by Hyougetsu
“What will happen to me?”
“That, I do not know.”
Normally traitors were executed, but Dillier was a princess. I didn’t know what her punishment would be. Eleora would be returning to the capital soon enough, so she and Ashley could figure that out. I was a foreigner anyway, so this wasn’t my business.
Dillier took a small bottle out of her pocket and offered it to me. “In order to avoid any undue suspicion, I will leave this with you. It is a poison meant for suicide, but my religion forbids such things.”
Sonnenlicht had nothing to say on the issue of suicide, so this was likely some Sternenfeuer tenet. If you weren’t ever gonna use it, why even carry it around? Is it just customary for princesses to keep a bottle of poison on them?
“Very well.”
“It is made of the guts of a certain poisonous fish. Though it is both tasteless and odorless, a single mouthful is enough to be fatal.”
Ah, so kinda like pufferfish poison. Chances were, whatever fish this was made from also had tetrodotoxin in it. Alkaloids like these could be metabolized given time, so I just had to use strengthening magic on someone’s liver to protect them from it.
Dillier wouldn’t have been able to kill herself even if she’d wanted to. It would have been kind of funny to see her try, but her bravery had prevented her the ignominy of failing to commit suicide.
The thought almost brought a smile to my face but I managed to keep my expression stern and said, “We’ll be escorting you to Creech Castle.”
“Very well. My only regret is that I won’t be able to see Shallier one last time.” Dillier smiled. “But my actions, I stand by.”
I see...well I guess that’s fine. But you know your brother’s gonna be stuck cleaning up after your mess, right? Sighing, I handed Dillier the reins of her horse.
“Please follow me.”
And thus, I took Dillier captive.
After imprisoning Dillier in Creech Castle, I hurried back to the capital ahead of Eleora. For the past few days, Parker’s skeletons had been in control of the city. They’d been wandering the streets in clumps, keeping an eye on everything that was going on. No doubt the citizens were sick of them. Plus some of them were probably starting to overcome their fear since the skeletons weren’t attacking.
“I think it’s time for this ridiculous festival of the dead to come to an end.” I stood atop the north wall with Parker and Mao, waiting for the dawn. Eleora’s army had reached Creech Castle yesterday, and was heading to the capital with Dillier in tow. I’d asked her to arrive by dawn, if possible.
Mao, who’d been relaying my messages for me, asked, “Princess Eleora’s asking ‘Are you sure you don’t want us to make this look like a fight?’”
“I could have my skeletons make a big show of it if you want, you know,” Parker said casually.
I’d considered that option, but even if it was just a mock fight, civilians could end up getting hurt. Though it would boost Eleora’s image a great deal if she valiantly triumphed over an undead army, I didn’t want anyone dying. I ignored Parker’s suggestion and asked Mao, “Are all the flags ready?”
“It was difficult to procure so many in such a short time, but I managed to get the amount you wanted. Eleora’s army will return bearing the triumphant flags of the Sonnenlicht Order and the Originia family.”
Perfect. Just then, I spotted Eleora’s army crest the horizon.
“Parker, it’s time.”
Parker gave me a forlorn smile, then nodded.
“I suppose all parties must eventually end.” The skeleton mage threw back his cape with a flourish. With the predawn light at his back he turned to his skeletons and shouted, “Undead brethren, our banquet has come to an end! Return to the darkness from whence you came!”
The north gates were flung open, and Eleora’s army swarmed into the capital bearing Sonnenlicht and Originia flags. At the same time, the first rays of dawn shone upon the city. To those of the Sonnenlicht Order, the first light of the day was holy. So when Parker’s skeletons started to flicker and disappear, many of the watching citizens probably believed that it was the light that had banished them.
Eleora then marched into the vacated city like a triumphant vanquisher. Her soldiers’ uniforms were splattered with mud and grime, their armor dented. Many of them wore bandages as well. However, silhouetted by the dawn as they were, they looked like radiant saints.
“A splendid performance,” Mao said with a sardonic smile.
I grinned back and replied, “I know, right?”
