Turning Chapter 1062

Chapter 1062

"The Duke of Peletta received a vacation as a reward and left? Is that true? He really left his post at a time like this?"

The Duke of Diarca questioned the person who knelt and reported to him, not hiding his disbelief.

"Yes. Our informants in the Imperial Palace also thought there must be some trick at first, but upon confirmation, it seems to be true. The Duke of Peletta went on a pleasure trip to the sacred forest near the capital with a very small number of close aides two days ago, and as soon as he returned, he left for Peletta."

"...Hmph."

The Duke of Diarca put down the pipe he was smoking. Under his fingers, which were pressing firmly on his temples, his eyes flashed with a sneer.

"Both the Sun Palace and the Duke of Peletta seem to have no idea of the danger at all. Even though this old man has been giving warnings of concern for so long... It seems they didn't take it to heart at all after regaining their health."

"..."

"Is it time to give another sincere advice... Or is it an absurd trick to mock this old man?"

A soft tone as if genuinely concerned about the country. However, the thorns contained within were sharp, and the thoughts in his mind must have been even more sinister. Those around the Duke of Diarca stiffened their bodies in secret and bowed their heads even deeper. They all knew well that the Duke should not be displeased in the slightest at times like this.

The Duke slowly exhaled smoke through his thin lips and tapped the end of his pipe. Just as he was about to say something...

"Your Grace. I apologize, but it seems you need to come out urgently for a moment."

A subordinate's voice came from the secret wall. The Duke of Diarca frowned and turned his head.

"What is it?"

"Someone has come from the Bright Palace. At first, I thought it was a servant who came on an errand, but... that is..."

The Duke's eyelids twitched for a moment upon hearing the small and urgent whisper that followed. He got up from his seat and immediately stepped out the door.

And among the flustered servants, he found a person whose entire body was covered in black clothes. As soon as the person, who was wearing a hood pulled down to hide their face, spotted the Duke of Diarca, they flipped the cloth back. What was revealed inside was the face of Crown Prince Katchian, who should obviously be in the Imperial Palace right now.

"...Your Highness. What brings you here?"

"What choice do I have when you don't come even after several summons? I had to come in person."

Katchian, with a face as pale as a wax doll, smiled with the corners of his mouth raised high. However, it was very different from his previous lovely smile that made anyone feel its beauty at a glance. That appearance, as if forcibly twisting a corpse to create a smile, made those who saw it shudder.

The Duke of Diarca also frowned upon seeing that expression, but he soon regained his usual generous and elegant expression.

"I've been so busy lately that there seems to have been some mistake in receiving the message."

"A mistake."

"To have made such a noble person come all the way here, I must punish those who didn't do their job properly."

Even at Katchian's sarcastic words, the Duke of Diarca remained at ease. Katchian, who bit his lips while looking at that face, asked in a low voice after a while.

"So... if it's a mistake, let's say it is. Then, are you going to keep me standing here?"

"How could I? Please come in."

The Duke of Diarca guided Katchian to the room next to his office, not his office. With just one glance from him, the preparations to receive a guest were completed in an instant. Katchian sat in the seat of honor as if it was natural and drank the tea politely offered by the servants of the Diarca family.

"It's Ponegri tea, brewed strong."

"I always have it prepared since Your Highness likes it. If drinking it makes you feel at ease, please tell me anything. I'll arrange for you to take a carriage when you return."

The words exchanged were incomparably soft. However, the atmosphere between them was not so. Katchian stared at the Duke of Diarca's smile, which showed no gaps, and gave a distorted smile.

"You think I don't know what you mean by telling me to drink it quickly and leave?"

"You're misinterpreting it too much."

"Since we both guess the reason for coming here, let's stop wasting time with useless words. The reason I kept asking to see the Duke was because I had something to tell you."

"Oh my. What happened?"

"A few days ago, on the day when the ruffians from the Cavalry came into the Sun Palace and made a mess of the garden with their dirty feet. During a walk, I encountered the Duke of Peletta's black dog. The very dog the Duke knows well."

"..."

For a moment, a dark glint flashed in the wrinkled eyes of the Duke of Diarca, which seemed like it would never change no matter what Katchian said.

"A rootless and stupid thing that can't even distinguish where it shouldn't bark. It was as vulgar as a monster, not knowing if it was a bitch or a male dog. That dog dared to insult me, and the Duke of Peletta who came to find the dog was the same. But... they said something strange to me."

"What did they say?"

