The 9Th Class Swordmaster: Blade Of Truth [EN]: Chapter 178

141. An Unexpected Encounter

Kromen’s funeral proceeded smoothly for the remaining three days. In fact, the atmosphere within the Imperial Palace was so complex that the word ‘smoothly’ felt out of place.

“Cahill? Gather all information about him!”

“There’s no time! We must make a move before the funeral ends. We must prevent him from falling into Oliven’s hands!”

“If we can’t make him our ally… at least find his weaknesses!”

The commotion in the detached palace was none other than the work of Prince Ruon’s faction.

They already sensed that it would be difficult for Cahill to join forces with them because of what happened at Twin Armor.

‘He not only stopped Prince Ruon’s army but is also the adopted son of Quell McGovern. There’s no way such a person would side with us. Besides…’

When he saw Cahill talking with the Emperor in the Sun Hall, Minister Brin Inique already realized that the two shared some kind of connection.

‘As Kromen’s funeral ends, the Imperial Palace will be caught in a fierce whirlwind because of him.’

Only a day remained.

The Minister now planned to minimize the damage caused by Cahill as much as possible.

On the other hand,

Contrary to expectations, the Oliven faction, which naturally thought they would have brought Cahill to their side, was just as busy.

“Find out his whereabouts in detail!”

“How did he become the owner of Tatur [presumably a territory or title]?”

“Find someone who knows what happened at Twin Armor immediately!”

-A new day… what does that mean?

-Please watch over me, Your Highness.

Cahill was sparing with his words.

Quell looked perplexed at his answer, but it seemed to pique Oliven’s interest even more.

-I’ll be expecting it.

As if not wanting to lose, Oliven was equally sparing with his words.

In any case, that night,

Cahill’s appearance was enough to throw all factions into chaos.

“…….”

Unlike their feelings, Cahill simply watched Kromen’s funeral being held from the window.

The funeral lasted 24 hours, with condolences pouring in from each territory and mourners flocking in.

Strangely, there were no foreign mourners.

The Duchy was busy with civil war, and the Istrian Three Kingdoms were naturally in a cold war due to the fierce battle at Twin Armor during the recent southern subjugation.

Whatever the reason, the fact that no country participated in the death of the Empire’s prince, who was called the strongest on the continent, may be the worst disgrace in the Empire’s history.

‘Should I have brought even the southern barbarians?’

Cahill smiled bitterly as he thought about it.

Because no one knew yet that he was the ruler of the South.

‘It’s funny. Kromen is the only prince who met me in the South. Still, no one knows the relationship between Digon [likely a place in the South] and me.’

Moreover, Randal, the only person who saw him in Digon, was not here, even though he was wearing a mask then and now.

‘Although I changed the mask… this is like covering your eyes and saying “peek-a-boo.” If Randal were here, no matter how dull he is, he would sense something strange about me.’

It was too perfect to simply call it luck.

Cahill nodded, as if satisfied with the way things were going according to plan.

“Shall we go out now?”

The Emperor told him to refrain from acting during Kromen’s funeral, but he did not order him to be confined.

The biggest influence on that decision was Quell McGovern, but Cahill’s existence itself was significant beyond being the adopted son of the continent’s greatest swordsman.

‘Tiran Sutean must have been surprised inside. Originally, I broke my promise with him and acted on my own.’

However, even after seeing himself suddenly appear, he saw it as an opportunity rather than embarrassment.

‘Putting Father next to him in the Sun Hall is not just for protection. It’s to show me [demonstrate something to Cahill].’

The Emperor may have guessed that Cahill was the one who fired the arrow into the sky.

Cahill smiled coldly.

‘In that respect, the Emperor is still above [more cunning/skilled].’

Oliven also approached him using Quell McGovern as an excuse, but the two were in completely different positions.

The way the two approached Cahill was completely different.

‘Saying that I should follow because I am the one Quell McGovern chose is more effective than saying that he can kill Quell McGovern, so I shouldn’t do anything stupid.’

In that sense, the Emperor placed Belin Valention next to him along with Quell.

‘But even the Emperor didn’t know he was being poisoned… Oliven, you surpassed the Emperor in a different sense. Amazing.’

The poison Oliven used, Myeong (未明) [likely the name of the poison, meaning “pre-dawn” or “not yet clear”], was a highly toxic substance handled only by the Jannabi tribe, one of the northern tribes.

‘I need to find out how he got the poison from the foreign tribes.’

Cahill decided to quickly carry out the plans he had been thinking about this time.

‘You came to me on the first day, but I will go to you myself on the last day.’

After today, the Emperor’s reprimand will begin in earnest.

Before that, Cahill thought he should do some groundwork in advance.

Kugugugu……

As if it was about to rain, thunder began to sound in the sky.

Hwareureureuk……!!

On the last day of the funeral, the people, apart from being of the imperial bloodline, mourned the death of a child who was not even ten years old and lit smoke in their chimneys to soothe Kromen’s soul.

Watching the smoke gathering black like dark clouds, Cahill thought.

‘He was a prince who was loved after all. Or… was he a pitiful child in the eyes of the people?’

Cahill looked at the sky.

There were over thousands of smoke plumes rising from within the Imperial Palace, and the thick smoke lingered over the Imperial Palace for a long time like black clouds.

