Category: I Will Be The Matriarch in This Life

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A sharp silence that seemed as if it were about to explode pierced the room.

Sushou remained calm, even in front of Lavini’s face that was gradually becoming colder.

He lifted his teacup which he had put down again and even drank a few more sips of the tea.

Although the body that filled the chair was large, the handling of the teacup was quite delicate.

“Just what…are you saying?”

Lavini’s voice trembled.

She was furious.

The face that was smiling beautifully, like a smooth porcelain mask, was gradually cracking due her anger.

“It’s exactly like I’ve said.”

The Sushou Patriarch answered while slowly lowering his hand down onto his bad knee.

It was a hand that belonged to a knight who had many scars.

“The deadline for the funds lent out to the Angenas by Sushou has already passed. So, if you aren’t able to return that money right away, we’ll have to seize the collateral.”

“Hey, Patriarch Sushou!”

Eventually, a loud shout burst out from the Empress.

The smile that tried hard to seem calm finally collapsed with a crash.

“You want me to return the money right now?! Aren’t you also aware of how impossible your condition is?”

“Have I said anything that was incorrect, Your Majesty the Empress?”

Chanton Sushou had an odd look on his face.

His twisted mouth made it hard to determine whether he was angry or smiling.

Seeing the face he had made, Lavini’s anger within her exploded.

“Are you pretending to be me right now?”

“Of course not.”

“If not, then what? What are you trying to do, getting me to suddenly repay you such a large sum of money at a time like this?!”

“I know. Borrowing such a large amount of money yet feeling so at ease, how strange.”

Finally, the Patriarch of Sushou let out a dry laugh and smirked.

But the gaze in his eyes was as thin as the surface of ice.

“Since you’ve borrowed the money, it’s natural that you now have to pay it back.”

Empress Lavini glared at the Chanton in front of her.

She was so angry that she had reached the point where her shoulders were shaking every time she took a breath.

However, she couldn’t even scream according to her personality.

Because it was true that the Angenas had borrowed money from Sushou using their estates and land as the collateral, and subsequently, the hilt of the sword was rightfully held by Sushou.

The Empress, who had been glaring at Chanton Sushou for a long time, finally opened her mouth.

“Is the South so insufficient for you to covet the West as well? Representing both regions isn’t allowed, so the West will still be under the jurisdiction of Angenas.”

“I’m already aware of that.”

“And yet you’re still greedy for our land. Aren’t you being overly ambitious right now?”

“That could be possible.”

The Patriarch of Sushou said languidly, as if he was stretching.

“But, of course, I wouldn’t be the only one who has a lot of greed. Wouldn’t the Angenas, the ones who seized someone else’s property, also have a lot of greed?”

“Patriarch Sushou!”

Her body trembled at the insults that were thrown directly in her face.

Her nails dug painfully into her palm as she clenched her fists.

However, thanks to the pain, Lavini regained her rationality.

Then, she took a deep breath whilst calmly grasping the situation.

“Patriarch Sushou.”

“Yes, please continue.”

“If you’re trying to pretend to be me, you’ll regret it.”

“I’ve already said it a while earlier, Your Majesty the Empress. Sushou is not trying to replace Angenas. I’m just claiming the accumulated debt.”

“…then I’ll arrange for the funds to be repaid within this month. If we’re not able to by then, I’ll hand over the deeds to the land.”

Empress Lavini put down all of her pride and suggested.

However, Patriarch Sushou shook his head.

“I’m sorry. Actually, the deadline stated in the contract is already three days overdue. I’ve already waited for the past three days, so I came here in order to get the deeds to the land today.”

“There’s no such law…!”

“Or should we ask His Majesty the Emperor to mediate?”

Sushou interrupted the Empress and asked.

It was a method that was occasionally used when conflicts between nobles escalated.

Just like it did with Angenas and Brown, a long time ago.

It was normally a suggestion that was welcomed with open arms.

But Empress Lavini’s complexion was still as dark as it was before.

Because it was the excessively fickle Emperor Yovanes.

She did not know what kind of ruling he would make if he was asked to solve such a problem, especially in a situation where because of Astana, he was in such a foul temper.

Perhaps he might have asked Angenas to spit out something else on top of their fief as collateral.

Clenching her teeth together, Empress Lavini rose from her seat and opened the safe.

It contained the deeds to the various areas under the jurisdiction of Angenas.

Lavini’s fingertips trembled as she pulled out the deeds from among the pile to the places that were stated in the contract.

However, when she returned to her seat with the deeds to the land, her expression had already returned to normal.

Before she handed over the deeds, Empress Lavini spoke.

“You already said you wouldn’t pretend to be me.”

“That’s right.”

“Then, please make sure you attend tomorrow’s noble meeting. And what we’ve done today is not to leave your mouth. Don’t tell anyone.”

Now, it was more important than ever for Angenas to show an unshakeable and solid appearance.

“Hmm.”

Patriarch Sushou, who seemed to agonise over her request for a while, nodded shortly after.

“I’ll do that then.”

“Also, you’ll return the deeds to our fief if we repay the amount of money we borrowed, right?”

“That’s quite difficult. We’ve already made plans for the estates in the west.”

“You’d better put aside those plans, since we’ll get that money as soon as possible.”

Empress Lavini’s words and scornful laughter elicited a rare laugh from Patriarch Sushou, who seldom did so.

Then, while accepting the bundle of documents that the Empress was offering to him, he told her.

“Then you’ll have to hurry, Your Majesty the Empress.”

[ / / / ]

The day of the aristocratic meeting dawned.

In no time, my carriage was already approaching the venue where the noble meeting would take place.

Of course, it was the carriage that my Grandfather always used, the carriage for the head of the Lombardys.

I swept my hand over the interior of the carriage which was beautifully decorated in gold, like the black silk dress I was wearing.

“The feeling of riding on this carriage, I missed it.”

This unshakable sense of security that seems to be put into this moving carriage!

The Patriarch of Lombardy’s carriage.

Of course, I had also ridden in this carriage in my previous life.

However, I was only accompanying my grandfather everywhere as a secretary to assist him.

“Now, it’s mine.”

Now it’s for me, Florentia Lombardy, the Acting Patriarch Lombardy, and no one else.

And just like that, I felt as if I had an unspoken connection with the carriage, and soon arrived in front of the place that the aristocratic council was to be held.

I patted the ornament of the World Tree and whispered.

“Just wait here for a while, alright? I’ll be right back after finishing this task.”

Those words weren’t just said for no reason.

The aristocratic meeting this time wouldn’t be too long.

I walked softly, taking leisurely steps.

As soon as I entered the conference room, countless pairs of eyes focused on me.

“Oh it’s young miss?” ¹

An old nobleman who was talking to another nobleman by the door asked me.

It was a man who belonged to the faction that sided with Angenas.

“Are you sure you haven’t come to the wrong place, young miss?”

“Is there perhaps a book club taking place near here?”

The sound of several people talking in whispers could be heard.

