There was no heavy metal attached to the shackles around my ankles.
However, both ankles were connected with chains so that it was not easy to move, and I felt a sharp pain on the top of my foot due to a slight sprain in the process of falling from the window.
I was groping with my fingertips for the hard seams of the shackles.
There was a polite knock.
"Your Highness, have you woken up?"
"..."
It was a voice I had heard before.
Was her name Greta?
I remember that she was the maid of honor for Letie.
When Letie was known as the real savior, she was the woman who would chase after me and sneer at me. Sometimes, when I was looking at the gifts that came to Letie, she would come to me and warn me not to look at them, as they were all valuable things for the savior.
As I recalled the unpleasant memory, Greta blurted out.
"I'll go in."
The maid rushed in without permission and immediately looked at me sitting on the bed.
Greta's green eyes didn't show the same subtle disregard for me as before.
So it was even more unpleasant.
"Why did you come in when I didn't allow it?"
"His Majesty has ordered me to take a good look at your condition."
Rather than checking my condition, he would have told her to monitor me so that I could not escape.
I didn't want to mess around, so I shut my mouth, and Greta bowed her head.
"I'll bring you a meal
"No."
I added with a sneer.
"I know what's in it."
How can you trust a meal given to you by someone who has already played a prank on the meals of the escort knights?
However, Greta seemed to think that the Emperor's order was a priority, so she managed to pull in a trolley filled with food.
I felt like I was being overwhelmed by the smell of the savory soup, which would normally have been pleasant.
Greta said in an unpleasantly caring voice, as if to soothe a child.
"You have to eat. His Majesty's order."
"I said I didn't need it?"
"Your Highness..."
"Are you so worried? My father is not Letie?"
Greta's mouth tightened.
I made a suggestion with a feeling of exhaustion.
"Then let's do this. I'm going to have a meal, so call my father."
"..."
"And I don't want to see your face, so if you want to put it on me, tell him to put another handmaiden on it."
Greta's face flushed with contempt.
I didn't care if I did or not.
It was already in the past that Greta was able to shout at me with the authority of Letie.
Now that Letie is dead and everything has changed, Greta is just a handmaiden.
Greta bowed her head deeply and replied, without refuting as expected.
"I see. Please eat comfortably."
I started eating only after Greta was gone.
Kishian would be looking for me by now.
To get out of this, I had to fill my stomach.
So, without even tasting it properly, I focused only on filling my stomach.
As soon as I finished eating, the other maids came and took the empty bowls.
After waiting for a while, the Emperor came to the room.
"You found me?"
"What the hell were you thinking when you did this?"
"..."
"Kishain will be coming to the Imperial Palace to find me soon."
If he comes, you will not be safe.
I didn't need to add this word.
He already knew what I wanted to say.
Again, the Emperor's face was hardened with anger.
"Do you think I will be afraid if the monster comes? I have prepared something in advance, and he will not even set foot near the Imperial Palace."
"..."
"Rather, there is something you have to do. It's something you have to do as a savior. Follow me."
He didn't listen to my answer and winked at the attendants standing beside him.
The attendants came over and loosened the shackles on my ankles.
When the shackles were removed, the Emperor took the lead and began to walk.
I was anxious, but I had no choice but to follow the Emperor because of the strong hands of his servants.
'What are you trying to do?'
The Emperor led me down the stairs.
I didn't stop at the first floor, but went further down, to the basement.
As I remembered, there was a warehouse in the basement of the main palace.
It was a warehouse for the imperial family's precious items.
The Emperor led me to the deepest of them all, the storehouse.
This is a place....
"You've never been in. It is strictly forbidden to enter."
It was true.
Neither I nor Letie had ever been here.
The Emperor stood in front of the secret storehouse and opened the door with the key he had.
In the dark warehouse, there was a lone thing that emitted a bright light, stored in a glass case.
When I saw it, I muttered in bewilderment.
"Lyssenblume?"
It was a flower that I was familiar with.
I heard the story of the Lyssenblume flower from the Kishian, and he used the gold that resembled it as the trophy for the monster hunting competition.
But what is it about that flower that is so preciously kept?
Moreover, even though it was underground without any sunlight, the flowers were full of vitality and light as if they had just bloomed.
I got closer to it without realizing it.
Looking at the flowers placed finely inside the glass box, the Emperor said:
"This is the reality of the curse that has fallen upon our imperial family."
A curse that has been passed down to the imperial family from generation to generation.
He said that this one sparkling flower was the reality of the curse that swept him into madness as he grew older.
The Emperor let out a long sigh and spoke again.
"I don't know if you've heard of it before. The story of Lyssenblume... The imperial court actively shredded and cracked down on all materials related to it, but they couldn't help the stories that were passed down through people's mouths."
He was right.
When I was in the Imperial Palace, I didn't know the story of Lyssenblume, but when I went to the North, I finally heard about it.
He nodded, and the Emperor continued in a weary voice.
"It's not just a folktale. Indeed, our distant ancestors sinned. He stole something from the Garden of the Gods that he shouldn't have stolen, and he was cursed."
"Then this flower..."
"It can be said that it is a testimony of that sin. It is also something that drives the royal family into madness."
After listening to his story, I looked at the flowers again.
It looked beautiful at first glance, but just by being up close, I could feel how rich it was.
It was exactly the same force that polluted the minds of the people.
The Emperor tapped on the glass box as if to ask me to take a closer look.
"This is the Magi that contaminates the spirit of the imperial family. We can't escape this curse. Without the power of a savior."
"I don't understand. It seems that the power of this flower causes mental pollution, so why didn't you get rid of it sooner?"
"It's not that we didn't get rid of it, but we couldn't get rid of it."
He explained with his eyes still on the cursed Lyssenblume.
"I've tried to trample on it. I've tried to burn it. Of course, I tried to shred it into pieces. However, no physical act could destroy it. We also tried sealing it away from a distance, but in the end it came back to us."
"..."
"So I had to admit it. We need a savior to remove this power."
His gaze fell away from the flower and turned to me.
His eyes showed extreme fatigue.
"Now that you have become a complete savior, you will not have to hide it."
"..."
"Hurry up and do what you have to do."
His attitude was very confident.
Just like I naturally believe that I will purify the flowers.
I felt like I was going to burst out laughing.
Whenever he throws me away, when the moment comes when he needs it, he acts as if he has entrusted me with salvation.
But I couldn't say no.
No matter how I felt, I was kidnapped, and the man in front of me could hurt me at any time.
He suppressed his anger and sadness.
"Please promise me one thing. If I can purify the Magi contained in this flower, you will send me back to the Grand Duke's Palace."
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