WeTried Translations

Translator: Coughing Baby

Editor: Coughing Baby

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◈ The Reluctant Imperialist

Chapter 155

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Gift

A secret chamber in the imperial palace.

"...He said an irresponsible servant unclipped the leashes, and now the dogs are running wild."

Relaying Leutern's words, Kents Bertem gripped his wineglass so hard it creaked.

"That damn permed head. That broccoli-looking bastard."

Chief Secretary Grossman curled one corner of his mouth in an easy smile.

"Dogs and servants... so that bastard finally opened his mouth?"

He slowly swirled the dark red wine and lifted a brow.

"But when you think about it, there is no better metaphor. We are all servants anyway. In this Empire, only one man stands above us, and everyone else stands beneath our feet."

"...I know. But I cannot stand that pathetic display. And the fact that he has been deceiving me this whole time..."

"Was it only you who got deceived? I was too. The whole palace was."

Leutern II had now become a power in his own right. Many royals had gathered around him as their center. Julius, who had led the opposing side, had already been expelled, so there was no proper way left to keep him in check.

Grossman added in a low voice.

"But royals are still only royals, and if one wants to achieve a grand ambition, one must know how to endure. You came to me because you want something too, did you not."

They could not move rashly yet. They still did not know exactly what Leutern felt about the Imperial Guard as an organization, or what calculations he was making.

Still, one thing was certain. The bastard still did not know their true intent. The cause the Imperial Guard was building step by step, that "Bloody Night" meant to cut off the heads of palace royals, he knew nothing about it, foolishly enough.

"...Yes. Understood."

Kents clenched his teeth hard enough to crack.

...

In the Empire's wealthy district, Sonnet Law Office.

Sonnet Kandel, lawyer and secretary and mage and scholar and doctor and company representative, and most recently even a professor, sipped green tea and asked,

"How was the visit?"

Across from her, Oswin still looked furious, his brows tightly knit.

"Those Imperial Guard bastards are out of control. Oliver was practically broken. There was not a single part of his body left unharmed."

Oswin ran a hand through his hair.

"Still, thanks to you, I confirmed he was there, that he was alive, and that he was subjected to absurd torture."

"That is a lot of facts."

"And Oliver is Aran. That is also a fact."

Oliver had been arrested while teaching magic to poor commoners. Those commoners were Aran too. His donation of talent for the Empire's future had ended up shackling him instead.

"You know Oliver too, don't you."

"Yes. I do."

The reason Sonnet had asked Maximilian for visitation help had, in truth, been pure goodwill. No deep scheme, no hidden motive, no plan. A very rare personal feeling for her. Oliver was one of the very few friends Sonnet had.

"So, are you starting the trial?"

"I filed the petition. His family tree is perfect, so we will definitely win."

"Yes. I will cheer you on."

Sonnet would watch the trial from a distance. Her feelings ended exactly there. She would never step in herself.

Only then could she achieve what she wanted.

* * *

These days, while the whole Empire was in turmoil over the civil law, I stepped aside for a moment and recalled a memory from before regression. It was a memory of a person and an incident.

[Imperial Ginseng Forager 'Kazen' Discovers an Arcane Passage!]

An article said a passage with buried ancient relics had been found. Back then, I had been openly amazed. What kind of item would be excavated? Should I win it at auction and put it to use? How much money was in my account? Thoughts like that.

I had been greedy, wanting to fill my shortcomings with gear.

Anyway, I put out a notice for that forager, Kazen.

"...Ah, y-yes, yes. I have roamed these mountains my whole life. A few days ago, while taking shelter from rain and wind, I found th-this strange passage."

The forager guided me while trembling.

"Hm. This is the place."

It looked like part of a cliff wall, yet fine strands of mana leaked from a crack.

An ancient magic passage.

"Y-yes. But no matter how much I push and hit it, nothing reacts."

As I ran my hand along the rough stone surface, I spoke quietly.

"Because you cannot handle mana."

Ancient relics, so-called Arcane. They said wars were once fought over them, but now, because mana stone technology had advanced, their value had thinned out a lot compared to the past.

"This passage links multiple entrances."

That meant entrances were scattered across the continent, but the space was one. That was why it was a magic passage, connected by magic.

"See this symbol?"

Three of the four circles were lit blue.

