Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 197

“You can rest in this separate palace building,” the servant said, bowing slightly.

“But when will we see the Emperor?” Logan asked, trying to keep his voice calm.

“His Majesty invited you himself. He will likely call for you soon.”

*Likely soon,* Logan thought, staring at the perfectly arranged fruit on his plate. *Soon shouldn’t mean a week.*

Seven days. It had been seven long days since they entered the Imperial Palace. Days that felt like weeks. Logan pushed the beautiful food around his plate. It tasted good, but he couldn’t enjoy it. Around the table, the others in his group ate in silence, their faces tight and worried. They were supposed to be honored guests, but they didn’t look like happy guests at all.

“Logan, seriously, how much longer? My stomach thinks my throat’s been cut!” Luther Kyle, who had piled a mountain of food on a plate as large as his own torso, grumbled.

The servant carrying the food next to him involuntarily took a step back, but Logan simply sighed in response.

“How would I know?”

“So, there’s been no mention to you either.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Although he answered calmly, Logan was also growing increasingly anxious. He knew it was a trick the Emperor used to make visitors feel less powerful.

‘I shouldn’t be wasting time like this.’

Since entering the Imperial Palace, he had been completely cut off from outside news. Even though he had expected it, his anxiety grew with each passing day.

‘It’s only been a week. Just a week. There’s no need to be anxious.’

A war wouldn’t break out in that time, and neither his family nor his kingdom would fall. He tried to soothe himself, but his mind wouldn’t be controlled as easily as he thought.

‘I was being too worried.’

Realizing that this anxiety was abnormal, he forcibly calmed his mind, and was able to at least pretend to be okay.

“Let’s wait a little longer. It won’t be too long now,” Logan said. (He hoped he sounded more sure than he felt.)

To be precise, it was merely a deduction and a hope based on common sense. Fortunately, those words became reality that very afternoon.

“His Majesty has ordered that the guests be brought to him. Ah, the audience is granted only to Logan and Luther. The others are to remain in the detached palace.”

Upon hearing the message from the chamberlain, Logan donned the formal attire prepared by the Imperial Palace servants and headed to the main palace.

Logan looked up at the ceiling. It was so high, even Luther Kyle looked small! Huge paintings covered the ceiling, filled with bright colours and scenes Logan couldn’t understand, but they were clearly made by a master. Lowering his gaze slightly from the ceiling, he saw pillars made of a dark, shiny stone he had never seen before, each one covered in swirling patterns that looked like they were alive.

The entire palace, from every pillar and floor to the walls along the path to the main hall, seemed determined to be decorated as works of art, a resplendent display.

However, the chamberlain leading them was heading outside the magnificent palace.

“Didn’t you say that the Emperor was waiting?”

“Yes. Today, His Majesty has summoned the officials not to the main hall, but to the courtyard at the entrance of the main palace. We are on our way there now.”

“The palace courtyard?” Luther Kyle, who was following behind, tilted his head, and the chamberlain added an explanation.

“It is usually used for major imperial events. It signifies how much His Majesty welcomes you both.”

A culture quite different from Grandia, where the host welcomes guests inside the house. Logan nodded at the unfamiliar fact and silently followed the chamberlain.

They had to pass through three gates just to leave the detached palace, circle around the inner castle, and head back to the entrance of the main palace.

“The guests from the Kingdom of Grandia are entering!”

– Let them enter!

As the knights threw open the last, third gate, Logan gasped. The palace wasn’t just big, it was shaped like a giant golden dragon, crouched down as if ready to spring. The golden roofs shone like scales in the sun, and the tall towers looked like the dragon’s head reaching for the sky.

“Hoo…!” It was not at all surprising that Luther Kyle, who had repeatedly emphasized the need to be vigilant, exclaimed in admiration.

In the wide courtyard in front of the palace, lines and lines of knights stood like statues, their armour gleaming, their faces hard and cold. Inside that stern formation, which exuded a chilling aura even from a distance, the imperial officials in long robes stood in silent lines, like trees in a forest, watching them pass.

At the end of the straight path that ran through their midst…

Beneath the belly of the dragon that wrapped around the entrance to the palace, someone sat on a massive throne adorned with golden dragons.

Even though he was at least two to three hundred meters away from the entrance where Logan and his party stood, his presence was so captivating that everyone around him seemed to fade from view.

