“I know that Kaela. She’s like a pig when it comes to sweets. Just mix anything sweet, and she’s done for.”
Beatrice recalled the dinner at Lusenford with utter contempt.
Although she was the one who was humiliated, and Peon was the one who caused that humiliation, her twisted anger always flew toward Kaela, the weakest person. The Marchioness of Schroz swallowed hard with wide eyes.
“Will she completely disappear?”
“Of course she will. She’ll walk out perfectly fine on her own feet, and then poof, she’ll vanish. I don’t know where she’ll go, but the effects of the second drug will occur after the first one wears off, so that’s none of our business. Try it on the Grand Duchess first. Then let me know if you want to use it again.”
Beatrice said only that much and stood up.
“A few drops will do. Well then, I’ll be going.”
She had no intention of staying where she wasn’t welcome, and she couldn’t stand looking at the Marchioness of Schroz’s plump cheeks flushed red at the thought of becoming Empress.
Beatrice left, practically brushing off her hands. If Kaela hadn’t treated her so coldly and been so mean, she wouldn’t have gone this far.
‘I didn’t add the second drug yet.’
Of course, the first drug was received from the Light Dragon and shown to the Emperor under the pretext of being “medicine to treat the Empress.” The Emperor had ordered it to be tested before giving it to the Empress, so they were going to try it on Kaela first, but she had to go and set fire to that plan.
‘I might end up dead before the evil dragon if I’m not careful.’
Beatrice had promised that merchant working under the Light Dragon’s orders that she would help smuggle out the Empress.
That drug, according to Beatrice’s guess, probably had something to do with the domain of the evil dragon Gusalante beyond the cold borders of Lusenford.
Since it’s a drug used to smuggle out the Empress, Kaela will surely disappear. To where? To the evil dragon’s domain!
‘And there she’ll cough up blood and die from the second poison!’
This rational deduction by Beatrice always made her happy whenever she recalled it.
‘I’ll just tell that merchant that I was only testing it. Honestly, even he can’t say anything if I point out who would feed someone suspicious medicine right away. And it’ll be fine if I say I’ll have the Empress ready right away, won’t it?’
Of course, she’d have to remove the poison then. Remembering Kaela’s innocent face, she gritted her teeth. Everyone should know that death awaits at the end of crossing Beatrice.
She was just using the Marchioness of Schroz for now since they shared the goal of ‘removing the Empress.’ Once the Empress disappears, the responsibility would naturally fall on the Marchioness of Schroz alone.
‘And then I shall become Empress.’
Since the Emperor didn’t feel right somehow, it wouldn’t be bad to remove Princess Keruzhan and take the Crown Princess position either.
Although the Crown Prince was somewhat pathetic, a young man was much better than an old one, and she could manipulate him as she pleased. She walked with her chin held high, filled with anger.
After passing on the poison, the palace that hadn’t even been visible when she entered now looked beautiful and appealing. It would be perfect if Beatrice Ravalley became its owner.
****
Gusalante, nicknamed the evil dragon, had always been watching, he said.
He, who sometimes had far-reaching vision even without magical tools, watched with tears of blood as his only love was imprisoned, and when his son came close and pointed a sword at him, he was just grateful to be able to see him up close.
Dragons must see many things. They glimpse the infinite future.
The father didn’t try to teach his son many things once they could communicate. He just answered questions asked and smiled gently.
So I could wait. Though it was painful, someday as much as it was painful.
The dragon smiled. That smile contained a cruelty that humans would find chilling.
The happy and joyful days are long too.
Indeed, that was true. Peon had been seeing quite enough lately of scenes he thought he’d never see in his lifetime.
“I know you’ve worried a lot.”
The Emperor was finally out of his bedroom for once. Though whether he was in or out of his bedroom made no difference in terms of his ravings.
“In this vast country, only you and I truly worry about the Empress. Those damned people. None of them are worth anything.”
“Everyone is worried.”
“Do people who are worried not even ask about the Empress’s well-being? Look at those wretches who now think it’s normal that Evelyn is unconscious, even though lengthy illness wears out even the strongest!”
Here we go again. The Emperor, who should have been the first to lose interest if the Empress remained unconscious for long, was throwing a fit.
If he was going to be this angry, shouldn’t he have treated her better when she was conscious? Of course, Peon knew well that the Emperor wasn’t that kind of person, and that this wasn’t about loving the Empress or being anxious about her.
