Chapter 84: Do You Think the Emperor Loves You?
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 84: Do You Think the Emperor Loves You?
[It is a truly wicked thing. If the residue is this strong, it might be the poison forbidden by the Archdemon.]
‘The poison forbidden by the Archdemon?’
Hearing those words, I glanced back. Marianne and Luciano had been quietly following behind me for a while now.
How on earth did a temple acolyte end up poisoned by a demon?
Was that why he had sought refuge in the temple? I wondered to myself as I kept walking.
‘Have any of you ever used poison on a human?’
[Of course not. We would never do such a thing.]
[Exactly! Our contractors don’t deal in that kind of filth either! Well, maybe that fellow Ilnes would.]
[But even Ilnes would probably find it too much of a bother.]
‘True.’
I nodded as if it were obvious.
Ilnes, who had nonchalantly entered into a proxy contract with Nathaniel, hadn't shown his face since then. Unless I specifically called for him, he would likely spend all his time sleeping inside the gem.
There was no way someone like Ilnes would approach a normal-looking child like this and use poison.
Besides, the demons had only just contracted with me after hundreds of years, so the timing didn't match up.
‘Could it be the Empress Dowager?’
[Hmm, if the scent is this foul, it’s exactly the kind of thing that witch would use.]
[She really does go around doing the most disgusting things.]
‘Hmm.’
As far as I knew, the Empress Dowager was the only one contracted with a demon. There might be others the demons of the gems didn't know about, but she was the most likely candidate.
If it really was her doing, why would she use poison on such a young child?
There was only one logical conclusion.
‘She was pretending to perform a miracle.’
Only a demon can withdraw a demon’s poison.
Long ago, the Empress Dowager had spread a plague through a village and then pretended to cure the patients. Since then, she must have spread countless diseases to make people suffer, only to "perform miracles" and gain the trust of the Empire’s citizens.
This boy was likely one of the sacrifices for that scheme. And then, the temple would have taken in the orphaned child for all to see. They were truly disgusting people.
[Humans are truly… It must have been painful enough that he would have been better off dead.]
[What a pitiful child. I can see why the Saintess keeps him close.]
‘Mm.’
Marianne was kind and good-natured by birth. She was merely being used by the Empress Dowager; she wasn't the type of child to intentionally harm me or Veronica.
I stopped in my tracks and spun around.
“Ah.”
Marianne flinched in surprise as our eyes met.
When we met at the Winston townhouse, she had approached me with a smile, but now she looked utterly terrified.
She was likely afraid because she had realized the nature of our relationship.
I watched her for a moment before speaking.
“Saintess Sister!”
“Yes, L-Little Lady.”
“Did you miss Dia?”
“…….”
Marianne didn't answer.
She bit her pale pink lips hard, hesitating before finally speaking.
“I-I did miss you. But we are…… I mean……”
“Yeah, I know.”
“Pardon?”
I looked straight into Marianne’s startled eyes.
“I know that the Saintess Sister and I have the same daddy.”
“T-That’s……”
Despair flickered across Marianne’s face. She hung her head and whispered in a small voice.
“You must hate me, Little Lady, don’t you?”
“…….”
“I’m sorry. I won’t show my face before you again. I’m truly sorr—”
I listened to her dejected voice for a moment before moving my feet.
Waddling over on my short legs, I grabbed Marianne’s tightly clenched hands.
“Dia hates Daddy. I hate him because he was mean to me and Mommy. But I like the Saintess Sister.”
“Ah……”
“Do you hate Dia, Saintess Sister?”
When I tilted my head and asked, Marianne’s eyes widened. Her violet eyes, so similar to mine, wavered violently.
“I-I like you. I like you too.”
“Mm-hmm. Then you’ll be friends with Dia, right?”
“Yes, of course.”
Marianne smiled through her tears. I used my other hand to pat her trembling shoulder.
Right, I’m only being nice to her because I might need to use the Saintess for something later.
I made excuses to myself, a bittersweet smile touching my lips.
