Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor [EN]: Chapter 95

“Hello?” It was Beric, with his red hair. Behind him were the warriors of Cheonryeo, whom he had only heard rumors about. The knight, startled by their sudden appearance, took a step back. Dive, who had seen them from the bedroom, slowly lowered his hand and frowned. “What is the meaning of this?” Squeak. Dive and the butler fully opened the door and peered into the hallway. There were five Cheonryeo warriors, each said to be worth a hundred men. The Lady also seemed curious, but she made no effort to get up from her seat. “Has Beric arrived?” Romandro asked, tidying up the papers. The butler barely managed to mutter in a daze. “No, Lord Romandro. What is all this…” “It’s nothing much. Lady Rienne was worried about her safety, so we’re offering a little help from our side. There’s a lot to do to prepare for the funeral, and it would be a disaster if something happened to the Lady in the meantime.” “What do you mean, ‘work’? What’s going on in the mansion…” “Something happened, and the Count passed away.” Romandro replied calmly, putting the parchment in his inner pocket. The knight stopped retreating and asked. “What was that loud noise just now? My colleague was supposed to be downstairs.” “Colleague? Ah, yes. He was.” “…He was?” “Madam, did you dismiss all the knights?” Dive, the three knights, and the butler couldn’t grasp the meaning of Beric’s words. It was Romandro who answered instead of the Lady. “Yes. She just declared it verbally. They are no longer associated with Mereloff.” “Ah. Good timing.” Good timing? What was? Then, from afar, two more men came up the stairs. It was Ian and a warrior, with the warrior carrying a familiar body over his shoulder. “Kell! Damn it, good heavens!” It was one of the three knights of Mereloff. The only way to recognize him was by his body. His head was a mess of blood, making it impossible to see his features. Clang! The other knight was horrified and drew his sword, but the atmosphere didn’t change. Rather, it felt like the desperate struggle of a victim, with a clear difference in power. “Well, you kept blocking the way and wouldn’t move. They said they wouldn’t let me in no matter what, so it turned out like this.” It was instantaneous. A Cheonryeo warrior, unable to control his temper, grabbed the man’s head and slammed it into the gate. Perhaps he was careless, but he was able to break through the door with a single blow. “Ah, it’s not that he was careless. I’m just that strong, you know?” “Yeah, no. I could have broken through too.” “Beric, it was your gut that got pierced. Wasn’t that guy in the desert about the same skill level as this one?” “Again! Are you going to bring that up again? I’m so sick of it. I’ll show you by having a match!” “Alright, alright. You talk too much.” “It’s because you don’t believe me!” Thud! The warrior who had been joking with Beric threw the corpse to the floor. Ian glanced inside the bedroom, checking on Romandro and Lady Rienne. “Everything seems to be fine.” “Aaaah! Sir Ian! Do you even know what you’re doing!” Dive screamed and ran into the bedroom at the sight of the lifeless body. Cold sweat ran down the back of the knight who had drawn his sword. ‘Ian wasn’t supposed to get involved directly. Damn it.’ That was the opinion of Poolu, the leader of the three knights. Ian was being held in check at the Imperial Palace and would soon have to go to the center, so he wouldn’t be able to interfere in the internal affairs of Mereloff, or so they had analyzed. Everything made sense, and it had actually worked, but there were always variables. “Yes, Dive. I do know, but I was greatly insulted by those three knights.” “In, insult?” Dive’s voice trembled. He had thought he would have a smooth funeral and inherit the title, but now there was this bloodbath… “The butler must have heard it too. When I came, worried about the Count’s passing, they asked if I was having an inappropriate relationship with the Lady. It’s the first time I’ve been so insulted in my life, so I’m going to prove my innocence with their deaths.” “No, usually you prove your innocence with your own life, don’t you?” “Is that usually the case? Not for me.” Ian looked at the knight who had drawn his sword. “You have to be alive to confirm that your innocence has been proven. On the other hand, disrespectful thoughts only disappear when the person who has them dies. Beric.” “Okay.” Beric slowly pulled the doorknob with both hands. The butler, who was standing nearby, naturally stepped back, and soon the bedroom door was completely closed, along with one of the three knights who had drawn his sword. Squeak. “What the…” “You, you, you lowly thing!” Unlike the overwhelmed butler, Dive was quite quick to grasp the situation. Didn’t Ian say he had brought the barbarians to protect the Lady? “You, you’re trying to ruin the family!” Dive grabbed a decorative item and lunged at the Lady. It was definitely an affair. Otherwise, there was no way Ian would help the Lady. From the beginning, the knights had suspected it, so everything fit together like a puzzle. “No, you can’t, Dive.” “Let go! You, you bastards. Are you also in cahoots with Ian and that woman? The wrath of God will strike you down!” “It would be best if you calmed down. Think about what will happen after that door opens if you harm the Lady now.” At that moment, a vibration that felt like the floor was collapsing shook the room. Thud! Bang! Crash! Clang! Without even looking, they could feel it with all their senses. The knight’s body was thrown, slammed into