Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Palace Infiltration (1)
Psychic Luminous will now truly demonstrate its potential with Maria at the center.
With Elvin and the others supporting Maria from below, there would be no need to interfere in their internal affairs anymore.
Rudian quietly slipped away with Gray and Yev.
Now they would need to reorganize internally and prepare for external battles, so they would be incredibly busy.
"Are you leaving?"
Just as Rudian was about to exit the meeting hall amid the commotion, someone noticed his departure and called out to stop him.
"Yes, Lord."
"I'm the former Lord now."
Matheus Kepler's complexion was still pale from the psychic power backlash.
"As expected, you were behind Maria's transformation."
"Are you criticizing me for inciting her?"
"Haha, hardly!"
Matheus waved his hand and laughed.
"That child's weakness was a problem that absolutely had to be fixed. Her power is so strong that ordinary trials wouldn't be enough to change her."
Rudian definitely agreed with that.
Even if she were thrown into the Dragon territories of the southern continent, she would surely destroy those dragons and return.
"I even considered the extreme measure of sacrificing myself or Elvin."
This crazy...
"That would have destroyed the organization."
"Well, it was just one of the plans I kept in my heart. Now that there's no need for that, I'm just confiding in you."
Could Elvin's abandonment of the sword to become a pure psychic user in the original story be related to what Matheus just said?
Some inexplicable suspicion arose.
Whether he knew of Rudian's gaze or not, Matheus wore an expression of relief, as if he had put something down.
"Please continue to take good care of that child."
"......"
What?
That father-in-law-like gaze of entrusting his anxious daughter to his son-in-law?
"A great battle will break out soon. Please prepare as quickly as possible and get ready for the coming decisive battle."
"Hoho, are you changing the subject? Well, that's fine too."
What on earth is this man talking about?
***
About three days had passed since the Psychic Luminous matter was resolved.
As expected, Maria was so busy controlling Psychic Luminous and the underground forces that Rudian couldn't even see her face.
Elvin, who had originally been monitoring Rudian at the Belstad mansion, also left the mansion to help Maria.
"Now only the imperial family remains as the final problem."
Rudian was currently at Bellatrix's main castle, located a short distance from Nevan.
Befitting the greatest noble house that divided the empire with Delphione, Bellatrix had its territory just a few kilometers from the capital.
"......"
However, Sonya, who had summoned people for the meeting, was glaring at Rudian with an expression that suggested something greatly displeased her.
"Is there some problem?"
"Quite a lot."
Though Rudian could guess what it was about, he deliberately played dumb and hid his expression.
"Oh my, what kind of problem? Is there something I can help you with?"
"What a disgusting expression. How can you pretend not to know after crushing my son's pride like that?"
"That happened because Gray wouldn't listen to what I said... I did my best to stop him."
"I know. That's why I'm holding back like this now."
Sonya puffed out her cheeks sulkily, expressing her dissatisfaction.
Though she was at least in her forties, her appearance was maintained at a perfect twenty-something through magic, making her look only cute.
Rudian smiled wryly and said:
"Pride is certainly the foundation that supports noble houses, but Gray's pride will affect his personal growth."
"Hmph, that kind of behavior is natural for my son."
Since she didn't argue further, it seemed Sonya also agreed to some extent.
But then Sonya suddenly cleared her throat and began saying this:
"So I made quite a large investment for you this time."
"Yes, I'm grateful for that."
"Isn't there anything coming back to me?"
"......"
This woman?
Rudian barely managed to control his expression from crumpling and opened his mouth.
"I already gave sufficient thanks to Gray..."
"That's that and this is this. Bellatrix's wealth isn't our son's yet, is it?"
Could it be that all that talk about pride... Was just groundwork to say this?
"Ah, my research has been stuck lately and I'm getting dizzy. If I could get a good artifact, that would be nice. Something from the Lichmond school would be even better..."
"......"
This was the first time he'd seen someone who fit the word disgusting so perfectly.
Though he rubbed the blood vessel that had popped up on his forehead to calm his anger, Rudian ultimately had no choice but to give up one of his carefully saved artifacts.
'I should give her the worst one.'
He owed her a great debt from this incident, and Sonya's cooperation would be essential for smooth operations in the future.
