# 364
◈
364
Two weeks is not a long time. But it was long for Asuka. It’s so boring that I wonder why the day doesn’t go by like this.
Asuka endured the prince’s bullying – annoying him and making him think was a torment – and hoped that this time would pass as soon as possible.
Archduke Farnese may not let you go, but wouldn’t he at least help you escape from the life of a guard knight that doesn’t suit you?
The crown prince asked him questions about difficult or difficult state affairs or internal circumstances of the empire, and did not tolerate insincere answers. Sometimes, things were important enough to be treated as confidential.
Asuka became anxious as she realized that she was learning about the internal affairs of the empire.
‘You know this, but you’re not going to let me go?’
Asuka felt that the crown prince was trying to make her his right hand man.
And from Asuka’s point of view, that’s just harassment. Because he has absolutely no intention of serving the crown prince.
The fact that Asuka stayed by the crown prince’s side until late on the day of the assassination attempt was simply part of the harassment.
It is absolutely impossible for the crown prince to feel confident about Asuka.
Maybe he didn’t like the fact that he yawned ostentatiously when he gave a speech in front of his subjects.
Anyway, out of the four new members, he was the only one left.
There were several other imperial knights outside the door, but he was the only one who entered the room and escorted the crown prince.
The crown prince was busy that day. Immediately after the morning meeting, he stayed in the office until midnight, looking at documents, showing Asuka what it was like to be the heir to the throne until she was sick of it.
Asuka looked at the crown prince and felt fortunate that she was just a member of the royal family and not the crown prince.
The crown prince suddenly muttered.
“It’s midnight.”
“Yes, I am escorting His Highness until midnight.”
Asuka expressed her dissatisfaction. The crown prince chuckled.
“I have to stop by the library. “You can just go now.”
The crown prince slept little. It was rare for me to sleep more than 6 hours a day.
Asuka nodded hesitantly, opened the door, and walked out.
‘He works so hard, he’s worthy of being crown prince.’
How can you make your desk bite that long? Even from the perspective of watching, it feels a bit tingly.
After all, Asuka was suited to swinging a sword to her heart’s content.
‘The Knights of Palma are fighting monsters in the desert, right?’
He was capable of joining the Knights of Palma.
Asuka thought for a moment about her career path. At some point while he was walking, he stopped abruptly.
‘huh? Now that I think about it, if it’s a library, wouldn’t Xian be there too?’
Xian had been staying in the imperial palace library until late at night these days.
The library is open until dawn. The idea was that there were restrictions on using magic in the imperial palace, so even carrying a book on your back was a hassle.
Asuka had not yet met Sian, so she could not tell him about meeting Michael.
I needed him to talk to Helmut’s side.
‘Does this guy have an idea or not?’
Have you forgotten that you are now being held hostage in the imperial palace?
We can’t discuss how to escape together, but we’re buried under that damn pile of books.
Asuka, thinking that magicians were an incorrigible race, started walking again.
It was heading towards the imperial palace library.
The crown prince must have already left. Asuka hoped she wouldn’t run into him.
It would not be good for the crown prince to know of Xian’s existence for no reason. I don’t know if you already know this.
Asuka was walking when she felt a strange sensation.
At this time, the only people moving around the imperial palace are sentries, guards, and knights. It’s not surprising that there aren’t many people.
But what is this eerie silence? Asuka trusted her intuition. His senses were truly animalistic.
‘Something is going on.’
So what about the crown prince heading to the imperial palace library? Suddenly there was tension.
Asuka was in no hurry to walk away. He was alert to his surroundings and killed any sign of him.
With silent steps like a cat, he approached the imperial palace library.
And at some point he heard a faint noise.
visor! Whip!
The sound of swords clashing and the sight of death all around. It was beyond the alley.
Asuka stuck to the wall, tilted her head and watched the situation there.
Knights were fighting with masked men over the stern-faced prince.
The skills of the strangers were slightly lower than that of the imperial knights, but their number was more than twice that.
Although the imperial knights have the upper hand in organizational skills, they will not be able to hold out for long.
The crown prince in the middle was just a burden.
Asuka was a little embarrassed.
‘what? Is this the scene of an assassination?’
I’ve been targeted by Black Hawk or something before, but this is the first time I’ve seen a full-blown scene like this. I try all sorts of experiences.
The imperial palace library is not far from the palace, so how could an assassination attempt against the crown prince take place in a place like this?
This is a question that raises doubts about the level of security inside the imperial palace.
‘The empire is also quite shabby. Or maybe it was carefully prepared.’
One of the knights facing the assassin shouted loudly.
“Call someone!”
That was the shape of the knight’s mouth. But even with Asuka’s excellent hearing, the sound was really faint.
It was as if I had been eaten by a ball of cotton.
