Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 111

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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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Chapter 111. Slave Trader
“Ian? Are you finished?”
I’d told him to keep watch outside, but Berik couldn’t resist and slipped in anyway. Still, he was clearly determined to follow orders—he dragged the unconscious bandit leader by the ankles as he entered.
He blinked at the mangled corpse of Hasha.
“What happened here?”
“For the future, Hasha wanted the body disposed of.”
“Is that so? The bastard’s got more backbone than I thought.”
Thud!
Berik tossed the thief’s body aside carelessly and approached Hasha. The sorrow that flows from a dog’s eyes—it’s an emotion no one could dare to fathom. Berik sniffled and wiped away the blood dripping down his face.
“Look on the bright side. If you keep doing this a few more times, you’ll live a long life.”
-Is that supposed to be comfort…?
Hasha’s expression twisted with irritation at such absurd consolation. But it seemed to serve as a stimulus to pull her out of her despair. She composed herself, wiping her eyes and snout with her short front paws.
-You didn’t kill the leader, did you?
“The master said to keep him alive, so I just severed his ankles so he can’t escape. But this place is bigger than I expected, isn’t it?”
Berik looked around and threw open the doors. I did the same. We wanted to check the stolen goods, but also to see if anyone had been kidnapped.
Creak!
“Look at this!”
“It appears to be where they stored their plunder.”
“Wow, these guys were doing well!”
“Indeed. They were more skilled than expected.”
Gold coins, jewels, and valuables were piled together, testament to their crimes. I clicked my tongue lightly and stepped inside. The surrounding area was nothing but small towns, yet there was far more gold here than I’d anticipated.
As Berik rummaged through things, he pulled something out and called to me.
“Ian, there’s an interesting sword here.”
It was a blade dark as pitch. The dull blade looked as though it had been scorched by fire. It seemed as if ash might crumble from it at any moment. Berik ran his fingertip along the blade’s edge, then muttered with a surprised expression.
“Nothing’s coating it.”
“The sword is unusual.”
“You don’t know what it is either?”
“How could I know everything? It could be a craftsman’s unique mark, or perhaps it was made for decoration. Not all swords are forged solely for cutting. Occasionally, swords mixed with mana stones also take on color.”
I’d never examined a Mageknights’s sword closely. During audiences with the Emperor, all weapons had to be surrendered for propriety and safety reasons. I’d only occasionally witnessed the power of Mageknights through sparring matches at the training grounds.
“That’s quite knowledgeable.”
Berik chuckled and swung the sword casually. It was a habitual motion, but the blade was lighter and more nimble than expected, and most importantly, it fit his arm length perfectly—surprisingly comfortable.
“Huh?”
“What is it?”
Whoosh!
The black afterimage left each time the blade cut through the air pleased me. The blade was somewhat dull, but that could be remedied by taking it to a blacksmith for sharpening.
“Ian! I want to keep this!”
“That one?”
“Yes, yes. Is it not allowed?”
He thrust and swung it about wildly, causing quite a commotion. I paused to consider, watching the sword in Berik’s hands. He’d used it so roughly that the blade’s teeth were completely worn away. The leather grip wrapped in cloth was stained with blood—whose, I couldn’t say—and utterly ruined.
“A guard should have a sword he likes. When we return to the village, we’ll settle the price.”
“Yes! How much is it?”
“Who knows. We’ll deduct it bit by bit from your meals, so you’ll find out.”
“Wait! You’re deducting it from my food?”
The stolen goods from the bandits would be returned to Karenna and the surrounding towns to find their owners, or otherwise be incorporated into the city’s budget. Berik seemed shocked by the mention of reducing his meals, alternating his gaze between me and the sword repeatedly.
“Ugh….”
But he couldn’t bring himself to say he’d give up the sword. It meant he’d truly fallen for it.
How easily his thoughts showed on his face. I chuckled softly and moved to inspect the remaining spoils of war, while Berik, wearing a rare serious expression, followed along with hurried steps and sighed.
‘Those who wield weapons sometimes experience meetings that feel like fate. By the looks of it, he’s properly smitten.’
“Does it please you that much?”
“Blood won’t show on it, which is nice.”
“To obtain what you desire, a price is naturally required. Consider it training for now.”
In truth, I had no intention of actually restricting his food, but Berik seemed to need various forms of tension to control his actions.
After thoroughly inspecting the interior, I confirmed there were no imprisoned people.
“This place is done. Berik, go call Romand and the villagers. Let them know we’ve found the carriage.”
Creak.
As I stepped outside, I saw Hasha trembling against the wall. The bandit leader who’d awakened in the meantime was crawling on his arms. Both his Achilles tendons had been cleanly severed, so he had no strength below his knees whatsoever.
“You woke up early?”
“Gasp!”
As Berik strode forward, the bandit leader’s face went pale and he gasped for breath. Though he’d served as a leader among rough men, he’d never encountered anyone overwhelmingly strong like Berik.
And was that all?
“Get away! You madman, leave me alone!”
The man’s mind was thoroughly broken, leaving deep aftereffects. The bandit shouted while waving his hands at Berik, but he paid no attention and grabbed the bandit by the hair.
Crunch.
“Now then. Don’t waste your strength—let’s have a conversation, shall we?”
“That’s, that’s my sword….”
Berik pressed the black sword he’d just found against the man’s nape. A faint wound appeared along the blade, and soon blood droplets began to bead. I’d thought the teeth were dull, but the edge was sharp. A fine blade is a fine blade indeed.
“From now on, answer every question without a single lie. Otherwise, you’ll go to the afterlife with your head severed, and your subordinates won’t even recognize you.”
I was the same. Standing before him, I looked down at the bandit calmly. At my unusual tone, the bandit tried to lift his head slightly, but Berik stepped on his head, stopping him.
