Chapter 30

“No matter what I say now, I can’t shake the firm will of the Fifth Prince.”

Raymond nodded slowly at Marquis Crayer’s comment. Once he makes a decision, he will surely carry it through.

“You know me very well.”

“Back when I was young, His Majesty was as righteous and brave as Your Highness the Fifth.”

Marquis Crayer’s eyes were lost in his memories as he recalled the past.

Back when he was young, the current Emperor Ronald Pilius defended the Empire from the Northern threats for three years and gained military support.

During those three years, the Emperor met him, the current Marquis Sand Crayer. Back then he was still the heir to the Crayer family.

“You two look so much alike.”

Marquis Crayer’s voice was smeared with regret and longing. In terms of justice, there was no one as valiant as Ronald who always unsheathed his sword before anyone else.

Now, he is an old and sick emperor guarding the collapsing Imperial throne.

“Well, now you know what I’m going to do.”

“You have opposed it a little while ago, but I still feel the same way now.”

He was known as the Scoundrel Prince, but now, for Marquis Crayer, he looked braver and more righteous than the First Prince, who is called the lord of knights.

When he first heard rumors that Raymond, the Fifth Prince, had declared he would take the initiative, he just smiled and shook his head. But in the recent weeks, he had seen his ‘initiative’ moves at the border. And they weren’t just impossible.

“Do you really have to go to the Black Mountains, Your Highness?”

Marquis Crayer asked. Raymond nodded and responded.

“Of course, I will return after defeating the General of the Kingdom of Fresyria, who dared to provoke the Empire.”

His voice was full of confidence. Of course, the General of the Fresyria Kingdom was not invincible.

There was definitely a way to defeat them, and Richard, the main character in the novel, once killed a General with his own squad by letting them fall into a clever trap.

Unlike the battles that were describe by one or two sentences in the novel, this process was described in great detail.

The only “power” Richard used in the novel was Desia and a hundred men, composed of top wizards.

Even if Raymond can mobilize more power, the odds are stacked against him.

The difference is that Raymond, unlike Richard, is an extra and has not yet received the “sword and magic blessing.”

‘I’ve got the soul sword, so it won’t be a big problem.’

Although receiving the Sword and Magic Blessings gave less worries, Sould Sword uses only a small amount of Aura, but it mostly uses the energy of his soul, so there is no fatal conflict between his Aura and his Mana. It wasn’t to the point where he wouldn’t be able to magic in an emergency.

“Then you should go.”

Marquis Crayer said. Although he clearly opposed it at first, he realized that he would not be able to stop him after recalling the courage that the current Emperor had shown before.

The voice of opposition disappeared sooner than he thought. A faint smile spread around Raymond’s mouth.

“But we can’t just send Your Highness, the Fifth Prince to the Black Mountains alone.”

“Marquis Crayer, I and a hundred Imperial soldiers will sacrifice our lives to escort his Highness.”

Casillas, the commander of the Imperial Army, reacted immediately. His voice was loud.

“Sir Casillas. Can I ask you one question?”

“If I can answer that, I would be happy to.”

“Honestly, do you believe that a hundred imperial soldiers can keep the Fifth Prince safe from the assault of the General and the Black Mountain range Monsters?”

Casillas froze at Marquis Crayer’s sharp question. There wasn’t enough power that could go against them.

“It wasn’t because the Emperor’s shield is strong, but because His Highness is great that you have been able to survive in the Black Mountains, right ?”

Casillas did not immediately respond. It was because Marquis Crayer’s words were true, although it hurt his pride.

If Raymond, the Fifth Prince, was a scoundrel as rumored, not only the Imperial Army but also the Shadow Squad would have been killed as soon as they entered the Black Mountains.

“The Imperial Commander, Lord Casillas.”

As Marquis Crayer spoke in with a soft voice, Casillas who was just looking at the ground, slowly raised his head.

“I don’t blame you. Your imperial army are the elites of the elites. But the Black Mountains is just too dangerous for less experienced people.”

He spoke as softly as he could. Casillas’ expression was much more relaxed than before.

When he saw it, Raymond smirked and shook his head. The Marquis of Crayer was not usually gentle, given that Casillas, who usually stand strong, was shaking first.

“I agree with you on that.”

“So I’d like to add more escorts, would that be okay?”

The eyes of Marquis Crayer, now looked towards Raymond.

Then who are is he going to send as the escort? I have some guesses but I am not sure, hmm…

“Would you excuse us for a moment?”

As Marquis Crayer raised his hand slightly, the Marquis’ retainers and knights left the meeting room without any hesitation.

This sight showed how deep their loyalty to the Marquis was.

