Chapter 97

97 “The Rise Of The New Sun”

Emperor Valerian cut off Empress Catharine’s words and glared at her dangerously.

‘What? You want to leave me?...just why?’

As Catherine was someone with low magic powers, Valerian’s dominant pure fire magic power forced her to submit to him and shiver in fear.

Realising this, Valerian immediately controlled his mana powers and wanted to comfort Catherine.

“A-Am sorry... i didn’t meant to-”

Catherine backed off and Valerian’s hands which wanted to touch her face was left hanging on air.

“Heh... isn’t this how it has been going on from the very beginning, Vale? This is how you forced me to marry you after i refused to marry the emperor.

Now my homeland doesn’t even exists on the map because of your love! I become someone who destroyed her own country’s fate because of you!

My father wasn’t good, i was abused by my stepmother, my stepsisters mocked me but still i never felt so helpless and terrified like now, Vale!

.....

I loved Vale, who was a prince of a small kingdom, not the Emperor of Valentino Empire, who bought me as some victory trophy from my kingdom!!!”

“We are the same person-”

“No, you are not the same person. The person i meet at my garden after getting beat up by my stepmother was a warm and innocent person. He wasn’t cold like you, Emperor Valerian-”

Before Catherine could say something else, Valerian had sealed her lips off with his.

Catherine punched him a few times but she couldn’t even resist him. He was the man she loved and the father of her child.

“Don’t even think about leaving me, Cathy... I can’t live without you.”

Valerian spoke as he kissed her bare shoulders and hugged her tightly in the bed, running his fingers on her bulged belly where the child was growing.

But Catherine just stayed silent and let him do whatever he wanted. There was no use of talking with him.

After calming her down a little bit, Emperor Valerian ordered the empress to stay in the emperor palace till the delivery and wasn’t allowed to step out or have any visitor.

Catherine didn’t stepped out of the emperor palace and stayed there obediently till her due date.

And when she came out, it was only her exhausted cold death body.

She had given Valerian the greatest punishment ever by leaving him all alone for the rest of his life.

Which Valerian could never even think in his dreams. He was desperate, trying to warm up her body but there was no use.

The poison might have killed her physically but he had killed her... soul. She was tired to the point she just stopped talking with him.

Valerian desperately wanted to follow her. But if he also followed her, wouldn’t he be just like his own father?

Isn’t this was the reason he had to struggle so hard to make him stronger, to the point he failed to notice her pain?

He can’t let the child, Whom Catherine loved so much, to struggle all alone like him in the imperial palace.

It was only Cathain, for whom he had the courage to live till now.

How the child cried on his arms, how the child smiled at him, hugged him to sleep, called him father with that child’s tiny hands caressing his face.

Valerian had vowed to cherish the child and gave him all the happiness, until when Cathain turned three and he had to break his own vows.

Emperor Valerian was running after the little prince as always to feed him and then the little prince finally got exhausted.

Valerian took the little prince on his lap and sit on a chair to feed him some more.

He had a warm and gentle look on his face as he kept staring at the little chubby bun like Cathain, who was eating happily as he finally got hungry.

But then, suddenly Valerian felt like Cathain’s mana level dropping then usual and his body started to get cold.

‘Huh? Cain?’

Little Cathain’s head was hanging low and Valerian turned him to see his face but he felt like his heart had stopped for the second time after Catherine’s death.

“Cathain!!!”

Valerian stood up from his sit as he run towards the main palace while ordering the guards to catch every maid and call for a doctor.

Little Cathain had his eyes closed and blood in his mouth as he leaned peacefully on his father’s chest.

‘Please, God... He is everything i have left right now. Don’t take him away from me... I beg you...’

Several doctors came in but none of them was useful. They failed to diagnosis the little prince.

Just as everyone was losing their hopes for the survival of the crown prince, Valerian’s shshattered hopes came back.

“Summon Duchess of Dalton, Right now!!!”

