Chapter 176

Chapter 176 – Chapter 35: Battle #3

Silvan, Felicia, Chris, and Caitlin returned to their mansions in the evening, with Anastasia at the forefront .

In contrast to what he had expected, Anastasia only left In-gong’s mansion after finishing dinner . She noticed Chris’ looks before and after the meal but continued as though she didn’t care . Caitlin smiled because she thought it was an opportunity to get closer to Anastasia, but Chris was different . In Chris’ eyes, Anastasia was just staying to spy on them .

Although his mood wasn’t great, Chris didn’t explain about what had happened on his mission . However, Caitlin briefly explained that he had done moderately well fighting against the creatures .

Anastasia was more curious about In-gong’s life among the lizardmen than Chris’ life . She knew In-gong and Felicia had stayed at the Dragon Temple, which could be called the sanctuary of the lizardmen, but she couldn’t understand what they had been doing there .

In-gong just smiled while Felicia talked about the brilliant appearance of the Dragon Temple . It felt like the conversation at Baikal’s tea party .

“The Dragon Temple seems amazing . ”

Although Caitlin seemed satisfied, Anastasia and Chris didn’t look that good . Chris frowned while Anastasia hid her displeasure behind her elegant appearance .

“Let’s talk again in the future . ”

In-gong said in a small voice to Chris, who was the last one to leave his mansion . When he was finally alone, In-gong sighed and looked up at the ceiling . Carack asked from behind him,

“Prince, what is it?”

“I still have a conversation left . ”

Carack made a puzzled sound, but In-gong just headed upstairs . He didn’t forget to give instructions to Flora whom he met along the way .

‘Master, you seem to be nervous . ’

“Yes . ”

In-gong took a deep breath in front of his bedroom door before opening it .

“Hello . ”

“Hello, Your Majesty the 4th Queen . ”

4th Queen Elaine Moonlight was sitting in a very comfortable position on In-gong’s bed . She wore a blue dress with a narrow skirt, but it fit well with her dark blue hair .

“My appearance isn’t a surprise?”

“The appearance of the 4th Queen is within the expected range . ”

In-gong laughed bitterly as he closed his bedroom door . Without opening the mini-map, he could feel Ludwig’s presence on the balcony . Elaine frowned slightly before smiling at him .

“Hmm, did you notice that I broke into your bedroom?”

“I am a little sensitive . ”

In-gong responded appropriately as he stood before the window which led to the balcony . Elaine smiled once again since it was exactly opposite from where Ludwig was hiding .

“I heard about Curtis . Anastasia doesn’t have the same personality as her mother . Well, no, to be precise, there are only several layers of bark on top of the egg… at least for now . ”

“For now?”

Elaine nodded pleasantly at In-gong’s question .

“Isabella said so . You are an older sister killer . Don’t you turn your older sisters into fools?”

Elaine laughed like she found it very amusing, while In-gong gave a soulless laugh .

“Hah, how interesting . Anyway, there are several reasons for me to visit today . Can you come over here?”

Elaine patted the area of the bed next to her . As In-gong approached reluctantly, she pulled a necklace out of a box she had prepared in advance .

“This…?”

“This is the Lycanthrope Tears . ”

It was a yellow jewel lodged in a wolf’s claws . This was the first time In-gong had seen it .

‘Is the Lycanthrope Tears also part of the tears series?’

A total of three tears had appeared in Knight Saga:

The Tears of a Dark Elf gave a powerful mental defense;

The Succubus Tears could create a love potion;

And the Draconian Tears restored the wearer’s magic power . Yet now, there was the Lycanthrope Tears .

‘Could it be that there is one for each queen?’

It was a moderately interesting story . In-gong was able to understand why this was the first time he had seen the Lycanthrope Tears .

In Knight Saga, Silvan had cut off Elaine’s head . Zephyr hadn’t participated in the lycanthrope subjugation until the end . Zephyr’s purpose had been to wipe out the lycanthropes and weaken the other children of the demon king, not build up his own merits .

‘Then is there a Gandharva Tears? Will something happen if I collect all five in the set?’

It was like a game idea, but it really seemed like that might happen .

‘I’ll need to check . ’

If the Gandharva Tears existed, then there was a high possibility it would be with the remains of the 5th Queen .

