Emperor of Steel [EN]: Chapter 81

6. Fake Son and Fake Father

1

Upon returning to his territory, Luke dedicated himself to crafting the core engine and essential components for the Gigant he intended to pilot personally.

Of course, this didn’t mean he ignored the news from Nemesis.

“The Emperor massacred the noble faction’s council members at the Imperial Council?”

At Luke’s question, Belpar nodded, relaying the information delivered by the messenger spirits.

“Yes, and furthermore, he has mobilized the Central Army to blockade the Imperial Capital, capturing and killing not only the noble faction and their families but also their retainers and employees.”

‘He’s truly lost his mind. I can understand the retainers, but what crime did the employees commit to warrant being killed?’

According to the messenger spirits’ investigation, the number of people massacred in the Imperial Capital on the first day alone exceeded 5,000. The blood flowing from the guillotine stained the central square of the Imperial Capital crimson.

Consequently, the terrified citizens of the Imperial Capital were avoiding going out, fearing they might be labeled as rebels and executed.

“What about Marquis Myers and Duke Butler?”

“They were at the Imperial Council but escaped before the Emperor arrived, and their current whereabouts are unknown.”

“Hmm, it would be problematic if those two died.”

They need to remain alive for the noble faction to unite. Otherwise, the noble faction would collapse from the outset and be defeated piecemeal by the Emperor’s faction.

“They are cunning individuals, so they must have found a way to escape the Imperial Capital.”

As Belpar finished speaking, he suddenly vanished. A presence was felt outside the door.

Knock knock.

“Come in.”

At Luke’s invitation, a young mage entered the office.

“What is it?”

“A magical communication has arrived from the Albeville territory of the Holy Arternia Empire.”

“From Albeville? I told you not to use magical communication if possible due to the risk of interception, didn’t I?”

Luke’s voice rose slightly, revealing his annoyance, and the communication mage replied with a troubled expression.

“That’s… I did say that, but Lord Dixon’s expression seemed very urgent.”

“Is that so?”

What on earth could have happened that Dixon would resort to sending a magical communication?

Intrigued, Luke hurried to the magical communication room in the lord’s manor.

As he arrived and appeared on the magical communication device, Dixon shouted in a panic.

– Lord, it’s a disaster! Albeville’s lord’s castle is under attack!

“What?”

Luke couldn’t comprehend why Albeville’s lord’s castle would suddenly be attacked.

The rebels within the Holy Empire had been completely eradicated.

And if the lord’s castle was under attack, it would be a very urgent situation, and there would have been signs beforehand, so he couldn’t understand why no report had been made until now.

“Dixon! Don’t panic and explain in detail!”

– Yes, yes!

Having regained his composure at Luke’s command, Dixon began to explain the situation in detail.

The trouble began three days ago.

A shabby, middle-aged man wearing worn-out armor arrived at the lord’s manor.

When asked to identify himself by the gatekeeper, he claimed to be the lord’s father and demanded to meet his son immediately.

“That crazy bastard! Lord Luke’s father passed away a long time ago!”

Upon receiving the report, Dixon was furious and ordered the imposter to be driven away immediately.

However, the problem was that the imposter, who looked like a wandering mercenary, possessed incredible swordsmanship skills.

The gatekeepers and soldiers who tried to drive him away were thoroughly defeated, and even the Red Wolf Knights, who rushed in after receiving an urgent request for support, were overwhelmed and pushed back, unable to subdue him.

– In the end, we managed to force him out of the lord’s castle by deploying a Gigant. But the problem is that one Gigant was stolen in the process.

“What! A Gigant was stolen?”

– Yes, and the mercenary who stole the Gigant attacked again this morning, and now the lord’s castle gate is about to be breached.

After hearing the report, Luke wore an incredulous expression.

The Red Wolf Knights were formed by selecting only expert-level mercenaries from those Luke recruited when he went to the Holy Arternia Empire to bring Reina.

And that wasn’t all.

