The Deceiver's Welcome
“Was that shocking enough to make you disappear for ten years? It’s not like I stabbed you in the back.”
Deceiver had merely been discovered.
He hadn’t stabbed anyone in the back. Until the very end, he had remained a son and a disciple. He had done no harm to Raven; the only thing that had happened was that his true identity had been uncovered.
Even so, Raven had been so shocked that he vanished for ten years. Deceiver could not understand it.
“……Yes. That’s just the kind of person you are.”
A twisted demigod who saw no problem in the act of deception itself.
In the past, when Raven had known nothing, he had occasionally embraced even this side of him, telling himself it was only because Deceiver was young and ignorant. But not anymore. Raven’s eyes darkened.
If only he had stabbed me in the back and then brazenly shown his face, just as he said, it might have been easier to bear.
What good would it do to get angry at him now?
A hollow, self-mocking laugh slipped out. Slowly withdrawing his hand, Raven answered calmly, as though explaining something to an immature child.
“It’s only natural to be shocked when the person you gave your heart to turns out to be your enemy. Besides—”
A trace of derision crept into his cold, sunken voice.
“Knowing from the very beginning that you came here with the intention to deceive, how could I possibly stay calm?”
“You were shocked because I was your ‘enemy’?”
“I was shocked because you were the enemy.”
Not anyone else—you deceived me.
The fact that the bond between them had not been formed by chance, but had been a carefully planned connection orchestrated by the enemy himself, was what truly shocked him. Raven, who had cared enough for Deceiver to take him in as an adopted son, did not rise in fury. Instead, he collapsed beneath the weight of sorrow.
The realization that he had believed he was doing his best, only to find himself back at square one, also played a part in bringing him down.
“Of course, that’s no longer the case.”
He brushed his hands clean and walked away without a trace of lingering attachment.
Deceiver, who had been quietly watching him, slowly rose to his feet. After dusting off his clothes a few times, he spoke in a neat, orderly manner, as though his earlier insolence had never happened.
“You must be weary from your long journey. It would be best if you rested first. We can continue our conversation later.”
“I will prepare the guest quarters for you.”
At the remark that signaled the end of their talk, the Emperor—who had been carefully gauging the mood—quickly spoke up. Deceiver’s brow twitched.
“The guest quarters? How insulting.”
He shook his head firmly.
“He is my father and my master. It would only be proper to offer him the most beautiful palace in the empire.”
“If that is the case……”
“For example, the Eastern Palace.”
The place so beautiful that no fitting name could be found for it, and so it was simply called the Eastern Palace.
It was the palace given to the Emperor’s sister, whom he cherished above all else; to the Empress, beloved by the doting husband; or to the favored concubine, as proof of the Emperor’s affection. At the mention of that place, the current Emperor, Kian Ardal, stiffened.
“The Eastern Palace…… you say? But that place is……”
“Your Majesty has no one you favor at the moment, do you not? This is none other than my father. You intend to grant him a palace that stands empty with no one using it—surely you have no intention of stopping me?”
“……”
“Or perhaps……”
Deceiver stared intently at Kian Ardal. His eyes, carrying something beyond human comprehension, gleamed coldly, as if to prove he was not of this world.
“Have you perhaps come to cherish someone enough that you would hesitate to give up the Eastern Palace?”
“Of course not.”
He had seen what happened when a demigod with such eyes veered off in an unexpected direction. Knowing that innocent people could die if he made a mistake, Kian Ardal hurriedly shook his head.
“If someone so distinguished were to use it, it would be an honor.”
“You heard him, Master. I will even allow the ‘stalker’ who followed you into the palace as a mere accessory. So……”
If you do not wish to see a certain pitiful crow meet its end.
“Rest.”
“……”
He might not care if others died, but he would never stand by and watch if he himself became the cause.
Deceiver curved his eyes toward the man whose fists were clenched tight.
