Unbeknownst to Me, I am Secretly Dating the Emperor - Chapter 190

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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 190
“Of course. What do you need?”
Ed asked as though he were about to strip the Imperial Palace’s Treasure Vault bare.
“It’s just that……”
I let slip to Ed the secret behind the Hunting Tournament wager.
“I heard it was a casual bet that somehow spiraled a bit out of hand.”
Ed laughed hollowly at the revelation that the stakes were far more serious than rumor suggested.
“Actually, that works out well.”
Though it seemed his thoughts had shifted to a more optimistic frame almost immediately.
“If I remember right, there should be some decent pieces in the Imperial Palace’s Treasure Vault.”
Ed stroked his chin thoughtfully before making a suggestion.
“Want to go take a look?”
The Imperial Palace’s Treasure Vault was legendary for being filled with rare and precious artifacts.
I couldn’t pass up the chance to see it.
“I’d love to.”
I answered with unmistakable eagerness, and Ed extended his hand.
The midnight exploration of the Treasure Vault was a delight.
The vault lived up to its legendary reputation.
Standing at the entrance, the eye could not find the far wall—the vast space overflowed with treasures beyond measure.
Ed gently guided me deeper inside as I stood mesmerized by the artifacts near the entrance.
“There’s nothing much up front.”
It was a place where relics from the Age of the Ancient Empire were dismissed as unremarkable.
“Let’s look around slowly another time.”
Ed suggested we simply visit the section where the Artifacts were kept, since it was growing late.
I made a mental note to thoroughly explore the entire vault someday as we moved into the Artifact storage area.
Unlike the relics displayed like museum pieces elsewhere, the Artifacts here were each carefully preserved in their own protective cases.
“Wow, isn’t that the Breath of the Sea? The one the merfolk supposedly gave to the human they were pining for?”
Everywhere I looked, the vault held Artifacts I had read about in history books or heard of in legends.
It was no wonder Ed earned the reputation as the wealthiest man on the Continent.
“The merfolk probably didn’t give it directly. It’s an Artifact that lets you breathe underwater—that legend must’ve grown from that fact,” Ed replied with casual indifference, despite being the vault’s true owner.
Even as he spoke so matter-of-factly.
Ed had found a bow from somewhere while I examined the Artifacts.
“This one was made by the elves.”
The bow, crafted from pale luminescent wood, bore delicate patterns etched across its surface—not ornate, but refined and beautiful.
“It has an auxiliary function that increases the user’s strength and accuracy.”
Unlike merfolk, which exist only in oral tradition with no physical evidence of their reality, the elves had maintained contact with humanity for quite some time.
‘And elves are all known to be exceptional archers.’
I felt as though I’d glimpsed the secret behind it all.
‘The history of Buff Items runs deep.’
Still, I was grateful.
An increase in strength and accuracy was precisely what I needed.
‘The targets at the Hunting Tournament are supposedly much farther away than where I’ve been practicing.’
“Thank you, Ed.”
As I accepted the bow with care, Ed hesitated a moment before retrieving a matching set of arrows and a Quiver to go with it.
The arrows and Quiver were equally beautiful, crafted from the same pale luminescent wood.
“I found these too.”
“Wow, the arrows have patterns carved into them as well.”
Unable to resist the appeal of a complete set, I reached out, and Ed explained that the arrows and Quiver were Artifacts as well.
“Using ordinary arrows with that bow will only ‘increase’ your strength and accuracy. But with these arrows……”
Ed drew one arrow from the Quiver.
“…you can land them exactly where you want with one hundred percent accuracy. The arrows return to the Quiver automatically after firing, and magic is woven into them so that if the arrowhead breaks, it restores itself.”
In other words, it was possible to fire an arrow into the exact center of any target endlessly, at will.
‘Ah, that’s a bit much.’
Though Ed said everyone used them, I decided that what I actually wanted was a reasonable Buff Item.
‘There’s a difference between a trick and a guaranteed winning cheat code.’
“I’ll use regular arrows instead.”
