Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 494

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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 494
Fire. The Atan Clan’s Crossroads
A life spent wandering in search of monsters.
The Atan Clan carried only two burdens.
A blade to strip flesh from bone, and a vessel to collect blood.
Moving instinctively as they followed the scent of monsters carried on the wind, they naturally shed everything else that might encumber them.
Somewhere nearly touching the northern border of Bariel. Efdiram stretched luxuriously and greeted the refreshing morning.
“Let’s eat!”
“Looking for food the moment you wake? Excellent priorities.”
“There’s leftover meat from yesterday, right? How much is left?”
“The children nibbled on it throughout the night. About half remains.”
“I figured as much. Tell them to stop sneaking bites!”
“Words mean nothing to them. Midnight snacking tastes the best anyway. I’ll start a fire. Hey! Go gather some wood!”
At the Subordinate’s call, the clan members rose one by one and began moving. Aside from the fact that they consumed monsters, they looked no different from any other community. The problem was they had to keep chewing constantly, and they rarely felt satisfied.
“Efdiram. The predicted northern route.”
“You didn’t sleep?”
It was Beno, the Mage Knight who served as the clan’s chieftain. He offered the map without a word, and Efdiram examined it carefully while chewing dried meat.
“Burgos will make it difficult to procure monsters. I suggest we pass through the completely opened rift zone beyond the northern border of Bariel.”
“Good. Tell the others the same.”
“Yes, and—”
Whoosh.
Efdiram and Beno turned their heads simultaneously. They sensed an unfamiliar presence.
The two studied the brush carefully, then showed opposite reactions. Efdiram’s eyebrows twitched with interest, while Beno tightened his grip on his blade.
“Colt, it’s been so long I almost didn’t recognize you.”
“Your head’s still as curly as ever.”
“If it were me, I’d at least hide my presence out of courtesy.”
“We’re not the type to worry about courtesy, are we?”
“You got lost, didn’t you?”
“…No.”
“Then why are you coming from over there?”
Berik pushed through the thick branches with a grimace. Damn it. Heil had brought him right to the spot, but he’d still managed to wander a bit. Berik wiped his nose and deliberately ignored the perfectly good mountain path nearby.
The Atan Clan, noticing the arrival of an outsider, gathered behind Efdiram one by one, armed and ready.
“Anyway, let me introduce myself first.”
“What the hell. Suddenly?”
Berik showed his identification with the mana stone missing, following the first instruction Ian had given him. This was it.
‘Berik. Reveal your identity. Tell them you belong to the Imperial Palace and that you’ve come to meet the Atan Clan on the orders of Prince Jin. That’s how the negotiation begins.’
Crack!
“This is who I am. See?”
Every member of the Atan Clan, including Efdiram, stared at Berik with eyes that said ‘So what?’ They didn’t speak, but their contempt was unmistakable.
“Where did the other half of your identification go?”
“I don’t need to know. Anyway, I came on Prince Jin’s orders. Chieftain, let’s talk.”
“…So it changed from Pogle to Pagal. Hmm.”
Despite the jesting murmur, Efdiram’s eyes narrowed. So? The Prince, with his coming-of-age and coronation ceremonies, sent someone to the Atan Clan? And not just anyone—an Imperial Guard with Atan blood running through his veins?
She settled onto a rock, shrugging her shoulders at Berik with a puzzled expression.
“As you can see, we have nothing.”
“I never expected otherwise.”
“So then, why did the great Prince of the Empire send a dog? Even a stray mutt passing by would know you’re not suited for this kind of work.”
“It’s a dual purpose.”
“Ah. A dual purpose?”
There were additional orders, then.
To Efdiram’s eyes, Berik was a goldmine. Information from the palace dripped out whenever she dug carefully—that kind of goldmine. She adjusted her posture and smiled. At this cute and tactless bastard.
“So, what’s the message?”
“The Atan Clan should stop causing trouble in the north and stop interfering with the Mages’ work. Otherwise, you’ll be swept away.”
