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Chapter 74
Aragon immediately stood up and hurried toward the place where the imperial envoy who had brought the bracelet was said to be.
On the way, a minister followed closely, commenting that he might be acting too hastily.
“Prince Phoebus said he would find the princess and eliminate the threat. Even when a reward was offered for finding the princess, the Empire had no leads at all.”
“However, if she truly went into exile, there’s no place better suited for that than the Delphium Empire,” Aragon replied.
It wasn’t that far by ship.
There were plenty of ships, making it convenient to escape if necessary.
“But Lady Fidelia must have predicted that Phoebus would have sent someone from the Empire to kill her, right?”
“That’s a story for the eastern ports. Prince Phoebus only actually searched near the eastern part of the Empire. The northern and southern regions are notoriously closed off, making them troublesome.”
Aragon burst into the reception room where the Imperial envoy was waiting and swung the door open. There, a man sat leisurely on the sofa, drinking tea.
Upon seeing Aragon, the man smiled warmly, stood, and offered a handshake.
“Pleased to meet you. I am Hilias Perschtain.”
“…The Perschtain family? Aren’t they the grand ducal family governing the north of the Empire?”
The Grand Duke of the Empire had come, carrying his wife’s bracelet.
There were no ports leading north here.
Questions flooded Aragon’s mind: How did Fidelia reach the northern Empire? Where is she now? And is the child she carried safely born and growing well?
“…You brought this bracelet here?”
“As you can see.”
“D-Do you know who owns this bracelet? Where she is? If you could help me find her, I’ll give you a proper reward.”
“Regrettably, Fidelia is dead. About three years ago. I should have brought it sooner, but I apologize. As you know, my position limits my freedom of action.”
The Delphium Empire and the Kingdom of Portlion lay across the sea from each other.
The Emperor of the Empire, wanting to extend his territory across the waters, had once waged a naval war against Portlion.
As history shows, Portlion won, but the Empire continued to eye Portlion for annexation.
Thus, Portlion and Delphium could never truly be on friendly terms.
“….”
Despair spread across the king’s face.
Hilias glanced at Aragon’s expression, smiling faintly.
“―However, the child is alive.”
“…Is that true?”
“That is indeed why I came to see you. To find the child, I need the Kingdom of Portlion’s cooperation. The child is in the southern part of the Empire.”
“The southern Empire?”
“The child is held like a hostage. In the hands of those who killed her mother. Perhaps due to the trauma of that day, she does not even recognize me.”
“What do you mean? She lost her memory? Do you mean the trauma from the day Fidelia died? The child witnessed that scene? Have you had Fidelia with you all these past seven years?”
Hilias quietly handed over a report.
It was a report written seven years ago, part of the routine reports for northern security.
[Seven years ago, August 14th, around 9 PM.
A ship from the Kingdom of Portlion, heading to the Kingdom of Ertea, docked in the Delphium Empire.
The engineer encountered rough waves, damaging the ship, during which a pregnant passenger experienced severe distress.
The pregnant woman was later transferred to a hospital and gave birth.
Detained for unknown reasons.]
“She was transferred to a hospital, gave birth, and detained for unknown reasons. I personally interrogated the stowaways, and it was during that process I realized Fidelia was a princess of Portlion.”
Hilias had recognized her immediately, even while she was detained.
“She is the heir who fled due to the prince’s rebellion. I remembered that Portlion’s royal family had distinctive black hair and green eyes.”
He continued, adding a note of humor.
“In fact, Prince Phoebus once came to me, asking for troops. He said if his rebellion succeeded, he would voluntarily make Portlion a duchy. Of course, I refused. Even if Portlion became a duchy, it would be the Emperor’s duchy, not mine.”
Aragon’s face darkened as he asked, “…How did Fidelia die?”
Hilias’ laughing face instantly hardened.
“The Emperor’s shadow killed her.”
“….”
“The Emperor discovered that the Portlion princess had taken refuge here. He wanted to capture her and use her to subjugate Portlion, but I helped her escape.”
He arranged a ship to another country.
But they didn’t manage to escape.
The carriage carrying her and the child was attacked, and when Hilias arrived, both were gone.
“The carriage was covered in blood. It was clear the Emperor’s shadow had done it. I am sorry I couldn’t protect her.”
“….”
“That was already three years ago. I thought the child was dead, born so small and fragile. Until I saw her myself a few weeks ago.”
“….”
“She was being raised by the southern grand duke, unaware that the one who killed her mother was that very man. The southern grand duke is the Emperor’s shadow. He was the Emperor’s shadow, and now he is the shadow of the Crown Prince, his son.”
After killing Fidelia, he had the conscience to raise the child himself.
“That bastard!”
Aragon slammed his fist on the table, unable to contain his rage.
“I thought she resembled Fidelia perfectly, and seeing her now… She must be your daughter.”
“….”
“It may sound funny to say in front of my husband, but I also loved Fidelia. I knew she always longed for you. Even if I couldn’t be by her side forever, just providing some comfort and a smile was enough for me.”
From the first moment he met her, he had loved Princess Fidelia passionately.
It was a first, unforgettable feeling.
He did not want to let go.
“What must I do to reclaim that child?”
Snapping back from his thoughts, Hilias replied,
“I want to personally deal with Duke Helios. I want support troops to help exact revenge for Fidelia.”
“Support troops?”
“The weapon Portlion developed recently. I want to see it in action.”
“…Very well.”
Aragon agreed, and Hilias smiled.
A sharp, arrogant smile, confident of victory.
Since Pia had not been explained to, people assumed the child Aelin was raising had been born outside by Floan.
At the same time, the Edgar brothers began fussing over Floan.
So then, who really is this child?
If illegitimate, who is the mother? If not, where did the black-haired child come from?
Amid all this attention toward the south, the royal banquet began.
The Empire hosted a grand banquet attended by its top nobles and foreign royals alike.
It celebrated the founding of the Empire and was enormous in scale.
The week-long royal banquet was followed by a two-week festival.
Many sacred ceremonies were held, and foreign travelers visited the Empire.
In other words, the streets were full of sights during this period.
“Wow! Look at that! The roof is red! Wow! That house is amazing too! Wow!”
Pia was glued to the window, thrilled to see the outside world.
It was a relief that she hadn’t been left alone at the southern grand duke’s castle.
Even that morning, she had been scared to go outside the castle.
But now, she was completely overjoyed, much to Aelin’s relief.
