Ruel raised the corners of his mouth.

    The stout man standing behind Adea was Medeas Tehel, who might know a way to remove his mark.

    Adea swiftly analyzed Ruel’s expression, anticipating a hint of arrogance that was surprisingly absent.

    “I was worried that I might have arrived too early, but seeing such a warm welcome from you reassures me.”

    “How could I not extend a welcome when you honor us with your presence, Your Highness? Please, take a seat,” Ruel gestured towards the table.

    Adea moved toward it, and Medeas, standing behind him, bowed his head to Ruel.

    “Nice to meet you. I am Medeas Tehel. Thank you for your hospitality after your long journey.”

    Medeas had an overall friendly face, which made a good impression.

    However, Ruel couldn’t quite recall if he had attended the welcome party.

    “Pleasure to meet you. I am Ruel Setiria. Please, have a seat.”

    “Thank you.”

    As Ruel observed Adea and Medeas taking their seats, he signaled with his head to Cassion and Ganien to indicate the door.

    The two nodded before stepping outside.

    Ttak.

    With a sharp sound as his cane hit the floor, Ruel’s confident grin returned.

    “No need for tea. It won’t be a lengthy discussion.”

    Adea snorted at Ruel’s confident attitude, which implied that he expected him to concede to his demands.

    “Is this arrogance your nature, or is it typical of the nobles of Leponia?”

    “Both. In Leponia, nobility is treated with respect due to their status. Growing up in such an environment, it’s unavoidable.” Ruel replied without hesitation as he took his seat.

    No matter how hard he tried to control his expression, the wrinkles between Adea’s eyebrows didn’t disappear.

    However, there was no need for Adea to belittle himself simply because he was a prince.

    He had the upper hand in this situation.

    “I would like to hear what decision you have made, Your Highness.”

    “Before that, you should demonstrate that you can keep your demands.”

    “I still have not resolved my doubts about you, Your Highness. How can I show trust without something to believe in?”

    Ruel didn’t show any sign of disappointment.

    There were plenty of ways to get Medeas to speak or to make him find the one who placed the mark.

    “I believe Your Highness and Lord Tehel have joined forces because of the Tonisk Empire, isn’t that right?”

    Since the day he received information about Adea searching for details on the Tonisk Empire, he felt something was off.

    The Tonisk Empire was currently a defunct state, and even if its gates had opened twice, it wasn’t a serious enough situation for a prince to personally investigate. So why was he searching for information?

    And that’s when Medeas Tehel immediately came to mind.

    He was the son of the former Prime Minister of the Tonisk Empire.

    The link between Adea and Medeas was the Tonisk Empire.

    Seeing Adea’s expression harden, Ruel smiled.

    It seemed he had hit the nail on the head.

    “There’s no one easier to manipulate than a dog that has switched owners, wouldn’t you agree?”

    Ruel’s gaze shifted toward Medeas, who also looked troubled, but Ruel’s next words caused his eyes to widen.

    “Would you like to know the situation of the Tonisk Empire?”

    Ruel reached out a hand towards Medeas.

    “Switching sides wouldn’t be a bad idea. I probably hold more information than he does.”

    “Lord Setiria. What are you doing?”

    Adea’s voice rose.

    Ruel smiled at his reaction.

    “It’s easy to persuade people like that. But I won’t. I don’t want to become your enemy, Your Highness.”

    Adea gritted his teeth, angry that he had been played.

    “I would like to advise Your Highness not to waste unnecessary time. You haven’t forgotten the conditions I proposed, have you?”

    “... I haven’t forgotten.”

    “Please let me know what results you have brought with you.”

    Adea let out a sigh and said, “Hela emphasized the importance of trust as a starting point.”

    “Yes. I’ve heard that several times already.”

    “Can you... protect Kran?”

    At Adea’s cautious question, Ruel scoffed.

    “Your Highness, it’s hard enough for me just to protect myself. Don’t delude yourself. Protecting Kran is your responsibility.”

    “...”

    Speechless, Adea seemed embarrassed by his own question.

    “As Lord Setiria knows, I’m a high-ranking member of the Red Ash.”

    Medeas pointed to himself.

    Ruel felt a strong curiosity, never expecting Medeas to directly label himself as an executive.

    ‘What is he trying to say?’

    “All I want from you, Lord Setiria, is one thing.”

    “Go on.”

    “The situation of the Tonisk Empire.”  No?v(el)B\\jnn

    Adea was taken aback to see Medeas surrender so quickly.

    However, he didn’t stop him.

    “Any information related to the Empire will suffice. Please tell me everything.”

    Ruel inhaled Breath, alternating glances between Adea and Medeas.

    They seemed to have a long-standing relationship based on how they interacted.

    But what did that matter?

    “Why should I? I don’t trust you.”

    Ruel said, looking Medeas straight in the eye.

    “I understand.”

    “Understand? How repulsive.”

    Hearing the executive of Red Ash use the word ‘understand’ while looking at him made the words come out harshly.

    “I didn’t think Lord Tehel would find anything to understand about me. It seems you’ve worked hard to rise to the position of an executive, but I wonder if your hands are free of the blood of my guardians.”

    “Lord Setiria.”

    Adea immediately tried to intervene with Ruel.

    But Medeas shook his head at Adea.

    “No, Your Highness. How could my hands be clean?”

    Medeas’s lips trembled as he spoke, opening and closing repeatedly.

    In the end, he couldn’t even look at Ruel and spoke.

