Imperial Throne

Chapter 137: The Yellow Sparrow Behind

Raven sat in the prison cell, yet he was neither panicked nor uneasy.

He was reflecting on his own mistake this time.

The long period of ease had dulled his sense of danger, leading him to step into a trap without even realizing it. After that came the arrogance born from being a bloodline user, which caused him to misjudge the person in the room, assuming he could kill the other party by suddenly launching an attack from ten meters away. Then came the incorrect assessment of the situation—believing that Ion, like him, would prioritize profit, yet he hadn’t expected that what Ion truly cared about was family.

But Raven was also relieved. Thankfully, Ion did care about family—so he was still alive.

Because he knew, until he revealed the whereabouts of Arsen’s son, Ion would never kill him.

So he waited.

Waited for Ion to come negotiate with him again.

Although he had revealed the location of the ruins, he had not shared the exact position or the method to enter.

Raven had not given up.

"Step—step—step—"

A series of footsteps slowly echoed.

Raven looked toward the sound and soon saw Ion’s figure.

"Well?"

"We found the ruins. You didn’t lie to me, so our deal continues," Ion said in a calm voice. "I’ve already sent someone to Iceport. If everything goes smoothly, we should have results in about half a year. If not, then it might take a bit longer—but only if the intel you previously provided is accurate, and there are indeed traces of Heartrock Hound activity around the Lava Mountain."

"You found the ruins?" A trace of disbelief appeared in Raven’s eyes.

"Of course." Ion’s expression was exceedingly cold. "Did you forget what I’m best at?"

Only then did Raven realize that Ion’s greatest skill was tracking—after all, he had always been remarkably sharp-minded.

"The intel you provided was just a decoy. It might work on ordinary people, but for me, I only had to think a bit—how did you initially stumble upon the ruins? Then combine that with the difference between ordinary people and mercenary groups, and naturally, the ruins' location wasn’t hard to uncover."

What Ion said was mostly vague talk, but Raven, already mentally stirred, failed to realize there was no real substance in Ion’s words. He only knew that his relationship with Ion had drifted even farther apart. This made his expression turn uglier, because he finally realized the true danger—no matter whether he got the magical beast materials he wanted, once he spoke of Arsen’s child’s whereabouts, Ion could immediately turn against him.

But if he were to receive the materials first before revealing the child’s whereabouts, he knew that unless Ion had gone mad, there was absolutely no way he would agree.

"I can’t understand." Raven shook his head. "Clearly, if we just cooperated..."

"I already told you—I don’t trust you." Ion mercilessly cut him off. "Maybe we were once close comrades and companions, but the moment you chose to abandon all your companions, we could never go back to what we once were. ...Raven, stop wasting your efforts. There will be no more cooperation between us. For the sake of our past, once you get the materials, leave the Red Eagle Territory."

Raven fell silent.

But Ion no longer had any interest in continuing the conversation. He turned and left quickly.

Only then did Raven slowly lift his head, eyes bloodshot as he watched Ion’s departing back.

His fists clenched tightly, his expression filled with unwillingness and rage.

...

Watching Ion come out from the dungeon, Yam hurried forward and asked, "Father, how did it go?"

"He bought it," Ion nodded slowly. "Next, we just have to wait for Sherry’s news."

"I already asked Anna. She doesn’t know about the Heartrock Hound either. I think Miss Sherry’s trip might not go smoothly," Akar shook his head slightly. "The Agbia United Merchant Guild mainly does maritime trade, but they rarely go to the Marquisate of Volcano, so if we really want to purchase a Heartrock Hound’s heart through the Agbia United Merchant Guild, it likely won’t be easy."

The Agbia United Merchant Guild was one of the five major merchant guilds in the Southern Region.

But unlike the Bruno Merchant Guild, the Agbia United Merchant Guild was composed of a coalition of mid- and small-sized caravans and merchant groups. Their business operations were very diverse, and their activity zones were primarily coastal territories such as the Cold Ridge Territory, Bay Territory, and Inner Bay Territory.

Now that the White Mountain Territory and the Fertile Plains had closed their borders, the Agbia United Merchant Guild was expanding rapidly at an astonishing pace.

Rumors even suggested that the Bruno Merchant Guild was engaged in a fierce secret conflict with the Agbia United Merchant Guild: allegedly, the Bruno Merchant Guild intended to secure a direct trade route from Iceport to the Inner Bay Territory, but was obstructed by the joint resistance of the Agbia United Merchant Guild. As a result, relations between the two were rapidly deteriorating.

"Whether it’s easy or not, we must at least try," Ion shook his head slightly. "There probably won’t be any news in the short term. You all go tend to your own affairs."

"What about you, Father?" Yam asked.

"I'll go study the locations Arsen carried out missions back in the day again. Perhaps we can find some clues," Ion said in a deep voice. "We can't place all our hopes on Raven. If we can find your elder brother's son first, then we'll have more options."

