Criminals who committed magical arson in the Huphester Alliance faced the highest punishment. On top of that, serial killing with high-tier magic was the highest crime of them all.
Realizing the severity of the case, the Delki Prince took the knights and pursued the culprit.
In dangerous times, the people of nobility should step forward. That was the principle that the king's faction promoted after winning the war twenty years ago.
"I am Delki's third prince, Laika Delki. Put down your weapons!"
The prince shouted after seeing Kuzan and Beris.
'Shit, it had to be now…! I was about to end him!'
Kuzan's eyes flicked between Jin and the prince's army. Jin had a fighting stance, but half of his consciousness was gone. He was breathing heavily.
Behind Kuzan, Beris was trembling from mana overflow. She didn't even know the knights were there.
Kuzan gritted his teeth.
'I will find you again and kill you!'
The moment Kuzan picked up Beris, the archers fired. At that moment, the knights ran towards Jin and pinned him to the ground.
Jin didn't even let out a sound as he fell to the ground. All of his senses were shut down, so he didn't feel any pain.
Laika jumped off his horse and unhooded Jin.
'Huh? This boy is…?!'
Jin Runcandel.
It was a face that he remembered seeing at the previous year's Runcandel banquet. Laika gasped and checked the young Runcandel's profile again.
"They're… the culprits…"
Jin whispered with his remaining strength.
The prince looked back and saw Kuzan running away with Beris in his arms. Despite the archers' shower of arrows, the two managed to get far away.
"Get them! Healer, aid this man immediately!"
"Yes, sir!"
* * *
Jin jolted awake and sat up to look around him.
"Are you awake?"
It was Laika.
"This is my summer house, Young Master. I chose this place in consideration of your current situation. And you woke up within three hours."
"Three hours?"
"Please be thankful that you are not dead. According to the healer, the poison in your blood was difficult for even 8-star warriors to bear. If you weren't a Runcandel, you would have never woken up again."
Kuzan and Beris.
They were the strongest opponents he had fought thus far. Especially surviving Kuzan's poison was no different from a miracle.
If Laika had arrived later, Jin would have been gone for good.
"What happened to them?"
"We lost them. I don't know how you somehow injured that monster. That man with the injury ran away with the woman in his arms."
From Laika's knowledge, Jin was a 5-star. On the other hand, Kuzan couldn't face the knights despite being an 8-star due to his injured state.
'Even if the press announces Young Master Jin's promotion to 6-star, standing on the same level as that man is impossible.'
Which was why he believed another person was behind the Delki serial killings.
"Well, I must thank you for your hospitality, Prince Laika."
"It is the duty of the knights of Huphester to help a Runcandel in need. Although, you are a provisional flag-bearer…"
"If you are thinking of reporting this to the main house…"
Jin and Laika's eyes met.
"Ah, we have no intention of that. We might die if we do. It hasn't been long since you became a provisional flag-bearer, but it seems you have a great team behind you."
"Pardon?"
"Right as we brought you here, some crazy warriors began to search the eastern region. They said that you were a provisional flag-bearer, so one wrong move and my head would've been gone."
Jin said nothing and smiled.
'Are my allies in Tikan searching for me? It's enough to make Prince Laika subservient. I feel sorry for my allies and this prince.'
"I apologize, Prince Laika. I have become a hassle."
"That is not true, Young Master. With consideration of your situation, I will keep my mouth shut."
The true ruler of the Huphester Alliance was the Runcandels.
Even if Laika was a royal, he couldn't be above Jin.
"Instead, please do me a favor when you become a flag-bearer. I can ask for that, right? I have saved your life and treated you with great care."
On that wording, Jin read Laika's thoughts like a book.
He wasn't taking advantage of Jin's weakness, not just because he was scared of the people who searched for Jin.
"It seems you want something from me. Please tell me, Prince Laika."
"When you become a flag-bearer, please station more guardian knights in the Delki Kingdom. I also ask for the return of some of the mined gold that the Runcandels taxed."
Jin smiled.
"You treat my life as if it were so cheap. Once I become a flag-bearer, I will return all of the kingdom's gold that the clan retains and station twice as many guardian knights. Please give me a pen and paper. I will make sure to write it down."
Prince Laika's eyes glimmered.
"W-Will you really do that for us?"
"There is nothing I cannot do for the Huphester Alliance."
Jin finished writing the contract and left the summer house, and Laika couldn't stop celebrating.
'What a miracle! Thanks to the serial killer, I was able to build a relationship with the Runcandels' brightest star. He even handwrote a contract… I'm sure the heavens are taking care of Delki!'
"Young Master!"
"Kid!"
Gilly and Murakan as well as Jin's other allies stood up and greeted Jin.
