My arms were tied again, and they dragged me to the same bedroom where the maids and the servants were suffering from severe headaches.
Everyone was asked to leave and soon, it was just me and the dowager empress sitting across from each other.
Dowager empress Katleyanira.
My mouth felt dry and I tasted blood. I must have bitten my lips at some point.
This was unbelievable. Of all the people to walk by at that exact moment, why did it have to be her?
The dowager empress poked me and laughed.
“What a cute talent you have.”
“How did you know it was me from behind? I was wearing a servant’s clothes and had my hair covered completely. You are very good.”
She scratched her chair with her red fingernail and answered, “The way you walked was not right. You looked like a servant, but you were walking like a noblewoman. You were right in front of the chamber where the prisoner was held, so obviously I had to check it.”
“…”
This woman’s ability to observe was shockingly good.
She said to me, “I can hear you think, but you should know it’s hopeless by now.”
I smiled on purpose to hide my fear.
“You never know. Perhaps Lucretius and his army are surrounding the castle as we speak and about to barge into this very room.”
She giggled. “Maybe.”
She stood up and came towards me. With her sharp nails, she poked me in the neck. It felt like a knife stabbing me.
I swallowed hard as she continued, “That is why I captured you.”
“W, what?”
“Even with Marquis Galisia on my side, I would never be able to raise enough army to go against the emperor. Only the emperor can own and train military men in this kingdom.”
“So you know. Then why did you do this? Lucretius will win no matter what, so you need to give up now. That will be the only way for you to survive.”
“What is the point of life if that is all you have? All my life, I have worked to get what I have right now. Yet if I have to live under your rule, what would be the meaning of my life anymore? It will be pointless.”
“… Nothing is more important than life.”
The dowager empress sneered.
“You know that is not true. You know very well that an empty life is not a life worth living.”
“How… can you be so sure of how I feel?”
I asked even though she was right about me. It scared me to think about how well she knew me.
“Isn’t it obvious? I know you because you are my enemy, just as you must understand me perfectly.”
“…”
Her voice was kind, which was even scarier than if she was yelling at me.
“Anyway, I would never be able to raise enough military to take over the throne by force.”
“So why did you do this?!”
She smiled and raised my chin up with her finger. “That is why I got you. Everything I did for this plan was to capture you.”
“What?”
She giggled. “I never imagined Lucretius would ever fall in love. He knew very well what would happen if he came to love someone, yet he let it happen anyway. How stupid.”
“What are you talking about?”
I tried to get free, but it was useless. In addition to the ropes, the guards tied me further with metal chains to the chair.
The dowager empress watched me struggle with joy and got closer to me to whisper, “You are Lucretius’ heart. If I threaten to kill you, he will come even though he knows it’s a trap.”
She continued to smile and explained to me kindly, “Tomorrow, your execution will take place inside the castle surrounded by my knights. The news has already been spread and I am sure Lucretius heard it as well.”
The dowager empress seemed very sure of herself.
“There won’t be enough time for him to gather all the military forces from different provinces to recapture the castle. This means he will come by himself.”
I gritted my teeth. “No, he’s the emperor. His blood is made of ice. He will never risk himself like that.”
He shouldn’t come. He couldn’t.
This was clearly a trap. If he came, the dowager empress would try to kill him.
This couldn’t happen. I didn’t want to be a burden.
However, I knew I already was.
I felt desperate.
The dowager empress laughed quietly.
“It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t come. If he abandons you, I will just kill you as I planned, and it would still benefit me.”
“If he abandons me, then it would mean I mean nothing to him. So what would you benefit from it?”
“Oh, you mean everything to him. I know this. I have never seen Lucretius look at someone like he looks at you.”
“You talk like you are his mother or something!”
“Mother…? Yes, I supposed I am like his mother. Not all parents raise their children with love and dedication. I didn’t bear him myself, but I raised him with hatred and desperation.”
“…”
I got goosebumps.
I remembered how I compared Lucretius to the dowager empress. They had the same coldness and cruelty.
She really was like his mother. She raised him to be just like her.
“So I know that boy very well. The moment he fell for you, there were only two possible paths for him. Either die with you or lose his soul in front of your dead body.”
“…”
“I don’t care which path he chooses.”
Her cruel smile sickened me.
I replied, “If you kill me and Lucretius lives, your entire family will not survive this. You, your children, and your brother will all die!”
Katleyanira nodded in agreement. “I know, so what?”
“You…!”
“This is the fight for the throne. Whoever is involved knows that possibility. Gahes is aware of it too.”
The name sounded unfamiliar, but I could guess who it was. It must have been Marquis Toruka’s given name.
“Liliana and the other girls… Well, Liliana is already hurt.”
I screamed in shock, “What?”
“That weak girl must have felt guilty and upset. After the Senate meeting, she returned to her room and apparently tried to kill herself.”
“How… could you say something like that without emotion? You are talking about your children! They are innocent!”
“Why should I care for people who can’t even do their job properly?”
This woman meant what she said.
I knew not every parent loved their children, but to talk about her daughters in this horrible way was unacceptable.
Just a while back, she said I must understand her well because she was my enemy. However, she was wrong. I couldn’t understand how she could feel this way about her own children.
I said to her angrily, “How fortunate that Liliana is nothing like you!”
The dowager empress laughed. “You are wrong.”
“What?”
“The reason why I hate Liliana so much is because she is so much like me when I was young and naïve.”
“What…?”
Suddenly, she frowned as if she realized she said too much.
“I must enjoy talking to you. You make me say things I shouldn’t and now… You made me remember something bad.”
Her red eyes stared at me.
“It was fun chatting with you, but I’m tired now. It’s time for you to go to sleep.”
The dowager empress took out a needle from her bracelet. It was a piece of similar looking jewelry as the rings I wore.
Without hesitation, she stabbed my neck with the needle.
“…!”
“Go to sleep. When you wake up tomorrow morning, it will be the last day of your life.”
I tried to keep my eyes open, but I couldn’t.
“Damn you…!”
I lost my consciousness.
