CH 69

".....Why is this happening? "

Norris covered his despair-stained face with his hands and sat down on a chair, muttering to himself.

Norris had offended Rid at the magic demonstration.

But it was an act of stroking the beard of a dragon and stepping on the tail of a tiger, which should never be done.

He never expected him to be such a good magician.

In the first place, that one who had instructed him to anger Rid because he was going to help him did nothing for him after all.

Then, by Elias' order, the soldiers captured him and put him under house arrest in what is now the "castle.

Unlike the prisons for commoners and the such, this room is for criminals of the nobility and higher.

The room was of a certain size and had a sofa and a bed.

However, this room had a nickname among the nobles.

Once you enter this room, what awaits you is death by assassination or conspiracy.

Either way, death is said to await him in the near future.

And Norris knew that the alias was close to the truth.

When he arrived here, he was rapt and despairing.

Despite all that had happened, he knew he could still survive.

He had thought "the One" would be there, too.

But what he was brought to was the "Yumei Room."

"I ...... cannot die yet. I still have a ...... task to do. ...... ."

That's when he muttered to himself.

A soldier's voice came from outside the door.

"His Majesty Elias is entering."

The door to the room opens without knocking, and Elias enters.

Another hooded figure enters the room behind Elias.

When Norris saw Elias, he immediately got down on his knees in front of him and apologized.

"Your Majesty Elias, I am very sorry for , but I did this for the sake of my country. Besides, I was only instructed to do this by "a certain someone," so please spare my life."

Norris is now on his knees, and the part of his hair that Asuna cut is in full view.

The kappa-style haircut seems to be more exaggerated thanks to this, which accentuates the ridiculousness of his appearance.

The hooded man who entered the room quietly approached Norris, who was on his knees.

Then, crouching down beside him, he tightened one hand around Norris's throat and lifted him up as he stood up.

He then lifted Norris up, tightening one hand around his throat, "Gghh , you ......?"

A shiver ran through Norris as he saw the hooded man's face as he was being tightened up, and he muttered with a shudder.

"Zack.........⁉"

Just as Norris muttered, Zack launched him against the wall.

'Gghhhh !'

A heavy, low sound echoed through the room as the man slammed into the wall.

'...... Zack, don't be too rough with him".

'Sorry, sir. It was disturbing to have him on his knees in front of the doorway,......."

Elias quieted him down and Zack took off his hood.

The man's eyes are cold, though his manner is as soft as usual.

It created an earrings that was different from his usual.

Norris coughed and looked like he didn't know what was going on.

He could see why Elias would come here.

But Zack Riverton, known only to a very few, is the highest power of the dark side.

He don't know why such a person would come here.

Seeing Norris's confusion, Elias shook his head and said coldly,

"You are a vassal who has served this country for a long time,. I will at least give you an explanation as a memento of your death."

"..... explanation?""

Norris, still unable to get up from the impact of being smashed against the wall, was looking at Elias with a dubious expression on his face.

Grinning at him, Elias turned to Zack and said,

'Explain it to him, Zack."

'Huh,...... Elias, Your Majesty is a terrible human being too.'

Zack, who let out a sigh and looked like he was about to give up, began to explain something to Norris.

It went back to the time when the alliance was formed with the empire after the Barsto Crisis.

At that time, they received a notice from the empire that although it was ostensibly an alliance, it was a secret agreement with the details of a vassal state.

At that time, some of the nobles, including Norris, were very much against it.

Elias appeased them and agreed to become a vassal state in order to survive as a country.

However, after the secret agreement with the empire, domestic politics became unstable.

This was caused by some of the nobles who could not accept the alliance with the empire.

So Elias devised a plan.

He proposed that those who were dissatisfied with the alliance with the empire should form a faction, and when the time came, they would be put together and dealt with.

And Norris was chosen to serve as the main body of that faction.

That is why he made it easy for Norris to make claims that could not be made by others.

And Elias and Zack were working from behind the scenes to ensure that Norris would be able to reign at the top of the faction.

That is why Elias was faced with the dilemma of not being able to ignore Norris's opinion, and that was the result.

Norris's face turned pale when he heard what Zack had to say.

Then he stood up and said to Elias, his voice trembling.

"This is a ridiculous ".

"We are using you, Norris, and thanks to you we know the details of the troublesome people who nest in this country. We thank you, okay?"

Norris huffed when Elias told him, then asked bitterly.

"...... that 'shadow' that approached me was originally was your's doing ...... , too?"

Hearing his words, Zack signaled with his hand.

Then, from Norris's shadow, a figure dressed in black appeared.

Norris was taken aback by the sight.

Zack approached the black-clad figure as if nothing had happened.

