Demon King of the Royal Class

Chapter 267

Dinner at the Palace of Spring was an extravagant affair. We ate at a grandly set table, assisted by attending maids. It seemed that, while the number of staff in the Spring Palace had been cut, not everyone had been dismissed.

Although I found it uncomfortable to have someone assisting me while I ate, it wasn’t too awkward. I ended up eating a lot, and Charlotte watched me stuff myself with a satisfied look. In the end, I ate so much that even Dyrus and Sabioleen Tana, who were dining with us, seemed taken aback.

“... Do you always eat that much?” Charlotte asked in amazement.

“When else would I get to eat like this?”

Charlotte was withdrawing from the Temple, and Vertus had nothing to do with it...

In the end, I hadn’t managed to find out what had happened in this palace, and Charlotte didn’t tell me the reason why she was leaving the Temple either.

She was essentially offering me a warning. She was letting me know that, if something happens to her, Vertus would have nothing to do with it, and therefore I wasn’t to do anything rash and put myself in danger. Then again, that could also be a lie.

It was clear that something strange was going on around Charlotte, but I was not going to get a straight answer. After dinner, we had tea together and talked about various things.

When things become too serious, people tend to talk about lighter topics. Any discussion about heavier topics would eventually drag down the entire atmosphere, and the whole conversation would collapse under the weight of it.

That was the situation that we found ourselves in.

I had to leave soon, since it had been agreed that I would leave after dinner. I didn’t want to leave yet, but while throwing a tantrum about wanting to stay the night might work on Charlotte, it would not work on Sabioleen Tana.

Charlotte said her goodbyes, and announced that she was going to get ready for bed.

“Goodbye, Reinhart. Dame Tana will see you off.”

After that casual farewell, Sabioleen Tana approached to see me off. It was more about making sure that I left properly, rather than a courtesy.

“Reinhart,” Sabioleen Tana called out to me.

“Ah, yes, Dame Sabioleen Tana?”

“Just Tana is fine.”

I nodded at her stern words.

“Yes, Tana.”

“... I didn’t mean to drop the honorific.”

“Yes, Dame Tana.”

The situation was serious, but somehow, she seemed oddly cute, just like Ellen.

“Follow me. There’s something I need to know.”

She seemed to have some business with me before she was going to let me leave the palace. She wanted to know something from me, which was why she, and not Dyrus, was seeing me off.

She led me to a part of the palace which appeared to be a training ground. The lights were on, but there was no one around.

Suddenly, she drew her sword.

It was a bit unsettling, but she held the sword by the blade and handed it to me. “Take it. It’s nothing serious. I just want to see your skills.”

I was confused. “Why now, all of a sudden?”

“I’ve been curious about the future of the empire that my junior spoke of back at the banquet. Since the opportunity has arisen, I want to see it for myself.”

The strongest person in the world wanted to spar with me...

It was clear she had no particular ill intentions, but she was unarmed after handing me her sword.

There were no other weapons in the training ground. Charlotte wasn’t one to practice swordsmanship.

As I stared at her, she seemed to realize her mistake and looked at her empty hands.

“Ah, I see. Don’t worry.”

Wooong...

Blue mana began to condense in her hands, taking the shape of a sword.

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It wasn’t an aura blade, which involved projecting mana onto a sword and overlaying it with power.

She had reached the level where she could create a sword purely out of mana.

A superhuman beyond superhumans, a Swordmaster beyond Swordmasters... Sabioleen Tana.

‘Isn’t she crossing the line a little, though?’

“Wait. What are you doing, summoning something like that?”

She pointed the mana sword at me. “Don’t worry. I can control it. Right now, it’s about as strong as a sturdy wooden sword.”

“Ah, well, that’s a different story, then.”

“Do whatever you want.”

“Yes, okay.”

Believing that nothing I did would matter, I approached Tana, wielding the sword she had handed me.

