Translator: Alpha0210

It really felt like he had lost consciousness for a week.

His whole body was sore, as if the joints aren’t fitting together properly.

“Hm, mm. Ah. Ah─”

Residue loosened his stiff neck and cracked all the joints in his body. As if doing calisthenics, he moved his body and looked around.

“Did Your Majesty cough?”

Agolet bowed his head first and spoke.

Residue waved his hand perfunctorily in response and turned his attention to those who were looking at him with bewildered expressions.

Aside from himself and Agolet, there were five other people, and the moment Residue grasped who they were, he could only blink blankly.

Because none of them had anything in common. Looking a bit more closely, it didn’t seem like they were all part of the same group either.

Residue categorized them into three separate groups.

The first group was the Twelve Void Lords.

First, a woman with bizarre hair that was half black and half white. The two wings she folded, one belonged to an angel, and the other to a demon.

He had seen her once during a meeting at the King’s Castle. She must have been a Void Lord with the title “Executor of the Law.” Her unusual appearance, with half good and half evil blended together, left a fairly strong impression.

Behind her… was a rather familiar face.

Likewise, a Void Lord, Death Worm. Still alive, huh. This foolish fellow seemed to have something he wanted to say to Residue, mouthing silently, though thankfully he didn’t actually speak, apparently aware of the situation. For now, these two seemed to be a group.

Next group, two men.

One of them was a much more welcome face than Death Worm, Retip. When their eyes met, he slightly lowered his head in greeting. Residue’s expression brightened. For some reason, this guy always felt pleasant to see whenever they met.

He listened well, wasn’t boring, and wasn’t impolite either.

In many ways, he was a man who invited comparison with the newly acquired subordinate, Agolet…

The one standing next to him also seemed to be an Absolute, judging by the flow of external force.

‘A dragon?’

He looked like one of the Absolutes under the Seven Fanged Dragon God. Come to think of it, what happened to the Absolutes who were under the dragons? Some seemed to have sided with Symetra’s rebellion, but the others?

Anyway, that man didn’t seem like an easy character either. Even standing next to Retip, he didn’t feel inferior in status. Residue narrowed his eyes and observed his face for a moment, but aside from the fact that the body was a shell, there was no other information he could discern.

And then finally, the last existence.

He was standing alone, separated in position, and his appearance and aura were the most alien of all.

This guy had such a unique appearance that Residue could barely recall the faces of the others he’d just seen before. He was also big, so Residue had to look up at him.

Eye sockets sunk in flesh and a flattened nose.

The only holes left on his face were his mouth and ears, but the areas around the holes were discolored and wrinkled, making it unpleasant to look at for long.

His physique was long.

Not large, long.

Compared to Retip and Death Worm standing beside him, he seemed about 1.5 times their size. He was extremely skinny, with especially long arms and legs, so he looked even taller than he actually was.

In fact, 90% of the reason why Residue was blinking like a fool was because of this guy, because his identity was none other than Destruction.

And not just any, this was clearly the one who killed the first Destruction that came out of Luca’s body in Meltown.

But his appearance had changed somewhat since then. He still looked monstrous, but most notably, his clothing had changed. He was no longer wearing that straitjacket-like outfit from before, but now wore a rough garment crudely stitched together from animal hides… and for some reason, it gave an unsettling feeling to look at.

‘Why is this guy here?’

As the thought crossed his mind that he had made eye contact with a being who didn’t even have pupils, Destruction waved his hand in a wobbly, exaggerated motion. It looked similar to how he had appeared just before leaving Meltown.

Residue muttered with a sour expression, ignoring Destruction.

“…Quite the rare lineup.”

Then Agolet approached and whispered into his ear.

“All of them arrived at nearly the same time, but each has a different purpose.”

“So they’re three separate groups from the start.”

“Yes.”

Residue stroked his chin and asked them.

“Did you lot come looking for me?”

But the answer came from the side.

“No, Your Majesty. Their objective is this servant.”

