I opened my mouth, finding his declaration to be difficult to swallow. He wanted me to become king of Aberis? Well, I mean, it wasn’t guaranteed. However, given my experience with dungeons, it was pretty likely I would win. Perhaps I was being a bit full of myself. I didn’t even know how strong Edward truly was. He was defeated by Shao in her demon lord form once, but those had been strange circumstances. If he had power equal to his father, I couldn’t just merge with Lydia before jumping in. I was pretty sure that would be cheating.

“King…” That was the only word I could manage to get out.

“You’ve already done enough for Chalm to make you a Duke. Even if you lose, I will promote you to Duke anyway. The other families are hoping to use this to snake their way into a leadership position, but I want to use their greed against them by bringing you into it. Since this entire competition was their idea, they won’t be able to refuse your right to compete if you win it under their conditions.”

“I can follow that part, but what are you saying about me becoming king?”

He chuckled. “You’re so confident you’ll win, huh?”

“I don’t mean it like that!”

“It’s fine. I’m a man who believes in fate. If you win, then it was simply not my fate to be king. What you’ve done in the west has already been the equivalent of forming a country. You’ve all but brought Dioshin and the Ost Republic to their knees as well. If you become the king of Chalm, I don’t believe it will be a bad thing.”

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“I’d hardly say brought them to their knees…” I tried to pull back my accomplishments.

He crossed his arms and sat back. “Well, whatever you say, I still believe you’re the best person to be my opponent. I must say that the king selection isn’t purely one of bronze, but intelligence and willpower. My father has always taught me that I was destined to be king. He has prepared me well for that day, but I have always wondered deep inside if I truly deserved the position. That was part of the reason I had hesitated and pushed things back to this point. Now, I’ve realized that if I want to feel like I’ve earned it, I’m going to need an opponent that makes me feel like I’ve earned it. I know no one more of a man’s man than you, Deek Deekson. That’s why I wish for you to become my opponent.”

“Alright.”

“You don’t have to decide now. There is still time before the king’s selection is underway. I would like you to seriously consider it though. It is not easy, and not something for someone weak in will.”

“I understand. I’ll think about it first and let you know.”

I still wasn’t sure how I felt about it, but since I didn’t need to decide that moment, then I’d at least have a chance to talk to everyone about it.

He let out a sigh and sat back. “Good, in that case, there was one other thing I wanted to talk to you about.”

“What’s that?”

“I believe Eliana is in grave danger. I need you to go the Ost Republic immediately.”