7. Jealousy is my strength (28)
The emperor who had screamed was already on the verge of passing out.
The out-of-focus pupils proved this. If the swordsmith hadn’t jumped out first, a catastrophe would have occurred, with the pinnacle of continental power collapsing on the floor.
Indeed, it was the quickness of an unmanned man who saw the tip of his sword. For a moment, even I missed the new model.
If there was only one flaw, it was the fact that it was the swordsman who caused the emperor to almost collapse.
An urgent tone escaped the girl’s mouth.
“Your Majesty, Your Majesty! Are you okay?!”
Even so, since he was a member of the imperial family, he seemed to be doing engineering while on official duties.
However, the emperor did not even seem able to afford to realize the change.
“Uncle, the pillars of our imperial family can’t be like that… I can’t believe you were hiding your desire to be such a petite girl… … !”
“… … Nephew, what nonsense are you talking about?”
The sound of grinding teeth echoed.
The epicenter was, of course, the swordsman. There was still a smile on his face, but the way he clenched his teeth was unusual.
is about to explode
Sensing this, I slowly took a step back. He didn’t want to get involved in a quarrel between the imperial family.
The young woman who served as an assistant to the emperor seemed to have a mind that was no different from mine. It was because he was trying to avoid his seat, but his eyes met mine and he was smiling awkwardly.
The premonition soon became a reality.
“Even in a room with Sir Ian alone… Ah, Sien… I’m sorry, poor Abira… … !”
“Well, no!”
His ears turned bright red and he shouted.
How sincere it was, the small furniture that was swept away in the aftermath was about to be smashed. It wasn’t until after a few fuss like this that the swordsmith and I were able to sit across from the emperor.
“… … In other words, are you saying that the Archwitch turned your uncle into a girl?”
“Yes, could it be that I voluntarily ended up like this? It was a problem related to the abnormal high temperature in the central region, so I had no choice but to listen… Tsk, what the hell do you think of this uncle?”
It took several minutes to convince the emperor.
Even so, the emperor still couldn’t erase his suspicious gaze. As if he hadn’t even fully regained his composure, the hand holding the teacup showed a slight trembling.
And the emperor did not make the mistake of hiding his doubts in order to catch his uncle’s notice.
It was worth it. Isn’t he the pinnacle of the continent in name and reality?
“Is that true?”
“That’s right! In the first place, don’t you think there are that many guys who want to be young and pretty girls?!”
Hmmm, the emperor swallowed a thick saliva.
Deep down, he seemed to have judged that the swordsman’s argument had some truth. Still, it didn’t completely erase the suspicious look.
“Because your uncle must have at least one secret taste.”
“… … Are you serious?”
“Even when I was wandering the continent, there were no rumors of infidelity, and since I was looking at the sword every night, how could I not doubt it? Even my uncle is a human made of flesh and blood… … .”
Now it was the swordsman’s turn to say nothing.
The swordsman coughed, saying “Hmmm,” and began to speak out. The slightly blushed face represented a feeling of embarrassment.
At least there seemed to be an excuse.
“It’s not possible to sow the seeds of the royal family carelessly.”
“Even though… Whoa, that’s it. Anyway, that’s good.”
The emperor sighed deeply and turned his horse’s head.
It was a face that knew very well that there was no use talking about it anyway. He chose me as a conversation partner instead of my uncle who became a girl.
“Ian Percus, you must have suffered a lot. Sorry to be in debt again.”
“Oh no! Everyone is suffering, so how can there be a debt relationship?”
It was a sound that I spat out randomly because I was very nervous.
However, the emperor unexpectedly seemed to like my words. The old man’s hand, with a faint smile, stroked his beard.
“It is indeed a remark worthy of serving as an example for a knight. But what I am grateful for is different.”
“… … Yeah?”
For me, it was a confession worthy of tilting my head.
The central part of the Empire, including the academy, is suffering from unprecedentedly high temperatures. I had just heard the news that farmhouses preparing for harvest were suffering great damage.
