༺ Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (35) ༻
Caught off guard by Cien’s abrupt question, the Imperial Consort found her breath caught in her throat.
Her eyes were blankly lost in thought.
Nevertheless, Cien continued to speak.
“When I was young, every time you saw me, you thought the same thing. Wondering what if I had been a son?”
“…What are you even talking about?”
Her words, tinged with deep unease, were met by Cien’s chilling indifference.
She continued to speak.
“Not long ago, while looking at me, you were contemplating how you could make me, who is nothing more than the fifth princess, into the emperor, entertaining assassination and all sorts of plots.”
The Imperial Consort remained silent, as if petrified..
After a while, she managed to utter a single word.
“…No.”
Her denial was met with Cien’s further rejection.
Cien shook her head roughly, looking up at the Imperial Consort with her eyes full of a fierce light.
Before she knew it, her pupils had slit vertically.
They resembled the eyes of a lizard..
“Why are you weeping? Because people around me are disappearing? No, in fact, Mother is afraid that I am getting further away from the throne.”
“Stop.”
The Imperial Consort abruptly commanded. Her face was considerably pale.
Words began to flow out almost suffocatingly.
“…J-Just stop.”
“You love me? For what exactly do you love me?”
But Cien’s impassioned words continued unabated. The disappointment and hatred in her eyes blazed like dim flames.
The Imperial Consort started to gasp for air..
Dense mana was gathering around her, as if affirming the blood of dragons flowed through Cien’s veins.
“My eyes? These eyes? In fact, aren’t you actually planning to use this power to assert the Imperial bloodline’s legitimacy? My lineage, my eyes, and my entire being! Loved merely as a tool by you…”
“I told you to stop!”
The Imperial Consort’s grip tightened around Cien’s slender neck.
Kugh, Kugh, the sounds of choked breath filled the air. The Imperial Consort’s eyes had long been bloodshot.
She no longer looked like a compassionate mother. She resembled a devil.
Cien’s face, looking at her, was filled with despair.
So this is how it ends.
“No, no… I said no! I am not that kind of person… I love you! I am your mother who loves you!”
Her voice that came out was more like a desperate struggle than a scream.
Tears fell from the princess’s bloodshot eyes. Her mind, driven to the brink, had made her lose her sanity.
As the grip on her tightened, the princess’s consciousness began to fade.
Only then she was truly certain.
Right, in this world, there is no one who genuinely worries about me.
Everyone is only interested in my status as a princess.
They think of me as a tool. How did I not realise that all this time?
Why did I yearn for it without knowing any better?
The hollow pretence of sincerity, the love, and the concern, all of it now seemed so pathetic to the princess and her eyelids, heavy with regret, slowly closed.
Had it not been for the head maid who arrived upon hearing the commotion, she would have died right there.
It was a major incident.
The news reached the ears of the Emperor, and soon an elderly man, known as the greatest mage of the time, hastily rushed to the palace.
He was known as the ‘Great Sage.’
**
“It is a curse.”
The old man with a snowy white beard spoke without an ounce of hesitation.
In front of him lay a petite girl sleeping with her eyes closed. Strange shapes surrounding her flickered continuously.
The man standing behind the elder sighed deeply.
He, who still maintained a dignified demeanour, was the Emperor and the girl’s father. He murmured in a miserable voice.
“…You certainly don’t mince words.”
“It’s because it is the truth, Your Majesty. As the successor of the Dragonblood Script, you must already be aware, aren’t you?”
The old man’s voice was steady as he said that. His blue eyes remained remarkably sharp even in the dim surroundings.
It was proof that he had reached the realm of a ‘Master’.
Having lived for centuries, he was nearing death. However, he considered it a mandate of heaven to encounter such a strange fate just a few years before his destined demise.
Despite being the Emperor, he couldn’t dismiss an old man who had reached the brink of truth.
He couldn’t make a single comment about the somewhat arrogant attitude of the Great Sage, only shaking his head in response.
“…Then, it should be my fault.”
