5-05 Assassination of a Princess (1/2)

On that day, there was a shock in King's Landing.

It was said that the Minotaur, a demon from the Abyss, the deepest level of the Labyrinth of No Return, the oldest labyrinth in the capital, had suddenly appeared in the city.

At the moment the demon appeared, all of the senior guards guarding the entrance to the labyrinth were killed.

Princess Linneburg, a talented princess who had just returned from exploring the middle level, was also on the verge of losing her life.

Are you sure?　Are you sure that the Minotaur appeared at the entrance to the labyrinth?

Yes. According to the testimony of the only eyewitness to the moment of occurrence, that is, the survivor, Lady Linneburg, there is no doubt. I think it was a summoning spell activated by someone.

The prince bit his teeth as he received the report from Dalken, the chief of staff of the Royal Knights.

So, the appearance of the Minotaur was man-made?

”Probably. You can find a lot more information on this topic on the web. We were able to recover the wreckage along with the body at the scene. It is made of an extremely pure magic stone. It's not something you can buy on the market, it's out of the ordinary.

Chief of Staff Dalken said and pulled out a piece of reddish purple gemstone.

”I see. So we have some idea of where it came from, right?

It is a very advanced technology, requiring a precise magic circle engraved by a high-ranking magician and a high-purity magic stone.

In the event that you have a lot of money to spend, you should be able to buy and sell it.

The number of people who can prepare all of them is naturally limited.

In the event that you're not sure what you're looking for, there are a few things you can do. He said that the wavelength of the magic stone is similar to that of the magic tools manufactured at the most advanced magic tool manufacturing facility in his country. And using a magic stone of this purity, it should be possible to trap the Minotaur in a ring-sized ward.

The prince's face clouded as Dalken's report continued.

The three surrounding countries surrounding the Kingdom of Crace.

Mithra, the Holy Church in the west.

Derridas, the Magic Empire to the east.

Sarenza, a commercial autonomous region in the south.

Among them, the magic empire of Derridas, located in the east of the kingdom, is now the most powerful country in the continent.

And it's a country that's been putting pressure on us at every turn.

It's possible that it's in retaliation for that incident,......?

In the past few years, the Magic Empire of Derridas has expanded its armed forces against the backdrop of a rapidly developing magic tool manufacturing technology.

It's a great way to make sure you're getting the most out of your money.

In such a situation, they have come to my kingdom as well.

In such a situation, they demanded that my kingdom give them the rights to the labyrinth in exchange for lending them our military power.

We knew that such a request was impossible, but we demanded it.

My kingdom is a small country that relies only on its abundant labyrinth resources and the human resources that gather around it.

If that foundation were taken away, the nation would not be able to operate in the first place.

Naturally, my father refused, saying that he would take care of his own defense.

But the Emperor of the Magic Empire, Sigurd Derridas III, is not a man to be satisfied with that.

So he responded to my country's rejection with retaliation and threats.

That makes sense.

No. That's not all.

We've been harassed before.

But not this time.

My sister is in the middle of a trial for the throne, according to kingdom law.

In some situations, she's alone and vulnerable.

He took advantage of that and tried to kill her.

When the Minotaur was summoned, the princess was simultaneously warded to prevent her actions.

Clearly, the intention was to eliminate her.

Furthermore, they left behind blatant evidence, as if they didn't care if they were exposed or not.

This has not happened in decades.

In other words...

The assassination attempt on my sister, Linneburg... The purpose of the assassination attempt on my sister, Linneburg, is not so much to threaten us as to induce us to wage war against her.

I think you're probably right.

If my sister, the first princess of Linneburg, was assassinated, the whole country would be forced to search for the culprit.

Even if it was an assassination attempt, it would be the same.

And this time, the evidence was so blatantly left behind.

It was as if they were trying to claim who did it.

Or as a show of force.

It's easy to identify the person who did it.

It's as easy as coming forward.

But if you use that as an excuse to question the other side you are setting yourself up for war.

That's what they want, I'm sure.

They want to lash out, crush us head-on, steal our resources, and they're not even trying to hide it anymore.

An obvious provocation.

If you can do it, you can do it.

It's clearly unjustified interference, and the fault lies with the other side.

But appealing to neighboring countries about it...

I guess it's useless.

Until now, they've been at odds with each other.

The kingdom of Crace in the center of the labyrinth resources.

In the northeast of the mountains, the magical empire of Derridas.

Mithra, the Holy See, northwest of the forest resources.

Sarenza, a commercial autonomous region in the south for marine resources.

Each plays its own role.

What they lack, they make up for through trade and negotiation.

They have maintained peace for hundreds of years.

However, the good relationship that had been balanced for a long time has been fragilely shattered by the recent rise of the Magic Empire.

When the Magic Empire captured the labyrinths of countless small countries in the vicinity through wars of aggression, the three surrounding countries aligned themselves and began to make unreasonable demands on our country, which is in a weak geopolitical position.

The goal of the Magic Empire is clearly ”labyrinth resources”.

They seem to want it desperately.

Relics from the Labyrinth of No Return to gain even more power.

There are probably no allies around.

The three nations have probably already negotiated their share after the invasion.

From the kingdom's point of view, it is surrounded in all directions, and all the neighboring countries are becoming enemies, which is the worst situation.

I can't help but understand what your father is thinking.

My father, a strict and inflexible man, has always rejected their unreasonable demands.

Anything that seems unethical, from the most important to the most trivial.

It's a natural attitude for a king.

I understand the logic of it, and I think it is right.

But that is why there is friction.

The relationship with neighboring countries is deteriorating every moment because of the reasoning.

This incident is a threat to my father, the current king, who has not yielded to pressure.

The other side is no longer going to hide it.

And perhaps other neighboring countries are also aware of what is going on.

What it means is: .......

We're in a real crisis, aren't we?