Nazarick, Tenth Floor.
Inside the spacious office, Herohero stared bitterly at the three outfits laid out in front of him.
The three garments looked almost identical, differing only slightly in color.
All three robes had black as their base, with deep purple, crimson, and bone gray as the primary colors.
Compared to ordinary academic robes, these three carried a faint but unmistakable sense of pressure. The gemstones embedded across them added an additional layer of mysterious elegance.
Herohero had to admit the outfits looked excellent, and the craftsmanship behind them was remarkable.
But for some reason, whenever he imagined wearing them, he felt an overwhelming sense of secondhand embarrassment.
"Do I really have to wear this?"
Herohero looked at his two friends with a troubled expression.
"Herohero, normally it wouldn't matter, but today isn't normal. You're the future Black Corrosion King, one of the three rulers of the Sorcerer Kingdom."
Naohara mercilessly shattered Herohero's hopes.
After all, creating these robes had consumed a considerable amount of Nazarick's rare resources.
The threads themselves were woven from precious magical metals. On top of that, considering Herohero's racial traits and comfort needs, a lining made from platinum dragon hide had been specially added.
Most striking was the dragon emblem embroidered across the chest. The dragon head glowed with a fierce crimson hue, and under sunlight it even displayed shifting colors, making it incredibly eye-catching.
To complete that dragon pattern alone, True Dragon Lords such as the Rainbow Dragon Lord, the Vampiric Dragon Lord, the Platinum Dragon Lord, and the Heavenly Dragon Lord had all contributed their heart's blood.
Just in terms of materials, the robe had already reached the peak of divine-class equipment.
On top of that, Naohara and several True Dragon Lords had gone completely overboard by sealing dozens of Wild Magic spells into it, pushing its power even further and raising its attribute bonuses to a terrifying level.
"Herohero, you'll just have to endure it. Besides, look at it from another angle. You're not alone, the two of us will be standing there with you. Relax."
Momonga stepped forward and said with a hint of amusement.
To be honest, if Naohara and Herohero were not there with him, Momonga suspected he would not be handling this situation much better.
Even though he had forced emotional suppression, adjusting one's mindset was not something that could be done instantly.
Whenever he thought about it, Momonga could not help feeling grateful that he was not alone.
His white skeletal hand subconsciously rubbed the staff he was holding.
The staff was called [Dragon Blessing], a divine-class weapon he and Naohara had obtained by defeating a hidden boss shortly before the game shut down.
But now it was slightly different.
Where the dragon's mouth at the tip of the staff had once been empty, a blood-red gem was now embedded, emitting a faint glow.
(Guess what that gem is~)
Naohara's gaze briefly swept across the gemstone on the staff, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly before he spoke again.
"The coronation ceremony is about to begin. We should get moving."
He picked up the robe and draped it over his shoulder, then snapped his fingers.
Wild Magic [World Teleportation] activated, and the three figures instantly disappeared.
...
Sorcerer Kingdom, inside a tavern located in the city center.
"Such a unique taste. Is this called cola?"
On the tavern's second floor, Caspond accepted the drink handed to him by a fox-girl waitress and took a small sip.
The transparent glass bottle shimmered faintly, and inside it was a black liquid filled with bubbling foam. The flavor burst across his taste buds.
Even someone as composed as Caspond could not help letting out a small sound of surprise.
Beside him, Pabel, one of the Nine Colors of the Holy Kingdom, was drinking it in large gulps.
It was just an ordinary beverage, yet it filled him with an inexplicable sense of refreshment.
"The Sorcerer Kingdom... truly is a fascinating country."
Caspond looked around the tavern.
The place was packed, and everywhere he looked he could see humans and demihumans of many different races drinking and chatting together.
Despite belonging to different races, they had set aside their differences and created a surprisingly harmonious scene.
Were the demihumans of the Sorcerer Kingdom really this easygoing?
Caspond found it difficult to believe.
"Are you two wondering why the demihumans and humans here get along so well?"
At that moment, a blond man walked over. His appearance gave off a somewhat frivolous first impression.
Seeing him approach, Pabel immediately became alert and instinctively reached toward the weapon beside him.
However, a hand pressed down and stopped him.
Caspond shook his head slightly, signaling that everything was fine.
"Calm down, my friend. This is the Sorcerer Kingdom. If you start a fight here, the Quagoa from the security force will arrest you."
The blond man showed no fear at all. Instead, he pointed toward several Quagoa soldiers sitting in the corner and offered a friendly reminder.
"My apologies. I was a bit too impulsive just now."
Coming back to his senses, Pabel realized he had indeed acted rashly and immediately apologized.
"It's fine. You two must be visiting the Sorcerer Kingdom for the first time. After coming here a few more times, you'll get used to it. You can relax here. No one will harm you."
"Let me introduce myself. My name is Lukrut. I'm an adventurer. I've been to the Sorcerer Kingdom twice before, so I know the rules here fairly well."
The blond man sat down across from them and waved his hand, showing that he did not mind at all.
"Nice to meet you, Lukrut-san. My name is Caspond, and this is Pabel. We come from the Holy Kingdom. This is our first time visiting the Sorcerer Kingdom."
"About the question earlier, has there really never been a case where demihumans suddenly attacked people when the guards weren't around?"
Caspond asked with interest.
Then he raised his hand to call over a server and ordered two bottles of the most expensive alcohol available.
The other party provided the information he wanted, and he provided compensation.
An equal exchange. The simplest principle.
"Haha, you're too generous."
