Chapter 83 : Chapter 83

Chapter 83 - The Eagle and the Serpent

 

Cough!

Charles let out a dry cough.

The tea that had struck his throat almost came back up, and he managed to suppress it, his shoulders heaving repeatedly.

The Head Maid, who was behind him, quietly handed him a handkerchief.

“Th-thank you.”

He wiped his wet beard with the plain handkerchief.

Meanwhile, Albert continued speaking on his own.

“The Young Master’s domain is magnificent. Your achievement of normalizing a demonic realm will be etched in history. However.”

“Albert! You’re speaking too hastily…!”

“Charles. We are Grand Officers. If vassals in our position drag things out and act ambiguously, it only puts the kingdom in an awkward position. Why do you not see that.”

The Youngest Son, who had been listening quietly, gestured lightly with his hand.

“It does not matter. I wish to hear everything you have to say. Continue.”

Since the lord had said so.

One of them had to take a step back, and the other had to take a step forward.

“The Julsin Kingdom's border is close to Eclipse, but we have no intention of pursuing trade or economic relations with this place.”

“The reason is.”

“Good faith.”

“Good faith?”

Albert nodded his head.

His gray, tiger-like eyebrows, filled with principles and stubbornness, trembled accordingly.

“Our king has already formed a bond of brotherhood with another esteemed person before the Young Master.”

“Ah. Is that so.”

“It is. As the younger brother, how could he betray the older brother he served and disappoint him? Please forgive us graciously.”

Albert bowed his head deeply.

At that reasonable refusal, Charles's expression relaxed slightly.

But the reason it had only relaxed slightly was.

It was because of the status of the being before him.

Furthermore, that being knew very well what his status was and how he could use it.

“Too brief.”

“…Pardon?”

He had asked for forgiveness, but the reply that came back was a short one.

No further words followed.

The contents of the pitcher had changed from the tea he had in the morning to black coffee.

Instead of an answer, a sugar cube was dropped in.

It dissolved quickly in the high temperature.

The blood-red eyes watched the scene silently.

“Sugar cubes. They dissolve quite quickly, don't they.”

“Yes. They do.”

Charles stepped forward instead of Albert.

Even if the Julsin Kingdom was backed by an elder, this was the abode of a blood relative.

An abode surrounded by thick, high walls, and guarded by demons no less.

The place where they sat now was such a demonic realm.

Driiiiip─

The long spout of the pitcher spat out black water.

“It’s coffee imported from the South, and its aroma is as good as tea. The difference from tea is that it awakens the brain.”

It awakens the brain.

It awakens and puts it in a state of alertness.

Add a couple of sugar cubes here, and it quickly becomes sweet.

So the tension is bound to ease.

“If you drink it, you won't make any useless mistakes. Your mind will race, so you’ll choose your words carefully.”

Two teacups were filled in no time.

“Drink.”

“…Young Master. I─”

“I will drink it with gratitude.”

Under the desk, Charles stepped on his shoe.

In the end, Albert also brought the teacup to his lips with a grimace.

It was hot.

A pain so intense it felt like his tongue would be scalded at any moment.

He squeezed his eyes shut and emptied the small teacup that could be easily hidden in his hand.

“How is it. Your head is clearer now.”

“Y-yes. It really is.”

It had better be clear now.

If not.

The whale would digest what had entered its stomach.

“Then, try saying it one more time.”

The reason?

The blood-red eyes turned to Albert.

It was a second chance.

“That is…”

This time, the words did not follow immediately.

The Youngest Son’s coffee had made him choose his words carefully.

After long deliberation.

Albert revealed the reason.

“For the past month, we have been serving one of the ten elders of Millesdusk, Elder Kian.”

“His words are true. Elder Kian has built a villa on our kingdom’s humble land and stays for a few days to escape the fatigue of daily life.”

“An elder.”

The index finger tapped on the armrest of the chair.

Albert smiled triumphantly to himself.

‘That’s right. He is an elder of your family. As of now, there is a being in our kingdom whom no direct blood relative can treat carelessly. So what can you do.’

