Ch.649Episode 23 – The Spy Who Returned from the Cold Country

The purple priest is born not to be served, but to serve.

Humility and devotion are the will of Great Emperor Vyacheslav that we must rightfully inherit.

Shamefully, I have failed to uphold that will. Unable to eliminate the treacherous collateral line, I’ve even left behind a poor child who lost his mother at birth.

All of this happened because of my incompetence, it is my fault.

The future of the empire, fragile as a candle in the wind; the resentment of subjects groaning in deep sorrow and pain; the reproach of my young son whom I failed to protect—all weigh heavily on my shoulders.

But, my beloved sister. Do not grieve.

The sister I know is a woman more worthy of the Smirnov name than anyone.

As a Grand Magician, you can surely protect the peace of the Kiyen Empire and the safety of the imperial family in place of an emperor who failed to carry on the will.

…So please forgive me. Forgive this incompetent emperor who abandoned his priestly duties and burdened you with the weight of the subjects; this inadequate brother who entrusted you with his nephew and the future of the family before departing to join our father.

Please promise me, Sasha. Promise that you will ensure Nikolai and his children do not remain incompetent emperors like myself.

Promise that you will guide them not to grow up as inadequate parents who could neither protect their loved ones nor their beloved children.

And someday, when the day comes for you to meet this brother and our parents again…

Please tell us.

That you, born as a Smirnov, as the Grand Magician, watched over your nephew and children who admirably carried on the Great Emperor’s will, and closed your eyes as a human being named Alexandra.

Tell this inadequate brother who chained your ankles with heavy shackles throughout your life, in that mischievous, tomboy voice of your childhood.

…That is my last lingering attachment.

Episode 23 – The Spy Who Returned from the Cold Country

A drowsy sensation pressed down on the crown of her head. It was the manifestation of fatigue she hadn’t felt in nearly sixty years.

Alexandra Petrovna stared into the communication crystal in silence for a while, then began to move her lips, which felt heavier than ever before.

“…It’s you, Liza.”

Her voice was no different from usual. It had a slightly husky tone, but the pitch was hardly distinguishable from normal.

-‘Yes, it is I.’

Yelizaveta’s voice from beyond the crystal was the same. Nothing in her intonation, pitch, or the short breaths she took in and out was different from usual.

That’s why Alexandra felt a familiar comfort in the princess’s voice. To be precise, she felt fragments of a woman she had met long ago.

The Empress who had welcomed her by Nikolai’s side. The nephew’s spouse who spoke warmly to the Grand Duchess whom others found difficult to approach.

The resemblance was uncanny. That’s how much Yelizaveta’s voice resembled her mother’s.

-‘I seem to have caused you concern. Judging by the lack of contact with those guarding the relay…’

If it had been just the voice, Alexandra would have been merely surprised, but the princess resembled not only her mother’s voice but also her manner of speaking and intonation.

That’s why.

That’s why she had momentarily confused the deceased empress’s voice with the other’s.

“I see you still have that habit of imitating Nadiya.”

-‘I never expected to hear my mother’s name here. Nor did I expect the Grand Duchess to call her by such an affectionate nickname.’

“Of course, didn’t we know each other long before you were born?”

Generally, it is taboo in the empire to casually address a member of the imperial family by name. Even a Grand Duchess cannot carelessly call the Emperor or Empress by name.

However, since Alexandra was the sister of the previous Great Emperor and the Emperor’s aunt, Nikolai VI and the empresses, who had known the Grand Duchess since they were toddling imperial grandchildren, specially permitted her to use nicknames.

That’s why Nikolai VI was always called “Kolya” by the Grand Duchess.

Similarly, Kolya’s first wife, Empress Nadezhda, was called “Nadiya.”

It was a habit unchanged even after decades.

-‘Well… I know the Grand Duchess was quite close to my mother. I have no reason or need to interfere if you still wish to call the deposed empress by a nickname. Isn’t that right?’

“…It seems your target today was not Valery but me.”

In response to the subtly barbed reply, Yelizaveta let out a coquettish laugh.

