Chapter 95
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------
95.
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty...!"
The First Empress naturally seized this moment and rose to her feet.
Even I, having long since abandoned all pretense of propriety, harbored no intention of stopping her in these circumstances.
The Knight Commander, our commanding officer, permitted it as well, and besides, she had nowhere to flee.
What troubled me far more was something else entirely....
"...Roselita."
My superior, Cassian Artez.
I hadn't pressed my forehead against his, merely grasped his hand, yet I could feel his pulse racing violently through my fingertips.
"In this state...."
Many words rose to my lips, but I swallowed them back.
Revealing Cassian's condition now would only disadvantage us.
"...Can you endure this?"
So I spoke with calculated coldness.
I harbored no shame in interrogating the First Empress for answers, yet I felt a twinge of conscience in pressing him further.
Yet Cassian offered a smile as composed as always, squeezing my hand firmly in return.
With eyes that urged me not to worry excessively, that implored my trust in him, I said nothing more and proceeded with him toward the Emperor's Bedroom.
It was time to end these interminable days.
*
"Your Majesty, do you have any idea how much I have worried? Thank heavens you have awakened so robustly...."
The moment I stepped into the Bedroom, I witnessed the Emperor just awakening and taking his medicine, while the First Empress shed tears at his side.
Though his body had only just been detoxified, he seemed remarkably resilient—after a few dry coughs, he began to speak with deliberate care.
"First Empress, cease your tears. My head is throbbing."
"Y-Your Majesty."
At this moment, I found myself admiring the First Empress anew.
Rather than casting a reproachful glance at his words, she expressed through her entire being how profoundly relieved she was that he could speak at all.
Yet the Emperor merely cast an indifferent glance at her remarkable display before withdrawing it entirely.
"Cassian Artez."
Instead, he gestured toward us standing at the Bedroom entrance.
"You truly...."
The Emperor paused mid-sentence, his gaze fixed upon Cassian Artez—a stark contrast to the tender manner in which he had regarded the First Empress as she wept moments before.
And me beside him, our hands clasped tightly together.
Complex emotions swirled across the Emperor's blue eyes.
He pressed his lips together once, then opened them again as though merely his throat had grown irritated.
"You have endured much hardship for such an absurd matter."
"Not at all, sire. I merely performed my duty."
"Your duty...."
The Emperor murmured Cassian Artez's matter-of-fact words as though savoring them, then extended his hand toward me.
"Before you arrived, I heard a situation report from the Knight Commander regarding what transpired after my collapse. However, Salice Advisor, you should possess the most precise documentation."
At those words, I immediately handed over the file folder I had been carrying to the Emperor.
Of course, the First Empress attempted to stop me.
"Your Majesty, such matters can surely be addressed after you have recovered! The investigation results—"
"Silence. I did not grant you permission to speak, First Empress."
The Emperor exhaled sharply, cutting off her words.
The First Empress's lips trembled as though she had been slighted.
As though she had been disregarded by all.
The Emperor, having received the file folder, swiftly reviewed its contents.
Within it lay a hastily written summary of the farce between the First Empress and the Countess that I had jotted down upon entering the Bedroom.
After reviewing everything within ten minutes, the Emperor released a heavy sigh.
"You have all labored greatly—the Knight Commander, the Imperial Knight Order, and you as well, Salice Advisor."
He then lowered the file folder and cast a weary gaze toward the First Empress.
"Release all prisoners except the Second Empress, the Head Maidservant, and Attendant Barry."
"Y-Your Majesty!"
The First Empress gasped, her mouth falling open.
"The culprit has not been completely apprehended, and further investigation is surely necessary!"
"First Empress, are you concerned for my wellbeing, or do you merely wish to eliminate those who rival you?"
"What a dreadful thing to suggest, sire. I speak only out of concern for Your Majesty."
Crash—!
At those words, the Emperor raised his hand and struck the side table forcefully.
Despite having spent several days on the brink of death and only recently been detoxified, her grip was remarkably strong.
"There is little point in continuing this conversation with you."
The Emperor regarded her with contempt as he began to speak deliberately.
"Plotting the assassination of the Emperor—such treachery cannot be overlooked. Attendant Barry and the knight who aided him, and furthermore—"
The Emperor's gaze slowly turned toward the Countess trembling beside the First Empress.
"According to the First Empress, you and your household orchestrated this assassination plot."
"Your Majesty, Your Majesty...! I did not, I did not!"
The Emperor exhaled sharply at her words.
"How unfortunate—to have chosen the wrong master."
"Please, please conduct an investigation, Your Majesty. I am innocent, truly, truly innocent!"
The Countess prostrated herself repeatedly before the Emperor, pleading desperately even as she endured the First Empress's piercing gaze.
The Emperor regarded her for a moment, then commanded the Knight Commander.
"Conduct a thorough investigation of the Countess and report every detail to me. Only then shall I determine her punishment."
