CHAPTER 129
The 2nd Prince had uttered a profoundly irritating statement.
As I seriously considered planting my fist in his face, Babiyen stepped forward.
“Your Highness, shouldn’t we confirm the Ice Lord’s intentions before anything else?”
Come to think of it, we hadn't actually heard what the Ice Lord himself wanted to do.
The outcome of this whole discussion depended on his opinion.
Dreivan was not unaware of this fact.
He stared at Babiyen with narrowed eyes for a moment before turning his head.
“Yes, that’s right. I forgot to hear the Ice Lord’s opinion. This wasn’t a matter for us to decide amongst ourselves.”
He turned his body, saying he would rest until the Ice Lord returned.
“We can talk once the Ice Lord returns. However, you would do well to seriously consider my proposal.”
It’s not a proposal, it’s a threat.
As expected of the representative of the uneducated this-worlders, he’s dying to show his true colors.

After Dreivan and his entourage left, we walked out of the building.
Dreivan’s presence here meant the Ice Lord wasn't in the building anyway.
“The situation is taking an unexpected turn.”
Aigis’s reaction showed that even she hadn't anticipated this.
No one could have known we would run into the 2nd Prince here.

“First, there are a few strange things.”
Just then, Babiyen, who knew noble society better than any of us, raised a few points.
“Why would His Highness the 2nd Prince come in person to retrieve the Ice Lord?”
That was a question I had as well.
This place was a long way from the capital.
Furthermore, the Imperial Palace had recently been directly attacked by Black Dawn.
In a situation like this, why would the 2nd Prince come all the way out here himself?
If it was just to deliver a royal decree, sending someone else would have been sufficient.

“……Isn’t it because there’s a reason the 2nd Prince had to move personally?”
Babiyen had a realization and got to the heart of the matter.
“Or perhaps there’s something that had to be delivered by the 2nd Prince’s own mouth, not through others.”
Something that had to be delivered personally by the 2nd Prince.
If it was a matter of that scale, there was only one thing.

“……The Emperor’s throne.”
Babiyen, who had been with me the longest, caught the gist of my words.
“Babiyen, how old is the Emperor this year?”
“He is ninety this year. But I heard he has been bedridden for quite some time.”
“Considering his age, it wouldn’t be strange if he passed away long ago.”
“Yes, and the royal family has a hereditary disease, so in fact, he has lived a very long life.”
The hereditary disease, I knew something about that.
Rapiel, the daughter of the head of the Grace Magic Tower.
Her library contained materials describing medical treatments related to the Imperial Family.
It was research conducted with a Transferee doctor to solve the Imperial Family’s chronic problem.
In a closed environment like the Imperial Family, it was common for blood to be mixed between relatives or people with similar genes.
It wasn't strange for a hereditary disease to emerge.

“The fact that the 2nd Prince has started to move personally means the Emperor is in critical condition. This journey is essentially a trip to gather his own faction.”
“If he can install his own person as the Royal Mage Captain, he’ll be able to seize a great deal of authority.”
The position of Royal Mage Captain wasn't something you got just for being good at magic.
It was a position that managed and commanded the numerous Magic Towers established in the Empire.
“Now I understand why Dreivan took the lead in demolishing the Grace Magic Tower back then.”
Dreivan had used his position as the Commander of the Imperial Knights to spearhead the demolition of the Grace Magic Tower. It was to imprint upon the world that he had the authority to demolish Magic Towers.
A show to make the Magic Towers bow their heads and accept the Mage Captain he chose. Dreivan had already started playing politics back then to obtain the throne.

“Babiyen, from your perspective as a former noble, who is most likely to become the next Emperor?”
“……If I had to say, it’s a close race. His Highness the 1st Prince has been building his power base for a long time and has many followers. But he is so cautious by nature that his ability to command people is weak. On the other hand, His Highness the 2nd Prince has outstanding skills, serving as the Knight Commander, and his judgment and actions are bold.”
They were polar opposites.
It was no wonder their supporters were divided.
“The biggest variable would be the 1st Princess.”
“The 1st Princess?”
“She has accumulated so many achievements that she is often mentioned as a candidate to become the first Empress. She is not to be underestimated either.”
So three people were fighting for the throne.

What a troublesome system.
“Can’t the Emperor just name a successor himself?”
“That’s the problem; His Majesty the Emperor has left no word. It seems he is still deliberating, watching the talents of the two.”
“And if the Emperor eventually dies of illness without saying anything.”
“Yes, the Empire will be split into three.”
A sigh escaped my lips.
Just dealing with Black Dawn and the Radiance Faith was a headache and a half.
And now the Empire was going to hell too.
The world’s problems just never end.
And the biggest problem was that a chaotic situation like this is exactly what Black Dawn would welcome.
The more chaotic the world becomes, the less attention and manpower will be directed towards them, and the more freely they will be able to move.
‘It’s still manageable since the Emperor hasn’t passed away yet, but.’
The moment the Emperor dies, it will become irreversible.
I slowly tapped my crossed arms.
If he was dying from a hereditary disease, there was nothing I could do.
A hereditary disease is essentially an inborn condition.
Like Shishiroka, his body’s lifespan itself was at its end.
If Resurrection magic worked, I would mobilize all my connections to try and save the Emperor’s life.
But Resurrection magic wouldn't work in the first place, so there was no way.
As I was contemplating this, my thoughts drifted elsewhere.

