Bad Born Blood - Chapter 150
Only Noblemtl
150
I arrived at Francek’s camp with Ivan on my back. The atmosphere was much more military than when I left. Many armored personnel carriers had joined, so I could see armored vehicles and armored personnel carriers.
The sound of rain falling on the armored corps’ metal was eerily cold. Perhaps due to my psychological state, the outlines of my auditory vision appeared blue-white.
Francec’s forces were in the shape of an army. There were only about five hundred soldiers, but it would have been difficult to move more than that within the city limits anyway.
‘The occupation of this Earth is also coming to an end.’
I saw buildings smoldering with residual heat and half-destroyed vehicles. It was a sign of battle. And Francek’s troops, victorious in their battle with the insurgents, were moving along the ring road.
At the center of the unit was a large armored vehicle used as a command vehicle. The command vehicle was spacious enough to accommodate over twenty people, and its defenses were excellent, so it could withstand even bombing.
I felt the gazes of the people wondering. They didn’t even know who Ivan I had taken prisoner was.
‘We have to keep the momentum going. If we just wait until tomorrow, people will come to their senses. They will realize what they are doing.’
Whether Francis negotiates with the Emperor or accepts his abdication, it must be done tonight. When the light of reason rises, Francis’ power will disintegrate.
OMG.
I approached the command vehicle. The vehicle’s door, which was moving at a walking pace, opened.
Francis, who was inside the vehicle, saw me. He was talking to another nobleman and a sergeant.
“Ah, a messenger has arrived with the cooperation of the military! Everyone, please step aside for a moment.”
At Francesque’s words, everyone stood up.
There was anxiety and anticipation on people’s faces. If Francis succeeded, he would be at the center of power. If he failed, everything would be over.
‘Cooperation of the military.’
At those words, people’s faces lit up. Even though most of them were full-body, their emotions were clearly visible. This was probably because most of them were young nobles.
Francis is pretending to be in league with the military, and he may have been framing the story as if he had been preparing for a revolution for a long time.
‘The Crown Prince and the Military.’
If the cause and military power were there, there would be hope for Francesque, if that were true.
‘Everyone except Haylas is dead. There is no one with the authority to command the troops spread throughout Akbaran.’
There were many armies in Akbaran who had lost their masters. The emperor must be worried as well.
‘If we try to punish Frances by labeling him a traitor, the army may end up being absorbed by Frances.’
Now, Francesque’s momentum was very high.
Tomorrow may be different, but today was Frances’ night. Behind Frances’s troops, thousands of lower-class people were following.
But Francesca’s fire, as fierce as it is, will soon be extinguished.
The fireworks are at their peak now. Tonight was our last chance. We had about six hours left.
The army was not only inside Akbaran. The majority of the imperial forces were in the border regions and fortified frontier cities.
Considering the Emperor and Kinuan’s capabilities… … they will prepare a pretext to subdue us and even prepare troops in half a day.
‘I only have a few hours left to move, that’s for sure.’
My thoughts and senses were already dulling. It meant that the drug’s effects had peaked and were now diminishing.
OMG.
As I was thinking about this, the door of the armored car closed.
Inside the spacious car, there was only me, Francek, and Ivan, who had a broken jaw. Papers were strewn about in the middle.
And the monitors on the vehicle’s walls will show real-time situations all over the city. This is my guess. The monitor screen is an area that cannot be confirmed with auditory vision.
“roo…….”
Francis looked at me and couldn’t continue speaking. It must have been because my eyes were dim. He calmed himself down and continued speaking.
“Your talent is always amazing. By the way, why is my brother’s chin like this?”
“You are saying things that are detrimental to my mental health. I am a little annoyed. If it weren’t for Your Majesty’s request, I would have blown your head off. So please forgive me.”
It was something I would never have said normally. But now I had nothing to fear. I was a human who would be finished tomorrow anyway.
Kuung.
