I Am a Ruined Noble of a Ruined Kingdom

Chapter 16: 8 Years Ago, White Sisters (1)

The pillar of golden heat rays created by Zicharun was brilliant enough to be clearly seen even from the Fayta Duke's residence. It was inevitable that Iruealfi and many other knights would rush over.

Of course, this was after the red dome disappeared and the safety of the Emperor and Empress was secured.

"Nephi! Where are you? Nephi!"

Iruealfi's urgent call rang out sharply. I was too ashamed to answer, so I lowered my head and tightly closed my eyes.

"Trust me," I said, Ranie. What a load of bull, and the bluff was sky-high.

'If I had given Iruealfi a little more confidence so she'd launched an offensive, everything would have been resolved.'

No matter how great the protagonist's power is, there can be no one-man army that overwhelms Iruealfi. The success of Charles's abduction was largely my fault for failing to move her.

"Nephi! There you are."

Iruealfi spotted my figure from a distance that looked like a dot. It was her incredible eyesight.

Step. Step.

My head became more confused with each step she took closer. I had no excuse for my clean failure, and I had no face to report it.

The still-dark curtain of night had dyed Iruealfi's snow-white hair black. She was already so close that it felt like an illusion.

What kind of expression is Iruealfi making as she looks at my pathetic self...

"Nephi."

"..."

"Hey. Nephi? Can't you hear me?"

"..."

I wish she would just ignore me and leave. I'd rather she curse and condemn me; at least my heart would be at ease. She has the right to do so.

Contrary to my simple wish, the method Iruealfi chose was extraordinary.

"Nephi. Are you not going to answer? If you insist, I'll count to three. Three... two... one..."

"..."

Sreung-

The chilling metallic sound engraved in my mind! It was a prelude to the beautiful appearance of the silver-white blade. I forgot about my pride and jumped up.

"Uwaaah!"

"See? You heard everything. Why are you acting like that when you do?"

"Th, that's not it..."

I hesitated and could only look down at Iruealfi's feet. Iruealfi approached me closely, noticing I had been silent for a long time.

Now, the distance between us was close enough to hear each other's breath clearly. I couldn't breathe easily because I was so nervous.

Looking at my dejected self, Iruealfi casually said,

"Nephi. You know what?"

"What..."

"If you're like that at this distance, it looks like you're just staring at my chest."

"Cough!"

I hastily backed away from Iruealfi's bombshell remark and even coughed up blood.

"Now you're finally looking at me properly."

It was as she said. For the first time since Iruealfi arrived, our eyes met directly.

Iruealfi wasn't angry. There was no sign of contempt either. She was merely staring at me with eyes like a calm, blue lake.

Just by looking into her eyes, my turbid, pond-like heart seemed to be turning into a clear lake.

'This is the feeling I had when I first met the Emperor.'

Could Iruealfi's eyes be blessed with Pasa's blessing?

She said,

"I don't blame Nephi. I don't have the right to."

"Iruealfi, I failed. I made a big fuss and charged in, and this is the result."

"No. It was entirely my misjudgment. If I had trusted Nephi, I would have achieved a better result."

Iruealfi firmly denied it. She grabbed me with her small hand and said resolutely,

"It's too late, but thank you. Since Nephi proved it with actions, I will trust Nephi from today onwards. Honestly, I was rationalizing that it couldn't be helped if you ran away as you were."

It was a joke that felt half-hearted. She chuckled and nonchalantly added,

"Well, I want to thank you again for staying quietly so that I won't regret my decision."

"Iruealfi... I... I..."

While I was wondering what to say, Iruealfi quickly changed the subject.

"By the way, it's quite a sight. It's only natural that the aftermath has reached the Fayta Duke's residence."

"..."

Iruealfi scanned the devastated surroundings. She was estimating the enemies' strength by looking at the traces of the battle. I added to her contemplation.

"Only one person made this place like this."

