Bloodline is a Cheat Code - Chapter 37

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 37
“Most petitioners are turned away. The Crown Prince handles the vast majority of state affairs, which suggests His Majesty’s condition is quite grave. Yet he still makes the weightiest decisions himself—that’s rather curious. The last time I saw him, his complexion was nearly ashen. His skin as well.”
“How could he make them directly…?”
Serpina Rosena seemed to believe Vincent was making arbitrary judgments and merely posing them as the Emperor’s choices.
But Father shook his head firmly.
“I’ve observed his handwriting for many years. I couldn’t possibly mistake it. And the Crown Prince is…”
Father appeared to be seriously contemplating whether what he was about to say constituted heresy.
Most remarks that follow such deliberation typically do qualify as heresy. Mother must have fallen for such heretical comments and decided to marry Father.
Suddenly I wonder if it’s truly acceptable for me—born between these two—to even create an Emperor.
“What about the Crown Prince?”
But Serpina Rosena, still unfamiliar with Father’s tendencies, pressed eagerly for an answer.
My daughter, who had always seemed distant, was finally speaking to me after so long and pestering me like this—Father’s delight was plainly visible.
Though Serpina Rosena spoke with a stern expression, to Father’s eyes she was clearly just wheedling.
After clearing his throat several times with “ahem, ahem,” Father spoke in a grave voice.
“He doesn’t seem to possess the caliber necessary to make decisions with such seasoned judgment.”
“….”
I mustn’t laugh.
Even Serpina Rosena, who rarely laughed, was in crisis this time—I could see her gripping her fork and knife so tightly that the tendons in the back of her hand stood out.
I had to endure.
“I… see…”
Her voice was trembling.
“Honestly, if not for that legend about red-eyed people becoming Emperor, I would have stripped naked and waved a flag in that plaza demanding they not appoint the Crown Prince. Aden Prince would have been far superior. Vincent Crown Prince is simply suited to be a Grand Duke living leisurely in some corner of his fiefdom with a virtuous lady, tending flowers.”
Flotie Rosena, I had to hold it together.
This wasn’t heresy, but regardless.
Regardless, my head was spinning white. I was gripping my knife tightly as well when Mother’s clear, bright laughter rang out.
“Listening to you, one would think Vincent Crown Prince was some sort of simpleton.”
“Of course not to that degree. How could he be idle when he bears responsibility for the life of flowers, madam? I simply mean he lacks the capacity to lead an entire empire. He was kind-hearted, but lately it seems he’s abandoned even that goodness. Whenever I see him these days, my mood sours considerably.”
“Ahahaha!”
Mother burst into hearty laughter. At the same moment, Serpina Rosena pretended to drop her fork on the floor, dismissed the servants, and crawled under the table to retrieve it—and didn’t come back out.
With nowhere left to hide, not even under the table, I covered my face.
“My, Tiae. Whatever is the matter?”
“The food is simply too delicious…”
“Is it truly that moving? My, I must reward the child who chose today’s menu. Don’t you agree, dear?”
“Well, what should we give her?”
“Indeed. You don’t even have flowers to tend in some corner of your fiefdom. We’ll have to settle for a vacation and money.”
“Ha, it’s quite difficult to hold a position befitting one’s station.”
Please.
* * *
“I’m truly grateful you didn’t join us for dinner, Elian.”
“I agree completely.”
“Pardon?”
When my sister and I returned from finishing our meal and spoke with such gravity in unison, Elian’s expression became peculiar.
But if she heard such an assessment of Vincent right before her eyes, there was no doubt that even Elian would have lost her composure.
I never imagined the two of them exchanged such jests regularly. We deliberately avoided discussing politics during meals.
At most, we shared only the lightest of pleasantries.
“Did you know Serpina talked more than usual during today’s meal? I’m not sure if the content was appropriate, but it was enjoyable. Besides, you seemed to be enjoying yourself too.”
Even now, thinking back on those moments made my head spin slightly.
