Darius And The Trio
Yawn.
Deia yawned and slumped down, naturally leaning against shoulder.
Feeling her warm weight, I pretended to be bothered by her careless action.
Youre too close.
Hm?
Then, Deia turned her head, which was still resting on my shoulder, and replied,
Its because youre the most comfortable thing to lean against in prison.
.
Also, its normal for siblings to have this kind of physical contact.
She responded shalessly.
The only sibling relationship I had seen up close was between King Orpheus and Princess Eleanor.
The two seed quite close to each other, so it sowhat made sense. Yet, I couldnt shake off the feeling that I was being deceived by Deia.
Deia quickly turned away again.
Ah, it feels more comfortable if I dont see your face.
Well, if that was the case
Since I had decided to let it slide, Deia chuckled and brought up the Archmages proposal from earlier.
What do you plan to do about that?
.
He said that he could help us escape. Its not impossible to escape from this place as long as we accept his offer, right?
Archmage Ropelican had secretly approached Deia and , offering to help us break out of prison.
Unexpectedly, he proposed to take our side.
He apologized for the extrely unreasonable treatnt, despite my success in overcoming three nearly impossible trials.
As I was unable to give an imdiate answer, the Archmage left, promising to return later.
Normally, I would have accepted his offer and thanked him with gratitude.
However, I was sowhat skeptical about Ropelicans proposal.
Is that really the true intention of his proposal?
Huh? What are you talking about?
Unable to comprehend the aning behind my words, Deia pressed her head more firmly against my shoulder. She seed to urge to get straight to the point rather than beat around the bush.
Feeling her weight, I expressed my thoughts clearly.
Archmage Ropelican is an incredibly loyal person. Even among those who are close to the King, he can be considered as the closest aide since the late Kings ti.
The relationship between Ropelican and King Orpheus was beyond that of a King and his vassal.
Archmage Ropelican was in charge of the young Orpheus education, and Orpheus thought of him as a life ntor.
They were practically family, so Orpheus never kept any secrets from Ropelican.
Hmm?
While Deia was impressed with the detailed information I grasped from the situation in a short span of ti, in reality, I was just recounting what I had witnessed in the ga.
All of Ropelicans actions are with the Royal family in mind. In other words, he offered this proposal for the sake of King Orpheus.
If the Mage Tribunal Judge, Tyren Ol Velocus, strictly served the Kingdom, Ropelican was loyal to the Griffin Royal Family, or to be precise, to King Orpheus.
There was a significant difference.
If it were Tyren, he wouldnt just overlook such matters.
He wouldnt have simply overlooked the fact that theRoyal Family had supported the dark mage who massacred people throughout the Kingdom in the past, and, on top of that, that very mage was of Royal Family blood.
However, Ropelican was different.
For the sake of King Orpheus, he would tolerate and silently ignore such matters.
Would soone like Ropelican really go against the Kings order and attempt to free ?
I could guarantee there was no way he would do that.
Hence, I needed to consider the opposite.
He wasnt trying to release because he believed I was unjustly accused.
He simply intended to eliminate soone like before I could beco an obstacle to the King.
It seems like the King is genuinely troubled with what to do with .
He couldnt decide whether he had to fulfill the promise and take responsibility, or silently draw the sword for the sake of the Royal Family and the Kingdom.
Suddenly, a part of Hamlets soliloquy by Shakespeare ca to my mind.
If I slightly altered the phrase to fit this situation
To kill or not to kill.
That was the question.
King Orpheus was tornted by indecision in the face of this problem.
If that were the case, Ropelican would rather get rid of , who was the problem, so that the King wouldnt have to make a choice at all.
Things are going better than I thought.
Unlike when I took the wrong route in the ga, the King didnt fall into shock or go crazy due to the guilt of being unable to overco it.
Clearly, he acknowledged his situation and was in distress.
Therefore, I didnt know the outco. However, it was better to wait for now.
* * *
Huff, huff!
Late at night.
Darius, who was unconsciously breathing heavily, quietly inspected the sword at his waist.
Even though the sword was almost an extension of his body and had accompanied him throughout his life, he kept checking it from ti to ti, perhaps out of anxiety.
Wow, I never thought I would infiltrate the Griffin Royal Palace.
It would have been nice if the Chief was here as well.
What should we take back as a souvenir?
On the other hand, the trio of Scrapyard Nomads who ca along were acting as if they were on a field trip, laughing and enjoying themselves, leaving Darius dumbfounded and bewildered.