Deep anger, hatred, tension, and fear swirled in Katchian's eyes. He suppressed all those emotions, trying not to let the Duke of Diarca notice, and opened his mouth.

"...That there is someone in the Cavalry who knew 'the old me'."

The Duke of Diarca's eyes narrowed for a moment.

"Is that true?"

"Upon confirmation, there was indeed a rumor that a Cavalry member with the same name was active in the south. I couldn't verify anything else yet."

"Your Highness's past was clearly erased so that no one could find it. Unless you contacted that place again after entering the palace, such a thing couldn't happen."

The Duke of Diarca's words were correct. Katchian La Orr had secretly sent someone to his hometown and killed a herbalist of the same age he knew in his childhood, and used the method of using poisonous herbs that only he and that person knew.

Although the purpose he intended to achieve using that failed, that incident itself was clearly something no one should have known about.

However, the Duke of Peletta mentioned the name of that herbalist's sister to Katchian as if he wanted him to hear it.

That she was in the Cavalry. As if he knew everything from Katchian's past to everything he had done until now, he boasted!

That incident gave Katchian a great sense of crisis. Even his anger towards the Duke of Diarca and his mind going mad with inferiority lost heat for a moment in the face of the survival instinct. The best thing to do in this situation was to ask the Duke of Diarca for help, but Katchian did not overlook the fact that the Duke might abandon him using this incident as an opportunity.

He decided to only emphasize the point that if he abandoned him, Diarca could also be in danger. Cunningly hiding his own faults and ignoring the Duke of Diarca's words as if he hadn't heard them, he retorted, pretending to be agitated.

"Aren't there countless people with strange abilities in the Cavalry? How can you guarantee that no one really knows? Even if what the Duke of Peletta said isn't true, the meaning contained in it is clear, but does the Duke not understand that meaning? Their ulterior motive is to create another scandal related to the past Crown Prince's exam. What they handed to me is just an indirect warning to the Duke!"

He didn't know if this speculation was true or not. However, Katchian deliberately emphasized that part.

"I'm very curious as to why the Diarca family has not found out such news until now, but fine. You were busy, so that could be the case. But Duke."

Katchian deliberately paused for a beat and slowly opened his mouth after making direct eye contact with the old Duke.

"You always told me that human power is more important than the power of God, but what have you achieved with that human power in the end? The Duke of Peletta is arrogant and running wild, and His Majesty the Emperor is also toying with you as he pleases, isn't he? Is this the future you promised me?"

"..."

"In a situation where I'm just treated like a madman and locked up, can I fully trust the Duke and the Diarca family? If I hadn't come directly to inform you of this information, it might have been the Duke's side that got backstabbed again!"

The Duke of Diarca said nothing. Katchian did not hide his burning eyes and spoke with emphasis.

"One thing is clear. They intend to turn my downfall into Diarca's downfall."

"..."

"That's all I have to say. I don't need to be seen off, so I'll leave now."

Katchian put down the barely touched teacup and stood up. As the Duke of Diarca quietly raised his hand, the servants politely escorted Katchian out.

The attendant standing behind the Duke, who was left alone, carefully opened his mouth.

"Your Grace. I will instruct them to tighten the security of the Bright Palace so that such an unpleasant incident does not happen again. Is there anything else you would like to order?"

The Duke nodded, looking down at the one teacup left on the table.

"Thoroughly investigate the Cavalry members who distinguished themselves in the south and bring me the results. As soon as you find someone from the same hometown as His Highness the Crown Prince, kidnap or kill them. And... investigate if His Highness the Crown Prince has ever sent someone to his hometown or contacted them. This part must be done thoroughly so that no one can find out."

It meant that he would believe Katchian's words while simultaneously not believing them. The attendant's face was filled with tension upon realizing that meaning.

"Understood."

"And to those who will be going on vacation and His Majesty the Emperor... we should send them each good gifts."

Shadows fell over the Duke of Diarca's face.

"We'll see who is really being careless."

***

The road to Peletta was peaceful, yet not peaceful.

To be precise, it would be more accurate to say that they forcibly made a road that could not be peaceful into a peaceful one.

Yuder clicked his tongue softly as he saw the masked assassins who appeared from somewhere as soon as night fell.

'Today as well.'

It had been quite a long time since he encountered assassins who appeared so blatantly. Guys like flies who didn't even know who hired them and were just dispatched to annoy the target.

The intention of the sender was so obvious that there was nothing to say.