Chapter 218
Chapter 218
The sudden collapse of the king.
And Logan, frozen in place with a wine bottle in his hand.
As the gazes of the royal guards and attendants all converged on Logan, for a moment, it felt as though time itself had stopped in the room.
"Your Majesty!"
But soon, the silence was shattered by the officials, including Cleo, who rushed toward the king, and the hesitant shouts of the guards.
"Seize—seize Lord Logan!"
Even as they yelled, the guards hesitated to move.
Amidst the chaos, Logan, who had been standing dumbfounded, quickly regained his composure.
'Ha... This is...'
It was utterly absurd.
He had considered the possibility that the king might pull some new trick.
But he never expected it would be something this extreme.
Self-harm?
The king?
'Damn it.'
He had been blindsided.
'If I use force here...'
He would be branded a traitor for sure.
As Logan watched the approaching guards, his mind raced. Then, he heard his master's panicked voice.
"Logan, what in the world—"
"It wasn't me. You know that, don't you?"
Logan shook his head at his master's shocked expression before letting out a bitter chuckle at the sight of the guards' drawn swords.
The tense knights flared their aura in response.
"Move aside. I'll walk on my own."
With a cold expression, he brushed past their blades and turned his gaze back to the fallen king.
The face of the once-vibrant young prince he had helped crown.
'How did it come to this?'
A sigh escaped him, heavy with bitterness.
'Did you hate me so much you'd go this far? Why?'
The hatred was incomprehensible.
His rising irritation and anger naturally redirected toward the official screaming hysterically beside the unconscious king.
'Was this your doing too, Cleo?'
Words he couldn't voice aloud in this situation.
Suppressing the killing intent boiling within him, Logan forced himself to remain calm as he turned away.
"Where am I being taken now?"
"Uh, well—"
"To the underground dungeons for now."
"...Lead the way."
Surrounded by guards as though they were an escort rather than captors, Logan stepped out of the king's office.
Rumors spread that Logan MacLaine had attempted to assassinate the king.
At first, the whispers were dismissed as nonsense.
"Why would Logan MacLaine do such a thing?"
"That's ridiculous."
"Stop spreading baseless rumors if you don't want a beating."
But the moment it was confirmed that Logan had been imprisoned in the royal dungeons, the rumors spiraled out of control.
-What the hell is going on?
As panic gripped most of the kingdom's nobility, the reactions of the key nobles—those who had no choice but to take this incident seriously—split into two camps.
"This is a disaster! How could this happen?!"
Count Roberts Floyd paced his drawing room anxiously, his mind racing.
'Everyone knows about the conflict between His Majesty and my son-in-law. Whether Logan truly did it or the king framed him, this won't end well. And if that happens, I...'
Finally making up his mind, Roberts barked at his steward.
"Establish a communication link to MacLaine! And prepare to leave the capital immediately!"
"Y-yes?!"
"Hurry! Move quickly!"
Ignoring the steward's bewildered protests, the count began hastily gathering valuables from his estate.
A handful of nobles who sensed the ominous tension either retreated deep into hiding within the capital or fled to their own territories. The rest chose to hold their breath and watch how events unfolded.
Though the situation was unexpected, most believed it wouldn't escalate further—after all, the kingdom's real power still lay with Logan and the Sword Duke, who were master and disciple.
But the reaction from MacLaine Territory was far more volatile than the majority expected.
"The Grand Prince?!"
"That's absurd!"
"What reason would our lord have to do such a thing?!"
Most of MacLaine's citizens, upon hearing the rumors, instead condemned the king.
"We can't just sit idle! We must free Lord Logan, even if we have to turn the capital—no, the entire kingdom—upside down!"
"Of course, my lady!"
Logan's fiancée and his personal attendant stormed off in fury to confront their lord.
Immediately afterward, a council of MacLaine's vassals was convened.
BANG!
"What the hell is going on?!"
Patrick MacLaine's furious roar silenced the assembled vassals in the grand hall.
All eyes turned to one figure—Dwain, the representative of the vassals—who stepped forward.
"It appears to be true that His Highness has been imprisoned. The Sword Duke sent word that he is assessing the situation and attempting to persuade the king, so we should wait a little longer—"
"Wait? Wait for what? For my son to be executed?!"
Patrick's enraged shout drowned out Dwain's tense explanation.
The chilling aura of a supreme knight radiated from the high seat, freezing the hall in dread.
But Dwain was the only one who could reason with Patrick in this state. Swallowing his fear, the bearded administrator forced himself to speak again.
"P-please calm down, my lord. Even His Majesty would not act rashly against the Grand Prince. Frankly, the situation is far too suspicious."
"Of course it's suspicious! If my son—a Transcendent—wanted to kill the king, he would've done it with his bare hands! Why use poison?!"
"That's precisely why we should wait a little longer. There's still common sense at play—"
"But we can't just sit idle! Mobilize all our forces! Prepare for war!"
"My lord!!"
The vassals' faces paled at Patrick's extreme order.
"If word reaches the king that we're preparing for war, the Grand Prince's life could be in even greater danger!"
