Chapter 67
Chapter 67
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 67
Chapter Title: 14. The Youngest Daughter of the Swordsmanship Clan (1)
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“Hoo....”
Emperor Julianus, seated in his office, let out a pained breath as he pressed his hand to his forehead.
His head ached unbearably.
It was all because of the documents strewn across his desk.
[Names, Charges, and Evidence of the Anti-Imperial Alliance Remnants. Rather than pooling their own forces, they opted to merge with other factions on a larger scale. Listed below are those who joined forces with the 'Holy Unified Nation' faction, which includes elements from the Holy Flame Church...] The sender was Ian.
Long ago, thanks to advice he had given as a prophet, the leader and key figures of the Anti-Imperial Alliance had all been executed.
So those listed here were surely just the small fry—remnants like family members or relatives who had banded together.
That wasn't the problem.
'Holy Unified Nation...'
It was a name even the emperor had never heard before.
Didn't that mean the Holy Flame Church was dreaming of overthrowing the empire?
The bottom of the letter detailed exactly what the 'Holy Unified Nation Plan' entailed and when it had begun.
'Ian must have known about it earlier but deliberately held back.'
He could claim ignorance as a prophet who hadn't foreseen that particular future, but the emperor doubted it.
A fleeting sense of betrayal passed through him.
Still, he could understand Ian's reasoning.
If he'd known in advance, the emperor would have cracked down on the Holy Flame Church, civil war be damned.
'Killing the Demon King was the top priority, so he wouldn't have wanted internal strife.'
Especially not now, when the empire hadn't yet stabilized—revealing this would have plunged the entire continent into chaos.
Fortunately, this second Holy Unified Nation faction wasn't all that large.
The letter from the Holy Emperor, arriving alongside Ian's, served as proof.
[I deeply bow my head in apology regarding this incident...] It had been dashed off in such haste that while the wording was formal, the handwriting was utterly sloppy.
In summary, the Holy Emperor claimed no connection to this Holy Unified Nation faction.
'Not this time, but it was different before...'
A simple deduction.
At any rate, there was no intention of moving against the Holy Emperor now.
'But this isn't something I can just let slide.'
Rubbing his dry face, the emperor summoned a retainer waiting outside.
“Fetch the First Imperial Prince.”
Soon enough, Julianus's eldest son—the top in the line of imperial succession—
Edipus Julianus Humil,
the First Imperial Prince, entered the office.
“I greet Your Imperial Majesty.”
The blond youth offered a rigidly formal bow.
“...Yes, have a seat.”
The prince sat across from the emperor.
Without beating around the bush, the emperor handed over the bundle of letters.
The First Imperial Prince read through them meticulously.
As he did, the emperor sank into another worry.
This one wasn't backed by official documents like the papers before, but it was no less grave.
'The 1st Hero Party...'
Bad rumors were starting to swirl around them at the center.
Things like stabbing people to extort money or hawking spoiled beer for profit...
V victims from that beer were cropping up in droves, and now people were even threatening lawsuits against the 1st Party.
'What madness is this.'
Of all groups, the 1st Party.
Ian's ill repute aside, their dazzling prestige alone made it so no one could carelessly slander them.
Yet a very quiet, very insidious malice was slowly spreading across the continent.
'What the hell is this Penny character thinking... He could've just maintained the status quo, but this fool can't even manage that and now...'
After Ian's departure, the emperor had planted a few spies on the 1st Party.
Their steady reports always contained unflattering tales.
But he'd never imagined their reputation would plummet this far.
“Haa...”
An old memory suddenly surfaced.
Whenever Ian visited the palace, he'd occasionally seek out the head butler or chief steward to ask about training methods and guidelines.
At first, its purpose was a mystery, but he'd eventually realized.
Ian had been doing it to somehow guide and nurture the 1st Hero Party on a proper path.
'Even so, this is too much... Stabbing someone? When Ian was handling them, things got dicey now and then, but they never caused real trouble.'
He'd even received factual reports to that effect from his informants.
The emperor was forced to contemplate the worst-case scenario he'd been ignoring.
'If we end up fighting them, who could possibly stand against them...'
To slay the Demon King.
To eliminate the monster threatening humanity, Ian had handpicked and raised other monsters.
If they went all out, those four alone might be able to reduce this empire to ashes—who could stop them?
The agonizing didn't drag on.
'The prophet's new selections should be capable.'
Ian knew the 1st Party's true power better than anyone, and he'd chosen these anew.
They might not measure up now, but it was easy to foresee them surpassing the 1st Party in time.
The emperor's thoughts extended only as far as the war's end.
