TAPGB - Chapter 147
The Abandoned Prince's Ghost Bride
A month has passed since the rebellion of the first Emperor and the warlock.
If it's long, it's long, if it's short, a lot has happened in a short time.
First of all, the shocking truth that the temple was a den of warlocks became widely known to the public, causing a huge blow to the temple's image.
Meanwhile, there was also a rumor that the first Emperor had been living by borrowing someone else's body until now.
Of course, it was something that could have undermined the authority of the imperial family, but the imperial family did not do much to stop it.
Naturally, the people and nobles were upset by such an attitude of the imperial family, and they said that the empire was in ruin.
However, as it became known that it was the current 18th Emperor and Cardinal Sebastian who calmed down the whole situation, the burning rumors quieted down somewhat.
Still, it was clear that it was an ominous rumor, so there was still a whispering atmosphere throughout the empire.
Meanwhile, Leopold, who had recovered his health to some extent, took over from Lucian in earnest and was establishing himself as the next Emperor.
Although it would have been difficult to fully accept the national projects and many political affairs that had been carried out over the past five years, starting from the incident that occurred this time, Leopold did it all without making a fuss.
In fact, Lucian, who was helping next to him, was enough to stop him and tell him to take it easy.
‘My younger brother worked hard for me, so I shouldn’t say something so weak.’
Of course, every time that happened, Leopold calmed Lucian's anxiety.
Leopold placed greater emphasis on hunting down the remnants of the warlock than on repairing the damaged imperial palace.
And he showed an amazing ability to hunt down remnants that even his fellow warlocks didn't know about.
‘Actually, when Leon took over my body, I was conscious to some extent.’
Perhaps thanks to this, Leopold was able to accept Lucian's explanation without burden.
Thanks to the quick handover, Lucian's role as Leopold ended as of today.
“Actually, it’s hard to say I’m a double now.”
Leah said, stroking the head of Lucian, who was lying on her lap.
After that incident, Lucian's existence was no longer confidential.
Rather, the fact that he was Leopold's twin brother and had been acting as the Emperor's successor until now was widely known among the workers.
To make matters worse, he was shown to be with Leopold in front of many people, making it known that the rumor was a fait accompli.
Lucian seemed much more comfortable, perhaps because the matter he had been trying to hide was gone.
From this morning, he snuggled close to Leah and enjoyed his free time.
“Can’t I go see Leopold?”
“Yes, I have finished handing over everything. And next to him are Harry and Dio.”
Still, he said, he will likely have to stay here for a while until Leopold is fully established.
He pictured other people busy moving around next to Leopold. Somehow he feels a little pitiful...
“You guys aren’t crazy!”
Bang-!
At that time, the door burst open and Caesar came in, grinning.
“Why are you doing that again?”
“Those bastards say this and that about Lucian!”
“There is a grand meeting of nobles today.”
Age, who came with him, added a lack of explanation.
According to the two's explanation, a great council of nobles was held regarding the incident that occurred a month ago, and during the process, Lucian was mentioned and an ominous tale about twins came to the fore.
“That people! Thanks to someone, they're sleeping with their feet stretched out right now! If it weren't for you, this empire would have fallen into the hands of dark magic a long time ago! But what the heck...?!”
Caesar suddenly began to glow. It seems that the dragon's hearing can even pick up the contents of the noble meeting.
Thanks to Caesar reciting the meeting details straight away, Leopold was able to understand how things were going.
- Isn’t this because Your Majesty is a twin?
Lucian frowned when he saw that the remark went too far.
Although he had expected that they would risk their life and fall, he could not forgive them for swearing at Leopold as well.
“Those who couldn’t keep their mouths shut in front of me will now be able to keep their mouths shut.”
Lucian sneered. But his expression remained cold.
Lucian, who once almost lost his brother, has since been unable to contain his anger whenever anyone tries to mess with Leopold in the slightest.
That was the same for Caesar and Leah, who put Lucian first.
