The Teddy Bear Sends the Insomniac Villain to Dreamland - Chapter 85

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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 85
Emperor’s Palace.
Edwin, summoned to breakfast after a long absence, found himself doubting his own ears at what he had just heard.
“Your Majesty, I’m afraid I didn’t quite understand what you just said. Forgive me, but could you repeat that once more?”
The Emperor leisurely cut into his steak and spoke again.
“I’m thinking of granting Ian permanent participation rights in the State Council, effective today.”
Beneath the sunlight filtering through the arched windows, Edwin blinked slowly.
He hadn’t misheard.
The meat he’d been swallowing smoothly caught in his throat with a sudden jolt.
Permanent participation rights in the State Council?
Since the Crown Prince had been designated, no mere prince had ever attended the State Council.
What on earth was the Emperor thinking?
His mind grew turbulent, and simultaneously, his insides churned with indignation. Yet he revealed nothing of it.
To expose one’s emotions within the Imperial Palace was tantamount to laying bare one’s weaknesses.
Edwin gently set his knife upon the table and asked.
“Might I inquire as to the reason behind this decision?”
The Emperor glanced at Edwin and spoke matter-of-factly.
“There’s no particular reason. I simply thought it would be good for Ian to understand how the state is being governed.”
“Of course, I understand that would be beneficial. However, the State Council is not a place anyone can simply join.”
The clinking of cutlery continued. The Emperor listened to Edwin’s words in silence.
“Important matters are discussed in the State Council, and sensitive topics sometimes arise. The moment Ian enters, those secrets will surely leak to the other nobles who follow him.”
“…Crown Prince.”
Edwin’s mouth, which had been explaining so smoothly, snapped shut.
The Emperor, who had addressed him with that cold, clipped title, wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and let out a contemptuous laugh.
“Are you so concerned about Ian’s participation in the State Council?”
Edwin’s eyes trembled slightly.
In that scornful tone, he discerned the Emperor’s true intent.
Are you afraid you cannot surpass Ian when he participates in the State Council?
Are you terrified that Ian will steal your position?
Are you so frightened you cannot even protect that much?
The Emperor, who had been staring at the silent Ian, shook his head slightly.
“I can have anyone who would benefit Casthonia Empire participate in the State Council. It doesn’t have to be Ian specifically.”
“…Yes, Your Majesty.”
Yet he could not help but see through the Emperor’s dark intentions.
The Emperor seemed intent on empowering Ian.
Beneath the table, Edwin clenched his fist. Blue veins rose prominently across his knuckles.
Never before had the succession hierarchy shifted.
Since ascending to the Crown Prince’s position, Edwin had been an unassailable candidate for the imperial succession.
But the reason for empowering Ian was….
“Was there a prophecy?”
The Temple’s prophecy.
Ophelia’s prophecy had undoubtedly shaken the Emperor.
The Emperor regarded her in silence for a moment.
His turbid sky-blue eyes, similar yet different from Edwin’s, flickered with irritation.
“So you see me as the Temple’s puppet.”
“That was never my intention, Your Majesty.”
Judging by his bristling reaction, Edwin had struck the mark.
Edwin suppressed an inward sneer. The Emperor was always like this.
“Whatever prophecy the Temple may have delivered, all decisions are mine alone. The divine guides me toward righteousness, and I make choices that serve this Empire.”
How wrong he was. The divine had granted Ophelia power, and she manipulated the Emperor through it.
The Casthonia Empire had fallen into Ophelia’s grasp.
Yet Edwin refrained from mentioning the Temple further.
Instead, he offered a quiet warning.
“It will only embolden Ian, Your Majesty. Should conflict ignite over the throne, will not rebels seize the opportunity?”
“If such a choice proves righteous, I shall make it whenever necessary.”
“Your Majesty. Ian is….”
A bastard, is he not?
A wretched, unremarkable half-prince who crawled in from the gutters?
Is Your Majesty not blessed with only one legitimate son?
Then why ignite such conflict?
The words clawed at his throat, dancing upon his tongue, yet Edwin swallowed them all whole.
The swallowed words lodged in his gullet, choking off his breath. His vision swam; his head spun.
Yet Edwin betrayed nothing of his turmoil.
He merely offered the Emperor—who stared at him as though inviting him to speak—a graceful, painted smile, then finished his meal.
“Not at all.”
“How dull.”
The Emperor clicked his tongue in disapproval and turned his gaze away.
As the Emperor returned to his meal, Edwin rose with proper deference and swiftly departed the Central Palace.
The Imperial Palace servants passed by him, offering their respects.
Edwin returned their greetings with a graceful smile and a nod.
Those who glimpsed the Crown Prince’s face—once radiant as spring blossoms—gazed upon him with admiration.
