Chapter 187
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 187
“F-Father…”
It was then.
“You’ve raised your son quite well, Your Majesty.”
At the sound of that heavy voice, sharp with biting criticism, Dave’s face turned as white as a sheet.
I couldn't help but blink in surprise myself.
“Grandfather?”
Ah. So the reason the Emperor stepped away for a moment was to receive Grandfather.
I hadn't expected Grandfather to attend the Victory Banquet in person, so the Emperor must have caught him and talked his ear off for a while.
And while he was at it, he probably brought Ferdinand, Benjamin, and Klaus along to proudly introduce them.
As if to prove my theory right, the three male leads who had followed the Emperor out of the hall earlier were now walking back in behind him.
Klaus, in particular, looked at me with sparkling eyes, but I didn't even have the luxury to acknowledge him.
“My granddaughter is as lovely as ever today.”
Grandfather’s voice was full of tenderness as he called out to me.
And…
As usual, he began his usual nonsense—no, his doting—no, his…
Anyway, Grandfather displayed his usual behavior without restraint, causing the nobles' eyes to widen in shock.
That’s right. Do you see this? I am the granddaughter loved by this powerful man.
I was a fox riding on a tiger’s back. I wanted everyone to know they should be careful and crawl before me.
I felt inwardly smug, but I was also amazed that Grandfather had arrived so quickly.
If someone didn't know better, they’d think he flew to the Imperial Capital within ten minutes of receiving my letter. Hahaha.
While I laughed to myself, Grandfather’s expression quickly turned cold again.
He was already a man of massive stature, and he stood at the very pinnacle of the high nobility.
Even I had trembled in fear when I first met him; how frozen must everyone else be when he wore such an expression?
“Your Majesty.”
It seemed Emperor Alexander was no exception.
“The Second Imperial Prince is already showing such violent tendencies. As your subject, I cannot help but be deeply concerned for the future of the Empire.”
“…I have shown you a pathetic sight, Grand Duke Frezier. My son is still very young and lacks discretion.”
Emperor Alexander spoke while glaring at Dave.
“I was under the impression he was of a similar age to my granddaughter… Very well. It would be unseemly to demand an apology from my sovereign.”
Grandfather said the words, but his terrifying gaze remained fixed on Dave.
They say that if you lock eyes with an angry tiger, you’ll fall ill from the sheer pressure.
Grandfather’s eyes were exactly like that.
His dark green eyes shimmered with a murderous intent as sharp as a poisoned blade.
Dave was trembling so hard he didn't even dare to meet Grandfather’s gaze.
Furthermore.
“Tulia.”
Papa’s here too!
Given the setting, I decided to call out to him in a more formal and elegant manner rather than my usual way.
“Father?”
“You aren't hurt. Thank goodness.”
It seemed I had addressed him correctly.
That’s right. Since Papa was out fighting on the Border Front, maintaining a dignified image was important.
“If you had been even slightly injured, your Papa would never have been able to sleep in peace.”
Well. I guess not.
As I decided that I should just call him 'Papa' regardless of the setting from now on, the banquet was hurtling toward a massive catastrophe.
There was only one reason.
“Imperial Father.”
It was because the Crown Prince had suddenly dropped to one knee before the Emperor.
Could there be another man as beautiful as him in this world?
The nobles' gazes followed Ferdinand’s every movement. Their eyes looked as though they were enchanted by an actor on a stage.
“I dare to ask once more that you grant the request I submitted previously.”
The Emperor’s brow twitched. And for a split second, I saw it clearly—the Emperor cast a very brief, sharp glance toward Grandfather.
“I told you we would discuss that matter later—at the very least, after your Victory Banquet was over, Crown Prince.”
“With all due respect, since the Head of House Frezier is present, would it not be appropriate to speak of it here?”
What is it?
My wonder was short-lived.
Words that would turn the entire hall upside down burst from Ferdinand’s lips.
“I wish to annul my engagement with Lady Sophia Frezier.”
* * *
Crash!
The moment Empress Carmi hurled her teacup, every servant in the Empress’s Palace immediately prostrated themselves.
