15. The beginning of the collapse
“Come in, son.”
His wrinkled hands gripped the throne. Son. Asherad snorted. There was no such thing as a farce. His speech was very kind, but he was a father who always welcomed his beloved son to the throne room.
A father's kindness? It was something a passing dog would laugh at. Emperor Belenus, with his authority as Emperor, was always planning to suppress his son.
“Meet My father.”
But Asherad bowed his head politely. He wanted to play family games first, and he was willing to do so.
“Is your injury okay?”
“Of course.”
The Emperor then remembered the wounds he had received during the horse race last season. He laughed so hard he almost cried at the artificial lightness.
“Do you know why I called you?”
“Isn’t it because I insulted the Princess of the Kingdom of Thalassa?”
Asherad lowered his head as if he knew his guilt. The Emperor raised the corners of his mouth.
“Yes, I want to hear the whole story.”
The Emperor looked at Asherad with sharp eyes. Since the beginning of time, the reason why many who ascended the throne died was not because of war or the purge of the opposition.
It was a usurpation by blood relatives.
Although they are blood relatives, as time passes and he grows older, he is challenged by younger people who share his own blood. The person in front of him was a detestable challenger before he was his son. His son always seemed to be extremely filial, but he was always wary of his outstanding son.
“That’s right, that stupid woman is ignoring me.”
Asherad said with a distorted expression on his face. His face was filled with unbearable annoyance.
It was a face that looked like it had been chewing mud. Asherad looked at his father's face with an expression that seemed unable to contain his anger, as if trying to calm down.
“Your Majesty. That woman is not worthy of the dignity of an Empress. I tried to be kind to her because she is my younger sister, but why did she curse my father so much?”
"Yes?"
“Yes, to be honest, Father, I was interested in Daphne.”
The Emperor frowned. What could his son be talking about? No matter how uninterested he was, he knew his son’s nature even if he didn’t want to know.
He was someone who hated anything dirty to the point of making his teeth chatter, and who strongly detested anything that touched the lowest of things. Just like himself.
“Isn’t it a lowly thing to think that she shares my blood with my father?”
A look of unbearable murderous intent overflowed from Asherad's face.
The Emperor looked at it indifferently. Yes, that was it. He wanted to give power to Beatrice's daughter. He wanted to give it all to the woman he loved and his own daughter.
The clever Sabrina and her son, Asherad, knew it well. And when the lie was revealed, Asherad was furious.
The Emperor understood Askelad's anger.
As the Emperor was persistent in one direction, Asherad was also persistent in another.
Perhaps it was because that sinister anger resembled his own that he was pleased. The Emperor found it amusing that Asherad was secretly oppressing Daphne.
“I am the Crown Prince of this country! I know everything!”
The stupid son didn't seem to know that he was being watched.
“But, why didn’t the Princess tell me that the girl is not my father’s blood? How could I not know that?”
“...”
“That’s why I was just angry.”
Asherad still tapped the floor with a face that showed no sign of displeasure.
The Emperor's face relaxed at the sight of his son, who was so foolish and did not care about people. However, his eyes were still filled with wariness.
“So you left the Princess behind and chased after the maid?”
Asherad sighed.
“I... was reckless.”
“...”
“I wanted to somehow humiliate that woman from Thalassa. I am also the Crown Prince of a country. It is not as if I do not know the palace affairs, and teasing that woman was one of my little pastimes.”
At Asherad's grumbling, the Emperor pretended to have the look of a stern father and said:
“Asherad, she is your aunt.”
“Yes, I know that very well.”
Asherad lowered his head, looking at the Emperor with a softened voice. The Emperor smiled as he looked at his son, who had awakened to his power.
He would eventually get his own position when he got older, but he wasn't smart enough to usurp it. That's because he couldn't suppress his youthful spirit and did this.
The irrational person's weaknesses are revealed. In that sense, this fool was being very filial just by his foolishness.
“Apologize to the Princess.”
“...”
“She is the one who will be your mother. Although you are not related by blood, isn’t she your aunt? I will cover up her shortcomings. Don’t act rashly.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Tsk tsk, you were just sitting there for a while, how can you do this...”
He clicked his tongue in a very fatherly tone and glanced at Asherad. His face showed displeasure, as if he did not want to apologize, but the Emperor found it humane.
What the Emperor was wary of was not the easy trickery, but the cunningness to skillfully hide it.
There was no father-son bond between them, and every time the Emperor looked at Sabrina's face, which, though he thought it was cute, looked nothing like his son, he felt a shiver run down his spine.
“Come in, son.”
His wrinkled hands gripped the throne. Son. Asherad snorted. There was no such thing as a farce. His speech was very kind, but he was a father who always welcomed his beloved son to the throne room.
A father's kindness? It was something a passing dog would laugh at. Emperor Belenus, with his authority as Emperor, was always planning to suppress his son.
“Meet My father.”
