Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 642

Whirr!

Nersarn’s hawk, Byan, tapped on the window of the Hielro mansion. It was right after Madam Rien had left in her carriage. Haena, who was organizing letters, noticed the strange sound and looked towards the window, where she saw the hawk, soaked and sitting still.

Clatter.

‘Byan?’

Master Nersarn went after him, so why has he returned alone? Haena was surprised and opened the window, but the hawk had no intention of coming in, just sitting stiffly on the windowsill.

Something was very wrong. Just as Haena grabbed her coat to go out-

‘Haena!’

‘Mui?’

Haena’s husband, Mui, a Chunryeo warrior, rushed into the mansion. Then, the hawk cried out mournfully. Haena was startled and grabbed the railing, looking down at her husband.

‘Where is Master Nersarn?’

‘He went out after Byan earlier, but he hasn’t returned yet. Byan just came back. What’s going on? Are all those hawks outside from Chunryeo?’

If Chunryeo sent several hawks at once, it surely meant an emergency.

Suddenly, Haena’s mind went blank. She knew the answer, but the reality was too sudden to grasp immediately.

‘Intruders.’

Her husband spoke instead. Intruders had appeared in Chunryeo, and the situation was bad, judging by the hawks they sent.

Haena screamed and ran upstairs.

Thump! Thump, thump!

‘Hey! Everyone, get outside!’

‘Why, what’s wrong, Butler?’

‘Contact the head of the guard right now! It’s an intruder! We need to search the border area near the Great Desert. We have to find Master Nersarn!’

‘Ah, yes, yes. Understood!’

‘Issue an evacuation order to the residents, and tell the heads of each household to arm themselves as much as possible and go on alert. If there are any children who cannot be cared for, bring them to the mansion!’

At Haena’s words, the servants rushed outside in a panic.

Reaching the top floor of the main building, Haena threw open the window facing the outside of the mansion and carefully walked along the narrow railing. It was dangerous because of the rain and wind, but Haena focused on her footing and slowly walked towards the huge bell.

De-eeng! De-eeng-!

‘Emergency situation!’

The huge golden bell swung from side to side, ringing loudly. The residents, who had been trying to avoid the rain, stopped in their tracks upon hearing the alarm bell, and torches were lit at the guard posts far away.

‘Gather all the soldiers!’

‘Haena!’

‘Mui! Don’t worry about me, go first! I’ll send a messenger to the Imperial Palace!’

Haena shouted to Mui, who was looking up at her worriedly from below. He hesitated for a moment, then whistled with his fingers and mounted his Kushile [a type of horse-like mount].

‘Byan!’

It was a shout to ask him to guide them to where Nersarn was. In response, Byan, who had been sitting on the windowsill like a statue, flapped his wings powerfully and flew off.

Tap, tap!

Whirr!

‘Mui! What’s going on?’

‘I don’t know. Grab your weapons! Guards!’

‘Yes, this way!’

‘Byan seems to be heading towards the desert! Clear the way!’

‘Get out of the way! Everyone, get out of the way!’

The guards, who were running towards the mansion, turned their horses upon seeing Mui. If it was towards the border, could it be a monster attack? Or was it the Ruswena [a hostile nation] ?

Whatever it was, the peace of Hielro was definitely broken. Realizing the seriousness of the situation, they raced through the heavy rain.

‘I see the desert!’

They could see it, but the closer they got, the stronger the wind became, making it difficult to stand properly. Mui, feeling a subtle family presence, tore his sleeve and wrapped it around his weapon and hand.

‘Follow me! We’re entering the desert!’

‘Understood!’

‘Keep a low profile and move stealthily!’

At that moment, a blurry figure appeared through the sandstorm. Was it Nersarn? Mui covered his face with his sleeve and approached, soon realizing it was Kakanthir.

His chieftain, who had died with his upper body severed. Even in death, his eyes were wide open, gleaming fiercely.

‘Ka, Kakan!’

Zhiing! Zhiing!

Boom!

And then, a series of explosions. A massive force based on magic.

Mui immediately realized that the Ruswena invaders had arrived and hurriedly slung Kakan’s body over his shoulder.

‘We’re going back to Hielro! It’s an invasion! Ruswena mages…’

‘Aaaaaaah!’

A shrill scream came from somewhere. Mui and the guards felt their hair stand on end. It sounded like the desperate scream of someone on the verge of death.

Then, a flash of light like lightning blinded them, and they staggered, unable to keep their balance. It was even harder to stay upright because the horses and Kushiles were startled and running around.

Then-

Zhiing!

A mage’s doll appeared through the light. It was a Ruswena invader.

The Ruswena’s sudden attack on Chunryeo was to ‘secretly’ cut off Hielro’s forces. But, Hielro had found out about this.

‘Since it has come to this-‘

Now, not even knowing how many Chunryeo survivors there were, there was no point in returning like this. It was right to take care of Hielro for the sake of the Ruswena soldiers’ advance later.

‘Kill them all before reinforcements arrive from the Imperial Palace.’

One of the three mages had been torn to pieces by a Chunryeo warrior, and another had lost consciousness.

For the sake of their fallen comrade, they would kill and kill to make sure that those who dared to attack a mage would remember their end.

‘Cough-!’

The mage coughed up blood and flashed his golden eyes, causing the soldiers to hesitate. What was he trying to do? They didn’t know, but it was clear that something was wrong with him after the battle with Chunryeo.

The soldiers turned their horses and gestured. The mage didn’t look good, so they had to take this chance to escape.

‘A, uh. Es, escape!’