“Hmm……”

There was someone watching this scene with a shocked expression.

It was the Executor of the Twelve Void Lords. With a flustered face, she stammered out her words.

“Agolet… Did you truly come to serve that man as king?”

“Haven’t I already told you that several times? And please mind your words and actions in front of His Majesty.”

Unlike the startled Executor, Death Worm remained blank-faced.

Residue belatedly waved his hand, meaning it had been a while. The creature's dark expression brightened slightly, and it waved back. Only then did he remember the last time he had seen this guy, he had been tricked by Residue’s words into wooing the Blue Knight, then ended up turning into dried squid and falling off a cliff.

Could he have come all this way for revenge? That would be hard to believe, considering that innocent face.

Swallowing various questions, Residue spoke.

“Two Void Lords came all the way here. What business do you have with Agolet?”

“That has nothing to do with you.”

The Executor replied coldly.

So that’s how you want to play it?

In that instant, Residue, having vaguely grasped their relationship, tattled to Agolet.

“That’s what she says.”

This time, Agolet turned a cold gaze toward the Executor.

“I am currently His Majesty’s sword. If you have business with me, the proper order is to report it to His Majesty first. If you won’t comply, then leave.”

“……”

The Executor glared at Agolet with a dissatisfied face. Residue picked up on the subtle tension flowing between the two. The emotion the Executor emitted was close to regret, whereas Agolet’s expression held only cold indifference.

Perhaps they weren’t just acquaintances but unexpectedly shared a deeper relationship.

Whether out of pride or something else, the Executor refused to speak, so Agolet continued.

“……While Your Majesty was resting, I heard from them about the situation Outside.”

“How long did I sleep?”

“About a week.”

“Hm.”

“It must’ve been due to accumulated fatigue. Is Your Majesty’s royal body feeling more at ease?”

“Not bad.”

“I am truly relieved.”

“……Anyway, this is absurd.”

Residue spoke again as he looked around.

“Just at a glance, I see subordinates of the Half King, the Ruler, and even Destruction mixed in. Setting everything else aside, let’s talk about Destruction first. That thing is your common enemy. Why haven’t you killed it and just left it alone like that?”

[Because it has no meaaaaaningggg at allllll.]

Residue frowned deeply, as if struck by a surprise blow.

He swore, it was the most repulsive voice he’d ever heard in his life. It provoked a sudden urge to rip out his eardrums on the spot.

This grotesque and nauseating sound was coming from Destruction’s mouth. It was probably just as foul as the stench it might be emitting.

[I have heard soooo muuuuuch about youuuuuu. Ho, ho, ho!]

Destruction jumped and laughed.

With that massive body throwing a tantrum, the ground vibrated with a thud every time its feet hit the floor.

“Stay still for a moment. You’re giving me a headache.”

[Ho, ho, ho. Noooo, I wooooon’t.]

“What are you? The second Destruction?”

[I’m the firrrrrst versionnnn of the seeecond Destruction. Just like Freyyyy Blakeeee.]

The voice that stretched and dragged out words matched grotesquely well with Destruction’s elongated physique.

Destruction pointed to itself with fingers like rotten tree branches.

[Pleaaase calllll meeeeee, the ‘Negotiatorrrrr’.]

“……Fine. Negotiator. Your voice is more disgusting than the buzzing of flies swarming in rotten intestines. Can’t you do something about it?”

[Ho, ho, ho.]

The Negotiator burst into laughter and continued speaking.

[Thiiis is my voiiiice by naaaatureee, so I caaaan’t accept that requesssst.]

“Then someone else explain. I’m sure anyone here can give a better summary than this dimwit.”

“I shall.”

A heavy voice cut in.

The man who naturally brought a smile to Residue's lips, Retip.

“It’s been a while, Reti-Reti.”

“...I’d prefer you refrain from using that nickname in public settings.”

“A reasonable request.”

Residue nodded.

“So, what brings you here?”

