Margrave’s Bastard Son was The Emperor - Chapter 452

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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 452
Fire. The Most Brilliant Moment
Overwhelming pressure.
For the first time in her life, Eriponi felt a crushing sense of oppression.
Was she not a king of a nation, ruling above all others’ heads? Noble bloodline from the moment of birth. The legitimate heir of a dynasty spanning centuries and more.
No one, not even her own parents, could treat her carelessly. They all knew Eriponi would become the King of Ruswena.
Yet that small thing, merely because he held the title of Prince, commanded Eriponi herself to kneel. A humiliation unseen even in war, here in the very center of the Bariel imperial palace, with representatives from all three nations watching.
“…That jest goes too far.”
“Do they exchange such jests in Ruswena?”
Eriponi’s smile twisted.
The Boy was resolute. There was no jest in his words about severing her legs if she did not kneel here.
How could he speak such cruelty? The officials swallowed hard and observed the situation unfolding, while the Mages too stiffened with discomfort.
A clash between sovereigns. The tense confrontation between Prince and King. Eventually one side would have to yield, yet Jin’s methods were far too brutal to predict the outcome.
Commanding ‘that’ Eriponi to kneel. From the position of a noble king, even if she wished it, she could not.
“Shall I explain again? The one who brought the tea was that Young Boy from the Ministry of Magic. Though born in Ruswena, he is a traitor of the highest order who sparked rebellion and destroyed the royal palace. Count Ian said he is now his subordinate. Therefore, bringing the tea naturally falls under the Ministry of Magic’s jurisdiction, does it not? Is that all?”
Eriponi drew closer to Jin, who stood rigid and unmoved, and growled. In her heart, she wished to tap that round forehead repeatedly and properly correct the Young Boy’s wicked habits.
“The one who poured the hot water was the Burgos Envoy. Ruswena had no involvement whatsoever in this process. Yet you command me to kneel? No matter how defeated a nation may be, can wielding power over unrelated matters truly be called the virtuous rule of Bariel?”
Had he commanded her to kneel when she lost the war, to press her face to the earth, she would have done so gladly. The leader of a defeated nation carries the souls of fallen soldiers upon her back; bowing would not have been so difficult.
But now? If she bowed, the lives of Ruswena’s surviving people would crumble with her. The nation’s dignity would fall completely to the ground. It would be better to die. In this situation, she absolutely could not lower her gaze even slightly.
“Right. Burgos was involved as well. Representative Bania.”
“…Yes.”
“You kneel as well.”
Bania, who had been watching from the side, flinched and glanced around. She felt all eyes piercing through her. Eventually, at the urgent signal from the Burgos Delegation, Bania slowly adjusted her clothes and knelt.
Royal blood flowed through her veins, but she had spent half her life under Rutherford. Servitude existed beneath her tongue, and sometimes her own circumstances felt heavier than those of freely roaming slaves. So what was the significance of kneeling?
As Bania readily bowed her head before Jin, Eriponi exhaled a long sigh as if going mad.
“Damn it.”
“How is it, Eriponi? The Burgos who stood before Ian’s death now kneels thus, submitting to Bariel’s authority. Yet your gaze… still remains above mine.”
Had Bania also refused and resisted, Eriponi’s dignity might have been preserved, but with this outcome, there was no space for her to retreat. The Ruswena delegation apparently decided it was better not to look, turning their heads completely away.
Meanwhile, others focused their gaze even more intently. Curious about when and how Eriponi would bow before the Prince.
“Forgive me, Your Highness. Unless Your Highness matures, my gaze shall continue to remain here.”
Eriponi had finally made her decision. Rather than sully her honor and trample her dignity, she would choose death. Rather than crawl along the ground to preserve her life, she would collide head-on, even if her head shattered.
Objectively speaking, the Prince’s command contained elements of absurdity, so Eriponi had secured a certain moral ground. The Minister of Magic suddenly collapsed and died, yet without any investigation, commanding a nation’s king to kneel—did that make any sense?
Jin nodded slowly in acknowledgment.
“True. But I lack time. Before Count Ian’s body grows any colder, I will have you below and interrogate you. From below, one cannot see above, but from above, one can see below. This principle applies to truth as well.”
Sling.
“Eek!”
“Your Highness!”
“This cannot be! We came as a delegation for negotiations! Please preserve the dignity of the Empire!”
“Everyone, step back!”
At Jin’s gesture, Xiaoxi drew his sword. The frightened Servants retreated silently, and the Ruswena Delegation blocked the way with bare hands.
“My patience is exhausted, Prince Eriponi. I will make everyone here witness the blood you shed. You need to come to your senses.”
“Yes!”
So we’re going all the way with this, are we? My patience wasn’t the only one depleted—Prince Eriponi’s had run dry as well. She cried out for all to hear.
“A shadow destiny you didn’t even know existed, and the lowest Prince 5 struts about with such arrogance! You didn’t ascend through achievement, nor did you earn the position of Crown Prince through your own merit—you obtained it through your brother’s death. Do you truly believe that position reflects your capabilities? You are foolish and ignorant! Having risen to a station far beyond your abilities, of course you conduct yourself with such pride!”
“…!”
“Your skill in handling a defeated nation is noteworthy, but as long as you remain in your current position, Bariel and foreign powers will never achieve true fusion. Will you slaughter them all, again and again, dragging the defeated nation through rivers of blood? Gaia will soon be filled with those born cursing Bariel!”
“Silence that tongue!”
Clang!
