Episode 28
When Azaid took an interest in the garden, the baroness gave a satisfied smile, as if she had completely forgotten how her daughter had just been chastised by the emperor moments earlier.
That glass garden was the place the baroness was most proud of. She had meticulously selected expensive and rare species to make it visually appealing to others.
Azaid asked the baroness, “Is that the place Serena used to tend?”
“Pardon? Oh, yes, there was a time she did. But now it’s maintained by a gardener.”
The baroness gave an awkward smile and observed Azaid’s reaction. She couldn’t understand why he was suddenly bringing up Serena. More so, she wondered how he even knew Serena had worked in the garden.
Could it be… Lydia?
The baroness glanced at Lydia with a look that said, Surely not. No matter how reckless she might be, it seemed unlikely that Lydia would casually bring up Serena, the emperor’s personal physician, in front of him.
Azaid, however, cut her thoughts short with a brief remark.
“This garden doesn’t suit the castle.”
“…Pardon?”
“It’s an eyesore. Especially since it blocks the view of the Imperial Palace.”
“Pardon?”
“I’d prefer if it couldn’t be seen from the palace.”
“Pardon?”
The baroness could only repeat herself, unable to grasp his meaning.
The Imperial Palace and Vincent Castle were quite a distance apart. There was no way the palace could see Vincent Castle, let alone its garden.
Moreover, the palace was the largest and tallest structure in the capital. Even if the garden of this modest Vincent Castle was visible, it wouldn’t harm the aesthetics of the palace.
But Azaid seemed genuinely intent on destroying the garden.
“Build a new garden elsewhere.”
With that, he snapped his fingers. A blue light shimmered at his fingertips before fire ignited in the baroness’s beloved garden.
“!!!”
The baroness’s eyes widened in shock. Setting fire to a garden in front of its owner—by the emperor, no less.
“This… this can’t be happening….”
She trembled, unable to finish her sentence.
Just then, a servant who had been nearby shouted at the sight of the blazing garden.
“F-fire!”
The servant rushed to fetch water buckets, and the entire castle was thrown into chaos.
Clatter, clatter.
The bustling servants made for a chaotic scene. But the magical fire wouldn’t be extinguished by a few buckets of water.
And with Azaid, the one who lit the fire, showing no intention of stopping it, the flames only grew stronger. The garden burned fiercely, crackling away.
The baron, the baroness, and Lydia stared blankly at the raging inferno with dazed expressions. Meanwhile, Azaid nonchalantly spoke to the baron.
“Bill the repair costs to the Imperial Treasury.”
“Th-this, this is….”
The baron, pale as a sheet, stared at Azaid. To show up unannounced and set the garden ablaze—this was practically a public declaration that they’d fallen out of favor with the emperor.
Just then, the communication orb buzzed. Leonard, who had stepped out to take the call, turned his head toward the commotion. When he saw the burning garden, his face twisted in disbelief.
“Jack, sorry, but now’s really not the time to talk. I’ll call you later….”
As Leonard hastily ended the call and turned to address the emperor’s reckless behavior, a familiar voice came through the orb.
– Don’t hang up, Sir Leonard!
The voice he had been searching for so desperately finally echoed through the orb.
“…Miss Serena?”
Leonard murmured in shock. Azaid, hearing her name, immediately reacted.
“Serena?”
Ignoring the baron entirely, Azaid grabbed the communication orb.
“Where are you?”
Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been?
The words were on the tip of his tongue but remained unsaid. For now, he just wanted to confirm that she was safe.
But Serena’s response shattered his composure.
– Me? Oh, I’m at an inn right now.
Her nonchalant tone echoed through the orb. Azaid blinked, momentarily thinking he’d misheard.
“An inn? Why…?”
Azaid’s expression grew more bewildered as he stared at the orb. Then, a sudden suspicion arose—how had Serena gotten Leonard’s private communication code?
And it wasn’t just any communication line; it was one shared only among their tight-knit group of five. His questions were soon answered by the voice that followed.
– Hello, Your Majesty. It’s Jack. How have you been?
“!!!”
Azaid couldn’t comprehend why Serena was with Jack. And in an inn, no less.
Azaid’s mood, which had lifted slightly as he watched the garden burn earlier, sank like a stone. He had found some satisfaction in avenging young Serena’s pain by destroying the garden.
