Emperor of Steel [EN]: Chapter 119

Thud! Thump!

Immediately after a massive explosion and flames swept through the dungeon, pieces of stone fell from the ceiling.

Where the explosion and flames had subsided, a bluish, semi-circular barrier appeared.

It was the shield magic that Luke had manifested.

At the same time as the explosion, Luke cast a shield that covered himself and his subordinates.

Fearing that one wouldn’t be enough, he fully activated his 8th Circle magic, layering over a dozen shields.

Most of the layered shields were shattered by the massive explosion that occurred in the enclosed underground space, but they barely managed to hold.

‘Ugh, whoever made this is truly vicious!’

He wanted to capture and analyze one of the stone dolls if he could.

However, they all self-destructed, so Luke couldn’t achieve his goal.

“Is everyone alright?”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Thanks to Luke’s quick response, there were no casualties.

However, he couldn’t shake off his frown. The situation was more serious than before.

The explosion had completely collapsed the passage to the surface.

To make matters worse, a large crack had formed in the ceiling, and debris continued to fall.

If a chain collapse occurred, they would be buried alive.

‘Could this have been their aim?’

Perhaps the stone dolls’ self-destruction was intended to collapse the dungeon and kill them all.

Whether it was Emperor Rudolf or a third party who orchestrated this, he couldn’t be sure.

‘Hmph, they’ve got some brains, but they can’t stop me.’

Luke tried to use teleportation magic.

He couldn’t use it when entering because he didn’t know the coordinates of the underground prison, but now that he was inside, he could obtain the coordinates, so it was no problem.

However, as Luke was deploying the magic with a sly smile, a look of bewilderment appeared on his face.

The coordinates of the underground ruins were not being read properly.

‘What? Why…?’

Luke, puzzled, soon realized the reason.

There was a unique wave flowing through these underground ruins that blocked teleportation and other movement magic.

It seemed that the ancient fairy mages had done this to prevent unauthorized entry.

‘Then I can’t use teleportation scrolls either. It will take quite a while to analyze the wave…’

Luke, frowning deeply, shouted to his subordinates.

“Everyone, retreat to a safe place for now!”

At his shout, Philip and the subordinates, who had come to their senses, hurriedly retreated towards the underground prison.

However, the underground prison was not a complete solution.

It was sturdily built and unlikely to collapse, but it was also blocked off.

‘Well, it’s a prison, so there’s no way there would be a passage to the outside.’

It was understandable, but it was extremely frustrating.

‘Should I just break through the blocked area with magic? No, if I mess up and it collapses, it will be difficult to hold on with the remaining magic.’

Even if they managed to break through, there was a problem.

Because of the commotion they had caused while entering, the Imperial Army would be waiting outside, heavily surrounding the area.

‘If I run into Rudolf in a weakened state, it’s over. In the end, I have to analyze the wave, even if it takes time…!’

As Luke turned his head with a troubled expression, he saw the stone door he had seen earlier.

It was the stone door on the right side of the underground prison that the dead guard had said wouldn’t open, and as Luke looked at it, his eyes gleamed.

He pointed to the stone door and said,

“Let’s open that door. There might be a passage to the surface.”

He had been bothered by it since he first saw it.

At Luke’s words, his subordinates approached the stone door.

However, no matter how hard they pushed or struck it with aura-infused swords, it didn’t budge.

“This seems to be made of the same material as the stone dolls?”

Philip judged so because it absorbed the aura the moment he struck it with his sword.

Luke, who had examined the stone door, agreed.

Although there were no magic circles or mechanical devices, it was clear that a similar force to the stone dolls was at work.

“But there must be a limit to how much it can absorb. Let’s keep hitting it.”

Luke and his group persistently struck the stone door.

Fortunately, there was progress. After about ten minutes of hitting, the thick stone door shattered with a roar of aura.

Crack!

Luke, who had cast light magic on his and his subordinates’ swords to use as torches, walked inside the stone door, warning his subordinates.

