Now, we know that Deon had a hard time knowingly or unknowingly in the Hardt family, who were naturally blunt and showed little emotion on their faces and were not good at expressing themselves.
When he went to war due to a document error, Cruel had no idea that there was a problem and immediately blamed his family.
However, while Cruel acknowledged the Hardts' partial responsibility for the extinction incident, he did not place all of the blame entirely on him and his family. Because there was a more direct culprit for which full responsibility could not be placed.
The Duke.
He sent Deon Hardt to war.
He didn't know why he did what he did, but he changed the list where Cruel Hardt's name was supposed to be on and sent people they couldn't communicate with to pull Deon Hardt out of the mansion. Even his father's gentle persuasion didn't work. Despite the acceptable alternative of sending Cruel instead, they only looked for Deon Hart, as if they had been brainwashed.
He couldn't understand.
'Because that child did something wrong.'
Cruel, who belatedly learned that this incident was related to the Duke, had been quietly keeping an eye on the Duke from then on.
An unexplained malice towards Deon Hardt. It showed no signs of abating even after the war ended. No, on the contrary, it became stronger.
That's why he went to serve him on purpose...
'That's for later.'
Now was not the time to think about that.
The Duke's head rose at the rare question. There was a faint suspicion in his eyes.
Cruel usually only answered questions without speaking first.
Did he really want to save Deon Hardt?
As the Duke's eyes narrowed, Cruel seemed to realize that he had asked the wrong question, and added a little more.
"I have every reason to kill him. But Your Excellency, it seems that you don't have one."
"Is it not enough that, as a representative of the noble faction, I must kill the EEmperor's dog?"
"..."
"It seems like it's not enough."
He had a feeling.
He was certainly not trying to get rid of him for that reason alone. Deon Hardt was a threat to the Empire.
The Duke simply could not ignore such a threat from the perspective of the future ruler of the Empire.
Why was Deon Hardt a threat to the Empire?
"The reason may be to recall the order I gave about Deon Hardt when he was on his way on a mission from the Emperor."
'If you follow the traces of the Revolutionary Army, there will be someone watching Deon Hardt's back under the Emperor's orders. Kill them. And if you have the means to chase after Deon Hardt, check where he is going and then come.'
"..."
"Ah, you don't know."
By the time he finished the job, Deon Hart had already left.
He didn't know if he really didn't know or was just pretending not to know, but if he had followed Deon Hardt and checked where he was going, he would have inferred to some extent that he had something to do with the demon realm.
The Duke touched the area around his heart and smiled.
"If you don't know, there's nothing you can do. That's all I have to say."
He knew that Deon Hardt was the commander of the Demon King's army.
If anyone found out about this, they would be curious.
If you were a person with a working mind, you would first consider 'since when' before asking 'how and why'.
The answer to that was simple.
'From the beginning.'
The Duke returned to his office after refusing Cruel's offer to take him there, sat down and leaned his upper body against the backrest.
A faint sneer appeared on his lips.
'I knew it from the beginning. It was because of me that Deon Hardt got the attention of the Demon King in the first place and he went to the Demon King's Castle.'
Why did the Duke send Deon Hardt to the battlefield during the Eight Years' War?
Why did he block the Count's request to the Imperial family to bring him back, and why did they come up with the opinion that Deon Hardt should be sent to the Demon King's Castle as a companion of a hero?
Why did Deon Hardt, the son of a nobleman, start out as an ordinary soldier, and who made him become a vanguard?
The root of all of this ultimately boiled down to one thing.
A contract with the Demon King.
Deon Hardt was the Duke's bait to draw the interest of the bored Demon King.
What kind of ill feelings could there have been towards the other person who lived only in the mansion and had no contact whatsoever? It was just bad luck that Deon Hardt was dragged into the battlefield.
It wasn't malicious intent, it was just bait out of necessity.
The Duke put his hand over where his heart was, ignoring the thought that if Cruel found out, he would have clenched his fist to the point of bleeding. He felt like he had the power to defy the rules of the world if he just put my mind to it.
The Duke's heart contained the Demon King's contract and the magical power gained through it.
Contrary to his expectations that he could make a contract by simply summoning him, he was so embarrassed when the Demon King refused, saying he was not interested.
'I would like to propose a bet.'
'Bet?'
'Yes, it would be quite interesting.'
In that situation, the Duke thought of a boy he had happened to meet at Count Hardt's residence a long time ago when he was visiting on official business.
***
"Red eyes, white hair, pale skin."
"I thought there were no red eyes among humans."
"As far as I know, he is a human. Even young."
"That's a bit interesting, but what does that have to do with betting? If you just threw something out there that might pique my interest..."
"That's not possible. First, let's listen to the end. The child is said to have been weak and has never been outside the house since he was born."
The Duke widened his eyes as he faced the reversed white and black eyes.
"If such a person were to go to war, how long would he be able to endure?"
"... Hoh?"
"These are the betting conditions."
A child known to be human despite his unique appearance.
A cruel bet proposal that threw away his conscience and the uniqueness of having never left the house due to his weak body.
