He Became The Most Insane Emperor Of All Time [EN]: Chapter 233

“Did you guys hear? The rebels wiped out another village this time.”

“What? The rebels? Not the government army?”

“What era are you living in? They say they committed a massacre after seeing the relief supplies distributed by the Imperial Army, calling them traitors.”

“It’s the end of the world. After all the things they’ve done…….”

The divide-and-conquer strategy attempted on the elves was working far better than I had expected.

“No, still, we should help our own kind…….”

“Aren’t those same people killing each other?”

“That, that could be a lie from the Dark Elves…….”

“There are many refugees who came to the city this time. Shall we take them and show them?”

The public opinion of those who were not at all cooperative with the government army originally turned their backs on the rebels.

Of course, there were still those who supported the rebels, but the ratio was close to 5:5.

It is short-sighted to ask if it is useless because the opposing opinion is not overwhelming.

Rather, it is precisely this ratio that makes things go as we intended.

“It will be interesting to see when the war is over.”

“Did you aim for this from the beginning, Emperor? To make them hate each other even after the war ends?”

“Of course.”

The Dark Elf King Nakan frowned and looked at me. His eyes were like looking at a demon crawling out of hell.

“Hey, what did I do to make you look at me like that? The rebels really did massacre the elf village. Those guys misunderstood that their own kind sold them out and did it on their own.”

“You intended that.”

“Isn’t it stupid to be fooled?”

Of course, I did use doppelgangers to confuse the rebels with misinformation.

But the problem isn’t just being fooled by that, but even if their own kind really sold them out, is it something to be proud of to massacre a village?

It means that they are just that kind of guys. They are willing to kill or sacrifice their own kind if necessary, while claiming to be for their own kind.

Isn’t that a contradiction? Who is the resistance for? I just made that contradiction more obvious.

“Besides, this is also helpful to you, Nakan.”

“How does this vile division help me?”

“Well, you are the king of a puppet state, and the more divided the elves under your rule are, the more you benefit. Are you really mistaken for being a respected king of the elves just because you hear the word king?”

“…….”

Nakan had a look of disgust, but unfortunately, there was nothing wrong with what I said.

The Dark Elf royal family, which now rules the elves, is not a royal family that was legitimately elected, but just a puppet that came to rule the elves thanks to the Empire.

Even so, the elves are adapting reasonably well, but no one really thought that the Dark Elves were their real kings.

At least, it would take several generations by human standards to have such thoughts, and those several generations are very long-lived.

So Nakan has no choice but to do good deeds, even if he has to force himself to do so. Only then will he change his mind even a little and follow him.

“Emperor, don’t you know that their dissatisfaction will eventually return to me? Even if we win the war, another civil war will be waiting. The kingdom may be divided in two.”

“Then that would be even better.”

“What?”

I know that too, but I gave Nakan an answer that sounded absurd to his question.

But that was also sincere.

“Think more deeply. You shouldn’t try to win the hearts of the elves, but rather prevent the elves from uniting and encourage division.”

“Division……?”

“Yes. As you said, this division may accelerate dissatisfaction with you. Someday in the future, the elves of this kingdom may really be divided in two. But why is that a loss?”

Of course, it is an undeniable benefit for the Empire if the elves hate each other forever.

But this has to be beneficial to Nakan as well.

“If the elves hate each other, those who resent the resistance will have no choice but to support you. If you can’t win their hearts, you have to make them hate each other.”

Divide and rule.

When England was splitting up India, the British, who could be called the demons of Earth, did not do inefficient things like doing good deeds to the Indians.

On the contrary, they made the Indians hate each other.

They made Hindus, Muslims, and Sikhs fight each other, strengthened the caste system to divide each other, and created pro-British intellectuals to fight again.

“I guarantee it. If more than half of the kingdom separates and becomes independent after the war, then you will be the real king. Not a fake king of a puppet state. Then you’ll thank me instead.”

“…….”

Nakan frowned, but this time he couldn’t say anything because it was right on the mark.

Eventually, he sighed and moved on to the main topic.

“…Okay, Emperor. Then that’s that… the real problem is something else.”

“The demons.”

Nakan nodded.

The Elven rebels’ ability to wage guerrilla warfare has been reduced by about half as local public sentiment has been shattered.

But as a countermeasure, as the rebels weakened, the demon legion behind them began to advance.

“The problem is more serious than I thought.”

“You don’t have to worry too much. I and the Imperial Army will defeat them once.”

Unless there was a special conspiracy, I was confident in the battle itself.

No matter what power the demons brought, the Imperial Army’s power is at its best right now.

“It’s not that simple of a problem.”

“What’s the problem?”

“The Spirit Realm.”

“Hmm?”

Nakan sighed deeply and said.

“They are conquering the Spirit Realm. Thanks to that, the entire Elf Land is in crisis.”

