The real reason why Kaiquilia annihilated the other royals. It was simply because all of her relatives were somehow linked to demons, except for her.
One of the royals had been corrupted through their connection with demons and started secretly working behind the scenes. By the time Kaiquilia noticed this fact, it was already far too late. Most of the humans, except for her, had either become demon servants or were on the verge of doing so.
Eventually, with Minerva’s help, Kaiquilia managed to secretly cross into the Holy Kingdom alone. She aimed to obtain the Holy Sword, which grants divine power to those who qualify.
Considering the entire Imperial Palace had become akin to a demon den, it would have made sense to deploy Inquisitors to attack. However, Kaiquilia refused that suggestion.
If it became known that the royals had ties to demons, the entire Empire would become interested in those connections. Such a scenario had to be avoided at all costs.
Fortunately, Kaiquilia succeeded in drawing the Holy Sword and gained its power. She returned to the Empire proudly and slaughtered all of her demon-controlled relatives with her own hands.
Outwardly, she let rumors spread that she had gone mad with power. Only a few high-ranking officials in the Holy Kingdom, including Kaiquilia, Minerva, and the Pope, knew the truth.
The most surprising part was that Aurora’s father, the former lord, was not connected to demons. While everyone else had died, that guy had survived solely because of that fact.
He probably thought his antics of pretending not to care about power had saved him, but the reality was that Kaiquilia had let him live.
According to Minerva’s speculation, he was so dumb and clueless that he only interfered with their plans, which seemed pretty plausible.
The truth was as follows, but I still questioned the connection between that event and Kaiquilia’s interest in me.
“But that means you, Your Majesty—”
“Your words are not yet finished. Silence.”
Kaiquilia’s finger pressed firmly against my lips. I obediently closed my mouth.
“Since that incident, you have believed that no matter what sacrifices may come, you must deal with the demons. The reason I permitted the Holy Kingdom’s battle nuns to enter the Empire freely was precisely for that Holy War.”
For some reason, I wondered why the Arachnae boss field was considered part of the Empire’s territory and why the Inquisitors were involved. I had never seen this event depicted in the game, so I had no way of knowing.
Actually, I wasn’t even sure if such an event had occurred. The only info players had was that the Emperor wielded the Holy Sword, leaving the rest up to speculation.
“However, one day, I received a letter requesting to deal with my blood relative, who had become linked to demons.”
That referred to my actions to deal with the former lord. I never imagined I’d receive such attention from the Emperor.
“My first thought was one of doubt. This person didn’t value others’ lives but indeed cared about theirs. They would never willingly associate with demons. Do you not think so?”
I nodded. I honestly agreed. When I showed the Book Inhabited by a Demon, the former lord’s expression and reactions were filled with deep anxiety.
Before I had lured him with lies that I could manipulate women, he hadn’t fallen under the demon’s control even after seeing the book. That was clear evidence of his deep-seated anxiety.
“Moreover, it was confirmed that his body harbored scars etched by a weapon imbued with divine power.”
‘He recognized the wound from being stabbed by a Blessed Dagger?’
This detail had never been depicted in the game either. Even if he had been pounded with a Blessed Weapon, there were no alterations to the Emperor’s dialogue.
In other words, I had been mistaken from the very start.
“Aurora is an ordinary human who cannot wield mana or divine power. The rest of the knights can handle mana but not divine power. Furthermore, among the battle nuns who can roam outside the Holy Kingdom, none wield daggers.”
“…….”
“So I will ask you. Who turned their fear of demons into demon mutation and handled a dagger imbued with divine power to deal with them? Who was the mastermind behind all of this? I won’t allow silence, so speak up.”
Kailiquia’s face was already certain I had committed such acts. Since that certainty was accurate and I had no excuses left, I nodded obediently.
“It was… me, Your Majesty.”
“Then that is your answer.”
“…….”
Everything suddenly matched up.
I began to understand why Kaiquilia had taken an interest in me. If what she said was true, then from the moment I had framed that guy as a demon and dealt with him, it made sense for her to be intrigued.
After all, the person who killed her relatives because of demons would undoubtedly react strongly upon hearing that her last blood relative had turned into one.
Naturally, her interest shifted towards me, who was almost certainly the culprit behind the incident. Aside from Aurora and the Knight Commanders, there was no one else who could pull such a stunt.
In the game, minor actions taken against the lord went relatively unnoticed because the Emperor didn’t want to escalate things, so I had no idea this storyline would unfold.
