Chapter 192: The Tin Knight and The Crossroads of Swords and Magic (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 192: The Tin Knight and The Crossroads of Swords and Magic (2)
The rivalry between the Empire and the Magic State had a rather long and deep history.
About 200 years ago, during an era when dozens of nations still vied for power on the continent.
The Empire was expanding its territory through wars of conquest led by the first Emperor and his trusted confidant, the Lion Duke. Meanwhile, the Magic State had transformed into a political power when its magic towers, originally research institutions, absorbed the existing royal family.
The two nations expanded their influence as if in a race, and in the process, their gazes fell upon each other.
Naturally, that gaze was far from friendly.
As the saying goes, there cannot be two suns in the sky.
Had one side willingly stepped back to become the moon, things might have been different, but since both sought to be the sun, a clash was inevitable.
Countless battles were fought and schemes were woven, and just as much blood was spilled.
Sometimes the Empire won, and other times the Magic State was victorious.
But never did one side manage to completely annex the other.
Some said it was because the terrain of the Garden served as a natural border, but this was just one of many factors, not the whole story.
In the early days, when both nations had many enemies besides each other, it might have been a different story. But for two great powers that had achieved stability, physically breaking through the Garden to open a path was merely a difficult task, not an impossible one.
And yet, neither nation ever put such a plan into action.
They did not risk everything in a single, decisive battle to unite the continent.
The reason was…
“—Because the higher-ups are cowards. Once they had a lot to lose, they didn't want to gamble it all away. Especially that old geezer, the Iron Blood Emperor or whatever he's called. He got so scared he even bowed his head to the Magic State first. What a disgrace, seriously.”
Her words were so outrageous, so reckless, they would make any listener turn pale.
It was the kind of rant you'd expect from a drunkard in a tavern, but the culprit was not a red-faced old man, but a girl with a remarkably youthful air.
Her fine, delicate golden hair, deep violet eyes, and elegant yet noble features were so striking that she looked like a painting just sitting there. But Maris von Lennart, who sat opposite the girl, had no time to be captivated by her delicate beauty.
“Watch your mouth. What will you do if someone hears you?”
The Iron Blood Emperor.
He was one of the most competent emperors in the Empire's history, the late emperor credited with placing the Empire on its current solid foundation.
He had earned the absolute support of the people—a support that persisted even after his death—by eradicating corruption, reforming outdated and evil customs, and implementing a variety of groundbreaking policies. If it became known that someone had insulted him, it would undoubtedly cause a massive uproar.
Even the traditional nobles, who had grown weary of the Iron Blood Emperor’s tyrannical "Shut up and do as I say" style of rule, still paid him respect publicly, if not privately, due to his numerous proven achievements and the people's support. That said it all.
“Someone else? Who else is here besides you and me, sis? Oh, the servants over there?”
But Maris’s warning seemed to have no effect on the girl before her.
This was evident from how she grabbed a servant who had been clinging to the wall like a shadow, trying to be invisible, and asked, “You’re not going to go blabbing about this elsewhere, are you?”
Maris suppressed a throbbing headache and rescued the poor, flustered servant from the girl’s grasp.
“I didn't mean it literally. I meant you should be more careful about your conduct. What if you get too comfortable saying such things in the main house and then accidentally do the same thing outside?”
“Hahaha, don't worry. I’m not that clueless.”
It was the reckless behavior of a sheltered noble lady who knew nothing of the world… or so it would seem, but that description wasn't quite right.
As far as Maris was concerned, this creature before her was by no means so innocent.
“The late emperor was a traitor who used us and then threw us away, but the world is full of fools who still follow him. So even if I don't like it, I have to hold back to some extent.”
As if to prove her point, a murderous mana began to seep from the girl.
The fine wooden table began to crumble from the edges, and cracks appeared on the teacup.
She hadn't even swung a sword; merely by revealing a sliver of her fighting spirit, the objects around her were breaking one by one.
Maris gritted her teeth.
This damn ruffian…!
It was anger at the girl before her, and also at the Council of Elders who had engraved their own obsessions onto the girl.
What was more troublesome was that there were quite a few within the Lennart family who held similar views to the girl.
Of course, their claims were not entirely without basis.
The Iron Blood Emperor had argued that establishing peace with the Magic State was beneficial for the nation, an act that essentially negated the Lennarts, who had shed more blood than anyone in the fight against the Magic State.
Furthermore, the Iron Blood Emperor had enacted a decree forbidding daughters from certain powerful families from marrying into the imperial family. Although the list contained many names, it was glaringly obvious that this was a move aimed at the Lennart family.
But still, this country was the Empire.
A nation ruled by the Emperor and the imperial family.
With the throne currently empty, its control had weakened, allowing for various murmurs of dissent, but the national power that had been built up over the years had not simply vanished.
If the Lennarts, already kept in check as the Empire's most prestigious family, were to show open hostility toward the imperial family, the only outcome would be civil war.
The Iron Blood Emperor had known this, which was why he had walked a fine line by granting Maris's father the position of Chancellor and the title of Guardian Lord of the State. But now, that late emperor was dead at a relatively young age.
