Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 557

“Whoa, whoa. Stop there.”

The coachman slowly pulled the reins at the gesture of the Imperial Guard. A dozen or so large boxes were piled up at the back of the carriage, each emitting a musty odor.

The guard wrinkled his nose and brought out a ledger.

“What’s your affiliation?”

“We’re from Rakkan Foods. We’re here to deliver food supplies to the Imperial Palace.”

“Ah, the ones specializing in duck meat? But the smell is quite strong. Is it spoiled?”

“The meat spoils quickly as the weather gets warmer. We spilled some rotten meat through a gap in the carriage a few days ago. I think that’s the smell.”

“And your companions?”

“Five laborers besides me. There’s another carriage behind us.”

Swoosh.

As the food manager showed his ID, the guard quickly recorded it and gestured broadly, signaling to open the gate quickly.

The coachman took off his hat and bowed, and two carriages entered in succession.

Clatter, clatter!

The carriages headed towards the food storage. The coachman and laborers unloaded the boxes one by one, but one man among them, wearing a robe, kept looking around cautiously. He was the source of the rotten smell.

The man adjusted the animal bone necklace around his neck.

Clink.

He then placed a pouch of gold coins on the seat where he had been sitting without saying a word, and the coachman naturally pocketed it.

No one paid attention to the man who disappeared so suddenly. Their contract was simply to get him inside the Imperial Palace.

Clatter, clatter!

The man looked around and lowered his body as much as possible. Soon, he hid in the bushes, took off his robe, and lit a small torch, causing his shadow to lengthen. It was an unreal sight, but a smile crept onto the man’s lips.

“Heh heh. Everyone, come out!”

Whoosh!

Heads poked out from the shadows. They cautiously emerged from the shadows, looking around. The sensation was more unpleasant than they had expected, and they seemed to be hurrying a bit.

“Ugh, this is a bit much.”

“What, did you expect it to be like a bed?”

“Shut up. You’re being insolent.”

“Hmph. How else would you get out if not for me? Unless you want to die hugging Damon.”

Nakasta glared fiercely at the Natan tribesman’s sarcasm. How dare a minor tribe from the north act so presumptuously?

Nakasta was a close aide who served King Damon before the fall of Vergos. In other words, he was a member of the Vergos elite, with the power to control minor northern tribes with a flick of his wrist. Or rather, he ‘had’ that power.

Though now it was just faded glory.

“Alright, I’ll stay here, so you guys go do your thing. It’ll take exactly two hours for the delivery carriages to leave. Geez, the Imperial Palace is nice, it’s so green.”

Thump! The Natan tribesman lay down on the ground.

The Natan tribe could manipulate shadows and treat them like another dimension, but they had the disadvantage of having their combat power drop to almost zero at night. The rotten smell from the animal bone accessories was a bonus.

Nakasta and his men clicked their tongues and began preparing for the assassination.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes, Nakasta-nim.”

Nakasta covered his face with a mask and infiltrated the darkness with his men. Their destination was only one place!

“The magic tower?”

“It’s over there!”

It was the magic tower where King Damon was imprisoned.

Nakasta had naturally been a royalist as part of the royal palace, but as time went on, he realized there was no hope there.

Whose fault was the prolonged war? Wasn’t it because of Bariel’s external justification of balancing power, which they kept fanning the flames?

In the end, the enemy country was eating away at the nation, and the royalists existed because of it. Nakasta had long since switched his allegiance to the anti-royalist side, yearning for the unification of the country.

“But, are you sure about this?”

“About what?”

Going to kill the lord he once served? Why not? Nakasta smiled slightly at his subordinate’s concern.

“The King will understand as well. It’s for the greater good!”

That’s why he was going.

Luderford had expected Damon to die willingly, but there were always exceptions. If he had any lingering attachment to life, and if he wanted to live, he would have no choice but to protect him and pretend to take care of him.

“Do you have the body bag?”

“It’s prepared without any problems.”

The Bariel side would never acknowledge King Damon’s death. At least not until they received help from the royalists in the aftermath of the war.

So, they needed undeniable proof. King Damon’s body. The only irrefutable evidence that they could see with their own eyes.

“Hmm?”

Thud!

“Hey, what’s going on there?”

“Are you alright?”

Romandro’s coachman was attacked from behind while smoking a cigarette. The soldiers at the entrance of the magic tower reacted with suspicion at the dull thud of him falling forward, and the assassins immediately jumped in and beheaded them all.

Cleanly and precisely-

With a single attack.

Slash!

“Kuh-ack!”

“Let’s go! Hurry up!”

“Any reaction from the windows?”

“I can’t see anything from here!”

Another weapon of Vergos was in charge of the windows, but they didn’t really expect it to succeed. Or rather, they might have wanted it to fail. This operation had to succeed in his hands.

To make a name for himself in this chaotic world, he had to create a significant historical event himself, didn’t he?

Clatter, clatter!

The infiltration group consisted of about a dozen assassins. United around Nakasta, their goal was to take King Damon’s life and create chaos in the Imperial Palace. To let the people of the empire know that the great Bariel’s Imperial Palace had been attacked by the enemy.

‘It doesn’t matter if we can’t get out because of the commotion. If we hide in the Natan tribe’s shadows, all traces will completely disappear. We just need to hold out in the shadows until Luderford figures out a way!’

“As soon as we secure King Damon and leave, set it on fire!”

“Yes, I understand!”

