Chapter 151

He smiled at me with his darkened eyes. As I looked into those eyes, I thought.

Ah, we shouldn’t just kill him. He should die slowly, in agony. Carlothian must have thought the same.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Having dealt with both domes in the temple, we decided to return to the palace.

Alright, I had taken the painkillers, changed into comfortable pants, and even brought Carlothian. Everything was ready.

While I was checking various things alone, Carlothian raised one eyebrow. I just smiled at him.

He and I took a carriage heading to the palace. The large dome was visible even from the temple. It was only natural. The dome had indeed grown tremendously.

It definitely hadn’t swallowed the entrance to the Imperial Palace before, but by the time we arrived, the dome had already engulfed it.

I looked at the empty palace front, where everyone had evacuated, and soon spotted a figure riding a horse approaching from a distance.

“Dorothea!”

“Ariadeline!”

It was Luciano and Dorothea. From what I heard, the two had evacuated everyone around and were staying at a noble’s mansion.

“The dome has grown a lot in the meantime.”

“Fortunately, it hasn’t expanded suddenly like last time, but it is gradually increasing in size.”

I looked at them and said,

“We need to solve this before things get worse.”

“……I agree, but how do we solve it?” Dorothea asked.

“I succeeded in purifying the cursed objects in the temple.”

“Really?”

Dorothea looked surprised. I nodded and then immediately glanced at Luciano. He furrowed his brow as if to ask why I was looking at him. It’s not because you’re handsome, you know.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

“Why are you calling me?”

“I need you.”

“…Me?”

“Yes.”

I hesitated for a moment. If I combined what I had learned so far, the answer was honestly simple.

The Emperor had made a pact with a demon. No, he might actually be manipulated, but I didn’t particularly want to consider that.

Still, Luciano is his son. So, he should be given time to prepare himself mentally.

“I received a prophecy.”

I concluded with the voices I had heard until now. At the mention of the prophecy, both of their eyes widened.

I took a step closer to Luciano with a determined expression.

“The swords you and Carlothian possess can defeat the demon at the center of the dome.”

“…Our swords? Wasn’t that just a futile legend?”

“It seems it wasn’t.”

“If that’s true, then I can…”

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

I looked up at him and asked.

“Are you going to be okay?”

“What do you mean…?”

“The demon that has swallowed the palace is related to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“…”

For a moment, he fell silent. I had struck a nerve regarding the truth he was trying to ignore. To be honest, Luciano must have considered this as well.

Why did the dome, which started with the cursed objects, begin specifically from the Emperor’s chamber? The Emperor did not possess any cursed objects.

No, perhaps he might have. Like Yermondi, he could have made a pact with the demons.

In any direction, it was undeniable that the Emperor was connected to the demons.

“…So.”

He bit his lip tightly before asking.

“Are you saying I have to kill my father?”

“Yes.”

I answered somewhat coldly.

“How can you say that…….”

“Then would you rather perish along with this land?”

Unfortunately, this hostage is the world. In fact, even if you don’t help, I wouldn’t mind knocking you out and taking the sword away.

What the Emperor did to us grinds my teeth, Luciano.

But you haven’t contributed to that. You have no fault, so I’m at least giving you this notice.

From Luciano’s perspective, it might seem unfair, but I didn’t particularly want to take that into consideration.

“If you need time to prepare yourself, just let me know.”

“…”

Luciano tightly shut his mouth. Dorothea, who was observing the situation, spoke to me for a moment.

“Ariadeline, could you give us a moment?”

“Of course.”

I stepped back a bit and approached Carlothian. He looked at me blankly. I simply smiled and wrapped my arms around his waist, burying my face against his chest.

“You’re pushing him too hard.”

Carlothian whispered as he embraced me. I giggled softly and quietly replied in kind.

“Did I? I thought I was being gentle.”

How should one treat the son of an enemy? How can I show kindness to the son of the person who killed me and you?

He thought I didn’t know, and Carlothian didn’t say anything more to me. We held hands tightly and gazed at the dome for a moment.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Luciano stood a little distance away from Carlothian and Ariadeline, alongside Dorothea. Dorothea looked at her husband, Luciano.

