Chapter 46
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 46
Chapter Title: Elberra (7)
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By now, word must have reached Earl Darlington that a messenger carrying Prince Henrik's letter had set out from the north under the escort of the Blue Falcon Knights.
So, having lost all further use, he had been discarded.
"What's wrong?"
Blake noticed the shift in Lindelmann's expression and asked.
Startled, he hesitated before cautiously inquiring,
"Um... do you happen to know what's written in that letter?"
"No."
Blake's face hardened coldly the moment the letter came up.
"Not even a guess?"
"None. Why bring up the letter all of a sudden?"
His voice dropped even lower, laced with chill.
"No, I just... s-sorry."
No matter how hopeless things seemed, he couldn't push Blake of all people.
Besides, it was just a hunch—no hard evidence.
Even if it turned out to be true that this mess stemmed from dealings between Earl Darlington and Prince Henrik, what could he do?
They were too powerful to hold accountable, and he was just a knight aspirant born out of wedlock.
'In the end, there's nothing I can do? Damn it!'
A fresh wave of despair crashed over him.
"Um, chin up, Sir Zaroph. You can just take the exam again, right?"
Ruben, who had been quietly gauging the mood, ventured carefully.
"Again... yeah, sure, just take it again. After waiting another three years."
Lindelmann's face grew even more forlorn.
"N-no, that's not what I—"
"No, forget it. I don't care what you meant. Just drop it."
Lindelmann didn't blame Ruben.
This kind-hearted, naive mage, raised in the mountains and awkward with people, had only meant to comfort him out of pure goodwill.
"Y-yes. Sorry."
Ruben bowed his head, his face full of regret.
"......"
Silence stretched on for a while.
Lindelmann stared blankly out the window, Ruben furtively watched the two men,
and Blake sat in a chair off to one side of the room, arms crossed, feet propped up on the table, saying nothing.
'Is Mr. Blake worried about Sir Zaroph's situation too? He seems deeper than he looks...'
Ruben glanced at Blake and assumed as much.
But Ruben's guess was only partly right—and partly dead wrong.
It was true Blake thought more deeply than his rough exterior suggested.
But Lindelmann barely crossed his mind right now—just a tiny bit.
Blake was mulling over the Grime family members he'd seen earlier and what they meant.
Especially the girl named Annrose Verniard, who had stared at him from the ship until the end. He kept replaying her final reaction.
'That woman definitely saw the neck pouch.'
Just as Annrose had recognized the seal on the neck pouch in that brief moment, Blake had caught the instant her expression changed upon spotting something.
And the only things she'd have noticed were the neck pouch tucked in his bosom and the commander's seal stamped on it.
If this had happened back when he first arrived at Headgates, he might not have paid it much mind.
But Blake had already experienced firsthand how much weight a letter sealed by the commander carried—especially with nobles.
The reactions from the White family and other northern nobles proved it.
Annrose Verniard today was no different.
Just like Roderick Swent in Dunfris, her face had changed the moment she saw the neck pouch.
'A woman who recognized the commander's seal is traveling with a family close to the Blue Falcons. And Crimson Wind Knights' couriers are in this city too. This doesn't bode well.'
Blake's gaze darkened further.
Clop-clop-clop!
Late that night, a band of mounted knights arrived at the Grime estate.
Armored in the same insignia as the courier horses Blake had seen that afternoon, they were none other than the Crimson Wind Knights.
"Where is the family head?"
Though he must have been exhausted from riding all day, Samuel Luther, the mid-thirties vice-baron, sought out Gilmore Grime immediately upon arrival.
"He's waiting in his study. This way, please."
Samuel Luther followed the crested knight to Gilmore Grime's office.
"Sir Luther has arrived."
"Ah! Sir Luther, I've been waiting. Come in."
"It's been a while. I hope you've been well."
"Same as always. Sit here."
"Yes."
Samuel Luther returned Gilmore Grime's warm welcome with polite courtesy.
But even as he bowed, he didn't miss noting how much more the man's belly protruded than before.
'Hmph! Not quite the same. He's turned into a fat, bloated pig.'
"Glad to see you in good health."
Hiding his thoughts, Samuel Luther sat with a gentle smile.
"You've arrived, Sir Luther. I was waiting."
"It's been a while for you too, Albert."
Soon, wine made a quick round, and conversation flowed.
"You must have hurried. Making it from Brix to here in a single day."
"The matter demanded it. May I ask how things are progressing?"
"Albert, you explain."
"Yes."
At his father's cue, Albert stepped forward.
"We've covered all Elberra's gates and the inns in the back alleys near the docks. Based on the letter's info, he's likely staying in a cheap lodging. Elberra's big, but with his distinctive look, finding him once he enters shouldn't be hard."
"I see. But what if he arrived before today?"
"No worries. As you know, once in the city, there are only two ways out: through the gates toward the capital, or by boat down the Bran River."
