episode_0177

Kairan’s expression turned cold.

Likewise, the Blue Wolf Knights glared at the prince as if they were going to kill him.

It was an extremely presumptuous act for a mere knight to take, but Kairan didn’t bother to stop him.

“You’re staring too hard, Count”

Hagen, whose mood had suddenly changed, smiled slyly.

Kairan’s eyebrows furrowed and she let out a short breath.

“Excuse me”

“That’s okay. Isn’t it a well-known fact that you love Ceres?”

Is it just my imagination that those words sound strangely muffled?

Kairan clenched his fists hard under the desk.

Hagen continued speaking, not giving the cold air a chance to warm up.

“You haven’t forgotten what this thing is, have you?”

“How could I forget the tears of the saint… ”

Kairan, who was answering, had an annoyed expression on her face, as if she had seen something she shouldn’t have seen.

“Haha, you really have a good memory”

“They say it’s a very precious item, so you know it well”

Louise laughed out loud next to him.

I immediately had the urge to cut that damn mouth off.

“Why did you have to show me this?”

“It doesn’t have any special meaning. It’s just a transaction”

“… A deal?”

“That’s right, I have what you want, and you can give me what I want. Isn’t it a win-win deal?”

“Win-win… ”

Kairan’s gaze turned towards the door.

There was no one who did not know that those eyes were turned towards Ceres beyond.

Ceres is a half-crippled woman.

An outstanding swordsman in her youth, she was a warrior of great renown who fought in many battles with Kairan.

But one day, he was sent on a suspicious mission to tail a warrior, and was cursed by the warrior, losing all control below his thighs.

Not only that, but as time went on, symptoms of mana being eaten away and the body becoming weaker also appeared.

The veteran warrior who once roamed the continent with Kairan was now a helpless woman, lying on her bed.

Fortunately, Kairan loved her passionately and gave birth to a beautiful daughter named Selene, and by chance, she visited the Holy Land and received help from the saintess to delay the curse.

Although the cost was astronomical, Kairan did not spare or hesitate if it meant helping Ceres to become even slightly healthier.

Thanks to the saint’s help, Ceres was able to eat for a short while and regain her energy to occasionally complain or joke.

For Kairan, that was nothing short of a miracle.

But now that power has weakened.

In the first place, I couldn’t always visit the Holy Land.

It was also the saint’s fault that she did not meet them.

“What do you want?”

Kairan stared quietly at the ‘Tears of the Saint’ placed on the table.

The Saint’s Tears were like a special potion made by the Saint herself by condensing her divine power into holy water.

Of course, since it contained tremendous divine power, it could cure most wounds and illnesses, and its value was difficult to calculate.

‘If I use this, Ceres will be a little more…’

Kairan’s mind was entirely focused on healing Ceres.

Hagen chuckled, leaned back against the chair and crossed his legs.

Accordingly, Louise also turned her back and leaned against the prince’s shoulder.

Rolf of the Blue Wolf Knights wanted to cut off their heads right away for their arrogant attitude.

The knights of the Estian Revolutionary Guard were knights whose loyalty was no less than that of the royal family.

“Please be polite in front of the lord”

Rolf said so.

A voice that sounds like a wolf growling.

Hagen flinched and half sat up.

The mind that had been possessed by Louise’s orders partially returned to the sound mixed with Rolf’s mana.

“Huh…? Oh, that, that…”

As Hagen hesitated, Louise pressed his shoulders against the sofa.

“The knight of the changeling lord is very energetic, isn’t he?”

Louise looked towards Kairan.

It meant to bow your head and take note of the situation.

Kairan calmed Rolf down with a gesture.

Rolf took a couple of steps back with a weak curse.

“I’ll finish what I was saying. I’ll get straight to the point. Please support us”

“… Support means”

“Yes, I mean, please give our prince strength to become the next king”

“Gears… ”

Kairan closed her eyes tightly with a complicated expression.

Hagen was not originally a challenger to the throne.

Besides, Prince Graham was not a lacking prince.

If such an offer had been made to him, it would have been safe to assume that the central region or other regions had already passed.

Aside from Ceres’s problems, Kairan’s heart ached at the thought of the chaos that would come to the kingdom and the people who would have to endure it all.

“I hate beating around the bush, so I’ll just say it. The prince is not ready right now. The prince’s choice now will only add to his confusion and anxiety”

Hagen flinched at Kairan’s words and lowered his head.

This is what many nobles said before coming here.

Especially, those with spirit and conviction like Kairan said all those things.

As a prince of a country, they were truly a welcome group of talented individuals. It meant that such upright and wise people were working for the kingdom.

However, as a man and not a prince, Hagen felt humiliated and insulted.

‘You are a man who cannot become a king.’

They supported their black kingdom, but did not protect themselves as princes.

In Hagen’s heart, various emotions such as inferiority complex, anger, and resentment were mixed together.

“Do you think so too?”

“… Yes”

Kairan said it was unfortunate, but honestly.

Hagen is not ready. It was his choice from childhood to give up on the challenge for the throne and just go out and play.

If he had any ambitions for great things and as the prince of this kingdom, he should have swung his sword one more time like his brother, read one more book of magic, and studied what it means to be a saint.

Hagen’s current appearance was like that of a child who was born with a spoon in his mouth but grew up trying to wear a crown that he couldn’t handle.

“Okay… ”

Is it surprisingly easy to accept?

And Kairan thought.

But soon he realized that this thought was a huge mistake on his part.

—-Gyaaaah

I heard a scream.

A piercing high-pitched sound hit my eardrums, and Kairan flew out like an arrow.

It was Ceres’ scream.

