“Hahaha! Please have another drink, Sir Galfredik!”

“Ah! It’s overflowing with booze. You are truly a generous man.”

“How could I possibly compare to you, Sir Galfredik? Knight of knights! Man of men! Uhahahahaha!”

Prince Localope shook his head with dismay as Galfredik, and the middle-aged nobleman laughed and chatted while sharing drinks.

“This… I don’t know if it’s supposed to work out this smoothly,” Prince Localope said.

“Good is good. I don’t know why humans have so many worries.” It was an inappropriate, irreverent way of speaking to the imperial prince, but no one criticized it. It was because the grinning existence by Prince Localope’s side wasn’t human. To be exact, it was an existence that could not be constrained by the laws and prestige of the Roman Empire. More importantly, he had played the biggest role in getting Galfredik to become so close with Count Vermain and to hold a banquet for all members of the expedition.

“Is this the end of the monster uprising? Is there more?”

“There is one left to the southwest.”

“How annoying. But since I promised, there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“Yes. Sir Eugene hates arrogant people who break their promises the most.”

“Despite that, he didn’t seem to dislike you, wizard.”

“Ah! Ah…!”

The female wizard, Romari, squealed while Georg giggled at her. Prince Localope narrowed his eyes as he watched the interaction between the two.

‘He acts and speaks no different from humans. But he’s definitely not human… What race does he belong to? If he isn’t a member of the Dark Clan…’

The two high lords accompanying the expedition had made it clear. Both Galfredik and Princess Lilisain were wary of Georg, which proved his strength, and there were also many other suspicious things about him. Firstly, Georg was better informed about monsters and demonic creatures than anyone else. Even the elves, who were excellent monster hunters, were inferior to him. Georg knew the weaknesses of all monsters they had come across, as well as how to appropriately deal with them. Moreover, he wasn’t just knowledgeable but incredibly strong as well. Even Galfredik had to give his acknowledgment.

But strangely enough, despite looking to be a figure of high prestige and status, Georg was rather ignorant of proper etiquette and common courtesy. No, rather, it was almost as if he didn’t know much about the world. Georg was ill-mannered and ill-informed, as if he were from another world, and he acted impolitely to everyone. He would have created a big ruckus had he been moving with Prince Localope and the other nobles of the expedition. However, Georg was compliant with the words of Galfredik, Princess Lililsain, and Romari, even though he wasn’t very close with them. And that was why he had accompanied the expedition and fought together with them without causing much friction.

“Hahaha! Anyway, you’ve finished something big, so please rest in my territory for a few days with the expedition before you go!” Count Vermain declared. Although he was speaking to Galfredik, he continued to steal glances at Prince Localope.

He was slightly drunk, but he knew well what position Prince Localope held in the expedition. He was also rather hopeful to build a friendship with the imperial family.

Galfredik responded, “I would love to, but the lord was quite strict with his orders. Moreover—”

“My lord! Sir Galfredik!” The captain of Vermain Castle rushed in while shouting urgently.

“What is it?” Count Vermain asked.

“A message from His Majesty the King of Maren,” the guard captain responded.

“Ohh…!” Count Vermain’s eyes filled with surprise, and the same was true for the members of the expedition.

“Master sent a messenger? How did he know we would be here?” Galfredik asked. It had been a while since the expedition separated from Eugene, and the resolution of the monster uprising was proceeding faster than initial expectations. Moreover, Petrucca was quite a distance away, so it would have been nearly impossible to send a messenger at the right time.

“Ah, about that…”

However, the mystery was resolved as soon as the group saw the messenger enter after the guard captain.

***

“Nice to meet you. Please just call me Verna,” Verna, a countess of the empire and one of the most renowned nobles of the Dark Clan, spoke while bowing. She was extremely courteous despite her prestige.

‘Is it because of the prince?’

‘I heard he had been driven out of the empire… Now, it seems to have been a false rumor.’

The nobles, unfamiliar with the situation, formed their own theories while stealing glances at Prince Localope. However, they were completely wrong. Verna was acting polite and gentle because of Galfredik.

‘The vassal of the great one… Oh, my! How does he look so dignified?!’

Verna stared at Galfredik with a fierce gaze. She had come with a secret order from Eugene. At first glance, she noticed Galfredik’s incredible strength and felt a burst of ecstasy. She could instinctively sense that Galfredik was much stronger than her father, the clan master. However, the spectating nobles didn’t know the truth and assumed she was being courteous toward Localope, who stood beside Galfredik.

Prince Localope coughed before taking a proud posture and greeting her. “Nice to see you, Countess Verna. I have heard of your great honor and reputation as a noble of the empire.”

“I’m flattered,” Verna responded with a bow and a gentle smile. Although all of her attention was focused on Galfredik, she was here because of Prince Localope.

Verna smiled softly and bowed even more politely before speaking, “I dared to use my power to track everyone to deliver the words of His Majesty Eugene. Please don’t be offended.”

“It was Master’s order, so you should be praised instead. Anyway, good work getting here so fast. Ah, right. Can I speak informally, Countess?” Galfredik said.

“Naturally. Again, please call me Verna,” Verna responded. She smiled charmingly while gazing at Galfredik. It was the first time she felt her heart race toward another member of the Dark Clan.