As I slowly glanced at their faces, one by one, the information regarding them floated in front of them.

That fat man who offered a bribe to his father and was turned down.

That grumpy looking man was competing with Shananae in the mining industry.

And the person who sent me a teddy bear for my 8th birthday.

There were very few people who were completely new to me in here.

Then, someone approached me.

“Oh, isn’t this Lombardy’s young miss?”

He was a nobleman I had seen several times before at a banquet.

He was a member of a household who was quite close to Lombardy and was always stuck right next to either my grandfather or Viege.

“Hello.”

Since I don’t remember his name, let’s just omit it completely.

Instead, I gave him a bright smile and asked.

“This is the conference room that will be used for the upcoming noble meeting, right?”

“That’s right, but…”

“Could you please let me know which seat my grandfather sits in when he normally attends the meeting?”

“Where the Patriarch Lombardy sits?”

The nobleman tilted his head for a while before telling me to follow him for now.

As I started to walk, numerous pairs of eyes also moved with me.

Curiosity, disapproval, vigilance.

All sorts of things stung the back of my head.

I gradually became more and more convinced by the fact that if I were not a Lombardy, I would not have been allowed into the conference room.

“Patriarch Lombardy hasn’t arrived yet.”

“Yes, I know.”

Right now, Grandfather is recuperating in bed.

“Aha, then did you perhaps come here to see Patriarch Lombardy?”

“No, nothing like that.”

The nobleman who guided me to my seat constantly chattered on without stopping.

Fortunately, my grandfather’s seat was not too far from the entrance.

Exactly to the right of the chairman’s chair.

The seat that was in the row furthest to the front and right in the centre.

It was a chair that didn’t look particularly stable or firm.

However, I was well aware of what such a position meant in this place.

“It’s here. However, as you can see, Patriarch Lombardi hasn’t arrived yet…”

Flop.

I ignored the nobleman who was talking about some other nonsense again and sat my butt down onto the empty chair.

I saw the Angenas faction on the other side glance over.

“What an ideal spot.”

I laughed when I thought of my grandfather sitting in this chair and glaring at the nobles on the other side.

“What…exactly are you doing right now?”

The eyes of the nobleman who guided me to my seat were wide open with astonishment.

The responses of the others in the conference room were no different.

“Ahem. Lady Lombardi.”

Then, I heard a courteous voice calling me.

It was the chairman.

“Yes, Chairman Killian. It’s been a while since I saw you. You came to my coming of age ceremony, didn’t you?”

“Yes, I did…do that.” ²

I could see the complex emotions flit past the chairman’s face.

He probably won’t be able to understand the situation any further since the appearance of me, sitting in the conference room probably overlaps with the one of me, having my coming of age ceremony only a few years ago.

“Ahem, Lady Lombardi. That seat is the seat of your grandfather, Patriarch Lombardy. the seat of my grandfather, the Lord Lombardi. If you’d like to watch the noble meeting, there’s a spot at the back over there…”

“I’ve come here to attend the meeting, not spectate it.”

“Attend…?”

“Yes, Sir Speaker.”

The chairman looked at me, dumbfounded.

The nobles who were waiting to attend the meeting started to talk as a crowd.

However, it was all like joyous music to my ears.

“If you’re attending…”

I’m sure you understand what I’m saying by now.

I repeated it once again, one word at a time in a clear and articulate voice to the chairman in order to confirm it with him again.

“Florentia Lombardy. The Acting Patriarch of Lombardy.”

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[1] 자네: it’s a pronoun used to refer to someone who is a friend or younger than the speaker but can also be an endearment between friends, e.g. buddy, mate, old sport. since the dude is talking to tia, i just tled it as miss because i doubt that dude would refer to her as buddy or mate, especially if he’s in the angenas faction lmao

[2] “그랬…소.”: chairman killian switches from what we assume to be informal speech to semi-informal speech suitable for someone older addressing the younger in a somewhat respectful manner as tia is now both of age and at a conference meeting that only the heads of the family can attend (not to mention her extremely noble family status). bit hard to tl informal formal speech but you get the idea hehehe

AHHHH THAT ENDING literally while i was tling that last bit all i could hear was girlboss music hASDLKFDF #thatsmygirl u tell em bestie !!

yeah but was loki pissed when they were all doubting her bc think abt it, if a guy or a grandson walked into the meeting, they’d probably automatically assume they were acting patriarch, esp with a grandfather as old as tia’s, right? idk i might be reading too into it but i felt so satisfied when they all finally realised hASDLFKJ

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“I’ll have to stop him.”

Empress Lavini said to Duigi.

Duigi Angenas was more frightened by Lavini’s calm appearance.

Ever since she was a child, Lavini was someone who had a fiery personality and smashed things when she was angry.

However, now, she looked very calm.

But Duigi thought he’d rather her be angry.

It was because he felt as if a calm Lavini further proved that the situation was not good.

Perhaps even worse than Duigi could even imagine.

Lavini, who had taken all the real power and left a puppet in the Patriarch’s seat, was resentful, but now was time to leave those sort of feelings behind.

“What should I do, sister?”

Duigi asked seriously.

“Didn’t I tell you? We have to stop him.”

A blue blood vessel throbbed on the back of Lavini’s clenched fists.

“That lowly thing…”

Lavini gritted her teeth when she thought of Perez.

She had thought it was quiet for a the time being, but couldn’t believe that he had actually secretly planned this sort of scheme behind their backs during this time.

“It’s clear that the Second Prince, Brown, and Lombardy, all had a part in this, Duigi.”

The one who had held a hunting competition and attracted them to Madman’s Forest was none other than Florentia Lombardy.

“Although I’d very much like to cut off the head of that disgraceful thing.”

She was still the Patriarch Lombardy’s granddaughter, and the daughter of Gallahan Lombardy.

She didn’t know how Lombardy would react if she touched her recklessly.

Besides, the Imperial Army was not allowed to step foot into the Lombardy’s mansion.

Lavini, whose thoughts had spread to the imperial knights, asked Duigi.

“How is the issue with the Knights coming along?”

“There’s a division of them within the Imperial Knights.”

Angenas occupied the west, expanding their influence, and the Empress who was originally from Angenas would give birth to a legitimate heir.

The 40 years that Angenas had spent building up their power were enough for them to spread their people throughout the empire.

And the Imperial Knights was one of them.

“According to the report, they’re saying it’s split in half.”

“Half?”

Lavini raised her eyebrows.

“We’ve put so much money into the Imperial Knights during this time, and you’re telling me we only have half?!”

Thwack!

Lavini punched the table.

“The thing is… It should be the current Knight Commander. Tollian Buckton. It seems that the Second Prince and the Brown family are united around him.”

“If we had a little more time, we could have replaced the Knight Commander’s position with our own men.”

If only there was a little more time.

Empress Lavini kept muttering these words.

Something was strange.

It was hard for words to describe it, but the things that were definitely going to go to plan were all being dislocated.

It was a great sense of incongruity.

