Chapter 115
Chapter 115
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 115
Chapter Title: The Scent of Deception
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“Haaah…”
Erewin let out a frail sigh as she sprawled across the bed.
Several days had passed since the incident at Enricasil had been resolved, but the trembling from that time still hadn’t faded.
‘Really…’
She had thought she might lose Damian. That the future she dreamed of might end right there.
She didn’t know Emperor Lucas’s abilities precisely. But his thought form alone had been overwhelmingly intimidating at first glance.
Even if Erewin and Boris attacked together, they wouldn’t win. Even Dallas couldn’t easily claim victory.
Under that pressure, Damian had boldly seized triumph.
He had read the thought form’s final gambit and etched his name into Enricasil’s history.
“Aah…!”
Every time he achieved something new, her heart raced.
Her own choice hadn’t been wrong. The empire’s highest seat was prepared for the two of them.
“I miss you, Damian.”
She had said they should keep their distance for a while. It was a valid reason.
Everyone had kept silent about the Enricasil raid. But gossipy people couldn’t stay completely quiet.
As a result, attention had shifted elsewhere. To Erewin and Damian’s relationship.
‘I got too excited.’
It couldn’t be helped. In the dire situation, she hadn’t been able to suppress her feelings for Damian.
Their relationship couldn’t be made public yet. Love between half-siblings was still seen as immoral, after all.
‘Idiots.’
They didn’t know the truth—that the imperial bloodline had been maintained through sibling incest.
In fact, Erewin and Damian’s bond was purer.
“How was Enricasil?”
Bang. The door flew open as Boris returned.
She had heard he was coming back from the Mage Tower, and it seemed today was the day.
“Even if we’re twins, barging into a lady’s room like this isn’t proper, is it? You should set an example as the 3rd Prince, Boris.”
“A lady? Is there a lady in this room? All I see is a crazy bitch begging for her half-brother’s seed.”
Pang! A burst of compressed air shot from Erewin’s fingertip. It left a shock mark on the wall with a deafening boom.
“What a temper.”
Boris didn’t even blink.
This kind of venting was all too familiar. The damaged wall was the palace servants’ problem.
“Not very manly of you.”
Erewin didn’t mean it either. He was still her closest blood relative, after all.
“Looks like you’ve handled things well on Damian’s side. Thanks to that, I managed to sway a few of Rubia’s people.”
Rubia, who had been attacked at the ancient ruins, was still holed up without showing her face.
The brighter she had shone, the darker the shadows when her light dimmed.
Voices praising Rubia had been matched by condemnations spreading subtly across the empire.
Boris had exploited that gap. He offered her followers a new choice.
“I don’t care if you seduce Damian with words or your body—just make sure no rumors spread. You know how all sorts of talk is going around lately? Mother dismisses it as nonsense, but if she learns the truth, it won’t end with mere anger.”
“…I know.”
Erewin shot a glance at the smirking Boris and sank into thought.
‘What to do about that guy…’
Boris was an obstacle to achieving her dream, too.
But even if he died and came back to life, he could never rival Damian.
The gap between Damian and Boris was widening.
The Damian from their first meeting at the Mage Tower was like a different person compared to now. Boris, meanwhile, had barely changed.
Before the year was out, the difference between them would be incomparable.
Among their side, the only one worth watching was Dallas. Not just for his skill, but for his ability to lead people.
‘Damian’s a bit lacking in that area.’
In Erewin’s eyes, Damian was weak at handling people.
She understood why.
The influence from his childhood, plus his own exceptional nature—he trusted only a few he acknowledged and distrusted the rest.
On top of that, his kind heart made him poor at exploiting people.
Michael, with his overwhelming talent, had no qualms about using others.
He saw everyone but himself as pawns.
‘But I’m here.’
She would fill Damian’s shortcomings. Wasn’t that the role of the empress?
“I’m going for a walk, so you go visit Mother.”
“Take your time enjoying yourself. I’ll use your room with Ciel in the meantime.”
“You crazy bastard.”
Debating the emperor from behind those walls. Sometimes, she was ashamed they were born on the same day.
“Princess Erewin. Where are you headed today? To the annex, perhaps…?”
“No, don’t worry about it. Just a short walk.”
Her maid asked with a worried expression.
Rumors that Damian and Erewin had some kind of relationship had spread faster than she’d expected.
That was why Mother had taken separate measures with the servants.
Winning over Damian was one thing; immoral rumors spreading was another entirely.
“It’s an honor to see you, Princess Erewin.”
“You look as radiant as ever today.”
“About that gathering I mentioned last time…”
Erewin passed the visitors and strolled leisurely through the palace’s inner courtyard.
Gardeners immediately cleared the gently falling leaves, so there wasn’t even a rustle underfoot.
“…You?”
“Ah!”
That was when she locked eyes with a girl hanging from a tree.
It wasn’t a face you’d see easily in the capital.
Tanned skin and exotic eyes. Anyone could tell she was from the southern deserts.
“So you’re the desert nomad Damian invited.”
“Ah… Um…”
The nomad girl, Paruzan, climbed down from the tree and glanced around nervously.
Did she not recognize Erewin’s face? Not impossible for someone from the sticks.
“I am the empire’s sole princess, Erewin von Edbalt. Since you’re a guest of my dear brother Damian, I’ll forgive your rudeness this once.”
