TAPGB - Chapter 62

 TAPGB - Chapter 62

The Abandoned Prince's Ghost Bride

"Then, the red dragon from the storybook..."

While staying with Lucian, Caesar naturally learned about his favorite children's books. There are three main characters in total.

The first emperor, Leon.

Witch, Aria.

And red dragon.

Caesar didn't know that the red dragon was his uncle.

'Dor a moment... But my uncle went missing. Moreover, a soul contract was signed. No way....!'

"I'm sure there are stories you've heard so hard that your ears are pounding. Don't get involved with humans. You should not enter into a contract between a human and a soul."

"It's all because of my uncle."

"We think the first Emperor may be involved in Carserine's disappearance."

Carcerine sent a message saying that now that Leon has become Emperor, he will spend more time with his friends. The contact also stated that he would stop by the house for a while sometime soon. So his family, including Luce, waited for Carcerin to return.

"But Carcerin didn't come until the appointed time."

Age tried to contact him first, just in case, but he couldn't find Carcerine's traces anywhere.

Dragons can sense each other's presence, and as long as they are alive, they can find their traces even if they are far away.

"The disappearance of traces means..."

"Only death or sealing."

Age nodded at Caesar's words.

"That's why there was talk that Carserine was either dead or sealed."

Caesar swallowed his saliva as the story was heavier than he expected.

"This is why I became a noble of the Oddrian Empire. Even if we are dragons, we cannot reveal our identity to humans, and we cannot uncover the hidden secrets of the empire through simple entertainment."

"..."

"But 300 years have passed since Carcerine disappeared, so I wonder if there is any point in looking for him anymore."

Age's wry smile looked quite tired.

"Age.... I guess you were quite close with my uncle?"

"Carcerine is an idol to dragons my age. In particular, Luce followed Carcerin a lot. She has a cool brother, wouldn't she like it?"

Just mentioning Carcerine reminded Age of Luce, who was depressed. It is rare for dragons to feel brotherly or familial love, but perhaps because of Luce's influence, Caesar is especially close with his family, namely his mom and dad.

He can't even imagine how big a shock it would be if such a family member went missing without knowing whether they were alive or dead.

"First of all, my goal is to retrieve at least Carcerine's remains. The imperial authority will change soon, so we have to move again."

"The imperial authority is changing?"

"Yes, I heard that after the Crown Prince holds his coming-of-age ceremony, he will pass on the throne within five years."

If it is the Crown Prince...

'Isn't he Lucian's older brother?"

Caesar occasionally heard stories about Leopold while talking through a crystal ball or visiting a haunted mansion.

"If it's a coming-of-age ceremony, isn't this kid only 18 years old? But can he become Emperor so quickly?"

"It's a little early. It's possible, but it's not impossible. And since 100 years ago, it has been customary to hand over the throne at an early age. The current Emperor also has such a bad relationship with the previous Emperor that he became Emperor in his mid-20s."

"Huh? What does that mean?"

Isn't it normal to kill one of the two generations if the relationship between the previous generation and the next generation is not good?

But even though they were not on good terms, he obediently handed over the throne?

"Was it during the time of the 10th emperor? At that time, the imperial family was turned upside down for a moment."

Until the 10th Emperor, a person could ascend to the throne only when the previous Emperor died. However, strange things happened every time the Emperor changed.

Except for the successor to the throne chosen by the previous Emperor, all of the other imperial descendants met mysterious deaths. In some cases, people were poisoned, in other cases, the Emperor who ascended the throne ordered a bloody extermination, and in some cases,  people died due to accidental accidents.

Although the reasons are all different, it is a constant fact that every time the imperial power is replaced, all remaining members of the imperial family face death within 1 to 2 years.

Based on this, the second Princess at the time proposed the issue of succession to the throne.

"That wasn't the only thing the Princess had questions about."

There are times when a monarch must wield power depending on the situation, and there are times when he must maintain peace by establishing harmony.

Depending on the era, there is a corresponding image of the monarch. However, from the 1st generation to the 10th generation, the same politics and the same actions continued as if they had been drawn on a sheet of paper.

The Princess, who was highly suspicious of him, claimed that the current Emperor was the same person as the previous Emperor and that he had used black magic to change his appearance since the time of the first Emperor.

