Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 320

“What did you say?” Logan asked, his voice sharper than he intended.

Louisa just smiled, a small, knowing curve of her lips. She seemed calmer now, watching his surprise. But Logan’s heart was still racing.

The idea she had just offered was too tempting to ignore.

*An alliance against the Empire? With someone inside the Empire itself?*

It was a path to his greatest wish, so much easier than he had imagined.

But then, a dark memory flashed in his mind: mountains of dead bodies from his past life. And the Emperor Baros, his face twisted in mad laughter above them.

Louisa watched him, her smile fading slightly. She clearly wasn’t going to answer his question easily.

“…This conversation ends here,” Louisa said, her voice cold. She placed her teacup down with a sharp click and stood up, turning her back to him.

But Logan pressed on, not letting her escape the conversation.

“If information about your magic were to reach the Imperial Family, both you and your family’s Dongwang Estate would be in serious trouble. I would be satisfied with just that, but would you be alright with it, Princess?”

“…I heard it was a trade of questions?”

Her blue eyes, still facing forward, were filled with chill, but Logan merely smiled and raised his teacup.

“It is a trade. But I have something you want.”

“…Not the sun of McLaine, but a snake.”

“Thank you for the compliment. Shall we continue the trade then?”

Louisa’s expression hardened at Logan’s sly smile, and she extended her hand with a frigid smile.

“…Three more. We’ll exchange only three questions.”

“Huh? You’re not in a position to be picky, are you?”

“After all, I can just abandon the estate and hide. How about it? An exchange of three questions, with honest answers from each other to the extent possible.”

The Princess has no attachment to the Dongwang Estate.

Is this an appeal that the Dongwang Estate is not related to that organization?

Or is this even a deception?

Keeping the doubts swirling in his head, Logan readily nodded.

“Haha. Well, it seems I’m at a bit of a disadvantage, but let’s do that.”

“Then I’ll go first…”

“Before that, you need to answer the question I asked, right?”

“…The first question?”

Tch.

I tried to get one for free.

“Very well.”

As Logan nodded, hiding his true feelings, Louisa tossed out a short word.

“Imperial commissions.”

Commissions?

Do they cooperate as needed, even while fighting?

The organization’s identity seemed to become even more ambiguous, and his brow furrowed involuntarily.

“That’s a vague answer.”

“Would you like to end the conversation here if you don’t like it?”

It was clear in her blue eyes that she would not concede any further.

‘Did I push her too hard?’

But since she was someone he couldn’t win over anyway, Logan had no choice but to accept the answer with a small sigh.

“Then it’s my turn. Why are you hostile to the Empire? There shouldn’t be any reason to be.”

How many wars had Grandia had with the Empire in its history? They were merely preparing.

Logan, who was about to gloss over it like that, changed his mind as he looked into Louisa’s blue eyes.

The moment he gave an answer that this woman couldn’t accept, this conversation would end.

Feeling that resolve anew, Logan clicked his tongue briefly. He had to reveal some of the truth.

“Because I knew the Empire was planning a war.”

“How did you…?”

“Now it’s my turn. What is the goal of your organization?”

To be honest, what he was most curious about was why an Imperial Royal Princess would call herself an enemy of the Empire.

‘Is the Dongwang Estate itself in league with the Black Serpent?’

He threw out the question, hoping that perhaps he could resolve that doubt with this one question.

But Louisa’s answer, after a moment of hesitation, was once again unsatisfactory.

“To change the order of the world.”

What nonsense?

Such a vague answer came to mind involuntarily.

But her firmly closed red lips didn’t seem like they would utter any other words.

‘I thought I was in control of this conversation, but…’

It was like a dog on a leash was threatening to bite its tongue and die if necessary.

With this, would he have the right to laugh at Louisa for not having the qualities of a negotiator?

‘If they’re changing the order, that means they won’t continue to comply with the Empire, at least.’

Keeping that one fact in mind, Logan gave a bitter smile.

Then, Louisa asked the question she hadn’t finished earlier.

“How did you know the Empire was preparing for war?”

How should he answer?

After turning his mind over for a moment, Logan came up with an answer that was neither truth nor lie.

“I met the Emperor. I didn’t think he was someone who would ever be satisfied with reality.”

“…Just with that?”

“Part of the truth. Like your answer.”

Red eyes and blue eyes crossed coldly, and then sighs and hollow laughter flowed from both of them.

“At this rate, neither of us will gain anything at all. How about we answer the last question with sincerity?”

“In other words, we’ll only answer questions that we can answer truthfully. How about it?”

“…Alright.”

How far could they trust each other?

Keeping that fact in mind, words in a calm tone were exchanged, and the last question and answer were exchanged.

And that day’s conversation ended.

[You knew my power?]

“Yes. That is correct.”

