Chapter 98 

A chill prickled at the nape of his neck. Alec gave a shudder as goosebumps rose along his skin. With thousands of monsters to deal with, it was no surprise that using aura had resulted in a massive amount of ash.

The fact that the ash stretched over a day’s journey meant just how much had been produced, and Alec swallowed dryly. Then, a sudden question struck him.

‘But then why…’

Why is he fine?

Once past a certain threshold, Edmund would go into a berserk state. He had always managed his usage carefully to avoid that outcome. And by Alec’s estimation, the number of monsters involved should have pushed him well past that threshold.

Yet Edmund had returned safely and seemingly unscathed.

‘Has his limit… changed?’

Tilting his head slightly, Alec continued walking.

‘He’s different.’

While Alec pondered this question, Edmund stood still, staring quietly at his empty wrist. No one knew his threshold for aura control better than he did, and he made every effort never to approach it.

But where he had gone, just as Alec had said, there had been thousands of monsters. There was no way to defeat them without using aura, so at first, he relied on magic stones. But even those had their limits.

Eventually, Edmund stopped using the stones and began drawing on his aura. Each time a monster turned to ash, he could feel himself drawing closer to that threshold, and so he immediately concealed himself.

There was still time. He’d planned to dispatch a set number each day. Though the monsters remained numerous, he had no other choice.

Three days passed. Then four. Eight in total.

His body hadn’t recovered after just one day of rest. He was pushing the limit. The monster numbers had hardly decreased, and time had nearly run out.

Under mounting pressure, Edmund pushed himself harder without realizing and crossed the threshold. And at that moment… 

In the blink of an eye, the aura within him erupted. He tried to pull it back in, but he was too late. The black mist surged out, devouring the monsters nearby before he could stop it.

It had been a long time since his aura had been released into the world. Containing it again was no simple task.

Fearing he might go berserk, Edmund focused all his will on suppressing the aura. Only after a long struggle did he manage to calm it and bind it back into himself. Breathing heavily, he finally looked around.

“…”

In just one hour, the number of monsters had been reduced as much as in the entire past week. He blinked blankly, his view obscured by the mountain of ash. On the ground lay the broken bracelet. And he… he was perfectly fine.

Slowly, Edmund released his aura. The black mist flared up again, but he realized he wasn't losing control.

The remaining thousands of monsters were dealt with in just one more day. He clasped the bracelet left behind by the Archmage around his wrist. That familiar sensation of suppressed aura returned. It was as he remembered, yet something felt off. Absently, he ran a hand over his wrist, feeling the bracelet.

Knock knock.

A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts.

“Come in.”

“Your Excellency.”

It was Baroness Nouvelle.

“Madam has regained consciousness.”

“…That was quick.”

It had only been half a day. He had expected it to take at least a full day.

“She shows no major symptoms. She’s speaking normally and seems no different from usual. However…”

The Baroness hesitated before continuing.

“She asked about the current situation, so I explained. But when she asked where the Young Lord was… I panicked and couldn’t answer…”

“…So she’s guessed as much.”

“Yes. I take full responsibility.”

The Baroness bowed low.

It was only natural for Daphne to ask about Damian. He had been unconscious the last time she saw him. But in her surprise, the Baroness had stumbled over her words and tried to change the subject, which made Daphne suspicious.

“Hide it for as long as you can.”

“Wouldn’t it be better to tell her the truth?”

“She’s still not stable, and nothing good would come from giving her more bad news.”

“…Understood.”

The Baroness withdrew.

Edmund opened and closed his hand. He knew perfectly well how flimsy that excuse sounded.

But even so, he couldn’t bring himself to let Daphne know. He wanted her to stay just as she had always been for the past five years – gazing only at him, remaining by his side.

She had already been through too much in just a few months. When she’d shut her ears and eyes and stayed within the safety of his walls, at least she’d been safe. Perhaps suffocated, but safe.

Edmund knew it was selfish. But it was a selfishness he simply couldn’t let go of.

* * *

“The Young Lord has vanished. He boarded a carriage of his own will. We’re tracking it, but… oddly, no one has been able to catch up.”

Two days later, new information arrived about Damian. He had disappeared after getting into a luxurious carriage. For the elite knights of the Black Order to lose track of a single carriage meant someone had used unusual means to throw them off.

“Send more of the Black Order. Use Nick’s guild to gather intel.”

“Yes, understood.”

Johann nodded, then produced a letter from his coat.

“A message from His Highness, the Crown Prince.”

As Edmund broke the seal and read the letter, Johann verbally summarized the contents.

“Marquis Bled has virtually seized control of the Imperial Court. The Crown Prince has gone into hiding. It appears the marquis made a move against him. The Emperor’s condition has worsened. Count Mute says he refuses to listen to reason.”

The Emperor was now quick to anger at the slightest provocation and increasingly obsessed with seeing his concubine. He had even begun talking about making her the Empress.

This led to Duke Bevelock, one of the empire’s two ducal pillars, storming into the palace in fury and ending up imprisoned in the underground dungeons.

“With one of the two Dukes out of the picture, panic is spreading among the nobility.”

The nobles, who had quietly remained on the sidelines, were now growing anxious one by one.

The Emperor was neither wise nor competent, but he was still royalty, and he had always known how to play nobles off one another to his advantage.

But imprisoning Duke Bevelock without hesitation sent shockwaves through the aristocracy. Seeing one of the empire’s main pillars thrown into the dungeon so easily, even the Emperor’s own supporters began to tread cautiously.

“Now that Duke Bevelock is out of the way, it’s likely we’re next, Your Excellency.”

There was a strategy often used in war. Rather than fighting an entire army of thousands, you simply remove the commander. The rest lose morale and surrender. That was clearly what Vished had in mind.

Edmund lowered the letter from Carlito and said, “…His Highness is alive.”

Johann exhaled in deep relief. Even with a letter supposedly from the missing Crown Prince, they couldn’t be certain it wasn’t an announcement of his death.

“He’s in hiding, trying to persuade the nobles.”

“…So he’s planning a coup.”

“…Get in contact with Count Mute. He’ll be of use to His Highness.”

Even the hesitant nobles would change their minds once they heard Yureit was involved. That was how great his influence still was. Though he had been out of sight for over a decade, many still longed for the days when he had been present.

“Also, the Temple is about to officially declare the appearance of the Saintess.”

“She really was the genuine article, then.”

“Yes.”

At the mention of the Saintess, Edmund furrowed his brows.

“And there’s been contact between the Temple and Marquis Bled.”

“With whom, exactly?”

The Temple was currently divided between the High Priest and the common clergy. As expected, the High Priest was displeased by the Saintess’s appearance, while the Temple welcomed her with open arms.

“Both, it seems. And neither side is aware of the other’s dealings.”

The Temple was already dancing to Sergei’s tune. And now the Imperial Court was on the verge of falling under his control as well. Things could not possibly get any worse.

“And…”

Knock knock.

A knock at the door interrupted Johann mid-report. Normally, the report would take priority, but Edmund rose from his seat and opened the door himself.

“…Your Excellency…”

Baroness Nouvelle stood there, eyes brimming with tears.

“…Again?”

“Yes…”

She bowed her head deeply.

Edmund ran a hand roughly through his hair, bit his lip, then slowly let it go.

“…I’ll go.”

It had been two days since Daphne last touched her food.

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