CH 678

The words that needed to be said to the Allied Force Commanders were not long.

Withdraw all the allied forces and send them back to focus on reconstruction.

Effective control was not immediately possible, nor was it meaningful.

It would come after they became self-sufficient in their own lands.

For now, it was better to disband the allied forces, scatter them, and ensure they couldn't regroup or disperse without our strength.

My decision to rule over you does not bring actual control.

The more problems we solved, the more they seemed to increase, rather than decrease.

After ordering the withdrawal preparations for the allied forces, I entrusted all these matters to Rowan, Louise, and Harriet.

The rest of us had to deal with more pressing issues.

The vacant Imperial Palace.

We needed to fill the emptiness of the Imperial Throne as soon as possible.

Since there were no battles scheduled anyway, only Charlotte, Olivia, and I arrived at the palace.

The palace guards seemed to know that we were coming, and they naturally cleared the way as I appeared.

I could not see the expressions of the guards inside their helmets.

However, all preparations for a bloodless takeover of the palace had been made.

Of course, it must have been done by Bertus.

The palace was almost empty, except for the guards at the entrance.

In truth, people were not needed for the palace's defense, as the magical barrier did the job.

Nevertheless, the most important people remained.

"Your Highness, you have returned."

"I can't be called that anymore, but yes, I have returned."

The master of ceremonies was there, the person in charge of all internal management of the palace.

Though he wasn't someone who went outside, he remained in his position, taking care of the palace's operations.

------

The empty palace became mine with just a single step.

To be precise, from here on, it was Charlotte's responsibility, not mine.

Charlotte, naturally, was well-informed about the palace's situation and would quickly grasp the palace's operations.

So, I had nothing to do.

Olivia and I walked through the central Imperial Palace, Tetra.

The central palace was solemn, quiet, and vast.

Olivia gazed at the high ceiling of the central palace.

"It doesn't feel... real."

"I agree."

We had raced towards the end of the war.

But the events that unfolded after the war's end were so consecutive that it felt like a dream.

I had only thought about getting here safely, and the tasks that followed seemed overwhelming.

The emperor's palace, which was once unapproachable, was now mine.

But it didn't make me happy.

"Is it... overwhelming because I'm too small?"

Olivia seemed to feel more overwhelmed and distant than accomplished, looking at the huge palace.

"I feel the same."

This palace alone was huge, but the world was incomparably larger.

Our words would make the world turn, and a single mistake could be irreversible.

There would be divisions, mergers, and conflicts at times.

Just as I took on a central role, Olivia also held a massive responsibility.

She bore the heavy mission of unifying all those who believed in the Five Great Gods and carrying out religious reforms.

So both Olivia and I couldn't help but feel the pressure.

"Still... we've managed to come this far."

Olivia hugged me quietly.

"We can't lie that there will only be happy moments."

"...Yes."

"Still, let's believe that we can do well. We've managed somehow so far. We'll manage somehow in the future too."

The girl who had once rejected religion was now forced to do what she had never wanted to do.

It was all because I had wished it upon her.

I had always been the one to receive.

Even now, I could only give her, "Thank you. Always."

Having no reason not to be grateful to her, I hugged Olivia tightly.

As if I was trembling a bit.

Olivia, who was hugging me, was definitely trembling too.

Still, we had to believe that things would turn out well.

Just as a sense of defeat would inevitably lead to failure.

Because a despairing vision would bring only despair.

We had to believe that things would turn out well.

------

How much time had passed?

Summoned by the attendants, Olivia and I headed to the Emperor's office. Charlotte tidied up the piled documents on the desk and placed them neatly on the right side.

"You just need to come and sit down."

"...Is that all?"

"Yes."

Though Charlotte knew most of the matters, Bertus had made sure to hand over everything properly before he left.

"It seems like most of the core bureaucrats knew what would happen next. You can just summon them and have them continue their work. Of course, there will be those who are scared and run away, but even in those cases, it's already arranged who to appoint as successors."

The administration was not left in a void.

Bertus had arranged everything in advance so that the situation would be maintained just by my presence.

"That doesn't mean the situation is good. The absolute famine issue is still severe, and of course, there's the resentment against the empire, as well as the opposition and uprisings that will occur when you ascend the throne. Those aren't problems Bertus can solve for us. We'll have to figure it out ourselves."

As the war continued, people became increasingly exhausted.

We could take over the empire.

But the crumbling empire embraced countless problems.

We were not drinking from a poisoned chalice, but swallowing the poison itself.

Taking over the empire wasn't easy, nor was managing it.

We had inherited a sandcastle on the verge of collapse.

Although we could operate the empire through the remaining bureaucrats, the challenge of stabilizing the imperial capital remained.

Would everything be over once the imperial capital was stabilized?

There were still issues with the imperial territories and the vassal states.

We would have to begin winning their complete obedience and providing assistance for them to become self-sufficient.

"The one silver lining is that when the allied forces withdraw, we can use the resources that would have gone to the military for the imperial capital. Originally, this situation would have lasted for about another year. It's a blessing in disguise, I suppose."

The quick withdrawal of the allied forces meant the preservation of resources.

The existence of Harriet was of great help to us and to everyone in the world.

Truly, Harriet had become the greatest mage in history, not only for humanity but for all races.

Charlotte stared blankly out the window after finishing her words.

I couldn't help but know what she was thinking.

She must have been thinking about Bertus, who had disappeared.

After completing all the preparations, Bertus disappeared.

No, he had fled.