Rolf also hurriedly followed Kairan.

bang-!

“Madam!”

“Madam! Are you okay?!”

The door burst open and Kairan picked up Ceres, who had fallen to the floor of the bed.

Ceres was holding my leg with a pained expression on her face.

“Yes, my lord… ”

“Madam, what is going on!”

“Ah… Ahh… My lord… ”

Her limp arms trembled at her legs.

Kairan hurriedly lifted her long skirt slightly.

“… This is… ”

A dark color was rising from her toes.

The Curse of Weakness. The curse that Ceres had long ago been inflicted upon her has been reactivated.

Why… now…?

Suddenly, Kairan’s thoughts turned to Hagen.

“Rolf. Protect her”

“Leave it to me”

The loyal knight Rolf nodded immediately and stood next to Ceres.

Kairan drew the sword on his waist and ran.

A piercing aura shot out as if it were going to pierce the ceiling.

Kwaaang-!

The door slammed shut with a louder bang than before.

Inside, Hagen and Louise were looking at Kairan indifferently.

“You have to choose your words carefully from now on”

“Count. Are you pointing your sword at the prince now? It seems like you, not us, are the ones who choose your words well”

“Why did Ceres’ curse activate again? Is it because of you?”

A cold aura reached the tip of Hagen’s neck.

Red blood dripped down along with a slight tingling sensation.

The pain caused Hagen’s orders to waver.

Louise came in quickly.

“Ceres wasn’t cursed again. She was just suppressing the original curse with the power of the saint. If the dam were to open, wouldn’t the water pour out again?”

“… What the fuck!”

Kairan slashed his sword.

Louise pushed Hagen away and pulled out Brutal.

If you try to block it clumsily, you’ll get hurt yourself. Louise immediately raised her ferocious magical power.

Kwagagagagak-!

The walls of the mansion were blown away and part of the ceiling collapsed.

Louise smiled, enduring the throbbing pain in her stomach.

“I was expecting it because it’s the guardian of the East, but it’s nothing special?”

“You said you had the royal name on your back, but it seems you ended up getting it through something other than your skills”

“That’s skill, idiot”

A red hellfire rose up through Kairan’s aura.

As Kairan’s aura was consumed by the fire, he suppressed the flames with greater force.

‘Are you crazy?’

Louise put away her sword, astonished at his ignorant manner.

Hagen has already gone mad.

There was no other power here, so wasting any more time was disadvantageous to him.

Anyway, since they reminded Kairan of their purpose, they achieved what they had to do.

“Can I continue like this?”

“… ”

“I need to get my beloved wife better quickly”

“… Shut up. I’ll kill you guys… ”

“We have a saint”

“… What?”

“It’s literally true. The hidden backers who support us. The Holy Land Alberon and the Saintess”

Kairan shut her mouth abruptly at Louise’s shocking words.

Louise, who saw the aura of Sagrada, secretly sneered.

“Think about it carefully. The Count is probably concerned about the chaos and instability of this country. However, if the Count supports us, many forces will follow. There will be chaos, but it will stabilize quickly. How many people would argue with you supporting Hagen? I highly value your charisma”

Louise took a short breath and continued speaking.

This time, beyond the broken door, I think of the woman lying in pain,

With a look of apparent regret on his face…

“And I have to save my beloved wife? Surprisingly, our saint has become even more powerful than before. She has even obtained the power of a warrior”

“… The saint is a warrior?”

“Yes, that’s right. If you find it hard to believe, try using the tears of the saint I gave you earlier. I’ll use that as evidence”

“… ”

Kairan saw the saint’s tears placed on the table.

“Count. We don’t want a big conflict either. We want to end it peacefully if possible. And we sincerely want Ceres to be free from the curse. Back then, all we could do was delay the curse, but this time it’s different. We can really cure the curse”

Kairan felt dizzy.

My ears were ringing and my vision was blurry.

Through it all, Louise’s voice could be heard clearly.

“Count. I hope you make a wise choice. It won’t take long. So, I’ll see you again soon.”

A faint breeze blew through the open wall.

When I came to my senses, Hagen and Louise were nowhere to be seen.

The saint’s tears were still on the table.

“… You fucking bastards… How dare you… me… ”

Kairan picked up the saint’s tears with a curse.

“Is Rolf here”

“Yes, my lord”

It was a small mutter, but Rolf answered immediately as if he had been there from the beginning.

“… How about Ceres?”

“You fainted a little while ago. The maid brought a sedative and gave it to you”

“Is that so… ”

“… My Lord, that is… ”

Rolf looked at the potion bottle the lord was holding tightly in his hand with pitiful eyes.

How could I not know that…

“Rolf… I’m sorry”

“Do you remember the first time you met the lord?”

“… The first time? Oh, that’s right. I remember. How could I forget? You had such beautiful eyes. Even in that garbage heap.”

“That’s right. It was you who saved me from digging through the dirt and rags. Not only me, but all the wolves have received a favor from you that we can never repay”

“Hehehe… That’s too much praise… ”

“My lord. Your lord’s job is simple”

Rolf walked slowly over and knelt down on one knee in front of him.

Just like when I first took the oath of knighthood…

“Tell us what we should bite. Whatever it is, the wolves will kill the enemy of the lord.”

Kairan closed and opened her eyes very slowly.

“… Selene is in the capital?”

“That’s what I heard”

“Please prepare a carriage”

“… I will do that”

Kairan looked at the vast fields beyond the collapsed wall.

As the sun set, the bright red glow of the sunset seeped through the cracks in the walls, making my eyes squint.

“I miss my daughter so much after such a long time”