The Demon Prince goes to the Academy

There was no way the Empire had extensive research materials on dark magic, which they had never explored before.

However, if a large-scale project was underway, they must have acquired that knowledge from somewhere.

The Black Order had extended their reach across the continent to deal with the Gate incident in their own way, suffering tremendous losses as a result.

With their last remaining strength, they poured most of their resources into killing the Demon King.

But even the swordsmen who had reached the Master Class and the Grand Magician, who was also the final leader of the Black Order, couldn't stand against the Demon King.

The remnants fled as soon as they realized there was no hope.

Since then, the Black Order had been unable to interfere in the affairs of the continent.

However, the Black Order's power might have vanished, but their knowledge hadn't.

There was a possibility that the remnants of the Black Order had joined forces with the Empire, providing them with their knowledge. The Empire, having no choice, would have accepted the knowledge about the forbidden arts.

Although they couldn't know exactly what the Empire was doing, suspicions about other possibilities arose.

In the end, this could also be considered a significant harvest.

"The Black Order tried to kill His Majesty. Regardless of the Empire's intentions, if this is true, it can't be good news for us," Eleris said.

Harriet nodded in agreement.

The Empire's willingness to use any means necessary to win the war was not only shared by them but also by Reinhardt.

If the knowledge of the Black Order could help end the war, Reinhardt wouldn't hesitate to use it.

Luvien, who had been silent, crossed her arms and looked out the window.

"It's clear that the Empire is not just researching but working towards a specific goal with tangible results, and it's highly likely that the knowledge of the Black Order serves as their foundation."

"The Black Order is an ancient order of magic practitioners. Their knowledge of the forbidden arts and research materials must be more extensive than any magic group in this world. Following the now-vanished Akasha, there's no other group with such vast resources as the Black Order."

"What could the Empire possibly want to accomplish by absorbing such knowledge...?"

"Before that, there's something we need to confirm."

Luvien looked at Harriet.

"You said that the bodies in the royal mausoleum and the Hall of Heroes were replaced and disappeared?"

"Yes, my lord."

Harriet nodded.

"Did 'all' the bodies in the Hall of Heroes disappear?"

At that question, Harriet shook her head.

"I can't be certain. We didn't open all the tombs. But all the tombs we checked were empty."

"Hmm, I see."

As Luvien seemed to be deep in thought, Harriet tilted her head.

"Lord, is that important?"

"Yes, it is."

"Why?"

Luvien shrugged.

"Although I don't know specifically who's buried in the Hall of Heroes, it's not just heroes who were physically strong."

Not only were there individuals who had reached the Master Class, but also those who had made outstanding achievements or left a mark on human history.

"Let me be more specific."

Luvien asked.

"Was the tomb of Mullerun, the mage from the hero’s companions, empty as well?"

Harriet's eyes widened at those words.

The Hall of Heroes.

Charlotte had mentioned that the body of Ragan Artorius wasn't there to begin with.

That would mean that the other tombs contained the remains.

Harriet was certain that she had opened all the tombs of the five warriors that day.

"Yes, definitely... they were all empty."

Olivia Lanze had said.

When creating a Death Knight, the basic conditions are essential.

Although it was a rather malicious example, Olivia had clearly said that a Death Knight could not be made using Harriet's corpse.

However, the Empire was not doing the same work as Olivia; it was clear that they were doing something entirely different.

"That suggests a rather... frightening possibility."

The royal family must have had a plan and anticipated that they could retrieve the remains because of that.

"Are you saying that a dead body could use magic as well?"

"Is that... possible?"

Harriet asked, her face turning pale.

"It's not strange for the undead to use magic in the first place."

Antirianus pointed to himself as he looked around.

The Vampire Lords present were undead.

"Although I have never heard of it and didn't think it was possible, couldn't they create Liches?"

If they could resurrect dead warriors as Death Knights.

Then, resurrecting dead mages as Liches wouldn't be impossible either.

It may be a magic that has never existed in the world, but that doesn't mean it can never exist.

"If the Empire can resurrect numerous heroes and mages from human history and deploy them in the war, the war won't be the problem."

Lucinil spoke with a stern expression.

"The Empire will possess greater military power than ever."

If this assumption is true.

Although humanity has weakened.

At the moment the project is completed, the Empire will be stronger than ever.

------

Nothing was revealed in the Council of Elders' meeting, and the suspicions only grew.

So far, they had not paid attention to the identity of the missing heroes' remains.

There is circumstantial evidence that the Empire can create not only Death Knights but also Liches.

Only one of the missing mage's remains, Mullerun, has been identified so far.

That means there is a possibility that the remains of great Archmages, who are in various places such as the Hall of Wisdom, were also retrieved.

If they all come back to life as Liches, and if they can use magic at the same level as when they were alive?

The Empire would possess the most powerful army in history.

Eleris spoke quietly.

"If the war ends and the Empire disbands that army, then I don't know... but if they don't..."

"We cannot rule out the possibility that the army might target us."

At Eleris's fearful prediction, Harriet felt goosebumps all over her body.

That couldn't be.

There's no reason for that.

Where is the reason for them to give up such a powerful force?

Although they are cooperating with each other now, they both know that this cooperation cannot last forever.

Gallarush spoke.

"Regardless of what the Empire is doing, we may need to destroy it before it's completed."

Ending the war is a common goal.

However, everyone knows that peace will not come to the world the moment the goal is achieved.

Whatever the Empire is preparing, it may help end the war, but the problem is what comes next.

In the end, it's a foolish act.

After all of this ends, fearing what might transpire, we must contemplate destroying the very means that might allow us to conclude it all.

If left alone, the war might end more easily.

