Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 835

“Minister Ian’s movements are unusual!”

Jin frowned. Acorella’s desperate plea, risking her life to speak, was still vivid, yet Ian’s actions were unpredictable, making it all seem meaningless.

Did Ian know? Did he know the heart with which Acorella bowed her head to him? Whether he was Verosian or not, it was a problem. He just wished Ian would stay still.

“What is it?”

“The mages residing at his residence have gathered. The situation seemed serious, and upon investigation, it was found that Sir Ian met with the second son of Count Charlotte at a hotel.”

“What?”

The chief attendant bowed his head and added,

“It seems that Commander Acorella sent a letter through Aide Romandro. It was just a request to restrain Minister Ian, so it was permitted, but it’s difficult to understand the correlation as to why the mages gathered.”

Jin lightly bit his lower lip. So, now…

“The mages are collectively heading to the Imperial Palace.”

“Acorella gave a secret order to Romandro, and the mages gathered in response?”

“That’s what we’ve gathered, but it would be best to look into it further before making a judgment. First, the certain fact is that dozens of central nobles were gathered at the residence of the second son of the Charlotte family, who contacted Sir Ian.”

It was clearly the prelude to a rebellion. The sudden movement of the mages, the gathering of nobles who contacted Ian, and the late hour…

Jin’s hand trembled slightly. The civil war he experienced when he was ten years old was still deeply etched in his mind. It was a civil war that ended only after many loved ones, such as parents or siblings, had died. Surely, it would be the same this time. Either a loved one would die, or he would die…

“Your Majesty.”

It was then. Beric, who had been hiding his presence like a shadow, revealed himself.

“Beric.”

“Do not worry. Those mages, they are soft on the inside, unlike their appearance. They are not the type to do foolish things, even if paid. Your Majesty knows this as well as I do.”

Even if they followed the minister more than the Emperor, they were still officials of the Imperial Palace and citizens of the Empire. Beric swore, placing his hand on his sword hilt.

“They are surely coming for a different reason.”

“Commander Beric, it’s dangerous to be so certain. The situation is…”

“If anything happens, I will risk my life to protect Your Majesty. I will not allow even the slightest scratch on Your Majesty’s safety, so Chief Attendant, don’t fill His Majesty with unnecessary worries.”

He didn’t say, ‘I’ll flip you over before you know it,’ but the chief attendant was wary. He was someone who was more than capable of doing so.

As the chief attendant stepped back, Beric moved closer to Jin and looked down at the documents on the desk.

“Your Majesty, do you want to believe that Ian is Verosian from the future?”

Jin was silent.

He wanted to believe it. And at the same time, he wished it wasn’t true. If he was really Verosian from the future, it meant he would return someday.

But-

“Yes.”

It was better than leading each other down a path of destruction like this. That much was clear.

As Jin made that decision, Acorella’s potion, which was placed on one corner of the desk, caught his eye. And at the same time, Ian’s words from some time ago.

‘I know you must be confused. But in times like these, you must calmly read the situation and use it to your advantage.’

When was that? It must have been during the Arsen incident. When he asked Ian why he followed him, that was Ian’s answer.

“Does that mean, no matter what Sir Ian’s intentions are, I should use him first?”

“Yes. And once Your Majesty’s authority is stable, take a moment to catch your breath and look at me again. Then, you will see a different perspective. What do you think?”

“…I want to believe you spoke the truth.”

“Yes. Then, believe it. Your Majesty is the center of the world, so Your Majesty’s belief is the truth.”

Believe what you want to believe. Since he was the center of the world, his belief was the truth.

Jin picked up the potion. How could he have forgotten that everything was up to his decisions and his mindset?

“Your Majesty, to be honest, I don’t understand the current situation at all. Why are they all acting like this when they care about each other?”

“It’s because they care. Because they care.”

“If they care twice more, they’ll all die.”

Jin smiled faintly and swallowed the potion. A strange sensation flowed down his esophagus. The chief attendant was still watching the Emperor with a worried expression, and Beric stood by his side with his arms crossed.

Jin wiped his mouth and frowned. Then, in an instant, his heart sank as if the earth had given way.

“Your Majesty?”

“Ah…”

It was as if a storm was raging in Jin’s mind. It began to stir through the fragmented memories, washing away the traces of the Undergod.

Beyond the abyss, a brilliant name that had been deeply submerged sparkled. Verosian, Verosian. That glorious name, Verosian…

Jin staggered and sat down, and the chief attendant approached him.

“Y-Your Majesty?”

But Beric immediately blocked him. He did not look at Jin. He intended not to look back until His Majesty rose on his own. The chief attendant understood his intention and covered his eyes and ears, retreating from the office.

“Beric, Beric…”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Beric answered, fixing his gaze straight ahead. The Emperor’s voice was wet.

“What should I do?”

Tears dripped down Jin’s nose and chin as he bowed his head.

He didn’t know why he had forgotten something so important. The fact that Ian was his blood relative, the victory of Bariel. All of those things were truly joyful and happy. How could they have been cut away? How could the gods be so heartless? It was a resentment towards the gods, and a grumble towards Ian.

“I, I-”

Jin curled up and sobbed quietly.

As he felt his breathing becoming increasingly rough, Beric let out a deep breath. He didn’t know what it was, but it seemed that Ian being Verosian was true.

“…I doubted Sir Ian.”

“It’s alright. Isn’t that what Ian intended?”

“But I shouldn’t have done that.”

“If you hadn’t, Ian would have been disappointed.”

“I made a mistake.”

He made a mistake. He was wrong. He shouldn’t have done that… Jin muttered repeatedly in a hoarse voice.

Beric waited with his back turned until the Emperor’s crying stopped, and soon, he noticed a flickering light outside.

The mages had arrived.

