Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 324

“Ian isn’t here? But his vacation was canceled, right?”

“A sudden business trip? Where to? When will he be back?”

In front of the tightly closed office, employees from other departments were anxiously pacing. They had stacks of documents in their arms, but there was no one to look at them! The mage gave an apologetic smile and shrugged.

“I’m sorry. It was decided at the urgent morning meeting, so it seems the message didn’t get around. Other departments came and went, though. I don’t know when he’ll be back.”

“This is driving me crazy. Then what about the aide?”

They hoped to get help from the aide, but that was impossible. Romandro, who was passing by, wasn’t a mage but an ordinary person like them.

The employees’ heads slowly turned, following Romandro. He was striding across the lobby with a determined expression, looking as serious as if he were going into battle. The employees sniffled and asked,

“…Why is Romandro acting like that?”

It was out of character.

It was very, very slightly, almost imperceptibly, similar to the way Ian acted whenever he turned the Imperial Palace upside down.

Having seen and heard it up close, he must be unconsciously imitating that behavior. Of course, since the subject was different, the feeling was very different.

“The aide is also on a business trip. If it’s urgent, there’s nothing we can do, but if not, please leave the documents. I’ll make sure to deliver them as soon as Minister Ian returns.”

“Ah, okay. Please do.”

“Take care.”

Screech!

Romandro opened the office door, tugging at his mustache. The atmosphere was chaotic. All the mages who had been working were standing in a corner, and Hale was rummaging through Philic’s desk with a cigarette in his mouth.

Hale, who had been reading through documents, greeted Romandro.

“You’ve arrived.”

“Did you find anything?”

“Well, not yet.”

Not only the personal lockers but also the trash cans at their feet were all overturned and in a mess.

Hale slowly flipped through each piece of paper, checking for anything suspicious. Then, he suddenly realized that everyone in the office was watching him and shrugged.

“Everyone, get back to work. Don’t mind me.”

“How can we not mind you? When you’re acting like that.”

“That’s right. Did, did Philic, do something wrong?”

“That crazy bastard. Whatever he did, he did it big.”

“If you tell us what you’re looking for, we’ll help too.”

Hale only exhaled smoke instead of answering. He had come to their department unannounced and overturned their desks, and now Romandro had joined in. They sensed that something was definitely going wrong.

“Who sits next to Philic?”

“M-me.”

“Did you notice anything suspicious? Like, reports that don’t seem work-related, or that he didn’t get along with others. Or, well, you know. Just use your intuition.”

As Hale shifted from searching to questioning, Romandro picked up the things that had fallen on the floor and slowly examined them. As he said, there didn’t seem to be anything special.

“We all practically live here, so what’s there to get along with or not? He did his work without any problems. If there’s anything unusual, it’s that he separated his office and his residence?”

“What do you mean?”

“Just as I said. Everyone else receives packages here, but Philic always goes through his residence first. It seems like a hassle.”

“Now that you mention it, that’s true. Usually, they bring it after work, or sometimes even take a half-day off.”

It was clear that there was something at his residence. Romandro took out a note with Philic’s personal information from his pocket and read it out.

“343 Restorn Street, Noon Residence, 3rd floor, is that right?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never been there.”

“Isn’t that what you wrote when you joined? Didn’t he move once? I remember. That jerk suddenly took a vacation then, and I had to handle his work.”

It was common for mages’ registered addresses and actual residences to be different. Many lived in the staff dormitory, which was their second home, so they only registered their address there. Even Hale was registered as living in the same house as Nakina and Tommy.

“This is getting complicated.”

He didn’t think they could just go in, but facing it made him feel at a loss. Romandro took out his notebook and tapped the end of his pen.

“Bring Philic’s vacation request form.”

“Yes? Yes, sir!”

“Look here, you, check the date here and pinpoint exactly when he moved. It’s true that he lived at 343 Restorn Street, so we can start our investigation there.”

At Romandro’s instruction, a mage rummaged through the cabinet and took out a stack of papers. It was thicker than he thought, probably because it included half-days off. Hale put out his cigarette and muttered.

“This bastard, he didn’t work and just went out to play……”

Tap tap. A mage who was looking through the papers pointed out a date. It was after the execution of the seven central noble families. It wasn’t as long ago as he thought.

“It seems like we can find him soon. Let’s go out now.”

“Understood. Nakina and Tommy are waiting.”

“That’s it. Philic, you stinky bastard!”

As Romandro raised his fist and stormed out of the office, Hale winked at the mages. It was an order to clean up.

“Hale! Please tell us what Philic did wrong.”

“That’s right. It would be good for us to know too.”

“…Minister Ian will tell you later.”

“Hale!”

Screech!

But Hale didn’t answer and closed the door. When he came outside, Romandro was giving instructions to Nakina and Tommy.

“It’ll take about an hour by carriage, so our goal for today is to find out before sunset……”

“An hour? It only takes ten minutes.”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“Captain Hale! Are we going by carriage?”

Nakina waved at Hale and asked. Romandro’s face suddenly turned blue. He grabbed the carriage as if it were his lifeline and shook his head.

“I, I, I’m going by carriage.”

“Come on. You said our goal was to find out before sunset. We need to save even a little time. Here.”

Ziiing. Ziiing.

Whoosh.

“No! No, I refuse!”

“It’s okay. As long as you don’t struggle, you won’t fall.”

