Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 482

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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 482
Fire. Ten Years Between You and Me
What in the world is this mad Mage Knight saying?
An earthquake erupted in Landroe’s pupils. The blonde green-eyed child who had introduced himself as the Minister of Magic flashed through his mind.
But a Mage Knight belonging to the Imperial Guards was searching for the Minister? In this quiet, isolated region, it was difficult to dismiss it as mere coincidence.
Landroe felt a chill run down the back of his neck and swallowed dryly again and again. Understanding exactly what was happening—wasn’t that the most important thing?
‘He could be pursuing an impostor claiming to be the Minister, or he could genuinely be searching for the actual Minister of Magic. If the former, I can simply guide him. But if the latter, I’m dead. There’s no way I’ll survive.’
When Berik grew impatient with Landroe’s delayed response, he shook him roughly by the collar. His patience was reaching its limit. From the moment he detected Ian’s faint scent in the blood, the ten years that had passed came crashing down on him like waves.
Every day he had repeated to himself that he would soon meet Ian whispered to him now. Just a little further, just a little more, and he would face Ian.
Crack.
“Gah, gack!”
“Where did you get the clothes? You won’t tell me? Should I cut out your tongue?”
“Th-that is to say, sir. My subordinate found it on the mountain where the Mage Knight was discovered. I swear, we didn’t steal or rob it! I’ve never even seen the owner of the clothes!”
First, shift responsibility to someone else. Landroe claimed it was his subordinate who had brought it, not himself. That way, even if he claimed ignorance of the details, he wouldn’t be suspected.
“Found it on a mountain?”
“Since it was fine fabric, he brought it to me. S-so this time I personally led my subordinates up the mountain. I thought perhaps we might discover something else.”
Berik threw Landroe’s collar away roughly and furrowed his brow. Ian’s traces were found on the mountain. Could it be connected to the Moles? Had those bastards harmed Ian?
While Berik clenched his teeth and soothed the rising emotions within him, Landroe clutched his throat and gasped for breath. That crazy Mage Knight!
Berik seemed to be thinking hard about something, then issued a command.
“Bring him.”
“Cough, hack, wh-who?”
“Your subordinate who found the clothes. Bring him here—I have questions.”
“…Y-yes, outside!”
Creak.
“You called, Master?”
Landroe swallowed dryly several times before calling the servant standing outside. Among these foolish men, who could he rely on to keep their wits about them? As Landroe pondered briefly, Berik cut him off.
“You there, your master is wearing those clothes, right? Bring me the one who brought them.”
“Ah, you mean Hot?”
“Hot or whatever.”
“D-do you mean to bring the corpse, sir?”
“What?”
The servant merely rolled his eyes in confusion. Given that his master was sprawled on the floor, the situation seemed grave, but he couldn’t fathom what had happened.
Landroe, whose face had gone ashen, sent silent signals with his eyes repeatedly.
‘Shut up! Please, shut that mouth!’
“A corpse?”
“Hot was told by the Master to be disposed of…”
Oh no, look at this.
Something was clearly going wrong. Berik looked between Landroe and the servant, then drew his sword.
If this were Ian, he would have resolved the situation with more refined methods, but Berik possessed neither such skill nor the patience for it. What did it matter how—as long as the objective was achieved?
Berik scratched his nose, then flicked his fingers. Lock the door and come closer.
“Both of you, from this moment on, you’d better speak carefully.”
“Oh, Mage Knight. Why are you doing this? Really.”
“If I don’t understand something or have any doubts, neither of you will leave here alive. Today is your last day. Do you understand?”
“Please spare us, p-please spare us.”
“Now. The questioning begins.”
Berik lifted Landroe’s upper garment slightly with his sword tip and asked.
“Have you seen the owner of these clothes?”
* * *
It was noisy.
I had finally fallen asleep after overcoming my hunger, but I awoke with a frown. There were servants working late into the night, so it was never truly quiet, but today felt different.
Had it ever been this loud? I peered through the wooden gaps to check if something had happened outside. Apart from all the lights in the mansion being lit, nothing seemed particularly amiss.
“Sigh.”
Now sighs came naturally. So this was how difficult it was to endure hunger.
Without physical stability, my magical recovery felt painfully slow. It was probably no different from when I first opened my eyes.
‘It’ll be the weekend soon, so I’ll probably go to the market. There’s no other way.’
Unable to move, I could only surrender myself to the flowing passage of time. When had I felt this helplessness before? When the war unfolded differently than expected? Or when I was imprisoned by Chroni?
No. This felt different. Back then, both my body and spirit were parched and desolate, but now it was purely physical powerlessness. A life lived with faith is so vastly different. Knowing the path forward is whole and complete, my heart feels light.
It was the moment I smiled faintly.
Crash!
The sound of breaking glass. Something was happening. I turned my head quickly to check if there was a fire. If it was anything else, it might be manageable, but a fire would be quite troublesome.
Thud, thud.
Then came heavy footsteps. Unlike the commotion in the mansion, no one came outside. Only one presence. A single person’s footsteps alone existed.
Click.
…Are they unlocking something? Who is it?
Crash! Bang!
The stranger fiddled with the lock a few times, then, unable to contain himself, began kicking at it.
As the door shook violently, I was startled and raised my upper body. This person had tremendous strength. The lock seemed to have been torn off in just three or four kicks.
Creak.
The door gap widened, and bright moonlight seeped into the warehouse. The light illuminated my blonde hair and green eyes in turn, and only silence hung in the air around us.
“….”
“….”
We stared at each other.
Red hair and red eyes. A tall, sturdy frame that suggested a warrior. Blood was caked all over him, but his sharp eyes and mouth felt so familiar. I gazed up at him blankly for a long while before I realized.
