A Mage Reborn: Legacy of the Fallen Emperor
Chapter 53: Hang Him High

Chapter 53: Chapter 53: Hang Him High

But his mouth was still gagged. A final, humiliating spectacle to witness the end of his world, robbed even of the chance to utter his last words.

Derga’s bloodshot eyes blinked, his face a mask of unspeakable emotion.

"Die!"

A multitude roared for his death. Stripped bare, he was nothing more than a pathetic man. What had twisted him into such a monster?

"Hang him high!"

"Hang him high!"

The noose tightened around Derga’s neck. Five men below pulled on the thick rope, slowly raising his body.

"Ughhh...."

"Let any who have suffered under this man cast the first stone. Your stones shall be the foundation of Bariel’s strength, the very walls that uphold the glory of the Imperial Palace."

He thrashed, his body twisting, but it only served to tighten the rope further. The Count, suspended in the air, looked like a well-prepared pig.

The crowd erupted in jeers, and Kakantir, along with the other Cheonryeo warriors, stood solemnly, ready to witness his end.

"Waaaaa!"

"Throw! Kill him!"

Thud! Thwack!

Dozens of stones rained down on the execution platform. Erica, under the protection of her investigation squad, stepped back, watching Derga getting stoned while dangling in the air.

Then it happened.

Whoosh! Thunk!

A spear, thrown with lightning speed by one of the Cheonryeo, pierced Derga’s side. The crowd momentarily faltered in surprise, but the fervor, once ignited, did not easily subside.

"Derga!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Dozens more spears flew towards Derga’s swaying form, a brutal retribution from the Cheonryeo warriors. Most embedded themselves in his thighs and back, blood dripping down the shafts.

Whoooooosh!

And finally, Kakantir, who had been inspecting a sharp spearhead, narrowed his eyes, calculating the trajectory. Derga’s body was beginning to slump. Without hesitation, Kakantir hurled his spear. It ripped through the air with a sound unlike the others, piercing Derga’s chest.

It must have been a direct hit to the heart, Ian thought.

"Gack...!"

Derga’s eyes rolled back, a final breath escaping his lips. Then, the rope stilled completely, signifying Derga’s demise.

"Derga Bratz is dead."

"Derga Bratz is dead!"

Boooooo-

The sound of a horn signaled the end. People cheered, hurling insults at Derga’s lifeless corpse. They reveled in the execution, treating it as a festival.

Ian watched the spectacle with a strange detachment.

"Are you alright, Lord Ian?"

"...Pardon? Are you speaking to me?"

"You didn’t throw anything. Shouldn’t your hands have been the ones to choke the life out of Derga, instead of that rope?"

Kakantir glanced sideways at Ian. The thought of choking someone to death wasn’t exactly pleasant.

"Perhaps. But now that he’s dead, I feel... strange. There are things I wish I had said."

"Things you wish you had said?"

Like demanding Derga’s forgiveness, not as Emperor Ian, but as the bastard son, Ian.

History had changed in this life, but in the original timeline, Ian would have been sent across the border to become nothing more than a handful of sand. All because of his lineage, the blood of a Count flowing in his veins. And after Ian’s death, his mother, Philia, would have likely met the same fate. Lady Mary wouldn’t have let her live.

"Don’t you feel relieved that it’s over?"

"I do, but I also know this is just the beginning."

Ian stared at Derga’s body swaying in the wind. From this moment on, the name Bratz would be erased from the world.

Derga’s corpse was to be displayed in the square for several days, a stark reminder of the fate that awaited those who defied Bariel.

Erica, overseeing the cleanup of the execution platform, asked her subordinate, "Any word from Central Command?"

"Yes. But, um..."

"What is it this time?"

"Mary and Chell’s trail has gone cold."

"Damn it. Where did they lose them?"

"It seems they completely lost sight of the targets upon entering the forest. They’re still searching, using traces of burnt firewood and such, but the trail goes cold near the valley. They say it’s rough going. And..."

"And?"

Please, don’t let it be more bad news.

Reading the look in Erica’s eyes, her subordinate answered with difficulty, "They also received a messenger bird from the Assembly."

"...What?"

"They were ordered to return to the capital if the pursuit of Mary and Chell is delayed. They’re recalling all soldiers dispatched to the provinces. We’re not sure if this is a decision made by the Assembly."

It was the work of the First Prince, Marive. He must have discovered that the Second Prince, Gale, had stationed troops in the provinces. It was a fitting countermeasure. But Erica, unaware of this, could only close her eyes tightly and mutter,

"We’re screwed."

If Central Command couldn’t find Mary and Chell, how could the investigation squad possibly track them down? Even if they did, they’d likely be torn to shreds by those two Cheonryeo.

"By the way, Commander Erica, did you not receive a letter from Lord Molin?"

"What?"

"The commander of the reinforcements said that Lord Molin was instructed to follow the Assembly’s decision for now. He asked what we should do, but I didn’t know what to say because I hadn’t heard anything."

"Molin sent a message?"

Erica’s head whipped around in surprise. There was no way Molin would send a message to the Central Command’s leader and not to her. Erica realized then that something must have happened to the messenger bird.

"There’s no way it got lost. It had a lodestone."

Similar to a brooch, lodestones, originally from the same piece, possessed a magical affinity that guided messenger birds with pinpoint accuracy. They would wait patiently right outside the window.

