“Evidence?”

Grandpa’s face twisted sharply.

I knew from Conrad that Grandpa was investigating the Festival of Abundance incident.

‘If the royal palace knows, Grandpa surely can’t be unaware.’

But since I had collected all the herbs the late Empress planted at the Festival, it must have taken time to find evidence.

More importantly, so many incidents happened afterward that they probably couldn’t focus on the Festival alone.

Still, Grandpa wouldn’t just let it slide.

‘If push came to shove, he might have thought about fabricating evidence...’

So how surprised must he have been to learn that I had the proof.

I pretended to hesitate, wavering.

The Emperor and Empress Dowager stiffened.

Even Empress Oselia frowned.

The Emperor urgently shouted,

“This is a different matter. That issue can be discussed later.”

Grandpa frowned and argued,

“If the drug the late Empress gave my granddaughter is indeed a truth serum, this cannot be overlooked. We must verify cause and effect.”

‘Right.’

I chuckled inwardly.

The nobles agreed with Grandpa.

He said to me,

“What is this so-called evidence?”

“Um...”

“Don’t be afraid; you have your grandfather. Tell us everything you know.”

Pretending to be unsure, I fiddled with the edge of my ledger and said,

“When the late Empress was at the Astra estate, my monster Lagon ran wild.”

The nobles nodded.

It was a well-known incident everyone was aware of.

“There was talk of placing a ban on me for nearly harming the royal family, and I was almost sent to the royal palace.”

Marchioness Paangte said,

“I heard that too. Was the young lady actually wearing a ban at the Festival of Abundance?”

“Yes. But... it was the late Empress’s doing.”

“What?”

“What did you say?”

“...!”

Suddenly, chaos erupted.

The Empress Dowager closed her eyes tightly.

Princess Anatoli shouted,

“No, no! It’s a misunderstanding! Mother, Your Majesty—!”

She screamed and caused an uproar, but I quietly lifted my ledger.

“Because of that, the late Empress caused trouble for my father, and I was so sad about it that when you two were together, I told him.”

“...”

“You didn’t have to. I told him to trust me. But...”

“...”

“The late Empress seemed upset about it. She asked the servants at the factory if I was bringing another monster.”

“...”

“The servant recorded everything... even the money she received.”

Pretending to be frightened and hesitant, I stared directly at the late Empress and spoke slowly and firmly.

“And by the late Empress’s order, the servant smuggled in certain herbs.”

“...!”

“At the time, the servant didn’t know what they were and brought them in, but they were the herbs used to summon monsters at the Festival of Abundance.”

“Y-you...!”

“Young lady, shut up!”

“If we trace the herbs, we’ll find out who put them in the brazier.”

“No! No, that’s not true!”

Princess Anatoli clenched her skirts and yelled viciously.

The nobles gasped.

Similar rumors had circulated, but most had dismissed them as ‘impossible.’

No one could imagine such madness at the Festival of Abundance.

Empress Oselia’s face turned pale.

“What on earth did you do...? Princess, the Crown Prince was there!”

The first prince Salvatore, known as the Emperor’s only child until now.

He was nearly in grave danger when the monsters swarmed.

Princess Anatoli turned pale, biting her lip as she looked nervously at the Emperor and Empress Dowager.

Then she glared at me and shouted,

“Why bring that up now all of a sudden?”

“...”

“You were aiming for me, right? Trying to corner me! That’s why you did those things...!”

She screamed like a madwoman. I hugged my ledger, pretending to be scared.

“I was very scared, but I didn’t tell anyone... not even Father.”

Great Uncle Grimier frowned.

“Why didn’t you say anything? You should have asked for help from adults.”

“But if this got out, it would trouble Her Majesty the Empress Dowager and His Majesty the Emperor.”

“...”

“Grandpa and Father would be angry, and Astra might fall out with the royal family.”

“...”

“I thought if only I endured it — the fear, the anger, the sadness — everyone could be at peace.”

I bit my lip hard.

It hurt so much tears welled up.

‘Ah, perfect timing.’

With tears added, the nobles looked at me with deep pity.

If I had a fourth life, I would definitely go to extremes then.

I smiled slyly inside, but the late Empress’s face was corpse-like.

Pale and lifeless, she barely moved her lips.

“Your, Your Majesty. I will explain. I can explain everything. So please, a private talk...”

“What explanation do you have?”

Grandpa’s low voice settled heavily on the floor.

People flinched.

With his years of authority, his voice carried a terrifying edge no one could ignore.

Even Princess Anatoli flinched, looking at Grandpa.

He looked at her with a colorless gaze.

“You got scared because you couldn’t handle what you did yourself, and when my granddaughter came to the capital, you felt threatened.”

“N-no, I really didn’t mean to threaten...!”

“So you fell into the delusion of threatening the royal family and gave drugs to a mere ten-year-old child to expose this.”

“Th-that is...”

“Is there anything false up to this point?”

Piercing eyes bore into the late Empress.

She couldn’t speak, only moved her lips.

Then,

“Your Majesty...!”

— she clung to the Emperor.

The Emperor sighed with a worn expression.

No matter how much she clung, what could be done?

Even the Emperor couldn’t fix this.

Empress Oselia was already angry with her, and the Empress Dowager silently shut her mouth.

The Emperor sighed again.

“I will remove the late Empress from the royal registry, confine her to the estate in Iplando, and forbid her from leaving a two-kilometer radius.”

“Your Majesty...!!”

