Chapter 6 (Part 12)

Suppressing his irritation, Felipe forced a smile of feigned affection.  

“Duchess, where are you looking, leaving the empire’s most handsome man beside you?”  

“The palace is so beautiful, I can’t help but admire it.”  

She was no pushover.  

Even though she hadn’t glanced at the glittering palace, she came up with a plausible excuse.  

Hiding a bitter smile, Felipe spoke again.  

“You don’t resemble the Baron much, do you?”  

“I wouldn’t know.”  

“That’s both a shame and a blessing.”  

Felipe wore a strange expression as he chewed on a grape.  

“If you resembled your father, you’d have jumped at the chance to sit in that seat over there.”  

Baron Demori was a man so obsessed with money that he would sell his country for profit.  

For that reason, Felipe had been rather fond of Therese’s father. People who were transparent and easy to read were easier to handle.  

At that moment, Knight Commander Dupont entered urgently and whispered something to Duke Richard.  

“……Hmm.”  

It was clear from first glance that something unusual had happened. The Duke shot a sharp glare in their direction, as if issuing a warning, before rising from his seat.

“My, how frightening.”  

Felipe, who had been rolling a grape around in his mouth, bit down on it forcefully.

Therese’s gaze followed the Duke as he disappeared.  

‘Did she really sit next to me and dare to look at another man?’  

Her grip on the armrest was so tight that the veins on the back of her hand bulged.  

‘This doesn’t please me.’  

Felipe picked another grape and held it out to Therese, attempting to draw her attention.  

“These are from Pasa. They’re very sweet.”  

“I-I’m fine, thank you.”  

“Are you trying to embarrass me, the Emperor?”

Reluctantly, she accepted the grape.  

As Felipe watched the red cloak disappear out the door, he whispered.  

“It’s a perfect night for a hunt, don’t you think?”  

Overcome with excitement, Felipe crushed the grape in his hand, letting the juice ooze out. The sticky, red liquid trickled between his fingers and gave off a sweet scent.  

Ever since ascending to the throne, Felipe had always desired one thing.  

‘Absolute power.’  

It was not something granted to those who didn’t strive for it, and Felipe’s greatest strength was his patience.  

“What an exquisite wait this is.”

All he had to do was wait for something to be caught in his net.  

In the mirror reflecting the room, Felipe’s gray eyes gleamed ominously.  

* * *  

Outside the entrance to the Imperial Palace, where the ball was being held, Georges stood holding the Duke’s horse.  

“Your Grace, wouldn’t it be better to wait for reinforcements?”  

Jeremy shook his head at Georges’ suggestion. After a long investigation that had yielded no leads, they had finally received a tip about the transaction site today.  

This was not something that could be delayed.  

“If we wait, we’ll lose them.” 

Besides, the fact that the transaction site was at the harbor made him even more concerned. If the culprits fled by ship, they would be hard to catch.  

“I’ll go ahead and apprehend the perpetrators. Follow me as soon as you can.”  

Due to the Imperial Palace’s security forces being concentrated at the ball, it would take some time to gather troops to dispatch to the harbor.  

“Your Grace, the enemy seems to be quite cunning, so please be careful. I’ll join you shortly.”  

As Georges bowed, the Duke’s horse had already galloped toward the harbor.  

Duke Richard’s eyes were cold as he rode.  

Although they had been tailing Count Pablo, they had only found suspicious circumstances without any decisive evidence.  

‘He must be connected to a major criminal organization.’  

Thinking of the criminal who had been giving him headaches for months, Jeremy clenched his teeth in anger.  

The culprit had disrupted the knight order’s discipline and tarnished its honor with illegal substances.  

He didn’t know what their intentions were, but as long as he was here, they wouldn’t succeed.  

After riding for some time, he stopped at a hideout along the way to change his clothes.  

Finally, he covered his face with a mask.  

If he couldn’t catch that man under the name of Duke Richard, he had to become someone else.  

“I will catch him with my own hands.”  

Through the slit of the black mask, his unusual eyes revealed his firm determination.  

