The Crown I Will Take From You - Chapter 209
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Part 2, Chapter 56
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News that Peleus had led the Agema to block the central trade routes and that the Kazen Envoy had been detained at their lodgings soon spread throughout the entire Empire.
Paollo clicked his tongue. Across from him, Sisear was handling his work.
Paollo had visited his office early in the morning.
When he first heard news of the kidnapping incident, Paollo had inwardly asked God for forgiveness.
‘Goddess, please forgive this foolish one.’
What happened to the Princess of Valdina was unfortunate, but compared to her evil deeds of persecuting and trying to bring down the Saint all this time, it wasn’t the absolute worst thing.
If he secretly felt that God had punished her, would that make him too cruel?
Just as he was thinking that perhaps her haughty pride had been broken a little, news came that made Paollo’s jaw drop.
Blocking trade routes and detaining envoys. Wasn’t Valdina really acting as if they would go to war with Kazen?
And this was Emperor Peleus, who had silently maintained his composure despite Kazen’s countless provocations until now.
‘Is it truly because of his sister? Is the Princess such an important existence to him?’
That’s why he had rushed here.
‘I need to find out what these madmen are thinking.’
The young chancellor buried in piles of documents rarely raised his head.
Paollo barely held back his frustration at being left standing like a stone for thirty minutes and forced himself to speak in a worried voice.
“What on earth are the Kazens thinking… How fortunate it is that both Your Highnesses are safe.”
The High Priest clicked his tongue.
Then, Sisear raised his head toward Paollo and spoke.
“The Holy Kingdom also has something to say to us, don’t you?”
“What? We do?”
Paollo widened his eyes and asked back.
“What do you mean by that? As you know, this was something planned by Jared and the Kazens from beginning to end. Just because our Holy Kingdom has frequently clashed with you people lately, are you trying to shift the blame to us?”
“The High Priest is saying what I was going to say for me. That’s why I’m asking this question. I’m curious why Jared chose that particular location.”
The secluded place where he had led the Princess and altered the magic circle’s coordinates to arrive.
The shabby but fully equipped chapel hall. The prepared priest of the old religion.
“That man, who by any measure was far from devout, had prepared very thoroughly. Once they signed the engagement contract, no one could annul the marriage. As if someone had specifically instructed him.”
The story coming from Sisear’s mouth was quite convincing.
The eyes behind his wire-rimmed glasses stared directly at Paollo. Realizing he was being suspected, his lips trembled.
“S-Sir. It’s a misunderstanding. That has nothing to do with us…”
“I’m well aware that the High Priest and the people of the Holy Kingdom viewed our Princess as a thorn in your side.”
“No! No matter what, how could we who serve God do such a terrible thing-!”
Paollo jumped up. But he knew his own excuse was pathetic.
Just moments ago, hadn’t he thought the Princess’s ordeal was amusing?
“It’s forced and speculative! As a priest serving God, I swear by the Goddess and His Holiness that I have never once done anything shameful. If I had, would I have worked so hard to help the Agema injured in this attack? I saved the wounded Count Meryl too!”
Paollo inwardly gritted his teeth at the Kazens.
‘Our Holy Kingdom’s trade routes can’t be blocked. Unlike Kazen, we have no other alternatives.’
In his mind, he pictured Valdina’s completely unhinged Emperor turning his horse toward the Holy Kingdom.
“I hope it was a misunderstanding. We want to maintain good relations with the Holy Kingdom for a long time.”
Sisear spoke gently.
However, with sunlight reflecting off his glasses, he couldn’t be sure what kind of look he was giving him.
“I, I heard that those who attacked His Majesty the Emperor were dark swordsmen.”
Paollo sighed and brought up his other purpose for coming here.
“Could we investigate? I heard there are traces of black aura and dark magic remaining.”
“High Priest. This incident has many unsettling aspects for us as well. What reason would Jared have to contact those who resemble the primordial darkness?”
Paollo didn’t take that fact too seriously, but it was because of Knight Commander Leonor’s request.
Sisear stared at Paollo thoughtfully for a moment, then nodded.
“Please do so.”
‘These unpredictable bastards.’
The High Priest had to suppress his boiling temper at their readily agreeable attitude when they had been pressing him until now.
In any case, at this moment, the existence of the dark mages was exposed to the Holy Kingdom’s eyes.
If the dark mages who had hidden themselves for so long under the persecution of the Goddess’s light and the Holy Kingdom had known, they would have coughed up blood.
* * *
The Imperial Palace of the Kazen Empire, the Emperor’s office.
“Chezare, you bastard!”
In the golden room that ran to the extremes of splendor, an aged voice echoed off the high ceiling.
It was Perdickas II, the current Emperor of Kazen.
“What the hell were you doing in Valdina! I personally sent Jason to deal with those people!”
The Emperor exploded in anger.
As his rage grew, his body trembled and even his thick black beard shook finely.
“Even so, I forgave you. Instead of grabbing your leash and dragging you back, I let you run wild in Valdina. But now what? You killed a Kazen?”
In truth, it wasn’t that he had let him be, but that he had no choice because of the 1st Prince’s faction, but Perdickas II was skilled at distorting the truth.
“Yes, I took his life with my own hands.”
At his clean admission without a moment’s hesitation, Perdickas II’s face contorted.
“What did you say. You, you’ve finally gone mad. You’ve finally lost your mind.”
Chezare raised his head. Unlike his father who had lost his reason, he was detached.
“It’s not like I’ve been crazy for just a day or two. How surprising, Late Emperor.”
“You bastard-!”
The Emperor glared at his son kneeling on the red silk.
Around Chezare’s wrists were tied red ropes used for transporting criminals. With the red ropes tightly bound around his wrists and forced to kneel, he looked exactly like a criminal.
However, unlike Duke Castulo who looked anxious, biting his lips and rolling his eyes busily, the 1st Prince seemed relaxed throughout.
The ropes around his sturdy arms looked like he could untie them at any time, completely failing to create any sense of the situation’s gravity.
“Late Emperor. You’ve heard the full report, so you must know what he did. As the Duke said, it was unavoidable.”
“Even so, you killed your own country’s 10-star general on Valdina soil? Do you have any awareness that you’re a prince?”
“Yes, he was ‘once’ a 10-star. Now he was just a worm who couldn’t even hold a sword. He was only that level of person, so I don’t understand why you’re so angry. Did you perhaps have feelings for him? That’s not like you, Late Emperor.”
Chezare’s leisurely answer made Perdickas II even angrier.
“Or was it truly you, Late Emperor, who sent him to Valdina, as others are gossiping?”
“You bastaaaard!”
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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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