The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　When they knocked on the door of the Suzaku family's house at number 32, Emma's mother rushed to open it. It would be a lie to say she wasn't worried about her daughter's first adventure. Selma and George had been talking about it from morning till night for the past few days, only managing to relax a little after receiving news a couple of days ago that Emma and Dark had returned safely.

　They couldn't be completely at ease until they saw their daughter in person. George happened to be there today, and the couple came out together. When Selma saw her daughter standing unharmed in front of the door, she immediately gave her a bear hug, overwhelmed with emotion.

　George was a step too slow, and his wife beat him to it, leaving him standing awkwardly at the back.

　He opened his arms, stopped in place, and suddenly saw Dak next to his daughter. He simply took a step forward and gave Dak a hug.

　Although Dak was thinking to himself that they weren't that close yet, he still returned the hug politely.

　Good evening, Uncle George.

　The "Moon Chariot" deployed a "Night Travel Barrier," expanding all the way to the entrance. Dark summoned magical spirits to move half of the treasures stored in the chariot into Emma's house.

　Then, George Metis pulled him into the house and settled him in the living room.

　Ash and Malt were also treated.

　George brewed coffee, poured it for each of the guests, and then sat down, eager to hear Dak recount their adventures.

　"Honestly, we just got back..." Emma complained under her breath, but she just picked up a newspaper and pretended to sit on the sofa and listen.

　Dark smiled slightly and began to recount his story of leaving Phoenix.

　Aside from his divine status as the "Golden King" and the "Heroic King," there's nothing wrong with that.

　Even if the identities of the "Golden King" and the "Heroic King" are those of gods, it won't be long before news of their divine status spreads from the Desert of Death.

　If the kingdom doesn't block the news or buy time, they might very well become the first gods to be resurrected in the eyes of the people.

　In this world, everyone strives to be "number one" in everything.

　If possible, Dark would still hope that Hermes, who pioneered the path of magic, could take this "first".

　This experience is too long to recount in a short time.

　As soon as Dak mentioned leaving Karaha Territory, he got up and went into the kitchen to help Aunt Selma.

　With so many guests arriving all at once, Selma was a bit flustered, but Dak's help came just in time, and the kitchen quickly got back on track, with one delicious dish after another being served.

　Dak felt completely at home, not at all like an "outsider." Emma glanced at the kitchen and felt that he was more like a child in this house than she was, and couldn't help but feel a little resentful.

　Afterwards, the family sat down at the table for dinner, enjoying a pleasant time together. After dinner, Emma was sent to wash the dishes.

　Sel

　Maze sat down on the sofa and listened with George as Dak told his adventure story in the Death Desert.

　Hyenas, the Sand Clan, the Great Bandits of the Golden Land, Sandstorms, Death Pit, Golden Horse Knights...

　What seemed like no danger to Dark was terrifying to others.

　Selma and George were filled with astonishment, and their hearts sank whenever they heard those dangerous words.

　If their daughter hadn't returned home unharmed, they might have remained terrified for much longer.

Chapter 1109 Darkdemon and the Parliamentary Election (6k views, please vote)

　That night, Dark did not stay at Emma's house, but left before going to sleep and took the "Moon Chariot" back to the capital.

　Night is the moon goddess's domain. The "Moon Goddess's Chariot" travels through the night, moonlight, like water, gathering into wings that flap rapidly, pushing its speed to the limit.

　At dawn, a magnificent black carriage emerged from the night and drove into the capital. Soon after, it arrived at Duke Dimon's mansion and landed on the helipad.

　Dak stepped out of the carriage and had the waiting maids carry the treasures from the carriage into the mansion before heading straight to the conference room.

　Arvit and Claire, among others, had been discussing for a long time in the conference room, and the deployment regarding the Death Desert had already begun two days prior.

　Dak's main purpose in coming this time was to introduce malt to them.

　Even disregarding Maiya's knowledge of the Death Desert, she is still a rare talent.

　Their superior ability to manipulate sand compared to ordinary sand people, their ability to foresee danger and avoid it, and the resulting talent for divination are all outstanding traits.

　Her biggest problem isn't her connection to the Sand Clan, but rather her age, which she herself is already aware of.

　Her advanced age makes it difficult to develop her potential.

　For example, her ability to "predict danger" could be developed into true "precognition" if it were cultivated in childhood, and applied to real-time combat or real-time strategy.

