Chapter 72
The banquet was coming to an end. Before I knew it, half the people had already left.
Martina Diva was nowhere to be seen in the hall. I took a moment to catch my breath and looked around. No one seemed to be paying attention to me anymore.
‘Seems like a good time to slip out.’
I pushed myself off the wall and scanned one side of the hall. That was where the loudest group had gathered.
‘Juppe.’
Juppe and his followers were gathered there. He mingled with various nobles, flaunting his influence.
‘Ilay?’
Juppe and Ilay were talking. Ilay, ever sociable, maintained a gentle smile even in front of Juppe.
Our eyes met.
‘Help me, Luka.’
Ilay moved his lips quickly, mouthing the words. It looked like Juppe was keeping him from leaving.
For Juppe, bringing Ilay—a strong contender for the next head of the Carthica family—over to his side would be ideal.
‘What a pain.’
I had wanted to avoid speaking with Juppe at this banquet. But I couldn’t just leave Ilay stuck there either.
I walked over to Juppe and his group. Their gazes immediately turned to me.
"Ilay, there you are. Got a moment?"
As I called out to Ilay, Juppe frowned.
"Luka, can’t you see we’re in the middle of a conversation? How rude."
"I know it’s rude, but this concerns Imperial Guard business. It’s urgent and important."
"Business? During a banquet?"
Juppe narrowed his eyes, waiting for me to explain.
"I can’t discuss details with an outsider who isn’t part of the Imperial Guard."
I replied calmly. This was exactly why I hated talking to Juppe—he always tried to pick a fight. I barely held back the urge to punch his front teeth in.
"What kind of important duty would a mere cadet—"
Juppe stopped mid-sentence, realizing his mistake. He must have momentarily forgotten what this banquet was celebrating.
"There are plenty of important duties. Like tracking down a top-priority fugitive, for example. Confidentiality is fundamental in Imperial Guard matters, brother."
"I-I know that. Ilay, we’ll talk again next time…"
Juppe finally let go of Ilay and left.
Ilay let out a breath once Juppe disappeared.
"Thanks, Luka. Your brother’s pretty persistent."
"You’re partly to blame. You kept entertaining his conversation with that smile of yours. Of course he stuck around."
"You were lying about the important business, weren’t you?"
"What do you think? Now go home. The banquet’s over."
I walked toward the banquet hall entrance and spoke.
"Aren’t you curious about what Juppe and I talked about?"
"It was probably something trivial. I don’t care."
He meant it. And I could already guess what their conversation had been about.
"He was asking if you had any weaknesses. Be careful. Looks like he’s planning to keep you in check more seriously now."
Ilay didn’t sound particularly concerned when he said it. He had likely gauged Juppe’s character after just a few conversations. Juppe was a true nobleman—in the worst sense of the word.
As a courtesy, I saw Ilay off before returning to the banquet hall. Before leaving, I needed to report to Hemillas.
"You did quite well today, son. Get some rest."
Hemillas offered a brief compliment.
The high-ranking officials and generals standing beside him murmured among themselves. Their gazes briefly fell on me.
Their eyes were so devoid of emotion they seemed almost inorganic. Each of them was an extraordinary figure, to the point that even my Overseer access couldn’t pull up information on them.
These were the people who truly moved the empire. No, calling them monsters would be more accurate.
* * *
I left the banquet hall and walked down the corridor.
I had been quenching my thirst with alcohol throughout the banquet, and now my senses felt strangely off.
‘Disgusting.’
I couldn’t understand the people who enjoyed this. Why would anyone deliberately dull their body and brain functions?
Muttering to myself, I stared at the walls.
The imperial banquet hall rented by the Custoria family was one of the palace’s annexes. Because of that, the corridor was adorned with portraits of past emperors.
The paintings of the first emperor, Dino Accretia, were particularly numerous, almost like a series.
‘Dino Accretia.’
I stopped in front of a full-body portrait. It depicted the first emperor raising his sword high. The radiant paint used for the background created a glowing halo effect around him.
Moving my gaze to the next painting, I saw the first emperor holding a flag, surrounded by his followers. It seemed to symbolize the founding of the empire.
Step, step.
As I walked down the corridor, I observed the paintings. They depicted savage alien species and the emperor’s valiant struggle against them.
…Holy and divine.
Other emperors’ achievements and records were also illustrated, but none carried the same level of grandeur as the first emperor.
‘Emperor Yuri Accretia.’
I stopped in front of the latest emperor’s portrait. Every past emperor bore a striking resemblance to the first, as if to evoke his image. Yuri Accretia was no exception.
The mere fact that he looked like Dino Accretia granted him an air of authority. That was how revered the first emperor was as the father of the empire.
Click.
Footsteps echoed against the marble floor. I lifted my head and gazed toward the end of the corridor.
"So, you're the star of tonight’s banquet—Lukaus Custoria?"
The voice was clear and refreshing. It had a neutral tone, making it difficult to determine whether it belonged to a man or a woman.
It wasn’t just the voice. I watched as the figure emerged from the corridor’s shadows. Their straight, neatly trimmed purple hair reached the nape of their neck. Their features were sharp yet delicate, giving them an androgynous appearance.
But upon closer inspection, it was clear that they were a boy.
Click.
My cybernetic eyes activated. I attempted to access his information. But nothing appeared—not even the slightest detail.
