Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 328

Ian’s gaze was truly peculiar. It was as if he had realized something, yet at the same time, he seemed to be lamenting.

The mage, having caught on to his thoughts, added further. His superior clearly needed to know. How amazing it was for someone of the boy’s age to rise to a ministerial position. In addition, what the limits of ordinary mages were.

“…We did our best, Sir Ian.”

It was embarrassing to say they had done their best, considering they had only performed a basic binding spell with three people, but what could they do?

In fact, they had used most of their power from the portal magic they used at the start. Interfering with the flow of time and space was a magic close to an eternal curse, so it was self-evident that its difficulty was considerable.

“Yes. My thinking was insufficient.”

“No, sir. If you say that, we’ll be even more ashamed. Anyway, you said it was urgent, so it must be a big deal. How much magic power do you have left, Sir Ian?”

The previous ‘Myriad Leaves’ [a powerful magic spell] was clearly different from before. It wasn’t just about summoning the World Tree, but also about making the earth rise, split, and then fill back in.

“I’ll gather what little power I have left and give it to you first. How about you go up first, even if it’s alone?”

At the mage’s suggestion, Ian slightly turned his head. Prince Noah and May were discussing something, and in the distance, there were a bunch of half-destroyed carriages, and in the corner, Philic was tied up and lying face down.

Was that all? If they walked a little further, it was the Clifford territory. If the prince’s party was delayed, people would surely come, but would the mages be able to respond properly then?

“What? Are we not going home!?”

“Be quiet and move this.”

“What about food? It’s a barren field, there’s not even any grass to eat!”

“Be quiet, you’re being annoying.”

“Don’t even think about stealing my lunch box. Well, you don’t have any molars, so you wouldn’t be able to eat it even if I gave it to you.”

“Whose fault is that? Die!”

“Ugh!? Crazy, are you really swinging that?”

…Berik was like that, and above all, Barsabe, who was from Jayrut’s side, was included. There were still matters to conclude with Prince Noah, so it would be better to send a messenger bird first.

“Captain of the guard, please get me a messenger bird. I’ll send it to the imperial palace. And I think everyone will be able to recover in about half a day. What do you think?”

“Yes. I think we can manage that much.”

“Ian! When the doctors come, let’s have them bring food too!”

Squeak.

Meanwhile, while Ian was organizing the scene, Noah and May put their heads together and sought a solution.

Having been caught harboring ulterior motives behind the alliance, wasn’t it time to humbly accept the consequences? If things went to the worst, it would mean war, and that would mean the annihilation of Clifford.

May bit her lip, blaming herself for the past.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness.”

“What are you sorry for? I made the decision. There’s nothing we can do about what’s already happened. Anyway, judging from Sir Ian’s attitude just now, it seems like there’s something else going on, right?”

“Yes. He seemed particularly surprised when he heard there was no payment.”

Prince Noah frowned and pondered. Since the other party was demanding a jewel, he thought there was definitely some political maneuvering involved. The basis for his judgment that it was the imperial palace was the mage Philic, who was lying there. Therefore, he couldn’t tell Bariel about it.

Judging from Ian’s attitude, it seemed like there was internal strife within the Magic Department.

“A traitor within the Magic Department. And Idgal…”

He realized that Clifford had gotten caught up in a troublesome situation. But there was nothing he could do. Even if he could turn back time, he would have made the same choice.

That’s how important the power to resist mages was for the nation. To be independent, safe, and for the future of a prosperous and strong nation.

“Your Highness. Whatever choice you make, I will be by your side until the end. So, please don’t worry too much.”

May held Noah’s hand tightly, giving him strength. To prevent any harm from coming to Clifford here, Noah had no choice but to take everything upon himself.

The exposed curse of the prisoner and the attempt to oppose Bariel. All of them were the prince’s unilateral problems, choices, and actions.

“May. You don’t have to do that.”

“Your Highness. I’m serious.”

“No. You really don’t have to. Surprisingly, Sir Ian might…”

Noah was about to say that he might show ‘leniency,’ but stopped himself. No matter what, wasn’t that too blatant and insulting a choice of words? Noah cleared his throat for a moment and continued.

“…might give us a chance.”

Knock knock.

At that moment, Ian knocked on the door as if to show off. It was a signal to stop their whispered discussion. May, startled, straightened her posture. Prince Noah just looked at him with an indifferent expression.

Ian adjusted his jacket, sat down, and crossed his legs. Yes, with a look that said, ‘Let’s see you come up with a way to take responsibility for this situation.’

“Sir Ian.”

“Yes, Prince Noah.”

“…First, let me tell you. All my actions in Bariel were my own unilateral decisions, and the King knows nothing about them. So, if there’s a problem, it’s also my problem. I will give everything I can to settle it, so please don’t hold Clifford responsible.”

“That’s not possible. Your Highness, you came here as a delegation from Clifford, didn’t you? Moreover, you are a strong candidate for the next successor, so your intentions can only be interpreted as Clifford’s intentions.”

“The one who attacked was a mage. Then isn’t there also a problem with Sir Ian for not managing his subordinates properly? Knowing the greatness of magic, you should know how much danger that one person’s threat posed to us.”

“But it’s a jewel bestowed by His Majesty. It wasn’t stolen, but handed over to a rogue as payment for a deal, which is the height of disloyalty. And for that, Idgal as payment?”