　Similarly, her ability to manipulate sand and dust also indicates that she possesses magical talent in rock and ground-based magic. If her magical talent can also be detected, she can receive further enhancements.

　Now that he is too old, many things are already set in stone, and it will be much more difficult to develop and cultivate them further, and it is not certain that he can reach his limit.

　However, these are all things that Malt herself needs to consider. The Duke's maid corps is not lacking in talent.

　After introducing Malt to the head maid, Jasmine, Dak sat down at the table to listen.

　He had been communicating with the Duke's mansion every evening these past few days and had some understanding of the arrangements within the mansion.

　In response to the Death Desert incident, their first actions were to block information and spread rumors to confuse the public.

　Only a few people can venture deep into the Desert of Death and see the City of Gold; this is not particularly difficult to accomplish.

　Moreover, even those who know the inside story, such as the Golden Village bandits and the Sand Clan, will choose to keep it a secret because of their vested interests.

　The government sent someone to make contact, and we are able to cooperate with them.

　The most important thing to guard against in this matter is the hyenas. After all, the Death Desert belongs to the orc territory, and the Karah territory, located on the border, is a strategic location that is contested by all sides.

　The mage of the Karahal lord was also involved in this incident. However, he and Him left early and did not witness the resurrection of the "Golden King" and the "Heroic King," which gave the Duke's mansion enough time to recover.

　The Duke's men quickly brought the lord of Karahar under control and reached an agreement with the Sand Clan for friendly cooperation. Now, only the Golden Country Bandits remain.

　The Golden Country bandits' base is hidden in the Death Desert and is not easy to access, but for the Duke's mansion, it's just a matter of spending a few more days.

　As long as these three forces are controlled and key routes are blocked, news of the Golden City will not spread in a short period of time.

　The Duke's mansion could then use this time to send people deep into the desert to try to make contact with the Golden Kingdom, that is, to conduct diplomatic negotiations.

　Leaving aside the "King of Heroes," the "Golden King" is clearly someone who can be interacted with.

　Furthermore, with the awakening of the "King," the monsters of the Golden City will be brought back under his control and will no longer attack people without reason.

　The Duke's mansion has an informational advantage in this regard, making it easy for them to gain the favor of the "Golden King".

　Of course, too much of a good thing can be bad, and one must be extremely cautious when testing the waters.

　After completing the deployments related to the Golden Kingdom, the Duke's mansion resumed discussions about the parliamentary elections.

　Lord Suna Montilfali and Aurora were both present in the conference room.

　They arrived in the capital in mid-June, but did not stay at the Duke's mansion—mainly to avoid suspicion.

　Normally, meetings are held in carriages at the Duke's mansion. Now, the parliamentary elections have entered the second half of the first phase, with all the alternates from their respective regions vying for a second round of votes from the common people.

　While Dak was exploring the Death Desert, Lord Montilfarli had already given several speeches in St. Louis Square, causing a great stir in the capital.

　The response was not entirely positive; in fact, a large part of it was negative.

　The human kingdom has long been influenced by the doctrines of the Holy Religion, and the rejection of mixed-race people is deeply ingrained. Even though many people have learned to think critically as their education levels have increased, it is still difficult to change the prejudices they have been formed since childhood.

　Lord Montilfali is under immense pressure to deliver her speeches, and on recent occasions, she has even faced large-scale, organized opposition from the masses.

　The Duke's mansion secretly intervened and arrested the person who had led the group, but the public's emotions had already been stirred up.

　The mixed-race individuals, who had originally come specifically to support Lord Montilfali, immediately clashed violently with that group, attracting the attention of the city guards.

　After the conflict, the enthusiasm of some of the mixed-race people waned, their spirits plummeted, and their support for Lord Montilfali decreased considerably.

　With only two days left until the end of June, Lord Montilfali is scheduled to give two more speeches, and the number of votes she garners will determine whether she can advance to the second phase.

　To advance to the second stage of a legislative election, one must be among the top 25 in terms of votes.

　Lord Montilfali, relying on the publicity in the early stage and the cohesion of the mixed-race people, has successfully squeezed into the top 25, but has not been able to widen the gap with the people behind her.

　Given the current situation, she is very likely to be overtaken in these last two days, which would completely ruin her chances.

　Therefore, one of the purposes of this meeting was to discuss how to stabilize the situation and ensure its smooth advancement.

　"Let's launch a media offensive."