“Everyone, be careful. We don’t know what might jump out from inside.”

Step by step.

As they cautiously looked around and entered, a large underground space appeared after a while.

In the center of the space stood a 3-meter-high stele [an upright stone slab or pillar, often bearing inscriptions]. And around the stele, strangely shaped stone statues were lined up.

The number of statues, which seemed to be kneeling towards the stele, was estimated to be over 100.

“Stone dolls that look like fairies, followed by monster statues… Surely these aren’t going to move too?”

At Count Ferrero’s words, who had suffered from the stone dolls earlier, Philip retorted.

“Surely not. Should we just smash them in advance if you’re worried?”

“No, leave them be. It’ll be a pain if they start rampaging if we touch them.”

The two did not destroy the statues but remained vigilant.

In contrast, Luke was examining the statues and the stele, his eyes sparkling.

‘These are similar to what I saw in the Southern Continent before?’

The forest in the Southern Continent where he had arrived after being caught in a subspace that appeared when he broke Nanas’ trap.

There were similar ruins in the open space in that forest.

Although most of the steles and statues were broken, he had taken them into the subspace of his bracelet, just in case.

‘Are they related?’

Regardless, this underground space had a similar role to Nanas’ trap.

Although a large amount of power wasn’t being drained like before, he could feel the power within his body flowing towards the center of this space.

‘It’s not just my power. It’s drawing power from the outside too.’

Luke looked up at the ceiling.

On the ceiling, which seemed to be as high as a five-story building, was a magic circle he had never seen before.

No, it was questionable whether it could even be called a magic circle.

The shape and structure of the formula were quite different from existing magic circles, and if you looked closely, it seemed similar to the patterns that decorated temples.

Most importantly, this strange magic circle was in operation.

From the center of the magic circle, all kinds of energies, including mana, flowed down.

Like honey dripping from a honeycomb, the streams of power were being sucked into the huge stele standing in the center of the space.

As Luke was watching the flow, Philip approached him with a troubled expression and reported.

“Your Majesty, I’ve searched this place thoroughly, but I can’t see any passage to the outside.”

“It’s alright. Don’t be impatient and wait.”

At Luke’s calm and composed response, Philip and his subordinates were puzzled, but they rested and waited as their king had ordered.

Ferrero looked at them and found it strange.

“It’s amazing. They’re not even frustrated, and they believe they’ll get out of here safely.”

“That’s because our Majesty is that kind of person.”

After thinking for a moment at Philip’s words filled with trust, Ferrero nodded as if he understood.

Luke de Rakan had survived the Gigant rampage incident.

Not only that, but he had also revived a territory that could have collapsed at any moment, and he had repeatedly won battles that seemed impossible to win.

He was a man who had overcome countless obstacles to become king.

It was natural for Philip and the agents who had watched his progress to have expectations in his words.

“And His Majesty is as knowledgeable about magic as any mage. He is also the only 8th Circle Archmage in the Kingdom of Symphonia.”

“Huh, is he that good?”

He knew that Luke was famous as a Rune Knight, but he didn’t know that his magic skills were at the same circle as the masters of the Baroque Imperial Magic Tower.

As Ferrero looked surprised, Philip seized the opportunity to boast about Luke.

“Do you think that’s all? Contrary to rumors, his swordsmanship has already reached the mid-level of Sword Master. Recently, he even defeated five Sword Masters who attacked him together.”

‘Haha, this is just…!’

If Philip’s words were true, Luke was at least a Sword Sage [a master swordsman].

Ferrero realized that King Luke was a more terrifying figure than he had known. He had been hiding his true abilities by at least two levels.

He had used that false information to lower the guard of his enemies.

Among them would be Emperor Rudolf and the Imperial Intelligence Department.

‘Perhaps the biggest enemy of the Baroque Empire is not the Kingdom of Livia, but the Kingdom of Symphonia…’

While Ferrero was thinking that, Luke approached the stele in the center.

