Chapter 247
Chapter 247
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 247
Chapter Title: Northern Nobles' Visit
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The news that the Northern Noble Faction was paying a visit to the Eastern Noble Faction.
In response, the Imperba Ducal Territory was breaking out in a cold sweat as it scrambled to prepare a proper welcome for the nobles.
This was no small matter—representatives from all corners of the realm were coming.
Naturally, those handling the preparations spared no effort, leaving no stone unturned.
Separate from those bustling with preparations, the ones simply waiting were on edge, tense as bowstrings.
The Eastern Noble Faction had recently begun surging ahead at an astonishing pace.
And the group least thrilled by this was, of course, the Northern Noble Faction.
They had long eyed the Eastern Faction with greedy intent.
Indeed, rumors had even swirled that the Eastern Noble Faction was destined to be swallowed up by the North.
But now, those rumors had flipped entirely on their head.
The Northern Noble Faction had remained quiet all this time.
In stark contrast, the Eastern Faction had made bold, unprecedented moves.
Backed by the Abyss, they had launched ventures left and right, expanding their influence at breakneck speed.
From those drawn by the mere allure of the Abyss's name to others who had witnessed its power firsthand.
Major players from across the world were lining up to ally with the Eastern Noble Faction.
The most shocking among them was the Savior Lord.
The man who had stayed silent for so long had now appeared in the Imperba Ducal Territory.
He had quietly taken up residence in an old church there.
Was the Savior Lord's arrival mere coincidence, or something more deliberate?
Opinions were divided.
And just as debates raged, the Copy Witch made her entrance.
She had left the North, where she had lived for so long, and relocated to the East.
Naturally, her guild, Fading Night, had followed suit.
They were a small, elite group to begin with.
Moving the guild wasn't a tall order.
Fading Night wasn't the only one to relocate.
A number of other race leaders had also shifted to the East.
They were the ones who had followed the Copy Witch as representatives of their races.
They would gladly trail her anywhere she chose to go.
On top of that, even the ever-veiled Elf tribe, Agrasil, had expressed willingness to cooperate with the Eastern Noble Faction.
And the Bloodless Sovereign, scenting profit, had approached them as well.
With all the world's major powers converging on the Eastern Noble Faction.
The Northern Noble Faction could hardly stand by and watch.
Especially when their own core forces were defecting.
Thus, they had all rushed to secure seats at this summit.
At the center of this brewing conflict.
Duke Imperba wiped the sweat beading on his forehead.
"Ugh... my stomach's killing me."
He groaned from the stress-induced gastritis that had flared up recently.
Ever since word spread worldwide that he had allied with the Abyss, the situation had spiraled out of control.
Duke Imperba had fought tooth and nail to turn things around, no question.
But even accounting for that, the momentum was unnaturally swift.
The tide was flowing far too favorably for the Eastern Noble Faction.
To the duke, the whole affair reeked of abnormality.
His instincts screamed it.
This situation is someone's design.
But whose?
He didn't have to ponder long.
'The Abyss.'
It had to be that man's doing.
Could a single individual upend an entire noble faction's power structure overnight?
Anyone else would scoff at the notion.
But this was reality.
All of it, stark reality.
Duke Imperba was one of the empire's top powerhouses.
Yet even he found this turn of events deeply unnerving.
The world didn't shift like this, no matter how hard a duke like him pushed.
So what in the world was the Abyss?
'And lately, we've spotted odd movements from the Night Raven side too.'
The empire's underworld blade.
The Night Raven Knight Order.
They had been acting in ways that benefited the Eastern Noble Faction more and more.
Could the Night Ravens be aiding the Abyss as well?
But why would they, when they answered to the emperor?
Unless... the Abyss had joined hands with the emperor himself?
One question spawned another, tangling the duke's mind in knots.
"Ughhh."
His stomach twisted again.
Yet he was the Eastern Noble Faction's leader.
Duke Imperba straightened his back with effort.
"Open it."
At his command, the attendant bowed and swung open the doors to the hall.
Kiiieeeek—
Bright light flooded in as the doors parted.
Gazes flew toward him from amid the hall's brilliant illumination.
Those gazes belonged to nobles gathered from east, west, north, and south.
The hall brimmed with them—all save the center seat.
Duke Imperba stepped forward as their representative.
'Damn it all. Never thought I'd feel like such a small-timer in my life.'
Standing here, tension gripped him like never before.
Especially with the showdown against the North looming.
'Father, I envy you.'
His father had always preached that peace was paramount.
And he had been right.
In these warlike times, every day was agony.
"Esteemed guests, welcome to this gathering today.
I am Roharen Imperba, lord of the Imperba Ducal Territory and representative of the Eastern Noble Faction."
Thunderous applause erupted alongside Duke Imperba's introduction.
But it came solely from the Eastern Noble Faction.
The Northern Faction mostly shot him cold, unwelcome stares.
Undeterred, Duke Imperba kept his back straight amid the scrutiny.
He strode to the center of the hall.
There stood a massive round table flanked by ornate chairs.
Every seat was filled—save for one.
Half were representatives of the Eastern Noble Faction, loyal to Duke Imperba.
The other half hailed from the Northern Noble Faction.
