195 - Pieces of the Broken Glass Slipper
Shattered Glass Slipper Shards 195
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What the Emperor wanted to say was clear. The farce put on by the beautiful woman claiming to be a Witch and the actions of the fake Grand Duke, who appeared at just the right time, were all a plan to provoke the Crown Prince.
They expected him to fall for it even more easily because he was a Crown Prince who suspected everyone. They knew that, given the Crown Prince's personality, he wouldn't easily overlook what was happening before his eyes and would keep it by his side until he was sure.
Wasn't he the one who had eliminated his brothers to ascend to the position of Crown Prince since he was very young?
It was only natural that he became unable to trust those around him. He had no choice but to do so in order to survive under a father who believed that the strong were entitled to everything.
No, even if he tried to trust, the Emperor would certainly not have allowed it. You could see it right away just by looking at today. He would have acted cruelly, like an animal dropping its cub off a cliff.
And his uncle, the Grand Duke, would have known this very well. So he provided variables like this time to arouse his suspicion.
I don't know how he got his hands on the Witch—perhaps the Witch was someone the Grand Duke had prepared from the beginning?—but it's clear just by looking at how he made a plan based on the prophecy she uttered and executed it perfectly.
The problem is, "Why was I included in the Grand Duke's plan?" The Emperor's subsequent words completely resolved this question.
"My brother seems to have wanted to maximize Idi's suspicion to the point of cutting off his hands and feet. Conflicts caused by beautiful women are common in high society, aren't they? So it's worth trying. But seeing the Bischwartz Young Lady today, I'm relieved that that won't happen at all."
Was he trying to drive a wedge between the Crown Prince and Sir Ayres by using me? The fact that he approached me at Chatoul's banquet and revealed his intention to take control of the Bishvarts Family must have been a ploy for this.
A plan to lure away the Empire's two best knights using me—isn't it quite plausible?
Therefore, if I had shown even a little bit of greed for the Crown Prince, I would not have seen the rising sun tomorrow.
The Emperor's eyes were saying that. There was no way he would tolerate a woman like me interfering with his pleasure.
On the outside, he looked like an old man riddled with disease, coughing dryly, but inside, there was clearly a hungry beast crouching. It was an animal that did not let up its guard, as if it would bite my neck off if I showed any weakness.
In an instant, I felt a chilling cold that made my spine tingle.
I was afraid of the Emperor's plan to move and manipulate everything as he pleased, and of his willingness to shed blood to select a successor who suited his taste.
The Emperor was watching the current situation with interest, even though the country was in danger of becoming chaotic and declining due to the rebellion.
Was it because the current situation was seen as a chessboard in his eyes? Or was it because he was confident that he could control everything?
If so, which of the six pieces would I be seen as by the Emperor today?
I wonder if I would be a bishop, a knight, or a rook that killed the queen. It was equally difficult to predict whose mouth the checkmate would come from.
Since the Emperor was merely an observer to the Crown Prince and the Grand Duke, it was hard to imagine that it would come from the mouth of anyone other than these two.
When I got to this point, I felt a sense of futility. A silent chuckle was barely suppressed by the Mask, a control device.
At this point, I even missed the old me, who ran around like a fool without knowing anything. I missed the days when I closed my eyes and ears to everything except Sir Halberd and Roena.
"I hope you will continue to praise your wisdom, Bischwartz Young Lady."
The Emperor already believed that I would follow his will. He arbitrarily concluded that I would be a tempting bait to seduce the Crown Prince and the Grand Duke, and then issued such arrogant orders.
The Emperor's mind was already full of plans to use me, but he had not prepared any safety measures for the aftermath. It was clear that no matter who won, they would take the Bishvarts Family away from me.
Did I really have to back down like this?
So I opened my mouth and spoke. My heart was pounding, my hands were sweating, and the tip of my tongue was stiff, making me feel like I was going to die, but I gritted my teeth and uttered each word with difficulty.