His expression was indescribable. A confusion that words could not capture was reflected in his eyes. Dorothea quietly opened her arms and embraced him.

Luciano instinctively nestled into her embrace. As she gently stroked his hair, she asked,

“What are you thinking about right now?”

“I’m wondering why God has put me in this situation.”

Dorothea didn’t utter the common phrase that everything has a meaning from God. She simply comforted him and fell into thought for a moment.

World or blood relatives. If asked to choose between the two, he would surely find himself lost in a labyrinth.

Dorothea thought about how she could help her partner escape from that labyrinth.

“…Whatever you decide, I will respect your choice.”

Dorothea said this.

“If you want to run away, then do so.”

“…Dorothea.”

“If there’s something that needs to be protected, I will protect it.”

“…”

Luciano smiled, furrowing his brow as if there was nothing he could do. Yes, his love is this kind of person; where could he possibly run away to?

Even if he did escape, the end would be hell. Being left alone in the world that his love protects would be nothing less than hell for him.

Eventually, Luciano held Dorothea tightly and said,

“With you saying that, where could I possibly run away to?”

“Luciano.”

Dorothea spoke sincerely.

“I hope you aren’t unhappy.”

“…I wish for your happiness.”

Luciano clenched his fist tightly while holding her.

I hope I can save my father. But if I can’t, I must protect what’s mine. The Empire, this world.

As the Crown Prince of this Empire. And as a man who loves Dorothea.

“I’ll be back.”

At Luciano’s words, Dorothea smiled sadly.

Watching him not run away in a situation where he might have to kill his own father made her feel deeply that this was the person she loved.

“Take care and come back safely.”

Luciano released Dorothea from his embrace and immediately headed towards Ariadeline and Carlothian.

“Have you made up your mind?”

“Yeah.”

“You’ve made a difficult decision.”

“…I appreciate you acknowledging that.”

Ariadeline smiled for some reason. He thought it had become easier to read her after meeting outside the capital, but now it seemed not to be the case at all.

“I’m not sure how long we’ll be inside, so we should probably pack some food.”

“Anything else?”

“I think everything else should be fine.”

With that, the three of them gathered some food and stood in front of the dome. Ariadeline handed a ring-shaped relic to Luciano.

“Make sure to keep this on you. You must not leave it behind.”

“Didn’t you say that we can only be safe inside the dome with the relic?”

“Yes. So, if possible, keep it on your body.”

Luciano carefully stowed the relic and then, along with the two of them, gazed at the dome, swallowing dryly.

Having already entered the dome before, the two of them disappeared inside without hesitation. Luciano took a moment to glance back at Dorothea.

She waved at him with a worried smile. Only after seeing her hand did Luciano disappear into the dome.

☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓

Phew, ha.

I took a deep breath in and let it out. It didn’t seem much different from outside, but I felt a subtle tightness in my chest.

‘Hmm, should I say it feels like fine dust?’

The instruments filling the dome felt similar to breathing in air saturated with fine dust in modern society. I hope this isn’t accumulating in my body as well.

As I blankly stared at the red sky, Carlothian lightly touched my arm.

“First, we’re heading to the emperor’s palace.”

“Ah, okay.”

“So, what will we do once we get to the emperor’s palace?”

“Hmmm.”

I looked at Luciano’s face and fell into a moment of contemplation. Then, I slowly began to walk.

“Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”

“What is it?”

“I don’t know what the Emperor will be like, but if he’s willingly made a deal with the Demon, there’s nothing we can do.”

“…That’s probably true.”

“But if that’s not the case, we might be able to purify him.”

“…You think we can purify him?”

“Yes, well, as I mentioned earlier, we purified the cursed objects, right? I’m not sure if it will work on a person, but if we can try that method, I’ll give it a shot.”

“…Thank you.”

“You don’t have to be too grateful.”

I whispered like a breath and walked ahead of him. My steps felt light, oddly mismatched with the situation.

‘After all, I’m not going to save him.’

I’m just saying this for formality’s sake. After all, you’re one of the people who threw me out when I was at my most desperate.

I hope you can at least be thankful for giving you a chance to prepare your heart.