Chapter 74
"My name is Jacken," said the man in black.
“Jacken?”
Joshua tilted his head. It was an unfamiliar name.
"Have you heard of an organization called Black Wind?"
"Black Wind!"
Joshua's eyes widened.
Black Wind.
The emperor's direct intelligence agency was only known by its name and existence to the highest-ranking nobles at the core of the empire’s power.
It was the most elite group that worked solely for the emperor. It was also an organization willing to die for the emperor if the emperor willed it.
The organization was relatively unknown to the general public, but Joshua was intimately familiar with it in his past life. It was particularly because the Assassin King was a member of Black Wind.
Joshua’s gaze turned conflicted as he stared at Jacken. The latter eventually spoke and asked, "I asked you if you were aware."
"A little."
"Great. That makes things easier."
Jacken's eyes gleamed. He didn't question how Joshua knew about Black Wind.
"I have come to bring this message in accordance with His Majesty the Emperor's command."
"His Majesty? His Majesty asked you to deliver the message personally?"
Jacken nodded and explained, "His Majesty dispatched me in secret, so there is no need for us to follow the protocol. Thank His Majesty for his consideration."
There was a necessary protocol the receiver had to follow whenever a representative transmitted the will of a superior to the former. The receiver had to act as though they were facing their superiors despite facing only the representative.
In other words, even a duke had to bow before a representative of His Majesty the Emperor’s will.
Usually, a superior would send someone appropriately ranked to respect the receiver’s rank. However, some would deliberately send subordinate spies or other low-ranking subordinates to embarrass the receiver on purpose.
Joshua had always disliked such tedious protocols, so he was grateful to skip such steps, but…
'It’s strange, but I don’t feel good with this treatment.'
Joshua suddenly revealed a twisted smile.
"But why are you speaking to me so informally?"
"What?"
Jacken's eyes went round, and his expression changed subtly.
"You still haven't even delivered His Majesty's will yet, and you didn't even address me in any manner."
"Perhaps… Did you expect me to address you formally?"
"I've heard that Black Wind's agents have long forgotten their real names and families. You are a noble with no title, so do you really believe that it's appropriate for you to speak to me like this?"
"..."
Jacken closed his mouth in response to Joshua's words. For Jacken, Joshua’s manner of speaking was incredulous. After all, even the Five Dukes or the Twelve Families had never dared to speak to them like this.
Since Black Wind was directly serving the emperor, it was only natural that their authority was strong in the Avalon Empire, where imperial power flourished.
Jacken spoke in a low voice while hiding his frown behind the silver mask.
"Aren’t you a noble with no title as well? Strictly speaking, isn't your father only the nobleman here?"
"Ah, the imperial family's intelligence organization isn't even aware of it?"
"What?"
Joshua shrugged twice as if mocking Jacken before explaining,
"Once an individual or a commoner becomes a C-Class Knight, they will immediately be bestowed upon a rank. They’ll immediately become barons-to-be, right?"
Jacken didn’t know what to say.
"Perhaps you’re unaware that I’m a C-Class Knight?"
"Hoho." Jacken chuckled.
"What’s funny?" Joshua asked with his head tilted.
"Nothing. Pardon me for laughing, but the rumors depicted you as a very mature individual, but it seems you’re not really different from kids your age."
"Ah, they do spread those kinds of rumors, I see..." Joshua blankly muttered.
"Yes, they do..." Jacken nodded before adding. "I'd like to say more, but I don’t have the time. Even you wouldn't want a never-ending chat, right? I shall announce His Majesty's will now."
"..."
Joshua kept his mouth shut, and Jacken finally spoke, "Listen, Joshua von Agnus."
"..."
"Your letter to the Fourth Prince was to my liking. Still, won’t you submit to my absolute command? My palms are itching because it has been a while since I had this much fun,” Jacken continued speaking, "I sincerely hope that you'll be able to join the Imperial Knights. I wish for you to entertain me a bit more. I heard you're a brilliant young man, so you should know what I am talking about."
With that, Jacken quietly raised his head.
"..."
After a long period of silence, Joshua asked, "Is that it?"
"Yes. His Majesty also mentioned that if a letter of recommendation is required, he would be more than glad to write it himself. However, if you do not want to be a part of the Imperial Knights…."
Jacken stood up from his seat, and he revealed an incredulous look as he said, "His Majesty had also told me to bring you over to the Imperial Knights if you ever got expelled from the Imperial Academy."
At that, Joshua chuckled as he said, "I've heard that His Majesty is a fascinating individual, but it seems that His Majesty is a bit different from the rumors."
"What exactly do you mean?" However, Jacken’s expression turned rigid at Joshua’s lighthearted words. His hoarse voice became tinged with coldness, making him sound like a screeching ghost.
Joshua shrugged and muttered, "I don't mean anything… I just find it fascinating that he’s really good at spotting talented people."
"..."
"Believe it or not…" Jacken carefully started.
