Chapter 80
Chapter: 80
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>Translator: penny
>Chapter: 80
>Chapter Title: Responsibility (1)
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The eight female Gray Plague victims rescued from the capital guard post were transferred to the imperial palace's medical center and immediately underwent extraction surgery.
When the ragged patients flooded in, the physicians openly grimaced. But with a prince of all people standing guard and staring them down intently, they reluctantly set aside their other tasks and treated the patients.
He had repeatedly instructed the physicians to care for them properly until they woke up, but in truth, Seongjin was skeptical about their recovery.
It was because salt crystals had already formed in most of their brains.
Even the academy students, who had been discovered early and still had relatively intact minds, hadn't woken up yet. There was no way those whose brains were already damaged by the salt crystals would regain consciousness easily.
"How's the patient we brought to the Pearl Palace yesterday?"
"Doctor Ninnias is treating her, but there doesn't seem to be much improvement yet."
The patient Sir Karmen had brought was currently receiving intensive care from Doctor Ninnias in the Pearl Palace.
She had undergone the egg extraction procedure right after being carried in last night, but she still hadn't woken up and couldn't even swallow medicine properly.
Well, she might be beyond hope already. According to the Demon King, her brain was thoroughly wrecked.
Still, they had to at least go through the motions of treatment.
After all, Seongjin had personally declared her a "guest" of the Pearl Palace. And judging from Sir Karmen's attitude and Sir Kurt's reaction, there was a foreboding hunch that this patient had some connection to Mores's past idiocy.
"The disease had progressed quite far, so I can't make any guarantees. It's true what they say about Gray Plague patients—they show no response even when priests pour holy power into them. And above all, her health was already so frail."
Doctor Ninnias explained this to Seongjin when he visited the treatment room upon returning to the Pearl Palace.
Thanks to the maids' care, the patient looked much cleaner than before.
However, her skeletal frame with bones protruding, her face full of wrinkles, and her brittle, crumbling hair suggested she hadn't eaten properly for quite some time.
Above all, her aura activity was barely detectable. In other words, her life signs were faint.
If he had once been the captain of the Royal Guard, he must have been an aura user. So why had someone like that ended up in such a state?
"Captain..."
Sir Karmen, who had been making a fuss since yesterday, had stuck right by the patient's side and pulled an all-nighter.
With his face swollen from bruises and one arm in a splint, he paid no attention to his own condition and focused solely on tending to the patient.
The way he tirelessly wiped her face and limbs with a wet cloth made it seem like he was determined to force the water into her skin if she couldn't swallow it.
"You must have been close with Sir Karmen. How unfortunate."
It didn't seem like blood relations, so Seongjin said it offhand, but Sir Kurt standing beside him asked,
"By any chance, Your Highness... do you remember anything about him...?"
Ah, damn.
So there really was something between him and that Mores bastard.
"Regrettably, nothing comes to mind."
"...I see."
Looking at Sir Kurt's somewhat downcast face, Seongjin recalled the conversation he'd overheard in the knight barracks the day before.
-Back then, because of that incident, Karmen still can't show his face in the 2nd Knights Order...
-It's Sir Kurt that's the problem. He's from the 2nd Knights Order too, but he subtly favors the prince.
That meant Sir Kurt knew the full story of the incident but harbored no real grudge against Mores. He could probably explain what had happened back then quite objectively.
Seongjin gave him a subtle nod.
"Sir Kurt. If you're alright, let's talk separately about that man."
He felt Malsain draw in a sharp breath in surprise from behind.
Well, he had been the captain of the 2nd Knights Order until recently, so he must know something.
But this was the same guy who hadn't even revealed to Seongjin that he was part of the imperial family. If he judged that Mores didn't need to know, he'd keep his mouth shut.
Glancing at the uneasy-looking Malsain, Seongjin stepped out of the treatment room with Sir Kurt.
"That man is Captain Bruno. So, about seven or eight years ago now? He became the Imperial Palace Knight Captain and led the Royal Guard."
Leaning against the corridor window, Seongjin listened to Sir Kurt's explanation.
Bruno Green.
He was a refugee from Ortona who, after joining the Imperial Palace Knights, earned a family name through great and small feats. He had risen steadily, reaching the rare position of knight captain as a commoner.
Considering that children of prestigious martial families trained in aura from childhood, he was a legendary figure who had climbed to the top through innate talent alone, despite picking up the sword late in life.
