Five Guardian Saints
A look of bewilderment flashed across Myeongamseong's face.
"Are you saying you refuse?"
"Yeah, I refuse."
"Why? I know the path you've walked. You're the Third Prince—looked down upon and scorned by everyone. Aren't you?"
"Well, that's true."
"And yet you refuse to become emperor?"
I tilted my head again.
There was a big slip in what Myeongamseong had just said.
"Hey, old man, you can't put it that way. You're not going to plop a crown on my head, right? You're just offering some help — go fight like mad and seize the throne yourself, aren't you? That's totally different from suddenly becoming the emperor!"
The moment I pointed that out—
Ts-ts-ts—
Myeongamseong's eyes flashed with a dangerous light.
I didn't leave it be.
"Who do you think you are—!"
Shk!
I drew my sword fast and stepped back several paces.
"Try any more of your tricks and you won't even be able to open your mouth!"
Earlier, I had been caught off guard by his 'perfect intimidation' not because I didn't know how to avoid it, but because I hadn't expected it.
Keeping a certain distance lets you dodge those status effects. If I turned and left this dungeon right now, I would be done with Myeongamseong forever.
'He's a Guardian Saint — he can't leave the designated area of these ruins, so there's no way he can chase me,' I thought, and used that to press Myeongamseong.
"…Fine. In the name of the Guardian Saint, I swear I will commit no harmful deeds. So come back and let's talk. I ask you."
My tactic worked.
"Hey you grimy old man, act like a gentleman! Got it?"
I stepped forward slowly.
I didn't intend to be at odds with Myeongamseong forever. The reason I had drawn a sword I didn't need was precisely to corner him.
This conversation mattered to me.
'Maybe I can get more than I expected.'
From the case of the card con artist Cero, I'd already experienced that this world doesn't run exactly like the original story. So I had to respond here according to the situation—and shape the outcome the way I wanted.
'Emperor of the empire? Unify the continent?'
No way was that something I wanted.
It wasn't that I had no experience. I did—but I didn't want to recall it.
'It was a horribly unpleasant scenario.'
To replace the cruel emperor now, one would have to be even crueler—suspecting everyone around you, moving with such ruthless thoroughness that you could cut people down at a moment's notice.
'The character I developed back then turned not only Marquis Reut but even Karls into enemies.'
That scenario—ruling the empire and the continent—was literally one that bled everyone around it. And that scenario inevitably ended in a sad ending.
'No way I'm taking that.'
As I mixed the given information in my head, I spoke.
"Myeongamseong, how much do you know about this world?"
The Transcendent frowned slightly.
"What do I know about this world?"
He gave a snort and replied to me.
"We know everything about this world. We even know what you do not. We have observed this world for a very long time."
…What an unbearably arrogant answer.
It was the sort of reply fitting someone transcending human form.
I shook my head.
"No. I don't think so."
"Huh?"
"If you truly knew everything, you wouldn't say something like that. That's my thought."
"What on earth do you mean we don't know?"
"About the 'present.'"
"…?"
"You don't know the continent at this very moment."
"W-what…?"
He looked utterly baffled, and I snorted with a smile.
"You're talking about a continent that used to be one? The perfect nation Everlast? But that was five thousand years ago, wasn't it?"
Not five hundred, but five thousand years!
"In the world I used to live in, they say five thousand years ago a bear who ate only mugwort and garlic even turned into a man. That's how unimaginably distant a past we're talking about."
It would be like Dangun himself dropping into Seoul and shouting, 'My old Gojoseon was nothing like this!'
"You want to recreate that ancient history exactly as it was now? Swearing some pointless vow and getting stuck here forever because of your selfish desires?"
"Our selfish desires?!"
"Then what other reason do you have?"
"Because that is how the continent originally looked!"
"Wow—that's selfish and self-centered, isn't it? What about the people living fine lives on the continent now? Are they wrong because the continent's present form differs from the old one? Is that what you mean?"
When I pushed back like that, Myeongamseong erupted in anger.
"How dare you presume to know anything! The united continent was far more moderate and peaceful than it is now!"
"Really? Was it a paradise on earth?"
"It was. Under Everlast's rule, all fights and conflicts were minimized—an ideal society. But what about now? Isn't the continent broken into pieces and at war with itself? In truth, we were all brothers of one blood."
His rhetoric was fierce, but I just snorted.
"Tell me then—why did that ideal society break apart? I find that very strange…"
…!
My sarcasm struck home; a crack formed on the transcendent's beautiful face.
Anyway, the fact that Everlast had fallen long ago didn't change. I had simply poked at that.
"It was because the people of that time couldn't adapt to change. Chaos followed when demi-god powers suddenly vanished."
Myeongamseong defended himself stubbornly.
"That change is complete now. It's time for the continent to return to a single enclosure."
"No, that's not it."
I shook my head again.
"People didn't fail to adapt."
"…?"
Sorry, but that logic can be turned on its head any time.
"They adapted very well. And that's what created the continent as it is now. For five thousand years people worked their tails off to rebalance things—and this is the result!"
Myeongamseong's expression hardened.
"This is balance?" he said.
"Yes. When change happens to people, change also happens across the continent, and balance slowly returns. Isn't that common sense?"
Riding the momentum, I pressed Myeongamseong harder.
"So now you want to reverse all that? And you want me to do what—grab the damn throne and start a new state to wage war? Seriously, isn't that ridiculous?"
"Ridiculous?"
"You say you want to minimize fights and conflicts by causing more fights and conflicts to create that state? Are you joking?"
…!
His face was completely frozen now. I delivered my final blow.
"Look, old man, let's be honest. What you want now is to be freed from that old covenant, isn't it?"
"..."
Myeongamseong slowly closed his mouth.
But one more thought crossed my mind.
