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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 22
Chapter Title: An Unwelcome Guest
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“We greet His Highness, the Crown Prince.”
“That’s enough. Yes, Duke Walker. I was planning to visit you soon, but it seems we meet like this.”
Tristan surveyed us with a serious gaze.
“As you may have guessed, this wasn’t a simple accident. It’s more likely someone intentionally released the monster.”
“You mean…”
“Yes.”
Tristan declared.
“I believe this incident was the work of those targeting House Walker.”
Even though I already knew, hearing it from someone else felt different.
“You’re not surprised. Did you suspect as much?”
“Your Highness. Our family, humble as we are, has served as one of the two pillars of the Empire. It is not unusual for there to be those who seek our downfall.”
“What if it’s not simply a matter of political maneuvering?”
“What do you mean?”
At Tristan’s gesture, a man named Werner took something out from his coat. They were black-and-white photographs.
“This is…”
Edmond frowned as he took the photographs. A quick glance revealed they were all pictures of dead bodies.
“The first is Count Cecilia of the Tahil Kingdom, the second is Margrave Lucia of the Schuhill Kingdom, and the last is the keeper of the Frostwood Forest.”
The common thread among the names was clear.
“Yes. They are the descendants of the 13 Prophets who led humanity to victory in the past Holy War.”
“Are you saying they are all dead?”
“Within the last year.”
That was very strange. The descendants of the 13 Prophets were known for aging slowly, being healthy, and living long lives, thanks to the blessings of their ancestors.
House Walker was also among them, descendants of the Holy Knight Samuel, and the Divine Grace we were born with was thanks to this lineage.
“We are proceeding with the investigation under the assumption that an unidentified group is targeting the descendants of the Prophets. As you may have heard, the daughter of House Walker is also assisting with that investigation.”
He was so nonchalant, despite never having mentioned the assassinations of those three to me. Was it because he was only convinced my abilities were real after this incident?
As soon as I heard Tristan's story, a man flashed through my mind.
-How did you do it? I’m sure I killed them all.
Those eerie, dark blue eyes were still vivid in my memory. I had never felt such an instinctual fear before.
It was different from the sense of crisis one feels when facing a monster. It was a more fundamental repulsion.
“Then how does the Imperial Family intend to handle this matter?”
“It’s still classified, so I can’t make an official announcement and protect House Walker. If I did, the enemy might just disappear without a trace.”
“You mean…”
Is he saying he’ll use us as bait to lure out the enemy?
Tristan might not know it, but we had already been attacked by them and nearly wiped out. It wasn’t a welcome suggestion.
“Yes. It’s difficult to mobilize the Imperial Knights. But if it’s me personally, that’s a different story.”
“Pardon?”
Tristan tapped Samuel’s sword and said.
“If something like today happens again, my presence should be enough to resolve it, wouldn’t it?”
Wait a minute. Did I understand that correctly? Is the Crown Prince…
“I will personally protect House Walker. I promise to take every precaution to ensure none of you are harmed.”
…Is he saying he’s going to move into our house?
“Your Highness. It is too dangerous.”
Edmond tried to dissuade him, pretending to be a loyal subject. How could this be? There were corpses in the basement of the Walker Dukedom right now. The bodies of the very assassins the Crown Prince was looking for.
“I am concerned that something might happen to the precious bloodline of the Bellond Imperial Family, so I implore you to reconsider.”
The concern was very valid. Wasn’t Tristan the sole legitimate heir of Bellond?
If something happened to him, the right of succession would pass to the next in line. Naturally, the legitimacy would be diluted.
*Please don’t come. Please.*
I prayed desperately in my mind.
“No. I am not the kind of person who can sleep soundly while my people are in danger. Besides, this sword was offered by House Walker when you pledged loyalty to the Imperial Family, so is it not fitting that it be used to protect you?”
He said, gesturing to Samuel’s sword. It was our ancestor’s sword, but since Samuel himself had offered it to the Imperial Family, we had never even seen it.
*That’s enough, just go back!*
I wanted to scream. But the Crown Prince’s status was too high for that.
“It’s an unofficial visit, so there’s no need for grand preparations. Just give me a spare room.”
