Episode 998

“Ugh!”

Berrick carefully climbed over the wall. Unlike the bustling guesthouse filled with servants, this side was quiet and nearly deserted. Since this was Clifford, famous for its wine, surely they’d brought some really good stuff, right? Berrick swallowed hard, trying to stay unnoticed.

‘Those damn seniors. They promise wine but treat me like a dog, huh?’

They said the palace chef manages the alcohol, so I have to get permission from him? What a joke. Those guys freak out just seeing their own shadows.

Lately, they’ve even been carrying military swords, so you can’t just rush in. Unlike the chef, who’d probably beat me up for real, the best defense here was to keep my guard up.

‘I’m not stupid.’

If I actually knocked out the chef, I’d definitely get kicked out of the palace. Even Ian wouldn’t back me up on that.

‘Oh right, Ian Your Majesty.’

Berrick quietly pinched the bridge of his nose. The emperor’s coronation was coming up soon, but he still wasn’t used to the new title.

Anyway, Berrick peeked out from the bushes, hoping to spot a forgotten bottle of wine lying around.

Rustle!

“Huh?”

A little girl was staring down at him. Her ears perked up, tail wagging gently, eyes full of curiosity. She squatted down and rubbed her face against his, frowning.

“Whatcha doin’?”

“Huh? Berrick?”

“Are you Ara?”

“Dummy.”

“How do you know I’m Ara?”

She just pulled on Berrick’s nose without a word. Judging by her clothes, she looked like a royal princess. What now? While Berrick was pondering, Queen Clifford came out into the courtyard and approached the princess.

“Princess, what are you doing here? Oh my!”

“I’m not doing anything!”

The queen was surprised and scooped up the princess, stepping back. But since this was Bariel’s palace, she knew no one dangerous could get this close, so she looked more puzzled than alarmed.

“Who are you? The gate’s over there.”

“Well, um, I took a wrong turn.”

Berrick slipped out from behind the leaves and stood up quietly. Better to get out before any palace staff saw him. Otherwise, Captain Herchi might just smack him on the back of the head again.

‘Same captain, damn it. Always hitting me.’

As Berrick grumbled and headed toward the gate, the princes suddenly appeared from somewhere and started attacking his backside without mercy.

“Ugh!”

“Attack! Attack!”

“Princes! What rude behavior! Stop it, all of you!”

“Are you okay?”

The king and queen tried to intervene, but the princes ignored them and kept tugging at Berrick’s hair. The princess, still in the queen’s arms, pointed at Berrick and muttered,

“Berrick.”

“Berrick?”

The king and queen looked at the disheveled Berrick. His shirt collar was crooked, maybe a button popped off.

“Ah, ahem. Excuse me. I’ll be going now.”

How on earth did the Clifford royal family know who he was? Was the reputation of the palace guard’s top three captains really that widespread? No, wait—the princess just called him a dummy. Could it be that his foolishness was famous even in the neighboring kingdom?

Berrick sniffled, deep in thought, when the queen laughed and tickled the princess’s chin.

“Oh my, that’s right. Your voice sounds just the same. Our princess is quite clever, you know.”

“Huh?”

What did she mean? Voice? Berrick asked, puzzled, and the queen winked and whispered,

“Just go along with it. Our princess isn’t feeling well. Who would have guessed that was a magic stone? It’s been passed down through the royal family for generations.”

“No, it’s not about going along with it. That really is me, Berrick.”

“…Huh?”

“Yeah?”

Now the queen frowned, clearly confused.

“That can’t be.”

“It’s true. I’m Berrick, one of the palace guard’s top three captains. Seems like we’re talking past each other. Have you had some wine?”

Despite the rude tone, the queen seemed too surprised to notice. She kept patting the princess’s back and added,

“Well, our princess had brought a special gift for Ian Berosion Your Majesty, but it turned out to be a magic stone. The Minister of Magic confiscated it.”

The princess had wanted to deliver it herself, but once they found out it was a magic stone, it was immediately taken by the Ministry of Magic. The princess looked disappointed and rubbed her face against the queen’s neck.

“So?”

What did that have to do with him?

“We didn’t know either, but it has a recording function. Your voice was recorded on it.”

“Whaaat? No way.”

“See? You’ve never been to the Clifford palace, right?”

Not just the palace—I’ve never even set foot in their territory.

“I think you’re mistaken.”

“But your name is Berrick, isn’t it?”

“I told you it is.”

“The one recorded on the magic stone was also called Berrick.”

“Same name?”

“Sounds similar too.”

The conversation went in circles. After a brief silence, Berrick stood up. The princes clung to him, not wanting to let go.

“So, Naum took it?”

“Oh, right. When they checked, their faces suddenly went pale. We’re worried there might be other functions in the magic stone…”

Since it was a gift, if it had some hidden features, that could be a real problem. But considering the princess was young and the friendly relations between Bariel and Clifford, it probably wouldn’t cause much trouble.

“They’re worried. Could you check it out?”

“I’m actually curious too. I’ve never seen the thing, and it has my voice on it? What was on the recording?”

“I didn’t hear much. Naum cut the magic off and left halfway through. It was noisy.”

“Noisy?”

“Yeah. But somehow, it sounded nice.”

“I see.”

The more he heard, the less sense it made. Berrick scratched his chin and pointed at the wine on the table.

“So, can I take this with me?”

“The wine?”

