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The Empress's palace was shrouded in tension.
Everyone’s nerves were on edge as the Empress repeatedly collapsed from crying, only to rise and weep again, night and day without rest.
Beside her, Arthur stood vigil.
“Aah… Aah… Those damn wretches… In the end, they really got together…”
“Mother, please, have some of this.”
Arthur had personally gone to the kitchen and prepared a soft, medicinal porridge, hoping to coax his mother to eat something.
But the Empress, oblivious or perhaps indifferent to her son’s anxious care, shot him a sharp glare.
“Be quiet. Do you truly not understand what it is you should be doing for your mother right now?”
“……”
“It’s because you waste your attention on such trivial things that His Majesty doesn’t entrust you with matters of real importance to the Empire!”
With that, the Empress abruptly sat up and struck Arthur across the face. The dish he held clattered to the floor with a crash.
“Why? Why won’t you do as I wish? What’s the point of me keeping watch on Emblem and Gray, of pressuring the Crown Prince? You, Arthur, are holed up here, refusing to step outside at all!”
“…I’m sorry, Mother. I… I’m truly—”
“Aaagh! Enough of your apologies! I’m sick and tired of them. What have you actually done to become this nation’s ruler? The Crown Prince just returned from the Continental Academy with a signed alliance from Prince Pavan! And what did you accomplish in that time?”
Until now, the Empress hadn't understood the root of her growing frustration. She had blamed the Crown Prince's stubborn survival and the chaotic state of the Empire for everything that thwarted her plans.
She thought that once she got her hands on the power of the demons, she would be able to overturn the imperial throne with ease. But even with that power, all she’d managed to do was keep the Emperor in check, she couldn’t understand why things hadn’t gone further.
But now she understood.
The problem… was Arthur Lutinas.
“What use is all my effort if Arthur himself refuses to take the throne? He keeps making excuses, avoiding not just public appearances, but even duties performed in the Empire’s name!”
The Empress had originally intended to send Arthur to the Kingdom of Pavan.
If Cherrya Emblem and Enoch Gray were not truly missing, if their deaths had failed, then it should have been Arthur who stepped in to clean up the mess.
It should’ve been Arthur who went to the Carmedan Jungle to keep the monsters there from being fully eradicated, so the graduation exam would be ruined, making it seem like it was Emblem and Gray’s fault.
But Arthur, terrified that the truth about his contract with the demons might be exposed, locked himself up in his room and refused to come out.
No matter how much the Empress pressured and threatened the Emperor to send Arthur, it was pointless if the man himself was in such a state. In the end, it was the Crown Prince who went to Pavan, solidifying a significant debt with the kingdom’s next king.
Now, Pavan would become one of the Crown Prince’s strongest allies.
“I’m sorry, Mother. I’ll… I’ll try harder…”
“Don’t just say it, show it with action! I want to see results!”
The Empress raised her hand to strike Arthur again. Bracing for the pain, he closed his eyes tightly.
But no matter how long he waited, the sharp sting of her slap never came.
“...!”
Opening his eyes, Arthur was startled to see a large hand gripping the Empress’s wrist.
He leapt to his feet.
“Y-Your Majesty!”
It was the Emperor, Marchian Leopardo Lutinas.
He, who almost never came to the Empress’s quarters, had arrived without a word, like a shadow.
Both Arthur and the Empress were so shocked they could barely speak, eyes wide in disbelief.
“Handmaid! Head handmaid!!”
The Empress, making no attempt to free her wrist, screamed for her head maid.
The woman appeared quickly, bowing with an apologetic expression.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty the Empress. You ordered us not to inform anyone because of your condition. We had no choice.”
“You serve me! How dare you prioritize His Majesty’s orders over mine!”
The Empress lashed out, her voice rising as if ready to expel the head maid on the spot. But everyone knew this was her way of redirecting anger at the Emperor for showing up unannounced.
Smiling crookedly, the Emperor said.
“It seems the Empress truly resents my visit.”
“…”
“You used to be delighted when I came. Time is indeed a cruel thing.”
The Empress glared at him, blood vessels bulging in her eyes.
“How did you…”
“When did your affection for Arthur turn into such cruelty?”
Releasing her wrist, the Emperor turned to inspect Arthur’s swollen cheek. But Arthur shrank back, recoiling even from his father’s gaze.
The Emperor clicked his tongue, pity flashing in his eyes, and spoke in a low, steady voice.
“I’ve always shown you mercy, Empress. So why do you keep letting your twisted desires destroy you?”
“Mercy? You call that mercy?”
The Empress let out a hollow laugh, as if the word itself was absurd.
“And how is surrendering a position that was rightfully promised to me considered mercy? You’ve given me nothing, Your Majesty!”
“Empress!”
“Oh? Are you going to reveal everything now? Then I suppose you’ll have to talk about her too, the one who died.”
At her words, the Emperor’s expression hardened. He gave an order to Arthur.
“Second Prince, leave us.”
“Stay, Arthur.”
“I said, leave.”
“Stay and listen, see what kind of grief your mother has endured!”
“Empress!”
The Emperor shouted furiously, but the Empress only laughed, almost like a madwoman.
“Your Majesty, you always had a soft heart, always so quick to show affection. That’s something I found repulsive about you for a long time. But today, it’s rather useful. How touching to see you care so much for our dear Arthur.”
“…You are not only the Empress of this Empire, but also Arthur’s mother. If you won’t fulfill your role as Empress, then at least act like his mother.”
“Oh dear, if you insist so earnestly…”
The Empress finally motioned for Arthur to leave. He calmly rose and exited her chambers.
Once Arthur was gone, the Emperor dropped all pretense and spoke with cold, visible menace.
“So you truly intend to make Arthur Emperor? Even though he isn’t of Lutinas blood?”
“Then when you found out he wasn’t your child, you should have cast me out. Ah, but of course you couldn’t do that because that would have meant killing not just me, but his real father as well.”
At her brazen words, the Emperor let out a weary sigh, as if he’d heard it all before.
“The brother of the woman you loved so dearly… her last surviving family.”
“…”
“Didn’t she ask you, in her final words, to take good care of her brother? Ha! It’s ridiculous. That very brother doesn’t even know whose hands killed his sister…”
“You don’t need to act so arrogant. You’ll pay for your sins soon enough. I came here today to warn you.”
“On whose authority? You’ve known all along what kind of power I hold. And yet you’ve let me be, why is that?”
The Empress’s tone was almost sing-song, like she was reciting a cheerful tune.
“If word got out that the Empress of the Lutinas Empire used the power of demons, the entire continent would unite to wipe Lutinas off the map. The Peacekeeping Pact? Ha! That’s useless against the fear the demons inspire.”
She no longer made any effort to conceal her ambition, nothing at all.
“Even if I die, I won’t go alone. Marchian… I’ll drag you and your pathetic son’s soul down to hell with me.”
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