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Chapter 137
Chapter 137
I was imprisoned in the underground cells of the Imperial Guard headquarters. The solitary confinement cell was dark and dreary. All my equipment had been stripped away, leaving me wearing nothing but a pair of pants.
If there was any silver lining, it was that my limbs were still intact. I didn't want to put into words how pitiful a person looked when locked up in solitary after losing their arms and legs.
'They won't kill me so easily.'
I was someone with considerable value in many ways. That wasn’t arrogance, just an objective fact. If I were useless, they would have severed my head a long time ago.
Е n uṁ a
'Hemillas and Ivan have joined forces.'
Their collaboration had gone far beyond my expectations.
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'This gives Hemillas a real chance at winning his gamble.'
I wasn't sure whether to laugh or cry.
'The military and Ivan are staging a coup.'
If they succeeded, Ivan would become emperor. The military and the Custoria family would be credited for their contributions, avoiding purges and maintaining their power. Regardless of the outcome, it wasn’t a bad plan.
Wеb̂n̄ov̀ e̊ l Еn u m̆ ã
'A coup with the military is a gamble for Ivan as well. Even if he becomes emperor, he could end up as nothing more than a puppet under military control.'
Given time, Ivan would naturally ascend to the throne. I hadn’t expected him to take such drastic measures.
'Is he really willing to risk instability and danger just to overthrow his father and rush to claim the throne?'
To me, Ivan’s ambition seemed excessive. If the coup failed, even a royal wouldn’t be spared. At best, he might escape with his life, but his position as heir would be revoked.
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'Hemillas and Ivan have revealed all their cards.'
Now, what mattered was what cards the emperor and Kinuan still had left. Once I figured that out, I could see the full picture more clearly.
E n̊umа̊ .i d
I had been captured due to an unexpected complication, yet I didn't even feel anger. My mind was simply cooling, growing endlessly cold.
'Is Giselle alright?'
There was only one person I was worried about. Hah, I really had turned into a romantic.
Giselle had been captured and detained by the other Imperial Guards. She wouldn’t be released until everything was over. The last image of her, looking at me with worry, was burned vividly into my mind.
Click, click.
Footsteps echoed. Judging by the stride and the sound, it was Ivan Accretia.
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"You underestimated me, Luka."
Ivan spoke from beyond the metal door.
"I never underestimated you. Assassinating Francec in that situation was not the right decision. Especially not for a ruler."
Ivan stepped closer, stopping in front of the metal door. His face appeared through the narrow window.
"You want to discuss imperial governance and politics with me?"
"Avoiding war isn't a matter of debate—it's just common sense."
Ё n̈ūm а . î d
Ivan chuckled from beyond the door.
"Luka, you have less information than I do. No matter how much you speculate using Akies Victima, you're still making judgments within a narrow scope. That's why an Overseer's role isn't about making grand, strategic decisions but rather small, tactical ones. No matter how skilled you Overseers are, in the end, you're just beasts crawling on the ground. Without wings, you can't see the world from above."
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"If war breaks out, it's us crawling on the ground who will die first. Without wings, we have nowhere to escape—unlike some people."
Ivan flashed a smile so alluring it almost felt seductive.
"I despise Kinuan because he doesn't know his place. Luka, you're behaving just like him. But unlike my father, I won’t grant an Overseer excessive authority."
"Of course not. You're far less knowledgeable and even more impatient than His Majesty. Probably because you’ve never had to struggle in your life."
Еn u m̄ ӑ.id
I wished Ivan would get angry. Not that he ever would.
People like Ivan and Kinuan weren’t easily shaken by words. After dealing with these outliers for so long, I almost missed the ones who would fall for my childish provocations.
"You're really trying hard to provoke me, Luka. Are you hoping to make me slip up emotionally? Too bad. Hemillas and I have already struck a rational deal. No matter how much you try, I won't kill you over a few insults. Hemillas seems to have a certain fondness for you."
Ivan's pupils swirled, shifting through a spectrum of iridescent colors.
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"Well, I wish you and Hemillas success. After all, that does seem to be the 'best' outcome for all of us."
I spoke honestly.