She kept having a strange premonition that she might have been toying with one person for too long, which was ridiculous, but she couldn’t ignore it.

The one who had found the dying Second Prince and became his guardian.

Then the one who had sent him to the Academy beyond the influence of the Empress.

The man who gave the returned Second Prince a chance to grab a position in politics under the pretext of the northern landslide, and even gave his granddaughter a boost.

And finally, the one who had set up the spectacular stage for the Brown family to draw everyone’s attention.

“Lombardy, that old man.”

In the meantime, if you looked at everything that had been in the way of Lavini and the Angenas, Lombardy was the one behind it, every single time.

Lavini tried to cool her head when she recalled dealing with Rulac.

One had to keep their head above water in order to successfully deal with him.

“I’ll leave the noble meeting up to you and Patriarch Sushou, Duigi. No matter what happens, the Browns must not be put back onto the aristocratic register.”

“Of course.”

Duigi Angenas answered quickly.

It would have been very difficult to deal with Rulac Lombardy alone, but the odds were stacked against the Lombardy if they were acting together with Sushou.

In fact, the power of the Angenas became stronger at noble meetings after it was revealed to the public that Sushou was standing on the same side as the First Prince.

“But how do I explain what happened to the First Prince?”

In the meantime, Duigi has been spreading rumours about how Astana ‘Didn’t do it on his own, he was just high on drugs.’

Thanks to this, the ones who supported Angenas and feared that the First Prince would be dethroned and lead to something big happening had subsided, but further measures needed to be added.

“He’s being falsely accused. Someone drugged Astana. Put it that way.”

“If they ask me who drugged him…”

Of course the correct answer was Perez.

But that was not something Empress Lavini nor Duigi could say.

Perez was the investigator who was in charge of the investigation.

“Right now, our top priority is to turn the arrow away from Astana. So…”

Empress Lavini’s eyes shone ruthlessly.

“You said Bellesac was still in custody, right?”

“You’re not possibly saying…”

Duigi Angenas’ jaw dropped.

It was because Empress Lavini was clearly showing him what she intended to do.

“You can’t possibly be thinking of pinning all this on that child, right?”

“Then is there a better way, Duigi?”

Lavini snorted.

“According to the knights’ investigation that you brought in, Astana clearly says, ‘Bellesac brought the canteen.'”

“But isn’t Bellesac the son of Serral?”

Serral was a cousin of Lavini and Duigi.

Empress Lavini frowned when she saw Duigi’s shocked face.

It was an extremely unpleasant face.

So she snapped back.

“Duigi. Bellesac, that kid isn’t an Angenas. He’s a Lombardy, isn’t he?”

Duigi Angenas had nothing else to say, and couldn’t do anything but stare blankly at the Empress.

[ / / / ]

At the same time.

Perez was entering the room where Bellesac Lombardy was detained with a few Imperial Knights.

Amidst the tense atmosphere, Bellesac asked.

“When can I go back to the Lombardy mansion?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure. So far, Lombardy hasn’t pleaded for you yet.”

“There’s no way…”

Bellesac’s voice stopped.

His father, Viege, had pretty much been ousted from the Lombardy family while his mother, Serral, was an Angenas and the Empress’ cousin.

He finally realised that there was no one left to pull him out of this situation.

Flop.

Bellesac sank into a chair, grabbing his hair.

“I didn’t do anything wrong, so why…”

He had had a faint strand of hope earlier.

By now, the Angenas’ faction should have already taken him out, by the request of either Lombardy, or his mother, Serral.

However, the ones who came to find him were instead, Perez and the Imperial Knights.

There was no place left for him to put his hopes on.

Perez spoke to the knights whilst looking down at Bellesac’s figure.

“Give us a moment.”

“…yes, Your Highness.”

The knights hesitated for a moment, but soon followed through and moved according to his orders.

A knight, who had remained in the room until the end, alternated his gaze between Perez and Bellesac with look of suspicion, but couldn’t do anything else.

There was no other way.

The Imperial Knights had to obey the orders of those surnamed Durelli.

Click.

With a quiet thud, the door closed as Perez sat himself across from Bellesac.

The way he leaned languidly against the backrest and crossed his legs differed greatly from his behaviour and atmosphere with the knights earlier.

Bellesac looked at Perez with wary eyes.

“Hey.”

Perez called out to Bellesac.

“Do you want to die like this?”

“W-What the hell are you…!”

Whilst he was with Astana, it had become a habit to mock and ridicule the Second Prince, so Bellesac, who had unconsciously spoke informally to Perez, shut his mouth hurriedly.

Perez, who seemed to understand why Bellesac was like this, replied in a calm voice.

“So far, there still isn’t anyone that will save you. I think you’re starting to get pretty desperate.”

Perez opened one of the boxes that were left at the table by the knights and showed him the canteen that was inside before saying.

“During the investigation, Astana said that ‘Bellesac was the one who handed me the canteen.'”

Bellesac’s brown eyes shook wildly.

Perez opened the second box.

“And this dagger that was used in the Emperor’s assassination also belongs to you, doesn’t it?”

“T-That’s…!”

“How do you think this would like to other people if the Angenas faction blamed this crime all on you?”

Perez continued as he looked at Bellesac’s face, which was gradually turning white.

“The Empress will accuse you as the main culprit, Bellesac Lombardy. You also know full well that she is the type of person to do that.”

Bellesac bit his lip.

It was exactly as Perez said.

Bellesac himself knew how cruel Empress Lavini was.

“I, who was the original owner of the water bottle and you, who stole it and gave it to Astana. However, I’m the investigator who’s in charge of this assassination case, so I can’t be accused. The only person left to blame is you, whose last name is Lombardy.”

At Perez’s words, Bellesac closed his eyes tightly.

Then Perez asked.

“Do you want to live?”

Bellesac lifted his head up.

His dull brain worked quickly in order to understand the current situation.

“Do you want to live?”

Perez asked once more.

“…y-yes! I, I want to live!”

Bellesac seemed to cling onto Perez’s legs.

Perez looked at Bellesac with a cold gaze for a moment, before taking out a piece of paper from his breast pocket.

It was a blank sheet of paper with nothing written on it.

“What…what is this?”

Bellesac was puzzled, as Perez tossed the piece of paper onto the table and said.

“Write a letter to your mother, Serral.”

[ / / / ]

The Empress had called the Sushou Patriarch to the Imperial Palace.

“I can only count on the Patriarch Sushou.”

Lavini said directly to Chanton Sushou.

Last time, Empress Lavini’s request for him to assassinate Perez was like a test.

It was in order for her to see whether or not she could trust the character of Chanton Sushou.

Eventually, Empress Lavini began to fully trust the former Imperial Knights Commander, Chanton Sushou, who had left evidence of his attempt to kill the prince.

“Aren’t Sushou and Angenas on the same boat right now?”

Empress Lavini poured tea for Patriarch Sushou with a beguiling smile.

