Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 457

“Hey, be careful. You’ll bump into something.”

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

The reception room used by the Luswena delegation.

The palace servants, with aprons and bonnets securely fastened, were busily tidying up the reception room. Shattered teacups, a carpet stained with blood, and scattered ornaments. The reception room was a mess, as if a storm had swept through it.

“They left in a hurry, but is it really this bad?”

“I know, right? What did they even take? All their clothes and everything are still here.”

“Move King Eriphony’s belongings to the exhibition hall as carefully as possible. They only took the golden arrow, so the rest will be kept by the Imperial Family and delivered later.”

“Understood. We’ll need a box for this.”

“Take it from over here!”

Not far away, their lord was attending a meeting. The sight of cleaning up the palace was not something the imperial staff should see. It was important to finish the work as quickly as possible.

The head servant waved a thin stick around, directing the servants’ movements. It wasn’t just magicians who could perform magic. Like them, small movements gathered together could transform a space in an instant. Wasn’t that also a kind of magic?

“Head Servant.”

Knock knock.

At that moment, a servant knocked on the open door to announce his presence. He was the man in charge of the meeting room. He quickly approached the head servant and reported the situation inside. The head servant scratched his hooked nose, surprised by the message.

“The Vergos reception room too?”

“Yes. Please clean it up as well.”

It seemed that the Vergos delegation was also about to have their status revoked, so they were asked to clear out their reception room as well. What on earth was going on in the negotiations that the heads of two major kingdoms were being removed?

The head servant was full of questions, but he made an effort to remain silent and simply nodded. Curiosity in the imperial palace was a way to shorten one’s life. He had to restrain himself. That was the secret to how he had survived in the palace until he became an old man with white hair.

The head servant took a few of his subordinates and strode towards the opposite side of the corridor, not far away.

Squeak!

Thud!

Compared to the messy Luswena reception room, everything in the Vergos reception room was neat and tidy.

“First, move all the Vergos items to the exhibition hall.”

“Yes, Head Servant.”

“Open the windows right now, dust, sweep, and wipe! His Highness is nearby, so if we dawdle, we’ll surely show him an unclean sight!”

Tap tap!

While the servants rushed to open the windows, the head servant opened the door to a small annex inside the reception room.

Items were stacked neatly. Most of them seemed to be personal belongings of the Vergos delegation, but some were covered with white cloths.

“Hmm?”

Swish.

With a light tug of his fingertips, the white cloth slid down effortlessly. The head servant gathered the cloth and tucked it into his waist, then examined the Vergos items. Expensive boxes containing valuables and ornaments. And a few paintings.

“Head Servant. Should we move these too?”

“Yes. All to the exhibition hall.”

Having passed through the main gate without incident, these were clearly the tributes that Vergos intended to offer to Bariel.

At the head servant’s nod, the servants carefully began to carry the items, and soon they faced a huge painting.

“Oh, this is too big. We’ll need to call more people. At least seven more, I think.”

“Alright. Go and call those who are strong.”

“Yes, Head Servant.”

The head servant stepped back and scanned the Vergos painting. It was like standing in the middle of a prairie. In the distance, a round hill stretched out, and a path led through reddish-brown trees. The sky was a dusky dawn. A huge full moon, as if about to fall to the ground, hung near the ridge.

‘It’s well-drawn, but who painted it? It’s a bit rough for the style of the Vergos court painters.’

The head servant shrugged his shoulders when he heard something break behind him. One of the servants had accidentally fallen.

“Hey! Can’t you be more careful?”

“I-I’m sorry! I’m sorry!”

“Everything here, down to the last petal, belongs to His Highness the Crown Prince.”

These youngsters these days! They have no sense of caution! As the head servant pursed his lips, strong men rushed in from outside to move the painting.

“It’s bigger than I thought. We’ll move it.”

“Okay, okay. Be careful-”

Be careful while moving it, the head servant was about to say, when she realized that something about the painting was off.

Was the moon really that close to the ridge? And more importantly, what were those small dots beyond the ridge? As the head servant tried to get a closer look, the strong men asked.

“Should we not move it?”

“Huh? No, no, it’s fine. We should move it.”

“Then please step back a little. We’ll cover it with the cloth again. It would be a disaster if it got damaged while moving it.”

“Alright. Ahem.”

The painting was covered again with the white cloth. The head servant put her arms on her waist and watched their backs for a long time. It was as if the painting had changed in a fleeting moment.

‘Am I imagining things?’

The head servant couldn’t shake off the uneasy feeling while directing the scene. Then, she suddenly noticed a familiar figure passing by in the distance. A person with unusual orange eyes.

“Commander Acorella!”

“Me?”

“Yes, yes. Hello.”

“What’s the matter?”

Acorella, one of the commanders of the Magic Department!

As the head servant called out and approached, Acorella responded with a nonchalant scratch of his chin. The inside of the meeting room was tense, the Magic Department was gloomy, and he, as the person in charge of the Siltham potion, was having a terrible time.

“I’m busy and need to go back in soon.”

“Ah, it’s not that, but there’s something I’m concerned about among the tributes brought in from Vergos.”

“If there were any peculiarities, they would have been filtered out at the main gate.”

“I suppose so. But, ah, I don’t know if I’m just getting senile or what. Haha.”

“If you’re getting senile, you should see a doctor, not me, right?”