Joshua’s eyes squinted as Jacken continued. “Babel von Agnus has already graduated from the academy, so staying here will have a great impact on your future. It’s not out of the realm of possibility, but…”
Jacken walked past Joshua and concluded. "If you fall off the rails, you will definitely regret it. Arcadia is different from the Agnus Duchy, after all."
"Thank you for your advice."
Jacken glanced at Joshua for a moment, and then he walked toward the exit while saying, "His Majesty’s will is absolute, so please visit the Imperial Palace as soon as possible. Now, then. Please take care."
As Jacken slowly vanished from his view, Joshua muttered to no one in particular, "Should I move the plan forward a little?"
Joshua briefly glanced in the direction where Jacken disappeared before walking away.
***
After school, in a vacant lot behind the academy was a boy writhing on the floor surrounded by dozens of sneering children.
His clothes were caked in dust, and his body was covered in dark bruises. Despite his predicament, the boy’s light blue hair still glistened beneath the sunlight.
With a distorted look, the boy who discovered the light blue-haired boy screamed, “Icarus! Veron Shen Villas, you bastard!"
The boy knelt in front of the bloodied Icarus as the sneering children held him down.
The gloomy-eyed boy who seemed to be the head of the group smirked mischievously.
"Whoa, Agareth. Take a deep breath and relax. Why are you acting like this? This isn’t even the first time so don’t act like it’s a big deal. Besides, this guy is just a commoner who has nothing to do with you."
"Why… Why are you doing this to me? What did I even do to you guys?!" Agareth shouted in anguish.
Veron's smile deepened as he said, “Did I say you did something to us?"
"What?" Agareth blanky muttered.
Standing next to Veron, Gehog responded, “Well, your previous crime was having the wrong older brother, and you committed the same crime by having the wrong friend.”
“...”
Since Agareth didn’t reply, Gehog continued. "You heard that right? You know what your roommate did, right?"
Agareth gnashed his teeth.
“It has only been a few days since school started, do you really think that he treats us as friends?”
"Hmm… I'm not sure about that. But I'm very certain that he likes to speak out for others," said Veron.
"What?" Agareth was taken aback.
Veron continued. "You don’t really have to know the specifics. What you will have to do for us right now is easy. Just bring your friend here right away."
"...!"
Agareth's eyes widened. They didn't have to explain what they were trying to do because Agareth already knew what was about to happen.
After all, this wasn’t the first time.
Veron’s eyes gleamed as he exclaimed, "As you already know, I'm going to take you two as a hostage to get that guy here and shatter all of his limbs. If that guy were to pull any silly stunts, your family could get in trouble… You already know what it is, right?"
Gehog said to Veron, “Don’t get too worked up. He’s from a fallen noble family, and he has no background at all. Shouldn’t we come up with a backup plan if we have no one to vent our anger on?”
The silent Natasha tapped Icarus on the head with her toe and finally spoke, "By the way, will this kid really get scared even if we threatened him with his family? He’s an adopted child, after all."
Gehog exclaimed in response, "Do you even need to ask that? We’ll figure it out when we get there!"
“Oh, really?”
Natasha stared at Icarus for a bit and licked her lips before saying, “Since this guy doesn’t really have any value as a hostage, is it okay if I play with him a bit?”
"She's at it again."
"It's a fresh start."
Gehog expressed his dissatisfaction with a shake of his head.
"Do you have any idea just how sad I was because of this guy’s brother? He's really my type, but to have him end up like an idiot because of…" Natasha explained while pointing at Agareth.
Agareth bit his lip.
‘If only I was a bit stronger…’
He bit his lip to the extent that blood dripped down his lip.
The Avalon Imperial Academy was under the imperial family’s control, but the members of the Twelve Families were the ones with the real power here. They formed Araksha and indulged in all sorts of delinquencies.
"Guess what will happen to you if that friend of yours arrived late."
Natasha slowly dragged Icarus’ shirt upward with her filthy hands.
"Damn it!"
Agareth cursed as Icarus's pure white skin was revealed.
However, the other children holding them down suddenly backed away.
The freed Agareth hurriedly retreated.
"You don’t have to worry about that because I’m already here."
"...!" Agareth's eyes widened.
A precocious boy with dark blue eyes was standing where Agareth originally stood.
"Ash pen Frederick!"
Veron screamed in fury as he recalled the awful memories.
Joshua coldly smiled and said, "Veron shen Villas, you did a great job here."
Veron flinched at the sight of Joshua, but he eventually calmed down and casually replied, "And what are you going to do about it?"
“Trust me, harming my friends is a considerably serious offense in my dictionary.”
Agareth teared up when he heard how Joshua called him and Icarus ‘friends’.
"Friends? You have friends?" Veron seemed like he couldn’t believe it.
However, Joshua ignored Veron’s astonishment as he started moving.
"I’m the prosecutor, so…" Joshua paused before saying, "You better be ready for your judgement."
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