Reborn As Noble

Chapter 371: The Key to Catastrophe ( 371 )

”If that thing comes out again, I donʼt mind sealing it once more… But if all seven awaken at the same time—thatʼs the real problem.”

Garius swept his gaze over the room. ”I can handle one alone, especially with Alf, Errinette, and Hesbeirn assisting me. King Edmund and Gilmon can back me up, and if Francesca lends her strength, it will be even easier.”

His voice grew heavier. ”But the issue isnʼt just one. If the other six emerge together… they growing stronger and stronger.”

A deep silence settled over the table.

Chieftain Guramak grunted, ” We canʼt let that happen. One is already a disaster… Seven? Thatʼs the end of the world.”

Queen Mylezra tapped her fingers on the table. ”Do we know where the other six are sealed?”

King Lioness cracked his knuckles. ”More importantly, do we have enough forces to stop them all at once?”

Veldrac crossed his arms. ”Even if we do, itʼs a matter of timing. If we fail even once, we lose everything.”

The atmosphere grew even heavier.

Then Garius spoke, his tone sharp. ”Thereʼs one problem.”

Everyone turned to him.

”I donʼt know who or how, but someone moved it to the Amazarak Kingdom recently.”

Tension spiked in the room, but Garius smirked. ”Luckily, the key to reviving it is in my domain right now.”

King Lioness narrowed his eyes. ”Oh? And who is this so-called key?”

Garius chuckled. ”The Amazarak princess—Zania.”

The name made several leaders stiffen. Queen Mylezra frowned. ”That girl? Are you certain?”

”Yes. Sheʼs the key to reviving that thing. The catch is—she doesnʼt know it yet.”

A heavy silence followed. Then King Gurdan tapped the table. ”And what if she runs back to Amazarak? If the enemy finds out, theyʼll surely use her.”

Garius grinned, leaning back in his chair. ”Well… I was worried about that too at first.”

King Sroku raised a brow. ”And now?”

Gariusʼs smirk widened. ”Now? Thatʼs no longer a concern.”

The room watched him expectantly.

”Sheʼs been too busy chasing Cedric and… declaring her love for him.”

For a moment, there was dead silence.

Then—

The entire table erupted into laughter. Even the normally reserved Veldrac chuckled.

King Lioness wiped a tear from his eye.

”So your son got tangled up with the key to the apocalypse?”

Guramak slapped his knee.

”BAH! Poor kid! He doesnʼt even know heʼs holding a doomsday switch!”

Queen Mylezra smirked. ”Love is a powerful thing… Letʼs just hope it doesnʼt bring about the end of the world.”

”But still,” Garius said, his voice lowering. ”Even if the last one canʼt be revived without the Amazarak girl, the other six are still a problem.”

A grim silence settled over the table.

”And if that happens…” Garius exhaled. ”Letʼs pray our troops can hold the line as long as possible.”

”Yeah.” King Lioness nodded.

”Agreed.” Queen Mylezra added solemnly.

”We should support each other.” King Edmund included.

The others voiced their agreement.

Garius turned to King Gurdan. ”So, Gurdan.”

”Yes?”

”Your kingdom has always been neutral, but youʼre next to Amazarak. If anything happens, donʼt hesitate to ask us for ʼassistanceʼ.”

Gurdan grunted, crossing his arm. ”I will.”

A heavy silence fell again, the looming weight of war hanging over them like an unseen storm.

”So, do you have a plan for it, Garius?” King Edmund asked, his sharp gaze fixed on him.

Garius exhaled and shook his head. ”Not yet. Alf and Erinette have deployed our best intelligence units to gather information. Currently, only one of the seals is secure—heavily guarded by your elite forces alongside my special unit to prevent any fools from trying to claim that power. Not that any of them could handle it.”

The leaders nodded in understanding.

”The problem is the other six.” Garius leaned back in his chair, his expression grim. ”One is already in the Amazarak Kingdom, but we have no access to it. Fortunately, the key to unlocking it is in my domain.”

”And the other five?” Queen Mylezra pressed.

Garius crossed his arms. ”Iʼm unsure. The last known seal locations were hidden… or rather, ”someone” is moving them.”

That statement sent a wave of unease through the room.

”You think itʼs our own people?” King Lioness frowned. ”The Beastkin, Elves, Humans, Dragonkin, Dwarves, or Halflings?”

”I donʼt know.” Gariusʼs tone was firm. ”It seems the ʼGoddessʼ—or rather, the spirits—are interfering.”

”There was someone in my kingdom who tried to send their men in before,” King Edmund said, his tone calm but sharp. ”But their units were annihilated before they even got close.”

Garius chuckled. ”I take it Arnold isnʼt someone weak, right?”

King Edmund smirked. ”Hah. Says the man who used to beat him every time back in noble school.”

A few leaders raised their brows.

”Wait,” King Lioness interjected. ”You mean Arnold, the current headmaster?”

Edmund nodded. ”Yeah. Back when we were eleven-year-old noble brats, Garius, Arnold, and I were classmates. Letʼs just say Garius had a habit of crushing him in every match.”

Garius leaned back, a cocky smirk on his face. ”Heh.”

A few chuckles rippled through the room, momentarily lightening the heavy mood. Even in the face of an impending crisis, some things never changed.

”Now, all we can do is ensure our people donʼt suffer because of that thing.”

Everyone nodded grimly.

”Yeah.”

”We should reinforce our borders,” King Lioness added. ”If even one of those things gets loose, itʼll be chaos.”

Garius leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. ”And most importantly, we all need to sign a peace treaty.” A small smile played on his lips. ”No more war.”

The room went silent for a moment.

”We werenʼt really at war in the first place,” Chieftain Guramak muttered, rubbing his beard.

”True,” Queen Mylezra said with a shrug. ”But we canʼt risk any internal conflicts while dealing with this mess.”

”Agreed,” King Veldrac said, arms crossed. ”The focus should be on eliminating the real threat.”

”Letʼs just hope everything goes well,” Garius said, exhaling.

King Edmund nodded in agreement.

Queen Mylezra crossed her arms. ”Iʼll send my intelligence units to gather information about the other five seals.”

”Same here,” Chieftain Guramak added. ”My scouts will start looking immediately.”

King Gurdan leaned forward. ”Iʼll try to persuade the Amazarak Queen about the sixth seal.”

Garius scoffed. ”I doubt sheʼll change her mind.”

”At least Iʼll do my ʼbestʼ ,” Gurdan replied firmly.

King Lioness smirked. ”Iʼll send some of my intelligence and scout units to assist in finding the remaining seals.”

Veldrac nodded. ”Iʼll do the same. My shadow demons will search from the shadows.”

King Sroku finally spoke. ”Once a seal is found, weʼll help secure it. Iʼll send my dragon unit for rapid deployment.”

Garius smirked, looking around the room. ”Then, letʼs get to work.”

( End of Chapter )