The beautiful Crown Prince had always been beloved within the Imperial Palace.
Yet throughout it all, only one thought consumed Edwin’s mind.
‘I must kill Ian.’
Before that cursed wretch could threaten his position, seize what was his, and ascend the throne with his own hands.
Everything had to be resolved beforehand.
Ian had always stolen what belonged to him with ease.
Rising from the depths of obscurity to become a prince overnight, no one harbored expectations for him.
Without expectations, even modest accomplishments seemed remarkable.
Praise that Edwin had to labor desperately to earn, Ian obtained through trivial deeds, receiving assessments of “surprisingly capable.”
‘Why? Why can Ian do it, but I cannot?’
Why has the Emperor’s attention shifted to Ian again? Why does the world revolve around Ian’s center?
The inferiority complex I had suppressed for so long gnawed away at my heart, burying my emotions beneath its weight.
Edwin’s once-clear sky-blue eyes grew clouded and murky.
‘It must be Ophelia’s doing.’
The Emperor had raged that he was not a man swayed by prophecy, yet it was undeniable that the Temple had spoken of Ian.
Edwin’s gaze caught upon the ring adorning the ring finger of his left hand.
It was a ring Ophelia had given him.
‘This ring holds a special power. It is bestowed only upon the one who shall become master of the Empire.’
‘What power does this ring possess?’
‘The sacred force that shall protect the Empire.’
Nonsense.
Edwin irritably removed the ring.
He hurled it toward the Advisor standing behind him.
Though startled, the Advisor caught it deftly and asked.
“Your Highness. Why would you….”
“I cannot bear the sight of it. Keep it.”
I could protect this Empire without such a ring.
If only Ian would not shackle me.
Someone whispered in my ear.
‘You must kill Ian. Go now and sever his head, cast his corpse beyond the Royal Palace gates. Only then will you survive.’
My mind felt as though it would fracture.
My pace quickened. Laughter spilled from my lips.
Surely the Emperor and Ophelia were not ignorant.
The moment my position as Crown Prince was threatened, they knew I would attempt to kill Ian.
‘How amusing. They are so desperate to make me a murderer.’
My heart thundered wildly, and a bitter laugh twisted my mouth.
If the Emperor desired a blood feud between us, then so be it.
My smile deepened. It was radiant enough to blind, and the Advisor following quietly behind me began to look bewildered.
A gust of wind swept through.
A zelkova tree, grown long with the summer season, swayed in a dance of pale green.
Along the path toward the Crown Prince’s Palace.
Witnessing that beautiful dance, Edwin came to an abrupt halt.
An empty path where only pale green trees swayed in silence.
Piercing through the terrible and cruel thoughts saturated with murderous intent, that beautiful and vivid pale green brought to mind—
‘I have a bad habit of laughing even when nothing is funny.’
Surprisingly, it was Blake Leblanc’s teddy bear.
It seemed as though a bright voice echoed from somewhere.
Without thinking, Edwin wiped his mouth with his palm. It was not a situation to laugh at, yet his lips curved into a beautiful arc.
The moment Edwin became aware of this, his smile plummeted.
“A fake smile….”
It was a smile I’d worn out of habit.
A laugh that had slipped out despite this cursed situation being anything but pleasant.
Edwin stared blankly at the dancing tree.
Why did that saying come to mind now—that a genuine smile was far more beautiful to behold than a false one?
As I recalled that strange woman who had pierced through the facade behind my laughter in an instant, my heart’s rapid, angry beating gradually began to calm.
She was the first person to truly understand my feelings.
Everyone else either pretended ignorance to appease me, remained genuinely oblivious, or had no desire to understand.
In a world filled with such people, she was a breed I’d never encountered before.
If I were to seek her out now and ask her to discern the truth behind my smile, could she do it?
Could she perceive the meaning behind my laughter?
Would she recognize once more the terrible, petty darkness festering within me—this anxiety and jealousy—and recoil in disgust?
Would she tell me to stop?
Dong, dong, dong.
The bell tolled three times.
The clock tower standing tall in the Imperial Palace Garden rang out the hour of noon.
My mind cleared. Merely thinking of her brought such joy.
Edwin’s crimson lips curved into a small arc.
“Your Highness. It is time to proceed to the conference chamber regarding the Capital Demon Beast incident.”
The Advisor spoke with evident tension, aware of Edwin’s state of mind.
“Ah, yes. I should go.”
Yet Edwin’s demeanor, which would normally have been murderous toward Ian and dismissive of any meeting, had softened considerably.
Leaving the startled Advisor behind, Edwin turned toward the conference chamber.
Edwin’s mind was consumed by a single thought.
‘I must see that woman.’

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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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