Especially during the early days of His Holiness's reign, when he unified the Church, Bruno had stood right by his side, swinging his sword and displaying great valor.
"...He was Father's close aide?"
Seongjin widened his eyes in surprise. He couldn't believe the Holy Emperor would let one of his own aides end up like that—it didn't seem like him.
Still, wasn't that guy the type to look after his people quite well?
"Yes, at the time, His Holiness cherished Captain Bruno greatly. He discovered him when no one properly recognized him due to his background and opened the path to success. His Holiness personally granted him the family name and spared no support."
Under the Holy Emperor's protection, Bruno Green fully demonstrated his talent and eventually reached the realm of a Decaron Knight. And as if he'd been waiting, the Holy Emperor appointed him as Imperial Palace Knight Captain.
He dismissed the nobles' backlash against a commoner knight captain in one fell swoop. There were even complaints from some quarters about excessive favoritism.
Captain of the Royal Guard 2nd Knights Order.
A lowly commoner knight who had toiled on the front lines for so long had now reached a position acknowledged as second only to Sir Baltazar, the continent's greatest knight.
It was only natural that Bruno would take over the princes' swordsmanship lessons from Sir Baltazar, who was busy shuttling between the southern front lines.
Oh ho, so that's where Mores crossed paths with him.
"Did some friction arise during the lessons?"
Rather than confirming Seongjin's guess, Sir Kurt looked embarrassed and averted his gaze.
"...It's not so much friction as bad luck."
Bruno's swordsmanship lessons proceeded peacefully for a while.
The students at the time were Logan and Mores. Prince Logan was such a quiet and diligent pupil that he was a swordsmanship genius who grasped twenty things from one demonstration—there wasn't much left for the captain to teach.
Mores, on the other hand, skipped classes so often that he barely showed his face, so there were hardly any incidents.
Thus, Bruno, who was just starting to enjoy mentoring disciples, turned his attention to a new apprentice. It was a commoner boy from his neighborhood who showed promising talent.
"That apprentice was Sir Karmen."
And that's how Karmen got involved.
Bruno doted on the young Karmen, it was said. During work, he'd sit him in the office with snacks. During sword lessons, Karmen's figure swinging a wooden sword alongside Prince Logan often caught the eye.
Gradually, the palace folk grew accustomed to seeing Karmen by Captain Bruno's side. Though still young, he was tacitly treated as the captain's official squire.
But that peace didn't last long.
One day, Empress Consort Elizabeth and Mores appeared before Karmen, who was standing alone in the palace garden waiting for his captain. And for some reason, a scuffle broke out between the two boys.
"I don't know the exact details of what happened. The only witnesses were the Empress Consort and her maids, and they all testified that Karmen committed lèse-majesté first."
Karmen had no one on his side back then.
Well, it was obvious, wasn't it? A clueless commoner boy wouldn't just charge at highborns out of nowhere.
Seongjin guessed that the two had probably picked on Karmen for no reason as they passed by.
The problem was that the fight left clear physical wounds on both boys.
And right in front of Empress Consort Elizabeth, no less.
"When the Royal Guard arrived after learning of the commotion, the prince's face already had scratches, and Karmen's forehead was gashed by a knife, covered in blood."
Mores swung a knife, even!
"And the Empress Consort ordered Karmen's immediate execution."
"What? A child?"
"It was undeniable that he had injured the prince, even if just a little..."
"So, he shouldn't even defend himself when the other swings a knife? Just die?"
Seongjin retorted in disbelief, and Sir Kurt's expression turned peculiar.
In any case, Bruno, as the responsible party, was summoned. Furious Empress Consort Elizabeth demanded he take responsibility and ordered him to behead the lowly scum right there for harming the noble prince's body.
"......"
Wow, to cut down his own apprentice personally? That's harsh.
The more he heard, the more outrageous it got.
Bruno knelt and begged for mercy on the spot, but the empress's stance was unyielding.
In the end, the captain made an extreme choice.
To save Karmen's life, he had to relinquish his knight captain position and shatter his own aura core right there.
For someone at the Decaron Knight realm to become a cripple unable to gather even a handful of aura—it was as good as death for a warrior.
Thus, with his aura core in ruins, Captain Bruno was cast out of the palace half-dead without proper treatment. And Karmen, who had directly caused his captain's downfall, became a hated betrayer in the 2nd Knights Order, still treated coldly to this day.
