Chapter 91
Chapter 91
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Knight Brigade (3)
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"Was it something we could have done if we tried?"
Raymond murmured to himself as he sat on the terrace, gazing up at the night sky.
He had anticipated the Knight Brigade's oath of loyalty, but he hadn't expected it to happen so quickly. Even with the First Prince's dying words, they hadn't joined the Emperor's war, so he figured there would be more complicated interests at play. But no.
'If there's a factor that moved them, was it the victory and the Sword Saint...?'
The Knight Brigade had expected the Mountain Duke to win. The forces gathered under the Emperor's banner weren't that numerous—pathetic compared to the empire's past when imperial authority had been strong.
That's why some elders had fiercely opposed the Knight Brigade joining the Emperor's war.
If they gathered under the Emperor's flag only for the Mountain Duke to win, it would put them in a real bind.
Unlike the Mountain Duke, infamous for his cruel temperament, they foolishly believed the Emperor would show mercy even if they joined late. Unfortunately, Raymond had no intention of showing mercy to any of them right now.
"Captain Ivan. You've arrived."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Raymond asked in a calm voice at the quiet approaching presence. The owner of that presence stepped onto the terrace and replied.
The moonlight illuminating the terrace swept away the shadows hiding the face of the knight in red uniform. It was Ivan Lows, the golden-haired captain of the Imperial Capital Guard. He slowly approached Raymond's side and stood at attention.
The two men were silent for a moment. It was a silence Raymond intended, and Ivan, not yet grasping his intentions, hesitated to speak first.
"Captain Ivan, I didn't expect you to become the head of the Knight Brigade."
It hadn't been long since the Bloody Funeral's aftermath when the Mountain Duke rebelled. These events happened right after Raymond ascended the throne, before he could properly strengthen imperial authority, so he'd been incredibly busy.
"I didn't expect it either, Your Majesty. Besides, this is only a temporary position. If it aligns with Your Majesty's will and that of the council of elders, someone else will take the role of Knight Brigade leader."
"So you need the council of elders' approval too, is that it...?"
Raymond murmured quietly to himself.
The empire's once-mighty imperial authority from ancient times had weakened along with the empire's decline. The fact that changing the Knight Brigade's leader required the council of elders' opinion alongside the Emperor's showed as much.
Thanks to the previous Emperor Ronald's efforts to strengthen it somewhat, Raymond could now command subordinates to this extent. Before Ronald, imperial authority had hit rock bottom, limiting even the Emperor's freedom of action.
It was all detailed in the setting documents. Knowing the novel's lore proved helpful in many ways.
"Your Majesty...?"
Ivan bit his lip with a pained expression at the sight of the agonized Emperor in profile. He bit so hard that blood seeped out.
"It seems the Knight Brigade needs some cleaning up."
"What do you mean by 'cleaning up', Your Majesty?"
Ivan asked cautiously. He pretended ignorance with his question, but he had a rough idea of what the Emperor meant by 'cleaning up'.
"You know exactly what I'm thinking, don't you, Captain?"
"Your Majesty, if I'm right, that's too radical."
"The fact that 'radical' comes to mind means your thoughts aren't far off from mine."
A cold smile spread across Raymond's lips.
He rose from his chair and leaned against the terrace railing.
"Captain Ivan, don't you think it's dangerous like this?"
There was no answer. But Ivan was deep in thought—his expression made it clear—so Raymond smiled quietly at him.
"I have a duty to strengthen imperial authority and revive the empire in full. But right now, a malignant group devouring the empire's revival stands before my eyes. What should I do?"
"Subjugate them and set the empire's foundations right, Your Majesty."
"Well said, Captain Ivan. I need your help to subjugate them."
Raymond spoke in a gentle voice as he approached Ivan. A small piece of paper and a pen had appeared in his hand at some point. He placed them on the table in front of Ivan and spoke.
"Write down the names."
"What... names do you mean, Your Majesty?"
"The names of the elders in the Knight Brigade with deep ties to the Mountain Duke."
This was a test of Ivan's loyalty. The Central Intelligence Agency, bolstered by funds secured from the Valencia imperial demesne, had already obtained the list. If Ivan was truly loyal to the imperial family and the empire, he would write down names matching that list.
If the names he wrote didn't match or the numbers differed greatly, Raymond couldn't trust him.
"I've written them all down."
After deep deliberation, Ivan handed over the list he'd penned himself. A clear smile spread across Raymond's face upon checking it.
It matched over ninety percent with the Central Intelligence Agency's list—a token that Ivan could be trusted.
"Captain of the Imperial Capital Guard and temporary leader of the Knight Brigade, Sir Ivan Lows. This proves your loyalty."
Raymond passed Ivan's handwritten list to a Royal Guard standing in the corner of the terrace. He then approached Ivan again, placed a hand on his shoulder, and spoke.
"Now, let me tell you what you must do."
"A sudden summons from the brigade leader? Is this any way to act?"
Arock, a high-ranking knight and one of the brigade's elders, grumbled to Sian, his fellow knight and another elder.
"Tell me about it. I thought Captain Ivan was wiser than this... Guess not. Forgetting he's only temporary and summoning the elders like this."