As I began to feel overwhelmed, Kaiquilia looked down at me and spoke again.
“You have tasks to do. Wish, hope, purpose. Accept them as you will.”
“……?”
“To eliminate all those damned entities in this world.”
Kaiquilia’s face loomed closer to mine. A warm breeze tickled my lips.
“I heard from Minerva that the Pope’s daughters brought you here personally. You must have achieved something in the Holy Kingdom. Otherwise, those who had shut themselves in their respective cathedrals for the past few years wouldn’t have come to move you. I became convinced upon hearing that.”
Her grip strengthened on my shoulder.
“I see potential in you. I see a special ability. Hope that can realize delusions. Whether you realize that fact or not, it doesn’t matter.”
“…….”
“Minerva also agreed. She couldn’t dare measure the abilities buried within you. If you wish, you could become anything.”
“You could become anything,” huh? That perfectly described the protagonist of Brightest Darkness 4. How you choose your past class and distribute your stats defines the build.
In the ultra-high-level context, that classification has little meaning.
“Then, as the Emperor of the Empire, I will ask you: do you have the ability to fulfill what I desire? Can you achieve what even the Pope of the Holy Kingdom has deemed impossible?”
Are you asking if the player can do that?
Yes.
Of course, I can.
There are a total of four DLCS for Brightest Darkness 4, and the third one released is called ‘The Sanctum of Demons.’ In that DLC, the player gets dragged into hell and slaughters numerous demons during their return, even taking down the final boss known as ‘The Harbinger of Evil.’
Once you defeat the final boss, it’s considered that all demon-type bosses have been cleared, and rewards are obtained without any demon enemies appearing in that playthrough again.
Thus, fulfilling Kaiquilia’s desires is feasible.
However, I planned not to clear that DLC.
‘Letting it be won’t result in the world’s ruin, and the lack of substantial rewards isn’t worth the risk.’
Unlike the final boss of the ‘Awakening Evil’ DLC, which truly risks the world ending if not addressed, letting this DLC linger wouldn’t lead to such an outcome.
In the first place, the reason the player was dragged to hell was simply due to being caught up in a cultists’ ritual.
Even if I wanted to, I could easily avoid the cultist gathering areas without affecting the ending at all. It wasn’t mandatory to clear; hence, I had no intention of engaging.
“It exists after all.”
Kaiquilia smiled knowingly, staring down at me with an unsettling gaze. I was jolted out of my thoughts.*
Inside, I cursed myself. I had been pondering too long.
“Indeed, it exists.”
With a swift move, her hand pushed me backward. My upper half fell helplessly onto the bed.
Kaiquilia crawled over me on her knees, her chest, wrapped in lingerie, pressing heavily downward, as her arms arranged themselves by my face.
“Those who imagine the impossible don’t wear such expressions. Your eyes were precise. You can grant my desires.”
Her golden pupils sparked with blazing lust directed at me. Joy was written all over her face. A heavy sense of foreboding enveloped me.
“I won’t say much. Be mine. Then—”
“Kaiquilia!”
The urgent voice cut through the moment, halting her words. Kaiquilia turned her head in annoyance. I did the same, following her gaze.
The owner of that voice was Minerva. Her usual calm and mysterious expression was gone, replaced by frantic breaths of anxiety.
“There’s a problem; prepare for battle immediately.”
Recognizing her unusual demeanor and hurried breaths, Kaiquilia instinctively sensed something was amiss. She erased her annoyed expression and slowly rose.*
“What is it, Minerva?”
“A dragon has appeared. It is currently just flying in the sky, but the feeling is unsettling.”
“……A dragon?”
Kaiquilia’s voice slightly rose in pitch.
In the Brightest Darkness world, dragons were treated as nothing less than walking natural disasters. Reports depicting fear of dragons were abundant.
Of course, to the protagonist, they were just a boss that was a nuisance to deal with.
‘Why are they here…’
As I slowly reviewed the list of dragon bosses in Brightest Darkness 4, a sudden realization snapped me back to attention.*
“Minerva!”
“What?!”
“Did you see what color the dragon’s scales were?”
“The scale color? I think… it was a mix of black and navy blue.”
Damn. The moment I heard that, I cursed internally.
A dragon with mixed black and navy scales was enough. In Brightest Darkness 4, there was only one dragon with such coloring.
The Creature that Devours the World.
The final boss of Brightest Darkness 4.
