Chapter 183
The one who had made the sound was none other than Helios. A signal to tone it down.
Alice flinched and turned her head. Her eyes met the deity’s, who was looking at them as if they were an obnoxious couple making a scene.
Alice slowly lowered the corners of her mouth, which had been raised in a smile.
She felt a bit tactless, as the deity’s gaze suggested.
Too absorbed in the fact that Kylus was safe, she hadn’t paid attention to their surroundings.
They were still atop the rubble of the collapsed palace.
Being affectionate on a pile of ruins.
Even I would have cursed inwardly at such a sight.
Alice naturally released Kylus’s hand and moved back slightly.
The deity shook his head at the embarrassed Alice, then prepared to leave.
[Now that things seem to have calmed down, I’ll return to the divine realm. If I stay any longer, I might be discovered.]
“…Thank you for protecting Kylus.”
At her belated gratitude, the deity smiled insipidly.
[…As long as you’re happy. So this ‘bastard’ will take his leave now. Clean up the mortal realm’s mess yourselves.]
The deity vanished as soon as he finished speaking.
Alice gazed at the spot where the deity had stood with a peculiar look in her eyes.
‘As long as you’re happy.’
‘What’s with that… it makes him sound like… he’s my father or something.’
Alice’s heart swelled with an emotion akin to family affection, something she had never experienced before.
‘I take back calling him a bastard.’
As Alice sniffled, Kylus cupped her face in his hands and turned her head.
So that she faced him.
“Don’t cry. Lord Helios sincerely wishes for your happiness. And…”
Kylus gazed at her tenderly as he gently caressed her reddened eyes.
His face drew closer.
Just as Alice’s eyes widened, she felt a soft touch on her forehead. A gentle kiss.
Kylus slowly pulled his lips away and whispered over her swollen eyes:
“From now on, I’ll make you overflowing with happiness. So you’ll never shed tears again.”
When his breath touched her eyes, her heart fluttered.
‘How can I not cry when you say things like that?’
Alice squeezed her eyes shut against the rising emotion.
At that moment, the barrier the deity had placed shattered.
“Your Majesty the Empress!”
“Duke!”
“Find the Lady and the Duke quickly!!”
Opening her eyes at the commotion, Alice watched Kylus rise to his feet and whispered softly:
“Thank you for… coming back to life. And…”
“Rien?”
‘I love you.’
Alice held back the words that had risen to her throat, saving them for a more beautiful day, and took his hand as she stood up.
The sky had turned red, as if the sun was about to set.
Looking at the white light pouring down under the crimson sky, Alice turned her gaze to the Empress.
The Empress had passed out at some point and lay on the rubble, looking like a bundle of rags.
People were now pouring into the collapsed palace.
Alice watched it all and thought:
‘It’s really over now.’
Imperial Year 981, September 21
[The Secret Prophecy Was Real!]
[From War Hero to Divine Messenger, Duke Dearrut Saves the Pentium Empire Once Again!]
[Empress’s Palace Destroyed by Divine Wrath, Lariella Pentium Arrested at the Scene!]
Imperial Year 981, September 22
[Lariella Pentium Was the Leader of a Wicked Black Magic Cult!]
[Emperor Deposes Empress and Permanently Strikes Lariella’s Name from the Imperial Family!]
‘As soon as it was revealed that the Empress was the leader of black magic practitioners, the Emperor swiftly deposed her and completely erased Lariella’s name from the imperial family tree.
He also ordered her portraits burned and, unusually before her trial, imprisoned her in the underground dungeon rather than confining her to her chambers.
However, her birth family, the Latris Marquis House, without protest, quietly announced they had removed Lariella from their family registry as well.
Thus, Lariella, once the most radiant Empress, will stand trial tomorrow, a shabby figure without even a surname.’
Imperial Year 981, September 23
[All the Cruel Truths Hidden Behind Lariella’s Benevolent Smile Revealed!]
‘In addition to sacrificing living people as offerings to nurture black magic for years, additional crimes committed by Lariella were revealed, including the poisoning of the First Prince and the assassination of the former Empress, Adrienne Pentium.
The nobles at the trial were speechless with shock, and Count Latrang eventually broke into tears at the horrific truth…’
[Head of Imperial First Knight Order Hasis Winston and Holy Knight Izeto. They Were Lariella’s Subordinates!]
‘Today at the trial, Duke Dearrut revealed the complete list of Lariella’s accomplices. The two most notable names were Hasis Winston and Holy Knight Izeto.
