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Chapter 195: Behind the Scenes

“Hmm...”

Olivurn took a sip of the still-warm tea as he listened to the report from Court Sorcerer Kadin Luer.

“Seems like the First Prince is preparing for a comeback... but things look rough for him. The number of nobles supporting him has decreased significantly.”

“But the empress and the chancellor are still in place. We still can’t afford to be complacent.”

“You are absolutely right.” Kadin nodded.

“You never know with these things... Whether it was a good or a bad day, my brother always used to sit here and have tea..."

The garden where Olivurn was seated was the same place where Luon would often have conversations with the chancellor. With no flowers in the winter, the ground was instead covered by a blanket of snow, the snowflakes floating down like petals.

Olivurn’s tone was that of wistful reminiscence, but a faint smile remained on his lips as he brought the teacup to his mouth.

“Forgive my boldness, but while I understand your sorrow for your only brother, this might actually be for the best. We need to bring more vassals to our side in the time we have.”

“I know. I’m grateful for your decision to support me, especially since you’ve been neutral until now,” Olivurn responded with a gentle expression.

“Sir Kadin, it seems my father has no intention of stepping down from the throne yet.”

Impudent words, but it was clear from Olivurn’s face that he wouldn’t take them back.

“How much more do the people have to suffer...?”

Olivurn clicked his tongue slightly.

“Don’t misunderstand my words. I have no intention of starting a rebellion. My father built this empire. In fact, the empire wouldn’t even exist if not for some of his more extreme decisions.”

“Oh, no, I understand what you mean... And the empire is bound to shine even brighter under the benevolence of Your Highness.”

Watching and listening to Olivurn, Kadin felt a renewed resolve to stand by him. Witnessing the downfall of Prince Luon after the Sun Hall incident had shifted his allegiance further toward Olivurn.

Someone willing to kill their own brother would lead the empire down a crueler path than the Conqueror King.

“Sir Kuwell is about to leave for his territory. It seems His Majesty is holding him accountable for what happened at the Sun Hall,” Kadin added in a low voice.

“The eye of the storm will be Karyl MacGovern. There’s no doubt about it,” Olivurn said with a nod. “Whatever he said to my father before leaving the hall, something is going on between them. And now that Tatur has become an independent state, his power will only grow.”

“I shall look into it quietly.”

“Yes.”

“Well then... I have something to discuss with Tiren before Sir Kuwell leaves, so please excuse me.”

Kadin glanced at Tiren waiting outside the garden, then stood up.

“I entrust this to you.”

At Olivurn\'s words, Kadin bowed and slowly walked away.

“...”

Crack!

Once Kadin had left, the teacup in Olivurn’s hand cracked and shattered. A shard of glass cut into his palm, and blood began to bead on his skin.

“Phew...”

Olivurn let out a low sigh as he watched the blood trickle onto the fresh snow from his hand, staining the pristine white with speckles of crimson. It was as though he could finally release his pent-up frustration now that he bled.

Is it true that the contents of that vial neutralized the poison?

Though he kept up a veneer of composure, his mind was constantly in tumult.

Karyl MacGovern... How did that bastard figure it out? If he cured Father of the poison, why did he let Kromen die? Or did he not know about the Third Prince?

Olivurn bit his lip as he recalled how Karyl had suddenly appeared at the palace, turned everything upside down, and then vanished. There were countless things he needed to uncover, but he couldn’t confide in just anyone about this.

After all, it was none other than Olivurn himself who had poisoned Titan Shutean and Prince Kromen. No one among his retainers knew about it, except for one person.

“Things have gotten messy...” Olivurn murmured to himself, his voice drifting through the stillness of the garden.

Woosh...

Just then, the snow-laden leaves rustled, the soft snow covering the spot stained by Olivurn’s blood.

“It seems His Majesty will find it difficult to handle this in the same manner,” Olivurn said out loud, his expression shifting back to his usual composure as he looked ahead.

“My apologies for the disappointment.”

How long had he been standing there? From the depths of the garden, a man, scooping up a handful of snow and scattering it, raised his head.

Crunch, crunch, crunch...

The man walked forward, leaving clear footprints in the snow. Olivurn watched the crumbling snowflakes and bowed his head in greeting.

“Sir Neil Blanc.”

The man was one of the empire’s four great dukes, whose whereabouts had always been a mystery even to the emperor. Surprisingly, Olivurn seemed to know him well.

***

“This way...”

Benedict was leading the way; his face was quite haggard from the questioning, and he was hunched over, unable to straighten his back.

Aslak, no longer surprised by anything, followed behind Benedict, carefully observing Karyl and his companions.

