Chapter 101
“Jamira… Jamie… Jamie…”
The priest Michael, in charge of directing the scene, squinted and tried to recall. Then he tilted his head from side to side and admitted,
“I… I can’t remember.”
“You don’t remember? Silver hair, blue eyes, and a little girl. According to Jerome, that child’s younger sibling, she should be about chest height. You don’t know her?”
“No.”
“Her brother’s name is Jerome. You don’t know Jamie, who worked as a copyist in the imperial temple?”
“No, I’m just a junior priest in charge of directing performances.”
“You’re a priest directing performances, and yet you don’t know Jamie, who was drafted for the play…”
“….”
Michael was at a loss for words as the Grand Duke stared at him suspiciously, pressing relentlessly.
Then, before him, Jamie walked forward—her frail figure and silver hair shimmering as she approached.
“Jamie?”
Gasp!
Michael raised a hand to cover his mouth.
This was bad.
He had let his guard down.
Michael bit his lip. He knew the Grand Duke’s abilities were exceptional, but he hadn’t expected he could even see memories.
“So you remember.”
The Grand Duke lifted one corner of his mouth and looked at him as if to say, see for yourself.
There was no escape.
What should I do? If it’s discovered I sent her to the secret room, I’m doomed.
By the time he realized it, Jamie had vanished.
“Shall we talk now?”
“!”
“According to Jerome, he came to the temple several times to inquire and pleaded with you earnestly… why did you say you didn’t know?”
“….”
“Don’t even think about lying.”
Michael felt his mouth dry up.
If he admitted she had gone to the “secret room,” his life would be forfeit.
It wasn’t a problem he could handle on his own.
With the Grand Duke involved, things could easily become complicated.
“My apologies, Your Grace. It’s disgraceful that your abilities are being used because of my rotten memory.”
“No, no, that’s not what I wanted to hear.”
“Huh?”
“Find Jamie and send her straight to her family.”
“….”
“You must show Orlesion’s mercy.”
The Grand Duke’s cold eyes were terrifying. One wrong word, and his head wouldn’t remain intact.
The Grand Duke held the highest rank in the empire, even above the emperor.
Moreover, the Julius faction that sided with the Grand Duke was still influential.
“Yes, I will immediately send the child to her family from the imperial temple.”
“Immediately.”
“Huh?”
Michael’s eyes widened in shock.
“The child’s mother is on her deathbed. She should see her child before she passes.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
“Don’t just let it pass. Report back to me. My aide may have already informed the imperial temple and resolved the situation, though.”
“…!”
So someone had already been sent to the imperial temple.
Michael bit his lip. There was no escape.
If his words didn’t match the facts, it would cause a major disaster.
“You cannot carelessly manage children who are the future of the empire in the temple like this.”
“…!”
The Grand Duke hadn’t come to ask questions. He was only here to verify.
Michael had misjudged the situation.
The Grand Duke had been fighting in the demon realm since he was ten, making him more skilled in strategy and tactics than anyone else.
Michael had no idea what kind of trap he had fallen into.
“Your Grace!”
His voice cracked.
“Marshal Julius always said: cherish and protect every single citizen of the empire more than your own life.”
Michael’s face went pale at those words, but he had to keep his expression neutral.
“Michael Yurie, you should be prepared. As one who protects the empire’s people, I will not overlook mistakes.”
The Grand Duke turned and left the waiting room. Michael slumped to the floor.
Perhaps the temple would scapegoat someone. He needed a lifeline.
Schmidt grew anxious.
It had been an order from the Grand Duke, but he hadn’t realized it would be this serious.
Perhaps the only fortunate thing was that they had quickly discovered Jamie’s whereabouts.
Many in the imperial palace had served since Marshal Julius’ time.
Of course, when the current Emperor Herace ascended five years ago, he replaced those close to the Shlesen Palace, but that was always an impossible task.
Guillaume had revered his brother, Marshal Julius, like a god. His words were absolute truth. Therefore, they were as one.
As long as the demon realm existed, peace in the Biatria Empire was impossible.
Among demons, deadly mutations could occur, and they could obliterate the empire at any time.
The darkness where Iclis slept was such a place.
A shift in perspective:
Marshal Julius had conquered the Karikas demon realm as the empire’s territory but had not slaughtered the demons. He accepted them willingly as subjects, including some demonic beasts.
He used them to tame other demons and prepared for conquest across the river.
