Imperial Guard - Chapter 13



Only Noblemtl

Episode 13

butterfly effect

“Ahem-.”

A pleasant humming echoed throughout the room.

Yuri, a guard from the special guard unit, was sitting in the office again today, concentrating on her work.

In addition to monitoring the King, she is responsible for the administrative work necessary to maintain the Special Guard.

[The Demon King’s Seal. No abnormalities.]

[The Thousand-Year Sword Master’s whereabouts are unknown. However, he is not in danger.]

[The dragon is still absorbed in its research.]

In fact, although it is called administrative work, there is almost no work.

In the first place, the special guards are not part of the Imperial Central Guard.

This is the Imperial Guard.

Even if Yuri does administrative work, it ends when she reports that there are no problems with the Demon King’s seal.

The other two are beings that don’t cause accidents.

“Is this enough?”

Yuri got up from her seat, stretching.

This was Yuri’s office, but it was also where she lived.

Because the condition for her, as the princess of the empire, to leave the imperial palace was to not leave here.

She is only allowed to go out with her maid once a month, but the rest of the time she must spend all her time in the special guard unit.

“Miss Yuriel.”

“I told you to call me Yuri here.”

Yuri sat on the sofa, watching Inyoung pop out of the air, blurring.

She, Isabelle, dressed in a black cloak, approached Yuri as if she were familiar with him and knelt down.

“It’s burdensome, so don’t do that when there are just the two of you.”

“That can’t be true, Uriel.”

Yuri chuckled and put a hand on her shoulder.

It was the etiquette of the imperial family.

Only then did Isabelle get up from her seat.

Ghent, Reina, and even Rael.

Only after all of the special guards had left did Yuri return to her true form.

2nd Princess. Uriel von Grandia.

Yuri looked into Isabelle’s eyes with a dignified look.

Blue eyes colder than the ice lakes of the North pierced hers.

Although his gaze was slightly nervous, the aura emanating from his body transformed even that into an appearance of authority.

Isabelle unconsciously lowered her head and held out the paper she had in her arms.

“The security guards that came in this time were cleaner than I thought. Come see for yourself.”

Isabelle put the paper down on the table in front of the glass and stepped back a little to stand behind her.

“··· I told you that you don’t have to do any background checks.”

“It is Lady Uriel’s duty to preserve the body. It is not a matter of likes or dislikes.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll take a look later.”

Yuri shook her head.

Isabelle always had that attitude.

She is overly loyal to the royal family and sees herself as the second princess, not Yuri.

“Miss Yuriel. You are still staying in a simple room.”

“Then that won’t work?”

Yuri asked, pouring tea on the table.

“It seems like a place that is not suitable for the Emperor’s bloodline. If you wish, I can create an environment identical to that of the Imperial Palace rooms at any time.”

“That’s an interesting question. Are you saying that lying on this bed will hurt my reputation? Does that mean that my imperial bloodline will be pushed aside by the bed?”

“··· That’s not what I meant.”

“As long as I’m here, this is the princess’s room. And, from now on, don’t come here and do any more research like this. I told you, it’s annoying to read.”

Knock- knock-

Yuri crossed her legs and lifted the paper, slamming it on the table.

It meant that it was time to go now.

“Okay. Good night, Uriel.”

As expected, Lady Uriel is a dignified and confident princess.

Isabelle lowered her head and disappeared into thin air again.

Only after she felt that she had completely disappeared was Yuri able to relax.

“Ugh. I’m dying of suffocation. Seriously.”

I wasn’t born wanting to be a princess, so I don’t know why I have so much to do.

Yuri looked at the piece of paper lying on the table.

This is the research on Rael that Isabelle gave me.

‘It’s a shame to look at other people’s information, but…’

Still, let me take a quick look.

Knowing his circumstances might help us next time we talk.

Yuri slowly read down the paper. She had read research like this many times before, but it was the first time she had read something as succinct as Rael.

“···Do people like this really exist?”

Yuri, who had finished reading the paper, started reading it again from the beginning as if it was new.

“Raised in an orphanage, you pulled out your sword at the age of 10… You turned down offers from numerous guilds and joined the guards, saying you wanted to be loyal to the empire…? No, why don’t you join the Knights Templar?”

With that level of talent, it wouldn’t have been difficult to join the Knights of District 1.

Why did you apply to the Central Guard in District 3?

Yuri lowered her gaze.

“I’ve never set foot in a red-light district… and I donate all my salary to a daycare center…?”

Since this information was obtained by royal informants, it means that it is all true.

“Mr. Lael… you were a good person. No, you were a strange person?”

Yuri mentally raised her evaluation of Rael by one level.

I thought it might be a good idea to have a serious conversation with Rael next time.