“Please leave us alone for a moment, gentlemen.”

Raymond also ordered his entourage out of the conference room. The appearance of Marquis Crayer acting with discretion has increased the probability of his initial guess to come true.

‘Is it him…….?’

Now there are only two people left in the Chamber, Raymond and Marquis Crayer.

Even the knights guarding the conference hall left at the order of the marquis.

“Can you tell me now?”

“Of course.”

At Raymond’s question, Marquis Crayer nodded. Then he opened his mouth, raising his eyes towards the ceiling.

“You may show yourself, Lord Jace.”

Seeing the Marquis calling someone’s name, Raymond needed to hide his astonishment inside. He knew who Jace was because he had read the Novel.

There were many candidates who could be mobilized by Marquis Crayer. But he didn’t expect the name of the strongest among them to come out.

“Retired Imperial Guard…….”

“Ho, I guess the Fifth Prince has heard rumors about me.”

Seeing the owner of the red mask coming down from the ceiling of the conference hall and landing softly, Raymond unconsciously uttered his identity to himself, which was a mistake.

Because it intrigued Jace.

“Did you know about Lord Jace?”

He seen the Novel, so he knew it of course. It was just a small part, but there was definitely a description for Jace.

Retired Imperial Guard.

The current emperor, Ronald Pilius, gave Jace his escort as a courtesy to Marquis Crayer, who he had guarded the North together as a young man.

Attaching a retired Imperial Guard as an escort is the best courtesy an emperor could do.

Just by looking at the symbol of that deep friendship and the offer to lend his, could show how Marquis Crayer thought of Raymond.

By the way, the “Escort” of retired Imperial Guard was usually done in secret, so Raymond needed to come up with an excuse of how he learned about Jace’s existence now.

“I just happened to know.”

He couldn’t think of an excuse right now, so he roughly put it in a hurry.

“I don’t want to ask you any more questions.

When Raymond implicitly revealed that he didn’t want to reveal it, Marquis Crayer bowed his head quickly and stepped back.

Jace was still curious, but at the time when the Marquis had stepped down, he did not dare ask the Imperial family questions.

This prevented a series of near-pouring questions. Raymond opened his mouth with a faint smile.

“So you’re lending Lord Jace as my temporary escort?”

“Of course, Your Majesty the Fifth. I don’t think Lord Jace would object either.”

“It’s an honor for me to be able to be the shield of the imperial family again. I’ll do my best, Your Majesty the Fifth.”

Jace took a step forward and bowed his head politely.

He is said to have retired and came under Marquis Crayer’s command, but he is still an Imperial Guard, the shield of the honorable imperial family.

He had no way to refuse the glorious work of serving the imperial family.

Although he has been assigned to escort by Marquis Crayer side since his retirement, he did not accompany the Marquis even when he was kidnapped because he stayed only in Crayer Castle as a Captain security officer.

The fact that he could get some fresh air after a long time excites him.

“It’s reassuring to hear that the Emperor’s shield will escort me.”

Even though he knew he was retired, Raymond still used the words “Imperial shield” to raise his loyalty and pride. Sure enough, his response came right away.

“The spear of the Fresyrian kingdom is sharp, but they dare to pierce the shield of the imperial family! As a loyal servant once an honorable member of the Imperial Guard, I solemnly pledge here to crush all threats against His Highness the Fifth in the Black Mountains!”

Jace said, clenching his fist tightly with his right hand and pounding hard near his heart. A clear smile spread around Raymond’s mouth as he saw him.

* * *

After the commander’s meeting, Raymond was successfully being escorted temporarily by the retired Imperial Guard, Jace.

Raymond was an imperial family of the Pilias and Jace was from Imperial Guard, armed with deep loyalty to the imperial family.

Even if he had been ordered by Marquis Crayer, Jace would not have been so co-operative if he been asked to escort anyone other than the Fifth Prince, Raymond.

“The Fifth Prince. Are you out?”

Raymond and Jace came out of the conference room, the Master of the Red Tower came up with Gesteine and bowed politely.

However, the Blue tower master, Desia, and Casillas was nowhere to be seen. Raymond asked the Master of the Red Tower for their whereabouts.

“Sir Casillas headed to the training grounyd, saying he was short of training, but I don’t know where the Blue Tower and the Desia went.”

“I need to discuss something, so call the tower Master and Desia.”

“Don’t I have to look for Lord Casillas?”

At Raymond’s words, Gesteine asked carefully. He seems to have become quite close to Casillas enough to ask for him.

“He is in training, so we can’t disturb him. But he might be disappointed, so it would be better to send someone to inform him.”

“I will send a member of the SS to deliver the message.”

