Monarch of Death

Chapter 65 – The Royal Family’s Struggle (3)

The second prince suddenly appeared and claimed to be the first prince? An ordinary person would think that Prince Alford’s mind was in serious trouble. However, if he were familiar with necromancy, the story was different.

Karnak made an impression.

“Have your souls been exchanged?”

Alford, to be exact, Prince Lloyd, who took over Alford’s body, made a surprised expression.

“I don’t think that’s what I said, but is this a story that can be easily accepted?”

“Although the conditions are very difficult.”

The prince sighed in relief.

“As expected, choosing you was the correct choice.”

This was the reason he deliberately contacted the King’s Order. It was not that there weren’t wizards more powerful than those of the King’s Order in the Kingdom of Yusteel. But when it came to necromancy-related cases, no one was more experienced than them.

Why? Before the darkness of the end was spread, there was no reason to use a method related to the Grand Spirit Necromancer. How many sieves did he have? He expected that at least a wizard of the King’s Order would recognize the necromancer.

Prince Lloyd asked again.

“Could a non-King’s Order mage recognize it as easy as you did?”

If so, it might be possible to contact other mages belonging to the First Prince’s faction. But Karnak shook his head.

“You have a misunderstanding. It’s not like I grasped the prince’s condition with some kind of magical eye.”

As soon as he saw him, he was like, ‘Huh? A strange soul was inside. The soul exchange technique currently being used on Prince Lloyd was a very advanced necromancy technique.

Not only magicians but even necromancers were hidden so secretly that they could not be recognized unless it was the person who opened it. He figured it as he was Karnak, but it was normal not to notice it.

‘So, I have to pretend that I didn’t recognize him.’

Karnak shamelessly continued. It was just that if the prince’s words were true, the soul exchange was the best match.

“Could it be that he is deceiving you and pretending to be Prince Lloyd?”

Any other King’s Order would have judged it this way. Prince Lloyd frowned.

“Does that mean you don’t fully trust me yet?”

“Not necessarily. Given the circumstances, the possibility that you are Prince Lloyd is quite high.”

“How did you judge that?”

Karnak clicked his tongue inwardly. He knew the answer, but it was annoying because he couldn’t tell him the circumstances. He couldn’t even tell the truth out loud. So, he trembled moderately.

“Because Captain Erantel trusted your letter.”

“Is it possible that I even deceived Lord Erantel? It is possible that Alford played a trick after obtaining my handwritten letter separately. Isn’t it?”

“From what you’re saying, it’s more and more likely that it’s Prince Lloyd.”

“Why?”

“If you were Prince Alford and you were faking it, you wouldn’t have said it that way.”

Unconsciously, he must have said that ‘I’ had separately obtained the handwritten letter from ‘Prince Lloyd’ and Alford was Alford. If he said that way.

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Prince Lloyd’s expression softened. Karnak looked up and continued.

“Just the reaction the prince is showing right now.”

“Reaction?”

“Aren’t you always asking me why I don’t doubt myself?”

If Prince Alford was pretending to be Prince Lloyd, there was no need to question him so closely that he doubted himself.

“Maybe it’s to get rid of the suspicious parts first so that we can gain trust…… No, that’s right. Then, even more so.”

“You don’t have to go this far.”

“And there’s also the fact that there’s not much to gain from it.”

“Nothing to gain?”

“Isn’t that how things are?”

Prince Alford pretending to be Prince Lloyd and accused his forces and himself of necromancy charges?

“I have no idea what Prince Alford could gain by doing this. Of course, this is also not without the possibility of planning a bizarre strategy that I can’t even imagine…”

This was also extremely unlikely. No matter how bizarre a ploy was, there was at least a basic framework. Given all the circumstances, it was very likely that Lloyd and Alford’s body swap was true.

“This is my conclusion.”

Lloyd’s expression softened. He felt a bit relieved now.

“I’m so glad I met someone as wise as you.”

Barros and Serati snorted.

[…A wise man?]

[I just peeked at the correct answer and put it together, what?]

[Hey, do you both manage your facial expressions?]

Infamous Scans

Translator: Anom
Proofreader: Orange
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In any case, thanks to this, Prince Lloyd saw Karnak as a trustworthy wizard who was very wise and not quick to judge the situation. The prince asked cautiously.

“Are you saying there’s no magical way to prove that our bodies have changed?”

“As far as I know, there is none. Of course, I don’t know if the powerful mages of the Mage Tower can refine it.”

There was. However, it was a problem because it took a long time to prepare, the compound was tough to find, and the ritual required a high degree of magical knowledge.

‘Currently, at the level of the Mage Tower in the Kingdom of Yusteel, no wizard can do that.’

Lloyd nodded too.

“Well, Alford wouldn’t have done this if he was easily caught.”

And he had a worried expression on his face.

“Then, what should I do now? I came to you expecting that a King’s Order wizard would be able to prove my identity…….”

“I’d like to hear the circumstances first.”

Karnak suggested sitting down because the story was going to be long. He asked again as they sat at a shabby table in the room.