For a Prince’s message, it was remarkably crude. Berik had probably embellished it on his own.
The Atan Clan members listening from behind bristled, raising their weapons. Their eyes gleamed with a murderous intent, ready to attack at any moment.
“Ha, swept away? Are we trash? We’ll kill you!”
“Chieftain, let’s skin him and show him what we’re made of!”
“Take back those words right now and apologize! You brat!”
“Hey, you lot with your big mouths. I’ve memorized every face. After we’re done talking, we’ll see. Got it?”
Berik pointed alternately at his own eyes and the Atan Clan members with his fingers in warning.
As the atmosphere grew increasingly heated, Efdiram furrowed her brow and raised her hand. The surroundings fell silent in an instant.
“That’s not pleasant to hear.”
“You should come to the palace and hear pleasant words directly.”
“…It seems there’s a difference in perspective, but we had no intention of interfering with the Mages. We were just trying to survive. As proof, there’s been no violent conflict between your side and ours. And besides, Bariel will be away for a while anyway, so things will naturally quiet down as the palace wishes. So there’s no problem, right?”
“No. There’s one more thing. You’re going to look for Rutherford?”
“The Mages told you?”
“Don’t go. Stay with Bariel, not Burgos.”
Efdiram let out a small exclamation. It was a very brief sentence, but the information contained within it was far too certain. She laughed in disbelief, lighting a cigarette.
“Insane. So Rutherford really exists?”
She was moving to personally verify the rumors of Rutherford’s appearance. Yet here was an imperial envoy revealing the truth in this manner. Unbelievable.
Efdiram flicked her cigarette-holding fingers in reproach toward Berik.
“If I were your superior, I’d have your eyes gouged out right now. Understand?”
“Yeah, go ahead. My boss doesn’t do that kind of thing.”
Berik scratched his ear and let it go in one ear and out the other. Then he recalled Ian’s second instruction.
‘If time hasn’t faded her, Efdiram is a sharp one. It won’t be easy to gain control of the conversation or extract information. Instead, she tends to interpret things quite arbitrarily. We just need to let information slip.’
‘So you’re telling me Rutherford is in Burgos?’
‘No need to tell her. As the conversation progresses, she’ll figure it out naturally on her own.’
‘But is it okay if she knows? Wouldn’t it be better if she didn’t know, so she’d be more inclined to side with us?’
‘Not necessarily. It’s information that will lose value as time passes anyway. And Rutherford means a great deal to the Atan Clan.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Many years have passed, and now it’s far more than just a friendly relationship.’
Snap!
Efdiram flicked her finger against Berik’s forehead, telling him to focus. She had just hardened her resolve through their conversation.
“Listen, if Rutherford has truly returned, there’s absolutely no reason for him to stay in Bariel. Not for a single moment.”
“Why?”
“You’re asking because you don’t know?”
First.
Bariel sought to completely seal off the Rift, while Rutherford aimed to activate it. As the Atan Clan, whose livelihood depended on the monsters emerging from the Rift’s cracks, wasn’t it only natural that they would seek out Rutherford?
And second.
Idgal had kept Bariel in check—specifically, the Bariel Mages—to maintain a balance of power. But now that the Mages were half-destroyed, his original purpose had vanished, and Idgal was currently being used to stabilize the Rift.
I needed to confirm whether Rutherford’s objective still aligned with Rift activation, and if not….
‘I would have no choice but to kill Rutherford, the source of Idgal.’
What mattered was what Rutherford was thinking and how he would act going forward. To confirm that, a direct confrontation was best.
“What about Bariel’s monster disposal unit or whatever?”
“Kill them. Live off the scraps the Empire throws at us like livestock? Hunting and combat are our identity.”
“We could even give you the northern territories.”
“On the condition of belonging to Bariel.”
“Doesn’t interest you, I see.”
“Times have changed greatly since before. Ever since the Cliffford Rift was created, those who’ve awakened to Atan blood have increased exponentially. Do you know what that means?”
