321. Childhood Episode – Madness

Leaving behind the king’s goldfish, a magnificent festival unfolded in Rutina, where a black ceremonial flag fluttered for a while.

The festival began with Akinin.

With the birth of a new king, the citizens quickly forgot about the bedridden monarch and blessed the ascension of Prince Eric de Yeriel.

The festival, meticulously prepared by the Yeriel royal family, was indeed grand.

Even jesters, who were usually scorned, roamed the streets, and no one frowned at the loud performances of musicians that typically turned heads.

The streets were entirely cloaked in blue, which was the royal family’s color, befitting of the Conrad Kingdom, a granary of the Acaian Empire.

But there was an inexplicable brown color mixed in, bordering the blue. Well, even if the etiquette officer was having a fit, it wasn’t a problem for the citizens.

Their focus was on the wedding ceremony, the climax of the festival, as the Yeriel royal family scheduled Eric de Yeriel and Elika de Isadora’s marriage for the final day, just a week after the coronation on the first day of the festival.

This schedule had been widely announced alongside the festival’s commencement.

In light of the ousted prince, Lean de Yeriel, they planned to publicize that Eric de Yeriel was marrying a princess from the Aisel Kingdom, thus compensating for the lacking legitimacy.

The festival was proceeding splendidly, and with only a day until the wedding ceremony, the royal castle was still bustling. Maids rushed around with exhausted faces, and a wizard swept through the chaos.

It was Count Soarel Demetri Ogerton. He walked, tapping his cane on the thick carpeted floor.

Of course, it wasn’t because the count, barely in his late twenties, found it hard to move.

He was inscribing mana roads everywhere… though, to be honest, this was something wizards typically don’t do.

Mana is so free-flowing that even if a path were drawn, it would scatter in just a few days.

However, Count Ogerton possessed a peculiar staff.

He had found it while on a frustrating trip to meet the continent’s only Swordmaster, Count Hermann Forte, to study the theory of mana layering, only to be turned away.

Miraculously, this staff seemed to temporarily freeze mana, as if under command from someone.

Could it be the efficacy of an oak tree?

He had experimented, but that wasn’t the case.

This staff was unique, and after obtaining it, the count returned home, soothing his bitter gut.

And only then did he realize he had a son.

Regretting that he hadn’t even known he was born, and feeling sorry for his wife who had been raising the child alone, Count Ogerton devoted himself to his family for a time. Then, feeling a bit bored, the Yeriel royal family contacted him.

They proposed that since their contracted magician, Ristad Jegen Dorph, had broken the contract and vanished, would he like to take his place?

Count Ogerton instantly understood the implication of this proposal, even the reason behind Ristad Jegen Dorph’s disappearance.

It was primarily because there were too few magicians. Officially, there were 283, but in reality, it was just under 230, this gap caused by each kingdom inflating the number of magicians they claimed to possess.

In truth, only 228 magicians existed. Naturally, Count Ogerton knew all their names and had also heard about their respective subjects of research and personal circumstances.

They were all fellow magicians. Even if they hailed from different birth kingdoms or were affiliated with different towers, they didn’t generally harbor hostility towards each other.

The rivalry might have looked fierce, but it stemmed more from competition than actual enmity, and they maintained camaraderie.

Even if they met on the battlefield,

– “Nice to meet you. I hear you’re studying mana layering. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

– “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

They exchanged greetings with cloud eyes magic. The battlefield was merely a vast experimental ground for their research, and even if captured, it was rare for a magician to be executed. They would simply awkwardly change their affiliated tower (according to their contracts).

This is the world of magicians.

So very rare were they that they knew and protected one another well.

Thus, Count Ogerton had a rough idea of Ristad Jegen Dorph’s situation (though he had never actually met him).

It seemed the factions of “Dorph” and “Lydia” inside the Cornell Tower of the Aisel Kingdom had clashed. The count speculated it was likely due to the war between the Aisel and Belita kingdoms.

The Cornell Tower had a deep involvement in the politics of the Aisel Kingdom. The marriage of Princess Elika, alongside the disappearance of Ristad Jegen Dorph, was not unrelated.

In any case, with Ristad’s breaking of the contract and subsequent vanishing, the Yeriel royal family needed a new magician.

While there was a tower (Iber) in the Conrad Kingdom, they did not wish to face the same misfortune as Aisel Kingdom and generally preferred to hire magicians from other kingdoms. This was the offer that came to Count Ogerton, who was returning from his journey, resting without any particular engagements.

