Chapter 157: No Difficult Task (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 157: No Difficult Task (3)
There were only six—no, practically five—Sword Masters on the continent.
And only three 7th Circle mages.
It was a duel between two individuals who should have, and under normal circumstances absolutely would have, avoided each other at all costs. Of course, Alan had merely humored Calian, parrying his attacks with restraint. Calian, however, had not. He had faced Alan with everything he had, pouring out every last drop of his aura.
“Thank you, Master.”
The outcome of their clash was immense.
First, Calian’s aura had grown significantly.
And it had changed.
It was a deep crimson, like a lone ember clinging stubbornly to life in the darkness—an aura that held both terrible death and sublime life.
“It is truly a unique aura, Your Highness.”
Of course, he would have to meet Marquis Evan Brissen and sense the man’s aura to be absolutely certain. But if it was true that his own now surpassed Evan’s, he would no longer need to maintain the magic concealing it. That would reduce his mental fatigue and, as a bonus, increase his chances of winning his height-growing bet with Yan.
What an incredible achievement.
Alan offered his congratulations as he observed Calian’s aura.
“Congratulations. It seems I have raised quite an exceptional disciple.”
Naturally, Calian was delighted.
If the growth of his aura had been the sole outcome of this duel, he would have simply rejoiced, just as Alan did.
“…Hmm.”
But Calian couldn’t bring himself to simply rejoice.
The small rock he sat on under the moonlight was intact. Only that rock was intact. Everything else around it had been utterly devastated.
The shattered rocks, splintered trees, and earth scorched black as charcoal bore testament to the fact that Calian’s sword was likely the sharpest in the Kairis Royal Palace and Alan’s flames were surely the hottest on the continent.
Of course, he had anticipated this much, so the state of his surroundings didn’t particularly bother him.
In truth, Calian had intended to simply play dumb about ruining the forest. Since it was a place people rarely visited, he figured no one would find out.
Even if Lemain discovered it, so what? Rocks crumbled over time, and trees would eventually regrow. Besides, Lemain had surely developed a thick enough skin by now to overlook an accident of this scale.
So, after sharing a moment of joy with Alan, Calian had planned to mount Raven and head back to Chermil Palace. He wanted to return, take a relaxing bath—which he loved—wash away his fatigue, and greet a refreshing morning.
However…
“This is… hmm. Yes. This is a bit of a dilemma.”
“Looking at the situation, shouldn’t the Corps Commander be first?”
“Considering their status, shouldn’t the Prince be first?”
Only one mage had gone to look for Alan.
When Alan wasn’t at Arpia Palace, the mage had hurriedly sought out Calian. Through an attendant, he learned that Calian and Alan were in the ‘forest.’ The mage had come to the forest, and a few curious others had tagged along.
And that was how Wilhelm Hall found itself on the verge of housing three statues in total.
The cause and effect didn’t quite seem to align, but that was the result. Calian had dueled Alan, and the number of statues to be erected in Wilhelm Hall had multiplied.
When Hina visits Wilhelm Hall, she should probably treat their heads first.
If she does that, they’ll probably demand a statue of her, too.
They’d completely lost their minds.
What am I going to do with them?
At the thought, Calian clutched his forehead, leaned against Raven, and burst into laughter.
Turning at the sound, Alan noticed Calian’s pale complexion and quickly spoke up.
“You should go inside and rest, Your Highness. I will look into the matter at Heisia Palace.”
It was hard to tell whether Calian’s exhaustion stemmed from his duel or from the white-robed madmen’s interior design plans for Wilhelm Hall. Either way, it was clear he was completely drained, which prompted Alan’s suggestion.
“I’ll only drop by briefly, so it’s fine,” Calian replied, still smiling as he shook his head.
Although the mages had come for Alan, Calian had heard the news as well and intended to go with him.
It was Heisia Palace, of all places.
He couldn’t possibly ignore a report that something was ‘emitting light’ in the place where Sispanian once resided.
Alan spoke in a gentle voice.
“Are you trying to carry this all by yourself again? I will come and tell you what I find, so please, rest for today.”
