Duke Pendragon

There was another reason for Jamie Roxan’s confidence.

He gestured at a noble who was standing next to him. Then, the noble crept to the edge of the palace and whispered into someone’s ears.

‘I have already read all of your cards.’

Jamie Roxan desperately suppressed his laughter. As soon as he heard of Duke Arangis’ death in the governor-general’s residence in Leus, he sent an agent to Leus to figure out the exact details. It had not been easy, but he found out that a priest from the Temple of Leus had visited the governor’s residence on the day of the incident.

It signified that, in all likelihood, Duke Pendragon was telling the truth, or at least that black magic was involved in whatever took place.

Even so, he was not worried.

Even if the priest knew of the secret behind Duke Arangis’ death, he was currently in Leus and he could not stand as a witness in this place. Furthermore, even if the priest testified, it was clear that he would side with the governor-general of Leus, in other words, Duke Pendragon.

In the end, even if the priest came all the way to the imperial castle to testify, none of the nobles gathered here would fully trust in his words.

Of course, it did not matter to Jamie if the priest stood witness. He had already called in other priests to prepare for all scenarios. He could take the young duke to a religious trial if it came to it.

The second prince and the Duke Pendragon would become disadvantaged with the passing of time, so in the end, he would certainly remain a victor. 

‘Hahaha!’

Holding back his laughter, Jamie Roxan looked towards the Golden Lion Throne.

*** 

“Hoo…”

The emperor stroked his chin with a glimmer of surprise in his eyes after hearing Raven’s words. He had put off meeting with his second son and Duke Pendragon to prepare for this moment.

If he did meet the two in advance, their words would lose faith. The various officials and nobles would be suspicious of the words they spoke to the emperor, since it was obvious anyone would think that they had spoken in advance and planned out their conversation.

This was also why he crowned Duke Pendragon as a king. And as he expected, Alan Pendragon did not even blink at the remarkable declaration. Moreover, to think he would speak the truth in front of himself and all of the great nobles…

It was hard to tell whether the young duke was outrageously bold, or if he was just a good actor. But it did not matter.

“Is what you just said true?”

The emperor asked. This time, Ian responded instead.

“The words of Duke Pendragon are true, Your Majesty. At the time, I was personally…”

“I did not ask you.”

“Hmm.”

Ian flinched when the emperor cut his words short with a cold voice. Then he bit his lips and lowered his head.

The emperor’s gaze shifted towards Raven once more, and the gaze of everyone else followed suit.

“…..”

Raven looked the emperor in the eye.

He was receiving the gazes of countless nobles and officials gathered in the palace, the ones who moved the empire. Most importantly, he was faced with the emperor’s stern gaze. Depending on the emperor’s words, Raven could either soar to the heavens or fall to hell.

He felt a chill run down his spine.

He would rather be facing hundreds of enemies in front of him.

Nevertheless, Raven straightened his shoulders and spoke.

“Everything is true. I understand that there are no lies in the royal family.”

“Huh!”

“Hmm!”

“Hmm.’

A glimmer appeared in the emperor’s eyes, and sighs and cries poured out from various places in the palace. But that too, only lasted for a moment. People began fiercely raising their voices.

“Duke Pendragon will be held accountable for what he just said.”

“That is correct, Your Majesty! The Nameless Necromancer? A petty magician instigated a duke of the emperor into committing treason? This is nonsense!”

“There is no evidence, Your Majesty! Even if Duke Pendragon’s words are true, he needs to back it up with solid evidence!”

The harsh, but realistic criticism of the officials poured down like a rain of arrows, and the emperor nodded with a calm expression.

Realizing that things were flowing his way, Jamie Roxan stepped out once more.

“Jamie Roxan of Paleon asks for permission to speak, Your Majesty.”

The palace quieted down at his words. Jamie Roxan held the highest rank in this place after the Emperor, Duke Pendragon, and Prince Ian. In addition, the officials who poured out fierce objections to Duke Pendragon’s story shared varying levels of relationships with Roxan.

“I allow it.”

Jamie Roxan turned his gaze towards Raven and started speaking after receiving the emperor’s permission.

“Even if what Duke Pendragon said is true, there is no substantial evidence. Duke Arangis, the responsible party, has already passed on, and the southern nobles who participated in the rebellion have already been beheaded by Prince In and Duke Pendragon.”

The officials nodded in agreement, and Jamie Roxan continued while looking around the palace.

“But we know someone who can testify about Duke Pendragon’s remarks.”

Jamie Roxan raised his voice after shifting his gaze back to the emperor.

“Arigo Arangis, the heir to the Arangis Duchy! Only he can verify whether Duke Pendragon’s claims are true or not. As such, I, Jamie Roxan of Paleon, hereby ask Arigo Arangis to testify.”

“Certainly…!”

“Hmm.”

Everyone nodded their heads.

It made sense. Now that Duke Arangis was dead, the responsibility for the rebellion fell to his successor, Arigo Arangis.

Perhaps the emperor felt the same way. He gestured towards Count Jean Granite.

“Bring Arigo Arangis.”

Not long after Count Granite ordered, Arigo Arangis was brought to the palace by several royal guards, both of his arms in restraints.

“Oh, my.”

“Huh…”

Many of the nobles frowned.

He was in a miserable condition. His beard was shaggy and overgrown, and his eyes were tinted red with exhaustion. It was hard to believe that he was the heir to a duchy that once dominated the entirety of the South.

Soon, he stood beneath the stairs and was forced to his knees by the royal guards.

“Arigo of Arangis, due to the stained heart of you and your father…”

“…..”

Arigo was unable to raise his head as the emperor started rebuking him in a solemn voice.

