~Chapter 59~
Till looked down at the intruder whose collar he was gripping and muttered.
“Why are you here?”
“Cough, cough…”
The intruder was none other than Aisha.
“Is this… how you treat people…?”
“A-ah, no, I just… I was too surprised.”
“Then if you’re surprised—let me go already!”
Unable to breathe, Aisha kicked Till hard in the shin. With a short scream, he collapsed to the ground.
“Argh!”
…Compared to his earlier sharp reaction, this looked downright pathetic.
“This is my hideout! How did you even know…?”
“I lied to Paul.”
“…What did you say?”
Till stared in disbelief, but Aisha continued calmly as if nothing was wrong.
“I told him it was urgent—that I had to see you right away. Of course, he refused to reveal your hideout easily, so I pressed him. Then I said…”
“What did you say?”
“That in an emergency like this, you had ordered him to tell me your location.”
“….”
“And I also said, if it was a lie, he could cut off my head. But it wouldn’t be too late to do that after we solved this mess. I think that’s why he gave in.”
“Aisha…”
He already knew she was crazy, but this… The Rune Guild was notorious, even the imperial family avoided touching them.
Paul wasn’t just a bartender for show—he was skilled, and Till’s closest ally in Rune, someone he’d been through countless things with.
Yet Aisha had boldly lied to him… even risking her neck.
And what if she had said something else?
“Hey! What if you told Paul that I was planning to cut ties with you and that damned Duke? What then?”
“You wouldn’t.”
“Excuse me…?”
“You said it yourself! Sunday’s Exposé is a money-making treasure! There’s no way a money-crazed man like you would throw me away!”
Honestly… she wasn’t wrong.
“Then why the hell did you come looking for me…?”
“No time, Till!”
Aisha didn’t back down.
Before he could react, she grabbed his collar with both hands, glaring fiercely into his face.
“Listen carefully to what I’m about to say!”
“I-I was listening…”
“We need to start printing right now.”
“…What kind of nonsense is that? You said it would be better to skip this week’s issue! And it’s not even Sunday yet—”
“News doesn’t wait for Sunday!”
“News…?”
“Yes! Breaking news. And this issue will be distributed for free. That way as many people as possible will read it!”
“You’re insane…”
“You’re the one who said it, Till! Sunday’s Exposé is the goose that lays golden eggs!”
Her fiery momentum stunned him into silence.
“Now the goose can evolve—into one that lays diamond eggs! Are you really going to waste this chance, you greedy money-lover?”
“…Wait. Then what about the article?”
At the mention of diamond eggs, Till regained his senses.
“The manuscript? You do have it ready, right?”
“…I don’t.”
“…What?”
“But it’s all in my head. I just need to write it out right now!”
“Excuse me…?”
“Take me to the printing house. Hurry!”
There was no room left to argue. In the end, Till sighed and nodded. He called out to the guild members waiting outside, ordering them to gather people.
Everything happened in an instant.
The emergency noble council, hosted by Roselia, was set to take place in the grand assembly hall—the largest in the entire empire.
Although there were still about fifteen minutes left before it began, the hall was already packed full.
The nobles who had taken their seats all wore different shades of tension on their faces.
Closest to Roselia sat Duke Dilsen and Baron Crawford, her staunch allies, along with several other loyal supporters.
On the other side were nobles who supported Killian Winters, and who had long been at odds with the imperial court.
Roselia, Dilsen, and Crawford were the only ones who fully understood how the situation would unfold.
‘Today, we’ll tie Sunday’s Exposé to Killian, strip him of his title… and deal with those fools once and for all.’
Dilsen and Crawford exchanged a glance, their lips curling into sly, sinister smiles.
Meanwhile, whispers spread among the nobles who supported Killian.
“What exactly is going on? Do you know anything?”
“I’ve heard nothing.”
“And the Duke? Has anyone seen him?”
“No. None of us have. We even tried contacting Sir Theorn several times, but…”
Their faces looked as though the world itself was collapsing.
“One thing is certain… the Empress Dowager intends to crush Duke Killian at this council.”
“…Haah.”
“Surely the Duke is aware of this situation, but what could he possibly be planning?”
“Can we not rely on His Majesty the Emperor? He has never shown strong hostility toward the Duke.”
At that timid suggestion, a few nobles let out bitter laughter.
“Look around you. The Emperor hasn’t even attended.”
“….”
“You all know the truth. Forgive me for saying it, but the real power in Draxion is not the Emperor—it is the Empress Dowager. Even if His Majesty wished to help us, what would it matter? He’s nothing more than a puppet.”
In fact, Emperor Belmore had never once attended such councils. His absence was more than refusal—it was silent permission, leaving full authority to Roselia.
And today was no different.
As Killian’s supporters sighed in despair—
From the front, Roselia herself appeared.
“Her Majesty the Empress Dowager enters. All rise and pay respect!”
All eyes turned to her as she walked in with a faint smile, then sat gracefully in her seat.
The moment her smile reached their eyes, Killian’s allies felt it.
This battle was already lost.
Soon after, a man stood up—the imperial relative assigned to preside, Grand Duke Valtrich Vartenbelk.
“Today’s agenda for this emergency noble council concerns the magazine Sunday’s Exposé, which has spread false information and damaged the honor of our Draxion Empire.”
His tone was blunt and solemn, his voice carrying through the hall.
“And also, the matter of Duke Killian Winters, who is suspected of being involved with it.”
‘So, Killian… even now, you still haven’t appeared.’
As Valtrich’s words rang out, Roselia smiled with chilling beauty.
‘This cursed bond between us ends today.’
There was only one step left.
To guide the council to the result she wanted, declare Killian an enemy of the empire, and have him hunted down and executed.
Roselia’s eyes gleamed sharply.
“Then, let us begin the council.”
Valtrich formally announced the start.
