Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 630

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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 629. There Is a Mage in Toollun
“Fire! Fire!”
“The Janai Market is burning! Bring water!”
“What in the world is happening in the middle of the night?”
“I don’t know! Bring all the sand we have!”
The Janai Market, which fell into silence once the sun set and merchants departed for the day, now had its dilapidated building engulfed in fierce flames. The pitch-black night suddenly blazed with light.
Residents from the surrounding area rushed over, carrying buckets of water and sandbags, while firefighters dragged long hoses across the Janai Market.
“Hurry! Quickly!”
“The fire mustn’t spread to other buildings!”
“Move aside! Everyone, move aside!”
Neigh!
A carriage bearing the Toollun royal flag pushed through the crowd of people moving about in frantic haste. A woman descended from within and gazed quietly up at the three-story building burning fiercely.
“It’s the Sorcerer!”
“We’re saved! Everyone, fall back!”
The woman in an ochre uniform with her hair tied back neatly brought her hands together, and between them, fluffy blue luminescent particles formed.
Splash.
A single drop of cold water flowing from her fingertips. From there, a massive mermaid-shaped spirit emerged and wrapped itself around the building. Thick smoke rose wherever the fierce flames met the spirit’s touch.
Whoooosh!
The Sorcerer clenched her teeth, and feeling her resolve, the mermaid spirit sacrificed itself to completely smother the building. In an instant, the flames subsided. Only charred marks, wet floors, and the acrid stench of smoke remained.
“Th-thank you so much! You truly are a great Sorcerer.”
“Remarkable, indeed. Truly remarkable!”
The crowd cheered and applauded, but she only frowned and turned away. She had sensed a subtle magical aura emanating from the fire.
“Fire Chief.”
“Yes, Vanusa. I’ll have the remaining embers extinguished.”
“No, before that—”
“Vanusa!”
As she was about to instruct the Fire Chief on cleanup, the Temporary Guard Captain called her name from a distance and approached. He looked haggard and disheveled. Though he had grown up in Toollun and experienced all manner of troubles, tonight had been far too chaotic and exhausting for them all.
“You’re the Temporary Guard Captain?”
“Yes. We’ve just received a report that appears connected to the building fire. We’re requesting your confirmation. You there!”
At the Temporary Guard Captain’s gesture, his subordinates dragged a boy forward. He appeared ordinary at first glance, but what he said was nothing short of astonishing.
“So the basement of the building was a hideout for the Cutoff Ears?”
“Yes. If you excavate the ruins, you’ll certainly find bodies. And the one who dealt with them and set the fire was Philia’s Son.”
“Philia?”
Vanusa’s brow furrowed at the unfamiliar name. The Temporary Guard Captain then whispered quietly.
“It’s a matter related to the Royal Palace, Vanusa. She’s a woman being brought from the Bariel Empire, but things became complicated when she got entangled with those Cutoff Ears.”
“Was her son involved as well?”
“No. I’m not certain of the details, but I’ve heard that the woman’s son is the Minister of Magic of the Bariel Empire.”
The Minister of Magic? Vanusa’s eyes widened slightly as she looked down at the young boy. It was clear the Royal Palace had been scheming something. If one assumed the Minister of Magic had become entangled in the process, the magical aura she sensed in the fire became explicable.
‘Unfortunately, I’ve learned far too much.’
That the Royal Palace had attempted to kidnap the Minister of Magic’s mother, that a mage from the Bariel Empire was here in Toollun, and so on.
Vanusa stroked the boy’s head, then gave a meaningful glance to the Captain of the Guard. It was an instruction to gather the information and handle it as he saw fit. The Captain hesitated for a moment before nodding in acknowledgment with a salute.
The situation was far from ordinary. The previous supervisor had died, and a massive fire had broken out. It was certain that the Royal Palace was in turmoil.
“…Take him away now.”
As the Captain of the Guard led the boy away, Vanusa dried her wet hands with a handkerchief and spoke.
“Summon the Sorcerers. I will convene an emergency meeting. Captain of the Guard and Fire Chief, I will inform you of the results once the meeting concludes, so remain at the scene until then.”
“An, an emergency meeting, you say?”
“This is no ordinary fire. There is magical energy present, so we must suspect that Bariel sent a Mage to rescue the woman. I do not yet know if they remain in Toollun, but if they do—”
Vanusa’s eyes reflected the charred ashes as they were.
“The Border Guard Commander must prepare thoroughly.”
“Ah, yes! Understood!”
“Then, I shall go inside first.”
Snap!
Both commanders saluted behind Vanusa as she departed. Ever since hearing news of the war between Bariel and Burgos, she had worried that Toollun’s ordinary days might be shattered….
‘They already have been.’
A Bariel Mage in Toollun. If so, there was a high possibility that the death of the previous Guard Captain was connected. Vanusa boarded the carriage and opened her palm to summon her small spirit.
Whoosh!
The mermaid that had been massive enough to coil around the building vanished, and instead a tiny creature small enough to swim across her palm swished its tail. It had weakened from directly facing the flames.
For a Sorcerer, a spirit is family and friend to share one’s life with. Should it perish, her abilities would disappear as well.
“I’m sorry. You’ve worked hard.”
Vanusa carefully stroked the mermaid, then gazed out the window. What on earth was the Royal Palace plotting?
