Bounty from the Labyrinth
Having escaped the dungeon that way, I headed to the nearest city and checked the time. I'd spent nearly two years there.
When I arrived at the former Silimaron royal palace where Ether had been staying, the management of the conquered territories was mostly wrapped up, and Ether had already returned to the homeland. Even if I had other business, I figured I should at least drop by to see him once, so I decided to head back to the Venus royal palace after all.
On the way back to Venus, the territories I passed through looked far better off than before, for some reason. It wasn't as if the nobles had suddenly eased up on their exploitation, so it must have been something the royal family had done. With the expanded lands and the goods coming from them, the economy had clearly boomed.
And so I arrived at the palace and met Ether. In just those two short years, he'd grown tremendously, now looking almost like a young man. He wasn't my blood son, and we hadn't spent all that much time together, but he felt like a son to me all the same. Seeing him like that filled me with pride.
I told him about this adventure, and Ether was utterly astonished. This was Inclonius's legacy, after all. I quietly asked him to prepare a place, and he set up a spot in one corner of a annex palace.
There, I began pulling out the items I'd stored in the subspace. My personal subspace wasn't all that large, so I'd first packed everything into the public subspace artifact Inclonius had prepared, then stored that inside my own. Even so, it took quite a while to unload it all. Probably several months' worth.
Subspaces normally can't overlap, meaning ordinary mages can't store one subspace artifact inside another. This had been possible only thanks to Inclonius's perfected subspace magic. In his research journal, he'd written that this spell must never be revealed to the world, even imagining ways it could be abused. Three hundred years really is a long time. It was a bit odd for a lich to worry about humanity's peril, but Inclonius hadn't been an evil man to begin with—his only reason for becoming a lich was his desire to see his wife again.
Anyway, his reasoning made sense to me, so I had no intention of teaching this magic even to Ether. As I'd felt while packing, the sheer volume was staggering once it was all laid out. Even the miscellaneous junk from the room with Inclonius's life vessel turned out to be valuable antiques upon closer inspection, so I'd taken it all.
What I handed over to Ether was 13 subspace artifacts, the books from Inclonius's library, general artifacts, antiques, and a fortune in gold coins and jewels amounting to some 20 million gold. Ether gaped as the treasures kept pouring out endlessly, but that wasn't everything. A soul like me has no need for money, but just in case, I'd held back about a million gold. Inclonius's masterpiece personal subspace artifact—which was sealed and not meant for public use—I didn't hand over either. Nor did I give him the two ring-shaped artifacts, keeping those for myself. And most importantly, Inclonius's personally authored spellbooks and research journal stayed with me.
Ether didn't ask about them, whether he knew or not, and the wealth I'd already given him was substantial enough to keep him busy managing it for a good while.
"Guardian, thank you so much. But there's something important going on these days."
Come to think of it, I'd been so caught up in my own stories upon reuniting that I hadn't asked how he'd been.
[What's going on?]
"Well... there are marriage proposals coming in for me."
Ether said it with extreme embarrassment, but he was just the right age for it.
[Have they narrowed it down to decent candidates?]
"Yes. Father seems keen on linking us with a noble family from the conquered territories if possible."
[Politics matter, but so does the person...]
"The candidates are staying at the palace right now. Could you take a look at them for me, Guardian?"
[It might be better if I do, but this is the woman you'll be living with. What you like matters most.]
Even if a soul like me vetted them, unless they were extraordinarily talented, human souls were all much of a muchness. That was my recent take. Even the blackest souls could be good to their own people, and even bright gray ones could commit murder.
"Proposals have come in for Elizabeth too."
[What? Who dares eye Elizabeth?]
Ether's face twisted a bit at my different reaction, though of course I knew about it and was just pretending otherwise. Elizabeth was like a sore finger to me—a child I felt particularly tender about. I'd taken Isabel's request, but relatively speaking, I'd paid her less attention than Ether. Not that she'd been neglected, but I felt guilty inside. And sending off a son to marry was different from marrying off a daughter, plain and simple. Ether would understand one day when he sent his own daughter away.
The family proposing to Elizabeth was none other than that of Marquis Kantana Aegis—the de facto commander of the expeditionary force—who had now been elevated to Duke Aegis. The family head's character seemed decent enough. He wasn't the type to mistreat a daughter-in-law. So I headed straight for the Aegis ducal estate.
[Then I'll swing by the Aegis place.]
"No, Guardian! Check the princess candidates first before you go!"
Ether shouted from behind, but my heart was suddenly in a rush.
[I'll be right back.]
I ignored Ether and flew to the Aegis estate. Fortunately, it wasn't far from the capital, so I arrived in just a few days.
