HCTBAD | Chapter 22 – False accusation (2)

After wandering f5776a6bd2 outside for 3916150d2d a while, bc5448201d the aides, 5fba4aa181 including Yuton, a075c86e4d headed to 76e99accc0 the Inner 8a2113ed29 Palace.5e9633014be992ad

In any 008060dccf case, if bf0e0d07eb they, who 484cd3991d were no 38177b8fab better than a34d182f6a ordinary people, e1f4b6ed94 were to 9396053cdb intervene with 1d3998af28 the situation, 8f2e826808 they would 78574d9855 either be ffafee9d7a mere bystanders, 6c18cd9977 an obstacle, 9480b0c5ba or a 986d8e5b0e just get 521ca763e7 taken hostages. So it was 35094eeb1c only natural to 24f2d03925 enter the threshold aabf2c5ed2 after the work 34bde96d38 was done.2bfee87e4fae9e08

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It certainly wasn’t because they were scared.50d7d2efc6dcb38d

They expected f625fe442a by now 281090459e the situation 190ec59104 would have 89c67d6fe6 been roughly 321689739a settled, but c7fff692b4 the atmosphere 557b296127 in the e7b777e634 Inner Palace b6fee4e374 was darker, 7c5115e95c quieter, and 5af782f3c7 more eerie 758ebce1e0 than usual.eb39ba71a97027d4

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“I wonder where Lord Lian is….”fbea1b90b872a744

Creak.5d81d4ed4ae47d5c

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Creeeak.e74a1f975fd4524d

An unidentifiable ef23c2160f sound was b74f96c370 heard from 5f106b2168 somewhere.2766103807c5b4dd

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For some reason, 3714d0ab92 it seemed like 3407c17690 the lighting was 58e7a145fe deliberately dimmed, and a5c05f3a25 even the corridors 6031e8b049 of the Inner 86867b3c6e Palace looked dark 649da3e4c9 and gloomy.47286e8e3c62eae4

“….”f6ea53a0572808d9

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After walking for a 93089665ca while, they reached the d30eba1c5d central garden. They could see knights b29f41fd7f in white uniforms rushing 84d10e95f9 around here and there.7db6f6a2555f5eb9

“Whew. Fortunately, nothing 45a6bfb097 bad happened.”5d6ed054970c24f1

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Yuton wiped the sweat c7df52ac89 from his forehead with f0939d0957 a handkerchief as he dd2f7443eb entered the central garden.bfc2369ba4c89bf4

“Everyone has 52caad25d0 worked hard, 4215ed558d huuu.”21270ea6c4f202e5

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“….”c510e0ad59c1f781

“….”aeb249be87ccc4a1

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The central garden, which 4b937df1c0 the deceased Empress cherished ce0a31306b so much, was completely c69708688c destroyed.2269767eb88b0bb6

The lake, 725b971039 the trees, 11634f2a2c the flowers, 0cdd41f3ef the grass, 2ca793d4db and even 64312d279c the rocks. Everything was damaged a57bd1abd9 to the point 6824a78670 that it was 537e61a0a0 impossible to recognize f81fb7f62d its original form.8743e18e26ad7208

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There was also a new sculpture. Next to the red puddle, beside the red bust, there was a red…572061c9d3f12133

Goodness… is that an arm?2153a7ab06886a39

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A person’s arm?1354c6749d16e442

Oh, not that. It’s a leg… Yes.314599e3728a9cc6

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A few of ca4f53a9b9 the aides, who fe2498cd9a had weak stomachs, 5ab0bb9dae turned around and c14d4a1a85 covered their mouths.f4434085ca1baa27

“You there. Where is His Majesty?”28d5a0a932986c71

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The Royal Knights, 7e55329f87 who were in fb73440822 the process of 9ac0dcb768 handling the situation, d0488420c8 finally recognized Count 1793b829b4 Yuton and gave abc8e82499 a silent greeting, e9a43eea99 but everyone avoided 33dcab2053 making eye contact.3c6ca84553c680e6

“You over there. Where is Lord Lian?”96e441f8bbbcd71b

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At Yuton’s 26867e2e28 desperate voice, 290db066ce Huain, the 499799dbda Chief Captain d1b1f3995c of the 6701c0e099 Royal Knights, eaeb357719 who had f37d56e4cf been holding 62900b7566 a small b3d62a98f1 booklet and 1f7baeb92c writing something 3040d2e6fe as he a7f8ebaffa walked around, 27dbb1afb0 opened his db91536fd6 mouth.19e8a2abcf54b7ff