In the endless conversation, May felt like she was suffocating. No matter how she looked at it, Ian seemed ready to cut Clifford to pieces, so why did the prince think they had a chance?

“I apologize for my mistake. When I meet His Highness the Crown Prince, I will sincerely apologize. I will also pay the appropriate price.”

“An appropriate price, you say. I’m curious.”

“I will add a military agreement to the alliance.”

Secret individuals handed over Idgal to Clifford. And that was with almost no economic gain.

He hadn’t thought about it at the time, but he was able to get a clue from Ian’s reaction. If Idgal was released in large quantities to neighboring countries, Bariel’s military power would take a heavy blow.

“You were trading behind our backs before the alliance, so what are we supposed to believe?”

The difference in power between Bariel and the three countries. In terms of the number of soldiers, they were equal, or perhaps the three countries were slightly more dominant. Nevertheless, the reason why they could reign as a great power, placing the three countries below them, was only one: the existence of solid mages.

“Let’s make a contract magic here.”

“Your Highness!”

Unlike May, who was horrified, Ian only wore a slow smile. He had roughly expected it, but the reaction came faster than he thought. That meant the prince’s sense of responsibility was that heavy.

“If Idgal is distributed in Clifford, it will naturally happen in Burgos and Luswena as well. No, it might have already happened.”

Ian tapped his cheek while resting his chin on his hand. Was this related to King Damon of Burgos being so confident? Idgal was already on the market in the Hawan Kingdom, so it was highly likely that Luswena, which was adjacent to it, had also encountered it.

If the power of the mages was threatened, the alliance with Clifford would certainly become important.

“You said that Your Highness is not the representative of Clifford, so what does it mean to make a contract with you?”

“And you, you’re just a minister of many departments, right? The person I need to see is in the imperial palace, so it seems like it would be a very suitable deal for each other.”

May clasped her hands tightly under the table and prayed. If she could, she would give her life to calm this situation.

Ian pondered for a moment and finally nodded.

“Alright. But there are conditions.”

“That’s essential for a contract. Tell me.”

“First, I will report to the imperial palace. That the whereabouts of the jewel bestowed by His Majesty have become unknown. And second, I want to make a contract with the King of Clifford, including Your Highness.”

“With my father?”

Ian smiled and nodded. Since he kept trying to cut off the tail using his status as a prince, he wanted to make a contract with the king so that he couldn’t do that at all.

“Is there a problem? Instead, I will make sure to explain well so that you won’t be held responsible for the loss of the jewel.”

“…What about Idgal?”

“That will be discussed with the King of Clifford.”

“I want to know the details about the alliance list.”

“Shouldn’t we also discuss that in front of the King?”

Noah sighed inwardly. He wanted to handle it on his own, but Ian wasn’t someone who would easily do that. He was no longer in a position to make suggestions.

The prince finally agreed.

“Then when…”

Just as he was about to ask when it would be good to arrange a meeting.

The guards sounded the water buffalo horn again. It was a sound they had heard in the chaos, so they reflexively flinched. The guards waved a white flag and announced to those around them.

“Cavalry is coming from the Clifford side!”

“They’re waving flags too! They’re from the kingdom! It seems they came to check because the return of the delegation was delayed!”

At the news that soldiers were coming from Clifford, people all ran towards the border. And they waved their hands as hard as they could, letting them know they were here.

“We’re here! Here!”

“The prince is here too! Please do something about the carriages!”

“We were attacked by mages-!”

“Hey, watch your mouth!”

“Um, so! There are mages here too! Be careful!”

The cavalry realized that something was wrong, and one of them immediately turned back the way they came. It was to request reinforcements. Ian, watching that, said to Noah.

“Rather than setting a separate date, it would be better to do it while we’re here. If we run only on horseback instead of carriages, how long will it take to get to the kingdom?”

“If we run without rest, we’ll arrive by midnight.”

“Hmm. Is that so?”

By that time, the mages’ magic power would also be restored. After finishing everything there, they could go straight back to the imperial palace. Ian stood up and gave instructions.

“The guards will temporarily allow the Clifford soldiers to enter, help with the cleanup, and organize this place. We will escort the prince into the kingdom.”

“Ah, yes. Understood.”

“Don’t forget to file a report.”

“The messenger bird is here, Sir Ian!”

“Everyone, hurry.”

Ian wrote a brief explanation of the situation on the table, then tied it to the messenger bird’s leg and sent it flying.

Soon after, Ian’s group, Noah, and May received horses from the cavalry and mounted them. Berik, as if excited, giggled and asked May.

“Hey, are there really a lot of grapes in the grape country?”

“…”

May glared. She didn’t want to admit it, but it was true.

Wasn’t it a country where wine was the main product, and there was at least one grape tree planted in every front yard? May ignored him and pulled on the reins first.

Hee-hee!

“Let’s go! To eat grapes!”

“Shut up! Go drink sewer water-!”

“Let’s go guzzle it!”

Berik ran ahead. Following him were the mages, May, and Noah. The sweet smell of the wind. They had only crossed the border, but it already felt like the air was different.

Ian, touching the Idgal [a valuable jewel] tied to his waist, lowered his body as much as possible. The horses began to run even faster.