Feeling a bit bored and not wanting to be dragged into the political scene by Marquis Drazin using his granddaughter, he accepted the employment contract.

Then last year, he brought his wife and child to Rutina, purchased a mansion, and began working on the tasks assigned to him, which was nothing grand.

He was simply asked to keep an eye on a group of seven people possessing red jewels. Though not particularly thrilled, the count granted the prince’s request as it was his first duty. Then something astonishing was discovered.

“A Swordmaster?”

Among the targets he was surveilling was indeed a Swordmaster.

The busy young man, one of the four remaining in Rutina, met with a knight from the First Knight Order, unveiling the Oblivion Blade.

Tap, tap, tap.

Excitement surged as the count rhythmically tapped his staff across the hall. He hurriedly wrapped the royal castle in mana roads as he made his way.

The castle was bustling with preparations for the wedding tomorrow, laying new carpets and hanging drapes. Had they run out of money? He noticed cheap-looking materials being used for finishing touches.

The drapes were fastened with twine instead of silk. The curtains were the same.

After all, the Yeriel royal family was shouldering the cost of the week-long festival, hence the chamberlain in charge of the royal finances was probably burning with anxiety.

Count Ogerton, unconcerned with the royal finances, silently passed through the first floor, bustling with wedding preparations, winding his way up the stairs.

Fourth floor, the king’s office.

Prince Eric… no, King Eric de Yeriel was with Princess Elika.

They were set to be wed, and though they hadn’t seemed close before, they appeared to have grown closer now.

To avoid the hassle of receiving permission from the chamberlain, the count simply walked through the wall and announced himself.

“Excuse me. I apologize, Princess. Just for a moment…”

“Yes.”

Though she was in the middle of conversing with Eric and might not have been in the best of moods, the princess promptly stood and stepped aside. She appeared to be quite accommodating towards the wizard.

Curiously, it was Eric who looked somewhat displeased. The king commanded coldly.

“I’d prefer if you didn’t do that here, regardless of how it was in the Orun Kingdom. Certainly not while watching over me.”

The count responded, flustered.

“It is my duty to protect the king and royalty; how could I not keep an eye on you?”

“Read the contract again. I asked for the protection of the palace, not the royal family.”

“…Understood.”

“Good, you catch on quickly. Now, what brings you here?”

“Actually, I came with a request. Prince… I mean, King, there are some people you asked me to monitor. What do you intend to do with them?”

“Start with why you’re asking.”

“…I wish to take one of them. Whether as a slave or whatever. Ah, please don’t misunderstand. They’re merely experimental tools necessary for my research, and I assure you they won’t be freed.”

“I cannot allow…”

That’s when the count raised his head. Meet his eyes—a pair of deep pink eyes so rich they appeared purple. Eric, looking into those eyes, reconsidered his thoughts.

“There is one. However, you must prove that the slave was killed after the research ends.”

“The research won’t ever end. I would prefer that to be the case.”

With permission granted, the count turned to leave. Eric let out a chuckle, humorless.

What a lunatic. He felt it through their eye contact. The count was enveloped in madness. And Oriax loved it.

Oriax had been born from the madness of a Minotaur, amidst a pile of corpses. Magicians were a breed that would slaughter countless slaves and soldiers for the sake of their research.

‘What a useful fellow.’ ─ This was what Eric thought at that moment.

Shortly after, Elika, who had stepped out for a moment, returned. Perhaps it was insincere, but she was starting to grow on him, that princess who smiled radiantly in understanding.

Oriax quietly retreated.

*

“…He hasn’t arrived.”

“True…”

The morning of the last day of the festival.

Leah and Reb were waiting in front of the Grania Orphanage for Cardinal Berg to make his appearance.

They had instructed Galen to bring him even if it meant kidnapping him, but whether the delay was due to things not going well or he simply needed more time was unclear.

The Baron Monarch’s manor was quite far, after all.

It was indeed tight on time for back and forth. Reb let out a light sigh.

Once the cardinal arrived, everything would be ready. They had already delivered the twine stacked high in the storeroom to the royal palace through the captain of the royal knights, and had also secured the cooperation of Jenia Jaqueri. There were jewels safely tucked in his pocket…

Why was it that they were always one item short?

Feeling anxious, Reb turned to Leah and asked.

“Is this really the path desired by God?”

“Yeah. We’ve done everything we can. Let’s go, or we’ll be late.”

