The Prince Wants to Retire

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Chapter 64: The Final War!

The great Emperor has finally made his move.

He took down Roman, one of the main culprits who brought the East Continent to this dire state.

At the same time, he launched an operation to clean up the remnants of the past that came from Hell, branding them as sinners.

This news was first announced by the late-arriving Allied Forces.

“Great Emperor Ignit! He has indeed crumbled the Palace of Hell!”

“The great Emperor who even defeated gods!”

“Kariel Friedrich von Blazer! His status has now surpassed that of the First Emperor!”

Knights praised the great Emperor of the West Continent who saved the East Continent.

However, there were also dissenters in the West Continent.

Though they didn’t show it on the surface, the claim that he surpassed the revered First Emperor, worshipped as the god of Ignit, caused inner turmoil.

Yet even they changed their minds after watching the footage captured from Kariel’s exclusive airship.

Kugugugu!

With a thunderous explosion, the tower crumbled.

And there stood the goddess, reverting to wraith form.

As they watched, the Empire Citizens could only stare blankly, unable to even cheer.

Kariel’s feats projected from the massive image sphere in Ignit’s capital were truly overwhelming.

“……”

“Wow……”

“Is that person… our Emperor?”

Controlling the massive dog, giant, and wolf that existed during the Mythical Era and pressuring the gods was nothing short of miraculous.

The strong power displayed by Kariel, who was mightier than both Master Talion and Achelio, surpassed the legendary presence of the First Emperor, documented only in records.

Especially when he brought down the colossal god, it made one proud to be a citizen of Ignit.

“Who dares to doubt the ‘god’!”

Now, it would be no surprise if a knight openly referred to Kariel as a god; no one would question it.

It was a logic that stated, since he defeated a god, it’s only natural to call him one.

Of course, some scholars argued that what Kariel defeated wasn’t a true god, but such reasoning no longer resonated with the Empire’s populace.

A heroic figure fully awakened in a desperate situation.

While the common tale of defeating foes and restoring peace was indeed cliché, it was a story desperately needed by the people of reality.

However, there was one problem.

The great hero had yet to return home.

While the Empire citizens cheered and celebrated, the expressions of those managing the home grew increasingly dark due to the absentee landlord.

“Is His Majesty not planning to return?”

At a chancellor’s question, everyone fell silent.

They all understood the reason.

“To calm this chaos, the remnants of the past spreading across the East Continent must be dealt with first.”

With such reasoning, Kariel had moved to directly lead the Allied Forces to handle the remnants of the past.

To properly battle the Demon King’s Army, they needed to securely close the Hell Gates continually reopening due to those remnants.

The problem, however, was the sheer number of them.

“It seems His Majesty…”

Although the Minister of Finance trailed off, everyone in the Grand Council knew what was left unsaid.

‘He doesn’t intend to return to the Imperial Palace.’

With that shared thought, they fell into deep contemplation.

During Kariel’s absence, the current leadership of Ignit was managing governance quite well by appearances, but that was merely superficial.

It was impossible for the Crown Prince alone to effectively run the state without the Emperor, and the political disparity between Kariel and Rufiel was too great.

Above all, the difference in charisma was monumental.

“I will personally bring His Majesty back.”

As everyone sighed, Rufiel stood up firmly, catching Chancellor Winston’s attentive gaze.

“Your Highness, you must stay in your position.”

“My brother should go to persuade him…”

“Then who will handle the pending approvals during that time?”

At the Chancellor’s question, Rufiel’s mouth twitched shut like a clam.

“In that sense, I am useless…”

“Chancellor, do not play games.”

This time, Rufiel confronted the Chancellor, glaring at him.

An unexpected side of Rufiel.

The one who usually chuckled at being dragged around was now taking such a strong stance?

‘The Crown Prince is also considering retirement, huh?’

The Chancellor quickly grasped Rufiel’s intention and smiled.

The two who earnestly wished for retirement exchanged glances, each sighing.

Ultimately, any action would be meaningless unless Kariel returned.

Thus, they gathered together to brainstorm.

There were significant issues at hand, yet those were already pushed to the back.

The prolonged Grand Council Meeting primarily discussed just one agenda.

“How to bring the Emperor back 1”

“How to bring the Emperor back 2”

“How to bring the Emperor back 3”

(continues)

The ministers’ minds, working more fervently than ever, hatched countless plans and began to formulate a strategy to pressure Kariel to return.

*

Meanwhile, utterly unaware of the plans that might shatter his precious retirement dreams, Kariel was joyfully roaming the East Continent.

– So when are you coming back?

“When the Demon King moves,” he replied with a smile to Surth’s question.

Surth shook his head.

– Why not just take action now?

“Not enough preparation yet.”

As he spoke, Kariel thought of Glen.

He had returned with more power than the current Demon King’s previous life.

Perhaps he had fully recovered his original strength.

The Demon King showing a mightier form than in his past life.

In contrast, Glen’s power had not only stagnated but also failed to reach his peak level.

Though he had achieved Master status much earlier, he still lacked significantly in several areas.

“At least I should meet a minimum standard, right?”

