Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 486

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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 486
News
Knock, knock.
“Your Highness.”
At Xiaoxi’s call, Jin turned his head while continuing to fasten his buttons without pause.
Rather than asking what the matter was, Jin nodded as if to say he could proceed with his report. The thick stack of documents in Xiaoxi’s hands suggested that today’s council agenda was unusually packed.
Truly peculiar. The council convened almost daily, yet there was always so much to handle. Jin’s gaze shifted back to the mirror before him.
“Is that the extent of it, excluding my father’s state funeral?”
“Yes, Your Highness. Regarding the state funeral, the officials have reached a consensus without significant objection. The general agreement is to follow precedent but minimize the scale in consideration of Your Highness’s coming-of-age ceremony and coronation.”
“I’m so grateful for their consideration of the imperial treasury that I could weep.”
At Jin’s cynical murmur, Xiaoxi paused momentarily.
The imperial palace budget allocated for the coming-of-age ceremony was substantial. Now that the Emperor had passed, Jin’s coronation would also need to be held in succession. With so many state events scheduled this year, they were proposing to reduce the scale of the state funeral.
The justification was sound. Yet beneath the surface, it was an act that diminished the dignity of imperial authority.
The Emperor had truly ruled an era. Though his presence had faded during the past decade of apparent inactivity, was he not the Emperor who had governed Bariel for over half a century?
“Your Highness, if this troubles you, I can bring the matter before the council again.”
For Jin, who would ascend to the imperial throne, holding a modest funeral for such an Emperor was an unpleasant matter.
But such was the law of the imperial palace—give on one front, gain on another. Jin shook his head.
“It is settled. The public sentiment is not particularly heated either, so this approach serves us well in many ways.”
The Prime Minister, Jairot, Ian, and Jin—only these four had an audience with the Emperor in the past decade. If even the officials working in the imperial palace found little meaning in his death, what of the citizens? They might grow weary of the successive state ceremonies.
‘By using the coming-of-age ceremony as justification for reducing the state funeral, they will have nothing to say regarding the coronation and subsequent decisions.’
With this matter settled, they would have no say in the various imperial events Jin would oversee henceforth.
They had preserved the imperial treasury by minimizing the Emperor’s funeral, yet if they now objected to imperial decisions due to budget constraints, would this not suggest fault lay with each ministry?
It was grounds for budget cuts. Any department wishing to avoid cuts could not raise significant objections to any decision Jin made going forward.
“Very well. If that’s all aside from the funeral arrangements, I won’t be eating on time today either. Proceed with your report.”
“I shall report in the order the matters arrived.”
As Jin snapped his fingers, servants waiting in the corner approached to complete the Prince’s preparations.
Leaning against the sofa’s backrest, Jin suddenly turned his head toward the bright sunlight pouring through the window. The weather seemed particularly fine today.
The curtains closed.
“First, doctors have gone up to King Damon’s tower.”
“It’s been a while since that happened. What wind has blown to stir up that trouble again? There’s no danger to his life?”
Jin’s brow furrowed instantly as the sunlight faded from his face. The first agenda item was proving most unpleasant.
King Damon Runkvis, imprisoned as a war prisoner from the Cliffford-Burgos conflict. With Burgos in chaos from internal strife and lacking a leader of legitimate succession, Damon could still be considered the true King of Burgos.
“There is no danger to his life.”
“He should know by now that his survival only burdens Burgos. In any case, tsk.”
Count Ian’s hint that Damon Runkvis was living a second life and seeking a third through death held considerable credibility. Damon, brimming with confidence and hope, had attempted to end his own life nearly every day.
‘Regardless of the truth, a prisoner struggling to break through the situation is unseemly.’
Jin tilted his head back again and murmured.
“Soon, as Bariel undergoes change, Burgos will respond in kind. Whether royalists or anti-royalists gain ascendancy, I will cast Damon into the heart of that storm. Ensure his life remains unharmed under all circumstances.”
A king with legitimate succession, connected to Rutherford, captured by an enemy nation even as he lost in war, yet survived.
Damon’s complex identity would sow confusion indiscriminately. Bariel would use that chaos as a shield, advance forward, and easily enter Burgos.
At Jin’s command, Xiaoxi placed a hand over his chest in ready acceptance.
“And then….”
Knock, knock.
Xiaoxi, about to hand over the documents, turned toward the door where the sound had come from.
“Steward Romandro of the Magic Department requests an audience.”
“Romandro?”
Why would someone he was about to see at the grand council come all the way here? Jin sensed immediately that something had happened.
At his gesture to bring him in, the door swung open, and Jin found himself facing Romandro, whose expression was grave.
“Your Highness.”
“Yes. What is the matter?”
It was clearly a problem—one that couldn’t be discussed at the grand council, Jin surmised. A matter concerning the Magic Department.
Always and without exception, anything related to magic troubled me. Even as the Prince, as a mere mortal without magical ability, it was a realm of mystery I simply couldn’t manage.
“A separate message has come from Zaira.”
“Zaira? From Cliffford?”
A mage originally from Ruswena, now naturalized in Bariel and currently containing the Cliffford Rift. Though young, she was renowned as more talented than anyone else in the Magic Department. I recalled her without difficulty.
“Is it the regular rift report? It seems to have arrived a bit earlier than usual.”
“No, Your Highness. It states that it cannot be transmitted officially and is being submitted as confidential. She notes it will not be included in the regular report. Given the nature of the matter, it would be best if you reviewed it directly.”
Swish.
Romandro handed me a crumpled piece of paper. I dismissed the servants and gestured for Xiaoxi and Romandro to sit closer.
