Eldest 181

181.

The carriage came to a stop in front of the prison.

The sudden arrival of a carriage from House Aeltern left the palace guards and a few soldiers at the gate visibly flustered.

As I disembarked at my leisure, one of the knights hurried over to me.

“What brings you here?”

“I’ve come to see the Crown Princess.”

“I’m sorry, but without His Majesty’s permission, you cannot meet with the prisoner.”

The knight blocked my way with a resolute voice. It seemed they were especially on edge, perhaps because the Crown Prince had just gone missing.

“His Majesty’s permission, you say…”

At that moment,

A soldier dashed up, breathless, and whispered something urgently into the ear of the knight who had just stopped me.

Hearing this, the knight’s expression shifted, surprise flickering across his face. Quickly, he bowed his head to me.

“I will escort you myself. This way, please.”

I smiled slyly as I watched the knight’s attitude change in an instant.

‘Did they really think I’d come to see the Crown Princess without any preparation at all?’

All this time, I had exchanged information with the Emperor through Killian on numerous occasions. In the process, I had naturally planted an informant within the palace.

Although the Emperor seemed aware of who my spy was, he had nevertheless grown rather magnanimous toward me, as I was Killian’s ally and also favored by Princess Hera.

‘That’s why he quietly turned a blind eye to my audacious actions.’

Before leaving for the palace, I had notified the Emperor through that informant.

As a result, I was able to approach the imprisoned Crown Princess without resistance.

“This is the place.”

The knight who was leading me stopped in front of a solitary cell.

A thick iron door had a tiny barred window.

“The prisoner is being held here.”

“Open the door. I’ll go in alone.”

“This is where the prisoner is confined. It’s dangerous to enter by yourself.”

“Do you think, as a member of House Aeltern, I can’t handle a single person?”

I let just enough force creep into my words to quell further argument.

The knight tensed up visibly, then quickly apologized.

“Forgive me. That was careless of me.”

Admitting his fault without pretense, the knight signaled briskly to the soldier guarding the door.

One soldier fetched a set of keys and, with a rattle, unlocked the firmly fastened lock.

Creeeaaaak.

The heavy door soon swung open with a hideous sound.

“I will await you just outside.”

“Very well, this won’t take long.”

With that, I stepped inside. A frigid air that seemed to gnaw at my very bones struck me immediately.

There was no heating, not even a window; the cramped cell received no sunlight whatsoever.

Relying on a small candle sputtering on the wall, I surveyed the cell: in the corner, a huddled figure cowered, trembling violently.

I approached her.

She seemed barely sane, her health all but ruined. The woman managed to lift her head and met my eyes.

Her gaze instantly turned fierce.

“Be—Bellady Aeltern…”

The Crown Princess…

There was no trace left of the woman who had once ruled the social scene in splendor and finery.

The Crown Princess clung to a threadbare blanket as if it were her only lifeline.

Her lips, frozen by the cold, could do little more than stammer out her words.

“What… What are you doing here? Did you come to mock me?”

‘At least, her fighting spirit is still intact.’

A small relief.

I crouched down to meet the Crown Princess at eye level, then removed my coat and wrapped it around her frail shoulders.

At this, the Crown Princess glared at me as if she could kill me.

“Take—take it away! How dare you pity me!”

“Lilith.”

At the sound of her real name, the Crown Princess flinched.

Buttoning my coat around her, I continued speaking.

“Soon your royal title will be stripped, and the House of Paragrin is on the brink of annihilation. All you have left now is your name.”

“So what!”

“Pherdel Allerman Deckerdil has gone missing.”

At my words, the Crown Princess’ eyes widened. I keenly watched her reaction.

“You were closer to him than anyone. If you know anything, now would be the time to say it.”

The Crown Princess snorted dismissively.

“A whole line of people probably want to know his whereabouts. What makes you think I’d tell you?”

“Remember this: I’m the only one here who will listen to you seriously.”

“W—what did you say?”

“No one else is going to pay any heed to your words. Because of the vain image you’ve built, and the vile crimes your father committed, trust in Paragrin is at rock bottom.”

“……”

“If you refuse now, I won’t come back for you again. Then whatever card you’re holding turns to trash.”

At these words, the Crown Princess pressed her lips together and seemed to weigh something in her mind.

I did not rush her, but waited in silence. At length the Crown Princess spoke, her words heavy and halting.

“If I tell you… what do I get in return?”

“State your terms. I’ll meet them if I can.”

“In that case—as quickly as possible…”

She squeezed her eyes shut, gulped for breath, then stared at me with eyes full of resolve.

