Rebirth of the 8th-Circle Mage-Chapter 193 - Central Powers (7)
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Chapter 193 - Central Powers (7)
âAre we not teleporting directly at the palace?â
âWe canât do that this time.â
âWhy not?â
âThe people of the Sore Empire value courtesy.â
âHah, youâre funny. So are you implying that the other Central Powers arenât civilized?â
âTo be honest, the people from Deucekain and Amaris arenât very well mannered, am I wrong?â
âI guess thatâs true.â
The people of the Sore Empire had dark hair and dark eyes, similar to the Zipan people. Most of them had monolids and sharp eye shapes, giving them a fox-like appearance. Also, they were a rare monoethnic empire.
The Sore people often wore white, and except for special cases, most of them had long hair. The reason for that was simple: to them, hair was something passed down the family line.
âTheyâre complicated in many ways.â
In terms of sheer combat power, the Sore Empire was far weaker than Deucekain and Amaris. However, despite their lack of strength, Henry had left them as a Central Power and hadnât forced them to become a free city because they were a nation of intellectuals.
âEspecially the way they talk.â
The Sore Empire was a nation known for its love of words, which was so intense that it was said that the Sore people kept talking even when they were on the brink of drowning.
Being good with words suggested that they were intelligent people, so dealing with them verbally was naturally quite the challenge.
Henry and his party soon arrived at the entrance of the Sore Empire.
âTheir gate is quite unique.â
As they stood in front of the Sore Empire, they couldn't help but admire the unique appearance of the gate.
Von pointed to a curved roof in particular and said, âThat roof is so unusual. What was it called?â
âThat roof is called Giwa, and itâs a traditional roof in the Sore Empire, made out of baked clay.â
âItâs commendable that they purposely used baked clay for the roof and made it curved so that it looks beautiful, but it requires a lot of maintenance, making it not very efficient.â
âI donât think they did it just for the beautiful appearance. Building it like that would make it easier to stack the roof, and easier for the rainwater to run off. Thatâs why they made it curved.â
âReally? Ahem, it seems that everything has a purpose in the world after all.â
âHey, this is the Sore Empire, after all. Donât you think theyâll be smarter than you at everything?â
As Von cleared his throat in embarrassment, McDowell took the opportunity to tease him.
âAnyway, weâre about to enter the Sore Empire, and as you all know, the Sore Empire values manners and courtesy. If things go well, Iâll be able to deal with everything with just a few words, so I donât want any of you to unsheathe your swords unless I specifically tell you to,â said Henry.
âOf course! You make it sound like we resort to using our swords for every little thing.â
âDo you not?â
âWhatever, just lead the way!â
The gate was shut tight.
The Sore people had locked the gates because Henry had sent Junky, the head of the liberty school, to inform them that the Eurasia Empire had collapsed and that war was going to break out soon.
Henry walked up to the gate, and then, from above, guards wearing the unique armor of the Sore Empire stopped Henry.
âWhoâs there? Reveal your identity!â
âIâm here to see the Taejae.â
âWhat? The Taejae?â
âBlink.â
Swoosh!
Henry cast Blink in front of the guard, who was befuddled by Henryâs saying that he was there to see the Taejae.
âH-huh!â
Thud!
As Henry suddenly appeared in front of him, the guard panicked and fell on his bum.
âW-what the?â
âI apologize for startling you. Iâm the master of the wizard that I sent a while ago as an envoy.â
âWizards? Ah! The person who came by not too long ago?â
âThatâs right. I have come to answer back to the Taejaeâs reply, so could you please open the door?â
âIf youâre a guest of the Taejae, then...â
Taejae was a title used to call the ruler of the Sore Empire, and the Sore people considered the guests of the Taejae honored guests.
The gate soon opened, and the way to the palace was quick.
âIt's interesting no matter how many times I see it.â
The Sore Empire was a monoethnic nation, and the amount of land they had was also very small. In some ways, it was smaller than the Highlander region, the capital of the Aenia Empire.