I wasn’t certain how much effect they’d have, but if they enhanced my strength and accuracy, I should be able to place in the middle tier of the competition.
So it was, with preparations complete, that on the day before the Harvest Festival, word came that the High Priest and the Black Mages had escaped from the Underground Prison.
* * *
Until he incited Duke Camelot into launching a civil war, the High Priest had been confident.
The Aristocratic Faction’s chances of victory in that civil war were less than twenty percent, but the odds of dealing serious damage to the young Emperor were roughly fifty percent.
The Western Region had traditionally been wealthy, and since the Aristocratic Faction was waging this civil war as a last resort, he had believed they would hold out for quite some time.
‘If that happens, the people’s faith in the young Emperor will waver as well.’
By inserting himself into that gap skillfully, he could restore at least the balance that had existed in the early days of the current Emperor’s reign.
He had even conservatively calculated a thirty percent chance that some unforeseen variable would cause the Aristocratic Faction to deal no damage whatsoever and suffer defeat, but the High Priest had believed his own safety was guaranteed even in that scenario.
What the High Priest’s calculations had not accounted for was the Emperor discovering his connection to the Black Mages.
The failure to seduce the Holy Maiden and the subsequent attempt to use the Junior Priest as a sacrificial vessel for Black Magic—these might have been recoverable losses.
But that Junior Priest managing to escape all the way to the Imperial Palace was where everything began to unravel.
The Holy Maiden had seen fit to bring the Junior Priest inside the palace, and the Junior Priest had proven remarkably perceptive.
He had only fragmented memories to work with, yet from those scattered scenes he had deduced the existence of Brainwashing Magic.
Had the information reached him earlier, there would have been time to prepare—but the young Emperor had maintained strict information control until the raid itself.
Moreover, it seemed he had even deduced that the Black Mages’ hideout was in Diegis.
The priests, fools that they were, had failed to notice the tail attached to him.
By the time word reached the High Priest, the Black Mages’ den had already been exterminated.
‘If only there had been even a single day—no, even four hours of leeway.’
He had ordered those he’d brainwashed to commit suicide in a belated attempt to destroy evidence, but it proved futile.
No matter how physically distant they were, the connection should not have broken—yet for some reason, the High Priest’s commands no longer took effect.
The foolish mages, eager to please the Emperor, had not only aided in capturing the Black Mages but had also recorded the entire affair on a Recording Artifact.
And that Junior Priest had given his testimony under a truth-detection spell that elevated its credibility.
The foolish and easily inflamed masses became enraged exactly as the Emperor wished.
The Emperor skillfully fueled that fury.
Temples and priests came under attack.
Soon thereafter, the Emperor’s dogs had the audacity to desecrate the Grand Temple itself.
Seeking to arrest none other than the High Priest himself.
The High Priest, understanding that resistance here would be pointless, had gone quietly.
His calculation was that by cooperating for now, future opportunities for reversal would arise.
Even after being dragged to the Underground Prison, he remained confident he could break through this situation.
Difficult, perhaps, but far from impossible.
The number of followers of the Minos Religion exceeded the Empire’s population.
Though the Minos Religion’s reputation had declined somewhat due to the young Emperor’s machinations, it remained the foremost faith on the Continent.
No matter how high the Emperor’s secular power, he could not afford to ignore the Temple.
Just as he had foreseen, the young Emperor had merely locked him away.
The High Priest had bribed a guard to spread the word for loyal believers to stage a disturbance.
The faithful protested, declaring that the Emperor was slandering the Temple unjustly and persecuting it.
‘Which is largely true, at that.’
His strategy had succeeded this time.
The commotion outside had grown substantial enough that the guards’ demeanor toward him grew increasingly respectful.
He judged that if he pressed the Emperor a little further, all would be well.
Until he heard that his execution had been decreed to take place after the Harvest Festival.
‘That madman.’
The High Priest longed to crack open the skull of the reckless, extreme young Emperor.
Turning public opinion required time.
Even after a body search, the High Priest had retained a Sacred—or rather, a Black Magic Artifact disguised as one—a prayer implement he was permitted to possess for his devotions.

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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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