The Baddest Villainess Is Back - Chapter 195

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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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Part 2, Episode 65
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Night had fallen in darkness.
Rozelin glanced sideways at the boy pressing against her. As always, Al stood rigid at her side, the Bread Hat pulled low over his head, clinging to her like a devoted guard.
Al reached over and squeezed her hand.
‘Are you nervous?’
Rozelin lowered her gaze to their joined hands for a moment, then looked up again.
“Good evening.”
With that, Rozelin opened the firmly shut door and offered her greeting without a trace of emotion.
The Emperor turned his head and spoke toward the figure obscured by shadow.
“……Are you insane?”
It was because the visitor was far too confident and natural about the whole thing.
The man who had been drinking alone in his chamber late into the night wore a bewildered expression.
“No, Your Majesty.”
“Do you know where you are?”
“Yes, Your Majesty’s Bedroom.”
“How did you find this place?”
How did she find it…….
Rozelin turned the question over in her mind for a moment, then pointed at the boy standing beside her with her index finger.
“My friend said he caught the scent of a person somewhere and found it for me.”
At that, Al’s body gave a slight jolt. It was clear he lacked such an ability entirely.
It had been a hastily improvised excuse.
While becoming a Beast-Human Hybrid had certainly sharpened his sense of smell, the world was so thick with scents that distinguishing one particular person’s among them was nearly impossible.
He had simply known the layout of the palace interior, the Emperor’s Bedroom, and several other likely locations, and had guided her accordingly.
* * *
The man, Sebirus Jin Dianitas, the young Emperor of the Dianitas Empire, narrowed his eyes.
The visitor’s voice coming from the darkness was quite young.
“If we’re to have a conversation, it seems only proper to show your face first. Don’t you agree?”
“You’re right.”
The youthful voice gave a brief assent.
Soon, from the darkness illuminated by nothing but moonlight, a very young girl revealed herself. A face the Emperor had seen once before.
Recalling where he had seen that face, the Emperor furrowed his brow and spoke.
“……Is it my imagination, or is the adopted daughter of House Wilbred standing before me?”
“No, your eyesight is quite keen.”
“How did you get in here?”
“My friend is rather clever.”
Rozelin, who had ridden on Al’s back and been carried in his arms, attributed all credit to him.
The boy had moved naturally through rooftops and trees, soaring through the air while bearing her, after all.
By the time she could think clearly, they were already inside the Imperial Capital.
Moreover, their luck held so well that every location they approached coincided with the guards’ shift changes, making infiltration smooth.
Even better, he knew which sections of the Imperial Capital went unpatrolled at this hour, so they had never encountered a single guard.
‘Though the guards likely couldn’t approach this area anyway because the Emperor deliberately kept them away.’
With the Emperor’s mood so unstable, the Abyss might rampage.
‘Originally, I intended to visit House Bellion and leverage my childhood connection. When coming to meet the Third Prince, I would have presented myself formally…….’
Rozelin rubbed her brow, pulling it taut.
Young Rozelin of House Bellion had gladly accepted her proposal, but the Third Prince had refused in a lengthy letter. The essence of it was that conditions within the Imperial Capital were presently unfavorable for receiving guests.
Moreover, he had written again and again that his father’s mood was deeply unsettled and that he feared showing her an unpleasant sight, and he begged forgiveness many times over.
Upon reading that letter, Rozelin could not press further.
Yet neither could she afford to forgo this meeting.
She could not simply stand by and watch the nation deteriorate into this state.
“Do you understand that breaking in this far means you could be executed on sight without raising any eyebrows? It sounds to me like you have a death wish.”
Rozelin shook her head.
“No, I don’t wish to die. Then I shall proceed formally. My apologies for the intrusion.”
Rozelin bowed deeply and walked briskly across to the chair opposite the Emperor, where she sat.
“I came because I have something to tell you.”
“If you wish a Royal Audience, use the formal channels.”
“I don’t think you’ll grant me one, so I must respectfully decline.”
With a flat voice and an apology entirely devoid of sincerity, Rozelin bowed once more.
Compared to the low chair, the table stood high enough that its surface aligned perfectly with Rozelin’s chin.
“Crime rates have become terribly high lately. People keep fighting.”
“……Rozelin, the reason I’m not taking your head is that Marquis Wilbred is having a rather difficult time of it at present. While I’m still in a good mood, I suggest you leave.”
The Emperor spoke without so much as glancing at Rozelin, tilting a glass of Whiskey that held no ice.
In the gaze fixed out the window, a faint irritation simmered.
Rozelin noticed his mood was far from ordinary, yet she did not hold her tongue.
“First, I’d like to borrow the Holy Sword that serves as a national treasure.”
“…….”
“And while I’m dealing with that, I hope you’ll govern the realm properly. If there’s anything you need, I’m happy to help.”
“…….”
The Emperor maintained his silence and finished draining the glass with measured deliberation.
Click.
The moment he set it down, a shrieking whistle tore through the air—the sound of a blade parting wind.
The Emperor’s sword had been drawn without warning, its edge gleaming as it traced a fluid arc toward her.
“Rozelin!”
At Al’s cry, Rozelin lifted her gaze to meet the Emperor without rising from her seat.
She could have dodged; she could have flipped the table to block. Instead, her eyes tracked the blade’s circular path as her lips parted.
Or rather, tried to part. In that instant——
Clang!!
Two swords collided, and only the sharp ring of metal sang out.
“What are you doing to Rozelin!”
Al had materialized before her, blade locked against the Emperor’s, radiating savage ferocity.
The Emperor’s eyes narrowed as he swung his sword.
“Approaching the Emperor with a blade drawn and no leave granted—I see you children truly are desperate to die.”
Rozelin spoke to the dry, expressionless face before her.
“Your Majesty, is the Third Prince’s mother perhaps being held hostage?”
“……!”
Al’s footing faltered for an instant.
She knew Rozelin spoke without circumlocution, but what cruel timing to strike precisely at his raw nerve.
“…….”
Sure enough, the opponent’s demeanor shifted.
‘This is indeed troublesome,’ Al thought.
Yet a faint smile played at the corners of his mouth.
The Emperor’s eyes hardened momentarily before he swung his blade in silence.
Clang, clash, clang!
Swift and heavy, each stroke drove forward with crushing weight.
Yet Al’s movements in receiving them were seasoned and practiced. The sight of that small frame deflecting the blade with such skill was remarkable—even the Emperor wielding the sword seemed taken aback.
Rather than brute force meeting brute force, he redirected smoothly what needed redirecting, exploiting each gap to mount a counterattack.
‘This Swordsmanship…….’
The Emperor narrowed his brow, studying the boy before him anew.
Blue eyes and coal-black hair. And a gaze suffused with rage and hatred.
It reminded him of someone, somehow.
The Emperor’s frown deepened as he wove Abyss around his blade and hurled it toward his opponent.
Boom——!
Before the swords could even touch, compressed air detonated outward.
Caught off guard, Al was hurled through the air, tumbling across the floor until he crashed into the wall.
Thud—the hat he’d been wearing fell to the ground.
“Al!”
Rozelin, alarmed, spun and rushed toward the boy.
Though the Emperor’s opponent lay at his most vulnerable, he strangely did not press the attack.
He simply waited, as though for the dust churned up by the crumbling wall to settle.
As the haze cleared from his vision, Al’s fingers stirred—he was beginning to come to—and his silhouette emerged from the dust.
Perk.
And from atop his head, two pointed ears covered not in human hair, but in fur, stood erect.
‘……Ears?’

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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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