Chapter 66

Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack, crack…!

A roar like thunder shook the air, as if it could make the entire audience chamber tremble.

At the king's terrifying voice of anger, I trembled, Noem trembled, and even Resreizer and Izabelera, who were still glaring at each other, turned to look at what was happening.

Most of all, Recolis, the councilor who had been directly scolded, turned pale and was shaking violently.

"Decades on the throne...! Has anyone ever mocked me as king to this extent...!?"

The king, whose shoulders were trembling.

It was due to the intensity of his emotions.

The cunning councilor immediately tried to defend himself...

"Please wait, Your Majesty! Mockery...!"

"Not just me. Even King Lubrum, who is not present here, would be mocked by your foolishness, thinking that your incompetence would be overlooked...! And above all, the repeated insults to Ryuya...!!"

The king pointed at the bald councilor and then smoothly moved his finger to the side.

It resembled the motion of beheading someone.

Indeed, that was what it meant, as the soldiers who had been standing in the corner of the room immediately stopped being discreet and rushed over, grabbing Recolis by the arms.

"Throw him out of the castle... no, out of the capital. If he resists, you may cut him down."

"Please wait, Your Majesty! Will my request not be heard?! Please, a word in my favor!"

"Why do you think it will be heard? Do you have maggots in your head?"

The king, harsh and angry.

It must mean he was extremely upset. While it is the duty of a king to listen to the people's voices, it is quite a challenge when it only makes him angrier.

"Please wait! There is one more thing! I have something to offer you! Can we make a deal with it?"

"Hmm?"

The bald man, unwilling to give up.

"Your country has had a strained relationship with the church recently! It is not good for your country to have a rift with the church, the only one capable of opposing the demons!"

"..."

"Fortunately, I have acquaintances among the bishops and cardinals! I can work to repair the relationship between your country and the church! If you hear my request!!"

"......"

Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack, crack, crack, crack...!

The veins on the king's face seemed to pop out immediately, as if you could hear the sound!

"Who would desire such a thing...!?"

"Huh?"

"The church, I severed ties with them! They did not send reinforcements when the demons attacked, causing many of my soldiers to be injured and many of my people to be endangered! I refused further donations and dismissed the negotiator!"

"Huh? What? Haaa...!?"

"How could you dare to speak so boldly without knowing such a thing! How can you serve as a councilor with such a superficial understanding of the situation! Get this trash out of here now!"

The soldiers once again pulled Recolis by the arms.

The bald man was dragged out, his feet scraping along the floor.

"Damn, I listened to him out of reflex. It was a waste of time...!"

"It's a professional hazard."

The king, who tries to listen to all the people's voices.

But that councilor, having many acquaintances among church officials, makes sense.

That explains why he dislikes me, a person without skills. The church, which grants skills in the name of the gods, is the source of skill supremacy.

The church constantly aims to dominate the world through skills.

They skillfully use the situation where monsters and demons run rampant to infiltrate their agents into various places like the kingdom and guilds.

Recolis, the councilor, is one of them, and so was the A-rank adventurer Soeides.

He also openly discriminated against the skill-less and tried to fail me with an unreasonable test.

When that didn't work, he resorted to more extreme measures...

...Huh?

"Wait a moment."

"What is it, Ryuya? I want to move on to a more pleasant topic. How about thinking of a name for the child Resreizer will bear for you?"

"Please wait a moment before dismissing Recolis."

I was able to ask him.

Recolis, who was being dragged by the soldiers, his feet caught on the threshold of the door, was questioned.

"Oh, what is it? Are you thinking of declining the S-rank promotion? That's a wise decision, a hero who saved Lubrum!"

"It's related to that..."

I had heard the name Recolis somewhere before.

I couldn't remember where, but I finally recalled it.

"That guy mentioned your name."

"Huh?"

"The A-rank adventurer Soeides."

It was right after our direct confrontation.

The defeated Soeides, with both shoulders shattered, as a last-ditch effort, summoned the calamity of the demigod Oceaneus using a Nereus larva.

It was the beginning of a great disaster that threatened the survival of Lubrum, but at that time, I clearly heard the name Recolis.

"Soeides did say that the one who gave him the bottle containing the Nereus larva was you."

"What!?"

"So you were the mastermind behind that incident."

I should have remembered it sooner, but I finally did.

The mystery that remained unsolved in that incident was where Soeides got the Nereus larva from.

Stealing the daughter of the ultimate transcendent being, the demigod Oceaneus, is an impossible feat for a human.

Not only that, but sealing Nereus in a bottle with special treatment to block Oceaneus's detection and using it as a trigger for the tsunami disaster is a feat that seems beyond human capability.

Of course, from an ethical standpoint, it is a monstrous act that cannot be considered human.

"Still, I put it on hold because there were no clues. I didn't expect the clue to come to me."

"I don't know what you're talking about! I won't tolerate baseless accusations!"

Denial is a common tactic of villains.

Breaking through that denial is a common tactic of the good side.

"To treat this adventurer guild councilor Recolis as a criminal! It's an insult, you skill-less scum! Do you want to have your adventurer's license revoked?!"

"If I can't become S-rank, you'll probably lose your position as a councilor anyway. So it doesn't matter how you're treated."

The king interjected in our conversation.

"I have already decided to designate this man as a banned entry, but if Ryuya wishes, I can imprison him as a criminal."

Upon hearing this, Recolis's already pale face turned even whiter.

"I don't know anything! I know nothing! I just remembered I have an urgent matter to attend to! Let me go, let me go!"

Recolis, who had been trying to stay in the castle and resist the soldiers, now tried to escape from the castle and struggled against the soldiers' restraint.

He's so obvious.

However, I can't understand how someone like him could deceive the demigod Oceaneus.

Did he use a tamed adventurer?

Even then, it would be impossible. I myself, who faced Oceaneus directly, know how transcendent the demigod is.

Even if they were A-rank or S-rank, to Oceaneus, they would be like insects, and it would be impossible to even scratch or find a weakness.

The gap between humans and demigods is that vast.

"How did you manage to steal Nereus from under Oceaneus's nose...?"

"Hmm, very interesting indeed."

A ghost appeared from the void, a very alluring noblewoman.

It was none other than the other demigod, Abinion, whom we were more familiar with.

"What's the matter? You were out of sight."

"I heard a story that concerns me. Oceaneus, my kind, was deceived and used. It's a very unpleasant story. If it can be solved, I want to be involved."

Abinion, who seems carefree, might actually care about her kind.

Recolis, seeing Abinion's sudden appearance, shouted, "Monster!? Monster!!!"

"To call the most beautiful woman a monster is disrespectful. Should I crush your soul?"

"Abinion, that's you."

However, I can't imagine this small fry being capable of deceiving Oceaneus.

Abinion seems to agree...

"The most likely scenario is that there is someone pulling the strings behind this scum."

"The mastermind behind the mastermind..."

Indeed, that makes more sense.

Soeides was just a pawn for a larger shadow, and Recolis was a pawn for that shadow.

The real culprit prepares multiple lizards' tails to cut and discard to ensure their own safety.

"Still, we should make the one who can sing sing everything they know. We should make use of this scum, right?"

"Stay away, monster! King, help me! A monster has infiltrated your palace!"

The king, whistling, pretended not to hear the desperate plea.

"I'm leaving! Coming here was a waste of time! I will achieve the prevention of the S-rank promotion of the skill-less by my own means!"

"Fools are truly pitiful, don't you understand your situation?"

Abinion, with a cruel smile fitting her presence...

"You are now a prisoner. You will not leave here until you reveal all the information I seek."