“Quite spacious,” Karyl muttered his first impression of Antihum. Despite being called a grand library, entering through Antihum’s main gate felt like entering a vast temple or a small village.

“Whoa... It’s huge! It seems even bigger than Tatur,” Mikhail exclaimed.

Even inside the building, it felt like walking through a dense northern forest, with trees growing thick and vines hanging everywhere. The brick walls creating maze-like pathways were the only indication that this was an indoor space.

Mikhail looked around in amazement; he had traveled from the Guidance Mercenary Gang with Karyl to the south and the principality, but this was unlike anything he had ever seen.

“...”

If Mikhail was impressed, Serica Lauren was outright stunned. While she tried to feign nonchalance, the mere sound of leaves crunching under her feet made her jump.

“Is that the cannon that fired at us all the way from the Fonein?” Karyl inquired.

“Y-Yes, it is.”

“Hmm,” Karyl mused, staring at the long cannon on top of the central structure of the grand library.

It looks similar to the ones in the imperial palace, he thought.

However, its purpose was entirely different from the cannons stationed on the walls of the imperial palace, which were used solely to signal the emperor’s death. Furthermore, the barrel of this cannon was twice as long as those at the palace, making the library resemble a fortress more than a repository of books.

It’s quite far from the river... The fact that it fires flame orbs made of mana instead of regular cannonballs indicates that it’s operated by a sorcerer, Karyl assessed.

The accuracy was also remarkable, far superior to any other existing piece of artillery.

Is it from the Magical Era? he wondered.

If such cannons could be manufactured, then it would have been possible to intercept the long-range attacks during the Oracle War against the Tarak.

If it can be dismantled and reproduced... Karyl clicked his tongue slightly.

But then he shook his head.

It’s not possible right now. If it fails, we could lose a valuable artifact. Only someone proficient in magitech could handle it.

Karyl immediately thought of one person.

I hope the civil war in the principality ends soon. It’s the only region where such advanced magitech could be developed.

The Lurein Principality, one of the three major powers on the continent, lagged behind the empire in magic and swordsmanship but held its position thanks to magitech.

Especially notable were the Golem battalions and the Wyvern cavalry, equipped with specialized bridles, both inventions of Wolfgang Schumar, the creator of Ashkelon, a relic of the Magical Era.

Most people call him an eccentric, but those who really know him recognize his genius, Karyl thought of Wingel Hart, the magitech engineer. If he weren’t brilliant, Duchess Tuli, the oldest among the seven dukes, wouldn’t have appointed him as the head of the Magitech Corps.

However, not even that genius had managed to recreate Ascalon. Karyl thought of the blueprint for the lower half he had stolen from Heim and clicked his tongue regretfully. Obtaining the upper half wasn’t difficult, but there was no one with the means or capability to build it yet.

Well, even Wolfgang, the creator, couldn’t complete Ascalon without finding the right ignition stone. Karyl sighed.

This life was distinctly different from his previous one. Magitech had many branches, but dwarves excelled in Golem crafting over humans. If Wingel from the principality and the dwarves of Tatur combined their efforts...

If they could collaborate...

Moreover, in his previous life, the Kadihum Mine hadn’t been developed, and he hadn’t been able to attain the octagonal stone. But this time, Karyl might just be able to solve the ignition problem that had eluded everyone in the Magical Era.

Ultimately, the Kadihum Mine needs to be developed quickly. Those Three Kingdoms of Istria... They have such a valuable resource, yet they bicker among themselves. He shook his head.

As they followed the maze-like paths, they eventually came across small houses scattered here and there. It seemed this was the residential area of Antihum.

“How many people live here?”

“Around three hundred residents live in the village surrounding the Grand Library,” Benedict replied, rubbing his swollen eye.

“Really? That’s fewer people than I expected for such a large area.”

“That’s because we don’t accept outsiders often... It’s been decades since anyone visited. And before they join the Immortal Council, people gather and live in this area. Inside the Grand Library, there are five hundred sorcerers,” Benedict explained.

Hmm... that’s odd, Karyl thought as he looked at the houses, his brow furrowed. If I remember correctly, there was no such village past Antihum’s main gate...

When the Oracle was prophesied and he first arrived at Antihum to find the Ten, Karyl had used the empire’s teleportation Magic Circle, arriving directly at the Grand Library and skipping the outer areas. Perhaps that was why the exterior was so unfamiliar to him now.

Karyl glanced at the residents of the Immortal Council, who were curiously peeking at him and his companions from inside their homes, and cocked his head slightly.

...Am I just not remembering correctly?