Nonetheless, Henry didnât look down on them because although their land was small, they had still managed to earn their status as a Central Power from him.
* * *
Henry was soon granted an audience with the Taejae, the ruler of the Sore Empire.
âI will meet with the Taejae, so please wait here for a moment.â
Henry was the only one meeting with the Taejae, so he left the Imperial Ten Swords behind and walked to the room where the Taejae had invited him.
When the court ladies opened the door, Henry was greeted by a translucent white cloth.
âNice to meet you. Iâm the Taejae that rules over this nation.â
The Taejaeâs voice could be heard through the white cloth.
âWhat the...?â
In the past, even after the empire was founded, Henry would occasionally meet with the Taejae for a cup of tea. Therefore, he didnât think that convincing the Sore Empire would be that difficult.
However, it seemed that the voice of the Taejae, whom he hadnât seen in years, had changed. Also, the way he spoke was a little unnatural. He wasnât the Taejae that Henry knew.
âThis voice is... Can it be?â
The voice was low-pitched, but it sounded unnatural, as if someone was trying to make it sound deeper than it was.
Sensing that something was off, Henry asked, âTaeja?â
âYes... Ah!â
âI knew it.â
Whoosh!
âH-how did you know?â
It was a simple bait, and yet Taejae had fallen for it.
The cloth was pulled back and the Taejae could be seen with a surprised expression. In front of Henry stood a young woman with her hair slicked back.
â...It was you, the third Taeja?â
The children of the Taejae were called âthe Taeja.â In imperial terms, Taeja was equivalent to a prince or a princess.
However, in the Sore Empire, all children of the Taejae were called Taeja, regardless of their gender, so it was right to just call her âthe Taeja.â
She was holding a special device that made her voice deeper.
Seeing this, Henry asked, âThird Taeja, how come you are greeting me instead of the Taejae? Where is he?â
At Henryâs gentle question, the Taejae sat back down, removed the cloth completely and calmly answered, âAhem, Iâm not the Taeja anymore, but the Taejae.â đđ§đźđźđŹđźđđđžđđźđĄ.đŹđžđ¶
âWhat do you mean?â
âI have been given the position of the Taejae.â
â...Excuse me?â
The name of the woman claiming to be the new Taejae was Hongwol.
She was the third daughter of Chungang, the Taejae Henry had come to visit, and if Henry remembered correctly, she was still a young woman not yet of age.
However, she was currently the new Taejae?
Surprised, Henry stayed silent and contemplated on it. After some time, he said, âTaejae.â
âYes?â
âWhat happened to Chungang and the first and second Taeja, and how come you took over the throne?â
âBoth my brothers and my father all passed away during the epidemic.â
âAn epidemic?â
âThatâs right. But who are you, and how come you know so much about my father and my brothers?â
âOh right! I got carried away and forgot to introduce myself.â
Given that the Taejae had turned out to be an unexpected figure, Henry naturally got flustered and forgot about manners. He immediately apologized.
âI apologize for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Henry Morris, the current head of the Magical Spire, and the one and only disciple of the late Archmage, Henry Morris.â
âHenry Morris? You have the same name.â
âThatâs right.â
âHuh, Iâve never heard that the Archmage ever had a disciple...â
In his previous life, Henry and Hongwol had known each other. Thus, stating that he was a disciple of the late Archmage made it easy for Henry to lower Hongwolâs guard and talk to her more comfortably.
âAnyway, Taejae, what do you mean, an epidemic? Just when did the Sore Empire get hit by an epidemic?â
âItâs already been more than one year. My father and brothersâ funerals have just finished, and I was the only Taeja left, so there was no other choice but for me to become the new Taejae.â
âI see...â
It was unfortunate news. However, no matter who the current Taejae was, Henryâs goal remained the same.
