Chapter 198: The Continuation of Sleeping Beauty
Translator: imperfectluck Editor: Pranav
Actually, I had been thinking about creating the Mist Alliance for a long time already.
It would be an alliance with a mutual goal, and each country would wors.h.i.+p the Law G.o.d. Each state would have a similar legal system and would obey the premise of non-aggression to create a relatively peaceful area in the Northlands.
Yes, it would only be an alliance, not some legendary kingdom and definitely not an empire. I had no intention of reigning over others and declaring myself emperor in the borderlands or anything like that. In fact, I didn’t even intend to be the leader of any faction.
“I want to reduce the scale of this Holy War and the death it will cause as much as possible. I want to gather more power and be able to survive this dangerous war.”
My primary goal had never changed, and after all this perseverance, I seemed to have begun getting results.
First, one of the most important members of the foundation, Wumianzhe, increased in strength.
While this may not seem like a big deal, in my plan to break the cycle of reincarnation, unless Wumianzhe reached the level of a Main G.o.d of Order, the rest of my plans would be nothing but empty words. Only making this “boss behind my back” become stronger could help me survive at least a single blow from any veteran G.o.d who decided they didn’t like me.
In a way, Wumianzhe was the true victor of this battle. He obtained his own Hall of Valhalla and Cycle of Reincarnation, as well as the Northlands. From now on, he had his own territory, and he was no longer considered to be among the ranks of the third-rate G.o.ds, false G.o.ds, and Evil G.o.ds.
Currently, Wumianzhe was leveling up from a Low G.o.d to a Middle G.o.d. His Divine Obligation included Law, Contracts, and the Guardians.h.i.+p of the Northlands, but he still hadn’t yet obtained a complete Divine Obligation. The Concepts of Law and Contracts were both new to this world, and contracts had only begun to popularize themselves in Auland. Although I felt that Contracts had endless potential, there were too few users and believers, so Wumianzhe hadn’t received enough power from this source yet. It was still merely a potential source of power in the future.
And while the power of the law had even greater potential, Sulfur Mountain City was still the place where it was most popular. About the entire city was filled with believers, and this was only the result of me working hard for more than a century. While there were now quite a few believers in the Underground, as well as the small Eastern Mist Communal Country, the time had still been too short. Most believers were rather shallow in their beliefs and only understood the surface of the concept of law, so they couldn’t provide much faith power to Wumianzhe.
But the Guardian G.o.d of the Northlands was something else entirely. As long as the Guardian G.o.d protected this species and this area, even non-believers would be protected by him.
Those various prayers mixed with grat.i.tude could also give Wumianzhe a large amount of faith power, and this time, Wumianzhe even personally performed a G.o.d’s Descent. This divine miracle that everyone could see was far more convincing than anything else. Perhaps the miracle of the Northlands’ Guardian G.o.d’s descent would soon be known by everyone in the entire Northlands, and the other northern countries would support the Church of Law and provide additional faith for Wumianzhe in two different Divine Obligation areas—Guardians.h.i.+p and Law).
To almost reach the rank of a Middle G.o.d in less than two years after becoming a G.o.d was unbelievable. This sides of both Order and Chaos were probably paying attention to Wumianzhe now.
But…
“Being at the center of attention means either becoming cannon fodder or getting slapped to death in a single strike—it’s obviously not a good thing. It seems that it’s time to lay low for the time being.”
I definitely wasn’t hoping for the appreciation of the veteran Order G.o.ds, with their “praise” like “with great power comes great responsibilities”—I would be sent to the front lines as mere cannon fodder. And nor did I wish for the Chaos side to treat me as a thorn in their side to be removed early on.
“Since the battling here has stopped already, then we should be able to have a few days of peace. Heh, it’s time to let loose and relax a little.”
Thinking about this, I couldn’t help but smile. All this tiring fighting was in order to have a peaceful, flouris.h.i.+ng place where everyone could live happily after all. However, thinking about what I was worried about earlier changed my smile of satisfaction into a helpless wry smile.
“…I’m developing too fast. Even if Ayer is protecting me, I still need to be careful. It’s easy for a Main G.o.d to protect a Low G.o.d who doesn’t even have his own territory since there basically won’t be any clash of personal interests, but now, Wumianzhe intends to take over the entire Northlands, which basically means becoming independent.”
“Speedy development without a solid foundation will definitely make others red-eyed with jealousy. Those True G.o.ds of Order may not be all that powerful in a direct confrontation, but they’re experts at underhanded plots and backstabbing. After all, they just had over two thousand years of internal conflict, and quite a few of their veterans died without even knowing what hit them.”
