TBKBS 23

Chapter : 23

“All the bookcart merchants have been caught. That passage is blocked.”

It was Eden.

Then, I could hear my father’s voice responding.

“Prince Calix uncovered everything to the end. He even cut off the tails.”

What on earth does all this mean?

Bookcart merchants?

Bookcarts?

!!!!!

Could it be… the bookcart from the night market?

At that moment, memories of meeting Eden at the night market flashed before me, along with the scene where Calix had spoken terrifyingly about ‘leaking the Empire’s secrets.’ A sudden chill ran down my spine, and my body shivered.

Eden’s voice continued.

“There’s no helping it. Anyway, it wasn’t a passage that could remain undiscovered forever. From now on, having someone go personally will be a little burdensome.”

“I’ll handle it through the Marquis’ people, as Prince Calix is under strict surveillance.”

“Right, that would be best.”

What does all this mean?

An undiscovered passage? The Marquis’ people?

Could it be that my father and Eden were communicating secretly?

There was a brief pause in the conversation between the two.

But soon, Eden spoke again.

“How are you preparing to kill the Emperor?”

“We’ll handle the method ourselves. You don’t need to know that.”

Kill the Emperor?

I was so shocked my teeth were chattering.

Eden sneered at my father’s stern reply.

“The Empress’ method is obvious, isn’t it? Poison, right?”

“……….”

Poison?

The Empress is going to poison the Emperor?

My father fell silent at Eden’s cynical remark.

No reply from my father meant he couldn’t deny it.

My heart pounded in my chest.

“Well, I’m not curious about the method either. I just need to know the timing of the attack.”

“As soon as preparations are complete, we’ll let you know the attack date via the Marquis’ courier.”

I could almost hear my own heartbeat.

What does all this even mean?

An attack date?

Attack… does that mean… the attack on Aolium?!!!

My father and the Empress were involved in the Dacres Empire’s invasion?

“Let me make something clear.”

Eden’s tone changed.

“Yes, please go ahead.”

Continuing, Eden said:

“The Empress is trying to make her own son the Emperor, so our agreement won’t change.”

“Yes.”

“You, however, are the problem, Duke Brockburk.”

“What do you mean?”

I pressed my ear closer to the door.

“It seems the marriage between Archduke Leon and Lady Kaelin Brockburk hasn’t progressed. Even if that marriage falls through, I’m a bit worried whether you’ll properly uphold the secret agreement you made between the Empress and the Dacres Empire.”

“…It’s an agreement already made, so there will be no change.”

!!!!!!

What the…!

So the conspiracy between the Empress and my father even involved the Dacres Empire?

Eden’s cold voice continued after my father’s response.

“Of course you should. If the other party causes me harm, I’m not the kind of man who just understands and forgives. This means, if the agreement is not fulfilled, I won’t stay silent. Once you step into this agreement and shake hands with me, remember—you can’t turn back.”

“I understand fully.”

Following my father’s grave words, Eden’s voice took on a somewhat lively tone.

“Don’t take this to heart; it’s just a precaution. I trusted that a Prime Minister of an empire wouldn’t unilaterally cancel a secret agreement, so I decided to work with you.”

Oh my…

My knees felt weak.

This wasn’t just a rebellion plan within the Everetian Empire. The Dacres Empire was also involved.

Emperor Klaus Everetian’s near-death state was due to the Empress’ poisoning, and the Dacres Empire’s invasion didn’t happen by chance—it was a meticulously prearranged provocation.

Lure Calix to the border, use his absence to place Leon on the throne—a secret plan!

I had thought the war and the Emperor’s critical condition coinciding was mere coincidence.

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized there were countless schemes and intrigues behind the scenes…

That’s why my father kept saying ‘it’s already too late!’

Suddenly, several previously inexplicable puzzle pieces fell into place.

Eden’s constant appearances at my home, my father insisting on the rebellion plan despite my protests about his lack of love for Leon—it all made sense.

Even my doubt about the inconsistency between Eden Dacres’ harmless personality and his war-causing actions…

Eden wasn’t a carefree playboy crown prince!

Even though in my story he was a minor character who caused a war and lost, his self-generated character in the novel was far from simple.

When had my father made this agreement with Eden?

I recalled the palace banquet held for Eden right after I possessed the novel’s character, and his subsequent visit to our home.

Had the agreement already been made then? Perhaps I was only slightly late.

It might even have begun long before that.

Anyway, by the time I possessed the character, this dangerous agreement had surely already been sealed.

