Chapter 55
Chapter: 55
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 055
>Chapter Title: Clanos (7)
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>Not long after, Masain and the man arrived at the temporary encampment of the army stationed on the plains near the north gate.
It looked like a hastily set-up position, with uniforms from the Imperial Guard, the Holy Guard, and various Holy Knight Orders all mixed together in a bustle of activity. Yet what was astonishing was how they moved with perfect discipline and no confusion in the chain of command.
A burly-faced knight who had been barking orders at the soldiers spotted them as they entered and approached with a scowl.
With his massive build, hair cropped halfway up, and eyes gleaming fiercely, he was someone Masain knew well.
Balthazar, the continent's greatest knight. Probably one of the most famous in Delcross.
No one knew when he had returned from the southern front.
He strode over with an air like he was ready to throw a punch, but surprisingly, when he reached the man, he placed a hand on his chest and gave a light bow of respect.
"Your Holiness."
Your Holiness? Masain looked up at the man in surprise.
The man facing Balthazar looked somewhat bored.
"What are you doing here instead of at the Imperial Palace?"
"I'll throw those words right back at you. Why are you here instead of at the palace? And what about the scouts—why are you wandering around alone?"
"How long am I supposed to wait for scouts? It's faster if I just take a quick look myself."
"That's..."
A vein bulged on the fierce knight commander's forehead, but before he could say more, the man swiftly changed the subject.
"Still, there was a result. I rescued Masain from the fortress. He held out well in tough circumstances."
Only then did the knight commander glance back at Masain standing behind the man. His expression shifted subtly for a moment. If put into words, it was something like, "Why him?" or "Why of all people?"
Of course, he quickly schooled his features and awkwardly lifted the corner of his mouth toward Masain.
"I'm glad you're safe, Lady Masain."
He didn't seem to think it was glad at all.
Balthazar completely ignored Masain after that and turned back to the man.
"The Imperial Palace is defended airtight by the 3rd Imperial Guard Knights and the Saint Aurelion Knights. We've set up a tent for Your Holiness, so please rest without worry."
"Very well. I'll leave the cleanup of the gate fortress to you."
"Yes, Your Holiness."
Balthazar gave a curt nod and left. Without so much as a glance at Masain.
That was how quickly treatment changed for a fallen imperial scion. The man seemed to feel that subtle chill too, clicking his tongue lightly.
But Masain had a more pressing issue. At this point, he couldn't pretend not to know who the man before him was.
"Um... are you perhaps Uncle Nathaniel?"
It was from long ago, but Masain had a vague memory too. Among the imperial family's bright blondes, the only boy with black hair. He'd never spoken to him, but he remembered the pale complexion, like he was always ill.
The man blinked several times at Masain's question.
"I only brushed past you a few times as a child—I didn't think you'd recognize me."
So it was true.
The man nodded to Masain.
"Yes, I am Nathaniel Clanos. Not yet coronated, but the current 17th Holy Emperor, and in private, your uncle."
Only then did Masain understand the knight commander's odd reaction earlier. For someone who had vanished and suddenly reappeared to inherit the throne, the survival of Masain—the legitimate child of the 1st Crown Prince—must be extremely awkward.
His thoughts didn't go further. A stern-faced knight in dark uniform approached.
"Your Holiness."
"Sir Leandroth."
The head of all exorcists and captain of the Saint Terbakia Knights, Leandroth.
He had always kept a step back from the throne struggle—who knew when he had started serving this man as Holy Emperor.
"There were only small fry left in the fortress. The [Puppeteer] was already gone."
"So you do think it was him, the [Puppeteer]?"
They exchanged hushed words in voices too low to make out.
"There can't be two with that kind of presence. I'm certain."
"Understood, Your Holiness. Then I'll order the pursuit to Brittany."
Sir Leandroth nodded, gave a formal bow, and withdrew. Without looking at Masain, of course.
"Hmm..."
The man scowled briefly, but Masain knew well that even he couldn't help it.
They hadn't taken a few steps toward the tent when yet another figure approached.
