Chapter 137: Labyrinth (6)
“Traps set by the young master, what exactly does that mean? Could it possibly be related to His Highness suddenly appearing out of nowhere? Is it some sort of mechanism?”
“I’m not entirely sure what he did or how he did it. I was trapped somewhere with Orden and barely managed to escape. We’ll have to find him and ask for details, won’t we?”
“But what did you do to Young Master Scarcepino for him to resort to such measures?”
“Hey, what did I do, really? I’m innocent here! Listen, the truth is that Riccardo was the one who from the start…”
Prince Morres, growing heated in his explanation, was being watched blankly by Orden when his subordinate, Herman, approached and asked cautiously, “Are you alright, Young Lord Orden?”
On the usually not-so-loyal subordinate’s face, a faint sense of guilt surfaced for having neglected his duty and letting the young duke end up in such a state.
It was something beyond his control, after all. He had orders to gather as much information as possible at this gathering and to stand by without any further instructions.
Besides, with Orden’s strength, what danger could there possibly be at a mere social gathering?
“To think you would be beaten by that young prince…”
“That is…”
Orden opened his mouth to retort but eventually remained silent, unable to come up with a response.
He was unaware that he had been flung to another dimension and returned, but he understood that what Riccardo had done was not something a normal person could achieve. The involvement of the Dark Order or a demon race was suspicious.
The fact that the heir of the wealthy Scarcepino family was involved with such malevolent forces was, in itself, enough to cause a huge stir in the Imperial City.
Thus, until the connection with the Milo Trade Association was confirmed, he and Prince Morres had agreed to keep quiet about the detailed events that occurred there.
After pausing to rub his face with his hands, Orden asked, “And Riccardo Scarcepino?”
“He has been absent since the middle of the gathering. According to the butler, he had urgent business and said he would return shortly.”
“Urgent business?”
“Yes. Of course, our people have been closely monitoring the surroundings, so it’s certain he hasn’t left the mansion.”
Herman then looked at him with a slightly worried expression.
“I’ll have someone investigate further, so for now, Lord Orden, please return to the mansion and receive proper treatment. Your current state is truly not good.”
“Yes, let’s do that.”
Orden responded thus and lifted his head to look towards the people of the Imperial family gathered together.
More specifically, his gaze was on the beautiful face of Princess Amelia, who was smiling softly at her siblings.
“But Herman.”
“Yes, Lord Orden.”
“Do you know? Amelia’s… Amelia’s face looks incredibly happy…”
“Oh dear.”
Herman sighed.
He couldn’t fathom why his normally stern and taciturn superior would act so foolishly whenever it came to the princess.
As if feeling their gaze, Princess Amelia turned around. Then, to their surprise, she began to slowly approach them!
Orden froze in shock at the unexpected turn of events.
“Young Master Siegmund.”
Princess Amelia, now close enough to look down upon him, had an unusually soft gaze.
“I heard from Morres. You tried to help him, didn’t you?”
Orden replied in a disheartened voice.
“…In the end, I wasn’t much help.”
“But still, the fact that you tried to help my brother remains unchanged.”
The princess said, her lips curving into a gentle smile. Although it was a faint smile, it was enough to momentarily take Herman’s breath away, brightening the atmosphere around them.
“Thank you very much, young master.”
“…!”
This was perhaps the first time Orden had received such a friendly response from the princess.
He was visibly moved, unable to hide his emotions.
Meanwhile, the reprimands toward Seongjin from the members of the Imperial family continued.
“It seems you’re quite the troublemaker too. I’m starting to understand why Princess Amelia is always so worried about you.”
“What, me?”
Seongjin bristled in response, and nearby, Masain frowned and clicked his tongue in disapproval.
“Exactly. It’s truly impossible to let one’s guard down around you. Despite my being here, you’ve managed to create such a mess in just a moment of inattention!”
“No, Sir Masain. Why do you always blame everything on me?”
Of course, if one were to delve into it, all of this was probably a result of the actions Morres had taken in the past.
In any case, Seongjin felt wronged.
“Let’s not do this here. Let’s head back to the Imperial Palace. I have things to report, so I need to meet with Father in the main palace for a moment.”
As Seongjin started to walk away, Logan quickly stepped in front of him.
“Just a moment before you go. Sit down here for a second.”
“…Huh?”
“I’ll give you a quick treatment. You’re quite injured, aren’t you?”
Huh? Seongjin was somewhat taken aback.
His leg did hurt a bit. But he thought he was moving quite well, all things considered. How did Logan notice?
“No, I think I’ll be fine after some rest…”
“Morres.”
Amelia’s cool voice cut him off from behind, and Seongjin looked back hesitantly.
Those quiet, gray eyes staring at him exerted an unspoken pressure, somehow reminding Seongjin of someone he knew all too well.
“With your leg like that, what are you even talking about?”
Really, she could see that?
Such keen observers!
“Anyone can see you have a serious injury right now. Just do as Logan says.”
“…Yes.”
Intimidated, Seongjin obediently sat down, and Logan placed his sword aside and laid his hands on Seongjin’s leg.
