Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 898

“Okay, everyone, drink some water.”

The three children, sitting in a row, gulped down the water Naum offered. Were they that thirsty? They drank so refreshingly that Naum wanted to buy them ice cream, but his empty pockets only allowed for a wry smile.

The children finished their water in one go and wiped their mouths with the backs of their hands.

“Are you all feeling a bit better? Calmed down?”

“Yeah. What about you, hyung [older brother]? Aren’t you drinking water?”

“I’m not thirsty.”

Naum crouched down to meet Hans’s gaze. At his gentle brother’s look, Hans’s nose tingled again, and he stretched Naum’s cheeks.

“You idiot! Idiot! Idiot! If you quit the printing house, you should have said something!”

“Ahaha. Sorry, sorry. I didn’t want you to worry.”

“Do they give you food here?”

“Not yet. They said they will after my probation is over.”

“Then you haven’t eaten anything all day, hyung?”

Naum looked apologetic. His brother must have had a hard day too, just as he hadn’t eaten. Hans, sensing his brother’s thoughts, replied.

“Ian bought me food, so I ate.”

“Really? Thank you.”

Naum winked at Ian, who smiled shyly and shook his head slightly, as if to say it was nothing.

Then, Hans pulled a coin pouch from his pocket and handed it to Naum. It was the money Barsabe had taken from the loan sharks earlier. About 50 silver coins in total. Naum was surprised and asked.

“Where did you get this?”

“You know those loan sharks?”

“Did those guys come all the way to our house?”

Naum was about to get up as if to go and protest right away, but Hans grabbed him.

“They came to our house and asked if we were eating well.”

“Huh?”

“They said that if we want to pay back the money, we need to work hard, so we should eat well and not overdo it. They even gave me pocket money, telling me to study hard.”

“Lies.”

“It’s true.”

At Naum’s disbelieving look, Ian and Barsabe nodded vigorously, as if to guarantee it. Naum decided to look into it properly later and took the pouch for now.

“Um, excuse me.”

Then, Ian cautiously opened his mouth. He had a mountain of questions and curiosities.

“Hans said that your family is related to the construction of the Magic Department’s annex, is that true?”

Could it be that he was drawn to Naum because of his connection to the Magic Department? Like a sixth sense.

At Ian’s question, Naum turned to Hans. Hans was not one to talk about family matters to others. But, he had talked about his family? Hans introduced him nonchalantly.

“Ian Hadel, he’s a mage.”

“What? Ah! The, the first noble-born mage?”

“So, while talking about the Magic Department, it came up naturally.”

“I see. It’s an honor, mage.”

Ian waved his hands in a fluster. He didn’t want to be treated so formally.

But Naum just laughed, finding it a truly amazing connection. His younger brother was friends with the only mage in Energes! He couldn’t hide his smile as he introduced his family.

“You asked if we were related to the annex construction? Yes, that’s right. Some of our ancestors were from Burgos. A long time ago, they held a government position in Burgos, but I don’t know the details. I heard that the political situation was chaotic at the time, so they had no choice but to move to Bariel.”

“Ah, so that person?”

“Yes. I don’t know exactly how they came to be in charge of the annex construction, but… they were from Burgos, where there are abundant magic stone resources, and they had worked in that field, so the Imperial Magic Department must have asked for their help.”

Hans also sat down next to Naum. The four of them sitting on the steps looked quite peaceful. If only there weren’t piles of waste around.

“Then you must have been quite well-off, what happened?”

It was Barsabe’s question. They say that even if a rich family falls, it lasts for three generations, so she was asking why they had become so poor that they had to worry about their next meal.

It was a somewhat rude question, but Naum and Hans didn’t seem to mind much.

“My grandfather was a magic stone broker, going back and forth between Burgos and Bariel. He brought goods from Burgos, but it turned out that there was a banned stone mixed in.”

“A banned stone?”

“Yes. I don’t know exactly what it is, but I heard it was a gem with the power to nullify magic. Anyway, my grandfather was upset, but there was nothing he could do. He was fined a lot, and after that, he couldn’t work as a broker.”

“Wow. Then someone must have put it in secretly.”

“Probably. But it’s too long ago, so we can’t know. My father jumped into various businesses as the family fortune declined, and as you can see.”

He went completely bankrupt. And even their parents passed away, leaving only the two brothers behind.

It was a truly tearful story, but no one was shedding tears. It was already a worn-out story for Naum and Hans, and for Ian and Barsabe…

“If it were me, I would have caught the guy who put in the banned stone and killed him.”

“Sister, your words are harsh.”

“Wouldn’t you do the same?”

During a brief silence, Ian recalled Chrony’s face. The revenge for his family and parents was still smoldering somewhere in his heart.

“…I wouldn’t stand still either. Perhaps Hans’s ancestors did the same. But if they couldn’t find them, there might have been a bigger conspiracy than we thought.”

“Could there be any records left in the Magic Department?”

“I think there might be. Last time I saw, they had really old records neatly organized.”

Hans and Naum listened to their conversation quietly, then interjected with puzzled expressions.

“Wait a minute. What are you talking about? It’s already a long time ago. It’s something my father told me when I was a kid.”

“Aren’t you curious?”

Where the starting point of the fate you are walking now is.

Hans, looking into Ian’s clear eyes, was at a loss for words. Naum, seeing this, added to change the atmosphere.

“I am curious, but I can’t. Haha. I just got a new job, so I can’t take time off. Hans, you should go on a tour of the Magic Department. It’s definitely a good opportunity.”

“No, hyung-nim [older brother]. Naum hyung-nim should go.”

“Huh? Me?”

