Chapter 79

It was certain that the inside of the clothes, invisible from the outside, would be bruised all over. She knew this well, having experienced it many times herself.

No matter which way she lay, the pain was so intense that she couldn't fall asleep, as if she had been beaten with a cane.

"By the Duke?"

At the question, Lysert pulled his hand away and lowered his sleeve.

He gave a smile that seemed to be drawn.

"It's a matter between my mother and me. You don't need to know."

Lysert sighed heavily and placed his hand on his cheek.

"I ended up showing my true colors in my excitement. This is probably why my mother always says I'm inferior to you in this aspect. But—"

He said with a pleased tone.

"Isn't it better than being bewitched by Taccar? Thanks to you, I was able to plot today. Thank you, thank you."

"And it failed."

Lysert said as he picked up the mirror from the floor.

"If it weren't for this, I would have won."

The mirror spun in his hand.

"If my mother had trusted me and given me the real one—"

Holding the mirror to his chest, Lysert smiled.

"Just wait and see, I'll become a fratricide one day too."

"......"

Lysert made a theatrical curtsey, holding the hem of her skirt.

"Then my mother will acknowledge me. That I am her greatest masterpiece, not you."

Fjord swallowed a bitter smile as he watched Lysert's retreating back.

Ah, right.

Now I know why I feel so bad.

'It's like seeing my old self.'

Seeing myself from when I thought Barat was everything and revered the Duke of Barat like a god, it made me feel very bad.

'I'll deal with the racial prejudice later, but first, it was an artifact I had never seen before.'

It would be good to investigate it.

Fjord thought this as he picked up the broken mirror pieces from the floor.

'Can I meet Lili tomorrow?'

Given the situation, it would be appropriate to say that it's fine not to meet tomorrow, or to ask for a convenient time later.

But he didn't want to.

He wanted to meet her.

He wanted to spend time alone with her.

A selfish desire surged up, but he couldn't control his heart. Just the thought of meeting her tomorrow made him so happy.

'But maybe I should change my plans a bit.'

Since he couldn't sleep peacefully anyway, he decided to make other plans.

* * *

Tan sighed deeply. Lat was also looking exhausted.

John Whale had a face as if he had eaten rotten bread.

He was dressed formally for the palace, but not as elaborately as a noble.

However, his hairstyle and appearance made him look elegant.

"Should I hang myself?"

Ignoring his question, Rudia said,

"Wasn't this the biggest crisis of your life?"

Altair leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin.

"It wasn't the biggest, but it was dangerous enough."

"I didn't think the 'Queen of Hearts' would work on a human."

"I don't understand why it suddenly appeared. And when I tried to retrieve it later, it was nowhere to be found. It must have been broken."

Whale grumbled, "No, that's why I'm asking if I should hang myself."

Altair turned his gaze to him.

The king of the intelligence department.

John Whale—his name was so obviously a pseudonym that it felt honest—had provided information worth the risk.

But the problem started from there.

One of his subordinates came in with an artifact in hand.

A heart-shaped mirror. At the top, it had a crown, and the reflective surface, which should have been silver, was black.

"Queen of Hearts, absorb!"

As he shouted, a blue light pillar shot up.

Altair felt his strength being 'sucked' away, but the flow wasn't that strong.

The light pillar indicated that the 'Queen of Hearts' was expelling the power it couldn't absorb.

If it continued to absorb, it would break.

The problem was that his body was stiff and he couldn't move. He couldn't use his strength or move his body.

It was just for a moment.

For a moment, he thought it was a trap, but seeing John Whale's face, he knew it wasn't. Horror flashed across his face.

The enemy had flipped the Queen of Hearts upside down.

The opposite side was silver, and the absorbed power condensed and was about to be fired when Rudia, who thought she was well hidden, jumped in.

She stood between the light and him.

Her shining hair and slender figure were silhouetted against the blue light, etched in his mind.

In the next moment, he caught her collapsing body. She was surprisingly light. A hole the size of a child's head was in her side, between her ribs and chest.

