The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 408

Indim and Seraph were inspecting the fallen monsters.

“Are these the Relief Knights?” Indim asked.

“Yes. They’re from the Wisdom Order of the Relief Knights, or rather, these ones are from the Courage Order,” Seraph replied.

Heine, the Guide of the Resting, frowned as he examined the rosary hanging from the corpse’s neck.

“Lord Triodana of the Wisdom Order rose up, claiming to have received a revelation of salvation. The Wisdom Order appointed him as a Knight of Wisdom, and after that, the people of the Order transformed into these monsters. They call this the gospel,” Heine explained.

“How ridiculous. Those who serve God are the first to fall,” Indim scoffed.

“That’s because we are waiting for the voice of God. We are endlessly yearning for salvation, hoping that the gods will speak to us and reach out their hands. So, if the Nether gods whisper even a little, those who were waiting for the voice of God are deceived. Or perhaps, they are falling even knowing it. Now I understand why King Azadin didn’t tell others that he was chosen. His wisdom is deeply felt,” Heine mused.

“This isn’t the time for that. There will be more pursuers. Let’s move,” Seraph urged, deciding to leave immediately in case there were any pursuers.

Fortunately, it wasn’t too far to the territory of the Banlung Kingdom.

*********

As they entered the territory of the Banlung Kingdom, a warm energy emanated from the ground, surprising everyone.

Those who had been suffering from the harsh cold could feel that the King of Banlung was exercising the light of a rightful king just by this. A warm energy was circulating within a radius of 1000 ri [approximately 3927 kilometers] around the throne of Banlung.

Of course, it was colder than in normal years, but it was a welcome warmth compared to other places.

“So this is Azadin’s kingdom. It’s amazing,” Midiam Etar said, impressed as she watched the prosperity of the capital of the Banlung Kingdom, the Heart of the Mountain, and the Banlung Port, where many carts were coming and going.

She had been diligently looking at the pictures of each city, but this was her first time in the capital of a properly run kingdom.

“But, this might be a rude question, but what is your relationship with King Azadin?” Heine, the Guide of the Resting, asked Midiam.

“I’m his disciple,” Midiam replied.

“Disciple?” Heine questioned.

“Yes. The messengers of the Messenger Clan operate in teams with apprentices under them….”

“I see. But he seemed to be moving alone. Ah, of course, he had the soldiers and heroes of Chadra with him, but there didn’t seem to be anyone from the Messenger Clan,” Heine observed.

“That’s… because he was persecuted within the clan,” Midiam explained.

“Is that so?” Heine was surprised to hear that Azadin was also persecuted among the Messenger Clan.

“Thinking about the kingly demeanor he shows now, it’s hard to believe. He is recruiting many people and making them his allies. He is truly a heroic figure….”

“Isn’t he?” Midiam agreed.

“Tch. He’s a huge overnight success. He was a dropout in the clan’s training, and now he’s a hero king,” Indim, who was listening, said with annoyance.

Ismail sighed.

“Lord Indim,” Ismail said calmly.

“Leave him be. We all gave up on him anyway,” Seraph said, watching Indim get annoyed because he was jealous of Azadin.

“Then, we are going to have an audience with King Azadin. I’m worried. Normally, we would have to apply for an audience with the king through the Relief Knights headquarters in Banlung, but currently, we cannot trust the Relief Knights headquarters. Especially since the Celestial Fire are false angels created by the Northern Empire, and their leader, Lord Karna, looks like a twin of Lord Triodana, we must consider him a spy of the Northern Empire,” Seraph stated.

“Then, should we just sneak in? Surely Azadin wouldn’t mistreat us, his clan seniors, just because he had an overnight success?” Indim suggested.

“……,” Seraph was silent.

“That’s the most dangerous idea. Do you know who a king wants to purge the most? It’s the guy who acts like an elder with his pre-king human relations. Besides, we didn’t do anything for him as his seniors, did we? We didn’t even bully him because we were in different classes. Since we’re not close, we should be more formal,” Seraph explained, stopping Indim.

No matter what the past was, a person in a position to stand above people cannot tolerate someone who shows excessive familiarity and undermines their authority. Even if someone approaches with goodwill, if they act without distance, you want to purge them, and Indim doesn’t even have goodwill, does he?

“The way I know him, he will meet us immediately if we ask to meet him. Don’t worry about it,” Ismail said confidently.

“Azadin is a messenger who has completed a fairly standard agent training. He would never refuse an opportunity to gather information,” Ismail added.

Indeed, it was as he said. As soon as they applied for an audience, the soldiers rushed to the communication device. The communication device made of brass pipes made by the dwarves quickly transmitted the sound, and soon, permission to come up was granted.

“Come in! I will guide you to His Majesty!” A page approached, but they did not disarm them.

Midiam Etar was the daughter of the Etar clan, a prestigious family among the Messenger Clan, but it was like a prestigious family in the middle of the countryside, so she was amazed by the scale of the huge royal castle, the Heart of the Mountain, built in the dwarven style.

As she was guided to the king’s audience chamber by the page, she was full of admiration, again and again. Heine smiled at her innocent appearance.

And after a while, the page called them in front of the audience chamber.

