Ryo scoffed in disbelief. “What arrogance!”
Abel smiled wryly. “Did you expect anything less from Imperials?”
While they didn’t know how it measured against nations beyond the Central Provinces, the Empire’s might was overwhelming. Its economic and military power stood head and shoulders above the other nations—Knightley and the Handalieu Federation—in the regional bloc known as the Three Great Nations. Everyone in the bloc, politicians and generals alike, recognized this fact.
“The Empire’s alchemical sector is also advanced. Although it’s not made public, the Imperial Association of Alchemy creates highly original devices. This box is likely one such creation.”
Kenneth stowed away the collapsible board and the magic circle, then placed the box on the table.
“Let’s try activating it.”
“Uhhh, are you sure about that? What if it...you know, goes kaboom?”
Kenneth disarmed Abel’s concern with a smile. “We’ll be fine.”
Ryo remained silent but swallowed nervously. He was less worried and more curious about the nature of the device.
Kenneth began channeling his magic. “‘Long live His Imperial Majesty, and may the world unite under the Empire’s banner.’”
The box didn’t open, but characters appeared on its surface.
“Hmm...” Kenneth rotated it carefully and occasionally poured more magic into it as he read the inscription. After a while, he nodded. “This device collects surrounding topographical data. It’s powered by the mana of an earth magician.”
Ryo tilted his head quizzically. “Surrounding topographical data?”
“But why would you even need that information?” Abel asked.
“It’s likely connected to a larger alchemical contraption in the capital. My guess is the sister device processes the box’s topographical data and creates a map.”
“A map...” Ryo murmured. Kenneth’s answer hadn’t made anything clearer for him.
“Oh. Those sneaky bastards,” Abel said.
Ryo looked at the swordsman. “Well? Don’t keep us waiting.”
“Okay, so... There are a few things you simply can’t afford to go without during a military campaign. One of those essentials is a map of the theater of operations, which you’d certainly want far in advance.”
“But that means...” Ryo trailed off.
“The Empire is planning to invade the Kingdom,” Abel finished, confirming his worst fear.
A heavy silence blanketed the annex. The Empire intended to invade the Kingdom, but when? Next year? Five years from now? Ten? By then, the situation might change so drastically it would render the invasion unfeasible.
Historically, political situations involving multiple countries are volatile. Rulers die, princes and princesses marry and form new alliances, natural disasters or unexpected catastrophes cripple a nation’s fighting power or eliminate the underlying motives for war altogether...
“Ah, shall I visit the imperial capital and dispatch the emperor?” Ryo asked.
“No, you know damn well you shouldn’t,” Abel snapped. “Besides, the invasion hasn’t even happened yet. Don’t make Knightley the aggressor in this war.”
“The situation has undoubtedly become urgent,” Kenneth said with an emphatic nod. He looked back at the cube in his hands. “For now, let’s transcribe the information within the box. We have a few maps of the Kingdom, but using this data will give us a much clearer picture.”
“You’re always quick on your feet, Kenneth. I admire that about you. Are you paying attention, Abel? This is what constructive input looks like!”
“I mean, yeah, but what’s that gotta do with me?”
“Because you’re a swordsman, and everybody knows swordsmen only know how to offer destructive input!”
“That’s pretty rich, coming from someone always destroying things with magic!”
“Ignoramus! Fool! Well, feast your eyes on this, Abel!” Ryo promptly created a one-meter-tall Mont Blanc. “Creation is the antithesis of destruction; thus, I am a creative!” He puffed out his chest.
“Astounding!” Kenneth exclaimed, marveling at the cake. He circled the intricate, marvelous sculpture in careful examination.
“Okay, fine.” Abel sighed. “It’s surprisingly creative, I’ll give you that, but...it’s not actually constructive in any useful sense.”
“Grrr...” Ryo grumbled. His cake might not have had any practical value, but at least he’d successfully broken the deafening silence that had settled over the annex after the revelation of the Empire’s invasion.
“All right, gentlemen,” Kenneth said. “I can’t transcribe the contents of the box here, so I’ll need to go to the alchemy lab.”
“Oooh!” Ryo beamed excitedly. “Abel, do you know about the alchemy laboratory? In the margrave’s mansion? It has so many amazing tools!”