Emperor Guillaume focused on the empire’s administration and industry, supporting his brother generously.
That was the peak era of the Biatria Empire.
The ministers were competent, contributing to the empire’s strength.
No matter how much Marquis Michael tried to use Orlesion’s clergy to ravage the Karikas territory and consolidate imperial power, he couldn’t destroy its foundation.
Guillaume’s ministers were effectively Julius’ ministers.
Even Marquis Michael sent his second daughter to the Grand Duke.
Schmidt assumed Emperor Herace would acknowledge Shlesen Palace willingly.
But that wasn’t the case.
Sending the daughter was likely a strategy to ease anxieties.
While carrying out the Grand Duke’s orders, Schmidt vaguely understood the relationship between the emperor and Michael.
The emperor had ordered Michael to eliminate the Grand Duke and his heir, and Michael seemed willing to sacrifice the Grand Duchess for his own safety.
Yet she worked tirelessly, drinking bitter coffee, trying to restore the Karikas territory.
[Tired, aren’t you, Schmidt?]
The bitter and fragrant coffee the Grand Duchess once shared floated in Schmidt’s mind.
Her curiosity, charisma, and vigilance—the mistress of his territory, Sinclair von Zeier, the Grand Duchess.
At first, he felt guilty for giving such a competent daughter to serve as the mistress.
He even felt grateful to Marquis Michael, who had seemed devious.
He had secretly hoped that once the curse was lifted, the empire might return to its former glory.
He wasn’t the only one. Everyone in the Karikas territory likely felt the same.
The Grand Duke’s face brightened, and Shlesen Palace staff were proud.
The previously struggling locals competed in production, supplying the empire, regaining vitality.
But now, seeing the red soil laid bare, Schmidt recalled the Grand Duchess and felt sorrow.
Had she refused the orders of Michael and the emperor?
If so, she, too, would need to be eliminated, alongside the Grand Duke and his heir.
“How… could this happen? How…”
It was devastating.
Schmidt watched the knights frantically digging for survivors, unsure what to report to the Grand Duke.
Jamie must be buried somewhere under that soil.
Five years ago, when the emperor devastated the Karikas territory, he was abroad as an envoy.
Hurrying home after hearing absurd rumors, he saw the territory covered in bright red soil.
Bodies had been buried along the Terion River and plains adjacent to the demon realm.
The grief and indignation churned in his heart.
He didn’t want to feel that humiliation again…
The dukes and marquises came to see him, and when the Grand Duke insisted on lifting the curse, they sought him out.
He should not have shaken his head, claiming he lacked the power to persuade.
His master, the Grand Duke, had walked into the cursed room, and he must serve as a faithful gatekeeper.
He focused solely on the guild’s affairs. When the Grand Duke emerged, the only thing he could proudly present would be the meticulously kept guild ledgers.
But that was a misjudgment.
On the hill overlooking the palace, the piles of soil excavated to uncover the truth blew in the wind, catching Schmidt’s eyes.
Tears welled in his eyes from the coarse sand.
The secret room.
He had heard of it, but never imagined it would be handled this way.
[Push out the current emperor and place the Grand Duke on the throne.]
This was what Duke Talios had reported.
[There is no other way. If the empire is to endure.]
Recently, the Kingdom of Hilrion discovered mana stones, developed magical tools, and recruited demons, declaring they would conquer the demon realm the empire had not.
They requested the empire clear a path for them, but naturally, the empire refused.
Whoever conquers the demon realm would dominate the Peternia continent.
After a rare battle, the empire won, and Hilrion became a vassal state.
Such events could occur anytime.
If Iclius hadn’t returned from the demon realm to establish the empire, Biatria would have remained a permanent frontier kingdom.
The Julius faction continually pressured the emperor to advance into the demon realm again. But Herace did not yield.
Moreover, a rebellion in the west rendered the claim moot.
Phew.
The empire was in crisis both inside and out. But the Grand Duke would surely disagree, as it wasn’t Marshal Julius’ will.
Then…
“I see it!”
A knight shouted. The nearby digging knights stopped. Torch-bearing knights ran toward the spot.
The knight dropped his shovel and began frantically clearing the soil by hand. Other knights joined, clearing the area carefully.
They could not risk injuring the fragile body of the deceased.
After some time, a long, pale hand, yellowed with blisters, glimmered faintly under the torchlight.
It was the moment of crossing the point of no return.