Luke even taught them the Silver Sword [a specific swordsmanship style] to make them an elite force comparable to the Rakan Knights or the Silver Knights.

For the Red Wolf Knights to be toyed with by a single person!

Moreover, a Gigant was stolen. Judging by the fact that the lord’s castle was about to fall, it seemed that the Gigant unit of Albeville was almost annihilated.

“What the hell is that guy’s identity?”

– Th, that, I don’t know either…

That was all Dixon could answer.

Suddenly, there was a thumping sound from outside, and then, with a cracking sound, someone burst into the magical communication room.

– Wh, who is it? Subdue that guy… Keuk!

Dixon pointed and shouted, but it was he who was subdued instead.

– Where do you think you’re pointing, pointing!

A strange man’s voice was heard, followed by the sound of a one-sided beating through the magical communication device.

Thwack! Thwack thwack!

– Tsk tsk, you’re so weak. How can you protect the territory like this?

A middle-aged man in mercenary attire, who had taken control of the magical communication room in an instant with a single wooden club, appeared on the other side of the communication device, clicking his tongue.

Luke didn’t know, but he was Rick.

He had saved Erewin, who was dying in the prairie, and escorted her to Bless. He had come to Albeville to find his son, who had become a lord after achieving great feats.

And that was how this commotion had started.

He carefully examined Luke’s face, who was looking at him in bewilderment, and spoke.

– Hmm, are you the lord here?

“That’s right. Who are you? How dare you attack my territory!”

Luke shouted in an angry voice, but Rick didn’t flinch and instead burst into hearty laughter.

– Who am I? Hahaha! I am your father!

At Rick’s words, Luke was so dumbfounded that he wore a blank expression.

He had heard that he was a con man, but he never expected him to be so brazen as to commit fraud even when facing the person himself.

Luke frowned and raised his voice.

“What nonsense are you spouting? I have never had a father like you!”

– Oh, why are you being so cold? You’ve been telling everyone about it.

“Absolutely not! I have never…”

Luke’s mouth closed mid-shout.

Because a thought flashed through his mind.

“N, no way. Are you Bellic the Thunderbolt?”

– Hahahahaha! That’s right. I am Bellic!

Surprisingly, Rick’s real name was Bellic.

He was the last vice-commander of the Royal Guard of the fallen Volga Kingdom.

After laughing loudly for a while, Bellic put on a serious expression and coldly snapped.

– But, who are you, impersonating my son?

After the fall of the Volga Kingdom, Bellic, who had been wandering the world, heard rumors that Baron Leff, the mercenary king who had appeared like a comet in the civil war of the Holy Arternia Empire, was his son.

Since his son, who had died in the chaos of the revolution, could not possibly have come back to life, it was clear that this was an impersonation.

‘How dare he impersonate my son and sell my name? I need to see what kind of bastard he is.’

That was how he had set out to catch the impersonator, which led to today’s disturbance.

– You were lucky. If you were here, your head might have been cut off right away.

At Bellic’s murderous voice, which could be heard through the magical communication device, Luke smiled and replied.

“I apologize for impersonating your son, Lord Bellic. But there was a reason for it.”

– A reason? Is it a reason I can accept?

“Of course. I will tell you the reason soon. So please wait a moment.”

No sooner had he finished speaking than Luke’s figure disappeared.

Bellic wore a sullen expression when he could no longer see Luke on the communication device.

“Wait? Is he trying to play tricks, or is he trying to run away?”

As he grumbled inwardly, he suddenly threw the wooden club he was holding.

The wooden club, which flew in a magnificent arc, landed deep in front of Dixon’s feet, who was trying to sneak out of the magical communication room.

Thud!

“Hiiiik!”

To plant a piece of wood into a marble floor, his strength was truly incredible.

If he had been hit by that, Dixon’s body would have burst like tofu hit by a fist.

“Hey, Lord’s Deputy.”

“Yes, yessir!”

At Bellic’s call, Dixon ran to him without realizing it.

