Chapter 62: Found (3)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 62: Found (3)
“At least bow your head.”
Calian had spoken while standing right in front of the reception room door, so Yan, who was waiting outside, heard every single word. As a result, he couldn’t shake his growing anxiety.
He would have felt more at ease if Kyrie were here, but Calian had not tasked Kyrie with guarding him inside the castle. Instead, he was giving Kyrie time to train freely.
‘If I’d known this would happen, I would have brought the knights, even if it meant arriving late.’
Since there hadn’t been any physical conflicts recently, their sole focus had been on a swift return. He never imagined he would regret agreeing to leave the knights behind so deeply.
Given that it was an audience with a prince, Gray wouldn’t have entered the reception room armed. However, Yan had grown up watching Suleiman. He knew all too well that to a Sword Master, anything in their hands could become a weapon.
‘What was the prince thinking, saying something like that? What if the Margrave loses his temper and goes berserk?’
Yan remained on high alert, unable to relax for even a moment.
Meanwhile, footsteps approached the reception room.
It was Arsen and Rachel, who had received an assignment from Calian regarding teleportation magic. They seemed to be on their way to the reception room to discuss it, but the room was already occupied.
“Please go somewhere else to talk,” Yan said, trying to turn them away.
Yan’s presence outside meant Calian was behind the closed doors, so Arsen simply nodded without asking any questions. Just then, Viscount Redington’s butler, sensing the situation, hurried over and spoke.
“There is a place upstairs where you can converse. I shall guide you there.”
“I know the way, so there’s no need to trouble yourself,” Rachel said, gesturing for Arsen to follow.
The two turned to head toward the place the butler had mentioned.
Patter, patter!
But they both stopped dead in their tracks. In the distance, someone was running frantically down the hallway.
With every step, a flutter of silver hair caught their eyes.
“Hina?”
It was indeed Hina.
Normally, Hina would never run like that. Her current state could only mean one thing: something was terribly wrong.
Yan, who had called out her name, strode over with a tense expression. “What’s wrong?”
Tears streamed down Hina’s face.
She looked at Yan and began to sign, but her hands trembled so violently that it was hard to read her gestures. Yan bent down to meet her gaze and spoke in a calm, steady voice.
“Hina. Slowly. It’s alright. Just take your time.”
Hina nodded quickly at his words. Then, she moved her hands again at a slightly slower pace.
—Brother, knights.
Having forgotten much of his sign language, Yan wasn’t fluent enough to understand everything, but he recognized those two words. That alone was enough to grasp the general situation.
“Kyrie and the Brissen knights?”
Hina nodded.
Yan’s expression hardened as he asked again, “Did a fight break out?”
Hina nodded emphatically.
“Where?”
—Horse.
“The stables.”
With nothing more to ask, Yan straightened up. He glanced briefly toward the reception room. Calian and Gray’s conversation wasn’t over yet, so he couldn’t leave to check on the situation himself. Seeing his predicament, Arsen stepped forward.
“I’ll go.”
Grateful to Arsen for volunteering when he couldn’t abandon his post, Yan bowed his head slightly.
“It seems there’s trouble between Kyrie and the Brissen knights. They should be at the stables.”
Hina nodded beside him, confirming Yan’s guess. As Arsen was about to head to the stables, Yan added a warning. “Sir Hertz. You must not be the one to harm them first.”
“I know that much. Don’t worry.”
With that, Arsen immediately departed.
Rachel tried to follow him, but Yan stopped her.
“It’s better for Sir Hertz to handle this alone. Dame Grace, please look after Hina.”
Since Arsen was officially one of Calian’s people, the prince could resolve any issues that arose. Rachel, however, was not yet in that position. Furthermore, she was an outsider who had only just arrived in Kairis from Libern. Getting involved with the Brissen family would only bring her trouble.
Whether she fully understood his reasoning or not, Rachel nodded without a word. She wrapped an arm around Hina’s shoulders, gesturing for them to go to her room, and led the still-weeping girl upstairs.
Watching Hina’s retreating figure, Yan frowned.
He didn’t know the exact details, but one thing was certain: Gray’s knights had dared to touch Kyrie and Hina, whom Calian cherished like his own flesh and blood.
“If the Prince finds out about this, he won’t let it slide… What should I do?”
He had a sinking feeling that whatever had happened, Calian would never let it go quietly. Yan let out a short sigh.
*
Unaware of the turmoil outside, a silence like the eye of a storm hung over the reception room. The atmosphere was so tense that the slightest misstep could send everything spiraling out of control.
Amidst the silence, Margrave Gray Brissen struggled to keep the smile on his face from slipping. Though it looked somewhat unnatural, he managed to maintain a semblance of a grin.