But Asherad bowed his head politely. He wanted to play family games first, and he was willing to do so.
“Is your injury okay?”
“Of course.”
The Emperor then remembered the wounds he had received during the horse race last season. He laughed so hard he almost cried at the artificial lightness.
“Do you know why I called you?”
“Isn’t it because I insulted the Princess of the Kingdom of Thalassa?”
Asherad lowered his head as if he knew his guilt. The Emperor raised the corners of his mouth.
“Yes, I want to hear the whole story.”
The Emperor looked at Asherad with sharp eyes. Since the beginning of time, the reason why many who ascended the throne died was not because of war or the purge of the opposition.
It was a usurpation by blood relatives.
Although they are blood relatives, as time passes and he grows older, he is challenged by younger people who share his own blood. The person in front of him was a detestable challenger before he was his son. His son always seemed to be extremely filial, but he was always wary of his outstanding son.
“That’s right, that stupid woman is ignoring me.”
Asherad said with a distorted expression on his face. His face was filled with unbearable annoyance.
It was a face that looked like it had been chewing mud. Asherad looked at his father's face with an expression that seemed unable to contain his anger, as if trying to calm down.
“Your Majesty. That woman is not worthy of the dignity of an Empress. I tried to be kind to her because she is my younger sister, but why did she curse my father so much?”
"Yes?"
“Yes, to be honest, Father, I was interested in Daphne.”
The Emperor frowned. What could his son be talking about? No matter how uninterested he was, he knew his son’s nature even if he didn’t want to know.
He was someone who hated anything dirty to the point of making his teeth chatter, and who strongly detested anything that touched the lowest of things. Just like himself.
“Isn’t it a lowly thing to think that she shares my blood with my father?”
A look of unbearable murderous intent overflowed from Asherad's face.
The Emperor looked at it indifferently. Yes, that was it. He wanted to give power to Beatrice's daughter. He wanted to give it all to the woman he loved and his own daughter.
The clever Sabrina and her son, Asherad, knew it well. And when the lie was revealed, Asherad was furious.
The Emperor understood Askelad's anger.
As the Emperor was persistent in one direction, Asherad was also persistent in another.
Perhaps it was because that sinister anger resembled his own that he was pleased. The Emperor found it amusing that Asherad was secretly oppressing Daphne.
“I am the Crown Prince of this country! I know everything!”
The stupid son didn't seem to know that he was being watched.
“But, why didn’t the Princess tell me that the girl is not my father’s blood? How could I not know that?”
“...”
“That’s why I was just angry.”
Asherad still tapped the floor with a face that showed no sign of displeasure.
The Emperor's face relaxed at the sight of his son, who was so foolish and did not care about people. However, his eyes were still filled with wariness.
“So you left the Princess behind and chased after the maid?”
Asherad sighed.
“I... was reckless.”
“...”
“I wanted to somehow humiliate that woman from Thalassa. I am also the Crown Prince of a country. It is not as if I do not know the palace affairs, and teasing that woman was one of my little pastimes.”
At Asherad's grumbling, the Emperor pretended to have the look of a stern father and said:
“Asherad, she is your aunt.”
“Yes, I know that very well.”
Asherad lowered his head, looking at the Emperor with a softened voice. The Emperor smiled as he looked at his son, who had awakened to his power.
He would eventually get his own position when he got older, but he wasn't smart enough to usurp it. That's because he couldn't suppress his youthful spirit and did this.
The irrational person's weaknesses are revealed. In that sense, this fool was being very filial just by his foolishness.
“Apologize to the Princess.”
“...”
“She is the one who will be your mother. Although you are not related by blood, isn’t she your aunt? I will cover up her shortcomings. Don’t act rashly.”
“Yes, Father.”
“Tsk tsk, you were just sitting there for a while, how can you do this...”
He clicked his tongue in a very fatherly tone and glanced at Asherad. His face showed displeasure, as if he did not want to apologize, but the Emperor found it humane.
What the Emperor was wary of was not the easy trickery, but the cunningness to skillfully hide it.
There was no father-son bond between them, and every time the Emperor looked at Sabrina's face, which, though he thought it was cute, looked nothing like his son, he felt a shiver run down his spine.
He thought it was natural to give the throne to his beloved and her daughter, whom he would not mind putting in his eyes. Of course, the woman's betrayal left him with no choice.
“Still, Asherad. Refrain from taking your anger out on that girl. It’s an order.”
Asherad made a face that seemed completely incomprehensible to the Emperor's words. At his gaze that seemed to ask why, he simply smiled bitterly.
“So stay away from that woman. There’s no need to scold her anymore. Just leave her alone.”
“Why, why?”
“Isn’t it time to decide what to do with that girl?”
“Oh, I understand.”
Asherad lowered his head. His exaggerated expression had turned cold in his eyes.
***
"What are you doing?"
"Oh!"
Someone spoke to Daphne, who was standing still. Startled, she turned her head and saw Fabian standing there.
