Previously
Irenia feigns a mental breakdown and physical exhaustion to bait Mercedes into a direct assassination attempt, knowing she needs a witness to secure a conviction. During a nap, Irenia experiences a terrifying 'Prophetic Vision' of Mercedes stabbing her repeatedly by the pond.
“Aaah!”
“Hmm?”
At the strange cry I let slip, Caesar tilted his head to the left, peering down at me in wonder before stifling a soft laugh. Those bright eyes, gazing at me with neither guard nor guile, left me feeling like the strange one here. And that was precisely the problem.
So I mumbled an excuse, though I hardly knew whom it was meant for:
“C-Caesar was just performing a rescue.”
“A rescue?”
Whether he caught the meaning or not, his smile broke bright once more, and he threw himself into my embrace. His weight fell against me all at once, his scent drifting past the open collar of my shirt. That very smell, the heat of his skin, the solid press of him—every part of it was dear to my heart. I wound my arms around him in turn, pulling him tight against my chest. And there we remained, held close in a long, quiet pause.
Caesar pressed several light kisses to my ear and the nape of my neck, then rubbed his cheek gently against mine. For whatever reason, he seemed deeply content.
I smoothed a steady hand over the back of his head and spoke softly:
“Thank you, Caesar.”
“Thank you.”
Whenever danger found me, Caesar was the one who came running—always. I saw that truth with absolute clarity now.
“Had you not been here, I would have been in real trouble. Truly, I am grateful.”
“Mmm.”
Brushing through his soft locks of hair, I began to voice the thoughts turning in my mind.
The dream I had just seen was a prophetic vision revealed through the Insight of Fate. On the night the moon reached its fullest, Mercedes would murder me in cold, brutal blood.
Even now, merely recalling the sight of my own death brought a chill crawling up my spine, shivering through my entire body.
Yet I held on to Richard’s words:
‘You can alter destiny. But know that changing fate means defying causality, and that will bring inevitable pain in its wake.’
He had told me the future was not carved in stone. Even if death was foretold, the circumstances could be changed.
“Fate can be changed.”
Perhaps I could not do it alone, but with Richard, Delfina, and above all, Caesar, it was not impossible.
What troubled me, however, was that Mercedes had been close to Caesar for so long. So, keeping my tone light, I asked him:
“Caesar, what do you think of Mercedes?”
He blinked his innocent eyes and replied:
“Michi is my wet nurse.”
“Yes, that’s right.”
‘Michi’ was the affectionate name he used for her. A pang of hesitation struck me: was it right to push toward ruin someone who held such a special place in his heart? Yet I had no one else I could trust enough to voice such worries to, and no other way to put an end to Mercedes. For that very reason, I had to know his mind, for she was like a mother to him.
I spoke in a calm, steady voice:
“Caesar, listen closely to me. Mercedes is an evil person. She has killed people.”
“An evil person?”
“Yes. Murder is a dreadful crime.”
Setting aside Elda, who had tried to kill me, none of those candidates to become his bride had been guilty of anything. Yet Mercedes had ended their lives in cold blood.
Caesar fixed his gaze on me.
“The women who were killed…”
His expression suddenly turned solemn. Perhaps… perhaps he already understood the situation. I gave a firm nod and said:
“Yes. Those women were killed by Mercedes.”
I did not miss the slight tremor that stirred in his crimson eyes. I sensed it then: Caesar understood what was happening. Looking straight into his gaze, I pressed on:
“And now, she intends to kill me too.”
“I don’t want you to die, Ren.”
He said it with absolute finality, his eyes flaring with a sharp intensity unlike before. Drawing a deep breath, I spoke firmly:
“Then we must stop her. Can you do that?”
Caesar looked directly at me, then nodded forcefully.
“I will protect Ren.”
Hearing those words brought a prickling warmth to the bridge of my nose and a burning sting to my eyes. That was enough. I quietly brought a finger to my lips, brushing them lightly.
“Thank you, Caesar.”
“Mmm.”
I reached out and stroked his bangs, this time with firmer warmth than usual. He had promised to keep me safe. That alone was enough to settle the unrest in my heart.
A tangle of emotions welled within me, yet somehow, I felt everything would turn out right. A deep warmth enveloped me, and the heart that had been weighed down by confusion grew clear and resolute.
It was finished. Every preparation was in place.
