Chapter 186

“Did Marquis Valenstein issue a lockdown order? And Isabella is missing?”

“Yes. If we want to leave the palace, we might have to start a sword fight. Shall we give it a try?”

The number of knights surrounding the palace was large, but there was only one master-level knight. If we decided to break through, we could do it easily.

I gripped Durandal’s hilt and slightly drew out an inch of the blade, ready to swing it at any moment.

“No, that won’t be necessary. With Marquis Valenstein stepping in, Isabella won’t act recklessly, and Ernst will be confined to his palace. It won’t take long for things to settle down.”

“But what if the Marquis has teamed up with Isabella? Staying here could be dangerous.”

It was like repeating the conversation we had earlier, but the situation had changed since then.

“No matter how I think about it, that seems unlikely. A knight who has lived his whole life devoted to the sword—what could that witch possibly offer him?”

“…Are you sure about that?”

At this point, my trust in Leopold had already dropped below half. Not personal trust, but strategic trust.

With the main palace in such a state, most of our previous predictions and plans had gone awry. The emperor’s funeral would be postponed, security would be tightened several times over, and it would be difficult for spies from the Holy Kingdom to infiltrate.

Even if they did, what could they possibly gain now? Unless they were mole people, what could they dig up from the ground covered in marble fragments?

Moreover, Ludwig, who could have been a strong force against Isabella, was strangely delayed. If he had arrived earlier…in this moment of chaos in the imperial palace, we could have gathered our forces and made a decisive strike at the 3rd Prince’s Palace.

No. Did they anticipate our move and delay Ludwig’s arrival? Leopold didn’t seem to think much of it, but seeing how things have turned out, it clearly seems like Isabella’s doing.

We shouldn’t have given Isabella time. Leopold’s approach wasn’t entirely wrong, but the more passive we were, the easier it was for Isabella to act.

Look at what she’s done in less than half a month. She killed Matthias, turned Ernst into a puppet, and finally erased all traces of herself.

While we sat and waited, I couldn’t even begin to guess what she might do next, or what she could do.

—

“……, …!”

“……!”

…It was getting a bit noisy outside. I glanced out the window.

The knights surrounding the palace were all looking in one direction, murmuring. My gaze followed theirs and then stopped.

“Confident, huh? Fine, if you want, I’ll even stake my name on it. Even if the sky splits in two, that won’t happen.”

Oh really? I just gained some confidence. I now know one more thing Isabella is capable of.

Damn it.

“…Then I guess Isabella has split the sky.”

I muttered without taking my eyes off the scene outside. My joke directly contradicted Leopold’s confident assertion.

“What are you talking about?”

Instead of answering, I pointed outside with my finger. Leopold’s gaze followed my finger and finally shook in shock.

“How…!”

Yeah, no wonder you’re shocked. I get it. Your confident statement was refuted in less than thirty seconds.

“…What name should I change to?”

Leopold didn’t seem to have the energy to respond to my sarcasm. Cold sweat was streaming down his cheeks.

Marquis Valenstein was walking towards us. In each hand, he held a severed head.

His sharp, determined eyes were fixed on us. Behind him, a dozen knights followed, swords drawn.

Most were ordinary knights, but three of them were not to be underestimated.

They wore Royal Guard armor, but their identities were obvious. They exuded the same aura as the ones we faced when capturing Claire.

Yes. They were master-level knights, infested with parasites.

—

“I can’t believe it. Why would Marquis Valenstein…?”

“…What should we do, Your Highness Wittelsbach? Should we try to escape through the back door?”

A frontal breakthrough would be impossible. Even if we ignore the unknown strength of Marquis Valenstein, the other three and the surrounding knights would be enough to tie me down. If it were just me, I might have been able to escape, but with two burdens, it was impossible.

“Wittelsbach…?”

“You just discarded the name Leopold, so you need a new one. What should I call you?”

My sarcasm seemed to sting, as Leopold’s expression twisted in frustration.

“Is now really the time for jokes…!”

“No, this isn’t the time for such talk. If it’s the back gate, can we escape through it?”

“Well…”

Honestly, I didn’t have high hopes.

If I really thought we could escape, I would’ve grabbed Leopold and run instead of wasting time chattering.

I was just cracking jokes to ease the tension, but from where I stood, a fight seemed unavoidable.

Even if we miraculously slipped out of the palace… by then, my back would be riddled with arrows instead of carrying Leopold.

“Who knows, if they just stroll over casually…”

At that moment, Valenstein’s pace suddenly quickened, as if he had heard me.

The knights following him did the same.

“This is bad.”

At that speed, they’d reach us in less than twenty seconds.

Leopold let out a deep sigh. Why so glum? You brought this on yourself.

“…Since it’s come to this, we might as well gamble. Princess Ai-shan Gi-or, don’t draw your sword yet, follow me. Sir Persval, you too.”

This guy’s plan… I can’t bring myself to trust it anymore.

“Do you have something in mind? If it works, I’ll give your name back.”

“Earlier, you said the troops surrounding the palace might not know about Isabella’s schemes, right? I’m betting on that. Even if Valenstein has truly turned against us… unless he plans to kill everyone to silence them, he won’t attack outright.”

“What if he intends to kill all the knights too?”

“Then we’ll shout that the traitor Valenstein plans to kill you all and hope for chaos. If they realize they’re in a life-or-death situation, the knights might back off too.”

If the encirclement breaks, we might have a chance to escape.

It didn’t seem like a high-probability plan, but we were out of time to think of anything else.

Because Valenstein had arrived.

“Prince Leopold, are you inside? If it’s not too much trouble, may I request an audience? I know it’s late, but the matter is urgent.”

His voice was low and calm, devoid of any emotion.

Leopold and I exchanged glances, nodded, and headed toward the main gate.

This talk… it definitely won’t end with just words.

If that were the case, he wouldn’t have brought those bug-like knights with him.

—

“Welcome, Duke Valenstein. I too have something to ask.”

Leopold stepped forward calmly, his gaze challenging as he stared at Valenstein.

Persval and I stayed a step behind, carefully watching the enemies’ movements.

“Your Highness, it’s an honor to see you. Since you have questions, please speak first.”

Valenstein bowed respectfully, as if he were a loyal knight.

“Very well. Then tell me, why have you sent knights to block me, almost as if imprisoning me, and now come here yourself? It’s as if you’re trying to take me hostage. Has the lust for power taken hold of you now that my father has passed?”

Oh, he’s coming out strong.

The prince’s blatant accusation caused a stir among the surrounding knights.

Unless they were all Isabella’s subordinates, Valenstein couldn’t just attack Leopold outright after such a statement.

Drawing his sword would be admitting Leopold’s words were true.

That he, a traitor, sought power by harming his master’s child after his death.

“How could that be, Your Highness? There must be some misunderstanding. My knights and I came here to protect Your Highness from a threat.”

Despite the near-insult, Valenstein remained expressionless and bowed calmly.

“Protect me? From whom? No, no need to explain. There’s no reason to.”

Leopold answered firmly, then turned his head toward me.

“With Princess Ai-shan Gi-or by my side, her protection is more than enough. In fact, I’m more concerned about Ernst… If you truly came here out of concern for my safety, I appreciate your loyalty, but I’d rather you return and protect Ernst instead.”

It was practically an ultimatum.

If you’re not a traitor, leave. If you refuse, then you’re a traitor. That’s what his words implied.

So, what will Valenstein choose?

I held my breath and glared at him.