“…But the non-aggression principle is an excellent excuse. Since we will never be the first to declare battle against anyone, it’s, of course, impossible for us to become cannon fodder. Then, unless an enemy comes to us… Yep, right now, we should focus on improving our defense, and we shouldn’t blindly focus on increasing our territory, which will give the other True G.o.ds and major countries an excuse—at least until the arrival of the Undead Calamity. The Mist Alliance countries will be limited only to the Northlands countries; this should at least make the mega-level human empires less concerned.”
Of course, I knew that it was impossible to make a tiger change its diet and become a vegetarian. I knew that, at the very least, Auland and San Antonio had had their eyes on the Northlands long since, but as long as I succeeded in stalling them for a few years, they would probably no longer have the time to think about us anymore.
“So, the next catastrophe will be the Undead Calamity? I wonder if it will happen earlier or later.”
The internal strife of the Xiluo Empire had never resolved their foundational problem. The Undead Lords that had escaped to the Undead Plane would definitely affect the Undead Emperors there. As long as the Undead Emperors still wanted to return to the mortal plane, with the increase in the Elemental Tide, the Undead Plane’s invasion was likely inevitable.
The only part where I could relax a little about was that the Undead Calamity was unlikely to focus on the Northlands since the land here was wide with the people spa.r.s.e. It definitely wouldn’t be as attractive to the Undead Emperors as the densely populated human centers in the middle of the continent. If I was the commander of the undead army, my first target would be to ambush the San Antonio Empire and the Bardi Empire, and I would conquer the cities that had the highest populations immediately in order to cast Undead Calamity and Death Plague—cough—cough—I accidentally got carried away; problem of occupation.
But I was confident of my own expert-level prediction since I had been an Undead Emperor in the past as well, and my prediction was the same as past undead invasions in history. If the undead army wanted to become stronger, it was necessary to s...o...b..ll their source of undead soldiers as much as possible, which meant that they had to first conquer those major countries with long histories and resurrect their graveyards’ strongest legendary heroes as the undead army’s main forces. They would have to use the commoners’ skeletons as cannon fodder and create countless amounts of new soldiers from battles—whoops, I accidentally got too excited again.
“When the undead truly begins their invasion, probably the undead under my command will be viewed in a different light as well. Perhaps I should create a preemptive mood and change their brand, giving them a new name and a new organization so that at least people know they aren’t those crazed, bloodthirsty undead.”
Imperceptibly, the undead under my command kept increasing, with the remnants from Xiluo that Omar had brought back, my Red Hunting Hounds squad, and the undead originally present in Sulfur Mountain City.
“Anubis Squad? It seems that this world doesn’t have a dog-headed G.o.d by this name, although it’s regrettable for dog-head lovers, I’m going to have to reject this name.”
“The Forgotten? This sounds plagiarized, and I’ll probably have to constantly explain what was forgotten. Rejected.”
“Undead Rock and Roll? Something strange seems to have gotten mixed up in here. Rejected.”
“Guards of h.e.l.l? This sounds pretty nice, although it does seem a bit ostentatious. I still feel like it’s lacking something. How about I combine it with my previous idea—Dog-Headed Guards of h.e.l.l, yep, this sounds harmonious and interesting! And we can use Bastian’s face as the emblem, and even give him a dog-head helmet! Ahh, I like it more and more already—I’m a genius at naming!”
I was getting delighted and was talking to myself with a constantly increasing volume.
“My lord, please don’t, otherwise Bastian and everyone will cry…”
The familiar confused voice belonged to the silver-masked Lilith Milan who appeared before me. Earlier, she had been in charge of work at Diffindor, but after the battle, she had returned here as well.
Just like how a certain naked tauren had exposed his own ident.i.ty in the Shawen Free States where no other tauren lived, my ident.i.ty was known by the people who knew me originally. Of course, some things were better left unsaid, with no need to directly ask, but I figured that the Four Heavenly Kings of Law probably knew my ident.i.ty already as well.
Currently, however, Lilith wasn’t in the mood to reminisce about the past. It was, of course, a joyous occasion for an old friend to meet an old boss, but hearing such words right from the start, which might end up with all the future Northlands undead having the nickname of “dog-heads,” was something not joyous at all.
And according to her understanding of Roland, if this “dog-head” t.i.tle was finalized, it would probably be incredibly difficult to get it changed.
