Chapter 9 - Banquet (3)
Chapter 9 - Banquet (3)
"I greet Count Hebron-nim."
Marquis Grobin, who resembled a goblin, offered his greeting with elaborate formality.
Deltain replied nonchalantly.
"Yeah."
"How was the gift I sent?"
"The Mana Herb was alright."
"The item you were looking for..."
"Ah."
Deltain lifted his head. A look of displeasure was etched in his eyes.
"Are you digging into my background?"
The Marquis's body stiffened at the icy tone.
It was the reaction Deltain had intended.
'Let's leave it at this for now.'
The Aristocratic Faction's flow of funds was suspicious. Ishmark was sharpening his blade for it. And today's event was a place to show Ishmark's power to them.
...Deltain had no interest in such things.
What mattered to him was clearing the DLC, and this attitude was merely for the sake of a smooth process.
Deltain is a perfectionist. He is a man who cannot leave things outside his control alone.
So, he was tightening the leash again. To ensure the golden goblin who offered tribute didn't have any foolish thoughts.
"...My apologies."
Marquis Grobin bowed his head. Cold sweat was running down his neck.
A superhuman whom not even the entire Empire could touch, even if they all rose up against him.
This was too massive a wall to face with the title of Marquis and the position of head of the Aristocratic Faction.
"I would appreciate it if you understood that I only wish to be of help to you, Count-nim."
Marquis Grobin's smile was almost servile.
Only then did Deltain suppress his aura.
"I'm not asking for much. I'm just saying let's live as neighbors who keep to themselves."
Deltain said that while putting down his glass.
"I've never picked a fight first, have I?"
His words were blatant and lacked grace. It was a tone that suggested he wouldn't even consider hiding a dagger in his words. This was confidence and the pride of the strong.
Indeed, Deltain did not think of ways to match the etiquette of pigs.
Snap.
As Deltain snapped his fingers, a transparent barrier formed around the two. Even Agnes could no longer hear their conversation.
"I don't care what you guys do."
Only then did Deltain spit out the fact he knew.
"I'll even turn a blind eye to you organizing a rebel army."
"...!"
Marquis Grobin's eyes widened. What was etched on his face was astonishment.
"What do you mean..."
"I know you're not actually going to start a rebellion. You just want to make Ishmark's reign chaotic."
"...I do not know what you are talking about, Count-nim."
"Yeah, keep pretending you don't know. I'll pretend I don't know too. Go ahead and commit arson or terrorism. Just not around me."
Marquis Grobin's fingertips were trembling. The only thought that crossed his mind at that moment was one.
'Where?'
Where did the information leak from? And how far had it leaked?
The army he was currently organizing was a secret that only a very few within the faction knew about.
There was no way Deltain Hebron could have found out this information...
"Don't rack your brain. I just know."
Deltain scoffed.
"Why do you think I wouldn't be able to come up with the ideas you guys have?"
A look so relaxed that it felt even more grotesque.
Marquis Grobin's smile began to break.
He replayed the situation.
He had gathered information.
Deltain Hebron snapped his fingers. It was after that that the fatal information came from him.
It must be magic that blocks sound. As proof, the Duke's daughter Levadein was looking at Deltain Hebron with dissatisfaction.
'The statement that he wouldn't intervene is true.'
Then what attitude should he take now?
Marquis Grobin knew the answer.
"...Thank you for your consideration."
A lion does not concern itself with the society of rabbits. This was what Marquis Grobin had heard from his father, the previous head of the family, when he was very young.
Marquis Grobin was a man who was quick to know his place. He knew he could not become a lion. So he had aimed to be the strongest rabbit.
To do that, this was the correct stance to take. He did not want the lion to turn its gaze toward the society of rabbits.
A look of satisfaction appeared on Deltain's lips.
Snap.
He snapped his fingers again.
"I received the gift well. Thank you."
"I will prepare something you will be even more satisfied with next time."
"Then go dig around in the desert."
"...There are many beautiful treasures in the desert."
Marquis Grobin straightened his back.
