Crimson Karma - Chapter 5

Raw provider: Tsalispark
Translator: Rhyme
Editor: Milac

“She doesn’t seem to be in any condition to speak. Report to me immediately once she regains consciousness.”

The man who was looking towards her commanded the nurse. With another glance at her, he left the block.

Because of the nervousness, triggered by the armour, she gathered all her strength to concentrate on the noises around.

“…The Knights of Marquis Cullinan…”

“The Emperor…escaped…Flag…Why…do not understand…”

“…Count Alonia….the Castle Lord…”

As she listened attentively to the exchanges between the soldiers guarding the block, some words not heard in modern times were said.

‘Marquis? Count? Emperor? What…This….No way. Did I reincarnate in the medieval ages?’

She was overwrought with anger towards the so-called Almighty, who warmly ordered her to ‘go back again’. That damn wretched God should have sent her to hell instead. If she were to hear that she would be tossed in hell, she wouldn’t be this angry.

‘What the hell…Why?!’

In the fit of her rage, she started to cough.

“Cough, cough!”

She felt bloody mucus flowing out of her mouth. The nurse who stood behind her rushed to wipe her mouth and gave her a piece of gauze.

Anger was anger, but if she needed to survive, she had to conform to reality. She was but a person who had memories from the 21^st century who somehow came to the medieval ages.

Even if she were to look back, it was absurd enough to make her laugh. If all of this was destined, things couldn’t be changed. Maybe the world in her memories might not be genuine.

‘Haa…There is no way.’

She didn’t have the least bit of intention to follow such undesirable disposition, but before God, there was no option than to live as per His will.

Though she had a slightly stiff mindset, she decided to make the best of her current situation. Her utmost priority right then was to rest and recover as quickly as possible. So she dived into a deep sleep.

*     *     *

“As soon as that soldier regains her consciousness, it will be better to confirm the truth.”

Inside the barracks, where the blue flag with silver-coloured lion pattern slowly fluttered, one could hear a voice filled with loyalty.

“It’s a woman. However, it is not clear yet whether she is a knight or an ordinary soldier. According to the report, she was found near the centre of the explosion. But whatever the case, how the hell did she survive? That too, alone.” Said the man seated at the head of the table wearing a silvery armour as he swept up his black hair. His low and deep voice could make the listening ears vibrate.

“It must be luck. Her, being alive is a miracle in itself.”

“That’s right. How did you know that the soldier is a woman? She was disfigured to the point that even her gender couldn’t be distinguished.”

Two knights with red hair, seated beside the man, conversed leisurely. Both looked so similar that with just a look, anyone could ascertain them as twins.

“Zeke, Mikhail. Don’t take this lightly. If this has any connection to that viper, it is not impossible to plant a spy among us using psychotic magic.”

“Can anyone obtain psychotic magic? The magic is no different from a legend. If he had access to the psychotic magic in the first place, then he wouldn’t have suffered from our surprise attack.”

“It’s just that the prince is quite suspicious. Please don’t attack that poor soldier who just escaped from a death door.”

Towards the one who was called ‘Prince’ by Zeke and Mikhail, the twin knights, unlike their reserved, formal manner, they maintained a friendly attitude.

The conversation topic about the survivor of Mist Forest derailed towards the cause of the carnage.

“The huge mana explosion in the Mist Forest must be the work of Duke Alister and Archmage Ernon. If it was them, then it’s quite natural to faint because of exhaustion due to high utilisation of mana. In that case, I really can’t understand how he was able to disappear from our encirclement.”

“Is there a rat among us?”

“But this time, to catch Ernon, the encirclement was made to be leak proof. So he must have used some desperate means. Considering our tactics, an escape, however fine, would have been very difficult. So for the Ernon who spent a great deal of mana, to escape that easily is impossible.”

“So what? He did escape right in front of our eyes.”

“That is why I am saying that it doesn’t make any sense. How can he just disappear? There were two-three wizards beside him. The formation was tight enough that Ernon, let alone the low-level wizards, couldn’t have escaped easily.”

Those men had no choice but to continue the disputed meeting about the mana explosion of Mist Forest and the archmage Ernon.

The previous afternoon they had led the Imperial Army with all kinds of shields and sacred and divine weapons just to capture the annoying archmage Ernon.

With the help of the magical infraction, the knights of the Imperial Army entered it as a surge. The moment everyone thought he would be caught, there was a massive mana explosion.

The Imperial Army lost numerous knights. Around three to four wizards, who acted as a helping hand for Ernon in the Rebel Army, also disappeared along with him.