In a short period of moment, Alexander came in while he helped Eunicelia, who was at the middle stages of her pregnancy came in.

“Your Majesty! What happened to the crown prince!”

Eunicelia ignored the imperial customs and hurried to the bed where little Cathain was laying down in worry.

“Everyone get out.”

As per Valerian’s order, all the maids and knights got out while closing the door.

And to Eunicelia’s surprise, Valerian had actually kneeled down infront of her.

“Your Majesty!”

Even Alexander was surprised to see Valerians action.

“Duchess... I know i shouldn’t ask you this considering you health but i can’t see my only son dying like this... Please help me.”

“Your Majesty... you don’t have to say this. And please stand up.”

But Valerian kept on kneeling, even Alexander couldn’t make him stand up.

“No... it’s a request from a father to save his son. I will do anything you want. Even the throne... but please save him.”

Eunicelia didn’t spoke anything and sighed before she finally decided to speak.

“Maybe my daughter is really fated with your son.”

After Eunicelia got pregnant, they got the prophecy of the saintess being reborn again, who will be the prince’s bride.

At first, Eunicelia didn’t believed it. But then when one day she accidentally cut her hands and saw it healing itself, she knew it was the powers of the child inside her belly.

This matter was only known between the emperor and the ducal couple as it was better to kept it a secret.

And coincidentally, now this can help this little prince. But she can only heal him, the poison inside of him was so strong that no holy powers can fix it.

“Your Majesty, i can heal him but i need someone to take the poison inside of his body.

He hasn’t awakened his magic powers yet so it’s possible to transfer the poison with someone compatible.

If the poison kept mingling with his magic powers and grows more, it would be hard to control it.”

“Exchange it with me!”

Valerian replied in an instant without thinking twice.

As long as he can protect their son, everything is fine even if he have to take poison for him. But seem like his time is up too.

That day, Eunicelia had asked her to look after her daughter and he have already prepared the gift to help Eleanora.

With this, he have no more tasks left except seeing his little prince grow up a little more.

Cathain couldn’t blame his father as he was the same in his past life.

At least to him, his father was better who had no one else except her mother, but what he got to know from Eleanora...

Cathain sighed as he looked at his sick father, kn a day, he has aged like ten years.

“Don’t worry, mother will forgive you.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

Both father and son smiled at each other as emperor Valerian thought his son has really grown up.

He could finally close his eyes to fall into a peaceful deep sleep.

“Forgive me for being strict with you all this time but I have always loved you, son.”

A tear drop left Cathain’s eyes as he also closed his eyes bear the pain.

“I love you too, Father.”

...

A little later the tightly closed bedroom door opened, and the crown prince walked out without expression.

.....

The whole night has passed and the morning sun was rising up slowly, the dark sky was fading away in bright sunlight.

Everyone standing outside had held their breathes in and from the crown prince’s expression, they could guess what has happened.

When everyone stiffened at the realisation, there was the sound of a bell ringing somewhere.

The bell was resonating grandly throughout the Imperial Palace. It was the bell that announced the emperor’s death.

‘His Majesty has passed away?!’

Eleanora stared at Cathain’s cold face and felt pain in her heart. Just how strong he is for staying calm like this?

People in the hallway, came to their senses at the repeated ringing of bells.

In an instant, Everyone present in the hallway dropped their swords as they all kneeled down in unison infront of Cathain.

It was their homage to the new ruler of the empire, the new sun of the empire.

Eleanora was feeling the most guilty as she kneeled down along with Alexander infront of their new emperor.

The emperor has died when she was eighteen in her previous life, but because of her... he died early.

Everyone was feeling hurt and sorrowful, for sure, except some people.

But most of the people, who were close to the emperor was trying their best to keep up their emotions in, as they yelled at unison in a emotionless voice because they had to.

“Hail to the new sun of our empire... Long live, Emperor Cathain De Valerian Valentino.”