Chapter 128. The Unfinished Battle
Leon had suddenly offered to give me the Venenon Territory.
The northern region was broadly divided into the frozen tundra, snowfields, and snowy mountains.
The Timberline Tundra Region.
The Snowfield Region, where Bryophytes grew.
And the Snowy Mountain Region, which marked the limit of survival.
The White Wolf County was located along the border between the snowfields and the snowy mountains.
The Venenon Territory, meanwhile, was the territory closest to the White Wolf County and was located within the frozen tundra.
In other words, it had an environment where vegetation could grow.
Animals such as reindeer could also be raised there. Furthermore, activities such as hunting and fishing were possible.
Most notable were the trees that grew while enduring the bitter cold of the tundra.
Their quality could be called the finest on the entire continent, let alone within the kingdom.
There was practically no one in the kingdom who hadn’t heard of Venenon Timber.
“The nobles have been extremely dissatisfied because the supply of Venenon Timber was suddenly cut off.”
That was only natural.
Venenon Timber was used everywhere, from noble estates and military fortresses to major structures within the royal palace.
Naturally, the profits it generated were enormous.
“I’ll give you the Venenon Territory. Make a fortune from it and use the money to develop the County.”
“Can you simply hand over a territory like that?”
“Why not? It doesn’t have an owner anyway.”
“The other nobles will object—”
“What are they going to do about it? If they don’t like it, they can become Princes themselves.”
....This was driving me insane.
Seriously, what was I supposed to do with Leon?
Naturally, Leon couldn’t distribute territories so recklessly. The struggle over the royal succession hadn’t ended yet.
Leon was currently a Prince, not the Crown Prince.
No matter how much authority he possessed as Regent, he couldn’t casually hand out territories like that.
“Once the situation in the royal palace has been resolved, I’ll transfer the Venenon Territory to you immediately.”
“You’re certainly acting like you’re already the Crown Prince.”
“It’s all thanks to you.”
How was I supposed to respond to that?
“Regardless, I clearly told you that I won’t approve.”
“What must I do to gain your approval for our marriage?”
“Nothing you do will make me approve.”
“I’ll give you as much money as you want.”
“I’ll consider it if you give me Aleph-Null gold.”
“I’ll grant you the title of Duke.”
“I just refused the title of Count.”
“I promise you the royal family’s full support.”
“Say that after you become the Crown Prince.”
“What if I order you with the authority of a Prince?”
“If you want to brand me a traitor, then by all means.”
“What if I kneel and beg?”
“No.”
“What if I pluck the stars from the sky for you?”
“No.”
Leon’s golden eyes suddenly gleamed.
It was the power of Present Vision [L].
Apparently, he was attempting to analyze and understand why I was so vehemently opposed.
However, my reason was based upon memories and information from my previous life.
Perhaps even the absurdly powerful Present Vision [L] couldn’t analyze or understand that.
“....What in the world is your reason?”
Leon asked in bewilderment.
For some reason, he looked sorrowful. He seemed to like Seraphia quite a lot….
“I should be asking you that. What is your reason? Why are you suddenly interested in Seraphia—”
“I fell in love.”
“You fell—what?”
“I fell in love with her. At first sight. Completely.”
“What?!”
Seraphia, who had been listening quietly, froze in astonishment.
Her face gradually heated up, and she began panicking, uncertain of what to do.
I was equally bewildered.
“Don’t joke about this.”
“Does it sound like a joke?”
I used Find Weakness [U] and immediately understood.
....He was serious.
“I don’t understand.”
“You don’t need to understand.”
Leon calmly added—
“You merely need to approve.”
Seraphia’s heated face had already turned bright red to the tips of her ears.
I sighed inwardly.
Judging by the situation, Leon must have fallen for her during the battle against Luseria.
When only Leon and Seraphia had been together.
I had no idea what aspect of her had made him fall in love.
“No.”
“That’s fine. I’ll continue proposing until you approve. Therefore, it’s practically no different from already being married to Seraphia.”
“....Are you sane?”
“Perfectly.”
“What exactly do you find so attractive about Seraphia?”
“Do you truly need to ask?”
“Yes.”
Leon drew a deep breath—
“She’s beautiful, capable, courageous, intelligent, strong-willed, diligent, cheerful, and optimistic.”
“......”
“She possesses the dignity of a noble, and she’s also kindhearted. Anyone can see how devoted she is from the way she treats you. She always puts others before herself. Her tendency to carry every burden alone is a problem, but even that is unbelievably adorable.”