“A simple reconnaissance. Whether the White Knight will join the war is a crucial matter at this point.”

“Join? Join what?”

Retip blinked.

“Ah. I heard you had been asleep for over a week. Then it makes sense that you’re unaware of what’s going on Outside.”

“I’m getting irritated, so just say it. What happened while I was asleep?”

“To summarize briefly, the Three Thousand Worlds and the Void World are on the verge of all-out war.”

“……”

What the hell is he talking about?

Only then did Residue’s expression twist up.

“A war? What war? With Destruction?”

“No. Between the inhabitants of the Three Thousand Worlds and the Void World. More precisely, between the Half King’s forces and the Ruler’s forces.”

He already understood that from the context, but it still didn’t make sense.

“Why would they fight? Don’t they still not fully grasp the situation? Or were they instigated by someone?”

[Ho, ho. Ho.]

That unpleasant laughter intruded again.

[I shallllll explainnnn from that poinnnt onnn, Yourrrr Majesssstyyy.]

The Negotiator laughed as he mimicked Agolet’s tone.

“...I’ll allow it, but please do something about that dragging speech.”

[I shall be carefulll. Ho, ho.]

The Negotiator chuckled and continued.

[We carefffuuuullyyy analyzed how the first Destruction faileddd. There were many reasonsss, but fundamentallyyyy, itttt dispersed its power too muchhh. That’s why it was defeated piecemeallll.]

It wasn’t an analysis. Any creature with a head on its shoulders could come up with that conclusion.

But the Negotiator, seeming to think he was delivering some brilliant, cold deduction, continued in a smug tone.

[So we decided to think the oppossssiiite.]

The opposite of dispersal is obvious.

“You intend to gather all of Destruction’s power into one being?”

[Nonnnnooo. Not one beinggg, but fiveeee beings.]

Residue furrowed his brows.

[Five days from now, five divided Destructions shall appearrrr.]

“Why five?”

[I don’t know thatttt. It was our masterrr’s willllll.]

Residue looked at the Negotiator and spoke.

“Master.”

[Youuu knowww, don’t youuu? You’re the one wearinggg our masterrr’s shelllll, after alllll.]

Ho, ho, ho. Destruction burst into laughter again.

So it was Lukas’s intention? Residue fell silent for a moment.

Beyond the Outside, could that guy’s ego still remain? Had it become corrupted? What was he thinking now… he pushed such thoughts aside.

In the current situation, Lukas Trowman was the enemy. A deeply ironic situation, but that was the truth.

[Butttt… I started to think, if we five charge in separately like thisss, it might actually take a verrryyy looonnng time to achieve our goalllll. You’re all quite persistentttt, after all.]

“So?”

[From myyy analysis, there are actually very few beings on the Inside that truly need to be neutralizeddd.]

The Negotiator raised his two long fingers.

[─The Pillars. The Pillars. If we simply destroyyy those Pillars holding up this landmass called the universssse, then the time until total Destruction will be drastically reducedddd. That was my conclusionnn.]

It wasn’t immediately clear, but apparently, he meant literal pillars.

[So I proposeddd, bring me the ‘five strongest in the universeeee.’ And let us fight at the place I’ve preparrreed.]

Ho, ho, ho.

[Faaaaiiir and squaaarrrree.]

“……”

Letting the unpleasant laughter pass through one ear, Residue asked,

“…Is that all?”

[Yessss.]

“And what does this have to do with all the chaos happening Outside…?”

He trailed off, and his expression stiffened.

With a slight shift in perspective, the reason suddenly made sense.

“Retip.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t tell me the reason the Void King’s forces and the Ruler’s forces are about to clash…”

“Yes.”

Retip responded with a bitter smile.

“They’re fighting over those five seats.”

…Ah.

These idiots.

*****

For more chapters visit - https://www.patreon.com/tgmalpha

For any errors and issues contact me through discord:- .gg/woopread-708613326262894654

And make sure to read on woopread <- click here ^-^.