"…Yes?"

The face of Lord Moet, who had just regained his composure at Kishiar's agreement, was filled with doubt.

"What is that… you speak of?"

"Sorry, but the person with me is merely my assistant, and also has the honorable title of Yuder Aile, bestowed by His Majesty the Emperor. I do not know anyone called 'Yude Al,' so it seems I'll be unable to comply with your request. I think I need to rest again."

Kishiar softly repeated his response and then closed the door once more. In the ensuing silence, Lord Moet stood dumbfounded, only regaining his senses a moment later, deep in thought.

It's not as if remembering the name and title of a commoner is that important, but if it's something bestowed by the Emperor, the situation changes slightly.

Even though no one doubts that the occupant of the throne will change within a few years, as of now, Emperor Keilusa still sat on the throne, and the one inside that room was the Emperor's only blood brother and a Duke.

If such a person were to take a minor mistake as an intentional insult to the Emperor, it would be greatly troublesome.

"Your Highness, Your Highness! I misspoke because I was unaware of the situation. What I meant to say was that I wish for your assistant Yu…der Aile to step forward and handle this matter. If there has been a misunderstanding…!"

"Hmm. You mean my assistant Yuder Aile, right?"

The door cracked open again, revealing red eyes. Lord Moet quickly nodded.

"Yes."

"But it's still confusing. Even if you were unaware of the situation, how could you forget the name of the person you wished to ask a favor of?"

Wasn't it ridiculous for Duke Peletta, who was neither wise nor well-behaved and whose tutors changed monthly during his princehood, to say such a thing? Deeply aggrieved and angry, Lord Moet bowed his head to hide his expression.

"That is not… a memory issue, but rather because I have not been feeling well lately, and sometimes my hearing becomes muffled…"

"Is that so? I thought you were not old enough to experience deafness and senility, but it seems you've aged quite a bit. There's no stopping the passage of time, I understand. Why didn't you say so earlier?"

Kishiar opened his eyes wide and shamelessly responded. His choice of words was truly delicate. Lord Moet's bearded chin quivered with indignation several times before he could stop it.

"Yes… It was merely a hearing mistake. Please know that I did not dare distort His Majesty's will or intend to insult. Now… will you accept our request?"

"I wonder…"

Duke Peletta, smiling, opened the door even wider and stepped out completely.

"Is it really necessary for my assistant to go out just to check the situation outside?"

"Yes?…"

"That's something I can do myself. I'll be right back."

Kishiar closed the door and moved forward, his reply even lighter and more carefree than if he were going out for a night drink. Watching the duke pass by them, barefoot and dressed in disheveled formal wear, the nobles all wore expressions as if they were about to faint.

"Yo, Your Grace! You can't go like that!"

"Our request did not mean that… Your Highness!"

Kishiar turned his head towards those chasing after him. Fearing that he might ask them to come along, they all recoiled in surprise. Kishiar smiled brightly at their comical reactions.

“Ah, I see. Just checking would be no fun, shall we place a bet? Thanks to my brave soldiers and knights, I'll wager 5,000 that the situation outside is not as dangerous or serious as you folks think. What say you?”

“I, I...”

Lord Moet stammered without finishing his sentence, lowering his head. Kishiar clicked his tongue in disappointment.

“Really now? Are there none here who know the pleasure of a bet? Oh well, then I'll open the door.”

“Your Highness! You mustn't!”

The nobles rushed over to stop Kishiar, who was hastily trying to clear the chairs and tables blocking the hall's entrance.

“The villains outside are already lurking! We will all be killed! Your Highness!”

“Stop the Duke, everyone!”

But the flamboyantly dressed young duke easily brushed aside the restraining hands as if they were merely annoying, laughing and pushing aside all the furniture in an instant.

“What's all this fuss? Everyone worries about me too much. Even I feel slightly embarrassed to be so loved by everyone. There's no need for this, you know?”

Although he didn't move with much force, the nobles were thrown about, making sounds of pain. From afar, it looked like a farce.

Lord Moet grabbed Kishiar's arm but let go instantly, watching with his mouth agape.

A madman. Duke Peletta was indeed insane.

He had heard whispered rumors of the Duke's eccentric behavior in the capital's social circles, but what he was witnessing now went far beyond those tales. This wasn't merely eccentricity; it was the act of a fearless and deranged person.

Though some may have doubted Kishiar's appearance, the nobles of the west who had regarded him lightly were gasping for breath. Eventually, all obstacles were cleared, and the door opened.

“No!”

Lord Moet, along with most of the nobles, covered their heads with their hands, crouched or turned their backs, looking for places to hide.

Soon, the barbaric invaders would reveal themselves. The pungent smell of blood would pierce their noses, and screams, previously silenced by the closed door, would assail their ears!

But after a long moment, nothing happened. The silent situation bewildered the nobles, who slowly peeked out from their hiding places.

Then, without exception, their eyes widened in shock.

In front of the open door, Duke Peletta saw no corpses or blood as they had anticipated.

The barefoot Duke was standing in front of the door, smiling as he looked down at the respectfully kneeling on one knee and saluting black-clothed Cavalry members and knights, along with a few bound individuals lying on the ground, all with a smile on his face.

“...”

“I report that the unexpected emergency situation has been dealt with, and the intruders have been captured, Commander!”

A blue-haired boy at the forefront of the Cavalry spoke with a clear and dignified voice, bowing his head. The other members also bowed simultaneously, unfazed by Duke Peletta's appearance.

“Hmm, I've won the bet. But since there's nothing to take, what now?”

Kishiar turned around with a bright smile in his eyes. Seeing the blood splatter on the young boy's pale cheek behind the Duke, the nobles were paralyzed with terror, unable to utter a word.

…

“Yuder! We've found most of the distinguished guests who attended the auction. Let's check Kanna's side and head back.”

“Understood.”

Yuder stopped the power of the earth and leaped down from the tree he had continued to climb, preparing for any contingency. He moved along with Ever. She had just completed her mission of understanding the situation in the auction house and commanding the members, having defeated Ershi as she had confidently assured, and coming here right after.

Yuder silently examined Ever's face, which, though filled with cuts that seemed to have been made by a thin blade on every exposed piece of skin, did not lose its smile.

"Hmm? Don't worry about this. It's nothing. Ershi is in worse shape than me."

Ever, seeming to notice where Yuder's gaze had fallen, casually lifted her hand and wiped away the bloodstains.

Some of the guests, who had thought the situation that seemed like a sudden earthquake was actually caused by the Cavalry, were still screaming and resisting, but the Cavalry members didn't pay them any more attention than they would to barking dogs, as they took them away and loaded them into carriages.

"Did you hear that Kanna handled her part well?"

"I heard so. They've captured all of Star of Nagran members there, but it's a bit of a shame that they didn't catch all the southern merchants who were in the warehouse."

While Yuder was continuously raising the power of the earth by himself, blocking the exit, the members had captured those designated according to their roles. The strategy of exploiting the confusion of those who thought a natural disaster had occurred went as planned, but the problem was that the southern merchants who had been in the warehouse had escaped using a secret third exit that was inside.

With information from Pruelle and Robel, they thought there were no other escape routes there, but the inside of the warehouse, which was said to have been inaccessible to anyone other than the southerners, acted as an unexpected variable.

The southerner who had fought with Yuder, as well as several other southerners who had been seen with him in the inn, had hidden themselves through the secret passage. All they took with them was a sack filled with substituted Calanesa powder.

"You fools! Do you know who I am? Let go!"

At that moment, Yuder heard the sound of another noble struggling near him. Turning his head, he recognized the man and stopped in his tracks.

"Yuder?"

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