"Yes, Your Majesty. As for the others—"
"They shall be hanged."
At the Emperor's cold pronouncement, the Countess trembled like an aspen leaf, tears streaming down her face.
She was soon dragged away by the Imperial Knights, desperately calling out to the First Empress.
Insisting that this could not happen to her, again and again.
The moment the commotion subsided, the First Empress spoke.
"I have failed to manage my household properly, Your Majesty..."
"I am glad you understand."
Yet unlike before, the Emperor showed not a trace of sympathy at her anguished voice.
"You must bear responsibility for harboring one who committed such heinous acts. Moreover, you acted rashly and attempted to confine innocent people on multiple occasions."
"I will accept responsibility! But it was all done out of concern for Your Majesty—"
"One whose judgment becomes clouded by worry for me is unfit for that position."
"Your Majesty!"
The First Empress's eyes widened.
Until now, the Emperor had never once touched upon her position.
"I am a woman who has spent decades as your consort! I have devoted myself to managing the Imperial Palace in the absence of the Late Empress and to caring for the imperial children!"
She hastened to speak, desperate to preserve her place.
Yet the Emperor's eyes remained only cold.
As though all the cunning or careless demeanor he had shown until now had been nothing but deception.
"First Empress Scaletti Jamoti has repeatedly brought chaos to the Imperial Family through reckless actions and has failed to demonstrate the bearing of the Imperial Family's highest elder in my absence."
"Your Majesty...!"
"Furthermore, since the orchestrator of this heinous plot emerged from under her authority, I cannot overlook this."
Blood vessels began to rise visibly in the whites of the First Empress's eyes.
"Therefore, I hereby demote the First Empress to the rank of Fourth Concubine, the lowest among the concubines, and shall advance the ranks of the other concubines accordingly."
"Your Majesty!"
When the sentence was pronounced, all traces of the grace and elegance that had once defined First Empress Scaletti had vanished.
Whether she sought the Emperor's pity or whether she should rage against this incomprehensible reality—she could not decide.
Even she, facing such a demotion for the first time in her life, seemed at a loss—her expression contorting into something grotesque.
"How could you do this to me, in such a manner...!"
The Emperor spoke quietly to Scarlett Jamoti, who had been reduced from First Empress to Fourth Concubine.
"If you wish to clear your grievance, then prove your innocence as you demanded those you falsely accused to prove theirs."
"...."
"To do so, you must first establish the innocence of the Countess Attendant whose ruin you orchestrated with such baseless claims."
At those cold words that sealed every escape route, Scarlett merely wept, her tears streaming freely, before lowering her head with eyes burning with resentment.
"...I shall withdraw, taking this as a reminder of my own failings."
The Emperor paid no attention to her words, instead commanding all the gathered courtiers to leave.
In particular, he seemed to wish to say something to me, but upon seeing my son beside me, he gestured urgently for us to depart as well.
Perhaps that was what it meant to be a father.
I suppressed my turbulent emotions, took Cassian Artez's hand, and left the Bedroom.
*
As I grasped his hand and walked with long, hurried strides, Cassian Artez lifted me into his arms midway through the corridor.
"Your Majesty, I can walk! Please go ahead on your own."
"No."
Why was he being so stubborn even now?
My heart was in turmoil.
Yet I had never succeeded in breaking his obstinacy before, and I had no choice but to settle quietly in his embrace until we reached the Winter Palace Office.
With a soft click, he entered the Winter Palace Office, locked the door behind us, and then simply collapsed to the floor.
So if he was going to do this, why had he...
"Why are you pushing yourself like this when you don't have to? You should go to the Bedroom and rest properly!"
I had intended to soothe him gently, but seeing his face—one of the few times I'd witnessed him in such a disheveled state—concern and frustration poured from my lips unbidden.
"Please, Your—"
"Ian."
The moment I habitually began to address him, Cassian Artez pulled me down into his embrace, his voice low and rough.
"Please, Roselita."
What did that matter in this moment?
At that pitiful plea, I inwardly protested, but gazing into his dark eyes, all my emotions suddenly surged forth.
Knowing full well what he must have endured, I wrapped my arms around him tightly, silently begging him not to break.
Thump—
His heart thundered against my chest, a powerful pulse that spoke of how mercilessly he had driven his body, how many times he had exceeded his limits.
I felt both anguish at that struggling rhythm and a profound relief.
We had safely weathered another crisis.
"...Ian."
With all my emotions tangled together, I called his name like a prayer.
His large hand cradled my neck and the back of my head, offering reassurance.
"Yes."
Even as his breathing came ragged and labored, his voice carried the same steadiness as always.
As though soothing me.
Despite his own grave condition.
"You no longer have to bear this alone."
He effortlessly unraveled the taut cord of tension that he had endured in solitude all this while.
---------------
Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
---------------