Escape from the evil lady (GL)
Chapter 114 - 22. Mourning at the Imperial Palace

Chapter 114: Chapter 22. Mourning at the Imperial Palace

The Emperor of the empire, Ruvens, has passed away.

As expected after the disappointing verdict of the doctor, the ruler of the empire really could not survive the night. And this loss was definitely a great loss for the entire empire.

The funeral ceremony was held in the presence of all the officials and close servants of the Imperial Palace. After the official ceremony, the portrait of the late ruler, as well as the rest of the deceased members of the Ronan family, was moved to the memorial hall of the imperial family.

For a long time, many people came there to express their condolences and pay their respects to the emperor. And the Empress was also expected to be one of those people. When she came to the memorial hall and looked at the portrait of her husband, the woman’s gaze remained as impartial as ever. After all, the Empress hadn’t even shed a single tear in all this time.

«I never thought that you would actually leave before me...»

Although Valencia Gross de Ronan has kept these feelings in the depths of her soul for many years, but in reality, all this time there was still a residue of resentment for the past. Valencia, being the daughter of a respected noble family, still could not forgive the emperor for the shame and humiliation associated with the fact that the emperor had once preferred a commoner to her. And even if, in the end, the woman still achieved her goal and took the throne, but the unpleasant trail from this story has taken place so far.

After all, the man to whom Valencia devoted her entire life and youth selflessly died this way. The woman had mixed feelings about this. And not so much because she lost her husband, whom she had feelings for... Rather, it was a fear of uncertainty about the future.

«Your Majesty.»

When the Empress continued to stay in the memorial hall for quite a long time without words, a muffled voice from an unknown direction suddenly called out to her. Despite the fact that it happened quite suddenly, the woman did not even flinch. Instead, she said coldly:

«What’s the matter?»

The mercenary who had suddenly appeared from the shadows silently knelt in front of her. The Empress only turned to him with an impassive face.

«Is there still no news about this bastard?» she asked first.

«Unfortunately, no, Your Majesty...» The mercenary replied timidly.

Following his words, the woman exhaled loudly.

After the news of the emperor’s passing, the Empress expected the speedy appearance of her hated stepdaughter in the first place. However, more than enough time had passed when this suspicious silence continued to persist. And the Empress didn’t like it at all.

«What the hell is she thinking?» The Empress whispered angrily, rather addressing herself.

Meanwhile...

«And there was nothing suspicious going on at the Heilos residence either?»

«No,» the servant shook his head, «We continue to monitor from the side, but during all this time, neither the Crown Princess nor the Dark Host have done anything special.

The Empress was genuinely confused by this situation, which seemed incredible to her.

«How come...?»

Kaena de Ronan, who had longed for the throne and the overthrow of the imperial family for many years, should have taken this opportunity without hesitation to carry out her plan. Moreover, Kaena was the main successor of the late emperor. This meant that even based on state law, she still had to come to the palace to assert her authority.

So why is that...

At this time, while the Empress was deep in thought, a thought suddenly came to her mind.

«Really... Could it really be related to that girl’s escape?»

Even though it was really hard for Valencia to believe it, but nevertheless... In the current situation, she couldn’t deny that possibility either.

According to imperial law, the emperor’s successor had to ascend the throne within forty days of the death of the previous emperor. If this did not happen for any reason, then this issue was put up for discussion by the Council of Ministers, where the decision was made on an individual basis. And if the circumstances turned out that way, then the place of the successor could go to the next candidate in line.

In fact, it was the easiest and most uncompromising way to take the throne from the imperial heir, who for some reason proved unsuitable for confirmation on the throne. However, even though it was the simplest and most obvious way, the Empress had never even considered such a possibility before.

That’s because the probability that Kaena Gessen de Ronan, for some reason, would not be able to inherit the crown or even give up the throne herself was almost zero.

And yet... Fifteen of the scheduled forty days have passed since the death of the previous emperor. This meant that there was only less than a month left until the moment when Kaena could be officially declared «unfit» for the throne.

The Empress, who was thinking about this for the first time, felt a strange excitement.

«If this girl really doesn’t show up here in the next few weeks, then everything can really be over...» In this case, Jerica will be able to inherit the throne after her older sister legally, and they won’t even have to resort to extreme measures.

As for the reason why that bastard ignored the emperor’s death... Only one thing came to the Empress’ mind.

The youngest daughter of Duke de Walt, who has recently become almost the most important person in this empire. After all, several of the most influential people in the state had their eyes on this insignificant person at the same time.

If the Crown Princess was really so interested in this girl that she even neglected her ambitions for power, then Valencia thought that this might really be a good way to settle everything.

«If I can use her, and thus voluntarily force that bastard to give up the throne... Wouldn’t that be the best way out of the situation?»

Valencia Gross de Ronan clenched her fists tightly when she thought about it.

«Your Majesty...?» the mercenary meanwhile called out uncertainly to the Empress when she had remained silent for some time.

«Are you still here?»

«Oh, yes, I...» the servant stammered over his words.