Those who knew about the real face of Ernon were few. Still, according to rumours, the silver-haired and fair-skinned wizard was a man whose age couldn’t be comprehended. Unlike his soft and delicate appearance, he was the first dark wizard of the empire.

Duke Alister was a viper in human skin. Perhaps he had already expected the arrival of such a day. He had kept the young wizard hidden; until the rebellion. He became the first and most significant barrier in the suppression of the Rebel Army.

It wasn’t once or twice that the Rebel Army turned the tables with the arrival of Ernon. Though the Imperial Army was not defeated, due to the substantial casualties, there was no happiness in those victories.

It was possible to capture Ernon if it wasn’t for that last-minute mana explosion. No one foresaw the explosion.

The knights and soldiers who encircled the Mist Forest were so severely affected by the explosion that they couldn’t be recognised anymore. But the superficial wounds were not the cause of their death. Instead, it was the mana wave that destroyed all of their internal organs.

And the only person to survive it was the female knight who was being treated at the nursing block. Her sacred shield was completely warped in the explosion. If that was the case, then it could be said that she barely survived due to the protection of the shield.

Because of the extensive wounds which distorted her features, it was difficult to confirm her identity. Due to this, the black-haired man was unable to lay down his guard.

“Mikhail, how is the data collection on the martyrs progressing?”

“Phew… I haven’t started to work yet. It ended yesterday afternoon. How can all that be confirmed already? You cannot rush such tasks. Don’t be so hard-pressed.”

“The hands of a female knight are smaller compared to a male’s. Now try to find her out from the data of the knights participating in the Mist Forest mission. By the way, did we have any female knights in the plan?”

“We did. But among the soldiers sent to surround Ernon, there was none.”

“Well, it should be like that. The situation at that time was not good, and nobody can explain the inside outs…”

At that moment, the nurse who was in charge of Kasia opened her mouth carefully.

“I…I am here to report something. She might not be sane.”

“What are you talking about?”

Having the eyes of the three men focused on her, the nurse standing outside tried to calm her trembling hands and squeezed the words out.

“I had once treated a soldier who was attacked by Ernon. In almost all cases, if the mana strikes their head, the patients lose their sanity. The mana explosion completely blew the survivor. To be truthful, her waking up is a miracle.”

Hearing the words of the professional, the three men couldn’t help but clutch their head hard with a groan.

“I wanted to enquire Ernon’s escape direction…”

Hearing the news, they felt lost thinking about the knights and soldiers who participated in the capture mission of Ernon.

The black-haired knight standing beside the red-haired twins with sharp-looking eyes was Tasel Kan Amaris, the prince of a collapsing kingdom.

Emperor Alterion had fought heartlessly and fearlessly on the battlefield. Maybe because of those crazy slaughterings, with age, he became more muddle-headed. If he was sane, he wouldn’t have taken away the status of Crown Prince from the first prince.He was crazily in love with the fifth Empress Melania and confirmed her son, the third prince Euricardeon, as the Crown Prince. Euricardeon was just a boy of 8 years old.

The most appropriate person for the Crown Prince position, first prince Caylen, as if already prepared, rebelled along with the people who supported him. With their help, he successfully rescued Queen Anatria, his birth mother, from the palace.

Emperor Alterion mocked the Rebel Army without knowing that two of his most trusted five retainers were angry about his decision of disregarding Caylen.

To become the most unmatched of all military power under Emperor Alterion, he tried to get rid of all military power left with the Emperor. If everything proceeded according to his plans, then the number of nobilities standing with the Rebel Army might be a lot more.

But at that moment, the second prince Tasel stopped his insane father. If the things had continued to proceed as they were, it would be a question of ‘when’ the Rebel Army occupied the imperial city.

In reality, after he calmed down, Tasel was faced with the fiery temper of his imperial father, Alterion. No one could discern his thought process. To defeat the Rebel Army, Emperor Alterion put Tasel in charge of the Imperial Army while he fled with his beloved Empress Melania and the Crown Prince Euricardeon. The forces were lacking but in such a situation so he ran away with half the army.

The Emperor also took the birth mother of Tasel, Queen Elena hostage.

“If psychotic magic was possible, I wish to do something about the Emperor.”

“Mikhail, these blasphemous words can behead you.”

“Since my head is still attached to my body, I think the prince has similar thoughts.”

Tasel stared at Mikhail with a chilly gaze, but he showed no intention to refute him. Everyone in the empire might have thought like Mikhail.

“Prince, you have to think carefully. How about negotiating with Prince Caylen?” Said the calmer Zeke with a slight smirk.

“The way those veteran knights think is entirely different from you young knights. They will defend His Majesty, the Emperor, by all means. If it were not the case, they would not have chosen to come with me.”