Chapter 396: Persuasion...?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 396: Persuasion...?
Edgar Mathias Hevaron.
The Chancellor of the Nivia Kingdom and the leader of the Neutral Faction.
I had never spoken with him personally, but I had seen his face when I had an audience with the king after saving Elisabeth from an assassination attempt.
He had the air of a dignified, elderly gentleman.
Hearing my words, Elisabeth tilted her head.
“Why him...?”
“I'll explain everything.”
But first, there was something I needed to do.
Snap-
I snapped my fingers and called a servant waiting outside to remove the man sprawled on the floor.
Then, I set up a simple barrier to prevent any sound from leaking out of the drawing-room and layered a Silence spell on top of it.
Once I judged that we had a reasonable level of security, I explained my plan to the two of them.
“First, I will assassinate the 2nd Queen and the 1st Prince. Then, I'll bring the Neutral Faction to our side to form a support base for you, Lady Elisabeth. Finally, I plan to eliminate a few key figures from the Noble Faction to establish a stable royal authority.”
“...What?”
Elisabeth was speechless, blinking her eyes in disbelief.
Tina had the same reaction.
“A-Assassination...? Are you serious...?”
“Yes. As things stand, it's the best option.”
Of course, it wasn't as if there were no other methods.
Given the 2nd Queen's personality, it was highly likely she had already committed numerous crimes. Gathering evidence of her misdeeds, holding a formal trial, and having her dethroned was one possibility.
However, the current king was neither just nor competent enough for that.
The current king of Nivia was a classic incompetent ruler, lost in debauchery and squandering the national treasury.
He took no action even when his own daughter was suffering under the threat of assassination.
One could argue he was being strictly neutral in the succession, but if that were truly the case, he wouldn't have given me a single, small jewelry box as a reward for saving the princess's life.
He should have offered a proper reward, if only to maintain the dignity and prestige of the royal family.
But he hadn't.
He even went so far as to offer me, a man of unknown origin, the position of Elisabeth's prince consort.
In that moment, I realized the king didn't care for Elisabeth as his child.
No, it was more reasonable to assume he was siding with the 2nd Queen.
“Tonight, I will assassinate the 2nd Queen.”
Of course, if I had my way, I would have liked to take my time and build up Elisabeth's power base.
But I didn't have much time to spend here.
“...No. That's too reckless.”
“In my homeland, there's a saying: 'a swift victory.' The entire capital is already under the 2nd Queen's control, so we must avoid a prolonged conflict.”
“Even so, the queen has Marquis Laxion, a Sword Master, by her side. No matter how strong you are, he's known as the Kingdom's Best Sword.”
Elisabeth's eyes widened, her expression firm, showing she wouldn't back down.
I could feel her concern for me.
For the sake of the worried princess, I reinforced the barrier to ensure no energy escaped.
“Pardon me for a moment.”
After reinforcing the barrier, I drew the Heaven-Shattering Demonic Sword.
Perhaps because it had absorbed so much demonic energy recently, a sinister aura flowed from the tip of the blade, spreading in all directions.
Of course, I suppressed the energy so it wouldn't be enough to harm Elisabeth.
Kiiiiing!!!
An inky black aura soon enveloped the sword.
“Th-That's...”
“...an Aura Blade?”
An Aura Blade, also known as Ganggi.
I deliberately pushed myself to enlarge the Aura, and as a result, looks of astonishment spread across Elisabeth's and Tina's faces.
It was a natural reaction, since they both thought I was a mage.
“N-No way... How can a mage use aura...? Don't tell me you've been hiding your power?”
“You could say that.”
Even after I withdrew the aura and sheathed my sword, their faces were still etched with bewilderment.
Tina's shock was particularly profound.
She was a high-level Aura Expert, on the verge of reaching the Transcendent Realm.
Her perception was bound to be different from that of Elisabeth, who couldn't even sense the mana in nature.
“...I understand that you're strong. But Marquis Laxion isn't the only one by the 2nd Queen's side. Elite knights from the Royal Knights are protecting her, and the Sapphire Palace is shielded by layers of barriers meant to protect royalty. An alarm will sound throughout the entire royal castle before you even manage to infiltrate the palace, and the capital will be locked down immediately. Then, whether the assassination succeeds or fails, you'll eventually be captured.”
