NOVPUB<Cale-nim over Dragons (3)>
“His Majesty will be right here as soon as the meeting is over.”
Cale leisurely leaned against the hair as he listened to the subordinate.
‘It’s a better place than last time.’
He was escorted to the Emperor’s palace and the interior as well as the furniture were all much fancier.
It showed that he was treating Cale well.
There was no way they would reveal a portion of the Emperor’s palace to an enemy.
“I am the one who showed up early anyway. His Majesty can take his time with his meeting.”
Cale gently answered the Emperor's subordinate.
The subordinate slightly bowed respectfully with a stiff look on his face.
It was rare for the Emperor’s trusted subordinate to act like this to someone who wasn’t a high-ranking figure like the king of a foreign nation.
Furthermore, the Emperor’s trusted subordinate should be by the Emperor’s side.
Nonetheless, such a person was escorting Cale right now. That meant quite a lot.
“I will bring over some refreshments.”
“Please be at ease, sir.”
The subordinate looked as if he wanted to say something else but he silently left the reception room after seeing Cale lean farther back in the chair and look out the window.
Click.
He peeked attentively at Cale even as he opened the door and walked out.
Gulp.
He couldn't help but gulp.
‘Cisco…a Dragon…he suppressed one so easily.’
After Cale left their first meeting, the Haru King had shown them a battle through a video recording device.
The subordinate, who had been behind Emperor Alt, had watched the whole thing.
The ten Dragon gods…
When he heard that Cale faced and captured some of them, he thought the battle would have been quite fierce and difficult.
However, reality was far different from his expectations.
Cisco, the God of Fighting.
She was one of the higher ranking of the ten Dragon gods and said to be just under the Three Saint Dragons when it came to fighting strength.
Such a Dragon was suppressed so easily.
Cale Henituse.
She was suppressed by this person's power and unable to do anything.
‘It was extraordinary.’
For a human to be this strong…
He could not believe that.
At the same time, his heart was oddly beating wildly.
‘Maybe this-’
He thought that maybe it really was possible to take down the Dragon Lord and the Purple Bloods.
It made him think about a world with humans at the center of power, similar to how it had been before the cataclysmic period.
“…….”
However, the subordinate’s gaze quickly sank.
Click.
He closed the door and left.
‘Treat him with respect. Give him the best treatment possible.’
He recalled Emperor Alt’s orders.
The Emperor was treating Cale Henituse as if he was a Dragon.
Basically, he was admitting that Cale was strong and treating him as an esteemed guest of the Empire. Furthermore, he was revealing a portion of the Emperor’s Palace in order to build an even greater relationship with Cale.
‘But the problem is that he is treating this guy like a Dragon.’
Dragons.
They were existences that Emperor Alt had to eventually defeat.
Basically, it was saying that Cale was a similar existence to Emperor Alt.
Cale Henituse claimed that he would disappear after taking down the Purple Bloods but the Emperor did not fully believe that.
It was because the Emperor was someone who valued power and authority more than the truth.
‘…This is driving me crazy.’
Emperor Alt was trying to play both sides right now.
He was telling both Cale Henituse and the Dragons that he would do his best to help them.
‘Will it be possible?’
Was something like that possible?
‘Jealousy-
No.’
“No.”
He shook his head.
He quickly erased the thought that came into his mind.
The subordinate had a lot of things he wanted to say, but he just let out a short sigh and continued walking.
Step, step.
He kept his thoughts deep in his mind and drowned it out with the sound of his footsteps.
‘I've been worried because his Majesty is always so envious of others. It seems-’
He seemed to be desiring Cale Henituse's powers.
That was the reason he was doing exactly as he had been doing with the Dragons until now, bowing his head but finding the right moment to strike.
However-
‘It’s too much.’
His Majesty had spent a long time as the top human in this world.
But that seemed to have made him lose track of the limits of his own greed.
“Mm.”
The subordinate groaned and just stopped thinking about anything. He felt an ominous sense of fear.
He simply hurried his walking. He needed to report to the Emperor who had told him to look into Cale Henituse's movements.
As for Cale, he was looking at the closed door as he nonchalantly commented.
“Did they talk about us?”
Swoooooooosh-
A small whirlwind appeared in front of Cale.
‘… Freedom…! They did!’
Swiiiiiish, Swiiiiiiiish—-!
Two other whirlwinds appeared.
