Bad Born Blood Chapter 284

284
I know Kinuan, yet I do not know.

After all, who in this world can completely understand others?

I don’t know Giselle. Her whereabouts are still a mystery.

How could I possibly understand the inner conflict and agony of my father, Heilas? The dead cannot speak, so I have no way of knowing.

Not only Ivan Kratsya, but also Mushir Al-Kashra’s psychology can only be read superficially.

It was equally difficult to understand Ilay Kartika, who risked his life for me. His emotions and inner self were like mixed paints, and it was difficult to discern the differences in color.

And it would be the same for them. Who would know me completely? They only know the existence of ‘Luka’ through my words and actions and vague clues.

‘But I know one thing for sure: there is no such thing as a ‘perfect person.’

Even the superhuman emperors of the empire are those who struggle to become perfect beings. Even Mushir Al-Kashra, a monster who lived for hundreds of years, was an imperfect being.

The same goes for Kinuan. He is neither a god of chaos nor omnipotent.

‘Kinuan is like me.’

You will be pushing yourself to the limit every time and achieving results with difficulty.

I was only looking at Kinuan’s results. I didn’t see Kinuan’s struggles, and I disparaged the ‘efforts’ he had accumulated. I just opened my mouth like an idiot, and assumed to myself that Kinuan, who was so great, must have ‘achieved’ it easily with some great scheme.

… … Kinuan was building his own tower over and over again in a place I couldn’t see. He was just looking down at me from up there, pretending to be noble.

But before I knew it, the tower he had built was breaking again and again, and he was standing at the height of my gaze.

I don’t have to look up at Kinuan anymore.

“Hmm, where should I start?”

Ivan was wandering around the garden, thinking. I watched him and said something.

“Please tell me the origin of Kinuan as you know it. I no longer want to perceive Kinuan as a being shrouded in mystery.”

Ivan chuckled, only showing his side profile.

“Good judgment. Mysteries and secrets lose their power once you figure out the reason. The moment you know the background and motivation, it becomes easier to understand the principle of the person’s behavior. The unknown is the basis of fear.”

Ivan gestured to a rock next to the pond, telling me to sit down.

I sat down, thinking it would be a long story. This garden was said to be made of the earth’s original species, but I was not particularly impressed. It seemed like a meaningless luxury.

Ivan sat down on the rock across from me, leaned forward, and rested his chin on it.

“Luka, the imperial family is more complicated than you think. The emperor and his direct descendants seem to be absolute beings, but… … that’s not always the case. There are also the annoying collateral branches that keep them in check. They are opportunists who will show their fangs as soon as Kratzia becomes weak.”

Ivan started talking. He tried to tell the story of Kinuan while explaining the royal situation.

“The secrecy of the imperial family is not only aimed at the imperial people and nobles, but is also a shield to keep the truth from being revealed even to the other members of the imperial family.”

“Secrecy and perfection go hand in hand. We can’t be perfect. But we can pretend to be perfect while hiding our imperfections. That’s why Aquis Domini is one of the great ruling tools.”

Even without direct orders or actions from the Emperor, Archies Domini helps the currents to flow according to the Emperor’s will.

‘If you look at the flow, it seems like the Emperor is omnipotent and has foreseen and prepared for all events.’

The events of the Storm Period almost went as the Emperor intended. It was an opportunity to eliminate the subversive elements of the Empire all at once and unite around the Emperor. If it weren’t for my intervention, it would have happened that way.

If the Storm had ended as the Emperor intended, the power of the unified Empire would have spread quickly outward, that is, it would have started a war.

“Luka, the current instability is largely your fault. You lost your authority because the throne was suddenly transferred. No matter what excuse you make, the flow is unnatural.”

“And… … the reign of His Majesty the previous emperor was very stable. So it will seem more unstable. It will be easy to compare.”

I’ll summarize Ivan’s story before it gets unnecessarily long. What I’m curious about is Kinuan.

“Acquis Domini, Kinuan has contributed greatly to the stability of the government, even from my memory. So my father would have trusted Kinuan without a doubt. However, I do not know much about Kinuan either.”

Ivan spoke about Kinuan quietly, recalling his memories.

‘It’s not much different from what I know.’

Kinuan was from the lower classes. He was also an irregular like me.

‘Before and after his cadet days, Kinuan… … caught the eye of the former Archies Domini, Zveli. Since then, he has been a loyal servant of the emperor.’

I opened my mouth as Mushir Al-Kashra came to mind.

“Zebeli’s brain was in Mushir al-Kashra.”

“It was something my father and Kinuan did. I don’t know the details. But my father felt he had to deal with Zveli. Whether Zveli was a rebel or Kinuan was the one causing the strife.”

I held back a laugh. I remembered Kashura’s words one by one. Kashura also had memories of Zveli.

‘Kashra said that Kinuan handed over Zveli. Kinuan’s schemes may have been part of the conflict between Zveli and the Emperor. It is also true that Zveli was not trustworthy.’

Kinuan is not a person who can artificially change the flow. If he had, he would have been suspected and killed long ago.

