Chapter 8

The Empress’s drinking party lasted for over an hour.

First was the seven-stringed zither, followed by the pipa.

She showed off her musical talent by playing instruments brought from her homeland, Chinguk.

Though her skill was suspiciously excellent, the atmosphere was bleak. Everyone listened with a look of despair. The only one who seemed to enjoy it was Siena, who clapped her hands happily.

“Aiyah!”

The concert concluded with the Empress’s cute scream. It seemed she had injured her hand due to the vigorous playing.

“Your Majesty!”

Though the maidservants shouted, the Empress paid them no mind. Instead, she stretched her arms wide and wore a carefree expression. Then what looked like stretching but was more of a flailing followed, all while muttering how stiff her body was.

Siena intervened then.

“Your Majesty.”

While she didn’t use honorifics in front of me and mocked rudely, she was now acting like a close stepdaughter, though at least her appearance was normal, giving her some appeal.

“Hm?”

“I am greatly pleased to see you in such good spirits, and I enjoyed your performance as well. How are you feeling right now?”

“Feeling? Of course, I’m good.”

As the Empress reflexively answered Siena’s question, she seemed to hesitate and stammered with a sudden “Ah…”

She must have felt the disapproving gaze of the Third Imperial Princess, Anais.

Until now, perhaps lost in euphoria, she might have just been strumming strings absentmindedly, but wasn’t Anais her own flesh and blood? In the Empire dominated by Caucasians, Anais was her sole resemblance. Unlike the stoic First Princess or the sinister Second Princess, she was her own cute daughter born from painful labor.

Siena gradually pressed the wavering Empress then, nodding at me.

“Just moments ago, you consumed psilocybin. My bodyguard, Alan Medoff, prepared it for you.”

“Bodyguard and medicine?”

“A sharp fellow, isn’t he? Unfortunately, he informed me that he won’t be able to provide more of it anymore.”

“What?”

At that, the Empress immediately straightened her face, gripping Siena’s wrist tightly.

“What an awful thing to say,” the Empress said sorrowfully, looking at me with a pitiful gaze. “This isn’t right, why…?”

It was only natural. After years of suppressed emotions finally resurfacing, enjoying, albeit in a warped way, a moment of happiness, she was now being told that opportunity would be taken away.

“Siena, what do you mean? Is it the cost? I can cover whatever amount needed if that’s the issue.”

“It’s not about the cost. However, Anais appears to have doubts about the efficacy of psilocybin. As you’ve likely heard, she compared it to a poisonous herb. Though I don’t intend to admonish Anais for such trivial matters…”

“Yes, among sisters…”

“We should get along, of course. However, I wish to protect my and my knight’s honor. It might have been the doing of her inner circle, though I don’t accuse Anais of such thoughts herself.”

“Ahh…”

“I wish to severely punish those guilty of sacrilege.”

In the end, it was a suggestion to dispose of Anais’s staff, and a request for the Empress, her own mother, to approve it.

A tough situation of choosing between the drug or her daughter.

Would the Empress still protect her daughter despite the influence of the drug?

If it was normal for her to dwell deeply on the matter, she decided in less than a minute as if already aware the game was over anyway.

“Those fellows deserve to be killed and turned into pickled fish for daring to harm your unity.”

“Pickled fish? You mean to punish them?”

“To be sure!”

The Empress quickly nodded then promptly stood up. It was as if clearing out a few nobles was nothing significant.

She seemed to care little about the impact of this decision on her own daughter.

“I guess I should go practice the dizi now. I’m sorry, but you guys are too intense, I don’t feel like staying.”

The Empress squeezed Siena’s and Anais’s cheeks once, then gracefully departed the scene.

As if holding onto the sacred duty to immediately play the bamboo flute.

This too was one of the characteristics of psilocybin. Endless ideas would flood the mind, making it impossible for one to stay put. That it manifested through musical expression was unexpected, but from my perspective, it wasn’t relevant.

What was important was that the Empress was highly satisfied.

All that remained was to negotiate the terms of surrender.

* * *

After the series of events had ended, a brief silence swept through the hall.

Anais must be furious with me right now.

Regrettably, it was predictable. After all, as long as I continued as Siena’s closest confidant, friction with other princesses was unavoidable.

At least now, the Empress knows of my presence and likely won’t dare interfere recklessly, considering she will become dependent on my medications. Even without opium-like withdrawal effects, the memory of intense happiness doesn’t fade easily.

‘So, this crisis is over.’

Preventing the Empress from becoming a recluse and Siena from becoming interested in the opium trade has been achieved. Though the latter still isn’t entirely certain.

