As if echoing the roar of the angry crowd, the sound of a fierce whip ripping Raju's back cut deep into the air.
The bright sky that used to hurt his eyes had long since become cloudy.
Tracking, tracking...
It started to rain.
The wet stone floor was covered in dark red blood, giving it a sticky sheen.
"Ugh...ugh..."
Every time the whip struck Raju's back, his body leaped forward.
The screams turned into shrieks as the sharp thorns tore through the skin and blood spurted out.
A scream that cannot be distinguished from that of the criminal being executed or of someone watching.
"Ahhhh! No! No more!"
At that moment, Catherine burst onto the stage, crying.
She didn't even care about the anger of the crowd that was glaring at her as if they were going to devour her.
"Mother...!"
Samon was a step too late in extending his arm, but Catherine's dress slipped away.
Catherine pushed away the guards who were blocking her, waving her arms frantically, and climbed up onto the scaffold in one breath.
Then she lay down and wrapped her arms around Raju's back.
Slam!
The whip, which had not yet been able to stop her impulsive actions, struck Catherine's back.
"Ahh!"
"Cath, ca..ca...go back...."
The screams of his lover broke his clouded mind. Raju shook his head with a bloody face.
Catherine, his love, had to be safe and far away.
"No, I won't leave you alone any longer!"
Catherine resolutely grabbed Raju's hand.
Then he glared at Katzen's messenger and executors with hatred.
"Kill me too! You dirty dogs of the empire! Do you think you can punish me with whips or something like that? What filth would I have to fear, having given birth to a beast and even killed my husband!"
The desperate cries of a half-mad woman echoed through the square.
No one could stop her.
"What should I do?"
The bailiff spoke to Katzen's messenger, seemingly troubled.
The messenger roared annoyedly.
"She wants to die with him, so let her do it! Hurry up and do it!"
The messenger had no interest in such a vulgar scandal as the revelation of Raju's hidden daughter.
"No. All of you, take up your whips. All 500 lashes must be carried out today. Time is of the essence, and we cannot afford to be delayed by such trifles!"
For he had an imperial decree left by Perdiccas II that was several times more important than the execution of Raju.
"Yes!"
"Mother! No, no, no!"
Samon, with his uncomfortable body, ran up to the stage and tried to get his mother out.
However, he was hit in the face with the bailiff's vicious hand and was kicked out without mercy.
Katzen's messenger had no intention of stopping the execution twice.
Slam!
The whip in the hands of the executioners struck Catherine's back without hesitation.
"Ah, Catherine... Ughhhhhhh..."
In Catherine's arms, Raju let out an animalistic cry.
But he could neither escape nor save his lover from the orgy of whips that poured down like rain, crossed by each other.
Catherine held Raju's hand tightly as if to say that it was okay.
Her face was a mixture of pain, despair, and love.
The lashes struck the scaffold with punctuated lashes.
The two people hugged each other and closed their eyes.
Blood-mixed rain spread thickly across the stone floor. Red drops seeped into the cracks of the cold stone.
The rain became heavier.
Amid the breathless moments that pass.
"...Died."
The executioners put down their whips and stepped back.
"What should I do, there are still turns left"
Their gaze now fell on the two cold, motionless bodies.
The two lovers who died while embracing each other seem to have wanted to remain in love for a century, staying together until death.
"Eugh... What's going on? Are they in an immortal love or something?"
"Pretending to be affectionate is a waste of time until you die."
To the people's eyes, it was just a shocking and disgusting execution scene.
The messenger spat.
"That's it. Let's just end it here. Do you think we can waste any more time on a criminal who deceived the royal family? We have to go to the villa quickly, so hurry and get ready!"
"Wait a minute, a villa? Is there another reason to come to our palace?"
Then, the knight of Valdina, who had heard the lion's words, asked him.
The lion recognized the Valdina imperial emblem engraved on the knight's chest.
"Hmm. Hmm."
The messenger coughed and tapped the red rose emblem on his robe.
And, unlike a moment ago when he had been nervously nagging his subordinate, he answered surprisingly kindly.
