I Will Surrender My Position as the Empress - Chapter 78
Karl’s jaw clenched involuntarily as he glared at the couple before him, his pupils contracting like a predator’s. His heart raced wildly, yet his entire body felt cold. The Empress wore a dress of deep navy, embroidered with golden threads that sparkled like stars. With every step, her skirt swayed like the veil of night. The dress, designed to reflect her raven-black hair and golden eyes that shone like the moon, suited her perfectly. Beside her, Lionel stood, wearing a suit of a similar design. His graceful and charismatic demeanor left the noblewomen in awe as he escorted the Empress. They looked like a matched pair from the beginning.
Karl’s gaze fixed on their lightly clasped hands. The sight of Adelaide holding another man’s hand made his blood boil. His glare was so intense and predatory that the surrounding nobles watched them in silent apprehension. Adelaide, dressed in green, glanced between the Emperor and Diane before offering a respectful bow to the Emperor. In contrast, the Emperor glared at Lionel, who bowed alongside the Empress, with murderous intent.
“Please proceed, Your Majesty,” came a cold voice, snapping the Emperor’s attention back to Adelaide. But she stubbornly stared at the closed doors of the banquet hall, refusing to meet Karl’s eyes. Clenching his jaw, Karl spat out an order.
“Open the doors.”
At the Emperor’s command, the heavy doors slowly creaked open, letting in the din of the already ongoing banquet.
“His Imperial Majesty, Her Imperial Majesty, the Marquis of Herbert, and Lady Diane Poitiers!” The herald’s booming voice echoed through the grand hall, silencing the chatter. The musicians stopped playing and stood up. Those already present, including Elizabeth, Theseus, Duke Despone, and Lennox, turned to face the entrance. Duke Despone exaggeratedly smiled and called out as he saw the Emperor through the open doors.
“Your Majesty! You and the Empress look splendid together! We’ve been waiting for you!”
Lionel glanced at Adelaide’s face. She maintained a calm expression as always, but her grip tightened on his hand. Squeezing her hand slightly, Lionel drew her gaze to him. In the warmth of their shared look, Adelaide gave a barely perceptible smile and tightened her hold on his hand once more.
The Emperor entered first with Diane. Duke Despone greeted them with a host-like smile, personally leading Diane to her seat, showering her with compliments about her strength despite her pregnancy and the difficulties of her journey. Meanwhile, the Empress entered with Lionel. All eyes in the banquet hall turned to them as if drawn by an invisible current. Even Duke Despone found himself mesmerized.
When Theseus and Elizabeth stepped forward to greet the Empress, the nobles’ eyes lit up like predators spotting their prey. The fact that the Emperor and Empress arrived with different partners didn’t matter. This banquet was a grand political arena, after all. The nobles surged forward, eager to greet the Empress, leaving the Emperor and Duke Despone in the background. Even the prominent mid-tier nobles joined the flow, making the Emperor’s and Despone’s entourage look relatively empty.
Duke Despone, watching with a displeased expression, furrowed his brows and strode up the platform. Approaching the Emperor, who sat on his throne, glaring at the Empress, Despone leaned in and whispered in his ear.
“Do you see? Right now, it’s just a ripple, but soon it will snowball into a massive, unstoppable force. A week? No, it’ll happen in just a few days!” Duke Despone’s voice was urgent, almost desperate. The Empress’s bold claim that she could destroy the tower within two years had undoubtedly piqued the interest of all the nobles who had been fretting over the tower’s menace.
“Can you find a solution just by glaring at them? We can’t afford to wait any longer!” Despite Duke Despone’s suppressed, agitated outburst, the Emperor remained motionless. Despone, feeling as if he had swallowed lava, his throat burning and chest heated, glared at the Empress, who stood proudly amid the crowd, like the eye of a storm.
“Your Majesty!” Despone growled, turning back to the Emperor. To his surprise, instead of continuing to glare at the Empress, the Emperor was now looking directly at him. Their eyes locked, and Despone instinctively furrowed his brows.
‘What is this…?’ Despone was taken aback by the Emperor’s gaze, a mix of obsession and desire. The storm the Empress had stirred seemed to have struck the Emperor squarely. The Emperor, staring intently at Despone, spoke in a chilling tone.
“Do not worry. I will not let that current… go unchecked.”
Karl shifted his gaze back to Adelaide. My solitary beacon in the night. He mused that love was not about pity or sympathy; it was about possession, complete and utter. He had always believed that. To achieve this, he needed to eliminate the nuisances around her, like Lionel Herbert and Theseus Baldr. Sending Adelaide to Vuetta had been part of his plan to claim her fully. But Adelaide had shattered that plan beautifully. Such tactics could not subdue her. So, how far must he push to cast her into the abyss? What must he take from her to make her willing to grasp his hand? Karl reached a cruel conclusion.
