Chapter 24 (1/2)

Chapter 24

Sneaking a glance outside through the window, she caught the red eyes of the Emperor staring at her direction. She was on the same carriage as him, acting under the name of a secretary. There was one more knight in the carriage who was in charge of protecting the King.

She kept her mouth shut, conscious of the knight’s gaze, but finally spoke when she couldn’t stand her growing concern.

“Your Highness.”

“What is it?”

“The Empire’s military power is considered to be the best on the continent, and now, there are many surplus ice-wizards due to the elimination of many disputes. Speaking of which, do you mind if I ask you why you’ve set up such a small army, Your Highness?”

He ran his fingers through his well-organized black hair. This son of the royal household looked stunning even in the slightest gesture of disrupting his hair as if he was annoyed.

“It’s more convenient to have a few elite wizards than to take a large useless group. If someone gets bitten and the undead increases, it’ll be a headache.”

“But…..”

One of his brows curved up, as if he found it funny.

“Why, are you worried? You’re afraid I’ll lose? You’re afraid I won’t come back alive?”

“It’s not like that, but aren’t you being overconfident, Your Highness?”

“I don’t think so. Are you doubting my power?”

“No.”

“You sound funny.”

Perhaps, he was enjoying it, but she was worried about him.

She didn’t know if he was already familiar with it, but she hoped it helped a little talking about the undead’s weaknesses. She also said that it would be helpful to use cryomancy instead of pyromancy, which he usually used.

As if interested, the Emperor listened with great attention.

“You’re acting as a secretary.”

“Was my way of talking too obvious?”

“Mostly…….but some of it wasn’t.”

“Will that work?”

“How do you know I generally use pyromancy?”

Well…..

She was conscious of the knight sitting in the same carriage throughout their conversation, so she answered quietly, a bit nervous.

“Reading the formula…..repeatedly shows it since it can be dismantled. Even if I don’t know what kind of magic you use, I can guess by how it is expressed. This is something I can tell by looking at only the main keywords.”

“It’s possible to do that in reverse….. You really do surprise people sometimes. This is great.”

He nodded.

“I think we’ll be there around today, so I don’t have to spare the formula. All right, cryomancy doesn’t have a good grip when it flutters, so it’s not my cup of tea, but I will take your suggestion.”

“Have you been saving your mana?”

“A little, yes.”

He said she was a genius for surprising him, but he was the real genius for saving his own power.

By the time they reached the southern jungle, two days had already passed. The group started camping near the forest. They said if there was an undead nearby, they must start at sunset. It was possible to meet them in this way, but this was the defensive side.

‘Are they sure it’ll be fine this way?’

However, at this point, she could not just worry about it.

The party camping broke their composure by starting a fire and eating rice, but when the sun went down, each of them gathered quietly in front of the campfire with their own weapons.

By the time the sun was completely over the mountain, everyone, nervous, kept their eyes open. The Emperor was the only one who wasn’t looking nervous. After ordering Celestia to stay in the carriage, he sat leisurely in the heart of the entire knights, rummaging through documents.

‘How long has it been?’

In such a tense situation, even time seemed unable to be processed.

Suddenly, she thought she heard a horse twirling and whining before its front legs sank to the ground. Opening her eyes wide, she tried to peer into the thick shade of the forest. However, it was hard to figure out what exactly was there, even though she spotted something rattling around.

Putting down the paper he was looking at, the Emperor gave a signal. Beside him, the knight waved a green flag and delivered his message to the whole party. It meant to stand by.

Tension intensified as everyone was standing staring at the forest with their weapons drawn before the Emperor held out his two fingers forward. The red flag flew in the air, and almost within seconds, creatures that were difficult to be spotted accurately came running out of the forest. They were both like dogs and humans. No, they were shaped like a human being. The image of them running on all four feet was so bizarre that they looked like animals.

She bit her lips, staring at the charging beasts.