73
Once back in Rainfall, I headed straight to Carten with Ilya, my mentor, and Rutger to meet that scoundrel Juwras.
Also, since the negotiation with Europa’s hostages was promised to take place in Carten, I had to jump into the negotiation immediately.
The envoy from Europa, who had been waiting, greeted me with a grim atmosphere.
“Hmm. You must be Wade.”
Europa had sent a delegation of military figures. They exuded a rough impression with a dull aura.
My aide stood by my side as if to protect me.
I glanced at Ilya, wondering if it might be bad for her emotional state, but she seemed oddly delighted, blood boiling after a long time.
“Oh, Wade, I didn’t expect Europa’s general to come in person.”
Picford, one of the Ten, known as Europa’s guardian, said.
Picford seemed to hear my words but remained silent, starting to speak his mind.
“Where is Prince Romelo? What’s he up to?”
“He’s being treated with courtesy. …For now.”
“For now?”
“If today’s negotiation fails, I might reconsider our treatment.”
“Nonsense. Do you dare to disrespect Europa’s royalty!”
“So, you mean ‘others’? Irrelevant to me. If you delay the negotiation by not showing sincerity, to me, you’ll just be prisoners making noise at mealtime.”
“You…!”
“Don’t threaten me like that. If you show sincerity in the negotiation, that’s all that matters.”
“Fine. State your conditions.”
It was simple.
The reason I went to Juwras to bring Europa’s hostages.
In fact, there was no need to bring Prince Romelo. Negotiations could have been possible with other noble hostages.
Prince Romelo was just a secure guarantee.
A guarantee in the form of bringing Bayolaf.
“There is someone impersonating me in your country. Bayolaf Dresden, was it?”
At this, Picford’s brows twitched.
“What about him?”
“He caused quite a stir even for me. So, I intend to prevent further impersonation. Bayolaf Dresden. Hand him over to me. In return, I will release Prince Romelo.”
“Hand him over? What exactly does that mean?”
“It means I will have the power over his life and death. Put simply, I will make him my slave.”
“What!? Nonsense! Bayolaf is the heir to the Duke of Dresden! Sending such a high-ranking noble as your slave? Did you expect us to agree to that?”
“In that case, it seems the negotiation is off.”
As I rose from my seat without hesitation, the figures from Europa drew their swords, threateningly.
Anton, Eonia, and even my mentor Ilya brandished their weapons, but Rutger held back the mentor and discreetly stepped aside.
“What’s this? Are you saying if negotiation fails, you’ll resort to force?”
“From the start, you never had any intention of negotiating properly, did you? Pushing such absurd conditions is just ridiculous!”
“It’s not absurd. You simply couldn’t comprehend it.”
From the perspective of the Euroupean military, Beiolaf was an individual who should never be sent to a foreign country.
However, from the viewpoint of the royal family and nobles, it wasn’t that extreme.
This was because Beiolaf had become a pawn after years of displacement.
“There seems to be no need to negotiate with you. If we negotiate with the royal family of Euroupe properly, we should be able to bring Beiolaf back. So let’s end this negotiation here.”
“…Wait a moment.”
Pickford gritted his teeth. He knew it would be better to conclude the negotiation himself to gain some credit.
“Can’t you give us a bit of a concession? At the very least, a guarantee for his safety…”
“It’s impossible. As mentioned, I will take all rights, including the right to life and death. So, it would be best for you to forget that such a person ever existed.”
“Argh! What exactly do you plan to do with him?”
“Didn’t I say? He was enthusiastic about impersonating me.”
“He didn’t claim that himself. It was foolish others who spread the word.”
“I wouldn’t know.”
Pickford narrowed his eyes.
He was already at a disadvantage. This negotiation was too favorable for me.
From Noble mtl dot com
“If this negotiation falls through, you know best what will happen.”
If this negotiation fails and Prince Pato or Romelo continues to live as a captive, rumors about the succession of the second or third prince may rise, causing internal turmoil in Euroupe.
So, the nobles supporting Prince Romelo would be willing to pay any price to make this negotiation successful.
Handing over the pawn Beiolaf to me was a trivial matter.
After taking a deep breath, Pickford nodded.
“…Understood. I will speak to the king in that direction.”
That was the end of it.
With this, Beiolaf would cast off the shackles of Euroupe and come under my wing.
Of course, to truly gain his loyalty, careful consideration through subtle manipulation would be necessary… but somehow, it would work out.
***
Having concluded the negotiation, I could meet Juras with a much lighter heart.
After assigning various tasks related to bringing Beiolaf to Lutger and Gaspar, I headed to the Karthen’s top management office with Eo, Yumir, Anton, and the master.
The guy who was working with his chin propped up looked surprised when he saw me.
“You’re here. That was quick. I thought negotiations with Euroupe regarding the prisoner would take at least half a day to continue.”
“It was a highly advantageous negotiation for me.”
“Is that so? What did you gain from them?”
“It’s a secret. Rather, tell me everything now.”
“Is that the attitude of someone who wants to hear the story?”
“Sigh…”
Juras was keen to know about the negotiation with Euroupe. Since if he set his mind to it, uncovering it would be easy, I decided to just tell him.
“I’ve decided to bring someone.”
“Someone? If it’s someone from Euroupe that you’re bringing back, is it Beiolaf Dresden?”
“…”
This was why I disliked him. His attitude made it seem like he knew everything.
Just having the attitude doesn’t matter, but what really annoys me is that I know everything.
“I heard that Violauf was eliminated for an unknown reason. It seems like there was some prior contact with him. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have just brought him in out of the blue. Hmph, well done.”
“Well done?”
“The current situation of you gathering talents is desirable for me as well.”