The Crown Prince, who was to become the new emperor, was still far too young. And the lion, which had seemed to be slowly tamed through the collaboration of the late emperor and the Duke, was shaking off its muzzle and gradually revealing its ferocity.
“Oh, right. I’m going to be heading north for a bit.”
With a clap!, as if the thought had just occurred to her, the girl clapped her hands. The ominous aura and mana radiating from her body suddenly vanished.
The smiling girl looked so nonchalant that if an uninformed person were to see this scene, they would never associate the ruined surroundings with her.
“By north, do you mean Nemea Castle?”
Maris asked, once again calming the mana she had raised to protect herself.
A chill emanated from Maris’s tone and gaze as she looked at the girl, but the girl seemed completely unbothered.
Then again, the way she acted around Adelaide was the exception; this was how Maris usually was with everyone else.
“No, even further north than that.”
“What?”
A hint of bewilderment entered Maris’s voice.
Nemea Castle was an imperial defense outpost built on a route that allowed direct travel between the Empire and the Magic State without passing through the Garden.
To go further north than the castle guarding the border could only mean one thing.
“You’re going to the Magic State? Why?”
“A sightseeing trip and a dojo tour. There’s a dojo there, right? I figured I might as well collect all five. And while I'm at it, I'll see for myself what that great ‘Tower of Annihilation’ is all about.”
Maris’s eyes narrowed.
The girl who had just been complaining about peace with the Magic State was now suddenly saying she was going there for tourism. It was only natural to be suspicious.
A moment later, Maris’s sharp mind came up with a possibility.
The girl was a ruffian who basically did whatever she wanted, but she tended to listen to the “grandfathers” of the Council of Elders.
And among those currently on the dojo tour was a member of a collateral line whose very existence was an inconvenience to the Council of Elders.
“You, don’t tell me—”
“—Well then, see you later, Maris.”
With a cheerful farewell, the girl stood up.
Seeing her subtly excited movements, Maris realized that no matter what she said, it would be useless.
To stop the girl, she would have to use force, but that was impossible.
The girl was the same age as Maris, but her skills were already on par with her father's generation.
In fact, across the entire family, only the Duke’s bodyguard knight and the general guarding Nemea Castle could be definitively called stronger than her.
After the girl left, Maris slumped into her chair and let out a deep sigh.
The only silver lining was that the Tin Knight would be around Adelaide, so no matter how much of a genius of violence the girl was, she wouldn't be able to act rashly.
And the representative instructor dispatched to the Magic State was a neutral figure who wouldn't readily condone the Council of Elders' actions.
Of course, that also meant he wouldn't help Maris, who was on the family head's side.
After a moment of thought, Maris decided to write a letter.
She didn't know if it would reach Adelaide in time, but it was better than doing nothing at all.
*
The City of Annihilation, Trudvangar.
Upon setting foot there, the Tin Knight’s party shared the following impression:
“It’s quite menacing.”
Domains came in many forms, but when comparing cities with walls encircling them to those without, the latter were overwhelmingly more common.
This was because the construction costs for the former were substantial, the walls required constant maintenance just like any other building, and they often became obstacles to the city's growth and expansion.
But Trudvangar boasted large, high walls as if such drawbacks were nothing.
In this respect, it was similar to a certain City of Pleasure where they had rescued Adelaide, but it was obvious that this place had far superior defensive capabilities.
That was because numerous spirits were stationed atop the walls and around the gate.
In particular, a massive, bird-shaped spirit was perched atop a watchtower that soared exceptionally high, and the fiery energy it radiated could be felt even on the ground far below.
“It's a complete battle fortress. I wonder which is superior, this or Nemea Castle in the Empire. Then again, that one's a mountain fortress, so a direct comparison is difficult.”
“It doesn't look like there are any cannons on the walls. But I guess if the mages, who must be plentiful in the magic tower, start firing attack magic from the walls, that's as good as a cannon.”
[The ‘Tin Knight’ assesses that this map looks like it would be quite fun to conquer!]
“No, I think a situation where we have to conquer this place would be a huge problem…”
Shaking her head, Adelaide gazed at the city with a complicated expression.
They said my father died fighting the Magic State. I wonder who his opponent was.
Considering the route from the eastern to the northern part of the continent, it was highly likely his opponents were from the Tower of Protection or the Tower of Control. However, since the Tower of Annihilation consisted of what you could call the core hardliners of the Magic State, the possibility of their involvement was not low either.
It wasn't that she was dreaming of revenge.
It would be a lie to say she felt no resentment or anger, but to harbor any specific hatred, Adelaide simply knew far too little about her father's death.
She didn't know what battle he had participated in, where he had fought, or what kind of end he had met.
Perhaps the people at the Lennart dojo in this city knew something, but she wasn't sure if it was okay to ask, or what she would even want to do after asking.
…In any case, the Witch is busy right now, and there's the matter of the Knight's modifications, so it's best not to cause any unnecessary trouble.
Just pass the test quickly and be done with it. Adelaide suppressed the murmurs in her heart.