Chapter 196: The Prelude to the Game 4

Feeling something on her forehead, Liliana blinked her eyes open. The ice pack that had been on her head had fallen onto the bed. She had broken out in a cold sweat, probably from a nightmare. As she was thinking how disgusting her whole body felt, she suddenly realized that what was touching her forehead was the paw of a beast.

She slowly turned her gaze to see a black lion with only its front paws on the bed. And it was extending its right front paw to touch her forehead.

“—Ajulite?”

‘You look like you’re in pain.’

“I feel a little better.”

Liliana answered in a voice hoarse with fever. Ajulite kept his right front paw on her forehead. If she concentrated, she could feel the flow of her magical power gradually calming down where he was touching. She didn’t feel it leaving her body. But Ajulite lived by a different logic than humans, so it wouldn't be strange if he knew a method that neither she nor the doctor who had examined her knew.

‘Your maid was here earlier. It seems she sent letters to both the Ministry of Magic and the mansion in the capital, but she was lamenting that she couldn't get in touch because they were away for a while.’

“—I see.”

It seemed Marianne had really tried to contact Ben Draco. But he was also busy. He was probably running around again, being pushed around with some unreasonable demand by the Director of the Ministry of Magic.

If Liliana used a magic stone, she could contact Ben immediately, but she had no intention of doing so. She didn't want to take up his time with her own problems, and she didn't want to show him her weakness. She probably trusted Ben, but didn't rely on him. That was why she hesitated to call on him when she needed him most.

As she was vaguely thinking about such things, Liliana blinked and turned her gaze to Ajulite. The black lion tilted its head.

‘What is it?’

“What are you doing now?”

At that, Ajulite blinked as if she had asked something strange and looked at his own right front paw. After a moment of thought, the black lion answered.

‘The magical power in your body is raging, and you look like you’re in pain. I’m calming it down.’

“—Humans can’t do it, but you can, can’t you?”

‘You understand well, don’t you?’

Ajulite grinned. His fangs were visible, but for some reason, it wasn't scary. Ajulite used the front paw on her forehead to close her eyelids.

For some reason, Ajulite had no smell, and his paw pads were soft. Why is that? As Liliana was thinking this, her consciousness sank into darkness again.

＊＊＊＊＊

After confirming that Liliana was asleep, Ajulite removed his paw from her forehead and peered at her face. In the black lion’s eyes, he could see the magical power that was invisible to human eyes.

The doctor who had examined Liliana could also see the flow of magical power, but to Ajulite, it was like calling a swamp, a lake, the sea, and a river all a “puddle.” The scale, the water quality, and the creatures that lived within were all completely different, but humans didn't even notice. But Ajulite had no intention of teaching humans the details one by one.

‘—It seems to have calmed down.’

Sometime during the night, the sky had grown dark and the moon had risen. It had taken some time, but the raging magical power in Liliana’s body had calmed down and seemed to be settling into her body. At this rate, her fever would probably be gone by the time she woke up next.

Ajulite let out a sigh of relief, but the next moment, his eyes sharpened, and he glared out the window. Irritably, he quickly went to the window. The locked window opened on its own. Ajulite, unfazed, slipped out through the gap. There was some distance from the second floor to the ground, but the lion paid it no mind. He floated lightly in the air and glared at the empty space.

‘I told you not to come here.’

‘I have no intention of following your instructions.’

As the sticky words answered, the air wavered slightly. But no figure appeared. However, Ajulite could see the magical power the other person was cloaked in. He irritably swung his tail, slamming it against the ground. But since he was floating in the air, his tail just swiped at the empty air.

‘It is still too early. I can understand your impatience, but if you rush, you will lose everything.’

‘Whose story is that?’

At the mocking words, Ajulite snorted. A faint sound of the air shaking echoed. The hidden person whispered cheerfully.

‘It’s usually hard to get into this place, so I thought if I missed this opportunity, I wouldn’t even be able to see the face of the girl you’re so fond of.’

‘There is no need to see her.’

‘Honestly, you have always been so narrow-minded.’

An exasperated voice echoed. A moment of silence and a staring contest continued, but eventually, the other person sighed theatrically in defeat.

‘It can’t be helped. I will wait for the next opportunity to come around.’

‘—There will be no such opportunity.’

‘No matter what you say, there will be at least one, won’t there?’

