19 episodes
7 Preparation
“ How long did you plan on staying like this?”
Richard Dranir, the lord of the city Ruin and also the head of the Dranir family, opened his mouth heavily as he looked at his daughter Lane Dranir.
“… … .”
Despite his father’s words, Lane sits on a chair and looks out the window and doesn’t say anything.
Richard’s face darkened at that.
3 days.
It’s been 3 days already.
From the time Lane was found unconscious in the middle of the Black Forest where all the instruments had disappeared.
There were traces of intense fighting around her, and none of the subjugation squads that had started with her could be seen, but Richard did not ask about it.
No, I didn’t ask.
Since then, his daughter has been in that state.
“… … Take your meal.”
Richard sighed as he looked at the untouched plates of food piled up next to Lane and quietly walked out.
In the room where only silence flows again.
how much time has passed
“… … It’s my fault.”
A voice so small that it could not be heard came out of Lane’s mouth, who was staring blankly out the window.
“ It’s because I’m weak.”
dead.
all died
All those who had been together for decades, more like family than family, all lost their lives that day.
The reason was not that Lian had betrayed him or that the number of subjugation units was small.
weakness.
It was only because of Lane’s own weakness.
“You have to be strong.”
If I had been strong enough to enter the Black Forest alone, if I had been strong enough to pierce the heart of a witch.
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Maybe people didn’t die.
“ Anyway.”
Break up!
In Lane’s dazed eyes, a thunderbolt begins to slowly develop.
she knew
that the witch is not yet dead.
Lane vowed to one day tear the witch to death with her own hands.
And a man rises with him.
‘ Zeon Harness.’
Apparently, the last man she saw before she fainted was Zion Harness.
A man whose identity and power were unclear.
What the hell happened after that?
He must have been dead, but Lane had a feeling he might be alive.
‘ Then maybe we can meet again someday.’
After thinking like that, Lane slowly began to get up from her chair.
* * *
The Moonlight Feast, one of the secret branches of the intelligence guild ‘Eye of the Moon’ that exists in the capital of the Agnes Empire.
Eileen, the branch manager there, tapped the report in front of her with her finger.
“ This… … Really?”
“ Yes.”
To Eileen’s question, Allen, the man with the mustache who was standing behind him, answered with a nod.
The report she is reading now is information about an unknown royal family who had recently visited the branch.
In the report, it was written in detail about the movement of the royal family over the past few days and what kind of behavior he was carrying around.
“… … The Black Forest has disappeared.”
And what surprised Eileen among them was that the Black Forest had disappeared.
No, to be precise, the instruments that filled the Black Forest disappeared as if they had been washed away.
Originally, she and the Eye of the Moon didn’t know much about the Black Forest, but this time, they found out a lot through research.
Along with him, he was also roughly guessing the identity of the ‘evil’ that the hero of Dranir had sealed in the past.
“ So, does that mean that the witch inside is also dead?”
“I couldn’t confirm exactly because the informants couldn’t get into the forest, but it seems to be because the nearby instruments have disappeared.”
“ Um… … .”
Eileen knew who the thousand-year-old witch was.
One of the most powerful opponents of mankind, who dyed the world with blood about two hundred years ago.
It was a very big event that such an existence disappeared.
“ You intervened there… … .”
Combining the information collected so far and the additional quests Narie had received, it was easy to see that the goals of the imperial family described in the report were the Purification Church and the Black Forest.
“… … Maybe the royal family.”
No, it could have gone beyond mere intervention and was the one who destroyed the thousand-year-old witch.
No matter how weak the seal was, and even if she received the help of the Seven Girls, how much power should she have in order to annihilate a thousand-year-old witch or a strong person similar to that?
Normally she would sneer as impossible, but Eileen thought it might be possible this time.
A direct blood relative of the Agnes family that rules the world.
Because they were monsters that one by one could not know the end of.
However, another question arose in Eileen’s eyes.
“ But why did you do this?”
I couldn’t even guess the reason.
She thought that in order to know this, she had to know the identity of the imperial family.
“ Has the identity of interest been identified?”
“ After that, I investigated the imperial fortress, and it was confirmed that all but one of the immediate imperial family were within the fortress.”
“ Who is that one?”
At Allen’s words, Eileen’s eyes shone sharply.
A person with such an overwhelming presence and dark gray hair wouldn’t be a sidekick.
Obviously, there was a high possibility that he was the only one left.
However, her face changed strangely at Allen’s words that followed.
“ This is Prince Zion Agnes, who is called the imprisoned prince.”
* * *
“ Is your ear canal blocked?”
The lobby on the first floor of the Chimseonggung Palace outside the Agnes Imperial Fortress.
Fredo, the knight who escorted the owner of this place, Sion Agnes, looked at a middle-aged man with a large bullnose who had come to the palace in the morning.
Fernando Fringham.
As the captain of the 4th Icarus Squadron, one of the Imperial Wizards, he was one of the people who held the ‘Succession Ceremony’ this time.
It was rumored that he had already boarded the main line of the Three Princes.
“ After seeing Prince Zion in person, ye, gi, eh.”
Fernando holds a piece of paper in his hand and stabs Fredo on the shoulder.
“ It means you have to sign it.”
At the top of the document was written “Consent to Succession Ceremony”.
Fredo’s eyes fluttered at him.
Prince Zion hasn’t returned yet, and he’s the only one who knows about it.