“......”
“She’s never weak, but sometimes she reveals that she wants someone to lean on. That makes me fall for her all over again. Above all else, she looks unbelievably lovely when she cries.”
“Lovely—no, cries—what?”
“When you were unconscious, she cried terribly because she thought you might die.”
My gaze naturally turned toward Seraphia.
Seraphia’s face had grown so red that she resembled a raspberry. She looked so overheated that steam might soon begin rising from her head.
“Th-That was...! I-I just—!”
Seraphia tightly bit her lip and desperately attempted to explain herself.
“Aaaaaah!! Please forget about it!!”
Unable to endure the embarrassment, she covered her face with both hands and curled into a ball.
Seraphia wriggled while remaining tightly curled up.
Leon continued—
“As you can see, she’s unbelievably adorable. Do I need another reason?”
“There are more?”
“She’s incredibly adorable but also strong-willed. Sometimes she can be a little clumsy, but that’s strangely charming as well. The fact that she doesn’t realize how lovely she is only makes her more charming. She’s careful about everything, yet—”
“....That’s enough. Please stop.”
He was completely blinded by love.
That only made the situation even more absurd.
—If the Hero Ian hadn’t existed, Leon would have become Commander-in-Chief of the Coalition Forces.
Leon might have become Commander-in-Chief of the Coalition Forces.
Although he didn’t possess the memories of my previous life, I had never imagined that Leon could fall this deeply in love with Seraphia.
But when I thought about it carefully….Ian had been the same.
It hadn’t been to this extent, but Ian had also believed that Seraphia was “more beautiful than the Saintess”.
But no matter how I looked at her, that simply wasn’t true.
Seraphia wasn’t unattractive, but she wasn’t more beautiful than Isolde, whose appearance had been shaped by Holy Power and transcended subjective standards of beauty.
Did people with the potential to become Commander-in-Chief possess some innate tendency to fall in love with Seraphia?
Predatory Instinct [S] couldn’t identify something like that, so I had no way of knowing.
In any case, Leon had never displayed this much affection toward another woman.
If it had been anyone else, I might not have cared.
But Seraphia—
The Monarch of Frost—
Was absolutely out of the question.
Just as the situation was beginning to make my head throb—
“Your Highness!! Prince Leon!!! Something terrible has happened!!”
A shout came from outside the door.
“Her Majesty the Queen, who was imprisoned in the underground dungeon, has been found dead!!”
Leon’s eyes and mine simultaneously widened.
Queen Marceline had suddenly died.
Leon and I immediately headed toward the scene. Seraphia said she wanted to follow us, but Leon firmly stopped her.
I agreed with Leon. There was no reason to make her look at the scene of a murder.
“I’ll tell you what happened later, so wait here for now.”
After hearing my words, Seraphia stopped insisting.
Knights had been stationed around the scene. However, they weren’t members of the Royal Knights.
Their uniforms and atmosphere were different.
When Leon and I approached, someone stepped forward and respectfully greeted us.
“You have arrived, Your Highness.”
He possessed a sharp gaze and a firm bearing.
His clean, efficient movements displayed both the spirit of a knight and the dignity of a noble.
I also recognized his face.
“Commander Lucas, what happened?”
Lucas, a Field Officer of the Coalition Forces.
At present, he was the Commander of the Royal Guard.
Wasn’t he also the head of House Arsente?
I believed so.
When I used Predatory Instinct [S], information about Lucas appeared before my eyes.
==< Character Information >==
Name: Lucas Arsente
Classification: Kingdom Animalia, Class Mammalia, Family Hominidae, Human
Gender: Male
Age: Forty-one
Trait: Indomitability [E]
◆ Indomitability [E] : The user possesses an Indomitable Will, granting resistance against abnormal conditions such as [Confusion, Fear, and Allurement]. By enveloping the body in that Indomitable Will, the user reduces all damage by [60%] and has a [certain probability] of enduring fatal attacks.
It was obvious that Lucas hadn’t won his position as Commander of the Royal Guard through gambling.
After all, an Epic Rank ability was powerful enough to injure even a Monarch.
Conversely, it was a rank capable of resisting a Monarch’s attack. Lucas’s Indomitability [E] was an ability that would work even against a Monarch.
But reading its description made me wonder how such a ridiculous ability could exist.
He enveloped his body in an Indomitable Will?
What did it even mean to wrap one’s body in willpower?