In addition, aren’t ‘vampires’ and their blood relatives a group of demons whose very existence is the enemy of mankind?
Of course, it was not an issue to be neglected. In other words, what I meant was sincerity, not humility.
The emperor would not have known this.
Seeing my bewildered expression, the Emperor smiled wryly.
“Didn’t I tell you before? Please make my daughter, Shien, a disciple of the Archwitch.”
“Ahhh! That’s what you said. Well, since you said it was a story related to the imperial family’s secret wish… … .”
“Have you ever heard of dragon blood?”
I closed my eyes and lost myself in thought at the question that was thrown in succession.
It’s called ‘blood’.
There was no way I couldn’t hear it.
“Are you referring to the ‘dragon blood text’?”
“That also has a lot to do with dragon blood. Hey, have you ever received ‘dragon’s blood’ before?”
My head nodded without delay.
The imperial family’s secret elixir, ‘Dragon Blood’.
It was something that was not readily available. As effective as it was, there was only one way for me to obtain it.
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Just winning the ‘Hunting Festival’.
All of my colleagues who participated in the hunting festival at the time, including me, were awarded one bottle each. It was after I finished taking the drug in the gap between drinking and falling over.
The emperor told the secret story about this.
“One of the ingredients is ‘dragon blood’ with high purity. It’s a product that has been purified for a long time from the blood of the real royal family… And only with the blood of a dragon that has been reprocessed can the character of dragon blood be given.”
Somehow, I thought the medicine I hadn’t tried was gone.
Perhaps ‘he’ used it to give it the dragon blood character.
Even if I had written it anyway, I couldn’t have found a more rational use for it. On the contrary, it was something I should be thankful for, so I didn’t bother to recite curse words in my heart.
Instead, he carefully agreed with the emperor’s words.
“Who knows how… … ?”
“Of course, only the current emperor. The dragon blood character does not symbolize the imperial emperor’s agent for nothing… The moment the ‘dragon blood letter’ is granted, the life-and-death right is given to the giver.”
It was an imperial family secret that came out of nowhere.
I didn’t even realize the weight of that information for a moment and turned my dumbfounded gaze to the swordsman.
The swordsman, who sipped tea with dignity, continued to kill.
“… … That’s what it says. The dragon blood character is close to the concept of changing one’s constitution. Shall we repurify the blood? In the process, a lot of authority is transferred to the grantor. Because you can know not only the right to escape life and death, but also your current location.”
“No, then… … .”
“It’s a structure that the emperor has no choice but to trust. However, you were an exception.”
After hesitating for a while, I finally decided to remain silent.
I couldn’t figure out why they were handing this information to me.
It was the emperor who resolved the question.
“It must have been a fact that you will find out someday anyway… Didn’t you somehow have contact with the person who gave the dragon blood letter?”
As he put the teacup down, the emperor’s gaze was directed toward me.
I lost my mind for a moment, but it was an opponent I couldn’t let my guard down.
In the meantime, all calculations have been completed.
No matter how valuable information is, it has no value after the other person has obtained it. Rather, by sharing these secrets, they were able to apply subtle pressure.
Secrets that shouldn’t be leaked out also act as a kind of shackles.
However, the emperor didn’t seem to have any intention of tying me down.
“… … Anyway, if we are going to continue talking about ‘dragon blood’, that’s it. Everyone in the royal family has this ‘dragon blood’. But sometimes children are born who are born with this ‘dragon blood’.”
“Your Highness Shien.”
The name that came to my mind reflexively hit my vocal chords without filtering and spat out.
“Is Her Highness Shien like that?”
“yes. In other words, the blood itself is different from normal people like us… And too much talent can be a curse.”
The emperor sighed and finally leaned his upper body against the backrest.
At first glance, it was a tired look.
“Even throughout the long history of magic, there were very few people with that kind of talent. I hope my daughter doesn’t hate her power… After all, it is the blood I inherited.”
