Ch.18Precious Child of the Deposed Emperor

I finished my calculations and left the bedroom. Being a princess wasn’t just for show—everyone who met my eyes bowed their heads to me. To be honest, with the common blood from my previous life still flowing through me, it felt rather burdensome.

As I walked among the maids and servants with my luxurious complaints…

“Ugh.”

A boy who encountered me from the other side let out a small groan when he saw me. His asymmetrical eyes and cautious gaze eagerly conveyed his feelings. I approached him first and greeted him warmly.

“It’s been a while, my brother.”

“…It has been some time, Sister.”

His response came in a restrained voice. I raised a slight smile and gave a small nod.

“You must have been enjoying yourself, Tesser.”

“I don’t understand what you mean, Sister.”

“Really?”

“What would you like to hear from me?”

“Well, if you truly know nothing, then I’d be satisfied with your silence.”

I pulled up an everyday smile and added:

“I hope so. Sincerely. You must know what I’ve been through, so could you forgive a little complaining?”

“If that’s what you wish, Sister.”

“Good.”

I sincerely hope Tesser isn’t the mastermind behind this commotion. If my only brother continues the succession dispute through illegal routes… I would have no choice but to bury my family with all my might.

“Where are you headed, Tesser?”

“His Majesty has summoned me.”

“You’re so formal. He would prefer you call him father.”

“And he’d prefer ‘daddy’ over ‘father.'”

“Certainly.”

I nodded silently. Now it was Tesser’s turn to ask a question.

“And where are you headed, Sister?”

“I’m also going to see Father. Without being summoned.”

“I see.”

“Your expression is souring, Tesser?”

“You misunderstand.”

I don’t want to treat Tesser coldly all the time. After all, he’s my family in this life. But as a potential successor eyeing the throne, maintaining an appropriate distance was crucial.

I suppose it’s an unavoidable fate, as I’m desperately trying to marry Rahilt.

How much easier would it be if we could resolve this with a physical duel? If I could just beat him up for a day, I’d be the Emperor.

“May I ask what business you have with His Majesty?”

“Of course.”

“What?”

Tesser hadn’t expected me to answer so readily, so he opened his mouth in surprise before quickly closing it.

Finding his age-appropriate behavior slightly amusing, I casually revealed the truth.

“It’s about time my one-sided love moved to the next stage.”

“…”

Thud.

Tesser, who had been walking beside me, suddenly stopped. Wondering what was wrong, I turned around to find my brother standing there with a face full of confusion.

After about ten seconds of heavy silence…

Before Tesser could realize his mistake, a loud exclamation of shock erupted from his developing Adam’s apple.

“W-what?! No, hmph…”

Tesser desperately watched my reaction. My brother stammered incoherently, making excuses.

“Y-you having a one-sided love? I mean, I had no idea… um…”

“It’s alright. No one knows yet. Now one person does.”

As Tesser resumed walking in a daze, I continued with a slight smile.

The Emperor’s office was right ahead. Being a loving couple, the Empress would likely be with him. As the main couple of the romance fantasy novel, they were always passionate.

I knocked lightly on the office door.

Knock knock.

“Serin and Tesser, Father, Mother.”

Permission was granted immediately.

I entered the office with Tesser following behind.

“This is rare. Both of you visiting together so late at night.”

“It’s good to see you both after so long. Serin, Tesser.”

These were the greetings from the current Emperor and Empress, in order. Tesser and I returned their greetings with formal evening salutations.

“I came because I have something to tell Father and Mother. Tesser seems to have received a direct order… Should I come back later?”

“It’s fine, Serin. You were already heading here before receiving any message.”

“I asked a servant to tell both of you to come to the office.”

“I see.”

What a coincidence. If they wanted to gather us in one place, it must be an important matter. I would have to set aside my business about Rahilt and the Windmill Mercenaries for now.

After Tesser and I took our seats, the couple sat down on the sofa as well.

We just looked at the two of them, unable to speak easily as they couldn’t hide their dark expressions. As this stalemate continued, Father, having prepared himself mentally, finally broke the silence.

“First… Serin. Thank you for returning safely. I had planned to talk about this on the day the Founding Festival ended, but unfortunately, that wasn’t possible.”

“The fault is mine. I’ve caused trouble for many people. I’m sorry, Father, Mother.”

“I wasn’t trying to reprimand you.”

Ahem.

He cleared his throat awkwardly.

I adjusted my posture and silently waited for the couple to speak.

However, the concept that came next from Father’s voice contained quite a shock.

“The Deposed Emperor’s Child. You’ve both probably heard this term before.”

‘Rahilt? Why is Father suddenly…?’

While I was speechless, Tesser answered.

“I’ve heard he’s the mysterious person who escaped the island’s encirclement fourteen years ago.”

