“Bait? Your Majesty means...”

“Muen Campbell, Ariel Bugaard, and that mysterious Crowned One... look. Toss a handful of bait into the lake, and don’t all the things that were hiding deep at the bottom come out and show themselves?”

The old man looked at the lake surface, where fish were packed so densely they were flopping and jumping, and the smile on his face carried an unfathomable depth.

“So that’s how it is. Your Majesty is wise,” the attendant said, impressed.

“But speaking of which, from the intelligence sent back from Belrand, that Campbell boy, and that Ariel Bugaard—who was previously completely unknown—their talent is truly terrifying. I thought His Highness the Seventeenth Prince’s talent was already astonishing, but I didn’t expect there to be people even beyond His Highness... and most importantly, they’re so young.”

Young meant possibilities.

And the Kingdom’s emperor before him was already old—so old he was nearly withering away. He had taken the throne back when the Empire still had the previous emperor’s previous emperor, and he had sat at the Kingdom’s highest position for nearly sixty years.

Below him were more than a dozen sons who had long since been drooling over that seat, watching like tigers, waiting so long they’d even grown white hair.

Of course, the attendant wouldn’t say such things. Because even if this wise Kingdom emperor was already so old, he still knew how to handle all of it.

After all, he was a truly outstanding king who could contend with that iron-willed Aldrich III. And now the one he faced was only Aldrich III’s daughter.

“Yes. Young.”

A flicker of disgust passed through the old man’s eyes—whether it was for the Empire’s youths, or for the word itself, no one could tell.

“From the intelligence we’ve compiled so far, that young empress is no ordinary person either. The Empire’s luck really is good. They clearly just went through that kind of upheaval, yet extraordinary figures still keep popping up. Meanwhile, my sons... every last one of them is trash.”

“Your Majesty, please calm your anger.”

“I’m not angry.”

The old man waved a hand, breezy.

“It’s fine if they’re trash. After they fight and fight, the disaster only gets bigger.”

“Then...” The attendant hesitated.

“If you have something to say, say it.”

“Yes.”

The attendant answered respectfully.

“What I mean is, if that’s the case, do we still have to act so aggressively? As Your Majesty said, although the Empire is currently in a weakened state, it’s still far from the point of collapsing at a touch. If we act rashly like this...”

“If we don’t do it now, are we supposed to wait until little Campbell grows into big Campbell, and little Leopold turns into big Leopold, and only then do it?”

The old man snorted.

“The Empire looks weak, but in reality, that weakness is the weakness that comes from scraping the rot out of the bone. It’s the weakness of someone who’s just recovered from a grave illness. Fools all think the Empire is already on the brink of collapse, but those with real vision all know that once the Empire gets through this hurdle, once they rebuild a complete, effective internal order... the Empire will only become stronger than it is now!”

At that, the old man couldn’t help sighing again.

“Honestly, I’m starting to envy the Empire’s internal situation. Every obstacle has already been swept away, so that young empress can swing her fists as she pleases. Meanwhile, the moment I try to do anything, some shortsighted rat-eyed idiots jump out and make me annoyed.”

“So that’s how it is.”

The attendant seemed even more awed.

“Your Majesty’s insight is exceptional. Even if the Empire is terrifying, with you leading the Kingdom, we will surely march toward victory.”

“You don’t need to pile on flattery. You and I both know that the Kingdom alone still isn’t enough. Therefore...”

The old man suddenly rose. Beneath his white ceremonial robe, his body was actually quite tall, not at all like an old man nearing a hundred. His eyes were like lightning as he stared at the attendant with majesty.

“Our friend who came from far away—has he arrived?”

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

The attendant placed one hand to his chest.

“That’s exactly what I came to report. At the same time, I also brought a piece of excellent news.”

“Oh? Excellent news?”

The old man clapped his hands and laughed.

“I hope that excellent news is precisely the excellent news I’m thinking of!”

...

The Kingdom, the royal capital.

A man wrapped head to toe in a loose black robe walked through the lively streets.

It wasn’t quite on Belrand’s level, but as the Kingdom’s political and economic center, this place was still extremely prosperous.

Pedestrians hurried along, flowing through the streets.

Carriages raced by, carrying who knew which noble.