Princess Anatoli clung desperately to the Emperor.

“W-what are you saying? Iplando...? That’s like a prison!”

Iplando is, simply put, a remote village.

A place swarming with monsters where no human dares enter.

Grandpa added coldly,

“Grain imports cannot exceed 20 kilograms per year; vegetables and meat are also restricted in weight; no servants allowed.”

“That’s impossible! You want her to starve?! How is she supposed to live without servants!”

“Your Majesty, precedent shows that the criminal Akalix, the deposed emperor, also received such punishment.”

“Your Majesty!”

The Emperor struggled.

‘But there’s no choice.’

It’s been dragging on since the Festival of Abundance.

Considering Grandpa’s personality, it was fortunate he only demanded this much.

Had he demanded death, the relationship between the royal family and Astra would have been irreparable.

The Emperor nodded.

“Do as you see fit.”

“Formalize it and stamp it with Your Majesty’s seal.”

“Yes.”

“Yes.”

“When will Anatoli be sent to Iplando?”

Now that she’s deposed, they called her by name without respect.

I smiled inwardly, and Dad’s mouth curled up disdainfully.

Anatoli was sitting down, crying.

“Your Majesty... Ah, brother! How could you do this to me? I have been your loyal servant...!”

“Shut your mouth.”

The Emperor warned coldly, and Anatoli crawled to cling to his leg.

“If the late Empress sees this, what will she say?! She told us to take care of each other and protect the royal family as siblings!”

“...”

“Your Majesty, please! How am I supposed to live in Iplando without servants—!!”

Anatoli sobbed like a child.

Though she was thirty, she acted like this...

But then again, even in a more conscious place like Korea, many people act strangely past thirty.

Just looking at the knights, there were countless strange people one’d wonder ‘Can someone that old act like that?’

‘She was always crazy anyway.’

The Emperor was resolute.

“As soon as this meeting ends, prepare to send her to Iplando.”

“Your Majesty!”

No matter how much Anatoli cried, nothing changed.

In the end, she was erased from the royal registry, became a commoner, and had to spend a lonely, hard 30 years in Iplando.

A very satisfying punishment.

The meeting was adjourned.

The nobles hurriedly left the imperial palace.

Anatoli’s madness would spread throughout the empire before sunset.

Grandpa, Dad, and Great Uncle Grimier had a separate talk with the Emperor.

‘Anatoli’s punishment is one thing; the compensation for what happened at the Astra estate is another.’

I approached Grandpa.

“Grandpa.”

“...”

His expression was sour.

I hesitated and said,

“I’m sorry for not telling you.”

“...This must never happen again.”

“Yes... Oh, and this.”

I handed Grandpa the ledger.

It was the document recorded by Hilda, a servant at the factory, detailing Anatoli’s madness.

This would be a huge help in dealing with the Emperor.

Great Uncle Grimier patted my head.

“I’m glad to have a clever niece. But being too smart sometimes worries the adults.”

“I’m sorry...”

“Go rest inside first.”

“Yes!”

Then I held Dad’s hand tightly.

“Don’t shout at the Emperor.”

“I know.”

“Don’t get excited.”

“Okay.”

“Anatoli, no, the late Empress, will be punished enough. Now the important thing is compensation, right?”

“Right.”

“Marquis Debussy said that when trouble happens, it’s better to get proper compensation for the future than to get excited.”

Grandpa, listening, chuckled.

“Anyway, Daymond, you’re one lucky father.”

Great Uncle Grimier smiled too.

“I should have had at least one child.”

Dad said arrogantly.

“Do you know how hard it is to have a child like this?”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

After Grandpa, Great Uncle Grimier, and Dad left, I smiled slyly in the hallway.

‘I’m going to get a lot.’

Hopefully something like the upcoming magical railway.

Construction on the magical railway would start by the end of this year.

Simply put, it was like a train, but powered by magic.

Nobles thought it meaningless since they had carriages.

The railway fare was so expensive commoners couldn’t afford it, and nobles preferred their good carriages.

So initially, very few regions had railways.

‘The royal family probably didn’t want magicians sent to the territories.’

It might be a minor noble’s job; the territories would be chaotic due to construction...

Only nobles cautious about the Emperor’s wishes or pro-Emperor factions reluctantly approved the railway.

‘But eventually, those connected by railway flourished greatly, and those not connected declined.’

Astra would lay rails later...

‘If only they had started from the beginning, they would have made a fortune.’

After a shopping town was built in the Ikandro territory, two shopping districts split the empire.

‘But if they put the rails down earlier...’

I heard an echo of gold coins falling wildly.

Chuckling, I snapped back to reality.

‘Now’s not the time.’

There was still work to do, so I hurried off.

My destination was the Empress Dowager’s palace.

“Your Majesty!”

I shouted as I ran, making the Empress ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) Dowager frown just as she was about to enter the palace.

“What is it?”

“Um, Your Majesty...”

“Yes?”

“I was worried you might be upset by today’s events.”

“...That’s none of your concern.”

She looked a bit tired.

‘That’s understandable.’

The royal family had been tarnished like this.

I couldn’t lose the Empress Dowager’s favor, which I had finally gained thanks to Anatoli.

I said, “Um...” and looked up at her.

Then I handed her something.

Seeing the neatly wrapped item, the Empress Dowager asked,

“What is this?”

“It’s a feather Lagon shed while molting!”

“Feather...?”

“This is...”

If the Empress Dowager knew, she’d be very pleased.

“So, this is...”