The silent threat within that gaze was so clear that Raven, who had been about to vehemently refuse, asking why he had to stay here, pressed his lips shut.
“……You bastard.”
“How hurtful.”
He could not afford to lose the humanity he had barely managed to preserve over something so trivial.
The guest departed.
Deceiver, who had also finished his business, turned to leave when something seemed to occur to him. He stopped and looked back.
His gaze, utterly devoid of emotion, as though watching a lowly insect struggling to survive, fell upon Kian Ardal.
“It seems I have won again this time, Your Majesty.”
“……!”
Kian Ardal’s face turned deathly pale.
“There is no need to worry. I am not angry. It is not as though I fail to understand scheming, and it has been moderately entertaining so far.”
That was why he had left Deceiver alone no matter what he did until now.
“However.”
This time, the target was Raven.
How dare he try to lure my father away and strike deals with the other siblings.
What Stigma had reported was only that he had received orders to secretly find Raven, but the purpose was obvious.
Even though they were human, his brothers and sisters were troublesome opponents. It was not a matter of power, but of circumstance.
What would have happened if he had not been the first to find Raven and stay by his side?
From the Emperor’s perspective, he had chosen his options well, but…… Deceiver, feeling the need to issue a warning for the first time, continued slowly.
“It would be wise for you to understand the boundaries I allow and act accordingly.”
And then he smiled brightly.
“Of course, I am certain the wise Your Majesty will manage just fine.”
A faint trace of fear appeared on Kian Ardal’s face.
The warning was sufficient. Deceiver withdrew the subtle pressure he had been exerting and smiled radiantly.
“More importantly, Your Majesty. Since my father has returned after ten years, the social circles of the Empire have changed without his knowledge.”
“……Would it suffice to hold a banquet in celebration of the distinguished guest’s visit?”
“I would be grateful if you showed such consideration.”
“Then I shall set a date as soon as possible—”
“No. The nobles will have much to prepare. If it is too soon, it will be difficult for everyone.”
It needed to be held as soon as possible, yet with enough time for nobles from the provinces to prepare and travel.
“If we rush and end up with a disappointing banquet, it will only cause mutual embarrassment……”
Prepare a grand and flawless banquet.
That was what the demigod was saying.
“So there is no need to overexert yourself by hurrying.”
If a banquet were held, his siblings would learn of the master’s existence and reach out. There was no need to hasten that timing.
Of course, they were also the ones who could tie his father down, so it was impossible to prevent them from meeting entirely. It would be best to keep his father appropriately restrained until he chose to leave of his own accord, then hold the banquet at just the right moment to summon his siblings and bind him further.
A grand banquet and well-groomed nobles would be enough to please his father. After all, Father was someone starved for conversation and warmth from others.
“Since Father is the master of all the association heads, including myself, there is sufficient justification, but I would prefer his true identity be revealed as late as possible.”
“Then…… should we simply announce him as a ‘distinguished guest’?”
“You catch on quickly. I look forward to a splendid banquet.”
“……Understood.”
After Deceiver left, Kian Ardal, having dismissed everyone around him, finally collapsed in his seat.
After a long silence, a hollow laugh escaped him.
“So it has come to this after all.”
Deep melancholy lingered at the end of his voice.
He spoke as though muttering to himself, yet he knew there was someone listening. Stigma, realizing this, revealed himself.
His emotionless brown eyes looked down at the Emperor, who sat without dignity. Kian quietly looked up at him. Facing those cold eyes, his own emotions cooled, and his thoughts began to turn.
……Still, it wasn’t a complete loss.
The fact that he had issued a warning meant he felt threatened.
Until now, Deceiver had left him alone, as though uninterested in whatever he did. It was only possible because nothing had affected him personally. And now, for the first time, that same being had given a warning.
The reason was obvious.
Raven. That man is his weakness.
But if he approached carelessly, he would surely die. Just as Deceiver had said, he needed to carefully observe the “line.”
