“This is an opportunity! We must take it immediately!”

“Isn’t it still unclear whether it’s real or fake? If we make a fuss for nothing…”

“It doesn’t matter whether it’s real or fake! We should just discuss what we should do after capturing him!”

A man claiming to be the King of Maren had appeared in front of the capital’s fourth gate, and the imperial castle was quickly thrown into chaos. The high officials shouted and argued their opinions fervently. However, Marecasio Caravan, who could be considered to be in charge, remained silent.

‘He came to the capital? Why? Does that mean the third prince and the traitors are moving separately? For what reason?’

Although Caravan was a Marecasio just like Helmond, he was less capable when it came to matters of the mind and remaining cool-headed. Such was why Marecasio Helmond had accompanied the imperial legions by himself.

‘Could I handle him by myself?’

Caravan shook his head after a short moment of contemplation. Even in the past, he and Helmond had worked together to barely put up a fight against ‘him,’ and it would have been an impossible task without the help of the Beholder. But now, he was without Marecasio Helmond and the Beholder. Even though ‘he’ still hadn’t recovered his old memories and was incomplete, the odds were still strikingly low.

‘Should I ask Mother for help?’

No, it would be a futile attempt. His mother had already put up a clear stance regarding what he and Marecasio Helmond had done. He could not hope for any help, and she was unlikely to provide any either.

Caravan finally came to a decision.

‘Let’s buy some time for now.’

“Everyone, silence,” He declared in a somber voice, and the shouts of the nobles instantly died down. However, there were a few officials who frowned while closing their mouths. Marecasio Helmond possessed a mysterious appearance rightly befitting his status as a member of the Dark Clan, and he was a knight. On the contrary, Caravan looked very strange. There were eerie tattoos completely obscuring his face, as well as big and small rings hanging from his ears, nose, lips, and even his cheekbones. He looked completely barbaric, and his appearance was simply unacceptable for the honorable, prestigious nobles of the empire.

‘I can’t believe I have to take orders from such a monstrous man…’

‘A monster like him has been controlling the imperial family for the past few hundred years? This is a massive disgrace. It’s a disgrace to the imperial family and to the great empire as well!’

It was perhaps a natural response for the nobles of the imperial nobles, who were born into the ruling class of the great Roman Empire. Although they were holding their tongues for now, due to the prestige of the legendary Marecasio, they held no fondness for the Marecasio, particularly for Caravan, whom they regarded as a barbaric man.

Even though the empire strictly followed a model of central power with all authority delegated to the emperor, did the barbaric man truly think that the emperor supported the large nation by himself? Clearly, the monster had no idea that sustaining the empire was impossible without the presence of the numerous officials and high officials and their great efforts. As such, quite a few nobles secretly shared a gaze while bowing and pretending to listen to Caravan.

“The one who claims to be the King of Maren. Let him be for now,” Caravan said.

“What? But Marecasio, the fourth gate is the most heavily traveled gate of the capital. If we keep it closed, it will cause great inconvenience to the people of the empire.”

“That’s right. You may be unaware after being in seclusion for such a long time, honorable Marecasio, but each day, the fourth gate sees the passage of products that are consumed by all the people of the capital.”

“Hooh? So are you saying that I should shut up because I don’t know the world any better than you?” Caravan responded.

“I apologize if you understood it that way, but I never meant…”

The nobleman denied it while bowing his head. But in truth, he planned to teach the ignorant monster how big a problem would occur if the fourth gate were kept locked. Unfortunately, the noble’s attempt was unsuccessful.

“If you didn’t mean it that way, then you are truly a fool,” Caravan said.

“…!!!”

The noble’s expression crumpled with his head still held low. Even if the Marecasio were legendary existences who cared for the emperor and the imperial family from generation to generation, he was not entitled to use such a tone. This was the imperial castle, and those present were the highest nobles of the Roman Empire. With the exception of the imperial family, they were the most honorable and noble people in the entire world.

‘You damned monster…!’

The noble’s eyes became bloodshot after Caravan trampled on both his honor and pride. However, he was bowing his head, and even a Marecasio could not see the change in the noble’s expression. Of course, if Caravan were slightly more sensitive, he would have realized earlier on that the atmosphere surrounding quite a few nobles had changed. However, he was a Marecasio, a vampire of vampires and an existence superior to the clan masters. He had become accustomed to being treated with only respect for hundreds of years, even by the emperors. For Marecasio Caravan, the imperial nobles were nothing more than literal ‘insects,’ and he would surely not attempt to understand the feelings of a petty bug.

“Let’s say that the man in question really is the King of Maren. He is a member of the Tribe of Darkness, just like me, and this is the city of the emperor. Do you really think he can cross the gate?” Caravan asked.

“…!”

“To be incapable of such basic deduction, you truly are a fool.” Marecasio Caravan said in an extremely cold voice. His voice was devoid of mockery or emotions.

He then continued while looking around at the other nobles, who were clearly bewildered by his words. “I cannot believe that such an incompetent lot was responsible for leading the empire. This is exactly why we are where we are now. Useless insects.”

Paaaaaa…

Marecasio Caravan was completely serious, and Fear exuded from his eyes. The nobles bowed their heads and saw their shoulders tremble in the face of the suffocating fear. However, all of their hearts burned with anger and contempt.

