Chapter 184
I rode a carriage heading for the capital.
The imperial family had told us to come in early March, but we set out half a month early. I wanted to install magic arrays at various strongholds.
This time, the magic arrays were compact and different from the existing ones. After installation, they would only activate by infusing them with magic power. There were two more pairs of arrays like these.
Thus, I installed these magic arrays in Urada's territory, and in Tris as well. From now on, all arrays would only allow entry to the stronghold through Urada's territory.
While stopping by Tris, I met with Count Mals, merchant leader Barako, and the Central Fleet admiral. I let them know that an incident could break out, so they could quickly shut down operations and evacuate.
I gave similar reminders to our own members, and informed Count Parde about the situation as well. Now, I also sent word to our now-allied Mutran of the west and Lian.
"How's the new intelligence squad doing?"
"They're not 'new' anymore. Right now, those members are working in the field. Some of them are even impressive enough that veteran members gave up their own equipment for them."
I was traveling with the squad leader of the intelligence unit.
The original eight intelligence members handled information processing and management. The eight former rookies worked out in the field.
So the veterans were called 'Line 1.'
The former rookies were called 'Line 2.' The squad leader might put it that way, but Line 1 was still more skilled.
The intelligence squad had made tremendous contributions during Ross's wedding, so I gave them an unprecedented amount of bonuses. It was enough to retire on, so for now, they just managed things without overexerting themselves.
"Any signs from the Syren family?"
"There was one suspicious thing. It was hard to verify, so I haven't reported it yet."
"What was it?"
"Earlier this year, someone suspicious entered the Syren household, suspected to be from the Tern military."
"Tern military?"
"Just hearing the name, I asked the Mogos intelligence group to look into it, and it seems he was the Kingdom Knight Order Commander from Tern. Moreover, his description matched the testimony of a witness."
What kind of situation was this?
The squad leader went on.
"What was more surprising was that this person entered the house together with Art Syren."
"Art Syren?"
"Yes. He had been missing up until now. Since being seriously injured, no one had seen him in the capital or the Syren household."
"So that's how it was."
Was Art Syren in Tern?
I had cut off his arm with my sword and Lok shot him with an arrow. He escaped in that state.
I just assumed he'd been treated in the capital. After recovering, the Duke likely warned him not to act recklessly. So I thought they'd kept quiet.
But he'd been in Tern?
If he hadn't shown up until now, it means he went to Tern when he was critically wounded and only now has returned.
Was the Syren family so incapable that they sent their precious second son all the way to Tern? Moreover, he was the true son of the Empress. There must have been a different reason.
Then what could it have been?
I had no clue.
The timing of his return was awfully coincidental, too.
"Is the insider testimony solid?"
"Yes. We have three spies in the Syren family. We recruited them three years ago, threatening and bribing them while pretending to be imperial secret envoys."
"What is the Tern Knight Order Commander's name?"
"They heard Art Syren call him 'Sel.' The Tern Knight Order Commander's name is Sellus."
So he was using a nickname.
Were they close?
"The Duke wouldn't meet with someone like that."
"Even if there were ulterior motives, they would have met outside the house. That shows how important this person must be."
"Why are they so important?"
The squad leader looked at me.
He hesitated briefly.
"There's a chance the Duke is plotting a rebellion in Tern. According to Mogos's reports, the Duke has been building up his organization by supporting several families in Tern and even in Robe."
"So he has people in Tern, too."
"Yes. That Knight Order Commander is believed to be the Duke's man within Tern, and possibly head of his family as well."
The Duke is plotting a rebellion in Tern.
It's possible. If a rebellion breaks out while invading Tern after taking control of the empire, it would allow bloodless conquest.
If not that—
"Or maybe he's planning to use Tern's army to attack the east."
"You really think so?"
"Judging by the Duke's actions so far, it wouldn't be impossible. He's the type to use others to achieve his goals and discard them easily. That Knight Order Commander could be completely in the dark."
