Episode 80. A Twist of Fate
Renisha fiddled with her fingers.
She should have been happy, of course, but why did she hesitate to answer at that moment?
Revenge was right in front of her.
Laxus would lose what he had fought so hard to protect, fall to the ground, and die miserably.
And Renisha would rise to that position.
“I should be happy...”
The abrupt question pierced Renisha’s heart.
“Why...”
Renisha sighed.
Kassius always stimulated Renisha’s human side. He would rekindle forgotten romantic feelings, and just like now, he would make Renisha, who had been running towards her goal, look back.
“It’s not all joy.”
She thinks she knows why.
The throne of the Emperor wasn’t something you could just obtain.
It was a crown of blood, earned through someone’s sacrifice and death.
Count Calliot had awakened this with his death, making Massius aware of it.
Renisha covered her face with her palm.
"What if I give up?"
A choice she'd never considered occurred to her.
Giving up the throne, giving up revenge.
Living in pursuit of happiness, as someone had hoped.
"Can Laxus lead Hientri well?"
Laxus was a much more emotional person than Renisha.
He followed instinct rather than reason and conducted politics for his own benefit.
Laxus would only sustain the empire, not advance it.
He would ultimately lead it to destruction, just as Hientri's fate was fading.
"I am right."
The lives Renisha could save by becoming Emperor would outnumber the lives she would lose by becoming Emperor.
That much she was confident of.
The question was, could she bear the weight of death that would rest on her shoulders...?
Would she not forget and endure it?
Would she crumble like Laxus?
"What are you thinking?"
Kassius approached her, tying his gown, and kissed Renisha's shoulder.
Renisha turned her head and kissed his cheek.
“I was thinking about what you said,”
Renisha replied with a sigh.
“Kassius. You often make me worry.”
Renisha puffed out her cheeks slightly.
“Do I?”
Kassius picked her up. Renisha, fresh from her bath, emanated a strong scent of perfume.
The soft moonlight streaming in through the balcony illuminated her skin.
“You don’t make me worry.”
“Then?”
Renisha pressed for an answer, asking what he meant.
Kassius lay her down on the bed.
Renisha was no different from a bewitching siren.
He wanted to listen to everything Renisha said.
He would have been happy to be her slave, manipulated by her fingertips.
If only he could stay by Renisha’s side.
Until his shallow feelings grew deeper and deeper, finally spreading like this.
Kassius was helpless, subject to it.
Kassius kissed Renisha.
Their souls seemed to be entwined.
No, more precisely, it felt like Kassius's soul was being subjugated to Renisha.
Kassius's lips trembled.
"You... drive me crazy,"
Kassius whispered softly.
"You make me not who I am."
Renisha blinked at the unexpected words.
Kassius didn't know if he knew.
He was quite the romantic.
The move was completed without incident.
It was Renisha and Kassius's mansion, built with Laxus's money.
Kassius seemed a little dissatisfied, but he obediently complied with Renisha's decision.
After the successful move, Renisha's first visitor was the Marquis of Danvers.
It was a secret visit.
As Renisha had hoped, they could now access the mansion through a secret passage.
Danvers's support for Renisha would have to remain a secret for now.
Renisha had created a secret room in the basement.
It was a door that could only be opened by Renisha's command.
And inside, the Marquis of Danvers was waiting.
"Lady Renisha."
"Marquis Danvers. It's a pleasure to meet you."
At Renisha's gesture, the door closed.
Lindy stood guard behind Renisha, her face stern.
Her expression looked as if she would bite the Marquis Danvers if he ever harmed Renisha.
The Marquis Danvers, who had no intention of becoming her enemy, smiled leisurely.
Ever since Renisha saved Count Calliot and his children, ensuring that Jails's death would be honorable.
And ever since she brought Jails's remains outside and held a funeral.
The Marquis Danvers had offered himself as Renisha's servant.
If he were to betray Renisha, it would be when Jails returned alive.
"I, indeed, would be honored."
"How have you been? How are things going with Canary?"
That was what Renisha was curious about.
"It seems Canary wants to be the hostess of the upcoming festival."
Renisha hesitated. Hostess?
"Is Canary worthy of that?"
"I heard she's been studying foreign languages diligently,"
Marquis Danvers replied with a smile.
That wasn't enough to secure the position of Empress.
To entertain a nation's envoys, you needed to know everything about their culture and arts.
To pretend to be a hostess without knowing a single thing about them?
Renisha let out a laugh.
"So, do you think Laxus would allow that?"
"Well, no one can know the Emperor's heart, right?"
"But I suppose I can drown it in mud,"
Renisha said slowly.
