Chapter 324: Tomb of the Snake (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 324: Tomb of the Snake (2)
The sky was clear.
The night was quiet.
It was the perfect kind of night for contemplation, for figuring out how to explain the expansion of mana without resorting to Calian’s ridiculous method of, “Just go shazam and do this and that.”
“It’s similar to stretching out your mana.”
Franz, who had been demonstrating how to condense and extend one’s mana for Hina, trailed off.
How in the world was he supposed to explain this properly?
To begin with, Hina manipulated raw, natural mana. Unlike mages, who converted mana into their own magic power to store in their Circles, she directly transformed the mana flowing in nature into healing power. That was why, despite healing so many injuries, she had never run out of mana, though her physical stamina might wane.
Since the very nature of their power was different, continuing the explanation was difficult, making his confident offer to teach her feel rather embarrassing.
“You calculate the location you want to send the mana to, and then, like this…”
As he added a few more vague explanations, he slowly began to understand Calian. It was absurd, but he now deeply sympathized with why his younger brother had explained things that way. He’d had no other choice.
Yes.
The bastard had done his best.
—I… understand.
But Hina, who had been staring at him with wide, round eyes, said this as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
It was like the time he’d seen Lucy somehow fit perfectly inside a vase that looked less than half her size.
“…How?”
Franz was left with a question that had no answer.
—I kept thinking about it. When sending mana far away, I didn’t know how to control it once it was no longer connected to me. But now, I think I understand a little.
Leaving a dumbfounded Franz to nod without a proper response, Hina rose from her seat.
—I will practice. I’ll try it, and if there’s anything I don’t know, I’ll ask you again.
“Do that.”
—Please don’t tell the kind Prince yet. I’ll tell him myself once I can do it properly.
“Alright.”
Franz let out a soft chuckle as he answered.
He couldn’t decide whether Calian, upon finding out, would make a fuss about how amazing “our Hina” was, or if his eyes would flare with jealousy, demanding to know why his older brother had been the one to teach her.
The thought suddenly reminded him.
He still hadn’t decided on his wish.
Having no watch and no idea how to tell time from the sky, Franz opened his mouth to ask Hina the hour. It was the exact moment she stood to bring him the strawberry ice cream she had promised—
Clank.
The distinct sound of chainmail armor clashing.
“Be careful.”
Kyrie’s voice, closer than he’d thought.
Dash!
Swoosh!
The sound of someone leaping forward.
The sound of something slicing through the air.
Ting! Clang-clang!
A flurry of small metal objects being deflected rang out all at once. None of those sounds belonged in the rear garden of the royal annex.
Before he even assessed the situation, Franz pulled Hina toward him. He positioned her between himself and Kyrie, who had suddenly appeared before them, and drew his sword. There was no panic on his face, no tension in his posture. He looked like a man who had finally encountered what he had been waiting for.
His gaze drifted to the ground.
Small needles lay scattered where they had fallen, blocked by Kyrie’s sword. As Franz’s eyes narrowed, Kyrie’s calm explanation reached his ears.
“Hidden weapons. They’re likely coated in an anesthetic or poison, so do not touch them.”
“Understood.”
Replying briefly, Franz raised his sword and watched as knights slowly closed in, surrounding the three of them.
No matter how light their armor, it was still metal. Fifty knights, weighed down by their equipment, could never defeat Calian’s sole knight. Franz knew this well. After all, Kyrie sparred with the entire Valkan Knights almost daily.
“Zeon is mixed in.”
Therefore, if the swords of a few of them hadn’t been glowing red, Franz wouldn’t have even bothered to draw his weapon and would have leisurely sat back down.
Hum…
With a low hum, Franz’s sword split into two.
At the same time, Kyrie moved to stand back-to-back with him, keeping Hina protected between them.
Hina remained alert, scanning her surroundings. Just because she couldn’t fight didn’t mean she would foolishly try to speak to Kyrie through her earring or otherwise get in their way. Drawing on her extensive experience standing behind Kyrie, she resolved to remain as still and quiet as possible.
Kyrie surveyed the area and asked, “Are they the Wolves of the Great Desert?”
“No. They look like ordinary knights with pebbles.”
Franz had seen the Wolves of the Great Desert who served Zeon; Kyrie had not. And while Calian distinguished them by the unique energy of the Great Desert’s warriors, Franz relied on his intellect. He had memorized the subtle physical traits of those born there—eyelashes slightly thicker than those of the continent’s people, a distinct gait from a lifetime of walking on sand.
