RGS Vol 7 Part 6

“Oh?! The flames are moving again!”

The soldier’s shout broke the heavy silence. People began to gather around the torches as if to confirm the soldier’s words. The flames, which hadn’t moved even when the wind blew, were indeed moving normally again.

As the flames, which had been a sign of ominous events, moved again, people began to murmur in relief.

Why on earth did it stop moving in the first place?

Could it really mean something bad is about to happen?

Is the curse of the Dragon’s Forest continuing?

And so on, people started voicing out their fears and anxieties. Then one person, seemingly struck by a thought, spoke up.

“Hey, try putting out the fire.”

However, no one wanted to go near the torches, so they reluctantly threw water at the fire from a distance.

Ssshh—.

With a refreshing sound, the flames turned to smoke and disappeared. The fire extinguishes when it meets water. It was an expected result, but people watched in disbelief. One person’s voice flowed out on behalf of everyone’s sentiments.

“Thank goodness.”

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

He felt wonderfully well rested. Despite staying up all night, running around trying to escape, and even getting whipped, he felt refreshed. Naturally, the first place he ran to after escaping the Regas Palace was where the prince was. But surprisingly, the palace was empty. There wasn’t a single person in sight.

Even if the soldiers had gone elsewhere, where had all the servants gone?

The most important person, the prince, was also absent. Abel initially planned to run out to search for the prince again but quickly changed his mind. If he went rashly and got caught outside, it could cause trouble for others.

No matter what the situation was, it was surely better to stay here. The prince will eventually return to this room. Thinking this, he crawled under the bed to wait for the prince and then he fell asleep. It was a rare, deep sleep without dreams. When he opened his eyes and stretched, he momentarily forgot where he was.

“Yawn— Ouch!”

Yawning and stretching, he hit his hand hard on something. He let out a small groan but quickly closed his mouth as he soon realized the situation.

Ah, right. This is under the prince’s bed. I was waiting for the prince…

As he recalled, he turned his head to the side and felt his heart drop. There, lying on the floor outside the bed, was someone staring at him with plain gray eyes.

“Ah?! Prince, ugh!”

Thud!

In his excitement and joy, he hit his head so hard that the entire bed shook.

“Ugh, Your Majesty, when did you come? Ouch, my head. Hehe, I wanted to surprise Your Majesty once you come, but I fell asleep.”

Even in the midst of recognizing Karas, groaning from the pain in his head, and feeling so happy seeing him that he was laughing, Abel did not forget his concern.

“Are you alright? You’re not sick because of the black potion, are you?”

“Yes.”

“Wow― that’s a relief. Ah! You’re not saying you’re not sick because you’re worried that I’ll worry, right?”

“Yes.”

“Haha, then I’m relieved.”

Feeling genuinely reassured, Abel lowered his head in the cramped space and lay down on his side just like Karas in order to face him. It would have been easier to leave, but he hesitated, thinking Karas might get up if he did. For some reason, Karas seemed comfortable at that moment.

“I heard that for the past few days, Your Majesty couldn’t exert your strength properly because of Truyde’s black potion. Moreover, when I came here, there was no one in the palace. I was so worried because I couldn’t see Your Majesty either. But where did everyone go?”

Abel blinked, looking completely clueless when he suddenly heard a question.

“Why are you here?”

“Huh? Ah― why am I under the bed? Haha, well, I thought it would be better to hide and wait here. Also, in the past, the prince used to hide here….”

“You said you lost your memory.”

“Ha, haha… I just wanted to feel the presence… of Your Majesty’s childhood here.”

Even though it sounded perverted, Karas didn’t pay attention to his answer.

“Why didn’t you escape to the forest?”

“Of course, I had to come here.”

Abel gave a simple reason.

“I just wanted to be by Your Majesty’s side. And I thought staying by Your Majesty’s side would be safer than in the Dragon’s Forest. Your Majesty is strong. Hehe.”