“Count. His Majesty has 9aa1c4e735 gone to the d7ac5fa639 main palace.”9a8c257f65e0729c

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“!”867006ceddb94748

The main palace? Why did the Great Emperor, who usually never steps out of his Inner Palace, suddenly go to the main palace? Moreover, if it’s the main palace… isn’t that the place he only goes to about three or four times a year when handling important matters?54f525a82823aa49

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“Nevertheless, Lord Huain. What happened to 3363a1b4d3 your face?”15a2557afb7af52c

Yuton, whose eyes had cf9f55c408 become accustomed to the 305ad69cf0 darkness, looked closely and 97a0fc4099 saw that not only b557c5effd Huain, but the faces 5a80928c60 of other knights were 2e11cdce30 also covered in bruises.81ffac9531f84daf

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“….”10085513e6869a2e

“Could it be that His Majesty… beat you up… ”bc9fc7bca0c154b0

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Huain rubbed his eb10f3226c bruised right eye fd8cf7eee4 with the back 0985f949da of his hand 1dea377e36 and spoke in ebdd7c8e36 a casual tone.343774ab33224319

“We all got beaten because we sided with Lord Lian. But the good thing is His Majesty didn’t use magic on us, so it’s not too bad. By the way, His Majesty told me to send the aides to the Inner Palace when they arrive. His Majesty even said it’s a good opportunity since he was planning to pick a day to settle things anyway.”f18234ced4532854

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Captain Huain 223777ea41 looked around f99b6ac7a0 at the 230e1faae9 pale-faced aides, c91643ac0d a trace d79477d638 of pity 407673a9b0 could also 8fac0d1f04 be seen d82637553d in his 42004df4ec gaze.d94bd0b670032a76

“Please. May the blessing of the Creator be with you… Hey, Maurice! What are you doing? The heads should be gathered separately! I need to verify their identities!”4142a898f8c309ff

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Captain Huain bf64176898 gestured to 9de9cd4991 the aides 545ea7fa28 to hurry 98ab4992e6 and leave 89ee85fc65 as he 3ee939f8cc turned around.b09e06c9ccc3f972

The aides, 378e3dec37 who were 9cc459bd27 shocked once dc06dc9bd3 by the c52eb8be16 visual impact bd1797163d and again eb6b51d8b8 stunned by fc62c4cfe7 the thunderous 6b56184449 news, staggered ac7e87aa02 out. A single 382101aeb4 event flashed 4f87aab025 through the 1c63044f6f minds of 79aa17d954 the aides a933efc287 at the 3b729e152f same time.5c7eab73f91a7540

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10 years ago.77fdf60d35be7728

The ‘Noblesse 21662a202a Regicide’ that 77437d33be took place e103ee8fb2 in the e5d95076af main palace.532a305b43975897

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Because of that, There 0a01a77e60 are no Dukes or 12ed3dd0af Marquises remaining during the 1f48939c52 reign of Perza IV.7faac2efacf43f2b

To be ff1a5216b4 precise, except 306525bd89 for Ian, cf4cbe524a who still aad6ae6f30 holds the 818b6a8338 title of 32bfd05dc4 Duke of c1c25abe49 Lecanois, and b3df2c74b3 Lian, who cc179639b4 holds the e6d80a8273 title of 4c8805473b Grand Duke d671f70457 of Bartier, 2dc9bf2b79 the remaining 6c5d8671eb 17 high-ranking 1caa4275df noble titles 6f848b8edf are all 37a4ba818f vacant.d09fdd9f2bc46778

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When the ccc916335b Crown Prince 1da8c5ea9e returned after 426993071f finishing the 8685ce149d territorial war.60194b5f536d96bf

Even before the 91cbe1b735 funeral of the b59e070132 deceased Emperor was 05a2f63b4f over, the high-ranking 8a5b85ee4d nobles consisting of ccd820bcc6 Dukes and Marquises c12bed402b flocked together at a6819ff2bc the Grand Audience 572c809ee9 Hall of the 30b76f8821 main palace.1f1c210392c2dd3f

