Chapter 180
dybvpAfter finishing the farewell banquet, the First Prince Claude was transferred to a luxurious guest room.HIsgU
UT2vqrgThe bed was soft, the food exquisite, and the room temperature perfect.4hataeN
aeR9ZeHowever, Claude could not feel any joy even though he had been given everything he desired.km6D
CHN7tn6No matter how good the conditions were, remaining confined was no different from being in prison.bQpk
PI36ZIn fact, compared to a cell with bars, this was even worse now he was surrounded by countless soldiers.sSzKmPx
bae0SUD“I said you could keep a close watch on me, but at least let me go out! I didn’t even ask to go far, just to take a walk through the castle corridors!”Z0JcRc
XJHOH“That is not possible. The duke ordered that you not be allowed to leave.”iXykfB
U4mloEven as Claude shouted, exploding with frustration, the soldiers did not move an inch.rhW
SQj3YfFixing them with a murderous glare, Claude spoke in a voice filled with rage.S0rc
vmI2“Do you even know who you’re talking to?”mcQRZg
2NPeju“To whom?”pWG4eJW
HBDY4L7“I am the legitimate heir of this Empire, the First Prince Claude!”YSv
sMW86“So?”lkAaBc
qV5UcN“….”qSJTM4
kIoThe indifferent attitude of the soldiers left Claude speechless.zEqLtGt
iFOIgnoring him, the soldiers began chatting among themselves.40mBZ
4S4bO“Isn’t a prince just the emperor’s son?”oZxL06T
aNxeuS“Right.”f7bN
l7F1cOs“And the emperor is our lord’s superior.”MXaXBO
Jopqdb“Then should we obey him?”uKjZi1a
r6uN“But the emperor’s son isn’t the emperor.”GZwQN
cX2C“Then we can ignore him, right?”BvgD3
b4LW6mHearing that, Claude was left without words.7cr
qVY8cDThey were even worse than the guards at the castle gate.kF1lk
LLJa0What in the world did people in Asagrim think of the emperor?AEuMYi
etPZBAt that moment, a familiar voice was heard from behind the soldiers.saF
qxSdr“They are men who have lived their entire lives in the tundra. They know nothing of the emperor’s majesty.”blfT
ZEU“Denis!”c3fRid
qlIr5hFor an instant, Claude’s face lit up, but it immediately twisted with fury.X7ZqS
SlzDo1Relief at finally seeing someone he could speak to, and at the same time resentment for having done nothing when he was taken away.sn2G78
6fMwr“What the hell have you been doing all this time!?”7McQO
owi0“First Prince.”Vmk
evJtwDenis dropped to his knees with a heavy thud in front of Claude.T6C
REUxVQ7“Difficult days lie ahead. But please, endure them. For the sake of the imperial family, which must endure forever, we have no choice but to bow our heads for now.”WlLJ
BZqI9“What the hell are you talking about…?”NT1
PdXVPjR“Even if it takes several decades, as long as you remain alive, there will be hope. So take care of your body and preserve the bloodline.”ytsPlQ
qE7q“…!?”jdgr
yYddAaY“I will soon speak with the duke to find a consort for you. Living alone in such a confined place must be lonely. With a partner, everything will be much better.”ExR
jWqY4ELClaude’s face turned pale.yME
xHOVOoImperial family, bloodline, consort.a78D
1bVjElpWords that seemed disconnected, yet all revolved around one thing blood.SaMvD
VLXMClaude instinctively understood the decision Denis had made.RWY5g
K4Q“A-are you saying you’re placing your hopes on my children, not on me? That I’m supposed to live bowing to the duke my entire life…?”i4wJatw
WgAUsVySomething was terribly wrong.hGkV0C
A48Claude had always believed that Denis would never betray him.Ks8
Hzup9If the late emperor had sent him north as a spy, his loyalty was beyond doubt.s1D
lSGiAnd indeed, that loyalty had not wavered even for a moment.606ZsgI
4RkdThe problem was that this loyalty had returned to an even more fundamental level not to the person of the First Prince, but to the continuity of the imperial family.NISWw70