“A mage is casting a Silent magic barrier somewhere. I asked Dame Grace to secure the perimeter as soon as I heard them, so she should find and eliminate them soon.”
“Understood.”
Only moments ago, Kyrie had been speaking with Rachel within sight of them when he caught the sound of unfamiliar footsteps. He had considered sending Hina a message through her communication bracelet to flee, but decided against it, fearing that if the enemy realized they were discovered, they might charge recklessly.
“The sound can’t escape, so Crown Prince Chase’s knights won’t notice. What should we do? Alert the outside?”
“No. Don’t alert them.”
Chase’s knights were a crucial force. If a mage was involved, they could easily be killed in vain. Since the annex building already blocked the view between the knights’ post and the rear garden, Franz judged it better to leave them in the dark.
In truth, that was just an excuse. No matter the justification, he simply didn’t want Secritia’s knights to die here. For that reason, he held off on using the communication bracelet connected to Chase.
“Understood.”
Kyrie had no obligation to follow Franz’s orders, so his response was one of agreement rather than obedience. He nodded, having guessed the reason, and reined in his killing intent.
“Is it alright to kill them?”
“It’s fine.”
They had intruded into the annex’s garden and thrown hidden weapons first. Of course there was no issue with killing them—just like the doorknob that had met its end at Calian’s hands that morning.
“Understood. I will stop them from getting close.”
For two men to block an onslaught from so many knights, they either had to be of comparable skill, or one of them had to be overwhelmingly stronger than the rest. Otherwise, unable to withstand the barrage, either Franz or Hina would be the first to die. It was better for Kyrie to press forward, to keep them from approaching at all.
“Please stay here, if you can.”
“Understood.”
Franz nodded, accepting the implicit instruction not to leave Hina’s side.
Though they had exchanged a few words, little time had passed—only enough for the surrounding knights to advance about five steps.
Dash!
The moment their conversation ended, Kyrie lunged forward. As if on cue, the sound of something thin slicing through the air rang out again. At the same time, Franz let out a short breath and thrust his own swords forward.
If the attackers had overheard their conversation, they would have known why Kyrie hadn’t bothered to warn Franz about the hidden weapons a second time.
Clatter!
Why waste their effort on something so futile?
After deflecting the slender needles with a quick thrust of his crossed twin swords, Franz glanced behind him. He confirmed Hina was standing ready, her face fearless, prepared to use her healing power at a moment’s notice, then turned his attention forward again.
Kyrie took a step.
His dark sword seemed to absorb the night.
Though they were fellow knights of Secritia, they had chosen the wrong king. And now, they walked the path of that king.
Slash!
In the end, this was a failure of them all.
A knight’s sword, gleaming in the moonlight, lost its strength and clattered to the ground. Spinning, Kyrie slipped past four blades descending toward him. Without hesitation, he thrust his own sword forward, piercing a heart.
Clang!
The sound of clashing steel rang out—but it wasn’t Kyrie’s. The swords of two knights targeting him had become entangled with each other. Slipping through the gap, Kyrie’s sword moved twice. Two bodies slumped to the ground.
His feet never stopped.
While Kyrie’s long reach slashed the neck of the next knight, Franz stepped away and blocked the sword of another rushing toward him with his right blade. Raising his other sword, he stabbed deep into the man’s chest.
Gush!
A sensation that was still utterly foreign to him. A stream of dark red blood erupted from the man’s chest. Franz didn’t spare it a glance, instead blocking the sword of another attacker who had rushed in at the same time.
Striking the man’s sword upward with his crossed blades, he shot his leg out and kicked him back. In that brief moment, he merged his swords back into one and swung, carving a deep, long wound from the man’s shoulder to his waist. He watched the knight’s breath cease.
Flowing blood soaked the soles of Franz and Hina’s shoes.
Should he tell Hina to close her eyes? The fleeting thought was immediately dismissed.
He knew where the siblings had lived. Hina had survived the same place as Kyrie. If he wasted time worrying about her in the middle of a fight, she would surely scold him for it later.
Clang-clang! Clang!
Another knight, charging toward Franz, skidded to a halt and raised his sword. He had no choice but to block Kyrie, who had closed the distance as if he had flown.
