Chapter 7_How Will You Prove It?

“You say she’s your wife, but do you love her?”

Talking about love in a life-threatening situation was utterly pathetic.

“How could you neglect such a great Bellita? If you truly loved her… no, if you were a man, just looking at her should make your heart race and your body heat up. Emperor, you wouldn’t understand even if you died and came back to life.”

He had no intention of dying and coming back to life over such trivial matters, nor did he consider Bellita to be great in any way. These were irrelevant and nonsensical words to him. They were just a bunch of idle people causing chaos. He would deal with them accordingly.

As the Emperor turned to leave, he commanded the soldier.

“Strip him.”

Behind the departing Emperor, Emur’s screams and pleas echoed, but they didn’t reach his ears.

“That Prince will escape at any moment.”

Anton’s trustworthy voice seemed to cleanse the Emperor’s ears.

“That’s why I ordered him to be stripped. Escaping like that will be a unique experience.”

If he killed the Prince now, the backlash from the Loca Kingdom would be immense, potentially leading to war. Therefore, the Emperor decided to leave Emur alive. Stripped n*ked. Whether he escaped or not didn’t matter.

“Your Majesty, the horse is ready.”

When the Emperor was in a bad mood, riding a horse and galloping freely often improved his spirits. Anton, knowing this well, had made the arrangements. The Emperor, feeling inclined, was about to head that way but then stopped abruptly.

“No, let’s do it another time.”

He thought of something even more amusing.

Someone is going to die.

The Emperor’s eyes began to gradually turn blood-red as if he were thirsting for blood.

***

“Oh, I thought for sure he would kill him.”

“What kind of wind blew that the mad Emperor to spare him?”

“Who knows what’s going on in that sinister mind of his.”

Grand Duke Kuro Benoit looked disinterestedly at the 3 members of the Horse Brigade chatting amongst themselves.

“She must have seduced him with her beauty again.”

“That monster? Does that even make sense?”

“Even a monster is a man, isn’t he?”

Duke Santino, in his late 40s, Duke Berlus, in his 50s, and Duke Jenson continued to talk about how the Empress was still alive. Everyone in the Imperial Palace knew she had fled with the Prince, yet she was spared. No one could understand the mad Emperor’s intentions.

“Despite neglecting her all this time.”

“That’s because he was obsessed with the war.”

“But the problem is he won them all. Only the Kingdom of Euclo remains.”

“It won’t be easy.”

Smirks of satisfaction spread across the faces of the three men as if they had planned it.

“It’s not entirely impossible, is it?”

“You hit the nail on the head. Ha ha.”

The Dukes laughed heartily, finding the situation amusing.

Grand Duke Kuro Benoit, who had been half-listening to their conversation, was lost in his own thoughts. These men were merely his supporters. As he licked his lips, his eyes grew more languid, eagerly awaiting the day he could do as he pleased. A twisted smile appeared on Kuro’s lips.

***

“Sleeping so comfortably, are we?”

The Emperor barged into Bellita’s room unannounced. The nanny, trying to explain that the Empress was asleep after drinking the sleep-inducing tea, was ignored as the Emperor flung open the doors with both hands.

What is this?

The room was somewhat dark. Seeing the red-tinted hair peeking out from under the blanket on the bed, he immediately knew it was Bellita. He was exasperated. His eyes narrowed dangerously.

Sleeping? In broad daylight?

She should be wracking her brains in agony, but instead, she’s pulling this stunt?

No way.

This might all be a setup. The Emperor, his mood souring rapidly, drew his sword and focused his magic. The blade began to hum, and blue flames danced along its length. He commanded,

“Find and kill.”

As if in response to the Emperor’s voice, the trembling sword began to fly around Bellita’s room at high speed.

Swish.

Swish.

The sword meticulously inspected the wardrobes, under the bed, and even the ceiling. However, the blue-glowing sword returned to the Emperor without any results.

The Emperor’s head tilted to the side.

Boring.

Bellita, who played with multiple men in one night, should have at least one man hidden somewhere.

The enchanted sword should have pierced the neck of any man it found.

He had come expecting a good show but was left disappointed. So, he decided to create another source of amusement. The Emperor approached the bed and looked down at Bellita with a disgusted expression. Now she was even smiling idiotically, which only fueled his anger.

Bellita was still wandering in her dreams. She was happily running through a field, chasing butterflies. But then, the butterfly made a strange noise, and dark clouds began to gather in the once-clear sky. It grew darker and darker… She thought she heard someone speaking.

