Soon after—sometime later—
The Holy Empire of Lubelius, which had long kept a cautious silence toward the Dwarven Kingdom, suddenly broke it.
They made a public announcement:
"From this day forth, the Dwarves are to be recognized as friends of humanity.
Furthermore, we shall establish diplomatic ties with the monster kingdom of Eterna."
Gasps rippled through courts and taverns alike when the news reached them. Lubelius followed that announcement with a further declaration: a non-aggression pact with Eterna, even if temporary.
That meant one thing.
The Holy Empire had officially acknowledged not only demi-humans, but monsters themselves as part of humanity.
And with that, the world shifted.
This incident became the spark that made people question the old boundaries between man and monster.
The news spread too quickly to be contained. Even if we had tried to keep it quiet, it would have been impossible. The rumor flew through the surrounding nations faster than anyone could control.
Whispers soon turned into declarations:
"Saint Hinata was defeated by Demon Lord Atem."
The information was released carefully—multiple sources, all coordinated to keep the true origin hidden. But even so, the rumors carried vivid detail, too vivid to be coincidence.
Someone was pulling strings behind the scenes.
Still, without anyone realizing, the story spread like wildfire.
No matter how secret the confrontation had been, nothing could stay buried forever.
The Eterna Federation was now at the center of the world's attention. Neighboring kingdoms increased their intelligence operations, desperate to understand what had really happened.
And because the march of the Holy Knight Order could not be kept secret, the rumors only grew more believable.
People everywhere responded differently.
Some trembled in fear at the name Demon Lord Atem.
"If he can defeat the Saint… then what are we against him?"
Others were furious.
"Hinata, the Saint, defeated? Impossible! That can't be true!"
And some simply focused on their survival.
"Forget what's true—just strengthen the borders. Prepare for anything."
But the most unnerving thing wasn't the rumor itself—it was how fast official information began to confirm it.
Lubelius soon released a statement:
"Saint Hinata and Demon Lord Atem engaged in battle and reached a draw.
As a result, the Holy Empire of Lubelius and the Kingdom of Eterna have agreed upon a ceasefire and a non-aggression pact."
It was a stunning revelation.
The leaders of other countries couldn't ignore the weight of those words.
No one believed the Western Holy Church entirely, but none could dismiss the possibility either. The event itself was too great, too impossible to comprehend.
"A battle between the Saint and a Demon Lord ended in a draw?"
"Then… Atem stands on equal ground with her?"
That thought alone was enough to shake the balance of power.
Although the details were unclear, the Holy Knight Order returned without any casualties. That fact alone proved decisive—it meant Atem had shown restraint, or worse, control.
The rulers of the West understood what that implied.
Something was changing. Something far beyond mortal politics or faith.
The Western Nations now found themselves caught in a storm of uncertainty and fear—
The location—the Dwarven Kingdom, the Armed Nation of Dwargon.
Inside the royal council chamber, the top officials of the nation—the ministers from every department—had gathered for an emergency meeting.
"That guy is up to no good again—"
The deep, commanding voice belonged to Gazel Dwargon, the Hero King himself.
For the past several days, his covert agents had been busy. They worked tirelessly, gathering reports, verifying them, and relaying every scrap of intelligence to the capital. The intelligence department had barely slept—analyzing captured images, verifying every statement, and preparing detailed reports.
By the time they were done, the number of pages was staggering. No wonder the ministers looked exhausted.
Still, things were calmer now than they had been a few months ago—
at least compared to that time when Atem, the ruler of Eterna, had ascended to Demon Lord.
When Atem first rose, chaos had spread through every nation. Then came his duel against Demon Lord Clayman, throwing the entire political structure into turmoil.
Gazel, his agents, and every minister in Dwargon had lost sleep for days back then. Remembering that crisis, this new situation almost felt mild—if only slightly.
"Heh… we'll have to consider this true, even if it sounds unbelievable," said Vaughn, one of the generals, a grin tugging at his lips.
"Your junior has defeated that Saint…"
"Watch your tongue, Vaughn!"
That sharp reprimand came from Dolph, the Commander of the Pegasus Knight Order. His tone was firm, his gaze colder than steel.