"Yes, His Majesty has asked me to convey a very great undertaking."
He proudly took out another scroll from his bosom.
It was a stiff, antique-looking piece of paper with gold engraving, different from the execution certificate Raju had spread out earlier.
"This is a special letter from His Majesty the King of Katzen to the Princess of Valdina, expressing his deep regret for the misunderstandings and unpleasant incidents that have occurred. His Majesty has expressed his noble intention to welcome Her Highness the Princess as an honorable member of the Katzen Imperial Family and to assume her guardianship."
The messenger turned slightly towards the crowd and raised his voice.
"What does that mean? Ahem!"
He paused for a moment, clearing his throat for no reason and staring into space.
"This means that Her Highness has now become the most noble person not only in this country but also on the entire continent. As the royal family of the two empires of Katzen and Valdina, she has gained new dignity and authority."
And he recited the contents of the special letter so loudly that it resonated throughout the room.
It seemed as if he was speaking to the people in the square, not just the knights.
Furthermore, in this special letter, the Princess is granted immunity from punishment for any crime she commits anywhere in Katzen, and special treatment that does not require her to kneel before His Majesty the Emperor.
It was to capture public opinion in advance, in case the Valdina royal family saw through the empty honor of this special letter and rejected it.
"This is truly a great decision, unprecedented in Katzen's history. Her Highness the Princess will now be under Katzen's protection wherever she goes on the continent."
"Oh!"
The crowd's ferocious spirit changed to curiosity and admiration at the messenger's passionate roar.
Regardless of their antipathy toward Katzen, the contents of the special letter delivered by the messenger's voice aroused their pride.
"So, that arrogant Emperor is now bowing down to Her Highness the Princess to be her guardian?"
Of course, it was a bit off from the message the messenger intended.
"Of course! Judging by the strings attached, I can see that they are eager to get Our Majesty out of the border as soon as possible!"
"If Her Highness the Princess accepts this, then surely none of the Katzen will be able to pray before Her Highness. How can they do that when their emperor is supposed to protect Her Highness!"
The people's hearts fluttered with strange excitement and pride at the news that their Princess was now recognized as the most noble being on the continent.
The Valdinians, who had been oppressed by the tyranny of the powerful Katzen, felt a kind of pleasure mixed with revenge in the upended situation.
"That, that's why you came in such a fancy carriage. To look good to His Majesty!"
The splendor of the carriage, which had been a thorn in their eyes, was seen again when they thought of it as an example to their Princess.
The messenger felt a brief discomfort at the public reaction, which was somewhat contrary to the intentions of his master, the Emperor.
But ultimately, it was clearly successful in raising the crowd's enthusiasm and drawing attention.
In the end, the most important thing was to create an atmosphere in which the Valdina royal family could not help but accept the special letter.
"So, as a person with the important responsibility of delivering this news as soon as possible, please forgive me for leaving first."
Katzen's carriage left the execution scene in the same magnificent manner in which it had first brought the messenger.
"Wow!"
"Long live Valdina! Long live Her Highness the Princess!"
"All Katzen bastards, get on your knees!"
The square became hot and humid, making the moisture from the rain that was falling lightly pale in comparison.
Except for one place, where the Claudio family is.
Birna stared blankly at the stage.
It was as if the messenger's roar had passed through one ear and out the other.
She hesitated and took a step back as she looked at the red object tangled like a piece of meat.
Her pupils were shaking and her Iips were white.
A man came into view, his mind blank.
Gray hair. Cloudy blue eyes. So familiar, her brother.
"Sa, Samon..."
She reached out.
She needed the support of her only remaining family, as she was unable to cope with the situation before her eyes.
But the moment she reached out to Samon.
Crack-!
A burning pain occurred as if she was being burned.
"Let go, you dirty thing."
Samon looked at Birna with contempt.
How can you believe that you have cared for a lowly commoner girl, not even your real sister, all your life, believing that she was your blood relative?
Thinking about it like that, Samon felt like a thousand fires were rising inside him.
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