Chapter 10 …

“Grrrrr!”

The Bearwolf lunged straight at Diarin.

To a monster that retained nothing but the instincts of a predator, Diarin was far too full of openings—a tempting prey beyond resistance.

Just before its steel-like fangs could tear into her delicate neck—

Slash.

The Bearwolf split cleanly in half while still in the middle of its charge.

Before the ferocious light in its eyes could return to focus.

Before the Bearwolf could even realize it was dying.

A crimson wing burst from Diarin’s back like a monster itself and swallowed the Bearwolf whole in a single bite.

It happened in an instant.

The Bearwolf’s corpse was completely erased from the world.

<It seems this Bearwolf was the leader of the pack. Its amount of mana is exceptional.>

Lor spoke after neatly devouring the corpse. At that moment, Diarin hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief from her clothes.

Cough!

Diarin spat blood onto the ground and quickly wiped her mouth with the handkerchief.

“Miss! Miss Concleister!”

At a truly terrifying speed, Sir Ramd came riding after her.

Finding her this quickly on such a dark mountain road was an impressive feat in itself.

I heard he even won the knight tournament held a few days ago.

As far as she knew, he had never been that extraordinary of a knight before.

It was strange.

Then again, he survived and returned from beneath the Gate Stone. His skills must have improved tremendously.

Ramd leaped from his horse with the force of a flying arrow.

In the blink of an eye, he was standing before Diarin.

“Are you alright? Are you injured anywhere? Those monsters kept blocking the road, so I—!”

“I’m fine. The Bearwolf dragged me all the way here and then disappeared over there.”

“Whew… Thank goodness.”

A deep sigh of relief escaped him.

Perhaps because he had cut through monsters like a madman to get here, Ramd looked completely disheveled.

His fluffy crimson hair, reminiscent of a brown bear and matching the color of his eyes exactly, was a complete mess from the wind.

Looking at appearances alone…

Ramd looked more like the one who had been kidnapped and then released.

Even in that state, he carefully circled the carriage, thoroughly inspecting the surroundings.

“Sir! Sir!”

“Over here! We’re here!”

A group carrying torches emerged from the darkness.

After signaling back with an emergency magical artifact, Ramd kept his guard up and turned his gaze toward Diarin.

At that moment, his eyes widened.

Diarin, who had been looking toward the forest, suddenly stifled a cough and quietly spat blood.

She did it with the familiarity of someone who had coughed up blood hundreds, perhaps thousands of times before.

To Ramd, Diarin’s calmness was even more shocking.

Just how often had she vomited blood to be so indifferent about it?

…Could it be that this young lady is suffering from a terminal illness?

Was that why she had given him a pledge stating that he could kill her if he wished?

If that’s true, then everything I’ve done until now…

Had he shown murderous intent and treated a frail lady with a limited lifespan so recklessly?

Ramd, a knight to his very bones, felt his thoughts descend into complete chaos.

His pride as a knight crumbled in an instant, and he could not even bring himself to look Diarin straight in the eye.

The One Who Guards the North

The most precious reception hall on the continent was the audience chamber of the Imperial Palace.

A place meant only for meeting the Emperor—a seat reserved solely for him.

The purple throne was dignified, and its decorations, lavishly adorned with diamonds, gold, ivory, and countless red and blue gemstones, were so extravagant that they could leave one momentarily dazed.

In this dazzling audience chamber, Ezet stared forward with an expressionless face.

A long crimson damask carpet stretched from the entrance all the way to the throne. As if by fate, a middle-aged mage wearing a robe of almost the same color as the carpet walked down it.

‘It’s like camouflage.’

‘It really looks like camouflage.’

‘Camouflage, huh.’

The mage bowed before the Emperor.

“Allow me to offer my congratulations on the glorious achievement of His Highness Ezet Asperk Kirchen. I am Gerald, a mage of the Four Seasons Tower.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Gerald Rune.”

“I am deeply honored, Your Majesty.”

The polite greeting quickly transformed into excitement.

“This is truly an honor! To witness with my own eyes someone who returned alive from beneath the Gate Stone…! Such glory will be remembered for generations! I offer this honor to the Great Five Divine Beasts of Od A Kir!”

