"Sir Zebeck?"
"Sir Zekt might come chasing after us. What will you do?"
"First, I'm going to stop by the Korasar Pedders' Guild to gather information and try to contact some higher-ups to report in. It might be a hassle for you, right? Should we part ways here?"
"Please don't say that, Azadin. To be honest, as long as Sir Zekt is still alive, I won't be safe anywhere. I'll continue to follow you for a while. Following you doesn't mean I'm breaking my vows as a holy knight of the King's Church, after all."
"Why?"
"Didn't you say your sister was of imperial blood?"
When Young Master Adler had shown off about his own bloodline, Araël, offended, had declared herself of imperial lineage—and Azadin's party had overheard it from outside the room.
"If your twin sister is of that blood, then so are you."
"Didn't the King's Church used to loathe the Emperor?"
"Even so, noble blood is still noble."
"Noble blood, my ass… You're usually fine, but sometimes you're just a moron. I guess that can't be helped, being from the King's Church."
Azadin knew Zebeck was trying to somehow reconcile his identity as a holy knight, the values he had built up through that life, with his loyalty to Azadin.
It wasn't that Zebeck didn't understand what he was doing—he was simply trying to soften the shock of his worldview collapsing and being rebuilt. Azadin decided to let it slide.
'Holy knights really are a special case. Well, I guess that's why they're holy knights. If he gave up his doctrine too easily, that would just mean his faith was never that strong to begin with.'
Meanwhile, Scott, still in his wheelchair, collided again with a drunken man who was staggering around.
"Eek, hiccup. What the hell? Why is some cripple riding this thing around hitting people? Oww, I'm hurt. Pay me for treatment, you bastard."
The drunkard flopped to the ground but jumped up the moment Zebeck glared at him.
"Oh! You're with a holy knight, sir? You should've said so!"
"Goddamn it. People here have zero consideration for someone in a wheelchair! These imbeciles! Don't they understand that someone physically impaired can still possess superior intelligence, and that passing on their genes could unlock their race's full potential?"
As Scott expressed his displeasure, Azadin replied flatly.
"First of all, you're not even the same race as them. Second, you're not in that wheelchair because of a disability—you just don't want to use your muscles."
"I mean, if someone like me with decent means has trouble getting around in a wheelchair, imagine how much harder it is for someone who's actually injured or disabled. Hmph."
As Scott spoke, Azadin came to a stop.
They were in the commercial district, where the regional offices of the firms were clustered. The rowdy dockside taverns faded away, and the presence of night patrols by the guards sharply changed the atmosphere of the street.
"Sir Zebeck, please wait nearby for now."
Where there is ambition, allies will gather. That was what Azadin had said to brush off Zebeck's reasoning for tagging along. But arriving at an unfamiliar guild branch, having a holy knight around could be a bit inconvenient.
"Understood."
"Good. Then, I'll leave Scott and Shati in your care as well."
Leaving them in Zebeck's care, Azadin headed for the office of the Korasar Pedders' Guild.
***
"But…"
Azadin frowned.
"I boasted to Sir Guillaumevalt that the Elder Council would lift my curse, remember?"
He muttered to himself as he looked at the Korasar Pedders' Guild office in Lantarik.
There, he encountered Calypso, a former herald of the guild whom he had defeated before—rank 106 among the Heralds. She had once served in Salasma and was now residing at the Lantarik guild headquarters.
"Azadin. Hm. I was looking for the orphans you requested, but it seems you already took them in."
Azadin had asked the guild to protect children born to women persecuted as members of the Herald Clan, as well as other children who had been sold as slaves. But he had found them first and entrusted them to the guild's care himself.
"Right. Our paths just happened to cross. But you're being awfully casual with your speech, huh?"
When Calypso had been defeated by Azadin, she had called him "senior" and watched her words carefully. But after a brief separation, she was now subtly speaking informally.
"What? What do you mean?"
"Forget it."
Being called "senior" by Calypso didn't earn him anything special, and Azadin didn't feel like nitpicking something so trivial.
"Well, anyway, if you'd already handled things, you could've at least let me know. I wasted time on this."
"I did tell the guild to inform you. Guess the message didn't get through."
"Ah, well. Things are a bit tense within our clan lately."
"So, what brings you here?"
"Lady Arael has placed a bounty on Aldis Jedaha. Not only that—she's ordered that all heralds and noble houses connected to the Elder Council be apprehended, persuaded if possible, or otherwise dealt with and tracked if not. Thanks to that, there are quite a few chasing after Aldis Jedaha. I, on the other hand, plan to half-ass my way through it."
"Lady Arael, huh…"
Azadin felt a sense of discomfort at Calypso's casual reverence for Arael.
"You know I resisted Arael, right?"
Calypso nodded.
"Yeah, I heard. Something about how you rejected her grand cause out of resentment for how she bullied you when you were kids? So petty."
"Petty?"
Azadin's anger flared at her words.
It wasn't that simple. Sure, if you boiled it down, it might sound that way. But to call the one refusing forgiveness or reconciliation 'petty'—that was crossing the line.
That makes it even harder to forgive.
Azadin stared at Calypso, incredulous.
"The Elder Council and the Five Great Houses are a sinking ship. They ruled over Aragasa for a long time but achieved nothing. They've failed to present a clear vision like Lady Arael has. The future of our clan lies with her. The merchants are still trying to play both sides because of their positions, but I've decided to serve Lady Arael with loyalty, from the bottom of my heart."
