Antonio Gyerre looked out the window while walking down the hallway in the middle of the night.

The Gyerre Castle. There were many people walking around with torches inside of the castle. He watched these people who were moving with urgency and thought about his grandmother, Duchess Sonata.

"Cale Henituse. Find out what he, and the crown prince behind him, wants."

He had seen anger in his grandmother's face for the first time in a long while. That anger was directed at herself.

The Chryshi Household.

The documents that Cale's guard knight had brought over, as well as the information that they had gained by storming the baron's estate, gave the Duchess quite the headache.

"Crazy bastard."

A noble was involved in the slave trade.

Although she did not have detailed information yet, that alone was enough to embarrass the Gyerre household. Furthermore, the citizens had witnessed all of it.

There was bound to be a punishment from the crown, a loss of trust with the citizens, and judgment from the other nobles.

All of this was giving Antonio a headache as well. However, he still needed to meet with Cale Henituse tonight. That was the mountain he needed to climb right now.

Of course, the real mountain he needed to climb was the crown prince, as Cale Henituse was working for the crown prince.

Prince Alberu was the prince who was poised to become the next king. There was no way he would just let this go.

'And Cale Henituse is a noble as well. He will try to use this to blackmail us for his own benefits.'

Antonio had seen many greedy people hiding under the title of noble. Everybody he had come across had been the same way.

That was why he had always tried his best to be a proper noble. He didn't want to give anybody a chance to find something to use against him. This was also the reason he ranked people with his own set of qualifications. It made it easier to deal with them.

"Mm." Antonio made a noise outside of the guest reception room. That made Cale Henituse's guard knight bow to greet him.

Antonio pointed to the door and Hilsman cautiously knocked on the door. "Young master-nim, young master Antonio has arrived."

"Please tell him to come in."

Antonio stopped the guard knight and turned the knob himself after hearing Cale's voice. "I will help myself in."

Antonio opened the door. This was the first time he felt nervous going into his own guest reception room.

'Is this what it feels like to have your weakness grasped by someone else? I'm curious to know what he will demand from me.'

Just what would Cale Henituse demand from him? That was what Antonio was curious about.

But he thought the most Cale would want is power to support the crown prince. That was why he did not seem nervous as he walked in through the door.

Screeeech-

He noticed Cale Henituse looking out the window as soon as he opened the door.

Antonio, the heir of the Gyerre household, felt as if it had been a while since he had seen someone's back. Frustration and annoyance filled his mind.

"Young master Antonio." Cale called out to him and slowly turned at that moment. He then asked in a casual tone. "Are the people okay?"

Antonio, who had been walking in, suddenly stopped moving. He looked toward Cale, who asked once more after it seemed as if Antonio did not understand his question.

"Are the people who were kidnapped doing okay?"

"...I didn't think you'd ask such a question."

"Excuse me?" Cale looked toward Antonio, who was mumbling to himself with confusion.

That made Antonio sigh before closing the door. "We managed to rescue all of them."

"That is a relief."

Antonio could see Cale smiling in relief before returning to his stoic expression after hearing his words. That made Antonio start to feel odd.

Was asking about the citizens another strategic move in order to get the Gyerre household to bend their knee? Or was Cale truly concerned?

'I guess I'll find out based on our conversation.'

Everything would be revealed based on what Cale Henituse asks of him.

Antonio had a lot of things to do right now, but he did not lose his calm demeanor. He sat down on a couch and pointed to the opposite side for Cale.

However, Cale did not sit down.

"I'm sure that you are busy with work for the territory, so I will keep it short." Cale did not want to extend this conversation for no reason. "I already mentioned I am not talented in beating around the bush, so I will get straight to the point."

"I am curious to hear what you have to say."

'What will he ask for?' Antonio was leaning on the couch looking relaxed, but his back was stiff as he looked toward Cale.

Cale took a document out of his spatial bag and put it on the table.

Clack! It was a thick stack of paper.