"It means three of the four entrances have already been discovered."

Mana had already been injected from the other three entrances. Before regression, while the Empire sat around debating who should enter the ruins and how, Gentra stole it.

I could not let that happen in this life too.

Even if I could not keep it myself, it still could not be allowed into the hands of those lawless, anti-imperialist armed thugs who did nothing but destroy.

"Y-yes, yes. Truly, Sir Knight, there is nothing you do not know. Thank you. Then this lowly man will be off..."

Shuffle, shuffle.

With a frightened face, the forager started backing away.

"Where are you going?"

I stopped him.

"Y-yes? Ah, w-well..."

His face turned pale in an instant, and I examined him slowly.

From skin tone to facial bone structure, he was not pure Aran.

"S-sorry! Please spare me!"

The forager dropped flat and bowed his head to the ground. I was slightly taken aback.

"...For what?"

"M-my grandfather is Kenshi... We have lived in these mountains for generations... I never meant to hide my bloodline!"

I let out a dry laugh. It seemed this was because of the Imperial Civil Law.

"It does not matter."

"...Pardon?"

The forager slowly lifted his head.

"Are you in public office right now? Is being a forager public office?"

"N-no. It is not."

"Exactly."

I pulled a checkbook from my inner pocket.

"If anything, you reported the location of a precious ruin like this to an Imperial knight, so you deserve a reward, not punishment."

I tore out a check and handed it to him.

"..."

His face went blank. He kept blinking as if he could not tell whether this was a dream or reality.

"Also, if you find exceptionally high-quality, potent wild ginseng while roaming the mountains, bring it to me without fail."

Wild ginseng and elixir had very different properties. If elixir was water that built up in the body bit by bit, wild ginseng was fire that burned mana and tempered it.

That meant it would help me quite a lot, along with the virus inside me.

"Understood?"

"Y-yes! I will remember!"

He was a forager who had crossed the Empire's harsh mountain terrain and found an ancient ruin.

There was no downside to keeping him as one of my people.

"Go on."

"Th-thank you! Thank you so much, Sir Knight!"

The forager left with a bright face. Joy showed even in his back as he disappeared along the mountain path.

"..."

I stared at the sealed stone door of the ruin, then placed my hand on it.

At that moment.

Thump!

The virus suddenly stirred, and then, clunk.

Rrrrrrumble.

The stone seams split, and the door opened.

"...No."

It was an impulsive move by the virus. I glared at the area near my collarbone.

I had not planned to enter right away, but this door was now open to everyone.

Which meant Gentra bastards could enter through other entrances.

If I was late, it would be stolen.

"Huu..."

I took a deep breath and stepped inside.

Step.

The moment I placed one foot in, the interior became vast.

This itself was magic. Different places across the continent were linked into one space, so in other words, I was walking inside magic... but.

It was dark.

Deep and damp.

More than the monsters, the eerie aura itself raised chills on my skin.

I was absolutely not scared.

"...The wind blows, from a sorrowful heart."

Without realizing it, I sang.

Get a grip, Maximilian.

I should have brought Leo with me, no, that is not it. You were never alone in the first place.

"Hey. This is your fault."

Thump.

The virus answered. I smirked.

These days, we communicated fairly well. The virus saw what I saw, understood what I said, and even reacted.

"Do not make sudden moves. Remember this. If I die, you die too."

Thump!

It felt offended somehow.

Anyway.

I released mana outward. I widened my mana sense and secured my domain.

Sssrrr.

My mana sense spread out, and I packed mana inward. I erased my presence by cooling even my body heat, along with footsteps and breathing.

My mana turned me into moonlight.

Nature that could not be seized, could not be felt.

How long had I walked like that.

Tsussssssss.

Faint presences flowed from up ahead.

Spectral-type demonic beasts. The ones literally called ghosts. Their forms were translucent, and because they could handle mana and attack with curses, they were quite troublesome.

Hrrrroooohrrrroooohrrrrooooh.

Mana waves that sounded like wailing.

I snorted.

Ebenholtz are nobles.

True nobles, that is, win without fighting.

I brushed past their group softly like a shadow, without provoking them...

Stage one clear.

Whummm, whummm, whummm.

As I moved deeper, this time a circular passage blocked the way.