Yet just voicing her opposition wasn’t enough, so Lilith could only wrack her brains and try to come up with a better name.
“…How about ‘The Guiltless.’ It indicates their foundational differences from normal undead as well as represents how they choose to stand under the protection of the Law G.o.d and that they’re guiltless citizens who choose to obey the law.”
I was hesitating whether or not to accept her idea.
Yep, I was just “simply” considering the advantages and disadvantages of these names from a “logical” standpoint. It definitely wasn’t because I felt that a dog-head emblem seemed really cool, and nor was it because I thought that seeing an undead army all wearing dog-head helmets would be really funny—I definitely wasn’t biased at all!
Lilith seemed to discover I was hesitating and mulled it over before apparently coming to an epiphany as she added another few sentences.
“Even if you call them The Guiltless, they can still use a dog-head emblem and the dog-head helmets. We can even make Bastian into their entire species’ mascot! As the leader of the Red Hunting Hounds squad, he should be delighted.”
“Okay, nice idea! That’s what it’ll be then!”
Lilith mentally apologized to Bastian who was about to become a mascot as she inwardly heaving a sigh of relief. After all, in a way, she herself would also be a member of The Guiltless. As a female who loved beauty, it would be too difficult for her to be called something like a dog-head.
But right when she was starting to relax, she heard a nostalgic name.
“Fina!? Isn’t this my cute little Fina?”
Amelia actually ran over here with an expression filled with surprise and joy, waving her hand as she rushed to us. It was quite rare to see her so happy, as her typical expression was grim and dark.
However, Lilith’s expression rapidly flickered between surprise, disbelief, anger, and helplessness. After having known her for so long, this was the first time I discovered that she had such acting talent with the many different expressions she could pull off.
“You guys know each other? Fina? Lilith, is this your real name?”
I recalled that Lilith had come to Sulfur Mountain City by herself. Every Blood Tribe member with no family would likely have some unpleasant memories, so abandoning her original name would be perfectly normal.
“My lord, there’s no Fina Milan here, only Lilith Milan.”
All of Lilith’s emotions finally quieted down as she spoke with only a calm expression, while Amelia still retained her expression of surprise and delight as she hugged Lilith.
“Fina, just where did you run off to? I’ve been looking for you all this time.”
“Aunt Amelia, please don’t call me Fina anymore. I am Lilith. Lilith Milan. Fina Milan disappeared from this world a long time ago.”
“Stop being so silly! No matter what, you used to be the female emperor of the Bardi Empire, my cutest and youngest niece…”
I discovered for the first time that actually both of them had the surname of Milan, and they actually resembled each other in physical appearance. It seemed they were relatives. And so, I pulled over a chair, sat down, did my best to erase my presence, and prepared to watch a good show.
And through their words of astonishment, I rapidly figured out the incredibly tangled relations.h.i.+p between the two of them. Well, it was tangled because of how Lilith viewed Amelia—Amelia was simply happy to see her youngest niece who she hadn’t seen in so many years.
And the story of their past was truly extraordinary.
“That ridiculous Sleeping Beauty story actually has a continuation in this world?”
Yes, Amelia was the evil witch in the story, and the Lilith Milan before me was the female lead of that very Sleeping Beauty story that ruined my childhood, Fina Milan!
“Fi—okay, Lilith. Relax, your aunt has already championed your cause. I tossed that ungrateful fickle man into a special plant garden, and he probably turned into fertilizer long ago. Sigh, I thought that since the corpse-loving prince wouldn’t be interested in normal women, he definitely wouldn’t be a playboy or a liar and at least be a good person. It’s all your aunt’s fault for not seeing through him. Hmph, Lilith, now you’ll believe me, won’t you? Your aunt is absolutely correct! There’s not a single good man in this world!”
Fine, she even viciously glared at me while saying this for no apparent reason. I’m innocent! I swear!
At the very least, I was able to get a clear view of the picture through their discussion.
So, the true story of Sleeping Beauty wasn’t all that romantic at all. The prince from another country, who was actually a necrophile, woke up the Sleeping Beauty, and the willful witch’s curse was broken. However, the following developments weren’t like a fairy tale at all.
When Lilith’s father, the king, saw his daughter wake up, he was incredibly overjoyed, and he even believed this to be something like a legendary “kiss of true love.” He delightedly deluded himself into believing that his daughter had discovered her true love, so he betrothed Lilith, who was still confused and didn’t know what was going on, to that prince. Since that prince from another country wasn’t in the line to directly inherit the throne in his country, he unhesitatingly agreed to marry the Bardi Emperor’s only daughter, who would be the future empress herself.
