The secret passage in the royal palace was dark and eerie. Several places that were only accessible to certain individuals were visible through the small openings in the wall. The trio passed by numerous openings that showed a high-ranking official’s office, the restricted library, a storehouse sealed with magic, and even the royal bathhouse.

“It’s connected to every single important place in the royal palace. Spies and traitors would love this place. Who made this place?” Yu Si-Do asked.

“Someone who’s both a traitor and a spy,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“Really?” Yu Si-Do asked with interest.

“There are revolutionaries within the royal palace too,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

He walked without any hesitation whenever they were met with a fork in the secret passage. That did not change even when the passage divided up into multiple branches.

Yu Si-Do asked as they were passing by a torture chamber that reeked with the stench of blood, “But how do you know that?”

“It’s none of your business,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“Wow! You’re the second person to treat me so coldly! The first was Han Se-Hyun,” Yu Si-Do exclaimed, giggling as if he had thought of something fun.

Kang Yoon-Soo continued walking and thought, ‘First, we have to assassinate the emperor. Then, we’ll go and find the alchemist who created Iris.’

He asked, “It has been quite a while. Has the White Shadow said anything?”

“The White Shadow is quiet. The only time it spoke so much was when I first met you,” Iris replied.

What was the identity of the White Shadow? That question would be answered very soon.

The trio walked through the inclined passage for quite a while. Eventually, a large square tile appeared in front of them. Once they moved the tile away, it revealed a large, grand, and majestic room.

“So this is the emperor’s residence,” Yu Si-Do said excitedly, repeatedly licking his lips.

Kang Yoon-Soo looked around the room decorated with various exquisite art pieces, and saw a large-framed man sleeping on the bed.

Iris looked at the man curiously and said, “So that man is the emperor. The father of the princess I was created to look like.”

Yu Si-Do whispered excitedly, “How do you plan to kill him? Stab him while he’s asleep? Or wake him up and make him go through all sorts of humiliation first? Hoo… Fuck! I can’t stop trembling from excitement thinking I’m going to kill the man with the highest authority in the continent!”

“We’ll poison him,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“What?” Yu Si-Do exclaimed with a disappointed expression. He added, “You came all the way here to end it that easily?”

“It’s the most silent form of assassination that leaves no trace,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

The emperor’s bedchamber had security magic installed in it; that magic would sound the alarm if someone did not enter from the main entrance.

Yu Si-Do squinted and said, “I didn’t follow you all this way just to commit such a boring murder.”

Kang Yoon-Soo stared at Yu Si-Do for a moment. Yu Si-Do was a skilled assassin, but his madness had made him betray Kang Yoon-Soo multiple times in previous lives; he had to be kept entertained to prevent the madness from coming out.

“I’ll use a poison that will make him laugh until he dies,” Kang Yoon-Soo said.

“A poison that can make someone laugh until  they die?” Yu Si-Do asked. His interest seemed to have suddenly been piqued as he asked, “You brought such a poison with you?”

“No,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“Then how do you plan to poison the emperor?” Yu Si-Do asked.

“I’ll get it from here,” Kang Yoon-Soo said. He walked for a bit and entered a door to reach the royal greenhouse. The bright moonlight shone down on the greenhouse covered in transparent vinyl panels.

“There are a lot of flowers here. This place makes me feel good. I like this place,” Iris said. She sniffed the flowers and smiled.

Various plants that had been difficult for even Kang Yoon-Soo to find in his previous lives were present inside.

Yu Si-Do looked around the greenhouse and plucked out a red flower. He exclaimed excitedly, “Ah! This is a bloodsucking flower! There’s no better material than its roots when making narcotics!”

Kang Yoon-Soo passed by numerous plants as he headed for the center of the greenhouse. He ignored all of the plant species that were valuable for alchemy or potion-making along the way. At the center of the greenhouse was a large purple flower.

‘Flower of the Lunatic.’ he thought as he skillfully plucked the flower’s petals. 

Suddenly, beyond the plants, a woman’s voice called out, “Who’s there?”

She then emerged from between the flowers. The moonlight shone down on her, and her long, flowing blonde hair shone bright under the moonlight. She was a noble and elegant beauty.