“No. It gets more complicated when you step up.”
Age clicked his tongue and stopped them. Even if they don't step forward, Leopold will take care of it.
- My younger brother is the one who stood in for me after I fell and firmly protected the empire for five years. You too live comfortably under my brother's rule, but you speak carelessly.
Like now.
Age chuckled at Leopold's cold tone, like Lucian, as if he were a brother.
“But we won’t be able to quell the complaints this way.”
Leah opened her mouth.
“It’s just a tale, but once discrimination and hatred are ingrained in people’s minds, they don’t easily disappear.”
This is a big issue that needs to convince not only the nobles but also the people. The reason they dislike Lucian is because he is Leopold’s ‘twin brother.’
“There is nothing I can do right now. Time will tell.”
Lucian spoke in a somewhat calm tone. As he said, there was no definitive answer, but it wasn't an answer he really liked.
“What if a big event happens that will change people’s perception?”
Leah, who had been pondering Lucian's next words, suddenly raised her head.
...Big event?
A good thought passed through her mind.
“I guess the meeting is over. What do you plan to do when Leopold searches for you?”
“If your brother is looking for you, you should go. I also take the time to look at the faces of the thick-faced nobles.”
At Age's words, Lucian stood up. Lucian held out his hand to Leah, and Leah took it and followed him.
As they reached the palace where the meeting was held, they saw nobles coming out of the meeting room.
“The empire is in ruin.”
“How can twins be so ominous...”
“Maybe the imperial family itself is at fault. Isn’t this incident also said to be the ghost of the first Emperor trying to destroy the empire?”
“Everyone, please watch your mouth. He’s still inside the palace.”
The nobles each came out talking about trivial things. Most of them were dissatisfied with the current situation and were unable to control themselves.
Meanwhile, one of the nobles at the front stopped when he saw Lucian and his group approaching close by.
Their faces became thoughtful. However, soon after, he was unable to hide his discomfort with Lucian with a disapproving expression, and it got to the point where he was blatantly ignoring him.
Then, the faces of Caesar and Leah behind them formed an expression of arrogance.
“Hmm! Please don’t block the way and get out of the way.”
A nobleman with his liver sticking out of his stomach swaggered in front of Lucian.
Lucian looked at each of the nobles who were grinning little by little behind him.
“Well...”
When Lucian opened his mouth, some people flinched.
“Isn’t it true that just a month ago, you couldn’t even raise your head in front of me? I can’t help but wonder how people can change so much.”
The nobles' faces turned red at the sarcastic tone.
“Hmm! Things weren't right back then! Watch your mouth!”
“More than anything, you have deceived us all and dared to imitate the Sun. Even if you had His Majesty’s permission, you would have to pay for the crime of deceiving us.”
The eyes staring at Lucian were all irreverent and arrogant.
“We need to cut out those bastards’ eyes...”
Caesar, whose eyes were already spinning, was blooming with white flames. Leah also understood Caesar's feelings, so he wondered what to do with them.
But someone came along and calmed the situation.
“Since when did the authority of the nobility become higher than that of the royal family?”
It was Ruber. The nobles couldn't help but look at Ruber in confusion.
To be precise, it seemed to be confirming the relationship between Ruber and Lucian.
If Ruber didn't care for Lucian so much, he would immediately turn his back on him.
There was no way Ruber did not know what Leah noticed. Since then, he has been dealing with nobles and ruling the empire for over 20 years.
“If you are dissatisfied with Lucian acting as Leopold’s replacement, then blame me. I was the one who asked my son, who said he didn’t like it, a favor.”
Ruber wrapped his arms around Lucian’s shoulders in a friendly way. Lucian's eyebrows twitched briefly but remained silent. Because it was quite a sight to see the nobleman's distorted and pale face.
“If you don’t have anything to say, you can leave now.”
When they nodded and gave the order to congratulate the guests, there was nothing they could do other than purse their lips.
