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Chapter 262

I had entrusted Sarkegar with investigating matters related to the Orbis Class, which were not directly related to me.

The advice I had gotten from the scribe had not led me to a trap. Rather, it had been a clue.

The advice had clued me into the fact that the attempted assassination on me had not been carried out by the person I was suspecting, and that something else was going on.

It was night, and I was in my room facing Sarkegar, who had come to see me late at night.

Since the Aaron Mede incident, there had been no signs that Sarkegar was not following orders properly or plotting something else.

He just looked very sad when he saw me.

He seemed terribly distressed that the person I cared about enough to risk my life for was the sibling of my supposed arch-enemy.

He seemed to be suffering because he wanted to do something about it but couldn’t.

In spite of that, he did not neglect his duties. Also, he did not bring up Ellen unnecessarily, as he knew that doing so would only irritate me.

Anyway, Sarkegar was investigating the events that had occurred after the Orbis Class’s closure. Specifically, those related to Oscar de Gradias.

“It’s a revolution,” Sarkegar stated.

Hearing that simple line made my brain freeze up.

The Orbis Class was a place where ability was everything, regardless of status. A place that instilled the ideology that effort could overcome everything.

It wasn’t strange that such people dreamt of revolution.

“So, the sudden wave of withdrawals and resignations that led to the class being disbanded was a smokescreen to prevent any further investigation, which could reveal unexpected truths,” I responded.

“That seems to be the case.”

They hadn’t foolishly provoked the imperial family; they had done it on purpose, to hide the secrets still lurking beneath the surface.

[Event Completed - Revolutionary Force]

[You have received 300 Achievement Points.]

On top of that, an event from long ago that I had forgotten about was completed.

Charlotte had believed that it would be strange if there were no revolutionary forces in the Temple. Although she hadn’t been able to investigate it properly, I had learned the truth of the existence of these revolutionary forces from a completely unexpected source.

The Orbis Class was probably a large part of these revolutionary forces.

The reason they hadn’t carried out any assassination attempts or retaliated against me was because it was too risky for them to make such moves at a time when they needed to remain as discreet as possible.

“It seems that the Revolutionary Forces infiltrated the Orbis Class quite a long time ago.”

The Orbis Class was the cradle of the Revolutionary Forces.

It would have been the perfect place to secretly recruit those who seemed likely to sympathize with their cause.

But what happened when they graduated?

Even if the Orbis Class wasn’t as prestigious as the Royal Class, they were still important talents.

These graduates would still end up in significant organizations or key positions because of their abilities, whether it was within the governance structure of the empire, the principalities, or autonomous territories.

“What is their scale?” I asked.

“It’s hard to say. I haven’t witnessed their gatherings myself; I’ve only inferred this information from conversations I’ve had with confirmed members of the organization,” Sarkegar said.

Given how fresh the investigation was, it was inevitable that he did not yet have all the details.

“However, now that the Orbis Class, a key institution for nurturing Republican talent, has disappeared, it’s clear that they will be moving their timetable forward.”

“Yeah, Oscar wasn’t just happy for no reason...”

Oscar de Gradias was definitely a member of the Revolutionary Forces. He would continue to pass information about the imperial family to the organization.

He knew what would happen if a thorough investigation into the Orbis Class took place.

In the original story, the Revolutionary Forces did not appear. This meant that they existed but were completely consumed by the chaos of the Gate Incident.

The Revolutionary Forces had taken over the Orbis Class and had been nurturing Republicans for a very long time.

It was highly likely that many of those who supported the Orbis Class students at the sponsorship gatherings were Republicans.

How far and wide had this spread?

“Your Highness, use them,” Sarkegar said, looking at me.

I knew Sarkegar would say something like this.

“Use them to create chaos in the empire. Then annihilate both the Revolutionary Forces and the empire.”

Right. If I wanted to become the Demon King, there wouldn’t be a better opportunity than this.

However, I had no interest in such things.

A fight between the Revolutionary Forces and the empire would throw the empire into great chaos.

And then the Gate Incident would occur. It would be the perfect scenario for the world to end.

It might seem like a simple confrontation, but it was no different from pressing the button that initiated worldwide destruction.

‘How did I even cause something like this?’

The butterfly effect.

That phrase now made me shudder.

There was only one thing I had to do. I couldn’t consider the pros and cons of the revolution.

I had to stop the revolution. Wasn’t that originally supposed to be my stance? It was almost laughable now.

Sarkegar judged this to be a golden opportunity for us.