“Shutra?”

In-gong raised his head at the voice he heard from right beside him . He turned toward Elaine only to see her face right before him .

“Is there a problem?”

“No, I was just a little surprised . ”

In-gong responded quickly and pulled back, increasing the distance with Elaine again . Elaine stared at In-gong before leaning toward him . Then she placed the necklace around his neck .

“The Lycanthrope Tears gives the owner a powerful regenerative ability . Have it . It will be very helpful . ”

Despite how small the three necklaces were, they stood out . He would switch all three pendants onto a single chain later .

‘Is this why she said she would return before?’

Elaine had said she would return with something in exchange for killing Gerard .

“The next thing is about the court gathering . ”

Elaine frowned and changed the topic .

“At this court gathering, the 1st Queen and 2nd Queen are likely to participate . Sylvia is also participating . So, in fact, all the queens of the palace will be present . ”

1st Queen Aishar Ragnaros and 2nd Queen Titania Nekrion… In-gong knew why Elaine wasn’t comfortable . In Knight Saga, the relationship between 2nd Queen Titania and 4th Queen Elaine had been very bad . The two of them were an example of a cat-dog relationship .

“You have already experienced the court gatherings a few times, so it shouldn’t be a big problem . Rather, the problem is the back issues . ”

The court gathering was essentially a venue for publicity . Even though 3rd Queen Sylvia had appeared suddenly at the last one, it hadn’t caused a problem to the process itself . It was after the court gathering that Sylvia’s tea party invitation had appeared .

“1st Queen Aishar isn’t a big problem . The problem is 2nd Queen Titania… She isn’t the same as Anastasia . She is a really scary woman . Do you understand?”

“I understand . ”

1st Queen Aishar had a similar nature to 1st Prince Baikal . She was very gentle and rarely left her mansion, spending most of her time on gardening and reading books . However, Titania was different . She was a thorny rose, a poisonous flower .

Elaine once again got In-gong’s attention as she rose from the bed and looked down at him . She patted In-gong’s head .

“I asked for Master Bruce to spar with you . Wait a little longer . ”

“Yes, Your Majesty the 4th Queen . ”

“Tsk, tsk . Call me Mother . ”

Elaine laughed as she embraced In-gong gently . She was similar in appearance to Caitlin, but unlike Caitlin, Elaine had more curves .

“Then that is all for today . I’ll see you next time . ”

Elaine touched In-gong’s cheek gently before turning toward the balcony, instead of his bedroom door . Ludwig appeared like a ghost behind Elaine . Elaine’s and Ludwig’s exit wasn’t as fast as the sword duke’s, but it was faster than the wind . In-gong sighed as he stared at the open balcony doors .

“Why does the sword duke and everyone else not go through the door?”

In-gong murmured as Green Wind closed the balcony door .

&

Two days after the meeting with Elaine, Shutra’s faction, headed by Felicia, gathered at In-gong’s mansion . They intended to head to the court gathering as usual .

Felicia had many gold decorations on a blue dress which was as exposed as always, with her clothing being reminiscent of what she had worn at the Dragon Temple . Thanks to Chris’ return, Caitlin wore a white dress which covered her shoulders . Chris smiled with pleasure, but Caitlin’s frown showed she wasn’t satisfied .

Silvan and Chris were wearing a colourful suit and black suit, respectively, as usual . In-gong was also wearing a white suit like he had always worn .

“Did you hear? There is a rumour that all the queens will be participating . ”

Chris’ eyes sharpened at Felicia’s words . He approached In-gong and said in a heavy tone,

“Beware of the 2nd Queen . Just watch the 2nd Queen . ”

His eyes filled with flames like Elaine . Seeing this, a smile found its way onto In-gong’s face .

“What is it?”

“No, Hyung really is the 4th Queen’s son . ”

Chris was still confused, but he didn’t ask In-gong anything else . Felicia stood next to them and added,

“Shutra, Omamama told me to watch out for the 2nd Queen as well . Don’t just laugh like that and be careful . Understand?”

“I understand . Hyung and Noona don’t need to worry too much . Will the 2nd Queen be the only one at the court gathering? The 3rd Queen and 4th Queen are bound to help . ”

Two of the four queens were on his side . 1st Queen Aishar was neutral, so she wouldn’t be an impediment . Chris laughed at In-gong’s words and knocked against his shoulder .