“Ah…” Iris let out a small voice as she stared at the woman, and the woman stared back at Iris. The two women, who had not even the smallest difference between them, looked at each other.

“You… You look exactly like me,” the woman said.

“You’re right. We do seem alike,” Iris said, with a strange glimmer in her eyes.

Yu Si-Do placed his hand on Iris’ shoulder and pointed at the woman before asking, “What is this sudden turn of events? Is that the real princess?”

“I do not think there is any reason to doubt my identity,” the woman said proudly.

They were certain. The woman in front of them was the imperial princess—Kisifran Reorkan.

“Who are you people, to be entering my greenhouse? And with someone that looks exactly like me on top of that?” Princess Kisifran asked.

Kang Yoon-Soo and Yu Si-Do were still wearing their masks, and Princess Kisifran could immediately tell that these people had not entered the royal palace with good intentions.

“There’s no way they would have granted access to the royal palace to people like you. With what intention did you enter the royal palace?” Princess Kisifran asked once again.

“To kill your father,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

Princess Kisifran was silent for a moment before saying, “Good. Do you need any help?”

“No,” Kang Yoon-Soo replied.

“I pray for your success then,” Princess Kisifran responded.

Yu Si-Do could not hold his laughter back. He asked, “What a fun response. Is the princess crazy like us?”

“No, I’m not. I’m just well aware of how I should be acting in front of assassins,” Princess Kisifran responded with a smile as her lips trembled.

Kang Yoon-Soo placed his blade on her neck and said threateningly, “Take it off.”

***

Tens of Centaurs died to Helkin’s blade, but they immediately came back to life to fight once again.

“What’s going on?” Lenox asked, staring dumbfounded at the sight unfolding in front of him.

Seyra coated her blade with oil and replied, “Can’t you see? They’re coming back to life as undead.”

“It’s not just that they’re coming back to life. They’re coming back stronger than before. There must be a black magician hiding somewhere behind all this,” Lenox said. He drew his blade and shouted, “All units! Go immediately to assist Sir Helkin!”

The knights and soldiers immediately charged into the fray at Lenox’s command.

Seyra struck her blade against the stone pavement and dragged it in a crescent shape. Sparks flew all over, and the swordmaster’s blade emitted brightly shining flames. “I don’t feel like cremating anything today, but I guess I have no choice,” she muttered.

“Be careful not to burn any of the plants his majesty the emperor adores!” Lenox shouted.

“Ah, please! I hope you’re joking, Mr. Upright sir knight!” Seyra retorted.

The Centaurs were quickly cut down one by one when the imperial knights joined the battle, but their morale did not falter at all.

“The Lord Lich, who has reached the pinnacle of black magic, stands with us!”

“Let  us borrow this evil energy and completely destroy the royal palace!”

The Mini-Lich left at the back of the line was now stuck in a difficult position. It thought, ‘I want to cry.’

It did not possess any immense powers like an average Lich, and to be honest, it had already had its hands full just dealing with Helkin alone. But now, with the joint attack of the imperial knights, the undead it had raised would be completely annihilated.

‘This is a difficult task for someone like me who was just born,’ the Mini-Lich thought. It inwardly cursed its master for leaving it with such a daunting task.

However, it shook its head, as expected of the naïve(?) Mini-Lich.

‘This is all because I’m not strong enough. Let’s not blame master,’ it thought.

The Centaurs’ front line was now completely annihilated, and the Mini-Lich at the back swung its staff at the Centaur army’s second line. The Centaurs suddenly went berserk and charged madly toward their enemies.

‘I want to cry, but why can’t a skeleton cry?’ the Mini-Lich thought as it sniffled.

Helkin struck down four Centaurs in one fell swoop, then jumped high into the air. The old knight found the Mini-Lich hiding in the back lines in an instant and shouted, “That guy is the perpetrator behind this!”

“Ack!” the Mini-Lich screamed as it was cut down by Helkin’s ferocious sword. The force that hit it was strong enough to turn its bones into dust. However, it just sustained minor cracks in its bones and did not die.

