Side Story Chapter 236

Side Story Chapter 236

“Just give me five minutes to persuade you.”

“Bullshit!”

“The first reason is that I can help you meet the real Joshua Sanders if you let me go.”

Of Kireua’s three reasons for Isaac, the first reason was the biggest one. Kireua had tried placing himself in Isaac’s shoes and considered what he would want the most if he ran into his enemy’s child. That was revenge, naturally, especially revenge extracted directly from his enemy. And it turned out that Kireua had guessed correctly.

“...I was planning on finding him anyway. I’m going to crush you here and lock you up in the dungeon, then the Martial God will have to come save his son,” Isaac growled, her words faintly laced with murderous energy.

Kireua had expected Isaac’s response, so he continued undeterred.

“The second reason is that, unfortunately, His Majesty is in no situation to save me.”

“What?”

“He’s fighting hard on his own to save the continent as we speak. He doesn’t have any time for anything else.”

“You crazy bastard.” Isaac frowned, her disbelief clearly written on her face. “Do you expect me to believe that? You knew that no one would be coming to save you and yet you march into my country’s capital?”

“Believe me or don’t. The fact that I’m one of the few people who knows the exact location of my father doesn’t change. If you defeat me right now, you’ll never get what you want.”

As he had Greed and the Emperor of Avalon had other Seven Evil Sins, Kiruea knew what condition the Emperor of Avalon was in.

“His Majesty locked himself up in an ice boulder so that he could erase every last trace of the Demon Spirit. He’s recently overstretched himself by intervening in recent events, so he has to focus on his work with the Demon Spirit even more. Not just anyone can go to him right now.”

Kireua exaggerated the truth a little, but he could feel Isaac’s doubt fade a bit. Little.

“I’m not an idiot; I’m not going to tell a lie that flimsy.” Kireua shrugged. “It looks like Bel went there himself to find out, so ask him if you don’t believe me.”

Kireua could feel the air around Isaac subtly changing again. That told him something.

“...I knew it. You aren’t on good terms with Bel either, are you?”

The murderous energy Isaac was exuding immediately thickened.

“Here’s the deal,” Kireua quickly added. “You let me go, and I’ll give you the opportunity to fight not only His Majesty but also Bel. You have my word.”

Isaac sneered. “So you’re just going to benefit from other people’s fights.”

“Come on. One of them is my father! Can’t you tell how I’m trying to compromise here?”

“Why should I believe you?”

“Shall I make a Mana Pledge or something if that helps?”

Isaac silently considered it. Despite what Kireua had said, Isaac would have to fight Kireua first. If she couldn’t defeat Kireua, she had no chance of beating the Emperor of Avalon.

Regardless, now wasn’t the time for that.

“You have nothing to lose from this deal. Your ultimate goal is revenge, so it’s only right to fight His Majesty,” Kireua cajoled.

“What... is your plan?”

“What?”

“Am I misunderstanding something here? I thought you’re Joshua Sanders’s son—or are you a bastard child fathered by someone else?”

Despite Isaac’s insulting question, Kireua stayed calm. He knew that everything would be for naught if they came to blows here.

“My dream is to become the next emperor of Avalon, so I need my old man to step down if I even want to have a chance,” Kireua casually replied.

“Oh? You’re more greedy than you look.”

“You’re... asking for my opinion?” Kurz squeezed out, glancing warily at Kireua.

“Yes, I am.”

Kurz swallowed again before slowly replying, “I believe... it’s cowardly.”

“Cowardly? Why?”

“But you’re... different from those cowards. You’re the god of martial arts, hero of the continent.”

“Aha. Since I’m a hero, different moral standards apply to me than those pathetic ‘paladins’?”

Kurz trembled as he realized that Kireua was leading him to voluntarily acknowledge the Emperor of Avalon’s superiority—and there was nothing Kurz could do about it with his life at stake. Besides, he wasn’t someone who valued his honor over his life.

“Y-Yes, I’m sure that a hostage situation isn’t right for the Martial God. No one in Hubalt would admit defeat even if you slit my throat right now.” Kurz desperately said.

“I get what you’re saying, so how about this?”

“What...?”

“I’m an emperor, but I walked right into the middle of my enemy at the risk of my life. You have to admire my courage.”

Even if Kireua didn’t say it out loud, all of them were dumbstruck by the sheer boldness of his ploy.

“Just like you all said, I’m the Martial God, so I’ll give you a chance for a fair fight.”

Kurz’s eyes gleamed.

‘Idiot!’ He had to hold back a grin. This was exactly what he wanted to hear.

“H-How magnanimous!” he said. “As expected from the Martial God!”

“Let’s fight one-on-one, as equals. Fair and square, right?”

‘S-Son of a bitch...’ Kurz felt his back slicken with cold sweat. All the knights in the room couldn’t guarantee victory even if they all attacked Joshua together, but Joshua was asking Kurz to fight him himself?

“Why? You don’t want to?”

“I-I think you’re being unreasonable here. I was an ordinary man of the cloth until not too long ago, so fighting you one-on-one is ...” Kurz trailed off weakly.

“Alright, here’s another idea.”

“Y-Yes, please be considerate of my capabilities. I’ll be as open-minded as I can.”

Kiruea took a look around; he barely listened to Kurz. He basked in the gazes of Hubalt’s nobility, allowing the tension to build.

“Anyone who is willing to fight me on behalf of your emperor, come forward,” he slowly intoned. “If you defeat me, I will let your emperor go. No strings attached.”

The chamber fell into a suffocating silence. Unsurprisingly, no one came forward, infuriating Kurz. Even if it was the Martial God, how could the nobles do this to him!

“What are you all doing? Anyone, step forward! I’m going to die!” Kurz screamed.

“There’s no need to get upset. No one in the world would give up their life for someone they don’t respect.”

“What...?”

Kireua looked down at the emperor with eyes tinged with wrath.

“That’s who you are, Cardinal Kurz,” he hissed.

His blade slid through Kurz’s flesh; in the silence, even that sound was deafening.

“I wasted too much time on you,” Kireua growled. “Now die.”ReAd latest chapters at novelhall.com Only