Let's just say that's possible.
But something like that could be ordered remotely. There's no reason to meet such a person inside the house.
"Is he still in the Syren household?"
"It seems he left. And since then, Art Syren hasn't been seen, either."
"So they both left together."
There was clearly another reason.
"How was Art Syren?"
"They said it was eerie. His face was wrapped tightly in cloth, and his left arm was intact."
"Not an artificial limb?"
"No."
As ordinary people had seen him, there was no telling how much his magic or swordsmanship had improved. I figured he'd undergone hellish training in Tern.
The carriage ran nonstop toward the capital. One of our family's inns in the capital had a secret underground room. I planned to install a magic array in that inn.
The Duke was probably watching the inn our family had purchased. But he couldn't know about the underground. The passageway down was in another building.
/ / /
I ate with Donnie in the dining room of our inn. As soon as we reached the capital, I installed a magic array in the inn with the secret, then moved to another inn.
"Someone's watching."
"They've always been keeping an eye on us."
"I'm less curious about why Tern's Knight Order Commander visited the Syren family, and more about why Art Syren went to Tern. Whether for treatment, or after recovering."
"Yeah, why would he go..."
At that moment, my spirit flickered.
A voice sounded.
—It's me. Are you about to make a move?
"Yes. Is it still too soon?"
—At this stage, it's about right. At the very least, it doesn't look like you'll lose.
"May I ask something?"
—Go ahead.
It was Viscount Drian. I'd been in touch before coming to the capital. Last time, it was just greetings. He had to check his hidden information before reporting it to me.
"Tern's Knight Order Commander entered the Syren family, and I hear Art Syren was in Tern. Does that ring any bells?"
—Art Syren was in Tern?
"Yes. It struck me as odd."
—That commander, who exactly is he?
"Someone named Sellus."
—Sellus?
I waited for a reply.
He seemed to recognize it.
—That's not possible.
"Why not?"
—He's dead.
"When did he die?"
—Two years ago, he was the commander of the Tern expeditionary force that landed in southern Verttern. He was killed in action, and after that, Tern gave up on the south. He wasn't even the Knight Order Commander at the time.
"So he didn't survive and escape?"
—No. The Tern army was wiped out. Leo even buried his body with full military honors.
What on earth—
"Are you sure about the burial?"
—I'm sure. It must just be someone with the same name.
"If that Sellus and the current Tern Knight Order Commander are the same, then he's not dead."
—How can that be?
There could only be one answer.
"Leo must have killed an imposter."
—Then you're saying he escaped and rose to command in two years? Knowing the King of Tern's personality, there's no way he'd appoint such a person.
"Wasn't he already close to the king?"
—If he was sent on the Tern expedition, he wasn't close at the time. Leo just told me: apparently, he's from the south of this region.
"From southern Verttern?"
—Hang on a moment.
It sounded like Viscount Drian and Leo were talking. Viscount Drian seemed to be in southern Verttern.
—That man betrayed his homeland and sided with Tern. Could a traitor like that possibly become the king's confidant?
Because he was originally from southern Verttern, he was sent to command the Tern expedition. He knew the south well, and no one cared if he lived or died.
Yet now, he's the kingdom's Knight Order Commander. As far as I know, the King of Tern is no pushover. That role would require a very close connection as well as immense strength.
Even if the Duke recruited him, he couldn't just push him into such a position. What if the Kingdom's Knight Order became a group of rebels? Would the king really give that post to a turncoat?
It was not just odd—it was bizarre.
"For now, please share any information about the Emperor's bloodline. I'll dig into the details and report back."
—Will do.
Viscount Drian gave me clues about the Emperor's bloodline. I immediately understood why he hadn't memorized them—it was a cipher.
"What does this code refer to?"
—There were no details about that. You'll probably have to check the Imperial archives. The two portraits are numbers. Combine them and you'll figure it out.
"I understand. I'll be in touch again."
—Good luck.
