Chapter 85

“The Ironblood Emperor was a remarkable ruler among all the emperors of the Empire.”

He had exceptional political skills and a talent for diplomacy, and contrary to his title, he seldom shed blood. But once he drew his sword, he would always strike down his target.

One of his many achievements was the rebirth of the Adventurer’s Guild.

However, even such an emperor had one significant concern: he had utterly no luck with children.

His eldest son, born to the Empress, passed away before even reaching a year old. His second and third sons also met their end due to a fall and illness, respectively.

Unfortunately, the Ironblood Emperor himself met an untimely demise at the relatively young age of fifty, leaving only two daughters and the youngest prince as the remaining heirs.

In the Empire, there was no concept of a female empress, and it was impossible for the young prince, who wasn’t even ten, to handle the emperor’s duties.

As a result, power in the Empire got divided into two factions: those who followed Minister of Defense Duke Lenart and those who supported the Empress.

In this political climate, the influence of the house of Heidern, the Empress’s family, steadily increased.

And the pride of Maximilian Agir Heidern, the second son of the Marquis, rose even higher day by day.

Maximilian thought to himself, ‘I must protect the Crown Prince and the Empress!’

He was young and inexperienced, viewing the world in simple black-and-white terms.

The Empress and the young Crown Prince were the good, while Duke Lenart and his followers were the evil.

Maximilian suspected the loyalty of those from the Duke Lenart family. The reason was simple.

“It should have been my father’s place to lead the Empire as the Minister of Defense. Duke Lenart snatched that position through cowardly power! If they were truly loyal subjects, how could they conspire like that!”

Considering the Empress’s presence strengthened the Heidern family’s influence, any argument suggesting they would hand over the regent position to a relative was utterly pointless.

The people around Maximilian were mostly similar, so instead of correcting his thoughts, they were eager to flatter and agree with him. There were even many who tried to outdo him!

– When the Crown Prince grows up, the Empire will naturally return to the rightful owner (and to those who served that owner).

– If that happens, Duke Lenart, who currently holds the Minister of Defense position, will be ousted. But would those cursed with power back down easily?

– What if the Crown Prince conspires or brings out some dagger before he grows up?

– Wait, isn’t it suspicious that the other Crown Princes passed away in quick succession? Could it be?

– Perhaps the fact that His Majesty departed at a young age…?

– You scumbag! Duke Lenart! What a despicable and wicked being you are! You shall never be forgiven!

Just to clarify, they weren’t throwing around wild accusations based on concrete evidence.

In technical terms, each of their assertions was both their testimony and their evidence.

When A ramble on baseless rumors, B picks it up and rambles back, and C cheers from the side, A would genuinely start to believe, ‘Oh, I must be right!’

It may look ridiculous from the outside, but it’s surprisingly common in isolated groups.

In order to thwart Duke Lenart’s scheme, Maximilian gathered friends who were deeply loyal and ready to dedicate themselves to the country.

Much like Maximilian, they were young nobles with no significant standing in their families, simply loafing around.

Their activities varied.

Martial arts training, building camaraderie, hunting monsters and beasts, building camaraderie, knocking down the rulers maintaining the balance in the back alleys and celebrating for bringing forth justice, building camaraderie. And then, even more building camaraderie.

Asking whether they were overdoing the camaraderie was unnecessary. Heroes are supposed to be lecherous, or at least that’s what they claimed.

The Maximilian gang trotted around the Empire causing ruckus, and yet no one dared to stop them.

The title of being the Empress’s nephew was that powerful.

Even the weaker nobles had to bow down, let alone the commoners.

Maximilian and his followers had lost sight of one crucial fact.

[‘The Tin Knight’ is just some Marquis noboddy!]

[‘The Tin Knight’ isn’t even recognized unless he’s a royal, a prince, or a duke scorned by an engagement and has launched a revenge saga!]

They forgot that there are insane folks out there who see secular power as nothing more than dirt under their nails.

***

“The, the Marquis noboddy…”

Upon hearing the Tin Knight’s choice of words, Adel seemed taken aback, dropping beads of sweat.

Though she had received scathing remarks from Dorothea about her mind being in a daze, she was still a noble lady.

While it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say she was clueless about politics or strategy, she at least possessed minimal education and knowledge.

Depending on the situation, it’s common for a marquis to be a grand noble who cannot be casually treated even by a king.

Let alone as a close relative of the royal family and the current ruler, they should never be subjected to such ‘noboddy’ remarks.

Unaware of the evaluation he just received, Buttermilian—or rather Maximilian—was bound and cursing.

“You wicked witch! I will never forgive you!”

Dorothea replied, “Never forgive me?”

“That’s right!”

“No matter what happens?”

“Ha! Even if you plead for forgiveness now, it’s too late!”

Dorothea nodded her head vigorously.

Then she spoke up, “Well then, there’s no helping it. Can, Tin. Start.”

[‘The Tin Knight’ is thrilled about having a chance to mimic a rebel as he watches historical dramas!]

Swish.

The sound of the blade being unsheathed echoed clearly, making the noble youth’s throats sway heavily.

Maximilian, panicking, shouted, “You guys, are you out of your minds? Do you even know who I am!?”

“You said you’d never forgive me. After letting you go, what’s left but revenge?”

“My father, no, my mother will never forgive you! Just because you shut us up here doesn’t mean it’s the end!”

“Thus, survivors of your kind would fare the same way. No, they’d probably face revenge even faster.”

The blade raised by the Tin Knight glimmered, sending a pale look across Maximilian’s face.

Though the witch’s words were extremely valid, they seemed downright unreasonable to him.

He had grown up basked in the Empress’s fondness and was close with the Crown Prince.

When he shouted, others should cower in fear or plead for mercy somehow.

That was the world Maximilian lived in.

That was the common sense he understood.

But that unshakable common sense didn’t seem to work with these people.

What revealed the ‘truth’ to Maximilian were the other youths captured with him.

“I-I won’t take revenge! I swear, I won’t do anything! Please!”

“Just this once, forgive us! We were surprised and drew swords without intention!”

“If you need compensation, just say the word! I’ll pay generously! So please!”

“W-Wait a second. What are you guys saying!”

“My lord, you need to hold yourself! If we die like this, who will protect the Crown Prince and serve the Empress!”

“Exactly. It’s all just a misunderstanding, so we need to set it right!”

Maximilian’s eyes darted around rapidly.

Surrounded by the kneeling youths, the Tin Knight was dancing around, waving his sword like there was no tomorrow.

It was beyond insane. They were terrifyingly scary.

Under the pressure of needing to bow and the terror of death, Maximilian gave in.