Chapter 150
Translator: Vine
Chapter: 150
Chapter Title: Empress Anatase
'I should make one too.'
It had been amazing from the sky, but experiencing it directly on the ground was beyond belief.
The open sky still whipped with biting winds, yet the inner castle maintained the perfect temperature between spring and summer.
Tap, tap.
Crunch, crunch.
Tia Bell and I walked in silence.
A dozen knights responsible for close protection followed at a short distance, as we headed toward a grand palace made of white stone, not far from the reception palace.
'Impressive magical knowledge.'
Of course, I didn't miss observing the palace on the way.
Not just temperature control magic—magic was extensively used in the gardens and various facilities.
It was perfect for reference in completing my mansion in Neruman.
'Nice scent.'
Tia Bell walked quietly beside me.
The soft expression she'd shown me outside had vanished, replaced by the icy aura from our first meeting enveloping her entire body.
An aura of haughty inapproachability.
No woman I knew could imitate Tia Bell's haughtiness.
'Security is impressive.'
The palace guards stood like statues everywhere in the inner castle.
A sharp mana scent emanated from their statue-like forms.
I'd already passed hundreds of them.
"Please remove your sword."
We arrived at the grand palace, supported by dozens of massive stone pillars around twenty meters tall.
At the entrance, over five meters high, a palace guard blocked us, demanding I remove my sword.
Click.
I had no desire to cause a scene, and since I excelled in magic and spirit arts beyond swordsmanship, I handed over my sheathed sword without hesitation.
Whoosh.
As I removed the sheath, the massive door slid open smoothly like an automatic door.
"Please enter."
The knights bowed politely toward Tia Bell.
Step, step.
Tia Bell entered with her head held high.
I followed behind her, step by step.
'Damn, using a second-grade magic stone on a mere door.....'
Even then, I eyed the large door.
Shockingly, a second-grade magic stone—one that would drive the entire continent mad—was embedded right in the automatic door.
'Hmm.....'
The sight upon entering the vast palace interior.
It was so spacious it drew a groan.
Exaggerating just a bit, the grand palace hall looked the size of a soccer field.
Dozens of white stone pillars stretched in rows, supporting the palace.
And deep inside.
At the far upper end, over two hundred meters away, sat a transparent silver chair.
Of course, palace guards were present inside as well.
High-level ones, at that—capable of containing their mana inward.
'High-circle mages too.'
A prickling scan mana touched my skin.
A mage capable of silent mana scans had reached the seventh circle.
I regulated my mana and stared straight ahead.
'Empress!'
Though two hundred meters away, one woman stood out clearly.
Seated on a three-meter silver chair, wearing a blood-red dress just like Tia Bell's.
Her mere presence dominated the space with overwhelming dignity.
Who else but the Empress of Hilderian?
Beside the Empress stood the white-haired mage who'd conducted the mana scan.
Rustle, rustle.
Tia Bell walked forward.
I followed behind her.
Zing, zing.
A thrilling sensation with every movement.
'They're all powerhouses.'
The challenging mana emanating from the palace guards inside the hall.
As if testing me, the mana intensified with each step I took.
Step, step.
The fighting spirit and mana that only high-grade knights who could control mana could emit.
My steps grew heavier.
'Ugh!'
Around the middle of the hall, my leg muscles began to tremble.
'These bastards!'
In that instant, Kang Hyuk-style defiance activated.
Whiiiiiing.
I boldly activated my mana hall with full force.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
Activating the mana hall caused even the Yin Dimension mana fused within it to spill outward.
"Gasp!"
"Hmm....."
Groans from the knights, who hadn't anticipated my sudden counterattack.
It wouldn't harm them, but their hearts would skip a beat from this level of mana scent and fighting spirit.
Swish.
'Trying to mess with me, huh.'
Their fighting spirit and mana faded as I crushed it with my own.
I approached the Empress with lighter steps.
"I greet Your Imperial Majesty."
When Tia Bell reached about twenty meters from the Empress, she bowed her head politely in greeting.
'Real parents?'
Even for an empress, Tia Bell's etiquette was so perfect it didn't feel familial.
'Not a white-haired witch.'
The Empress had white hair like Tia Bell.
She didn't look like a man-eating fox spirit.
No, she must have been called the world's greatest beauty in her youth.
Her mid-forties voluptuous figure left a strong impression paired with the red dress.
At a noble party, she'd have uncles drooling and losing their minds.
"Lord of Neruman, Count Kaiyer de Neruman, comes before His Imperial Majesty, Emperor of the Hilderian Empire."
I slightly bowed my head, placing my right fist against my left chest in the standard knight's salute.
Rustle, rustle.
The moment I gave my greeting, warm auras emanated from the knights behind me.
'Do whatever.'
She wasn't my emperor.
No need to bow excessively.
"Welcome, Count Kaiyer. You've had a long journey—well done."
'Wow!'
Her sweet voice rang in my ears.
She even gave me a warm smile.
"It is the greatest honor of my house to meet Your Imperial Majesty, whose fame precedes her, in person."