'Clashing with the prophet is inevitable. But if we have to take on the 1st Party too...'
Julianus glanced at his eldest son, Edipus, seated before him.
The current heir apparent, the empire's most promising young man for the throne.
'If enmity with both factions can't be avoided, I'll have no choice but to back the victor. And now that those two have parted ways...'
As if he'd finished reading and grasped it all, Edipus met the emperor's gaze.
The emperor's order was straightforward.
“Go to Fioreene County in person.”
The prince looked mildly puzzled.
The situation was dire, but was it truly necessary for him to go personally? It felt borderline.
Yet the emperor had decided to send the First Prince.
This was about racking up achievements.
When the day came for him to inherit the throne, the emperor wanted his son to have a strong record of political accomplishments.
The First Prince, quick to read between the lines, nodded solemnly.
“Understood.”
“Ian's there too, on account of the dueling tournament. He says he'll cooperate to the fullest without interference, so make contact.”
“Yes.”
“Your escorts will be Provost Marshal Wolfgang. And...”
With the First Prince going personally, they needed to make an impact.
“Take the Aegis with you.”
If the Provost Corps handled the empire's public security,
the 'Aegis' existed solely to safeguard the imperial family.
The audacious decision to send them alongside the Provost Corps and First Prince to Fioreene was made without hesitation.
“Understood.”
“One last thing... Prepare a gift for the prophet. I've got something specific in mind—just take it along.”
The prince wasted no time, assembling his retinue and preparing to depart.
And there was one person who had overheard the office conversation.
'Sir Philip...?'
The emperor's youngest daughter.
The princess who had witnessed with her own eyes how Ian blocked an assassin to protect her, heedless of his own wounds.
Grace had caught that name.
'Heading to Fioreene County, is he?'
*
In a cavern of an E-rank dungeon they stopped at en route to Fioreene County,
Ian blankly took in the scene unfolding before him.
“......”
The aftermath of Vivian's spell had left pockmarks all over the cavern.
The mid-sized Moss Troll—the boss monster here—had vanished without a trace.
The other parties stood dumbfounded, replaying what Vivian had just pulled off.
The afterimage of that moment still burned in his retinas.
Three parties, Ian's included, had arrived here simultaneously where the boss lurked.
And the instant they did—
Vivian's chain of Flame Strikes had obliterated the whole area.
Not even the small Moss Trolls near the mid-sized one were spared; they scattered as ash.
Magic circles blooming sequentially across the floor.
Fireballs erupting in perfect sequence, split-seconds apart.
The other parties had no chance to react—nor did even Helena.
Those who witnessed Vivian's prowess murmured among themselves.
“She looks like an official Hero—why's she here...?”
“Tell me about it. Trying to starve out us temporary Heroes?”
“Oh, that's the mage. Vivian, right? The one who...”
“No way? The King Slime girl? Then the manager beside her must be...”
Vivian scratched her cheek, embarrassed.
“Lady Vivian! Incredible! Was that the artifact's doing too?”
“Hehe... Not exactly...”
Ian could guess the reason.
Iris.
She had laid the theoretical groundwork for Vivian before leaving.
It had been only a fleeting moment, but that alone had made Vivian's magic far more precise and refined.
'Genius doesn't even begin to cover it...'
Vivian and Helena descended confidently with the magic stones in hand.
The other parties conceded without protest.
Ian flashed a satisfied grin, and the two beamed back at him.
*
“Whoa... So many people—so lively!”
“Now I get why Ian called it a festival!”
To accommodate the influx for the dueling tournament, events large and small crammed every corner of Fioreene City.
Stalls hawking festival specialties, traveling troupes running makeshift circuses, taverns slinging half-price booze, and more.
The outdoor tavern seats brimmed with patrons, while smiling folk clustered in groups, strolling the streets.
Ian surveyed the bustling scene before fixing his gaze on Fioreene Castle, where the dueling tournament would unfold.
“First things first—let's find lodgings.”
“Yes!”
“Got it!”
Ian's group had arrived in Fioreene City.
*
“Lady Kaily. We've arrived.”
In the eastern sector, at the advance party's makeshift camp, Kaily arrived.
'13 days left.'
After 13 days of solo operations, she'd check their progress.
If there was no improvement by then, she'd kill Penny regardless of who tried to stop her.
“Right. Move out at once.”
Coincidentally, they were within Fioreene County—close to Fioreene City even—but Kaily paid it no mind.
No compelling reason to head there.
Kaily armed up without delay, gave the camp a once-over, and set off once more for the nearby A-rank dungeon.