Chapter 146

It wasn’t hard to find someone connected to the Relief Knights.

The Empire Intel Division quickly made contact and directly revealed their location.

More precisely, a pretty significant presence within the Relief Knights.

The Snake-Eyes faction and their de facto leader were openly continuing external activities.

Bounding across several buildings in one go, Ruelde headed towards the marked location on the map.

Two silhouettes barely managed to keep up with him.

Golden-haired, emerald-eyed elf Hamren glided through the air while a youth, relying on brute stamina and physical prowess, chased after them.

The latter had dark blue hair and heterochromatic eyes that hinted at pink. He was another hero’s descendant, carrying the surname of the famed hero Hamelot.

Drake was desperately trying to keep up with Ruelde, whom he hadn’t seen in a while.

‘This isn’t really my style.’

Would you believe this pace is still half-slacked?

He was truly unmatched as ever—past and present.

Impressive, but unlike his dissolute father who’d lost much of his power and influence in his prime, Ruelde never slacked on training. Hence, he’d reached a new peak according to Imperial Princess Ellie’s assessment.

Legacy of the Great Demon King or authority… those things weren’t reasons to celebrate.

In other words, even without them, he was clearly beyond ordinary standards.

As they pursued, Ruelde suddenly stopped atop a stone roof, causing the two figures to halt beside him.

“There it is.”

A small temple.

This old shrine and its surroundings were unusually crowded.

Food distribution personnel and anxious recipients maintaining order despite their impatience.

Attempts at cutting in line or stealing food were deterred by a few vigilant security officers glaring from the sidelines.

At this point, Drake glanced inside the temple.

“Let’s go.”

Just then, Ruelde darted onto the temple roof in the blink of an eye.

Hamren followed subtly, stepping as if on invisible stairs…

“This won’t work for me.”

Lacking stealth skills, Drake instead descended and circled around.

No need to draw unnecessary attention, right?

By the time he caught up, Ruelde was already facing a white-haired man emerging from an alley.

One had naturally silver hair; the other’s was faded and lifeless, making them starkly contrastive even from afar.

“To come to me means you haven’t located him yet.”

The man spoke in a monotone as if he’d already seen through their intentions, his expressionless face adding to the eerie vibe.

“Do we need an explanation?”

Ruelde asked calmly.

“Hardly.”

White-haired Rupert shook his head slowly with closed eyes.

“All I can offer is meaningless sympathy.”

“…”

“Meaningless… sympathy?”

“But I did prepare for such a situation. Though he didn’t want it.”

“Did Karriel endure something because of you people? Are we supposed to not know that?”

“Then you’re grabbing the wrong person.”

“I didn’t interfere. Still, as part of the same organization, I don’t deny being an accomplice. It’s hard to escape that label whether through omission or neglect.”

For someone who could foresee the future, initiating events was impossible.

He merely recognized what would happen and utilized it accordingly, never taking the lead.

So if anyone took the lead, it wasn’t Rupert—it was Uthserph.

But even Uthserph might just be a puppet of fate.

Ultimately, even without our interference, it was destined to happen.

Besides, all the Relief Knights did was subtly inspire Earl Eschina regarding his concerns.

Still, knowing this, the Eschina family and certain nobles aligned against the Hero Emperor purely for the sake of profiting from the resulting vacuum later on…

Even that calculation wasn’t Rupert’s own.

While guidance was given and non-action taken, it was only possible because his foresight was imperfect.

Sometimes interpretations were needed, and occasionally misinterpretations led to unexpected results.

If Rupert possessed the clarity of someone like Grandeous…

He wouldn’t have been able to act at all once the future became fixed knowledge. Every action would’ve been futile struggle.

…Yet Grandeous claimed movement solidified the future.

However, that was because he was exceptional.

And his ability to stand on the stage of eras was due to achieving appropriate power and qualifications—a miracle in itself.

“Take this.”

Rummaging through his coat, Rupert handed over a folded paper which Ruelde reluctantly accepted.

“A message, wasn’t it?”

“I requested it in writing to avoid disbelief.”

He added quietly: “For this moment.”

Ruelde quickly unfolded it, fully aware that the guy was stalling. His intuition about incidents had sharpened after handling many cases.

But…

Was it because it involved his son?

Or maybe because of Geoffrey’s command-like plea while coughing up blood?

“…”

Upon reading, Ruelde sucked in a sharp breath.

[When the time comes, I’ll come myself. No need to wait long. Soon. Please refrain from unnecessary pursuits.]

The repeated phrases felt like a clear dismissal aimed directly at him.

But…

“How do I trust this came from Karriel?”

“Wouldn’t any parent know?”

“What nonsense is that?”

After speaking, Ruelde paused mid-sentence.

Know? Know what?

