Ch.24Chapter 24. One Magpie, One Crow

A magpie was flying, showing off its blue feathers.

Leaving a subtle blue trail as it flew, the magpie soon landed on a window of the Kaulan Imperial Palace.

Tap tap

“Enter.”

Upon receiving permission, the clever magpie grabbed the window latch itself, opened it, and poked its head inside.

Hopping in, the magpie extended its leg with a letter attached to Emperor Rainfold.

[Report on Demon Appearance in Efalterga]

Reporter: Tigria

“Finally.”

The handsome blonde youth unfolded the report and read it carefully.

The beginning matched what he had previously been informed. The demon appeared to be a succubus and was dealt with using holy water that a porter had at the time. Hero Luciana Estel had also recovered.

“Hmm?”

‘The porter and hero’s expected destination is Valtercrua.’

“Valtercrua…”

Rainfold had informants scattered throughout every city in the world.

The commercial city of Valtercrua was no exception.

In fact, since Ravin, once a hero party candidate, was there, more capable spies had infiltrated the city.

Nevertheless, it wasn’t easy.

Ravin had already caught and killed one informant.

Though the informant was more of a low-level operative, sending the corpse back with a fish in its arms was clearly a warning.

Moreover, “they” had also warned not to provoke Ravin further, so Rainfold had been keeping his distance.

“The hero and the porter, and if the thief joins them…”

It would become quite troublesome.

If Lucy were to attack without restraint, it would take the saint, archer, and shield knight all at once to match her.

With Tigria present, the outcome would depend on who struck first, but if a thief who could conceal their presence and deliver backstabs joined the other side, it would counter the mage’s advantage.

Just as he finished reading the report, something else knocked on the window.

“Enter.”

This time it was a raven.

The raven, wrapped in purple darkness, puffed up its feathers upon seeing the magpie dressed in blue darkness.

“Just hand over the letter.”

The raven pushed the magpie aside with its body and extended its leg to Rainfold.

The letter contained only a brief message:

‘Red hair spotted, they say they will handle it.’

Crumple

Look at these fools.

Acting as if they discovered it themselves, then saying “they” will take care of it?

These useless informants, after learning about Lucy’s discovery from “them,” must have hastily scribbled this single sentence and rushed to send the raven.

“What should I do?”

Both the hero party and “they” were trying to break free from the balance Rainfold had established.

It was a very unpleasant and insolent act.

As the world’s guardian, he was carefully maintaining the balance between all parties, yet it was lamentable how they blindly pursued their own desires.

“Morgan!”

In that sense, the Imperial Princess Rinasien was truly a woman after his heart.

“Since the last meeting, both the nobles and citizens led by Efalterga have been demanding that we secure the hero’s whereabouts.”

Noble by birth but lacking somewhat in qualities befitting her status.

Look at her now.

The Imperial Princess had run in on her own two feet without escorts and flung open the office door.

Rinasien irritably pulled her sweat-soaked platinum blonde hair away from her neck.

Then, trying to hide her discomfort, she made an effort to appear dignified.

“I haven’t recovered from the previous disgrace, and now public opinion demands the hero’s return. We need a strategy to overcome this.”

It was amusing.

Hadn’t she once claimed to be a tactician type who emphasized practicality despite her competence?

Yet when faced with a crisis, she was demanding solutions from Rainfold.

She was truly a woman who pleased him more the more he saw her.

Her long platinum blonde hair, her doll-like features graced with arrogant beauty.

As mentioned before, her abilities fell short of her ambitions.

Yet she made efforts in secret when no one was watching.

Rainfold wasn’t being sarcastic.

He genuinely adored Rinasien.

From the moment he first saw her, from the moment he understood what kind of person she was, he wanted her by his side.

He wanted to make her empress and remain by her side as the guardian who brought peace to the world, so he temporarily set aside his burning love and even pretended to be engaged to the hero against his wishes.

His feelings for Rinasien were always sincere.

“Do not worry, Your Highness. I have just learned of Hero Lucy’s whereabouts.”

“Where is she?”

“The commercial city of Valtercrua.”

“From Efalterga to Valtercrua…? That’s not a distance one can reach in a short time.”

“The hero’s physical abilities transcend human limits. With a single leap, she can shake the earth and reach the clouds in the sky. Even just running at full speed allows her to cover great distances. Not elegant, but effective.”

Rinasien didn’t want such unnecessarily kind explanations.

“Rainfold.”

The shield knight didn’t like it when the Imperial Princess addressed him by his surname.

When she had business rather than affection, she would call him Rainfold with a serious expression, and Rainfold took this as quite a challenging behavior.

Once they officially became husband and wife, this was something he would have to correct as her husband.

Even if it required somewhat harsh methods.

