After the Wicked Wife Leaves

 

The Emperor glared at Reinhardt with a stern expression.

Reinhardt looked up at the emperor with concern and asked,

“Your Majesty, is something wrong?”

After a moment, the Emperor relaxed his expression and laughed heartily.

“Hahaha, I was just momentarily having trouble with my eyesight. It’s only you who worries about me!”

“That’s only natural. No matter what anyone says, I am your Majesty’s most loyal subject.”

“Yes, you are like family to me.”

At that moment, Reinhardt raised the corners of his mouth and said,

“It would be wonderful if your Majesty and I could truly become family.”

After this cryptic remark, Reinhardt bowed his head and said,

“I’ll take my leave now. I hope that when we meet next time, you’ll look much healthier.”

“Thank you.”

After leaving the emperor’s office, Reinhardt handed a jewel to the low-ranking servant waiting outside the door.

“Take good care of His Majesty.”

Poisoning doesn’t necessarily require ingestion. It could be applied to the skin or even be in the air we breathe.

For this reason, the attendants were thoroughly testing everything the emperor ate and drank, everything that touched his body, and all fragrant substances for poison.

However, the poison Reinhardt had prepared was odorless, didn’t come into contact with the skin, and wasn’t ingested.

“Are there still plenty of candles left?”

Burning odorless candles with poison added can be extremely lethal to the respiratory system. However, since a candle’s function is to provide light, it would be hard to suspect that there was poison in it.

But there was no harm in being cautious.

So Reinhardt chose not the heed attendant but a low-ranking servant who would light the candles as a tool to poison the emperor.

Such a task was ideal for a worthless person who could easily be bribed and discarded at any time.

Moreover, all Reinhardt had done was hand over the candles, stating they were high-quality and should only be used in His Majesty’s chamber, along with some jewels.

Thus, this foolish person would likely remain unaware that he was poisoning the emperor.

As expected, the servant, blinded by the jewels, responded with a grin, not harboring any suspicion. 

“Yes, Your Grace. There’s still plenty.”

“Don’t be stingy with them. It seems His Majesty has been having trouble with his eyesight lately.”

The servant smiled brightly and replied,

“Yes, understood. It’s only you, Your Grace, who thinks of His Majesty’s well-being, isn’t it?”

Reinhardt let out a small laugh, then gazed down the long corridor with a wistful look.

If he waited just a little longer, the attendant would bring Cornelia.

The mere thought of seeing her made his fingertips tingle and his heart race.

However, Reinhardt slowly began to walk away.

‘I’ve waited for years; I can’t just reunite with her in a place like this.’

There were countless things to do before seeing Cornelia. He needed to check his appearance in the mirror and tidy his clothes.

‘Above all, I must save her from the villain so that she will feel favorably toward me.’

He smiled as he recalled a note from his subordinate saying that Marquis Arzen would soon arrive.

‘To do that, I’ll have to help the foolish villain.’

It won’t be long now.

The day he would possess someone he had longed for even more intensely than the throne since childhood was approaching.

“I want to leave my mark on her pure white skin soon.”

The fruit obtained after such a long wait would surely be sweet.

Reinhardt licked his lips and then stepped outside.

He then asked his aide, who was waiting outside the imperial palace.

“Did you spread the word to the Crown Prince? That Countess Herde is at the Imperial Palace.”

“Yes, he will be coming to the Imperial Palace soon.”

The first villain was ready.

Now it was time for the second villain.

Reinhardt nodded and said,

“Go to Marquis Arzen and deliver my message.”

Meanwhile, the Emperor, who had been holding back a cough, finally let it out.

‘There isn’t much time left. The day I die is approaching.’

Though Fritz was still unfit to sit on the throne, the thought of leaving this world made everything feel dark.

‘It’s possible to forcefully place Fritz on the throne. But…’

The current political situation was the problem.

‘Recently, concerns about Fritz’s downfall have been growing louder.’

Could it be because he had grown up as a crown prince from birth? Despite being under the emperor’s control, Fritz’s behavior had reached extremes.

Fritz continued his reckless lifestyle despite numerous reprimands, even dismissing his fiancé.

As a result, even the nobles aligned with the Emperor were slowly turning their backs.

‘Moreover, while I was sick, Reinhardt’s actions have been suspicious.’

