Emperor of Steel

Three days had passed in the blink of an eye.

In that duration, Rudolf left everything related to the governing over to Count Voltas, which would allow him to focus on his ill kids.

However, he had no choice but to use all the means and methods available.

If there was a good doctor or priest, they were brought in and used regardless of the type of medication they were giving.

And the following proclamation had been given.

Anyone who can defeat the disease of the Imperial family members regardless of their titles will be given the title of Count.

Even if they have committed any sins in the past, even if it was a deadly sin like treason, the Emperor would give them immunity.

Despite all these efforts, the children’s illness hadn’t improved.

No, as time passes, the conditions only worsened.

And of them all, Martel’s condition was the most serious.

With already blood seeping out from the rashes, now the skin had begun to rot, and all the body parts began to lose movement, starting from fingers and toes.

And the 4th queen, the mother of Martel, who saw her son in such a desperate state couldn’t hold herself strong.

“Your, Your Majesty… please, please…”

“Kuh! Kuh! Your highness, save, please save me!”

“I don’t want to die like this, Your Majesty!”

From the pleading of Martel, Lian and Barto too asked Rudolf to help them, seeing that Rudolf could only imagine himself in the depths of hell.

Unbearable to look at them, Rudolf immediately walked out of the room where the kids were being treated. He called for the warlocks who were being trained in the Imperial Palace.

“Is there no way?”

At the question from Rudolf, including Meishin, the warlock’s head, shook his head.

Along with the numerous doctors and priests with divine ability, they too had watched the scene for three days.

Which was why they weren’t able to speak.

However, if they kept their mouth shut, they would be slaughtered in the hands of Rudolf.

So, Meishin was the one to speak as a representative.

“Your Majesty, I didn’t directly examine the condition of the princes, so I can’t give any definite answer, but this seems to be the curse placed by someone.”

“Curse? Then, can it be solved?”

“The thing is… this has to be a very strong curse if no priest was able to even sense it. And dark magic normally aims at chaos, darkness, and destruction…”

“Then end it! Conclude it!”

Flustered by the scream from the Emperor, Meishin decided to make it short.

“With my current ability, I am of no use against it.”

“This!”

In fact, there was a thing everyone missed. It was to make the princes into undead.

That way, they could get the princes away from the pain they were feeling, however, they would have to face the pain of living forever.

He could have said, but Meishin decided to keep his neck intact.

“Ehh! All you useless men! Disappear from my eyes right away!”

“So, very sorry, Your Majesty.”

The warlocks receded as the Emperor yelled.

He screamed loudly, but Rudolf’s tantrum wasn’t done yet.

Wanting to get rid of the stuffy feeling, he went down to the basement of the Imperial Palace and wielded his sword like crazy.

“Uhaahhhhhh!”

Grrrrng! Grrrng!

Despite the fact that he was a Sword Emperor who wasn’t yet recovered, the power released from the emperor’s sword made the palace go wild.

The statues made of rocks and steel all shattered in the basement and the gold aura which hit it shattered into powerful energy.

“Huh! Huak!”

Rudolf, who had been going crazy, stopped only after the ground was entirely messed.

What he did was so terrifying that the famous sword he used, which was made of the Ergen got cracked.

Rudolf threw away the ruined sword and sat down.

“Dammit! How can this even happen?! The strongest man in the continent, the one who looks after the millions of people of the land, can do nothing!”

With anger, Rudolf hit the ground with his clenched fist.

It was the very first time that Rudolf had felt how it was to feel incompetent.

“Kul. Kul. Kul. I see. That. Now. Realized. The power. you have. Is. Nothing. But. Worthless.”

“Who, who is that?”

Suddenly a voice entered Rudolf’s ears, which made the Emperor pick up the sword.

Rudolf was the only person who could be in the basement.

It was his desire of wanting to be alone so that his escorts didn’t see him in such a miserable state.

And who could have invaded that privacy?

“Who is it? Come in front of me right away!”

A middle-aged wizard with a gray robe appeared from the air at the shout of Rudolf.

He had large and small wrinkles along with wounds on his face.

His lips were firmly closed and had a sharp chin.

It was a face he had definitely seen.

Rudolf pointed the sword at the wizard and asked, “Who are you? What the hell are you even doing here?!”

“Upset. You must. Be. But. Forgot. Me already?”

“Don’t tell me… Arsene?”

When the wizard asked Rudolf, taking a close look, Rudolf’s eyes widened.

The face was different, but the voice was very familiar, and so managed to notice.

“Kuk. You. Forgot. Me. Very. Thoroughly. I see.”