Leaving behind Gesteine’s answer, Rayman hastened his steps toward the parlor next to the accommodation.

The Blue tower master and Desia arrived at the Meeting room first, perhaps they went there immediately after being called by the Red tower master.

The two were courteous by slightly bowing their heads after seeing Raymond coming through the door.

“Old man, you’re late.”

“What? I arrived before the Fifth Prince…….”

“You should have came with me from the conference room.”

“Yes, I’m sorry.”

After a short conversation, Lisefield surrounded first.

No matter how hard he tried, he was not confident of beating the Fifth Prince to a debate. He did so because he realized from his experience that it was better to surrender quickly.

“Everyone, sit down.”

Raymond pulled the chair first and sat down.

“I’ll be guarding outside the door.”

Jace claimed to be the gatekeeper. He didn’t think he had a place in this composition yet, so he was going to leave first.

“Stay here. I don’t think the Imperial shield would betray.”

‘The Prince has faith in me!’

Jace knew what Raymond was trying to say and what he really meant. That’s why he was moved.

“Fifth Prince…….”

“I don’t don’t doubt your loyalty, but I think the shield of the Emperor is an exception.”

It wasn’t a topic deep enough to keep it as a secret from the Imperial Guard.

But he don’t have to explain it to Jace.

“The shield has no foolish mouth to spread rumors about.”

Raymond nodded with a satisfied look at Jace’s response. And he soon opened his mouth, looking alternately between the Blue Tower and the Red Tower.

“Don’t you think General’s assault team came down earlier than expected?”

It was too fast.

“Something’s wrong, isn’t it?”

The two towers swallowed dry saliva and Desia twisted the corners of her mouth to open her red lips.

“I smell a traitor.”

TL: I do not translate very fast and I am busy with school most of the time so I decided that I will be accepting sponsored chapters rather than updating daily with advance chapters.

Currently I am alone in translating, editing and proofreading so I can’t release much chapters in a week.

If I could, I have time every night to translate a chapter (because it takes me about 2 hours translating a chapter) but I want to spend that time leisurely after school.

I will try to release every Wednesday and Sunday. This are the only days of the week that I have the whole day as day off.

***

Deneb Pilius, the second prince, is one of two sons of the first Empress, Eli Pilius. She was the eldest daughter of the ducal family, Valencia.

He is supported by the Duke of Valencia, who is known to be the richest man in the whole Pilias Empire, thanks to a large number of port cities in his domain.

Deneb, the Second Prince, spends gold like water and took control of the Underworld of the Pilias Empire, so countless assassins followed behind him.

Of course, gold alone would not have dominated the Underworld of the Pilias Empire.

There was a true Master of the Underworld behind him, but very few people know about this fact.

“Lord, we have a visitor from ‘Deep Night’”

Late at night, a black-uniformed Shadow Squad member came in front of the bedroom of the second prince Deneb and to politely inform him of a new guest’s visit.

Deneb, who was sitting by the window reading, looked up. It’s already past midnight and he was quite tired, but he can’t let the guest from the “deep night” waiting

“Guide him first to the lounge room, I’ll be there in a minute.”

“Yes, Lord.”

He is a valuable guest, he can’t greet him in his pajamas.

At Deneb’s words, the Shadow Squad bowed his head and stepped back. Soon after, it was reported that a guest had arrived at the lounge room.

After changing clothes, Deneb immediately went to the lounge room.

“You guys stay out.”

Upon arriving at the lounge, the second prince sent three guards guarding outside.

He knew it may be unsafe facing this person without any protection, but the fewer people who knew about him, the better.

“You are finally here, Your Highness the Second Prince.”

Entering the spacious lounge, a woman dressed in black walked out of the corner dark, spoke with a calm voice.

She looked straight at Deneb, the second prince, with a cold attitude.

“You’ve been informed on what happened on the border, haven’t you?”

“The situation is not good.”

“Yes, it is. The Fifth Prince had rescued Marquis Crayer, who was on the verge of execution. Thanks to that, his status in front of the border army and marquis has risen to the sky.”

Milsa couldn’t deny it anymore. The Fifth Prince was really considered to be a border hero.

“The Marquis should have been killed, not captured alive.”

There was a sense of regret in Deneb’s voice. The words twisted the corners of Milsa’s mouth.

“Weren’t the one who will rule this empire, your Highness the second Prince? I think you’re taking their lives too lightly.”

Her words may have shown some concern but there was sarcasm in them. Hearing her words, the face of the second prince remained unshakable.

“I can do more to become an emperor.”

Milsa could feel a strong desire to be the emperor from the answer of the second prince. She had a faint smile around her mouth because she knew this will be his answer.