Seongjin, stunned by the more horrific truth than expected, asked in a slightly trembling voice after a long pause.
"...What about Father? What did Father say back then?"
"How could we presume to fathom His Holiness's deep intentions?"
Sir Kurt brushed it off vaguely, but Seongjin could tell.
The Holy Emperor had done nothing at the time!
He hadn't stopped his cherished Captain Bruno from becoming a cripple and being cast out. A man who could work miracles with a flick of his hand hadn't even provided basic treatment.
Why on earth?
"In any case, the captain ending up like that is ultimately all my fault."
Seongjin felt a headache coming on.
No wonder Sir Karmen always glared so insolently—it was almost gratitude-worthy now.
He must have wanted to stab that face every time he saw it. How had he held back all this time?
As Seongjin clutched his forehead, Malsain panicked beside him and shouted.
"Th-that's not true, Your Highness! It wasn't you who demanded punishment, was it? You were just an ignorant child at the time!"
"Being young doesn't erase responsibility, Sir Malsain."
Seongjin quickly sorted his thoughts.
He had initially planned to help as much as he could just because of Sir Karmen's face, but now he really had to do his utmost to treat the captain.
The man's fall into the slums and contracting the Gray Plague could, in the end, be traced back to Mores's villainy.
But how to treat him?
Modern medicine couldn't revive someone whose brain was completely fried.
The only possibility that came to mind was seeking the Holy Emperor's help for a miracle...
'But he ignored it so thoroughly before—would it be different now?'
Well, it's not like I don't know that guy.
He surely had some reason.
"For now, I'll go meet Father and talk. You two help Doctor Ninnias here. Make sure the captain gets the best treatment possible..."
As Seongjin made up his mind and lifted his head, the treatment room door suddenly burst open with a bang.
"Don't pretend to care! It's all pointless now anyway!"
Turning around, Seongjin saw Karmen, face flushed red, glaring at him with terrifying eyes.
"What insolence before His Highness..."
Malsain's face hardened as he stepped forward, but Karmen exploded and cut him off.
"Why? Did I say something I shouldn't? Stop the fake concern and acting like you care! You all think the captain has no hope anyway! You think you can just bury him quietly and be done! Isn't that right?"
Karmen's eyes blazed with such deep fury that sparks seemed to fly.
This guy's so pissed he can't see straight?
"You think pitying the poor guy like charity will earn gratitude? Too late! Now that it's come to this, what good is it?!"
"Sir Karmen..."
"You know nothing! Do you know what the captain always said even after being cast out of the palace? That standing by His Holiness's side, even briefly, was an infinite honor! That he had no regrets! He said it like a habit! But this—what is this?! A lifetime devoted to Delcros, to His Holiness, repaid with such a wretched death—I, I..."
Karmen's body trembled violently as he couldn't continue. Sir Kurt hurried over and said,
"Sir Karmen, calm down first. His Highness is also doing his best for the captain's treatment..."
"Don't make me laugh, Sir Kurt! You 2nd Knights Order guys are all the same!"
Karmen raised his voice and screamed in anguish.
"Did even one knight stand up for the captain back then? The 2nd Knights Order did nothing for him! They sneered at him for being a commoner, then when he was miserably cast out, suddenly everyone's pitying him! No need to curse the idiot prince—you're all the same scum!"
This guy's really about to cross the line?
Seongjin furrowed his brow, but the arrow of rage turned back toward him.
"You talk big too! Yeah? It's all your fault? Even if young, responsibility doesn't vanish? Don't spout empty words! It doesn't matter—you don't remember anything anyway!"
"...Hey."
"All you're gonna do is consult His Holiness? Why? Because that man..."
Thwack!
Karmen crumpled to the floor before he could finish.
He had taken a clean hit from Seongjin's thrust-out fist and passed out neatly.
"......"
Facing the bewildered looks from Malsain and Sir Kurt, Seongjin hurriedly made excuses.
"Uh, sorry. I didn't mean to go that far, but I thought if I left him like that, he'd really commit full lèse-majesté, so I just..."
Who knows, but insulting the prince and insulting His Holiness the Holy Emperor probably carried different weights?
He seemed mentally exhausted anyway—might as well let him rest.
Looking at Sir Karmen now lying quietly beside Captain Bruno, Seongjin thought.
Still, that Karmen guy's got a hot temper.
Maybe it wasn't impossible that he had committed lèse-majesté first, as the empress claimed.