As I moved, she adjusted her shoulders and her stance even though I hadn’t reached her yet. It was as if she could read all my movements and intentions, and was adjusting her balance before I even made a move.

I could sense that my attack would be blocked the moment our swords clashed, so I stepped back, creating some distance as I reassessed the position.

I had never been able to do this before, but after awakening my Qi Sense, it became possible.

Among the many traits I had received, Qi Sense was the most broken one. Of course, the Hero’s Lineage and Divine Spirit traits were also incredible, but the versatility of Qi Sense was unparalleled. It felt like it was always active, and was not just useful in specific situations.

In this scenario, I could see my opponent’s movements more clearly. While I couldn’t fully read them, I could see them more finely.

By observing her preemptive movements in response to my own, I could predict, to a certain degree, the flow of our exchanges.

This wasn’t a supernatural power.

I could now see what Ellen saw. What could only be seen after a long period of training, I could now see with the help of my trait.

I adjusted my stance and the angle of my sword, and Sabioleen Tana mirrored my movements. Even though our swords hadn’t clashed, it felt as though we had already exchanged more than five blows.

If I went in one way, my attack would be blocked. So, I angled for a different approach, and she responded, prompting me to adjust again. As this cycle repeated itself, I observed her shoulders, her steps, and the direction at which she held her sword. From this, I could sense how our exchanges would go.

“...”

“I see you’re not a novice,” Sabioleen Tana said.

She had to have seen what I had as well, but at a much more detailed level. That’s why this sort of exchange was possible.

She nodded as she observed me. For some reason, I could read her thoughts. Ellen’s had been hard to read at first, but this person’s thoughts were almost transparent.

‘He’s not a mere novice. I heard he’s been learning the sword for less than a year. But even if he’s learning from a genius, is this sort of progress possible? What kind of talent is this?

‘He said he’s also managed to activate Mana Reinforcement, right? And he has supernatural powers? What is this? He’s scary.

‘Should I invite him to Shanapell? I want him. But it would take too long for him to graduate.’

Her thoughts flowed along those lines.

Why did it feel like I had mind-reading abilities, specifically when it came to her?

Srrrk...

“That’s enough. I don’t need to see more.”

In the end, she dismissed her mana sword without even crossing blades with me.

I respectfully returned the sword to her, and she looked at me with a complex expression. She seemed to have a lot on her mind. I suddenly wished Ellen could grow to be like this.

“I don’t know if you’re the future of the empire, but I don’t think Effenhauser’s judgment was wrong.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“It’s a statement of fact.”

This person... She resembled not only Ellen, but Effenhauser as well. Given their respective ages, it was probably more correct to say that Efffenhauser took after her instead.

She sheathed her sword and looked at me.

“Follow me.”

Without another word, she left the training ground and headed outside the Spring Palace.

It was night, and the garden was full of flowers.

All the gardeners seemed to be gone. Perhaps they had gone home.

Rumble...

“It looks like it’s going to rain.”

The sky, which had grown gloomy without me realizing it, rumbled with ominous thunder.

How long had it been since the sun had finally set, and when did it suddenly become so cloudy?

She handed me a large umbrella, but didn’t take one herself.

“Aren’t you going to take one for yourself?”

“No.”

Even though it looked like it was about to rain, she walked through the palace garden as if it didn’t matter.

The garden was so vast that it took quite a while just to cross it.

There were no guards anywhere in the palace or in the garden. Perhaps Sabioleen Tana’s presence was enough.

It seemed that even the few remaining palace staff had left the palace.

Charlotte had shown me the vast quarters reserved for servants and maids within the palace, but although I hadn’t gone inside any of them, it had been clear that they were unoccupied.

How long had we walked?

Plop. Plop.

It started to rain.

I opened my umbrella, but Sabioleen Tana continued to walk on in the rain. I tried to cover her with the umbrella, but she rejected my offer and kept her distance, continuing to walk in the rain.

It was clear from that alone that she wasn’t in a good mood.

We walked through the garden of the Spring Palace in the midst of the falling rain. The tram stop was still far away.

