Mad Rosetta - Chapter 114

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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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Rosette Gone Mad
Chapter 114
Lingering Echoes (3)
* * *
“Perhaps you should reconsider.”
“….”
“Surely you possess the means to sway the Duke’s heart.”
Had he not just moments ago lamented my exhaustion, suggesting I needed respite from such trials?
I fixed my gaze upon the Emperor, who had abandoned all pretense of civility to broach the matter directly.
Gold and crimson suited the Imperial Court magnificently.
The furniture carved from ebony and ivory, the garments adorned with meticulously inscribed patterns of meaning—all served only to showcase his authority.
‘How revolting.’
Such irreverent thoughts occupied my mind within the Emperor’s Reception Room.
“Since this conflict arose between lovers, I had intended to observe without interference, as much as possible….”
“….”
“Given how long this betrothal has endured, many eyes watch both Houses, do they not, Noble Lady.”
Of course—the union of the Marquis House, aligned with the Imperial Faction, and the Duke’s House, which maintained neutrality, naturally drew such scrutiny.
The Nobility Faction would celebrate the dissolution of this marriage with open hands.
Thus, his undisguised urgency in pressing the matter stemmed from his desire to fortify his own position.
‘A steadfast child,’ was it?
Jeremiah, as Sing had named him.
A ‘child,’ no less….
One who had followed calling ‘brother, brother,’ only to receive a blade in return—hardly a fitting epithet from the one who wielded it.
Regret, emptiness, sorrow, or perhaps anger.
And alongside these, a separate compassion.
Sing’s expression when recalling Jeremiah seemed to blend all of these emotions together.
I deemed the man worthy of death without hesitation, so I could not fathom why Sing himself wavered.
I believed that one should hate in proportion to the affection given; I could only hope his muddled mind would soon find clarity.
“The Empress spoke similarly not long ago. Hearing it again feels oddly nostalgic.”
I do hope you’ll cease your pecking at me.
I spoke with a faint smile at the end, and Jeremiah’s lips tightened.
To be frank, delaying the dissolution further had become impossible.
The dissolution documents were nearing completion, and above all, Father’s stance was unyielding.
Treating it as refuse to be disposed of with haste, his processing speed was so relentless that I could barely keep pace.
“However, I suspect Father may be somewhat concerned about securing a new betrothal.”
“…Do you have someone in mind.”
“I’m uncertain. As Your Majesty suggests, given how long-standing this betrothal was, I worry whether a suitable match can be found readily.”
Yet I could not afford to incur Jeremiah’s enmity, so some measure of restraint was necessary.
‘As a neutral House, I need only select the Imperial Faction once more for my next betrothal.’—that was my meaning.
“A Noble Lady of your standing will surely find an appropriate match befitting your station. What heir would refuse you.”
“I am grateful for your kind words.”
A list of Imperial Faction members with questionable loyalties would soon descend upon my Household.
Watching his gaze soften, I sensed I had answered well.
“But Your Majesty, I came today because there is something I urgently wish to request.”
“A request… I hope it won’t be too burdensome, Princess. Your father already left me with quite the load not long ago.”
“…I heard that the shocking events have weighed heavily on Your Majesty, and that you have a request. I humbly ask for your understanding.”
My own divorce, and my daughter’s broken engagement.
As if that weren’t enough, Father had seized the moment to demand a public execution sentence for the Epsilon Mother and Daughter with unwavering insistence.
I heard the interrogation was being prolonged to establish the facts of the case more firmly.
Throughout all this, Father’s decisive demand to determine the sentence first was deeply satisfying.
“Very well… A request from the Princess? Let me hear it.”
“…It concerns the Culprits from Benatra currently under interrogation. If a sentence is decided, I wish to postpone the execution date.”
“…I don’t follow your meaning. Didn’t you say you heard news from the Duke?”
“Yes. I was told he would make his decision after fully considering the magnitude of the changes our Household has endured.”
“The Duke wishes for the case to be concluded as soon as possible.”
“Before coming to see Your Majesty today, I had already conveyed my intentions to Father.”
Though I had heard his thunderous refusals more than once.
When I expressed my wish to postpone the execution of Lianna and Odette, Father’s eyebrows had shot up without limit.
Since I had even persuaded Father, who had been insisting on what I was saying, I believed the same approach would work on Jeremiah.