-‘Surely not. I harbor no ill feelings toward you, Grand Duchess.’

The blue eyes staring into the crystal took in the scene.

Burning islands, collapsed buildings, and destroyed armored vehicles. There was no discernible difference between the military uniforms and civilian clothes mixed in the mud. The same went for their owners.

Against the backdrop of distant artillery fire, silence fell, and the jade-colored communication crystal still had two lines connected. One belonged to Yelizaveta, who had just contacted the Grand Duchess, and the other to Frederik, with whom she had conversed earlier.

“……”

Looking alternately at the wounded capital Petrograd and the communication crystal connected to two lines, Alexandra took a deep breath and slowly opened her mouth.

“You’ve done something terrible, Liza. Aren’t you afraid of Kolya’s anger and the subjects’ resentment? Why would you do such a thing?”

-‘You’re stating the obvious.’

Yelizaveta snickered and replied.

-‘You don’t sincerely believe that my father, who has lost his firearm and fallen critically ill, could do anything to me, do you?’

“…So you knew Kolya was bedridden.”

-‘Though I am the daughter of the empress who killed my hand, I am still his child after all.’

…Damn it. Was it too much to try hiding the Emperor’s condition for over five years?

She never intended to hide it forever, and knew it wasn’t possible, but she hadn’t expected Yelizaveta to have noticed already.

She thought the princess would have only harbored suspicions.

As Alexandra frowned with a gloomy expression, lost in thought.

-‘I have no obligation to tell you how I knew about His Majesty the Emperor’s critical condition.’

With a clatter, as if setting down a walnut, Yelizaveta opened her mouth.

-‘Of course, you’re probably not curious about that right now. Honestly, were you surprised? I never expected the Grand Duchess herself to step in and put me in a difficult position.’

“……”

-‘So, to cut to the chase, I’ll get straight to the point.’

The princess said.

-‘Help me drive out the traitor Valery.’

Use your own hands to support me as Emperor instead of the Crown Prince.

*

In a foreign coup situation, the job of an intelligence agency is to read the room.

Who has approached the core of power? How many hyenas have gathered around the powerful?

Predicting the justification for the conflict, the likelihood of victory based on each faction’s situation, and the international diplomatic impact the coup will have on one’s own country are all critical tasks.

I listened carefully to the conversation between Alexandra Petrovna and Yelizaveta Nikolayevna.

-‘…You want me to drive out Valery with my own hands?’

-‘You understand perfectly.’

The princess leading the rebels proposed cooperation to the Grand Duchess. Although the Grand Duchess rejected her outright, thwarting the princess’s scheme, this conversation implied quite a bit.

First, the military significance.

After more than 12 hours of engagement, the rebel forces are struggling, unable to break through the second defense line established at the Reyevsky River.

Despite having more than twice the military power, the Petrograd Defense Command has successfully defended by exerting every ounce of strength, and the offensive of the rebel forces, whose supply routes have been cut off, has now reached its limit.

Why has the rebels’ offensive revealed its limitations? Because the supply of materials from the Western Fleet headquarters via long-distance teleportation has been cut off. And the ones who severed that teleportation were the Grand Duchess and Camilla.

From the perspective of Yelizaveta and the naval infantry generals, the two of them are more threatening than either the suppression forces fiercely resisting at the second defense line or the Central Command’s suppression forces attempting to enter from the outskirts of the capital.

While the suppression forces might be manageable opponents, the Grand Magician and the Hero are formidable enemies.

If they can’t be treated as enemies, it’s better to either recruit them as allies or prevent them from interfering further.

Second, the political significance.

Yelizaveta is currently drawing in many high-ranking social figures to legitimize her actions. If she can demonstrate that so many leaders support her, she can steal the justification from Crown Prince Valery, who has labeled the princess a traitor.

However, Valery has already secured statements of support from the military and foreign governments.

As long as he wields the legitimacy of being the Crown Prince and receives support from foreign countries, allies, and the military, it’s impossible for Yelizaveta to gain the upper hand in terms of political justification. Honestly, she probably knows she’s at a political disadvantage.