It wouldn't be bad to feed her one as a bribe in advance.
Eventually, Sonya's face, having received the artifact enchanted with summoning magic, literally shone like the sun.
"Ahaha! Good! Now shall we seriously discuss the palace matter?"
"...Please act your age, Your Grace."
All Rudian could do toward the gleefully laughing Sonya was throw such sarcasm at her.
With Duke Vincent Delphione joining them, a proper meeting atmosphere was established.
"First, it's certain that something strange has happened to the Emperor and the 1st Prince. I visited the Hellas ducal house a few days ago, and it was quite a sight."
The Hellas ducal house was the First Prince's in-laws.
"Was there some problem?"
"They said they hadn't met the First Prince for a long time either. When I tried to probe a little about demons, for some reason they desperately refused my visit. I could barely say a few words before being chased out."
"There's definitely something there."
"Right. If they're showing such behavior, there's a 100% chance they're being threatened by someone. Perhaps the demons have a very strong grip on Duke Hellas's safety."
Rudian fell into thought, covering his lips.
The fact that they didn't even dare ask for help from Sonya, an 8th Class Great Magician, meant Duke Hellas viewed the opponent as beyond Sonya's level.
"So I did a little investigation... And found a very impressive name among Duke Hellas's vassals."
"Who is it?"
At Sonya's following answer, Rudian's eyes widened.
"Count Marba Ainsworth. The Ainsworth family joined under Duke Hellas as new nobility about 50 years ago."
"If it's Marba, then surely...!"
Vincent frowned, having identified someone from that name.
"Right, it's the alias of the one called Marbas, one of the three Demon Kings who invaded the empire that Rudian mentioned."
Everyone's expressions became serious.
Though the Hellas ducal house didn't have military power on the level of Delphione and Bellatrix, it was a prestigious family that had shared the empire's beginning and history.
The thought that such a family might have already been taken inevitably made their hearts feel heavy.
"In the end, we have no choice but to meet the Emperor directly and solve the problem."
"I agree. That 3rd Prince bastard keeps acting up lately, so I'm worried sick and can't even sleep properly."
'I don't think so...'
There was no way that shameless embodiment would be bothered by such things, someone tougher than whale sinew.
"I won't oppose either. We need to know His Majesty's thoughts clearly so there won't be problems in the decisive battle."
With Vincent also agreeing, the plan proceeded swiftly.
"But obvious infiltration of the palace is impossible. The palace has not only the highest-level detection magic, but also all sorts of terrible traps laid out to intercept intruders in case detection magic is neutralized."
"Then infiltration would certainly be difficult..."
Even with Diabolo's authority preventing detection, the moment they got caught in even one trap, the infiltration would fail.
'I've definitely been spoiled by relying on stealth abilities until now. I need to use a different method this time.'
Then Sonya offered an unexpected opinion.
"How about just going there openly?"
"Just like that?"
Would that be possible when demon influence had surely reached around the Emperor too?
"Of course, we'd still go secretly. We just need to find reliable collaborators inside the palace."
"Reliable collaborators? Are there such people who can guide us directly to the Emperor?"
"There's exactly one group. Those whose power has been obviously reduced lately and whose dissatisfaction has reached its peak."
While Rudian thought about who that might be, Vincent nodded slightly and spoke.
"You mean the eunuchs."
"Correct. I knew you'd understand right away."
Eunuchs...
Listening to Sonya, it seemed that recently within the imperial family, the inner palace's authority centered on concubines and court ladies had grown stronger than the eunuchs.
If their power had been extremely reduced, that could also be proof they were safe from the demons' grasp...
'Did the demons also not want to disguise themselves as eunuchs?'
In the case of court ladies, they could achieve considerable cost efficiency by deploying succubi, so that was possible.
"And in a few days, there will be a triumph ceremony for Marba Ainsworth, who went on the eastern expedition. The palace atmosphere will be quite relaxed then, making it perfect for infiltration."
"A triumph ceremony..."
Rudian already knew that Demon King Marbas, who had a disguised identity in the military, had been deployed on the eastern expedition.
Thanks to that, he had been able to deal with Rigos, so it was good timing.
"Good. Let's proceed that way. Then will Duke Bellatrix handle contact with the eunuchs?"
