Chapter 222: The Emperor's Return
Not even a year had passed since the Hero was summoned when I was born on the Northern Continent in the 8th round.
That meant that the nurse, a princess, who gave birth to me had already married a dastardly prince from a neighboring state in exchange for military assistance.
Not long after that, their country was utterly defeated in a war, causing it to fall apart and forcing the princess to flee to her homeland.
She didn't succeed in that either, however.
Back then, it hadn't even been a year since the Hero was summoned. Hence, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't save her.
But this time, it was different.
There were still two years left before the initial summoning.
The nurse not only hadn't died but also hadn't married the vile prince yet.
Due to my interference in the history of the Northern Continent, I couldn't even imagine what became of her.
But I didn't have to worry too much.
After all, I had a source of information.
Race: Human
Level: 999+
Job: Knight (Loyalty → Fortitude ↑)
Skills: Sword Mastery SSS, Fortitude SSS, Charisma SS, Willpower SS, Gifted S…
State: Doubt, Fatigued, Humiliated
The Sword Princess distributed food to my army every day, which didn't fit the status of the most powerful knight of the Northern Continent.
She always followed the nurse.
Although she was a crazy woman who tried to kill me out of her own carelessness, by showing me her naked body, she was still incredibly loyal to her.
Naturally, she should know everything about her.
But there was a problem.
"Emperor of Darkness, you are deeply mistaken if you think that I will tell you the princess's location that easily."
She didn't want to cooperate at all.
"It's easy to get you to speak. I can drive you crazy with the help of a mind spirit, or I can tie your arms and legs and bring about 100 soldiers to play with you. But for the sake of my son Chris, I won't do any of those."
"Chris is my son!"
Even Chris had admitted that he was my son, yet the Sword Princess still couldn't accept it.
We weren't married, so the only point of contact between us was our child…
"Mom… the Emperor of Darkness really is my father…"
"You're mistaken, Chris! I would never allow someone like him to touch my body!"
The conversation didn't go well.
The problem was my appearance.
Due to the fact that I was given birth to by a nurse, a local of Fantasy, the genes of the "local" dominated. I was slowly returning to my former appearance, which my soul remembered, but I hadn't completely reverted to my old look yet.
It didn't matter. My son and I had the same spine.
How should I convince this stubborn girl?
"Oh! The royal seal!"
This seal was inherited among those in whose veins royal blood flowed.
Many Fantasy states had a similar 'national treasure'.
And it wasn't only the royals that had them. There was such a ' family heirloom' in many aristocratic families and famous descendants of military families.
The royal seal in the form of a ring was preferred in this place.
One could always wear it as a ring, and when necessary, use it as a seal.
Noteworthily enough, instead of cinnabar, they used their own blood for it.
"Emperor of Darkness! Stealing the royal seal won't make me obey you!"
"I'm only putting up with this for my child's sake…"
"If you touch my son, I will never forgive you!"
"Oh my god, you're making my head split… take her away and make her peel potatoes all day."
The knights retrieved the Sword Princess and returned her to her post.
Soon after, I noticed Chris glaring at me.
"You're too rude to mother, and you hurt my back. Are you really my father?"
"Yeah. Would I just give such vast lands to some stranger?"
"Well… that would be weird.
"Just watch quietly. It won't take much longer."
The Holy Mollan Empire's army gathered around me.
They captured ports on all three sides of the Northern Continent, except for the northern part, where ships couldn't sail due to glaciers. Soon enough, I gained complete control over the sea.
The southern, western, and eastern parts of the continent were captured in that order.
All that remained were the central and northern parts.
That being said, the northern part was a permafrost zone ruled by one of the representatives of the Five Great Disasters, the Snow Queen Elsh. Therefore, only those whom she raises, like cattle, live there.
"Your Majesty the Emperor, O' mighty Hero, Slayer of the Supreme Dragon of Oblivion, Noebius, and disciple of Master Mollan! Your army awaits your order!
Old aristocrat A, in excitement, announced the completion of the soldiers' preparation.
He only grumbled at me before, but he immediately became a faithful servant after seeing the results.
He apparently didn't think he'd be able to see his flag on the lands of the Northern Continent.
There was no particular change in the behavior of other aristocrats and knights.
Smiling, I went up to the pulpit.
Combatants gathered in front of me.
"Warriors of the Holy Mollan Empire! I am proud and glad that you are alive and that you've arrived here safely. Let our comrades who fell in battle be remembered as we fight to the end for their sake. I will sincerely pray that His protection will be with you. Mollan."
"Mollan! Mollan! Mollan!"
"Mollan! Mollan! Mollan!"
"Mollan! Mollan! Mollan!"
"Go. Bring me victory!"
Without Sage, their weapon of mass destruction, the Magic Kingdom couldn't even do anything.
Although the fighting forces of the Holy Mollan Empire were cut in half without the sea mermaids, that didn't cause much of a problem.
The Northern Continent suffered a strategic defeat.
In this war, I never fought.
With my power, I could conquer the entire enemy territory in one day.
But right now, I was here as an "emperor."
I left the battle to the soldiers while I developed a strategy and took care of the people and the prisoners.
The reason was simple.
"Chris, why do you think I'm not fighting?"
"Hmm… Because you're lazy?"
"Thank God for being born my son. Otherwise, your cervical vertebrae would already be… Ahem! Well, anyway, let's go. A state built on strength is like a sandcastle. Those who are conquering the enemy's lands and sticking their flags right now will one day show off their feats to their grandchildren. Hearing stories like that will make them proud of their country."
"And what about the losing countries?"
"They won't think about rebellion even after I leave.