Retrieving his deflected sword, Kyrie twisted and continued his assault. Faced with a blade so swift it seemed to slice the wind itself, the knight stumbled but quickly regained his footing and looked forward again.
He was gone.
Kyrie had vanished.
And then…
…Crunch!
Instead of footsteps, a gruesome sound echoed in the knight’s head. He stared blankly at the sword that had pierced straight through his waist before his body collapsed to the ground. Having slipped past the knight’s side to deliver the fatal blow, Kyrie gripped his dark sword and lunged forward once more.
Calian’s knight rushed relentlessly toward two of Devlan’s men. Two swords brimming with red energy blocked his path.
Aura. So, it was Aura.
Kyrie smiled.
Had anyone faced a red aura—one so similar to theirs, yet so completely different—as many times as he had?
Clang! Clang-clang!
Slash!
Their swords were imbued with Aura, but the men holding them were just ordinary knights.
After a couple of exchanges, one collapsed, bleeding from his chest. Stepping over the corpse, another knight charged Kyrie, holding a shield in one hand and a sword pulsing with red energy in the other.
Clang!
The dark sword struck the silver shield and bounced off. In the scattering sparks, Kyrie’s dark blue eyes were reflected for an instant before they vanished.
Looking down at the knight with emotionless eyes, Kyrie immediately swung his sword horizontally. The knight thrust his shield forward again, and with a sharp metallic ring, the blade was deflected.
Kyrie didn’t stop.
Swoosh!
Kicking off the ground, his sword surged toward the knight. Once again, the knight blocked with the shield in his left hand while aiming for Kyrie’s heart with the sword in his right.
Or rather, he tried to.
Crunch!
A shield of that caliber could never block Kyrie’s strength and the sharpness of a sword forged from a melted star three times. The knight’s body collapsed, his heart pierced right through the shield.
Clang! Clang!
Clang! Clang!
While Kyrie’s sword clashed repeatedly, blocking knights trying to rush Franz, one managed to slip past his range and charge his target.
Blink.
Franz’s eyes slowly closed and opened.
Dame Grace is taking a long time.
The Silent magic barrier remained intact.
Continuing his train of thought, Franz joined the hilts of Sinasta. Swinging the weapon—now a longsword comparable to a spear—in a full rotation, he struck down his opponent’s sword with the first blow, and the sharp blade descending immediately after severed the man’s neck.
There were now about thirty knights left.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Clang-clang! Clang!
Kyrie’s sword relentlessly thinned their numbers.
The blue-silver of Sinasta and the dark hue of Kyrie’s sword reflected and absorbed the moonlight as they pierced another heart.
Rachel still hadn’t returned. There was no sound or energy of a magical clash. Yet, no magic fell upon the garden either. Furthermore, while the knights launched attacks at Franz, they made no deliberate attempt to target Hina.
What did this mean?
As he pondered this, the conversation he’d had with Calian before he left with Chase came to mind.
“Since I divided our forces assuming I would remain here, it might become dangerous if I leave.”
They had sent Euria, Arsen, and Eila to Marquis Lin’s mansion, which was more vulnerable than the palace. Even with Kyrie and Rachel here, their strength was undeniably reduced. And among those left behind, weren’t Hina and Franz prime hostage candidates that Devlan would love to get his hands on?
“I’ll be back soon, so I doubt he would target this brief window, and I question if Devlan would sink that low, but I’m still uneasy. That’s why I thought it might be better for us to go together.”
“Just go.”
“…Will you be alright for a short while?”
“I’m fine.”
“Understood.”
In an instant, his thoughts began to race.
They had prepared for this danger. It was closer to a resolution than a plan, but they had anticipated it. And just as expected, Devlan had sent his knights.
Clang!
Clang!
Two swords thrust out to either side, blocking the attacks of two knights rushing from both directions at once.
“Duck, Hina.”
At the brief command, Hina immediately dropped. Franz spun, swinging his twin swords in a whirlwind of steel. Blood splattered, and one knight’s corpse rolled onto the ground. The second collapsed moments later.
—It’s too quiet. The mage.
Taking advantage of the brief lull, Hina finally caught Franz’s eye and quickly sent him a message in sign language.
Franz nodded.
He was thinking the exact same thing.
Calian wasn’t here.
There was a mage, but there were no attacks. And if a commotion arose here, Calian would come.
“If an emergency occurs, call me through Brother Chase. I will come immediately.”
