Chapter – 92
“You, this is going too far.”
Duke Guntram stepped towards Carlisle.
“Have you even considered the price you’ll pay for letting such words leave your mouth so carelessly?”
“I’m not such a fool that I wouldn’t know that much.”
“You, really…!”
Under Duke Guntram’s pressure, Carlisle felt as if his heart had stopped.
His breath caught in his throat, his heart pounded madly, and his body trembled like a leaf.
‘If the Grand Duke lifts a single finger, I’m dead. No, he wouldn’t even need a finger. Someone like me could be killed by his aura alone.’
But Carlisle was not one to yield merely before the fear of death.
He had already died once; what was so great about dying twice?
“So, you’re just the same as everyone else, after all.”
“What did you say?”
“You’re trembling.”
A cold smile formed at the corner of Carlisle’s mouth.
“I can understand to some extent. You’ve been practically brainwashed with fear of the Royal Family since childhood. But, I’m a little disappointed that you don’t even have the courage to face the truth.”
“Fine, I am afraid.”
Duke Guntram spat out the words.
“I am endlessly afraid of that foresight of the Royal Family, of the power they possess.”
“How honest of you.”
“Do you think it’s because I fear for my measly life? Our family, the North, are subjects subservient to them. If we fall out of their favor, the lives of all Northerners, not just our family, will become more impoverished and miserable. Countless sacrifices will undoubtedly have to be made. I am only afraid of that.”
“It seems you don’t need to be afraid anymore. The restraints of the Royal Family were nothing but an illusion.”
“Illusion…….”
“Can’t you see it even after looking?”
Carlisle pointed far into the distance, dozens of kilometers away.
“The Royal Family has no foresight. If they had something like foresight, they wouldn’t have ended up in such a state.”
“Have you never considered that even that could be part of the Royal Family’s scheme?”
“Keuk.”
Carlisle laughed.
Duke Guntram’s reaction was the same as Maranello’s.
They feared even the Royal Family’s predicament, believing it to be part of some grand scheme they were orchestrating.
Seeing meaning in dreams… as they say.
However, Carlisle didn’t think that was something to be criticized.
They had been instilled with fear of the Royal Family since childhood and had firmly believed they possessed foresight.
“Whether it’s part of a plan or not, we’ll know if we wait and see.”
“What does that mean?”
“We’ll conclude it was the work of the savages and sweep it under the rug. On the contrary, the other families will probably provide us with troops. Because the North lacks the strength to retaliate against the savages on behalf of the Royal Family.”
“Calling that a plan…….”
“Care to make a bet?”
“A bet……?”
“If I’m right, how about agreeing to my demands?”
“And if you’re wrong?”
“My head will roll, of course. The Royal Family wouldn’t just let me be.”
“…….”
“You can hear the details from Maranello.”
Saying that, Carlisle looked towards the distant scene of the incident.
“By the way, it’s a pleasing sight.”
“What is?”
“Giving the Royal Family bastards a taste of their own medicine, doesn’t it feel good? It does to me. Of course, they probably didn’t die. Their carriage must be quite sturdy.”
“…….”
“Well then, I’ll be going.”
Carlisle descended the spire.
“Just what is going on? Why did you do this………….”
“Your Grace, the Grand Duke.”
Maranello knelt on one knee towards Duke Guntram.
“I have heard an astonishing story from the Second Young Master.”
“Astonishing story……?”
“The Second Young Master is a descendant of the Chaos King.”
“Sir Maranello…….”
Duke Guntram bent down with a pitying expression and took Maranello’s hand.
“How merciless time is. What has become of you, once called the God of Death of the North?”
“Pardon……?”
“It seems it’s time for you to rest. Retire now and spend the rest of your life in comfort. How could I possibly work you further when your mind is no longer sound? I have a conscience too.”
Duke Guntram thought Maranello had become so old that he had gone senile.
* * *
Maranello explained to Duke Guntram the events that had transpired, and the Grand Duke finally understood the whole story and cleared up the misunderstanding.
“My apologies. It was such an outrageous story that I misunderstood.”
Duke Guntram apologized sincerely to Maranello.
“What are you saying? It was perfectly understandable for you to think so. Hoho.”
Maranello did not blame Duke Guntram.
Even he thought it was a story that could be mistaken for dementia, so it wasn’t unreasonable for the Grand Duke to think that way.
“I simply cannot believe it. That rascal inherited the legacy of the Chaos King.”
“Even this old man couldn’t believe it until I saw it with my own two eyes. But it’s an undeniable fact. The Inheritance Sword the Second Young Master possesses was in fact not the Wanderer, but Grímnismál.”
“Why would the jet-black sword choose him…….”
“Who can know? It must mean the will of the Chaos King dwelling within Grímnismál chose the Second Young Master.”
“That makes it even harder to understand. How could that great will choose such a reckless brat?”
“How could this old man possibly know the intentions of the Chaos King?”
“Well, I’ll be…….”
“Moreover, the Second Young Master is a Dragon Lord. As I mentioned earlier, according to the dragon’s advice, it’s highly likely that foresight never existed in the first place.”
“Then how do you explain the foresight the Royal Family has shown for the past several hundred years?”
“For now, the young dragon and the Young Master believe it is the result of highly developed information-gathering capabilities, the ability to analyze it, and conducting operations based on the collected information.”
“I cannot believe it.”
“I feel the same, Your Grace.”
Maranello also wore a confused expression, as if sharing the same affliction.
