Chapter 06

Escape from Another World with a Possessor (6)

1. Families Collapse, Society Collapses, the Empire Collapses (4)

“Gayeon.”

“I’m fine! Just knowing there’s someone from the same region is enough! And… and… Unnie, you’re going to come get me, right? I can endure this. I’ve already survived three years, so I can handle it!”

Ga-yeon tried to act brave, but her trembling lips betrayed her. Selena felt a pang of sympathy.

Finally, Selena snatched the troublesome bracelet and tossed it aside, then lightly flicked Ga-yeon’s forehead with her finger to snap her out of her half-panicked state.

“Ouch!”

“Pull yourself together, Gayeon. I’m not that weak.”

“But how can a single mage fight against all these knights…?”

“No, I’m not a mage…”

Selena drew the silver staff from her waist.

Bang!

The living room wall shattered mercilessly. Her staff moved before the black shadows inside could even react.

Klang!

The silver barrier easily deflected the strike from a knight clad in black armor.

“…I’m an Archmage.”

Selena smiled faintly.

Lightning, Explosion, Rock Blast.

Triple casting.

The three high-level spells surged toward the intruders in the living room.

Electricity crackled, flames roared, and massive rocks flew through the air like cannonballs toward the knights.

“Argh!”

“Aaaah!”

The knights, who had appeared so threatening, were swiftly and gruesomely defeated. Selena scoffed.

“If you came to capture one of the Empire’s only three Archmages, you should have at least brought a Master.”

They must have just tracked her position with a tracking spell and sent nearby knights. Understandable, but sloppy.

They were knights from the capital’s outer wall, so they had teleport-blocking war magic tools at most.

With only basic sword skills, they didn’t stand a chance…

…Huh?

“Damn it.”

Selena’s mocking senses detected a strong mana far away, outside the range of the teleport-blocking tools.

A Master.

The distance was still considerable.

But with their physical abilities, it would take them less than a minute to reach here.

The Empire was surprisingly competent.

Even if the Empress had been kidnapped, deploying such a capable Master so quickly was… bold.

Even accounting for her own mana resistance, teleporting a Sword Master would require at least a 7th-class mage. That meant high-level mages from the Tower were already involved.

Selena urgently analyzed the distorted mana flow.

“Gayeon, hold on tight!”

“Yes, yes!”

Ga-yeon’s thin arms wrapped around her waist.

The chilling aura approaching wasn’t just the fury of a Master rescuing a kidnapped Empress.

Who was this angry? A minor Roderfel noble? Hmph, if she was so precious, he should’ve protected her better from the Emperor!

But it was already too late.

Everything.

Selena smiled confidently.

A bright light surged from beneath her feet.

“Teleport!”

—Just before disappearing, the red eyes passed down through generations in the Elsaik royal family flashed briefly beyond the broken wall of the living room.

A flood of desperate, sticky emotions reached her ears.

“Ariaaaaaaaa!”

It was the Emperor’s scream.

Having successfully teleported to one of the thirteen villas she owned, Selena took a brief moment to evaluate the Emperor she had first encountered.

“This Emperor really isn’t sane.”

She’d guessed he might have gone mad from how he treated Ga-yeon, but this was worse than expected.

Goodness.

Even if the Empress had been willingly kidnapped, he rushed in personally.

Even as a Sword Master, his performance as an Emperor was disastrous.

If, by any chance, Selena had actually been a spy for an enemy nation, and this was a trap to lure the Emperor, he would have been dead.

“Has he not even thought about what would happen if he died? Doesn’t he realize he’s the Emperor? Idiot.”

If the Emperor died and the Empress disappeared, the Empire would collapse.

It would either erupt into civil war or, worse, be attacked by enemy forces while in chaos. In the worst case, the Empire could be destroyed.

This was not an exaggeration.

There was no one to succeed him.

The previous Emperor was poisoned. His brothers died through political intrigue and mysterious accidents. There was no heir yet between the current Emperor and Empress.

The only surviving descendant of the previous Emperor’s brother ruled the northern Frost Fortress as a Grand Duke but had been stripped of succession rights—essentially useless.

In short, if he died, the Empire would plunge into chaos, yet he acted recklessly.

A true rescue of the Empress required a careful, strategic approach.

Kidnapping the Empress was clearly political. If the Empire hadn’t wanted a full confrontation, she could have been safely treated at least minimally.

A sloppy rescue risked the kidnappers detonating evidence and taking both Emperor and Empress down.

Boom! Emperor gone. Boom! Empress gone. Boom! Empire gone. Boom boom boom!

“Even the Royal Guards must have tried to stop him. Maybe the ministers and nobles clung to him too.”

“…And being a Sword Master, he probably just tossed them aside.”

Selena shook her head. A foolish Emperor with both power and authority. The Empire’s future looked grim. Not her problem, but the citizens were pitiful.

“Gayeon, why did you pick such a trash car? Even if it wasn’t a Mercedes, you should’ve picked something that runs properly.”

Selena felt genuine regret.

No respect, recklessly wielding power—disqualified as a spouse. Physically eliminating rivals—disqualified as a person. Nearly ruining the country through emotion—disqualified as an Emperor.

What did Ga-yeon see in him?

Did she pick him just for his face?

Selena recalled the Emperor just before teleporting.

It was possible.

His emotions were horrifying, but his ruby-red eyes and golden hair looked angelic, almost like a celestial being.

If the Empire had chosen an Emperor by appearance, Ga-yeon would have been in fierce competition for first place.

Sensing Selena’s unspoken theory about Ga-yeon’s “beauty-first worldview,” Ga-yeon hurriedly explained:

“He wasn’t that stupid, okay? That’s why I thought I could work closely with him to run the country, so I pushed for him…”

Her stomach twisted at the memory, and she washed her face with a self-critical look.

“If he really wanted to send a Master, he should’ve sent the Captain of the Royal Guards… Ugh. Really.”

Ga-yeon suffered, knowing she’d helped the problematic Emperor gain power.

Selena patted her shoulder, feeling reassured.

If it were her, she might have already lost all attachment and considered finding an assassin herself.

She had worried that Ga-yeon might be swayed thinking, “Even if the Empire collapses and I’m in danger, he came to save me,” but that wasn’t the case.

To Ga-yeon, the Emperor’s love was no longer love.

It was madness and obsession.

The so-called “love of the century” had a pitiful ending, but Selena didn’t pity her.

The one who put Ga-yeon in danger was the Emperor himself. Everything was self-inflicted.

“I’ll have to act more cautiously than expected. A madman can’t be predicted. I have to assume he could appear like a rabbit anywhere, anytime.”

Hmm, somehow that suited him.

Even their eyes were the same red. She decided to call him “Rabbit.” If she said “Emperor,” it would draw attention.

Ga-yeon found the idea hilarious and laughed, then cheerfully suggested they eat rabbit meat for dinner.

“…”

Selena decided to let that slide without thinking too deeply this time.