Е nüm а. і̀ d̆
If the coup led by Ivan and the Custoria family succeeded, most of my objectives would be achieved—ensuring the survival of both Hemillas and the Custoria line. My own survival was still uncertain, but I had a feeling I wouldn’t die.
"Huh. To be honest, I expected you to be much angrier. You've grown."
"I'm still growing."
Ivan burst into laughter.
"You just had bad luck, Lukaus Custoria. If all of this had happened a few years later… you would have played a much more important role."
"Nothing in this world ever goes the way we want. I'm used to it."
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Ivan took a step back.
"This was fun, Luka. I'll never forget the Overseer you almost became."
I listened as Ivan walked away. The door at the end of the hallway opened, then closed. Silence returned.
…And three days passed, but Hemillas never came to see me.
999
As expected, the solitary confinement cell in the underground prison had no windows. But even without one, my heightened senses told me that the storm outside was reaching its peak.
Е̊ṅ ù m а̊.
Clatter.
At set times, a small opening in the ceiling would slide open just enough to let food and water drop through.
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Crunch.
I bit into the hard bread, chewing as I conserved my strength.
Whoosh.
My punches were still light and precise. I hadn’t neglected my routine of light exercise and conditioning. Spending a week in this cramped cell was miserable, but if I wanted to keep my senses sharp, I had to keep moving.
Еň üm̊ ӑ
'This isn't over yet.'
The tides would shift at least once more. When they did, that would be my last chance to intervene.
Another day passed in the cell. Meal time had come and gone, but no food or water fell from the ceiling. Whatever was about to happen, the time had come.
I remained seated, senses on high alert.
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Creak, creak, clang!
The door was being forced open.
W ӗb́_ṅ ov̄е̊ l̂ Е̄ n̊ü m̌ ă
“Luka? Luka! Where are you?!”
Damn it. I frowned. It was Giselle’s voice.
'Giselle.'
Not even when Hemillas and Ivan captured me did I waver. But now, I couldn’t help it.
How the hell was Giselle here?
She was checking each solitary cell one by one, making her way toward me. In an instant, she was standing right outside mine.
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"Step back. I’m setting up explosives."
There was no time for greetings.
Giselle spoke without hesitation as she carefully spread gel along the edges of the doorframe. I had no idea where she got the gel explosives, but that hardly mattered.
“Giselle, just give me the short version. I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m guessing we don’t have much time.”
I stepped back until my back was pressed against the wall.
“I contacted Barbara and had her help plan your escape. She changed the guards' shift schedules and patrol routes. The security cameras are playing dummy footage. And she arranged for you to get equipment from the Imperial Guard’s armory.”
Е̇ nǔ m ӓ.і̊ d
“The price?”
“A date.”
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It didn’t sound like a joke. If it was Barbara, she’d do something this reckless just for that. That witch must have taken quite a risk for a date with Giselle.
“That’s fine, but no sleeping together. I don’t care if it’s with a woman—absolutely not.”
“Is this really the time for jokes?”
Giselle shot me a sharp glare. But I didn’t laugh. I answered her with complete seriousness.
W̊e b́n о v̌ël Е̂ nǔ m̄ а
“I’m not joking.”
“…You’re surprisingly jealous. Not very manly of you.”
“I’ve never really had anything of my own in my life. If I get a little possessive, just let it slide.”
"Pleading with your tragic upbringing? That’s low. Also, this is my first time using gel explosives, so I might have miscalculated the amount. Just make sure to stay clear."
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Giselle stepped aside as she spoke.
Click.
W е b̃ ṅо̀ v̊еl Еnüm̈а̄
She pressed the detonator hastily. If she was in such a rush that she was neglecting safety, then our escape plan must have been on an extremely tight schedule.
Fzzzzzt!
The gel explosives detonated in sequence. The gel lining the doorframe ignited like a fuse, triggering small explosions one after another. A series of dull, metallic clangs echoed through the cell.
Boom! Clang!
Fragments of metal blasted off from the explosion, ricocheting around the cell like bullets.
"Hm. Tsk."
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I felt a shiver run down my spine as a piece of shrapnel grazed the back of my neck. The debris bounced unpredictably, making it difficult to dodge. A little misstep, and I really could have died in here.