“What brings you here?”
“Then why are you here?”
“Because no one told me to do anything.”
Daphne muttered gloomily. It was not the first time she had spent time in her room, but the smelly room was stuffy. Whenever she went outside, the servants would always say something.
Eventually, Daphne escaped the maids and went outside. Whenever she wandered around aimlessly, she would always be standing here.
“So you’re hanging around the Crown Prince’s Palace again?”
“...”
Daphne didn't say anything. Fabian glanced at her and saw that Daphne's face was filled with sorrow. Her eyes, wet with tears, were beautiful in themselves, but they looked dangerously close to collapsing. Fabian looked around.
Indeed, it was a place where people's gazes were cleverly hidden, as if they had worked in the palace for a long time. Fabian sat down next to Daphne.
“Why, His Highness the Crown Prince didn’t call you today?”
“...”
“You don’t hate him?”
Daphne shook her head desperately when she heard that. What does that mean? Asherad is such a kind person.
"No."
“...”
“Absolutely not.”
“Why do you think so?”
“He said he thought of me as his little sister.”
“...”
“Now, even though he knows what kind of person I am, he still shows me his unchanging affection. He says he cares for me, like a younger sibling...”
Daphne's words trailed off as she spoke. Sister. The meaning was somehow unclear.
Long ago, Daphne looked at Asherad and imagined that he could be her brother. But...
“Wow, you were dumped.”
"Yes?!"
Daphne opened her eyes wide. Fabian began to spout cruel words with an innocent face.
“That’s right. I heard from someone I like that I look like a little brother.”
“...”
“You, as a person of the opposite sex, aren’t even considered a romantic interest.”
Daphne's heart sank. It was also a strange sense of anxiety that she had been harboring. Her lips trembled.
“A romantic interest... His Highness the Crown Prince’s romantic interest, I wouldn’t even dream of such impure thoughts!”
“Then what are you worrying about so deeply? You always have that expression on your face like you’re about to die.”
Fabian spoke with an innocent face. Daphne was puzzled. Was she making a deathly expression? Did others see it that way?
“And, Daphne.”
“...”
“Are you an idiot, His Highness the Crown Prince? I know that, too, but you think he didn’t know that you were that woman’s daughter?”
It wasn't malicious slander. That's why she dug deeper. Her heart was pounding.
“How can I fathom His Highness’s feelings...”
Fabian muttered and looked at Daphne's face, but she only tried to calm her rapid breathing with a pale face.
“I... don’t know. Looking at you, it doesn’t seem like His Highness the Crown Prince cares much about you.”
“...”
“If it were me, I would have changed those old clothes into new ones first.”
Fabian said, getting up. Daphne looked at her clothes. They were black and had no marks, but they were old and shabby.
She was about to get angry at Fabian and ask him what the hell he was talking about, but Fabian had already walked away.
Daphne opened her eyes wide and looked at Fabian's back. Of course, Asherad was not that kind of person. Daphne rebuilt her trust in him, which was about to crumble.
What she should have been indulging in was her own pity for having become Asherad's 'younger sister', not Asherad's indifference to Daphne's circumstances.
But at some point, something suddenly started to crack.
"Yes?!"
Daphne opened her eyes wide. Fabian began to spout cruel words with an innocent face.
“That’s right. I heard from someone I like that I look like a little brother.”
“...”
“You, as a person of the opposite sex, aren’t even considered a romantic interest.”
Daphne's heart sank. It was also a strange sense of anxiety that she had been harboring. Her lips trembled.
“A romantic interest... His Highness the Crown Prince’s romantic interest, I wouldn’t even dream of such impure thoughts!”
“Then what are you worrying about so deeply? You always have that expression on your face like you’re about to die.”
Fabian spoke with an innocent face. Daphne was puzzled. Was she making a deathly expression? Did others see it that way?
“And, Daphne.”
“...”
“Are you an idiot, His Highness the Crown Prince? I know that, too, but you think he didn’t know that you were that woman’s daughter?”
It wasn't malicious slander. That's why she dug deeper. Her heart was pounding.
“How can I fathom His Highness’s feelings...”
Fabian muttered and looked at Daphne's face, but she only tried to calm her rapid breathing with a pale face.
“I... don’t know. Looking at you, it doesn’t seem like His Highness the Crown Prince cares much about you.”
“...”
“If it were me, I would have changed those old clothes into new ones first.”
Fabian said, getting up. Daphne looked at her clothes. They were black and had no marks, but they were old and shabby.
She was about to get angry at Fabian and ask him what the hell he was talking about, but Fabian had already walked away.
Daphne opened her eyes wide and looked at Fabian's back. Of course, Asherad was not that kind of person. Daphne rebuilt her trust in him, which was about to crumble.
What she should have been indulging in was her own pity for having become Asherad's 'younger sister', not Asherad's indifference to Daphne's circumstances.
But at some point, something suddenly started to crack.
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