Tuk… Tuk… Tuk…

Raindrops began to fall on the window.

Even the black smoke that had been mourning began to slowly dissipate in the rain falling from the sky.

“It’s over.”

Cahill said quietly.

Ttalcak-

When he opened the door, the soldiers standing in the hallway watched him. They were wearing ordinary armor, but the aura emanating from them was unusual.

‘Knights.’

It wasn’t surprising because it was expected.

In addition, surveillance magic was cast around the hallway in case of emergency.

“I would like to go to the main palace… is that okay?”

“We will accompany you.”

“Let’s go.”

With Cahill’s skills, he could have eliminated the guards before the surveillance magic even triggered, but there was no need. His destination wasn’t Ruon and Olyvern, whom he was scheduled to meet in secret. It was then that a voice called out.

“Stop. Didn’t you know this place is off-limits?”

“I-I’m sorry!”

A commotion arose from down the hallway. Hearing the noise, Cahill paused and turned his head.

The speaker was a man who appeared to be in his early twenties.

His pale skin, as if he hadn’t seen sunlight in ages, and his neatly combed hair gave him the air of a dedicated scholar.

“This way is a shortcut to the academy… I didn’t realize it was a restricted area.”

“Seriously? Didn’t you hear about the commotion a few days ago?”

“I’ve been organizing books in the academy library… This is my first time out in a week…”

The guard looked dumbfounded. “Leave him be. Don’t you know who he is? He’s a scribe from the library, practically a legend in the palace. Even the court wizard has given him special permission.”

“Why?”

“Well, he single-handedly manages the books that the academy’s magic students use.”

“…What? All of them?”

The guard scrutinized the man, seemingly unable to believe that he managed a library with hundreds, even thousands, of books coming and going daily, all by himself.

“…”

Cahill carefully observed the man’s face, visible between the guards.

‘Interesting. I never imagined I’d find you here…’ Unlike the man, who wore a clumsy expression in front of the guards, Cahill’s eyes gleamed as he looked at him.

“Wait a moment,” Cahill said, walking toward them.

“I’ll head back right away,” the man said, bowing his head apologetically to the guards. As he raised his head, his eyes met Cahill’s.

At that moment,

Cahill noticed the man’s face, which had seemed so awkward, turn cold for a fleeting instant before relaxing again.

He understood the significance of that change.

‘He wasn’t lost.’

Cahill had always felt a gap in his capabilities, something he hadn’t been able to fill.

He anticipated difficulties in the future because he hadn’t found a suitable replacement.

What he needed was a strategist.

The most promising candidate was Tiren McGovern. Even in his previous life, despite being a fallen aristocrat, Kwell’s backing combined with his own abilities had allowed him to rise to the position of the empire’s prime minister.

‘Perhaps the same will happen in this life.’

But it would be absurd to expect Tiren to join him when he was essentially at war with the empire, unless he already held significant power within the empire.

‘So, the alternative I considered was Anthem Howard.’

However, Anthem Howard, known as a refugee after the fall of the Istrian Three Kingdoms to the empire, was actually an agent of Fran from the Lorraine Grand Duchy.

‘If my prediction is correct, Anthem Howard will be stripped of his commander position after the Lorraine Grand Duchy civil war and defect to the Kingdom of Penria, where Princess Viola resides.’

But Cahill knew Anthem’s ambitions extended beyond wealth and military power in the Kingdom of Penria.

‘Initially, he must have recognized Princess Viola’s potential.’

However, Anthem Howard eventually went to the empire and joined the First Prince Ruon’s faction.

‘He must have realized that talent alone is not enough if your leader lacks vision.’

The king of the Kingdom of Penria was incompetent.

The same was true of the other kings of the Istrian Three Kingdoms.

‘No matter how capable Princess Viola is, she can’t imagine treason. She is excellent, but ultimately, she is a hothouse flower. Sometimes, a ruthless approach to power is necessary to change things.’

Cahill smiled faintly.

This was why he had treated Viola harshly when she first came to him.

By subjugating Maggul and demonstrating the power of his Free Army, Viola’s perspective on the world had shifted.

Anthem Howard couldn’t achieve that, but Cahill had.

Perhaps this time, the first queen of the Kingdom of Penria would be born.

‘When I think about it, that guy’s life is truly tragic. He was demoted from commander of Cobb to a commoner and ultimately failed in his final choice, leading to his death.’

He was praised as a talent worthy of advising a king and was an excellent strategist, but all the rulers he served eventually met their demise.

‘If Fran loses the Grand Duchy civil war and Anthem Howard defects to Penria, and Viola ascends to the throne…’ Cahill had left that position vacant because none of the strategists he had considered had any connection to him.

‘Maybe in this life, even Anthem Howard’s fate will change.’

But if that happens, Anthem will follow Viola, not Cahill.

It might be a disappointing outcome.

But it’s acceptable.

Rather, he could later bring both Viola and Anthem Howard under his banner.

This was the reason for his decision in this brief moment.

“Nice to meet you,” Cahill said, looking at the man before him.

‘To think I’d meet you here.’

Even he hadn’t anticipated it.

A man he had dismissed from the beginning because he believed they would never cross paths.

But the fact that such a man was now a scribe in the library was truly surprising.

‘Perhaps the missed connection with Anthem Howard was meant to lead me to you.’