Chapter 48
Chapter 48
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 48
Chapter Title: The Price of Sin
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The door opened shortly after the moon rose. It was no surprise that it swung open without so much as a knock. It was Asherad, as expected. Daphne wasn't particularly startled.
Blue moonlight cast deep shadows across his face. Daphne gazed not at Asherad himself, but at his long, stretched shadow.
She reached out toward the approaching shadow. Her hand's shadow overlapped with his, and she stroked it repeatedly with her fingers.
Naturally, the shadow offered no tactile sensation. It merely curved over her fingers like a veil. Daphne stared at the shadow that passed straight through her hand, seeking its substance.
The man's mood seemed foul today.
"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Those were his first words upon seeing her. Daphne was caught off guard. What did he mean, why hadn't she told him?
"Daphne."
He stared at her wordlessly, then extended his hand. Daphne yielded to his touch.
"I'm asking why you didn't tell me that woman was causing you trouble."
"That woman..."
"I'm talking about the Empress Dowager."
"......"
Asherad caressed Daphne's cheek and leaned down. His sharp eyes met hers. Daphne held his gaze.
Confusion swirled within her.
Why was he pretending not to know?
Hadn't this been the man who, three years ago, tracked down her escape, captured her, and killed Fabian?
Pretending ignorance despite knowing everything was utterly repulsive. Well, even if he truly hadn't known, it didn't matter. For an emperor to remain ignorant meant he simply hadn't bothered to find out.
But he was definitely feigning ignorance. Out of embarrassment, perhaps?
"Well, she's officially your mother, after all."
Daphne decided to play along with his tune. She put on a shy expression, biting her lip just like that ragged maidservant from before.
"And incidents like this... I'm used to them."
His ears must have stung at her added remark. Asherad pressed her earlobe firmly with his thumbnail. As she shot him a questioning look, he lifted the corner of his mouth.
"Used to it..."
"......"
"Yes, that's right."
For a fleeting moment, an inexplicable glint flickered across his face. It resembled regret at one glance, disgust at another. As Daphne lifted her head to say something about that ambiguity, Asherad spoke.
"I'll make sure nothing like this happens to you again."
"......"
"That woman won't insult you anymore."
"It's fine."
Daphne replied brightly. She wore an awkward expression, mumbling as if overwhelmingly honored by this special treatment.
"Her Imperial Highness the Empress Dowager naturally despises me. I'm the daughter of a criminal, after all."
Asherad fixed her with a chilling gaze. For some reason, her words twisted his expression even further. Pretending not to notice, she added,
"But it's still better than that old mouse-hole lodging. I can eat delicious food, get pretty things, and sleep in warmth, so I can endure that much."
Daphne beamed.
Asherad stared at her intently. It was the look of someone trying to discern the truth. Naturally, Asherad would spot any crack in her facade.
No matter how well she composed herself, he had a devilish knack for finding her vulnerabilities.
He would pry them open, shatter her again, and whisper sweetly into those gaps as he held her.
"But, Your Majesty... I have one request."
"......"
"I... um..."
"What is it?"
"......Well."
Daphne's lips trembled. She bit them hard, as if unable to bring herself to speak. Then, a hand settled on her shoulder.
"Come on, tell me."
Asherad was the one urging her. Daphne's eyes widened. Why was he so impatient?
Hadn't he always been indifferent to her circumstances? Yet now he looked desperate, like a suitor in courtship.
Before his patience ran out, she squeezed her eyes shut and blurted it out.
"I want all those maidservants dismissed."
"What?"
Daphne opened her eyes and looked at Asherad.
"The ones who didn't take my side when Her Imperial Highness unjustly scolded me."
"......Ah."
Asherad's face lit with recognition. Daphne, unsure what he might say, hurriedly added whatever came to mind out of fear.
"When Her Imperial Highness pushed me, they didn't even hold me back."
No. Daphne quickly realized this wasn't just "whatever"—it held a measure of sincerity. She wanted to punish them.
It was a base instinct, but there it was.
"I want them fired. Driven out."
Daphne looked up at Asherad. The authority over the maidservants' appointments lay with the lady of the Imperial Palace, Callista.
More precisely, her proxy, the head maidservant. A mere concubine couldn't decide on her own.
Daphne eyed Asherad cautiously. This was to gauge just how much leeway he had granted her.
Jewels, clothes, fine meals, strolls—those were trivial. What she could do here mattered more.
Her hesitation had been to lay the groundwork, in case he refused outright; she'd convince herself to accept it. From what Daphne knew, Asherad despised foolishness. Blindly begging for something was "stupid."
It was crucial to convey that she knew it might not be possible but had no choice except to ask.
"Ah, yes. Of course. I forgot."
What did he mean? Asherad smiled gently. His eyes sparkled with delight—different from when she pleaded for a dress.
"If they upset you, then it's only right. Those wretched things."
Asherad snapped his fingers. At once, the door opened, and his attendant Leon entered.
"You called, Your Majesty?"
"Bring the maidservants who attended Daphne today."
What was he thinking? Would Asherad personally deliver their dismissal?
"I could just tell them myself..."
"Be quiet."
Asherad gently stroked Daphne's hair. She nodded, and he gave her a soft smile.
It wasn't the caress that pleased her so much as the chills it sent down her spine.
It wasn't long before the maidservants arrived—they weren't far off. There were five of them. Their cheeks were all puffy, undoubtedly from taking the brunt of Callista's wrath.
Asherad regarded the maidservants impassively and spoke.
"I've summoned you today to reprimand you for failing in your duties."
He stared at them with a stern demeanor he hadn't shown Daphne. It was utterly unfamiliar.
'Did that wench report us?'
The maidservants shot Daphne a venomous glance before prostrating themselves. Obviously, they assumed she had snitched.
In truth, Callista had committed the gravest offense, but they were the ones left holding the bag, so their resentment was understandable. Seeing their glares, Asherad said,
"Therefore, you will all be made an example through execution."
In an instant, her heart plummeted with a thud.
An eerie silence fell. They stared at one another with bulging eyes.
"Your Majesty, what do you mean?"
Daphne had never wanted executions, not in the slightest. It was true. She grabbed Asherad's arm, but he rejected it, instead clasping her hand tightly. It felt like encouragement.
"Drag them away."
At Asherad's crisp command, the Imperial Palace knights guarding outside entered. The clank of their armor resembled funeral bells.
Realizing it might be real, terror seized the maidservants' faces.
"P-Please spare us!"
"Mercy, Your Majesty!"
"Spaaaare us!"
Daphne's face drained of color as they screamed like the damned. She had only meant dismissal. Absolutely, this was not her intention.
Asherad gazed down at the wailing women with the indifference one might show vermin.
"Your Majesty."
Daphne called to him urgently. Asherad shifted his gaze from the maidservants to her.
A smile crept across his face.
"Why?"
Why? Did he not know why? These maidservants hadn't committed crimes warranting death. They had merely been rude to her. That was all!
"You said you'd dismiss them!"
"Sorry, Daphne. I never promised that."
"......"
"But I do agree they were negligent in serving you."
His voice was as smooth as velvet. Daphne glanced at the kneeling maidservants. They all wore desperate expressions. Whether they'd neglected her, insulted her openly, mocked or tormented her before she became the emperor's favorite—it didn't matter.
"It's not a capital crime."
Yes. It wasn't a crime deserving death.
"It is a capital crime."
To Asherad, it was. He looked straight into Daphne's eyes and declared,
"They made you angry."
"......That's."
"You didn't think I wouldn't know they tormented you, did you?"
"......"
"It was just the right time to make an example. Kill them."