*Yeah, right.*
“Then I will see you again soon, Duke Walker.”
Tristan patted Edmond’s shoulder and left.
We stared blankly at his retreating back. In the cold silence that descended, Yulia muttered as if spitting out the words.
“We’re screwed, right?”
I think so.
***
“So this makes… what number family meeting is this?”
We’d been meeting so often lately that I’d lost count. Yulia, sitting in front of me, half-raised her hand and answered listlessly.
“The seventh? Or the eighth?”
“Then let’s just say we’re starting the 9th Family Countermeasure Meeting~.”
As I nonchalantly continued, Yulia raised an eyebrow.
“Are you even listening to me?”
“First, let’s talk about the monster that appeared at the academy.”
Yulia grumbled something under her breath, but surprisingly, no one paid her any mind.
“To think something like that would happen when I wasn’t there.”
“It was a good thing you weren’t. It would have been stranger if you, a knight, hadn’t stepped up.”
Since Isaac wasn’t there, he had only heard a brief explanation of the situation. If he had actually seen it, he wouldn’t be saying that.
“You should have seen it jump right over Yulia and Edmond, Isaac.”
The dazed looks on their faces. It was hilarious, even in such a tense situation.
“Yeah! That! Edmond stood in front of me so heroically, you know? Why’d you have to be so embarrassing? Are zombies not even worth attacking?”
“It probably recognized us as its own kind.”
Edmond offered the correct answer, trying to smooth the frown that was forming on his face.
“Monsters and zombies, they both originate from warlocks. Am I wrong, Emily?”
“You’re probably right. I couldn’t think of any other reason.”
“What. So we’re completely exempt from attack even if another monster shows up?”
“That’s about right. I’m glad you two weren’t hurt because of it, but…”
If the two of you had been seriously injured with so many eyes watching, people would have become suspicious when not a single drop of blood came from your wounds.
“…There might already be people who think something is strange.”
It was also an unnatural sight, the way the monster moved, avoiding just the two of them. Of course, it was so chaotic that people might just think it was a coincidence.
“His Highness the Crown Prince didn’t say he would stay at the ducal manor with that in mind, did he?”
Yulia looked around nervously. But no one could readily answer, ‘Of course not.’
“Isaac! You should know a little better than us, right? You’re an Imperial Knight.”
“Just because I am doesn’t mean I’ve met His Highness often. It’s hard to say, but… he’s, um, someone who rarely reveals his true intentions.”
Perhaps only his closest aide, Werner, would know his thoughts. Even among the knights who protected the Imperial Family up close, the Crown Prince’s reputation was somewhat ambiguous.
“Emily, what about you? You’re his personal scribe!”
Yulia whipped her head around to look at me. Unfortunately, I was in the same boat.
“All I can do is impersonate His Highness’s voice and forge his signature.”
“Agh, really! …Do it.”
“Ahem, ahem. ‘Daughter of Duke Walker. There seems to be a calculation error in this section. Would you check it again?’”
“What, that’s exactly like him!”
Yulia slapped my shoulder repeatedly, cackling. She was going to break her wrist again at this rate.
“…After looking into it, everything His Highness said was true.”
Edmond pretended not to hear our conversation, as if used to it.
“There have been many cases of descendants of the 13 Prophets dying suddenly in the last year. It seems reasonable to assume the carriage explosion that turned us into zombies was also the work of the same group.”
“And as if that wasn’t enough, they targeted our youngest, too.”
Isaac gritted his teeth.
“I thought they were targeting House Walker. But seeing as Andrea, whose abilities haven’t even awakened yet, was also in danger, do they have another objective?”
“I can’t say for sure. If they knew we were going to the academy that day, it could have been an attack to take care of us.”
Edmond calmly refuted.
“That’s even worse. To involve innocent children just to achieve their goal.”
Yulia muttered, disgusted. I agreed.
Besides, they terrified all the children in the classroom.
“If all of this really is terrorism targeting the descendants of the Prophets, then the objective is surely…”
“To stop the Divine Grace from being passed down, I suppose.”
“…What’s that.”
Isaac let out a hollow laugh.
“That sounds like something only a warlock would think of.”
“……”
“……”
A chilling silence fell.
