Chapter 363: Epilogue Part 4

Since ascending the throne, Emperor Lobelia Vicious von Miltonia had not enjoyed a single day of rest.

It had already been two months since Johan had fallen into a coma. Other than the occasional report that his condition was improving, she hadn’t even had the chance to see how he was doing.

She was simply too busy. There were countless problems that demanded immediate attention.

“Your Majesty, here is the estimate for the Imperial Palace reconstruction.”

“Ugh… My head…”

“Haha! What a humorous joke, Your Majesty. Every official here knows that you were the top student at the Cradle.”

“I’ve been sleeping thirty minutes a day and working nonstop for two months. So why is there still just as much work? And why am I only getting the reconstruction bill now? I’m sure I already saw an invoice before.”

“That was the demolition cost for clearing the rubble.”

“…….”

Now that she thought about it, that was true.

Lobelia felt as though she were trapped behind prison bars.

For the first time, she felt like she understood why Abraham had gone mad.

Her parents had been monsters.

In more ways than one.

“…Haah.”

The exhaustion was overwhelming.

She felt even more drained than she had while confronting Abraham.

Damn those bastards.

Lobelia needed help.

Desperately.

Of course, her aides had supported her in every way they could.

But there were matters that only a member of the imperial family could handle.

So she came up with a solution.

She would get help from the other members of the imperial family.

Fortunately, she was merciful enough that she had never intended to cast the others aside.

Better yet, Cynthia had finally resurfaced after a long absence, and Theseus had been confirmed to be recuperating at Cynthia’s workshop.

Then they ran away.

Immediately after defeating Abraham, she had raided Cynthia’s workshop, only to find that the two of them had already vanished without a trace.

The overwhelming sense of betrayal left Lobelia grinding her teeth.

“……”

And so she worked alone.

Organizing people to search for those two would only create even more work.

In the end, deciding she simply could not afford to increase her workload any further, Lobelia endured all of it by herself.

I’m fine. This is what I wanted. Didn’t I swear that I’d sacrifice myself to build a better world?

As though placing herself under hypnosis, Lobelia continued to steel her resolve.

As long as all this suffering was for the sake of creating a better world, that was enough.

Fortunately, Abraham had wiped out the corrupt officials and nobles in one fell swoop. All she had to do now was properly fill the vacancies they had left behind.

She assigned rewards and punishments, restructured the balance of power, reviewed budget proposals, and dispatched personnel wherever they were needed.

“……”

There was simply too much to do.

She knew she couldn’t afford this, yet every now and then her eyes would drift into the distance.

Even though every minute and every second mattered, she was only human.

Then, almost absentmindedly, Lobelia looked out the window.

“Hmm?”

Alice was there.

Thankfully, she had been helping with the reconstruction every morning by making her way through the ruins.

Of course, she wasn’t doing the heavy labor herself. She simply observed from elevated positions, identifying which structures could be safely disturbed and which could not.

With her gift of precognition, predicting which sections would collapse if touched was a simple matter.

The Empire’s Oracle truly was an invaluable asset.

Lobelia was quietly grateful for her help.

But now, she noticed something different.

“…….”

Alice was talking with Johan.

And the atmosphere between them was… strange.

Johan’s awkward expression was one thing, but the smile on Alice’s face was an even greater spectacle.

“The nerve…”

Here she was, working herself to the bone, while they were flirting?

Worse still, that fool already had three fiancées, yet there he was smiling so carelessly at another woman.

The thought made her blood boil.

“I’m stepping out for a moment.”

“Your Majesty, but there are still documents awaiting your approval—”

“So?”

“…As you wish.”

The displeasure in her voice was impossible to miss.

She certainly possessed the same commanding presence Abraham had once wielded.

Just look at her. Even at a time like this, she was already exercising her authority with an iron hand.

The official clutching the stack of documents felt the world go dark before his eyes.

Having displayed the makings of a tyrant, Lobelia immediately set off.

She was working herself to exhaustion, and yet those two were standing in the middle of the Imperial Palace flirting.

She simply couldn’t forgive them.

***

Seeing Alice smile made it all worthwhile.

That alone was enough.

I’d saved her.

I’d finally put an end to the version of myself who always hid behind the excuse that nothing could be done whenever faced with the pain of losing someone.

“What are you writing?”

“That’s a secret. It’s nothing you need to know.”

“‘Find happiness,’ she wrote.”

“Would you please get that damned demon out of here, Johan Damus?!”

“What’s wrong with that? There’s nothing embarrassing about wanting to be happy, is there?”

And more than anything, I was glad she’d reached the point where she could think that way.

After everything, moments like this made saving her feel worthwhile.

“So, what are you going to do now?”

“I’m not sure. I never really made any plans for the future.”

“That’s pretty normal.”

“I don’t think so. Her Highness Lobelia….no, Her Majesty now is diligently planning the Empire’s future, and everyone else seems to have plans as well. I think you’re the only one who intends to drift through life without a care.”

“Why do you always have to sneak in a jab whenever you’re saying something nice?”

Was it instinct?

How was someone like her supposed to function in society?

“Whatever. The point is, you don’t have any immediate plans, right?”

“……”

“Why the silence? Do you think I’m about to say something awful? I’m just asking. Why are you so on guard?”

“Am I wrong?”

“I did save your life. Don’t you think that attitude is a little inappropriate toward your benefactor?”

“I know exactly the kind of person you are. That’s why I’m keeping quiet.”

“So I’m not even allowed to brag a little?”

“You are. The problem is, I don’t think you’d stop at ‘a little.’”

“That doesn’t change what happened. I’m going to brag about it, got it? So listen carefully, Alice. If you really don’t have any plans, then maybe…”

“Enough! That’s far enough. What do you think you’re doing in the sacred Imperial Palace?”