"Nephi lost, which is surprising, but you're saying just one person did this much destruction?"

Iruealfi's innocent question that confirmed my defeat hurt. I nodded and retorted,

"You can do it too."

"I'm special, after all."

"Still an egotistical answer."

"What did you just say?"

I thought I was muttering quietly, but it seems she caught it. I vaguely mumbled.

"The guy who made me like this is unusually strong. But I can see that all his subordinates are systematically trained."

I recalled the man who avoided all attacks and inflicted damage in the cave. If it hadn't been for Netionpies's overwhelming physical abilities, I wouldn't have been able to handle him.

"If Nephi's words are true, the culprit is a private soldier of a high-ranking noble... If not, it could be a member of the guild."

"Guild, huh..."

I hesitated for a moment whether to mention Zicharun. It was easy to say, but if I was questioned about how I knew the details, I would have nothing to say.

I hesitated and quickly shook my head.

'How stupid! It hasn't even been half an gak since Iruealfi said she would trust this infamous body. And I'm already thinking about hiding things.'

It was a mindset that disqualifies me as a human and as a man. I immediately informed Iruealfi of the details I knew.

"I don't know which organization he belongs to, but I found out something. His name is Zicharun Misrah. He is the last remaining spirit in the world."

Iruealfi's expression showed surprise at the unexpected and unconventional information.

"A spirit? The mythical race that was said to have gone extinct in ancient times... No, more than that, how does Nephi know that?"

"I know a lot of things."

"Don't joke around."

"... He said it himself because he thought he had completely killed me."

No matter how much I want to repay Iruealfi's trust, there are limits to what I can do. I will never be able to reveal the truth that this is a world inside a game. That's why I glossed over it with an appropriate excuse.

Due to the situation of the possessed person, all the justification for my knowledge of the original work must rely on Iruealfi's trust.

Iruealfi was the first to step back. Even though she was unconvinced, she was perceptive enough to know that I was serious and showed consideration.

"Hoo! Let's talk about the details later. Let's go back to our mansion and make future plans."

"Yeah, let's go back for now."

To our mansion.

As we walked side by side, Iruealfi suddenly puffed out her cheeks and complained.

"But Nephi."

"Why?"

"You weren't really thinking, 'This is my chance!' and staring at my chest, were you?"

"Huh?"

I quickly found my cool and calmly chose my words.

'There's nothing to see, but should I say I saw it? Well, considering the angle, it's true that it came into view.'

It was an unobstructed view from the upper body to the lower body, but I guessed that no matter what answer I gave, a good future would not be waiting for me.

"Well, you know? A lot of things come into a human's field of vision, but things that aren't impressive are unconsciously passed over. Should I say this is the same context? Anyway... Uh, Iruealfi?"

"That's enough."

In an instant, a chill ran down my spine that seemed to cool even Zicharun's heat rays. I was afraid to look into Iruealfi's eyes, so I stiffened my neck.

But the viewing angle of a human is subtle and contains more than you think. As soon as I saw Iruealfi's beautiful hand hesitating around the sword hilt, I ran away.

Then came Iruealfi's shout mixed with shame.

"Nephi! Stop right there!"

"Am I going to stop, you crazy bitch?! Why are you asking if you're going to do that?!"

The midnight tag ended with Iruealfi's victory, of course.

...After that, things played out terribly.

◇

As soon as we returned to the mansion, the servants made a fuss. They were horrified by my ragged appearance and were busy preparing various services, so the conversation with Iruealfi had to be postponed a little.

I vehemently argued that Iruealfi was half responsible for my rag-like appearance, but no one believed me.

'How heartless...!'

Everyone doesn't know Iruealfi's true nature.

I swallowed my dissatisfaction and opened Iruealfi's door.

"Nephi, you should knock. What if I was changing?"

"You already know the inside of the mansion with your spiritual senses, right?"

"I'm not going to do that from today. I promised."

