How to Safely Divorce An Obsessive Emperor

“But you have to leave one piece behind. Otherwise, how are you going to find out?”

From Ryan’s perspective, it was a natural statement. Since it was an unknown creature targeting the Empress, its identity had to be revealed for the sake of the future. However, the problem was the identity of the purple energy.

Ryan thought that the force moved along the target in that only one could be applied at a time. But it wasn’t that simple.

“…hmm?”

Fortunately, Ryan lifted the half-cut piece that was rescued before it disappeared into black smoke, and then her expression suddenly changed. The hand, which touched the purple smoke, was turning blue.

“Oh,”

Tuk.

Ryan dropped what she was holding.

Tion calmly took out his gloves, put them on his hands, and lifted them. His expression was dark. It seemed that it wasn’t just because of the abnormality that had come into Ryan’s hands.

“Lord Sigress.”

As Rasilia came to Ryan’s side with a surprised look on her face, Ecelion stopped her.

“It’s still dangerous, Lady Lasilia.”

Lasilia looked at Ecelion.

“What happened, Your Majesty? Where on earth did the power to infect people just by touching come from?”

Ryan belatedly came to her senses and asked.

“Didn’t you say one at a time? And speaking of epidemics… You mix that kind of energy with a knife? No, it’s strange that there’s something else like that besides the Sword Aura, but it’s contagious… It doesn’t even make sense, it just doesn’t make sense.”

Ecelion looked away, as if he was troubled. Tion also just lowered his head and kept his mouth shut.

“Your Highness.”

“Yes… Lady Lasilia.”

Still, he couldn’t turn away when Lasilia called, so she answered.

“Please know that I am not trying to question or criticize Your Highness. My wish is to see no harm come into the hands of Lord Sigress. Is that a bottle? Then is there a cure?”

“…”

Ecelion and Tion exchanged a glance. Tion, who saw Ecelion’s expression, let out a small sigh as if he had resigned.

“To conclude, there is no cure. Because it is not a disease.”

“Then what is it?”

“It’s not a disease… It’s a curse.”

“A curse…?”

Ecelion nodded his heavy head once.

“Yes. The divine power given to me… It is the power to curse things that go against God’s will.”

* * *

Divine power was divided into five types. Foresight, healing, prosperity, purification. And curse.

Among humans, there was a rare person who was born with divine power. Most of all was the ability to heal and thrive. Prophets were so rare that often not even one was allowed in a generation. The curse was a power of a completely different nature from the four. No matter how much he borrowed the name of God, it was difficult for a human being who cursed others to be fully accepted.

Those who received the power of the curse were entrusted to the temple as soon as the power was manifested. The temple erased their power with its healing and purifying powers. Among the priests, opinions were divided about the power of the curse.

No one knew a clear answer as to why, if it was a God-given ability, it would harm humans. They also said that they should not be recognized as divine powers, and that they represent the evil that God had driven out to earth. So Prince Ecelion’s divine power was kept secret. He too had to undergo a long and painful purification ritual. However, there was no priest whose purifying power was superior enough to completely eliminate the divine power he had been given.

With no way to escape the power of his curse, Ecelion had to find a way to control it. That method was a knife. Fortunately, Ecelion was talented with the sword, and he was not embarrassed by the lie that he had a sword with the power of a curse.

The only ones who knew this were some priests, the royal chief knight who trained Ecelion, and Ecelion’s guard knights. And the two guard knights, like Esselion, were born with the power of a curse but could not purify it.

“I thought it couldn’t have been a Sword Aura.”

Ryan looked at his stiff hands and muttered carelessly.

“If you are an Auror, there are no such restrictions. And right now, there are no rumors that a Sword Master has been born anywhere on the continent.”

Her hands were cursing, but her voice was somehow excited.

“Rather than that, I think it’s time to worry about the Lord’s hand.”

Lasilia said.

“Oh, this? Well, I don’t think it’s spreading any further. It’s also my left hand anyway.”

Ryan shrugged her shoulders.

“Besides, since it is divine power, wouldn’t it be okay to go to a priest with healing or purifying abilities?”

“But it looks like you have no intention of going to the temple.”

“Oh, not now. I don’t know when they will come again.”

They no longer appeared. The only trace of them was a half-cut piece that Ryan had saved by paying the price of a curse. Another knight who came with Ecelion was the first to discover traces of it. To be precise, it was not a trace but a connection.