“How can there be good and evil in the lineage? It’s just that she was born that way. The power of the Dragon is nothing but a curse to ordinary humans. Especially those eyes that can read everyone’s emotions, haha…”
The old man let out a guffaw, looking down at the princess with both compassion and sympathy.
She was a girl that even her own mother abandoned.
She would never be able to trust humans for the rest of her life. It would be the same even if we sealed those ‘eyes.’
However, even with the consolation of the Great Sage, the Emperor’s expression showed no signs of easing. He continued to let out pained sighs.
“No matter what, I am her father, and she is my daughter. Is there no other way?”
“I can temporarily seal her eyes. But that won’t completely suppress them. She’ll still feel fragments of the most intense emotions from others.”
The Emperor’s eyes, gazing down at the princess, grew somber.
He silently listened to the Great Sage’s words.
“Her distrust in humans will probably deepen as time passes.. This is because desire is the most intense emotion humans often possess. Still, if I tell her I’ve completely sealed her ‘eyes,’ she might be able to lead somewhat of a normal life.”
“…So you’re saying she’ll never trust people?”
From his voice alone, it was clear what kind of answer the Emperor expected, but the Great Sage nodded without hesitation.
“Of course. She won’t trust anyone. All she will believe in will be the desires she sees with her own eyes and the actions that accompany them.”
With a sigh, the Emperor held his forehead. He seemed like he wanted to stagger and ease his mental shock, but he was the Emperor.
An Emperor first and a father second.
Even when he was alone, he couldn’t show signs of collapse. His eyes were filled with despair.
Perhaps feeling sorry for him, the Great Sage cleared his throat while straightening his robe.
“…However, a miracle is not impossible.”
The Emperor’s somber gaze turned towards the Great Sage. It was impossible to discern any emotions in the ruler’s eyes, which possessed an unfathomable depth.
The Great Sage could only guess that there was a glimmer of hope in those eyes.
“If someone… If someone shows their sincere heart, it might change this unfortunate child, don’t you think? After all, a curse is nothing but a contrary blessing… If she encounters an absolutely unerring sincerity, her eyes will become a blessing instead.”
“…Is that possible?”
At the skeptical words of the Emperor, the Great Sage smiled bitterly.
“Isn’t that why it’s called a ‘miracle’, after all?”
That night, a ritual by the Great Sage took place in the palace.
Afterwards, Fifth Princess Cien returned to her daily life, and was even able to receive as much love as before due to her more affectionate behavior.
But no one knew her true feelings aside from the Emperor and the Great Sage..
The despair of Cien, who realized that she could never truly receive goodwill.
She came to see people as tools, just as she was seen as such by others.
She vowed to herself every morning.
I will never trust anyone again.
Never.
**
After hearing Senior Neris’s lengthy story, my response was plain.
“…The flower in the greenhouse dug its own grave.”
It was unclear exactly what happened on the day the ‘Great Sage’ visited.
However, given that she changed afterwards, it seemed the events prior had left scars on the princess’s psyche.
How much distrust would she have, having almost been killed by her own mother?
Therefore, rather than being looked down upon, she seemed to prefer remaining as an entity of fear.
For a girl who had to endure hostility and contempt previously, it was a natural reaction.
At my casual remark, Senior Neris lowered her head in silence. Commenting on the Imperial Family was almost taboo.
The only reason why Senior Neris didn’t say anything at all was because I was the holder of the Dragonblood Script.
After all, it was only natural for the Emperor’s proxy to evaluate the Imperial Family.
Only then did my manner of addressing Senior Neris revert to a more formal tone.
“You’ve done a great job, Senior Neris. You can go back and rest now… Oh, and make sure the non-combatants can opt out as much as possible during the Homecoming Festival.”
But Senior Neris seemed hesitant, even with my dismissal.
As I turned my puzzled gaze towards her, Senior Neris, who had been cautiously gauging my reaction, timidly asked.
“So, did I pass the test…?”
I stared at Senior Neris in silence for a moment.
