Chapter 100:

The ordinary man said no more and looked at me.

In that time, my suspicion gradually turned into certainty.

“Aren't you the one who told me not to go to the People's Medical Center back then?”

A fleeting look of trouble crossed his expressionless face.

Thinking about it now, it was indeed suspicious that a high-status guest from upstairs knew about the People's Medical Center.

Although the People's Medical Center was covered quite importantly in the newspapers, it didn't attract much attention from the nobles who were already receiving good treatment at hospitals.

“Isn't it proper to introduce yourself?”

Regina intervened with a calm voice and then slightly shook her head.

Seeing that her gaze was subtly directed at me, it was a signal for me.

Come to think of it, my body was leaning too far forward.

I took a deep breath and settled into a comfortable posture.

There was no need to be hasty.

The fact that he came to me directly meant that his side was more desperate.

“You can call me Ivan. I work under the Duke.”

“I don't think that's an answer to my question.”

“…Yes. I was at the theater that day.”

Perhaps thinking it was pointless to hide it, the other party readily admitted it.

“I came expecting to be caught, but I didn't think you would notice so quickly. As expected of Count Valheit.”

“As much as I walk with my eyes closed, I tend to keep my ears open. What were you doing that day? You surely didn't go there just for some cultural enjoyment.”

“I went to stop you, Count.”

I thought he would deny it a few times, but to think he'd openly say he did it.

I was slightly dumbfounded and let out a laugh.

“You admit it so refreshingly.”

“If I had intended to keep hiding, I wouldn't have come here.”

“Then I suppose I can ask why you've shown your face before me. Do you intend to settle the score you couldn't at the theater, here?”

“How could that be?”

Ivan lightly shook his head.

His calmness was so unnerving that I unknowingly frowned.

Regina's expression wasn't bright either, as if she felt the same.

“I know it is not my place to interfere with my father's plans, but I must say that this incident you've caused is not at all helpful to the Eight Council, and furthermore, to the relationship between the Empire and Leitche.”

“What happened at the theater was unavoidable but I, too, understand well that aggravating the situation any further would be a disservice to the Grand Duchy and the Duke.”

The two exchanged words that sounded more like diplomatic rhetoric than a conversation between members of the same organization, glaring at each other sharply.

It seemed that the two of them had a worse relationship than I, an outsider.

I cleared my throat lightly to change the atmosphere.

“Ahem, so what is the reason you came here after all?”

“To deliver a proposal to you, Count.”

“Is it a proposal for me to back off from this matter?”

Ivan nodded.

For someone who tried to blow a person up, his attitude was quite brazen.

“What will you do if I refuse? Do you plan to blow up the entire villa? Or are you going to storm the Eight Council's headquarters?”

“That won't happen. Because you, Count, will surely accept the proposal.”

“How can you be so certain?”

“Because the Duke gave his word.”

Is it because of that promise?

The promise that we would take care of each other's dirty work.

“Let's hear it first, at least.”

“The reason we used extreme measures to stop you was because your investigation was proceeding too quickly.”

“Ha! Are you blaming me.”

“No. It is our problem for getting caught. We only used such means because we needed to buy even a little bit of time.”

I really didn't like how he described setting off a bomb as if it were merely blocking a road.

Besides, I wasn't the only one caught up in that explosion.

“Was getting Timershi Stetten involved intentional?”

“We thought he wouldn't die since you were right next to him, Count.”

“Are you saying you set off a bomb right under an Imperial Duke with such a complacent thought?”

“Yes.”

He was so brazen that it almost felt confident.

My head throbbed as I remembered the series of troublesome incidents that occurred because Timershi got swept up in it.

“Do you know how much of a headache that caused me. No. What does it matter if you know or not? It's already happened.”

“This proposal will be one that eases such worries of yours, Count.”

Ivan took out a piece of paper and handed it to me as I shrugged.

The personal information of one person was densely written on it.

It contained not only the name and address but also trivial information like their hometown, schools attended, and military service record.

“This is information about the culprit of the theater incident.”

“Aren't you the culprit?”

“That is correct. The one written there is a culprit we created. If you present that person as the culprit, you will be able to handle the aftermath of the theater incident well.”

After reading all the information written on the paper, I understood why he said that.

The content written in the 'Notes' section was the key.

“Although a citizen of the Empire, was greatly influenced by the western autonomy movement. Frequent contact with local resistance organizations during military service. Deeply involved in the regional movement where the Third Duke ruled… What is all this.”

“It's a plausible culprit we created.”

“Does a person like this really exist, or did you make it all up from scratch.”

“Of course, he is a real person. No matter how much this person denies it, his connection to the resistance organization will come out during the investigation, so it will be enough to persuade the Empire.”

Were they investigating even these kinds of things usually?

It would make sense if they said he committed terrorism out of discontent with Stetten.

But is there a reason to put up a fake like this?

“It would be enough to just drag you away, so why must we go through the trouble of this play?”

“In exchange for covering up this incident, the Duke has agreed to provide all Imperial information collected by the Raven, and also to end the experiments with this one being the last.”

That's a very grateful story.

They shouldn't have started it in the first place.

