Chapter 119
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------
Chapter 119 "We can take care of them all at once!"
At those words, Lahedis and the Imperial Princess rushed forward simultaneously, striking down both men in a single blow.
"Tch, intrud—" The last remaining man tried to cry out, but Lahedis was faster. The man struck on the back of his neck by Lahedis's hand strike crumpled without even a scream. 'So they weren't just skilled at magic....' Lahedis had known this all along. While I stood there blinking at the events that unfolded in the blink of an eye, the Imperial Princess brushed off her hands and turned to me.
"What are you doing? Move these guys."
"Yes, right away!"
We dragged the three unconscious men into the underbrush. And shortly after. We stripped the robes and masks from the men and put them on before entering the Separate Palace. Fortunately for us, the workers here wore their robe hoods pulled up and white masks for security purposes. 'Which makes it even more suspicious, doesn't it?' Just what kind of secret operations were taking place here? But the moment we stepped inside the Separate Palace with grim determination to uncover that secret, we hit a snag.
"...Where is the laboratory supposed to be?"
Inside the Separate Palace was not a laboratory, but the sight of a long-abandoned, derelict palace. Lahedis, surveying the desolate ruins, spoke.
"The laboratory is likely underground. They've probably connected a portal so outsiders can't find the entrance."
"Ah, right. There was a portal?"
"Since portals react to mana, if it connects to a place they want to hide, it's more likely to be on a wall than on the floor where someone might stumble upon it."
"That makes sense. But how do you know so much about this? You sound like someone who's hidden plenty of portals before."
I felt a pang of guilt at that. 'Right, the Imperial Princess doesn't know that Lahedis is the leader of Terrak....' Anyway, he had a sharp eye for the strangest things. Lahedis simply let the Imperial Princess's question go in one ear and out the other, then began feeling along the walls to find the portal. The Imperial Princess and I were also running our hands along the walls following Lahedis when it happened.
"Hey, what are you doing over there?"
Another robed man appeared in the Separate Palace, which had been empty until then. It was the Imperial Princess who broke the awkward silence that fell upon us.
"...We heard a strange noise from the Backyard and came back after checking it out."
"A strange noise?"
"It was a cat."
"Ah, I see. With winter here, there's no food, so they're rummaging through every nook and cranny."
Nice one, Imperial Princess! 'If things go this way, I can just follow that man and naturally ride the portal?' I was getting excited at the thought of turning this crisis into an opportunity when the man suddenly asked the Imperial Princess something.
"By the way, what's your personal code?"
At that, the Imperial Princess and I both froze again. 'This is bad!' There was no way I could know something like a personal code! 'Do I need to take this man down too...?' Ready to attack at a moment's notice, I watched Lahedis and the Imperial Princess for any sign of what to do. But then....
"When the sun rises, the stars fall asleep."
The Imperial Princess uttered something resembling a code with perfect composure. 'Did she just make that up on the spot...?' Gulp. I waited anxiously for his reaction, worried he might see through our disguise after hearing the wrong code.
"Ah, so it was you."
But contrary to my fears, the man dropped his guard entirely and approached us as if he knew exactly who the Imperial Princess was. 'How did the Imperial Princess know the personal code?' When I looked at her with surprised eyes, the Imperial Princess simply winked.
"Let's go inside."
The man walked toward a broken mirror hanging in one corner of the Separate Palace and placed his hand on it. Blue mana swirled around the mirror, and a portal activated on its surface. We approached the portal, following the man. As the distance between us and the man widened slightly, the Imperial Princess whispered in my ear.
"I overheard the code when I was young, and it looks like he's still working here."
Relieved, I stepped through the portal, and just as Lahedis had said, an underground chamber-like space opened before us. 'We've made it through the portal safely, and once we part ways with this man, we can search for clues.' We were about to exchange farewells and leave. Until the man who had walked a few steps ahead stopped and turned back to us.
"Wait, you there."
"Yes...?"
"I happen to have something I need your help with. Come along for a moment."
