Chapter 118
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Chapter 118
The next day, we visited the Guard Post and met with the Imperial Princess.
And I shared my deductions with her.
"So what you're saying is... the Father Emperor is planning a war with the demon tribes?"
I nodded heavily and added my thoughts.
"It's only speculation at this point."
I'd formed this hypothesis because the barrier surrounding the Forest where Curtis Rohan was stationed seemed abnormal.
According to Lahedis, the Emperor still harbored inferiority and was targeting the Demon King's heart.
He'd even orchestrated the Hunting Festival incident to provoke war.
But the Hunting Festival incident had failed, and now the Demon Realm was sealed off by a barrier, making it inaccessible.
In such circumstances, the Tartrium he'd purchased in bulk was a toxic herb that suppressed mana generation.
Combining these facts, a plausible hypothesis emerged.
'Perhaps the Emperor is creating a reagent to suppress barrier formation.'
The barrier had persisted for nearly twenty years because my mother's heart in the Demon Realm continuously supplied mana to it.
If such a reagent were applied repeatedly to the barrier, it might not destroy it entirely, but it could breach a section.
After finishing my explanation, I carefully observed the Imperial Princess's expression.
Lahedis had advised against telling her the truth.
[Even if the Imperial Princess walks a different path than her father, they're still family. Exposing his misdeeds wouldn't be pleasant for her.]
But I disagreed.
[Of course it won't be easy... but if I were the Imperial Princess, even though it would hurt, I'd want to stop my father's actions myself.]
[....]
[At the very least, I wanted to inform her and give her the choice.]
I'd decided to share my suspicions with her based on what I would want, but truthfully, I couldn't be certain this was truly for her sake.
'After all, I'm just choosing what seems best from my perspective. But the Imperial Princess isn't me....'
As expected, the usual composure had vanished from the Imperial Princess's face.
She maintained her calm, but her tightly pressed lips trembled faintly.
"...I'm glad, actually. To learn this before it's too late."
The Imperial Princess forced a smile, but it looked closer to tears than laughter.
Seeing her pain, I quickly mentioned another possibility.
"But there's one inconsistency in this theory."
"An inconsistency?"
"My father desperately wants to prevent war with the demon tribes. If His Majesty the Emperor truly is dismantling the barrier for war, my father wouldn't simply stand by and allow it."
This had troubled me since yesterday.
Why would my father, who wanted to prevent war, be allowing this?
"...Perhaps there's something else between them that we don't know about."
"We intend to investigate further on our own. Your Highness, your position could become difficult, so you're welcome to step back."
Lahedis added his words.
His statement was considerate of her position, but it was also rooted in concern that the Imperial Princess, unable to turn away from the Father Emperor, might ultimately shield him.
However, the Imperial Princess let out a scoff.
"You're telling me to close my eyes and seal my lips while knowing everything? How presumptuous."
"That's not what I meant...!"
"To find proof, we have no choice but to search the Imperial Palace where the supplies arrived. I can search it without your help, but wouldn't it be easier with my assistance?"
To find evidence, we had to search the Imperial Palace, but even for the Information Guild Terrak, it was difficult to quickly grasp the internal situation of the Imperial Palace.
Of course, for other matters, we could collect information slowly and carefully, but given the state of the barrier, we didn't have much time left.
'If the Imperial Princess helps, things will certainly move faster....'
And the Imperial Princess knew better than anyone that she held the advantage in information gathering.
"Follow me. I have a rough idea of where that poison is being researched."
Whether fortunately or unfortunately, the gloomy expression from moments before had vanished from the Imperial Princess's face as she stood.
* * *
Since it was still winter, night fell quickly.
At that moment, we were rummaging around near the walls of the sparsely populated Imperial Palace.
To find a gap we could use to slip into this Separate Palace where we now lingered.
It seemed considerable time had passed since anyone maintained it, as long grass and dense undergrowth flourished around the walls.
"I'm pretty sure it was around here...."
Following behind the Imperial Princess as she searched for the gap, I suddenly voiced a curiosity that had occurred to me.
"By the way, Imperial Princess. Whose Separate Palace is this? It's not maintained, and it seems to have been abandoned for quite a while."
The Imperial Princess paused, glanced sideways at Lahedis, then answered.
"The Abandoned Crown Prince's Palace."
This was the Separate Palace where Lahedis's father had lived during his time as Crown Prince.
However, Lahedis appeared unfazed, as though he had anticipated this.
"After that, there was talk of demolishing it, but it never happened, and it's still abandoned to this day. Or rather, I thought it was being left abandoned."
"You're suspecting there's a research facility in this Separate Palace?"
"When I was young, I explored various places in the Imperial Palace and came here once. At that time, I saw suspicious people coming and going from here. I got caught immediately and was dragged away by my father for a scolding, but...."
"Seeing that they still haven't demolished it and continue to leave it abandoned, there really might be a research facility here."
The Imperial Princess, who had been nodding at my words, suddenly cried out.
"Ah, here it is!"
As I approached the Imperial Princess, there was indeed a gap there.
However, there was one problem....
"Lahedis, can you fit through here?"
Since this was a gap the Imperial Princess had used as a child, it was too small for Lahedis, a sturdy adult man, to enter.
"If we squeeze it a bit, everything fits through. Let's just go in."
The Imperial Princess spoke casually and slipped directly into the gap.
Lahedis glared at the gap the Imperial Princess had entered with a displeased expression, then gestured for me to go first.
As the smallest of the three, I easily passed through the gap.
But as my ominous prediction foretold, Lahedis got stuck from the shoulders.
As I watched anxiously, unsure whether to laugh or cry, the Imperial Princess, observing the scene beside me, clicked her tongue.
"Why don't you fold those unnecessarily broad shoulders?"
"...Do you think that's possible?"
"That's an imperial command. Fold them quickly."
"...."
Hmm, could it just be my imagination, or do I hear curses in Lahedis's gaze as he looks at the Imperial Princess?
'I was right to get involved in this after all.'
If I'd left it to those two, they would've just engaged in a battle of wills and failed miserably.
With that thought, I grabbed Lahedis's arm and pulled.
"Imperial Princess, what are you doing? Pull harder!"
"Ugh, I'd rather not touch him...."
Despite her grumbling, the Imperial Princess seized Lahedis's sleeve.
And so, through one thing and another, we managed to successfully extract(?) Lahedis from the wall....
'Gasp!'
As Lahedis broke free, I lost my balance and tumbled backward into the brush.
Rustle.
The commotion caused the vegetation to shake loudly.
"Who's there!"
The sound reached the ears of men who happened to be patrolling inside the Separate Palace!
Glancing over, I saw three men in robes approaching us.
It would be simple to handle them with magic, but the Imperial Palace had barriers set up against intrusions that prevented the use of magic.
And if I resorted to force, causing a commotion here would make it impossible to infiltrate the Separate Palace.
"W-what do we do? This is bad if it gets loud...."
"What do you mean, what do we do."
The Imperial Princess, who had worn a troubled expression for a moment, soon turned to Lahedis with a sinister smile.
And then....
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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