Chapter 202
Chapter 202
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 202
Chapter Title: For the Sake of Position
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“Big trouble, big trouble!”
Bam!
The aide who burst into the Prime Minister’s office slipped and tumbled sideways. How could someone who normally didn’t even breathe loudly be making such a fuss?
Not only the Prime Minister but all the high-ranking officials gathered for the report froze and turned their heads. Quintana was among them.
“Compose yourself.”
The Prime Minister removed his glasses and scolded him. The desk was already a mess of papers, enough to scramble anyone’s mind. Unless the imperial palace had collapsed, dignity had to be maintained. These were the leaders among leaders.
“P-Prince Gail... Prince Gail attacked Prince Arsen. Fortunately, his life isn’t in danger, but he’s unconscious and was carried away.”
“What? Prince Gail attacked Prince Arsen?”
“How? Isn’t Prince Gail confined to his quarters under the guise of treatment? Did he go outside?”
It was confinement disguised as treatment. Even they couldn’t approach by Ian’s order, so how had Gail and Arsen met?
The aide shook his head at Quintana’s question.
“No. It seems Prince Arsen entered Prince Gail’s palace. The call for the medical team came from there.”
“Hmm. Well, this is something. Heh heh. Why would he do that?”
“Exactly. I think we should end the meeting here and move on.”
Some officials rolled their eyes and cleared their throats awkwardly. They were Arsen’s supporters. Since Arsen had colluded with Haiman, they must have tried to eliminate Gail for him. The cause and effect were clear.
As they gathered their papers, the aide stammered out the most crucial news.
“Prince Arsen is a Mana User.”
Everyone froze.
Time itself seemed to stop. Some were bent at the waist, others half into their coats. Drip, drip—a dazed someone’s teacup overflowed.
“What did you just say?”
“Prince Arsen used mana!”
“Prince Arsen...”
“Used mana...”
The empire’s top leaders wore the same expression all at once. A rare sight. They muttered in disbelief, then fell silent.
But only for a moment.
Thud! Crash!
“Ouch, that hurts.”
“Excuse me, excuse me. Just a moment.”
“I’ll go first. Take your time.”
“Prime Minister. Let’s discuss this later.”
“Outside! Carriages! Get the carriages ready! Hurry!”
Those who grasped the situation sprang up swiftly.
If Arsen was a Mana User, it was a victory by default—no need to compete with Jin. With the Magic Department Minister’s authority already swelling, this was like a trumpet blast on the battlefield. A trumpet proclaiming victory.
“If Prince Arsen is a mage, then this!”
“It’s the will of the gods. It couldn’t be more perfect. We can check the Magic Department at the same time. We’re saved.”
“Go to Lady Dillaina right now. Prince Jin isn’t the heir—Prince Arsen is. Damn it, damn it!”
Those who had backed Jin raced off to Dillaina, while Haiman’s faction huddled to plot their next move.
“Since he tried to kill Prince Arsen, let’s execute Gail on the spot. No need for a trial like with Marib. This is our chance.”
“Yes, yes. That’s best.”
“Let’s go! Hurry!”
Somehow, they moved faster than during the rebellion. Quintana swallowed a sigh and sorted her papers.
“Aren’t you going?”
“I calculate taxes. Even if Prince Arsen is hurt, what can I do?”
“You may not be able to do anything, but you can think. What do you make of it? Prince Arsen being a Mana User.”
At the Prime Minister’s question, Quintana let out a small sigh. She thought of Jin, who had attended the Grand Council. Abandoned by his mother once, now to be abandoned by the officials—it was heartbreaking.
“…If Prince Arsen is a Mana User, it’s the empire’s blessing, a joyous occasion.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“What do you mean?”
Creak.
The Prime Minister answered with silence, then left the office. Likely to get the precise situation from Ian.
Left alone, Quintana pressed her forehead.
“…Damn it.”
For some reason, Jin’s face—clutching her hand tightly—came vividly to mind. If Arsen took the successor’s seat, Jin would naturally become a target for elimination. In power struggles, defeat meant death.
Jin would die by his mother’s hand, his retainers’, and the throne itself.
Quintana remained seated for quite some time.
* * *
“Siaosi, this is your name.”
“Si, a, o, si.”
“That’s right. Try writing it. You have a calm temperament, so your writing is straight. I’ll teach Berik too when he wakes up. You must carry your own name in your heart as you live.”
Jin was teaching Siaosi how to write his name. Though Siaosi had lived his whole life as a slave, he was clever and grasped each lesson quickly.
As the two huddled heads together studying, the outside grew noisy. Mages were rushing about as if something had exploded.
Tap, tap!
“Did I hear that right?”
“Ian’s heading out from Prince Gail’s palace now. He’s wrapping up there and coming back, so the division captains should assemble in advance. Move. Orders will come the moment he arrives.”
“To think I’d live to hear news like this. Ha!”
“So what happens now?”
At Ian’s name, Jin and Siaosi perked up their ears. The mages’ voices faded down the hall, but the last words rang clear.
“If Prince Arsen is a Mana User, he’ll join our side. We can’t split up the few mages we have.”
“We’re screwed, really. Especially Ian will be in the toughest spot.”
Thump—Jin felt his heart drop.
Had he heard wrong? Arsen, a Mana User?
The boy turned to Siaosi with trembling eyes, as if begging for denial. But Siaosi looked shocked too.
