Emperor! Can You See Stats!?

Chapter 110: Corpse

The Grand Duke regained his composure as he met Eurius’s cold gaze.

‘Did he notice that I was going to attack?’

He could understand that much. 

But he never imagined that Eurius would confront him alone, leaving behind his main force.

‘There must be some trick. This is definitely a trap.’

He quickly finished his thoughts and spat out cold words.

“Do you intend to surrender your neck willingly? Then I will grant you a clean death as a courtesy to the Imperial family.”

“Thank you for speaking on my behalf.”

“…!?”

“If you and your friends behind you surrender peacefully, I will preserve your honor as the empire’s best knight.”

As he saw calmly counter him, the Grand Duke almost burst into a hollow laugh.

“Did you lose your mind from the shock of the emperor’s death?”

“Is that a refusal?”

“What confidence do you have, first prince…”

The Grand Duke’s expression changed drastically as he tried to continue his words. 

He saw two figures walking out from behind the throne.

“It’s a bit annoying to keep quiet. Can I warm up now?”

“You should make a quiet entrance like a secret weapon. Don’t you care about the dignity of your lord who set up this stage?”

“You’re talking nonsense again.”

The two people seemed to be joking lightly as they walked, but the Grand Duke couldn’t help but change his color as he examined them.

‘They are superhumans. And one of them is not a novice who just reached the realm.’

A middle-aged man with a refined appearance who looked like an easterner and a young man with a fierce expression and a proud stature. 

They were Jegal Unhyeon and Nuada.

The Grand Duke looked slightly surprised, but he soon regained his calmness. He judged that they would cause some damage, but not enough to change the outcome.

“I see you had some backup.”

‘I can handle them. If worse comes to worst, I can use other reserve forces.’

He opened his mouth again with a confident tone.

“But if you think you can stop me with just three people, you are mistaken.”

“Hooh…”

“Are you the leader of those suspicious guys who were with Gundar?”

The Grand Duke’s arrogant remark provoked the two men’s fighting spirit. 

But Eurius nodded his head as if he agreed.

“Of course, it would be insufficient to face Gladius and the empire’s best knight.”

“…!?”

The Grand Duke was shaken again, but he didn’t show it.

‘He knows about Gladius?’

The information about Illuminati was only available to the leaders of each faction or the emperor. 

And he knew that and still lured him into this situation?

A faint groan escaped from his mouth.

“Could it be…”

At the same time, he sensed multiple presences entering the central palace.

‘What are these presences?’

They quickly jumped into the hall. 

And the person who was at the front of their ranks was someone the Grand Duke knew well.

“Grand Duke Your Highness, I’m disappointed about this.”

“Calos…”

The person who looked at him with a reproachful expression was Calos, the Grand Duke of the Imperial guard and his son-in-law.

In front of him were Eurius and three superhumans!

Behind him were Calos and the Imperial guard!

The Grand Duke was perfectly surrounded from front and back. 

He asked calmly how Eurius had persuaded Calos.

“Weren’t you supposed to not move without the emperor’s order?”

“I never broke my word.”

“What do you mean? You confirmed that His Majesty had passed away, didn’t you?”

And as the Grand Duke asked Calos, who shook his head, he heard another familiar voice.

“His words are true without a single lie.”

“…!?”

He heard more footsteps coming into the hall. 

The person who led them was someone he was sure had died.

“Your Majesty…”

To his surprise, it was the emperor who entered with his servants. 

Moreover, he looked healthy and radiant, unlike yesterday’s paleness.

“I greet Your Majesty.”

Eurius also got up from the throne and bowed. 

Hearing his voice, the Grand Duke quickly looked at him.

‘This first prince bastard?’

Eurius also smiled brightly, unlike his cold demeanor before.

“How did you…”

The Grand Duke was furious, but he barely uttered a question.

How did the emperor come back to life? 

He confirmed that his heart had stopped. 

The physician and bishop who took care of him also agreed. 

How could the emperor be alive?

But Eurius didn’t seem to want to explain.

“I don’t think I need to tell you that.”

“…”

The Grand Duke’s face twisted even more as he saw Eurius’s smile. Eurius smiled inwardly.

‘There are sometimes methods that you can’t even imagine in this world.’

***

This happened about three days before this situation.

“The preparations are done.”

“Hooh…”

The emperor looked at Eurius with an interested eye. 

How could he eliminate the Grand Duke’s core forces without starting a war?

But the person who spoke, Eurius, hesitated a bit.

‘Should I have just asked Marius to say it?’

But it would be torture for him to say such words to the stubborn man. 

The emperor became more curious as he waited.

“Tell me quickly.”

‘I have to do it anyway.’

He wanted to close his eyes tightly, but he kept a calm expression and finally said the shocking words.

“Your Majesty! Could you please be a corpse for a day?”

“…!?”

The emperor made a face that he had never seen before in his life. 

