I Will Surrender My Position as the Empress - Chapter 34.1
“…Yes?”
“I will arrange a residence in my palace for you. The Imperial Palace is a place where the Empress’s hands cannot reach.”
If the Empress and he were to fight like dogs, they could certainly do so. However, if they were to engage in a full-scale battle over this matter, Baldr Manor would undoubtedly interfere.
“If you’re not inclined to do so, you can return to Countess Poiter.”
“No! Your Majesty, please. Please don’t abandon me.” Diane desperately grasped Karl’s arm and lowered her head. “Don’t cast me aside. Please, don’t abandon me, Your Majesty.”
Karl, barely containing his urge to swallow a lump in his throat, shook off Diane’s arm.
“I told you not to say that.” A face in shock, a face that seemed as if it were about to die.
“You’re becoming more and more like my birth mother.” Karl turned his body and quickly started walking away. His steps were so fast, it seemed as if he were running. And as he reached the end of the corridor, he encountered someone coming up the stairs. It was someone who didn’t dress like a palace employee, and she had a name tag hanging around her neck, indicating that she was an outsider. As she faced the Emperor head-on, she quickly bowed her head and stepped aside.
“I am the skincare specialist called by the princess.”
“…” The Emperor stared blankly for a moment, then swiftly left the Ivory Palace
****
After a while, his brother made his way towards the library. The butler, informed of the empress’s visit, personally trailed behind the brothers, pushing a cart filled with refreshments. Adele, engrossed in her book, rose from her seat as the trio approached.
“Shall we have a bite to eat?” Lionel suggested.
“Thank you, but the library is splendid,” Adele replied.
Meanwhile, the butler, swift as a hare, discreetly withdrew after swiftly arranging the food.
“It’s not a restaurant dinner, and the fare is somewhat modest due to the secrecy surrounding the visit,” Lionel commented.
“Quite acceptable. Thank you. Let’s indulge ourselves now,” Adele responded.
Having hardly eaten throughout the day, Adele gathered together her portion of food.
“Is it to your liking?” Lionel inquired.
Adele swallowed the morsel she had been chewing and nodded in approval. “Very much so.”
After finishing their meal, the trio relocated to a cozy area adorned with a soft sofa and a low table. The library was expansive, offering numerous seating options.
“Now, ask me your questions,” the empress said directly as she settled into her seat. Being in close proximity to a nation’s ruler, she had no need for superfluous conversation. Yet, it was astonishing that the atmosphere remained unassuming. Just as Theseus had noticed during their wedding, the empress possessed a remarkable ability to command her entourage with gentle words and actions. As Theseus observed the empress, Lionel initiated the questioning.
“May I inquire about the tower’s destruction?” Lionel began, seizing the opportunity that had been pent up within him until now.
Adele nodded, granting permission for him to proceed. Lionel had been eagerly waiting for this chance to satisfy his curiosity.
“On that day, he mentioned that it was ‘level 4, close to level 5, so there’s no time to waste.’ Can you personally dismantle a tower of level 4 or lower?”
In response to the query, Adele furrowed her brow slightly and shook her head.
“I can handle a tower below level 5 on my own. With level 4 towers, I can demolish the lower and middle sections, but the upper levels are beyond my reach alone. However, if possible, I avoid destroying them single-handedly.”
“You destroyed the towers before they even touched the ground. Is that the usual approach in Gottrov?” Lionel probed.
“It happened by chance around five years ago. Since then, the foremost rule of tower destruction is to dismantle them before they make contact with the ground.”
To dismantle a tower, one must target its core. Since the core typically resided in the upper middle section, climbing up the air currents proved to be the most efficient way to reach it.
“The issue is that there are very few wizards who can ride the updraft like I can. So statistically, about half of the year, we manage to dismantle them before they hit the ground, while for the rest, we have no choice but to destroy them as they fall.”
“The extent of the damage is incomparable.”
“You remember that day, don’t you? When we dismantle them before they touch the ground, there is no loss of life unless the striker makes the unfortunate mistake of falling.”
Theseus, who had been attentively listening, posed a question in a hushed voice.
“What are your thoughts on leaving the tower standing? Can it be ‘managed’?”
Upon hearing the question, Adele’s expression hardened, and she responded with firm resolve.
“Absolutely not.”
“Absolutely not?”
“Never.”
“How does Gottrov handle towers that touch the ground?”
“As a general rule, any tower that makes contact with the ground must be dismantled within a two-day period. Nearby wizards bear the responsibility of demolishing the tower, and if the assigned wizards are insufficient, the next unit of wizards must swiftly take action.”
Theseus, who had been observing the empress intently, asked for her understanding before rising to retrieve a long cylinder. Adele had a feeling it contained something of significance, and her intuition proved correct—it was a meticulously detailed map of Ehmont, divided into distinct territories. Theseus spread the map across a spacious table. Adele peered down at it, while Lionel proceeded to place crimson stones across the map. In an instant, dozens of stones adorned its surface. Even after depleting one handful of red stones, Lionel reached for another. Adele’s countenance grew increasingly somber with each passing moment. When Lionel finally removed his hand from the map, the empress appeared almost breathless, her gaze fixed on the sight before her. The translucent red stones gleamed and cast shadows, as if drenching the entire map in a macabre crimson hue.
“…So, these indicate the highest points?”
“Indeed. These are the towers currently under ‘management’ in Ehmont.”
“What… do you mean by ‘management’?”
The empress surveyed the locations where the red stones had been placed. She didn’t need to investigate further. It was evident that everything in their vicinity had been decimated. Those who had barely survived would be too terrified to even raise their eyes to the sky, fearing their imminent demise. Orphaned children would wander the streets, vulnerable to trampling, while grieving parents would be left in a state of shock.
“…If all these red stones represent towers.”
“They say the vast plains are a sight to behold—a fertile land that yields abundance year-round, some regions even supporting three harvests.”
Adele had a faint inkling that her mother’s words had been a fabrication, but she never anticipated the truth to be so devastating.
“If all these red stones were towers, then…”
Adele lifted her gaze, her eyes alternating between Theseus and Lionel.
“Ehmont has become a living hell.”
