Children of the Holy Emperor - Chapter 406



Only Noblemtl

406. Head Tower (4)

After the Emperor returned to government duties, the palace seemed to quickly regain peace.

But that was only the surface. Like lava that could erupt at any moment, beneath the cooling rock, fierce suspicions and confusion were still seething hotly.

First of all, the high priests of the Holy Synod.

They felt the shield of faith they had kept all their lives shaken to its core by the voice of the subtle evil whispering, “Alas, my lord! It may be so literal, I fear!”

So what can I do? I can only close my eyes and ears, which have become insensitive to good and evil, and pray ceaselessly for the Lord to quickly take away this harsh ordeal.

Such internal turmoil and tension, different from the outward appearance, can be found frequently outside the palace recently. One example is the intelligence organization that closely supports the royal family, the ‘Monkey Watchtower’.

After returning from a brief report to the King after a long time, No. 21 noticed that the air in the basement of the tavern, which was usually shrouded in secret silence, was excessively harsh.

“…Why is the atmosphere here like this?”

Then, after half a day, No. 19, who had become unrecognizable, silently smiled at him.

‘I don’t know! Please save me!’

As expected, at the center of that chilling air were veteran intelligence agents that No. 19 could not dare approach.

“Senior No. 9 and…Senior No. 13?”

The two, who had finally met face to face after such a long time, were not on good terms to begin with, as far as No. 21 knew.

But now, both of them are glaring at each other with distorted, sinister faces, as if something is seriously wrong.

Since the main job of informants was physically demanding work, there were occasional instances of friction between the units.

The problem is that these two people who are supposed to be friends are fighting over the unfortunate number 19.

“It’s funny. It’s been so long since you’ve been my master, and you already feel so arrogant as if you’ve been my loyal subject for eternity. What do you think of this? Number 19.”

The petite 9th asks, placing an arm affectionately on the shoulder of the not-so-tall 19th. His pronunciation has seriously deteriorated due to years of being beaten by the Varsha tribes, and his speech is unusually light and shaky.

Number 19 trembled in front of his distant senior, unable to say anything in response.

“Just because the period of time spent with them is long, doesn’t mean that the level of trust is proportional to that. Doesn’t the level of trust the owner has for the informant depend on how closely they are kept by their side? Answer me, No. 19.”

The tall and neat No. 13 glared at No. 19 with a cold expression. It was doubly scary to see the usually meticulous senior with such a serious expression.

Number 19 now looked like she was about to cry.

‘…aha!’

Number 21 could guess the details of the argument.

‘This is a problem with the monster task force that is going on a business trip this time.’

I heard that Senior No. 13 is going to follow Prince Mores this time too.

But for some reason, Number 9, who had served Prince Owen faithfully on the Southern Front for the past several years, was ordered to remain here. Was he given the task of staying in the capital and searching for someone?

It must have been a bolt from the blue for No. 9, who was particularly proud of his skills.

‘but…….’

No matter what, aren’t those two too insensitive? The one over there, No. 19, is the one who has served Prince Logan the longest, but has never followed the punitive force.

“What? Are you done talking? No. 19, did you hear what that baseless Varsha rascal was saying?”

Number 9 finally lost control of his anger and lost his temper.

The junior informant, who is not on good terms with him, is also serving an unlikable prince who once tormented his master. So he cannot help but be on edge about their every move.

“Huh! I wonder who in this room is speaking with a Barsha accent. Hey, listen up, Number 19?”

Of course, No. 13, who was up against her, was also formidable. She was a courageous senior who always proved herself with her skills to those who looked down on her as a Barsha.

Phagec!

A dangerous spark flew from the gazes of the two who faced each other. Only the numberless 19 screamed silently amidst the fierce war of nerves.

‘Please, someone get me out of here!’

It was just then.

Boom! Boom! Kwaang!

Someone was knocking loudly on the chimney that connected to the upper floor. It was Breman, the head of the monkey tower and a senior member of the assassination organization ‘Oberon’s Hand’.

At maximum intensity, four times.

Based on my experience, that signal is Breman’s ultimatum, meaning, ‘If you don’t do something, I’ll close up shop and go down immediately!’

“… … .”

The tension that had been building up disappeared without a trace. Not only No. 9, but also No. 21, all of them were riders who had gone through Breman’s harsh training.

“I, I will go! Prince Logan has urgent instructions for me to do this!”

No. 19 starts to hurriedly gather his documents, his expression noticeably relieved.

No. 21, who had been thinking of taking a break here for a while, also changed his mind and turned back. If he stayed here, he would get into trouble again.

“… Then I also have some things to prepare, so I’ll take my leave now.”

As we moved our bodies in a refreshing manner up to No. 13, soon only No. 9, who was completely dead, was left in the wide basement.

“Tch!”

Number 9 sat down with a thud and pouted inwardly.

I was aware that I had embarrassed myself in front of my juniors, who were far behind me. But how hurt must I have been recently?

“Prince Owen is really too much. He tells me to look for this guy here all of a sudden. Who on earth is he…?”

