The Heavenly Demon Can’t Live A Normal Life [EN]: Chapter 364

Marquis Memphis’s office.

Count Fabius sat opposite him, a smile on his face, though the meeting place had been changed at the last minute. “Don’t you think we’re seeing too much of each other?” Fabius joked. “Dimitri and Chronos… It seems those who are trusted don’t get any time to rest, haha.”

Fabius was Dimitri’s best diplomat.

Memphis was second-in-command in Chronos. For a global audience, especially new readers, Chronos is a powerful empire.

They met whenever there were political problems, and as Fabius said, they knew each other well.

Fabius looked like he was enjoying himself, but Marquis Memphis was clearly annoyed. He didn’t like that Dimitri had told him about this meeting without asking first.

“Get to the point,” Memphis said.

“Well, if you insist,” Fabius replied.

He shrugged.

Count Fabius took a sip of the tea brought by the servant, his face calm.

“It’s been a while since Chronos and Dimitri agreed to stop fighting. Things have been calm because we’ve both followed the rules. But recently, I’ve heard that the Chronos Empire is moving many soldiers to the Cairo border. You say it’s just training. But Dimitri is also having problems with Valhalla right now, and then you do this…”

Clang!

He slammed the teacup down, the sound echoing in the room.

His friendly face changed instantly.

“My lord is very displeased,” Fabius stated.

Marquis Memphis’s smile vanished, his face twisting into a mask of anger.

Expressing anger towards Chronos was unthinkable just a year ago.

“Like you said, we are just training our soldiers. It’s none of Dimitri’s business,” Memphis retorted.

“Yes, yes, if you say so,” Fabius replied. “If you say it has nothing to do with breaking our ceasefire, fine. But we’re not fools. We know what moving troops like this means to Dimitri. Even if you aren’t working with Valhalla, it still looks bad to everyone else. People will blame you.”

Fabius spoke boldly.

Fabius was like a hyena, seizing the chance to attack Memphis’s weak point.

Marquis Memphis didn’t hide his anger either.

“Count Fabius,” Memphis said. “If we really wanted to attack Dimitri, we wouldn’t have waited this long. Chronos has much more power than we’ve ever shown in our war with you. We could decide to do anything we want. Sending troops to Cairo is just a small part of our army. That’s the truth. Dimitri shouldn’t make such a big deal out of it, should they?”

The silence in the room was thick with tension. Neither man blinked, their eyes locked in a silent battle.

Count Fabius knew this meeting would go this way.

Simply moving troops for training wasn’t enough to justify political blame.

Count Fabius twitched.

“You’re forcing us to be honest here,” Fabius said. “Dimitri and Chronos are only in a ceasefire. The war isn’t over, just paused. We’re always watching what the Chronos Empire does. You say you don’t want war, but we know it could start again any minute. So, let me ask you this: Does Chronos need more time for something? You’re just watching and waiting, which is strange for you. It makes us think you have other plans.”

The reason for visiting Chronos was clear.

The other party’s excuses didn’t matter from the start.

“So, do something about it,” Fabius demanded. “We know you’re trying to stall for time. But if you keep being so unclear about your intentions, Dimitri will have to take action.”

He leaned back on the sofa.

With a somewhat arrogant face, he looked down at Memphis.

“Do you understand what I mean?”

Marquis Memphis threw back his head and laughed, a harsh, barking sound that didn’t reach his cold eyes.

“Indeed, you live up to your reputation,” Memphis said, wiping away tears. “You have a sharp tongue.”

Unlike his smiling face, irritation surged within him.

Dimitri’s power had grown.

Now, they were fearless against the Chronos Empire, and they didn’t deny that war could break out again, as Fabius had said.

Had any country in history opposed Chronos so much?

If so, it would have been destroyed within years.

Marquis Memphis said, “Here’s what I can promise: Chronos wants to keep the ceasefire for now. We will try to reduce the number of soldiers near Cairo as much as we can. We can’t take them all away, but we’ll make sure there aren’t enough to be a threat.”

He smiled.

But his eyes held a sharp glint.

“But you know, Fabius, if Chronos is planning something big, you’re walking into danger right now,” Memphis continued. “You could die just for being here for Dimitri. Aren’t you scared? You used to be called the ‘Raccoon of Cairo’ because you were clever, not brave. You’re not doing this just to be selfless, are you?”