There was no hesitation in their steps as they ascended. Like beasts running towards their prey, they cut down soldiers and climbed without stopping.

Finally-

“Y-you, you bastards! Where do you think you are…”

They arrived.

The assassins took a light breath and immediately turned their bodies. It was to focus on securing the stairs.

Nakasta drew his sword and stepped inside, facing Romandro, who was trembling and blocking the way.

“Where do you think you are! You bastards!”

“You don’t seem to be a warrior, so you should just lie down and pretend to be dead.”

“Don’t make me laugh! You’re the one who should be lying down!”

“Your Majesty!”

At Nakasta’s cry, Damon raised his head. He was being restrained by a soldier and couldn’t move, but his gaze was free.

The subordinate he had reunited with after nearly ten years was just as he remembered.

“Your Majesty! Do you know the situation in Vergos right now!”

“Niyaaaat!”

Clang! Clang!

Romandro rushed in with his eyes tightly shut, and Nakasta easily deflected his sword.

Oops! Romandro stumbled backward, reflexively got up, and grabbed his sword again. A trickle of blood flowed from his right nostril, but he didn’t notice it due to the tension.

“Ugh! Ugh!”

Damon made a final desperate plea to Nakasta. To take him away. To free his soul and let him go to the next world.

Nakasta smiled in relief as he confirmed his will to die. Yes. That’s how it should be. As a king, you should face death honorably.

“Your Majesty! I will escort you!”

To be precise, your corpse!

Nakasta sharpened his blade. This time, it was a warning that he wouldn’t just deflect the opponent’s attack, but would follow up with a counterattack.

Romandro sniffled, not knowing if it was snot or blood, and charged again.

“Y-you, you bastard!”

“Annoying!”

Clang!

Whoosh!

Romandro opened his eyes slightly. What was that? He had clearly heard the sound of metal clashing loudly, but he felt no impact or pain.

“Huh?”

He was standing alone, stabbing at the air.

Then, where was the opponent?

“……!”

“Long time no see.”

Nakasta was now locked in a blade-to-blade clash with Timothy, who had suddenly appeared. Just as he was about to attack Romandro, Timothy had thrown a chair from behind.

Romandro, who was standing there blankly, quickly regained his senses and approached Damon, standing in front of him. Yes, fighting was not his thing. He was better as a meat shield!

“S-Sir Timothy! Help me!”

“I apologize for being late.”

“I-it’s okay, our king is still fine.”

Creak!

Nakasta smiled wryly and interrupted Timothy and Romandro’s conversation.

“You’ve become a Bariel man, Timothy.”

“Thanks to whom.”

“Do you resent me?”

Timothy’s hand tightened on his sword.

Resent him? Was that even a question? He had lived only for Vergos, worked only for Damon, and wanted to live as a husband to a woman and a father to a child.

But-

“…I hate you beyond resentment.”

Damon and Nakasta had ruined everything.

Damon had doubted him, and Nakasta had whispered conspiracies in that gap. A huge storm had been brought upon his fate, which would have been no different yesterday, today, or tomorrow. Unfortunately, it was his family that was swept away.

“Kuh. You’ve gotten bigger in the meantime. Did you like the Bariel food? My wife and child are dead and eating dirt.”

“…You bastard!”

Timothy furiously attacked, swinging his sword.

Nakasta managed to block it, but it was too much. He had thought he had honed his skills during the civil war, but it seemed that it was impossible for an ordinary person to overcome the difference in physique.

He called out to his men for help.

“Over here! Damn it!”

“Nakasta-nim!”

“Not me, over there! Towards King Damon!”

“I’ll take the rear!”

The assassins split into two groups, one towards Timothy and the other towards Damon. Romandro rushed in again with his eyes tightly shut, but was easily knocked down with a single punch. The soldier holding Damon also collapsed, and an assassin shouted.

“We can’t break the shackles. Wouldn’t it be better to deal with him here and cut him off?”

“Do it!”

Damon willingly showed his neck, and the assassin raised his sword.

“It’s an honor! Your Majesty!”

He was dead. They were all dead.

Bariel, Ian Hielo, in his third life, he would trample them all miserably. He had endured and waited for this moment for ten long years!

Whoosh!

At that moment, Timothy pushed Nakasta away and rushed towards the assassin. He swung his sword mightily, and the man’s arm was cut off in one swift motion. Very easily.

“Aaaagh!”

Timothy grabbed the severed part of the man’s arm and mercilessly stabbed his sword into the fallen assassin.

Thud!

With each furious attack, crimson blood splattered. It stained Damon’s pale cheeks, and his once sparkling eyes were also stained dark with blood.

“…Your Majesty.”

Timothy muttered, wiping the red blood flowing down his eyes with the back of his hand.

“You pushed me into despair, yet you seek hope.”

“…Ugh.”

“No. Your Majesty cannot choose anything. Do not die, but live as if you are dead.”

Romandro shook his head from side to side to clear his blurry vision. Then, he hugged King Damon again to protect him. If they wanted to kill the king, they would have to kill him first.

“Nakasta.”

In his eyes, it looked as if Timothy was crying tears of blood. Like someone who was already dead.

“I will abandon all my reason as a human being and slaughter you.”

No. Perhaps he was already dead.

From the moment his wife and child died.

At the strangely eerie aura, Nakasta swallowed hard and tightened his grip on his sword.

“So scream in agony. So that the screams of my wife and child… are erased from the world.”