Lobelia made a quick decision.
First, she slammed the door shut.
Ah.
Only then did she realize that action would lead to even greater misunderstanding. Yes, her judgment had been swift. Just not accurate.
Lobelia felt as if she were being chased by a murderer.
Limited time, limited options.
What in the world could she do to get out of this crisis?
“There’s only one way out…?”
And that was to treat Johan as an assassin and deal with him right then and there!
“Well played, Your Majesty. What a ridiculous move you’ve made.”
Abraham was known as the most brutal ruler in history, yet even he wouldn’t have imagined such a scenario.
Lobelia, who immediately considered a course of action that would leave even Abraham speechless, truly was Loki’s sister.
But if I kill Johan, Ariel will be heartbroken…
And the crucial difference between her and Loki was that Lobelia still had a human heart.
In the end, caught between doing nothing and doing something drastic, Lobelia simply looked down at Johan who lay unconscious.
Whack!
Then she grabbed him by the neck and pried open his eyelids.
“Poison, huh. I was wondering why he was lying in my bed…”
Splat!
She then flung him under the bed.
As long as she didn’t kill him, it was fine. Her mood just wasn’t great at the moment, so a little emotional reaction was unavoidable.
Caught in this deeply calculated trap, Lobelia felt a headache coming on.
“What am I supposed to do with this…?”
She had already locked the door.
Opening it now wouldn’t change how things looked from the outside.
So before she opened it again, she needed a strategy.
“Maybe I should just beat him up for now.”
Still, wouldn’t the rumors be less severe if Johan were left beaten to a pulp?
A creeping darkness began to rise in Lobelia’s heart.
As long as she didn’t kill him, it didn’t matter.
That kind of option kept flickering before her eyes.
“Guhk!”
“Oh, you’re awake.”
Just as her heart was beginning to lean toward violence, Johan came to.
Even so, she didn’t have the nerve to beat a conscious Johan.
No matter what the situation was, she couldn’t bear the consequences of that ruinous mouth of his.
She’d already been swindled out of a significant sum by him.
“What… happened?”
Johan muttered under his breath as he stared up at an unfamiliar ceiling.
His last memory was his conversation with Abraham, so the confusion was stronger than ever.
“Johan, did you ingest poison?”
“Yes… I got caught up in an attempt to poison His Majesty. I thought I’d be fine since I’d taken several antidotes in advance, but it seems I didn’t pick the right one.”
“So, do you understand your situation now?”
“Well, I could try if you explained anything to me. More importantly, where am I? Dolls, wallpaper… it’s all pink. What is this, a borrowed room from some preschooler?”
Thud!
“Gah!”
Lobelia stomped on Johan who was still lying down.
Thankfully, she wasn’t wearing heels….otherwise, he might have ended up with a hole in his body.
“This is my room.”
“…Now that I look closer, it’s quite gorgeous and elegant.”
“Can’t you just shut that mouth of yours?”
Lobelia buried her face in both hands and let out a silent scream.
Because of her usual image, she’d never revealed her personal tastes.
And now, of all people, the last person she wanted to find out had seen everything.
“Don’t worry, Your Highness. I’m tight-lipped.”
“Your mouth that once blabbed about Kult to me? I remember it well.”
“Come on, that was because my life was on the line. And it’s not like Kult and I were friends or anything.”
“And are we friends?”
“……”
“Answer.”
“No, we’re not.”
“Then if your life’s in danger, you’d spill my secrets too, wouldn’t you?”
“Well… who would go so far as to blackmail someone just to find out you like cute little dolls, Your Highness?”
“……”
Whack!
“Guhk!”
Without a word, Lobelia kicked Johan as he looked around the room.
He rolled on the floor groaning in pain for quite some time, but Lobelia didn’t pay him the slightest bit of attention.
“First, let me explain the situation.”
“No, before that, please call a physician.”
“Explanation comes first.”
Lobelia pressed him even as he was coughing up blood, possibly from internal injuries.
That wasn’t what mattered.
What mattered was the current situation.
“Listen carefully. It seems His Majesty has decided to…”
***
It was truly dreadful to hear.
Now that I thought about it, Abraham had said something along those lines at the end.
Maybe it was actually lucky he fainted before he could respond to it.
Still, it didn’t seem like the situation had changed much. It was just as hopeless.
“Let’s get one thing straight first, Johan.”
“I’m all ears.”
“…This whole thing is mutual fault.”
“….…”
I looked at Lobelia for a moment.
Did she really just say that right now?
I thought it was absurd, but then again, I had been giving her quite a bit of grief lately, so I couldn’t really argue.
She was right. This time, it was mutual fault.
But there was one more thing I knew for sure.
“Not once in my life has a member of the imperial family ever helped me.”
“Johan, you’re in the Imperial Palace.”
“…Right.”
I should watch what I say.
“At least be glad it’s my room. No one can eavesdrop on us here.”
“Well, I guess even imperial members values their privacy. Judging by the way your room’s set up, I can tell just how well your privacy is being—”
Thud!
Just as I got back on my feet, I was forced to roll on the floor again.
Lobelia’s fist struck me dead center in the torso.
Did she hold back a little out of consideration?
The shock rippled through my whole body, but at least I didn’t cough up blood like earlier.
Still, everything hurt.
From the impact area all the way to my fingertips and toes, pain throbbed through every nerve.
“Enough. Start thinking of a way to get us out of this mess.”
“Hmm, who should I sacrifice this time?”
“That line is… a little chilling.”
But honestly, aside from burying one scandal under a bigger one, nothing else came to mind.
But to bury something this big, wouldn’t we need to blow up something serious enough to completely ruin someone?
“Ah, but now that I think about it, this might not work.”
