Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Dark Elf Arel
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...... My premonition was spot on.
Arel.
The dark elf on the brink of extinction, and the adopted daughter of Grand Duke Persephone.
She possessed the skills of a Sword Master, and he called her a gift.
Was I supposed to be happy about this?
'A poisoned chalice.'
A chalice, yes. But one laced with poison.
This was out of character for him.
He had never come to see me before, to begin with.
He was a ruthless pragmatist.
Grand Duke Persephone never wasted himself on anything that didn't interest him.
Not his time, not his energy, not even a single glance.
But that didn't mean his attention was always a good thing.
Those who caught his interest usually ended up broken and ruined.
'The problem is I can't refuse it.'
I knew it was poisoned, yet I couldn't turn it down.
He had deliberately used the word 'gift.'
And he said it the moment he laid eyes on me, after not seeing each other for over a decade.
Refusing it meant there would be no next time—a polite way of putting it.
Polite, my foot. It was as good as a blatant threat.
Turning down a smilingly offered gift was the same as saying you despised him.
Fine. Let's say I accepted it.
Even if Grand Duke Persephone wanted nothing in return, the act itself created a 'debt.'
A 200-year-old monster who had remained a grand duke.
Six emperors had come and gone, yet he stayed in his position.
His debts would persist even after I ascended the throne and died.
They could drain my bloodline for generations.
That was why I couldn't owe Grand Duke Persephone anything.
His sense of time was far too different from a human's.
Forget that he was a dark elf, and you'd get your nose pierced before you knew it.
"Is it a burden, Your Highness?"
...... It was.
Denying it would be a lie.
But if I couldn't accept even this, it would only prove how small my vessel was.
"It's my first gift like this, so I was pondering for a moment."
"What troubles you?"
"How I should repay it."
"No need. Consider it a gesture of goodwill."
Goodwill, he said. But it was still a debt.
A debt of the heart—one that would force me to grant whatever he reluctantly asked for someday.
No one in the world could ignore him, so he'd collect it one way or another.
And so I said,
"Hmm, even a simple gift of goodwill isn't something I'd take without shame. So, let me specially include the grand duke in my next 'venture.'"
"Venture...?"
He paused slightly, clearly caught off guard.
He was one of the empire's financial titans.
The man who sucked wealth from every corner imaginable dared to be offered a 'special' business proposal.
What could this be called?
Absurd?
"I'm planning to build a grand canal linking the southern tip of the continent east to west. If it goes as I envision, it'll cut transportation costs and time by more than half. If Grand Duke Persephone joins me, success is guaranteed."
"......"
It'sounded even more outrageous the more he heard.
It was too preposterous for words.
Building a canal was a national project.
A massive undertaking that required the entire empire's mobilization.
Linking the continent's south from east to west would demand unimaginable sums of money, time, and even wars.
It wasn't a matter of ignorance; it was simply impossible.
And yet, a mere crown prince claimed he'd do it?
A stray dog would laugh.
Was he mad?
Or pretending to be?
'The latter.'
He had countered goodwill with goodwill of his own.
One that couldn't be accepted.
By deliberately proposing something outrageous to force a refusal.
If intentional, it was masterfully high-level play.
He wouldn't even owe a debt of the heart.
"I appreciate the offer, but I'll just take your kind intentions, Your Highness."
"What a shame."
I said it was a shame, but inwardly, I felt much lighter.
The heavy lead weight had turned into a light feather. For now, one worry was off my chest.
—Never owe Grand Duke Persephone anything. No matter how trivial. If he buys you one shoe, he'll demand a castle fifty years later.
That was the adage describing him.
A miraculous exchange where one shoe—not even a pair—claimed a castle.
Not even the imperial family could escape it.
In fact, the imperial family owed him the most.
When the current emperor died, most of the imperial foundation flowed to Grand Duke Persephone.
That was why I, with no real talent, could easily purge the empress and princes.
Especially Empress Josephine, who had borrowed excessively—rumor had it her entire clan, relatives included, ended up penniless.
'He must have anticipated a continental war the moment I ascended the throne.'
He stripped them bare before the treasury hit rock bottom.
In the Deus era of peace and prosperity, he maximized and harvested the interest.
Looking back, it was better that he hadn't paid me any attention before.
But now, he had.
'Gotta see it as a positive sign.'
It meant I was worth him coming in person.
Enough to gift me his adopted daughter, signaling he saw great potential in me.
Of course, the gift itself had ulterior motives.
"I hear you've become the master of a spirit. Congratulations."
He changed the subject.
The gift discussion was over; this was the main point.
"Thank you."
"If it's not too rude, may I see that sword?"
"No trouble at all."
"If you've contracted it, you can summon it, right?"
He knew about spirits?
That was highly unexpected.
No matter how long-lived a dark elf, spirits were a mystery lost a thousand years ago. Almost no one knew of them.
Their invocation words were revealed later, but not now.