So he just watched how far an ugly man’s inferior complex and desires could twist and run to extremes.
Dragons see many things. Indeed they do. Peon watched the man who had abused him in his youth, using age and power to frighten him, now crawling on the ground.
“This won’t do, Hyperion. This simply won’t do.”
Peon didn’t bother to ask. He just let him ramble. Most of it was nonsense not worth responding to, and moreover, his sharp senses were busy detecting others besides the Emperor barking before him.
“This cannot continue.”
The increasingly gaunt Emperor shook his head.
“We cannot just stay anxious and let the Empress be taken away. Was there anything unusual in Lusenford?”
“It was as usual. Shall we return to Lusenford?”
The Emperor didn’t answer right away. While the people serving the Emperor at Soleil Palace worried that he might be going mad, Peon knew well that he hadn’t completely lost his mind.
The Emperor was still calculating.
He was meticulously calculating whether it would be better to keep Peon, his last means of controlling the evil dragon, by his side as a shield while not knowing when the Empress might disappear, or to send him away.
That was exactly why he had kept Peon in Craine for so long under the pretext of regency.
But simply holding onto him and sitting heavily in hesitation only made his anxiety grow.
“…Just don’t return.”
Peon found it too bothersome to even ask what that meant, so he just listened.
“It was bound to happen someday. It’s finally come to this. Now that we’ve arranged the marriage with Keruzhan, the south will be quiet for a while.”
Well, that was the Emperor’s wish. Just looking at how Prince Elkanan wasn’t returning but staying in Craine showed that Keruzhan felt this marriage arrangement was precarious.
“The northern barbarians will also be quiet for a while since you’ve dealt with them.”
That leaves just one main enemy of the empire.
“When there’s a problem, you must cut off its source. No, shouldn’t we pull out the roots, Hyperion?”
To solve a problem, one must first recognize it properly.
“All these problems stem from the evil dragon. The issue was fearing it as an evil dragon and not confronting it properly.”
Hmm. Seeing how he couldn’t even recognize it properly, this was hopeless. Well, he hadn’t expected much anyway. It was just surprising how that bloated ego always reached creatively selfish conclusions.
“Hyperion. Haven’t I always told you? That to properly protect your mother, you must stop the evil dragon.”
“Yes. You have.”
So that’s what it was all about. The Emperor had always wanted to break the evil dragon. He wanted to break the evil dragon who had captured the Empress’s heart. He wanted to break that blood that had produced a son better than himself.
Though it was obvious why a mere human came to envy a dragon, it was quite peculiar that he would think of breaking it when normally one wouldn’t even dare to consider it.
The Emperor was just that arrogant. In terms of arrogance, he would proudly rank first among all Cranian Emperors.
“…Remember what I told you before? About there being another dragon?”
“Yes.”
“We must find a way to cut off the evil dragon’s head.”
No, he would rank first in madness too.
“He’ll eventually threaten this empire. As soon as you can talk with that other dragon, you take the vanguard. I’ll provide all the soldiers and everything else you need. The new dragon will give us the answer. It must…”
“Are you saying you want to wage war against a dragon?”
The first Emperor is revered because he chose the empire’s safety by minimizing friction with dragons. Yet he wants to break that? The current Emperor, who isn’t even as great as the first Emperor?
“There is no chance of victory.”
“No. No. You can do it.”
The Emperor cried out almost convulsively at Peon’s plain answer.
“You! You can defeat him!”
“While I appreciate your faith in me, Your Majesty, look. I’ve barely managed to protect Lusenford. I haven’t been able to go beyond that, nor have I lived up to your expectations. If I could have defeated the evil dragon, I would have done so long ago.”
“No. That’s because I haven’t supported you enough. This time I will provide maximum support, so go to battle. We cannot just sit here doing nothing! How long must we remain anxious like this!”
The Emperor was tired of badgering sorcerers, magicians, and doctors while not knowing when the Empress might disappear, and waiting for word from the new dragon through Beatrice.
Nothing was more horrible than helplessly waiting while being unable to do anything.
“Your Majesty. Please calm yourself. If you insist on confronting the evil dragon, you must cut off his breath surely and completely in one go. Otherwise, this country will suffer too much damage. Isn’t that why you’ve been holding back, knowing this?”
Though not smooth, his knightly calm and heavy voice soothed the Emperor.
“That’s right. But there’s no way, no way…!”
