Sister-in-law of the Heroine in a Childcare Novel - Chapter 253

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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 253

“And His Majesty the Emperor…?”
“He said to handle it as I see fit.”
Brian’s voice was utterly dispassionate. Yet the face of the man who heard it drained of all color.
Brian regarded him with eyes as cold and bitter as an iron plate abandoned in the depths of winter.
The patriarch of the Lucen Family had hair that was almost entirely white. While his age made white hair unsurprising, he had once taken considerable pride in retaining a youthful darkness of hair compared to his peers—until the moment he heard news of his only son’s death. He had collapsed in a faint, and when he awoke, his hair had turned completely white. Now he ground his teeth and muttered under his breath.
That cursed demon has finally devoured my son.
A barren woman who cannot bear children—how dare she look down on the Lucen Family! My son. My heir!
I will kill her!
…Though in truth, the current Emperor and the patriarch of the Lucen Family were equally culpable—one maintained a proper wife while shamelessly fathering children by another woman, and the other did the same. Had either of them possessed even a modicum of self-awareness, the Emperor would not have taken the Emperor’s own sister as a wife and then brazenly flaunted an illegitimate child. Rather, had he clung to apologies—”It was a mistake made before the marriage, I am sorry, the Family will never acknowledge her”—and made a show of casting out his concubine, then Valentina, proud as she was, would have simply closed her eyes to the arrangement, guaranteed the material comfort of the woman and child, but made it absolutely clear they could never be brought into the Family proper.
But the patriarch of the Lucen Family still harbored the conviction that his wife was his wife regardless of whether she was a princess or not, and since she had yet to bear him an heir, what right did she have to such presumption?
In any case, he believed his innocent son had been sacrificed in a plot orchestrated by Valentina and Titania together. While others wept in mourning, it was he who stubbornly insisted, “That cursed Titania must still be alive.”
He had thrown himself into the investigation to prove his son had been an unwitting victim—but the moment his son’s lustful pursuits and persistent advances toward Titania came to light, he became the subject of mockery: “That Family, whenever they entangle with the Imperial House, the results are never good.”
So he poured everything into it.
As the patriarch of a great noble house, he cast aside all the dignity and protocol he had maintained until then. He would kill that accursed princess, and the former empress. And that repugnant empress who took the princess’s side, and Prince Adrian as well—all of them. He acted on that conviction alone.
So when the other party subtly revealed they had a very formidable backer, instead of trembling in fear and withdrawing, he made a solemn vow: “Titania’s life belongs to me.”
Brian, rather than confirming this oath, gave a somewhat lackluster reply: “We will hand over the body when the opportunity arises.”
“Well, as the saying goes, even rotten fish is still fish. The Castrain Family appears to be mobilizing in earnest. His Majesty must declare them as traitors.”
“That is precisely what ‘handle it as I see fit’ means.”
“…!”
Brian tossed the Imperial Seal lightly into the air and caught it again. The man’s eyes widened at the sight.
From what he heard, yes—they had conducted an abbreviated Crown Prince investiture ceremony.
Normally it would have been a grand affair that would set the entire Capital ablaze with talk, but he had only heard that they rushed through it with merely a handful of pro-Imperial nobles who made their daily appearances at the Imperial Palace banquets. Under normal circumstances, it would be unthinkable.
Yet lately, the Emperor had grown exceedingly lazy.
Whether it was listening only to Empress Cleo’s words. Whether it was showering favor only on Prince Brian. Whether it was driving Prince Adrian from the palace and levying the most unreasonable obstructions.
He remained Emperor nonetheless.
For him, nothing had changed.
So what if some suspicious plague and contagion spread through the Capital? If the lowborn died?
When had they not died? The able-bodied ones who refuse to work and loiter about, coveting free medicine, firewood, and food—aren’t they dying anyway?
As for Magic Beasts, the renowned Castrain Ducal House handles them and basked in praise from the people each time.
Nobles grow angry? Ah, the Castrain Ducal House commits treason, you say? Yet fails to carry out their duty of purging Magic Beasts? How can that be?
Once the Minister of State kept whining about insufficient funds for the banquets. Then Empress Cleo said she would handle it herself, and truly, it was handled.
In the old days, he would have been mindful of the Empress’s backing—more precisely, the deep-rooted great noble families led by the Empress.
