Emperor of Steel

Walk. Walk. And walk.

The dawn wasn’t so dark.

And there was a young person who seemed to be approaching the lordship of the Rakan Marquis.

The young one was wearing a white coat which symbolized the El Kassel denomination, and the face was covered with the hood.

However, because of the lean body, it was easy to figure out that the young wasn’t a man but a woman.

“Ha ah, I managed to come here at last!”

A clear and calm voice came out from the woman who looked at the manor.

She was a little exhausted with the long trip, however, she wasn’t tired to the extent of falling unconscious.

Taking steps again, she approached the gate of the manor.

Right then, the guards who were guarding the place approached the woman and spoke very politely.

“Glory to the messengers of the light which illuminates the darkness! I am very sorry, but this is the place where the Marquis of Rakan resides, and no one can enter without his permission.”

No matter who the man was, no human could enter the manor unless the guards were informed beforehand.

And after the recent attack from the assassins, the entrance had been asked to work more sternly.

At the words of the guard, the lady pushed back the hood which was covering her head.

Behind the hood was a woman with unparalleled beauty and green hair.

However, she wasn’t a human.

‘E, Elf!’

The guards were startled.

However, it wasn’t because of her being a beautiful elf that the other guard was shocked.

It was because the guard was familiar with her face and said, “By chance, are you Miss Erwin?”

There were very few fairies who were living in the Rakan estate.

The guards were often called by the Lord.

And the guards were made to memorize their names and appearances, including Erwin’s.

“Yes, I am Erwin Lesa. Go and inform the Marquis that I have come.”

“But, it is too late miss, the time is…”

The guards were rather flustered with her words.

It was because their Lord normally would be asleep by the time.

“Please move fast. I have come to visit the Lord in a secret manner, that is why I had to come at this time to meet him.”

She told them that so they wouldn’t ignore her request.

Though there was a little hesitation, the guards went and informed the butler that Erwin had arrived.

“What did you say? There is a visitor at this time? And would want to see our Lord?”

It was said that when a man gets old, morning sleep was usually decreased.

Hans, the butler and the deputy lord of the Marquis of Rakan, could feel his morning sleep decrease.

Being an early riser, he tried to complete the pending work in the morning, and he was puzzled with the report a guard has brought in.

“Did he inform who he was?”

“Yes, an Elf named Erwin Lesa.”

“Who? Erwin Lesa?!”

Hans knew that name very well.

The disciple of High Elf Erenes, the one who was closely involved with Princess Reina’s disappearance in the past, a 7th magic circle Archmage.

He too had seen her quite a lot of times.

Not long ago, he heard from the head of the Argos, Hudson, that his Lord was puzzled when the whereabouts of Erwin was declared as unknown.

“I guess that I need to go.”

Hans hurriedly put on his coat and headed to the entrance of the manor.

Indeed it was Erwin, dressed in pure white.

He couldn’t figure out why she, a wizard would be wearing a denomination’s clothes, but he was concerned that she might have something bad for Luke.

Which was why he wanted to decide after listening to her whether to grant an audience with his Lord or not.

“You are the butler, Hans. It has been so long.”

She greeted him first.

“I am glad to see you. But what is with the visit at this time? Can I know why you are going to meet the lord?”

She looked young, but Hans knew that the elf’s average age could be around 200 years, and he couldn’t speak recklessly towards her.

And more troubling was that Erwin was like the head of the fairies in the Rakan estates.

“I have something to speak to him.”

“… By any chance, are you trying to get him caught up in any strange request or incidents?”

Erwin sighed at Hans’s antipathy towards her.

“We have reflected on ourselves with the incident of Princess Reina. We weren’t aware enough. However, this time, I haven’t come to harm the Lord. I swear on the goddess of earth, Belize.”

“Uhm…”

Only after the promise of Erwin, Hans moved.

Fairies sure had big mouths, but they didn’t lie as frequently as humans.

Moreover, Erwin vowed to Belize.

The goddess of Earth, Belize, the one considered to be the mother of elves.

So, she couldn’t lie under that name.

“Would it be alright to know the reason?”

“That could be troublesome. It is related to the fairy clans…”

‘Clans of fairies?’

Hans knew that there was a slight revolt between the fairies in the estate.

The fairies haven’t told anything about the reason, so he couldn’t assume. But wondered if it related anything to his Lord.

“Then, I can’t help it. I will guide you, please follow me.”

“Thank you so much.”

After the conversation, the two of them moved into the manor, even as if the darkness of dawn still hadn’t set.