“Please come in,” the page said.

“Yes!” Midiam answered excitedly, even though she didn’t need to, and followed the page into the audience chamber.

The king’s audience chamber, built in the dwarven style, had stone walls with rows of pillars, and battlements were built between the pillars. And in between, the king’s guards, dwarven musketeers and blunderbuss soldiers, were stationed. In the majestic and spacious audience chamber, Azadin’s vassals and subordinates were lined up along the carpet leading to the throne, and Azadin was sitting on the throne, wearing a golden crown on his head. His appearance was so stern and dignified that it was hard to believe he was a dropout who had been persecuted in the Messenger Clan.

He, who looked like he was born to be a king, was smiling and welcoming them.

‘I’ve heard the stories,’ Midiam Etar thought, flustered as she looked at Azadin’s eyes.

She had heard from Indim and Seraph of Hwajopungwol [a term referring to the beauty of nature, often used to describe a beautiful person] that Azadin’s eyes had recovered. She had heard that Azadin had become a different being through the fusion with Araiel, and that Araiel’s eyes had been transferred to Azadin….

‘He’s much more handsome than I thought? No, rather than handsome, what is it… he feels like an angel,’ she mused.

He had a beauty that felt more like a higher being, not a human, and even majestic. The magical beauty of Araiel, which made men and women alike go wild and even caused a rebellion in the Messenger Clan, remained intact in Azadin, making Midiam’s heart flutter.

But….

“Hmm… Midiam. And Indim and Seraph, is it?” Azadin said, his gaze shifting to the side of the audience chamber.

Surprisingly, Sion Etar and his subordinates were standing there.

“…Huh?” Midiam was surprised.

“Well, well. You came at a good time, Midiam. Ismail. And Indim and Seraph. I’ve heard the stories. You rescued Midiam and also rescued the people of the Mercy Order of the Relief Knights on the way? Excellent. I will give you dwarven gulden as a reward,” Azadin announced.

The page handed bags of gold coins to Seraph and Indim. Each bag contained 50 dwarven gulden gold coins, which were cheap compared to their value during the heyday when commerce was active, now that the economy was ruined. However, the fact that the king officially gave them a reward meant that the Banlung Kingdom recognized the existence of these two.

Indim and Seraph happily accepted the reward.

“Thank you,” they said.

“But. Why is Sion Etar here?” Indim asked, confused.

“……,” Seraph wanted to poke Indim in the side for talking nonsense, but unfortunately, there were too many people watching. Even if you’re curious, you can’t ask directly at an audience with the king, can you?

However, Azadin nodded.

“I guess you’re curious about that. Okay. Let’s skip the formalities and move to another place?” Azadin suggested, pointing to the conference room next to the audience chamber.

*********

One good thing about being a king was that people came to you on their own. Now, instead of running around on his own feet, those who needed him came to him on their own, delivering information and making requests. For Azadin, who had to travel hundreds of miles in a single day to fulfill other people’s requests, it was a world of difference.

However, it wasn’t all good, as too many people were coming.

“Your Majesty. The manager of the Van Dyke Trading Company has come to see you,” a page announced.

“Is it Dilia?” Azadin asked.

“Yes. And she is requesting an audience, saying that she has come with her superior,” the page replied.

“Superior? Hmm. Okay. I’ll grant an audience. Ah, no, no. To the conference room,” Azadin agreed to the audience when he heard that Dilia had come with her superior.

The news that Vissen had rebelled against Azadin and defeated Zekt had also reached the King’s Church.

Dilia, the manager of the Van Dyke Trading Company, came with a guest. The guest was surprisingly Sion Etar, the elder of the Etar clan, who could be said to be the real power of the Messenger Clan.

“Congratulations on your great achievement. King of Banlung. Your achievements are shaking the entire continent,” Sion Etar said.

“Don’t say things you don’t mean. What is it, Sion Etar?” Azadin asked directly.

“I heard you wanted to see me. Actually…,” Sion Etar looked around.

It was the conference room of the royal castle. Unlike the audience chamber, which was open and allowed many troops to guard the king, this place was designed so that the king could have secret conversations with those he trusted more.

‘If he wasn’t going to have a secret deal with me, there’s no way he would have called me to the conference room instead of the audience chamber from the beginning,’ Sion Etar thought, knowing that Azadin wanted something from him and smiled inwardly.

“But still, it’s a sudden visit. I thought we would go through a coordination process, but I didn’t expect you to come directly like this. Besides, it seems like you came with a considerable number of assassins. Even one or two Aragasa [a clan of skilled assassins] are scary,” Azadin said.

Azadin, who was also an Aragasa, knew their danger well. The innate strength and spatial awareness of even children handling powerful bows that adults would use. And the innate magic book that the emperor had given to their lineage. Based on their innate physique and strength, they are excellent warriors, as they receive assassination training from a young age for the future of the clan.

If these people with such dangerous power entered his territory, no matter who they were, they would not be able to sleep soundly at night.

Sion Etar brought messengers, apprentices, and a large number of servants into the Banlung Kingdom. It was a number that could be called the total force of the Etar clan, capable of assassinating national figures in an instant.