Chapter 243: Before the Imperial Throne (1)

It was strange.

The city’s alarm bells had begun ringing violently, and the moment Serena, the Queen of Storms, heard them, she’d rushed off, mentioning that this was already the fourth time today.

The capital possessed formidable defenses. Its walls were incredibly difficult to breach, and security throughout the city was exceptionally tight. I could hardly imagine anyone managing to get past all those defenses, which left me wondering what kind of threat they were dealing with.

Glancing toward Asterion and Kevin, I noticed that both wore similarly puzzled expressions. They were trying to understand what was happening, since neither of them knew why the alarm bells had sounded.

But they didn’t dwell on it for long.

"Whatever. I’m sure Serena can handle the situation."

Asterion sighed before gesturing for everyone to follow him.

"Come on, brats. The Emperor and his piglets are waiting for us."

After coordinating with the servants at Serena’s residence and the guards waiting outside, we finally set off.

Along the way, Kevin took the opportunity to gather as much information as possible from the knights accompanying us.

After a brief conversation, we learned that the capital had recently been experiencing a series of disturbances involving groups of barbarians who would suddenly appear and begin causing chaos.

Their combat abilities were relatively weak, so the knights had little difficulty suppressing the disturbances and arresting those responsible.

However, their fighting strength wasn’t the problem.

There were two other issues that made these incidents particularly troubling.

The first was their sudden appearance inside the capital.

Each time they attacked, the barbarians emerged in a different part of the city. The knights had been unable to determine how they were getting past the walls in the first place.

Initially, they suspected that some kind of opening or hidden passage had allowed the intruders to enter.

But the walls remained completely intact, and their investigations had failed to uncover a single breach.

As a result, the knights had increased the number of soldiers guarding the entrances, which explained why the checkpoint we’d passed through earlier had been so heavily guarded and unusually strict.

The barbarians themselves were a collection of tribes with no fixed allegiance, constantly traveling in enormous caravans.

They possessed distinctive appearances, with rugged physiques, hardened facial features, and dark brown skin. Their appearance was unusual enough that identifying them should have been relatively easy.

It made little sense for people who stood out so clearly to pass through one of the capital’s gates without attracting attention.

The second problem, aside from the mystery of how they were entering the city, was the frequency of their appearances.

This was already the fourth incident today.

In other words, the capital was being attacked repeatedly, and its defenders couldn’t even determine where those attacks were coming from.

So far, the raids had been contained without much difficulty, thanks to the considerable difference in combat strength between the capital’s guards and the attackers.

But the fact that someone could bypass the capital’s defenses so easily was extremely dangerous.

’So that’s why Serena went herself...’

She hadn’t gone to fight.

She’d gone to investigate where the attackers were coming from.

As Kevin continued questioning one of the knights, he raised an important point.

"You said you managed to capture quite a few of them. Haven’t you tried interrogating them? With the appropriate amount of torture, you can make just about anyone talk."

Kevin said this without so much as blinking.

"You never hesitate to take the harshest approach, do you? That sounds exactly like you, Kevin... But you have a point."

Asterion joined the conversation, unable to conceal his own curiosity.

Unfortunately, the knight’s answer only made the situation more unsettling.

"We did try torture, but..."

The knight hesitated for a moment before finishing his explanation.

"They die the moment we attempt to do anything to them..."

Both Kevin and Asterion immediately frowned.

"They die on their own... That’s not something barbarians should be capable of. It must be the result of either magic or a curse."

Kevin spoke thoughtfully, and the knight agreed with his assessment.

The circumstances surrounding the barbarians’ deaths were difficult to explain.

Whenever someone attempted to interrogate them, their hearts simply stopped beating.

Barbarians were warriors who relied on brute strength in battle. There were no mages among them, nor were they known to possess individuals capable of performing miracles.

That made the manner of their deaths all the more mysterious, raising several troubling questions.

To begin with, I was surprised that barbarians had appeared here in the Arden Empire at all.

As far as I knew, their tribes lived in the north.

’Something definitely isn’t right...’

Still, I had no particular reason to involve myself in the capital’s security problems.

As long as the danger remained far away, there was no need for me to take any action. Of course, that didn’t mean I could afford to let my guard down if something unexpected happened.

The others seemed to share my opinion.

Rather than worrying unnecessarily, we continued toward the palace where the royal family resided, without any further delays.

We were transported there in horse-drawn carriages, luxurious and exceptionally comfortable vehicles clearly designed with the nobility in mind.

The journey didn’t take long, since Serena’s residence was already quite close to the central district.

But the moment we arrived and stepped out of the carriages, everyone was left staring in astonishment.

Before us stood an enormous castle unlike anything I’d ever seen outside of movies.

Its outer walls rose dozens of meters above the surrounding buildings, constructed from massive blocks of white stone. Enormous watchtowers stood at intervals along the fortifications, and judging by their sheer size, I wouldn’t have been surprised if someone told me each one could accommodate hundreds of soldiers.

And beyond those defenses stood the castle itself.

It was an immense complex of magnificent palaces, fortified towers, and royal halls, all constructed across a series of ascending levels that gradually rose toward the center of the structure.

There, at the highest point of the entire complex, stood the Imperial Palace.

Its towering spires reached such extraordinary heights that the tips of some disappeared among the clouds.

’Just how much did it cost to build all of this?’

The castle housing the Emperor’s palace possessed its own defensive walls, almost as though an entirely separate city had been concealed within the heart of the capital.

Whoever had built this place in the past had gone to ridiculous lengths, as though their sole intention had been to flaunt the Empire’s wealth.

And looking at what stood before me, I couldn’t deny that they’d succeeded.

"This place alone probably cost as much as the entirety of Ashvarn..."

I muttered as we followed the guards inside.

The moment we entered, I noticed a considerable increase in security.

Among the guards, I also began sensing individuals whose auras were far more powerful than those we’d encountered earlier.

I supposed that made sense.

After all, we were about to attend an event bringing together some of the most important figures in the entire Empire.

Only a few minutes passed before we finally reached the main banquet hall, where we would at last meet the Emperor.

The hall’s enormous white doors were decorated with magnificent golden ornaments.

Despite their incredible size, they opened immediately through some kind of mechanism the moment we stood before them.

A flood of warm golden light spilled through the opening, washing over our faces as the brilliantly illuminated interior was finally revealed.

"The hunters of the Heart Clan have arrived, accompanied by the Uncrowned Emperor, Asterion, and Elder Kevin!!"

Someone shouted from the far end of the hall, his voice carrying throughout the enormous chamber as he announced our arrival.

Every eye immediately turned toward us.

The number of people gathered inside far exceeded my expectations.