Among them sat a man with deep blue hair, eyes narrowed to slits.
Duke Kaiden.
Leader of the Northern Noble Faction and living legend of the North.
Facing him, Duke Imperba instinctively stiffened.
An extraordinary aura poured from the man, binding his entire body.
A fitting reputation as the North's legend.
Though retired now, he had once been vice-captain of the Golden Tiger Knight Order.
A warrior who had achieved nineteen Ascensions, on par with golden heroes.
That was Duke Kaiden.
'The gap between us dukes feels impossibly vast.'
Duke Imperba was far from the imperial core.
Still, he knew full well what the empire's knight orders signified.
He was no stranger to their brutal training regimens either.
'We Imperbas, distanced from the center, could never grasp the full schemes of the capital.'
The empire's knight orders were forged in ways unknown to common folk.
Born from the Central Garden at the heart of the imperial court.
Compressed talent honed to lethal perfection.
Their strength was unmatched.
Especially the knight order captains—truly perilous sorts.
'Duke Kaiden never rose to captain.'
Likely due to the chains of succession among captains.
By skipping that role, he had preserved his full might.
Yet even so, he had never challenged the emperor's reign.
He knew better than anyone the emperor's own terrifying power.
But times had changed dramatically.
With the emperor in seclusion and foxes running rampant.
Fangs were bared everywhere, all hungry for imperial might.
Duke Kaiden before him was no different.
He too was just another fox coveting the throne.
No point fearing one fox with another.
"It's been a while, Duke Kaiden."
"Indeed it has. You've put on some fine weight—must be doing well."
"Haha, living in bountiful lands like the East leaves little choice. You, Duke Kaiden, seem even more robustly muscled."
"In harsh climes like the North, training's all we've got."
Tension crackled between them.
The other nobles followed suit, nerves taut.
As Duke Imperba took his seat, the summit truly began.
At first, conversation flowed as they reviewed recent events in the North and East.
Viscounts, not the dukes, took the lead.
The dukes held final say.
Trivial matters fell to the viscounts.
But this was a clash between two factions baring teeth.
"Hahaha, ever the Northern gentlemen. Must you nitpick every detail? A touch of leniency wouldn't hurt."
"Leniency? I'd call it sloppiness on the East's part. Bloated bellies breed complacency—such a pity."
"We call it flexibility. I get the hunger makes you prickly, but the world doesn't turn on such rigidity."
Before long, the summit devolved into a war of nerves between the factions.
Bickering escalated; some even slammed the table and stood.
As tempers peaked.
"Duke Imperba."
Duke Kaiden spoke first.
In an instant, every noble fell silent.
His words carried that much weight.
Duke Imperba, who had eyes only for Kaiden, smiled faintly.
"Speak."
"Rumors swirl that a figure of your stature has allied with some shady back-alley element."
A question none dared voice.
Duke Kaiden had put it into words.
Their gazes locked.
Would Duke Imperba admit it or deny?
All held their breath in suspense.
"After all that buildup, it's just that?"
Duke Imperba's smile never wavered.
"True enough. I have decided to back the Abyss."
The Abyss.
His name uttered outright made every noble gulp.
No one had expected Duke Imperba to own up to it so boldly.
"Allying with a necromancer the court wants captured? What madness is this!"
"Housing such a vile necromancer and brazening it out!"
Outcries erupted from the Northern side.
Duke Imperba's expression remained unchanged amid the jeers.
"By imperial law, the bounty on necromancers has been lifted.
You nobles surely know this, so if you're just grasping at straws to insult me, it doesn't sit well."
His glare silenced them.
No matter the faction, a duke was a duke.
No one to trifle with lightly.
"I'm not condemning him for being a necromancer."
Duke Kaiden spoke again.
"I mention it because he's committed acts tantamount to high treason."
High treason.
The grave charge made even Duke Imperba pause.
No light accusation.
"...Duke Kaiden, do you truly stand by those words?"
Duke Imperba dropped his smile, voice serious.
Duke Kaiden stared back blankly before replying.
"The Abyss stands accused of annihilating the White Lion Knight Order and slaying the Imperial Necromancer."
The hall plunged into dead silence.
White Lion Knight Order. Imperial Necromancer.
Both had vanished from the court recently.
And pinned on the Abyss.
"He who slew the emperor's appointed knights and the Imperial Necromancer, who served only the court. That is the Abyss."
Duke Kaiden was a fox.
"To ally with such a one."
A fox that devoured its own kind.
"Does the Eastern Noble Faction intend to commit high treason?"
But one that utterly crushed what it couldn't consume.
Duke Imperba's face hardened.
The fox was cornering its prey to devour it.
Tak!
Then, footsteps echoed through the hushed hall.
Disruptive clamor amid such a crucial summit.
Irritated gazes turned toward the sound, landing on an aide.
An aide, appearing at this pivotal moment.
Nobles' stares bored into him, but he delivered his message undaunted.
"D-Duke Imperba, s-sir."
"Out with it."
Duke Imperba approved directly, noting the aide's urgency.
Any breather would do right now.
Even trivial news.
"The White Lion Knight Order Captain requests to join this assembly."
His next words rounded every noble's eyes in shock.