Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 474

A terrible imbalance.

Rutherford frowned involuntarily at the strange discomfort that washed over him.

For hundreds of years, nearly a thousand, he had parasitized and existed in various bodies. Even when his soul had weathered and the name ‘Bandor’ had faded, this sensation he felt in the abyss was etched into his mind, never to be erased.

What should one call an existence where everything disappears, leaving only a hateful sensation? Rutherford, defeated by the despair, fear, and helplessness that the abyss was becoming him, wept for a long time.

For a long, long time.

“Lord Rutherford, are you alright?”

“Th-this is a rift?”

“Good heavens, what exactly is the abyss…?”

“Don’t stray too far! You must not be separated from Lord Rutherford! Everyone, stand firm and gather together!”

“Some of the corpses have come over with us!”

“Let them drift away. Only the living will follow Lord Rutherford. The dead will fulfill their roles beyond death. This way, quickly!”

“Damn it, where did all the treasure go?”

“Huh? Wh-what is that? Something is approaching!”

“Fall back! Fall back!”

Rutherford, who had been lost in thought, slowly opened his eyes. It was the sea of the abyss. Ian, that bastard, had managed to pinpoint the coordinates even with his dying body.

Rutherford turned to look at his subordinate being dragged into a hallucination.

“Uwaaaah!”

To those who had stepped back, it was a faint image, but to the one experiencing it, it must have been a vivid hell unfolding before his eyes.

Perhaps startled by the sight of him writhing in agony and begging to be killed, the subordinates backed away from Rutherford and huddled together.

“Wh-what is that?”

“The hell that exists within each of you. The sea of the abyss is where those hells gather and sink.”

“Th-then how…?”

“Leave them be. At most, they’ll go mad, but they won’t die. More importantly, how many mages are left?”

“Including me, there are about five left.”

“And the usable mana?”

“The mana consumption in the imperial palace was severe, so it’s almost depleted.”

“Hmm.”

Rutherford brushed back his hair and pondered.

They were now in the abyss below the rift. Since they hadn’t fallen through forbidden magic, escaping wasn’t impossible. Just like Bandor had done in the past.

‘But, if that happens, there’s a problem.’

That was the possibility of losing Rutherford’s body.

Bandor, who had escaped the rift, had entered the body of a stranger and was trapped in an eternal cycle of death. There was no guarantee that it wouldn’t happen again this time.

After countless reincarnations, the gears of fate, which had always been misaligned, had finally clicked into place. If he lost this moment, this body, and faced death again to awaken in another timeline, he might not be able to endure it.

“Lord Rutherford. How did you do it back then?”

“Yes, please tell us. How to get out of here!”

The mages surrounded Rutherford, clinging to him. Their eyes were filled with blind faith.

It wasn’t a lie. The abyss below the rift truly existed, and the one who had returned alive from this place was their master, Rutherford. Could there be anything more wonderful than this?

Their fear of the unknown world was fleeting. The mages looked around the abyss with curious eyes, as it was likely connected to their fundamental existence. Even as they did, they stayed close together, not separating.

“…Back then?”

Rutherford recalled that faded day in response to his subordinates’ questions. He didn’t know exactly when it was. Suddenly, the voice of God had flashed through his mind.

‘Your cries have reached me.’

It was a voice like a ray of light, but instead of rejoicing, Bandor had only poured out harsh criticism. He questioned whether he was truly close to God, and if so, why he had been left in such a state. He criticized God for being so indifferent and lamented his unfair fate.

“Lord Rutherford?”

“Ah.”

The mages, seeing that Rutherford wasn’t saying anything, urged him on, grabbing his sleeve. It was something they would never normally do, but the oppressive atmosphere of the new environment was that strong.

Rutherford gestured to the side and explained.

“The abyss is a place where space and time are intertwined. There is no up, down, left, or right as you normally think. If you wander and wander, you might reach a rift at some point-”

“By rift, do you mean?”

“The place between the Gaia land and the abyss, where monsters are created.”

Escaping the abyss wasn’t the end. They had to survive in the rift, which could be called the origin of monsters.

The mages’ faces darkened as they realized the path ahead was longer than they had thought.

“Be careful not to get caught by the hallucinations. Especially the mages. If problems arise, mages should help each other escape. Death here means the death of the body.”

“Wh-what do you mean?”

“You will lose your mana. Like me.”

Upon hearing that, the mages quickly checked on their companion who had been caught by the hallucination. Fortunately, he wasn’t a mage. They didn’t know what had happened, but he was foaming at the mouth and had fainted.

“Then, the priority is to safely move from the abyss to the rift. Is there a path? Or do we have to wander?”

Please, say no.

Rutherford, having read this unspoken wish, sighed softly. That was how it was back then, but not now. And he wouldn’t let it be that way. If, by any chance, God gave those guys the same opportunity as him, the power of the gathering under the name ‘Rutherford’ would be broken.

“No, we can get out right now.”

“As expected!”

“The portal that Ian opened. It’s impossible to return to Gaia, but we can ascend one step from the abyss to the rift.”

So, who wants to try opening it? Rutherford urged the mages with a leisurely look.

The flustered mages looked at each other, raising their hands. It was a gesture to show that they had little mana left.

“I really don’t have anything left.”

“Same here. I used it all up fighting the imperial palace mages earlier. It’ll take at least two days to recover.”

“Two days. Does the concept of a day exist here?”

“Isn’t it a bit bright now? There’s light around us.”

“Wait, so you all have none left?”

“The portal was impossible from the imperial palace. And even if we could open it, the next problem is the rift above the abyss. We’d have to fight monsters.”

