A Mastermind? No, I'm just the Live-In Son-in-Law-Chapter 82: Invasion

“...You’re not the only one imbued with the Demon King’s power.”

At that moment, from the high seat—until now silent—a dry cough echoed, followed by a heavy voice.

“Yes. It’s about time we talked about that.”

Gone was the flamboyant figure from before. Tiffany Astellade now sat upright, eyes gleaming with gravity.

“Centuries ago, a prophecy passed down through the Order of Light foretold a destined fate...”

“......”

“A prophecy of ruin, left by the Second Saintess and First Guardian of Radiance. The final light to decide the world’s end and salvation... the wheel of fate already set in motion—”

“...Uh, sorry.”

Just like always, Tiffany extended her hand dramatically and began spinning the tale in full white-mage flowery speech, until—

“Could you maybe explain it a little simpler?”

“Ah—uh-huh.”

Whitney, who had been gazing forward with a polite smile, gently asked in a low voice. Caught off guard for a moment, Tiffany lowered her head bashfully.

“I-I meant... if you hear the prophecy left by the Second Saintess, you might understand why.”

“......!?”

When actual, comprehensible words finally came from her mouth, the eyes of the Elder Council collectively widened.

“Could you tell us what it says?”

“...Sure!”

Seeing Tiffany—the very leader often blamed for pushing Lumen Ordo into its current closed-off state—now obediently turning red and nodding, was itself a shock.

But the greater shock came next—

“The evil god sealed within the Hero shall one day reclaim its strength.”

“......”

“At that time, children across the world will be born with remnants of the Demon King’s severed bloodline.”

Even more astounding was that Tiffany’s uncovered eye, usually normal, had now turned completely white—radiating divine energy.

“And then... huh?”

“......”

“W-Why are you all looking at me like that?”

The elders, well aware Tiffany usually used glowing-eye magic for style only, instantly noticed the sacred power in her eye.

She’s never done that before...

She always made up her own versions of the prophecy...

Still unbelievably powerful.

The reason the Elder Council tolerated such an eccentric was to accommodate the wildly gifted—but unstable—Tiffany Astellade.

Despite their efforts, she’d shown no real progress—until now.

“...So there was a reason she’s the Head. Her potential’s nearly on par with Saintess Hestia.”

“......”

“Makes sense why you never went with the conventional path.”

With power strong enough to make even Meredia wary again—just a day after reuniting with Whitney—Tiffany Astellade had proven herself.

What’s with all the fuss?

But to Whitney—someone who saw Meredia glowing red-eyed daily—this was hardly shocking.

...Ah. Right. This was always a weird group. Guess Her Grace finally realized the core truth, too.

The knowing smile he flashed at Meredia was so layered in meaning that even a child could tell—and it was enough to earn him yet more acknowledgment from the Council.

Well, I guess there’s no helping it now...

We are professionals at acting, after all.

...Still worried about what happens when it gets out.

With exchanged glances, the elders quickly shifted gears, regaining their composed facades. Led by Salem, they resumed explaining as if nothing had happened.

“As you heard, the Demon King’s bloodline was severed in the second generation. Historical records confirm it.”

“...Through marriage with the Hero.”

“Indeed. However, individuals with the potential to become Demon Kings—‘candidates’—started appearing.”

Their eyes then fell upon Meredia, seated beside Whitney.

“These are children born with unique powers in parts of their bodies, emerging decades ago.”

“......”

“To avoid panic, the Theocracy, the Empire, and Lumen Ordo agreed to call it a ‘blessing’... but in truth, that’s what it is.”

Normally, Meredia would’ve met such stares with displeasure—but this time, she simply lowered her gaze.

“...I never wanted to be born this way.”

Though cloaked in shadow, her pallor was clear as she clenched her hands tightly on the table.

“So... is that all the prophecy says?”

Whitney, reaching slightly toward her, pulled his hand back when she glared at him—then quickly shifted the topic.

“...There’s one more line.”

Salem turned toward the high seat, voice trailing off.

“But the last part is sealed—I cannot speak it freely.”

“...‘The one favored by the evil god shall lead those children and seize the world.’”

“Of course, if it’s the Guardian of Radiance asking, it’s a different story.”

As expected, it was Tiffany—now glowing-eyed again—who recited the line. Salem chuckled bitterly.

“As you can tell, this prophecy is top secret. While the prophecy and appointment rights of the Hero lie with the Theocracy, this knowledge belongs to Lumen Ordo alone.”

Whitney stared at Salem in silence, then asked in a quiet voice,

“Then what exactly does that prophecy... have to do with me?”

Silence fell over the meeting room.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

“Whitney Ringaarden. Please listen without misunderstanding.”

