Building A Human Empire By Creating A Clan [EN]: Chapter 6

7. Building a Human Empire Through Familiar Creation Episode 7 (7/185)

‘Hehe, look at that mosquito, whining because he doesn’t know what to do.’

Raeragon twisted a strand of hair around his index finger as he watched Edar and Vlad face off.

Seeing a situation similar to when he and Edar confronted each other in Ollimurs made him laugh.

‘He’s definitely got something.’

Raeragon scrutinized Edar with half-closed eyes.

He also viewed humans as an inferior species, so fragile they would crumble if breathed upon.

Unpleasantly similar to elves, yet ugly and unable to live even a century.

Calling humans monkeys was an expression of his displeasure.

‘He said he’s on par with me, but there’s no way.’

Raeragon enjoyed fighting, but he wasn’t a fool.

In over ten thousand years of his race’s history, there was no one stronger than him.

Humans, on the other hand, had a shorter history than Raeragon’s age.

Could such inferior creatures produce two beings as strong as him?

Both reason and emotion screamed that it was impossible.

It was clear that this inferior creature was bluffing.

‘But that armor guy was the real deal.’

He clenched his fist, thinking of Calliope.

It was the first time he had ever been overwhelmed by sheer power.

It wasn’t just empty bravado that made him back down.

He intuitively knew that if he had continued, he would have died.

That’s why he swallowed his pride and invited them to the Representative Assembly.

‘If this monkey is bluffing… I’ll kill him here.’

There were two more beings as strong as him in this place.

Even Calliope, who had overwhelmed him, could never win against three.

That was the biggest reason for inviting Edar and Calliope to the Representative Assembly.

‘But what if he’s for real?’

He knew things that mere monkeys couldn’t possibly know.

Information about Raeragon and Vlad, the origins of Mobrang, and so on.

‘The fact that this isn’t his first time at the Representative Assembly… it’s too natural to be a bluff.’

His calm demeanor, even while receiving the attention of powerful beings, was strange.

‘He really gives off an unsettling feeling, that monkey.’

It was like standing before the World Tree.

How could a monkey be like the World Tree?

An aura unlike that of a human flowed from him.

It would be more accurate to call it a spiritual presence.

Like the elves felt an unfathomable presence when looking at the World Tree.

It was a different dimension from the sensation of a strong being facing another strong being.

Because of this feeling, he hesitated to step forward, even while believing that Edar was bluffing.

And that mosquito and dwarf must have felt the same way.

If they were on par with him, there was no way they couldn’t see what he saw.

‘How did he know about the wound?’

The wound he sustained in a fight with a being as strong as himself, who wasn’t present here.

It was just a scratch from a fingernail, but it wouldn’t heal easily because of the curse that had seeped in.

The wound seemed to have opened up because of the intense movements a moment ago.

‘Damn it… it hurts like hell.’

Edar’s gaze passed over each of the seated figures.

“That dwarf over there must be Gotava, the master of the Red Mountain. And the rest are Nomik, Shalle, Bamaha, and Hwitan, in that order.”

Gulp.

The already heavy silence grew even heavier.

He had merely named them, but the speaker was a monkey.

An inferior creature, regarded as a monkey, was acting like he knew them.

“······.”

Everyone’s expression hardened.

‘Surdret couldn’t have told him, that monkey.’

Humans had never participated in the Representative Assembly since its inception.

If no human had ever experienced it, how could he know the attendees?

‘Is someone leaking our information? Or is he really human?’

He claimed to be the son of Duke Surdret, and his appearance, barely twenty years old, seemed to support that.

But if one only considered appearance, Raeragon himself didn’t look much different in age from the human before him, did he? If his ears were shorter, he would be no different from a human.

“Are you human?”

Vlad asked the question, representing everyone in the room.

Edar put down his teacup, clasped his hands, and wore a serene smile.

“Vlad. I am the one who coveted your family’s blood when humans were still using stone tools. You may have the appearance of a human, but are you human?”

“······.”

Vlad trembled.

‘This… I’m hearing this for the first time.’

Vampires’ skin is naturally pale, but Vlad’s skin was losing color to the point where it seemed like it had been rosy just a moment ago.

Raeragon realized that Edar’s words were true, and that Vlad had sucked the blood of his own family, killing them.

Vlad opened his mouth to say something, but he only moved his lips a couple of times before closing it.

“Ha! This is amusing.”

The dwarf Gotava struck the table with his right arm, laughing.

Gotava tilted his chin, stroked his beard, and glared at Edar with eyes burning like a furnace.

“Don’t you think it’s too old a story for a monkey who can’t even live a hundred years to know?”

“I suppose so.”

“Don’t you dare spout nonsense about me. I don’t know how much you know, but.”

The force that Gotava emitted enveloped Edar.

It was such an intense force that a weakling might have died from a heart attack.

‘Gotava is an old man stronger than me. Enduring that old man’s aura means he’s either just as strong, or he’s got no fear.’

