Episode 11
Where could the owner of this body have gone?
It’s a question I’ve thought about for a long time.
…Actually, no. I haven’t thought about it at all.
If she’s dead, there’s nothing I can do about it.
And if she’s not, then she must be somewhere inside this body.
Maybe she still exists within, but is being suppressed by the overwhelming power of the great emperor.
“I don’t know.”
Kinesia’s face twisted in confusion — shock, fear, and uncertainty all tangled together. She suddenly reached out as if grabbing a lifeline and clutched my shoulder.
“Ria… Ria isn’t dead, right?”
I stared at her for a moment before casually shrugging.
“I told you already. I don’t know. When I woke up, I was just… here.”
“What was it like back then?”
“A sea of fire. But this body was fine.”
Her grip tightened. The pressure started to hurt, so I tapped the back of her hand.
“Hey, that’s your sister’s body you’re squeezing.”
Only then did she startle and quickly pull her hand back. She stumbled a few steps away, trying to calm her breathing.
Her eyes shut tight, and when she opened them again, her gaze was firm. The earlier confusion was gone.
“So… you really aren’t Iralenaria, then.”
Her voice still trembled, though.
It must have been hard to accept that a stranger was suddenly inside her sister’s body.
“Please tell me who you are.”
Should I tell her? What if she faints when I say I’m a tyrant?
“Irane Philotimeomai Veloas.”
I was ready to flick her on the forehead if she so much as whispered “tyrant,” but thankfully, Kinesia didn’t even utter the first syllable.
Pleased, I smiled and added,
“I’m the one who led Epiphanes through its golden age and ascended the throne myself. You could say I’m your ancestor. You should feel free to be proud.”
But instead of pride, her face hardened.
There wasn’t the slightest hint of admiration.
“You’re saying… you were Emperor Irane? But why… of all people—”
“‘Of all people?’”
I shot her a sharp look, but she didn’t meet my eyes.
Instead, she sank to the ground, staring blankly at the floor like someone who’d just realized they’d been swindled out of a precious jewel.
“Why the tyr—”
“Say ‘tyrant’ and see what happens.”
She snapped her mouth shut. Still, the fact that she even thought the word was enough to annoy me.
I sighed and crouched to meet her eye level, then raised my hand.
A sharp snap rang out right in front of her forehead.
“Ugh!”
Kinesia winced, clutching her head. Her once-clouded eyes began to clear.
“So… the things written in your autobiography were true?”
“Of course.”
“Was Epiphanes truly prosperous and powerful under your rule?”
“You call that a question? Half of Paradon and half of Letunia were mine.”
“What about the starving citizens?”
“There weren’t many.”
“Were Epiphanes’ people never discriminated against anywhere they went?”
“Who’d have the guts to look down on my people? They’d be asking to die.”
“And everyone was proud of their homeland?”
“Obviously.”
Kinesia bit her scabbed lip, then shifted into a kneeling position, looking up at me.
It was the proper posture to greet an emperor — but since she was the one who’d just called me a tyrant, it didn’t sit right with me.
“What are you doing?”
“Please help us.”
Ah. That sounds ominous.
Maybe I should just pretend I didn’t hear that and go back to my room.
I tried to turn away, but my legs wouldn’t move.
When I looked down, Kinesia’s hand was clinging to my ankle.
I hadn’t shaken her off fast enough, and now she was stuck like hardened clay, dangling from my leg whenever I tried to move.
“Let go. You’re touching the body of a noble emperor.”
I shook my leg hard, but she didn’t budge. If anything, her grip crawled higher like ivy wrapping around my calf.
“Please, help Epiphanes become prosperous again — so that we’re no longer looked down upon.”
Her desperate tone made me stop struggling.
I faced her again.
To be honest, Kinesia had potential. If nurtured properly, she could become something remarkable.
If I’d had a daughter like her during my reign, I might have had a hard time choosing a successor.
Those eyes — blazing with conviction — stirred something in me, an artisan’s desire to polish that raw gem into brilliance.
But even so, I had to be honest.