The moment they let out a small laugh, the other person’s presence vanished. Realizing that they had completely disappeared, Ajulite let out a deep sigh. His tail hung limply. With a look of melancholy in his eyes, the black lion glanced back at Liliana’s sleeping room. He was thinking about something, but he eventually tore his gaze away as if forcing himself to and looked away. Then Ajulite spread his dragon wings and took off from the spot.

＊＊＊＊＊

Riley Williams Slibegrad blinked after reading the letter he had received. It was not work-related, but a letter from Liliana, who was scheduled to come to the palace today, informing him that she would not be able to visit. That in itself was not a problem. However, there was one concerning phrase in the letter.

“Magical power runaway—?”

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t that she had had a magical power runaway. It was just that she had been in a state where she was one step away from having one. But Liliana had always had control over her magical power. Normally, it was said that one could control their magical power around the age of ten, when their magical power stabilized. That is, if one could control their magical power, they would not be on the verge of having a magical power runaway, no matter how much magical power they had. Of course, it was also impossible for Liliana’s magical power to increase so much at her age that she would suddenly lose control.

“What in the world happened?”

The letter didn’t say anything more than that. It just stated calmly that her condition had now stabilized and that she wanted to rest as a precaution, so she couldn't come to the palace.

Riley bit his lip. Liliana might not know the cause either, but even if she did, she wouldn't tell him unless he asked. And he wasn't confident she would tell him the truth even if he did ask. The frustration of knowing he could help if she would just rely on him piled up.

But Riley was lucky.

“It’s a good thing I read this letter now.”

As soon as he muttered it, there was a knock on the office door. When he prompted them to enter, two men came in. Lucian, the heir of the Kennys border margrave, and Duke Clyde Clark. Riley stood up from his chair to greet them.

“You both came. Thank you.”

“We were nominated directly by Your Highness.”

It was Lucian who answered nonchalantly. Riley smiled faintly and prompted them to sit. After Riley sat down, Lucian and Clyde sat on the sofa.

It was Lucian who spoke first. He took out some documents from the bag he was holding and handed them to Riley.

“This is the report on the conduct investigation of the personnel working in the palace and the Knight Order. We have secretly investigated the person in charge of the investigation.”

“Thank you. As expected, you work fast.”

Riley smiled and took the documents, then quickly began to read through them.

As expected, the list of people in charge of the background check, which had been compiled by Marquis Finch and earl Mellars, included people who were aligned with their respective factions. But they were just members of the faction; they couldn't be definitively called spies. Therefore, Riley had asked someone he knew was not from the Grand Duke’s faction to oversee the background check. That was Clyde and Lucian.

It would have been fine to ask Ulysses Ealdred, who had succeeded the Duke of Ealdred, but unfortunately, he was from the same Alcasia faction as Marquis Finch. It was easy to guess that there would be opposition from earl Mellars. That was why the choice had fallen on Lucian.

Lucian and Clyde’s job was simple yet troublesome. While having the people in charge conduct the background check on the personnel of the palace and the Knight Order, they would investigate their conduct. Of course, they also had the role of monitoring whether the people in charge were conducting the background check unfairly. To be honest, only one of the three great ducal families or a border margrave could have secured the personnel to conduct that investigation.

“We were instructed to do it as quickly as possible.”

Lucian said with a hint of sarcasm. It was a line that could have been taken as disrespectful, but Riley, far from getting angry, smiled with amusement.

“I had no doubt you could do it.”

“—To be trusted so much is the greatest honor.”

“I’ll have to strive every day to make you say that from the bottom of your heart.”

When Riley replied nonchalantly, Lucian let out a wry smile this time. He shrugged and looked at Riley with narrowed eyes. At first glance, his expression seemed cold, but his eyes were shining strangely.

“But at the very least, Your Highness has more promise than His Grace the Grand Duke.”

At Lucian’s words, Riley looked up. He sent him a questioning gaze. Clyde had been irritated with Lucian’s attitude from the beginning, but his words now seemed to have increased his displeasure. Though his expression barely changed, there was a sharpness in his gaze as he looked at Lucian. Lucian, who should have been aware of the intensity of his gaze, calmly ignored Clyde and looked at Riley meaningfully.

“Did you meet my uncle?”

