🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 52
The Emperor had not yet arrived at the reception room. From the chief attendant’s tone, it felt like he wanted to end this meeting with Calix as quickly as possible. The delay was clearly intentional.
Calix suddenly thought the whole thing was a ridiculous play.
They both knew what the other wanted, and they both knew that the other knew. Yet, they were pretending not to, hiding their real intentions behind polite words.
So when the Emperor finally entered the room, Calix skipped the formal greetings and went straight to the point.
“I will give Your Majesty what you want.”
The Emperor froze for a moment at the door, then gestured toward the sofa, telling him to sit. Calix reluctantly sat facing her.
She smiled, as if amused by his lack of manners.
“You’ve become rude since I last saw you, Duke.”
“Forgive me. I lost my parents early, so I never learned proper manners,” Calix bowed his head as though sincerely apologizing.
A moment of silence passed, then the Emperor burst into loud laughter. The attendants flinched, but Calix kept his head bowed, refusing to look at her.
When her laughter finally stopped, the Emperor spoke with a smile.
“You’ve even gotten better at joking since the last time we met.”
“Yes. I taught myself,” Calix answered calmly.
The Emperor tilted her head.
“And what exactly is it you think I want?”
Calix had already thought about this countless times on his way here. He wanted this conversation to end quickly, even before tea was served.
He remembered the fact that the Emperor still hadn’t found the person who tried to poison Rena.
In truth, it would be better for him if the Emperor and that culprit just killed each other.
He couldn’t simply say, “I know who tried to kill Rena,” because that would only make the Emperor suspicious of his motives.
Instead, he offered an even bigger bait—something the Emperor couldn’t refuse.
“What Your Majesty wants… the thing in the basement.”
The Emperor’s face stiffened slightly. That tiny reaction sent a thrill through Calix.
The Emperor signaled for the attendants to leave. Now alone, she asked in a flat voice,
“The thing in the basement? What do you mean?”
Calix clenched his fists to hide his anger.
“Yes. The thing in the basement. I will give it to you. That’s what you’ve wanted from the start, isn’t it?”
“How could you possibly do that?”
“I thought Your Majesty already knew,” Calix said.
Tension filled the room. He stared at the Emperor without blinking.
“Isn’t that why you summoned my mage?”
The words “my mage” were a clear sign of possession. Calix didn’t even bother to hide it.
The Emperor didn’t reply. At that moment, a knock came at the door. Tea was served, but neither of them looked at it.
Finally, the Emperor asked quietly,
“What does your mage have to do with the thing in the basement?”
Calix answered with a sharp question of his own.
“You’re not asking because you don’t know, are you?”
“What exactly do you want?”
The Emperor smiled.
“I’ve never seen you like this before, Duke. Is it really worth it?”
“Hearing those words from Your Majesty… feels strange,” Calix said.
The Emperor leaned back casually.
“The girl you brought… she’s pretty, I’ll admit. But is she worth all this trouble?”
Calix silently wished the Emperor would never understand Rena’s value—or even notice her.
“She belongs to me. So the decision of her worth is mine alone.”
“You’ve not only lost your manners, but also your self-control, Duke.”
“Forgive me. I was never taught any better,” Calix replied, almost sounding like a gangster.
The Emperor only observed him without comment.
After a short pause, she sighed and leaned back into the sofa.
“Well, it’s not my business who you value.”
Calix clenched his jaw but said nothing.
The Emperor then changed the topic, her voice cold.
“Rumors travel fast, even inside the palace. They say the woman you’re keeping looks like the missing daughter of Truxia. What do you think, Duke? Does she?”
“…Yes,” Calix finally replied with a suppressed voice.
“She does look a lot like her.”
“I see,” the Emperor answered, sounding uninterested.
“Well, you’ve always been close with Truxia anyway.”
Then she asked coldly,
“If I ordered you to bring that traitor to me right now, could you?”
Calix didn’t answer.
The Emperor smirked and sipped her tea.
“I don’t care what games you’re playing with that girl. There are plenty of women like her outside the palace.
But only she can give me what I want.”
The meaning was obvious.
“…I will tell you when I’m ready,” Calix said at last.
“You’d better hurry,” the Emperor warned.
“Or I might get bored and start interfering in your love life.”
The meeting was over. Calix bowed and left without touching the tea.
The chief attendant tried to escort him out, but Calix refused.
“That won’t be necessary. I have somewhere else to go.”
Calix quickly left the Emperor’s palace and hid behind the garden bushes. He bent over, suppressing a wave of nausea.
He had basically told the Emperor he would hand over the dragon in exchange for ignoring Rena’s existence.
It was necessary. This was a decision that had to be made eventually. But the disgust of making the deal himself made him sick.
He couldn’t bear to see Rena’s face right now. He walked deep into the garden where no one would find him.
Of course, he had no intention of actually giving the dragon to the Emperor. The dragon was bait.
He would lure the Emperor outside the imperial palace with it.
Once the Emperor stepped into Truxia to see the dragon, she would be walking straight into Calix’s trap.
“She’ll die with the dragon in her sight. That’s the only death she deserves,” Calix thought.
But the guilt remained. He had made a deal with Rena’s life without telling her. And now, he would have to continue acting behind her back.
“Even if it’s just bait… I traded the dragon for her safety. She can never know.”
