Chapter 38
(38) Overwhelming Affection (9)
As the large hand tightened around his neck, fear appeared in Caron’s eyes.
Aster tilted his head and stared quietly into Caron’s deep green eyes before releasing his grip.
“Cough, cough.”
Caron coughed hoarsely as he straightened his posture, having just been released from the choking hold.
“You don’t look it, but you scare easy.”
Eleanor, who had been quietly watching, replied,
“Yeah. He lived not knowing pain, but now he’s learned what it is.”
Aster dusted off his hands and stood. Caron glared at him, still clutching his throat with one hand. Then Aster casually pulled out a dagger and handed it to Caron.
“Sorry for breaking your weapon. And sorry for hurting you too. I just had to check if it was okay for you to stay by my sister’s side.”
Caron’s eyes softened for the first time in his life, he had never heard an apology before.
He looked up at Aster in disbelief, then down at the dagger in his hand. It was sharper and more refined than the one he’d used before.
“That’s a bribe.”
“A bribe?”
“Yeah. I’m giving it to you to ask you to take care of my sister. Use it to protect her—and yourself. I have a feeling she’d be sad if you died.”
Caron’s nose wrinkled in confusion.
“Your sister planted a bomb in my head. If I disobey her, she’ll kill me. And you think she’d be sad if I died?”
At the word bomb, Aster turned to Eleanor in disbelief, and seeing the faint smile on her face, turned back to Caron.
“Right, my sister’s a really scary person. She treats human lives like flies. So do what she says. Otherwise, the bomb goes boom, you die, I die, and probably everyone in this palace dies too.”
Caron scowled, not understanding Aster’s joke. Eleanor sighed.
“Stop teasing the kid and come back over here. Tell me what’s going on in the North.”
Aster returned to the sofa.
“Well, it’s pretty much what you expected. Thanks to the timely appearance of the Azure Knight, Owen and Osborn stormed off in anger. We’re rebuilding the collapsed walls and calming the people. We opened the granaries to comfort the victims’ families, and the commoners are slowly returning to daily life. Also, a few powerful individuals have taken up positions along Osborn’s trade routes. We have received reports that some merchant guilds trying to enter Osborn’s territory fled in a hurry.”
“I see.”
“Oh, and here’s something interesting. Persephone is preparing to come to the capital. Word is, she’s finished her preparations and is waiting for something.”
Aster leaned forward.
“My brother says someone in the capital might be trying to harm you. And it seems Persephone suspects that too. Who’s your enemy?”
“They’re not my enemy.”
“Then?”
“They’re the emperor’s enemies.”
Aster furrowed his brow.
“His Majesty has enemies?”
“He does. Quite a few, actually.”
“Why? Because he killed the former empresses? Do their families want revenge?”
As her puzzled brother asked, Eleanor turned over what she had just heard about Persephone.
‘Persephone is already preparing?’
She had considered the possibility that the Empress Dowager might summon Persephone one day after investigating Eleanor.
But that thought only came after she’d arrived in the capital and learned the palace’s political climate.
How did Persephone, from where she is, anticipate the Empress Dowager’s moves?
Eleanor didn’t think Persephone had been closely following palace affairs. Persephone was clever, yes—but her cleverness was always used to secure her position as a count’s daughter.
‘Just as Persephone never truly understood me, perhaps I never fully understood her.’
‘No, that’s not it.’
If she were that clever, she would have anticipated that I’d seek help from the palace and blocked my path.
But no one blocked Eleanor’s way. Persephone hadn’t foreseen that Eleanor would protect the Snow territory in exchange for becoming empress.
Yet she did seem to know someone in the palace would try to kill Eleanor.
Maybe the Empress Dowager had a hand in Owen and Osborn teaming up to attack Snow. And Persephone knew about it.
Eleanor let out a small laugh.
“I thought they were just His Majesty’s enemies. Turns out, they’re mine too.”