Alan’s words were a gentle chiding, asking if Calian was trying to overexert himself alone again, despite having promised to share his burdens. How could he ever tell Calian that the pebble might be a ‘man-made sacred artifact’ if the prince insisted on acting this way?
Compared to Calian, who was overcome with fatigue now that his aura was depleted and his stamina had reverted to that of an ordinary person, Alan looked as refreshed as if he had just finished a light evening stroll. Thus, Calian nodded, yielding to the inevitable.
“Understood. Please make sure to let me know as soon as you find anything.”
“Do not worry.”
Thus, Calian headed toward Chermil Palace, leaving Alan behind with his curiosity about Heisia Palace, his slight guilt over the forest, and his worry over how to stop Valkan from erecting those statues.
“I’ll head in first, then.”
He hadn’t slept properly for five days while memorizing the information on Chase, so he decided to take Alan’s advice and get some rest.
Clack, clack.
Sensing Calian’s decision, Raven began to trot toward Chermil Palace on his own.
Alan watched his retreating figure for a moment before vanishing.
He had departed for Heisia Palace. The remaining Valkan mages mounted their horses to head back.
They didn’t even dream of using teleportation magic to follow.
Traveling the distance from the forest to Heisia Palace in an instant was a feat no one but Alan could even conceive of.
*
Yes. He had definitely been there.
There had certainly been a time when a black-clad Calian sat between the light beige sofa and the silver-white cat.
Thud!
Even so, this was too much.
Did a light-green fellow, looking like a boiled pea, really need to be sitting between the black sofa and the silver-white cat?
Calian, who had opened his bedroom door only to immediately shut it, bit his lower lip. Still, having done something similar himself once, and knowing the color of his own room all too well, he didn’t make the foolish mistake of wondering if he was on the wrong floor.
“You don’t have to come in. I’ll put myself to bed. I’m exhausted.”
Instead, he spoke to Yan, who was about to follow him inside. There was no way Yan would look kindly upon Franz, who had made himself at home in someone else’s room.
Since Calian’s face looked truly awful, Yan eyed him with deep concern before replying.
“Understood. Please call me if you need anything.”
“I’ll be fine after a good night’s sleep. Don’t worry.”
Having reassured Yan and sent him away, Calian turned on the lights and barely managed to cast Silent magic. There was no benefit in letting the two escort knights outside know that he had an uninvited guest at this hour.
“What brings you here?” he asked in a low voice.
Of all days, and at this exact moment.
The timing was truly impeccable.
It wasn’t that his appearance was a mess from the duel. Calian had already tidied his attire the moment the mages arrived. He knew all too well how terrifying the scrutiny of others could be.
However, he couldn’t hide his deathly pale complexion.
Franz, who had only turned his head to look at Calian while remaining seated, spoke.
“It seems my little brother’s hobby is overexerting himself.”
“And it seems my older brother has finally learned how to worry about me.”
“Cut the crap.”
The expected reply came back.
Soon, Franz stood up, still cradling the cat. He wasn’t so tactless as to chatter on in front of someone who looked like they needed to sleep for a solid day.
Calian let out a short sigh as he looked at the cat, which remained fast asleep even as Franz stood—a cat whose very posture seemed to say, ‘I am Prince Calian’s cat, but I like Prince Franz more.’ The fact that the creature was so deeply asleep meant Franz had been waiting for quite some time.
“Go ahead and speak. I’m fine.”
After staring down at Calian for a moment, Franz sat back down. Then, meeting Calian’s gaze, he spoke.
“It seems there’s a bird in the knight order.”
“Are you saying a spy from Secritia is hiding in the Royal Knights?”
“Yes.”
“Wow.”
A genuine exclamation of admiration slipped from Calian’s lips—admiration for both Chase and Franz.
“I had no idea.”
Whether Franz believed him or not, Calian truly hadn’t known. In his past life, spies hadn’t been planted as deep as the knight order. This had to be Chase’s doing.
Planting a spy in another nation’s Royal Knights.
Lemain’s influence didn’t reach Knight Order Karen or Raon; all he did was receive the final report on the roster of knights. Thus, this was a glaring exposure of Lemain’s ongoing incompetence and Evan’s oversight.
