Chapter 31
Chapter 31
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 31
Chapter Title: A Ridiculous Misunderstanding
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A situation where Estelle had formed some utterly ridiculous misunderstanding.
Of course, misunderstandings needed to be cleared up.
But before he could do that, Leyzon's eyes were growing wider by the second.
"...Estelle, so you've learned the empire's secret too."
Leyzon had shown the diary of a Kaltura Empire citizen to Syria and Hanok previously.
At the time, they had dismissed it as some fairy tale.
They hadn't harbored any great doubts about it.
That was the natural reaction from locals.
But Estelle was different.
Estelle often fell into deep thought, his face paling.
This meant Estelle pondered things more deeply than most.
He had somehow pieced together the empire's secret.
And realized just how abnormal the facts the empire was hiding were.
The problem was that this habit of deep reflection sometimes led to bizarre misunderstandings.
"Yes, though I realized it later than you, Leyzon."
Hearing her next words, Leyzon's lips twitched for a moment.
Estelle's eyes held profound trust toward Leyzon.
As if gazing upon a sage who had grasped the truths of the world.
Leyzon felt the urgent need to correct this misunderstanding first.
"No, I only learned about it recently myself."
"Ah, so you verified the facts just recently."
"...".
Leyzon realized Estelle was incredibly stubborn.
Correcting the misunderstanding seemed hopeless.
Instead, he shifted to questions.
"Estelle, which lord was it that you killed?"
Leyzon had done his own investigating in the meantime.
But he knew nothing about the lords.
Information on inactive lords wasn't even handled by informants.
Messing with a lord's mood while gathering info could spell doom.
So they had mostly washed their hands of anything lord-related.
At Leyzon's question, Estelle paused for a moment.
Then, with a slightly troubled expression, he replied.
"The lord I killed was the Hundred-Legged Lord, Viscount Pashema."
Viscount.
A rare noble even in Dungeon Replay.
'The Hundred-Legged Lord.'
He was said to have been confined to his mansion for a long time due to worsening illness.
'But in reality, Estelle had killed him.'
Only then did Leyzon understand why no information had leaked.
A figure of viscount rank.
The empire couldn't publicly admit a viscount had been slain by an undead.
And that was all the more reason they had to hunt Estelle down.
"Estelle, I doubt you went after the Hundred-Legged Lord without reason. There must have been a cause, right?"
"Yes, the Hundred-Legged Lord was capturing non-humans."
At that, Hanok's ears suddenly perked up.
Hanok stared at Estelle with wide eyes.
As Leyzon shot a questioning look, Estelle continued.
"His main research focus was excision of the innate traits still present in non-humans."
Leyzon's eyes twisted in fury.
"...So the empire wants to erase even the traits possessed by non-humans."
The Kaltura Empire hadn't managed to remove non-humans' traits yet.
But the empire aimed to eliminate even those.
"The Hundred-Legged Lord was one who conducted that research under imperial orders."
Leyzon was certain.
The empire wanted the system to be complete.
"Of course, I only learned this after taking down the Hundred-Legged Lord."
"So there was a reason to target him before that."
"Yes. To be precise, I received a proposal from someone.
They said if I helped them, they'd let me in on the empire's secrets."
That person had asked Estelle to help take down the Hundred-Legged Lord.
Estelle, wanting to know the empire's secrets, must have been tempted.
A figure of the Hundred-Legged Lord's stature in the empire would know plenty.
"Who was it?"
Then who was the one bold enough to strike an imperial viscount?
Hearing Leyzon's question, Estelle clasped his hands together as he sat.
Then Estelle's gaze turned to Hanok beside Leyzon.
Hanok's body flinched.
"From the moment you first brought that Sword-Tooth Clan child, you already knew, didn't you, Leyzon?"
It seemed like another misunderstanding.
But Leyzon could tell who Estelle meant.
"...No way, the Shadow Warlord?"
As Leyzon uttered the name, Hanok's eyes shook violently.
The representative of the Sword-Tooth Clan.
And the one hunted by the empire for rebelling against it.
The Shadow Warlord.
"Yes, that's right."
