Chapter 98:

As soon as I left the People's Medical Center, a bitter smile escaped me.

A crowd of what appeared to be reporters was staring at me as I came out of the People's Medical Center.

I had specifically come out at dawn to avoid this spectacle.

The reporters' dazed eyes glinted the moment they saw me.

“Count Valheit, a word on the recent theater attack incident, please!”

“It is a regrettable incident.”

“Count! What are your thoughts on the speculation that Vestol is behind this incident.”

“Well now, I have no idea.”

“How is the Third Duke’s condition!”

“Please go and ask him yourself.”

I passed by the reporters, giving breezy answers to the flood of questions.

I thought that would be enough to make them give up, but the reporters clung to me tenaciously.

“Is there a reason you attended this Imperial Theater Troupe event?”

“A Dukes’ Council was convened, is there anything you know about it?”

“What is the extent of the Third Duke’s injuries?”

It became a bother to even answer, so I got through the crowd of reporters with a smile.

Just then, from among the voices of the reporters who were tirelessly throwing questions, a blatant, complaint-filled question flew at me.

“There are rumors that you, Count, caused this incident. Is this true?”

As I whipped my head around, the reporters who had been straining to hear anything just a moment ago fell silent in an instant.

“That last question, which the reporter asked.”

The reporters’ gazes all fell on one person.

The reporter, flustered by his colleagues’ betrayal, looked around with a bewildered face.

“That’s an interesting question, so I should say a word. That would be alright, wouldn’t it, reporter.”

“Ah, yes.”

Perhaps thinking he had elicited a response, the reporter’s face turned triumphant.

A hint of pride could be seen, that unlike his colleagues who were just beating around the bush, he had won an answer.

“However, before I answer, there is something I must inform you of.”

“Yes?”

The reporter, who was taking out a notepad and pencil to take notes, blinked and asked back.

In the meantime, I walked straight toward that reporter.

“It’s a warning about what will happen when you return to your newspaper company after hearing and writing down my answer.”

“Uh….”

“Your editor-in-chief will wait for your report with a look of anticipation, saying you’ve landed a big scoop. That anticipation will crumble the moment you relay my answer, and the editor-in-chief will be busy yelling at you.”

Each time I approached the reporter, the other reporters would lower their eyes and step aside.

“It will probably be something like this. What were you thinking asking such a question? You’re bringing that in now calling it a big scoop. Something like that.”

“How would you know that, Count….”

“Ah… trust me. I know it very well. While you are bewildered like you are now, the editor-in-chief will meet with the president, and you will be fired on the spot. And that’s not the end of it.”

As I reached the reporter’s nose and pushed my face forward, the reporter took a step back.

I paid him no mind and bent my waist, approaching him.

“Before I say more, do you wish to hear more?”

When I added a bright smile, the reporter's lips trembled.

He hesitated for a moment, then answered by putting his notepad into his coat.

“Now, is there anything else you’re curious about?”

“Is… is this an official request to ban reporting?”

A reporter who looked quite old asked cautiously, then let out a dry cough, avoiding my gaze.

“How could that be? I’m not a duke or anything, so I’m not in a position to request such a thing. Please judge for yourselves. Any other questions.”

The reporters, their gazes lowered, mumbled that they had none.

The threat worked well, but if I let them go just like this, who knows what the disgruntled reporters might write.

I should probably toss them a suitable piece of gossip.

“I hear Lord Timershi will be leaving this place for the Imperial hospital today, and it seems a doctor from the People's Medical Center named Rapel will be accompanying him.”

“What?”

“You heard correctly. Now then, I have other business to attend to, so I must be going.”

The reporters’ eyes sparkled.

It was only natural, as they now had much easier prey that was good for asking all sorts of questions.

‘Sorry, but please deal with that swarm of mosquitoes for me.’

Mulling over Rapel's noble sacrifice, I quickly moved away from the People's Medical Center.

Ede and Til should have found something.

Lost in such thoughts, I stopped walking for a moment.

Someone was following me.

I activated my detection skill, but no enemy was detected.

That meant they were an ally or neutral.

As I started walking again, the following footsteps also quickened.

Only two sets of footsteps echoed quietly on the streets of the Imperial Capital, still lost in sleep.

I changed direction and entered a narrow alley.

The following footsteps grew rushed.

It seemed they were not a well-trained spy.

When the stalker entered the alley, I had my staff aimed at his neck and was clicking my tongue.

“Please move more cautiously next time. If there is a next time, that is.”

“Please wait a moment, Count!”

The stalker waved both hands, flustered.

Wait, I’ve seen those clothes somewhere before.

“Are you from the Imperial Palace?”

“Yes, that’s right. I originally intended to make contact as soon as you came out, but because of the reporters….”

“Who sent you?”

“His Majesty the Emperor ordered me to bring you, Count.”

Blaiher is looking for me.

It surely wouldn't be for a good reason.

I briefly pondered whether to chase the mastermind of the terror attack or to respond to Blaiher’s request, then made up my mind.

“I will go now. Lead the way.”

“Yes, Count.”

***

The atmosphere of the Imperial Palace was not much different from the last time I visited.

Disciplined, yet not seeming busy, one might say.

Only after passing the reception room and entering the garden did I see Blaiher standing in the distance.

Blaiher, having spotted me, gave a light wave.

“It’s been a while, teacher.”

“Isn’t it about time you stopped using that title, Your Majesty.”

“It’s a habit, so it’s hard to change. Are you alright?”

