Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 44
Chapter Title: Suspicion
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Please take good care of me.
Arsen, Palato, and Luden hurried down the corridors of the estate lord's residence.
Groom, whose legs were still a bit unsteady for moving quickly, was riding on Arsen's back.
Snow was falling outside the windows on this ordinary afternoon, but the air inside the estate lord's residence was heavy.
No servants or administrators going about their errands were in sight. Instead, a few soldiers and squires with stern expressions stood guard in the hallways.
"What happened?"
"It was an attempted poisoning. They say he collapsed suddenly after drinking some wine. Luckily, Lady Eloise was right there with him, so he didn't lose his life."
"Is the lady unharmed?"
"I heard she is."
Only then did Arsen realize, in his haste, that he'd overlooked something important.
He carefully touched the earring and injected a tiny amount of mana into it.
A moment later, the earring vibrated, and with the sensation of an invisible line connecting to somewhere, a voice came through.
The voice from the other end of the earring trembled severely. Even without seeing her, Arsen could tell Eloise was in extreme distress.
[Sen? Is that you, Sen? Right, you idiot... I should have used this.]
[I heard the estate lord collapsed. Are you okay? Nothing happened to you?]
[I'm fine. But Father won't wake up. I already used a purification spell to neutralize the poison and even cast a healing spell. What should I do?]
[Calm down. We're on our way right now. Luden Knight and Groom are with me.]
[Got it. Hurry. Deroy and Lidat just dragged a bunch of other people here.]
When they reached the stairs and looked up, just as Eloise had said, a crowd had gathered in front of the estate lord's bedroom.
Knights, administrators, and various retainers all stood guard before the bedroom door, their faces etched with anxiety or anger.
Arsen didn't need to shout that a mage had arrived to clear a path.
The retainers, spotting Luden and Groom, stepped back as if burned, making way.
Inside the room, they saw Estate Lord Nut lying in bed, Eloise sitting in the corner of the bedroom, and Madam Iva standing behind her.
A short distance from the bed, the estate lord's two sons, Deroy and Lidat, along with a few knights, stood facing off as if in opposition, surrounding the bed.
On the opposite side from Eloise, the estate lord's personal physician was examining him, sweating profusely.
"Sen!"
Eloise jumped up from her chair and threw herself into Arsen's arms.
Arsen patted her trembling back while looking down at the collapsed estate lord's face.
Seeing him pale and corpse-like filled Arsen with a pang of sorrow.
Even though there had been some recent unpleasantness, Nut was Eloise's father and the lord who had allowed Arsen to live in the territory.
"Karnon, how is the estate lord's condition?"
At Palato's question, the personal physician, Karnon, pulled out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow and turned his head.
This middle-aged doctor, wearing glasses made from carved crystals, was one of the few inheritors of medical knowledge in the territory.
Fortunately, his medical expertise had developed its own systematic framework, unlike medieval quacks who lacked hygiene concepts and bled patients for injuries—though not as advanced as modern medicine.
Focused mainly on treating the body with medicines, he might be considered something like an internist in modern terms.
"It's not good... The poison is gone, but it seems he suffered serious internal damage in that short time. My apprentices are working to identify what kind of poison it was. I'm checking precedents for the symptoms too, but it's still hard to say for sure."
The physician flipped through the large book in his hand as if making excuses.
Watching him, Luden stepped forward and spoke.
"For now, I'll magically examine the estate lord's body, then have this fellow try treating him. Groom here is a master of healing magic. He can even reattach severed limbs."
At Luden's words, a few knights nodded in agreement. They had received treatment from him on the way back from the southern expedition, or during later training and outings.
Those who had experienced his healing all knew how exceptional Groom was, so the two mages were able to place chairs opposite the physician without much resistance.
The physician's face turned pale as he faced the two mages.
"Let's see..."
Faint silver light flowed from Luden's hands, enveloping the estate lord's entire body.
This analysis spell, which peered into the body's internals, had been instrumental in making Luden so knowledgeable about human anatomy.
The light scanned from his toes up through the knees, waist, chest, and to the head before being drawn back into Luden's hands. He winced slightly from the sudden influx of information, a mild headache forming as he tried to analyze it.
"Other areas are a bit damaged too, but especially the head... There's a problem inside the brain. Groom, focus your magic on the estate lord's head. Full power."
"Understood, Master!"
Following Luden's guidance, Groom placed his hands on both temples of the estate lord and cast a healing spell. After several minutes of bluish light enveloping the head, Groom stopped the spell and caught his ragged breath.
"Huff... Pant, Master. I'm out of mana; I can't continue."
"Got it."
Luden responded flatly, then cast the analysis spell on the estate lord's head once more.
After the light delved in and out for a moment, Luden let out a light groan and stood up.
"Healing spells won't work. It's not improving at all."
"Why is that?"
Pressing his throbbing head, Luden answered Palato's question.
"There could be a few reasons. Healing spells restore injured parts but can't regenerate severed ones, so the brain damage might be seen as 'permanent loss.' Or the poison used here might contain something that inhibits healing spells. There could be other issues too, but that's what comes to mind for now."
A heavy silence of despair filled the bedroom at Luden's words.
The only sound was the physician flipping pages, until a sharp voice broke the quiet.
It was the estate lord's eldest son, Deroy.
"Lidat, was it you?"
"What are you trying to say?"
"You know."
Lidat ground his teeth at Deroy's vague, nerve-grating words.
But knowing it wasn't the time to get heated, he calmed himself and glared at his brother.
"You're the one who's been acting all jittery lately. Did you go this far? Are you insane?"