A thick steel pillar rose in the center, and around that axis, mana stone blades spun and scraped through every direction.

Whummm, whummm, whummm.

I watched and calculated the blades' paths and timing.

Whummm, whummm, whummm.

The instant a gap opened, I drew the longsword from my back and threw it into the space between pillar and floor.

Kiiing, clunk!

The longsword wedged between the gears. The mechanism stopped, and I walked through, then reached into the air.

Whirl.

The moment the longsword returned to my grip, the blades roared and spun again.

"...Huu."

I pushed forward.

Nothing much.

Feeling relieved, I reached fairly deep inside. It was a vast cavern.

At first glance, there was nothing to see, but the space itself was vast enough to swallow several training grounds.

"What? There is nothing here."

A voice was picked up by my mana sense in the distance.

I hid behind a wall.

"Mmm, I thought something good would just pop out."

I tracked the presence. There was only one. Likely Gentra's advance scout.

In a one-on-one, I could win. I even had a Super Stim Pack.

Ssswk.

Just as I was about to step out.

Step.

Another set of footsteps rose.

"Ah, you came? Look here. There is nothing."

Ssswk.

I hid myself again.

Another person entered my sight.

Step.

He made footsteps, yet through mana sense I felt no mana wave, not even the warmth of life. Just a man dark as pitch black. Not Izenheim, but I had never seen a figure this close to nothingness.

Step.

"So?"

...

Without speaking, he looked somewhere.

Not at me.

If anything, the opposite side.

"Hm? What are those guys?"

Voices rushed in from there.

As I said, this place had four entrances in total. That meant four different forces could enter this relic.

"Who are you bastards! Identify yourselves!"

This time it was a group of around ten.

I looked over their uniforms.

Dark red uniforms, and chests covered in medals.

Iron Men raised by the Eastern Alliance to oppose knights, the Adversaries.

Their number was exactly twelve.

If they started fighting, I could steal the relic in that chaos. I had Stim Pack and Spherical Aura Guard. I could test the waters, then jump in...

At that moment.

The unknown man stretched his hand toward the Adversaries.

No incantation, no mana warm-up. Just one gesture, and space itself twisted while invisible pressure exploded.

"Kraaaagh!"

"--!"

"Kugh!"

A sudden storm of mana. A crazed surge. In an instant, the Adversaries caught in it were shredded like paper.

Crunch. Spatter. Krrzzzk!

Those sounds followed. Blood and torn flesh chunks that hit the ceiling rained down.

Twelve people, an entire unit, collapsed into lumps of blood.

Time used for slaughter on this scale, only a few dozen seconds.

"Oh wow. As expected, Major."

Major.

The title made something surface late in my memory, a Gentra leader.

An irregular once evaluated as standing shoulder to shoulder with the central Sebestian and the northern Jackal.

"I will handle the investigation first. What will you do, Major?"

"Wait."

Ssswk.

I hid again.

I became a piece of shadow.

I sank beneath the ground.

The world was wide, and there were many strong people.

Still, that did not mean there was no way.

There were many strong people, but only one stood at the peak.

If this ancient relic would go to Gentra, then I would rather...

* * *

The Emperor of the Empire loved ancient relics. He believed he was chosen by god, and he was convinced he was the greatest person on the continent.

So the Emperor's hand had to hold things worthy of an Emperor, and that was ancient relics.

Imperial Army Commander in Chief Sebestian knew the Emperor's heart very well. He was an old friend and the most loyal subject.

"Commander."

One day, an adjutant came to the commander's residence and delivered a message.

In that moment, Sebestian's brow furrowed.

"Yes."

"Remove it."

Sebestian could have everything, but he did not want it. Such greed, such desire for possessions, was of no help at all to a servant of the throne.

"But it is not an object."

Not an object.

Sebestian looked at the adjutant in silence. As always, his gaze was very heavy, but the adjutant continued calmly.

"They say an Arcane, an ancient relic passage, has been discovered."

Then he handed over a map.

"Arcane?"

Arcane...

Indeed, this time it was something worthy to present to His Majesty.

"Yes. They also added that they have left the passage open, so they strongly recommend that you go personally and take possession as quickly as possible..."

As quickly as possible. Personally take possession. A strong recommendation.

Sebestian found it absurd, but if it truly was an ancient relic, it was worth that much.

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