Laws Broken, Order Reconstructed – Part 03

Emperor Kagurai broke the silence. “Well, come on in, Kutsuwa. And you too, Soaarunay Saak.”

Soaarunay, wrapped in a tattered cloak, slipped past Kutsuwa into the room. The chief watched her warily, ready to act at a moment’s notice, but Kutsuwa remained calm.

“Are you the current emperor?” Soaarunay asked sharply.

Neither Kagurai, Kutsuwa, nor the chief reacted to her disrespectful tone.

“Yes, I am Kagurai G. Quinbrand.”

“If you were going to summon me, couldn’t you have at least sent a carriage? I was forced to travel for days with this quiet guy,” she complained, gesturing at Kutsuwa with her thumb.

Kutsuwa briefly frowned. Kagurai grinned upon noticing.

“Shall we have some tea? Director.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The chief bowed deeply and moved to the magical teapot. Meanwhile, Soaarunay casually sat in the chair opposite Kagurai, and Kutsuwa stood behind her. Though he seemed relaxed, Kutsuwa was also on guard.

“You understand, don’t you? We couldn’t risk your movements being detected by other groups, so we couldn’t send a carriage,” Kagurai explained.

“What other groups? Don’t you control the imperial nobles?” Soaarunay asked.

“That’s part of it. The chaos from the Black Rot still lingers.”

“What’s that? Tell me more.”

“Kutsuwa, explain it,” Kagurai instructed.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

He explained that the Black Rot was a poison based on a curse called the Accursed Toxin, developed by the Man Gnome Ranna under orders from the previous Pope of the Theocracy of Bios. Driven by a deep-seated hatred for the Man Gnomes, the previous Pope had spread this poison throughout the Quinbrand Empire, leading to countless deaths.

Soaarunay listened with little interest, responding only with a hmm. She drank down her tea, sweetened with plenty of honey, and immediately asked for a refill.

It seems the information from the village was accurate, Kagurai thought as he observed Soaarunay.

This woman, a descendant of the Saak family, was rumored to have traveled to another world. Though tales of such a spell existed, no one had ever succeeded. The sudden appearance of the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas, rising into the sky, had astonished the world. If Soaarunay had indeed been in another world until now, it would make sense.

“Soaarunay, can you travel between worlds freely?”

Her hand, holding her tea, paused mid-air. “I… can’t.”

“Then how did you come here from another world?”

“I could back then, but not anymore. Isn’t that enough? It’s a very complex topic involving sorcery, and I’m not in the mood to give a lesson right now.”

“Hmm.”

“More importantly, why did you bring me here? I thought you were friends with the silver-masked guy, but you left him behind among a horde of monsters.”

Kagurai was taken aback. She must be referring to Silver Face. He had heard about securing Soaarunay but not what happened to Silver Face. He glanced at Kutsuwa.

“This woman knocked Silver Face out from behind. With numerous monsters closing in, I believe he’s dead.”

“You didn’t confirm it?”

“My mission was to approach and scout the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas, and if possible, secure Soaarunay.”

After Hikaru’s group created an updraft using the Fire Drakon’s mane and flew into the air, Kutsuwa followed them. Hikaru regularly checked a radius of about 100 meters with Mana Detection, but after landing in the labyrinth, there were too many mana signatures to sense Kutsuwa.

Kutsuwa did not enter the labyrinth but instead conducted a thorough survey of the surrounding area until the labyrinth crash landed. This was the greatest crisis for Kutsuwa. He then saw adventurers, the Four Eastern Stars, and Paula exiting, and later Hikaru and Soaarunay.

Kutsuwa observed them, waiting for an opportunity. He was especially cautious of Hikaru—Silver Face. Surprised to see Soaarunay knock him out, he seized the perfect chance to secure Soaarunay and bring her to the imperial capital.

“Well, that’s fine,” Kagurai said. “Soaarunay, let me address your question about why we brought you here. As a descendant of the Saak family, you should be killed. That is the longstanding wish of us Man Gnomes.”

Soaarunay kept a calm façade, but her body was tense.

“Are you planning to torture me for magical secrets?”