Both the justification and the power were here.

The Youngest Son’s eyes seemed to be deep in thought.

But the Head Maid’s interpretation was different.

‘He’s bored.’

It was the Fifth Son who had frequented the Fourth Son’s camp even when he had nothing.

And now that he even had a proper residence.

“Why should I care about something like that.”

“…!”

“Y-Young Master…!”

The two Grand Officers were startled.

So startled that their old, sagging eyelids lifted.

Anyone who saw them would think these two were the Millesdusk blood relatives.

Tap, tap.

The Youngest Son was still tapping the armrest.

Tapping idly, without any emotion.

“An elder. The excuse you’ve brought is no reason for me.”

“…Can you take responsibility for these words? In Millesdusk, the ten elders are─”

“They are people just like you.”

The definition was simple, without any need for debate.

“Old monsters with immense power within that land. Vipers with fangs that cannot be ignored.”

However.

“Because they are vipers and serpents, they must crawl on the ground. Even if they raise their heads, they cannot escape their crawling fate.”

“……”

“But. Do you know this.”

Swoooooosh─!!

Giant wings spread behind the Youngest Son’s back.

They were so large.

They more than filled the room and reached the ceiling.

“This one was born an eagle.”

An eagle? It eats serpents.

“Conversely, if you crawl on the ground like them, you will look up at a greater being. It might even look like a dragon. I know that well.”

But it was different for the eagle.

“In my eyes right now, you. And that Elder Kian. Are nothing but snakes of different sizes.”

“…Young Master. You are making a great leap of logic.”

“We shall see whether it is a great leap or not. It seems your elder is thinking similarly to me anyway.”

He flicked his finger lightly.

One of the walls, which had been closed on all sides, slid open to the left and right.

They thought it was an order to leave, but what they saw was a panoramic view.

“I-it was definitely the ground floor…”

Charles’s eyes went wide.

They hadn't climbed any stairs or anything.

They hadn't even stepped on a small ledge.

But the scenery revealed when the wall opened was the top floor of the Dark Moon Grand Castle.

It was Eclipse, viewed from above.

The Youngest Son stood close to the unobstructed opening.

“Tell the king. If the view he sees is higher than mine, maintain his current stance. If not, send the elder back to his original place.”

Albert’s face hardened, and Charles was flustered.

“E-even if the king accepts the Young Master, how could we possibly drive out the elder…!”

“You kick out half-breeds like illegitimate children so well, yet you are so afraid of an elder?”

“But…!”

“Head Maid. The guests are leaving.”

“Both of you, please follow me.”

The Dark Moon Grand Castle changed its form once again.

But there was no time to be surprised by that.

A completion ceremony they had attended for a gentle yet firm refusal.

The two Grand Officers left with a mountain of worries and dilemmas.

Albert glared at the top floor of the Dark Moon Grand Castle.

“That hooligan, truly…”

Charles’s eyes, on the other hand, just stared into the empty air.

“…Albert. Just now, the Young Master.”

“Yes. I can’t believe it either. Phew, how am I supposed to report this to the king.”

“No. That’s not what I was talking about.”

“What else.”

Charles brought up the word that was stuck in his craw like a fishbone amidst the confusion.

“Illegitimate child.”

“Illegitimate child? What about it…. You. Don’t tell me.”

Albert’s eyes turned surprisingly cold.

“Forget any thoughts about him. Isn’t he a dead man?”

“You know it too. William-nim was wronged, and so wronged that even his body disappeared.”

“…It was a necessary death.”

“There are no necessary deaths, and no unnecessary words. It bothers me why the Young Master specifically chose the word ‘illegitimate child’.”

Albert got into the carriage that his attendant had opened for him.

“A useless worry. You should be thinking about the report to the king. If we stand in the wrong place, the elder will turn his back on us too.”

“Haa. If only we hadn’t received any external force from the beginning.”

“Enough. It was the king’s decision. We must follow it.”

