### Chapter: 324
The Unleashing and the Poison King
After the suppression of the Igrit, the smoke that once lingered in Lagrain vanished.
The Poison King quickly gathered his men and headed for the Kingdom of Jeblam, the last bastion.
This time, it was the Igrits that had intentionally stirred up chaos.
However, Jeblam was already known for its tendency to go berserk from time to time.
Consequently, the noble families responsible for Jeblam knew how to manage such outbreaks effectively.
Lagrain was no different.
Thus, the Poison King mobilized his people to deal with the rampant disturbances in Jeblam.
“This situation is left to the Poison King.”
The problem wasn’t just limited to Lagrain.
The Igrits were simultaneously shaking the Jeblam that the Empire was managing.
While Lagrain had the illustrious Poison King among the Ten Great Lords at their disposal, which allowed them to react even if a bit late, some other noble families would just keep watch at the entrances.
“Well, it’s not like Jeblam usually has simultaneous outbreaks.”
The Empire had a large expanse of land.
Therefore, there were many Jeblams they needed to manage.
Yet, the reality was that the number of noble families capable of controlling the Jeblam was limited.
To address this, the Empire had enlisted several capable noble families to oversee multiple Jeblams.
Checking the Jeblams regularly while on patrol was no big deal for these noble families.
For the Empire, this reduced excessive power consumption, and for the noble families, it was a reasonable trade-off for the rights granted by the imperial family.
However, now, this was turning into a definite downside.
No matter how skilled a noble family might be, they couldn’t handle multiple Jeblams going wild at the same time.
Ideally, if the Jeblam they managed started rampaging simultaneously, they could request temporary assistance from other families.
But now, with the Jeblams raging across the Empire, there was no one to help.
Therefore, there would undoubtedly be areas of the Empire ready to abandon their Jeblams.
Or they might later consider calling for help from nearby countries, anticipating damage to future diplomacy.
“Sigrid!”
Understanding the urgency, Kraush put aside his exhaustion and urgently looked for Sigrid.
The only one at this location who could connect the Poison King directly to the Emperor was Sigrid.
Kraush opened the door that led to Sigrid’s location.
Sera, Sigrid’s guard, who had been waiting by the entrance, bowed her head upon seeing Kraush.
When Kraush shifted his gaze, there was Sigrid, communicating with someone through a magic orb.
Upon catching the eye of Kraush, she raised a finger to signal him to wait a moment.
Kraush quickly figured out who Sigrid was conversing with.
The Emperor, Sirius Ephania.
They were on a direct line.
“Well, then I take that as a confirmation.”
With that, Sigrid concluded her conversation.
She then turned to Kraush.
“I’ve received permission to get support from Starlon.”
Kraush paused upon hearing that.
Because Sigrid’s statement meant he had come here to win that very permission.
Starlon was linked to the Holy Royal Family.
The Holy Royal Family possessed expertise related to World Erosion.
Moreover, Starlon and the Empire were not far apart, and if they utilized the teleportation methods from Rahern Academy, travel could be even faster.
Kraush was a person who had all that authority.
He had the right to connect directly with Durandal, the Grand Headmaster, as well as the authority to call Starlon to action.
And he was the only one who wouldn’t face criticism for protecting the Empire’s interests.
The imperial family had publicly declared Kraush to be a hero of the Empire.
The Emperor’s authority in the Empire was absolute.
From the moment they made that declaration, no matter how deeply intertwined Kraush was with the people of Starlon.
The entire Empire had no choice but to show him a friendly response.
Additionally, Kraush was even announced as the fiancé of the Fourth Princess.
Though she had minimal rights to inherit the throne, the term “fiancé” implied that he would soon be one of the Empire’s own.
The Empire surely viewed their position as superior to that of Starlon.
It would seem that Sigrid was coming to marry Kraush rather than him coming to marry her.
Thus, even if Kraush summoned support troops from the Holy Royal Family, the Empire would not perceive it as an invasion but rather interpret it as their future son-in-law bringing reinforcements.
Of course, neither Starlon nor the Holy Royal Family had any reason to oppose this arrangement.
For them, this was an opportunity to put the biggest power in the world, the Empire, in their debt.
A win-win situation for everyone.
However, the situation had not been orchestrated by Kraush himself.
“Sigrid, did you have this planned from the start?”
The one who had crafted this situation stood right before Kraush.
It was none other than Sigrid Ephania.
Even if there had been spies involved from the start, it was peculiar that she had followed him all the way to Lagrain.
But Kraush had a feeling Sigrid had a different plan all along.
Having heard Kraush’s question, Sigrid flashed a mischievous smile.
“I hoped you wouldn’t find it unpleasant. But honestly, is there a better situation to get involved in the events unfolding between the Empire and several nations?”
Sigrid had sensed that Kraush aimed to expand his reach across the world.
He had a goal.
Yet, that path was fraught with various obstacles.
Especially considering the dynamics between the Empire and Starlon, Kraush would find it exceedingly difficult to intrude into the Empire.
Sigrid had caught on to this and quickly removed a significant hurdle standing in front of Kraush.