Whoooom!

As he got closer to the stele, which had a surface that shone like a mirror, a low hum flowed out along with a purple light.

At the same time, the Black Circle in Luke’s heart accelerated on its own, and the protective charm that Reina had given him also emitted light.

‘This is… a resonance of power!’

He had expected it to some extent when all kinds of energies gathered, but the power contained in the stele was ether [a hypothetical medium believed to fill space and transmit energy].

That’s why Luke’s magic, which was refined to be close to ether, and Reina’s protective charm were reacting.

‘What exactly is this stele? Why does it contain ether?’

Luke carefully placed his hand on the stele.

At that moment, the magic within his body was sucked into the stele.

‘No way!’

Luke’s heart sank, wondering if he would have all his power completely taken away.

However, contrary to his worries, as much magic as had been taken, or even more, new ether rushed into his body.

Surprised by the vast amount of ether, like a tidal wave, Luke hurriedly tried to take his hand off. If an uncontrollable power suddenly entered his body, it could explode.

However, his hand didn’t budge, as if it had become one with the stele.

“Kuh-ahhh!”

“Your Majesty!”

When Luke grabbed the hand attached to the stele and screamed, Philip and the agents were startled and rushed to him.

However, they were bounced back by a purple wall before they could even reach Luke.

“Wh-what? What happened?”

Count Ferrero, bewildered, hurriedly looked around.

The purple light emanating from Luke’s body and the central stele was spreading like a wave throughout the large space.

Along with that, the surroundings shook as if they were about to collapse.

Rumble! Rumble!

However, Luke couldn’t pay attention to the surrounding situation. The massive ether that had rushed into his body was accelerating the Black Circle like crazy.

“Kuh-ahhhhh! Ahhh!”

The acceleration was so fast and fierce that it felt like being swept into a giant whirlwind.

‘Am I… am I going to die like this?’

Luke felt the fear of death from the pain that felt like his whole body was being torn apart.

The moment the pain and fear reached their peak, his body flashed and disappeared from everyone’s sight.

2

A dark space where it was impossible to distinguish left from right, top from bottom.

Luke was floating in a space similar to the Purgatory where the hero Rakan had fallen after a resentful death in the past.

‘But it feels warmer and more nostalgic than Purgatory.’

Not only that, but the pain and fear that had tormented him a moment ago had disappeared as if they were a lie.

Luke looked at the darkness passing by his side and felt slightly uneasy.

‘How long will this scenery last? Surely another 500 years won’t pass…’

He wondered if he had died again and come to Purgatory.

As such fear gripped him, small lights began to twinkle around Luke.

Numerous constellations that occupied the night sky.

A man was standing in a marble plaza located in the center of the constellations.

However, the moment he made eye contact with him, Luke’s body was pulled in.

As he got closer, he could see the man’s appearance in detail.

He wore a robe embroidered with gold thread and held a staff made of gold. Though he looked young, he had a mysterious aura that made it impossible to guess his age.

The man smiled faintly at Luke.

‘It’s been a while since we’ve had a visitor. How long has it been…?’

‘Who are you?’

At Luke’s question, the man paused for a moment before answering.

‘You could say I am one with the mission of a Watcher.’

‘A Watcher?’

‘Yes, it’s my job to always watch. Everything that happens in the world.’

The man simply called himself a Watcher.

Luke was curious about his name, but he felt he shouldn’t ask. He somehow sensed that he shouldn’t dare to do so.

And from the mysterious aura he felt from him, he could roughly guess his identity.

So, Luke asked another question.

‘Do you perhaps know about the ruins I touched?’

‘Of course, I know. It was created long before you were born, to steal the power of time that cannot be grasped.’

‘The power of time?’

While Luke was surprised, the Watcher continued, sounding somewhat regretful.

‘Humans and similar races have always stolen something. They stole fire from the sun’s chariot, wisdom from the fruit of good and evil, and the mystery of life from the spine of a giant. For thousands and millions of years, through countless worlds and countless eras.’