“Well, the painting is a bit strange. It seems like it moved, or something?”

Then, I’ll be going! Acorella was about to turn away after saying that, but stopped at the head servant’s next words. A painting that moved? This was very familiar.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know either. I turned away for a moment and looked back, and it seemed like the scenery in the painting had changed a little. But it was so quick that I’m not sure…”

Acorella’s eyes moved sharply. A moving painting? Where had he heard that before? It was the passage the Emperor used to hide during the rebellion, wasn’t it?

Rebellion? Rutherford? Vergos? Passage? Words floated in Acorella’s mind according to the flow of consciousness.

“Let’s see it.”

“Huh?”

“Let’s see it. If it’s a painting made with magic stones mixed in, it might not have been filtered out at the main gate. I need to have a taste.”

“Have a taste…?”

“Never mind, lead the way. Where did they move it? The exhibition hall?”

“Yes, yes. This way.”

The head servant turned and guided Acorella, and soon they rushed to the exhibition hall, passing by the busy servants.

* * *

Tap tap!

Meanwhile, Melania turned her gaze out the carriage window. They had been running and running, but all she could see around her were blue ridges.

Were they going a different way than she had come? There was a village not far away, but since getting into Rutherford’s carriage, she hadn’t felt any sign of people.

“What’s wrong?”

“…I think we’ve taken the wrong way.”

Rutherford tied his long hair up in a single twist. It was as if he knew they were almost there.

Melania shrugged, pointing to the empty outside. The sun would be setting soon. It seemed impossible to spend the night in this empty field.

“Wrong way? Not at all. We’re on the right path.”

“There’s only one village I passed by in this area. But since I don’t see it, it’s clear we’ve taken the wrong way.”

“Who said we were heading to a village?”

“…Who said that? Mr. Rutherford. Aren’t we going to Bariel, or rather, the Imperial Palace? If so, we should naturally pass by that village-”

“Shhh.”

Rutherford put his finger to his lips as if to tell her to be quiet. Then, surprisingly, the carriage speed gradually slowed down. Melania noticed a rectangular frame standing in the middle of a distant ridge.

‘What is that?’

A square frame, just standing there, empty. It was out of place, but it was clear that someone had made it artificially. It had the effect of making the flowing clouds, swaying trees, and the long road look like a single painting.

“We’ve arrived just in time. Miss Melania. If there had been a delay in the schedule because of you earlier, it would have been a problem.”

“What is that, exactly…?”

“Is there a place you want to return to?”

Melania turned to look at Rutherford without answering. The low voice that had flowed out for a moment felt like it belonged to someone else. The moon reflected in Rutherford’s eyes.

“…Yes, there is.”

The Haiman mansion where she had spent her entire childhood, the embrace of her phantom family, the glory of the past. All of these were places Melania wanted to return to.

Rutherford nodded as if he understood.

“I also have a place I have longed for for a very long time. That will take me there.”

Squeak.

The carriage came to a complete stop, and Rutherford opened the door himself and stepped out to look at the huge frame on the ground. And soon, his feet moved as if he were bewitched.

Then, his subordinates separated the carriage and the horses, each grabbing a rein and slowly following behind him.

Melania wondered what she should do, looking back and forth.

“If you wish to follow Mr. Rutherford, walk with us.”

At that moment, a man tapped Melania on the shoulder and signaled her to follow. It was Clark, who had been riding in Rutherford’s carriage.

Melania thought. Wouldn’t it be better to go with them and get a share, rather than stay here and guard this place? Clark handed her a dagger and warned her.

“If possible, do not leave the group.”

“L-Leave the group? What are you trying to do now?”

“We will go. To the Imperial Palace.”

“The Imperial Palace?”

As Melania asked in surprise-

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Zzzzzing. Zzzzzing!

Swish!

Rutherford’s magicians placed their palms on the ground and released their magic power.

A strange flow that even ordinary people could feel. The wind blew fiercely, creating waves in the short grass, and the clouds scattered, revealing a huge moon.

The moon slowly and continuously fell as if drawn by magic.

“Ah!”

As the moon tilted as if it were within reach, Melania covered her mouth. Soon, as the moon filled the inside of the square frame, Rutherford fluttered his robe and took the lead.

“Let’s go. To the deepest part of the Imperial Palace.”

“Waaa!”

“Do not forget your respective duties. Tigmore!”

“Yes, Mr. Rutherford.”

“You, take Bania and King Damon.”

“I will keep that in mind.”

“Leon! You, take the treasures of the Imperial Family.”

“Yes. No problem.”

Thump!

Rutherford’s subordinates put their hands on their chests and saluted. Melania soon realized that it was a form of etiquette used in the Imperial Palace.

“And I… will greet Ian.”

Rutherford said that and walked into the moon. Soon, his back disappeared into the bright light. His subordinates jumped in without hesitation, and finally, only Melania and Clark remained.

“Wait!”

“……”

“How do we get back?”

“Until the moment dawn breaks. The door will remain open. You just need not get lost in the Imperial Palace. Take the treasures, Miss.”

That would flow into Vergos and become a force in the war against Bariel, and it would also help the young lady’s survival. Clark left only a brief piece of advice and hurried away, and Melania was left in a difficult situation, looking straight ahead.

But, soon-

Rip!

Swish!

She cut off the hem of her long skirt with the dagger Clark had given her and jumped towards the moon with all her might.