'Are these his conditions?'

Cale started to speak as Antonio had that thought in his head. "This is a document detailing how the Chryshi household hired an assassin guild to kidnap a child in the past."

Antonio's face turned stiff. The slave trade wasn't it. There was more to it. Cale Henituse had two cards up his sleeve and Antonio had just found out the second one. He could see Cale smiling at him.

"I did not share this in front of the citizens earlier. Only I know about this."

Antonio brushed his eyes with his hands. This single day had brought him quite a lot of fatigue.

"...I am also not talented in beating around the bush. Nor do I have the time to do so." He asked Cale to get to the point. "What is it that you want?"

Clack! However, another stack of paper was thrown on the table instead of a response.

Antonio looked down at the stack of paper.

"This is the information about the merchant guild that the Chryshi household sold the slaves to."

'Mm.' Antonio held back his groan. He had thought Cale was famous for his just actions, but Cale was more meticulous than he had expected.

Cale had information that the Duke's Estate did not have because the incident had just occurred today. Antonio had no choice but to be dragged around by Cale.

Antonio almost blacked out after hearing Cale's next words.

"It is a merchant guild from the Empire."

Antonio closed his eyes. '...That damn crazy bastard!'

He could not help but swear at Baron Chryshi. Not only did he enslave his fellow citizens, but he had also sold them off to a merchant guild from the Empire.

It was difficult even for a person to move from one region of the kingdom to another, but he had smuggled them out to a foreign nation. This would be bad for the Gyerre household if it was to get out.

Antonio felt gratitude that Cale brought this information to them first. However, he felt suffocated at the same time. His weakness had been thoroughly grasped.

"Antonio, these so-called nobles are willing to stab each other for their own greed. That is why you need to know how to wield the sword as well."

He remembered his grandmother's words. A sword was at his neck right now. He was in a dire situation.

"Young master Antonio."

Antonio opened his eyes. He looked back at Cale Henituse.

"Please guard the southwest region's gate."

'What?' An unexpected story was coming out of Cale's mouth. He could not avoid Cale's gaze.

"Please make it so that a merchant guild from the Empire would not dare to come over to our Roan Kingdom in order to do such terrible deeds again." That was all Cale wanted from the Gyerre household.

"Don't let even one of those damn rats in."

Cale wanted Antonio to make it so that the Empire could not strike the Roan Kingdom while the war was going on to the north.

"As the gatekeeper, please have the Gyerre household keep the southwest gate safe."

Antonio could feel his hands starting to go numb as he was looking into Cale's resolute gaze.

"That is what I want from you." Cale's request was for the Gyerre household to do their job properly.

Antonio could not help but gulp.

All Cale was asking him to do was to properly do his job as a noble. However, Antonio felt as if those words were very heavy.

He had never seen a noble sincerely wish for something so obvious like this before.

Alcohol. Trash. Greed. Many words floated through his mind at once.

He realized that he had the wrong impression of Cale. This person was different. He did not want power nor have any greed. He was not a fake pretending to be a noble.

"...Young master Cale-"

"And." However, Cale was not done speaking.

"When the kingdom asks for it." There was something else the crown prince wanted. "Please open the gates."

The Empire would not stand for the alliance of the four kingdoms and the one beast tribe.

"This is what we want." Cale then stopped talking.

Noble.

Antonio looked toward Cale and thought this was a 'true noble'. Antonio, who also wanted to be a true noble, clenched his fists.

Silence filled the guest reception room.

Antonio looked down at his clenched fists before slowly unclenching them. He could see his empty palm. He had realized something about himself through this chat.

Why did he think that Cale Henituse was looking to get something from him or try to take advantage of him when all he did was ask for a chat?

Antonio felt as if there was a mask in his empty palm. The name of that mask was 'noble'. He too was wearing a fake noble mask.

He started to speak. "What do you mean by open the gates?"

Antonio's nervousness showed as he asked the question.