“Kill me.”

I met the Crown Princess’s gaze for a long moment at this reply. She did not avert her eyes, but made her demand with pride.

“I am the eldest daughter of House Paragrin, and a blood member of the great imperial House of Deckerdil. End my life before all of that is taken from me, Bellady Aeltern.”

“If you wish, I could spare you instead.”

I had more than enough power for that.

But she shook her head firmly, her expression unyielding.

“Those things mean more to me than my life itself.”

“……”

“You’re not going to call me foolish, are you? After all, you—you’re the same kind as I am.”

There was no denying it. I understood too well what she was feeling.

So I said nothing further.

“I respect your wish.”

A fleeting look of relief passed through the Crown Princess’s eyes.

Having secured my promise, she spoke again.

“Pherdel Allerman Deckerdil—he’s likely gone to the Forest of Demons. That’s where he hid his private army.”

“And how do you know this?”

“When he’s completely drunk, he can’t stop boasting about it. Later, he remembers none of it. The fool.”

The Crown Princess gave a dry chuckle as if she’d been nursing this grudge for a long time.

“Do you know the exact location?”

“Would I be saying this if I didn’t?”

She gave the coordinates, which I committed to memory before pressing on.

“What’s the size, and where are the soldiers from?”

“You’ll think I’m mad for saying this, but every word is true.”

Her eyes sharpened.

“He doesn’t have a living army. He meant to use corpses.”

“I expected as much.”

“You… expected as much?”

“Anyone who brainwashes people with the monsters’ offal isn’t going to assemble an army by normal means.”

My response was calm enough, but inwardly I was startled.

Was he planning to turn people into puppets again…?

‘Or does he intend to use actual corpses this time?’

“Do you have any proof for what you’re saying?”

“If I did, would I be babbling on like this?”

The Crown Princess forced a frozen smile.

“If you don’t believe me, then just get lost.”

Amused, I stood up with a soft laugh and offered her a final parting.

“I hope your death is a peaceful one, Your Highness.”

“As if you mean that…”

But I saw with my own eyes—the tears pooling in the Crown Princess’s gaze, and her hand crushing my coat with desperate strength.

I left her unacknowledged, taking my leave from the prison with the waiting knight.

‘First, I need to verify her information and make preparations.’

I would have to mobilize all my spies to get swift results.

And also…

‘Perhaps it’s time to prepare a little gift for Caspar Agla.’

An amusing idea crossed my mind.

Ah, I’m hardly in any position to judge the Crown Princess myself.

‘The thought of striking at my enemies so cleverly—why does that alone bring me such satisfaction?’

The feeling left me faintly elated.

I smiled and quickened my pace.

---

The atmosphere at the emergency meeting, convened at dawn, was ablaze.

In the beginning, when the topic was exposing the culprit who had freed the Crown Prince, and confirming that Caspar Agla had fled the capital with Pherdel, the mood was more grave than heated.

But with a single remark from Theodore, the temperature in the room soared instantly.

“The temporary head of House Aeltern has a way to track them down. Your Majesty, entrust her with the entire matter.”

At that, a storm of protest erupted from the assembled nobles.

“What are you saying?”

“If you do that, the North will monopolize all the credit!”

“And besides, the acting lady of Aeltern is still young—and a woman!”

Theodore brushed off their complaints with cool indifference.

“It isn’t a matter of the North claiming all the glory; rather, it is the capable acting head resolving the issue. And when, if not now, shall we make use of such young talent?”

He turned to the Emperor, his face set.

“Please, use my daughter for this great cause.”

In truth, the Duke’s words were as good as a declaration that Bellady would be made a Small Duke once this was over.

Sensing this, the more astute nobles discreetly looked for the Emperor’s reaction.

A woman inheriting as head of a house?

Unthinkable by their conventions, and yet, they dared not oppose it recklessly.

The influence of “Bellady Aeltern,” driving force of the railroad, had already spread beyond the Deckerdil Empire to the entire continent.

If they recklessly spoke out against Aeltern here and now…

‘Our house will be swept aside in the new marketplace before we know it!’

While the nobles hesitated, fear in their eyes, the Emperor finally spoke with grave authority.

“If that child can truly capture Pherdel Allerman Deckerdil and Caspar Agla… I will make this the first item on the agenda at the high council of patriarchs.”

With that, the emergency session was adjourned.

Immediately, all the nobles hurried to speak with Theodore. But he was even swifter than they.

“Second Prince, a word with you.”

He had no intention but to secure Killian.

Chosen by Theodore, albeit unintentionally, Killian could only swallow nervously.