"Capella, you have worked very hard over the years. Thanks to you and Norris, I was able to gather all the necessary information on the opposing factions. All that remains is to eliminate them."

".....⁉ A cleanup, you say? There is no way you can do such a thing.......that would mean the loss of important people in this country.......⁉"

Norris believes that the country would not be able to function without them, and he is probably trying to say that if a cleanup were to take place, the country would not be able to survive.

But Elias was taken aback by his words.

"Because of the longevity of the Dark Elves, it is easy for the generation of the important people in the country to change slowly. Your faction is just such a group. You are no longer cunning. You are old men to this country".

"What the hell is this ?"

Elias continued speaking to Norris, whose face was turning red with anger.

"I am sure that Rid has already told you that it is not the old generation who creates the future. Don't you understand?"

.."...⁉ How do you know that?"

Norris was surprised to know that Elias knew about his conversation with Rid.

At that moment, his eyes fell on the shadow called Capella.

At that moment, a question came to his mind.

(How long had the Capella been lurking in my shadow?)

Then he remembered Zack's words, "I'm sorry for all your hard work over the years," and a chill ran through his body.

To which Elias replied with satisfaction.

"That's right. Your every move has been observed, you know. Norris."

"!!"

Norris bit his lower lip at Elias' words.

Was he being played?　

No, it couldn't be.

(If that were the case, what would happen to Lacis?　0

If everything was really being monitored, there was no way he could use the prince as a pawn.

Thinking this, Norris said.

..". falsehoods, and if you've been spying on me, how are you going to explain Prince Lacis's situation?"

'Lacis? It is true that I did not expect you to be so fascinated with him, but he was a good distraction for you to take action. It was a good distraction, wasn't it?"

"What ......?　You even used the prince as a decoy?"

"The king is a king. That is what it means to protect the country and the people. If I am to be led around by the likes of you, and if I am to be deluded, I will never be king. Well, now that Rid has converted me, I think there is a little chance for Lacis."

"I want to ask you one last question: ....... Is that person, Miss Eltia, also on your side ......?"

If Ertia is on her side, she can still do something about it.

But Elias answered immediately.

"Of course. You were the only one who didn't know anything about it. Norris."

Hearing Elias' words, Norris fell to the ground in despair and muttered weakly,

"I was ...... really just being made to swim and dance on the palm of his hand".

The three people present, except for Norris, seemed to have lost their cool.

"What you have done is the crime of treason, and you will not be spared anyway. And you have two ways to die."

Norris listened to Elias' words with a drooping head and no energy.　

"One is to be assassinated in this room tomorrow morning. The second is to kill yourself with this medicine. I recommend the second. I've heard that this potion can take you to the other side of the world as if you were asleep. Isn't that right, Zack?"

Zack nodded quietly as he was told the story.

Elias then placed the drug near Norris and spat out,

"You have very little time left,". Curse your own stupidity at best."

After he finished, Elias turned his back to Norris and started walking toward the door of the room.

◇

Norris was disoriented with despair and anger.

(Don't be silly, Elias, you are not a king. Yes, I should make Lacis the king and I should be the regent and lead the country.)　

The only thing Norris had in his mind now was hatred for Elias.

Just as Elias was about to leave the room, Norris shouted in a loud, angry voice.

"Elias !!!"

At those words, Elias turned around with a dubious look on his face.

Then, Norris was ready to launch his magic with an angry expression on his face.

Zack and Capella tried to cover him, but Elias stopped them.

Then Norris shouted again, this time in a loud, angry voice: "Y

'You should have been killed by me, you freak!

As Norris was about to use his magic, Elias gripped the sword at his waist without effort.

He then instantly entered his pocket by strengthening his body, and with the same momentum, he reaped him in a horizontal line with his iai.

"Hah"

Norris muttered in a small, pained voice.

These were his last words.

Elias shook off the blood glue on the blade and sheathed it.

At the same time, Norris's body crumbled into two pieces, the upper half and the lower half.

A large pool of blood appeared on the spot.

"Well done, sir."

Zack, who had been watching the series of movements, called out to Elias.

Elias's movements were instantaneous.

Norris could not used his magic because of this.

'Don't be ridiculous,...... I didn't expect him to be this stupid.'

Elias replied to Zack and then gave them instructions.

"Get rid of this corpse. Norris's death will only be made public after this visit to the Bardia family is over. Until then, ...... keep the body salted to prevent it from rotting."

".....Yes, sir."

Zack and Capella both bowed as they responded to Elias's instructions.

Elias then left the room.

The end of a man who was dissatisfied with the empire's vassalage and continued to operate with ego and selfish malice was, ironically, a salve, to be pickled in the very thing that had caused the vassalage.