âThatâs sad news, but right now, my priorities are more important than mourning.â
âThen are you the one that responded to my offer, saying you need a little more time to think about it?â asked Henry.
âAbout the Allied Powers, right?â
âThatâs right.â
âYes, but...â
Hongwol trailed off, and looked slightly down.
Henry immediately noticed the change in her attitude.
âIt wasnât Hongwol who responded to my letter.â
Henry had used to be a friend of the Taejae, and would occasionally teach the Taejas the ways of the Empire. Therefore, he was familiar with some of the unique habits that the Taejaes had.
The third Taeja, Hongwal, had a habit of trailing off her sentences and not being able to maintain eye contact if she was lying or making empty promises.
Henry started thinking. If it wasn't Hongwol who had responded, then who could it be? Just who would be able to make important decisions for the Sore Empire on behalf of the Taejae? freeweb(n)ovel.co(m)
He quickly figured out the answer to those questions.
âIt mustâve been her right and left-hand ministers.â
Her right and left ministers were those who assisted the Taejae in running the Sore Empire.
No matter how well-educated and intelligent Hongwol was, she was still just a girl who hadnât yet reached the legal age of maturity. Thus, it was inevitable that the two older, more experienced ministers would be heavily involved in the affairs of the empire on behalf of the Taejae.
If so, Henry would have to talk to her two ministers instead of her.
âWhere are your right and left ministers right now?â asked Henry.
âWeâre here.â
Just as Henry asked the Taejae, he heard the voices of the two ministers from behind her.
âWere they eavesdropping?â
The two of them were quick-witted old men. They had been behind the young Taejae and eavesdropping on their conversation, hoping to get more information.
Her right and left ministers revealed themselves at Henryâs question.
The left minister was as pale as a mountain god, with a long beard and a slender build. However, he had the face of a tiger.
The right minister was chubby, had a short beard, and was walking with a cane due to an injured leg.
The two stood next to the Taejae, bowed, and said, âWe apologize. We know that this is disrespectful to the Archmageâs disciple, but we didnât have a choice.â
âI understand. Then, please join us in our conversion.â
Although it was rude, Henry decided not to take offense because, in diplomacy, rudeness could be considered a strategy.
Besides, even if Henry talked to the Taejae, she would inevitably have another meeting later with her left and right ministers. It was also clear that the two ministers would have the final say, so there was no point in getting angry if she was going to talk to her left and right ministers anyway.
When the two sat down, Henry said, âI would like to talk about the former Taejae if I could, but given the situation we find ourselves in, Iâll get straight to the point.â
âOf course.â
âIt seems that youâve seen the letter Iâve sent, but have the three of you still not decided on what to do?â
It was a straightforward question.
âWeâve received your letter and understood your message, Sir Henry, which is why weâve been contemplating deeply on your offer,â declared the left minister.
âDoes that mean youâve made a decision?â
âThatâs right, but weâd like to say something before we inform you of our decision. Whether we decline or accept your offer, the future of the Sore Empire will be the same either way, won't it?â
âThe same? In what way?â
âSir Henry, you have reached us before the envoys of the Empire this time, but... The Empire envoys will arrive sooner or later. They will also make the same offer, and whichever side we reject, they will become our enemy, will they not?â
âIsnât that obvious?â
âItâs not! We do have some defense capabilities, but weâre not nearly as powerful as the Empire or the Magical Spire. So, if we reject either side, they will become our enemies, and that will eventually lead to us getting attacked out of revenge! If we were to reject your offer to join the Allied Powers, and instead joined forces with the Empire, wouldnât you attack us?â
âYou would become our enemy, so of course that would happen.â
âThe same goes for the Empire. If we join forces with you, the empire will also be put in the same situation as you, Sir Henry. So, the future of our nation, the Sore Empire, is the same no matter which side we choose, isn't it?â
âSo what position does the Sore Empire want to take?â
âThe people of the Sore Empire will declare neutrality,â answered the right minister on behalf of the left minister.