Crepin Subjugation Battle (6)
The previous head of the family, Brahms Rothtaylor, was poisoned during the usurpation of the second-in-command of the imperial family.
His uncle, Baine Rosstaylor, was killed by the demi-humans as an abandonment in a battle he was destined to lose, and his mistress, Marie Rosstaylor, was assassinated by a rival family.
In addition, many others died while playing in the hands of power. The matriarch’s throne where Crepin was sitting was stained with blood.
Nevertheless, he never resented anyone, got angry, or went crazy… He quietly sat on his throne and observed the world.
He clearly rose to the second-in-command position in the imperial family, condemned scoundrels who tried to take advantage of the family, and exterminated rival families who were secretly seeking to take advantage of him.
Gradually, he had no hesitation about killing people and took advantage of others for granted. Although he hid his real appearance and walked around the estate as if he were a benevolent duke, the fishy smell of blood was always present along the path he walked.
From the time he was born until now, he has become a villain to survive, and he has not justified that fact or tried to be understood by anyone.
The words his ancestor Brahms Rothtaylor whispered to him when he took over as head of the family still remain in his mind.
In this world full of scheming and secret tactics, only one of the two can survive for long.
Either a hero or a villain.
If you can’t be a hero, become a complete villain.
Don’t rationalize or feel remorse, just rule as a villain.
Rooftop of the annex of Ross Taylor Mansion.
Hundreds of heavy items of luggage rest on the shoulders of Crepin, who is sitting on the railing overlooking the estate.
Nothing is light.
If the sacrificial ritual is completed, more than half of the gathered guests will die. In this way, Mebula will feast on the soul of the noble man and bestow Crepin with the power to wield that power for the rest of his life.
“… … .”
He was left with many excuses.
There are many ways to justify yourself as a villain and give reasons why you had no choice but to twist.
For example, it is the expectation and trust toward Crepin.
The faith of Arwen and her vassals who trusted him until the end when he decided to roll in the mud. In the end, Crepin’s path will be right and he sends him away… That unconditional, infinite trust.
It could be said that the weight made it difficult for him to take a step back any longer, pushing him further down the path of darkness.
――That is the situation of Act 1 boss Yenika, who is currently running towards Ed’s room.
Or, it could be regret for something lost.
His mentor Brahms, who had to die in the process of usurping power, and his mistress Marie, who had to die in a secret struggle. If the people he had to lose remain in his heart, whispering in his ear that he should not compromise and become a thorough villain… It’s quite plausible.
――That is the situation of Act 2 boss Glast, who eventually dies in remorse for his lost daughter.
Otherwise, it may be nothingness itself.
He rose to the end of his power by killing many people, but in the end, all that remained was a large mansion and a large estate.
All of the family members died or were scattered, and Arwen, who had followed her until the end, was half crippled with her own hands.
In the end, the only thing left in his life is great strength and power, so if he has no choice but to run to the end of the road, even if it means borrowing the power of evil spirits… It’s not that bad.
–that… This is the situation of Lucy, the boss of the third act, who lived her whole life as a strong person, but after losing Glokt, her reason for living also disappeared.
Whichever direction you take, it won’t be too bad.
Although Crepin thinks so, he does not compromise in any way.
The half-ruined railing looks like a king’s throne.
Sitting firmly on top of it, he bows his head and waits.
He was born as a wicked person, and he dies as a wicked person until the moment he dies.
The world is discussed as pure evil that is not tainted until the end.
That was the attitude he took throughout his life to survive.
As long as that purity is fully established, no storm can shake it.
Act 4 final boss.
The head of the family, Crepin Ross Taylor, was quietly contemplating the world.
* * *
The dagger split the tentacle.
The spirit consciousness appeared and flames rose up, completely breaking the tentacle in two. The moment Ed grabs his sword and leaps back again, the flames from the mug burn down the entire hallway.
It seemed as if the conquered workers had been swept away and the road had been cleared, but soon the gremlins broke in and broke in.
―Kyaaaaaaa!
Demons making vicious sounds jumped towards Ed’s body with blades, but the wind rose and pinned all the gremlins to the wall.
The white-haired girl who appeared behind him as if blooming suddenly swung her hand once more. The gremlins are crushed by the pressure of the wind, and are all burned by the subsequent flames of the mug.
Just like that, Ed ran across the hallway on the first floor.
Jenica and Clarisse were the same running down the hallway. After crossing the hallway of the central mansion and arriving at Ed’s room, the two simply broke down the locked door and went inside.
