While Baulder was being beaten by Aslan, the soldiers who arrived unexpectedly did not seem to intend much harm.
Rather, it seemed they regarded this as some kind of transfer of power.
It was clear that they presumed Aslan was attempting to become the emperor.
Aslan, who had no intention of becoming the Emperor of the Northern Empire, defended himself by saying he was merely testing whether the emperor was fit for the role.
Whether his defense held much conviction is unclear, but at least because Aslan, who had just beaten a monster barehanded, was speaking, none of the soldiers pressed the matter further.
Though feeling uneasy, Aslan tried not to dwell on it. After all, things had turned out well, despite the process.
“Things worked out, but… the plan got messed up.”
Aslan’s original plan was to evaluate Baulder.
During this evaluation, if it was discovered that he wasn’t a priest, Aslan intended either to recruit him or let him go. If he was a priest, Aslan planned to kill him.
Based on these outcomes, calling Angie and Ereta from outside, where they were pretending to lead a large army, would be entirely Phey’s responsibility.
As the gathered soldiers returned to their duties or barracks,
Aslan asked Phey, who was watching nearby, to call Angie and Ereta, instructed Baulder to bring them inside the fortress, and told him to keep the meeting hall empty until something special occurred.
When Baulder left without any objections, Aslan also headed towards the meeting hall.
There, he waited until the entire traveling party gathered.
The meeting hall, where a hole had been punched through the wall, was now cold with drafts creeping in. By the time everyone had gathered, dawn had broken.
Bathed in the dim light of the early morning sky, Aslan began sharing information.
By the time the information-sharing concluded, the sun was rising.
Lumel was dozing off, while Tiamat was curled up like a puppy and sleeping in front of the fire. However, the rest of the group remained awake.
After the information-sharing, the next discussion was about future strategies.
Aslan spoke up.
“In my view, the blessed ones are at minimum artificially created heroes born from improved monsterization.”
“Improved monsterization?”
Ereta voiced her confusion. Aslan nodded to the white-haired woman with her chin resting on her hand and explained.
“For now, since I don’t know the exact term, I’m just making it up, but… you know what regular monsterization entails, right?”
“Yes, it’s when someone just turns into a monster, right? Mindless, chaotic, and if left alone, they barely survive for two weeks before dying. Right?”
Indeed, thanks to Ereta’s previous position as a high-ranking priestess, her explanation hit the nail on the head.
Aslan nodded, and Angie made a disapproving face, pursing her lips.
“Disgusting. To treat people this way…”
“That’s the advantage of the monsterization ability. It can deliver psychological shock against armies, and with just one human life, you get a mindless monster that can last for two weeks.”
“Our priests are picky for that reason.”
Speaking in a melodious tone while examining her nails, Ereta wore an indifferent expression.
Phey responded to this.
“Yeah, they’re annoying. They heal quickly, and their limbs reattach easily, so it’s tough unless you slice deep or tear them apart.”
While leaning back in the chair and rocking back and forth, the elf with crimson hair said this.
Although Angie looked embarrassed and accepted it with a sigh,
“But you mentioned ‘improved,’ didn’t you? What exactly has been improved?”
“They maintain their sanity and are closer to priestification while being more stable.”
“The improvement seems to have discarded all the existing advantages… I don’t understand the motive behind it.”
“…Exactly.”
Richard asked, and Aslan answered.
Just as Richard keenly pointed out, the distinctive feature of the improved monsterization was that its purpose was unclear.
Aslan honestly expressed his admiration upon realizing something he hadn’t anticipated, and Richard awkwardly scratched his head.
“Oh, kid, impressive.”
“It’s all thanks to Sister and Lord Aslan…”
“Don’t call me ‘Sister.’ Or I’ll hit you.”
“Uh-huh…”
Although Richard quickly became deflated and glum, as he said, this monsterization was strange.
Especially so because its purpose was hard to guess.
But it wasn’t something to delve into immediately. Aslan broke his gaze away from the two and tapped his fingers on the table.
As the black fingers struck the table, producing a clear sound, everyone’s attention turned to him.
“Anyway, moving forward… in my view, there will be priests among those blessed ones. All the royal magicians behind them will likely be priests.”
With everyone’s gaze still fixed on him, Aslan withdrew his hand and continued.
“It would be far simpler if the goal were simply to crush the conspiracy or kill all the priests of the Northern Empire. But that won’t happen.”
At this firm statement, Angie’s expression shifted from disappointment to difficulty, and Aslan added while looking at her.
“And our objective isn’t to kill the priests or destroy their conspiracy.”
Confused looks appeared on Angie’s face, while Lumel, who had woken up from her drowsiness, rested her cheek on the long table and struggled to stay awake. Ereth blinked silently, Phey watched intently, and Richard was deep in thought.
Aslan scanned the group with his eyes and spoke.
“That’s merely the process, the path we must traverse; it’s not the goal itself. Getting lost in the process could lead to the failure of the goal.”
“So, what are you planning to do?”
Ereth tilted her head and asked. Aslan smiled gently at her and replied.
“We need to unify the Northern Empire.”
This statement only elicited a reaction from Richard. His eyes widened in surprise as he stammered.
“Us? Wait, is that even possible? This is still an empire, after all…”
“It’s only called an empire. It claims to be the successor of the ancient empire, but in reality, it’s on the level of a kingdom.”
“Even so, how can we unify an empire by ourselves?”
“Yes, precisely because this is the easiest path.”
At Richard’s puzzled expression regarding the “easiest path,” Aslan glanced around the group and explained.