“Investigate further. Find out the exact scale of their operations, the locations of their forces, and who their leader is. Find out everything. If necessary, you may even join their ranks.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

I needed to know their exact scale to take any measures. Unfortunately, my intentions did not align with Sarkegar’s.

Sarkegar smiled with joy, unaware of my true thoughts.

The Revolutionary Forces definitely existed, and they were certainly widespread.

However, I could not take reckless action. If I began to carelessly cut off the branches, they would feel cornered, and begin to stir.

Such hasty interference could lead to great chaos.

I hadn’t known that a single fight would lead to such a turn of events, but from this point on, whatever I did would have tremendous repercussions.

I had to be extremely cautious.

At the moment, I had no choice but to leave the information gathering to Sarkegar.

It felt like I was devising how to handle a nuclear bomb that would explode if mishandled.

Killing them all—whether that was possible or not—was the worst option.

The best option was to delay them from taking action until at least the year after next. By then, the Gate Incident would have either occurred or not.

If I managed to prevent the Gate Incident, would I then have to watch the Revolutionary Forces stir up trouble with my own eyes?

Even if I successfully prevented the Gate Incident, it seemed inevitable that a second round of conflict awaited, this time an internal conflict within the empire. Where would I stand in that situation?

I felt like I was going crazy. The world was a minefield, no matter where I turned.

“...”

Sarkegar seemed pleased to have found a way to achieve his goals without lifting a finger, while my brain was racked with worries.

This was the perfect example of having different dreams in the same bed.

“Alright. You may go now.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Sarkegar transformed into a sparrow and made to leave.

As I watched the sparrow heading out the open window, a sudden thought crossed my mind.

I was only using Sarkegar for my own ends. In the end, he was destined to be used by someone like me, who had no intention of rebuilding the Demon Realm. Among the many mistakes I was making, the biggest one was that I was merely using this blind loyalist.

“Sarkegar.”

Chirp?

Sarkegar turned to look at me, his head tilting in confusion.

“I’m sorry about last time.”

I couldn’t do anything for him, and in the end, I would become an even greater arch-enemy to him than Ragan Artorius.

In response to my selfish apology, Sarkegar, in his sparrow form, looked at me quietly.

—Your Highness.

“...”

—I serve not the Archdemon, but you, Your Highness.

The last time I brought it up, I pointed out that I was the only Archdemon, and so he had no choice but to serve me.

I had implied that he served me only because there was no other Archdemon, but Sarkegar was saying that he served me because I was who I was.

I wanted to bite my tongue for having said such things back then.

—Please remember that.

He was not loyal to the Archdemon. Did that mean he would serve me even if I were not an Archdemon? Why? Did he value me so much?

—From the moment Your Highness decided to rescue the demon prisoners held by humans, every strand of my hair and every last piece of my soul belonged to you.

It was not because I was an Archdemon.

From the moment I had rescued the demon prisoners, Sarkegar had acknowledged me as his sovereign.

Seeing my guilt-ridden expression, Sarkegar, still in his sparrow form, tilted his head back and forth a few times, as if he had just remembered something he hadn’t mentioned.

—Your Highness, now that I think about it, there is something additional I need to tell you.

“... What is it?”

—It’s about a different matter. But isn’t it strange that the imperial family hasn’t noticed this issue?

“... It is.”

It was indeed puzzling that the imperial family hadn’t noticed this issue. Both Vertus and Charlotte, as well as the emperor.

Sarkegar’s intelligence-gathering abilities were exceptional, but it was still surprising that the imperial family would be completely unaware of this matter.

—I was wondering if they were deliberately ignoring it, so I did some investigating on that front as well.

“What did you find?”

—I can’t be certain, but it seems there are problems within the imperial family.

“What kind of problems?”

—There are rumors that someone died in the princess’s palace.

“... What?”

There was indeed something brewing within the imperial family.

If it had been something else, I might not have been as concerned, but this incident concerned the princess’s palace.

‘Come to think of it...’

I had been too preoccupied with the assassination attempt on me to pay any attention, but Charlotte had been commuting from the Imperial Palace to the Temple rather than staying at the dormitory for some time now.

I had assumed it was because of internal imperial affairs, but Vertus was still staying in the dormitory.

‘Charlotte’s palace... The fact that someone died there... Does this mean the emperor has lost control of the struggle for succession?

‘What other situation is unfolding, or rather, has been unfolding?’

Another complex problem was thrown into an already complicated situation.

The sparrow flew away, and I stood by the window, lost in thought about this new issue for a long time.