“Episode 64”
The officials dispatched from the royal court to resolve the incident frowned. A priest who had been dispatched from the Vatican spoke first.
“This incident is not limited to the duke’s family. The duke is the commander of the royal knights. Lately, he has been fighting barbarians and has earned merit as a knight. Attacking him could be an attempt by the Yahrat tribe to extract important secrets from the royal palace knights or to assassinate key figures in the royal court. Please hand over the suspect indicated by the evidence to us. It’s for the security of the royal family.”
“Then why wasn’t the suspect arrested when I already identified them?” Yuriana interjected with a flash in her eyes. Despite her demeanor, the priest from the Vatican calmly responded, seemingly unperturbed by her agitation.
“The lady has the power of prophecy. Since her arrival, she has warned us repeatedly to beware of the seeds of war. She also emphasized the importance of the duke’s security to win that war.”
The priest cleared his throat, feeling a bit burdened by the attention focused on him, but he continued speaking.
“The power of prophecy is sometimes unwelcome, manifesting when least desired. Erenora, the deity who protects the empire, alerted the lady about the danger to the hero who would stop the impending war, and the lady had no choice but to rescue the duke at that moment.”
“Where is the lady now?”
“Her divine energy was depleted, so we had to bring her back to the Vatican.”
“…That’s unlikely. That woman is dying for causing the ‘incident’ by ignoring the original plot.”
Yuriana mulled over her words. It was only now that she realized her hands and feet were trembling with anger. She seemed to be overwhelmed by the scent of Evan’s blood emanating from herself.
Seated, she tightly held the cold hand of her husband, who had lost consciousness from the poison. She wished Evan would hold her hand back as he always did. But her husband, regardless of how or where he was affected, had already departed to a realm where even her warmth couldn’t reach.
Yuriana, with her head bowed, trembling lips barely managed to speak.
“…Ana’s succession will occur after I personally uncover the whole truth of the incident. It will only take a few days. Please leave. I have something to discuss with Priest Sharo.”
With the firm words of the duchess, the royal officials and Vatican priests withdrew for a moment. They exchanged glances, knowing they had to swallow different words.
As they disappeared like the tide, a silence fell over the duke’s mansion. It was an ominous silence.
And within that silence, Sharo felt a heavy burden to speak alone with the duchess, replacing her mother, who was searching near the Emerald Lake.
It was understandable. The duchess sat like a lifeless figure, unable to even change into a dress stained with the duke’s blood, somewhere between life and death.
Where had the authority they displayed to the royal officials and Vatican priests disappeared to? She silently stared at the duke with vacant eyes. Sharo cautiously reached out to hold her hand.
“Duchess, it’s evident that the maid attacked the duke using tracking magic. What we need to focus on is ‘why’ and ‘how’ it happened.”
“Ana wouldn’t do such a thing. Clearly, that lady orchestrated it.”
“There was nothing wrong with the lady’s divine power. The pope who was present can attest to that.”
“Priest Sharo, you’re saying the same thing as everyone else who was there at the time. There was nothing wrong with the lady’s divine power, and the lady with the power of prophecy often demonstrated her strength in such a manner… What good is that kind of statement?!”
“…You’re right. That’s what the royal officials want to hear. Those kinds of words.”
Yuriana wiped away her flowing tears with determination. Her words came out forcibly.
“…What does that mean?”
“We’ve been deceived.”
“What do you mean…”
“We, the members of our faith, also witnessed the lady’s divine power. There was nothing wrong with that power. It was truly the pure power of the divine. Higher than us… If even a slight impurity had mixed into her divine power, our mother would have known. But the important thing is another issue. Why was the duke targeted at this moment?”
“The royal court didn’t target me, but Evan?”
Yun, it wasn’t aimed at me.
Yuriana quietly muttered with disgust in her pale lips. Her words sounded like they were coming from a distant place. She heard a splitting sound from somewhere.
Was it her heart or some corner of her mind? She couldn’t guess. With the duchess before her, Sharo spoke anxiously.
“In the current situation, that seems certain. From the beginning, the royal court planned to attack the duke at his mansion. If the duke had been assassinated elsewhere, the problem would have been more significant. The empire would have been overturned. However, the duke was attacked at his own mansion. Then, the people present at the duke’s mansion at the time would be suspected. However, the lady from the royal side actually saved the duke in danger.”
“You testified that the lady emerged from the entrance to the underworld. So if you claim her divine power is extraordinary…”
“Verification of divine power takes time. Since the duchess requested verification as a high noble, we need to negotiate the date of the divine trial with other high-ranking nobles… Ah, damn it. Even that has been distorted by the duke’s injury!”
Sharo vigorously shook her hair, which had been tied tightly. She exerted all her strength to calm her surging excitement.
It was remarkable that the duchess did not collapse. She vividly recalled how the duchess, who had lost consciousness in the lake after Evan’s poisoning, had screamed. Sharo shivered at the memory.
Sharo lowered her trembling head.
