chapter 189………………………………..
Like the wind, like a ghost.
The knight who appeared there without a sound or trace of presence was none other than the lover she had loved so dearly.
Only then did the Empress come to her senses.
Because she had avoided him all this time, it was their first face-to-face meeting in nearly ten years since Theseud’s return.
For a moment, the two of them forgot the passage of time and simply stared at one another.
But soon, the dreadful reality struck them both.
The Windfarer, tainted by sin, had slipped away from that space and vanished without a trace.
Then what remained?
The fact that the Empress of an empire had stabbed and killed her own subordinate with a national treasure entrusted to her care.
And not just any empress—but Empress Imelda, respected for her noble character and for bearing two outstanding sons…
At the very moment they were both left stunned before this shocking sin—
Theseud’s sharp senses caught something.
Someone else’s breathing.
It was extremely faint, but clearly there were two other breaths besides theirs.
“…?”
Snapping back to his senses, Theseud traced the source of the sound.
The outer balcony.
He flung open the door and rushed outside.
Beyond the long balcony that ran along the building’s exterior, he glimpsed two figures in the darkness, hurriedly opening a door to another room and disappearing inside.
A few seconds later and he would have missed them—but he barely managed to catch sight of them.
They appeared to be the Duke and Duchess of Lacroitz.
The Duke and Duchess of Lacroitz…
It was a plausible guess.
During banquets, the famous paintings and treasures displayed in the hall were removed and stored across various rooms.
The Lacroitz couple did not particularly enjoy social gatherings. Moreover, the duke had a hobby of collecting objects, so he was far more interested in paintings and treasures than in the ball itself.
Thus, whenever there was an event, they would make an excuse midway through, slip out, and wander around on their own. Everyone knew this.
“They must have been wandering as usual that day as well and happened to approach near the scene of the incident. Hearing Eloise collapse and her pained groans, they likely wondered what was happening and took a look into the neighboring room via the balcony.”
Grace continued her account.
“To think the Duke and Duchess of Lacroitz might have witnessed Her Majesty murdering her maid… Sir Theseud must have felt utterly cornered. That was when I appeared at the scene. I sensed something was wrong, dismissed everyone loitering in the corridor, and entered the room. At the time, I was Her Majesty’s most trusted maid, so I had the authority.”
So that was why I had been able to inspect the scene afterward without interference.
It made sense.
Every lingering question was being answered one by one.
“When I entered, Her Majesty was sitting collapsed in shock, and before her lay Eloise’s cold body. Sir Theseud stood there, pale as a sheet. At first, I was simply dumbfounded, but it did not take long to grasp the situation. After that, it was utter chaos.”
As she reached the most painful part, deep lines formed across Grace’s forehead. She continued with difficulty.
“I tried to take the blame in Her Majesty’s stead, but she vehemently refused. She said she would go to His Majesty and confess everything, accepting whatever punishment followed. That was when Sir Theseud spoke. He asked if she intended to make Aldensis and Zikren the sons of a murderer.”
Several listeners gasped and nodded.
‘The son of a murderer cannot become Crown Prince. The investiture would be revoked, and the two children would be expelled from the imperial palace. And they were not ordinary men but transcendents—how would they live after that?’ At Sir Theseud’s earnest plea, Her Majesty fell into confusion once more. So did I.”
Grace’s face twisted in anguish as she continued.
“Sir Theseud first carried Eloise’s body and ran out. I went to fetch a sedative for Her Majesty, thinking she needed to regain her composure somehow.”
That must have been when she encountered me.
That was what I had suspected—and it was true.
“On my way back, it occurred to me that someone might still be in the corridor. Earlier, I had not realized how serious the situation was and had not checked thoroughly. If anyone had noticed something amiss, I intended to silence them forever and set out with the vial in hand. That was when I found Lady Aristina.”
Grace’s gaze turned to me.
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“At that moment, I had seen Her Majesty alone at the crime scene and was fleeing. I had come there out of curiosity after seeing Sir Theseud running away with the body. Grace did not fully trust me, but she let me go without doing anything.”
“I see…” my father, Duke Canel, groaned.