I threw Ivan onto the conference table. Ivan, with his arms and legs broken, was unable to do anything on his own. His vocal organs were also broken along with his jaw, so only a weak sound came out of his throat. To put it bluntly, he was no better than a bug.
“… … You came alone, without Heilas. Did our plan fail?”
There was anxiety in Francesque’s voice.
“Heilas will join us late. He offered himself as bait to get Ivan and me out.”
“So you’re saying I might not be able to come back.”
“If you’re going to die there, it won’t be of much help even if you join us.”
I tried to bluff. Worrying and praying won’t change anything.
“I told you that the deal between the military and me is over. If there is no sign of the military joining forces, there are many people out there who will betray me right away. We have to make the lies we spread into truth.”
“All the generals except Heilas are dead. We can’t move the military forces right now.”
Francesque’s face must have been pale now. He hid his trembling hands under the table.
“So is our revolution over?”
“Hailas saved me even after seeing the military general die. No matter how much he cherishes me, he is not the kind of person who would abandon his family and his people. In fact, he judged that his family was more important, so he tried to kill me twice. In other words, Heilas has other plans.”
I don’t know what that solution is, but it would be the worst option with very little hope. It would not even be considered as a second best option.
We must wait for Heilas’s contact so we can decide on a course of action.
Shhh, shhh.
Ivan, lying on the table, looked at me and gasped. The sight of his body, so aesthetically perfect, seemed pitiful.
“Just stay still, Riley, I’ll connect you shortly.”
Francesque called Ivan Riley, which seemed to be his original name.
Hold on.
Francis felt Ivan’s nape. The terminal under the artificial skin opened.
Creak.
As soon as I plugged the wire into the terminal, the terminal and Ivan were connected.
Woohoo.
A static noise that sounded like Ivan’s voice flowed out of the terminal’s speaker, and Ivan’s pupils blinked as if adjusting to the system.
-Brother, you are being deceived by Luca. The military and Heilas are already advancing on the palace! If we are tied down like this… … .
I sighed. I wanted to pull out the wire right away.
“Ivan, Prince Francis is not your puppet.”
I spat out coldly.
There was no agitation on Francis’ face as he looked at Ivan. Francis put his clasped hands on his chin and opened his mouth.
“I just ask you one thing, little brother. Did you want to become emperor even if it meant killing me?”
It was a wise question. He spoke as if he were certain of the attempted genocide, hiding his own unease. As if he knew everything.
‘Fransec still can’t believe that his father and brother tried to kill him.’
But not wanting to believe it doesn’t change the facts.
-… … Even if I wanted to keep evading until the end, there’s no time. Frances, you’re my puppet. You were just sitting in my place for a while. But now you’ve cut the strings yourself and are moving around as you please. Why didn’t you just dream happily without knowing anything?
The truth came out lightly. The reason was simple.
‘Ivan is getting nervous.’
Ivan wants to escape the Empire. If he drags his feet, he won’t even be able to leave Akbaran.
“Why, why, me, father, Riley, why, no, what did I… … .”
I was a little surprised, too. As soon as Ivan finished speaking, Francis’s once solid face began to crumble.
‘shit.’
Ivan’s sudden remarks seemed shocking to Frances. Even if he had prepared himself mentally, it seemed like it was difficult to handle.
-You are not worthy of being the emperor because you are shaken by a few words like this. Every time you pretended to be my older brother, it was ridiculous. I never once thought of you as a brother. Every time I acted kindly, I imagined how I would kill you.
“Lou, Luca, something doesn’t seem right, doesn’t seem right. This isn’t Riley.”
-I felt closer to the Kirishi and Mitoba families from the collateral line. I always wondered how someone as tall as you could be my brother.
Ivan spewed out harsh words as if he had sensed it was the right time. Francisc’s condition was critical. This was something I had not expected.
‘The bond between Francesca and Ivan was deeper than I thought. Francesca had never imagined that Ivan could be such a cynical person.’
I tried to muffle Ivan’s voice. If I pulled the line, he wouldn’t be able to speak.
Hold!
