Above Your Head

Chapter 100: For the Crown (5)

We are graced by the presence of the Queen of Starlight, the pride of our Leonhardt Empire. I heard you were the last to meet His Majesty the Emperor... My deepest condolences to you. Amon, who was on the podium, talked to us. There was literally no warning. It was a surprise attack.

"…Damn it." Rosta, who got up from his seat, let out a low groan and sat back down again. He noticed that everyone who was in the main council room had their eyes directed at us.

"There really isn't any information..." Celestia frowned and murmured softly. She was right that there was no information. With no background, she herself was no match for other nobles or royalties. Furthermore, it was difficult for her to obtain any proper information upon going against forces that were larger than her. Basically on her own, she was overwhelmingly behind in the battle for information.

When Celestia fought against the Sixth Imperial Prince, or when she suddenly encountered the Crown Prince, both princes lost composure and were in dire straits only because I was present as a variable. Even though that was how events had unfolded when she faced off against the Sixth Imperial Prince, the Crown Prince had picked the perfect timing to interfere just as soon as Celestia got off the Albatross ship before meeting with her fans. If she failed to properly resist and things turned out according to their will, the countless fans or the Noblesse wouldn't have been able to help her. In that particular case, they wouldn't have been able to even see her face, so they wouldn't have been able to tell if she had been taken by the Leonhardt Imperial family or if she had left on her own accord.

'Moreover, even now, she's swept away in the midst of the enemy's scheme,' I thought. The current situation was extremely dangerous, where even the slightest bit of misconduct and blunder would snare Celestia in the enemy's conspiracy.

Thank you for your concern, Duke. However, isn't there something more important than showing your concern over my well-being? Celestia responded calmly, since this was not the first or second time this sort of situation had occurred.

Something more important to do?

...That's a strange question to ask, Duke. Is there anything more important at this moment than uncovering the assassin who murdered my father? Celestia took a blunt stab at it, indirectly asking the Duke what nonsense he was spouting. She thought he should first be revealing the culprit who killed the Emperor, or disclosing the details of the investigation. This was not some Question and Answer time for him to try having a regular one-on-one conversation with her, who was seated, from the podium.

That's correct. As expected, the Queen of Starlight is a person of intelligence. Amon nodded and agreed with Celestia's words. However, at that moment, I could feel the contempt flashing from where he was.

'Would you look at that?' [1] I buried myself in the fluffy seat. For better or worse, no one seemed to be interested in me. This reminded me of a situation where a celebrity and their manager passed by a group of people. Everyone would conveniently ignore the presence of the manager, who was me, while they would all concentrate on the celebrity, who would be Celestia in this situation.

It would be great if I could accurately read their minds, I thought. No matter how versatile their titles were, I could not figure out the target's objectives or plans. Looking at those countless titles could possibly offer up clues to deduce the objectives or plans, but it was a difficult feat to pull off. It would be easier if they were held in place in front of me for tens of minutes, so I could look into them and investigate.

'Regrettably, I have to use the most effective Classification.' I pondered over it. Ability, Emotion, Status, so on and so forth… I needed to look into such keywords in order to directly obtain as much information as I could from a single title. Even if I couldn't uncover all the conspiracies of the enemies in one shot, I could at the very least identify one or more pieces of information.

While I quietly pondered by the side, Celestia continued to speak, I would like to know how far the Senate has figured out regarding this situation. Did you find the culprit?

It goes without saying that we haven't identified the culprit. Amon's reply was calm and unwavering.

At that moment, I found the appropriate keyword. Truth. I slightly leaned in, hiding behind Celestia to whisper softly. It was an unnecessary move, since the seats in the main council room had a function that prevented any sound leaks, but it was better to prevent being seen. I did not want anyone to read my lips. "It's a lie."

Celestia was momentarily stunned by my words. However, she immediately stared at Duke Amon without any changes in her facial expression. It's not a scheme that you all had planned out, right?

For an instant, even the relaxed Duke Amon could not come up with an answer. The other nobles and elders who stood on the podium looked at Celestia with a look of dismay. All of them knew just how devastating and dangerous a question that was. This girl… Everyone including her samcheon, Rosta, looked at Celestia as if she was mad.

I was the only one who knew why Celestia had asked such a dangerous question. She was able to quickly figure out my abilities, so she made the risky move of attempting to obtain the most important information that was not easy to attain. And the result was…

You seem to have lost your cool due to the grief of losing His Majesty the Emperor... Although it's discourteous, I'll let it pass.

That means it's unrelated to you all.

Of course. Amon's answer was resolute and without any hesitation. He had such a clear and determined gaze that seemingly made it impossible for anyone in the world to doubt him.

However, I shook my head. "Lies..." It was great that I knew the truth, but the situation was looking bleak. This place was full of nobles gathered by the Senate's summons, so we were basically in the middle of enemy territory.