“Please don’t cry, Saintess……”
As Marianne wept, Luciano, looking flustered, hurriedly pulled out a handkerchief and offered it to her. Marianne gave him a bright smile.
“Thank you, Luci.”
While Marianne wiped her eyes with the handkerchief, I took a closer look at Luciano’s face.
Just as Desmond had said, deep forest-green eyes peeked through his broom-like brown hair. They were darker than typical green eyes, making them even more striking.
“Ugh.”
Meeting my gaze, Luciano quickly lowered his head. His eyes vanished from sight in an instant.
[Tsk, tsk. Those are poisoned eyes.]
‘Those green eyes?’
[It seems the demon poison he was infected with was green. If it were severe, even his blood would have been green. It’s mostly healed now, so it seems to be concentrated only in his eyes.]
‘Hmm, I see.’
I looked away from Luciano, who seemed overwhelmed by the attention.
Luciano would make an excellent witness when the time came to reveal the Empress Dowager’s crimes.
I could just use him then, yet I couldn't help but feel concerned. I glanced at Luciano’s arms, which were as thin as twigs.
“You’re the Saintess Sister’s friend, right?”
“Pardon? Ah, I am……”
“The Saintess Sister’s friend is Dia’s friend! So, come play at the palace.”
“Wh-What?”
Luciano trembled, bewildered by my pushy behavior.
Marianne, having finished wiping her face, smiled and answered for him.
“Yes, I’ll come visit with Luci.”
“S-Saintess……”
“The Little Lady is a good person.”
Marianne whispered softly, stroking Luciano’s back.
I had guessed from his appearance, but it seemed he wasn't treated very well at the temple.
‘Hmph, I’m just keeping an eye on him so nothing happens to my hard-earned witness to the demon poison.’
[Sure, sure. If you say so.]
Desmond gave me a nasty smirk. I felt strangely embarrassed.
“When you come to the palace, you have to play with Dia. What games do you know?”
“Uh, I, well……”
“I’m going to count to five, so tell me quick.”
Like a delinquent shaking someone down for lunch money, I extorted information about commoner games from Luciano.
His eyes darting around, Luciano earnestly explained the games he knew. Having lived on the streets, he seemed to know a few things he’d seen and heard. I nodded with satisfaction.
“Then next time you come to the palace, we’ll play that—”
“Let go of me!”
“……!”
Just as I was getting excited about playing commoner games for the first time in a while, a sharp voice pierced my ears, making me jump.
‘What was that?’
Before I knew it, we had wandered quite a distance from the Queen’s Garden.
The voice was strangely familiar. I crept toward the sound.
Through the thicket, a man and a woman were arguing. My eyes widened when I saw them.
“What do you think you’re doing, Marquis Lionel?”
“Veronica, please, just listen to me.”
“Stop this pathetic behavior. Have you no shame?”
It was none other than Veronica and Cedric.
Why were the two of them together? Where was Dantalion?
As I wondered, I saw Marianne beside me gasp and cover her mouth with both hands, causing me to frown.
“I came here to find my child, so don’t interfere and just go your way.”
“Do you really think the Emperor loves you?”
“……What did you say?”
At Cedric’s question, Veronica laughed as if she couldn't believe her ears. Then, she asked sarcastically, “What does that have to do with you?”
“It has everything to do with me. I am the man who was married to you.”
“That relationship is already over,” Veronica said firmly.
But Cedric didn't back down, continuing his tirade.
“Do you think becoming Empress will allow you to get revenge on me? Are you stepping into such a dangerous place just for that?”
“Don’t pretend to care. It’s disgusting.”
Speaking harshly, Veronica shoved Cedric’s arm away. Having contracted with Luers, Veronica could easily shake off even the hand of a Sword Master like Cedric.
Cedric frowned, looking down at his stinging hand for a moment before looking up again.
“The Emperor is only using you. What he needs is the power of Winston.”
Cedric’s violet eyes flashed with an eerie light as he made his declaration. Veronica bit her lip, glaring at him.