‘The left whirlwind is the Wind Elemental that has resided in the Imperial Palace the longest! It has been here since the days of the Haru Empire!’
‘Oh.’
Cale’s eyes opened wide.
The current spot of the Holy Empire was where the Haru Kingdom’s palace had been in the past when it was still an Empire.
They were basically a destroyed nation after being pushed far north now, but the reason that the Empire, which was at the center of Aipotu, shared a border with the Haru Kingdom to the north was because the Empire was the one to push the Kingdom out north.
“Hi?”
Cale looked toward the left whirlwind.
A Wind Elemental that lived that long should have quite a bit of information.
Pssss—
The whirlwind slightly shook.
He then heard the voice.
‘Haruuuuuuuuu—’
‘Hmm?’
‘Haruuuuuuuuu—’
“Hmm?”
Cale was truly confused.
‘Haruuuuu, Haruuuuuuu, Haru! Haruuu!’
“Huh?”
‘…Does this thing only know how to say Haru?’
‘Freedom! I will translate for you, Freedom!’
‘…I need a translation?’
Cale had a lot to say but held back for now.
Swoooooooosh-
The whirlwind that had been to Freedom’s right moved over to Cale’s side.
‘Around two hundred years ago, when the Empire lost their Imperial Palace… One of the Imperial family members was an Elementalist. This Senior Wind Elemental was that Elemental's summoner. Having his contractor die led to an issue with their contracted relationship making it so that his words will not be delivered correctly to you.’
Cale’s face lit up after hearing a whirlwind speaking properly after dealing with an Elemental that kept shouting about freedom and chaos and one that only knew how to say Haru.
"It would be great if you could explain.”
‘I understand, young master-nim. This Wind Elemental will offer everything I have to properly explain.’
‘Mm.’
Cale flinched.
‘This one is a bit off too.’
But he listened for now.
‘When the Third Saint Dragon, Axion, contacted the Emperor… Emperor Alt informed Axion about Cale Henituse-nim’s existence despite opposition from his trusted subordinate.’
The Elemental continued in a calm voice.
‘Of course, he didn't disclose all of the information. He simply said that you were strong enough to capture two of the Dragon gods, sir. Naturally, he kept it a secret that he agreed to cooperate with you, young master Cale Henituse-nim.’
“As I expected.”
Cale spoke in a relaxed voice.
‘He said that they needed to be wary of you and that he would lead you to a trap because he had won your trust.’
Emperor Alt…
‘This bastard is so funny.’
‘His subordinate asked him… He wondered if this was Emperor Alt just taking the Dragons’ side again. He asked if it wasn’t more beneficial to side with you, young master Cale-nim, instead of the Dragons. This was how the Emperor answered.’
‘Freedom, chaos!’
‘Ryan is dead.’
“Hooo.”
Cale was amazed.
“How did he know that?”
‘Apparently he was keeping an eye on the situation from outside the desert, sir.’
Ryan's castle was within the Empire’s territory.
Keeping an eye from outside the desert area would have allowed the Emperor to have a good idea about what happened even without being told.
“I guess we did have a huge fight.”
The blue mana, the black liquid, blue flame, and rose gold thunderbolts…
It was such a shitshow that they would have seen the dazzling lights even from afar.
“And he was certain that we were victorious and not Ryan.”
‘The Emperor also knows that the Second Saint Dragon was there, sir. Apparently he has always been keeping an eye on the Second Saint Dragon’s movements from a patrol station at a shore near her island.’
‘Wow.’
Cale was a bit amazed.
“He’s quite smart.”
Although he was extremely greedy and got overly jealous…
The Emperor planned for a fight between Cale, who had defeated Ryan, and Axion, the Third Saint Dragon.
“He probably sees it as a win if both of us die or even if one of us dies.”
The Third Saint Dragon was gathering as many troops as possible right now.
Honestly speaking, it was basically all of the troops in Aipotu other than the Dragon Lord and some of the Dragons gathering.
“But he is still foolish.”
‘I said that I would leave afterward.’
‘Oh, the Emperor also informed the Third Saint Dragon of the Pope's betrayal.’
“Ha!”
Cale was flabbergasted.
“No. I guess he thought it through before doing that?”
Cale had said that he would head back after everything was finished.
The Emperor probably did not fully believe that. Because he himself was not that kind of person.
As a result, he would want to balance the powers as much as possible.
