Chapter 84

“I already told you, I won’t listen!”

He reverted to his polite speech.

But his sword strikes were heavy with seething rage.

When his anger crossed a certain line, the tip of his blade became even calmer.

The double-edged sword relentlessly targeted my vitals.

“After all this, shouldn’t you say you’ll listen?”

I leaped high.

“Let’s be a little more flexible.”

My body was light.

Lahukala had gifted me with explosive vitality.

As my body grew stronger, the Mana Armor Valziart was also exerting its full power.

If it weren’t for that, I wouldn’t have been able to handle the damnably heavy and hot ‘The Heated Iron Bloodline’.

His jade eyes glanced at me.

I thought he was extending his sword, but the blade already passed by, just grazing the tip of my nose.

“…Phew!”

A bead of blood formed on my nose.

If it had been a little deeper, if my ‘The Unclosable Twenty Steps’ had been a little slower, my head would have been sliced in half.

“Wasn’t that Debius’s Forged Horn just now?”

It seemed to be cutting, but it had already finished its cut.

There was no other technique like it.

“When did you learn that? Or should I say, steal it?”

“It’s just an imitation. General Marina’s horn was just particularly memorable.”

“You’re something else.”

To steal the secret technique of the Debius family in a single battle.

That’s impossible with just intuition or talent.

I couldn’t even guess what kind of capacity and realm you had to reach to do that.

“Even an imitation is the Forged Horn. If Deballo Debius knew, he’d try to kill you on the spot.”

“Then all the more.”

His double-edged sword looked ready to strike.

But it had already struck.

“I suppose I’ll have to take Your Highness’s neck.”

My Adam’s apple tingled.

Three sword strikes had reached me, piercing through the Mana Armor Valziart and ‘The Unclosable Twenty Steps’.

I barely ended up with shallow wounds, but it sent chills down my spine.

‘This guy, he seems to have more left in the tank…….’

I clicked my tongue.

Amethus gave me no openings.

He knew my danger better than anyone.

He couldn’t afford to give me any time to think.

But I had no intention of keeping my mouth shut either.

“Listen, Amethus. This is the good part. How about this?”

My blue eyes were cunning.

“Let’s think about the exact opposite.”

As sharp as Amethus’s double-edged sword was, my tongue was just as sharp.

“What if the Aretions were actually loyal to the empire and the Imperial Palace?”

Even if they didn’t participate in the war directly, they did their best in their own place.

Since they owned the largest port in Hobel Bay, they were in a good position to supply materials.

I chatted.

“They might have believed they could prove their loyalty to the Imperial Palace by doing their best. After all, they did have an ambiguous identity, caught between the West and the empire.”

Amethus silently wielded his sword.

But he couldn’t close his ears.

He knew he shouldn’t listen to my story, but he kept listening anyway.

It would be simple to cover his ears, but he couldn’t.

“But the Imperial Palace’s demands became more and more brutal.”

“……”

“It makes sense, though. It was a crisis for the empire. Continua the Great had to seize power in a way that was close to rebellion.”

At that time, Continua had practically blackmailed his father into starting a Succession War, receiving the surrender of all his siblings in just one day.

Gaining the title of Crown Prince, Continua immediately confined his frail father under the pretext of recuperation and took control of the military.

It was a move worthy of a heroic tale.

“The Aretions were at a crossroads.”

The Cordis Imperial Palace told them to choose.

“Send all the young men of the island to the battlefield. Or, provide the being that the family had long revered as material for a weapon.”

“Non, sense……”

“What choice do you think they made?”

“Nonsense!”

The double-edged sword was still sharp and unwavering.

But a subtle tremor began to appear in his jade eyes.

“They agonized over it. To hand over the god their family had revered for a thousand years. But what about the lives of their young men? And even in a crisis, would it be a good idea to cross Cordis?”

Every word felt like it was piercing his lungs.

And yet, it was sweet.

The time of all the humiliation he had endured under the name Aretion made my words feel so sweet to him.

“Now, we already know that the attempt to turn the ancient god into a weapon failed. The calamity we saw proves it. But whose fault was it?”

“…I said, nonsense.”

“Is Cordis really blameless? Isn’t it not so strange for the human empire, which despises all things called gods, to have blown up Arete Island and the Aretions while trying to turn an ancient god into a weapon?”

There was no strength in Amethus’s voice.

“Was it really the Aretions who brought about the calamity? Who can guarantee that it wasn’t Cordis’s fault?”

“How long will you keep this childish sophistry……!”

“Really? Then why did the Imperial Palace make the story of Arete Island into a fairy tale and spread it throughout the empire? What does the empire gain from such a story?”