His face already wore the same smile as when he had approached.
"I hope you have an enjoyable banquet."
"Yeah."
Marquis Grobin left.
Only then did Agnes ask Deltain.
"What were you talking about so secretly?"
"Work stuff."
"Did you hold him back to ask him to look at you?"
"No, he was clinging to me, asking me not to abandon him."
"Wow, losers are ugly."
Agnes giggled.
Deltain tilted his glass again.
'Well, the business is done.'
There might be a distance between Ishmark's intentions and his own actions... but what of it? It was important for Deltain to simply increase the sources for the DLC materials.
<Collect the materials for the contract.>
An interface with 'Complete' marked on only 3 items.
What Deltain had entrusted to Marquis Grobin was 'No.5 Breath of the Scorching Sand'.
'Since there's only one desert in the south, he'll find something.'
Now, he could just sip some alcohol and go back to the mansion.
It was while Deltain was thinking that.
"Deltain."
"Why."
"Isn't His Majesty coming?"
"He'll come. Once everyone gets a bit drunk and starts dancing."
"I know he usually doesn't get that late."
"He's just posturing for no reason."
Every action of Ishmark is completed under thorough calculation.
Just like the meal with Deltain earlier, he would surely carry out today's appearance with a clear intention.
"Still, well... seeing him this late, it seems he really intends to do something."
"Are you not worried?"
"About what?"
"He called you here, and he's going to cause trouble."
"Not even a little bit. And what do you mean 'cause trouble' for His Majesty the Emperor? That's imperial blasphemy."
"You talk trash, though."
"I'm allowed to. I'm the one who put Ishmark on the throne."
"For someone who says that, you're whispering quite a bit."
"I'm respecting the authority. It's annoying if the authority I created is looked down upon."
Agnes blinked for a moment, ruminating on Deltain's words.
Then she smiled and replied.
"Then I'm special to you. Since you tell me all these things too."
Stumble.
Deltain's movement stopped. It wasn't a reaction caused by anger or shame like usual.
'...Me?'
Only then did Deltain realize that he had blabbered things to Agnes that he didn't need to.
Deltain's gaze turned toward Agnes.
"You're slow to notice."
She was smiling arrogantly, as if to say, "Look at this."
"A confession will be soon, too."
A dry laugh escaped Deltain's lips.
"...No, thanks to you, I've lost the need to do that for the rest of my life."
Deltain humbly admitted it. He had just made a mistake. A mistake that might have even led to failure.
"I must have really gone soft. I ended up getting attached to my patient."
"I think that's physical attachment."
"Don't talk bullshit."
"You know that? They say love accelerates from the moment you realize it."
"That's why I'm saying it. I have no love to realize."
"I'm looking forward to it. How you'll confess."
Agnes burst into laughter as if she were having fun.
There was no one around the two, so the conversation didn't leak, but those who were glancing at her from afar were at a loss at the smile that had burst out.
"Right. What line will you use when you ask for a dance?"
"I won't ask. Besides, you can't dance. You seem to be mistaken, but just because you can walk doesn't mean you can dance. You're still a weakling who can't even run."
"Is that so? I don't think it's to that extent."
"In normal times, you only move within the range that the Supporter can cover."
Agnes pouted her lower lip at those words.
This was also an expression meant to scratch Deltain's nerves for no reason.
"...Once I extract the Demon Flower, I'll consider other treatment methods."
"Yeah, until then, I'll have to be satisfied with rolling around in bed."
Pfft!
Deltain spat out the alcohol he was drinking. He even coughed.
The expression that came to mind was bewildered.
Deltain said to Agnes with a face that was scrunched up as much as possible.
"...Crazy bitch."
"Lack of exercise is a serious problem. I think you, as my therapist, should solve that problem."
"Where did that kind of idea come from again?"
"The novel Elina gave me. Treatment of Secret Ecstasy."
"Do you want to be friends with someone like that?"
At those words, Agnes's expression wavered.
But it was a short moment. Agnes soon regained her composure and smiled gently.