“Don’t you have any useful information?”
“No, it’s just… my relationship with Cattleya hasn’t been great lately.”
It’s not a good idea to get on her bad side right now.
Especially since I went behind her back and tried to kill Loki on my own, it wouldn’t be strange if she resented me for it.
In the game, the character kills Loki and then commits suicide; it was unavoidable.
Maybe before, I could’ve justified it. But now that I know Emily was her family, I couldn’t just stand by and let her die.
Sure, things seemed pretty friendly when we last met.
But that was only because Loki’s life was still in her hands.
Now that the Great Sage Faust has taken him from her, it’s practically a given that she’s in a terrible mood.
“If we could blow up a corner of the Imperial Capital or something instead…”
“Are you planning a terrorist attack now? Actually, that’s a pretty solid plan. It would give me a perfect excuse to kill you.”
“…I was joking.”
Of course, I am a terrorist.
And it’s not like I can deny it….I even carry the emblem of Ex Machina.
I was both a researcher and a terrorist for Ex Machina.
God, how did it come to this?
It all started when Lobelia came looking for me.
“This is difficult.”
“…Then what do you expect me to do?”
“How would I know?”
I’m at a loss too.
At least last time, I could blame it on being drunk and rambling. But this time, I was in her room….there’s no excuse for that.
All I can do is marvel at the Emperor’s meticulous planning.
The moment I entered the Imperial Castle, he lined up the threats. First poisoning, then a direct route to the grave.
The Emperor, truly… a monstrously ruthless being.
“Well then, it can’t be helped.”
“What do you mean ‘can’t be helped’? Try to come up with at least one more idea.”
“If even you don’t know, how am I supposed to?”
Well, it’s not like I’m particularly smart or anything.
Even when I make plans, I usually just sketch out the basics and handle the rest by improvising as I go.
“We just have to hang in there until the storm passes.”
“I’m pretty sure I’ll die before that happens.”
Sure, things were a bit better than before. At least Loki was already dead, right?
But that didn’t mean this situation was bearable by any means.
“Just endure it.”
“No.”
Someone could actually die!
“I’ll explain things properly to Ariel, at least. You…”
“What about me?”
“Well… do whatever you want. Explain it to Yuna or don’t. Honestly, it’s not like I have the kind of relationship where I can step in.”
“If I ever disappear without a trace, please make sure to find me.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
What do you think it means?
At this rate, I might get kidnapped and locked up by Yuna, and I’d have no grounds to complain.
***
Right after returning to the Cradle.
Contrary to my expectations that I’d lie awake all night, I slept like a rock.
Probably because my body was still recovering from the poison.
Without coming up with a decent excuse or a proper plan, I collapsed the moment I got back to the dorm and just passed out.
Warm sunlight and birds chirping greeted me as soon as I opened my eyes.
The kind of perfect morning you’d see in a painting.
“…Ha.”
The birdsong sounded like it was singing, “You’re screwed now~.”
Have I ever feared waking up this much?
The day was already here, and I didn’t even have time to make excuses. I have no idea what’s going to happen.
Clink.
The faint sound of a mug being set down made my skin crawl.
Someone’s in my room.
Not that it’s unusual….but when you’ve got guilt hanging over you, it’s hard not to be scared.
“Y-Yuna?”
I cautiously opened my eyes.
As expected, Yuna was sitting at my desk and sipping coffee.
Not only did she look completely composed, but she also had an intellectual air about her that felt a bit different from usual.
And when I saw what she was holding in her hand, I couldn’t help but suck in a breath.
“What’s wrong?”
“……”
“You look like you’ve done something wrong.”
Yuna was reading today’s morning paper.
On the front page, in huge bold letters, was a headline….so loud that even just reading the first sentence was enough to understand the gist of it.
“Just hear me out first.”
“I’m listening.”
“This is all the Emperor’s trap.”
“So?”
“I mean… it’s all rumors and speculation. I don’t want you worrying about it for no reason—”
“But Johan, if it’s really the Emperor’s trap… can you get out of it?”
“……”
“This is so interesting. How is it that every single time I spend ages planning something, something completely unexpected always shows up to mess it all up?”
What plan?
Wait… were you plotting something again?
From the way you said that, it doesn’t sound like it’s the first time.
I’m honestly too scared to ask what the plan was.
“Well, I guess I really have been acting like a coward lately.”
“You? A coward? No, not at all; you’ve been fearless. I’ve never met anyone who throws themselves into things as boldly as you.”
“Hold on, Yuna. Let’s just calm down and think this through.”
“Aw, Johan, when you say it like that, it sounds like I’ve lost my mind or something. But sorry, I’m completely calm. It’s not like this is the first time I’ve dealt with something like this.”
“……”
“It’s the second. First it was Lady Ariel, and now it’s Her Highness the Princess, huh?”
I got out of bed.
If I kept lying down any longer, who knew…I might end up gift-wrapped in my own blanket.
Even if it’s Yuna, she can’t just force me to—
No. Actually, she can. Yuna’s more than capable of doing that.
I mean, I can resist a little. That’s all I’m saying.
“…Ha!”
Clatter.
Yuna set the mug down again. It was empty.
The brief peace of a cup of coffee had come to an end.
Only then did she look up from the newspaper and meet my eyes.
Ah, no. This is bad.
She had already made up her mind.
“W-Wait…!”
Boooom!
And in that instant, the wall exploded.
Ariel Ether who burst through it with magic and floated into the room appeared with a blank expression and asked,
“Johan, are you in your room?”
For someone floating in so gently, the killing intent rolling off her was enough to make my skin crawl.
“……”
Wait, my room?!
Lobelia, you bastard! You said you’d explain everything to Ariel!
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