Turning Chapter 810

Chapter 810

Diemon, turning his head with a bright face, thinking the sage had returned, froze in place upon seeing the long shadow looming over him.

It was none other than the very person he had just cursed to death, standing there.

"Na... Na…han...!"

"Brother, didn't I tell you?"

That we would meet again soon.

With those words, Nahan lifted the corners of his lips. In that smile, too faint to be considered joyful, Diemon's spine chilled.

"How on earth did you, here."

"Did you think I've been waiting here without any preparations? Huh?"

"The sage, the sage is not here!"

Diemon shouted, but his voice trembled pitifully.

"It seems so. Abandoned by the sage, you're left here alone, aren't you?"

"No! The sage is... The, the sage is..."

Diemon's outcry faded as he heard Nahan's footsteps slowly approaching him.

"The sage is..."

Finally, standing right in front of Diemon, Nahan bent down and grabbed his head with one hand. The hand, wrapped in bandages, faintly reeked of old blood. Then, incongruously tender, a whisper reached Diemon's ears.

"Brother, you have two paths before you. One is to die here alone, upholding loyalty to a traitor and becoming food for rats."

"Uugh...!"

"And the other is to tell me where the sage went and receive at least minimal treatment from the brothers who followed me. Of course, afterward, you'll face punishment for inflicting pain and death upon countless brothers and sisters at our base."

Which do you choose?

In front of that devilish question, Diemon urinated in fear, having a seizure.

—

"Hmm. So, Nahan and the sage might be in this city somewhere right now?"

"Yes. So be careful, make sure Hosanna doesn't get wind of this for a while."

"That won't be a problem. Hosanna seems distracted by something other than Nahan himself these days."

Today, one day before the funeral of Herne's Second Prince Ashrav.

Yuder, having a rare conversation with Kanna, furrowed his brows at this unexpected topic.

"He's showing interest in something other than Nahan?"

"Yes, that's what I came to talk about. Remember the Herne’s First Princess who visited recently?"

"Princess Myra."

"Yes. Remember when Hosanna briefly encountered her last time?"

Of course, he remembered. He had run into Kanna and Hosanna while leading the unwell Myra to the medical unit.

'At that time, Hosanna seemed to be hiding, not even lifting his head properly.'

"After the Princess left, Hosanna asked for her name. Since then, he often inquires about her and Herne, and although he seemed to be trying to hide it, something unusual is definitely going on."

Hosanna and Princess Myra. The connection between these two seemingly unrelated individuals was puzzling.

Yuder calmly asked Kanna.

"You've read the information, right?"

"Of course. There was nothing direct, but that might be because Hosanna knows so little about Princess Myra. However, the emotions Hosanna feels when her name comes up are clear: confusion and fear."

"Confusion and fear..."

"Listen, maybe... the noble house where Nahan and Hosanna were, could it possibly... have some connection to Herne? Otherwise, there's no way Hosanna would know about the Princess."

"Hmm...?"

Yuder, lowering his voice secretly, gazed into Kanna's eyes, lost in thought.

Kishiar had already received a report from Yuder about Nahan's past and the oath that bound Hosanna. They were tracking down Nahan's former residence based on the tale and simultaneously searching for a way to break Hosanna's binding oath.

The oath on Hosanna was particularly troublesome, different from the double oath prohibition that had killed assassins in the past.

Firstly, the oath that bound him wasn't issued using an official temple scroll, yet, paradoxically, it possessed a power equal to, if not stronger than, the temple's own. Kishiar surmised that it must have been made by an official temple craftsman.

In other words, it was an illegal product, stronger than the original, made deliberately by a genuine craftsman who had erased his name.

At that time, Kishiar twisted his lips into a smirk and said, "Such cases are rare. Very rare. It means someone who could afford an official oath sought an illicit, more powerful version."

There was only one way this could be possible: the person had enough power and wealth to make such a request to a temple craftsman.

How many families could casually use such an item to silence a bastard and his servant? Not many, he assumed.

The Herne Dukedom, rulers of the south and their influential branched families, certainly fit the bill.

‘Perhaps something has already emerged in Kishiar's ongoing investigation, but it wouldn't hurt to have an additional clue.’

Yuder concluded his thoughts and decided.

"It sounds like a plausible theory. I'll mention it to the Commander."

Kanna was pleased with Yuder's response.

Upon hearing Kanna's speculation, Kishiar also showed considerable delight.

"I was already investigating Nahan's old house based on Hosanna's information, but the search was proving more difficult than expected. This is good news."

