Episode 431. Alone at the Conference
A carriage going up a slope.
Rutherford was looking out the window, draped diagonally on a soft bearskin. As if he liked the very slow movement of the carriage.
But at that moment. A small shiver occurred along with a cooling sensation on one side of my chest. His gaze, which had been fixed straight at the sky, also wavered.
“ah.”
“Why are you doing that?”
Rutherford picked up the cigarette without answering his subordinate’s question. Rutherford’s brow furrowed as he took a deep sip of the smoke.
The magic that had been cast on Damon had been activated. It felt like the thread that had connected me to my sixth sense had snapped. It was clear how he had activated the magic, but I couldn’t tell if he was alive or dead. If my head had blown off, it would have been the end, but somehow it felt strange.
Rutherford spoke, wiping cigarette smoke out the small open carriage window.
“You’d better hurry up a bit. King Damon may be dead.”
“Has it been activated?”
“Oh, yeah. That’s right. But it doesn’t feel refreshing.”
“I will urge the coachman.”
Knock knock. The subordinate knocked on the window on the coachman’s side and gave a hand signal. The coachman, tense with tension, pulled the reins tighter, and the carriage, which had been moving regularly, began to shake violently.
Rutherford didn’t like that. This is because he felt as if he were an insect crawling on the ground, just like an insignificant human walking and running on his own two feet.
A subordinate noticed Rutherford’s change in mood and quietly spoke up.
“Or, how about sending Rutherford and some of the wagons near Bariel?”
“Okay. What are you going to do first? What’s the difference between that and rushing into the enemy camp without a weapon? If Damon is dead, he’ll go down the drain as he died. If he’s alive, he’ll go down the drain as he lived. And above all, we need to save our children’s strength, right?”
Rutherford scolded him with a grin, and his subordinate lowered his head.
His return to Bariel had significant implications. It does not mean simply stepping on the earth, seeing the people of the empire, and looking around.
Entering the palace, the blood of the royal family would be seen, and furthermore, his name would be engraved in the history books once again. Rutherford let out a sigh of excitement and nervousness along with the smoke from his cigarette.
“It took too long.”
The passage of time was unfathomable. From the very beginning, the beginning of memory. From the name Bandor, he lived for eons between countless deaths and lives. The subordinate cautiously added words of comfort.
“As it has taken a long time, everything will be done according to your will, Lord Rutherford.”
Rutherford smiled brightly and grabbed his subordinate’s chin, slightly opening it. A black pattern was visible next to his tongue. It was like Damon. Rutherford lightly tapped his chin and asked.
“Do you think so?”
“of course. Rutherford is close to God just by existing.”
“… “How can that be my will?”
Bandor. Rutherford recalled his first body, which had already faded away. For Bariel, for the sake of the wizard’s beliefs, he had carried everything and thrown himself into the crack, but what was left for him was an eternal life like a curse.
“I’m so sick of it.”
It was a series of deaths.
At one point, I was a nomad at the end of Gaia, at another time I was a wandering fisherman in the open Blaster Sea. And at another moment, it was a criminal waiting for death with his limbs cut off, and at another moment, it was a nobleman who was imprisoned and withering away due to a fight between brothers… … .
All of these things hit Rutherford in succession. Death, death. And again with death.
“… … .”
In the midst of countless deaths, Rutherford lost his will to fight at some point and just endured what he had experienced. Then one day, he met him. ‘Gypsy who eats secrets’.
“What about Clark?”
“He’s in the carriage right behind me. Should I call him?”
“No. That’s enough. Your heart will flutter when you meet your lover. Why bother me? I know how you feel too well.”
Clarke meets Lien, and Rutherford meets Bariel after aeons of death. As he extinguishes his cigarette, his subordinate knocks on the stable window again and urges him on.
Nearly a hundred carriages of various sizes and shapes quickly followed the carriage carrying Rutherford. Then, dozens of black horses led the way at the front of the carriage procession.
