Chapter 13: Showdown

「Title: So, is the King of Regarium a psychopath lol?

-He's harsh to his daughter, but then goes ballistic when she leaves. What's his deal?

┗Dude, even if you ask us…

┗It's just the tutorial stage anyway, who cares?

┗Yeah, just grab some starting items and opportunities lol」

「Title: You know why the King in the post above is like that?

-I heard his wife died early because of some incident. And then, he has a daughter who resembles his wife? But younger?

┗Just leave, dude lol

┗Ugh lol

┗Please just die. Please….

┗So, the reason he's so harsh is because he's fighting his last remaining conscience?

┗Oh....

┗What 'oh' dude lol」

---

The next morning.

For some reason, I woke up feeling refreshed and have been awake since dawn.

Perhaps because it's a Royal Palace, the scenery outside the window was truly picturesque.

‘Should we build a palace too?’

There's a building similar to a palace on the Religious Order's grounds.

Just then, my shadow cast on the floor suddenly wriggled.

“...Huh?”

I looked again, thinking I saw wrong, but it really wriggled as if it were alive.

What the hell.

I almost immediately poured Divine skills into it, but I barely regained my composure and started to observe the situation.

-Rustle.

The wriggling shadow momentarily paused, then gradually took shape.

The first thing I saw was a pair of red eyes. Then, a delicate physique and a neat nun's habit.

It was our Belladis.

“...Bella?”

“Father God. Were you uncomfortable in your sleep…?”

She emerged from my shadow as if it were natural, and just as naturally asked about the quality of my sleep.

“No, I just woke up… but.”

Unable to contain my curiosity, I asked her,

“How long have you been in there…?”

“Since you were in your bedroom, Lord God. I've been waiting.”

“….Why.”

“Because I'm by your side…?”

As if asking why I'd ask such an obvious question.

With that sentiment evident in her overall expression, I just… had to accept it.

It hasn't been long since I came to this world, but the followers' constant worship seems to be getting heavier by the day.

“...Hmm.”

Recalling last night's events brought back the dizziness I had forgotten.

The Princess gained Realization.

Well, good. That's fine.

The problem is, she keeps trying to get involved with our Religious Order.

If she tries to get involved with the Princess, it will incur the wrath of the psychopathic King above her.

And then what?

From then on, I'll be having a six-star Fan Meeting, getting ostracized worldwide.

‘...Seriously?’

But the opponent is Regarium.

To dismiss it as just a tutorial helper nation, the prestige it holds in the setting is too high.

-Your daughter gained Realization and is half out of her mind, but we won't take responsibility, so deal with it yourself.

Then her father will laugh heartily and order his Knighthood to sacrifice their lives.

‘So annoying.’

I need to find a good excuse somehow.

As peacefully as possible, and without harming anyone.

‘I wouldn't have come if I knew this would happen.’

Who would have known?

That NPC that other users drool over, desperate to recruit.

That NPC who built a wall of nightmares in the Community.

Would have fallen with just one Simulation—

‘This is bad.’

The Religious Order's image being on the verge of ruin absolutely needed to be prevented.

I spent some time with Bella, and the morning sun rose to a suitable position.

-Knock, knock.

It was around then that I heard a knock on the door of the room we were in.

Soon, a familiar-looking Knight opened the door and appeared.

The Knight Commander, ‘Ricardo Baltar.’

‘Is this old man free these days?’

It feels strange to think that the Knight Commander of a nation came all the way here to escort me.

Because I thought a maid or a butler would come.

‘Thinking about it, maybe not.’

My current status isn't a guest, but a target of caution.

Since an incident could happen anytime, anywhere, it could be that they've carefully selected personnel on their side.

“Shall we go?”

I politely greeted him.

“...I shall escort you.”

Still maintaining a formal demeanor, Baltar began to guide me in a disciplined manner.

The scenery inside the Royal Palace was exactly as I saw it in the Game.

However, the transcendent vividness inevitably caught my eye.

‘Being a King is nice.’

I hold a similar position to a King among my followers, but the feeling is different.

Our Bella has been super tense since earlier.

There are no longer any traces of injury on me, but her determination not to allow a second incident is evident.

