Trash Prince and Ice Queen 10th Re - Life-Chapter 140: The True Story and Mastermind Behind It

The atmosphere remained tense as everyone waited for what Thorena was about to say. Naturally, with all eyes fixed on her, Thorena felt a bit awkward; however, Geoffrey kept his hand on her shoulder while keeping his gaze forward, as if telling Thorena that he was with her no matter what and would always stay by her side. Thorena took a deep breath, then looked at Kresus, Lesnar, Hardim, and Bharlel.

50 years ago, after Elmer vanished from the palace, Thorena and her older sister, Lurgena, were talking in the palace family room while enjoying snacks and tea. A servant entered carrying a letter and gave it to Lurgena. Not long after, the sound of a commotion broke out—a giant had been captured at the border and brought before King Murmic at the palace. The two princesses finally went to the throne room and saw the giant kneeling before the king.

The giant spoke of a peace treaty, the Githiess egg, and Prince Elmer’s arrival at his kingdom. Naturally, Murmic and Hardim, who happened to be in the throne room at the time, were confused; they had no idea that Elmer had gone to the giant kingdom to propose peace to the giant king by bringing the Githiess egg, which was a royal heirloom. They were under the impression that Elmer had left with his troops for the front lines to defend their fortress and engage in battle.

Hearing the argument in the throne room, Lurgena naturally pulled Thorena back inside, so they did not witness the king executing the giant kingdom’s envoy. Once they were in Lurgena’s room, she finally opened the letter from Elmer that had been sent to her and Thorena. Upon reading it, both were shocked: it turned out Elmer and Princess Grethia had known each other for several years before they disappeared together. They had met in a seaside village where dwarves and giants lived together, back when the princess had fled the palace because her father was forcing her into an arranged marriage with an elderly nobleman with the title of Marquess.

Elmer heard Grethia’s reasons for fleeing, and it turned out that the old Marquess was planning a revolution to overthrow King Vogir, her father. After they lived together for a year and fell in love, the two of them formulated a plan to bring peace to the two kingdoms. This was because the old nobleman’s ultimate goal was the surface; he intended to lead the giants to the surface to conquer it, as he had received a dream about a goddess asking him to attack the world above.

Hearing Thorena’s story, Ard and Eva immediately turned to look at her from where they stood. Their expressions quickly shifted to ones of deep concern.

"A goddess? What was the nobleman’s name?" Ard asked.

"I don’t know. The name wasn’t mentioned in the letter," Thorena answered.

"Ard, are you thinking what I’m thinking right now?" Eva asked.

"Yeah. The goddess who sent that dream seems to be one we know very well," Ard replied.

"Then what happened next?" Kresus asked impatiently.

Next, Elmer returned to his kingdom, took the royal heirloom, and led his troops to the giant kingdom to plan for peace. After that, Elmer and Grethia intended to marry and travel to the continent across the sea to build a city or establish a new kingdom there, effectively closing off the path to the surface—which was clearly the nobleman’s goal. At the bottom of the letter, he wrote that his plan was sure to succeed and that he intended to invite both of his sisters to join him.

When they finished reading, Lugerna and Thorena were naturally trembling, because they had heard the giant envoy’s angry words to King Murmic earlier, signaling that their brother’s plan had failed. Lugerna then decided to go across the continent, hoping to find Elmer there and promising to send a letter to Thorena once she had found him. This was what caused Thorena, who was still a child at the time, to set her heart on going to the surface and becoming a bridge between the dwarves and other races.

"All of that happened about 50 years ago," Thorena said, concluding her story.

The atmosphere went silent instantly, but this time there was no tension because everyone was thinking, including Kresus and Lesnar. They all realized that Elmer and Grethia’s disappearance might not have been a simple escape; in the worst-case scenario, something dark might have happened to them, as they clearly had an enemy linked to a goddess from the surface. Hardim turned to Kresus.

"Do you know which nobleman she meant?" Hardim asked.