That was something I heard for the first time.

* * *

In fact, I had indirect relationships with the Spirit Realm several times.

The problem was that all of them were bad relationships.

For example, when burning the World Tree of the Elven Kingdom, it is presumed that a little of the Flame of Purification passed through the World Tree into the Spirit Realm.

I know that little bit burned the Spirit Realm quite a bit, which was not immune to the Flame of Purification.

In addition, the elves tried to revive their race by using the power of spirits. They also tried to revive the Spirit King.

As they became more and more influenced by the Empire, some elves began to abandon their spirit beliefs or use them for the Empire, but the elves and the Spirit Realm were inseparable.

But the demons are conquering that Spirit Realm?

“It’s closer to subjugation than conquest, but anyway, attacks are coming through that Spirit Realm, so there’s no way.”

“How is it like that?”

“The entire army’s encampment was burned or buried without a trace overnight.”

Oh… that’s a bit serious. In fact, it means that they can attack the city itself or the entire kingdom.

It means that the Imperial Army stationed here is not safe either.

“How did that happen?”

“I don’t know the exact state of the Spirit Realm, so it’s just a guess… but it’s probably because of you, Emperor.”

“Because of me?”

“Well, you’ve ruined the Spirit Realm several times.”

“Ah.”

So the defense of the Spirit Realm has weakened? Enough to succumb to the demons?

“Ahem, that’s unfortunate. But the important thing is what to do now. The past is not important, right?”

“…I envy you for your flexible evasion of responsibility. Well, you’re not wrong. So, what are you going to do?”

That was the problem. Whatever the past, what are we going to do now?

It is not wise to honestly strike the demon army as it is. We can’t counterattack the attacks from the Spirit Realm, and the attacks seem to be very powerful.

However, the fact that they can’t burn Elf Land completely or target the Imperial Army with pinpoint attacks means that there are restrictions in some way.

“Then the solution is simple. Remove them from the Spirit Realm.”

“…It’s easy for you to say. There’s no easy way to enter the Spirit Realm right now. Most of the capable spiritists have either gone over to the rebels or abandoned their spirit beliefs.”

Nakan grumbled as if expressing his dissatisfaction with my optimistic words.

But I said what he didn’t even think about.

“It’s okay. We still have one direct course to enter the Spirit Realm.”

“What is it?”

I smiled and answered his question.

“The World Tree. It’s all burned down now, but only the stump remains.”

At one time, it was clearly connected to the Spirit Realm by the Spirit King.

“But now that there is no Spirit King…….”

“Why not?”

“Huh? What are you talking about? The Spirit King is dead, right?”

“Well, he’s dead.”

However, he was eaten by a soul residing in a doll.

* * *

“I can do it. I’ll open the Spirit Realm for you.”

Loretta, the daughter of the puppeteer Gawain, gave an answer that met my expectations.

“But I have one condition. I want to go to the Spirit Realm with you too.”

“That’s a bit difficult.”

But the following words were something that made me uncomfortable.

“Loretta, you shouldn’t make His Majesty uncomfortable.”

“I’m sorry. But if I go with you, I’ll definitely be useful.”

Loretta said earnestly, as if trying to persuade her father, Gawain, and me.

“If you have the soul of the Spirit King, you will definitely be helpful. But at the same time, the risk is great. If the benefits of taking you are not worth the risk, it won’t work.”

“There are benefits, Your Majesty. I can make the Spirit Realm completely on our side.”

“That’s not a certainty, it’s just a guess.”

We don’t know the information about the Spirit Realm. So naturally, I thought Loretta would be the same.

“No, I can feel it. Their call is being conveyed to me.”

“A call?”

“The call of the spirits. They are constantly wanting the return of the Spirit King.”

That alone was quite surprising, but Loretta’s next words were more important.

“And that’s what the demons are aiming for.”

“What? The demons?”

“Yes, they are trying to subdue the spirits and create a demonic Spirit King. There is not much time left. If you are late, there will be no chance.”

Oh, dear.

If that was true, I had no choice but to take Loretta with me.

“Okay. Then I’ll take you with me. However, you must never act alone.”

Originally, I was going to go alone.

This was because I couldn’t take the army to the Spirit Realm, where I didn’t know what dangers lurked.

Of course, I did take the army to Dark Land a while ago, but unlike then when I didn’t have enough time, I now had enough time to scout.

However, I’m doing the scouting myself.

“Okay. Then I’ll start right away.”

Loretta, who was allowed to accompany, soon reached out to the burned World Tree.

Then, spirits gathered at the burned World Tree and temporarily recreated the shape before it was burned as an ethereal body.

Perhaps all the elves living in the capital were watching that sight as well.

And soon a portal appeared showing the appearance of the Spirit Realm.

Beyond that, there was a desolate, burnt, ashen land.