Chapter 70

When even the Empress stepped out to see her, Ardein was truly at a loss for words.

What could she possibly say to her father? Her mind was completely blank, unable to think of anything.

“Your Majesty, that…”

“You unfilial child. You were always such a smart kid, so why can’t you see the bigger picture? Do you know how much it pained me when I heard you had run away from the Imperial Palace and disappeared?”

Even as Ardein tried to say something, she finally got a proper look at the Emperor’s face.

The old man was shedding tears. Not as the Emperor, but simply as a father.

Seeing the old man cry, Ardein couldn’t hold back her own tears. She bowed her head once more, sniffling.

“I was wrong. I was wrong. Father, I was wrong!”

“I’m already past sixty. Even if my heart feels eighty, it’s no different. Do you think this old man can bear the pain of losing another child at this age? Did I seem so cold-hearted to you?”

At the Emperor’s words, the Princess couldn’t respond and simply bowed her head.

Without a word of where she was going, she left alone on horseback to Larpentia. Only later did she realize how it must have looked in her parents’ eyes.

She thought she wasn’t being treated well, but upon arriving in Larpentia, she realized that wasn’t the case. The world treated lepers as the root of all evil, and the Emperor had been protecting her, who could barely stand against the prejudices of the entire world.

“Still, you left so confidently, and yet you managed to encounter some miracle and return to your original state. Come here. Let me see your face. This old man’s eyes aren’t what they used to be.”

The Emperor reached out his wrinkled hand to touch Ardein’s cheek. And the tears streaming down her cheek as well.

He finally smiled. It was perhaps the first smile he had shown since waking up.

“Truly, it’s a relief. The gods have forgiven you.”

“It was the gods who forgave me, but not the Three Divine Gods. That’s…”

“Enough. It doesn’t change the fact that the gods forgave you.”

The Emperor cut off the Princess as she tried to bring up Kyle and the god he served, letting out a deep sigh. He hesitated for a long time before finally speaking.

“So, as your father, I ask you. Can you forgive him too?”

“Who…”

“Edmund. Your half-brother.”

The Emperor smiled bitterly. His child, his most cherished child, had killed another.

The fact had already been thoroughly investigated by the Secret Guard, the imperial intelligence agency, and reported to him. This was also one of the secret forces left by the founding Emperor.

Edmund, unaware of their very existence, probably didn’t even know that the Emperor had discovered he was the mastermind behind the Crown Prince’s assassination.

“Did you know that child poisoned my son, your brother?”

Hearing this, sparks flew from the Princess’s eyes, and a cold shiver ran through her head.

She gripped her sword with a fierce gaze, filled with rage.

“I will go right now and cut off that damned traitor’s head. I will avenge my brother. Your Majesty, just give the order, and I will…”

“At first, I wanted to do the same.”

The Emperor, as if thirsty, took a sip of tea before continuing.

Perhaps he wasn’t thirsty but wanted to quell the burning anger inside.

“But if I killed Edmund with my own hands, I would lose another child, and the heir to the throne would be gone. So I couldn’t punish him. Since you turned out this way, if Edmund were gone too, the next ruler wouldn’t be from our family.”

But he couldn’t forgive the child either.

So he didn’t grant him the position of Crown Prince. The Emperor continued calmly.

“Later, when my head cooled a bit, I realized that the child’s corruption was entirely my fault. It’s all my mistake. My error. In my youthful passion, I betrayed your mother and made the wrong choice.”

With the empire’s situation so unstable, the Emperor took concubines from various places. They were all daughters of influential figures, backed by powerful forces.

It wasn’t a marriage of love, so he felt less affection for their children.

Still, they were his children, and he wanted to cherish them, but he didn’t have the strength. Despite the Emperor’s efforts, the empire’s situation only worsened, and he kept hearing bad news.

“If I decided to bring in concubines, I should have properly cared for the children they bore. But I couldn’t even do that. Yes, I am nothing but an old man who has only failed. At least when it comes to raising children.”

Busy with state affairs, he couldn’t give proper affection to his children. That is the Emperor’s greatest regret.

Yet, what gave him strength were his two children with the Empress, Arsein and Ardein, who were exceptionally brilliant. Even in tough times, seeing his first and second children always gave him strength.

“Do you know? Honestly, I thought either you or your brother would make a better Emperor than me. Arsein had good political skills. Unlike this father, who barely passed as a ruler, he knew how to hide a dagger behind a smile from a young age. If he became Emperor, I could have happily stepped down and retired.”

Ardein couldn’t say anything.

She simply listened silently to her father pouring out his heart.

“You too, Ardein. You had talent. The talent to lead people. The talent to reign over others. The talent to bring victory in war. Though you might not have excelled as a monarch, your qualities as a general were outstanding. I truly thought you could become Emperor.”

There was just one thing he wished for.

That whichever of the two became Emperor, the siblings wouldn’t be at odds.

He wanted the siblings to rely on each other and lead the country well.

If Arsein became Emperor, Ardein would assist as a general, and if Ardein became Emperor, Arsein would assist as a chancellor.

That way, they could complement each other’s weaknesses and create a better empire.

Just thinking about it gave the Emperor strength, no matter how tough reality was.

After all, he had to do his best to leave a better empire for his children.

“I thought you two could rely on each other, depend on each other, and fill in each other’s gaps to do much better than I could. But…”

“My brother… for me…”

“Enough. Let’s not talk about that.”

The Emperor put down his teacup. His gaze was deep and profound.

He clasped his hands behind his back and slowly continued.

“Ardein. I won’t last much longer anyway. That mysterious light is telling me. My lifespan is like a burnt-out log, and even if a flame reignites, it’s just embers.”

Extending life is possible, but increasing lifespan is not, as Kyle had already warned. The Princess nodded heavily.

Death was near, and as the Emperor, he could have obsessed over immortality and gathered all the elixirs in the world, but he remained calm. Even discussing his own death, he was composed.

“So, as someone soon to die, I can’t decide what happens after. That would be arrogance. The future is for you and Edmund to unravel, and I merely ask. If blood is repaid with blood, no one can escape the cycle of vengeance, but my words might just be nagging to you.”

He coughed and continued.

“It’s in the past. It’s all in the past. You and Edmund are still family. If family keeps killing each other, what will be left in the end? They say in the face of power, there are no parents or children, but does that mean people should become vipers, unrecognizing family and tearing each other apart?”

“I couldn’t forgive that child, but I hope you can. That’s the only request this father has for you. Even if you don’t agree, I have no way of knowing, but I still hope you will. I know it’s hard, but can’t you get along with Edmund?”

Ardein couldn’t answer. In her heart, she wanted to cut down that traitor with her Dragon Form Technique right away. But with her father dissuading her, she didn’t know what to do.

The Emperor didn’t press for an answer and instead changed the topic. Even if he got the answer he wanted here, it wouldn’t change anything. By then, he would already be buried in the imperial tomb, unable to appear even in dreams to admonish.

He didn’t grant the position of Crown Prince to either Ardein or Edmund because both were disqualified as Emperors. This old father wanted the siblings to rely on each other and lead the country.

So the little time he had left wasn’t entirely in vain. The Emperor already knew what he had to do. He knew the answer but chose not to pursue it.

Even knowing the answer, he wanted to test his two children once. So now, it was enough that his daughter had taken his request to heart.

“Alright, I’ve been talking too much about myself. Let’s hear your story. I’m curious about what miracle you encountered that healed you and extended my life, even if just a little.”