Chapter 70: Secret Agreement

Far from the northern region where Lucius is, in the western region, there is a crowd of about twenty people walking through an underground passage.

Leading the way are a man and a woman in their fifties.

The man, with gray-streaked beard, seemed anxious.

“Why is the Empire attacking!? Moreover, for the War Emperor himself to invade, what does this mean!? Could there be a secret agreement!?”

With hair closer to white blond, and a tan complexion, he originally had a rugged appearance, but now seemed like a small, frightened man.

Walking beside him, a woman of the same age responded firmly.

The woman’s skin is sickly white, and her reddish-brown hair is mixed with gray.

“It’s reasonable to assume the secret agreement has been broken.”

“Why are you so composed, Weshte-sama?”

“No matter how frantic we get, what’s done is done. That’s why we must attend the meeting, Soushi-sama.”

The two are key figures in the kingdom’s central government.

This country is divided into four regions: north, south, east, and west, each governed by major noble families.

The Four Great Noble Families.

The woman is Adelaide Weshte Windsor, one of the four great aristocrats of the West.

The man is one of the four great aristocrats of the south, Telugu, Soushi Windsor.

The leader of the west, which has produced kings and is at the height of its prosperity, and the leader of the south, who submitted to the west in the last royal election.

They are practically the number two and three of the kingdom, both in name and reality.

The group arrived at a dimly lit cavern.

In the center of the cave is a small spring.

The candlelight held by the servant reflected on the surface of the water.

The servant stepped forward, dipped his hand into the spring, and let magic flow into it.

As magic infused, the spring gradually began to emit a faint light.

Magic spread throughout the spring, and once the ripples on the surface calmed down, an image formed.

The projected image showed two men.

The two men were seated in a spotless white room.

“It’s been a while. Emperor Benedict, Elder Registia.”

The War Emperor.

Emperor Benedict is a charismatic figure known as the War Emperor.

With golden hair and golden eyes, he shines like a hero stepped out of a painting.

Sitting beside the War Emperor is a seemingly out-of-place young boy.

He looks to be in his late teens, and like the War Emperor, has a face so flawless it’s inhuman.

His large, pointed ears signify he’s no ordinary human.

Benedict, the War Emperor, looked down through the spring, his expression soft and smiling.

“It’s been a while, Adelaide. Telugu too.”

Lord Telugu of the southern region sweats coldly.

“I-I haven’t seen you in a while! Since the mediation of the conflict four years ago…”

As Lord Telugu tried to continue speaking, the War Emperor raised his hand, cutting him off.

Seems like greetings were unnecessary.

Adelaide, who quickly realized, spoke up.

“Regarding the recent surprise attack in the east, could there have been some misunderstanding? We had no prior information.”

It’s the incident Lucius fought in. The battle where Yu died.

“No, there wasn’t.”

Emperor Benedict remained smiling.

Clearly, it was intentional.

Lord Telugu, unable to bear it, interrupted.

“Why!? We’ve been doing well! We’ve been reducing our border personnel and regularly sending people from the north and east to the Empire. In return, our country has been allowed to survive. Why now, after our long-standing relationship, why!?”

There are regular conflicts along the border between the kingdom and the empire.

Most of the time, people from the east and north are forced into war, but the west and south have been using their political influence to keep reducing personnel.

Because of the secret agreement with the Empire.

Even the northern Lord Strauss and the eastern Lord Lilintz, both of the Four Great Noble Families, didn’t know.

Elder Registia, who had been listening silently, spoke up.

With a voice colder than one would expect from his youthful appearance.

“A bridge is being built over the river that blocks our path. Your existence is no longer needed.”

Lord Telugu of the southern region wore a bewildered expression.

“I-I don’t understand.”

The young Elder Registia didn’t answer.

He had conveyed all that needed to be conveyed and remained silent.

Contrastingly, the War Emperor continued to smile.

“Father-in-law, that’s quite harsh.”

“…Benedict. You’re not in a position to lose to something as insignificant as a firefly. Our goal is already within reach. Surely, you haven’t forgotten why you were made emperor?”

“Father-in-law is as strict as ever.”

Adelaide, the western lord, smiled as if she had grasped a thread.

“That annoying firefly. Let’s give it to the Empire. A mere nobleman from the countryside can be dealt with however we please. Whether it’s crucifixion, tearing apart, or exposing to the public, do as you like.”

As the election for the king draws near, the firefly – Lucius – is a hindrance.

For Adelaide, it would be better if he disappeared.

Eliminating a political enemy would ensure the country’s and her own position’s safety, killing two birds with one stone.

The War Emperor’s eyes glinted coldly.

“Just a mere nobleman, huh?”

He seemed about to say something, but the words were cut off by the non-human being, Elder Registia.

“Not necessary. From what I’ve heard, that reincarnated individual has yet to reach his full potential. Even if he came to the Empire in that state, he wouldn’t be worth much more than a spectacle.”

Except for the War Emperor and the Elder Registia, no one truly understands the significance of the reincarnated individual.

For Adelaide, Lord Telugu, and the others, their understanding is limited to someone who used the miraculous stone, the mana stone.

“Father-in-law, as you say, he’s talented.”

“It’s a matter of perspective. That person named Lucius, despite being reincarnated, seems to cling to the privileged class of nobles.”

“Yes… but if we leave him be, he’ll prey on us.”

“Doesn’t matter. If you’re preyed upon, then you’re only of that caliber. Then you’ll be cast away.”

