Ch.296296. Did I Ramble On Too Excitedly?

“Thanks to Lord Selden Alphonse, His Majesty Emperor Callian has graciously forgiven you.”

I wanted to say ‘No’ to Cabla sitting on the sofa across from me, but the words wouldn’t leave my mouth.

Why?

Because I’ve suffered like crazy in a short time because of this person.

I was dragged to the Western Continent’s imperial palace and had to deal with rebels.

On top of that, I somehow ended up bringing back the imperial butler and a servant, only to find out one of them was an imperial princess.

In the end, after the war, Emperor Callian came to Lake Territory, and even Emperor Malius visited.

All of this happened after meeting Cabla.

So, it’s impossible not to feel humble.

I cleared my throat before speaking.

“I’d like you to meet Lucien now.”

“Yes, I’ll have a conversation with Lucien today.”

“I’ve already explained the situation to Lucien, so you shouldn’t have any difficulties talking with him.”

“Will Lord Selden Alphonse not be joining us?”

“Since this is your first conversation, I don’t want to interfere.”

“Ah… I see.”

“Lucien will also be more comfortable talking without me present.”

Cabla held his teacup and raised his head.

“May I stay here for a while?”

“Oh? I thought you were planning to return to the Western Continent right after meeting Lucien?”

“Ah, that was because I needed to receive punishment from His Majesty the Emperor, but now that my crimes have been pardoned, I’d like to have more conversations with Lucien and gather more data.”

“Then I’d be grateful for that.”

As I smiled faintly, Cabla savored the tea in his cup and then hesitated, as if something had occurred to him.

“But, do you really think you can find the cause of why zombies keep appearing?”

“You don’t need to worry about that. I’m already gathering information.”

“Do you also think the culprit is a mage, Lord Selden Alphonse?”

“Half right and half wrong.”

“…Pardon?”

I put my teacup down on the table and adjusted my posture.

“Do you know about dark mages, Cabla?”

“Dark mages?”

“You can think of them as corrupted mages who have crossed moral boundaries.”

“W-what do you mean…?”

It was natural for Cabla to be confused.

In other novels, dark mages are usually humans belonging to groups, but in this world’s setting, there was only one dark mage.

Of course, there might be dark mages somewhere on the continent who didn’t appear in the novel, but the people here seemed unfamiliar with the concept of ‘dark mages’ itself.

Looking at Cabla tilting his head in confusion, I continued.

“The magic used by dark mages differs from that of ordinary mages. It mainly exploits the life force of others or inflicts curses.”

“Exploiting life force and curses…?”

“Yes, they might have been born as mages, but now they’ve transformed into completely different beings.”

“Ah… so that’s why you said half right and half wrong?”

“Correct.”

“How fascinating. This is the first time in my life I’ve heard of dark mages.”

I sighed briefly and nodded.

“I understand. Dark mages aren’t as numerous as regular mages.”

“…Then?”

“Based on the information we’ve gathered, we suspect that a single dark mage is creating the zombies.”

“O-one person created all those zombies?”

“Probably not all of them. Some people become zombies after being bitten by other zombies.”

“…May I ask one more question?”

“Go ahead.”

“Does that mean the dark mage can control all the zombies in the Western Continent?”

I smiled calmly at his question that hit the mark.

“They probably can’t control all of them. Dark mages can connect with zombies to control them, but as the numbers increase, the connection becomes more complex and likely weakens.”

“Ah…”

“If complete control were possible, the dark mage would have already taken over an entire continent by now.”

Cabla made a bitter expression and then furrowed his brow.

“What on earth is this dark mage trying to achieve by creating zombies? If complete control is impossible, there doesn’t seem to be much to gain.”

“Why not?”

“…Pardon?”

“Didn’t I say that the dark mage can control zombies, even if not all of them?”

“Y-yes?”

I straightened my back and gave Cabla a meaningful look.

“The dark mage’s ultimate goal is to create perfect zombies that are just like humans. And once that goal is achieved, there’s no need to control all of them.”

Cabla responded with a terrified expression.

“Because to gain control of the continent, they only need to control one person—His Majesty the Emperor…?”

“Exactly.”

“T-that’s truly chilling.”

“However, the dark mage’s personal power probably isn’t that strong. If we can find their residence, they should be easy to capture.”