‘ Prince Zion… … .’
It’s already been close to a week.
Even as Fredo, hiding the fact that Shion was not in the Imperial Castle was reaching its limit.
No, I was more worried about what had happened outside of that.
“ Did you know that today is the last day you can apply to participate in the succession ceremony? This means that the succession ceremony cannot be held unless Prince Zion signs here by today.”
Fernando spoke in an annoyed tone to Fredo, who was still silent.
In fact, it didn’t matter as long as other members of the immediate family held the succession ceremony, as long as they expressed their intention to participate without having to see their faces.
Only for Prince Zion, it was applied strictly according to the principle.
Thanks to that, Fernando was visiting Chimseonggung once a day for several days.
But behind his irritated eyes, there was a subtle expectation.
‘ This is enough for sure.’
It was already 3 days.
Has he started coming to this palace regularly?
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Meanwhile, Prince Zion’s face was not even visible.
He was not feeling well today, he hadn’t come out of the underground training center yet, and he gave various excuses, but Fernando was convinced.
‘ Now Prince Zion is not in Chimseonggung. No, it is not in the fortress.’
Combined with the words of the people around him that he had not seen him for a while and various other circumstantial evidence, it was all too obvious.
The imperial family who has not yet held a succession ceremony is prohibited from leaving the castle without permission.
If you use it, you might be able to prevent the succession ceremony itself from being held.
This was an opportunity to show off to the three princes who were displeased with Prince Zion holding a succession ceremony.
“ Where is Prince Zion now?”
“ I am not feeling well, so I am resting in my bedroom… … .”
“ I must see you today no matter what!”
puck!
With those words, Fernando, who had pushed Fredo past, quickly began to climb the stairs of the palace.
No guidance was needed.
Because he already knew the location of Prince Zion’s bedroom.
“ Captain Fernando, wait a minute… … for a moment!”
The old knight from behind followed behind him with a desperate expression on his face, but he could not stop Fernando.
ride it!
Fernando’s eyes grew more and more euphoric as he got closer to the bedroom.
On the contrary, the childish embarrassment in Fredo’s eyes grew.
‘ Prince, where have you been?’
The old knight calls out to Zion inside.
“ The Prince! It’s urgent, so I’ll go in without excuses!”
Fernando finally arrived at the front of the bedroom and opened the door with a smile.
and the next moment.
“ Uh… … ?”
Fernando’s young joy disappeared.
What he saw in his eyes was Prince Zion, who was sitting at a small table next to a large bed, flipping through the pages.
chin!
When Fernando appears, Shion closes the book she was reading and looks at him.
As soon as Prince Zion’s languid eyes looked at him, Fernando felt his body shudder involuntarily.
“ If I had known I was going to be disrespectful, I shouldn’t have done that, right?”
“ Sin, I’m sorry, Your Majesty!”
different.
Everything was different from the Zion Agnes he had heard so far.
The eyes that naturally look down on everything and the strong pressure that comes from it.
Is it true that the author is the imprisoned prince?
Rather than being an imprisoned prince, it’s like… … .
At that moment, Shion reached out to Fernando, who had his head bowed down.
“… … ?”
“ Agreement. Please sign it.”
“ Oh, yes!”
Only then did Fernando realize the will, and quickly approached Zion and handed him the consent form.
“ I mean. I don’t like anyone touching mine.”
A low voice came out of Shion’s mouth as she picked up a pen and signed the consent form to participate in the succession ceremony.
Talking about Fernando’s disrespectful treatment of Fredo a while ago.
“ Be careful.”
This was a warning.
A warning that there will be no next time.
A cold sweat ran down the nape of Fernando’s neck, who bowed his head at the ominous sound of that voice.
“ Prince, where have you been? This Fredo, I thought I was going to die of a liver tremor! Several times a day, I look for the charge… … .”
After leaving Chimseonggung as if fleeing with Fernando’s signed consent form, Shion put Fredo’s words out of one ear, sitting in front of him, and organizing the events in his head.
‘It was a short-lived car.’
It was just before Fernando attacked Chimseonggung that Zion returned to the Imperial Castle.
Had I been a little late, I would not have been able to participate in the succession ceremony.
‘ By now, Riusina must have arrived in the capital.’
After coming out of the Black Forest, Shion did not move with Liusina.
After all, the only people who had the authority to invite outsiders who were not officially elected into the imperial palace were the immediate imperial family who had the right to enter the people’s palace.
So, Sion had given Riusina one instruction.
By the time she completes her instructions and enters the Imperial Castle, Zion must also have passed the succession ceremony and obtained qualifications.
‘ Before that… … .’
Shion’s eyes turned to Fredo.
“ Is that finished?”
“ If that’s the case… … Oh, are you talking about the heart of a thousand-year-old ogre? of course. I did as instructed.”
There was one instruction given to Fredo by Shion before leaving the Imperial Castle.
Processing the heart of a thousand-year-old ogre.
In order to fully absorb the power contained in the heart of a thousand-year-old ogre, special measures were required, and it took time to do so, so I did not consume it until now.
‘ Absorb the power of the heart to reduce the penalty of this damn body as much as possible. and… … .’
Zion slowly clasped her hands and opened them.
‘ Up until the succession ceremony, Heukseongha is perfectly raised to 2 stars.’
In Zion’s eyes, the second star flickered and disappeared.