"Open the gates to the Empire when the kingdom asks for it."

It was a pretty dangerous proclamation if you understood it in the wrong way. It could be interpreted as the Roan Kingdom raising their sword against the Empire.

"Young master Antonio." However, Cale just responded back with a question. "Are you worried that his highness the crown prince would want to wage war against the Empire?"

This was indeed the case. The crown prince might desire to go to war against the Empire or another foreign nation.

That was what Antonio was worried about. Antonio could see that a corner of Cale's lip had gone up a bit.

"I thought I was very clear." Cale repeated his words once again. "When the kingdom asks for it."

Not the crown prince but the kingdom.

There was a big difference between the two. However, Antonio did not realize that difference until just now.

Cale added on after realizing that Antonio had caught on. "The Gyerre household that works for the kingdom should know what I mean, right?"

'Works for the kingdom.' Those words lingered in Antonio's mind. His expression turned serious at the same time.

A situation where the entire Roan Kingdom would want them to open the gates to the Empire. That would mean that the Empire did something terrible that the Roan Kingdom could not simply brush aside.

The kingdom meant that the crown, the nobles, and the citizens all wanted it.

'...What did the Empire do?'

The Gyerre household was responsible for the southwest region that was the closest to the Empire.

Although he was the heir of the family, Antonio could not figure out what the Empire could have done in order to cause such a situation.

He called out to Cale after realizing that his lack of information was a more serious issue. "Young master Cale-"

"Figure it out yourself."

Antonio could not ask about what the Empire did after hearing Cale's response that drew the line. He could not say anything about it.

With his weakness in Cale's hands, he had to do whatever was asked of him without asking any questions. Furthermore, it was only proper for the Gyerre household to figure it out on their own if it was something the Empire did that was related to the kingdom.

It was either that he investigate it on his own, or, there was another option.

"...I will ask his highness, the crown prince." He needed to go above the Duke level to ask.

Antonio looked toward Cale, who accepted his response as the obvious answer and made up his mind to stealthily investigate the Empire and go through the southwest region's defensive maneuvers once more.

That was the response that Cale had wanted. He wanted Antonio to be wary.

He also wanted Antonio to stealthily investigate the Empire.

In addition, Antonio would be interested in the flow of events in the kingdom without only seeking power.

It would be beneficial for Cale if a noble who held power in one region of the kingdom held such a demeanor.

Cale sat up on the chair and made eye contact with Antonio. "I hope that you make the right decision after thinking about it."

Cale did not want to talk anymore. All requests were best if they were presented in a short manner.

Of course, he didn't forget to threaten Antonio in the process. "These documents are all copies. I have the originals, so I hope that you make your decision without forgetting that your weakness is still in my hands."

"Haa." Antonio let out a sigh and smiled.

That action made Cale start to frown. Antonio was smiling after being threatened.

'...This is weird.' He thought that Antonio had understood him, but rather than frowning, Antonio had a smile on his face.

'Why is he smiling?'

Antonio was relieved while Cale was confused. 'Not everything grandmother said is correct.'

A noble who uses your weakness in order to request something on behalf of the kingdom is a 'true noble'. Antonio felt as if something in his mind had cleared up after meeting such a 'true noble'.

"You are a noble, young master Cale."

"Of course?" But Cale could see that Antonio had understood him properly. 'I guess I meet his criteria.'

The fact that Antonio had called him a noble meant that Antonio had a very good impression of him.

'The crown prince will take care of the rest.' The crown prince would know how to keep Antonio in check as soon as Cale handed over the documents.

Cale felt satisfied that things went as planned. However, there was something that went a bit different than he had expected.

"I know you are busy, so I will be on my way now."

Cale heard Antonio's voice as he was about to walk out of the guest reception room.

"Thank you very much, young master Cale."

"...Excuse me?" Cale turned around in shock.

"Thank you for many things." The smiling Antonio seemed to be giving off a sense of vitality.