But what if the Grand Duchess, who is a Grand Magician, shows support for her or takes a stance of tacit approval? At the very least, the magical community would be hesitant to support the Crown Prince.

Additionally, those within the empire who are deliberating which side to take would be greatly confused.

In other words, this is a gambling table that Yelizaveta, who is in trouble, has created by using her wits.

“……”

The problem is that not everything in the world goes according to plan.

Upon hearing the princess’s proposal, the Grand Duchess shook her head without looking back.

-‘I have a duty to protect the imperial family. And you ask me to drive out the Crown Prince appointed by Kolya and support you instead? Is this even reasonable?’

-‘It seems the intelligent Grand Duchess has forgotten that I too am a Smirnov.’

The conversation between the two continued for quite some time.

It was an argument between the princess trying to persuade her opponent and the Grand Duchess trying not to be persuaded.

-‘Valery is not qualified to be Crown Prince. Do you truly believe that someone who usurped military authority and deceived the subjects while the Emperor was bedridden is a legitimate successor?’

-‘So you tried to kill your half-sister, mobilized the army, and turned the islands into a sea of fire?’

-‘When you put it that way, it sounds as if I plotted treason. I merely wanted to eliminate the traitor who coveted the throne with the backing of her maternal relatives, and drive out the foolish Crown Prince who neglected the critically ill Emperor and was absorbed in power games.’

To me, who knew even a little about the situation, Yelizaveta’s words sounded like nonsense. But there couldn’t be a more suitable logic for incitement.

After all, it’s true that Margarita entered the succession race with the backing of her maternal grandfather’s power, and it’s true that Valery attempted to secretly seize military authority.

Of course, the princess had the mindset that she would rather become Emperor herself than be pushed out of the succession structure and be purged along with her maternal family, and the Crown Prince stepped up because someone had to command the army in the conflict with the demon race, but…

Anyway, such behind-the-scenes circumstances are not important at all right now.

What’s important is that Yelizaveta is using the superficially revealed circumstances as evidence to incite all kinds of people.

“…Her propaganda is impressive.”

Even as I muttered, blocking the voice coming into the communication crystal, the viper-like tongue showed no signs of stopping.

I analyzed this as Yelizaveta’s intention to buy time. While the Grand Duchess was conversing with her, she wouldn’t be able to move rashly.

And her intention hit the mark exactly.

-‘Nonsense. If you thought you could deceive me with lies, you’re mistaken, Liza.’

-‘How could I possibly deceive the Grand Duchess who dominated an era? However, whether the subjects share the same thoughts as the Grand Duchess is uncertain.’

-‘…You’re determined to divide the empire in two.’

-‘Don’t worry. I will embrace both those who follow me and those who don’t.’

-‘I’m sure. Those who died today must have lost their lives because they couldn’t be embraced by you.’

-‘……’

Faced with a polite rebuttal telling her to stop talking nonsense, Yelizaveta had nothing to say and just laughed.

Or perhaps she judged that there was no value in engaging further.

It seems her intention was the latter, judging by what she started spouting next.

-‘Whether a hundred die or a thousand, what does that have to do with you, Grand Duchess?’

-‘…What did you say?’

-‘Aren’t they people you’ve never even met? The deaths of hundreds whose names you don’t know may be a passing sorrow, but they can’t compare to the death of a cherished one that must be buried in your heart forever. Such as an only family member or a sole disciple.’

-‘……’

-‘I’ve already received reports that your disciple is accompanying you. So please don’t bother denying it.’

The death of a cherished person.

No one misunderstood what that meant. Once Camilla’s name was mentioned, this was clearly a metaphor symbolizing her.

It was a warning: if you don’t want to see your disciple die, stop causing trouble and disappear.

“……”

After turning my gaze away from the communication crystal that had fallen silent, I quietly got up. Passing through the noisy military radios, I left the communication crystal behind and went out into the corridor.

With a phone in my hand.

I spoke to the person on the other end of the phone who had been silent until now.

