“… That concludes the contents of the message, Your Majesty.”

The ministers and aides broke out in murmurs as the messenger finished. Words of speculation flowed out from all corners of the room as the elites of the empire discussed the steps they would take and the problems they could face.

“Astonishing…”

With the softest peek of sound from him, the throne room was engulfed in silence. Deep inside the room on an elegantly raised dais stood the regal throne of the emperor. An untouchable air surrounded the monarch atop the lofty throne as he rested his head on his fists. With hair as white as clouds and eyes as blue as the sky, the emperor’s gaze seemed to hold all that was around.

His eyes stayed thinned and his face devoid of emotion even as he expressed his surprise through words. The emperor lowered his hand and leaned back on the throne, his every moment reminiscent of the greatest works of art.

“Apprise the nobles and generals of the empire.” Like a flute playing tunes of old, the emperor’s enchanting voice reverberated in the throne room. “The Imperial Court shall convene with great haste in lieu of this occasion.”

The official message they had just received from the theocracy was far too big a matter for the lower-ranked ministers and officials here for their quarterly reporting sessions, yet they remained true to their duties and spared no effort to carry out their monarch’s orders to perfection.

“As for this session, we shall conclude it here.” With his countenance still as cold as snow, the emperor turned to the aides standing closest to the dais. “Tend to the theocracy’s messenger.”

The aide bowed deeply while the messenger joined his hand in prayer for the emperor.

“You all may leave.”

Everyone in the room immediately stood up and bowed towards the emperor. “Glory to the skies! Glory to the emperor!”

Only after staying like that for five whole minutes did they all stand upright and move to exit the throne room, all the while not showing the emperor a peek of their backs in respect. When all the ministers had left, the emperor gazed at the knights standing guard and nodded. Soon, the room was empty except for the noblest being sitting atop his throne.

The emperor's icy face showed the tiniest hint of change as his eyes widened by the fraction of an inch.

‘Astonishing,’ it was an expression unsuited for an official message. The skies saw the world, there was nothing the theocracy could hide. The emperor had barely registered the messenger’s words, let alone be surprised at them.

His astonishment stemmed from something starkly different.

“Show yourself...” The emperor spoke. “Vincent Kirsche.”

A cold wind wafted through the room as a red-haired man appeared right behind the throne.

“Caelestis Ilma von Eter Himmel.” Vincent Kirsche, a mere deadbeat from the boonies of a small kingdom had dared to call out the great emperor’s entire name. The air in the room hardened in an instance as the weight of the world around those two seemed to have multiplied.

“I have come here to take your life,” Vincent continued.

The emperor’s negligible smile faded away as his face assumed the same stone-cold expression as before, no, it was even colder. He unfolded his legs gracefully and stood up in a swift motion. The emperor’s blue eyes darted through the room and landed straight on Vincent.

A pressure so tense filled the room that even the gods watching from above would gulp under it.

“Vincent…” The emperor spoke in a low tone. “Cease your tomfoolery.”

The two stood in spot without taking their eyes off of each other.

At last, Vincent sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Still as stiff as ever, aren’t you Cael?”

“Not at all. I am merely waiting for an opportunity to show off humor.” The emperor shrugged as his mouth widened by the fraction of an inch again. “You too, you still don’t about your pranks beyond ‘this will be fun,’ do you?”

“Never.”

Emperor Caelestis smirked very lightly at Vincent’s bluntness. An action extremely uncharacteristic of the emperor that his vassals had taken to assume was devoid of all emotion.

With a sigh, the emperor placed his palm on his chest and shook his head from side to side.

“Vincent, allow me to express my sorrow. I wished for you to come back, but never did I hope it would be like this.” The emperor then stepped ahead and lightly placed his hand on Vincent’s shoulders. “I have already peered through the skies, that child is not in the empire. But no matter what it takes, the entire Himmel Empire won’t hold back in searching for him.”

Vincent wasn’t surprised when the emperor spoke of his situation. He already knew that Vigsius had sent word to the empire ahead of them.

“Haha, your words are too heavy. But I’ll be depending on you.” Vincent’s face scrunched up into a pained frown as he lowered his head. “He’s out there, Cael. I am sure he is.”