I offer glory to the Great Five Divine Beasts.

It was the highest form of respect one could express in the Akir Empire.

Ezet’s expression did not change in the slightest, but the other nobles standing in the audience chamber reacted differently.

The Four Seasons Tower was infamous for being arrogant, independent, stubborn—

‘And completely self-willed. No one standing here is unaware of that.’

Even Emperor Bruno IX, seated upon the throne, wore a satisfied smile.

“The sincerity of the Four Seasons Tower is appreciated, Gerald Rune.”

“You honor me, Your Majesty.”

“However, something seems strange. The mage of the Eighth Prince—was her name Dillis Oan? I was informed that she had already departed for the Four Seasons Tower.”

Three people had returned alive from the Gate Stone.

Ezet.

Ramd Veston.

And Dillis Oan, the mage of the North Gate Stone territory.

She had headed to the Four Seasons Tower before responding to the Emperor’s summons. After all, every mage belonged to the Four Seasons Tower by default. Its independent influence was so great that even the Emperor could not easily interfere with it.

“Hahaha.”

Gerald laughed.

“I departed for the Akir Empire in great haste, so I have not yet met Dillis Oan. However…”

His excitement flared up once again.

“The case of Dillis Oan is astonishing as well! Truly! Truly astonishing! She was only a Rank 2 mage before, yet during the two years she was missing beneath the Gate Stone, she advanced all the way to Rank 4! Such a thing has no precedent!”

For a mage to advance even a single rank was extraordinarily difficult. Decades of training might not be enough.

Yet Dillis Oan had returned as a Rank 4 mage after only two years.

Not quite a legend, but close to one.

The story was already guaranteed a place in the magical textbooks of the Four Seasons Tower.

“Your Majesty, I have also heard that the young knight who returned alongside His Highness the Eighth Prince, Ramd Veston, has experienced a tremendous increase in strength! Is this miracle truly real as well?”

“It is true, Gerald Rune.”

Ramd had won this year’s unofficial knight tournament.

The Emperor tapped the armrest and looked toward Ezet.

“He was never a particularly remarkable knight before. Isn’t that right, Ezet Asperk?”

“Yes, Grandfather.”

Ezet answered calmly.

Grandfather.

A faint crack appeared in Gerald’s cheerful expression.

That was right.

The Emperor and Ezet were grandfather and grandson.

Nor was Ezet the only one.

Every prince currently existing within the Imperial Family was a biological grandson of Emperor Bruno IX.

Bruno IX, Emperor of Akir and the Iron-Blooded Monarch, had no surviving children of his own.

Because Bruno IX himself had purged them.

Twelve years ago. The day one of the most horrific chapters in Akir’s history began.

At the time, the Emperor’s eldest son had led a rebellion, and by Bruno IX’s furious command, he was flayed alive.

Bruno IX was no benevolent ruler.

As he relentlessly hunted down everyone even remotely involved in the rebellion, a shocking truth came to light.

Every one of his sons and daughters had participated in it.

Afterward, Bruno IX executed every prince and princess.

Yet even amid his rage and sense of betrayal, an heir to continue the imperial bloodline was necessary.

Thus, Bruno IX spared only a handful of grandsons who met his personal standards and invested them as princes.

As a result, all of the Empire’s current princes were not Bruno IX’s sons, but his grandsons.

At the time, not only foreign and domestic observers but even the eccentric mages of the Four Seasons Tower had reacted with:

“Eh? Isn’t that a bit horrifying…?”

While Gerald was recalling that shocking period, the Emperor asked:

“Gerald Rune. Does entering the depths beneath the Gate Stone cause a knight’s abilities to increase dramatically?”

After asking, the Emperor shook his head.

“No, that can’t be right. If that were the case, the Imperial Knights and the entire Northwestern Gate Stone region would not have been wiped out.”

“Precisely.”

Gerald lightly furrowed his brow.

“They survived by a miracle within the fog of unrefined mana, and as a result, their abilities improved dramatically. The depths beneath the Gate Stone are, quite literally, hell.”

“Yes. A place famous for being hell.”

“Indeed. Your Majesty, have you perhaps heard the rumor that consuming poisonous mushrooms can, on rare occasions, cure diseases?”