This worked. Usually, people who were dull from boredom looked for things that are stimulating. Even excluding the special setting of the child itself, none of the Demon King's contractees, which may not be many, would have made such a bet.
"I heard that the situation in the human world is unusual... but is a war really going to break out?"
"Yes, because our king, who ascended the throne this time, launched a provocation against all kingdoms by naming the kingdom 'Empire'. There are already large and small armed conflicts taking place with neighboring kingdoms."
So what's the answer to the bet?
The Demon King, who was lost in thought for a moment at the unexpected information, nodded.
"Good. I bet on 'survival.'"
"Yes?"
'Survival', not 'how long can he endure'.
"You set the condition in the first place as 'how long can he hold out', so you will choose 'death', right? The deadline is until the end of the war in which the child participated."
"Yes? Yes."
Weird. The bet was turning in this side's favor.
He must have clearly said that the child was weak and had never been outside the house.
The Demon King laughed as if he sensed the Duke's confusion.
"Betting is only fun if you bet on the unfavorable side."
***
After that... it was obvious.
Deon Hardt must be killed before the war ended. Since the Demon King was watching, the Duke was unable to take direct action, and indirectly tried to create a situation in which he could easily die.
For example, having a nobleman's son participate in the war as an ordinary soldier like conscripted commoners. However, since he did not die, he made him the leader of the vanguard.
It was easy to manipulate documents because issues such as transfers had not been resolved not long after the king came to the throne by force, and war broke out almost immediately after his accession to the throne.
'It was obviously a hastily constructed vanguard made up of commoners and poor people, so I thought they would die soon...'
Deon Hardt managed to survive. No, rather, he became famous for his cruelty and 'immortality'.
A vanguard that never died. These murderers brutally killed as many people as they could, making people reluctant to even get close to them. Master Deon Hardt, who commanded and led them.
He became a hero and the eight year long war was over.
It was the Duke's defeat.
'The contract... should I give up?'
His theory was that the more power the better, and his instinct was to rise to higher ground.
It made him want to make a contract with the Demon King, but that was okay. It was a little disappointing, but the contract was just a strength to prepare for an unexpected situation.
Even if he had signed the contract in the first place, he had no intention of using it unless it was a truly urgent situation.
'I'll put another condition on it.'
Nevertheless, the Demon King extended his hand to him who lost his appetite in disappointment.
'Send Deon Hardt to me. Then, I will give you a portion of my magical power.'
'...'
'It is not a complete contract... Yes, it can be considered a half-contract.'
Ah. A smile slowly spread across the Duke's expressionless face.
The bet was a loss, but the Duke did not fail. The ground he had laid was clearly demonstrating its power.
The bait offered to attract the interest of the Demon King. For eight years, the Demon King received news of Deon Hardt in various ways, and sometimes used magic to observe him personally. It was not surprising that he became interested in him in the process.
'I think it would be possible with my own strength to send him to the Demon King's Castle, but to capture him...'
'It's my role. I know. That's enough.'
And.
The Duke insisted that Deon Hardt be selected as a warrior's companion and sent to the Demon King's Castle, and for some reason, the Emperor accepted this and sent him to the Demon King's Castle.
He might die on the way, but looking at his luck so far, he probably wouldn't die. Well, there's nothing he could do if he died.
Either way, he would never see Deon Hardt again. There's no way the Demon King would easily let go of something he got his hands on.
So he thought...
'The hero's body has been recovered!'
Deon Hardt returned alive. And carrying the hero's body!
On this day, the Duke uttered a double curse for the first time in his life.
At first, he wondered how this happened.
As time passed, the doubts were gradually resolved.
The Commander of the 0th Corps of the Demon King's Army, who gradually began to be mentioned at some point.
Deon Hardt periodically traveled to and from somewhere under the name of a secret mission from the Emperor. And the identity of the Commander of the 0th Corps was kept a complete secret both in the demon realm and the Empire.
Deon Hart was the Commander of the 0th Corps. Even though the Emperor knew about this, he turned a blind eye to it.
A person who held a place in the demon realm was also considered an important figure in the Empire? They were dangerous.
The Emperor even cared for Deon Hardt a lot. What would happen if such a person turned to the Demon King's side?
'I have to kill him.'
He must put aside the Emperor and kill for the sake of the Empire. It was a natural conclusion.
'I don't know if I can kill him, but…'
If he kept trying, he would die someday.
He was a man who went to war and became a hero at a young age, having never even held a sword. He was a little worried, but he suppressed my anxiety, saying that if he kept trying, one day he would break through the shield of luck.
"Duke, Daniel has come to visit."
There was news of an unscheduled visit by a guest.
***
"I found someone with good writing skills in Ireon. I plan to use this to sway public sentiment."
This was what Daniel, who had asked to meet on a whim, said before he even sat down.
"... Are you planning to spread a message in the streets?"
"Yes."
"..."
The Duke closed his mouth, not knowing what to say.
He could be sure of one thing. The man in front of him right now was out of his mind.
Pale complexion. Eyes trembling as if nervous... Now that he thought about it, he once heard that his mother had begun to show signs of hemoptysis. He heard that they were hiding it from the leader, but as time passed and there was no news, they tried to hide it well, but it seems they were eventually found out.