“Huh?”
“Listen carefully, Aster.”
“I always take your words as divine truth.”
“The power of the border lord Pellagon Calix has grown strong enough to rival that of the emperor. Calix probably wants to become emperor.”
“But that can’t happen, right? The emperor is a Delgado.”
“Yes, a Delgado—the last family blessed by God. No matter how much they try to brand His Majesty as a madman, he’s still the rightful emperor.”
Most people respected and admired Border Lord Calix, who guarded the frontier near the monster-infested lands of Buford. They revered his loyalty and dedication to the empire and the emperor.
But Count Snow had seen through Calix’s ambition as Calix had sent people several times to gauge the Count’s allegiance.
“The Empress Dowager wants her father to become emperor.”
Aster scowled.
“But His Majesty is her son.”
“Exactly. That’s why no one suspects anything. I didn’t either, not until I came here and saw it for myself—that the Empress Dowager wants to kill the emperor.”
Aster opened his mouth, then closed it. He rubbed his mouth with his hand, unsure what to say. Then he asked,
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Very sure.”
“But… I mean… Okay, let’s say that’s true. Then what?”
“To make Calix emperor, they need a few things. Either the emperor must die, or he must be accused of a crime so great that he can’t remain on the throne—even as a Delgado.”
“So they’re trying to portray him as insane? And those dead empresses…?”
“I’m not certain. But I don’t think His Majesty killed all of them.”
“Isn’t he rarely in the palace because he’s out fighting monsters?”
“Exactly. That’s the problem.”
While his enemies were tarnishing his name, the emperor was busy fighting monsters. He had no time to clear his reputation.
“The faction trying to dethrone the emperor is growing. But there are still noble families loyal to him that can’t be ignored.”
“And one of them is our Snow family… Wait—don’t tell me.”
“Right. Owen and Osborn were swayed. That’s why they suddenly turned their blades on us.”
“Because Father stayed loyal to the emperor.”
“Calix’s faction may be strong, but they couldn’t ignore Snow. If Calix took the throne, he feared we’d raise an army against him.”
“Right. We also have the Thunder Emperor of the Perpetual Snow.”
“Exactly. No one knows how strong that mysterious power really is, so they probably wanted to test us.”
Even after fighting off hordes of monsters, Snow still held out for a long time against Owen and Osborn.
“Now that they’ve gauged our strength, they’ll adjust their forces accordingly. Which means Snow must hold power they can’t predict.”
“Good grief. No time to rest, huh?”
Aster didn’t seem too worried, but Eleanor knew better. She could see he was tense—and that he’d perform even better because of it.
“When are you going back?”
“Why? Can’t wait to get rid of me?”
“No. I was hoping you’d stay a few more days. There’ll be a grand banquet at the palace soon as His Majesty officially declared me the next empress.”
Aster frowned.
“On the way here, I heard a rift opened in the capital. Even though His Majesty handled it well, there must’ve been casualties. They even canceled the New Year’s Festival. And now the nobles are throwing a banquet in the palace?”
“Yeah. Perfect opportunity for the emperor and his fiancée to get criticized. Something very interesting is going to happen. Stay and watch.”
Eleanor smiled.
“Also, hand over what you brought.”
***
Of course, Aster hadn’t come empty-handed. Eleanor hadn’t said a word to Havelion. But she trusted that he’d understand the resolve behind her decision to stay at the palace and know what she needed.
And Havelion did not betray that trust.
The wagons sent from Snow were parked just outside Tulip Palace. Their grandeur was so overwhelming that the First and Third Consorts came out to see, and even the Second Consort, who was confined to her quarters, heard about it.
Each time a massive wagon was unloaded, the laborers from Snow shouted out its contents.
“Five boxes of dresses!”
“Received: five boxes of dresses!”
“Two boxes of shoes!”
“Received: two boxes of shoes!”
What shocked everyone was the last announcement.
