Chapter 118: Each of Their Movements

Day broke, and the world shifted silently.

Changes and movements known only to those in the know.

The Emperor quietly read the report detailing the rapid spread of malicious rumors about the Demon Realm before summoning the chancellor.

“Do you know the Duke’s weakness?”

“Did the Duke have a weakness? I thought he was the type to hide such things tightly, making them difficult to find. And to think you’ve already uncovered it…”

“He himself probably doesn’t realize he has such a weakness. And he’ll never know, not in his entire life, that I’m aware of it.”

Because it’s that kind of weakness.

A cold sneer spread across the Emperor’s face.

“Of course, even if he knew, he couldn’t fix it. How can one fix ‘arrogance’?”

“…Arrogance, you say?”

“He believes he’s the smartest, looking down on everyone from above. It never occurs to him that someone might be watching the top of his head.”

Could the Emperor really not have considered the possibility of someone siding with the Demon Realm? The imperial throne is no place for the naive to survive.

What a joke. He simply knew.

Knew that if he pretended not to know, the Duke would step forward, acting as if he were doing a favor.

“Thanks to that, we were able to save our already limited manpower.”

“…You are truly audacious. Entrusting such a critical matter, one that could determine the Empire’s fate, to an internal enemy.”

“The Empire’s fate is on the line, so I entrusted it to him. The Duke covets this position, the Empire itself. There’s no way he’d let it fall.”

It does feel like the Duke treats me like a child sometimes… But whether it’s arrogance or underestimation, I’ve used it, so it’s fine.

Pushing aside the unpleasant feeling, the Emperor flipped the report over.

“Someday, his arrogance will trip him up. I wonder what kind of expression he’ll have then.”

***

I became a Honorary Marquis!

I expected a fierce backlash from the noble faction, but it was surprisingly quiet. Upon investigation, I found out Cruel had become a Honorary Count.

Right, they gave a title to the noble faction’s leader’s dog, so they can grumble a bit and then be done with it. Truthfully, the noble faction had plenty of reasons to protest, but their leader, the Duke, kept his mouth shut and accepted it, so they had to shut up too. Honestly, I’m amazed. Did the Emperor and the Duke make some secret deal?

Well, that’s not important. More importantly…

“I… really came back alive…”

“Why would you say something so unsettling?”

Rememver placed a glass on the table, his gaze fixed on me.

But seriously, it’s amazing, right? Surviving after infiltrating some secret organization’s base – that’s a miracle. Especially since my identity was exposed. When they put the blindfold on me, I thought they were taking me to some dark place to dispose of me, but they actually returned me to the street safely. I was genuinely surprised.

Unable to explain the eventful night, I just rolled my eyes around and picked up my glass.

“Puh-wah!”

“Oh dear. Are you alright?”

“Cough, what is this…”

“The Imperial Palace’s court physician sent over more restorative medicine.”

It’s supposed to be restorative medicine, but why does it feel like my taste buds are dying?

Damn it, I thought it was coffee. Who puts restorative medicine in a coffee cup? There’s no need to develop things this way, you old man…

I feel like I’ve lost all sensation in my tongue. Is it just my imagination?

“This is… an attempted poisoning…”

“The poison check is already complete. Please don’t make an old man’s heart drop like that and drink up.”

“……”

Damn it all.

Tears welled up as I downed the glass. And to make it worse, it smells like coffee.

A terrible taste with a fragrant coffee smell – it doesn’t match at all.

“Why does this smell like coffee?”

“I made a special request. I thought you wouldn’t drink your medicine willingly, Marquis, so a trick was needed.”

“Am I a child?! And the court physician who agreed to this is what kind of person…! Haa…!”

“Please calm down and take a deep breath. Your blood pressure goes up when you get agitated, Marquis.”

“Rememver, you’re doing this on purpose, aren’t you?”

Clutching my neck and seething, I glared at Rememver.

The snake-like butler merely smiled and smoothly changed the subject.

“I heard you can control plant-type monsters.”

“Cough!”

“That you’ve been raising plant-type monsters for a long time and using them to secretly dispose of those who displease you at night…”

“Cough, cough, what nonsense are you spouting!”

Ah, there it is again. Even knowing he was changing the subject, I fell for Rememver’s words once more.

It’s too late to try and pull myself together…

“Oh, isn’t that right? Then the rumors about you being a vampire and the plant-type monsters being born from your blood…”

“That’s a uniquely absurd load of crap.”

“Then what about the rumors of you plotting to conquer the world…”

“Do I look like I have a death wish by committing treason?!”

What kind of person is the Emperor!

…How can I not get drawn in when he talks like this?

Is this what they call experience? I shook my head, filing away the incorrect understanding of the word “experience,” when Rememver spoke with a hint of playfulness in his voice.

“Ah, on the contrary, there are also rumors that you’re plotting the world’s destruction.”

“That’s insane. How on earth can rumors inflate to that extent?”

I feel like applauding people’s imaginations.

At the words “world destruction,” Dan, who was working on paperwork in the corner, snapped his head up but was ignored as I clicked my tongue.

But more than that, why is he here?

I looked at him with bewildered eyes, then at Rememver. He met my gaze with a smile, as if asking what the problem was.

“…Aren’t you being too biased? He’s still an outsider, no… someone who hasn’t been here long.”

