Chapter Chapter 84: 10. We came, we saw, we won (9) (2/2)

“Damn it, it was a perfect plan…”

“To think the academy called Yugrasia would pull off something that insane…”

These two were members of the Anti-empire army, while not all that famous, still had a long and distinguished history behind them!

But right now, they were simply fugitives on the run from the imperial net.

Who knew the signal that would announce the beginning of our cause would be the signal that announced the empire of our existence…

“But thanks to that we got a useful piece of information.”

“What is it?”

“The Imperial Crown Prince is currently suffering from an unknown illness.”

“What?!”

At one man’s words, the other shouted loudly as if he had forgotten for a moment that he was a fugitive.

“My mistake. Is that true?”

“Yes, it is a highly credible rumour. Apparently when the Crown Prince found out about our existence, he jumped for joy saying that he would have more companions with him on the path to the underworld.”

“Is that so. It isn’t like that the Crown Prince of the empire could be killed off by someone, after all.”

“Yes.”

The men who knew nothing about the fact that the Crown Prince’s life was held at the whims of his older sister ingrained the fact that the Crown Prince was suffering from an unknown illness firmly into their heads.

“Then should we change our priority target from the Crown Prince, who’s going to die anyway, to the Ignel nel Karuan, Loser of the North?”

“It seems we will have to. But Ignel nel Karuan is currently away training his army in the north, so it seems that it will be hard for us to touch him right now.”

“Indeed. And since the one who wouldn’t give an inch to either of them, Atia nel Karuan, isn’t in the empire right now either…”

“It seems we will have to stick to our original target of assassinating the emperor.”

The two of them nodded, not realising that they were making a massive misunderstanding.

“But to do that.”

“We need to escape the encirclement of the empire and contact headquarters.”

“We will split up here.”

“Yes, understood.”

The two people nodded and ran in opposite directions to each other.

“Kaaaagh!”

But one of them didn’t get very far before he was caught by his pursuers.

“D, damn it. You imperial dog!”

“Dog? I’m not a dog?”

“You devils that would do anything and everything for your empire!”

“Empire…? I’m just earning my keep for tasty meals?”

The man thought this petite pursuer was not in their right mind.

But compared to how insane his opponent was, they were far too powerful.

“Anti-empire army, I am Marcis’s Haeel Reia. I’m going to have to borrow you, for my snacks this week.”

“Kgghh… do you think I’ll go down so easily, imperial dog!”

“I’m telling you… I’m not a dog.”

And thus, unbeknownst to anyone, a fight broke out in a back alleyway of the empire.

#18 Their story: A certain terminal patient’s story.

“You can lift your head.”

“No, elder sister. I always liked bowing my head down.”

Elder sister suddenly returned.

No, she’d given advance warning so it wasn’t really sudden, but my heart wasn’t ready for it!

“Can I take it to mean that you don’t want to look into my face?”

“No, elder sister. How would I dare to not face my heavenly elder sister’s countenance?”

“Then raise your head.”

I’m scared. In all honesty I am in no situation to look elder sister face to face directly.

“Yes!”

But it’s elder sister’s orders.

If I don’t obey, I die.

But I think I’m going to die even if I do.

I really do have no hope left.

“So, my brilliant little brother. Have you found Ast?”

What I saw when I lifted my head was elder sister smiling brightly, and Sir Reia turning her face slightly sideways as if she couldn’t bear to watch any more.

Ah, as I thought, I’m going to die.

“I… have not managed to find him yet.”

“Really?”

‘Then die.’

It felt like I could hear elder sister’s next words echo in my head.

“I found him.”

“Ye, yes?!”

Those words made me doubt my ears for a second.

“You found him?”

“Yes.”

Elder sister’s expression was that of someone who was very happy, and also very angry at the same time.

“And he was in a place where I’d never expected to find him, either.”

“Wh, where is it?”

Right now I had ample cause to mobilise all the soldiers under my command.

Right now, elder sister was like a dragon whose reverse scale had been touched.

If there was a way to get that dragon to slumber peacefully once again, I have to do everything I can to achieve it.

If I don’t, I worked so hard to become Crown Prince, but I’m going to die.

“There.”

“West?”

In the direction where elder sister’s finger was pointing towards, I thought of the cities within the empire and the nations beyond the empire’s borders.

“Nope, a bit closer.”

“Is he inside the empire?”

“Mm, but even closer than that.”

“Wh, where is he?”

Despite having an extremely bad premonition of what was about to happen, I asked anyway, and the answer I got back was outrageous.

“Yugrasia.”

“What the hell?”

I heard many things about the man named Ast, and met him in person a few times as well, and he was a crazy motherfucker more of a lunatic than rumours could ever hope to describe.

Not anyone else, but my elder sister of all people was chasing after him, and he chose to hide away in one of the Four Great Academies, right in the shadow of the imperial palace!

And he still hadn’t gotten caught, either!

“He was playing teacher. Under the name Nicerwin Ain.”

“Nicerwin Ain, is that man Ast!”

I can’t not be horrified at this.

Nicerwin Ain is a giant in the field of summoning, famous throughout the empire.

Even I’d heard the news that that person had gone into Yugrasia!

“That kind of person came to Yugrasia, and yet you didn’t bother to check?”

“I, I was kind of busy…”

More accurately, I was running circles everywhere looking for traces of Ast, the man himself, so all I did was send a messenger with a letter of thanks.

“As I thought, I can no longer trust my little brother.”

“Hiiik!”

Am I really going to die here?

Since I missed him right under my nose I’m really going to die?

For a moment all sorts of thoughts rushed through my head.

My father His Imperial Majesty was said to have become the emperor eating and drinking and making merry, I have no idea why my life must be at risk even despite becoming Crown Prince.

And so, as I was contemplating over my final regrets.

“So, I will deal with this myself.”

“Sister, are you going to spare me?”

“Who knows?”

At her expression that seemed to be genuinely deliberating, in the end I begged and pleaded and eventually convinced her to spare me on the grounds of my role in preventing Ast from noticing something amiss happening.

Hooray! I’m saved… I’m saved!