“…I’m going to call out some numbers now. Don’t get confused and make sure to remember them.”

*

A headache struck.

Whether her shortness of breath was due to old age or intense emotion, she couldn’t tell.

“……”

Alexandra remained silent for a while, holding the communication crystal, as if trapped in a glacier. She didn’t know what words would come out if she opened her mouth now.

She took a breath, perhaps for the umpteenth time, and thought.

She had to think.

-‘Grand Duchess. I know that you have dedicated your life to the Smirnov family, maintaining balance throughout your life. No one is unaware of this, and no one is ungrateful.’

-‘Duty, you called it? My mother once told me. That there was a promise you made with the late Emperor before he passed away.’

To protect and cherish the children of Smirnov.

To be a fence for them in place of her brother who, throughout his life, couldn’t be a fence for his sister and son, who died as a human without being able to shake it off.

That’s what she had promised.

-‘You’ve done admirably. Others might not know, but you’ve certainly lived a life without shame.’

-‘Though you couldn’t personally execute the regent of Smirnov blood, you rescued Nikolai VI, who had fled from the palace to escape the regent’s knights, from the brink of death many times.’

-‘Did you know? When His Majesty was on the verge of death after eating berries containing deadly poison, unaware of it, while heading to Minister Stolypin’s estate.’

-‘You, who had escaped from the palace avoiding the regent’s eyes, nursed His Majesty, who was suffering from high fever for four full days in a cave where not a ray of sunlight entered.’

It was a stormy day.

Her little father, who had been eyeing her sick brother’s position, finally drew out the dagger buried deep in his heart, and Kolya had to flee the palace to escape his little grandfather who had become regent.

Until departure, there were knights and subjects who followed her brother. However, the knights sent by the regent were too numerous, and not everyone could escape alive.

On the day she was tied down by the regent. The eastern night sky she saw from the palace rippled with the red light created by weapons and magic.

Only after fifteen sunrises and sunsets could she finally leave, using the flimsy excuse of checking on the workshop she had left in the magic tower.

They survived in the end. Although it took 16 years, she eventually passed on the throne that should have rightfully gone to her brother’s child.

However, she couldn’t protect the woman Kolya loved until the end during the evacuation.

She only managed to save Valery, the sole blood relative she left behind.

It was probably then.

The moment when Kolya, who always wore an innocent smile, lost his smile. The moment he decided to thoroughly reject anyone he perceived as even a slight threat.

It must have been so. Later, when he argued for purging the maternal relatives, saying they might rise above the Emperor’s head if left alone, Kolya recalled those times when they fled from the regent, when they were alone together.

-‘Even now, decades later, His Majesty hasn’t forgotten your efforts from that time. Whenever he reminisced about those days, he always expressed gratitude. Even Nikolai VI, who seemed like he wouldn’t bleed a drop if stabbed with a spear.’

Yelizaveta wore a faint smile. Though it couldn’t be seen, the empress she resembled always smiled at times like this.

-‘…But why did you pretend not to know?’

-‘My poor mother, Nadezhda, whose flesh rotted like a leper from an unknown disease, was deposed by my father’s order and driven out of the palace. Why didn’t you help when the empress who had warmly welcomed you died in a rural estate without anyone’s help?’

-‘While you forcibly held me back when I tried to follow my mother.’

If she closed her eyes, she could see Kolya wearing the imperial crown and Nadezhda’s retreating figure being led away by knights.

Herself restraining Liza, who was reaching out to her mother, and Nadezhda who gave a faint smile to her and swallowed her tears.

Nadiya, who was deposed by Kolya’s order before spring could arrive, didn’t survive that winter.

Alexandra felt intense dizziness as she slowly opened her eyelids.

“…I couldn’t send you to Nadiya’s side.”

-‘Why not? Because I was of Smirnov blood and shouldn’t die? Were you afraid I would be dragged to the scaffold like my maternal grandfather and cousins if I wasn’t separated from my deposed mother?’

“It was because of the last request the empress left me. She said at least you should survive.”

Huh. A despairing laugh came from Yelizaveta beyond the crystal.