“…How did you gather all this information, Lord Selden Alphonse?”

Oh no…

Did I get too excited and ramble on?

I carefully hid my flustered expression and continued.

“Despite appearances, I have a solid network of informants. Most of what I’ve told you came from them.”

“…I once tried hard to find the cause of zombie appearances in the Western Continent but gave up when I couldn’t find anything… You’re truly remarkable, Lord Selden Alphonse.”

“I’m just gathering information thanks to my good colleagues.”

“I hope the culprit is found quickly and all the zombies in the Western Continent disappear.”

“They will.”

After exchanging a few more words, Cabla rose to meet Lucien.

“Then I’ll go meet Lucien now.”

“Cabla, may I ask you for one favor?”

“Anything, please tell me.”

“I’d like to meet your dragon friend as soon as possible. Would that be possible?”

Cabla gave a faint smile and winked.

“I’ve already sent a letter, so they should be on their way to Lake Territory.”

*

“Your Majesty, repairs for war damages are currently underway, with priority given to the walls and major buildings. According to experts, all work should be completed faster than expected.”

“What about village restoration?”

“Restoration of farmlands and villages within the territory is also proceeding simultaneously.”

Emperor Callian Lumiere nodded at Butler Darian’s report.

“Any news of Leonis’s whereabouts?”

“Given that such a large number of people haven’t been found yet, they’re likely hiding in the deep mountain regions. I’ll report additional information as the investigation progresses.”

“Good work.”

After Butler Darian finished his report and left the office, Princess Joanna, who had been sitting beside Emperor Callian listening to the report, carefully spoke up.

“Your Imperial Majesty.”

“I told you to drop the formalities when we’re alone, didn’t I?”

Princess Joanna smiled faintly at Emperor Callian’s words.

“Brother, do you have something else on your mind?”

“Does it show?”

“Yes, you seemed to be thinking about something else while listening to Butler Darian’s report.”

“It’s about Selden Alphonse…”

Princess Joanna’s eyes widened at the name ‘Selden Alphonse.’

“Lord Selden Alphonse?”

“That man is truly peculiar.”

Emperor Callian, who had never shown interest in anything unrelated to imperial matters until now.

Princess Joanna raised her head and spoke.

“What do you find so peculiar about him?”

“You didn’t notice?”

Princess Joanna broke into a cold sweat at Emperor Callian’s question.

In truth, he was peculiar.

Who else would point out and criticize the problems of the Western Continent’s imperial court to her face?

Of course, it was only possible because he didn’t know she was a princess, but even setting that aside, Selden Alphonse had a personality Joanna had never encountered before.

“I-I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Didn’t you ride to Lake Territory alone with Selden Alphonse? Didn’t you have any conversations then?”

Princess Joanna decided to hold her tongue.

If she told the truth, it might cause trouble for Selden Alphonse, to whom she owed a debt.

“P-perhaps because he thought I was a servant, he didn’t engage in much conversation.”

“He didn’t make advances toward you?”

“…Pardon?”

“With our sister’s beauty, it would be natural for other men to flirt with you, wouldn’t it?”

Princess Joanna blushed at Emperor Callian’s question.

“N-no, he didn’t.”

“Really? That’s what I mean by peculiar. He even looks me straight in the eye without hesitation… And the subordinates of Selden Alphonse at Lake Territory had an abnormally impressive aura. Even the imperial knights were in awe.”

“You could tell without directly confronting them?”

“It hasn’t been long since we fought the war with Leonis. Perhaps because everyone’s battle senses are heightened, I could instinctively tell how strong Selden Alphonse’s subordinates were. And…”

Emperor Callian trailed off, tilting his head as if something still bothered him.

“It’s also puzzling that Emperor Malius personally came to Lake Territory because of Selden Alphonse.”

Princess Joanna smiled gently at Emperor Callian’s confusion.

“Perhaps Emperor Malius simply cares deeply for Lord Selden Alphonse.”

“…That’s why I’m even more intrigued.”

“I-intrigued?”

Emperor Callian, who had been tapping his fingers on the desk, suddenly had a flash of inspiration and turned his gaze to Princess Joanna.

“Joanna.”

“Yes, Brother?”

“Would you like to marry Selden Alphonse?”

“…Pardon?”