Chapter 50

‘Two months passed faster than I thought.’

Joshua had spent them regaining his strength, as well as doing his best to convince his mother to move to the safety of Duke Agnus’s mansion. However, Lucia was loath to part from her child—the new environment let her spend time with her son without other people disturbing them. There had been one fight about it, but Lucia had ended up raising the white flag; it seemed that no parent could win against their child. The most likely threat to Lucia while Joshua was in the academy was from the inside, not the outside.

With only a week until he would enter the academy, Joshua was getting nervous. Finally, the person he had been waiting had reached out to him.

***

“Young Master, it’s been a long time since I’ve seen you.”

The Imperial Palace Restaurant sits deep within Arcadia, with a large sign boasting, “Experience the cooking of the Imperial Palace’s chef!”

Joshua, sipping a glass of milk at a corner table, shot a glance to the side. There sat Zero of the Moon Gate.

“You… Are you Sir Cain?”

Cain flinched—he’d been on high alert since Zero appeared.

“It’s fine.”

“Yes, Young Master.” Cain went back to eating without another word.

“The fact that you approached me like this—”

“Of course,” Zero interrupted with a beaming smile, “I executed your order flawlessly.” Zero pulled something from his sleeves and passed it furtively under the table, where Cain snatched it out of his hand.

“The tracking took longer than expected due to the number of people involved. However… the last location has been found.”

Joshua stood up immediately.

“How much does it cost?”

“Ah, consider it on the house.”

Joshua was taken aback.

“This is but a little thing in comparison to other requests.” Zero smiled. “You told us to go look for them, but they seem to be completely mundane things… I’m wondering if they have some secret power we’re not aware of.”

“Stop thinking about it.”

Joshua and Zero stared each other down for a moment.

“...Was that too far-fetched?” Zero got up from his seat. “Now then, since the rest of the commission remains incomplete, I’ll keep you updated.”

“Please.”

“Ah, we’ll take care of the request fee then.” Zero clapped his hands together. “This is also complimentary; our organization takes an advanced payment for every request.”

“Complimentary…” Joshua puffed up with laughter.

‘

There’s no such thing as a free lunch. There will be a time, when the fruit is ripe, that he’ll ask for something bigger.’

“I’ll be going now… I’ll be in touch every now and then.” Zero bowed deeply and disappeared out the door.

.

Joshua swept his gaze over the inside of the restaurant. It was late afternoon, well past lunchtime, so the restaurant was quite quiet.

“Are there a lot of aristocrats on the second floor at this time of day?”

“Perhaps. Of course, because it’s regularly used by the nobility, there will be additional fee—”

Joshua was making for the stairs before Cain could finish his sentence. Cain followed him with a bemused expression, and the figures of a man and a boy vanished into the second floor.

***

“Oh, Young Master Villas!” A bloated man ran into the yard with no shoes on.

This plump man’s estate lied on the outskirts of town, across from the home Duke Agnus had given Joshua. As a baron, the lowest of the aristocrats, his home was far from the Imperial Palace. However, his mansion was far larger than a typical nobleman of his rank. Even on Arcadia’s outskirts, that meant having money to burn. This was the residence of Baron Provalum, a man well regarded throughout the entire Empire.

“Young Master, what brings you to this filthy place without warning?” Baron Provalum wiped his sweaty palms as he approached the young man who had just arrived.

He had pristine white skin and emerald hair. He stared at Baron Provalum with his dark and steely eyes.

“Provalum, I believe the deadline has already passed.”

“Ah, that…” Baron Provalum shook his head remorsefully. “As you are aware, Young Master, other races, especially female elves, are quite scarce. It’s quite difficult for us to acquire such products. If you give me a little more time, I’ll be able to—”

“I’m not interested in your excuses. I believe I entrusted you to carry the task to fruition.”

“I sincerely apologize, Young Master.” Baron Provalum could feel the cold sweat trickling down his back.

“Does a week suffice?”

“Of course, of course! Can someone bring me some water?”

The young man scowled at the sweaty baron and abruptly turned away. The clatter of armor echoed around Baron Provalum’s lowered head as the young man’s retinue disappeared from sight.

“This isn’t how I want to live up to my name.” Baron Provalum flopped over where he stood. “It’s the same way every time…”

“Baron, the water is here.” The butler handed Baron Provalum a glass of water, which he downed instantly.

“I… Baron, is a week really enough? For an elf, a week—”

“I want to make it possible, even if it’s impossible.”

Baron Provalum shivered. That young man was the reason why he, a bottom-rung aristocrat, could enjoy such wealth.

‘

I could lose everything at a single word, or I coluld double my wealth.’

“The Villas…” Baron Provalum whimpered.

The Emperor’s confidant, the Marquis of Villas. Veron shen Villas, the only son of Marquis Berburdi shen Villas, a powerful pro-Imperial general, had made his appearance.

***

Count Orbis’s family was one of the few families of noble mages in the Avalon Empire, an oddity in a land where magic was scorned. They’d formed a pair with Count Rebrecca’s family. Despite Avalon’s knight-centric culture, Orbis had defied the stereotype that a mage could not defeat a knight in single combat. The head of Orbis had famously cemented his place as the first battle mage on the continent.

The incident didn’t gain much traction in Avalon, the kingdom of knights, but in Terra, the magic kingdom, the response was explosive. The monarch of Terra even went out of his way to invite the patriarch of Orbis to his kingdom.

Such was the Orbis family, a family whose passion for magic was unmatched. A passionate advocate for the rights and interests of mages; a family that may have altered the Empire’s perception of mages. But only a few years ago, the prosperous Orbis family had fallen completely.

Not to just anyone—they had been obliterated by the Imperial family.

‘

When you look at the records, you can’t help but wonder if the Imperial family is eliminating nobles on purpose.’

Joshua eyed the parchment that Zero had delivered. It bore a single line of writing.

“Baron Accent…” Joshua scowled.

According to Moon Gate’s report, the Orbis heirloom Joshua sought was most likely owned by Barron Accent. Unfortunately, Baron Accent was quite well-known in the area.

‘

Well, not exactly famous. Notorious, rather.’

Joshua smiled wickedly.

His initial plan had been to buy the item with cash as soon as he could find it. Joshua hoped to capitalize on the fact that he was the only person who knew the object’s true value. Despite being the heirloom of a prominent family of mages, it was neither an artifact of unique power nor encrusted with gemstones. In the eyes of most people, it was nothing more and nothing less than a lovely golden ring.

‘

It’s impossible for its true value to be exposed immediately—but that’s the issue. I can’t just go out and buy it when I don’t know anything about Baron Accent’s character.’

“...Colossus of the Night, Accent Provalum,” Cain mumbled.

“Do you know who he is?”

“Just a smidgen. He’s reasonably well-known. Slave trading, smuggling, drug dealing—he uses the influence of high-ranking aristocrats to engage in all sorts of nefarious activities. He’s also the younger stepbrother of Viscount Vig.”

“His stepbrother?” Joshua frowned.

“Yes,” Cain nodded. “It’s well-known within the Agnus Duchy. Not to mention he’s such a powerful character behind the scenes. There’s a rumor that everything in the black market passes through Baron Provalum’s hands.”

“Well…” Joshua sighed.

“Young Master Joshua?”

𝙛𝒓𝒆𝙚𝒘𝒆𝓫𝙣𝓸𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝒄𝒐𝓶

An unexpected voice drew their attention.