Chapter 48

Chapter 48

The word “escape” bothered me a lot. It was as if something bad was going to happen. The emperor probably felt the same way as I did.

Doubt and displeasure simultaneously bloomed on his face. “Why should I? What am I supposed to escape from?”

“I knew you had a lot of enemies, but somehow, you had to make another one. Isn’t it famous that the Burg Empire’s internal affairs are a mess? Oh don’t look at me like that, you know it’s true.”

“So?”

“I heard one of them is attacking this place today.”

What the hell was that about?

The emperor and I met eye to eye. There were plenty of expected enemies, but would such a brazen attack ever happen? This was the heart of the Burg Empire. A space for noble children and a hall of learning for the most outstanding scholars.

There was an implicit agreement that no matter how volatile the state of a country was, even when it had come to the point of war breaking out, it was an unwritten rule that temples and academies should never be touched.

But assuming that the threat is true, that would mean that someone in the country was trying to attack the academy’s banquet hall. For what? Who in the world would benefit from doing such a thing?

“Do you want me to believe that?”

“I don’t care if you believe it or not, but I want her sent somewhere else.”

The emperor’s expression became strange. He sneered, and moved to kick the man,

The man who was lying on his stomach groaned and managed to raise his upper body. “You’re wasting your time. At this rate, I’m begging you to kill me.”

The emperor never took matters of murder into his own hands. But a similar degree of pain, if not death, he might give a taste. What the hell was that guy fighting for and why was he so bold?

At the moment when the dagger spun around in the emperor’s hand, I suddenly saw earrings flash in the man’s ear. A small, teardrop-shaped earring made of white jade veined with blue. I remembered from before when a guest came over that Liberty told me that, in general, jade was hard to get by and that even a small amount would be worth a lot of money.

The fact that the man had kept all the other characteristic items and clothing hidden but kept on his person such earrings might have meant that he didn’t know that they were expensive.

A man of considerable standing and money. And a magical power that couldn’t be dealt with one-on-one unless it was the emperor himself.

I tried to remember the few people I knew about that had powers to rival the emperor’s. I had heard rumors of Kuhn, the prince of the Teppoda Empire, a nation that bordered Goldina.

There should have been no way that a prince from another country would be wandering around like this. But considering the fact that the emperor’s direct magic unit missed this caster, it made him quite a powerful wizard.

The emperor seemed to be annoyed that the man seemed to be unintimidated and spoke informally to him, but from my point of view, I couldn’t think of many people who would be so gutsy. Additionally, the person’s appearance was also similar to those from Goldina.

It was probably because of this kernel of doubt that I raised my hand and stepped in. The emperor’s hand snapped in the air.

“Wait a minute!”

“What is it?”

“That guy didn’t seem to mean me any harm from the start. I think you’d better listen to the story.”

The emperor grinned. “There are many ways to listen to a story.”

“That’s true, but… in case you hurt him, it could be an international dispute…”

“Hm?”

“I think that person is Khun, Prince of Teppoda.”

If he were half as experienced as the emperor, the man would probably hide his expression, especially in this situation. However, he was clearly agitated at the moment.

“I didn’t mean to hide it, but…”

‘It’s really you. What the hell are you doing walking around other countries alone?’

Annoyed, the emperor grabbed Khun by the collar and raised him. “Why did the fishy little prince of the Empire of Teppoda crawl in here?”

“I would have told you. I have business with her.”

“What the hell…?”

Khun meekly straightened his posture as if he had no intention of escaping. There was a twinkle in his eyes.

I turned my attention to the emperor.

“You, I mean…”

“It’s Celestia.”

“How did you know who I am?”

“Is that important right now? Just tell me what you have to do. And what the hell are you trying to avoid?”

Khun looked out the window as if to gauge where the sun was and then turned his head back. After I found out who he was, I noticed that his nails and hair were trimmed so neatly that I wondered why I had never noticed.

“Well, I couldn’t just do nothing. Your empress dowager is out of her mind.”

“Empress Dowager…?”

“Wouldn’t it be better to explain the details later? They’re going to attack you right now.”

“What?”

