Chapter 817: Neron's Shocking Revelation
"The Midas Empire is being ruled by Kuzon Midas, and they've taken control of the Northern Continent, making it their stronghold."
When Nerom told me this, I couldn't control the smile on my face. It seemed not everyone was a problem, after all.
'The Midas Empire still stands in this reality? That's amazing!'
"Kuzon has formed an alliance with the Magic Beasts and they're currently warding off Jared's forces. In any case, that's the current state of this world—The Midas Empire versus Jared's United Nations." He sighed.
For some reason, Neron didn't seem too happy about the resistance Kuzon made against Jared. Perhaps things weren't as simple as I thought.
"Why not ally yourselves with the Midas Empire and help them stop Jared?" I asked.
Neron sighed even more, confirming my earlier suspicions. It seemed something more was wrong with the Midas Empire and Kuzon.
"If only we could reason with Kuzon Midas. Unfortunately, ever since Jared killed his parents, he has been blinded by pure rage and he has led his nation into an all-out war against Jared's forces."
Neron continued to tell me how much of a tyrant Kuzon was and I instantly realized that this guy was totally different from the Kuzon I remembered.
"Kido, his uncle, tried to knock some sense into him. He tried to let him consider a better way to win without an all-out sacrificial war, but he was shunned by Kuzon. In the end, Kido joined us so we could stop Jared before Kuzon slipped further into darkness."
It seemed quite selfless for Kido to go so far for his bratty nephew. From the little I knew about him—after hearing Beruel and Kuzon speak about him in my original world—the dude was an asshole.
'If he's kind here, then that's an improvement for sure.'
It seemed the situation was more dire than I thought. This world was caught between two extremely powerful factions—Jared, the world-conquering maniac, and Kuzon, the tyrannical ruler.
Both sides were at loggerheads and so the world burned as they engaged in conflict.
"That's why we exist. As the Outgroup, we take it upon ourselves to intervene in ways that Kuzon won't. We covertly attack Jared's supply points, we reduce his manpower, we set traps, and we do whatever we can to stop them—or at least slow them down."
"To what end, though?" I asked.
"Merlin had a plan, and it seems Jared is also following in his footsteps. Ciel fears that they might be trying to rain Dark Magic upon this world, just like what happened those years ago."
"I see..."
The Outgroup, though consisting of only a few members, seemed to be doing very important work. It was impressive that their little group had been able to hold on for so long.
... Or was it?
'This doesn't add up at all.' I thought to myself.
These people were equivalent to the Nether Cult in my world. Those guys really caused us a lot of trouble, and in the end, they won—at least, until Aether intervened.
If these guys had the same roster—with Karlia, Neron, the Martial Blade God, and Kido leading the charge... what was stopping them from winning?
After listening to the tales of each member and seeing how Neron intervened, it puzzled me that he couldn't do more than rescue the victims.
For example, when he saved Stefan and Reed during the Ainzlark takeover... Why couldn't he have defeated Jared right then and there?
During the Beastfolk coup, why hadn't he helped Vaizer more than he did? It made no sense, considering the fact that Neron was the strongest person I knew.
Unless...
"How powerful is this group... no, how powerful are you? What level are you at in Magic? Peak? Transcendent?" I didn't want to say any further, since that would be too much.
Or was I looking at this wrong? Perhaps it wasn't that the Outgroup was weaker than I thought, but that Jared's team was just much more superior.
Maybe I already surpassed Neron in this world.
"We measure our Magic by stars. One star is the weakest... and Nine stars is the highest." Neron spoke, interrupting my thoughts.
'Ah, so even their concept of Magic is different.'
Still, I had no doubts that Neron would place somewhere rather high up.
"Those who can't practice Magic don't qualify for this classification though, and I'm one of them. I am an Inept."
... Eh?
'Did I just hear that right?'
"You're... inept...?"
Suddenly, I began to piece everything together. The reason why the team didn't seem as powerful as I thought they would be, and the reason Neron hadn't solved the problem at this point.
He couldn't use Magic!
"I assume the Neron in your world could utilize Magic." He smiled a little. "Based on that look you're giving me."
Oh boy, he had no idea just how much magic he could use!
The Neron in my world was a beast on another level. Everyone knew that!
'I shouldn't say anything. It's better that way.' I told myself, bleeding for this version of Neron as I held back my tears.
"Y-yeah. He had Magic." I simply replied, stuttering for a second.
"I see. Was he strong? Could he have averted this crisis?" He went on to ask.
I shivered instantly. What was this guy's deal? How could he ask such leading questions? It seemed no matter the world, Neron was still as clever as always.
"Yeah, most likely. The Neron in my world is strong enough to save the world many times over."
"I see... thanks for telling me." A sad smile formed on his face.
"Sometimes, I have these feelings of dissatisfaction swirl up within me. I want to do more... to be more—and it always feels like I should be able to achieve it. Yet..."
I could relate with Neron, considering the fact that I was Inept in my past life as well.
"But, I've long made my peace with my lack of Magical Abilities. After all, there's more than one way to win a fight."
I watched as Neron broke into a bright, charismatic smile. His face was shining with such blinding hope that I could only watch in awe.
Rather than feel despair, or pat himself on the back in pity, Neron kept pressing forward.
"We will win this war... and we won't fail."
It seemed no matter what reality, Neron was still the same. And I couldn't help but smile at this.
'That's good.'