-‘What touching maternal love. If she had been a person who had ever pretended to love her husband or daughter, I might have been momentarily deceived.’

“…Liza!”

-‘My mother never loved me for a single moment. Though I was the daughter of the empress who killed her hand, she often beat me and then cried, repeatedly saying that her stupid daughter, who wasn’t even born to the legal wife, could never ascend to the Emperor’s throne, all while being swayed by my maternal grandfather who tried everything to place an imperial grandchild on the throne. Of course, Nikolai wasn’t on good terms with my mother either. It was natural since they were in an arranged marriage.’

The laughing princess added casually.

-‘Why didn’t you just let me die too? If I had known I would grow up to be a child who would turn against blood like the regent and my father, perhaps dying then wouldn’t have been so bad.’

“……”

-‘Still, I loved my mother. Though she was a foolish mother who, harboring love that would never reach the Emperor, was swayed by her family’s influence and raised her hand against her child, but in the end couldn’t be truly harsh.’

Whether it was love for her parents or longing for the empty space left by her mother who departed early, the princess recited, more calmly and composedly than ever, that she missed Nadiya.

To this, Alexandra asked.

“…So, are you seeking revenge? By pushing aside the successor Kolya established and staining the islands with blood. Is inheriting the Emperor’s seat the revenge you’ve been dreaming of?”

-‘Surely not. If I truly wanted revenge, I would have done it when my father was well. I never wanted such a thing in the first place.’

“Then why on earth-!”

The question burst out in anger.

Why. Why are you doing this? What could possibly make you start a rebellion and see the blood of your own flesh and blood?

“Why did you plot such a thing, entangling your family, your sisters in conspiracy!”

-‘……’

“Answer me, Liza!”

The Grand Magician’s roar was clearly transmitted despite passing through the communication crystal.

A moment of silence fell.

Yelizaveta, who could only remain silent in the face of the roar, eventually broke the silence by slowly opening her mouth.

-‘Sisters… I’ve always hated that word.’

“……”

-‘Half-sisters born to the empress from a family that contributed to killing my mother, more half-sisters born to a concubine after dismissing the wife he had welcomed that way, a Crown Prince who, despite having superior abilities to me in his youth, hid shamefully out of fear of our father who had gone mad… Why did His Majesty bind us together with the fence called family? What was so important about protecting that priestly position, a power he couldn’t even take to his grave?’

“……”

-‘So I’ve always wondered. Whether I should accept as my family these half-siblings and a monster who doesn’t even seem human. Whether I should truly acknowledge the Crown Prince, who now seems more incompetent than me, as the successor.’

“…Watch your tongue, Yelizaveta Nikolayevna.”

Suddenly, the back of her neck tensed sharply. Just as Alexandra was about to open her mouth, feeling as if her blood vessels were twisting and her blood was flowing backward—

– ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ ̶ !!!

A massive noise, incomparable to the sporadic explosions that had been continuing, pierced her eardrums, and a warm sensation brushed against her skin.

In a world flickering between white and black, Yelizaveta’s voice was faintly heard—

-‘You shouldn’t lose focus on the battlefield, Grand Duchess. Isn’t that advice you emphasized yourself?’

A bright light engulfed her vision.

*

The southern sky burned brightly as huge clouds of smoke billowed up.

As the windows shook from the shock that arrived faster than the explosion, Yelizaveta calmly moistened her lips with a glass she raised despite the trembling.

“Is she dead?”

A general in naval infantry uniform bowed his head cautiously and replied.

“I humbly report that we cannot be certain, as our opponent is a Grand Magician.”

“I don’t mean to blame the commander. I was just wondering if the 6th-grade magical device, prepared as a decisive blow to destroy the defense line… would be effective against the Grand Duchess as well.”

The man referred to as commander also refrained from giving a definitive answer, saying it was difficult to be certain.

However, given that it had enough power to erase more than half of the defense line at once, even a Grand Magician couldn’t have avoided serious injury. He added that she would likely be restricted in her actions for a while.

