TVIQ 14

Chapter 14

To put Aine’s conversation with Cled in a single word, it would be this:

‘Absurd.’

How could a woman who had just become a prisoner possibly claim that she would help him become Emperor?

Throughout Cled’s life, he had heard countless statements like that.

People would tell him that they could help him become Emperor and ask him to make them his right-hand man, or claim that they possessed a secret strategy and beg him to listen.

Whenever he received such answers, Cled always maintained the same attitude.

He would cut off their heads and present them before the Emperor.

All of them had died that way, yet Cled did not kill Aine.

‘If she’s proposing a deal, then she must want something from me as well.’

The fact that she was the enemy commander’s presence certainly played a part in his decision not to kill her, but more than anything, Cled himself was interested.

Especially since this was the woman who had brought him to the brink of death several times.

“More importantly, there’s a reason I can’t kill her.”

Cled shifted his gaze toward the desk.

There was a letter that had arrived immediately after he finished speaking with Aine.

It was a letter from Mary Stewart, the Deputy Commander of the First Army of the Kingdom of Orion.

The short message was written in remarkably elegant handwriting, but its contents were anything but elegant.

—If you lay even a single finger on her, I will kill every last one of you without leaving even a blade of grass standing.

The contents of the letter were nothing short of vicious, but one thing was clear.

“At least while we have her in our possession, peace will finally come.”

At last, the long war that had continued for five years had come to an end.

The moment Aine decided to surrender to the Empire, she had expected a hellish life to await her.

The Empire’s treatment of prisoners was harsh.

They were thrown into places fit only for livestock and given nothing more than a single piece of hard bread once a day.

Aine had expected the same treatment.

But her expectations were spectacularly wrong.

“This is the lodging where you will be staying from now on, Commander.”

Aine glanced at the person guiding her to her quarters.

Her look clearly meant that she wanted him to stop joking around and give her proper directions.

But there was not even the slightest trace of humor on his face.

“I was under the impression that being captured by the Empire meant a horrible life as a prisoner.”

“That only applies to ordinary soldiers. And my name is Captain Aten.”

“Even so, isn’t this a little too much?”

This was beyond the level of a nobleman’s residence.

At a glance, everything in the room—from the furniture and curtains to the carpet—was prepared to a standard fit for royalty.

No matter how important an officer she was, or how much value she might have to the Empire, Aine thought this was far too extravagant.

Aten, however, seemed to think differently and answered firmly.

“Do you realize that Brantfort Fortress has been turned upside down because of you, Commander?”

“That much is obvious. The commander of the enemy’s front line has surrendered.”

“That is certainly one reason, but there is another.”

Another reason.

Aine waited for him to continue.

“Please rest comfortably.”

But Aten merely bowed and left the room.

“What on earth is going on?”

Aine hesitated for a moment, wondering what to make of the situation, but her exhausted body felt as though it could no longer endure.

‘I’ll think about it tomorrow.’

She was so tired that she wanted to put everything off until tomorrow.

She roughly took off her outer clothing and lay down on the bed. Her gaze fell upon her treated hand.

As soon as Cled had left, the military physicians had appeared and treated her hand.

‘I wonder if Mane and Wilhelm are all right.’

She was worried about where the two of them were and what they were doing now.

But not long after she lay down, complete darkness overtook her.

<An emergency situation has occurred>

[ALERT] Change in Wilhelm’s condition

Wilhelm’s life is in critical danger. Treat him immediately.

Wilhelm: Near death

Health Gauge: 2%

“Did you confirm that Commander Kleine had fallen asleep?”

“Yes. I even entered the room, but she did not wake up.”

Just as Cled always remained wary of allowing a small spark to cause a major disaster later, he was a man who made certain that every matter was handled thoroughly.

When Cled gave him a signal with his eyes, his aide Richard began his report.

“Mary Vandellio. Her rank is Major, and she is a military physician. It appears that her family has been involved in medicine for generations.”

He was reporting on the backgrounds of those who had surrendered to them alongside Aine.

“Anything suspicious or unusual?”

“There was nothing particularly suspicious. However, there is one unusual point. Despite participating in every major battle, she managed to survive until the very end.”

