Reborn as a Mind-Reading Empress
Chapter 31: Truth

Chapter 31: Truth

Arabella flinched at Alwin’s words. Everything he said was true though.

Alwin was loyal to Ferdinand so it was only normal he would be furious at her after everything she had done.

She panicked when she thought Alwin glanced at her and walked in her direction.

However, he simply walked to the window to get a good view of the capital.

Alwin chanted a spell and a gigantic magic circle loomed above Riva. It glowed as he activated it.

A golden green light filled the capital and when it vanished, Riva was no longer in flames.

The raging flames were gone as if they were not there just moments ago. Even the dark smoke had vanished.

Alwin chanted and all of a sudden, the rain poured in torrents as if trying to douse out any remaining embers and calm the chaos.

The clamor of swords and battle ceased.

’He was this powerful?!’

Arabella was flabbergasted at what she just witnessed. But it wasn’t the time to be amazed.

"Valeria will never fall. All of your schemes have failed. You may have fooled the Empress and everyone else but not me," Alwin glared at the maid.

"Your comrade thinks he had escaped but I already know where he went. I can simply find him wherever he goes later," Alwin grimaced.

He had intentionally shown off what he could do so Renee would stop clinging to the hope that Marcus would come and save her.

"How? How do you know all these?" Renee paled. "You just arrived and yet-"

"I don’t have to explain to you," Alwin barked.

Arabella braced herself as she silently watched Renee tremble at the piercing glare Alwin kept throwing at her.

The maid relented and finally explained when she realized she could only prolong her life by cooperating.

Arabella keenly listened as Renee answered all of Alwin’s questions. She was dumbfounded at everything she learned.

. . .

Marcus and Renee performed a ritual to possess both Arabella and Ferdinand’s bodies.

The ritual could only be performed once the soul and body of those to be possessed were both weakened. Thus, the two waited until Arabella and Ferdinand were both in their weakest state.

They let Arabella continue with her plots all for this day to come.

Renee succeeded in possessing Arabella’s body through a ritual that exchanged their bodies first.

Arabella’s body was healed as she was dying so she didn’t die. However, she remained unconscious as the ritual progressed and her soul was transferred to Renee’s body and vice versa.

In order to make it permanent, the ritual required Renee to kill Arabella who was now in her body.

It was why there was a dagger planted in Renee’s chest. The latter did not hesitate to stab her own body just to be in Arabella’s.

Marcus on the other hand did not succeed to possess Ferdinand’s body.

In Ferdinand’s case, it was too late to heal him. He was already dead.

But, Renee revealed that Marcus said as long as the soul was still around, he could heal the body and possess it.

However, Marcus’ magic did not work because, they discovered, there were a lot of spells and seals on Ferdinand’s body, and were still in effect even after he died.

Further, Ferdinand’s body had already become empty. His soul was already nowhere to be found when it was supposed to stay in the body or near it for three or more days after death.

Thus, Marcus thought of occupying Icarus’ body instead.

But Icarus was already set to be betrayed by the allies he gathered with Arabella.

There was someone else who wanted to reign the empire.

Renee and Marcus thought of getting that person’s body instead.

But Alwin arrived before they could push through with their new plan.

"You sure enjoyed your time toying with the Empress," Alwin said mockingly and glared at Renee. "Were you also behind the assassination of the Crown Prince?"

"I just followed Marcus’ instructions and told the Empress it was His Majesty’s doing! I didn’t know Marcus added poison to the Crown Prince’s food which another maid was delivering until he told me to lie to the Empress."

Renee quickly denied it and passed the blame to others. She didn’t seem to be lying though since Alwin believed her.

’It wasn’t Ferdinand?!!! It wasn’t his doing?!’

Arabella felt like her blood turned cold at what she was hearing.

Her son was poisoned by the cloaked and masked man called Marcus!

It wasn’t her husband whom she had blamed and hated for a decade.

"But the Emperor was truly having the Crown Prince fed with different kinds of poison. He had been asking the maid who was executed to have it added to all the Prince’s meals in small amounts. Wasn’t he trying to eliminate his son? Marcus just granted the Emperor’s wish."

’Huh?!’ Arabella’s brows knit in confusion as she continued listening.

"Nonsense! His Majesty loves his son so much. He would never hurt him. The Crown Prince was born with a certain immunity to all sorts of poisons. He inherited it from His Majesty. But he could still be poisoned if given huge doses so His Majesty was just strengthening the Crown Prince’s immunity. It does not poison His Highness at all since his body neutralizes it," Alwin defended his lord.

’So it really wasn’t Ferdinand?’

"The Crown Prince perished with poison though. He wasn’t immune at all," Renee blurted out and Alwin grimaced.

"That’s because the poison used to kill His Highness was very potent. It was one of a kind that should not exist anymore. And yet, you and your comrade are in possession of it. You used it on the Emperor too on Her Majesty’s orders, didn’t you?" Alwin glared at Renee and the magic rope bound around her tightened.

"H-how do you know that?!" the maid gasped.

Arabella wondered the same. How could Alwin know about all this?!

In her previous life, she had asked Renee to retrieve any poison which had the same effects as the one used on her son. Renee successfully got the poison and said she obtained it in an underground auction.

Arabella thought the poison used on Ferdinand only had the same effects but were different. And yet, it was actually the exact same poison used to kill her son?!

"I am the one asking questions, not you," Alwin glared. "Where did you obtain the poison?"

"Marcus just gave it to me. He didn’t say what or where it came from," Renee quickly replied to stop Alwin from tightening the ropes around her again.

Alwin stared at Renee for a while as if analyzing her.

"I see. That was all I needed to know. Get out of the Empress’ body now."

"W-what?! I already told you, I can’t. The ritual is complete. It cannot be undone. I am the owner of this body now," Renee paled at the look Alwin was giving her.

"Then die," Alwin touched her forehead and uttered a spell.

Arabella and Renee’s bodies were both wrapped in blue light. A black mist was released from Arabella’s body and went into Renee’s.

When the blue light was gone, Arabella’s body grew pale and lifeless and almost fell to the ground but Alwin caught it.

He uttered something and all of a sudden, a regal and beautiful coffin with a soft cushion appeared and settled her in it.

"His Majesty would be even more brokenhearted at this," Alwin sighed at the sight of Arabella’s blood-drenched clothes.

He flicked his fingers and all the blood on her was gone along with the binding ropes.

Her body was suddenly all clean in the coffin and it almost looked like she was merely sleeping.

Alwin walked to Renee’s body and uttered a spell before emitting blue fire in his hand.

He burned Renee’s body and it turned to ashes in a matter of seconds until nothing remained.

"Milord," Alwin rushed and kneeled beside Ferdinand’s corpse.

"Why did you have to allow yourself to suffer this much?! You could have just abandoned her and returned to Estrella. You do not deserve to die like this at all," Alwin cried as he carried his master’s corpse.

Another coffin appeared beside Arabella’s and Alwin placed Ferdinand in it. His coffin looked so much more regal than Arabella’s.

"If my master doesn’t treasure you so much, I would tear you to pieces, and feed your body to monsters. I will never forgive you for hurting His Majesty so much," Alwin glared at Arabella’s corpse.

"His Majesty loved you with all his heart. He still loved you so much even when he knew you are betraying him. He accepted dying by your hands to atone for breaking you apart from your lover and not being able to protect the Crown Prince."

’. . . !!!’

Alwin gritted his teeth as tears flowed down his cheeks. He glanced at Icarus’ corpse.

"And it had to be King Icarus you had to cheat with? You caused His Majesty to lose not only his wife but also his precious friend."

’Precious friend? Aren’t they enemies?’