Fear and despair made my legs feel like they would collapse.

Then, in the quiet room, Eden’s voice spoke again.

“Alright. Let’s finalize this. I’ll attack at the time you want. In return, you must not send in any additional troops.”

Right. That’s how it was.

With Eden’s war provocation, Calix leaves the capital, the Emperor dies, and Leon ascends the throne.

But Leon, having gained the throne, does not send additional troops; he even plans to attack Calix from the rear.

Calix finishes the war victoriously in record time and returns to the capital, ruining the Empress faction’s plan entirely.

But behind the scenes of my story, there had been a secret agreement between the Empress faction and Eden!

Now, knowing the hidden details beyond what I wrote, I could understand the overall situation.

The problem was that I hadn’t written such a complex conspiracy.

Even I, the original author, hadn’t imagined the schemes and the betrayal that involved surrendering land.

Yet, thinking again, I hadn’t written the details, but the major flow was exactly what I had written.

The events would unfold as I had written, regardless of the hidden psychology behind the characters’ actions. The result—I would die.

“Your Majesty, please promise to attack on the date we designate. The outcome of the war depends entirely on you. We only promise to prevent additional support from reaching the Dacres Empire. But for both our sakes, you must win.”

My father spoke.

Fools.

Nothing will go according to your plan!

The outcome is already decided.

Calix will win that war even without Everetian support.

‘Screech’

The sound of a chair dragging reached my ears.

The conversation was over!

I quickly rose onto my toes and ran down the corridor.

Barely rounding the corner at the end of the long hallway, I hid as I heard the door open.

Gripping my trembling chest, I dashed up the stairs toward my room.

From the second floor guest room to my fourth-floor room, I ran at full speed. Entering my room, I felt tears threaten to fall from the fear of what I had just learned.

Poison, secret agreements, treason…

Everything was more intricate and terrifying than I had imagined.

And Eden’s true nature, which I hadn’t known, was shocking.

Behind the persona I had written, he had a far more secret inner self.

The walks we took together, the time wasted, even him telling Calix at the cafe that he was dating me—all of it was to avoid suspicion regarding the secret agreement.

The talk of romance was likely a precautionary measure, using me to prevent my father from abandoning the plan, knowing the union between Leon and me was weakening.

Even Eden’s frivolous actions, his image as a playboy enjoying free love, might have been a carefully constructed facade.

Suddenly, the story I wrote about a noble lady of the Sorel Kingdom came to mind.

He had approached a betrothed lady, faced her fiancé’s duel, and ended up killing the fiancé.

Regardless of my intentions, could that incident have also been a disguise for his true nature?

All these thoughts about Eden struck my mind like lightning.

The sharp tone and cold voice my father had used when confirming the agreement that day were probably Eden’s hidden true self.

That night, curled up in bed, I ruminated on their terrifying secret agreement, on Eden, and on my survival strategy, finally falling asleep around dawn.

But soon after, the secrets I had learned the previous night woke me like a nightmare.

Before seeing Eden again, I needed to organize my thoughts.

Using the excuse of not feeling well, I didn’t go on a walk and spent the whole day chewing over my thoughts.

That night, I finally reached a conclusion again.

Nothing has changed!

That was my conclusion.

Even if there were secrets I didn’t know, the progression of events remained the same.

Ultimately, the fact that I would die had not changed.

In fact, knowing the secrets, it seemed even more natural that Calix would be the one to kill me.

The Empress poisons the Emperor, gives away land to a rival nation for the throne…

I absolutely had to escape this empire even more desperately than before.

Exile itself didn’t seem too difficult.

To Eden Dacres, worried about my father leaving the agreement, my exile could be a welcome card.

My safety would fall under his control.

But I couldn’t just consider the possibility of exile.

One and a half years later, after the war and Calix’s victory, my situation would become that of a traitor’s daughter. I had to consider how the Dacres Empire would treat me.

Knowing the collusion between Eden Dacres and the Empress faction could even work to my advantage.

Eden wouldn’t want me, who could reveal the agreement’s contents to Calix, sent back to Everetia.

Even if he didn’t return me, I had no value as an exile, and what the Dacres Empire would do with me remained uncertain.

At worst, they could permanently silence me within the Dacres Empire.

Still, wouldn’t it be better to attempt exile, with at least a slight chance of survival, than to face certain death here?

No, that’s not right.

If the Dacres Empire killed me, all it would change is the location of my death.

Ultimately, I had no choice but to test my intention to seek exile with Eden and see for myself how likely I was to survive there.