Chapter 312: Episode 312_Succubus Dream (2)
2.
This was the lowest of the low.
The words coming from Han Simin’s mouth were utterly shaless.
He had just finished irrevocably branding the Heavenly King as the Demon King in the minds of humans, and now, the very mastermind behind it all was asking the Heavenly King if he wanted to return to the Celestial Realm.
The Heavenly King was speechless.
The situation was so absurd that he should have been asking, ’What kind of bullshit is this?’, but he was too dumbfounded to even open his mouth.
This was true even for him, the Heavenly King, ruler of the Celestial Realm and arguably the sole representative of God.
He couldn’t have predicted this.
’What on earth is this human thinking? What could possibly be his intent in spouting such words?’
“What do you an?” he asked.
He asked because he genuinely wanted to know.
Normally, he would have obliterated such an evil, conniving human with a flick of his finger, leaving not even dust behind.
That was the Heavenly King’s true nature.
The idea that celestials were inherently kind and gentle was a common misconception.
In the end, celestials were living beings like any other.
The only reason they were called celestials was that they served God and wielded divine power. That was all.
Their favor toward the continent was only because its people had chosen to serve God, making His worship their common religion.
Even then, they would not intervene when demons invaded the continent unless there was no other way.
They were just that cold.
And when it ca to evil, especially demons, they were particularly strict.
Yet here he was, not physically expressing his disgust toward Han Simin—the man who had joined hands with demons to subject him to such humiliation—and instead asking questions to satisfy his curiosity. There was only one reason.
He had no power.
He did not bow his head just because he lacked power, but he also was not foolish enough to bluff and posture with power he did not have.
He knew it wouldn’t work.
And the man opposite him knew perfectly well it would be a bluff.
A man who clearly had no intention of answering would hardly be swayed by so empty posturing.
Never.
So he spoke calmly and waited.
If the man talked, he would listen; if not, so be it.
Fortunately, Han Simin answered the Heavenly King’s question without resistance.
“I asked if you wanted to go back to the Celestial Realm. Just take it at face value and answer. I’m just asking.”
The Heavenly King remained silent.
“Of course, it’s not going to be cheap. You’ll pay a price far beyond what you’re imagining. But compared to the humiliation you and the other scraps in here are going to suffer, you’ll probably be grateful just for the chance to post bail.”
He did not respond.
There was no need to spell it out.
This was rely a confirmation.
“So why are you doing this?”
The problem, of course, was that this wasn’t the answer the Heavenly King had been looking for.
But as he listened to Han Simin’s words and the emotion behind them, the Heavenly King could tell he was sincere.
He did not understand it, but this human, more demonic than the Demon King herself, was extending a devil’s hand to him.
It was a bizarre phenonon—unfathomable, yet sohow understandable precisely because of the kind of man Han Simin was.
The Heavenly King wanted to press further, to hear the specifics.
The reason for such an offer.
“If I return to the Celestial Realm, I could regroup and lead the celestials back to the continent. Or I could head straight for the Demon World. So why?”
There was no way the human in front of him did not know that.
Even if he didn’t, there was no way the Demon King Epia didn’t.
So why?
Was this a purely personal decision?
Even knowing the burden would eventually fall back on him?
Han Simin answered that complicated question with another simple line.
“Why not? Killing you is pointless since you’ll just be resurrected later. And keeping you around is a waste of space. I might as well get paid to let you go. You’re going to co back for revenge soday anyway. Since that ending is already set in stone, I might as well profit from it while I have the upper hand.”
The Heavenly King was at a loss for words.
As he said, it was simple.
Han Simin only thought about himself.
Keeping the Heavenly King here longer would certainly benefit the Demon King.
It would give the demons ti to conquer the continent and cross over.
But any gains from that would now benefit the demons more than him.
All Han Simin would get was a bit more trust from the Emperor, which he already had, and a slight boost to his fa on the continent.
Even if the Demon King never conquered the continent, Han Simin’s path ahead was already paved in gold.
And if the Heavenly King went back, rebuilt his army, and invaded?
That wasn’t sothing that would happen in a day or two.
Whether he kept the Heavenly King here or let him go, the profits Han Simin would reap from the sky-high reputation he had built in the ga would be the sa.
In that case, of course it was better to take the extra side benefits.
A very simple, very selfish calculation.
And precisely because of that, it was efficient.
Had he not, with a single sentence, thrown the Heavenly King off balance?
In a negotiation, flustering your opponent and forcing them to reveal their hand is crucial to seizing the initiative.
“I’m not asking for much. It’s not like you have that much on you anyway, and even if I told you to go back and bring more, it’s not like you’d keep your word.”
The Heavenly King stayed silent.
Having taken control of the pace, Han Simin pushed the deal forward as he pleased.
There was no resistance.
Being dragged along by a human’s intentions did not sit well with the Heavenly King, but the fact remained that he was still locked in a prison cell. That reality forced him to admit this was no ti to worry about pride.
“I will think about it.”
“I can’t give you much ti. The news will spread soon enough, and as you know, the longer you wait, the higher the price.”
That last shred of pride—the determination not to join hands with demons—squeezed out one final line.
