Bloodline is a Cheat Code - Chapter 48

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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 48
“Well, my brother may have planted his eyes and ears here, but that doesn’t mean I just idle away my time in the Palace.”
“I see.”
True enough—traitors abound everywhere. Vincent does seem rather poor at managing his surroundings.
Because of everything I’d witnessed from him thus far, Vincent’s actions never quite sat well with me, no matter what he did.
As I readily agreed, he broke into a smile. For some reason, his face looked unusually beautiful today, and it unsettled me.
I wondered if it was because I’d inadvertently whimpered earlier and shown my vulnerability. No, Lucian Advein had always been rather handsome.
What was I even saying? Of course I was tense—that’s all it was.
“Yes, so… what happened next?”
“At first, he asked why this Delegation arrived with so few members and at such a secretive hour. But apparently, the Holy Kingdom did it to spare us embarrassment.”
After all, those who had initially rejected the Holy Kingdom with countless discourtesies would become a laughingstock if they welcomed the Delegation in broad daylight, and refusing them would only spread unfavorable rumors.
If they were to simply use Holy Power out of goodwill to cure the ailments currently plaguing us, that would be even more problematic.
Though the Holy Kingdom’s Delegation spoke presumptuously, their words weren’t wrong—and I found that oddly satisfying.
“If that were the case, they couldn’t have proposed beginning exchanges immediately. So are they trying to use this as a pretext to divide factions during today’s talks?”
“I initially suspected the same thing. But it doesn’t seem to be the case. The Delegation’s proposal was quite unusual.”
“What on earth was it?”
Even he seemed unable to make sense of it, lifting his teacup to take a sip.
* * *
“I have called upon you all on such short notice, despite your busy schedules, because I have recently received a request from the Holy Kingdom.”
Serpina Rosena watched Vincent speak with composure.
She knew that only she was truly focused on him; everyone else was stealing glances at Serpina Rosena.
‘The eldest daughter of Rosena.’
‘They say her beauty is striking, and it’s true.’
‘If she weren’t a minor duchess, I’d find a way to make her a concubine.’
‘So she really is aligned with the Third Prince?’
‘How can such a young thing be a minor duchess?’
So many blatant, lecherous stares. Serpina Rosena understood all too well what form their desires took.
In her past life, she had personally slit the throats of several among them.
Seeing them resurrected and sitting in the same hall, their eyes wide open and intact, made her stomach turn.
Yes—not only those she had lost were brought back to life, but those she had struck down as well.
“During the period of severed relations, the Holy Kingdom has undergone countless transformations. They wish for one of the Imperial Princes—destined to become the Empire’s brightest star as the next Emperor—to visit the Holy Kingdom personally and witness these changes firsthand.”
The Main Hall erupted into chaos.
Voices rose in protest—this was absurd, how could they dare speak such nonsense? Some faces had gone pale.
But Serpina Rosena could read the true sentiments beneath their outrage.
‘They find it amusing.’
The audacity of the Holy Kingdom in treating the Imperial Crown Prince—already virtually confirmed as the next Emperor—as merely one prince among many.
And they felt a hint of fear at the power of a nation that had grown strong enough to act in such a manner.
Yet everyone in this hall except Duke Rosena had already boarded the ship named Vincent Advein.
‘Tiae, you were right. Without resorting to magic or swords, one can discern so much simply by observing one’s surroundings.’
Her perceptive younger sister had once earnestly told her that through quiet observation alone, one could read the world. She hadn’t understood then, but now she was beginning to grasp its meaning.
At that moment, Lye Rohaim’s gaze turned precisely toward Serpina Rosena.
“What are your thoughts on this matter, Young Duchess of Rosena?”
‘The Crown Prince is present, yet he bypasses his right to speak and directs the question to me?’
The Main Hall fell silent in an instant. Everyone seemed to share the same thought.
“Lord Rohaim, that is overstepping your bounds! That is a question for His Highness the Crown Prince!”
“It is a question His Highness the Crown Prince would have asked anyway.”
‘Ah, so he’s upset because he thinks I spoke out of turn earlier.’
