“Bring me some cold tea.”

The Emperor strode into the living room and exhaled coldly.

“No, cold water first.”

The chief attendant hurriedly got water and offered it. The water was lukewarm, not cold.

He said he didn’t like drinking cold water, but today he was frustrated. The Emperor lowered the glass of water, hitting the floor and said,

“Bring some ice!”

The chief attendant beckoned to the young attendant.

The young attendant went back and forth without a sound. He had to hurry to get the ice from the ice house.

The Emperor sat down in the armchair. Then, he untied his collar, which was holding his neck.

The chief attendant came running and took off his shoes and socks himself. It was unlikely that the Emperor would want to change into comfortable clothes.

Instead, he carefully removed the heavy gold ornaments and insignia from the robes in a way that would not be intrusive.

“Call Keshore.”

The chief attendant beckoned quickly. Another attendant ran out.

The Emperor closed his eyes.

He realized that he had been caught by a checkmate.

The Emperor thought he was in control of the situation until now.

He was still thinking like that, even if there was only one member of the Imperial Family worthy of being his successor, Cedric.

Cedric had a weak political base. The Emperor could reject him if he wished.

Now, power is being reorganized around Cedric, but that was because he eventually allowed it.

The Emperor could have overturned the line of succession by putting his illegitimate children; his two daughters or their children.

Even if the Empress did not agree, it did not mean that there were no means at all.

What will the Empress do if he catches the children of Viscounty Pescher and the Empress’ old friends and threatens them?

He decided to take Cedric.

There were many reasons, whether Leticia was favored by God, or for the future of his daughters.

But above all else, it was because the Emperor himself wanted to end his reign peacefully.

He was realizing that he was old.

He felt even more so after losing Miraila. He was lonely in his own way.

The Emperor thought that it could also be due to the political events of the past few years.

There were flaws with his solid power.

Each time he did, he felt his own aging.

In the end, that’s why he chose Cedric.

The Emperor himself also wanted peace. He did not want to be recorded in the history books that he lost his authority due to his old age and that he could not even properly select the next ruler.

But now the problem is different.

‘Is Tia really a Saintess?’

It just felt like nonsense.

The Emperor thought he knew Artizea well.

She calculated her gains and odds and moved on.

She was not ashamed to flatter the strong, nor did she consider it a humiliation to be servile in order to win.

She joins hands with those whom she needs, and betrays those whom she does not need. She would have calculated the values ​​of loyalty and good faith with the same formula.

Still, there was only one reason why she decided to present the oracle like this.

‘Even if I am angry, it must be too late to turn it around.’

After considering that it was more advantageous to carry the oracle than be the Emperor’s favorite, she revealed what she had hidden.

Indeed, now the Emperor has lost the right to choose his heir.

Even if he changes his mind now, he can’t stop the Crown Prince’s coronation.

It is not a matter of whether it was in a few days or that envoys from other countries have already arrived.

Rather, it was a question of legitimacy.

An oracle came down that a Saintess would become the Empress.

Then, the Saintess’ husband would become the Emperor. If that person was the immediate Imperial Family, there was nothing more to say.

Cedric’s legitimacy no longer lies in being the Emperor’s adopted son.

Even if he breaks the adoption bond and returns him to Evron instead of Krates, the temple and the people will not doubt that Cedric is the next Emperor.

‘What a shame.’

There was nothing the Emperor could do at this point.

It was right after the oracle was declared. Any attempt to bring Cedric down from here would only make them an apostate.

No matter how powerful the Emperor was, he could not face the temple carrying the oracle on their back.

So, it would be good to be happy and relieved that Cedric was adopted as the Crown Prince before the oracle is revealed.

At least, he decided to select the Crown Prince not because it was pushed by the oracle.

The existence of the oracle did not remove the reason he chose Cedric as his heir.

For his daughters, for a peaceful hierarchy, for a stable reign, he knew there was no other alternative.

The servant brought tea full of ice. The Emperor gulped down the tea.

He felt a tingling sensation in the depths of his head.

The attendant announced,

“Sir Keshore has entered.”

“Come in.”

Keshore came in and knelt down on one of his knees in a neat position.

“Did you call, Your Majesty?”

The Emperor looked at him with red-hot eyes.

There is nothing in the world that is completely believable. The Emperor already did not believe in loyalty.