Vendors on both sides shouted their wares. The sheer number of goods made it almost impossible to take in at a glance.

Countless buildings stretched for who knew how many miles. When you looked up, all you could see were neat little block-like piles stacked together.

The man stopped where he was, as if he’d been stunned by the sight.

A woman carrying a bag of apples passed by him, but accidentally bumped into him, knocking several apples onto the ground.

“What kind of backwater bumpkin is this?!”

The woman cursed, but when she glanced at the man’s larger-than-normal build, she swallowed, gave up the idea of squeezing money out of him, didn’t bother picking up the apples that had already been smashed, and walked off still grumbling.

“...”

Only then did the man seem to notice what had happened.

He stared blankly at the woman’s swaying back as she left, then slowly lowered his head and looked at the apple that had rolled all the way to his feet.

The apple was red and glossy, like a girl’s cheeks. Unfortunately, it had already shattered. White flesh mixed with juice smeared onto his filthy boot.

The apple was completely ruined, mixed with dirt and the filth on the ground. In a place like the royal capital, even the beggars on the street probably wouldn’t bother with something like this.

But the man suddenly bent down and picked the apple up. He didn’t even clean it. Just like that...

He took a bite.

In an instant, the man froze again. It was as if the crisp sound of teeth sinking into flesh, and the sweetness blooming in the juice, had shocked him. The muscles of his face started twitching, almost beyond his control.

Twitching with excitement.

Very quickly, the man moved again. He devoured the whole apple like a wolf, ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) leaving not even the core.

Delicious.

A deliciousness he had never tasted before.

“Fertile land, clean air, sweet fruit... how beautiful.”

The man stared at this beautiful street again, stared at the noisy crowd, and murmured softly.

“Unfortunately... such beautiful things are occupied by such lowly things. What a waste.”

...

...

Creak—

A heavy iron door was pushed open, letting out a sharp screech that made your teeth ache.

Muen lightly waved a hand, dispersing the drifting dust and stench, and stepped into the prison once more.

It was still the legendary Black Prison.

But this time, it wasn’t the same area as last time. That area—where some serial killer and “midnight urban legend” had been held—was, for the entire Black Prison, only the uppermost and loosest region.

This time he was deeper down. The terrifying suppression felt like it was seeping into bone marrow. Even though he wasn’t wearing shackles, even though he wasn’t here as a prisoner, Muen still felt his body become unbearably heavy.

“Are you okay?”

Muen looked at the disheveled woman inside the cell and asked softly.

Clank.

At his voice, heavy chains slowly ground against each other. A pair of slender hands lifted, parting the tangled hair.

That face was filthy and pale, and she was clearly injured. Still, her eyes were fairly bright.

“M-Mr. Muen... you came to see me?”

“We’re acquaintances, aren’t we?”

Muen waved a hand, signaling the guard behind him to step away for now. He walked into the cell and sat down across from her.

“Long time no see, Miss Sevier.”

Muen smiled.

“We’ve met a few times already, but this is the first time we’ve properly said hello, isn’t it?”

“L-long time no see.”

Sevier fidgeted as she tried to tidy her messy hair and the filthy prison clothes. But the environment made it impossible for her to regain any of her former polish, and for a moment she didn’t even know where to put her hands and feet.

“I didn’t expect this conversation to happen in a place like this.”

Muen glanced around and suddenly felt a little emotional.

But thinking about it carefully, his first meeting with Miss Sevier had also been in the Dusk Country, where rotting bodies littered the ground and monsters ran rampant—so it wasn’t like it had ever been a good place.

“How are they treating you? They didn’t use torture on you, did they?”

Muen asked.

Deep within the prison, curses of pain and low, pitiful pleading kept drifting over, and mixed into it were sounds that made your scalp crawl—flesh splitting, bones wailing, souls trembling.

They were all people from the Kingdom’s delegation.

After being captured, they’d all been thrown in here. But as the price for daring to attack the Empire’s intelligence organization, most of them were undergoing “professional” interrogation. Even Muen, who was already used to death, couldn’t watch those methods without feeling something.

“N-no.”

Sevier lowered her head. Her hands, hidden inside her tattered sleeves, trembled slightly, but she forced them still.

“Maybe... it’s just not my turn yet.”