‘I-it’s a good thing master took my life vessel with him…’ it thought. Of course, it would not be able to come back to life if its bones were ground into dust, and the Mini-Lich was aware of that fact.

“Wall of Fog!” the Mini-Lich shouted, and a thick black fog enveloped the area around it. Helkin immediately swung his sword toward the escaping Lich, but he did not manage to cut it down and the Lich managed to escape.

“That rat-like bastard…” Helkin bit his lips before turning around and shouting, “Dame Seyra! Sir Lenox! I’ll leave this place to you guys!”

“Sir Helkin! What do you mean by that?” Seyra asked.

Helkin replied in a cold, ferocious voice, “Didn’t you notice it? That sorry excuse of a lich was just here to stall for time. It was intentionally dragging the battle out, and I’m sure the real perpetrator is here somewhere.”

“Do you have somewhere in mind?” Seyra asked.

“There are a few… I’ll go take a look,” Helkin responded.

Lenox suddenly shouted, “Sir Helkin! I’ll go with you!”

“There’s no need for you to come along as well,” Helkin replied.

Seyra suddenly shook her head and said, “No, it’s better to take him. Lenox will be a big help to you. I’m more than enough to take care of this place.”

“Alright,” Helkin replied.

The two imperial knight captains left the scene of the battle and headed toward the royal palace.

Helkin looked around for a moment at places Lenox could not see, then suddenly said, “Over there. There’s a broken window.”

***

There were two guardsmen guarding the entrance to the emperor’s bedchamber. The usual cliché was for guards standing watch to be hit from behind in the head and collapse, but that was not the case for these two. Only the best of the best of the imperial guardsmen were stationed to watch over the emperor’s residence.

“What is the matter, Your Highness?” one of the guardsmen asked.

“I have something urgent that I must relay to father,” Princess Kisifran said in a warm, elegant voice.

The guardsmen looked perplexed for a moment and asked, “Who are those two men behind you, Your Highness?”

“They are my personal bodyguards,” Princess Kisifran replied.

The two guardsmen looked at each other and furrowed their brows before saying, “We cannot allow you to enter his Majesty’s bedchamber at this hour even if it is Your Highness. It is all the more difficult with your bodyguards on top of that.”

“Is there really no way around it?” Princess Kisifran asked with a sad expression.

The guardsmen were taken aback by the face the princess made. The princess had never made such a face at anyone before.

“You guys are being too much the more I listen to this…” the man behind the princess said as he stepped forward. He seemed to possess the haughty arrogance usually carried by nobles. He said proudly, “To think that you would dare use the law and rules of the land against the bloodline of the royal family that established this empire. Do you think that makes any sense at all?”

“This is the bedchamber of his majesty the emperor. I am sure that you are well aware of the strict rules that were implemented by his majesty to prevent his assassination and kidnapping,” the guardsman replied.

“Then you should stand aside all the more. His majesty might be in grave danger as we speak,” the man insisted.

“Huh? What are you talking about, sir?” the guardsman asked, shocked by the man’s words.

The haughty man lowered his voice and whispered, “This is something highly confidential related to the royal family. As such, do not go around telling this to anybody else. Actually, a letter arrived at the royal palace this afternoon from someone threatening to assassinate his majesty the emperor. Of course, the sender was not written, but we are currently assuming it was those pesky Traveler bastards.”

“I-I see,” the guardsman replied, still in shock.

“If you get it, then stand aside! Every second counts!” the man urged the guardsmen on.

The guardsmen contemplated for a moment before standing aside and making way for the princess. ‘Her highness the princess is with them; what could go wrong?’ they thought.

The trio entered the bedchambers of the emperor.

“That expressionless man, who do you think he is? I’ve never seen him before,” one of the guardsmen asked.

“I don’t know, but I’m sure he’s a high ranking man. It’s been a while since I saw someone who spoke and moved so elegantly like a true noble that way,” the other guardsman replied.

“He seemed to be quite young, but he’s already the personal bodyguard of her highness. He’s really amazing. He must at least be the son of a marquis,” the first guardsman remarked.

“He lives in a world different from ours,” the other guardsman added.

The guardsmen let out a sigh and went back to standing watch over the emperor’s bedchamber.