Episode 16
At Berthold’s words, Mother slowly nodded again.
“The fortunate thing is, I have the power to heal Her Majesty the Empress.”
“……”
“And I’m the only one who can.”
Her signature violet eyes gleamed like clear glass marbles.
Relief and joy at being able to heal—shadowed by concern at the knowledge that a hidden hand was behind all this.
And then…
Mother is really angry.
Not even when I had caused serious trouble before had I ever seen her this furious.
I shivered instinctively.
She was terrifying.
“But to completely heal Her Majesty, it will take time.”
Even so, she explained gently, calmly.
“Her stamina is already so depleted that purging the miasma recklessly would only shock her body. I’ll have to purify it gradually, while channeling away the residue little by little.”
“Then a method has been found. Time is no longer an issue,” Berthold said, smiling with a curve so similar to Harzen’s.
“What you’ve told me, I’ll explain to His Majesty myself. I think it will be better that way—for my brother as well.”
On the surface, it sounded like he was being considerate toward Father.
No way!
Who knew how that man might twist things once he spoke to the Emperor?
He was suspicious enough to be considered a prime suspect in this whole miasma plot.
“Then I should—”
I hurriedly tried to cut in, but—
“No.”
Mother was a step ahead, shaking her head firmly.
“It would be best if I explained this to His Majesty personally. That way, he can rest assured.”
Mhm. As expected, Mother was the clever one.
Then… just once more…
“Then I should—”
“Cici.”
But again, I was stopped mid-sentence.
This time not by Mother, nor by Berthold—
but by Harzen.
“You and I still have something to talk about.”
I swallowed hard, unable to say more.
What was this?
So strange.
Why did this feel like something I had already gone through not long ago?
And so, I was left alone in the room with Father.
“How you managed to follow us here… that much I can already guess.”
He glanced briefly at Father Kyle’s invisibility cloak draped nearby.
“The real question is, why did you come here?”
I stood stiffly at attention, neck shrinking like a turtle’s.
“W-well, I…”
Mother, save me… this air is too scary!
“…Cici.”
Father bent his knee, lowering himself until our eyes were level.
His voice was gentler now.
“About the audience hall earlier—my apologies.”
“Eh?”
“I shouted out of shock, but I wasn’t trying to scold you blindly.”
“……”
“I only wanted to hear why you made this choice.”
I stared into his clear blue eyes.
He wasn’t lashing out; he was trying to understand me first.
Maybe… this was the very kind of conversation the young Harzen himself had once longed for.
“I… I just wanted to protect Mother.”
There, I said it. At least that much I could admit safely.
“Protect her?”
He echoed me with a puzzled look.
I pushed on, gathering courage.
“Do you trust that man?”
“That man?”
His brows rose in surprise, then softened as he let out a quiet sound of recognition.
“Ah. You mean my brother.”
“…Mm.”
I couldn’t call him “Uncle.”
I refused to acknowledge him as family.
“Why that question, all of a sudden—”
Father muttered half to himself, frowning faintly.
But before I could answer, his gaze sharpened with a hint of realization.
“I see… I think I understand why you’re asking.”
Really? Did he actually get it?
“You must have overheard what Ria and I said in the carriage. And here too… the atmosphere wasn’t exactly pleasant.”
…Nope. He didn’t.
“But Cici.”
He smiled faintly then, a real smile this time, not the hollow one he sometimes wore.
“My brother is one of the few who looked after me in this cold palace. An invaluable benefactor.”
The words pierced me like needles.
“My childhood was nothing like yours. If I managed to keep my sanity back then, it was largely thanks to him.”
I could only stare into his eyes, feeling the depth of affection there.
The weight of someone who had once been a lonely boy—
and the one person who had reached out to him first.
“…Then, Father.”
I lowered my gaze, fumbling for words.
Sometimes, they say, truth can be poison—
too cruel, too shattering, enough to overturn a person’s whole life.
But…
Now I understood just how deeply he trusted his brother.
How much he liked him.
Yet I also knew that in truth, that man was a villain.
The one who would one day drive Mother to her death.
So I had no choice but to destroy Father’s illusion.
For Mother’s sake.
“Do you… like him more than Mother?”
No matter his answer, I would still have to uncover Berthold’s crimes.
Still, I asked—out of a childish wish to sulk, maybe,
or perhaps because I longed for reassurance.
Reassurance that even if I shattered his illusion,
as long as Mother lived, Father would not despair.
That he could still smile for us—
not for Berthold, but for his family.
“Hmm?”
At my sudden question, he raised his brows again.
Then, in his usual calm tone, he answered.
“Well… it’s impossible to compare the two. Ria is the one I love most in this world. My brother is the one I trust the most. The kinds of affection are different, so there’s no comparison.”
“That’s too hard.”
I pouted, deliberately pushing out my lower lip.
“The one you love the most should also be the one you trust the most.”
Mother versus Berthold.
In that choice, shouldn’t it be obvious whom to believe?
Of course family was important.
But if I had someone I loved, I knew I’d still place my parents first above anyone.
Even so!
“Father, you’re a fool.”
I muttered, eyes fixed stubbornly on the floor.
He only chuckled softly, resting his hand on my head and stroking my hair.
“Perhaps it’s difficult for you to understand now. You’re still young, after all.”
No, Father.
I understood perfectly well what you meant.
I just didn’t want to accept it.
I don’t want you to like him.
I don’t want you to trust him.
…I just don’t want you to be hurt.