"Nonsense! Even if something happens, Logan isn't one to fall easily. Do as I say!"
"My lord!!"
"This is a warning to the king! If anything happens to my son, I will overturn this kingdom!"
"What?!"
Every vassal's gaze locked onto Patrick.
Especially Dwain and Heinkel, who had served him for decades—their eyes widened in shock.
Honor and chivalry.
These were the values Patrick MacLaine had upheld his entire life.
And at the core of those values lay loyalty to the king.
Yet—
"If the king moves against my son, then from this moment on, there is no king!!"
To a father whose child was in danger, everything else was secondary.
"Prepare for war!"
Patrick's furious roar filled the grand hall, and MacLaine's military forces began mobilizing at an alarming pace.
Thanks to the bishops' divine power, the king, who had been in critical condition, quickly recovered and rose from his bed.
But this only deepened the public's suspicion.
"That hero actually tried to kill him?"
"Isn't this all too convenient?"
"What's really happening in the kingdom...?"
Anyone with half a brain could see how fishy the whole situation was.
Yet the king, undeterred, immediately ordered a purge the moment he regained consciousness.
-Arrest everyone connected to the traitor Logan MacLaine!
At the king's command, the royal guards moved swiftly. Soon, most of the ministers stationed in the capital were dragged away.
Some, like Count Floyd's household, had already fled to MacLaine Territory the moment Logan was imprisoned. But those who hadn't escaped in time were all thrown into the dungeons.
The only reason they weren't executed on the spot was because the Sword Duke desperately intervened.
It had become an open secret that the king's furious shouts and the Sword Duke's attempts to reason with him echoed continuously from the royal office.
And with MacLaine's forces now making ominous movements, the kingdom's nobles had no choice but to brace for what was coming.
-Another war might break out.
-If MacLaine rebels now...
-The worst civil war could unfold.
As unease seeped through the kingdom, the man at the center of it all remained locked away, cut off from all news.
A spacious room.
Soft incense wafting through the air.
A bright lamp.
A bed draped in silk.
A proper desk and dining table.
Even a private bathroom with a door.
If not for the lack of sunlight and the iron bars enclosing everything, it could have passed as a noble's luxurious guest suite.
'Well, it is for a noble.'
Logan smirked as he opened his eyes.
He had spent days meditating, perfectly content to remain still for as long as necessary—but he had sensed a familiar presence approaching.
"Awake?"
"How could I keep my eyes closed when my master has come to see me?"
In the dim lamplight, the familiar face of his master came into view.
"Do you have any idea what's happening?"
Noticing the increased white hair and wrinkles on his master's face, Logan exhaled softly.
"My guess is the same as yours. No—given the situation, it's the conclusion most would reach."
"...The king's self-harm?"
"So you knew."
The Sword Duke's expression darkened at his disciple's words, which bordered on mockery.
"How could I not?"
"Blind faith can sometimes obscure the truth entirely. And you, Master, are the most devout man I know."
Logan smiled bitterly, choosing his words carefully.
How could Felix Esperanza, the kingdom's strongest aura user, be a fool?
Yet at times, he seemed frustratingly dense—precisely because his unwavering beliefs clouded his judgment.
Especially when it came to the king and the royal family.
Logan had even considered the possibility that his master might interpret the situation differently.
But the Sword Duke sighed heavily, meeting his disciple's gaze.
"Regardless, the situation is dire, Logan. Too many witnessed it, and the timing was too perfect. The poison, too."
"...They must have prepared thoroughly for this opportunity."
His sarcastic tone drew another sigh from his master.
"It was an extreme poison, capable of bypassing the Crown of Ruler's magic and inflicting critical damage. His Majesty could have died."
"But he didn't. If I had truly wanted to kill him, I would've used my aura—not poison."
And no one could have stopped me.
Not even you, Master.
He left that last thought unspoken, but the Sword Duke nodded grimly.
"...True. But precisely because it was so dangerous, some are siding with His Majesty's claims. That man Cleo is leading the charge."
"Ha... Of course it's him..."
"And His Majesty is adamant about punishing you."
"Naturally. So how long must I stay here? The sooner this is resolved, the sooner I can decide my next move."
Resolved, not punished.
The blatant implication—that he would not accept any punishment—made his master's expression darken further.
"...I am still persuading His Majesty. Wait a little longer. Endure the discomfort."
Can you really persuade him?
This was the same king who had harmed himself to frame Logan.
And even if his master succeeded in securing his release without punishment...
'I won't hold back anymore, Master.'
Rage simmered in his chest, but seeing how much older his master looked in just these few days, he couldn't bring himself to voice those words.
"...I'll wait."
"Good. Please—no, never mind. I'll return later."
The Sword Duke seemed about to say something more but stopped himself with a deep sigh before turning away.
'What was he going to say?'
The question lingered briefly before being swallowed by the fury bubbling inside him.
And then—
"AAAAARGH!"
BOOM!
Unable to contain his rage any longer, Logan's furious roar shook the dark dungeon walls.