‘……’

‘And finally, they came to this dimensional rift and tried to steal time.’

‘What led them to this point?’

‘Their arrogance, their mistakes, their flaws.’

At those words, Luke could roughly guess.

The ruins under the imperial palace were probably created by the fairy mages of the Magic Empire of Avalon.

They must have tried to obtain the power of time to reverse the world that was losing the power of spirits and declining.

If they could turn back time, they could undo what they had done wrong.

‘Huhu, if only they had thought as naively as you. Then, I might have overlooked it even if they stole a little.’

Luke was startled by the Watcher’s words.

‘Did you read my mind?’

‘Yes, I saw it. Didn’t I say that it’s my job to see everything that happens in the world? Your mind is no exception.’

‘So, this person, no, this being is…’

Luke, certain of the other party’s identity, spoke more politely.

‘Then, why did the fairies of Avalon try to turn back time?’

‘To exterminate humans.’

‘Th, that!’

The Magic Empire of Avalon was destroyed by the humans who were being exploited as slaves by the fairies at the time.

The humans, who had gradually learned the fairies’ knowledge and magic, rose up all at once when the Avalon Empire fell into chaos due to the great disaster at the end of the Magic Civilization era.

So, the fairy mages thought that if they turned back time and exterminated humans, their glory would continue.

Luke didn’t know, but the terrifying disease, Bers, was also a disease created as part of that plan.

‘Yes, what about you?’

‘What do you mean? I just happened to arrive here while looking for a way out of the imperial palace’s underground.’

‘Of course, that’s right. But you also had some expectations in your heart after hearing my story, didn’t you?’

‘That’s… true.’

At the Watcher’s question, Luke nodded as if acknowledging it.

‘If I could turn back time, I might be able to go back to that time 500 years ago and save Katarina…’

The past could not be forgotten, and the desire to turn it back could not be erased.

But such lingering feelings and desires faded when he saw the gold ring on his finger.

If he went back to the past, his relationship with Reina would be erased. Unlike the past, which still had traces, the present would disappear like a bubble.

‘Everything has a cause and effect. And I also know well that if you want to achieve something, you have to pay a price.’

‘Hmm…’

‘If the price of going back to the past is the annihilation of those who are connected to me now and those who have expectations of me, then I will… give up my lingering feelings about the past.’

The thought of Katarina still broke his heart.

But he was not the only one who had suffered such sorrow and pain.

Many people who had to live under an unjust order had suffered such pain, and they were still suffering.

Therefore, he did not want to go against the natural order for the selfish purpose of clearing his lingering feelings.

‘Are you really not going to give up? You’ll regret it?’

‘Of course, I will regret it. But I have already decided to move forward. I cannot achieve my goal by going back.’

The Watcher smiled faintly at Luke’s determined gaze.

‘Good, do as you wish. Considering that you said something admirable, I will give you special help. So that you can go to the future, not the past.’

‘Thank you, Watcher.’

‘Then, let’s go back.’

Thump!

The moment the Watcher struck the floor with the end of his staff, Luke’s figure suddenly disappeared.

Woo-oong!

At the same time as Luke disappeared, another person appeared in the marble plaza.

It was a woman with elven features, a beauty with a voluptuous figure and a warm smile.

She looked at the place where Luke had left and said as if she knew him well.

‘He still doesn’t remember. That he came here 500 years ago.’

‘He didn’t come, he was drawn by the light you showed him.’

The Watcher glared at the woman reproachfully.

Originally, he shouldn’t have given help in that way.

‘What should I do then? He’s pitiful. Are you going to let him wander around the world of nothingness, burning with his wish without accepting death?’

‘Still, breaking the rules is not right.’

‘Hmph, you know the rules so well, why did you help him?’

The Watcher, embarrassed by the woman’s retort, subtly averted his gaze.

500 years ago, when he was called Seimon, Luke had come here. Drawn by the guidance of the woman who was revered as the mother of all things.