“The fact that Your Majesty considers a separate sentence is itself a testament to how much you are showing consideration for our Household’s position. I am not now asking for leniency.”
“…Then?”
“I simply wish their end to benefit not only our Household, but the Empire as well. In a more perfect form.”
“…Continue.”
“Winter is longer than one might think. There are still many who struggle through the season with cold and hunger. Especially as year’s end approaches, petty crimes increase…”
“…”
“Would not a grand spectacle—one that could instill a sense of caution in commoners and tension in nobility grown complacent with peace—be beneficial?”
Without realizing it, I had grown tense. The sound of my own swallow seemed far too loud.
Yet I met his gaze solemnly, laden with urgency.
Refuse and I threaten? In other words, pretend you can’t resist and agree quickly.
When the waiting felt unbearably long, Jeremiah finally spoke.
“They say it was thanks to you that we could prevent an even greater disaster…”
“…”
“With the Princess’s wisdom, I cannot refuse your request. Duke Benatra possesses considerable wealth.”
At his subtle smile, I too lifted the corners of my mouth.
It seemed I would not need to resort to threats after all.
‘But it’s not over yet.’
I deliberately sighed as if relieved and spoke.
“I am at a loss for words to thank Your Majesty for understanding my heart. I was even anxious on the way here because something strange occurred… but it seems it was merely my needless worry.”
“…Hmm? What happened, Princess?”
“Well, that is… On the way to the Imperial Palace, the road became blocked and we had to stop briefly, when suddenly someone in a robe appeared and began speaking to me.”
I rolled my eyes as if there were countless oddities no matter how many times I reconsidered.
“At first, I thought he was merely a peddler. But he said that if I conveyed my words to His Majesty, he would change his mind, did he not?”
“…?”
“He spoke as though he knew I was on my way to meet His Majesty.”
Jeremiah’s expression turned grave in an instant.
It was a natural reaction.
Not only had the Imperial Palace’s schedule leaked to the outside world, but it was a matter that could even threaten his very life.
Though I felt somewhat uneasy, I was too busy laughing awkwardly, unable to hide my joy that the matter had concluded well.
“But it was truly incomprehensible nonsense. Something about ‘if unexpected footprints are left upon Winter Mountain, you must shelter the wanderer.'”
“….”
“And that if I did so, I would receive an answer to the words ‘even in death, we shall not meet in the same place.’…”
“…What?”
“Ha, since he merely spouted such cryptic words, I promptly dismissed them.”
With one last artless laugh, I lifted my teacup.
‘Those were the very words you spoke when you murdered Sing.’
It was to savor Jeremiah’s frozen expression while keeping the poison concealed at the corners of my lips.
Was he even breathing?
Like one who had sensed something ominous, he appeared utterly diminished.
He seemed both terrified and simply frozen by dread.
“…That, Princess. Who—did you truly not recognize who that person was?”
“…Pardon?”
“…No, never mind. Rather, I fear I have taken up far too much of your time. Shall we arrange another meeting next time?”
With a demeanor utterly transformed from his easy chatter moments before, he urged me to leave.
Having said all that needed saying and seeing no further point in wasting time, I nodded and rose from my seat without resistance.
‘He must move according to our design.’
If he were to cancel his resort visit this year entirely out of fear, it would be catastrophic.
With that thought, I declined the palace attendant’s guidance and left the reception room.
“…This seemed to be the way.”
As I descended the long staircase, I arrived near the Ballroom where the coronation anniversary celebration had been held.
And soon, the corridor that I could never grow accustomed to finally came into view.
Back then, I had thought this passage impossibly long and the faces in the portraits excessively large…. But now, though grand, it was not quite so.
“…Your features are quite striking, Your Majesty. If beauty were a capital offense, you would deserve execution.”
It must have been because I was consumed by fear at that time.
After confirming no one was nearby, I let out a quiet giggle.
Calastian Theo Arcanis.
It was to gaze upon your true visage hanging in this Imperial Palace corridor after so long.
The portrait rendered you quite well.
Your hair, black as ebony. Your pale cyan eyes, so different from Jeremiah’s. Both were captured faithfully.
Though I felt a certain strangeness in your expressionless, merciless face devoid of any smile, unlike now.
“Ah, I miss you.”
Like me, she’s probably at the Imperial Palace.
She’s likely in the midst of a lengthy conversation with the Empress Dowager.
Sing, I’ve completed what I set out to do.
So go ahead and spread your wings freely.

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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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