-An inexplicable change has occurred in the rift. Comparing it to when I first arrived at Cliffford ten years ago, the magical power leaking from the rift had been steadily decreasing. While absorbing and regulating that power with Idgal was a major factor, some mages judged it a natural phenomenon occurring as earthquakes subsided—all things have beginnings and ends. There were cases where it maintained a certain level, but increases were rare. However…
Rustle.
Concern clouded my eyes. From the context, I could guess what Zaira was trying to say.
-These past few days, the rift has been behaving abnormally. Magical power is surging explosively. The Idgal we currently possess and manage cannot handle it. Something seems to be happening beneath the rift, but as those of us on the surface, our research has limitations. If this proves meaningless, it would be fortunate, but if it proves significant, we cannot help but anticipate a “Third-Tier Rift.”
The “First-Tier Rift” referred to the great demon beast in the north, the “Second-Tier” to Cliffford. And the “Third-Tier Rift” meant the next—a future that would come someday.
-I cannot be certain, but the Third-Tier is most likely to occur at the midpoint connecting the First and Second-Tiers in a straight line. If the rifts below are connected, it would be even more so, and even if they are separate, magical power has the property of combining with like forces.
I gazed at the massive map of Bariel hanging on the wall.
The demon beast territory in the northwest.
And Cliffford’s capital in the southeast, Prodona.
I stood abruptly and traced a straight line connecting the two endpoints.
‘All places along that line belong to Bariel. And the midpoint of that line is—’
“Mount Raza, Your Highness.”
Romandro, as if he had already anticipated this, spoke after clearing his throat.
Mount Raza. A mountain standing prominently in the west, not far from the capital. Zaira was now warning that the next rift could occur in Bariel itself.
“….”
I pressed my forehead and fell silent for a moment. This was truly a troubling matter. With mages already divided between north and south, a rift in Bariel itself?
If a region not at some distant border but close to the capital were to be devastated, it would create grave problems for Bariel’s national strength.
“Your Highness, would it not be wise to dispatch mages to investigate the vicinity of Mount Raza?”
“You know better than anyone, Romandro, that we lack such personnel. Are you suggesting I send even those responsible for the palace gates?”
“Nevertheless, now that we are aware of the danger, we cannot ignore it. Otherwise, we would have no choice but to call upon the mages from the north or south….”
Either way, it was not a situation from which they could easily withdraw. The north required a clear defensive line due to the considerable scale of the demon beasts, and the south was politically entangled with Cliffford.
Xiaoxi, who had been quietly contemplating, finally offered his opinion.
“Your Highness. I believe it would be better to summon the northern mages rather than those from the south. The Atan Clan are devourer of magical beasts. While they cannot control the rift’s magical power itself, they are certainly capable of holding back the surging magical beasts. Would it not be wise to persuade them and utilize them appropriately?”
“Persuasion is not easy. If it were possible, Captain Heil would have had no need to venture north.”
Moreover, Efdiram, their chieftain, was a woman of grand vision. Rather than consuming the magical beasts before her eyes, she valued widening the rift itself to secure her people’s future. This was precisely why she had sided with Burgos in the Cliffford-Burgos war. And above all, her nature was as raw as the untamed wilderness, making it difficult to align with the Empire’s intentions.
“The Atan Clan hopes for the rift in Cliffford to activate as well. But if it happens in Bariel too, it would be the greatest fortune for them. If Captain Heil, who has been holding the line, withdraws to Bariel, there is a high chance Efdiram will notice. She is no ordinary woman, is she?”
The Atan Clan had flatly rejected Bariel’s proposal to manage the northern magical beast territory. They argued that surviving in a limited area with only limited food sources was no different from being livestock. This stance was identical to what it had been when Ian was present.
‘…If Count Ian were still here—’
Ten years ago, the Atan Clan had come to the imperial palace at Ian’s summons. Had they participated in negotiations then, the situation might have unfolded differently.
Jin shook his head, dismissing the pointless hypothetical. Regardless, Count Ian was not here now, and it was he who led Bariel. He needed to focus his mind.
“Let us observe for a time whether this change holds significance. Tell Zaira to send me reports daily.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“And I must send word to Berik. Sia.”
“I shall prepare it.”
Berik’s mission to meet with the Atan Clan had become even more critical.
As Xiaoxi rose from his seat, Romandro asked a question.
“Has there been no report from Berik yet?”
“No word. He may be too preoccupied with his constant riding.”
“Ah, well, that would be fortunate at least. But still, I confess I am somewhat worried. Your Highness, if you would be so kind, should you receive any word from Berik, I would be grateful for any news.”
Normally, reports would have come through Captain Jairot of the Imperial Guards, but this mission had been directly commanded by the Prince himself. Thus, Berik’s messenger bird would arrive first to Jin. Just as Jin was about to reassure him—
Tap. Tap-tap-tap. Tap.
A small, scratching sound echoed through the room. What was that? When Jin turned his head, he saw an old, small pigeon struggling to peck at the window.
Somehow it looked broken, its condition utterly disheveled. The pigeon pecked at the window with its beak, and when its eyes met Jin’s, it twisted its head left and right frantically.
Then something glimmered in the sunlight—Berik’s magical stone, wound around its neck. Jin smiled faintly.
Coo?
“…It is Berik after all. Speak of the devil.”
“My, why is it in such a state? Even when he rescues messenger birds, he always rescues ones like this.”
“Your Highness, I shall bring it in.”
As Xiaoxi opened the window, the old pigeon waddled inside.

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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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