Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 429

“So, questions are being raised about Ian’s connection to the Imperial family?” Philia’s eyes widened, trying to make sense of what she had just heard. A laugh escaped her lips, a mix of disbelief and absurdity. She was clearly both bewildered and dumbfounded.

Berik watched her, munching on a handful of sugar candies. Judging by her reaction, it seemed the rumors were indeed baseless.

“It’s not true, right?”

“I… I don’t know why such a rumor would even start.”

“Maybe it’s because Ian is too exceptional.”

“But, Ian doesn’t have blue eyes, he has green eyes, and more importantly, he looks just like me! Before I went to the Great Desert for the peace treaty, Derga had Ian’s bloodline tested. I even remember them saying they needed Imperial approval for his registration.”

“Really? That old geezer was well-prepared.”

“Of course. He was very thorough. At first, I hid Ian very well. I said he wasn’t Derga’s child, that they must have heard something wrong.”

“Where’s the blood test result?”

“I think the Cheonryeo tribe in the Great Desert might have it. I should let Nershaln know. They said it only reacts to family members, so if I get tested too, the doubts about our bloodline will disappear.”

“Hmm. No, not really? I don’t think Ian and Lady Philia need to. Your appearances vouch for it. The problem Lord Romandro is worried about…”

Berik mumbled, crunching the melting sugar candy with his tongue.

“…is Lady Philia.”

“Me? Why me?”

“Derga is a noble, so his bloodline is certain, but what if it turns out that Lady Philia’s parents or ancestors were Imperial family members?”

“That’s absurd.”

Philia raised an eyebrow, questioning his sincerity. Though she was practically an orphan, she clearly remembered her parents.

Her parents, who always stroked her soft, white cheeks and sighed with worry. Her parents, who said it was better to live like the wind, unnoticed, if you had nothing, but were sorry for leaving her with golden hair.

Her father, who went out to find food in the dead of winter and never returned, and her mother, who drowned in the melting lake the following spring. Most of Philia’s life had been spent alone since then, but those childhood memories remained vivid in her heart.

“That can’t be true.”

“Okay, then. Lord Romandro said to keep up with your daily routine, but not to be too surprised if something happens.”

Berik finished the remaining candies and stood up.

“The record of that ‘same blood’ thing should be in the Imperial Palace. I’ll go deliver it. Stay warm and well.”

“Wait, can’t I, can’t I come with you?”

“Huh? I just told you to keep up with your daily routine.”

“I miss Ian. For this to happen right after he returned from the battlefield, it seems too cruel for him. I know the Imperial Palace is like that, but… I want to hug Ian like I hugged you, Berik.”

As tears welled up in Philia’s eyes, Berik took a step back with a ‘Ugh’ sound. He quickly looked around, checking if Nershaln was watching.

As far as Berik knew, nothing was more troublesome and powerful than Philia’s tears. They could melt even Nershaln and Ian like sugar. How could he dare to resist?

Berik scratched his head, pacing back and forth.

“Ah, this is not good. Really.”

“We can just go see his face for a moment and come back, Berik.”

“Ian is super busy, you know.”

“It’s okay if I just see him from afar. How can a mother stay still when her son has returned from the brink of death?”

“…If Lord Romandro says anything, I’ll say Lady Philia insisted.”

“Of course. It’s all because I pestered Berik.”

“Get your coat. Let’s go.”

“Thank you.”

*Chu!* Philia quickly kissed Berik on the cheek as a thank you and moved swiftly. Just as she was about to go upstairs…

*Clang!*

“Aaaah! Madam!”

*Thump! Thump! Bang!*

Mini’s scream came from the inner room. Startled, Philia quickly turned around, and Berik instinctively drew his sword and rushed inside. Nershaln and the Cheonryeo tribe members, who were training in the backyard, did the same. Everyone reacted swiftly to Mini’s small scream. This mansion had to be safer than anywhere else.

“What happened? Why!?”

“Berik!”

Philia, who had first grasped the situation inside, turned and blocked Berik’s path. Vivianna’s groans of pain continued to be heard.

“Don’t come in, and, there, the midwife. We need a midwife.”

“…What’s that?”

“The baby is coming, so we need someone to help. There’s an old woman who used to be a midwife next door. Nershaln!”

“Yes, Philia! I’ll go get her!”

“We should also inform Lord Romandro.”

“Wasn’t Berik about to go to the palace? Hurry and go bring Lord Romandro. Quickly!”

Unlike Berik, who stood there in shock, the warriors moved quite smoothly. All the children in the tribe were born this way.

Berik looked back at Philia, urged by the warriors.

“Lady Philia! You said you were going to see Ian?”

“How can I do that when Vivianna is like this? I’ll go with you when Lord Romandro comes and returns to the palace. Berik! Hurry and tell Lord Romandro! As quickly as possible!”

“Ah, ugh, really. What is going on.”

Berik shook his head and ran towards the carriage. The coachman, who had been dozing off peacefully, noticed the commotion inside the mansion and wiped the drool from his mouth.