This is an absurd claim from a mere Princess with no right to succeed to the throne. Doesn't it make no sense to dare to accuse the Emperor, the father of the empire, of being a warlock?

However, the Princess supported the theory of black magic based on the evidence she had gathered so far.

As a result, one by one, people began to agree with her words.

"Is the Emperor just watching that?"

"I guess so? Of course, he was executed for treason and insulting the royal family."

He also killed his daughter so cruelly that it was unbelievable.

Many people were filled with fear at the sight of him showing no mercy even to his own children.

However, the seeds of doubt that the Princess had buried before her death germinated one by one, strangling the Emperor.

In the end, in order to calm their complaints and suspicions, the Emperor passed the throne to the Crown Prince and enacted a law.

"The person who inherits the imperial throne swears to respect and consider his predecessors and not to cause harm unless there are special reasons."

This literally means that the safety of the previous Emperor must be guaranteed in exchange for passing on the imperial power.

Also, it is impossible to harm the former Emperor unless he commits a serious crime such as plotting treason.

For 100 years, this law has remained the same until now.

"Well...It's bizarre."

"Still, there is a good thing that one person does not monopolize the imperial power. Over the past 100 years, the empire that had been sluggish has been able to grow rapidly."

The tenth Emperor's choice was proven to be correct, and subsequent generations could not easily disobey his orders.

'That's why the Emperor can't touch the previous Emperor.'

Most nobles know that the relationship between Emperor Ruber and Emperor Julius is not good. If it had not been for the law enacted by the 10th Emperor, Ruber would have punished Julius a long time ago.

'Well, it's none of my business.'

Age has only one goal. Finding traces of Carcerine.

For the past 200 years, he has been searching for traces of Carcerine. But he hasn't found any evidence or traces so far, so he's thinking of finding a new method. 

"Well, anyway, you're going to be busy from now on, so even if you come to the north, I won't be able to see you."

"What! Am I busy too? Why do you go there when you don't have time to hang out?" 

"Anyway, this snout is really..."

When Age grabbed Caesar's lips and pulled on him, Caesar struggled. Soon the two dragons were bickering and playing petty pranks as usual.

***

Two weeks have passed since Leah's body was found. Meanwhile, Lucian went down to the cellar every day, searching for a way to unseal her. That's how he finally discovered a magic spell covering the jewels.

However, it consisted of very difficult calculations. Just transcribing the magic spell was enough to make his head explode.

"Would it be better to ask Leah rather than do it myself?"

There was no answer back. Lucian sighed in frustration and placed his forehead towards Leah's head inside the jewel.

"Let go of your anger, Leah. How long will you avoid me?"

For the past two weeks, Lucian has been working hard to break the seal, but he is still in a cold war with Leah.

To be precise, Leah was busy avoiding even when Lucian approached her.

"I can clearly see what you are thinking."

She's probably blocking all conversation so that he can never confess again. Judging by the extreme measures she uses, it seems she has no intention of accepting his feelings at all.

"We started off wrong in the first place."

They didn't meet when they were children. At least at this age... No, he wouldn't have felt so rejected if he had first met her three years ago.

"Still, it's unfair. I only had Leah from the beginning."

8 years old. From the time he came here, unaware of her beauty, he himself took her seriously as his bride.

Wasn't Leah the first to accept him as the groom during the soul wedding in the first place?

"Whenever you want a little groom, come now."

Lucian, who felt somewhat disappointed, poked the jewel and grumbled.

"But Leah, I'm not the person to give up just because you avoid me."

He liked her from the beginning when she was a ghost, but now that he realized that he could save her, is he going to give up now?

"You should have rejected me from the first time we met."

That way, he wouldn't have false hopes and he wouldn't like her. Well, is it a meaningless imagination when Leah is everything in life?

"We have to first reconcile. I'll come back later."

Lucian said goodbye to Leah's sleeping body and then came upstairs from the basement.

Lucian looked around, confirmed that Leah was not there, and walked down the hallway as if nothing had happened.

Fortunately, Leah was reading a book in the living room. When she sensed his presence, she glanced in this direction haughtily turned her head, and pretended not to notice.

Lucian's eyes narrowed at that.

