Chapter 11 – Long Ago, Where My Gaze Reached (Part 1)

Having completed all his tasks, Tartenon was about to step into Reubellina’s bedroom when he turned away, sensing a strange smell. After spending some time in the bathroom, he received a report from the healer.

“She collapsed from exhaustion. She will recover with some rest.”

“That had better be true. If not, I won’t let you off.”

“…There is no falsehood in my words.”

Tartenon answered the healer with silence. Entering the bedroom, he saw Reubellina sweating and groaning, and immediately approached the bedside.

“Reubellina.”

As Reubellina kept mumbling in her sleep, Tartenon’s hand gently rested on her head. He tenderly stroked her hair and whispered in her ear.

“It’ll be alright.”

“Ugh!”

As she let out a short breath and her eyelids quivered, Tartenon looked into her golden eyes and spoke.

“Are you alright?”

“…Tartenon.”

“Yes, it’s me.”

He took Reubellina’s outstretched hand and brought it to his lips.

“Is it really you?”

“What are you saying…”

“The person who saved me that day at the hunting ground… was it you?”

Tartenon found it hard to answer Reubellina’s question. She had discovered the truth, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak. It was what he had always wanted, but he was hesitating now.

“Was it?”

It wasn’t a question. Reubellina was already certain.

Reubellina’s hand moved as she met Tartenon’s blue eyes. Her hand left his and touched his cheek. Gently caressing his cheek, she smiled faintly.

“It was you.”

Tartenon’s answer wasn’t necessary. Reubellina already knew the truth.

Even as her eyes closed again and her calm breathing filled the bedroom, Tartenon didn’t move. No, he couldn’t move.

“I love you.”

Though Reubellina was already asleep and couldn’t hear, his quiet confession filled the bedroom.

“I’ve loved you for a very long time.”

***

The situation in the North had become quite serious. Tartenon’s knights, unlike before, hunted down and killed all the nobles who opposed him. There was no mercy. Those who resisted died, and only those who knelt survived.

It was during this time that Tartenon was subjugating the northern territories one by one. The Emperor, hearing the news late, exploded in anger.

“What on earth is happening!”

“Well, that is…”

“Inferno!”

Inferno, who was enduring the emperor’s wrath, couldn’t maintain his composure. The father who had once shown him a friendly smile was no longer there.

He had to make some excuse to get out of this situation. Just like the last time when he was certain he had involved Viverna, he needed a plan.

“I was told he was trapped in the Bego Mine!”

“But that’s not the case!”

“That’s impossible!”

The news that Viverna had been stripped of her title and chased to Pietrie reached the capital. Her miserable downfall became a hot topic among the capital’s nobles. That wasn’t all. Timely, the daily newspapers from The Scene were sold.

It was quite a provocative headline. Everyone in the capital knew that the Duke’s daughter referred to Reubellina Asillious. The chatter among the people irritated the Emperor. Hearing the story, the Emperor became even more enraged.

If Inferno had done his job properly, he could have had the Asillious family in his grasp. Along with their wealth.

“Now there’s no way to take control of the north.”

“That’s not true!”

“Viverna was the last thread!”

Among the Speraum bloodline, Viverna was the only one friendly to the royal family. The emperor had extended his hand first, and Viverna had taken it. Many Speraum had been contacted, but only she had sided with the imperial family.

“She wasn’t a card to be used like that! She should have done more for me!”

“Y-your Majesty!”

The Emperor, highly agitated, didn’t notice Inferno trembling. He was furious at Inferno for losing the golden opportunity and failing to use Viverna properly. He needed a puppet to rule the North after Tartenon was gone, but now that hope was dashed.

“Evidence! Is there evidence that you and that woman conspired!”

“T-there is none!”

“What do you mean ‘there’s none’!”

The Emperor threw the seal he was holding. Blood trickled from where the seal hit Inferno’s forehead, but the Emperor didn’t stop. He threw everything he could get his hands on until Inferno lay sprawled on the floor, unconscious.

“Chamberlain!”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The chamberlain entered quickly.

“Get him out of here! I can’t stand the sight of him!”

“Yes!”

The knights who entered with the chamberlain dragged Inferno out. There was no courtesy for the royalty. Watching this, Crown Prince Monterno Freynante entered the chamber.

“Calm down, Your Majesty.”

“Calm down? Do I look like I can calm down now?”

“Your Majesty, getting angrier won’t change anything. Inferno is not capable of handling great tasks. You know this.”

“I know! But he must do his part!”

“Every time he takes on a task, he messes it up. Why do you keep entrusting him?”

“If left alone, he would be a useless fool.”

“Just leave him. That’s what suits Inferno.”

The Emperor sighed at Monterno’s soothing words. He had hoped to mold Inferno into someone worthy of the royal family, someone to support Monterno. But it was hopeless. Without Reubellina guiding him, Inferno’s foolishness was all that showed.

The emperor had demanded more from Inferno, refusing to accept his shortcomings, which led to Inferno, not Monterno, being sent to the North.

Inferno seemed to improve after returning from the north. But it was only temporary.

The Emperor, learning that Viverna had approached Inferno first, was deeply disappointed. Despite many opportunities, Inferno failed to seize them. Though he couldn’t accept that a royal was inferior to the Duke’s child, he had to admit it now.

“The Duke raised quite an impressive child.”

“I know. That’s why you tried to tie Inferno to her, didn’t you?”

“But that idiot squandered the opportunity!”

“Your Majesty, something seems off about the whole situation.”

Monterno’s serious gaze met the Emperor’s. A smile formed on the Emperor’s lips. His eldest son never disappointed him. Even now, he voiced his opinion without irritating the Emperor. Admirable.

“Off? How?”

“That young lady. Bellaruse Zeraon.”

“Ah, that girl.”

“The Zeraon family isn’t that significant. They’re not bold enough to abandon the Speraum and side with the imperial family.”

“That’s true.”

“Then why did she seduce Inferno?”

The Baron Zeraon family had an agreement with the royal family. They had to maintain the engagement until the princess and Tartenon were united.

But Bellaruse had brazenly broken that promise. And Tartenon, who was set to marry the princess, immediately left her for Reubellina.

“Isn’t it strange? To call these events mere coincidences.”

“So you’re saying it was all planned?”

“Yes.”

“Tartenon Speraum, he orchestrated this?”

“Yes.”

“The imperial family played into the hands of the Northern Speraum?”

“Regrettably, we must acknowledge it.”

The Emperor’s hand trembled with rage. He couldn’t contain his rising anger. He couldn’t stand that the northern Grand Duke, whom he had always kept in check, had completely escaped the royal family’s grasp, especially since it was Tartenon Speraum.

“To be outdone by a mere youngster like Tartenon!”

“But Your Majesty, this isn’t the end.”

“Not the end?”

“What do you think Tartenon, with the northern knights under his command, will do next? It’s obvious. Having dealt with Viverna, his next target is the capital.”

Monterno declared. The Emperor nodded, agreeing with his opinion.

He was right. The blade of a son who believed the royal family had caused his father’s death would only be aimed at the royal family.

“Then what should we do now?”

“Weeds keep growing because they aren’t trampled on time.”

“Weeds?”

The Emperor smiled at Monterno’s audacity in comparing Tartenon to mere weeds.

“So we must kill them. Thoroughly.”

“Can you do it?”

The Emperor’s low voice was directed at Monterno. Without hesitation, he answered.

“Give me a suitable number of knights, and I’ll go to the north.”

“How many?”

“A thousand should suffice.”