The Youngest Hides a Lot - Chapter 124

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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 124
“Your Grace, welcome. I shall inform His Majesty of your arrival.”
The Attendant rushed forward and bowed deeply to Leviathan.
Leviathan stood before the grand doors of the audience chamber, quietly awaiting permission to enter. The Attendant reappeared before long.
“My apologies for the wait! His Majesty bids you enter at once…”
The Attendant’s words trailed off as he glanced nervously at the Duke.
“Your Grace…. Has our door somehow offended you in some way?”
This was because Leviathan was poking at the jewels adorning the magnificent doors with the tip of his scabbard.
“Why are there so many red gems embedded here?”
“Pardon?”
“Replace them. With blue ones. At least then I wouldn’t feel so wronged.”
“…I beg your pardon?”
“Are you having trouble understanding? I mean those clear, beautiful blue gems that sparkle so brightly you can see them from far away. The kind that possess both curiosity and mischief, making you feel affection just by looking at them….”
“Enough. Stop talking about missing your daughter and come inside already.”
Finally, an exasperated voice from within silenced Leviathan.
“Tch. This is infuriating.”
Leviathan fell silent with a deeply disgruntled expression and stepped forward. The Attendant and aide exchanged knowing glances behind him.
Is something troubling him?
As always, he appears to be in perfect health. …Physically, at least.
Upon entering, what greeted them was the Emperor wearing an astonished expression.
“What is this? You’re not even a moody adolescent. Are you truly this upset about missing your daughter’s entrance ceremony?”
Leviathan’s lips curled into a smile.
“Not upset, precisely, but it seems this shall remain a lifelong regret.”
“….”
This is quite serious indeed.
The Emperor shook his head in disbelief.
“Very well, very well. Cheer up. You can attend the graduation ceremony. What if I designate a public holiday? The Zebert Duchy Young Lady’s Camp Graduation Commemoration Day, or something like that?”
At this, Leviathan’s thick brows rose noticeably.
“Hmm, if that is the case, then the date should be….”
“I cannot even jest with you anymore. How did you become like this?”
Where has my hero gone? Bring him back.
The Emperor laughed in utter bewilderment.
Leviathan stared intently at the man seated upon the throne, then released a long sigh.
Observing the vaguely hollow eyes and the scattered documents piled haphazardly around him, he decided it was time to cease his teasing.
“Well then.”
His low voice reverberated through the vast audience chamber.
“What of the Continental Alliance? Has there been movement from Arcadia?”
At Leviathan’s question, the Emperor straightened his posture while maintaining his smile. With that alone, the relaxed atmosphere transformed into one of gravity.
“Indeed.”
The Emperor spoke. His voice had distinctly lowered.
“The Mage King seems to be moving in a strange direction.”
“…Strange direction?”
A peculiar glint of murderous intent flickered across violet eyes.
* * *
After eating, I was resting when Kalid came to find me.
Kalid and I had agreed to refrain from using communication magic here. There was the matter of my mana, and besides, this land made spellcasting unnecessarily complicated.
“Can we talk outside for a moment?”
We made our way to a small back garden near the dormitory. The familiar squirrel was perched on his head, sniffing curiously.
“What’s wrong?”
“During the entrance ceremony…. I think I saw someone suspicious.”
My eyes widened.
“Someone suspicious?”
“She seemed to be a maid. Something felt off about her. As for her mana…. I couldn’t quite tell.”
I glanced at the squirrel and lowered my voice to ask.
“Did you follow her?”
Kalid clenched his fists as he muttered.
“I did try, but I lost her midway. Sorry. My mana control is clumsy here too.”
“That’s not something you need to apologize for….”
I settled down at the base of a nearby tree.
‘A suspicious maid, you say?’
Honestly, she could have simply been a lost maid, but given my circumstances, my thoughts inevitably turned to the Mage Kingdom. However….
‘That doesn’t fit the Mage King’s methods.’
If his goal was to pursue me, he would have sent someone of advanced mage rank or higher. But all of the Mage Kingdom’s advanced mages were currently occupied.
“Is the Mage King’s situation unchanged?”
“Yes. He’s preoccupied with the Delcan Ruins beyond Iosia.”
When Kalid told me that news, I was certain the Mage King had caught the scent of dark magic there.
‘But surely dark magic can’t be revived that easily?’
Because…. I held the key to its resurrection.
In any case.
