Chapter 161
Chapter 161
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 161
Chapter Title: The Banquet Purge
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“The Duchess's words are absolutely correct!!”
Was it because everyone could feel the bizarre tension heating up in the banquet hall?
The Baron of Varenca, who had been eagerly licking the boots of the Khan Empire, raised his voice in agreement with the Duchess's plea.
“Everyone, think about it carefully. Isn't the Duchess's opinion truly wise? How can a nation progress if it's forever shackled by old grudges? Instead, we should join forces with the Khan Empire, where the revered Grand Duke Kaidu resides, so our kingdom can advance even further…!!”
The Baron of Varenca couldn't finish voicing his opinion.
Chiririririt!
The sound of something slithering like a snake echoed through the air, followed instantly by a blade of white steel filling the Baron's entire field of vision.
“Huh…?”
Pluuuump!
A crisp sound, like a watermelon bursting.
Red juices flowed as blood poured from the Baron of Varenca's head.
“……?”
A chilling silence descended upon the banquet hall.
The sudden outburst left both the traitors and the loyalists too stunned to process what had just happened.
“Your Highness.”
At that moment, Ian's quiet whisper shook Crown Prince Raychen's ears.
Raychen, who had been equally flustered, snapped back to his senses.
“Nothing has changed. Our purpose here today is to execute the traitors in this very hall and unite our forces to check the Khan Empire. Never forget that…”
“……!!”
As Raychen regained his composure from Ian's words laced with solemn power,
“…A-Arghhhhh!!”
“Murder! It's murder!!”
“The Crown Prince's guard killed Baron Varenca!!”
“My lords!! Protect me, quickly!”
The nobles, snapping out of their shock, filled the silence with screams, turning the banquet hall into a pandemonium in an instant.
In the midst of that chaotic inferno, Raychen, now collected, slammed down on the dais.
Taaaaang!
The resounding boom pierced through the nobles' clamor, drawing their panicked gazes to Raychen for a brief moment.
“Is that… all you have to say, Duchess Alvarez?”
“Your Highness, what in the world is this…?! Do you not know what your guard just did?!”
The Duchess shrieked sharply, pointing accusingly at Raychen, but he—fully regaining his cool from Ian's words—merely flashed a sly smile.
“Hahaha… Of course not. I know full well. It was something I ordered in advance, after all. How could I not?”
“W-What…?”
As the Duchess stared in bewilderment at Raychen's response, he quietly raised his hand.
That was the signal.
Kuuung! Thud! Thud!
The royal guards stationed outside the banquet hall locked the doors as if they had been waiting.
Shhhrrrrk! Chiiiik!
The sunlit windows were swiftly shrouded by thick blackout curtains, blocking out the sunlight all at once.
“W-What's happening now?”
Sensing the ominous turn, the nobles instinctively huddled into their faction groups.
They had no idea what the prince was plotting, but it was clear it wasn't favorable to them.
Or more precisely,
Only the nobles in lavish attire—those deeply tied to the Khan Empire—began to stir in panic.
In stark contrast, the nobles who had been glaring hostilely at them all evening…
Shiiiing!
…silently drew their weapons from their robes.
The reason they regained their composure so quickly was simple.
“…Everyone, no need to panic.”
The elderly noble who had calmly reined in the young nobles' fury despite the deep insult from Viscount Ramoel moments ago.
“His Highness has finally made his resolve and drawn his sword. That's all.”
It was because the old tiger of the borderlands, Marquis Mortfair—who had steadfastly held the northeastern frontier against the Khan Empire's Turmur Surge for years—steadied their hearts.
“Now, everyone, draw your swords. And let's exterminate these parasitic vermin gnawing at our land, right here and now, without leaving a single one.”
There was a reason the Marquis wasn't angry.
As a longtime loyalist of the kingdom, like Raychen and Viscount Sozen, he too knew of today's grand undertaking.
No matter what Viscount Ramoel blabbered, there was no reason to rage at the yammering of traitors about to die.
As the Marquis's urging ended, two young nobles who had been glaring murderously at Ramoel from the start shot forward like lightning.
“We've waited for this day, Ramoel!!”
In the banquet hall where chaos hadn't yet subsided, the two closed the distance to Viscount Ramoel in a flash.
“Wh-What?”
Viscount Ramoel, dazed and clueless amid the sudden developments, stared blankly at them.
And then.
Puuuuk!
“……!!”
A tearing rupture sounded as the young nobles' blades pierced through Viscount Ramoel's torso.
Drip… drip… drip…!
“Kuh… Kehek!!”
Unlike Baron Varenca, whose head had exploded on the spot, Viscount Ramoel writhed in agony, spewing a fountain of blood from his mouth.
But only for a moment—his legs gave out, and he slowly collapsed.
Kuuuung!
That wretched, brutal sight felt all the more real.
“Eek! S-Sir Marco!! Protect me, now!!”
“Sir Kane! Where are you!!”
The traitors called for their escorts while drawing their own swords.
They had finally realized.
Raychen, Crown Prince of Pang Kingdom, who had only recently come of age.
Dared to 'purge' them, under the Khan Empire's protection…!!
“Your Highness!! Are you insane?! How dare you commit such insolence against us, under the Khan Empire's protection!”
“You think the Khan Empire will let this slide?!”
Ian, who had been watching the traitors hurl their abuse at Raychen, turned to him and asked,
“Do you think I acted too hastily?”