"..."
"So, um. What does Lady Arael like? Do you know?"
"I know what she doesn't like, at least."
"Oh? What?"
"You."
Azadin said that and stepped into the office. The people inside, sorting through documents, recognized him.
At the largest desk sat the Lantarik branch head, wearing a monocle. A middle-aged woman dressed neatly, she was a beauty whose composed demeanor only made her colder.
She cleared her throat.
"Barging in like this… Normally, I wouldn't meet with a low-ranking herald in person. But if you're Lady Arael's younger brother, then that's a different story."
She made sure to emphasize that point first.
To the Aragasa lineage, an emperor's herald was the highest status one could attain. Everyone in the clan strove, competed, and challenged themselves to become heralds.
But not everyone could be one.
Most ended up as servants or merchants, working within the external branches of the Herald Clan. Even those who retired due to age or injury would work in those external organizations.
But humans are creatures of self-justification. Even though they had once desperately desired to become heralds, once that path was no longer available, they'd begin claiming their current roles were equal to or even superior to that of a herald.
Merchants, in particular, held sway. They had money, supplies, and organizational power—resources even active heralds needed—so they wielded considerable influence.
'So basically, she's only meeting me because I'm Arael's younger brother, huh?'
As expected, the branch head lowered her voice and spoke to Azadin.
"We haven't decided yet whom to support, but we don't wish to treat you poorly, being Lady Arael's younger brother. If there's anything you require, speak."
"First, I want to report directly to the Elder Council. But I've lost the Emperor's Voice… They dismissed me out of nowhere, can you believe it?"
At first, Azadin had been furious at the Elder Council for their arbitrary decision to strip him of his post. But now, he could somewhat understand the situation.
Arael was rapidly expanding her influence among the younger generation. Even the Four of the Beauty of Nature, raised as leaders, had turned their backs.
If a full-scale conflict broke out between the Elder Council and Arael's faction, Azadin would now bet on Arael's victory.
Given the circumstances, the Elder Council probably wanted to bind Azadin—Arael's younger brother—in some way, to prevent him from siding with her.
'And apparently, Arael has publicly declared she cherishes me.'
Everyone around him now looked at him differently.
Arael's beloved younger brother.
There was no doubt that was what they all believed.
'It makes things easier, sure, but it's damn humiliating.'
"So then, what's your business, Arael's younger brother?"
The Lantarik branch head asked Azadin.
"I want to meet with a nearby elder."
"We'd like to meet them too."
"What? What does that mean?"
"We're currently neutral. But the elders have gone into hiding, fearing Arael's faction is coming after them. We can't reach them at the moment."
"Wait, what? Are you saying the Elder Council is afraid of Arael's faction?"
Azadin felt dizzy hearing that.
It had been centuries since Aragasa became a Herald Clan—and now that entire tradition was crumbling, undone by a single person, Arael?
"Then even if you claim neutrality, the elders won't contact you either. So what do I have to do to meet with the elders and chief?"
"I can't help you with that. But, how about meeting with the House Aether?"
"House Aether?"
"Yes. If you go to Coral Sahar, the capital of the Korasar Kingdom, their branch is run by people from the House Aether."
Coral Sahar was the original name of the Korasar Kingdom's capital.
Most people just called it "Korasar" now, but the branch head insisted on using the old-fashioned "Coral Sahar" to show off her erudition.
'Then why don't you call me Asahdin too?'
Azadin found the branch head's pretentiousness a little ridiculous—but since she was beautiful, somehow, it didn't come off as all that irritating.
When the House Aether was mentioned, Midiam clapped her hands as if something came to mind.
"Oh. You mean Zion orabeoni."
"Right. The House Aether likely still has contact with the elders."
In short, the current Elder Council had gone into hiding, driven into the shadows by Arael's faction.
Even if Azadin claimed his innocence and wished to meet them to break the curse of service, they wouldn't receive him. They were too afraid that revealing their location would lead to being ousted by Araël's faction.
What in the world is happening? How did it come to this?
"Hmm…"
Midiam looked deeply troubled.
"In this situation… wouldn't it be wise to just surrender to Arael?"
She was suggesting that submitting to Arael and resolving the curse of service would be the better move.
"I'd rather die."
"Is it that bad?"
"Midiam. You're Aether, and you're trying to convince me to join Arael's faction?"
"I wouldn't say that… I just meant, if you're thinking rationally."
It was true...
'If thinking rationally, the better choice would be to side with Arael and have her lift the curse of service.'
Accept the apology she wanted, and in return, he'd receive money, power—hell, even a beautiful woman, supposedly.
Was it really just Azadin's emotions that blocked reconciliation with Arael?
No—it wasn't that.
When Azadin had faced Arael, he realized she was using the power of the Nether.
Otherwise, there was no way she could have healed those wounds so quickly without using holy magic.
However…
'I can't risk becoming a laughingstock by claiming she's using the power of the Nether without solid proof.'
For now, there was no clear evidence. And judging by the current climate, even if she were using the Nether's power, there were still plenty of people who'd continue to support her regardless.
In the end, Azadin decided to head for Coral Sahar, capital of the Korasar Kingdom, and withdrew from the meeting with the branch head.