‘Kinuan must have noticed the subtle conflict between Zveli and the Emperor and naturally tried to sow discord.’

This inference is only a hypothesis based on circumstantial evidence. The truth may be different. Let’s keep that in mind.

“Father, Kinuan… … um, let’s rest for a moment, Luca.”

Ivan groaned and touched his forehead. He was panting, complaining of a headache.

Ivan Kratsya is the Emperor. He will be wearing a body made by the best geniuses in the Empire, and will be inspected every day.

If there is any ‘abnormality’ in Ivan, it is only a ‘brain dysfunction’.

‘Functional abnormality.’

I watched Ivan quietly. Ivan revealed to me that he was experiencing dysfunction.

‘Ivan is showing me his weakness. Is this a trap?’

I ran my fingers along my rough neck. The metal collar that clung to my skin was the leash Ivan had given me.

‘Is it because I’m wearing a wooden armor that I can reveal my weaknesses without hesitation? Because if I spill my secrets, I can be killed at any time?’

After about five minutes, Ivan was barely able to look at me out of the corner of his eye. He occasionally muttered something to himself.

‘Stop, it’s okay, not yet… … .’

I let Ivan’s ramblings sink into my mind. He was resisting something.

“Luka, who am I?”

Ivan’s entire body was covered in cold sweat. His sweat had a refreshing scent. What a luxurious body.

“You are the emperor of the empire.”

“That’s not me. Tell me something closer to the essence.”

“Guardian of humanity, father of the nation, successor of Dino Kratzia… … .”

Ivan grimaced at my dry words.

“That’s not it!”

Ivan screamed. There was a rather aggressive wave. The pond rippled and the grass swayed. Stunned fish floated to the surface.

I thought about it for a while and then blurted out the words.

“You are Ivan. It’s the name I chose among Nero, Ivan, and Selim.”

After I finished speaking, I bit my lower lip.

My mind was tickling. I felt like I was getting a clue. The secret that Emperor Ivan Kratsya was holding was right before my eyes.

“Yeah, I’m Ivan. Ha, ha, good, great.”

Ivan’s expression brightened.

… … I hope my guess is wrong. I frowned.

“We were talking about Kinuan, Ivan.”

I called Ivan’s name again and brought him back to consciousness.

Ivan looked satisfied and ran his hands through his sweaty hair.

“Father trusted Kinuan, and Kinuan betrayed that trust. That’s all you need to know. He is a great traitor who would betray the Emperor’s trust.”

Ivan looked at me as he said that.

“Then does that mean I am also a great sinner?”

Hmm, it sounds like I said that out of frustration. Ivan just laughed at what I said.

“That depends on your future actions. You will now know as much about the Empire and the royal family as Kinuan. Luca, whether you like it or not, you have seen a fair amount of the legacy of the Arcane civilization.”

I nodded, recalling the memory.

“People have a misconception. They think that in order to use a technology and phenomenon, you have to understand its structure and principles. But reality is different. We deal with phenomena and results before we know the structure and principles. We can deal with causes and interpretations later. Ever since we could not scientifically interpret the phenomenon of ignition, humans have been skilled at using fire. The same goes for the technology and heritage of the Arcane civilization. Even if you don’t know the origin and principles of the technology right now… … you just have to somehow make it work.”

Ivan clasped the tips of his fingers together and slowly spread them apart.

Chijik.

A holographic thread flowed from Ivan’s fingernails and created a screen.

On the screen, the ruins and relics of the Arcane civilization flashed by.

Among them, there was one I recognized. It was a capsule-shaped teleportation device that I had seen before.

“Imagine if we gave our guns to our ancestors who carved axes out of stone. Some of them would understand that the trigger would be pulled by accident and a powerful projectile would be released. The one who figured out the principle would be the loser of the whole world. He might even be praised as a god. Until the magazine runs out.”

“Are you saying that compared to the Arcane civilization, we are primitive people with stone axes?”

“I see you understand so well, I want to throw you a snack. Don’t frown like that. I consider it a compliment.”

“… … I guess so.”

The scene of the hologram that Ivan unfolded with his hand froze.

The hologram contained a single helmet. It was a helmet with a beautiful, squiggly circuit decoration that glowed from the outside. At first glance, the complex circuitry looked like the folds of a brain.

“The Empire is studying countless arcane relics and technologies, but this is one of the most important relics among them.”

I looked at the helmet-shaped relic and drew countless lines of reasoning. None of them appealed to me. They all led to unpleasant conclusions.

At least for now, I don’t mind being an idiot and I hope that all my guesses are wrong.

“… … What is this?”

“It hasn’t been that long since we figured out what this relic does. We call it a ‘mental war machine.’”

Why do bad feelings usually come true? Life is always absurd.

The pieces that had been buried in the swamp began to rise. The flow of events appeared in my mind.

I closed my eyes and opened them.

“How much longer do I have left to be the Ivan I know? I don’t want to wait another week, so I guess I’ll have to tell you this quickly.”

Ivan smiled with a face covered in cold sweat.

“It’s still okay. I’m quite restrained by your presence. Right now, I can’t hear ‘Father’s Whisper.’”

… … This is the worst.