Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 534

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Chapter 533
The Gift from Ruswena
Unlike the grand banquet hall, the Magic Department was quiet. In preparation for Ruswena’s unexpected visit, only two mages remained on duty.
Captain Akorella and her subordinate had spread out a mat in the back garden, enjoying the brightening sky. It was a masterpiece they had created themselves, and it was truly worth seeing.
Akorella flopped backward and muttered to herself.
“Here I am stuck waiting on such a beautiful day. Damn it. I need to get back to my experiments properly.”
“There’s nothing we can do about it. Since we don’t know when Ruswena will arrive, someone of captain rank needs to wait and greet them in Ian’s stead.”
“Will you stay here? I’m going to pop into the office for a bit.”
“That won’t do. If you leave your post, Ian will hear about it. You’re going to run experiments, aren’t you? Once you get started, you lose track of day and night. Can you really maintain the white nights?”
“You brat, who’s the superior here?”
“You are, Captain Akorella.”
“Right. You know it well. Even if you have no manners.”
Akorella tugged at her hair and rolled around on the mat. She wanted to give up, but could she really do as she pleased? There were mana stones affected by day and night or weather, and experiments she’d miss forever if she didn’t seize today swirled in her mind.
Damn Ruswena. What are they doing to drag out time like this, seriously!
“Those bastards. Maybe I’ll catch them right before they fall and break their necks.”
“If you want to write an incident report, I won’t stop you. But I want to make it clear that I take no responsibility.”
“Ugh, this won’t do. Go move the equipment from the lab over here.”
“Huh? What’s that?”
Just as Akorella was about to list the errands on her fingers, the mage suddenly stood up and looked at the sky. Akorella, not about to be fooled, narrowed her eyes and struck the mage’s calf with her fist.
“Don’t change the subject—hurry! The second shelf of that cabinet and the frozen Luron crystals below it. Saitomarch, Galen, and—”
“Captain, they’re here!”
“What!”
“Ruswena!”
They’d only arrive just before the portal closed, so what nonsense was this? Tsk, if I fall for it, I lose. But the acting was good enough to let slide. Akorella turned her gaze suspiciously, then stood up abruptly and froze.
“That is…”
“C-c-captain. Should we fetch Ian?”
“What the hell!”
What emerged slowly from the black moon was not a carriage, but a ‘living creature’.
A sleek, angular snout and horns of coral hue rising from its brow.
A body covered in crimson scales and wings spreading from its back.
“Is it a monster?”
“…It’s a dragon.”
Whoooosh!
The dragon, now fully visible, spread its wings wide and soared upward. Akorella immediately noticed the chain-like restraint around its neck, and then realized its end was connected to the carriage.
Where a horse should have been, there was a dragon.
“Captain!”
“Damn it, let’s go!”
Zing!
Their first task was to safely catch the falling carriage. The two took positions to launch themselves skyward, but soon realized it was pointless.
The carriage’s balance in the sky remained as steady as on the ground. There was a mage among the Ruswena delegation besides them.
Screeeech!
“Ah, yes, yes it is. Yes indeed…”
“Quiet, you fool! Stop making a fuss.”
As the Mage pressed close behind me, muttering nervously, I rebuked him.
The carriages descended smoothly as if following an invisible road, and the dragon folded its wings calmly. Up close, it was nearly the size of a house, radiating an overwhelming presence.
Screeeeak.
“Are there so few Mages in Bariel?”
“Welcome. I am Captain Akorella of the Magic Department. A banquet is currently underway, so the welcoming party is small. We appreciate your understanding.”
This was the man Eldetr had sent as his representative. Gaunt frame, murky eyes. Setting aside his late arrival and attitude, what bothered me most was—
‘That pathetic mustache. Damn it.’
It was a mustache of such bizarre shape I wondered how he’d even managed to grow it that way. I fixed my gaze on his mustache and asked.
“By the way, what is that dragon?”
“Ah, don’t be too startled! It’s a coronation gift from His Highness Eldetr for His Highness Prince Gin! Hahahaha! Since Bariel doesn’t have a single dragon, he selected a rare and sturdy one to send.”
Thwack!
The man laughed boisterously as he struck the dragon’s head roughly for show.
Treating a spiritual creature so carelessly? It was genuinely dangerous, and my subordinate Mage flinched, but the dragon, tamed through captivity, merely snorted a few times without any other reaction.
“What do you think? Surely this is your first time seeing one.”
He looked at me expectantly, wanting some grand expression of admiration, but I simply crossed my arms in silence.
The Mage sensed something was amiss. He hastily activated a communication spell and whispered urgently while tugging at my sleeve.
“Captain. Please bear with it. Just bear with—”
“I just introduced myself as Captain Akorella of the Magic Department.”
“Huh? Yes. I heard it well.”
Pop. Veins bulged at my temples.
“Does Ruswena not have a culture of proper introductions?”
“W-what did you say?”
The Mage squeezed his eyes shut in terror. My eyes, already half-crazed on a normal day, were now gleaming with madness. All reason seemed to have fled far away.
“I introduced my affiliation and name, yet I receive no response in kind. I was beginning to wonder if you truly came from Ruswena.”
Whoooosh.
If you weren’t a guest, you’d be an intruder in the imperial palace—subject to summary execution. As I radiated a murderous aura and conjured spheres of mana in both hands, the man stumbled backward.
“R-Ruswena Envoy Representative Lepin, at your service.”
“So you are a guest after all. I believe there was a Mage among you?”
