Chapter 90
Chapter 90. The Secret Hidden in the Portrait
Vinea turned her cold gaze away from the window, where sharp winds were lashing at the tree leaves as if it were already winter, despite the weather not yet being cold enough for that.
Today marked exactly one week since he had fallen victim to Eurene’s scheme.
It felt like an eternity.
Last night, news of a rebellion in Veshnu was relayed through the artifact she shared with her mother. She had suggested holding a grand banquet on Vante’s birthday to deliberately loosen security by stationing imperial forces elsewhere.
She thought her cornered uncle wouldn’t miss the opportunity, and her prediction was correct. Now all that remained was to wait for news of victory from her mother.
However, at the same time, voices criticizing her began to grow louder throughout the Tessibanian Empire.
The Emperor, secluded for a week; the Empress of Veshnu origin holding decision-making power over the empire’s affairs in his stead.
As if reaching the limit of silencing the doctors, rumors that His Majesty the Emperor had died began to spread outside the palace.
Thanks to her efforts managing public sentiment in Haksya village, signs of rebellion didn’t immediately arise, but the timing coincided unfavorably with the temple’s announcement.
Suspicions were creeping up that the Empress had ultimately used Sefitiana to drive the Emperor to his death.
It was a trap truly befitting Eurene. So obvious and cliché, yet always decisively effective.
Vinea turned and unfolded a parchment on the Emperor’s office desk. It was a list of nobles demanding the release of the Emperor Emeritus imprisoned in the western outer tower and a direct meeting with Tatar.
“They must be quite anxious. Fearing I might bring down this Tessibania.”
It was truly devoted effort, how they had gathered so many signatures in just two nights.
The Emperor Emeritus was ultimately an issue easily resolved once she received evidence of his collusion with her uncle through her mother, but Tatar’s meeting was the problem.
‘It would be fortunate if they don’t cause an uproar demanding to hold the funeral immediately without desecrating the Emperor’s body.’
That would inevitably lead to regression. Back to when there was no life in her womb.
“Is it worth enduring this trouble to protect you, who has nothing properly established?”
Vinea swallowed a bitter smile and took a step.
This dawn, a letter had also arrived from the temple.
It was a long-winded letter stating that they had received reports of the Empress of Tessibania using Sefitiana for wicked tricks to disrupt the empire’s discipline, and that they were shocked as those who serve God.
In the end, it meant one thing: We know you stole Sefitiana and used it for nefarious purposes. If you don’t bring it back, we will reveal your sins to the whole world.
“How absurd.”
The person who made a wish on Sefitiana was someone else, yet they were demanding an innocent person to cough it up.
Heavy fatigue and pressure weighed on her body. Perhaps due to habit formed in that short time, the action of placing her hand on her flat belly had become familiar.
She needed to clear her head. The distance from the main palace to the Empress’s Palace was quite far, not light enough for an immediate walk, so she needed to find a suitably quiet place.
Passing by the servants who glanced at her with suspicious eyes—where were they when praising her as the ‘Radiance of Blessing’ or whatever—Vinea arrived at the exhibition hall displaying portraits of past Tessibanian imperial family members, located just below the top floor of the main palace.
Ansha. The woman who was the mistress of the founding Emperor, Abraltan. What would be the most likely reason for her to make a wish on Sefitiana?
It must certainly be related to the founding Emperor.
Though her name was recorded outside the palace, it couldn’t be found in any records within the palace.
She couldn’t shake the thought that the reason for erasing her was closely related to why she had made a wish on Sefitiana.
She arrived at the exhibition hall.
Unlike the bedroom where the Emperor and Empress could activate locking magic at will, this exhibition hall was the only room in the imperial palace where magic was constantly in effect.
The special ancient magic allowing entry only to the Emperor, Empress, and their direct children was engraved during the early days of the empire’s founding when magic was powerful.
As she placed her hand on the doorknob, a familiar white magic circle appeared on the back of her hand, and simultaneously the door clicked open.
Vinea entered. The room, without a single window to prevent discoloration of the portraits, had several portraits lined up under the light of a splendid chandelier.
Due to the scarcity of heirs, there weren’t that many portraits despite spanning 800 years.
Passing by her own portrait hung most recently, Vinea headed straight for the end of the long exhibition hall.
Standing before the two most magnificent portraits at the end of the exhibition hall, Vinea raised her head.
Abraltan, the founder of Tessibania, and his Empress Magnolia.
Facing Abraltan’s face, Vinea quietly examined the face in the portrait.
Bright silver hair and brown eyes. Sharp eyes, with the intelligence in them obscured by the ambition and venom of one who used war as a means of revolution.
As if the story of him fighting for a long time to stop the tyranny of the tyrant Salbare, who was once his master, wasn’t a lie, even in the portrait which typically conceals some flaws, a diagonal scar from above his left eye to his cheekbone was depicted.
That scar seemed to make his sharp impression look even fiercer. Moreover, despite being a person from 800 years ago, somehow Tatar’s face was vaguely visible.
She shifted her gaze to examine Empress Magnolia beside him.
Green hair tied up in a bun and golden eyes. Her tightly closed thin lips exuded the arrogance typical of nobles. Downturned eyes, a low nose, and slightly protruding cheekbones.
It wasn’t an exceptionally ugly or beautiful face, but it did seem lacking compared to Ansha, who possessed a pure beauty even in her gloomy atmosphere, as seen through the artifact.
After looking at the portraits of the two for a long time while recalling Ansha, Vinea was about to turn away, having lost interest, when a portrait stopped her in her tracks.
[Imperon de Tessibania – 2nd Emperor]
Vinea’s expression hardened.
Her eyes were filled with the portrait depicting the face of the 2nd Emperor, the son born between Abraltan and Magnolia, at the time of his ascension to the throne.
Darker silver-gray hair than Abraltan’s, and under sharp eyes, eyes of the same color as Tatar’s.
The small mole under his left eye reminded her of someone.
Suddenly, a chill ran down her spine. Vinea, who had realized the old secret hidden in the portrait like a bolt of lightning, muttered with a blank face.
“Ansha…?”
