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Chapter 19
Only an Empty Voice Remains
“I’ve never thought about it.”
“Adeline.”
“Not once.”
Adeline decided to be honest. She didn’t want to lie to the Lion King. So even though she knew he might get angry, she just spoke the truth: she had never imagined what would come after her revenge.
She expected him to be furious, but the Lion King wasn’t. His hand, which had been covering her cheek, slowly lifted.
Did he lose interest? It didn’t matter. She had always been this way. The warm, soft dreams that everyone carried in their hearts had never existed for her. She had no grand yet ordinary dream of someday building a small cottage and living there with the people she loved. Not even before becoming the emperor’s daughter. She simply couldn’t picture herself living like that. She had no vague hope that waiting patiently would make everything work out. That was why she had walked such a lonely path.
What Adeline held onto were things like this: deep sorrow, relentless patience, and countless enemies. She believed these defined her.
“Adeline.”
The Lion King, who had been silent, finally spoke. She was prepared to endure any criticism he might throw at her.
But he smiled. His expression was the same as always.
“You know very little about yourself.”
“What?”
“Let’s leave it at that for today. I’ll reward you in the South, just as you said. That was my original intention too, and you said you could confidently give it.”
“Ratchi.”
“If you want to give gifts to your subordinates, give them personally. They’ll be happy.”
The Lion King’s hand, which had left her cheek, now rested on her shoulder. It was a gentle, comfortable gesture, like one between real companions or friends. After patting her shoulder twice, he took out his long black cloak and draped it over himself.
“Let’s go.”
“Where are we going?”
“To your palace. You’ll stay there tonight.”
Why? Adeline asked with her eyes.
The Lion King didn’t answer. He stepped outside, opened the carriage door she had arrived in, then picked up her hesitant waist in one motion and placed her inside.
The Duke of Nord Hill was a militarist, a model soldier who rose to command through the royal guard. But to wield power in Marma, politics was essential. Intrigue, manipulation, and slander were basics. Sometimes innocent people were killed, and the emperor betrayed.
One day, this country would have to face the wolf packs lurking beyond its borders. Nova’s young king, Odium’s Lion King, Babel’s warmonger — none of them were easy opponents. If they all invaded at once, it would mean destruction. That’s why, as soon as possible, the lazy pacifists of the country had to be driven out and a strong army built.
The duke never doubted his beliefs. He raised an army to use as his last resort in the worst moments.
He first gathered the talented. Then, he entrusted the young men he personally selected to experienced leaders to shape them into weapons. He was confident that at least the so-called royal guard of the imperial castle could never defeat his trained soldiers.
“You know better than anyone that your family has long protected Marma. So I told those claiming treason that the duke was just overly cautious.”
“…Your Majesty.”
“After all, aren’t they gathered to protect the country?”
The emperor didn’t shout, didn’t punish the duke. He simply stripped the duke’s long-hidden claws. He sent the duke’s soldiers far away.
“Send them to the western coast. All of them. I heard pirate raids are severe, causing disputes at every port.”
The emperor, pondering, pointed with a faint smile to a region along Marma’s western coast.
“It’s where pirates often appear. Send everyone there. Then the duke can be announced as having acted out of patriotism, not rebellion.”
The Saurian Archipelago, one of Marma’s remote areas, home to free people along the western coast.
Soon, news spread that the Duke of Nord Hill had retreated into seclusion. He deeply regretted offending the emperor and swore never to act rashly again.
Late at night, carriages arrived at Nord Hill’s mansion, windows covered, no heraldry, no guards. They parked at the back, moving like guilty men. The nobles following the duke were protecting the emperor’s line.
“A generational change is needed for the royal family.”
The nobles shouted in unison. It wasn’t long before the tormented duke presented Crown Prince Cesare to them.
After casually mentioning that he would stay at Adeline’s western palace for the night, the Lion King truly followed her.
The chefs prepared a lavish dinner for the two. They ate late, then walked through the nighttime garden.
Spring came early in Marma. The cold, dry winds carried a touch of warmth. The thin ice along the pond’s edge had completely melted.
“Ratchi, earlier…”
Adeline spoke again, unsettled by their conversation at his house. She didn’t usually linger on ended conversations, but facing him up close made her words fidgety.
He gently patted the back of her head as if it were nothing.
“Don’t forget, Adeline.”
“Forget what?”
“I’m the man who proposed to you.”
The Lion King said it as if it absolved her, and she couldn’t help but respond.
“What do you mean? You only did that to form a forced, strategic partnership. You said it was the best way, right?”
“Adeline, I’ve said it before: I don’t think I need multiple wives.”
“Why…?”
Adeline widened her eyes, looking at him, then furrowed her brow and asked:
“Could it be… if I accepted your proposal, you wouldn’t marry anyone else for life?”
“Yes.”
“Even if we didn’t become such good friends now, and I left after achieving all my goals…?”
“Yes. That was my plan.”
Adeline lost her words and stopped walking. She grabbed his arm, halting his steps as well.
“Ratchi, you are a king.”
“To the people of Odium, I think giving them the southern plains is better than bringing a queen.”
“I wouldn’t betray you now. No matter how cruel or vile I am, I won’t betray you.”
“You are neither vile nor cruel.”
“Ratchi.”
“Then there’s no need for a proposal now?”
Adeline gazed at the night sky floating above the pond, then stepped back to look at him.
Even draped in black, he shone. Ratchi El Baltica. The wild lion amidst dense greenery. And the wandering star circling above. A surreal scene, like something out of a poet’s tale, unfolded in her heart.
A lion is a lion, even in darkness. No matter how beautiful the western palace is, it couldn’t capture his presence fully.
What should she say about their relationship? She knew she couldn’t have him, even if he desired her. Adeline had no such greed. When she vowed to live a life of revenge, she first abandoned this kind of happiness: excitement, thrills, sweet dreams. This perfect man could not be hers. Accepting that left her heart hollow, bitter.
Adeline stepped back from the Lion King and said,
“I need to stand this far.”
“Say what?”
“To see all of you at once.”
He was too big to see clearly up close. She smiled.
“If I cling close, I see nothing but your face. Do you know what that feels like?”
A cryptic statement, but he tried to understand. He mulled over her words carefully, visibly thinking them through. That alone was enough, but Adeline spoke once more.
“How closely are you really seeing me?”
“What do you mean?”
“Can you see everything in my eyes?”
She didn’t mean it literally. The Lion King thought quietly.
“You mean… not to ignore your situation, your dreams, your heart with no rest… to face them squarely?”
“You were really a model student.”
Adeline smiled and nodded. She approached him again, whispering:
“Ratchi, you have to go back.”
Her voice faded gently.
“I once thought… if I were born an ordinary princess, loved and raised, wouldn’t I have fallen in love at first sight with you? Wouldn’t I cling, thinking my love was the only truth in this false world?”
A sweet fantasy.
“But even in that fantasy, we weren’t eternal. You are the king of Odium. The leader of twelve tribes. You must bear responsibility for them. I… cannot even imagine the burden you carry.”
“That’s my share. You don’t need to worry.”
“What I want is someone’s ruin. What I bear is my own punishment.”
“Adeline!”
“How could I come to you? I have chosen to accept my sins willingly. Guilt? Grudge? All mine. I won’t cling to you for relief. As I said, it’s all mine.”
We could be the best partners, but likely not lovers.
“I’ll give you the South. When this is over, return to the desert.”
Her words were clear.
“You are asleep.”
Nabi whispered tiredly.
Adeline, after returning from the walk,
