That’s Not What Kissing Means! - Chapter 128

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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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That’s not what kissing means!
Episode 128

Theo and I spent the late hours cleaning up the aftermath of the incident at Aila Territory.
Calimedes met his end here, and there were considerable witnesses.
There was no way to hide his crimes from the people of the Empire any longer.
The next morning, we were finally able to depart for the Capital.
Upon arriving at the Underground Gate of the Imperial Palace, Theo and I made our way to the Dining Hall.
The Emperor had invited us to dine in order to commend our accomplishments.
As I walked through the Corridor, I felt conflicted emotions stirring within me.
Relief that evil had finally been vanquished, yet the heavy weight of yesterday’s events still lingered.
As we entered the Dining Hall, the door opened and the Emperor slowly rose from his seat.
“Duke Ashford, and Miss Evelyn… I will not forget the efforts of you both.”
Countless emotions flickered across the Emperor’s eyes.
Gratitude and encouragement, alongside shame for failing to protect the Empire.
Princess Rosina, standing beside the Emperor, also expressed her sincere gratitude.
“Please, be seated.”
At the Emperor’s command to sit, Theo pulled out my chair before any Chamberlain could approach.
The Emperor did not miss this gesture.
Once everyone was seated, the Emperor spoke with grave weight.
“…I have no right to execute the Envoy.”
At these unexpected words, my eyes widened.
The Emperor continued.
“Being deceived by the illusion, failing to stop the Envoy’s crimes because of it… all of it is my responsibility.”
The Emperor’s gaze fell to the floor.
“To properly hold him accountable for his sins, I must also reveal my own foolishness. I will make it known throughout the entire Empire.”
“Your Majesty!”
The Princess tried to stop him, unable to bear her father’s authority diminishing.
“This is the final gift I can give to the people of the Solaris Empire as their Emperor.”
“Final, Your Majesty…?”
The Princess asked, her voice trembling.
“I will step down from this position. I am no longer worthy of being Emperor.”
The air in the Dining Hall froze in an instant.
“Princess Rosina, I entrust the throne to you.”
The Princess quickly shook her head.
“I am far too lacking for such a role.”
“This time, you held your own in discussions with seasoned statesmen to apprehend the Envoy. When pressuring foreign nations connected to the Envoy, you never lost your composure. And above all, you showed concern for the people of the Empire.”
The Emperor could see it in Princess Rosina’s handling of affairs and her dignity—she possessed the qualities necessary to rule the Empire.
The Emperor encouraged his daughter.
“Set the Empire right.”
“But…”
“I must step down. If those who have committed sins do not take responsibility, history will simply repeat itself.”
He exhaled deeply.
“I will… seek forgiveness. From all the people of the Empire.”
The Princess found herself unable to speak.
Evelyn watched quietly as the heavy, bitter mantle of succession passed to another.
The Emperor forced a bright smile to dispel the somber atmosphere.
“Has dinner not been served yet?”
At those words, the Chamberlains moved swiftly.
Beginning with a light aperitif, the courses of the banquet were brought out one by one.
Even as the meal progressed, Theo’s gaze never left Evelyn.
He quietly sliced meat and transferred it to her plate.
‘What on earth is he doing in the Imperial Palace…!’
Evelyn, suddenly self-conscious, glanced around.
Seeing her flushed cheeks, the Emperor chuckled softly.
“Does it please you so much?”
In that instant, Evelyn’s hand froze.
“…Pardon?”
“I already know the heart of Duke Ashford.”
The Emperor spoke with amusement, as if to say such feelings could hardly be hidden.
Evelyn’s face burned crimson.
What was she supposed to say in a moment like this?
As she fumbled for words, Theo answered with perfect composure.
“Yes, Your Majesty. Immeasurably so.”
His voice held not a shred of hesitation. Evelyn could not raise her head any further.
At his shameless candor, the Emperor laughed aloud.
“Indeed, love is a wonderful thing. I know it better than anyone.”
The Emperor spoke, recalling someone.
“Love transforms a person. It makes you wish to protect another, and it makes you strive to become better.”
“One’s entire life is overturned. It becomes the priority in all things.”
At this saccharine response, Princess Rosina looked aghast.
Seeing her darkened expression, as if something troubled her deeply, Evelyn felt even more ashamed.
“…The Duke seems to surpass even me in this regard.”
The Emperor too wore an expression of exasperation.
Evelyn simply wished to flee this place.
“I intend to hold the wedding ceremony soon.”
The Emperor laughed playfully at Theo’s words.
“Surely you’ll have a seat reserved for me among the guests?”