Above that sky, if God were to look down, it would surely be the first thing he would notice, a majestic sight.
* * *
“Wow, what is this-”
“I’ll explain the situation later, come on! Stop the bleeding!”
“Ah, yes yes. Well, you are King Damon, right? Excuse me for a second. “Bring the hemostat!”
“What should I do with the tongue piece?”
“I don’t think I can put it back together. Oh my, I’ve seen tongues cut off a few times, but this is the first time I’ve seen it shattered into pieces like this. What happened?”
The imperial palace doctors looked around the messed up interrogation room and laid Damon down. Everything was covered in blood to the point where there was no words to describe it other than how gruesome it was. An explosion occurred in his mouth, and not only was his tongue torn into pieces, but the inside was so horrific that it was beyond words.
The doctors hesitated for a moment, not knowing where to start, but soon rejoiced at the appearance of the healing wizards.
“I will add energy. Since he is an important attendee of the upcoming conference, saving him is the priority.”
“No, how can you call me as a witness when I look like this? It’s impossible. I’m not against it because I’m a doctor, but I mean it’s medically impossible.”
“He is the head of the war criminals, and the war has just ended, so it is right to bring him a corpse.”
“Yes. And keep that piece of tongue safe. It is proof that Ian did not treat King Damon lightly. I was the only one who exploded and got angry, so it would be bad if Ian was misunderstood.”
“Here, bring me something to put the tongue piece in!”
“Here’s a styptic!”
Crack, crackle!
Boom!
The hurried footsteps of those going up and down the stairs echoed noisily.
At the end of the hallway, Romandro stopped the scribes and looked over their work. They held their pens tightly and eyed Romandro with suspicion.
“If you find even one dot, I will immediately report you.”
“Well, I told you several times not to worry. You’re holding the pen, right? As an aide, I should know at least what conversations Ian had with Damon before he was born! “Don’t make too much noise, just stay still.”
“Ttuk ttuk? Did you say ttuk ttuk?”
“Eight! “If you keep saying it, you’ll end up reading the same parts again!”
When Romandro threw a fit of tantrums, the secretaries backed away in absurdity. Then, soon after, they realized that they would only be harmed if they tried to meddle in it, so they held onto their pens and remained silent.
The rustling sound of paper turning could be heard amidst the commotion. Romandro, who had finished reading, looked at Ian, who was sitting a little distance away.
What on earth is that wonderful boy thinking?
“Ian.”
Ian turned his head at Romandro’s call. Romandro stood close to Ian and tapped the clerks’ records.
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“So, judging from King Damon’s reaction, it’s a given that Rutherford is a wizard?”
“Otherwise, there’s no way the tongue would break into pieces like that.”
“Okay, let’s say so. But is it generally possible for a wizard to lose his magic? I’ve never heard of it. Of course, I’m not a wizard, so I don’t know. But didn’t you say that magic is imprinted on the soul? Unless you die, how can it disappear?”
“That’s it.”
“that? what?”
“Death. Since nothing can take away a wizard’s power other than death, it can be assumed that Rutherford has already died more than once.”
“Could it have something to do with necromancy?”
“It’s not completely impossible, but it’s a bit unlikely. Harsha didn’t say anything specific about Rutherford. Astana is the most authoritative figure in the necromancy field, so Rutherford wouldn’t have made a move without them. Judging from his actions, including Idgal, it would be more natural to call him a wizard who had experienced death.”
“Oh, really? Wait a minute. I don’t quite understand.”
How could a dead person be alive and moving like that? Being ignorant of the concept of regression and reincarnation, Romandro could not easily accept it. Unlike Ian.
‘This body is now that of Ian the bastard. A hundred years later, I cannot be sure whether I am dead or alive in Bariel. But one thing is certain-‘
If the magic power remains in Ian’s body, it means that his soul has not disappeared. He is not dead. It means that he is running through the timeline somewhere, like me and Damon.
