The Half-Forced Imperialist
To Be Different (2)

Shk—!

With the wall carved away, Julian made his move. The cartel's forces were swarming, but he moved like the wind. There was no mercy in his hands. It took him a mere ten minutes to clean up the dozens of members from the first floor to the third.

“……”

I sheathed my longsword again. There was nothing for me to do. I trudged up to the third floor to find Julian sitting on some random box.
He was wiping the blood from his sword with a handkerchief.

“Good work.”

Just then, the police arrived.

“Salute! We will begin the search!”

After saluting, they began to tear the building apart.

“There’s a suspicious passage here!”

Another space was revealed in the basement. I went down as well. It was a cell, thick with a nauseating stench, where people abducted by the cartel were trapped.

Thump.

The virus reacted faintly.

“……?”

Was Izenheim among them?
I craned my neck, but he wasn’t here. The source was a sofa in the middle of the cell. I took a closer look at it.

“Max, what are you doing?” Julian asked, having come down at some point.

“I think I found something.”

I pointed to the sofa. Julian slashed it open, but inside was nothing but cotton and dust.

“What did you think you found?”
“……Perhaps.”

I placed my hand on the sofa’s leather and channeled my mana into it. The leather hide melted like liquid, coalescing into strange crystals. It was a significant amount.
Julian’s eyes widened slightly.

“It’s a drug. And the purity is remarkably high.”
“Yes.”

I picked up a piece of the crystal. The moment I did, the virus reacted. Information about the magical compound flooded my mind.
To put it in numbers: purity over 97%, a double-helix structure, and extremely high addictiveness.

“……”

It seemed my virus also had a talent for identifying ‘mana’.

“They used mana to rearrange the material’s structure and hide it. Who in the world—”

Julian, for once, was at a loss for words. The technique was just that revolutionary.
The culprits were obvious. It had to be them. The ones who would do anything to throw the empire into chaos—the otherworldly race, Izenheim.

“Max.”

Julian suddenly turned to look at me.

“Well done.”

It was praise from my superior. It didn’t feel bad. I swallowed a smile and gave a short nod.
Just then, the police officers appeared. Their eyes grew wide at the sight of the brilliant drugs inside the sofa.

“May we confiscate this?”
“No.”

I turned them away.

“We will handle the confiscation.”
“Yes, sir!”

Julian stared at me.

“You don’t trust the police much either, do you, Sir Knight?”

This was enough for tens of thousands of doses. Stealing even a tenth of it would change a person’s life, and police stations were full of rats.
Julian gave a small smirk. He seemed to agree, but he tested me with a question.

“Then who do you trust?”

The answer was already decided.

“Only yourself.”

Julian nodded. As if to say, that was the correct answer.


In her private quarters, Schatz regulated her mana, repeating her breathing exercises. It was a form of meditation to organize the flow that had been suppressed by restraints for years, and a training to fulfill Maximilian’s command to ‘get stronger’.

Knock, knock.

A sudden knock, and a man entered.

“A pleasure to meet you. I am Dieter Schmidt.”

Dieter’s eyes immediately scanned the room. A mattress, a small refrigerator, bedding, personal belongings. There was nothing else.

“My apologies for the humble temporary lodging. Please bear with us for a while. Our finances are not yet in order.”

Schatz tilted her head.
Ebenholz’s finances are not in order? The words didn't seem to fit together.

“...Ah. Understood.”

So, your treatment depends on your skill.
That was how Schatz understood it.

“Yes. Would you please come with me for a moment?”

Dieter led Schatz outside. The two stood side-by-side in an empty lot behind the building.

“Please, show me your mana.”

Dieter requested a demonstration from Schatz and took out a notepad.
Accurately assessing and recording an employee’s abilities was also an important task.

“Yes.”

Schatz gathered mana at her fingertips. Blue sparks crackled and condensed.
Fzzt!

The moment she extended her arm and fired, electromagnetism shot out 10 meters and struck the ground.

“Hmm. An electromagnetic type? Excellent. You were born with a very rare mana property.”
“……”
“Thank you.”
“……”
“Yes.”

She was a woman of few words. Dieter, too, was the type to only say what was necessary.
The two of them quietly looked around the empty lot for a moment.

“There is nothing around here.”

Dieter replied to Schatz’s comment.

“Yes. It is currently undeveloped land, but we are in the process of acquiring it piece by piece.”
“—We plan to build a city here in the future.”

A voice suddenly came from behind them.
It was Knight Maximilian. Schatz quickly straightened her posture.

“I was just passing by. Dieter, what do you think? Can this place become a city?”

