Chapter 407: Elder Die Too

Fortunately, the dagger was just one of the Holy Swords that Hilde had created. It had naturally disappeared when its time limit expired rather than being left inside my stomach.

The culprit behind the missing dagger was none other than time itself!

Well, yeah—it’s not like a dagger is a tiny razor blade. If it were actually stuck inside me, someone would have noticed.

Good.

That’s a relief.

…Though, there were still shards of the anesthetic ampoule lodged in my skin.

I’ll just ignore that part.

It’s not like they could be inside my body, right?

And even if they were, I definitely don’t have the guts to reopen my stomach and take them out.

“How are you feeling, Father?”

“It hurts even more now… but strangely, I feel refreshed.”

That quack wasn’t completely incompetent, at least.

A shoddy finish, sure, but the results spoke for themselves.

In any case, my body felt lighter, and moving around was much easier.

Since I didn’t feel like sleeping, I decided to entertain myself with something I had planned earlier.

A nearby table, unfortunately, caught my eye.

I placed the Eight of Spades card on the table and slammed my fist down like a seal.

The table instantly transformed into a deck of cards, its thickness equal to the table’s former volume.

The cards, no longer having the same structural strength as a table, scattered and fell to the ground.

Then, I tilted my next card at an angle.

Seven of Spades, The Lightning Spool.

I summoned the Divine’s lightning and unwound its threads.

Countless strands of lightning spread out like an intricate web, seizing the scattered cards.

As I grasped the coil and pulled, the loose cards shot back into my hand in unison.

Hilde, watching the self-moving cards, asked,

“You’ve learned a new trick~? Is that the power of the Divine?”

“Well, yeah. Nothing too impressive, though.”

I answered indifferently, shuffling the deck in my hands.

The Golden Lord built a fortress powered by alchemy.

The Lightning Thief hurled bolts of lightning at will.

Meanwhile, all I could do was make a few cards and shuffle them with a weak magnetic pull.

Why does everything degrade when it comes into my hands?

Well, I guess it’s enough for playing around.

“Why are you collecting Divines, Father? What do you plan to do with them?”

“I’m not collecting them for any particular purpose. It’s just instinctual.”

“Instinct?”

“Yeah.”

The Sanctum hid knowledge that could potentially endanger humanity.

They called them Divines and concealed the remnants of the Oracle in the gaps of history so that mankind would forget.

But in order to hide something, you must first understand what it is.

The fact that the Sanctum hid the Divines meant they had already become part of humanity.

Even if they could glimpse the future, they couldn’t erase knowledge they had already comprehended.

The moment they understood it, it became theirs.

Still, what’s the point of hiding it from my eyes alone?

It’ll all leak out eventually.

Just like it did in the Fallen Dominion, just like it did in Claudia.

Alchemy.

Lightning.

Even if they didn’t fully comprehend them, people will always end up using them.

In the end, everything is meant to be found.

And when I finally find all the Divines, when the King of Humans, trapped in an era before the First Year, catches up to humanity—

Maybe then, I can put an end to this tiresome struggle and return to being the King of Beasts…

“Father?”

“Hm?”

“What are you doing?”

Lost in thought while shuffling, I looked up at Hilde’s question.

Dozens of cards were floating in midair.

As I swept my hand in a circular motion, the cards followed, as if my hand had been extended through invisible threads.

When I flicked my fingers, the cards crossed each other in a zigzag motion, shuffling themselves.

A human has two hands.

Each hand has five fingers.

Due to that structural limitation, there were only so many ways I could shuffle a deck.

However, the power I had recently acquired was somewhat unusual—it allowed me to control objects connected by the threads of lightning as if they were part of my own body.

Now that I think about it, it’s not particularly strange.

My own body is also being moved by these threads of lightning.

So, in that sense, it’s rather… ordinary.

“I’m just shuffling cards normally.”

“So normally that even ‘I’ can barely see it?”

“If you can clearly see how it’s being shuffled, then is it really being shuffled?”

It was more complex than before, sure, but the concept remained the same.

After flicking the cards a few more times, I clasped my hands together, pulling the entire deck into my grasp like a collapsing ring.

I tapped the deck a few times, checking its thickness.

Fifty-two cards.

The numbers were correct.

Even if I couldn’t restore their original content, at least I had to make sure the count was right.

“That’s what you call ‘normal,’ Father?”

“Dexterity is a common human skill, isn’t it? This much is doable. If anything, I find it more fascinating that you can alter your body with Qi Arts.”

“What if you had Internal Qi like me? Would you be able to transform like I do?”

There was no reason to lie.

“Well, I’ve never tried so I don’t know, but if I had enough ability, then yeah, I’d probably be able to do it like you.”

“So everything ‘I’ can do, you can do too. Because you’re the King of Humans.”

Hilde murmured, as if in a trance.

“I understand now. My ‘acting’ was nothing. I’m a fake. The King of Humans is the only one who can truly become anything because you’re the King of Beggars, Chancellors, and Emperors alike.”