Regardless of their rank, their backs were drenched in cold sweat.
“Since when… since when…!”
Carmi’s beautiful face was hideously distorted.
She couldn't even begin to grasp when things had started going so wrong.
Olivia, the former Empress?
She was nothing more than a handful of dust who had lost her husband to Carmi and died.
The Crown Prince, who looked exactly like Olivia, was also nothing more than a weed—someone who had been mocked and disregarded by everyone due to his fatal disability.
“Investigate the news from the Crown Prince’s Palace in detail. Find out exactly when, how, and by what means the Crown Prince grew. If a priest helped him, find out every single one of their weaknesses.”
Empress Carmi’s voice was devoid of inflection, but it was laced with a chill as cold as a sub-zero winter. It felt devoid of any humanity.
“I will look into it immediately, Your Majesty.”
The Head Maid of the Empress’s Palace nodded and withdrew with hurried steps.
If no one else knew, the Head Maid—Carmi’s confidante—knew well.
She knew that beneath the title of the ‘Sunshine Empress,’ Carmi actually possessed a cruel streak.
She also knew how much of an inferiority complex Carmi harbored toward Empress Olivia and Crown Prince Ferdinand…
It had been fine as long as everything remained beneath the surface.
But now…
A bead of cold sweat rolled down the Head Maid’s forehead as she hurried through the palace.
The problem was today’s banquet.
The Emperor had slapped the Second Imperial Prince, Dave, and then the Grand Duke and Marquis Frezier had appeared and openly questioned the Second Prince’s qualifications.
And so…
The biggest problem is that Her Majesty’s plans have been completely derailed.
The Head Maid’s fleeting gaze flickered toward a large warehouse on one side of the palace.
That place had recently been filled with an enormous amount of tribute that Empress Carmi had personally prepared.
Dozens of bottles of rare, fine wine whose scent was said to cover an entire island once opened; tens of thousands of bolts of lace as thin as spiderwebs, intricately embroidered by master artisans; top-quality pearls and various rare jewels that felt as soft as a baby’s skin when held in one's hands.
And that wasn't all. There was also a hoard of rosewood furniture personally sourced from haughty foreign artisans who were famous for only taking orders from families of ducal rank or higher.
These were all treasures Empress Carmi had prepared with her private funds to secure the betrothal between Tulia Frezier and the Second Imperial Prince, Dave.
But in the end, those tributes would never see the light of day. Like pearls inside a tightly shut clam, they would only gather moss in vain.
Because…
* * *
“I shall grant the annulment of the engagement between the Crown Prince and Sophia Frezier!”
At Emperor Alexander’s angry voice, the seated nobles didn't even dare to breathe.
The Grand Council Chamber.
In the Brillant Empire, many regular meetings were held in the presence of the Emperor, and the Grand Council meeting held today was one of the largest.
And today, at this gathering, Emperor Alexander officially issued the Annulment Decree for the Crown Prince.
The Emperor looked down with cold eyes.
Beneath the glorious Imperial throne, Ferdinand stood with his eyes cast down.
The Crown Prince’s calm demeanor didn't matter.
The problem was the group of noblewomen wailing and causing a scene behind him.
“Your Majesty! Please, rescind your order!”
“Your Majesty! Such a sudden Annulment Decree! Our daughter has done nothing wrong; we cannot possibly accept this!”
The person wailing the loudest at the front was none other than Aubrey Frezier—the Viscountess who had recently been completely ousted from power within the Grand Ducal House due to family matters.
Unlike Aubrey’s screaming relatives, Sophia Frezier stood there trembling, her face deathly pale.
She looked half-insane, appearing like a commoner on the verge of suffocating from the pressure of standing in such a place.
“Silence!”
The Emperor slammed his hand down on the armrest.
“Ferdinand Cassel Ewigkeit!”
He asked in a voice as sharp as frost, his anger evident.
“This annulment was clearly requested by you! Is that not so?”
In an instant, all eyes turned toward Ferdinand.
To be precise, the gazes that had been stealing glances since earlier now had a justification to look at the Crown Prince openly.