EMATEC Chapter 145

145

“Ughhhh.”

“Arghhhh.”

In the end, the two of them were dragged out without managing to utter a single word.

Everyone present frowned at the disgraceful sight, which failed to show even the minimum decorum expected of students of the Continental Academy.

The one who broke the awkward silence was none other than Aurelian, the Crown Prince of the Lutinas Empire.

“There’s always been talk about Emblem and Gray… But I must say, I’ve never seen anything quite like this. It’s rather unsettling.”

With a face tinged with disappointment, he turned his gaze toward the Crown Prince of Pavan.

“While it’s true that Emblem and Gray have had a rocky relationship since the past, if the worth of their families amounted to no more than that, they wouldn’t have made it this far.”

“……”

“Both Emblem and Gray are people who would willingly give their lives if it meant fulfilling their duties and upholding their honor.”

At Aurelian’s continued words, a strange crack formed in the expression of the Pavan Crown Prince. After all, who on this continent wouldn't already know that?

The reason why the history of Emblem and Gray drew the attention of the entire continent was because of the immense honor and influence both families had built over the years.

And yet, Emblem and Gray, blinded by petty emotions, ended up fighting, abandoning their fellow students and nearly going missing themselves?

It was none other than the King of Pavan who entertained such a ludicrous notion.

Though Aurelian voiced his thoughts in a tone of frustration, in truth, he was criticizing the King of Pavan for his malicious and underhanded thinking.

“The late king’s decision was arbitrary. What pains me more than the grief of losing my father is the shame I feel because of his choices.”

Without hesitation, the crown prince denounced his own father. All he could hope for now was to prevent the scandal from becoming public knowledge.

If the Pavan king’s scheme were exposed, not only would it draw the ire of the entire continent, but it would also plunge all of Pavan into a grave crisis.

After all, Pavan had wielded substantial international influence merely by being home to the Continental Academy. But now, not only had its royal family tried to harm academy students, they had even gone so far as to attempt the murder of Emblem’s commander, who had come to help.

Considering the aid they had previously received from the Emblem knights, this would shatter Pavan’s credibility on the international stage in an instant.

“I cannot even lift my head before Emblem, who trusted the Continental Academy and stepped forward with goodwill toward Pavan. All of this happened because of the protection pact led by His Majesty and me.”

“…That’s not true, Your Highness. Please don’t say such things. This is all my failure. I should have been the first to consider the late king’s intentions, yet I stood by, completely unaware. I—and Pavan—will repay this debt.”

The crown prince of Pavan bowed deeply, to the point of appearing pitiful. But under the circumstances, it was understandable.

“But when the missing King of Pavan returns… I wonder if he will carry the same intentions as Your Highness.”

Jade Gray interjected dryly, as though the whole exchange was none of his concern.

The crown prince’s sharp gaze immediately turned toward Jade Gray.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said. The King of Pavan isn’t dead—he’s missing. Naturally, if he were to return to the royal palace, he might have a very different outlook than Your Highness.”

“...”

“It just seems that Your Highness is quite confident the king will never return. That’s why I said it.”

Jade Gray narrowed his eyes, as if trying to peer directly into the prince’s heart.

The Pavan crown prince clenched his fists tightly.

‘Does that man know everything?’

In truth, the King of Pavan had not gone missing.

He had been found alive, amidst the wreckage of his carriage, and returned to the royal palace.

However—

'Hurry, hurry, get me out! I said get me out of here! Seffield Emblem has come to kill me! Protect me, now! Hurry!'

The King of Pavan had lost his grip on reality, overtaken by fear. His once-sharp judgment and kingly dignity had completely vanished.

Unaware of how much amusement the sly Emperor of the Lutinas Empire would derive from this situation, the crown prince couldn't possibly let anyone see the king in such a deranged state.

To protect Pavan, it was better to declare the king 'missing' and let him live the rest of his days hidden away in the palace’s underground chambers—as if he were dead.

“We cannot leave the throne of Pavan vacant for long, so I have already been appointed to succeed the crown. Even if he returns, His Majesty will not be able to override my authority.”

“Ah, I see. I was worrying over nothing, then.”

Jade Gray stepped back without further comment. And just as the crown prince began to loosen his clenched fists, thinking the matter had passed—

The one who spoke next was Benedict, who had been smiling gently as he placed refreshments one by one before Cherrya.

“Duke Gray, you seem needlessly concerned. His Highness the Crown Prince is already burdened by guilt, considering how upset our Emperor was—talking about tearing up the contract with Pavan before the ink had even dried.”

“...Of course.”

The Crown Prince closed his eyes tightly for a moment, feeling a wave of dizziness wash over him.

Benedict Emblem, though seemingly taking his side, was pressing him in a way quite different from Jade Gray.

“I’m sure Your Highness understands. Duke Gray is someone who trusts official documents with signatures far more than mere words from someone’s mouth.”

“Hmph. If you keep watching Emblem say pretty things but never clean up their mess, you start to become like them.”

“Well, we at Emblem have always kept our word even without such documents, which is why we've never felt the need for them.”

“And you're saying Gray doesn't?”

“I wouldn’t go so far as to claim that.”

Jade and Benedict began a subtle but pointed war of words—a worthy display of those bearing the names Gray and Emblem.

But one thing was clear: if anyone was going to put a stop to their veiled sparring, it would have to be the Crown Prince himself.

“Ha ha. The tea is excellent.”

Meanwhile, the Crown Prince of Lutinas calmly sipped his tea, wearing the serene, detached smile of someone well-accustomed to this kind of drama.

“Let’s stop this here, both of you. I’ll draft a new official contract. And since I’ve heard that the swamp—responsible for spawning monsters in the Carmedan Jungle—has been completely destroyed, we can use that as a public reason to commend the two of you for your efforts. It shouldn’t be too difficult.”

“If that’s how it’ll be handled, I have no objections.”

“Same here.”

Just like that, Jade and Benedict nodded in agreement as if nothing had happened between them.

From this alone, it was clear—even if Emblem and Gray didn’t get along personally, when it came to matters of the Lutinas Empire, both families prioritized public duty over personal grievances.

'I thought my father’s decision was disgraceful… yet at the same time, rather clever.'

Using the long-standing feud between Emblem and Gray as justification had seemed like a smart political move.

But after seeing how the two interacted today, it was clear just how absurd that plan had truly been.

The crown prince could already feel the headache setting in as he wondered what kind of leverage Lutinas might now hold over Pavan.

“By the way, I heard that Cherrya Emblem and Enoch Gray, who are both here, are promised to be married. Is that true? If it is, then Pavan has truly made a massive blunder.”

Surely that part couldn’t be true… Watching Jade and Benedict’s earlier standoff, the crown prince desperately hoped it was just a baseless rumor.

But—

“Ah yes, that’s true. We agreed to it when our children were still in the womb.”

And with that, his hopes were utterly crushed.

“Well, I’m not thrilled about it, but His Majesty gave his blessing.”

Jade Gray gave a nod of confirmation as well.

The crown prince’s eyes widened in disbelief as he looked between Cherrya and Enoch.

“I-Is that true?”

Cherrya couldn’t hide the storm of emotions on her face. She frowned.

Answering here and now would be the same as publicly sealing her political marriage with Enoch.

Her lips parted slightly but no words came. She simply clenched her fists tightly—and then, a large hand gently covered hers.

“Yes. It’s true.”