My dear witch, please turn evil according to the script!

Chapter 412 I said, Your Majesty's opinion is brilliant.

"My lord, what are you thinking about?"

Machima stood behind the Queen and asked curiously.

Although she is in a subordinate position, their relationship is actually similar to that of Flum and Kalia.

Although they are not related by blood, years of living together as stand-ins have made them no different from family.

Andrea Lancelot, the influential princess of the Kingdom of Platia, always had a melancholy look between her brows.

Standing on the high-rise terrace of Heria Castle, facing the biting cold wind, she sighed.

"I was just thinking... about what the future of the kingdom will be like."

"Although the war has ended, and even the Blood Demon Royal Court has allowed my people to enter the royal city to clean up the mess and gradually take over the order."

"But all of this is not based on the kingdom's resistance, Machima."

"The demons' submission, the support from the Church, the Society, and even the Empire... all of this is thanks to my cousin whom I've only ever met in the family genealogy."

“Young, powerful, and influential… I can tell he’s not someone who craves power, but I’m also afraid that some people will push him into a position he doesn’t want to be in.”

"Of course, this idea is partly due to my personal feelings."

The princess sighed and said, "Destroying the existing order is much easier than rebuilding and maintaining one."

"And that is the current situation in Prattia."

"No...it's not just Platia."

"It's time for the entire Federation of Nations to be reshuffled."

"Regardless of whether the Demon King's Court, as the main war faction of the Demon Race, chooses to take great risks and launch a war based on the remaining five member states."

"The order of the federation of nations can never be restored to what it was before."

"Think about it, my foolish brother has already killed all the members of the royal family in his madness."

"Could similar situations be occurring in other franchise locations within China?"

Machima laughed when she heard this: "So, you're afraid?"

"...That's right."

The princess paused for a moment, then nodded: "I am indeed afraid."

“That’s unnecessary worry, my lady.” Machima smiled and continued speaking behind the princess, “Perhaps it’s for the sake of checks and balances, or perhaps it’s due to distrust.”

"Or perhaps other, unspeakable thoughts... Mr. Alucard secretly relayed to me some information gathered by the demons before Lord Roland arrived."

"Some of the information highly overlaps with the information previously gathered by the Kingdom's Shadow Guards."

"For example, there are reports that the Society is cooperating with the Empire to mass-produce weapons of war. There are also rumors that the Papacy itself is in dire straits."

"Perhaps humans and demons can unite for a common goal—such as dealing with those cult lunatics and erasing the traces they left behind."

"However, it is impossible to reach a consensus on the division of interests and mutual trust, at least in the short term."

"The cooperation between the human alliance and the demon army in the Demon King War was nothing short of miraculous."

"This is mainly because the Demon King and the Knight King back then were two extraordinary figures."

"Now, although the Demon King has returned, his control over the demon race can never be the same as before. The human side is also in disarray because it lacks a true mortal enemy."

"Without the unrest caused by the demons, the Federation of Nations alone would have been enough to wage a war between its member states."

"You and I are both well aware of this. If it weren't for the sudden intervention and disruption by the demons, the war might have started much earlier, and it would have been far more ruthless and brutal."

"At least the demons know how to control the scale and impact, and only target the powerful nobles and royal family members at the top."

"The middle and lower classes are actually laxly monitored. Even the lower-class civilians in the member states outside of Plataea have no idea what is happening."

"And once a war breaks out in the federation of nations... it could very well develop into the scale of the civil war that happened two hundred years ago."

"From the perspective of the majority of the kingdom's commoners, we should perhaps thank the demons. Because of their intervention, the conflicts and disputes between the kingdoms stopped and disappeared in an instant."

The princess laughed helplessly upon hearing this: "How ironic... The few months without any disputes or border conflicts were actually because the demons controlled the high-ranking officials of the Federation of Nations."

“But you don’t understand my real concerns, Machima.”

