CHAPTER 94…………………………..
Linaria’s body was placed in a glass coffin, preserved so that it would not decay.
Her death was thoroughly concealed, and only a trusted few were told the truth.
On the day Linaria died, only those who had seen her corpse firsthand — the Brimstone family and Duke Ignas — were informed of her passing.
“Liri… I’m sorry I was never anything more than a foolish father to you.”
Dante murmured, gazing down at his daughter lying in the glass coffin, as if merely asleep.
“But I will keep my promise. When the day you wished for comes, I will hold your funeral. Please, wait just a little longer.”
Dante had no time to grieve his daughter, whose funeral he could not yet hold.
He had inherited the Luna Merchant Guild — and now he had to sharpen the blade of vengeance in earnest.
Of course, the identity of the new guild master remained a secret, so the public didn’t even know a change had occurred.
Outwardly, it all seemed peaceful, as if nothing had happened.
But beneath the surface, fierce movements were underway.
Those who knew of Linaria’s death gathered in secret:
Dante, Kaas, Ricardo, Duke Federico Brimstone, Magnus, and even Noah.
The most formidable figures of the Empire had assembled together.
“So it was at Marquis Leviathan’s command that my daughter was taken from me.”
Dante had tracked down the assassins who killed Linaria — the group known as Lambda.
Though Lambda was shrouded in mystery, no secret lasts forever.
With the cooperation of Obel, Brimstone, Ignas, and even the Ivory Tower, the truth was uncovered.
“To think Marquis Leviathan was behind such atrocities…”
Federico swallowed hard.
The man who had secretly organized Lambda and commanded its killers was none other than Marquis Leviathan himself.
He had ordered the death of the guild master — and thus, Linaria.
The culprit was closer than they had thought — someone whose face they knew well.
“Good.”
Dante spoke calmly.
It was strange — to call such a revelation “good,” when most would find it shocking.
“What do you mean by that?”
Federico asked.
“Since he’s the crown prince’s in-law, we can take care of them together.”
“Do you realize what you’re saying?”
“It was my daughter’s final wish.”
“Linaria’s death was tragic enough, Dante. I’ll help you as much as I can, but killing the crown prince? That’s going too far.”
Federico could not understand the depth of Dante’s hatred.
Marquis Leviathan was the one directly responsible for Linaria’s death — tearing him apart still wouldn’t ease the pain.
But there had been nothing between Linaria and Prince Maximilian.
Would Linaria have truly wished for that?
Federico couldn’t believe it.
“A life doesn’t have a clear price tag, like something sold at a market. But if I had to assign a value… my daughter’s life outweighs thousands of others.”
“……”
“So how could killing a crown prince possibly be ‘too much’?”
When their eyes met, Federico realized it.
No words could dissuade this man.
“The same goes for weighing gains and losses. I’m not calculating anything — I’m simply fulfilling my daughter’s wish.”
Dante placed a pipe between his lips and took a long drag, smoke curling up slowly.
“I thought you quit.”
“Every time I remind myself that I must protect her… I find it in my mouth again.”
The divine stimulant scattered into the air.
Unlike before, he now used it merely as a means to recover strength quickly.
Knowing that, no one dared tell him to stop.
“Marquis Leviathan was trying to secretly swallow the Luna Guild. It’s hard to believe the Imperial Family had no hand in that… Tell me, is the Empress’s name also on your kill list?”
It made little sense that Leviathan would commit murder over a bit of money or trade.
The Luna Guild had recently offended the Imperial Family — surely the Empress’s influence was involved.
There was no other explanation.
“It would be difficult to say otherwise. If they’re all connected, then everyone linked to Leviathan must be erased to achieve my goal.”
“Do you think the Emperor will just sit and watch his beloved Empress die?”
Federico had been the first to notice that the Emperor’s affection for the Empress was far from ordinary.
To eliminate both Leviathan and the Empress meant making an enemy of the Emperor himself.