"...Because I was young."
It was an incomprehensible statement.
Deltain looked at Agnes as if he were fed up, but she just shrugged her shoulders.
Deltain looked for Ishmark for no reason.
In fact, the reason he hadn't left yet was that he hadn't arrived.
At a banquet invited by the Emperor, one must show one's face to him before leaving.
This was a matter that had to be kept as it was in the contract Deltain had made with Ishmark.
So, about 10 minutes passed.
[His Majesty the Emperor enters!]
At the same time as those words, the orchestra began to play vigorously.
Deltain's gaze turned to the main entrance of the banquet hall.
It turned to the man who was opening it and entering.
"The Emperor looks quite youthful."
"The cost to maintain that is the tax of a small territory for a year."
"Wow."
The dazzling white hair flowed down like silk. Above it, a golden crown was placed. More noticeable than that was the sturdy body whose lines could be felt even over his clothes, and the impression that exuded masculine beauty.
Emperor Ishmark Von Levrok was entering the banquet hall with a relaxed gait.
The nobles stepped aside and bowed their heads in the path he walked.
The fact that no one dared to even breathe carelessly showed clearly how much authority Ishmark held.
The Emperor of a peaceful era, Ishmark's reign might be unsatisfactory to some, but in terms of the Empire's prosperity, he was more outstanding than any other emperor in history.
This was just proof of that.
Soon, Ishmark sat on the head seat of the banquet hall.
For a moment, his and Deltain's eyes met.
Ishmark greeted him with a smile and raised his hand.
Snap. The orchestra's music stopped.
'He's really fucking calculating.'
Deltain watched what Ishmark was planning with a listless face.
"Thank you for attending today's banquet. As you know, this banquet is a place for the Empire's swords and the great mage who excellently handled the accident that happened a while ago."
The banquet hall's gaze was fixed on Deltain.
Deltain's expression became even more sullen, and Agnes's smile became even more artificial.
"First, I would like you to applaud them."
Clap. Clap.
As Ishmark clapped in a steady rhythm, the seated nobles began to follow suit.
Each one wasn't that loud, but the vibration they made together was enough to shake the banquet hall.
"Wow~."
In the midst of it, Agnes was even cheering. It was as if she liked Deltain's sullen face.
Deltain glared at her for a moment, then stood up from his seat and bowed his head to Ishmark.
"I am overwhelmed by the Imperial grace."
A farce that wasn't even funny.
Thinking back to the day after defeating Gaias, this was the second time this month.
It was quite an annoying thing for Deltain, but it was a pleasant thing for Ishmark.
After all, hadn't he revealed his relationship with Deltain to the whole world like this?
But one must keep the line.
Since Ishmark had already seen all the benefits he could get by praising him, he didn't get any greedier.
"I am grateful for the hard work of the Count who always protects the Empire."
Ishmark's gaze, having said that, scanned the banquet hall.
It was a gaze that pierced the silence.
Since the main point was from now on, that act was playing a role in creating tension.
Ishmark's moving gaze stopped at Marquis Grobin.
Deltain watched the situation quietly.
He knew Ishmark would make a move today, but since he didn't know the exact method, a faint curiosity was even dwelling inside him.
In the midst of that, Ishmark parted his lips.
"There was a moment of crisis. It was something that happened because of demons that snuck in through an unexpected route. Fortunately, we got over the hurdle, but..."
The nobles bowed their heads and listened to the Emperor's words.
Marquis Grobin was not shaken even by the gaze that pierced him.
"...I don't know why, but I have a feeling that the crisis hasn't ended."
A smile lingered on Ishmark's lips.
"Isn't that so? A demon is something that dwells in the human heart. Isn't it possible that a demon that hasn't been eradicated yet is inside this system?"
The following words were radical.
"For example, like that Demon of Chaos who led the previous Emperor to commit suicide three years ago."
In an instant, Marquis Grobin's expression stiffened.
Deltain's eyebrows lifted.
'A demon...'
Only then did Deltain understand Ishmark's intention.
It was quite a radical move.