At the innocent compliment, Karas turned his head. His gaze wandered aimlessly away from Abel. Although his expression didn’t change, he looked like an embarrassed child. Of course, Abel, who had no sense of awareness, didn’t notice and became serious as he thought about Truyde.

“Your Majesty, about the black potion.”

When Abel’s voice lowered, Karas, who had briefly averted his gaze, looked back at Abel. Abel, hesitating under the dark bed, spoke in a firm voice.

“I happened to get some information about the black potion. It’s said that a certain herb is related to the black potion, but I’m not exactly sure how. Still, I thought it might be helpful to let you know.”

“What kind of herb is it?”

“Oh, it’s an herb that hawks eat.”

“Hawk’s herb?”

“Yes, it’s an herb that prevents them from getting sick even if they eat rotten meat.”

“……”

“But even though it’s a very rare herb, I don’t think it’s an antidote or an ingredient for the black potion. Um, I’m sorry. It might be useless information, or, um, I’m not sure.”

Abel, who was feeling sorry, trailed off as he looked into Karas’ eyes. It seemed like a slight smile flickered in Karas’ grey eyes that he met for a moment before suddenly disappearing.

Why?

As Abel wondered, Karas provided the reason.

“It was helpful.”

“Ah? But that alone won’t be enough to uncover the secret of the black potion.”

“No. I found it.”

Found it?

Karas gave an answer to the question at the end of Abel’s lips. This time, with a clear smile in his eyes.

“I’ve figured out exactly what the black potion is.”

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

Everyone was severely injured, and none were better off, but those who were awake looked even worse due to another concern.

“Should I go to the Prince’s Palace? It’s almost daylight, and there’s no news. Ugh, this is so frustrating.”

Nani, who could still move a bit, stood up from his spot, and the butler followed suit.

“I’ll go with you too! I need to see for myself whether the young master is really okay.”

As the two were about to head out, Melmond stopped them.

“Wait a little longer. If His Majesty hadn’t found Abel, he would have already killed all of us already.”

“Then we might as well go and confirm that.”

“Wait.”

Melmond shook his head again and spoke in a hoarse, cracked voice.

“If you interfere with those two for no reason, you might bring greater disaster upon us, understand?”

As Melmond struggled to continue speaking, he suddenly stopped talking when he noticed something on the butler who had stood up. The butler, noticing he was looking at his waist, asked curiously.

“Mr. Melmond, what’s the matter?”

“Hey, that thing on your waist.”

When Melmond pointed with a trembling hand at the butler’s belt, the butler lifted it up.

“Ah, this was thrown to me by Lord Abel when he came out of the forest to use as a waist accessory. Nani, do you remember that time when Lord Abel played a trick on Truyde’s subordinates?”

“Haha, of course, I remember. Although I couldn’t show it because I was flustered by Lord Abel’s sudden appearance, it was so exhilarating… Huh? Sir Melmond?”

Nani laughed with the butler as he recalled the memory, and then noticed Melmond’s fingers trembling violently.

“Sir Melmond, are you alright?”

“Th-th-that.”

“Yes?”

The butler, who was pointed out, handed over the waist accessory he was holding to Melmond who was frozen in shock.  It was a round wooden pendant, split on one side with a visible crack. However, only Melmond noticed the dragon engraved on it. Unfortunately, before he could announce this discovery, he collapsed.

“Abel, you rascal… Ugh!”

Thud.

The wooden pendant fell from Melmond’s hand to the floor as he fainted. The precious treasure passed down for hundreds of years now bore a distinct scribble.

⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖ ⊹˚. ♡.𖥔 ݁ ˖

You figured out the black potion’s secret?

How?

Abel, in disbelief, raised his head again. However, perhaps because of his previous experience of hitting his head hard, he only lifted it just enough to avoid hitting it again and urgently asked.

“Y-You figured it out? The secret of the black potion?”

However, instead of a response, Karas’ hand reached out to him. It felt like a signal for him to come out, so Abel crawled over and grabbed the large hand. A strong force immediately pulled Abel out from under the bed.

“Really? Then do you perhaps know the antidote too? No, it’s fine if you don’t because we have Mr. Melmond’s medicine… Your Majesty?”

