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A girl suddenly appeared in one of the safest places within the royal castle.

It immediately became clear that the royal guards could do nothing about this girl, who spoke politely but in an arrogant manner. There were many people capable of breaking a sword with their bare hands, but even with a sword pointed at her, she didn’t show a single sign of fear and even had the composure to yawn.

Even the strongest of men would have reacted, even slightly, when confronted by a force as powerful as the king’s guards. And yet, the girl’s expression didn’t change once. She was not just acting. I didn’t know what else to call this but a threat. It felt like she would strike back even if I sent our full force at her.

The words this girl spoke afterwards were painful to hear. She seemed to know as much, if not more, than I did, the king of Fraus, and although I couldn’t confirm it, I couldn’t help but believe it. The earlier disaster had been far too massive to dismiss as a mere whim of nature. Historically, such calamities should have been suppressed by the power of the spirits.

In recent years, however, that control had weakened, and we had even begun seeing occasional torrential downpours. It was also true that since the summoning of the heroes, this trend had only grown stronger. It was all circumstantial evidence, but pieced together, I was sure the girl was right.

But I could not accept these as signs of the world’s collapse. If I admitted that, I would be denying Fraus’ entire lengthy history. It would mean denying the royal bloodline passed down through the generations. As King of Fraus, that was something I could never accept.

And yet, it was also true that I had been the one trying to place the blame on Topersion. I couldn’t help but raise my voice, but doing so only made me feel as if I had lost something important as a king. Wondering whether I’d made the wrong decision tormented my heart.

As king, I had to take responsibility for my own choices. If that were the case, then what would that responsibility mean if the world truly collapsed? If this girl was right, then the fault lay with the kings of the past… But there was no point in thinking about that now.

The castle was under attack by the very people it was meant to protect. I began to hear footsteps gradually approaching the room, and eventually, the door was opened. Before I realized it, the girl was gone, and the knights were standing before me with their swords drawn.

There must have been more than just knights and soldiers in the castle who were capable of fighting. And yet, the head of Avaritia, who emerged from behind the door, had brought with him a force far greater than what a few dozen men could handle.

Why was this happening? I wondered.

In the end, they were just common folk. They weren’t professional fighters, and there was no logical reason for the king’s guard to lose. But the condition for our defeat was simple: if I were incapacitated, it would all be over. Even with some combat experience, I wouldn’t be able to win if I were surrounded by my people. Besides, Avaritia surely knew how to fight.

In contrast, the other side would be satisfied as long as they got my head or took me into custody, regardless of how many lives this took. It wasn’t an overwhelming force, but the situation was still to our disadvantage.

“It is you, after all, Avaritia.”
“This is all because the royal family betrayed us.”
“What might you be referring to?”
“Don’t play dumb. The recent disaster and the current war are all the royals’ doing, are they not?”
“You’re right. We fooled you!”
“We trusted you… You traitors!”

Avaritia spoke triumphantly, and the people followed his lead. Was it not the greatest disgrace for a royal family to be brought down by its people in such a manner? In the long history of the Fraus Kingdom, a situation like this would have been unimaginable until now.

But I couldn’t just sit back and let them get away with it. Though we were at a disadvantage, that didn’t mean there was no chance of victory. If I died, Avaritia would rise to the top.

If he were truly working for the good of the people, there might have been room for discussion, but I knew that wasn’t his intent. He and his followers would begin preying on the people and doing as they pleased. And if the world didn’t collapse, exploitation under Avaritia would likely begin.

“It can’t be helped. Avaritia, you will pay for the violence you’ve caused!”
“And you, Your Majesty, will pay for the lawlessness you’ve tolerated until now! Suffer the wrath of your people!”

When Avaritia raised his hand toward me, parts of the bodies of those who had come with him began to glow — arms, legs, faces. The locations varied from person to person, but upon closer inspection, I realized the glow came from magic circles. It was a type of enhancement magic, a spell meant to strengthen them. But even so, I doubted that would be enough to overpower the royal guards.

However, I then recognized the pattern. If I recalled correctly, it was one of the forbidden arts Topersion had been secretly researching. It was similar to the enhancements granted to the heroes during their summoning.

“Hahaha… I’m overflowing with power!”
“I think I can handle a knight or two like this!”
“I knew I could trust Sir Avaritia. Now I can purge the royal family with my own two hands!”
“Avaritia, you b̲a̲s̲t̲a̲r̲d̲… You sold your soul to the devil!”

The people rejoiced innocently, but the burden on their bodies for gaining such power in an instant would be far greater than that borne by the summoned heroes. Those who stood here now would end up in a hopeless situation.

I raised my voice in warning, but the people only looked at me in confusion, as if they had no idea what I meant. Avaritia, meanwhile, grinned in triumph.