However, the means that easily resolved the war might destroy us afterward.

So, should we foolishly interfere with it?

The Great Demon War was caused by humanity's fear of demons.

The Gate Incident, too, was due to mutual fear and hatred.

And now, once more, everyone is put to the test.

Should we watch as our opponent wields immense power?

Or should we thwart their plans?

If trust had been placed in one another, none of this would have happened.

But just as the Empire couldn't trust Darkland,

Darkland, too, couldn't trust the Empire.

------

One should rest when it's time to rest, I thought.

I thought so, watching Ellen and Heinrich, but it turns out I, too, didn't know how to rest.

Considering Heinrich announced he'd take a lap of patrol around the Imperial Capital as soon as he returned, it seemed like he didn't come to rest in the first place.

Looking at it now, the most dangerous place might not be the Alliance Army's garrison with troops on constant standby, but the Imperial Capital. The security of this place and the surrounding areas was undoubtedly the worst.

In that case, it might be better to secure the safety of nearby areas during the winter.

Ellen and Heinrich seemed to be planning to take a lap around the outer districts.

Ellen would cover half of the circuit from the northern end to the west.

Heinrich would cover the other half from the southern end to the east.

It was a simple agreement.

"Be careful of the ones immune to fire."

"I will."

At the entrance to the temple, Ellen and Heinrich exchanged short words before parting.

This wasn't an agreement with the guards, but rather a voluntary mission.

They weren't taking any legal action in the refugee residential area but instead would sweep away any dangerous monsters in the outer districts and return.

"Hmm…"

Ellen stared at me, who had followed her outside the temple.

To avoid recognition, Ellen wore her robe hooded.

After contemplating whether she could take me along, Ellen eventually embraced me.

"Let's go."

-Meow

Just as Heinrich could control fire, Ellen could also harness Lapelt's flames to eliminate monsters from a distance.

As if going for a walk, she carried me lightly in her arms and headed north along the Imperial Capital.

------

A few days had passed since Ludwig was assigned to the 17th Refugee Residential Area Guard Unit in the southwest of the Imperial Capital.

Ludwig couldn't be treated as a mere guardsman.

And he wasn't officially a guard now, either. He had even heard that he could quit whenever he wanted to.

It wasn't because he had lost an arm.

Beyond being a former Temple Royal Class, he was a superhuman who far surpassed ordinary guardsmen.

Furthermore, he was a veteran who had joined the Alliance Army and continued to dedicate himself to the security of the Imperial Capital even after being sent to the rear.

Therefore, Ludwig was highly valued for his efforts, despite his current state, rather than being treated as receiving a golden parachute.

Ludwig wanted to be treated as a simple guardsman, but everyone treated him with respect regardless of his temporary rank. This included the captain of the 17th Guard Unit to which Ludwig belonged.

However, right now, Ludwig was facing the troubled expression of the captain of the guard at the 17th Division Headquarters, one of the few intact buildings in the refugee residential area.

"Are you talking about joining the subjugation squad?"

"Yes, sir."

"Hmm..."

At Ludwig's words, the captain couldn't hide his troubled expression.

Ludwig had been assigned only a few days ago and already wanted to take on a different mission.

A subjugation mission.

Patrolling the outskirts of the Imperial Capital and fighting monsters directly as a member of the guard.

Ludwig told the captain that he wanted to take on that mission.

Since the subjugation squad was not under the jurisdiction of the 17th Division but belonged to a completely different command structure, Ludwig was essentially requesting to be transferred to a different unit altogether.

"Your help is needed here as well, Ludwig. Don't you know that?"

"...Yes, I'm well aware."

"I thought you had understood that the work here isn't to be taken lightly."

"It's not that I'm ignoring the work here, it's just..."

Ludwig wasn't saying this simply because he wanted to fight monsters.

While all the Imperial Capital guards were short on manpower, it was true that the guards in the refugee residential area were especially lacking, and Ludwig was indeed needed.

Ludwig wasn't disregarding the work on this side.

"The work here is... too difficult for me."

"..."

Crime.

When dealing with crimes involving humans, immediate judgment and action were frequently required.

It was practically lawless, and even the guards themselves were often attacked.

Over the past few days, Ludwig had witnessed several instances where the immediate action taken by the guards was summary execution, without any proper trial or procedure.

Because public order was extremely unstable, the autonomy given to the guards was ensured to an excessive degree.

In such situations, Ludwig found it difficult to take immediate action.

Was his judgment correct?

Ludwig couldn't be sure.

In a fight against monsters, such judgment wasn't necessary.

Monsters were evil.

So, they needed to be killed.

But, whether the refugees who committed crimes were truly in the wrong or not, and whether they should be forgiven because they had no choice, he couldn't tell.

His actions might lead to the death of an innocent person, or a wrongful judgment might land someone innocent in prison.

The work wasn't worthless.

It was just too difficult for him.

Ludwig knew his judgment wasn't the best.

He might make the wrong decision.

That was what weighed heavily on Ludwig.

Fighting monsters might be physically exhausting, but it didn't cause headaches like this.

"That's not possible."

"..."

"Don't you know that the higher-ups won't accept your request, Ludwig?"

This position had been arranged by the emperor himself.

He couldn't possibly be allowed to leave the safer position that had been created for him and go to a dangerous place instead.

Being placed there was not a form of golden parachute for Ludwig. But he wasn't entirely free from that position either.

So Ludwig couldn't leave this position.

If he continued to reject the emperor's goodwill, he could even be exiled to a remote chapel.

He might not even be able to do this job anymore.

"...Understood."

In the end, Ludwig had no choice but to stay in his current position and trust his uncertain judgment.