EMATEC Chapter 102

 

 

 

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With a complicated expression, Enoch returned to the camp and looked over the Gray Knights before approaching me.

 

“We lost them.”

 

“Well done.”

 

I shared the note exchanged between my mother, the Crown Prince, and me with Enoch.

 

“Shadow?”

 

“Yes, that’s what I was told.”

 

“…So that’s why there was no killing intent.”

 

Enoch furrowed his brows for a moment, his face reflecting complicated emotions.

 

It must have been disheartening to discover that the suspicious individual we had been chasing was, in fact, the Emperor’s shadow.

 

“They were truly strong, don’t you think?”

 

Other than my mother and grandfather, Enoch and I had never encountered someone so formidable that it sent chills down our spines.

 

Even though we both attacked with manifested sword aura, we couldn’t leave a single scratch before ultimately losing him.

 

Their skill was indeed befitting of someone called a member of the secret knights known as the Emperor’s shadow.

 

“…When I faced them, something felt off.”

 

“What was?”

 

“The feeling.”

 

“What about the feeling?”

 

At my question, Enoch seemed to sink deeper into thought and didn’t answer for a while. As I waited for him, I slowly observed the atmosphere of the main camp.

 

The extermination in the Lowes Mountains was carried out by two forces: one led by the Crown Prince’s Emblem Knights and the other by Arthur’s Gray Knights.

 

With the late arrival of the bishops due to a carriage accident, the extermination unit decided to take a brief break.

 

The injured Gray Knights finally had the chance to receive proper treatment.

 

“…The atmosphere is a total mess.”

 

If only the Emblem and Gray knights were clashing outright, it would be easier to manage.

 

Instead, there was a subtle tension lingering between the two knightly orders.

 

The Gray Knights, determined to make up for their previous mistakes, were building up their morale even while receiving treatment. Meanwhile, the Emblem Knights’ faces were full of dissatisfaction.

 

This was because the bishops were prioritizing the treatment of the more severely injured Gray Knights, leaving the lightly injured Emblem Knights with hasty bandage jobs and basic medicine.

 

“Those with serious injuries come first. Focus on getting as many people as possible ready to rejoin the subjugation rather than restoring one person to peak condition.”

 

Of course, at the center of this unfair treatment was the Empress herself.

 

Claiming that even knights were her subjects to care for, she began interfering with the main unit’s operations to assist the Crown Prince.

 

What started as a few concerned words had now escalated, with her taking over real authority, as the knights instinctively obeyed the most noble woman in the current Lutinas Empire.

 

‘This is exactly why I deliberately tried to provoke her.’

 

I looked disapprovingly at the Crown Prince. He was conversing with the Second Prince Arthur, appearing pitifully submissive, as if he had done something wrong.

 

Every time the Second Prince spoke, the Crown Prince’s face turned pale. Watching this, I couldn’t help but sigh in frustration.

 

‘What’s the point of me trying to protect the Crown Prince’s authority from the Empress if he’s going to ruin everything with his timidity?’

 

Even toward the Empress and Second Prince, who were practically his political adversaries, the Crown Prince remained overly polite. His courtesy went beyond reason—he couldn’t bring himself to voice a single complaint.

 

While the Empress blatantly favored the Gray Knights, whom Arthur would lead, the Crown Prince seemed too preoccupied worrying about the Second Prince to properly support the Emblem Knights under his command.

 

“How can I rely on someone like that…”

 

Naturally, I was deeply troubled. If we allowed the Gray Knights to overshadow us in this extermination, I wouldn’t have the face to look at my grandfather, who was currently back in the capital.

 

That’s why I was determined to showcase the strength of our Emblem Knights in this mission.

 

“Cherrya.”

 

At that moment, Enoch, who had been watching the Crown Prince lost in thought, called out to me.

 

“Yes?”

 

“We couldn’t handle the shadow because our coordination was off.”

 

“Was it…?”

 

“Yes. We’ve only ever pointed our swords at each other, not together at the same target.”

 

At Enoch’s words, I nodded in agreement without hesitation.

 

“Now that I think about it, that seems true.”

 

“In the Empire, there’s no knight besides you and me who can consistently manifest sword aura. Everyone else can only use it during brief moments of extreme focus.”

 

“That’s right.”

 

“This is an incredible asset, Cherrya. The Empire needs to know how to utilize the two of us better.”

 

He wasn’t wrong. We were swords—finely honed and excellently trained.

 

But wielding us properly was the responsibility of whoever we would one day pledge ourselves to.

 

“………….”

 

Until moments ago, I had been harboring doubts about the Crown Prince. Naturally, Enoch’s words left my thoughts even more entangled.

 

Could it really be possible?

 

“That’s why we need to start doing things together, not just sparring.”

 

“With you?”

 

“Yes, with me.”

 

We already sparred regularly, but what he was suggesting meant meeting even more frequently than that.

 

While it wasn’t a bad proposal, as it could help improve my swordsmanship, something about it felt uneasy.

 

“Considering the current relationship between our families, I’m not sure if that’s feasible.”

 

“That’s the biggest problem.”

 

Enoch and I simultaneously turned to look at our respective knightly Orders.

 

The Emblem and Gray Knights were like oil and water, refusing to mix even in the slightest interaction.

 

I could already imagine the betrayed faces of those who would confront us, asking how we could do such a thing, if Enoch and I were to initiate any form of cooperation.

 

“…Still, I think we need some practice.”

 

Facing the Emperor’s shadow made Enoch and me realize the necessity of collaborative swordsmanship—almost like being partners.

 

We could have worked on coordination with other knights, but none could unleash the same power as the two of us, whose skills were evenly matched.

 

“There’s a problem.”

 

“There sure is.”

 

For the first time, Enoch and I began to fully comprehend the issues stemming from our status as members of rival families.

 

The extermination mission, originally undertaken together by the Emblem and Gray Knights, was now split between the Crown Prince’s Emblem Knights and the Second Prince’s Gray Knights.

 

“Even when we worked with other knightly orders, it never got this bad.”

 

“Seriously, how can the two strongest orders in the Empire fail to work together?”

 

Was this the very issue that had troubled our mothers so deeply when we were young?

 

Could this be why Enoch and I had been bound by the shackles of a political engagement?

 

“I can’t believe I’ve come to understand my mother…”

 

As I muttered blankly to myself, Enoch, who had been staring off into the Lowes Mountains, suddenly nodded slightly and spoke.

 

“That’s true.”

 

His gaze, heavy with contemplation, wavered faintly. It made me wonder if something had happened during his pursuit of the Emperor’s shadow.

 

“Let’s figure something out after this extermination mission, Cherrya.”

 

But when Enoch turned back to me, his face looked strangely relieved, so I decided to feign ignorance and simply responded.

 

“Alright. Let’s think about how to grow stronger together without fighting.”

 

Even though our families were enemies, Enoch and I shared a begrudging bond built from years of familiarity since childhood.

 

They say the strongest ties are born from love and hate. Enoch and I believed we could rise above our families’ enmity and help each other grow.

 

But we would soon realize that this belief was a grave misunderstanding.