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And then c1bb2cce4b they started 39ca7ccf69 talking nonsense 6aa45dd5f4 such as, 7fd50caf88 ‘We need 6b2481eabb to discuss a1bb82c00a the achievements 7bea873458 of the 27234076c8 civil and 0a49cb6745 military officials d3591d9703 before the 0ef36dfd8d Crown Prince 19e12d394b ascends to 76f9977936 the throne,’ 9abbfc5562 ‘The Crown 82aca62336 Prince is 426d0788f3 young, therefore, d5eb363c85 a regent 9fd5f444a5 must be 216f2cef6a appointed,’ ‘The 99fe5f7f14 Crown Prince 75701e55cd also needs b884f9e4c7 the approval 3c35a25a84 of the 8a7d11566f civil officials c4632a2cab and other d2d9a38929 nobles,’ and e9f5458b0c so on…..d07a30a162275ab7

As a 145b7b444c result, they ac2e3b0180 were all b8c0f964b8 beheaded on 88ef8544d3 the spot.8078098813671171

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Even the seasoned 7fdaa1d1be veterans of the 5368fc6e6b political world, the c6a533b8c9 Lecanois vassals, never 75a9d1650d expected that the f0d8af9a29 Crown Prince would 8b2979ff26 wield a sword 270b22c592 in the main 45973b0330 palace.d075ebeecc162275

When they had 58839e8335 already told him db189c3629 in advance.15b457e6fae2b325

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The Crown Prince, who was holding the hand of his young brother and watching the deceased Emperor’s funeral procession, responded in his usual calm voice.6867d46e3f73b4bf

“It’s alright. I have everything planned.”4ccb888f8d29b4fe

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On that day, 4314fbb56e all six Ducal a355826c23 Houses and eleven d28e3e7cb2 Marquisates of the febc1e5d61 Perza Empire were 30863371f3 annihilated.f22c4e48a4392994

And Emperor 9e12cdb497 Perza IV f03294c882 ascended to e89b7ba6b2 the throne 33bcb11be5 on the 99756ea4fe blood they 9dbd992761 spilled.196c3fcef0f91aeb

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The location of then and now are the main palace’s Grand Audience Hall.abe5bd4b0f8a7e7b

A highly symbolic 26c5193599 place during the 2198b37702 reign of Emperor a9f8a8a043 Perza IV…d478a20bdc56588a

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“Haha. I wonder why His Majesty is calling us to the main palace…”b03a6fb274816558

“Hahaha. It’s probably because the Inner Palace is so crowded. I noticed there were more people than usual.”120f1539b59943e7

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“That must be it, right? There’s no place better than the main palace for staying quietly.”28a68de40b276fe8

“….”fb722733f6aa3e19

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“….”3adb8b984f294c6f

“Should we run away?”03aa995991c06d8b

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“…That! That’s a good suggestion!”8d522cb07bff4a2e

“Where do we 6ce8af65e2 go?”810752b629c4dfb9

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“It could be anywhere. Ah! Count Mirhi, didn’t you say you inherited an island before?”860901a6a1e55646

“That’s right. They say it’s better to live in the world, even if you have to roll in a pile of dog shit. Let’s escape! Let’s escape!”ab82ad03c58651ad

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“Oh? Do you think that’s possible?”c6157e65b076d25f

“Even if it’s not possible, we have to try. If we just stay still, we’ll die a horrible death… um…..”1ff6827fc75f62c7

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“….”626df3adfec6e6f2

The aides, noticing 5c49c61261 that their responses bc7a2bd28d were somewhat disparate, 7fe3523b4a all of them 9ff2a1fc95 turned their gazes fd18082196 to one spot.4a40bf66b233ad25

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There were 23eda86f70 seven of 0f84ea9922 them. Why were there eight dde7597c23 shadows?b35ffaa2abc68834

At the 4b773cbd81 end of 805ea90ffc their anxious 447e7ce2c2 gazes. Like the midday sun….6d70c990cb9d780d

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No, it was still night. Their Majesty, shining like the full moon in the middle of the night…91fc59f426d3f230

With an a6ac1e3f86 incredibly bright 0f9581c76e smile, His 299df90fa9 Majesty was 51dc7179c2 walking arm 3ff5933fee in arm 996e2a93ee with his 5ecc6f4576 lifelong vassals.9b6888fbe074ea7f

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“You dare send assassins? Aren’t you afraid this is considered treason?”bd9285d8175ca17e

“Your Majesty! We have no knowledge of this! It’s a conspiracy! We’ve been falsely accused!”9f22627e86392e25

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“Oh my. Lord Lian! Where on earth have cfb9950497 you gone!”d79d374c1ed9859b