The following was where the story completely derailed from the usual plot of a fairy tale. The prince, who had a rather unique personality, had no interest whatsoever in his newlywed wife, and instead spent all his time in the graveyards, until finally the prince, who had studied undead magic before, decided to turn his wife into what he loved the most. And so, he used the curse of the Blood Tribe on her, turning Lilith into a living corpse, and he also tried to use evil necromancy magic to enslave her.
But he didn’t expect that Princess Lilith was also an excellent swordswoman, which coincidentally helped her to transform into a Blood Tribe n.o.ble who maintained her intelligence.
And so, in the royal palace, the two of them had a fierce battle, until the Bardi Empire’s Holy Knights and priests arrived in time and exorcised the “evil queen emperor who bathed herself in evil magic in order to remain forever young.” In the end, the scandal was hushed up, and that prince became the emperor.
But, according to Amelia’s story, he didn’t get to be emperor for very long, because the furious witch discovered this plot when she returned to visit her relatives and finally transformed the prince into fertilizer for her garden. Evil was punished and justice was served; it was a cla.s.sic fairy tale with a happy ending. Congratulations, my condolences, congratulations…
“To h.e.l.l with your congratulations! No matter how you look at it, this is all your fault, Roland!”
“What!?”
I took yet another unexpected blow. I obviously had no connection to this story whatsoever; back then during the time it took place, I was busy searching the world for clues for my revenge. How could I possibly have anything to do with it?
“If it weren’t for your betrayal, causing me to lose trust in men, how could I possibly set such a strict test in order to a.s.sess Lilith’s future husband? And in the end, such a pervert was the one who pa.s.sed, harming Lilith to be befallen with such a terrible fate! In the end, all of this is your fault!”
I was instantly rendered speechless. It wasn’t that I was unable to retort; I was angered to the point of not knowing what to say.
“Even this can be counted as my fault? Then I might as well be the root of all evil!”
“Aunt Amelia, there’s no need to blame Lord Roland. I just had a tough life. Heh, I’m over it now; men are all ugly and untrustworthy. I only like women now. The me from that time was so foolish.”
Okay then, so the legendary rumor that some people could change their s.e.xual orientation after meeting with a huge romantic setback is true after all!
But when Amelia heard her niece declare that she was now a lesbian, she took two steps back, and her face paled. It seemed that she must have been a lot purer on the inside than what she appeared on the outside.
But I immediately discovered that I was wrong in my understanding, as Amelia actually started bawling out loudly.
“Waahhh! My poor little Fina, it’s all your aunt’s fault. Even if that b.a.s.t.a.r.d is dead already, your aunt will definitely find that b.a.s.t.a.r.d’s undead teacher for you—waahhh—it’s all that b.a.s.t.a.r.d teacher’s fault, saying something like ‘Don’t mind what others think of you, and work your hardest at seeking true love. If the one you love doesn’t meet your standards, you can try using your own way to change her and accept her.’ That undead mage teacher, who didn’t take any responsibility for teaching as he pleased, is the true culprit!”
Hearing her angry roar, I instantly dropped all the snacks I was eating onto the ground. Why did this phrase sound so modern and so familiar? It sounded exactly like a sentence I read in a Chicken Soup for the Soul on Earth. Could it be that it was popular in this world as well?
“A prince? Back then, in order to obtain more information for my revenge, I did take in several disciples from powerful families, including Suana’s father, and I think there was a person from Som. Could he have been…”
“Eh? Roland told me this exact phrase before as well; he was encouraging me to follow my heart and seek true love, which was how I worked up my courage and determination and started discarding my bias in order to find my new happiness. Is this a popular phrase? Was it said by someone famous?”
Lilith’s expression was filled with surprise, but Amelia had her head lowered as she mumbled, “I knew it, I knew it, only he—” She suddenly turned around and started laughing insanely at me.
“Heh! It was indeed ‘said by someone famous,’ but soon, it’ll become the ‘crazed words of a dead man!’ As expected, you’re the only person who could possibly be the culprit behind it all!”
There was a b.e.s.t.i.a.l look in her blood-red eyes, and her green hair was growing at a furious pace. Her killing intent and anger was exploding to the point where even the ground was trembling from her frightening power.
“I knew those so-called logical seeming Chicken Soup for the Soul books were completely unreliable! Following its advice can only lead to problems! Ahh! Amelia, don’t hit my face! I still have to go to a conference in a bit!”