I closed Stunner’s Wondrous Travels.
It was hard to say whether the book was a travel journal or a novel.
Fantasy genre or not, there was no way a subspecies of human could have feet big enough to be used as umbrellas, or that there existed a monstrous bird with a human face, wings, and legs.
More importantly, the author hadn’t claimed to have seen these things firsthand—everything was phrased as something he heard somewhere, which made it hard to believe.
Still… it doesn’t seem like it’s all fiction either.
Some of the stories supposedly told by locals had suspiciously precise timeframes and settings.
The chapter about the orange-haired Saintess was especially interesting.
Tales of the Saintess had spread from the Black Continent—where the Eslick Empire was—to the White Continent across the sea.
While there were some variations, the core of the stories was strikingly similar.
A Saintess with bright, flame-colored orange hair who tended to the sick and gave generously to the poor—only to vanish a month later without a trace.
There were a lot of overlapping traits with the Commander, who had once startled me by suddenly showing up at Headquarters.
According to the author, the stories of the Saintess had ceased about seven years ago.
In the original work, the Eight Council was formed about eight years ago. So the timing lines up…
If this Saintess really was the Commander, I might’ve stumbled upon a completely unexpected clue about her.
But then… Why did she form the Eight Council with Valheit?
There were still too many unknowns.
I wanted to hear more in detail…
“May I come in?”
“Go ahead.”
Right on cue, Cesare showed up.
“I sent the goods to the palace just as you ordered. The weapons and armor too—”
“Before we go further, could I ask for a moment of your time? I have a personal favor.”
Cesare gave me a confused look.
I had been insistent that we maintain a strict client–businessman relationship, and now here I was breaking my own rule. Not ideal—but I didn’t have much of a choice.
“I want to meet the author of this book.”
“…Isn’t that the book I gave that brat?”
“Yes. I started reading it, and I got curious.”
“When and where should I deliver him?”
He didn’t even ask why. That was refreshing.
“After the plan is done, let’s meet in the inn basement.”
“In two days, right?”
“Yes, two days.”
I glanced out the window. The sun was setting.
I needed to get ready, too.
Tomorrow at dawn, the operation begins.
***
Dawn under a new moon.
The Imperial villa in Novosibir was just as quiet as always.
The guards, likely driven indoors by the harsh wind, were nowhere to be seen.
A dark figure checked the surroundings, then motioned for the others to follow.
Two more emerged from behind the hedges in the garden, lowering their voices.
“It’s suspiciously empty.”
“Yeah…”
“Til said she’d distract them. We’ve come this far—we just need to trust her and move quickly.”
Prompted by Hillia, Karl and Noah exchanged looks.
She wasn’t wrong.
Speed was everything in these kinds of operations.
“Stick to the plan. Hillia handles rooftop surveillance. Karl and I search the place.”
As soon as Noah gave the signal, the three split up.
Minutes later, another group arrived at the same spot.
The younger of the two exhaled deeply.
“Nervous, Your Highness?”
“A little.”
“It’ll be fine. The Chancellor will surely see your worth.”
“I hope so…”
Blaiher trailed off as he made his way toward the villa.
The plan was simple.
While Til distracted the guards, they’d bring Hendrick to the inn.
Then they’d escape Novosibir before the Border Guard could respond.
It was a clear-cut plan, but far from easy.
They had to extract Hendrick before the guards returned or caught on, and avoid the Border Guard's search once the alarm went off.
Which meant—if persuasion didn’t work, they’d use force.
That’s what Valheit had said.
But whether he could really go that far… Blaiher wasn’t sure.
They had about ten minutes.
It had to be decided at that time.
He’d prepared his speech as best he could.
Hopefully it will work.
Swish!
A noise like a bird call made Blaiher look up.
But no bird was in sight.
“…Let’s keep moving.”
Joseph frowned slightly as he spoke.
That was a signal arrow. Someone else is already here.
Joseph gripped the hilt of his sword.
If, as Valheit had warned, it was Demons—he’d deal with them properly.
***
Hendrick woke to a sudden noise.
It wasn’t loud, but just irritating enough to pull him from sleep.
A signal arrow?
He had heard that sound countless times during his days as a military officer.
He wondered if he’d misheard—but no, he knew that sound.
Who the hell is still using that relic at this hour?
With more efficient communication tools available now, signal arrows had become a rarity.
He vaguely remembered hearing at some banquet that mercenaries or criminal organizations sometimes still used them…
Mercenaries or criminals—neither boded well.
Maybe his impatient nephew had decided not to wait for his uncle to die of old age.
Hendrick scrambled to grab the fire poker nearby.
Creeeak.
“Who’s there?!”
Despite the commanding tone, his hand on the poker was damp with sweat.
As the door creaked open, he unconsciously held his breath.
“You’re awake, I see.”
“You’re…”
A familiar face emerged in the faint moonlight.
Hendrick’s heart nearly stopped.
“Brother?”
“No, no. I’m Blaiher—the one you met in the garden.”
Right, if it were his brother’s ghost, it would’ve appeared as he was during his reign.
Still, the resemblance had been uncanny enough to fool him for a second.
“So your visit to the garden that day wasn’t a coincidence.”