His expression remained composed, but his rational judgment had not matured beyond his years—a timeless trait of those steeped in desire and accustomed to servitude alone.
Such arrogance, to disregard even Vincent’s displeasure. Serpina Rosena rose gracefully, smiled softly, and opened her mouth.
“My words represent Duke Rosena, and my intentions represent the Rosena Duchy Family. Since His Highness the Crown Prince currently represents His Majesty the Emperor, shall we interpret all of Lord Rohaim’s statements henceforth as representing His Majesty the Emperor, and all his intentions as representing The Empire?”
What is it that all nobles in this world fear most?
Serpina Rosena would answer without hesitation: the annihilation of one’s house. For they sometimes behaved as though their family’s honor mattered more than their own lives.
Did not Flotie also believe that protecting Rosena was the swiftest path to protecting her family?
In that regard, Serpina was not particularly noble-like.
“Young Duchess.”
“Your Highness, I apologize for my sudden remarks. However, as one who represents Rosena and remains loyal to The Empire, I must respectfully ask your understanding in addressing this matter.”
And Lye Rohaim was cunning enough to toy with such nobles.
Usually, when one provoked an opponent to this degree, some would succumb to momentary rage and rush forward, but he composed himself and answered with a gentle smile.
“Upon reflection, I have been discourteous to His Highness the Crown Prince. Your Highness, I apologize.”
“Not at all.”
Vincent received the apology awkwardly, as though he had never once been apologized to by him in his entire life.
Lye looked toward Serpina Rosena with a gleam in his eyes that seemed to say, ‘Are you satisfied now?’
Had she been the woman from her previous life, she might have wilted under such a gaze and lost her composure. But the soul dwelling in this body had weathered every hardship and returned.
‘That is not authority—it is mere bluster.’
Serpina received that piercing gaze with her entire being, straightened her posture, and continued to smile with only the corners of her lips curled upward.
“Since this is a conference convened by His Highness the Crown Prince, I shall answer only the questions His Highness deigns to ask.”
“Is that the will of Rosena?”
This time, the question came from a different noble seated elsewhere.
He seemed intent on repeating her words verbatim to deliver a subtle insult.
“Yes, it is. My will, as the representative of Duke Rosena, is the will of Rosena. In time, I shall become not merely a representative, but the true Duke.”
‘Baron Hamel proposed a marriage between me and his eldest son, who is sixteen years my senior. I am a bastard, and his son is a man of loose morals, violent and utterly useless, so he spouted nonsense about disposing of defective children together.’
And at that time, Duke Rosena had utterly buried the House of Hamel.
Even though he must have believed I was not his true daughter, he had looked after me—a kindness that lingered long in my heart.
Yet I had to leave him behind in that burning mansion until the very end.
Serpina, emerging from her reverie, gazed at Baron Hamel, who was laughing as though bewildered.
“Did I say something so amusing, Baron?”
“No, it is simply that you speak of such grave matters before His Highness the Crown Prince with such absurd words, Miss.”
“Absurd words?”
“For one as inexperienced as you, Miss, to represent Rosena here—this diminishes His Highness’s dignity. Moreover, Lord Rohaim is a man of considerable experience, having long served His Majesty the Emperor.”
In other words, you are on an entirely different level from someone as ignorant as you.
‘Yes, in my past life too, he wagged his tongue carelessly and disappeared soon enough. Now I see it clearly—he was never truly after the Crown Prince’s favor. He was chasing Lye Rohaim’s coattails all along.’
Upon my return, certain truths became visible that had remained hidden before. The perspective I lacked in my youth now opened before me.
I had observed the bare minimum of courtesy. As one not yet fully invested with the title of Duke, I had shown deference to a Baron and preserved the minimal dignity befitting his station.
But he had just crossed that line.
I let the corners of my mouth fall from where Serpina Rosena had lifted them, and returned my voice to its natural tone, abandoning the gentleness I had carefully adopted.
“Prestige, you say? It seems the Baron’s disrespect toward me is doing wonders for your own standing, is it not?”

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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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