Born as the Hidden Daughter of a Villainess and the Male Lead

<Episode 79>

 

After Ashmed finished speaking, there was deep silence in the hall.

However, it was different from the silence that fell due to the Emperor’s anger.

Then..…

“I understand that Your Majesty the Emperor is angry. However, Your Majesty, if you give up on the inheritef customs because you cannot accurately implement the traditions of your ancestors, as His Highness the Second Prince said, the national spirit will eventually be cut off and only a deep disconnect will arise. ”

I walked up to Ashmed’s side, knelt down with him, and spoke to the Emperor.

“Now that the Spirit King of Fire has disappeared, the Roshan Empire faces an unprecedented crisis and a change of times. Therefore, Your Majesty the Emperor should not reject the advent of a new era, but rather take the lead in accepting it with an open mind. I earnestly ask you to do so.”

“……Your Majesty, I also admire and agree with the wishes of the 2nd Prince and Grand Princess Edith.”

At that moment, someone walked out of the crowd, knelt down next to Ashmed, and expressed agreement with our wishes.

He was none other than Count Celt.

What was in the eyes of the old man, whose eyes had deep marks accumulated over the passage time, was patriotism for the Roshan Empire that could not be more sincere.

“The request that His Highness the 2nd Prince and Grand Princess Edith have made to Your Majesty……. I am sorry to say that, but it has caused me, who have lived many times longer than these two, to feel deep shame. How could I have  lived my whole life without change? How could I have thought proudly that I am being loyal and respectful of the ancestors true values?”

Count Celt, who quickly turned his head to look at me and Ashmed, looked up at the Emperor again and spoke forcefully.

“Even if the Fire Spirit King has left, why does it matter? Water, earth, ice, wind……No matter what happens, if we do not stop the tradition of honoring the Phoenix, the spirit of Roshan itself, the Roshan Empire will never disappear.”

“That’s right, Your Majesty! I have been implicitly reluctant to allow His Highness the 2nd Prince to succeed to the throne on the grounds that His Highness the 2nd Prince has been blessed by the Spirit of Darkness and has not been blessed by the Spirit of Fire like the previous Emperors.”

At that moment, another nobleman emerged, knelt down towards the Emperor, and shouted in a loud voice.

It was the Marquis of Oppenheimer.

“But at this moment, I offer my sincere advice to Your Majesty. Although His Highness the Second Prince did not receive the blessing of fire, he understands better than anyone else the virtues an Emperor of the Roshan Empire must possess. The person who should rule the new era that Roshan has entered is none other than the Second Prince!”

“Your majesty! I don’t care if you execute me right here for blasphemy. Please appoint His Highness the 2nd Prince as the new Crown Prince and bring stability to the Empire!”

“Your Majesty, I admire the thoughts of the Second Prince, and Grand Princess Edith, who shares his will, also possesses the qualities of an incredibly perfect Empress despite her young age. If His Highness the Second Prince and Grand Princess Edith, who are so wise, rule over Roshan as the next Emperor and Empress, peace and prosperity will truly come!”

Ugh, wasn’t that a bit of an exaggeration?¹And a lot of talking, I felt dizzy just translating it😂.

Count Celt, Marquis Oppenheimer, Marquis Hopper and Marquis Aslan.

As if they had planned it in advance, the heads of prestigious and historic families in the Roshan Empire approached the Emperor and expressed their admiration for the 2nd Prince and Grand Duchess Edith.

And I, still kneeling before the Emperor, was trying hard to hide my distorted expression as I was internally astonished by the increasingly extravagant praise.

In the first place, the debate over the replacement of the Crown Prince had been going on for several years, and it was getting tiresome.

Although it was something I had planned with Ashmed to find a way to deal a blow to the Emperor and Valerian, the culprits of the muddy fight, I had no intention of becoming the Empress of the Roshan Empire.

The Empress of the Roshan Empire cannot hold any title other than that of Empress.

In other words, if I married Ashmed and became Empress, I would not be able to inherit the title of Grand Duke Heilian.

This is ridiculous. Why would I choose the position of the Empress, bound by laws and restrictions, instead of inheriting the position of the Grand Duke, if I could just wait?²What do you mean, do you think you could just abandone Ashmed like that(⁠‘⁠◉⁠⌓⁠◉⁠’⁠), it is ridiculous😂

Although such thoughts were troubling me, the heads of the great aristocratic families endlessly requested the Emperor to replace the Crown Prince.

“……Stop, stop. Today is This Emperor’s birthday, and it is not the time to make hasty decisions on such an important matter.”

In order to calm the rapidly escalating atmosphere, the Emperor interrupted the conversation of his ministers and spoke in a soft voice to Ashmed and me.