Without his greed to become the emperor, he would not be able to attract foreign powers to support him.

“Since ancient times, the nobles of the Northeast have been united under a single leadership with the Marquis Crayer, a prestigious knight family. They have always shielded the Empire from the sharp Spearheads of the Triple Alliance. Marquis Crayer is an aristocrat who has a big influence. He will soon declare his support for the Fifth Prince and the other northeastern nobles will follow suit.”

Milsa explained. Deneb couldn’t hide his angry look.

“This may have happened according to the calculation of the Fifth Prince when he saved Marquis Crayer at his own risk.”

“Raymond, I didn’t expect him to be this scheming…….”

The First Prince, the Third Prince, and even the Fourth Prince he has put someone on watch, but when it comes to the Fifth Prince, who was a scoundrel, he didn’t think it was worth it to send his men over.

But it turned out this was his biggest mistake. Now, Raymond had a sharper blade than the First Prince.

“Wouldn’t it be better to kill him?”

“I will leave it to the judgment of Your Highness, the Second Prince.”

Deneb said questionably, but the answer was already set.

Knowing that Milsa grinned and avoided giving a clear answer.

“I’ve made up my mind, I’ll have to remove him.”

As expected, the answer was already set from the beginning. Milsa nodded and opened her mouth.

“Do you want me to create a stage for you?”

“I’d like you to support the assassins. I can only fill it with my own people, but it could lead to suspicion.”

“Do you intend to use the Triple Alliance again?”

“It would align with your kingdom’s interest if I became emperor.

The Deep Night envoy had no answer. She just grinned. A heavy, quiet silence lasted for more than five minutes. Finally, Milsa opened her mouth first.

“I’ll call the higher-ups.”

The envoy left the lounge first. Deneb shook his head with a short sigh. He may have borrowed the power of foreign powers to become an emperor, but he was still reluctant to trust them completely.

‘When the time comes, I will cut off our connections.’

If he succeed to get the throne with the help of the power of foreign powers, there would soon be a limit to his own power. So Deneb was preparing to sever his relationship with the “deep night” as soon as his position in the race for the throne became somewhat solid.

He was moving discreetly and cautiously, but “deep nights” are by no means easy going. They actually knew everything.

“Sylvia.”

“Did you find it?”

Unlike other members of the Second Crown Prince’s Shadow Squad, who had gloomy auras, the color of her hair gives off light  But at the same time, a person would feel chills when looking at her.

She is an elf with platinum wavy hair that reaches her shoulder.

Her soulless green eyes looked at Deneb.

“You’ve got work to do.”

“Your Highness, I thought you’d free my sister and the leader after the banquet.”

“Didn’t things go wrong because you made a mistake? So that’s deal it’s invalid.”

Sylvia bit her lips to the point where blood leaked out. She managed to resist the swearing that was about to pop out of her mouth.

She felt powerless at the leash that was holding her own, she wanted to rebel but the second prince was currently holding in captive the most important people for her, so she had no choice but to follow.

“So, what do you want me to do?”

Sylvia asked carefully. What is he going to order this time?

There seemed to be a storm of trials ahead, so she had no choice but to close her eyes.

How long should she have to wait in order to free her sister and father? The second prince opened his tightly closed mouth.

“I heard your clan has a stronghold in the forests of the northeast.”

“Yes, it is.”

She suddenly felt uneasy.

“You must be familiar with the geography of the Marquis Crayer’s domain”

“Yes….”

She didn’t want to be in the same place as the second prince anymore.

If she had to comply with the order anyway, she wanted to get out of here as soon as possible.

“Go to the Black Mountains with my assassins.”

“What should I do there?”

As expected, the destination was the Black Mountains, one of the most dangerous places in the whole continent.

“This time, you’ll just show the way again.”

That was it. The second prince did not say much. All that’s left is to hear orders from assassins under his wing.

* * *

Despite being busy thinking about Elphis and the Apocalypse, Raymond stepped down from the Black Mountain together with Marquis Crayer with his men.

A knight from the Marquis Crayer led the 500 cavalries to the border in order to escort the Marquis.

They lowered their heads from their horses in unison, as they met the Fifth Prince and Marquis Crayer coming down from the borders of the mountains.

“The Fifth Prince! Welcome back to the land of Marquis Crayer!”

It was an enthusiastic welcome, unlike their first time. Seeing their lively greetings Raymond turned his head toward Marquis Crayer, who was next to him and grinned.

Nothing has been said, but the Marquis Crayer must be well aware of the meaning behind that grin.

“Your Highness, the hero of the Northeast, will not be treated as an outsider while you stay at Crayer.”