“It seems plausible.”
“You can be honest.”
“It’s not far from the capital, but being cut off from transportation makes it seem distant. Furthermore, the frequent appearance of monsters means the conditions are not ideal.”

This was why the vast plot of land was still undeveloped. Monsters were the greatest enemy of architecture. A monster raid in the middle of the night would demolish everything, and assigning additional manpower for defense would amplify the costs.

“Ebenholz can do it.”
“……More than anything, we lack the funds to build a city.”
“The mine?”
“We should have the results by next week.”
“I’ll trust you and wait.”

Maximilian turned to look at Schatz.

“Are you still thinking about Mason?”

Schatz answered curtly.

“……Yes.”

“There’s no need to be buried by it. If you wait, an opportunity will come eventually.”

The founder of Mason is not a pure-blooded Imperial. He may be ‘disguised’ as one, but his mixed blood will inevitably be exposed. That fact alone will be enough to bring Mason Industries to ruin.
Such an era awaits us.

“And now, for your first mission.”

Maximilian handed her a single document with someone’s personal details on it.

“Find this person.”
“Yes. Understood.”
“Aren’t you curious who it is?”
“Who is this person?”

Schatz finally asked, and Maximilian answered briefly.

“A member of the Revolutionary Army.”


It wasn't even summer yet, but my peers had already formed their own factions.
Tiana and Leon had latched onto the line of senior knights.
From there, it went up to Adria, and from Adria, up again to Anton.
In other words, the line of Vice-Commander Anton.
Anton was widely respected. Which was precisely why the Revolutionary Army was tangled up in it.

As I’ve said before—the high-ranking knight ‘Adria’ was a mole for the revolutionaries.

“Sir Knight. This is from Empire Point.”

An employee handed me a letter.
He was a guard brought from the Western Penitentiary. The associate warden and two guards who played a major role in saving Schatz were all hired as my knightly aides.
I took the letter. It was a high-quality parchment stamped with the crest of Empire Point.

[To Sir Maximilian von Ebenholz of the Sentinel Knight Order]
[For the sake of our academy’s outstanding cadets, we respectfully request your noble experience and knowledge by asking for your observation and evaluation……]

Empire Point often asked the Sentinels for this kind of guidance. It was a sort of master class.

“……Looks like I have to go.”

If Izenheim was at Empire Point, that would be the worst-case scenario. It was the fastest path to the heart of the Empire.
And besides…

‘There must have been a better way. Surely.’

I was also curious what Jacob, the first Izenheim I ever killed, and his little friends were up to.

Vrrr—

The terminal vibrated.

—This is Schatz. Target’s location has been identified.

Already?
No, she was as capable as I expected.
I left the office. I had been sitting and analyzing activation traces for so long that I was getting restless.

“Max… Millian!”

As I was about to get on the elevator, some knights called my name.
They were knights of noble birth. Reynell, Gionne, and their leader, Kairon.

“Sir Kairon wishes to see you.”

Reynell pointed towards Kairon behind him.
Kairon smiled at me.

“Maximilian. We finally get to see you in person.”
“……Yes. Good day to you.”

I bowed my head to him.
Memories from before my regression flashed through my mind.
Kairon, a noble from the capital, sought to drag down Vice-Commander Anton.
But Kairon lacked a power base. Anton, despite being from a fallen noble house, had knights flocking to him thanks to his unique charisma, while Kairon’s family was more of a recently successful upstart.
The reason Kairon was able to succeed in his coup d’état was the power of the Royal Guard.

“The talk of the social circles lately is all about you.”

The Empire’s Royal Guard is power. The Knight Order is honor. Both wield immense authority, but their methods and nature are different.
The Royal Guard will bring about an ethnic cleansing, and the Knight Order will bring about war.
Both… are perhaps necessary evils for me.

“A Third-Class Gold Lion Medal. Did I receive that when I was twenty-two?”

Kairon smiled, looking at my chest.

“May we speak for a moment?”
“Of course.”

Kairon gestured to his subordinate knights. They discreetly excused themselves.

“Let’s talk on the way down. You seem busy.”
“Yes.”

We boarded the elevator together.
The moment the doors closed, Kairon spoke in a low voice.

“Maximilian, the world is changing. It’s going to change more drastically than it is now. Far more than you can possibly imagine… The central political stage is already a storm.”

His voice was like a snake, his face like a snake.

“But I am always concerned. Can our Sentinels truly handle such a great wave?”

Kairon had made this same proposal before my regression.
Back then, I hadn’t properly understood what he meant.

“Are you referring to Vice-Commander Anton?”

Now, I had enough knowledge to get straight to the point.

“……You’re quick-witted. That’s right. The selection for the next Knight Commander is not far off. As things stand, Anton is the most likely candidate.”
“Yes. I am aware. Many people are fond of the Vice-Commander.”
“Are you one of them?”