Then it hit me, only the Emperor’s close associates could possess the Dragonblood Script.
In other words, it would have been normal for me to already know the secret of the Imperial Family that Senior Neris was talking about.
It seemed that Senior Neris thought I was testing her based on the information I already knew.
There was no need to correct her misunderstanding. I bluntly replied.
“…I’ll observe for a bit longer.”
The more I thought about it, the more peculiar the academy’s branch of the Imperial Intelligence Agency seemed.
Even though they were just trainees, they failed to follow even the basic rules. Despite the fact that the organization selected them from students of the academy, which was even known as the cradle of talent.
I felt that further investigation was needed in this as well.
Although my assessment was largely negative, Senior Neris seemed satisfied with just that, soon letting out a sigh of relief.
Just as she was about to leave, Senior Neris hesitated, as if she still had something to say.
It didn’t take long for me to hear her question.
“……Uh, Sir Ian?”
My golden eyes glanced at her briefly, as if to prompt her to speak.
Just as always, Senior Neris asked me cautiously.
“So, what are you planning to do?”
It was a question about how I, as the Emperor’s proxy, would deal with the Fifth Princess who had dared to challenge me.
With an answer that was self-evident, I swallowed a bitter chuckle and replied.
“Save her, of course.”
The princess, the students participating in the homecoming festival, the citizens of the city, and the entire world.
It was a sincere statement without any hint of deception.
As if it had always been that way.
**
That night, the princess woke up panting.
Kugh, kugh choking sounds echoed in the silent room. She gasped for air and frantically reached for water.
She had a nightmare.
The dream of her mother strangling her neck, those demon-like red eyes were still vivid in her memory.
Everyone was the same.
The emotions directed towards the princess all had one thing in common.
Whether it was lust, a thirst for power, or greed for money, they were all desires that she found displeasing.
Even her closest aide, Irene, and the head maid were no exception. They also showed a certain degree of desire for honor and power in serving her.
When it came to exceptions, there was only one.
But as she recalled those golden eyes that only seemed to convey pity and compassion, the princess immediately gritted her teeth in frustration.
She shouldn’t be looked down on.
Only the strong could win favor. The weak were either made fun of or excluded if they deviated even slightly from the norm.
Those were painful days.
Everyone in the world was hostile towards her. Whenever Cien recalled that day’s memory, her mind went blank, and since that day, she had lost her emotions.
Humans were untrustworthy beings.
The princess’s gaze then fell upon the small cat’s eye stone placed on the desk beside her bed.
The grey cat eye stone was an item left by her mother, the fourth Imperial Consort, when she left.
After her mother strangled her, the princess never saw her again. She only heard the news that her mother had fallen from grace and was banished, accused of daring to lay a hand on the Emperor’s daughter.
There wasn’t even a letter with details on her predicament.
Her mother had left only that cat’s eye stone. The princess still couldn’t comprehend her mother’s mentality.
Did it mean she intends to return someday and try to exert influence over or piggyback on my authority?
Even while thinking this way, she couldn’t bring herself to throw away the stone, which showed she too remained a child. Cien thought so, as she casually held the stone in her hand.
She tossed it into the air and caught it, pondering.
How could that man be so strong?
The princess knew all too well the feeling of being opposed by everyone in the world. She thought it was the most terrifying form of revenge, and after much deliberation, had decided to act accordingly.
But that man, undeterred, turned the tables on her and even had the nerve to pity her.
Presumptuously so.
The princess’s eyes grew cold with a hostility that felt almost desperate.
She wouldn’t allow herself to be looked down on any longer.
Soon, hell would come for that man.
His sister’s company of merchants would be brought to ruin and the Percus territory would be in shambles. Even those dear to him would one by one leave his side.
The stage had long been set. As soon as the academy’s holiday starts, the real action will begin.
The day that would signal this was….Yes, that’s right.
The princess’s gaze silently swept over the calendar, remembering the day marked in red.
The day of the ‘Homecoming Festival’ was approaching.
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