　After learning about it, Dak spoke up.

　The vote difference for Lord Montilfali was not significant, which actually surprised him.

　But now that things have come to this point, the next steps are quite simple. Since someone is manipulating public opinion to prevent Lord Montilfali from advancing, then the same methods will be used to resolve the situation.

　"Next, we should consider how to get the votes from the adventurers and ordinary people who are inclined towards the Free City."

　"Simply put, it's about using a media campaign to evoke their sympathy."

　"And it's not difficult to do this." "You don't even need to fabricate lies to deceive the public." "We just need to present the facts."

　The bullying that mixed-race people have suffered to date is unimaginable to the average person.

　If those facts were suddenly presented to them, many people would not be able to bear it, and their aversion to mixed-race people would be greatly reduced.

　Those who are already on the side of mixed-race people will also be emotionally stirred, increasing their sense of unity.

　However, humans are always caught between emotion and reason. Although such public opinion may cause a temporary emotional outburst, it will subside after a few days.

　Because of the improved treatment of mixed-race individuals, there is an unavoidable reality for ordinary people.

　That would encroach on the social resources they might be allocated. Moreover, excessive propaganda can also provoke a backlash.

　Therefore, this kind of propaganda is useful but not easy to use for a long time, and it is just right for this final sprint.

　Arvit nodded slightly and smiled, "That's indeed the plan. The problem now is to guard against interference from others and to protect Suna's safety."

　After the parliamentary elections enter the second stage, there will be voting in the House of Lords, voting by members of parliament, and baptism by the Church.

　Only the initial first stage can truly reflect "public opinion." Once the second stage begins, the so-called "public opinion" becomes meaningless, and what follows is factional struggle and a contest for power.

　Therefore, everyone knows that once Lord Montilfali enters the second phase of the council election, it is equivalent to obtaining a ticket to enter the council.

　Therefore, the only way to defeat Lord Montilfali is in this first phase.

　The next two days will be crucial!

　...

　After the meeting, Dak greeted Aurora and her daughter, then walked to the restaurant with Aylvit.

　Arvit had already eaten breakfast, of course, but watching Dak eat was a pleasure for her as well.

　During breakfast, Dak shared some travel details with Yalvit before getting down to business.

　He wanted to learn some real information about the kingdom's situation from Alvette. Although it was downplayed at the meeting, the competition among councilors was actually very fierce.

　However, the factional struggle between the eldest prince and princess has completely ended. During this parliamentary election, these two figures, who were most active in previous years, seemed to have disappeared, and have not appeared in public for nearly a month.

　Those who didn't know the situation thought they were being held under house arrest by the king.

　Those who knew... all knew that they were receiving extremely rigorous magical training in the palace.

　For some unknown reason, the old king suddenly became concerned about the personal abilities of his two heirs to the throne.

　Although not many people paid attention, Anna and Angie, like Charles and Elizabeth, were confined to the palace...

　Moreover, the old king's move was so sudden that Charles and Eliza were completely unprepared. One day, they were suddenly brought into the palace and then lost all contact with the outside world.

　In the current tense situation, this is actually a very ridiculous thing.

　With the eldest prince and princess, who were the leaders of the faction, suddenly disappearing, the members of their faction were naturally at a loss. They became hesitant about what to do next.

　In addition, since these two factions were already in a state of flux, they suddenly showed signs of disintegration.

　In this parliamentary election, the eldest prince's faction and the eldest princess's faction made no move at all, so nobles who wanted to become members of parliament had to switch to other factions.

　However, with the eldest prince's faction and the eldest princess's faction existing in name only, more factions that saw an opportunity emerged.

　For them, running for parliament is the best opportunity to seize the right to speak.

　Among the major factions that have emerged so far, besides the King's faction and the Valkyrie faction, the most important are the traditional noble faction and the emerging noble faction.

　The traditional aristocratic faction encompasses traditional nobles left over from the old era, stubborn nobles unwilling to change, and some conservative nobles who only want to preserve their old ways; they belong to the conservative faction.

　The emerging aristocratic factions, on the other hand, consist mostly of younger nobles who are willing to seek change; they belong to the radical faction.

　conservatives

　They may seem the same as the radicals, the doves and hawks of the past, but they are not.

　The Valkyrie faction is a dove, pursuing peace and stability, but it is neither conservative nor opposed to change.

　The hawks within the Holy Church, while conservative, also sought change brought about by the war.