‘Can you stay still?’

‘If Father God commands.’

So, before leaving the room, I laid down some insurance.

Just in case she misunderstands and does something strange on her own.

“It's lively.”

I expressed my honest impression.

Immersed in modern scenery, actually encountering such rare sights made my heart pound continuously.

The servants, butlers, and even the occasional noble-looking officials busily moving around the Royal Palace.

Very restrained, but their dedication to their respective roles was very pleasing to see.

If I return to the Religious Order headquarters now, will my followers also show this kind of appearance?

I'm really looking forward to that time.

“...Thank you.”

Praise for the Royal Palace is praise for himself.

Baltar, who was guiding me through the palace, replied a beat later.

“I wonder if His Majesty has been well.”

I wonder if he's been doing well.

At least he hasn't perished until I've progressed to the final stage, so he must be fine.

“His Majesty is always in good health. Under his rule, the Regarium Kingdom prospers day by day.”

At the textbook answer, as if he memorized the manual entirely, a smile crept onto my face.

“That’s good to hear.”

Since there's nothing wrong with the Kingdom I viewed favorably, I wasn't in a bad mood.

In the first place, I came here partly to see the Royal Palace.

And so we arrived in front of a huge door.

“Please enter here.”

“Is this… the audience chamber?”

“No.”

Baltar replied in a stiffer tone than before.

“...Then?”

“His Majesty wishes to meet you in the conference room, Constellation.”

Conference room?

Is it the conference room I know?

The room where the King discusses important national matters with his officials, right?

-Rumble…

Passing through the giant door that opened with a majestic sound, I stepped inside, and a lavish and enormous interior, too extravagant for humans to use, greeted me.

‘...Whoa.’

The moment I saw it, I felt overwhelmed by something.

An atmosphere where authority seemed to reside in every structure, even every speck of dust.

It felt like the boundary between the inside and outside of the door was completely separated into different dimensions.

-Click. Click.

Bella and Baltar followed me inside.

“Your Majesty.”

Baltar, who entered the room, immediately knelt and waited for the man's reaction.

An old man with a white beard, showing the passage of time.

‘Should I kneel too?’

I have my Constellation pride, so I just stared blankly at the situation.

“Your journey here.”

A brief silence followed. The old man, after staring at me for a while, suddenly opened his mouth.

Despite his somewhat weak and hoarse voice, a unique firmness could be felt.

Dignity and demeanor as if he had lived his entire life to reign over others from the moment he was born.

“You’ve worked hard.”

My first meeting with the King of a nation left a deep impression on me.

“It’s an honor to meet you.”

I offered a subtle smile and slightly bowed my head in courtesy.

“The Knight Commander may leave.”

“...!”

King Edmund, who had nodded in response to my greeting, ordered Baltar's dismissal.

“B-But, Your Majesty.”

“There’s no need to worry. You may go.”

In this vast room, there was only me, Bella, the King over there, and the Knight Commander.

The Knight Commander was the only one who could handle any unforeseen circumstances.

And yet, he was being told to leave.

It felt like a decision that was half-suicidal.

“...Bella, do you want to leave too?”

I asked tactfully, and once again, the King intervened.

“Your Follower may stay.”

“Y-Your Majesty.”

“It’s an order, Knight Commander.”

He was the King.

Unable to disobey, the Knight Commander finally took his reluctant steps out the door.

-Clang…

The heavy door closed once more, completely isolating the three of us within the room.

“Please, have a seat.”

The aged King continued to show me consideration, just as he had from the beginning.

“Thank you for your consideration.”

Normally, there would be bothersome formalities and procedures.

But he seemed keen to cut through all that and get straight to the point.

I slowly walked over and sat in a suitable spot.

The chair looked quite antique, and the moment I sat down, I thought, 'So this is the life of a noble.'

I settled into the plush comfort and waited for the King's next words.

“I hear you descended to this land yourself to stop the Holy War.”

Edmund Carsein brought up the topic directly.

“That’s correct.”

“For a while, we thought you had abandoned this world. Or perhaps… that you had lost your power and vanished somewhere.”

I hadn’t known this would happen to me either.

Who could have imagined it?

Becoming something akin to a god overnight and exploring a strange world.