Canary would lose everything she had hoped for.
That was Renisha's punishment for Canary.
She knew that Canary had whispered advice into Laxus's ear, fueling his inferiority complex.
She had played a part in Laxus's eventual murder of the Duke and Duchess of Lottera.
Renisha intended to repay him.
“I should be the hostess of that place.”
“...Are you referring to the position of Empress?”
“No. The hostess of that day is the one who sits next to Laxus. I’ll consider sitting in that position for a day or so.”
“I’ll understand and prepare accordingly. Canary will be very sad.”
Renisha shrugged.
That wasn’t Renisha’s concern.
Just as Canary had whispered about Lottera’s downfall, she hadn’t considered the sorrow of those who remained.
“And I’ve found out where Canary is embezzling the money and buying a mansion.”
“A foreign country, I suppose?”
“Yes. Are you planning to let Canary escape?”
“Does she deserve to live a life of luxury? Forgetting everything. As if nothing had happened. I don’t want to allow that. Can you do something about it?”
“As long as Canary trusts me, it’s possible.”
Marquis Danvers’s confidence made Renisha happy.
She was certainly happy now.
Canary would live a messy life, just as Renisha had hoped.
“Renisha entered the mansion?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The chamberlain bowed.
“...Alone?”
“No, Your Majesty. I understand she entered with Duke Kassius.”
Laxus paced the room with a disgruntled expression.
Renisha never got her way. Just when she seemed to have her in her grasp, she’d run away again.
Laxus gritted his teeth.
He remembered Kassius standing beneath him with Renisha on that rainy day.
Renisha was smiling brightly in her arms.
Kassius was enjoying that smile, a smile he’d never seen before, oblivious to the subject.
His heart was seething.
“Why on earth!”
Laxus kicked the table.
“What did he say?! A mere slave?”
Laxus scanned Renisha’s bedroom with gleaming eyes.
Laxus gritted his teeth.
Looking at the bed, he was reminded of Renisha and Kassius tangled together.
Unlike how she had treated Lexus, Renisha was held in Kassius's arms...
This time, Laxus kicked the bed.
The more he thought about it, the more painful it became, but he couldn't stop thinking about it.
The past Laxus must have been crazy.
How did he not know Renisha so well?
She was a woman who would never return once she left.
Laxus burst into anger.
The chamberlain remained silent.
“Bring Renisha. Bring her before me immediately!”
The object flew past his head and crashed to the floor.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The chamberlain barely swallowed his discontent.
Was he someone Renisha would summon?
Renisha would never move unless it was necessary.
The only ones who were being squeezed out like shrimp in the gap were the servants.
He doesn’t know what Renisha wants, but he hopes it comes quickly.
No matter what Renisha does, Laxus will not be there.
The Berriet Forest near Hiloshine was shrouded in darkness.
Humans had infiltrated a place where the only awake life should be wild animals. They concealed themselves in the darkness, hushed their footsteps, and carefully avoided being seen.
They stood just before the gates of Hiloshine.
A thick tension hung between the two men.
“...Is this even possible? Is this really Hiloshine?”
“It’s better to try something than to die inaction.”
The men exchanged glances.
They had come here on Emperor Laxus's orders.
Their bodies, pushed to their limits, were groaning with fatigue and breaking out in a cold sweat, but their eyes wouldn't close.
The tension made their blood boil.
Their order was to kidnap 'Isabella Lottera.'
The Emperor was about to put Renisha on a leash, as he desired.
The only sounds were the rustling of the bushes brushing their legs and the hooting of owls.
And yet, why was it so ominous?
They cautiously crossed the gates of Hiloshine.
The place was nothing more than a ruin...
"I can't believe this is Hiloshine."
The men clucked their tongues and held their breath.
Entering Hiloshine was difficult, but crossing the castle was even more arduous.
Armed knights stood guard, fiercely guarding the castle.
Today, their fate would be decided.
Would they be captured and killed here, or would they succeed in their mission and receive a reward from Laxus?
How on earth did they get caught up in this?
The men cautiously crossed the castle.
Soon, the once-dormant castle lights up.
“Haylin!!!!!”
Amidst the chaos of shouts and screams, masked men slung sacks over their shoulders and emerged from the castle.
They swore as they rode their horses.
“You’re not a kid!!!”
“Just go! Anything will do! Isn’t it better than empty-handed?!”
They ran without looking back.
A breathless chase had begun.
I hope they can arrive safely at the palace!
Fate struck Renisha once again.
Two pieces of bad news were delivered to her.
Henry had escaped.
Haylin had been kidnapped!
Misfortune always lurked around Renisha.