Since she responded softly, I added more flattery.
"Hehe. Your tongue seems even smoother than Crishea described. No wonder our innocent daughter misses you so, Count Kaiyer."
'Cough.....'
She said it laughing, but her words carried thorns.
'What the hell did Crishea say about me!'
There was a time when my dream was to be the last romanticist of this era.
Yet the Empress branded me as a smooth-tongued seducer of innocent girls.
She was no easy opponent.
"How could it be my smooth words? It is the princess's greatness in seeing my unseen sincerity."
The moment she denied my words, my praise of the princess would turn false, making the princess a fool too.
Smirk.
The Empress smiled softly, her depths unreadable.
Rustle.
Sparks flew as her eyes met mine in the air.
"I have one question for you, Count Kaiyer."
"Speak, Your Imperial Majesty."
An emperor, yet using honorifics toward me.
A formidable foe, but I'd show respect too.
She slowly met my eyes squarely and spoke.
"What... is your true identity?"
"....."
Ziiing.
The moment the Empress finished speaking, tension thickened in the hall.
Gulp.
I swallowed dryly without realizing.
Instinct screamed danger.
The Empress smiling as she asked.
She was questioning me now.
Asking what my true identity was.....
"You bastard to kill!"
A single Lumicar flew into Kerper Castle.
It carried an urgent letter from Marquis Holbein, the envoy sent to Bazran.
Duke Hardaim held the letter, his face flushed red as he crumpled it in his fist.
"Faultbiran... you're dead set on dying, aren't you."
To probe his intentions, he'd sent top gifts as birthday presents.
But that thieving bastard now demanded the entire kingdom on a platter.
"I'll send them. The Sky Knights you want—straight to Bazran's capital, not Neruman!"
He'd held secret meetings with various kingdoms.
Dodging Bazran spies, exchanging encrypted documents to formulate concrete plans.
"Count Kaiyer of Neruman. Just get his help, and then....."
The Bazran Empire was too much even for three kingdoms combined.
Thus, Duke Hardaim devised a scheme with crafty Duke Galpoise.
With Neruman's Lord Count Kaiyer's aid, the kingdoms could fully avenge themselves on the empire.
No—seize the chance to escape imperial influence and swallow vast imperial lands.
"Heh, if he's not an idiot, he won't refuse our offer."
Neruman's lord, hated by both Bazran and Raviter Empires.
They planned to propose destroying Bazran, granting not just Neruman but chunks of land, and jointly checking Raviter.
Any non-fool would grab it.
Kaiyer de Neruman.
No one on the continent could offer him better.
"Haha, hahahahaha!"
".....!!"
I burst into utterly refreshing laughter.
The palace guards showed undisguised displeasure.
If the Empress commanded, they'd sever my head on the spot.
Stop.
I ceased laughing.
Then looked straight at the Empress.
"What kind of emperor are you?"
My question burst forth.
"Insolent!"
"You bastard!"
The knights couldn't tolerate my audacity in questioning their sovereign and moved to intervene.
"Hehe, hahahahaha!"
Suddenly, the Empress laughed uproariously.
I was no pushover, but neither was she.
Stop.
But only briefly.
She cut off her laughter, gazing at me with cold eyes.
"You're an amusing one. Hehe. You're the first in my life to ask such an absurd question before me."
"The feeling is mutual."
I wasn't one to lose.
Our auras clashed evenly.
No mercy just because she was a woman.
"M-Mother....."
Only Tia Bell beside me trembled in shock.
She was leagues below the Empress in level and heart.
"Then allow me to say it formally. I am Emperor Anatase, ruler of the Great Hilderian Empire."
"I am Kaiyer, lord of Great Neruman."
Following Emperor Anatase, I revealed my identity(?).
"Your Majesty, dark dimension mana used by black mages is detected from this man's body."
Clang!
The moment the white-haired mage beside the Emperor spoke of detecting dark dimension mana, the sound of swords drawn echoed from all directions.
'Wanna fight?'
It was ridiculous.
They hadn't summoned me from afar just to detect the dark dimension mana in my mana hall.
Hilderian and the main continent were unrelated.
Even if I were a black mage, what business was it of theirs?
"Is that true?"
"Yes."
"Gasp!"
"D-Dangerous, Your Majesty!"
Rustle.
When I nodded and confirmed, the knights surrounded me in an instant, shocked.
They seemed worried for Princess Tia Bell's safety.
"I'll ask again. Do you know Altakas?"
'Altakas?'
I'd never heard the name—unless it was Altarimu.
"No, Your Majesty."
"Lies! If not a disciple of Destruction's Black Magic Swordsman Altakas, how could you reach high-circle magic swordsman at your age! Confess now for a painless death!"
The mage beside the Emperor pointed his staff—embedded with a fist-sized crystal orb—and bellowed at me.
'You messing with me now?'
Not like I was dragged to some agency for torture, yet this mage demanded I confess what I didn't know.
Their behavior was absurd.
"Empress Anatase, Your Majesty. Did you invite me here just to persecute me?"
