The Blood of the Traitor Runs Red (3)
Consul Grussis carried out my instructions. I shot a glance at the chairman, who declared the agenda passed with a sour expression, then rose from my seat.
The senators filed out one by one, and Rikius approached me.
"Sir."
"Yeah."
"Drassus wants to see you."
"Drassus?"
I recalled Drassus, the man I'd taken under my wing some time ago. Our paths had crossed because of his shady dealings in the capital, but now he was one of my trusted men.
"Yes."
"You could handle it yourself."
"He insisted on reporting to you directly."
I rubbed my chin. For someone like Drassus, who had little direct connection to me otherwise, it made sense—he probably needed to wag his tail every time he had something to prove his worth, or he'd get anxious.
Overlooking these little things could lead to problems in managing the organization.
"All right. Then you handle selecting the personnel for the delegation from the Praetorian Guard."
"Yes, sir."
I clapped Rikius on the shoulder and left the Senate house.
Riding in a litter borne by slaves, I arrived at a villa in the city center where the wealthy merchants lived. Drassus, thick with fat, greeted me there.
I raised a hand to signal the bearers to set it down and stepped onto the ground.
As I dismounted, Drassus bowed deeply.
"I've been waiting for you."
"What is it?"
"It's best if you see for yourself."
Drassus led the way into the villa, and I followed with my guards.
The interior was stark, almost eerie, with hardly any furniture. Drassus lifted a carpet in one corner, revealing a passage leading underground.
"This way."
Descending the stairs after him, we entered a dim basement lit only by faint oil lamps. In one corner, two battered men were bound.
I glanced at them and asked Drassus, "Who are these?"
"Merchants who come and go selling grain at the harbor."
"So why are they here?"
"While surveilling the prominent figures on your orders, I caught them meeting with slaves."
"Couldn't it just be business?"
"That's what I thought at first. But right after they met the slaves, grain prices in the capital spiked. Trusting in you, sir, I had them quietly snatched and interrogated."
I gave a wry smile at his words.
In the empire, kidnapping and detaining citizens without the emperor's permission was strictly illegal.
The fact that he'd done it banking on my backing showed how my very existence threatened the empire's order, in a way.
But with pressures mounting at home and abroad, I couldn't afford to be picky.
"And?"
"After days without sleep and beatings, they spilled everything."
"They weren't just delirious and babbling?"
"No. I checked their story, and it all lined up. Here's the ledger."
I nodded as I looked over the ledger Drassus handed me.
"I see. Who else is involved?"
"Need more investigation, but Senator Constantinus seems tied in."
"Constantinus?"
"Yes, sir."
I recalled the profiles of the senators I'd read recently. Constantinus was from the knight class, unlike the Senate mainstream, born in the eastern provinces.
Of course, his father and grandfather were imperial citizens, career soldiers who'd even served as governors.
A man like that playing with fire against the empire.
Anyone who'd served in the imperial army and governed a province knew this wasn't the time to get lost in power games.
Yet Drassus said he'd done it.
How to interpret this?
I pondered for a moment.
What if Drassus was bought off by someone else and framing Constantinus?
It wasn't impossible.
But he'd learned the hard way what happens if he played games in front of me. The odds of him lying were low.
Which meant Constantinus had likely done it.
Does that mean he has ambitions?
But Constantinus had no real base. His military career was all in the Eastern Army, and his governorship too. He had few people in the influential Northern Army or Praetorian Guard.
Need to think this through carefully.
"Got it for now. Good work on the investigation."
"Thank you, sir. What about these two?"
I stared coldly at the men for a moment.
"I hear Senator Grussis owns a fish farm near the capital. Grind them into chum and dump them in. No traces."
At my order, the two slack-jawed men suddenly found their voices and wailed.
"Sir! Mercy! We've told you everything!"
"We're innocent!"
I turned my back with a sneer.
Drassus snapped his fingers, and several burly black slaves advanced with gleaming blades.
"Aaaargh!"
I left the villa behind the screams that could have come from the end of the world.
The delegation was formed with Consul Grussis as its head. No senators wanted the job, so Grussis had to go himself, weeping as he swallowed his bitterness.
While Grussis packed at his home, I took Brinhilte to the palace.
She needed to pay respects to the emperor as his nominal "sister." When we entered with her, a secretary greeted and guided us.
"His Majesty is bathing now."
"We'll wait."
I sat in a chair by the bathhouse entrance. Brinhilte hesitated, then sat beside me.
"Sir."
"Speak freely."