For a ducal house, the Aegis territory was small and not particularly wealthy. Back when he was a marquis, Kantana had been a run-of-the-mill academy professor with little interest in politics. A look around showed the people's sentiment wasn't bad. Highborns usually get trashed in public gatherings—cursing the king, the lord, or the lord's kids was everyday talk. Checking the taverns at dinnertime, there was some grumbling, but no one badmouthing the lord or his children, no bad rumors.
So I went to the lord's castle. Kantana himself was already vetted, so I checked his inner circle. The duchess-to-be was a typical noblewoman, living for noble dignity with a touch of extravagance. Her soul color wasn't too murky, so she didn't seem bad.
Kantana had four children, and naturally, the marriage talk involved the eldest son. The 21-year-old heir was a textbook knight. But viewing his soul, his talent wasn't great—no chance of reaching Master. He seemed decent in character otherwise, but the problem was his siblings. The second son and youngest daughter had pitch-black souls. The youngest daughter would marry out eventually, so no issue, but the second son was trouble. His soul was puny too, so he wasn't wise. Hadn't I lived through what happens when a dimwit harbors dark ambitions?
For a moment, I thought, 'Should I just kill him?' It wasn't a bad idea upon reflection. But I decided to hold off and dig deeper into the ducal house.
The investigation confirmed their finances were shaky. Money wasn't a big deal, though. I could tell Ether to pass a few million gold from what I'd given him to Elizabeth, and he wouldn't refuse. A lavish dowry would only improve her treatment there—win-win.
The second son was up to no good, covertly and overtly. Tormenting servants was routine, and he caroused daily with local deadbeats. This must be the infamous ducal wastrel.
So I made up my mind. Killing someone directly would be a first, but I'd researched methods long ago. The human body breaks easier than you'd think, especially when unguarded. A soul's greatest advantage? Passing through objects without resistance. Add mana use, and it's terrifying. As far as I knew, no other soul could do that.
That night too, the Aegis second son returned to the lord's mansion late, drunk off his ass and barely atop his horse with his cronies. Then he felt a powerful shock bursting inside him. That was it. I'd gathered mana in his heart and detonated a mana bolt. A human heart pops that easily. Masters or archmages might block it, but anyone below? Impossible.
I wasn't some soul that killed indiscriminately, nor did I plan to, but for assassination, I might be the continent's best.
With the investigation and cleanup done at the Aegis house, I returned to the palace. Ether was officially preparing to receive his princess consort, meeting daily with noble ladies who came to the palace as candidates. Some approached boldly, others hung back—shy, or maybe uninterested.
I floated up beside Ether, swarmed by the ladies and barely keeping his wits, and spoke.
[So, who do you like?]
Ether jumped at my sudden voice from the side.
"Oh, Your Highness, what's wrong all of a sudden?"
"Are you unwell?"
The ladies fussed as Ether flinched and trembled.
"Ah, it's nothing. The Guardian just spoke to me."
The ladies erupted at the mention of the Guardian—the legendary figure they'd only heard of. Even the indifferent ones crowded in, surrounding Ether with over a dozen in seconds.
[Quite the flower garden you've got.]
Naturally, all the selected candidates were stunning. Ether's face flushed red. The guy had less resistance to women than I'd thought.
"Don't tease."
Ether muttered so softly, but the ladies overheard and made a fuss denying they'd dare tease the prince. I chuckled inwardly and examined each one. Some had black souls, some didn't—that was normal. One even had three resentful souls attached, inappropriate for her age. She was out immediately.
Then one caught my eye. Not close to Ether but standing shyly on the outer edge—a lady with long, ebony-black hair. Her soul dwarfed the others. She had remarkable talent. Its color was relatively bright, not dazzling but haloed with a glow. By soul alone, she stood head and shoulders above.
[Who's the black-haired lady in the back?]
"Then let's end today's meeting here."
Ether, realizing he'd blurt more thoughtlessly and face hell, decided to escape.
Back in his room, Ether sighed in relief.
"Are you there?"
[Yes.]
"The black-haired lady is Lady Eren from Odysseia, eldest daughter of the Posiga Count family."
[A family with some pull, yet they stayed out of the war nicely.]
"I hear they run a major trading company. Richest in Odysseia, they say."
Not a bad match. For Ether's partner, merchant wealth beat political or military clout.
[No one else catches your eye?]
"No, I can't really tell. Maybe you should pick for me, Guardian?"
[Meet a few more and think it over carefully. If you're still unsure, that Lady Eren looks best to me.]
Ether nodded, and with that, his marriage issue was settled for now. Next up: wrapping up Elizabeth's.