Iruealfi's promised trust included this kind of courtesy. I felt a strange emotion at her words, which she uttered without emotion.

It would have been nice to indulge in these sentiments, but I didn't have the luxury. I composed my distracted mind and asked about the current situation.

"Iruealfi. The Emperor and Empress must have heard about Charles. Is it okay for us to be like this?"

"For now, I guess we have to say that. The Empress fainted. The Emperor was so surprised that he refused the nobles' entry into the palace and went into seclusion."

Iruealfi also talked about the temporarily taken measures, such as the detention of Etio Rescal, the vice-commander.

"It's serious."

"What's more serious than the Emperor and Empress is Charles's whereabouts. Their subtlety is beyond my expectations."

Iruealfi's eyes sank deeply.

"The pillar of heat rays wasn't just used to kill Nephi. In the first place, it's not reasonable to use an area-of-effect skill against one person."

"There was an intention? I just got the impression that they were in a hurry and had no choice but to use it."

"To be exact, it's both. One is to kill Nephi, and the other is to erase all traces."

"I guess so."

I readily agreed.

The golden pillar required a lot of resources as it was Zicharun's signature skill. There was no way they would use an area-of-effect skill that would put a heavy burden on me, who was no match for them.

"So it's too difficult to find Charles's whereabouts. I don't know how many days it will take. What are the enemies trying to demand with Charles as an excuse?"

I had an answer that was close to certainty.

'I'm 90% sure, but they'll probably use it as a stepping stone to make the imperial family harm Miren Yustiha themselves.'

The reason why I'm not absolutely certain is that they have no way of knowing Iruealfi's future as a Destroyer. Considering this, I feel uneasy like there's dust in my head.

'In the first place, I can't even explain why Zicharun is there. Ha, this is driving me crazy! How did the original work, which I never touched, get twisted somewhere?'

At this rate, even my future knowledge of the original work is useless.

'But I can do what's best for Iruealfi.'

I spoke in a whisper, like a treacherous subject trying to please his lord.

"Iruealfi. Don't misunderstand, okay? I'm saying this because I already talked about this with His Majesty, okay?"

"Yes? Talk. Don't be so wary like you were earlier. I'm more curious now that Nephi's like this."

I swallowed hard and lowered my voice.

"You... You better get your sister out of the imperial palace now. I'm talking about Miren Yustiha, who is asleep with Chainreach."

"Nephi... How does Nephi know Miren?"

I tried to make the suggestion as carefully as possible, but it was all in vain. Iruealfi's eyes trembled like a child facing a shocking fact.

I hastily spat out the excuse I had prepared.

"You said it yourself on the day His Majesty mentioned her social debut. You said your sister chose her dress for her debutante. After that, I was curious, so I talked to His Majesty about it and found out."

"I said that... There's no way."

Next to self-denial came slander against her lord.

"More than that, I thought His Majesty was tight-lipped... He must trust Nephi quite a bit. Someone was anxiously worried about it."

Fortunately, Iruealfi seemed to accept it without suspicion. The Emperor unknowingly became a man with a loose tongue, but I'm sure he'll forgive me.

"But why does Nephi want me to take Miren out?"

"Looking at it from a different perspective, this is a major incident where the Empress's daughter was kidnapped. I don't know if Miren will be safe from the same thing. But if she's by your side, she'll be unconditionally safe."

I hope she will easily accept it this time, but there was no luck twice. Iruealfi rarely showed her displeasure.

"That makes sense, but it's impossible."

"Why? In terms of medical care and the quality of the servants, this place is quite..."

"That's not the problem."

Iruealfi's eyes, correcting my words, became a little moist. She must be thinking of Miren Yustiha, who is asleep in the imperial palace.

"... Is there an unavoidable reason?"

"Yes, that's right."

Iruealfi mumbled, staring blankly at the imperial palace far away.

"Miren, my sister's soul is subordinate to the imperial family. Since 8 years ago until now."