“That’s why you want the Archwitch to be your teacher.”
“Right. The imperial family’s secret wish, what is it… It’s useless. In fact, that is my true intention.”
Only then did I understand the emperor’s words of apology.
“This is a request as a poor father.”
With a sad smile, the Emperor made such an irresistible offer.
“Help my daughter love herself. I am a child who has been scarred since childhood… If you’re an Archwitch, you’ll know how to wield that power.”
If I help the Archwitch, of course I will have a say too.
As the archwitch has already declared, she will be able to breathe her breath into the process of ‘selection of disciples’. In the process, it must mean pushing Shien.
After hesitating for a moment, I made up my mind and said.
“I will definitely do that. However, there is no information on how many blood relatives the vampires have right now, so there is no assurance… … .”
“Ah, that.”
As if he had just remembered, the emperor took out several documents from his pocket.
It was a list. Next to it, even a specific building within the academy was written.
When I made a strange expression, the old man playfully winked one eye and said.
“I heard the report and caught everything. Interrogate as you please.”
It was a moment when my work was reduced in an instant.
**
Even as I walked straight ahead, I couldn’t erase the bewildered feeling.
“Can it be this easy?”
“Then what?”
The attitude of the swordsman in answering my essential question was quite plain.
The form of exhaling a yawn seemed quite relaxed.
“Are you saying that it should be difficult to collect information and secure factors? The emperor is in the academy, and the imperial intelligence service is hiding in the shadow of the wall?”
“However, the Dark Church can’t be caught so easily… … .”
“So you should do well.”
Then the swordsman grinned and raised the corners of his mouth.
It was a wild yet charming smile.
“The interrogation is not ours. The intelligence service is now investigating the whereabouts of all those missing over the past few days. Then, information will come out, but you will have to dig up the decisive information yourself.”
“Wouldn’t the intelligence department be better at interrogation?”
“It’s hard to tell the blood relatives of real vampires apart. I’ll try to do something with the common people, but I can’t lay my hands on so many nobles.”
Heck, the Findlestons, who hold key positions in the Imperial Secret Service, were also aristocratic.
It was difficult to suppress dozens or even hundreds of nobles without proper charges.
Even so, the swordsman didn’t look particularly worried.
“But, have you reported it before? Vampires are especially sensitive to you… Also, because of the vampire’s magic, a change has taken place in you as well. It’s worth putting your hopes on.”
“What if that doesn’t work?”
“Then, you should touch it. Can you tell me?”
I didn’t ask the stupid question of what.
The safety of hundreds of students was in my hands.
That’s when I was in the middle of my troubles.
“Ah, senior Ian!”
A girl’s voice caught my ankle.
When I slightly turned my gaze back, there was dark blue hair resembling the night sky flying around. And even the distinctive light gray eyes.
The 5th Princess Shien.
It’s been a long time since we met, but it was a good junior whenever we saw each other. Eventually, the moment I was about to shake my hand in delight.
A thought flashed through my mind like lightning.
Wait, ‘interrogation’?
While I hesitated for a moment, Shien smiled and bowed his upper body respectfully in front of me.
“How have you been? These days, Ian sunbaenim’s fame is making my ears sting.”
The swordsmith who was walking side by side with me was the one who was stunned to see that.
The sight of a girl with wide-eyed eyes jumping out of place was quite worth seeing.
First of all, because it looks good.
“No, Shien! How can the imperial family bend their backs recklessly… … !”
“… … So, senior Ian.”
However, the swordsman’s anger did not last long.
It was because the princess’s voice, which did not erase her smile, was particularly cold and sharp.
It must be the first time in my life that I have been treated like a niece and granddaughter.
The swordsman was shocked and froze. It was a sight that sounded like it should have been heard.
Whether or not to say it, Shien asked with her light gray eyes narrowed.
“Who is this girl?”
Those eyes were clearly stained with hostility.
The swordsman was crying.
Autumn was a harsh season for the girl.