Francis shook his head, holding my hand. Tears were streaming down his cheeks and jaw.
– Are you crying? You wanted to believe that there was a reason why I couldn’t help it, right? You wanted to hear a plausible excuse from your lovely little sister.
Ivan really got into Francis’ heart.
“Enough of the verbal abuse, Ivan. From now on, you will only answer the questions we ask you. If you taunt His Majesty Francis one more time, you will experience your head being flattened.”
I put my hand on Ivan’s head. As I exerted force, cracks appeared from Ivan’s temples.
“roo…….”
Francesca tried to stop me.
thud!
I stretched out my front leg and kicked Francis. He was pushed back against the wall and fell down with a thud.
My palms pressed harder against Ivan’s head. His eyeballs were cracking too.
“Don’t think that a little brotherhood can protect you. In this place, I hold the power of life and death over you.”
-You’ve finally lost your temper, Luca. You’re showing your madness. If only you had been like this earlier, I would’ve liked you more… … .
Ivan said this and stopped mocking Francis. He had accepted my warning.
‘Ivan’s priority is his own survival. His immediate goal is not to become the emperor, but to survive.’
If you know the purpose, you can understand the principles of action. And negotiation is not difficult.
“As you can see, Prince Francis still thinks of you as a brother. His victory is the only way for you to survive. Cooperate with us, Ivan.”
-Haha, what happened to you? Your level of thinking has gone up a lot. This kind of change wouldn’t be possible in a short period of time… … .
“Well, okay, keep rambling on. Bye.”
I put strength into my arms. As expected from a body for the imperial family, it was extremely durable. The first thing to break was the table.
Kkwaduk!
I kept crushing Ivan’s head with the intention of killing him. When it hits the floor, his head will burst. His precious brain will be crushed.
Ugh!
Francis rushed in and caught Ivan’s head with his arm. The impact was reduced, saving Ivan’s life.
‘I knew you’d move, Francesque.’
It is true that I tried to kill Ivan. If Francis had not acted as I expected, Ivan would have died.
My murderous intent was real and without hesitation.
Kiing, kiing.
Ivan’s pupils would have been wide open, as if he had just seen a kaleidoscope.
“Haa, haa.”
Francesque gasped for breath as if he were about to die. Despite his panic, he jumped in to save his brother.
“Ivan, Francis is a better man than you. If you have any human heart at all, you should be ashamed of yourself.”
Ivan was silent for a moment. There were a few static noises from the connected terminal, and then he spoke fully.
-The Krachia family has a special gene. It is the key to the battle legacy of the Arcane civilization. If my father uses it, we are finished. The army gathered here now and all that is meaningless.
Ivan’s words seemed true. I waited for Francis’s reaction.
“I, I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
-Of course you haven’t heard it! You only believed what your father told you and never tried to find out anything yourself. I really hated you, Frances.
Even though it was a machine sound from the terminal, it had a heavy resonance. Ivan hated Francek.
-While you were waving your hand and laughing outside without knowing anything… …! I trembled in fear every night. Because I didn’t know when Father would kill me. I thought countless times that I might be the second Francis. Could he be hiding the real Crown Prince again? Could I really be the Emperor’s material when I was so scared and trembling like this? I couldn’t shake off my doubts.
Ivan did not trust himself. The backlash that was created is the Ivan we know. Even his arrogant words and actions that seemed to show no doubt that he was the successor were a mask for survival.
-Luka, can you trust a father who would calmly kill his eldest son? I too was crawling around like a log.
… … I didn’t answer. If you peel back just one layer, everyone was human.
Neither Ivan nor Heilas were as dark monsters as I thought. They were just humans who wore masks and pretended to be monsters, just like me.
Even the reason they had to wear masks was the same as mine. They pretended to be of the same species to avoid being eaten by monsters.
The real monster was not here. The alien being wearing the human skull cap was living deep inside the palace.
There are those who were born as humans and became machines. So it wouldn’t be strange if there were those who were born as humans and became monsters.