The Crown I Will Take From You - Chapter 355

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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 202

“Head Servant. Leave this to me and everyone else withdraw.”

“Yes? But…”

When the Head Servant sent a worried glance wondering if he could handle the raging Emperor alone, Eratosthe slowly closed and opened his eyes.

‘Well, when it comes to handling His Majesty, wasn’t the Duke superior to me?’

It was the same when Eratosthe broke his long absence and returned to the capital as a mere monk.

‘He softened His Majesty’s wariness overnight and seized the Duke’s position. I was worrying for nothing.’

The Head Servant gestured to the other servants.

They hurriedly left the Emperor’s chamber with sighs of relief.

“Penteros. You heard it too! What kind of curse that bastard Chezare poured on me before he left!”

After sending out even the remaining few servants, alone in the Imperial Palace, Perdickas II was still fuming.

“Since both the First Prince and the First Prince’s Wife are so resolutely seeking each other, it would be better to stop forcing the oracle. I fear it might unnecessarily stir up trouble.”

“Stop it! No! That cannot be!”

At Eratosthe’s suggestion, Perdickas II violently shook his head.

Thick veins bulged on the Emperor’s neck.

“Those young fools are making such a mockery of me and playing games, how can I give them what they want! Absolutely not! This Perdickas has not lived that way!”

Stubbornness and rage mixed in his eyes.

Perdickas II picked up a water cup that was beside him.

His throat was parched from excitement.

“…Please drink tea. Cold water is harmful to Your Majesty’s throat condition.”

Eratosthe slowly approached and tilted the golden teapot.

The sparkling liquid filled the cup with a gentle splash.

Perdickas II’s movement toward the teacup paused briefly. It was a moment’s hesitation that no one could notice.

Trickle—.

However, soon after seeing Eratosthe pour tea into his own cup and quietly drink it,

Perdickas II also drank the tea as if nothing was wrong.

Indeed, as Eratosthe said, the warm tea flowed down his throat and calmed his churning stomach.

His boiling head also became much calmer, finally allowing rational thought.

“I’ll teach them a proper lesson, I’ll make those creatures kneel before me and bow their heads. How? How… should I do it… Hmm…”

His eyes flashed. Then he clapped his hands.

“Yes, the child. There’s still the child. A child is most vulnerable when in its mother’s womb.”

Where the anger had subsided, the Emperor’s sinister malice raised its head again.

“When they lose their offspring because of the chaos they’ve caused, only then will they realize their mistake to the bone.”

If you have something to lose, you shouldn’t recklessly charge forward.

Those young pups were still intoxicated with their own power and inexperienced in the laws of how the world works.

“…”

“I am still the supreme ruler of this Kazen, yet they’re already acting as if they’re something, making such a fuss. They must pay the price for that recklessness. Isn’t that right?”

“Are you determined to go through with it?”

Eratosthe asked in a dry voice.

It was a tone that seemed to confirm the Emperor’s firm resolve rather than curiosity.

Perdickas II got angry as if asking why he would say something so obvious.

“Ha! In this vast continent, not a single person who mocked me has survived! They should be grateful to be forgiven with just one child’s life! What?”

“Your Majesty, despite coming from rotten roots, isn’t he bearing proper fruit?”

Eratosthe’s indifferent voice rang out.

“How can you try to make him into a beast like Your Majesty instead of praising him?”

The Emperor paused for a moment.

Rotten roots. Beast.

Perdickas wondered if he had heard wrong.

“Wh, what did you just say, Penteros?”

“I said it’s fortunate that a beast didn’t produce another beast.”

“…”

“It seems the Goddess hasn’t abandoned this country after all.”

Perdickas II turned his head toward him.

His eyes were fierce as if he would kill the opponent before him. It was incomparable to Eratosthe, who seemed like he would break like a twig at any moment.

At least in this place right now, the Emperor was the physical stronger one.

“Penteros, have you lost your mind?”

“Probably.”

Eratosthe’s voice was monotone, sounding the same as usual.

“I’ve been like this for quite a while, but you’re only realizing it now.”

Now there was no longer any courtesy of treating him as an emperor.

Just like returning to the relationship between master and disciple from the academy decades ago, Eratosthe’s words were unrestrained.

“Did you think I’d be sane when my Eleanor died because of you? What grand dreams you have. I’ve been a madman for a long time already.”

“You wicked—!”

Perdickas II’s face turned red and blue.

The anger that seemed to have calmed for a moment surged through his blood vessels again.

“You’ve been lurking by my side with a knife hidden in your belly! Targeting my life—”

Drip. Drip.

However, the Emperor’s words could not continue further.

Just as Perdickas II was about to shout, blood dripped from under his nose.

“Wh, what is this, cough!”

At the same time, Perdickas II spat blood from his mouth.

His front garment was instantly soaked red.

“Cough, cough…!”

Pain as if his heart was being torn to shreds struck him.

It was an unfamiliar yet powerful agony that made his eyes flash open.

The Emperor looked up at Eratosthe with shocked eyes.

“The medicine is taking effect.”

However, nowhere on the Duke’s gray face could urgency or surprise be found.

The serenity of his wrinkled face was closer to coldness.

“You used poison…!”

Perdickas II recalled the cup he had offered him just moments ago.

His face contorted.

His blood vessels swelled as if they would burst, and heat seemed to tear through them thoroughly.

He glared at Eratosthe while breathing out through his gaping mouth.

“Poisoning the Emperor means immediate execution. Do you think you can get out of here alive?”

“Where would this old man have such capability? It’s enough if your breath stops before today ends.”

Eratosthe’s voice remained so calm it almost sounded mocking.

His head rang dully. The Emperor was dumbfounded.

He couldn’t believe it.

That Penteros, who was more trusted than anyone in the current Empire, was now targeting him.

Did this mean that all those years of pretending to be a loyal subject, never showing any resentment or anger, was all perfect acting?

Meanwhile, the pain spread like a seizure.

Agony as if fire was lit in every joint wrapped around his entire body.

“Ahhh! Wh, where is the antidote? Penteros, I was wrong.”

Perdickas II quickly racked his brain.

“I won’t blame you. I understand your position a hundred, a thousand times over. I, I will personally apologize to Eleanor. I’ll even offer gold to her grave. Would that work? Huh?”

He frantically rubbed his hands together.

He made gestures as if begging forgiveness toward the Empress’s Palace and turned around again.

However, Eratosthe’s eyes remained calm.

“Pen, Penteros, are you insane? Have you gone senile? Do you know who I am! The owner of this Empire, of this Kazen!”

“All I see before me is a lowly wretch.”

Eratosthe sneered.

“Eleanor, my greatest regret is binding that child to vermin like you with my own hands.”

“Give, give me the antidote! This, this is an imperial command!”

Perdickas II’s obsession was terrifying.

He swung his cane.

The sharp tip of the cane tore through Eratosthe’s investigator uniform, leaving a massive wound.

“Hand it over! Right now!”

“There is none. Nothing at all. An antidote never existed in the first place.”

Eratosthe looked down at him.

“Don’t feel wronged, Perdicas. From the day Eleanor left until now, not a single day has passed without me thinking of ending your miserable life. This was simply the end you were destined to meet eventually.”

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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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