How could he make a living person into a corpse? 

And how could he fool the eyes of the Grand Duke, a fierce warrior?

“Please wait a moment.”

Eurius showed him with his actions. 

It was better to demonstrate once than to say a hundred words.

Bang!

“…!?”

Suddenly, he collapsed and lost his color. 

The emperor was momentarily flustered. 

But he was not a fool. 

He roughly guessed Eurius’s intention and went to check his pulse himself.

‘How did he stop his heart and lose his vitality?’

He only collapsed for a moment. 

Eurius’s body faintly started to beat again, and his pale face gradually regained its color.

As he got up, the emperor opened his mouth.

“That’s an amazing method. Surely, the Grand Duke won’t doubt your death with this.”

He was not a stubborn person. 

It would be normal to be outraged if he was told to disguise himself as a corpse, but what was a day or two of lying down compared to getting rid of his decades-old enemy?

But there was another question.

“Can I learn that too? If someone else does it for me, I have to rely on them to wake me up.”

But even if the emperor became a corpse, not anyone could enter there. 

He would always have guards around him. That meant he had to get up on his own.

“That’s why I hesitated too.”

Eurius smiled bitterly and started to explain the method. 

The origin of this plan was the intangible poison he saw in the desert.

If it could make people die naturally without any evidence, couldn’t he use it in reverse?

‘But it’s not poison. It would be too much for Your Majesty who is already old.’

Even if he removed the poison, his weakened body wouldn’t recover. 

He heard that the king of Parthia was still having trouble moving.

And crucially, he doubted if he could make the cautious Grand Duke move with just a coma-like condition.

‘The intangible poison came from the east. Maybe they have other methods if I consult them?’

But surprisingly, when he consulted with Jegal’s people, the problem was solved.

“It’s not difficult for someone who has mastered inner energy to disguise themselves as a corpse. Depending on the level of inner energy, it’s not hard to stop your heart for a day or two.”

“There’s such a method?”

Eurius’s eyes sparkled as they explained the method that the eastern spies or assassins used to fake their death.

“[Returning Breath Technique]?”

“Yes. There’s no big side effect, but if I have to say something…”

***

“Ah… it was a good idea, but I can’t do it twice. This is the first time I’ve trained so hard since I became emperor.”

Thud!

The emperor grumbled in a sullen tone as he received Eurius’s greeting. 

His arms and body twisted as he moved. 

The muscles and joints that he hadn’t used screamed.

It was natural after not moving for a week. And the Returning Breath Technique was not a difficult skill, but it wasn’t easy for the emperor who wasn’t very good at martial arts.

“Still, I’m glad you learned it in time.”

Eurius smiled bitterly as he accepted his complaint. 

The first time the emperor collapsed and his heart beat weakly was all part of the training.

He used his illness as an excuse to practice the technique. 

And after a week, he finally achieved enough to stop his heart completely.

“Well… normally, you have to stop your heart momentarily to master it perfectly, but it doesn’t matter if you gradually turn into a corpse while pretending to be sick.”

The people from Jegal’s side were also impressed by this ingenious plan. 

The people of the western continent wouldn’t know such a method existed.

Even if they heard about it, how many would suspect that the emperor who had aged naturally had used the Returning Breath Technique?

The emperor stopped grumbling and returned to his solemn expression.

“Wilhelm Grand Duke, do you have anything to say?”

“…”

The Grand Duke had nothing to say. 

He didn’t know what kind of method it was, but he was completely trapped. 

He had no chance of winning against them head-on.

‘I have to get out of here first. I still have some cards left…’

“It’s really something to congratulate you on. I didn’t expect Your Majesty to come back to life so suddenly. Could you share your secret with me?”

“Hmm?”

The emperor raised an eyebrow at the Grand Duke who pretended to be relaxed. 

But before he could answer, Eurius intervened annoyingly.

“He’s trying to buy time. Don’t you think it’s strange, Grand Duke?”

“What are you talking about?”

Eurius smiled.

“Your subordinates who should have arrived by now haven’t arrived yet. If they had crossed the closed gate, we would have heard about the clash by now.”

“…!?”

The Grand Duke realized that something else was wrong. 

He had lost his sense of time in this sudden situation.

‘Now that I think about it, the Golden Lion Knights should have joined me by now. They should have at least arrived in the capital.’

He groaned and looked at Eurius again. 

He noticed that he hadn’t mobilized any forces except for the two superhumans.

“You bastard…”

“They’re probably fighting with my knights right now.”

“Do you think you can stop the Golden Lion Knights with them?”

The result of the last tournament showed that the Scharnos Knights were not very good in terms of the overall quality of the knights, except for a few skilled ones. 

What did he rely on to be so confident?

But Eurius still smiled and said the last words.

“Of course, the overall power is different. But if I didn’t have a chance to win, would I be joking with you right now?”