He might have been more wary of the Castrain Family. Out of inferiority complex toward the Castrain Duke, he might have sought ways to entangle with them and acted more aggressively. Yet the Emperor had gradually lost all sense of crisis.
So he simply handed over the Imperial Seal to Brian—something he would never have given under normal circumstances.
Brian received it and remained his faithful son; Empress Cleo whispered sweet words to the Emperor and provided every convenience, resolving all manner of affairs with almost magical ease.
The man, having grasped the situation, laughed with obvious displeasure.
“Then there is no time to waste! We should seize the Empress confined in her palace and take her hostage! As for Prince Adrian, I don’t know where the little rat is hiding, but if we declare treason and hold the Empress hostage….”
“That matter is less urgent.”
“Pardon? Ah, I see you’ve been thinking of something…. Still, the Capital is where His Majesty resides, so naturally the people will be on our side. But surely you’re not planning a defensive siege? We should dispatch troops before the enemy even lands….”
“We have received reports that enemies are hiding in this area.”
“Ah, ah yes? Then perhaps we should dispatch forces immediately…. But, but this place is…. A district where commoners dwell? Are you concerned about opposition? Or perhaps you worry the rebels will hide among the common folk and escape?”
“What I need are your men.”
“Just give the order, I beg you, any order at all! I will carry it out at once!”
The patriarch of the Lucen Family departed the Imperial Palace, laughing that same disjointed, eager laugh despite the orders making no sense. He never perceived the way Brian gazed upon him.
Besides, the real problem wasn’t within the Palace. It was outside it.
And now, before the enemies even breached the Imperial Territory, Brian was telling him where to find the enemy’s base so he could seize them—which was precisely the way to make him a meritorious subject for subduing traitors.
To dare criticize me for abandoning the noble dignity befitting a great house and acting with such vulgarity? Don’t make me laugh. I am the final victor. With that conviction, he acted as Brian commanded. He sent the designated goods and men to places that made no sense. He himself stood there and bellowed until his throat tore raw, “Seize the traitors! Suppress the traitors!”—and then….
“…Huh?”
Something erupted from the ground.
All this while, the servants of Chernobog had made considerable effort to swallow the Capital whole.
Because the Northern Barrier firmly sealed the entrance to the Underground World, summoning Magic Beasts in the Capital—which lay far from the entrance—was difficult.
More precisely, summoning Magic Beasts with great power.
Even if the Castrain Ducal House remained in the Capital only briefly during the social season, the Capital was still the Capital. There were many people, and it was difficult to accomplish anything grand.
Yet they had made vast preparations. They hollowed people into empty vessels, filled them with the blood and Demonic Energy of Magic Beasts, and drew a massive circle. Instead of pomegranate-red fruits and black seeds sprouting, the earth darkened to pitch black.
A kind of Summoning Circle.
The Summoning Circle trembled as it reacted with its catalyst.
“What the…?”
The man blinked, staring at the Thorn Blade that had pierced his chest. He did not understand the situation. Screams erupted from all directions.
The attendant who had served the man beside him shrieked as well. It was a hellish sight. From the earth, countless thorns erupted as though they were living things, tearing through the ground. Black characters and symbols writhed, drinking blood.
“Why am I…?”
In one sense, the man’s instinct was correct.
Those who backed Cleo and aided Prince Brian possessed power enough to engulf the world. They had come very close to success once before.
Even if humans appeared to them as worthless ants, had one survived to the final moment, they would have granted them a baptism of sorts and treated them as a member of the new world.
But at this moment, Brian simply had need for someone to supply provisions to a specific location.
In the fastest and easiest way possible. The man was desperate to prove his usefulness, and it was obvious he would carry out his orders without the slightest hesitation.
As the man vomited blood, someone came to his mind.
-A human who believes all his influence stems from his own ability, puffed up with needless pride and inferiority, so stubborn he couldn’t offer a single apology even as he dies.
The woman now called Valentina, former empress.
Legally still the mistress of the Lucen Family—her phantom appeared before him. He retained memories of seeing her face from a distance when she dwelt in the Imperial Palace, but now what surfaced in his mind was the image of that woman who had hurled blistering curses at him decades ago.
The precious jewel of the Imperial Palace. Sister of the Emperor. The pearl of the Imperial House. Noble brows, long hair that rippled like water. Lips painted in the vivid red she favored.

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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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