I Have been Reincarnated As a Lazy, Arrogant Noble, but When I Destroyed The Scenario Through Effort, I Became The Most Powerful With Extraordinary Magical Power - Chapter 256: Ancient Magic Artifact

Chapter 256: Ancient Magic Artifact

Apart from the human world we live in, Noblesse Oblige has another world.

That world is the Demon Realm, where demons led by the Demon King live.

Of course, many countries exist there as well.

Monsters inhabit it, and people of the Demon Realm reside there.

And the Demon King is the ruler who has unified that entire realm.

Those creatures come to the human world for their own pleasure, attacking humans—and in some cases, even eating them.

But at its core, their real goal is to conquer this world too.

If you were a king and had unified all the nations, wouldn’t you want to claim even the smallest missing piece?

That missing piece is the human world—the only gap in their collection.

And in the original story, Alan’s enemies weren’t just demons.

He also crossed swords with the people of the Demon Realm.

That was one of the most exciting aspects of Noblesse Oblige.

As the world expanded, new enemies, new allies, new races, and complex relationships intertwined, creating a cathartic experience.

But in reality, such things are nothing but trouble.

“Okay, so let’s say this Demon Realm exists. How do you know about it, Weiss?”

On top of a building—not exactly a classroom under the blue sky—we were talking about the Demon Realm.

Duke asked a dumbfounded question.

Along with the usual group, Karta, Olin, and Tula were also here.

Basically, everyone had gathered.

Normally, no one would believe something like this.

But these guys were different.

Before I could answer, Cecil spoke up.

“I’ll add some details to that. It looks like the upper ranks of the Ostrava Kingdom are already aware of it. Isn’t it strange how monsters suddenly appear out of nowhere? One theory suggests they’re coming from the Demon Realm. Though, by now, they’re probably breeding within the human world too.”

I knew about it from the original story, but Cecil had truly gathered information about the Demon Realm herself.

In the original, there was an important event where the ancient magic artifact was stolen.

That’s why, this time, I intended to strike first—just like I did during the large-scale demon invasion.

At that moment, Shari spoke up.

“So, you’re saying these Demon Realm people are coming to steal the ancient magic artifact? And you want to stop them?”

“That’s right. But this isn’t confirmed yet. However, according to Cecil’s information, they’ve already started making their move.”

“Making their move?”

Shari tilted her head in confusion, and Cecil answered.

“The ancient magic artifact was something Fancent-kun asked me to win at an auction. It’s also called Return of Memory. It’s a magic book used during the Dark War era that allows people to recall forgotten things. It’s quite old. And I’ve found people who have been investigating it.”

“Why would the Demon Realm people want that?”

Shari asked, and I answered.

“The people of the Demon Realm are basically the demons’ subordinates. The real ones who want it are the demons themselves. It’s said that when a pseudo-demon revives, their short lifespan is due to a memory issue. Humans live by anchoring themselves to their past. If they stabilize those memories, they can turn into true humans.”

Alan, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke.

“So, the demons or the Demon Realm people are planning to use past humans to create soldiers—no, an army?”

“Most likely.”

In the past, warriors were much stronger than they are today.

When war is constant, people grow stronger whether they like it or not.

Demons are cunning and efficient.

Rather than slaughtering their way through the human world, they likely decided it was faster to recruit villains from the past.

They were trying to revive humans even stronger than those in the original story.

In a way, our own strength was making the game harder.

Still, I couldn’t help but feel a rush of excitement.

What if legendary sages and swordsmen stood in our way as enemies?

Then, Cynthia spoke.

“Weiss, if that’s the case, why not destroy the ancient magic artifact? Or just throw it deep into the sea?”

“I tried to destroy it. But I couldn’t. The ancient magic artifact was created by past sorcerers who poured all their knowledge into it. Even Eva probably wouldn’t be able to destroy it. It also emits an unusual kind of magic. We could try relying on divine intervention and hiding it somewhere, but driving them back ourselves is a much safer option.”

In games, indestructible items weren’t uncommon.

And the ancient magic artifact was exactly that kind of object.

Unlike the human world, the Demon Realm was constantly at war.

They had no peaceful moments like we did, so every day was a battle for survival.

Naturally, their intelligence was high.

I knew they would investigate Cecil’s purchase of the ancient magic artifact.

And I planned to use that against them.

Though, I didn’t expect it to happen this soon.

Lilith, understanding the situation, sighed with a sorrowful tone.

“Of all times, it had to be when Milk-sensei and Eva-senpai aren’t here… They’ll be back from the study trip next week.”

“Yeah. But even if Eva were here, there’s no guarantee she’d help us. If she hears about past heroes being revived, she might even turn against us. I can easily imagine her getting excited, thinking, How interesting!“

With that, everyone nodded in agreement.

“More importantly, are you guys really okay with this? This isn’t a test or anything.”

I had asked Cecil for help, but there was no benefit in it for them.

Unlike me, they weren’t trying to avoid destruction.

But Alan stood up.

“I’m just doing what’s natural. After we saved Sophia, so many people were happy. This will probably be the same.”

As always, the typical protagonist.

Does he ever think ahead or not? I can never tell.

“I don’t care about demons or the people of the Demon Realm. But I love fighting. And I love helping people even more. I will lend my strength.”

“I’m with you too! As long as we’re together, we can overcome anything!”

“…Me too. Forcing people from the past to fight is just too cruel. If we can stop it, I want to help.”

Tula, Olin, and Karta followed suit.

It was crazy how easily they believed such an outrageous story.

But in this world, strange things happened all the time.

Magic existed, so the word impossible probably had no meaning.

Even if we drove them back this time, it might not change anything.

But Sophia hadn’t been attacked the way the demons had claimed she would be.

If this were a game, stopping them once would mean the event wouldn’t happen again.

If we change fate now, the future battlefield will shift drastically.

Wait for me, Demon King.

In the end, I’m coming for your head.