“I have heard it.”

“As you already know, it is nothing more than a rumor.”

“I see. I understand what you’re trying to say, Gerald Rune.”

If one ate a poisonous mushroom, one died.

However, there was a rumor that, in extremely rare cases, a lethal toxin would drive out the poisons accumulated within the body, causing the body to be reborn anew.

Whether that was true could never be verified, and the chance of simply dying from the mushroom was incomparably higher.

“Furthermore, forcing people into life-threatening situations in order to make them grow is the sort of thing only black mages would attempt.”

The Four Seasons Tower prided itself on following the righteous path.

Besides, unless it was an extraordinarily special case like Ezet’s, breaking through the Founder’s sealing magic and descending underground was nearly impossible.

Bruno IX nodded.

“I have not the slightest doubt regarding the morality of the Four Seasons Tower.”

“Your gracious words honor us greatly. In truth, had the Northwestern Gate Stone not collapsed, His Highness the Eighth Prince would never have fallen underground in the first place. The Four Seasons Tower always prays for the prosperity and safety of the Imperial Family.”

“I know that well. I have always been grateful.”

“You honor me, Your Majesty.”

Ezet understood why, among the countless mages of the Four Seasons Tower, Gerald had been chosen to meet the Emperor.

Gerald was an excellent speaker.

In the Four Seasons Tower, where socially inept mages were said to be everywhere, he was undoubtedly a rare talent.

Even setting that aside, Gerald was remarkably friendly toward Ezet.

“The Four Seasons Tower has already completed preparations for a grand reconstruction project. Thanks to the tremendous achievement of His Highness the Eighth Prince, there is no longer any danger of the Gate being destroyed, so we intend to devote ourselves to restoring and rebuilding every collapsed Gate!”

“Then the price of Core Stones will fluctuate considerably.”

“Indeed, Your Majesty.”

Core Stones were stones hidden within the cores of magical beasts.

They were absolutely essential for constructing Gates.

However, most people could not touch Core Stones with their bare hands. Only those of the Fair Bloodline could handle them safely.

“The Gates within the Imperial Palace remain intact thanks to the Founder’s great protective magic, but the Gates outside are another matter. Not only the capital, but even the Gates of the great territories are in ruins.”

“Yes. Once this grand reconstruction is completed, all the roads that have been blocked will be opened again.”

The Emperor smiled with satisfaction.

Only after Gerald had spent considerable time enthusiastically describing how excited the Four Seasons Tower had become did he finally leave the audience chamber alongside the Minister of Finance.

Then, after dismissing the remaining nobles as well, the Emperor spoke.

“It is the first time I’ve seen those stiff fellows from the Four Seasons Tower so excited, Ezet Asperk.”

“I am honored, Grandfather.”

“Now I understand why Duke Concl is so anxious over you.”

“It is likely only temporary interest.”

“You are too modest.”

The Emperor stroked his chin thoughtfully.

“Now then. I heard that Concl’s collateral branch—a bearer of the Fair Bloodline—has been sent to the North Gate Stone territory?”

“Yes.”

“Concl’s influence is not something that can be ignored lightly.”

For the Emperor to say such a thing, the House of Concl had to be extraordinarily ancient.

It was said to have existed even before the founding of the Akir Empire itself.

That meant its history stretched back well over a thousand years.

According to legend, the family only submitted to the Empire after Akir’s Founder summoned the Winged Divine Beasts.

Naturally, the power and wealth accumulated by Concl over countless generations were immense.

The Duke of Concl had secluded himself for a time after his heir was involved in an accident several years ago, but that was all.

A foundation that strong did not disappear so easily.

“Still, difficult does not mean impossible. Duke Kelstuder has shown considerable interest in you. Kelstuder’s daughter would be an appropriate match in both status and standing.”

The Emperor’s thoughts were divided.

There was no need to make an enemy of Concl, so maintaining the current engagement was one option.

The other was accepting the many benefits Kelstuder eagerly offered and taking the opportunity to demonstrate the authority of the Imperial Family over the House of Concl.

Either option was acceptable.

“What will you do? I shall give you the choice.”

In other words, the Emperor was granting Ezet the right to choose his bride.