“I’m very hungry, having been rampaging since morning. Tell those guys who are watching from outside to bring me something to eat.”

“Y, you mean a meal?”

“Yes, even a half-eaten piece of bread is fine, but as quickly as possible. I have a habit of becoming violent when I’m hungry, so tell them to be aware.”

“Understood. I will bring it to you soon.”

Dixon approached the broken door and gestured to the Red Wolf Knights who had rushed to rescue him to quickly bring food.

They had already heard the conversation with Luke a little while ago, so they couldn’t just ignore the monster in front of them.

2

Luke immediately teleported to the lord’s manor in Lamer City.

When Luke appeared in the office, Pavel, who was in the middle of his duties, was startled and stood up from his seat.

“My lord, what brings you here so suddenly…?”

“I’ll explain later. For now, you need to come with me.”

“Yes? Where are we going…”

Before he could even finish asking, Luke activated the teleportation magic again.

The time it took for him to go to Lamer and bring Pavel was about three minutes.

In the meantime, Bellic, who could be seen through the crystal ball, was munching on jerky that the Red Wolf Knights had brought.

– What? Did you come back? I thought you had cowardly run away… Huh!

Bellic’s eyes widened when he saw the old man next to Luke.

He was a very familiar figure.

“Y, you are…?”

It was Pavel who recognized the other party before Bellic did.

His hair had turned gray, and wrinkles had formed on his face, but his impression was so strong that he couldn’t be mistaken.

“Is that not Baron Bellic! It seems you are alive as well!”

At Pavel’s welcoming voice, Bellic also became emotional and shouted.

– Chief Aide Pavel, are you still alive?

“Hahaha! Of course, I’m not dead. Even if I die, I must see the Princess get married…”

– Wait, Chief Aide. Did you just say Princess?

Bellic asked in surprise.

“Yes. The Princess has grown up wonderfully and is now a saint…”

“Wait, Lord Pavel! There is a risk of interception, so it’s best not to say anything more about that.”

Agreeing with Luke’s point, Pavel stopped talking there.

Then, Bellic, who had become frustrated, began to jump up and down.

– Chief Aide! Why are you stopping mid-sentence? And you, you bastard! How dare you threaten Chief Aide Pavel. When I meet you, I’ll smash you to pieces…!

As Bellic became agitated, Pavel stepped in to stop him.

“Lord Bellic, you must never be rude to this person.”

– Why not?

“Because this person is the Princess’s lover.”

– Wh, what?!?

Bellic’s mouth hung open, unable to close, as if he couldn’t believe it.

Luke looked at Bellic and said boastfully.

“Hehehe! Now, do you have any idea how I could have impersonated your son?”

– Ugh, what kind of goblin trick is this…

Bellic shook his head with an expression that showed he didn’t understand at all.

“I have something to say to the Lord’s Deputy, so please switch him.”

– …Alright.

At Luke’s request, Bellic spoke in a blunt tone as if he was throwing the words out, then stepped back, and after a while, Dixon reappeared on the communication device.

His eye was bruised and swollen, as if he had been injured in the process of Bellic breaking in.

His appearance was similar to that of a panda, an animal imported from the Southern Continent as a spectacle, so Luke almost burst out laughing.

“Dixon.”

– Yes. Please speak, my lord.

“Is the long-range teleport gate that I ordered you to build completed?”

– Thanks to the mages you sent, my lord, it was completed in time.

The long-range teleport gate.

It was a high-level magic circle that could instantly transport people or goods to a place more than 500 kilometers away.

It was convenient in that it didn’t require continuous use of teleportation magic, but the initial installation cost and maintenance costs were so high, and an 8th-circle mage was required to activate the magic circle.

It was a magic that only the heads of the ten major magic towers could perform, and above all, the operating costs were so expensive that even most kingdoms gave up on installing it.

Currently, only the Baroque Empire and the Holy Arternia Empire possessed it, and they tended to refrain from using it unless it was an extremely urgent matter.

