Children of the Rune – Winterer - Chapter 411

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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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Episode 181.
In the Name of Loyalty and Vengeance (23)
Milestone merely smacked his lips with an expression suggesting he had no idea what anyone was talking about.
When Maximian had hired Milestone, he’d made no mention that the ship could do anything besides float on water. There was little point—such talk would only frighten the man or get him labeled a lunatic. Besides, even after boarding, Milestone had no knowledge of piloting a ship through the sky, so there was no real need for explanations.
Of course, that was Maximian’s reasoning. Yet once they’d clapped their hands together, Joshua turned to face him.
“Wait, you didn’t explain any of this? Not even when you first made the contract?”
“Would there have been any benefit in telling him beforehand?”
“You hid it all this time just to avoid cutting his wages?”
Riche quickly interjected, raising her index finger pointedly.
“And our destination is Periwinkle Island! I made sure to mention that clearly this time!”
Milestone nodded absently at the captain’s words before being pulled to his feet by Joshua’s hand. Joshua led him to a small cabin below the main quarters—a place he’d never shown anyone before. The moment Joshua unlocked the door and stepped inside, Milestone’s eyes went wide.
The room was filled with crucibles overflowing with gold. As the door swung open, the entire space gleamed with golden light. Milestone turned to face Joshua.
“Your friend—he seems to be quite different from appearances. If this much gold doesn’t look like money to him, just how wealthy is he?”
“Unfortunately, I cannot offer you the gold here as your wages.”
By the time Maximian and Riche arrived, Joshua had already deployed his considerable gift for concise explanation, covering roughly half of what the crucibles represented. As Maximian peered in, he caught snippets of the conversation.
“For this ship to stay aloft, it needs something solid beneath it to push against. At least within ten paces below. Think of it like a grasshopper crouching and leaping—except instead of falling back down after jumping, it keeps flying.”
Milestone stood dumbfounded, then scratched near his eyebrows.
“What did you say?”
“You don’t understand? It’s not that complicated. For this ship to fly, there needs to be solid ground beneath it….”
“No, no.”
Milestone waved his hand and stared directly into Joshua’s eyes—as if checking whether the man was in his right mind.
“What exactly do you mean by ‘flying’?”
“Didn’t you hear what we said earlier?”
Maximian dragged the two of them apart before their noses could touch as they stared at each other.
“Stop examining each other’s pores, and let’s go. Explanations are pointless anyway. You’ll understand once you see it. Come on, hurry. The weather’s perfect—let’s set sail immediately.”
“Ah, well, should we?”
“Is that what you’re showing me?”
It wasn’t until later that they discovered Maximian had rushed them along because he thought that once they departed, he could gloss over the wage issue.
As Duke Franz von Arnim was finishing his afternoon with almond macarons and a cup of hot tea, a promissory note arrived at his desk. The Duke donned his spectacles and read through the text inscribed upon it.
To the bearer of this document, ‘Joe Hispanie,’ or to his designated representative: I shall pay fifteen hundred Elso in Elso gold coins in exchange for this document. The payment date shall be determined separately.
March 19th, Year 990
Duke Jasper Franz von Arnim.
Please pay the amount written above to the endorsee ‘Baemon Elwards’ or to his designated representative.
June 5th, Year 990
Joe Hispanie.
Shortly thereafter, three men were summoned to the Duke’s study: his elderly secretary Hessel, and his trusted subordinates Baron Edmel and Lord Marlon. The Duke handed them the promissory note to examine.
“What do you make of it?”
Baron Edmel held the genuine promissory note alongside this one for a lengthy comparison before finally speaking.
“It’s exquisite. No—it’s identical.”
Duke Arnim rarely issued promissory notes, and when he did, there was no reason for him to issue such a small amount. The Baron, knowing this well, had concluded it was a forgery and answered accordingly.
Like most noble families and large merchant houses, the House of Arnim’s official stationery bore intricate patterns along its borders that were nearly impossible to counterfeit. The family crest was also embossed upon it. Such paper was difficult to obtain unless one belonged to the family, and replicating it was entirely impossible. Without the metal plate that the family kept under strict guard being leaked, such identical patterns could never appear.
Lord Marlon posed a question.
“Who could have secretly removed the metal plate and then returned it?”
Baron Edmel objected.
“Even if someone had done such a thing, it would be unimaginable to forge such a small sum using such precious paper made that way.”
“The date signed here doesn’t appear to be recent.”
“That date doesn’t necessarily indicate when the forgery was made. The date could have been written in any manner.”
“Then should we use the first endorsement date as our reference point? It couldn’t have been made after the endorsement date.”
“Then it would be June 5th.”
Duke Arnim listened to the two men’s conversation in silence, waiting. When they finally ceased speaking, he turned his gaze toward his secretary. The secretary removed his thick monocle glasses and examined the promissory note before setting it down.
“This is no ordinary matter.”
Duke Arnim nodded, then picked up a pen and signed his name on a blank sheet of paper. To anyone’s eye, the signature was identical to the one written below the promissory note. All three fell silent for a moment, comparing the two signatures.
The secretary nodded and spoke.
