âAh, you look like you have a lot of questions, but hear me out first!â
Such a sentence flowed out, still looking as chaotic as ever.
He took out something from his inner chest pocket.
âŠA key?
It was a key luxuriously decorated with jade.
The mark engraved on it indicated that it was used to access internal facilities in the Imperial Palace.
"This will allow you to enter anywhere in the Imperial Palace! It is an item managed by the Upper Nobles Association. I will give this to you!â
â...â
âAnd, alsoâŠâ
Marquis Bogut winked as held the key out to me.
âSince the Imperial Palace is crowded with people and full of things for you to play with, it wonât be a problem if you take a few things you like!â
â...â
âIf youâre caught, just tell them that the Upper Nobles Association told you to do it!â
From his words, this key didn't seem to be something that could be casually given away like thisâŠ
What he said afterwards made it sound even more so.
â...Why should I do that?â
âBecause you will be able to pass the Last Ordeal of the Hero Selection that way!â
â...â
âYou must be well aware of the thing that is âsleepingâ inside the Imperial Palace, right?â
Marquis Bogut continued while grinning.
âAnyway, youâll definitely find something that you could use for your plan!â
â...â
SomethingâŠ
Felt offâŠ
His intention behind him suddenly giving me such a favor asideâŠ
This bastard seemed to be very aware of the âprinciple of my actionsâ and my âgoalsâ.
Before the incident, I had to collect the items to solve it easily before planning in advance
He seemed to be aware that I âalready knewâ about this world.
â...I assume that thereâs something I need to take there.â
âYes!â
Marquis Bogutâs gaze fell onto the amulet tied to my arm.
â...Along with the âGuardianâ, it will definitely help you out!â
â...â
This bastardâŠ
He knew about Caliban too?
My expression stiffened as I stared at him silently.
Where the hell did this bastard come from? What the hell was it that he wanted?.
â...Why are you doing this, Marquis Bogut?â
I asked in a low voice.
âYou seem to know well that I could turn into your enemy at any time. Also, I am associated with your political opponentsâŠâ
I could not help but ask.
This bastardâs existence was mysterious enough to make me had the urge to force him to tell me his intentions.
â...Is that really something you want to ask me the most?â
Not only that.
His words made it sound like he knew everything.
âIf you ask, I think I could explain why Iâm doing this to some extent.â
â...â
I gritted my teeth slightly.
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It felt like I was dancing on his palm, so I felt really reluctant about thisâŠ
But, I had no choice but to ask him the most important question in my mind.
â...Do you know my mother?â
If it was about my father, Viscount Armin Campbell, it wouldnât be strange even if he knew about him in detail.
Given the cunning habits of the Empireâs nobles, it was safe to assume that they had investigated my personal information from A to Z since I began to receive their attention.
HoweverâŠ
If it was about my âotherâ parent, it was a completely different story.
âOf course I do.â
Bogut answered, shrugging his shoulders.
He asked me another question, still looking relaxed.
âWhat about you?â
That question stabbed me deep in my heart.
â...By the look of it.â
He continued.
âYou donât seem to know âeverythingâ, hm?â
Instead of replying, I just glared at him.â
âThought so.â
Marquis Bogut continued again with a grin.
âArmin is not the kind of person whoâd tell you stories about her so easily. He has always been like that ever since he was little.â
â...â
âThat bear-like pink. So diligent and hardworking. Guess that was why Astrid liked him.â
I clenched my fists.
Astrid.
Astrid Campbell.
That was my motherâs name.
And the only information about her that I knew âfor sureâ.
âAnd I respect Arminâs decision.â
Marquis Bogus continued in a soft tone.
âIf he didnât tell you, then I wonât be telling you anything about Astrid.â
â...Youâve already told me a lot, Marquis.â
I said coldly.
Why is he trying to play dumb after making it so obvious that he was deeply related with my parents? Is he trying to make fun of me or something?
However, despite my reactionâŠ
He only shrugged his shoulders as if it didnât matter.
â...Then, since Iâve told you so much already, why donât I be generous and tell you one more thing?â
At that moment, the grin on the bastardâs face vanished.
He continued his words expressionlessly.
This was the first time Iâve seen him looking so grave.
â...Astrid had asked me for a favor.â
This was getting really annoyingâŠ
âYou've been talking in circlesââ
âThe reason why youâre here is to sound me out, right? Both the Empress and the Chancellor must be thinking of checking on me.â
â...â
I narrowed my eyes.
He didn't say âHer Imperial Majestyâ.
As a vassal of the Empire, this was a violation that could get him punished for a lÚse-majesté.
In other wordsâŠ
He was openly expressing his âhostilityâ.
â...What are you thinking, Marquis Bogut?â
I didnât know the reason why he suddenly did this.
There was no way that he wasnât aware of the fact that both the Empress and the Chancellor werenât pleased with him.
Then, why would he say something that would clearly make him earn my disapproval? I was someone who was deeply connected with them both.
âCurrently, the movement of the Empireâs Upper Nobles Association is suspicious. In this situation where the Empireâs power is divided between the Empress, the Chancellor, and the Upper Nobles Association, a civil war will definitely break out and get out of hand if one side sets up a big fire. Am I right?â
â...â
This was something that I was also aware of.
Because this was the background of Chapter 5.
âThat⊠is correct.â
â...â
I looked at him as if doubting my ears.