The banquet was a battlefield where words and glances clashed instead of swords. Like a seasoned captain navigating treacherous waters, Adelaide skillfully handled the nobles. Lionel stood by her side as her aide, supporting her, while Elizabeth and Theseus engaged in seamless conversation, forming a strong front.
Taking a brief moment to catch her breath, Adelaide whispered to Lionel, Theseus, and Elizabeth, “Come to the Empress’s palace tomorrow morning. There are things we need to discuss and show you.”
“Understood,” Theseus and Lionel nodded in agreement. Elizabeth, observing the crowd milling around them, glanced up at the Emperor and Duke Despone on the platform and remarked,
“The Emperor must realize by now how precarious it was to hold power by leveraging the people’s safety. I will come in the morning.”
How long did they converse this way? A servant pushed through the crowd and approached the Empress with a message. “His Majesty requests your presence.”
Adelaide instinctively looked towards the throne, but it was empty. The quick-witted servant added, “He awaits you on the terrace.”
With numerous eyes piercing her like arrows, Adelaide maintained her composure, nodding gracefully. “Very well. Lead the way.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.” The servant quickly turned, and the surrounding nobles stepped back to create a path. Before following, Adelaide exchanged a glance with Lionel. She offered a barely perceptible smile to his deep, dark blue eyes before moving forward. Lionel watched her retreating figure with an anguished gaze, feeling helpless and trapped.
“Lionel…” The soft call made Lionel turn to his brother. Theseus, with a stern expression, shook his head slightly, prompting Lionel to collect himself. However, his thoughts remained fixated beyond the closed terrace doors.
Meanwhile, having reached the terrace doors with the servant, Adelaide took a moment to compose herself. As the doors opened, the cold air rushed in, biting at her skin. The warmth in her hands quickly dissipated, leaving her fingers chilled. She clasped her hands together, straightened her back, and stepped onto the terrace.
The Emperor, his gaze sharp as a blade, spoke. “Sit.”
Adelaide took a seat opposite him, raising her head to meet his stare. Each time she faced him, she was reminded of her position, a habitual thought that pierced her heart like a thorn. Unintentionally, her eyes dropped, landing on her lavish skirt. The opulent palace, the beautiful dress, the esteemed title—none of it compared to the simple joy in her recurring dream where she ran towards Lionel, clad in a humble cotton skirt, holding a bouquet of wildflowers. In that dream, she was neither Empress nor anything else, and Lionel was just a man, not her aide or anything else. It was a foolish, impossible fantasy.
“Empress.” The cold voice pulled Adelaide back to reality, and she quickly looked up. The Emperor’s gaze was overtly scrutinizing. Adelaide steadied her thoughts.
First, I must remove Duke Despone from the palace. The Emperor’s reliance on his power means that the Emperor will undoubtedly weaken without him. That’s the initial step.
At that moment, the Emperor called her again, but this time…
“Adelaide Ulrich Echmont,” the Emperor’s voice sounded unexpectedly tender, almost forlorn. Adelaide, unable to fathom his intentions, remained silent, her eyes fixed on him. Karl leaned in, his whispering voice barely audible.
“Do you think you can push out Duke Despone, seize power, and turn me into a puppet, believing that you will then hold the quill?”
“…”
“Do you think all those nobles will bow to you and pledge their loyalty? …They won’t.” Karl’s smile was captivating yet dismissive.
“You are a ship anchored in Echmont. No matter if you were a princess of Gottrov, the only reason you can be Empress here in Echmont is because of your connection to me, not Lionel Herbert. By severing that tie, you are effectively cutting your anchor line.”
“So, you think I’m doing this purely out of a thirst for power?” Adelaide’s tone was icy. Karl paused before speaking again.
“This is my final warning and request.”
“…”
“Publicly retract your statement about destroying the tower within two years. Furthermore, refrain from offering any opinions as a mage in the future.”
As the repetitive demand spun around like a squirrel in a wheel, Adelaide sighed. “I can’t do that.”
“You always insist on your way, so arrogantly.”
“I’m not imposing my preferences on you! If you actively destroy the tower, the nobles will genuinely—”
“Enough. I’m tired of this,” Karl interrupted her abruptly, his words seemingly off-topic.
“Adelaide Ulrich Echmont, you have continually neglected your most important duty as Empress.”
He smiled softly at her, a whisper laced with menace. “I warned you. You refused. You failed in your duty.”
A chilling wind brushed Adelaide’s cheek, the foreboding air sending a shiver down her spine.
The Emperor stormed out of the banquet hall, issuing commands to the servant trailing behind him.
“Contact the High Priest who officiated the royal wedding immediately. Summon the Chief Justice as well.”
Adelaide. Even when you are no longer Empress, will you still dare to defy me?