“That night, when you returned home feverish and crying that you had seen a ghost… It wasn’t a ghost after all. You had witnessed a murder scene.”
“That’s right, Father.”
Duke Canel looked at Grace.
“You must have been frantic to protect Her Majesty, yet you let my daughter go unharmed. I am grateful.”
“She was far too young,” Grace replied flatly before continuing.
“After sending Lady Aristina away, I returned to Her Majesty. Shortly afterward, Sir Theseud returned as well. He said everything had been taken care of and that there was nothing to worry about so long as the missing Windfarer was retrieved and restored. At those words, Her Majesty and I looked at each other. Taken care of? What did that mean?”
Grace’s face and voice twisted as if wrung dry.
“Even setting aside Eloise’s body—what about the Duke and Duchess of Lacroitz? Her Majesty asked what had become of them, but Sir Theseud gave no answer. Realizing what that silence meant, Her Majesty screamed and fainted. That is all I can testify.”
Grace lifted her head sharply.
“That concludes my testimony. The former Duke and Duchess of Lacroitz were murdered by Sir Theseud that night for witnessing Empress Imelda stabbing her maid to death. And another witness, Lady Aristina Rosen, was likewise murdered by Sir Theseud for posing a risk of exposing that night’s events.”
She raised her finger and pointed straight at him.
“You are a murderer who killed three innocent people! I will regret forever, even in death, that I helped place the blame on an innocent man at your word! Her Majesty also regretted letting you have your way! Just before she passed, she did not love you at all!”
“Silence!”
Theseud, who had been listening blankly, roared.
He seemed to snap out of his immersion in the past at those words. The black aura that had briefly subsided surged violently again, forming a vortex that bore down on us.
Ruelian immediately extended one hand and reinforced the barrier to block it.
But then—
Grace’s body, which he had been supporting with one arm, suddenly went limp.
Ruelian stared at her in shock.
“Grace?”
I too grabbed her hurriedly.
The aged maid looked at us silently, then her head fell forward. A thin stream of red blood trickled from between her tightly sealed lips.
“…?”
I looked around in disbelief.
The black magic Theseud had unleashed had not penetrated the barrier.
Grace had taken her own life.
Everyone who witnessed the scene was stunned.
“N-no…”
My father approached, aghast.
“What happened? I intended to take this old woman to our estate and care for her well. Why…?”
“She must have taken poison beforehand—one that spreads slowly through the body,” Ruelian answered after examining her mouth.
“It seems she resolved herself when she began her testimony. Her guilt must have been overwhelming.”
…
I was speechless.
It was true that giving false testimony and helping an innocent person bear false charges was a sin.
But the true murderer was standing right there, unharmed.
Rage rose beyond what I could bear.
“You’ve killed yet another person!”
I shouted at Theseud.
“Is this truly for the late Empress Imelda? Was this really for Aldensis and Zikren? Don’t be ridiculous! You’re insane! Completely insane!”
Theseud only listened in silence.
If his meticulous manipulation of evidence and minds over more than a decade to guard the secret was obsession—
What he now revealed was madness.
Amid the thickly swirling black aura, his white hair whipping in the wind, the knight radiated something beyond mere obsession.
True madness.
A chill ran through my chest.
‘He’s going to kill us all.’
To ensure that the fact that the woman he loved—Imelda—had committed murder would never spread beyond this room, he intended to seal the mouths of everyone present.
“Everyone, run!”
I shouted—but it was already too late.
As Theseud raised one hand high, an aura far denser and more intense than before gathered in his palm.
Then—
“Run!”
With a sharp cry, someone suddenly sprang from behind Theseud and seized him. Amid the black aura, silver hair flashed.
“Sion!”
“I’ll take this monster with me.”
From Sion’s hand, a blazing rose-colored radiance flared forth—the sacred power of the Rosen family.
My father and the elders cried out in shock.
“That’s—! Sion! Are you trying to die?”
“Young master!”
No reply came.
Was he truly intending to sacrifice his life to kill Theseud? Because he was already living on borrowed time?
That was absurd.
I ran toward him and screamed—
“Sion!”
