382 Venomous Snake in the Treasure Vaul (1/2)

Although the people in the tiny cockpit appeared to be discussing major issues that could shake multiple nations, they were speaking casually, as if they didn't feel they were discussing anything important.

”Bardi… Orloss means you should hand over the assassins and treat this as a case of a personal grudge. Of course, the Mage Country should also sign a formal apology and make reparations on the surface… Yeah, I know you won't agree. At the very least, you should hand over the assassins. They're just a few Dark Elves. Otherwise Orloss won't be able to explain it to his citizens.”

Evelyn didn't mince her words in the least. Who knew if it was because Copper Dragons naturally loathed Dark Elves or if it was her who didn't like my Dark Elves?

”If you truly understand me, then you should know that this is absolutely impossible. I only listen to softball methods; I won't accept anyone playing hardball with me… Fine then—actually, neither method works on me. You can call me overly protective or unreasonable, but I have zero intentions of handing anyone over.”

All that happened was that my Dark Elves killed an evil criminal. I didn't feel that they did anything wrong. And since my subordinates didn't do anything wrong, as their boss, how could I possibly retreat and compromise? So what if a mega empire was pressuring me? They wanted me to hand the Dark Elves over? Never.

”Tsk! As stubborn as in my memories. I suppose it's to be expected. If you were someone soft who gave up easily, you wouldn't have fought against the entire Bardi Empire by yourself back then. And, the Eve—the Cher from that year wouldn't have fallen in love with you.”

She whispered the last part in a tiny voice, but I still managed to hear her clearly. However, I preferred to pretend that I didn't, as I truly did not want to know the events of the past.

”Aren't you curious?”

”…I would be lying if I said I wasn't, but considering the troubles I'll meet after I remember, it'd be for the best for me to not know. Or is there something I absolutely must be know?”

I smiled as I said that, but Evelyn grit her teeth in anger.

”…An even slyer smile than what's in my memories. You wicked deceiver of emotions!”

Alright then, I didn't know whether I should laugh or cry. It seemed I accidentally stepped on some landmine.

However, it was fortunate that we represented the negotiation between two major factions. Cher, especially, simply watched the two of us, setting all personal issues aside. For the time being, at least.

Once we finished our discussion, Evelyn got up and said goodbye. She took Cher along with her, saying that she wanted to ”Have a long evening talk with Cher to deepen our mother-daughter relationship.” However, I felt that Evelyn intended to tell Cher about the entire messy relationship from back in the year.

I considered the fact that I needed to cure Cher, so I would also need her cooperation. Rather than me spending lots of effort to obtain her trust, it would be much easier to have Evelyn explain everything to her. I didn't stop the two of them from leaving together.

”Sigh, this relationship is impossible to understand with how messy it is. Forget it. Let's let things play out naturally.”

”You're just avoiding the problem.”

”You're so right that I don't even know how to counter you, silly cat.”

The more I thought about my personal affairs, the messier I felt things were. I decided instead to concentrate on the main task at hand.

”Aso… I truly underestimated you.”

From a certain standpoint, Aso was an incredible individual.

There was no need to go into any more detail about his numerous past accomplishments. None of us were that young, at the age where we needed to brag about our achievements. So-called ”past glory” to people as old as us would typically be nothing more than burdens and frustrations. He had personally led and coordinated all the invasion efforts by himself and had left several hidden killer chess pieces, such as the potential Bardi ”Undead Plague” or the Salo's Crystal ”nuclear bomb” aimed at the Truth Symposium—this was best evidence of his amazingness.

At the very least, if I were in his position, there was no guarantee I would do any better.

Perhaps the only part where he was lacking was in luck.

In the game's history, Aso had successfully led the undead invasion, but he met with the problem of two robbers reaching their hands into the same pocket. He just happened to run into the revived Titan Giants—he could only end up fighting against them.

Yet in this version of the world, once Aso discovered that his scheme was exposed and that the few Dimensional Doors he opened might be closed by us, endangering the Tark Republic's plan to return, he unhesitatingly sacrificed himself. All in the hope that the Tark Republic would be able to inevitably return.

The flip side of the coin was that he had led the entire undead invasion by himself. While he had great authority, he had been far too important to the Tark Republic.

As a typical Undead Emperor, he lacked trust in both his subordinates and fellow Undead Emperors. The end result was that after his death, the secrets that only he knew were lost. His killer traps didn't have anyone to activate them.

Still, Aso was evidently unwilling to die off just like this and take all his knowledge to the grave. This great scheme he had been planning for several centuries would be ruined just like this.

And so Aso had handed over the keys to his knowledge to the only other Undead Emperor present at the time—me. But he didn't tell me much. Obviously, he didn't trust me, and it could even be said that he had a grudge against me.

However, a nuclear bomb with a lost activation code would be nothing more than a hunk of metal. As long as the activation code existed, it would forever be a threat. That's why, as long as he handed over the activation code, he wouldn't lose out in the end.

Since I now knew about the lock, finding the right key on the keychain was simply a matter of time.

”…A potion created out of thirteen common ingredients. Only a miniscule amount of this potion needs to be dispersed on the air, and it will begin the mutation of the bloodlines all Bardi citizens who inhale this fragrance. And this mutation will be impossible to stop once it begins.”