Elisabeth warned me quietly, her eyes filled with concern.
But I shook my head.
I understood her worries completely, but that wouldn't change my decision.
“The 1st Prince's supporters are united under the banner of the Noble Faction, but they are nothing more than gamblers betting on the possibility of him taking the throne. They've used every trick in the book to win that bet so far, but if you, Lady Elisabeth, are the only royal left, they'll have no choice but to change their tune.”
“So you're going to assassinate them? To flip the board and take away their options entirely?”
“Yes.”
Of course, the Noble Faction still had the option of rebellion.
But I had no intention of letting that happen.
If I kill all their central figures, who would be left to lead a rebellion?
“...Even if you succeed in eliminating Marquis Laxion, Count Klude will just rally the Noble Faction and keep the throne in check. Besides him, there are several other nobles who won't be easily swayed.”
“You don't need to worry about that. I have something in mind.”
I mentally added the names of Count Klude and his heir, Eden, to my kill list.
A rice stalk that bows does not break in a typhoon, but a rigid, towering tree is bound to snap.
*
The power in the Nivia Kingdom was currently divided among three factions.
The Noble Faction, centered around Marquis Laxion and Count Klude; the Neutral Faction, led by Chancellor Count Hevaron; and the Royalist Faction, which leeched off the debauched king.
Naturally, the Noble Faction was the most powerful. Even the combined strength of the Neutral and Royalist factions couldn't match them.
The king neglected his duties, and the 1st Prince, the leading heir to the throne, was little more than his mother's puppet.
Meanwhile, the 2nd Queen was focused solely on expanding the wealth and power of the Laxion family, paying no mind to the people's livelihood.
Count Hevaron let out a heavy sigh.
Every time he went out in disguise, all he saw was the people's anger toward the royal family and the nobility.
If this was the situation in the capital, where royal influence was strongest, the sentiment in the provincial territories was surely even worse.
As one of the few loyal subjects who genuinely worried for the kingdom's future, Count Hevaron's concerns grew deeper by the day.
And then, a mysterious letter arrived for him.
“...An invitation?”
He often received invitations, but this one was from the 1st Princess, the one known as the Scarecrow Princess.
After a moment's thought, the count decided to pretend he hadn't seen it.
He had a goal: to hold onto his position as Chancellor and set the kingdom's affairs straight. To do that, he had to avoid getting on the 2nd Queen's bad side at all costs.
Of course, if he sided with the Noble Faction, he could secure his position as Chancellor.
But he could never bring himself to join forces with those scoundrels, who ignored their duties and responsibilities as nobles and were only interested in lining their own pockets.
“...Still, I should send a reply.”
Even if she was the Scarecrow Princess, a royal was still a royal.
He had to show proper courtesy.
About two hours after Count Hevaron sent a letter of refusal...
“It's a pleasure to meet you, Count Hevaron.”
“...”
An uninvited guest had arrived.
Count Hevaron wiped away a cold sweat as he looked at the man before him.
Though the man appeared younger than his own son, his eyes were like a sharply honed sword.
The tension in the air was even greater than when he faced Marquis Laxion, the Sword Master.
“...What reason does the 1st Princess's hired mage have for visiting me?”
Kang Hyun-woo tilted his teacup, glancing at him from the corner of his eye.
“So you knew.”
“I may have been away from the center of power for a long time, but I haven't closed my eyes and ears.”
“I'm glad. That should make this conversation quicker. I'll get straight to the point. Please support Lady Elisabeth.”
“I refuse.”
Count Hevaron answered without a moment's hesitation.
In truth, the count had vaguely expected Kang Hyun-woo to make such a proposal.
If the 1st Prince ascended the throne as things were, only two paths remained for the 1st Princess.
She would either vanish like dew on the execution ground or be married off to someone from the Noble Faction as a 'reward'.
'The eldest son of the Klude family has shown a particular interest in the 1st Princess.'
Her situation was pitiful, but Count Hevaron had no power to help her.
Leader of the Neutral Faction? It was just an empty title.
