Kagu sat down on the sofa. In an instant, Oscar's ring glowed and a cup of hot tea appeared on the table.

"Looks like you had a good trip."

Seeing Oscar displaying the amazing artifact as if nothing had happened, Kagu raised the corner of his mouth and smiled.

"Yeah. I did what I wanted to do, according to my own heart."

"It's for the girl you like, right?"

"Hmm, cough cough! Don't tease me like that. Meredith and I really don't have that kind of relationship."

"No one mentioned Miss Meredith's name at all, okay?"

Oscar pushed his glasses up, a vein popping out on his forehead. Lately, everyone around him had been teasing him about this, and he was about to explode.

As for Kagu, he was satisfied because he had avenged the arrow that startled him just now, so he picked up the brewed black tea and tasted it.

Then──

"The sign has been replaced, as expected."

Oscar lowered his head slightly and spoke in a low voice.

"Yes. The kingdom's new face is actually my family's name. It's an honor I can't bear."

"At least better than Orcus, I think."

Although he said this, Oscar's tone revealed guilt. Kagu narrowed his eyes and said:

"Don't be silly. We are all Orcus craftsmen, both then and now."

Even if the name is changed, the characters that are identified and regarded as pillars remain the same.

──You are our pillar.

Oscar could of course hear the hidden meaning, and his expression suddenly twisted.

"The Inquisitor must have been here, right? I announced my name when I was fighting the Knights of White Light in the West Sea."

"That's right."

"Is this wound also from the Inquisition?"

"right."

Oscar looked at Kagu's face with heartache. There was a large wound on his face, as if flesh had been gouged out. One of his eyes was still bandaged.

The heretic claimed to be "Orcus," and the craftsmen of the Orcus workshop would naturally be suspected of having any connection to him. They would certainly be subjected to harsh measures to question whether they were related to the Liberator.

"Don't take it to heart, silly boy."

“How is that possible!?”

"I just want you to not take it to heart!"

Kagu stood up and punched Oscar on the head.

"I gave you the title of 'Orcus' with full understanding. I also told you that this was the 'unanimous agreement of all the craftsmen in the workshop.' Have you forgotten?! It was because you understood this that you decided to inherit and carry this title! In that case, don't waver over such a trivial matter!"

Kagu and Oscar's eyes met.

"...The Liberator also cares about us."

Kagu paused, sat back on the sofa, and then spoke slowly.

"You asked them to protect us, didn't you?"

In fact, Kagu and others were once invited to join the liberator camp.

Now that he had given the title of Orcus to Oscar, the Inquisition would surely come knocking one day.

Even if there weren't any, the workshop had once taken in children who didn't qualify for the "Divine Weapon Creation Project." Although this was a secret plan pushed by the Archbishop, the workshop still had the potential to be implicated in some covert operation, so they decided to let the workshop join.

However, Kagu and others rejected the invitation based on the wishes of all the craftsmen.

As a craftsman, their job is to fully utilize their skills and create works that will be passed down to the world. For them, this is like breathing. No matter what the reason, they cannot give up halfway.

This is their dignity, their way of survival, and their life.

Therefore, there is no point in running away and hiding.

Anyone who can tell can tell that it is a product made by Orcus Workshop.

Of course, the craftsmen of the nationally renowned Orcus Workshop are just that excellent.

Therefore, those who try to escape or hide will be targeted for purge.

After this explanation, the "Liberators," who believe in respecting free will, naturally accepted it and, of course, respected the will of the workshop.

"The liberators promised to protect us when necessary, including the children you rescued and who are temporarily staying with me. They also occasionally tell us about Maureen and the others' current situation."

Ever since the workshop refused to join, no one claiming to be a liberator has come to the door.

However, sometimes letters would suddenly appear in the study.

"What a loyal bunch. They're a secret organization fighting the world, yet they care for others like old ladies."

The same thing happened when the Inquisition came. The Liberator had given them a heads-up via letter beforehand, and offered to help them if they wanted to escape.

The letter also said that if you don't want to escape, you can give out information about the "Liberator".

"That being said, as for the Liberator, I only know you, Miss Meredith, and the young man who came to persuade the workshop to join. Even if I wanted to offer anything, I wouldn't be able to..."

At this point, Kagu recalled the young liberator who had come to visit him. He'd smiled and said, "I'm constantly on the move. This time, I'm just stopping by the capital for a few days and will be leaving soon. Don't take it personally." The young man, wearing a peaked cap and a backpack, looked especially good on him. He introduced himself as Tim Rocket.

"Even a fool can tell there's a base in the capital just by hearing that. What a pushover! This is too risky."

"...They're not pushovers. This is the path they—no, this is the path we believe in."

Fortunately, thanks to their creed, none of the craftsmen from the Orcus workshop, including Kagu, were missing.

Because Kagu confessed everything truthfully during the interrogation.

It is said that an organization calling itself "Liberators" has come to invite us to join, but the workshop has already declined.

It also included the matter of giving the title of "Orcus" to Oscar, and explaining that this was not done because he agreed with the ideas and beliefs of the heretics, but simply because Oscar was the most skilled craftsman in the entire workshop, and there was no other reason.