"Since the source of my wisdom lies in His Majesty, what more can I dare to do?"
"Hoo?"
The Emperor's eyes flashed, and he straightened his back and sat up straight. Chatoul grabbed his arm and supported him.
"Is the Young Lady saying that you need my help now? Or are you trying to please me with flattery?"
"His Majesty told me to become the master of the Bishvarts Family. May I dare to think of this in connection with a title? If you mean to take control from behind the scenes, then blame my foolishness."
Under imperial law, only men could hold titles. What a woman could have was the title of someone's wife. Even if she inherited the family because she was the only heir, she had to pass the title to her husband as soon as she got married.
Therefore, the fact that I can mention 'Countess' now is only possible because I am a virgin, and when I get older, I will lose everything. The Emperor's lack of reaction to my remarks was also due to the fact that he knew this.
Rather, he was interested in my words and began to listen. He seemed to find it amusing that I was expressing my anxiety directly, and he even wore a smile on his face.
"Anything is fine. I'm just curious about the Young Lady's thoughts. Keep talking."
"Looking back on the current reality, I am currently tied to a guardian and am even being pushed back by my sister Roena in the public opinion of high society. Above all, you must know that there are rumors that the knight's lady you mentioned is Roena."
"So what does the Young Lady want to do?"
"What power do I have, having only been in the family for a year and a half? Right now, I'm struggling to even hold tea parties and invite young ladies. So I'm afraid I'll fall short of His Majesty's expectations."
"Then we'll have to put someone else forward."
"But is there anyone other than Roena who has as much justification as I do? I don't think you don't know this. Isn't that why you called me and are having this conversation? I'm just hoping for a small favor from you."
"You are……."
The Emperor stopped speaking and coughed violently. Chatoul was surprised and cried out, "Your Majesty," but he raised his hand to calm her down, as if this was not the first time this had happened.
He covered his mouth with a silk handkerchief and coughed again, then lay down with a tired face. It seemed very difficult for him just to straighten his back for a moment.
"You are sure that I will not call your sister."
"If you had decided to do that, she would have been the one with a guardian, not me. When it comes to legitimacy, there's nothing like blood ties."
"Do you know the reason for that as well?"
"Who am I to dare to say? I only know that everything will be done according to Your Majesty's will."
As I bowed my head and lowered my waist deeply, the Emperor chuckled. The faint voice was full of satisfaction.
"What are you worried about? Until the Young Lady gets married, you will be the Bishvarts, just like now."
"Even without a guardian? Even if Roena makes her debut in high society? May I dare to connect the position with a 'title'?"
"The Young Lady has a lot of worries."
"I am so sad about my situation, where even if I stand firm like a deeply rooted tree, unshaken by any wind, if a carpenter comes and asks me to give up my fruit, I have no choice but to give it up, depending on Your Majesty's intentions."
"You don't want to give up your fruit? Isn't that greed?"
"What should I say if you say that a tree that is just living according to the natural order is greedy?"
"Did you just say the natural order?"
"Yes."
"Truly?"
I raised my waist and looked at the Emperor. The Emperor was glaring sharply, as if trying to read my mind. So I took off my Mask and stared at him with my bare face.
Facing him in a raw state was a scary thing, but I thought I had to act calmly as if there was not a single lie in order to reassure the Emperor.
"Why else would I express it as fruit? There are many who covet it while salivating, but that's all."
"But the Young Lady's tongue is so smooth, how can I be at ease? Cunning and wisdom are only a paper apart, so I don't know if you are deceiving this old man whose eyes are dim with age."
"I'll bet my life on it."
"What?"
I spoke to the Emperor again in a clear and emphatic voice. Strangely enough, I felt more at peace than afraid, even though I was saying that I would bet my life. So I continued in a casual voice, as if I were asking for greetings.
"I said I would bet my life on it. Is that not allowed?"
"Of course it's allowed. I was just thinking about how much life I have left to make such empty promises."