Since it was early morning, Eleora was doing her best to have her army march quietly. But even so, the citizens were taking notice. Seeing that the skeletons were gone, some of them even ventured out into the street.
“Princess Eleora...”
“Princess Eleora has returned to us!”
“Wait, the skeletons are gone!?”
“What happened?”
“I don’t know, but we’re safe now! Princess Eleora will surely protect us!”
A crowd started forming around Eleora’s army. For her part, Eleora was just smiling quietly from atop her horse.
“Princess Eleora!”
“Welcome home, Your Highness!”
“Dear citizens, now that I am here there is nothing to fear,” Eleora called out as she waved cordially to the crowd of people. “I shall ensure this city’s safety.”
Our princess has gotten pretty good at putting on an act too now. Relieved, I leaned back against the wall’s railing.
“Now Eleora’s army is here to keep Lord Bolshevik’s troops in check. Even if the skeletons are gone, he shouldn’t be able to do anything.”
Parker nodded in agreement.
“This gives Eleora an excuse to have her soldiers guard the emperor too, doesn’t it?” he said with a playful smile. “Though depending on how you look at it, you could say she’s the one who’s kidnapped the emperor now.”
“Now, now, it’s rude to say things like that, my fellow disciple,” I replied, smiling as well.
By the time Eleora reached the palace, every last skeleton soldier had vanished. Their task complete, the ancient undead necromancers Parker had summoned to aid him started vanishing as well. As their forms began to blur, I raised a hand to one of the nearby necromancers that I recognized.
“Thanks for your help. We’ll do this again sometime.”
I’d addressed the Bone King, Gusforitus. The undead tyrant who I’d helped exorcise back in Zaria raised his helmeted head to look at me. For a moment I thought he might say something, but then he silently vanished like the others. Now then, it wouldn’t do for Eleora’s Meraldian guest to be away from her side at this critical moment. I needed to make it look like neighboring Meraldia had aided Rolmund in their time of need.
“Alright, that’s all the undead taken care of. Let’s go meet up with Eleora.”
“Hang on, Veight, you missed one,” Ryucco said, pointing to Parker.
“You want me exorcised!?” Parker exclaimed.
I ignored the pair’s bantering and headed toward the palace with Mao and my werewolves. Now that the skeletons were gone, citizens started pouring out of the Sonnenlicht temples they’d evacuated to. Ranks of Holy Templar Knights guarded them as they made their way back to their homes. Once everyone had been safely escorted, they started heading to the palace to meet up with Eleora as well. There were quite a few of them too. Cardinal Kushmer, who was leading the knights, stepped forward and said, “Princess Eleora, we have been awaiting your return.”
In front of a crowd of watching citizens, the cardinal bowed down before Eleora.
“It appears the impure creatures who threatened our holy city fled before your might.” She sure was laying it on thick. I hadn’t planned to take the act quite that far, but it seemed the cardinal had no such reservations. Eleora nodded and replied, “No, this is all thanks to the protection of the Sonnenlicht Order. I hear the undead spirits were unable to approach
your temples.”
Dang it, Eleora, not you too. Cardinal Kushmer smiled and said, “Now that you have returned, Your Highness, this capital is free from the specter of the dead. Our current safety is all thanks to you.”
“For the sake of all Sonnenlicht believers in Rolmund, I shall do my best to live up to your expectations for me.” Eleora smiled back at the cardinal.
Wow, these guys are more evil than me.
“All hail Princess Eleora!”
“May the blessings of Sonnenlicht be upon you!”
The citizens started cheering for Eleora. The immense relief they felt at being free from Parker’s skeletons had probably made them more energetic than usual. Before long, the entire city was shouting Eleora’s name. She waved to the people with a smile, as did Cardinal Kushmer. As someone who knew the truth, I felt guilty about manipulating the people like this. Still, if they’re happy I guess there’s no harm done. After a while, Eleora said loudly enough to be heard over the cheers, “My soldiers have secured the palace!”
