Chapter 424

Posted by Kuze, ? Views, Released on April 8, 2025

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424 Royal Capital Jeruit #3

It is said that the royalty of the Gaia Continent carefully selects their marriage partners after much deliberation.

In other words, for them, marriage is akin to a merger procedure between families or kingdoms.

However, Theo Friedrich established his household at a relatively young age.

Since Theo had an elder brother, Vincent, who was already designated as the heir to the throne, he was relatively free to do as he pleased.

Indeed, most responsibilities fell upon Vincent, the firstborn, while Theo lived a debauched and reckless life.

Thus, when he reached a certain age, Theo married a handmaiden with whom he had grown up like childhood friends.

”At the time, people made a fuss about the difference in status, but she was far too good for me. Truly far too good.”

Though his wife lost her life giving birth to their daughter.

Still, he had intended to pour his affection into their daughter, who resembled her, and live a peaceful, comfortable life.

Until that incident occurred.

”My daughter fell ill with a fever. To be precise, she was poisoned. Poison—administered to a newborn child. And it was an extremely rare poison, one that could not be obtained in this land.”

”Poison, you say…?”

”Now, it’s called Eight. The poison of the elves.”

Eight.

I was already familiar with it.

The poison that had lured Ignoy and killed Bacchus was none other than that very poison. The shock of it had left Ignoy mute to this day, and she often tore apart the sofa whenever she got the chance.

Eight, which killed Bacchus.

And Eight, which had attempted to poison the newborn Pride.

Could there be a connection between these two?

As I briefly pondered, the king continued his explanation.

”At the time, it was long before the gates were opened to the elves. Since there were no elves on the continent, the only ones who could have obtained such a rare poison were high-ranking nobles or royalty. But my father, the late king, was bedridden with illness. There weren’t many suspects.”

”So it must have been your brother.”

At my words, Thunderblade fell silent for a moment.

As if lost in distant memories, he wiped his wrinkled face with his palm before finally opening his mouth, as though he had made up his mind.

”My brother Vincent was a man among men. Not the kind who would do such a thing. But those who secretly supported me seemed to think otherwise. My daughter was on the brink of d*ath, and I… I wasn’t in my right mind either…”

Thus began the civil war.

”I realized—to ensure a peaceful life for myself, my family, and my daughter, I had to eliminate the threat. I abandoned my brother and chose my child. But on the very day I stabbed my brother’s eyes and killed him… my daughter also took her last breath. That day, I lost my entire family…”

So he had stabbed Vincent’s eyes.

Now I understood why Valtma of the Mars Guild had lost an eye and become half-blind.

It must have been a fatal wound—one so severe that d*ath would have been assumed. Perhaps he had truly died.

Regardless, the important thing now was not that man, but the daughter who had been poisoned and ultimately died.

”So you performed necromancy.”

”It was my last resort. I used the high priests of Pluto, whom I had taken prisoner, to bring my daughter back to life. The result was a success. Warmth returned to her cold body. But…”

”But?”

”But what returned with that warmth was not my daughter’s soul—but something else. To be precise, it would be more accurate to say that something had mixed with her soul.”

Now it made sense.

It felt like a missing puzzle piece had finally fallen into place.

Though the daughter had been revived through the Pluto priests’ necromancy, the one inhabiting that body was someone—or something—else. That was Thunderblade’s claim.

And this transformed daughter later led the Shrine Knights to exterminate every last remaining Pluto priest.

Were necromancers her greatest weakness?

Outwardly, she proclaimed that reviving the dead was heresy—but there was an undeniable stench of something suspicious about it.

Come to think of it, could the strict prohibition of illegal medical practices in this world also be related to necromancy—the act of resurrecting the dead? No, perhaps that’s going too far.

I asked,

”How many people know about this?”

”They’re all dead. Killed by Pride’s hand, branded as cultists. The ministers, their children—all were executed under charges of treason. Now, only I remain.”

”Now that I’ve heard it, I suppose that includes me.”

”That b*stard will surely come for my life as well. I will d*e. But I want to save my daughter’s soul. By any means necessary…”

Sigh—

The king bowed his head to me once more.

”Call me irresponsible if you will. I killed my brother, concealed this grave truth, and ruined the fate of this kingdom—all to save my daughter. But, Lord Zigress. I believe you will understand me.”

”Me…?”

”Though I lived a dissolute life, I am still royalty seated upon the Throne of Lightning. This is no empty boast claiming to be Jupiter’s proxy. Zigress, you are like a daughter to me.”

”No, what do you—”

Cough—

At that moment, the king erupted into a fit of coughing.

Having dragged his aged body here and excitedly poured out the words festering deep within him, Thunderblade coughed violently for a long while.

Thud—

Finally, his hands covered in bl**d, he lost consciousness. Checking his pulse, it was abnormally slow—as though he might stop breathing at any moment.

It seemed this man had been about to say something incredibly important.

So I placed my hand on the king’s chest.

If his daughter’s bosom was like the land of Canaan, flowing with milk and honey, then Thunderblade’s body was so emaciated that his ribs were starkly visible.

Two years at most.

Perhaps even less.

Though the king had said his daughter Pride would k*ll him, perhaps his life would end even before that.

Was it due to the stress of his illness? Or perhaps this weakened state itself was part of Pride Friedrich’s scheme.

There were many ways—adding trace amounts of poison to his food daily, casting curses, and so on.

In any case, if the king were to suddenly d*e here in the midst of this secret conversation, it would be the worst possible outcome for me. Thus, I decided it was best to first undo the curses clinging to his body.

”Consider yourself lucky.”