The two Grand Officers rode the carriage and left Eclipse, the fastest among the guests to depart.
 

 
──「Domain Management Window」──
[Current Cash]
: 10,540 Gold Coins
[Debt]
: 40,264,892 Gold Coins
[Satisfaction of Domain Residents]
: 4.8 / 5.0
[View More]
….
───────────


I opened the management window.

The moment I looked, the debt was quantified, revealing its presence without concealment.

It was an amount that would make most people want to check the river's water temperature just by looking at it.

But the Youngest Son was calm.

This was because this domain had virtually no maintenance costs.

It was an ancient structure that had maintained its form on its own for thousands of years from the beginning.

Its sturdiness was enough to make even the Construction General Manager shake his head, but it was not good to have no income.

“Head Maid. Have you finished what I told you to tell Edwin?”

“Yes. I sent him off with a full load of the Decoctions made in Hexa. The packaging boxes you mentioned were sent as well.”

“Well done.”

Recently, D-District was the place receiving the most attention in Dusk Citadel.

Thanks to Josephine, D-District was leading all sorts of trends.

It was impossible not to be drawn to its dazzling technology.

In such a D-District, countless packaging boxes engraved with the crest of Hexa would be circulating.

“From today, wherever you go within the district with the most foot traffic recently, you will see Hexa’s packaging.”

But it would only catch their eyes frequently; to people, it was something they were seeing for the very first time.

“The public will eventually become curious, and while searching for the source, they will come all the way to Eclipse.”

“In the meantime, Edwin will spread rumors. Then the diffusion effect will be even faster.”

D-District, which had become the center of attention.

I would use that as a spotlight for Hexa.

Of course, this was just one of the means to make money.

The real moneymaking was in the neighboring countries.

“Head Maid. Summon Jubel.”

“For what reason.”

“It’s the second job.”

“I will send a Messenger Ghoul immediately.”

“Alright. In the meantime, I.”

Have to go meet the guest who came in secret.

***

 The Julsin Kingdom.

A quiet cabin in the forest within the border.

In such a place, a few old men had gathered and were enjoying a tea party.

From the outside, it looked as if they were leisurely enjoying tea and discussing the rest of their lives.

But if one looked inside.

“This is a big problem. The thing we were worried about has finally happened.”

“I heard they finished the completion ceremony today.”

“Haa… How on earth did Eclipse…”

Three elders.

To the three gathered here, Eclipse should have remained undeveloped forever, at least while they were alive.

That was the only way for the judgment they had shouted for to be proven right.

But look at reality now.

“Eclipse has been completed, and it seems there is no shortage in it fulfilling its role.”

At Elder Kian’s words, the remaining two sighed in lament.

It would have been different if the majority had opposed the occupation of Eclipse.

Out of ten, five had abstained. Two had agreed. Three had opposed.

In the council of elders, power naturally shifted to the two, and the three were ostracized.

They were being held responsible through silence.

Responsible for the fact that a land as precious as gold had gone to the Youngest Son, not the family.

“Therefore, we must turn things around. We must take Eclipse from the Fifth Son’s hands and make it belong to the family.”

“Is that even possible? The Family Head has acknowledged the Fifth Son as the lord.”

“Since when did Millesdusk only do things that were possible.”

Elder Kian ran his hand over the old table in front of him.

He felt the rough surface of the wood.

At the same time, with that single gesture, a complex theory of curses was engraved on the table.

It was difficult to understand perfectly at first glance, but it was immediately clear what this was for.

“Kian, you, this…”

His words trailed off as he looked at the owner of the cabin.

His eyes trembled faintly with unavoidable fear.

“If we fail, it won’t end with death.”

“That’s right. We’ll be trapped in Mugan. But I, for one.”

Creeeak─

He clenched his fist on the table so hard it hurt.

“More than the eons of pain that Mugan brings. Being pushed aside like this, pushed away, and eventually falling out of the Family Head’s favor and being cast out feels more like hell.”

If it comes to that…

I will extinguish this hell with a real hell.

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