And Oscar has already embarked on his journey, and Kagu believes that he will come back one day.

It was also stated that even if Oscar was a heretic, since he had given up the title based on his strength as a craftsman, Kagu would never use the title he had given up again even if he died.

This is the path that craftsmen believe in, and other craftsmen who value honor also hold the same view.

In the end, Kagu and others' upright attitude of "We have said everything we can say, we have done nothing wrong! You can kill us or chop us up as you please!" finally convinced the church.

"However, it's also possible that they're deliberately letting us go, waiting for the liberators to come and contact us."

"After all, the Orcus Workshop is brimming with talent. Executing them without even a shred of evidence would be a complete waste. Furthermore, a force has emerged capable of resisting the Church's greatest might. For the Church, the more good weapons and the artisans who craft them, the better. In fact, the Church recently provoked a war that involved the Confederation."

"It's a victory for craftsmanship."

The two smiled at each other. Kagu finished his tea and returned the cup to Oscar.

"You are about to take on the great task of a lifetime, and you are risking your very soul as a man."

Having said that, Kagu raised the corners of his mouth and a heroic smile appeared on his face.

"If you hinder us at a time like this, it would be a huge disgrace. You should understand that, right?"

Kagu seemed to see through Oscar's thoughts. No, in fact, he saw through it.

He knew why Oscar came to see him directly, regardless of the danger.

It’s not because the decisive battle is imminent that I want to meet him.

The Berunega branch's implementation team will also leave here.

In this case, just in case, if possible, I hope to hide these stubborn fathers in a safe place. And the only one who can convince them is me - this is what Oscar thought, and Kagu saw through his thoughts.

However, unexpectedly, Dad just laughed it off and told Oscar not to take anything to heart and just do what he should do.

Because they were all craftsmen from the Orcus workshop. And Oscar was also recognized by everyone with awareness.

"Isn't it? — The modern-day Orcus."

The best pillar of all time.

Suddenly, Oscar felt a surge of excitement threatening to burst from his heart. He tilted his head back, savoring the emotion for a moment.

Then he pushed up his glasses.

Oscar slowly stood up, took out the black crystal key from his arms and activated it.

Suddenly, a glowing space door appeared in the room.

However, Kagu didn't even look at the door, but just stared at his son who valued his family.

"You look very good now, like a real man."

"Of course I need to say that. Because we have the best role model right before our eyes."

After saying that, Oscar walked towards the gate of time and space.

He walked to the door and stopped, but he didn't look back.

"Then I'm going out, Father. I'm going to change the world."

"Oh, do your best."

The two said goodbye very briefly.

The door of time and space disappeared silently, and silence returned to the room.

Kagu sat down, leaning his back deeply against the sofa and tilting his head back in the same manner.

"Hmph, you are the good son I don't deserve."

His tone seemed to tremble slightly, and he sounded both relieved and somewhat proud.

──Igudol Demon Kingdom, Demon King's Castle

In a corner of the city wall where one can overlook the castle town, an old man was smoking a pipe, puffing out clouds of smoke.

Years of hardship left wrinkles on his face, and his short, red hair was streaked with white. A striking scar ran from his temple to his cheek. He was one of the three generals of the Demon Kingdom—Elgar Inster.

He was currently sitting on the site of a brutal battle that had taken place about six months earlier. The city wall, cleaved by an incredibly massive sword, was still being repaired. He sat on a pile of rubble.

“…I’m really scared.”

He muttered to himself, blowing out a puff of smoke.

That day, the Lyson girl and her companion literally descended from the sky and struck him out of the throne room, knocking him unconscious. What happened next was what I heard from others.

It is said that the Demon King intends to launch an anti-military annihilation magic on the castle town.

Not only that, destruction beyond human comprehension was brought down from the sky.

A symbol of this beloved motherland

To the capital city where the people they were supposed to protect were—

“Mmm…”

Thinking of what happened at the royal meeting, Elgar couldn't help but hum twice.

Elgar later woke up in the infirmary that day, having only been unconscious for a few hours.

Meanwhile, the demon king Ra'l did what he was supposed to do.

In order to prevent chaos, soldiers were sent to the Demon City to announce that the Demon King was safe and sound, and that the Demon King would appear in person the next morning to speak to the people.

At the same time, they also took control of the chaotic situation in the city, reorganized the army, rescued and treated the wounded, and further reorganized the security system.

At the same time, he also sent people to summon the princes to prepare for an emergency meeting.

Even though an unusual incident had just occurred where the Demon Tribe's base was nearly destroyed, and he himself was covered in wounds, he was able to accomplish all these things in just a few hours, which made people have to admit that his skills were very skilled.

Compared to his usual expression of being happy to commit a crime, he is completely different.

At the panic-stricken imperial court meeting, Laser disclosed the facts without any concealment.

That is the truth.

──The Demon King, actually, is not the Demon King.

Since the day of the coronation ceremony, Ra'l was no longer Ra'l. Someone else had taken over his body and mind. Unbelievably, according to Ra'l, the possessor was a follower of Esid, the god worshipped by the Church of Holy Light.

It turns out that the dispute between humans and demons that has continued since the distant past is just a game that Esid uses to kill time.

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