“No, that’s not our intention. The risk of learning secrets from you is too high.”

“What danger is there in knowing secrets? I can’t even imagine.”

“Director.”

The head of the intelligence division bowed respectfully. “For instance, to verify those secrets, we’d need to take you with us to the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas. But that would only benefit you, since the labyrinth is your domain.”

“Hmph. You’ve thought this through. So you brought me here to keep me away from the labyrinth?”

Kagurai nodded slowly.

“Now you’re really losing me. What are you planning to do by keeping me alive? Are you seriously considering making me give a lesson on sorcery?”

“That does sound intriguing. But no, that’s not it.”

“Stop with the riddles and just give me a straight answer. If it sounds interesting, I might go along with it.”

Soaarunay maintained an audacious attitude. Outside the labyrinth, she was nothing more than a powerless magic researcher. She had no weapons, no combat skills. Whether it was her innate personality or her complete disinterest in authority, her arrogance knew no bounds.

“Then let us bring in our guest.”

Kagurai rang the bell on his desk. The clear sound echoed to the attendants in the waiting room. After a short wait, the door opened, and five Man Gnomes entered.

Soaarunay studied them curiously, wondering who they were.

“You’re kidding,” she mumbled.

Four brawny Man Gnomes entered first, protecting the one in the middle, an elderly Man Gnome likely over 200 years old. Kagurai stood to greet him as he approached with measured steps.

“This way, Seventh Elder.”

Elder. Soaarunay instantly recognized that he was an important figure in the Man Gnome village.

“Ah, thank you. Since you’re in charge here, I’ll sit beside you,” the Elder said cheerfully as he took the seat next to Kagurai. The four Man Gnome guards positioned themselves behind him.

“This is Soaarunay Saak, a descendant of the Saak family,” Kagurai introduced.

The Seventh Elder’s expression remained unchanged, but the four guards fixed Soaarunay with hostile glares.

“Soaarunay, this is the Seventh Elder, one of the elders of the Man Gnome village.”

“I see,” Soaarunay replied. Not expecting this development at all, she rapidly processed her thoughts.

Kagurai, noticing her discomposure, couldn’t help but smirk inwardly.

“As Emperor of the Quinbrand Empire, I steer this nation,” Kagurai said. “But I also receive directives from the Man Gnome village. Since the Great Labyrinth of Runay-aas reappeared—since your return to this world—the village’s policies have proven inadequate.”

The Seventh Elder nodded in agreement. “Indeed. The leadership under the Grand Elder has become outdated. In these times of rapid change, particularly with the labyrinth’s resurgence, it has become nothing but harmful. The Grand Elder’s orders were to destroy the labyrinth with the Star White Wedge, even at the cost of every Man Gnome’s life.”

“Oh, that white beam,” Soaarunay said. “So, the Elder and the Emperor have reached an agreement. I understand that. But why bring me here?”

“Don’t you understand? It’s quite simple,” Kagurai replied. “There’s no inherent superiority between soul energy and magical energy. Claims of such are mere delusions.”

The statement shocked Soaarunay. “Pardon? Delusions?”

For the Man Gnomes, sorcery had long been their enemy, and they had sacrificed many to eradicate the Saak family. Conversely, the Saak family revered sorcery and saw the Man Gnomes as their greatest foes. Yet Kagurai dismissed it all as mere delusions.

The Seventh Elder continued, “I am seeking the dawn of a new era. After extensive discussions with Kagurai, we have concluded that soul energy and magical energy should be merged. This would allow us to control the total amount of both energies in the world.”

Soaarunay quickly understood their plan. “This is madness! If you’re talking about merging them, then you’re…” Unable to contain herself, she half-rose from her seat. “You’re trying to rule this world!”

Ruling the world meant annexing all nations and uniting the continent under a single state.

“That is correct. For that, we need your wisdom,” Kagurai said nonchalantly. “I will be the first Emperor to unify this world.”

Though his words were full of ambition, his tone was incredibly calm, as if he were merely recounting an old tale. But there was no mistaking the gravity of his statement.

Emperor Kagurai G. Quinbrand of the Quinbrand Empire had declared his intent to rule the continent.