NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 17
Chapter 17
In an instant, Nahun organized the situation, sorting through the defeated soldiers and ordering Aaron to gather their allies. Aaron complied, albeit for the first time today, with Nahun’s command without hesitation.
“Ah, Daejeong. Are you hurt anywhere?”
“… Yes, Nahun.”
When Nahun spotted Lin and expressed concern for her condition, Lin lowered her head in gratitude.
“Thanks to you, I’m alive.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I was just waiting for an opportunity, and Daejeong created the right situation.”
It was a lie. Nahun had seen the moment he arrived that Lin was in danger from the Hydra and had immediately charged at Andromalius. However, he thought it unnecessary to burden Seere’s loyal subordinate with a debt, so he said something different.
Hearing Nahun’s words, Lin smiled faintly and nodded slightly. Nahun made a sour expression at Lin’s reaction.
‘…Did she catch on?’
Perhaps due to his experience, deceiving someone wasn’t easy. Nahun cleared his throat and lightly patted Lin on the shoulder.
“You did a great job.”
“Thank you.”
Nahun turned to Baruna. Baruna, snapping to attention at his gaze, saluted sharply.
“Deputy, why the salute? I’m not a military man.”
“…Ah, my apologies.”
He had reflexively saluted without realizing it. The sight Nahun had shown was overwhelming enough to leave Baruna in shock. He quickly corrected his stance and spoke to Nahun.
“Command me.”
“Deputy, stay here and help the Count of Raiders with the cleanup. I need to see Seere.”
“Where is His Majesty?”
“He’s with His Majesty Citri.”
Nahun’s words surprised Lin, who asked slightly taken aback, “Is it alright?”
“If Citri has any sense, he won’t disturb Seere there. So it’s fine.”
“That… does make sense.”
“Daejeong, you’ll also come with me.”
“Understood.”
Nahun tucked Andromalius’s head into his pocket and stepped out of his paralysis. Lin followed right behind him but ended up losing his position.
“How fast are you…?”
Had she not known the location of Citri’s army, she might not have been able to keep up at all. Lin quickly headed toward the stronghold where Nahun was headed.
In Citri’s embrace, Seere, who was playing with a doll, suddenly looked up at the sky. Citri tilted his head in question.
“What’s wrong?”
Seere stretched out her tiny hand and pointed to the sky.
“Teacher is here!”
“Huh?”
The moment Citri looked up, a strong wind blew. Before long, Nahun appeared holding a pocket.
“Uh, when did you arrive!?”
“I just got here.”
“Teacher~!”
Seere wiggled in Citri’s hold, and as soon as she was placed on the ground, she rushed toward Nahun.
“Were you listening well?”
“Yes!”
Nahun picked up Seere and held her. He then spoke to the arriving Lin.
“Lin Daejeong, report the situation to His Majesty Citri.”
“Understood.”
Lin suggested to Citri that they enter the tent. However, Citri gestured for Lin to wait a moment.
“Nahun.”
“Yes?”
“What’s that thing in your hand?”
“What do you think? It’s Andromalius’s head.”
“Hand it over.”
Lin, upon hearing Citri’s words, furrowed her brows tightly. Nahun was solely responsible for taking down Andromalius. There was no assistance from others, so there was no room for dispute on that.
But to give that head to him? Lin thought it was an outrageous request, and with a somewhat fierce spirit, she spoke.
“Your Majesty, that is….”
“Fine.”
Before she could say anything more, Nahun readily agreed. Surprised by Nahun’s decision, Lin asked.
“Nahun?”
“Instead, please have the credit for taking down Andromalius attributed to His Majesty Citri.”
“…That’s not unreasonable for me.”
“Take it.”
Nahun willingly extended the pocket containing Andromalius’s head. Citri took the pocket, promptly opened it, and checked its contents.
“What a conceited fool, you’ve ended up in a lovely state.”
“The split remains 50-50, Your Majesty.”
“I know. I’ll distribute it quite fairly.”
“I’ll trust in that.”
Citri smiled with satisfaction and stashed the pocket away as he entered the tent. Baphomet followed him in, and Lin glanced back at Nahun. Noticing her gaze, Nahun spoke.
