Chapter 199:
Chapter 199:
Chapter 199:
*Thud* *Crash!*
Kairos, who was trying to escape, unfortunately tripped over his own foot and fell.
So flustered that he didn't even realize his feet were tangled.
The result.
*Snatch*
Ariel grabbed Kairos by the back of the head.
“How dare you… run away again?”
“A…. Ariel!”
“Even after 450 years of not seeing each other… are you avoiding me again?”
"I-It's not that! I'm just so flustered…""DIIIIEEEEEE!!!!"
Ariel swung a spiked club towards Kairos.
“Aaaaahhhh!”
Kairos couldn't even properly retaliate and was unilaterally beaten.
The beating was so severe that the people who watched from the sidelines quickly turned away.
“He deserved it.”
“Right, good.”
“Suffer, Your Majesty.”
Kairos's men, Agatho, Hildegard, and Maximus, cheered Ariel on.
It was natural.
They had been strong supporters of Kairos and Ariel in the past.
But when Kairos fell in love with Beatrice, the Flower Snake, everything was ruined.
Not just Kairos' life, but the lives of his subordinates.
So it was only natural to cheer for Ariel as she vindictively beat Kairos.
“Kwueeeh!”
“Die, DIIIIIEE!!"
“Aaahhh!”
“Die, you little shit!”
“Quack!”
Kairos was beaten indiscriminately by Ariel, paying for the karma he had accumulated in his previous life.
For ignoring the pure and innocent love of a devoted woman…
“Hehehe!”
Otto took delight in seeing Kairos get beaten up.
Since this was the reason he brought Ariel in the first place, his goal was accomplished.
*Sigh.*
Camille, seeing Otto like that and thinking he was hopeless, turned away and quietly left.
Watching Kairos get beaten was entertaining, but the scene was too terrifying to truly enjoy.
“Well, good luck!”
Otto also left, as if he had seen enough.
“Hey, you bastards! Ack! Ugh! where are you going, you disloyal bastards! Ugh! Aaah! I need help… Kweeeeeeek!”
Kairos cried out for help, but no one came to his aid.
It wasn't like they really didn't want to help in the first place, but they didn't dare pull Ariel away, fearing for their lives.
“Stop me? Just try it, huh?”
Ariel snapped, pointing her spiked bat at the people around her.
People were so frightened that they quietly slipped away.
They didn't want to risk getting beaten by Ariel for meddling unnecessarily.
The result.
"Kkuuuaaaaaaaaaa!!!"
Throughout the day, Kairos' screams echoed through the barracks.
* * * * Read in GalaxyTranslation97 Website * * * *
* /SchattenTranslations *
After one gruesome beatdown.
“Aack, Uughh!"
Kairos lay sprawled on the ground, completely battered.
*Smack* *Smack*
Ariel was still not satisfied, and tried to beat Kairos with her bare hands.
But…
*Drip* "Heok."
After venting her frustrations, the pent-up emotions of centuries burst forth.
“Huhu… Huhuhu."
Tears streamed from Ariel's eyes.
“Oh, how I've missed you, you bastard, Huhuhu."
"……."
"I still can't get over you… Huhu… Every night. I spend every night. Huhuhu.. Thinking about you. I have lived my whole life without getting married. Huhuhu."
"……."
"I… I missed you. Huhuh."
Suddenly, Ariel burst into tears as she hugged Kairos.
"……."
Kairos comforted Ariel as she cried without saying a word.
Knowing how much she'd chased after him in his previous life.
“You.”
Ariel turned to Kairos after a long moment of sobbing.
“You're going to avoid me again this time, aren't you? Huh?”
"……"
“You're going to ditch me again, aren't you? For some flower snake bitch?”
“No.”
Kairos shook his head.
“Not in this life… I won't run away.”
“You're lying.”
“I mean it.”
Kairos spoke with sincerity.
“The reason I didn't accept your heart in my previous life… was because I had another woman in my heart.”
"Beatrice, that damn woman?"
"……"
“Is this the result of all your avoiding me because of one trashy bitch?”
“I'm sorry.”
Kairos shook his head.
Beatrice was the most painful part of Kairos's life and his greatest blemish.
“And now?”
“Well, of course….”
"Of course. What are you going to do?"
“Let's get to know each other slowly….”
Right then.
"Heup!"
Ariel's lips crashed down on Kairos's.
Ariel then transformed into a ferocious beast and ripped Kairos' shirt to shreds.
“W-What the f-! Heum!"
“Hold still.”
“Isn't this too fast… Hmph!"
“I've put up with you for 450 years, and you want me to wait for more?”
“B-But still! Hmph!”
"I can't endure it anymore. Just stay quiet."
“Hmph!”
Kairos's grip tightened on the carpet on the floor after that.
* * * * Read in GalaxyTranslation97 Website * * * *
* /SchattenTranslations *
Same time.
Argonne the Great led his private army across the borders of the Kingdom of Loredin.
The Oberhausers had long been training their own Order of Knights in preparation for the return of the Great Argonne, and possessed thousands of soldiers.
It was therefore not a difficult task to form a military force inside the Kingdom of Loredin.
“Kill them all!”
“Destroy the kingdom's army!”
The army, led by Emperor Argonne, quickly laid waste to the areas occupied by the Loredin Kingdom Army.
"Those who surrender will be spared. But for those who resist, there will be only death."
Clad in golden armor, Argonne the Great demonstrated his overwhelming power as he crushed the Loredin forces on the front lines.