He inspected the note again.

“…”

“How does one know?”

“Lord Ruelde, may I borrow this for a moment?”

“Here.”

Hamren lightly touched the paper.

“It’s correct… This was written by Karriel.”

“Are you sure?”

“When researching Karriel under your orders, I familiarized myself with his handwriting after gaining Lady Hermine’s permission—just in case. So, it’s definitely accurate. Moreover… This was written less than a few hours ago. That’s also certain.”

Possible interpretation thanks to the elf’s natural affinity with nature and special communication abilities.

Since paper comes from trees or plants, the forest kin should have no trouble deciphering it, especially someone as attuned as Hamren, who appears almost full-blooded despite being quarter-elf. Even high elves sometimes lack specific talents.

Though, just because Hamren is quarter doesn’t mean he lacks elven traits.

“Is that so.”

Only…

Ruelde felt another shock.

Handwriting?

Now that he thought about it, had he ever properly seen anything Karriel wrote?

Back when the kid was younger, he used to write letters frequently…

Whenever hostages moved around, countless notes were exchanged…

Thinking back, how many times did he and Ermina worry over those letters…

“Lord Ruelde?”

“Can the exact timing not be determined?”

“Yes. Unfortunately.”

“So, back to square one.”

Ruelde stared at Rupert.

“Where is Karriel?”

“You know the contents of the message. Aren’t you going to think it over?”

“That’s something I can decide after seeing your face.”

“What drives your impatience? Don’t you trust your own son?”

“That’s none of your business to judge.”

“The Demon King’s shadow must feel quite threatening to you.”

“That’s enough.”

Draeke interjected.

“Refusing cooperation and provoking us like this benefits you nothing, does it?”

“And why wouldn’t it benefit me?”

That’s when Ruelde casually threw out:

“Do you wish to die?”

Not a threat.

Rather, akin to bluntly asking someone desiring suicide if they truly yearn for death.

“If your vaunted intelligence applied equally to your family, I wonder how things would’ve turned out.”

“Will you answer willingly?”

“I cannot answer what I don’t know.”

Plainly speaking,

Rupert opened his eyes.

“My sight is gone because your son deemed it his rightful punishment. And I accept it fully without complaint, considering it my due retribution.”

“You…”

“Torture me all you want, but ignorance remains ignorance. I closed my ears preemptively.”

Why am I even here?

“Still, that’s no reason to let you go.”

“I’m fine either way. My duties within the Relief Knights ended long ago.”

During the intel division agent’s handover of Rupert,

Ruelde continued scattering mana, focusing intently on scanning.

Despite sweeping most of the downtown area repeatedly,

Karriel’s location remained elusive.

“If he hasn’t left the city, there’s still a chance.”

“There’s a reason you stalled me here.”

Unless he blatantly escaped above the city,

It meant sky or underground—those were the options.

Then,

An unfamiliar yet oddly familiar energy registered in Ruelde’s senses.

“This is…?”

“Hm?”

Draeke furrowed his brows, sensing something off but unable to pinpoint it yet.

“We should move first.”

“Eh?”

As if casting a teleportation spell, Ruelde vanished.

Leaving only Draeke and Hamren in the alley.

“Perplexing.”

“How many reasons do you think Lord Ruelde has to rush off like that?”

Aside from finding Karriel or sensing some urgent danger prompting immediate action…

“I can’t make sense of it.”

“Reasonable points. But… Is there anyone capable of threatening Lord Ruelde?”

Thinking hard, Draeke couldn’t come up with a single plausible example.

Even dragons he’d encountered held awe and fear toward Ruelde.

Unless it’s the mighty Gold Dragon himself, who dares oppose him?

“There’s one exception, Daik. While traveling straight to Faceulan, we encountered it.”

A catastrophic presence transcending mere menace.

On the surface, a seemingly fragile girl or woman, yet…

Something operating on a completely different level.

Had Ruelde not been there, neither Master Geoffrey nor Hamren himself would’ve stood a chance.

Proof of this: The entity resisted Ruelde for over two hours.

Which is why Geoffrey rushed to Faceulan without rest, forcing vitality-restoration magic until his horse foamed at the mouth.

Ruelde refrained from leading ahead because the woman blocked their path twice more afterward.

Had she appeared before Geoffrey and Hamren instead of Ruelde…

That’s why he couldn’t go ahead.

Ironically, this delay became a rare rest period for their horses.

Around this time, both Geoffrey and Hamren sensed an unusual unease.

Why didn’t the beasts react to her presence with fear?

Switching locations to here.

Faceulan’s sole royal palace.

Within a guest room, Delica and Cain watched as a dimensional portal opened right before their eyes.

Creak!

Their door burst open too.

Princess Ellie and Alesia barged in shortly after.

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