Chapter 40
Perhaps she thought it wouldn’t matter as long as she didn’t touch it directly, but simply held onto it briefly before handing it over to the Temple as evidence.
That ‘evidence’ was a substance created by concentrating and solidifying the demonic energy from the nuclei of hundreds of demon beasts; it was a catalyst that, by its very existence, would lure in countless monsters.
And if a demon beast were to swallow it, it would become a catastrophe. Even if there were no significant demon beasts within the Capital, there was a possibility that truly dangerous ones would be drawn in from afar.
It was obvious that every demon beast in the vicinity would immediately swarm toward the Imperial Palace.
In response, the Duchy of Castline had secretly scattered traps for demon beasts throughout the palace grounds. It was a necessary measure to divert the monsters’ attention away from the Imperial Consort’s evidence.
Cries of distress began to echo from the distance.
“A demon beast!? How is there a demon beast in the Imperial Palace!?”
“Requesting backup! Backup!”
“Aaaah, why is this happening!?”
Those who had entered service through bribes without any skill or even a minimal test, and who frequently shirked their duties, were the first to be attacked by the demon beasts as they fled.
On the other hand, those who possessed the minimum level of skill befitting the name of the Imperial Palace managed to hold their own against the monsters somehow.
I didn’t intend to let things escalate too far.
Aside from the demon beast that had ambushed Prince Brian, the others weren’t quite that threatening.
Furthermore, I had the demon beasts guided as much as possible toward areas where soldiers were always stationed. Unless they were the type who intended to get a free ride in their profession, they could at least hold them off, even if they couldn’t kill them. After all, the number of soldiers and knights stationed at the Imperial Palace was not small.
Nevertheless, the screams echoing from all directions made me let out a hollow laugh.
That’s right.
The current Imperial Family was nothing but a hollow shell.
The Royal Guard, who supposedly follow only the Emperor? In a situation where the Emperor even privately lends them to the Imperial Consort?
The personal guard, where only the Emperor can give orders and only the Emperor’s safety is considered, had technically become nothing more than ‘the Emperor’s most stylish fixers.’
The Imperial Knights? In the first place, they were people who chose to serve at the Imperial Palace because they didn’t want to deal with demon beasts. While young and old with bright futures were dying outside fighting monsters, could the skills of those who ignored that reality and only wanted to act high and mighty as knights within the stable Imperial Palace really be any good?
Well, that must be why the Imperial Consort spent her own money and effort to hire mercenary types for her son and place them in his personal guard.
I had been appalled to hear that she had even brought in someone like a serial killer because their skills were certain, masked them, and assigned them as Brian’s escort.
Even those types, well… they were knocked out in a single blow while facing the demon beasts earlier.
I stood up after surveying the situation. It was almost the time I had planned for. Just then, the Empress spoke to me.
“Now that I think about it, I haven’t heard what your role is in this play you’ve staged.”
“A play? Hmm, I just think of it as returning a slight in kind.”
“You wouldn’t have suffered much of a loss even if you had let yourself be deceived by the Imperial Consort this time.”
“…….”
“The Imperial Consort’s target this time was me.”
I looked at the Empress, who had a weary gaze despite her upright posture. Her hair was starting to fade into gray. Her neck was as elegant as a swan’s. Shadows lingered beneath her eyes.
She was the person who had listened without a word when I called her this morning and spoke of strange things, and then replied that she would ‘do it.’
Among the people in this palace, she was the one for whom the word ’noble’ was most fitting.
She had endured and persevered for a long time. It was said that premature gray hair had already begun to grow, and she hid it with dye every time.
The Emperor, who took all sorts of health tonics and remained vigorous in appearance, had mocked the Empress’s looks several times in comparison to Imperial Consort Cleo’s radiant beauty, yet she was someone who calmly lowered her eyes and let it pass.
“His Majesty the Emperor held it against you that the Duchy of Castline took your side to hide you, so he sided with the Imperial Consort.”
“If Your Majesty the Empress were to suffer, it would have been my turn next anyway.”
“Weren’t you reluctant to join hands with my son?”
“When you took me into your palace while I was unconscious, I already owed you a debt. I intended to repay that debt before leaving.”
“You merely wanted to leave a debt on behalf of the House of Castline.”
