Chapter 245
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 245
—To the future Crown Princess, I offer my humble greetings.
I sincerely congratulate you on reaching your adulthood.
How have you been?
As for me.
Benjamin Fluers, the Crown Prince of the Sorsen Kingdom, paused his quill as he wrote.
—As for me.
“I am doing well,” Benjamin murmured in a low voice. Of course, these were words he couldn't bring himself to put on paper.
“I am doing well…”
No, in truth.
Yes, in truth.
“…”
I am not doing well at all.
I am yearning for you.
I spend my days and nights living off the crumbs of pity you once gave me.
And so.
“…I am doing well.”
It feels as though you have become a scar upon me.
One I have no intention of erasing.
I suspect I will live my entire life this way.
I want my whole body to be filled with traces of you.
“…”
Since when?
Since when did you begin to flow through me like my own blood?
“…”
Unable to write a single word, his nib merely hovered over the paper, forced to swallow ink time and time again.
“Your Highness Benjamin!”
It was then that the door swung open. Benjamin raised his eyes, his golden pupils shining like raw silk.
In the Sorsen Royal Palace, only one person was capable of such a rude intrusion.
“What is it, Sir Trini?”
Sir Trini, the man Tulia had sent to him. He had now been granted the formidable title of Commander of the Sorsen Crown Prince’s Direct Knights, but…
Inwardly, Benjamin always thought of Trini as something closer to a nanny. Or perhaps, like the first gift Tulia had ever given him.
Still, they had built a relationship of solid trust. This wasn't so bad.
“A conflict has broken out between the Grand Ducal House of Frezier, the Brillant Imperial Family, and the Holy Nation!”
Benjamin’s gaze darkened instantly.
“Who is the primary aggressor?”
“The Grand Ducal House of Frezier is leading the charge! They have dispatched their knights to the Holy Nation, holding them accountable for the poisoning of the Saintess!”
“They sent knights to the Grand Temple…”
Benjamin let out a short, dry laugh.
“I’ve scoured history books, and I’ve never seen anything like this.”
“What shall we do, Your Highness?”
In such a case, the Sorsen Kingdom was also required to dispatch a delegation to the Alliance Association, in accordance with the agreements of the Great Kingdom Alliance.
“Assemble a delegation. Send Count Buchicus at the head, and keep Sorsen’s position strictly neutral. Leave the rest to the Ministry of Rites.”
“Yes, sir!”
The Sorsen Kingdom was already completely within Benjamin’s grasp. Not a single person remained who paid any mind to the King, who had become a vegetable.
“Sir Trini.”
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“You said Frezier is the core of the search party.”
“That is correct!”
“And Grand Princess Tulia. Is she also…”
Benjamin’s voice grew low and raspy, like someone whose vocal cords were bruised.
“Did she go to the Grand Temple as well?”
“Yes, Your Highness Benjamin. It is reported that she is effectively in command of the Frezier knights dispatched to the Grand Temple.”
Benjamin stared into the empty air for a moment. Dust motes drifted slowly in the sunlight. Those insignificant things would scatter forever beneath the light.
They would gladly dive in, grateful for the warmth.
Even if that light wasn't shining for them alone.
So, it didn't matter.
It hadn't mattered from the very beginning.
“Prepare yourself. We’re going to the Grand Temple.”
“Understood, Your Highness.”
As soon as Trini hurried out, Benjamin stood up. He opened the deepest, most secret drawer of his desk.
This massive desk was equipped with nine complex keyholes arranged like a labyrinth; if the wrong key was inserted even once, the maze would only grow more intricate.
Inside this complex secret drawer lay nothing other than a single map.
It was an item so precious that it would be difficult to obtain even for a fortune.
It was a map detailing the entirety of the Grand Temple.
Even for a family of Count rank or higher, a map showing the structure of a lord’s castle was treated as top secret. The Grand Temple was on another level entirely.
When he had been approached with a deal to secretly kidnap and sell children, Benjamin had laughed at them. He had never intended to accept such a deal in the first place.
However, at the time, Benjamin was in a state of greed so intense he wouldn't let a single grain of sand slip through his fingers.
To have Tulia, to buy her.
Because it was a time when he was greedily amassing all the wealth in the world.
Using a bit of luck and his sharp trading skills, Benjamin had secretly acquired this priceless map. And he had kept it stored in the deepest of places.
Sir Trini’s report echoed in his head.
“The Kingdom Alliance plans to formally protest this situation to the Brillant Imperial Family and the Grand Ducal House of Frezier…”
Benjamin tilted his chin slightly. He didn't care if the Saintess was poisoned, crushed to death, or starved. Whether she lived or died was of no concern to him.
