24
In the depths of the imperial palace, underground, where darkness shrouds the place. Few people come here, and as evening falls, there are no longer anyone roaming these lanes.
But the guards standing in front of the huge iron door did not show any slack in their stance. It was clear from their appearance that what was behind this door held great value.
They guarded the magic stones, or “mystones,” which contain magical energy. With it, wizards can cast stronger and greater spells.
Some of them even allow the use of spells that the magician has never learned before. That's why, after the war ended, most of the powerful magic stones were collected and deposited deep within the palace, under heavy guard.
No one was allowed to enter this place without the Emperor's permission. Moreover, because of an ancient magic stone buried deep in the ground by an imperial wizard, most of the wizards were unable to use magic here.
So, stealing these stones was almost impossible.
However, there was no room for lax guarding. Among the stones stored here, there were stones with destructive power, which were used in war to take thousands of lives at once.
Therefore, the guards treated this place as if it contained a monster that might wake up at any moment.
The day almost passed quietly as usual, but suddenly, a commotion rose at the entrance, and soon a group of people appeared.
“Who… His Majesty the Emperor!”
The guard commander prepared to take a defensive stance, but he quickly recognized Cloyce, who was standing in front, and hurriedly saluted. He was followed by the rest of the guards, who saluted in amazement.
They were confused. It is true that the magic stones are very precious, but the Emperor had never visited this place before.
“What made your Majesty come here yourself...?”
The guard captain asked anxiously, fearing that something serious had happened.
Seven years have passed since the war ended, and the empire has regained its stability, but the remnants of enemies are still moving in the distant places.
Did they cause a problem? Are they planning to attack the palace? While the guard commander's face was getting more and more gloomy, a woman appeared from behind the emperor and said impatiently:
“Open the door, quickly! Come on, hurry up.”
“Who... is this lady?”
“It's Seraphina Redhm, the director of the gifted academy. I have allowed her to enter the magic stone warehouse, so open the door now.”
“Seraphina Riedhm...”
The Guard Leader's body stiffened even more. She was a young woman, but a genius who had not lost her grace from her days at the Gifted Academy until her graduation from the Capital Academy.
She was the most powerful witch alive, and the Emperor's closest confidant. After the end of the Succession War, it did not settle in one place, but rather traveled throughout the empire.
It was said that she hunted down the remains of enemies at the Emperor's command, or that the Emperor himself cast her out in fear of her power. What does she have in common with the Emperor now, and why did she come with him to the magic stone warehouse?
“Has something happened, Your Majesty?”
The guard commander looked up and asked in a firm voice, determined to protect the Emperor at all costs, even if there was a rebellion within the palace. Cloyce answered seriously:
“A child has disappeared.”
"…What?"
The guard commander doubted his hearing for a moment. A little girl disappeared?
“So we need to use a tracking spell urgently. It has to be large-scale and exceed the magic nullification spell in the palace, which means we need a magic stone. "Open the door now."
“Okay, right away! concept!"
Although confused, he had to carry out the order. The guard commander and his soldiers approached the iron door, grabbed the handles, and did their best to open it.
It creaked as it moved slowly, until it revealed the inside of the warehouse. Serafina couldn't hide her sly smile.
In normal circumstances, she would have had to go through a complex and lengthy procedure, and her application might even have been rejected.
But thanks to the Emperor's presence today, she was able to directly enter the warehouse.
When the door was fully opened, huge numbers of magic stones appeared.
“As I expected… the stones of the Imperial Palace are truly stunning...”
Seraphina's expression was as if she was eager to swallow stones, which made the guard commander and his soldiers take a step back in annoyance.
“Find the stone you want quickly.”
"present!"
Fearing that Cloïs might change his mind, Seraphina began to wander among the stones excitedly.
She thought he would use the guards to search for the child, which would take longer but would be calmer.
Normally, priority is given to protecting minors even in such cases. But when Cloyce heard the name of the missing child, he seemed surprisingly confused to Seraphina, and immediately authorized the use of the magic stones.
“Anyway, let's focus on finding the baby first.” Like a master witch, she began to run her hand over each stone, looking for one that matched her energy and had enough power.
While Seraphina was searching, Cloyce was walking around the warehouse. The warehouse contained not only powerful stones; There were decorative stones, most of which had lost their power or had very weak power.
Cloyes' gaze suddenly stopped at a magic stone polished like a glass ball.
“This…”
It was not a stone of great power. It was just a stone emitting a faint light.
“It's still there, then.”
He caught it, looking at it longingly. It was the size of a grown man's fist, round in shape, and had only that dim light. But he remembered him for one reason.
“Isn't that nice?”
Long before, Lillian showed it to him, saying that she had obtained a useful magic stone. It was not something worthy of being called a souvenir. Even Lillian didn't use it much.
“Even if it is a magic stone, it is precious, I don't want to use it carelessly. I'll just use it as a lamp. “I think this stone is more suitable for younger children.”
“Well, then we'll give it to our baby when he's born.”
Lillian laughed, shaking her head as if she couldn't help it, then told him to keep it because she would surely be neglected.
“So he was here.”
Cloyce touched the stone, and it gave off a faint light as if he felt his touch, but he stopped there.
A stone that lights up and turns off with human touch. As he stared at him, Seraphina cried out:
«I found him! "It matches my energy, so we can cast a tracking spell that covers the entire palace without a problem!"
Cloyce raised his eyes from the stone he was looking at. Seraphina came out from inside, carrying a stone with difficulty.
“Bring it.”
Cloyce extended his hand and took the stone from her. What she was holding with both hands with effort, he easily lifted with one hand.
Seraphina remembered that, although he remained in the palace now, he had once been the strongest knight on the battlefield.
When Cloyce came out with the stone, the guards offered to carry it, but he gestured with his other hand refusing.
“Let's hurry.”
Then he immediately went upstairs, Seraphina hurriedly following behind him. Cloyce ordered the guards to prevent anyone from approaching, then he and Seraphina headed to the back garden.
At that late hour, the park was empty. He put the stone on the ground and looked at Seraphina.
“Is this enough? “Begin immediately.”
Serafina nodded. She didn't understand why Cloyce would go to such lengths to find just one child, but she saw no harm in it.
“Above all, the opportunity to use magic of this magnitude within the palace is rare.” She approached the stone and said to Cloyce:
“I hope we succeed the first time.”
"What do you mean?"
“As you know, the palace is full of obstacles that interrupt the flow of magic.”
Then she muttered unconsciously:
“If Lillian were here to help me, it would be easier to find him.”
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