At that time, Luke had said to the Watcher.

To give him a chance to live again.

If he did, he would endure any humiliation and shame.

The Watcher had granted Luke’s request. And he erased the memory of coming to this dimensional rift.

‘You’re so mischievous. Of all the many bodies, you chose the descendant of his enemy…’

‘It was that guy who said he would endure any humiliation and shame. Shouldn’t he be able to handle that much?’

That was when the Watcher said that.

With a flash of light, someone stepped into the marble plaza, cutting through the world of nothingness.

‘Oh my, another guest has arrived.’

The Watcher couple turned their heads and saw a female mage wearing a pure white robe.

She was in her late 20s and possessed complex and diverse energies in addition to mana.

She approached the couple and knelt respectfully.

As if she knew their identities.

‘Your foolish daughter greets her great parents.’

‘Hehe, she came here with a purpose.’

The Watcher clicked his tongue.

If Luke from before had accidentally stopped by while looking for a way, this one had come here after searching through the records and ruins left by the mages of Avalon.

In other words, her purpose was to meet them.

‘I believe you know why I came here.’

The Watcher, who was watching everything, was aware of the female mage’s situation.

Therefore, he could understand her earnestness.

‘Please give me the power of time. I will gladly pay any price.’

At the female mage’s request, the Watcher looked at her with a serious gaze that was quite different from before.

‘Are you still willing to do it even if you lose all the power you have as a result? Even if your existence is erased from the world, and you are left to wander forever in purgatory where only darkness and solitude remain?’

‘I am already prepared. It would be better than the world being destroyed.’

The Watcher fell silent for a moment at the female mage’s words.

He knew how serious the situation she was talking about was, and how long it would take to purify and restore the destroyed world.

So, he decided to help her after all.

Even if it broke the rules a little, it was most beneficial for them to solve their own problems.

‘Alright. I will give you the power of time.’

Tap tap!

The Watcher tapped the floor twice with his staff.

Then, a vast circular three-dimensional magic circle began to form above the female mage’s head.

She sensed a tremendous power from the magic circle that seemed capable of turning a continent into dust.

As the power surged as if to overwhelm her, who prided herself on being the strongest mage in the middle world, the female mage tightly gripped the old amulet she was wearing around her neck.

‘Mother, Father… give me strength!’

3

Luke, who had stepped away from the Watcher, fell into a vortex-like passage.

The surrounding scenery spun around dizzyingly, making his eyes spin and his head throb.

But it wasn’t as painful as when he touched the Ether Stele [a stone tablet that can manipulate time].

When he felt somewhat adjusted to the vortex, a series of scenes came into his eyes.

‘That’s… Katarina!’

He saw Katarina, from 500 years ago, when he was doing chores at the Veritas Magic Tower, handing him a handkerchief with a kind smile.

It was his first meeting with her, which he still remembered.

After that scene of memories passed, this time he saw the situation when he had a showdown with the hero Rakan.

Even after seeing it again, the confrontation with the fool Rakan, who had been swayed by the vile enemies, was nothing but unpleasant.

Unfamiliar people and unfamiliar scenes unfolded before Luke, who was slightly frowning.

It was a half-elf beauty wearing a priest’s robe and armed knights.

‘Princess Sophia, where is this place?’

‘Well, it’s a place guided by the goddess Beliz, so I think it’s a land where we can rest.’

‘Princess Sophia? Is she perhaps the last princess of the old Kingdom of Livia?’

They, who were known to have disappeared from the temple, were standing on a vast land.

But the landscape of the land was different from the Rhodisia continent.

It was similar to the southern continent.

Sure enough, after a while, thousands of people from the southern continent came to them, and a young man wearing golden scale armor reached out to the princess’s party on their behalf.

The moment Sophia took his hand, the scenery changed again.

The place was the same as before, but a large hall and a stele had been erected.

And people Luke knew revealed their faces.

