Chapter 45

“You can’t even win the Emperor’s heart after all that work.”

Benjamin’s eyes were still sharp as he pulled Katarina out of the old room and looked at her with contempt.

“Today, Emperor Theodore will come. He’s planning to visit to comfort his fiancée, who is lying in her sick bed, shocked by the disaster on the day of his engagement. Who knows? If you hold onto the Emperor’s heart, I might take you out of this place.”

In any case, the only way for her to live was to capture Theodore’s heart. Otherwise, she would be imprisoned in that old room again.

“Your Majesty, Benjamin has imprisoned me. He didn’t let me see you.”

As soon as Katarina saw Theodore, she hurriedly told him about Benjamin’s atrocities. But Theodore had no interest in what Benjamin did to Katarina.

“Where is the divine tree you talked about last time?”

“I told you. You can only go in there with the permission of the headmaster.”

It wasn’t the divine tree that mattered now. Benjamin was trying to do something.

But when Theodore only talked about the divine tree, Katarina became a little annoyed.

“I think Benjamin is trying to do something terrible.”

“Where is Benjamin Ferdinand now?”

“I don’t know. He hasn’t been seen since morning.”

Benjamin took Katarina out of the old room and disappeared.

So Katarina could not find a trace of Benjamin or Yves Llewellyn.

“I don’t know what Your Majesty is trying to do here. The engagement ceremony, which has been postponed without an appointment, must be resumed as soon as possible. Only then can I keep Benjamin in check…”

“Oh yeah. The engagement.”

Theodore glanced at Katarina, as if belatedly remembered.

“You bullied Yves while using your fake fiancée’s status. Didn’t you?”[T/N:  I wonder who bullied whom?]

A cold murderous intent began to fill the golden eyes that looked at Katarina.

“How dare you, my Yves… .”

Katarina’s body curled up at the chilling death that seemed to pierce her skin.

She wanted to inform him about Benjamin and Yves Llewellyn’s plot, but because of his reaction, she couldn’t tell that the woman was still alive.

“Ha, Yves Llewellyn, that woman… she was trying to seduce Your Majesty with a face resembling Yvonne Chernicia….”

“Deception!”

A dry laugh escaped Theodore’s teeth.

Yves deceived him?

If true, wasn’t it so cute?

What a foolish delusion

“It’s up to Yves to decide whether to save you or kill you.”

Said Theodore, raising the corners of his lips.

‘What does he mean? Does he know that she is still alive?’

Katarina became anxious because she could not understand Theodore at all.

“Stop with that fucking fake engagement. Guide me to that divine tree right now.”

At Theodor’s threat, Katarina rose from her seat and led him into the courtyard of the mansion.

“It’s inside.”

Katarina said, pointing to the deepest part of the mansion’s courtyard.

A large, old tree with a black bark was showing off its bizarre figure.

Seeing this, Theodore’s brow furrowed.

“Blessings on such a bizarre thing?”

“Yes, it has been a divine tree that has blessed Ferdinand since a long time ago.”

However, no matter how he looked at it, the appearance of the old tree was more atrocious than a blessing, but a curse more appropriate.

‘Maybe, that’s…… ..?’

Suddenly, Theodore felt a small energy springing up in his heart.

That bizarre thing in Ferdinand’s courtyard may be a trace of ancient darkness. As soon as he felt that energy, Theodore took a step towards it.

“Careful, Your Majesty!”

But at that moment, his body was thrown away by the strong ban.

“Sh*t.”

Theodore stretched out his hand, chewing on a swear word.

A golden glow emanating from his fingertips collided with the black barrier.

“…!”

Katarina looked at the scene in amazement.

‘Emperor Theodore could use Divine Power.’

It was a divine power that was strong enough to withstand the barrier passed down from Ferdinand’s ancestors.

Two forces collided in the air and swirled.

“Hey, stop it! Benjamin will find out!”

“I don’t care.”

Theodore ignored Katarina’s cry and poured out his energy.

There was nothing more important.

He had no intention of resorting to a peaceful method.

Even aside from the fact that he wasn’t a pacifist in the first place.

However, the energy quickly bounced back and struck Theodore’s body.

“Ugh!”

Theodore, carelessly wiping the blood running down his lips with the back of his hand, glared at the old tree.

Then he stretched out his hands towards it again.

“You’re going to die like this!”

Katarina’s scream was heard this time.

Theodore looked back at his body at that moment.

His fingertips were cracked and his skin was flaky.

He couldn’t break this barrier just by pouring his divine power.

“In the end, should I meet the head of Ferdinand and negotiate?”

Theodore had to turn around with no income.

***

And when Theodore returned to the Imperial Palace, Yves’s body disappeared.