“I’ve never tried to become them, though.”

“You don’t need to. What matters is that you can.”

Shouldn’t she be asking if I want to first?

I didn’t know what she was expecting.

No—I did know, but I feigned ignorance.

“Father, by any chance—”

“Hu?”

Just then, the door opened soundlessly.

Tyr entered the room, not making a single sound.

Her crimson gaze landed on Hilde who was sitting beside me, and her expression soured slightly.

“I gave you a room of your own, yet you still choose to pester Hu while he is recovering?”

“What’s the big deal? We’ve been traveling together for a while. I figured Father might be bored, so I just came for some company”

“Time and place matter. Now that you are in the Duchy of Mist, you must follow its laws.”

At Tyr’s words, Hilde twisted a lock of her hair between her fingers, feigning repentance.

“Nee, nee~ But I have a question~ Is it normal in the Duchy of Mist to barge into a guest’s room without knocking?”

That was clearly aimed at Tyr.

Tyr, slightly pricked by guilt, nevertheless had a prepared answer and responded confidently.

“I sensed an unfamiliar presence inside. It was an unavoidable measure to ensure Hu’s safety.”

“Oh, come on. Who in the Duchy of Mist would dare attack the Progenitor’s guest? U-N-L-E-S-S! When Tyrkanzyaka talks about an ‘attack,’ does she mean something else~?”

“It is possible that the Crusaders could infiltrate. Just as they did in Cloud Village.”

That, in turn, was aimed at Hilde.

Because of what had happened in Claudia and the events that followed, Tyr had instinctively recognized that Hilde was a Crusader.

She had tolerated her presence thus far only because Hilde’s actions had deviated significantly from those of the Crusaders.

However, her vigilance had increased considerably.

“You may not be one, considering you saved Hu and called for Valdamir to come to Cloud Village… but who knows? Perhaps a Crusader, hiding their identity and playing a role, has already snuck into the Duchy of Mist.”

The Progenitor, Tyrkanzyaka, despised the Sanctum.

The Crusaders were no exception.

Vampires dedicated immense effort to denying their past, erasing their present, and obliterating their future.

Even if she was no longer a Crusader, there would be no escape from that hatred.

The only reason Hilde was still being tolerated was due to my presence and the fact that her identity had not been completely confirmed.

“If you are an outsider, a human, you should expect suspicion and act cautiously.”

That was all there was to it.

Tyr subtly warned Hilde with those words.

Hilde, recognizing both Tyr’s consideration and her wariness, sighed dramatically.

“My, my~ I won’t even get to treat you to a proper sightseeing tour~”

“Do not worry. Once Hu recovers, I shall guide him personally.”

With her business concluded, Tyr turned to me.

“More importantly, Hu, did anyone visit you earlier?”

“Yes. One person. The doctor sent by the Crimson Duke stopped by.”

“Already?”

Tyr’s expression turned sharp.

“There were no issues?”

“She didn’t say much. She just treated me and left. Though, I’m not entirely sure if what she did was treatment or some kind of organ display.”

“I see…”

｢If Valdamir sent her, that means he deemed her safe… but what I heard was quite different.｣

Huh?

Reading Tyr’s thoughts, I noticed our perceptions didn’t quite align.

The Lyre I had encountered was not dangerous in the slightest.

Even when she cut open my stomach, I hadn’t sensed any real danger from her.

But Tyr… was being cautious.

“What’s wrong? Was she actually an assassin who stuck a blade inside me to make it look like an accident? If so, then I guess I was done for from the start.”

“No. If she treated you, then she has fulfilled her duty. That child must be found elsewhere.”

“Well, then you’re already too late. She said she was heading toward Claudia.”

“The Cloud Village?”

“Yes. She figured there were people in need of treatment there.”

She was probably already long gone.

Even if she lacked experience, Lyre was practically an Elder in terms of ability.

If she wished, she could cover vast distances in an instant.

Tyr murmured in contemplation.

“Hmm. How troublesome.”

“What is it?”

“It is a state secret… but Hu, I suppose I can tell you.”

Oh, if it’s not something important, you don’t have to tell me.

I only asked out of politeness—

But Tyr, pleased by my curiosity, began explaining.

“The death of Luscynia was classified information. Only fellow Elders and his immediate retainers were informed. Matters concerning the Elders are mine alone to oversee. As such, it is my duty to investigate how Luscynia died and seek retribution.”

“Even for the Progenitor, it doesn’t seem like an easy job.”

“It is the responsibility of those who stand above others. I appreciate your understanding.”

Tyr smiled softly, but then covered her lips and spoke in a lower tone.

“…However, according to what I have heard.”

What now?

Should I just read her mind ahead of time?

While I was debating whether to use Mind Reading, Tyr finally revealed something shocking.

“The one who killed Luscynia—an Elder of superior rank—was none other than Lyre Nightingale.”