Volume 20 - CH 9

Me, Meena, and Kaede are trapped in a dungeon somewhere.

The another world hero named Mirity Iceman, an old man in white armor, was a subordinate of Emperor Gilan.

We confronted the emperor in the Throne Room by means of a transference magic circle, but we were unable to even move due to Mirity's mental skills.

「Get down on your knees, you lazy bastard!」

Mirity shouted in a different form than before., and we fell flat on the ground, unable to even defy him.

「My apologies, Your Majesty, this Mirity Iceman has not been able to lead his subordinates well. I hope you will punish me as well.」

「It's not worth it.」

A low, grave voice echoed through the throne room. A giant in gold-rimmed dark armor looks down at us expressionlessly. Its jet-black eyes seemed to absorb the light without the slightest emotion.

「Oh, ......I am so grateful for your generous words ......! It's hard to put into words!」

Ignoring Mirityt's exaggerated exclamation, the Emperor asks me.

「King of Vernia, why did you interfere with the propaganda efforts of my empire?」

「That's right, why did you interrupt Polin-chan's wonderful, wonderful live performance, Alec!」

Polin-chan was there, too?

I guess these guys already know who I am. Well, of course they did.

So, what do we do now?

Apologize and beg for my life?

――You gotta be kidding me.

There's no guarantee that begging for my life will save me. Besides, aside from Polin-chan, they have people like Mirity under his command. The emperor is probably not a very good person. That's what employer responsibility and appointment responsibility is all about.

Then it's obvious, isn't it?

「The Kingdom of Valencia, which you unjustly ruled, is to be returned.」

I'll make it clear. There's the matter of Madamada, but more than that, I don't like the way this place is being ruled.

「You, you insolent bastaaaaaaarrd!」

For Mirity, who is the embodiment of the Japanese corporate spirit, even expressing an opinion to the CEO (top management) is an outrageous offense. Well, he knows that, doesn't he?

「Foolish. My rule is absolute and great. Injustice and treason against me must be suppressed.」

「Which is more unjust?」

Kaede blurted out.

「Any rebel who defies the great me will be unconditionally thrown in jail and ordered to be re-educated.」

「Hahaha! Right away! Come on, you ungrateful bastard!」

Mirity pulls Kaede up.

「Huh? When did I ever do anything to make you guys feel indebted to me?」

「Shut up!」

The slap flies.

「Kuhhh!」

「If you want to eat, you'll have to listen to me!」

「Two things, Mirity.」

When I saw it, I said,

「What?」

「I'm talking about when someone tries to dominate another person with violence. The first, when the violent person is too stupid to tell the other person what to do. Second, the person being beaten up is either too stupid to be violent.」

「I see, there's no room for argument, defying the top! It's a betrayal of the world and society.」

「That's right, that's right ☆」

「What if the emperor is wrong? The world and society could be wrong.」

I ask.

「No, if you win, you are infallible. Power is everything! The great power of the Emperor! Don't you feel it, Alec? The fear that shakes you to the core! And absolute control!」

「I feel some fear, but ...... absolute domination? Infallible? That's a lie.」

「What?」

「Domination, in other words, is the ability to influence someone to do what you want.」

I explained it to him in other words.

「Yes, you're right.」

「But if they won't obey you unless you suppress them by force, doesn't that mean that they don't like what you want them to do, or that you and your people are so hated by the people of Valencia?」

「Murhh......　」

「The point is that hope itself is flawed. More to the point, God doesn't want anything. Because if he were omniscient, omnipotent, infallible, and perfect, he would have already achieved it when he wanted to.」

「Watch your mouth! How dare you defy Emperor Gilan! You rebel!」

Contrary to Mirity's spitting and ranting, the Emperor was silent.

You think you can listen to me, Emperor?

「Emperor of Gilan, let me teach you a more sophisticated way of reigning than domination. You don't have to torture and educate people if you make yourself attractive and get them to move in the direction you want them to go. That way, everyone benefits.」

「No. If all were equal, wealth would not flow or gather. And the misery of all mankind is my honeymoon. Strife is my flesh and blood.」

「Hooh ......」

Well, I knew that this big figure would never be human, but still.

It calls itself the emperor of the land of humans.

It's the greatest misfortune of the greatest number of people who are drowning in power.

「Are you sure about this, Mirity? You're human, aren't you?」

「Yes, I'm human. However, I have been promised immortality and unlimited happiness by the Emperor.」

「A contract full of contradictions that may or may not be fulfilled. Even if you're the only one to be happy, it's going to be cold if the rest of the world is full of corpses. It would be difficult for the human race to procreate. Do you think that people who want to make humanity unhappy like that will seriously fulfill their contracts and promises to humans?」

「They will. That's how powerful His Majesty is」

「Power alone is not enough. You must have the will and trust to do so.」

「I am of service to His Majesty. Then the future is inevitably promised to me.」

「I wonder about that? I hope they don't fatten you up like livestock and then turn you into flesh and blood. If they're only useful, aren't livestock also useful to humans?」

「Wha!」

Mirity was upset, but he didn't seem to have thought of the pattern of just being used and being done with.

He was naive.

In the first place, it is wrong to expect mutual understanding from the logic and value of non-humans.

「It is unacceptable to doubt my words. I'm guilty! You will burn!」

Emperor Gillan pointed his index finger at me and made a face like an orc's face.

The next moment, black flames clung around my neck, and my consciousness and body completely disappeared from this world.

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Alec's HP 0。