Crown had been dreaming.
The last player.
The final rebel and challenger.
Prince Ash Born Hater Everblack, his eyes glowing in the darkness, had been screaming at him.
- The Pied Piper...!
"Ugh!"
Swallowing hard, Crown snapped his eyes open.
The safe zone between the third and fourth sectors of the Lake Kingdom Dungeon - the base camp - was shrouded in complete darkness.
Only the permanent magic stone embedded in the corner gave off a faint light.
Crown was sitting under that magic stone, leaning against the wall.
It seems I dozed off.
He couldnt rember the last ti he had a good nights sleep.
Crown tried to wipe his weary face with his hand.
But soon he realized his face was covered with a ridiculous mask.
"..."
Crown slowly looked down at his hands, and then his body.
A black hooded hat, a minstrel costu.
And a laughing mask.
"Ha."
He couldnt even rember how long it had been since he put on these ridiculous clothes and started playing the fool.
Suddenly, he recalled the scene where Prince Ash had scread at him.
The Pied Piper, he said?
The Pied Piper.
There was such a tale in the Lake Kingdom, too.
A village was infested with rats, and the villagers hired a minstrel to get rid of them.
The minstrel played his pipe and controlled the rats, drowning all of them in the lake.
But the villagers, stingy and regretful, did not pay the minstrel as promised.
Angry, the minstrel played his pipe again and controlled the villages children, drowning all of them in the lake as well.
Thats too much, really.
Crown bitterly clicked his tongue.
Thats way too accurate...
Then.
"Crown."
A tallic voice reached him.
Turning around, Crown saw one of the Nightcrawler squad mbers standing next to him.
"Whats the matter?"
"The commanders under the Demon King are being summoned. It seems theres a war council today."
War council.
Crowns lips twisted behind his mask.
The Nightcrawler squad mber asked slowly.
"Will you attend?"
"...I have to."
Crown slowly got up, his body creaking as if he were a wooden puppet.
"After all, I am the representative of this Lake Kingdom."
"..."
"Even if this kingdom has fallen to be a colony of demons."
Crown staggered out of the base camp and started walking towards the center of the Lake Kingdom.
The Nightcrawler squad mber muttered in a low voice.
"Be careful."
"Careful..."
Crown shook his head weakly.
"I wish sothing would happen where, if Im not careful, I would just die..."
***
The very center of the Lake Kingdom.
In this place, shrouded in a fog as thick as smoke, a colossal tower lood ominously.
Kings Castle.
Once the most bustling and beautiful place in the Lake Kingdom, it was now smothered in dripping, inky darkness.
Crown strolled nonchalantly into the palace engulfed in this darkness.
"Hes just a jester."
"Shaless fool."
The palace gatekeepers, demons, sneered at his sight. However, Crown walked on, ignoring them and crossing through their midst.
Walking a distance along the hallway, a vast hall unfolded before him.
A space where the subjects revered the king.
There were three thrones on the stage, but the two thrones on either side were grotesquely destroyed and empty.
Only on the throne in the middle sat a figure, blurry as a shadow.
Above its head, it wore a radiant golden crown. It stared at the chessboard placed next to its throne in silence.
"..."
Crown, having glared at that shadow for a mont, eventually cast his gaze down to the stage below.
Below the stage, a long table was placed, huge chairs arranged around it.
And seated in them were nine monsters.
"Youre late, Crown!"
A werewolf with a silver mane among the monsters hollered cheerfully.
"How dare a puny human like you, co late to the eting summoned by the Demon King! Dont you humans understand the concept of sha?"
"Puny human..."
Crown muttered under his breath and took a seat at the end of the table.
"Born from the nightmares of those humans, a piece of trash. Amusing."
"What did you say? You insolent-"
"Let it be."
A solemn voice echoed from the throne.
The king had spoken. The werewolf imdiately shut his mouth.
"That one, Crown, is a jester. Mocking, ridiculing, satirizing, jesting, and making a fool of himself is his job. Thats this humans main occupation."
"..."
"And Crowns words arent entirely wrong. You all were refined from the fragnts of human nightmares."
The kings voice hardened a bit.
"But, the one who lets these humans dream of immortality, and fulfills that dream, is ."
"..."
"Isnt that right, Crown?"
"...Yes, Your Majesty."
"Dont forget, Crown."
The kings voice grew increasingly heavy. Crown could feel an intangible force settling on his head and shoulders.
"All the humans of this Lake Kingdom are nothing more than our livestock. They supply nightmares when we need them... no different from the cows or pigs you used to raise."
"..."
"Always be grateful that such livestock is brought to the council table. Do you understand?"
When the king finished speaking, Crown was almost leaning over the table, his torso almost touching it.
Crown nodded silently.
Surrendering to the power of the king was not a shaful act.
To feel humiliation over sothing so trivial, when they had endured so much greater indignities over the countless ages...
"Well, lets leave that topic here," the king shifted the discussion. The oppressive air pressing down on Crown disappeared.
"The reason I summoned your legion commanders today, as you probably know, is because the ti for the Great Rampage has arrived."