Unaware of what her fiancé was thinking, Rinasien maintained her cool tone and instructed him:

“Rainfold, despite defeating the Demon King, demon remnants still remain, and the hero who has returned alive enjoys strong public support and popularity. Both pose significant threats to my succession to the throne and imperial authority. As your fiancée and your first subject, I require a strategy to overcome this situation.”

Though her words were lengthy, she was ultimately asking for help.

The proud Imperial Princess who had no choice but to rely on the shield knight.

She was precisely the ideal woman Rainfold had desired since childhood.

“The problems are complex, but the solution is simple.”

“What do you mean?”

“There are demon remnants. To easily resolve this, we need the hero. But having the hero alive is inconvenient.”

“Are you suggesting we recruit the hero again to deal with the remnants?”

The shield knight shook his head.

“The hero has only recently recovered. She’s likely not at full strength. Though the demons are strong, they’re not as powerful as the hero. It’s best to eliminate them now while we can send a subjugation team.”

“Then what about the demon remnants?”

“Even the hero party without the hero is sufficient to eliminate them. It won’t be easy, but instead, we’ll definitely remove our biggest obstacle, Luciana Estel.”

“Who will you send in the subjugation team?”

“The mage and the saint. With Tigria present, rapid movement is possible.”

“What if the hero is at full strength?”

Despite being belittled, the Imperial Princess was no fool compared to Rainfold.

In the quick exchange of questions following his hint, the Imperial Princess steadily grasped the core issues.

Rainfold smiled with satisfaction at the Imperial Princess.

“Then we’ll attempt recruitment. To easily eliminate the demons.”

“We’ve already betrayed the hero. Would Luciana Estel be willing to take our hand again?”

“Your Highness. Do you remember what I’ve always said is important in these situations?”

“Yes.”

Rinasien remembered clearly.

“Information. Information about the situation, about the enemy.”

“Correct. Therefore, we will first confirm whether the hero is at full strength, and whether there are factors that would make the hero accept our recruitment.”

Rainfold wrote two letters.

And deliberately speaking loud enough for the Imperial Princess to hear, he told the raven:

“Go and deliver this. Find the hero’s weakness and, if the opportunity arises, kill her. Given the hero’s violent nature, it’s kill or be killed, so approach with determination.”

Conversely, he told the magpie:

“The world still seems chaotic due to demons, so the hero is needed. Go to Valtercrua fully prepared to welcome the hero. However, if you believe the hero will become a greater threat to the world than the demons, incapacitate or kill her. Do not rush preparations.”

Thus, the two letters were sent flying.

Watching the birds disappear into the distance, Rinasien gently leaned on his shoulder.

“I always seem to be learning from you.”

“Despite your late start, your improvement is remarkably fast, Your Highness. I look forward to your future progress.”

“To become a ruler recognized by all, I should be a complete talent now, not in the future.”

“Don’t be impatient.”

Rainfold wrapped his arm around the Imperial Princess’s shoulder.

“The finest vessels take the most time to create.”

“You’re truly reliable, Morgan. If someone like you had been by my side since childhood, I would have already completed my preparations to become empress.”

“While it pains me that Your Highness spent your childhood in that place, I believe it was a valuable experience that gave you the generosity to understand and embrace the foolish and greedy imperial citizens more intimately.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

The Imperial Princess recalled a boy.

A skinny boy who always had a determined look in his eyes.

The boy whose feelings she knew but couldn’t reciprocate due to her innate noble bloodline.

The one who left with impertinent words when she tried to reward him for his devoted service.

‘Wait, I’ll definitely become someone who can look at you as an equal!’

In the end, all he took with him was the name Lin that she had given him belatedly during their time in the gutter alley.

It would have been a disrespectful remark that would have shocked Rainfold had he heard it, but Rinasien would embrace even such a boy as a proper imperial citizen.

Because that’s what a ruler is.

Because that’s what a benevolent monarch is.

Because one must love and enrich the people under one’s rule.

‘I’ve been thinking about you lately, Lin.’

I hope you’re living well without illness, farming in some quiet countryside as you wanted.

Fitting your station.

—

And so,

“Go to Valtercrua and secure Lucy?”

“I’ll invest a day in preparations.”

“A day? No, that might even be too short for dealing with Lucy.”

The mage and saint headed toward Valtercrua.

“Let’s go smoothly according to plan, damn it!”

“Don’t act friendly with Lin!”

“And you, don’t mess things up by overreacting to trivial matters!”

“Sigh…”

Lin sighed between the bickering Ravin and Lucy.

“Yes, things are moving.”

She also smiled gently as she watched them.

“Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for this?”

Calming her excited heart, she whispered:

“Once I remove the interferers, I’ll come for you right away.”

Finally, the main episode of DLC Chapter 2 has officially begun.

“Wait just a little longer, my Lin.”

And “they” also began to move in earnest.