Jackal slowly lifted his hand from his thigh and the water followed suit, rising up as if pulled by a taut thread.
He tightly grasped the edge of the water with his hand.
At that moment, the water connected like a chain, forming a blue chain with a sickle-shaped hook at the end.
Jackal began to wield the chain like a sword, swirling it over the water.
Just then, thunder and lightning began to strike from the sky and a downpour started to fall.
The heavy rain echoed through the valley.
Jackal’s head was drenched in the rain, and his blue eyes shone sharply through his wet hair.
With the surroundings getting darker, his bright blue eyes looked even more threatening.
Jackal became one with Nek and looked like a man possessed doing a sword dance in the water.
Whenever Jackal imagined a weapon in his mind, Nek, connected to his thoughts, instantly transformed the water into the desired weapon.
Amid the constantly changing weapons such as long swords, broadswords, daggers, spears, nunchucks, and more, Jackal handled them all with ease.
He had been trained since he was young to handle any weapon he couldn’t, so what he was doing now was a reflex action.
His exceptional performance left the village chief and officials frozen in place, their eyes wide. Even Sosa looked at him in amazement.
Despite the rain soaking them, they were so immersed in Jackal’s sword dance that they did not even notice.
He was inept at social dancing, but a master of the sword dance.
The chief’s eyes trembled in disbelief.
A spirit contractor could not have mastered their abilities so flawlessly in such a short period.
The previous contractor, Cylon, had also been unable to use the spirit’s power with such ease.
It was said that the more the spirit and the contractor became one, the more immense power they could unleash.
Jackal was truly a natural-born ‘genius’.
As he continued his sword dance, a slight smile curled on his lips.
When he first met the spirit, he thought it was a bit less impressive, but after using its power, he thought it was quite useful.
Nek surged with power, responding to Jackal’s thoughts, and gave him even greater strength to display.
Excitedly, Nek caused the ground beneath Jackal’s feet to freeze, and he danced on the ice stage as the water quickly transformed into a sharp weapon before melting back into its original form and shattering like ice.
Little did the village chief know that Jackal’s ability to use the power of the spirit so freely was due to him being the clan’s successor, with his will and the spirit’s perfectly aligned.
Cylon, on the other hand, was hesitant to use the power of the water spirit, even though he could.
His unwillingness to kill Karaf had blocked the spirit’s power.
But Jackal and Nek’s determination to save the flower spirit allowed them to exert even greater power.
The power was granted to those who wished to use it in the right place and with sincere intentions.
Nek became even more excited, meeting Jackal’s expectations and causing unusual phenomena to occur throughout the valley, enticing the villagers to come and watch in amazement.
The way people now looked at him was completely different.
As a spirit contractor of that level, he seemed to have the right to become the next village chief. Everyone felt it unconsciously and trembled.
As Jackal finished his sword dance, he raised his long sword one last time, and his face was reflected in the blade.
Then, with a swift motion, the sword transformed into water. He brushed his hand and calmly began walking on the surface of the water.
The village chief looked at him in shock.
Glancing up at the sky, Jackal turned a few raindrops into ice beads and rolled them in his hands.
“Is this good enough?”
“…. It seems like the time has come. Follow me.”
Without another word, the village chief turned around and Jackal calmly followed him with his hands behind his back.
He already knew about Cylon’s curse, so he had to extract other information from him.
The two returned to the village chief’s house together.
It was an important conversation related to minorities, so Jackal decided to talk with him alone as the heir of the Kelpie Clan.
The village chief spoke with a serious tone.
“… Before we talk about the curse, you might be curious why we are trying so hard to kill the emperor.”
Jackal looked at him and said calmly.
“For the survival of the ethnic minorities, right? Because the Imperial Family is persecuting minorities.”
“That’s right. But before that, there’s something you should know. Why did we come to be called a ‘minority’ in this empire?”
As Jackal looked at the village chief with curiosity, the chief asked him a serious question.
“Do you know what our origins are?”
* * * * *
An emergency noble meeting was called at the Imperial Palace, and not only the major nobles but also the lower-ranked nobles were invited to attend.
Karaf and Asha entered together.
Asha confidently entered the meeting room in an orange dress.
The nobles were confused as they looked at Vanessa who had already taken her seat.
“Everyone, take your seats.”
Karaf sat on the throne, and Asha sat on the empress’s seat next to him, while the other nobles took their seats.
“I think everyone knows why we are having this emergency meeting. There is something we want to discuss with the Lords about the monsters appearing in the temple and throughout the empire.”