"Who would dare to utter empty promises in front of you? If the carpenter who will soon come to find the tree that does not give up its fruit does not leave it alone, I just wanted to choose death myself, since that's how it will be anyway. Unless Your Majesty takes pity on me and bestows the mercy of not having the tree uprooted."
Whether the Crown Prince suppressed the Grand Duke or the Grand Duke succeeded in the rebellion, my ending was already decided.
If the Crown Prince won, I would be deprived of Sir Ayres and Sir Halberd and even kicked out, and if the Grand Duke won, I would be killed for the crime of resentment because I did not take his hand.
That's why I proposed to the Emperor, "I will maintain neutrality according to your will, so please help me save my life."
It was only natural that the Crown Prince could not disobey his father's will, and the Grand Duke would not reject the late Emperor's will in order not to undermine the legitimacy of the rebellion.
Saying that I would not give up the knights, whom I referred to as fruit, was a last resort to prepare for any possible danger.
After a while, the Emperor opened his mouth and spoke. His smile was still on his lips, as if my proposal had not offended him.
"That's right. You have to have this much courage to have fun talking. This is a very pleasant day. What should we do? Should I leave a written document? That's what the Young Lady wants, right?"
"Weren't you going to stamp it with a seal?"
As I cheerfully retorted, the Emperor laughed loudly again. And he told Chatoul to bring paper and a pen, and he wrote down what he had in mind without hesitation, as if he had thought about it in advance, which was surprising.
Before long, the Emperor finished the sentence and turned the top of the ring on his right middle finger to separate it.
He tilted the candle that Chatoul had brought with a sense of tact, dropped candle wax on the paper, and pressed the ring he had taken off his finger firmly.
"This is the Emperor's personal seal, which is used when handling private matters. Anyone in the imperial family knows about it, so don't worry about being caught up in false controversies."
Chatoul, who received the paper from the Emperor, walked gracefully to me and handed it over. The letters, with their faint strokes connected in places due to lack of strength, clearly contained the contents we had just discussed.
It stated that as long as I did not use the knights for private purposes, I had no right to threaten me, and that I could not hold on to the knights even if they were corrupted.
As long as I kept this promise, it was also clearly written that I, Cishe de Bishwaltz, would be the master of the Bishvarts Family until I got married, and that even Roena or other relatives would not dare to touch it.
In fact, it was a declaration that I was the 'head of the family', even though the word 'Countess' was not mentioned.
It was unexpected that the Emperor added a condition at the end of the letter that I would be responsible for and take care of Chatoul's life as long as this document was in effect. When I raised my eyes and looked at him, the Emperor said in a calm tone.
"No matter who it is, there's no way they'll leave Anna alone. If Anna hadn't liked you, today's meeting wouldn't have happened."
In other words, if it hadn't been for Chatoul, he would have put someone else, not me, forward as the heir to the Bishvarts Family, regardless of neutrality. Even though he was lying in bed and might die any day, it was nothing to get rid of a young lady like me.
It was true that I felt strange at the first kindness shown by a man who seemed to have no blood or tears. I wondered if he had deep feelings for his concubine, but I also had doubts about whether he had any ulterior motives.
Anyway, what was certain was that maintaining a friendship with Madam had come as a stroke of luck like this. I tried to calm my dizzying mind and answered calmly.
"Thank you for your deep grace."
"So please be careful not to lose it. Keep in mind that there are many eyes and ears in the palace."
"Yes."
"Well, we've come to a mutually satisfactory conclusion, so I think we should end our meeting here. Anna, I'm tired. See the Bischwartz Young Lady off."
"Yes. I'll be right back, so please go to sleep first."
Chatoul took care of the Emperor so that he could sleep comfortably, then kissed his wrinkled cheek and smiled brightly. And she led me out of the room with quiet steps.
Her face, which had been smiling sweetly with a kind expression, changed immediately after the door was closed. She looked at me with a worried face and gestured silently. Madam's shoulders were slumped as if worry had settled on them.