Serpina, who seemed to have laughed for quite some time before returning, was half-dazed before letting out a soft chuckle.
“You’re right. Even unhelpful conversations like this are pleasant. It eases the tension.”
Serpina’s smile truly was beautiful.
But what now? I had to discuss something more helpful.
“Obliviae? Is it related to Obliviate, the memory spell?”
As expected of someone who had created great achievements at the Magic Tower, Serpina immediately connected the name to magic.
I honestly told her that I had demanded seats for Elian and Vincent as compensation for this matter, and Serpina didn’t doubt my judgment at all.
She of all people would know that I could have obtained something better.
“You must have had your reasons, Tiae.”
“It’s because of me.”
Elian stepped forward, worried that I might say something self-reproaching or shift her own responsibility onto me.
Seeing her interject despite knowing it was impolite showed just how much she cared for me.
“I believe that when something happens, emotion is ultimately the greatest variable.”
“That’s usually true.”
“And the greatest key to shake Vincent Crown Prince would ultimately be his feelings toward Elian and Aden Prince.”
His love for Elian and his affection for Lucian Advein.
I knew the clear circumstances surrounding the former, but I hadn’t fully grasped the latter.
Unless I truly intended to draw a blade and cut his throat, I had no choice but to probe this aspect and shake him. In the end, I was using Elian, yet she seemed rather pleased about it.
‘This way, I might also hear what he has to say. I always thought we should meet at least once.’
“Nothing in this world can be evaded forever. Eventually, a moment must come when you face either your own emotions or those of another.”
Serpina spoke what seemed clearly born from experience, her gaze fixed on Elian.
I must set aside time one day to hear about what Serpina has endured. I couldn’t contain my curiosity.
“I’ll search the Magic Tower separately for information about the sacred artifact, but do you have any suspicions, Tiae?”
I blinked slowly.
Truth be told, something did come to mind the moment I saw that name. But I had my reasons for not speaking it aloud.
If it were that, it seemed too obvious. Someone might mock it as childish.
I didn’t mention it precisely because it was so flimsy that I wondered how no one had noticed.
“Tiae?”
“Well, you won’t think it’s a childish guess, will you?”
“No.”
I stared intently at the word Obliviae, written in the script of the Holy Kingdom.
The moment I saw this word, one person came to mind.
“Aubrey Violet.”
“….”
“The Violet Family is adjacent to the Magic Tower, and before Serpina Rosena contracted with it, they held an exclusive monopoly on magical artifacts. Moreover, in important social circles like the Faneshula Reading Circle, instead of sending someone of appropriate age like Aubrey Violet, they consistently sent their youngest member—their movements were extraordinarily limited.”
Families claim they send their children to cultivate independence, but dispatching such a young youngest member to the Faneshula Reading Circle would be poison to their own interests.
Then perhaps there was a different motive at play.
For the Violet Family to genuinely establish new footing within The Empire was exceedingly difficult.
The positions from which they could ascend by backing the Magic Tower were limited, and given their proximity to it, wasn’t their position too ambiguous to join the Vincent Crown Prince’s faction?
Supporting the Third Prince openly would yield them nothing of value either.
“I heard that the Holy Kingdom, recently angered with The Empire, is actively embracing magic—news that would certainly tempt the Violet Family.”
“Mm.”
Serpina Rosena nodded silently in acknowledgment.
My confidence grew slightly, simply because my words weren’t immediately refuted.
“In truth, I believe genuine loyalty among nobility is exceedingly rare.”
Occasionally, families like House Delpoi possess true devotion, but they represent an infinitesimal fraction.
The rest act entirely according to their interests, selecting whom to support based on calculation. Consequently, some nobles barricade themselves within their territories and never emerge at all, do they not?
Yet I found myself wanting to be loyal to Lucian Advein.
But naturally, one’s own security matters far more than how the world turns. That is simply how things operate.
“What if, while expanding their business into the Holy Kingdom, the Violet Family discovered the existence of sacred relics?”

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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