I was thinking about quickly grabbing Ed’s wand and leaving, but the room was bigger than I thought, so I was confused about where to start looking.
Ed’s wand is quite bulky. Searching under the bed and behind the dresser, I eventually found Ed’s cane under the large work desk.
Just like that, Yenica picked up the wand and handed it to Clarice.
Yenika had to remain in the central mansion and escort the VIPs. After sending out all the VIPs, it would take too long to go directly to Ed.
Saint Clarice has the protection of holy laws that can protect her body from almost all types of attacks. Since it was relatively safe, he was the right person to deliver the wand.
Clarisse nodded and quickly turned around, holding her wand tightly. At that moment, Yenika called Clarice over.
Clarice turned her head to look at Yenika, as if in confusion, and Yenika looked at the letters spread out on Ed’s personal desk.
Because of the sheer volume, it was impossible to read everything. However, a feather that fell between the letters caught Jenica’s eye.
He picked up the feather, held the end, and swung it around… Soon she handed her feather to Clarice.
When Clarisse was puzzled, Yenica added that she should tell it to her.
On the first floor of the central hallway, Selaha was leaving the central mansion with Dest.
The garden in front of the central mansion had already been torn apart by all kinds of monsters. It was a sign of Ed running wild as he headed toward the annex.
Princess Selaha narrowed her brows and looked around. The ruined grounds of Ross Taylor’s mansion are still full of monsters.
Dest dissuaded Princess Selaha, saying that it could be dangerous if she went any further. Selaha thought for a moment, then shook her head and walked out through her garden.
Meanwhile, Senir Bloomriver, who was leading a group of VIPs, was heaving a sigh of relief.
Thanks to the group of spirits that Yenika dragged along, the lives of the remaining VIPs were able to be protected. In addition, thanks to Yenika opening the hallway of the central mansion, a route out of the mansion was also secured.
Senir quickly walked out into the hallway, leading the group of VIPs. He cautiously and calmly, holding his breath, made his way across the hallway toward the exit.
The sky outside the window was still full of spirits fighting with gremlins. The VIPs swallowed their dry saliva and suppressed the urge to run out.
Everyone is heading to their own destination. Even as each person rushed forward with their own purpose, time was passing steadily.
Among them, the one who is most in trouble is probably… It was Tanya Rosstaylor.
-bang! bang!
“… … .”
The workers were kicking down the door of the food storage room. Tanya hugged her shoulders and trembled.
A spire rising in the center of the mansion grounds.
In the storage room on the middle level of the spire, Tanya was holding out, the door barricaded with furniture.
―Paaaaaaaaa!
―Paddeuk!
The wooden door was pierced by the gremlin’s dagger, and a creepy eye could be seen through the hole.
“Uh, uh… .”
Tanya quickly strengthened the door and ran inside the storage room.
* * *
―Kwakwang! bang!
Clearing the road was a breeze.
By utilizing the power of Mug and Lacia, I conserved consumable magic engineering supplies as much as possible.
Since it was necessary to conserve some magical power, Merilda’s power was only partially manifested and used.
Just by using basic elemental magic, the path cleared, and before I knew it, I was running up to the second floor of the mansion annex.
The second floor of the annex was full of even more hideous monsters. Even the smooth tentacles had all kinds of bizarre flesh attached to them, pressing them with even greater force, and the gremlins with reddened skin threw blades with berserk magic applied.
―Kaaaaaaaaa! Kyaaaaaaa!
The humans who make strange noises barely resemble humans anymore. It feels like limbs are attached to a lump of flesh.
It was a sight that made me feel sick just looking at it, but I gritted my teeth and used my magic to subdue them all.
[ Master Ed! Now that we’ve secured space on the stairs, let’s go straight up! This fire candle mug will keep your rear in check! ]
“If you don’t clean up the hallway, you could get stabbed in the back!”
[Then it would be better… Wouldn’t it be better to get up to the rooftop first and then destroy the rooftop entrance? ]
“… Yes, that makes sense!”
Replying to Mug’s words, I quickly ran up the stairs.
[Oh! My direct words were valid! He became such a dignified lieutenant spirit, but he also played the role of a strategist… Great job myself… ! ]
Actually, if you think about it calmly, it’s not that difficult to come up with a plan, but I didn’t go in and kill Mug’s excitement by pointing it out.
