Chapter 204: Understanding

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Beneath the dim illumination of the Everlasting Lamp, the soldiers roughly brought Thales and Little Rascal, who had their hands tied behind their backs into the prison cell next to Kohen’s.

Thales listened to the sound of the thick iron door being locked, and consoled the horrified as well as perplexed Little Rascal for a bit. He then turned his head and looked at his surroundings through the bars.

’Why do I feel like I have a special connection with prisons?’

There were only three bound prisoners—Wya, as well as a man-and-woman pair in the dark. All of them were staring at Thales in disbelief.

However, there were six guards present, all staring at the prisoners without moving their gazes away. They had fierce expressions and they were extremely vigilant.

Thales clutched his hands together softly as his heart sank—his dagger had been taken away.

He gave Little Rascal the only considerably dry corner in the prison cell, and sat against the wall on the dirty, wet floor.

"Wya, why are you here?" Thales solemnly asked as he stared cautiously at the young man in the opposite cell. "Where are Putray, Ralf and the others in the diplomat group?"

’Did all of them...’

Wya’s expression dimmed.

"I was dispatched to search for you along with the mute, Aida and a few other soldiers." The face of the prince’s attendant was covered in abrasions and bruises, while his clothes were torn. "Sir Putray is probably still waiting for news from us in Heroic Spirits Palace."

Thales furrowed his brows and started to think.

"No talking allowed." A tall and big guard went up to their prison cell with his hand on his saber. He seemed like the head there and his tone was unpleasant. "Do you want me to teach all of you how to shut up?"

Filled with anger and hatred, Wya stared at him as he gritted his teeth.

Thales ignored him. The second prince raised his head and continued to ask, "Then, how were you captured—"

Wya was about to answer when he was suddenly interrupted.

*Sching!*

The shrill sound of metal rubbing against each other rang. The guard had whipped a portion of his sword out.

Holding the hilt of the sword strapped to his waist, he cut Thales off coldly, "Little sh*t, I warned you... not to talk!"

Little Rascal’s face went pale from fear. She inched behind Thales and pushed the prince’s back with her shoulder to stop him from talking.

Thales sighed.

He slowly rose and stared the guard in the eye.

"Are you an Eckstedtian?"

The tall guard momentarily froze.

"What?"

With a calm expression, Thales stared at the guard, who seemed like the head. It was as if Thales wanted to see straight into his mind through his eyes.

"I’m asking you," the second prince said flatly, "are you Eckstedtian, soldier?"

Clad in a patrol uniform, the guard furrowed his brows.

"All of you were sent here to guard me." Thales shook his head slowly and swept his eyes across the soldiers around him. "Does this mean that all of you know what’s going on?

"Including following Lampard and walking all the way here from Black Sand Region to assassinate your king while cutting off all your possibilities of backing out, and regardless for the sacrifices you have to make as well as the price you have to pay?"

Upon hearing this, the five other guards could not help but turn their heads and look over. Their expressions varied.

The guard’s face immediately became a little pale.

"Assassinate the king?"

The prisoner in Thales’ neighboring prison cell, a blonde young man, opened his mouth in shock. "So, what Kroesch said was true—"

"Shut up, Kohen." A young woman in the opposite prison cell coldly cut him off.

Hearing the slightly familiar female voice, Thales realized something. He looked at the young woman.

’She’s...’

The atmosphere in the prison turned solemn.

"You..." The head guard’s expression was dark, and his gaze was complex as he moved his brows about. "You don’t know anything, little sh*t."

"But you do." Thales stared straight into the guard’s eyes, not cowering in the slightest. "All of you held your weapons and walked into Dragon Clouds City, all of you saw your king’s dead body. Are all of you able to live with yourselves at peace without any trouble?"

Two of the guards seemed hesitant. One after another, they turned their heads and gazes away from Thales.

"Enough, arrogant prince." The head guard noticed his subordinates’ actions and his expression changed. It seemed like he was struggling. "If you think that by doing this, we..."

"I’m not asking you for anything." Thales shook his head slightly and sighed. "Perhaps all of you have no choice, and are just following orders... But all of you are Northlanders after all.

"And this is not the Northland I know."

The guard’s expression did not change, but there was a flash of complex emotions in his eyes.

Thales raised his head once again and stared at the head guard with a sharp gaze.

The head guard pursed his lips and set his sights on Thales, furrowing his brows a little.

"You know what crime I’m being held captive for.

"So, before I’m put to death as the culprit..." Thales sighed, his expression dim.

"Let me talk to them for a bit."

The head guard’s eyes froze. He placed his hand on his sword, which was halfway out of its sheath.

A few seconds later, as if recovering his senses, he turned and glanced at his subordinates.

However, they all had their heads turned away with varying expressions.

*Sching!*

The head guard finally snorted softly and sheathed his sword.