'This is how it comes out.'

Lucian took long strides toward Leah. Then he snatched the book she was looking at. 

[... Lucian.]

"Why don't you act like you know me when you see me?" 

[It's not the first time we've seen each other today, so do we have to say hello?]

"That's not what I'm saying, why are you ignoring me?" 

[I have never ignored you.]

"Okay? Then why can't we make eye contact?"

When he pushed his face towards her, Leah squirmed and took a step back. Soon she opened her mouth with a stern expression on her face.

[I told you not to fool around. I can only see your sorrow.]

"..."

[The more you show up like that, the more I will push you away.]

Although it seemed quite sincere when she spoke with a serious expression, Lucian noticed Leah's hand tightly grasping the hem of her skirt.

It proved that he was overly nervous trying to push himself away with mean words.

Now he knows. That everything she says now is a lie. 

If he pushed further, she would run away, so Lucian stepped back.

"Leah, why are you pushing me away?"

[Didn't you hear what I said all this time? I have never once seen you as a person of the opposite sex...]

"No, I know that. Since you have been taking care of me since I was 8 years old, of course I may not be seen as the opposite sex. But when I look at it, it seems like there is another ultimate reason."

Leah froze. She let out a sigh as she realized Lucian wasn't joking. 

[... Lucian, who am I?]

"Who is it?"

[No, before that I was a ghost! Shade! dead! I'm an illusion with only the soul left!]

Leah's screaming voice was quite desperate.

[Do you know how I feel every time you confess? I was wrong. I ruined your future by becoming too big of a deal to Lucian. Damn it! It makes no sense for the living to like the dead!]

Only then did Lucian realize why Leah kept pushing him away.

No, she had said before that the dead and the living could not be together, but he let it go in one ear and out the other. Because he had the confidence to live with Leah, even though she was a ghost, for the rest of his life.

[Lucian, I can never give you the ordinary happiness that others provide. We can't share body heat, we can't kiss, we can't sleep together, and we can't have children! Are you saying that a relationship like this is good too? Wake up, Lucian Odelion! The living must not follow the dead!]

After Leah huffed for a while, silence fell.

At that moment, when Leah felt regretful as she wondered if her words had been harsh, Lucian covered his mouth and blushed.

"Leah, is that what you thought? Kissing... Sleeping..."

Leah was dumbfounded for a moment and then screamed. 

[Is now the time to focus on that?!]

"No, because you talk as if you have thought about such a future with me...."

Leah trembled for no reason. It's not like she hasn't honestly thought about it. As he continues to confess and envision a future with her, she has no choice! 

Reflexively! It just came to mind.

But in the first place, such imagination disappeared before it could take shape.

[It's natural that I can't do it because I am a ghost!]

They may be able to do something about holding hands or hugging, but any more skinship than that is impossible.

Lucian chuckled and gently curled the corners of his eyes. Leah's soul trembled for a moment as she looked at him lovingly.

At that time, Lucian gently held Leah's hand. Then he briefly kissed the back of her hand.

"Leah, this is enough for me. Could it be possible that I liked you without even thinking about that? Even if I risk everything, what can you do if it's good for me?"

[Lucian, I...]

"First of all, Leah, if you're pushing me away because you're a ghost, don't worry."

Leah, who was trying to take Lucian's hand away, stopped and looked at him.

"I will make you human."

[... What?]

"I will turn you into a human, hold a real wedding, and make you my official bride. Of course, that's assuming you accept me."

Leah didn't know what she heard.

Is this perhaps a new confession method? Or is he trying to convey his feelings this way? If not, is he really trying to turn her, a ghost, into a human?

[Are you perhaps having strange thoughts...?!]

"Luciaaaan~! Your brother is here!"

Before Leah could finish speaking, a cheerful voice was heard from outside.

Lucian, who was wondering how to avoid Leah's nagging, cheered inwardly and naturally stood up.

"Leopold must have arrived. I'll go out and see."

Just before running away, he didn't forget to take advantage of the opportunity and kiss Leah's forehead.

Leah, who was unable to stop him, looked at Lucian, who was walking away without continuing his words. Lucian was already walking out the front door with light steps.

[Luciaaaaan!]

Leah's voice echoed throughout the mansion.

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