“Did you summon me to the Imperial Palace without even knowing whether I was alright or not?”

“I’ll take that to mean you are in good health.”

After an awkward laugh, Blaiher gave a look, and the servants and Imperial Guards who were nearby retreated to a distance.

That small movement alone was enough to feel that the new Emperor had the Imperial Palace under his control.

“Why have you summoned a count with nothing to do?”

“I had something I was curious about, and something to ask for advice on. Shall we get straight to the point? Why are you so interested in Brauder?”

It was a direct question.

Well, I had been running around the Imperial Capital so much and was even swept up in an explosion, so he couldn't have not known even if he wanted to.

“Werner-ssi asked for my help. He asked me to help with the investigation related to Brauder’s kidnapping.”

“That’s strange. As far as I know, isn’t Werner Chartra the one who led this kidnapping incident?”

Blaiher asked back with an innocent face.

Did he plant someone inside Werner’s investigation team?

If he knew, there was no need to beat around the bush.

“He asked me to investigate because Brauder is suspected of being involved in a crime against a citizen of the Empire.”

“Hmm… I didn’t know there were such circumstances. I thought he just did it because he didn’t like him.”

Blaiher furrowed his brow slightly.

It seemed he knew about Werner’s intervention but not the reason.

“You were swept up in an explosion while investigating, I can assume it was something like that.”

“Similar.”

“So have you found out who is behind it?”

“I am investigating. If Your Majesty were to send me off a little sooner, the investigation might gain some momentum.”

“I understand.”

There was no change in Blaiher’s face despite the sarcasm.

If anything, he seemed more relieved.

“I was suspecting that you were moving for the dukes, but it seems that is definitely not the case.”

“Why would I move for those brats? Aren’t they people who will live just fine on their own without me.”

“Then it would be alright for me to ask a favor.”

He said it as if it were nothing, but it was as good as a declaration that he would take a different path from the dukes.

In the original work, he started as the dukes' puppet and ended up confronting them head-on, so it was not surprising.

However, it was true that the time had come sooner than expected.

“What did the dukes do that made you so hurried?”

“It is not I who is hurried, but the dukes. It was the dukes who hastily gathered after the incident at the theater and jumped to a rash conclusion.”

“What did they demand?”

“It was a notification that the seven dukes would join forces to establish a single institution. An institution to prevent such situations in the future.”

It was the dream that the dukes, or more precisely, the First Duke Johann Geller, sought to achieve in the original work, even going so far as to start a rebellion.

Of course, Blaiher would be in a position to oppose it, then and now.

I had a rough idea of what he was going to ask.

“As you know, creating an institution solely for the dukes is a controversial topic even among the dukes themselves. Even if they decide to create it, it will take time for a concrete plan to actually emerge.”

“You’re telling me to catch the culprit before then.”

“Yes. If this incident is resolved quickly, the dukes’ momentum will also decrease.”

“I trust you are not asking me to do this for free.”

If he went so far as to summon me personally to ask a favor, it couldn't simply end with a favor.

If he had nothing to give, then I had no reason to grant his request.

“I have made arrangements so that you can freely use the investigation organization led by Werner.”

“That alone is not enough.”

“Financial support and a pardon for anything that happens during the investigation will also be guaranteed.”

“Be a little more generous.”

“…I have assigned a force from the Imperial Guard to you, teacher.”

The Imperial Guard moving is the same as the Emperor moving.

This was not a bad offer.

“Is that all?”

It was a request from the Emperor, but it felt like a waste to end it with just this.

Considering that I would be publicly confronting the dukes, I absolutely could not make a losing deal.

“Is there anything more you desire?”

“If you allow me to use Your Majesty’s resources even after this investigation is over, I will resolve this problem for you quickly.”

Considering that one of the reasons Valheit died was due to discord with the dukes, I had to have at least this much insurance.

Blaiher, who frowned upon hearing my proposal, asked back.

“Can you promise not to use those resources for anything against the citizens of the Empire and the Empire itself?”

“Of course.”

Even after hearing my answer, Blaiher stared at me for a long time.

As if trying to figure out the hidden intentions behind Valheit’s closed eyes.

The one-sided staring contest that lasted several minutes ended with Blaiher’s smile.

“In that case, I promise the support of the Imperial Family.”

“The Imperial Family, you say.”

“Yes, the Imperial Family.”

As the Emperor and the Imperial Family were strictly different, it was a compromise that took a step back.

I decided to take a step back here as well.

“I understand, Your Majesty. Your Majesty’s worries will be resolved in a short time.”

“I hope so.”

The meeting ended with a smile.

As I came out of the Imperial Palace and stretched out my arm, a raven landed on it.

It was time to play the cards I had prepared.

***

Hillia, who was standing at the edge of the clearing, spotted a single black dot approaching.

The black dot that gradually grew larger soon became a raven and landed softly on Hillia’s arm.

Hillia, who skillfully took the paper from the raven’s leg and checked it, shook off the raven and ran in among the demons.

Finally reaching the hideout, she shouted towards her companion who was idly keeping watch.

“We’ve got a message from Valheit!”

“Finally! It’s not another message telling us to wait, is it?”

“Not this time. He says to take that guy and move.”

Brauder, who was sitting in a corner, started to break out in a cold sweat upon realizing they were talking about him.

“Wh-where are you taking me?”

“The Imperial Capital.”

Both Brauder and the demons were surprised at the words ‘Imperial Capital.’

But the destination written on the paper was certain.

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