The Tyrant Wants To Live Honestly

Raymond couldn’t sleep.

 

One day, two days, three days, Dorothea’s whereabouts were still unknown.

 

The atmosphere in the imperial palace became even colder, and some people even speculated that Dorothea might already be dead.

 

“Dorothy?”

 

Raymond asked with red eyes.

 

The nanny shook her head.

 

Even his nanny, who had always comforted him and told him that it would be okay and not to worry, was no longer able to say words of comfort.

 

The tears that he thought were dry had formed again, glistening in the corners of his eyes.

 

Raymond hurriedly buried his wet eyes in his lap.

 

“You need to eat.”

 

“Has Dorothy eaten?”

 

“Your Highness…”

 

The nanny was worried about Raymond, who didn’t eat until the food cooled down.

 

When Dorothea went missing, he stayed in bed without eating properly.

 

But how could he eat it?

 

How could he eat when Dorothea was probably starving?

 

“In times like these, you need to take better care of yourself.”

 

The nanny fidgeted and tried to soothe him, but it was no use.

 

“His Majesty the Emperor is also very worried. His Majesty becomes more worried if you act like this.” said the nanny.

 

Carnan had also stayed up all night for several days, concentrating on finding Dorothea.

 

Kidnapping a princess and demanding just that much money, it was clear that there was some kind of trap behind it.

 

It’s political. Or perhaps a threat from a foreign power.

 

For several days, Carnan secretly investigated the nanny, investigated suspicious nobles, and at the same time assigned the knights to search for Dorothea.

 

However, the suspects who could kidnap Dorothea could not be narrowed down.

 

Meanwhile, the promised week has come to an end.

 

Carnan held a meeting to fulfill the kidnapper’s demands.

 

Stubborn nobles argued that the imperial family should not accept the criminal’s demands.

 

However, Carnan argued that the princess’s safety came first.

 

“The princess will come back. His Majesty is working hard in many ways.”

 

“if something happened to Dorothea, I…” 

 

A scary thought came to mind, and Raymond shook his head again.

 

* * * 

 

“Your Highness! They found the princess!”

 

“Really?! Where? How? Did she get hurt?”

 

Early morning. Raymond, who had been having trouble sleeping, suddenly woke up to the good news.

 

“She’s safe and she’s expected to arrive at the palace tomorrow.”

 

A knight named Stefan Greenwall found Dorothea in the desert.

 

It’s a desert. Even if it’s a little late. 

Or, if the paths had diverged just a little, Dorothea might have gotten stuck in the sand and never been found.

 

Raymond sat down again, overcome with relief.

 

Before he knew it, tears were falling.

 

* * * 

 

Raymond stood at the entrance to the imperial palace waiting for Dorothea to return.

 

Carnan didn’t stop him either.

 

Carnan was also standing at the entrance to the imperial palace.

 

Finally, the door opened and Stefan Greenwall, the knights, and the carriage came in.

 

As soon as the carriage stopped, Carnan opened the door and looked inside the carriage.

 

Inside the carriage, Dorothea was lying on a bed that seemed to have been hastily prepared.

 

“your majesty!”

 

Everyone bowed their heads in front of Carnan, and Carnan lifted the unconscious Dorothea into his arms.

 

Raymond saw Dorothea in Carnan’s arms.

 

His younger sister, held in his father’s arms, looked smaller than ever.

 

“I’ll hear more details after this.”

 

Stefan bowed his head in silence at Karnan’s words. Carnan took Dorothea with him and headed to the Converta Palace.

 

Raymond followed him.

 

The Converta Palace people who had been preparing in advance greeted them.

 

Varnan laid Dorothea on the bed.

 

While the doctor was examining Dorothea, there was only cold silence in the room.

 

Even though Dorothea has returned, Raymond was in pain with a throbbing heart.

 

Everyone who saw Dorothea’s condition was like that.

 

Dorothea was alive, but Raymond was in a state where he couldn’t dare be happy about that.

 

Raymond bit his lip to keep from sobbing pathetically.

 

“Her nutritional status is very poor. Additionally, she has respiratory problems due to the desert sand. She has a high fever due to inflammation.…”

 

Carnan looked quietly at the doctor who continued speaking.

 

“Fortunately, it doesn’t seem like there are any other major problems.”

 

Carnan breathed a sigh of relief.

 

“Take care of her.”