Whatever the case, it was fortunate that the Mage King’s attention was directed elsewhere. Thanks to that, all the mages, including the Tracking Mage, were being dispatched to the Delcan Ruins.
‘Ah, except for the mages guarding the Imperial Palace, of course.’
As my thoughts reached that point, I narrowed my eyes slightly.
“Hmm.”
The wind blew. My black hair fluttered softly.
“I’ll investigate further. She looked like a maid from a noble house.”
“Really?”
“Yes. She wasn’t wearing Academy maid uniform.”
Kalid spoke reassuringly.
‘A maid from a noble house…. Which family?’
I pondered for a moment, then nodded.
“Understood. Just to be safe… I’ll need to move around as carefully as possible.”
To be precise, I had decided that I needed to keep a low profile while at this Academy.
Since my reason for coming to the Academy in the first place was to search for clues about the stigma, it seemed unlikely that I would draw much attention.
‘Ah. If my identity as Rubian Zebert had been revealed during the entrance ceremony, things might have been different.’
It was somewhat embarrassing to admit, but people seemed far more interested in the “young lady of the Jebert Family” than I had anticipated.
I habitually fidgeted with the watch hanging on one of my wrists.
This object, which I had stubbornly worn since arriving in the Capital, was actually a portable mana battery masquerading as a timepiece.
It was a magical artifact that Asha and I had created as our masterpiece—one that held mana well and released it in measured amounts.
“How’s your condition? Are you alright?”
Kalid asked while observing my movements.
“Yeah! It feels similar to when I was in Ipson.”
“Tell me anytime if you need mana.”
His reassuring tone made my expression naturally soften with gratitude.
“Thank you… my personal high-capacity battery…”
Kalid let out a small, dismissive cough.
“But you’re forbidden from squandering mana here!”
At my stern warning, Kalid frowned in displeasure, but I brushed it aside lightly and clenched my fist with determination.
“Anyway, let’s just keep a low profile and get through this! If anything happens, it would be absolutely disastrous!”
“Don’t worry so much. I’m here, and the Duke is stationed just outside the Academy, so there’s no way you could be in danger…”
“Oh, Father isn’t in the Capital.”
I suddenly remembered and added this correction.
Kalid’s expression showed rare surprise at my straightforward answer.
“…He’s not here?”
“No. Father is…”
I recalled the contents of the letter that the Maid had delivered to me just before meeting him.
“On a business trip by order of the Emperor.”
* * *
“Your Excellency, preparations are complete.”
“…Remarkably swift.”
Leviathan clicked his tongue and silently cursed the Emperor. So this was what he had intended all along when summoning me to the Imperial Palace.
He recalled the conversation in the audience chamber.
“What about the Mage King?”
“The Delcan Ruins on the border between Iosia and Casalia. He suddenly dispatched mages there.”
“That’s a disputed territory.”
The terrain there had been altered by dark magic during the war, creating a border dispute between the Kingdom of Iosia and the Kingdom of Casalia.
Leviathan exhaled a short sigh.
‘The King of Casalia must have granted permission.’
Casalia, a desert nation, was a country with high magical artifact consumption and where Hub Mages played a significant role. The Mage King must have certainly leveraged that.
“What’s the reason the mages are rummaging through that place?”
“Mana stone exploration, or so I’m told.”
“Something is definitely suspicious.”
“My thoughts exactly. Magic stones in ruins that are nothing but rubble? But since Casalia has permitted the expedition….”
“So… the reason you summoned me is?”
“The Delcan Ruins. You’ve been there before?”
The Emperor did not hesitate.
“…You’re telling me to go.”
“We’ll frame the visit as a diplomatic mission to encourage peaceful resolution of the border dispute. Keep the Duke’s involvement classified.”
Then he added with grave emphasis.
“…I’m telling you this beforehand—don’t clash with the mages. Simply observe what they’re investigating there and what schemes they’re harboring. That alone will suffice.”
The Emperor had not yet decided whether excluding the Mage Kingdom from the Continental Alliance was truly the right course.
After all, there were nations like Casalia that depended heavily on the Mage Kingdom’s close cooperation.
Magic was a convenient tool.
So it was true that conflict arose—the question of whether it was better to appease the mages and maintain the alliance.
But the matter of child soldiers in the war rankled him, and the incident with the Tracking Mage grated on his nerves. He had clearly determined that pressure was necessary.
“This is precisely why I don’t visit the Capital.”
Leviathan spoke curtly, and the Emperor let out a soft laugh.
At that signal, the Attendant produced a large box.

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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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