The king scanned the legion commanders, his fingers draped with rings.
"Therefore, one among you should lead your legion to invade the world of n."
The kings gaze carefully swept over each of the legion commanders.
Eventually, the king raised his hand, preparing to point at the werewolf.
"Given that it is still the early stages, a low-ranking Dem-"
"Your Majesty."
At that mont, soone daringly interrupted the king and raised their hand.
"Please, send ."
"Hmm."
The one who raised his hand was a boy with pale skin and dark blue hair. Crown glanced at him.
The Nightmare Legion Commander, 5th in rank.
The head of the bloodline. The essence of the vampires.
The No Life King. Nosferatu. Dracula-
"Celendion."
The king spoke the boys na with a delighted tone.
"Quite unexpected. You, volunteering to lead the charge? Didnt you always dislike coming forward?"
"...
The commander of the bloodline, Celendion, remained silent for a mont before opening his mouth.
"The humans on the surface killed Ollorb."
"Oh?"
"I wish to seek revenge. Please grant permission."
The Black Spider Queen, Ollorb.
A powerful 6th ranked legion commander, killed absurdly by a re cannon. And during a scouting mission at that.
Her sudden and pitiful demise was sothing even the king hadnt foreseen.
"Right! Those bastards killed Ollorb!"
"How dare those livestock!"
"If it werent for the Naless, those trash wouldve been wiped out long ago!"
The table grew loud as Ollorbs death was brought up. The king waved his hand.
"Dont get too excited. Ollorb will return in the next round."
Ah yes, the king who had spoken, laughed heartily.
"Of course, its a concept you guys might not understand."
Confused at what next round ant, the legion commanders couldnt understand the kings words.
"..."
Crown kept his mouth shut in silence.
"Anyway, good. I like it. Most of all, it seems like it will be fun."
The king nodded at Celendion.
"Celendion, I grant you permission to march. Begin your invasion four weeks from now, in earth ti."
"I accept Your Majestys command."
Celendion, who had risen from his seat, deeply bowed towards the king.
"Good, this matter is settled. Next, we have the issue of Nightmare supply throughout the kingdom-"
Just as the king was about to discuss the next agenda item.
Boom!
The door of the Reality Chamber burst open, and a gatekeeper demon rushed in, panting heavily.
"Your Majesty, there is a problem!"
"What is it?"
"The Naless... has invaded...!"
The table began to buzz. Crowns eyes widened.
The king, sighing faintly, inquired.
"A ssage?"
"A ssage indeed."
"Figures, its always been that way."
"So, perhaps it would be best to conclude the eting here and close the palace gates for the day..."
The words of the Water Gate Demon were cut off.
Thunk!
The upper body of the Water Gate Demon shattered into pieces along with a flash of light.
A sword hurled from a distance lodged into the back of the Water Gate Demon, simultaneously setting off an explosion of light.
Thud. Thud.
An unhurried silhouette strode down the corridor and slowly retrieved the sword from the body of the Water Gate Demon.
"You!"
"This blaspher, even in our court!"
The outraged commanders all shot up from their seats.
"Its a good night, monster lords."
The figure who sauntered into the demons lair was a woman in tattered robes. Her bleached white hair dragged along the floor, and the black sword in her hand was so worn it looked more like a lump of iron.
Facing such an adversary, the king voiced his dismay.
"So, you continue this pointless fight, tireless and futile, Naless."
"Sure, since cleaning up your incessant dust is my job."
The dungeon rchant who road the grounds of the Lake Kingdom.
The NPC who first guided Ash and his companions - Naless gripped her sword.
"Though it may seem sudden, Im here to execute you."
The king shook his head disapprovingly.
"How much ti has passed since you started swinging that sword? A hundred years? Five hundred? Or is it several millennia?"
"I dont know. Ive forgotten all about it."
"No matter how hard you try, your kingdom will never be saved. Youll just wander this hell forever."
"If thats the case, I will fight forever."
Naless old sword began to slowly emit light.
"If thats my duty, so be it."
The commanders blocking Naless path drew their weapons.
Both sides entered a state of tension as if a collision were imminent.
Thud. Thud.
And then.
Crown walked out of this tense reality as if nothing were amiss.
"..."
"..."
Crown and Naless brushed shoulders. But the two didnt even glance at each other.
"Hahahaha!"
Watching this spectacle, the king roared with laughter.
"A surrendered one and a resister, huh? Haha! I love them all! They make excellent nightmare material!"
Listening to the demon kings laughter, Crown murmured quietly as he left the palace.
"Resistance is futile. The nightmare never ends."
Holding her sword in front of her, Naless dismissed him nonchalantly.
"Even so, soone has to keep the torch lit."
Naless thought of the countless people who had perished in the effort to illuminate the darkness of this kingdom.
And she thought of the faces of Ashs group, who were still fighting.
"Because soone following that torch... can light a new one."
With a whoosh!
Charging headlong into the monsters, Naless thrust her sword.
The battle that had unfolded countless tis in the hell beneath the Lake Kingdom was being repeated once again.
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