“Since we’ve waited this long, please wait just a bit more. Even war requires much preparation, doesn’t it? First, start preparations while discussing with this new dragon. There might be new methods that humans know nothing about.”
“Yes, but that Bea…!”
Beatrice is so slow! The Emperor who was about to say something quickly shut his mouth.
“Yes?”
“No, nothing. You’re right. I’m just so anxious now that I can’t stand not doing anything.”
“I understand.”
Indeed he did understand. He even empathized. No one despised helplessness more than Peon. He knew better than anyone how horrible it was. Though it was laughable that the person who had tied his hands and feet and made him helpless through psychological torture was acting this way.
“But Your Majesty, aren’t you the ruler of the Crania Empire? I know you care for the empire. You said yourself that a dragon must be caught with a dragon.”
“I did.”
“I think that’s the most correct method. So, win this difficult war with your greatest strength – your patience, Your Majesty.”
The Emperor made a groaning sound.
“…I should call General Luxsburg and ask his opinion.”
“Yes. That would be good. Make contact with the new dragon quickly.”
The new dragon spoke quite loyally.
“I will stand by in Craine.”
The barely calmed Emperor reached out and patted Peon’s shoulder.
“I, I only trust you, Hyperion. I have no one else to trust.”
“What are you saying? Everyone is Your Majesty’s loyal subject.”
“No. They’re all fools. Talking with you at least makes things clearer. You really take after your mother. You take after Evelyn… Before you go, pay your respects to Evelyn. Wait, as I’ll call for you again soon.”
“Yes. Thank you, Your Majesty.”
Peon bowed his head, hiding his expression of extreme annoyance as he turned and left. Count Horhen, who had been waiting outside the corridor, pulled Peon into a corner with an anxious face and asked.
“Has he calmed down?”
“I’ve only bought time.”
“Still, it’s truly fortunate that Your Highness is here. It seemed he was going to talk about military matters.”
“Yes. He did speak of it.”
“That won’t do.”
“It won’t.”
The chamberlain and the ministers, including General Luxsburg, had begun to increasingly rely on Peon. It was natural since the Emperor relied on him. The weight of the Grand Duke of Lusenford was growing heavier. When this happens, opposition invariably follows.
****
“Your portions have increased a little. That’s very good.”
Darinka, who lately often joked about becoming a Craine native since she now knew the area from this townhouse to the city square by heart, smiled. It was an unexpected comment.
“You’ve worked hard.”
No, Kaela had been paying less attention to food lately. To be precise, she no longer had time to worry about how she would look at every meal, constantly measuring portions like before.
“When you fell into the river, it was terrifying, but you recovered well. I knew His Highness the Grand Duke would save you, of course.”
Darinka had firm faith that the Grand Duke would somehow manage if anything happened to Kaela.
“…You once told me something like that before. That even if I became severely disabled or crippled, His Highness would certainly save me.”
“Yes, Your Highness. I did. I had already seen His Highness trying desperately everywhere to save you. He truly didn’t hesitate in finding medicine to save you.”
Even to Darinka, that level of determination was almost frightening.
“Is that so.”
But at times like this, Darinka felt a bit uneasy. The Grand Duchess would calmly nod and say “I see.” Why was she suddenly confirming this?
“Please eat well and smile more, Your Highness. Coming to Craine, I found it’s truly a different world. Even the illustrations in the corner of newspapers were interesting. Maybe it’s because I’m from the countryside, but it’s nice when the weather is warm and there are many people making it lively.”
Darinka decided to remember the fact that the Grand Duchess had improved. At the same time, she could only hope that nothing would go wrong with the Grand Duchess again.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”
Darinka left after finishing the daily regular examination. Kaela looked down at her still unsightly body.
Weak, frail, with nothing pretty about it. She couldn’t understand why Peon kept kissing her, but it was definitely a body he struggled hard to save.
“Kaela, I’m here.”
If there was one part Peon considered important, it was his weakness.
“Have you been well? What were you doing?”
Lately, Kaela sometimes hated this man. Since Beatrice Ravalley made her very angry, she hated this man who only called that woman by her first name, Beatrice. She hated him enough to want to scratch him, like during their early marriage before the regression.
Negative emotions kept arising. Crying, anger, hatred. Even this was Peon’s fault, which was irritating. It would be comfortable to feel nothing, but he had ultimately made her like this. Changed her.
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