“I can take care of Astana’s side, so please take care of the noble meeting’s side of things, Patriarch Sushou.”

“You mean the Browns.”

Chanton Sushou asked in a peculiar monotonous tone.

“That’s correct. It’s an extremely important issue.”

The Empress replied whilst continuing to smile.

But that smile didn’t last long.

It was because of what Chanton Sushou had said whilst putting down his tea cup.

“Then you should give us the estates belonging to Angenas.”

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the way lavini’s mind works is sort of insane but i have to give it up to her, she’s rlly formidable.

꒰ discord link: click here! ꒱

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“W-What sort of bullshit are you spouting?! Assassinating the Emperor…you’re saying I committed treason?!”

Astana couldn’t bring himself to say his own crime and turned a ghastly white.

He struggled until his cloth-bound ankles were all peeled and red, until the bandage on his severed right arm which was tied by the palace unraveled.

No one could beat his dirty temper.

But Perez’s face whilst looking down at Astana’s figure, remained expressionless.

“Do you perhaps want to claim that you don’t remember anything now?”

Perez asked in a dry tone.

“Don’t be ridiculous! Why would I ever try to kill the Emperor…”

Astana murmured, still looking confused.

The next moment, he raised his eyes and shouted at Perez.

“Wait, is that why I’m tied up here right now? Because I tried to assassinate the Emperor?

“That’s right.”

“Ha! Then that’s fine! Ha ha!”

Astana burst into a fit of laughter.

His sweaty and matted hair, disheveled clothes, and bloodshot eyes made his deranged smile seem as if it belonged to an insane madman.

“There must have been a misunderstanding! The one I was trying to kill wasn’t the Emperor but rather, it was you! So let this go, now!”

The faces of the knights became ambiguous.

How were they meant to explain it?

At the same time, they looked toward Perez.

Perez snorted and stared at Astana before replying.

“The one you rushed toward to kill wasn’t me, rather it was the Emperor instead.”

Perez said whilst he opened a sturdy chest.

“You used this dagger that Bellesac Lombardy had, didn’t you?”

Astana’s gaze arrived at the sharp dagger.

Fine, he remembered holding that dagger in his hand.

However.

“What a load of bullshit. It was clearly aimed at you, you lowly thing. I didn’t succeed because of the imperial knights that were next to you, but…”

Astana’s voice gradually faded away into silence.

His pupils trembled as if there was an earthquake.

With eyes that gradually showed his genuine horror, Astana checked the expressions of the knights with a nervous expression.

“N-No way…”

Eventually, a sound that seemed to be half a breath came out of Astana’s mouth.

“D-Did I really?”

Astana asked Lord Sloan.

Lord Sloan looked at Perez with a glum face, as if to get permission from him, before he replied to Astana.

“In Madman’s Forest, Your Highness, the First Prince attacked His Majesty the Emperor, not His Highness the Second Prince.”

“B-But he was clearly wearing the red armour, and that bitch from Lombardy was next to him…”

“Watch your words, Astana.”

Perez had already picked up Bellesac’s dagger and pointed it at Astana’s neck before speaking lowly.

It was not just a threat.

The exceptionally sharp tip of the dagger was already pressed against Astana’s Adam’s apple.

With just a little more force, it’d cut through his flesh and stab into him.

“U-Understood.”

Astana answered quickly.

“As I was saying, the young lady from Lombardy was also clearly next to him, I mean.”

“Florentia was taking care of His Majesty and looking around in the woods.”

Perez continued to speak without lowering the dagger.

“Therefore, you are a sinner who attempted to commit treason, Astana.”

“Treason you say?! Why would I? Even if I stay still and do nothing, I’m still a prince who will succeed His Majesty as the emperor in the future! Why would I commit treason?”

“Hard to say. That’s what I’ll need to figure out in the future.”

Perez flipped the dagger in his hand and thrust it in front of Astana’s eyes.

“Astana Nerempe Durelli. You attempted to assassinate His Majesty the Emperor with this dagger in Madman’s Forest. Furthermore.”

At Perez’s order, the knight held out a canteen made of black leather.

“The investigation revealed that this canteen contained a drug.”

“…a drug?”

“It’s a drug that absorbs magic at a rapid rate, causing visual hallucinations, auditory hallucinations, and so on.”

“Y-Yes, that’s right!”

Astana immediately jumped up from his spot and shouted.

“That’s right, clearly someone must have given me a drug! Otherwise, I couldn’t have mistaken His Majesty for you…”

“Are you saying that you didn’t choose to take this drug on your own?”

Lord Sloan asked Astana.

Magic boosts the human power by leaps and bounds.

That’s why Astana had the strength and stamina to push himself to his limits during those few days.

“Am I crazy enough to want to deliberately absorb magic?!”

“Then this is a very important piece of information”

Then, Lord Sloan asked Astana with an extremely solemn face.

“Is there anyone else who had access to this canteen?”

“How am I supposed to know that? That canteen wasn’t even mine in the first place!”

“It didn’t belong to Your Highness? Then why did you continue carrying this canteen in your possession?”

“That’s because Bellesac…Bellesac…”

Astana’s voice gradually became quieter again.

At that moment, Astana’s gaze turned to Perez.

“That canteen…”

“When I ran into the Second Prince’s group in the forest, I swiped one of the canteens they had drunk while they were talking about magic.”

Astana couldn’t find it in himself to speak.

“You, you…”

He felt goosebumps rise all over his body.

When he came to his senses, only then did he realise that he was already in the beast’s mouth.

At that moment, Perez, who was standing at the back, said.

“Tell me, Astana.”

His voice was as monotonous as before, but to Astana it seemed exactly as if he was laughing.

“For it is His Majesty’s command to find all those who were involved, including you.”

Perez’s red eyes were smiling.

[ / / / ]

Rulac breathed out a long sigh as he sat within a carriage that was entering the Lombardy mansion, watching the view outside the carriage’s window.

All of a sudden, he felt increasingly fatigued.

“Seems like I’ve grown older too.”

Rulac smiled in vain.

It had already been a long time since he found the work of the Patriarch overwhelming.

However, he had still held on until now.

It was because Doctor Estira, the Lombardy’s family doctor, was extremely skilled, and Rulac himself had lived in her care ever since he had collapsed a few years ago.

But now, he felt as if he was at his limit.

‘Hmm.’

Rulac sighed once again, rubbing his face.

“Patriarch, we’ve arrived at the mansion.”

The coachman’s voice was heard from outside.

“You’ve done well.”

Rulac said as he tried to hide his fatigue as much as he could.

Then the carriage door opened.

Rulac, who had just thought it was the coachman, widened his eyes.

“Grandfather, you’re back!”

“Tia…”

Although she had now become an adult, his granddaughter, who was smiling widely, still acted like a child.

“You must have been tired from the long trip, right? Let’s have a nice dinner together, Grandfather!”

“Were you waiting for outside just for this grandfather? It’s cold today though…”

Rulac asked anxiously when he saw his granddaughter’s nose that had turned red due to the cold.