Compared to the Noble Faction, they were nothing but a disorganized mob.
“Do you support the 1st Prince?”
The count said nothing. Instead, he furrowed his brow in displeasure.
That was answer enough. Kang Hyun-woo nodded silently and didn't try to persuade the count any further.
If he were in the count's shoes, he wouldn't board a ship that was bound to sink either.
For now, it was enough to confirm that the count did not support the 1st Prince.
“Well then, I'll see you later.”
Kang Hyun-woo bowed politely and smiled.
He wondered if Count Hevaron would be able to maintain his neutrality after the 1st Prince and the 2nd Queen were dead.
*
Just like on Earth, mages in this world were incredibly valuable assets.
A small territory might have one, if any, and even on a national scale, it was hard to find a high-ranking mage of the 5th Circle or higher in a small kingdom like Nivia.
For that reason, every nation spared no effort in training mages.
But the results were always lackluster.
After all, magic was heavily influenced by innate talent.
Just as a hundred days of effort by an ordinary person couldn't match an hour of a genius's time, one could overcome the hurdles up to the 3rd Circle with hard work, but anything beyond that was difficult.
In contrast, Kang Hyun-woo, who had been studying magic for less than a year, was already approaching the 6th Circle.
While he might be somewhat lacking in theory and academic knowledge, his practical skill was unmatched by anyone at the same level.
He had even broadened his horizons by meeting three archmages.
To someone like him, the royal castle's barrier was less than a rain-soaked piece of paper.
'Is this the place?'
Late at night, after his successful meeting with Count Hevaron, Kang Hyun-woo made his way to the Crystal Palace, where his first assassination target, the 1st Prince, resided.
As he circled the palace's perimeter, examining the barrier, he stroked his chin with interest.
It was the same with the Sapphire Palace; the barrier was riddled with flaws.
'They focused so much on security that while the effect is strong, the structure is incredibly simple. A 4th Circle mage who specialized in barrier magic could probably disable it.'
Elisabeth had said that the moment I approached the palace, an alarm would ring throughout the castle, and dozens of knights and hundreds of soldiers would come rushing.
But that was only if the barrier was functioning properly.
“Hmm... This should do it.”
Paaat-
The moment Kang Hyun-woo's fingertips touched the barrier, an intangible wave spread across its entire surface.
But no one detected the change.
The castle's barrier had been installed with the help of the Association in the first place, and there were no high-ranking mages residing in the Sapphire Palace who could sense such a thing.
Woooong-
Kang Hyun-woo passed through the opaque screen and into the palace grounds as if it were nothing.
There were knights and soldiers on patrol, but none of them noticed his presence.
[Phantom Shifter]
Using the invisibility spell, Kang Hyun-woo also employed the 'Ghost Divine Art,' a technique he had acquired after dealing with the assassins from the Ghost Valley who had come to kill Jegal Hyang.
Thanks to this, even the faint scent and traces of his presence vanished.
Of course, while the Ghost Valley Master was at the 7-Star realm, Kang Hyun-woo was still only at 3-Star.
However, it was impossible for knights who were, at best, low-level Aura Experts (at the initial stage of mastery) to detect him.
'There it is.'
Kang Hyun-woo darted toward the most heavily guarded area.
Thud-
The moment an indistinct figure appeared under the moonlight, the soldiers standing guard all collapsed, unconscious.
I would have preferred to eliminate only the 1st Prince, but a special wave of magical power was covering the bedroom.
'A protective artifact... Makes sense. A royal palace wouldn't be guarded by just knights and soldiers.'
It would surely sound an alarm the moment it detected an intruder.
Of course, I could neutralize the artifact without setting off the alarm, but doing so would alert the knight blocking the only entrance—the door.
After a moment of thought, Kang Hyun-woo finally dispelled his magic.
“Who's there!”
The moment he did, the knight, sensing an unusual presence, drew his sword and shouted.
A bluish aura rose from his blade.
Despite being skilled enough to be appointed as the 1st Prince's personal guard, the knight never let his guard down.
“...Salute! It's time for the shift change!”
“Nonsense!”
The knight charged at Kang Hyun-woo, who had brazenly replied while wearing a dark hood.
