TNCM~06

Chapter 6

“So it has come to this… I must call upon the Rodalan Guild.”

The Rodalan Guild, said to be Sordan’s secret benefactor, had yet to make its presence publicly known. Yet, having read the reports, Estelle knew the guild master better than anyone.

“I had hoped never to face him again, not after feigning death and fleeing… But this can no longer be postponed.”

It was time to resort to the last option.

“What on earth are you doing, Your Majesty?”

Kaian furrowed his brows the moment he stepped into the bedroom, spotting an unwelcome guest.

The room was thick with a sweet fragrance known to tempt the mind, and Empress Christine, perched on the bed, wore a dangerously revealing nightgown.

“I am merely fulfilling my duty. A solid heir is the foundation of a stable throne, is it not?”

Christine sauntered toward Kaian with exaggerated charm, her gown slipping slightly with each step, the front opening just enough to be tantalizing.

“Indeed. That is also part of your important duty as Empress.”

Christine’s smile of triumph widened at his agreement.

“Yes, Your Majesty. It has already been four years since I came of age. I must fulfill my duty.”

She caressed Kaian’s cheek with a seductive touch, her hands inching toward his buttons—until he stopped her.

“One thing, however, is different with you.”

Kaian firmly pushed her away.

“Have you forgotten that you are merely an Empress in title? You hold that position only for your own protection.”

“Your Majesty—”

“You were the one who requested it first, were you not? I allowed you to become Empress to honor the last service of Countess Joanne, my mother’s loyal maid. That was all the position was for—protection, nothing more.”

Countess Joanne had been Serena’s most trusted maid and close friend. Yet, she had ultimately been accused of conspiring with the late Empress Serena to assassinate the Emperor and was executed.

Christine was the daughter of that Countess Joanne.

The moment Kaian became Emperor, Christine had secretly sought him out, invoking her mother’s final loyalty to request her placement as Empress. Kaian had immediately consented. No matter how strong the Dukes’ pressures were, he could not allow Estelle to be enthroned as Empress in memory of his late mother. Any other woman would do.

“By elevating a daughter of the Count’s house, against the Duke of Astria, to the position of Empress, the reward for that loyalty should be enough, I would think.”

Kaian passed Christine and seated himself on the couch.

Christine felt humiliated at his stern demeanor.

‘No, I thought he couldn’t resist any grand priest, so why now? What is wrong?’

Even though she was of a fallen Count’s lineage, she was born as a Lady of a noble family and had become Empress of this Empire.

Yet, after lowering every ounce of her pride over the past four years—believing he might finally notice her—he still did not touch her.

‘…Could it be… impotence?’

Even after wrapping herself in all the seductive scents and revealing attire, using her last resort, he did not yield.

‘He visits Estelle as if out of duty, yet he won’t so much as touch me!’

Christine had been Empress for five years now. At first, she assumed he was merely waiting until she turned eighteen. She had even tolerated that.

She had admired the young prince secretly from childhood, so a little patience seemed bearable.

But now, four years past her eighteenth birthday, Kaian still refused to hold her.

Imperial nobles openly awaited the Empress’s consummation, and the Dukes were ready to offer a new bride at any moment. Each passing day made her increasingly anxious.

Why embrace Estelle and not me? Could it be he still held feelings for her?

‘No. That’s impossible. She is my mortal enemy, yet he visits her dutifully. He merely pretends to fulfill obligations for her sake.’

Christine denied the thought, dismissing it as absurd.

“Your words concluded, Empress?”

“Perhaps a cup of tea to ease your fatigue—”

“Empress. Do you wish me to leave?”

Kaian’s cold crimson eyes fixed on her, icy and piercing. A clear order to withdraw.

“…May you have a peaceful night.”

Christine sensed that further indulgence would only be harmful. Failing again tonight, she departed from the Emperor’s bedroom with heavy steps.

Click.

The door shut, leaving Kaian alone in silence. He opened the window to release the lingering fragrance in the room.

Though the allure of the scent was negligible against the mind of a Swordmaster like him, it was still unpleasant.

“Ha.”

After some ventilation, Kaian ran a hand through his hair and exhaled a stiff sigh. Fatigue from endless duties and preparations for the founding ceremony weighed heavily upon him.

Yet even at night, he could not sleep. As the ceremony approached, memories of Estelle’s fall four years ago grew more vivid.

Kaian poured a glass of unchilled liquor and drank it in one gulp.

“Your Majesty, Cedric reporting.”

A polite knock came at the door.

“Enter.”

“It’s a report, Your Majesty. We have found the trace you were seeking in Aren.”

“Aren?”

Cedric, his loyal captain of the guards, brought awaited news.

Soon after his ascension, Kaian had discovered a small, tightly locked safe in the Florance Palace. Faded memories of his youth suggested it had been used by his mother to store something important.

Its contents were unknown, but it was the last trace of his mother he could find. He had investigated ways to open it in secret.

Yet no magic or physical force could budge it. Across the empire, no one knew the unlocking method—only the unique markings on its door provided a clue.

Even the Imperial Library offered nothing. Years of research later, traces of the markings were finally found in Aren.

“Aren, huh.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. I shall depart immediately.”

Aren was a small port town at the southernmost tip of the continent, insignificant in influence. Yet the name was familiar to Kaian.

“I always dreamed of traveling across the continent, from Norden in the north to Aren in the south!”

Again, it was Estelle. Just when he decided to erase her from his mind, her presence once more captured his thoughts.

“No. I will go myself. To Aren.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. We will prepare immediately.”

After delivering the report, Cedric left Kaian’s bedroom.

Once more, Kaian was left alone, tortured by his thoughts.

“Estelle… Astria.”

Behind the name of a naïve first love, there lay the family he most despised.

The fiery sensation rising from his core—was it intoxication or rage? Or both? He could not tell.

‘Estelle… that annoyingly cheerful girl who used to trample the thresholds of Florance Palace had no sincerity in her heart, did she?’

She was a true enemy, deserving of his hatred. He could even toast to her death without guilt.

Yet, what was it about first love? That audacity had dared to disturb the Emperor’s mind.

‘Damn it.’

The last time Kaian had extended his hand from the brink, it was Christine who had grabbed it first. Estelle’s lips curled in a cold smirk, untouched by despair or betrayal, as if to say: “Of course, it had to be you.”

Kaian had reached for her first, but he never imagined that Christine, clinging unseen beside him, would snatch his arm.

Just as Kaian tried again to seize Estelle, the tree root supporting her snapped, and she plunged into the valley below.

Estelle had had the chance to take his hand. She had chosen to refuse.

Even as she fell, no trace of fear marred her face. Instead, she looked as if she had been waiting for this moment, serene and composed.

‘Estelle… did you despise me more than death itself? To choose falling rather than grasp my hand.’

Her final image remained vivid in Kaian’s mind.

The chilling sensation of her hand brushing his in midair. Her silver hair fluttering pitifully in the cruel wind. Her deep blue eyes, colder than the deepest ocean, sinking silently.

All of it was etched into his memory, gripping him with every breath.