-Gnash.

At the word 'vanished' from the King's mouth, Bella, who was standing beside me, gritted her teeth.

It was good to see her restraining herself as much as possible, as I had asked.

‘Time to start working,’ I thought.

This was the crucial part.

I had to somehow gain the King's favor to lay the groundwork for the conversation about his daughter later.

‘Should I apply some Blessings?’

The healing skill I granted was very beneficial to the human body.

For the aging King, it would be the best tonic.

For that, first…

“Someone fed false information to my Followers.”

The culprit who leaked the clue about my existence to the Black Sun Cult.

I didn't know who that bastard was, but the important thing was that my Followers were victims of that false information.

“That’s why they tried to instigate a Holy War against the Black Sun Cult.”

The King listened quietly to my story.

“....”

“I was luckily able to stop the Holy War, but there seems to have been a slight misunderstanding with the Kingdom’s forces in the process.”

I continued speaking with a tone of deep regret.

“That ‘someone’ you speak of…”

The King, who had been listening to my story, opened his mouth.

“I haven’t located them yet, but I’ll find them soon. It must be a malicious force that tried to sow discord between Your Majesty and my Religious Order.”

I was confident I could identify the culprit quickly.

I had the ability, and in the original timeline, this world was practically in the palm of my hand.

“A malicious force…”

The King cleared his throat with a displeased expression.

“Are you saying there’s a true culprit who dared to mock both me and your forces in all of this?”

“Indeed.”

“If you catch this culprit…”

“I must make an example of them so they can never again threaten the peace of my Followers.”

I calmly met the King’s gaze as I spoke.

Confidence was key here.

I couldn’t let the anxiety hidden deep within my heart leak out.

I had to face him as if I were hypnotizing myself.

“Perhaps…”

King Edmund Carsein, seemingly lost in thought, finally spoke after a long silence.

Many thoughts must have been clashing in his mind.

Whether what I was saying was true or false.

Whether he should be hostile towards my Religious Order or trust us for now.

And on top of that, if he added in the matter concerning his daughter…

Even with Edmund Carsein’s composed nature, this would be a rather troublesome issue.

“You may already know everything, Your Constellation.”

Know everything?

My thoughts raced at those words.

Should I just blurt it out, or should I confess honestly?

As I continued to ponder, suppressed rage emanated from Bella beside me.

“Even if you are the King, I cannot tolerate you doubting and insulting my Lord God.”

She was smiling sweetly, but being close, I could clearly feel it.

Belladis Rochellia clearly harbored murderous intent towards the King who was relentlessly cornering me.

“...I apologize for my momentary outburst.”

Only after seeing the King take a step back did a realization flash through my mind.

‘He intentionally dismissed the Knight Commander, his only protection.’

If he had wanted to threaten me, he could have used more drastic measures.

‘He wants a conversation.’

Seeing him readily apologize despite Bella’s warning solidified my speculation.

Finally, I could decide on my next course of action.

‘Alright. Let’s just go for it.’

“I’m fine, Bella.”

First, I calmed down my lovely, snarling Follower.

Then, I put on a gentle smile and replied,

“Your Majesty asked if I knew everything, correct?”

“....”

“In this world—”

Who was I?

In this hell where Constellations ran rampant…

I was the Constellation who had reached the highest position, the supreme authority of the strongest Religious Order.

That authority commanded reverence, even from the king of the most powerful nation.

“There is nothing I do not know.”

And so, I dared to speak.

“....”

“....”

A heavy silence pressed down on the atmosphere after my words.

‘Almost there.’

Soon, the answer that would conclude everything came.

“I have committed a grave sin.”

-Thud!!

The King, who had been obediently listening to me, suddenly rose from his throne and slammed his forehead against the floor.

“The responsibility for all of this lies entirely with me.”

“...Excuse me?”

My comprehension couldn’t keep up with the unfolding situation.

What was going on?

“As Your Constellation already knows, I… I dared…”

The King trembled as if his head were about to be chopped off, then with difficulty, he uttered his final words.

“I, Edmund Carsein, am the one who spread the false information to Your Constellation’s Religious Order…”

The culprit suddenly revealed himself.