Efdiram tapped ash from her cigarette and studied Berik, particularly the black sword at his side. A blade that summoned monsters, a sword that any Atan would inevitably encounter one day.
The very fact that he wielded it proved he was Atan himself, so how could he live as livestock trapped in the Imperial Palace?
“The Rift is the power and source of the Atan. Build a fence and yes, we can eat safely. But we cannot grow. You’ll understand soon enough.”
“So, you’re ultimately joining Rutherford?”
“Not immediately. If Bariel shows positivity toward Rift expansion, I’ll reconsider.”
“You’re talking nonsense.”
‘The Atan must unconditionally meet Rutherford, and there’s no stopping that. So what matters is pulling the situation to our side when they meet. Berik, this is where the real game begins.’
Berik rose, recalling Ian’s warning. As his demeanor made it clear he was finished, the Atan Clan parted left and right to open a path.
“Anyway, I’ll relay it then. We’re abandoning Bariel and joining Burgos.”
“The Atan’s objective isn’t Bariel’s downfall, but Rift activation. I hope you understand that precisely.”
“That’s the same thing, you fool. I said it clearly. From this moment on, we’re each going our own way. Do you understand?”
As Berik relaxed his shoulders, Efdiram sent him a suspicious glance. This madman didn’t understand nuance. His attitude of dividing relationships so sharply into black and white, like a diplomat would never do, left her uncertain whether it was intentional or not, given that Berik was the one doing it.
At that moment, Berik grasped the black sword and released his magical power.
Zing! Zing!
“…You!”
“What? This is my duty too.”
It was a manifestation of his resolve—that he could not let anyone threatening Bariel leave alive. At the overwhelming killing intent, Efdiram, Beno, and the Atan Clan simultaneously drew their blades.
“Idiot! Do you want to die?”
“No! I want to kill!”
Whoooosh!
No matter how elite the Imperial Guards were, Berik had no chance of winning here. Efdiram was a seasoned Mage, and there were several Mage Knights including Beno. Though their skills were still rough.
In any case, Berik’s actions were the epitome of foolishness.
Boom! Bang!
‘Beyond mere hostility, I need evidence that they threatened Bariel. Prince Jin has likely prepared separate justifications for war, but the more pretexts we have, the better. If the Atan Clan enters Burgos, Bariel can also step into Burgos. We gain a powerful justification—pursuing threats to Bariel.’
‘What if Burgos refuses?’
‘Then it’s war. And suppose Burgos accepts and Bariel’s forces enter. Since the royalists are allied with Bariel, they’ll be pleased to gain military strength. So then, which faction would be displeased?’
‘The opposition. The anti-royalists.’
‘Exactly. So who are the anti-royalists allied with?’
‘Oh, Rutherford?’
‘Precisely. Therefore, Rutherford will find bearing the Atan Clan burdensome, and naturally their interests will become misaligned. For the Atan Clan, entering Burgos is as good as losing their strength. When that happens, a moment will come when they want to negotiate with Bariel again.’
‘So, what do I need to do?’
‘Berik, you’re an Imperial Guard and a diplomatic envoy dispatched directly by the Prince, so you represent Bariel. Now, if we want to establish an adversarial relationship between the Atan Clan and Bariel, what should you do?’
‘I don’t know. Fight?’
‘Exactly. Well done.’
I patted Berik’s shoulder and laughed.
‘Go to the Atan Clan and have a good brawl, then slip away at an opportune moment. The Mages will be waiting nearby with a perimeter drawn. Once the Mages are involved, it becomes an unavoidable conflict, so the Atan Clan won’t pursue you to the end and will turn back, leaving Bariel.’
‘Ah, so I should get beaten up and come back?’
‘Just don’t get hurt too badly.’
Berik chuckled, recalling my instructions. This is my specialty! His sword traced a massive arc through the air, and soon a tremendous explosion erupted.
Crash!
Boom!
‘Ian! Damn, I’m doing pretty well!’

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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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