Previously
Giovinetta forces her way into Irenia's room at the Emerald Palace, finding her half-sister in a state of apparent mental collapse amidst a trashed room. Giovinetta mocks Irenia by wearing funeral attire, while Irenia reacts with hysterical outbursts, throwing pillows to drive her away.
Mercedes was kneeling in a corner of her room, clasping her hands in prayer. She fingered the cross on her rosary, murmuring verses from the Holy Scripture.
God had sent an angel to her. It had come to grant her the strength to vanquish her bitter foe.
“He has given me authority to trample scorpions and overcome all the power of the enemy… Heh.”
A laugh broke from her lips against her will. She tried to stifle it, but her mouth stretched from ear to ear, and color rushed into her cheeks. Suppress it as she might, it was no easy feat.
And why shouldn't she? Lady Giovinetta herself had come to her! Yes, in the flesh!
“Madame Arontio, I have been so worried about my sister that I came to tell you myself.”
“Finally…”
The word had come directly from Lady Giovinetta that the Prince's wife was engaging in suspicious behavior. Such glorious news that this vile wretch had finally committed a heinous misstep! What marvelous tidings!
“Every night, Irenia slips out of the palace alone and does dubious things… I cannot be certain, so could you look into what is happening?”
How blissful she was! For Lady Giovinetta to seek her out personally for help… It was proof beyond doubt of her trust.
Mercedes felt that this was nothing less than a grand destiny, almost certain it had been orchestrated by the Almighty.
“Heh, heh, hic…”
Peculiar, frog-like sounds croaked from her throat as she struggled to swallow her laughter. She shook her head to gather her senses.
What should she do? Her thoughts spun endlessly. An overpowering wave of euphoria washed through her until it felt as though a volcano were erupting inside her mind, her heart pounding violently as if she had run with all her might.
“She said that tramp slips out every night, didn't she?”
The hour Giovinetta had spoken of arrived. The exact same time every night when the Prince's wife would venture out. Mercedes peered through the latticed window she had watched hundreds of times before.
“Ah!”
A gasp of sheer joy escaped her. Giovinetta had been right. She saw her emerging in the distance.
In the murky dark of night, with disheveled hair and a translucent nightgown, she was carrying something suspicious as she staggered along. Even from this distance, she looked utterly mad.
“What a brazen harlot! How could such a creature be allowed beside His Highness Prince Caesar!”
It was intolerable. Unforgivable. The sight of her, that limp—it all stoked Mercedes's fury anew. She was flawed, wretched, a disgrace to perfection.
She was a thorn in her side. A black ink blot on white paper. Born only to tarnish the perfection of Caesar, her beloved.
What had to be done to get rid of her? She must be eradicated. No, it would be best to wipe her out without leaving a trace. Only then could beloved Caesar remain pure and immaculate.
Thus, whatever befell that woman next was inevitable. What was impure had to be destroyed; such was the rule.
Mercedes began trailing Irenia slowly, keeping a safe distance to avoid detection. The woman ahead seemed oblivious to her surroundings, merely walking straight forward.
As if spellbound, she muttered words into thin air, stopping at intervals to hang her head.
Truly, she appeared to be nothing short of a lunatic.
“What on earth is that madwoman doing?”
Mercedes bristled with malice. How could heaven have granted her such a prime opportunity? There was no doubt this was destiny—the very will of God.
In front of the Moonstone Palace, a maid was quarreling with the guards. It was a servant from the Emerald Palace named Delfina.
“Please! I have an urgent matter to report to Her Majesty the Empress!”
“At this late hour? Coming without a prior audience request is out of the question. We cannot permit you entry, miss.”
The guard captain replied in an awkward tone; even if her identity was verified, they could not let a frantic girl barge into the palace.
“What is all this commotion at the Empress's residence in the middle of the night?”
Countess Elvira stepped outside to inspect the disturbance. The moment Delfina caught sight of her, she fell to her knees before her.
“My Lady Countess Elvira, please… Save Her Highness!”
The Countess studied her closely, leaning down slightly.
“What reason do you have to be in such a panic?”
Delfina bowed her head as tears began to stream down her face. Her miserable appearance was enough to stir pity in anyone.
“Her Highness… she does not seem in her right mind.”
Her frail frame trembled. The Countess had already heard reports of the Princess wandering at night, yet she listened in silence to hear what the maid had to say.
“Not in her right mind? What do you mean by that? Speak clearly.”
The Countess questioned her sternly, and Delfina dissolved into tears, clutching at the Countess's dress.
“Please, my Lady… Save Her Highness!”
The maid pleaded, and the matter indeed appeared dire. There was not a trace of deceit in her, perhaps owing to her simple nature.
“And where is she now?”
“…She has gone out again, just as she does every night.”
“Her Highness has gone out?”
Delfina nodded mutely.
“This is a grave matter… Do you know where she went?”
“To the lake… She heads there every night, so she must be there now.”
The Countess gestured to the palace guards.
“Lead the way quickly.”
Even so, she could not entirely shake a lingering sense of suspicion. Yet she refused to pass judgment before seeing it with her own eyes.
Led by the maid, they hastened toward the lake.
Mercedes quietly drew a deep breath. Whenever she closed her eyes, she would always see the face of her son, Caesar, smiling back at her. That luminous smile hovered before her at every waking moment.
Caesar was her only son, the single person in this world who belonged solely to her. Because of that, a profound bond of the soul had always linked them.
“My sweet boy…”
She inhaled deeply, bathing in distant memories. She could feel all her senses awakening. How vividly she remembered the way he smelled as an infant.
He was like a beam of midsummer sunlight. The clean scent of freshly washed linens, of grass and dewdrops, and the sweet breath of a newly nursed babe.
Yet one day, the scent of a woman began clinging to him. A foul, repulsive stench. Who had dared lay hands on him? She could never permit it. No one had any claim over him. Caesar was hers alone.
“I should nurse him now…”
Despite his bright mind, Caesar had been weaned unusually late. It was all Mercedes's doing; she had coddled him from childhood, never withholding her breast even after her milk had run dry.
“He misses me so…”
The void and gloom he suffered had been her chance to draw him closer, to soothe her own aching loneliness. At times, she would intentionally leave him alone for hours, ensuring he would come running back to her arms, unable to bear their separation.
In truth, Mercedes had been happier than anyone when the affliction struck Caesar down. Despite her mourning facade, her heart had brimmed with delight.
‘If only we could live like this together forever…’
Whenever he lost his mind and drifted away, whenever his thoughts regressed to early childhood, and whenever he wept in agony and confusion—deep down, she had rejoiced.
‘My Lord Prince Caesar… I shall take care of you for the rest of your days.’
He had become a helpless child who would never leave her embrace, no matter how much time passed. Even if his form or mind warped, what did it matter? She was his mother. And a mother, by her very nature, loved and embraced her child no matter his state.
She lavished him with devotion, giving her all for his sake, and if it meant trapping his very existence between her ribs, she would not flinch. She was prepared to give her life, and prepared to commit atrocities condemned by everyone on earth, if only it was for him.
‘Yes, whatever stands in Caesar's path, whoever it may be, must be erased from this world.’
FADE OUT