Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 415

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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 415
Fire. The Bat Princess
“Halt!”
A Ruswena Soldier waved his hand toward the luxurious carriage approaching the encampment.
Though it wasn’t coming from enemy territory, judging by its direction, it wasn’t a messenger from their own forces either—it likely came down the road from another town under Bariel or Cliffford’s control.
The Ruswena Soldiers simultaneously raised their spears in a show of caution, their brows furrowing as the carriage drew closer. It wasn’t a war chariot. The Coachman wasn’t armored either, but an ordinary person you could see anywhere.
Had they taken a wrong turn? But the carriage didn’t veer its wheels, and it continued approaching while gradually slowing its pace.
Whinnnnny!
“It looks like a Bariel carriage.”
“What should we do?”
“Report it to command.”
As the Soldiers hurriedly moved and headed toward the back, Alena opened the door herself and stepped down from the carriage.
She brushed her hands together and then surveyed the Soldiers. She didn’t know much about war, but was this really how one established a camp—driving stakes into such barren wasteland?
“I’ve come to meet Prince Eriponi, King of Ruswena.”
“What did you say?”
“I am Alena Sereo, daughter of the Sereo family, a central noble house of Bariel. If you inform His Highness, he will surely grant me entry, so stop wasting time and move.”
Ting!
As she spoke, Alena flicked a small jewel—a tiny ruby—and waved a fan that seemed to serve as a token between herself and the King.
The Soldier quickly snatched up the jewel, then nervously glanced around. Too many eyes were watching. In this situation, he couldn’t slip it into his pocket unnoticed and had no choice but to report it upward.
The Soldier cleared his throat and gestured for her to wait a moment.
“Miss, I should really be going now….”
“You can’t leave. I can’t ride a horse.”
The Coachman wanted nothing more than to turn back immediately, anxious and uneasy about being drawn into war. But Alena shut him down with a single sharp word, and faced the expressionless Soldiers. Hurry, hurry….
“Please come in. However, we will need to conduct a body search, so I hope you understand.”
“Of course.”
Alena raised both hands, indicating she had no objections.
After a brief search, as she followed the Soldier into the encampment, dozens—nearly hundreds—of eyes suddenly focused upon her. The rumor that a Bariel noble had entered spread like wildfire in an instant.
At this critical moment when the war hung in the balance between victory and defeat, Alena’s arrival sparked considerable intrigue.
“This way.”
Whoosh!
As the Soldier pulled back the tent flap, a fierce wind swept through and rushed back out. Alena smoothed her windswept hair and looked straight ahead, meeting the gaze of Prince Eriponi within.
Eriponi sat reclined on a sofa with his hair tied high in a single knot, and before him lay a half-empty bottle of liquor.
“Princess Alena. It’s been a while.”
Eriponi laughed, spreading his arms lightly as if welcoming her. Yet the atmosphere within carried a temperature entirely opposite to his smile, and the Generals gathered nearby had complexions nearly the color of earth.
Though Alena wasn’t wearing a dress, she gave a slight curtsy before stepping inside.
“It’s quite striking to see you in such a place. That outfit suits you well without the dress.”
“The honor is mine, Your Highness.”
“I have mountains of questions to ask. Shall we start with the most basic one? How did you come to be here? Hmm?”
Could she be a double agent sent by Bariel or Ian? Eriponi’s piercing eyes flashed coldly. If so, he could reverse the situation and extract some information from their side as well.
Since the Crown Prince’s appointment ceremony, they had been in contact—Ian would surely know. Eriponi, nearly certain of this, probed Alena as if testing her.
“I grew concerned whether my letter reached you properly, so I came here directly. I simply wished to confirm your wellbeing with my own eyes, and that small desire led to this bold step.”
“Ah. The letter.”
Eriponi glanced at Eldetr. The letter—how many had he received? Since Eldetr filtered out anything lacking importance, Eriponi couldn’t know exactly how many contact attempts Alena had made.
In that fleeting moment, Eldetr blinked five or six times. She’d sent quite a few, Eriponi thought, inhaling smoke again with an amused smile.
“They reached me. Of course.”
“Your Highness—”
“But you see, Princess Alena, the distance between us has changed considerably since the Crown Prince’s investiture ceremony. As you can see, this place is not one adorned with marble sculptures but a battlefield where corpses accumulate, and the relationship between Bariel and Ruswena has shifted as well. Frankly, I don’t understand why you’ve sought me out.”
Alena hesitated for a moment. It felt like a broken clock suddenly starting to move again.
If she proposed Ruswena’s asylum again here, Eriponi didn’t seem likely to accept it easily. No, that would actually be preferable.
Perhaps…
“Does Bariel know you’re here?”
If he used the letters she’d sent as evidence for blackmail? She realized she could fall to the very bottom. That night when she’d met Eriponi had been so sweet that she hadn’t noticed her feet beginning to rot from within.
Alena swallowed dryly and composed her expression.
“No. My brother led the reinforcements into the Cliffford barrier, and I withdrew midway to come here. So he wouldn’t know.”
“Reinforcements? How many?”
Eriponi frowned and pressed her temples. Already, due to Burgos’s blunder, the war was in a precarious state, and now reinforcements? Eriponi chewed on her cigarette for a moment before crushing it against the table.
“Princess Alena. I asked how many reinforcements.”
“Well, the supervisor of the reinforcements is my brother, so I don’t know precisely. I simply came along with the thought that I could meet Prince Eriponi if I came this way.”
“In the thousands?”
