"...K-Knight of Brazier..."
Landrose exclaims in surprise as the man slowly walks in beside him, giving him a brief glance before turning to face the throne... And bowing down to worship the Demon-Lord Supreme Xhaka!
"..."
*Sigh... "I told you not to mess this up, Landrose."
Nero remarks, straightening up and scowling at the Minister of Ashgate while scratching his head!
"..."
"N-Nero..."
Shaken to the core by the betrayal. All Landrose can do is anxiously repeat the name of the Knight of Brazier.
"So... So this is what was going on all along..."
The pink-haired minister murmurs to himself, looking confusedly at his boots and the concrete beneath them.
"..."
*sigh... "No, Landrose, it wasn't."
Gazing at the minister with growing paranoia, Nero says without expression.
"I truly considered your proposal, Minister of Ashgate."
"And the more I gave it some thought..."
"The more I dissected and examined every single, minute detail of it, I realized something..."
"It was flawless."
Gesturing outwardly, the Knight of Brazier begins to tread towards Landrose... Causing the black knights in front of him to move aside so that the former colleagues can face each other.
"...what?"
"It really was Landrose, it really, really, was."
Nero repeats, his face plastered with an almost ecstatic expression of epiphany.
"I mean, get the strongest Demon-Lords in the realm to aid you in defeating possibly the strongest Demon-Lord ever?"
"What a tale of rebellion it could have been!" Simply brilliant!"
He says, beaming broadly like a lunatic.
"And you... carefully selecting those with virtually unrestricted access to Demon-Lord Xhaka's defense, schedule, and even livelihood???"
"Landrose, you really did your homework on this one. Bravo."
Smiling, the Knight of Brazier praises the work of his counterpart.
"You picked the right people, Landrose."
"And the coup's timing made it all the better to prevent information from being leaked or suspicions about what was really going on behind closed doors."
Nero pats Landrose's shoulder with a reassuring smile.
"Then... Then why? Why did you choose to betray me? To betray the Demon Realm?"
The Minister of Ashgate asks the question, looking down at the ground with clenched fists as he mulls over where he might have gone wrong.
"... betray you?"
"Minister of Ashgate, you appear to be utterly misinformed once more."
Nero answers, his expression stoic and confused, adding to the impression that Landrose had made a mistake in choosing him after all.
"I never turned on you."
"I was simply never on your side."
The Knight blinks blankly, his disconnection from their once-shared goal becoming increasingly apparent.
"Every aspect of your plan was flawless... And having the Den of Brazier in your back pocket was certainly the crux of it."
He smirks once more.
"With us, you only needed to take out everyone else in the Demon-Lord Supreme's vicinity; you did not even need to defeat him."
Nero begins...
"If you must, force him to surrender."
The Knight says as he turns to leave Landrose behind.
"Then why--"
"--Because that is how a 'human' would have approached taking the throne, Minister of Ashgate."
Nero's nonchalant response cuts Landrose off right away.
"We, Landrose, are not human."
He makes the claim with vehemence, gesturing around him to the seated Kasper and Demon-Lord Supreme.
"..."
"...when... When Demon-Lord Xhaka first ascended to the throne..."
The Knight of Brazier ponders aloud...
"He did not need to rely on people he believed had the qualities he needed to succeed, or on the assistance of dishonest tactics."
"No."
"Rather, the Great Lord existing as himself, existing as 'what' he is."
"Took on the Ministers, one after the other in fights to the death!"
"...Keep in mind, this is all in one night."
For added emphasis, the Knight raises one finger.
"This... all of this occurred prior to him ultimately confronting the 'former' Demon-Lord Supreme the next morning."
He says while smirking.
"Aaaaah... Truly its a tale of legend..."
"Within a single night..."
"Crushing not only our forebears but also the former Demon-Lord Supreme like he was a bug.... beaten to within an inch of his life and torched on the throne he so coveted to give birth to a new legend."
The Knight grins sadistically as both he and Landrose fix their gaze on the chained throne...
"Not only did he win unanimously on his own, but Brazier would undoubtedly bless him for so magnificently offering up the former lord as a sacrifice."
"I mean... You should know... You were there..."
Nero says, looking at Landrose, who can only turn his gaze away from the beast's intimidating stare.
"An army? Ministers?? A precisely mapped-out timetable of his 'daily life'?
"Such 'elaborate' aids were unnecessary for Demon-Lord Xhaka."
"And as the legend goes, the next morning when his stablemates were called to Castle Ashgate, they were astounded to discover their predecessors corspes strewn all over the royal throne and, as a result, or possibly as a reward, were placed in their place."
