Episode 24
As time went on, the nobles couldn’t persuade the Emperor during the grand council.
He started insisting on his own opinions. Worse, he ordered part of the imperial treasury to be spent on stabilizing the outer territories, which was a big headache for Duke Nigel.
“I will take a break.”
With the Emperor’s sudden announcement, the nobles bowed and left.
Duke Nigel stormed into the nearby reception room, angry and frustrated.
Of course, his faction followed him.
“Duke, you held back well.”
Marquis Sael handed him a glass of water, but the Duke slapped it away roughly, his face red with anger.
“What a fool…!”
The glass shattered on the floor, but no one dared to react.
“Each day, it gets more ridiculous!”
“Duke, please lower your voice.”
“Ha! Those frontier peasants? They were sent there just to stretch the empire’s borders. As long as they stay alive and hold the land, that’s all they’re worth.”
To Nigel, those people were no better than livestock.
What noble would want to waste money on peasants they’d never even met? And now the Emperor, who isn’t even a real noble, dares say such things—it was absurd.
“Until a few years ago, he didn’t care about running the empire at all. But now, he’s spending money on the border and even trying to lecture me!”
Signs of Cayenne becoming a problem had started a few years ago.
Especially after he became an adult, his overwhelming presence was harder to deal with.
“Don’t worry, Duke. He’ll go back to Rubeo soon enough.”
“Yes, just wait a bit.”
Like they said, the Emperor had been too busy trying to develop Rubeo into a trade city, so he rarely stayed in the palace. But that wouldn’t last forever.
“The late Emperor was annoying in his youth, too, but eventually became an ideal ruler.”
To Duke Nigel, the “ideal” emperor was one who ignored everything and spent time lazily inside the palace, like the previous Emperor after he lost his wife.
“But this is a different case.”
Cayenne was still young, with a long future ahead of him. Worst of all, he grew faster than Nigel expected.
“At this rate, what if he takes back full control in 3 years?”
Duke Nigel, who had near-complete power like a regent, believed he was the only one fit to lead the empire.
“Not yet. You saw how uncomfortable he looked in his formal uniform today.”
Cayenne kept fidgeting and eventually unbuttoned his collar because the outfit felt stiff.
“Right… He still doesn’t suit the royal image.”
Even though Cayenne’s bloodline was strong, his father had thrown him away as a child.
In a culture that valued refinement, a ruler who had lived like a soldier and still fought on the battlefield didn’t fit.
“The age of warriors is over. That’s ancient history now,” said Marquis Sael calmly.
“Hah, I guess he really does carry the blood of our ancestors.”
Duke Nigel smirked bitterly, referring to Cayenne’s ancestors who led armies to create the empire.
“Well, I can endure this humiliation.”
He looked calm again.
“But we’ll need to speed up our plan.”
His lips twisted into a nasty grin, and the others nodded.
“In 3 years, the Emperor might gain enough power to cut off my head. But I’m not going to wait.”
He knew exactly what he was doing.
The late Emperor had trusted him with the empire.
He wouldn’t let Cayenne, just because he was the son, ruin everything.
“Yes. And soon, mercenaries will attack Rubeo again, and he’ll have to rush back there.”
Marquis Sael grinned.
“Mercenaries? How can you be sure?”
The Duke tapped Sael’s shoulder.
“If someone hears, they might think we’re the ones creating these battles.”
“It’s just a guess. But enemies will keep showing up in Rubeo, and three years will pass easily.”
The Duke nodded, satisfied.
They had been secretly funding mercenaries and enemies near Rubeo from the start—just to keep the Emperor stuck there.
“Rubeo is truly cursed.”
Cayenne wasn’t protecting Rubeo.
It was only because he stayed there that all the fighting happened.
If the poor people of Rubeo knew the truth, how would they react? But the Duke saved that amusement for later.
“Let’s go back to the council. You prepared the reports I asked for?”
“Of course.”
Since Nigel couldn’t openly insult the Emperor, he gave Cayenne extremely complicated reports—knowing he wouldn’t understand them—just to embarrass him.
“He can’t even understand major state matters. How is he any better than a commoner?”
“At least he can read.”
“For someone who grew up in the wilds, that’s quite impressive.”
Duke Nigel chuckled smugly.
He purposely made even simple reports complicated, just to make Cayenne look foolish. Today’s council, held only once a year, was the best time to do that.
“In the end, he’ll realize how stupid he is and run back to Rubeo. At least there, people will praise him for killing.”
No one in the room saw Cayenne as the true ruler. In fact, they looked down on him and secretly despised him. Even though he was the rightful heir, he had been abandoned at age seven and lived a rough life—enough reason for them to consider him beneath them.
The saddest part? Cayenne had always felt that.
Meanwhile…
A single teardrop fell down Alicia’s cheek.
“…How could this be…”
She hadn’t even realized she was crying until Emma gently handed her a handkerchief.
“Did no one try to stop the late Emperor?”
Alicia’s voice trembled.
“No… He was so heartbroken, he wouldn’t listen to anyone.”
Alicia thought she knew Cayenne’s past, but this was worse than she imagined.
She just wanted to know more about him—his interests, what he liked.
“But he was only seven…”
“Yes… It was unbearable to see. The only one who stepped up was Count Hayer. He volunteered to go to Rubeo and used that as a reason to take the young Prince with him.”
Emma’s eyes were also teary.
“The Count wasn’t protecting Rubeo. He was protecting the young Prince. If he hadn’t… the late Emperor might have…”
She couldn’t finish. Alicia knew Cayenne had a hard childhood.
The fact that he didn’t even know proper table manners proved it.
But to think that his mother’s death made people blame him, and that his own father almost killed him?
“I… I didn’t know.”
“It’s not your fault, Your Majesty.”
Even though Alicia had been his wife for ten years, she never truly tried to understand him. They had never treated each other like a real husband and wife.
“The knight who protects him now is Count Hayer’s son. They were born the same year and grew up together.”
Alicia thought of Glenn, the quiet man always by Cayenne’s side.
Cayenne didn’t even have regular attendants, but Glenn was always with him like family.
“And Count Hayer and I… we shared a secret.”
“A secret?”
Emma nodded slowly.
“Now that I’ve met Your Majesty, I think it’s time to share it.”
Dianne’s final message had weighed heavily on Emma’s heart.
She had kept it hidden because the late Emperor had ordered it, but Cayenne’s suffering felt too cruel to stay silent.
“His Majesty doesn’t know the real reason his mother died.”
“…What?”
“He misunderstood it. That was the late Emperor’s doing.”
Alicia’s eyes widened in shock.
“She did get stabbed protecting him, but her health had already weakened after a miscarriage. She died later from illness.”
“But…”
“The late Emperor probably felt guilty for the miscarriage. Maybe he needed someone to blame for losing the woman he loved most…”
Alicia let out a breath.
“Then Cayenne… still thinks he killed her?”
“Yes. I couldn’t deliver Lady Dianne’s final message. That’s my sin.”
After the Emperor went mad with grief, no one dared mention the past. Even after Cayenne became Emperor, his trauma ran too deep.
Once, someone tried to bring up his parents—and was executed on the spot.
“…Can I hear her last words?”
Even Cayenne didn’t know this truth.
“Yes. I was scared this secret would die with me. But now, after meeting Your Majesty, I believe you’re the one who can help him.”
Emma had finally found someone to pass on the message—and hoped this beautiful woman would be the one to save Cayenne’s heart.
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