CHAPTER 33
From the moment he entered the plaza, Harpa couldn’t stop looking around in awe.
He had come to the capital this time at Kyle’s invitation.
“Don’t you think it was a good decision to come?”
At Alfred’s question, Harpa simply nodded in agreement without saying a word.
Meanwhile, Kyle was scanning the cheering crowd quickly.
“Did the young lady not come to the tavern today? With the plaza this loud, she’d usually come out at least once to take a look.”
The procession passed the alley leading to the Kuna Tavern.
Maybe, just like before, he might run into Everett by chance.
Kyle widened his eyes and swept over the crowd.
“We always ran into each other here in the plaza.”
He searched with silent hope, but his shoulders soon slumped.
“She must’ve heard the rumors that I’m returning…”
Disappointed, Kyle let out a sigh and looked away from the cheering crowd.
As they left the plaza, the imperial palace grew closer.
This time, instead of commoners, nobles lined both sides of the road.
“Why are nobles standing out on the street?”
A knight at the front widened his eyes at the unfamiliar sight.
Kyle had been a member of the enemy knight order for over ten years.
Every time he left the capital on the Emperor’s orders, he passed this road countless times.
There had never been even a single ant seeing them off—and now, nobles were here?
It was hard not to be shocked.
“They must’ve sensed His Majesty’s intentions behind calling Your Grace back to the capital.”
“His intentions?”
“There are rumors that Your Grace might be getting married.”
“Marriage? His Grace?”
“Yes. So nobles with daughters must’ve come out hoping to make an impression.”
Just as he said, most of the bowing nobles were low-ranking—rarely ever invited to the palace.
“Everyone in the empire knows the Emperor doesn’t like His Grace. And they’re doing this over marriage?”
The knight explaining clicked his tongue in frustration.
“Fool, the Emperor has no heir right now.”
“Oh… Well, whatever the reason, I guess it’s a nice feeling. I’ve never experienced this before.”
Though the greetings weren’t meant for him, the knight couldn’t help but curl his lips smugly as he looked at the nobles’ bowed heads.
When Kyle reached the palace, he removed his armor and went straight to the audience chamber.
“By your command, I have returned after subjugating the monsters of the northern mountains.”
As soon as he entered, he dropped to one knee and bowed his head.
The Emperor must have already heard about the crowd’s cheers for Kyle and the nobles gathered at the gates.
He always felt anxious that Kyle might steal the attention he believed should be his.
Kyle, fully aware of this, made sure to humble himself as much as possible in front of the Emperor.
“Rise.”
The Emperor’s voice, heard for the first time in a year, was coarse.
Kyle looked up, and his brows furrowed unintentionally.
The Emperor’s face had grown alarmingly gaunt. It wasn’t just a sign of illness—something felt off.
Especially his eyes, now dull and clouded like a foggy film had settled over them.
In Kyle’s memory, the Emperor’s gaze always gleamed with fury.
As a child, he had trembled under that glare, hiding under his blankets.
“What happened to him? What could’ve changed so much in just a year?”
The Emperor stared at Kyle with lifeless, rolling eyes, as if they might close at any moment.
Worried his expression might betray his surprise, Kyle quickly lowered his head.
The Emperor slowly opened his mouth.
“You’ve done well. I hear you played a major role in the monster subjugation. The northerners… I hear they call you a hero?”
Even with his dull eyes and raspy voice, his words were still laced with anxiety and jealousy.
“Nothing’s changed.”
Kyle’s eyes twitched as he stared at the floor.
“A hero, Your Majesty? I’ve never heard such a thing. That’s nonsense spoken by ignorant northern bumpkins.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. The real heroes are Your Majesty’s knights. The people simply call anyone a hero if they remove threats to their lives.”
“Hm…”
Apparently pleased by Kyle’s humble attitude, the Emperor gave a satisfied grunt.
His voice then grew noticeably softer.
“I should get going now.”
He had already sent in his report on the subjugation. This meeting was just for appearances—to be seen by the nobles.
“Can’t be too late…”
The longer it went on, the more anxious Kyle became.
He decided it was time to close the meeting.
“Then, Your Majesty—”
“Have you had dinner?”
Never in his life had Kyle heard the Emperor ask if he’d eaten.
“Is he… crazy?”