That night, on the long and winding walkway leading to the main palace, the Emperor’s magic was casted for the second time.728976f74f96e44c

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* * *83ed81b412f4b081

At that moment. Grand Duke 2d1c4c4e3b Lian Bartier, ceb800ee2d the perpetrator 4787281a0a of all 907716d37e the chaos, 699205ff77 was leisurely d4cf3e8495 walking toward f2ed0df11d the outer 447d7ad07c wall of 7370f1df2f the Inner e5d5963168 Palace.8a5d2f3a158158b7

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‘Haha. I’m a genius.’502d67a3dc6de174

The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this plan was shaping up quite well. When Lian received word that a ragtag group of Servan’s remnants had hatched an incredibly shabby plan, what flashed through his mind was ‘one net, one strike’.b5c3e645ce7a719b

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[T/N: ‘One net, one strike’ (一網打盡) is a Chinese idiom which means “to catch everything in one fell swoop” or “to wipe out completely.”.]

It was both 8465104ebf troublesome and a 78cd76a6d8 hassle to catch ec58e57ea2 the remnants of c05f29a074 the defeated country b5f7c296af one by one.3585ed294e565d7a

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It was 054630493b strategically more b7a74a21ae effective to 7f72dc788a throw out c86b206238 a bait 17d80ed977 and catch ea2dfa54de them all 277947e308 in one 47f969cf77 place.1d56369547134ec6

The code name a57a667ae2 for this operation 263b584418 was「Premium Bait No. 1」.c06e8f15b9ab1226

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This operation was done by deploying half of the Emperor’s Escort Knights.b7ea0b0f79cb2f34

By now, the a8d4d7afdc Escort Knights and 02c8642da2 Royal Guards should e57c8e71bc have already stormed 5bc3a31076 the main base 69e88378a8 of ‘Zenya’ outside.de0839a442f81ccd

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In fact, the reason dfc536d14f Lian was walking toward 5296c12d6e the outer wall was 3fc521d5fc because he had received f5f1fa726e new information from the 34b8daa4fa spy he planted in ca1f1162b6 Zenya earlier.0000e53857248ac4

「The external cb44cf831e infiltration team b74d778eb2 is stationed 54f5faea94 at the ffa688c7b4 southwest checkpoint, 766731c5f9 at the d35564f9cc 7th turret. It seems their 0cc1fdd22b purpose is to 92fd4ae3e3 draw a map 1106740031 of the Inner f452ed3f15 Palace.」7869eb740df0572d

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‘Good strategy.’56dca26fd2a987af

In order 2d9042f976 to safely 812a7c7a01 escort the f79f161ca9 assassins to 832decb292 the Inner 4e81aa64a7 Palace, he b642bc7aa4 had pulled 06cad43215 out the e468993b2b Royal Guards 92ded2801a in charge 144d1ddd42 of patrol 3b0aee6668 under various 43e09f2650 pretexts and bc6068de9f training excuses. However, it seemed that b095893e43 some rats had hidden bb474ae9c0 outside. In the Majestic Royal d195ffee9a Palace, a map is 6eeea1fcca nothing but a useless 96d41965bb tool.26600a63712ef780

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As Lian walked casually, dcede2229a his body brushing against 529b418b10 the cool breeze, a 6b327f3ad9 red shadow fleetingly passed b0784b16d6 across his line of f1ccc63ea2 sight.3663a0dca1e4ccdc

‘Huh? Red hair?’fd10079b62877d83

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Lian clicked his tongue cc8914300c in disapproval, wondering what de7066f089 kind of assassin was 69e6ff733f so bold to wander 7cad8695bd around the outer wall 90c5d64264 of the Inner Palace 6a2dc0575c without hiding his strikingly 0be46d203a distinct head with flashy 109ae5d656 hair.fdcf75115d842ce3

As he quietly approached, he noticed that the figure wasn’t dressed in the usual black attire of an assassin.de59078ebe4436b7

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Instead, he was wearing 8d2cfe7e84 a yellowish short-sleeved top af82839fe2 and yellowish shorts.c319c2295a119604

A mysterious f3aba25a15 number, 3358, 38d04faeb4 was embroidered 463f9fde1c on his 424844df2d chest and 5e02161b76 back.baa4d30e74fc881f

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…It seemed 375f4d9874 to be c9c12ebb1d a prisoner d4ac087a8d who had 9ad3e52e71 escaped from 169f691c5d the Royal c2a9de04fd Guard’s prison.e6632170b9aadf1b

