Chapter 45
Joshua defended the emperor for numerous decades after he became the emperor's sword. His life came under threat hundreds, if not thousands, of times; each time was unique in its own way. Pursued by the continent's finest guild of assassins, backstabbed by a trusted subordinate…
Poison was, of course, among them. There were probably hundreds or thousands of different kinds of poison out there, but Joshua was confident that few people had come across as many poisons as he had.
Joshua was never one to rely on his subordinates when he could be taking the initiative. By the time one of his subordinates had killed one person, Joshua had killed ten, twenty, or more. His aggressiveness left his body a wreck on the inside and outside. He was always on the front lines, meeting the enemy's blows head-on. He survived through all of that and emerged as the country’s sword.
‘It's Gari.’ Joshua let out a chuckle. Gari's greatest strength was its subtlety; it gradually drained its victims rather than melting their organs outright like other infamous poisons. It took roughly a week for symptoms to manifest. By then, the poisoned food would have been completely digested, making it very difficult to find evidence. Additionally, its properties were difficult to identify as poison. The victim wouldn’t even know that they had consumed poison until it was too late.
‘Gari is worth its weight in gold, and she has put in a lot.’
Joshua knew a truly odorless, colorless poison would be invented by the famous alchemists of Fordran's southernmost kingdom after decades of research. However, that wouldn't happen until far in the future—at the very least, Joshua was confident it wasn't in his food right now. Also, he was sure that as of this very moment, he knew every single poison that was available in Avalon Empire.
‘The poison has been expertly blended into the seasoning, and the plates have been carefully arranged to only target the right people.’?Joshua thought as he took a glance at Vanessa’s food. As expected, he couldn't see signs of gari in her food.
For a split second, their gazes briefly met in the air. Despite a slight tremble, the Duchess kept smiling, as she always had.
‘I look forward to seeing that expression twist.’?
An icy smile appeared on Joshua’s face as he remarked, "Since this is the first time the entire family is sharing a meal, how about we all enjoy it together, First Mother?"
As per his expectations, Vanessa's fa?ade was already melting. Joshua's heart buzzed with excitement.
"That… It's not always easy… I've gained a lot of weight recently, so I'm paying more attention to my diet."
"Diet?" Joshua shot the Duchess an innocent, wide-eyed look. "Is there a need for that? You're already stunning."
‘This brat is really—!’ Vanessa sighed deeply. She was almost convinced that he already knew everything.?
‘No, maybe he does. Rumor has it that he's cunning enough to have concealed his abilities for years…’
Vanessa's uneasiness grew as the idea festered in her mind. What if this cunning boy said he wouldn't eat unless the Duchess did?
"When would we have the chance to have a meal together once my mother and I depart for the capital? Let's eat together this time, so my mother can relax and enjoy herself."
Vanessa had an overwhelming urge to plant a fist right into the boy's smug face.
"What's the matter? Could it be that… the meal was poisoned?" Joshua belted out a long laugh. Yet, Vanessa couldn’t form any response. If it had not been true, she could have laughed it off as a joke, but she knew that it wasn't just a little true.
"Young Master Joshua, you're being too much!" Chiffon couldn’t hold it in any longer and stepped forward when he saw Vanessa's flustered expression.
"Such impoliteness! What kind of joke is that? This is poison we're talking about!"
"Yes, son, the Duchess took special care to prepare this dinner!" Lucia chided Joshua.
Lucia was embarrassed when Chiffon called Joshua out for his impoliteness. While Joshua might have meant it as a joke, those listening could interpret it differently. Furthermore, the Duchess had taken the initiative to extend a hand to them first. Instead of feeling grateful, her son was subtly accusing her of poisoning them. Being a descendant of royal bloodline, there was no way the Duchess could possibly tolerate such accusations.
Lucia then turned to Vanessa. "Please accept my apologies. Joshua, quickly apologize."
Lucia's urgency grew as she saw Vanessa's expression stiffen.
Joshua only returned an icy expression. He had no intention of getting involved in the war of succession of a soon-to-be-destroyed family. He had many enemies waiting ahead of him, and they were really powerful individuals. He certainly didn't want to make new enemies.
However, these people had crossed the line. He could have put up with it if he had been the only one who received their silly anger. But these people had laid their hands on someone they should never have even looked at.
"Impolite… You were probably thinking the same thing."
"Uh, what—"
"I have a question." Joshua looked Chiffon dead in the eyes. "Do you have any idea who I am?"
Chiffon stiffened. He hadn't even stopped to think about it earlier.
"I suppose your silence is an answer."