But if a certain woman was involved, the story changed. It changed completely.
Tulia Frezier, who ruthlessly cut away anything she disliked, whenever and however she chose.
If she differed from other power players, it was that her standards were exceptionally high. Though she herself didn't seem to realize it.
Tulia—Tulia Frezier—had a high moral bar for herself. A Grand Princess so noble that he couldn't help but love her.
What she needed right now, more than anything, was time.
Benjamin tucked the map into his robes and stood up.
* * *
“…I thought there would be enough time.”
I stood with my arms crossed, leaning slightly to one side.
“But it looks like there won't be.”
A search party of over ten thousand, including knights and soldiers, was ransacking the Grand Temple indiscriminately.
And yet, what they had found was…
‘109 secret spaces?’
And they were still searching. The Grand Temple was far too vast and excessively secretive.
So, where is it?
Where exactly are they taking the children to kill them?
Where do I have to go to see the truth I’m looking for!
‘The abyssal horror is that there might be even more.’
We immediately began searching the secret spaces we discovered. But it wasn't easy. The priests treated the knights like servants of Satan, yet clung to them like leeches.
It was so bad that even Leon Frezier ran a hand through his hair and spat out in annoyance.
“Wow, damn. These bastards are really getting on my nerves. Should I just kill them all and go to hell?”
Should we?!
Should we just head to hell together?!
Should I show them a mass slaughter that will go down in history?!
Of course, I only said it; I couldn't actually do it.
“Tulia.”
“Brother Lisian!”
I hurried toward him. Lisian was wearing a silver-shining helmet, and when he raised the visor, his dreamily beautiful face was revealed.
“I heard… the Alliance… has set out.”
“The Kingdom Alliance? That was fast.”
A smirk played on my lips.
“I didn't expect the High Priests to act so quickly.”
“The Alliance… will likely… op-oppose… Frezier and the Imperial Family’s search… of the Grand Temple.”
“Then that means we’ll have to back down.”
“Tulia.”
I looked up from my deep, frowning thoughts.
“Yeah?”
“If… you want.”
Lisian’s eyes sparkled softly with a deep light.
“I will… declare… war.”
For a moment, I doubted my ears.
“War?”
“Yes.”
“Against the Kingdom Alliance?”
“Yes.”
“No! No, Brother. It’s okay. A war, of all things!”
“Tulia.”
Lisian spoke as he retied the ribbon on my cloak.
“When I was young… I made… a p-promise… to Mother.”
His touch was so delicate it felt like a feather tickling my cheek.
“That if… there was something… I decided to protect… I should protect it… even if I had to… give everything.”
The thought that flashed through my mind was that he truly was the son of my mother, who was born of the Guardian’s bloodline. How could someone be so bold and cool?
I asked back playfully on purpose.
“So you’re protecting me because I’m your sister?”
“No.”
“No?”
“Tulia.”
Lisian’s smile deepened.
“You… won't remember… but…”
“…Yes?”
“When I was… very young… I swore… an oath… to protect you… as my only… l-lady.”
“As your lady?”
This was truly the first I’d heard of it, so I blinked in surprise.
“When? I don't remember that at all.”
“It was… when you were… one year old.”
“Huh?”
Doubtful of my own ears, I asked again.
“How old was I? One?”
“Yes.”
A gentle laughter laced every word Lisian spoke.
“When you were… one year old.”
Wasn't that just babies playing around?
I smiled brightly, thinking lightly of it.
“What kind of knight’s oath is that?”
“I was… sincere.”
“…”
Lisian gave a faint smile. Soft shadows fell across his moon-like face. It was a countenance where an elegant smile lingered.
“Is it… funny?”
I shook my head as if entranced.
Lisian, with a face like yours, anything you do seems perfectly fine…
Eventually, Lisian laughed out loud.
“Of course… it was… before I was even… d-dubbed a knight…”
“…”
“I will… protect you. Tulia.”
For some reason, the tip of my nose felt prickly.
Come to think of it.
Even in The Milk Bread, Lisian had never offered a knight’s oath to Corico.
I had just brushed it off back then, but thinking about it now…
Perhaps it was because he had already sworn a knight’s oath to his one-year-old sister that Lisian never gave one to Corico, who was supposed to be his female lead.
I rubbed my eyes, which were turning red for no reason, and said, “If I ever want to start a war, I’ll be sure to tell you, Brother.”
Lisian picked up the back of my hand and kissed it, answering with a smile.
“Please do.”