“No. We don’t have much time, so I’ll be brief.”
“Go on.”
“My name is Blaiher Kruber. I’m the son of the former Emperor, Guido Kruber.”
“Continue.”
Hendrick responded calmly, though startled inside.
Given his brother’s capable yet womanizing nature, it wasn’t unbelievable.
“I came to ask for your help, Chancellor Hendrick. Please come with me.”
“What sort of help do you need? Help for a rebellion? Do you know how many so-called illegitimate heirs the Empire has seen?”
“Around ten. But only two ever made it to actual rebellion. I’m different.”
“How so?”
“Because I’ll have the support of the Imperial Family’s elder—Chancellor Hendrick.”
Blaiher gave a calm smile that reminded Hendrick sharply of his confident older brother.
Still, what could one bastard child possibly achieve?
“I’m not doing this alone. Lord Werner Chartra is supporting me.”
Blaiher added that quickly, almost as if reading his mind.
Hendrick wondered if he’d misheard.
Chartra? The famously steadfast house was backing a bastard?
No, it couldn’t be.
Hadn’t they marched into the capital claiming to protect the Emperor?
“Pardon the interruption.”
The door burst open mid-conversation.
Hendrick squinted, then gaped.
“Joseph Chartra? What are you doing here…”
“I’ll explain later, Chancellor. We need to leave immediately. Someone else is already—”
Before Joseph could finish, the window shattered with a deafening crash.
Dark figures jumped through the broken glass.
Before Hendrick could even react, a blade was already at his throat.
“Move and this man dies.”
“Let’s settle this peacefully.”
Joseph and Blaiher both drew their swords, but the Dark Elf pressed the blade tighter against Hendrick’s neck.
Chaos erupted outside. The alarm bell rang loud.
“Tch, it’s already time, huh.”
“Drop your weapon, Demon.”
“Karl! Plan B!”
“Plan what now?!”
“I said go to the backup plan!”
With a roar, the red-horned Diaboli lunged at Joseph.
Joseph tried to parry casually—but the Demon’s strike had surprising weight and pushed him back slightly.
Meanwhile, Karl grabbed Hendrick and began fleeing.
“…Your Highness, handle the Dark Elf. I’ll take care of this one.”
Before he could finish speaking, Blaiher was already chasing Karl.
“You’re not stopping him?”
“I’m not arrogant enough to get distracted against this opponent.”
Noah took a deep breath as he faced Joseph, who radiated killing intent.
Their swords clashed, flickering like lightning in the dark.
***
They say nothing’s more entertaining than watching fire or a fight.
Can’t speak for fire, but watching a fight? Yeah, that’s fun.
Joseph and Noah had already exchanged several blows, and surprisingly, they were evenly matched.
It didn't look like Joseph was going easy, either.
“Aren’t you slacking off a bit for the commander-in-chief?”
“I’m coordinating from above, keeping the whole picture in view.”
“Sure you are.”
Til had returned and sat beside me with a huff.
Right on cue, Joseph and Noah’s duel intensified.
“Mm. Worth teaching him, I suppose. His moves are a bit stiff, though.”
“What exactly did you teach him to let him go toe-to-toe with a Chartra warrior?”
“Long story. Let’s just say it was a crash course on fighting Magic Swordsmen.”
No explanation necessary—I knew Noah’s abilities better than anyone.
Probably even better than Noah himself.
Mana that absorbs instead of releases. The ultimate counter to magic.
In a world built on magic, it was an absurdly overpowered skill.
Its one flaw was that he had to figure out how to use the absorbed mana through trial and error…
Til helped fast-forward that part.
Joseph’s blade swung, releasing a brilliant white arc of energy across the dark dawn.
But when it reached Noah’s sword, it crumbled into nothing.
Noah countered, closing the distance and slamming down with his blade.
It looked more like a club than a sword—but it hit like hell.
BOOM—!
When the blade landed, the ground exploded.
He’d focused the absorbed mana into the blade and released it.
In the original, it took him 50 chapters to get to that point.
His growth was incredible.
But still not enough.
Joseph easily slipped out of the blast radius.
Noah, on the other hand, was gasping for breath after gaining distance.
Even with magic countered, the raw physical difference was too great.
The balance was barely holding—and wouldn’t for much longer.
“Of course, that was when my brother was still using magic.”
The moment Til said it, Joseph ceased emitting mana—he had figured out Noah’s ability.
He switched to pure swordsmanship—and Noah immediately started getting pushed back.
Though he blocked fatal strikes, more and more cuts began to appear.
A few blows sent Noah crashing through the villa’s wall and tumbling into the snow.
Still, he stood, battered and bleeding.
A protagonist, through and through.
“Looks like this is his limit for now.”
“Will you help him?”
“Shouldn’t you be helping Blaiher?”
I glanced over to see Karl and Blaiher facing off over Hendrick.
Not a bad standoff on its own.
But Hillia was sneaking up with a drawn bow.
“Yeah. See you back at the inn.”
Til vanished without even a goodbye.
Well, guess I don’t have to worry about Noah.
I whistled, watching the Border Guard rush in.
“Time to get to work myself.”
I stepped toward Blaiher and Karl, ready to jump in.