Chapter 143: The Real Culprit

“Your courage is commendable, venturing by yourself into Digon’s territory.”

“Well, receiving an audience with Your Majesty has proven quite difficult, so I decided to come personally rather than on behalf of the empire.”

“Is that so?”

Tiren spoke without hesitation, but Miliana flashed him a sly smile as though she could see right through him.

Shhh–

Thunk...!

In an instant, Miliana drew and threw the rapier from her waist with such speed that one’s eyes couldn’t even register. Tiren, unable to react, merely stared at her, completely frozen. A red line formed on his cheek, blood trickling down.

The rapier, embedded in the pillar behind Tiren, trembled as if unable to withstand its wielder’s strength.

“And what makes you so confident that I’ll have a friendly chat with you and not send your head back to your prince as a gift?”

Tiren wiped the blood from his cheek with the back of his hand.

“I didn’t expect a friendly chat, but I thought at least you wouldn’t kill me.”

“Why?”

“Because neither of us actually want bloodshed.”

Miliana looked at him with grudging admiration.

Well, I guess that’s enough.

Though she was amused by Tiren’s determination and intriguing reactions, she remembered her promise to Karyl and moved on to the next part of the plan.

“So why did you come before me? You said it was personal, not on behalf of the empire?” Miliana asked, lifting her chin slightly.

Swoosh!

Tiren pulled the sword from the pillar and placed it before her.

“Randol MacGovern.”

The card he wanted to play.

“He is the survivor of the Ryeo Knights and the fifth of our family. I know he’s here.”

“What if he’s not?”

“He is. A reliable source told me so.”

Sure, but does that source know that the person who annihilated your brother’s knights is right here?

Miliana thought to herself as she watched Tiren, bemused.

“Fine, he’s here. We’ve been taking care of him. His injuries were quite severe. As you said, the empire’s matters are the empire’s matters. I see no need to prevent a reunion between brothers.”

She pointed to the end of the tent.

“He’s in the fifth tent on the right. I would have told you earlier, but he’s still recovering.”

“What? It’s been quite a while since then... Is he still injured badly?”

Tiren’s cold gaze wavered, and now there was a sense of urgency in his tone. Randol, a commoner by birth, and Tiren, born into nobility, were different in origin. Nevertheless, Tiren valued Randol, who had earned his knighthood through his own power, above his other brothers.

Moreover, having spent quite a long time together at the royal palace, Tiren's attitude and respect toward him was definitely different.

“Well, it’s not the injuries from back then...”

Although Tiren was visibly worried, Miliana merely scratched her cheek, unsure how to explain the situation.

***

"Brother..."

Tiren looked at his younger brother, whom he hadn't seen in a long time. Randol was wrapped in bandages all over, grimacing in pain at every slight movement.

"What happened to you?"

"I'm sorry..."

Seeing Randol bow his head, Tiren thought about his father's words, realizing they were true.

How did Karyl know about this?

Kuwell had only told him that Karyl knew Randol’s whereabouts, not mentioning that Karyl had also become the master of Tatur. It was unclear whether Kuwell had omitted that out of fatherly consideration or due to caution brought on by uncertainty.

This might be related to it.

Judging by what his father had said about Karyl helping the emperor regain his power and authority, Tiren intuitively felt that Karyl was no ordinary person.

He's also an immigrant with the same barbarian blood.

Unlike his other siblings, Tiren had never acknowledged Karyl ever since he had first arrived at their mansion. Perhaps things would have been different if Karyl had just kept to himself, but Tiren couldn’t tolerate an immigrant interfering in the empire’s affairs.

“Wait.”

Tiren glanced around the tent.

“Detection.”

He reached down with his hand and drew a sigil on the ground. Then, a blue rectangular barrier formed around him.

Oong...!

The light flickered for a moment and the barrier expanded to cover the entire tent. Then, it disappeared as if it had been absorbed.

“Hmm. No one is watching us,” Tiren muttered after seeing that his detection spell hadn’t caught anything.

Seeing this, Randol asked with wide eyes, “Brother... have you reached the 4th Class?”

“Yes, but not long ago. I barely managed to reach it. There are many more talented sorcerers than me at the Academy.”

“But still, congratulations. Father will be pleased.”

Tiren smiled faintly at his words.

“Father will be happier to know you’re alive.”

“...I’m sorry.”

Tiren patted Randol’s shoulder lightly, glanced around, and said, “I’ll get straight to the point.”

“Yes?”

“Do you remember the person who slaughtered your Ryeo Knights?”

Randol slowly nodded.

“What did he look like?”

At Tiren's question, he slightly bit his lip. It had to be unpleasant, recalling the death of his comrades and his own defeat.

“He was about my age or slightly younger.”

“...What?”

Tiren was taken aback by his answer.

“Brown eyes and brown hair, the typical imperial look...”

Randol sighed.

“His swordsmanship was outstanding. I’ve seen the imperial knights fight, but that boy was something else. And...”

“And?”

“I couldn’t tell what kind of magic he used. His mana was purple... I’ve never seen or heard of someone using a Mana Blade of that kind.”

Randol spoke with difficulty, pressing his forehead as he recalled what he had seen.

Purple?

“At first, the Mana Blade was almost colorless, but during the second clash, it was definitely purple.”

“Hmm.”

“I think... I think it’s related to the Spring of Vision at the Abyssal Rock.”