In any case, Calian was impressed by Chase’s audacity in planting a spy right under Evan’s nose and by Franz’s sharp intuition in discovering it.
“How did you find out?”
“I don’t know. Nor do I know who it is.”
“Then how do you know there’s a bird?”
Franz held out a small, folded piece of paper.
“It was in my pocket before I knew it.”
Since Franz must have met with the knight order, someone must have slipped him the note while he was observing or conversing with them. Franz was quite skilled with a sword himself; for someone to secretly pass him something meant they were no ordinary expert. Then again, for a spy to have infiltrated the royal palace itself, their abilities went without saying.
Taking the note, Calian lowered his eyes for a moment without even checking its contents, losing himself in thought.
Would harboring a spy be an act against the Brissens, or not? He pondered a choice whose outcome he couldn't be certain of.
After a brief silence, Calian spoke.
“Tell Marquis Brissen. Tell him there’s a spy.”
“If it’s revealed, the Crown Prince of Secritia will be in a difficult position.”
Chase and Secritia’s predicament.
And Franz’s heart.
Which of the two carried more weight?
“It is better to tell him.”
“If I keep it hidden, I might find a way to use it against them,” Calian countered.
Chuckling, Franz leaned back against the sofa. “Because keeping the spy around might prove useful in deceiving the Crown Prince of Secritia.”
It was likely a pretext, but it wasn’t entirely false. Keeping a spy alive to exploit them could hardly be considered an act against the Brissens.
“A bird that merely acts as a carrier pigeon can be ignored.”
“Is that something a Prince of Kairis should say upon learning there is a Secritian spy in the knight order?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
In truth, there wasn’t much more for the spy to find out anyway. Franz had already revealed all the crucial secrets with his own mouth. Besides, Calian wasn’t blind to the fact that Franz was, in his own way, trying to show consideration for both him and Chase.
“Understood, then.”
Nodding without further argument, Calian finally unfolded the note.
—I remembered something we did not get to discuss that day.
An incredibly elegant script.
It was the exact same handwriting as the documents Calian had desperately memorized until just this morning. He had suspected as much when Franz mentioned a Secritian spy, but it was indeed from Chase.
A simple sentence was written on the note.
—The one who brought the believer and the denier together is the master’s son.
Calian didn’t even need to read it twice.
It was a straightforward message: the one who had worked to unite the priests who believed in Serenti and the warriors of the Great Desert who denied Serenti was not the King of Tensil, but the Crown Prince.
Watching Calian summon a small flame to burn the note, Franz spoke, his voice carrying its usual languid tone.
“If it’s about Tensil, it wouldn’t violate our contract, would it? Even if I know about it.”
“Even if you were to find out about the contents of this note or the last conversation I had with Crown Prince Chase, it wouldn’t breach our contract, but…”
After a moment’s thought, Calian shook his head.
“No.”
“Why?”
“I told you, didn’t I? I will absolutely not tell you. What concerns Brother Randel is a matter for the future. I believe I already made that clear.”
“You’ve got a lot of nerve, saying that with a straight face.”
“That’s none of your concern.”
At Calian’s reply, one corner of Franz’s mouth curled upward. It was that obnoxious smirk Calian hadn’t seen in quite some time.
“My little brother…”
Starting with those words, Franz glanced out toward the terrace. Seeing the direction of his gaze, Calian’s brow furrowed slightly.
“What on earth could be the reason for you to fight an Archmage?”
“…Ha.”
A deep smile spread across Calian’s lips.
He knew exactly what Franz was implying.
“Are you threatening me with your own heart right now, Brother?”
“My brain is better than yours, so spit it out. Stop wasting my time.”
He was telling Calian to leave the investigation of Tensil to him. Otherwise, he would keep digging into why Calian was preparing for something by dueling Alan.
“Because I’ll help you.”
He said he would help.
This damn brother of his, threatening him with his own life on the line, was offering to help.
Calian let out another deep sigh.
The documents.
He shouldn’t have burned them.
…He would have to write them all over again.