NOVEL NEXT Chapter 32
“Sigh… the work I have to deal with never ends…”
Second Prince Rian lamented as he stared at the mountains of paperwork piled high on his desk in his private office.
“But I won’t regret it.”
Still, he was convinced that what he did was not wrong.
During discussions with his family about the Betrayer Hero, he had argued that they shouldn’t hide the ugly truths of the Imperial family but rather should bring them to light and seek forgiveness from the Hero.
Of course, his older brother Leon had shot him down, calling it madness, and even their father, the Emperor, seemed somewhat taken aback.
Fortunately, since his sister, the First Princess Riss, was absent, the Emperor turned to his twin sister Eve for her opinion, stating he would go with the majority.
Eve, who often appeared cold and devoid of emotion, was certainly not as human-like as Riss, and in that moment, he genuinely thought about stabbing himself with a dagger.
But—
“Father might think I’m the most rational person, but I’ve been emotional for quite some time now. Sure, it’s more appropriate to hide the truth as royalty, but I would prefer for the truth to come out.”
Perhaps it was evidence of how much she had changed, as Eve backed his call to reveal the truth.
Thus, all the truths were officially announced by the Imperial family, resulting in a barrage of attacks.
The ugly truths became a great opportunity to strike against the seemingly flawless Empire.
It was so bad that even the Vandenta Kingdom, which refused to accept Imperial customs and was under a dictatorship, decided to import books from the Check Writer because of the Betrayer Hero.
They were brainwashing their citizens by showcasing the Empire’s ugly side while claiming their kingdom was utterly clean in comparison.
Most of the documents lying before Rian now were related to the Vandenta Kingdom.
“I want to have a good relationship with the Vandenta Kingdom…”
‘But while I’m alive, that might be tough.’
With a sigh of disappointment, Rian let out a heavy breath.
Needing a moment to clear his head, he stepped out of his office and walked through the Imperial Palace.
As he continued walking, he found himself in front of Eve’s office.
Curious to see if she was doing well, he knocked on the door.
-Click.
“Huh?!”
In an instant, Eve’s hand pulled him inside her office.
“What’s going on…?”
“Rian, it’s serious.”
“What?”
Seeing Eve’s grave expression made Rian gulp nervously.
Then the words that came from Eve’s mouth were—
“Leon is preparing a rebellion.”
“W-what?!”
***
A little earlier, in First Prince Leon’s office.
“Damn it, why the hell am I dealing with this crap?!”
-Crash!
Watching the pile of papers stacked on his desk, Leon couldn’t hold back his rage and flipped the table over.
Bending down, he rested his hands on his knees and thought to himself.
‘Damn, how hard have I worked to become the Emperor!’
Since the day he was born and picked up a sword, he had lived a life of being praised as a genius in swordsmanship.
But that was short-lived.
“First Princess Riss suits the title ‘God of Martial Arts!'”
“Her talent is leagues ahead of you, Leon!”
He faced the wall that was his sister, Riss.
He hadn’t always hated his sister; he once admired her as a child, thinking she was amazing.
But—
“My little brother is weak.”
Her words after their first duel changed the course of Leon’s life forever.
Determined to beat his damn sister, he swung his sword like a madman and trained to the point of exhaustion.
But—
“My little brother is weak.”
How many times had he heard that line?
Despite everything, all he did was lose.
In the meantime, Leon saw his father, the Emperor, conversing with Riss.
“Well done, First Princess Riss. Thanks to you, the citizens of the South are now living in a better environment.”
“I was just following your command, Your Majesty.”
“Can I ask you to handle the West next?”
“If it’s your command, I will follow.”
To Emperor Father, Riss bowing like a loyal dog.
Leon’s target shifted upon witnessing that astonishing scene.
If he couldn’t win through strength, he would crush her with ‘power’ instead.
But—
“Damn it, Riaaan!!”
His underappreciated younger brother, Rian, spouted off useless words, causing the Imperial authority to diminish more than ever.
“Damn it, damn it, damn it!! The Imperial family should not have any flaws! You idiot!!”
-Bang!!
He kicked over the fallen desk, smashing it into pieces as it hit the wall.
“Huh… let’s calm down.”
After catching his breath somewhat, Leon stood up and turned to his butler, who maintained his posture without flinching behind him.
