Water Magician-Chapter 637: The Grand Duchy of Atinjo

Editor: Tseirp

Ryo and Abel traveled to the capital Kamfo of the Grand Duchy of Atinjo together with the Atinjo diplomatic mission led by Acting Head Zlurma.

Trailing behind them, as if of course, was an ice sculpture riding on a .

Out of consideration for privacy, the ice block had been made opaque so that nothing inside could be seen.

Still, Ryo’s expression was tense.

Abel, however, was not worried at all.

The reason was obvious.

“You really are bad at riding, Ryo.”

“If only Andalusia were here, this wouldn’t be like this!”

Yeah— because they were traveling by horse, Ryo’s face had stiffened.

If it had been his beloved mount Andalusia, he would have been able to ride with complete trust, surrendering everything and feeling calm; his expression would probably have been bright… but of course, Andalusia was at the Rondo Manor in the imperial capital Hanlin.

They had taken a ship from the capital to the autonomous city of Kwebasa and planned to return the same way… Andalusia and Abel’s Feiwan had no role to play here and, naturally, stayed behind at Rondo Manor.

It made sense… but still…

“If only Andalusia were here—”

“Give it up.”

Abel answered Ryo’s frustrated face with the same expression he always wore.

Abel’s handling of the reins seemed flawless.

“You’re being a show off.”

“It’s the result of training since I was little.”

That’s right, Abel was the reigning king.

He lived constantly exposed to attention at home and abroad.

Riding beautifully was part of his job.

For that reason, he had practiced again and again since childhood.

That said, Abel was inwardly relieved.

At least outwardly, Ryo’s condition had returned to normal.

Of course, deep down, he might still be worried about Duke Helb’s matter.

And that was fine for now.

Nothing good ever comes from rushing.

They would adapt slowly.

Within the Atinjo delegation, the two of them were treated with extreme courtesy.

That was because Zlurma, the vice-minister of foreign affairs, had told everyone in public that Duke Helb himself had said, should anything happen to him, to entrust these two with certain matters.

“Abel once cut off Zlurma-san’s head, you know.”

“…Why bring that up now?”

Ryo shook his head slightly as he spoke, and Abel frowned in reply.

That incident had occurred when they had raided the embassy.

Zlurma, after Duke Helb had carved a star-shaped magic circle into his chest, had gained powers that hardly seemed human.

Zlurma and Abel had engaged in single combat.

By the way, during that time, Ryo and Duke Helb had been chatting.

Well, there might have been a bit of fighting too… perhaps that was just Ryo’s imagination.

In the end, Abel had cut off Zlurma’s head, pierced his heart… and severed both his arms and legs.

But the truly terrifying thing came after that.

The next day, the two of them were shouted at by Zlurma once again.

The very Zlurma whose head had been cut off, whose heart had been pierced, and whose limbs had been severed the day before…

Apparently, Duke Helb had ‘treated’ him.

A faint line of stitching could be seen around the neck…

And now that Zlurma was leading the delegation as acting head.

“If I were Zlurma, I’d tear Abel to pieces first.”

“Ryo will save me, right?”

“Sadly, delivering Duke Helb, frozen in ice, to the other side is the priority, so Abel will have to manage on his own…”

“Hey…”

People apparently prioritize things differently.

“Abel, I’m always grateful to you. Really. Really. But that’s one thing and this is another.”

“When will you save someone if not when they’re being torn apart?”

“It’s decided. When Abel orders too much food and can’t finish it, I’ll eat with him and save him.”

“That hardly sounds like a likely situation.”

“Why not? Abel overeating happens often, doesn’t it?”

“In such cases, Ryo, you’d already be in an overeaten state yourself, right?”

“Now that you mention it…”

The Atinjo delegation moved slowly.

That was because there were several carriages.

One of them, the most luxuriously built carriage, was supposedly reserved for the Grand Duke… but at present it carried the Grand Duke of Atinjo frozen in ice.

Zlurma had asked Ryo to freeze him.

He could not be allowed to decay.

Because of that, the atmosphere in the diplomatic corps was understandably not cheerful.

Even the two of them spoke in low voices.

Still, there was no option but to go together.

“It can’t be helped.”

“The world doesn’t go the way we want it to.”

Both Abel and Ryo were grown-ups.

Two days later, the Atinjo delegation, which included Ryo and Abel, arrived in the capital Kamfo.

The party went straight into the royal palace.

Zlurma, Ryo, and Abel — together with the ice-entombed Duke Helb — were shown into the audience chamber.

As soon as the three entered, a young man approached.

“Zlurma.”

“Your Highness…”

Zlurma uttered those words and then fell silent, bowing his head.

“It’s alright. I have received the report.”

The young man closed his eyes lightly once, opened them wide, and looked at Ryo and Abel.

“I take you to be Ryo-dono and Abel-dono of the Kingdom of Knightley. I am Bash, Prince of the Grand Duchy of Atinjo.”

“Your Highness, it is an honor to meet you. I am Ryo Mihara, Duke of Rondo; I hold the position of Premier Duke of the Kingdom of Knightley.”

“And I’m Abel, his guard.”

Prince Bash, the heir to the Grand Duchy, offered his greeting; Ryo revealed his status as Duke of Rondo, and Abel maintained the cover of being simply ‘Abel, the guard.’

“Duke of Rondo? Yes, yes — I read the record that a letter of invitation was sent to you as an advisor for this conference. You are currently staying in Darwei, are you not?”