"This is a royal council, not your tavern table. Show some restraint!"
Vaughn raised his hands lightly, shrugging. "Yeah, yeah, my bad," he said, but his eyes still danced with disbelief.
Every minister glared at him, making him cough awkwardly and straighten in his chair.
King Gazel chuckled faintly, easing the tension.
"Don't be too harsh on him, Dolph. Everyone here's just as shocked as he is. You can't blame him for saying what we're all thinking."
Indeed, no one argued. The reports before them were too overwhelming to process calmly.
The documents detailed everything—from the Holy Empire's movements to the shocking outcome.
The so-called strongest human force—the Holy Knight Order, a hundred elite warriors—had launched a secret assault on the monster kingdom of Eterna.
Even Gazel's best covert agents, led by Anrietta, hadn't detected the movement until it was too late. Only after the battle began did they realize what was happening.
If Anrietta's agents knew, then surely every other nation's spies had caught wind of it too.
And yet, Demon Lord Atem—that mysterious ruler—hadn't lifted a hand against them. He knew of their infiltration and allowed it, likely for his own calculated reasons.
Perhaps, Gazel thought grimly, to let them witness his power firsthand.
And what they saw… left no room for doubt.
The Holy Knight Order was defeated—completely.
Atem's subordinates won the battle without suffering a single casualty.
Thanks to the agents' reports, Dwargon's council now had a clear picture of what had occurred—even though none of them had been on the battlefield.
"Your Majesty," said Anrietta, stepping forward. "My subordinate witnessed the battle in person."
The room quieted immediately. She unrolled a parchment filled with scribbled notes.
"At the end, Saint Hinata and Demon Lord Atem appeared to have engaged in a one-on-one duel. But midway through, the entire area was engulfed in distortion. The flow of magicules was warped, and it interfered with all magical surveillance."
"Distorted, you say?" asked Jaine, the elderly court mage, her voice sharp with interest.
"Yes," Anrietta nodded. "We also detected immense youki energy—dense and unrestrained. I believe that interference came from two opposing forces colliding violently."
Jaine frowned. "Couldn't it have been a magicule storm strong enough to jam your sensors?"
"I don't think so, Jaine-sama," Anrietta replied calmly. "It wasn't natural. It was… like heaven and hell clashing in one place. The interference wasn't random—it was deliberate."
"Hmm…" Jaine crossed her arms, eyes narrowing. "Even so, you didn't actually see the result of their duel, did you? How can you be so certain that Hinata lost?"
The question hung heavy in the air.
Everyone knew Hinata's strength. She was famed as humanity's strongest, a warrior blessed by light itself. Even Jaine had seen her power up close, and found it difficult to believe she could be defeated.
Anrietta took a deep breath.
"This may only be indirect evidence," she said, "but consider the facts. The Western Holy Church, known for its hatred toward monsters, suddenly revoked its doctrine and called for friendship with both dwarves and monsters alike. That change alone speaks volumes."
She looked toward Gazel, her tone unwavering.
"There's no way a victorious Hinata would have allowed that. And her home nation, Lubelius, has not only changed its stance but has also announced formal diplomatic ties with Eterna. They've even made public declarations about it to every nation. This isn't rumor—it's a complete political reversal."
Her words sank deep into the room.
The ministers exchanged uneasy glances.
Jaine spoke at last, her tone bitter.
"You're right. For those arrogant, human-supremacist zealots to suddenly change course… something's forcing their hand. It's not mercy—it's fear."
She turned to King Gazel.
"If that's truly the case, Your Majesty… then it means Demon Lord Atem has surpassed even your strength."
The chamber fell silent.
No one spoke for several seconds. The flickering light from the enchanted lanterns made the silence feel even heavier.
Finally, Gazel's eyes narrowed, his expression grim yet resolute.
"So, Atem… you've really gone and shaken the world again."
He leaned back in his chair, eyes glinting like steel.
"Very well. If the Saint herself has fallen before you, then the age of men and monsters has truly begun to change."
The weight of his words hung in the air—
and outside the council walls, the first winds of a new era began to stir.