At that moment, I saw other people approaching from the opposite direction. I couldn't see the Imperial Princess's face in front of me, but I could roughly guess what expression she was wearing. 'Damn it....' In the Backyard, it had been a secluded place where I could knock the men unconscious and hide them in the bushes. But in this narrow space, taking all of them out carried far too much risk. In the end, the Imperial Princess followed the man. Then she turned back to us and mouthed the words. 'Find it.' And so the Imperial Princess left following the man, leaving only Lahedis and me in the research facility's Corridor. 'We have to find the clues before the Imperial Princess's identity is exposed.' We exchanged a look and headed deeper into the research facility, passing through the Corridor. The long, dark corridor stretched endlessly, lined with countless rooms on either side. We avoided contact with anyone we encountered, methodically searching through rooms that showed no signs of occupancy. As Lahedis and I split to search the rooms on either side, I discovered a chamber stacked high with Tartrium. 'So they really were conducting research on Tartrium here.' Beyond that, I couldn't determine exactly what they were studying, but room after room appeared dedicated to synthesizing or researching reagents. After thoroughly combing through the laboratory, we finally discovered an Archive Room brimming with documents. Instinctively sensing the clues we sought lay here, we entered the Archive Room. As I sifted through the documents, I froze upon discovering something entirely unexpected. 【The Correlation Between Internal Mana Concentration and Demonification】 "Lahedis, this is...."
The Archive Room contained far more than we had anticipated. Tartrium research was merely the beginning—dark magic for controlling demons, bioengineering experiments for creating them, everything was here. Upon confirming this, Lahedis let out a bitter laugh.
"...Our Majesty has certainly committed every conceivable variety of wickedness."
Seeing those documents, my resolve hardened once more. 'I will set right everything that has been corrupted because of this person.' As I hurriedly gathered the documents, footsteps sounded outside the Archive Room door. Noticing this, Lahedis pushed me into a corner.
"Vivian, hide for now."
"Why? Wouldn't it be better to pose as a researcher looking for documents?"
"If the Imperial Princess's identity is exposed, they'll search for the pair accompanying her. Since everyone's dressed similarly, they'll suspect the pair first."
Now that I thought about it, quite some time had passed since the Imperial Princess followed that man. Though no major commotion had erupted within the laboratory yet, it was possible her identity had already been discovered. I accepted Lahedis's reasoning and concealed myself behind a bookshelf, clutching the documents I'd found against my chest. At that moment, the Archive Room door opened, and two more robed figures entered. They exchanged words near the entrance before dispersing to examine documents separately. One of them approached the bookshelf where Lahedis stood. Upon spotting Lahedis, he spoke first.
"You seem to be searching for the same materials I am. What are you looking for?"
Hidden behind the bookshelf, I swallowed hard, watching the two men intently. Lahedis, feigning interest in the documents he held, responded calmly.
"I was searching for Tartrium research materials."
"But the reagent research should have been completed today?"
"The barrier of the Demon Realm hasn't been completely destroyed yet. If we refine the reagent synthesis process further, we could neutralize the barrier entirely with a smaller quantity of Tartrium."
"No, there's no need to completely destroy the Demon Realm's barrier."
"Then...."
"Tonight, when His Majesty and Dane Lowsweed depart for the Demon Realm, and when they return—opening the barrier at those moments will suffice."
My heart plummeted at the mention of Curtis Rohan's name from the man's lips. 'So Father really did know about this...?' What could he possibly be thinking? As if mirroring my turbulent thoughts, Lahedis deliberately feigned knowledge of the plan, probing the man's resolve.
"Isn't that plan far too reckless? We don't even know what dangers lurk within the Demon Realm, yet Your Majesty intends to venture there personally...."
"There's no other choice. The Demon King's heart can only be extracted through direct absorption, or so I'm told."
"That's hardly reliable information, is it?"
"It came from Dane Lowsweed."
"...."
"From that very 'Dane Lowsweed' who vanquished the demon race and faced the Demon King himself."
No one understood how deeply Curtis Rohan loved my mother—I knew it better than anyone. And because of that knowledge, I could be certain. Bringing the Emperor to the Demon Realm was merely bait. 'Father intends to kill the Emperor in the Demon Realm and never return....' After all, death was the only punishment a knight could face for failing to protect his sovereign. The moment I grasped Father's true plan, my heart began to race with dread. 'I have to stop Father.' But in the next instant.
"However...."
The man pulled a book from the opposite side of the bookshelf where I was concealed. At the same moment, my eyes met those of a man wearing a chilling smile.
"What's your partner doing hiding over there? Intruder."
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------