“If you insects are so worried, I will personally go to the gate and check it myself,” Caravan declared. He openly expressed his Fear while crossing the great hall.

The imperial nobles could only tremble in terrible humiliation and fear.

***

“Sir, are you really going to stay here like this? I’m getting bored.”

“…”

Mirian whined, then eventually gave up when Eugene ignored her and continued to gaze silently at the gate. She wanted to complain more, but by the looks of it, Eugene had a plan. Moreover, Mirian knew from experience that it was best to keep quiet at times like this.

“Kieeee… There’s no helping it. At least you can—Kieeh?!” Mirian muttered while rolling around on Silion’s mane, but then she suddenly jerked her head around in surprise. She was slightly lacking, but she was an evolved spirit of water with a contract with the Origin. It was only natural that she could sense the powerful energy drawing closer to where they were standing. In addition, it was the most powerful energy she felt after meeting Eugene.

“S-s-sir. What’s this? I-is this what you were talking about earlier?” Mirian asked.

“That’s right…” Eugene nodded before unfolding his arms. However, the energy coming closer to them belonged to someone else. It wasn’t the energy he referred to earlier.

‘I thought there were three Marecasios, so why are there only two? Did one of them join the imperial army while two stayed behind?’

In the end, it didn’t really matter. He had warned Galfredik earlier just in case something like this happened. Galfredik was his only vassal, and he was certain that Galfredik could handle a Marecasio alongside the four clan masters. Maybe Galfredik could even face them alone.

‘How strange.’

Eugene turned his attention to the two energies with interest. Both were definitely stronger than the clan masters, but one felt more intense compared to the other.

‘It feels familiar. Why is it?’

It felt like an itch in the corner of his mind. Something danced near the border of his consciousness while poking at his memories and emotions. Eugene was slightly taken aback by the unexpected feeling. He had never felt anything like it.

There were three Marecasio, and they all resided in the recesses of his memories. As such, both energies should have evoked a similar reaction because both of them were likely his children. However, only one presence elicited the strange feeling. Hot and bright—a strange yet familiar feeling.

‘Well, I’ll know when I see them.’

Naturally, he was referring to the one with the familiar energy. Unfortunately, the one rapidly approaching the gate was the unremarkable presence that was just slightly stronger than the clan masters.

***

The guard captain and the guards quickly bowed and made way when they saw Caravan and the accompanying imperial guards. They were ignorant of Caravan’s identity, but the presence of the imperial guards meant that he possessed an exceptional status. Caravan slowly climbed the stairs and arrived at the top of the walls. He looked down at the two figures on horseback waiting in front of the gate.

“…!”

He quailed, and his tattoo-covered eyes convulsed. He met the gaze of the crimson, ruby-like eyes, and his lips slowly opened.

“It was… real.”

Caravan started breathing hard. He was again in the presence of the one he once admired and adored, one he would have given his life for. He had never imagined that they would meet again and that their meeting would be like this.

“It seems that fate really exists…” Caravan muttered. His words were inaudible even to those right by his side. However…

“That’s right. It really seems like fate exists.”

“…!”

Eugene’s voice pierced through space and rang inside Caravan’s ears.

“You, you know me, right?” Eugene asked.

“…”

“I think I know you as well,” Eugene continued.

Caravan bit his lips and replied, “It seems you haven’t recovered everything just yet.”

“Well… I don’t think that’s very important. Anyway. are you going to continue looking down at me from there?” Eugene asked.

Caravan clenched his teeth at the words only he could hear. It was an instinctual response for a vampire. However, it was fine. One way or another, he just had to wait until Marecasio Helmond returned after destroying the third prince’s army. He just had to hold out until then.

“Well, there are certain things that even you can’t do. Yes, I intend to do this for the time being,” Caravan muttered before catching his breath. His soul had been momentarily shaken after seeing the absolute ruler of the clan and hearing the latter’s voice, but he managed to overcome it. It was due to his belief that Eugene could never climb the wall, as well as the authority only he and Marecasio Helmond possessed.

“Really?” Eugene’s mouth curled up into a smile, revealing his sharp fangs.

“…!”

Caravan’s eyes quivered. How could he possibly forget that smile?

And every time he smiled like that…

Bang!

A loud explosion broke out. An intense shockwave of air pulsated around the origin of the explosion, and Caravan instinctively unleashed a barrier of Fear around himself. The powerful shockwave caused the troops on the wall to stagger, and the crowd outside the wall collapsed like straw. Amidst the chaos and screams, Caravan quickly turned to where his instincts led him.

“…?!”

The eyes of Marecasio, the strongest vampire in the empire, grew wide with astonishment. ‘He’ stood with his legs on the wall of the capital, even though no one, not even the ruler of the tribe, could cross the wall without permission from the emperor.

‘He’ stood there as if he was mocking the absolute constraint placed on the Tribe of Darkness.

The ruler of vampires, the Origin, the alpha and omega, spoke to the empire’s strongest vampire, “I don’t know your name, but you were laughing at me the last time you saw me, right? I remember that for sure.”

Eugene stared straight at Caravan’s stiffened figure. He had kept his following words buried within him, as he had been waiting for the day when he finally met the Marecasio.

“You bastards erased my memory, right?”