Surviving As The 5Th Prince Of Hellman Kingdom [EN]: Chapter 113

113

It was close to midnight.

A carriage was passing through the lord’s castle of the Runtia Duchy.

The owner of the carriage was Count Hobart.

He had barely survived a riot in his territory not long ago. It was during a banquet at the hunting grounds, and the riot troops attacked when the mages and knights were all drunk.

If he hadn’t been resourceful enough to steal a coachman’s clothes, he would have surely been killed by the rioters.

Having survived, Hobart wasn’t foolish enough to mobilize his knights to suppress the rioters without thinking.

He understood that wiping out the rioters in anger would eventually lead to his own starvation.

Perhaps it was because he had barely survived a life-threatening situation?

From then on, Hobart’s instincts and thoughts were focused on ‘survival.’

He recalled the meeting at the Runtia Duchy after the Honorary Nobility Act was railroaded through the State Council.

– The Honorary Nobility Act! This is nothing short of a declaration of war by the Fifth Prince to starve us to death.

– They railroaded it through while we were temporarily away to stabilize our territories. We must all go to the capital right now.

– That’s right! We can never accept this! The sacred duty of national defense? It’s the same as taking our successors hostage!

– The tax regulations are even more absurd! Since the founding of the Lionel Kingdom, there has never been such an attempt to suppress the authority of the lords.
.
.
.

The lords, united around Duke Moria to avoid losing a single thing in their grasp.

– Don’t worry. Have you forgotten who I am? The King of the South! The 7-star mage, Moria Runtia.

Moria was encouraging these lords without any real solutions.

That’s when a warning bell rang in Hobart’s head.

He realized that continuing to hold onto the Moria line would only lead to them plummeting off a cliff.

He was contemplating going to the royal capital to find Count Clian when a man came to him.

– I’m Julian.

The man, who appeared with letters from Count Miloa, Count Clian, and even a handwritten letter from the Fifth Prince, made Hobart’s instincts advise him to follow his words to survive, and Hobart trusted his instincts.

Knock, knock.

At the butler’s knock on the reception room door, Hobart hurriedly returned from his past recollections to reality.

“Duke Moria, Count Hobart has arrived.”

“Let him in.”

The door creaked open, and Hobart entered the reception room with a nervous expression.

“What’s so important that you need to see me at this late hour, Count Hobart?”

Moria was waiting for him. His face was flushed, and the smell of alcohol was strong, as if he had been drinking.

“I have something I must tell you directly, Duke.”

“Speak.”

Hobart glanced sideways at the sofa.

The fact that he wasn’t being told to sit meant that he was expected to say what he had to say and leave quickly.

Indeed, how many people must have requested an audience with Moria? He was a count, so he was being granted a meeting at this late hour.

“Our territory is adjacent to the Elven Forest.”

“Was it the 17th branch of the World Tree?”

“As expected, you know it well. The Elven Forest, especially, suffered greatly when the Red Star Fever [a fictional disease] swept through the South. Rumors spread that even the forest keeper had fallen ill with the Red Star Fever.”

“Is that so? But what does that have to do with anything?”

“Recently, knights disguised as mercenaries ambushed men suspected of being slave hunters.”

“So?”

“They were no ordinary men. The knights suffered considerable losses. After a fierce battle, two 4-star knights lost their lives.”

“Hmm, if mere slave hunters managed to kill two 4-star knights, they must have been quite extraordinary. Were any of them captured?”

“The captain said that the captured men bit down on poison and committed suicide. The problem is what came after…”

Hobart once again glanced at the sofa. Moria chuckled and gestured towards the sofa.

“It seems like this will be a long story. Don’t just stand there, take a seat.”

“Thank you.”

“Now, continue. So, what was the problem? Did you find the Elven Queen’s successor in their carriage?”

“No. What we found in their carriage was a small treasure chest.”

“A treasure chest? What was inside?”

“Dozens of glass bottles containing a very small amount of an unknown liquid. The family mage analyzed the contents and said it was the essence of herbs commonly found in the Elven Forest.”

Moria chuckled.

“That must be a lie.”

“I thought so too. You have to deceive someone who can be deceived, don’t you? There’s no way I couldn’t have read the greed in their eyes. Clearly, it was made using a rare spirit herb. Like the Sky Flower.”

“Did you happen to bring it with you?”

“Of course.”

Reaching into his coat, Hobart took out a vial the size of his little finger and handed it to Moria.

Moria examined the vial closely.

Opening his third eye to observe mana, he felt like he was suffocating from the immense energy contained in the liquid.

‘This is…’

Moria had actually consumed the Sky Flower before.

This was incomparable.

It was unbelievable, but there was only one thing that could be considered the raw material for the liquid in the vial.

‘The fruit of the World Tree.’

Moria, with difficulty, took his eyes off the vial and looked at Hobart.

“The rest, are you keeping the rest?”

“Of course. I’ve hidden it in a place only I know.”

Moria’s eyes sharpened.

The fruit of the World Tree at this unexpected time?

‘Is this a trap?’

He stared intently into Hobart’s eyes.

***

I have three people around me who are considered ‘geniuses’ with extraordinary minds.

Clian, Julian, and Miloa.

Their tendencies and specialties are all different.

Among them, Julian’s administrative processing skills are not even close to those of Clian and Miloa, but he excels in the field of reading the other person’s psychology.

– Moria will never easily trust Count Hobart. He is a suspicious man.

As Julian said, Moria wasn’t so blinded by the bait that Count Hobart offered that he rushed out of the lord’s castle.