“How did you use necromancy with a necromancer’s corpse?”
“Eh? What do you mean by that….”
“You’re trying to evade.”
Whoosh.
At my words, Berik angled the blade sharply. The pain of it gradually digging into his nape made the bandit cry out in shock.
“Aaaaah! Damn it, save me, please save me!”
“There are no second chances. I ask again. How did you use necromancy with a necromancer’s corpse?”
The bandit squeezed his eyes shut, then stammered out the truth.
“I didn’t steal it—it followed me!”
“So then, why?”
“That’s, that is….”
The bandit leader frowned at Berik’s black sword. Since it was an awkward matter to explain, he glossed over it, pretending not to know.
“I don’t know much about it either. At first, I thought it was just some object since it wouldn’t die even when killed. I was going to sell it to a slave merchant, so I, I took the corpse there…”
A slave merchant. The moment Ian heard those words, he furrowed his brow. He had vaguely grasped the thread of the incident. Since these were men who engaged in plunder and kidnapping, it was natural that a slave merchant would be backing them.
“Could it be that those bastards helped you?”
“That’s right! The slave merchant said that if we used the child’s corpse properly, we could create many beings just like them. In return, we needed many corpses, but for us, killing people is, is, our job anyway…”
“You made a deal. The slave guild teaches you the incantation method, and you create undead and sell them.”
“I don’t know what they did with the corpses they took away. I swear on my life! We only thought we’d sell one corpse, but when they said they’d give us gold coins every time we returned to Karenna with more, there was no reason to refuse.”
The slave merchant doesn’t operate only in Bariel. Due to the nature of the business, they needed to collect “merchandise” spanning multiple races and species. Moreover, unlike Bariel where slave auctions didn’t happen constantly, the surrounding nations had thriving underground economies.
“What’s the name of the guild?”
“Parkens Slave Guild.”
Parkens. It was certainly a guild name familiar to Ian’s ears. If someone from a hundred years in the future knew of it, it meant the place had considerable scale and foundation.
At that moment, Berik struck the bandit leader’s face repeatedly with the flat of his blade.
Thwack! Smack!
“Your words are too short?”
“Ugh! It’s the Parkens Slave Guild!”
“Good, good.”
Berik seemed to think this was worth the effort. He raised his sword proudly and looked at Ian with satisfaction. Ian chuckled softly and posed another question.
“Then, some of the gold coins came from the guild?”
“Yes, that’s right! Yes, sir!”
“How did you use the incantation?”
“We needed ten intact corpses to barely produce one functional being. And, we needed hair, so we couldn’t even use bald men.”
Hasha, listening to those words, perked up his ears.
-That’s the exact method I use. Each necromancer has their own style of incantation, but I need hair for mine.
The bandit’s eyes bulged as if they might pop out. A talking dog. And from the tone of voice, it seemed a child’s soul was inhabiting that body.
“Lucky for the bald guys, huh? They don’t even get caught by the incantation.”
Using Hasha’s incantation exactly as it was. Ignoring Berik’s nonsensical remark, Ian turned to look at Hasha with a sudden thought.
“Will you listen to more?”
-Of course. I’m the owner of that body.
“Good. Tell me. How did you proceed with the incantation?”
The bandit bit his lower lip as if going mad. These were misdeeds he had committed without hesitation in the past. But now, as he tried to confess them with his own mouth like this, he became aware of it. That these were unforgivable acts.
“…When they brought the corpses, they handled it themselves. But normally they couldn’t be controlled, so we kept them tied up when they weren’t working.”
Hasha listened intently to the bandit’s words. As the testimony grew longer, Ian gestured to Berik to hurry and go to the village.
“After cleaning the corpse, they picked flowers and applied the scent…”
Tap tap tap!
Even as Berik headed toward the village, the bandit’s words continued. Hasha soon realized that the incantation the corpse had performed matched perfectly with his own.
* * *
“Romandro~ Sir~!”
“Gasp! It’s Berik! Berik! What about Ian?”
“I’m covered in blood, but you’re not going to ask about that?”
“No! You’ll be fine, won’t you? So what about Ian?”
“Everyone’s coming. Found the carriage. And I brought the guards too. We need to handle the cleanup.”
At Berik’s words, Romandro and his companions’ faces brightened instantly. They immediately summoned the Captain of the Guard to request reinforcements, then urged their horses forward in pursuit of Berik. Dawn was breaking, the moon nearly set, the sky turning violet.
Clop clop clop!
Countless horses thundered toward the bandits’ lair, their heads fixed on the path ahead. And soon, the devastated state of the village came into full view.
“Ian!”
“You’ve arrived?”
Ian greeted Romandro alongside Hasha. He immediately rushed toward the carriage, confirmed that the documents and mana stones were safe, then dropped to his knees.
“Hah. Thank you. Heavens above.”
“No, Romandro. You should be thanking me?”
“Right. Berik. Come here, oh, what a beauty!”
“Ugh! Disgusting!”
As Romandro attempted to offer encouragement personally, Berik recoiled in disgust. The Captain of the Guard who entered could not hide his shock and issued orders to his subordinates.
“Good heavens, all of this…”
“They’re all dead. Corpses.”
“Ah. One’s still alive. The leader.”
“Collect the bodies first! Check if there are any others hiding inside! Remove every tent!”
“Yes! Understood!”
As the moon set, so too did the bandits’ fate. Ian watched the Guard Captain organize the situation while holding Hasha close.
‘Still, from what the Bandit Leader said, he seemed quite knowledgeable about the ritual, yet he doesn’t know why the undead initially followed him?’
That doesn’t make sense. Ian crossed his arms and locked eyes with the Bandit Leader being escorted away. He offered the trembling man a slight smile and sent him a look that said they’d meet again in the village.

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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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