It was pure curiosity.

The troop movement was something Chronos would back down on, but his eyes didn’t show defeat.

He carefully watched Fabius.

He looked ready to attack.

But Count Fabius picked up the teacup again, looked at Memphis, and slowly savored it.

“Well, I won’t lie,” Fabius said. “I hate dying for nothing. Only fools die for no reason, and nobody even thanks you for it.”

People said Fabius had become loyal to Dimitri.

They thought he was different from the ‘Raccoon of Cairo’ he used to be.

But that wasn’t true.

He was still the same Fabius.

“I’m doing this because it’s good for me to serve Roman Dimitri,” Fabius explained. “I’m important in Dimitri now. I have power. My wife is happy because Dimitri gives us gifts every month. And my oldest son? He’s training to be a great Aura Swordsman for Dimitri. And most importantly…”

Fabius leaned forward, his eyes gleaming.

“I know that if I’m useful to Dimitri, he will never let me down,” he continued. “He’s fearless. He declared war on Chronos, and he messed with the Valhalla Empire. He can do anything. How can I not be loyal to someone like that? If I die here, it will be painful and annoying, yes. But Dimitri will take care of my family forever. And he will definitely get revenge for me. I’m already seen as a traitor by some. So, shouldn’t I do dangerous things to prove how valuable I am?”

He got up from his seat.

“I enjoyed the tea,” Fabius said.

As if he had achieved his goal, Count Fabius left without regret.

Valhalla’s secret chamber.

Under Marquis Belphear, the nobles of Valhalla gathered in secret.

A nobleman leaned forward, his voice careful. “So,” he asked, “what happened with Chronos?”

Marquis Belphir shook his head.

“The Chronos Empire has expressed its refusal.” Marquis Belphir’s words hung heavy in the air. A murmur of disappointment rippled through the room. “Even though it’s a golden opportunity to crush Dimitri’s arrogance by joining forces with Valhalla, they say they won’t get involved this time. They’re probably scheming to stand by and reap the benefits.”

“Oh, dear,” one noble murmured, his face pale. Another let out a short, bitter laugh. “Ha! This is just wonderful,” he said sarcastically. Sighs and groans of despair rippled through the room.

An alliance with Chronos was their only chance to reverse the situation.

With Chronos showing a firm refusal, the nobles of Valhalla couldn’t help but feel frustrated.

Marquis Belphir said, his voice tight with tension. “We are now cornered. The Valhalla Emperor…” He paused, swallowing hard. “…is still not revealing his full power, and regardless of the war’s outcome, we are bound to suffer damage. So, after much deliberation, I’ve come to a conclusion. Instead of letting the Emperor take everything from us by demanding too many soldiers, how about we lead this rebellion ourselves?”

“Please explain in detail,” one noble said, leaning forward eagerly. Another, older and more cautious, stroked his beard thoughtfully. A third just nodded, his eyes gleaming with a dangerous excitement.

In fact, they had already accepted the possibility of betrayal.

Because they were like-minded people, they could be in a secret chamber where not just anyone could be invited. They gathered in a secret chamber, the air thick with the smell of old wood and candle wax. Tapestries depicting past Valhalla victories hung on the walls, now seeming like mocking reminders of their current predicament.

“Either the rebels or the Emperor will be annihilated to end this fight anyway. If the tide is leaning towards the rebels, our decisions can determine the war’s course. First, we’ll divert as much of the capital’s forces as possible under the pretext of suppressing the rebels. And when the defenses are weakened, we’ll attack the capital simultaneously from both inside and outside, eliminating the Valhalla Emperor. Then, we can take the position of having led the rebellion. Duke Vieto will have no justification to oppose us then. Since our goals are the same, we can still survive as powerful figures in the future that will change.”

“It’s risky, but it seems like a good plan for now.”

“I agree.”

Opinions converged. Even at this moment, their hearts were racing.

Betraying the Valhalla Emperor in Valhalla was akin to suicide, but they had no other choice.

Above all else, Marquis Belphir had taken the lead, hadn’t he?

They trusted Marquis Belphir.

But the truth was slightly different.

