Chapter 10

‘As expected.’

The Crown Prince spoke.

“There’s nothing more to see. It’s been over thirty minutes since he went in, and not only is there no sign of the ‘Song of the Sword’, there isn’t even a flicker of light escaping… A coming-of-age ceremony perfectly suited for a fool.”

The Second Prince.

“I knew it would be like this. I wondered what kind of confidence made him act up, but there’s nothing at all. Truly, not even the slightest bit beyond my expectations.”

The Third Prince.

“…Let’s return. There’s nothing more to see here.”

Even the Fourth Prince.

The four princes watched the ceremony from afar, each taking turns to voice their impressions.

Their wording differed, but all four brothers shared the same thought.

In their eyes, Yuwon’s coming-of-age ceremony was so pitiful that it was embarrassing to even call it a prince’s ceremony.

“What were we expecting to see here, anyway? What a waste of time. Let’s go.”

Just as the Third Prince was about to lead his attendants away—

“Oh? He’s already coming out!”

“Eh? It’s true! I can see him!”

At someone’s cry, all eyes turned toward the main entrance of the Memorial Hall.

From a distance so far that ordinary people—unable to sense mana—could barely distinguish a human silhouette, a single figure was walking out.

And there was only one person who could be coming out from there now.

It was Yuwon.

“He must’ve given up early.”

It had only been thirty minutes since Yuwon entered the ‘Tomb of Swords’.

That was far too soon—unbelievably soon.

The spectators began murmuring.

“Seriously? He’s already coming out?”

“Is that really it? What about the Song of the Sword?”

“Hah… don’t tell me he went through the ceremony without any preparation at all? Does he even know what a coming-of-age ceremony means for a prince?”

As the murmuring grew—

“I expected this, but this is even faster than I thought. This’ll go down in history for a very special reason. Kuh, khuhuh.”

The Second Prince burst into laughter, unable to suppress his amusement.

His laughter was contagious. It spread like a plague, and soon the crowd followed suit, laughing aloud with him.

“Puhaha!”

“For such a special reason, indeed! Your Highness, you’ll make my stomach burst with laughter, hahahaha!”

The onlookers chattered and laughed among themselves, completely absorbed in their mockery.

None of them bothered to truly look at Yuwon.

The plaza rang with laughter. And no one found it strange.

They had wanted to laugh at the Fifth Prince’s pathetic coming-of-age ceremony, but had been hesitant out of respect for the imperial title.

Now that the Second Prince had given them permission, how could they resist?

Yet even amidst the laughter, the Emperor’s gaze remained fixed on Yuwon.

From his private seat, where he watched quietly, the Emperor was the first to notice what Yuwon held in his hand.

“…I’ve lost.”

“Eh? What did you just say, Your Majesty…?”

Startled by the words, Marquis Bradman quickly sharpened his vision to focus on Yuwon.

“H-how… how could he, in such a short time…?”

After seeing it with his own eyes, the Marquis wore a dazed, disbelieving expression.

The Emperor broke his reverie.

“Our business here is done. Let’s head back. It’ll get noisy soon enough.”

As if all was settled, the Emperor rose from his seat and turned to leave.

A faint smile curved his lips as he did so.

About a minute later, when the laughter toward Yuwon began to fade—

Yuwon, long dismissed and ignored by the crowd, had finally drawn close enough to be seen with the naked eye.

A minor noble standing beside the Second Prince, eager to curry favor, spotted him and raised his voice.

“The star of the day approaches! Shouldn’t we all rush out barefoot to greet him? Hahaha!”

A blatant mockery. Because of that voice, the crowd’s attention briefly—just briefly—returned to Yuwon.

“Wait—hold on. What’s that?”

Something was off.

One of the spectators, who had turned to look at Yuwon, suddenly shouted in shock.

“In his hand… what is that?”

“Huh?”

“Look! The Fifth Prince is holding something!”

The Fifth Prince is holding something!

It was an unbelievable claim.

Sensing the disturbance from afar, Yuwon’s lips curved into a faint smile.