“And what, Your Highness, would you have me bow to?”
“To question a prince’s words. How insolent.”
He spoke with utter condescension.
Rather than getting angry, Gray chose to doubt his own ears.
Never, even in his wildest dreams, had he imagined hearing such words. He stared at Calian, an awkward smile plastered on his face that looked as if a child had crudely drawn it on with a brush.
Calian had been staring into Gray’s eyes for some time now, his gaze remaining icy cold. His expression as he looked down at the Margrave did not change in the slightest.
Calian spoke again, his voice clear and distinct.
“Margrave.”
Gray Brissen stood at the very pinnacle of power. He was the eldest son of Marquis Evan Brissen and the older brother of Queen Silike Brissen. A Margrave, and one of the five strongest swordsmen on the continent. It was obvious how such a man had lived his life.
For the eldest son of a duke to act as a mere attendant was truly bizarre. Most people naturally lived like Gray.
Calian—no, Bern—had seen countless people like him. He had dealt with and ruled over them in place of the overly soft-hearted Chase.
That was why he knew so well.
“I told you. Bow your head.”
People of this sort had to be dragged down to the very bottom.
Only then would they choose whether to show their belly or bare their claws.
At this complete condescension—a level of disrespect even Lemain did not show—Gray’s face twisted into a fierce scowl. While Tessid stood beside him in silence, Gray spoke.
“What did you just…”
“Your mouth is not what you should be moving.”
Calian didn’t even let Gray finish. His voice remained calm, and his expression was unwavering.
Seeing this, Gray kicked back his chair and shot to his feet. He was a giant of a man, a full head taller than even the tall Tessid. Standing rigid, Gray glared down at Calian.
‘Will he unleash his killing intent? Or will he lose his mind and draw a hidden sword?’
‘Or will he show an unexpectedly wise response?’
Such thoughts crossed Calian’s mind as he anticipated Gray’s next move.
However, the scenarios Calian predicted were about to become moot.
“Since you have stood, please show your respects and sit back down, Margrave Brissen.”
Tessid had stepped in, blocking Gray’s path.
A strange gleam flickered in Calian’s eyes as he looked at Tessid.
Though Gray didn’t seem to realize it, Tessid was currently helping Gray, not Calian. He was mediating, preventing Gray from making any more mistakes and ensuring this petty emotional clash didn't escalate into a major incident. For a mere viscount to stop a Margrave required immense courage.
The only pity was that Calian was the only one who understood Tessid’s intentions and resolve—and that Calian had wished he wouldn't interfere.
Calian turned his gaze from Tessid and looked straight back at Gray. Since he was standing some distance away, he didn’t need to look up at the taller man. Meeting his gaze, Gray frowned slightly.
—You must not think of him as the 3rd Prince of the past.
Only now did he understand the meaning of that single line in the letter Silike had sent him. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t heard the rumors about Calian from other sources, but to think they weren’t exaggerations…
Gray barely suppressed the urge to slice Calian’s throat right then and there. Had he done so, the entire House of Brissen would have been slaughtered. He reminded himself that it was not yet time to draw his sword so rashly.
“Since I have stood, then…”
However, that didn’t mean he intended to back down quietly.
Gray’s face twisted into a distorted grin. Instead of drawing his sword, he made an extremely exaggerated gesture with his arms. It was a bow dripping with mockery, the kind a circus clown would perform for a superior.
“Gray Brissen pays his respects to the great 3rd Prince of Kairis.”
Afterward, Gray raised his head and looked at Calian. Since he had been ordered to bow and had done so, Calian would have nothing to say, no matter how frivolous the gesture had been. His eyes gleamed with anticipation, waiting to see how the prince would react.
However, the moment Gray raised his head, his expression completely contorted.
Calian’s head was turned toward Tessid.
He hadn’t even looked at Gray’s bow.
As if there was nothing more to see, Calian turned fully to face Tessid. With a weary expression, he spoke.
“I am fatigued, so I shall retire. Viscount Redington, please take good care of the Margrave.”
Only then did Calian turn his head toward Gray.
He concluded in a calm, flat tone, “Since they say he is quite unwell.”
Then, as if he saw no further need to deal with the man, Calian turned and walked out.
Realizing he had been utterly ignored, Gray’s eyes changed. Unable to hold back any longer, he took a step after Calian—
BOOM!
Just then, an unexpected, thunderous roar shook the castle.
Hearing an explosion loud enough to rattle the windows, Calian’s eyes turned sharp.
A sudden surge of mana.
That energy belonged to none other than Arsen.