The Empress looked at him and exhaled angrily again.

«You’ve already wasted enough time,» she said. «Instead of continuing to hang around here, finally get down to business!

— ...

«The fate of the empire depends on it. Do you realize that?» The mother of the empire’s people continued to put pressure on her servant, «I want to get my hands on that girl. It doesn’t matter if she’s alive or dead!

***

There was silence in the memorial hall, illuminated by the soft candlelight. The second princess of the empire knelt in front of her father’s portrait and stared at him. The girl’s heart was heavy with grief, and the thought that she would never see her father again was not easy for her.

Jerica de Ronan really found it hard to believe that the emperor was no longer with them.

When the princess closed her eyes, the time she spent with her father involuntarily flew by in front of them. First of all, the princess recalled her happy childhood, which was due to the fact that she was raised by loving parents. Of course, the girl couldn’t help but feel sorrow and remorse now.

«When my father was still alive, I had to spend more time with him, despite my busy schedule.»

However, regardless of all the regrets, the lost time and opportunity could not be returned.

At this time, while the second princess was deeply grieving for the deceased emperor, her loyal subordinate quietly entered the memorial hall. He was the only person here, apart from the Princess herself, who had not left the memorial hall for several days.

«Your Highness.»

Despite the fact that Selman Hirsch said it quietly enough, she still heard him.

— Selman...» Jerica slowly turned to look at him, «Are you back?»

«Yes,» the deputy princess nodded, «Let me inform you of my return, Your Highness.»

«...»

Jerica de Ronan sighed softly as she turned back to the portrait.

«You’ve been away for quite a while, but it looks like you’re fine now. It’s good.»

— Ahem...

«What is it?»

«Your Highness, I have something to report to you, but it might not be the right time to do so...» The deputy princess hesitated involuntarily.

«No, it’s okay,» Jerica objected, «you can talk.»

Selman Hirsch cleared his throat.

— In that case... — he continued, — I finally managed to find out the location of Lady de Walt.

At this moment, the second princess’ previous depressed state underwent a drastic change.

«Really?» she asked immediately.

«Following your orders, I have been secretly searching for the lady throughout this time. Even though I didn’t get any results for a long time, but I didn’t give up, and eventually I managed to discover some clues,» the knight said, «I continued to ask the locals and heard strange rumors about a certain lady and her companions, whom no one had seen before in that area. the terrain. And so I finally managed to get to this information.

— Are you sure that the information you received is reliable?

— That’s right, — he confirmed, — I even managed to see the lady personally.

— Really? In that case... Where is she right now? Have you managed to contact her? — The princess continued to ask.

— I tried to do it, however... — The princess’s assistant stammered, — In the end, I didn’t succeed because I wasn’t the only one who was following Lady de Walt.

— what?

— When I wanted to get close to her, I definitely felt a dark energy that I couldn’t mistake for anyone else. It was definitely the magic of the Crown Princess.

— ...

«Her people are also watching the lady,» Selman continued seriously, «and if I had taken a single step, they would certainly have found me out.

«...»

Jerica de Ronan was not a little confused by everything she heard.

«what? But why is Kaena doing this...?»

It was completely different from the nature of the older sister she knew. Kaena de Ronan had never stood on ceremony with people before, and especially with those who betrayed her. And from the outside, the Duke’s youngest daughter’s act could be interpreted in this way. After all, Camilla secretly ran away with her brother at night, and, among other things, even forced Kaena to lower her guard with sleeping pills... After such an outburst, the Crown Princess would undoubtedly want to retaliate in the most terrible way.

But then why... All this time, the Crown Princess was aware of the whereabouts of the duke’s daughter, but only continued to monitor her without doing anything? What exactly is she trying to achieve with this?

If only...

Is it possible that Lady de Walt may be in even greater danger than they are able to imagine? Otherwise, Jerica simply couldn’t believe that her ruthless and insane older sister could leave such a situation unchecked.

Of course, the second princess also felt a considerable amount of guilt and responsibility for what had happened. After all, she was the one who initiated this dangerous operation from the very beginning, because of which the innocent lady’s life was now under great threat. Therefore, the girl could not just leave everything to sit idly by.

— ...In that case, I should immediately warn Lady de Walt of the danger that may threaten her, — Jerica said seriously.

— No, you shouldn’t do that! — Her subordinate suddenly protested.

— what? — Jerica de Ronan was surprised by his reaction.

«I’m sure that the Empress’s people are still keeping an eye on you outside the palace,» Selman said, «so if you really go there and meet the lady, you’ll only help the Empress reveal her location.»

— ...

«Indeed.»

Now that she thought about it, the second princess couldn’t help but conclude that her assistant’s words definitely made sense.

«But then what do we do?» The princess asked, confused.

At that moment, Selman Hirsch suddenly stepped forward.

«Your Highness, you’d better entrust this matter to me!» The knight stated resolutely, «I will certainly do my best to uncover the Crown Princess’ motives and protect Lady de Walt from danger.