The middle-aged man, with black hair, a square face, yellow skin that could only be seen in the imperial bloodline, and a grand physique, leaned back with his elbow on one armrest, looking down at the platform below. His face was full of intense curiosity, and above all, his black eyes gleamed with a strange light, capturing Logan’s gaze and refusing to let go. There was something in the Emperor’s eyes that made Logan feel like he was being studied, like an insect under glass.

‘…What is it?’

Before he could think about what it was, Logan tilted his head, feeling as if their eyes had met across the long distance.

‘Could it be….’

A distance where even the shape of a face would be difficult to distinguish with ordinary eyesight. He had been scrutinizing the expression in detail because it was something only he could do, but their eyes met?

But the moment he felt their eyes meet again, the Emperor smiled faintly.

Soon, as if to prove that it was not a mistake, the Emperor straightened his posture and gestured towards him.

“Come closer, young hero of Grandia.”

A subtle yet powerful voice, laden with presence, pierced Logan’s ears as if hammered in, even from hundreds of meters away. With that alone, a strange feeling of palpitation arose in his chest, and Logan snapped back to attention.

‘Magic…? Or presence? What is it?’

But there was no time to think deeply. Despite the presence of Luther Kyle, whose massive physique could not be ignored, the Emperor was only addressing Logan.

In a situation where countless eyes were focused on him, he had no choice but to move immediately. Even the mighty Luther could only follow closely behind Logan, who slowly entered the main hall at that moment.

“What, that big guy?”

“Doesn’t look young?”

“It must be the young man in front, you fool.”

“The one over there doesn’t have much of an impact.”

“Still, His Majesty must see something in him….”

“By the way, where is Grandia?” Whispering voices came from around him.

But Logan’s gaze remained fixed on the Emperor in front, unmoving.

‘Why? Why am I drawn to him?’

The reason why his gaze was drawn to the Emperor. He was preoccupied with thinking about that reason. But perhaps it was because he had been staring for too long.

‘Gasp?!’

Suddenly, an oppressive force that seemed to crush his entire body jolted Logan out of his reverie.

Only after his inner strength fought back against the pressure and asserted itself did Logan realize that he had entered within 50 meters of the Emperor’s throne. And also that this presence suppressing him was emanating from the ten knights lined up to the Emperor’s left and right.

The moment he realized that, Logan couldn’t help but be astonished.

‘They’re all superhumans?!’

Crack!

Logan stepped into the grand hall. Right away, he felt a heavy weight pressing down on him. Even walking felt like a huge effort.

A heavy energy pressed on him like a mountain. It felt cold and heavy, making it hard to breathe. His muscles tightened with each step. He could only focus on putting one foot in front of the other. He couldn’t even pay attention to the quiet talking around him, or to Luther Kyle walking behind him.

“Stop and bow 30 meters from the throne, at the shallow indentation,” the chamberlain had said.

The remaining ten or so meters to the spot the chamberlain mentioned felt like an impossibly long distance, such was the pressure.

Creak.

Fortunately, as he gritted his teeth and took each step forward, the pressure began to ease slightly.

Logan was strong, even for a superhuman. But this pressure was affecting him from far away. He knew then that even the strongest people would feel it.

Some of the weaker ones had already begun to withdraw their energy, one by one.

However, even after reaching the 30-meter mark the chamberlain had indicated, five distinct types of oppressive energy still bound his entire body.

Which meant…

‘At least five superhumans at my master’s level. Bloody hell.’

A bad feeling grew in Logan’s mind. He didn’t want to believe it was true.

The moment he recognized it, a psychological weight beyond the actual pressure seemed to crush his very soul.

‘The difference is this vast…?’

The confidence that he had prepared sufficiently vanished, replaced by an anxiousness that filled his heart.

Ten superhumans here, he thought, just in this palace. And then the Archmages, and the Legion commanders… Suddenly, the numbers he knew in his head became real. Too many. Far too many.

How many more hidden powerhouses were there besides?

It was a force that was daunting even to contemplate.

Facing the numbers he had only known in his head, a great fear began to take root in his heart.

‘How am I supposed to overcome this? How, exactly?’

The preparations he had diligently made, the preparations he thought were thorough, felt woefully inadequate.

But had he dwelt on that thought for too long?

“Insolent!”

A slightly youthful superhuman, with a vaguely familiar face, among those who had withdrawn their energy, shouted.

Logan quickly regained his senses and immediately knelt on one knee.

