The Tyrant Wants To Live Honestly

“Are you okay, Master?”

 

After Jonathan left, the servants flocked to watch him.

 

As if sorry for the scar on his handsome face, they tried to take care of Ethan’s wound.

 

“It’s okay, go out.”

 

“But, Master—”

 

“Go away.”

 

Only after Ethan’s voice became ice-cold did the servants leave the room.

 

Ethan saw the room messed up Because of Jonathan.

 

A smirk leaked out between the blood-soaked lips.

 

A mirror placed on one side of the wall reflected his messy face.

 

He saw a man with a bruised bluish color due to the blood vessels under his eyes bursting out.

 

Ethan stared at his shabby self in the mirror.

 

No amount of violin or piano playing would lighten his expression in the mirror.

 

However, he really missed Dorothea.

 

* * *

 

“Master Ethan! It’s been so long!”

 

It had been over a week since Ethan returned to the palace to meet Dorothea.

 

Clara and Joy greeted him as if they had waited.

 

“I told you to come as soon as possible.!”

 

Joy is worried about Dorothea, so she resents Ethan for coming so late.

 

Ethan didn’t dare say he couldn’t meet Dorothea with a bruise on his face.

 

“I was late because I prepared a present.”

 

Ethan used the gift excuse.

 

No, it wasn’t entirely an excuse. It is true that the gift took some time to prepare.

 

“Why did you prepare it so long? Why didn’t you just send it!”

 

“That’s because I didn’t make it for you, this Is the gift for the princess. So, is the Princess inside?”

 

“Yeah, come on in. Because the Princess doesn’t know that young master is coming.”

 

Joy, who had always been wary of Ethan, has now even pushed him on the back.

 

At that, Ethan smiled and headed to the study where Dorothea was.

 

* * *

 

“This is the report on the border of Hark the Princess has specifically requested.”

 

“Thank you, Theon.”

 

Dorothea received a report from Theon.

 

“As expected, the soldiers have been augmented at the Hark border.”

 

Dorothea glanced through the Hark-related reports.

 

Before the return, Nareus was concentrating on increasing his military power.

 

‘But there’s no reason to start a war…’

 

Dorothea scoffed at the thought.

 

‘When have we ever fought a war for a reason? We did it for greed.’

 

They could make up any excuse and make it fit.

 

“Hark bought a small boat from Riversouth.”

 

“Yes, it is a considerable amount, but since it is a fishing boat, there is no special obligation to report to the Imperial Family.”

 

“But it would be enough to convert it into a military ship and use it.”

 

Dorothea murmured.

 

Although it was marked as a ‘fishing boat,’ only Dmitry and Nareus would know what type of ship it was.

 

Any boat carrying a net rather than a weapon is marked as a ‘fishing boat’.

 

Converting a fishing ship into a military ship is simple as long as it fits the fishing boat’s shape.

 

Dorothea remembered how Hark invaded Ubera before returning.

 

“I wonder if Marquis Dmitry would have delivered the warships…?”

 

‘Still, Dmitry is an imperial nobleman. It’s unlikely he would deliver warships to Hark….’

 

“There is nothing that cannot be done with money.”

 

‘Besides, if you have political connections, you are willing to help.’

 

Nareus would have said that it was ‘to check other countries than Ubera,’ so it would be enough of an excuse for Dmitry to close his eyes. Besides, it’s not even loaded with cannons.

 

“However, the size of the delivered ship is small for naval battles. It would be useful in rivers and shallow waters. Still, dams block the river connecting the Empire and Hark to prevent unauthorized access.”

 

“That’s right.”

 

Dorothea nodded her head.

 

But that’s why it’s dangerous.

 

‘The ship will come over the mountains, not the water.’

 

Dorothea remembered the fight with Hark before returning.

 

They will attack key points along the river, attracting attention from the front, and sneak over the mountains behind them.

 

The spirit of water makes a small waterway in the mountain to pass the boat.

 

Therefore, Nareus did not need a large ship. A large ship is too big to go over a mountain, and it is difficult to float in a river.

 

Thus, they entered the river of the Empire without blood and came up to the heart of the Empire.

 

An attack that no one could block because it was a strategy that no one could have imagined.

 

Apparently, Carnan was in a critical period, so Ubera was completely confused.

 

The nobles, who treated Hark lightly and tried to solve it only with local troops, were broken like that.

 

Under the command of Nareus, who knows how to deal with the water spirits, Hark’s naval forces quickly ascended to the center of the capital as if they had wings.

 

Dorothea, who was going down beforehand, blocked it.

 

When everyone else argued that it was a small battle that could be settled below and that there was no need to go down, Dorothea dragged her army down, vowing to crush Hark.

 

When Dorothea heard that the border had been breached, she headed straight for the river.