A second later Ashley strode up to the palace gates, flanked by a pair of werewolf guards. Finally, this mess is over. Unfortunately, my job still wasn’t. I gathered up my werewolves and told them to arm themselves.
“Alright, guys, follow me! We still have to take care of Lord Bolshevik’s soldiers! Search every nook and cranny of the capital. If anyone tries to keep you out tell them you’re acting under the authority of Princess Eleora! Oh, but whatever you do, don’t transform.”
“Gotcha, boss.”
“If anyone resists, we’ve got permission to kill them, right?”
Yeah, you do. The few suspicious places Parker’s skeletons had discovered all ended up being hiding spots for Lord Bolshevik’s troops. However, his men were out of supplies and low on morale, so most of them surrendered without a fight. Furthermore, upon questioning them, they immediately admitted that Lord Bolshevik had ordered them to be here.
Naturally, both the crown and the Sonnenlicht Order made that information public. We now had the proof we needed to make Lord Bolshevik a wanted man. His coup d’état had ended in failure, and the situation was more or less settled. Except for the fact that no one knew where Lord Bolshevik was. No matter how much we questioned his men, it seemed none of them had any idea where he’d gone.
Now then, where are you hiding?
When we marched north, Lord Bolshevik’s two younger brothers surrendered to Eleora without a fight. Since they didn’t resist, Eleora was able to take them prisoner instead of being forced to execute them. In truth, tradition dictated that she should have executed them anyway, but no one objected to her decision. Mostly because at this point no noble had the level of authority and influence she did. Unfortunately, Dillier was a different matter.
After retaking the palace, Ashley called for an imperial council with his closest advisors and the top cardinals of the Sonnenlicht Order.
“My sister is a traitor who disturbed the peace of the empire. I’m afraid she needs to be beheaded,” he said once all the members had gathered. Surprised by his rather harsh declaration, the gathered nobles and clergymen exchanged worried glances. One of the nobles turned back to Ashley and said hesitantly, “Your Majesty, isn’t decapitation a bit too cruel? She is a princess after all... Would suicide not be a more merciful punishment?”
Everyone gathered agreed she couldn’t be allowed to live, but most of them at least wanted to let her die with dignity. No matter what she might have done, she was sister to the emperor. If she was given an ignoble death, it would hurt the prestige of the imperial family. However, Ashley shook his head resolutely.
“This is the last matter I must settle while I am still emperor. Once this affair is over I shall hand the crown over to Eleora, so what happens to the Schwerin name matters not.”
“Perhaps so, but still...”
“Your Majesty, don’t you think it’s wrong to treat her like a common criminal!?”
Ashley remained silent, but his face was pale. He was obviously forcing himself to appear resolute. Of course, the hard part was ordering the execution of his sister. No one particular method of execution would be that much more painful to him than any other. However, the attending nobles were only interested in the method. Or at the very least, no one was saying she should be spared.
I turned toward Eleora, who was sitting next to me. She just so happened to look my way at the same time. We silently exchanged glances. After a few seconds she sighed, then whispered softly enough that only I could hear, “Fine, fine. I’ll do what you want.”
Eleora raised her hand into the air, indicating that she had something to say.
“Your Majesty, please wait. If you come off too forcefully here, the fact that your sister is a Sternenfeuer believer might get leaked.”
The fact that Dillier was a heretic was a far bigger deal than the fact that she’d staged a coup. Past rebellions had all been orchestrated by Sonnenlicht believers, meaning they’d followed the rules laid out by the order. Even Ivan had sent out a formal declaration of war before invading Ashley’s strongholds. Since Dillier and Lord Bolshevik were both Sternenfeuer adherents, however, they hadn’t bothered following any of those rules. They’d used trained serfs in war and hadn’t sent out any declarations of war before trying to take over the capital from the inside. Furthermore, everyone believed they’d broken the ultimate taboo and dabbled in necromancy. Though that one was all Parker.
