Chapter 106
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Chapter 106
My fleeting doubt was buried beneath the Imperial Princess's next words.
"I understand how coercive and violent that method must have felt to you."
"...."
"That's why I wanted to apologize to you on behalf of the Imperial Family."
The Imperial Princess spoke those words while bowing her head.
Startled by her gesture, I waved my hands dismissively.
"I'm fine! Everything worked out well in the end, after all."
At my reassurance, the Imperial Princess's expression, which had been dark moments before, brightened considerably.
Yet there remained one lingering concern in my heart.
"But... is that truly the end of it?"
"The end?"
"I thought you found me troublesome because of my relationship with Lahedis...."
"Me? Why would I?"
"Because I became involved with Lahedis in that way."
"Why would that be a problem?"
The Imperial Princess genuinely seemed to not understand why it would be an issue.
"Well, wouldn't that make Lahedis the enemy of your parents?"
"I suppose technically, but... I don't really think much of it."
"Really...?"
"If anything, I owe my very existence to the fact that his mother never married His Majesty."
...Now that she mentioned it, that was true.
"And setting that aside, it would be absurd to hold my father's sins against him. He wasn't even born at the time."
The moment I heard the Imperial Princess's words, it felt as though someone had struck me across the head.
'I was the one trapped by prejudice....'
While I felt ashamed of my own thinking, a belated sense of relief washed over me.
Had I not found the courage to confront this last doubt, I would have lost a friend because of that very prejudice.
Unable to contain my emotions, I suddenly pulled the Imperial Princess into an embrace.
I felt her flinch in surprise at my sudden action. Her voice, which followed shortly after, conveyed the same shock.
"W-what are you doing all of a sudden?"
"I'm just so happy that my friend is such an amazing person."
"H-friend? Don't be ridiculous. You're my subordinate."
The Imperial Princess grumbled indignantly, yet she made no move to free herself from my embrace.
Just as our emotional reconciliation (?) came to an end, the hurried footsteps of someone approaching drew near.
"Ah! There you are, Miss Rowswide."
It was one of the Junior Priests.
He bowed respectfully to the Imperial Princess before delivering urgent news to me.
"You'll need to come with me to the Annex Building right away."
"What's happened at the Annex Building?"
"The Young Noble who was supposed to participate in the ceremony has suddenly fallen ill. It seems you'll need to take his place."
Since the ceremony is a ritual performed before the gods, it would be conducted with reverence, and there would be no particularly dangerous movements or actions.
The probability of injury during practice was slim, and it was such a simple ceremony that even if one's physical condition wasn't ideal, it could be accomplished as long as one could stand.
'Yet they insist on substituting me for him?'
Even while abandoning the symbolism of an influential house?
An ominous premonition crept over me—it seemed that Young Noble's physical condition wasn't the real issue, but rather that some greater power was at work behind the scenes.
Yet in this situation, I had no choice but to refuse, so I obediently followed the Junior Priest.
* * *
Twenty minutes before that.
Lahedis, who had come to the Annex Building, found himself facing four young nobles of the Nobility waiting for him.
They greeted Lahedis as he entered the Room with whistles.
"Well, well, who do we have here? Isn't it our Princess Isella of Edelwein, risen from the dead?"
Malice gleamed in the eyes of those who mocked Lahedis.
It was exactly what Lahedis had anticipated.
'After all, everyone participating in this ceremony is from the Emperor's faction.'
From the moment the Emperor included me among the ceremony's participants, I grasped his intentions well enough.
He wanted, by any means—even if only in this brief theatrical performance—to force me to kneel before the Imperial Family and the Crown Prince.
And it seemed he also wished to display his 'benevolence in protecting his nephew, the son of a traitor,' before the people.
The transparent intent was laughable, but there was no refusing an imperial command.
The rehearsal I reluctantly attended proceeded exactly as I had foreseen.
"Ah, right, right. Now you're a young lord, aren't you? My apologies, my apologies. I was confused because the image of Young Noble in a dress is still so vivid."
"But I'm curious about something—my mother told me when I was young that if a boy wears a dress, that very important thing falls off. Is it really true?"
Lahedis passed by the young nobles exchanging their pathetic jests and ridicule, moving deeper into the Room.
After all, there was someone else orchestrating this, and as long as the orchestrator didn't stop, their mouths wouldn't either.
Inside the Room, Allen was practicing lighting the sacred flame.
He orchestrated this entire situation, yet showed no interest whatsoever, not even glancing once.
Behind Lahedis, who regarded Allen with cold eyes, came the voices of the young nobles, as if speaking for my benefit.
"By the way, young lord, why didn't your lover come along? She's usually glued to your side."
"Ah, is our young lady in a delicate condition?"
"A delicate condition?"
"In early pregnancy, one must be careful, you know. Who's to say? Perhaps you, like your parents, are dreaming of an elopement born of love―"
The young noble, comparing the relationship between Vivian and Lahedis to that between Isella and Leopfried, never finished his mockery.
Lahedis's foot, closing the distance in an instant, kicked him squarely in the abdomen.
"Kugh!"
The faces of the surrounding young nobles drained of color as they watched their companion crumple.
They had never expected violence to be used, not in a sacred Temple.
"Are you insane? What do you think this place is, using violence like―!"
"I'd say the same applies to you—insulting parents and lovers in a sacred Temple hardly gives you the right to speak."
Lahedis approached the young noble writhing with his hands clutched around his stomach and stomped on it repeatedly with his foot.
"Y-you crazy bastard―!"
The young noble pinned beneath him struggled to escape from that foot, but Lahedis didn't budge an inch.
The only change was that the force pressing down on his abdomen grew fiercer.
'I thought he was just tall...!'
Shedding his girlish appearance, he had become a complete man without their knowing it.
An alpha suited to the world of survival of the fittest.
Just as Young Noble and his companions, trembling with the instinctive fear of the weak watching their friend trampled so brutally, were about to rush at Lahedis—
"What are you doing right now?"
Allen, who had been observing the situation as if he hadn't seen it, intervened.
'Finally making his move directly.'
Only then did Lahedis release Young Noble and face the 'true enemy.'
But Allen, ignoring the hostile glint in Lahedis's youthful eyes, locked gazes with Daemon rolling on the ground.
"Oh my. Daemon, your stomach isn't ruptured, is it?"
"No, it's fine, Your Highness."
"No, it doesn't seem fine. Will you even be able to conduct the ceremony in this state?"
At those words, Daemon's heart sank like a stone.
The New Year Ceremony was a stage to display a house's influence.
His family absolutely had to take the stage.
"Truly, I'm fine. This much is...."
"No, no. You shouldn't push yourself. It's better to rest."
"Then, the ceremony...."
"We should bring in a substitute."
Still unable to catch his breath properly, Daemon desperately clutched at Allen's leg.
"No, no! I can do it, Your Highness!"
But Allen ignored Daemon's desperation, pretending not to notice, and lifted his head.
His gaze turned toward Lahedis standing directly ahead.
"So, who would be a good substitute?"
Allen's pupils glinted with a desolate madness as he posed the question.
'Surely not....'
The moment Lahedis felt an ominous premonition at that gaze, Allen continued with a smile.
"Ah! I just remembered."
Then he turned to Young Noble beside him and spoke.
"Tell the priest outside. Since Daemon is unwell, it seems the Young Lady of Rowswide will need to conduct this ceremony instead."
Lahedis's pupils began to tremble at those words.
Because that statement meant Allen was shifting the target of his wrath to Vivian.
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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