The innermost office of the Katzen Empire's palace.
The interior of the spacious room, with its high ceilings and marble and gold flooring, was the height of extravagance.
The ceiling was covered with frescoes depicting the moment of victory when the Katzen Empire trampled the continent, and each wall was adorned with tapestries and statues.
The Emperor's throne was placed higher than other places so that visitors had no choice but to look up at it.
Opposite the throne, a gilded statue of the Emperor deified itself and radiated a splendid light.
"What's all this fuss about!"
The middle-aged man sitting on the throne roughly crumpled up the letter and threw it down.
He wore a splendid black robe embroidered with thick gold thread and had a nervous expression.
If you look closely, you can see the beautiful features from her younger days.
However, the thick eyebrows, sunken eyes, and thick black beard gave off an eerie feeling.
His pitch-black hair, soaked with sweat and sticking to his forehead, gave him a strange sense of impatience.
He was the current Emperor of the Katzen Empire, Perdiccas II.
"Angelique, are you sane or not! I sent you to strangle Valdina, and now you're bringing relief and feeding those northerners yourself, and you're even giving birth to a child with the blood of those vulgar bastards?"
Perdiccas II trembled.
And soon, unable to control his anger, he struck the furniture with the long golden staff he was holding. In his hand, breaking it.
"How long must I endure this?"
Crang!
The flying objects hit the glass as he swung his cane. The white marble statue shattered into pieces.
The young servants gasped in surprise.
"Please refrain from getting excited. It will only harm Your Majesty's health."
Only the old chief chamberlain, who had served the Emperor since he was a mere Prince, spoke to him with a calm expression on his face.
"Doesn't I look excited right now!"
"Please, Your Majesty. My wicked daughter has caused you trouble, so how can I repay this heavy sin?"
The Empress Dowager was also in this room. She too was thrilled by the news of her daughter from Valdina.
'Angelique, you fool! Where did all your mother's advice go when you sent me this message!!'
But it was something that could be done later, after finding out the whole story and scolding her daughter.
The most urgent task now was to appease the Emperor's anger and bring her daughter here as soon as possible.
"Your Majesty, please save Angelique. She has been tricked by the wicked. You know that she is a child with no sense of humor, despite her big body. So..."
"Even if she's not smart, she should be smart enough! Is it really that easy to overlook having an illegitimate child? Ever since I heard that, you were making a fuss, I told you to discipline that child!"
When the Emperor's anger seemed unabated, Empress Dowager changed course.
Tears fell down her beautiful face like a flower.
"If Your Majesty also turns his back on us, what should we do? Your Majesty, are you going to disgrace Angelique, your own daughter born of your flesh and blood? Let rumors spread that she gave birth to an illegitimate child whose father you don't even know?"
It was a question, but it was closer to a cry of despair.
"Your Majesty is a very heartless person. I know that you love Angelique, but you have always been dissatisfied with her. But, Your Majesty, do you remember? That child is the only bloodline I gave birth to after a difficult labor and risking my life."
Empress Dowager raised her eyes as if she was resentful.
She overcame numerous struggles within the royal family to achieve her current position.
After the Empress died, she had to share power with another Empress Dowager, but she was undoubtedly the most noble woman in the palace.
Moreover, Perdiccas II favored the kind and loving Empress Dowager much more than the arrogant and old-hearted Empress Dowager, who was similar to the deceased Empress Dowager.
She won the Emperor's love, but at the same time, she lost much.
The biggest pain was that, due to other Empress Dowager's actions, she could no longer have children.
"Your Majesty has countless other children, so it doesn't matter what happens to one daughter. But I only have Angelique!"
The Empress Dowager ran toward the window. As she was about to throw herself out the window, the chief of the household was startled and caught her.
"Let go! Your Majesty, if I am a mother who cannot even protect your own daughter, then there is no reason for me to stay in this palace any longer."
"When did I ever say that I would Ignore her! Your Majesty, do not speak lightly!"
Even the cold-hearted Perdiccas II could not help but be shaken by the sight of a beautiful woman, who had not lost her beauty at all despite having a grown daughter, beating her chest and shedding tears.
Haa. He let out a deep sigh, got down from the throne, and walked towards the window.
Then he naturally spread his arms as if he was embracing the Empress.
"Your Majesty, please kill that bastard. If he and the child disappear, there will be no reason for our Angelique to be tarnished with shame."
The Empress, who did not miss the moment when the Emperor was looking through her tearful eyes, grabbed his sleeve and hung on to him.
"It's too late! Even the Holy Land has heard about it! Are you really going to let Angelique be treated as an apostate?!"
The conservative doctrine of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints prohibits both adultery and abortion. Marriage and pregnancy. Going against the natural order is considered apostasy and heresy against God.
"Your, Your Majesty?"
Empress Dowager's face was filled with despair. She had a gut feeling that there was no turning back.
"So, for now, the best thing to do is to marry the two and save what's left of Angelique's reputation. Claudio is still a member of the royal family of Valdına's, so he's a completely ridiculous opponent-"
"No! Oh no. Your Majesty, no! How dare you bring that filthy Valdina's blood to our daughter...!"
