Of course, Viteos had decided to purge them, stripping that monster’s supporters of their positions—and if they dared to fight back, he had resolved to send them to their deaths along with all their associates and the people in their domain. Alas, none of it had come to be. That man always had helped his supporters flee—he’d given them disguises, brought them to the front lines, started a sham of a battle, and carried them out of Altane’s borders as war prisoners. Then, the achievements he’d earn in these “battles” would usher a new wave of aristocratic supporters for him, rendering Viteos’s efforts at purging them utterly meaningless.
All that had been left for Viteos was the dishonorable title of a tyrant. All because of that accursed man—that monster—Viteos never came to be known as the wise and brilliant emperor he truly was. To make matters worse, the rebellion started by that man’s subordinates had eventually led to Altane’s ruin in the Second World. None of it had been Viteos’s fault, yet his name was the one to be smeared in mud.
Hence, he had been deeply moved by the First World. Here, his name was rightfully praised and extolled, and the people bowed reverently before his imperial presence. This was how things should be—how things should have always been. Without that man in his way, Viteos would have stood at the top of the world, where he truly belonged.
However, the one flaw in this First World...was that Raid Freeden’s traces still haunted him.
“The Sage? Hah! The Sage, you say! How utterly laughable!” Viteos spat as he grabbed the previous emperor by the collar. “The Raid Freeden I knew was a trifling peasant, far from being worthy of such a grand title!”
“M-My apologies...!”
Viteos clicked his tongue. Only when he threw the fool to the ground did some of his anger finally abate. “They probably managed to extract some information from Dian and his troops before they killed themselves, and thus they got the foolish idea of parading around as the Demon Lord and the Sage. Such imbeciles are hardly a threat to us.”
“H-However, we have already lost contact with Ariel Verminant... Would they not constitute a threat on par with the Demon Lord herself?”
Viteos scoffed. “You forget that the Verminants of this world are traitors, shamelessly clinging to their own lives. Why, I wouldn’t be surprised if that woman fell for their cajolery like the fool that she is and decided to betray us.”
“I see...” the former emperor muttered. “Heroes are powerful enough to oppose the Calamities. Even if they suppressed her, they would have suffered severe damages in the fight. And even if they won her over...”
“She wouldn’t be able to oppose us because of the absolute subservience to the emperor that is embedded into Hero,” Viteos finished with a wicked smile. “In fact, I would love to see them march right into our territory, only to despair when Ariel stabs them in the back.”
The previous emperor burst into laughter. “That sounds quite perfect for a traitor like her! She can finally live up to her family’s name!”
The corner of Viteos’s lips curled into a smirk. Raid Freeden and Eluria Caldwin were threats, yes—but he also had a Hero of his own.
“Father! Your Majesty, Lord Viteos!” yelled a man as he burst into the meeting room without so much as a knock. Unlike the soldier, however, he was very much permitted to do so.
“Oh, Valtos! You’ve come all this way!” exclaimed the previous emperor.
“But of course, father! It is my duty to protect Altane as a Hero...and to display my might as one of imperial blood!” The man, Valtos, flashed them a wide grin as he hefted a broadsword over his shoulder.
When they first recreated Hero, Viteos had learned that there were certain conditions for compatibility. Dian was the only compatible candidate in their army. They had allowed the young lady of House Verminant to participate for their contributions, and she’d proven compatible too.
However, they weren’t enough—not for Viteos, at least. The moment either of them raised a flag of rebellion, the imperial family and their entire nation would be done for. Viteos did not want a repeat of the Second World—and so, he needed to select a third Hero from the imperial family. Moreover, giving him the Hero’s sword further solidified their power and status in this nation. With a true hero, the son of their former emperor, with noble imperial blood—and not of lowly birth like that monster—they would truly be unstoppable.
It was a brilliant, most ingenious plan; Viteos was quite proud of himself.
“Ah, Valtos! Welcome, welcome!” Viteos crooned. “To take such initiative in such unfavorable circumstances, I could not be prouder to have such a noble descendant!”
“It is an honor, Your Majesty—and I have every intention of living up to your praise! With my very own hands, I shall eliminate the savages who dare to invade our capital and show them the might of the Hero and our imperial family!”
Viteos froze. “‘Invade our capital,’ you say...?”