Given that the Duke was blatantly lying to us, it seemed like the surrounding nobles did not participate in the Emperor's murder. But then again, it was no different from treason… How could he publicly comment on it then? If a conflict was to rise between Duke Amon and Celestia, however, it was almost certain that the nobles would definitely not provide us with any help.

There was a huge gap between the Consul and Celestia. The Consul was the highest administrative position, and the one controlling the governing power for the administration and military. Meanwhile, Celestia only possessed a small force as an Imperial Princess without any other backing.

That's a relief. Then, can I ask for a faster investigation and for that information to be disclosed?

Absolutely.

While I was watching and fearing that some sort of major incident would happen, Celestia sat back down after the conversation unexpectedly wrapped up in a smooth manner. It seemed that she was coming on too strong, so Duke Amon backed off from his initial attempt to find fault with her.

"Fortunately, we got over that safely... By the way..." Rosta, who had been quiet, squinted and stared at me. "What did you mean? That it was a lie?"

"He literally meant what he just said. Dae-ha has an ability that grasps the authenticity of what the other person says."

Rosta frowned at Celestia's calm explanation. He then said, "If it was an intelligence-type ability, I would like to say that it was a hasty judgment. Rather, such cheap tricks won't work on a transcendent who has reached the level of a Compléter. Most of all, after listening to a man who doesn't seem to have reached such a high stage, you did such an extremely dangerous..."

"Samcheon." Celestia sighed as she swiftly cut off Rosta's words. "Do I look stupid to you? Moreover, Father allowed this marriage. Do you also think he is a stupid fool? Why on earth would you think that this guy is an ordinary human being?"

"What? But..." Rosta's voice trailed off.

I shrugged at the middle-aged blonde-haired man who looked in my direction with an incomprehensible look. Then, he turned to look at Celestia again and said, "No matter how I look at him, isn't he an ordinary human being?"

Among the royalties, only those with special eyes could feel 'something' in me. Then again, my body was that of an extremely ordinary human being. The soul power I possessed also did not go beyond the level of a beginner. From an ordinary perspective, it was expected to perceive me as a normal human being. I was only surprised that even transcendents could not figure it out. Did my power have nothing to do with the realm or stage I was in?

"It's complicated, so stop spouting nonsense and just assume that that is true. If they killed my father…how on earth did that act benefit them in any way?"

"What do you mean 'benefit'?" Rosta still seemed unconvinced, but he was also lost in thought. He only pondered for a moment before saying, "…There's nothing, though?"

"Nothing?"

"That's right. No matter how much I think about it, there's nothing. Even if they were aiming to rebel… It is not the best time to do so now. Of all things, countless outsiders and even Noblesse have come to this planet, so it is illogical for them to cause an incident. No matter how much they try to block it, they won't be able to stop the information from leaking out."

There were countless abilities that existed in the Great Universe, and the numbers remained innumerable. These included the abilities formed through a specific study, the superpowers awakened under a special environment, as well as the power awakened from the bloodline just like the royalties. Among them, the most difficult to block was information-related abilities that could independently analyze the information. For example, the Foresight ability was capable of seeing the future, while a psychometric ability was capable of seeing the past of a particular object or place.

There was even a bizarre kind of ability that could hear secrets related to the information. I heard that beings who possessed The Devil Behind the Door ability were even more valuable than the extremely rare Foresight ability users.

'I see. They can't help but be afraid that there might be someone with that kind of ability among Cel's fan club,' I thought.

Which job would be best-suited for people with information-related abilities? That would be a reporter. In order to succeed as a proper reporter in the Great Universe, which was overflowing with all kinds of high-level ability users, information-related abilities were necessary. Horus was rumored to be famous for being the universe's largest media outlet, and their Chief Director was said to be able to read documents that existed in other galaxies while seated in the Director's Office. Hence, it was self-explanatory and required no further explanation.

If so... Celestia was someone who was greatly known for her title as a Space Idol. It was then highly likely that reporters would be mixed among fans who flocked together upon hearing that Celestia was in danger. In fact, it was almost a guarantee that a reporter would be present. Who knows, there might even be more reporters mixed in than I thought there would be.

"But even so, the Emperor was still killed. That is an indisputable truth," Celestia spoke in an unwavering tone that was filled with confidence.

However, Rosta disagreed. "Get a hold of yourself, Cel. I know this guy is a great pilot, but this is a completely different matter. Even the greedy nobles… No, on the contrary, it is precisely because they are greedy nobles that we shouldn't forget that there would be no reason for them to do such a thing." His disagreement was firm. No matter what Celestia said, he had already come to his own conclusion.

"Certainly, that's true." Just then, a new voice which didn't belong to me or Celestia interrupted their conversation. "However, it is a fact that not everything in the world goes according to a predetermined plan."

"...!" I jumped up from my seat in surprise. It was just too familiar a voice to me.

"You are...?"

"Long time no see." The man was a typical Westerner with dazzling blond hair and blue eyes. He looked to be about sixty or seventy years old, but was strangely dressed in oriental silk clothes and held a white fan.