“Yes, I truly understand your intentions. I was short-sighted ended up scolding you. Now, get up quickly, 2nd Prince and Grand Princess Edith! I will treasure the Phoenix statue you presented and keep it safely.”

“Your Majesty, His Highness the Second Prince…….”

“You all calm down. Didn’t this Emperor make it clear? The matter of replacing the Crown Prince… is not one that should be decided so hastily.”

My knees were already so numb that I couldn’t feel them, so I exchanged glances with Ashmed and finally stood up.

Unlike before, when curiosity and greed were what filled most gazes, the gazes directed at us were filled with sincere respect, admiration, and desire.

“Your Majesty! How long are you planning to avoid making a decision on this important matter?”

Now all we had to do was done.

Ashmed took down the Phoenix statue that was floating in the air and handed it over to the servants, then turned to me and whispered.

‘It would be best to stay away from here for a while.’

I agree.

I answered by nodding my head.

We hurriedly left this hot, suffocatingly scented space, arm in arm, just as we had entered the banquet hall.

 

***

 

“Ha……. Now I feel like I can finally breathe.”

“Were you nervous?”

“A little? But because the elders were so enthusiastic, it was even more burdensome.”

Ashmed laughed quietly at the words I said while stretching.

“Anyway, this will make the nobles support you even more passionately.”

“……Yeah. I guess so.”

Hearing the soft answer whose intentions I could not understand, I turned around and faced Ashmed.

“Don’t you want to become the Emperor?”

If so, why did I plan all of this?

“……Well. Actually, I’m not craving the throne itself.”

“It must be cold,” Ashmed replied as he took off his coat and wrapped it around me with a small mutter.

Well, I don’t know.

I thought as I looked up at Ashmed’s face.

Sometimes I can see right through you, but at other moments, it seems like everything I was confident I knew about your heart was a lie.

“…… As you walk through the rose garden, don’t you think back to the old days? Your Highness the 2nd Prince.”

After being in a strange mood for a while, I tried to lighten the mood by asking a playful question.

“…… Will you please forgive me for my past behavior, when I was wild like a thunderbolt? Grand Princess Edith.”

“Well, I still get angry every time it pops up.”

I find myself surprised once again as I often do during our casual conversations.

When did we become this close?

‘You……you’re Hailien’s daughter?’

I remember when I met you for the first time.

A strange boy who blindly grabbed my neck with an aura so unrealistic that I couldn’t believe he was a human being like me.

“It’s already been over five years since you and I met.”

I mumbled without thinking and felt awkward for some reason.

“I’ve finally reached the age where I can officially take the Spiritualist Qualification Exam.”

He said confidently.

Before I found out the truth hidden behind Mariette’s evil deeds, I had to at least get some information about Lore, the Spirit King of Wisdom.

After learning the truth, the essential reason to visit Litera and look for books related to Lore disappeared.

So, I decided to start with gradually increasing my status for the goal of reinstating my grandfather, clearing Mariette’s name, and informing the world of the truth.

I had lived so intensely for the past four years.

My coming-of-age ceremony would take place at the age of sixteen, and by then I would have become a great spiritist and the noble Hailien Grand Princess whom everyone respects greatly and whom no one can easily disparage.

The I would reveal the true nature of Chastia, Allea, and Roberick

To reach that goal, I had to put all my efforts into my training as a spiritist.

Because I didn’t know when the Spirit King of Darkness would reach out to me, Mariette’s daughter, again.

However, inexplicably, Arkane did not make a single move for four years, which was neither short nor long.³Girl, you mentioning that is the same as declaring he will make his move soon..

Although I felt reassured by that, I couldn’t shake off the anxiety deep within me.

It had been intense time till now as if I was struggling underwater.

“You already met the qualification requirements the year before last, so why didn’t you just get it then…”

At that time, Ashmed refused, clearly saying that he would take the test with me.

“If I don’t go through it with you, it’s just a meaningless piece of paper to me.”

It was no different now.

“We can finally go together.”

Ashmed stopped walking, looked at me and said.

The moment when I looked face to face with the the boy who had a smile that evoked his unconcealable excitement and innocent emotions.

I once again fell into a new sense of appreciation.

“Come with me, Edith.”

The child who was once left out and twisted in the cold had grown into a boy who smiles so naturally.

“Okay.”

Let’s go together.

The moment I smiled and answered, I had an inadvertent thought.

Ashmed was already fourteen years old.

Maybe, there might not be many days left for us to be together.

 

***

TL:

It seems like the fun part is coming, I personally like it when there is a lot of magic talks and I am reading with you as I translate, so I am somewhat excited ✧⁠◝⁠(⁠⁰⁠▿⁠⁰⁠)⁠◜⁠✧