It was the third prince, Jo Won-rak, and the Royal Guard General, Je Gal-hwi, whom he had met in the Song Empire.

‘Is this the place where Emperor Jinjong and Empress Dowager Cheonmyeong met 500 years ago?’

‘Yes, Empress Dowager Cheonmyeong is said to be a celestial maiden who came to this land by the will of heaven. The historians who wrote the chronicles would not have recorded vague rumors, so she must have had some extraordinary abilities.’

‘If we could know what kind of extraordinary abilities she had and obtain them…’

‘Yes, it will be much easier to fight against the forces of the second prince.’

Based on the series of videos and the words of the two, it seemed that the Empress Dowager Cheonmyeong was referring to Princess Sophia.

It would be a very interesting thing for scholars who study history to know.

The direct lineage of the old Livia royal family, which had been cut off from the Rhodisia continent, had flowed into the Song Empire royal family of the distant southern continent.

‘Wh, what’s going on?’

‘Your Majesty, what’s wrong?’

‘The guys who infiltrated the underground prison are alive! Moreover, they went into the closed ruins!’

The scenery changed, and Emperor Rudolf and Count Voltaire appeared.

From Rudolf’s furious appearance as he looked at the magic three-dimensional map, Luke could tell that he was the one who had awakened the stone doll from before.

But Luke paid more attention to the process of the video than to that fact.

At first, it showed the past, and then it was showing the present era.

‘Then, is it possible to see the future?’

The future is literally an era that has not yet appeared.

The future can change depending on what happens now.

But there were also people who believed that the future had already been decided.

Most clerics believed that grand destinies were already decided by the will of the gods.

They argued that the fate humans carved out was merely a small embellishment on that grand design.

‘I don’t know if that’s true or not. But…’

Another scene appeared before Luke’s eyes.

Kueeeeh!

Kueooooh!

The ruins of a massive city.

Amidst reddish-black storm clouds and pouring black rain, rotting corpses emitted grotesque moans as they swarmed in a certain direction.

There were thousands… no, tens of thousands, at least.

‘Those are undead. They’re definitely zombies and ghouls, right?’

Leading the zombies and ghouls were high-level undead, presumably liches and death knights.

Luke was shocked when he saw where the undead army was headed.

It was the royal palace of Brenden, where he had been staying since declaring the founding of his kingdom.

Inside the palace, which was burning and collapsing in places, were rusted and broken Gigantes [giant mechanical soldiers], exhausted soldiers, and people who were nothing but skin and bones from starvation.

They shot arrows and threw stones as the undead clung to the palace walls, trying to hold them off.

However, the undead, swarming like black ants, climbed relentlessly over their fallen comrades.

‘There are no more Gigantes that can move. We can’t hold out any longer, so we should evacuate…’

‘Evacuate? Where can we run when the whole world is already filled with death!’

In the main hall of the palace, where the roof had collapsed, old generals were holding a meeting.

Their faces, filled with lament and shouting, were quite familiar.

Luke recognized them instantly.

But he couldn’t accept it. Their miserable appearance and the situation filled with despair.

‘It’s all because of you! If you hadn’t been deceived by that fake’s words… if you had trusted His Majesty more, this wouldn’t have happened!’

‘Who knew that he was a fake?’

‘Ahem, this isn’t the time to fight over the past, is it? We must save the Princess, His Majesty’s only bloodline, at all costs. The strongest… and last magician on the continent is our only hope.’

The generals continued to argue, but Luke couldn’t hear them.

No, he didn’t want to hear them.

A world filled only with despair and destruction as the future.

He didn’t know what had happened, but he couldn’t accept or tolerate it.

‘This can’t be! I absolutely can’t accept this!’

Luke closed his eyes and covered his ears.

Nevertheless, a series of scenes continued to flash in his mind, and hallucinations echoed.

His head felt like it was about to explode from the enormous amount of visual and auditory information pouring in like a storm.

‘Kuaaaah! Stop it! I said stop it!’

With a scream that spread into the void, Luke’s consciousness sank into a distant place.