 

And when Hark’s naval forces rushed up the river with equal momentum, Dorothea broke the dam that had been blocked in advance.

 

No matter how much Nareus had a water spirit, he couldn’t stop the huge current from the broken dam, and the small ships were swept away.

 

‘He is preparing a strategy like that again.’

 

The situation of the Empire is better than before the return, but Nareus’ desires don’t seem to have changed.

 

Moreover, if his ears hear of the unstable situation of Carnan and Raymond, Nareus may attack with the aim of supremacy.

 

‘But if I tell them about that, everyone will not believe it because it’s a story that went too far ahead.’ 

 

They’ll laugh at her for making a big deal from Hark’s purchase of a few fishing boats. Still, she knows the future, so she’ll be able to stop it.

 

‘The dam broke, and several villages were swept away.’

 

Ubera’s sacrifice was as significant as the enemy’s sacrifice.

 

In the name of protecting the Empire, the people living downstream of the river were sacrificed.

 

At that time, Dorothea mercilessly blew up the dam because Ubera’s survival was more important than their lives.

 

One sin added to the name of a tyrant.

 

But this time, she can’t make the sacrifices happen again.

 

“Does the Emperor know about this?”

 

“The same will go up to His Majesty by the middle of this week. Oh, and if you look at the noteworthy part here…”

 

Then, Theon’s finger, who was going to point out a part of the report, passed Dorothea’s finger, which was about to flip to the next page.

 

“Ah…! I’m sorry, Princess.”

 

When Theon touched her finger, he quickly removed his hand and stepped back.

 

The wind caused the brooch on the desk to fall to the floor.

 

“I’m really sorry, Princess.”

 

Theon hurriedly picked up the dropped brooch.

 

At that moment, he felt a strange feeling. Something that had been weighing him down became lighter…

 

‘Spirit of Light…?’

 

“Theon.”

 

At Dorothea’s call, Theon woke up and returned the brooch to her.

 

She looked at Theon for a moment, then put the brooch back on her chest.

 

Theon looked at her brooch, feeling the lingering aftertaste in his hand.

 

“Come to think of it, you always wear that brooch.”

 

“Yeah, it’s a gift from Ethan.”

 

A smile crept across her lips as she said Ethan’s name.

 

“Ethan Bronte?”

 

Dorothea nodded her head.

 

“I think I’ve seen that brooch for quite some time…”

 

“Well, a lot of time has already passed. I got it as a gift around the time I debuted.”

 

Dorothea smiled and looked back at the fast passing of time.

 

Years have already passed, and now the spirit stone has become accustomed to being a part of her body.

 

‘The Princess’ Debut…?’

 

‘Didn’t Princess Dorothea awaken the spirits for the first time at that time?’

 

“By the way, Theon, is your purification okay?”

 

At that moment, Dorothea remembered the spirit and asked Theon.

 

‘I didn’t realize it before, but now I know what it’s like when he suppresses his power for a long time.’

 

When he’s suppressing his spirit power, he gives off a subdued aura.

 

And every action became cautious and sensitive.

 

For example, he just ran a finger with her and hastily backed away.

 

The fear of hurting others because of the dark spirits is something he has acquired.

 

“I will visit the Crown Prince tomorrow.”

 

It seems that Dorothea’s guess was not wrong.

 

Theon hadn’t been able to ask Raymond to purify him for a week.

 

Instead of Raymond, he assisted Dorothea, so he had less time to be with Raymond and it was also because it became difficult to ask Raymond to purify him after the accident.

 

“Theon, it’s okay if you ask me.”

 

“You have to take care of your health, too.”

 

Purification had to use a lot of the spirit’s power, so Raymond was quite tired after purification.

 

In Theon’s eyes, Dorothea has been overworked lately.

 

Asking her to purify him like that…

 

“Haha, I’m healthy, Theon. I’m not a convalescent princess anymore. Besides, I’m better with spirits than the Crown Prince.”

 

Dorothea laughed.

 

‘I didn’t mean it that way…’

 

“Are you still uncomfortable with me?”

 

“No, it is not.”

 

Theon hurriedly shook his head.

 

“Then I will help you.”

 

Dorothea led him to the sofa.

 

Dorothea wanted to purify Theon someday.

 

The reason she dared to take on the role of the crown prince was in the sense of atonement for the past.

 

She wants to pay back even a little bit of her regret for the life she had killed.

 

Purifying him was the most meaningful thing she could do with the Spirit of Light.

 

“I’ve already learned how to purify, but I’m just trying to do it now.”

 

Dorothea smiled awkwardly, sat face to face with Theon, and placed her hand on his.

 

Then she felt Theon’s fingertips tremble.

 

“I might be a little clumsy, so tell me if it makes you uncomfortable.”

 

* * *