The original plan wasn't this urgent. They had intended to end with Viscount Sozen leaking a sliver of truth today, then assassinate the resting traitors one by one under cover of night.
But the Duchess Alvarez's rhetoric had been more persuasive than expected, risking a shift that would disadvantage Raychen and Sozen if delayed.
Thus, Ian had preemptively switched to Plan B: the 'grand purge'.
“No, Young Lord Ian.”
Raychen, now glaring at the resisting traitors with steely eyes, lightly shook his head.
“It's for the best. The banquet's mood was swaying toward the Duchess's persuasion… Thanks to you, we cut it off at the right moment. You saved us.”
Despite Ian acting on his own, Raychen didn't blame him but readily acknowledged his merit.
“Moreover, with Karawna here alongside them, there's no need to leave even a tiny clue pointing to House Alvarez. Who knows? So… right now, while Karawna is out of reach, seems like the perfect timing.”
Ian inwardly raised his revised assessment of Raychen as he watched the prince smile and analyze the situation coolly.
He had faltered briefly during the unexpected debate with the Duchess, but he adapted calmly to Ian's improvisation and pivoted to the backup plan.
'Still room for improvement, but… considering his age, he's remarkably bold. Good. He'll suffice as an ally against the Khan Empire later.'
“I'm grateful you see it that way. Still, the fact remains that I started this.”
Kwak!
“I'll take full responsibility.”
Gripping the Twin-Headed Blood Serpent, Ian stepped into the banquet hall turned Asura's field alongside the Latent Dragon Squad.
It was the perfect chance to eliminate as many traitors as possible—excluding Duchess Alvarez—while Karawna's forces remained oblivious and the traitors hadn't fully organized.
“Ah, Young Lord Ian.”
Raychen called out to Ian as he moved to join the fray.
“As we discussed, I've instructed the guard unit to keep the south gate loosely watched. Please ensure Duchess Alvarez doesn't die by any mistake. If she perishes here… Karawna will flee straight to the Khan Empire without looking back. To shackle their feet, we must let her escape somehow.”
Despite her earlier speech surely boiling his blood, he still clung firmly to the core objective…
Ian couldn't help but smile at Raychen's demeanor.
“As you wish.”
Indeed… this crown prince was quite useful.
“Die, you damned Khan Empire dogs!!”
Pluuuump!
A massive hole punched through the head of a young knight charging at Karawna.
“……”
Swish!
Tarik flicked his spear to shake off the knight's blood, his expression hardening.
“Crown Prince Raychen, was it? Not wise… just a raving madman.”
Moments ago.
-Aaaarghhh!!
“…Noisy. Wonder which idiot's making such a fuss now.”
Tarik, resting in his assigned room, dismissed the screams as insignificant.
Probably some fool noble spilling wine on their fancy dress, he thought.
And he wasn't alone.
No one in Karawna treated the noise as a threat.
It was only natural.
They were Karawna, the elite even among Khan Empire forces.
Who could imagine?
A 'purge' unfolding in the banquet hall right when Khan Empire elites arrived as escorts.
But Tarik's misconception didn't last long.
-Kyaaaahhh!!
-Help!!
Kwajik! Kuuuang!
The screams from the banquet hall didn't fade; instead, clashes of metal and shouts grew louder.
“…What's this? You all hear it too?”
“Yes, we're hearing it as well.”
Karawna members nodded grimly at Tarik's question.
It wasn't his imagination.
Something was happening beyond the banquet hall.
“This feels off.”
Unable to ignore the ominous noises from within, Tarik could no longer stand by.
Regardless, House Alvarez was under direct orders from the Grand Duke to be specially protected.
At least nothing should happen to them.
“You, and you. Go to the banquet hall now and check the situation. Don't intervene even if it seems serious—just confirm and report back.”
“Understood!”
The two members dashed out toward the banquet hall at Tarik's command.
And not long after.
Bang!
The door flew open, but only one returned— the other nowhere in sight.
“What took so long… Huh?”
“C-Captain… save….”
The blood-soaked returnee, arrows bristling from his back, conveyed the outside situation more vividly than words.
Puuuk!
One of the Pang Kingdom private soldiers encircling the building thrust a spear into the member's gut.
“Found them!! All of Karawna still here!!”
“Kill them all!! Taking out Karawna will make our achievements greater than anyone's!!”
Wild-eyed troops, frenzied with excitement, surged madly toward Karawna's quarters.
“Wh-What?”
“Are they insane?”
Karawna, baffled.
But elite they were, even in chaos.
The moment their comrade returned bloodied, they had already donned their scattered gear.
They had just finished dealing with the surprise attackers.
“Captain, combat noises from the banquet hall haven't stopped. What are your orders?”
The vice-captain approached Tarik.
Asking whether to flee the kingdom or rescue House Alvarez.
Truth be told, they could escape without much trouble if they left now.
But… Tarik couldn't choose that.
-Even after that disgrace at Lichtenauer, this is a chance the Grand Duke personally granted. If you fail again despite his gracious mercy… prepare yourself. Even if he forgives, I won't.
Arslan, closest aide to Kaidu Ballak and leader of Borjin Kermen—Khan Empire's strongest unit—had directly threatened him to ensure House Alvarez survived.
“Tch… no choice.”
Scratching his head in frustration, Tarik gripped his spear and glared toward the banquet hall whence the screams came.
“Everyone, gear up. We're charging in.”