After riding for a while, the sea began to come into view. Jeremy gradually slowed his horse and carefully observed his surroundings.  

The only lights illuminating the night harbor were the faint torches, the bonfires lit by sailors sharing drinks, and the moonlight reflecting on the sea.  

“Alexandra, wait here.”  

Jeremy stroked the mane of his horse, which exhaled deeply, and hid Alexandra in a safe place.  

While searching through the piles of wooden crates stacked like mountains in the harbor, he found a single tent.  

‘It’s just a shabby tent, but judging by the armed guards stationed around it…….’  

It was undoubtedly suspicious.  

Jeremy drew his sword and cautiously approached the guards. After effortlessly taking down two guards, he surveyed the area around the tent.  

“Are these all the guards?”  

He had checked on his way, but there was no one else. Lifting the curtain, the Duke entered and meticulously examined the inside of the tent.  

The tent was larger than it appeared from the outside, but aside from a single torch in the middle, there was no other light, making the atmosphere dim.  

‘Did I come too early?’  

Perhaps he had arrived before the transaction had even begun.  

At that moment, a small box on the table caught his eye.  

‘This is too easy.’  

The fact that something so important was left out in the open was highly suspicious.  

‘If the informant was bribed…….’  

This could very well be a trap.  

‘I should step out and assess the situation first.’  

Just as Jeremy was about to turn around—  

“……?”  

Dozens of men armed with weapons suddenly surrounded him, making strange noises.  

……Krrrr.  

Jeremy was taken aback by the sudden appearance of intruders in the tent. There wasn’t enough space inside the tent to hide this many people, and it was impossible to completely erase their presence.  

‘Unless they emerged from the ground.’  

But now was not the time to question such things. Without lowering his guard, Jeremy adjusted his grip on his sword, ready to strike at any moment.  

“Drop your weapons and surrender.”  

Jeremy had come here tonight to apprehend those distributing illegal substances, not to harm anyone.  

……Krrrr.  

However, despite his warning, the men did not drop their weapons and continued making strange noises.  

“Have they all been drinking?”  

Under the faint light, their bloodshot eyes were unfocused, and their steps were unsteady.  

Jeremy realized that he couldn’t feel any warmth or pulse from them. Despite his countless battles, this was the first time he had encountered such opponents.  

“No choice, then.”  

Realizing that a fight was inevitable, Jeremy leapt forward in an instant. His sword slashed through the enemies’ arms and legs without hesitation, and soon, the tent was splattered with blood.  

After a few minutes of fighting, Jeremy straightened his back as the fallen enemies groaned on the ground.  

‘I need to get out quickly and inform Georges.’  

It was clear that someone had deliberately leaked false information.  

Wiping the sweat off his damp mask, Jeremy checked his clothes.  

‘Ah, I’ll need to change.’  

Thinking of the spare clothes he had left with his horse, he was about to leave the tent when—  

“……?”  

Something grabbed his ankle.  

Looking down, he saw one of the fallen enemies clutching his ankle with gleaming eyes. The enemy’s hooked nails dug into his flesh, and Jeremy quickly moved to sever the hand holding him.  

……Krrrr.  

Then, the fallen enemy began writhing like a caterpillar, vomiting a yellowish liquid from its mouth.  

“What… what is this?”  

Even when dealing with monsters in the frontier, he had never been this startled. But now, he was deeply shaken by the actions of these human-like creatures.  

“Are they monsters?”  

That would explain why he hadn’t sensed any presence earlier. These creatures resembled humans cloaked in the aura of monsters.  

The enemy, twisting its limbs and neck unnaturally, stood up with a completely different face than before.  

“In that case, there’s no reason to hold back anymore.”  

Believing they were human, Jeremy had fought with the blunt side of his sword to avoid unnecessary killing.  

But if they were monsters, the situation was different.  

“You’d better be prepared.”  

Jeremy Richard’s sharp eyes narrowed as he adjusted his sword to its proper edge.  

<To be continued in Volume 3>