Salem cleared his throat, wearing a slightly darkened expression.

“...It seems you are the one favored by the evil god.”

At those words, the smile slowly faded from Whitney’s face.

“A-Ahem... During our analysis of Sir Whitney’s magical output, we discovered a force interfering with his white magic... something fundamentally opposed.”

“...But it’s n-not black magic! The two forces are inherently incompatible.”

Aurora and Celeste, watching Whitney’s ever-darkening gaze, finally spoke up under Salem’s expectant glance.

“And when we continued our research... we discovered that monsters submit to Sir Whitney’s magical signature.”

“H-Have you... ever experienced anything like that before?”

Faced with Aurora and Celeste’s sharp question, Whitney hesitated for a moment—then finally admitted the truth.

“...During the academy exam incident, the monsters... did follow my orders.”

“I-I knew it!”

Suddenly, Aurora jumped to her feet with a loud voice.

“T-To be honest, it wasn’t just analysis—we actually reverse-engineered your mana signature! The efficiency’s awful, but it was the most accurate method we had...”

“H-Hey, we actually wanted to ask you something for a while now. Would you be willing to stay at our lab for a day? We won’t do anything weird! We just want to extract a few samples—”

As even Celeste, sitting beside her, chimed in with slightly wild eyes, Salem—clearly unimpressed—shut them down with an icy tone.

“This is still a meeting. Save personal requests for later.”

“Ah, yes.”

“...We’re sorry.”

With the sudden flare of excitement quickly extinguished, Salem cleared his throat and brought the meeting back to its original focus.

“Do you know what the most powerful—and essential—ability of the Demon King is?”

“Hmm... Maybe an invulnerable body? Or near-infinite mana?”

“Those are important, yes. But not the most important.”

“Then...?”

“The Demon King’s most necessary power is the power of domination.”

The moment those words were spoken, a memory flashed through Whitney’s mind.

...Come to think of it, didn’t Parsha say something about a domination power...?

Back when the Prodigy Selection Tournament ended and they returned to the mansion—he remembered Parsha being overjoyed upon seeing the mark of a vassal spirit on the executives, saying he had awakened the power of domination.

“Demons, monsters, black mages, and other creatures of the dark—the power to subjugate them and make them your vassals. That is the power of domination.”

“......”

“And after long research... we concluded that you possess that ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) power.”

Salem, carefully watching Whitney’s increasingly sharp expression, spoke with caution.

“You’re someone who should wield the purest magic—white magic—but also carry the most wicked force within you. That’s why your powers conflict.”

“......”

“The gray hue of your magic... the ominous pressure that no white mage should emit... all of it stems from that.”

And again, silence fell over the meeting room.

***

After sitting quietly, head lowered in thought for a long time—having finally heard the full truth of his powers—Whitney eventually spoke.

“I get what you’re saying... but I still don’t really understand.”

“What part do you not understand?”

No matter how he turned it over in his mind, there was one thing he just couldn’t accept.

“Either way, my original ability is... authentic white magic for the first time in thousands of years, right?”

“...Correct.”

“Then why would the evil god give me that kind of power?”

As soon as he brought it up, the elders began avoiding his gaze—expressions turning awkward, as if they’d been waiting for the question.

“I mean, I’m not some Demon King or shadowy mastermind—I’m just a live-in son-in-law, remember?”

“......”

“And I’m even the Hero now. I mean, come on! Where are you going to find someone as nice as me?”

Just as Whitney was getting more indignant, looking around the room with a face full of injustice—

—Zzzzzzzzt...

Suddenly, a comms crystal in his chest pocket began to buzz.

“...My apologies.”

“No sense of etiquette, honestly.”

Even though he’d spent most of his past life lying in bed, Whitney knew full well how awkward it was to have something vibrating during a formal meeting. He quickly reached to shut it off.

“I’ll turn it off right—wait. Hold on.”

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Instead, he ended up pulling the crystal out.

“This is Parsha’s direct emergency line.”

He had given her this crystal with strict instructions to only use it in life-or-death emergencies.

“Parsha? Did something happen at the mansion—huh?”

His expression drained of color as he brought the crystal closer—then noticed something was wrong.

—Sssshhhhhh...

The crystal he’d taken out was turning pitch black, smoke curling from it.

“...Oh no.”

“That’s...”

“...Impossible.”

The shocked voices of the elders came from all sides as they stared at the corrupted crystal.

“Ah, can you hear me?”

“......!”

But before anyone could even ask what was happening—

“It’s nice to see you again... remnants of the Light.”

A voice that should never have been heard echoed from the blackened crystal.

“This is the Shadow Witch—executive of the Shadow Conclave and Grandmaster of the black mages. I bring greetings to you all.”