“It hasn’t been long since I came out! My dad is also waiting for you at the restaurant. Grandfather, come with me!”

Tia said, walking arm in arm with Rulac affectionately.

“Gallahan as well…alright, alright.”

Rulac patted Tia’s hand.

Although this hand still felt small and tender, this hand couldn’t be more reliable.

The affectionate grandfather and granddaughter walked up the steps of the entrance, one by one whilst talking.

“The Brown household’s reinstatement is going to be discussed properly at the noble meeting.”

“Really? The Patriarch of the Brown family and Lady Ramona would like that a lot.”

Rulac looked at his granddaughter when he heard Tia’s words.

“What are you going to do, Tia? It was you who showed them to the world.”

“That’s…”

Tia smiled, crinkling her eyes finely.

It was a smile that resembled her father, Gallahan.

“Of course it’s good. It was a task that Grandfather had assigned to me.”

What a smart and resolute child.

Rulac patted Tia on the head.

“When did you grow up to be this big?”

His granddaughter had suddenly grown up to be such a strong support for the family.

He had been supportive of her becoming his successor.

The Durelli Family, which was already overflowing with blood, was different to the Lombardy household.

Lombardy had a promising younger generation that was ready to emerge.

‘Tia is still young, so I’ll teach her everything one by one. Then, after a few years…’

It happened when Rulac was having these sort of thoughts.

Stagger.

Rulac’s body collapsed and fell down.

It was the exact same situation as when the still-young Tia had hugged Rulac in order to cushion his fall and rolled down the stairs.

Rulac already knew what to do in this sort of situation.

Wouldn’t he injure her as badly as last time if the same thing happened twice?

Instinctively leaning to the opposite side of Tia, Rulac collapsed on the stairs.

“Grandfather!”

He heard Tia’s shocked voice.

He could feel his granddaughter clutching his shoulder, as if she was still trying to protect Rulac somehow.

In his gradually fading consciousness, Rulac patted the back of his granddaughter’s, just like he did a while ago.

‘Don’t be too surprised. I’m fine.’

However, failing to say all that, Rulac eventually lost his consciousness on the steps in front of the entrance.

[ / / / ]

“Estira, what’s going on?”

My voice was so cold that it was unfamiliar.

As Grandfather was safely taken to the bedroom, Estira immediately ran over right away.

“He’ll regain consciousness in no time. He’ll be alright.”

“How bad is Grandfather’s condition? If you had told me earlier…”

I would have been more careful.

I wouldn’t have let you go all alone on such a long journey to the palace.

Various thoughts were rushing through my mind.

“Don’t scold Doctor Estira too much. I was the one who told her not to tell anyone.”

My grandfather was slowly lifting himself up.

“Grandfather.”

My grandfather smiled as I approached him.

“In the end, isn’t this all because of my old age? No matter how effective the medicine is, it still can’t fool time.”

What grandfather said was correct.

In my previous life, my grandfather was already gradually struggling to move and always needed someone’s help to walk.

Unlike right now, he wouldn’t even have been able to imagine being able to get up from the bed himself or visiting the palace freely by himself.

I apologized to Estira.

“I’m sorry, Estira. I spoke out of turn there.”

“It’s fine. Miss Florentia was also very shocked.”

Estira gave me a warm smile as she handed the medicine to my grandfather.

“I think it’s because I was very fatigued today. Should I take my medicine more often?”

“I’d advise you to rest properly for a few days and observe your progress, Patriarch.”

“Hmm. I see.”

Grandfather shook his head as if he knew it would be so.

“This has become extremely troubling.”

“There’s nothing to worry about. You have to rest completely, Grandfather.”

My grandfather burst into laughter at my words.

“But shouldn’t someone go to the noble meeting and preside over the Brown family’s reinstatement?”

“Don’t worry about that. Perez already knows about that and will take care of it…”

“Alright, Tia, it’ll be find if you go.”

“What…?”

I doubted my ears for a moment.

I tried to scratch my ear with my little finger since I thought I had heard wrong as my grandfather smiled and said to me.

“Tia, you go to the noble meeting instead of me.”

“But, Grandfather. That’s…”

“That’s right, it’s something only an acting head can do.”

I nearly forgot to breathe as I looked at my grandfather.

Grandfather smiled kindly and said again, as if to confirm with me.

“You’ll attend the noble meeting as Lombardy’s Acting Patriarch, Tia.”

---

damn they rlly all fell into perez’s perfect trap huh. the moment astana realises this is so satisfying.

PLUS SOME MORE EXCITING NEWS! I’VE CREATED A DISCORD SERVER! idk how many of u guys there are but in case any of u guys wanted to be notified on chapter releases, you asked and i delivered hehehe click the link here, it’ll expire after 7 days bc im still scared of translation hunters SDLFKJDFS

---

The whole country was in a state of disarray.

It was only a natural reaction to the fact that the First Prince had attempted to kill the Emperor but was caught in the act by the imperial knights.

The nobles also became restless.

In the meantime, those who had been currying for favour behind Astana were stunned and anxious to be seen well by Perez.

Although he was the first and legitimate prince that was sired by the Empress, it was all useless in the face of the fearsome charges of attempted assassination and treason.

“There are nobles lining up in front of the Second Prince’s Poylac Palace every day.”

Bate reported to me.

“Even now, they’re still trying to gain favour and follow behind Perez. But I don’t know if I can say that.”

Perez will not push them away.

He is not a crown prince who cuts off those who choose not to follow him.

But he’ll definitely cut off the heads of some of those who had opposed him.

“How many people still remain on the Empress’ side these days?”

“There are a lot more than we expected.”

Bate answered my question while shrugging his shoulders.

“First off, right now, the power of the few remaining loyal households, including Angenas and their vassal families, are still quite strong. There are also many who have been married into the Angenas family through the arrangement of the Empress.”

“You’re saying those that can no longer sever their connections with the First Prince are still standing firm.”

“There is a rumour going around that the First Prince was out of his mind when he tried to kill the Emperor. The amount of people that also want to take the external factors into account are also not small in number.”

“So, was he in his right mind?”

I can still clearly remember Astana’s face from that day, when he was rushing forward with a knife.

He definitely must have been out of his mind.

Sure enough.

Bate shook his head.

“He was drunk on magic. To the point where he would not have been able to recognise his mother or father.”

“But it’s probably not easy for someone to get so drunk on magic to that extent. Am I right?”

Bate nodded this time.

Even if it was Madman’s Forest or catching a monster, it was not easy for magic to spread to that extent.

Furthermore, for it to be near the entrance of Madman’s Forest as well.

“Could he have possibly taken some sort of medicine that could absorb magic…”

The fact that Bate says it like that means that he can’t reveal the exact source, but there was definitely information that had come in about it.

“Medicine you say…”

It was Perez.

Even from the beginning, it was him who had proposed to hold a hunting competition in Madman’s Forest.

Preparing the gold armour for the Emperor was also one of his requests.