Renisha fiddled with her fingers.
She should have been happy, of course, but why did she hesitate to answer at that moment?
Revenge was right in front of her.
Laxus would lose what he had fought so hard to protect, fall to the ground, and die miserably.
And Renisha would rise to that position.
“I should be happy...”
The abrupt question pierced Renisha’s heart.
“Why...”
Renisha sighed.
Kassius always stimulated Renisha’s human side. He would rekindle forgotten romantic feelings, and just like now, he would make Renisha, who had been running towards her goal, look back.
“It’s not all joy.”
She thinks she knows why.
The throne of the Emperor wasn’t something you could just obtain.
It was a crown of blood, earned through someone’s sacrifice and death.
Count Calliot had awakened this with his death, making Massius aware of it.
Renisha covered her face with her palm.
"What if I give up?"
A choice she'd never considered occurred to her.
Giving up the throne, giving up revenge.
Living in pursuit of happiness, as someone had hoped.
"Can Laxus lead Hientri well?"
Laxus was a much more emotional person than Renisha.
He followed instinct rather than reason and conducted politics for his own benefit.
Laxus would only sustain the empire, not advance it.
He would ultimately lead it to destruction, just as Hientri's fate was fading.
"I am right."
The lives Renisha could save by becoming Emperor would outnumber the lives she would lose by becoming Emperor.
That much she was confident of.
The question was, could she bear the weight of death that would rest on her shoulders...?
Would she not forget and endure it?
Would she crumble like Laxus?
"What are you thinking?"
Kassius approached her, tying his gown, and kissed Renisha's shoulder.
Renisha turned her head and kissed his cheek.
“I was thinking about what you said,”
Renisha replied with a sigh.
“Kassius. You often make me worry.”
Renisha puffed out her cheeks slightly.
“Do I?”
Kassius picked her up. Renisha, fresh from her bath, emanated a strong scent of perfume.
The soft moonlight streaming in through the balcony illuminated her skin.
“You don’t make me worry.”
“Then?”
Renisha pressed for an answer, asking what he meant.
Kassius lay her down on the bed.
Renisha was no different from a bewitching siren.
He wanted to listen to everything Renisha said.
He would have been happy to be her slave, manipulated by her fingertips.
If only he could stay by Renisha’s side.
Until his shallow feelings grew deeper and deeper, finally spreading like this.
Kassius was helpless, subject to it.
Kassius kissed Renisha.
Their souls seemed to be entwined.
No, more precisely, it felt like Kassius's soul was being subjugated to Renisha.
Kassius's lips trembled.
"You... drive me crazy,"
Kassius whispered softly.
"You make me not who I am."
Renisha blinked at the unexpected words.
Kassius didn't know if he knew.
He was quite the romantic.
***
The move was completed without incident.
It was Renisha and Kassius's mansion, built with Laxus's money.
Kassius seemed a little dissatisfied, but he obediently complied with Renisha's decision.
After the successful move, Renisha's first visitor was the Marquis of Danvers.
It was a secret visit.
As Renisha had hoped, they could now access the mansion through a secret passage.
Danvers's support for Renisha would have to remain a secret for now.
Renisha had created a secret room in the basement.
It was a door that could only be opened by Renisha's command.
And inside, the Marquis of Danvers was waiting.
"Lady Renisha."
"Marquis Danvers. It's a pleasure to meet you."
At Renisha's gesture, the door closed.
Lindy stood guard behind Renisha, her face stern.
Her expression looked as if she would bite the Marquis Danvers if he ever harmed Renisha.
The Marquis Danvers, who had no intention of becoming her enemy, smiled leisurely.
Ever since Renisha saved Count Calliot and his children, ensuring that Jails's death would be honorable.
And ever since she brought Jails's remains outside and held a funeral.
The Marquis Danvers had offered himself as Renisha's servant.
If he were to betray Renisha, it would be when Jails returned alive.
"I, indeed, would be honored."
"How have you been? How are things going with Canary?"
That was what Renisha was curious about.
"It seems Canary wants to be the hostess of the upcoming festival."
Renisha hesitated. Hostess?
"Is Canary worthy of that?"
"I heard she's been studying foreign languages diligently,"
Marquis Danvers replied with a smile.
That wasn't enough to secure the position of Empress.
To entertain a nation's envoys, you needed to know everything about their culture and arts.
To pretend to be a hostess without knowing a single thing about them?
Renisha let out a laugh.
"So, do you think Laxus would allow that?"
"Well, no one can know the Emperor's heart, right?"
"But I suppose I can drown it in mud,"
Renisha said slowly.
Canary would lose everything she had hoped for.
