Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 180

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Side Story 3, Episode 2
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[…They’re at it again.]
Far above, in the Divine Realm that towered over distant Udeta, Raulus lay sprawled lazily across the grass, observing their adorable antics in full. After a moment’s deliberation, Raulus rolled over and rose to his feet. His silken silver hair, stretching past his shoulders, cascaded down with a soft whisper.
Though the King of the Underground had been sealed eternally and the taboos of Udeta and Remordi had effectively been nullified, Raulus still discouraged his divine siblings from carelessly bestowing blessings upon the surface or interfering in mortal affairs. The neutral ground had been carefully maintained for millennia—there was no need now for an excessive touch of divine hands.
Yet separate from his firm discipline of his siblings, Raulus frequently descended to the surface whenever boredom struck. Today was no exception. He casually waved his hand, opening the entrance to Udeta. Stars spiraled in a whirlwind, creating a passage to the surface—a path leading to the Barishard Temple in the capital of Belgot. It took Raulus less than a minute to set foot upon the golden altar of the temple, which was as much his home as any other place.
“…Ugh!”
Bishop Barishard, Diego Schmart, who had been devoutly offering prayers in the temple, started in alarm and leaped to his feet. The violet curtain shielding the altar was swept aside, and a more sacred wolf, having trampled upon the holy altar, bounded down to the prayer chamber floor.
“Raulus!”
[It’s been a while, Radu. How have you been?]
Though Raulus claimed to descend frequently, time flowed differently beyond Udeta and on the surface—it had been exactly two years since Diego last witnessed Raulus’s manifestation. The priests gasped in shock at his sudden appearance and began striking their heads against the floor.
[Yes, yes. I heard your prayers well. Keep up the good work.]
Raulus merely nodded and dragged Diego out of the prayer chamber.
[Come now, come now. Our little ones have run off again. Let’s follow them.]
“Eh…?”
When a god declared his intent directly, no priest could stop him. Diego abandoned any thought of resistance and instead called out desperately.
“Raulus, you cannot follow them in that form!”
[Is that so? Then should I go like this? This hair is so long it’s inconvenient.]
“A robe! At least wear a robe!”
[Tie up my hair too, will you?]
In the end, Diego was forced to commit the irreverence of seating the human-formed Raulus, carefully combing his silver hair that dragged to the floor, then rolling and pinning it up. Raulus examined his reflection in the mirror from every angle and declared with satisfaction.
[Is it done? Then let’s go!]
“Yes….”
Diego was dragged away once more by the god’s grasp. Thus, behind Deb, Jena, and Uni—the three siblings pursuing the Belgot Emperor and Empress—were added Raulus following the three siblings, and Diego following Raulus.
Yet the additional members did not end there. Shortly after Diego and Raulus left the temple, someone abruptly threw open the door to the prayer chamber where they had been. An irritated voice shattered the priests’ hard-won peace once more.
“Excuse me, Priest! Do you know how many minutes past the appointment time it is now….”
A beautiful woman with reddish-brown hair and eyes like obsidian swept her gaze across the frozen priests. The moment she realized her quarry was absent, irritation flashed across her face.
“Where did he go? Did he leave?”
“Yes…. Just now, Raulus….”
“I had a prior appointment.”
“That is….”
Don’t ask us! To the priests whose livers had shrunk to the size of beans from the god’s descent, the existence of the Black Mage guarding Remordi’s seal was deeply troublesome. Soleia irritably shut the prayer chamber door with a snap.
She had been released from the underground dungeon five years into her guardianship of Remordi’s seal and was permitted to wander the temple. From the tenth year onward, she was granted permission to leave the temple grounds—though always bound in restraints that prevented her from using magic, and any departure required the approval of Archbishop Diego Schmart.
Soleia left the temple without a shred of conscience. Since the man who could grant permission had vanished, she would simply leave first and find him to obtain his approval later. The order was quite reversed, but as always, Soleia paid it no mind. Thus, behind Raulus and Diego following Deb, Jena, and Uni—the three siblings pursuing the Belgot Emperor and Empress—was added Soleia chasing after Diego.
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At that very moment, the servants and knights of Belgot Imperial Palace moved with perfect coordination.
“The Imperial Prince has disappeared!”
“The First Imperial Princess has disappeared!”
