Chapter 36 : The Iron-Blooded Emperor (2)
by fnovelpia
As a child, he was taught the pride and honor of being of imperial blood.
At first, he thought it was a noble and glorious thing—at least until he became the lord of the northern Baikal Territory.
As a member of the great Bahamut Imperial Family, he was entrusted with the mission of saving the impoverished people of the Baikal Territory.
That sense of duty had been instilled in him—or rather, engraved into his very being.
From an early age, he was rigorously taught that as a member of the great Bahamut bloodline, he had to lead by example.
This was the pride demanded by imperial lineage.
And yet, the very people who preached such lessons merely watched from the sidelines.
The ten years of pride and military strategy he had learned since the tender age of eight became meaningless dust the moment he assumed the position of lord of Baikal.
The harsh reality of the territory quickly shattered his ideals.
People died day after day.
Families couldn’t even afford proper funerals for their loved ones. Baikal was a living hell.
Food was always scarce.
Firewood was nearly impossible to come by, forcing the people to use whatever scraps—branches, straw—they could to stave off the cold. Despite this, Raipen didn’t despair from the start.
He tried his best to do everything he could.
He built walls to protect the territory’s residents from the Wendigo and personally traveled to the capital in desperate attempts to secure supplies.
[“I’m sorry, Lord of Baikal.”]
[“We’re doing our best, but it’s not easy to procure resources.”]
[“Don’t worry. As soon as we can, we’ll send assistance.”]
At first, he believed their words. It wasn’t naivety; it was logical to think that with so many people sent to the northern territories annually, Baikal would eventually receive proper support.
But it didn’t take long for him to realize the truth.
Their words were all lies, thinly veiled under a facade of compassion.
When you hear the same excuses enough times, even a fool can understand.
Ultimately, they only needed a figurehead—a shield for propaganda. “The Baikal Territory is safe because an imperial prince governs it,” they’d say.
This revelation shattered everything Raipen had ever been taught.
He had learned that members of the Bahamut Imperial Family were paragons of virtue and pride.
Yet, all those teachings vanished from his mind in an instant.
It was only after discarding his pride and honor that Raipen finally saw the one truth he had been ignoring.
He was a child of a concubine, scorned by the imperial family.
Born from the Emperor’s fleeting indulgence.
An unwanted child, welcomed by no one.
He had forced himself to look away from that truth, believing that if he worked hard enough, he could someday become a proud member of the imperial family.
But the moment he realized it was all a delusion…
He fell into despair so deep it defied description.
It was as if he were plummeting endlessly into a bottomless abyss. No matter how he reached out or struggled, there was no escape.
An inescapable hell.
A pit with no end in sight.
And he was falling further into it.
Two years passed like that.
Even so, he continued to live, not because he wanted to, but because as the lord of Baikal, he felt obligated to fulfill his duties.
Though he knew it was futile, he kept moving.
Even though the Wendigo were immortal monsters, trained soldiers were still necessary in Baikal to maintain order and guard incoming travelers.
Desperation was a constant, but so was survival.
Occasionally, the soldiers’ relentless fighting would drive the Wendigo back.
Of course, on the days they failed, the soldiers would be killed or devoured, leaving few volunteers willing to join.
It was a situation so dire that even the hands of a cat would’ve been welcome.
Perhaps Raipen saw a reflection of himself in the desperate state of Baikal. All he could do was laugh bitterly.
And then, she appeared.
Her white hair and radiant golden eye burned fiercely even amidst the blizzard.
Naturally, all eyes were drawn to her.
“You wish to enlist in the military as a woman?”
It wasn’t common for a woman to enlist, especially not a young girl.
Raipen still vividly remembered her response that day.
“My heart is a man’s.”
At first, he dismissed her as crazy.
Due to their lack of manpower, he allowed her to join but wasn’t impressed.
In fact, she irritated him immensely. Her every move grated on his nerves.
He could confidently say his first impression of her was the worst. What?
She thought she could hunt the Wendigo?
Did she honestly believe such a thing was possible after a century of suffering?
‘Get rid of those delusions.
Face reality.
Some things can’t be done, no matter how hard you try.’
Yet, he didn’t interfere further, thinking she’d give up soon enough.
He believed she, too, would fall into despair like him. But she didn’t.
The tide began to turn. Instead of extinguishing, her fire burned brighter, warm enough to make the harsh winter seem like a distant memory.
Initially, Raipen resisted her fire, fearing it might be a lie.
He was terrified it might vanish if he allowed himself to believe in it.
Yet, her warmth melted even his fear.
Before he knew it, he was wielding a sword beside her. Her flame burned fiercely, dispelling even the cold and terror of winter.
She didn’t win every battle, but she never gave up, even in the face of despair.
Watching her fight to the bitter end, Raipen finally understood why she had irritated him so much.
Where he had been broken once, she remained unyielding.
That was the difference.
Fighting alongside her, Raipen began to change.
While he was falling endlessly into despair, she had been the only one to reach out her hand.
Together, they walked the path of glory, winning some battles, losing others, but never faltering. And eventually, countless people followed them.
From feuding nobles to those who had lost hope of avenging themselves against immortal monsters, they all united and took up arms behind her.
She wasn’t just a war hero.
She was the Empire’s one true hope.
Its brilliant future.
While many wept in gratitude for her arrival, a select few resented her. Sadly, the Bahamut Imperial Family was among them.
As the Winter War neared its end, Raipen was abruptly summoned back to the palace.
Though the call came suddenly, he had a good idea of the reason.
“Wolfgang Leonhart is a threat to the Bahamut Imperial Family.”
“She may appear a hero now, but her power could turn on us at any moment.”
“Beneath the guise of a human, she is still a monster.
She must be eliminated before she becomes a greater danger.”
“…You haven’t changed at all in ten years.”
At first, Raipen had hoped.
He thought maybe things had changed over the past decade.
That witnessing her and their efforts would have softened their hearts. But nothing had.
It wasn’t just the imperial family.
Many nobles, particularly those who had refused to support Wolfgang, echoed the sentiment.
Driven by fear of retribution, they sought to preemptively eliminate her.
Wolfgang, however, had no thoughts of vengeance.
She understood their position—who would willingly give up what they had?
Yet, Raipen could not allow her to accept their judgment.
If she had to endure their retaliation, he wouldn’t let it happen. He already knew what he had to do.
Raipen entered the palace unarmed, alone, while surrounded by the full Imperial Guard.
Facing impossible odds, he smiled faintly.
“Do you know the true meaning of being No. 2 in the Vendetta Legion?”
The captain of the guard tried to dissuade him with words. But in a flash, Raipen’s hand struck like a blade, severing the captain’s head.
“It means I’m the second strongest.”
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