But no matter how much he thought about it…
Creeeeeak.
The door opened.
“But still-”
He made eye contact with Emperor Alt.
“Still, so stupid.”
Cale smiled as he asked.
“Don't you think so?”
"What do you mean by that?”
Cale nonchalantly responded to the Emperor who was feigning ignorance.
“Ryan is dead. And Epley’s lair exploded. The entire island disappeared. Please feel free to check it yourself. Axion is the only one left other than the Dragon Lord who is not here right now, your Majesty.”
Cale's eyes observed Emperor Alt as he purposely spoke gently and respectfully.
This guy looked more like a General than an Emperor but what was inside was like a greedy opportunist.
“Let’s not make things complicated. What do you think?”
Cale had no thoughts of convincing the Emperor.
HE simply came here today to give a warning and a final opportunity.
“I know everything you did with Axion.”
“…….” 𝓃𝓸𝓿𝓹𝓾𝓫.𝓬ℴ𝓶
Cale shrugged his shoulders while looking at the Emperor who was unable to come through the door.
"What is the issue? Are you curious to know how and what I found out?”
Cale chuckled and pointed around him.
Swooooooosh-
Swoooooooosh.
Swoooooooosh-
Cale spoke while not hiding the whirlwinds.
"The world is on my side right now.”
He needed to do at least this much against this bastard of an Emperor.
“What I am saying is that anything you say or do will all come back to me. So let’s not make things complicated.”
“…Commander, you seem to have misunderstood my intentions-”
"Why would I misunderstand?”
Cale cut him off and asked as if he was truly curious.
“Do you think I have the time to waste misunderstanding your intentions?”
“…….”
The Emperor scowled.
Cale did not pay it much attention.
You needed to treat different people differently.
Acting like this was efficient for bastards like Emperor Alt.
“Do you know why I said that the world will return to how it used to be in one month and that I would leave after that?”
Cale got up and walked over to the window.
Chhhhh-
He then closed the curtains to the window that allowed him to see outside.
Cale then looked toward the Emperor who was standing at the only door out of this room.
“One month. No. It’s less than one month now.”
He had spent a good amount of time dealing with Ryan.
“If I can’t take care of things within that time, this world will perish.”
“……!”
The Emperor's eyes opened wide for the first time.
He looked as if he did not understand Cale’s words. The subordinate, who was behind the Emperor, turned pale.
“Does it sound like I’m lying? The Dragon Lord and the Purple Bloods are planning on casting this place aside and going somewhere else.”
Cale was not using his aura or any other power while standing in front of the Emperor.
He simply stared at the greedy Emperor’s face.
“Do you think a world will survive when they keep sucking out the foundation of this world? That world will eventually die. Isn’t that obvious?”
The Emperor’s closed mouth could not easily open.
“Ah.”
His subordinate was simply gasping with a blank look on his face.
“The Dragon Lord, Purple Bloods, and the other Dragons only have the thought of throwing this world away.”
‘Ah.’
Cale shrugged his shoulders as if he suddenly thought of something.
“The Pope as well. You know that, right? The Pope and the Bishops are the ones who want to destroy this world.
Haha-”
Cale let out a short laugh.
“Seriously, why does nobody have any lingering attachments to this world?”
However, the smile on his face quickly disappeared.
“Aren’t you the one who has the lingering attachments?”
He was no longer calling him Emperor or speaking respectfully.
“I think that you are the one with the most lingering attachments.”
Cale continued with a relaxed look on his face.
“I told King Dennis to convince the other kingdoms.”
– Human, is it okay to tell him that?
‘Why not?
What can this shitty bastard of an Emperor do?’
Honestly speaking, this guy doing everything he could was still not that threatening for Cale.
This was the same reason Cale was relaxed in front of the Pope.
Cale had already told the God of Death.
< You said that God of Balance is in a chaotic state right now? Then let’s call a large number of people from the Central Plains to come here. We’re lacking in numbers. >
< You should be able to help that much, right? Then I'll give you a few pieces of information about the God of Chaos. >
The God of Death read the message and sent back a single line.
< Wait a bit. >
It was basically a positive response.
Cale had nothing to fear if the Heavenly Demon or the people from the Martial Arts world showed up.
The Sichuan Tang Clan was extremely angry right now after losing their home because of the Dragon Lord.
Those people, who were crazy about the poisons and assassinations, coming here to fight would truly create a chaotic battlefield.