It felt as if I had one done over me.
Currently, this bastard was the only one who was capable of causing a âGreat Turmoilâ in Chapter 5, but the problem here was the fact that he admitted to it calmly.
âŠBut why?
In the end, I went back to that question.
What would he gain by bringing this up now?
âDowd Campbell.â
As I pondered such thoughts, he called out to me.
âArenât you curious about what kind of favor Astrid asked me for?â
â...Sorry?â
âBecause of my promise with her, I canât say it outright⊠But I guess I can give you this much as a hint.â
Marquis Bogut said while sipping the wine in the glass he had taken with him.
âAstrid had entrusted me with âyouâ, the greatest masterpiece she had created.â
âWhat does that meaââ
âTo put it simply, Iâm thinking of making you âgreatâ.â
â...â
He was just saying words at this point.
This bastard was the first âvariableâ that rivaled even the Prophet since I came to Sera.
I frowned hard as I looked at him.
ThenâŠ
He continued without waiting for my reply.
âYou may pass this on to the Empress and the Chancellor as it is. Listen carefully.â
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What he said next was also something that was beyond my âexpectationsâ.
âI am going to burn down the Empire. All of it.â
â...â
He said those words so calmly that they failed to register for a while.
âIâm not going to start something lame like a civil war or something. Because my goal is not the throne.â
As if he was saying an obvious fact, his tone was so light.
âI will kill every imperial citizen over the age of ten. Men, women, kids, elderlyâeveryone without exception. Fairly. Hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, millions. All of them. Every single one of them.â
As if telling me he would go for a walk the next morning.
âI am going to restore this whole country to nothing.â
â...â
ThenâŠ
When those words finally registered, my breathing grew ragged.
â...You.â
If he was a madman or a villain, thus declaring the huge conspiracy he was plottingâŠ
I wouldâve at least understood.
But this punkâŠ
Was fucking soberâŠ
And he told such a ridiculous and lunatic planâŠ
In such a dry toneâŠ
As if this was something that he just had to do.
âAnd I want you to prevent that from happening.â
No kidding.
âI beg you.â
He said all of that ever so calmly.
â...HaaahâŠâ
After parting ways with Marquis Bogut.
I was walking outside on the terrace, down the corridor.
A deep sigh, the kind Iâve never let out even once since I first came here, ever so naturally came out of my mouth.
In my hand was the key that I had received from Marquis Bogut in the banquet hall.
âŠWhat the heck is that bastard?
I didnât get it.
It was the first time I had ever felt so hopeless since I met the Prophet.
Especially since he knew something about my mother that I didnât know. It seriously gave me the creeps.
[...Come to think of it, you said that itâs better not to know about your mother not too long ago.]
That voice came out of the Soul Linker.
[Did you say that because you knew about her to some extent?]
âNo, I didnât.â
[What?]
Caliban responded as if he was dumbfounded. Then, I forced myself to continue.
âIâve never even seen her face and thereâs only one thing I know about her.â
Back when I was little.
When I was very little.
Before I became âDowd Campbellâ.
When the original owner of this body was so sick that he couldnât even move properly.
[Ah, is that so? You said that you were cured miraculously when you were seven, no?]
âNo, I wasnât cured.â
I replied with a sigh.
âWhat happened was, I died once.â
I had looked it up in my fatherâs library.
When Dowd Campbell was six, lost his battle against a chronic disease and died.
There was even a record of them calling an undertaker to hold a funeral.
If anything, I came back to life âmiraculouslyâ, not cured.
â...And the one who caused that miracle was my mother.â
[...What does that mean?]
âShe resurrected the dead.â
Of course I had played tricks of coming back alive from death several times before, but I had never âcompletelyâ died, so her feat was on another level.
Astrid Campbell.
Had resurrected her completely dead son.
[...What?]
Caliban asked again, he sounded lost.
[Even the Great Priests of the Holy Land who could perform all kinds of miracles canât do something like that. No, even the Pope himself will never be able to do that! Itâs something you only see in fictionâŠ!]
âWell, Iâm here now because she did exactly that.â
[...But how?]
I know, right?
Honestly, I donât know how either.
â...â
Right.
Even though I was in a fantasy world, this was the shit that came out of a fantasy.
Resurrecting the deadâit was a kind of miracle that couldnât be found even in the Devilsâ Authority.
The most likely explanation was that I didnât actually die in the first place and they had mistaken me for dying when I was just in a state of suspended animation. But there was no way that my father would make that kind of mistake.
âŠI know nothing about my mother. Nothing.
How the hell did she resurrect a dead person?
What happened to her afterwards? Where was she now?
How did she meet my father? Where did they get married? What kind of life did she live?
I knew nothing.
Because that was all my father had told me about my mother.
As Bogut had said earlier, my father was terribly reticent when it came to my mother.
â...Whatever.â
I said with a sigh.
âIf I donât know, then I'll find out.â
That was the only way.
In order to find out what that bastard was up to and how he knew about my mother.
Iâd have to get into it myself.
âAnyway, I guess I should ask Her Imperial Majesty and the Chancellor for their permission and get away from this social gathering immediately, Caliban.â
[...Where are you going?]
âThereâs a place I have to drop by.â
I turned the key I received from Marquis Bogut in my grip once.
âThis has something to do with you as well.â
To be exactâŠ
I canât go there without /genesisforsaken