Selena, who was still Galfredik’s ‘aide,’ stepped forward with a straight face. “The lady is a countess of the empire. Master, if you treat her informally, it could lead to unnecessary diplomatic problems in the future. Moreover, the lady is much older than you, Master. It’s not only a matter of being disrespectful. I’m afraid that it might tarnish your reputation as well, Master.”

Verna’s eyebrows wriggled slightly when she heard how Selena had emphasized certain words.

‘How dare this little wench…’

It was ridiculous that a mere aide was interfering and blabbering, but Verna had to suppress her anger because she knew that Selena was the niece of Essandra Archivold.

“Well, I guess you have a point. Anyway, Countess, what is the master's message?” Galfredik asked.

Verna felt rather disappointed at how Galfredik had addressed her, but she bowed and responded anyway, “This is a message for His Highness Prince Localope.”

Verna raised her head and gazed at Prince Localope before continuing, “As a true friend of Your Highness Prince Localope, His Majesty has put on display the dignity of the imperial family on your behalf. However, as a foreign monarch, His Majesty cannot manage the City of Petrucca. As such, His Majesty hopes that Your Highness Localope will come to Petrucca as soon as possible to personally display the rights and the dignity of the glorious golden blood.”

“…”

Prince Localope looked rather dazed at Verna’s grand words. Count Vermain and the other nobles looked rather confused as well.

“That… Well, I’m not sure I fully understand…” Prince Localope said.

“To put it simply…”

Verna gave a brilliant smile before continuing, “The City of Petrucca will be incorporated under the direct control of the empire, and His Majesty would like to return the authority over the city to someone capable of representing the imperial family, which would be Your Highness.”

***

Petrucca was still at peace. It was like a lie, considering that five knights representing the city had perished and all the nobles of the city, including the governor, had been partially forced into detainment. The peace was largely due to the fact that numerous citizens had witnessed the overwhelming might of Maren’s King, but it was also because the vampire clans did not impose any sanctions on the city. Everyone was still free to come and go, and there were no restrictions imposed on the citizens, as well as on foreigners and those from other races. As such, the declaration of Maren’s King in regard to occupying the city was quickly buried without any remaining rumors. Nothing had changed since that day, and the governor had not taken any action either. As such, most people simply dismissed the matter, thinking that they had heard things wrongly.

Of course, the four vampire clans worked hard to achieve the result. Those from the four clans purposefully found gathering hubs for citizens, including pubs and restaurants, and they worked to change the public sentiment. And since no one could best vampires when it came to being ‘insidious,’ Eugene’s performance was elevated as another legend, while the comments he had made were simply forgotten in the meantime.

Unfortunately, the governor and the nobles of the city lived each day as if they were walking on thin ice. They had been involved in that act of ‘treason.’ Although most of them believed it to be true anyway, if Master Helmond’s testimony were actually true, it meant they had been involved in an act of serious treason. The governor, as well as the nobles, could easily be incriminated in the act of rebellion against the empire.

Treason was a heinous crime that could act as a weapon of complete destruction against anyone. Even if as much as one’s toes were involved in the act of treason, their entire family would be destroyed. As such, the nobles refrained from going out and stayed in their respective mansions while praying for the issue to peacefully go away. As Eugene mentioned, they had no choice but to wait for Crown Prince Voltaire, the central figure of the rebellion, to arrive in Petrucca. The nobles spent their days in great anxiety and curiosity about how the tremendous event involving the crown prince would end. And finally, a messenger arrived in Petrucca with news that the crown prince had arrived near the City of Petrucca.

***

“And the messenger?” Eugene asked.

“I sent them back, just as you ordered,” the clan masters responded.

“Then, he’ll come crawling in all on his own,” Eugene said.

“Yes. They are certainly excited. They even put on airs in front of us,” they said.

“Is it because you’re supposed to be a close aide of the crown prince? It seems both the boss and his underlings assume that he is already the emperor,” Eugene responded.

“But they will soon be awakened from their absurd illusion.” The clan masters even slightly smiled in front of Eugene. They discovered that their great god and master was more generous and tolerant than they initially thought. He only cared about their obedience to him.

Eugene smiled with satisfaction as well.

“If we get the crown prince, those who are holed up in the imperial castle should follow as well, right?” Eugene asked.

“Whatever deal they made with the crown prince, they won’t have any authority to do anything without the emperor or the crown prince,” the clan masters answered. Even if the veiled figures could control the crown prince at their will, they still could not do anything without the crown prince. In the first place, the Roman Empire was a centralized state, and all important matters were directly handled by the emperor or the crown prince. In other words, without Crown Prince Voltaire, the self-proclaimed Origins in the imperial castle would not be able to do anything.

What would happen if Crown Prince Voltaire disappeared? They couldn’t reinstate the detained emperor, so they would be left with no choice but to search for the crown prince.

“We have to ensure that the crown prince won’t run away, just in case,” Eugene said.

“Yes. I thought you might say that, so I sent some reliable children to observe him.”

The children were definitely high lords. Although high lords were only children to Eugene and the clan masters, they were still great beings. They would ensure that the crown prince would remain on his path directly to Petrucca without straying.

“Good. We only need Localope, then,” Eugene said. He was satisfied. With this, he could finally fulfill his promise to Localope. The third prince would emerge as a hero for punishing traitors and restoring the empire’s law and dignity. Such a hero would naturally succeed to the throne, and he would be on Eugene’s side.