* * *

Days later, the truth spread across the entire continent.
The Grand Cleric’s atrocities—sacrificing innocent lives to achieve immortality—along with the Clerics who participated and the powerful figures who enabled it.
Fury ignited and spread like wildfire.
Throughout the continent, those connected to the Grand Cleric were dragged away one by one. A massive shift in power had begun.
The Grand Cleric, who had been tortured in the Underground Dungeon all this time, was now dragged out by Knights.
His body, bound for the Guillotine Platform, was a mangled wreck. Traces of brutal interrogation marked him everywhere.
Burn scars stung and itched. The melted flesh throbbed with pain as if needles were piercing it.
Yet even that agony paled in comparison to the suffering of those who had become his victims.
The rough ground bit into his bare feet. He stumbled and clung to the Knights, but they simply dragged him forward.
Curses rained down from the crowd around him.
“Monster!”
“And you call yourself the Goddess’s representative?”
The Grand Cleric slowly lifted his head.
Just days ago, everyone had looked up to him with reverence and awe.
But what lay before him now was nothing but hatred and fury.
Upon reaching the execution platform, he collapsed limply to the ground.
The Knights lifted the Grand Cleric once more and forced him to lie face-down upon the guillotine.
He wept silently, unable to comprehend how such a terrible outcome had come to pass.
Before the blade could fall, he gazed up at the sky one final time.
“What… have I done wrong?”
His fractured voice spilled forth with resentment.
“Will you truly abandon me like this…?”
There was no answer.
Instead, white light poured down upon his face.
A brilliance so blinding it was impossible to distinguish whether it was sunlight or the response of Goddess Yulia.
Even as he poured out his grievances, nothing changed. A hollow laugh escaped between the Grand Cleric’s cracked lips.
There was only one thing he had pursued his entire life.
Immortality.
An undying body and divine power, and endless authority.
To become not merely the Goddess’s representative, but her closest being.
This was the end of a pursuit built upon trampling countless lives and accumulating sin upon sin.
A bitter smile crossed his face.
Suddenly, words his Mentor had once spoken came to mind.

‘There is no eternal throne. The Goddess always prepares for what comes next.’

The Previous High Priest remained composed even as the end drew near.
Eternal life—was it truly beyond mortal grasp?
Perhaps my Mentor had known all along.
That to desire eternity itself was the height of human arrogance.
Have you come to punish my pride?
The Grand Cleric pleaded toward the white light.
Save me, I begged silently. Please, extract me from this place.
“….”
The Grand Cleric drew a trembling breath, deep and heavy. Then, quietly, he shook his head.
Upon the guillotine platform, the blade rose high.
In that brief moment, the entirety of his life flashed before the Grand Cleric’s eyes.
From the slums, meeting his Mentor, serving Goddess Yulia, exalting her, until his obsession with eternal life consumed him.
And then he understood.
This light had always been beside him from the very beginning.
Even when he achieved so much and trampled upon others… the pristine radiance had enveloped him.
It was he who had first abandoned Goddess Yulia.
“Ha ha… ha ha ha…”
The Grand Cleric’s laughter spilled forth as though his mind had shattered.
Blinding light flooded his vision completely.
He felt neither the jeers of the crowd nor the sharp edge of the blade.
Everything had ended.

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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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