The Villainess Lives Twice

ersevered.

It is foolish to fail to protect a person who should be protected for one’s own sake.
Artizea taught him that.

And she and the child in her womb were the things that Cedric had to protect the most.

The Emperor asked.

“What can I do for you?”

“There are those who kidnapped my wife, destroyed evidence and prevented me from intervening in this situation.
I believed that they were ordered by Bishop Akim.”

“Hmm.”

“Please have two reliable guards present as witnesses in the interrogation.
We want to ensure that the temple does not question the fairness of the interrogation.”

“Alright.”

The Emperor nodded his head.

“However, there will be backlash from the protesters.
Do you have any thoughts about that? If you plan to forcefully suppress it, I will lend you the military.”

“The heresy interrogation is intended to be led by an otherwise trusted clergyman.
That should calm them down to some extent.”

“Come to think of it, Brother Colton was helping your wife.
But will he listen? He doesn’t listen to me.
Besides, temples are not easy to sway about.”

Sponsored Content

“I have to convince them.
At least the Archbishop will be compelled to cooperate with me.”

“Well, the temple has operated with its greed for worldly power, so no priest can pretend that they don’t know that.
Besides, the Archbishop has been quite friendly with you so far, and he’s ignored these things, so it won’t be in vain.”

Cedric said with his head down.

“Leave me the work of the Dowager Marchioness of Rosan.”

“…….”

The Emperor did not respond to this request.

“I understand that Your Majesty feels uneasy.
It’s also true that I don’t like her.”

“…….”

“However, she is the mother of my wife and the maternal grandmother of the child to be born.
I’ll make sure the thing that you worry about doesn’t happen.
Leave the disposal to me entirely.”

The Emperor thought for a long time.

He wouldn’t interfere, he couldn’t heartlessly say it didn’t matter.

Maybe it was a good thing.
A father, who had nearly lost his child for treason, had to deal with treason.
It could have been easier for the citizens to understand too.

And above all, the Emperor would not be blamed.

The Emperor nodded his head.

“Yes.
You have a reputation, so you’ll do well.
I will leave it to you.”

“Thank you.”

Cedric bowed his head deeply and greeted in gratitude.

“I have a lot of work to do, so I’ll leave.”

“Well.
Even if you are not, the officers of the Guards and the Central Army are gathered here, so it would be good to say that you have received all authorities from me as you go out now.”

The Emperor said so and called the chief attendant, who had been standing politely beside him until then.

“Deliver my orders to the waiting room first, and have the scribe write down the Imperial Decree and give it to Cedric.”

“I will.”

The chief attendant bowed.

And he stepped back first, and opened the door for Cedric.
Cedric bowed again to the Emperor and went out.

The Emperor then opened his mouth wide and laughed the laughter he had been holding back.
And he called the attendant and gave orders.

“Although Akim is greedy, he wouldn’t have the guts to do this alone.
Dig out who’s in the background.”

The attendant bowed without a word and left.
Of course Cedric would also investigate the background, but the Emperor had to figure it out for himself first.

This was an opportunity to firmly seize Grand Duke Roygar.

Sponsored Content

***

Cedric first went to the audience waiting room under the guidance of the chief attendant, and met with members of the military, including Gayan and Amalie.

“You could have had a really big trouble.”

Gayan offered a word of consolation.

“In Evron Grand Duchy, there was only one blood descendant until now, Your Grace.
This should be congratulated, but I am sorry that I am not in a situation where I can easily say such a thing.”

“I was very surprised that the Knights of Evron took action.
There were also some who suspected rebellion.”

said Amalie.

Few people can guess how much thought she has been through in the hours from when she heard of the news until now.

She was determined to stand by Cedric’s side.
But that meant supporting Cedric as the next power, not betraying the Emperor right now.

“It’s not rebellion, Dame Harper.
Didn’t the Knights of Evron rather go out of the capital? If it was a coup, they would have targeted the Imperial Palace.”

“Sir Gayan, no matter how deaf you are, I didn’t say anything dangerous.
I’m saying this in a sense that there shouldn’t be such a trivial excuse.”

Amalie replied back with a slight frown.

“Anyway, since His Majesty’s permission has been granted, the Guards and the Central Army will cooperate at any time, as long as you speak up.”

said Gayan.

Sir Keshore intervened.

“More than that, the health of Her Grace.
Is she alright? She’s a weak person, so I don’t know if she can hold on…….”

“The doctor says it is absolutely stable for the time being, and it is not dangerous.
All I can do is hope that she is safe…….”

It was when Cedric answered.

A man approached from the other side of the hallway.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the long corridors of the Imperial Palace.

Cedric paused.

The other side also stopped.
The light of the lamp was weak, but the neat and beautiful face was recognizable even in the shadows.

It was Lawrence.

Lawrence seemed to recognize Cedric as well.
He looked surprised.
He hadn’t heard of Cedric’s return yet.

Lawrence’s face contorted.
His soft lips were clenched.

And he tried to go past Cedric, as if he had decided to ignore Cedric.

“Lawrence.”

Cedric called him.