Randol remembered the lightning that had struck when they had retreated from Abyssal Rock.

“Was it really purple?”

“You think I’d forget something like that?”

No knight's Mana Blade had ever posed a challenge to that singular power.

Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Thunder—all five elements that made the world were helpless against that power, and they had been brutally shattered back then.

The strength of Randol’s enemy had been overwhelming; against that sheer elemental dominance, Randol had realized that he would inevitably face defeat, causing him to despair.

“Purple, huh...”

Tiren recalled a memory from an old tome he had read in the Academy’s library, describing a sorcerer with such power.

Allen Javius, the Great Arcane Sorcerer.

“The Assembly of Seven Elders...” Tiren muttered under his breath.

But they’re from the primeval Magical Era.

He was an ancient figure from a thousand years ago. If that power had been preserved for such a long time, keeping it a secret all this while would have been incredibly difficult.

And yet...

Listening to Randol, Tiren couldn’t shake off this sense of unease. He recalled stories heard in the palace corridors.

The winner of the Expert Magic Competition...

The one who had infiltrated the Gray Training Ground as a reward for winning the tournament, the one who had led the Ryeo Knights to seek the Clear Distilled Water at the Spring of Vision.

What kind of place was the Gray Training Ground? It was the only area related to the Assembly of Seven Elders that had not yet been explored.

“You said he used swordsmanship?”

“Yes, it was a style I had never seen before. Simple yet intricate, static yet dynamic.”

“I’m not asking out of admiration. The level of his swordsmanship is important. If not even Sword Experts could beat him, he was likely 4th Class.”

Given that this boy had managed to wipe out an entire squad of Ryeo Knights, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he was a master of the blade.

Tiren and Randol had to face the unsettling truth that this mysterious enemy was likely a Sword Master.

“I don’t know about swordsmanship, but annihilating a bunch of Ryeo Knights with magic alone is no easy feat. Has he also mastered swordsmanship?”

“Well...”

Randol couldn’t give a clear answer to Tiren’s question.

“Think carefully, Randol. Although Father always held back, we grew up watching the swordsmanship of a Sword Master.”

Tiren leaned in closer as he whispered to his brother.

“Is he stronger than Father?”

“I... I don’t know.”

Tiren gasped slightly at Randol’s hesitation.

“I see. So he was that formidable. Was there anything else peculiar about him?”

“Hmm... I’m not sure if it was a coincidence... but when I clashed with him at the Spring of Vision, the Sand Serpent appeared.”

“What?”

“I’m not jumping to conclusions. Taming the Lord of the Rolling Hills is impossible, right? Since the Abyssal Rock isn’t far, it might have been looking for prey.”

Had it been a coincidence? But it had seemed too strange to be mere coincidence.

A cold wave of unease washed over Tiren.

“It might not be impossible.”

“What?”

“Prince Olivurn couldn’t come to the south because the Sand Serpent was blocking the road.”

“You mean the prince turned back to the empire?”

“No, it doesn’t seem like that. It seems that he’s reorganizing his men. But it’s one hell of a coincidence for the same serpent to cause trouble at such a critical moment.

“Brother...” Randol called out in a tense voice, causing Tiren to gulp nervously. “The one who annihilated the Ryeo Knights is here.”

“What?!”

“I saw him clearly. He was dueling the Queen of Digon. I intervened and ended up like this...”

Tiren looked at him coldly.

“He beat you up twice...?”

“...I’m sorry.”

Tiren wasn’t rebuking his brother for the defeat. Rather, he was angry at what that boy had done to a MacGovern.

“You should apologize to the emperor, not me. But you’ve given me something important. Your presence here might just be a stroke of luck.”

“What do you mean...?”

“The reason we came here is because of the annihilation of the Ryeo Knights. Digon isn’t cooperative due to the issues with the Five Families and the knights.”

But if the culprit is linked to Digon, the story changes. We might even hold Queen Miliana accountable.

That could potentially change the entire situation.

I’ve figured out a way to have the queen meet us.

Tiren unwittingly clenched his fist.

“Randol, what are you going to do now?”

“I’m ashamed to say, but in this condition... I’ll be more of a hindrance than anything.”

Tiren nodded.

“There’s still something I’m going to need to do,” Randol said resolutely.

“Don’t seek personal revenge. This matter is no longer just yours, but the empire’s.”

Sensing his brother’s intentions, Tiren dissuaded him.

“I understand. But I can’t return like this.”

“Just don’t do anything foolish.”

Randol nodded at his words.

“I’ll return to the empire and accept my punishment.”

“Good lad.”

Tiren gave a bitter smile and patted him on the shoulder.

“I’ll come back with Prince Kromen. I hope you can act as the mediator then.”

“I’ll do my best.”

“Alright. Take care of yourself.”

There was much to do to prepare for the following day. As much as he wanted to, Tiren couldn’t afford to waste time on this reunion.

Ssss–

As he was leaving, Tiren paused at the tent’s exit, and Randol looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“One last thing.”

“Yes?”

Following his discussion with Randol, Tiren had been debating whether to ask this question. This figure with brown eyes, brown hair, and even magic... Those features didn’t seem connected, and yet an inexplicable doubt lingered in his mind.

“I know it’s a foolish question, but just in case...” Tiren asked cautiously. “Did your attacker resemble Karyl at all?”