Nathaniel opened the door to the study and four pairs of eyes immediately went to him. He promptly closed it and walked towards the group, then sat beside his father who looked so serious at the moment.
Not just Leon, but everyone was sporting the same expressions, and even after he joined, no one was talking. You could feel the anticipation in the air as they eyed each other until the emperor broke it himself.
"I think I understand why they attacked Nadia."
His sentence made everyone pay attention to him, wondering why he thinks so.
"They were not trying to kill her. They want to take her away," he remarked.
It was such a bold conclusion that these men were surprised to hear.
Nathan's brows furrowed, voicing out the same doubts that everyone else had in their hearts.
"Why?"
The emperor clasped his hand together and looked at the inquisitive faces of the others one by one.
"Because of her magic."
He wasn't sure at first and was confused why they had targeted someone that is not from the palace. He had thought it was a way to distract them but now that he learned about Nadia's magic, a suspicion sprang up from the back of his mind.
"They know?" Leon was baffled.
"But didn't she just awaken her power?" Even Ezekiel was perplexed, not quite getting it.
Lukas leaned back on the couch and rested his boot on the expensive wood-carved table in front of him. The others had long been accustomed to this and did not react but Nathaniel got distracted. After all, he was facing the indifferent duke who doesn't seem like he cares at all.
"It's not impossible for them to notice it even before she awakened," Lukas shrugged his shoulders in nonchalance, "I could sense it the first time."
Ezekiel was caught dumbstruck.
"You did? But I didn't."
How many years had he been with Nadia's side? Why didn't he feel any disturbance during those times they were together? Is his perception getting awry? Should he be worried?
Nathaniel peered at Lukas and mumbled gloomily to himself.
"I couldn't tell either. And she's living under the same roof as me..."
To think that he, of all people in here, had been with Nadia the most, was also oblivious about her powers…
He tried to think back if he ever encountered abnormality from her before and fell at a loss. What to do? Nadia had always been abnormal...
Now that he is thinking about it, there are clues everywhere. And they are so obvious it's making Nathan want to vomit out blood for being stupid.
One example was the strange fox Nadia had brought home. It's obviously not an ordinary animal because what kind of fox grows 2 meters?
"That could be explained. Lukas must have noticed it earlier on because of his anima's sensitivity to anything." The emperor suggested.
Ezekiel grew up with Lukas so he understood what the emperor said and affirmed. If it's Lukas, of course, it is possible. Though there is also a side that he might have accepted that reason only to not feel bad with himself.
"That must mean they have someone in their group that has powers for appraisal like your majesty, or a tool that could detect mana," Leon pointed out. "Or someone like his grace…" He added.
This silenced everyone.
Any of those three mentioned by Leon is already worrisome. An appraisal skill? That's unsettling. A magic tool? That's even more alarming. Magic tools are rare and there are only a scarce number of them out there, with the exception of the arcane tower.
Someone like Lukas? That's terrifying! It's like saying there is a super-soldier on the enemy lines. A one-man army...
Ezekiel downed the tea that had long been cold to moisturize his drying throat. Just thinking about the possibility brings shivers up his spine!
Nathaniel, unaware of Ezekiel's growing fear, had voiced his doubts.
"But then, when did they start paying attention to her?"
Was it the night of the founding ball? But she was inside the hall… Is it plausible that those people had infiltrated the palace too?
"The knights have already reported about mysterious presences following Nadia around. I had thought they could be stalkers again or some people sent by the other faction."
The marquis' aristocratic face was knotted, looking like he's having headaches.
The emperor glanced at him.
"Stalkers?"
Ezekiel was then reminded of the past and chuckled, feeling rather amused.
"Nadia has plenty of stalkers, it's actually crazy. Nathan and I had driven some of them away before."
There were times that it got so serious it gave them headaches for so many months. They weren't just men either, there were also women; it's actually disconcerting. And those ladies are the most persistent!
Aside from the two of them, the rest of the group was also looking out for Nadia, preventing these people from getting close to her. The one that enjoys dispelling them off was Eon and thought of it as a sport.
The emperor sighed and masked his face again, appearing cautious. He was hesitant to bring this topic up so he was carefully treading. More so when there's one among them that has ties with the said topic.
"I suppose that you all heard about the royal massacre," he steadily remarked.
The emperor then meaningfully glanced at Lukas who froze as soon as he heard his words. His drastic change in his lazy demeanor was noticed by the others and Ezekiel, who was aware of the reason, had turned to stone again.
The temperature inside the room dropped and the mood got gloomy and tense in an instant.
Who hadn't heard of the dark history of the empire? As people in positions, they are obviously aware of some things that are not known by the common people. Plus, the said massacre happened only half a century ago and is written in books.
"Before the Ronans sat on the throne, there was another family who ruled before them. The Von Brandts, Rosenthal empire's first monarchs."
Hearing the familiar surname from the emperor's mouth, Lukas' frown got deeper, staring at his leather shoes with burning eyes. His anima sensed his strong reaction and thrummed, syncing with him. This made his hatred burn brighter as it fueled his rage. It's like Nox was celebrating his anger and was wishing him to act on it.
Lukas snorted in disdain.
'Aren't you greedy?'
His anima responded to his chide, sneering at him with ridicule. It made him let out a cynical smile because he understood what it meant.
That they're the same.
Greedy.
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