Alena smiled faintly. Tick-tock, the broken clock began moving earnestly. From her demeanor, it seemed Eriponi didn’t wish to end the war as it stood.
Though her actions could become a weakness that bound her, simultaneously they were an opportunity for Eriponi. Reinforcements that could join her side at any moment had essentially entered the Cliffford barrier.
If chaos erupted within the barrier, whether the King of Burgos was captured or not would be irrelevant. Advance unconditionally. Advance no matter what. This would be the most crucial opportunity among all the battles fought thus far. An opportunity to stake not just survival, but everything.
“Your Highness. To know that, I would need to return to my brother, and then he would ask me where I’ve been.”
She couldn’t return empty-handed. Give me a definitive answer. That’s what Alena was saying. Would he grant her royal authority of Ruswena or a title equivalent to it, or would he use her actions as a pretext to make her fall to the very bottom?
Eriponi swept her hair to one side and looked Alena up and down. How could she trust one who had turned her back on her own country? No matter how she thought about it, she didn’t want to grant naturalization, but for now, she seemed like a useful card to play.
“Then tell him you have met Eriponi, the King of Ruswena, directly.”
Yes. If she wished to come to Ruswena thus, she would grant permission. As Eriponi’s approval fell, Eldetr quietly turned her head, and Alena bowed respectfully.
“Yes, Your Highness. Is there anything else you wish me to convey to my brother?”
“Alena. This is something I desire not only from your brother but also directly from my princess. Can you manage it?”
“Please tell me.”
“I want Ian Hielo eliminated.”
Even just killing someone wasn’t an easy task for her, but Ian Hielo of all people? A Mage? The Minister most trusted by the Empire and called the current power holder?
As Alena couldn’t respond in her shock, Eriponi rose herself and grasped her shoulders. The height difference was so great that Eriponi’s waist bent fluidly.
“If you cannot eliminate him, then at least temporarily seize his magical power. I will give you a dagger made of Idgal. After you see Ian’s blood with your own eyes, come back here. It would be even better if your brother secures the inside of the barrier.”
Alena felt not just determination but earnest desperation in Eriponi’s grip on her shoulders. See? Alena dared to place her hand on the back of hers, then answered in a tone full of regret.
“Yes, Your Highness. I will do my utmost.”
“And if possible, I would like you to convey detailed information about the situation inside.”
“Of course. Your Highness, would you perhaps need a negotiation table?”
“What would be best right now is the absence of Ian Hielo and the other Mages. Bariel will certainly seek to hold Ruswena accountable, and that matter won’t be light enough to be handled at a negotiation table.”
“I see. I understand what you mean.”
The momentum from Cliffford’s side seemed far more formidable than what the messenger had reported. During this ceasefire, if one played their cards right, both Bariel and Ruswena could claim victories.
Alena decided to stand between the two factions rather than pursue Ian’s assassination.
Eventually, they would all end up at the negotiation table anyway, so wouldn’t it be better if she took the initiative and arranged a swift meeting? The key was to plainly explain her connection with Ruswena to Bariel’s side.
Crack!
“Your Highness!”
It was the moment when Alena had been cycling through countless thoughts in her mind. An urgent soldier’s voice rang out from beyond the tent. The Generals tensed and unconsciously rose from their seats, while Eriponi moved away from Alena and retrieved his bow.
“What is the matter?”
“Your Highness, something strange appears in the distance.”
“Strange? What exactly?”
“It would be best if you saw it yourself.”
Eriponi took up a spyglass and stepped outside the tent. At that moment, he felt the earth trembling very slowly. Wondering if it was an illusion, he turned back to see that the others had also paused, sensing something amiss.
Eriponi fixed his gaze toward where the soldier was pointing. They were positioned on the upper slope of a hill, and since this was Cliffford territory primarily devoted to grape cultivation, the vista stretched clear in all directions. Thus, he could immediately discern the mysterious smoke the soldier had mentioned in the distance.
“What is that?”
A faint, grayish haze of smoke.
It resembled a waterspout seeping from a fissure in the earth. Eriponi frowned at this natural phenomenon he had never witnessed before, and promptly summoned the Mages.
“Do you know what that is?”
“No. We… are uncertain.”
The Ruswena Mages had never witnessed the origin of the rift either. In an instant, the beneficiaries of a civilization spanning ages became mere mortals.
Zaira, witnessing this beside him, spoke to the King.
“Your Highness. Whatever this may be, it would be wise to inform the palace. There is no path swifter than the celestial roads, so please permit us to carry this message.”
“The scout Mage has not yet returned.”
“Allow me to depart first. I can make the journey and return within a day if I exert all my strength.”
And with a glance, she looked at Alena. Though they had just met, the Princess from Bariel was unmistakable. Both the Princess and the King seemed to possess an unwavering will to continue the war, so if Eriponi’s command fell, she would go to the palace to rescue her family and seek asylum in Bariel. And she would need to inform Count Ian about this woman as well.
Meanwhile, Alena carefully observed the Mages, etching their appearances firmly into her mind.
‘I must remember the number of Mages. From their conversation, it seems they’re requesting reinforcements from the palace, and along with that, I can mention that two Mages have left their posts. That way, I’ll earn Bariel’s trust.’
When Alena’s eyes met Zaira’s, she smiled faintly, and Zaira received it with indifference. They were both traitors, yet why did this woman displease her so? Did this mean her scales had already begun to tip toward Bariel?
Zaira shook her head, finding it incomprehensible.

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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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