“…So I will ask of you. Does Arangis admit to all these sins?”

The emperor’s long speech ended with a question.

Arigo raised his head slightly, then made eye contact with the emperor before answering while biting his lips.

“…I admit it.”

It was an expected response, so the crowd remained rather calm. But what followed was the actual question of importance.

“Then I will ask you again. Your father was killed at the governor-general’s residence in Leus in a mysterious manner. Those responsible, Duke Pendragon and the second prince, claim that it was the work of a sorcerer called the Nameless Necromancer. They also claim that the sorcerer shared a deep relationship with the Arangis Duchy. Is this true?”

People gulped loudly in anticipation of Arigo’s response. With hundreds of gazes on him, Arigo opened his cracked lips.

“This is the first time I have heard that my deceased father has anything to do with a sorcerer.”

“…..!”

“Ohh!”

“As expected…!”

The response of the nobles was largely divided into two. The few who supported Ian bit their lips in shock while biting their lips, while the majority of the nobles and officials nodded their heads.

‘It’s over.’

Jamie Roxan unknowingly clenched his fists, convinced that everything was finally working out as he intended. Arigo Arangis was a key figure in the rebellion, and now that he had denied the claim, Duke Pendragon’s remarks had no power. Even if Ian chimed in, it would make no difference.

Jamie Roxan spoke calmly while hiding the joy he felt.

“Your Majesty, as you just heard, the claim of Duke Pendragon and the death of Duke Arangis have nothing to do with each other. How could the head of a duchy belonging to our ancient, powerful empire be misled by a mere wizard and start a rebellion? This is…”

Nobles and officials nodded in agreement as he spoke in a clear, confident voice. Even the young nobles on the side of Ian and Raven were starting to be encaptivated by his logical and skillful speech.

“…in the end, Duke Pendragon is speaking falsehood with no evidence…”

Convinced that he was driving the stake into the coffin, Jamie Roxan started to wrap up his remarks. At that time, a murmur suddenly began on one side of the palace.

“Hmm?

“What’s going on…?”

The commotion quickly spread throughout the palace.

“Your Majesty, sirs…”

Annoyed that his speech had been disrupted, Jamie Roxan attempted to garner the attention of the crowd while frowning.

“Y, Your Majesty…!”

Several royal knights rushed to the stairs.

“What’s going on?”

Count Jean Granite stepped out. One of the royal knights reported after falling to one knee.

“R, right now, in the royal courtyard… in the courtyard…”

The royal knight was shocked to the point of stuttering his words in front of the emperor. Count Granite realized the strangeness of the situation and hurried to the window where the courtyard was visible.

His eyes widened with shock.

“…..!”

Count Granite always maintained his calm and composure. When he reacted in such a manner, the nobles and the officials also turned to or approached the window with haste.

“Keuk!?”

“Heup!”

People drew sharp breaths after nearing the window. Outside the palace, several gigantic shadows were on the large courtyard of the Royal Batallium. The beings responsible for casting such large shadows on a cloudless day were…

“D, dragon…!”

Someone murmured blankly, unaware of the drool that rolled down his open mouth.

Kwaaaaaaauugh!

From the clear, blue sky of the imperial castle, six dragons slowly descended to the ground while spreading their magnificent wings, led by a dazzling silver-white dragon.

Kwakwakwakwa!

Gusts of wind mixed with strong mana surrounded the overwhelming creatures, then quickly concentrated and wound around the silver-white dragon.

Woooong!

The dragon was larger than a palace tower. As the figure became wrapped in light and disappeared, a female warrior stood in its place. Following her lead, the other six dragons also transformed into human figures.

“Hurry!”

Hundreds of royal guards and royal knights responsible for protecting the imperial castle flocked to the courtyard and surrounded the figures. However, even though they were called the elite soldiers and knights of the imperial army, they could not do anything except to surround the seven dragons. The seven siblings of gods stood leisurely, giving no attention to the human figures.

Then, the leading female warrior started striding towards the palace without hesitation, and the rest followed behind.

“Hmm…!”

The royal knights unwittingly backed down.

Dragons.

The strongest creatures on earth.

Not one, not two, but seven.

Their mission was to protect the emperor and the imperial family, but they could not afford to face the spirits of the beings called the brothers of gods.

As the royal knights split to the sides like a wave, the seven dragons walked. 

After the creatures entered the palace, they completely ignored the nobles and the officials of the empire, continuing their way down the middle, towards the Golden Lion Throne where Emperor Aragon sat.

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap…

In a stifling silence, the seven dragons walked before finally coming to a stop in front of the emperor. Then, the female warrior looked to the side after gazing at the emperor with an indifferent look.

A young man with luscious, black hair dressed in black leather and armed with two small swords responded. He nodded lightly, then turned to the emperor. His eyes shone like black meteorites as he spoke.

[Lord of humans, Amuhalt is the name given to me by the gods. I am a knight of Soldrake, the Queen of All Dragons. I greet you on behalf of my queen. Would you welcome us as guests?]

The magnificent voice of the Black Dragon Amuhalt filled every corner of the wide hall, and everyone stumbled a few steps back.

Only Raven and a few others remained in their spots, only recoiling slightly as his words. It was the same with Emperor Aragon, the master of the Golden Lion Throne

“…..”

The emperor slowly rose from his throne.

“It is okay, Jean.”

Ever since the dragons made their way to the stairs, Count Jean Granite had rested his hand on the pommel of his sword. The emperor patted the count on the shoulders before turning.

“…..!”

Everyone was shocked at the sight that followed.

The most prominent figure of the empire – he never left the Golden Lion Throne for any reason at any time. He was slowly walking down the stairs to where the Queen of All dragons stood.