When the fox-girl waitress brought over the drinks, Lukrut's eyes immediately lit up. He silently praised his own luck, never expecting these two to be so generous.
He quickly composed himself and began explaining at length, though he deliberately lowered his voice as if worried the surrounding demihumans might overhear.
"What you said has happened before. But after those demihumans who couldn't tell right from wrong were thrown into prison, and some were even executed in public, those incidents gradually disappeared."
"Quite a few demihumans even protested. They claimed they were only pursuing their own happiness. But the Sorcerer Kingdom shut them down immediately, saying they were destroying other people's happiness."
"Heh, funny, isn't it? Trying to argue with the Sorcerer Kingdom using the laws it created itself. That's just asking to be laughed at."
Lukrut picked up his glass and took a sip. As the liquid passed over his taste buds and slid down his throat, a wave of comfort instantly spread through his body.
"I see. So that's how they handled it."
Caspond nodded slowly. He roughly understood the Sorcerer Kingdom's intentions now.
Without a doubt, it was a brilliant move.
Achieving something like this was neither especially difficult nor particularly easy.
It required only one condition.
Power.
Power strong enough to crush everything else.
Then again, even the so-called Dragon Lords had submitted to the Sorcerer Kingdom. Compared to them, those demihumans would hardly be capable of resisting.
And even if someone did attempt to rebel, how many demihumans would truly join them?
After all, demihumans were not united. Higher-ranked demihuman races had always discriminated against the lower ones.
The Sorcerer Kingdom's actions had, without anyone noticing, protected the rights of the lower demihumans. Those people were more grateful than anything else, so how could they possibly think of rebelling?
"One move after another... truly terrifying cunning."
Caspond sighed, unable to hide his admiration.
(Naohara: ?)
(The three people involved, completely unaware that their casual orders had once again been wildly misinterpreted, could only feel speechless.)
After that, Caspond asked many more questions. As his understanding of the Sorcerer Kingdom deepened, the conviction in his heart only grew stronger.
"Make way! Make way!"
"Incredible! The Bloody Emperor and the Dragon Princess have personally come to the Sorcerer Kingdom!"
"I heard that the Brightness Dragon Lord, the founder of the Dragon Kingdom, appeared not long ago and easily wiped out the Beastman Country that invaded the Dragon Kingdom. If the Dragon Princess has come here now, does that mean that the ancient True Dragon Lord holds goodwill toward the Sorcerer Kingdom?"
"They say the same about the Empire. Supposedly, the Bloody Emperor was able to conquer the Kingdom so easily because he received secret assistance from the Sorcerer Kingdom..."
A sudden wave of noise interrupted everyone's thoughts.
More than a hundred thousand citizens along the streets were shouting together.
Following the sound, Caspond turned to look, and the scene made his pupils shrink.
On the wide avenue, hundreds of Quagoa were waving red flags in welcome.
A luxurious carriage drawn by eight-legged magical beasts slowly moved forward.
Standing on the carriage was the golden-haired Bloody Emperor. Even without making any particular gesture, he radiated immense authority.
Beside him stood a figure in a pure white dress.
It was Renner, smiling gently.
Not far away, another carriage pulled by several hybrid dragon beasts advanced alongside the Bloody Emperor's.
The ruler of the Dragon Kingdom, a descendant of an ancient True Dragon Lord, the Dragon Princess, rested her chin on one hand as she looked around with great interest.
"I'd already heard the Dragon Princess was cute, but I never expected her to be this exciting to look at!"
"Well, she's the descendant of a True Dragon Lord. It's only natural for her to inherit such excellent blood."
"By the way, doesn't the Bloody Emperor feel a little strange? And the person beside him... isn't that Princess Renner of the fallen Kingdom? Why is she there?"
The residents discussed it excitedly.
Aside from a small number of people who noticed the Bloody Emperor and Renner together and found it somewhat strange, most of the discussion centered around the Dragon Princess.
Her human-like young girl appearance combined with the noble bloodline of a True Dragon Lord stirred intense fascination among both humans and demihumans.
"The Bloody Emperor, the Dragon Princess, and Princess Renner of the fallen Kingdom?"
On the second floor of the tavern, Caspond looked somewhat surprised.
He could understand why the Bloody Emperor was here, but what was the Dragon Princess doing here?
Once again, things had exceeded his expectations.
At the same time, he felt somewhat relieved.
Fortunately, he had come personally.
If the Holy Kingdom had only sent Pabel, one of the Nine Colors, the situation would have been quite awkward.
After all, comparison always exposes the difference.
"The coronation ceremony should be starting soon. I'll head over first. You two should hurry as well. If you're quick, you might still grab a good spot."
"And thank you for the drinks. If we have the chance next time, let's talk again, Caspond-san. My treat."
Lukrut stood up and quickly bid the two farewell. Near the staircase, several figures could be seen waving at him.
"Hey, where did you run off to again? We've been looking for you everywhere."
Ninya looked at Lukrut, who reeked of alcohol, and spoke with clear irritation.
"Alright, alright, let's hurry and go. Otherwise all the good spots will be taken."
Seeing the situation, Arche quickly stepped in.
The other members of [Swords of Darkness] and [Foresight] shook their heads, and then the group left together, chatting and laughing.
"We should go as well."
Seeing the surrounding people leaving one after another, Caspond also headed toward the venue with Pabel.
"So the Sorcerer Kingdom really does have a king. I've heard there are three kings ruling together. I wonder if that's true."
A trace of curiosity flashed through Caspond's eyes.
***
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