“Yes, Your Highness, as you say.”

“I see. The duke, my uncle…”

Bash said that and then looked at the ice sculpture.

“I’ll make it visible.”

Ryo deliberately said that, and then altered the ice’s translucency.

The frozen form of Duke Helb was revealed.

“Uncle…”

Bash murmured and stepped forward to touch the sculpture.

“A result of my lack of power…”

Ryo bowed his head and said.

“No! I have read Zlurma’s report. My uncle originally asked to be killed to stop his rampage. But you, Duke, stopped him without taking his life. That alone… I believe you have conferred a great boon upon our Grand Duchy.”

Ryo was genuinely impressed that this barely adult young man could speak such dignified words in front of his frozen uncle.

Understanding something with the head is one thing; the heart often refuses to accept it.

Especially when the sight is shocking, the refusal becomes conspicuous.

A relative frozen in ice would be the prime example.

Yet Prince Bash stood before them, composed and brave.

He was a member of the grand ducal family, after all.

From childhood, he had been tempered in many ways… whether he liked it or not.

“Duke.”

“Yes, Your Highness?”

“I have an impertinent request.”

“What is it?”

“The Grand Duke’s funeral and my accession ceremony to the new Grand Duke will take place thereafter. The schedule will be about ten days in total; would you attend?”

“Eh…”

Ryo was taken aback.

Come to think of it, if the Grand Duke had died, there would be a funeral, and it was easy to imagine an accession ceremony for the new Grand Duke.

But Ryo had not expected to be invited to such an event.

First of all, Ryo had no relation to the Grand Duchy of Atinjo.

On the contrary, unofficial though it was, he had been one of the people who attacked the Atinjo embassy in Kwebasa… perhaps not public knowledge, but surely a matter people around the ruling circles were aware of.

Moreover, he was the one who had frozen the Grand Duke’s younger brother.

Even if it had been at the request for help.

While they might not persecute him, he had not expected to be asked to attend the ceremonies.

And normally, a sovereign’s accession ceremony is announced domestically and abroad and held months later with representatives from surrounding countries in attendance.

That is because it serves not only as a domestic ritual but also as a foreign-facing demonstration.

Yet the man standing before them, now to become the new Grand Duke, intended to hold his accession ceremony very soon.

“Of course, it would be an honor to attend, but you plan to do the accession ceremony so quickly?”

“Yes. In fact, my father… the Grand Duke of Atinjo, told me before we left for Kwebasa. If anything happens to him, take the throne immediately. He didn’t elaborate, only said one thing — ‘do not allow any stirrings’.”

“Stirrings…”

Ryo tilted his head slightly at Prince Bash’s words.

He did not know the precise nuance of “do not allow any stirrings”.

But the Grand Duchy of Atinjo had brought under its control the Ghegish-Lu Federation and had also dominated the autonomous city Kwebasa.

And that was very recent. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝓮𝒘𝙚𝙗𝒏𝙤𝙫𝓮𝒍.𝓬𝒐𝙢

And by quasi-military means.

If, at this time, a powerful Grand Duke had died, and the Grand Duke’s younger brother Duke Helb—a visible symbol of the duchy’s might—had disappeared… it was plausible that those who wanted to wriggle and stir would begin to move.

“Fortunately, the national army, centered on the royal guard, supports my accession. Therefore, I wish to transfer power as quickly as possible and build a firm regime.”

“I see.”

Ryo nodded deeply at Prince Bash’s words.

From the time word of the Grand Duke’s death spread until the diplomatic mission returned, many, including Prince Bash, had already been moving.

Show as little vulnerability as possible, for as short a time as possible.

Move before the other side receives the information.

That is the basic tactic for seizing power quickly.

For the next ten days, Ryo and Abel stayed at the royal palace annex of the Grand Duchy of Atinjo.

They were treated as honored guests in every way.

The funeral and the accession ceremony proceeded without incident, and Bash was enthroned as the new Grand Duke of Atinjo.

“Thank you, Duke Rondo.”

“No, Your Majesty, this is the least I could do.”

The newly enthroned Grand Duke Bash expressed his gratitude, and Ryo replied.

“We will keep my uncle… Duke Helb in safekeeping.”

“Someday… I will surely free him.”

Ryo did not make promises he could not keep.

He would not declare anything here.

But in his heart, he made a solemn vow.

He would defeat the Phantom King and free Duke Helb.

Thus, Ryo and Abel were seen out from the palace.

They were to ride by horse to the port town of Hoi An within the Grand Duchy of Atinjo.

Of course, the new Grand Duke Bash offered to send a carriage… but carriages in the Eastern countries were not, to be polite, especially comfortable.

Ryo politely declined and said they would take their time touring the duchy on horseback to Hoi An, and so they were sent off.

“Well, the job’s done for now.”

“Not everything is perfect, but haven’t we done everything we could at the moment?”

“Yes, I think so.”

As they exchanged that conversation, a figure appeared before them.

Or rather, could it be called a figure…?

At the very least, it was something that shouldn’t be in Kamfo, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Atinjo…

It was 150 centimeters tall.

Its body was entirely ice, blue in color.

It was not human…

And around its neck it wore a yellow scarf…

“Eh? Friendship Token No. 2-kun?”

It was, indeed, the golem Ryo had made and left in the care of Captain Lu Yao—Friendship Token No. 2-kun.

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