ITIF Chapter 55

Duke Cardia’s Scheme

The petitions mainly questioned the Crown Prince’s excessive conduct displayed at the imperial ball, expressing doubt about whether the future of the Empire could truly be entrusted to him.

“Hah…….”

The Emperor let out a heavy sigh rising from deep within his core and squeezed his eyes shut.

“Just bring them all at once.”

“This appears to be all for today…….”

Which meant there would be more tomorrow.

“Who do you think is behind this?”

Since it wasn’t common for petitions to arrive simultaneously from multiple sources, it was reasonable to assume there was a ringleader.

The Emperor believed someone had stepped forward to stir up the nobles.

At the Emperor’s question, the chamberlain answered with a troubled expression.

“I suspect it may be Duke Cardia himself.”

The Emperor downed the remaining wine in his glass in one gulp and said,

“My thoughts exactly.”

“Would it not be wise to summon Duke Cardia to the palace tomorrow?”

“…….”

The Emperor silently held out his empty wine glass. As the chamberlain filled the empty glass with wine, he continued.

“If His Highness the Crown Prince formally apologizes, might Duke Cardia’s anger not subside somewhat?”

Only after gulping down several cups of wine did the Emperor finally speak.

“Yes. It would be proper for the one who caused the trouble to take responsibility.”

“Yes, I agree.”

“What is the Empress doing?”

“It seems she is investigating every possible avenue to calm the situation, but…….”

The Emperor shook his head. If this were something the Empress could handle, the petitions wouldn’t have flooded all the way to the Emperor.

“Bring that boy Joshua to me.”

“I-it’s late tonight, so perhaps it would be better to summon him early tomorrow morning…….”

The chamberlain, who had been cautiously suggesting this, closed his mouth at the Emperor’s sharp glare.

“I’ll go fetch him, Your Majesty.”

The chamberlain quickly bowed and hurried out of the office.

The Emperor, who had been about to raise his glass to his lips again, realized it was already empty and drank straight from the bottle.

He was astounded by the Crown Prince’s shamelessness—causing trouble he couldn’t even handle himself and then not showing his face anywhere.

Duke Cardia was one of the nobles even the Emperor couldn’t easily control.

Kavelaseth had become Duke Cardia at a young age and performed his role as family head admirably, earning the respect of vassal families.

“Now that I look at it, the comparison is stark…….”

Joshua was about the same age as Duke Cardia, but aside from having the Emperor as his father, he had accomplished nothing.

It was for this reason that the image of his deceased daughter, Princess Trinity, sometimes came to mind.

She had been a child of exceptional ability, at least.

But regret at this point was meaningless. What use was there in recalling a daughter who was no longer of this world?

“……I’m drunk.”

If he weren’t drunk, he wouldn’t be wallowing in sentiment like this.

****

“She appeared to be enjoying a tryst with a young man in the plaza.”

As Joshua received the report on today’s surveillance, one corner of his mouth twisted upward.

‘She claims to love Duke Cardia, yet there’s another man besides him?’

A scoffing laugh escaped through Joshua’s teeth.

“So she is a promiscuous woman after all.”

“There’s more to report besides that.”

Joshua gestured for him to continue.

“After parting with the man, she seemed a bit…… no, quite strange.”

“Strange? How so?”

When Joshua asked, the knight lowered his gaze slightly. However, as if soon making up his mind, he plucked a flower from the vase and stuck it in his ear.

“What are you doing right now?”

At Joshua’s expression of disbelief, the knight answered with an almost tearful face.

“Perhaps it would be better if you saw it yourself and judged…….”

The knight then began spinning around and dancing.

He looked exactly like a madman.

Joshua, watching him, felt like he was losing his own mind. Just as Joshua frowned and was about to tell him to stop—

A knock on the door was followed by the chamberlain’s voice.

“Your Highness the Crown Prince. His Majesty the Emperor requests your presence.”

“Now?”

“Yes. It would be best if you went quickly.”

The Emperor had never summoned Joshua separately at such a late hour before. Calling him suddenly without prior arrangement was also rare.

He had an ominous feeling, but refusing wasn’t an option.

“Where is His Majesty now?”

“He is in his office.”

“Let’s go.”

As the chamberlain had said, the Emperor’s office was brightly lit when they arrived.

The Emperor generally maintained regular habits.

Being in his office until this late at night, well past his usual bedtime, meant there was an extremely urgent matter at hand.

“…….”

Even after Joshua entered the office, the Emperor didn’t lift his gaze from the documents.

“I greet Your Majesty.”

