Episode 2
About a year ago—
Before Sevia was imprisoned in the tower.
The large duke’s estate in the East was full of life.
The officials and servants working under the duke were busy, but their faces were bright and full of smiles.
It was because the Eastern Dukedom had grown wealthy in just four years since the young duke had inherited the title.
Everyone in the dukedom believed their lives would only keep getting better if they continued living there, so they gladly supported their duke.
Though Sevia was a proper lady, she preferred wearing shirts, vests, and pants over dresses, tying up her golden hair high on her head as she worked passionately.
People respected her strong and confident appearance and didn’t care about the fact that she was born out of wedlock.
In fact, most of the staff knew about her childhood.
Even though she had shown great talent from a young age, she had grown up enduring harsh treatment from the duchess and her half-brother because of her status as an illegitimate child.
And ever since that same half-brother—the young lord—massacred the villagers she used to govern, she had clenched her teeth and built up her power.
Eventually, she raised an army and defeated him, becoming the rightful heir.
Not long after, the former duke passed away and left the title to her.
Now, as the new duke, Sevia was finally able to use her talents freely and had turned the dukedom into a thriving land.
That day, Sevia was in her office, reading over a document.
She sat under the bright sunlight, frowning in a way that was unusual for her.
“What does it say, Your Grace?”
Marquis Temian, with greying hair, asked her.
Sevia laid the document on her desk.
Temian picked it up and read it, then frowned slightly as well.
“It’s a threat demanding 2.5 million livres.”
“Half of our yearly income. The new emperor is making a ridiculous demand,” Sevia sighed.
Temian glanced at her and then looked back at the emperor’s edict.
“Seems the rumors about the emperor’s lavish spending are true. Demanding money like this…”
“When a baron from the northern frontier destroyed the Trinitor imperial family and became emperor, I thought he might be impressive,” Sevia said with displeasure.
“But it seems he has no interest in ruling the empire properly.”
As always, Sevia spoke respectfully to the white-haired marquis.
“If I don’t pay, he wants me to come to the capital and stay there. He’s basically saying he wants to keep me as a hostage.”
“The fact that you’ve managed the dukedom so well is likely a big threat to him. He probably wants to remove any possible danger before it grows,” Temian said calmly, stroking his white beard.
“If you don’t obey the edict, the emperor could use it as an excuse to invade with his army. It’s a hard command to refuse.”
Sevia placed her hands together on the desk and asked,
“What do you think I should do? I really don’t want to take money from the people just to support the emperor’s luxuries. I don’t want to raise the taxes we finally managed to lower.”
“Then… will you fight against the emperor?”
Sevia frowned deeper at Temian’s question and asked in return,
“Can our Eastern army defeat the emperor’s forces?”
Temian gently shook his head.
“Unfortunately, it would be very difficult. The emperor controls not just the northern army but also the elite troops from the former royal family. They have much more battle experience than our forces. If we fight head-on, we’ll lose. And…”
“And?”
“The emperor has Casar Juan by his side. Have you heard of him?”
Sevia nodded like it was obvious.
“I have. He’s the one who played a key role in putting the new emperor on the throne. He’s said to be the emperor’s right-hand man now. I also heard that even though he was born a commoner, he became a marquis after the emperor rose to power.”
“He’s known as a brilliant strategist. They say he once defeated fifty thousand enemies with only five hundred soldiers.”
“Oh?”
Sevia raised an eyebrow with interest but soon returned to a troubled expression.
“So you’re saying we can’t win with just our Eastern army.”
“That’s correct, Your Grace.”
“Then what should we…”
Before Sevia could finish, someone knocked on the office door.
“Y-Your Grace.”
An official entered and spoke.
“What is it?”
“A messenger just brought news. The emperor has massacred everyone in Count Martian’s castle.”
“…Massacred?” Sevia frowned deeply.
“Why?”
“Count Martian apparently advised the emperor to cut back on his spending. The emperor didn’t like that. The count, his wife, their family—everyone is dead. So are all the people in the castle.”
Sevia held her head in frustration, her mind spinning.
Then, memories started to resurface—and her frown deepened.
“…Has the emperor’s army already withdrawn from the count’s castle?”
“It seems so. Before that, they locked the gates from the inside and committed a brutal slaughter. After the army left and the gates opened, a spy went in, but all that remained…”
“That’s enough,” Sevia said, rising to her feet and giving orders.
“Pick about fifty of the fastest men. We’ll search the count’s castle for survivors and bring them here for protection.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
As the official turned to leave, Sevia stopped him.
“Wait.”
“Yes?”
“I’m going too.”
“Wh-what?”
Sevia’s pale face turned stern as she looked to her knight, Baron Akina, standing like a statue beside her.
“Let’s go, Viktor. I need to see with my own eyes whether the emperor really did this.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
Baron Akina, with his reddish-brown hair, followed immediately.
The calm-eyed Marquis Temian slowly stood as well.
“I’ll go too, Your Grace.”
“You as well?”
“Yes. You always do something reckless when you get upset.”
“There are… no survivors here either, Your Grace.”
Inside the count’s castle, a soldier gave his report.
Sevia said nothing.
The entire castle was filled with the breath of death—so much so that she could feel it even from the back of her horse.
The stench of death was so strong, it seemed to curse the living.
Standing among the cold, stiff bodies, Sevia frowned and whispered bitterly,
“I can’t believe I’m seeing this hell again…”
A voice from her past echoed in her head—the voice of her half-brother, the one she had driven out long ago.
—“I killed all the villagers.”
Back then, she could barely breathe from the ropes binding her.
But her brother’s cruel, mocking voice still rang clearly in her ears.
—“What?”
—“I said I killed them. Every last one.”
—“Don’t lie! Why would you kill innocent people?!”
—“Why? Because everything you do pisses me off.”
—“So that’s your reason?!”
—“Yep.”
With a short laugh, he beat her with a thick club. She bit back a scream from the pain.
—“Liar…!”
—“Oops. Too late. The village is already gone.”
Though her body was bound, Sevia fought with all her strength.
—“Untie me! Right now!”
—“Oh? Now you resist? You used to stay quiet the moment you were tied up.”
After the endless beatings, Sevia felt something inside her break.
She rushed to the village, but what met her eyes was a terrible silence and the stench of something burning.
The old lady who always welcomed her…
The blacksmith who could make anything…
The low-ranking official who nagged her all the time…
Everyone she knew lay cold and lifeless.
—“This is all my fault… I caused this…”
She collapsed, unable to stand, and sobbed uncontrollably.
—“If only I had stayed hidden… If only I hadn’t caught his attention…”
Even the sight of a child lying motionless made her gasp and nearly faint.
She fell to the ground, punching the cold earth with her fists.
The one who helped her up was her friend, Viktor.
—“Get up. This isn’t your fault. That madman of a young lord is to blame.”
Sevia barely stood and, with fire in her emerald eyes, shouted,
—“You’re right. I’ll never forgive him. If he becomes duke, he’ll do even worse.”
She clenched her fists.
—“I’ll become the duke, Viktor. I won’t let that monster take the title.”
Now, Sevia had that same look in her eyes.
Her hand trembled slightly as she looked at the bodies, and her gaze burned with fury and hatred.
“I can’t let the emperor get away with this.”
Clenching her teeth, she made a vow under the crimson sunset.
“I will become emperor.”