“Yes. As you may already know, he has been on good terms with the Marquis Finch’s wife for a long time. Through that connection, I received a love letter from him.”

At the unusual turn of phrase, Clyde muttered, “A love letter…” with a look of weariness. But he probably hadn't actually received a letter confessing love. Riley, who had gotten the hint, raised the corners of his mouth.

“Were you persuaded to switch to the Grand Duke’s faction?”

“To shoot the general, first shoot his horse, I suppose.”

The fact that the Kennys border margrave supported Riley as the next king was now known to all. So the Grand Duke Franklin Slibegrad had likely made a move to win over the next border margrave.

Normally, a letter from the Grand Duke shouldn't have reached Lucian, but the Grand Duke had long had an affair with the wife of Marquis Finch, who had power within the Alcasia faction that supported Riley. Therefore, the Grand Duke had likely used the Marquis Finch’s wife’s power to contact Lucian.

“My father has not left the domain since he was attacked by an assassin several years ago. He can move on his own with a cane, but not many people know that. I am the one who attends social gatherings. I deliberately spread the rumor that he doesn't have long to live, and I believe the Grand Duke believed it.”

“Did he not use his ‘Shadows’?”

Riley asked suspiciously. Lucian shrugged.

“The Grand Duke’s faction is not that well-organized. Even if a noble has ‘Shadows,’ their quality varies greatly.”

Originally, the Grand Duke’s faction was not a monolith. There was no one who truly cared about the future of the kingdom; it was a faction of people who wanted to gain real power or line their own pockets. The Grand Duke himself apparently had no desire to become king at first, but after being skillfully persuaded by his sycophants, he seemed to have changed his mind, thinking that if he could enjoy a life of debauchery without doing any work, he wouldn’t mind becoming king.

“—That seems to be the official reason, though.”

“Official reason?”

Riley’s eyes widened. He had thought that his uncle was no longer satisfied with the money he could get from his position as Grand Duke. But Lucian shook his head with a smile that was close to a wry one.

“In reality, it seems he is blinded by the power to move the country freely. He says that even if he leaves the practical work to the officials and nobles, the final decision should be made by the king. But if he says that, he risks alienating those in the Grand Duke’s faction who want to seize power for themselves. So, it seems he plans to play the cat and watch the situation until he can become king.”

“—As expected, my uncle is not an easy man to deal with.”

“Yes, he seems to be a rather shrewd gentleman.”

Of course, neither the Grand Duke nor the nobles of the Grand Duke’s faction were foolish enough to say such things openly. The official pretext was that “the young Crown Prince Riley is unreliable, while the Grand Duke Franklin Slibegrad has connections with foreign countries and is a trustworthy person.”

In reality, his connections were probably with the women of various countries or with greedy merchants, Lucian had thought with exasperation.

“Including the Grand Duke’s ‘Shadows,’ it seems the nobles of the Grand Duke’s faction are only capable of raising children. A mixed bag, and the Grand Duke’s faction itself is a motley crew. They are all looking in different directions and squawking as they please. It would be fine if chickens only crowed in the morning, but they crow in the middle of the night, which is a great nuisance.”

It seemed the spies used by the Grand Duke’s faction did not have the power to infiltrate the mansion in the Kennys border margrave’s domain and steal information. He thought they could get information if they just blended in with the commoners, but they either didn’t have the ability to do so or didn’t have enough people—Riley thought silently.

“However,”

Lucian shrugged, glancing at the complex-faced Clyde and the seriously thinking Riley.

“It seems the Grand Duke’s faction is also getting impatient with Your Highness’s upcoming ‘investiture ceremony.’ The assassins who attacked Your Highness were undoubtedly from the Grand Duke’s faction, but it is not certain who in the Grand Duke’s faction arranged it.”

That much Riley had already predicted. But Lucian should also be aware of that much. As expected, there was more to the story.

“But a sorcerer was involved in this incident. There are no personnel in the Grand Duke’s faction’s domains who can use teleportation circles. I was wondering where they got them from—”

“The Ministry of Magic, isn’t it?”

It was Clyde who interjected. His brow was slightly furrowed. Lucian glanced at Clyde out of the corner of his eye and raised the corners of his mouth. “You are correct.” But his eyes were not smiling at all.