Edar remained seated, enduring the force and meeting Gotava’s gaze.

Edar raised the corner of his lips at Gotava, who was baring his teeth and growling.

To Raeragon, that smile seemed to mean that no matter how much magic or powerful energy pressed down, it was all trivial.

Gotava must have thought the same.

He snorted and withdrew the pressure.

‘The mosquito backed down, and the old man too?’

Raeragon frowned.

If things had gone according to plan, Vlad or Gotava should have subdued Edar.

Even if the Elven prince claimed to be on par, there couldn’t be any fools here who would naively believe it.

But the two people he had trusted had retreated without any significant gains.

Raeragon clicked his tongue and chewed on a sweet.

“You don’t have to ask me. This place isn’t for that in the first place, is it?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

At Gotava’s gesture, Raeragon took his feet off the table and clapped his hands.

Soon, servants entered and unfolded a huge map that filled the table.

The map was a world map that meticulously depicted the world, befitting its size.

“As you can see, each country’s territory is colored. The reason this Representative Assembly was convened is here. The Oroko Great Plains. An unpleasant land with all sorts of colors.”

The area called the Oroko Great Plains was a mix of colors because the races belonging to the Representative Assembly had divided the land among themselves.

The place Raeragon pointed to was painted in the same color as the Elves’ kingdom.

Ollimurs was just a village within it.

“You all know. That I was supposed to receive this land. But when I went there today, there was a human claiming to be the owner.”

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. According to this human, Surdret gave it to him first.”

“He made contracts with both sides.”

Gotava chuckled in disbelief.

The other ambassadors had the same reaction.

“So? How do you want us to handle it?”

The question was directed at Edar.

“According to the customs of the Representative Assembly.”

“Customs…”

Gotava stroked his beard.

“Do you know why the Representative Assembly was created?”

“To persuade rather than fight when there are disputes between each other.”

“That’s right. Then how do you think that persuasion is done?”

“By showing that there is more to lose than to gain, isn’t that the tradition of the Representative Assembly?”

“You know it well.”

He was praising him with a hearty laugh, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.

He was emitting an intense glare, as if he would grab the ax on his back and swing it at any moment.

“Human. Oroko was originally a neutral zone. The neutral zone treaty disappeared, and the one who planted the flag first became the owner. If you want to claim the territory from the pointy-ears, you must first plant the flag or show power befitting it. Tell them that if they don’t hand it over to you, they’ll suffer severely.”

Showing power in a system created to avoid using power.

It seemed contradictory, but the Representative Assembly had been running that way for a very long time, and at least for now, it was running well.

‘The dwarf can be helpful sometimes.’

Raeragon pursed his lips as if to whistle.

Even if the Elves and Dwarves had a bad relationship, they acknowledged each other as equals.

On the other hand, humans were inferior beings, no different from animals.

It would be unpleasant for the Dwarves to see such beings making a big noise in the Representative Assembly and taking advantage of the Elves.

Thanks to that, the ambiguous atmosphere had shifted back to Raeragon’s plan.

‘I think I’m really smart.’

It was a shame he couldn’t cut off Edar’s head.

If he could, he would have done it in an instant and taken the land.

He couldn’t because of the ominous feeling that his intuition was sending him.

“What will you do?”

Show power, or back down.

Gotava emitted his energy again.

It was a different level of pressure than the mere formality from before.

Following him, Vlad added his magic, and the ambassadors added their energy.

The teacup in front of Edar trembled, and the chandelier shook.

‘How about it? Can you endure it?’

Raeragon also joined in with a smile.

It was on a different level than when each person pressured him individually.

Even Raeragon, who was applying the pressure, was on edge due to the energy filling the conference room.

If he had been pressured like this, he would have drawn his sword immediately.

Or he wouldn’t have been able to endure it without surrendering.

Edar still had a calm expression, but that would soon be shattered.

‘Surrender, you inferior creature.’

At that moment when Raeragon was wearing a triumphant smile,

The space behind Edar rippled.

“······!”

Everyone jumped up from their seats.

Faced with the anomaly, they prepared for the attack that would follow.

They surrounded Edar in a semicircle, reaching for their weapons.

At their reaction, Edar raised the corner of his lips and rested his chin on his clasped hands.

A human figure was emerging from the rippling haze.

“Space teleportation?”

Someone blurted out their thoughts, flustered.

Raeragon sharpened his senses and calmly assessed the situation.

‘Fool! It’s not space teleportation! I don’t feel any movement of magic.’

If it wasn’t space teleportation, then what?

The thought sent shivers down his spine.

‘Did he hide his presence!’

Raeragon examined the intruder.

A man who looked more like a scholar than someone suited for battle.

He was wearing a sword, but he had a toga-like cloth over his clothes, making his movements look awkward. The intruder stood still, scanning those who were surrounding the two of them with narrowed eyes.

‘How?’

Raeragon, Gotava, Vlad, they had all survived countless assassinations.

They had survived assassinations to the point where assassins now refused to take on contracts against them.