[…It’s possible to guess about our insignia. If the superhumans of McLaine who clashed with Gerohin or the reports from the Allied War were entered, it’s possible enough. But to see through your seal and even grasp its nature?]

“He told me so himself. He said he noticed it with just his senses.”

At those words, his teacher’s expression hardened.

[With just his senses? Huh, the seal I personally placed… It’s absurd. Is the power of the one who changes fate much stronger than I thought…?]

“It seems that the people around me were not affected by the magic spell because he knew about my power from the beginning.”

[If it’s the power to change fate, and if his identity was revealed early on, that would be the only explanation.]

Louisa didn’t mention the fact that she had broken the seal and caused a commotion. Judging from King Logan’s words, he must have already guessed it, separate from that incident.

‘Anyway, yesterday night’s failure has no impact on the organization.’

She tried to excuse herself like that, but she couldn’t help but let out a self-deprecating smile.

‘Pathetic.’

Make her successes look bigger and hide her mistakes.

She was utterly miserable when she realized that she was doing the same disgusting behavior that the lower-level members of the Tower used to do.

The end of failure is either brainwashing or sacrifice.

This strict punishment was a leftover from the Tower’s old rules. The Cassel Magic Tower had maintained these rules in order to keep the organization running while avoiding the eyes of the Imperial Family. Because of that, there were many cases where things went wrong due to disruptions in information transmission.

That culture of strict punishment was also one of the customs she wanted to change, but now she was just making excuses to avoid it.

‘How did it come to this…’

Crack!

The image of King McLaine, who had driven her into a corner once again, came to mind, and she involuntarily ground her teeth.

Then, startled by the sound she had made, she looked at the communication device, but her teacher was just lost in thought.

Seeing that, Louisa calmly recalled her last conversation with Logan.

To be exact, the questions she had asked and the answers to them.

– What does Your Majesty think of the Temple?

A random question that didn’t fit the context of the conversation at all.

But since it wasn’t a difficult question, the King’s answer came easily.

– …The agents of the gods. I don’t think you want to hear that kind of answer, do you?

– I’m asking about Your Majesty’s view of the Temple. I heard there was some trouble recently.

– …It was just trouble with corrupt priests. The Pope will also be replaced, so I hope the Temple will change a bit now. I just hope that the Nine Gods will choose a clearly designated agent.

– Ah… Is that what you think?

– …Surely that’s the end of the question?

– Yes.

The last conversation that came out after a fierce confrontation was so futile, so King Logan’s expression as he looked at her was bound to be dumbfounded.

But Louisa was able to confirm one of the most important facts from that random question and answer.

“King Logan has no idea about the source of his power. And he doesn’t know what’s starting in this country either.”

[…He has such power, but he’s not aware of it? He should at least have a sense of it? Hmm. This is…]

“Yes. I think he can be used enough.”

A smile appeared on Louisa’s face.

It was a small thing, but it showed the direction to achieve the organization’s goal. A sign that showed a faster way to reach their goal.

[Good. I’ll review it for now, so return immediately.]

“Yes, Master.”

That was why she was able to smile, relieving some of the burden of her miserable failure at the palace.

“How did it go, Your Majesty?”

“I confirmed that she was the person in question, and I also confirmed what I was curious about.”

“What are you referring to…?”

At Dwayne’s question, Logan recalled his last conversation with Louisa.

– What is the name of your organization?

– Cassel. The Cassel Magic Tower.

“Zibric Cassel.”

“Yes?”

“They are the descendants of the Magic Saint. It was definitely them. Huh…”

“Yes?”

“They exist. Those ruthless people.”

The doubts that had accumulated at the end of his previous life. The questions about the masterminds who had created the mountain of corpses were clearly resolved.

The people who had mingled with the Emperor inside the Empire were now fighting each other, so wouldn’t it be a rather pleasing change among the variables he had created by regressing?

So, another concern arose.

“Should I tell the Imperial Family about this, or not?”

If, contrary to the Princess’s words, the entire Dongwang Estate was related to the Cassel Magic Tower, then simply informing the Imperial Family of this would bring considerable benefits to the kingdom.

Wouldn’t one of the powerful families clash with the Imperial Family of the Empire?

But what if the Princess’s words were true?

The internal strife would be concluded at a level where the Dongwang Estate would receive some punishment, and the Black Serpents would hide again.

‘A group of mages hostile to the Empire, whose numbers are unknown, would turn completely into enemies.’

It was an adventure that could not be easily chosen.

“What to do…”

He had a strong feeling that the choice he had to make from now on would have a significant impact on the future.

And.

‘Why did she ask about the Temple?’

Louisa’s last question also bothered him quite a bit.

As the night deepened, Logan’s worries only deepened. He knew this conversation was just the beginning of a dangerous game.