Kyle’s eyes flickered in confusion, unable to find a place to focus.
“You probably haven’t eaten properly after such a journey. If you haven’t had dinner… let’s dine together.”
“Your Majesty, you haven’t eaten yet?”
It was already past 7 PM.
Though the season was between winter and spring, the sky outside was pitch-black like midnight.
As far as Kyle knew, the Emperor always dined before sunset.
“I’ve eaten. But… it’s been a while. I want to talk with my nephew. I’ll just have some tea.”
Kyle muttered a curse under his breath—too quiet to hear.
“Understood, Your Majesty. Then, may I change clothes first? I came straight here in my armor…”
The Emperor waved his hand slowly, a rare expression of tolerance on his face.
“Yes, go. I’ll have the location sent through a servant.”
Under normal circumstances, the Emperor would never have summoned Kyle.
He hadn’t dined with anyone in the same room for years—paranoid that an assassin might try to poison him.
“Understood, Your Majesty.”
Kyle exited the audience chamber, his face stiff.
“Kyle, did the conversation go well? Did he make any strange demands or ask you to leave again?”
Alfred, waiting anxiously outside, rushed to ask.
Seeing Kyle’s deeply furrowed brow, he knew something was wrong.
“It’s worse.”
“…Ha.”
Alfred sighed, as if he expected it.
“He asked me to eat dinner with him.”
“Dinner… What? Dinner? You’re having a meal with the Emperor?”
Kyle clicked his tongue in irritation.
“What kind of nonsense is that? We’re not exactly on dining terms. Why the sudden dinner? Ugh, I think I already have indigestion.”
Kyle had a place he needed to visit after meeting the Emperor.
Alfred knew this too, which made the situation all the more frustrating.
“Then shall I go see Priest Yankeller and let him know you won’t be visiting the temple today due to palace duties?”
Kyle looked at him in confusion.
“Yankeller? I’m not going to the temple.”
Until now, Kyle had always visited the temple after seeing the Emperor.
No matter what, his first meeting upon returning to the capital was always with Yankeller.
Alfred, startled, asked again.
“You’re not going? But on the way back, didn’t you keep saying you had somewhere urgent to be?”
“I do. But it’s not the temple.”
“Then where…?”
“Since I don’t know when dinner will end, you and Lord Olbreno should go ahead first.”
“Go where?”
“Kuna.”
“Kuna? That tavern?”
“I told you before—there’s a fantastic tavern in the plaza.”
“Yes, you did… But is there a reason you need to go today? You’ll be staying in the capital for a while, right? Why rush—?”
Going to Kuna meant a higher chance of seeing Everett. But unexpectedly, he had been roped into dinner with the Emperor.
Kyle, grumbling, let out a brief chuckle at Alfred’s question.
“There’s a debtor I have to meet there.”
“A… debtor?”
Alfred couldn’t make sense of what Kyle was saying.
He often said what he wanted and then went quiet, but this time, it was even more incoherent than usual.
“Was dining with the Emperor really that shocking? Skipping Yankeller and going to a tavern… to meet a debtor?”
Alfred shook his head.
He didn’t understand, but it seemed best to just go along with it.
Having dinner with the Emperor was already frustrating enough…
“Is he really in a bad mood?”
If so, Kyle’s constant amused smirk didn’t match the mood.
At the door to his room, Kyle looked back at Alfred.
“I already explained everything to Lord Olbreno. Just listen on the way. Everyone knows where Kuna is, so it won’t be hard to find.”
“And… what are we supposed to do there? If you plan on confronting that debtor—”
Kyle laughed loudly.
Startled, one of the attendants nearby flinched at the sudden noise.
“Relax, Alfred. This is the capital. There are no monsters to chase in your sleep. Just try the Ice Kuna there—you’ll get what I mean.”
“…Alright.”
Kyle gave Alfred’s shoulder a few pats as he stood dumbfounded.
“I’ll be there soon. See you at Kuna.”
“Harpa, this is the place, right?”
Though he was from the capital, Alfred had spent most of his life wandering across the continent.
He’d only seen the plaza a handful of times.
And with how much things had changed, it wasn’t even the same plaza he once knew.
It was actually the younger Lord Harpa Olbreno who had an easier time navigating to Kuna.
“With a sign that big saying ‘Kuna’… yeah, I think we found it.”
