Picking Up the Exiled Prince
Translator: CleizZ
Editor: mon cherry
Read at Watashi Wa Sugoi Desu!
Ch 17 Ruthless SideÂ
ăDanis and Chris were running to the place when they caught one of the underworldâs subordinates who had scattered after the National Guardâs pursuit, who had originally been in charge of this area, and got him to spit out where Gabriel and Alan were headed.
âYou are the head of the dark organization!?â
âSpeaking of which, you donât have much trust for a captain of this country either, do you?â
ăChris gulped at Danisâ words and swallowed them. It was certainly Chrisâ fault for not noticing the chase. Apparently, the Prime Minister had suspected him from the beginning.
ăDanis had been betrayed by his own subordinate, so it was mutual. There was no point in arguing about it any more.
âWell, I didnât even notice the adhesion of my subordinates, but⊠rather than that, it would be better to somehow manage the current situation.â
âI know that without being told!â
ăWhile heading to the destination in that way, a familiar face ran from the other side. It was Tim who came toward me while shaking his hair.
ăHis face was grim.
âDanis-sanâŠ! Iâm sorry, IâŠ!â
ăWhen I saw Timâs somewhat regretful face, I was able to grasp the situation, as well as the fact that Alan was not with him.
ăChris and Danis stopped running, and Tim stopped in front of them, out of breath. I could tell by the way he was gasping for breath that he was running as fast as he could.
âHis Majesty The King AlanâŠâ
Danis put his hand in between them to stop Chris from biting his head off.
ââŠAlan went himself, didnât he?â
ââŠExcuse me?â
ăTim turned his face down and clenched his back teeth.
ăIf it was just an act of desperation, an act of sycophancy, Tim would not be here. He would have done whatever it took to stop Alan. Tim is a compassionate person and will do what is asked of him in a crisis. He knew Tim well enough to know that if his spirit had been broken, he could return it to normal at will.
âWhatâs your role in all this? Alan understood why I needed you, so he put you first, right? Thatâs your top priority right now. I donât care if you have to use your men, bring me your trump card!â
ăAt Danisâ words, Tim raised his grim face and said, âYes, sir.â And he ran to another place.
ăChris watched the whole thing and turned to Danis.
âWhat is the trump card?â
ââŠIsnât the corpse predicted to have been assassinated yet? If the assassin is discovered, the princeâs suspicion will clear up.â
â⊠There have been no reports so far, but itâs been over a week. Iâm sure theyâre already working to destroy the evidence.â
ăDanis looked at Chris and gave him an inappropriate smile.
âWell, I doubt it.â
ăTo be honest, itâs a gamble.
ăThere is basically no advantage to keeping someone alive who has assassinated the king. More so since Prince Alan is suspected. He gets in the way even more.
ăBut⊠There are many other ways to take power by making the prince a puppet. What is his reason for being so obsessed with the prince? I had some doubts.
It would be possible to make up an assassinâŠ
âAnyway, weâre on our way. We may be late.â
âYou donât have to tell me.â
ăDanis and Chris started running again.
ăThen, out of a narrow alleyway, a wounded man appeared, looking desperate. Danis noticed him, and when the other man noticed Danis and the others, his face turned pale. Danis stopped and faced the man. The man was the leader of the group that Danis had entrusted with this area.
ăIn other words, the man who had betrayed him by conniving with Prime Minister Gabriel was right in front of him. He was injured, and from the way he looked, Danis could guess what had happened.
âSorry, go ahead, Iâll be on my way after Iâve given him some moxa.â
ăChris seemed to understand those words, and he shot a sharp look at the man, and the leader of the group looked horrified and shivered, but Chris took the initiative and ran ahead just as Danis had said.
Danis approached the wounded man, âYou look pretty dumb after betraying me. Ravaghi?â
ăThe man with the scar, Ravaghi, shuddered, his face pale, as Danis narrowed his eyes and smiled wickedly. The manâs eyes showed agitation and frustration. He hadnât expected to run into him.
âItâs because youâre an idiot! Itâs a common occurrence in our world.â
ăDanis glared at the frightened and barking Ravaghi with a sharp eye. He grabbed the manâs neck with his left hand and forcibly pushed him against the wall, strangling him as he was lifted.
âKuk⊠Ugh⊠AhâŠâ
As his neck was crushed and his trachea tightened, the man kicked his feet, leaking his unvoiced sobs, but his limbs only shook, perhaps because his neck was closed and oxygen was cut off.
âOh, Iâm sure I was off guard without even noticing your shallow betrayalâŠâ
ăDanis let go of his grip just as the man nearly suffocated and his eyes rolled so far back that they went to the day after tomorrow.
ăThe man collapsed on the spot, strangled, and turned back defiantly. Without giving him a chance, Danis pushed his gun against the manâs forehead. The man took a deep breath. His body trembled and his expression remained blue.
