Chapter 226. Premonition of War (2)
“Welcome, Your Majesty!”
The moment I entered the salon, Astolfo came running over to greet me.
Then he pointed at Jason standing beside me.
“Ah, it’s Jason.”
“Haha. I am Jason, the Nameless King’s greatest partner. Treat me accordingly.”
“Then I’ll be the greatest loyal subject!”
“Don’t decide things however you want...”
Leaving Jason and Astolfo’s banter behind, I walked deeper inside.
Many Constellations were waiting for me around the round table.
Because their numbers had increased so much, many of them couldn’t even sit down and had to remain standing.
There really are a lot of them now.
The largest group consisted of former Knights of the Round Table.
Mordred, Lancelot, Gawain, Tristan, and the others.
There were also many Greek heroes, such as Odysseus, Orpheus, and Atalanta.
And among Charlemagne’s Twelve Paladins, there were Bradamante, Astolfo, Renaud, and others.
“Welcome, Nameless King.”
Standing proudly at the center of all those Constellations was Arjuna, who held significant authority within the Committee.
If Odysseus served as the Committee’s chief strategist, then Arjuna was like its prime minister.
“...”
Without saying anything, I walked through the crowd of Constellations and approached Arjuna.
Arjuna stepped aside, and I took the position where he had been standing.
“I apologize for keeping everyone waiting.”
I looked around and spoke.
“The reason all of you have gathered here is because of the declaration of war from the S-rank Constellation ‘Dragon-Slaying Immortal’... Siegfried.”
I spoke without hesitation in front of the assembled Constellations.
“To clarify beforehand, I have already been attacked by the S-rank Constellation ‘Greatest Hero’ Heracles.”
“...!”
The mention of Heracles caused a stir among the Constellations.
“And behind that attack was the S-rank Constellation ‘Prophetic Magician’ Merlin. There is a high possibility that Siegfried’s declaration is part of the same plan.”
“Merlin...!”
After Heracles, hearing Merlin’s name caused many Constellations to look shocked.
In front of them, I continued.
“If Merlin is truly behind this, then there is a high chance this declaration of war has another purpose hidden beneath the surface.”
After saying that, I glanced at Jason.
With Arjuna’s assistance, Jason played the video we had prepared beforehand.
“Because of the results of your manipulation of Ha Mina, countless ‘vessels’ were created throughout the world.”
It was an edited recording of the conversation I had shared with Merlin when Heracles attacked.
Many Constellations looked stunned after learning that Merlin had been behind Ha Mina, the person who had thrown the world into chaos.
“As you can see from this video, this is the true reason Merlin opposes us.”
I spoke slowly.
“Merlin is trying to create powerful Contractors by causing wars on Earth. Even Ha Mina was nothing more than a tool for that purpose. And he sent Heracles and Siegfried to eliminate us because we interfere with his plans.”
The reason I emphasized this point was to weaken the legitimacy of Siegfried’s argument.
There would certainly be many Constellations who felt that Siegfried had a point when he said:
Constellations descending to Earth and fighting in place of Contractors is putting things backward.
But that was only the surface-level reason.
If I emphasized that Merlin was the one behind it all...
then Siegfried’s justification would lose much of its importance.
“If that is true...”
Odysseus, who was sitting in his chair, raised his hand.
“Then Merlin is the true enemy we must defeat. He is also responsible for much of the chaos that has occurred on Earth.”
“That is correct.”
Beside me, Arjuna also spoke.
“As everyone knows, Ha Mina and the vessels caused countless disasters. In China, numerous Contractors were massacred, and not long ago, Korea was invaded by Round.”
Arjuna’s expression became solemn.
“My own Contractor, Saionji Keito, also lost his life because of Ha Mina’s schemes.”
“...”
“If Merlin was controlling everything behind the scenes, then he is an evil that we must defeat.”
With Odysseus and Arjuna, two veteran members of the Committee with strong influence, declaring this, many Constellations nodded in agreement.
But at that moment.
“However.”
A Constellation leaning against the wall in the corner spoke.
The S-rank Constellation ‘Golden-Haired Knight Commander.’
His true name was Finn Mac Cool, one of the greatest heroes of Celtic mythology.
As the leader of the Fianna, he had accomplished countless feats.
Because he lived before King Arthur, some even considered him the original inspiration for Arthurian legends.
Japan’s Narukami Kaoru was his Contractor.
Though Shin Minyu defeated him.
When I first visited the salon, he hadn’t been there.
But he was also one of the Committee’s veteran members.
Finn brushed back his flowing golden hair and looked around.
“Do we really need to fight?”
“Finn Mac Cool, what exactly do you mean?”
“Just because we received a declaration of war doesn’t mean we need to create an atmosphere where everyone immediately starts fighting.”
Finn answered Arjuna’s question in a relaxed tone.
“If Merlin’s true goal isn’t to punish us, then there is room for negotiation.”
“If we stop descending to Earth, they’ll have no reason to fight us anymore.”
“Then we can simply negotiate under that condition.”
“Finn Mac Cool, are you saying you believe we do not need to descend to Earth?”
“For one thing, I have never descended before.”
Finn had not participated in either the Louvre operation or the Maginot Line battle.
However, discussions had already begun about him descending to Earth sometime soon.
“Besides, Siegfried’s argument isn’t entirely wrong.”
“Us descending to Earth and fighting Pandemonium is putting things backward, isn’t it?”
“Perhaps it’s time to stop.”
“...”
At Finn’s words, several Constellations nodded.
The atmosphere was beginning to shift in an unfavorable direction.
“May I speak?”
The one who raised his hand was Mordred, the ‘Knight of Ruin.’
“I don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Why?”
“It’s true that directly descending to Earth might be considered putting things backward.”
“But...”
Mordred placed his hand on the round table.
“What exactly is wrong with that?”
“What?”
“Why shouldn’t we actively interfere with Earth in the first place?”
“Are we always supposed to remain far away, only acting as observers or supporters?”
Mordred’s voice grew stronger.
“I have always wondered.”
“Why does it have to be that way?”
“Mordred, if you question that, the very meaning of our existence as Constellations becomes unstable.”
“And why is that a problem?”
“What?”
“Yes, I have always wondered.”
“Why must we act that way?”
Mordred spoke without hesitation in front of the confused Finn Mac Cool.
“We are beings from the past, while the humans living on Earth today are the true owners of Earth?”
“That may sound convincing at first glance.”
“But I don’t agree at all.”
“As beings who exist in this universe, we have the right to act freely.”
“Isn’t that going too far?”
“Our role as Constellations is to protect humanity from a certain distance.”
“Who decided that?”
“What?”
“Who decided that?”
“...”
Finn Mac Cool fell silent.
Even the surrounding Constellations looked uncomfortable.
This is...
That was right.
No Constellation could answer that question.
Because it was knowledge automatically granted when they became Constellations.
If Taigong Wang truly created the Constellation system, then it was probably something he decided...
But this was basic common knowledge.
So most Constellations had lived without ever questioning it.