Grumbling inwardly like that, I handed the paper back to Ivan.

“If that's all, I refuse.”

“If there is anything lacking, please tell me. I will convey it to the Duke and get it for you.”

That was the most subjective thing he had said all day.

His words, that he would definitely get it, were enough to inspire trust.

“Does the Duke have more to give than His Majesty the Emperor?”

“…The Emperor, you say.”

“His Majesty ordered me to catch the culprit as soon as possible. And the reward is more certain than the Duke, who just rattles off ambiguous promises.”

At my sarcasm, Ivan's expression changed for the first time.

Ivan, who had been glaring at me with eyes mixed with surprise and anger, returned to his ordinary, blunt face.

“Then isn't that even better? If you hand over the guy written here as the culprit, both His Majesty the Emperor and the Duke will be satisfied.”

“Ah, perhaps so. Then maybe everyone will be happy. But then, wouldn't it be too pitiful for the citizens of the Empire who died without knowing why?”

“I understand that there were injuries from the explosion at the theater, but no deaths.”

Thump!

I slammed my staff down on the table placed in front of Ivan.

The sound of the table breaking, unable to withstand the shock, and Regina's sigh filled the room.

“There's something you seem to be unaware of.”

I looked down at Ivan, sneering as much as possible.

“If you thought you could mess with the Empire and get away unscathed, you were sorely mistaken.”

“There will be no more experiments in the future. Isn't that enough.”

“Listen carefully. The Empire is not a place you can just test the waters with and then leave as you please. Especially not while I'm watching.”

Ivan looked at my face with his eyes wide open, as if slightly shocked.

“Are you saying you will break your promise with the Duke?”

He said slowly as he watched me laugh mockingly.

I spat back an immediate reply.

“Sorry, but the promise I made with the Empire came first.”

“…Shall I convey those words exactly as they are?”

“Convey what. I plan to capture you right here and now and drag you to the Imperial Palace.”

“That won't be possible.”

Ivan looked at Regina.

Regina, who had been observing the situation, let out a long sigh.

“Catching a Raven in the Raven's land is the same as saying you'll shatter our cooperative relationship.”

“What's the difference between that and falling out with the Duke?”

“Even if you break your personal promise with the Duke, the Raven is still a partner of the Eight Council. But if you capture Ivan here, it becomes a violation of the contract between the Eight Council and the Raven.”

Regina emphasized the word 'here'.

It meant that no trouble should be caused inside the branch.

I didn't care about falling out with the Duke, but I was reluctant to lose a collaborator like Regina, whom I had gained with difficulty.

Twisting my lips, I tucked the staff under my arm.

“I'll be seeing you again soon, Ivan.”

I had a strong feeling that I would meet this guy again in Ruhindorf anyway.

Letting him go for a moment now wouldn't change his fate.

There was something to take care of before that.

Leaving the branch, I headed towards the 7th pier.

***

“Hey, I said I'm not running away! Can't you put the knife away?”

“Of course you'd say that. Look forward and walk.”

“I-If we run into the police like this, you're the ones who'll be in trouble.”

Brauder, who had been whining, clamped his mouth shut when he felt the cold touch of metal on his back.

To be honest, he doubted if any police patrolled a place like this.

Although Brauder had never been to the pier on the lower reaches of the river, he knew this much, that it was a high-crime district.

If he were in the center of the Imperial Capital, or at least the eastern district, he would have screamed for help, but it seemed useless here.

“Number 7. Here it is.”

Noah, who was leading the way, said in a whisper.

The number 7 was written largely on the old, tightly packed warehouses.

“We just have to wait here?”

“If the Count is right, then yes. Hillia, get on the roof and check the surroundings. Karl, you hide and keep a good hold on that guy.”

Noah took a deep breath as he watched his companions disperse.

As he focused his mind, he could feel the flow of mana around him.

It was a natural level of concentration.

Considering that mages leak mana without doing anything, it meant there were at least no mages around.

‘But that doesn't mean there are no enemies.’

In the Empire, it was natural for those who handled a sword to also handle magic to some extent, but there were many who didn't.

Most were just street thugs, but there were also exceptions, monsters like Til.

I guess I can catch my breath for now.

The moment he thought that and turned his head, something grazed his cheek.

A burning pain spread across his face.

Noah quickly hid his body behind the nearest warehouse.

An arrow struck the wall of the warehouse where Noah had hidden with a loud thud.

It wasn't a level the old wooden wall could withstand.

“Hillia!”

“I'm already shooting!”

He decided to entrust the response to Hillia and first find and protect Brauder.

“Tsk.”

Arrows rained down in the direction he was moving.

It meant they were aware of his movements here.

‘There are more of them than I thought.’

Noah clicked his tongue as he counted the number and frequency of the flying arrows.

His ability, mana absorption, was ineffective against this old-school style.

‘I need to watch for the timing….’

Just as he was about to break through the rain of arrows, the aura of mana changed.

The mana that had been faint until just a moment ago swirled into the wind.

Friend or foe?

Someone called out to the tense Noah.

“Are you in trouble?”

When he looked up, a man with narrow eyes, dressed neatly, was looking down at him.

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