“……”

“You know the story, too. Even children sing it.”

My tongue dug in mercilessly.

“Stupid Aretion, despicable Aretion! They betrayed the empire, so they deserved what they got. They sold the being they revered, so they deserve to die!”

“-STOP-!!!”

He shouted as if he was throwing up.

“Please, stop your mouth, stop it!”

Amethus pushed back.

He wielded his double-edged sword like a circus performer.

He blocked the iron bloodline, pierced through the twenty steps and acted as if the Fantasy Finger didn’t exist.

“Why are you doing this? -WHY-!”

One by one, wounds began to appear on my body.

But thanks to Lahukala and the Golden Medicine, the shallow wounds healed quickly.

“Why are you saying such things, telling such lies, and what do you hope to gain? What do you want to do after butchering my life like this—!!!”

“If the truth butchers your heart, whose fault is that? It should be a very sweet story to you, so why?”

“…Shut up!”

“’Shut up’ is an odd thing to say.”

Amethus was the one pushing back.

I was the one bleeding.

But the Regressor Prince was smiling playfully, and the diviner of the Security Bureau was panicking as if being chased by something.

The tip of his sword was so steady, but his jade eyes trembled with unease.

“Look back, Amethus, think again. You didn’t live in that era, so you could have been mistaken.”

‘You’re still young. It’s worth it to reconsider what you think is certain.’

A voice overlapped and came to mind.

It was Niko Nereyades’s.

‘Now that I know you’re an Aretion, isn’t my favor natural?’

The memory lingered.

‘…You don’t know? You really don’t……? The First Imperial Prince, no, the next Majesty, didn’t tell you?’

Why did Niko say that?

What made that strong old man so bewildered?

He had lived his whole life in Hobel Bay.

He had even spent his youth with the Great Emperor.

‘He didn’t tell you……. So, he didn’t tell you……. How… could a person… how could he possibly……!’

Every single word lingered in his mind.

It was just a short conversation, but he couldn’t understand the reason.

No, in fact, he knew.

He just didn’t want to know. He already knew.

‘…That’s too much. …That really is, too much…….’

The emotions in Niko’s eyes.

Bewilderment, anger, shock, and… pity.

Why would he pity him?

Niko Nereyades said he knew Amethus’s grandmother.

Why would an old man who lived through that time 46 years ago say that?

What did he see, what did he know?

Perhaps there really was a hidden something…….

‘…Stop, stop thinking……!’

He couldn’t.

He mustn’t realize.

He mustn’t know the reason.

If he did, he couldn’t go back.

But his intuition was racing.

As always, it ignored his will and madly dug for the truth.

‘The Aretions are stupid and despicable. What if that’s not true?’

Even my words were lingering.

Amethus wielded his sword as if possessed.

Another wound was etched onto my shoulder blade.

‘What if it was the empire’s lie?’

The distorted face was Amethus’s.

The relaxed smile was the Regressor Prince’s.

‘What if it wasn’t the Aretions who caused the calamity? What if the empire covered up their own mistake and blamed them?’

Agony.

Just a few words lingered inside, turning his mind into a mess.

His intuition had already found the answer.

No, the Regressor Prince had already said it.

The empire’s lie.

What if everything was a lie?

What if the Aretions’ shame was fabricated?

How sweet.

How perfectly it fits.

Then it made sense.

Why Ferbias, who cared for him so terribly, was so passive about fulfilling his family’s long-cherished wish.

Why did he try so hard to stop him from going to Arete Island…….

‘Perhaps, His Highness Ferbias, really, knew everything and…….’

“No!”

Amethus suddenly screamed.

It was because the emotions he couldn’t suppress had burst out.

He shook his head, trying to shake off the thoughts.

Whether it was true or false, he had to shake them off.

“-That can’t, be-!!!”

He gripped his sword and gathered all his strength.

A slight opening appeared.

The ‘Iron Bloodline’ flew.

It struck Amethus’s shin and was terribly painful.

But it was trivial compared to the agony in his mind. It was even enough to bring a little bit of peace.

He poured all his gathered strength into one strike.

As if he was going to split Arete Island in two.

I broke into a cold sweat and hastily withdrew the iron bloodline.

This damnably heavy Ars was also damnably sturdy.

I made the iron bloodline eight layers thick and blocked the sword.

“…Wow!”

I exclaimed in admiration.

The ‘Heated Iron Bloodline’ was scratched.

Through the scratch, black, lava-like blood gushed out.

I prided myself on my Ars as something that could not be cut by anything, but it seemed Amethus’s rage was even fiercer.

