The Return Of The Genius Ranker Of All Times [EN]: Chapter 303

303.

“……Charlie?”

A deep-seated sorrow resided in his trembling hands.

In stark contrast to his chillingly composed face, his eyes flickered with intense fury.

Indescribable emotions swirled within him, manifesting as palpable bloodlust.

‘Calm down, Charlie! This is the Imperial Palace.’

‘Lizariza!’

I hastily whispered, fearing he might draw his sword at any moment, but Charlie remained silent.

He stood frozen like a statue, his eyes tightly shut, seemingly exerting the utmost patience.

The revelation that the Lord of Arren Castle was a mole must have been quite a shock.

Considering he had directly experienced the Arren tragedy, suffering the most from the abyss’s terror, it was understandable.

‘There’s no way he can calm down.’

I kept a close watch, ready to grab Charlie and run at a moment’s notice.

“Well, this is a bit awkward.”

“Ah, pleased to meet you. I am Do-hyun.”

Do-hyun belatedly accepted Garion’s outstretched hand.

He couldn’t simply ignore him with the princes watching.

Sss.

Grasping his hand, Do-hyun calmly scanned Garion.

A middle-aged face, presumably around Charlie’s age.

However, unlike Charlie, a handsome middle-aged man with a noble air, Garion had a sharp and rugged appearance.

His towering height of around 190cm [approximately 6 feet 3 inches] and his beast-like physique further accentuated that impression.

‘He’s incomparable to the knight I saw at the workshop.’

More than anything, the aura he exuded was entirely different from that of Duran, the Gale Knight, who was said to be a match for the Ten Great Guild Masters.

He was weightier, sturdier, and fiercer. The difference was so vast that it felt almost insulting to compare them.

Garion was, after all, the commander of the Arren Castle Knights.

Considering the current prominence of Arren Castle, it was only natural.

‘To think the Lord of that Arren Castle was a mole.’

It was truly an unimaginable identity.

At the same time, it was incomprehensible.

‘How does the Lord possess the Imperial family’s trump card?’

The Knightly Order is one of the Empire’s three major powers.

Among them, Arren Castle is one of the top-ranking castles.

Every user knew about it, as it had even appeared in the tutorial.

Naturally, the Lord of such a castle would be a noble with immense power, but it made no sense for him to possess the Imperial crest.

‘It’s a symbolic token held only by those who inherited the blood of the first Emperor.’

Could it be that Garion was a descendant of the first Emperor?

A setup straight out of a drama, where the hidden son of the king is the commander of the knights.

And so, in a fit of anger, he tries to destroy the Empire!

Wouldn’t that make sense?

‘I have to catch him now.’

Whatever the case, this was the only opportunity.

If someone who was the commander of the Arren Castle Knights started rampaging, the difficulty would increase dramatically.

He had to be nipped in the bud without giving him a chance.

Fortunately, there were two princes here, and the Emperor was just down the hallway.

“Your Highnesses. Have you ever been to the Labyrinth?”

“The Labyrinth… you mean the Labyrinth of Rejection? Only apostles can enter that place.”

“That’s what I understand as well, but what’s this about?”

Do-hyun continued in a serious tone, addressing the questioning princes.

“The conditions change each time someone enters the Labyrinth. His Majesty the Emperor also said that initially, everyone, not just apostles, could enter.”

“Is that so? That’s surprising information to learn.”

“I just found out as well. But why are you bringing this up?”

Do-hyun focused his gaze on Garion, not the princes.

By now, Garion would have some idea of what was going on.

He had set the stage, and now he would observe what kind of reaction Garion would show, but Garion remained unfazed.

‘Would he still be so calm if I brought this out?’

Do-hyun smiled wryly and presented the crest he had received from the 1st Emperor.

Receiving the crest, the prince couldn’t hide his surprise.

“This is… a golden crest? How did you come to possess something that only the Imperial family has?”

He knew better than anyone the value of the golden crest, as he had used it many times to overcome difficult situations outside.

“I obtained it after defeating a legion commander in the Labyrinth. Someone must have visited before the Labyrinth’s entry conditions changed.”

“……Why are you telling us about this important matter now?”

“I apologize. Since it’s an Imperial crest, I needed to be certain.”

In other words, he was saying that he had been suspecting them.

It was something that could make them feel unpleasant, but they understood.

Since it was clearly an Imperial crest, anyone other than Do-hyun would have judged the same way.

That wasn’t what they were curious about right now.

“So, the reason you’re telling us this now is…”

“Yes. I’ve found the one who was colluding with the abyss.”

Do-hyun’s shocking declaration filled the room with silence.

The sound of someone swallowing could be heard, and the 1st Prince’s chilling voice echoed softly.

“……So, you’re saying the culprit is among us?”

“You’re looking at me. I assure you, it’s not me, brother.”

“I know you’re not the type to do such a thing. But if that’s the case, it means Father is the mole.”

The 1st Prince seemed troubled.

Currently, there were only three members of the Imperial family remaining in the Empire.

If it wasn’t the two gathered here, then circumstantially, it meant the Emperor was the mole.

It was shocking that his father was a mole, but if the ruler of the Empire was a mole, he had no idea what to do.

“No. Neither His Majesty the Emperor nor the two of you are moles.”

“? Then who on earth dared to possess the Imperial crest?”

“I don’t understand.”

Even while the two were bewildered, Garion showed no reaction whatsoever.

As Do-hyun stared intently at Garion, everyone’s gaze naturally turned towards him.

“……Could it be?”

Garion, who had suddenly become the center of attention, said nothing.

He simply kept his mouth shut and met their eyes.

Looking at him, Do-hyun declared as if delivering a sentence.

“Garion Ban Rodman. The crest reacted to you.”