The elevator stopped. I walked toward the parking lot as I thought.
Vice-Commander Anton Geffren.
He was a good man.
…And nothing more than a good man.

“Not a chance.”
“Then, what is it that you don’t like about him?” Kairon pressed.

I turned my head and looked him in the eye.

“I believe he trusts too much in the good nature of man.”

Anton was a man who valued the outdated romance of ‘chivalry.’ That was why he expressed concern when I killed the young Izenheim.
I will kill Izenheims endlessly, and Anton will become an obstacle in my path.

“He is ignorant of a knight’s duty, of his reason for existence.”

Kairon’s face began to twitch at my continued response.
It was the face of someone trying to hold back a smile.

“He tries to see only the good side of this world.”

In a broken empire, destruction blossoms. The empire must function as the lesser evil, and the cleansing of the races must proceed.

“That makes him no different from a blind man.”

An old man trying to plant a single flower in this hellish world.
That was Anton.

“Hahaha!”

Kairon laughed heartily. He clapped his hands and put one on my shoulder.

“You’re right. Absolutely right. Well, I’ll be. To be proven right by a rookie. No, Maximilian, it’s not right to call you a rookie, is it? You’re the heir to Ebenholz.”

Kairon’s expression quickly turned serious again.

“Maximilian, the Imperial Family will likely conduct a thorough investigation into Anton. They’ll come to you, and to your father, and ask many things.”
“I doubt my words will carry much weight.”
“What’s with the modesty?”

Kairon paused, twisting one side of his mouth into a smirk.

“I just want you to be honest, just as you have been now, and if any other words come out, I want you to simply remain silent.”

It meant he was going to fabricate things to frame him.
Kairon raised an eyebrow with a peculiar expression.

“A noble who might as well have been selling straw mats becoming the Commander of the Sentinel Knights… That can’t be, can it? I’m sure your father thinks the same.”

I nodded. I didn’t like him constantly bringing up Jephestian, but tact was necessary.

“Yes. Speaking honestly is simple enough.”
“……Haha.”

Kairon gave a low smile.

“Good. Let’s see each other again later. Go on now. You look busy.”
“Yes.”

And with that, Kairon left. I got in my car.
I let out a sigh as I pressed the accelerator.

“So many presumptuous bastards.”

To mention Jephestian so freely was to look down on me, but for now, I had to endure it.
I was still just Jephestian’s little puppy. And for now, being seen that way was to my advantage.


“……Sir Knight. Will Max be of any help?”

In the Sentinel Knights’ parking lot, the noble knight Reynell asked with a displeased expression.

“Max is already on Jephestian’s bad side. Rumors are even flying that he’s adopting Edmon as his son. You saw him for yourself, didn’t you? His neck is so damn stiff.”

Just then, Kairon furrowed his brow.

“Watch your mouth. His neck?”
“Ah, yes?”
“And what do you mean, Jephestian is adopting some half-breed? He’s more of a purist than anyone.”
“……My apologies.”

Reynell and the other knights hastily bowed their heads. Kairon clicked his tongue.

“Don’t treat him carelessly. Maximilian is a man you can reason with.”
“Ah… is that so?”
“Yes. How long are you going to act like big shots? You were the ones who were wrong in the first place. Maximilian’s words were a hundred times right. No matter how you knew him privately, in a public setting, you can’t just call him Max.”

‘Do not call me Max.’

The senior knights held a grudge against Maximilian for the words he had once said.

“He is an Ebenholz. His standing is already different from yours, and the legacy he has built is that of a different class of nobility.”

He may have been their junior as a cadet, but his class was different from the very beginning.
And yet, these idiots tried to treat him casually, remembering their time at Empire Point.

“It means don’t get on his bad side for no reason.”
“……Yes. We apologize.”

The knights bowed their heads.


“Oh my. Is there a meeting in the parking lot?”

Everyone flinched and turned around. Kairon glared at her.
Adria von Hardenberg.
A key member of Anton’s line, and the knight Kairon despised the most.

“It lacks dignity. A group of knights loitering about.”
“We were just discussing the lunch menu.”

Kairon swallowed a curse and smiled. Adria also gave a small laugh.

“I see. Well, you do like to make a big deal out of everything. Do carry on.”

Adria got into her knightly vehicle. Kairon watched her, then gestured to his knights.

“Let’s go.”
“Yes.”

Kairon confirmed that his will aligned with Maximilian of Ebenholz. That was enough.

Besides, there's no way a man raised by the noblest of blood would take a liking to a baseborn creature like Anton.

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Pub: 02 Oct 2025 04:37 UTC

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