Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 366

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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 366
Fire. Diluting Wine with Water
“Your Highness.”
King Damon did not answer Timothy’s call. Instead, he merely paused his pen in acknowledgment.
Judging by the timing, all the Minority Successors from the north had gathered. Those who harbored ill will toward one another were now facing each other in a single room.
Should he hurry there, or wait until the conflict escalated? King Damon straightened his collar and summoned his servants. He had chosen to proceed as slowly as possible.
“Have they all assembled?”
“Ten of the fifteen tribes have responded, and the total number gathered is seventeen.”
“What of the remaining five tribes?”
His mouth twisted into a smile, yet displeasure lingered in his eyes. These mere minorities dared reject an offer from Burgos? He would remember their existence well and move forward accordingly.
Timothy carefully handed over the documents and spoke cautiously.
“Your Highness, the Katrika Tribe and others dwelling near the ‘Rift’ have largely declined to attend. They cite the recent sharp increase in monster attacks and floods as preventing them from sparing personnel.”
“Fools. That is precisely why they should come.”
“Shall I send another letter?”
As King Damon’s brow furrowed, the servant straightening his collar flinched nervously. The King’s mood seemed quite poor, and any mistake now could mean death.
“Enough. An opportunity comes but once, which is why it is an opportunity.”
“Ah, and if I may offer my humble opinion, the regions near the Rift seem to experience less internal strife than elsewhere. Perhaps they feared accepting external power would cause them to lose the trust of their followers…”
“Ugh!”
King Damon seized the servant’s hand and twisted it, glaring irritably at the mirror. His gaze extended beyond it to Timothy.
“I do not wish to know, Timothy.”
“…My apologies, Your Highness.”
Timothy bowed flat in apology. The King had always been sharp-tempered, but lately it had become far more pronounced.
What had he done wrong? If that were the case, the King’s nature would not lead him to express anger so indirectly. There was clearly something that had offended his sensibilities.
Timothy gestured for the whimpering servant to leave while still holding his wrist, then attended to the King.
“Let us proceed to the reception hall, Your Highness. On the way, I shall brief you on notable matters concerning the Minority Tribes. First, there is Astana.”
“Astana. I have heard it called the land of sorcerers.”
“Yes, that is correct. Currently, the tribe employing necromancy and the tribe employing spiritualism are in fierce conflict. The one who came to Burgos is a successor of necromancy. His name is Hasha, and while his exact age is uncertain, he appears to be around thirty—”
King Damon stopped walking and furrowed his brow.
“Thirty? By Astanan standards, is that not practically a newborn? Such a youth is a successor?”
“Originally, they were nearly annihilated in conflict between the factions. The elder who led the necromancy sect disappeared with a child, or so the public account goes. In truth, the prevailing theory is that he was invited to conduct research at Bariel and subsequently vanished.”
“Yet he suddenly returned alive, reorganizing his forces?”
“Yes, that is so.”
“His abilities seem formidable. Was he a blood relative of the elder who led them?”
“His grandson, it is said.”
As King Damon listened to Timothy’s report, he could not shake an odd sense of unease. There was nothing particularly noteworthy in the account. Could it be because Bariel was involved in their movements?
That great empire, absent nowhere. King Damon clicked his tongue and ordered Timothy to continue.
By the time several pages had been turned, they arrived at the reception hall. Servants pulled the doors open on both sides to receive him.
“King Damon has arrived!”
Creak.
As the doors opened, the scent of an unfamiliar foreign land wafted in sharply.
Gathered around an elliptical, elongated conference table sat figures whose attire, appearance, and very presence radiated individuality. Despite hailing from the same northern region of Gaia, their differences were striking—almost impossibly so.
“Be seated.”
King Damon acknowledged them with a light gesture after receiving their greetings. His eyes blazed with barely concealed fury and excitement. It was clear that before his arrival, they had already clashed among themselves.
“You have traveled far. I appreciate your effort.”
“Not at all, Your Highness. We are honored by your summons.”
“Indeed. Burgos is as magnificent a nation as we hoped. Had the Makun Tribe simply cleared the roads, we could have arrived earlier and explored more thoroughly.”