No sooner had he done so than Berik jumped in. He opened the window on the coachman’s side and shook his collar vigorously.

“Go! A baby is coming!”

“A, a baby?”

“Hurry!”

“Ah, yes, yes. I understand.”

*Neigh!*

*Clatter! Clatter!*

The carriage turned the corner and disappeared quickly, and soon after, the warriors rushed into the mansion carrying an old woman on their backs.

* * *

“I, Ian.”

Romandro reached out to Ian with a slightly trembling hand.

In his hand was Damon’s head. Sticky blood was pouring out endlessly, so it wouldn’t be strange if he died soon.

But Ian shook his head, stopping Romandro from approaching.

“Please don’t come closer.”

“I, Ian. Why? Huh? King Damon is still officially the King of Burgos, and he’s an important hostage in negotiations with the opposing country. More than that, we need him as a witness in the upcoming assembly, but if you make him a bloody mess like that, what are we going to do?”

Something must have gone wrong during the interrogation. Whether intentional or not, Ian’s posture meant he would inevitably be implicated.

The scribes clung tightly to the wall, clutching the documents they had written. Judging by their pale, blue faces and their inability to speak, they must have been greatly shocked.

“Ian. Let’s put that head down for now. Okay? The mages will be down soon, and we can’t show them that. Scribes, calm down for a moment and breathe. I don’t know what, what happened, but-”

“Sir Ian, he, he did it!”

“Wh, what?”

“When King Damon was about to say something, he suddenly got up and attacked him! At the same time, an explosion went off, so, isn’t that Sir Ian using magic?”

The scribes huddled together, shouting as if protesting. Ian just stood there silently, looking around the floor as if searching for something.

“No, don’t you know our Ian? He’s not someone who would act emotionally. It seems like there was some misunderstanding-”

“You weren’t here. How can you be so sure when you didn’t see it? We all saw it!”

“Yes! Sir Ian, th, this will be reported to the Imperial family before it’s recorded. When asked about King Damon’s condition at the assembly, we will tell them what we saw and experienced without embellishment.”

The scribes shouted at Ian, their faces flushed. Then, they tried to back out of the basement.

But Romandro blocked their way. He spoke loudly, so the mages waiting outside could hear.

“Ahem! How can our Minister maintain his dignity if you leave your posts like this? Shouldn’t we share information in detail and clear up any misunderstandings? I’m sorry, scribes, but you cannot leave this place before I understand the situation. The mages outside won’t allow it either!”

“Wh, what…! Ha!”

“Right? Huh? Outside! Can you hear me?”

At that moment, Ian put Damon’s unconscious head on the floor and approached the scribes. They flinched and cowered.

With a calm face, Ian slowly bent down. In the thick smoke, he picked something up.

“…Ian, what is that…”

“Call a healing mage and a doctor.”

“Huuuh!”

It was a piece of tongue. Romandro was horrified and threw himself towards the scribes, who hugged each other, staring at Ian. Their faces were filled with terror, fear, and shock.

“The bleeding will be severe, Lord Romandro.”

“Ah, ah! Th-”

“I didn’t do it.”

*Thud.*

Ian lightly tossed the piece of tongue onto the table and took out a handkerchief. There was an unknown pattern drawn on the back of the tongue. Romandro, who had lived with mages, realized it was similar to a magic circle.

“He had a magic circle hidden. A device that explodes when certain content is mentioned. It’s the same as how I reacted to the Idgal pendant.”

“Wh, what? So, this is Damon’s tongue?”

“Isn’t it better to give up flesh than bone?”

It was a split second. The moment Damon was about to answer Ian’s question, a strange magical power was felt.

Ian reflexively grabbed Damon’s face to break the explosion, and instead of his entire head flying off, Damon was able to save his life at the cost of a part of his tongue.

Ian looked down at Damon’s shoulder, which was twitching on the floor.

“Wh, what question did you ask that caused that? If there’s magic involved, it means a mage is connected.”

“Everyone is by Rutherford’s side.”

The fact that the illegitimate child Ian was only bound by a contract magic and left meant that the power of a mage was not immediately needed at that time. In other words, there were mages under his command who could be used immediately. If they were there then, there was no reason why they wouldn’t be there now.

“So, what question did you ask?”

“…King Damon said before that Rutherford is someone who communicates with the gods and adjusts the world. So, I was curious.”

What exactly did he do and how did he do it that made King Damon say that about Rutherford?

Damon was arrogant, haughty, and a descendant of the royal family to the bone. Moreover, he was not someone living a second life. For such a person to say that about Rutherford, it was only natural to be curious.

“Those who are generally associated with gods possess mysterious powers, so I asked if Rutherford was a mage. He answered well that he wasn’t.”

“He, he answered well? Then why did he end up like that?”

“He seemed to ponder for quite a while about whether he ‘was a mage’.”

Romandro frowned at Ian’s words. He couldn’t understand what it meant at all.

“Although it wasn’t in King Damon’s voice, I think I heard the answer clearly. Rutherford is someone who ‘was a mage’.”