“Why should I help you?”
If I were the type to be swayed by sentiment, I’d have become a jeweler, not an emperor.
And really — wasn’t she asking me to rebuild the very tower she and her people had torn down?
But her next words caught me off guard.
“I’m your bloodline. Your family.”
And what of it?
“Unfortunately, you’ve picked the wrong approach.”
I was never one for family bonds.
I’d barely even met my mother — I only ever saw her being scorned from afar for being from a small, weak nation.
My father and I were political enemies from the time I could think for myself.
As for nannies, they came and went. The longest-serving one treated me strictly as a duty.
And being an only child, I had no siblings either.
So appealing to family ties was useless.
She’d have had better luck appealing to my mercy instead.
I was about to turn away again when Kinesia suddenly shouted,
“I’ll clear your name!”
…A true ruler knows when to listen.
“How?”
“Make me an absolute monarch. Once I ascend the throne, I’ll ensure your history is properly re-examined and rewritten.”
“Hm.”
“I’ll base it on your autobiography, of course.”
Now that was an enticing offer.
To finally erase that infuriating label — tyrant — from history!
“Hm…”
It wasn’t as if I could ascend to heaven anytime soon.
Until then, I’d have to endure the insult of being remembered as a despot.
Wouldn’t it be better to help her?
It’s not like I’d have to do any real ruling.
I could just stand beside her, give advice, and help her gather capable people.
Once the laws were restructured and the arrogant “I’m-the-king” types were weeded out, the country would run just fine.
And while I worked on finding a way to transcend, I’d have a backup plan — not a bad idea, really.
If I guided my descendants well, perhaps the heavens might even grant me salvation someday.
My decision was leaning heavily toward help her.
Still, I didn’t want to look too eager, so I planned to pause for dramatic effect.
…That was the plan, anyway.
But Kinesia’s expression was so desperate that I couldn’t help nodding.
“All right. I’ll help you.”
“Thank you. Truly, thank you.”
Her face — so much like Yulcian’s — lit up.
She looked as if she wanted to hug me right there. Sure enough, she got up and reached out, but I sidestepped quickly to avoid it.
Kinesia froze mid-motion, then let out an awkward laugh.
After a moment of staring at her hands, she sighed deeply.
She stared at the ground, lost in thought, and finally spoke again when the silence began to stretch too long.
“There’s… one more thing I’d like to ask.”
“What is it?”
“I want to keep it a secret — that Your Majesty has taken over Ria’s body. If you ascend before Epiphanes regains its strength…”
I finished her sentence for her.
“…Then you wouldn’t have to keep your promise, right?”
“…Yes.”
“You know how to play your cards, don’t you? I like that.”
“T-thank… you?”
Even though she’d practically blackmailed me, she looked startled by the compliment.
“First things first — drop the formalities. No more honorifics.”
“Got it— no, okay, Ria.”
“Good. Kinesia, let’s work well together.”
She nodded.
I rose on my toes to pat her shoulder lightly, then turned away.
Suddenly, exhaustion washed over me. Time to rest for real.
I left her standing there, still deep in thought, and walked away.
I was just about to pass between the trees when—
“Hm?”
Something glimmered in my peripheral vision.
It was a silver gleam — the kind that shouldn’t exist unless some lunatic had hung a silver necklace from a branch.
Whoever it was, they were close enough to have heard everything between me and Kinesia.
Probably just my imagination, I told myself.
Then I turned and looked.
A boy was leaning against a tree.
Silver hair that shimmered faintly. Eyes of deep, moonlit violet.
He looked about Kinesia’s age — maybe Floretta’s.
How long has he been standing there?
He didn’t hear all of it… right? It would be humiliating to have my secret exposed the moment we decided to hide it.
Should I question him?
As I approached, the boy straightened up.
With a mischievous smile, he opened his mouth.
“Hello, Princess.”
Then, without warning, he stepped forward and pulled me into a tight embrace — so tight it took my breath away.
“It’s been so long.”
…said a boy I’d never seen before.
What in the world—