In Luke’s case, he had long-range teleport gates built to connect the Albeville territory, the Jason territory, Lamer City, and the Rakan Marquisate in preparation for emergencies.

For this, the mages of the Katarina Magic Tower and the Dark Moon Magic Tower secretly moved with the blueprints and magic circles that Luke had drawn.

– But surely, you’re not thinking of using that?

“I have to, so I can meet Lord Bellic as soon as possible.”

Dixon was startled by Luke’s nonchalant reply.

“Absolutely not! You, of all people, should know how many mana stones are consumed with each activation!”

When a long-range teleport gate is activated, the mana stones’ lifespan is drastically reduced due to a rapid mana deposition phenomenon.

Over a hundred mid- and high-grade mana stones, used to construct the magic circle, are instantly rendered useless.

Moreover, if the caster’s skill is insufficient and the magic fails, the mana stones are wasted all the same.

From Dixon’s perspective, who equates ‘mana stones = money,’ he wanted to prevent the unnecessary waste of a large sum of money.

However, Luke ignored Dixon’s plea.

“I will activate the magic here, so have everything ready by 6 a.m. tomorrow.”

“My Lord—!”

“If anything goes wrong, I will hold you responsible.”

Though Dixon couldn’t understand his lord’s thoughts from Luke’s stern expression, he had no choice but to nod.

“Ah, I understand. I will do as you command.”

In truth, Luke didn’t care about the loss of mana stones.

He knew how to regenerate mana stones that had become unusable due to mana deposition.

Moreover, the method was not difficult, except for the slight use of human blood and the somewhat tricky construction of the magic circle and incantation.

‘The problem is activating the magic.’

Luke was already an 8th-circle black mage.

Using his demonic energy, he could use high-level white magic, making long-range teleportation magic not difficult.

However, it was his first time using such complex high-level magic since his reincarnation, and he was a bit nervous because it required a considerable amount of demonic energy.

If he made even a small mistake, it would reveal that the source of his power was demonic energy, not mana, and that would cause a big problem.

‘It’ll be fine. I haven’t made a mistake yet.’

Magic was originally one, though divided into black and white due to ideology.

Therefore, theoretically, white magic could be used with demonic energy.

However, the unique properties of mana and demonic energy repelled each other, making it practically impossible.

But the demonic energy that made up Luke’s black circle was highly refined and closer to ether, unlike that of black mages or demons.

He could use white magic sufficiently, and as long as he didn’t openly use black magic in front of people, he wouldn’t be exposed.

This had already been proven in the Holy Empire.

‘Yes, if I don’t trust my own power, who will!’

Luke decided to use white magic with more confidence.

The realm of magic he would face in the future would be vast and limitless.

3

The next day, as soon as it was light, Luke headed to the Katarina Magic Tower, where the long-range teleport gate was located.

Despite the early hour, the area around the gate’s magic circle was bustling with mages from the Katarina Magic Tower.

“Lord, you’ve arrived?”

“It seems everyone is here, even before breakfast. Are you not hungry?”

Mute smiled brightly at Luke’s remark.

“Haha. It’s because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to witness the activation of a teleport gate.”

There were only a few teleport gates in the entire Lodisia continent. Most of them were strictly managed by the imperial magic towers of the two empires.

Naturally, ordinary mages had almost no chance to see them activated.

“And there are those who are making bets. Whether you will succeed or fail, my lord.”

“Oh? Which side did you bet on?”

“Since the day I swore my loyalty, I have decided to trust you, my lord. Not only your actions but also your skills.”

Luke chuckled at Mute’s reply.

“Hmph. Is that so? Then I must live up to that trust.”

Luke approached the long-range teleport gate, which looked like a circular bracelet with a diameter of 20 meters.

The gate was glowing with a soft blue light under the morning sun.

Unlike ordinary magic circles, the long-range teleport gate was constructed using special metals like adamant and gigantium, as well as magical alloys like erzen [a type of magical metal].

Moreover, over a hundred mid- and high-grade mana stones were embedded throughout the magic circle.

