Chapter 220
Chapter 220
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 220
Chapter Title: One Mind, One Body
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“Ugh......”
Jin grumbled softly, rubbing his face against the pillow. No matter how much he had learned the protocols of the imperial palace, mornings were no different from those of common children.
The child lay prone, cracking his eyes open just a slit to glance around. Shiao-shi, who was always sitting on the sofa at the foot of the bed, was nowhere to be seen. Instead, Ian was leaning against the wall, slowly reading something.
Jin immediately recognized it as the [Legend of Roberside].
“Lord Ian?”
“You’re awake?”
“...Where’s Shiao-shi?”
At Jin’s call, Ian turned his head slightly. With his finger inserted between the pages, it seemed he wasn’t just skimming but examining it closely.
Why on earth is Lord Ian reading a fairy tale book like that? As Jin blinked sleepily, Ian rang the servant call bell.
“Shiao-shi was sent on an errand due to some business. He’ll be back soon, so no need to worry. How about having breakfast with me instead today?”
“That sounds great.”
Ding-a-ling-
As the bell chimed, Jin felt his mind clear a bit. Soon, a servant hurried in at the summons.
“You called?”
“His Highness is up. Prepare.”
“Yes. Breakfast will be served shortly.”
Even as he spoke, Ian didn’t let go of the fairy tale book. Curious, Jin approached Ian. He hadn’t been mistaken—it really was the [Legend of Roberside]. The portrait of Roberside, Jin’s distant ancestor and guardian of the Carbo Temple, was faded from handling.
“But why that book?”
“Your Highness, you said that whenever you read this fairy tale before bed, Roberside always appears in your dreams. And that it’s fun.”
“That’s right. Even last night, when I looked at something else before sleeping, it was no exception.”
Jin nodded with a bright smile. Playing with Roberside was always enjoyable. Especially when spending time with Arsen, it felt like the one escape.
Ian held up the book and asked,
“May I borrow it for a few days? It’s not even in the imperial library, so I’d appreciate it.”
There were many books about Roberside, but Jin’s fairy tale couldn’t be found anywhere. It had been specially published by the Carbo Temple. Jin nodded vigorously, of course permitting it.
“You like the book too? No need to ask. Feel free to read it.”
“Thank you.”
“Your Highness Jin. The bath is ready.”
“Okay. Sure. Ian, I’ll be right back. Eat breakfast together.”
Jin followed the servants with light steps. Once the door closed, Ian pulled up a chair and delved into the fairy tale in earnest.
‘It’s strange. Is it really coincidence that Roberside appears in Jin’s dreams every time the book is read? For a fantasy born of the child’s joy, it happens far too frequently, doesn’t it?’
And above all, Roberside had appeared to him as well, the one who read the fairy tale. It wasn’t pleasant—demonic beasts overflowing, trying to kill Arsen, and such.
Ian could still vividly hear his desperate scream in his ears.
‘The child must not be born. Kill it!’
Tap, tap. Ian tapped Roberside’s portrait and gazed at it quietly. The Roberside who last sealed the demonic beasts, Arsen’s ability unrecorded in history, the oracle’s oddity......
A hypothesis surfaced in Ian’s mind, but he couldn’t voice it without solid evidence.
‘If my guess is correct, what happened to Arsen in the original history? Jin becoming emperor doesn’t change, so there must have been some incident that toppled Arsen.’
As Ian pondered deeply, Jin emerged, freshly prepared for the morning. The child grabbed Ian’s arm, urging him to eat.
“Lord Ian. Let’s go to the dining hall. The head chef caught duck today. Huh? Romandro’s not here either.”
“He went with Shiao-shi.”
“Oh?”
Jin rolled his eyes side to side and beckoned Ian closer, as if calling him over. Ian bent down to listen, and Jin whispered a great secret very carefully.
“I think Romandro and Vivianna’s baby will be a girl. Thankfully, she’ll take after Vivianna, so she’ll be clever and pretty.”
“Where did you hear that?”
“Lord Roberside told me!”
Jin’s dimples deepened softly. Ian looked slightly surprised, gripped the child’s shoulders lightly, and glanced behind. The servants quickly bowed their heads and retreated in quick steps.
“Does Roberside tell you things like that too?”
“Not often, very rarely.”
“Anything else he told you?”
“Hmm. Oh, the demonic beast Lord Roberside dealt with last. It’s not in the book, but—”
Jin racked his memory and took Ian’s hand. Then, very carefully, he drew something on Ian’s palm with lines. It looked like letters, but Ian had never seen them before and couldn’t understand.
ᚫᚱᛋᛖᛀᛖ
“He said the name is written like this.”
“How do you read it?”
“No idea. He wrote it on the ground with a stick.”
As far as Ian knew, it wasn’t from any neighboring country’s script. Since Roberside was from the founding era, was it ancient? Or a fantasy Jin created? While Ian stood still memorizing the letters, Jin exchanged greetings with passing mages.