“What killing intent. But what is it that can’t be? That Ferbias would never betray you… Ow, I’m talking!”

“You, snake-like, tongue-!”

“You’ve gotten better at swearing.”

I bit my tongue slightly.

“Amethus, you know. You know Ferbias Caseptus.”

“Stop! I won’t listen, stop!”

“Then you should cover your ears when you talk.”

The Regressor Prince was excited.

“My brother Ferbias is a sucker for the greater good. He finds small sacrifices painful, but he accepts them as necessary.”

“I said I won’t listen!”

“I said I’d keep talking whether you listen or not. Anyway, from what I remember, he even tried to kill his own brother for the Imperial Throne. No, he didn’t even pose a real threat, he just found him annoying and tried to kill him. And yet, he was still his brother.”

That’s just how the secret-keepers are.

They meticulously hide their own secrets, but when it comes to digging into others’ secrets, their shoulders unconsciously begin to sway.

“Oh. That brother is me, isn’t it?”

“……”

“Look at me straight. Amethus. Look into my eyes!”

My eyes were so blue that Amethus had trouble breathing.

“I am the evidence. I will prove what kind of man Ferbias Caseptus, the Fiftieth Emperor of Cordis, is.”

Ferbias Caseptus had tried to kill the Fourth Imperial Prince, Nebulo Le Etier and the Fifth Imperial Prince, Zionis.

Just as I said, there was no real reason.

He just found them annoying and tried to kill them.

Seeing his jade eyes filled with agony, I smiled even more deeply.

‘…No, it’s a mistake, it’s a mistake…….’

Amethus was a blunt man.

His emotions were rarely stirred.

But how could a person’s heart only be cold?

When his deepest part was stabbed, the things he had suppressed also surged up.

He thought he could just pile them up.

He thought they would disappear if he just hid them.

But instead, the feelings that had festered in the meantime rose to his throat along with the pus.

Amethus gritted his teeth.

‘His Highness Ferbias, no, Pel, wouldn’t do that……!’

He desperately pretended not to hear what his emotions were telling him.

Instead, he brought out his long-held memories that supported him, from his time at the capital’s academy.

‘Right, it’s Pel, my friend Pel……!’

He suppressed his feelings.

‘In the off chance, a very small off chance… that he did know, there must have been a reason. He must have had no other choice!’

Amethus didn’t notice.

His heart was tilting little by little.

At first, he confidently shouted that Ferbias would never do that, but now he was re-assuring himself that there must have been a reason if he had known.

He couldn’t endure otherwise.

‘…That’s right, didn’t I already know that tongue was like a snake?’

Amethus took a breath.

Two deep breaths.

His heart, which should have calmed down by now, was still boiling, so he took four more.

Regardless of how he felt, he pointed the tip of his unwavering sword at my Adam’s apple.

‘First, I’ll cut his neck…….’

“Your face says you’ll cut my neck first and then think about it.”

“……”

“And now your face says you’re surprised I read your mind.”

The Regressor Prince laughed.

“Don’t think too complicatedly.”

I was sly, but there was no hint of a lie.

“It’s simple. Everything is one of two things.”

“……”

“Did the empire tell the truth, or a lie? Were the Aretions traitors, or victims? Was the calamity of Arete Island and your family’s humiliation the Aretions’ fault, or the empire’s?”

Amethus couldn’t bring himself to stab the sword. Because my words felt as if they were untangling the knots in his heart.

“Did Ferbias lie to you too, or……?”

I chuckled and raised my index finger.

And then, annoyingly, I went ‘shh’ and stopped talking.

“Let’s stop here.”

Amethus felt a sense of disappointment, and also a profound shock at his own feelings.

He knew he was being played by that lying brat, but he couldn’t escape.

He couldn’t just cut my neck because my skill was not to be trifled with.

“Up until now, I’ve given you no room to breathe. I’ve been cramming the story into you.”

The smile faded from my face.

“But now, it’s your turn.”

There was a chilling light in my eyes.

It was the face of an eleven-year-old, but the something it held that an eleven-year-old couldn’t have made it beautifully cold.

“I’m going to the center of the island. There, you can find the truth. It will be explicitly revealed which side is telling the truth. So you have to make a choice.”

Amethus’s face seemed to be melting.

“Will you face it, or run away?”

The long-cherished wish of his life, the pain of his youth, the premonition of betrayal—each of these was enough to shake his life and the conflict they caused was so overwhelming he felt like he wanted to vomit his heart out.

“Choose. You have to.”

“Why……?”

“It’s simple.”

Just as I am a Pollinglight.

“You are an Aretion.”

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