Marquis Crayer said. It was also a way to redeem himself from the past who had been imprudent.

Unlike when he first came to the Northeast, Raymond, was not only a hero who rescued Marquis Crayer but also the hero who played an important role in the Black Mountains against the Fresyrians.

If there was any negligence in dealing with him, he will specifically punish them.

They arrived in the central city of Crayer, escorted by the Border Army. The gates were wide open and people were waving flowers and imperial flags on both sides of the boulevard. The soldiers were controlling, but the atmosphere was so intense that they were facing difficulties.

Each of the buildings’ rooftop was also full of people in order to see the face of the Fifth Prince. All the doors and windows of the houses facing the main street were wide open, and people were waving handkerchiefs and flags as their heads were sticking out.

“Long live the Pilias!”

“Hurray for the Fifth Prince!”

‘As expected, my calculations were accurate.’

As he watched the cheering crowd, Raymond lifted the corners of his mouth. Marquis Crayer was really a popular lord in the northeast.

Although he did not join the ranks of the Great Duke, many aristocrats gathered under the banner of Marquis Crayer, and the commoner supported him.

‘At least the Northeast won’t antagonize me with this.’

Marquis Crayer is a Noble who establishes a close relationships.

He can tell by the setting of the novel.

Raymond drove his horse into the middle of the wide road, confirming once again that his choice was not wrong.

The children ran out and sprayed petals on Raymond’s path.

Indeed, there was no such thing as a grand return ceremony. The welcoming crowd led them to the center of the city.

Since the entry of commoners is limited in the inner parts, the welcomed army thought it would end here, but it was just an illusion.

“Welcome, Fifth Prince!”

Knights dressed in neat uniforms lined up along the road.

They gathered to thank Raymond, the Fifth Prince, for saving their Lord with his knights.

Unlike when he first entered the central city, they were full of favorable views on him now.

Raymond’s group, which passed through the inner city with welcoming greetings from the knights, finally reached Castle.

“A welcome dinner will be soon ready.”

Marquis Crayer said as soon as he crossed the castle gate of the Castle. Raymond nodded gladly because this was his anticipated development.

All of Raymond’s aides attended the dinner. Whether it was prepared with sincerity, the level of cooking served during the dinner was high.

At the recent feast of fine cuisine, which was not usually seen during their times in the Black Mountains, the Blue Tower Master moved his fork and knife with tears.

“We are in front of His Highness the Fifth Prince. Keep your dignity.”

The Master of the Red Tower reprimanded him, but it was useless. The Blue tower has already lost its head in front of the high-quality cuisine. Raymond just laughed at him and shook his head.

At the end of the dinner, Raymond went to the terrace with Marquis Crayer together a bottle of liquor.

In a light silence, each other’s glasses were filled with wine.

“Fifth Prince.”

When about half of the first glass was emptied, Marquis Crayer broke the silence first. Raymond, who was looking at the side below, raised his head.

“I want to thank you again.”

“I think you’ve already done it many times on the way here from the border.”

“I don’t think it’s a proper thank you if I said it while injured.”

Marquis Crayer rose from his chair and bowed politely.

“To be honest, my first impression of you was bad. But who would have thought you would be the first person to come and save me when my life is in danger.”

Marquis Crayer’s voice trembled. If he had been brutally murdered by the ghost army, the marquis right now would have been his eldest son, Cron.

Cron is a talented knight, but he was not yet a capable lord. He still needs to learn many things. If he had become a lord at such a young age, it would not have been easy to deal with the large domain of the Crayer.

“I save you because of his majesty and the Pilias Empire.”

“Of course I know, Your Highness the Fifth. But since you saved my life, I think I’ll still need to show my utmost sincerity.”

In the novel’s setting, Marquis Crayer’s homely attitude was to establish a relationship with the Imperial Family.

“Get to the point.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

Marquis Crayer saw the butler standing behind him and asked him to bring something.

I’m sure it is something he will give in return for saving his life.

As Marquis Crayer delivered it himself, it would never be a useless reward, so Raymond waited calmly, calming his pounding heart.

Soon, the butler step forward at the Marquis Crayer’s word and carefully gave a box to Raymond.

“Your Highness has saved our Marquis Crayer. Therefore, I will give you an artifact, which has been in our family for generations.”

When the cover was opened, a white ring with cold energy appeared.

‘Is this even possible?”

The reward was greater than expected. There is only one artifact in the novel setting that gives such cold energy among the artifacts that the Crayer family possesses.

That’s…

“To His Highness the Fifth, I offer you this ‘Ice Spirit Guardian’.”

It is the only First Class artifact in the whole Pilias Empire.