WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Hydrogen B
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◈ Whispers of a Scheming Demon ◈
Chapter 117: An Uninvited Guest
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The sun would soon set, yet a guest had arrived.
The visitor had been sent by House Leonar, and he was uninvited.
He had come to someone else's home late in the day without any prior notice.
No host could welcome such behavior. Someone sensitive to etiquette might even feel insulted.
Johan's thoughts were somewhat different.
He simply found the situation strange in many ways.
House Leonar had abandoned its own principles and planted a spy near Johan.
Now they had forgotten etiquette as well and made themselves uninvited guests.
They were far too different from House Leonar in the original novel.
What had turned those noble knights into petty schemers?
Johan wanted to resolve that question at once.
He looked at Haman.
“How much time is left until sunset?”
Haman answered uncertainly.
“I-I can't say exactly, but the sun should set within an hour.”
Johan turned his gaze outside.
Twilight was beginning to settle.
‘About thirty minutes, then.’
That was enough time to briefly get down to business.
Johan spoke to Haman.
“Show the guest to the drawing room.”
Haman looked worried.
“...Will that be all right?”
He had spent the previous night in the estate.
The mansion at night was clearly different from how it was during the day.
It felt desolate and sinister.
Perhaps, as the rumors claimed, Johan really did study forbidden ritual arts at night.
Johan stared at Haman.
“What are you worried about? Are you afraid the Marquis will discover my true identity?”
Haman was greatly flustered.
“Y-Your true identity? What do you mean...?”
Johan gave a quiet snort.
“It was a joke. Don't worry. Just show the guest in. Nothing will happen.”
Haman gave an awkward smile.
“Haha, then I'll do as you say.”
He immediately left the office.
Johan also headed to the drawing room.
* * *
The moment he opened the door, brilliant golden armor caught Johan's attention.
The black lion crest depicted on its breastplate seemed to stare straight at him.
The knight's gaze was as imposing as the crest's.
The knight slightly bowed his head toward Johan.
“I greet the Watcher of Narak. I am Mamon Leonar, a knight of the Royal Guard.”
House Leonar had served only the royal family since ancient times.
Any knight with the surname Leonar served the royal family.
Among them, members of the Royal Guard placed the royal family before their own house.
In other words, the knight before him had not come as a representative of House Leonar.
He had visited Baron Myatro's estate as a representative of the royal family.
Johan was somewhat taken aback.
‘The king sent someone to me?’
The current king of the Artelga Kingdom had absolutely no interest in politics.
He probably did not even know that the Watcher of Narak had come to the Royal Capital.
There was no reason for that puppet king to take an interest in Johan.
Though Johan found the situation strange, he did not show it.
“Nice to meet you, Sir Mamon. I am Johan Myatro. Please, have a seat.”
At Johan's invitation, the two sat across from each other at the table.
The knight spoke.
“First, I would like to apologize. I have been discourteous by visiting at such a late hour. I am sorry.”
The young knight looked genuinely apologetic.
His eyes trembled faintly.
‘...Is it shame?’
Johan could not understand the knight's behavior.
Arriving at another person's home late was discourteous, but it was not something that should make a man squirm with shame.
If there had been an urgent matter, it was only natural to visit without notice.
Moreover, was this knight not a representative of the royal family?
He should act proudly and with dignity wherever he went.
There was no trace of confidence in his current behavior.
The knight could not hide his shame.
There was probably another reason for it.
Johan spoke calmly.
“It is all right. If the royal family has come without warning, there must be a reason. I understand, so please do not dwell on it.”
The knight swallowed once and looked at Johan.
The unease in his eyes slowly faded.
Some kind of resolve settled over him.
‘What is this?’
The knight slowly opened his mouth.
“That is right. There is a reason I came to see you at this hour.”
The mood changed completely.
“Please, tell me.”
“It has already been more than three days since the Watcher came to the Royal Capital. Is that correct?”
“It has probably been around that long.”
The knight's eyes sharpened.
“Then why have you not sought an audience with His Majesty?”
Something entirely unexpected came from the knight's mouth.
‘...Why have I not met the king?’
The reason was simple.
The king was nothing more than a puppet.
Every decision in the Kingdom was made by the Council, and the king approved the Council's decisions without even reviewing them.
There was no need for Johan to meet the king.
Time spent with him would truly be wasted.
Of course, he could not say that to the knight before him.
Johan hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“I heard rumors about His Majesty's condition. As I understand it, His Majesty is currently not in a state to attend to state affairs.”
“This is not about state affairs. As a noble of the Kingdom and a member of the Council, the Watcher has a duty to seek an audience with His Majesty and inquire after his well-being upon arriving in the Royal Capital. Then why have you not even seen His Majesty once?”
The knight's words were correct.
Even if the king was confined to his bed, Johan needed to show that he wished to meet him.
He had to give the king the option of refusing the meeting.
