Chapter 67

Chapter 67

Monkey Watchtower.

A pub that sells cheap dark beer, located prominently in front of a square with an elegant fountain.

When Seongjin had visited the place to give his regards for the closure ceremony a while ago, he had been led by the twins Herna and Gades to greet the owner Bremen.

Ive received your greetings. Ill return the favor soon.

Little did he know that the return greeting would come across the walls of the imperial palace.

A woman clad in black stealth attire introduced herself as [Dasha].

She looked entirely different from the people of Delcross that Seongjin usually encountered. She was a beauty with deep brown skin and long, wavy black hair.

Her emerald eyes, which sometimes appear teal depending on the light, twinkled playfully.

Hmm? Is this your first time seeing a Varsha person? Im not a heretic.

Sitting on the sofa with her long legs crossed, Dasha revealed her white teeth as she laughed. She had a smile that somehow looked refreshing.

Varsha people refers to a term collectively describing the ethnic groups living in the southern part of the continent.

They were divided into several smaller tribes, each with its own language and unique appearance. However, people from the central continent often could not differentiate these subtle distinctions and would simply call anyone with darker skin a Varsha person.

Of course, among the heretics, there were also people with white skin like those from the central continent, and there were people like Dasha who had dark skin but were born and raised in the central continent. Strictly speaking, Dasha, who was born in Delcross, was not a Varsha person.

Nevertheless, due to her unique and rarely seen appearance, she would always be categorized as a Varsha person by others.

So, you came from Monkey Watchtower wearing that stealth attire? Are you out collecting debts or something?

Hahaha. I wish. Monkey Watchtower is no ordinary pub, Your Highness.

According to Dasha, that small pub was actually a direct intelligence agency under the holy emperor.

It is a department that acquires and processes fairly high-level information within the Central Intelligence Agency and performs functions of a personal secretarys office depending on the users request.

A secret agency exclusive to the imperial family that even the assembly and administration were not aware of.

Coming to pay respects to Monkey Watchtower means requesting to actively use the organization, and asking to place an informant.

Those darn twins. Shouldnt they have explained this beforehand?

I should have given you the answer earlier, but it took some time to assign a dedicated informant. As you know, the Pearl Palace is a bit of a special place

Even though the visitor restrictions had recently been lifted, Pearl Palace was still a place where the emperor strictly controlled the entry of people. Having someone with stealth abilities enter was a security-related issue, thus making approval even more stringent.

Moreover, a dedicated intelligence agent needs to be able to connect with the target without arousing suspicion, and Pearl Palace is much more difficult in that regard compared to the main palace.

There are resident knights with verified capabilities from various orders and even the dedicated maids possess considerable aura usage. So, finding someone capable of infiltrating the palace seamlessly isnt easy.

In other words, Dasha was among the top agents in Monkey Watchtowers network of informants.

What an honor it is to have such a talented person as my personal informant.

Dont you have any suspicions? If it were me, I would start with suspicion if someone suddenly showed up late at night to say something like this.

Well, its not that I havent considered the possibility.

However, for now, Seongjins intuition did not perceive any danger signals from her.

If you think about it, her infiltration skills are remarkable. It was only due to the Demon King that Seongjin was able to notice her presence at all. Given Seongjins abilities, its notable that he couldnt easily detect her.

If she wanted, she could easily wipe out someone like Morres. Whats the point of a well-crafted lie? Its a waste of energy considering Morres position. Behind Morres is the Holy Emperor. An incredibly fearsome person whose limits are unknown. Based on his previous encounters, the Emperor seems to hold Morres in high regard. Could the person in front of him really handle the fallout if she deceived Morres?

Moreover, on our side, we have an excellent lie detector.

[No change in pulse. Blood pressure normal. Breathing normal. Very likely to be telling the truth.]

Although the Demon King cant use abilities that directly interfere with the soul since the Holy Emperors barrier has overridden it, this is still pretty useful.

[Heh heh heh.]

Feeling the demon king laugh proudly inside his mind, Seongjin clicked his tongue inwardly.

Even though he was a king of a dimension, now he feels fulfilled just being this useful.