“Did you identify the monster I told you about last time?”

“Yes. Kangpara is a monster with long claws, and like crows, has a habit of collecting items that sparkle.”

As always. It went according to my expectations.

Perez had deliberately led the Emperor down that path in order to swap his own armour.

“Seems like it’s finally started.”

Perez’s revenge.

In his previous life, his revenge was long and thorough.

Starting from the crown prince and working his way up from there, he returned all the pain he had suffered.

However, I had never thought of stopping Perez.

No, instead, I was planning to help him.

I turned to look back at Clerivan and said.

“Sir Clerivan. It seems like the time to use ‘that’ is approaching soon. Make sure you’ve prepared for it properly.”

“Yes. I’ll move it to the Lombardy mansion.”

Clerivan replied with a relaxed smile on his face.

• • •

Emperor Yovanes, unable to sleep, poured alcohol into a glass with a haggard complexion.

He drinks to the point of unconsciousness and falls asleep under the influence of the alcohol.

Then, when he gets up the next morning, he reaches for the liquor bottle once again.

It was the recurring daily routine of the Emperor after returning from the hunting competition.

Eventually, it reached a point where a servant took the initiative to contact Rulac separately.

“Have a glass.”

Yovanes said, putting down a glass of liquor in front of Rulac.

“Are you drinking this kind of hard liquor every day?”

Rulac asked while frowning as his forehead wrinkled.

“I can’t sleep well unless I drink this.”

A weak Yovanes replied helplessly.

Even so, he quickly poured the golden liquor into his mouth and swallowed it in one gulp.

“I wish I could convey some good news to Your Majesty, but…”

Rulac broke the silence and started to talk, putting the wine glass back down without tasting it.

“You need to pay attention to the public sentiment that’s going on outside the palace.”

Emperor Yovanes frowned at the truth in Rulac’s words and grimaced, pressing down on his temple.

It meant that he didn’t want to hear it.

But Rulac continued to speak, disregarding the Emperor’s actions.

“The rumour regarding the First Prince’s assassination attempt on you has spread, making the public anxious. Furthermore…”

Rulac deliberately dragged out the end of his sentence to incite Yovanes’ curiousity.

“The story of the Brown family has become a hot topic again.”

“The Brown family?”

Yovanes, who was already pouring his second glass, suddenly lifted his eyes.

“What exactly is the rumor?”

“It was the old rumour about the Angenas household attacking the Brown household and killing the Brown Patriarch more than forty years ago.”

“So what exactly is that old rumour…!?”

Rulac gave Yovanes a look that seemed to ask, ‘do you really want to know?’

After a moment of silence, Rulac opened his mouth.

“Isn’t the First Prince, who is the legitimate heir, going crazy and trying to kill the Emperor, a punishment and retribution for betraying and abandoning the Brown household, who were loyal subjects long ago…? …Well, that’s the rumour.”

“What sort of nonsense!”

Yovanes was outraged.

“But that’s not something I did, is it?! That’s something that the late emperor did!”

Yovanes felt wronged.

It had been the late emperor’s decision to support and back the Angenas household, which he had remained close with since the time he had been a prince.

So in some way, they had turned a blind eye to the ousting of the Browns and the establishment of the Angenas in the West, joining their children, Yovanes and Lavini in marriage afterwards.

Everything had been the late emperor’s choice! Why should Yovanes himself accept this curse?

Already burdened by constant appearances in his dreams and trouble sleeping, he couldn’t believe that he had also been passed such a troublesome thing.

He was like a man who stood in the way of his child, even in his death.

“How would the ignorant know any better?”

Rulac appeared to take Yovanes’ side soothingly and said.

“It’s just the hushed whispers are saying that the royal family is receiving retribution for abandoning the Brown family. The Brown family which is famous among the commoners for their imperial swordsmanship.”

“Hmph.”

Yovanes snorted.

“I understand why your father felt so bitter about the Brown family. The Brown family whose imperial swordsmanship excited the populace, the Brown family, what a sight.”

The jealousy of the emperor is scary.

For the Brown family, the price of that jealousy was the destruction of their family.

“But under the current circumstances, there wouldn’t be anyone who could quell such rumours as quickly as the Brown family.”

“What do you mean?”

Yovanes, the emperor who hated receiving hate, perked his ears up.

“Reinstate the Brown family. If you do that, the futile rumours about the Angenas would also calm down.”

“The Brown family you say…”

Yovanes asked Rulac whilst rubbing his chin.

“Wouldn’t that be difficult? I mean, reinstating them now, after a few decades have already passed.”

“As long as Your Majesty brings up the Brown family as a topic of conversation at the next aristocratic meeting, everything else will fall into place”

The Second Prince behind him, that wild dog would take care of it.

There must have been a plan to that extent when the Brown family had been snapped over.

“At least while discussing the Brown family, wouldn’t talk of the royal family be blown over?”

Rulac smiled leisurely.

Yovanes, who had been agonising over the issue for a while, replied shortly after.

“Okay, I’ll do as you say.”

It just so happened that a noble meeting was also scheduled to be held in a few days, so the timing also made it an appropriate decision.

“What are you planning to do about the matter pertaining to the First Prince?”

At Rulac’s question, Yovanes downed another glass again.

It was because the bloodshot eyes of the late emperor, who had brought down a curse suddenly came to his mind.

Yovanes, who merely shrugged his shoulders, asked Rulac in response.

“Do you know why I left the Second Prince in the hands of the Empress?”

Rulac had already answered that question in his mind, ever since the day he had first seen the Second Prince, living in a dilapidated detached palace.

“Probably because the Second Prince greatly resembles the late emperor.”

“That’s right. That’s why I’ve been keeping him far away from me, ever since he was a kid.”

The truth was that it was actually the First Prince that was the product of that curse.

Yovanes, as if he didn’t want to think about it anymore, shook one hand in a swatting motion and said.

“I intend to leave this matter to the Second Prince. After all, he was there with me when it happened, so he’ll be able to investigate the details properly. I don’t want to worry about it.”

Oh dear, bless your soul.

Rulac clenched his fist tightly in an effort to quell his sudden urge to laugh.

When he saw the foolish owner of a fish store entrust it to a cat in front of him, he felt like laughing. who left the fish shop with the cat in front of me, he felt like his sides were going to split from laughing.

• • •

Crash!

A loud crash came from the room where the First Prince was currently being detained in.

“Medicine! Bring me the medicine! Ahhhhh!”

Desperate screams also leaked through the crevices of the door.

At around early evening when Astana had woken up, ever since then, he had started screaming like that to no end.

“W-What should we do…”

A prince was still a prince, even if he was imprisoned for an unforgivable sin.

Two maids who were assigned to clean up the mess of such a prince became anxious and were at a loss at what to do once they heard the sounds that had leaked out from the inside.

“I’ve already given you all the medicine though…”

“S-Should I let the palace know?”

It was when the maids whose eyes were shaking nervously because they couldn’t stand it, that someone said.