"I thought you might already know something."

"Well, if you think about it, if it's hard to find despite being such a notable incident, it means someone powerful must have covered it up afterward."

The exact location in the south where Hosanna and Nahan had lived was unknown. However, Nahan was likely a noble's bastard or belonged to a family of similar wealth and honor, and had escaped by burning down a building about 2-3 years ago.

A fire involving a powerful family wasn't common and would have been noticeable. So, if it was hard to find as Kishiar said, it meant someone had deliberately buried the incident afterward.

"But we did have one suspicious event in mind."

'Of course.'

If Kishiar had set his mind on finding it, it was unlikely he'd have found nothing at all.

Kishiar smiled and handed over a stack of papers from his desk.

"It was thanks to the quick cooperation of the Emperor and Empress's informants in the south. Want to take a look?"

The incident Kishiar focused on was succinctly described. Yuder quickly gleaned the key points from the brief intelligence report.

"About six months after the Red Stone fell. A building in a small area of southern Conkachista collapsed due to an accident. The building was registered as a warehouse belonging to a trading company, but in reality, it was a luxurious mansion. There were rumors from local residents that it wasn't a collapse but a fire that completely consumed it."

“Testimonies claimed it was difficult to ascertain the identities of those frequenting the mansion due to their secrecy. People assumed it was a noble's villa.”

“The lord of Conkachista was a hard-line aristocratic figure, making records of casualties and the demolished building from the accident untraceable. The central administration's reports from the time of the accident were also partially lost.”

Having read this far, Yuder let out a thoughtful hum.

"This certainly seems like an incident worth suspecting."

At first glance, it appeared to be a common case of some foolish noble or wealthy folks disguising a villa as a trading company warehouse, only to lose it in an accident.

But the timing of the event, soon after the Red Stone fell.

The fact that it was reported as a collapse, yet the locals knew it as a fire.

And the lord of the area being a hard-line aristocrat – all these points combined emitted a strong scent of a deep cover-up.

"Right? Now, if we cross-reference the lord of Conkachista with someone from the Herne family and track Princess Myra's whereabouts at that time, we might easily find a connection."

"The quickest way would be to explain the situation to Princess Myra herself at the funeral tomorrow and ask for her cooperation."

"Oh, you've already seen through my plan."

Kishiar replied playfully as he stood up.

"Speaking of which, have you prepared your outfit for tomorrow?"

"...It's a funeral, not a party. What else to prepare but a mourning dress?"

A bright color would have been problematic, but the uniform of the Cavalry was fundamentally black. Being a part of the uniform, it wouldn't be disrespectful to wear it at a funeral.

However, Kishiar shook his head.

"Oh no, the princess personally sent us a card inviting us, so we must do more. Especially in the south, where etiquette for ceremonies like this is highly valued."

A sense of foreboding brushed Yuder's back as he listened.

And soon, that premonition came true.

"I thought as much and had already prepared a formal attire to wear. It arrived earlier; want to try it on?"

"..."

The next morning.

Yuder frowned as he looked at the sleet falling from the overcast sky.

'Even though it's the day of the funeral, the weather didn’t have to be like this.'

On such a day, it's hard for horses and carriages to move, and people's senses dull. Of course, Yuder's senses wouldn’t be affected that much, but considering he and Kishiar, among others, were to move together today, caution seemed advisable.

"Already dressed and ready?"

Lost in thought, Yuder was approached by Kishiar. Expecting him to come close, Kishiar instead stopped and looked Yuder up and down with an unreadable smile.

"...Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Uhmm. I have an intensely personal and secretive feeling that would not be appropriate for the journey to send off the dead and empower the living."

It seemed his smile was one of satisfaction.

Indeed, when Yuder had tried on the clothes the day before, Kishiar had been quite pleased. Despite not seeing the outfit himself and making a hasty choice, Kishiar had commented about five times how well the southern-style formal wear suited him.

But honestly, such remarks seemed more fitting for the man currently shining beautifully in similar attire.

Kishiar, draped in a long, flowing, and voluminous black formal coat that reached his feet, looked almost sacred, making one momentarily forget the gloomy weather outside. He was like a black gem in himself.

"Isn’t the long coat inconvenient?"

"No. It’s fine. The sword hidden underneath isn’t visible, so it’s actually better."

As Yuder slightly lifted the hem of his coat to show the sword strapped behind his waist, Kishiar’s eyes softened.

"Well then, shall we go? Everyone must be waiting outside."