    “Yes, I won’t deny it. I killed one of Lord Setiria’s guardians to rise to this position.”

    Ruel’s expression turned icy in an instant.

    “I know how disgusting I must seem. So, separate from the conditions you presented, I will tell you who placed the mark.”

    Adea looked like he wanted to stop Medeas immediately, but he didn’t.

    He couldn’t stop him because he knew how long Medeas had been struggling with this issue.

    “But killing the one who placed the mark won’t lift it.”

    “What do you mean it cannot be lifted?”

    “Honestly, that’s what I would like to know. They say it’s due to the natural mana swirling around Lord Setiria, but frankly, I don’t understand what that means.”

    Medeas forced a smile, his expression apologetic.

    ‘It’s Jan’s power.’

    At that moment, Ruel felt an overwhelming urge to run to Jan and hug him.

    The increase of natural mana around him had started occurring when Jan’s power had been absorbed into him.

    Ruel clenched his fists on the table.

    “Is this enough for you to believe me? Try wearing the necklace now.”

    Adea wanted to stop Medeas countless times but managed to hold back.

    The opportunity for negotiation had already passed.

    Ruel had obtained the most important information he sought, hadn’t he?

    Adea gave up and gestured towards the box with a smile.

    Ruel took a deep breath and took the box.

    Leo’s eyes widened.

    —Woah!

    From Leo’s reaction, it was clear that the necklace wasn’t tainted with corruption.

    Ruel carefully held the necklace in his hands.

    There was no sensation.

    It didn’t even tingle.

    ‘It’s not even a magical necklace?’

    Ruel felt a mix of unease and curiosity about this unfamiliar object.

    If it worked as Medeas claimed, it was certainly not an ordinary item.

    “Again, let me remind you, while wearing this necklace, it will only conceal the mark. Eliminating it entirely is impossible for now.”

    Ruel glanced back and forth between the two before placing the necklace back into the box.

    His heart was already racing, making it hard for him to focus on the transaction.

    “I’ll verify it later.”

    “That sounds good.”

    Adea’s expression brightened a bit.

    Receiving the box was a positive sign, after all.

    “Lord Setiria.”

    Adea called out to Ruel.

    “Yes, Your Highness.”

    “To be honest, I’ve been weighing my country and myself up to this moment. It’s like defying Hela’s words.”

    Adea seemed to be blaming himself.

    “I willingly cooperate with you.”

    Despite Adea’s acceptance of the deal, it felt like a plea for Ruel to trust him.

    However, that was out of the question.

    Ruel looked at Medeas.

    “Who does Lord Tehel consider to be the Great Man?”

    “Regrettably, I don’t know.”

    Medeas shook his head.

    “Among the high-ranking members, there is likely no one who knows whose body he has taken over. Ironically, he trusts no one.”

    Ruel couldn’t hide his disappointment.

    No one knows?

    Various questions swirled in his mind, but now wasn’t the time.

    He needed to ask one urgent question.

    “Lord Tehel, haven’t you sworn a mana oath related to the Great Man?”

    Wasn’t it too natural to refer to the Great Man as ‘him’?

    “I have. But what does that matter? The Great Man is not his real name. The ‘Great Man’ I’m loyal to now is Your Highness Adea Kran.”

    At Medeas’s words, Adea smiled with satisfaction.

    That was genuine.

    Indeed, the one to whom Medeas pledged his loyalty was Adea.

    Even if there were loopholes in the mana oath, and even though loyalty could vary from person to person, one could not escape the fundamental framework of loyalty.

    Didn’t Cassion grab his chest and complain whenever he cursed at him?

    Nevertheless, Ruel did not dismiss the possibility that Adea might be the Great Man.

    If Adea was the Great Man, then Medeas’ mana oath and his presence by Adea’s side all made sense.

    “Very well.”

    However, Ruel had started to dismantle the towering walls of suspicion he had built.

    Now it was time for direct verification, not just words.

    “Cassion.”

    As Ruel called for Cassion, he opened the door and entered, “Did you call for me?”

    “Give me the powder.”

    Cassion took out a pouch containing the powder from his pocket and handed it to Ruel.

    Watching Cassion retreat back outside, Ruel inhaled Breath.

    “What is that?”

    Adea asked first.

    “It’s a sign of trust that I need to believe in Your Highness.”

    “Is this it?”

    Ruel opened the pouch and took out the powder.

    “If you trust me, please stay still.”

    “I understand.”

    Ruel then turned to Medeas.

    “The same goes for you, Lord Tehel.”

    “Understood.”

    Upon hearing their responses, Ruel sprinkled the powder over both of them.

    Adea sneezed, while Medeas tightly closed his eyes.

    Nothing happened.

    If they were corpses, then recalling Hikars’s words about how the connection with the heretics would break for a moment when the powder was sprinkled, Ruel finally smiled.

    Adea and Medeas had nothing to do with death.

    “Thank you.”

    Ruel then handed the pouch containing the powder to Adea.

    “Here’s the powder I just sprinkled on Your Highness. You can use any method you want. Please sprinkle it on His Majesty.”

    “Why should I sprinkle this on His Majesty? And what is this powder anyway?”

    “Your Highness, after sprinkling this powder, please come back to me. Then I will trust Your Highness.”

    Adea was confused and even annoyed.

    He had set aside his pride as a prince and offered to be a pawn for the plan.

    And now he was being asked to sprinkle this powder on the king?

    Adea asked in an annoyed voice, “Are you always so rude?”