“You know well. That’s exactly what’s known publicly. The child of the deposed emperor and his concubine. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“Is there anything else we should know?”

“There shouldn’t have been… but I think it’s right to tell you. Even if it sounds absurd.”

‘What is he trying to say?’

I know well about Rahilt from the original work. Of course, I was reincarnated into this world after an accident, long before the story concluded… but I’m familiar with the general setting.

…

……

‘Wait, am I?’

Thinking about what I actually know, it seems quite pitiful.

A face with the highest aesthetic value in the world.

The female lead’s doormat.

A smart and strong overpowered character.

Low self-esteem and dependent personality.

A flawed mental state.

‘…Is that right?’

Looking back, the Rahilt I’ve experienced seems quite different.

He has low self-esteem but is far from having a dependent personality. While he is overpowered like in the original, his mental state isn’t as damaged as in the original work…

Only then did I feel something off and listened carefully to Father’s words.

“To explain the Deposed Emperor’s Child, we need to mention the founding myth of the Bellonin Empire.”

“Do you mean the legend where the first Emperor made a contract with the black dragon and established the foundation of the empire?”

“Correct, Tesser. And he married the humanized black dragon and had a son. That son became the second Emperor. This is why the bloodline of the old imperial family was called the Dragon’s Blood.”

The founding myth was just that—a myth—so it was difficult to guess why he was mentioning it.

But in the next moment, Father overturned our common sense with a serious face.

“To put it bluntly, that legend is true. Though after generations, all traces of the dragon completely disappeared.”

“What?”

“What did you say…?”

Both Tesser and I expressed our surprise. Father then let out a faint sigh.

“More precisely… we thought it had disappeared. Until that day fourteen years ago, when the Deposed Emperor’s Child was left alone.”

After Father finished speaking, Mother continued:

“Do you know the concept of Ancestral Regression? It’s a phenomenon where a distant descendant rarely awakens genetic traits incredibly close to their ancestor. That’s called Ancestral Regression. And fourteen years ago, many imperial personnel witnessed the dragon abilities awakened in the Deposed Emperor’s Child.”

“It must be the result of Ancestral Regression. Dragon power that far exceeds the norm, and the black clouds that the Black Dragon was said to control… evidence couldn’t be more clear. Even the Imperial Knight Commander suffered a major injury from a mere five-year-old child and lost him. By now, do you understand what we’re trying to say?”

Gulp.

I heard someone swallowing nervously beside me. The couple quietly revealed to Tesser, who was listening tensely:

“Logically, the Deposed Emperor’s Child must harbor great resentment toward the current imperial family.”

“While we age, that child will only reach his prime as time passes.”

“It might be fine while your father remains strong… but I must admit, I fear for the future.”

‘The fact that you can handle Rahilt until the aging curve hits already makes you an incredible monster…’

He wasn’t the male lead of the previous work for nothing. I was suddenly struck by how fortunate I am to have such a person as my father.

‘Besides, Rahilt doesn’t have any such thoughts, but you’re jumping to conclusions. I understand, but still…’

I thought they were going to say something important, but they’re just being paranoid. My husband is so innocent—why are you slandering him? You should be more careful what you say about your future son-in-law.

“The only hope we can cling to is… according to tradition, those with dragon’s blood have very faint emotions. Records indicate they are empty beings incapable of feeling joy or even resentment.”

Excuse me?

He was extremely surprised and shocked when I saw him. He’s a person with such rich emotions that he avoids eye contact out of embarrassment during squats. He might be a bit slow sometimes, but still.

‘Well… he’s not exactly like ordinary people…’

The discomfort was so subtle that calling it “faint” seemed excessive.

“Ah… could it be…?”

“Serin?”

“Sister?”

For a moment, as a past memory flashed before my eyes, my family’s attention turned to me.

“No, it’s nothing…”

While hastily composing myself, I recalled a conversation I had with Rahilt.

It was that evening when Rahilt was unnecessarily lowering his self-esteem. He confessed his worries about not being able to follow others’ normalcy.

[Actually, I’m much better now compared to before. Rodrick still waves his hands in dismissal whenever he recalls those times.]

[Mr. Rodrick?]

[Yes, if I had a father, I think he would be like him. He always taught me various things so I could mingle with people.]

[You had a good person by your side.]

[So if Serin thinks I’m normal, it’s definitely thanks to Rodrick.]

[Hmm.]

At that time, I just thought my father-in-law had given him good character education. That was the extent of my understanding.

But could it be that the dragon’s blood mentioned in the founding myth… was corrected by such a miraculous educator?

I didn’t know the original Rahilt had such a backstory, and this Rodrick person seems to have completely erased that backstory.

“Teacher Ro Eun-young…?”

My father-in-law was a more remarkable person than I had imagined.