Chapter 89.
Beatrice appointed people to keep a close eye and ear on Killian and promoted him to the rank of commander, placing Nicholas and some other confidants in the military police.
Fortunately, Killian didn’t show any suspicious signs.
But why did she feel uneasy every time she saw him nodding so obediently?
Beatrice wanted to kick Killian’s leg and make him show his thigh today.
However, she couldn’t do it with just her suspicions.
If she did something like that to Killian, and he turned out to be innocent, it would be a problem for her.
If she did such a thing to him, it would become public knowledge that she would do the same to those who interrogate alibis in the future.
Then, there would be strong opposition from everyone gathered in the hall.
“Nicholas, is it true that you wounded the Black Moon’s thigh?”
“Yes, Your Highness. There is no doubt about it. I was in a state where I couldn’t completely sever the tendon due to being suppressed by the Black Moon, but the depth of the wound is not ordinary.”
Nicholas assured her.
With a wound of that depth, it would be difficult to stand.
So, at a glance, the black moon could not help but be exposed.
“… Are there any other important clues you remember about the Black Moon?”
The Empress inquired again, but Nicholas shook his head.
“It’s possible that he’s an outsider who didn’t attend the ball, isn’t it?”
The probability of an intruder not on the list cannot be ruled out.
However, the Empress shook her head.
“As you know, today we’ve been much more strict with access than usual. There shouldn’t be anyone who secretly entered.”
Today, the list of nobles’ attendants at the ball was compared with the list of servants and maids, and alibis were checked for all the servants who did not attend the ball.
The number of guards patrolling the palace was increased threefold, making it extremely difficult to intrude.
Above all, it would be impossible for the injured Black Moon to secretly leave the palace.
Beatrice looked down at Nicholas, her fingers slightly tapping her chin.
“I wonder if you lied to me… It’s suspicious, Nicholas.”
“How could I possibly…!”
Nicholas vehemently shook his head as he met the Empress’s narrowed eyes.
“Liam died, and yet you shamelessly came back to life after being in the Black Moon’s grasp. Surely, the black moon could have killed you. I can’t fathom why he spared you.”
Beatrice’s voice was tender, but Nicholas’s face turned pale.
“I also don’t know why the Black Moon spared me, Your Majesty. But I can firmly say that I had no involvement with the Black Moon!”
“Yes, that’s how it should be. Your beloved sister must be longing for your face.”
“…!”
The word “sister” lingered on Beatrice’s tongue, causing Nicholas’s expression to stiffen.
His younger sister, who had been ill since childhood.
However, there was no cure for her chronic illness, and she needed treatment and medicine until the end of her life.
So the Wesker family began selling the family’s assets one by one.
Starting with small jewels, it eventually became their estates, and Wesker began depleting the family’s wealth.
Wesker family, which was not particularly wealthy to begin with, quickly found themselves on the path of a fallen noble.
When it came time to sell even their titles, he reached out to the imperial family.
The Empress promised to provide the medicine needed for his sister’s chronic illness and committed to continuous treatment in exchange for Nicholas working for the imperial family.
Nicholas gladly accepted the proposal, or rather, he considered it an honour.
Sacrificing his life for the Empire and the imperial family had long been his cherished wish as a knight.
He discreetly joined the Red Bracelet (Rosarphi), and it was not a difficult task.
With the Empress’s power, he was surprisingly appointed as the vice commander of the military police division.
While he was indeed skilled, it wasn’t a position that one could easily attain.
When Killian and he were appointed to the military police division together, there was much talk about this unconventional appointment.
At times, he felt a sense of guilt and burden, particularly when it came to sudden and anxious missions.
“Hopefully, you will take a closer look at Killian, Nicholas,” the Empress had requested.
She wanted to know everything about Killian, especially if he exhibited any strange or suspicious behaviour.
Initially, he thought the Empress was being overly protective of Killian, treating him like a child.
However, as time passed, he realized that the Empress’s interest in Killian was not driven by affection but by something else.
Yet he couldn’t refuse the Empress’s request.
It wasn’t a sin; it was an order from the Imperial Family. It was an inevitable choice to ensure his sister’s well-being.
And so he became a loyal servant of the Empress and a watchful guardian over Killian.
