Frieren 48

Title: A Grand Step in Place: Controlling the Kingdom

After delivering a devastating blow to the forces of the Empire and the kingdom, forcing both sides to abandon their conflict and retreat, Ash temporarily halted his assault.

But it was only temporary. He walked leisurely across the battlefield. As many soldiers retreated nervously, he approached the location of the Empire’s high-ranking officers.

Magical energy gathered between his hands. Zoltraak beams swept through the military command tent, then swiftly turned to the kingdom’s side, doing the same.

Only when both sides were thrown into chaos did he reveal his purpose to the remaining soldiers.

After killing the main commanders and leaving chaos in his wake, Ash left with a few military officers.

After instructing Aura to control those officers and obtain the information he wanted, Ash attacked the nearest imperial noble’s estate. With a flip of his hand, he compressed earth and stone, gathering them, and in an instant, they rose into the sky.

Then, in the next second, a massive ball the size of a castle, with unstoppable force, flattened the noble’s estate.

Afterward… Ash left word that this was punishment and took Aura, who created a new scale by gathering magical power, to quietly move to another noble’s estate nearby to test her control.

If their willpower was too strong, Aura wouldn’t use it. But fortunately… their willpower wasn’t strong.

As nobles close to the central region, they preferred an elegant and luxurious life over displaying military strength. This left them defenseless, easily having their minds controlled by Aura. Ash’s first step went smoothly.

…Indeed. From intervening in the war to now, Ash hadn’t taken meaningless actions.

The intimidation on the battlefield was to demonstrate power, but targeting the nobles was meant to instill true fear in those responsible for recruiting soldiers… Yes, those who died were the controlled military officers and the ones recruiting child soldiers.

Besides trying to eradicate the use of child soldiers and fulfilling his agreement with Frank in his own way, Ash also used these flashy actions to cover the spikes he quietly planted among humans.

After all, his goal wasn’t just the Demon King but controlling the entire world. However, the Empire was too troublesome, so he could only plant a few nobles as spikes.

Thus, he left the Empire’s territory and turned toward the kingdom.

Though the kingdom’s capital here was protected by a barrier left by Flamme… it could be said that the magical barrier, left a thousand years ago, remained the greatest reliance of all nations against demons even now.

Though they couldn’t understand its principles—not even Frieren did—they could use the control method left behind, manipulating it from within with a staff, allowing residents to enter and exit normally.

This allowed Ash, with his highly deceptive appearance, to walk straight through the barrier and control it to let Aura enter as well.

“Though it’s not my first time in a human city, this is my first time in a capital with a barrier like this. You’re pretty impressive~”

Inside the carriage, Aura quietly opened a gap, observing the streets around them. She also lifted her leg and kicked Ash, who was sitting in front, acting as the coachman.

This annoyed him slightly. Ash grabbed her ankle, tucked it under his arm, and was too lazy to say anything.

He closed his eyes to rest. When they arrived at the entrance to the palace in the capital…

“Who’s there!”

At the palace entrance, a row of knights in heavy armor saw the strange carriage arriving but not stopping. They all drew their weapons in unison.

The coachman merely glanced at them. An invisible impact stirred the dust and bricks on the ground, and in the next second, their feet lifted off the earth. They were all flung against the wall like fish hit by a wave.

The tightly shut palace gate and the magic imbued in it were nearly useless. The gate shattered like paper under the purple light of Zoltraak.

Meanwhile, the carriage ignored the nervously gathering guards and casually continued toward the castle, the king’s palace.

An attack at another time might have been difficult to succeed. But because they relied too heavily on the thousand-year-old barrier, the kingdom’s main and elite forces were either fighting demons or clashing with the Empire.

The Empire’s leaders would never have imagined that the ancient barrier they boasted about could be breached.

This left no one reliable in the capital. Thus… Ash had no intention of missing this opportunity. He decided to replace the king and make this nation his own. This was to plant a crucial chess piece for all future actions.

◆━⊰✧⊱━◆

The palace, audience hall.

The king and nobles were holding an emergency meeting, discussing the unusual situation faced by the frontline troops via communication magic, when the door suddenly burst open.

A soldier in heavy armor stumbled and crawled in. He didn’t even manage two steps before collapsing to his knees, shouting anxiously: “I-It’s bad! Your Majesty! Intruders! There are intruders!!”

“Intruders? W-What…”

The king on the throne hadn’t finished speaking when he saw two “people” enter the audience hall. His eyes narrowed sharply: “There are people!! Capture those two—”

Before the king’s voice fell, Ash swept his hand without warning.

*BOOMM!!!*

A powerful repulsive force sent the soldiers who had just begun to surround them flying back at an even faster speed. This also silenced the king’s voice.

“Y-Your Majesty…!” A high-ranking noble looked pale, trembling like the shivering king.

“W-Who… are you!?”

Before Ash, who appeared around 18 years old, between a teenager and a young man, the king, over 70 with a plump figure, tried hard to suppress his trembling. He attempted to hide his fear, only wanting to buy time. But…

“You can leave peacefully. After this, I’ll take your place to protect the kingdom and free the people from the threats of the Empire and demons.” Ash observed the nobles.

He had no intention of negotiating with them. After announcing his plan, he extended his hand and directed them to look at Aura.

The moment everyone noticed her horns and held their breath, Aura showed no mercy. She immediately summoned her scale.

They instantly recalled the strange, dominating magic that existed only in rumors. They scrambled and crawled, trying to flee the place. But… it was already too late once the scale appeared.

“Obedience Magic.”

Aura spoke words that made people feel as if they’d fallen into an icy abyss, with a smile full of malicious intent.

Everyone’s bodies froze instantly. All their magical power was placed on the scale at once, but the result was—despair.

At least for them, it was despair.