7BV“This is bad…”tGc43o
xHtzUClaude went completely pale.SPQuV
CM04He had seen many of those loyalists throughout history fanatics who cared nothing for the prince’s personal feelings and only wanted him to be a cog in the Empire.kuDqvLV
r3FyHConvinced that everything they did was the correct form of loyalty, they were impossible to reason with.5ji
zg7x6t0If this continued, Denis would end up the same, blocking his ears and doing only what he believed was right.TdKvTL
rj8GSeeing that same unsettling gleam in Denis’s eyes, Claude spoke desperately.7tf
oGTpY“W-wait. It’s not over yet! We still have a chance!”JYZmxO
f0nv“Of course. It is said that matters of state are planned with a hundred-year view. Bowing for fifty years is nothing.”fa4DaR
S0Hj“That’s not it! I can do it myself! I have a plan!”fDezsc
cdAO“I am sorry, Your Highness. Forgive me for being so weak that I have no choice but to entrust the future to the generations to come.”aHMs
iUq“Are your ears blocked? Listen to me first!”E4JgN7B
0OMRClaude shouted, almost in tears, but Denis pretended not to hear.T1nU3
vzNHe stood up, bowed his head, and as he slowly withdrew, left behind one final sentence.E4TSeqE
2JqQrt5“Do not despair; preserve hope. But abandon excessive ambition and entrust the future. Everything has its time.”aAajh
mpzhn0J“Hey, son of a bitch!”NFrCb
MpE“Hey, where do you think you’re going?”EVQoX
IzXCWhen Claude tried to rush forward to grab Denis, a soldier blocked his path.c31qS
H6FbNExJust as he was about to unleash another curse—AFJZUV
akGUBoom!fQwE8e
gHKW4W“Ugh…!”N0a1Fu
UBCsA brutal impact, as if an iron mass had slammed into his abdomen, tore through Claude’s body.VtIFkts
ffJwqNausea and pain made him collapse to the floor, unable even to scream.rOhqYv
h8qmU0Then, among the soldiers, other voices were heard.GXRft
fxT“I would rather not use this kind of magic, but he tried to escape. There was no choice.”CXH
D8r28y“That’s right. It’s a spell used only to prevent escapes.”Bhw1n6
sC3Y“The duke will fully understand our master’s decision.”Y6yyGP
o7yCurled up on the floor, Claude raised his head with difficulty.9pl
qpWHe had to see who the madman was who dared to do this to him.N3YQK2
CmgPE8nWhen he identified his attacker, his eyes widened.0gOd
hzXP“Mages…!”o9B20
3jkp“Yes, mages. Do you remember us?”6Jl
N3Tg81AHow could he not remember them.A9x
SyV0rpFor three hundred years, the imperial family had exterminated unauthorized mages through witch hunts.pd5seA
5745rThat such mages had been “escorting” him at the banquet was impossible to forget.jbGXqz
nf8dwEEven more so after they had sealed his voice with magic.CLwR
wFIpEQAnd now, not one, but all three were standing before him again.OzMo
3Jr“The duke sent us. He said that if we saw signs of an escape attempt, we were to stop you immediately. Though, due to my lack of skill, I failed a bit in controlling the power. Your stomach hurts—are you all right?”qNtPk
0nJ“H-how dare you…!”yUW0LM
5XsavDI“If you can speak, it seems you’re fine. What a pity. We bear no grudge against the imperial family, but even so, we must resort to such rough methods.”gsUw4
CdYfMarius, Colin, and Helen put on sorrowful expressions, like actors in a play.hZjdV
h6dHowever, the corners of their lips were raised, unable to hide it.WVBoYvt
gAUCl“First Prince, please behave yourself. If you continue trying to escape, we may have to use even rougher methods.”i3O4W
JBd“…!”C62E
EnOkbkFaced with Marius’s deep smile, as if he were eagerly awaiting the next escape attempt, Claude’s body began to tremble.iXw
rPX***P4E57
KuJtiAfter assigning mages as guards, Claude could no longer even breathe in peace.rAazkn