Sian pouted her cherry-like lips in complaint. The two elders were heading to the audience chamber after receiving an urgent summons from the Knight Brigade's leader, Ivan Lows.
Temporary or not, it was the leader's call. Despite their high status as elders, they couldn't ignore it, so they dragged their heavy feet along.
But their irritated grumbling was unavoidable.
"The meeting place is the audience chamber. His Majesty the Emperor might be involved."
A fellow elder—this one a senior knight rather than high-ranking—spoke cautiously. Sian twisted her lips into a rotten smile and shook her head.
"Even if the Emperor's involved, what of it? Sure, he beat the Mountain Duke, but the brigade has plenty of high-ranking knights. The Emperor has to watch his step around us."
"Quite right."
Arock snickered in agreement with Sian. The other elders with senior knight ranks nodded as well as they walked together.
This was the Philius Empire, the imperial palace, yet imperial authority hadn't fully recovered. It was a perfect display of how the days of commanding the world were now mere past glory.
"The audience chamber is just ahead. Royal Guards will be on watch, so you'd best lower your voices."
A short elder approached and advised cautiously. Fortunately, they hadn't lost their fear to the point of rejecting even this—they lowered their voices, whispering gossip until they reached the audience chamber vicinity, then stopped badmouthing the Emperor.
But they didn't know. Listeners lurked in the deepest shadows, overhearing their audacious insults to the Emperor. And they never would.
Oblivious to the soundless shadows trailing them, they approached the audience chamber doors.
"His Majesty the Emperor awaits."
A Royal Guard guarding the entrance said in a low voice.
"Inform His Majesty and the brigade leader of our arrival."
One elder spoke, and the Royal Guard nodded before forcefully opening the doors.
The empire had declined, but the audience chamber remained grand and ornate.
At the far end on the throne sat the young Emperor Raymond, with Ivan Lows, the temporary head of the Knight Brigade, standing at attention beside him.
The air in the audience chamber hung heavy. An ominous aura seemed to blanket the floor. Sian swallowed dryly as she walked, following that inexplicable unease.
The Royal Guards lining the passage exuded a ferocious presence, making even confident Sian tense up.
"Pay respects to His Majesty the Emperor."
Gestain bellowed, drawing the elders' eyes to him. Some knew of him, but more than half didn't.
Before the Emperor, they didn't outright ignore him, but dissatisfied glares were inevitable. Yet Gestain's expression remained rock-solid, his grip on his sword sheath unmoving.
"The Knight Brigade council of elders pays respects to His Majesty the Emperor."
Arock stepped forward as their representative. He bowed first, and Sian and the others followed suit.
But their decorum was fleeting. Soon, despite the Emperor right there, they shot defiant looks at the temporary brigade leader.
"Why have you summoned us, Brigade Leader?"
This was the imperial presence. Treating the Emperor like a mere screen and questioning Ivan directly violated protocol. Yet Arock, an elder and high-ranking knight of the Knight Brigade, pressed Ivan undeterred by the Emperor's cold gaze.
The other elders did the same. Their behavior showed just how weak Ivan's grip on the brigade was.
"His Majesty has questions for you, so I summoned you."
"Hah, really. Even so, summoning us so abruptly—what country's etiquette is this?"
Ivan spoke with a pained expression, but Arock scoffed mockingly. The Emperor's presence didn't faze him much. Only Sian and a few elders glanced nervously at the Royal Guards.
"Didn't I say I summoned you because I have questions? Stop pressuring the poor brigade leader."
Raymond finally intervened, unable to stand it. He hadn't realized Ivan's temporary position and the elders' strengthened influence had reached this level. But for Raymond, it was a fortunate turn.
Seeing it with his own eyes erased any hesitation and solidified his resolve. The great undertaking was near.
"If His Majesty says so... we'll stop here."
Raymond's lips twisted at Arock acting like he was granting some grand mercy. He let out a short sigh and rose from the throne.
"Given your attitudes, I suppose bluntness is best."
Raymond's eyes gleamed coldly. Desia and Gestain, at his side, stepped forward in unison.
"Why did you side with the Mountain Duke?"
"Y-Your Majesty?"
The atmosphere shifted abruptly. The elders finally sensed something amiss. Shadows surged from the audience chamber's dark corners—they were Shades, the signal flares for the great undertaking's start.
"Did you think I wouldn't know? That you took gold bars from the Mountain Duke and breathed poison into the brigade to keep it from moving!"
The Soul Sword was now in the Emperor's right hand. The elders' faces paled at the sight of its vivid mana glow.
"If you have mouths, then defend yourselves!"
"Your Majesty! This can't be!"
"We're elders of the Knight Brigade! Such threats won't work on us!"
The elders drew their swords in unison. As high-ranking members, they were permitted to carry blades even in the audience chamber.
Mana blades erupted from their swords simultaneously. Only those at senior knight level or higher—and highly skilled—were granted elder positions in the Knight Brigade.
Thus, each bore a threatening mana aura. But it posed no threat to Raymond.
"Gestain, step forward."
The Emperor had the Sword Saint on his side.
"Go judge them and raise the banner heralding the revival of the rotten Philius Empire."
"As Your Majesty commands."
Aura blade—the mark of the Sword Saint—surged from the sword Gestain raised.