Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 1863

A strange atmosphere hung heavy in the air.

It was quite unusual.

The Round Table.

This large, circular table, a symbol of equality, had presided over this conference room for a long time.

Though times changed, people changed,

and even its very essence had shifted, the Round Table itself had remained steadfast in its place.

That’s why this was so strange.

Since the creation of the Round Table, this conference room had never been dominated by such oppressive heaviness.

*Gulp.*

The sound of someone swallowing hard was as loud as a thunderclap.

The Knights seated around the Round Table were literally holding their breaths, their gazes fixed downwards.

‘What on earth is going on…’

Their eyes darted towards the head of the table.

And…

Unlike the other Knights, the one sitting at the head of the table was leisurely sipping his tea, his face relaxed.

Savoring the aroma, Wiggins smiled faintly.

“One’s nature is inevitable, I suppose. After all this time, the first thing I want to do is drink tea.”

Wiggins, muttering something incomprehensible, put down his teacup and slowly raised his head.

“Thank you all for gathering here.”

At those words, the Knights flinched and simultaneously looked at Wiggins.

Wiggins didn’t reveal any particular hostility.

He wasn’t pressuring them with the imposing presence of a ruler, nor had he even said a single word that would make them feel burdened. Yet, all the Knights present were being crushed by Wiggins’s very presence.

‘What is happening?’

It was incomprehensible.

Only the Knights who had faced Kang Jin-ho at close range in the past felt that the current situation was similar to that time.

“I apologize for being absent for so long when the Round Table needed to be reorganized and re-established.”

“Ah, no, Master.”

“There must have been a reason.”

Quick replies came back.

It was as if they couldn’t bear Wiggins’s apology themselves. Seeing their reaction, Wiggins smiled gently.

“Thank you for understanding.”

Wiggins lightly stroked his neatly grown beard and continued.

“I believe there must be a mountain of unfinished business since the Master’s seat has been vacant for so long. I will do my best, but I will need the help of each Knight for a smooth resolution. I ask for everyone’s cooperation.”

“Of course.”

“We will do our best, Master.”

The Knights who answered, and even those who were just watching, felt an undeniable sense of unease at this moment.

The tone was mild.

Yes, the tone was definitely very mild. In fact, he seemed to be more humble than the previous Master.

But the conversation wasn’t flowing naturally.

Although Wiggins was humbling himself, this conversation felt less like a dialogue between the Master of the Round Table and the Knights, and more like a conversation between an emperor with absolute power and his subjects.

The balance had already collapsed.

Even though Wiggins had done nothing, the axis of the Round Table had crumbled, and this Round Table would no longer be a symbol of equality.

The Knights here were acutely aware of that fact at this moment.

The Knights looked at each other. But none of them dared to open their mouths and voice that fact.

Resistance? Or rebellion?

‘Against that man?’

Those who glanced at Wiggins couldn’t help but chuckle to themselves.

Fighting a lion with a spear could be called courage. But fighting a lion with bare hands is not courage, but recklessness. No, even the word recklessness is too good for it. It’s just madness.

Even if they weren’t alone, it would be the same.

Could a group of ten, twenty, or even thirty bare-handed humans dare to fight a lion?

If that’s the case with a lion, who would want to fight a monster that surpasses a lion?

All they could do was pray that the lion wasn’t hungry, and even if it was, that its claws and teeth wouldn’t be directed at them.

“As you all know…”

Wiggins trailed off slightly. A subtle silence passed, and the atmosphere grew heavier and heavier.

“Thanks to the tyranny of the previous Master, the Round Table is in a very dangerous situation.”

No one could meet Wiggins’s gaze.

There wasn’t a single fool here who didn’t understand the meaning behind Wiggins’s words. This was a threat veiled in mild language, a soft attack.

“Therefore, the most urgent thing to do is to make up for the mistakes of the previous Master and restore the relationship between the Round Table and the General Assembly. What do you all think?”

No one could easily answer.

There wouldn’t be anyone here who wouldn’t agree with the premise that the relationship with the General Assembly needed to be restored, but the problem was the method.

The method they had thought of was none other than placing Wiggins in the Master’s seat. They thought that would be enough to show their reconciliation to the General Assembly.

But now, Wiggins was asking them instead. As if that alone wasn’t enough.

“…Master.”

Someone mustered the courage to speak.

“It’s not that we haven’t considered the issue, but we believe that you, Master, would know more about it than we do…”

“Hmm?”

Wiggins laughed as if amused.

“So, are you saying that I can proceed with full authority on that matter?”

Everyone flinched and looked at Wiggins.

It was the same words, but the hidden nuance in those words was enough to make them uneasy.

“Master… what are you planning to do?”

“Isn’t it obvious?”

Wiggins smiled gently.

“The Round Table’s sins are great, but they can be called mistakes. In fact, most of you here are not really responsible for that, are you? Everything was done at the sole discretion of the previous Master.”

“Y-yes, that’s right.”

“If we had known, we would have stopped it somehow. No one here wanted such a thing to happen.”

Wiggins’s lips curled into a bitter smile.

“But you see.”

“Isn’t the Round Table originally such a place? The actions of the Master were also done under the name of the Round Table. If so, then saying that you are not responsible is just an excuse.”

