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Okay!
Sumnia, held by Davian's neck, snapped her fingers.
"Red sun."
Thud.
A member of the Royal Guard collapsed on the spot.
Espen's eyes widened.
"You wench! What have you done...!"
Thud.
Marquis Espen Ellaina collapsed on the spot.
After that.
Thud, thud.
People inside the audience chamber began to fall one after another.
The King sitting on the throne above the stairs already had his head tilted.
Thud.
Following the 1st Royal Guard Captain.
All three magistrates collapsed.
Davian asked.
"Poison?"
"Don't worry. I didn't kill them. I'm just sending them all to dreamland for a while. You'll be next... Huh?"
Everyone in the audience chamber had collapsed.
Here and there, snores could be heard.
However.
Davian, who held Sumnia's neck, still had sharp, bright eyes wide open.
Not only that, but Sarah and Mons as well.
The three were still wide awake.
Okay!
Sumnia snapped her fingers again.
"It is poison."
"Huh...?"
Davian lowered his head to look at the fallen Marquis Espen and adjutant Colin.
Their breathing was shallow and rhythmic.
Their eyes and noses were twitching slightly, as if they were dreaming.
"Is it the kind of poison that puts everyone to sleep at once?"
Instead of Sumnia, who was rolling her eyes in great confusion, Sarah answered.
"It's not just putting them to sleep. Everyone here will be having the dream that Sumnia intended."
"Dream?"
"Yes. Sumnia, the witch of the Marino Empire. She's a psychic with the ability to control the dreams of others at will. She's quite famous within the spy organization. Because her ability is so unique."
Davian turned his head to look at Sumnia.
"So you're the one who weakened the King's mind."
"Huh... What happened? Was there not enough powder? No... I sprinkled enough. Did he take the antidote? No... I'm the only one who knows how to make the antidote..."
"What are you muttering about? Tell me what you did to the King."
"Did he get a lot of sleep yesterday? Is that why he can't fall asleep? No... That shouldn't matter... Am I dreaming? No... I took the antidote..."
Davian shook his head.
'She's a type that's very vulnerable to stress.'
She seemed to have almost lost her mind because things weren't going her way.
"She probably made him have nightmares every day. Giving him medicine like earlier every day."
Davian turned back to Sarah.
"Nightmares?"
"Yes. You said that the King is only obsessed with his own safety and has lost his former intelligence, right?"
"Yeah."
"He probably had dreams like that every day. Being deprived of the throne, being killed, everything he's built collapsing. That's Sumnia's method."
"Ah...."
Davian nodded.
He didn't know when it started.
But if he had been having dreams like that every day, it wasn't unreasonable for a person to become like that.
"Since when? Since when have you been giving the King nightmares?"
"That's right... That must be it. These guys aren't human. Then what are they? Demons? Spirits? Dragons? Is that why they don't fall asleep and don't dream..."
Sumnia was now reciting nonsense with completely unfocused eyes.
"It can't be like this otherwise... It's impossible..."
She was so out of it that he almost felt sorry for not falling asleep.
Of course, he didn't actually feel sorry.
'She's not a dragon, but she did take a potion made by a dragon.'
Davian slapped Sumnia's cheek again.
Slap!
"Kya!"
"Get a grip."
"T-Tell me first. Why didn't you fall asleep? Why aren't you having the dream I made? Tell me first. Then I'll answer anything you ask."
That was a welcome thing to hear.
"Really?"
"Quickly! Tell me quickly. How could you not fall asleep? This is powder that I mixed myself... I sprinkled it earlier, so it should be all over here now... Everyone should have inhaled the powder just by breathing... How are you still wide awake?"
"Do you know the Green Dragon?"
"The Green Dragon? That Green Dragon that spews poisonous breath?"
"Yes. I took medicine made by the Green Dragon. It's said to create immunity to all the poisons in the world."
"Ah...."
Sumnia stared blankly at Davian's face.
"...Then that makes sense. That makes sense. Of course. There's no way a human could overcome my ability. If the opponent is a dragon, then that makes sense."
"Now answer me. Since when have you been manipulating the King's dreams?"
"About five years."
"What kind of dreams did you make him have?"
"Exactly what Sophie Marre said earlier. I made him have nightmares of being killed every day. One day by the enemy, one day by a vassal, one day by family, one day by the captain of the guard, one day by a servant, one day by himself."
Sophie Marre.
That's the name Sarah had before she had plastic surgery and changed her name.
"For five years?"
"Yes. Seeing that he hasn't gone crazy yet, your king is no ordinary person. I answered, so now my question! What are you going to do with me now?"
"Listen carefully. Die now, or tell me the highest-ranking person among those who cooperated with you."
"If I don't tell you?"
Crack.
Davian tightened the hand that was holding Sumnia's neck.
"Keugh!"
"Are you hard of hearing? I said you'll die now."
"If I tell you... Will you spare me?"