“Should I kill you right here?”

It was a familiar voice, but since it was a dream, Bellita wasn’t scared.

“Always talking about killing… Go away…”

Ha!

Even talking in her sleep?

How relaxed she is. 

The Emperor’s forehead veins bulged as he pondered how to torment her to make her tremble all day.

“Wake up!”

Like a well-trained puppet, Bellita’s eyes fluttered slowly, revealing and then hiding her topaz-colored irises. Her still-dazed eyes made her look like a doll. A doll with a filthy interior.

Perhaps it was the Emperor’s deadly gaze, but Bellita was waking up like an animal sensing danger. Even before she was fully awake, the eerie atmosphere made her skin crawl. As soon as she opened her eyes again, she locked eyes with the blood-red eyes of the Emperor, who was looking down at her.

Ah! Ahhh!

She tried to scream, but no sound came out. She just opened and closed her mouth like a goldfish, her voice lost from all the screaming she had done earlier.

***

“Nanny, what’s going on?”

“I’m not your nanny. Address me properly!”

“Fine. Madame Canel. I can’t believe His Majesty the Emperor has come to the Empress’s room… Last night, he brought her back in his arms. What’s going on? Is it going to thunder and lightning tomorrow?”

“Quiet. I can’t hear anything!”

The nanny pressed her ear against the firmly closed door of the Empress’s room, straining to catch any sound, but she heard nothing. The constant chatter of the maid, Liza, was particularly irritating.

The nanny’s face was filled with concern. Princess Bellita, whom she had raised with utmost care since birth, had cried her eyes out in this room last night, lamenting the great trouble she had caused. She had been distraught over not being able to stop it, blaming herself for not noticing sooner. But seeing the Princess return safely, albeit injured, had given her some relief.

No one could ever be angry with the princess, who had the appearance of an angel since birth. Everyone just forgave her. Even the King of Pellon couldn’t stay mad when his only daughter shed tears. 

When the Princess cried, everyone, including the King and the nanny, was busy comforting her, unable to get angry.

That’s why she was called spoiled and arrogant, but in the nanny’s eyes, she was still the angelic baby Princess Bellita.

That Princess had begged for help. She had promised to protect her. But not being able to enter this room was eating her up inside. The Emperor had even sneered at her before entering, making her feel even more crushed.

‘The Princess is still sleeping, so please wait a moment…’

‘Prin.Cess?’

The Emperor’s single word carried a deeper meaning in his cold voice.

Still calling her Princess? You must be out of your mind.

No wonder Bellita turned out like this.

The nanny immediately shut her mouth and stepped back quietly. Thus, she could only pace anxiously outside the door.

***

“Emur confessed everything. How should I kill you?”

Repeatedly. As soon as she opened her eyes, Bellita freaked out and scrambled to the opposite side of the bed, pressing herself against the wall and casting a terrified look at the Emperor.

Even in the dark, her bright blue eyes sparkled mysteriously.

Strange.

Seeing her tremble made her look prettier than when she was sleeping like a doll.

Very pleasing.

The Emperor, his eyes now a golden hue, sat on the plush sofa in the middle of the room and quietly commanded Bellita, who was trying to hide in the shadows like a fox.

“Sit.”

Let’s correct that. Not a fox. A puppy. As soon as he spoke, Bellita scurried over and sat on the farthest sofa, almost making the Emperor laugh for the first time.

This is amusing.

Why is she only now providing such entertainment?

The Emperor smirked, trying to suppress his smile.

“Tell me. I’ll kill you as you wish.”

Bellita, clasping her trembling hands, managed to move her quivering lips.

“Well… that time… in the mountains… Your Majesty, no, you…”

She wanted to say, ‘how could he do this after asking me to prove myself’. But she couldn’t speak properly.

“Me? To you? What did I do? Kissed you?”

The Emperor’s sudden words made Bellita jump in fright.

“No, no. That’s not it.”

She wanted to plead for him to forget that embarrassing incident, which she never wanted to remember again.

“Just based on Prince Emur’s words…”

“It’s true, isn’t it?”

He wouldn’t let her speak. Not that she could speak properly anyway.

“I… will prove it…”

Ah! 

The Emperor lightly nodded as if he had just remembered. She hated how he toyed with her life like a cat playing with a mouse. But she didn’t show it. She wanted to live.

“How will you prove it?”