Anyway, since he decided to trust and use her, Seongjin decided to get along with Dasha without any needless probes.

He had been troubled by not having any reliable subordinates lately; anyone would be better than Edith.

Why would I have reservations about someone coming to help me? Besides, Dasha gives off a trustworthy vibe. I also think youre quite capable and have a good impression.

Seongjin smiled and gave a bit of lip service.

Oh my?

Dashas eyes twinkled.

It seems you have no prejudice against people from Varsha.

Why would I be prejudiced against someone who came to help me? Youre competent and also have a good personality.

Her smiling face was pleasant, and she was also beautiful.

Just like right now.

But being on a dispatch mission, its honestly a bit more comfortable than being with the main force, isnt it?

Sob! If only I didnt have the bar tabs piled up this month!

I really need to quit drinking right away; its so exhausting these days!

Maria and Kurt, who were quietly doing personal training nearby, sighed with a gloomy expression.

Although they belonged to different Knight Divisions the 1st and 2nd, respectively they had been longtime drinking buddies since their squire days.

They had volunteered for the well-paying dispatch duty at the Pearl Palace, thinking theyd earn some extra money for drinks.

Well, I know a great bar where the drinks are pretty cheap. They only serve dark beer, though

Its not just about money; Im too tired to even go out drinking after work these days!

Could you please persuade Knight Commander Masain? Huh?

Seongjin felt a bit awkward.

If Masain was being unreasonable with the knights, that would be one thing, but he was operating according to the main palace guard manual, so there wasnt much to say. In fact, these guys had been having it too easy until now.

On top of that, they were whining to the person who did the most work and training among the resident knights. How could he persuade anyone?

Alright, hang in there. Ill find time to treat you to a good drink.

To the earnest appeals of the resident knights, Seongjin was comforting them in such a manner.

Thud.

Just then, a noise like a falling scabbard echoed from the side.

?

When Seongjin and the resident knights turned around in unison, they saw a knight sprawled out in the corner of the training ground. It was Haven, who had looked somewhat off since the morning.

Whats wrong with him?

Did he drink too much last night?

Haven had just returned from vacation. He had apparently spent the last day of his vacation drinking late into the night.

Knights who were standing nearby carelessly approached to shake him.

Why did you come back from vacation like this?

Hey, get up. If youre feeling unwell, take sick leave.

As they were checking on him, one of the knights suddenly exclaimed in alarm.

Somethings wrong with him! His body is really cold!

I see some kind of rash

Could it be the plague?

Its the plague!

Panic broke out instantly. They had heard rumors about the outbreak of a disease in the judiciary just the day before.

The knights hastily retreated from Haven, whose symptoms included low body temperature, rash, and impaired consciousness.

Could it be?

[Yes, its the Lophellum egg.]

The Demon King answered.

[The egg is already dead, but I dont know why hes in that condition.]

Noting the tense atmosphere, Seongjin paused as he was about to approach Haven. The knights were in an excessive state of turmoil due to the sudden fear of the plague.

First, I need to calm the situation

It seemed best to leave Havens medical care to the physicians and first calm down the panicking knights to avoid an unfortunate situation.

So, he quickly gave orders to the two most experienced individuals there.

Sir Kurt, contact Sir Masain immediately, and have the Dr. Ninnias, the physicians and priests on standby at the knights quarters.

Kurt looked at Seongjin with a strange expression, but nodded respectfully and left. He also managed to drag along a few trembling knights with him.

Dame Maria, control the other knights. This is not the plague, so stop panicking and hold your positions.

Maria looked at the collapsed Haven and then back at Seongjin. However, as soon as Seongjin calmly met her gaze, she visibly regained her composure.

She clenched her fist tightly to control her shaking hand and turned around to shout at the knights running all over the place with a booming voice.

Everyone, calm down! This is not a plague, so stop your baseless speculations! Are you really the proud Royal Guards of Delcross if you lose your cool over something like this!

As Maria gathered and calmed down the knights, Seongjin approached Haven. Then he gave instructions to the remaining knights who were still frozen nearby.

For now, lets move Sir Haven to his quarters.