However, neither Charlotte nor I had expected Bertus to flee.

Somehow, it seemed like he had resolved himself in a different way than we had anticipated.

"Actually, this might be better. People will hate the emperor who ran away, and then they can easily let go of their attachment to the Gardias royal family."

If the emperor had been executed, there might have been those who believed in his innocence.

But the fact that the emperor had fled would lead to the disappearance of any last lingering attachment to him.

So, Charlotte would have thought it was fortunate that Bertus had escaped and was still alive. Just like I was thinking now.

However, neither Charlotte nor I could be certain whether Bertus had really thought that way when he fled.

"We can't pinpoint the whereabouts of Christina, Louis, and Anna. We probably won't be able to find them. We'll have to check on their situation eventually. The facilities for creating immortals have all been destroyed, and it's impossible for individuals to rebuild them, but we can't know for sure."

We needed to find out if Christina was really dead, and if she was, whether the other two were dead as well.

We couldn't rule out that possibility either.

And what had happened to Ludwig?

On top of that, there was the issue with Antirianus.

Not everything had been resolved yet, and I didn't know everything.

The list of things to do kept growing, as did the responsibilities I had to bear.

------

Two weeks had passed since the battle of Diane.

During that time, Charlotte had managed the overall affairs of the empire.

The allied forces began to return slowly under Harriet's guidance.

As soon as they returned, word would spread across the continent that the Gate incident had ended in victory for the allied forces.

And the story of the empire's betrayal and the Demon King would also spread.

The people of each region would deal with the ensuing chaos on their own.

Conflicting claims would arise between those who rejected me and those who had seen me directly in the allied forces, which would lead to numerous conflicts across the continent.

I couldn't handle everything at once.

I hoped that the leaders of humanity would carry out my words properly.

For now, I didn't know about anything else, but at least they should eat well and live well.

Governing them in practice would come later.

It was already difficult enough to manage the affairs of the empire.

After the withdrawal of the allied forces, the complete end of the Gate incident was announced in the empire.

All forces had returned to the empire.

And then.

The story of the Demon King swallowing up the empire would spread simultaneously.

A joy so great that it would quell all the confusion that had arisen thus far.

And a strange story that would suddenly make that joy seem bizarre.

The betrayal of the empire and the reign of the Demon King.

It was a story that would inevitably be revealed someday.

A black propaganda campaign began.

The Gate incident was actually caused by the emperor, and the Demon King had been trying to protect humanity.

That was the gist of the content.

In the central palace Tetra's conference room.

Me.

Harriet.

Charlotte.

Olivia.

Airi, who had been summoned from the Edina Archipelago.

Liana.

Sarkegaar.

The Vampire Lords, excluding Antirianus.

Rowan, the commander of the Holy Knights.

And finally, Louise von Schwarz.

In other words, all those who would have to take on the role of the real power in my regime from now on were gathered together.

If only Archduke Saint Owan had been here, but he had returned to his duchy with his army, leaving behind the words that he would entrust everything to his daughter.

"...Honestly, I wouldn't believe it either."

At my words, everyone gathered in the room slowly nodded in agreement.

The black propaganda.

To be frank, it was too obvious.

It was nothing more than a new regime attempting to justify its rule by slandering the previous one.

"But we can't just not do it, can we?"

At Olivia's words, I nodded. Whether people believed it or not, it was a good thing for me if even a few more people believed it.

"The testimony of those who saw you fight in the allied forces will serve as evidence."

The unbelievable black propaganda.

Real combatants would testify to it.

That would give it some degree of persuasiveness, and I agreed with Charlotte's opinion that it would be enough.

Charlotte began her explanation.

"The affairs of various parts of the continent are not yet at the stage where we can intervene. First and foremost, our goal should be to support and stabilize the Imperial Capital."

"Over time, a significant portion of the forces that returned to their homeland will likely harbor different intentions."

"Many of them may refuse to accept our rule when we start functioning as an empire. This could be the position of the rulers, or a result of representing the oppressed."

"However, there isn't a single force in the whole continent that can invade the Imperial Capital with military power. So, their resentment can only reject our rule but cannot pose any substantial threat to us."

"Securing political legitimacy will be difficult. However, once they become dependent on us, obedience will follow."

"Dependence doesn't always require force; it could come from our strength, resources, or technology."

"In the long run, we can subdue the entire continent under the empire through economic means rather than political or military ones. Once they are well-fed, denying our rule would mean creating a situation where everything falls apart."

"Everyone may hate us, but if we make them realize that everything they enjoy would disappear without us, we can rule them."

"Fortunately, we have the blueprint for the new warp gate."

With those words, Charlotte looked at Harriet, who nodded in response.

The new warp gate.

It was the second button for us to rule the entire continent.

"First, let's focus on stabilizing the Imperial Capital."

"Then, we'll restore and redesign the warp gates throughout the continent to economically integrate it. If we control the warp gates, no one can defy us."

Living a peaceful life by miserably submitting to the Demon King.

So, we would subdue them economically rather than militarily.

In the end, economic prosperity would accelerate the reconstruction of civilization.

The moment we possess the warp gate, the leash of the entire continent would fall into our hands just by having control over it.

We briefly discussed the path we should take in the future.

"There might be situations where we actually have to use force. Food supply is tight, and we need to worry about Edina's issues. So, let's stay in the Imperial Palace for the time being. We never know when or where a situation may require our presence."

The Imperial Capital was like a boiling pot.

With the potential for an emergency to break out at any time, we had to stay within the Imperial Capital for now.