Yam and Akar exchanged a glance but didn't try to dissuade him further.

After all, both of them were also extremely eager to find their nephew.

However, just as the three left the dungeon, a figure suddenly stepped out from a nearby small house.

This house was originally the resting place for guards watching over the dungeon. But since Baroness Anna had taken power, the dungeon had remained unused for quite some time, so the hut had gradually fallen into disuse—only recently had Anna arranged for a few servants and kitchen maids to help out because Ion had been using the dungeon frequently. Their main job was to prevent the prisoners held in the dungeon from starving to death. Apart from that, there were no other duties.

They rarely interacted or communicated with the prisoners.

But at this moment, this figure clearly wasn't one of the servants.

He watched Ion and the others leave, then turned to glance at the long-abandoned dungeon, finally giving in to curiosity and walking toward it.

As he went deeper, he quickly discovered Raven locked in one of the deepest cells of the dungeon.

Raven looked at the newcomer in some surprise.

Judging by the other man's attire, Raven immediately knew this person was not one of Ion's people. He had been imprisoned here for some time already and was naturally familiar with the servants who came and went. He had even tried to bribe them to let him out, but every time, they merely dropped off food in a rush and left quickly, as if he were carrying some kind of plague.

"Who are you?"

"Who are you?" the man countered instead of answering, "Why are you locked up here?"

"You're not one of Ion's people?" Raven asked knowingly.

"Ion?" The other man let out a mocking laugh. "Do I look like one of his? This is my wife's dungeon. It’s been abandoned for a while. If I hadn’t noticed some odd movements in the kitchen recently, I wouldn’t have come to check it out. I thought there were a few internal thieves, but now it seems there's a deeper secret involved."

Wife?

Raven pondered silently, and then realization dawned on him.

He had been brought into the Lord's Manor himself. He had assumed the female lord of the Gem Territory was aligned with Ion. But from the words of this richly dressed man in front of him, it was obvious that Ion and the lady of the Gem Territory were not on the same side.

In the next instant, Raven’s mind began to scheme.

"My lord, you must run!"

"Run?" Joshua furrowed his brow. "Why should I run? This is my wife's dungeon. Ion isn’t even her household knight, yet he dares act recklessly here just because his son is the chief knight commander of the Billy Family? I have plenty of ways to deal with him later. ...But you—I'm more curious why you're locked up here. How did you offend Ion Soderbell?"

"My lord, it's not that I offended him—he's trying to seize a treasure!" Raven spoke urgently. "He’s already killed many people to claim the treasure for himself. I originally thought he was acting under the orders of the lord of the Gem Territory, but from what you've just said, it seems even the lord of the Gem Territory doesn't know about this. You must leave quickly, or if Ion finds out, something might happen to you too."

"Something might happen?" Joshua shook his head, his expression slightly arrogant, though more due to the confidence and assurance that came from his own background. "What, is he going to kill me? If he dares to do that, he—and both his sons—will all die."

"My lord!" Raven hurriedly cried out, "That treasure is of great significance. He’s even hidden it from the lord and wants to take it for himself—why wouldn’t he dare kill you? He’s already allied with over a dozen bloodline users. That power is absolutely not to be underestimated!"

Joshua's heart gave a slight jolt.

Although he had no real power since arriving in the Gem Territory, that gave him more time to understand the region’s power structure. He knew well how many bloodline users were in the entire Gem Territory.

So upon hearing Raven’s words, a thought immediately formed in Joshua’s mind. "Among those people, did you hear names like Sien, Hatch, or the like?"

"Yes!" Raven looked extremely anxious and surprised. "I was targeted in Ruby Village. At first, it was a few mercenaries chasing me, and soon afterward, the people you just named appeared. I may not be weak, but facing a dozen bloodline users, I dared not resist—that would be a road to certain death! ...Thankfully, Ion desperately wanted to know the treasure’s location, so he didn’t kill me. Instead, he brought me back and secretly imprisoned me."

"What exactly is this treasure?"

"I don’t know the exact nature of it. But before I lost consciousness, I heard Ion mention—it’s the treasure of the Bourbon Family."

"The Bourbon Family’s treasure?" Joshua exclaimed. "Impossible! ...No, wait! If he truly belongs to the Bourbon Family, he must know the location of the Bourbon Family’s secret vault. Could he be trying to empty it while Grandfather is unaware?"

Secret vault?!

Raven’s heart thudded in shock once again.

He had deliberately avoided mentioning the ruins and instead brought up something rather ambiguous, but unexpectedly, he ended up overhearing news about the Bourbon Family’s secret vault!

With a slight thought, he immediately opened his mouth again and said, "My lord! Ion and his family are not members of the Bourbon Family!"

"They're not?" Joshua was stunned. "Impossible! Ion’s bloodline may be the Flame Hound, but his eldest son Yam awakened the Flame Demon Hound—that's the bloodline symbol of the Bourbon Family."

Yam's bloodline was also the Flame Demon Hound?