Davian nodded.
Now that she had accepted reality and regained her mind, Sumnia's mind began to work quickly.
'I'm caught anyway.'
Her being a spy was exposed in the middle of the royal palace.
There was no way to escape from this formidable academy student who was immune to all poisons.
If she was going to die anyway, she should choose the side with a higher probability of surviving.
'If I cooperate and stall for time...'
Although the odds were slim.
An opportunity to get out of this might come.
She had been recognized for her abilities and had taken a key position in the spy organization.
But she had no intention of dying here, being loyal to such a place.
"Let's... Make a deal."
Davian frowned.
"A deal?"
"Y-Yes. A deal. I'll tell you who made me stay here. Let me go. I'll never show my face on your continent again."
"Bullshit. You don't have a choice."
Sumnia met Davian's gaze head-on.
She didn't expect him to accept the deal from the start.
"If I die or get locked up like this, the one who put me here will disappear. You can probably guess that too, right? Then you'll never find out who it is. Think carefully."
"You think carefully. I'm not a member of the royal family, and I don't care what happens to things like that. As long as you don't touch me."
Swish.
An ice sword appeared in Davian's hand.
"Just die."
Stab.
The tip of the sword pierced Sumnia's side.
"W-Wait a minute!"
"You're thinking about talking?"
"The... Administrative Magistrate! Publicke Solus!"
"Publicke Solus?"
"Thank you. Now die."
The ice sword dug a little deeper into Sumnia's side.
"T-That's not all! Publicke is in direct contact with our high-ranking officials. If you kill me like this, you won't be able to find that evidence. Take this opportunity to completely take down your Administrative Magistrate, along with his cronies! Otherwise, your royal family will soon be in the hands of our Empire. H-How about that? Do you know what's more important?"
The more disadvantageous, the longer the tongue.
Sumnia began to rattle off the information Davian wanted.
"Not only that! There's more, there's more! Those who cooperate with our Empire even though they're not spies! I know quite a few! Oh, well, whatever! The other two magistrates there are just puppets who unconditionally follow the will of the Publicke Administrative Magistrate!"
It didn't matter if she said everything.
Just one person.
She just had to not say one person.
Then maybe... She could live.
The face of the only man who could save her now came to Sumnia's mind.
'That's right... I'm going to try to live, Sumnia. I'm never going to die in a place like this.'
Sumnia continued.
"How about this? I'll go with you and tell you everything. It's a race against time. If you're late, they'll all hide and run away, you know?"
Davian turned his head to look at the Administrative Magistrate lying on the floor.
His pupils were shaking from side to side, making him look very uneasy.
'Sumnia didn't lie.'
Okay, now it's time to deal with those three magistrates.
Davian continued.
"Wake everyone up. Don't mention the three magistrates. Now do as I say. Then you might live."
"Okay! I understand! I'll do everything you say! Shall I wake them all up now?"
Davian nodded.
Okay.
Sumnia snapped her fingers.
"Heok!"
Adjutant Colin, Marquis Espen Ellaina's adjutant, woke up first.
He gasped and repeatedly inhaled and exhaled, as if he had had a nightmare, and looked around.
Sweat was streaming down his face.
"Heok!"
One by one, they began to wake up from their dreams.
"Kkeungh...."
Even Marquis Espen Ellaina, with his daring personality, woke up sweating profusely.
"You wicked woman! What tricks did you play? How much time has passed? Your Majesty... Your Majesty?"
Alonso Alcanzia, sitting on the throne, also had his head bowed and was breathing heavily, as if he had had a nightmare.
After the captain of the guard and the magistrates had all woken up.
Davian opened his mouth.
"Fortunately, I was not fooled by the spy's strange magic. As you heard before falling asleep, this maid is a spy from the Marino Empire, and she said that she would confess to the best of her knowledge those who cooperate with the Marino Empire within the royal family, on the condition that she not be executed immediately."
Davian glanced at Publicke Solus.
His pupils were shaking from side to side, making him look very anxious.
'Sumnia didn't lie.'
Okay, now it's time to deal with those three magistrates.
Davian continued.
"Fortunately, it is said that there is no one in this place who cooperates with the Marino Empire. Marquis Espen, I think it would be a good idea for you to take this spy around and ferret out the traitors within the royal family. If the rumors spread, they may all destroy the evidence or disappear, so it is important to move quickly."
Just as the 1st Royal Guard Captain was about to say something.
Davian quickly continued with the next words.
"To this end, Marquis Espen Ellaina has brought all of his marquis army and surrounded the royal palace. So that the traitors cannot escape. Isn't that right? Marquis Espen."
Espen looked at Davian.
'It was a situation that could have led to war. He is trying to calm the situation by putting up a common enemy of the Alcanzia Kingdom. Indeed, Davian Naone.'
As a result.
A new cause was attached to Espen's marquis army, which had surrounded the royal palace.
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