Joshua spoke first, but the Emperor kept his eyes on the documents and said indifferently in a dry voice.

“I’m beginning to doubt whether it’s wise to entrust the Empire to you.”

“……!”

Joshua’s eyes widened at the sudden criticism.

‘What’s this all of a sudden…….’

Joshua narrowed his brow, biting the soft flesh inside his mouth.

He wanted to grasp the Emperor’s intentions, but it was frustrating that he couldn’t see his expression since the Emperor wouldn’t lift his head from the documents.

Nevertheless, Joshua had something to rely on.

The Emperor’s only children now were himself and Count Tarel’s illegitimate son, and Joshua was certain the Emperor would never pass the throne to a bastard who couldn’t even be properly proclaimed as a prince.

‘The investiture ceremony is already over. What’s so important about some Duke Cardia?’

It was the moment when a rather twisted retort was about to slip out.

What the Empress always said flashed through Joshua’s mind.

Her words that he must be careful, careful again until he wore the crown, that he must cater to the Emperor’s moods as much as possible to avoid displeasing him.

“I apologize, Your Majesty. My thinking was shallow.”

Joshua bowed his head to the Emperor.

From childhood, royalty are taught never to show the top of their heads to others.

The instruction not to bow their heads carelessly to anyone applied even among fellow royalty.

But he knew that in an unfavorable situation like this, he mustn’t let pride or stubbornness take over.

“Since you understand, I won’t scold you further.”

“…….”

“When Duke Cardia enters the palace tomorrow, apologize to him formally.”

“……What?”

One of Joshua’s eyebrows shot up.

“Apologize? To a mere duke?”

Reading his rebellious look, the Emperor glared at Joshua with blazing eyes.

“Not a mere duke. Duke Cardia!”

“But Your Majesty…….”

The moment Joshua opened his mouth again, the Emperor raised his hand.

Joshua knew well that the Emperor had violent tendencies. But since the Emperor had never used violence against him before, he was quite flustered.

Soon the Emperor’s thick hand flew at him.

“Kugh……!”

The Emperor’s hand was fierce. It made a mockery of his earlier thought that a white-haired old man’s blow couldn’t hurt that much.

The Emperor’s hand struck Joshua several more times after that.

“……Good heavens! Your Majesty!”

The Empress, belatedly informed of the situation, came running.

“Your Majesty, he was wrong. It’s my fault for raising our son poorly, so if you must blame someone, punish me instead.”

Unable to control his overflowing anger, the Empress began tearfully pleading with the furious Emperor.

Watching this, Joshua ground his teeth.

‘Duke Cardia, that cunning bastard.’

It seemed he had been putting on a shameless act in front while pulling dirty tricks behind the scenes.

****

A visitor arrived at the Cardia ducal residence early in the morning.

“You are summoned to the palace.”

At the butler’s words, Kavelaseth put down the newspaper he was reading and rose from his seat.

He had been planning to visit the Emperor around this time anyway, so this worked out well.

Kavelaseth immediately left the Cardia residence and boarded his carriage.

The reason the Emperor summoned him was all too clear.

‘An apology, no doubt.’

If they didn’t back down even with petitions pouring in from across the Empire, he already had a plan prepared for that scenario.

That would actually be better.

But given that they summoned him early in the morning, it seemed they had no intention of brushing this aside.

While Kavelaseth was lost in these thoughts, the carriage arrived at the palace.

As he descended from the carriage, an attendant who had been waiting approached him.

“Welcome, Duke Cardia. His Majesty is waiting for you.”

Kavelaseth nodded in lieu of a reply.

“I’ll escort you inside.”

Following the attendant, he found not only the Emperor but also Joshua and the Empress present.

The sight of the imperial family’s three members gathered cozily together was a rare spectacle, but their expressions were far from pleasant.

Whether they hadn’t slept the previous night, the Emperor’s face looked haggard, and shadows hung beneath the Empress’s eyes as well.

And of the three, the Crown Prince was in the worst condition.

“……?”

At first, he thought he might have seen wrong. But looking again, it was the same. The Crown Prince’s face bore bruises that even makeup couldn’t conceal.

Kavelaseth looked past the visibly displeased Empress and fixed his gaze on the Emperor. It seemed the Emperor, unable to control his temper, had assaulted the Crown Prince.

Having assessed the entire situation in a short time, Kavelaseth merely nodded slightly toward them as a greeting.

“I heard you summoned me.”

At his arrogant attitude, not only the Empress but even the Emperor’s eyes sharpened.

However, there was no one here who could call out his behavior. Not if they didn’t want to make things even more complicated.