"Hm."
As Samuel Luther nodded, Albert continued confidently.
"That's why we posted wanted notices at the gates and docks first. Gate guards on our payroll will stall and tip us off if he tries to leave that way, and he can't slip past the dock gangs by boat."
"Impressive. The Grime family has a bright future ahead."
Luther nodded.
The rumors about the Grime eldest son being sharp weren't empty talk.
"You're too kind."
"Haha! As Albert says, once that man sets foot in Elberra, we'll nab him for sure. Rest easy until we hear something in a few days."
Gilmore Grime beamed, pleased by the praise for his son.
But Samuel Luther shook his head lightly.
"I'd like that, but I think it's better to secure lodging in the city and wait. There was that rumor I heard right when I got the letter from Sir Swent."
"Rumor?"
"Yes. Do you know of Viscount Lancaster, by chance?"
As Samuel Luther's voice lowered slightly, Gilmore Grime's eyes sharpened.
"I've heard the name. A northern noble from merchant stock, under one of the great lords, right? Anything special?"
"Yes. That Lancaster viscount's house apparently suffered a crushing defeat in an honor duel against a minor local landholder recently."
"What? Even Lancaster, who I hear hired skilled knights with all that money? Surprising. But what of it?"
"Their final proxy knight was a senior member of the Blue Falcon Knights."
"Huh?"
Gilmore Grime's eyes widened slightly.
But the real shock was just beginning.
"And the one who took down that Blue Falcon senior along with all of Lancaster's duelists was a giant named Blake."
"What?"
Gilmore Grime's eyes bulged wide.
Now it clicked.
Sending a courier just to find one man had seemed excessive, but there was good reason.
"Hm! So Roderick Swent is hunting this Blake for revenge?"
A famed Blue Falcon senior losing to some nameless mercenary was a blow to the order's pride.
Thus, Gilmore assumed revenge drove Swent.
"I thought so at first, but it seems there's more to it."
"Hm?"
"This Blake isn't just any commoner, they say."
"Not common? The letter called him a discharged soldier. Care to elaborate?"
Gilmore Grime's face grew urgent at the increasingly cryptic words.
Albert listened with keen interest too.
"True. But rumor has it he carried someone's letter during the duel. Effectively a messenger."
"Messenger? Just a delivery boy, then?"
"You could see it that way. But doesn't the sender determine a messenger's status?"
"Fair point. So the sender was...?"
"Don't be shocked. The letter came from Northernrocks Fortress commander—Prince Henrik himself."
"Hm!"
"Gasp!"
The unimaginable name froze father and son.
But only for a moment.
Startled by the sudden mention of royalty—second only to the emperor in fame—Gilmore Grime quickly steadied his gaze, drawing on his worldly experience.
"Now it all makes sense. For Swent, it's not the man—it's the letter he carries that's vital."
"Likely. Consider the capital's recent shifts and Lord Darlington's moves—it confirms it. Prince Henrik, silent for over a decade, sending a personal letter? Depending on the contents, it could shake the realm."
"The throne...?"
"Not to judge lightly, but yes."
Their expressions turned gravely serious.
"Sorry to interrupt, but could you explain it more simply?"
Albert asked cautiously, sensing the gravity.
"Tch!"
Gilmore clicked his tongue at his eldest son's question, while Samuel Luther chuckled inwardly, relieved.
'Still green, as expected.'
He had a reputation for smarts, but he was far from seasoned.
Elberra's underbelly was challenge enough; grasping empire-shaking intrigue was beyond him.
"Know the biggest event coming to the capital?"
"Uh, the Imperial Knight Exam?"
"Right. And it's been rescheduled to...?"
"Two days from now—Prince Tobias's birthday."
"Good. Why move the knight exam to His Highness's birthday?"
"Well... uh..."
Though the lecturing tone irked him, Albert could only smack his lips, stumped.
Samuel Luther smiled slyly.
"Heh, listen well. The empire's sword and shield—the Imperial Knights. Their selection trial moved to Prince Tobias's birthday. And he's decided to oversee it personally. What does that mean? He claims the passers as his knights. In other words, a veiled declaration of his claim to the throne."
"Ah!"
"His Majesty hasn't appeared publicly in over three years. Power has slowly shifted to Prince Tobias at court."
"I see."
"Core powers like military command remain His Majesty's. No formal proclamation naming the eldest son heir. But for the imperial firstborn, already of age, it's only a matter of time before he's crowned crown prince."
"Right. But how does that connect to Blake's letter...? Gasp! W-wait, could it be?!"
Albert's eyes flew wide as realization dawned.
Samuel Luther nailed it home.
"Exactly. Prince Henrik, dormant on the frontier, sending a messenger now? It screams throne ambitions to anyone watching."
"......!"
The throne!
Albert's pupils quaked at words deciding this vast empire's master.
(To be continued in the next installment)