“The Second Imperial Princess has disappeared!”
Roxanne, the head maidservant responsible for the peace and order of Belgot Palace, the central palace of the Imperial Palace, and Felix, the Emperor’s secretary, hastily summoned the dedicated knights of the Imperial Prince and Imperial Princesses. Roxanne’s voice rang out with grim determination.
“‘Plan A, don’t take your eyes off the Imperial Prince and Princesses for a single moment’ team! What on earth happened!”
“Well, we confirmed they had refreshments on the third floor and then each retired to their own bedroom, but after that….”
“Then ‘Plan B, seal all entrances to the Imperial Palace from every direction’ team! Why didn’t you stop them!”
“I-I’m so sorry! We were definitely guarding the doors properly, but somehow….”
The faces of the Knights assigned exclusively to watch the young Imperial Family members had all turned ashen.
“What do we do?”
“There’s no choice. We have to execute Plan C.”
Roxanne, Marienne, and Felix’s eyes flashed with grim determination. Roxanne’s resonant voice rang out once more across the Imperial Palace Garden.
“They definitely haven’t left Barishard! Everyone remember the sacred aura of the Imperial Prince and Princesses!”
“Yes!”
“Then we move out immediately! Plan C! We pursue the Imperial Prince and Princesses and bring them back by force if necessary! Execute!”
“Yes!”
Thus, at the very end of that long chase, a three-column, five-person squad of Maidservants and Knights led by Roxanne, Marienne, and Felix was added to the pursuit.
* * *
“…Hmm?”
Yerenika, who had been admiring traditional Belgot handicrafts, lifted her head with a puzzled expression. Auredhian was selecting lace ornaments that would suit his wife with even more care than he gave to state affairs. Yerenika murmured to herself.
“What was that…?”
“Hmm?”
As she furrowed her brow, Auredhian set down the lace and immediately checked his wife’s complexion.
“What’s wrong, Yeni? Are you feeling unwell?”
“No. It’s strange—my nape keeps tingling.”
Yerenika tilted her head and surveyed Ugel Square. The plaza, dusted with snow, was quieter and more deserted than usual.
“…I must have imagined it.”
After a brief search, she withdrew her gaze. Auredhian tensed in response, but the moment Yerenika held several brooches up against his chest, testing them this way and that, he quickly tempered his sacred aura. Yerenika deliberated at length between the navy and dark blue that looked identical to his eyes.
“They all look so good on you that it’s hard to choose…. What do you think, this one and this one?”
Though warmer than previous years, it was still winter, and the wind bit sharply. Yerenika’s white cheeks were flushed red from the cold. Even with her fluffy winter hat, she couldn’t completely block out the chill.
“Edi, are you listening? Which one looks better?”
“I like whatever you choose.”
“Don’t dodge like that. Look, this one is darker and closer to black. This one is brighter with more green in it. Can’t you see the difference?”
“Well….”
As Auredhian honestly admitted and listened to Yerenika’s complaints, the three Belgot Imperial siblings were just slipping into hiding at the entrance of an alley south of Ugel Square.
“Can you see? Can you see? Where?”
“Brother, don’t push me.”
Whether Aizena grumbled or not, Decarve pressed down on his sister’s back as he carefully surveyed the square. Unie, riding on Decarve’s shoulders, poked her head out above her brother’s shoulder.
“Our first destination should definitely be Ugel Square. You said Mother and Father used to come here often during their courtship days.”
“Strictly speaking, it wasn’t courtship—it was more like pushing and pulling.”
“That’s the same thing. Anyway, look carefully, Jena. Have they already passed through here?”
“Brother’s scarf is blocking my eyes. If I fall, you know Unie gets hurt too, right?”
“Unie won’t get hurt. Do you know what kind of child she is? She succeeded in levitating with her sacred aura at just two years old. Right, little one?”
“Youngest.”
“That’s right.”
“I don’t know, you’ll figure it out and do well enough on your own….”
Aizena Belgot let out a deep sigh, and Decarve Belgot, scanning intently beyond the square, caught sight of a flutter of pink hair swaying in the breeze.
“Ah!”
“Did you find her?”
Aizena Belgot, who had been feigning disinterest moments before, suddenly yanked away her brother’s scarf that had been blocking her view.
“Where!”
“There!”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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