– The Honorary Nobility Act has passed the Assembly. He needs to unite the nobles of the South. He will hold another meeting at his lord’s castle. Count Hobart will be detained in the Runtia Duchy until then and will not be able to escape.

Count Hobart, who had visited the Runtia Duchy, had not been heard from since.

He was detained.

And the day before yesterday, Miloa, who had received intelligence that the southern nobles had departed for the Runtia Duchy to meet again, visited me.

– I told Count Hobart to inform them of the secret location where the concentrated extract of the World Tree fruit is stored at the appropriate time. Duke Moria will send his most trusted confidant to that location.

Around midnight yesterday, it was confirmed that the Runtia Knights Commander had secretly left the lord’s castle with a small number of men.

And now.

「Duke Moria. We have secured the item.」

「Oh! Really? Was it really stored as Count Hobart said?」

「Yes. It matches exactly what you showed me. The quantity is also correct.」

I eavesdropped on the communication between the Runtia Knights Commander and Moria, who were stealing my concentrated extract of the World Tree fruit through a magical tool secretly installed in Count Hobart’s secret location.

Julian told me to rest in Emerald Palace, but I couldn’t miss such an interesting sight.

After confirming that the Runtia Knights Commander had left, I got up from my seat.

“Shall we go, Reina?”

“Yes.”

Reina was wearing tight black clothes and a black mask, and she was disguised with long, elf-like ears.

No matter how you looked at her, she was an Elf Extermination Squad member who went around punishing the betrayers of the forest and hunting down elf hunters.

I looked at the twin daggers hanging from her waist.

If you’re going to imitate the Elf Extermination Squad, a bow would be more certain, but since many of them use twin daggers, it shouldn’t be a problem.

***

Moria was in a good mood all day after receiving the news that the Runtia Knights Commander had secured the elixir made using the fruit of the World Tree.

It was the first time in nearly half a year that he had smiled so brightly.

‘Ah, this is not the time for this.’

Moria, who was getting up from his seat and moving to the place where Count Hobart was being held, met the southern nobles he had summoned for the meeting in the middle.

“Duke, you look bright, so it seems you have good news.”

“It seems worthwhile to have rushed here at your request, Duke.”

“Haha, would I have called you here without anything to report? Today’s meeting will be worth looking forward to.”

“That sounds really exciting. Hahaha.”

“Ah! Count Hobart was said to have arrived in advance, but I can’t see him anywhere. Is there something wrong with him?”

“Count Hobart is suffering from a hangover from drinking too much. He’ll come out of his room when he feels better.”

Moria, who had filled the hearts of those he met with anticipation, moved his steps again.

He arrived at a room where two knights were standing guard.

“Were there any special occurrences?”

“No, there weren’t.”

“You’ve worked hard.”

“It’s nothing!”

Moria praised the two knights, then opened the door and entered. Count Hobart, who had been tilting a bottle of alcohol, jumped up when he saw him enter.

“Duke Moria! Did the Knights Commander find the item?”

“It was as you said. I’m sorry for doubting you.”

“It’s nothing. You should doubt me a hundred or a thousand times. If something happens to you, Duke, we’re all dead.”

“I plan to reward you greatly when the situation is over, so look forward to it.”

Hobart looked out the door and carefully opened his mouth.

“Then, can I leave this room now?”

“Of course. There are already people looking for you. I know you’re suffering from a hangover, so play along appropriately.”

“Of course.”

Moria released Hobart and returned to his office.

He took out the vial containing the enchanting liquid that he had secretly kept and admired it.

’30 of this amount…’

Moria was a mage who had taken some elixirs.

He knew that the amount was far short of one World Tree fruit.

‘Is this what was left over from using it on Elbengard?’

He had some doubts, but it didn’t matter.

The important thing was whether he could use it to reach the 8-star mage level.

‘It’s possible.’

It had already been 20 years since he reached the 7-star level. Moria was confident.

‘If I reach the 8-star mage level, many things will change, Fifth Prince.’

He raised the corners of his mouth, imagining pleasant things.

At that moment.

Weeing- Wee-ing─

One of the rings decorating his finger flashed red and vibrated.

A communication that came in with an emergency code.

Moria hurriedly brought the ring to his lips.

“What’s going on, Runtia Knights Commander?”

「Attack, it’s an attack! The Elf Extermination Squad followed us right before entering the duchy!」

Thump!

Moria jumped up. The chair fell roughly in the wind.

“What! What’s the current situation?!”

「It’s a powerhouse close to 7-star! My men are buying time, but I’m running away at full speed, but I’ll be caught soon!」

“Where are you!”

「If I run a little further, I can reach the 9th base area.」

Base area.

A residence known only to a very small number of the Runtia family, equipped with a magic circle that assists long-distance teleportation.

The only thought that came to Moria’s mind in this urgent situation was.

‘I have to go right now.’

He was worried about leaving the lord’s castle, but it was a base area. It would be a matter of moments to take the Knights Commander and the elixir and return to the lord’s castle.

Moria hurriedly left his office.

He moved to a secret space prepared in the basement of the lord’s castle and brought his hand to the firmly closed iron gate.

Kugung- Kugugung.

The thick iron gate opened in response to magic.

Moria went up on the magic circle that moved to the 9th base area.

“Knights Commander! What’s the situation!”

「······ Tss··· Tss······.」

Only noise was heard.

It was clear that the situation was so urgent that he couldn’t answer.

‘I have to hurry.’

Only that thought filled Moria’s head.

Goooo-.