Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 489

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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 489
The Dera Tribe’s Tunnels
“Roel, you said you lived in the Great Desert when you were young, didn’t you? Tell me about the things you saw back then. I’ve never seen a desert before.”
Vivi rolled across the grass and laid her head on Roel’s lap.
Roel, who had been reading, paused only briefly before naturally brushing away a leaf clinging to Vivi’s cheek. Then she turned her gaze back to her book and murmured.
“Golden sand. And the desert flood that Father said reminded him of Mother.”
“What’s that?”
Vivi asked curiously, but received no answer. Yet as if accustomed to this, she simply reached her hand toward the sky and pretended to grasp at clouds.
Philia and Viviana watched the scene with contentment while holding their teacups. Two girls of similar age, the same gender, with opposite personalities, yet they seemed to get along far better than expected.
“My daughter is bothering Roel. I’m sorry about that.”
“Not at all. Roel seems to like Vivi very much. I was worried she might be rude to Vivi, but my concerns were unfounded. Vivi has such a wonderful personality.”
“By the way, shall we visit the dressmaker this afternoon? You mentioned Prince Jin’s coming-of-age ceremony dress wasn’t quite right, didn’t you?”
“Yes. Since he’ll be back at work tomorrow, today would be perfect. Do you still go to the same place as before?”
“Oh, it changed long ago. So much time has passed.”
I see. Philia smiled faintly as she counted the ten years that had slipped away.
Then Roel, who had been reading, glanced toward the entrance of the mansion as if sensing something. Vivi, who had been resting her head on Roel’s lap, did the same.
“What’s wrong?”
There’s nothing there.
Just as Vivi was about to stand up in confusion, a brown horse came around the corner. A Ministry of Magic flag was planted on it. Clop, clop, clop! The rider approached the fence and pulled the horse up sharply, shouting.
Neigh!
“Lady Philia! Lady Philia, are you here? I’ve come from the Ministry of Magic! This is an urgent message from Minister Romandro! Please receive it directly!”
At that cry, Philia and Viviana exchanged bewildered glances. Didn’t Romandro usually send messages through his wife, Viviana? Philia hurriedly set down her teacup and received a slip of paper.
“Then, I’ll be going.”
Something had clearly happened at the Ministry of Magic. The fact that the rider from the palace didn’t even dismount from his horse meant it was urgent.
Viviana also approached Philia with concern, and together they checked the contents of the note.
“Oh my!”
It was Viviana who cried out first. She covered her mouth, not knowing what to do with herself. Ian Hielo was alive, and was currently returning to the capital with Berik! Viviana embraced Philia and offered her congratulations.
“Countess!”
….
“Goodness, Nersaren, come out! It’s wonderful news! Roel, your brother is alive and coming home. Ian Hielo, the Minister of Magic himself! Nersaren!”
Wow, that Ian Hielo she’d only heard about? Vivi raised both her thumbs, while Roel simply closed her book without any particular reaction.
As Viviana ran into the mansion to call Nersaren, Philia gripped the fence and her body swayed.
“Oh no, Countess! Are you all right?”
“Vivi, I’m s-sorry, but could I have a g-glass of water….”
“Just a moment! Mother! Mother!”
Philia breathed heavily and clutched her chest. The world felt like it was shaking from the shock and disbelief. Unable to stand properly, she sank down and grasped her hands without realizing it.
‘Thank you. Thank you.’
Thank you for not taking my son’s breath. Thank you for returning the meaning of my life that disappeared in an instant. Living through a child’s death was unbearably painful. From now on, it doesn’t matter what path Ian takes. I would be content to watch only his back forever. To believe in him, to rely on him, and simply to live together with that fact alone—that would be enough for me….
“Mother.”
As Roel knelt and placed her small hand on her mother’s hand, Philia lifted her head. Tears streamed down along her jawline. The child looked up at her mother and whispered quietly.
“Your gratitude is more than enough.”
