The appearance and intervention of the Palace Steward, the goal of this trip to the royal city, were both expected and somewhat unexpected.
This was because both the Black Wing Duke and his daughter, Lucia, had assumed that the Palace Steward would want Khan out of the royal city.
When viewed objectively, the Palace Steward, who seemed to be building his own faction rather than aligning strictly with the King’s party, would naturally see the influential Black Wing Duke as a thorn in his side.
‘The Black Wing Duke’s entry to the royal city is limited due to the central bureaucrats who wary excessive concentration of power.’
The only reason the Duke was currently in the city was that Khan’s rampage had made it necessary for his direct involvement. For the Palace Steward, who had just started expanding his own influence, the Duke’s presence would be highly displeasing, and he would undoubtedly want to expel him quickly.
“Interesting.”
Khan, withdrawing the hand he’d extended to have his cuffs removed, muttered with a smile. Lucia frowned, puzzled by his words, but the situation was indeed interesting.
Despite having hair as white as snow, the Palace Steward maintained an unusually upright posture and had piercing eyes, embodying the archetype of a stiff-necked old man. A third of the nobles and officials in the hall were clearly aligned with him.
‘The central power structure is said to be divided, with seventy percent supporting the King and thirty percent being strong nobles and bureaucrats.’
Of course, the divisions were more nuanced, but that was the general idea. The two main figures who divided the King’s faction were the Palace Steward and the Black Wing Duke. A third of the people in the hall siding with the Palace Steward was no surprise. However…
“Most of those standing up aren’t nobles. Are they all officials?”
“…Yes, they are all high-ranking officials. But why now?”
Most of the high-ranking officials in the royal palace were now openly showing their allegiance to the Palace Steward. It didn’t make sense to show their hand just as the Black Wing Duke was in the city.
“Palace Steward, why are you objecting to my verdict? Are you trying to show off your new faction?”
It seemed that Khan wasn’t the only one with questions. The chief judge voiced his displeasure, but the Palace Steward remained impassive, persistently insisting on Khan’s death sentence.
“It’s a reasonable opinion. Regardless of his achievements, this barbarian committed the heinous crime of killing royal blood. Who would accept this without punishment? Or does the Chief Judge intend to announce to the world that the royal authority has fallen?”
“You exaggerate, Palace Steward. Prince Alan’s unchecked ambition endangered the entire kingdom. Labeling the act of stopping him as regicide and punishing it would not only tarnish the royal family’s reputation but also the kingdom’s standing as a whole.”
“That’s mere sophistry. The royal family is the foundation, root, and center of the kingdom. No external entity can harm the royal blood for any reason. If we make an exception now, will similar situations be excused in the future as well?”
“What is your true intention, Palace Steward? Are you trying to complicate this matter unnecessarily? To what end?”
“As I said, it’s a reasonable opinion. Chief Judge Dorothy.”
The heated debate between the two political veterans left no room for others to intervene, creating an atmosphere that felt almost as tense as a battle to the surrounding nobles and officials.
‘What are they talking about?’
To the barbarian’s ears, yawning widely, it was nothing but meaningless drivel.
A prince who went mad and died alone. A citizen who courageously intervened to stop it. Why complicate such a simple situation? They could have just awarded a medal for bravery and taken a photo to resolve it.
“How long must we be stuck in this mess?”
“…The situation isn’t simple. With the Palace Steward and numerous high-ranking officials opposing, we can’t just force the verdict through. The Chief Judge would face significant political backlash.”
No wonder he was so fervently arguing. Khan chuckled, finally understanding why the old judge had been so staunchly defending him.
“Then just delay the proceedings.”
“Pardon? No, it would be better to solidify the not guilty verdict right here…”
“No, just delay it. Assign me a solitary cell, separate from the others.”
Lucia looked puzzled, her eyes narrowing through the slit in her helmet. She then approached the Chief Judge Dorothy to convey Khan’s suggestion.
“We’ll delay the verdict for now and revisit the discussion later. Chief Judge, you don’t need to push yourself any further. The Black Wing Duke will deem this sufficient for now.”
“…Very well.”
Khan’s enhanced hearing, a result of his increased stamina stat, picked up the whispered conversation between Lucia and the Chief Judge. But he yawned loudly, pretending not to hear a thing as Lucia cast a curious glance his way. He then quietly returned to his solitary cell.
Woooom—
『Finally, you’re releasing me from that unpleasant space.』
Khan chuckled at Draupnir’s remark as he pulled it from Aecharis’s pocket.
“What’s so unpleasant? You had that demon to keep you company.”
『You’ll understand if you ever get trapped in there, madman. The feeling of eternally floating in that repulsive demon’s stomach is utterly vile.』
“So, do you know much about Aecharis?”