How could that be!?

Raven was genuinely confused.

Others might not recognize Akar’s bloodline ability, but Raven, who had been researching the Bourbon Family’s ruins all along, was already very familiar with the Flame Demon Hound’s abilities. So when he saw the arrow Akar shot that night, he had already recognized Akar’s bloodline.

It was precisely because of this that Raven was so shocked now.

Because back in the ruins, the Flame Demon Hound bloodline potion they had found—there had only been one vial!

Raven had always believed that the potion had been used on Akar. But now, hearing that Yam’s bloodline was also the Flame Demon Hound, he faintly sensed that he had likely overlooked something very important—and that this crucial clue might already be fully grasped by Ion.

However, these thoughts merely spun around once in Raven’s mind.

He knew the most pressing matter at hand was not to ponder over these things, but to escape this place as soon as possible.

"It’s not like that, my lord!" Raven spoke quickly. "Ion’s family and I were all mercenaries. They weren’t bloodline users before—they only became bloodline users after discovering a treasure, just like me. Moreover, Yam isn’t even Ion’s eldest son. Ion’s eldest son is Arsen. He was the one who discovered the treasure with me back then. We agreed to split it equally."

"But later, Arsen died, and Ion wanted to monopolize the treasure entirely. That’s why he tried to kill me. I wasn’t his match at the time, so I had no choice but to flee. I was planning to get stronger and take revenge later, but I didn’t expect Ion’s family to grow stronger even faster than me."

"My lord, there must be some kind of secret behind all this! Perhaps that’s why they’ve always wanted to find that treasure again."

After hearing Raven’s words, Joshua felt both furious and anxious.

"You wait here!"

"My lord, please save me!"

"Don’t worry, I will definitely save you!" Joshua said with a cold expression. "But for now, I can’t release you. Because if things are as you say, then Ion has already hollowed out the entire power of the Gem Territory. That means my wife is in great danger. If I let you go now, it would alarm them and cause unnecessary danger."

"My lord, are you planning to… request reinforcements?"

"Yes." Joshua nodded. "No more than ten days. I promise you will leave here safely."

"Really?"

"Yes!" Joshua nodded. "I swear in the name of Joshua Kasein—I will absolutely protect your safety!"

He had deliberately avoided mentioning the ruins and instead brought up something rather ambiguous, but unexpectedly, he overheard news about the Secret Vault of the Bourbon Family!

With a quick thought, he immediately spoke again, "My lord! Ion and his family are not members of the Bourbon Family!"

"They’re not?" Joshua was stunned. "Impossible! Ion’s bloodline may be the Flame Hound, but his eldest son Yam awakened the Flame Demon Hound—that is the bloodline symbol of the Bourbon Family."

Yam’s bloodline was also the Flame Demon Hound?

How could that be!?

Raven was truly confused.

Others might not recognize Akar’s bloodline ability, but Raven, who had always been studying the ruins of the Bourbon Family, was already very familiar with the abilities of the Flame Demon Hound. So the moment he saw the arrow Akar shot that night, he already knew Akar’s bloodline.

It was precisely because of this that Raven was so shocked now.

Because back then, in the ruins, there had only been one vial of Flame Demon Hound Bloodline Elixir!

Raven had always believed that this elixir was used on Akar, but now hearing that Yam’s bloodline was also the Flame Demon Hound, he faintly felt that he had likely overlooked something extremely important—and that this clue was likely fully grasped by Ion.

However, these thoughts only spun around Raven’s mind once.

He knew that the top priority now was not to think about these things, but to escape this place as soon as possible.

"It’s not like that, my lord!" Raven quickly said. "Ion’s family and I were all mercenaries. They were not bloodline users before. It was only after discovering a treasure that they suddenly became bloodline users, just like me. Moreover, Yam is not Ion’s eldest son—Ion’s eldest son is Arsen. He was the one who discovered the treasure with me. We agreed to split it equally."

"But later, Arsen died. So Ion wanted to monopolize the treasure entirely and attempted to kill me. I wasn’t his match at the time, so I had no choice but to flee. I originally planned to get stronger and take revenge later, but I didn’t expect Ion’s family to grow stronger even faster than I did."

"My lord, there must be some kind of secret in all this! Perhaps this is also the reason they’ve always wanted to find that treasure again."

After hearing Raven’s words, Joshua immediately felt both furious and anxious.

"You wait here!"

"My lord, please save me!"

"Don’t worry, I will definitely save you!" Joshua said coldly. "But for now, I can’t release you. Because if things are as you say, then Ion has already hollowed out all the power in the Gem Territory. That means my wife is in great danger. If I release you now, it will certainly alert them and cause unnecessary danger."

"My lord, are you going to… request reinforcements?"

"Yes." Joshua nodded. "No more than ten days. I promise you’ll leave here safe and sound."

"Really?"

"Yes!" Joshua nodded. "I swear in the name of Joshua Kasein—I will absolutely ensure your safety!"