As the Knight of Brazier delivers his narration, he strikes an angelic pose and appears like a man reformed.
"Demon-lord Xhaka forced the entire court to fight alongside him."
"Demon-lord Xhaka, made the Demon-realm as a whole bend the knee!"
"The epitome of what it means to be a demon is Demon-lord Xhaka!!"
"Power itself actualized, that is Demon-lord Xhaka!!!"
"A reality of true power that starts and ends with him and only him!!!!"
The Knight gives the beast another bow while grinning broadly.
"..."
"...compared to that Landrose."
"You are weak."
"No... That is not entirely accurate. You're...."
"Human."
Nero says, turning around to look at him with a repulsed expression.
His tense aura nearly buckles Landrose's knees; at this point, all he can do is stare at the ground.
A significant error in judgment...
Landrose had placed too much faith in what he mistook to be a sane and coherent Knight.
"..."
-silence-
"..."
"... Said your peace?"
Landrose says stoically, facing the floor.
A faint trace of a suicidally anxious smile plastered on his face.
"No..."
Nero gives a lifeless response.
"A demon with your level of weakness could never lead us to victory."
The Knight of Brazier says with a stoic face.
"And for that reason... I never took sides with you."
He says, assuming a dignified position next to the seated Kasper on the Demon-Lord Supreme's left.
"..."
"...good..."
A shell-shocked Landrose can hardly speak.
"I-I am happy that you have chosen to reveal your true self, Nero."
The demon says, keeping his face hidden from everyone's eyes.
"Because, in this charade, you have chosen to side with the defeated party!"
"...Not the other Ministers, though."
He says, trying to reassure himself about his fading dreams of ascending to the throne.
"..."
"No...no...no...they...they chose me..."
"ME!!!"
The pink haired demon snaps...
"I- I will become the next Demon-Lord Supreme, Nero!"
Landrose shouts, losing all composure.
"An-And once that is accomplished, my first order of business will be to execute you, Knight of Brazier."
With a feeble smile, Landrose gestures to Nero with a finger.
"Amenadiel... Samael...Amenadiel...Samael...Amenadiel... Samael...Amenadiel... Samael...Amenadiel... Samael..."
"I... Do not be too arrogant, Demon. W-we still have more than enough to take you down."
Landrose says, keeping his now shivering finger on Nero.
"J- just you..."
Stuttering, the Minister of Ashgate tries to establish a telepathic link with his other allies when...
"They will... they will..."
"..."
-silence-
"..."
*sighs, "No response?..."
Nero remarks inanely, breaking the tension with a tone devoid of emotion.
"Oh, where? Oh, where? Are the revolution's grand ministers?"
The Knight sings in a tone deaf manner.
"They... They should be here any minute now."
Landrose thinks with growing anxiety...
"..."
*Sigh... "Landrose."
"Your plan was flawless."
The Knight of Brazier reiterates.
"It really, truly was..."
He says...
"I expect even my least skilled assassins to stay in their enemy's shadow to gather information and execute them in the most efficient way possible."
"...Nevertheless, describe this to me, Minister of Ashgate."
"Since you insisted on engaging in a game of shadows..."
"...and followed the shadow of Great-Lord Xhaka with such medical precision, observing his every move and probing even his smallest vulnerabilities..."
"Doesn't courtesy dictate that he would be free to do the same with your shadow?"
He says as he slowly shifts his attention to Kasper, who is still thumbing through his book and appears bored.
"Ah..."
Landrose looks up at Kasper.
"..."
"...i refuse to believe this..."
"Foiled... Foiled by a boy????"
He thinks nervously as the elegantly attired young lord turns the page to the next.
"That's not possible..."
Landrose mutters to himself...
"I had all my tracks covered!
He shouts in a sudden outburst!
"I kept my circle small!"
He cries!
"I refuse to believe... to believe... this..."
"This farce!!"
A rattled Landrose laments, attempting once more to establish a telepathic connection with his purported allies...
"...tch!!!"
"S-Sariel..."
The Minister of Ashgate shouts, gesturing outwardly to his shadow, when...!!
"Quick. Get out here; we need to make a tactical--"
"--ah"
Just then, a person begins to emerge from Kasper's shadow directly in front of him.
A woman... with star-studded blue eyes and deep purple hair...
"...Master?"
The black-robed woman says, bowing before the reading Kasper and then stoically turning to face the Minister of Ashgate!
"..."
-silence-
"..."
"..s..sariel..."
A shaken Landrose looks over at his subject with trembling eyes...
"Ah..."
Before turning back to face the young lord, who is staring at him with a bored expression on his face as he loosens his grip on his book.
"..."
"..."
-To Be Continued-