“Hu, okay . Disturbance Shutra . I will put aside my futile worries and proceed to enjoy the exciting court gathering . ”

Chris was expecting an event to happen again . Felicia opposed it immediately .

“Hey, does it have to be exciting? Shutra, please let it be quiet this time . Noona’s heart hurts at every court gathering . Yes?”

Felicia grabbed her chest as she begged In-gong . She looked so serious that he was unsure if it was a joke or her true heart .

“Anyway, let’s depart . It will be a big deal if we are late . ”

It was Silvan, the oldest member of Shutra’s faction, who said this . Chris smiled at the tone which made Silvan sound like an old man but prepared to leave . Just as they were planning to leave the reception room…

“Your Highness . ”

“Flora?”

Flora approached at an urgent pace and bowed before In-gong .

“Your Highness, the court gathering scheduled for today has been cancelled . ”

“Cancelled?”

Felicia cried out in an aghast tone . So far, the court gatherings had never once been delayed or cancelled . It was surprising that the court gathering was cancelled on the day it was to be held .

Chris asked sharply,

“Tell us a little more . What is the reason? Was there some type of accident?”

“I don’t know the reason . I received the news from a guard . ”

Flora was surprised by Chris’ intimidation, but she responded in a calm tone . The court gathering had been cancelled, and the reason was unknown . Moreover, it was the guards who had informed her .

Felicia and Chris gazed at each other with confusion . It was obvious the court gathering had been cancelled due to an incident, but they couldn’t even guess what had happened . Silvan and Caitlin were no different . Caitlin looked at In-gong with an expression of concern .

In-gong started thinking, and thought of something reflexively . If ‘that’ had happened, then it made sense . It would explain why the court gathering had been cancelled . However, the timing was too early .

‘Perhaps…’

In-gong shifted his gaze in the direction of the Black Castle, which was called the true Demon King’s Palace .

&

The demon king, Mitra, opened his eyes . He wasn’t on a comfortable bed . The demon king recalled the situation just before he lost consciousness .

“The court gathering was cancelled . The queens were quite confused . Well, this is the first time it has happened . ”

The sword duke spoke in a low and heavy voice . The demon king shifted his gaze and the sword duke came into his sights . The sword duke opened his mouth to speak,

“Has your sickness worsened?”

The demon king didn’t deny the sword duke’s worried question, but his current situation itself was the answer .

He had vomited up blood and collapsed; he had lost consciousness . It was fortunate that the sword duke had been the first one to discover him . The demon king had concealed his illness even from his guard, Reinhardt .

The demon king of the Demon World had always been considered an absolute being . If the fact, that he had a disease and was in a weakened state, were exposed, then the hearts of the people, even the queens, might change .

The next demon king wasn’t ready yet . Until a new absolute being appeared to guard the Demon World, he had to show a healthy appearance .

The sword duke clicked his tongue . He looked at his only disciple with sadness .

“Demon King, you don’t need to rush . Are you going to die before this old man? If you do, then you better be prepared . I will never forgive you . ”

The sword duke spoke intently on purpose . The demon king smiled and raised his upper body slowly .

“Sword Duke, prepare to go to the Holy Land . ”

The sword duke’s eyes widened at the command . The demon king could see the flow of destiny, so he wouldn’t say this for no reason . It was clear that something would happen in the Holy Land .

“I understand . I will leave immediately . ”

Maintaining the Holy Land was the greatest task assigned to the sword duke, and it was related to the comfort of the entire Demon World . The sword duke prepared to leave the demon king’s side, but then the demon king’s magic grabbed the sword duke . The sword duke looked back with confusion and the demon king said,

“Not alone . Take Shutra with you . ”

“To the Holy Land?!”

The sword duke raised his voice unintentionally . It was a confusing order . The demon king turned his gaze back to the sword duke, staring at him with calm eyes . The sword duke sensed that the demon king had read the flow of destiny . So, he didn’t ask any more pointless questions .

“I understand, I will do so . ”

The sword duke replied before leaving the demon king . The demon king’s gaze lingered on where the sword duke had been, then he shifted his gaze to a distant place .

The flow of destiny was fluctuating .