If it were revealed that none other than the Minister of Magic’s mother had been kidnapped and brought to Toollun, this would be an unavoidable war. Moreover, it would hand them a justification on a silver platter, leaving them unable to gain any support from neighboring nations—a lonely war indeed.
“Damn it.”
In Toollun, there existed a family that wielded the four elements. While there were many Sorcerers in total, the foundation among them was Vanusa’s own house. Whenever problems arose throughout Toollun, they were always the first to step forward and resolve them, just as now.
Yet a Puppeteer who was of no help to the nation held power, and it was a sight to behold.
‘The Royal Palace will soon realize it too.’
Through Marni’s testimony and the Captain’s report, they would become aware of the Bariel Mages’ presence. Once that happened, the Sorcerers would be summoned immediately.
In the end, there was no choice but to gather among themselves first, grasp the situation, and devise a countermeasure.
“Make haste. Before the night ends.”
“Yes, understood.”
At Vanusa’s urging, the Coachman cracked his whip sharply. The farther they moved from Toollun’s center, the deeper the quiet night became.
* * *
Click!
Heil closed the window and looked both ways. The street was empty, and the streetlamps on the road they occupied were dark.
Confirming there were no problems, Heil drew the curtains and lit a candle.
Crackle.
“My goodness, Barsabe?”
“Philia. I’m relieved to see you’re safe.”
“Wh, what’s happened? Why do your eyes look like that?”
“It’s nothing. I covered them for certain reasons. Please, sit here. Are you hungry, perhaps?”
An unpleasant odor clung to Philia’s clothes. Even if she had been treated as premium goods, the environment was incomparably worse than her daily life. Heil cut up fruit and bread that the hotel had prepared in advance and offered them to her.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No, thanks to you. Ian arrived at just the right moment.”
“Ian. To be honest, I’m a bit surprised. I didn’t think you’d find her so quickly.”
I removed my blood-stained leather gloves and tossed them onto the table. Berik seemed to have his eye on Philia’s food, but he patiently sat beside her, merely watching.
“Right. I went looking, but I didn’t see any pale blue fabric. However, I spotted a man hurrying through the darkness. When I pursued him, it turned out he was one of the thieves who’d heard about the fighting pit. Lucky break.”
Philia tore off a piece of bread and handed it to Berik, who sprawled across the sofa and munched away contentedly. A meal after finishing the job—absolutely delicious.
“So now we can head back, right? The Magic Department folks will be thrilled. They made such a fuss worrying about you, Ian.”
I had achieved the primary objective. I had rescued Philia.
More importantly, she needed to return to Bariel quickly and make contact with Nersaren. If she delayed even slightly, Cheonrye could be left vulnerable during the war against Hawan, Ruswena, and Cliffford.
“I think it would be best if we moved together to Burgos first, then sent Philia to Bariel.”
Heil said this while glancing at Barsabe. If we withdrew now, we’d lose the intelligence about the royal palace. Moreover, we’d also lose the clue about Barsabe’s vision.
Of course, if we eventually fought Toolun in an official war, she would regain her sight, but there was no guarantee of when that would happen.
“Yes, I agree. Philia’s safety is the priority, so let’s withdraw.”
But Barsabe agreed with Heil’s opinion without hesitation. She had come to realize that being unable to see wasn’t a problem when it came to wielding a sword. It was disappointing, but she had faith that an opportunity would come someday. After all, Bariel was her homeland.
“I’m fine with it too. But do we really need to go to Burgos? We’re fast enough that it’d be better to head straight to Bariel, drop Philia off, then go back to Burgos. And while we’re at it, let’s get some proper food in people.”
Berik had offered a sensible opinion for once. Philia covered her mouth awkwardly with an uncertain gesture, and Heil poured her some milk.
“Take your time. We can move whenever you’re ready. Don’t worry.”
“Thank you, Captain Heil.”
Philia moistened her throat and bowed her head.
“How much do you all know? I think it was King Toolun’s royal palace that first kidnapped me. I don’t know who specifically, but from what the thieves were saying, it seemed to be someone quite high-ranking.”
“Wait a moment, Mother.”
I gently stopped Philia mid-sentence.
“What the thieves were saying? Mother, can you speak Toolunese?”
The thieves couldn’t possibly have been fluent in Barielian. If they were, they wouldn’t have come to Toolun but would have returned to Bariel to collect her ransom.
“No. The people of Toolun—hardly any of them speak Barielian. I shouted in the great marketplace, and only one person understood. The thieves brought a boy to interpret for them before. He was clumsy at it, but we could communicate well enough that I understood.”
“A boy?”
I asked in confusion. Among the scattered corpses, there was no one who appeared to be a boy. He must have heard my warning to lie down and hidden under a table.
“Why do you ask, Ian?”
“Is there a problem…?”
“Not a problem exactly. I just missed something.”
If the boy was alive, information would certainly have reached the royal palace through the guards—that the “mage” who rescued Philia was currently in Toolun.
“What? You missed something? Insane! That’s huge!”
“Berik, you look excited. Compose yourself.”
“Even Captain Heil looks curious. So what is it?”
“By now… the King of Toolun might have already learned that we’re here.”
Wasn’t that a disaster? It seemed we should escape quickly. Everyone except Berik showed worried expressions, but I simply smiled as if a good idea had just occurred to me.
“Before we leave Toolun, it seems I have a bit more to do.”

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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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