“You don’t have to be interrogated.”

Muen suddenly said.

“Even though I don’t hold any official post right now, so it’s hard for me to interfere in the Empire’s governance, I can still guarantee you this—you don’t have to be interrogated.”

“On the condition that I sell out my country?”

Sevier suddenly let out a mocking laugh.

Even though she had been driven to this point by the teacher closest to her, and by her own country, and even though she had started to doubt her cousin’s cause of death... it was still very hard to suddenly abandon what she’d held onto for the first half of her life.

“It’s not selling out the Kingdom.”

Muen kept his tone as gentle as possible.

“I don’t think Hertz would tell you anything truly core anyway. You’re victims too. What we want to know is... why the Kingdom is doing this. Where their confidence comes from.”

The dim candlelight at the top of the cell flickered, but it still couldn’t hide the handsomeness on his face.

Sevier stared for a moment.

And when she sank into it, she suddenly remembered—she had originally had that fluttering, springlike foolishness precisely because of this face.

How much of it had been real liking?

From how she’d shrunk back the moment she was frightened by those lofty women... maybe there hadn’t been much at all.

“I... don’t know.”

Sevier shook her head.

“In fact, I was shocked by this change too.”

“Shocked? There wasn’t anything abnormal inside the Kingdom?”

If the Kingdom wanted to raise this war to a higher level, the Kingdom’s interior couldn’t possibly have had no changes.

Resource transport, personnel movements, orders being conveyed... a machine that massive couldn’t run without making a sound.

In fact, that was what Muen found strangest. If the Kingdom had truly prepared for all-out war with the Empire, the Empire’s intelligence organization couldn’t possibly have received not even the slightest whisper.

The Empire spent so much money every year to keep so many people—it was to make them the first line of defense protecting the Empire, not to raise a pile of useless trash.

And the facts proved the Empire wasn’t raising trash, but truly vicious hunting dogs—dogs that had once torn the Kingdom so badly it couldn’t bear it.

“I really don’t know...”

Sevier pinched the corner of her clothes, hesitated, then suddenly said:

“So I think... if the Kingdom really has some kind of confidence... maybe that confidence isn’t inside the Kingdom.”

“Not inside the Kingdom? What do you mean?”

Muen frowned and fell into thought along with her.

From Sevier’s way of thinking, did that mean it wasn’t only the Kingdom that wanted to attack the Empire this time, but other countries too?

But...

“Young Master Campbell.”

His thoughts were cut off.

Muen raised his head and looked at the guard who had just walked in.

“What is it?”

“Her Majesty is looking for you,” the guard said. “She said it’s something extremely important.”

...

A “reminiscing” that ended in a hurry.

After receiving the order, Muen quickly headed to the palace. Along the way, as if the message had already been passed down in advance, he wasn’t stopped once. The entire palace was completely open to him.

In the end, he arrived at the Throne Hall.

Majestic murals were carved into the enormous pillars, and the statues of the First Glory Knights still stood around the hall.

Even if their descendants had become rotten, greedy, and stupid beyond saving, no one could deny the tremendous contributions they had once made to this nation.

Celicia sat high upon the throne, resting with her eyes closed. The Throne Hall was empty at this moment—not even a guard or maid in sight.

But Muen could clearly feel the lingering aura of other people here.

It seemed a very important imperial meeting had been held here, discussing grave topics tied to the Empire’s future, until deep into the night, and only now had it finally ended for the moment.

Muen could feel the exhaustion radiating from Celicia, impossible to hide. From Milne’s death until now, for these two days, her mind had clearly been stretched to its limit.

“Are you okay?”

Muen tiptoed up and began massaging her temples.

“You look really tired.”

“...”

Silence.

Then a long sigh.

In this vast Throne Hall, that sigh was like a gust of cold wind blowing in from midsummer, making people uneasy from the depths of the heart.

“Muen.”

Celicia rubbed her cheek against Muen’s palm with lingering attachment.

She rarely acted so intimate. She rarely called his name so gently.

“I’m sorry. You have to go to the Abyss.”

“Why?”

Even though the premonition had already begun, Muen still asked without thinking.

“Because...”

Celicia opened her eyes.

“The Abyss frontline... something happened on your father’s side.”