“Do you think this is an incomprehensible decision?”
“To be honest… yes.”
“I don’t do anything that harms the 72nd floor.”
“Are you saying that relinquishing all the credit is beneficial?”
“If we attribute Andromalius’s defeat to the 71st floor, we can hide our true strength.”
Lin tilted her head. It wasn’t that she didn’t understand the need to conceal their strength; rather, she didn’t grasp its necessity.
“What good is hiding our strength? On the contrary, if we reveal it, they won’t dare mess with us.”
“No, not now. It’s better for other forces to remain unaware of our strength for the time being.”
Once the forces of the 72nd floor became aware of their capabilities, there would indeed be a benefit, as Lin mentioned: others wouldn’t dare disturb Seere’s power.
But that could disrupt the ongoing conquest. Therefore, Nahun aimed to hide their true power, even at the cost of transferring his own accolades to Citri.
“That way, the enemies will let their guard down.”
Lin listened to Nahun’s story and realized his intention.
“So you had a deeper meaning.”
“Make sure the subordinates under you keep quiet about this.”
“Understood. If anyone speaks about this battle, I will deal with them severely.”
Nahun couldn’t help but smile at Lin’s loyalty. After nodding in response, he made eye contact with Seere, who was nestled in his arms. After gazing into her innocent eyes briefly, Nahun chuckled lightly.
“Shall we go home now?”
“Yes!”
#
With the cooperation of the 71st and 72nd floors, Andromalius’s power collapsed, and the Demon King was slain. The news spread quickly throughout the demon realm.
While it was common for Demon Kings to form alliances and strike at higher strata, it was rare for a Demon King to be murdered in the process.
The Demon Kings with significant hierarchical differences didn’t see it as warranting much concern. They merely dismissed it with a thought of how curious the world had become.
However, with Andromalius dead, the next likely target, the 69th floor Demon King Dantalion, was an exception. Dantalion, upon being informed of this by his subordinate, was unable to hide his shock.
“Andromalius is dead?”
“It is said that Citri killed him.”
“That’s absurd. How could that woman…?”
Dantalion widened his eyes, entertaining nonsensical imaginations.
“Could it be that the seal has been lifted?”
“That’s unlikely. It seems that it was possible thanks to the cooperation of the 72nd floor. Isn’t there still one of Seir’s Swordmasters left on the 72nd floor?”
Understanding the subordinate’s suggestion, Dantalion nodded. If Seir’s Swordmaster, Lin El Lazine, had assisted Citri in battle, it wouldn’t be odd for Andromalius to have been killed.
“Then is it my turn next…?”
“We definitely need to prepare.”
“…I’ll need to send a letter to Dekarabia.”
“Are you going to form an alliance with him?”
“Is there a good option other than that? The opponent has absorbed the forces of the 70th floor. Even if their hierarchy is lower than mine, it has become an alliance that can no longer be ignored.”
Dantalion was entirely different in nature from Andromalius. While Andromalius built his power based on personal strength, Dantalion was a Demon King who had constructed his influence through strategy.
“I’ll send an invitation for alliance to Dekarabia. He has no reason to refuse.”
“That seems like a wise decision.”
#
As Nahun returned to the Demon King Castle with Seere, Cain, who was repairing the front door, welcomed them.
“You’ve returned, Nahun.”
The two tilted their heads in confusion at why Cain was repairing a door.
“Why is the front door broken?”
“Ah, I accidentally misjudged my strength… I’ll fix it shortly.”
“You broke it?”
Nahun paused for a moment before casually asking Cain.
“Did an assassin come by?”
“How did you know?”
“Other than that, there’s no reason to break an intact front door.”
Cain nodded. Nahun’s sharp deduction was entirely correct, and he added a remark.
“Congratulations on conquering the 70th floor.”
“You already know.”
“A messenger just rushed over to inform me.”
“I see.”
Nahun glanced at the castle of the 72nd floor, Devata Castle, and said.
“I won’t be moving the Demon King Castle.”
“Ye… Yes? Why is that?”
“I’m planning to give the 70th floor Demon King Castle to Citri.”
“Wh-what!?”