“…huh?”

“yes?”

But something unexpected happened. Rooms 13 and 19, who had already stepped out into the hallway, simultaneously looked back at Room 9 from beyond the door.

“Senior, who are you looking for right now… … ?”

“… … .”

“… Hmm? Ah.”

Number 9 was a little taken aback by the unexpected attention.

“This is the person Prince Owen has been looking for, but I don’t think he’s from Delcross. Do you guys know what region this name is from? It’s pronounced a bit strangely, so, Lee, Son… Jin?”

Let’s say the names one by one like that-

“Ah, that’s… … !”

“Huh?!”

Surprisingly, an awkward look of realization passes across the faces of both No. 13 and No. 19.

Number 9 was confused. Doesn’t it seem like everyone knows this name?

“You guys, really? Ishon, Jin?”

“No, I mean… … .”

A little while later, the truth that No. 9 heard from them was unexpected.

“That’s a tricky name to pronounce. It’s probably a nickname for the lower class.”

“Nickname? By the way, who is that?”

Then number 19 answered quickly.

“This is Prince Mores. I don’t know why, but Lord Logan has been calling Prince Mores that whenever they are alone.”

Number 9’s eyes widened at the unexpected information.

“What the heck?!”

Is this Lee Son-jin, that Prince Mores?

* * *

While preparing for the long business trip, Sungjin learned a lot from Sir Robert.

The knowledge of a knight who was ignorant? Of course, the secret to washing the conquest was learned from Edith instead of Seongjin. Of course, I also vaguely knew about the classification and characteristics of the demon species.

Then, as a part of common sense, I roughly learned about the reality of the sacred barrier that the knights were said to have learned.

“Isn’t this just geometry?”

Seongjin stuck out his tongue as he flipped through a textbook filled with complex shapes.

It is said that the person who currently established the foundation of the sacred realm is Granius, a famous theologian during the time of the Five Great Emperors.

Until then, the barriers created by priests were nothing more than simply pouring divine power into creating a large-sized curtain in front.

However, after he appeared, it became possible to create custom barriers based on the characteristics of the demon species.

With fewer people, and in a more efficient manner.

‘Depending on the number of people forming the barrier, the angle of the formation, and the object to be covered, the shape, incline, and even the height of the three-dimensional object change in a myriad of ways… … .’

The barrier thus completed can be a polygonal sphere or a polyhedron.

Either way, it doesn’t look easy. Now I see why the Paladins are so obsessed with practicing the Holy Barrier.

“Our exorcists are relatively better off. At best, there are only two people working together. However, the situation is quite different for the Lilium Special Forces that travel around the continent to subdue people.”

Against all sorts of sea creatures and demons, you have to create all sorts of barriers. So, naturally, the person who becomes the center of the barriers has to be good at geometry and mathematics, right?

It was a moment when the Lilium Special Forces and Logan, who was leading them and running around, were seen again.

‘I just thought they were Logan’s crazy fan club.’

And Sir Robert also taught Seongjin carefully about the tools used in exorcism.

Of course, most of them were uninteresting and he just turned a deaf ear to them, but occasionally, there were things that Seongjin thought were quite useful.

For example, there were small plaques indicating that one had been blessed for a month.

These were small, awl-shaped tools engraved with the symbol of the god, and were designed to be thrown or driven in with a hammer.

“Each one has a weak power, but if you place several of them in a row, you can instantly achieve a light purification or barrier effect.”

While listening to Sir Robert’s explanation, Seongjin picked up a bundle of secret tickets.

Ta-da-da-dak!

After throwing a few of them as a test, the bullets were stuck in the wall in a neat semicircle just as Sungjin had intended. Sir Robert, who was watching from behind, let out a soft exclamation.

“Excellent, Your Majesty! Have you ever studied swordsmanship separately?”

“Hmm? What is that… … .”

In fact, Sungjin is a promising assassin. He is already growing by learning tips from elite agent Dasha.

Of course, I can’t just tell Sir Robert that fact straight away.

‘Anyway, if it’s this easy to use, I might find it useful too.’

Seongjin took the opportunity to receive a set of secret tickets from Sir Robert.

“Ah! By the way, I haven’t shown you the most important tool yet.”

Sir Robert, who had called attention to himself, quickly took out a small object from his bag. It was smaller than a child’s fist, and looked like a spinning top with spikes on both sides.

“This is called a gyrocompass.”

“Gyrocompass?”

“Yes. It’s a device used to track down demons. It’s an important item that serves as a guide for exorcists who must track down demons alone.”

He continued his explanation, carefully placing the top on the table.

“They say that those with strong divine power can sense even the weakest magic. However, for exorcists like me who have weak divine power, there is no tool more useful than this. If you just place it on the ground like this, it will tell you the direction of the strongest magic in the surrounding area… … .”

But Sir Robert couldn’t finish his explanation. The needle of the gyrocompass, which had been spinning round and round, immediately turned around and pointed towards Seongjin.

Whirlyrick!

“… … .”

“… … .”

There was an awkward silence in the room for a moment.