"I just can't imagine... the future landscape after human power has taken hold in this cold northern land."

"The Empire has absolutely no intention of taking over such a large area of ​​land."

"At most, we could annex the neighboring Kingdom of Plataea."

"But what about the remaining five member states?"

"If the demons really stop the war, withdraw from the Federation of Nations, and lift the mind control they've imposed... then what happens next?"

What happens to multiple neighboring countries in a power vacuum?

"...That would be an unprecedented war."

The princess shook her head helplessly: "If only the Papacy could spare some manpower..."

"Machima. What do you think... will happen to the Federation of Nations after the war ends?"

Machima fell silent, her earlier ease gone: "I don't know."

“But sir, we only need to consider the matter of Platia, don’t we?”

“...Yes.” The princess responded, gazing at the still-flying snow.

After the storm that Xinos had unleashed, the snow seemed to fall even harder.

"Winter in the North is so long... it feels like spring will never come."

"Dong Dong Dong!!!"

At that moment, a rapid knocking sounded on the door.

One of the attendants, disregarding even basic understanding and composure, cried out in a flustered voice, "Your Highness! Grand Duke Roland is downstairs!"

……

……

The talks did not last long.

To be precise, Roland didn't want to say much more.

He was simply explaining the current situation.

It concerns the demon race, the evil gods, and most importantly, the underworld.

Upon hearing the news of the closure of the Underworld, Cardinal Clark's expression immediately turned grim, beyond words.

That was a forced calm as he tried to suppress the tension, panic, and fear in his heart.

After Roland brought up the matter, he hurriedly left the meeting, leaving only Suren, who had come with Roland, to continue as a member of the Papacy's side in the subsequent talks.

However, there wasn't much left to discuss, and the largely social meeting quickly ended after Clark left.

However, none of those present chose to leave immediately. The first to approach Roland was the great sage Erebus.

His expression was also somewhat serious.

Although the Society never quite understood the so-called divine gifts and power of faith that the Papacy obtained from the gods, he could tell the seriousness of the situation from Clark's expression and demeanor.

Not to mention that the information Roland provided, even taken literally, was a momentous event.

"Lord Roland, what does it mean by the closure of the Underworld? Why is His Excellency the Cardinal reacting so strongly?"

Roland shook his head: "I don't know either. But the god of death has indeed closed the gates to the land of the dead, and the ferryman of the River Styx relayed this message to me."

"The only thing we know for sure is that after a person dies, their soul does not go to the underworld, but stays in the mortal world."

"As for Cardinal Clark's reaction... I'm quite curious too. But even I know about the situation at the Holy See, so surely His Excellency the Great Sage is aware of it?"

Erebus nodded: "I understand... Thank you for your clarification."

"By the way, your two friends at the academy are currently on the front lines."

"Perhaps you could go and meet them; the association has recently begun extensive collaborations with the college."

"Some of the research from your senior colleague, Mr. Aslan, has been extensively referenced."

"Researcher Mashu has made some small props for you."

Roland was stunned for a moment after hearing this.

Aslan's research?

Aren't those all kinds of explosives?

Considering Mashu, who almost built a Gundam, Roland found it hard to imagine what kind of "gadget" she had created.

"I shall take my leave now. I need to report the current information to the other great sages immediately."

With Erebus' departure, only the demon representative, the princess, and Machima remained in the hastily prepared banquet hall.

While Roland went to check on Kalia's condition, Danso also arrived in Heria.

After all, even if he wanted to ignore the celestial catastrophes, it would be difficult for him.

Not to mention that Accardo also conveyed a request for help.

After making urgent arrangements for matters within Yalan City, he immediately rushed to the scene of the incident.

Then, caught off guard, they were blown away by the aftershocks of the hurricane stirred up by Sinos, deviating from their original course.

This is the inconvenience of the Blood Demon race's mode of flight.

