Chapter 300: Vacation (1)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 300: Vacation (1)
On March 10, 1799, Rosa summoned a meeting of the flagbearers.
Barton Vichena’s empty helmet sat atop the long table.
Every flagbearer except Jin stared at the helmet in shock, though none allowed their emotions to surface.
They were already aware that the true hero of this mission had been Jin, not Dipus.
Dipus had told Mary himself: the mission would never have succeeded without Jin. Mary, in turn, had spread the word among the other flagbearers as if it were her own achievement.
Flip, flip…
In the heavy silence, the sound of Rosa leafing through the report seemed exceptionally loud. After reading the entire document with an expressionless face, Rosa spoke.
“It seems you have forgotten the details of your mission.”
“In what way were we lacking?”
At Jin’s nonchalant question, the eyes of several siblings twitched. Ran, Vigo, Myu, Anne, and the Tona brothers—they had only heard that Jin and Dipus had perfectly succeeded.
“Securing Ventica and slaying Barton Vichena is well and good. However, the family’s orders were to make it look as though he died in battle.”
The family’s orders.
Rosa emphasized those words.
The decision to frame his death as being ‘killed by the enemy during a mission’ was not just her personal wish, but the collective judgment of the entire Elder Council.
“Barton Vichena. If we simply intended to execute him, there would have been no need to deploy you flagbearers. I and the Black Sword Council could have moved personally.”
“Mother.”
“Speak, 12th Flagbearer.”
“On this mission, it was impossible to make it look like Barton Vichena was killed by the enemy. Due to the variable of Kelliark’s authority, more manpower would have been required than we had.”
“If that was your judgment, then you should have retreated when Barton Vichena insisted on proceeding and waited for the next opportunity. Of course, in that case, other flagbearers would have been assigned the task instead of you.”
At that, Jin did not hesitate to shift the responsibility to Dipus.
“The 4th Flagbearer, who held command, had a strong will to see the mission through.”
“4th Flagbearer. Is this true?”
“It is.”
“Why did you not retreat?”
“Because with the 1st Flagbearer absent, I judged that no other flagbearers could have performed the mission better than the 12th Flagbearer and myself.”
“That is merely your opinion, Dipus.”
“We brought back results. Although we could not stage his death as a casualty of battle, we achieved both objectives without a single loss.”
“Do you not understand why the family tried to kill Barton Vichena in such a complex manner? It was to prevent his betrayal from being known to the outside world. Every single Zipple mage who retreated knows he survived. If his death is announced now, it will look as though Runcandel purged its own Black Knight.”
Killed in action versus purged.
For any other knight, the distinction might not matter, but for a Black Knight, it had to be the former. The purge of one of Runcandel’s strongest assets would signal a failure in cohesion and loyalty.
The fact that a Black Knight had been purged would carry immense repercussions. Such was the symbolic weight a Black Knight held, not just within Runcandel, but throughout all of Huphester.
Of course, even if he were reported as killed in action, Runcandel’s prestige would inevitably take a hit. However, the forces Zipple deployed for the ‘Ventica Securing Mission’ were publicly known to be far superior. Since they had faced the Kozec and the White Night, it was entirely plausible for a Black Knight to perish.
If the mission had gone as originally planned, they could have even spun it as the Black Knight sacrificing himself to ‘save the flagbearers.’
“As you all know, these are sensitive times. While the Patriarch and the 1st Flagbearer are away, Zipple is expanding its influence by the day. If it becomes known that a Black Knight was purged in such a situation, what will our allies think of us?”
Myu and Anne almost burst into giggles out of sheer spite.
I knew it. No matter how great Brother Dipus and the youngest are, they’re only human. Their greed for achievements made them reckless. Once Brother Joshua takes power, they’ll be the first ones cut loose.
I heard the Elder Council is even refusing to teach him the Decisive Techniques. Serves him right. This incident will put him even further out of their favor.
Ran and Vigo were simply marveling internally at the fact that Dipus and Jin had actually killed Barton Vichena; they had no other thoughts. The Tona brothers were full of worry, as usual, but they barely managed to keep their emotions from showing.
Rosa could see the thoughts of those six as clearly as if they were written on their faces. She suppressed her frustration, clicking her tongue inwardly.
“…If the 4th and 12th Flagbearers have no insight regarding this, I will consider this mission a failure.”
“Mother, you know very well that there will be no problem, even if you announce that Barton Vichena died in battle.”
At Jin’s words, the eyes of the six siblings widened—the same six who had just disappointed Rosa.
On the other hand, Rosa, Joshua, Luntia, Dipus, and Mary remained calm. It was as if they had expected this.
“The enemy’s Kozec was half-destroyed, they lost six Red Dragons and over thirty elite mages, and Veradin suffered severe injuries despite using Kelliark’s power. Even so, they failed to secure Ventica.”
Using Kelliark’s power.
At that, the six flagbearers fixed their gaze on Jin once more. No such detail had been in the distributed report. However, no one dared to ask what he meant.
“It makes no sense for Runcandel to have suffered zero damage in that process. Especially if it becomes known that I was the one who destroyed the Kozec, Zipple will lose more than just face.”