the floor, the window was broken, and he was repeatedly smashed against the wall. Dive’s face turned white as a sheet, and he froze like a stone. “Sh, shit.” Then, he shook off Romandro’s hand and began to kneel and pray. He muttered, chanting incomprehensible words, begging for mercy from the underground god he believed in. “Huh, geez.” He knew about the underground god religion, but this was the first time he had seen an actual follower. Romandro continued to watch Dive’s pathetic state with a mix of curiosity and bewilderment. “Let him pray. It’s better than him attacking us. It’s disgusting to watch, though.” “Shut up! You evil demon!” “Whatever.” Lady Rienne even flipped him off, as if she had nothing to lose. Dive’s face flushed red with insult, but he chose to focus on his prayers rather than uttering profane words. He practically prostrated himself and cried out. Thud! Bang! “Aaaah!” “Hey! Hey! You shouldn’t do that!” The dull thuds and screams echoed in time with the prayers. It was clear that it wasn’t an equal fight, but a battle where the power was clearly on one side. How long had it been? The commotion gradually subsided, and then stopped completely. Everyone except Romandro was staring at the tightly closed door. They were afraid of whether it would open, and what would happen if it did. Squeak. The hallway wall was visible through the slightly opened door. There was a bloody handprint. The long trail of blood was clearly not from anyone else… Romandro crunched on a candy and asked. “Is it over?” “There’s one more knight left, but he doesn’t seem to be in the mansion, so I’m going to send Beric to pursue him.” Of course, some of the Cheonryeo warriors would accompany him. Dive turned his head away in horror, afraid of seeing another corpse. Ian gestured, sitting across from the Lady. “Please sit here. I have something to say.” It felt like when his parents would call him to talk when he was a child. He didn’t want to, but there was no way to escape, and his heart was pounding so hard that he felt nauseous. Dive tried to remain calm as he sat down. “First of all, I would like to apologize for the commotion. But as you heard, those men are no longer associated with Mereloff.” “Do you think that’s a reasonable thing to say right now?” “Dive, I’m going to make a few suggestions. Please think carefully and make a wise choice. Madam, the same goes for you.” Ian completely ignored Dive’s words and continued to say what he wanted. Lady Rienne calmly sipped her cold tea. “It doesn’t seem like the two of you have any intention of coexisting. Am I right?” “Yes. I don’t.” “Ha, geez. Who do you think you are to say that!” The most peaceful way would have been for Dive to inherit the title according to custom, but delegate all authority to the Lady. That way, they could pass the matter without reporting it to the Imperial Palace. But with the way the two of them were acting… “For the sake of each other’s safety, it would be best if one of you left Mereloff, or rather, Bariel. Personally, I would prefer it if it were Dive.” “What are you plotting! Outside! Is anyone out there!” Dive, enraged, shouted at the top of his lungs. Then, the door opened, and a couple of Cheonryeo warriors peeked in. Squeak. “Did you call, Sir Ian?” “No. Please focus on the cleanup.” There was no one to help the pseudo-heretic successor who had been praying in the outer mansion without any power. Thud! As the door closed firmly, Dive squeezed his eyes shut and began to mutter an unknown prayer. “The cleanest way would be for all those with the Mereloff name to disappear, but that would be difficult for the Lady to handle. An Imperial Palace investigator would come down to re-examine the case, and she would have to prove her abilities to be appointed a new title by the Emperor, just like I did, which is no easy task.” Even if she proved her abilities, it was uncertain whether she would be chosen. There was a high probability that Gail or other opposing forces would try to put their own people in, like Erica. “I’ll be heading to the center by then, so I won’t be able to actively help you.” “Then what?” “It would be ideal if Dive were to leave the territory for a long, very long time. Isn’t the underground god religion originally from the country of Toolun in the Northern Hemisphere? I suggest you go on a pilgrimage.” It was a pilgrimage in name only, but it meant that he should go there and not come back. “I think 1,000 gold coins would be enough to go on a pilgrimage.” “…Do you even know how far that is?” “I heard it takes three months on foot.” A kind of vacuum. If Dive left before the Count’s death and succession, the lord’s seat would be literally vacant. But if that happened, the Imperial Palace wouldn’t have much reason to intervene, and the Lady wouldn’t have to go through the complicated process of getting certified and struggling. “What if he leaves and Sir Ian leaves, and then he comes back? What if he secretly tells the Imperial Family about this?” “He? Did you just say ‘he’?” Lady Rienne didn’t even look at Dive. He was about to burst a blood vessel, but he couldn’t raise his voice in front of Ian and Romandro. “You don’t have to worry about that.” “Do you have something in mind?” “Yes. But the Lady will have to spend some money. I don’t think that will be a problem. The important thing is Dive’s decision.” Ian smiled and looked at Dive. At the same time, Romandro and Lady Rienne’s gazes fell on him. Dive felt cornered and chewed on his dry lips. He didn’t need the underground god to tell him what would happen to him if he refused Ian’s offer.