Ch.182Chapter 182. Tyrant Serpina (4)

“What on earth is going on…?!”

Though Serpina was momentarily stunned by the unbelievable scene before her eyes, she quickly regained her senses and threw herself into the burning mansion.

Inside were countless corpses. Most were meritorious officials from powerful families, many of whom Serpina personally knew.

And not long after, she saw two more corpses—those she knew even better.

“Sister Lilirose…? Brother Stadel…?”

As she stared at the unbelievable scene in a daze, a familiar voice reached her ears.

“Serpina…!!!”

When she turned toward the hate-filled voice—

Sidmid was glaring at her with black eyes, blood pouring from his stomach.

“Serpina… you… you did this to me…!”

No.

No, brother. I—

She wanted to speak, but her mouth wouldn’t move.

“You killed me!!!”

That’s not true, brother! I was just following Brother Algot’s orders…!!

“You!!! Me, my siblings…! You… don’t tell me you planned this from the beginning…!!”

CRASH!!!

A stone fell from the ceiling and crushed him, cutting off Sidmid’s final words.

“Eeeek…!!!”

Having barely escaped the flames, Serpina heard a woman’s voice this time.

“Princess! Princess…!!”

“…Iria?!”

She quickly moved toward the voice…

There, Algot, bleeding profusely, sat alongside Iria, who was holding his hand, both surrounded by corpses.

“Serpi…na…”

“Brother Algot! Are you alive?! Why… why is this happening…? What… what happened here?!”

“Using private soldiers… I summoned my siblings… and killed them with these hands…”

“…!!!”

“He too… brought soldiers… and ended up like this… Ugh.”

“Sidmid… would have become a tyrant… destroying the empire… I had to… eliminate him… for the empire’s sake…”

“Brother!!”

“My siblings too… pursuing only their own advancement… would eventually ruin the empire… Kuhak!”

Algot barely managed to lift his head to look at Serpina.

His once brilliant golden eyes were losing their color.

“Serpina… you… were different from the others. Not coveting the throne… for the empire… sincerely… I, I knew it all…”

“I’ll bring soldiers right away, brother! We need to stabilize the situation and get treatment…!!”

“It’s too late… I cannot live any longer… I know that much…”

Serpina, Algot, and Aria beside them all sensed it.

This was his final moment.

“Only you remain, Serpina… Among those with Einhart blood… you’re the only one… unstained by dirty blood… So, this foolish brother… entrusts everything to you…”

“I ask this of you… The empire… the divided empire, unite it again… bring peace to this world once more…”

After that, no more words came.

“…Brother…? Brother Algot…?!”

…He was dead.

Algot had passed on, leaving the Einhart name to her, perishing alongside his siblings.

“…Princess.”

“Iria…?”

“Please… grant his final wish.”

Such sudden words only confused Serpina, who had never even considered becoming empress.

Nevertheless, she assessed the situation as quickly as possible.

The thought that she must save whoever could be saved drove her actions.

“No, Iria, instead of staying here, let’s get out together…!!”

She naturally wanted to take Iria with her, knowing Algot would want her saved, but—

Serpina froze, unable to continue speaking.

Iria’s legs, which she thought were merely sitting… were gone.

“I was wrong, Princess…”

Only then did Serpina notice the light of life fading from Iria’s ruby eyes.

Yes, she had remained “alive” through sheer willpower until Algot could speak his final words.

“Princess. Please bring peace to this continent fallen into chaos again… so my brother can rest easy, please rebuild the unified empire… This is my final request.”

BOOM!!

The mansion was collapsing.

It was clear that staying any longer would endanger her own life.

“Iria…”

“If someone like you… had become my sister-in-law… it would have been wonderful… I’m sorry… that my humble status… prevented it…”

“Iria…!! Iria!!!”

And so, as Serpina witnessed Iria’s life fade away, her world went dark—

When she regained consciousness, what awaited her was the will of House Einhart.

A crown she never wanted, as the final victor in the succession battle.

* * *

Yes.

She wore a crown she never wanted.

Without accepting the outcome, she repeatedly suppressed the continuing unrest.

All for rebuilding the unified empire.

To carry on the will of Einhart that had been thrust upon her.

“You asked, didn’t you? That the possibility of consecutive rebellions is quite low. But I can tell. For someone like me who constantly detects the malice spreading through the air… it’s not strange at all that rebels rise up one after another.”

With an even thicker skin now, she accepted the title of tyrant that felt like fate.

As atonement for House Einhart’s original sin, she reached for absolute power.

Whether she liked it or not, from the moment she took on that will—everything had to become her doing.

A tyrant who planned everything and succeeded in annihilating everyone was more suitable to rule over people than a puppet who was merely given power after being pushed around.

The golden-eyed witch, sole survivor of House Einhart, covered in the blood of all her brothers and sisters.

Therefore… Serpina smiled cynically and brazenly lied to Swen.

“It’s only natural. I eliminated both Algot, the most likely successor, and Sidmid, who was his greatest rival, with my own hands. Of course I would earn their hatred. But in a situation where the previous emperor died without properly designating an heir, having more than one person with Einhart blood was extremely dangerous. Though chaos did unfold, had it been delayed any longer, the empire would have certainly vanished from history.”

Serpina continued in a calm tone, no longer trembling.

“As the youngest with no stake, the only way for me to ascend to the imperial throne was through purges. If there were none who would follow me, I simply had to kill everyone and spare only those who pledged loyalty. It’s ridiculously simple, isn’t it? So I cleaned house. I was the one who had to wear the crown.”

It was just such a trivial story.

And yet.

For some reason, Serpina… wanted to ask Swen before her.