The Empress seemed to have thoroughly investigated me.
She met my direct gaze without flinching.
"You must tell. This matter is more vital to our empire than any other. I have a duty to ascertain the truth."
Emperor Anatase pressed strongly.
"Hahaha. Didn't I clearly say it's not me? How can you ascertain truth then?"
I had no samurai-like urge to disembowel for truth.
This mage shoving an unknown as my master.
Her stubbornness suggested no easy resolution.
"No lies! Who on the continent could train a magic swordsman like you! Confess your ties to Destruction's Black Magic Swordsman Altakas! No escape for you!"
Rustle.
As his words ended, over a dozen mages appeared behind the Empress.
All sixth-circle or higher, it seemed—fierce mana surged from the elderly men's bodies.
"Funny old geezer."
"W-What!"
"Why assume your knowledge grasps the world! Don't think your magic is all there is! I don't know this Altakas, but before my master, he'd kneel!"
I wasn't usually this rude, but I was pissed at the old mage stubbornly trying to pin me.
I knew elders clung to habits and prejudices from experience.
But right was right, wrong was wrong.
"T-Then tell us! Who is the master who raised you!"
The bullheaded mage who learned pain from blows, taste from eating.
"Idal."
The grateful name Idal, called after so long.
"Gasp!"
"T-The Golden-Eyed Death God Idal!"
Terrified screams from the mages.
'Master's popular everywhere.'
Beyond the continent, even here in Hilderian—my thug master's Gandalf fame(?).
"L-Lies... Idal vanished a century ago....."
The mage demanded confirmation.
"Won't believe, huh? No matter what I say, you won't. You're dead set I'm this unknown Altakas's disciple—your stubbornness rejects facts. But truth is truth, lies are lies. If you won't believe me, do as you will. Heh heh heh....."
I smirked bitterly at Emperor Anatase and the mages.
Thud.
"M-Mother... Lord Kaiyer is not that kind of person!"
'Huh?'
The haughty Tia Bell suddenly knelt, defending me.
Moisture welled in Tia Bell's eyes, which had seemed incapable of a single tear.
No chance to know me, yet she cried and shielded me.
"Can you swear to your words?"
The Empress's quiet voice rang.
"Kaiyer de Neruman—I swear on my name. My master is not Altakas, but the Golden-Eyed Death God Idal."
"....."
Silence fell over the hall.
Empress Anatase gazed at me with deep eyes.
"Sheathe your swords."
Clang!
"Y-Your Majesty....."
"Akirion Duke, enough. Kaiyer is not connected to Altakas. Even with black hair and dark dimension mana as a magic swordsman, not is not. And... I trust Tia Bell."
Emperor Anatase's words, quiet yet naturally dignified.
"I am honored, Your Majesty."
The mage called Duke Akirion bowed and retreated.
"All palace guards, out."
"Yes, Ma'am!"
The life-and-death palace guards to her word.
They vanished silently from the hall the moment she finished.
"Sorry for the brief disturbance."
Emperor Anatase returned to her initial soft tone.
Watching her resolve the situation without a expression change, I thought, truly an emperor.
"Glad the misunderstanding cleared. But one thing piques my curiosity."
"Speak."
"Who is this Destruction's Black Magic Swordsman Altakas you mentioned? Why such reactions?"
I was genuinely curious.
The name Altakas, unknown on the continent.
Black magic swordsman sounded equally alien.
"I'll explain."
At the Emperor's command, Duke Akirion—who'd retreated—spoke.
"Since you're Master Idal's disciple, you're no outsider to our empire—I'll tell all."
'Huh? Master's tied to Hilderian Empire too?'
What a networker.
Hard-to-meet dwarves and elves on the continent, now Hilderian—master's connections.
I perked my ears, listening intently to Duke Akirion.
After the emotional storm, this Altakas tale seemed worth it all.
"Precisely 203 years ago... Ovans Territory fell overnight, Death Knights appeared....."
Duke Akirion's voice echoed in the hall.
I focused my mind.
A hunch it related to me.
Hunches never missed, even when they could.
Eyes sparkling, I stared piercingly at the duke's mouth as he began the Altakas story.
"Kaiyer's not in Neruman!"
Raviter Empire's capital.
Newly titled Count Lucens.
Deeply trusted by the Emperor, he'd gained an office in the imperial palace.
Reading the encrypted spy report from Neruman, he was astonished.
"Chance!"
Instinct told him opportunity knocked.
Neruman with or without Kaiyer was worlds apart.
Without Kaiyer, Neruman was spear-wielding infantry sans shields.
"Heh heh heh."
Lucens smirked slyly.
Neruman without Kaiyer could be swept by five hundred wyverns.
That number could cross Kobiran Mountains in a week.
"Thanks, Kaiyer."
Spies confirmed he was gone awhile—reliable intel from a key knight in Neruman.
"Where is His Majesty! Find his location at once!"
Lucens asked his assigned attendant about the Emperor's position as he headed out.
The smile lingered on his lips.
Like a poison flower long scattering death's fragrance....