“…….”
“Arsen... a Mana User...”
The boy set down his pen and muttered. He couldn’t believe it. Born from the same womb at the same time, why did Arsen have everything?
He’d taken their mother’s love, and now the gods’ glory. And not just that—he’d take his supporters, Ian’s loyalty too.
His brother, who took everything, everything, was now terrifying. Why did Arsen shake his fate like this?
“Haa.”
Jin covered his face with his hands. His heart clenched in pain. Realizing the opponent was an insurmountable being brought utter helplessness, and at its edge soaked despair.
Tears fell as Jin whimpered.
“…Lord Ian told me not to cry.”
What to do? He already doubted his own talents because of Arsen; if he saw him crying, it’d be disastrous.
Jin wiped his eyes with his sleeve, but his tears were like an endless sea.
“I’ll block my eyes and ears.”
Siaosi’s comfort: he wouldn’t see or hear, so cry freely. The boy shed silent tears, staring into space.
‘I want to win now. I don’t want to lose anything more.’
That resolve echoed in his mind like a void’s reverberation.
Suddenly, he bolted up and dashed out the door. Siaosi followed right behind.
Tap, tap!
“Oh, Prince Jin?”
“Your Highness, you’ll fall!”
“Be careful!”
Jin wove through the mages. Frantically, eyes fixed only on the main building’s entrance. Far off, Ian descended from a carriage, climbing the stairs. Discussing something with Romandro, just as usual.
The difference: mages surrounded him, asking about Arsen.
“Ian!”
“Your Highness?”
At Jin’s sudden call, Ian looked up in surprise.
The boy, lips pressed in resolve, ran down almost tumbling and grabbed Ian’s sleeve. The surrounding mages reached out in worry he’d fall.
Whoosh!
“Your Highness, it’s dangerous!”
“What if you get hurt!”
“Listen well, Lord Ian.”
But Jin stared straight into Ian’s eyes, ignoring them. The stairs evened their heights.
“I heard Arsen is a Mana User.”
“News travels fast, Your Highness.”
Ian smiled faintly and nodded. He knew what Jin meant to say.
“Arsen and I are twins who shared everything. If he’s a Mana User, I could awaken anytime too. So don’t judge hastily.”
Persuasion, appeasement, a bid to hold his faction. Clumsy and raw, but Jin’s intent was clear. Ian gripped the boy’s hand, urging him on.
“A-Above all, if Arsen joins the Magic Department, your position will be tricky. So, so...”
“So?”
“Better to hold onto me than Arsen.”
“Is that so? If Prince Arsen is a Mana User, it’s the empire’s blessing. Doesn’t the imperial family bear the gods’ will?”
Jin bit his lip at Ian’s reply. By then, Romandro and the subordinates stepped back to watch Jin.
The little emperor was fighting for his position for the first time.
“That doesn’t guarantee the best future. The late emperor who led Bariel’s great revival wasn’t a mage. And if Arsen is a mage, you’ll regret it as much as I.”
“You have a plan, then.”
At Ian’s question, Jin glanced at the onlookers. They deliberately stepped back and bowed heads. They wouldn’t listen, so speak freely.
Jin whispered so only Ian could hear.
“Announce me as a Mana User too. As twins, they’ll believe it easily. Then I can rival Arsen, and you hold my weakness—no one loses.”
Bold. It showed how cornered Jin was. Ian patted his shoulder and smiled brightly.
“Excellent.”
Rough and immature, far to go, but a brilliant first attempt. Jin blinked at the praise.
“But lies beget lies. If it overwhelms you, it’ll strangle you instead. Better to handle lies indirectly than directly.”
“…Lord Ian?”
“Better to see than hear. Prince Arsen will show you himself. What becomes of those who dodge with lies. Shall we go in first, Your Highness? It’s chilly.”
Ian took Jin’s hand and nodded upward. Arsen would show the fate of liars?
That meant...
‘Arsen is lying?’
Jin looked up puzzled, but Ian avoided his gaze.
They entered the conference room. Acorella, Captain Hail, and all division heads waited. The mood was grave.
Creak.
“Minister. You’re here?”
“Sit, everyone.”
“Prince Arsen used mana, is it true?”
“Ah, well, this is... How did this happen...”
They couldn’t hold back questions. Ian casually removed his robe and confirmed.
“Prince Arsen did use mana.”
“Damn it!”
“We’ll hold the Mana Confirmation Ritual soon. Prepare quickly. The Light of the Oracle? Is it in the palace?”
“Ah, no. We returned it to the Neanil Temple after the New Year’s gathering. I’ll request it again.”
“No. Get it from the Carbo Temple this time.”
“Pardon? Carbo?”
Carbo was Jin and Arsen’s maternal temple. Why there, when closer ones existed?
“And order the priests who received the oracle at the twins’ birth to bring it personally. This is an official Magic Department command.”
“Y-Yes. Understood.”
“And the doctor who handled the birth.”
He likely resided in central Bariel now. Unrelated investigation orders kept coming.
“Bring that doctor to me too.”
“…Yes, Minister.”
Ian smiled at puzzled Jin. If Arsen’s mana was real, his fate was erasure from imperial history.
‘Endure just a bit longer, Prince Jin. You can reclaim all Arsen took.’
If not real, he’d have to explain what he showed. Non-magical mana sources were mysterious, apt to vanish in an instant.