Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 654

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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 653. Making the Impossible Possible
“…The sun has risen.”
“Indeed. A day has passed.”
The two Mages on duty murmured absently, gazing at the morning sun.
It was the first sunrise since Ian and Berik entered the Thicket. My parting words echoed in their minds—if they didn’t return by the next day, something would be wrong. They sighed softly, rose from their seats, and climbed the stairs to the duty quarters.
Creak.
“Hey. Everyone wake up.”
“…Huh? Where is Ian?”
“He hasn’t returned.”
Most had fallen asleep at dawn after working late, so waking proved difficult. Their faces were puffy, their voices hoarse.
But at the news that Ian hadn’t returned, everyone’s eyes widened. They had assumed he would certainly be back by morning….
“Yawn. He didn’t come back? Berik too?”
“If Ian didn’t return, how could he?”
“Has something happened?”
The situation in Bariel’s eastern territories was indeed unusual, but the Minister of Magic’s proper place was beside the Emperor.
Moreover, with war against Toollun approaching, any significant problem would be set aside for now. The priority was to return and ensure Kalamata’s forces suffered no losses—that would have been my judgment.
“Yet he still hasn’t returned.”
Heil rubbed his dark stubbled chin roughly. After a moment’s thought, he rose from bed and donned his robes.
“I shall see His Majesty. We will consult and decide which Mages to dispatch this morning, so all of you prepare.”
“Understood. We’re departing for Hielo, correct?”
“The distance is considerable, so I’ll draw the magic circle in advance. By the time we finish the calculations, the afternoon will have passed quickly.”
“Yes, I’ll help too.”
The Mages stretched one by one and tidied their bedding.
As Heil turned to leave, he happened to catch his reflection in the wall mirror. Would it be disrespectful to see His Majesty looking like this? He examined his face from various angles, then decided there was no particular issue and stepped out the door.
Kalamata’s morning was so quiet that one wouldn’t sense it was wartime. The air outside was scorching hot, while the Royal Palace was filled with the chill of marble.
Tap-tap-tap!
The moment Heil entered the corridor where the Emperor was, a group of people came rushing from the opposite direction at a hurried pace. Their faces were pale, and upon spotting Heil, they frantically gestured.
“Are you Captain Heil of the Magic Department?!”
“I am.”
“This way! Please come quickly! It’s urgent!”
Bewildered by the sudden urgency, Heil instinctively quickened his pace and entered the Emperor’s office with them. Though it was early, Jin sat reviewing documents in a crisp formal uniform.
Knock-knock.
“Your Majesty. A grave situation has arisen!”
“What is it so early in the morning? Is it related to Count Ian?”
“No, that is not it… Rather, the Burgos River, which had dried up, is flowing again.”
At this unexpected report, Jin raised his head with a puzzled expression. Heil felt the same. The water had been blocked upstream, causing drought concerns, but if that were resolved, wouldn’t that be good news?
But the words that followed forced Jin to his feet.
“However, the water is strangely dark and murky. No one has drunk from it yet, but a donkey that touched its mouth staggered and collapsed. It seems Toollun has done something, but we have no way of knowing what… I apologize.”
“What?”
Jin’s voice carried anger at the question. He had thought they had merely blocked the riverbank to hinder farming, but that wasn’t it. It had been preparation to cause greater and more certain damage.
“Are they mad? How dare they kill Gaia’s land.”
People may perish, but the land must never die. People live in the present, but the land lives for the future.
It was such an unexpected sentiment that Jin found himself momentarily speechless.
“How much water is flowing through the river now?”
“Currently about one-tenth of the normal water level, but it’s increasing rapidly as time passes.”
With their current strength, there wasn’t much they could do. Not unless they climbed all the way to Toollun to investigate and resolve the source of the problem.
Jin wrapped his forehead with his hand, looking troubled. While it didn’t seem directly related to Bariel at the moment, this was truly a grave issue.
Rutherford was the primary reason, but Bariel had nonetheless made considerable sacrifices for this war. If Burgos’s land died on top of that, the losses Bariel would suffer would become incalculable.
And then there was Cliffford. The river flowed in that direction too, so inevitably the crops would suffer damage, and if that happened….
‘The entire Gaia continent would become increasingly dependent on Ruswena for food.’
It was quite troubling. This was a problem of an entirely different dimension than merely land drying up.
As Jin bit his lower lip in deep thought, Captain Heil added quietly.
“This is not a task for a single spirit sorcerer of Toollun. If we follow the river upstream, we will surely encounter those who are wary of Bariel’s northern advance.”
It almost felt as though they were being lured to come up.
Jin remained silent for a long while, then looked up at Heil.
“Captain Heil.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Is it possible to open and maintain a portal without Count Ian? How long could you sustain it?”
“…A portal, Your Majesty?”
Though the question came suddenly, Captain Heil quickly grasped Jin’s intention.
“If it’s the width of the river, I believe about seven of us rotating shifts could maintain it for roughly five days. Of course, Captain Akorella’s potions would be essential. That would be the maximum.”
“Y-Your Majesty, what are you saying…?”
One advisor looked bewildered, his eyes darting back and forth between Jin and Heil. Open a portal where? In the river?
“What if we open a portal toward Toollun and simply return the flowing sewage back through it? Would that be possible?”
“Theoretically it is possible, but there are many dangers. First, opening a portal aligned with the ground rather than the sky requires considerable skill. Without someone like Ian, well… it might take some time. And second, once the portal opens, we could send this river’s water to Toollun, but-”
Heil shook his head without realizing it.