But the Empress Dowager shook her head strongly as if refusing. Because her union with Claudio, who was a commoner and had completely fallen from grace due to treason, meant that Angelique was completely pushed out of the line of succession.
It would be difficult to surpass the Princes with such an ugly appearance that isn't even worth decorating.
Perdiccas II also noticed her intentions, and his eyes turned cold.
"Empress, if you don't change course when the current changes, you will be swept away. I would like to at least leave the title of Princess to Angelique."
Empress Dowager's mind suddenly came to her senses at the Emperor's warning.
"I, I'm just worried about Angelique, sob. Your Majesty..."
"Okay. Empress Dowager can go back now. You guys, take the Empress Dowager and leave."
"Your Majesty, but-!"
"I told you to go back. Don't worry about Angelique. I won't let your bloodline be infamous."
Empress Dowager left the office, shedding tears as if being dragged out by her attendants.
As the door closed, Perdiccas II touched his temple.
His head hurt. His head was throbbing.
"Valdina, Peleus, Claudo... They are all bastard!"
"Your Majesty now is the time to think strategically."
The chamberlain pointed out calmly. A neatly trimmed white mustache stood out from the wrinkled old man's face.
"The King of Valdina finally took control of the plains. However, even the regent's rebellion failed..."
Even that son of a bitch, Samon Claudio, threatened to reveal to the King the evidence that the Katzen royal family was aiding the Regent if he was not saved.
Still, he couldn't kill him.
"The regent has already lost an eye, but Samon Claudio. He is the only blood relative of the previous King, aside from the current King. If he disappears, that Peleus will become the absolute King."
Perdiccas II trembled with rage.
The power of a throne without substitutes is immense.
Now that the plains have been restored, it is unclear what impact this will have on Katzen in the future.
'Peleus, if that bastard's damned temper is any indication, he'll probably try to take revenge on our Katzen.'
So while he was away, they tried to make Claudio, a worthless man with big dreams and no ability, King.
"You stupid idiot! How could you fail so miserably when I pushed you so hard?!"
Perdiccas II was chewing his fingernails.
"That won't do. Valdina. The Philosopher's Stone needs to fall into my hands..."
He muttered anxiously, not even noticing that his already tattered fingernails were torn and bleeding.
"Your Majesty."
"The demons will tear our Katzen apart here and there! They will storm the palace and try to destroy my throne!"
He shouted loudly.
Thanks to the Philosopher's Stone, Valdina is called the Land of Protection, as it is not invaded by demons.
However, Katzen was still suffering from the demon's chaotic attacks.
Even the Katzen Empire, which had conquered the tribes and established itself as the hegemon of the continent, failed to save the demons.
Every quarter, hundreds of knights were dispatched solely to deal with the demons.
So it was the Emperor's wish and plan to establish Claudio as the King of Valdina, take away the Philosopher's Stone, and establish an ultimate and lasting safe zone.
"All of them! They're all just a bunch of idiots with flaws. I have to go through each and every one of them and fix them. If anything goes wrong, just come to me and ask for help."
If Cesare had been there.
"If the First Prince were alive..."
The Emperor repeated the words that had come out of his mind.
"There was no need for me to be so troubled! He would have already given me that young man's head! There was no need for me to worry about the future of the empire or to aim for Valdina!"
It would have been different if it had been Cesare. If it had been him, everyone would have fallen to their knees and bowed their heads in fear.
The glory of the empire would have prospered forever.
The Emperor repeated the same story as if trying to catch a lost azalea.
"So we need a means. The Philosopher's Stone. Only with it can we protect this country even after Cesare's death."
The chamberlain listened to his lord's monologue and thought that he was being two-faced.
'You miss His Highness the First Prince, but you are already treating him like a dead person.'
The first Prince is still clearly alive and breathing, even though he has a limited time left.
But this isn't the first time the Emperor has been duplicative.
When the first Prince was so prosperous and was declared the successor, he was wary of his son, worried that he would lose the throne at any moment.
Because of this, the First Prince, despite his numerous achievements, was not even given the title of Crown Prince.
The First Prince's current power and even the notoriety he has built up were all created by the First Prince himself.
So, the Emperor's despair over Cesare's empty seat could not help but be contradictory.
'It's fortunate that His Highness the First Prince is a cold-hearted person who has no feelings.'
If it were me, I might have gone crazy a long time ago.
But the chief of the court hid all the thoughts that were passing through his mind through his wrinkled face and bowed politely.
"I understand Your Majesty's concerns. What should I do?"
"Claudio's life must be saved."
"However, he has been erased from the royal lineage. Wouldn't it be difficult for him and his son to stand as the King's opponents?"
"As long as they are alive, they can rebuild everything else. Look at me. What is there that I have not fixed since I sat on this throne? What is important is the blood that flows through your body! Their identity as the blood of the Valdina royal family!"
Perdiccas II turned around.
Whoosh-
He threw the letter he had scribbled down.
"Tell the King of Valdina that Duke Claudio is my grandson's father and that he and his family must be spared."
"The King may ignore it and proceed with the execution."
"So, we need to throw out a bait that will attract those who can't do that."
The Emperor's eyes lit up with madness as he looked at the continental map.
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