“Why, yes! All forces in the capital are currently intercepting the foes, but alas, soldiers or not, those of lowly birth are truly incompetent—they are struggling to hold them off. Thus, I shall head out myself. I’ve come to give my greetings before entering battle!”
The previous emperor hummed. “We haven’t received any such report...”
“’Tis a measly matter that I shall settle in no time! Hence, I instructed the soldiers not to interrupt your meeting!”
“Ooh... Yes, you’re quite right. No savage would stand a chance before you, my son! You are a Hero, after all!”
“Yes, father! I shall present you with their heads shortly!”
As he listened to the father and son’s jovial exchange, an unplaceable anxiety began to bud in Viteos’s heart. The Altanian capital was situated in the eastern continent, whereas their outpost was in the northeastern region of the central continent. Needless to say, there was a vast distance between these two places. Whether Ariel had been defeated or won over by the enemy, there remained much time for Viteos to observe the situation and secure his own safety before Raid Freeden or Eluria Caldwin could get here.
But what if that man had predicted his thoughts?
Viteos’s body was seized with a sense of foreboding as his mouth fell open. “Show me the capital, now.”
“Ah, please rest assured, Your Majesty. Valtos shall head over right away to—”
“Don’t make me say it twice!” he snapped.
The previous emperor—the dim-witted fool—flinched and hurriedly grabbed a magic device. “U-Understood... I shall display the footage from the surveillance device attached to one of our frontline soldiers.”
All the while, that man’s accursed message seemed to echo mockingly in Viteos’s mind.
“Raid Freeden is coming to sock the foolish emperor in the face.”
If he’d meant that literally, then...
“AAAAAAAAGH!!!”
A jarring, bloodcurdling scream pierced through the room the moment the previous emperor set up the device.
“Wh-Where did all these people come from?!”
“‘People’?! Those aren’t people! What kind of people can come back to life?!”
“Th-They’re coming! R-Retreat... Retreaaat!”
Fearful cries and chaotic screams screeched from the device—until one loud and booming voice drowned it all out.
“Bah ha ha! Got that right! You’ll regret it if you think of me as an ordinary person!” bellowed a giant in the distance. Each swing of his club knocked down their military facilities and guard towers, and each stomp on the ground flipped over their stone pavement. Soldiers went flying in every direction from the force of his rampage as his boisterous laughter boomed across the ruined streets. “What’re ya waiting for?! If you don’t wanna die, get off your asses and get running! I’ve got tons of energy to spare after being cooped up for so long!”
Viteos knew that giant—he was that despicable mountain bandit who’d escaped execution by the monster’s scheming. Whenever they returned from battle, that giant would stand at the very front as they paraded through the streets in perfect formation while flourishing Altane’s standard, almost as if to flaunt the Hero’s return.
However, the standard fluttering behind him was no longer Altane’s.
“A-Ahhh...!” Viteos would never forget that standard—it was the standard raised by those vermin who attacked the capital after the Hero and the Sage’s deaths. “Why... Why are they here too?! That man’s subordinates—they should have died long ago!”
“P-Please calm yourself, Lord Viteos—”
“Calm myself? Are you telling me to be calm right now?!” Viteos gripped his scepter until his knuckles turned white. “Those are the insurgents who dared turn their blades against me and chased me from my throne! Do you truly expect me to be calm before them?!”
“Oh, what’s this?” Suddenly, a new voice came from the surveillance device. “This magic device on your neck—I’m guessing it can transmit visuals? They use this to monitor you guys, huh? Poor things.”
Viteos recognized that voice. It was so long ago that his memories of that time were beginning to fade away, but that voice alone remained vividly in his head. It was a time when his father had still been alive and he himself had been the imperial prince. Despite being no more than a young mercenary, that man had been invited to the capital for his many feats in battle. His father quite liked that the young man was called a monster and had personally initiated him into the Altanian army.
Viteos had watched the proceedings from start to finish—watched as his father, who only ever had harsh words and tough beatings for him, spoke to that young man with all smiles and praises.
“I don’t know if you can hear me, but sit tight—I’m on my way.”
In hindsight, Viteos realized that perhaps he had been jealous. He couldn’t accept that his father would curse his own son as an incompetent fool while smiling so generously at such a lowborn monster.
“As the Hero of Altane, I’ll make sure to lop your head off myself.”
And now, that lowborn monster was looking down on him—the very same way his father always had.