For them not to sense someone’s presence was only possible when they were very far away.

Not sensing a presence at a distance where they could touch noses, like now, was impossible.

‘It’s like, he appeared as if something that didn’t exist was created.’

Something that didn’t exist was created?

Did he create a person?

Could creating life be possible without the World Tree or a god?

Raeragon scolded himself for having such foolish thoughts and focused on the intruder.

The toga that reached down to the floor caught his attention.

‘How could he hide his presence in such a getup? Could it be that he’s stronger than us?’

He couldn’t believe it, but the truth was the truth.

The fact that he didn’t know the intruder was nearby until he came close and revealed himself.

This meant that Raeragon’s head could have been taken without him even knowing.

The fact that the toga was an awkward outfit for hiding one’s presence strongly encouraged such thoughts.

Raeragon placed his hand on his waist, ready to draw his sword at any moment.

Gotava and Vlad also fixed their gazes on the intruder, assuming a defensive posture.

“Griff.”

“Yes, Master.”

The intruder, called Griff, took a step forward and bowed.

Everyone flinched at the movement.

“Is it urgent?”

“Yes.”

Amidst the tense atmosphere, Edar muttered while looking down at the map.

Edar was the only one sitting down.

Edar was also the only one who was calm without a hint of tension.

“The seal of Tiamar has been damaged.”

“What…!”

Gotava widened his eyes and stammered.

“Ti, Tiamar?”

Tiamar, the sealed Evil Dragon.

The name of a powerful and insane dragon who had once nearly destroyed the world.

Now, it should be sealed deep within human territory, in a deep sleep.

That disaster’s seal has been damaged?

‘How does he know that fact?’

Raeragon frowned.

How could he know that the seal was damaged?

No, how could he even know about Tiamar and the seal in the first place?

Only some among the different races knew about Tiamar.

Even among that some, only a very few knew that Tiamar was not dead but sealed.

They in the Representative Assembly were among those few.

“······.’

He made eye contact with Gotava.

The dwarf read Raeragon’s intention and subtly shook his head.

‘Don’t do anything rash.’, that was the meaning Gotava was sending.

‘Damn it.’

Edar tapped the table with his index finger, thought for a moment, and picked up a cigarette.

The intruder burned his finger on it to light it.

He put it in his mouth, took a deep drag, and exhaled it a few times.

“Everyone seems surprised. Don’t hide your presence and quietly stay by Calliope’s side.”

“Understood.”

Edar sent the intruder away and looked around at everyone who was still standing and frozen.

“Disappointing.”

‘Disappointing? What the hell!’

His head was so complicated that he felt a headache coming on.

Since meeting Edar, unresolved questions had continued to pile up.

What was the identity of the aura that was unlike that of a human, how did he know them, and how could he know about Tiamar and that its seal was damaged… everything related to that human was full of questions.

If he had revealed even a little bit of his true nature, he would have rushed in and questioned him immediately.

But with the appearance of an intruder whose presence he couldn’t feel at all, he couldn’t bring himself to do so.

‘How much more, what are you hiding?’

“You asked me if I had the power to take this land, but shouldn’t I be asking that question?”

“Asking? What are you talking about!”

“Who is managing Tiamar’s seal? Isn’t it you?”

The Representative Assembly is an organization to which all countries and races belong.

The jurisdiction of the Representative Assembly means that everyone belonging to it is managing it.

If a problem arose due to the Representative Assembly’s inadequate management, it was everyone’s fault.

“The seal was damaged due to your incompetence. Do you, who can’t even manage your own things, have the right to ask me if I have power?”

Raeragon frowned.

“How can we believe the claim that the seal is damaged? It’s just an assertion.”

“You can check it. Is it too far to go check? Then I’ll wait.”

“······.”

Edar got up from his seat.

The ambassadors sitting next to him flinched and stepped back.

He finished smoking his cigarette and stabbed the map with the remaining butt.

There was a sizzling sound and the smell of burning map.

But there was silence without anyone saying anything.

“I’ll ask again. Do you, who can’t even manage a single seal, have the right to have this land?”

They were speechless and couldn’t answer.

If the Evil Dragon’s seal was damaged as Edar said, it was an immeasurable crisis.

The responsibility for causing the crisis would also be enormous.

“Also, if what I said is true, then I am the one who saved you. Shouldn’t you give me reasonable compensation instead of threatening me?”

Most of those here were not human, so they were very old.

History for humans was experience for them, and the Evil Dragon was also one of those experiences.

The weight of unfulfilled obligations was bound to be extraordinary.

“So, in my opinion. The land I should have.”

Edar held up the cigarette that had stabbed the map.

The place under the cigarette was the frontier village he had received from Duke Surdret.

The area that land occupied on the map was at most the size of a little fingernail.

Edar spread his palm over it and pressed down.

“This much.”

The area that was dozens of times larger than his own territory came into his palm.

“I’ll have to take this much.”

Everyone’s face contorted.

Sensing