A dignified, handsome middle-aged man—the real power in the council these days, and rumored to be the youngest ever to become cardinal, Archbishop Capran.
"Your Holiness."
He greeted the man with refined poise, but upon spotting Masain, his face changed. He openly showed utter disbelief.
"This... Wasn't this not part of the plan, Your Holiness? What is this...?"
Masain was momentarily speechless at the face openly asking why she was still alive.
It was a blunder someone as seasoned in politics as him wouldn't normally make. But Archbishop Capran had let his true colors slip for a moment, and the man's eyebrow twitched, the air around them turning sharply cold.
"Archbishop Capran."
Capran flinched. The man gazed at him with a faint smile, and Masain learned for the first time how chilling a smiling face could be, like a blade.
"Tatiana Capran will become Empress, and I'll grant the Clanos name to Masain. What more are you dissatisfied with?"
"But..."
"That's enough."
The man raised a hand to silence the archbishop.
"A person must know when to be content. Who knows—I might change my mind suddenly."
He flashed his teeth in a grin.
"I might just flip over the board you've so carefully set."
The archbishop's face drained white. He bit his lip, glared at Masain briefly, then composed himself and bowed politely.
"My apologies, Lady Masain."
The man walked toward the tent without a glance at the archbishop. Masain hurried after him, the sharp stare boring into their backs quite unnerving.
"Capran looks proper, but he's sly enough. I thought about getting some food here, but no. Better watch what you eat or drink for a while."
The man clicked his tongue and gave Masain a small nod.
"Come on. I'll crack some walnuts for you first."
They finally reached the tent. Being for the Holy Emperor, even this hasty military setup felt quite cozy.
He sat Masain on one side of the cot and rummaged through his robes, pulling out a small pouch of walnuts.
He unbuckled his sword belt, drew the blade slightly, and wedged a walnut between the scabbard and guard. The metal-tipped scabbard had a groove curved just right to hold it perfectly.
Crack. The guard slammed down, neatly splitting the walnut into bite-sized pieces. He handled it so naturally, like he did this often. Masain could only stare blankly at the neatly shelled nuts piling up.
"This sword's name is Walnut Cracker. A perfect fit for its purpose, no?"
Wasn't it just an aura blade a moment ago?
"But why walnuts of all things?"
"Experience. It's not easy to tamper with unshelled walnuts."
Poison. What a sadly practical reason.
Masain thought so as she popped one into her mouth.
And so, Masain—the son of the 1st Crown Prince and second in line for the throne at the time—entered the Holy Emperor's protection in exchange for taking the Clanos name and renouncing the throne.
The Holy Emperor appointed Cardinal Benitus as her guardian, and Archbishop Capran, wary of the Holy Emperor's gaze, made no overt moves against her. Soon after, Masain was able to return to the academy as if nothing had happened.
* * *
"So, no progress on aura initiation, and it's bothering you?"
"Yes, Uncle."
Masain had come to the Imperial Palace for the holidays. She had rushed back to the academy and finished a semester, but now she needed to formally ask the Holy Emperor about her future.
She had lived in the Azure Rose Palace originally, but now the Holy Emperor's sons had taken it as their new home. As a Clanos, she could no longer stay in the palace.
But when the Holy Emperor asked about academy life, she ended up spilling her worries about aura initiation. Why am I even telling him this? Masain felt a moment of confusion.
The Holy Emperor listened to her story with a fairly serious face.
They sat not in the main palace office, but in the Azure Rose Palace reception room, which the Holy Emperor—who had lately been practically living there—had turned into his office.
They hadn't met many times yet, but to Masain, her uncle was an incredibly peculiar person. By age, he was only five years older, yet talking to him strangely felt like conversing with someone much wiser and older.
Perhaps it was the maturity of a family man. At 21, he was already father to five children.
Logan, son of the Empress; Mores, son of the 1st Imperial Consort; the infant twins living in the capital mansion; and Sisle, the daughter of the 2nd Imperial Consort born recently.