That’s right, it was at the dinner table in Derga’s backyard that Emperor Ian stood up and became possessed by Ian. Unless he ingests something poisonous, there is no reason for Ian to die as soon as he stands there.
“Ian.”
Romandro dabbed saliva on his fingertips and flipped through the record. His face was full of determination.
There was already a lot of nonsense going around about the royal family and Yeon-i, creating Idgal, and so on. There was a lot of nonsense going around about Ian, the war hero.
If Damon’s condition worsens, doubts will inevitably arise again. That Ian harmed Damon in order to deny and cover up the suspicions.
“You’d better prepare your argument carefully. The war just ended, so the bureaucrats won’t be so sharp. But these are all serious problems. Don’t get nitpicked, okay?”
‘If Ian the bastard is alive, where is he now? Is he running on a different timeline? Otherwise, he would have come looking for Philia. He could do the same thing as I did.’
“First, I will try to exert some force on the administration side. There is more of a bond there than in other departments. In many ways. “The issue is King Damon’s personal situation, which Burgos will raise, but since they have not heard anything yet, it would be better for us to hold a conference quickly.”
‘The abyss beneath the crack. If there is no space and time in the abyss, is there Naum there? If we go by the records, Bandor is the one who went under the crack. He has no choice but to ask Rutherford in person, and in order to meet him-‘
“Ian. Who am I talking to? Are you listening to me?!”
“… of course.”
“What did I just say?”
“Let’s prepare thoroughly.”
“Hey, hey. You were just pretending to listen and half-letting go!”
“no. I was really listening. By the way, Romandro. Would you like to return the records to the clerks and go to the palace archives? Please go and see if there are any more records of this man named Bandor. Also, please bring me anything that mentions rifts and abysses. Even just one letter is fine.”
“No! What if I return the record sheet? “Do you think the secretaries are going to tell the imperial family what to do?”
“Then we can keep it?”
“That’s not it-”
“Romandrooooo! sir! “Romandro!”
Boom boom boom!
Boom!
At that time, someone tumbled down the stairs. Romandro clicked his tongue, saying it was obvious even without looking at it. Because the only person in the imperial palace who behaved so recklessly was Beric.
“Be loud, you bastard! “This is an important moment!”
“I’m important too!? Vivianna is having a baby!”
“uh?”
Toouk. Romandro dropped the record to the floor. His eyes widened like a rabbit’s and he froze.
“I’m having a baby. wah wah. “I came here after seeing Vivianna collapse, so I’d better go quickly, right?”
“Rain, why did Vivianna collapse?”
“I don’t know. “Go and see for yourself.”
“T, no… … .”
Romandro hurriedly tried to pick up the paper. But Ian lightly restrains that touch. He knelt down on his hands and spoke to Roman Dro.
“Don’t worry about this matter and go quickly.”
“Oh, hey, Ian.”
“it’s okay. This isn’t my first time attending a convention alone. “The mother and father must be together at the child’s starting point.”
Strangely, Romandro’s steps did not slow down. If it had been the same as usual, I would have just said I was sorry and ran away.
Somehow, I had a feeling that if I sent Ian to the conference alone, something terrible would happen. I don’t know exactly what it is.
“Ian, then I’ll be back soon after seeing my Vivianna and the baby. huh?”
“Okay. Hurry up.”
“Oh, right. Well, anyway, see you again. Beric!”
“The carriage is outside!”
“okay. i get it. Good job! Move!”
Crack, crackle!
Romandro strode up the stairs, his short legs moving quickly, while Ian gathered the records and handed them over to the clerks.
Those who were watching Ian with wary eyes. He reached out and snatched the paper away.
“You guys can go back now. And testify at the grand conference without adding or subtracting what you heard and experienced here.”
“… Even if it doesn’t come soon, we will do it. “You’re worried for no reason.”
“In the first place, I guess worrying is for no reason.”
As Ian grinned, the clerks rushed through the wizards and left the interrogation room. Wherever they stepped, Damon’s blood-stained footprints were clearly visible.
fantasy,