But the moment he heard Serena and Jack were at an inn together, it felt as if ice water had been poured over him.
“What’s this? Why are you with my physician?”
His tone naturally sharpened. Jack, seemingly oblivious to the emperor’s ire, replied with feigned nonchalance.
– Oh? Ah, we spent the entire night together.
“…What?”
Spent the entire night together?
Who? Serena? With that philanderer?
Azaid’s mind went blank, unable to process the information.
Hearing those words felt like being doused in freezing water yet again. Knowing Jack as he did, the idea of Serena being with him grated on Azaid’s nerves.
Why? Why were they at an inn together? Why?
Azade’s expression grew darker and more menacing. A man and a woman spending the night at an inn—what could that possibly mean?
The woman was the personal physician he had been searching for, and the man was the most dangerous of his close friends.
While Azaid was still in a panic, Jack’s smooth voice gratingly poked at his nerves.
– You’re looking for the physician, right? I’ll send you the coordinates, so come over here. Neither of us is in a position to move right now.
“Not in a position to move…?”
Why? Why? Why?
Azaid felt the thread of his reason snap under the weight of endless questions. He was about to tell Jack to get lost immediately, but Jack beat him to it.
– You’ll understand when you come. Hurry up.
“You, you…!”
Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.
The communication ended. Azaid clenched the communicator so tightly it seemed like it would break. An intense aura radiated from him.
The atmosphere in the room froze at Azaid’s silence. During the exchange, the baron’s expressions had shifted by the second.
First, he was shocked that Serina spoke so casually with Azaid. Then, he was even more stunned that Azaid didn’t seem to mind.
Summing up the situation, it seemed Azaid held Serina in special regard.
So, the rumors were true after all.
The baron rubbed his mouth as if wiping away cold sweat. The abandoned child was now favored by the emperor.
This was both an opportunity and a crisis.
Depending on how the baron dealt with Serina, the Vincent family’s fate could waver precariously.
It was as if the beautiful garden from yesterday had been reduced to ashes today. Similarly, if mishandled, the Vincent family could burn to the ground.
“Y-Your Majesty.”
The baron barely overcame his fear to speak.
“Leonard. Prepare to leave immediately.”
Without even sparing the baron a glance, Azaid stepped into the carriage. The baron was so overwhelmed by the emperor’s aura that he couldn’t stop him from leaving.
Thus, the emperor’s carriage departed the Vincent estate at a leisurely pace. The fire the emperor started continued to blaze.
The flames consumed the garden entirely before naturally dying out.
To burn only the garden and then stop—such precise control required high-level magic. Of course, this wasn’t the kind of magic anyone would want to witness in this manner.
“A-Ah…!”
The baroness collapsed to the ground in shock, her face pale.
“Mother!”
Lydia cried out and rushed to help the baroness. The baroness burst into tears at the sight of the completely ruined garden, while Lydia clenched her teeth in frustration.
Serena, you vile woman… How dare you disgrace our family like this?
Though Serena had done nothing, Lydia unfairly blamed her. She concluded that Serena must have badmouthed the Vincent family to the emperor.
The baron silently surveyed the ruined garden, his distraught wife, and his fuming daughter. The household was in utter chaos.
***
Azaid headed straight for the inn. Leonard, closely following him, tried to speak.
“Your Majesty, please, calm down for a moment—”
Azaid shot him a cold glare. His eyes were wild, and Leonard found himself at a loss.
If things progressed to a confrontation, it was bound to end in disaster. In truth, even Leonard didn’t know why Jack and Serena were together.
The missing Serena, of all people, was with Jack?
Knowing Jack’s nature, Leonard couldn’t help but worry for Serena. With such conflicting emotions, they arrived at the door of the inn room where Jack and Serena were staying.
Without bothering to knock, Azaid turned the doorknob. The door wasn’t locked and opened easily. As soon as he entered, he called out.
“Jack Gordon!”
Serena, who had been sitting on the sofa, blinked in surprise at the sight of Azaid.
His gaze shifted to her. She was dressed exactly as she had been when she left after the morning check-up the previous day.
“You’re here?”
Serena greeted the emperor with a calm smile, which only further provoked Azaid’s irritation.
• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •By Esraa• ❁ • ❁ • ❁ •
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