Became The Son Of The Final Boss [EN]: Chapter 272

272.

The battlefield was being cleared.

I was talking with my father alone on the castle walls.

“You’ve worked hard.”

“Not at all, Father.”

“You can speak comfortably.”

At my father’s words, I turned my gaze away.

I couldn’t read anything from my father’s expression as he silently looked down at the castle walls.

“Um… by comfortably, do you mean… ?”

“I mean you can address me comfortably. When we’re alone.”

The shadows that followed my father every day were not present now.

I felt a little shy, but I tried not to show it and replied.

“Yes, Father.”

“The Undead remaining in the Empire will be wiped out. They’ve lost their center. James will handle the fairies in the West well.”

“Yes. He is an excellent knight. His leadership is also exceptional.”

“He’s someone you can entrust the future to.”

My father also acknowledged Duke James.

Now, the White family was the only one left of the four great houses.

“Yes.”

“He’s also Olivia’s father.”

“Both of them are of great help to the Imperial Family.”

“Is there still no news about a child?”

I stammered at my father’s direct words.

“A, a child?”

“It’s been quite some time since you got married, but there’s still no news of a child. You and Olivia aren’t old.”

“That’s… well, we’ve been constantly at war…”

“You could have burned even hotter because of the war.”

I couldn’t find the words to say as I looked at my father, who spoke as if it were obvious.

In the Calpheon Empire, everyone gets married at fifteen or sixteen and has two or three children by twenty.

Olivia and I were indeed excessively late.

“The successor must always be reliable.”

“Yes. I will try.”

My father’s voice continued.

“Take good care of your siblings in the future.”

It was the first time my father had directly mentioned my siblings.

Ted’s remains were never found.

Because he had completely fallen to the Undead.

Perhaps Ted was among the many Undead who died today.

To think that the Second Imperial Prince of the Empire would become an Undead and die miserably.

“I couldn’t give affection to any of my children. All I loved was Iriel… and I only opened my heart to you, who Iriel bore.”

“Father.”

“But it’s also true that all your siblings are my children… even though I can’t take care of them directly.”

“You can be affectionate to them now.”

My father smiled bitterly.

“No. It was in the name of the Empire’s stability, but it was ultimately my greed. I dreamed of a unified continent and married the daughters of various influential families, which was very unfortunate for me and those involved.”

Marriage policies were very common in medieval cultures, but it was a difficult past for my father.

I knew enough about his love for my mother.

“Now that the Purifying Flame Brigade has fallen, please forget your guilt towards Mother.”

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that after my mother died, my father lived only for guilt and revenge.

“Yes. Let’s go together when we destroy the Demon King Bellushi.”

“Where to… ?”

“The place where Iriel was scattered.”

The Empire has a cremation culture.

“Wasn’t there a separate grave for Mother?”

“The grave that has been created now is only to be mindful of the eyes of the general Imperial citizens. Iriel wanted to be cremated, and I granted her wish.”

“Ah.”

“I scattered Iriel in the tributary of the Tail River, west of the capital.”

“Yes.”

I decided to go with my father after everything was over.

“The Demon King is not an easy opponent. Lilian said that the four of us are the minimum force.”

“Olivia reaching Grand Sword Master, and me summoning all four elemental spirits is the minimum, she said. If that’s the minimum, then the Demon King is…”

“The demon you destroyed seemed stronger than other demons.”

“Yes. Bellushi said he created a special demon.”

“To be able to create such a demon… it would be good to prepare thoroughly before going.”

“Yes. I plan to go after stabilizing the Empire to some extent.”

Judging from the demon’s words, Bellushi was waiting for us.

‘It was as if he was trying to grow me by sending demons.’

“Well, yes. It would be good to clean up all the remnants of the Purifying Flame Brigade.”

My father continued.

“But the Demon King won’t wait that long. If he leaves the Kingdom Alliance and comes down to the Empire, a terrible disaster will occur.”

“That won’t happen.”

We turned our heads at the voice coming from behind us.

It’s Lilian.

Lilian, who was fluttering her robe as she stood next to us, continued.

“Don’t apply human time to the Demon King.”

My father asked.

“What do you mean?”

“They are beings who live for eternity. A month, a year… may be a long time for humans, but what would those times be like if you lived forever?”

My father and I exclaimed at the same time.

Indeed, if you live forever, what does a year or ten years matter?

Wouldn’t you lose your sense of time itself?

‘Certainly, the Demon King seems to be a transcendent being. What if humans lived forever?’

It would be nice at first, but wouldn’t you gradually go crazy as time passed?

It would be hard to endure without a strong mental power.

“Bellushi will wait until we are complete.”

“How does Bellushi know that?”

Lilian pointed to the sky.

Brown clouds were floating between the moonlight.

“He has been watching us since the moment he descended.”

My father’s face hardened.

“Was he… that kind of being?”

“Don’t underestimate the Demon King. Even if I reach the Ninth Circle [the highest level of magic], Olivia becomes a Grand Sword Master, and the Crown Prince summons all four elemental kings… that was only the minimum condition.”

“If there is a minimum condition, there must be a condition that is advantageous to us, right?”

“The Pope and His Majesty, who are hiding.”

My father narrowed his eyes.

“Me and the Pope?”

“Yes. Now that the war is over, the Pope will slowly step forward. He’s been watching.”

My father’s face contorted.

‘What’s going on with the Pope?’

I was curious, but my father didn’t say anything more.

* * *

I was riding a horse side by side with my father.

As we returned to the capital, all the people of the capital shouted cheers to me.

“Long live the Emperor!”

“Long live!”

My father’s victory was always a matter of course in the Empire, but this victory was definitely different.

My father’s defeat, who had always won overwhelmingly, was more than shocking.

But my father won again and returned to the Emperor they knew.

And I was next to him.

“Long live the Crown Prince!”

“Long live!”

Looking at the crowd waving their hands in welcome, I made up my mind once again.

‘I must protect them.’

I had a duty to protect the people as the Crown Prince of the Empire, not as my father’s son.

The Purifying Flame Brigade has been destroyed, but the remnants remain.

The Undead are easy to clean up because they are noticeable, but completely eradicating those who believe in pseudo-religions will be difficult.

‘It will probably take a long time.’

I waved my hand and headed to the Imperial Palace.

Near the Imperial Palace, vassals gathered and waited for my father and me.

As my father and I got off our horses, watching those who bowed their waists.

“Congratulations on your victory, Your Majesty.”

“The Crown Prince and the Crown Prince’s vassals did a great job. I just watched.”

At my father’s words, the vassals’ gazes dropped.

“Head to the Grand Hall. All vassals must gather without exception.”

A long line formed inside the Imperial Palace.

All the vassals were following my father and me.

“A big announcement will be made in the Grand Hall.”

“A big announcement?”

“I am going to step down from the throne.”

“Father!”

Everyone stopped walking at my sharp voice.

“Let’s walk.”

At my father’s words, I asked again as I walked.

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s a good time to step down from the throne. Anyway, I have become an Emperor who has recorded one defeat.”

“You can’t win every war.”

My father shook his head.

“Calpheon was a dictatorship based on my power. Now that my power has been damaged, someone will doubt the power of the Imperial Family someday.”

“That’s too much of a concern. Stepping down from the throne because of something that hasn’t happened…”

“You will become the new sun of the Empire. You have never been defeated and you are my son.”

“Father.”

“The early days of founding are always chaotic. I have overcome the crisis with my power so far, and it has gone wrong. The Empire seems stable, but now that my power has collapsed, it will be torn into several pieces.”

“In the battle with the Demon King?”

“Of course. There will be those who do not cooperate.”

“Wasn’t it just the four of us going anyway?”

My father nodded.

“Before, everyone would have waited for my victory without doubting my absence. But I have flaws, and there will be people who take advantage of my absence and become greedy.”

I couldn’t answer.

Because my father’s words were not wrong.

“But if you are the Emperor, it is different. You are a perfect Emperor. Like me. If you become the Emperor and go to subjugate the Demon King, everyone will believe in you and wait. Whether it’s trust or fear in you.”

Still, becoming Emperor was too much of a burden.

My father patted me on the shoulder.

“Don’t worry. I will help you a lot when this war is over. I am stepping down from the Emperor, but I am not leaving the Empire.”

“Ah, yes!”

I was relieved then.

It’s reassuring to have my father behind me even if I become a puppet Emperor.

‘Duke James is also there… and Olivia too.’

The authority of the Imperial Family will be even higher than before.

Soon after arriving at the Grand Hall, my father sat on the throne.

The vassals lined up on both sides and bowed. My father spat out.

“I am stepping down.”

The vassals raised their heads.

They didn’t understand my father’s words.

“From today, the Crown Prince will become the Emperor of the Empire in my place. I will step down as the Supreme Emperor and only take care of the Imperial Family.”

“Your Majesty!”

Everyone knelt down.

They said, hitting their heads on the floor.

“This can’t be happening!”

“Please withdraw your order!”

My father did not budge despite the words of several vassals.

“I was the strongest human when I founded the Calpheon Empire. But the Crown Prince has surpassed me, and I must hand over the throne. The Emperor of the Empire can only be the strongest human.”

Later, this could raise issues regarding succession, but it seemed that my father had taken everything into account, so I didn’t bother to say it out loud.

“The coronation ceremony will be in three days. After the coronation ceremony, the Empire will be reorganized around the new Emperor, and full-scale preparations for the Demon King subjugation will begin.”

The vassals trembled at the word Demon King.

“The Empire’s danger is not over yet. Rather, there is a greater danger left.”

My father got up.

“Although it is not a coronation ceremony, the Crown Prince will now preside over everything in the Empire.”

My father got up.

When my father flicked his finger at the vassal of the Grand Hall, he quickly brought another chair.

I sat on the throne with awkward gestures, and my father took a seat behind me.

After clearing my throat, I said.

“Everyone listen.”

The vassals bowed their heads all at once.

My father often used this during the Grand Hall meeting, so I tried to emit energy for the first time.

When I emitted a light energy, I was able to completely dominate the atmosphere.

It’s telling them.

That my father’s words are not empty words.

The founding Emperor… must be strong.

I believed I was the right person for the job.

“First of all… .”