"Why must you scare me all the time, Young Master?! It hasn't even been that long since all that ruckus in the Kollon Ruins. If you had died, then I— …I felt like I was burning in hell for hours, waiting for confirmation that you were alive."
"You thought of fighting an 8-star knight and magician duo alone? You've been getting stronger too quickly, so you have no brain or fear. I heard that you'd have been dead meat had the Prince of Delki not come."
"Young Master, we were all so worried—you wouldn't even know. When Jet arrived alone, Miss Quikantel transformed and went to the Delki Kingdom to search for you."
Hearing that Quikantel made a move, Jin then understood what Laika meant when he said that he'd die with one wrong move.
"I'm sorry, everyone. I will not do it again. But if we lose Dan, then I think that we would never find information about Taimyun. Also, escaping with them on our tail seemed impossible."
"Oh goodness, oh gracious! Young Master! You have returned!"
As he had received multiple beatings from returning without Jin, Jet was thankful that the young master returned in one piece.
"Jet, I'm sure you didn't forget about Dan?"
"Young Master. Even if I, Jet, were to die, I would never forget. I made sure to heed your order and get him to Tikan. He and his daughter are safe! They have been saved with your sacrifice!"
"Great job!"
Jin shouted with his hands on Jet's shoulders. He went through so much for this, and if Jet had lost Dan, then it would have all been for nothing.
"Even though I explained that I was ordered to escape, they beat me to a pulp! Wah!"
"Yes, yes. You went through a lot. Did Dan Marius say anything while I was gone?"
"Nothing, Young Master. He said he wouldn't say anything until you arrived. And I apologize. We didn't have enough agents to identify that there were twelve Mariuses and put you in danger…"
"No need, Sir Kashimir. Please bring Dan."
A while later, Dan was dragged over and couldn't meet eyes with the young Runcandel. Everyone aside from Jin glared at him.
"Alright. We won't need to talk for long, Dan Marius. I almost lost my life trying to save you and your daughter. Now, it is your turn to return the favor."
"A-Are Beris and Kuzan dead?"
"No, they are not. Who they hell are they? Unlike your other siblings, they were very skilled."
Shivering in fear, Dan took a deep breath and looked into Jin's eyes.
"…Even after Lunar Sacrifice closed, unlike us, they were trained to be hunting dogs."
"And who trained them?"
"Taimyun Marius… A nanny of Runcandel trained them herself."
Gilly covered her mouth in surprise.
There wasn't any correlation between Taimyun and Jin's curse, but the fact that she trained Beris and Kuzan was still shocking.
If Dan's words were true, then the ones who attacked Jin were Taimyun's underlings. And they were Runcandel affiliates. Runcandel affiliates attacking a Runcandel was something that should never happen. It was basically a heinous crime.
If the clan found out, then Taimyun and everyone somewhat related would be slaughtered—even servants who worked with Taimyun. Not a single one would be spared.
"'That person'. Your other brother, Tagan Marius, also talked about them. I presume that person is also Taimyun Marius?"
"Tagan… Did he also die from Beris and Kuzan like the others? It's been so long since he left the Delki Kingdom, so I haven't heard from him."
"No, I killed Tagan myself."
"What…?"
"Tagan operated under the name of Alu, and before he died in my hands, he said that 'that person' failed once but will finish me off in the end. And Dan Marius, my name is Jin Runcandel."
"…Huh?"
"Like you, Tagan was referring to Taimyun. And she was trying to kill a Runcandel."
At that moment Jet's eyes widened. He just found out that Jin was a Runcandel.
'Young Master… Y-You were a R-Runcandel?'
He was about to spit out those words, but he kept his mouth shut.
"W-Wait. Did Tagan really say that before he died?"
"Indeed. So I traced back to his origins and found out about the Marius name as well as Lunar Sacrifice. And when I went to look for you guys, everyone was being killed by Beris and Kuzan. Thankfully, I found you before they did."
Jin slowly explained the situation, and Dan took slow deep breaths, trying to comprehend the situation.
"…I understand a little better now. Why Beris and Kuzan killed our siblings. About fifteen years ago, Tagan told me something before he left Delki."
Jin's eyes flickered.
"What did he say?"
"That Miss Taimyun did many deals with a person of high standing in the Runcandel Clan. He also said that if something goes wrong, then all of the siblings could die. So he told me to be careful. Probably because he cared about me."
"Did he specify exactly what kind of deal it was?"
"I didn't hear anything about that. After Lunar Sacrifice closed, the other siblings and I were basically thrown away. Sometimes, Tagan would take Beris and Kuzan to meet Miss Taimyun, though."
"Then, as you said, Tagan and Taimyun were birds of a feather? At least at the time."
"Yes, that's right."
Jin couldn't get any more information out of Dan after their exchange.
Now, it was time to meet Taimyun Marius.
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