“I-I’m Paruzan. It’s an infinite honor to meet you, Princess.”
She hadn’t been in the palace long, but her manners were impressive enough. For someone of lowly birth, she had a good head for learning.
Chin. Erewin lifted Paruzan’s chin with her finger.
The girl couldn’t resist.
She shouldn’t. For a princess to personally appraise a commoner’s looks was an honor; refusing would be irreverent.
“Not bad looking. You have a different vibe from the capital girls.”
“Th-thank you.”
Paruzan trembled as if holding something back. Tense in front of the princess, perhaps.
She had told Damian to get rid of her last time, but now Erewin thought keeping her around might be fine.
She didn’t mind women flocking to Damian. He had the kind of beauty that drew them inevitably.
Ugly ones were the problem. Even bees around a flower needed a certain class.
Paruzan was decent enough. If Damian cherished her, she could serve as a maid later.
Erewin liked her subtle scent, too. Something unique to the desert?
‘Asking here would be awkward.’
Better to have a maid check later.
“May I take my leave now, Princess?”
“Go on. Give my regards to Damian.”
Paruzan bowed deeply, climbed back up the tree, and vanished in an instant. Her movements were squirrel-like.
“Hm? What’s this…?”
A book lay where Paruzan had been.
‘If it’s from the annex…!’
Normally, she’d leave such things to underlings. But this could be an excuse to visit the annex.
‘Let’s see what book it is.’
Not some dense scholarly tome—just a collection of intriguing incidents.
Paruzan must have found it quite entertaining.
Coming from the empire’s remotest region, everything in the capital must have dazzled her.
Paruzan’s scent clung to the pages, with many corners folded.
‘Elgana…’
The name caught her eye. The worst criminal who once plunged the empire into terror.
Erewin hadn’t been born when it happened.
But it had been so shocking that she’d heard plenty from those around her.
‘Come to think of it, Ezekiel—Damian’s teacher—stopped Elgana.’
The incident that earned him his “eccentric” moniker.
Common belief was that Elgana was killed by Ezekiel, but the author thought otherwise.
Investigations showed Elgana could transform into others.
There were even testimonies of him living as a noble after leaving the Mage Tower.
So beware, empire—don’t let your guard down.
That worst criminal might still lurk among you, plotting his next chance.
The ending was almost novelistic. But if he were alive, it’d be thrilling.
‘Wait a minute…’
Dallas’s butler suddenly came to mind. The man connected to Rubia.
Dallas had said he was skilled, but his true identity was unknown.
‘…No way.’
Erewin shook her head. The empire’s worst criminal hiding in the palace? Absurd.
‘Still, maybe look into it?’
Questioning Dallas directly was impossible, so she planned to hire someone.
Commission the adventurers’ guild, but give them direction.
Assume Dallas’s butler is Elgana. Gather related materials on that premise.
And a few days later.
“No way. No way. No way…”
It was a casual hypothesis. But the gathered evidence proved it true.
“Such a monster in the palace… Urk!”
Her stomach churned suddenly. But she didn’t vomit.
Elgana had killed countless people.
His active regions still had memorials too numerous to count.
That monster in the palace? As 2nd Prince Dallas’s confidant? What was his goal?
“…Th-this isn’t the time to shake. If I use this right.”
Elgana did have ties to Rubia.
All that was certain was they discussed magic, but they might have talked more.
No—meeting him knowing his identity was the issue.
If she could prove it solidly, toppling Rubia would be easy.
No matter how favored by magic she was, Rubia couldn’t defy the entire empire.
Naturally, 1st Prince Michael—betrothed to Rubia—would lose status. Erewin and Damian’s greatest foe.
‘Unclear how much Brother Dallas knows.’
Better if he knew and allowed it. Then she could knock him out of the race, too.
“Heh heh heh. Damian, Damian. Look forward to it. The day our dream comes true isn’t far off.”
* * *
Meanwhile, in a room at the annex. Erewin’s soliloquy was transmitted via a magic tool.
A device Damian had attached to the planted evidence.
“…With a brain like that, she’s the empire’s sole princess? Even we didn’t expect her to fall for it this easily, even if we planned it.”
“Damian. Plan. Too. Successful. Suspicious.”
Paruzan and Shakiya tilted their heads. They hadn’t expected Erewin to fall into the trap so readily.
“Lucky for us.”
Faking the evidence had been simple.
He had info from pre-regression talks with Rubia and interrogations of loyalists.
Plus Shakiya’s help.
“Still, things progressed this fast thanks to this perfume.”
Damian shook a small perfume bottle. A prototype from Dylan.
It dulled the inhaler’s focus excellently, with mild addictiveness.
‘Didn’t expect them to produce it so quickly. Worth the investment.’
His request got a reply in days. Apparently made from plants harvested in Mirror Lake’s cave.
Damian had Paruzan apply it to her body, then arranged contact with Erewin.
More effective than gifting it—let her succumb to the scent by chance.
“Ugh… I never want to smell that again.”
“You did well.”
Paruzan shuddered.
Her keen sense of smell meant she’d been affected despite plugging her nose. Not a pleasant experience.
“Preparations are complete.”
Regardless of the truth, few would believe Erewin.
Just thinking about it revealed huge flaws.
But that was fine. Damian wanted the chaos that would ensue.
“Go wild, sis.”
For now, that repulsive Erewin was proving useful.