I looked at the cipher.
I was told to use this code, check the portraits of the first Emperor and Empress in the Imperial library.
The cipher used words common as region names or personal names. It wasn't hard to memorize, but if I didn't write it down, I might get confused later.
After finishing my meal, I headed to my room.
I had a meeting with the Emperor in four days, so I planned to rest thoroughly in that time.
/ / /
Two days passed.
I alternated between my room and the dining hall, just resting, but something chaotic was happening in the capital.
Was it because we'd arrived?
Syren's elite had come in and out of the family house several times, and ridden away on horseback at speed.
So I told them to look into it.
Finally, late at night, word came.
—There's someone being pursued by Syren family knights. They're seriously wounded and seem to have hidden in a slum on the western outskirts.
"Any idea who it is?"
—No, but there was someone exceedingly strong among the Syren knights. Our intelligence unit is searching, and the Watts Count's knights are also moving discreetly.
"Is it related to Count Watts?"
—We haven't confirmed yet.
"I'll go there myself."
I donned my spirit mask and left my room. Donnie must have gotten the message, as he appeared wearing the mask of a man in his forties. We would arm ourselves outside.
Who was this fugitive?
Was it one of Count Watts's sons? Or someone with information for Lord Watts?
Leaving the inn, I mounted up and rode hard.
Something like this rarely happened in the capital. It felt like the Duke was acting in response to our arrival.
If my instincts were right,
It meant the Duke knew why we'd come to the capital, and was now rushing to advance whatever he'd been hiding.
We rode for about an hour.
In the distance, I saw shanties built closely together by the river. There were lots of torches inside the slum.
I dismounted and ducked under the bridge. There, I opened the magic vault and entered with Donnie. After a short while, we came out with our squad, all disguised as Amir.
—Squad leader here. Currently, the Watts knights and the Syren team are fighting.
"What about the strong one from Syren?"
—He's searching for the fugitive alone, killing Watts' knights with a single stroke. We haven't identified the fugitive's exact location yet.
"Understood."
Staring at the slum, I spoke.
"Eliminate the enemies."
With that, I dashed forward.
Our squad drew their Amirs' swords and scattered in all directions as we ran.
Chang— cha-chang—
The sounds of fighting echoed from the alleys of the slum.
"Where's the strong one?"
—Thirty paces ahead, in the alley! He's just jumped into a green-roofed house!
I immediately propelled myself onto the densely packed rooftops of the slum. In a few strides, I vaulted over several shanties and jumped straight down into the alley. At that moment!
Crash—
One of the shacks exploded and someone was sent flying out. I was shocked to see the body crash into the alley.
Was that the fugitive?
Just then, the strong one strode out of the wrecked house. The one who'd been about to attack me suddenly froze. He was wearing Tern's armor—right here in the empire's capital.
"Are you Sellus?"
I channeled magic power into my sword.
The strong one from the Syren family only stared at me through his helmet. He was formidable.
He looked from me to the fugitive lying behind me. Had Tern's Knight Order Commander come all the way here to kill 'him'? Then why had the Duke allowed it?
He was waiting for a chance to strike.
Or maybe he meant to escape.
The moment he moved his foot!
I swept my sword in a horizontal line.
I'd hoped to catch him while he dodged—
But astonishingly, he didn't dodge.
Boom—
He took the horizontal slash head-on.
Then immediately leapt upward.
Right away, I unleashed a barrage of spirit flying swords at him. The blades fired at staggered intervals, targeting him as he soared upward. But in midair, he twisted and knocked the blades away.
Tang, Tang—
He vanished into the darkness beyond.
Stronger than the Sword of Light wielder.
Only then did I look behind.
A man lay losing blood, his arm gone. His body was slashed all over.
"Long time no see."
The fugitive grinned at me.
"How have you been... Roger."
With those words, the man collapsed.
As if he'd spent every last bit of strength.
He was Xenon.
Former guest of the Syren family.