Although he was not injured, the forced interruption of his flight caused him to be delayed for a while, and he didn't arrive at his destination until the situation had been resolved.

However, his arrival was just in time, because Roland had only recently arrived in Heria.

But after Erebus left, Danso did not rush forward to talk to Roland. Instead, he calmly sat down and drank the blood tea that the princess had thoughtfully added, which contained a little blood taken from death row inmates.

Yes, the service experience this time was much better than last time.

Arcado turned to the composed leader and asked, "Your Majesty, aren't you going up and have a chat with Lord Roland? Didn't you say you had many things you wanted to know while we were waiting?"

"Heh, no need to be so anxious." Danso smiled faintly, and at first glance, he really did have the demeanor of a master: "Don't forget, our Blood Demon Royal Court was the first to declare allegiance to His Majesty the Demon King."

"I have a fairly good relationship with Lord Roland... even if we're not friends, we're acquaintances. It's fine to let others take the lead at this time; it's also a good opportunity to show the magnanimity of our Blood Demon Royal Court."

Alucard: "?"

Ross, who was eating dessert with his head down, thought: "?"

Unlike the cunning and shrewd Demon Elder, who didn't refute Danso but simply acknowledged the King's insightful opinion before starting to drink his blood tea, the straightforward and young Ross spoke up directly.

"Lord Danso, if you and Lord Roland are so familiar with each other, why didn't he even greet you when we were chatting just now?"

Danso: "..."

"Also, even if they are acquaintances, wouldn't it be better to take the initiative to say hello? What if Lord Roland goes back and speaks ill of you to His Majesty the Demon King?"

Danso: "..."

The silent Danso turned to look at Alucard, who was trying hard to suppress his laughter: "Where did this unlucky kid come from?"

"Ah~~~ Isn't this the young talent sent to my Lich King's court by the King? Have you forgotten?" Alucard fully demonstrated the expression management skills of a high-ranking demon, revealing a flawless disguise.

Danso was even more speechless.

Of course he doesn't remember.

The unfortunate reinforcements didn't even say hello when they arrived.

That old lich bastard just greeted him and that was it; he went there on his own.

Although he had heard of the genius lich Ross, he had never actually met him.

Although he knew that the only ninth-ringed archlich that could appear at this time was this unlucky kid named Ross, he would not admit that he hadn't reacted in time.

Even if someone sees through you, you can't admit it.

At that moment, Roland's conversation with the Princess also came to an end.

The two did not deliberately muffle their conversation, so it was impossible for the three ninth-ring level demons not to hear it.

However, the topics they discussed were not of interest to the demons.

They were all topics about power struggles within humanity and the division of interests.

In short, the princess wanted Roland's promise that after the war, the imperial army would continue to be stationed on the border of the Kingdom of Platia to prevent uncontrollable events from affecting the Kingdom of Platia, which had suffered heavy losses due to the civil war.

Roland agreed, but of course, there were conditions.

During the garrison period, all supplies needed by the legion must be provided by the Kingdom of Platia.

If supplies cannot be provided directly, they need to be converted into the corresponding monetary value.

Roland used this condition as leverage to help persuade his father-in-law, the emperor, to agree to the decision.

After all, the empire's military strength is also limited.

Especially in these turbulent times, any military force must prioritize ensuring the security of its homeland.

The power of the supervisory bureau and the city defense forces in various places alone is not enough to solve the increasingly serious crisis.

Sending an expeditionary force to Platia was solely to prevent the demons from instigating a large-scale war.

If everything settles down, then the Empire's attitude will be another matter entirely.

Even if Roland is indeed the only Grand Duke with real power within the Empire, he has no authority to mobilize these regular border elite troops, except for the military forces within the current Grand Duke of Riskan.

but……

Danso smiled as he watched the princess leave.

If all else fails, the demons can also lend a hand. It's just about maintaining order, right? Humans come and demons come, it's all the same.
(End of this chapter)