“…Roel?”
“The God acts far beyond human understanding, so if we become too moved and pray fervently, we may find ourselves in difficult situations.”
I didn’t quite understand what she meant. Philia sniffled and looked at me expectantly for a clearer explanation, but I could only wipe away Mother’s tears.
Philia slowly embraced me, and I accepted her embrace willingly. Mother buried her face in my shoulder and murmured softly.
“You made the right choice coming to the capital. If you had heard this news while still in Hielo, those two weeks of travel would have felt impossibly long.”
“Yes. You must stay in the capital. If you leave, it will be difficult to see Brother.”
“Roel. What else have you seen?”
“….”
Philia gripped my shoulders and asked urgently, but I fell silent again.
Yet my gaze drifted sideways. Normally I would have said nothing more, but it was difficult to remain silent in the face of Mother’s tears.
“…Berik is truly peculiar.”
“Hmm?”
“Either way, he will do well. Let us not worry and simply wait, Mother.”
As I murmured awkwardly, Philia smiled brightly without pressing further.
Yes. Ian said he would return, and Berik would be at his side—what was there to worry about? Tears continued to flow with her expression, but Philia paid them no mind and laughed even louder.
* * *
At that very moment.
Ian watched Berik, thoroughly drunk and singing at the top of his lungs, with utter contempt. Berik clutched a hammer bent halfway in half, one foot propped on a wooden crate. Had he forgotten that very hammer had struck his head?
Around the singing Berik, Pim’s family and the Dera Tribe crowded in, clapping their hands continuously.
“The greatest warrior departs! Clear the way! If you don’t move, I’ll beat your backside until it catches fire! Whooosh!”
“Whooosh!”
“Huh. His face is a mess, but the man can sing! Hey, what did you say his name was?”
“Quiet! Who talks to someone in the middle of singing?”
“Berik, they said. Berik. This is why the world is fair, I suppose. His face is smashed, but his singing voice is incredible!”
“Ahahaha! Want another drink?”
“Yeah! Pour it! I don’t drink from cups!”
“Ohhh. Now that’s a drinker.”
That alcohol was the problem.
The Dera Tribe’s cavern lay deep underground, and flames shot up from furnaces scattered throughout—so many that one could say each individual possessed five smelting forges. The heat was intense.
From the moment we entered the cavern, Berik had been whimpering about the heat. When I offered him a drink to cool his throat, he became thoroughly intoxicated.
Pim glanced at Berik while carefully wrapping bandages around my hands.
“It’s remarkable he hasn’t passed out completely. Our alcohol has quite high proof.”
“Berik is a heavy drinker.”
“Apart from being ugly and having a terrible personality, he’s useful.”
Quite interesting. This was Berik, who had nearly been driven out after singing a single verse at Philia’s wedding. Yet they were cheering his song as pleasant to hear.
Was it because they had only ever heard the screams of Dryads and the clanging of smelting their whole lives? Or did the Dera Tribe simply have unconventional aesthetic standards? I couldn’t say.
But in any case, thanks to Berik’s loosened demeanor, the meeting with the Dera Tribe unfolded in a far softer atmosphere. Even Pim, who had been openly hostile, was humming along to that absurd harmony.
As I rotated my wrist, thoroughly soaked in medicinal herbs, other Dera Tribe members gathered around one by one to watch.
“You said you came from the Imperial Palace? Are you also from the Palace?”
“Indeed. I am Ian Hielo, Minister of Magic, and this fellow is Berik, captain of the Imperial Guards.”
Ian noticed that the Dera Tribe members playing with Berik were all on the younger side. Those seated beside Ian, including Pim, sniffed quietly in agreement.
“So, what do you think? How does it feel to enter the Dera Tribe’s tunnels?”
“Hmm….”
It felt more like a cavern than a tunnel. The ceiling stretched dozens of meters high, and ancient tree roots that had breathed for centuries served as pillars.