[Master Ed. More gremlins will appear above. ]
A calm Lacia reported the situation above. I gathered more magical power and flew the wind blade.
―Crispy! Kasasasak!
As I watched the group of gremlins being wiped out helplessly, I realized that my basic magic firepower had increased considerably.
No matter how many gremlins win, it is not easy to produce enough firepower to wipe out a group with a single blow.
I climbed the stairs again and again, stepping on the bodies of gremlins that were pouring down. His body was already covered with the blood of his enemies.
As I walked up the stairs of the mansion, avoiding the strangely bulging flesh all over the stairs, I finally came to an open hall.
The stairs end here. This is because the third floor of the mansion annex consists of one large hall.
To get to the rooftop, you have to cross the hall and run up the final stairs.
The hall boasts the largest size of the annex. The space was named ‘Ross Taylor Hall’ after the family name… Almost all of the outer walls had already been blown away.
Cool and well ventilated. You can also see the starry sky at a glance.
Lucy can be seen in the distance, fighting with Mebula in the heat of battle, and the sight of the spirit legions fighting the gremlins decorating the night sky is also impressive.
It was the moment when I was about to pass through Ross Taylor Hall.
―Crack, crack, crack.
In the center of the hall, a figure was seen standing up, twisting its body strangely. More than half of his body was already covered in grotesque flesh, and it seemed like he had no sense of reason left.
I checked that face and frowned. It wasn’t a very good relationship, but it was an old story anyway.
One of the two knights who came to Aken Island to kill me under the orders of Crepin Rosstaylor.
The eagle knight Kadec glared at me with his white eyes.
At that moment, huge tentacles broke the floor and rose up from all sides of the hall.
* * *
– ‘You look good on it, Tanya.’
– ‘What is this feather, Sister Arwen?’
― ‘It’s a wild bird feather from the Felvelo region.’
Now it is a faded memory.
On a warm day, Tanya was sitting on the terrace and being held in Arwen’s arms… She smiled brightly as she stroked the feather decoration she had beautifully placed on her head.
― ‘It’s really pretty…’ .’
– ‘You can decorate your head like that, or you can hang it on your collar. Men also put it in the front pocket of their tuxedo.’
– ‘Now that I think about it, you also decorated your blouse for dance. It suits you so well.’
– ‘huh.’
Arwen gently stroked Tanya’s face and suddenly looked sad.
― ‘The wild birds of the Felvelo region are so colorful. If you pick the feathers of one bird, the color of the feathers of another bird will almost never overlap. So, it is said that there is a custom of sharing feathers of the same color among family members and decorating them individually.’
– ‘Wow… is it so… ?’
– ‘I sent one to Ed and his father… Will you decorate your body? ‘I don’t know.’
When Ed’s name came up, Tanya’s expression became even darker.
It had been a week since Ed and Arwen separated on the terrace.
After that, Ed stayed alone in his room without talking to anyone and seemed to be in deep trouble.
Tanya, who was young and unaware of the situation, was so scared of Ed that she only stuck to Arwen.
― ‘I hope my sister and brother reconcile quickly… .’
– ‘Tanya. ‘Maybe Ed and I will never be able to reconcile again.’
Tanya was in tears when she heard that.
Arwen had a hunch. By the time Crepin was confirmed, Edwa had already crossed the river of no return.
Living as Crepin’s successor all her life, Arwen had a deeper understanding of the human being Krapin Rothtaylor than anyone else. Arwen sympathized with Crepin to her core.
Perhaps Crepin Rothtaylor will exploit even Arwen herself to the limit. He is a man who uses all the means at his disposal.
Even if Crepin viewed Arwen as nothing more than an outcast, Arwen was ready to affirm him as his daughter and family member. Arwen is that kind of person.
Crepin’s life is full of blood.
It is a life in which one establishes oneself as a villain in order to hold on to the throne.
He is a person who will live as a lonely evildoer until the day he dies, without a single person who understands him.
The only people who can support such a self-indulgent man are his family.
If she is the only one who can understand his bloody path, she is willing to go to the darkest reaches for him.
However, Arwen could not force her own decision on her younger siblings.
Ed, who separates, is also Arwen’s beloved younger brother. He cannot force the sacrifice even on him.
Crepin is a poisonous species among poisonous species.
If Arwen dies or is no longer useful… The magic will spread out to Ed and Tanya.
So, no matter what happens, grit your teeth and endure.
In order to carry out her own choice and protect her younger siblings who are following a different path, Arwen herself must never die.