“That’s right. Without enough mana, we’ll be annihilated. We don’t even know what kind of monsters are there.”

“Lord Rutherford. How about we wait until we gather some strength before going up to the rift?”

The mages seemed to have reached a consensus, and they fell silent, waiting for Rutherford’s permission.

Their leader had a very strange expression. It wasn’t an affirmation, nor a denial, but an ambiguous emotion.

“If you stay submerged in the sea for too long, you’ll inevitably encounter unseen dangers. It’s better to hurry and escape before that happens. If you don’t want to become like ‘that’.”

Rutherford pointed to the ‘shell’ of the one who had fallen victim to the hallucination. It was a lifeless body, forever circling the area, like a drowned corpse.

Then what should they do? As the mages fell silent, as if asking for an answer, Rutherford flicked his fingers.

Saaak.

From the tip of his finger, golden lava bubbled up. The flowing grains solidified, forming the shape of Idgal [a material with divine properties]. Rutherford laughed, wondering what they were so afraid of.

“I may not have mana, but I have this. Why are you all so afraid?”

“But, we can’t even try without recovering.”

“Use forbidden magic. Which of you will sacrifice yourself?”

“……!”

Rutherford stared at the Idgal sinking to the bottom of the abyss and muttered.

“With one sacrifice, everyone can ascend to the rift. This place is a kind of other world that can be reached at any time. If we wait a little, they will come to save us again. The fact that we came here, and that I came twice, is proof that it’s possible.”

Rutherford wasn’t a mage, so he was excluded. Among the remaining, a volunteer was needed.

But they couldn’t easily step forward. Those who had given their limbs for Rutherford in the imperial palace were all dead, and this place was unfamiliar and dangerous.

All they could see were bodies floating around, their minds stolen. How could they be left alone? It wasn’t easy.

“Is there no one?”

His voice was filled with obvious disappointment. Rutherford remained silent, his eyes rolling around, looking at his surroundings. A world where silence weighed heavily.

“…It is not my will. It is the will of God.”

Rutherford was one who communicated with God and coordinated the world. As proof, God had given the material called Idgal to the world, making the mages obey, and had also bestowed upon Rutherford a portion of the power of life and death, which only God controlled.

King Damon had been like that, and so had Rutherford until now, and so would they be in the future. Living, and living again, continuing life.

“I, I will do it.”

One of the mages, after hesitating, raised his hand and volunteered. Faint sighs of relief escaped from the surroundings, and Rutherford patted his shoulder with the hand holding Idgal.

“It’s forbidden magic, but since this is the abyss, its destination, it should be fine, right? I, I believe you will definitely return. Lord Rutherford. Definitely…”

Rutherford only smiled, as if telling him to believe.

In fact, he didn’t know how to take those left behind by forbidden magic out. Moreover, he didn’t know what would happen to those who used forbidden magic in the abyss.

But, what was important to him now wasn’t such trivial matters, was it? The flow of time was quite different between the abyss and the outside, so his entire plan was to hurry back and continue his great work.

“Trust me. I will deeply engrave your sacrifice.”

“…Yes. I will accept it with glory, with glory.”

The mage took out a dagger from his waist and slashed his arm. As blood dripped, golden eyes flashed. The mages stepped back, and soon, black things began to surge around him.

Ziiing! Ziiing!

Swaaak!

“Uwaaaah!”

“Damn it!”

It wasn’t the neat black moon that Ian had shown. It was like a black trace distorted by water.

The mages looked back at Rutherford, wondering if they were alright, and he took the lead and stepped forward. If they could just get past this, they could ascend to the rift without as much trouble as before. If that was the case, they could escape without a single death, so there was no problem.

Swoosh.

At that moment, a strange flow was felt from somewhere. Even Rutherford, who had no mana, could sense it, so it was natural that the mages noticed it.

The mages simultaneously frowned, looking at one place.

In the distance-

“Lord Rutherford!”

Something huge was swirling.

If you could see light passing by with your eyes, would it be like this? The mages turned their heads, following the mana that was quickly passing between them with their eyes.

Puh-uh-uhng-!

Kwajik! Kwajijijik!

An attack that was condensed with tremendous pressure came crashing down.

The portal summoned by forbidden magic cracked, and then shattered all at once. Black fragments flew around, and Rutherford looked for the source with surprised eyes.

‘Ian?’

Chwaaaak!

Ian was approaching at an incredible speed.

Rutherford gnashed his teeth and roared loudly.

“Ian-!”

No more interference would be tolerated. The lump of flesh that God had spoken of, there was no way to deal with it now. Even if he had to kill it and take it in pieces, it wouldn’t do now.

Rutherford activated a contract magic to seize his heart.

Swaaaak!

But as if true names were useless, Ian closed the distance in an instant.

Rutherford’s hair briefly obscured his vision, and when he could see again, a platinum-blonde with blue eyes was right in front of him, his face close, with a murderous look.

“…Who dares to utter my name so carelessly?”

“You-”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

Soon, the blue eyes were instantly dyed gold.

Rutherford realized that the figure was the soul within Ian. Had the contract magic been broken? If so, did that mean his body had died while caught in a hallucination? But how? How could he maintain his mana even after dying?

Kkwaak.

Ziiing!

Ian grabbed Rutherford’s hair and released his mana. Become a cold corpse and wander the sea of the abyss. May your limbs be scattered and wander forever.

Ian smiled faintly without realizing it, and looked at himself reflected in Rutherford’s eyes.

“Rutherford, you were curious about who I am.”

The figure reflected in his eyes became clearer.

The Emperor of Bariel, Ian Verosian.