The knight of Ecelion discovered a stranger walking around near the duke’s residence, and after dealing with him, they suddenly appeared. So now, the knights of Ecelion were in the process of searching the duke’s residence again. There was no evidence that it was just one stranger who had called it. Only by clearing this wide area and making sure there was no danger could he do other things. There was also the idea of ​​evacuating Lasilia to the imperial palace, but since there was no telling what kind of attacks might occur on her way to the imperial palace, the priority was for her reinforcements to arrive.

The Royal Guard was now rushing towards the imperial palace.

“But you voluntarily withdrew from the search. I think he has enough to worry about.”

“Oh, that’s… Well, it’s true that you should be worried. I still have other thoughts.”

Ryan, who thought he would shut her up, scratched the back of her head and tapped the remains of it wrapped in his cloak.

“First of all, this is it.”

Her ears moved slightly. In Lasilia’s eyes, it seemed to be wary of her surroundings. It wasn’t a wrong idea.

There was a reason why Ryan intentionally left out of the search and remained by Lasilia’s side. It was so that they could talk alone in a place where Ecelion could not hear.

“It seems a bit… It looks similar to His Majesty’s mutation… What do you think, Her Majesty?”

“Does this mean it is a type of demon?”

“Of course I know this is very different from your Majesty. Above all, don’t demons use magic power? Much more than humans… Uh, what should I say… Anyway, aren’t they superior to humans? Even excluding the physical benefits. You definitely have broader knowledge about this world and this dimension, right?”

However, those that appeared today only had an appearance that did not exist on the continent, and did not appear to be creatures with intelligent abilities.

“They may come from the same place, but they may be of a different type, or they may be demons that need more growth.”

“Yes. That’s my opinion too. A demon appeared in the capital some time ago.”

“And they’re targeting me. Just like when I was hiding in the Temple of Harios.”

“Yes. I don’t think I can deny it.”

Ryan added, frowning her eyes.

“So I’m not sure yet. Is it right to quietly wait here for reinforcements, or is it part of the demons’ plan to target Her Majesty the Empress?”

“Beep…?”

Pipi, who had been sleeping like the dead on Lasilia’s lap, suddenly lifted her head. Pipi, who spewed fire and then turned into a flame, remained like a flame ever since. Then, after about five minutes, I felt so sleepy that I closed my eyes and fell asleep. Everyone was surprised when Pipi’s sleeping body fell onto Lasilia’s lap, but strangely, Pipi’s flame did not transfer to Lasilia.

As Pipi fell asleep, he slowly returned to his original small body.

“Beep. beep.”

Pipi squeezed his sleepy eyes.

He told her not to worry because he was there. And they said those strange things were already dead.

“OK got it. Thank you for your hard work.”

“Beep…”

Pipi lowered his head and fell asleep again.

Ryan, who was watching Pipi, nodded her head.

“Phoenix can sense in advance when a crisis is coming for Her Majesty, so it can be considered safe for now.”

“Then we can go to the temple.”

Ryan shook her head as if to say something nonsense.

“Even if Her Majesty personally brings reinforcements, I will not separate from Her Majesty’s side.”

“Why? You know there is no more danger to me.”

“I don’t like the feeling of running away.”

Ryan gave a slightly strange answer.

“No one thinks you are running away.”

“…If it weren’t for the power of Prince Dell’Arta, I don’t know what would have happened here.”

Ryan raised her left hand. She wanted to squeeze her fist, but she couldn’t. Her stiffened left hand had no strength whatsoever.

“I was afraid of that. Because I can’t do anything, something might happen that I can’t handle.”

“The Lord did his job well.”

“No, Your Majesty. I’m sorry, but I wasn’t good enough.”

Ryan bit her molars hard.

“I knew it wasn’t enough, and it should have been enough a long time ago… But she kept…”

Ryan frowned and closed her eyes. The wrinkles forming between her eyebrows looked painful.

She wasn’t just blaming herself for lack of skills. If that was all it was, there was no way he would have made such a distressed expression. Lasilia placed her hand on Ryan’s shoulder.

“Lord Sigress.”

“…It’s okay, Your Majesty. It will be okay soon.”

She saw it then. A different thought came to Ryan’s mind than what she was doing with her mouth.

-It’s not okay, damn it.

“…”

Lasilia, who was slightly surprised, looked at Ryan.

Ryan was suffering. She could pretend she didn’t know that she was suffering alone, but maybe she could help.

-If something goes wrong with Her Majesty the Empress… Then your Majesty is also in the wrong.

Ryan then thought of the mutated Lescal. The sight of Leskal, who lost her companion and completely turned into a demon, destroying everything in sight.

 

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Translator Note: