Ch.94Epilogue – Zikharun & Charle (1)
by fnovelpia
Ch.94Epilogue – Zikharun & Charle (1)
The Imperial Palace, restored to its former glory, was relaxed in its usual tranquil routine. The sun-warmed wildflowers and grasses swayed their heads, carrying a pleasant breeze that delivered languor to the bridge of my nose.
Since a peaceful life where the seeds of chaos had been eliminated was exactly what I sought, I found the current atmosphere quite desirable.
The morning was peaceful with sunlight gently filtering through the windows. It would have certainly been a serene day—at least if one excluded the Emperor’s office.
“Your Majesty, even though I’m supposedly your conversation partner whenever you’re bored, this seems inappropriate.”
“Why doesn’t the Marquess believe me? Surely you’ve felt the unsettling currents yourself!”
“All I can sense is Irefi’s killing intent.”
“Please believe me, Charle. If that child goes down the wrong path… ah…!”
“Sigh.”
I quietly closed my eyes and took a sip of honey water. Bitter tea wasn’t to my taste, so I didn’t drink tea even during private audiences with the Emperor.
“Charle isn’t a fool, you know.”
“Everyone becomes a fool at some point! In my case, it’s when I’m alone with the Empress in our bedchamber!”
“Please, I really don’t need such sensitive and detailed examples. Seriously.”
Was the Emperor someone whose lower body and head switched places every night? I couldn’t help but fix my envious gaze on his features.
“While Charle is certainly sharp… Zikharun isn’t completely insane either. Probably.”
“That damned fellow… I lack sufficient grounds to expel him now. Couldn’t the Marquess just take him in?”
“Your Majesty seems to be indirectly suggesting you want the Empire to collapse. You’ve been singing about retirement lately, haven’t you?”
“Ugh… uwaaaaah!!!”
This fellow seems psychologically cornered enough to consider the extreme option of dumping Zikharun on our household. If that happened, Irefi’s anger would surely be enough to blot out the sky.
Not wanting to hear the Emperor’s frantic screams any longer, I offered a moderate compromise.
“Since Your Majesty insists so strongly, I’ll go see for myself.”
“W-would you do that?”
“Yes, please excuse me.”
I walked past the Emperor and opened all the windows blocking the office terrace. The gentle spring breeze filled the office, immersing the space in drowsy warmth.
‘It’s not like I don’t bear some responsibility…’
I sat on the terrace and opened my senses to their fullest extent. This was an ability superior even to Irefi’s spiritual perception. Just by sitting on the terrace, I could know everything happening in the Imperial Palace.
Filtering through the information flowing in, I fell into reminiscence. After the engagement ceremony, the day I encountered Zikharun.
Yes, precisely the incident at noon that day.
I was so dumbfounded by his behavior that I ended up making a foolish intervention.
That was the beginning of the mistake I committed.
◇
It was approaching noon that day. I was walking through Eldrion’s central plaza on an errand when I noticed people unusually clustered around the fountain.
I didn’t know who they were surrounding, but it seemed to stem from good intentions. Just hearing the concerned question from a middle-aged man with a gruff voice made that clear.
“Hey, young man. No matter how nice the weather is, sleeping in a place like this will give you facial paralysis.”
As the man advised with a sympathetic gaze, a woman standing nearby added:
“Was it a month ago? When this young man was homeless here…”
Agreeing with the woman’s hazy recollection, a girl who helped at a nearby tavern chimed in.
“That’s right. I know because I occasionally brought him food.”
“Such a handsome young man, how did he end up like this… tsk tsk…”
My heart ached with every sympathetic comment that reached my ears. Though the Chainlich that had swept through the empire had been resolved smoothly, the reality was that many casualties had occurred.
If the young man they surrounded was a victim of the Chainlich, I had a duty to help him. After all, as the vessel of the old man, I needed to break the cycle of inherited hatred.
I couldn’t ignore a victim stemming from the chronicles of Netionpis and Lorian Feita. It was inevitable that I would push through the crowd to approach the young man.
If he was a victim of Feita’s blunders, I would need to take active steps to help him. I steeled my resolve, carrying the burden of guilt.
Until I heard the young man’s familiar voice.
“Temperature doesn’t mean much to me, so I’m fine. Oh, those skewers you brought last time were delicious. I’d like to express my gratitude.”
Flinch!
The confident tone and uniquely glib manner of speaking. The young man who might give an arrogant impression was someone far too familiar to me.
“Hmm?”
Soon the young man recognized me standing frozen like a statue. He smiled brightly and familiarly, as if without any shame.
Instantly transforming me into a criminal…
“Hey, Dad. Long time no see.”
I recoiled in shock and hastily stepped back. This was an unexpected reunion.
“Who’s your dad, Zikharun!!!”
“How disappointing. Treating your own flesh and blood so coldly. Well, I won’t argue. Your son’s rebellious phase is already over.”
“Stop talking nonsense and die.”
At my naturally flowing condemnation, Zikharun’s eyes filled with bitterness. His moist red eyes looked forlorn like an abandoned puppy under a cloudy, rainy sky.
Even rotten, he had inherited Lorian Feita’s genes. The dazzling young man’s clouded expression was enough to draw sympathy from the crowd like water from a spring.
“My goodness… they look so young, yet he called him his son.”
“It’s hard to believe, but looking at their appearance… black hair and red eyes aren’t common, are they?”
“At least I’ve never seen anyone else like them.”
“So he abandoned his son? Perhaps because he was born out of wedlock?”
‘No, from my perspective he is illegitimate… but this is being distorted in just the right way!’
What made it even more miserable was that I lacked the logic to refute people’s whispers. Either way, it was the old man who left behind this complicated family tree who was at fault.
“No! This is all a misunderstanding. More importantly, why have you become homeless here?!”
“Is there anything strange about it?”
“Is there anything strange, you ask? It’s startlingly strange!!! You madman, what are you really doing?”
“No, no, I’m the one who sincerely wants to ask. Dad, do you think I have even a penny to my name? What’s strange about a pitiful young man with no money and no home sitting on the street?”
“What’s strange is… huh?”
In the middle of my fierce rebuttal, I closed my mouth at a possibility that suddenly occurred to me. Thinking about it, it was an absurdly plausible explanation.
“Ah, of course I have no intention of blaming Dad for rejecting his homeless son and living luxuriously in a massive mansion. It’s partly my own doing, and I’m too scared to face my biological stepmother. I’m not mentally prepared yet…”
“You seem incredibly resentful, but let’s move past that for now. Stop looking so pathetic and come with me.”
I grabbed Zikharun’s hand and forcibly pulled him up, pushing through the crowd. I could clearly hear people gossiping about our complicated family situation. I thanked God this wasn’t a ballroom.
‘Where should I take this guy?’
It was troublesome not having a private place to talk since I had come on foot. If I had brought a carriage, I could have stashed him inside for a serious conversation.
I never dreamed that someone like Zikharun would become homeless after Feita’s downfall. This was an unexpected catastrophe. Should I call this karma…
“How have you been living all this time?”
“As you can see, I’m homeless.”
“What about food? Your complexion is quite good for someone who hasn’t bathed. Are you using some secret Feita hideout?”
“Nutritional intake isn’t completely useless, but I have an efficient body. Only my shell is human; I’m basically a spirit.”
“Don’t try to glamorize living off handouts!”
“Plus, I handle hygiene with spirit arts.”
“Good grief, and this guy is supposed to be the protagonist…?”
It was like using the ability to burn mountains for roasting sweet potatoes over a campfire.
It was difficult to guess why Zikharun, whose physical specs were exceptional even excluding spirit arts, was living as a homeless person.
“Why would someone with your abilities choose to live as a homeless person in the first place?”
“I got tired after all the commotion. Now I want to pursue a comfortable life of begging for a day and eating for a day. I’ve been busy throughout my past life too… Your son dreams of becoming a rich house cat.”
So I ended up hearing my biological son express his desire to degenerate into an animal. The urge to grab a switch piled up like a mountain, but was suppressed by self-reflection.
‘Why are we vessels living like this…’
Come to think of it, I had no right to criticize him when I was receiving an allowance and mansion from the Imperial family.
I earned enough for Miren’s dress expenses just by breathing. I lacked grounds to condemn Zikharun.
Meanwhile, Irefi was working hard to inherit her marquessate. She was always a lover too good for me.
‘Sigh… I can’t just leave this walking strategic weapon as a fixture in the central plaza. What should I do?’
Old man.
Tell me the answer.
Your son, a direct descendant of a Founding Noble and a ducal family, is living as a homeless person in the central plaza.
If I hadn’t seen him, I might have ignored it, but once aware, I couldn’t turn a blind eye. For the sake of Netionpis and Lorian!
I instinctively searched for the most reasonable place that felt like home. The mansion was out since Irefi lived there. Marquess Justitia’s manor was also rejected. The only place where I could rehome this abandoned cat…
‘Only the Imperial Palace.’
For me, the Imperial Palace had long since fallen to the level of an orphanage. I was called there so frequently that it was hardly difficult; the Emperor demanded stories of my past life almost daily.
‘Whether he takes on security duties in emergencies or just gets fed, it’s better than abandoning someone like him as a homeless person.’
Besides, Bartlant, the captain of the Nelfrugia Knights, resided permanently in the palace. I thought the combination of my future father-in-law Bartlant and Zikharun wouldn’t be bad.
“By the way, since we’ve met, could you feed me, Dad? I don’t mind if my biological younger stepmother joins us. Let’s try to cultivate a harmonious family, albeit belatedly.”
Shaaaa…
My composure crumbled, and malice leaked out beyond my control. Though I hastily contained it, my anger had nowhere to go and burned my stomach fiercely.
‘Is it okay to abandon your son like this, old man?’
Zikharun seemed to enjoy watching me suppress all sorts of negative emotions.
He kept making absurd jokes without pause, which made it obvious.
“Ah!”
“What now?”
“From today, would you call me… Yeopho, Dad?”
“What nonsense is that?”
“With Bartlant, the inner dad, and the outer dad, I have three fathers.”
“Argggghhhhh!!!”
An afternoon when murderous intent surged.
This was the moment I firmly decided to dump Zikharun at the Imperial Palace.
The Emperor’s concerns sprouted through this process.
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