“Since you brought him in, Marquis, there’s no need to be wary. It’s only natural to show favor based on competence. And calling him an outsider when you brought him here yourself? You completely accepted him after he organized the filing system, even if it wasn’t initially. Dan would be disappointed to hear that.”

“I am disappointed.”

“…Oh, okay… Sorry…”

Experience is truly terrifying.

I can’t hit an old man, and I lose in arguments, so the best course of action is to avoid direct confrontation with Rememver. I tilted my head slightly and changed the subject.

“It seems I’ll have to leave again for a while to carry out the task His Majesty assigned me.”

“The restorative medicine will spoil then.”

“That’s a good th… that’s unfortunate.”

“I’ll pack it for you when I prepare your luggage.”

“……”

I’ll just throw it away.

Just as I was making ambitious plans for my taste buds, Dan asked with a questioning expression.

“…His Majesty’s task, you said?”

“Yeah. Like before, I’ll be gone for a while.”

Thinking about the Emperor makes my head hurt. Not just a headache, but a surge of stress.

I pressed my temple, throbbing with pain, trying to dispel the inexplicable stress by slowly taking a breath. Noticing my discomfort, Dan hesitantly spoke up.

“Could I come with you? I’ll assist you.”

“No, you can’t.”

“…Yes.”

“And don’t try to follow me secretly either. One of us might end up dead.”

Witnesses must be eliminated.

But he did say he learned some swordsmanship, so conversely, I might be the one who dies. He did save me from an attack once during the hunting competition, so I can’t completely dismiss that possibility.

If I don’t notice and end up dragging him all the way to the Demon King’s castle, that would be the worst. I’d die alongside him for bringing a human into the Demon Realm.

‘Well, at least I won’t be bored dying alone.’

Ah, this is stressful. Maintaining my grip on my temple, I quietly recited words.

But why is it so quiet? There’s no response.

I cautiously raised my head.

“…?”

Rememver and Dan were looking at me with unreadable expressions. Dan’s pupils seemed to be shaking, but I must have imagined it.

Unlike his trembling eyes, I felt a strange thrill in his gaze, making me quickly look away, so I didn’t have time to see clearly.

While rubbing the goosebumps on my arms, Dan seemed to regain his composure and slightly bowed his head.

“To think you could make such threats even in your usual state…”

“Huh…?”

“I won’t follow you.”

“Oh, okay…”

I replied awkwardly, rolling my eyes.

The atmosphere is strange. It was just a light warning.

As if to change the subtly tense atmosphere, Rememver shifted the topic.

“When are you planning to depart?”

“…Now?”

Staying here any longer means more paperwork and having to drink that bitter medicine.

It’s better to go to the Demon Realm as soon as possible.

“Then I’ll prepare.”

“Please do. Ah, and those assassin guys…”

Those kinds of stunts can only work once or twice. At this point, I’ll have to find another way. We’ve been lucky so far that no one’s been seriously injured, but it’s still dangerous. We can’t have a chase scene every time.

Isn’t there… a more comfortable and easier way?

The observant butler immediately offered an alternative.

“If you could delay your departure time a bit, Marquis, I could add sleeping pills to their meal for a smoother departure.”

“They’ve built up a tolerance, so ordinary sleeping pills won’t work.”

“I acquired some strong medicine through Dan this time. Depending on the dosage, it can supposedly knock out an elephant in three seconds.”

“No… that’s a bit…”

Do we have to kill people?

…But if he knew such a convenient method, why didn’t he mention it sooner? Judging by his immediate answer, it seems like he’s known about this method for a while. If acquiring the medicine was the issue, he could have told me.

As I looked at him, filled with questions, Rememver smiled knowingly.

“Isn’t it funnier this way?”

“…I didn’t find it fun at all.”

It felt like flirting with death.

Grumbling inwardly, I waved my hand, indicating for him to go and prepare.

Rememver bowed slightly and turned to open the door. He encountered a servant who seemed about to knock.

“…What’s this?”

I craned my neck to see the servant over Rememver’s shoulder. The servant flinched when our eyes met.

His voice, now smaller, barely escaped his lips.

“H-His Highness, the Crown Prince… has arrived for a visit.”

***

The Princess insisted vehemently.

“He must like men!”

The Crown Prince looked troubled.

“Surely not.”

Then he paused, remembering.

A man whose interactions with women were unusually bland. A man whose inner circle had a suspiciously skewed gender ratio, a man who showed a disturbing lack of interest in women…!

“There’s no way…”

“Isn’t there?”

“……”

It’s not like there are no women around him. As the man the Princess is pursuing, his surroundings are thoroughly investigated and monitored, so he knew.

There is a knight named Lien Riner. But it’s purely a professional relationship, bound by the roles of lord and knight. The Crown Prince dismissed it.

When carrying out the Salvation Church mission, Deon Hart brought back a man and a woman from somewhere. Their names were Dan and Ran, if he recalled correctly.

And when the mission ended, the man stayed while the woman left. The man is currently living with Deon Hart in his mansion. The Crown Prince, who had been worried that he might have feelings for the woman, was relieved.

‘I shouldn’t have been so relieved…’

To think he might like men.

“So why don’t you try to seduce him, Brother?”

“…What?”