“Good morning.”
“Did you sleep well, Your Highness Jin?”
“Your necktie looks great today.”
“You look great too! Thanks!”
The two entered the dining hall. Two place settings on the grand table. As Ian moved to sit across from Jin.
Bang!
The dining hall door suddenly burst open, and Romandro appeared, drenched in sweat. He panted heavily, quickly locking eyes with Ian.
“Romandro?”
“Y-Your Highness Jin is here too.”
“You said you were off on business? Come in. Have you eaten?”
While Jin welcomed him warmly, Ian paused unfolding his napkin and observed Romandro. Shiao-shi stood behind him. Both clutched documents tightly to their chests.
“Lord Romandro.”
“I-Ian. Um, you see.”
“Catch your breath first. You too, Shiao-shi.”
The ones who had gone to file the complaint returned in such a state—Ian realized his concerns had come true. Holding papers separately was to prevent loss if one was taken. It meant Romandro had felt that level of threat.
“Close the doors and everyone out.”
Creak.
At Ian’s order, the servants bowed deeply and left the dining hall. Jin, uncomprehending the situation, widened his eyes and read the mood. Something had gone wrong?
“What happened?”
“Huff, huff. S-Someone’s trying to snatch it.”
Romandro collapsed into a chair, gasping. Not proper words before a prince, but nothing else fit.
“I never pegged Duke Haiman for such scum. Worried even the carriage might have issues, I walked. If I hadn’t run into Quintana midway, my knees would’ve given out.”
Riding a carriage could lead to abduction. So Romandro walked, met Quintana en route, shook off the two mages with her, and returned first.
“The handler, Erikse, had a carriage accident. Won’t be back today or tomorrow, and the staff there, plus the people gathered—super suspicious.”
“Crude.”
Ian moistened his lips with lukewarm water. Crude, but effective enough. It seemed Haiman’s side was trying to delay the Grand Council post-Arsen’s Mana Confirmation Ritual. With little time left, direct physical action was most efficient.
“And Ian. Seems Haiman has people in the Magic Department too. Those two mages we went with earlier, uh, how to say—chilly?”
At Romandro’s whisper, Jin’s eyes widened like a rabbit’s. The Magic Department had far fewer people than other divisions. They were generally wealthy, with high pride and strong loyalty.
Yet if Haiman’s influence had reached there, how many throughout the palace? It really sank in that Haiman was nobility above nobility.
“Yeah.”
But Ian nodded lightly, as if he’d expected it.
“Intuition isn’t to be dismissed lightly. If you felt that, Lord Romandro, it’s worth investigating.”
“You knew too? That’s why you sent Shiao-shi. Without him, I’d have been terrified enough to cry. For real. Running back, Vivianna’s face kept flashing—ugh!”
Romandro grabbed and shook Shiao-shi’s shoulder, groaning. Ian gave a wry smile at the sight. Doubting enemies was easy; weeding out one’s own side was always hard.
“Ian, how’d you notice? Huh?”
“...I just hoped it wasn’t so.”
Hoping it wasn’t meant assuming it might be. Beyond the palace, that was human life. Ian recalled Naum’s words as he neatly folded his napkin.
‘Your Majesty. When three gather, one is a traitor, one may defect. Only Your Majesty remains, so trust only yourself.’
‘...And you?’
‘Your Majesty, don’t trust me either. Always suspect, but keep close for gain. Trusting always hurts. I don’t want Your Majesty hurt.’
Why hadn’t he etched that in his heart then? Ian bit his lip lightly, thinking of his nephew Crony too.
Romandro, Shiao-shi, and Jin watched Ian’s heavy silence. His face was impassive, but his eyes were deep. A storm of emotions churned.
“Lord Ian?”
At Jin’s call, Ian looked up with a bright smile.
“You okay?”
“I’m fine. It was something we’d have to do eventually.”
“What......?”
Mages mustn’t fall to personal temptations. With great power comes great responsibility. Those who took the Mage’s Oath shouldn’t falter like that.
Ian rang the bell lightly, ordering breakfast.
Ding.
“Check Erikse’s current status. Prepare documents for an official letter to the Judiciary. Send mages from different divisions, two of them. No volunteers.”
“Y-Yes? Oh, yes. Understood.”
“And relay to the two mages who went with Lord Romandro to wait in their rooms. I’ll meet them after breakfast.”
The servant panicked at the sudden orders but soon scurried off to relay them. Romandro gulped the remaining water and asked.
“Ian. Truth Serum?”
“The Mana Stone Management Division already knows how to neutralize it. If they know, other mages can too. Can’t trust it.”
Ian held knife in right, fork in left. He elegantly sliced a tomato. One became two, then three.
“We’ll weed them out another way. The Magic Department is one mind, one body—if something foreign is inside, it has no place.”