“…Ah, Berik.”
So it was Berik.
I had heard that ten years had passed, but I hadn’t truly grasped it until now. Seeing Berik grown so much, it must be real.
I examined Berik with wonder, then slowly rose and approached him. Yes. That’s right. The timeline where you lived as Bariel a hundred years ago and the timeline where I lived as Bariel a hundred years hence were so utterly different.
“Berik. You’ve changed so much.”
“You….”
“But I can still recognize you.”
Ian grasped Berik’s arm with a bright smile. “Everyone has changed just as you have, haven’t they? Jin, Romandro, Sia. And everyone in the Ministry of Magic has lived through their own time. How wonderful. It’s truly miraculous to live through time itself.”
Ian, who had come from the future, already knew their endings, but he realized anew how astonishing it was to witness the transformations within that process.
And in that moment, a hollow ache surged through his chest. He had unconsciously acknowledged that he could not walk alongside them.
“Would you recognize me?”
“Is that what you call a question!?”
Berik struck Ian’s hand away roughly and shouted. It was too small a cry to pour out everything he had held tightly for so many years, but it was all he could manage.
“You, you—who just disappears on a whim? Huh!?”
“I apologize. There was no other way.”
“Damn it, and why are you like this here?”
His voice trembled severely.
“…Why, why haven’t you grown?”
Berik grasped Ian’s shoulders with careful hands. This is maddening. Were you really this small back then? The Ian in my memories wasn’t this young.
I don’t know if it’s because I’ve grown so much, or if I’ve been misremembering you all along. Whatever the case, this indescribable feeling will never fade.
“I didn’t know why I was here either, but seeing you, I think I understand now. Perhaps this is why I came—to meet you like this.”
“What are you talking about? You, you—what on earth happened to you?”
“It’s only been a few days since I came out of the Abyss. There seems to have been a gap in the flow of time.”
“You madman, and you’re saying that now…”
Berik faltered, his expression suggesting words had failed him.
“Then what about your time? Your ten years?”
“It was never there to begin with.”
While they welcomed spring ten times, I had not welcomed even a single spring.
Should I call this fortunate? Should I say it was fortunate that everything you endured in the Abyss amounted to so little time?
When there is too much to say, one becomes unable to say anything at all. Berik’s nose twitched slightly as he sniffled.
“…Is it really you, Ian?”
“I think you’re asking rather late, Berik.”
“Damn, it is you. Listening to you speak, it’s definitely you.”
“And listening to you, it’s definitely you too, Berik. To be honest, it feels a bit unfamiliar.”
“…It doesn’t feel unfamiliar to me.”
“Is that so? That’s a relief.”
“A relief…”
Berik wiped his reddened eyes roughly and muttered curses. A relief? What relief is that? Don’t you understand what it means that even after ten years, you’re not unfamiliar? Damn troublesome master.
“This is really damn frustrating. Insane.”
“Oh, time really has passed. I even get to see Berik crying like a child.”
“Shut up! These aren’t tears, you hear? It’s just snot!”
“Sure, sure. Is everyone doing well?”
“Doing well? Everything’s a mess!”
Ian furrowed his brow and asked what had happened.
He had anticipated there would be changes. First, the existence known as Ian Hielo had vanished from the imperial palace without resolving the upheaval he caused, and like himself, Rutherford must have left a void as well. He could not even begin to guess how the situation between Burgos and Bariel had become entangled.
However, he believed that the situation was not as unfavorable to Bariel as Berik’s description of “a mess” would suggest.
“The Ministry of Magic collapsed. Everyone left the imperial palace, the remaining mages are split between north and south, and Romandro is handling all the work alone. Oh, Romandro’s daughter is ten years old? Her name is Vivi… ah, right. I saw your younger brother recently too, and he’s grown up quite a bit.”
“…My sister?”
“Roel. Looks just like you.”
“Ah. And Prince Jin?”
“…He’s doing well. His coming-of-age ceremony is coming up soon.”
“Oh my, what a world.”
Ian showed genuine interest for the first time, bursting into laughter. That small child was approaching his coming-of-age ceremony! He had taken a step forward to a place even I had yet to reach, standing there with such composure.
As Ian smiled brightly, Berik narrowed his eyes and muttered.
“That’s ridiculous. You don’t even know what’s going on inside people.”
“So you do have feelings after all. I never knew.”
“…What are you talking about.”
“So, Berik. How did you end up here?”
“I was trying to go to Tooluun. Got lost on the way.”
“…Nothing’s changed about you.”
“Who are you talking about!”
Tooluun. There was no reason for Berik to head there alone, so I could infer he was carrying out orders from the Imperial Palace. Rutherford must have awakened somewhere in Gaia as well. Perhaps it was all connected to that incident?
Berik stared at Ian, who was lost in thought, then tilted his head back and grumbled.
“Yeah. So what if time stopped for a bit. Think of it as living ten more years than everyone else—that’s a gain, right? Well, it worked out. You’re back, so that’s what matters. Hey! But this is ridiculous. What the hell are you doing here like this?”
“I have no mana. I used it all up in the Abyss.”
“What? You’re full of surprises.”
Grrrrowl.
Berik’s eyes widened as he looked at Ian. Wait, what was that sound? It didn’t come from my stomach…
“….”
Ian spoke calmly and seriously.
“…I’m hungry.”
“What? You haven’t eaten!?”
“I was imprisoned.”
“Damn it! You weren’t fed!? Unbelievable!”
Bang! Crash!
An infuriated Berik bolted out the door in an instant, then came rushing back just as quickly. As if he’d forgotten something terribly important.
He extended his hand to Ian, who was sitting down.
“Let’s go. Get up.”

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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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