Though Sigrid had acted independently without informing him of this, she was slightly apologetic about it.
Kraush simply chuckled lightly.
“I’m not the type to get offended by those kinds of things.”
In his youth, he had been rejected when adults would give him things they deemed good for him just because he didn’t want them.
Kraush had not lived his life in vain.
He took everything, recognizing that life was tough enough.
So, when someone offers him a delicious piece of honey, there was no way he wouldn’t take it.
“Actually, you did well. Your judgment was right. Thanks to you, things have become a lot smoother.”
Kraush was doing anything and everything to protect the world from destruction.
And above all, he was acutely aware of his own shortcomings.
Kraush was not a dazzling genius.
He had become what others might call a monster, but that was due to his fervent tenacity and a series of fortunate events.
There were still many aspects in which he lacked.
Therefore, it was often better for someone brilliant in these fields to take the reins rather than for Kraush to step in himself.
One person couldn’t save the world.
Having realized this, Kraush had grown alongside the Sky Generation.
From Haring’s situation to now Sigrid.
Kraush was glad that his efforts had not been in vain.
“…I didn’t expect you to take it so easily.”
Sigrid’s eyes widened in surprise as she observed Kraush.
It felt like she was witnessing a new side of him.
Before she could comprehend it, Kraush had moved in closer and playfully ruffled Sigrid’s hair.
“Eek!”
As Sigrid screamed at the messy state of her hair, Kraush grinned widely.
“Thanks! Having a dependable friend has made things easier.”
His smile carried a kind of innocence.
Sigrid recognized that the smile reflected his trust in her.
She gazed at Kraush with slightly bewildered eyes.
Since their first encounter in childhood, Sigrid had been intertwined with Kraush in quite a stubborn manner.
Initially, it had been a mix of curiosity and mischief.
Kraush was someone unlike any other child she had met.
Conversations with him were enjoyable.
No matter what joke she threw his way, he effortlessly countered with a witty comeback.
Such a demeanor was not something one would dare exhibit in front of a princess.
Yet Sigrid never once considered it impertinent.
She knew that this was simply Kraush’s natural disposition.
But perhaps because their relationship had started with playful intrigue, Sigrid didn’t overly contemplate her bond with Kraush.
Maybe her true personality was just like that all along.
Having had such exceptional intelligence from a young age, Sigrid often wore a mask when interacting with others.
It was her survival method as a princess.
And that mask had stuck around longer than she expected.
Before she knew it, Sigrid had forgotten how to take off that mask.
Being intelligent, she inadvertently adapted her mask to suit her own.
However, in doing so, she had forgotten how to interact with people without the mask.
Her behavior was playful.
Full of mischief with little seriousness, at times toying with those around her.
Even her proactive attitude for the Empire could seem frivolous to someone else.
To others, she appeared lighthearted.
Because of this, she thought there wouldn’t be anyone who would genuinely trust her.
After all, she couldn’t trust someone so light-hearted herself.
Her relationship with Kraush mirrored that sentiment.
Even after they had navigated numerous entanglements, culminating in an engagement, Sigrid assumed Kraush wouldn’t think too deeply of her.
That’s why she braced herself for words of reproach: “Who do you think you are to pull this off?”
But unexpectedly, he expressed gratitude instead.
That was a completely unanticipated response.
‘Oh, I see.’
Thanks to that, Sigrid realized one important fact.
Kraush didn’t take their relationship lightly.
He trusted her as a companion and would genuinely step in to help if she were in danger.
And Sigrid had probably been aware of this for quite some time.
‘The fact that I’ve been acting observantly to other relationships and diligently working for Kraush all this while…’
It was likely because she subconsciously felt Kraush trust her wholeheartedly and wanted to repay that trust.
In a family where she couldn’t build connections with her kin, he provided her with her very first sincere relationship.
‘To think I considered what I had with him merely curiosity. How foolish of me.’
As she belatedly recognized this, a silly laugh escaped Sigrid.
Seeing Sigrid’s unexpected laughter, Kraush gave her tousled hair another ruffle.
“Why so grim? That’s creepy. Did I mess up your hair too much?”
That was just it.
Leaving aside her status as a princess, he treated her like a human being.
In response, she found herself, for once, wanting to act like a person and not stick to her position.
Sigrid didn’t mind the change in herself and this newfound ambition.
Ambition, after all, represented things one desired.
Sigrid acknowledged that the tendency she had inherited from the royal family was manifesting in her.
“Sigrid Point: 935 points.”
“Wait, what?”
Before Kraush could react, Sigrid abruptly raised her head with a sparkle in her eyes.
In a moment of hesitation while adjusting Sigrid’s hair, Kraush became the target of her cheeky attack.
As the soft touch of her lips met his, Kraush realized what had just transpired.
A fruity citrus scent wafted by, lingering at the edge of their shared moment.
Sigrid, pulling away, wore that usual mischievous grin.
Kraush stood frozen in place.
Sera observed the scene and shook her head in disbelief.
“It seems I’m meant to marry my lord, after all.”
The ambitious princess had no intention of letting go of her one true desire.
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