‘I can understand Dixon’s feelings a little.’

Even excluding the mana stones, the special metals and magical alloys used to create this gate were enough to make at least ten Gigants [large, humanoid war machines].

If it didn’t show any useful aspects, everyone would surely demand that it be scrapped immediately to make Gigants.

“Well, shall we give it a try?”

Luke placed his hand on a circular figure built on one side of the long-range teleport gate.

As his mana reacted, a series of magical characters emerged from the circular figure.

These magical characters were newly constructed according to the coordinates of Albeville that Luke recited.

After finishing the coordinate settings, Luke began to chant the activation phrase while deploying his mana.

“I, who seek truth from the star shining in the darkness, declare, crossing time and space…”

As 8th-circle demonic energy was slowly injected into the magic circle, the teleport gate’s magic circle began to glow purple.

Whoooosh!

First, the center of the magic circle flashed, and then the surrounding figures and characters, which were arranged along the complex lines of the gate, lit up in a chain reaction.

As the gate seemed to be operating normally, exclamations of admiration burst from the mouths of the mages watching from behind.

“Wow!”

“To think I would see such a sight in my lifetime…!”

“More than that, the fact that it’s operating normally means that the lord has reached the 8th circle?”

“Heh… Amazing! When did he…?”

“Long live the lord!”

Luke looked satisfied with the reactions of Mute and the Katarina Magic Tower mages.

‘Hmm, it seems I haven’t been exposed.’

That the power used to activate the magic circle was demonic energy, not mana.

Looking satisfied, Luke fully activated the long-range teleport gate.

Then, the space in the center began to ripple like waves.

The magic was finally complete.

“Heh. To actually succeed!”

“The lord’s achievements are truly amazing, but to do this just to bring one person…”

When one mage spoke negatively, another mage immediately retorted.

“It’s not just one person. From what I’ve heard, the person we’re bringing is said to have swept through a territory alone. In short, a one-man army.”

“If we can recruit him, our territory’s power will greatly increase.”

“Yes, considering that, the mana stones aren’t that much of a waste.”

As the mages were whispering, Luke entered the coordinates into the communication crystal ball attached to the magic circle and injected mana.

Then, the face of the mage dispatched to the Albeville territory appeared.

“Has the teleport gate there been activated?”

“Yes, my lord.”

The mage on the Albeville side turned the communication device to show that the gate had opened.

Luke nodded, looking satisfied, and gave the order.

“Have Sir Bellic move here immediately.”

“Understood.”

Shortly after, the subspace that had formed in the center of the gate swirled violently like a wave, and a person appeared from within.

A middle-aged mercenary knight with a lot of gray hair.

The one who appeared from the long-range teleport gate was none other than Bellic the Firebolt.

After looking bewildered for a moment, he spotted Luke and approached him.

But there were people who greeted him before Luke.

“Sir Bellic!”

“Oh, it really is Sir Bellic!”

“We thought you were dead, but we’re glad you’re back alive!”

They were the old retainers of the Volga Kingdom, including Pavel.

Luke had used teleportation magic to bring them the previous evening, but even after hearing Pavel’s explanation, they were still skeptical. It was hard to believe.

But now that they saw him with their own eyes, they were all teary-eyed with emotion.

“So you all survived!”

Bellic recognized the old retainers and embraced them.

They were comrades who had fought to the end to protect the royal family against the Republican Revolutionary Army.

But they had eventually been defeated by the Revolutionary Army and scattered, and they hadn’t known each other’s whereabouts for a long time.

“If you were alive, why didn’t you come here sooner?”

“If His Majesty had seen you when he was alive, he would have been very happy…”

At the words of the old retainers, Bellic said with a gloomy expression.

“I suffered severe injuries in the last battle. It took a long time to recover.”

Just as he had barely recovered from his injuries, he heard the tragic news from the Baroque Empire.

That Pyotr II, who had fled into exile, had passed away.