Bright divine energy flowed down, beginning to ease the pain in his leg.
Masain, watching with a stern expression, asked, “Is it serious?”
“I’ve administered first aid for now. But it would be best if he refrained from any strenuous activity for a while.”
“I see.”
Masain nodded and then sternly admonished Seongjin.
“You heard what Prince Logan said, didn’t you? How can you even think of going to the main palace in your condition? I’ll carry you to Pearl Palace myself, so don’t even think about walking on that leg today.”
“What?!”
Seongjin was taken aback.
No, wait a minute, everyone. I’m already completely fine! It’s not a big deal at all!
Why are you treating me like a baby?
“And that’s not all, Your Highness. You are forbidden from training for the entire day tomorrow. Do you understand?”
“But Sir Masain? I really am…”
As Seongjin tried to protest, he was simultaneously scolded by the siblings.
“Be sensible and listen while you’re being spoken to nicely!”
“Don’t even think about training!”
“Uh…”
Seongjin blinked in confusion.
What’s going on here? Why am I being scolded by them to this extent?
[Tsk tsk. Your character is so flawed that you lack extreme empathy for others. Can’t you see your family is worried about you?]
I’ve been thinking about this lately, but somehow, this Demon King has an unnecessarily deep understanding of humans.
‘No, but isn’t this concern a bit too excessive?’
[Exactly. I don’t understand why they’re making such a fuss over this damn brat…]
‘…’
Seongjin blankly looked up at his siblings and Masain.
Three different colored pairs of eyes were all looking at him with the same worried expression, as if they were looking at a child by the water.
“Ha ha…”
Perhaps it was the absurdity of the situation, but a laugh escaped him involuntarily. When had Seongjin, the strongest hunter of humanity, ever been treated like this?
—It’s just that you have so many family members around you.
He remembered the Holy Emperor saying something like that once.
At the time, he thought it was a bothersome and annoying relationship.
Why, then, did he suddenly not feel so bad about being with them?
* * *
Young Master Scarcepino was found by people late into the night.
The old butler, finding it strange that the carriage was still there, had summoned the servants to search the entire mansion, leading to the discovery.
He was found collapsed in one corner of the garden, surrounded by an alarming amount of blood.
The servants initially panicked, fearing something dreadful had happened to the young master, but surprisingly, there wasn’t a single wound on his body.
Riccardo, carried back to his room by the servants, regained consciousness only late into the night.
“The connection… the connection has been severed! Oh, no!”
Upon waking, Riccardo immediately fell into a panic.
“Ahh! I’m finished! It’s all over now!”
The startled servants restrained him as he began to thrash about.
“Lord Riccardo! Your Grace! What’s the matter?”
“The Guardian! He’s destroyed my mind! He’s completely severed me from the grand flow!”
“Lord Riccardo, what do you mean by…?”
“Sigurd! Sigurd! Where is he? Please, bring him to me!”
This behavior was uncharacteristic of the always gentle and refined young master.
The commotion prompted the attending physicians to rush over, and the pale-faced old butler quickly called for a healing priest.
Riccardo’s outburst continued for a while.
And around dawn, when he had finally calmed down, he ended up cowering under his covers on the bed, still not in a normal state, trembling and with a haunted look in his eyes.
Unable to bear it, Isabella approached him with a worried expression.
“What’s the matter, Riccardo-orabeoni?”
Riccardo clenched the blanket tight and gritted his teeth.
“Ah, I’m so afraid, Isabella. Terrified.”
“What are you so afraid of?”
“The connection to the noble spirit has been severed. The link that was to lead to a grand tale…”
Riccardo’s eyes, as he murmured, were unfocused, darting aimlessly.
“Now I see nothing. Everything that was once so clear is now obscured as if veiled in thick mist, so ambiguous…”
“Brother.”
“Is a mere human’s spirit so trivial? Not even able to see the world properly, let alone oneself, like a blind man with eyes wide open!”
“…”
“Ah, Isabella! What should I do? I have become nothing in this universe. I, who should have been a tributary connected to the grand flow, a pillar of the great order, am now but a speck of existence!”
Tears welled up in Riccardo’s bloodshot eyes.
Isabella, who had been quietly watching this scene, cautiously took his hand and began to comfort him.
“I see. Yes. But don’t be too sad, brother.”
“…”
“Being suddenly expelled from the grand order. It must be a tremendous loss. I understand all of your feelings, brother.”
Her beautiful turquoise eyes looked at him with deep compassion.
“…Isabella?”
Riccardo turned his head towards Isabella, puzzled by his sister’s reaction. Her face was unusually calm and peaceful.
She continued with an unprecedented gentle smile.
[But you need not be so sad. To dare to be a part of the grand order, that was never something you were permitted, brother, who were no more than a puppet at midday.]
Her lips, red as a flower, slowly approached and whispered sweetly in his ear.
[Since it was never there to begin with, you haven’t lost anything, brother. What a fortunate thing, isn’t it? So now, forget everything and rest easy, brother.]
