Having sent Evelyn No. 2 away to settle down and reflect on the meaning of infrastructure and farming,
Leon stepped out of his room.
Tomorrow would be the day of his meeting with the Shadow King.
Besides meeting the Shadow King, Leon also planned to reap some benefits in the Endless Bay.
To do that, he needed to make some preparations in advance.
With that in mind, he took Titus and the other warriors, along with the Deep Diver—which had been shrunk to the size of a backpack—and headed to the waters off the coast of Jellyfish Town.
“Put it in the water,”
Leon ordered quietly.
Titus stepped forward and carried the heavy Deep Diver into the sea.
The moment the Deep Diver touched the surface, a crisp clicking of gears echoed, and the metal sheet, which was previously only the size of a backpack, rapidly expanded.
In the blink of an eye, it transformed from a one-cubic-meter metal block into a small submarine over fifty meters long.
“Evelyn No. 0, happy to be of service,”
a mechanical voice rang out from within the submarine. After a brief pause, it added,
“The joy in my heart right now is equal to Miss Alicia's joy when she eats a lollipop.”
Leon: “...”
So Evelyn No. 0 actually remembered their last conversation?
After a few seconds of speechless silence, Leon led Titus and the other Limit warriors into the Deep Diver.
“Familiarize yourselves with the internal facilities,”
Leon said.
Ratahn and the other Falcon warriors were only at the Bronze rank. Although they could fight Silver rank enemies when working together, their individual strength was still too weak.
Therefore, Leon did not plan to bring the Falcon warriors along for this punitive expedition against the Burns Court in the Endless Bay.
Since he would be the primary combatant anyway, having Titus and the other Silver-rank Limit warriors as guards was more than enough.
Furthermore, Titus and the others would only need to focus on fighting.
As for piloting the submarine and avoiding magical beasts in the ocean, those tasks could be fully delegated to the artificial intelligence, Evelyn No. 0.
Hmm?
A female-voiced, ship-controlling intelligent robot.
Come to think of it... could Evelyn No. 0 be considered a shipgirl?
But Evelyn No. 0 didn't have a physical body; she was just a conscious entity housed within the core of the Deep Diver. Could that really count as a shipgirl?
Shaking his head, he brushed the somewhat complicated question from his mind.
Leon placed the alchemical core into the power slot and ordered No. 0 to pilot the Deep Diver to begin its descent.
“Head beneath the surface of the Endless Bay!”
...
A day later.
The Dusk Sea.
Clad in a suit of blue ice armor, the Frozen King stood on the deck of the Shadow, her gaze fixed on the calm sea.
Behind her, the still-pale Shadow King mirrored her posture, staring out at the azure waters.
“Leon might not actually be able to heal your injuries,”
the Frozen King suddenly spoke, her tone cold.
“Even if he knows the cure, he might not necessarily help you.”
“He might even use the excuse of healing you to lure you into facing the Burns Court's undead army directly, while he sits back and reaps the rewards.”
Behind her, the Shadow King listened and replied calmly,
“I know. But I don't have a choice.”
Since Leon had set the meeting place at the Endless Bay, it meant he intended to use the Shadow King to deal with the Burns Court.
But... this was a pledge of allegiance that the Shadow King had to offer anyway if he wanted to seek refuge with the Heron Empire.
Eradicating the undead strongholds in the Endless Bay meant making an enemy of the Burns Court.
In the past, this might not have been a concern, but now the Burns Court was a dominant force in the Dusk Sea.
“Once we make an enemy of them, my forces will undoubtedly be targeted and retaliated against by Burns V in the future.”
The Shadow King's mind was remarkably clear:
“However, it is precisely because of this that I can show I have no way out. Only by seeking refuge with the Heron Empire with such determination can I earn Leon's trust.”
The Frozen King turned around to meet the Shadow King's gaze.
“But have you ever thought...”
“...that Leon Douglas might not have any intention of accepting your submission at all?”
“He might even be using this meeting to eliminate you by the hands of the Burns Court, adding another achievement to his record.”
The Frozen King had never hesitated to harbor suspicion toward the so-called empires, whether it was the Heron Empire or the Nightmare Empire.
Those nobles, thoroughly marinated in bureaucracy and obsession with achievements, were always short-sighted, chasing immediate gains while ignoring the long-term future.
Anyone with half a brain could understand that Leon currently lacked a foothold force at sea to gather information on the Burns Court and serve as a strategic buffer.
But... so what if they knew?
Who could guarantee that Leon wouldn't just directly convert the Shadow King's life into an achievement, bypassing the need for a sea-based force altogether?
After all, Leon was a noble!
Due to her background, the Frozen King had met many nobles and knew full well that they never cared about the consequences of long-term development.
They only knew two things:
First, only a fool passes up easy profit.
Second, by the time problems arose, they would have already been promoted and fled, leaving the mess for their successors.
Facing the Frozen King's warning, a smile appeared on the Shadow King's pale face.
“Yes, I share that concern.”
“So... if I die at Leon's hands, I'll have to trouble you to look after the people on Shadow Island.”
“I'm sure our most kind and lovely Miss Camilla Soto won't let them suffer.”
The Frozen King was annoyed at first, but hearing the latter part of his words, her face flushed with embarrassment. She suddenly turned around and punched the Shadow King right on his wound.
The pain made the Shadow King gasp sharply.
Fortunately, the Frozen King was a mage with a weak physical body. Even though she swung her fist, she didn't cause any real harm.
Seeing the Shadow King's face contorted in pain as he doubled over, the Frozen King snorted coldly:
“Stanley, don't think I'll fall for your flattery!”
The Shadow King raised his hands in surrender, a placating smile on his face.
“Boss, it's time! The boys are ready.”
Just then, the voice of a trusted subordinate came from behind, reminding the Shadow King that the agreed time had arrived.
“Alright, I got it,”
the Shadow King called back.
Turning back to the Frozen King, he said,
“Don't worry. From what I've gathered, Leon Douglas is no traditional noble. His character is highly praised by the public throughout the Heron Empire. He shouldn't do something as short-sighted as killing the goose that lays the golden eggs.”
“Besides...”
The Shadow King smiled.
“Don't look at me like this just because I'm heavily injured. If I really put my life on the line... I might just be able to take Leon down with me!”
With that, the Shadow King walked down the deck and ordered his men to steer the ship toward the Endless Bay.
By the time he finished giving his orders and returned to the deck, the Frozen King was already gone.
“Tsk, leaving without even saying goodbye?”
The Shadow King clicked his tongue in regret. He had thought he might get a hug from the Frozen King and experience what it felt like to hold a Fairy in his arms.
Turning around, the Shadow King gazed in the direction the ship was heading, his expression gradually shifting from regret to resolve.
The Dusk Sea bordered the southern part of the Heron Empire, the extremely hot volcanoes of the Caruso Highlands, and the southwestern border of the Nightmare Empire.
But other than seeking refuge with the Heron Empire, did he, the Shadow King, have anywhere else to go?
Rate on N.U.
