The Abandoned Empress

“Do you remember what I said before? When I opened my eyes after dying, there was a man next to me, who stabbed me in the chest. Do you know who that man is?”

“… No way!”

“That’s true. He was Duke Jena. ”

I opened my eyes wide. Was he really Duke Jena who killed her before her return? But why did she enter his house as a foster daughter? Wasn’t he the enemy who killed her?

“At first, I was going to get revenge on the emperor. Although he said he loved me so much, he made me miserable at the end of the day. So, I passionately tempted him because I wanted to hurt him the same way he did. Well, you revenged him on my behalf.”

“…”

“Of course, I was also planning to take revenge on Duke Jena who stabbed me. I wanted to compete with you on an equal footing, so I decided to go to the duke’s house as his stepdaughter because I could find his weaknesses up close.”

Really? But given the duke’s personality, it was probably not easy for her to achieve her goal because there was no chance that he, who valued his family pedigree so much, treated her genuinely as her daughter. I noticed it when I found her not mingling well with the members of the noble faction. Who would have treated her properly when she was not treated properly within her own family?

By nature, one’s betrayal is based on one’s trust in somebody to some extent. Did Jiun ever have a chance to get even with the duke when she had no trust in him from the beginning? Was that the reason she was so obsessed with the temple? Did she want to build power that he could not ignore because she could not earn his trust?

“When you were poisoned, I heard something strange about your symptoms. And when I heard that the palace investigators were trying to look for the traitor who tried to poison the emperor, I knew who was responsible for it. No matter how hard I thought, I could not think of any other man than Duke Jena. Of course, little did I think he would be so easily caught so easily like this.”

“…”

“You asked me why I saved you, right? Yes, like you said, I saved you for my own survival at first. It’s too unfair for me to die like this because I didn’t get even with the emperor, you and the duke. I didn’t want to die so empty without having achieved my goal at all.”

“So?”

“The day you were ambushed… the emperor that I saw wasn’t the one I used to know. The emperor I used to know could never make such an expression. His way of speaking and acting was totally different from what it was in the past.”

“…”

“Remember what you told me before? You said that he was different from the old him. At that time, I thought you were ridiculous, talking such nonsense. I ridiculed you deep down, thinking you could be called a sacred woman in terms of generosity. Then, looking at his expression on that day, I got confused. I felt he was really different from what he was in the past. I reflected, thinking over what I had done until then…Then I got confused. I didn’t know what I was doing here.”

She continued with a bitter smile, “Well, that’s enough. Anyway, I achieved half success.”

When I saw her bitter smile, I suddenly had a lot of things on my mind. I turned around with a sigh and took out a box from my pocket. Then, I touched its corner, making sure she could not see it.

What should I do now?

“… The emperor gave a ruling on me, right?”

Her voice was very feeble. She pretended to be casual, but she was very nervous, with her voice trembling a lot.

When I nodded silently, she asked with a more trembling voice, “What’s the ruling? As I was dependent on the traitor, was I sentenced to the death penalty? ”

“…”

There was an uncomfortable silence. After such a long silence, she said, breaking the silence, “That’s what I expected.”

Biting my lip tightly, I opened the lid of the box, and lightly squeezed what was inside.

The unique coldness of the glass bottle made me feel cold all over my body.

<Your Majesty, she has to end her own life by herself? Isn’t it too cruel?>

<I don’t like it very much, but that’s what most of the nobles want, so I can’t help it.>

<But…>

<Come to think of it, their argument makes sense. It’s not good to set a precedent. Besides, it is right to nip any potential danger in the bud. Besides, she has the right to the throne as the child of God’s prophecy. No matter how much I think about it, I think it’s better to get rid of her on this occasion.>

<Your Majesty…>

I looked silently at the two glass bottles in the box. This bottle which is red like blood is a deadly drug that would immediately kill her, and this transparent one is…

<Whew, if you insist, let me give you one option. I don’t want to take this risk, but as you really want to save her…>

<‘What is it?>

<Let me save her by disguising her death. But there is one condition. As soon as you leave the palace, she must leave the empire and never come back.>

<But that is too…>

<Stop it. I already made lots of concessions. You know what will happen if she, who everybody thinks she was dead, appears again.>

<…Yes, Your Majesty. >

<I will leave the choice up to you. Given the choice, I hope you can choose the option that will not bring about any future trouble.>

I was agonized, looking at the two bottles.

Which one should I choose?

When I thought about saving her life, I should leave a transparent bottle here.

Without her, I would have missed the opportunity I was given again, but also he and I couldn’t have confirmed each other’s love.

But…

When I carefully touched the red bottle, I suddenly heard her grinning voice behind my back.

“Life seems to be fun. right?”

“… What are you talking about? ”

“Well, it’s because you are going to see me die this time.”

“…”

“So, when is the date of my execution? Tell me, so I can prepare myself. ”

Was it because the bottle is red? I felt like I was smelling blood from the bottle that touched my fingertips.

I was lost in thought, touching the red bottle. If you leave it here, I will no longer have to deal with her. Since I have decided to accept his heart, the only link that would connect me with my past was Jiun. Without her, I could completely cut off my memories of the past. Besides, she seemed to have chosen to die to some extent.

My hands trembled.

Which should I choose? Red? Or the transparent?

The moment I turned around after long hesitation, I saw something white sparkling under a purple cloth that looked like a wedding veil.

My eyes opened wide because her hair, which was black like the night sky, turned white.

Suddenly, I realized that she had really used her ‘wish.’ That’s why her hair turned white.

According to the High Priest, when she lost her divine power, the color of her hair would change.

“… Well, the emperor gave a ruling on the Jena family. All the immediate members of the Jena family including the duke were sentenced to beheading.”

Only

“…”

“In your case the emperor decided to give you a poisonous pill, taking into account some factors about you. But if you are alive when the duke is beheaded, you will be beheaded too. ”

“…”

“The duke will be beheaded ten days from now. And I’ll tell you one thing. I don’t want to see you die, looking up at him and me. In that case, I’m afraid the nightmare of the past that I barely forgot will come back. Of course, it’s up to you which way you want to choose. ”

I turned, ignoring her empty eyes. Then I took one glass bottle out of the box, put it on the table, and crossed the room without hesitation.

Bang!

I closed the door.