– Hmm…

“And Marquis Sicario looks promising as well.”

The Marquis, who had died before Kariel had a chance to utilize him in his past life, was different now.

Perhaps another wall-breaking talent might emerge beyond Glen.

So, it called for waiting.

“I must time it perfectly.”

Not knowing just how powerful the Demon King would be, he needed to ensure the war began at the most optimal moment.

– You should know that as we grow stronger, so do they.

Reports had come in that Demons were getting stronger by hunting the remnants of the past.

Thus, Kariel had commanded the Imperial Army to directly hunt the remnants.

If they could find ways to grow through the remnants of the past, so too could humanity.

The resurrection of the remnants of the past had not solely brought adverse effects to the continent.

“The power that had vanished since the Mythical Era has returned!”

“Ancient magic long forgotten has resurfaced.”

“Ancient spirits revived from the remnants of the past.”

“Lost existences are starting to reappear. What on earth is happening on the continent?”

The remnants of the past were undoubtedly fallen existences.

The power that had tainted Hell was now corrupting the continent.

However, their inner strength seemed to impact something that had vanished since the Mythical Era.

Fairy tribes, once hard to find for hundreds of years, began to reappear, and spirit-beasts imbued with spirits were showing up all over.

Their emergence allowed for the advancement of “Ancient Spirit Magic” and “Ancient Spirit Contracts.”

Moreover, ancient sorcery had broadened the application of magic as well.

However, further research was still required, and even if applied immediately, humans would need considerable time to manage the spirits and spirit-beasts.

In contrast, there was a method to instantly upgrade modern magic by leaps and bounds.

“Ancient Runes”

Utilizing the ancient runes obtained while hunting the remnants allowed for significantly simplifying complex magic circles.

Once achieved, the Empire and humanity could advance countless steps forward.

Thus, Kariel and humanity were eager to hunt the remnants of the past.

The Demons, too, were evolving through the remnants, so it was only a matter of time before their territories intersected.

‘The War of Humans and Demons will finally begin then.’

Kariel sighed at that thought.

There was still time.

Thus, he and the strongest of humanity, above Master Class, also needed to find ways to improve their abilities.

Finding the lost techniques was indeed crucial.

However, the most encouraging aspect was the method of mana manipulation.

The Mana Cultivation Method and Mana Refinement Method, which had continued to modern times, were the original source.

The remnants of the past, who had reached the level of ‘god’, demonstrated various ways to harness pure mana’s power.

Perhaps through them, ways to break through the Master wall more easily or efficient methods to become Grand Masters, which had gått extinct since the Mythical Era, could be found.

“Your Majesty, we have arrived.”

Awoken from his musings by Talion’s words, Kariel gazed at the distant storm of lightning.

“Quite powerful.”

The great bird once revered as the god of a region.

The largest and strongest of the Thunderbirds, said to emit lightning born purely from mana, was falling from the clouds.

A storm that was difficult to approach unfolded, launching lightning powerful enough to intimidate even a Master.

“Pure power…”

As he observed the Thunderbird, which utilized mana in a radically different way than humanity, a smile crept onto Kariel’s face.

Having conducted countless studies to heal his body in his previous life, he found the current display of the Thunderbird’s power highly intriguing.

And it wasn’t just the Thunderbird.

If they recorded and studied the mana manipulation methods of those revered as gods, humanity could advance even further.

Perhaps a god might be born among humans.

But the Demon King wouldn’t wait for that to happen.

“Let’s start the hunt.”

“Yes!”

Shadows and knights bowed their heads at Kariel’s command.

As Kariel was hunting divine beings, the Demon King was also slaying the remnants of the past with overwhelming strength.

Then suddenly, a tectonic shift occurred on the continent.

The remnants of the past, which had been acting independently, began a massive migration.

From enormous ancient dragons unseen in modern times to giants, and even colossal birds, they all headed to the same location.

As the remnants of the past surged forward, the previously quiet Giant Mountain Range started to tremble.

Like it had been holding back all this time, volcanic eruptions exploded from various spots in the range, and a colossal mountain began to rise from the heart of the continent.

And the remnants gathered there.

As they converged, numerous floating islands began to form around an unusually high island.

And those floating islands began to build up into one massive aerial continent.

It was a scene that resembled the resurrection of the land of gods depicted in the Mythical Era.

“Is this Asgard?”

Kariel muttered, gazing at the land beyond the clouds reflected in the image sphere.

“What about the Demon King?”

“He has begun to move.”

Talion responded immediately to Kariel’s question.

The Demon King, who had originally started this war to hunt gods, would promptly move toward a god he deemed killable.

But it was problematic that it was happening within the Giant Mountain Range.

“We can no longer delay this war.”

Kariel smirked as he spoke.

It seemed he really had to initiate the War of Humans and Demons.

The Demon King would head toward Asgard, and in that process, the Demon King’s Army would attack humanity, who stood in their way. War could no longer be avoided.

“Hoo… let’s go to the Empire.”

At Kariel’s command, Talion and Achelio bent their heads as if they had been waiting for those words.