4

‘Your Majesty! Please come to your senses, Your Majesty!’

‘Kuh…’

Luke opened his heavy eyes at the repeated shouts in his ears.

‘Philip… Sir?’

Philip’s face lit up as Luke regained consciousness.

‘Do you recognize me? What happened to you?’

‘What… do you mean?’

‘You suddenly disappeared before our eyes. And then you reappeared.’

‘Disappeared? Me?’

At Philip’s words, Luke tried to recall his memories.

After touching the ether stele [a stone tablet imbued with magical energy], he couldn’t handle the overwhelming power and collapsed.

And then…

‘What is it? I don’t remember anything.’

He felt like he had gone through a series of events, but he couldn’t remember anything.

Even when he tried to recall something, he only felt a thick darkness as if it had been painted over.

‘What the heck is going on… Keok!’

‘Y-Your Majesty!’

Luke clutched his heart and vomited blood.

The massive amount of ether that had surged into his body when he touched the stele was going berserk. He tried his best to suppress it, but it wasn’t easy.

His whole body was boiling as if it was about to explode.

‘Kuh…!’

Philip and the agents were alarmed by Luke’s half-conscious state.

‘What happened to him?’

Count Ferrero, who had examined Luke, answered one of the agents’ questions.

‘It’s similar to an aura going berserk inside the body. We should show him to a cleric or a doctor first.’

‘But there’s no way out of here, is there?’

Just as everyone was feeling helpless,

Whoooosh!

The purple light that had spread throughout the underground chamber gathered and began to swirl like a vortex.

Then, in an instant, it cut through the air and created a tunnel of light.

‘W-What is this?’

‘I don’t know what it is, but it looks like a passage.’

Count Ferrero reached his hand into the tunnel of light and then boldly jumped in.

‘Oh! Vice-Commander!’

Just as Philip was startled, Ferrero, who had disappeared into the tunnel of light, reappeared.

He exclaimed with a bright expression.

‘I can see a field on the other side! We can get out!’

At Ferrero’s words, Philip and the agents supported Luke and hurriedly entered the tunnel of light.

Whether they could believe it or not, getting out of this place and treating Luke quickly was their priority.

While a series of commotions were taking place in Nemesis,

Shirley, the captain of the Iron Guard, one of the three divisions of the Baroque Imperial Knights, was patrolling near the imperial capital with a few of her subordinates.

This was because her negligence during the last riot suppression had been discovered.

So, for the past few days, she had been performing patrol duties on the outskirts without even being able to enter the imperial capital.

It was practically a demotion.

Moreover, this was the most shameful punishment for an Imperial Knight. An Imperial Knight, who should be protecting the Emperor at close range, had been banished outside the imperial capital.

‘Captain, it seems like there’s a commotion in the imperial capital. Is it okay for us not to go back?’

‘Hmph, why would we? We haven’t received any orders to return.’

Shirley ignored the flames rising in the distance from the imperial capital.

‘Sigh, it seems like that crazy Emperor is massacring civilians again.’

Recently, Shirley had been feeling a deep sense of doubt.

She had been wondering if she should continue to follow the Emperor after his repeated misrule since last year.

‘And the nagging of those old geezer vassals is also tiresome.’

Shirley was born as the illegitimate daughter of the Kyle family.

However, she was not treated properly because she was a half-dwarf. Even though she had outstanding skills as a Spear Master.

Rather, the vassals, seeing that she was a threat to the position of the previous family head, used all sorts of tricks to keep her in check.

Then, when the previous family head, a Sword Master, died in battle with the Volga Republic and the family declined, the vassals completely changed their attitude and bowed to Shirley.

It was not for the sake of the family, but for their own advancement.

‘Ugh, should I just quit everything and leave?’

Just as Shirley was thinking this, the ground suddenly shook as if there had been an earthquake.

Kugugugung!

‘Kyaa! What’s going on?’