“Swen.”

“Yes.”

“Do you not despise me?”

Swen answered carefully.

“…That’s quite sudden.”

“I killed my own blood with these hands. All for the imperial throne. With no foundation of my own, I destroyed all foundations. To seize the empire, I shattered the empire. How can I complain about so many rebellions rising against me?”

She smiled bitterly, mocking the situation with a shameless smile.

“I’ve taken countless lives. Naturally, I deserve endless hatred. If you look around, there’s likely at least one person near you who holds a grudge against me. I… had to live that way. Isn’t it strange that you don’t despise me?”

Yes.

She was used to being hated by everyone. Since inheriting the will of Einhart, she thought no one would understand her.

But why was she… forcing Swen to answer?

What kind of answer did she hope to hear from him?

Swen bowed his head in thought for a moment, then finally opened his heavy lips.

“I…”

* * *

“I do not despise you.”

At my answer, Serpina smiled as if surprised and said:

“What pleasant words you speak, Swen. If this is you fulfilling your duty as a subject, I must commend your dedication.”

Though she pretended to be strong with such words, her attitude was strange in many ways.

First, why bring this up to me?

Is she saying, “I’m this terrible a person”?

Listing all her evil deeds just to say, “Despise this wicked me”?

‘No.’

On the surface, it might look like a “loyalty test” asking, “Will you still serve me despite this?”

But I couldn’t shake the feeling that there was a true intention hidden even from herself in bringing up this topic.

Rationally, there was no need to bring up such a heavy conversation now.

If so, her current state must be quite emotionally charged… which naturally raises the question, “Why did she have to become emotional?”

The answer was obvious—because Serpina’s expression looked so sad despite her words.

No matter what words came from her mouth, her eyes could never lie.

Until now, my judgment was based solely on my Intelligence 100 brain.

Though limited in scope, it always gives the correct answer when asked. I just had to follow that answer.

Even if I cobbled together flimsy reasons, I would inevitably win in the end.

But now.

I’m not judging the situation with such “infallible predictions.”

My judgment comes from my intuition.

The part where I think, “That seems right.”

With my own will alone, I answered her.

“No. Even if I didn’t serve you, Lady Serpina, I believe I wouldn’t have despised you after meeting you and hearing your story.”

“…Why?”

I bowed my head and answered slowly.

“Because I believe in my lord… in you, Lady Serpina.”

“…!!!!”

Looking at her widened pupils, I said:

“I apologize for such an odd answer, but this isn’t the first time I’ve been like this, is it? I hope you can understand with your generous heart.”

“Swen…”

Serpina said nothing more, just stared at me for a long time…

Then turned around and began leading the way again.

“I hope you won’t come to regret this, Swen.”

“I won’t regret it. It’s all my decision.”

Honestly.

I suspected that perhaps she had simply “taken on everything” herself.

Though based only on circumstantial evidence, there were many signs.

The things she mentioned when we spent the night drinking together, and now listing her evil deeds as if pleading.

To me, her plea seemed like an indirect way of saying, “I didn’t actually do it”…

That’s why I blurted out the somewhat inappropriate response, “I believe in you.”

“I too was lonely, so I understand. Bearing a truth that cannot be told to anyone… moving forward alone with that burden is terribly isolating.”

What could be the truth hidden in her heart?

What happened to her?

How did she become the empire’s successor, and… what cruel fate prevented her from becoming the unifying monarch?

As various thoughts troubled my mind—

“This is the place.”

Serpina stopped walking and said.

Before her eyes were… four unmarked graves.

“This place is…?”

“As you can see, graves. …Buried here are my blood relatives.”

“!!!”

“Algot, Sidmid, Stadel, and Lilirose… My brothers and sister are buried here.”

“I… see?”

“Do you think they’re too humble for royal graves? It can’t be helped. The graves of revered figures tend to become sacred sites. Originally, hardly anyone besides me knows that they’re buried here. No—”

Serpina looked at me with a faint smile.

“Now there are two people who know, Swen.”

“…”

“After my bedroom, you keep taking my ‘firsts’ quite well.”

After saying that with a light laugh—

She continued in a serious tone.

“I come here every time before and after suppressing rebellions. You could say I’m asking them to look after those who gave their lives following their will when they reach the other side. Well, though the words sound nice, perhaps I’m just avoiding the weight I must bear.”

After saying this, Serpina slowly turned to face the graves…

And bowed her head in silent prayer.

Her golden hair fell toward the ground, pulled by gravity.

It’s full of contradictions.

She’s secretly honoring the graves of siblings she killed to ascend to the throne?

As she said, if revered people’s graves become sacred sites, wouldn’t it be more rational not to make graves at all?

Yet she had secretly placed her siblings here, in this sunny spot.

And.

What does it mean that she’s showing this only to me?

Perhaps she… still hasn’t told me what she really wants to say?

If so, what kind of story could it be—

‘No.’

I quickly shook off what might have become a moment of contemplation.

What matters is that she brought me here.

And that she told me something she hadn’t told anyone else.

I vividly remembered the night I spent with her.

I couldn’t remember everything I said while drunk… but I did remember my mindset at that time.

I wanted to stay by her side.

And I still do. I wanted to stand beside Serpina, who seemed like she might crumble at any moment.

Let me focus only on that for now.

Put aside everything else—continental unification, whatever circumstances led her to bring me here and say those things.

With that thought, my complicated mind cleared.

I slowly closed my eyes beside her in silent prayer, asking a question that would never reach the deceased:

What happened to you, Lady Serpina?

Naturally, no answer came… only the quiet sound of the wind brushing against my ears.