“There’s no need.”

A low voice was heard from behind them.

“Your Highness, the Second Prince!”

The maids’ faces brightened immediately once they saw Perez with the imperial knights.

“You can come back tomorrow morning. Go back.”

At Perez’s command, the maids ran out as if they were fleeing and didn’t want to be caught again.

“Let’s head in.”

Lord Sloan was leading them.

As soon as the door opened, Astana’s shouts broke loose.

“Hey! You! Do you think you can tie me up like this and leave with your neck intact?! Let me go! Now! Argh!”

Astana, who had one foot tied to the bed, contorted his whole body and screamed.

“I’ll kill you for insulting me like this…!”

Astana’s shouting stopped shortly after Perez entered the room.

“Astana Nerempe Durelli. We’ll start the interrogation of your failed assassination attempt on the Emperor and treason.”

---

woahhhh shit went dOWNNN we rlly get a look in how dumb and muddleheaded the emperor is, like, seriously, when rulac said oh dear, bless your soul i literally had to to stop tling and dieD SLDKFJDF rulac old man’s sarcasm is seriously too much HAHAHA
plus the analogy of the idiot fish store owner and the cat; rlly gave us a good look at the idiocy of the emperor HAHAHA

---

The last day of the hunting competition was dawning.

“Oh, is this my armour?”

Emperor Yovanes asked, lifting up a sparkling golden breastplate.

“Yes, Your Majesty. I have specifically prepared for you a colour that stands out.”

“Yes, yes. With this sort of colour, you’ll be able to see me, even in the middle of Madman’s Forest!”

Yovanes burst into laughter while patting me on the shoulder.

Ah, ever since then, seriously.

I slipped back while saying, “Your Majesty’s safety is our first priority.”

It will be troublesome if Yovanes gets hurt in a hunting competition that was hosted by me.

“Hahaha! You speak extremely well!”

The emperor burst into laughter once again.

“I felt like I had a thorn in my heart since I hadn’t been able to come to the hunting grounds for a long time. Now, it seems as if it’s also thanks to you that I’m able to laugh out loud!”

He then beckons to his servant to assist him with putting on the armour on his body.

As expected, the breastplate I prepared earlier fits perfectly with Emperor Yovanes’ body.

“Yes, it seems to fit extremely well. Have all the knights finished preparing?”

Emperor Yovanes asked the Commander of the Imperial Knights.

“Yes, Your Majesty. A total of ten knights, including myself, will be accompanying you, Your Majesty. “

The imperial knight, who looked fierce at first glance, approached us.

It was an appearance that reminded me of the Sushou Patriarch.

I took a quick look at that appearance, then snuck in behind and asked Yovanes.

“Your Majesty, if you don’t mind, may I join you in going to the forest as well?”

“Hmm? You, Florentia?”

The emperor widened his eyes and asked again, with an expression of surprise.

“Yes, it’s the last day of the competition, and I wanted to go into the woods at least once, but I haven’t had the chance to yet.”

“But it’s quite dangerous for a young lady to enter.”

The emperor said with troubled expression.

I knew he would say that, loading the words I had prepared earlier.

I gave a smile to Emperor Yovanes and said.

“With the strong Emperor and the capable imperial knights beside him, what safer place is there in the Empire?”

Sure enough.

The corners of the emperor’s mouth curved up and his smile became indescribably sunnier.

The expression of the stiff and stony faced imperial knights commander also twitched slightly.

“Ohoho, that’s right! Alright then, let’s head into the forest together!”

“Wow! Thank you for allowing me to do so, Your Majesty!”

I bowed my head to Emperor Yovanes and gave a small nod to the Commander of the Imperial Knights.

“…I’ll protect your safety, Lady Lombardy.”

The Commander of the Knights said in a low voice.

[ / / / ]

I knew this was going to happen.

Around an hour had passed since we had entered into Madman’s Forest.

The emperor’s party and I had met a man.

That man was Perez, who had a bow in one hand.

Although it seemed as if our paths crossing had been nothing but a coincidence.

I wasn’t sure. Was it really just a coincidence?

I had known that something like this would have happened, so I made an excuse to follow the emperor.

I had a strong feeling that whatever Perez had prepared would occur today, at the end of the hunting competition.

“Your Majesty, this place here is…”

Perez, who was about to say something to Emperor Yovanes, suddenly found me in the cluster of people and stopped talking abruptly.

He had an expression that seemed to ask me, ‘What are you doing here?’.

I smiled gave him a look that conveyed that I was just here to watch.

I just came here to sightsee.

But Perez, whose face was stiff, couldn’t take his eyes off me.

“Ah, so the Second Prince was also hunting around here.”

Eventually, Yovanes ended up being the one to bring up the coincidence first.

“…Yes, Your Majesty, since this is a place where dangerous monsters tend to come out. Why don’t I bring you to a different area?”

Perez said, turning to glance back at the Emperor and the Commander of the Knights.

“Hmm, is that so? But I thought were were still quite close to the entrance.”

“Yes, I’ll take you someplace safer.”

At Perez’s words, the emperor turned to glance back at the commander of the imperial knights.

“I’d rather do that. His Highness would know more about what happens inside the forest compared to us.”

In the end, the Emperor and I moved in succession to follow after Perez with the ten imperial knights trailing behind.

It seemed as if we were going somewhere safer near the entrance to the forest, but Perez was leading us back.

Hmm, could it possibly be this?

Then, all of a sudden, it happened.

“Kyakkk—!”

A monster with sharp claws suddenly appeared whilst letting out a strange scream.

And the one it happened to jump towards also unexpectedly happened to be the emperor.

The imperial knights quickly rushed forward in an attempt to protect the emperor.

Ping!

However, Perez’s arrow reached him first.

The arrow flew to its mark on the monster’s side, falling down in that instance.

But the monster didn’t come alone.

The next monster immediately appeared after the first had fallen.

However, the direction it came from this time was not ideal.

It was approaching from the blind spot of the imperial knights.

“Heok!”

Emperor Yovanes quickly stepped back in surprise, but it seemed as if the monster had succeeded in striking him.

“Kyakk!”

Then, right in front of him, the monster’s horrible shriek suddenly sounded.

Then, when the monster’s long claws finally reached the emperor’s breastplate.

Suddenly!

A blue light suddenly flashed, splitting the monster in half and falling to the floor.

“Ha, Ha…?”

Emperor Yovanes blinked, letting out a steady breath of relief, as if he was deflating.

Then, the emperor used both hands to fumble for his armour, tracing them.

There were long claw marks embedded in the gold armour.

“Your Majesty! Are you all right?!”

In an instant, the knights made a camp to guard the surroundings and shouted.

“I-It’s only a graze on my armour. It’s not a big deal, don’t fuss!”

Even at this moment, the emperor pretended to be strong.

Even though I could still see all his fingers trembling.

“Please wear this instead.”

Perez, who sheathed his sword and came to his side, took off what he was wearing, saying to the emperor.