*

Beggars are working harder than you think.

Other people might not know, but Rael could tell.

The movements of beggars wandering the streets have changed.

Beggars were seen everywhere, whether at festivals, weddings, funerals, etc.

Of course, beggars had been seen before, but now Rael saw that they were naturally gathering information among people.

‘Openness is right after all.’

There’s no way a martial arts novel would lie.

It is clear that beggars are very good at obtaining information.

“Lael. You said you would go see the debt collector with me. When will you go?”

“I was going to go yesterday, but you were drunk and out of your mind. I can’t go today because I have something to do, but I’ll try to make time sometime this week.”

Lael lay in the hammock and talked to Reina.

Reina was standing next to him, chattering, and Gent was pruning.

Last time he threw a tantrum and told me not to prune the tree, but today he is quiet.

The elves were definitely not normal.

“That’s right. Ghent made some wine for you. Ghent! Is it okay if I give it to you now?”

“Do as you wish. But aren’t you forgetting something?”

“Huh?······ Ah! Ah, I made a mistake. Brother Rael···.”

“Hmm.”

Gent nodded at Reina.

Actually, I was thinking of teasing her a little, but it seemed like Rael was already doing a good job of that role.

“Okay. It seems like we’ve become pretty close, so I guess we can stop now.”

“Gent! You are a kinder giant than you look. Then I will bring you some wine!”

Reina tapped Gent on the shoulder and went into the building.

‘Every day must be fun for these kids.’

Rael looked at the two and laughed in vain.

But now I feel like I’m pretty close with them.

In fact, Ghent and Reina were easy to deal with.

Gent just has to praise the crops in the field and sympathize with the wonders of nature, while Reina just has to agree with his vague remarks.

There are no fools like this one.

‘Yuri still has to try a little harder.’

In contrast, the princess had a difficult time.

I’d like to become closer to you, but I need to think about how to do that.

‘It doesn’t seem like they’re that close with Yuri either.’

Yuri usually worked alone.

My hobbies were also quite healthy. On days when I didn’t have work, I would read books in the office or go for a walk.

It seemed strange that Rael, who had no interest in that area at all, would suddenly approach me, so I put it on hold for the time being.

‘He seemed really happy when he went out occasionally.’

On the day I went out, I could see her smiling and happy from the morning, so I thought it would be a good idea to approach her at that time.

Jaw- Jaw-

As I was thinking about glass in my hammock, a fox approached me.

“Oh. Come here, fox.”

Rael climbed onto his stomach and stuffed the beef jerky into the fox’s jaw as it yawned.

It was quite cute to see him munching on jerky in a hurry.

“Are you close with Vermeil III?”

As I was stroking the fox’s head, Gent, who had finished pruning, approached me.

Ghent also called the fox Vermeil III.

It seems that his real name is Vermeil III, not just a nickname that Reina uses.

“··· It’s shocking that his real name is Vermeil III.”

“The names of spirits are usually like that, so what’s strange? I’m more surprised that you’ve already become close with Vermeil III. Yuri is still awkward, but you seem to have become closer to me than I am.”

“It’s natural for animals to like handsome people.”

“I see. Well, Rael, you have one of the better looking faces among humans.”

Ghent nodded.

Rael was quite handsome among humans.

“Ghent. If you put up with Rael’s bullshit, it’ll never end. You should also learn to ignore it appropriately.”

At that moment, Reina, who came out of the special guard building holding wine, spoke with a distorted expression.

Why does that crazy elf come and do that when he’s in a good mood?

“Vermeil III. Ask.”

“Ouch! Vermeil III! How could you do this to me?!”

While Reyna fled from Vermeil III, Rael leisurely lay in his hammock, munching on jerky.

After some time, Vermeil III came back onto Rael’s ship, and an exhausted Reina also came over.

“Huh, haa… That’s right. Rael. There’s something I wanted to ask you.”

“What is it?”

“It’s about your body. You were fine even after receiving the blessing of the forest, and you remained conscious even after facing the Demon King. I’m curious about the secret.”

“You guys can handle that much, so what are you curious about?”

“That’s a different story. Ghent and I are long-lived species with strong vitality. And we’re also among the strongest in our clan.”

“··· You and Ghent? Really?”

I knew these guys were strong, but to think they’d be one of the best in the clan.

How on earth do giants and elves survive in this harsh world?

It was really questionable.

“That’s because you don’t know! If you tell the foreigners that we’re Gent and Reina, they’ll all be surprised and run away!”

“Oh, right. Let’s say that’s true. Then what about Yuri? Yuri is a human being just like me.”

“Yuri··· comes from a noble family, so she was blessed with blessings since she was young, and her mental barrier is as thick as that of a longevity servant.”