In truth, it wasn’t a question but a sarcastic remark. Was this really the right thing to do? Leah answered without a shred of doubt, and Reb asked her one last time.

“Do you really have to come?”

“I want to.”

“…Alright. Just promise me. If I have to run, don’t look back and just run. To Demos village. That’s my request.”

“Okay.”

Leah answered casually. Reb seized her shoulder firmly.

“Promise me. For sure. Don’t just act as you please, listen to my words too. Otherwise… next time, I’ll lie to you. All the dreams you’ve had were just nonsense, and nothing like that happened.”

“…Alright.”

“Thank you.”

Reb moved on ahead. His insistence made her a bit doubtful, but Leah didn’t worry too much.

“Let’s go.”

Following Reb ahead were Leah and 200 orphanage residents. Having become close with the orphans over winter, instead of waiting for the cardinal who might not even come, she spoke frankly to them.

She revealed the reason she sought Cardinal Berg was to defeat the Evil God and asked for their help, and the orphans began to murmur, discussing until they reached their conclusion in their own way.

Those who wanted to help would help, while those who didn’t need not say a word.

They followed Cardinal Berg’s teaching to pray less and act more, pursuing their beliefs.

About a third of the orphans decided they would follow Leah. Though they didn’t know how to use holy spells, the young ones imbued with divine power stood ready to back Reb and Leah.

Leah felt incredibly reassured and thought they could win against anything that stood in their way.

Of course, Reb’s expression showed no sign of relief…

Nevertheless, the die had been cast.

Reb earnestly prayed everything would proceed according to plan and entered the royal castle.

[ Achievement: First Entry into the Royal Palace – You will grow stronger in the palace. ]

With Bart’s former comrades (all royal knights) present, and having utilized the secret passages in the beggar siblings’ scenario during the twelfth round, the process was not difficult.

The caution the orphans received was to make as little noise as possible and to act as though they were priests here to bless the king’s wedding.

They wore the garb of priests from the Cross Church, even if the insignia was missing.

“What’s this, it’s easy?”

Leah, donned in the fake priest garb along with the other orphans, whispered excitedly. As she said, it was indeed easy.

The maids were too busy to pay them any mind, and moreover, the captain of the royal knights was leading the way.

Even if the royal guards or knights happened to stop them, they were told to prepare a surprise gift for the king, so on the last day of the festival and the wedding that was bound to be blessed, those who should be strict with the rules had grown complacent.

Having reached the ceremony hall without so much as a hiccup, Reb felt a bit dazed.

Now, once that door opened, he only needed to charge in and smash the jewels. There was no body search, meaning a sword hung at his waist.

‘Is it really this easy?’

It couldn’t be… right?

As questions brewed in Reb’s mind, now mixed among 200 orphans, he began to panic. This was a disaster waiting to happen.

Feel free to curse at him for being crazy.

Having seen nothing but awful endings, he dreaded just how easily this was playing out; it meant they were already doomed!

Before he could sort his thoughts, Reb unsheathed his sword.

Having come this far, he’d gone too far to turn back. Whether in or out, smashing was the plan…

But if Eric and the knights happened not to be inside, they definitely shouldn’t break in, but that in itself would mean trouble. Also, Minseo instructed Reb to break the jewels right before Eric’s eyes, but what did that matter now? They were screwed.

Reb lifted his flaming sword, the Oblivion Blade. In his other hand, he clutched the jewels, intent to smash them…

“Ugh!?”

“Screech!”

“Wh-what!? S-sorry! Is everyone alright… huh?”

The 200 orphans who had been waiting just before the great doors all fell to the ground simultaneously, as if trampled by something.

They were confused, not comprehending why they had fallen, and when they tried to rise, they realized they couldn’t move and floundered helplessly.

Standing in their midst, the only one on his feet was Reb, his face turning white.

“Stop right there, young Swordmaster. The moment you twitch a finger, I’ll kill them all.”

“Wh-why are you here…?”

Before him stood the wizard he had encountered in Nevis, who was a servant of Barbatos.

He didn’t even know his name.

But it was clear he had been a tricky opponent, wielding Barbatos’s power freely back then. Even without his staff, this magician had unleashed lightning, which had been rather bothersome.

“I said not to move. Press!”

“Ugh, aaah…!!”

– Thwack, splatter!

At the count’s shouted command, several people around Reb burst open. Their clothing tore, insides spilling out, eyes popping.

One after another.

Reb’s body froze in place. He dared not turn his head to verify, and whispered.

“Le… Leah?”

There was no answer.