Chiffon's lips remained tightly sealed. He couldn’t even find any words to retort. Even if Joshua was scum born from the lowest blood, Chiffon couldn't dispute that he was a direct descendant of his master.
"What do you think, First Mother?"
The words ‘First Mother’ triggered Vanessa as she met Joshua's gaze. Her body was shivering with anger. She did not even try to hide her malice through her furrowed brows.
"I was joking, but Sir Chiffon's reaction makes it seem like it's not a joke." Joshua's eyes glowed with a dangerous light.
"Did you really poison the food?" Joshua asked.
Vanessa’s face gradually turned red, and just as it seemed as though she would burst out in rage—
"This- this, this—!" Chiffon couldn't take it anymore and drew his blade just before Vanessa lost control. "I can't let this go any longer! Even if you have master's blood in you! Contempt of the Imperial family is grounds for immediate execution!"
"How dare you…?" Joshua growled at Chiffon as killing intent burst out of him. It was way more concentrated than what he had released earlier.
‘Am I… nervous?’ Chiffon received the full brunt of Joshua's razor-sharp focus. He knew the gap between a C-Class and B-Class Knight was insurmountable, but instinct was taking over. He knew Joshua was just a C-Class, and he couldn’t accept the fact that he was reacting in this manner to a mere C-Class.
"Don't mess with me!" he screeched. His mana poured out in all directions like a small bomb. Chiffon's heart felt as safe as a lie as he lashed out with the deep blue mana rising from his mana hall.
"Die," Joshua mumbled. A long iron staff blinked into existence in Joshua's hand.
‘Built-in subspace magic!? I thought he had something unusual, but I never imagined it would be this incredible.’?
Chiffon’s eyes widened in surprise. That wasn't the most pressing issue, however.
‘Is this a C-Class skill?’
Chiffon, buffeted by Joshua's energy, could not believe his eyes. The mana he felt was vast and boundless; it had to be B-Class, at minimum.
‘What a phenomenal rate of progress…!’ Chiffon was terrified at this point, but he couldn't hold back his sword now. ‘I have no idea how much you'll grow if you leave like this. I'd much rather you die here—!’
Chiffon breathed every scrap of mana he had into his sword.
The moment peaked with exquisite tension; it teetered and dallied on the edge of catastrophe.
"Tell me, what are you doing?"
A low and deep voice entered the ears of the four people present in the room.
***
The immense Imperial Palace contained a variety of palaces reserved solely for the princes. One, in particular, stood out: the farthest one from the Imperial Palace.
This one was definitely shabby, unlike the other elegantly adorned palaces.
Interestingly, its doors were wide open today.
In the fading light of the setting sun, a knock echoed quietly in the detached palace's largest chamber.
The man seated by the window gently raised his head from his book at the sound. Well, perhaps he was still better described as a boy rather than a man. A boy with brilliant eyes and bright blonde hair that would attract attention wherever he went: Kaiser ben Britten, fourth prince of the Avalon Empire.
"This is Evergrant, Your Highness."
"Please, enter."
The door gently swung open to admit Evergrant, Chief Mage of the Empire, dressed in his trademark spotless white robe.
"A letter has arrived from Agnus," Evergrant reported with deference.
"It appears he has made up his mind." Kaiser's eyes twinkled with desire. He'd been looking forward to this letter arriving.
Receiving the letter from Evergrant, Kaiser then asked, "Have you examined the contents?"
"I thought it would be impolite, so I brought it here as soon as it arrived at the Imperial Palace."
All mail sent to the Imperial family via the Imperial Palace's mana post was routed through Evergrant, the most senior mage. With the development of magic with time, assassination methods had grown more diverse, and thus, the task of checking through all mail naturally landed on Evergrant.
Kaiser smiled warmly at Evergrant for his consideration.
"Will he actually take me up on my offer?"
"I believe he will accept," Evergrant responded without hesitation. "All knights dream of joining the Knights Templar. One would be an idiot to refuse this chance."
"Let's see…" Recalling the boy with the remarkable blue hair brought a smile to Kaiser's face as he skimmed through the letter.
Tak.?
The letter fell from his hand.
"Your Highness?" Evergrant cautiously leaned towards him. His fears were confirmed when Kaiser didn't respond.
"Hahahahaha…" Kaiser chuckled.
"Your Highness?" Kaiser's sudden outburst left Evergrant confused and embarrassed.
"Hahahahahahahaha!" The discarded letter was crushed under Kaiser's heel. His modest smile stretched into a maddened rictus, and his kind eyes glittered with a psychotic light.
"...Joshua von Agnus."
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