"The effect of the medicine takes a bit longer to take effect."
He glanced at the teacup on the table.
Kensington couldn't believe it.
Knock knock.
He couldn't believe it even as blood flowed out of the corner of his mouth and the excruciating pain in his heart spread throughout his body.
He thought that what the Emperor had shown him a moment ago about Jason's disposition was just a warning from the Emperor.
He didn't know that even more miserable words awaited him...
"Your Majesty! I am your hand, your eyes. How! How can you do this to me, ugh..."
Kensington reached out in outrage at the undeserved loyalty.
He devoted his entire life to building a spy network that spanned the entire continent and had many bloodsheds on his hands. He refused any glory and called himself a dirty cleaner, living in the shadows.
All for Perdiccas II, his master.
Jealousy and desire both serve the wrong master, but he thought he should embrace them even more because he is a subject.
Since Perdiccas II was a Prince, Kensington believed that the bond they had built up over that long period also existed in the heart of the Emperor.
Just as he had tried hard to turn away from the hand extended by the Princess of Valdina, he thought that the Emperor still had feelings of loyalty towards his subject that he could not easily let go of.
He never thought he would be betrayed like this.
"That's your mistake. You're just a part that can be replaced whenever I feel like it's done with. How long should I tolerate your arrogance in claiming to be the supreme being?"
The Emperor kicked Kensington's hand away.
"The Red Fox Corps has grown this large because of my approval. So it belongs to me. Not to you!"
"No, no, no, no, ha-"
"One, Kensington, what did you do with your four years? You held it and threatened me, waiting for an opportunity to betray me and take it somewhere!"
The Emperor's roar was more like the tantrum of a beast. The golden staff struck Kensington's body roughly.
There was a sound of solid metal breaking bones.
But the Emperor was not satisfied for he tried to strike Kensington's head.
"Ha, ha ..."
He took a deep breath, his hands trembling, and threw his cane away, unable to bear to look at it.
"You've been doing this for too long. It's time for a generational change. It's time to throw away the dirty water and pour in new water."
He is a hunter. That is how he obtained this throne.
The law of the wild that if you don't eat it, it will be eaten, was no exception in the imperial palace of Katzen. Kensington's help was desperately needed during the struggle for the throne. But now, decades after his victory in that fight, the two-headed group is only causing chaos.
It was not easy to get rid of the meritorious subject who had worked hard for his throne, given the dishonor of having usurped his nephew's throne.
That is why this situation was an excellent excuse for Perdiccas II.
Because he could wash his hands of all the wrongdoings of the Valdina delegation by blaming Kensington for them.
"Be... lung... ha..."
Kensington tried to move his stiff tongue, but it was not enough. The Princess's voice lingered in his head.
"Will your loyalty be valid even if you die at the hands of the Emperor?"
He stiffened and fell to the floor with a thud.
"It is unfortunate that Kensington felt responsible for this incident and punished himself."
Perdiccas II spoke solemnly, looking down at him as he lay dying. His eyes were full of cruelty.
"I have decided to respect the final choice of the public servant as well, so let me know of Kensington's death and uphold his will."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The attendant bowed his head politely.
Tsk.
As if his business had ended there, the Emperor clicked his tongue once. Then, he passed Kensington, who had collapsed, his robes billowing.
Left alone in the office, the old chamberlain paid a brief moment of silence to the fallen Kensington.
"I'm sorry, Count. Please understand."
That evening, a cart carrying bales of straw left the palace.
The cart reached the deep river that runs through Persepolis, the capital of the Katzen Empire.
On a deserted riverbank, the men dug out Kensington's body from a pile of straw and lifted it onto a wooden raft.
Chaak-!
The raft was set on fire.
It was a simple funeral prepared for Kensington, despite the risk of being caught by the chamberlain.
Under the light illuminating the darkness, Kensington's eyes were frozen in shock. His wide-open eyes revealed his bloodshot resentment and were ugly to look at.
Along the flowing river, the raft moved away.
"Let's go."
The men who had been watching the receding fireball turned around and disappeared.
How much time has passed like that?
As the black river water rippled silently, a silent boat approached the raft in the darkness.
Splash.
A man jumped into the water, lifted Kensington's body, carried it inside the boat, and let the raft drift away.
The crimson fireball floated back into the calm waves as if nothing had happened...
Chook-!
The assailant lifted a bucket and dumped river water over Kensington's body.
Again, bang-!
Kensington sat up abruptly as the water droplets continued to slide down his pale, soaking wet face.
"Ugh-!"
"If you wake up, eat this."
The assailant held out a jug of clean water to Kensington in a cheerful voice.
Kensington looked up. A freckled young man was looking down at me.
Kensington, who had been feeling a sense of unfamiliarity yet familiarity, soon distorted his expression.
"Red fox-!"
That's why I'm crazy about my colleagues.
'If he's the Emperor, he can't end it with me alone.'
The Red Foxes followed Kensington alone. Even the Emperor failed to persuade or exorcise them.
Perdiccas paranoid personality would rather burn the Red Foxes who disobeyed him than let them live.
At that moment, the stranger winked as if to reassure him.
"I have already moved to a new location. I am waiting for you, Count."
"Short story..."
A familiar face appeared behind him. It was Umberto.
"The Princess of Valdina... no, Her Highness the Princess... sent us. With a note telling us to evacuate our comrades if you do not return from the palace."
At first, Umberto did not believe it. But somehow he felt uneasy. The Princess of Valdina had never been wrong.
"So I sounded the white flag alarm. Everyone escaped before the knights of the castle barged in. The red foxes are safe."
A tear flowed from Kensington's eye at Umberto's words.
At the same time, red blood flowed out from between the chewed lips.
If it weren't for the stone the Princess gave him, he would have died from drinking the poison from the dandelion the Emperor gave him.
Kensington had already swallowed the stone before meeting the Emperor. Does that mean he, who did not trust his lord, was the first to betray him?
And yet, didn't the Emperor who eventually kicked him out betray him?
"Ha, haha, hahahaha!"
A strange, yet empty laugh spread.
It was like a scream that seemed to be being pulled up from deep within.
Tom and Umberto remained silent until Kensington came to his senses.
Finally, Kensington raised his head. The still-dried tear stains on his face gave off a bleak aura in the moonlight.
"I guess I should go to Valdina."
"Yes, I will. You won't regret it."
Tom raised the corners of his mouth.
"I must stop by the Holy Land before that. The Red Fox Corps' headquarters is there."
"Isn't this Persepolis?"
"I chose that place in case Katzen is attacked or I die. No one will think that we are hiding in the shadow of the enemy country, the Holy Nation, because it is dark under the Iamp."
So that even if Kensington dies, the Red Foxes can still continue their activities.
Even Perdiccas II did not know the size or location of the headquarters.
The loyalty he had offered to the Emperor was the shield that would keep the Empire in the ranks of the eternal great powers.
Slowly, slowly.
As he was leaving the road he had been running on without stopping. Kensington's eyes were burning brightly.
"Yes. I will go to the Princess."
The old master had burned everything down to the last bit. Now, nothing was holding him back.
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