Chapter 71
Chapter 71
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 71
Chapter Title: Father's Heart
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Once even the Empress had looked at her and left the room, Ardene truly had nothing to say.
She had no idea what to say to this father of hers. Her mind was blank, devoid of any thoughts.
"Your Majesty, I..."
"You unfilial child. You're such a clever girl, so why do you see only one thing and miss the other two? Do you have any idea how much I suffered when I heard you'd fled the palace and vanished?"
Even as Ardene tried to say something, she finally looked properly at the Emperor's face.
The old man was shedding tears. Not as the Emperor, but simply as one father.
Unable to hold back at the sight of the weeping elder, Ardene burst into tears herself. She bowed her head once more, sobbing.
"I was wrong. I was wrong, Father. I was wrong!"
"I'm over sixty now. My heart feels like it's already eighty. Do you think this old man can bear the pain of losing yet another child at this age? Did I seem that heartless to you?"
The princess could not respond to the Emperor's words. She merely kept her head bowed.
Without leaving so much as a word about where she was going, she had ridden off alone to Larphentia. Only later did she realize how that must have looked to her parents.
She had thought she wasn't being treated well, but upon arriving in Larphentia, she realized that wasn't true. The world treated lepers like the source of all evil, and the Emperor had been protecting her—a body she could barely control—against the prejudices of the entire world.
"And yet you left so confidently, only to encounter some miracle and return to your old self. Come here. Let me see your face. This old man's eyes don't work properly anymore."
The Emperor reached out with his wrinkled hand and stroked Ardene's cheek. And the tears flowing down it.
Only then did he smile. It was probably the first smile he'd shown since awakening.
"It's truly a blessing. The gods have forgiven you."
"It wasn't the Three Gods who forgave me, but a god who did. It was..."
"Enough. Regardless, the gods have forgiven you, haven't they?"
Cutting off the princess as she tried to speak of Kyle and the god he served, the Emperor let out a deep, profound sigh. He hesitated for a long time before finally opening his mouth.
"So as your father, I ask you—can you not forgive him as well?"
"Whom..."
"Edmund. Your half-brother."
The Emperor gave a bitter smile. One of his children had killed his most beloved child.
The Secret Guard, the imperial family's covert intelligence agency, had already uncovered every detail and reported it to him. It was one of the secretive forces left behind by the founding Emperor.
Edmund, unaware even of their existence, had no idea that the Emperor knew he was behind the crown prince's assassination.
"Did you know that boy poisoned my son—your brother?"
At those words, sparks flew from the princess's eyes, and a chill ran through her head.
She gripped her sword with fierce eyes, seething with rage.
"I'll go sever that damned traitor's head right now. I'll avenge my brother. Your Majesty, just give the order, and I'll..."
"At first, I intended to do the same."
The Emperor took a sip of the tea before him, as if his throat were parched, before continuing.
Perhaps it wasn't thirst, but a desire to calm the burning rage within.
"But if I killed Edmund with my own hands, I'd lose yet another child, and there'd be no one left to inherit the throne. That's why I couldn't punish him. With you gone like that, if Edmund were no longer around, the next ruler wouldn't even be from our house."
But he couldn't forgive the boy either.
So he hadn't granted him the crown prince position. The Emperor continued calmly.
"Later, when my head had cooled a bit, I realized the boy's twisted path was all my fault. It was all my doing. My sin. I shouldn't have betrayed your mother in my youthful folly and made that choice."
With the empire's situation so unstable, the Emperor had taken multiple concubines from various places. They were daughters of powerful figures, backed by strong factions.
Since they weren't marriages of love, he felt relatively little affection for their children.
Still, they were his children, and he wanted to cherish them, but he didn't even have the leeway for that. Despite the Emperor's efforts, the empire's state only worsened, with nothing but bad news pouring in.
"If I was set on taking concubines, I should have at least properly looked after the children they bore me. But I didn't. Yes, I'm nothing but a failure of an old man. At least when it comes to raising children."
He'd used state affairs as an excuse to keep busy, failing to give his children proper affection. That was the Emperor's greatest regret.
Yet what had sustained him were his two children from the Empress: Arseine and Ardene, who were exceptionally brilliant. Even in hard times, seeing his eldest and second child always gave him strength.
"Do you know? Honestly, I thought whichever of you two became Emperor, you'd do better than me. Arseine has a gift for politics. Unlike your father here, who barely scrapes by as a king, he knew from childhood how to hide a blade behind a smile. If he became Emperor, I could have happily laid down my burdens and stepped aside."
Ardene could say nothing.
She simply listened silently, taking in the depths of her father's heart.
"You're the same, Ardene. You have talent. The talent to lead people. To rule over others. To bring victory in war. You may lack the qualities of a sovereign, but as a general, you're outstanding. I truly thought you'd make a fine Emperor."
There was just one thing he'd hoped for.
Whichever of the two became Emperor, he didn't want the siblings to turn against each other.
He wanted the brother and sister to rely on one another and govern the nation well.
If Arseine became Emperor, Ardene could serve as general to support him; if Ardene became Empress, Arseine could be prime minister to aid her.
That way, they could complement each other's shortcomings and build a better empire.
Just thinking that gave the Emperor strength, no matter how harsh reality was.
And if he did his utmost, he could pass on a better empire to his children.
"Because I believed you two, relying on and supporting each other, filling in weaknesses, could do far better than me. But..."
"Brother... he did it for me..."
"Enough. Let's not speak of that."
The Emperor set down his teacup. His gaze was deep, so very deep.
He clasped his hands behind his back and continued slowly.
"Ardene, I won't last much longer anyway. That mysterious light has told me so. My lifespan's firewood has burned out; even if a flame flickers again, it'll just be embers."
Kyle had already warned that while it could grant longevity, extending life itself was impossible. The princess nodded gravely.
With death so near, and in his position as Emperor, one might expect him to cling to immortality and gather every elixir in the world, but he remained calm. Even discussing his own death, he was serene.
"So I, soon to die, can't decide matters after my passing. That would be arrogance. What comes after is for you and Edmund to resolve. I can only ask. Responding to blood with blood means no one escapes the cycle of vengeance, though my words may just sound like nagging to you."
He coughed and continued.
"It's in the past. All in the past. You and Edmund are family in the end. If family kills and kills each other, what remains at the end? They say before power, parents and children mean nothing—but does that mean we should turn into vipers, blind to family and tearing at each other?"
"I couldn't forgive that boy, but I hope you can. That's the one thing your father asks of you. Even if you don't grant it, I won't know anyway, but I hope you will. I know it's hard, but can't you get along with Edmund?"
Ardene couldn't answer. In her heart, she wanted to cleave that traitor with Dragon Aura right then. But with her father restraining her, she didn't know what to do.
The Emperor didn't press for an answer and changed the subject instead. What use was hearing what he wanted here, if her heart wouldn't change? By then, he'd be buried in the imperial tomb, unable even to appear in dreams to admonish her.
He hadn't granted the crown prince position to either Ardene or Edmund because both were unfit to be Emperor. This old father wanted his children to rely on each other and lead the nation.
So the little time he had left wasn't entirely wasted. In truth, the Emperor already knew what he must do. He knew the answer but hadn't pursued it.
Even knowing the right path, he'd tested his two children once. So for now, it was enough that his daughter had engraved his request in her heart.
"Yes, I've spoken only of myself until now. Tell me your story. I'm curious what miracle you encountered that healed you and extended my thread of life, even if just a little."
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