This was a stealth operation to infiltrate the Griffin Royal Palace, and it was quite astonishing that they could remain so relaxed.
It turns out they didnt follow that crazy woman around for no reason.
They might not have been like that when they still led ordinary lives. But once they broke out of their shell, they were no different from Findenai.
Was this how people changed in order to survive in the Clark Republic, infamous for being full of horrible rumors?
I cant really tell whether theyve adapted, or they were just completely broken.
Regardless, thanks to these people, Darius felt sowhat relieved. Thus, he took a deep breath and looked up at the high wall.
Although their bodies were already concealed in the darkness, to break-in, they had to conquer the towering walls fencing the Royal Palace.
Due to the risk of being exposed when using mana, Darius decided to crawl up. So, he loosened up his grip and approached the wall cautiously.
One of the trio asked Darius.
Are you really okay with it?
What do you an?
Darius wondered what he ant, as they were just cheerfully talking a while ago. However, the latter unexpectedly brought up so sensible points.
I understand your siblings are precious, but if things go wrong, all of you could really lose your heads, you know? And the Verdi Household itself could face extinction.
Darius paused for a mont upon hearing this. The statent was not wrong.
After all, their aim was to free Darius two siblings who were confined.
Furthermore, one of them happened to be a dark mage, and dark mages were vehently hated in the kingdom.
Even if they were family, attempting to protect a dark mage could lead to more than just Darius losing his life. It could spell the end of the Verdi Household .
Yes, family is important.
If asked to na the most important thing to him, he would undoubtedly answer that it was the Households glory.
The na of Verdithe giant who guarded the Northern Mountain Rangewas a source of pride for Darius.
Yet, two months ago, after exposing their Households accumulated dirty deeds, they decided to start anew.
With a tightly clenched fist, Darius firmly declared.
However, I am not the only Verdi.
.
Those two also carry the na of Verdi with pride.
Hearing those words, the trio grinned and chid in,
Just admit that your siblings are precious to you.
Yeah, no need to use the family as an excuse.
Still, youve changed a lot since we first t.
Ahem.
Feeling awkward, Darius cleared his throat, and one of the trio handed him a rope draped over his shoulder.
I brought this since it seed like we might need it. Well help you get inside, so just hang this from the castle wall.
Huh? You guys will help get inside?
Wondering what they ant, the trio confidently took their positions right in front of the wall, creating a makeshift jumping platform for Darius with their hands.
Darius was dumbfounded.
Sigh.
Since this was preferable to crawling up the wall, Darius seized the opportunity and leaped.
Heave ho!
Perhaps due to the trios impressively synchronized movents, Darius jumped so high that he was surprised by the outco.
His body truly zood through the sky.
He then managed to easily cross the bars on the wall fence and landed smoothly on the other side.
Huh.
Obviously, the trio had done this kind of thing several tis during their resistance movents.
They were not just skillful but also experienced.
Just as Darius was about to secure the rope on the wall to help the trio to cross.
Hmm, youre quite audacious, huh?
The chilling voice of an elderly man echoed from behind. Darius threw the rope down, his neck creaking as he turned.
Simultaneously, he drew the sword from his waist.
Certainly, it was a beastly strike.
Darius demonstrated a sharp sword strike, proudly showcasing that he wasnt called the giant guarding the Northern Mountain Range for nothing.
He had grown significantly through rigorous training, especially following the crushing defeat against Findenai.
Just like Findenai, the attack was so fierce that one could say that he was overpowering when facing him.
Thud!
Before he could land a proper attack, the pressure from the mana pouring out of the elderly man pushed Darius backwards, causing him to collide with the wall.
Stuck to the wall like a painting, he could only open and close his mouth repeatedly while confirming the presence that had subdued him with a single move.
How reckless of you. Your personality is completely different from that of your solemn and reliable younger brother. Perhaps youre agitated because your siblings have been arrested?
It was an impressive elderly figure with a staff resembling an ancient tree, wearing a robe so magnificent it exuded an air of mystery, and adorned with a striking white beard.
Its quite amusing that you thought there wouldnt be any magic on the Royal Palaces walls. If I hadnt discovered you in advance, you would have been roasted by now.
Archmage Ropelican Linus clicked his tongue while staring at Darius.
Did you co to rescue your siblings, Margrave /genesisforsaken
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