“The pattern on this counterfeit promissory note was not stamped with a metal plate. Though perfectly identical, when one draws curves with a pen, the texture of the nib causes subtle variations in line thickness. This was drawn and copied by hand with a pen. If that is the case, as you know, there are only two people in this world capable of such a forgery.”
By using the honorific “two people” rather than simply “two,” the other two men’s expressions grew tense. Baron Edmel hesitated before speaking.
“The name ‘Joe Hispanie’ written here… it doesn’t seem like a name chosen at random.”
He spoke thus because he too knew the name of Hispaniae von Arnim. The secretary continued slowly.
“One person is of course that esteemed gentleman. However, I cannot fathom why he would go to such lengths to forge a promissory note of such a small amount. Even if he were in need of funds, a simple invoice would suffice. Of course, he is not a man to create such circumstances. Moreover, the endorsement date coincides with shortly after he departed from this place.”
Hispaniae possessed sufficient wealth to live out his remaining years without extending his hand to his nephew. And he had departed from Jade Ring Castle not long before.
“The other person is… surely not Count Armorique?”
Lord Marlon spoke hastily, and Baron Edmel gave him a warning look. The secretary shook his head.
“The Young Duke resides in this castle. He scarcely leaves its confines.”
If Hispaniae had no reason to forge Duke Arnim’s promissory note, then the Young Duke certainly had even less. The baron and Lord Marlon exchanged bewildered glances between the secretary and Duke Arnim.
Duke Arnim raised his body slightly from where it had been resting against the chair.
“Hessel, send one man to track where that gentleman has gone. Have him bring the promissory note as well. When he sees it, he will likely discern the answer. And regarding this matter with the promissory note, all of you are to remain silent.”
These were retainers who had served Duke Arnim since before the days of the Republic. When the Duke said “remain silent,” they understood without being told that it meant to keep the matter hidden from everyone outside this room—even from the Duchess and the Young Duke.
The elderly secretary bowed.
“Understood.”
As the three men departed, the Duke opened a drawer and withdrew an envelope. It was a letter whose seal had already been broken, as if previously read. The Duke extracted the letter and examined it carefully. Then, pressing his brow, he closed his eyes.
The handwriting of the letter was identical to the script of the endorsement below the promissory note. It was a letter that Joshua had sent from Blue Coral Island early this year.
3. Drawing the Hidden Card
You are a bold person who remains unharmed by the language of flowers
I was pricked by the thorns upon your lips.
When warmth touched her eyelids, Anna awoke from sleep.
As she had done every day these past few days, she considered where she was the moment she opened her eyes. The sky bore the hue of early morning light. The place where she lay was beneath a tree with thick, wild grass.
She had not yet grown accustomed to it. Having slept outdoors wrapped in a blanket, her body creaked in various places. A light drowsiness clung to her eyelids, but she squeezed them shut before opening them again. Then she rolled her eyes to search for the person who had fallen asleep under the same conditions as herself. He was no longer in that spot.
The sound of footsteps treading on grass passed near her head. When she lifted her head to look, the two men were already clearing away the remnants of the extinguished campfire.
Seeing that Anna had risen, Langie spoke.
“You woke early.”
His voice was neither kind nor cold, yet Anna always interpreted it as the latter. She spoke in a tone of excuse.
“I’m the one who’s always late.”
Though not today alone. Langie and the tall man who accompanied him always rose before Anna. Despite the equally uncomfortable camping conditions, I had never seen them dawdle beneath their blankets. Even Anna, who had been so eager to reach the front lines, had no choice but to admit within days that she was not yet prepared.
Cold air brushed against the tip of my nose. Today, as always, the reality struck anew. I had left Giscar’s House. I was traveling to Keltika to engage in the front-line activities I had so desperately desired. I would receive my assignment and share secrets. Anna Eisenelmo was no longer a student but a full member….
That last part was not yet true. To become a full member, I would have to pass three examinations in Keltika. Moreover, Anna had one additional process to undergo before those examinations. I tried not to think about that part, but as Keltika drew closer, fear began to overwhelm my other expectations.
Anna was well aware that thorough identity verification was the very foundation upon which the Friends of the People had survived all this time. I had asked myself countless times whether this beginning was truly the best course. Perhaps if I had simply stayed, I would have remained at Giscar’s House for the rest of the year. Yet even such thoughts could not entirely dispel my fear.
That day, when my eyes met Langie’s as he looked down from the windowsill of the visitation room, I was so startled I nearly cried out. Looking back, I was truly grateful I had not screamed. How foolish I must have appeared.
Anna tried to explain why I had overheard their conversation, but the response was cold. No matter how plausible my excuses might have been—and truthfully, they were not plausible at all—having done such a thing meant they could not rule out the possibility that Anna was a spy. To undergo identity verification, I would have to submit to an investigation by the Exile Council.
“Will I… will I be interrogated? Will they beat me or… is that what happens?”
Children of Rune – Winterer
Author: Jeon Min-hee
Publisher: 14 Months Publishing
The copyright to this book belongs to the author and 14 Months Publishing.
To reuse all or part of the contents of this book, written consent from both parties is required.

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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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