“The Grand Duke seemed to have a conviction that the Grand Duke’s faction had won over Nicholas Bergson and Thorn Greed. It was probably another noble who made contact. In fact, we have obtained information that Bergson and earl Mellars are in contact, but we have not yet found any connection between Thorn Greed and earl Mellars.”

“earl Greed is on good terms with earl Mellars, isn’t he?”

At Lucian’s explanation, Riley felt a doubt. It was Clyde, not Lucian, who answered.

“The earls are, yes. But earl Greed does not value his third son, and it seems he has not sent him a single letter in recent years.”

“I see, so you thought another noble had contacted Thorn Greed.”

“Yes.”

That is correct, Lucian nodded. He was speaking in a light tone, but it was not good news at all. Riley pressed his fingertips to his aching head and let out a small sigh.

In other words, the director and deputy director of the Ministry of Magic had been won over by the Grand Duke’s faction. Ben Draco, who had been ousted from the position of deputy director, had returned to the Ministry of Magic, but he was a general sorcerer and had no power. If necessary, he would be disposed of by the director or deputy director.

“Thinking about it, it was a great blow that Lord Ben Draco was framed four years ago.”

Clyde muttered in a bitter tone. Lucian seemed to feel the same way, and his mischievous expression was slightly broken.

But Riley looked back at the two with a fearless smile.

“No, that’s not necessarily true.”

“—Your Highness?”

Clyde tilted his head in confusion. Lucian also sent a questioning gaze to Riley, as if asking what he meant. Riley glanced at the documents in his hand. While looking through them earlier, he had found a few names that caught his eye.

“Actually, I have called another important person. I want to proceed with this matter in secret, with only a very limited number of people knowing. Failure is not an option.”

With Clyde and Lucian looking even more confused, Riley looked at the clock and muttered, “It should be about time.” As expected, an attendant knocked on the door and announced a visitor. When he prompted them to enter, a figure in a robe appeared. Clyde and Lucian’s eyes widened as they recognized the person’s face.

“Your Highness, I have come as you called.”

“It feels strangely ticklish when you use that kind of language with me.”

Riley shrugged and smiled faintly. The visitor tilted his head in confusion but didn't object. Riley told him to sit, and the robed figure sat at the end of the table.

Lucian and Clyde, who had not expected that person to come, quickly recovered and extended their right hands for a handshake.

“It has been a while, Lord Ben Draco.”

Lucian said, and Clyde followed with a wry smile.

“I never thought I would see you here. You are a cruel man, Your Highness.”

“Isn’t a little trick like this fun once in a while?”

Without paying any mind to Clyde’s accusing tone, Riley answered with a mischievous smile.

Ben Draco, who had apparently been invited by Riley, shrugged slightly. And with a hint of resentment, he complained to Riley, “It was quite a hassle.” Unable to read his intention, Riley tilted his head. Ben, who had not intended to seriously blame him, quickly changed his expression to a wry one and shrugged.

“There’s a noisy person above me who makes a fuss when I disappear. But I heard that my coming here was a secret, so it was a hassle to set up a trick.”

“A trick?”

“Yes, I left an illusion of myself working hard at the Ministry of Magic. Of course, once I came to the palace, my magical power wouldn't reach, so I had Muirulainen help me.”

I see, Riley nodded. On the other hand, Lucian and Clyde didn't hide their exasperated gazes.

Ben was saying it as if it were nothing, but the fact that he could set up such a spell in a short amount of time was abnormal. He was truly a genius, as the rumors said, they thought in awe.

But Ben didn't seem to have any intention of wasting time and tilted his head.

“So, why was I called? It’s not like you want me to teach you magic, is it?”

“No, there is that, but I want to talk about something else first.”

It seemed the “teach you magic” part had been a joke on Ben’s part. At Riley’s affirmation, Ben’s face froze in a strange way. Clyde and Lucian also sent a curious gaze to Riley, but Riley decided to get to the main point first.

“Actually, I’m thinking of meddling in the personnel affairs of the Ministry of Magic as well.”

Clyde and Ben’s eyes widened for a moment. But Lucian seemed to have foreseen it and grinned, agreeing.

“As expected, you have a good eye, Your Highness. That is something I was hoping you would do.”

Riley smiled brightly. And he placed the documents he had been holding on the table and lowered his voice.

It had all started with a problem that a certain sorcerer had mentioned—.

—-

Toc

Chapter 197