“Wait a minute.”
As I drew their attention, everyone’s eyes turned to me.
“If Black Dawn learns of this news, won’t they also realize the chaos that would ensue if they hastened the Emperor’s death?”
“……Ah.”
Babiyen frowned as the realization hit her.
“There’s a high probability that Black Dawn will attempt something on the day of the Emperor’s passing.”
“Ooh.”
Aigis’s face showed she understood as well.
There was no way Black Dawn would miss that opportunity.
“Right, all the incidents they’ve caused so far have happened when there was some equivalent chaos.”
“But we still don’t know what Black Dawn will do.”
“That’s a problem, but at least we can guess the timing to prepare for it. Or.”
If there was a way to intentionally cause the Emperor’s death.
I didn't say this part out loud.
It was only a possibility, and there was no guarantee Black Dawn could do such a thing.
It was just that if the Emperor were to name the 1st Prince, the 2nd Prince, or the 1st Princess as the next ruler before he died.
There was no telling what the opposing sides might do.

“Babiyen, I’m sorry to ask this of you, but.”
“You want me to try entering the Imperial Palace, don’t you.”
I reluctantly nodded.
The 2nd Prince had already seized the authority of the Mage Captain.
If she could enter with the Ice Lord, she would be able to learn everything about the goings-on in the Imperial Palace.
But this was all just speculation.
From Babiyen’s perspective, she could just end up being taken hostage.
Of course, I didn't think the 2nd Prince would harm Babiyen, but there was always a ‘what if’.
Besides, she might have to clash with the Asteria family she had finally escaped from.
If they found out Babiyen was alive, they would surely try to get involved.

“Harua, I was planning to get the Ice Lord’s help anyway.”
Revive the Red Flame Lord and learn fire magic under the Ice Lord’s supervision.
That was Babiyen’s original goal.
“If the Ice Lord goes to the Imperial Palace, I will gladly follow. Because I want to become strong enough to protect someone.”
Babiyen looked at me and smiled brightly.
“Of course, this all depends on what the Ice Lord decides to do.”
As she said, in the end, it was up to the Ice Lord.

“I’m back-ssir.”
Just then, Lululio suddenly returned.
“Lululio, the situation?”
“It’s the Radiance Faith, alright-ssir. They seem to be positioned all over the place, and I think they’re in other towns too-ssir.”
What on earth were those Radiance Faith bastards doing?
“Do you know their intentions?”
“Uhm, I dug around a bit, but it’s ambiguous-ssir. It’s like they themselves don’t know why they’ve gathered here. I think we’ll need someone who knows the internal situation well-ssir.”
There was a limit to the information she could gather in a short time.
“I see. Report this matter to Sir Inferno.”
“Got it-ssir!”
As we were talking, Aigis turned her gaze to the distance.
“Oh, it seems he has arrived.”
And there, a man holding a small basket was walking towards us.
A short man with mean-looking eyes.
His face looked as if he had grown weary of a long life and had left the secular world behind.
In fact, with every step he took, he let out a deep sigh.

He was different from what I’d imagined.
In my head, the Ice Lord was like a monk who had renounced the world.
However, this man looked more like a hermit who had fled from the horrors of the world.
‘Well, if he’s the opposite of the Red Flame Lord, then I guess this fits.’
A woman driven mad by greed and a man sickened by it were indeed polar opposites.
The Ice Lord.
Iox Lexar.
He was a half-blood of the Snow Wolf Tribe.
“Lord Iox!”
When Babiyen called out to him, Iox looked our way.
“Hmm?”
Iox tilted his head, seemingly not recognizing Babiyen, but then his eyes widened in realization.
At the same time, his gaze trembled violently.
He looked as if he had just met someone he had longed for for a very long time.
“La-Lady Vanessa?”
“Pardon?”
Babiyen looked momentarily confused. Then, as if remembering someone, she let out a small gasp and corrected him.
“Lord Iox, it is I, Babiyen.”
“Ah, Lady Babiyen.”
The light visibly drained from Iox’s face.
“My apologies. It has been so long since she passed, but you resemble her so much that I was mistaken.”
He deflated in an instant.
The guide mentioned Iox was indebted to the Asteria Barony; this must be related to that.
“Babiyen.”
I gave her a subtle glance, asking what that was about, and Babiyen whispered to me.
“Vanessa Asteria was my great-aunt. She was the one who helped Lord Iox when he was in a difficult situation. She died in an accident when she was young, though.”
So, Babiyen’s grandmother’s younger sister.
It seemed Babiyen strongly resembled her.
It was obvious that Iox still harbored a deep longing for Vanessa.
As I watched him, an idea struck me, and I asked Babiyen.
“Babiyen, just in case, is your Great-Aunt Vanessa buried in a grave?”
“Uh, yes, she is?”
It takes about ten years for a human body to become a skeleton.
And it takes even longer for the bones themselves to completely decay and disappear.
Especially if buried in a coffin, it’s common to find a skeleton even after a very long time.
The fact that bones from soldiers who died in the Korean War are still being discovered today is proof of that.
‘I think she can be resurrected.’
A subtle madness crept into my eyes.
Babiyen must have noticed, as she turned to me with a start.
“Harua, don’t tell me…”
“Babiyen.”

If we have to go to the Imperial Palace anyway…
“Shall we stage a spectacular resurrection?”
It might be a good chance to squeeze the Asteria Barony for all they’re worth.