‘Just as I thought.’

The eyes fixed on him changed in an instant.

And under that collective gaze, Yuwon smiled lightly.

‘So it’s that shocking to see the White Dog come out of the ceremony holding something.’

Amidst the spreading commotion, Yuwon took another step, and then another.

By now, those who could sense mana could faintly discern what he held.

Then, one of the Empress’s knights narrowed his eyes—and his expression twisted in utter horror, as though he had seen a ghost.

“W-wait! Th-that—!”

“What? What is it? What do you see?”

Unable to sense mana herself, the Empress asked urgently. The answer came from another direction.

“B-Baek… Baekbaek. The White Dragon Sword!”

“What?”

The White Dragon Sword?!

“What nonsense is that? Do you have any idea what you’re saying—!”

The laughter vanished completely at the mention of the White Dragon Sword — the twin blade said to have been forged alongside the White Lion Sword, the Emperor’s own symbol.

Eyes filled with disbelief all turned toward Yuwon’s right hand.

The idea that the wastrel Fifth Prince could be holding the White Dragon Sword was absurd beyond belief.

Those who had been standing still as though on a leisurely outing suddenly surged forward.

Before the name of the White Dragon Sword, even nobles of the highest standing forgot their dignity.

Those at the front finally saw it — the White Dragon Sword they had longed to see with their own eyes.

In the right hand of the Fifth Prince, who stood there with a calm face as though unaware of what he held, gleamed a sword of pure white.

“Ah… It really is the White Dragon Sword…!”

It no longer mattered who had said it.

Everyone saw it, and everyone knew it. And yet, it was something so astonishing that all still doubted their own eyes.

At that moment, each of the princes wore a different expression.

The Crown Prince, always composed, had a stiff face. The Second Prince cursed under his breath in disbelief.

The Third Prince, upon confirming the sword in Yuwon’s hand, abruptly rose and left his seat, while the Fourth Prince closed his eyes in prayer amid the uproar.

Only Yuwon himself remained calm.

‘I knew it was no ordinary sword… Looks like I’ll have to keep a low profile for a while.’

That was all Yuwon thought of it.

“…I, Guardian Sword Dant Ser Geiorn, in gratitude for the grace bestowed by the Empire, shall willingly protect the Lion and his bloodline for all eternity….”

The murmured recitation, spoken like a sigh, struck the onlookers’ minds like thunder muddled in mud.

Ah…! The wastrel Fifth Prince chosen by the White Dragon Sword! What a cruel joke of fate! The Empire is doomed!

Then, waiting in place for Yuwon’s return, Chief Attendant Marcellus stepped forward. He bowed deeply toward Yuwon, who was walking closer from afar.

Soon after, Marcellus continued the words another had been unable to finish.

“Whoever proves their worth before me — when the moon rises, I shall guard him in my sun’s stead. With neither doubt nor falsehood, I solemnly swear this before the night and my name….”

The inscription left upon a great stone tablet by Dant Ser Geiorn, the founding hero more renowned than the First Emperor himself.

While the White Lion Sword — symbol of the Emperor — passed from one Emperor to the next, the White Dragon Sword had remained alone within the Grave of Swords, waiting for its successor.

Ten years passed, then fifty, then a hundred.

The inscription faded from the tablet, and new swords filled the space beside it.

Even as other swords left their places upon finding new wielders, and new heroes’ blades took their place, the White Dragon Sword never once stirred.

For hundreds of years of imperial history, thousands had undergone the royal coming-of-age ceremony — yet none had ever emerged holding the White Dragon Sword.

That was, until today.

At last, the White Dragon Sword had chosen the one it would protect.

Since the founding of Aphahiel, the proud and untouchable hero’s sword that had never once acknowledged a master — had chosen Yuwon.

The next day.

From early morning, spring rain began to fall.

The gentle drizzle that began at dawn grew into unexpectedly heavy drops by noon, soaking the Imperial Palace and the entire capital with long-forgotten moisture.

Perhaps because of the unseasonable rain, the palace atmosphere was strangely different from usual.