"All your words are going to fall on deaf ears anyway," he said coldly and turned away with his eyes shut. He ignored Thales just like his fellow guards.

Thales sighed deeply.

With a tired look, the second prince sincerely said, "Thank you, Northlander."

Thales’ entire body ached, and he felt like sitting down against the wall.

But he saw the absent-minded Little Rascal through the corner of his eyes. The poor girl was cowering at the corner and staring at the empty ground with a distracted expression.

Thales’ felt his mood go down.

When he thought of the difficult situation they were in, he shook his head, gathered his strength and moved close to the bars.

’It hasn’t ended yet.

’I can’t rest.’

"Where is this place?" Thales leaned against the thick wooden bars and observed his surroundings.

Compared to Vine Manor’s dungeon, this prison cell seemed comparatively simple and crude. There were only two Everlasting Lamps with a small amount of Eternal Oil burning in them.

’Strange.’

"I’m not sure, Your Highness." Wya’s face was visible beneath the bars of the opposite prison cell. It was filled with anxiety and fury. "We... We were ambushed, and had our heads covered..."

Thales furrowed his brows a little. "’We’? Are you saying that—"

Before Thales could finish, a handsome young man in the neighboring prison cell struggled to inch his head over. He was tightly bound with an iron chain.

"Your Highness!"

The poor prisoner seemed to be in immense pain. Panting, he said, "Prince Thales, I am Kohen, Kohen Karabeyan.

"You may not know me, but I am a police officer and a patrol leader in the capital city... I mean Eternal Star City..."

Staring at his face, a memory from the past surfaced in Thales’ mind.

’Karabeyan.

’It’s him.

’But why is he...’

"I recognize you. You’re from the family of the Sword of the Twin Towers." Thales stared at Kohen in contemplation as he swept his gaze past Kohen’s blonde hair. "I remember you almost fighting with your father in the Hall of Stars."

Kohen’s face froze. He could not even feel the immense pain in his right arm anymore.

Was that the first impression he left on the heir to the kingdom?

"Your Highness, it is my honor to meet you again along with your attendant this time." With a gloomy expression, Kohen swept his gaze past Wya, who was snorting coldly in disdain. Kohen then glanced listlessly at the little girl behind Thales. "And I assume that this young lady is...

"Umm..." Kohen furrowed his brows, trying to guess Thales’ age. Puzzled, he then estimated the girl’s age and said, "The princess consort?"

The swordswoman opposite Kohen raised her brows and burst out in laughter.

Thales’ face twitched.

With a dismal look, Little Rascal looked anxiously at Thales.

Kohen stared at his friend, who was laughing in spite of herself, and reacted awkwardly. "Right, you are not at that age yet..."

"Ahem..." Thales furrowed his brows. "Thank you for your concern, Your Excellency."

Face covered in dirt, Kohen tried his best to raise his head and flash a friendly smile at the prince.

"As for you, Miss Arunde from Broken Dragon Fortress..." Thales turned his head and looked at the woman with light armor and black hair diagonally opposite him. He could not help but sigh. "I reckon that you’re not here for a sightseeing trip?"

The disheveled Miranda Arunde stopped smiling, putting on a blunt expression again.

She turned her head, and amid the clanking of the chains, she coldly said, "Same as you, Your Highness."

Thales glanced at Miranda, and then at Kohen in a daze.

’The heiress of Northern Territory’s Arunde Family...’

"Both of you..." He took a deep breath and started to ponder once again. "Do you have any idea what sort of trouble you have gotten into?"

"I’ve heard bits and pieces," Miranda’s chilly voice rang. "There was an assassination attempt on the King of Eckstedt?"

"Not just an assassination attempt." Thales nodded and exhaled. His face was pale. "The king has already passed away."

A few of the guards in the prison subconsciously glanced at them, but they looked away when their head stared fiercely at them.

Miranda furrowed his brows, while Wya widened his eyes.

On the other hand, Kohen shut his eyes and rested his head on the ground once again. His tone was regretful as he said, "I knew it..."

Little Rascal sat at the corner of the prison cell and trembled slightly as she remembered how King Nuven died.

The swordswoman’s voice continued to ring through the bars, "So, what exactly happened?"

Thales glanced at Little Rascal. He sighed softly and turned to face the three people staring at him with gazes of anticipation.

"I only know part of the truth." Thales furrowed his brows tightly. "And now..."

He raised his head and looked at the three of them with a solemn expression. "I need both of you to tell me exactly what you encountered, from beginning to end.

"Starting from why you came to Northland."

More than ten minutes later...

"Kaslan Lampard?!"

Thales could not hide the shock on his face or control the volume of his exclamation. Even the six guards glanced at him.

The prince alternated his hesitant stare between the gloomy-looking Kohen and the extremely solemn Miranda.

’That old man in the tavern...

’Seemed so reassuring.

’And...