“A heavily scratched armour won’t be able to hold up if it’s attacked again.”

Emperor Yovanes’ gaze at that moment immediately turned to Perez’s body, which didn’t have any armour on at all.

“Alright, I should do that.”

In the end, the red armour Perez was wearing was instead, wrapped around the emperor’s body.

At that moment, my eyes met Perez’s.

Perez’s red pupils seemed to pierce deeply into my own.

“Be careful.”

Perez said to me.

Without replying, I stared intently at Perez’s face.

It was him who had asked me to make sure that the armour I had prepared for the emperor would be gold.

“Let’s quickly head back.”

Emperor Yovanes said, much to no one’s surprise.

“It’s that way.”

Perez moved to the front and took the lead again as he said so.

And not long after, I came to realise what Perez’s plan had been all along.

“…First Prince?”

Astana appeared in front of us, who were constantly moving.

He held a sword in one hand, limping and covered in monster’s blood from head to toe.

Astana was smiling.

And then, he suddenly started running towards us.

To be exact, to the emperor who was right next to me.

“Stop!”

The commander shouted.

The knights quickly ran to defend the emperor while others ran out to stop Astana.

“Please stop!”

But Astana was too fast.

As if he was possessed by something, Astana ran out, slipping away from the knights.

It was a monstrous force.

“I’ll kill you!”

Astana, who let out a horrible shriek, closed the distance.

“Damn it.”

The commander who was at the side of the emperor, guarding him, eventually pulled out his sword.

For an imperial knight, pointing a sword at the crown prince was like their last resort.

The commander of the imperial knights clenched his teeth before clashing with Astana’s sword.

Chaeng!

As the sword was flung far away, Astana hand’s became empty.

“Your Highness, please calm down!”

Bellesac, who had abandoned his sword in front of the imperial knights and run after Astana hurriedly, shouted as he gasped for breath.

And it was at that moment.

“Die!”

Astana screamed desperately, swinging something.

Krrrk!

A scratchy noise rang clearly in my ears.

But it wasn’t the emperor’s scream that followed.

“Argh! Aaargh!”

It was Astana who was rolling frantically on the ground as if he had lost his mind, letting out a painful cry.

“My hand! Ack, it hurts! My hand!”

Astana’s right hand was gone.

Other than the red blood that gushed out endlessly, there was nothing else that was there.

“Ah, Ahhhh…”

The hand that had been cut off was at the feet of a frozen stiff Bellesac.

Which was still tightly holding onto a sharp dagger.

Whilst everyone was still frozen.

“Commander, protect His Majesty.”

Perez ordered in a low voice, looking down coldly at Astana who was still rolling on the floor.

“…Yes.”

The stiff-faced commander replied, picking up the dagger that had fallen on the floor.

Together with Astana’s hand.

Handing it over to a deputy, he said.

“Keep it safe. It’s evidence left of the emperor’s alleged assassination.”

It was the moment Astana became a sinner.

Then Perez approached me.

He reached out a hand to my face.

“Blood splattered out.”

“Ah…”

Whilst standing next to the emperor, it seems that Astana’s blood had also splattered onto me.

Perez’s hand touched my cheek.

And began carefully wiping off the dried blood on my face.

“Sorry.”

When he had cut off Astana’s hand, the unconcerned Perez had knit his eyebrows into a scowl.

“I’m sorry, Tia.”

Perez said in a low voice.

“Aaaargh!”

Astana’s scream, which was still ringing, and the voice of the commander was also heard, saying, “We have to find out what his motive was or if there was someone else behind him pulling the strings, so we have to keep him alive. “

“Ha…”

It was the voice of Emperor Yovanes, who had been forgotten for a moment.

“Haha…”

The emperor had a wry smile on his face and was stroking the armour’s red breastplate.

It was the part that had a shallow sword mark that had been made by Astana.

“In the end, like this…….”

The emperor looked at Astana, muttering words of unknown significance.

Perez also looked at Astana and spat out.

“It could be because of the magic.”

“Magic?”

“In the blood of the monsters living in Madman’s Forest flows a dark spell. It’s said that it can trigger the emergence of a man’s deepest desires. Maybe that’s why he lost his rationality and suddenly changed.”

“Desire. Desire you say.”

The eyes of the mumbling Yovanes gradually cooled down.

“Second Prince.”

Yovanes called to Perez.

And called out an imperial order.

“Escort the First Prince back to the palace.”

[ / / / ]

The emperor’s procession was returning from the hunting competition.

Empress Lavini, who had come out to the front of the palace in order to be the first to greet the emperor, was there.

Emperor Yovanes got off from the first and most luxurious carriage.

Then Perez got off the next carriage that had followed behind him.

But it was strange.

No one had gotten off Astana’s carriage.

“Your Majesty, where is the First Prince…….”

It happened just as Empress Lavini had started to ask her question.

“Mother! Mother!”

Someone at the back of the procession had suddenly burst into tears.

Empress Lavini who had just casually looked in that direction, unintentionally let out an expression of shock and horror.

“P-Prince! Prince, how come……!”

Astana, whose whole body was covered with dried and hardened blood, cried mournfully as soon as he saw the empress.

“Mother! Hnng, mother!”

“Gasp!”

Then Lavini, who finally noticed Astana’s bandaged right hand, let out a silent scream.

“Your Majesty, what’s going on? How can this be…!”

But Emperor Yovanes gave no reply.

He only spoke with the tone of the empress.

“The First Prince, drag him away.”

“You can’t!”

Empress Lavini shouted, standing in front of Astana and blocking him.

“Just what king of sin did the prince commit for you to do this? Furthermore, to even injure the prince…”

“The charge is the attempted assassination of the emperor and treason.”

The Empress’ eyes widened in shock.

Emperor Yovanes answered coldly and went up the stairs.

Leaving the frozen empress all alone.

“Let me go, mother! Mother!”

Astana was dragged away, still calling for the empress.

But this time, Empress Lavini couldn’t stop them either.

“No way…there’s no way…”

Perez passed by in front of the empress who was in a state of shock, still murmuring her disbelief.

At that moment, Lavini’s blue eyes met Perez’s red ones.

“You, you…”

Passing by the empress who had begun to grasp the situation, Perez gave an order to the commander.

“Keep the sinner in prison. I’m going to interrogate him myself.”

Following behind Emperor Yovanes’ footsteps and going up the stairs, the corner of Perez’s mouth quietly twisted up into a smirk.

---

n e ways,,,enjoy chapter 204 bc i had a shit time with kakaopage

LSDKFJSD PEREZ DEADASS A BORN MANIPULATOR HALSDKFJDFSJ yawl see his subtle manipulation with the magic and the it revealing your deepest desires hALSKDFJDSF HE KNEW WHAT HE WAS DOING DEADASS

psa to myself: don’t try to rip raws at work when the manager is in 😦

i got in trouble for yawl hAHAHAHA also sorry for not updating my life been sort of hectic recently hAHAHAHA