Reina, who had to hide Yuri’s origins, spoke indirectly as much as possible, but to Rael, who was a human, it was no different from advertising through a loudspeaker that Yuri was the princess.

Which noble family would be blessed with such longevity?

“Of course, Yuri’s great mental power also plays a part. But you’re not like that? You don’t show any blessings on your body… and your mental power is also not that great.”

“What are you talking about, you crazy elf?”

“Anyway! What are you? How do you withstand the spirit of the Demon King? It’s important!”

Reina shook the hammock as if she was going to eat Rael.

I thought it was really important, so I answered it quite seriously.

“genius.”

“uh?”

Reina’s bright eyes blinked at Rael’s words.

“You must be a genius, Inma. Do you think you can ask a 20-year-old person something that you, a 150-year-old person, don’t know?”

“Well, that’s true, but···.”

“That’s what genius is. A genius is someone who can do things that others can’t do without any difficulty. Even if you don’t understand it, there’s nothing you can do. They’re called geniuses because they go beyond common sense.”

“Oh, yeah… congratulations.”

At Rael’s words, Reina’s expression began to harden.

Regardless, Rael continued.

“No. I think you have talent too, Reina. Don’t give up.”

“Yeah… um, I want to go play with Vermeil III.”

As she said this, Reina picked up the fox that was on Rael’s stomach and ran into the forest.

Uda-da- Rael, who was watching her running away, turned his head and spoke to Gent.

“Hey. Gent. Reyna, she can be a little weird sometimes. Isn’t she?”

“Rael.”

“huh?”

“I think you are too.”

“What are you talking about, you idiot.”

This is ridiculous.

Seeing them covering for each other, it’s clear that there’s a Jangseongjong cartel.

Rael covered his eyes with both hands as if he was annoyed and leaned back in the hammock.

“···.”

And Gent stared at Rael like that.

Why does this person end every conversation with accusations?

‘God gave us talent and took away our humanity.’

Nature is truly great.

*

It was only two days later that Rael saw the beggars again.

I didn’t want to bother going there and asking for a mask, so I didn’t go, but strangely enough, they contacted me first.

‘There’s no way the information was already obtained… Was the mask made?’

Even though Rael believes in the romanticism of openness, he does not value the beggars of this era that highly.

He probably found a pretty good wizard and entrusted him with the mask.

Lael headed towards the Baggers’ base as usual.

“Mr. Zenith. You got the information in two days?”

And, Rael, who met Zenith at the Baggers’ stronghold, was inwardly surprised and asked back.

“Yes. Just as you said, even when there were beggars around, he would tell them important information without any suspicion. Rael, you were right. That’s a truly groundbreaking idea!”

Zenith felt like hugging Rael right away.

The organization called Baggers, which he devoted his youth to, is facing a positive situation.

By forming a relationship with the capital’s information guild and starting operations properly, Baggers can quickly become the best information guild in the city.

“Ugh. You should have done as I said earlier. Your brain is hardened. That’s why your hair falls out.”

“······.”

Zenith’s mood, which had seemed as if she was flying, plummeted to the floor in an instant.

Rael ignored the middle-aged man with a wounded expression and read the paper on the table.

‘Is the quality of information okay?’

All Rael had given us was a piece of information about Bennett’s name and that he was a member of the church, but there was quite a bit of information written about him.

‘If you think about it, it would be normal if this place did a better job than the open one.’

The thing about martial arts novels is that they don’t know that beggars are sources of information.

But medieval fantasy is different. Here, the beggars are just people who need to be helped. They have no intention of carrying their information.

“uh?”

As Rael read through the information about Bennett, his gaze was caught by a single word.

“Bennett is saving a branch of the World Tree?”

“Yes. It seems like they need a large quantity of that too. If we approach them under the pretext of a deal, I think we can easily monopolize it.”

“Isn’t the World Tree’s branches only needed by elves?”

“Even medicine can be poisonous if taken in excess. The branches of the World Tree are often used as cursed items. They must be sorcerers.”

“Hmm···.”

Sure enough, he is a sorcerer.

The credibility of the information brought by beggars has gone up a level.

‘If this is true… is it because of the butterfly effect I created that Reina’s life became difficult?’

Originally, it would have been Reina alone who saved the branches of the World Tree.

However, because of Rael, Bennett, who left the Academy, is saving the branches of the World Tree, so he is asking Reina to pay more.

“Uncle Zenith. Do you happen to have any World Tree branches left in Bagus?”

“Could there be something so precious?”

“I didn’t expect it anyway. Thanks for the information. I’ll call you next time the mask is made.”

Rael folded the paper, put it in his pocket, and stood up.

‘I guess I should go see Uncle Eric for the first time in a while.’

It’s time to use the connections of 3rd Guard Captain Rael.