KZ8pIt was enough for him to approach the door for the mages to unleash merciless restraint upon him.XckE
UppCrunch!Of6K
cF5“Ugh!”UNPYE08
UCNj“Well now, trying to escape again. Please stop forcing us to intervene.”yG8J2E
sth5“I wasn’t escaping! I was just going to ask the guards for something!”mI2ls
rxu5ChQ“Then shout. Stop making excuses that convince no one.”DsgfV
mqKLUnlike other nobles, who at least maintained some decorum, or the soldiers, who simply carried out their duty, the mages were completely implacable.jsx
cxsDZEspecially Marius, who had brushed against death time and again during the witch hunts, watched with an unhealthy obsession.0OpYij
UIxAt the slightest suspicious sign, magic was unleashed without mercy.YQm1H
d5K‘They’re the ones who know best that all my magical artifacts have already been taken away and that I have no way to escape…!’0mG
tkUe1yClaude was furious to the limit, but since they were openly picking a fight with him, he had no way to protest.BYoWEh
CqqSTo make matters worse, the soldiers watching the scene were not surprised in the slightest by his suffering; they did not even blink.nwKI5
LndThe Order of the Knights of the Blue Rose, one of the orders directly subordinated to the imperial family, had been “lent” by the former emperor to Lucian, but that did not mean they had changed their loyalty.CHtbB
C2eQQY8If the First Prince gave them an order face to face, they would have to obey.cfUbPF2
BLYhJHRegaining some confidence, Claude adopted a solemn expression and ordered the Order of the Blue Rose.m6ZgNGw
ZZ1“Knights, immediately cut down that insolent traitor and get me out of here.”N581
cTZF“No.”HAEQh
8m2s“What?”jGO7Bc8
lUC8PE“First Prince, please regain your composure. We are human as well. We are not wooden dolls who blindly obey their master.”nOM
abaxwcThe knights let out a deep sigh and shook their heads, as if dealing with a child who understood nothing of the world.iGiZ
6Rc“If you escaped from here, it’s obvious you would give us all kinds of absurd orders. Why should we help you escape?”qHH
s8Kn8v“Y-you swore loyalty! You swore loyalty to the imperial family!”hDLEB
atz“Precisely because of that, this is a blessing. Thanks to Your Highness being confined here, we only receive reasonable orders from the duke.”5JYZ
zlLChXT“…!”fFEgc
trFLW“Please remain calm. No one wants to receive orders directly from Your Highness. Not only us—the other lords think the same.”RH0
mWDWElClaude blinked, stunned by the knights’ frankness.QzNFxa
r43WqQSo all those loyalists had been a lie?FzIf
bLFnNJNHad they sworn loyalty only because they believed he would never be able to escape Tibron?YZu5s9
HeeWhile Claude still could not react, the knights delivered the final blow.LeGAS
JNY“A piece of advice—even if, by some chance, you manage to escape, do not go to other lords lightly. They might assassinate you.”F9CmT1v
TxBJOZl“W-what?”ZtrBKi8
vO4w“What do you think would happen if you went to people who do not want to obey your orders, but also do not want to lose the title of loyalist? In your place, I would quietly kill them and say that you never appeared.”fh46vP
mK5tAfter leaving those heavily loaded words behind, the Order of the Blue Rose departed.FbKM
NBRClaude remained frozen in place for a long time, unable to move.0Is
wf0H36UTwo days later, when Lucian came to check on his condition—JzA5Hp5
E73E3QI“Duke! No, King Lucian! Please, save me!”RFU
RobClaude dropped to his knees and shouted before Lucian could even open his mouth.Frkv
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Fernando
Qi RefinementHas reality finally hit him? Or did he have another idiotic idea?