“If you don’t want to take responsibility, you shouldn’t bear the name of a Knight. Do you understand?”

Wiggins’s voice lowered heavily.

“If the Round Table’s system had been functioning properly,

it would have been able to stop the previous Master no matter how much he tried to act unilaterally. That means that the current system cannot prevent the tyranny of those in power. Then, the most urgent thing to do is…”

Wiggins smiled.

“The reallocation of authority and the reorganization of the system.”

A cold aura pierced the Knights.

There was no trace of mana. But every time Wiggins’s atmosphere changed, their hearts would beat wildly and then stop.

‘…It’s on a different level.’

‘What on earth happened?’

One thing was certain.

The current Wiggins had reached an absolute level that they could not stop no matter what they did.

“In that sense, I intend to appropriately reallocate the authority of the Master and the authority of the Knights. First, I will adjust the authority of the Master.”

“How…”

“I will return the command of the Royal Guard, which the Master had exclusively wielded, to the Round Table.”

“Excuse me?”

The Knights’ eyes widened at Wiggins’s unexpected words.

“The Royal Guard, you say?”

The Master’s Royal Guard was no different from the Master’s private army.

The Round Table was a coalition formed by the powers of various countries. However, for the immediate execution of tasks, it needed not only troops that required permission from each country to move, but also troops that the Round Table could directly control.

They were the power of the Round Table, a power that only the Master could wield.

The Knights thought that Wiggins would naturally strengthen their power. But instead, he was saying that he would give up the authority to command them.

‘What on earth is he thinking?’

Without giving them much time to think, Wiggins continued.

“And, it seems that your authority also needs to be adjusted. About half of the power that each country has must be delegated to the Round Table.”

“W-wait a moment!”

The Knights’ eyes widened.

“M-Master! That’s too much. We are merely those who have been delegated authority from our homelands.”

“I know.”

“But how can you…”

“Isn’t that why all of this happened?”

Wiggins opened his mouth with cold eyes.

“Standing back and protecting each country. The countries do not take responsibility for what happened at the Round Table. That’s why you couldn’t stop the previous Master’s tyranny. If that had happened in your own countries, would you have sat idly by while all of that happened?”

“I’m not just forcing you to sacrifice. I will also give up all authority.”

“B-but…”

Knight Boronin said, sweating profusely.

“The fact that military power is being transferred to the Round Table means that the Master’s power is being strengthened. But what you’re saying about giving it up doesn’t make sense.”

How much mental effort did Boronin have to exert to say these words? It wasn’t hard to guess just by looking at the sweat dripping down his face.

“That’s right.”

Wiggins nodded.

“The biggest problem with the Round Table is that the decision-making process is too inefficient, and once a decision is made, the Master wields excessive authority. That’s the problem.”

“That’s why I’m going to change the system a little.”

“…How so?”

Wiggins smiled.

“Each Knight gets one vote, the Master gets one vote, and one vote is given to a neutral party, narrowing the majority voting system to three.”

“If the military power that the Master has, and half of the military power of each country, is transferred to the Round Table, and the authority to move that military power is held by the Round Table, not the Master, then there can be nothing more democratic than that. Don’t you think so?”

Knight Boronin nodded.

They had to lose their authority in this place anyway. Wiggins wouldn’t let them get away without any losses.

But if it was this much, it wasn’t the worst. At least they would have voting rights, and Wiggins would also lose something. Considering his overwhelming power at the beginning, it could be said that Wiggins had conceded a lot.

If only one thing was confirmed.

“Then, who is this neutral party?”

“I’ve been thinking about it.”

Wiggins rested his chin on his hand and looked at everyone.

“Neutrality doesn’t just mean having no relationship. If you don’t know the situation of how the Round Table works, it could be poison, wouldn’t it?”

“…That’s right.”

“So, I’m thinking of appointing one of you Knights to act as a mediator between the Knights and the Master.”

“Could it be…”

Wiggins smiled faintly.

“Don’t worry. I’m a reasonable person, so I’ll exclude the British.”

“I’ve chosen someone who can satisfy both you and me. It has to be someone who is not influenced by the Round Table’s system and is not particularly favorable to me.”

Wiggins’s head tilted to one side.

“The one I’ve chosen is Knight Tavares.”

Everyone’s gaze turned sharply towards Knight Tavares. But Knight Tavares didn’t look at those who were looking at him, and only stared at Wiggins with hostile eyes.

‘Not bad.’

‘His rebellious nature is a concern, but he is more hostile to the Master than we are.’

‘We’ve gained what we needed with this much.’

It was a concern that it was Knight Tavares, but considering that he was the youngest Knight who had joined the Round Table last, they had no choice but to agree that he was the most neutral.

No, it was a choice that was rather favorable to them.

“I agree.”

“It’s a reasonable choice.”

“I also agree.”

As the Knights unanimously expressed their agreement, Wiggins smiled faintly.

“Then, I will leave the selection of troops to be contributed by each country to Knight Tavares.”

“As you wish.”

A surprisingly easy agreement was reached.

And…

At that moment when everyone was breathing a sigh of relief, Knight Tavares and Wiggins exchanged a brief glance.

‘He’s become more rotten in the meantime.’

Wiggins, having obtained everything he wanted, leaned back in his chair.