Judging by his appearance, he seemed to be around my age. I quickly reached a conclusion.
"…It is an honor to meet a descendant of the Founder."
I lowered my head and dropped to one knee.
"Oh? You catch on quickly. No wonder you were able to earn military merit as a mere cadet."
He spoke with admiration, stepping closer.
‘A minor whose information is inaccessible even to the Overseer.’
And this was an imperial annex.
‘The boy before me is highly likely to be royalty. He could even be one of the emperor’s children.’
The imperial family was shrouded in secrecy, except for those who held official positions.
Only the emperor and his successor occasionally appeared in public. Currently, only Emperor Yuri Accretia and the famed Crimson Crown Prince, Fransech Accretia, had been seen by the public.
"You may rise, Lukaus."
Without a word, I stood up. No matter how arrogant I could be, I would never dare to question a member of the imperial family.
One must never ask anything until the royal themselves chooses to speak.
"Follow me. I'll show you the garden."
What kind of whim was this? Regardless, I followed behind him.
‘There’s no one around.’
The banquet had only recently ended, yet the corridor was eerily silent. Apart from the boy and me, there was no sign of life.
‘They cleared the area ahead of his route.’
The control of the crowd had been so seamless that even I hadn’t noticed.
‘A royal’s personal information is one of the empire’s highest-level secrets.’
Without prior authorization, it was nearly impossible to see a royal’s face—even by coincidence.
‘For some reason, this boy specifically sought me out.’
I tried to read his intentions but quickly gave up. Deduction requires prior information. No matter how advanced a computer is, it cannot reach a conclusion without input.
There was only one piece of information I had about the boy—he was royalty.
Clatter.
The boy opened the double glass doors. Beyond them lay a garden.
At the center of the garden was a pond, reflecting the crescent moon as if it had sunken into the water. Surrounding it were countless flowers and plants, thriving in a delicate balance between chaos and order.
"I wanted to talk to the one everyone’s been gossiping about."
The boy walked to the pond and stretched his hand over the water’s surface.
Splash!
The fish in the pond poked their mouths above the water, following his hand. The boy wiggled his fingers as if scattering feed.
Splash! Splash!
The fish eagerly gathered, thrusting their mouths toward his hand.
"They’re fools. Just reaching out my hand makes them think I’m feeding them, so they rush over in a frenzy. And the ones following from behind? They don’t even know what’s happening, yet they still gather. No one cares about truth or reality. They just drift along, following others."
I opened my mouth slightly, then closed it again. It wasn’t time to speak yet.
"If you want to say something, go ahead."
The boy had given me permission.
"…But they only gather like that because they’ve actually been fed before. They learned from experience."
"That’s right, Lukaus. If they never received real food, they wouldn’t keep coming. That’s why I feed them sometimes—just enough to make them think their efforts are meaningful. To make them believe they got food because they diligently followed my hand."
I kept my expression neutral. His words were layered with metaphor, but I didn’t grasp them entirely. Still, I felt deeply unsettled.
"But even if it's nothing more than their master's whim, those who give up and stay motionless won’t receive even that small reward."
"Haha, I’m glad I talked to you. You’re right about that too. Since you’re already here, take a look around. These koi, as well as the flowers and trees, are all original species from Earth. Not even the slightest genetic modification was made to help them adapt. This garden is like a miniature Earth."
I felt nothing in particular. To my eyes, they were no different from any other plants or animals.
Splash!
I stepped closer to the pond. The school of koi swam toward me, their dull faces opening and closing their mouths.
"What do you think?"
The boy spoke as he looked down at the koi beside me.
"The more I look at them… I suppose they are somewhat cute."
"Really? Then, as your order, Lukaus Custoria—kill them all."
He gave the command as if making a simple request.
If I said I wasn’t taken aback, I’d be lying. But an order was an order.
Splash.
I stepped into the pond, the water reaching my navel. The gathered koi scattered in all directions. But in such a small pond, there was nowhere for them to escape.
Calmly, I carried out the command.
The moonlit pond turned red with the blood of the koi. The reflection of the moon rippled as crimson spread like drifting clouds. The lifeless bodies of fish, their skulls crushed in my grip, floated to the surface.
"Well done."
The boy praised me as he grabbed one of the dead koi.
Crunch, crunch.
Burying his face into the fish’s belly, he devoured it ravenously. The blood smeared around his mouth, an eerie contrast to his refined, noble appearance. His act was nothing short of savage.
"Want some?"
He held out the dead koi toward me.
"If it’s an order, I will eat it."
I spoke while still standing in the pond.
"Hmm, that sounds like you don’t want to."
The boy wiped his bloodstained lips with the back of his hand. The streaks of blood trailed down his cheek like smudged lipstick.
I did not deny it. Even if it made me seem arrogant, I had no intention of flattering him with empty pleasantries or indulging in his grotesque dining habits.
"You may go. Let’s meet again, Luka."
Stepping out of the pond, I bowed deeply in a respectful farewell.
Drip, drip.
Drops of blood-tainted water fell at my feet.
Squish, squish.
I walked down the corridor. The eerie silence had ended, and people had begun to reappear—crowd control had been lifted.
Some of the banquet attendees were among them. I could feel their gazes on me as I walked.
…Exhausting. It felt as if I had been possessed by a ghost.