Doubt.
’He might be pulling so trick.’
It was a decision based on the situation outside, news of which had not yet reached the underground prison.
Han Simin generously gave him the chance.
Then, without a mont’s hesitation, he turned his back and left.
An adventurer ca down right after.
He was one of the players still clinging to the Sub-quest.
“Heavenly King, we’ve got a problem. You’re screwed, sir. What do we do?”
The Heavenly King stared at him blankly.
“You’ve been branded as the Demon King now, no way out of it. Ah, how do I even explain this... So the Heavenly King—no, the Demon King disguised as the Heavenly King...”
A mont later, the detailed explanation began.
*
The Main Quest was not over.
The Sub-quest given to the priests was still active as well.
Which ant the window of opportunity was still open.
—Why isn’t this ending?
—Is this a joke?
—Well, I an, there’s no reason it should end. There’s still technically a way to prove who the Heavenly King is, right?
—It just beca absurdly hard, that’s all.
—If soone clears this, I’ll give them my entire fortune.
—Co on. They just fabricated the whole story of how the Heavenly King turned into the Demon King and showed it to the Pope and the Emperor. How are we supposed to convince them now? Even if the Heavenly King gets his power back and saves the country with divine power, won’t they just say, “He was the original Heavenly King, of course he can do that,” and not believe it?
—He betrayed them, so he’d be using dark magic. If he uses divine power, they might still believe him.
—What are you talking about? By that logic, Epia used divine power too. Maybe Heavenly Kings and Demon Kings can both just use divine and dark power.
—Co on, they’re supposed to be opposites.
—Opposites or not, it already happened.
No one thought this was a quest ant to be cleared.
They all just assud it was so kind of bug.
Of course, there were no bugs in Fantastic World.
Which was why all they could do was sigh.
The quest was, for all intents and purposes, finished, yet the Main Quest did not move on to the next stage and remained stuck.
No one even considered trying to clear it. But for the story to progress, for players to grow and chase after the rewards that gave them hope, the Main Quest—which offered the greatest prize in all of Fantastic World—had to continue.
And that was not the only problem.
—Ugh. Now that the rumors have spread, the NPCs don’t believe us anymore.
—You say stuff like that and they imdiately call you a cultist and stone you.
—Fuck. I was trying to speed-level to 30 in the newbie zone by proselytizing, but I got killed, lost a level, and now I can’t even log in. This sucks.
Even that brief period of easy EXP farming had co to an end.
The players knew the truth, but the NPCs had not seen it with their own eyes.
No matter how loudly the adventurers shouted, the Pope and the key figures of each nation had all experienced Epia’s dream.
Who would believe that dream was a lie?
It had been so vivid, and Epia—who people had already been half inclined to believe—had handed them such a perfect story.
In the end, there was only one thing left for the players to do.
—Han Simin is insane.
—What a bastard. He hogs everything for himself.
—Let us live too, man.
—If you’ve got any conscience, stop hogging it all.
They grumbled.
—Looking for people to go protest at Rich Territory.
—Let’s hold a demonstration.
—Yeah. If the players band together, we can take down one scummy player ruining the ga’s ecosystem.
—We might not be able to call the Heavenly King the Heavenly King, but nobody’s going to complain if we protest to drive out one sly player.
They picked a relatively easy target to pick a fight with.
But most players didn’t realize that it would have been a far better choice to go straight to the Emperor and beg.
*
After throwing himself onto his bed to celebrate a job well done and enjoying a deep sleep, Han Simin returned to hear so interesting news.
“Simin, there’s a huge protest going on in front of Rich Territory. People are making a scene. The aide is wracking his brain over what to do. The casino just opened, too, and they’re all gathering there, getting in the way right when we need to squeeze it for all it’s worth.”
“Huh?”
He understood.
It was perfectly reasonable.
If he were in their shoes, he would have done the sa.
“They’re at least asking you to push the Main Quest forward already.”
“I’m sure they are.”
He understood, but that was their problem.
Han Simin had his own.
“What’s there to think about? Just wipe them out.”
“...Huh? Is that really okay?”
“Of course.”
“What if it hurts sales? You hate that kind of thing, Simin.”
Han Simin frowned at her question.
She was right.
An ordinary person would think that way.
After all, the people gathering in Rich Territory were not just a handful.
They were coming from all over the continent, and they were players.
Considering that nearly half of Rich Territory’s revenue ca from players, as a businessman, reflecting their opinions at least a little might be the right choice for long-term success.
But Han Simin did not see it that way.
“The ones who are going to co will co anyway. If we cave now and let them think this is their playground, that’s an even bigger loss, honestly. Just wipe them all out. What else are the Rabbits going to do for fun? I even went easy on them when they pulled out the hatchling’s heart because I was worried they’d die. They might as well work now.”
“Okay. I’ll pass that along.”
“If they’re lining up to hand
their pocket money, there’s no reason to turn them away.”
“You really are my type, Simin. You’re just like a scamr.”
“Keep the complints that don’t make money to yourself.”
With a broad smile spreading across his face, Han Simin felt unstoppable.
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