Chapter 96
Chapter 96
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 96
Chapter Title: Night Yaksha (1)
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Camellia Palace was suffering from a severe headache due to the continuously swelling crowds lately.
It was all because of the business Cecilia had recently started.
"So, we need to revise the design for this part like this..."
"Tailor! Where's the tailor!"
"The fit's all wrong! Get me some pins!"
"The stuff on shelf C31, right? That... What? Another team took it already? You idiot! I told you to reserve it ahead of time!"
"Where's the model? When's the model supposed to show up who was scheduled for this time? Send someone to check now! Every second counts!"
With countless people scurrying all over the palace, it was hard to even tell who was who.
The butlers and maids moved about with half-resigned expressions, merely replenishing snacks and drinks to keep the guests from going hungry.
"...This place is getting more chaotic by the minute."
Kirson let out a hollow chuckle as he entered Camellia Palace alongside the workshop folks laden with ordered goods.
Not a single servant left to greet new guests.
The business hadn't even officially launched yet—how could it already be this hectic?
'They said it's extra crazy finishing the dresses and formalwear for the upcoming Suseon Palace social party, right?'
Cecilia's clothes he'd glimpsed in passing were all exceptional in design and fabric.
Even discerning Kirson had been genuinely impressed.
The problem lay in the sales approach.
No matter how superior the product quality, without proper promotion, it was doomed.
Especially for Cecilia's haute couture, word-of-mouth was everything.
Securing that first customer was crucial.
'Theo's rising fame lately means no worries there... but it also means massive risks.'
Just as Kirson was about to put his pipe in his mouth.
"You're here, Mother?"
Cecilia spotted him late and approached with a slightly weary face.
Dark circles shadowed her eyes, but they sparkled with vigorous life.
Vitality.
The very sparkle Kirson had fallen for when he first saw her on stage long ago.
"Yes. I brought everything you requested... but you know the payment from last time is reaching its limit, right? I've told you over and over—no credit here."
"Yes, I'm fully aware. There's a major social party in a few days, and the shop will open right on time, so once orders start rolling in, cash flow should ease up. In fact, inquiries for quotes are already trickling in through back channels."
"Well, if you're handling it, I suppose I have nothing more to say."
Cecilia was managing her maiden venture remarkably well.
Still, wasn't fretting over a child's endeavors a universal parent trait?
Cecilia seemed to sense his thoughts and smirked.
"I won't overdo it, so don't worry. If something truly tricky comes up, I'll consult you."
"Ahem! If you put it that way."
Another universal parent truth: no matter how grown the child, their spoiled moments were never unwelcome.
Kirson cleared his throat awkwardly, unable to stop his lips from twitching upward.
"Ah, but more importantly, is it really okay for you to be out here all the time?"
Kirson suddenly shifted topics as a thought struck him.
Cecilia tilted her head.
"Something happen? Oh, the treatment for the captains Young Master asked about—is that done?"
"That's underway with nerve reconnection, no issues there. No, it's about Rose Palace news."
"Rose Palace... news?"
Cecilia's eyes quivered faintly.
"Figures you're too buried in outside work to notice. Even so, it's your son at the center of it all."
"S-something happened to Young Master?"
Cecilia urgently grabbed Kirson's collar.
"Gah, ack! Let go and talk! And I've told you countless times—that kid's got a dozen foxes scheming in his head! What could possibly happen to a guy like that!"
"Then...!"
"This morning, he lopped off Third Wife's head. Pinned rebellion charges on the Central Intelligence Chief."
"......!"
Kirson lightly puffed his pipe before continuing.
*Whoo—*
"That's got the outside in an uproar. Better watch yourself. Folks'll swarm like a pack of dogs."
"Is that so? As long as Young Master is unharmed."
"Huh? Yeah, that's what I heard."
Kirson blinked.
Cecilia's reaction wasn't what he'd expected.
He thought she'd be thrilled, but she seemed far too nonchalant.
"Good. Thanks for telling me. I have another meeting, so I'll head in."
Cecilia bowed and returned to the palace.
Her demeanor unchanged from usual.
"......"
Kirson stood dazed, pipe in mouth, scratching his head.
* * *
'Emil... is dead.'
Cecilia's mind swirled with tangled thoughts as she walked to the meeting room.
She'd acted as casual as possible with Kirson.
But she couldn't truly remain unaffected.
There was no meeting waiting, in fact.
'Emil is dead...'
Cecilia strictly ordered no one to enter, then sat alone in the empty room, covering her face with both hands.
Memories of torments from Emil and her son flooded her mind one by one.
Malicious rumors branding her a seductress and wastrel for entering Rose Palace, fixated on Kyle and estranged from her mother.
The atmosphere sidelining unremarkable Theo, finger-pointing him as a cripple.
The Central Intelligence Bureau's repeated assassination threats to drive out their mother-son duo.
To protect Theo, she'd lived each day on a knife's edge.
That might explain why she'd pushed him so hard.
-This powerless, worthless mother of yours will die someday soon, leaving no one to shield Young Master. What will you do then?
When had she realized it?
Cecilia had instinctively known her life was short.
Whether by assassination or some unknown illness.
A vague sense she'd have only a few years left.