They had to escape from this well-crafted drama. Otherwise, the Duke’s family would be engulfed in a massive investigation. As the Vatican priests said, the duke’s assassination was not limited to the duke’s family alone.
Sharo spoke again.
The silence that had fallen over the duchess, who had closed her eyes and was biting her lip, was brief. The moment she opened her eyes, something dull and heavy fell from the edge of her husband’s blood-soaked robe. Yuliana, trembling, caught it in her hands.
It was a smooth, black pebble. In black magic that could harm and kill, there usually was a high level of malice, but this object showed no such malice.
Instead, it was filled with traces of Anna, soaked with the duchess’s inexperienced worries and affections.
“Anna…”
Yuliana embraced the pebble as if embracing Anna herself. In the center of the pebble, a blinking eye shimmered with empty grayness.
Yuliana sensed Anna’s trapped soul within. The soul was struggling to return to its original body with all its might.
Indeed, ‘Yun’ had contacted Anna, confining her original self here and leaving only an empty shell behind. Yuliana felt a surge of anger towards Yun for orchestrating such a senseless act.
“Your Grace!”
At that moment, Sharro, who had become sensitive to the commotion outside the mansion, looked out the window.
For a while, Sharro couldn’t believe what she was seeing. But once she realized that it wasn’t an illusion, she exclaimed in shock:
“His, His Majesty has arrived!”
—
Lucian Bu Ariakne passed through the main gate of the duchy wearing a golden armor. Behind him, the imperial army followed. Yuliana speculated on why the emperor had come all the way here.
He had come to witness the end of this drama.
“Your Majesty.”
Yuliana advanced to greet the emperor, still dressed in her blood-stained white dress, without changing. She addressed him again through clenched teeth.
“The news must have reached you already. The judgment of the duchy has not been made yet, so please return.”
The emperor’s face, obscured by his helmet, couldn’t be fully seen. Through the helmet, he spoke in a gruff tone.
“Duchess. I couldn’t stay idle after hearing that the one who attacked the Duke is here.”
“Surely, Your Majesty doesn’t believe in the words of the Papal priests and the royal officials? It’s been only a few hours since the Duke was attacked. Rushing here won’t solve anything.”
Yuliana’s eyes flashed. Despite the threat surrounding the duchess from the imperial army, she sneered.
‘Lucian, you’re being used for this play.’
“Duchess. It was I who urgently requested the intervention of the Duke’s matter.”
At that moment, a small carriage carrying the saint appeared, escorted by the imperial guards. The saint smiled sweetly at the duchess, who stared at her with disbelief.
“Madam Duchess. His Majesty has come here personally to resolve the matter of your friend. How can you allow the assassin to roam free in your mansion while nursing the Duke?”
Yuliana gritted her teeth and said:
“This matter should be resolved internally.”
“The Duke, who serves as the commander of the Imperial Knights, cannot be simply seen as the head of a family. If we do not pursue the one who attempted his life, it will jeopardize His Majesty’s safety as well.”
Yun spoke softly.
Yuliana, trying to refuse, eventually relented due to Lucian’s coercion, and Anna, who had been imprisoned in the underground dungeon, was brought forward.
Standing in front of Anna, Yuliana shouted:
“Stop this! How can you proceed like this?”
“The Duchess is overreacting. Why refuse His Majesty’s help?”
The saint, Yun, spoke gently. She smiled warmly at the shocked Yuliana and took her arm affectionately.
“When the head of a family loses her composure like this, the Duchess must remain calm.”
[Yuliana. Look at me.]
Was it because of her wide-open eyes? Yuliana’s thin eyelids trembled.
Yun raised her heel to look closely at her. She wiped the blood droplets splattered on her cheek with a gentle smile.
Even in her blood-stained appearance, Yuliana O’Ban was beautiful. Yun admired her beauty and whispered. Of course, it was a message only for Yuliana to hear.
[You, you are truly beautiful.]
Yun chuckled softly. Upon seeing her smile, Yuliana recoiled and stood in front of Anna again, shouting:
“Stop it! How can you proceed like this?”
“The Duchess is in distress. Why refuse His Majesty’s help?”
The saint, Yun, spoke softly. She smiled warmly at the shocked Yuliana and took her arm affectionately.
“When the head of a family loses her composure like this, the Duchess must remain calm.”
And then, it happened.
In an instant.
Yuliana suddenly felt a terrible pain from behind. She grabbed her head in agony, and the sound of wheezing filled her ears. She turned stiffly to see the face of her attacker.
“Anna…!”
Certainly, it was Anna who had been subdued by the imperial soldiers and had now broken free with astonishing strength, attacking Yuliana.
“The, the Duchess!”
“What is the Imperial Army doing?!”
Yuliana turned her head stiffly to avoid the knife aimed at her throat. She smelled the same poison as what had affected Evan. She grabbed Anna’s arm tightly as she was attacked.
How much magic would it take to hurt Anna’s body without harming her soul and safely restore it? Yuliana struggled with confusion. Taking advantage of that gap, Anna clung to her back and choked her.
“Gah!”
