Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 611

The royalist officers were dumbfounded by Danit’s proposal. A full investigation? Of all the weapons? With the Variel army practically at their doorstep, she was suggesting they collect all the weapons?

For Burgos, this was an absurd and infuriating statement. However, Lady Danit didn’t back down and continued to push her argument.

“Why aren’t you answering?”

“What is this-”

“You called me unreasonable? Shameless? Those words suit you better. You threatened me and my daughter, claiming there was a problem with the weapons, yet you can’t produce the evidence? You’re the ones trying to hide the truth!” [referring to the idiom ‘hide the sky with your palm’]

Her stance was clear: if they couldn’t prove there was a problem with the weapons, it was clearly Burgos’s slander.

It was absurd and ridiculous, but what was even more frustrating was that they couldn’t think of a reasonable way to refute it.

A way to refuse a full investigation while still proving the Holin family’s betrayal? There was only one way.

‘Kayla’s confession.’

Unless the person involved confessed directly, it would be difficult to resolve the issue.

The royalist officers turned their heads and whispered amongst themselves, while Lady Danit glared at them, tense. Her hand, hidden within the folds of her dress, clenched tightly. She knew that the only path those cornered men could take was the only one.

“Excuse us for a moment.”

“I refuse. Give me an immediate answer.”

As the royalists tried to leave, Danit raised her fan to stop them. It was clear they were going to Kayla, who was being held somewhere. They might inflict even more severe torture on her to get a confession.

The lady looked towards Hale and Nakina, seeking their help.

“As a mage of the Great Empire of Variel, please speak up. If anything happens to Kayla here, I will retract all my previous statements.”

A full investigation. The chances of the royalists accepting it were slim, but if they did, the enemy would be facing the Variel army empty-handed.

And if they didn’t accept? They wouldn’t be able to prove the Holin family’s guilt. This would be an insult to the imperial court that supported the royalists, which would be another reason to break down the gates.

Hale slowly chewed on the cigarette in his mouth. It was important to ensure that the Emperor and Ian took full responsibility for the current situation, which was like a flickering candle.

“Royalist officer, what’s your name?”

Hale gestured towards the oldest among them and asked.

“…Jorge.”

“Jorge. Good. If you refuse a full investigation, return Lady Kayla safely. Otherwise, I will consider you to have treated Variel as an invader and report it to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“…Do you think that makes sense? Asking us to hand over the weapons!”

“Who said we’d take them? We’ll return them after checking if there’s anything wrong with them, so stop worrying.”

“Shut up! You damned thing! The more you talk, the louder your daughter’s screams will be.”

“Go ahead and try!”

Danit, who had been calmly responding, suddenly shouted. It was such a loud and forceful warning that even Nakina was startled.

Lady Danit glared fiercely at Jorge. She didn’t even blink, and her pupils seemed frozen, not moving.

“Go ahead and try. If even a single tear falls from my child’s eyes, I will tear you limb from limb. Curious? Whether I can really do it or not?”

Lady Danit took a step towards the royalists. She was just a woman with a fan, yet they unconsciously stepped back, maintaining their distance from her.

“I’ve achieved everything I’ve set out to do. You’ve seen it with your own eyes, haven’t you?”

“Kuh, kuh…”

“Bring Kayla here. Right now, in front of me.”

As Lady Danit tried to grab Jorge by the collar, the soldiers rushed forward to stop her, and Hale and Nakina also moved closer to protect her from them.

A tense situation. It was the moment Nakina’s eyes were about to turn gold.

“I thought it was late, so I came-”

It was clearly a quiet murmur, but it was enough to grab everyone’s attention. Ian was looking down at them from the sky. And next to him was Beric, clinging to another mage.

Hale and Nakina gestured for them to come quickly, while the royalists tensed up at the arrival of the new mages and gripped their swords tighter.

“I apologize. Something came up.”

“Ian! Come here quickly. It’s a mess here.”

“Oh, it looks like it! Everyone’s so slow.”

“Beric! Just because it’s a mess doesn’t mean you have to talk nonsense.”

*Chuk*. While Nakina and Beric exchanged middle finger greetings, Ian landed.

The royalist officers were bewildered by the sudden appearance of the boy, but they guessed his identity from the way Hale and Nakina addressed him with respect.

“…The, the Minister of Magic.”

Damn it! Even the Minister of Magic had arrived, was this really the end? They should have waited for Danit inside the Kalamat gates instead of here.

“What’s going on?”

“Ah, well-”

Hale whispered to Ian, briefly explaining what had happened.

Meanwhile, Beric was walking around, looking for a suitable opponent among the Burgos soldiers, and Danit was adjusting her disheveled clothes.

“Hmm.”

Ian’s eyebrows twitched with satisfaction as he heard the situation. It was an unexpected variable for Lady Danit, but her skill in maintaining control was extraordinary.

Ian seemed to understand and gestured to them. It was a signal to put down all their weapons.

“Wh, what should we do?”

“Give us your orders!”

However, the soldiers hesitated, only looking at the royalist officers, and Beric, thinking ‘This one’s caught,’ immediately grabbed one by the collar and headbutted him.