“But-“

“Enough talking.”

When the young man waved his arm, the spring suddenly rippled, and the image disappeared.

What remained was just the water surface reflecting the candlelight.

“W-what are we going to do!?”

Lord Telugu clung to Lord Adelaide.

“What do you want to do, Soushi-sama?”

“I-I don’t understand, so I’m asking!”

Leader of the south, Lord Telugu, also known as Soushi, is an average man.

And he understands this more than anyone else.

Therefore, he must not choose the wrong opponent.

That’s the only way to survive.

Lord Adelaide sighed after witnessing this.

“Dion.”

A young man standing behind Adelaide stepped forward.

“Mother, here.”

“It’s time to make a choice. Hurry up with those preparations.”

“Yes.”

Lord Soushi, sensing something, continued.

“Rushal! You too! The time has come!”

A young woman stepped forward from behind.

She has dark skin like her father Telugu.

“Father! It’s such a bother to do what you ask!”

“Rushal!”

“Yes, yes. I understand.”

In a drawn-out voice, the woman who lazily responded stood next to Dion.

The two quickly disappeared into the darkness ahead of the group.

After confirming their departure, Lord Adelaide muttered.

“My son Dion is the one fit to be king. I won’t let anyone interfere.”

◆ ◆ ◆

The next day.

Lucius, along with Crane from the Orleans family, rode on the back of the evil dragon, swaying through the sky.

Crane had a blissful expression as he stroked the dragon’s broad dorsal muscles.

Among the three heads of the evil dragon, the left one seemed uncomfortable, its eyelids twitching unpleasantly.

Despite several warnings, he wouldn’t listen.

According to him, being eaten by an evil dragon would be a blessing.

The result of petting the dragon ended up transcending the understanding of an ordinary person’s life by about three levels.

“We’re almost there. That’s the capital of the northern province, Barondia.”

“Ah… Let’s keep flying!”

“No, we can’t. Are you in a hurry?”

“But! Opportunities like this are rare!”

If there’s a chance of being eaten by a dragon, it’s rare. Rather, it would be troublesome if it happened frequently. It would further tarnish the evil dragon’s notoriety. That’s why I need to keep Crane alive.

“No, it’s not.”

Leaving the disappointed young man to himself, Lucius turned his gaze forward again.

A huge walled city spread out below, the castle town of the northern province’s Four Great Noble Families, Lord Strauss’s residence.

Upon closer inspection, something was floating above the castle.

— A woman riding on a wyvern.

Upon closer inspection, it was a person straddling the wyvern.

A woman riding on a wyvern with red scales.

It seemed the other party noticed too, as the wyvern slowly approached the evil dragon.

Clearly capturing the opponent’s figure, the woman desperately calmed the wyvern, which instinctively didn’t want to get close to the evil dragon.

A dragon and a wyvern, with vastly different sizes. As they approached each other in the sky, Lucius suspended the evil dragon.

“I am Colonel Lila Norris Keller of the 13th Division. I’ve come to welcome you!”

It seems she was waiting for Lucius.

Colonel Lila brought her wyvern closer and lined up next to the evil dragon.

The right head of the evil dragon glared at her irritably.

It seems each of the evil dragon’s heads has its own personality; the right one is irritable, the middle one is aggressive but uninterested in inferior beings, and the left one is gentle, even sending a loving gaze.

The wyvern, glared at by the right head of the evil dragon, raised its voice in fear and flapped its wings.

“Calm down, they’re allies.”

Lila gently stroked the wyvern’s throat.

“Thank you for coming to welcome us.”

“No, it’s necessary. Without the knights accompanying you, the city below would be in chaos.”

Looking down, they could see the restless townspeople pointing fingers up at the sky, with some even crying.

“…Sorry about this.”

“No, don’t worry about it. Strauss-sama is waiting for you.”

Although it had been decided from the beginning that he would visit Lord Strauss’s castle, it still felt awkward to expose the evil dragon to the public. After being guided by Lila, they headed towards the castle.

They landed. The place was the courtyard of the castle.

After carefully lowering the evil dragon onto the neatly trimmed blue grass, Lucius jumped off its back.

“A magnificent dragon.”

Turning at the voice resonating in his belly, Lucius saw a middle-aged man with servants and guards.

He’s Lord Strauss, the marquis who rules the northern region.

His blue hair mixed with white gave it a bluish hue.

The wrinkles under his eyes hinted at his age, but his sharp gaze remained the same as when Lucius first met him at three years old.

Once whispered to have been tamed, he is now said to be embroiled in political strife again for the sake of his daughter, Olivia.

Strauss tried to approach further, but his attendants cautioned him.

“It’s dangerous to get too close.”

“Please take care of yourself.”

“If anything happens, we won’t be able to protect you.”

Strauss disregarded their voices.

“I don’t mind. If you don’t want to get close, wait there.”

Lucius knelt.

Strauss approached Lucius, placing a hand on his shoulder, urging him to stand.

Then he stared directly into Lucius’s face.

“Good to see you again, Your Excellency.”

“Lucius, welcome back. You’ve done well in the east. I’ve heard the stories.”

“No, I still have a long way to go.”

“A long way, huh? When I first met you when you were three years old, you were bewildered, not knowing right from left… and now you’re aiming for heights I can never reach. You’ve become an indispensable presence in this country.”

There was a hint of sorrow and expectation in Strauss’s eyes.

“Um…”

“Let’s go.”

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