“My apologies for that. We could not grant them passage due to complaints about the stench of rotting monsters whenever the Makun Tribe enters. I shall make greater efforts to ensure your return journey is smoother.”
“Are you now insulting us by suggesting we consume monster flesh?”
“Certainly not. You are reading far too much into my words.”
“Enough! What is the meaning of this conduct before King Damon himself!”
Bang, bang, bang!
King Damon watched their quarrel with amusement. How pathetic and laughable—these petty creatures scrambling so fiercely over their insignificant lands.
The deeper their discord ran, the more they would seek Burgos’s strength and aid. This worked entirely to his advantage, so he merely smiled without any intention of intervening.
“It is of no consequence. I am well aware of the diverse cultures represented among those gathered here.”
“Thank you for your understanding, Your Highness.”
At King Damon’s gesture, servants presented each of them with a glass of wine—a dark crimson liquid of uncertain origin. Given how sensitive these individuals were to assassination attempts, their expressions betrayed clear wariness.
“However, I would prefer we move beyond pleasantries and address the matter at hand.”
“You seek the assistance of each tribe, then…”
“Burgos shall declare war on Clifford in due course. I would welcome your modest support when that time comes.”
War? Against Clifford, no less?
Caught off guard by this unexpected declaration, they exchanged bewildered glances. From their expressions, it was evident that none of them had been forewarned.
“Your Highness, if I may speak candidly, war with Clifford is a delicate matter. To propose it so suddenly…”
“Is there a problem?”
There was indeed a problem. While their dependence on Burgos was not absolute, many tribes maintained trade relations with Clifford. More critically, their forces were already stretched thin from conflicts within their own lands and across the northern continent.
To ask them to participate in a foreign war was no trivial request.
“Burgos does not seek your military strength. Rather, I desire the abilities of those gathered in this very room. There is no need to mobilize soldiers—nor do I wish for it.”
What difference could the Minority Tribes possibly make anyway?
“You speak of deploying sorcerers in this war, Your Highness?”
“Precisely. I seek the power of your sorcerers in particular.”
“Hmm…”
They hesitated, unable to commit easily. This was not a war rooted in their own ideologies, and should Burgos suffer defeat, their position would become precarious indeed.
For now, their proximity to Burgos granted them influence. But what if Clifford emerged victorious and extended dominion northward? Would the Minority Tribes who had participated be spared? A single decision now could shape their fate for years to come.
Hesitant silence hung in the air. King Damon lit a cigarette and smiled lightly.
“Why does the atmosphere feel so heavy?”
“Your Highness, this matter is truly not something to decide hastily…”
“Burgos will emerge victorious.”
“Pardon?”
“In the war against Clifford, Burgos shall achieve absolute victory. Those who wish to hear the reason need only drink their wine, and I shall reveal my delightful secret.”
His declaration was utterly confident and unwavering.
“Moreover, the spoils of war will prove far sweeter still.”
Damon raised his glass first.
Several of them lifted theirs without hesitation, showing their agreement. These were tribes whose support base had been particularly weakened by the civil war. For them, Burgos’s aid was essential.
Then the others murmured and slowly raised their glasses. If another nation stabilized and grew strong, that would become a threat to themselves. For the sake of leveling chaos, and moreover, for leveling stability. If someone joined hands with Burgos, they had no other choice.
Whoosh.
Soon everyone had raised their glasses. A silent toast in the air. They emptied their glasses in one gulp, and shortly after, Damon’s satisfied laughter rang out.
“Good, good. Let us think of ourselves as having shared blood. We are now like brothers, so allow me to share some very welcome news with you all.”
Words of brotherhood. They knew well how the King of Burgos viewed them. Had they not been holding back the monsters in the north, King Damon’s first territorial expansion would likely have turned northward rather than toward Clifford.
“You all understand better than anyone that the state of the rift in the north has become unusual of late.”
“Yes. With each passing day, the number of monsters increases. And the damage grows ever more severe.”
“I will redirect the power of that rift toward Clifford.”
“…!?”
