"But let me ask you just one thing: why is the Captain of the Royal Guard the King of Makluxa?"
"I recommend you find that out for yourself."
The Emperor tilted his wine glass with a thud. Then he narrowed his eyes.
"Your Majesty, the child of a murderer has been born. Is this child a sinner or not?"
"Are you suddenly trying to debate guilt by association with me?"
"Then... are the King's children sinners against their will, or not?"
She wasn't a fool. It wasn't difficult to realize what Roselyn was trying to say.
'The King's child...'
The former Emperor was a womanizer. Aside from the Empress, he had several concubines, and now none remained in the imperial palace. This was because he had disposed of them all in order to ascend the throne.
Those who could be let go were let go, and all those who refused ended up losing their lives in some unforeseen accident.
Even the many brothers he had when he was young died in unfortunate accidents.
However, considering the late Emperor's womanizing, it was ridiculous that he had so few children.
'...I knew I had a half-brother.'
However, it didn't stand out, so he didn't pay any attention to it.
Contrary to his flamboyant womanizing, the former Emperor was a man who cherished the empire and cared for its well-being.
Needless to say, after Sevirus was appointed Crown Prince, no one cared what he did.
Whether his other brothers suffered an unexpected accident or not, or whether he tidied up his surroundings or not.
The former Emperor was lustful, but he was not stupid.
He was neither a good parent nor a good husband, but he must have been a good Emperor.
Just as he came to love a woman, the only thing the Former Emperor loved was the empire he was entrusted with.
Therefore, he did not wish to bring a private and useless fight to the imperial city.
It means that he disposed of all the illegitimate children on his own without even noticing them.
"To think there would still be someone alive."
Saying that it was surprising in its own way, the Emperor slumped into the sofa like a vagabond and silently tilted his glass.
He looked like the absolute ruler of a nation.
'It's a difficult situation... because he's an illegitimate child.'
Unfortunately, there was no law in the empire to protect illegitimate children at present.
Roselyn is right.
They exist but must not exist, breathe but must not come out into the sun, and must live their entire lives like sinners for the sin of merely being born.
There was no rule that it had to be done that way, but that was the world's prejudice.
'To think he would even think of staging a rebellion like this.'
And he had been holding his breath for so long that even the Emperor didn't know.
'Has it been about 30 years since the Captain of the Imperial Guard was put in that position...?'
He was the Emperor's right-hand man for a long time.
He thought it was his right arm.
It was just as the Emperor was putting ice back into the empty glass and pouring whiskey.
The Emperor, who was holding a glass, let out a chuckle at the sound of footsteps outside the door and finished drinking.
With the door opened quietly without even a common knock, the Emperor opened his mouth without even looking toward it.
"It’s hard to see your face even though we’ve lived in the same imperial city our whole lives, but lately you seem to be getting a bit more laid-back, my youngest. You’ve been visiting quite a lot more often."
Arma did not say a word despite the Emperor's banter.
He walked in silently, looked down at his father, then plopped down on the sofa opposite him and placed the wine he was holding on the table.
It was a hard-to-find, bloody wine from the Kingdom of Roti, produced 20 years ago.
The year in which excellent quality wine was made due to the high sugar content of the 'Bloody Grapes' of the Kingdom of Roti, caused by good sunlight at that time.
It was so famous that the wine distributed to this day was not common.
The Emperor narrowed his eyes and chuckled as he watched his youngest son acting quite cutely.
"Do you have another favor to ask?"
"What should I do if there is something I want but it seems impossible to get my hands on it?"
The child, who had already shed the appearance of a boy, poured wine into his crystal glass and spoke.
"..."
The Emperor narrowed his eyes and rubbed his chin.
'The entire Duchy of Bellion has returned to the duchy, leaving only the eldest and second sons in the capital.'
And he had already heard from the information that Roselyn Bellion was included in that march.
The Emperor tilted his cup in silence and flicked his finger.
The ice in the basket floated gently into the air.
"Caught them without them noticing..."
As he lightly grasped the air, the ice instantly shattered into a beautiful rose.
"You have to keep it in your grasp."
An ice rose made by the Emperor was placed in front of the table where Arma was sitting.
Arma looked at the rose made of ice in silence.
He looked up as he watched the flower slowly begin to melt.
"Are you saying that my father broke my mother and imprisoned her?"
"..."
The Emperor narrowed his eyes at Arma's words.
He shrugged lightly as he watched his son, who had given up on his usual clumsy acting.
"I don't really like the way it sounds, but yeah."
The Emperor opened his mouth willingly without hiding anything.
“No.”
"..."
"I must not do as Your Majesty did."
Arma said firmly.
“No?”
"If I use the same method as you, I will fail."
“...What are you talking about?”
Arma saw in a dream what this world would have been like without Roselyn.
He will be ruined, and his father will eventually die alone.
And his mother, who was trapped in a cage by this man and tamed for decades, will die not long after her master's touch is cut off.
Arma clenched his fist tightly.
He hated everything he was born and raised in this country.
He tried to dislike it and didn't try to give it a point.
For this country was the world his father held at his feet, and at the same time, it was no different from a garden his father had personally cultivated to imprison his mother.
In a sense, this country was a living hell that he had created.
After a brief silence, Arma slowly opened his mouth.
"...I hate you."
At the words of the young man who had just turned twenty, the Emperor raised one eyebrow and chuckled.
"My son really knows how to say he hates his father to his face."
"I'm not joking, I really hate you."
With a stiff voice and slumped over like a loafer, he silently tilted his glass and nodded.
"I know. That's quite a cliché."
The Emperor turned his back even on his son for the sake of his only companion's safe life.
He wasn't expecting a close father-son relationship, so he didn't really have any lingering regrets about that fact.
"I hate everything your touch has touched."
"Is a confession next to relationship advice? The timing is bad. I’ve been having a headache lately anyway, so if you're going to whine, maybe next time..."
"When I was young, I missed my mother. She must think I am dead. Because that is what she would have thought. That is why I resent you."
The Emperor showed some displeasure at the fact that his words were being completely ignored.
As he raised his head with a look that seemed to say, "What on earth is wrong with this bastard today?", the young boy was staring at him with a strangely resentful expression and his fists tightly clenched.
"So at one time, I wished this country would disappear, and later, I intended to abandon it and leave."
The Emperor did cherish his children in his own way.
It means that there was enough affection to stop and restrain the child who was later appointed Crown Prince if he were to try to kill the remaining two children.
Whether it was a misfortune or a blessing, the two children from the same womb got along quite well.
This child is the only one who feels out of place.
That doesn't mean they were trying to kill each other, though.
Considering the imperial family's genealogy was practically nonexistent, the Emperor was actually quite lucky with his children.
“Once upon a time...?”
"I tried so hard not to let my heart be attached to the fact that I was born and raised in this country..."
With a clenched fist, veins bulged on the back of his hand.
The Emperor, who had been sitting half-leaning on the sofa, straightened up, rested his arms on the backrest, and gazed blankly at Arma.
"...I ended up falling for someone who was born and raised in this country of all places."
"..."
“Father.”
The Emperor did not answer.
Arma slowly raised his head and looked at him.
"How can I become an Emperor? I want to become an Emperor."
The young man, having shed his boyish days, spoke firmly while grinding his teeth.
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