Chapter 101 Funerals
On the day of Caspian’s funeral, it rained all day.
Given his status as a criminal at the time of his death, the funeral was conducted by the head of the family rather than the head of state. Only about 20 people attended, mostly imperial family members and high-ranking nobles.
“Huhuhu… Caspian… No way. If you go away in vain like this…”
As the coffin was being lowered into the deep pit, Sandra clutched it tightly and sobbed.
The handmaidens who stood by her side struggled to pull her away from the coffin. Eventually, the coffin was removed from Sandra’s arms and placed in a pit, with earth sprinkled over it.
‘Such tears were never seen at the funerals of Veronia the Princess.’
The death of a biological son is different, thought Killion, who was forced to sit in the back row because of his status as a Chancellor.
Apart from Sandra’s sobs, the funeral was quiet throughout. There were no eulogies from Emperor Jonathan or the High Priestess.
The funeral was nearing its conclusion. Sandra seemed to have calmed down a bit, but then she went on a rampage again. She lunged at Jonathan and Tate, who were standing side by side.
“It’s all because of you, you ungrateful bastards! I cared so much for you, I raised you, and your indifference is what killed Caspian!”
Jonathan and Tate’s faces contorted in disbelief at Sandra’s outrageous behaviour, even though the funeral had been a small affair, with the High Septon, the royal family, and high nobility in attendance.
Jonathan gestured to the guards at his side and ordered.
“Escort the Empress safely to her quarters.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Two of the guards, bowing their heads in reverence, immediately tried to grab Sandra by the arms. But she had no intention of letting them. Dodging away from the guards, Sandra lunged at Killion, this time in front of her.
“Kilion Drea!”
A deafening scream echoed through the cemetery.
Sandra swung her fists and lunged at Killion, but her arms were quickly grabbed by the guards.
But she was not deterred by the restraint. Sandra raised her voice even higher, shouting harsh words in Killion’s face.
“Such a trivial incident… could have been swept under the rug! Why are you so eager to expose the prince’s little transgression? Why, it was you, Chancellor of Drea, and no one else, who killed my son!”
Sandra shouted and shouted at Killion through the pouring rain, her eyes red and bloodshot as she glared at him.
“This time I’ll make you pay for your sins, and you’ll see, you’ve brought tears of blood to my eyes, so this will be your turn!”
Sandra, who had been using all her strength, finally lost control and fainted. Killion opened his mouth, his face expressionless.
“Take the Empress back to the palace at once, and fetch the imperial doctor.”
“Yes, Your Excellency.”
The guards and maids scurried about at Killion’s command. Thus ended Caspian’s funeral, which had begun with the evil of Sandra and ended with the evil of Caspian.
***
“Who would have wanted to kill Caspian, even though he was already deported?”
She couldn’t figure it out. She couldn’t think of anyone who would benefit from Caspian’s death.
The victims of the last incident seemed quite content with the 20-year banishment that Caspian and his group had received, so it seemed unlikely that they would have had blood on their clean hands.
“Unless it’s a grudge killing… cleansing? No, no, no.”
Muttering to herself, Veronia shook her head. It was hard to imagine Caspian loving someone deeply, or being loved by someone.
Then, suddenly, a chill ran through her heart.
‘He should have died according to the original story, but because of me, he was allowed to live because of the twists and turns of the original story, and both the Emperor and Caspian died due to unexpected events.’
Veronia’s brow narrowed as she concentrated on her thoughts. Her palms began to sweat with nervousness.
‘So, in the end… people who should have died die?’
She didn’t want that. It shouldn’t be that way. Never. Veronia squeezed her eyes shut tightly and shook her head vigorously.
‘Cut the crap, Veronia, and get a grip! The original story has already been spoilt, and this is a completely different story!’
She scolded herself, clenching her canine molars.
‘It’s a different story… I have Jediel, who wasn’t in the original, and I have divine powers. And I married Killion…’
The world Veronia now inhabited was not the original Evangelina of the Dawn; it was a completely different world, with all the characters and even the plot reversed.
‘So worrying about it is a waste of emotion and energy.’
Veronia stared at her reflection in the glass and took a slow breath in and out, and soon her chest settled and she felt better.
But her ears were alert to the sound of more rain pounding against the window. An uneasy feeling of foreboding still hovered near the nape of her neck.
***
It’s been two days since Caspian’s funeral. Sandra had been lying in bed all day, with no food or drink.
There was a knock at the door and it opened. Thinking the maid must have brought her dinner, Sandra said in a weak voice
“The meal is ready. Take it back.”
“I hear you haven’t had a meal today, so the least you can do is eat a little, mother.”
It was not the maid, but Emperor Jonathan himself, coming toward her with a tray of food. Sandra stared at him through narrowed eyes, her mouth tightly shut. There was considerable hostility in her eyes.
Placing the tray on the table, Jonathan walked to her bedside and sat down in a chair.
“I know your grief, mother,” he said, “but you need to eat, or you’ll do yourself a great disservice.”
“So what is it you want to say?”
Sandra opened her mouth, unable to speak, unwilling to look at his face, unwilling to hear his voice, unwilling to do anything but say what she had to and disappear.
“None of the soldiers who escorted the deportation procession survived, so it’s hard to know exactly what happened, but after examining the scene, they say it’s hard to attribute the attack to bandits. It’s more likely to be the work of trained mercenaries.”
“…”
Sandra looked away from Jonathan, her mouth tightly shut, her fists balled into tight fists.
Sandra found that odd, too. The thirty mercenaries she’d hired had certainly succeeded in storming the banishment procession.
But they had failed to secure the all-important Caspian recruits. She recalled a conversation she’d had with the leader of the mercenaries the previous night.
‘I trusted you with my son, and this is the way you do things, you incompetent bastards!’
Sandra slapped the snooty mercenary across the cheek.
‘We’re just as guilty as you are! We saw one of them take the prince away, but after that he went missing, and when we searched the neighbourhood, he was already dead.’
He rubbed his reddened cheeks, casually rattling off an excuse that didn’t sound like an excuse at all.
‘There must have been a leak. There must be eavesdropping ears in the palace, because there would never be a leak from our side, Your Majesty. You don’t seem to be keeping your mouth shut, Your Majesty.’
Sandra glared at the mercenary with bloodshot eyes. She wanted to rip his heart out of his chest and chew it to pieces for blaming her for this mess, but she had to hold back. Until she caught the real culprit.
Swallowing hard, Sandra paid the rugged-looking mercenary the promised money. When the mercenary saw the money, his eyes widened in surprise, and he immediately opened his mouth to speak.
‘You could have given me half.’
‘This is the price for keeping your mouth shut for the rest of your life. And if you use that money to make fun of me, you’d better watch your mouth, because I’ll behead you, your group, and their families.’
‘Of course, Your Majesty.’
As soon as the mercenary with the money was gone, Sandra slumped in her seat.
“What are you thinking?”
Jonathan’s voice snapped Sandra out of her reverie, a voice she didn’t want to hear.
“They’re suspecting a hate crime. It’s speculation, of course.”
“…”
“We’ll be increasing the number of investigators so we can get to the bottom of this.”
Jonathan spoke slowly, watching Sandra’s eyes. Sandra turned to face Jonathan with an expressionless face, devoid of any emotion or thought, and opened her mouth, and the words that came out were unexpected.
“A hate crime, I suppose.”
“Oh my god…”
