Chapter 217 – If It Works, It’s a Revolution (15)

My talk with Terbal hyung—no, Berken hyung—wrapped up nicely.

To sum it all up: he just wanted to come home.

He’d returned at the Emperor’s summons, only for the Second Princess to suddenly try to burn him alive.

Everything else was just the Second Princess jumping to conclusions.

He wasn’t trying to usurp the throne. He wasn’t trying to crush her. He didn’t take her mother hostage.

If I’d realized sooner that the infamous Third Prince was the Terbal I knew, I wouldn’t have caused such a fuss.

He’s not the type to move based on some convoluted scheme.

He’s the kind of guy who, when food ran out, raided demon patrols by himself just to steal combat rations.

Anyway, since he said he’s happy as long as he’s reinstated as a prince and can live freely in the capital again, we should go talk to the Emperor.

Because right now, the only one with the authority to restore a prince’s status is the Emperor himself.

“So where is the Emperor?”

“Probably in the audience chamber.”

“Right. Let’s go.”

As soon as we entered the palace, we saw the Second Princess’s aide racing out with a bunch of pigeons in his arms.

“What’s this? Are you their dad now?”

“Out of the way! This is an emergency that concerns the fate of the Empire!”

He dashed past us and flung his arms outward, releasing the birds into the air.

“Go, quickly! Alert the loyalist legions to secure the capital!”

“What’s that about?”

“Messenger pigeons.”

Berken hyung explained.

“They’re probably carrying orders to nearby legions loyal to Mirelis. Orders to march on the capital.”

“I see. She’s planning to settle everything while things are in chaos. She doesn’t waste time.”

We ran up the stairs and crossed the large hall on the second floor.

Through the wide open doors, we saw the dark elf siblings, who’d arrived earlier, protecting a woman.

On closer inspection, it was the Second Princess’s mother.

“Don’t you dare touch Mirelis! Not a single hair on her head!”

“Gaaah! My hair!”

Clutching a strange cloth doll to her chest, the woman’s eyes blazed as she yanked on Zacrion’s hair.

She must think that doll is a younger Mirelis. Poor woman.

Come to think of it, mental illness and dementia can’t be cured with holy healing, can they…?

But wait—where is the Second Princess?

She came charging in here to rescue her mother, didn’t she?

At that moment, a loud cheer echoed outside, followed by a flash of light, and the whole building shook.

Mirelis’s forces had already arrived. That was fast.

“Hey, Sharion.”

Sharion, who was sitting on a windowsill coiling thread from her sleeve, turned to me.

“Where’s the Second Princess?”

“Not sure. She saw her mother was safe and ran upstairs in a hurry.”

If it’s right upstairs, then she must be in the Emperor’s office.

“Hyung. If Mirelis kills the Emperor, then who’s going to reinstate you?”

“The next Emperor, I guess.”

“And who would that be?”

“How the hell would I know?!”

“We better hurry.”

We rushed up the stairs.

“How do you know your way around the palace so well?”

Berken hyung asked as we weaved confidently through the halls.

“I’ve been here a few times. There it is!”

We threw open the door to the office—and the first thing we saw was long silver hair and a white uniform.

It was the Second Princess, her back to us.

Over her shoulder, the Emperor stood atop the windowsill.

His eyes widened in shock as they met mine.

“What the—?!”

Then, without warning, he leapt backward out the window.

“No!”

He can’t die! He needs to reinstate Berken hyung as a prince!

I lunged forward, vaulting over the desk and reaching out—

But it was too late. He was already gone.

“Son of a—!”

Grabbing the windowsill and leaning out, I looked down—and blinked.

The Emperor was… floating in midair?!

He dangled outside the building, as if suspended by invisible threads.

What the hell is going on?

“Professor Dian.”

Sharion’s head popped up between me and the Emperor.

“What should I do? He was falling, so I grabbed him.”

I understood immediately.

Right below us was one of the large windows from the grand hall we’d passed earlier.

Sharion must have been sitting there when the Emperor fell, and thanks to her dark elf reflexes, she’d caught him with thread.

“Pull him up. I’ve got business with him.”

“Okay.”

Sharion reeled the thread in and dragged the Emperor back through the window.

“Done. The Emperor’s alive. He’s in the hall downstairs.”