After the group of nobles disappeared, Ruber let out an irritated sigh.
“From now on, don’t listen to what those snake-like people say. It may be a bit messy now, but Leopold and I are organizing it...”
Ruber stopped talking. This was because the face of Lucian right in front of him was completely unfamiliar. He belatedly realized that he had wrapped his arms around Lucian's shoulders.
Ruber awkwardly removed his hand and stepped behind him.
“I’m sorry.”
“...No."
There was an awkward silence between the two father and son. In particular, Ruber was not very careful in treating Lucian.
“What happened so far?”
“I came to see my brother for a while.”
“...Yes, he will be inside. Go in.”
Ruber looked like he wanted to say something, but he didn't say anything. Lucian didn't even bother to ask about him.
Just as he was about to pass Ruber and enter the conference room where Leopold was.
The door opened by itself and the Duke of Sevans came out from inside.
The Duke, who had a rather dark face, flinched when he saw Lucian. Soon he passed by Lucian, giving a brief bow with a meaningful look on his face.
"What?"
“There was some discussion inside about the engagement.”
Caesar kindly explained to Leah, who tilted her head.
‘Oh, come to think of it, now that Leopold has become Emperor, there will be talk of marriage.’
But the words were exchanged? What is there to go back and forth about?
Leopold probably doesn't know what Lilith did.
“Oh, Lucian! Leah! Come on!"
After being so puzzled for a moment, Leah went inside when she heard Leopold's voice welcoming them.
Leopold smiled brightly and hugged Lucian who was approaching.
As he hugged Leah and greeted her, he stopped when he saw Caesar and Age.
He soon took his angle and bowed politely with a sense of respect.
“Meet the two great dragons.”
“It’s okay, such an intrusive greeting.”
“You have eyes to see, so be careful.”
Caesar and Age waved their hands and roughly took a seat nearby. Leopold doesn't know if it was arrogant or just annoying, but it was very informal.
Leopold had been trying to treat the two people with contempt since he found out they were dragons, so he laughed a little awkwardly.
But I quickly came to my senses and sat down.
“Why did my younger brother come to see me?”
Leopold rested his chin and looked at Lucian with his eyes dripping with honey.
He was so jealous of his lover, Leah, that he thought his brother was an idiot.
‘Leopold is usually like that, so how could he be confused with Leon?’
Leopold's role was one that Leon could not play.
“Do I have to have work to come? I just came because I wanted to see my brother.”
“Huh... Harry, did you hear? Lucian missed me!”
“...Please stay safe.”
Harry clicked his tongue with narrow eyes. Lucian opened his mouth when he saw that he looked much more tired than when they met before.
“Are you sleeping these days? Is it that much work?”
“There are many. I haven't been able to go home for three days now. Why are there so many things to deal with, and why do nobles do such mischief every day? I feel like I just want to wipe everything out.”
His exhaustion seemed to be evident in the fact that he even forgot the honorifics he usually used.
“...Please accept my resignation.”
This time, it was Dio who had half his face on.
“Dio, what are you talking about? A resignation letter?”
When a confused Lucian asked, Dio laughed helplessly with a face that looked like he was about to collapse at any moment.
“If this continues, I think I’ll die from overwork. My duty is to protect Lucian, not chores like this.”
“Dio, your position is definitely that of the captain of the Emperor’s bodyguard knights, right? It is a very important task to serve the Emperor, not Lucian.”
“No, I...”
“Are you saying that your friendship with me right now is nothing? Too bad!"
As Leopold whined too much, Dio's soul gradually faded. Only after he said he would withdraw did Leopold stop whining.
Leopold's attitude was beyond sly and shameless, leaving Leah speechless for a moment.
‘Why does it seem like Leopold has sucked everyone’s energy?’
Leopold is shiny, and Dio and Harry are looking haggard after sucking up vitality.
It was Leah and Lucian who felt an unnecessary sense of pity.
Comments
Post a Comment