Against the World II: Transgression
Chapter 51: Other Battlefields, Part 4
Minner halted his run when suddenly his eyes found a stranger sitting on one of the huge mounds of rock. His actions made the troops he led also stop. The vampires led by the three members of the Moon Temple also stopped. Their views all focused on the individual Minner looked at, the individual who was more than twenty meters right in front of the king.
Minner ordered his troops to stay in place and in a state of alert, then darted straight towards the person who had interrupted their journey. The same thing the leader of the vampires did; the three of them had walked parallel to him approaching the individuals who had approached them. None of them expected this, but they also could not immediately turn around or take a detour.
The closer they are to the individual, the more obvious it is that what their eyes see is not a hallucination.
Xavier sits with his right leg crossed and his left leg bent. His left hand rests on his left knee, while his right hand stands upright on his right foot. His head tilted with his eyes closed, his right cheek resting on top of his right fist. He showed no special expression, as his body did not radiate strength or air of existence.
“I did not see the imperial flag as you said back then,” Minner said as he stopped exactly three meters in front of the stone mound where Xavier was sitting. “Or, do you have another reason that makes you stop us from heading for Axellibra?”
“Minner Ertharossa.” Xavier opened his eyelids slowly. “I'm coming to give you a choice.”
When the sentence was finished, Xavier's red eyes had already pierced into Minner's eyes. The commander did not even look at the three vampires beside him. Those red eyes were only focused on the king.
“...Asumsiku has been wrong,” Minner murmured accompanied by a head bobble. “You don't work with or for anyone. You do what you want and for your own sake. You really are El.”
“Starting today, I am Emperor of the United Empire of Islan.” Xavier ignored Minner's words, saying what he wanted to say. “Vermillion Kingdom's. Elf Kingdoms. Desert Kingdoms. Caligula Kingdoms. Ekralina Kingdoms. Maggarithaz Kingdoms. Hongariand Kingdom's. Favilifna Kingdom's. Vladivta Kingdoms. Emeralna Kingdoms. Those ten kingdoms are already vassals of my empire, and now I have come to offer the same to you.”
“You will still remain as king,” continued Xavier without giving a pause. “Your power in the autonomous region of Warebeast Great Kingdom remains the same. Only, your position can be deposed if you fail to fulfill what the empire expects. Your power will not be absolute. In the freedom to rule your kingdom, you must remain in the course that the empire will set.
“Later on, you and the kings/queens will be part of the Imperial Council that Prime Minister Achilles will lead. Conflicts between vassals will be resolved in meetings. If the deal doesn't happen, you'll talk to me. I alone will decide how the conflict should be resolved. If anyone does not accept, his position as king/queen will be revoked. There will be no more war under my watch. Now, make your choice.”
…Now it was clear to Minner that he was talking to Xaver at the time. Now there was no need for him to guess anymore; everything was clear. But—
“I have four questions.”
—Minner has four questions that need answers. He will make his choice based on these four answers.
“Forward.”
“First question: You mentioned ‘Vermillion Kingdom’, what happened?”
“I killed Nueva. Seized empire. Forcing Achilles to work for me. There cannot be an empire within an empire. There can only be one emperor in this land.”
Minner wanted to laugh at that answer. However, he held back. Although Xavier was not impressed to lie, but he was not entirely honest. Nueva is dead and Achilles is working for her. Minner can be sure of that, and that's enough— for now.
“Second question: What would you do if I refused? Are you going to kill me and force my descendants to obey you?”
“The empire will give you six months to reconsider your answer, but after that be prepared for the worst if you still refuse. You can join the Emiliel Holy Kingdom to try to fight back. Fie Axellibra had indeed died at the hands of Vermyna Hellvarossa, but Kanna el Vermilion and several Imperial Army divisions had allied with them. You and all those who oppose will be given a chance against.”
All Xavier's words seemed to fade from Minner's ears when the commander—who had now appointed himself emperor— revealed that Fie Axellibra had died. The three vampires beside him were not surprised; they had complete confidence in the queen. However, even though Minner believes Vermyna has become unusually strong, hearing Fie Axellibra get killed is still surprising.
“...Vermyna will not do anything that will make her face to face with her husband. About him seizing the New World Order, he'll be punished for his indecency. New World Oder to be disbanded.”
Minner was not the only one who fell silent with a stupid face after hearing Xavier's words. Lucard and Cainabel too. Even Hecrust also showed his surprise behind the mask that had become his trademark. Although Xavier's remarks were not entirely clear, none of them failed to understand the conclusion of the statement.
“Your last question.”
Xavier's remarks returned Minner from her overwhelming shock. Rather than Fie dying, hearing that Xavier was Vermyna's husband was even more shocking. Even in imagination, she would never have imagined Vermyna would have a husband. Even if there was, Minner thought it was Hernandez. Xavier's…. Minner never thought he'd be the one.
“...How?” Minner couldn't help but ask.
“What is your fourth question?”
Of course it wasn't. Minner's fourth question has nothing to do with it. However, at this point, he no longer cared about his fourth question. What he wanted to know was more important than his fourth question.
“Ya,” Minner replied seriously. “Ang that fourth question.”
“Hm...” Xavier changed his sitting position – now both his legs are cross-legged and his hands fold on his chest. “He caught me while I was fighting Fie. He locked me up in a dimension where time was running fast. There he satisfied himself with using me. She forced me to be her husband. …He sealed my mana and rendered me helpless.”
…Minner could not hold his laughter any longer, even Lucard laughed with him. Only Cainabel and Hecrust didn't laugh. Cainabel looked at Xavier with a face of disbelief, and Hecrut. Minner could not say how she was expressing it.
“Do you enjoy it?” asked Lucard with his pretentious grin. “I can record the number of vampires willing to exchange their lives to be in your position. Heh, maybe Crow ju—”
“Lucard.” Crow appears suddenly along with Lumeira and Valeria. “Continue saying, and you will lose your vocal cords forever. I don't know what you're saying, but obviously it's not a ‘baik’.” thing
Lucard's grin did not fade, but he did not continue his words. Crow's sharp gaze made the vampire dare not continue to talk. As could be expected of Vermyna's strongest subordinate.
“Minner, your answer.”
That remark again made the attention focused on Xavier. And just like before, Xavier still ignored the vampires. He didn't even glance when Crow and the two women appeared.
“Knowing Vermyna is behind you, I will only bring the Warebeast Great Kingdom into ruin if it is in the opposite position.”
“But,” continued Minner without giving Xavier a pause to respond, his jaw hardened and his gaze sharpened. “If you're going to declare war on Emiliel Holy Kingdom and its allies, I won't help. This is the last one for me.”
“Then I decided today you have become my vassal.” Xavier said slowly and then stood up. “So war, no need to worry. There will be no war. I just need Menez's help to subdue everything. If Menez is busy, I can do it myself. Now, back to your kingdom. This war is over.”
…Xavier von Hernandez immediately disappeared after saying that. And even up to his last second here, he didn't even glance at the vampires.