However, the horses they were riding were even more surprised than Shirley and her subordinates.

Just as they managed to calm the horses that were wildly agitated, the space in front of the field distorted, and a tunnel of light appeared.

While Shirley’s group was staring with wide eyes, a group of people emerged from it.

About a dozen men were supporting a blonde youth who seemed to be unconscious.

Shirley’s group, who had been momentarily stunned, surrounded them as soon as the tunnel of light disappeared.

‘Who are you?!’

‘Drop your weapons and raise your hands!’

The use of space-movement magic was prohibited within a 10-kilometer radius of the imperial capital.

This was to prevent magical forces of enemies or rebels from launching surprise attacks, and for this purpose, magic circles that interfered with space-movement magic or scrambled coordinates were installed throughout the imperial capital.

After the civil war broke out, such measures were further strengthened.

Nevertheless, the fact that several people had moved through space meant that the mage’s circle was quite high.

‘Everyone be careful. There might be a great mage among them… Huh? Uncle Ferrero?’

Shirley, who was warning her subordinates, widened her eyes when she spotted a familiar bearded man among the suspicious people.

Count Ferrero also recognized her and greeted her.

‘Huh, what are you doing here?’

‘Well, that’s… You tell me first! Shouldn’t you be in the underground prison right now?’

She had heard that Ferrero had gone to the Emperor to ask him to withdraw the riot suppression order and had been imprisoned in the underground prison.

What was the man, who should be playing with rats and cockroaches, doing here?

‘Uncle, by any chance… did you escape?’

Ferrero gave a bitter smile at Shirley’s question.

‘I’d appreciate it if you could pretend you didn’t see me.’

Ferrero was aware of Shirley’s skills. If Philip stepped forward, he would be able to subdue her.

However, with Luke unconscious and fighting not far from the imperial capital was a foolish choice.

If a commotion broke out, they would be chased immediately. So, he was asking for a favor based on their past friendship.

However, before Shirley could answer, the Iron Guard knights stepped forward.

‘Sir, you can’t do this.’

‘That’s right. Escaping is a serious crime. It’s not too late to go back with us and turn yourself in.’

They fearlessly pointed their swords at Count Ferrero, who was once their superior.

‘Haa, I have no choice.’

Just as Ferrero, frowning, reached for his sword hilt,

Shirley, who had been lagging behind, suddenly swung her spear at her subordinates.

Thwack! Thwack thwack!

The Iron Guard knights fell from their horses in an instant.

They had not expected their captain to attack them, so they could not even counterattack or run away, and they fainted with one blow.

Shirley, having subdued all her subordinates, stuck out her tongue slightly at Ferrero, who was looking at her with surprised eyes.

‘Hehe, it’s hard to pretend I didn’t see you, so I’ll go with you, Uncle.’

‘You’ll go with me?’

‘Yes, I’m going to desert too.’

Count Ferrero looked dumbfounded at Shirley’s childish answer.

However, the decisive reason for her decision to desert was his appearance, which was battered from torture.

Even the small amount of affection she had left for the Emperor, who carelessly abandoned even his loyal subjects, had completely disappeared.

‘But who are the people behind you?’

‘They are special forces from Symphonia who came to rescue me.’

Ferrero did not reveal the identities of Luke and Philip. He planned to give a detailed explanation in a safe place.

‘Symphonia Kingdom special forces? Could it be that the commotion in the imperial capital is because of…?’

‘Yes, it’s a diversionary tactic to rescue me, and it seems to have worked quite well.’

‘Wow, the Central Army and the Imperial Knights must be in chaos right now.’

While the two were chatting, Philip, who had been checking on Luke’s condition, said.

‘Let’s talk later and move quickly. His condition seems to be getting worse than before.’

‘I was about to move soon anyway. It’ll be a headache if we run into the Imperial Army while loitering around here.’

The group divided and rode on the fallen Iron Guard’s horses.

And they headed towards the southern rendezvous point where they were supposed to meet with Squads 2 and 3.