『Perhaps. As you might have guessed, my memories are fragmented and chaotic. Sometimes I remember things, sometimes I don’t. It’s because my soul was torn apart and scattered. Currently, I just recall the demon being extremely ‘repulsive’.』
He does indeed look revolting.
Agreeing inwardly with the grudge, Khan shifted the topic.
“Back when you saw that half-baked prince, you seemed to recognize something. Do you know anything about the power in the Argon royal bloodline?”
『Hmm.』
Draupnir fell silent for a moment, as if reminiscing, before replying with a hint of laughter, claiming to remember nothing. When Khan shook the dragon scale shard, suspecting a prank, the spirit quickly elaborated.
『I was merely recalling my impressions. I wasn’t speaking from any concrete knowledge. Madman, try providing more clues to jog my memory.』
“Clues, huh.”
Luckily, two terms came to Khan’s mind.
“Transcendent Genes. And Test Subject Argos.”
These were mentioned on the stone tablet he found in the lawless city of Bates, referring to some ancient mages’ dubious experiments.
Khan was considering the possibility that the test subject Argos, mentioned in the Transcendent Gene experiment, was an ancestor of the Argon royal family.
『Transcendent Genes… and Argos.』
Nothing concrete came to mind. Khan was about to chide the useless spirit when the follow-up thoughts piqued his interest.
『But, there is one thing I’m certain of. Not far from here, I sense the presence of a dragon. It’s faint, nearly imperceptible unless you focus.』
***
The Armenia Royal Palace was vast, with many ancient hidden rooms scattered throughout its grounds, their locations known only to the king and crown prince. Even the current royal family members did not know their entirety. The Palace Steward, a close confidant of the king, was also privy to some of these secret places.
“Palace Steward, wasn’t it a bit hasty to confront Chief Judge Dorothy? We had no choice but to act when you stepped forward.”
In one such hidden room, the Treasurer, who managed the royal finances, voiced his concerns during a meeting with other officials in their faction.
“With the Black Wing Duke entering the royal city, it feels like we are taking on unnecessary burdens.”
“No. We must ensure that barbarian remains within the palace. Moreover, we need to secure him under our control.”
“Why… did you discover something about him?”
“Have you forgotten? We did intend for Prince Alan to go on a rampage, but the timing deviated significantly from what we planned. According to the original flow, the prince was supposed to awaken the power of the bloodline after exhausting most of the forces, to a degree he could control. Instead, he went berserk, took on a horrifying form, and was killed with his head split open.”
“We heard about that from the Royal Guards. But what does that have to do with the barbarian…?”
“You seem to have forgotten. That barbarian is the one who dealt with the necromancer of Necar Mountain. The young paladin was with him as well.”
“Ah…!”
Realization dawned on the Treasurer and other officials.
“So, he might have obtained ‘that item’ from the necromancer!”
“If that’s the case, it explains the prince’s rampage. He must have been subjected to an uncontrollable stimulus.”
“Exactly. Therefore, we must secure that barbarian. Specifically, we need to retrieve the item he possesses.”
However, there’s a problem. The officials fell silent, waiting for the Palace Steward to elaborate.
“The problem is, getting to that item means dealing with the barbarian himself. And he’s not one to be underestimated.”
They all knew it. The task ahead was challenging since the barbarian proved his might by killing Prince Alan. How could they subdue someone of such strength?
“We need to be both strategic and cautious. If we fail, the consequences could be disastrous.”
The room went silent. Each official pondered the stakes and the next steps required to achieve their goal without falling into ruin.
“If he could subdue a rampaging prince alone, there’s no easy way to secure him.”
“What about using the Blue Flame Knight Order?”
“Unless we mobilize the entire order, it would be like adding fuel to the fire. We must handle this discreetly if we want to avoid the Black Wing Duke’s wrath. That’s why we had no choice but to seek her help.”
“Mm… In that case, the barbarian is as good as finished. Though the necromancer of Necar Mountain died too soon and left their creation incomplete, its combat power would surpass even the Royal Guard.”
“We just need to wait here and retrieve the item from the mangled remains of the barbarian.”
The officials acted as if everything was already resolved smoothly.
The Palace Steward was no different. The creatures created using the royal bloodline were monsters that not even the mighty Black Wing Duke could handle easily.
However, there was one thing that neither the Palace Steward, the high-ranking officials, nor even the Black Wing Duke anticipated.
That was the very existence of Khan, whom even his own comrades dubbed a “walking disaster.”
BOOM—!!!
In the dead of night, when Armenia’s royal palace was shrouded in darkness, a tremendous crash echoed loud enough to wake everyone from their sleep. Couriers quickly spread the message throughout the palace:
‘The underground prison of the royal palace has collapsed, and all the prisoners held there have escaped.’
TL’s Corner:
Khan doing Khan things.