They will attack you here and then blame it on insurgents. Aren’t there quite a few small countries that have merged recently?”

“That kind of thing….”

If they attacked the area and turn it into the work of insurgents, the relationship between the emperor and the people of the annexed states would deteriorate dramatically. Perhaps there would be a great deal of discord.

It was so ridiculous and astonishing that I couldn’t speak properly.

“Is that true?” the emperor asked the wayward prince.

“That’s right.”

“If that’s true, how crazy has the empress dowager gone?”

Khun looked in my direction.

“You’ve crawled into a different country, and you’ve got a lot to ask for. I’ll hear the details later. So, when is the raid?”

“The time the sun touches that mountain.”

“Oh, that’s soon.” I nodded slowly, and the emperor blinked as if he had accepted my opinion. It would be unreasonable to take such a warning for granted.

In this situation, there wasn’t any reason for Khun to lie.

“There’s nothing to be gained from saying that, so I’ll trust you. Instead, I don’t intend to evacuate.”

“What?”

“I don’t want to play along with the dowager’s tricks or anything… nor Teppoda’s. But to me, these academy students are the few people that are worth protecting. I can’t let them die.”

Khun closed his eyes. “I’m sorry, but you won’t be able to stop the attack.”

“Ha…”

“No, I mean that we can’t do anything about it all of a sudden. She has been preparing for this for a long time…”

“I’ll give you a heads up, boy. Explain it properly.”

“What?”

“You seem to have something to do with Celestia, and we don’t plan on running away. If you intend to save us, explain the scale, location, and method of the attack.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“I’m the one who will stop it.”

“It’s not that easy—”

A merciless kick cut off his words.

“You’re a talkative little boy. You’re what, the tenth from the throne?”

“Eighth.”

“In any case, that’s a lot of kids. I doubt there will be many people coming to your aid, so stop wasting time and just tell me.”

Khun looked displeased, but he sighed when he glanced at my face. “It won’t be easy to take that girl, it seems. I never thought I’d meet such a stubborn emperor.”

He had enough skill to escape from nearly anywhere, but I was certain he was regretting his choice to travel without an escort now. The emperor was a very powerful man.

But again, how the hell did he know of me?

Watching the emperor, ten wizards, and Khun head out the door, I put off getting answers. I’d have a chance to ask soon, anyway.

The sight of the emperor on top of the stairs flustered all who saw him. The conductor stopped the music, allowing for the people to kneel in respect.

He waved his hand in dismissal, looking around everyone in the hall until he selected an instructor who seemed to have the best leadership skills. “We have been warned that there will be an attack on this building today. Evacuate everyone here right now.”

“Yes…?”

“Don’t make me say it twice.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

‘The emperor’s words truly have a certain power. He didn’t even need to provide any evidence to make them move.’

Unfortunately for us, Khun’s words were indeed the truth. When the wizards returned, they reported that there was already a sorcerer targeting the building.

“It’s some kind of meteor magic, perhaps fireballs.”

“You don’t think the Academy’s shield will stop it?”

“It can easily block one strong shock, but it’s vulnerable to multiple, although I think we’ve improved our chances somewhat by strengthening it.”

“That’s inconvenient.”

If there was more time, it would have been faster to dispatch the team, but now it was impossible to redo the enchantments hastily. Though at the very least, the attack was detected early, the evacuation time was still short and many people would need to go. Also, even if the magic was intended for this building alone, the damage would likely extend to the surrounding areas.

And again, the time. Probably not even half of the two thousand people would be able to evacuate.

We ran up the rooftop in the opposite direction from everyone. Khun seemed to want to run away on his own, but the emperor wouldn’t let go of his neck.

“Get out of the building.”

I shook my head firmly.

“Honestly, I would like to evacuate you first, but you won’t listen to me, will you?” he said quickly. “Isn’t it your job to do as you’re told?”

“Your Majesty will protect me anyway, so I’ll stick around.”

“You’re really the most stubborn person I’ve ever had on my side.”

“It’s an honor.”

The emperor laughed quietly, making no mention of it again. He seemed to have realized that it would just be a waste of time trying to persuade me.