However, it wasn’t time to relax yet.

“Sir Alan. Could we have a word? I hear you played an important role here.”

In the midst of a scattered atmosphere, an elderly man approached me.

Marquis Lickerius, a leader in the Third Princess’s faction and the largest shareholder of Higgins Bank, one of the most prominent banks in the Empire.

This was a world where market economies had already developed significantly, causing traditional land-focused nobility to decline while banking magnates like him grew powerful.

But now, this Marquis wasn’t the financial giant he usually was, merely an old man stepping in to clean up the mess caused by Anais’s blunder.

‘Of course, Siena wouldn’t want to negotiate herself.’

After receiving a nod of approval from Siena, I engaged in the discussion.

“Sir Alan. We must smooth things out somehow, don’t you think?”

“Marquis, this is beyond resolution.”

“…”

“Her Highness Siena was subjected to an insult in front of everyone. Do you comprehend the extent of her shame?”

“So… perhaps it can still be fixed somehow. How about this? The two princesses can have a tea conference soon. At that meeting, Her Highness, the Third Princess, could publicly apologize and express gratitude for the Empress’s treatment…”

“Tea conference? Are you mocking me!?”

As I raised my voice, Anais sent an anguished look, while Siena smirked from a distance. The emotions of the two factions were starkly contrasting.

“No, no. Actually, it was that bodyguard, Bono, who gave a false report, wasn’t it?”

“That friend will be severely punished in our ways. Your Highness too.”

“…Then tell me what you want.”

That’s the proper way to negotiate.

Pretending to ponder for a moment, I revealed my terms.

“Her Majesty the Empress must have already mentioned this. The disloyal individuals who incited Her Highness the Third Princess to propose the conspiracy theory must be punished.”

“…What do you mean by punishment?”

“Responsible nobles should confess in court to the crime of irreverence. And not just one or two of them. We’d appreciate if Her Highness the Third Princess formally requests Her Majesty’s removal of their titles.”

“…”

“Of course, this isn’t the end. It’s a serious situation, isn’t it?”

As I laid down my conditions, a chill descended over the room.

The Empire typically dealt leniently with crimes of disrespect against the royal family outside of the Emperor. If they bought an expensive pardon certificate that contributed to the Royal Treasury, they were often spared. But not this time. The confiscation of their property is likely to be added.

Coupled with the removal of titles? It would amount to a death sentence.

‘Especially since they have to confess to crimes they didn’t commit.’

The main culprit is the Third Princess Anais, but as a member of the royal family, she has the ability to pass the blame to her underlings.

This tail-cutting method would sever her primary support.

No noble would willingly die upon request. They would have to be pressed or bribed through force. As a royal family member, it’s possible but they’d face massive backlash, causing nobody to remain truly loyal.

“Too harsh… Third Princess is merely a first-year at the Academy.”

“Marquis, if you wish to negotiate, you must speak directly to Her Highness Siena. I am just a mere knight.”

As I cut my words short, Marquis Lickerius finally lowered his head.

He must realize taking these conditions would lead to chaos but rejecting them could make the situation worse. The Marquis approached the dazed Anais and started muttering.

There was a brief argument.

But the result was submission.

From here on, internal conflicts would arise as Anais is pressured. It didn’t concern me if her reputation at the Academy is ruined due to this incident.

Unexpectedly, internal discord began sooner than expected.

“A wretched pup! You advised Her Highness to do this! I was just dragged along!”

“Excuse me? When did I…!”

“Gentlemen, control yourselves. Her Highness is still watching.”

“Your Highness should control yourself! If you think about it, whose fault is all this? How could you simply trust a knight’s supposed internal report?”

“It was… verified.”

Amidst a hail of profanities, the nobility started shifting blame onto each other, with Anais attempting to restrain them with a lost expression. Meanwhile, my superior, Siena, watched the scene from afar before turning her back.

Though it wasn’t really my place to say, it was turning into quite the farce.

“Good work, Alan.”

“Thank you. Will you go see His Majesty?”

“No, I’ll just leave. If my father summons me, I’ll decline, stating I need a break due to the humiliation I endured. This way, my father will likely feel some guilt toward me without committing any wrongdoings. It will also place extra pressure on Anais.”

“…”

“I’d like to have her withdraw from the Academy and place her under house arrest for about two years. Eliminating a few aides isn’t sufficient.”

Siena seemed to have awakened politically through this ordeal. For here, I pretended not to notice. It was better to avoid further attention.

In any case, that concludes the situation.

As I exited the Imperial Chambers, faint sounds of the flute reached my ears. The Empress seemed eager to reach the musical climax before the effects of the drugs wore off.

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