Marquis Belphir, too, would not have taken on the enormous risk of leading a rebellion if Roman Dimitri hadn’t pushed him.

The nobles of Valhalla were deceived by him.

Marquis Belphir, fearing that revealing the truth that his own life was at stake might spoil the mood, portrayed it as if it were a future for everyone.

Therefore, he hid the truth.

After gaining the nobles’ agreement, he spoke of the future plans.

“The plan is for two weeks from now. We will lay the groundwork sufficiently, and we will write a new history of Valhalla.”

The nobles of Valhalla didn’t realize that the two weeks Marquis Belphir mentioned was exactly the fifteen days Roman Dimitri had predicted.

Time flowed quickly.

The past two weeks had seen a fierce battle.

Roman Dimitri harassed Valhalla’s suppression forces with hit-and-run attacks, but over the course of two weeks, he was pushed back to the edge of the northern border.

If he had wanted more than that, he would have pushed forward even if it meant overdoing it.

But since the goal was to distract and harass Valhalla’s attention in the first place, he moved to minimize troop damage.

He drew his sword. Blood dripped thickly, staining the frozen ground. Around him, the battlefield was a gruesome tapestry of death. The air was cold and sharp, carrying the metallic tang of blood and the groans of the dying. Mountains of corpses, both enemy and ally, lay scattered across the snow-covered landscape.

‘Is this the end?’ Roman Dimitri thought calmly as he looked around.

Count Gomes had stubbornly followed, but the result was the scene now visible.

They inflicted considerable damage on the suppression force through surprise attacks and cutting off the rear.

In the process, it wasn’t that there was no damage to the Dimitri Allied Forces, but compared to the enemy’s casualties, the damage to our side was truly minimal.

The edge of the border was time to retreat now.

Chronos had expressed its desire to maintain ceasefire negotiations, but in order to prepare for war with them, no further damage could be allowed.

The war was also heading towards its end.

Since it wasn’t a full-scale war led by Dimitri, it now had to be completely entrusted to Hernand’s rebels and Marquis Belphir’s rebels.

Chris approached and said.

“Do you think Marquis Belphir’s rebellion will succeed?”

In the meantime, it wasn’t that there were no achievements.

After deciding to rebel, Marquis Belphir had been in constant contact with Dimitri, and Dimitri deliberately drew attention to buy time for Marquis Belphir to prepare for the rebellion.

Certainly, there was no better opportunity than this.

With Hernand’s rebels growing in size and marching towards the capital, and with the people’s riots intensifying, the Valhalla Emperor would not have anticipated Marquis Belphir’s rebellion.

But…

“The rebellion will fail,” Roman Dimitri said, sheathing his sword. *Belphir is brave, but bravery isn’t enough against the Emperor’s hidden power.* “But,” he continued, his gaze distant, “that’s not the point.”

Marquis Belphir had a fatal problem: the existence of a strongman to decide the victory or defeat was missing.

No matter how suddenly Marquis Belphir attacked the Emperor, the special forces possessed by the Valhalla Emperor would overwhelm the difference in numbers at once.

The immortal warriors and the imperial family’s wizards. Even after confirming only a part of them, Roman Dimitri knew how reckless this rebellion was.

Marquis Belphir was the same.

He also knew it was impossible, but he risked his life on a slim chance because he would die if he didn’t kill.

“Marquis Belphir’s rebellion is just the beginning. The rebellion will be suppressed, but the Valhalla Imperial Family will suffer great damage, and the rebellion will be prolonged due to Hernand’s rebels and the angry public sentiment. That alone is enough for us to achieve our goal. While Valhalla is unable to come to its senses, we will prepare for war with Chronos.”

“I understand.”

With this, Dimitri’s role was over.

From now on, he would observe and take other advantages from the situation unfolding.

And the next day, unexpected news struck Dimitri.

“The Valhalla Emperor is dead! Marquis Belphir’s rebellion has succeeded!” Chris exclaimed, his eyes wide with shock. Roman Dimitri paused, his sword dripping blood onto the muddy ground. He looked up, a flicker of surprise in his usually calm eyes. “Succeeded?” he repeated, almost to himself.

The success of the rebellion was a truly shocking result that exceeded expectations.