The ominous atmosphere closing in on mother and son only intensified it.
Sometimes she dreamed of being framed and mounted on the guillotine.
Theo gazing at her with sorrowful eyes.
Don't follow this worthless mother's path, Young Master. Seek your own happiness.
She should have said it from the start... Sorry it's so late.
So please, leave this place.
Run away, Young Master.
'...But Young Master changed a fate that might have led there.'
How much bitter hardship had he endured to reach this point?
Tears welled up at the thought.
Then,
"Use this."
Someone suddenly offered a handkerchief from beside her.
"Head maid...? I said no one enters."
"Yes. That was the plan."
The head maid gave a wry smile and glanced at the door.
"Kirson insisted it be delivered personally..."
"Ah."
Cecilia recalled Kirson's final wry smile.
Mother knew.
Mother understood this worthless daughter's heart.
Cecilia took the handkerchief.
A small note was tucked inside.
Don't cry. It doesn't suit you.
Only one look fits you: when you vex this mother. Be confident like that always. Arrogantly overlook the world. That's when you shine brightest.
That's why you're this Kirson's one and only daughter.
A faint smile touched Cecilia's lips.
Then, unbidden, laughter burst out.
P.S. If you must cry, do it for this poor mother whose wallet gets ransacked by that naughty grandson every time. I'll overlook that.
'That part feels the most sincere.'
Cecilia finally shook off her heavy heart and rose.
Thoughts of Emil and her son had vanished completely from her mind.
* * *
-The Central Intelligence Chief plotted rebellion!
No sooner had Theo's rumors shaken Winterer than new ones struck.
Rebellion by Anti-Dragon, one of the Nine Dragons.
If by the Central Intelligence Bureau—Ragnar's true core—no one could ignore it.
Some dismissed it as rumor.
But public opinion flipped at the sight of heads impaled at Ragnar's main gate.
Starting with Third Wife Emil Troyvan,
Heads of Central Intelligence Bureau's Second Deputy Chief Morgan and key executives, Quadrock of Ceres Merchant Group, and other involved parties—all strung up in a row.
Drip, drip...
Freshly severed heads bled, staining the ground crimson.
And the placards below bluntly detailed the incident.
The above criminals conspired long with Class-1 offender Ed Troyvan to siphon family secrets...
But the most shocking part was at the placard's bottom.
...This rebellion plot traces back to the eastern great house Troyvan and the heretical Demon Cult.
-W-what's this?
-Troyvan and Demon Cult colluding with Anti-Dragon? No—Anti-Dragon was their puppet?
-Disgusting...! How could he do that while basking in Ragnar's favor?
-Troyvan as Anti-Dragon's birth family, fine—but Demon Cult out of nowhere? The imperial family's declared them heretical cult! Anti-Dragon must've lost his mind!
-What of the Family Head? Any word?
Crowds swarmed the placards.
Numbers swelled endlessly.
...Thus Ragnar demands of Troyvan and Demon Cult.
What did you plot against Ragnar? 72 hours' grace. The Lord of Winter Mountains' wrath shall depend on your answer.
The declaration, tantamount to war, made all shudder.
-War!
-War might erupt any moment!
-The Dragon's fury will turn the east to ash!
From somewhere.
A bloodwind seemed to blow.
* * *
Winterer's rumor epicenter was undoubtedly Theo.
He'd exposed Axion's disposal, Emil's decapitation, Ed's defection.
New rumors about him spread rampant.
-'Night Yaksha' might stand as close to the throne as the Five Candidates.
Talk even swirled of dubbing him the 'Sixth Candidate.'
But.
The rumor protagonist Theo faced unwelcome news.
"Ed Troyvan... is missing, you say?"
Evelyn nodded gravely.
"Just in from Klevel. Black Dragon personally raided Anti-Dragon's summon site, but he'd fled long before."
"...He sacrificed his own brother as bait and bolted."
They'd planned swift closure before Ed noticed, but the sly fox had sensed and escaped.
Still, what a ruthless bastard.
However urgent, how could he abandon sibling and subordinates?
'No—perhaps that's why no one here spotted his flight?'
Meaning Ed had prepared them as scapegoats from the start.
A sudden realization hit.
'Wait. Then...?'
"Black Snow's pursuing for now, so let's wait a bit mo—why the sudden face?"
"The First Armory! The one only Family Head can enter—what of it?"
Evelyn wondered at Theo's abrupt query but assumed reason and nodded.
"I'll check."
Moments later.
"...Fire's raging out of control, total chaos. How'd you know?"
Theo covered his face with his hand.
'Too late.'
The First Armory was Ed's longtime pet project.
Site of the 'Dragon Bow's Ghost Sword' from his memories.
Sensing trouble, Ed had raided it first, snatching the relic.
'Good thing I recovered this earring and ring, but I'll still need to retrieve them together eventually.'
Just then, as Theo thought that.
[Quest arrived.]
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[Scenario Quest #3]
Your past life's nemesis stole the relic you must claim. But you lack the power to reclaim it yet. Gain recognition from the two recovered relics via level-up.
· Current Progress: 0/2
· Difficulty: A+
· Reward: Ownership of two relics
· Failure: Death
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In that instant, his inventory vibrated.
As if urging him to take something out.