"Hmm... there are three noblemen with the title of Marquess in the kingdom. But based on age, the oldest is Marquess Idor. However, he is the king’s right-hand man, and regarding the engagement, it was actually his son who was betrothed to Princess Grethia," Kresus answered.

"That’s true. When Elmer came to the palace, he also mentioned that he wanted to ask for Princess Grethia’s hand in marriage as a political bond between the two kingdoms and a sign of peace... I was there when Elmer arrived. That was what made the king stop and think, and... if I remember correctly, Marquess Idor was also at the throne at that time," Lesnar added, lost in thought.

"Hmm... but why didn’t Prince Elmer speak with our king?" Bharlel asked, thinking.

"Hah... my stubborn brother would never have listened to his son’s voice. He certainly wouldn’t have stood against him; the only reason we are even standing here is thanks to Ard and Eva convincing him," Hardim answered, shrugging his shoulders.

"It seems this problem is bigger than us. As a baron and a knight, I can’t exactly tell King Vogir that Marquess Idor is planning a revolution... the King would surely trust Idor over me, unless we have undeniable proof," Kresus said, thinking hard.

Suddenly, Ard raised his hand. Everyone, without exception, turned to look at him as he stepped forward.

"Here is what we’ll do. First, we must speak with King Murmic once more, but this time, Eva and I are coming along, as well as Lord Kresus and Lesnar. We will explain what actually happened, and for that, I’m asking Thorena to tell the story to her father one more time. Second, we must go to the Tartagia Kingdom and confront Marquess Idor. I want to know about his dream, because it’s clear there is a goddess from the surface who wants to use the giant kingdom to cause chaos above," Ard stated.

"Ard is right. If you look at the map and the geography of this underground world, the continent across the sea corresponds to the northern continent on the surface, where the Ateras Kingdom is located and where the demon god Malekh is sealed. That damn goddess has been planning this for fifty years—to free the demon god using the giants," Eva added.

"Hmm, now that I think about it, you’re right. There’s no way the giant kingdom could break through to the surface via the Grimgrath Kingdom—our kingdom—which has been at war with them for nearly 500 years; the path to the surface is only through our kingdom or the continent across the sea," Hardim muttered.

"But why hasn’t Idor made a move for the past 50 years if he really was ordered by that goddess?" Bharlel asked.

"That’s what we don’t understand. If the events of 50 years ago were his doing, and Princess Grethia’s disappearance was his doing... but wait a minute, 30 years ago there was a small rebellion in the kingdom... could that rebellion have been his work too?" Lesnar asked, turning to look at Kresus.

"Hmm... it’s possible. The leader of the rebellion was caught and executed... but there could have been a mastermind behind it since we never investigated it more deeply," Kresus muttered, thinking.

"I see. What was the reason for the rebellion?" Hardim asked.

"Tax hikes in several regions... but the decision to raise taxes 30 years ago was the king’s decision because we needed funds for the war... oh, that’s right, the one who proposed the tax hike back then was Marquess Idor," Kresus answered, deep in thought.

After connecting the dots of everything that had happened in their kingdom over the last 50 years, Kresus and Lasnar fell completely silent; it seemed they realized there was something moving behind the scenes in their kingdom, whispering in their king’s ear. The two of them turned to look at each other, locking eyes for a few moments, before they both turned to look at Hardim, and then at Ard.

"Fine. This problem is clearly bigger than just a war between dwarves and giants. Lasnar and I agree to go and meet the dwarf king, but allow us to bring our troops along," Kresus said firmly.

"What do you think, Hardim?" Ard asked while folding his arms across his chest.

"Hmm... all right, let’s go surprise my brother together. Please, make sure no one notifies our king before we arrive there, understand?" Hardim asked while glancing at Bharlel.

"Of course I understand, no need to look at me like that," Bharlel answered, annoyed.

"Very well. Let’s go speak with King Murmic II and convince him, because in order to solve this problem and discover the fate of the Crown Prince and the giant princess, we need to work together," Ard replied.

Everyone nodded immediately, and then they began to prepare for the journey back toward the border city where King Murmic was located.