“Have you heard the news?”

“About the Fifth Prince’s coming-of-age ceremony? Don’t even mention it. My ears are sore from hearing about it all morning.”

“….”

Not even twenty-four hours had passed since Yuwon’s ceremony, yet rumors had already spread through the entire palace — not a soul remained ignorant of the White Dragon Sword’s appearance.

‘The White Dragon Sword chose the Fifth Prince!’

The mere fact that the wastrel Fifth Prince had undergone the ceremony had already drawn great curiosity, but now that the White Dragon Sword had been involved, how could such a story not spread?

The legendary White Dragon Sword — spoken of only in myths — had chosen its wielder.

After hundreds of years, a new guardian had appeared; it should have been cause for celebration.

But no celebration was held.

Because the chosen guardian was—

“Of all people in the royal family, it had to be the Fifth Prince.”

“Hah, what’s to become of this country… A pearl before swine, they say — and now the White Dragon Sword in the hands of that wastrel White Dog.”

Though none dared speak openly, dissatisfaction simmered beneath the surface.

“At least, those who witnessed the ceremony said the ‘Song of the Sword’ was pitifully weak. Whatever meaning General Geiorn saw in choosing the Fifth Prince, there’s no way that White Dog will ever become Emperor.”

“The meaning’s obvious enough — probably just to make that scoundrel act like a decent human being for once. Sigh… let’s hope this doesn’t bring misfortune.”

Most who spoke of yesterday’s event discussed the White Dragon Sword’s bewildering choice. But there were exceptions.

“Your Majesty, please grant me the honor of instructing the Fifth Prince.”

So said Marquis Bradman, known as the Empire’s Greatest Sword.

To him, the fact that Yuwon had awakened the White Dragon Sword was less important than that he had awakened mana within just five days.

A talent unseen in all of recorded history — perhaps since the dawn of the Empire itself.

That unprecedented brilliance ignited the Marquis’s heart.

“The Fifth Prince’s gift is nothing less than a divine blessing upon Aphahiel. If you entrust him to me, within ten years—”

“I’m afraid that won’t be possible.”

Though it was a rare request from a close friend, the Emperor refused without hesitation.

“…Even if I ask in Rev’s name — or rather, in Revildren’s name — would it still be difficult?”

“Ah… even then, I’m afraid so.”

Marquis Bradman, unusually for him, even invoked his friend’s name, but it did no good. The Emperor spoke apologetically.

“…I already spoke to my youngest about it, and he said this — how could one man serve two masters?”

“Two masters? Ah… could it be…?”

The Emperor nodded.

“Your son. Or should I say, the son of the South? Terrien — that boy apparently tutored Yurion while he prepared for his own ceremony.”

When he’d first heard that someone so young — barely able to handle his own affairs — had instructed the Fifth Prince, he’d brushed it off as nonsense, thinking the wastrel and the boy were a perfect pair of misfits.

“Hah… to think he blossomed without a proper teacher…”

Now he realized it hadn’t been an empty rumor.

The Emperor consoled his dazed friend.

“My heart is the same as yours. Let’s wait and see. When the chance comes, I’ll make the introduction.”

It was unlike him to lean on old friendship to soothe the matter. The Marquis blinked out of his stupor and bowed deeply.

“Your Majesty’s gracious concern humbles me. Please forgive my rudeness — I was blinded for a moment.”

“No rudeness between us, my friend.”

The matter ended on good terms.

“Though belated, allow me to offer congratulations, Your Majesty. With both the White Dragon Sword and a talent worthy of it, the youngest prince’s path will surely differ from before.”

“Thank you. I find myself, strangely enough, holding expectations for that youngest son… truly curious, isn’t it? Haha.”

“Ah, come to think of it, then our wager…”

“I lost rather splendidly. That boy outdid his own father, it seems. Haha, what can I say? I’ll have to hear the story myself.”

“You’ve been bested, Your Majesty.”

“Haha. And yet, I can’t say it feels bad.”

The two old friends shared the same, familiar smile.