“How do you know?” Abel asked.
“Sera gave me a tour,” he replied with a grin.
With a chuckle, Kenneth left the room.
“Ryo, he’s gone. What do you wanna do? Follow him?”
“No. Outsiders aren’t allowed in the lab. Even Sera had to request permission before taking me.”
Abel hummed thoughtfully. “That means security is tight.”
As a member of the royal family, Abel had known for a long time that Margrave Lune was creating something. It had been in development for decades, utilizing techniques at the bleeding edge of alchemy, mechanical engineering, and metallurgy. Lune had always recruited talent from outside established circles, so Abel was certain that the margrave had summoned Kenneth Hayward from the capital for his secret project. He suspected they were close to a breakthrough on the alchemical front. However, he couldn’t mention any of this to the water magician so fascinated by alchemy, but he’d find out someday. Abel could almost see Ryo’s radiant joy on the day he found out...
“That day will come soon enough...”
“What? Abel, did you say something?”
“Nope, nothing. Okay, how about a trip to the dungeon where you’ll eventually end up, Ryo? I kinda wanna see the mind-break chair in action.”
“Then you haven’t seen it either?”
“Nope. I’ve just heard about it, and...it’s kind of...”
“Scary, right? I understand.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
The pair left the annex and headed to the building on His Lordship’s estate where the underground jail was located.
✦ ✦ ✦
On the bridge of the Markdorf, the team performed a final debriefing of the rescue operation.
“I understand that the captives are in Lune,” Hartmut said, “but we don’t know their exact location, yes?”
“We’ll know when we get closer,” Fiona replied.
“What do you mean, Your Highness?”
“The princess can ascertain the location of the Division members once she is within a certain distance,” Oscar answered for her. “That’s why she’ll be joining your rescue team, Ser Hartmut.”
“She’ll determine their location magically, yes?”
“Correct,” Fiona replied, smiling. “However, please keep what you just learned confidential. Besides the Division members, only His Majesty and the premier know about my ability.”
“My lips are sealed,” Hartmut said with a vigorous nod.
He understood this was a top secret matter for the Empire. Even the Twelve Knights were sometimes asked to guard privileged information. If this information were to leak, the punishment would, quite literally, be his head.
But then a question sprang to his mind. Most tracking spells were air magic, with Probe being the most famous. If he remembered correctly, Fiona’s elemental affinities were fire and light. Simply wielding two was a rare feat, yet Fiona was said to be one of the most powerful imperial magicians in each individual affinity. However, neither element had tracking spells like Probe... So how could she locate her subordinates with such certainty?
As his thoughts churned, Hartmut’s gaze fell upon Raven, the legendary sword Fiona always wore at her waist. Passed down through generations of imperial royalty, it was one of the most famous magic blades in the Central Provinces. It was usually worn by the reigning emperor, but Fiona, the eleventh imperial princess, currently wielded it.
One of Raven’s unique characteristics was that it possessed two attributes of magic: fire and air.
Could her tracking ability have something to do with Raven? Hartmut wondered, but he kept this thought to himself. He had just been told to keep that information confidential, after all. If he immediately began speculating, an army of millions wouldn’t have been enough to save his life. It didn’t matter that he was one of the Twelve Knights. In fact, because he and the other eleven were close to the Empire’s backbone, they had to be far more cautious with their words than ordinary citizens.
With a shake of his head, Hartmut refocused on the debriefing.
“There’s a chance Knightley has already used magic or alchemy to extract valuable information from our comrades, so we don’t have the luxury of waiting until nightfall,” Oscar explained. “We commence the rescue as soon as we arrive. Elmer, at our current speed, when will we reach the airspace above Lune?”
“In one hour, at 4 p.m.,” Elmer answered. As captain of the Markdorf, the vessel carrying the force to Lune, he needed to know the details of the operation.
“From infiltration to extraction, we have thirty minutes. During that time, we’ll need the Markdorf’s air support. I’ll leave twenty Division members behind as magical bombardiers. Leverage them and make sure they don’t get shot down.”
“Leave it to me.”
“During infiltration, we’ll secure the landing zone with a coordinated magical barrage from the air. Maneuvering the airship will be difficult, but we’re all counting on you.”
“Understood. Just get our people back to safety.”