Johan had not considered the king at all.
The time he would have to spend on the king seemed too precious.
Johan spoke.
“I have been somewhat preoccupied since arriving in the capital. I will visit soon, so please do not take offense.”
He had no intention of engaging in a contest of wills with the knight over the king.
Johan wanted to wrap up the subject and get to the main matter.
The sun would set soon.
The knight furrowed his brow.
“His Majesty is greatly displeased. Why not visit him at once?”
Johan was consumed by doubt.
He had thought the knight was bringing up the matter of an audience to pressure him before getting to the real point.
He had been wrong.
The knight's real point was the audience itself.
Johan found it quite strange.
The king, who found everything bothersome, would never wish to meet Johan.
Even if Johan requested a private audience, the king would probably refuse.
Johan spoke calmly.
“His Majesty wishes to see me now?”
The knight nodded.
“That is correct. He ordered me to bring the Watcher of Narak to the palace as quickly as possible.”
Bullshit.
The king would never give such an order.
Having read the original novel, Johan was certain.
He quietly studied the knight's expression.
‘He doesn't seem to be lying.’
Had the king somehow been possessed by a ghost?
Otherwise, this situation made no sense.
Johan spoke.
“It is quite late now. Let us arrange a time for an audience tomorrow.”
Resolve settled over the knight's face.
He spoke in a low voice.
“Must I invoke a royal command for you to comply?”
Johan was dumbfounded.
‘Why is he being so persistent?’
At this point, it was practically as if someone had laid a trap and was waiting for him.
Johan swallowed.
“...If it is a royal command, I will obey. Give me some time to prepare.”
Johan had no grounds to refuse the king's order.
He needed to buy at least some time to think.
The knight nodded.
“Very well. But do not keep His Majesty waiting too long.”
Johan immediately left the drawing room.
* * *
Johan's mind raced.
He went over their entire conversation again.
‘The knight was clearly ashamed.’
The knights of House Leonar held honor as dear as their lives. They did not tolerate even the slightest shame in themselves.
If they showed shame, there had to be a reason.
What could it be?
Lost in thought, Johan reached a conclusion.
The knight was taking part in a scheme because of an order he could not refuse.
There was a high chance this was correct.
Then the one who had given the order was also obvious.
The king.
Knights of the Royal Guard obeyed only royal commands.
To them, the king came before even Marquis Leonar, the head of their house.
An order from Marquis Leonar could never crush a Royal Guard knight's convictions.
Only a royal command stood above those convictions.
Several questions arose from this.
How and why was that puppet king plotting such a scheme?
Could the king have been the one who sent Verdan the Mimic as well?
Whatever the case, the king was clearly involved in this matter.
Johan clicked his tongue.
‘This is troublesome.’
He had to meet the king immediately.
Even if he somehow got through today, the king would keep pressuring him.
He did not even know why the king was acting this way.
A bigger variable had emerged than he had expected.
Without the original novel's help, Johan would have to navigate the situation using only his own abilities.
In the underground prison of the baron's estate, Johan quietly stared through the iron bars.
Verdan lay naked and face-down on the floor.
Johan looked at Verdan and muttered.
“...It seems I'll have to use this one.”
With the Mimic Authority, he could at least deal with the immediate crisis.
He could send Verdan, disguised as Johan, to the royal palace in Johan's place, since Johan could not be active at night.
It was surely the best option.
That did not dispel his strange unease.
Johan could not shake the feeling that this train of thought had been brought about by someone's intentions.
The gift called Verdan had suddenly fallen into his hands, and before long, a situation had arisen where he had no choice but to use Verdan.
The flow of events was far too convenient.
Someone might be playing Johan in the palm of their hand.
‘...Am I speculating too wildly?’
Johan swallowed.
Unease and suspicion continued to rise.
He had strained his mind so much that his thoughts were slowly beginning to seize up.
“Damn it!”
He cursed and lifted a pair of iron pliers.
First, he needed to pull out his fingernail.
After sunset, even if he wanted to pull out Johan's fingernail, he would not be able to.
He would become Mapheltan.
Johan pressed the pliers against the nail of his ring finger.
He had already done this once, but the fear remained.
Even if his soul had been tempered, pain was another matter.
Johan tightly shut his eyes.
Then he pulled the pliers.
Crack.
A sickening sound rang out.
A pure white fingernail was caught between the pliers.
“Ghk, hrrrgh!”
Johan let out a ragged breath.
Blood flowed freely from his hand.
‘...I can't get used to this.’
The pain was truly terrible.
As he groaned, the pain suddenly vanished.
Power began to boil throughout his body.
A black nail grew back where the fingernail had been pulled out.
Johan became a demon.
Mapheltan tossed Johan's fingernail through the bars.
“Swallow it. I have something for you to do.”
Whatever happened, he had no choice but to use Verdan in the current situation.
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