The nobles were once again shocked by the duplicity of Hasis and Izeto, whom they had believed to be loyal knights of the Empire, but Hasis was already dead and beyond punishment.
Instead, the Emperor stripped Hasis of his title, removed him from the Winston Count family, and forbade even a funeral for him.
And Izeto, his accomplice, was stripped of his holy knight status according to temple law and awaited death with his sword taken away…’
Imperial Year 981, September 24
[Lariella Imprisoned in the Tower of Death at the Northern Edge!]
‘At the nobles’ petition that beheading was too light a punishment for Lariella’s numerous crimes, the Emperor ultimately sentenced her to life imprisonment in the Tower of Death at the northern edge, from which she can never escape until death.
The Tower of Death, built by the first Emperor to imprison traitors, was the worst prison, never having opened its doors since the empire’s founding traitors were confined there.
Therefore, it can be said that Lariella received the worst punishment ever given to an imperial family member, and she will be transported to the tower today.’
[The Final Fate of the Most Praised Empress in History.]
Under the bold headline on the front page of the newspaper was a large photo of Lariella.
Lariella was wearing a restraint made of cold metal—created by the deity himself to gradually annihilate the black magic within her body—around her neck like a dog collar, glaring at the reporters.
“…People don’t change easily.”
Alice murmured softly as she looked at Lariella in the photo, then placed the newspaper back on the table.
Even at yesterday’s trial, Lariella had screamed until the end.
Far from showing remorse for her exposed crimes, she had shouted brazenly:
‘You think I’ll crumble like this!? I’ll never crumble!!! My master will surely return!! He will tear all of you to pieces!!!’
She couldn’t accept that the Dark Wraith had been annihilated.
Either she had collapsed before seeing the Dark Wraith’s annihilation, or she had seen it but refused to acknowledge it.
Either way, she kept shouting about her master until Kylus finally gagged her.
While it was partly because she was making the courtroom so noisy, the greater concern was that someone might become interested in her references to “my master,” the Dark Wraith.
After all, they had agreed that only Kylus and Alice would know the truth about the Dark Wraith.
It was none other than the deity who had ordered this.
‘If it becomes known that the Dark Wraith from the painful legends of the primordial era still remained in this world, it will only heighten interest in the Wraith. Then someone might become interested in the power of darkness and try to summon new chaos.’
So cover up the truth about the Wraith.
Thus, they concluded the matter by saying that the Empress had been the leader of black magic practitioners and had gathered a wicked group to attempt rebellion.
Never revealing what had been in the basement of the Empress’s palace.
Of course, there were others who knew about the underground magic circle besides the Empress.
They were Hasis, Izeto, and the Empress’s chief lady-in-waiting, Countess Hestils.
Hasis was… irrelevant, having been eaten by the Wraith, but the other two had to be silenced discreetly.
Countess Hestils with Helkin’s poison, and Izeto… by cutting out his tongue and severing the tendons in his wrists, was it?
Some might find it excessively cruel, but it was necessary.
Considering the crimes they had committed, it wasn’t particularly brutal.
In any case, by completely silencing both of them, the truth about the Dark Wraith was buried as the deity wished.
And Lariella would be imprisoned in the tower, bearing the Wraith’s crimes along with her own.
“She should have departed by now.”
Alice checked the time, which had passed 2 p.m.
The magic carriage carrying Lariella was scheduled to depart for the tower at 2 p.m. today.
The carriage she boarded had been enchanted with fire magic to prevent any escape and was made with iron bars instead of walls so that everyone outside could see in.
Like a mobile prison.
This meant that during her transport to the tower by land, all imperial citizens could see Lariella.
So that the people could curse the criminal.
It was deliberately arranged this way.
Because Lariella had shown not the slightest remorse until the end.
Especially after she had openly mocked those she had killed during the trial, it was decided that she should experience the same humiliation through this land transport.
“Whew.”
Alice exhaled lightly as she looked at the pile of newspapers on the table.
“It’s really over.”
Yes. The mission the deity had entrusted to her.
The task of saving this world had truly come to an end today.
The Dark Wraith had been annihilated, and its remaining followers had been completely dealt with.
There was no longer any danger of this world disappearing.
Like the Empress’s palace being rebuilt, a new world was unfolding here as well.
Just as Alice was smiling smoothly, the door opened and Aileen entered.
“My lady, the Duke has just left the mansion.”