Suddenly, she spoke.

“Her Highness said that you were someone that would take her secrets to the grave.”

“... Did she say that?”

“Yes. She also said that you are a benefactor, and friend who has helped her immensely. That was why she said it was okay to share some of her secrets with you.”

So, that was part of the private conversation they’d had earlier.

Her secrets...

I never wished for this to happen.

In the end, Vertus was not involved in this. The issue was Charlotte’s own.

“This is a very unusual situation. For you, an outsider, to learn the imperial family’s secrets, solely because Her Highness willed it. I could not decide on my own whether or not to allow it. If this gets out, not only will your life be at risk, but mine as well. So, what you’re about to hear, keep it to yourself.”

Having given sufficient warning, Sabioleen Tana went on, “Currently, the Spring Palace is closed to all outsiders, and not just external visitors. Most of the palace staff have not been allowed back in as well, aside from those who can be fully trusted.”

I had to listen first, without adding in any unnecessary comments. Charlotte hadn’t said anything to me directly, perhaps because she wanted me to hear it from Sabioleen Tana.

Charlotte had allowed me to know part of her secret.

“Because of this, when Her Highness brought you here, Sir Dyrus and I were taken aback. It should not have been allowed to happen, given the situation. Therefore, remember that the conversation between Her Highness and me was in no way political. I am not involved in any matters arising from politics.”

I took a moment to let her words sink in. “I see.”

Sabioleen Tana... Her strength belonged to the emperor, yet despite her prominent title as the leader of Shanapell, she did not involve herself in politics at all, as she believed it was not her path.

“You have supernatural powers, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must know more about the dangers of such powers than the average person.”

“Yes.”

“Her Highness’s supernatural power is a dangerous ability. She has a form of power that is difficult to control. That’s why its nature could not be revealed to the public. Her Highness has been focusing on controlling her ability.”

Charlotte’s supernatural power...

I had only guessed that it was an offensive ability, and one that couldn’t be revealed.

“I can’t go into the details. However, both the imperial family and Her Highness herself are having difficulty controlling that power. Therefore, Her Highness can no longer continue her life at the Temple.”

I paused for a moment. “I see.”

Dangerous and uncontrollable superhumans were eliminated. Charlotte’s power was of that nature, and it could endanger other students at the Temple.

That was why Charlotte could no longer attend lessons at the Temple.

Charlotte would soon withdraw from the Temple. It could be in a month, in a week, or even that very day.

If that was true, then Charlotte’s statement that Vertus was not involved in this was likely true.

That meant the rumor of someone dying in the Spring Palace... Could it be that someone had lost their life because Charlotte’s power had gone out of control?

Murder... That was the reason why Charlotte had been returning to the imperial palace instead of staying at the dormitory.

“This day has been unusual in many ways. Don’t expect to be able to visit the Spring Palace again in the future.”

This wasn’t because of the power struggle; Charlotte was being taken out of the Temple because she’d failed to control her power.

‘But before all of that, what exactly is Charlotte’s power? Why is Sabioleen Tana here? Why did my Qi Sense give me a warning today?’

Flash!

Rumble!

The flash of lightning illuminated Sabioleen Tana’s face. As she walked through the rain, the raindrops running down her cheeks looked like tears.

“If Charlotte completely fails to control her power... what will happen?”

“There’s no reason to tell you that,” Sabioleen Tana said without looking at me.

Both of our expressions were grim. She seemed to be preparing herself for something she didn’t want to face.

‘Sabioleen Tana... Why is the strongest person in this world guarding this palace alone?

‘Why is she alone?’

No matter how I looked at it, the only other guard besides her was Dyrus.

“So, you’re here to handle the situation if Charlotte loses control?”

Flash!

Sabioleen Tana’s eyes widened.

My Qi Sense had given me a strong warning that day. I could still feel that warning reverberating within me.

It was likely that Charlotte would die that day, at the hands of Sabioleen Tana.