“Wait, youngest. You were the one who destroyed the Kozec, not Brother Dipus?”
Ignoring Vigo’s question, Jin continued.
“In this situation, Zipple would welcome us making a false announcement that a Black Knight was killed in action. We are both protecting our own interests. Of course, since we suffered no actual damage and secured Ventica, we are the ones coming out overwhelmingly ahead.”
“Are you not considering the possibility that Zipple might reveal that the Black Knight was actually a spy?”
“No. It is not a matter worth considering. If they reveal Barton was a traitor, Zipple becomes the loser who had a traitorous Black Knight on their Kozec and still lost. If Zipple reveals the whole truth, I will take full responsibility.”
Silence fell for a moment.
Unlike Ran, Vigo, Myu, Anne, and the Tona brothers, the others present were well aware that this conversation had been Rosa’s ‘test.’ Her pressuring tone wasn't merely to put Jin in a difficult spot.
Since this mission was truly vital to the family, she wanted to see how Jin, as a flagbearer, would resolve the political fallout. Furthermore, she wanted to set an example for the flagbearers who had failed to grasp the situation. She was showing them what a flagbearer of Runcandel should be.
If Jin had simply answered that it couldn’t be helped, Rosa would have immediately punished him for the mission's failure.
But Jin had brought back a satisfying result, as he always did. Despite the severe variable of the spatial explosion, he had achieved a near-perfect success.
Because of that, she felt a maddening sense of waste.
It is lamentable that I must one day bring this child down. But until then, there are many things you must do for the family.
Use me to your heart's content. Eventually, that will be what strangles the necks of you and Joshua.
Different thoughts drifted between Jin and Rosa as their eyes met.
Knock, knock, knock!
Someone knocked on the conference room door.
“Lady Rosa, it is Heinz, the butler.”
“Come in.”
Heinz entered with a bow, a bundle of newsletters in his hand. They were from the Lutero Magic Federation.
“Zipple has released an article regarding the Ventica mission. The general tone is that while Zipple suffered a defeat, they achieved the feat of slaying a Black Knight.”
“Kelliark Zipple beat us to the punch. An unnervingly sharp man. Did he become certain that Barton’s cover was blown just from the flow of the mission?”
This time, even the high-ranking flagbearers seemed quite surprised. Though, as usual, Luntia was busy suppressing a yawn.
“Was there anything else of note?”
“There was not. Shall I prepare a counter-article?”
“Do so. Embellish Barton Vichena’s death beautifully, but do not reveal his true name. Also, expunge all records of Barton.”
“As you command.”
As of today, articles praising Barton would flood the Huphester region, but his black helmet and remains would never be interred in the Mausoleum.
Once Heinz left, Rosa turned her gaze back to Jin.
“It went exactly as you said, 12th Flagbearer. I must grant you a reward. Is there anything you desire?”
“Once the mining of the ancient Ten Thousand-Year Steel is complete, give me ten percent of it. And I would like a vacation of about ten days.”
“Very well.”
Surprisingly, Rosa readily accepted. She had decided to focus on utilizing Jin for the time being rather than checking his power. Just as Runcandel and Zipple were protecting their own interests, so were Jin and Rosa.
Above all, Rosa believed that everything Jin gained would eventually belong to Joshua as time passed. Therefore, providing support above a certain level wasn't a bad thing. In fact, it was sometimes necessary to give him wings.
“That is all. The flagbearer meeting is adjourned. The 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th Flagbearers will have mission assignments this evening. Send your respective butlers to my office.”
“Understood.”
Immediately after leaving the conference room, Jin walked straight to his room without speaking to anyone. However, as he passed the Tona brothers, he told them he hadn't forgotten his promise.
“Let’s have a drink tonight.”
“R-Right! I’ll have something good ready!”
The other flagbearers clicked their tongues at the Tona brothers, but Dipus and Mary felt quite envious. Mary simply wanted to get closer to Jin, but for Dipus, it was different.
That Lightning Sword the youngest showed… it definitely had similarities to the 6th Decisive Technique, Lightning Flash. And a Demon God Stone? There is too much I don't know about the youngest. The power of his magic also far exceeded my expectations.
Mary, seeing the back of Dipus’s neck, flinched and blinked.
“Brother? Are you cold? You’ve got goosebumps on your neck. Gross. We should go have some warm wine, too.”
When Jin returned to his room, Gilly welcomed him.
And Murakan, the black dragon of approximately three thousand years, glared at Jin with a heavy pout.
“You’ve worked hard, Young Master.”
“Thanks. But what’s wrong with Murakan again?”
“Ah, that is…”
Gilly gave an awkward, troubled smile.
The reason Murakan was so cross was simple: Gilly had insisted that they all go on this vacation ‘together.’
In other words, for Murakan, it was hard to accept that his long-awaited date had gone up in smoke.
“I heard the contractor of Olmango is in the Schuteron Kingdom. I’ve always wanted to visit the beaches there at least once, and I thought it would be wonderful if we all went on vacation together with our comrades from Tikan. If it’s alright, I thought you should come along too, Young Master…”
Watching Murakan scowl once more, Jin let out a chuckle.