“What does that mean?”
“I will tell you everything now, including that. What would you like to hear first?”
There were three things Jurass wanted to hear.
The secret that Paraine King and Anton were hiding. The betrayal of Blerang and the reason for the king’s assassination. And the reason why it is beneficial for Jurass that I am gathering talents now.
“Let’s start with the secret Paraine King was hiding.”
“You’re getting straight to the point.”
“Why did Paraine King hide it from me in the first place? He willingly shared everything else.”
“Well, that’s obvious. If you knew that, you might. You could become hostile to our Crossing.”
“Crossing…?”
“Yes. Because we are the ones who killed your biological parents.”
The air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Jurass continued, without hesitation, as if unraveling happy memories of the past.
“That’s because it happened 17 years before you were born.”
17 years ago.
It was a time when Paraine King was not as lethargic as he is now and was determined to achieve justice.
“Do you know what the Epsilon Revival Faction was trying to do at that time?”
“…I don’t know.”
“They were looking for a force that would support them as they traveled around different regions.”
“A force…?”
“They aimed to give their legitimacy to one of the existing kingdoms to continue the name of Epsilon. Through that, they sought to regain power once again.”
It is said that there were several hostile nations involved in this.
During a time when many kingdoms were emerging one after another, legitimacy was a significant advantage.
“Your father did not turn a blind eye to this. He knew all the crazy things the hardliners of Epsilon had done. He thought it was obvious what would happen if they regained power and tried to unify the continent again. Well, now it seems like he wants the continent to be unified in that way… anyway.”
Thus, Paraine King decided to eliminate the Epsilon Revival Faction before they could establish a foothold.
“It was when their group was passing through the Paragan Forest. It was a sparsely populated area, perfect for an operation.”
“You ambushed them! You…!”
“To be precise, I was part of the special forces involved. If it was 17 years ago… I see. I must have just become an adult at the time.”
“…”
At that moment, Crossing’s special forces set up a tight encirclement and tightened the noose.
The result was as I knew it.
“So, it really was you. Crossing…!”
“Yes, we killed your biological parents.”
Unintentionally, I choked up. Even I, who had no thoughts about my biological parents, couldn’t help it, but Yumir couldn’t bear it.
“How dare you harm Lady Lysna─!!”
“Calm down, Yumir!”
Eonia urgently embraced Yumir.
“hahahahaha! Trying to kill me. How amusing. It’s truly comical.”
Jurass taunted Yumir.
Yumir was unable to contain himself. If Eonia hadn’t held him back, he might have lunged right then and there.
“Did you say Yumir? If you want to kill me, you’ve got the wrong target. After all, I am a benefactor of life to you.”
What was this guy trying to say now?
“I know this is a story even the boss doesn’t know. Should I spill the beans now? Or just let it out? hahahahaha!”
Jurass laughed like a child who had found a lost toy. He went on to reveal shocking stories one after another.
“At the time, when I was part of that special forces unit, I was the first to find your mother. And even the shaman who hid in the garbage pit with the child, you see.”
“…!”
“Your mother, Lysna Almain, knew that I had caught on. She started begging.”
Begging to spare the child. Offering her life in exchange, begging me to turn a blind eye.
“So you turned a blind eye? Was it an act of kindness?”
“Am I someone like that?”
“It doesn’t seem so.”
“Exactly. I simply thought you might be of use in the future. So, while things were happening, I made sure no one came near the garbage pit where you were hiding. Think about it. In a mission devoid of blood and tears, would we really miss someone hiding in a mere garbage pit?”
That was the case.
“If it weren’t for me, both you and the shaman over there would have lost your lives. So, the title of benefactor of life is not wrong.”
It was a give-and-take situation, but it was true that without him, they might not have survived.
“After wiping out most of the Epsilon Revival Faction and handling the aftermath, I personally confirmed where you were heading. I made sure you entered the Illein family and were accepted as a quantum.”
“No way… You found out my true identity.”
“Yes, it wasn’t hard to figure out you were Wade, considering I knew all your actions. I had people watching you in Rebel since you accepted Ilya Anfay as your mentor, up to the Triad War! After the Triad War, putting all the pieces together, you turned out to be Wade. That’s when I felt destiny!”
The truth about past events.
I was speechless, unable to utter a word.
Then, Anton, who had been grim-faced all along, spoke decisively.
“Master Als. The one who commanded that operation back then was my father, Galerian Quinter.”
Galerian, the Grand Marshal of Crossing and a ten-year-old at the time.
After completing the mission, he was tormented by great guilt. Even when Epsilon was thriving, he was in the military.
Even though Epsilon was in a state of ruin at that time, he had killed the nobles he had served out of loyalty.
“Out of guilt, my father erased the name of the Quinter family and took his own life. Before he did, he told me. If ever a legitimate successor of Epsilon appears, sacrifice your life to serve and restore the honor of the family.”
This was the oath that came down to the Quinter family, the reason Anton pledged loyalty to me.
“If you ask me to end my life right here and now, I will do so.”
His gaze was sincere. At this, the mentor hesitated, glancing between me and Anton.
“No… It’s fine. You’re not responsible for what happened.”
Lacking a real connection to my birth mother made it bearable. If the members of the Illein family had died in such a tragic way, even I might have lost my composure.
“I apologize. If you ever want my life, please let me know.”
“Don’t say such things. You are already one of us.”
“I’m truly sorry.”
But then.
“Anton, no. That’s not it.”
Jurass said mockingly, finding it amusing.
“Your father’s death was not simply for that reason.”
“What…?”
He speaks as if mocking everything in the world.
“Because I was the one who killed your father, that’s why.”