"Also, someone who obsesses over the past and tells others what to do is a problem. I call that a 'grandpa.'"
"Grandpa?"
"Yeah—'grandpa,' or 'old-timer.' You probably don't know that word. Anyways, you're so obsessed with the old days you're stubbornly insisting on them—always looking for the 'good old days.'"
What else could that be but being a grandpa?
Myeongamseong, who had been silent a moment, let out a short, amused laugh.
"Grandpa. That's a word I haven't heard in a long time."
"Huh? You know that word?"
"That's not the important issue."
He brushed aside my curiosity and reclined on his throne, returning the question to me.
"So you have no intention of ascending to the imperial throne, and you have even less intention of unifying the continent. Is that what you mean?"
I nodded silently.
The scenario had already been canceled.
"..."
Myeongamseong let out a quiet sigh after a moment of silence.
"Then we cannot change the current continent, nor can the ancient nation return…"
His voice grew darker.
"So we're to be trapped in this fate for eternity…? Is that really how it must be?"
A bitter smile spread across the Transcendent's lips.
At the same time, new voices began echoing from every direction.
—Don't be too disheartened, Master.
—If it's with you, even eternal imprisonment is bearable.
—I feel the same.
—There must be another way.
They were the voices of the Guardians of Wolf Fang, Spear and Sword, Blazing Flame, and Heavenly Wheel.
They must have been listening to our conversation from the beginning.
But Myeongamseong only gave a hollow smile.
"My apologies."
It was the first time a truly human tone had come from the once-arrogant and overbearing Myeongamseong.
"You all followed me and swore the covenant… only to be bound like this."
At those words, all the Guardian Saints fell silent.
It seemed even they didn't know of any other way to undo their oaths.
…So that's how it is.
Watching Myeongamseong's sorrowful face, a new idea came to me.
'Then how about this?'
A way to free the Guardian Saints from their oath without forcing me into a meaningless struggle for the throne.
A proposal that could bring these Transcendents over to my side.
I opened my mouth.
"Myeongamseong, how about this?"
"…?"
"We proceed with Everlast's restoration—but without starting a war, achieving unification peacefully."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean unifying the continent while minimizing warfare."
"And why should we do that? By your own logic, isn't the current state already one of balance?"
"The balance of the continent is about to collapse."
"If that's so, we could simply use the Empire—"
"But the Empire will collapse soon, too."
"W-what?"
At the Transcendent's bewildered look, I shrugged.
"The Balt Magic Empire will soon fall—just like Everlast did five thousand years ago."
Myeongamseong frowned deeply.
He clearly found it hard to believe that such a mighty empire would fracture.
He turned to the unseen Guardian Saints.
"Speak, all of you. Tell me what you know about the possibility of the Empire's division."
Then their voices rose in turn.
—Hmm… honestly, there are signs of unrest in the Empire.
—But it's always been that way over the years. They've endured so far.
—It's the same everywhere—betrayers appear among all factions. The so-called 'revolutionaries,' and even the beast tribes.
After listening to the Guardians' reports, Myeongamseong looked back at me, as if to say, See?
"Especially since the Empire is held together by a strong emperor's hand. How could it split apart like Everlast did? How can you be certain?"
Certain.
That was always the problem.
But I declared firmly,
"I'm sure of it. Within a year, the Empire will begin to fall. The coastal alliances will withdraw first, internal fractures will spread, and eventually, even the Imperial Capital will burn."
"How can we believe that?"
"The Kingdom of Palatan, whose new king ascended last winter, has already started the process. Next will be the Duchy of Wyler and the Kingdom of Heron."
"Then the proof—! What evidence do you have for saying so?"
"Contact with the demon realm."
"…!"
When I answered calmly, Myeongamseong's eyes widened.
Need more explanation?
Fine, I'll talk.
"One of the allied nations, the Kingdom of Palatan, has begun reaching out to the Demon King to escape the Empire's control. It's probably the Demon King ranked sixth in the demon realm's hierarchy—Estored."
That was the beginning of the cracks forming outside Imperial territory.
…Of course, there were others forming internally as well.
"You can verify this yourselves, can't you? That should be solid enough proof."
At once, the Guardian of Wolf Fang responded.
—He's right. The new king of Palatan is in contact with the demon realm. The Demon King who bears the Crest of Rebellion, Estored—that much is confirmed.
"The Crest of Rebellion…"
Myeongamseong murmured blankly.
"How fitting. And that will be the spark that divides the Empire and the continent? Unbelievable."
A shadow of concern crossed the Transcendent's face.
I smiled faintly.
"That's why it's even more meaningless for me to reach for the Imperial throne."
Instead…
"What about building an entirely new force outside the Empire? One that minimizes meaningless wars and prepares for the danger to come."
Reject the old, unstable proposal.
Instead, reshape the framework completely.
That was the right judgment—and the proper way to handle this divergence from the original storyline.
"You mean to create a new Everlast outside the Empire?"
"Exactly. But it won't be about domination. We'll form an alliance—step by step—while dealing with the chaos to come."
I already knew this kind of scenario.
Of course, it wouldn't be easy—but it was a far better path than becoming emperor of a collapsing empire.
"…An alliance, huh."
Myeongamseong closed his eyes and fell into silence.
I waited quietly for his answer.
"A completely new Everlast…"
When he finally opened his eyes, a faint smile crossed his face.
"Very well. Let's stake our fate on your audacious proposal."
And as soon as the Transcendent snapped his fingers—
[New Title Acquired: Proxy]
[Bonus Rewards from the Five Guardian Saints Granted!]
Messages burst forth with a blinding light.
A new title and extra rewards? Not bad.
But it wasn't over yet.
[Faction Scenario Unlocked: War Expedition Corps]
It was the faction scenario I had personally triggered.