For a moment, time stopped.

"Your Majesty!"

"Altair!"

He came to his senses at the calls from outside.

Grunting, Altair bit his tongue and let the blood flow into Rudia's mouth.

"Uaaaaah!"

As a failed subordinate rushed in, John's sharp scimitar drew a white line. The moment the head hit the floor, the attack continued as if it were a signal.

It was a fight where it was hard to tell who was a subordinate and who was a traitor. Several times, swords fell on Altair, but he blocked them with his arm.

Bang!

"Altair!"

Tan, covered in blood, rushed in. He had cut down the enemies outside in a straight line. He was startled to see Rudia but immediately rushed to Altair's side, blocking in front of him.

Altair pushed Tan away and handed Rudia to him.

"I've done all I can. She's still breathing, so call Lili."

He licked his blood-stained lips and smiled.

"Now, let's finish this."

Suddenly, John Whale, sensing something, shouted,

"Get down!"

His subordinates reflexively lay down, while the others were blinded by the attack.

"Rise."

It was just one word. Pale flames burned, and everything turned to ashes.

The enemies, who couldn't even scream, disappeared with their bones, plunging the allies into panic.

They looked at Altair as if they were lost dogs whose toys had suddenly disappeared.

John Whale calmly sorted out the situation, as if it had been planned between them. He hid his shock and calmed his subordinates.

Look, even in this situation, he's holding his head stiffly and asking, 'Are you going to kill me?'

Altair thought highly of him. As he silently looked at him, John Whale shrugged.

"I've submitted everything and made all my statements."

He didn't want to be humble in front of the emperor, but he didn't want to be foolish either.

He had done everything he could as 'John Whale,' so now it was up to the other side to hang him, torture him, or burn him alive.

After all, his subordinate had attacked the emperor, so he couldn't complain if he was arrested for treason.

What hurt his pride the most was that Barat had roots in the information guild.

John turned his gaze to Rudia. She, who was so beautiful that she made the slums' alleys eerie, fit surprisingly well in the palace.

'And Lirika.'

She looked happy, contrary to his worries.

'That's a relief.'

Thinking this, a smile naturally spread across his face. Rudia placed her hand on Altair's shoulder, stepped forward, and smiled.

"Shall we exchange some other information now?"

"Do you have information I don't know? Your Majesty, the Empress."

John added the honorific sarcastically, but Rudia didn't blink.

"Yes, I have information about the roots the information guild has spread."

John flinched, and Rudia smiled. It would be nice to torment him a bit for always ignoring her—

'But thinking about before I returned.'

When he was living as one of Barat's lackeys, he approached her at a palace ball.

"Lirika?"

That was his question. Rudia, not recognizing him, asked, "Who are you?"

He clicked his tongue and lifted her chin, but she still didn't recognize him.

After that, they exchanged sharp insults, but he had genuinely cared for Lirika.

So.

'I should only torment him a little.'

Rudia touched her cheek and gave a slightly evil laugh, as she used to.

* * *

"Uba!"

Lirika ran to Uba, who had returned after a long time. Uba, still wearing his bead decorations and a captain-like triangular hat, took off his large feathered hat to greet her, but when Lirika ran up, he smiled and lifted her up.

Lirika laughed brightly.

After spinning her around once, Uba put her down.

"You always welcome me so warmly, I don't know what to do with myself."

"Did you go to the flood again? I'm glad you returned safely. You said you wouldn't do dangerous things anymore."

"But adventures call to me."

He said in his theatrical tone and winked.

"I see, but be careful with the floods."

The princess, who always took it seriously and worried, made Uba smile warmly.

"Coming to the palace is rare, what brings you here?"

"The Empress called me. It's about the flood and the capture of the monster—"

"Monster capture?"

Looking puzzled, Uba said, "And other things." and reached into his coat.

"More importantly, I brought this for the princess."

He took out a glass bottle containing a round seed.

"Try planting it."

"What kind of seed is it