Upon arriving at the port, Gerick was taken from the carriage and transferred to the ship.

Only after boarding the ship did he realize that Evelyn had followed him.

“Are you really coming with me? It will be difficult.”

“Staying here without you would be more difficult.”

Gerick flinched in surprise at Evelyn’s changed manner of speaking, but he decided not to make a big deal about her tone since he wouldn’t have to go to Benedict alone.

He was no longer Emperor or anything special, and Evelyn and Gerick were the same age.

Before becoming Crown Prince, they had spoken casually as friends along with Erika.

It felt rather liberating, like returning to the old days.

However, this was Gerick’s grave misunderstanding.

After arriving at Benedict Monastery, Evelyn transformed.

Of course, Gerick also struggled to adapt to life at Benedict Monastery.

How could he have known anything about farming?

Everything at Benedict was unfamiliar to him.

He gradually became more dependent on Evelyn.

The more Gerick relied on her, the harsher Evelyn’s tone became.

— Can’t you even do this? What would you have done without me? This is exactly why you were driven from the throne.

— You can’t do anything right. Truly pathetic.

— How can food go down your throat when you work like this? Why live, why bother living?

— Only someone like me would live with someone like you, seriously.

In the separate quarters specially provided for them at Benedict Monastery, Evelyn openly shattered Gerick’s self-esteem.

Yet Gerick had to endure Evelyn’s verbal *buse out of fear of being alone.

Having lost everything, he didn’t have the confidence to go on if he lost Evelyn too.

Gerick felt the current situation was excessively confusing and somehow wrong, but he couldn’t clearly identify what exactly was wrong.

He simply believed he was paying the price for his past mistakes.

That he was receiving back exactly what he had done to Evelyn while being obsessed with Erika.

Gerick gradually lost his will to live.

He hated himself for feeling so useless.

Yet he didn’t want Evelyn to hate him, so he revered her words like divine revelation.

In reality, unlike Gerick, Evelyn was properly fulfilling her role as a saintess at Benedict Monastery.

Despite her harsh words, Gerick couldn’t bear to be separated from Evelyn, reaching a point where he couldn’t even eat properly without her.

Gerick withered away little by little at Evelyn’s side.

From some point on, Gerick couldn’t even get out of bed.

He just curled up with his body dried up like a mummy.

Evelyn whispered to him every day:

“You really are useless. This is why Erika disrespected you so much. I’m telling you this because I love you, so take it to heart. Rather than living like this, you should bite your tongue and die.”

Gerick struggled to hold onto his fading consciousness.

He considered biting his tongue and dying as Evelyn suggested, but he didn’t even have the strength for that.

“I’m sorry…… I was wrong……”

Gerick barely managed to form words of apology.

He felt terribly sorry to Evelyn who stayed by his pathetic side.

It was truly regrettable that he couldn’t do anything for the only person who loved him.

Gerick died slowly like that.

A satisfied smile formed on Evelyn’s lips as she looked down at Gerick with his pale complexion.

※※※

Ion’s coronation ceremony was to be held at the Grand Temple as usual.

Although the Emperor had changed through a coup, they decided to follow tradition for the coronation.

Ion and Erika finished their preparations early in the morning and joined the parade.

This was to announce the change of Emperor to the people and to greet them.

People came out to the streets to see Ion because the Empire had rapidly stabilized even before the coronation ceremony.

“Long live His Majesty the Emperor!”

Many people clapped and cheered, rejoicing that Ion had become Emperor.

Ion enjoyed the parade, making eye contact with as many people as possible.

“So Dame Erika has finally become Empress.”

“Hey, man. When was she last called Dame Erika?”

“Ah, right. She’s Her Highness the Grand Duchess. Now she’s Her Majesty the Empress? Hahaha.”

People were also very happy about Erika ascending to the position of Empress.

Just as many had felt sorry for her when her marriage to Gerick fell apart, they didn’t hesitate to bless Erika standing beside Ion.

“Long live Her Majesty the Empress!”

Erika waved to the people in step with Ion.

When Erika waved, people cheered even louder, shouting “Long live!”

Finally, the Grand Temple began to come into view.

When the carriage stopped in front of the Grand Temple, Ion got out first and extended his hand to Erika.

Erika took Ion’s hand and stepped down from the carriage.

Ion guided her hand to his arm and led her into the Grand Temple.

Knights lined up to welcome them, and many people were waiting for them inside the Grand Temple.

Ion and Erika slowly walked along the red carpet.

They exchanged eye greetings with the nobles who welcomed them with applause.

At the front of the platform, the Duke of Sparta and Hermes sat with Nicholas, while High Priest Wilhelm awaited them on the platform.

A hymn, praying for infinite blessings and glory over the new Emperor’s future, rose from the choir’s beautiful voices.

Following the ceremony, Ion knelt on one knee before High Priest Wilhelm.