Her subordinate, after a moment of thought, offered, "There are a lot of hawks in the mansion, aren’t there? Maybe it got eaten..."

It was a possibility. Erica, scowling, immediately went to get her horse. Her subordinates, who were cleaning up the square, called out to her, but Erica galloped straight towards the mansion.

Thud!

"Ian! Ian!"

"...What is it, Commander?"

"We need to cut open every hawk in this place."

To suddenly appear and demand to cut open hawks... Ian put down the documents he was holding, and the Cheonryeo warriors wore equally bewildered expressions. But they quickly realized she was serious and started to grumble.

"Don’t be ridiculous. We’ll cut your stomachs open before we touch the hawks."

"If even a single feather is plucked, you’ll be hanging next to Derga, you hear?"

"The hawks seem to have eaten the messenger bird!"

"Ah, the messenger bird."

Ian nodded as if he finally understood. He had been wondering what all the fuss was about. Erica paused, a look of ’don’t tell me...’ crossing her face.

"You knew?"

"Not exactly that the hawks ate it, but there was an incident. We buried the messenger bird properly, and the lodestone within the cloth has been kept separately."

"You dared to intercept an imperial messenger? That’s high treason, Ian!"

"It wasn’t from the Imperial Palace. It was a personal message from Molin."

Erica’s heart sank. What could Molin have written? He wasn’t a fool; he wouldn’t have put their plans in writing. But in the future, it could be seen as evidence of rebellion.

Erica’s demeanor softened.

"Give it back."

"Of course. I intended to give it to you as a gift when you left Bratz. We’ll have Derga’s body taken down within three days."

Leave within three days, and I’ll return the letter. That was the implication. Erica would have been expelled regardless, but this gave her a convenient excuse.

"It seemed like an urgent message from Lord Molin. If you were to leave immediately, rather than in three days, we would be even more grateful."

Erica’s pupils dilated, guessing at the contents of the letter.

In truth, it likely only contained information about the issues with the Lord appointment and that he would be coming down with an advisor soon. But Erica couldn’t possibly know that. It was more likely a letter meant to comfort a disheartened Erica rather than a crucial update.

Erica, her hands trembling, spoke each word with difficulty.

"Fine. We’ll retrieve the body and leave tomorrow."

"A welcome decision."

"Just as I am leaving, you too should leave before the advisor arrives. Don’t think you’re safe just because you didn’t inherit the Bratz name."

It sounded like a curse, delivered with as much desperation and wishful thinking as possible.

But it had no effect on Ian. Seeing his lack of reaction, Erica glared at the Cheonryeo warriors and continued,

"An advisor is officially appointed to manage the territory. It’s not someone a bastard from a brothel can play noble with, even if he has the backing of some barbarians."

"I would advise against using the term ’barbarians,’ Commander Erica. I wouldn’t want to be put in a difficult position when the advisor comes asking about your whereabouts."

It was a veiled threat, delivered with surprising elegance. But it didn’t quite register with Erica, who was about to lose her title and be forced to chase after Mary and Chell indefinitely.

"I will return. And when I do, you better be prepared. I’ll turn the Great Desert inside out."

"I doubt that will happen."

"Don’t delude yourself, Ian. It’s unbecoming."

At Erica’s words, Ian placed a hand over his heart, offering a noble’s bow. And then, an overflowing surge of mana. His green eyes turned golden, and an unfathomable energy filled the air. Erica could only stare, mesmerized.

Ziiiing.

"Commander Erica, you should abandon any hopes of returning and focus on finding Mary and Chell’s corpses. If you’re unlucky, you might just die out there in the wilderness."

"...A mana wielder?"

"Now, if you’ll excuse me. I won’t see you out."

"...."

Even the warriors, who were seeing this for the first time, watched Ian with interest. But that quickly faded as Ian returned to his normal state, the spectacle over as quickly as it began.

"Is that what magic is? It’s over?"

"Ah. That’s what Beric showed us back then."

"Does it change when you become a mage?"

"What’s that? How do you do it?"

"I don’t know. I just heard about it, man."

Leaving the chattering Cheonryeo behind, Erica walked out, dazed.

A mana wielder.

Now she understood how Ian had managed to win over the Cheonryeo and gain the confidence to become Lord.

"Commander Erica, are you alright? What did he say?"

"A mana wielder."

Forget being demoted to a slave, she would probably be summoned to the capital.

For the first time, Erica realized the extent of her defeat in Bratz. Her subordinate approached, concern etched on his face, but she was too lost in thought to respond.

"Commander Erica?"

"...Pack your things."

"Pardon?"

"We’re leaving the territory. Go, hand over Derga’s body to the Central Command. We will pursue Mary and Chell."

What could be more futile than chasing after the dead? If they were going to suffer anyway, it was better to start as soon as possible and at least show some effort to the Imperial Palace.

Meanwhile, Ian, listening to the warriors’ banter while reviewing documents, looked out at the distant green forest, thinking of someone.

"It’s about time..."

Time to see Philia. Ian’s birth mother, who must be hiding somewhere in the forest. With Derga and his family dead and her son returned, there was no need for her to remain hidden. But there was something more important.

’How did Ian come to possess the flower pot?’

She was the only one who knew the answer.