Naturally, such a power didn’t exist in ordinary reality. And yet it undeniably existed in this world.
It was a power created from an individual’s imagination through Aura.
In other words, Lucas was a Master Knight.
“Commander Lucas, you said the imprisoned Queen Marceline is dead? Do you mean she took her own life?”
“We must investigate further, but at present, murder appears more likely.”
“Explain in detail.”
“The body is not intact.”
“May I inspect it personally?”
Lucas turned his gaze toward me.
Then, without even a moment’s hesitation, he replied—
“No one may enter. We must prevent contamination of the scene.”
“I’ll take responsibility.”
Leon stepped forward in my defense. But Lucas remained firm.
“My apologies, but even Your Highness cannot enter.”
The Royal Guard—
The kingdom’s final shield.
Leon had not yet been officially appointed Crown Prince. In other words, Leon couldn’t issue orders to the Royal Guard.
Lucas was exactly the same as he had been in my previous life. Still, he wasn’t someone completely incapable of flexibility.
If he had followed rules and principles without exception, he wouldn’t have followed Leon after Leon lost his position in my previous life.
Nor would he have become a Field Officer of the Coalition Forces.
But in a situation like this, he had to uphold the rules and principles.
Leon and I reluctantly turned away.
The moment we rounded a corner of the royal palace, I whispered to Leon—
“Your Highness, could you distract Commander Lucas?”
“I don’t know what you’re planning….but very well.”
Leon nodded lightly before turning around and walking back.
I silently watched him leave—
As my form gradually disappeared by assimilating with the surrounding environment.
It was an ability that had even deceived the Royal Knights. But completely deceiving the senses of a Master was difficult.
“Commander Lucas, have you identified any suspects?”
After confirming that Leon had drawn Lucas’s attention, I carefully entered the underground dungeon.
* * *
The cell where Queen Marceline had been imprisoned—
It was the same cell where I had previously been imprisoned.
The difference was that the Royal Guard maintained an impenetrable watch over it.
“......”
Their security formation was flawless.
Every entrance leading inside the dungeon was perfectly controlled.
But unless Lucas himself was present, they couldn’t detect the presence concealed by Assimilation [C+].
I moved farther inside.
Pitch-black darkness devoid of even the slightest trace of light welcomed me.
Naturally, I couldn’t use a torch or Glowstone.
But that was fine.
◆ Activating the skill, Low Light Vision [D+]!
A message appeared before my eyes.
The dungeon previously concealed within the darkness gradually became visible.
And—
I had definitely made the right decision by not bringing Seraphia.
I had witnessed scenes like this countless times during the war against the Empire.
But Seraphia hadn’t.
In many respects, this wasn’t something a sixteen-year-old girl should see.
Of course, even if she had accompanied us, she wouldn’t have been able to see anything in this darkness.
I carefully examined Queen Marceline’s corpse.
‘It’s certainly difficult to believe that she took her own life.’
The damage to the body was far too extensive.
Even if she had killed herself, it couldn’t possibly have been this gruesome.
More importantly, Queen Marceline’s arms remained tightly bound in chains.
I turned my attention toward the condition of the cell.
The thick stone walls and heavy iron door—
Everything remained intact.
‘There are no signs of forced entry.’
That could be interpreted as evidence that someone on the inside had assisted the culprit.
However, the Royal Guard was solely responsible for guarding the underground dungeon.
In other words, Lucas personally supervised it. That would mean Lucas had colluded with the murderer….
‘That’s impossible.’
I could dismiss that possibility. There was no reason even to consider it.
The Lucas I knew wasn’t someone who would betray the royal family and collude with an enemy.
Therefore, someone else must have infiltrated the dungeon by slipping past Lucas’s surveillance.
But—
‘Someone bypassed a Master’s surveillance?’
That would be difficult even with Assimilation [C+].
I hadn’t secured its complete Genetic Factor, and it couldn’t perfectly escape a Master’s senses.
Still, suppose someone had somehow infiltrated without being discovered.
Even then, secretly murdering Queen Marceline and escaping would be impossible.
Lucas would notice the instant she was killed.
To put it bluntly, not even Ian could accomplish that.
Therefore, as far as I knew—
Only one entity was capable of doing this.
Even if he openly committed the crime—
Even if he murdered Queen Marceline directly before Lucas’s eyes—
Every memory and every piece of information about it would be erased through Oblivion.
‘The Monarch of Darkness.’
He had personally intervened.
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