Cale started to feel odd after seeing Antonio looking happy, contrary to his expectations. '...Should I have properly threatened him and taken something in the process?'

He had not requested any material goods from the Gyerre household in order to act like a proper noble. He felt a bit disappointed, however, Cale forced a smile toward Antonio before walking out of the guest reception room.

He was pretty much done with his tasks for the day. However, there was still one task remaining.

But that was for tomorrow. He could not do it until after midnight.

The largest guest bedroom. Cale leaned back on the comfortable bed and looked toward the video communication device.

– I connected it!

Wiiiiiiiiiiing.

The screen turned on and Raon flew over to the corner where On and Hong were sitting. There was a lot of food in front of the three children.

Cale observed Raon quietly chewing on some meat before turning his gaze toward the screen.

> Young master Cale.

He was naturally talking to crown prince Alberu. The last task he had was to report to the crown prince.

It was always necessary to report in as soon as possible after creating a mess.

Crown prince Alberu was frowning. Cale understood that Alberu would find it disrespectful that he was leaning on the bed.

Who wouldn't be angry after seeing someone relaxing on a bed when they had been working frantically until now? He just wanted to see the crown prince's angry face before reporting.

Though Cale, who had filled his stomach with food, now felt bad for Alberu. That was why he started to speak first.

"Your highness-"

But Alberu cut him off. Alberu was frowning as he started to speak, almost in agony.

> You really are not the kingdom's star but the kingdom's light.

'...What the...' Cale's expression stiffened up.

Alberu did not care as he used his glib tongue for the first time in a while.

> With a light like you, our Roan Kingdom is not even afraid of the darkness. You are not just a star, but the brightest star in our kingdom.

'...Why is he acting like this?' He started to get annoyed even though he was full and relaxed.

"Your highness, shall I sit up?" Cale tried to stop leaning on the bed and sitting up.

> No, no need to do so. I heard about it.

Alberu no longer seemed to be in agony as he started to smile brightly. Someone might even think that he was out enjoying a beautiful flower field or something.

However, Alberu was feeling as if he was somewhere even better than a flower field.

> You coughed up blood and almost fainted while trying to capture human traffickers in the Gyerre territory?

"...The last part of it is true." He did not cough up blood or almost faint.

> You used amazing charisma in order to capture the human traffickers, destroyed their buildings with the silver shield, and rescued the imprisoned citizens?

"...I suppose so?" That was indeed what had happened. However, it seemed to be a bit exaggerated.

> You pretended to be drunk and observed the human traffickers through a restaurant window before confidently taking them on with just one knight by your side?

"...Could you please stop?" Cale started to frown while Alberu started to smirk.

Alberu seemed to be feeling good even though his face looked tired. That made Cale realize that there was no need to go into details about today's event with Alberu.

"It looks like you've already heard about most of it, your highness."

He knew that one of the crown's informants would be in the Gyerre territory. The crown prince was a meticulous person after all. However, he had not expected that much information to be delivered so quickly.

> Yes. My informant told me about the rumors spreading through the territory.

The exaggerated version Alberu discussed was what was quickly spreading throughout the Gyerre territory. The Duke's Estate had no way of stopping the rumors from spreading.

Alberu had come to a conclusion after hearing the rumors.

> A good crazy bastard.

"It'd better if you don't add the 'crazy', your highness."

Alberu did not enjoy seeing Cale grumbled childishly at his words.

The other information he had received said that he did not cough up much blood but that there was still a bit of blood.

That would be why he was laying down to recover. Then he could have rested and reported to him in the morning, but he was uselessly proper and waited until past midnight to report.

That was why Alberu found Cale to be the easiest to work with, even if he didn't like the bastard. It was because Cale was similar to him.

> What is it you need to report?

He was not the cruel type to hold up a recovering person. Furthermore, this bastard was the one who would soon go to the Caro Kingdom's auction house in his stead.