“Y-yes! One!”
Why does he keep giving short answers and acting foolish? As I furrowed my brow sharply, Lepin brought someone forward—a rather young boy. Likely a newly discovered Mage from Ruswena after the war. He’d probably been brought along to advertise that Ruswena possessed magical forces in warfare.
I nodded and issued my command.
“The Mage must equip a mana-sealing stone. Only then will I permit entry into the palace.”
“This way, please.”
“Lord Lepin.”
“Yes. Come along! Quickly now!”
The Mage led the boy toward the Magic Department headquarters, and I turned back to regard the dragon with continued displeasure. A sigh escaped me.
Sigh.
“It’s the most beautiful dragon in Ruswena. We’re lending it to you for ten years at no cost, so during that time, Bariel will have the opportunity to develop research and understanding of dragons. This is a value that cannot be measured in gold, so Prince Eldetr is essentially gifting Bariel a future.”
The moment Captain Akorella heard those words, she glared at Lepin. These Ruswena bastards had always been masters at playing tricks with gifts.
‘Where am I supposed to keep this thing?’
Unlike Ruswena, which had hatcheries and breeding grounds, Bariel had no facilities whatsoever for dragons. Was it just the facilities that were a problem? There was no knowledge or experience in management and breeding either. This wasn’t going to cost pocket change, and with war looming, when exactly would they build the necessary facilities, and who would they entrust to oversee it?
‘And it’s only ten years, not indefinitely. Once we invest and get things established, they’ll take it back and leave us in a hopeless situation. What if something goes wrong in the meantime and the beast dies? It could become a diplomatic issue, or even an international one. Damn it all.’
They were spouting flowery words about the most beautiful dragon this and that, but when inspected later, it would surely have health problems. And above all, after everything she’d suffered because of dragon scales, this was just—
“Ahem. Should we head straight to the banquet hall?”
Curses rose all the way to her throat, but Captain Akorella barely suppressed them through superhuman restraint. You bastard, do you know who’s waiting at that banquet hall? You’re dead now.
“Yes. Let’s go. We’ll wait a moment for your mages to arrive.”
Captain Akorella gestured for them to prepare, and Lepin and the Ruswena attendants climbed back into the carriage.
The dragon, still blinking without understanding what was happening, scratched its snout with its front legs.
* * *
“Ian. We just received a summons. The Ruswena delegation has arrived.”
“Who received them?”
“Captain Akorella.”
“Understood. Guide them here immediately. Prepare everything.”
“Yes. But… the summons signal was rather strange.”
Ian, who had been carefully observing every corner of the banquet hall, raised an eyebrow. Their early arrival was already suspicious, but if the summons signal was abnormal, it meant there had been a problem from the very beginning.
Ian nodded in acknowledgment and ordered the mages to prepare. Then, without moving, I continued watching Shatima, who was facing Jin—or rather, the Hawan side.
“…Therefore, I offer my sincere congratulations once more.”
“Yes. Tell the King of Hawan that I wish for his swift recovery. And tell him that the Central Kingdom also has many excellent doctors.”
“…I shall convey your words as you have spoken them.”
“You may withdraw.”
At Prince Jin’s command to end the audience, Shatima bowed her head and stepped backward. Attendants approached to hold the hem of her dress, and among them was the woman who had entered with Ian. Shatima noticed her return and gave her a subtle look—a gaze that seemed reproachful yet tinged with irritation.
At this, Romandro met Ian’s eyes and asked.
“That woman from earlier? Does she concern you?”
Ian nodded while sipping his drink.
After the audience ended, Shatima left the banquet hall under the pretense of adjusting her dress, and I signaled the mages with a gesture before following her.
Creak.
Thud!
The waiting room provided for the distinguished guest locked firmly shut. Shatima confirmed no one was inside and let out a low growl.
“I told you not to act foolishly.”
“My apologies. The investigation unit building isn’t far from here, so I went there briefly.”
“Why there?”
At Shatima’s pressing question, Erika lifted her veil and revealed her face. Her discomfort was evident.
“Before, when I went down to the borderlands, I left a photograph in my old office. It’s my only family photo, so I wondered if it might still be there.”
“It couldn’t possibly be!”
It had been ten years. A palace official’s position left vacant because the mission was never completed—there was no way it would remain untouched.
“Yes. So I spent some time looking through the lost and found storage inside the building. Since the situation is what it is, no one was in the building. I was careful, so don’t worry. I apologize for causing you concern.”
“This is Bariel, not Hawan.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
Shatima exhaled a long sigh and smoothed her forehead with her long nails. Since she was in the midst of choosing the path of vengeance, it seemed best to refrain from further pressing. She waved her hand dismissively.
“Go and bring me some new jewelry.”
“Yes, understood.”
Since it was for an audience, the jewelry was extravagantly ornate. My neck and shoulders ached from the weight, so it was time to change into something lighter.
Creak.
Erika stepped outside and relayed the order to her attendants. It was the moment she turned around.
“Pardon me.”
“…!”
It was Ian.
Having sensed no presence whatsoever, Erika froze in shock. Their eyes met directly, and for a moment she wondered if her face was exposed. When she unconsciously raised her hand to feel the veil, relief finally washed over her.
“Is there something you need?”
“Ah, no.”
“You seem to be looking for something. For example—”
“Never mind.”
Erika bowed her head and hurried past Ian.
But the words that followed seized her ankle firmly.
“The corpses of Mrs. Mary or Chel, perhaps?”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————