Chapter 2. The Spoil of War

Thud. Not far from the bed where Roshan sat, the last visitor collapsed to the floor. Knox, who had cut him down, frowned at the blood spreading across the floor before slightly swinging his sword to clear the blade of blood.

“They carry the emblem of the Sedas Kingdom’s army…… But their swordsmanship resembles that of the Empire.”

Hayden, who was examining one of the dead assassins from a short distance away, reported. Knox, who had already knelt down, searched through the belongings of the man he had killed and held something in his hand as he reported.

“The same goes for the one I dealt with.”

What Knox held was a metal badge issued to the soldiers of the Sedas Kingdom. A deer drawn above three conifers, and a sharp arrow below. The badge was engraved with a pattern he had seen countless times during battles over the past few months.

But the dead men were not soldiers of the Sedas Kingdom. Assassins had continuously appeared since their arrival at the palace. Some of them seemed to be from Sedas, but many, like today, were disguised as Sedas natives.

“It seems His Majesty is getting anxious as Your Highness’s return approaches.”

Hayden shuddered with disgust as he looked at the dead men. Since Roshan’s return date was approaching, assassins had been infiltrating almost daily.

“They should know by now it’s pointless……”

“They’re hoping we’ll make a mistake just once. They think they might succeed if luck is on their side.”

“What a petty bastard!”

Knox burst out in anger, openly displaying his emotions. And surprisingly, the target of his rage was the emperor of his homeland, the Vistius Empire.

As an imperial knight and heir to a noble house, Knox loved his country but neither respected nor was loyal to the current emperor. He believed the current emperor had neither the qualifications nor the ability to sit on the throne.

And now that person is repeatedly trying to harm Roshan. To Knox, who was fanatically loyal to Roshan, the emperor was already no different from an enemy.

“Your Highness! Are you just going to watch this happen?”

Finally unable to contain his rising anger, Knox shouted while looking at Roshan. But Roshan responded indifferently to his subordinate’s outcry.

“His Majesty must be bored.”

“Isn’t this too blatant? You should at least warn him when you return!”

If Roshan died in the Sedas Kingdom, the emperor of the Empire would declare: My beloved brother was assassinated by the people of Sedas. I cannot hide my grief, so I will seek revenge. And the Sedas Kingdom, already battered from losing the war, would completely disappear from the map under the pretext of the emperor’s wrath.

But the emperor wasn’t particularly interested in the Sedas Kingdom itself. His primary goal was singular: for his half-brother, who had a more legitimate claim than himself, to die and disappear—whether on the battlefield, by assassination, or by illness.

‘Send word to the Sedas Kingdom to send their princess. I hear the princess is beautiful, so I’ll bring her into my garden as a flower.’

The emperor often provoked small countries and made unreasonable demands for the purpose of killing his half-brother. If the frightened small country complied with his demands, that was good enough, and if they didn’t, he could send Roshan to the battlefield under the pretext of punishing an insolent country that dared to defy the Empire—killing two birds with one stone from the emperor’s perspective.

But the emperor had not yet achieved his goal. Far from dying as he wished, Roshan had won every war. As a result, rumors spread throughout the imperial palace that the emperor was growing increasingly agitated.

“On the battlefield, assassins disguised as imperial knights or soldiers were active…… Until our return, we’ll be dealing with those disguised as people from the Sedas Kingdom.”

Hayden sighed at the predictable future. Unlike Knox, he didn’t openly display his emotions, but he too was disgusted by the emperor’s sordid behavior.

But what could he do when their lord himself seemed indifferent? Hayden approached Knox, whose face had turned bright red, patted his shoulder as if to calm him down, and then turned to Roshan.

“I’ll call someone to clean this up, but it might take some time, so perhaps you should sleep in another room tonight.”

Roshan nodded silently in response to Hayden’s suggestion. At the same time, Knox bowed to Roshan and went to the door to summon people.

Soon, soldiers to remove the bodies and people to clean the room were waiting outside. Roshan followed the guide to a new room, accompanied by Knox and Hayden.

The night was deep, and despite the lit lamps, the corridor was dark. As they followed the guiding maid, Roshan suddenly turned his head toward Hayden and spoke.

“Didn’t you say you had something to tell me?”

“Ah…… Yes. I need Your Highness’s permission for something.”

Hayden, who was walking on Roshan’s right side, bowed his head with an awkward expression. Dealing with the assassins had made him completely forget his original purpose. He quickly asked for the permission he needed.