Yelizaveta’s face looked quite satisfied as she traced her lips with her finger. She kept nodding while gently rolling a walnut in one hand.

“Can we cross the Reyevsky River without magical devices?”

“Yes. As soon as the preparatory bombardment is complete, all forces deployed along the riverbank will cross. Although a significant portion of our remaining shells will be consumed…”

The commander’s gaze rested on the black smoke rising from the midst of the sea of fire.

“…Now that our most concerning enemy is gone, we can reactivate the teleportation magic circle connected to the western ammunition depot without issue.”

“I’ll trust the commander.”

“Thank you, Your Highness.”

Yelizaveta, who had been staring at the distant downtown area swept by bombardment, suddenly resumed the connection to the magical communication device that had been paused.

Then she began calling the Grand Duchess in a monotonous voice.

“Grand Duchess? Are you perhaps still alive?”

Turbid noise flowed from the crystal.

Along with coughing sounds, a response began to be heard.

-‘…With such, a toy, you thought you could kill me.’

The red eyes staring at the window widened. As if she hadn’t expected her to actually be alive.

She expressed genuine admiration and replied like this.

“Hmm… Impressive. I heard it was a magic carefully prepared by the military for war.”

-‘Of course… it would be, designed to penetrate the coasts of the Fatalia Republic and the Kingdom of Abas in one strike….’

“Oh? You even knew the nature of the magic?”

-‘How could I not know a formula I improved and handed over.’

To be precise, it’s a military magical device designed for amphibious operations.

Abas and Fatalia established defense lines along every landable coast at the first sign of war, following the doctrine of preventing the Kiyen naval infantry from landing.

It takes considerable effort to remove magically installed anti-tank obstacles, mines, and pillboxes.

In the past, the Kiyen naval fleet would have had to lead battleships to push away the entire coastal area, but in today’s highly developed magical world, there’s no need to maintain expensive battleships.

Dropping the 6th-grade military magical device just used on the coast would vaporize bunkers and obstacles alike.

It’s a strategic weapon that the Kiyen Ministry of Defense had put heart and soul into developing for war preparation, and the Grand Duchess had also participated in the development process.

-‘…My intestines are out. This damn…’

She probably never dreamed that the rebels would use it against her.

While there was no way to know exactly what injuries the Grand Duchess had sustained, the groans coming from beyond the communication crystal were clearly the voice of someone severely injured.

She must have suffered wounds that were difficult even for her to endure.

Of course, it was bizarre in itself that she had survived after taking a strategic weapon capable of obliterating an entire coastline head-on, even if its power had been reduced.

“Hmm.”

Yelizaveta put down her glass and drew a deep smile.

“It seems you’re not in good condition, but might I suggest you retreat now?”

-‘……’

“If you withdraw now, I promise safety in my name. Even if not for the Grand Duchess, your disciple must be severely injured and needs protection. She’s a precious connection, isn’t she?”

-‘…You cause the disease and then prescribe the medicine.’

Thank you for the gesture, but no thanks.

Adding that, Yelizaveta brushed back her hair and asked.

Have you made your decision?

It was a question implying that if she wouldn’t back down any further, she too would have to see blood till the end.

And.

Alexandra Petrovna, who let out a painful groan, began to give her answer in a small voice, as if she had leaned her body against something.

-‘…It seems you’ve made one misunderstanding.’

“What do you mean by that?”

-‘It’s true that I moved with my disciple, but I never said I’m still with that child right now.’

“……”

The corner of Yelizaveta’s eye twitched as she looked into the crystal.

-‘You forgot the advice, Liza.’

“……”

-‘You should have observed carefully. What happens when you lose focus.’

The jade-colored crystal suddenly turned gray.

Yelizaveta, who had been staring at the crystal as if nailed to it, slowly turned her head as if entranced.

In the deep night before dawn.

Despite the occasional artillery fire, the scenery outside the window was peaceful, shrouded in darkness.

On the rooftop across from the building, a pair of blue eyes looking into the room.

“It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

Camilla, perched on the railing, greets her with a slight smile.