“If I had truly died, no matter how much you are the Empress, you would not have been safe.”
That was why I was incredibly shocked when I woke up and heard that I had been treated in the Empress’s Palace.
The Empress, already disliked by the Emperor, had no real power. Fortunately, I survived and recovered perfectly. But if by some chance I had breathed my last and failed to revive, the Empress would have had to shoulder all the responsibility.
“You are more tender-hearted toward those around you than I thought.”
“…Pardon? Tender-hearted? Me? It’s just that I can’t stand being in debt.”
I instinctively furrowed my brows. Good heavens, this was coming from the person who had already appalled me just by bringing me into the Empress’s Palace.
Just because I plotted a bit of revenge against the Imperial Consort, who tried to screw over both me and the Empress, I’m tender-hearted? What kind of talk is that?
The Empress gave a faint smile as she looked at me.
“And quite shy, too.”
“…Your Majesty, I think it would be more comfortable if you just cursed at me for being a wicked thing who causes trouble without fear.”
It would be easier to deal with the sly Adrian instead. Dealing with the Empress was quite uncomfortable.
“I thought I had to endure more.”
As I was about to leave the spot, the Empress spoke in a quiet voice.
“That it wasn’t time yet. Until the Princes reach adulthood, even mentioning the throne is an act of disloyalty. Since His Majesty would never appoint a Crown Prince while he still has his strength, I thought the key to victory was to endure for a very long time, until the very end.”
She wasn’t wrong. The Empress and Adrian had stubbornly held out and seized victory.
Though the Empress didn’t live long due to injuries sustained during the civil war, and Adrian suffered from gastric spasms every time due to the stress of cleaning up the ash-covered palace… they were able to live to trample upon and mock the corpses of their enemies.
“However, now that I think about it… I wonder when a battlefield advantageous to us would ever come.”
I was at a loss for words at that.
Even after Adrian and Brian reach adulthood, the situation doesn’t get significantly better or worse than it is now. It was because of the Emperor’s attitude.
Brian enters the struggle for the throne in earnest after marrying the daughter of Marquis Havilios.
The House of Marquis Havilios joined hands with Imperial Consort Cleo and devoted everything to putting Brian on the throne.
My memory is strangely hazy on this part, but I think that family used some kind of power related to demon beasts….
Anyway, were they the family that threw the definitive kindling into the civil war that turned the Imperial Palace into ashes?
In truth, the one holding the greatest military power in the nation is the Duchy of Castline.
However, even with such a large force, they couldn’t move as they pleased. They had to maintain the front lines. If the front lines collapsed once, they would lose numerous villages and cities like falling dominoes.
So, even at the moment the civil war turned so grim, the Castline family could not send all their forces to the Capital.
On the other hand, the enemies acted with the attitude that they didn’t care if the continent or the citizens were bitten to death by demon beasts.
In conclusion, they won the civil war, but the damage had been too great.
Perhaps, if it had started much earlier than in the original story—that is, at a time like now—the situation might have been decidedly different.
“I am sorry for turning a blind eye to you, using my own difficulties as an excuse.”
I froze at the Empress’s words.
“Seeing this sight you’ve created today, I realized that all my thoughts until now were nothing more than a coward’s excuses.”
“…….”
“Despite being the Empress of a nation and having the duty to look after all the children of the Imperial Family, I ignored you to protect Adrian. It was an irresponsible attitude.”
The Empress was, in a sense, similar to Raymon.
Responsibility.
Pride.
She was a person who seemed to be drawn by the gathering of such words. And after those things were crushed, she lived solely for Adrian.
No matter what anyone said, she was the perfect Empress, a person far more mature than someone like the irresponsible Emperor. Such a woman called herself ‘irresponsible.’
“…Why are you apologizing to me?”
“It means that whether today’s affair succeeds or fails, I will not blame you.”
The Empress smiled with a somewhat relieved expression. I felt strange.
“What could an adult, who pushed their work onto a child, possibly have to say regardless of the outcome?”
It was because he had such a mother that Prince Adrian had to become as cunning as a snake.
In fact, he might not have cared what happened to the throne. His nature was easygoing, and he had never known lack.
However, because such a mother—knowing shame yet trying to forget it—had ground her teeth to make her son the victor, he had to become more cunning and move without a single opening.