Scattered metal scraps formed walls throughout, though to Ian’s eye, there was almost no spatial division. Every trace suggested these people had devoted their lives to creation, as if the basic acts of eating and sleeping had been entirely abandoned.
“It’s like a treasure vault.”
“What? Ahahaha! That’s right! Exactly! This is a treasure vault! It’s full of shiny things!”
A compliment that fully respected the Dera Tribe’s pride. Pleased, they shook their bottles cheerfully. In response, *clang! clang!* The sound of hammering echoed from somewhere.
“Will you have a drink?”
“I must respectfully decline. Berik has already gotten drunk.”
Ian felt the oppressive heat and lightly tugged at his outer garment. Pim nodded in understanding.
“This environment isn’t really suitable for non-Dera Tribe members. Shall we get straight to business?”
“Good.”
“Do you really have the Drifter?”
Drifter! At Pim’s question, the Dera Tribe members’ noses twitched. Ian accepted cool water from someone and took a drink, then nodded.
“Yes, certainly. That automatic recording device you created, is it not? The one that automatically makes marks at regular intervals.”
“That’s right! How did it end up in your hands?”
“Through Lady Lien, as I’ve already explained to Pim.”
As Ian looked at Pim, Pim added to the explanation.
“A girl born between a Dryad and a human.”
“Ah? Oh! I remember now. Was it a few years ago? Twenty years ago?”
“It wasn’t quite that long, was it? You’re talking about the child who fled after abandoning her mother, right? I remember. Is she doing well? Back then, I think she went by a different name, hmm. Lien, was it. She’s obtained a very good name.”
“Of course, the lady is doing well. She’s managing the Merelrof territory.”
“What? Well, I’ve seen it all. Hehe! Back then, thanks to that girl, harvesting fruit was so easy. When there was a child around, the Dryad didn’t act savagely even without hammering.”
“Right, right. So that’s why we must have given her the Drifter as a parting gift.”
“Who was it that gave it then? We should have given something else!”
The Dera Tribe members made a cheerful commotion reminiscing about Lady Lien. Ian watched quietly, then casually asked.
“Do you need the Drifter?”
“Eh? Well, yes. It’s not so much the Drifter itself, but what we’re trying to create with it.”
What could that be? Ian looked curious, but the Dera Tribe member changed the subject, unwilling to explain. They hadn’t opened their hearts that much yet.
“It wasn’t difficult before. If we failed, we’d make another Drifter and try again, break it, make it anew. But when was it? From some point on, it became hard to source the materials we needed.”
“Is it because they’re imported from Burgos?”
“It seems that way since that country fell into chaos.”
The Dera Tribe member rested their chin and muttered seriously.
“There’s a limit to recycling and reusing. So we had just one Drifter left, and those damn bastards stole it.”
“This time, let’s not just sit idle! Let’s go find it!”
“We can’t. Going down the mountain might mean death.”
“We’re not monsters anyway. What does it matter? If they attack, let’s fight back!”
The Dera Tribe members stretched their snouts in different directions, each voicing their own opinion. There seemed to be some disagreement among them as well.
As the tension escalated, Ian raised a hand slowly, gesturing for calm.
“Unfortunately, your last Drifter has been destroyed.”
“What?”
“I recognized it because I possess one myself. It was completely obliterated, crushed together with scrap metal.”
The Dera Tribe member’s small eyes bulged in shock. With his mouth hanging open, tiny fangs peeked out timidly.
“Th-those damned bastards!”
“K-kill them-!”
Just as they all erupted in fury and reached for their hammers, Ian continued speaking calmly.
“However, if you wish, I could give you mine. And though I’m not entirely certain what it is, I believe I could also help you procure the materials for it.”
With that, he casually brought a nearby hammer into his own hands.
This weapon was powerful enough to knock Berik unconscious with merely two strikes. What if such arms were mass-produced and distributed to the Palace Guards?
“What do you say? Will you accept my Drifter?”

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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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