Not just the Sacred Empire's welfare, but five children's lives rested on his shoulders.
Kyahaha!
Suddenly, innocent childish laughter rang out from outside. Masain absently thought it was one of the princes, when the Holy Emperor startled and jumped up. He bolted out of the office like a shot.
Masain glanced toward the open terrace he had run to and gasped in horror. On the second-floor balcony railing opposite, a little child had climbed up and was dangling precariously. A toddler with pale grayish-blond hair.
The child wobbled while looking around, then fearlessly leaped down.
"Kyaaak! Your Highness!"
"Lord Mores!"
Servants' screams followed belatedly.
"D-Danger...!"
Masain leaped up in shock too. She could already picture the child tumbling bloody on the ground.
Fortunately, it was just her imagination.
Whoosh—
A wind from somewhere wrapped around the child, lifting him lightly, and before she knew it, the toddler landed plump in the Holy Emperor's arms on the balcony below, laughing brightly. A cute boy with upturned eye corners and a mischievous face.
"Mores! How many times have I told you not to jump from anywhere!"
"Daddy! Whoosh! Whoosh again!"
"You little..."
The Holy Emperor looked exasperated for a moment, but then obligingly tossed the child upward.
Kyahahaha!
The boy shot up, wrapped in wind, and floated down slowly before plopping back into the Holy Emperor's arms.
"Daddy! Again! Again!"
With a small sigh, the child soared into the air once more. Kyahaha!
Total chaos.
"Sorry for startling you, Brother Masain."
A sudden voice from the side drew her gaze down to another black-haired toddler who looked just like the Holy Emperor, extending a hand toward her. The tiny thing was offering a handshake.
"Pleased to meet you. Father said Brother was coming. I'm the eldest, Logan."
This one was odd in his own way. Three or four years old?
He was only a few months apart from the flying kid in the Holy Emperor's arms, yet he spoke like an old soul.
"Lately, Mores has been obsessed with jumping from high places. Take your eyes off him for a second, and he leaps from somewhere."
No matter how hard the servants watched, if there was even a brief gap, he'd jump. One night, he even snuck out a locked balcony alone and jumped, cracking his forehead open. The Holy Emperor had rushed over at dawn and poured holy power into him.
But they couldn't lock all the doors and confine him all day. Apparently, that's why the Holy Emperor had been holed up in the Azure Rose Palace lately.
"Anyway, kids cause accidents if you look away even for a moment."
The black-haired toddler shook his head sagely.
Masain was dumbfounded. You're a kid too.
The Holy Emperor already looked enlightened.
"If scolding worked on them, Lizaveta wouldn't have run back to her family."
Ah. So the 1st Imperial Consort's sudden long trip to her homeland in the Asane Dukedom was all because of Mores.
The Holy Emperor sighed softly and tapped the forehead of the child in his arms.
"You, enough mischief—aren't you going to greet your brother properly?"
"Brother Masain?"
The toddler turned to Masain, beamed, and reached out. He wanted to be picked up.
Before she knew it, Masain had taken the child from the Holy Emperor. As the warm weight settled in her arms, something strange welled up inside her.
Last semester, after suddenly losing her parents and brother, and then all her subordinates to the curse in the fortress, one corner of her heart had felt empty, always leaving her with a sense of hollowness somewhere. She seemed to adapt fine, but even she knew her recent state wasn't normal.
But right now, that empty space was filling with a gentle ripple.
"Hi? Brother Masain?"
"...Hi? Mores."
Masain answered the child in a slightly hoarse voice.
"Daddy said you'll be with us from today."
"I... see."
"Yeah, so you'll whoosh me too, right Brother?"
"......"
He was slyly cheeky.
During the entire break, Masain unwittingly ended up rolling around with the kids in the Azure Rose Palace. Gasping at Mores's antics, getting nagged like a caregiver by the old-soul Logan.
And sometimes, sitting in the office with the children, picking up walnuts the Holy Emperor cracked, while listening to useless advice like "Aura follows where the heart goes."
Days she now longed for, never to return.