The one who came to visit Rudolf was Arsene.

A wizard who had become obsessed with the forbidden dark magic after being obsessed with the Veritas Magic tower and raising to high positions.

Emperor Rudolf watched Arsene, who wasn’t around for a long time and asked with caution and aura pulsating from the body.

‘He did change, but did he end up changing his body?!’

It was a misunderstanding from Rudolf’s side.

Arsene wasn’t away from the Lich’s body and changed into another wizard’s body, but was briefly using the teachings of Saymon, by transferring part of his soul into a guardian.

“Oh my. You. Who. Can’t go. Against me. forgot. Me. And. Now. You. Dare. To ruin. My. Veritas. Magic tower?”

At the rage in Arsene’s voice, Rudolf jumped not realizing.

His opponent was a Lich, the worst kind of monster who knew both white and dark magic.

And Rudolf knew that yet thought that he wasn’t lacking much to the Lich, he quickly corrected his stance and raised his voice.

“On whom are you placing the blame?! Wasn’t all of this the cause by you and the stupid successors of yours?”

Whether it was internal politics or using someone, Veritas Magic tower wasn’t properly built.

However, Arsene’s thoughts were different from Rudolf’s.

“Even. If that. Is right. Being. An Emperor. Can’t. you. Persuade. The heart. Of the. Public? Now. That. I see. This was. An opportunity. For you. To push. Down the. Magic tower. Destroy. The relationship. All because. Of your. Greed. Right?”

“That, that…”

“For a long. Time. We have. Been. Working. Alongside. To throw. It away. Like. This. So easily. With. Time. I should. Have seen. This before. If you didn’t. your flower. Like. Kids. wouldn’t. have. Been going. Through. So much pain.”

Thought it wasn’t entirely accurate, Meishin’s words were right, someone had placed a curse on the children.

“Was, was that your doing?”

“Now it. Is you. Huh. you. I didn’t. want. To believe. The change. In. you. But yes, this. Is the same, thing as. the curse. hanging on. The. Warrior’s. descendant. A very similar one.”

It was something very similar, but no one was able to understand it.

The curse on the Rakan family hindered the men to move their body in the most urgent situations.

The curse was placed right after the kid was born, and then it gets triggered once again as time passes.

Just a thought, but what would happen if the body suddenly went stiff during a crucial battle?

That was surely a terrible situation for one to be in.

On the contrary, the curse placed on the Baroque Imperial children was cast in the beginning and then starts at the trigger from its caster.

The effect of it was much stronger than the former one.

It was because the curse would be triggered when one of the kids got it.

“Kul. Kul. Kul. Want. To. Know. Something. More amazing? Your. Kids. And. The. Curse. Which is hanging. On them. You have. It. On you. Too. The strongest. Man. On the. Continent. You. Can. Be killed. Without. Cutting. Off. Your wrist.”

“Then can’t you just kill me?! Why bother my innocent children?”

“Because. I want. You to. Taste. The pain. That you. Have. Given. Me.”

At the plea of Rudolf, Arsene only responded with a cold voice.

The pain and anger for losing the magic tower which he had cherished for hundreds of years could not be compared to the pain of losing a child.

The pain he was going through was much less than the time he was changing into a Lich.

This was why Arsene wanted Rudolf to know how bitter the pain of losing something precious was.

“Kul. Kul. Kul. Like. The. Time. When. I wasn’t. able. To save. My. Magic tower. And. Now. When. You. Won’t. be able. To. Do anything.”

“Kwaaah! You monster!”

Quickly, gold aura began to burst out of Rudolf’s body.

The aura responded to the intense anger and rage which was residing in his body.

Kwaaaang!

With the gold aura, Rudolf collided with Arsene who was using dark magic or the part of the soul which was controlling the guardian.

A shock wave similar to an explosion of a Gigant’s core engine shook the entire basement.

However, the blow from Rudolf did very little damage to the guardian.

“Kul. Kul. Kul. Yeah. Run. To. Me with. No sense. Of. Battle. But. There. Isn’t. anything. You. Can. Do.”

“Uhhh! Arsene, you jerkkk!”

“Later. When. You. Have. Lost. Everything. With. Nothing. In possession. Let’s meet.”

With those words, the guardian which Arsene was maneuvering, disappeared like smoke.

Rudolf who ran could only hit the vacant air, not being able to get rid of his anger, he kept on wielding his sword.

“Where are you, Arsene! Come out! Come out this very instant, you monster!”

Rudolf cried and screamed, and wielded the sword for a long time in that broken basement.

But Arsene, who vanished made no appearance.