The group chose only the treacherous paths to evade pursuit.

Using an ordinary cart to transport a felon we barely managed to extract. They must be seriously short on resources.

He deeply regretted his severed finger. If only his hand were intact, he could have used a speed-enhancing spell.

The entrance to each village they occasionally passed was lined with crosses bearing mutilated corpses. It was far from an objective view, but Arthur made sure to meet the empty eyes of each corpse with his own. It was his own form of atonement.

Did the Duke deliberately want to show me this sight?

It was a plausible guess. Knowing Duke Shalvarat, or Dieron, it made sense.

Following his family’s tradition of guarding the western border, Dieron had walked the path of a soldier ever since graduating from the academy. He had risen swiftly as the sole opposition to the emperor while avoiding the Azar royal hunt.

However, people believed that while the Duke could hold his ground against the emperor, he would never win.

This was because of his straightforward nature, which made him incapable of speaking in a roundabout way and turned the atmosphere tense whenever a disliked topic was brought up.

“I thought you might be useful, but your condition is worse than expected.”

“If you had brought him along when you were holding the Hadrianus Wall, he would have been fine. Who are you blaming for being late?”

Even after meeting again at the end of a long journey, his personality hadn’t changed.

“The Holy Lady did not wish to become empress, yet she faithfully used her position. She planted her people everywhere. She even secretly contacted me while I was at war with the emperor. But what made the chancellor so leisurely?”

“I’ve been doing what I do best.”

“Using your silver tongue and deploying your wizards to play watchdog?”

“Yes. How do you feel seeing the end of a hunting dog?”

Despite Arthur’s straightforward acknowledgment, Dieron was unmoved and merely continued marching.

They entered a large tent in the middle of the military camp.

Inside, the vassals of the Duke’s household glared at Arthur in unison.

“How fitting. You clung to the emperor as if you’d live forever, only to fall before us.”

When Azar was fervently hunting royals in the capital, Arthur had transferred the frontier army’s achievements to the central imperial army.

That action, aimed at reducing Dieron’s influence to prevent his forces from taking the capital, proved to be the right decision, as evidenced by their current appearance.

“Your Grace! Have you really brought this scoundrel?”

“Why are you doing this? At least tell us!”

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"Really, why was I even summoned? Was it to quell your anger or to stage a public execution?"

Instead of answering, Dieron walked to the corner of the tent and picked up a sword hanging there. It was the treasured sword of the Grand Duke of Shalvarat.

"Yes, he was indeed the Emperor's mad dog, who relentlessly attacked us."

Holding the sword, he walked towards Arthur. Only then did a few retainers cheer.

"Make him suffer as long as possible!"

"It's too merciful to kill him in one blow."

However, instead of drawing the sword, Dieron extended his other hand. In it was a musty, moldy old book.

"Open it. You should be able to recognize it."

Arthur took the book and opened it. It was filled with ancient, long-extinct characters and illustrations.

"Can you read it? Even the scholars among my retainers, who have studied ancient languages for generations, said they couldn't decipher it—"

"תענה לי, האמת." (Truth, answer me.)

Arthur responded by reciting the first line of the book. The characters, more like drawings, seemed to wriggle on the parchment, and the ancient magical book, weathered by countless years, trembled as if in endless joy, radiating light.

"...This is the very grimoire I've been searching for." After a moment of silence, Arthur spoke with a tone filled with regret. "To finally get my hands on this book after losing everything. How ironic."

This was undoubtedly the "Grimoire of Magic" by the prophet Arphen. Renowned ancient magical books had consistently referenced it as a compendium of primordial magic, before the divide between black and white magic. Yet, it was believed to be lost, as its actual existence was never confirmed. Even Arthur, who had collected various magical books and ancient relics through the mages of the Magic Tower, had never found this elusive manuscript.

"Where on earth did you find this?"

"The 'Forbidden Forest' to the northwest. I entered it with my men while being pursued by the Imperial Army."

"So, Arphen's tomb was there. To think you survived that perilous place, which even the elite mages of the Magic Tower avoid."

"It would be more accurate to say that the place allowed us to leave alive."

Arthur became curious about Dieron's intentions. "But why are you giving this to me? As much as I appreciate an unexpected gift, I doubt your loyal retainers will be pleased with it..."

Arthur's sarcastic remark was cut off. Dieron, like a great bronze statue, knelt before him, holding the treasured sword with both hands.

The Grand Duke pledges his loyalty, staking the honor of House Shalvarat!

The tent fell silent instantly. Everyone was in shock, including Arthur.

"Give me a plan, Arthur. I have found what you have coveted and knelt before the enemy who harshly trampled us. I believe this is more than enough compensation, isn't it?" Even in the deathly silence where the sound of a pin drop could be heard, Dieron’s voice echoed. “We've tried everything we could. But I don't know the cunning attack methods of people like you or Azar. So hunt Azar for me. Only you can do it.”

Enough with the grand compensation. You're just asking me to fight the imperial army in exchange for a book, you fool. Could there be a more losing bargain than this?

Arthur laughed incredulously and lifted Dieron by his shoulders. “If you insist, call me a hunting dog rather than a fox. Thanks for giving me the chance to bite my old master.”

For the next two days, Arthur muttered suspicious dead languages while poring over old books.

The soldiers assigned to watch Arthur didn't know what they saw or heard, but on the first night, they screamed and fled as Arthur began memorizing the book. By the second night, they stayed up in terror.

“What did you see?”

“We're not sure, sir. But you should remove him quickly before he does something terrible...”

“No. Do not interfere, just leave him be. Grant him whatever he asks for.”

Thus, on the morning of the third day,

“I saw beyond dimensions.”

Arthur, looking the same as ever, gave this brief statement.

“Your Grace! The emperor himself is leading the army toward us.”

Azar too was approaching closely.