They all froze in shock at his unexpected words.
Redirect the power of the rift? Was such a thing even possible?
“On the Gaia continent, rifts have only ever occurred in the north, have they not?”
“They are rarely found anywhere else. Clifford, you say? I do not understand what you mean.”
Servants refilled the glasses with wine. Damon rose from his seat and promptly spilled the wine across the table. Splash—the red liquid spread before stopping. Those watching did the same.
“Beneath this Gaia continent we stand upon, an unknown world has formed. Condensed power expands and eventually tears through the earth, emerging to create monsters, ravaging nature, and threatening our survival. Let us say this wine is that power, yes?”
He slowly walked toward the opposite side of the table. The eyes of those filled with tension rolled and followed him.
“But what if a gap were to open on the other side as well? It would be like opening a new path to what once flowed only northward.”
Then Damon poured water. Slowly spreading, it naturally mixed with the wine. The transparent water took on color, and where it met the wine, the wine’s hue grew pale.
“A great earthquake will soon strike Clifford. If we seize that opportunity, the flow that has been moving northward will shift toward Clifford. Is this not advantageous for you all in many ways?”
It was far more than merely advantageous. It was an opportunity to step away from centuries of war against monsters and pass on to their descendants a land of new life.
“H-how is such a thing possible?”
“Do as I just did. Not wine, but something of similar properties will seep through when poured. In truth, you need not know the details.”
Hasha watched the water dripping beneath the table. If monsters continued to overflow from the north, it would eventually affect Burgos as well.
So before that happened, he would shift the power toward Clifford, seize that land, manage it, and strengthen his dominion over the minority tribes.
Everyone benefited, but Hasha felt uneasy about it. There seemed to be another meaning to the soaked table.
“Then, shall we have another drink?”
Damon lifted his empty glass with apparent delight, and someone nearby hastily refilled it.
Hasha touched the brooch he had tucked in his pocket as he drank.
* * *
“Yes. I heard it well. Is this a low-grade mana stone? The sound is a bit off. Let me see what this is….”
Unlike Akorelra examining the mana stone, Noah covered his mouth as if in shock. The General of Clifford did the same. To trample his fertile lands with monsters.
“…This is war. This is a war from which there is no return.”
“Prince. I did not know Burgos possessed the technology to predict earthquakes. I will report this to His Highness at once.”
Tap tap tap!
The mages exchanged glances between Noah and Hasha, their eyes turning uncomfortably. It was the meeting of Clifford’s master and the one who sought to destroy it, an atmosphere that could not be hidden.
“What the similar properties King Damon spoke of truly mean, I do not yet know in detail. But what is certain is that he is ‘waiting’ for the great earthquake—”
“You bastard!”
“Oh my, Prince! Please do not do this!”
“Now we’re on the same side, yes? The same side, I’m telling you?”
As Noah seized Hasha by the nape of the neck once more, the mages rushed forward in a swarm to block him.
This was no mere war. It would become a clash between those seeking to reshape the continent’s very fate. I smiled faintly and tapped the table with my fingertip.
‘King Damon truly is something else.’
Was this the extent of his vision for Burgos’s future—one different from my past life? Since I’ve regressed, my knowledge of the great earthquake should be reliable, yet….
“He overlooked something.”
Tap.
“What?”
“King Damon overlooked it. If a new path is carved, the original bloodline will certainly dilute—”
The monsters in the north would decrease somewhat. But considering the monster damage across all of Gaia, wouldn’t the total actually increase?
“As water overflows when mixed, so too will they overflow.”
Can Idgal control that? Idgal, a new fissure, Damon….
“Ah.”
I let out a small exclamation as understanding dawned.
Perhaps this is what Rutherford truly desires. A Gaia led by Rutherford, where none can survive without Idgal amid the monster deluge.
“Ian, sir. Do you understand what King Damon meant by ‘similar traits’?”
It wasn’t quite that revelation, but I nodded lightly. Traits similar to monsters.
“It refers to all things that wield and harbor magical power. Baekgak is such, synthetic monsters are such—”
Mages and Mage Knights.
“We are such.”

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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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