âYou can go for my seat. Do what you want. But I will not give up my seat to a man who is so easily taken advantage of that loses his men so easily. How many of my men have died because of your foolish schemes? If you want to take this seat away from me, youâd better use your head.â
ăThe man was so terrified he couldnât even move.
Danis had pressed a gun against the man, but he was not angry, and threatened him with a calm and light tone. Ravaghi was afraid of Danisâ complexion not wavering at all.
There was no gap in his appearance. The only thing that made Ravaghi shrink was the cold words that came down nonchalantly from above.
When it came to threatening each other in underworld organizations, they would threaten their opponents with power and bravado. But this man, Danis, was different. He threatened me with a calm voice. His voice was very cold and far more frightening than any shouts of anger.
ăThis man, Danis, could draw his gun with no expression on his face. He had no emotions whatsoever. He acted as if this was normal.
ăThe reason why Danis could be so sharp was partly because he was smart, but it was also because he was different. He could be ruthless with an innocent look on his face. That was what made him so scary.
ăIt was a mistake, Ravaghi thought, to think that he had an opening when he saw that Danis had brought the boy with him.
âIâm dropping you from this area. Be as grateful as you can to be able to start over.â
ăDanis deflected the gun away from the man. The man put his hands on the ground as he collapsed. The man replied weakly, âYes, sir.â
ăSeeing this, and sensing that there was no more hostility, Danis put the gun away in his inner coat pocket and headed toward the target.
ăWhen Chris arrived at the place where he got the information, there was Danisââ No, the injured manâs subordinates were lying on the ground.
ăThere was no sign of Alan, and the soldiers seemed to have pulled back.
âDamn it! Iâm too late!â
ăHe wrinkled his brow and bit his back teeth to suppress his frustration. His hands were clenched into fists, trembling with anger at his own carelessness.
âCaptainâŠ!!!â
ăThen several soldiers from his unit appeared.
Chris looked up and faced the soldiers who had called him, and they looked apologetic.
âIâm sorry⊠I didnât realize that this happenedâŠâ
âItâs not your fault, I was just sloppy.â
ăBut Chris shook his head, interrupting the soldiers who were about to sayâŠ
ăMaybe Gabriel even used his own troops. The other party was the Prime Minister, so at worst they didnât have the right to refuse. If they were suspicious to begin with, it wasnât the subordinateâs fault.
ăWhat a lack of power he had⊠he was pathetic.
âItâs too late after all. I didnât expect you to kill me like thisâŠâ
ăDanis appeared after him, and Chrisâs men, surprised by his face, took a stand. Chris shook his head, pointing his hand at his men to put their swords away.
ăDanis went in front of Chris, who still hadnât found a place to put it, and held out his hands.
Chris looked at Danisâ face, unsure of his intentions.
âCatch me. Youâre going to have to take me out from the inside, arenât you?â
âNow⊠Sure, but Iâm already suspected by Prime Minister Gabriel. I donât know if it will work.â
âThen why donât you let your men do it?â
ăChris was about to say something when he came to a realization and brought his hand up to his mouth.
âThen Iâll do the same.â
ăChrisâ words startled his men, who widened their eyes.
ăâWhat are you talking about?â They shouted.
âI want you to help me when I run away.â
âIt would be even more necessary then, would it? Iâm the one who knows about the castle.â
ăIt seemed that Chris had decided. Entering a prison should be the same as getting stigmatized as a knight. But it wouldnât make sense to look at Chrisâs face. If this guy thinks heâs right, he wonât bend.
ăDanis shrugged his shoulders and sighed.
âIâm sorry, but Iâm not your man. Heâs your subordinate to begin with. Can they even be trusted?â
âItâs a simple matter. A souvenir in exchange for being transferred to another unit after being disgusted by the captain who committed an indiscretion. You can call it that.â
âHey, weâre still soldiers of Captain Chrisâ unit no matter what!â
ăAll the soldiers straightened their backs and saluted in front of Chris.
Chris made a slight smile, as if he was somewhat relieved by that.
âThank you. But I canât get you involved right now⊠Letâs go with this strategy now. Next time I will take the prince out and send him to the Vander family⊠Will you help me again then?â
âOf course!â
ăChrisâ subordinates had a slightly regretful looks on their faces, but they replied in honor of their captain.
ăDanis chuckled.
âWell, you have good subordinates, donât you?â
âUnlike you.â
ăAfter the conversation, Danisâ and Chrisâ hands were tied together. Chrisâ men took care of their weapons so the prime minister wouldnât get suspicious.
âWeâll go to the jail to make it easier for you to escape.â
âNo need⊠I know what that place is made of.â
ăChris heard that and glared at him quizzically, âHow do you know the structure of a castle prison?â Danis shrugged and exhaled, glaring at him.
ăHe had only been there once.
But Chris didnât seem to be convinced by that. But he ignored it because it wasnât important.
ăWell⊠I wish that the prince is safeâŠ
ăRemembering the trauma that had been inflicted on him when they first met, Danis had a bad feeling about it.