’His personality, along with the sympathy and open-mindedness he exhibited didn’t seem like qualities that would be found in a hypocritical villain.’

Wya widened his eyes. "That old man in the tavern? Didn’t he use to be the commander of the White Blade Guards? He’s very well-known."

"Very surprising, isn’t it?" Miranda’s voice was still steady. However, it carried a hint of suppressed emotions. "It is rumored that his relationship with Chapman Lampard is very bad. I thought that he would always be loyal to the Walton Family..."

"A brute of a man." Furious, Kohen struggled to get up and grimaced in pain once again. "He did not even pop my right arm back in properly. I knew that he was a rotten person..."

"You were the most affectionate towards him, even putting your arms around his shoulder," Miranda immediately called out Kohen’s lies with her cold words, causing the latter to put on an awkward expression.

Thales stared at the ground in a daze. Some of the incidents he remembered started to make sense.

"No." Thales breathed slowly and his eyes became increasingly bright. "Kaslan... This solves many of the mysteries.

"Nicholas told me that he heard from an old friend who was formerly in White Blade Guards that the person who tried to assassinate me at the fortress was a part of the Disaster Sword." Focusing his gaze, Thales recalled his journey before he entered Dragon Clouds City. "However, Poffret told me before he was decapitated by King Nuven that the Shadow Shield was the one trying to assassinate me."

’That "old friend" was probably Kaslan.’

Kohen and Miranda were shocked.

"The Shadow Shield?" Kohen furrowed his brows. "So, they’re back?"

Thales shook his head. He did not answer the police officer’s question.

He had to get straight to the point.

Wya glanced at Kohen in annoyance.

"The Disaster Sword—or whatever else they could have used—was just a lie and a guise, so that both of you would be lured here in the name of the Tower of Eradication." As Kohen awkwardly realized that no one had answered him, Thales muttered, "To be exact, it was to lure you here, Miss Arunde, the heiress to the Guardian Duke of Northern Territory."

Miranda sighed.

"True, Kroesch was only passing on the news. She did not have the right to decide who the Tower of Eradication sent." Kohen froze momentarily, but soon regained his focus. "But Kaslan can do that. He is Master Shao’s close friend, and he can absolutely suggest or even specify who he wants."

"For a noble from Constellation’s Northern Territory to secretly enter Dragon Clouds City... It is alright under normal circumstances." Wya pondered and continued the topic, "But to capture Constellatiates who were acting suspiciously, including the heiress to the Archduke of Northern Territory at a time when the king has been assassinated..."

"We are the perfect scapegoats," Miranda said in a low voice as she slowly shut her eyes. "This sounds much more convincing than a young prince with little power plotting to assassinate the king."

Nonetheless, Thales remained silent.

His mind was working at an increasing speed.

Finally, in the dim and dreary prison cell, the second prince softly said, "It’s not just that." Thales inhaled deeply, and the picture in his mind became clearer and clearer. "Wya’s right. You’re the heiress to the Northern Territory.

"The Northern Territory..." The second prince narrowed his eyes and remembered how anguished and hysterical Val Arunde was in Renaissance Palace. "The Northern Territory of Constellation, south of Broken Dragon fortress, which Lampard dreams of conquering.

"Lampard has been determined to get the Northern Territory since the time he conspired with Duke Arunde."n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Everyone went silent.

Kohen blinked as if he was still figuring out the clues, while Miranda stared at the iron chain around her body in a daze. Wya on the other hand, bit his lips hard.

"I am the scapegoat for the king’s death, but you, Miss Arunde," Thales sighed and slowly said, "as the most legitimate heiress of the Northern territory after Val Arunde was jailed, you’re not just a scapegoat... You may not even be a scapegoat."

"Not a scapegoat?" Kohen was shocked. He struggled up amid the pain. "What does this mean?"

Miranda opened her eyes. She understood.

Thales raised his head as his thoughts became increasingly clear.

"Think about it. The venerable Duke Val Arunde, framed by the fatuous King Kessel of Constellation and ending up in prison," the prince said softly.

"His daughter-cum-heiress then heads to Eckstedt for help, trying to fight for justice and take back everything that belongs to Arunde."

Every single person in the prison held their breaths.

Including the guards from Black Sand Region.

"Such a good story, isn’t it?" Thales chuckled sarcastically and shook his head a little. "Coincidentally, the Prince of Constellation assassinated King Nuven at the same time."

"It can’t be." Kohen’s face was filled with shock. In a trance, he said, "They..."

"Chapman Lampard." With a face filled with resignation, Thales slowly sighed and said, "It looks like his agreement with Val Arunde is still effective."

Miranda lowered her head. Her face was pale.

"And you, Miss Arunde..." Thales sighed and looked at Miranda. She did not say a word, and her expression was cold. "In the impending negotiation or war regarding the ownership of the Northern Territory, you’ll be Lampard’s...

"Biggest bargaining chip."