“That would amount to wiping out the Imperial bloodline. I wonder whom the divine beast of Light would choose as the next contractor then.”
Dante, blinded by grief, might not care — but to Federico, it meant shaking the very foundation of the Empire’s rigid hierarchy.
“That won’t be a problem.”
Kaas removed an earring.
At once, his black hair turned gold.
Golden hair. Golden eyes.
In that instant, everyone realized what that meant.
The light around them vanished — darkness descended — and then, with a blink, the light returned, brighter than before.
“Weren’t you contracted with the divine beast of Darkness?”
“I’m a dual contractor.”
Federico was dumbfounded.
That the Emperor had an illegitimate child was one thing — but a dual contractor of divine beasts?
Words rose to his throat, but before he could speak, Magnus muttered lazily,
“Leave him be. I’m in favor.”
The master of the Ivory Tower — who had taken the form of a child — looked hollow, empty, his eyes devoid of light.
He showed little interest in anything and agreed with all of Dante’s plans without protest.
“If… if Linaria wanted this, then I’ll help too.”
Noah, who had been silent, spoke hesitantly.
“Duke Ignas, think carefully. You’re declaring yourself a traitor to the Empire.”
Federico was the only one still thinking rationally.
But Noah shook his head.
“I owe Linaria a great deal. If this is how I can repay that debt, then so be it.”
“You’re all insane.”
Federico muttered, dazed.
He realized that he was the only sane one left in the room.
As if expecting that reaction, Dante spoke calmly.
“Duke Brimstone, you don’t need to help us directly. Just keeping silent about what you’ve heard today will be enough.”
“This is madness. The losses far outweigh any gain. If you fail, you won’t just lose your head — it’ll be much worse.”
Federico scowled and rubbed his face roughly.
“And yet here I am, actually considering siding with you in this hopeless scheme.”
“……”
“I must be out of my mind.”
It was his way of saying he would join Dante.
“First, I’ll see my family safely out of the country.”
“Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me. If not for Linaria, I’d never take your side.”
While Dante and Federico exchanged words, Ricardo, who had been quietly observing, finally spoke.
“Our immediate target is Leviathan, but ultimately, it’s the Imperial Family itself.”
Federico sighed, unable to hide his weariness.
“If we’re to pull this off, information will be key. We’ll need someone who can infiltrate Leviathan’s and the Imperial circles.”
No one disagreed.
“I’ll become Obel’s traitor.”
“Ricardo.”
“You’ve all heard the rumors about me — that I’m a discarded pawn. So if I approach the crown prince or Marquis Leviathan, they’ll just see me as an ambitious man looking for opportunity.”
“……”
“And since I’m the only one of the heirs who was adopted, they’ll be even less suspicious.”
“You’ll face humiliation, insults — even direct abuse.”
“That doesn’t matter.”
Ricardo’s tone was resolute.
He wasn’t even a blood relative, yet in that moment, he resembled Dante more than anyone.
“Each of us has our own role to play. I intend to fulfill mine.”
A flash of Linaria’s ravaged body crossed his mind.
He forced down his emotions.
“Please, allow me to do this.”
No one could stop Ricardo, who had chosen to become a double agent.
Before her death, Linaria had given Kaas a ruby necklace — it ultimately became his possession.
He hadn’t taken it selfishly or hidden it from Dante, but kept it as she had wished.
“That was the birthday present I gave her.”
“She said if I showed you this, Duke Obel, you’d help me. So she entrusted it to me.”
“Even without seeing it, I would have carried out her will…”
Dante couldn’t conceal the pain in his voice.
“Keep it.”
“……”
“It’s a gift I already gave my daughter once. I can’t take it back.”
“Understood.”
From that day on, the necklace became Kaas’s treasure.
Though he treated it with care, he couldn’t bring himself to feel joy about owning it.
Perhaps because he knew — the one who had cherished it so dearly would never come to reclaim it.