In the 1st round, I went through many difficulties.
There were cases when the Hero's companions intervened in the war for one of the sides and brought victory to them when they were supposed to lose.
Such false wins led to consequences.
Among the losers, some said after the Hero left that it was all because of him that they lost and that if it wasn't for him, the war could've been won.
The result was terrible.
The companions, who only looked ahead and rejoiced at every task they accomplished, didn't think about anything else, but I, who always looked back, wasn't like that.
The princess who started a war because she didn't want a marriage of convenience became the mistress of a bandit who was even worse than a vile prince.
The illegitimate child who deposed his stupid older brother and became the heir to the throne watched his whole family come to an end since he couldn't secure the trust of the knights.
Therefore, I didn't go into battle.
Even if I intervened in all battles and won them to ensure the Holy Mollan Empire would flourish, I wouldn't be able to remain emperor forever.
Would my heir be able to replace me?
People didn't think so.
I was me, and he was him.
No matter how great Chris grew up to be, he couldn't be me.
Even if Chris became stronger than me, the rebels wouldn't think so.
"Have you heard of the phrase, 'Now I am on my knees to gain strength.'"
"Not really."
"Now you have. Anyway, what I want to say is that those who obey me now will scatter as soon as I leave. To minimize this, I am not allowed to show off, especially in battle."
I depicted it in the form of simple arithmetic.
If we expressed the fighting power in numbers, then…
Example 1:
Holy Mollan Empire + Emperor = 100
Holy Mollan Empire= 40
As soon as the emperor left or was wounded, traitors would immediately appear, like mushrooms after rain.
Few people believed that his heir could surpass him. That could only be changed by him taking over an entire continent while still being the crowned prince.
What if it was like this instead?
Example 2:
Holy Mollan Empire + Emperor = 100
Holy Mollan Empire = 99
With or without an emperor, if there were no change in military power, then the entire political situation wouldn't change much.
To be honest, most countries fit the 2nd example.
The longer the country's history, the less often one would find a ruler who fought well. New states, which heroes built according to example 1, almost immediately disintegrated due to crimes, generational change, etc.
"Chris, do you understand everything?"
"Yes, but you only think about the bad scenario."
"Because I had already personally experienced setbacks several times."
I didn't want to talk about it with my son. The less he knew, the better he'd sleep.
"Your Majesty! A delegation has arrived from the capitulated country."
"Not from the Magic Kingdom?"
"No."
"I see."
The Magic Kingdom was known for its pride throughout the Northern Continent. Even if they lost in numbers, they wouldn't just give up.
They were unfortunate enough to have a plutocracy of wizards.
Due to it, they believed that everything could be fixed with magic.
Sage could turn the tide of the war, but it wasn't known what became of him after the Queen of the Mermaids dragged him out to sea.
The course of this war could no longer be reversed.
"I'll meet with them."
I went to the conference room to take over my second home.
***
"Great Emperor of the Holy Mollan Empire! I…"
"No preludes are needed. Do you want to give me the princess as a sign of your surrender?"
"I… I am surprised at Your Majesty's wisdom…" The head of the delegation immediately began to bow.
Everything was as I expected.
The princess, who was sent from my second homeland as a tribute, was the nurse. I had become the one she should marry.
Her facial expression was as befitted a princess.
Even if she was married off to a stranger, it was impossible to tell from her expression that she was dissatisfied by it.
But she wasn't a toy. She didn't completely abandon her feelings.
To find out a little more about me, who would become her future husband, she quietly watched me.
100% princess.
She had more than just genes and the appearance of a royal.
Her fragile body was so beckoning. She couldn't be an assassin, unlike the Sword Princess, who could kill her husband at night.
Any man who didn't like the nurse was most likely a eunuch.
She was a real princess.
She didn't marry the beloved "prince on a white horse," as in the novels. She was a canary who had voluntarily locked herself in a cage for the sake of her people that had been paying taxes all this time.
I calmed down.
If the nurse died or were already married due to a different setting, I would've considered this 12th round a failure.
But now I didn't have to worry about it.
"I am honored to meet you. With a joyful heart, I accept your surrender and promise that your people will not suffer."
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"I have but one condition."
"Please, tell us."
"I want to see your royal seal. I don't know much about the situation on the Northern Continent. Therefore, I want to check whether royal blood really flows in her."
"Your Majesty, excuse the rudeness, but the royal seal is a national treasure, so it will be difficult to show it to you right now. Please give us at least a day to prepare it."
"I'll allow it."
"We are most thankful."
I assigned the Sword Princess to the nurse as a guard.
She became desperate when she learned that her homeland had surrendered to the Holy Mollan Empire and had become a part of it, but she devotedly embarked on the mission as befitted a knight.
Soon enough, the royal seal arrived.
If the state had become a colony, then why did it need a national treasure?
It was better to give it voluntarily as a gift than to wait for it to be taken by force.
I took out the royal seal from a small box that was handed to me.
The ring was engraved with a blue dragon with an open mouth.
They say that this was a legendary work, which was left as a parting gift by "Ice Dragon Sleas," which was more harmful than Freon, before leaving for the Southern Continent.
I didn't think I'd wear it again.
"Your Majesty! Be careful! If this ring is worn by someone whose veins do not contain royal blood, then their finger will freeze… should freeze…" The puzzled ambassador stared at me with a stupid expression on his face, seeing how I put on the ring without any problems.
The previously invited Sword Princess and my son were also surprised, and the expressions of the Holy Mollan Empire were no better.
With my Righteous Hero's smile on my face, I made a declaration.
"Northern Continent, your emperor has returned!"