Xiaoxi swung his blade to cut off Prince Eriponi’s words, but Eldetr stepped forward to block. As Eldetr received Xiaoxi’s attack, fabric tore along his forearm, revealing gray metallic armor beneath.
Was he wearing protective gear? As Xiaoxi narrowed his eyes to assess, a fist came flying through Eldetr’s flowing long hair.
Thud!
In that moment, Prince Eriponi swiftly seized her golden bow from where it rested against the wall. Though it had no arrows, the bow itself was sturdy enough to wield as a weapon.
“Drop your weapon!”
“Everyone, calm down, please calm down!”
“Aaaahhh!”
“Subdue the Ruswena delegation! Bind all those from Ruswena!”
“Your Highness the Crown Prince, please retreat this way!”
“King Eriponi! Drop your weapon! If you do not—! Aaaahhh!”
Prince Eriponi brought her bow down upon the head of a guard lunging at her. Blood fountained upward, staining the white walls with crimson.
The mages formed a protective circle around Ian, awaiting Jin’s command. In the absence of the Minister, they had only the master of the imperial household to follow.
“Your Highness. What shall we do?”
This was the heart of the imperial palace. The Ruswena delegation, armed with barely adequate weapons, had virtually no chance of accomplishing anything. It felt like watching a small trapped beast thrashing about in a cage. Jin, protected by the mages, fixed his gaze upon Prince Eriponi.
“Take him alive. As long as there’s breath in his body, it matters not.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
“Prince Eriponi! Be careful!”
“Damn it, damn it!”
The Ruswena delegation resisted fiercely, but their limitations were clear. One by one, they were forced to their knees like their lord before them, their faces ground into the floor as they were bound. Seeing his subordinates fall, Prince Eriponi’s gaze shifted urgently.
“Eldetr! Who is it?”
Among the defected Ruswena mages, there was one in contact with Eldetr. It wasn’t a firm commitment of allegiance—merely a line of communication—but right now, that was the only place I could place any trust.
If necessary, I could expose that defector’s collusion with Eldetr to everyone present, pressuring them into helping Ruswena. After all, they would be unable to remain in the Bariel palace otherwise.
“Speak quickly!”
But Eldetr quickly scanned the mages and frowned. As if he recognized no one among them.
“My apologies, Your Highness. It seems they are not here.”
“That’s impossible!”
Besides Bariel’s mages, the number of Ruswena mages gathered with Zaira was considerable. Yet they couldn’t be found among them?
Filled with rage, Prince Eriponi continued swinging his bow, blocking the guards’ approach.
Whoosh!
“All of you, don’t think of coming closer. If it’s at all possible, perhaps you could provide me with even a single arrow.”
With just one arrow, just one… I could pierce that insolent brat’s heart in an instant.
As the stalemate continued, resembling a war of attrition, Jin spoke.
“Eriponi. You are truly foolish. Had you simply knelt earlier, it would have been far less shameful. Your pride has endangered not only your subordinates—but the very people of Ruswena as well.”
“And if word spreads that I was humiliated here? The proud people of Ruswena will not stand idle. They will rise. They will fight. And so, every last one of them will aim their arrows at Bariel’s heart!”
Whoosh!
Eriponi thrust her bowstring through the Bariel Guard’s throat once more, her voice sharp as a blade. Yet she knew the truth as well. There was nowhere left to go.
All that remained was to die with as much dignity as possible—though the circumstances suggested even that would not come easily.
“Eldetr!”
“Y-yes, Your Highness!”
“Damn it!”
In the moment Eriponi cursed under her breath—
Whine!
Whoosh!
An arrow streaked past her neck.
It struck a wooden ornament just beside her.
In the chaos, who had fired it? She glanced around, but even the Bariel Guards seemed ignorant of its source. They merely stared at one another in bewilderment.
Crack!
It mattered not who had shot it. Eriponi’s reflexes took over—she wrenched the embedded arrow free and nocked it with practiced ease. The bowstring drew taut. Everything flowed as naturally as breath, as swift as a blink.
Her arrow aimed true at Jin’s skull. Just as the scar that split his face in two, this arrow would cleave his life in two as well.
Whine!
The bowstring snapped. In that infinitesimal moment, Eriponi awakened the senses honed across countless hunts. The distance. The defenseless target. And that perfect sensation flowing through her fingertips—the one she felt only when piercing a beast’s throat with absolute precision.
For an instant, it felt as though a path had opened before her desperate circumstances. If she could eliminate Jin and Ian and escape safely, all of Bariel’s future glory would fall into Ruswena’s grasp.
Cliffford, shattered by the Rift. Burgos, ruled by a king with a severed tongue. The only nation to rise above them both, to reign supreme, would be Ruswena—under my, Eriponi’s, dominion!
“Your Highness!”
Whistle!
Thud!
Cries of shock erupted from all around. Eriponi’s breath came in exultant gasps as she stared at Jin.
But then—
“What?”
The arrow she had fired had vanished without a trace, leaving only Jin’s bewildered expression vivid before her. Eriponi’s eyes darted about, searching—
Thump!
Then came the pain, blooming from her chest, rising like a terrible tide. Eriponi’s head lowered slowly. And there, she saw it. The familiar arrow, piercing her heart with perfect accuracy.
“What… is this…?”
It was that golden arrow she had fired on the battlefield. Eriponi’s hands trembled as she tried to pull it free, but the mana wound around its shaft rendered her powerless to grip it.
“…Your Highness!”
Only then did Eriponi realize those cries belonged to her own subordinates.

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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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