'No point in deceiving him.'
If he already knew, lies were useless.
But this was also a debt. A golden chance to saddle him with one in return.
"Caliburn."
I uttered the invocation and called its name. Particles of light gathered in my hand.
True to its name as the guide of light, its majesty drew involuntary awe.
"You've truly... contracted it."
"Would I lie?"
A glint flashed in Grand Duke Persephone's eyes.
"Do you know how to awaken spirits?"
How to awaken them.
If Zero dominated an intact spirit weapon, it awakened.
But finding an intact one was nearly impossible, and I couldn't reveal this method.
"Well, aside from pulling the sword, I didn't do anything special."
"Nothing from contracting the spirit? I know conversation is possible."
Why was he pushing this?
It wasn't like Grand Duke Persephone.
I shrugged.
"Conversation is possible, but I'm not fully free with it yet. It'll take some time."
"Then."
Grand Duke Persephone nodded to Arel.
With a shing, she drew her sword.
"Can you awaken this sword as well?"
That red blade.
That sword with an eye in the center—it looked awfully familiar.
'Berserker.'
The dark elf knight called Berserker wielded that sword.
Only then did I realize this female dark elf was the Berserker.
The mad monster who slaughtered allies and enemies alike!
Grand Duke Persephone's dark elf legion was small in number but strong enough to upend humanity's military balance in one fell swoop.
Berserker was the standout among them.
On par with the current Croft.
[Admin authority level sufficient to unseal this 'unauthorized nanomachine.']
[Would you like to unseal?]
I could do it.
It was intact, like Caliburn.
But I couldn't release it just like that.
"Not right now."
"Not right now means...?"
"Give me time, and I'might. I hear something, sort of."
I pretended to listen, pressing my head to the sword.
My acting worked; a change finally crossed Grand Duke Persephone's face.
"If you unseal this sword later, I'll reward you handsomely."
"I'll do my best."
That was it.
As if he had said all he needed, Grand Duke Persephone rose.
"I've taken too much of Your Highness's busy time. I'll see you at the princess's debutante ball."
With a brief farewell, he departed.
Arel remained.
'Not easy.'
It left a storm of aftershocks.
Fighting sword-to-sword might've been simpler.
I sat in the chair and sipped the prepared tea.
I hadn't even thought of drinking during our talk.
Treating him like other nobles and treating history's living witness were worlds apart.
'A gift that's Berserker.'
I turned to the expressionless Arel.
She was like a doll without emotion.
Fitting for the Berserker who slew without distinction.
A gift left to monitor me, and my watcher.
But it was also an opportunity.
Keep your enemies closer, as they say. This would let me grasp Grand Duke Persephone's intentions more clearly.
Having already made Grand Duke Carlos an enemy, turning Grand Duke Persephone into one too was too risky.
I had no idea how he knew about my debut in high society, but...
'Turns out normal life has a higher difficulty than expected.'
Still, no choice.
Better to roll in shit now than live a past riddled with regrets.
Of course, to avoid real shit-rolling, I needed to accelerate a bit.
Say, snag other mysteries, hidden treasures, or imperial secrets.
*
'He's hiding something.'
Grand Duke Persephone thought as he left the palace.
He was certain Reinhardt was concealing something important.
'I can't read his thoughts.'
He possessed the power to read others' minds.
Any 'human,' strong or weak, he could read completely.
Yet Reinhardt's thoughts were impenetrable.
Because he wasn't human?
No. He was unmistakably the emperor's son.
When young, Reinhardt's thoughts had been easy to read.
But now, they were not.
Was it from the mania worsening, tangling his mind too complexly?
Truly mad ones' thoughts could be unreadable at times.
He'd handled Rigel Kingdom's prince, so he wasn't fully cured.
And moreover.
Thump! Thump!
His heart raced.
It had been half a century since it pounded like this.
A tension he hadn't felt in ages.
An unknown power emanated from Reinhardt.
Stronger than anything he'd felt in fifty years.
'This sensation... it's like facing the Numbers.'
Half a century ago, he'd met a god called one of the Numbers.
One of the Twelve Gods.
He'd been captivated by that overwhelming power.
And now, looking at Reinhardt evoked a similar feeling.
If Reinhardt was linked to the Twelve Gods, investing in Arel wasn't a waste.
Awakening a spirit meant inheriting a chief god's power.
The lost ancient mysteries.
Only the Twelve Gods could awaken and wield them.
'I'll watch for a while.'
It had been a meaningful time.
Well worth the forced visit.
He eagerly anticipated how Reinhardt would resolve his future request and what reward he'd demand.
Of course, his goodwill didn't always lead to positive outcomes.
He became scarier than anyone when expectations were dashed.
But if Reinhardt truly inherited the Twelve Gods' power.
'Only one with a chief god's power can make dark elves breed.'
It could be a new solution for the near-extinct dark elves.
As a mere breeding tool, a stallion.
End of Dark Elf Arel