“You must also consider that water could flow back from there to Kalamata. It would be the same as opening a path directly in front of the Royal Palace, falling right before Your Majesty.”
Ordinary soldiers certainly couldn’t swim upstream against the current, but water spirit sorcerers were another matter entirely. They would undoubtedly use the passage created by the portal, and no one could predict what dangers might result from that.
‘But one thing is certain now—we need the power of mages to stop the river’s flow.’
Suddenly, Jin’s eyes widened as this realization struck him, and he stared at Heil.
“Why do you look at me that way?”
“Something is strange.”
“What is…?”
“The fact that the river was released now, without Count Ian present.”
If Toollun had truly decided to kill Burgos and Cliffford’s lands, now was not the right time. Weren’t Bariel’s mages firmly stationed at Kalamata’s Royal Palace? There was no concern about being unable to stop it—only deliberation about which approach would be best.
“…Yes. A reasonable deduction. If Toollun had true resolve, they would have released the river immediately after Bariel’s main force departed Kalamata. It would be difficult to respond while in transit, and with luck, Bariel’s forces might not discover the river’s anomaly until later.”
“But they caused this problem knowing we were in Burgos. As if they specifically wanted the mages to ‘respond.'”
“…Ian did not return last night.”
Snap!
Jin snapped his fingers, as if he finally understood.
“Count Ian is the reason these creatures have caused this calamity.”
At his rather harsh tone, the advisors lowered their heads slightly and averted their gaze. It was a natural habit—when Jin appeared displeased, even the innocent instinctively withdrew.
“Count Ian apparently sensed trouble with Merelrof and Hielo, so he headed in that direction. And he hasn’t returned. This confirms that our concerns were justified, and only Hawan and Ruswena could orchestrate something of this magnitude.”
“In Hawan, Shatima’s death has raised suspicions about the existence of a puppeteer.”
“And puppeteers share the five senses, correct?”
The advisors nodded at Jin’s question. A doll of a doll, and then another doll of that doll—wherever a puppeteer existed, the King of Toollun could perceive the situation through all five senses.
Then, in other words….
“Count Ian must be facing off against Ruswena or Hawan. They possess puppeteers.”
“Your, Your Majesty’s meaning is… then, that Toollun orchestrated this at a timely moment to tie down the mages’ support?”
“Precisely. And that also means Count Ian requires support.”
“Then, ah, what should we do….”
He had grasped Toollun’s intentions, but that was a separate matter. The river continued flowing endlessly onward.
This was Jin’s moment to choose. Only God knew what the right answer was.
“The Magic Department shall prepare a portal.”
Had he chosen Ian?
As the advisors began to bow, an additional command was issued.
“Calibrated to the river’s width.”
“Yes, sire—”
“Set the destination to Hielo, the great desert adjacent to Ruswena.”
Even if the waters flowed there, it would matter little for now. It was already a land of death where not a single blade of grass grew.
Moreover, the possibility of enemy counterattack was low. They had already mapped Ruswena’s terrain to some extent, and for Bariel, mages were easier opponents to face than unfamiliar spirit sorcerers. The difference in military strength was a concern, but… once they joined forces with Ian, what was there to fear?
“Understood.”
Heil bowed his head to accept Jin’s command. The maintenance duration would shorten due to the distance, but it posed no problem.
He offered a proper salute and hurried outside. In front of the Royal Palace plaza, mages were gathered in small groups, staring down at the ground.
“Captain Heil! You’ve arrived quickly. What did His Majesty the Emperor say?”
“Wait, hold on. Captain! Could you check this first? This guy keeps inserting strange incantations.”
“If you don’t know, stay quiet. This one’s correct, right?”
“Want to bet? I’ll take on Jin’s week’s worth of work.”
“I’m in. Looks like I’m getting a week’s paid leave.”
“No! If you’re confused about something, leave it blank and draw it, you idiots!”
“You focus on drawing the right side properly!”
Hielo. The eastern edge of Bariel.
The distance was so great that even Ian had hesitated to venture there. Had it not been for the message that came through the diagram, he likely would never have gone.
“…Everyone, stop what you’re doing.”
“Yes?”
Heil drew out a cigarette and placed it between his lips as he commanded.
Stop? Something felt ominous. The mages froze and looked up at Heil.
“Why, why?”
“Erase that and draw it again. There, on the riverbed.”
“Whaaaat?!”
“And Tomi, Nakina. You two go ahead to Hielo’s side first and find Ian. I’ll mark the portal opening coordinates on the map, so check them.”
“Wait a moment! How are we supposed to draw this on the riverbed? It’s hard enough to draw on smooth marble floors!”
Tomi and Nakina slipped away from drawing the magic circle with an “alright then.” Captain Heil tilted his head toward the river.
“Water is flowing in the river.”
“Huh?!”
“I’m going to send it through as a portal. I need to design it.”
“No, that’s insane! How in the world do you draw a magic circle on water…”
“Who, who, who is it?”
Who else would it be? Captain Heil kicked off the railing and soared into the air. His destination was obvious without even looking. Burgos’s boat crossing the Kalamat.
“I’ve spotted a decent surface. I’ll record the magic circle as is and bring it over.”
“We can’t! Absolutely not!”
“Try saying that in front of Ian.”
At the mention of Ian, the Mages’ cheeks puffed up indignantly. But what could they do? There was no way around it. If ordered, they had to comply, and they had no choice but to succeed.
“Fine. We’ll do it. We’ll do it.”
“But how exactly? Seriously.”
“I don’t know. We’ll figure it out as we go.”
The Mages grumbled as they flew after Captain Heil.

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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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