LIGHTNOVELWORLD Chapter 347
After that… um. There wasn’t much to explain, just a leisurely and peaceful time, so let me briefly summarize and move on.
First, North Romania.
The northern part of the empire, which had split into two, has remained divided into five territories due to the emperor’s influence becoming meaningless, causing countless regions to repeatedly merge, split, and go to war with each other.
The capital, Sirius, where the emperor, who has nothing left but his name, resides, along with the emperor’s territories surrounding it. And around Sirius, there are four large lordships positioned diagonally.
While nominally belonging to North Romania, each lord was in a frenzy, unable to swallow the territories of the neighboring lords.
Of course, those lords didn’t intend to touch Sirius, which was centrally located.
With other enemies around, trying to swallow Sirius isn’t easy, and they seem to understand that making a mistake could lead to destruction.
Moreover, Sirius’ military strength was not lacking compared to the other large lords.
Thanks to that, the wars that had swept through North Romania had somewhat subsided.
There were minor border disputes among neighboring lords, but large-scale invasions became impossible.
Additionally, there seemed to be an unspoken military agreement among the non-adjacent lords, such that if one lord were invaded, the opposite lord would gather their forces to exploit the opening and attack.
For instance, if the northeast lord gathers troops to attack the southeast, the southeast lord sends a messenger to inform the northwest lord, who immediately rallies their forces to attack the northeast lord.
The reason for such agreements seems to be that they understood that if they expand their territories through surprise attacks, it would soon be their turn.
Anyway, amidst such relationships, a tense balance was maintained, with the emperor’s influence and Sirius coordinating the overall situation.
Even while doing so, if an invasion from outside came in, they would rally around the emperor and repel the enemy.
Well, it was a bit different from when the emperor’s authority was at its peak, but there was still a certain enjoyment in watching it unfold.
With no major wars occurring, the number of lives lost decreased, which was a positive.
Next, South Romania.
Despite experiencing various incidents, including necromancers, the southern empire managed to cope well and live on….
They became satisfied with maintaining the status quo.
Since Romania was split into two… um. How many years has it been? It should be roughly three digits.
Maybe a little over 200 years? Approaching 300? Anyway. Considering that much time has passed, it’s safe to say the two empires have completely separated.
At one time, South Romania envied North Romania for occupying the capital, Sirius, but as time went on, that thought began to change.
Understandably so, because South Romania is generally peaceful.
They’re not directly hit by the harsh northern cold, the overall climate is warm, there are hardly any nomads charging in, the land is good for farming, and being by the sea ensures a robust trade, resulting in ample wealth.
The problematic elements were blocked by North Romania, so South Romania enjoyed peace.
Thus, the people of South Romania, the nobles, and the emperor lived happily, savoring peace.
Some ambitious nobles don’t seem to think that way, but let’s set that aside for now.
So, South Romania thrived and maintained a peaceful lifestyle centered around its capital, Semerium.
Well, it wasn’t completely free of minor issues.
Overall, perhaps due to the mild environment and favorable climate for crops, the numbers of animals and plants increased.
Therefore, the creatures that feed on such flora and fauna also multiplied.
Monsters have become very numerous.
No, it wasn’t just a matter of being numerous.
If you stepped off a decent road or the pilgrimage route, you could easily encounter other animals or monsters.
The surge in the number of monsters was almost incomprehensible.
It’s not uncommon for monsters to breed abundantly in a rich environment, but this level of increase… hmm…
I don’t know. Um. It just feels like there’s plenty to eat, so their numbers grew. There’s probably no way to come to a conclusion by overthinking it unnecessarily.
So, let’s just keep it simple and comfortable.
Thanks to that, there was also an increasing number of adventurers hunting those animals and monsters.
With the increased number of monsters being hunted, the amount of mana stones harvested also rose, resulting in excitement across various regions using mana stones.
Many people suffered due to the ferocity of the monsters, but they didn’t have the luxury to care for each one.
Unless something truly significant happens, it’s more or less neglect!
Alright, that’s about it for South Romania. As for other countries…
There wasn’t much difference.
Just an overall improvement in living standards?
While many enjoyed the convenience brought by the advancement of various tools, there weren’t any revolutionary changes.
The elves were leisurely hunting as always, and the dwarves were burning with passion for new inventions…
Ah, dwarves! There was something to mention about them.
In the course of improving the magical circuits, it seems that the new additions shocked the dwarves significantly, as they began mixing all sorts of things from then on.
Calling it chemistry would be misleading; let’s say it’s a primitive form of alchemy instead?
Well, from the dwarves’ perspective, it’ll just be an experiment to find useful metals, but there was certainly progress in that process.
Anyway, a still unnamed field of study has begun to take root gradually.
Next up is Procyon.
After tasting a bitter experience due to the Church of Life, Procyon has since kept its tail tucked and behaved modestly.
They didn’t stir up any trouble, engaged in magical research, and slowly repeated their growth.
Well, among those studies, there were indeed parts that could pose problems. They filtered out what they needed to while allowing what was permissible.
Among those studies, the research on taming monsters with above-average intelligence was quite interesting.
While it’s tough with monsters that are too wild, the results showed that a more intelligent monster could recognize individuals who had helped it.
Like the founding king of Arcadia from ancient times and the bee monster he tamed: Killer Queen.
That part stirred some interest, so permission was granted, and it seems there’s something to look forward to in the future.
Aside from that… um… the other races were just getting along well.
They were exploring uncharted lands, increasing their populations, and steadily accumulating wealth through constant trade. They continued to grow steadily.
There were still many uncharted lands, areas not connected by roads, and lands untouched by foot.
The world was still vast; life forms were increasing in number to fill more areas.
Well, time flowed leisurely in such a state.
If nothing particular happens, we can expect to live comfortably.
– – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – –
Well, I didn’t genuinely think that could really happen.
It just feels like something strange always happens when I think I can relax.
Anyway, after believing I could enjoy some leisure for about 150 years, one day…
In the barren northern lands, at one corner of the vast plains and the blizzard-swept snowfields, something began to rise.
Something enormous, resembling a mountain or a castle.
It wasn’t a problem just because an unidentified something appeared, but the trouble was what happened next.
Firstly, monsters began exhibiting suspicious movements.
The unthinking, wild monsters gathered in hordes and continuously advanced northward.
They moved toward something that suddenly appeared as if drawn by an invisible call.
Normally, monsters that would bite and devour each other began moving as if they had a single purpose.
People were greatly shocked by this sudden abnormal behavior in monsters, closing the city gates to avoid being swept up in the movement.
Occasionally, brave adventurers saw the massive number of monsters as an opportunity to hunt but ended up fleeing in terror at the unimaginable numbers. Well, at least they weren’t dead.
Anyway, countless monsters gathered around this castle…? Well, since people call it a castle, we’ll call it that too.
A rumor began to circulate about this castle.
It was said that a king of monsters exists within that castle.
A king of monsters who rules countless monsters like extensions of his will. The king of beasts.
So-called, the Demon King exists.