"Cheong Won..." I groaned and looked around. His unexpected appearance did not garner any reactions from the surroundings. No, it was beyond the extent of earning no new reactions…

"You don't have to look around like that. I've stopped time."

"Now even stopping time is possible, huh..." I mumbled in bafflement, though it wasn't too surprising a thing. Compared to the Time Reversal, which was a great miracle, something like stopping time was a merely trivial thing.

Schururuk! However, as Cheong Won came in front of me, he suddenly took out a container that contained something similar to sticks and scattered it into the air. Then, the sticks that were in the container floated up in the air. Moving in a fixed manner, it then stopped after that.

Cheong Won's face frowned grimly. "It's still the same? I already moved away from the flow of cause and effect. Even when I'm only moving in a suspended time...?" While he mumbled as if he couldn't understand the situation, I looked at his title.

Bong Rae-do

Fate of Death, Jwa Ja

I remembered the time when I used my keys to awaken my own bloodline. At that time, I searched for Cheong Won's future to get rid of any future troubles that would arise from being caught by him. I had to do so before I became weak again, but I could only read his death and couldn't obtain any other information. I had no idea why he died, or who killed him.

'Destined to die.' That was essentially what Cheong Won's title meant. Foresight did not only show one future, but it showed countless futures depending on the branch of time and all kinds of variables. Yet, there was only one future prepared for him.

"This isn't the time for this. I came here to negotiate with you."

"Are you saying you want to negotiate with me?"

"That's right. You decided to marry the Fourth Imperial Princess. If... If you swear to give me the body of the child born to you and the Fourth Imperial Princess, I will help you." Cheong Won did not beat around the bush, nor did he drag his feet. It was a very direct deal. He looked at me with a restless expression, as if he was being chased by something.

"Do you think I would agree to that?" I asked, before… Rattle rattle. I could hear the sound of a door shaking from somewhere.

"There's a good enough reason for you to agree. Try thinking about your current situation. The Emperor is dead and you've entered a lion's den.[/ref] Duke Amon is already determined to kill you. The Fourth Imperial Princess will be taken into his captivity, and sold for a reasonable price. On the other hand, your body won't even be found."

Rattle rattle. While the door kept shaking, I wanted to pressure him by saying, 'Release this immediately! What do you think you're doing right now?!' Instead, I asked, "So I have to agree to this if I want to live?"

"It's not just a matter of living on. Although I'm bound by a mission, I am still an Intermediate-rank transcendent, so I can help you in many ways. I can make your name renowned throughout the entire universe. And also..."

"Come to think of it, Jwa Ja, there's something I want to ask you."

"...What did you say?" Cheong Won made a blank face, as if he was struck by lightning. I had suddenly called him by a different name.

However, I ignored his reaction and asked, "The body you have right now is also the body of a royalty from the Leonhardt Empire, right?"

Jwa Ja was an ascetic existence that came from the end of China-Later Han. [2] From the very beginning, I found it strange that the progenitor of Forbidden Arts, Jwa Ja, [3] had a Westerner's body. He was obviously from China, so it didn't make sense for him to have blonde hair and blue eyes. However, now that I think about it, I roughly knew where the blond hair and blue eyes had come from.

"Judging from my observations, I guess that body wasn't good enough to satisfy you. It seems you're getting older and growing weaker. It is no wonder that I couldn't recognize you until now." I looked at him and laughed in the stopped time.

Cheong Won, no, Jwa Ja was looking at me with a stunned expression. "You, who are you? How did you recognize me? What is your true identity?"

"Me? Who knows?" I laughed as the door shook. Rattle rattle.

Hawa thought I could not awaken my own bloodline without the key I had inherited from my Father, but that was clearly a great misconception. If I opened the locked door with a key, then I wouldn't need a key after that. I would be able to open the door just by turning the handle. There were plenty of hints. Didn't I repeatedly seal the enemies who interfered with the key from a long distance? If it was possible to seal it, then it was obviously also possible to unlock it.

Rattle rattle. The door was shaking.

"...Something has changed. You're not who you used to be just a while ago. Who are you?" Jwa Ja scowled at me with a serious expression, taking out five or six talismans. Each of the talismans were Bobae-rank [4] talismans imbued with unprecedented power.

However, all I did was laugh. "Who am I huh..." I remembered the time when I tried to get rid of him, all to protect myself in my lowly human state. I couldn't find him then, because all I could see was his death. Back then, I was flustered by the fact that I couldn't see anything. However, I finally knew the reason.

"I am..." I murmured and… Wiiiiingggg… The Shadow Stalker that was on my left hand transformed from a watch to a revolver. I naturally aimed the revolver at him and said, "...your death."

1. This is a rhetorical question used to cynically comment on something.

2. Later Han is the fourth of the Five Dynasties in Ancient China.

3. Jwa Ja is actually the name of Zuo Ci in Korean. Zuo Ci is a character from the Three Kingdoms.

4. Bobae is Korean for Baobei 宝贝, which means treasure in Mandarin.