‘Magic?’
Asuka narrowed her eyes. The use of magic is restricted in the imperial palace. But magic is unfolding here.
‘The protective barrier has been lifted in this area. ‘It’s not unusual.’
The imperial wizard will probably personally check the condition of the barrier. It was after midnight, and if there was a problem with the barrier, it would not have been easy to check right away.
Now, only the minimum number of imperial wizards will be left on shift, so they will be checking the state of the barrier, focusing on the royal family’s residence.
However, the crown prince was here, not his residence. That was the problem.
‘Why are you wandering around so late at night?’
The knights protecting the crown prince were unusually few in number today.
They tell us to bring in people, but we don’t have the capacity to send people out to ask for help.
If one person leaves their position, the driver who left will be chased to death, and the rest will not be able to last long in this tense situation.
The enemies would have just killed the crown prince and removed him.
‘If the crown prince dies, I will be closer to the right to succeed to the throne.’
When I remembered that, I got goosebumps. It was a place I never wanted to get close to.
Asuka grabbed the sword handle.
Anyway, he is an imperial family in name and name, and he is an imperial knight. The crown prince is under attack and he cannot remain silent.
Meanwhile, Asuka, who had finished calculating the opponent’s power, strengthened her legs.
It was time to finally fulfill my duties as an escort knight.
***
At that moment, the prince in crisis was feeling a numb sense of tension for the first time in a long time.
A crisis of death in the middle of the imperial palace!
Even before the current emperor ascended to the throne, his son, the crown prince, had already experienced assassination attempts.
Archduke Farnese did not raise Asuka in hiding for no reason.
However, I had no idea that the crown prince would be targeted again in such an unexpected place.
Even though this was the imperial palace, I felt complacent.
‘Assassination at this point.’
It was rare for the Crown Prince to wander around the interior of the palace at this late hour.
However, the documents uploaded this time were complex, and data from the imperial palace library was needed to process them. Several volumes as well.
Tomorrow is full of tomorrow’s work. Since he couldn’t sleep at the time, the crown prince left his office for a quick outing.
The escort was brief today. Asuka was sent away, and the elite knights who were guarding the crown prince were also absent, as they had, coincidentally, been sent to a parade outside the emperor’s palace.
The ones here are knights of relatively low status and skill.
Normally, there would have been one or two people below the level of the deputy commander, but it was a rare day when the escort was neglected.
On days like this, it was right for the crown prince to refrain from moving.
But he moved and was attacked because of it.
‘I wasn’t sending that guy away.’
The crown prince thought of Asuka. If you are at the top of the swordsmanship department at Greta Academy, you will have skills that are useful even in the Imperial Knights.
Besides, I felt sorry for even just one person right now.
I tried firing a flare, but it went off in the air without a sound.
The enemies were using magical means. Right here in the imperial palace! Does this make sense?
‘Did the announcement of the temple’s closure move them?’
Never before has the imperial family made such an extreme decision.
The process of pushing out the power of the temple from the empire was carried out in a cautious and less overt manner.
Such as slightly reducing the budget or excluding nobles who are close to the temple from key duties.
Although their intentions were obvious, the temple must have thought that they were paying a price for siding with the emperor’s political enemies.
Although the protest was indirectly shown, the temple side was trying to make it look more visible to the imperial family of the empire.
There were several occasions when the High Minister visited the empire in person.
Although each time it ended with superficial courtesy and conversation.
When the crown prince decided to close a fairly large temple, the temple seemed to have decided that it could no longer choose a moderate approach.
At this point, the reaction could be considered outraged.
‘That’s the way it suits them in the first place.’
Why did Lumen not know that the intention of using God’s power would change from the moment it was given to humans?
Even though noble ministers stand at the top of the head and lowly humans only act on their behalf.
“Ugh!”
One knight fell down, sprinkling blood. One person decreased. The enemies were still vivid.
The crown prince gritted his teeth. If one side has talent, the other side is bound to be neglected.
He had great qualities as a prince, but his sword skills were mediocre.
Although he was holding a sword in his hand, it couldn’t be of help.
“Your Majesty the Crown Prince! We’ll block this place, so run into the Imperial Palace Library. “It’s complicated inside, so you might be able to hide!”
One of the knights whispered quickly. The crown prince nodded slowly. That was the only way for now.
It was then that they were about to use their last resort.
“hi!”
A flash of light crossed the air along with the sound of cheerful words.
Push! Blood splattered in the air, turning one assassin into a piece of meat. dump!
Everyone looked at him at once. A blue-haired savior with a fierce smile stood there.
A harsh sound that did not suit him immediately came out of his mouth, dressed in the attire of the Imperial Knights and with a neat appearance.
“I really hate dirty bastards like you. “Remember that everything has been covered today!”