As he pondered what to do next, Stigma, interpreting the gaze differently, slowly knelt on one knee and lowered his eyes.
Only then did Kian’s attention focus entirely on him. Since there was something he wished to say, the silence broke easily.
“……Don’t you have something to say to me?”
After a brief hesitation, the answer came immediately.
“Why did you do it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You knew I would report it, so why did you give me the order?”
Stigma was the watcher Deceiver had openly attached to the Emperor.
Even though he knew that the viscount, a former slave from a defeated nation, had risen to his position precisely because of that background, the Emperor had still given him the order. It had been an irrational, nonsensical action.
“Because……”
Kian lowered his eyes calmly. Contrary to his composed expression, his voice carried a hint of fatigue and resignation as it echoed through the room.
“It would have been impossible to do anything without you knowing anyway.”
“……”
“I have no useful cards left in my hand, not with my limbs severed. So what choice did I have? I had no option but to borrow your hand.”
Because you are capable.
The judgment that “he” regarded him as insignificant and would therefore ignore even such an insolent report had also played a part. And indeed, that had been the case.
“Pathetic, isn’t it?”
“No, it is not.”
“Liar.”
Even so, he could not give up.
He was an emperor with many things he had to protect.
Ending his self-mocking laugh, the young Emperor cast aside unhelpful emotions and continued his earlier line of thought.
The demigod had called that man “father,” yet the man himself seemed to dislike him. Was this real, or merely a quarrel……?
If it was real, he needed to determine whether it was pure hatred strong enough to kill, or something closer to love and hate intertwined.
He needed to find out, but this was not something he could learn through Stigma. Issuing such an order so soon after Deceiver had warned him about Raven—if word reached Deceiver, he would certainly not let it slide.
It would be difficult, but he would have to take a different path.
First, I need to obtain another usable card that isn’t Stigma.
Turning his eyes away from the domain he could not touch recklessly, he looked for something he could do now.
Something had just come to mind.
“……Come to think of it, there have been some people drawing attention lately.”
“……”
“Slave liberation activists, I believe they were called.”
Stigma’s brow furrowed slightly, as though he had heard something he should not have.
But what could he do? Even if he was a watcher placed by the demigod, he was still only a viscount with the shackles of his slave origins. The one standing above him was the Emperor.
Unless the demigod became his unshakable backer, Stigma was nothing more than a replaceable part that could be discarded the moment he fell out of favor. He could not act arrogantly.
Having finished his calculations, Kian spoke without meeting the other’s gaze.
“Could you look into them for me? If possible, I would also like a way to make contact.”
It did not matter if the report reached Deceiver.
Even if this order reached the demigod, gaining a new card by contacting them would be worth it.
The demigod dislikes troublesome matters and will not bother to pay attention to things that do not interest him, so he will not bother to stop me from carrying out such a minor order.
Someone who rose to this position on the basis of “competence” would hardly fail to carry out a direct order from the Emperor.
Stigma would have no choice.
“……If that is your command.”
As expected, Stigma slowly lowered his head, as though trying to hide his reluctance.
His short green hair slid down to cover the side of his face, and from within came a neat, emotionless voice.
“I will gladly obey.”
Information arrived that someone resembling Raven had entered the imperial palace.
Because he had openly closed a Gate alone in front of the castle gates, the report had traveled faster and more reliably than usual.
His skill remains unchanged.
The admiration for his astonishing Gate-handling speed lasted only a moment. After all, there had been records of it before.
Setting the matter aside as insignificant, Edardo, the head of the information guild Aurell, returned to his original topic.
“And he entered as an acquaintance of that Deceiver……”
Well, the other association heads had also been searching with fire in their eyes, so it was highly likely that Deceiver, who called them his brothers and sisters, had done the same.
In the end, the victor became a monster.
The moment Edardo heard the news, he ordered all ongoing operations related to Raven to be halted. There was no longer any point in continuing them.
Instead, he changed the orders.
