CH 258

Act 11: The Truth Lies In Navitan

As the citizens of Navitan watched the Imperial Guard of the empire march through the castle gates, they thought the end had finally come for them. Only a few months had passed since the illegitimate princess of Navitan, whose existence up till then been unknown, was sent off to the kingdom to become the empress.

In her absence, a dark gloom had descended upon the royal palace. In the initial days, the royal family had rejoiced and even went so far as to host a celebration banquet. They were relieved that there would be no tearful partings needed in order to obey the emperor’s demand. However, it wasn’t long before they came to their senses.

Amidst the banquet, someone from the royal family muttered, “Hold on… What happens if that princess, who hasn’t received a single formal lesson, irks the emperor and ends up dead on the first day?”

“Then, who’d be held responsible…?”

Well, that much was obvious. Who else but the kingdom of Navitan? And so, the atmosphere in Navitan became more akin to a house in mourning as the emperor’s wedding day approached.

Finally, a few days after the marriage was consummated, the messenger whom everyone had been impatiently waiting for returned with news of Princess Cecile. Surprisingly, the news turned out to be different from what they’d all expected.

“Apparently she’s not dead?”

“Not only is she not dead, but the emperor decreed that the Summer Palace would belong to the empress, and spent a week in there with her without ever once coming out?”

This utterly unexpected turn of events caused the entirety of Navitan to tremble in fear for a different reason.

“There’s no way Empress Cecile will like us, is there?”

The woman had vehemently flipped the bird at them until the moment the carriage departed and bellowed, “You’re all gonna paaaay!” That is why the royal family of Navitan had lived gloomy days ever since. And now, finally… Today was the date of arrival for the person whom they all wished would never return.

Arriving three days prior, the knights of the Imperial Guard had announced the emperor’s imminent arrival, along with his requests.

“We ask that accommodations be arranged for His and Her Imperial Majesties. I have also been instructed to request for the sturdiest prison that Navitan can prepare. I am told that if it’s an underground prison, then the deeper the better. Or the highest it can be, should it be a prison on the surface.”

The entire royal family of Navitan had paled at the imperial guard’s words. Just who was that prison intended for?

“Surely, it must be for one of us? Or it could be… for all of us.”

Their groans sounded like people who’d been dealt their death sentences. Resigned to their fates, the members of the Navitan royal family began writing down their wills. Attendants of the royal palace, under the belief that their place of employment would soon be switched over to the empire, also began setting out to look for jobs offering minimum wage and labor contracts. Three days passed in such a manner.

As the emperor’s carriage made its way onto the castle grounds, someone muttered, “But why do none of us remember that princess?”

The offhand remark made the members of the Navitan royal family exchange glances. They remembered the first time Cecile had emerged from the villa, they had all doubted their eyes. ‘Isn’t she too pretty?’  they thought. It was a face that could launch a thousand ships. Even if she was an illegitimate child and had been raised in neglect, it was impossible that she hadn’t garnered interest with a face like that.

‘If the people knew about her beauty, someone would’ve most certainly have asked the king for her hand.’ That was the thought that ran through everyone’s heads. If her existence had been known, then perhaps she would never have had the chance to become the empress. Instead, everyone had forgotten about her, only to remember her existence when the emperor’s letter of proposal arrived.

The person who thought it strange and was most puzzled by this matter was none other than the king of Navitan. ‘I did call her my daughter, but…’ But was she really? Admittedly, he had no choice but to acknowledge her as his child. Her platinum blonde hair and green eyes were obviously characteristics of the Navitan royal family, but still…

Glancing over at the children born between him and his queen, the king thought that even if it wasn’t the most in the whole wide world, he could still quite proudly declare that he loved his wife deeply. Honest to heaven, he truly believed he’d never been unfaithful to his queen.