The one who killed the Hundred-Legged Lord alongside Estelle was the Shadow Warlord.
"Sword-Tooth Clan child."
Estelle called out to the frozen Hanok.
"You're the Shadow Warlord's younger brother."
Leyzon turned to Hanok in shock.
Hanok was the Shadow Warlord's brother?
This was news to Leyzon.
"That necklace."
Estelle pointed to the bone necklace Hanok wore.
"When I met the Shadow Warlord after everything was done, he was wearing the same one.
He said it was a memento from their parents, shared with his younger brother."
Only then did Leyzon realize how Estelle had recognized Hanok.
And why Estelle had misunderstood again.
'Coincidences upon coincidences.'
Leyzon buying Hanok from the black market had been pure chance.
He never imagined it would connect like this.
Leyzon and Hanok's eyes met.
Hanok bowed his head with a face that said he had nothing to say.
"...Leyzon, I'm sorry. For not telling you sooner."
Hanok's tail and ears drooped limply.
Hanok had kept secret that he was the Shadow Warlord's brother until now.
It was something he felt sorry for toward Leyzon, who had trusted him all along.
Leyzon said nothing much.
Instead, he let out a breath.
"No, nothing to apologize for. I'd have kept it secret too in your shoes."
The Shadow Warlord was branded a rebel by the empire.
Naturally, if it came out that he was his brother, his safety would be at risk.
Leyzon wasn't one to pry, but.
That was separate from rashly revealing it.
So Leyzon didn't blame Hanok.
'Now I get why the Bloodless Sovereign had captured Hanok.'
That old monster planned to use Hanok as bait to draw out the Shadow Warlord.
What a shady character.
"Hanok, did the Shadow Warlord tell you he killed Estelle and the Hundred-Legged Lord?"
Hanok shook his head.
He had only pieced it together listening to Estelle and Leyzon's conversation.
Hanok didn't seem to know exactly what the Shadow Warlord had done either.
"...My brother was just trying to save the non-humans."
The empire captured non-humans to neuter their talents.
The Shadow Warlord had learned of this somehow.
And couldn't tolerate it, so he opposed them.
"But because of that, our Sword-Tooth Clan was massacred by the empire."
Hanok gripped his bone necklace tightly.
"Of course, we Sword-Tooth Clan don't resent my brother. He did what had to be done."
The Sword-Tooth Clan was a proud race.
There was injustice, and they stood against it.
Even if it meant their race being burned away.
They didn't condemn the Sword-Tooth Clan's hero.
Leyzon caught on to why Hanok sought to grow stronger.
To survive as the Shadow Warlord's brother.
And to become another source of strength for the Shadow Warlord.
Hanok strove to grow strong.
'Those with goals grow strong.'
This was something Leyzon, who set goals and charged toward them, knew best.
"Hanok, do you want to become like your brother?"
"...No. I could never be like him.
Maybe because we don't share blood, but unlike him, I'm really cowardly."
They didn't share blood.
Not blood-related brothers.
"But I want to show that his choice wasn't wrong. Because we're family."
Still, Hanok and the Shadow Warlord were family.
"Then that's enough. Just keep heading toward your goal from now on."
Leyzon forgave Hanok.
However, Estelle's gaze toward Hanok had sharpened.
"Shadow Warlord's brother, for his sake, I'll let the secrecy toward Leyzon slide."
A faint killing intent emanated from Estelle's body.
"But if anything that could harm Leyzon's safety arises in the future, tell him yourself first."
Hanok nodded at that.
With that, Estelle's killing intent faded, and his expression softened.
"And this is a message from the Shadow Warlord."
Hanok's ears perked up.
"The empire won't give up on this. They'll capture non-humans again."
This was meant for Estelle, ultimately.
But it applied to Hanok too.
"...Thank you."
A firm resolve settled on Hanok's face.
Leyzon gave Estelle a brief smile.
'You've grown well.'
Advice and a sense of purpose.
Estelle had given Hanok both.
Estelle had grown splendidly.
A gift for such an Estelle.
"Estelle."
"Yes, Leyzon."
"Time to evolve a bit."
"...Pardon?"
Evolution!