episode_0142

Elastine ended her story about Duchess Rosetta.

Before her eyes, she saw Katlena with a truly angry expression on her face.

Her appearance is filled with a deep sense of betrayal towards someone she trusted.

Seeing this, Elastine judged that Catlena’s heart had definitely changed through this story, just as Saladin the Great had said.

‘Even without that, our relationship had recently become so strained that I was joining hands with the princess and becoming hostile to Elios, and now I’ve heard this story. It’s only natural.’

People who have emotional gaps are very vulnerable to exploitation.

Because of this, even if there are facts that are normally difficult to accept, you can accept them as the truth.

The emotions of anger and betrayal are inherently like that.

Although Elastine did not have the ability to utilize these emotions well, there was no major problem in that regard, as she was now leading the situation by telling the story that her vizier Saladin had told her rather than thinking of it herself.

and..

As she watched Elastine tell her the truth, Katlena seemed to have difficulty suppressing her emotions, and spoke with an expression and voice that seemed to be literally seething.

“So..so? You..what is the reason you are telling me this?..no..what is the purpose of Saladin, the prime minister, that made you tell me this story?”

Katlena speaks in a fierce voice.

At this, Elastine began to feel a little scared, even though she knew that the anger was directed at Duchess Rosetta and not herself.

However, regardless of those facts, there are situations where what needs to be said needs to be said.

So she kept her composure as much as possible and told him what was actually the most important story to her.

I started to bring up the main topic of this plan.

“Yes, I will tell you. The fact that the Prime Minister wants to tell the truth to Lady Katlena and request her cooperation through this… That is… I want her to help me assassinate the evil woman who is here now… Duchess Rosebetta.”

“Oh my.. Ah.. No.. Duchess Rosetta.. Um.. Kill her?”

A truly terrifying request to help kill the next heir to this principality.

As she spoke, Elastine began to feel uneasy inside.

If this statement were misconstrued, it could lead to the destruction of not only her but also her family.

This is a story that would have been impossible to bring up if the person saying this did not have the strong support of a prime minister.

And… while listening to Elastine’s story, Katlena began to tremble even more and bit her lip so hard that it bled.

“This may be a sudden and shocking story, but… it is a decision that the Prime Minister has made after careful consideration. I don’t know the exact details, but according to what he said, it would be too dangerous to keep Duchess Rosebetta alive for the sake of the Empire.”

“That… Really?…That…is…right…that’s what I’m saying..”

Katlena speaks in a voice that sounds like it might explode at any moment.

To this, Elastine bowed her head in front of her to make sure she was being heard.

“Yes, my lady. This must be done for the sake of the Empire and for the sake of your late mother. Please help us to cut off the head of that evil Duchess Rosebetta.”

“… .”

Finally, Elastine, which speaks with deep earnestness.

At her words… Katlena remained in heavy silence for a moment.

Although Elistine could not tell exactly what it meant, she could only vaguely guess that it was probably a phenomenon that occurred when one harbors feelings of anger toward Duchess Rosetta in their hearts.

And after a while…

“Haa… ”

A heavy sigh escaped Katlena’s mouth,

Then she looked at Elastine and spoke in a voice that had regained some of its composure.

“..Okay..Let’s do that.”

“Ah!..”

Katlena’s answer to her own… or to be precise, accepting the prime minister’s request.

At this, a look of joy began to appear on Elastine’s face, and looking at her, Katlena asked in a cold voice.

“Then… tell me your future plans. As you know, Duchess Rosebetta is the most powerful witch in the Empire, and her daughters, Ellios and Senel, are here. Even if I’m lucky and can get Maeb to join me, it won’t be easy, right?”

“Of course. Besides, I probably won’t be able to get help from Princess Maeb for this matter. If she were to get involved and things go awry, there’s a risk that things will get complicated because of the royal family…”

“Then what are you going to do? Even if you mobilize your weak forces against the strongest witches in the empire, you’ll just be swept away without a fight?”

Elastine spoke with a serious expression in response to Katlena’s slightly impatient voice.

“..You don’t have to worry about that part. There are already powerful adventurers involved in this matter.. Northern wizards are already inside the academy.”

“Northern… wizards? West… no way.”

The moment she heard those words, these people suddenly began to come to mind in Katlena’s mind.

Then Elastine nodded and spoke to her.

“Yes, Lady Katlena must have seen it before. That auction… The powerful magicians who raided the auction house in Benetsa. They actually stole the auction items there under the orders of Prime Minister Saladin. Was it for some kind of experiment?.. I don’t know the details, but I know that if the situation is right, they can easily defeat the Duke’s wife.”

“Yeah.. That’s right..”

Cattlena muttered in a small voice at Elastine’s words.

Then she looked at Elastine and spoke with a voice full of determination.

“Okay. Then tell me what I should do.”

“Yes, Katlena.”

So, Elastine told Katlena the details of her future plans.

Hearing this, Katlena nodded calmly.

And this was the same for Zeros, who was listening to this situation while suppressing his emotions as much as possible.

*

“Then.. I will ask you to take good care of me, Katlena.”

“Okay.. Okay.. You help them move according to plan.”

“Yes, just leave it to me!”

After saying goodbye to Elastine, Katlena leaves the place.

Then she walked along the road quietly with Zeros, maintaining silence.

And after a while… Zeros, who had confirmed that there were no people around, spoke with a voice full of worry and anxiety while looking at Katlena.

“..Katlena-sama.. Are you really.. going to do it? Are you really going to join that absurd plan..”

It was Katlena who was showing genuine anger right in front of his eyes.

Although, Zeros also knew that she already knew the secret of her birth… just what Elastine had been talking about.

No, to be exact, Zeros was worried that Katlena’s mind might have changed after hearing the fabricated story that Saladin had told.

however..

“Are you crazy? Why me? You, Zeros, did you really think I’d fall for such nonsense?”

“Huh? Oh… Well… That’s right, right?”

The next moment, Katlena answers with a voice that seems genuinely bewildered.

Seeing her like this, Zeros felt a momentary sense of relief and answered with a slightly trembling voice.

“I also know very well what kind of person my mother is. If anything, she would have been persecuted by someone. She would never have treated others badly.”

“Hmm… that’s definitely true.”

Even though Rosebetta wasn’t that simple of a person, Zeros acknowledged that at least she wasn’t the type of person to harass others.

Yes, Zeros is a little more worried about the possibility that Katlena might betray the Duchess.

However, at this moment, he suddenly began to realize that the emotions he was seeing from Katlena were a little excessive.

‘But… for something like that, you really seem to be in a bad mood. Is it simply because you insulted Rosebeta in front of your eyes? Or is there another reason…’

Zeros followed behind Katlena while feeling such doubts.

Meanwhile, at that moment, Katlena’s heart was filled with a truly deep and intense feeling of anger.

However, this was not necessarily the case for Duchess Rosetta or her sisters.

The object of her anger…

It’s… disappointment in his grandfather who even resorts to lies to use him as a consumable.

And more than that…

In her previous life, she had always considered him a friend, but in reality, he was just her grandfather’s puppet, a dirty traitor who had approached her only to use her.

It was about elastin.