* * *

“Please! Let us see His Majesty!”

“You can’t do this, mages! Do you not know how dangerous your actions are right now?”

“Step back! You cannot enter the palace!”

“No, please, just deliver the message! It’s a really important matter!”

“Yes, we beg you!”

As the mages swarmed in, the guards became tense and vigilant. They had already received word from the entrance and were armed with spears embedded with magic sealing stones. There was a pervasive fear that a violent situation could occur at any moment.

“It’s not enough to just beg! Request an audience during the day, following the proper procedures! There will be no more warnings!”

“No! Just a moment!”

Romandro pushed his way between the mages and the guards, waving his hand. He calmly mediated, signaling everyone to step back.

“How can the guards arbitrarily decide on a matter of national importance? Did His Majesty directly order this?”

The guards hesitated. In fact, no imperial order had been issued. A report had been sent, but it was only a temporary order from the head of the guard and the chief attendant.

If it were a matter of the Magic Department, His Majesty would have immediately given direct orders, but for some reason, there were no instructions today. He couldn’t possibly be sleeping in this situation.

“Or by whose order are you blocking us like this? We are here by the order of the Minister of Magic. Is it by the order of someone with a higher rank than the Minister of Magic?”

“That’s the problem! You know what the relationship between Minister Ian and the Imperial Palace is right now.”

“No! The current Minister of Magic is Acorella!”

“Huh?”

“Acorella? That sounds a bit disrespectful, and yet it doesn’t. Ahem. Anyway, it’s not what you’re thinking, so please clear the way. I mean it, really!”

“R-Really?”

Romandro rolled up his sleeves and glared.

“I can’t stand it!”

“I can’t stand it either!”

The mages also chimed in, shouting loudly. They looked like they were about to rush in and throw punches, but paradoxically, that made the guards’ tension ease. If it was fist-to-fist, it honestly seemed manageable.

“Oh my, what a ruckus in the moonlight.”

It was then. Beric, in his uniform, came down the palace steps. The surprised guards turned and saluted, and the mages looked up at him, teary-eyed. Ha, seeing him like this, he was kind of welcome.

“Beric!”

“Beric! It’s about our Ian!”

“Alright. Stop being so noisy and come up.”

“H-Huh! Sir Beric!”

“It’s His Majesty’s order. From now on, I, the captain of the Royal Guard, will handle this, so the guards return to your positions. Ah, and you! You go to the underground prison and bring Acorella.”

Beric waved his hand and turned away. The guards wondered what was going on, but soon, they followed Beric’s orders, lowered their guard, and dispersed.

The mages hesitated for a moment, then quickly ran up the stairs.

Thud!

Tap tap tap!

They ran quickly through the hallway with determined faces. No one dared to speak easily. They were all determined to pour everything out to His Majesty.

The chief attendant, who had been given prior notice, had left the bedroom door open.

“Your Majesty, the mages from the Magic Department have arrived.”

His voice was still full of worry, but the chief attendant closed the door with a resolute gesture, as if to say he would not argue with the imperial order.

Jin was sitting on the sofa. His calm face was particularly noticeable. He looked up at the mages, and the mages, realizing that their eye level was not aligned, prostrated themselves.

“Your Majesty!”

“…It’s late at night, yet there is such a commotion.”

“Your Majesty, we are sorry. But there is something we must ask you to hear. Commander Acorella, or rather, Minister Acorella, has already spoken, but there is a truth that must be confirmed. And to uncover the truth, Your Majesty’s will is absolutely necessary!”

Romandro placed an old book on the floor with trembling hands. It was Bibi’s collection of novels. He closed his eyes tightly and said,

“Your Majesty, this is a novel I have been secretly writing since before. I swear to the heavens, I had no impure intentions. But…”

The novel was necessary as a catalyst to approach the truth, but he couldn’t put Bibi in danger. Romandro willingly claimed it as his own work.

“For some reason, there are contents that were not there before. A considerable amount of content is written so clearly.”

“I can guess the countless rumors that followed Sir Ian, the inside story of why he had to make decisions for the Magic Department, and that in the end, it was a choice for Your Majesty.”

“Your Majesty, I beg you, please put aside the advice of those who do not even know if the truth exists and find it with us. The truth about Sir Ian.”

“Please. We beg you.”

“Otherwise, Sir Ian will truly become irreversible.”

“We will do anything. Just save him.”

The mages prostrated themselves, crying and begging. Their pleas echoed throughout the Imperial Palace.

Jin was choked up and couldn’t speak easily. After a long silence, he finally calmed himself and took a breath, then turned his head at the sound of footsteps outside.

Creak.

It was Acorella. She came in with shackles on, looked at the situation, and blinked in confusion. The mages looked back at her, their faces covered in tears and snot.

“Everyone…”

“Commander Acorella…”

“What’s wrong? Why, why are you like this?”

A fleeting sense of unease crossed Acorella’s eyes. But that was only for a moment. Jin, who had been silent for a long time, ordered her.

“Acorella.”

“Yes?”

“Go and get the potion.”

“…Are you talking about the Sildam potion?”

“No.”

“Then, could it be…?”

“Yes.”

A strange light flickered in Acorella’s eyes. She finally understood what those words meant. It was done for her. She had already drunk it. Now it was Beric’s and the mages’ turn to drink it.

Acorella then discovered the empty bottle on the desk and screamed internally. Then, her face turned red, and she moved her lips, stepping back.

“Y-Yes! The memory potion! I’ll, I’ll get it right away! Hey! You guys just wait! Stop crying!”

“Why, why are you crying too, Commander, h-huh?”

“Shut up! Wait! Beric, please release me from this!”

As Jin nodded, Beric’s sword was swung. Acorella’s shackles were cleanly cut in two. She immediately unleashed her magic and flew away.