Regardless, no other rebel had ever flaunted the guidelines laid out by the Sonnenlicht Order so openly. Lord Bolshevik and Dillier had taken all of Rolmund’s traditions and dumped them into the trash. Worse, Dillier was sister to the emperor. The severity of what she’d done couldn’t become public or the empire would fall into chaos. Ashley had no choice but to hide the fact that she’d become a heretic and make it seem like her rebellion hadn’t been as serious as it was. While Ashley looked for some way to refute Eleora’s argument, she pressed onward.
“Besides, with Lord Bolshevik missing, the situation is still volatile. Who knows what he might try to do if he learns we’re executing his fiancée.”
We’d searched everywhere around both the capital and Lord Bolshevik’s territory, but we still hadn’t caught any trace of him. He wasn’t even hiding in any of the manors that Dillier’s family owned. But if he’d done this good a job at disappearing, it meant he couldn’t have many troops with him. After all, hiding an army was a lot harder than hiding a single person.
That being said, it didn’t hurt to be cautious. The last thing we wanted to do was agitate any rebel forces still in hiding. And since Eleora had once again been the one to resolve this incident, her words carried weight. I could tell the other nobles were taking her suggestion into consideration.
“Princess Eleora is absolutely correct. Still, we cannot just allow a heretic princess to roam free...” one of the nobles muttered, and everyone else nodded reluctantly.
Cardinal Kushmer gave the noble a troubled smile and said, “Had Princess Dillier remained a Sonnenlicht believer, we could have sent her to one of our monasteries as punishment, but...”
By becoming a nun, Dillier would lose her title, making her unable to ever participate in politics again. Sending problematic nobles to monasteries was a common practice in Rolmund. However, a Sternenfeuer believer like Dillier would never be accepted at a Sonnenlicht monastery. Fortunately, Eleora had another plan in mind.
“Let us keep Dillier confined in Creech Castle for now,” she said. “As the castle is protected by the lake, it will make for the perfect prison.”
The nobles and clergymen nodded thoughtfully.
“Hmm...postponing her final punishment until things settle down certainly seems like a good idea.”
“Plus, that castle is nigh impregnable. It won’t fall to any surprise attacks.”
“Still, we can’t be certain Lord Bolshevik won’t attempt to rescue her...”
Eleora’s idea was appealing, but they weren’t ful
ly on board yet. This is probably where I should step in.
“Your Majesty, Princess Dillier was tricked by Lord Bolshevik. She’s not truly at fault,” I said. “Besides, no one was hurt. Can’t you find it in your heart to be merciful?”
My plan was to make Dillier look like just another victim, and push all the blame onto Lord Bolshevik. That would also help prevent the imperial family’s image from being tarnished. Since everyone thought Lord Bolshevik was also responsible for the skeletons, I figured it’d work. The nobles exchanged glances.
“If even you, the man who captured Princess Dillier, believe that is best, then...”
“However, someone has to be held responsible for this attempted coup.”
I grinned. “If you ask me, Lord Bolshevik is the one who should answer for that, not Princess Dillier. And since he’s currently missing, he can’t defend his honor either.”
“You do have a point...”
A few of the nobles kept raising objections, but in the end everyone got too tired to argue, and Eleora’s proposal was adopted. The way the nobles saw it, they could kill Dillier any time, so leaving her locked up in Creech Castle for now wasn’t a big loss. Naturally, “any time” meant they could just quietly assassinate her once the situation had settled down somewhat. No one said that outright, but I had no doubt that was what most of the nobles were thinking of doing. Even if they didn’t have any concrete plans yet, I knew that was what they’d attempt eventually.
And thus it was decided to officially pin all the blame for the coup on Lord Bolshevik, claiming that Dillier had just been manipulated by him. Fortunately, none of Lord Bolshevik’s soldiers had publicly stated their affiliation with the Sternenfeuer cult so we’d be able to sweep that under the rug too. Were it to become public that the Sternenfeuer cult had been involved in the coup, it would mean Dillier had been manipulated by a heretic, which would be bad for the Schwerin family’s name. As the meeting came to a close, the various noblemen and priests got to their feet with weary sighs.