– ‘Tanya… ‘Listen to me carefully.’
Arwen hugged Tanya tightly and spoke.
– ‘My father always looks noble, but he is actually a lonely and pitiful person. ‘I probably won’t be understood by anyone in the world.’
– ‘sister… .’
– ‘And, Ed and Tanya… You are my little brothers whom I love so much. Because I’m greedy… I want to embrace everyone… .’
Tanya could clearly feel the strength coming into the arms that were tightly hugging her.
―Woe to you!
Suddenly, Tanya came to her senses and raised her head.
I was so out of it that I was resting against a shelf in the storage room.
―Bang, bang!
The gremlin was still knocking on the storage door. Tanya went deeper into the storage room and opened the window.
It was quite tall as it was on the central level of the spire. There is no guarantee of safety if you jump, and there is no guarantee that you will be safe from monsters if you use wind magic to land in the garden.
Tanya, who was looking out the window and feeling the wind blowing in the sky, swallowed dry saliva. Then suddenly I turned my gaze towards the annex.
Ross Taylor Hall, where the exterior wall collapsed and the interior was exposed.
The man standing there looked familiar. Tanya swallowed his dry saliva, gathered his magic power, and stood on the window sill.
My legs started shaking.
* * *
―Aaak, kaaak! Kaaaaagh!
―Kwaang, shush!
A human shape emerged from between the rising tentacles. The girl who came up from underground under the protection of tentacles… It looks familiar.
One arm that shouldn’t have been there is sticking out. The same goes for one leg.
However, compared to the slender limbs of the opposite hand, it is quite bizarre. Rather than being flesh, it was closer to the shape of flesh being patched together. This was also Mebula’s power.
The flowing blonde hair is similar to Tanya and Ed’s hair color. I’ve already seen it once from underground and came up.
The girl who bloomed like a flower among the tentacles was holding a great sword with one hand. It is the great sword ‘Daybreak of Dawn’ that was piercing the girl’s body just moments ago.
And he wears a sword about half the size horizontally behind his waist. This is ‘Condemn’, one of the swords used by the first swordsman Luden.
The girl jumped down from the tentacle and landed in the center of Ross Taylor Hall. and… The head of the Eagle Knight Kadec was cut horizontally.
―Crispy!
Kadek’s neck rolled on the floor a few times, then turned into ash and disappeared. The same was true for his body.
It happened in an instant.
“Mebula’s power comes at the cost of mental pain. “To the point where it would be better to die quickly.”
In the center of Ross Taylor Hall, a slender girl standing in the moonlight stuck her great sword into the floor.
Then, he knelt down towards Kadek, who was disappearing into ashes, and quietly put his hands together and prayed in the moonlight.
“Kadek, he devoted himself as a vassal of the Rosstaylor family for a long time. “If this is all I can do for you, I will probably be punished greatly in the afterlife.”
“Sister Arwen.”
“I already let it all go, Ed. I walked in the opposite direction from you. Even if I embrace all the sins of the world, I decided to affirm my lonely father until the end. Even if the end of the road leads to darkness.”
The girl kneeling and praying next to the great sword is strangely sacred, even though one of her limbs looks terrible.
“That’s the conclusion I came to while living as Ross Taylor’s successor, watching my father, and being with you all. Your father probably doesn’t even care. “I would just be an outcast and a scapegoat to be exploited.”
“… … .”
“Still, I decided to affirm my father until the end. Otherwise… “Because my father will die in loneliness until the end.”
Arwen stood up again.
“So, I can’t pass from now on. “For my father and for you.”
Magical energy enveloped her body, and strength came into her body. With all kinds of auxiliary magic… Slowly raise your upper body.
With one hand, he picks up the huge greatsword, ‘Daybreak of Dawn,’ and with the other hand, he pulls out Luden’s holy sword, ‘Condemn.’
These are two swords that symbolize the time when he lived as the glorious successor to Rosstaylor.
“Go back.”
“… … .”
“The Ross Taylor family is over. Now live your life. “I will be here until the end.”
He is a person whose existence was not even known in the political world.
You can’t see it anywhere, not as a boss or a hidden boss.
Finally, as Ed Rothtaylor, as a member of this damn world, I feel like I have met my destiny.
A girl standing blocking the road.
The forgotten heir, Arwen Rothtaylor.
She was standing in the center of the hall, bathed in moonlight with her bright eyes straight open.