That was Renisha's punishment for Canary.
She knew that Canary had whispered advice into Laxus's ear, fueling his inferiority complex.
She had played a part in Laxus's eventual murder of the Duke and Duchess of Lottera.
Renisha intended to repay him.
“I should be the hostess of that place.”
“...Are you referring to the position of Empress?”
“No. The hostess of that day is the one who sits next to Laxus. I’ll consider sitting in that position for a day or so.”
“I’ll understand and prepare accordingly. Canary will be very sad.”
Renisha shrugged.
That wasn’t Renisha’s concern.
Just as Canary had whispered about Lottera’s downfall, she hadn’t considered the sorrow of those who remained.
“And I’ve found out where Canary is embezzling the money and buying a mansion.”
“A foreign country, I suppose?”
“Yes. Are you planning to let Canary escape?”
“Does she deserve to live a life of luxury? Forgetting everything. As if nothing had happened. I don’t want to allow that. Can you do something about it?”
“As long as Canary trusts me, it’s possible.”
Marquis Danvers’s confidence made Renisha happy.
She was certainly happy now.
Canary would live a messy life, just as Renisha had hoped.
***
“Renisha entered the mansion?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The chamberlain bowed.
“...Alone?”
“No, Your Majesty. I understand she entered with Duke Kassius.”
Laxus paced the room with a disgruntled expression.
Renisha never got her way. Just when she seemed to have her in her grasp, she’d run away again.
Laxus gritted his teeth.
He remembered Kassius standing beneath him with Renisha on that rainy day.
Renisha was smiling brightly in her arms.
Kassius was enjoying that smile, a smile he’d never seen before, oblivious to the subject.
His heart was seething.
“Why on earth!”
Laxus kicked the table.
“What did he say?! A mere slave?”
Laxus scanned Renisha’s bedroom with gleaming eyes.
Laxus gritted his teeth.
Looking at the bed, he was reminded of Renisha and Kassius tangled together.
Unlike how she had treated Lexus, Renisha was held in Kassius's arms...
This time, Laxus kicked the bed.
The more he thought about it, the more painful it became, but he couldn't stop thinking about it.
The past Laxus must have been crazy.
How did he not know Renisha so well?
She was a woman who would never return once she left.
Laxus burst into anger.
The chamberlain remained silent.
“Bring Renisha. Bring her before me immediately!”
The object flew past his head and crashed to the floor.
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The chamberlain barely swallowed his discontent.
Was he someone Renisha would summon?
Renisha would never move unless it was necessary.
The only ones who were being squeezed out like shrimp in the gap were the servants.
He doesn’t know what Renisha wants, but he hopes it comes quickly.
No matter what Renisha does, Laxus will not be there.
***
The Berriet Forest near Hiloshine was shrouded in darkness.
Humans had infiltrated a place where the only awake life should be wild animals. They concealed themselves in the darkness, hushed their footsteps, and carefully avoided being seen.
They stood just before the gates of Hiloshine.
A thick tension hung between the two men.
“...Is this even possible? Is this really Hiloshine?”
“It’s better to try something than to die inaction.”
The men exchanged glances.
They had come here on Emperor Laxus's orders.
Their bodies, pushed to their limits, were groaning with fatigue and breaking out in a cold sweat, but their eyes wouldn't close.
The tension made their blood boil.
Their order was to kidnap 'Isabella Lottera.'
The Emperor was about to put Renisha on a leash, as he desired.
The only sounds were the rustling of the bushes brushing their legs and the hooting of owls.
And yet, why was it so ominous?
They cautiously crossed the gates of Hiloshine.
The place was nothing more than a ruin...
"I can't believe this is Hiloshine."
The men clucked their tongues and held their breath.
Entering Hiloshine was difficult, but crossing the castle was even more arduous.
Armed knights stood guard, fiercely guarding the castle.
Today, their fate would be decided.
Would they be captured and killed here, or would they succeed in their mission and receive a reward from Laxus?
How on earth did they get caught up in this?
The men cautiously crossed the castle.
Soon, the once-dormant castle lights up.
“Haylin!!!!!”
Amidst the chaos of shouts and screams, masked men slung sacks over their shoulders and emerged from the castle.
They swore as they rode their horses.
“You’re not a kid!!!”
“Just go! Anything will do! Isn’t it better than empty-handed?!”
They ran without looking back.
A breathless chase had begun.
I hope they can arrive safely at the palace!
***
Fate struck Renisha once again.
Two pieces of bad news were delivered to her.
Henry had escaped.
Haylin had been kidnapped!
Misfortune always lurked around Renisha.
Comments
Post a Comment