Killian, as he observed, had nothing suspicious about him; instead, he proved to be a faithful commander of the military police division. Nicholas soon found satisfaction in his assigned duties.
However, as time passed, he gradually found himself taking on more responsibilities beyond monitoring Killian.
“Nicholas’s skills are exceptional. We can entrust him with these tasks,” the Empress remarked.
And that task was none other than murder.
“Empress, this task… it involves…”
“Your sister’s name was Melissa, wasn’t it? She is a kind and adorable child.”
Besides, isn’t it the imperial family that ordered this? Failure to obey orders is tantamount to treason.
‘I guess the imperial family also wants to entrust this important task to him.’
Moreover, this task was assigned by the Imperial Family.
After all, murder occurs frequently on the battlefield.
In the midst of a peaceful regime, making a battlefield out of nowhere would not raise suspicions.
Nicholas wore a red bracelet like that. And that bracelet became the shackles that bound him.
“I really hope your sister is healthy.” “I genuinely wish for your sister’s good health,” Beatrice said as she retrieved a single flower from her embrace and placed it beside the lantern.
“I also hope that Liam’s death will not have been in vain.”
Beatrice’s words pierced Nicholas’s heart. He felt guilty for failing to protect Liam.
“Your Majesty, I… It seems I am not fit for the role of vice commander of the military police division.”
“Oh, I’m aware of that.” (T/L: The audacity of her, but I can’t hate her. I have a weak heart for smart women. But still, I’ll kill her.)
Beatrice smiled mischievously and nodded.
“I’ll arrange things when the time comes, so don’t resist and wait patiently.”
“Your Majesty…! Cough!”
Nicholas, who had been about to grab her, coughed and spat out blood.
He no longer had any attachment to the position of vice commander of the military police division.
However, the Empress’s words hinted at something more.
Like a hunting dog sensing it was on the verge of being abandoned, he trembled with fear.
“It would be best for you to focus on your recovery, Nicholas.”
Beatrice gently comforted him as he struggled with pain.
“Your Majesty! There is one more thing…!”
Desperately, Nicholas managed to continue speaking, causing Beatrice to halt her steps.
Beatrice, who had turned away, reluctantly stopped and looked back at him, expecting to hear some futile words from his trembling lips.
“The Black Moon was having a conversation with someone.”
“I mentioned that earlier.”
However, didn’t Nicholas find out who that conversation partner was?
“But the conversation… was very peculiar.”
Nicholas raised his head and locked eyes with the Empress.
“…It was about the Imperial family’s illegitimate child.”
Beatrice’s expression wavered upon hearing Nicholas’s words.
“The Imperial family’s illegitimate child…?”
“I heard about what the Imperial family’s illegitimate child looks like.”
Nicholas presented a weapon he held in his hand to Beatrice.
And that weapon was lethal to the Empress. (T/L: No way!!.)
* * *
“The missing Imperial family’s illegitimate child?”
Sophia asked with her mouth agape, her voice barely audible.
Killian nodded his head once again. Sophia’s face turned pale.
‘Now, hold on a moment. In the original story, there has never been any mention of this!”‘
It was an unexpected turn of events.
“The former Grand Duke secretly sent that illegitimate child somewhere through adoption, and so…”
As Sophia mumbled what she had understood, she covered her mouth with both hands.
Although it was a small voice that no one would likely overhear, just uttering the words felt like a huge risk.
“So, was Empress Beatrice planning to get rid of that illegitimate child?”
“Well, most likely she still is.”
Killian’s gaze grew even darker.
Sophia finally started to piece together several confusing elements that hadn’t made sense before.
Killian had been close to Marquis Fideut.
People had said that they had grown distant due to an argument before the Marquis’s death, but it was merely a charade to avoid the scrutiny of the Imperial family.
It was the same with Percel.
Sophia had thought that Killian and Percel had only a distant connection through their family ties with the Grand Duke, but in reality, the two had maintained a close relationship recently.
‘Killian wasn’t the one who killed the two.’
Upon learning this fact, Sophia felt her heart melt.
Killian wasn’t a crazed murderer.
“So, have you found any traces of that illegitimate child?”
Sophia asked.
For a long time, he had been searching for that child while unravelling the secret of his parents’ deaths.
“I… I think I have.”
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TRANSLATOR:
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