“Yeah, the Ministry of Magic folks are so strict, you have to bring something like this to get in.”

Lies. Berrick’s eyes sparkled more than any wine lover’s. But the king and queen just shrugged, pretending not to notice.

“Take as much as you want. If you need more, just come back.”

“Awesome! Thanks!”

Berrick grabbed the wine and dashed out of the guesthouse. The palace staff spotted him and gave him looks like, ‘Why are you coming out from there?’ but Berrick just chuckled and ran off.

Bang!

“Hey, you idiots at the Ministry of Magic!”

Berrick burst through the Ministry’s door, and the mages looked at him with annoyed expressions. That simpleton, barging in on the busiest department during the coronation preparations. What an idiot.

“Kill him…”

“Yeah, killing him and throwing him in jail would be easier.”

“At least you can sleep there…”

Zzzzzzt, zzzzzzt!

“Calm down, please.”

Someone released magic, and Romandro spoke calmly. Berrick’s antics were nothing new. Using force here would only hurt himself. There was so much magic to be used during the coronation.

“Captain Berrick, if you’re just here to mess around, you’d better leave.”

“I’m not here to play. I came to see Naum.”

“Call him Minister!”

Romandro, who had been keeping his cool, suddenly shouted and then hesitated.

“But why are you looking for the Minister?”

Berrick rarely sought out Naum personally. Sometimes, as captain of the palace guard, he had meetings with the Minister, but usually Captain Herchi or another captain went instead.

Berrick shook the wine bottle and grinned.

“I wanted to ask something. They said there’s a stone with my voice on it?”

“That guy’s been drinking since morning…”

“Romandro, he’s the captain, remember?”

“Ahem. Right.”

Berrick glanced toward the Minister’s office and asked again.

“Can I go in?”

“No, you idiot. The Minister’s at his guesthouse and hasn’t come back yet.”

“Huh? At the guesthouse? I heard he already left from there.”

“What did you say?”

This conversation wasn’t going anywhere. Berrick scratched his ear and added,

“He already got the princess’s jewel and left a while ago. So he’s not at the Ministry? Then where did he go?”

“Well…”

They didn’t know. The mages stopped what they were doing and just blinked.

“Could it be—”

Everyone’s faces went pale. Their hands trembled, their vision blurred—they could barely stand.

…No way. It can’t be.

“He didn’t run away, did he?!”

The mages shouted, and Berrick covered his ears. Maybe it was because they hadn’t slept in days, but none of them seemed to have their wits about them.

The mages stormed out and started searching the building.

Bang!

“Not here.”

Bang!

“Not here either!”

Clatter!

“Maybe here?”

“Don’t come in, damn it! Didn’t I tell you not to enter during experiments?!”

“…Sorry.”

There was no sign of Naum anywhere. Given the days that had stretched beyond mere overwork into near abuse, had he finally snapped and bolted out of the imperial palace?

“How many hours has it been?”

“Three hours since he said he was going to the secondary palace.”

“That’s enough time to be well beyond the city by now.”

“Damn it, what do we do? Should we run after him?”

“No, we can’t. Ian—no, Your Majesty’s coronation is tomorrow…”

While the mages huddled together, seriously debating their next move, Romandro finished sorting through some documents and let out a heavy sigh.

“What if the guests from the three kingdoms see this?”

The empire’s mages reduced to this—how humiliating, utterly shameful!

Grabbing the papers, Romandro climbed into the carriage and urged them to depart quickly. They needed to report to Ian, who was still at the main palace.

“Hey! You’re not coming? Am I going alone?!”

---

“What did you say?”

Ian looked up from his book. Behind Romandro, the mages clung to him, tears streaming down their faces. Ian let out a faint chuckle.

“Naum ran away, huh.”

Better if Beric had gone off to university instead.

But the mages sniffled and protested.

“I’m telling you, he’s really nowhere to be found. The magic department has so much work.”

“We searched everywhere—from the magic department to the surrounding areas of the secondary palace.”

“Still, Hans is right where he always is. He should be back soon, right?”

Ian closed his book and raised an eyebrow.

Is Naum the kind of person to abandon everything without a word? Absolutely not. The mages know this too, but they’re so exhausted their judgment is clouded.

“Nonsense. Everyone, stop worrying and stay put.”

Despite Ian’s words, the mages hesitated but didn’t leave. Partly because there was still work to do, but also because they wanted to spend a little more time talking with Ian before the coronation. Once he ascended the throne, even lighthearted jokes like this would have to be kept in check.

Romandro glanced at the book Ian had closed.

‘The Miracles of Past Lives,’ huh? So that’s the kind of book he’s been reading lately.

After days of sitting, poring over documents and books, Ian didn’t look well. Clearing his throat, Romandro spoke up.

“Whatever the circumstances, it’s a problem that the Minister of Magic disappeared without a word. Your Majesty, do you have any idea where he might be?”

A secret hideout, perhaps? They’d been close since childhood, so maybe Ian knew something. Romandro’s suggestion was also a gentle nudge for Ian to take a break, close the book, and get some fresh air.

“I might have an idea…”

But Ian let the thought trail off without finishing.

After receiving approval on the documents, Romandro bowed and led the mages out. Left alone, Ian rested his chin on his hand and muttered,

“Maybe I should go see for myself.”

If he had to pick a place, there was one.

‘The magic department’s annex.’

Since he had some research to do there anyway, Ian rose from his seat, curious about what could have happened to Naum.