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-Creak

The moment the door opened, the woman sitting on the bed lunged toward it.

Margaret Erzeth, the Duchess of Vert and the mistress of this mansion.

Her eyes were blazing with fury at the person standing in front of her.

Her outstretched claws seemed ready to tear into the throat of her opponent, but,

-Thud

Margaret’s body was immediately blocked by the knights, and her two hands flailed pitifully in the air, unable to reach their target.

“I thought you’d be lying down weakly, but it looks like you’re still quite lively.”

The blonde woman let out a light laugh, seemingly mocking Margaret.

“Where is my son! Where did you take Cranz?”

Margaret immediately demanded the whereabouts of her son.

“If anything happens to Cranz, I’ll make sure all of you…”

“Why are you acting like this? Didn’t I tell you from the beginning? This is all for the sake of the family, Duke Vert, and…”

A calm, unwavering smile spread across the blonde woman’s lips.

“For Aschel.”

At the mention of Aschel, Margaret’s pupils shook violently.

But it was only for a moment.

Margaret once again glared at the woman with eyes full of rage and shouted.

“Do you think the Duke will let you get away with this? As soon as he returns to the mansion, you’re finished!”

“The Duke is currently welcoming the imperial delegation. In other words, he’s very busy right now.”

The woman crushed the last bit of hope Margaret was clinging to.

Then she signaled to the knights with a gesture.

In response, the two knights stepped outside and soon brought in a man whose face was covered with a cloth.

“Cranz!”

Recognizing the man immediately, Margaret called out to him desperately.

“Mother?!”

Cranz reacted to his mother’s voice, flinching.

The knights quickly removed the cloth, allowing the mother and son to face each other.

“Long periods of isolation can turn even the firmest convictions into soft whims. I think both of you have realized that by now.”

The woman handed two official documents with a large, familiar seal to Margaret.

One of the documents was blank except for the seal.

“Write down the contents of this document in your own handwriting, and everything will be over.”

Reading the contents, Margaret let out a hollow laugh and asked.

“Where do you plan to send this?”

“Of course, it will be sent to your family, the House of Count Erzeth. Then, other families aligned with the House of Erzeth will unite to form a faction. A faction opposed to the current direction of the imperial family…”

A pen was already in Margaret’s hand, and a blank document lay before her, ready to be written on.

Twenty years as the Duchess of Vert and mistress of this mansion.

The pride and self-esteem built up over those twenty years crumbled in an instant.

Glancing between Cranz and the woman with turbulent eyes, Margaret eventually began to write on the blank document with a boiling heart.

“Why did you come back, you wretch?”

“I didn’t want to return either. But I had no choice. To give that child, who has lost power and crumbled, a ladder to climb back up, I had to return.”

Margaret couldn’t understand.

The woman, who was thought to be dead, declared dead by the Duke himself, and whose face most people here had never even seen,

How could she have returned to this mansion?

The woman seemed to read Margaret’s thoughts, crossing her arms and raising her chin as she spoke.

“Soon, a black storm of blood will blow across this continent, starting with this Velias. The only one who can stop that storm is…”

-Thud!

Suddenly, there was a loud noise from outside.

Sensing something unusual, one of the knights immediately opened the door,

-Slash!

With a deadly slicing sound that stimulated all the senses, the knight’s body fell forward.

“Step back.”

The remaining knights immediately drew their swords, positioning themselves to protect the woman.

Beyond the door that had been thrown open, the knights who had been waiting outside were sprawled on the ground, blood gushing from their necks.

In the blink of an eye, three knights had been taken down.

However, the culprit was nowhere to be seen.

But from behind the still-closed door,

“…!”

An overwhelming aura of lethal murderous intent radiated, curling like a mirage.

The knights exchanged quick, wordless signals with their eyes.

One of the knights’ swords glowed with a blue light, and without hesitation, he slashed at the door with his sword energy.

-Kwajik!

As the door was cut down, the other knight swiftly dashed outside.

Then, swinging his sword with the intent to slice through the air,

“…?”

There was nothing beyond the door.

Even as the knight who had sent out the sword energy followed and stood back to back with his comrade, scanning the surroundings, they saw nothing but the dead bodies.

However, just as they remained vigilant, trying to check every detail,

-Swish

A sudden gust of wind blew towards their faces.

Momentarily distracted by the unexpected wind,

-Thud

The knights’ heads, just turning to look, fell helplessly to the ground.

The heads rolled, their faces still frozen in an expression of shock and confusion, not understanding what had happened.

-Step, step

Footsteps echoed from the hallway beyond the wide-open door.

“What on earth is happening?”

Margaret, overwhelmed by the incomprehensible situation, showed fear. Cranz quickly ran to her side.

“I’m not sure if this is something to celebrate, but he’s here!”

“Who, who are you talking about?”

“That gloomy monster! He’s returned to Velias as well!”

As the mother and son clung to each other, sharing their anxiety,

The unknown footsteps continued to approach the room.

Finally, the perpetrator appeared through the door.

“…!”

Margaret was shocked to see a face she was all too familiar with.