A gaze saying 'You ate something expensive, so you should at least do that much' turned toward Sonya.
"Oh my, of course."
"......"
Sonya expressed her agreement while rubbing the spherical artifact she received from Rudian against her cheek.
For a moment, Rudian wanted to shoot at the happy Sonya to please act her age, but...
'It won't work, damn it.'
Gray's shamelessness compared to that woman would be like the difference between a new employee and a department head.
***
The palace infiltration was set for the evening five days later, when Marbas would return.
Once a triumph ceremony of the Morian Empire began, festivals would continue for at least three days.
Especially since they had completely stripped the bones and flesh of the eastern pirate kingdom that had been troubling the empire, there was a high possibility the empire would hold a particularly special level of triumph ceremony.
Nobles above a certain level in the capital were required to attend triumph ceremonies, and since Rudian also held the rank of viscount, he was forced to participate in the medal ceremony.
'It's troublesome, but it's also an opportunity to observe Marbas directly.'
Even before the triumph ceremony began, the streets of Nevan were already completely in festival mood.
"Amazing. So much delicious food."
Yev's eyes shone excessively at the street stalls filling several streets.
It was natural since the imperial family had spent a lot of money for this event, and merchants who smelled profit had been thoroughly preparing for days.
"Here, waffle pie."
Even while biting into a waffle pie filled with honey and fresh cream, Yev's gaze didn't miss the desserts at the stalls.
'It seems like she won't leave until she conquers this place...'
Sometimes this childlike appearance overlapped with the image of her standing in the middle of a sea of blood after grinding up all the demons, giving him chills.
But Rudian deliberately shook off that thought.
'Yev is Yev. Since I offered tribute and asked for her help, I shouldn't think negatively about this.'
Yev was thoroughly keeping her promise, so he should respond to her actions too.
Rudian shook his head and enthusiastically joined Yev in exploring the streets again.
'...It's fun.'
When was the last time he had played so carefree?
Without worrying about money, completely free from all work pressure - it had been really long since he had rested like this.
Rudian found himself enjoying this festival without realizing it.
Illusions created by magic performed puppet shows, and several circus troupes demonstrated on the streets, drawing cheers from citizens.
After eating two days' worth of food in almost an hour, Yev finally rubbed her belly with satisfaction.
Rudian had also enjoyed it considerably, with evidence of the festival easily visible all over his body.
-Those rabbit ears are quite impressive.
'Shut up.'
-Yev has good sense. Pfft!
'......'
However, not everything was chosen by his own will - most notably, the rabbit ears perked up on Rudian's head were something Yev had forcibly put on him, saying it suited him.
Though Rudian grimaced, he couldn't bring himself to remove the rabbit ears.
As the first day of the festival was reaching its climax.
Yev, who had been walking alongside him, suddenly stopped dead in her tracks and looked ahead.
"......"
"Yev?"
-Master.
-Kid, be careful.
At the same time, warnings came from Adi and Diabolo too.
A street with countless people passing by.
'An assassin?'
In this situation, that was the only type to be cautious of.
But in that flow, Rudian noticed not an assassin, but the presence of a large man looking at him.
"......"
He felt it instinctively.
That must surely be the one Adi and Diabolo simultaneously judged as dangerous.
'...Who is it?'
From his neat, high-quality formal wear, he appeared to be a noble.
But beneath that formal wear was an enormously trained body that reeked of martial arts.
Yet his luxuriously flowing hair and strong eyes evoked the image of a hero from ancient mythology.
...Except for the familiar and thick traces of demonic energy that followed.
In the situation where the man and Rudian's eyes met, the man spoke first.
"What are those ears?"
"......"
Damn it.
Rudian involuntarily distorted his expression at the rushing embarrassment.
Fortunately, the man didn't seem to feel any further interest in Rudian's rabbit ears and changed the subject.
"I never dreamed our greatest enemy would be leisurely playing in a place like this."
"Is it wrong to play? You're the one who should be busy preparing for the triumph ceremony. Is it okay for you to wander around alone like this?"
"Hehehe, well, you have a point there."
Rudian glared at his opponent with wary eyes.
"Marba Ainsworth... No, Demon King Marbas. Why did you come looking for me?"