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AFTER leaving Miss Monica’s bedroom, I conducted negotiations with the relevant party then went to my office, where I was now. I gazed out the window. Duke Worth’s villa was situated on a hilltop overlooking the plains of the Kingdom of Kophe. I murmured to myself while staring at the perfectly sunny, tranquil day outside.
“Agggh. I want to burn this whole rotten country down.”
“I see you’re in a dangerous mood, Your Highness.”
“Can you blame me, Darius? This is a country where people plot to assassinate Miss Monica by using her hometown’s traditional clothing as a souvenir.”
Darius didn’t laugh, only frowned sadly. “It really is unfortunate that we must continue to keep Madam Monica in the dark about the truth.”
The ones who came bearing the customary garments of Nowasilo were honest rural women. At least that was the impression they had tried to cultivate with their appearances. They had in fact turned out to be the Church’s underlings. A supernatural ability had been woven into the garment’s sewing threads. The trap would activate with the sharpness of steel when the designated recipient—in this case Miss Monica—wore it, tightening around her body and crushing her.
Darius had pulled the threads out and incinerated them. The priest who had woven the evil magic must have realized we had a talented magician on our side through the burning of his threads. After that, the garment was thoroughly inspected before being given to a seamstress Xenu introduced us to. She stitched the clothes back together and they were safe again for Miss Monica to try on.
She hadn’t suspected a thing as she marveled over the outfit and thanked me. I knew her delight in it came from the heart. Even though it had originally been designed to kill her.
The Church’s minions had been rendered harmless since the women had violated the binding spell. We planned to educate them for some time and then decide what to do with them.
“The only reason I haven’t burned this country to the ground yet is because it still has some value.” I ground the words out angrily. “I would have conquered the whole damn Kingdom through force if not for Miss Monica’s sadness at the prospect.”
“If Your Highness so desires, I am ever ready to set this place aflame, unworthy as I might be for the task.”
“Excellent. I’ll be depending on you when the time comes, Darius.”
Darius brought me a basket of fruits. I picked up a pomegranate and bit right into it, unconcerned with the thick skin. I narrowed my eyes while lapping at the tart juice trickling out.
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“She is the Empire’s Arousing Priestess. As such, I have the authority to purge any citizen of Kophe who has harmed her.”
My people had already completed their investigation into the origins of the child who’d stabbed her in the stomach. I had the branch of the Church responsible for the brainwashing under my thumb, as well as any others involved in the plot. Those who knelt at my feet and swore allegiance to me were bound by the magical constraint without their knowledge. Though I ostensibly forgave them, they were nothing more than pawns for my use.
With the spilling of Miss Monica’s blood, I gained control over the core of Kophe’s central leadership ahead of schedule. I didn’t miss the irony in the situation.
At present, we hadn’t killed anyone, only enacted the binding spell. Richard Il Belktrius, the humanitarian statesman and would-be savior of the Kingdom of Kophe. A man who condemned the offense but not the offender.
“Everyone keeps saying I’m more suited to the emperor’s throne…but it’s a lie.” A self-deprecating smile curved my lips. “If I had become the emperor, I would have placed magical constraints on every last citizen…making me no different from a dictator.”
My brother would have saved Kophe in a more conciliatory way. He would have sent aid long before the situation turned this disastrous. Which was exactly why I asked him to give me full authority over the matter of Kophe. Because when it came to politics, I was much more level-headed than my gentle older brother. By chipping away steadily at the Kingdom’s power and capturing the people’s hearts, I made it so that Kophe’s citizens would welcome me naturally.
“I’ll never forgive the country who wounded Miss Monica so terribly for so long.”
In my mind, I recalled my fateful encounter with the saint who showed me my path.