“And around that time, I met a servant of my family, and I belatedly learned that my wife and son had died in the rebellion. For a while, I wandered around aimlessly, not in my right mind.”

“I see.”

The old retainers, thinking about how much Bellic must have suffered, wore solemn expressions.

Luke spoke to Bellic, who was patting the old retainers on the shoulder.

“How does it feel to reunite after 20 years?”

“How does it feel… Of course, I’m happy.”

Bellic turned his gaze to Luke and scanned him carefully.

“The lover of Princess Reina?”

“That’s right.”

“Then it’s only right to show some respect.”

With that, Bellic bent one knee towards Luke.

No, he pretended to bend while drawing his sword like lightning and swinging it.

Clang!

With a sharp noise, a clear spark flew.

Luke, who had hastily drawn his sword, staggered back, and Bellic, who had launched a surprise attack on him, grinned and readjusted his grip on his sword.

“To think you could block that. You’re quite skilled. It doesn’t seem like you tricked the princess into falling for you.”

“Sir Bellic, what is the meaning of this!”

At Pavel’s shocked shout, Bellic replied as if it were nothing.

“What do you mean, what is the meaning? I was testing him, chamberlain.”

“T-Testing?”

Princess Reina was born just before the Volga Kingdom fell.

Bellic, who was the vice-commander of the Royal Knights, had seen her wrapped in swaddling clothes, and she was the person he wanted to meet most now.

Since Pyotr II’s death, she had become the one he should pledge his loyalty to.

Therefore, he couldn’t just let anyone be by Reina’s side.

“I want to see if that guy is suitable as the princess’s lover.”

The old retainers looked dumbfounded at his words.

Pavel, who had greeted Bellic more warmly than anyone else just a moment ago, shouted with a flushed face.

“Stop it right now! Do you know who he is? He is a direct descendant of the hero Rakan!”

“I don’t care about bloodlines! Whether he’s a descendant of a hero or not, if he’s not suitable as the princess’s lover, I’ll just cut him down!”

At Bellic’s shout, befitting his nickname ‘Firebolt,’ Pavel and the other old retainers were sweating profusely, wondering how to stop him.

“I apologize, my lord. He’s always been a bit rough around the edges…”

“It’s alright. I wanted to test him as well.”

Luke waved his hand at Pavel as if to say it was okay, and then he gripped his sword tightly with his right hand.

The sword in his hand now was Iron Feather.

As befitting a masterpiece made by the legendary master craftsman Zig, not a single chip was missing from the blade.

However, the vibrations that were shaking the sword’s body did not subside easily, as the force of the previous surprise attack had been quite strong.

‘He’s strong. Not as strong as Grand Duke Gregory, but definitely not someone to take lightly.’

Sword Master Upper Level? Perhaps even the highest level, he thought.

As Luke remained vigilant, Bellic slowly closed the distance.

“You wanted to test me as well? You seem quite confident.”

“That’s right. But your sword doesn’t seem as confident as you are.”

At Luke’s words, Bellic looked at his sword.

The sword, which was already heavily rusted, was cracked all over as if it would break at any moment.

It had been damaged in the process of clashing with Iron Feather earlier.

“Tch, cheap stuff is no good after all. Hey, you swindler. Lend me a sword.”

At Bellic’s brazen request, Luke, as well as the people watching from the sidelines, couldn’t hide their bewilderment.

Only the Volga old retainers, who knew Bellic’s personality, shook their heads.

“If possible, I’d like one that’s as sleek as the one in your hand…”

“How about we do it with something other than swords?”

“What? Then perhaps?”

“That’s right. Let’s do it with Gigants.”

Gigantic Duel.

When Luke suggested fighting while riding Gigants, Bellic’s eyes widened, and then he grinned.

“You’ll regret it?”

“I don’t want to worry about such things.”

“Heh, I like your boldness. Alright, let’s have a go.”

Bellic readily accepted Luke’s proposal.

Luke was pleased to have such an interesting match.

But the old retainers of the Volga Kingdom couldn’t help but worry, fearing that something might happen.