“Yves? Yves, where did you go?”

The Imperial Palace was turned upside down.

Theodore ran endlessly in search of the missing Yves and turned over the entire palace.

“Yves, where the hell are you……”

But Yves was nowhere to be seen.

“Yves left me.”

Theodore, who sat down on the snowy field, stared blankly into the air, murmured.

“Why did you leave?”

Just before leaving the Imperial Palace, he remembered her cold face. At the same time…Even the sound of her holding him back wa heard in his ears.

Are you going to see Katarina Ferdinand?

Theodore left her behind and went to see Katarina many times, even when she was alive. Each time she would stare intently at his back with her wounded eyes. Theodore always knew the gaze, but pretended not to notice.

Maybe she, who no longer looked at him with tender eyes, was now disappointed in him forever and left.

“No, no, Yves….”

Theodore, who had collapsed, buried his head in his hand as his shoulders shook.

“Really not. Really…..I didn’t leave you to go to that woman….”

Then, a small question suddenly appeared in his mind.

“By the way, where did you go…?”

There were only a few places where Yves could have left.

Theodore immediately realized.

“Benjamin Ferdinand, that bastard.”

That day, the smell of Benjamin Ferdinand that was wafting from her seemed to bloom in her misty air.

At that unpleasant sensation, Theodore clenched his teeth and got up. His eyes glistened with light.

***

Benjamin greeted Theodore, who had returned with half-savored eyes.

“You are back, Your Majesty. I see Albrecht’s master. Glory to Albrecht.”

A seemingly happy smile appeared on Benjamin’s face.

“You took Yves, didn’t you?”

With every syllable Theodore uttered, a killing spree pierced Benjamin’s skin.

Benjamin was overjoyed to know that he had finally given Theodore back even the slightest bit of the loss he had felt.

“Why did the person who came to see Katarina want to enter Ferdinand’s forbidden area?”

“Give me back Yves.”

“I wonder if that was Your Majesty’s purpose rather than visiting Katarina from the beginning?”

The two men, who had already thrown away their masks, growled without hiding their true feelings.

“Of course. Katarina Ferdinand or something like that, whether sick or not, I wouldn’t care.”

“Poor Katarina. She has long wanted to be your Empress…”

Benjamin muttered as if he felt sorry.

“Now that she isn’t useful anymore, you’re going to throw her away.”

Benjamin said with a smug face.

But whatever Katarina was, it didn’t matter to Theodore.

“Yves, where is she?”

He looked around her, but he couldn’t feel her energy anywhere.

“Are you curious?”

Benjamin grinned and glanced back into the mansion.

“Come with me, and I will show you both Yves whom you so desperately seek, and the courtyard of Ferdinand, which you tried to get in by using your fake engagement with Katarina.”

The appearance of a willing guide was questionable, but Theodore had to swallow his uneasiness and followed.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Inside the exceptionally quiet mansion, only the footsteps of the two men resounded.

Then, the moment Theodore entered the space where he failed to get in this morning, he stopped and froze in the spot.

“Now, that…”

A pre-existing fear crept over his chest.

Benjamin looked back at him slowly.

“I burned them all down.”

The black smoke that had burned everything over his shoulders was fading with its last strength.

“What……?”

“It was all burned. Yves’s body, and the old tree in the courtyard you’ve been curious about.”

“Who are you to burn her!”

Theodore grabbed Benjamin by the neck and screamed.

“Who are you to burn Yves!?”

“It hurts my heart to see her being held by you even though she was dead.”

Benjamin answered in a calm voice.

“Didn’t you give her a hard time when she was alive?”

Theodore’s hand trembled as he grabbed Benjamin’s collar. The corners of Benjamin’s lips curled up crookedly.

“Yves had a hard time because of you right before she died. So she came to me and asked for help. She wanted to leave.”

“…Yves, so where is she?”

However, Theodore tried to find Yves instead of being swayed by Benjamin’s provoking words.

“She doesn’t want to be with you. Why are you looking for her for?”

“You bastard!”

Theodore’s fist slammed into Benjamin’s face.

“Give me her ashes. It must be somewhere!”

Benjamin grinned, rubbing his punched cheek.

“It must have fallen to ashes in Ferdinand’s courtyard.”

Theodore removed Benjamin and plunged into the courtyard, where only black ashes remained. He fell on the pile of ashes around the extinguished embers, crawling on all fours, chasing Yves’s traces.

His clothes were stained with dry earth and black ashes. But he couldn’t feel her anywhere.

”Yves, no……Yves….”

Theodore sobbed as he clasped both his hands full of dirt and ashes. The ashes scattered between his fingers were in vain. Benjamin looked at Theodore like a bug and turned around.

***