—

Thunderblade awoke exactly three hours later.

Lying on a grand bed fit for a king, he blinked in confusion as though bewildered by his surroundings, with many people watching.

”What in the—? Why is the king in such a place…?”

The Minister of Internal Affairs—some weasel-faced man named Karl or something—answered.

”Your Majesty, it seems your chronic forgetfulness has acted up again…! You suddenly disappeared, and though we searched, we could not find you—until Lord Zigress discovered Your Majesty and brought you here—”

Sigh—

The old man’s eyes turned to me.

I said,

”Did you sleep well?”

”Better than I have in years. In my dreams, my brother appeared. I thought he had come to drag this wretched younger brother into the river of hellfire…”

”That couldn’t be.”

”Hmph, well, no matter. It seems I lost consciousness again. I am fine now. Everyone, leave us. I do not wish to delay your busy schedules—”

Some of the ministers spoke up in worried voices.

”Your Majesty, perhaps it would be best to summon healing priests to examine your condition.”

But the king shook his head.

”It’s fine. Lord Zigress, the so-called God of Healing, is by my side. What could be safer than that?”

Though the ministers seemed to have much to say, they hesitated, unable to refute him, and eventually left the king’s chambers.

”I’ve shown you a shameful sight. This time, I truly thought I would go to where my brother is…”

”Hmm. That won’t be so easy.”

”I suppose not. I am destined for the abyss. Even in d*ath, I doubt I’ll see his face. I wanted to at least apologize to him…”

I realized this man didn’t know that his brother, Valtma, was still alive. Hadn’t I signed documents in Vincent Friedrich’s name when establishing the shrine?

I had assumed he knew.

But judging by his reaction, he seemed to believe his brother was truly dead. Then again, Valtma himself wanted to live as though he were dead.

Not my place to interfere.

”This old man’s ramblings are boring me…!”

Paranoi interrupted again, leaving no time to discuss the matter further.

”This child is…”

”I am Lord Hassan’s loyal right hand, the future Imp of Hellfire, Paranoi…! As the Border Count of Hell, my rank is higher than any king in this world…!”

Thunderblade frowned slightly, as though unable to comprehend Paranoi’s words. Noticing that evening had fully fallen outside the window, I asked,

”So, you said you want to exorcise the evil spirit from the prince’s body. Is there a suitable time or date? The sooner, the better. I can’t stay in the royal castle forever—”

”Ah, if that’s the case, I have an idea. There’s no need to delay—tonight at midnight will suffice.”

Midnight tonight?

I had assumed I’d return to the hotel where Luna and the others were waiting by evening at the latest. The sudden overtime was a bit awkward.

Can I get paid extra for this?

Then Paranoi spoke up.

”How dare a mere human king presume to command Lord Hassan’s time as he pleases…! I held my tongue in front of others to save face, but this old man is truly insolent…!”

Paranoi seemed furious.

”To disrespect Lord Hassan is to disrespect me, the Border Count of Hell…! I have a duty to enforce hierarchy and discipline…!”

Despite the angry Shiba Inu-like display, Thunderblade merely stroked his beard and chuckled.

”Lord Border Count, you speak truly. The gods are guests of the continent. They are precious beings who deserve respect. Of course, I do not ask for this service for free.”

Oh? Did Paranoi successfully negotiate?

Bringing her along was the right call.

I asked,

”If not for free, then what will you give?”

”Though I am king, Pride has stripped me of much authority. I am but a figurehead. Still, even I can grant access to the royal treasury.”

That was enough.

A smarter man than I thought.

And so, late that night—

The royal castle at night was desolate and silent, save for the occasional servant carrying a torch.

The towering walls felt like a prison—cold, quiet, and eerily unsettling.

Paranoi, the aged king Thunderblade, and I quietly made our way through the halls toward the prince’s chambers, ensuring no one noticed.

The first obstacle was the guards stationed at the entrance. Two men leaned against the door and windows, chatting idly.

How long has it been? An hour? Is the shift change coming soon?

No, maybe just twenty minutes?

Time moves so slowly.

Their conversation was mundane—complaints about boredom and time dragging on. Then Thunderblade spoke.

”Leave this to me.”

Leaving Paranoi and me hidden in the shadows of the hallway, he approached the guards with a deliberate cough.

”Your Majesty, what brings you here at this late hour…?”

The previously lax guards snapped to attention, saluting sharply.

Despite having removed their helmets and been leaning against the wall moments ago, their movements were swift.

Their faces were tense.

They had likely been slacking off and were now terrified of being caught by the king.

But Thunderblade dismissed them casually.

”I have matters to discuss with my son tonight. A private, heartfelt conversation. You may end your shift early. Inform the next watch that guard duty is canceled.”

”Is that truly alright…?”

”Yes. Best hurry before I change my mind. Go and rest.”

”Thank you!”

I had expected it to take longer, but the soldiers seemed overjoyed at the unexpected night off. Honestly, I would’ve been too.

They quickly gathered their gear and vanished into the darkness. Watching them, Paranoi clicked her tongue.

”After years of peace, even the royal guards have grown lax…! What if Thunderblade were an illusionist in disguise? How careless can they be…?”

Now that she mentioned it, she had a point. These guards were far too negligent.

”At this rate, overthrowing the kingdom would be easier than eating cake…!”

”Only after we deal with that prince. He’s dangerous. Stay alert. Who knows what might happen tonight.”

”To catch a tiger, one must enter its den…!”

Finally, Thunderblade stood before his daughter’s chamber and motioned for us. Steadying my pounding heart, I stepped forward.

Flicker—