Nevertheless, a hot lump of heat formed on his chest. He saw it not as a sense of betrayal, but as a sense of failure.

He had failed to grasp Keshore, nor to hold onto his allegiance.

“You know, right?”

“…….”

“From the beginning, I did not believe in the miracles of Saintess Olga. Rather, I thought Tia must have gotten some good medicine from somewhere.”

The Emperor exhaled.

“It was healing through the power of the divine.”

“I don’t think you will believe me, but…… I did not know, either.”

Keshore said politely.

“When Grand Duchess Evron saved my daughter, she made me promise in advance not to want to know her way. To make it a miracle of Saintess Olga.”

“…….”

“So I never asked what method she used as promised, and I followed the advice to only think of it as a miracle of Saintess Olga.”

“Still, you must have guessed something.”

“The last saint appeared more than a hundred years ago. Furthermore……. It’s difficult for me to say these things, I’m not even that faithful…….”

Keshore said with his head bowed.

“When asked to keep it a secret, I thought that she might have done something forbidden by the imperial law.”

The Emperor shut his mouth and looked down on Keshore.

He was angry, but he couldn’t find fault. The Emperor himself thought so.

Nevertheless, it was unacceptable.

“The reason I trusted you was because you weren’t close to anyone.”

“Yes.”

“Now I can’t trust you. I’ll only let you stay until the ceremony.”

Keshore made no excuses. Instead, he said,

“I am only sorry for disappointing you.”

The Emperor beckoned him to leave.

Tiredness came suddenly. The Emperor stared into the air, buried deep in his armchair.

“An oracle?”

That couldn’t be true.

But the power was real.

‘I had wondered how she persuaded Brother Colton, it seems that things have been intertwined since then.’

If so, it is quite a long time ago that Artizea hid that she was the Saintess.

The Emperor grinded his teeth.

‘Since the time of Bishop Akim, she has already been aiming for the throne. It wasn’t that she was harmed, but she used that as an opportunity to wipe out a faction from within the temple.’

Perhaps, her collapse was a self-made play.

The things before that.

Tired from the depths of his eyes, the Emperor covered his eyes with his palms.

“Miraila…….”

He doesn’t know how long it’s been since he called that name.

What the Emperor did not suspect until now was that he believed that, in the end, what Artizea wanted, no matter by what means, was recognition and love.

The ambition to lust for power was incompatible with it.

At least, that’s what he thought so far.

That premise is completely wrong.

What he thought to be a cute opponent was actually the most intimidating enemy.

＊＊＊

Artizea had a dream.

In her dream she was hanging in the dungeon.

[“It’s terrible. She’s still alive.”]

[“It is the power of the Empress.”]

[“Shh. If the new Empress hears the story…….”]

One of the guards stopped his colleagues.

[“Damn it, listen. My Empress is only the Saintess.”]

[“Why did she bless such a woman?”]

[“Isn’t that very reasonable? Rather than dying right away and getting comfortable peace.”]

[“Well, that’s true, too.”]

At the time, she didn’t even have the strength to think about it.

But now, looking back, it was right.

The cause and effect was really terrible. It must have been a forgiveness for Lysia to bestow her blessing on her, but it was only prolonging her painful time.

‘Why does God make oracles?’

Now that she thinks about it, she couldn’t even understand the oracle that had been given to Lysia.

Although Lysia had enormous divine powers, she was not a being that transcends humans.

Can one person save the world?

Should they sacrifice that one person if she could save the world?

Artizea didn’t know. She was neither a philosopher nor a believer.

Artizea had dreams about the ruined East and the ruined West.

[“Is it necessary or not?”]

Cedric said,

[“Does that person not conscious of wanting to cherish and value what’s oneself and make it a good thing?”]

Lysia said,

[“Please tell him that Lysia went without regrets.”]

Come to think of it, Artizea didn’t know what was the real oracle she had been given.

* * *

When she woke up, her body was as tired as a wet cotton.

“Madam, are you okay?”

Sophie looked into her face in surprise.

Artizea tried to say that she was fine, but her neck was choked and the sound seldom came out.

Her divine power was too inefficient. There was no way to know how much of life force was consumed.

It was far better to use magic as she was able to accurately calculate the cost.

If she could use magic, of course she would have. She would have had a greater effect by healing the Karam half-blood on the spot.