It was Cyan, the youngest member of the household.

“I may not have the best memory, but I’m sure of this. I’ve never seen you before.”

Cyan advanced slowly, each step measured as if he intended to suffocate those in his path with his presence.

“But your eyes aren’t like that. You look at me as if you know me.”

Despite Cyan’s question, the woman didn’t bat an eye.

It was as if she wasn’t surprised to see him there.

“The man who defies prophecy. I didn’t expect to meet you so soon.”

“You know me?”

“How could I not know you?”

The woman placed a hand on her chest and bowed her head respectfully towards him.

“Nice to meet you. Cyan Vert.”

Despite the seemingly respectful greeting, Cyan didn’t appreciate it.

It was no wonder, since this unfamiliar young woman exuded an aura that reminded him strongly of a man he utterly despised and loathed.

“I am Haniel Pasinati, Aschel’s birth mother.”

* * *

Humans cannot defy time.

This is an immutable, unchangeable law of nature.

But now, Arin was facing a being that seemed to defy that unchanging law.

“Lord of New Velias, Willius Vert. I greet the esteemed Princess Arin.”

Willius Vert.

A lifelong friend of the Emperor and her father, Dionne Sevellerus, from their days at the Royal Academy.

However, unlike the Emperor, who had aged and weakened due to long illness, Willius displayed the same robust presence he had ten years ago.

“I sincerely apologize for my rudeness earlier in front of the esteemed princess, who has come to lead the tour on behalf of the Emperor.”

Without any excuses, the Duke bowed his head, apologizing for his earlier discourtesy.

This was the Willius Vert Arin knew.

A paragon of integrity and righteousness.

Even ten years ago, when she was a nominal princess, he wouldn’t have committed such rudeness even if she had come as the head of a delegation. What could have caused him to act so out of character?

Arin concealed her thoughts and spoke calmly.

“I accept your apology since you have acknowledged your mistake and personally apologized. However, before we begin the official tour, there are a few things I need to confirm.”

“Please proceed. I will arrange a place for us to talk.”

As if anticipating her request, the Duke immediately instructed his knights.

Soon, an improvised tent was set up in front of the checkpoint for their discussion.

Leaving Ressimus and the special attendants behind, Arin entered the tent with the Duke.

“Please verify this first.”

As soon as she sat down, Arin showed the Duke the letter she had received from him.

“Did you really send this letter?”

“Yes.”

“Do you genuinely want our imperial family, no, the empire, to fulfill the requests listed in this letter?”

“That is correct.”

The Duke answered without hesitation.

“Is this entirely your independent thought, with no input from anyone else?”

“…”

The Duke did not answer this question.

Instead,

“Are you here to lead the tour or to interrogate me?”

He posed a meaningful question to Arin.

“I am here to ascertain the truth.”

Arin responded confidently, refusing to back down.

“Both my father and I know that Duke Vert would never engage in a foolish and reckless act like war or conquest. This isn’t just my opinion but a belief shared by everyone who knows you in this land.”

“What is it that you wish to say?”

“Who is it? Who proposed this absurd idea of a demonic realm conquest to you?”

Once again, Duke Vert did not immediately respond to her question.

“You say it’s a common belief among all who know me?”

“Yes.”

“That belief stems solely from the way I’ve presented myself.”

“Would you deny that?”

“Even I don’t fully understand myself, so how can others claim to truly know me?”

The Duke fundamentally denied Arin’s assumption.

“Though you may believe that my goal of conquering the demonic realm is wrong, I do not see it that way.”

“And why is that?”

“I do not know.”

For a moment, Arin’s eyes widened in shock.

“What?”

“I do not know. I cannot explain why it is wrong or right. I have no explanations to offer.”

“What are you saying, Duke Vert!”

Arin couldn’t comprehend his words and snapped at him.

However, the Duke continued unfazed.

“Therefore, if you believe that my future choices and actions are wrong…”

Arin saw it in an instant.

The intense tremor in his clasped hands beneath his firm gaze.

“Stop me. Please, Princess.”

Unconsciously, Arin rose from her chair and shouted.

“Where is Aschel? Where is Aschel, Duke Vert?”

“…!”

“I know he is the cause of all this! Tell me where he is hiding! If we delay any longer, who knows what might happen…”

“He is not here.”

The Duke curtly dismissed her.

“Then where is he?”

“He is not in Velias. He is not in the Empire, nor anywhere on this continent.”

Arin quickly processed his words.

Not anywhere on this continent?

Does that mean he is dead?

No, it can’t be. He is hiding somewhere else.

Somewhere not far from Velias…

“…!”

Finally, Arin realized.

Her sharp gaze focused on the space behind Duke Vert,

Beyond the border gate.

This place is the boundary of the Empire and our realm.

Beyond that gate lies not the realm of humans but the domain of unknown races.

In other words, Aschel’s whereabouts were in…

“The demonic realm?”

The Duke remained silent.

For a moment, silence seemed to prevail.

“Princess! You must come out of the tent immediately!”

Suddenly, the urgent shout of Resimus came from behind Arin.