Cale enjoyed his allies causing chaos.
“Your Majesty, I'm sure you were logically thinking about power and about the world before the cataclysmic period until now. But you need to change your line of thinking.”
Pat pat.
Cale patted the Emperor’s shoulder.
He then whispered.
“If you wish to live, that is.”
The Emperor turned his head.
He made eye contact with Cale.
Cale smiled at him.
"What is the issue? “Do you want to die?”
The Emperor had not been able to say anything since coming to see Cale.
Honestly speaking, there was not much he could say right now.
His face just turned pale like his subordinate’s face.
It was because he could tell that Cale was not lying at all.
Cale spoke gently to him.
“Stick with the Dragons if you wish to die. Then you will be used as a chess piece before you are discarded with the world.”
He then nonchalantly commented.
“Or on the other hand, you can remain a hero in this world as Aipotu's greatest sword master.”
“!”
As the Emperor’s eyes opened wide…
His eyes focused on the smiling Cale.
The man, who looked paler than when the Emperor last saw him, spoke as gently as if he was the devil whispering in his ears.
“Death or hero. Either way, it will be fun.”
Cale shrugged his shoulders and walked past the Emperor and his trusted subordinate.
However, the Emperor was unable to stop him.
He simply watched Cale leave before speaking to the subordinate once he could no longer see Cale.
“…See him out.”
“Y, yes sir!”
The Emperor watched his subordinate rush toward Cale and mumbled to himself.
“…Destruction, that is not allowed. Absolutely not.”
An odd light sparkled in the Emperor’s eyes.
It was not because of a sense of calling or for the greater good. It was closer to greed.
“Shall we head out, young master-nim?”
Cale got on the carriage and nodded his head at Beacrox’s question.
“Yeah.”
The carriage soon started to move and Cale spoke to Raon.
“Can you send a message to King Dennis?”
“What should I say?”
“Let him know what the Emperor has done. The King will use that information wisely, don’t you think?”
The corners of Cale’s lips curled up.
He looked at the Emperor’s Palace as he commented.
“A hero my ass.”
What the Emperor, who was greedy for power and fame, would do was obvious.
HE also knew that King Dennis would use that information well to create a lot of allies.
Aipotu.
The issues of this world were something people of this world should handle, so shouldn’t they be able to do something with even this much information?
Cale stopped thinking about it and leaned back against the carriage chair.
He then nonchalantly commented.
“…Is Clopeh strong enough to fight Choi Han?”
“Human, doesn’t it make you curious? It makes me curious too!”
Clopeh and Choi Han…
Cale was quietly curious about how their fight would have ended.
As a result, Cale was able to see Clopeh who looked completely fine with no injuries and extremely happy as well.
He knelt down on one knee and looked up at Cale.
“Cale-nim. I will give you my all as your Guardian Knight and protect you.”
‘Ah.
This is the result that I wanted, but…
But seriously, ah…
Ah, why is it so-’
“How annoying.”
Cale subconsciously spoke his inner thoughts.
Cale realized his mistake but got even more annoyed after seeing Clopeh still smiling brightly with joy.
"Alright, you can have it.”
Cale quickly pulled the wooden sword out of his pocket and handed it to Clopeh.
The wooden sword covered in a cloth with Eruhaben's magic imbued in it was in Clopeh's hand now.
Clopeh pulled the cloth off.
He immediately grabbed the wooden sword.
Now he needed to put a bit of his blood on the wooden sword to have it recognize him as master.
“!”
Clopeh’s eyes opened wide.
Ooooooooong-
A message arrived from the God of Death at the same time.
However, Cale had no time to look at it.
He heard Clopeh’s angry voice.
He was glaring at the wooden sword as he spoke.
“You dare to compare a damn Dragon to Cale-nim?”
The wooden sword was shaking. It looked like it wanted to get out of Clopeh's grasp no matter what it took.
Clopeh looked at the wooden sword and smiled.
“You can’t get away.”
Clopeh's eyes as he looked down at the wooden sword while speaking gently to it…
– Human, human! Clopeh has gone even crazier!
‘I know, right?’
– It’s a bit scary!
‘…Yeah, it really is a bit scary.’
Cale slowly took a step away from Clopeh.
Raon as well.
Choi Han did so too.
All three of them took a step away from Clopeh.
—
Translator's Comments
One step away from Clopeh.
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