When I turned around, the Second Princess was staring at me, eyes wide.

“Dian.”

“Your Highness. Let’s go downstairs. We all have things to talk about.”

I passed her and walked out of the office.

She stood still for a moment before slowly turning and following me.

When we reached the grand hall below, we found the Emperor trembling, drooling, and crawling on the floor.

“Dian… Dian is coming… He’s come to slit my throat…”

“What’s with him?”

“Looks like he’s lost it.”

Sharion answered flatly.

“He came into my office… to kill me… Jumping was my only chance… I hadn’t finished talking to Mirelis…”

What the hell. So now this old geezer thinks I’m why he jumped?

“Dian… He’s come… After ten years… to take revenge for the war…”

The Emperor, still on all fours, scurried toward me and clutched my pants.

“You there! Call the Imperial Knights at once! Dian is coming! We need the entire Order to stop him! Hurry! That’s an imperial command!”

“…Yikes. He’s finally cracked.”

“You there! Don’t you hear me?!”

Still clutching my pants, the Emperor suddenly let go and muttered solemnly:

“No… That won’t work… I miscalculated… Not even the Knights can stop him… What could possibly stop that man…? Wait! Of course…”

As if a lightbulb went off, the Emperor snapped his fingers.

“Linus! We must summon Linus! The hero who slew the Demon King! The savior of all sentient races! Call Linus and have him stop Dian!!”

Leaving the babbling Emperor where he was, I turned to the Second Princess.

“Your Highness. The Emperor’s broken.”

“I see that.”

“First, let’s sort things out. Do you intend to become Emperor?”

“Arrest the princes! Search every corner!”

Came the shout of legion soldiers flooding the first floor.

The Second Princess glanced at me and answered.

“I do.”

“Very well. Then what about the other princes? Are you going to kill them all?”

“That’s insane!”

Berken hyung shouted.

“If you do that, I’ll never forgive you, Mirelis!!”

His presence was so fierce the Second Princess visibly paled.

“No matter how much you hate them, they’re still your family! Even if they’re half-siblings, they’re your father’s blood! If you kill them, I’ll kill you!!”

“You still feel familial affection after being exiled as a child and wandering for twenty years?”

“If I didn’t, you’d already be dead the moment we met.”

He’s right. If Berken hyung had wanted to, he could’ve turned her into a mummy back at the gate.

“I see. Then making you my enemy would be unwise. Still, I will become Emperor.”

“You think you can outmaneuver the eldest and the rest and take the throne, Mirelis? Wouldn’t it be smarter to maintain the current balance?”

“No. His Majesty named me his first successor.”

She held out a paper.

It bore the Emperor’s seal—an official decree naming Mirelis as heir.

“With this, even the First Prince ranks below me. I can become Emperor. Especially now that His Majesty is… like this.”

“Send Linus… to the Demon King’s castle…”

The Emperor muttered from a corner.

The Second Princess went on.

“Brother, you made a deal with His Majesty—your reinstatement in exchange for my capture. I will uphold that. But—”

She paused before continuing.

“Promise me. You will never stand in my way.”

“I won’t. As long as you don’t break your word or lay a hand on me. And leave the others alone.”

“This is treason! Let me go!”

At that moment, the other princes were dragged in by soldiers.

“Unhand me! Do you know who I am?! I’m the First Princ—”

The moment he saw Mirelis and Berken hyung, the First Prince’s voice shrank to a whimper.

Let’s see—First, Second, and Fourth Princes are all here.

Good. I can address them all at once.

“Ahem, if I may.”

I raised my hand to get their attention.

“Gasp! I-it’s Dian!”

The princes turned pale as sheets.

“Dian! Remember me?”

The First Prince groveled.

“T-ten years ago, we had a meal together… and went to the sauna…”

“I don’t remember.”

“Guh…”

Yeah, that probably happened. He tried buttering us up back then with favors and entertainment.

Noble Linus refused everything, while I… accepted and bounced.

But none of that matters now.

“With the Emperor and the royal family gathered here, I have a proposal.”

All eyes were on me.

“I don’t usually like meddling in other people’s family drama. But if a third party doesn’t step in, this will never end.”

I looked at each prince and princess in turn, then continued.

“My proposal is this: the princes shall leave the capital—taking His Majesty with them.”