His own nephew and a distant relative of the imperial family, Reinhardt Adolf Tarrant.

For over ten years, he had taken it upon himself to act as the emperor’s hunting dog, identifying and delivering the empire’s unsavory elements to the emperor.

But what if that hunting dog turned against him?

The outcome was clear.

Instead of handing the crown to Fritz, he would find himself in the humiliating position of passing it to one of the distant relatives he had previously looked down upon.

‘The next emperor must be of my blood!’

The Emperor clenched his fist tightly.

‘There are two ways. Either promise vast treasures to entice the great nobles and solidify my foundation, or…’

“Your Majesty, the guest you were waiting for has arrived.”

“Let them in.”

A woman in black mourning clothes soon entered the emperor’s office.

“Welcome.”

The Emperor greeted her, and the woman removed her hat and bowed her head.

“It’s been a long time, Your Majesty.”

Seeing his daughter after such a long time, she looked worn out and somehow gaunt.

Though her appearance bothered him, the emperor urged her to sit.

“Please, have a seat.”

He must not let his heart weaken; Cornelia was the only solution to overcome this crisis.

 

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

 

The moment I saw my father for the first time, I involuntarily flinched.

‘How did he end up like this…’

In my memories, my father had been relatively well at this time.

However, the man before me now appeared to be in poor health, as if he might collapse at any moment.

‘He definitely wasn’t like this before.’

Seeing this man, so weak now, felt strange.

‘Yeah, to be honest, I…’

At that moment,.

“Princess, how have you been?”

The man who always referred to me by my title, never by name.

A man who had never been a loving father to me.

“I hear the child has grown quite a bit; it must have been tough raising him alone.”

Yet, the moment I heard his voice asking about my well-being, my nose tinged with emotion.

Yes, it was the first time.

That he spoke to me like a real father.

And that he came to see me when I was sick.

And I didn’t dislike it. Perhaps he thought of me as just another child, like Fritz.

“Yes, I’ve been well. Have you been well, Father?”

As I called him that, a faintly bitter expression appeared on his wrinkled face as he looked at me.

He had always shown a steadfast demeanor, so before my return, I had thought of him as an invincible superhuman.

Yet now, seeing signs of struggle, I realized he was human too.

Yet, it was only for a moment. The Emperor replied calmly.

“What troubles could I have? I am the ruler of this empire, the sun itself.”

Still, I was worried about him.

Seeing him speak so normally brought me a sense of relief.

‘I’m relieved. It seems like his condition isn’t as serious as I feared.’

Then he spoke.

“I think you’ve had a harder time, though. As a woman, managing the estate on your own must have been quite a challenge.”

Honestly, as he said, it was tough.

Widows were generally looked down upon by men, and there were many scoundrels targeting the mines as well as high-ranking nobles who tried to take advantage.

Every time I defeated such adversaries, it was my father who handled the aftermath.

“No, it was manageable thanks to your care and attention, Father.”

“It’s only natural for a father to look after his daughter living alone. I am rather proud.”

Proud.

Hearing those words for the first time made my head feel light.

‘He’s proud of me?’

Since childhood, I have always strived to earn his recognition. But no matter how hard I tried, I had never heard such words before.

That’s why I was now making a dumbfounded expression.

Seeing me like that, my father smiled kindly and continued.

“Even though there was a mine in that remote backwater, the fact that you’ve managed the territory so well is proof of your excellent governance.”

Hearing his acknowledgment for the first time filled the emptiness in my heart.

Soon, I realized the nature of this unfamiliar emotion.

‘Yes, I’ve always wanted his acknowledgment.’

To be honest, before seeing him, I thought it wouldn’t matter if he died.

However, every time he showed a fatherly side to me, I subconsciously recognized that I was his daughter.

I seem to have harbored a deep-seated longing for him to acknowledge me and to love me.

I then looked at the emperor.

‘Honestly, I hope you live a little longer.’

Although he wasn’t very affectionate, he was still my father.

I didn’t want him to die just yet.

‘Before my return, my father’s respiratory system was fine. The state of his face now must be the result of someone’s deliberate actions.’

Having finished my thoughts, I tried to probe into the recent events concerning him.

“Your Majesty, have you perhaps…”

At that moment, the Emperor spoke.

“Princess, regarding that, I want you to help your brother.”