Wilhelm dipped his hand in holy water, made the sign of the cross, and recited a prayer.

Then he lifted the Emperor’s crown for all to see and placed it on Ion’s head.

Ion raised his hand before the people to make his vow.

“I, Ion Kaiser, swear before the Supreme God to uphold the laws of the Empire, protect the people from all enemies domestic and foreign, treat them with sincere faith and loyalty, and faithfully perform the duties of Emperor.”

People applauded enthusiastically and cheered.

Next was Erika’s turn.

Ion moved to where High Priest Wilhelm had stood, and Erika went to where Ion had knelt, placing her knee on the floor and bowing her head just as Ion had done.

“I bestow the crown of Empress upon Erika Kaiser.”

The first official act of Ion as Emperor was to establish a proper Empress.

Erika was the most anticipated Empress in history.

The crown of Empress was placed on Erika’s head.

Erika moved to adjust her posture and raised her hand as Ion had done.

“I, Erika Kaiser, swear to assist His Majesty the Emperor in protecting the laws of the Empire, protecting the people with sincere faith and loyalty, and faithfully performing the duties of Empress.”

Thunderous applause filled the Grand Temple.

Erika came down from the platform and took Nicholas.

Ion wanted to declare right there that Nicholas would be the Crown Prince to inherit the throne next.

Fortunately, High Priest Wilhelm responded favorably, letting Ion act as he wished.

Ion welcomed Erika as she stepped onto the platform, holding Nicholas.

They lifted Nicholas for everyone to see and stood before High Priest Wilhelm.

Wilhelm dipped his hand in holy water and made the sign of the cross on Nicholas’s forehead.

Nicholas gazed up at him with wide eyes.

Wilhelm smiled gently, stroked Nicholas’s head once, and offered a blessing.

“May there be eternal glory in the Kaiser Empire. I declare Nicholas Kaiser the Crown Prince of the Empire, may he be blessed.”

When the prayer ended, Nicholas laughed out loud.

The baby’s laughter brought smiles to everyone’s faces.

When Ion, Erika, and Nicholas stood together on the platform, everyone rose from their seats.

“Hurrah, hurrah, hurrah.”

The unified cheers made Ion and Erika’s hearts swell.

At the same time, their shoulders felt heavier.

The burden of being responsible for the entire Empire, not just one person, weighed on their shoulders.

Ion wrapped his arm around Erika’s shoulder and nodded.

An expression of determination that they could do it.

A belief that Erika could overcome the weight of the Empress’s crown.

Erika, sensing what Ion wanted to say, returned the same to him.

A belief that he would do well.

A conviction that Ion would bear the weight of the Emperor’s crown and repay it with growth and development.

The procession of the two people, filled with trust in each other, began.

※※※

Ion Kaiser. Kaiser IV.

He was recorded as the king who led the most prosperous revival period in the history of the Kaiser Empire.

After becoming Emperor, he expanded the territory by absorbing the Kingdom of Paira and actively developed magical engineering.

With the development of magical engineering, the Kaiser Empire opened a way to smoothly supply goods throughout its vast territory.

The relationship with the Heinreich Empire, which had been the most hostile, changed when the Third Prince Caliph inherited the throne.

Caliph was the person who had advised Ion to become Emperor of the Kaiser Empire rather than suffer persecution from Gerick.

After becoming Emperor, Ion helped Caliph become Emperor of the Heinreich Empire.

Caliph strengthened his relationship with Ion and sought ways for the Heinreich Empire and the Kaiser Empire to coexist.

Ion accepted Caliph’s proposal and exchanged the abundant grain and minerals of the Heinreich Empire.

Thanks to this, the people of the Kaiser Empire no longer had to worry about food, and prices stabilized, allowing them to live stable lives.

Ion was remembered as an Emperor with an exceptionally close bond with Empress Erika.

He took no concubines beyond her and loved only the Empress.

Together, Ion and Erika had two more princes and a princess, in addition to Crown Prince Nicholas.

Empress Erika aided Emperor Ion in governing the Empire and was celebrated as the wisest of Empresses.

She also trained several outstanding knights, helping to strengthen the Kaiser Empire into a powerful nation.

This was also the reign when the most Sword Masters were born.

The Kaiser Empire became a country that no one dared to challenge, and even monsters could not rampage in this powerful nation.

When Crown Prince Nicholas turned thirty, Ion stepped down from the throne and became Grand Emperor.

Nicholas I ruled the Kaiser Empire, carrying on the Grand Emperor’s will.

Ion and Erika spent the rest of their lives traveling the world.

When Erika fell ill with an unknown disease at the age of eighty, Ion never left her side.

He also passed away one week after Erika’s death.

Nicholas I placed the two in the same tomb so they could be together even in death.

The Definition Of A Political Marriage, The End