‘Retreat! Retreat! Go to Hielro and set up a defense!’

‘Mui! Hurry! Quickly!’

‘Let go! That bastard did that to Kakan-!’

‘I said no! We’ll all die if we stay here!’

Mui drew his sword and tried to attack the mage, but one of the guards grabbed his Kushile’s reins and pulled him away. The Kushile, which had been staggering in the wind, turned and ran away.

* * *

‘How long has it been?’

‘I don’t know. Two hours? Has it been longer?’

‘Ugh. You’re deep in thought.’

For hours, Ian had been staring at a blank piece of paper, his chin resting on his hand. He had been like that ever since he heard the news that Prime Minister Shatima had been murdered by her aide.

If he would just give an order, they could at least move, but the mages could only sit still and wait for Ian to move.

‘How long does it usually take to send a messenger from Cliffopord to Kalamat?’

‘It varies depending on the individual, but usually within a week. This one took about five days, judging by the seal on the letter.’

Five-day-old information. Since Cliffopord received it, her death must have happened even earlier. If it was true that Prime Minister Shatima was killed by her aide, the situation in Hawan might already be somewhat settled.

‘It’s a bit of a shame that the information doesn’t come in real-time. If Toolun was involved in Prime Minister Shatima’s death, it would be good news for Ruswena.’

‘Definitely. There’s no reason for Toolun not to open the way for Ruswena. As the saying goes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend. With a common enemy called Bariel, it’s certain that Ruswena will benefit.’

‘By benefit, do you mean military movements?’

That was correct. Ruswena had been busy keeping Cliffopord and Hawan in check, so they hadn’t dared to show their teeth towards Bariel, but if Hawan fell into Toolun’s hands, wouldn’t they be able to breathe easier? A beast that has become comfortable will naturally show its hidden claws and attack.

The mages spread out a map.

‘There’s an area in southern Bariel where Cliffopord and Ruswena are adjacent. Wouldn’t they try to target that area?’

‘I think so too. We should leave the Mereloph territory to Hawan… Huh? Hielro?’

The mages hadn’t particularly noticed. The spectacle before them, that their superior was the noble in charge of the border. Since coming to the center, he had never gone down, and he had been working as if he had no hometown.

‘Hielro was here, Ian?’

‘Then this side is safe. No matter how arrogant Elder King is, he wouldn’t dare attack a territory ruled by Chunryeo and the Minister of Magic.’

‘You never know. If he was the type to consider such things, he wouldn’t have been at odds with Bariel in the first place.’

‘That’s true, now that I think about it.’

Ian crossed his arms and pondered for a moment. If something happened to Hielro, it would be best for him to move.

But the problem was…

‘This could be a scheme to lure me out.’

If a war broke out in eastern Bariel, it was a predictable move. Moreover, unlike them, Toolun was able to share senses in real-time through puppeteers. If he moved rashly, he could get caught in their plan.

Was it best to trust Chunryeo for now and wait for the next information?

‘Sir Ian.’

‘Your Majesty.’

Then, Jin, having heard the news, came down to the conference room. He was with Tweller, who followed right behind the Emperor.

‘Prime Minister Shatima is dead.’

‘Yes. The Imperial Palace must know about this as well, but I don’t know what kind of judgment they will make.’

At Ian’s answer, Tweller added lightly.

‘The Imperial Palace will focus on defending the center, won’t they? Unless the enemy pushes into the border, they won’t move rashly. In an emergency, the Prime Minister has full authority, but it hasn’t reached that point yet.’

‘I think so too, but it’s a matter of time. Didn’t you say that Prime Minister Shatima’s death was caused by her aide?’

‘That’s right.’

Ian, Jin, and Tweller recalled her from the Imperial Palace. She was a person with considerable popularity and experience. Moreover, she was about to regain the throne and gain the upper hand, so unless there was a very good reason, the benefits of killing Shatima would be minimal.

‘Toolun must be involved.’

‘Not an aide, but the work of a puppeteer?’

‘Yes. Isn’t that the situation?’

‘Hmm. That’s true.’

Even if it wasn’t a puppeteer, the one who killed Shatima would be someone who was against Bariel, which meant they were on the side of Toolun and Ruswena.

‘If a conflict breaks out in southern Bariel, Cliffopord will be able to stop it, but if the Hielro territory is invaded, I’m worried about what to do. It will take about a month for the central support troops to reach Hielro.’

‘How about you go there for a while using the portal?’

‘That’s one way, but the distance from Kalamat to Hielro is too far.’

It would consume more than twice the magic to go from Kalamat to Toolun or the center. Was he just going to go? He couldn’t ignore the power it would take to return.

And above all, since the situation was uncertain, it was not reasonable to use such a large amount of magic just for ‘confirmation.’

‘First, I will send a letter to Ruswena. It’s a formal protest against their support of Rutherford in the previous Agiar battle. If Bariel takes issue with this, Ruswena may wait to preemptively attack Bariel.’

‘Provoking them to stop them?’

‘They’re waiting for a cause.’

It could buy them time. If they were lucky, until they returned from Toolun.

Clang!

Just as Ian was about to grab his pen, Beric burst in, breaking the door.

‘Iaaaaan!’

The pen’s ink was about to spill again, but not this time. Ian calmly put the pen down and checked if the paper was okay.

‘Drag that bastard out.’

‘His Majesty the Emperor is here, are you crazy?’

As the mages grabbed Beric’s arms, Beric said,

‘No, I have a quick matter, okay? Ian. There’s a moving picture in the marketplace of Kalamat.’