“It’s an astonishing story, and also a dangerous one. If we make a single misstep, it could lead to the ruin of not only our family but the entire North, so how could I not be afraid?”
“My thoughts exactly.”
“However, the fact that Grímnismál chose the Second Young Master, and the young dragon acknowledged him as its master, I believe are grounds sufficient to trust him.”
“Hmm.”
“For now, let’s trust him and wait.”
“What else can we do but stay quiet? There’s no other way.”
The milk was already spilled.
Carlisle had already caused the incident, and there was no way to undo it.
As the Grand Duke, all he could do now was keep his head down and watch the Royal Family’s reaction.
“Let’s trust the Second Young Master once. In fact, hasn’t he changed since obtaining the Inheritance Sword? Perhaps inheriting the will of the Chaos King was the catalyst.”
“That is persuasive. Even though his current state isn’t exactly good, in the past, I seriously wondered if he was even human…….”
“Perhaps the complete independence of the North and liberation from subjugation rests in the hands of the Second Young Master.”
“In that rascal’s hands?”
Duke Guntram retorted as if it were utterly ridiculous.
The fate of the North resting in the hands of a good-for-nothing scoundrel?
Even a stray dog would laugh at that.
“Hasn’t Your Grace already been directly experiencing the Second Young Master’s extraordinary nature?”
“You speak of the Marell Mountains. And discovering Evangelin, that child, is another.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“It is indeed something unimaginable in the past.”
Duke Guntram also acknowledged the astonishing achievements Carlisle had produced so far.
“I will support the Young Master well from his side, and if necessary, I will request Your Grace’s help.”
“I entrust this to you.”
Duke Guntram took Maranello’s hand with a earnest expression.
“Now that things have come to this, it’s no exaggeration to say the fate of the North and our family rests in that rascal’s hands.”
“How could I refuse?”
Maranello smiled.
* * *
Meanwhile, the Royal Family’s envoy was in great chaos due to the unexpected accident.
The explosion was immense, its power sufficient to devastate an area with a radius of over 30 meters.
Nearly a hundred knights were torn to pieces, and the horses pulling the carriage were also shattered beyond recognition.
“W-what in the…!”
The Crown Prince, who had crawled out of the overturned carriage, was deeply shocked by the horrific scene before his eyes.
It was a terrifying hellscape he had never seen in his entire life.
People and horses were torn apart by the explosion, their fragments scattered in all directions.
The sight of blood, flesh, entrails, severed arms and legs strewn about was truly horrifying beyond words.
And for the Crown Prince, it was a tremendous shock.
While it might have been merely a slightly disturbing sight to someone like Kubelin, drenched in blood on the battlefield, or the soldiers of the North who fought savages daily beyond the border, for the Crown Prince who had lived a life of luxury, it was a scene he couldn’t have even imagined in his dreams.
Fortunately, the carriage was extremely sturdy and enchanted with magic; otherwise, even the Crown Prince would have surely been shattered along with the carriage.
“U… Uweeeeeeeeh!”
The Crown Prince vomited the contents of his stomach.
“Y-Your Highness, the Crown Prince!”
“Your Highness!”
The surviving knights rushed towards the Crown Prince.
“Secure the perimeter thoroughly!”
“Request reinforcements from Dekaron immediately! Hurry!”
Some knights shouted.
“Q-quiet!”
The Crown Prince raised his hand to stop the knights.
“Do not panic… Ugh.”
The Crown Prince gritted his teeth, struggling to hold back his vomit.
He knew all too well that, as the legitimate son of the Royal Family and the Crown Prince of the United Kingdom, he must not show a broken demeanor here.
It was not only a problem of damaging the dignity of the future king, but it was fatal that the long-held belief in the Royal Family could be shattered.
If he were to lose the trust of the Royal Guard and Dekaron, the most secret and dangerous secret the Royal Family was hiding could potentially be exposed.
‘I… I need to pull myself together.’
Trembling, the Crown Prince tried hard to pretend to be calm.
“This was somewhat anticipated. There is no need to act rashly. Secure the area swiftly.”
“……!”
“Now!”
As the Crown Prince shouted angrily, the knights scattered to manage the accident scene and right the overturned carriage.
“Do not leave a single trace behind. Understood?”
“Yes, Your Highness the Crown Prince.”
In the chaos, the knights shoveled their comrades’ corpses—if they could even be called that—into sacks, collecting their belongings.
Meanwhile, the Crown Prince went back inside the carriage and desperately racked his brains.
‘Who is it? Who would do such an insane thing? Could it be… they knew in advance that I wouldn’t be able to foresee this accident?’
As it was the first attack on the Royal Family in hundreds of years, the Crown Prince was utterly confused and unable to grasp the situation.
Not knowing who was behind it or the reason for the attack, he couldn’t calm his panic.
“Y-Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”
A knight knocked on the carriage door.
“I have something to report.”
“Speak.”
The Crown Prince replied without even opening the carriage door.
“It appears to be an attack by the savages.”
“The basis, the basis for that.”
“An unexploded mana stone trap was found.”
“A mana stone trap……?”
“Circumstantially, it seems the savages infiltrated the rear and installed mana stone traps.”
With a clatter, the Crown Prince flung the carriage door open.
“Look at this, Your Highness.”
The knight showed a large mana stone trap to the Crown Prince.
“This is…….”
It was a mana stone trap used by the savages, differing only in size.
Its crude craftsmanship clearly indicated it was made by the savages.
“……How dare these uncivilized, barbaric wretches.”
Angry mutterings escaped the Crown Prince’s lips.