A bout of understanding surprise came over the emperor. The face his friend was making was one he would have never dreamed of seeing in the strangest of his dreams, it went beyond his imagination to think that Vincent could be this troubled. But he could understand it as well, the loss of a child for someone like Vincent, must have completely shaken him from his core. The emperor still didn’t know how anyone in the wide world could kidnap one of Vincent Kirsche’s kids no matter how far below he had lowered his guard.

At the same time, a strange thought went through the emperor's mind. For Vincent to believe that his child was still alive with such conviction, there was no way it was just a parent’s denial or biased view, there absolutely must be a reason.

“Vincent—”

“Yes,” Vincent interrupted the emperor. “I’ll be explaining everything right now.”

**

Hot smoke wafted from the two cups placed on the table as its scent spread over the expansive guest room of the imperial palace. Vincent leaned ahead with his arms on his thighs as he looked at the emperor with a serious gaze.

Next to the cups of tea were platters of cookies and sweets of all kinds prepared with the finest of ingredients. Decorations made of rare metals filled the room, the few paintings bordered with gold. From the ceiling hung a beautiful chandelier lighting up the room. Emperor Caelestis met Vincent’s gaze with his own as he comfortably leaned back into his seat.

“I shall go first,” the emperor said. “An envoy from the theocracy informed us of their suspicions into the Rileth Kingdom. They claimed some of the high-ranking positions are infiltrated or are being manipulated by followers of evil gods. Of course, I had no idea you were in Rileth or I would have informed you.”

“Naturally. The place we were at wasn’t there, after all.”

“What do you mean?” The emperor’s eyebrow cocked a millimeter up.

Vincent thought the emperor’s unnoticeable surprise was extremely apparent as he smirked. “We uprooted a village from the other end of the country. It was small and the people were easy to brainwash.”

“Amusing. I am impressed. I see that Lady Ophelia has gotten even stronger.”

“Terrifyingly.”

“It certainly seems hard to believe she used to be your arch-nemesis.” The emperor showed a provocative smirk in his usual manner of barely moving.

Vincent sighed. “Well, yes… Cael, do you still…”

“Not at all,” The emperor interrupted. “You are aware, I will never make rules I dislike. The Himmel Empire, and I, Caelestis Ilma von Eter Himmel have pledged by the skies to accept witches as our own… But of course, it’s not that easy.”

“Of course.” Vincent sighed again. The entire world couldn’t consider a dreaded enemy a friend just because the empire ordered. If it were, Vincent would have never had to leave in the first place.

“Well, we got sidetracked,” Vincent said.

“Indeed. To continue, after the incident that occurred in Essen, the fact that the nobility itself might consist of the depraved evils has come to light. It is a serious situation for everyone, especially since tensions and unrest have been rising in Rileth.”

Vincent nodded his head at the emperor’s words. “They aren’t as proactive as I would expect them to be, though. Well, I guess I should continue now.”

With those words, Vincent once again leaned ahead. The atmosphere in the room stiffened as he spoke.

“The Viscount was performing a ritual even Ophelia had never seen. A completely new, though not very effective spell. It wasn’t something that bastard should have been able to use. And…”

With a deep breath, Vincent continued. “My son… where he disappeared… There were traces of soul magic—”

—CLANK!

A sharp sound boomed through the room as all the plates on the table split into two.

“Vincent.” The emperor growled in a low voice. Though his face remained frozen, the pressure being released by him was enough to make mountains shiver. Unfazed, Vincent matched the emperor’s eyes. “Are you saying those bastards have returned?”

“Caelestis.” Vincent’s eyes sharpened as he addressed the emperor. The pressure exuded by the emperor faded away at Vincent’s call. “It doesn’t matter to me who is back or who is not. They dared take my family, my son.”

“That child is crafty. He is weak and cowardly, but exceedingly wise and aware. I know he is alive. But if they harm Astolfo…” A force even greater than the one the emperor had summoned filled the room as Vincent’s face scrunched up into a murderous frown. “…Not even gods can save themselves.”

Stifling pressure remained in the air. The dozens of servants and knights standing guard outside had already fallen unconscious while personnel on the other end of the castle staggered with their movements. Under this monstrous display of killing intent shaped into the world by Vincent’s mana, the emperor did not feel the least bit affected as he mulled over Vincent’s words with closed eyes.

“Understood.” At last, the emperor opened his eyes and nodded. “For you, who has made me the ruler of the skies.” Caelestis stood up and stretched his hand towards Vincent.

“If need be, I shall help kill even gods that dare stand in your path. ”