Abel lifted his head, feeling something strange as the force that had been pulling him stopped in the middle. His body was more than halfway out from under the bed, but that was all. Karas’ hand had stopped pulling him in that state.

He didn’t let go of his hand either. He just simply looked down at Abel. For the first time since meeting Karas today, Abel saw his grey eyes change like a snake’s. It was also the first time he heard his voice coming out of his mouth as cold as frost.

“What are those wounds?”

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As it approached noon, the torches that hadn’t been extinguished at dawn were gradually forgotten by the people. Instead, words about the forest slowly expanding its territory spread, capturing the interest of everyone in the palace. Thus, no one noticed the embers in the extinguished torches suddenly coming back to life once again.

Who could have known?

In the blink of an eye, the embers would transform into a giant flame, engulfing people like a living creature. Not just in the black forest, but fires throughout the palace began to engulf the people.

The inn where the Commander of the Royal Guards was staying wasn’t far from the palace. The innkeeper was a soldier who had fought in Ashler’s unit, making this place a natural gathering spot without the need for an appointment. The Commander of the Royal Guards was supposed to wait here for someone to deliver a letter, following Ashler’s orders, but he didn’t plan to wait long.

He thought he would wait for about a day or so, then leave the letter and head back to the palace. He had followed the orders because avoiding Ashler was urgent, but once he left the palace, his worries grew. He worried about the emperor, who had made a bet with the King’s Heart while consuming the black potion, and Ashler, who stood alone on the emperor’s side with few subordinates.

But most of all, he worried about Abel. No, it wasn’t just worry, Abel’s face wouldn’t leave his mind. The cute figure with large green eyes darted around while standing next to Sir Ashler. Now that the disguise he wore at the Marquis’ mansion had been removed, his fair skin shone brilliantly under the sunlight.

He recalled every detail of Abel’s adorable lips as he smiled and his flustered actions trying to calm down an angry Ashler.

Ah, this isn’t the time for this.

The Commander of the Royal Guards scolded himself inwardly as he remembered the news he had heard from the innkeeper that morning.

‘It seems there is a problem at the palace. All the gates leading to the palace were closed at dawn. There are even rumors that the reason the palace is closed is because the emperor has gone mad.’

Because of the mad Emperor.

The news of the palace being closed was a big deal, thus, rumors would surely spread quickly. And the cause would be attributed to the mad emperor. The person spreading the rumors was obvious without needing to see. The King’s Heart, or rather Truyde to be exact. There was already an increase in madmen within the palace, so it wouldn’t be surprising if a revolt broke out soon. However, the news about the emperor could have an unpredictable impact.

As a result, his anxious heart found it hard to wait even a single day, but he managed to suppress his impulses. Causing trouble without knowing the exact situation inside wasn’t a good idea. Even so, unable to sit still, he paced back and forth, hoping time would pass quickly. Eventually, he received word that the guest he had been waiting for had finally arrived.

“They said they’ll come up immediately, knowing that the Commander of the Royal Guards is here.”

Ashler’s words that they would recognize him seemed to be true. However, seeing the innkeeper addressing them formally made him wonder if the person was a captain in Ashler’s unit. Thinking this, he took out the letter from Ashler he had kept in his pocket and began packing his luggage to prepare to leave right away. As soon as he heard the door open, the Commander of the Royal Guards gave orders without even looking back.

“There is a letter from Sir Ashler for you. Since the situation inside the palace is not good, I’ll need to leave immediately, but you should stay and follow Sir Ashler’s orders.”

“What do you mean the situation inside the palace is not good?”

Thunk.

The Commander of the Royal Guards, who had been bent over as he was packing his luggage, stiffened. The voice who was asking him coldly was so familiar that it seemed like it belonged to someone who sometimes appeared in his nightmares.

“S-S-Sir Kin?!”

The Commander of the Royal Guards greeted Kin with a voice that was cracked into three parts. However, Kin already expecting such a reaction, ignored his shocked face and reached out his hand.