I showed her proper courtesy. Nominal or not, from this moment, she was imperial family. She waved it off uncomfortably.
"No, how could I with you, sir."
"It's imperial protocol. If it's uncomfortable, do as you please."
"Yes."
She never dropped the formalities.
As we sat awkwardly, Princess Euresia appeared with her maids, apparently to bathe.
I stood, and Brinhilte followed. Euresia glanced past me at her.
"Here to see His Majesty?"
"Yes, Your Highness."
"And the woman with you—is she that rumored barbarian wife?"
Euresia asked with a mocking smile, knowing full well it wasn't true. The vixen was up to something. I hardened my expression.
"Mind your words. Princess Brinhilte has been recognized by the Senate as the adopted daughter of Emperor Marius. Choose them carefully."
Euresia covered her mouth with a pale, slender hand.
"Oh my. A barbarian becoming an imperial princess? What joke is this? I must have misheard."
She laughed.
A joke?
Anger flared inside me. I'd forced this crown on an innocent woman, banishing her to a distant land for the empire's future, swallowing my own bitterness—and she called it a joke?
"Are you dismissing the Senate's resolution as a joke, Your Highness?"
As my voice rose, Euresia, who'd been like a spitfire cat, stepped back.
"Raising your voice to me?"
"Just correcting your slight against the Senate."
"A slight? A barbarian as princess? Absurd!"
"It's done. The Senate can elevate even an emperor. You underestimate its authority."
I replied coolly.
I didn't particularly respect the Senate myself. But nominally, I followed their votes and procedures.
Yet the emperor's sister dared belittle it? I was dumbfounded.
Euresia bit her lip.
"I can't accept it. A barbarian as princess? No such law exists. How can baseborn scum without lineage join the imperial family? This is wrong."
At her blunt words, Brinhilte bowed her head.
I stepped in for her.
"Your Highness, I'm baseborn scum without lineage myself—a provincial non-citizen. That lowly upstart elevated His Majesty and brought you to court. Why follow my will then?"
Euresia clenched her fists, trembling with rage.
She glared venomously, then spun away.
"I can't talk to you, General. I'm leaving!"
"Safe travels."
As the princess stormed into the bathhouse shaking, Brinhilte's hand trembled faintly. Humiliation, shame, anger—a storm of emotions gripped her.
But in my eyes, she looked nobler than Euresia.
A princess sacrificing for her people versus a spoiled girl chasing power. No need to say which was better.
After the storm passed, the emperor emerged from his bath. I introduced Brinhilte to him.
He was stunned at having a barbarian sister but seemed enchanted by her beauty, showing no real objection. As we finished our respects and turned to leave, he asked,
"You're sending Sister Brinhilte to Ersia?"
He'd taken a liking to her looks, calling her sister.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"What's that mean?"
I caught that he was smitten.
"Politics, Your Majesty."
"B-but she just became princess today, and you're sending her off to Ersia? That's too much."
"The empire's affairs are urgent."
He kept glancing at her as he spoke.
But I can't give you the princess, Your Majesty.
My mind was set. Keeping Brinhilte at court would only complicate things.
Many resented making a barbarian an imperial daughter, even nominally—noblewomen, traditionalists valuing order and lineage.
She couldn't stay in the empire.
I had to show it was for "strategy" to quiet their complaints. Otherwise, it'd undermine my position and stir chaos in the capital.
And,
If the emperor falls for her, it gets messier. Him, Euresia, Brinhilte in a triangle—the court intrigues turn to power struggles. Stimulating that powder keg Euresia is headache enough.
Despite his interest, I repeated that the Senate's decision was final.
Finally, the young emperor took her hand with a wistful look.
"First meeting, and already farewell. Safe travels on the long road."
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
Brinhilte curtsied carefully, her voice clear—she'd steadied herself after Euresia's barbs.
On the way out, Brinhilte said,
"Thank you for defending me before the princess. In truth, I'm just a rootless barbarian princess, and I've troubled you, sir."
"Not defending. You're now a proud member of the imperial family. Don't forget that."
I met her eyes squarely. And don't forget our deal. I conveyed it with a look.
She held my gaze, then nodded.
"I'll remember your words, sir."
As we descended the palace steps, Rikius came running. I eyed the soldiers lined up behind him.
"These the Praetorians for the delegation?"
"Yes."
"Good picks."
I inspected them, hands behind my back. All sturdy veterans with fierce eyes. They wouldn't lose in spirit even in Ersia.
That covers the urgent Ersia front. Now to catch the rats in the capital.
I smelled blood, like on the battlefield.
(To be continued)