“The king of Sedas has requested to meet the princess once before departing. He says he wants to properly greet his sister.”

For just a moment, Roshan’s brow slightly furrowed. He continued walking in silence for a while. Knox, who was on Roshan’s left side, tensed at the inexplicably chilled atmosphere.

“……I have no reason to refuse.”

Roshan only gave his permission after entering the new room. Hayden bowed toward him, who was now sitting on a couch by the window looking outside.

“Then I will convey your decision.”

He felt inexplicably pleased. From what Hayden had heard, the princess had a good relationship with her half-brother, the new king of Sedas. So he hoped that meeting even a half-family member might help the princess overcome some of the grief of losing her family.

“Hayden. Tell the king of Sedas that I grant permission, but the date and time will be provided later.”

Just as Hayden was thinking about arranging for the two to meet as soon as tomorrow, Roshan suddenly continued speaking. Hayden, who had intended to arrange an immediate meeting between the king and princess, felt a little deflated at his lord’s command. But as always, he bowed his head and answered that he would comply.

“Yes.”

The scent of double lilies wafted heavily through the open window. Roshan rose from his seat and approached the window. After carefully appreciating the double lilies that had bloomed so profusely, he turned his head to the side.

“Knox.”

This time he called for Knox. Knox immediately responded and moved a little closer to hear Roshan’s command. After thinking for a moment, Roshan ordered:

“Tomorrow morning, bring me the woman who was said to be the princess’s nanny.”

* * *

Less than three days remained before the imperial army would leave the palace. Under Frederick’s supervision, Yerena was able to say goodbye to her close maids and a few others she had been friendly with.

‘Do you need to say farewell before going to the Empire? If you wish, I will summon those you name.’

Although she had thought about saying goodbye to her acquaintances before leaving, she hadn’t dared to make such a request, but for some reason, Frederick brought it up first. Yerena felt his voice sounded somewhat disgruntled, but not wanting to miss the opportunity, she quickly agreed.

“I’ll go too. I can’t let the princess go alone.”

Everyone who came to say goodbye to the blind princess had tears in their eyes. Some of her close maids burst into tears and said they would go to the Empire with Yerena. But Yerena shook her head and firmly refused.

“No.”

Although the imperial knights consistently used honorifics with her, Yerena knew well that she was going neither for a political marriage nor as part of a diplomatic delegation. She was going as a spoil of war, wearing the yoke of a prisoner, to be pushed into the emperor’s bedroom.

Crudely put, she could be called a bedroom slave. And she absolutely could not take those who had been with her since childhood to such a place.

“Lily, you’re about to get married. You should stay here and live happily with your fiancé. And Jeyna, your daughter is only three years old. How can a mother leave her child behind?”

“Princess……”

Going to the Empire would be hard enough, but the looks from the people there were predictable. Although from a small country, her maids as a princess were ladies or wives from fairly decent families within the Sedas Kingdom. How could they endure the contemptuous glances and disdain from people in the Empire? Moreover, Yerena didn’t want anyone from the Sedas Kingdom to see her becoming the emperor’s concubine.

Yerena comforted her crying, clinging maids and distributed most of her jewelry and gold coins to those she trusted. Many treasures and assets in the palace now belonged to the imperial army, but for some reason, she had received back a few small jewelry boxes that were her personal possessions.

“More importantly, take this…… Keep it safe and use it where needed. This winter will be difficult, and I hope fewer people will go hungry.”

With the war reparations, probably everyone in the country would struggle. If even the nobles were forcibly stripped of their wealth, what about the common people below them?

Yerena knew that her jewelry boxes wouldn’t be much help. She also knew that even after careful selection, the maids who received them might use them personally.

But that was better than keeping them herself, wasn’t it? Yerena asked Frederick if she could give some of her possessions, except those taken as reparations, to certain people she had chosen. Frederick quickly returned after seeking Roshan’s permission and conveyed that she could do so.

“Are you giving away even what you’re wearing?”

Frederick looked at Yerena with a strange expression as she gave away even the earrings she was wearing. Yerena answered in a voice much colder than when she had faced her maids.

“I can’t even see anymore. These things are useless to me.”

Frederick felt disappointed by Yerena’s attitude but let out a hollow laugh. He thought he was becoming emotional like silly women from spending all day around a fragile lady.