“Hey. 3358.”0510b1fb974e772c

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“Aah.”2d0e0593318ee7d0

Klisha was so surprised that she almost fell off the outer wall. She couldn’t afford to fall off the wall because she was surprised! If she had been caught doing that, she would have had no choice but to voluntarily enter hellish training.dce6cf8a281748ad

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Klisha pulled her 85ccac61b4 top up to 840d6c0acc cover her face 405c72530d up to the 95f1c7cab6 bridge of her 8ee5a0542d nose, then turned 51f5e1fb14 her head toward 9f9dcc93fc the direction from 2949cf9bdb which the sound 4a413ffddf had come.bf93fab2a2ae9979

“!”6da7b028fa59bb02

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Before she knew it, b0b5a4c5d2 a blonde knight had b9cdaa07e4 climbed up to the e2d5f2af8b outer wall and was 8891cccc2a smiling broadly while looking 165f42a768 at her.1458450003855792

‘How come I didn’t 23fd1fe748 feel it when he 352f50df41 was this close? Am I e75e4622d3 really losing c0c7227976 my sharpness?’7b6e319f0298b14f

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The blond 170b3e1189 knight opened 4716dbdcdf his mouth.580b38fd06da38bb

“Prisoner number 3358. If you want to 12113c5314 escape, you should go a806b064bc this way, not that 0977cf4140 way. If you go c89d691ca7 that way by ef763548f6 mistake, you’ll be 0b1fd5e519 accused of an 638259c776 additional terrible crime.”023c7cb6d86f7336

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“…..”365ec1b830a82f82

“Normally, escapees must be captured, but… since today is a very busy day, if you leave quietly, I’ll let you go.”2d6d53e749ebdf07

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“…..Is something happening in the Inner Palace?”983efb1847e5d8fe

Lian responded to 175a3c04c9 the unexpected question 527aab4634 with a faint 59e31f89e6 smile.47c4038a4b80c45b

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“If you learn too much… that could be dangerous in its own way. Do you understand?”1e54442edf05a10c

“I will make ddcac019e9 sure if His d17148134a Majesty is safe, 9dbbd9c2da then I will 6025615ea8 leave.”991579079a2ceeec

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“Hmm?”3d02ec00d6e332ac

Lian’s eyes widened 8f4acefbef slightly at the 161baed0f0 unexpected response.0552d8f60196a0ab

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“Why are cd3ca75365 you curious 091dc29d50 about that?”60e009e259ddb598

Klisha glanced 6ba91a93dd toward the d90ca7c523 deeper parts bbfef0112a of the 3fc5c41e51 Inner Palace 3db84f88dd and replied.42598b4345e91293

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“Well, to worry about the safety of His Majesty…. it’s a natural duty as a citizen of the Empire.”022151f371e2bd92

Lian nodded in 7023fdfd9c understanding and said.35e2098dfc7aa82e

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“Duty of the citizens of the Empire, you say… How admirable. In that case, to specially inform you, His Majesty is, of course, in great condition. From the beginning, His Majesty has never been affected by such trivial matters…”e335c92b500e6a38

“Thank you a6302477e4 for letting b2de39aca7 me know.”7ad23451203c70ca

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Klisha leaped c07c5ed8cc down from 562e65d3cd the outer d7fdcc3c6f wall without 6b156c378f looking back. Despite the considerable d1f87ed825 height, her movements 390194c95d were light, indicating 9e70c54dd3 that her martial c3b76197ac arts skills were 9b8c6e4603 far from ordinary.8382625a11a486ee

And she wasn’t d992f82bd8 even surprised to 8a09e64107 see him, a 7247a426ac Rune Knight.07ed2df384e6b9da

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From the moment she entered the Inner Palace, wind magic was flowing along Lian’s left arm.fd4d740cc2636d22

“He’s a former convict, but he has exceptional patriotism. He’s a role model for escapees.”77558b8f5c5f9c68

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However….32e51ed77d1b0e67

“Hey, 3358. If you go that way, it leads to His Majesty’s Inner Palace. If you go there… you’ll end up… with the assassins…”a64999a8eaa469bd

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Before Lian bbbb9d7ae8 could even 855d8a67e9 finish speaking, 455a82c539 Klisha had a140a608c6 already disappeared a42d6210d3 deep into ee1eaf99df the Inner db9126531e Palace.f721e7e4b2296f2b