Markus was beyond shocked. For a moment, his mind went blank, utterly blank because there, standing in the middle of his office, was the Emperor himself.
Even as a high-ranking officer, Markus had never expected this. Normally, it was he who went to the imperial palace, not the other way around. The Emperor’s presence here was like a storm appearing in a quiet lake, something that simply didn’t happen without reason.
The moment realization hit him, Markus shot to his feet so quickly his chair nearly toppled. "Your Grace!" he barked, bowing deeply.
Thankfully, it wasn’t as exaggerated as Agnes’s display earlier that day. Markus was a commander, after all formal, but not servile.
Alexander lifted a hand, his tone measured and calm. "Commander, you may be at ease."
Markus straightened instantly, his back still rigid with tension. Only then did he notice the three standing behind the Emperor, Leon, Racheal, and Adrian. His gaze immediately locked onto Leon.
’So he’s already found him,’ Markus thought, a hint of relief mixed with awe. ’The Emperor acts fast. It hasn’t even been a full cycle since I sent that report, and he’s already met the boy himself.’
In truth, Markus wasn’t surprised. No one in the empire understood the true danger of corruption like the Emperor did. If there was even a chance that this young man could help, Alexander’s presence here made sense.
The Emperor took a seat, his movements calm but deliberate. "Sit," he said, gesturing for Leon to take the chair opposite him.
Leon obeyed without ceremony, lowering himself into the seat, his usual composure unshaken. Racheal and Adrian, on the other hand, quietly moved to the couch along the wall, watching in silence.
Markus couldn’t help but notice something subtle but striking, how the Emperor addressed Leon, how his tone carried an almost equal weight between them. ’He’s treating him like a partner,’ Markus realized, a chill running down his spine. ’Thank the stars I didn’t mistreat that boy when he first arrived.’
His jaw tightened at the thought. ’That damn Lancelot is lucky he’s still in the infirmary,’ Markus mused darkly. ’If he were here right now...’ He didn’t bother finishing the thought.
Meanwhile, in the infirmary, Samuel sat beside Lancelot, who had just regained consciousness.
Lancelot’s brow furrowed suddenly, his gaze distant, a cold sweat forming down his neck. Samuel tilted his head, frowning. "What’s wrong? You see another kid you feel like beating up?"
Lancelot didn’t answer. He just stared blankly at the ceiling, his gut twisting with an unfamiliar chill. ’Why do I feel like I’m in serious trouble...?’
Back in Markus’s office, the air grew heavier as the Emperor finally spoke.
"Commander," Alexander began, his tone steady, "I’m sure you already know why we’re here."
Markus gave a curt nod. "Yes, Your Grace."
"Good," Alexander said, folding his hands on the desk, his gaze sharp and unwavering. "Then we can go straight to the point."
Alexander leaned back in the commander’s chair, his tone calm but firm. "Commander, we’ll need over a dozen environmental tether sites, preferably ones that have just appeared."
Markus straightened immediately, his expression tightening into one of focus. "That’s no issue, Your Grace. I’ll have a team assembled to escort Leon into—"
Before he could finish, Leon cut in, a faint, almost amused smirk playing on his face. "That won’t be necessary. I already have a team ready."
Markus blinked, caught off guard by the interruption. His gaze flicked toward Leon, then followed the young man’s subtle glance toward Racheal and Adrian. The realization hit him immediately. ’Those two?’ Follow current novels on 𝓷𝓸𝓿𝓮𝓵✦𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖✦𝙣𝙚𝙩
He turned to the Emperor, silently asking for confirmation. Alexander’s expression didn’t waver.
"That’s fine," the Emperor said. "You can simply send one guard along, preferably a lieutenant—to watch over them, just in case of any unforeseen trouble."
Markus nodded, though he was still uneasy. "Understood, Your Grace."
Alexander’s emerald eyes drifted toward the far wall for a moment, his tone casual but deliberate. "What about that newly promoted lieutenant... what was his name again?"
Markus’s heart dropped. He already knew who Alexander meant before the name left his lips.
"Yes... Lancelot, wasn’t it?"
The room went dead silent.
Racheal’s brow furrowed instantly, disbelief written all over her face. Adrian’s jaw tightened as his hand subconsciously curled into a fist. As for Leon, he didn’t even need to look up, he could already feel the Plots irony pressing against his temple. ’Of course,’ he thought dryly. ’It had to be him.’
The tension was palpable now. Alexander noticed it too. His eyes drifted from one face to another before finally settling on Leon.
"Is there a problem?" he asked, his tone still even, but sharper now, like a blade cloaked in silk.
Before Leon could respond, Markus quickly stepped in. "No problem, Your Grace," he said, forcing a tight smile. "But Lancelot is still green behind the ear. Perhaps another lieutenant would be—"
The temperature in the room dropped in an instant.
Alexander’s once-calm expression turned glacial as his emerald eyes locked onto the commander. "I didn’t ask you, Commander," he said, his voice brisk and heavy with authority. "I asked the boy."
A shiver ran down Markus’s spine. He swallowed hard, his throat suddenly dry as he forced out, "I... I apologize, my Lord."
Inside, his thoughts were a storm.
The air in the office remained thick and heavy, the faint hum of mana crackling just beneath the surface, like the calm before something worse.
Markus could feel the weight of the emperor’s gaze still hanging in the air, sharp enough to cut through bone. He tried to steady his breath, his mind racing for a way to steer the moment back to calmer waters.
He knew the emperor’s temperament well, Alexander was not one to tolerate interference, especially when his authority was challenged. But this wasn’t about pride; Markus was trying to protect someone. Because if the emperor ever discovered the full truth - that Lancelot had once drawn his blade against Leon - the young lieutenant’s life would be forfeit before he even had the chance to explain himself.
It had been a reckless act, yes, a moment of blind arrogance and flawed judgment. Lancelot had misread the situation completely, thinking Leon a threat to the Empire rather than its potential savior. But intent didn’t matter in the eyes of an emperor. Not when the victim of that mistake was now sitting across from him, the very person who might deliver humanity from the nightmare known as corruption.
Markus’s eyes flicked briefly toward Leon. The boy sat relaxed, unreadable, but there was something in his calm that made the commander uneasy. Leon’s smirk had faded, replaced by that distant look he wore whenever his mind was already five steps ahead.
’Lancelot’s fate is already sealed,’ Markus thought grimly. Whether Leon decided to speak or not, the outcome would be the same. One word from him, one mention of what happened that day, and the emperor would erase the lieutenant’s name from existence.