That night
The promised day had arrived, the full moon hanging round and bright. I made my final inspection inside my room at the Emerald Palace.
Caesar and Richard had already been waiting at the agreed-upon spot for hours.
“Right, let us go over the plan once more.”
Raking a hand through my hair, I turned to Delfina.
“When I step outside, if Mercedes follows me…”
“I will go straight away to inform Her Majesty the Empress.”
“I am counting on you. Your role in this is vital.”
Even if the Empress were told, she might not come in person. But that hardly mattered. We needed to gather as many people as possible. Anyone who arrived would become a witness, and the more witnesses there were, the greater my chances of survival.
“Yes… but please be careful, Your Highness…”
Delfina looked up at me with an anxious, shadowed face. I gave her a reassuring nod to show I was all right.
Taking up a small cloth-wrapped bundle, I stepped out from the Emerald Palace.
The air was unnervingly cold tonight, the wind murmuring with an ominous whisper. Still, it was fine. Even if I could not see them, Caesar and Richard had promised to watch over me from afar.
“Beep!”
And Abr was tucked safely against my chest as well.
According to Richard, this clever chick could sense danger swiftly and would alert them the moment any threat loomed near.
“Thank you.”
I lightly patted the small shape nestled inside my dress pocket.
With everyone helping me like this, I could not afford to fail. I trusted them, and I would keep moving forward.
My destination was the place I had seen through the Insight of Fate… the shore of the lake that had become so deeply entwined with my life.
It was here that Mercedes would murder me.
No, that was merely what the dream foretold.
Though I had seen that destiny, I had the power to alter it.
And that was why I stood here—to defy my fate.
Kneeling low to the ground, I began to dig into the earth. I tried to master my nerves, but terror seeped through my bones until my skin crawled with a violent shiver.
At any moment, it felt as though Mercedes would burst upon me just as she had in the dream.
Or perhaps… perhaps it was all a phantasm inside my own mind.
Yet the lingering chill refused to leave me.
It felt as if someone were tugging at the back of my hair.
Time and again I wanted to spin around and check the dark behind me, but I had to hold out. Any slip in the plan could bring total ruin.
Time seemed to race by in a blur—or crawl with agonizing slowness.
My heart hammered so fiercely I thought it might leap straight out of my ribs.
The wait was sickening.
I thought I caught the rustle of footfalls on the grass.
Or perhaps a faint laugh.
I had known it would come to this, yet the sheer terror still shook me.
Richard’s words echoed back to me:
‘Do not fear illusions. What matters is holding the power to pierce through to the essence.’
My death had not happened yet.
I was still breathing.
I was here… alive…
She had arrived.
Drawing in a deep breath, I shouted toward the dark:
“Mercedes! You are there, are you not?!”
A faint rustle stirred through the grass, followed by hesitant footsteps as a figure emerged from between the bushes.
The night happened to be bathed in the glare of the full moon, and her cold face stood out sharp beneath its light, pale as a demon made flesh.
“…How did you know?” she asked in a low voice.
“I expected you to come to kill me.”
“So you knew all along? And yet, you are too late.”
I turned to face her and looked straight into her eyes. They were fraught with strain and confusion, tangled in naked instability. She was nowhere near her right mind. Though she kept her hands hidden behind her back, I was certain she clutched a dagger there.
Quietly, I said:
“I know what you have done.”
Then I rose slowly from the ground.
“I heard you have been digging here and there. Well, and what have you learned?”
“The candidates for Crown Princess. Elda. And now me… you are trying to murder me too, aren't you?”
Mercedes let out a choked laugh, but it sounded warped and desolate, sending dread crawling through my veins. The air grew taut with suffocating tension.
“Well… suppose that were true. What of it?”
She stepped closer, head cocked slightly to the side, and I took a step back.
“Why did you do it? The candidates were innocent… they committed no crime.”
“Innocent?! No, they were not! Every single one was guilty!”
Mercedes began to mutter indistinct words that made no sense.
“They are the ones who sinned… daring to touch Caesar… Caesar is my son. Caesar… sullied by those women… and you too… yes, you must be erased. You must not be allowed to live. I know exactly what you are…”
Then, without warning, Mercedes whipped out the dagger she had been hiding behind her back and lunged straight at me!
“Yes! Die, you vile witch!!”
Thrust!
The blade drove deep into my side, and the sound of the strike alone was enough to shake my very soul.
FADE OUT