After hearing the answer, Cled looked at Mane, who had yet to awaken from the anesthesia.

All the military physicians who had operated on her had immediately said that she had been extremely lucky.

The injury had missed becoming fatal by only a few millimeters, and they even said that perhaps God had helped her.

“Investigate her more thoroughly anyway. We can’t afford to overlook anything.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“Where is that brat?”

Having lost interest in Mane, Cled wanted to move on to his next subject.

“If you mean the child, he’s currently isolated in another room.”

“Isolated?”

“Yes. He appears to be addicted to Eternal Nightmare.”

“Hah.”

Upon hearing that the child had been exposed to Eternal Nightmare, Cled furrowed his delicate brows.

“The kingdom’s people are just as insane as the Empire. To give Eternal Nightmare to a child…”

War drove everyone insane.

There was nothing normal about it.

That was what people said, but Cled thought differently.

He believed that people started wars because they were already insane.

An unpleasant memory briefly passed through his mind, but Cled immediately pushed it away.

“Let’s go to the child’s room.”

He had not finished his work perfectly yet.

There could be no exceptions for him.

Richard was reluctant to let Cled meet the child, but an order was absolute, so he reluctantly led Cled there.

When they arrived at the ward, Cled saw the child suffering in agony.

Keeping his gaze fixed on the child, Cled asked,

“What is the child’s name?”

“We couldn’t find out.”

“Origin?”

“Likewise.”

“Parents?”

“Unable to confirm.”

“Then what exactly did you manage to find out?”

Whenever a question was asked, it had to be answered.

Those who could not provide answers were treated as useless.

That was why Richard had always managed to answer every question Cled asked him.

But for the first time, he could not give Cled an answer.

“So his identity is completely unknown.”

“I apologize, Your Highness.”

Cled did not blame Richard.

If the royal family had deliberately classified the child’s identity as a state secret, there was nothing they could do about it.

“Still, there are plenty of circumstances from which we can make an inference.”

There was no certainty, but the kingdom had classified the child’s very existence as a secret, and they had poisoned a young child in an attempt to kill him.

“And we should also include the fact that they continued taking him with them even while being pursued.”

Cled agreed.

‘She wouldn’t have brought him along for no reason.’

It was understandable that she had brought Mane, a non-combatant, with her because Mane was not only a military physician but also her subordinate.

But the child before him was just that—a child.

He was barely five or six years old.

“She told me that a rebellion had broken out in the kingdom.”

“A rebellion?”

“Yes.”

It seemed highly likely that this was somehow connected.

“Come to think of it, I feel as though I’ve seen him somewhere before, but I can’t remember.”

The longer Cled looked at the child, the more strangely familiar he seemed.

‘He resembles someone.’

It was not his imagination.

There was definitely something about the child’s appearance that he had encountered somewhere before.

But the memory refused to come into focus, leaving Cled frustrated.

Eventually, he gave up trying to remember and returned his attention to the present.

‘A child of unknown identity.’

He knew he should not jump to conclusions, but Cled sensed something dangerous from this child.

He did not know why, but his instincts seemed to be urging him to eliminate the child.

All he had to do was reach out, and he could easily take the child’s life.

But the moment he learned that the child had been poisoned with Eternal Nightmare, he abandoned the thought.

“Have you reported this to His Majesty?”

“Yes. We immediately dispatched a messenger to the Imperial Palace. We reported everything, starting with Aine Kleine’s surrender and including the contents of Deputy Commander Mary Stewart’s letter.”

“Then we should wait.”

Looking at the struggling child, Cled reached out his hand.

His hand was as cold as ice, completely devoid of warmth.

Yet to the child, whose entire body was burning with fever, it seemed to be like the water of life, because the child tightly embraced it.

Watching the child who looked as though he could die at any moment, Cled opened the pendant hanging around his neck.

Inside was medicine.

“Your Highness. That is the medicine His Majesty bestowed upon you—”

“Shh. Be quiet.”

It was medicine personally given to him by the Emperor.

Even when someone was already shrouded in the aura of death, this precious medicine could extend their life.

The Emperor had given it to Cled with instructions to keep it until the moment of absolute crisis and use it then.

But without hesitation, Cled took out the medicine and poured it into the child’s mouth.