“Thank you for the invitation. Logan of Grandia greets the ruler of the Empire.”

Luther Kyle followed Logan’s lead and offered the same courtesy, but the Emperor’s gaze remained fixed solely on Logan.

The Emperor, having confirmed that the knights on either side had nodded in acknowledgment, wore a broad smile.

“So, Logan McLain. I have heard much about you. It is a pleasure to meet you. Seeing you in person, you appear even more remarkable than I had been led to believe.”

“…Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Logan didn’t know what the Emperor was thinking when he said those words, but they caused the gazes of those around him to shift once more.

“His Majesty is praising him so highly…?”

“Who is he, anyway?”

“Grandia is a small nation in the East…”

Small murmurs spread from here and there, finally reaching Logan’s ears.

“No. He is certainly better than the rumors suggest. The Aura User Slayer, the one who killed a superhuman. I have just confirmed that his reputation is not false.”

It was a test, as expected.

Though he felt displeased, he couldn’t show it.

Taking solace in having confirmed at least a portion of the Empire’s superhuman strength, Logan calmly replied.

“Please, Your Majesty, do not exaggerate my merits. I was merely fortunate.”

“Is that so? Well, we shall see. Jerome!”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

At the Emperor’s words, a relatively young superhuman on the left immediately knelt on one knee.

The superhuman who had scolded Logan a moment ago.

The moment that unfamiliar face and name overlapped, a certain person came to Logan’s mind.

‘Jerome? Could it be Jerome Decaid?’

His face couldn’t help but stiffen for a moment.

And regardless of Logan’s feelings, the Emperor continued with a smile.

“Compete with the young hero of Grandia. I wish to see for myself which is superior, the rising star of our Empire or the hero of Grandia.”

“I shall obey your command, Your Majesty.”

Inviting a person from another country and then suddenly ordering a competition without even asking for their opinion.

‘So, this is why you created this gathering.’

For this purpose from the start.

It was absurd, but no one protested against the absurd act.

Except for one person.

“Your Majesty, Logan is visiting you as a representative of our kingdom. This sudden situation is not appropriate, even considering customs……”

Luther Kyle continued with an unusually eloquent explanation, but the Emperor cut him off with a smirk.

“Hmm? I invited Logan McLain as an individual, not as an envoy. Where is there room to discuss customs? Luther Kyle, superhuman of the kingdom, are you now opposing my decision?”

The moment Luther’s large face stiffened.

Logan rose from his seat.

“If Your Majesty desires it, I must comply. However, I trust you will not hold me accountable should an unfortunate incident occur.”

Logan’s eyes, fixed on the Emperor, were filled with fighting spirit.

At that sight, the superhuman Jerome’s brow furrowed.

Suddenly, the Emperor burst into laughter.

“An unfortunate incident? Hahaha! Are you serious? This is truly amusing, amusing indeed. Young talent from another country, I merely intended for young talents to test their abilities against each other. Did you perhaps intend to be serious?”

Logan was rather taken aback by those words, but he nodded with a firm expression.

“If possible, wouldn’t it be more pleasing to Your Majesty to see us clash at full strength?”

At those words, the Emperor burst into hearty laughter once more.

After laughing for some time, the Emperor looked at the loyal knight kneeling before him in the silent grand hall, where everyone else remained silent.

“The young hero of Grandia seems truly confident in his victory. Jerome, what about you?”

“Except for the Empire’s masters, there is no one who can defeat me. I do not even consider the talent of some unheard-of small nation.”

A confident tone.

Jerome Decaid, the Empire’s rising star who had just turned thirty this year and had reached the realm of superhumanity three years prior, had eyes full of fighting spirit.

Just like the look in Logan’s eyes as he looked at him now.

‘Jerome, Jerome Decaid, of all people…’

He might be called the Empire’s rising star now, but in 20 years, the nickname attached to him would be different.

Namely, the First Sword of the Continent.

The strongest Aura User on the continent, and the strongest enemy who was called the Grim Reaper by the Grandia Liberation Front.

That was the biggest reason why Logan was being so proactive.

Jerome, as judged by his transcendent senses, still seemed far more immature than other superhumans.

So, the odds were in his favor.

‘At the very least, inflict a serious injury that he can never fully recover from.’

An opportunity to take away that potential from a future formidable foe.

Or, an opportunity to reduce the current superhuman strength of the Empire.

The Emperor’s whim-created game was of such significance to Logan.