“It’s impossible to distinguish which warlords are priests, which ones are involved, and which ones are innocent. Even if it were possible, it would be excessively difficult and increase the chances of failure.”
Moreover, even if distinctions could be made, there were issues. There was no way to be certain or trust those distinctions, and betrayal was always a possibility.
In short, there were too many variables.
“Therefore, it would be faster and easier for us to take direct action.”
“How exactly do you plan to do that?”
This time, it was Lumel who asked. Resting her cheek on the table, her voice was heavy with sleepiness.
Aslan smiled slightly and answered.
“We’ll use Baulder.”
Baulder, the temporary lord of this fortress and the product of improved monsterization, an inhabitant of the Northern Empire who views Aslan as an enemy.
Richard glanced at the floor where he had pinned Baulder earlier and asked.
“Can we really trust him? Isn’t it suspicious?”
Facing Richard’s gray eyes filled with concern, Aslan nodded before Richard could even ask why. Aslan spoke first.
“Baulder’s actions were driven purely by emotion, not by cunning.”
Not understanding immediately, Richard and the group looked confused. Aslan elaborated further.
“He didn’t know who I truly am; he just knew me as an enemy. From that, I was confident that Baulder wasn’t on the side of the priests.”
“What if he was just pretending?”
This time, it was Angie who questioned, wearing a perplexed expression. Aslan naturally averted his gaze from her emphasized chest and shook his head.
“There was no reason to. If I were aligned with the priests and trying to deceive someone like me, he wouldn’t have attacked.”
“Maybe he thought it was worth trying…”
“Did he not see the Supreme Divinity’s Sword fall?”
“Ah…”
Angie exclaimed in realization.
Aslan thought:
Anyone connected to the priests who gave birth to him would surely recognize the one who felled the Supreme Divinity’s Sword.
Such priests or blessed ones aligned with them would approach cautiously or even friendly rather than confront directly.
Therefore, Baulder was trustworthy.
His reckless attack, revealing everything down to the bottom, ironically served as his alibi.
While rubbing her sleepy eyes, Lumel interjected.
“What if he’s hiding something like Thor Mull did?”
It was a valid point. Fortunately, Aslan had already considered it.
“Precautions have already been taken. I believe that managing a single priest or an artificial monster under their control should be sufficient.”
Everyone present was confident they could withstand or even defeat a hastily ordained priest alone.
And Phey, who had already joined their ranks, might even handle several priests alone.
Upon hearing this addition, Phey grinned confidently.
“Right, Phey is cute and strong, so trust Phey.”
The elf girl, brimming with bravado, placed her hands on her hips. After her words subsided, Aslan added:
“So, we will make Baulder the emperor. We’ll manage Baulder through Phey and unify the Northern Empire around him, starting with Velrus Neresca.”
The group had no objections to this suggestion. There was nothing left to argue against within this explanation.
As the group quietly agreed, Aslan continued.
“The first step in this plan is, naturally, absorbing nearby forces. We must absorb them as intact as possible…”
“If I go and smash them, will that work?”
Smiling mischievously while clenching her fists, Angie received a troubled shake of the head from Aslan.
“Many would die that way. We wouldn’t be able to fully assimilate them. That’s where Lumel’s role becomes crucial.”
Caught off guard by being named, Lumel, who had been dozing off with her cheek resting on the table, suddenly snapped to attention.
The man met her curious gaze with a smile.
“In that sense, the easiest force to absorb would be one of the smallest nearby powers—easy to digest and lacking any significant reputation or achievements.”
The audience, intrigued, focused their attention on Aslan. Sensing their interest, Aslan continued.
“The force that has explosively grown since the monsterization and its leader, Red Mane…”
Creeak.
Aslan paused mid-sentence as the door to the meeting hall opened.
Peeking through the door was Baulder.
Fully recovered from the beating he’d received earlier, he stared at Aslan with eyes filled with fear and hatred.
“I thought I told you not to come until something special happened…”
The hesitant voice of the potential future emperor. Aslan, recalling his earlier words, turned his head and noticed the commotion coming from outside.
“Hmm… Now that I think about it, it’s noisy outside. What’s happening?”
“Well… I did ponder whether I should come or not, given it’s something that happens regularly… The army of Red Mane has arrived.”
Aslan frowned at this news.
“Why have they come?”
“I assume it’s business as usual. They frequently visit to provoke us or challenge us to duels…”
A typical story. Likely, they were trying to bolster their own achievements and expand their influence from the fortress.
Indeed, it seemed like a common occurrence, and despite his hesitance, Baulder attempted to remain calm in his response.
“I was going to ignore it as usual, but since you ordered a report, I came. Uh, I’ll handle it myself, so please continue with what you were doing…”
Though clearly affected by the earlier beating, Baulder appeared to want to avoid causing further trouble.
Aslan stared silently at the trembling giant for a moment before raising his hand.
“Hold on.”
At this, Baulder trembled violently and stopped.
He instinctively raised his arms in a defensive posture.
It was a pitiable sight, but not worth dwelling on.
Rather, there was something else that required attention, so Aslan disregarded Baulder’s cowardice and spoke.
“Let them in.”
“Eh? What? Let them in…?”
Baulder furrowed his brow in confusion, made eye contact with Aslan, and exhaled sharply.
Aslan turned his gaze from Baulder to Lumel, who was braiding her hair with sleepy eyes.
She tilted her head in response to Aslan’s emerald gaze.
“Lumel, it seems like it’s time to demonstrate the role I mentioned earlier.”
“Role… uh, hmm…?”
Clearing her throat, Lumel spoke hesitantly, prompting Aslan to grin sheepishly and add:
“A duel.”