“What happened?”

“I don’t know. I just woke up, and I was Alford.”

“I’m asking you to explain the process in detail. The prince might catch clues that you don’t know about.”

“That’s right.”

Convinced, Lloyd slowly opened his mouth.

“It was before the new day……”

»»————-　★　————-««
According to the prince, it was a day that was nothing different from usual.

“That same day, I went to bed after finishing my routine and receiving the priest’s divine healing technique that I receive every day.”

Barros suddenly asked.

“You receive divine healing every day?”

Lloyd let out a laugh.

“I’m sure you guys have heard rumors that my body is weak, right?”

“Yeah, but that’s it…”

It was not a weak level or an almost-breathing zombie level? Of course, he didn’t dare to speak openly in front of the prince. Perhaps a familiar reaction, Lloyd shrugged.

“So, it’s not unreasonable for my father to be expecting Alford. At any rate, until he fell asleep, there was nothing particularly unusual about him.”

Karnak pointed out more carefully.

“Have there been any unfamiliar objects left in the room or strangers wandering around?

“I can confidently answer that.”

Even if it wasn’t for necromancy, Prince Lloyd was always concerned about the defense of the residence. Because he had a deep discord with Alford, he didn’t know when he would try to poison him.

“Not only in my dwelling place but throughout the royal palace are barriers of powerful magic and sacred arts. So, I don’t understand at all. Is necromancy such a powerful technique?”

“That part is a bit difficult for me to understand.”

Seeing Karnak arguing, Serati secretly asked.

[What is it actually?]

[I don’t know. I don’t understand.]

[Oh, weren’t you deliberately pretending not to know?]

[It’s not all-powerful because it’s necromancy. To use this level of magic, you have to be prepared for it.]

Casting necromancy from a distance without entering the royal palace of a country that had all the defenses in place?

[If that’s possible, I wouldn’t have suffered in my previous life, right?]

[How do I know what Karnak went through in his previous life?]

[That’s what they mean, right?]

Leaving Serati’s criticism behind, Karnak fell into trouble. It was because of the Trist City incident a few months ago.

‘Let’s wait, what is this again? Was there another trick I didn’t know about?’

Lloyd started to explain again.

“That’s how I fell asleep, and when I opened my eyes again, my surroundings had completely changed.”

»»————-　★　————-««
The first thing he felt when he opened his eyes was his physical condition.

‘What? Why do I feel much better?’

No headache was felt upon awakening. He didn’t feel the heat, which was always painful. Even the creaky joints were strangely comfortable. Puzzled, Lloyd tried to stand up. And in an instant, He flinched.

“Oh?”

The whole body was tied with a rope. Thanks to that, He couldn’t get up as naturally as he usually did. Alarmed, Lloyd quickly scanned his entire body. And once again he was puzzled.

“Who is this?”

Thick, muscular, well-cleaved forearms were there that looked manly just by looking at them. It wasn’t his arm that was hard to tell the difference even compared to the young girl’s. No, this was not the problem now.

‘Where am I now?’

He had closed his eyes in his room, in his bed, but now he had opened his eyes in some unknown space. Lloyd looked around frantically. It was a small stone chamber.

A plain, dark stone chamber with no furniture. A strange red magic circle was drawn on the floor under the magic light, and he was sitting in the middle. And beyond that, three men in black robes had covered their faces. One of the men let out a sinister voice.

“Did you cough, Prince Lloyd?”

The words were polite, but the tone was full of ridicule. Lloyd looked at the men calmly.

“Unknown places, unknown people.”

It was embarrassing enough, but he couldn’t express it like that.

“You’ve got a good talent. You mean you kidnapped a country’s prince from the depths of the palace?

Lloyd continued, looking at himself exaggeratedly.

“Even after the kidnapping, it looks like he did something strange to my body. My arms aren’t that thick, and my body isn’t that thick either.”

In response, the other man clicked his tongue.

“You’re so calm. I thought you’d show the least amount of embarrassment.”

Lloyd asked with cold eyes.

“Yes. What have you done to me?

The man waved his hand in the air.

“I will show you.”

A magical mirror of light was created in the air and frightened Lloyd. Lloyd’s complexion turned pale as he looked in the mirror.

“……Alford?”

For a moment, he thought his brother was sitting there. However, he was tied up and quickly grasped the situation through facial expressions.

That ‘Alford’ was Lloyd himself! No matter how calm he was, he couldn’t help but be dazed at the moment. The man in the black robe continued.

“The bodies of the prince and His Highness Alford were swapped. It was because of the power of the mighty Tesnarak. Whoops.”

The name Tesnarak had been familiar to Lloyd. A look of astonishment flashed in his eyes.

“……A cultist!”

»»————-　★　————-««
“Hmm? Isn’t that a bit strange?”

After hearing the explanation, Serati was puzzled.

‘Did you dare make a magic mirror to show the prince’s current appearance and even inform him of the situation without asking?’

Were the original necromancer strains so talkative like that?

[To be continued.]