“Rian is too soft and incompetent to be a member of the Imperial family. And he dared to propose the absurd idea of revealing the family’s dirty laundry.”
The butler silently listened to him.
“Softness is a trait he shares with our father.”
-Bang!
He kicked a chair and spoke out.
“The Emperor should be the most level-headed, yet he has grown complacent after years of peace. So…”
It was treason.
The butler bowed his head without saying a word.
“Should I contact him?”
“Yes. Even though I really, really hate the idea of relying on that woman to take her down… she is certainly someone who brings power to the table. Since she has no interest in authority, I’ll make use of her once I become the Emperor.”
At his words, the butler promptly took out a communication crystal and contacted someone.
-Leon?
“Yeah, it’s me.”
-What’s your business.
“I’m going to fix the Empire.”
Leon casually blurted out such a grave statement that would shock anyone else…
-Why are you telling me.
The other person seemed unfazed by Leon’s words.
“I want to borrow your strength. You might think of me as a joke, but you have no choice but to help me.”
-Why.
“I know what you’ve been aiming for lately.”
-What is it?
“Do you think I’m unaware that a killing machine like you wants to indulge in those silly emotions? And I know that you’ve got your spies placed.”
-How are you going to assist me?
“You’re probably planning to kidnap the author, huh? But with your fiancée, Eve, you wouldn’t dare do that. You care for the Empire more than anyone else, don’t you?”
-Agreed.
“So I’ll become the Emperor, break the engagement with Eve, and give you some time alone with the author.”
-How?
“If I’m trying to become Emperor, it’s only natural that those useless siblings of mine, Eve and Rian, will resist me. So I just need to frame them a bit and get them out of the way.”
-That would cause a huge ripple effect.
“But it’s for the future of the Empire. Don’t you think I would be the best fit to maintain the Empire as a great power?”
-That’s true. Eve, Rian, and I have many shortcomings in being Emperor.
“Neither of us is a perfect candidate for Emperor, but we’re certainly better than those two idiots. And if we’re comparing you and me… doesn’t it make sense for me to be the Emperor?”
-I see. But wouldn’t it be more proper to wait for the throne instead of committing treason? If I give up the throne, it would naturally go to you.
“By the time that happens, it’ll be too late. I need to correct this as soon as possible.”
-Understood.
“So, will you help me?”
On the other side of the crystal, the other person was silent for a moment. Just when Leon was about to get angry, the other party responded.
-Deal. I’ll accept.
“Heh, got it.”
-Click.
Thus, the winds of treason began to blow through the Imperial Palace.
***
“-So that’s why my academy days were so entertaining. What do you think?”
“You’ve lived as tumultuously as a novel. Is this what it takes to be a world-shaking author?”
“Oh, it’s not that great.”
With plenty of free time, Latte and I had a good chat.
Well, mainly it was me talking.
Anyway, while discussing with Latte, Metida ended up joining us.
“Zech oppa, are you comfortable?”
“I’m all good, all good. It feels nice, almost like I’m holding a doll.”
Metida carefully sat on my lap, and we continued talking in that position.
Even though she was up there, she kept looking up at me with an apologetic expression, but she wasn’t heavy at all and it felt fine.
Honestly, it was nice to feel like Metida truly saw me as her big brother.
If there’s one thing on my mind…
“But Metida, why are you shaking so much?”
It wasn’t that cold, yet she kept trembling.
“Are you feeling unwell?”
“N-no… it’s just…”
“You’re shuddering a lot. Should I hold your hand?”
“Please…”
Not one to refuse, I carefully took her tiny hand.
“Hehe…”
Surprisingly, her shivering stopped right away.
“Zech oppa.”
“Yeah?”
“This time will be different.”
“Hmm…? What do you mean?”
“Hehe, nothing. Do you have to take the pen I gave you?”
“Of course, that’s a given.”
I took the pen out of my pocket to show off my pen-flipping skills.
“Wow! How did you do that?”
“Heh, this is easy peasy.”
The pen Metida gave me was surprisingly nice.
During the day, you don’t really notice it, but at night, it even glows softly.
It felt great to write with.
“Thanks for this wonderful gift.”
“Hehe, you should always keep it with you!”
At Metida’s question, I nodded with a smile.