“I got it, so…”
“Yes.”
Could Devlan possibly not know they could use communication devices through a Silent magic barrier? He already knew Franz possessed things far greater than that. Yet, he must have also known that Franz would not call Calian right away.
Franz knew what Calian was doing in front of the royal palace. Chase had summoned the victims of the “pruning,” and they would be cornering Devlan at this very moment. If Calian left that scene, they would lose their objective, high-ranking, and undeniable witness—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Therefore, Devlan must have calculated that Franz wouldn’t call Calian, no matter what happened here. It was entirely possible, if he had finally realized the two brothers’ relationship wasn’t as poor as he’d thought.
“Right. If there’s a commotion, my younger brother will come.”
This place is quiet.
Calian doesn’t go to quiet places.
“…Ha.”
As if everything had clicked into place, Franz let out a short, sharp breath.
He quickly scanned the garden and counted the remaining knights. Sixteen. Three of them were using red Aura.
Could they hold out?
Doing the math, Franz moved his hand to the bracelet connected to Chase, but stopped. He spoke in a very low voice.
“Kyrie. Take Hina and find Dame Grace. I want you to head to Marquis Lin’s mansion as quickly as possible.”
Finishing his words, Franz turned his head briefly toward Hina.
—The mage’s attack.
Calian’s sharp-eared knight was exceptionally good at hearing even the softest murmurs. Hearing Franz’s order, Kyrie sent a reply through the communication device connected to Hina, asking if Rachel wasn’t supposed to be handling the mage.
“The mage won’t attack here. Devlan intends to attack Marquis Lin’s mansion. Because our mages and the Royal Concubine are there.”
Kairis, trying to sway Marquis Lin by taking Louise and Arianne hostage. That was the new picture Devlan was trying to paint.
Though he didn’t know the exact reason, the purpose of keeping this place quiet was to avoid drawing the attention of Calian and the others. Whether Franz informed Calian or not, to outside observers, the annex had to appear peaceful.
Leaving the annex quiet, Devlan planned to attack Marquis Lin’s mansion, no matter who he had to mobilize. It no longer mattered whether Kairis or Alan made the first move. Having confirmed that Louise and the mages were at the mansion, Devlan had a new plan. He would make the very presence of Kairis mages with Louise serve as the preemptive strike.
Calian had said Devlan surely had a hidden trump card. His intention was to “reclaim” the Marquis’s mansion from Kairis, whether by sending all of Zeon there or by using some other means. While it would be framed as a reclamation, in reality, he intended to take Louise hostage and force Chase and Calian to their knees.
The moment flames erupted at Marquis Lin's mansion, Calian and Alan would be forced to move. This would give Devlan the perfect pretext to frame both Calian and Kairis as the masterminds behind the mansion's seizure. Meanwhile, Franz and Hina, unable to contact Calian, would be captured.
In this scenario, Hina would become Devlan's lifeline. Franz, in turn, would be a high-value bargaining chip to use against Kairis—a win-win for Devlan. Without ever declaring war, he would gain a new excuse to control both the nobles and Crown Prince Chase.
It was an absurd, reckless plan, but from Devlan's desperate position, no other solution was as efficient. He was a cornered snake, ready to strike at anyone—be it Kairis or someone else.
That was precisely why Hina had to be sent away.
Hina was the Crown Prince's fiancée. Devlan would undoubtedly use her presence as a justification for his actions, claiming he couldn't possibly leave her in a place where violence was about to erupt. To strip him of that excuse, Hina had to leave. Safely, and immediately.
And Calian needed to come to the annex—not now, but after he had finished playing his part as a "witness."
– I will hold off the knights. Dame Rachel, get her out of here...
"No," Franz cut in.
Hina took off her earring and pressed it to Franz's wrist. Instantly, Kyrie's voice echoed in Franz's mind—a necessary measure, as both of his hands were occupied with his swords.
– Just take Hina and go with Dame Rachel. I'll give you the bracelet. Explain everything to Crown Prince Chase once you've arrived safely. If you tell him on the way, my younger brother will come charging in recklessly. Wait until you're there.
– But what about you, Your Highness?
– I'll call my brother when the time is right. I can handle this.
Eleven of them left.
His eyes scanned the remaining knights, and the corner of his mouth curled into a smirk.
– After all, I know how to get my brother's attention better than anyone.
His grip tightened on the two swords.