It was checkmate.

With the truth revealed in this room with two princes present, there was nothing he could do.

‘He knows best what happens when someone raises a flag of rebellion against the Imperial family in the Empire.’

Especially since treason was the greatest crime of all.

He would be subjected to all sorts of torture and meet a miserable end.

Of course, he would deny it, but there was clear evidence in the form of the crest, so it was meaningless.

In fact, the faces of the 1st and 2nd Princes were hardening.

‘It’s over.’

The time had come to finally end the forgotten King’s quest.

But what was this?

The reaction that came back was neither denial nor confession.

“Keuh…!”

It was laughter.

He was laughing even though he was about to be tortured and die miserably?

It wasn’t just Garion.

“Hahaha!”

“Heuheup….”

Even the 1st and 2nd Princes were laughing?

The faces that had been hardening were twitching, and the room instantly turned into a sea of laughter.

Do-hyun’s face suddenly turned serious as he watched the reactions that were logically incomprehensible.

A warning light flashed in his head.

‘Could it be that the two of them are also in cahoots?’

Garion was just the one who acted directly.

In fact, everyone might be involved.

When he thought about it, it was safer to have the commander of the knights act than for the Imperial family to move directly, so it was entirely possible.

‘Damn it…!’

He had been relieved and spoken because he had concluded that the Emperor, 1st Prince, and 2nd Prince were not moles.

He had been short-sighted.

If he was caught here, he would be falsely accused of all sorts of things and imprisoned.

Then everything would be over.

Sss.

Just as Do-hyun instinctively reached for the Cheonbyeon [his weapon].

“It’s been a while since I’ve laughed like this.”

“I agree. To think that Lord Garion is a mole, hahaha!”

“Please don’t be like that. It was a situation where he could have been misunderstood.”

“Didn’t you laugh the loudest?”

“Keuheum….”

The laughter stopped, and they uttered incomprehensible words.

‘Misunderstood?’

As Do-hyun’s face turned sullen, Garion smiled and approached, handing him something.

A crest with a golden border and a dragon drawn on it.

“……A crest?”

A golden crest, the symbol of the Imperial family.

It felt like it had been around for a long time, but it was well-maintained and hadn’t faded.

“The golden crest reacts to the same crest. It’s to identify the Imperial family so that no unfortunate incidents occur.”

“So, it’s only natural that it reacted to Lord Garion, who has the crest.”

Even the 1st Prince added his testimony, but the questions still weren’t resolved.

And Garion, who had noticed that like a ghost, smiled.

“You’re wondering why I, who am not a member of the Imperial family, have this.”

“…….”

“There’s no reason not to tell you. This is my treasure and nothing less than a family heirloom.”

He carefully put the crest back into his chest and opened his mouth.

“This is the crest that my lord entrusted to me before he passed away.”

“……Lord?”

“When His Majesty the Emperor was the 2nd Prince, he was a great knight called the reincarnation of the Lion King and a promising candidate for the next Emperor.”

Garion said, concluding in a calm tone.

“I’m talking about His Majesty the Emperor’s older brother.”

* * *

-All the bloodlines of the Imperial family bloom in competition.

It is a saying that has been passed down from ancient times and an immutable law.

There are many princes, but there is only one Emperor’s seat.

Competition makes people grow, but it also makes people evil.

To get what they want, they don’t hesitate to use any means or methods to check each other, and they go too far and shed blood.

Long history proves this, but very rarely, there were cases of benevolent competition.

Bairan de Arnis.

His case was like that.

-He is the reincarnation of the great Lion King!

-If it is Bairan, he will be able to reach the highest level.

-Ah, the future of the Empire is bright.

-He has both the qualities of a tyrant and the qualities of a wise ruler, so how can we refute it.

The 1st Prince, he showed genius in various fields from a young age, and the younger brother, who had to compete for power, followed him well.

Jealousy? There was no way there could be such a thing.

The difference had to be appropriate to be jealous, but in Bairan’s case, respect came before jealousy.

But geniuses have short lives.

On the day he turned 20.

Suddenly, Bairan, who had an unknown disease, weakened rapidly.

The charismatic appearance disappeared without a trace, and the boneless body withered away.

He withered away slowly like a fading flower, and eventually died without lasting more than 3 years.

Therefore, the younger brother, who would not have been able to become Emperor, became Emperor, and from that day on, the younger brother lost his smile and his personality changed.

That was Baharun de Arnis.

That was the hidden history before he became Emperor.

“I was the first sword who served Bairan from a young age.”

And the first sword of such Bairan 1st Prince, and the knight who helped his younger brother Baharun to stand as Emperor according to Bairan’s will.

Also, an existence that is like an uncle to the current princes.

That was Garion Ban Rodman.

“There’s no way Lord Garion would collude with the abyss.”

“In the first place, the crest that he has is carefully kept. It’s impossible unless he had two crests.”

“However, the situation is not good. We need to investigate how the crest was there.”

“I will inform His Majesty.”

It was only natural that he had Bairan’s crest.

Because Bairan gave it to him directly before he passed away.

And that crest is now in Garion’s hand.

It was a situation with no room for doubt, but Do-hyun’s expression was subtle.

‘Huh.’

The moment Garion presented it as Bairan’s crest, Do-hyun could see it.

[The Eye of Truth is activated.]

The red light that started from the crest he took out stretched out like a thread to Garion and both princes.

Also, a message window was floating above it.

[An item related to the main quest has been found.]

[You have found the key to the fifth fragment of fate.]

[You have completed the main quest, ‘Fifth Fragment of Fate (2)’.]

[A linked quest has been generated.]

‘What the hell is going on?’

It was the moment when he suddenly found the key to the fragment of fate.

Oh