*Bang!*

“Kuh-heok!”

“Ian told you to put down your weapons! Peace, dialogue, and, damn it, a reasonable choice!”

His nose was crushed in one blow. They looked similar in size, but the difference in power was clear. Judging by his terrible personality, was he a magic swordsman? Everyone watching shrank back, assuming so.

Meanwhile, Ian slowly walked between the lady and the royalists, naturally creating distance.

“First, I understand the current situation. It seems difficult to reach any agreement right now, so as the Minister of Magic, I propose this. First, to the royalists.”

What Variel wanted from the royalists was just one thing.

Obedience and cooperation.

They were the ones who occupied the capital, Kalamat, and had gathered the support of the people with the justification of protecting the legitimacy of the dynasty. If these people opened the gates and showed a friendly attitude towards Variel, it would be easier to achieve cultural integration.

“His Majesty the Emperor has stated that he cannot immediately grant autonomy. You have come this far with Variel’s support for the past 10 years, yet you changed your attitude as soon as Agiar fell? His Majesty is saddened by this, so he has decided to wait and see before making a decision.”

“Look here, I’m sorry, but the people of Burgos are slowly realizing. Where the civil war in Burgos truly started!”

“That is the fault of the incompetent Runkvis dynasty and those who supported them. What are you trying to say?”

Wasn’t the fundamental reason for the long civil war between the north and south that Variel had been orchestrating due to the higher-ups who had ruined the country? Ian asked back with a puzzled smile, and the royalists shut their mouths tightly.

“Anyway, as long as the Holin family’s fault is not clearly proven, the detention of Lady Kayla is a rather excessive measure and a mistake. Above all, she is also a citizen of the Empire, and we cannot arbitrarily detain an innocent person without evidence.”

“What do you want?”

“Escort the lady back to Variel. If you do, I will speak well to His Majesty.”

“Is returning Kayla of such great value that it will change the Emperor’s mind? She is just one of many noble ladies. Judging by how she backstabbed us in a foreign country without fear, her personality must be quite special.”

“Yes, of course, she is valuable.”

Ian kindly added.

“Did you really expect to be granted autonomy without any connection to Variel?”

Wasn’t the blood of Runkvis flowing through Danit and Kayla? Even if autonomy was granted, it was implied that it would be mediated through the Holin family.

With that, Ian turned to Lady Danit.

“In return, as soon as you retrieve Lady Kayla, please clarify the suspicions regarding the weapons. How can there be a problem with a business authorized by the imperial court? If there is a problem, you must take responsibility. The Holin family must.”

Although it was a matter planned by the imperial court, it now meant that the Holin family alone would bear the burden.

This was the imperial court’s intention to avoid being held accountable by the royalists, and furthermore, it was a device to exempt the imperial court from any possible compensation process and to keep the Holin family in check. If they became the center of Burgos’s autonomy just because they were of Runkvis blood, they would eventually grow beyond Variel’s influence.

‘Whether you pay with your family or sacrifice a life or two from the Holin family, that’s up to you. You were invited to the table because you are a descendant of the Runkvis lineage, so you must survive on your own.’

Danit read the meaning in Ian’s silence. It was absurd, but it wasn’t something she hadn’t expected. Weren’t all the imperial court people like that?

In any case, the most important thing now was to safely retrieve Kayla, and if she could find her daughter, she could take the risk in the future.

“I will take responsibility.”

“How is it? It seems like we’ve reached an agreement. Are you still not satisfied?”

Ian asked, looking at Jorge, and they hesitated for a moment before nodding. Ian patted him on the shoulder with satisfaction, encouraging him.

“That’s the right decision. Don’t forget that the lives of many Burgos citizens depend on this. Now, send word inside the Kalamat fortress. The Variel army will arrive today, so tell them to welcome His Majesty the Emperor with glory. Oh, and don’t forget to add a few things.”

That the Burgos legitimacy that had been maintained through the civil war was all thanks to Variel’s support, that the Burgos people had managed to survive the miserable 10 years thanks to Variel, that Variel had defeated the northern rebel forces that the royalists had failed to deal with, and that a new Runkvis to succeed Damon Runkvis was about to appear.

And most importantly, that the people of Burgos would regain the lost 10 years, and that Variel would still be standing strong behind them.

“Do you understand?”

At Ian’s question, Jorge made a decision.

For now, it seemed like they were behind the Holin family, but the imperial court had given them a sword. The weapon was the issue of the low-grade weapons supply.

If some of the autonomy was transferred to the royalists through the Holin family, they could weed them out then. The people would not cheer for those who were of Runkvis blood and had supplied faulty weapons to the royalists.

“…I understand.”

“Good. Then, the lady?”

“There’s a hut a little south from here.”

Upon hearing that, Lady Danit immediately mounted her horse, and Hale and Nakina flew into the sky first.

Ian asked Jorge again.

“Is the lady’s condition alright?”

“…Yes, well.”

“…I see. You should hurry and send word inside Kalamat. His Majesty the Emperor will arrive soon.”

With that, Ian entered the mansion where the mother and daughter had been staying. He had an idea of what Kayla’s condition might be, but he had no idea of the new turmoil it would bring.