"No way. Even if Father favors you, the successor is still me. Why would I? If anyone's the culprit..."
Deroy said this while exaggeratedly stroking his nose in mockery.
Seeing that, Lidat advanced as if ready to throw punches, but Ramun, standing behind him, gripped his shoulder firmly to hold him back.
"Don't get excited, Young Master."
"...Sorry. Uncle, I lost control for a moment."
Deroy clicked his tongue in disappointment as Lidat sighed and stepped back.
Unable to stand this farce any longer, Palato shouted in an angry voice.
"What is this disgraceful behavior right where the estate lord collapsed? Instead of finding the culprit, you're accusing each other without evidence. Do the two of you even realize your noble blood?"
If a typical young knight had said that, they might have berated him as rude, but Palato was a veteran knight with skills and experience second only to Ramun among active knights.
Deeply favored by the estate lord and popular with the younger knights, the brothers couldn't ignore or dismiss his outburst.
"My apologies, Palato Knight. That wasn't my intent."
"We'll be more careful."
As the brothers apologized politely, Palato glanced around and said,
"Is there anything else needed, Karnon?"
"For now, it would be best if everyone leaves so the estate lord can rest comfortably. This kind of environment is terrible for a patient."
"Understood. Let's leave two knights for guard duty... and Madam Iva. Everyone else out, including the young masters."
Declaring this, Palato stared pointedly at the two brothers.
"Amund Knight and Iden Knight. It would be good if these two guard the estate lord. What do you think?"
Amund followed Deroy, and Iden followed Lidat.
At this blatantly political decision, Deroy and Lidat glared at each other for a long while before nodding in agreement, standing, and leaving the bedroom.
Palato watched them go with a weary expression, then turned to Arsen.
"For now, let's head out too."
* * *
The territory's retainers were divided into three factions.
Knights following Deroy, knights following Lidat, and the neutrals who sided with neither.
The neutral faction consisted only of Arsen, Palato, and the three mages.
Excluding knights like Kamin and Zenovia on patrol, this meant every knight and administrator in the territory had sided with one of the two successors.
Arsen looked at the distant clusters of the other factions and remarked,
"Surprisingly, many knights follow Young Master Deroy. Administrators too."
Given Deroy's vulgar personality and the estate lord's recent moves favoring Lidat, Arsen had thought Deroy would have few followers.
But unexpectedly, the number chasing Deroy and Lidat was nearly equal.
Palato gave a weary smile at Arsen's words.
"He's been recognized as the firstborn for over twenty years since birth. Plenty think it's too late to switch to Young Master Lidat now. Plus, Young Master Deroy's maternal side isn't negligible either."
"You're talking about Knight Kort, right?"
Kort had been the strongest knight in Belluan territory before Ramun and was now a retired elder knight.
Unlike the somewhat aloof Ramun, he was known for his bold and intense leadership, with considerable influence.
The estate lord's first wife was Kort's daughter, making Deroy his grandson.
'If the estate lord hadn't taken three wives, this mess wouldn't have happened...'
As Arsen had that idle thought, he turned his gaze to Eloise, who had been sobbing just moments ago.
Her under-eyes and nose were still red, but unlike her completely broken state earlier, she now maintained a fairly composed demeanor.
[Feeling better now, Elli?]
Eloise whipped her head around at Arsen's voice through the earring.
A moment later, she replied using the artifact.
[Yeah. Sorry, I should have stayed calmer. Seeing Father collapse right in front of me... I panicked.]
Even in the shocking situation of her father suddenly collapsing before her, Eloise had immediately cast purification to prevent him from dying.
For a seventeen-year-old witnessing that, it was the best possible response.
After patting Eloise's shoulder in encouragement, Arsen asked Palato,
"But why did Young Master Lidat react like that earlier?"
"Which part?"
When Arsen mimed stroking his nose, a wry smile crossed Palato's face.
"Young Master Lidat and Ramun both have hooked noses. Young Master Deroy once mocked him, saying 'Your real father is Ramun,' playing on his nose. It was an insult lumping in the second madam, Ramun, and even the estate lord, so he got a severe scolding."
Only after hearing Palato's explanation did Arsen understand why Lidat had gotten so angry.
If that gesture carried such an insult, it was surprising Ramun had held him back.
It was tantamount to accusing Ramun of sleeping with his own sister.
A moment later, Arsen posed a question to Palato.
"Who do you think is behind this incident?"
"I'm not sure. With the estate lord recently showing signs of naming Young Master Lidat as successor, maybe Young Master Deroy got desperate and acted... But jumping to conclusions would be too hasty."
As he listened, a sudden realization flashed in Arsen's mind.
He immediately turned to Luden and asked,
"Luden Knight, where is that person? Did you send them away?"
Even with Arsen's vague question, Luden quickly grasped what he meant.
"Still downstairs. Locked up."
The exchange was cryptic to the others, but it was enough.
Arsen shot up from his seat.
"I'll step out for a bit."
Leaving the others looking up at him, Arsen left the estate lord's residence and headed for the mage tower.
Using a key hidden near the door, he unlocked the tower and opened the basement door.
The face of the Azure Merchant Guildmaster, imprisoned below, came into view.
"Knight Arsen! Did things go well?"
The estate lord collapsing on the very day the secret society made contact—it was too coincidental to be chance.
Creating political chaos after the estate lord fell or died was an extremely effective way to push Arsen out of the territory.
With many mages and artifacts at their disposal, pulling off such a scheme would be far easier.
Arsen interrogated him in a firm voice.
"No long talk, Guildmaster. Was this your doing?"