 

“I will do everything I can.”

 

Raymond saw Carnan’s back quietly as he looked at Dorothea.

 

He couldn’t tell what expression Carnan was making.

 

“Your Majesty.”

 

At that time, someone called for Carnan, and Carnan left for a moment to talk to him.

 

Only then was Raymond able to carefully go to Dorothea’s side.

 

Dorothea was suffering from a high fever and was breathing irregularly.

 

Doctors and his assistants tried to reduce Dorothea’s fever by wiping her body with mint-scented towels.

 

“I will do it too.”

 

When Raymond stepped forward, the assistant looked at the doctor.

 

Knowing how much Raymond worried about Dorothea, the doctor put a towel in his hand.

 

Raymond took a towel and rolled up his sleeves to dry Dorothea’s arms.

 

As he rolled up her white sleeve, he saw that the arm was covered in bruises that looked like they had been roughly handled.

 

There were the handprints of a grown man, and there were also the marks of ties.

 

Everyone held their breath and closed their mouths.

 

Raymond wiped Dorothea’s thin arms with trembling hands.

 

Dorothea’s limp arms were as hot as if they were on fire.

 

He couldn’t imagine what had happened to Dorothea.

 

Raymond, who was carefully cleaning Dorothea’s body, looked at Dorothea’s face.

 

Dry lips and rough skin. A small wound on her cheek. She had become so thin that her facial bones stood out.

 

And, at the nape of her neck: there were also bruises left as if she had been strangled.

 

The moment Raymond saw the marks, he couldn’t hold back his tears and burst into tears.

 

“I’m sorry, Dorothy…” 

 

He squeezed Dorothea’s hand.

 

‘For being such a pathetic, stupid brother…for not being there for her when she needed me.’

 

* * * 

 

Carnan and Raymond stayed at Palace Converta until Dorothea woke up.

 

Carnan told Raymond to go back, but did not force him.

 

He was also guarding Dorothea’s side and the kidnapper who kidnapped Dorothea was quickly caught.

 

They said that one of the two criminals was already dead when they went to the knight’s headquarters.

 

Considering the height and location of the knife, it seemed like Dorothea had killed him herself.

 

Everyone was surprised when it became known that the nine-year-old princess had killed her kidnapper and escaped for her life.

 

However, Raymond’s heart aches at the thought of Dorothea, who had to endure that situation.

 

Carnan was very busy handling the incident while staying at Converta Palace.

 

“From now on, select and assign a guard knight for Dorothea.”

 

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

 

“And what happened to the one who was caught?”

 

“I’ve tried torturing him, but I can’t find any connection.” The knight answered.

 

Carnan thought that he might have been Hark’s spy, or that he might have been instigated by a nobleman.

 

But no matter how much they looked, they only got insignificant results.

 

“After investigation, they were kidnappers whose names were unknown.”

 

“You mean she was kidnapped by those guys?”

 

Carnan bit his lips.

 

Then the knight and his aide Robert lowered their voices.

 

“How do we handle it?”

 

“There should be a public execution.”

 

“But Your Majesty, this incident is clear and there is no harm in the situation. it would be better for us to keep it quiet.… ” 

 

There are already all kinds of rumors going around about the kidnapping of the princess.

 

Someone’s treason, a sign of war…

Additionally, rumors were secretly circulating that Dorothea had been sexually assaulted.

 

It is not good for the imperial family or for Ubera’s stability to grow the case further.

 

Carnan rubbing his face, feeling frustrated.

 

“Everything is annoying.”

 

He wants to see the end as soon as possible, but there are too many things to consider.

 

But Carnan could not blame anyone.

 

All of this is because of the imperial family’s carelessness in not attaching a proper guard to Dorothea.

 

It was all his sin.

 

“Find and deal with the person who leaked this information. Also, announce to the outside world that the princess was kidnapped is a rumor, and severely punish anyone who spreads such a rumor again.”

 

Carnan sighed as he finished speaking.

 

He didn’t like the idea of covering this up like that.

 

“Then what should we do with the one who gets caught?”

 

“I’ll take care of it.”

 

“Your majesty wants to take care of it alone?”

 

“Even if it’s not a public execution, shouldn’t there be an end to it?”

 

Executing the man who kidnapped the princess by borrowing other people’s hands would not be possible.

 

Carnan walked with his sword in hand.

 

* * *