“P-please refrain from saying such things! Please!”

Tommy grabbed Romandro’s hand tightly and released his magic. Romandro shook his head repeatedly, saying that he couldn’t have the same experience as before, not again.

But his resistance was futile as his body floated up.

“Aaaah! Ugh!”

“Everyone else seemed to enjoy it?”

“I’m not Beric!”

Thud!

Whoosh!

With his last cry, Romandro soared into the sky. His scream, close to a shriek, gradually faded away.

Mages who were passing by looked around in confusion, but they couldn’t find the source. They had already disappeared like dots far into the sky.

* * *

“Wahoooo! This is awesome!”

“Beric! Don’t say ‘awesome,’ you’ll actually die!”

“Aaaahahaha!”

Meanwhile, at that time. There were others flying in the sky like Romandro’s group. It was Ian’s group, who had just fallen from the Black Moon.

Their bodies were falling without resistance. It was a landing close to a crash, but Beric was flailing his arms and legs as if he were swimming, enjoying it. The mages shouted, looking at Ian.

“Ian!”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

The portal collapsed as it was destroyed. It was because they had withdrawn the magic that had been concentrated there. They were falling down, down, down with the fragments of the Black Moon.

‘Prince Noah is in the middle of the procession.’

“Ian! Give us instructions!”

“The goal is to stop the carriages! It’s about 3 kilometers to the border!”

“What? What are you guys talking about? Tell me too!”

“Shut up, it’s hard to hear when you’re talking!”

“Iaaaan! I can’t hear!”

The sound of the wind was so loud that there was no way to communicate. They had no choice but to use the power of magic. Beric, who wanted to join in, and a bewildered Barsabe looked at the approaching ground with tension.

“If it’s unavoidable, we will also accept sacrifices!”

“Understood!”

“Selena, Yen, and Demis, take the rear! If we block the front first, there’s a chance of collision, so try to slow them down from the back! Tayla and Kanchi, cut off the middle! Each of you take Beric and Barsabe down!”

“Yes! I’ll take the center right, Kanchi will take the left!”

“I’ll take the lead.”

“Iaaaan! Me! Me!”

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Beric took out his sword and waved it.

The carriages were getting closer, there wasn’t much time left. Tayla, who was holding Beric, relayed the order, and he made a circle with his arm, indicating that he understood. As Ian gestured, the mages descended even faster.

They fell in a smooth trajectory like shooting stars. The coachmen, who were whipping like crazy, looked up at them and turned their heads.

Neigh!

Clatter! Clatter!

“Keep your wits about you and keep running!”

“Increase the speed even more! More!”

The mages moving in the sky were unusual. At Prince Noah’s command, the subordinates even lowered their flags to minimize resistance. The procession was chaotic with the rattling of wheels, the stomping of horses, the commands of the subordinates, and all sorts of noises.

Boom! Thud!

Then, a huge roar came from the rear. Those who were running ahead looked back, but the smoke made it impossible to see.

“W-what is it!”

“There’s a problem at the rear!”

“Your Highness, what should we do?”

Three mages drew concentric circles in the air and attached themselves to the rear. The problem was that they weren’t field workers, so they had never used speed magic while flying.

The three of them combined their strength to create a single central axis, aimed slightly behind the center of the procession, and released their magic.

「Restraint」

The light emitted from the ground. It shot up towards the mages and then accurately landed on the ground.

Boom! Bang! Bang!

Neigh!

“Aaaah!”

“Stop! Wait! This is-!”

The horses that had been running well were blocked by the restraint and tumbled, and the carriages that were hit properly were shattered and fell to the side. Screams were heard, but Noah bit his lip and ordered them to advance.

“Don’t look back and run!”

Whoosh!

Then, something passed over Prince Noah. When he leaned out of the window, he saw it was Beric. He had fallen from the mage and climbed onto the carriage behind. Beric, who was lying flat and looking around, and Noah’s eyes met.

“Huh?! This isn’t the carriage! What if you drop me off at the wrong place!?”

“Damn it!”

“Prince of the Grape Country! Stop the carriage! Ian told me to destroy everything if you don’t!”

He had never said that, but it would happen anyway, so it didn’t matter. Beric shouted, but Noah ignored him and went back into the carriage. He crawled towards the driver’s seat.

“H-huh! W-who are you!”

“This carriage is mine now!”

“Hey, here! Here!”

Clang! Clang!

The guards attacked from the left and right, but Beric nimbly dodged and kicked them. Those who fell from the carriage knocked over the horses that were following right behind.

Thud. Thud.

It was surprisingly fun to swing a sword in a shaking place. There were explosions coming from the side where Barsabe had landed.

What should he do now? The moment Beric turned his body towards Prince Noah, humming a tune, the ground began to shake as if there was an earthquake.

“Ahead! The gatehouse is visible!”

“Pass through! Just go straight through!”

“Keep the speed-!”

Maintain, someone was about to shout, but stopped.

In the distance, wasn’t the ground rising? Thick stems sprouted from the gaps that were splitting left and right.

「Myriad Leaves」

As the boy standing in the air gestured, the stems quickly rushed towards the carriages. As the lush leaves covered them, the coachmen closed their eyes without realizing it.

“Stop.”

And a small voice echoed in their ears.

It was Ian’s voice, conveyed by magic.

“If you stop on your own, you will live, but if you don’t, you will die.”