With a slightly heavy expression, Karaf opened his mouth.
“In order to ensure the stability of the empire, I have decided to go on a pilgrimage with the priests of the temple.”
Everyone was surprised.
Karaf looked at them sharply and continued.
“Everyone is aware of the lack of manpower to deal with the monsters right now. The Cactus Knight and I are going to deal with the monsters during the pilgrimage, but it will be difficult to deal with the rest. So I hope the Lords will take this opportunity to participate in the subjugation. I think this is a great opportunity to earn the merit that all of you wanted so much.”
Silence fell around him.
Karaf had planned to dispatch the nobles to the monster subjugation team to distract them from focusing on his absence from the palace.
However, it seemed that the nobles only saw this as an opportunity to discredit the emperor.
Seeing that no one volunteered to subdue the monsters, Karaf felt a sour feeling in his stomach.
Weren’t there supposed to be five petals protecting the Imperial Family?
It was a tragic fact that, despite their reputation, the Lycaons, whom he had persecuted, were far more trustworthy than those beside him now.
But then, someone who raised his hand caught everyone’s attention.
It was Duke Sihan Blossom.
“I will volunteer. Lady Vanessa chose me during The Month of Blossoms event, and I must repay her expectations properly.”
He smiled brightly.
He appeared with a golden branch on his chest as if to show off to the nobles.
“No, Duke of Blossom. Please protect the Imperial Palace with me.”
Asha said, and everyone’s gaze turned to her.
Asha spoke seriously.
“I want the Duke to defend the capital while His Majesty is away.”
Sihan caught the double meaning of her words and chuckled.
“I understand. Then I’ll stay here.”
It was unclear what would happen while Karaf was away from the palace.
Asha’s words were meant to defend the capital from monsters, but they also had a hidden meaning of protecting the Imperial Family in case other nobles attacked them.
It would be a great help if Duke Sihan remained in the palace.
“Another volunteer?”
Karaf glanced at the nobles, but no one followed Sihan’s lead when he volunteered.
Feeling very uncomfortable, he called out to someone with a firm voice.
“Count Delphinium.”
“……Yes? Yes, Your Majesty.”
“The last time we met, I was so moved by the Count’s consideration for me. I didn’t know you thought so much about the Empire and me.”
Karaf said, causing Kiam’s face to flush.
At the time, Kiam had suggested that he make his daughter, Nia, a concubine, but instead received humiliation.
“…Not at all, Your Majesty! However, if my words caused any discomfort during our last encounter, please accept my sincere apologies once again.”
“Then, may I ask you a favor?”
When Kiam looked at him, Karaf smiled at him.
“I hope the Count can take responsibility for dealing with the monsters on the border area.”
“… What?”
Kiam’s eyes widened.
Karaf continued with a sly smile.
“If you can properly defend the borders during these times of monster attacks, you will become a great strength for the Imperial Family. Once the Empire is stabilized, I will make you a Marquis.”
Karaf’s words surprised the other nobles, but they understood the implied meaning behind them.
Karaf intended to send Kiam, an unsightly man, to the farthest border area from the capital, where he would have to deal with attacks from monsters or invaders on his own.
Although such a task should have been assigned to someone with the title of ‘Marquis,’ Karaf openly showed his intention to test Kiam.
Knowing how much Kiam Delphinium desired power and a good reputation, the other nobles congratulated him while secretly mocking him.
Red-faced, Kiam couldn’t refuse and answered.
“…Yes, Your Majesty. I will accept the task.”
* * * * *
“Shit! That damned tyrant dared to insult me…!”
Returning to his state, Kiam was furious from the embarrassment he suffered and his face was red.
His servants stood in a row, avoiding eye contact and remaining quiet, knowing how unpredictable he could be on days like this.
After pacing back and forth for a while, he turned to his butler.
“Nia, has that child arrived?”
“Yes. She just came from the Imperial Palace. She will be here soon.”
Nia rushed out of her room while Kiam was still angry.
“Father, did you call me?”
Sensing danger like the servants, Nia greeted him politely without meeting his eyes, and he spoke as he walked towards her.
“So, have you been keeping a close eye on Vanessa?”
“Yes? Ah, yes…”
“Is there something that could be a weakness? Or something that could cause trouble for that tyrant?”
Nia flinched at the mention of the emperor being called a ‘tyrant.’
“… There doesn’t seem to be any issues.”
“Damn it…!”
Kiam suddenly screamed violently, startling Nia to the point where she forgot to breathe.