While he had disguised himself as a merchant, he had been forced to conceal his true strength, but it was only when he sought to take Loredin that he revealed his true power.
After his first great victory, Argonne immediately set out to reassure the people of the occupied territories.
He understood all too well that winning battles was not enough, but winning hearts and minds was the most important thing.
“Release the food supplies and feed the starving people first.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Emperor Argonne released the military rations and fed the starving people of Loredin.
‘Damn it. What a waste, to have to feed these wretches.'
In truth, Argonne the Great did not want to release the food.
The rations he was distributing to the people were the last of his personal reserves.
Argonne was not giving it away out of charity, he was doing it out of necessity to win the people's favor.
“Oh, thank you!”
“Thank you for your grace, General!”
The starving people of the Loredin Kingdom could only shed tear after tear of gratitude.
Unaware of what the Argonne thought of them.
But Argonne didn't stop there.
“Set up a makeshift hospital and tend to the sick.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Medical supplies were unpacked, and mages were sent to heal the sick with healing magic.
The crowning glory of it all was that Argonne himself visited and tended to the sick.
“How did you let it get to this point?”
Argonne the Great asked, holding the man who was suffering from the pain of his back and comforting him.
"Hold still. Let me heal you."
“Oh, thank you.”
“First, we must remove the pus from your back.”
Next moment.
*Tsup!* *Tsup!*
Argonne pressed his lips to the man's bare back, sucking out the pus.
“Ptui!”
Argonne spat out the foul, bloody pus, and disinfected the man's back with a strong liquor.
Then he sent for a mage to heal the wound.
“Oooh!”
“The General sucked the pus with his mouth.”
"Good heavens. How could such a person appear only now?"
The people of Loredin were greatly impressed by the appearance of Argonne the Great.
They never thought to see him suck that foul pus into his mouth.
"General! I don't know what to do! Oh my!"
"Don't worry. I just did what needed to be done for the sick patient."
Emperor Argonne showed kindness and a gentle smile to the grateful patient."
Of course, Argonne's outward appearance and inner thoughts were completely different.
"You disgusting wretches.
‘These disgusting worms.'
Emperor Argon despised the people.
Emperor Argonne, with immense pride in his noble lineage, never considered ordinary people equal to himself.
To him, the common people were nothing more than objects to be exploited.
He only sought to gain public sentiment because he knew well the power they held when tens, hundreds, or even millions of commoners gathered.
Argonne's values regarded individual commoners as beings lower than insects.
“Establish a defensive line around this area, and prepare to expand our territory.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Also.”
Argonne the Great smiled and ordered his men.
"Release our agents to spread rumors. Spread the word that General Julius's occupied territory is a true earthly paradise. Tell them that going there means receiving food and encountering no oppression from nobles."
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
As soon as Argonne the Great had succeeded in capturing a part of the kingdom, he would immediately engage in a public relations campaign.
It's like proving the reason he was able to become Emperor in the first place.
* * * * Read in GalaxyTranslation97 Website * * * *
* /SchattenTranslations *
Later that night.
“…Uuughh.”
Kairos emerged, practically walking as a zombie.
His cheeks were sunken in, his eyes were hollow, and his lips were puffy and swollen.
What else?
His legs, usually strong and sturdy due to his strong lower body training, were wobbly and weak.
His face was also covered in bruises from the beating he had taken.
“W-What the hell happened?”
Otto was horrified at the sight of Kairos.
He'd expected Kairos to be beaten up, but not to this extent.
Who knew that a man could turn into a decrepit wreck in a mere day?
On the contrary, Ariel was as bright as a flower in full bloom.
Her face was full of vitality, her skin was radiantly smooth, and the corners of her mouth shone like rubies.
Like a person who's done a lot of physical revitalization.
‘Is she some kind of vampire?'
As Otto was considering that.
“Hey.”
Ariel said to Otto.
“Do you mind if I ask you a favor?”
“A favor?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of favor?”
“I'm getting married later, and I need you to help me prepare everything.”
“Huh?”
Otto scratched his ear, wondering if he was hearing it right.
A wedding?
Is this some kind of roasting beans over a lightning storm?¹
“W-Wedding?!”
“Already?”
“No, what kind of wedding, and in such a hurry.”
“Hehehe.”
The people around were also bewildered by Ariel's nonsensical words.
Marriage is no child's play.
"Why? What?"
Ariel rolled her eyes.
“I've waited 450 years, and you want me to wait any longer? What's the big deal about marriage? Can't we just pour a bowl of water and call it done?"
Ariel's comment left everyone, including Otto, speechless.
‘Come to think of it, that's true. The ceremony isn't what's important. What matters is their feelings for each other.'
Otto nodded, secretly agreeing with Ariel.
“N-No! We're getting married now?!”
Kairos exclaimed in surprise.
“Why? You don't want to?”
Ariel snapped her head around to glare at Kairos.
"You've done it once, right?"
"W-What do you mean!"
"Are you saying you'll abandon me? Again?"
“When did I start behaving in such a…."
“Then we do it.”
Ariel's eyes glinted at Kairos.
"….."
"….."
"….."
People finally realized what had happened and were dumbfounded, their mouths agape in disbelief.
After Ariel beat up Kairos…
“Hey.”
Ariel rounded on Otto.
“Y… Yes?”
“Could you get something ready for me?”
“Uh, like what?”
"Slaughter a pig, bring some drinks, and just pick some flowers from the field."
Otto was at a loss for words.
** ** **
TL/N:
1. This idiom conveys the idea of an unrealistic or impossible situation.