Why me? As Naum smiled in confusion, Ian grabbed his hand again. Then, he suddenly opened his golden eyes.

Hans, startled, grabbed Ian.

“You! What are you trying to do now?!”

Ziiing! Ziiing!

Swoooosh!

A gentle wind swirled around them.

Barsabe roughly fixed her fluttering bangs and watched with interest, while Hans looked at his brother, following Ian’s unwavering gaze. Naum was holding Ian’s hand, frozen like a person whose heart had stopped.

“Do you feel it?”

Tap.

As Ian created a light in the air with his other hand, a light turned on in the depths of Naum’s consciousness.

The energy slowly moved following Ian’s gesture. Naum seemed to have forgotten to breathe, confused by the sensation he was feeling for the first time.

“You will surely see it.”

With the sixth sense, the golden light of God.

Chwaaaak!

As Ian lightly infused magic power, warm things poured around Naum. Spring wildflowers, a cozy blanket, the comfort of a stove, a firm embrace… It was a joy that could not be easily described with any words.

“Uh…”

Naum’s brown eyes turned golden in an instant, just like Ian’s.

Hans, who was watching, gaped, and Barsabe flicked Ian’s magic power with her fingertips as if it was amazing.

‘The concentration is amazing.’

He could see why the Magic Department had made such a fuss, and why his grandfather and father had mentioned Ian Hadel’s power. He was clearly an anomaly among mages, on a different level than a magic swordsman.

Ssssst!

As the magic power subsided, the surroundings became quiet as if there had never been any commotion.

Thump.

Except for the laborers in the distance who dropped their things while watching the scene, the space was so silent that no other sound could be heard.

As Naum looked down at his hands, Ian grabbed his hand and hugged him tightly.

“I knew it! I was right! You are a mage!”

“You’re a magic wielder, right? Ian, move aside. Let me hold his hand too.”

“When I came to pick up Hans on my bike last time, I kept feeling strange. We were connected by our sixth sense!”

“Ian, move aside! Me too! Hand! Hand!”

“I’m so happy and congratulations, Naum and Hans!”

Ian jumped up and down, unable to hide his joy. Barsabe also squeezed in and grabbed his hand, and they cheered loudly, shouting all sorts of cheers. Ian even hugged Hans and shouted.

“Now, the fate of the two of you will change too!”

Just like his own fate had changed.

On the verge of falling off the edge of hell, the two brothers would also experience the miracle of the world changing with the power of magic.

Naum still looked like he couldn’t believe it, and Hans’s hair stood on end with goosebumps.

“Hy, hyung-!”

“Ah…”

“Hey, Naum. What was that just now?”

“Ma, ma, magic, right? Right?”

“What happened to you? Huh?”

Naum smiled in disbelief as he received the cheers of the people. And then, he hugged Hans tightly, trying to control his overwhelming emotions.

More than the fact that he was getting out of financial difficulties, or that his insignificant status was rising, he felt a much greater resonance from the warmth Ian had given him.

Tap tap!

Hee-hee!

“Iaaaan-! Young master! Barsabe! Miss!”

A familiar voice was heard from somewhere. A carriage burst through the gate of the waste disposal site. It was Romandro, who had rushed over after receiving a call from the Imperial Palace stableman.

He must have been frantically searching and rummaging through Lugerspell, as his collar was half-folded back.

“Ah, Romandro!”

“Oh my, you troublemakers! Why on earth are you here? I can understand Ian, young master, not knowing Lugerspell well, but Barsabe, miss-!”

“Romandro, come here. This is Naum. He’s my friend Hans’s brother, and he’s a magic wielder!”

“Is it important that your friend’s brother is a magic wielder right now! If you ever leave the carriage like this again-! Huh?”

Romandro’s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out. Ian and Barsabe were hanging onto Romandro’s waist, jumping up and down.

“It’s certain! I saw his eyes turn golden.”

“No, that’s not the point-! Sigh! Okay, fine. But a magic wielder? How did you know that? There’s no light of the oracle.”

“I kept getting a feeling, so I touched his power a little.”

Romandro’s mind seemed to have stopped for a moment as he tried to grasp the situation. He rolled his eyes, observing Naum and Hans’s reactions and the surrounding atmosphere.

This, this seems to be real?

“Romandro, you brought the carriage well. Let’s all go to the Magic Department. Let’s check it out properly.”

Oh, wait a minute. How did things turn out like this? Romandro reflexively wiped his hands on his coat.

“Erm, I’m Romandro.”

“I, I’m Naum.”

“Goodness, I feel like I’m dreaming right now.”

“I feel the same way…”

It was possible to shake hands with a magic wielder twice in one year. I should buy a lottery ticket on my way home today.

Romandro, half out of his mind, opened the carriage door and guided them.

“Would you… like to get in?”

“I, my clothes are dirty.”

It was too precious a luxury carriage to ride in with such shabby clothes. But Ian and Barsabe got in first and pulled Hans and Naum by the arms.

“Get in! It’s not like anyone else is wiping their butts before getting in.”

“Romandro, you get in too.”

“Yes, eeh, okay. Let’s, let’s go.”

Romandro also urged Naum and Hans to take a seat and tapped the driver’s seat, dazed. It was a signal to return to the Imperial Palace.

Hee-hee! Hee-hee!

Two new mages in one year… no, if you add that mage who’s crazy about magic stones, that’s three. Coincidentally, the number of mages in the Magic Department kept increasing after Ian came in.

“It’s really great.”

Romandro looked at Ian, who was smiling brightly, and finally came to a conclusion. Perhaps a really big lucky charm had entered the Magic Department.