It was the moment I’d been about to make the biggest confession of my life.

“Johan Damus. You’re awfully bold for a man accused of attempting to murder a member of the imperial family.”

Lobelia suddenly stormed in with a group of knights.

For some reason, the atmosphere was anything but friendly.

Had I done something wrong?

Or had becoming Emperor gone to her head already?

“I greet the glorious sun of the Empire! Haha! Congratulations on your ascension, Your Majesty. Seeing how magnificently you’ve grown fills me with nothing but joy.”

In that case, I’d better butter her up.

Sure, I was a little annoyed that she’d interrupted me, but there would be plenty of opportunities later.

“Oh, I’m sure it does. After all, it’s all but certain that you’re the one who brought down the late Emperor.”

“Ahem! Your Majesty, someone might misunderstand if they heard that.”

“Misunderstand? And what misunderstanding would that be?”

“You make it sound like I overthrew the late Emperor myself. As if I were capable of such a thing. I merely lent a hand to the great Emperor Lobelia. If you put it that way, how am I supposed to show my face in public?”

“Isn’t the real problem that a criminal intends to show his face in public at all?”

“Haha… What a joke…”

“……”

Wait.

What?

Was she serious?

Don’t tell me she was actually planning to throw me under the bus.

Let’s think this through. What would Lobelia gain by throwing me under the bus?

…Come to think of it, quite a lot.

The power and influence concentrated around me could easily become a problem.

I’d vaguely assumed that, since Lobelia was the protagonist, she’d never do something like that.

But from the perspective of a ruler, was there anyone more dangerous than me?

Still… even so, she was going to come after a man engaged to Ariel?

Was she really that ruthless?

“Well, enough joking.”

“H-Hahaha! What a hilarious joke, Your Majesty!”

“You sound like you took it seriously. Were you actually suspicious?”

“Of course not!”

Since when had Lobelia’s poker face become this good?

Even now, I couldn’t tell whether she was joking or completely serious.

“But if you’ve regained consciousness, you should have come to see me immediately. I assumed you understood that, considering everything you’ve done, it would be dangerous to leave you unattended. How could you be so foolish?”

“Me?”

“Yes, you. What you did was no small matter. Whether I was involved or not, it’s common knowledge that you were the first to move against the late Emperor.”

“How can you say that?!”

“Have you forgotten wiping out the Sun Knights in front of the city gates?”

“Wiping out? I didn’t kill them!”

“True. Which is precisely why there are more than enough witnesses. And yet you still intend to deny it?”

“…….”

I had a bad feeling about this.

Surely she wasn’t going to execute me for treason…

But she was steadily cornering me like prey during a hunt.

And she was doing it in front of knights and government officials.

This wasn’t something that could be brushed off as a joke.

“If Your Majesty is busy, perhaps it would be best if I excused myself.”

“I would appreciate that, Oracle.”

Alice who was quick to read the room backed away first.

Seriously?

I saved your life!

Your lifesaver is being backed into a corner, and you’re just going to save yourself and leave?

How could you do this to me?

“Now then, Johan Damus. I have no intention of reprimanding you.”

Every word out of her mouth was a lie.

Then what exactly had all that pressure just now been for?

She’d practically branded me an attempted regicide.

“But neither can I simply overlook what you’ve done. You see, I intend to be a fair and impartial Emperor.”

“Your Majesty! I beg for your mercy!”

“What a ridiculous thing to hear again after so long. I honestly have no idea where you learned such bizarre expressions. In any case, the consensus among my officials is that we cannot simply let you walk away.”

Murmurs spread through the crowd.

The officials exchanged glances and whispered among themselves.

From the looks of it, this didn’t seem like something they had actually agreed upon.

“If I were to let someone as important as you leave without doing anything, it would reflect poorly on me as well. So you have two choices. There is a measure I must take regarding you.”

For some reason, this all felt strangely familiar.

An odd sense of deja vu washed over me.

More specifically, it reminded me of the first time I was summoned to the dean’s office at the Cradle.

“Will you become a hero of the Empire? Or will you become the assassin of the Emperor?”

S or F.

Two utterly merciless choices, with nothing in between.

I already knew there wasn’t an answer among them that I would truly be happy with.

“If you choose to become the assassin of the Emperor, then I will have no choice but to punish you.”

First, the assassin of the Emperor.

The title alone was terrifying enough.

There wouldn’t be any trial or defense. I’d be sentenced to death on the spot.

And it wouldn’t necessarily end with just me. My entire family could be wiped out as well.

In other words, this wasn’t really a choice at all.

“But if you choose to become the hero who helped me overthrow the late Emperor’s tyranny and place me upon the throne, then that is another matter entirely.”

The stick and the carrot.

She intended to break me with the stick first, then win me over with the carrot.

It was an obvious tactic, but it was also one I couldn’t refuse.

And Lobelia wasn’t wrong. What I had done was simply too significant. Of course, if she had never brought it up, it might have stayed buried. But now that she had, there was no escaping it.

I had gone into that fight fully prepared not to worry about the consequences, but I never imagined there would still be consequences even after succeeding.

And now that everything had worked out, I found myself afraid of what would come next. People really are fickle.

“I wish to reward you.”

“Y-Your Majesty’s grace is beyond measure…”

“I will grant you a new title and offer you the opportunity to serve as one of the Empire’s key advisors. What do you say?”

“…….”

It was a carrot, all right, but one laced with deadly poison.

Even so, I had no choice but to take a bite. If I refused it, I knew the whip, bristling with thorns, would come crashing down on me instead.

“…I’ve made my decision.”

And so, I lost my status as the heir to House Damus and became an independent noble serving as an official of the Empire.