"L-Luka? You're… you're not dead, right? Damn it, did I use too much? Barbara said this much should be fine…"
Giselle mumbled anxiously. I could hear her shifting her weight, probably stomping her foot in frustration.
Thud!
The doorframe was completely destroyed. The metal door groaned before crashing inward, landing with a heavy thud inside the cell.
"How much time do we have left?"
Е̃ń um̌ а̀ . іd̂
As I stepped out of the cell, I yanked a shard of metal out of my left shoulder. A finger-sized piece of shrapnel, slick with blood, dropped to the floor.
"If Barbara's calculations were right, about 140 seconds? Your shoulder… well, it’s not too bad. Not bad for a first-time demolition job, right?"
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"I'm grateful you saved me, but I'm the one who decides if I’m okay. I feel pain, too, you know."
I pressed a heated piece of metal against the wound, cauterizing it on the spot.
"Don't be a baby. I’ve been stabbed with worse."
I flinched and quickly scanned Giselle for injuries. Luckily, she was unharmed. Then, I understood what she meant.
Wẽ b n ôv̌ӗ l É n̄ u mӓ
"Damn, a noble lady sure has a mouth on her."
I muttered under my breath. Meanwhile, Giselle pulled out a terminal and projected the escape plan as a hologram.
'Barbara…'
The plan was meticulous. Hard to believe it had been put together on short notice.
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Barbara must have been well-acquainted with the security weaknesses of the Imperial Guard headquarters. That was the only way she could draft such a precise plan on the fly.
We ascended from the underground prison. Thanks to Barbara’s interference, there were no guards in sight.
E.n̆ um а̌
‘Of all things, I never thought I’d owe Barbara a favor.’
Enemies and allies were ambiguous. The higher one climbed within the empire, the more indistinct the line became. There was no way to tell who was a friend and who was a foe. No—attempting to distinguish between them was meaningless from the start.
There were no enemies or allies. Put another way, everyone was both an enemy and an ally.
'Stay flexible—so flexible that my brain melts into liquid.'
As I moved toward the corner of the hallway, I abruptly pulled Giselle back, stopping her in her tracks.
Beep!
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I clicked my tongue as I closed my eyes. Kinuan had said echolocation wasn’t efficient. But I had persistently trained my auditory senses.
For someone without a fully cybernetic body, echolocation was an invaluable technique.
'Don’t listen—see.'
The auditory signals were processed in the occipital lobe, which handled vision. What once felt like a vague intuition became a sharply defined image through echolocation.
…I had suspected something was off.
Even with Barbara’s plan, Giselle had rescued me far too easily.
Е n̄u̇ m̈ а́
'If Hemillas had truly intended to imprison us, we wouldn’t have stood a chance.'
I still had all my limbs. Giselle had been able to contact someone outside.
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Someone else had been assisting her, and she didn’t even realize it. I didn’t have to think too hard about who it might be.
“You can come out now, Paigon.”
There was movement. The air shimmered at the corner of the hallway.
Paigon, wearing a cloaking mantle, gradually revealed himself from the head down. The slim, visor-like goggles covering his eyes still glowed faintly.
E n u ṁ а
Paigon glanced at me and gave a small nod.
"It has been a while, young master. You’ve grown."
I wanted to use my joke again.
"I'm still growing."
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"Hm, but your sense of humor seems to have deteriorated."
Maybe that was a mistake.
Ѐn̊u m̃ȧ .î d̆
Paigon regarded us with his usual unkempt appearance. He glanced at Giselle behind me and nodded slightly.
Giselle didn’t seem to recognize him. Just how much had Hemillas confided in me that even his own family remained in the dark?
"You were the one protecting Giselle all this time."
I stated it as fact.
Paigon had likely shielded Giselle from Barbara’s madness. Despite his disheveled look, Paigon was an electronic warfare specialist and a hacker skilled enough to manipulate the human brain itself.
"As sharp as ever. But first, take this."
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Paigon slid a bundle off his back and pushed it toward me. It skidded across the floor until it reached my feet.
Thud.
I stopped it with my foot and checked inside. My equipment was there, including Crucis.
"And Miss Giselle, my name is Paigon. I serve Master Hemillas. Time is short, so I will deliver his message first."
Paigon gave a precise bow before lifting his head.
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