I Became the Master of the Empress

19 – Episode 19

I am surrounded by strangers and dragged somewhere.

I can’t see, and my hands are tied, unable to move.

I… I don’t want to die…

But I don’t want to plead miserably to be spared.

Because… that would be betraying Prince Anthony who loved me.

I forcibly ignore my trembling body and tears.

At that moment, a cool breeze brushes against my hands and neck.

Is this… the outside?

Or is my vision being blocked?

Every nerve in my body focuses on the sensation.

Hearing, and touch… Smell…

All these senses now tell me that I’m not in a damp prison, but outdoors.

-Clang!

And soon, I’m carefully placed in a soft spot.

“Don’t fidget, just sit quietly. You won’t get hurt that way.”

A man’s voice reaches me.

-Thud… Thud…

Something pulls, heading somewhere.

Certainly… Is this a carriage?

Am I perhaps being taken to the gallows?

“Sigh… Even the Duke… such a bother to deal with people.”

A woman’s voice is heard.

“But we did get a lot of money, didn’t we?”

And a man’s voice responds to those words.

“Well… considering it as a few months’ salary, it’s quite a lot.”

I eavesdrop on their conversation.

Did the Duke… hire them? If so, who are they? And where are they taking me?

“Ugh!”

I want to say something, but… because of the ropes and the gag, I can’t move properly.

I feel around with my hands.

Is this…?

A gentle sensation, reminiscent of the soft touch one might feel on a luxurious carriage seat, brushes against the back of my hand.

Right now, it seems I am inside a carriage.

Soon, the swaying comes to a stop.

-Creak…

The carriage halts.

And the man, supporting me again, speaks cautiously.

“Watch your step.”

He gently grips my shoulders.

Step by step, we carefully descend the stairs.

Where is this?

It feels like I’ve just come out of prison, but I can’t tell where I am because I can’t see.

And then…

-Swish…

The cloth covering my face is removed.

Here is…

A night with a crescent moon.

Some alley.

In the surroundings, several tall buildings can be seen.

In that moment.

– Thud!

“Ahh!”

Someone roughly grabs my hair from behind.

“Don’t be too resentful. I’ll cut it nicely for you instead.”

Before I can fully grasp the situation…

– Ssshh.

A chilling sound reaches my ears.

As if… it’s the sound of drawing a sword…

But the woman holding my hair.

She raises a dagger in front of my eyes.

“How is it? Sharp, isn’t it? I sharpened it myself to finish it in one go.”

Though it’s an immature voice… her voice gives me goosebumps.

Ah… Is it going to end like this?

“You know? I’m thankful for tying up my hair nicely, it made my job easier.”

– Slice!

At the sharp sound…

“Ahh…!”

My legs go weak.

– Thud!

And I become powerless, sinking down.

Am I… going to die like this?

It’s not as painful as I thought.

No, there’s no pain at all.

I can see them again…

“What are you doing?”

As a clear voice reaches me, I turn around…

A girl with slightly disheveled brown hair looks at me incredulously, twirling her neatly tied hair around her finger.

“hahahaha! What’s that? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

The girl, almost in tears, somehow annoys me.

“Rebecca, stop it and take them with us.”

“Phew! Look at that, Karl! That stupid expression! Phew!”

Karl, a man who watches her laugh without stopping, shakes his head.

“I hope you haven’t forgotten that we’re on a mission.”

At his words, Rebecca wipes away her tears and says, “Oh dear… I laughed so much that I’m hungry…”

At that moment, Karl picks me up, opens the door in the alley, and goes up to the second floor.

*Creak!*

As the rusty door opens, a shabby house comes into view…

“Where is this?”

I ask Karl, who is holding me, with a puzzled expression, and he opens his mouth.

“Did they call it the ‘Eepa’? I guess I’ll have to stay here for a while.”

“Yes…?”

I thought I would be tortured and killed without a doubt.

Antoni… It seems like I’m fated to stay here a bit longer…

They seated me at the dining table like that, serving hot coffee.

“First, my name is Karl, and the woman next to me is called Rebecca. What’s the lady’s name?”

In response to that, I reply, “I’m called Eepa… but… why am I here?”

They ignore my question and touch the back of my head.

My hair has been cut short.

It feels strange, almost unfamiliar, to have it cut so short.

Prince Antoni always said my hair was pretty…

I don’t understand why I, who should be in the underground prison, am here, and why they are holding my precious hair so carefully.

“We don’t know the reason either, we just do what the Grand Duke commands.”

Grand Duke Devian…

Why does he plan such things?

“Now, the Grand Duke gave us this and said to tell you.”

Karl takes out a quite hefty cloth bag and places it on the table.

“First, take this. It’s the sum of your severance pay, this month’s salary, and a year’s worth of salary. Count it once.”

Why are they giving me this?

“Count them once; if there’s a shortage, I’ll report it to the Grand Duke.”

Upon hearing those words, I open the pouch in front of me, revealing shining gold coins.

“Wow, the salary seems more substantial than that of a palace maid, doesn’t it?”

“Considering the severance pay and a year’s worth of salary combined, it seems so.”

Satisfied with a rough count, I close the pouch and say, “It seems roughly accurate… but why is this?”

Instead of torture or execution, is this a directive to leave the palace after receiving this?

“It’s a gift from the Grand Duke to someone deeply devoted… Of course, you can stay here for a while, and when the time comes, you can return to your hometown or open a bakery, whatever you prefer.”

A perplexing situation.

Wasn’t the Grand Duke trying to kill me?

Unable to comprehend the situation, I look at Carl and ask, “Grand Duke… were you not trying to kill me?”

Rebecca, a woman, responds to my question, “No, quite the opposite. He acknowledged your loyalty and advised us to take care of you if anything was lacking.”

I don’t understand her words.

“Why?”

Why? I haven’t been particularly kind to him, and I’ve only seen him a few times from a distance as a maid.

Moreover, I meticulously observed the Grand Duke’s actions as ordered by Princess Theodora.

If I had more courage, I might have poisoned his food long ago.

But in the end, lacking courage, I couldn’t do it. That’s all.

Therefore, the Duke’s actions are incomprehensible.

“We don’t know either. We only follow the orders of the Duke.”

“I see… Then, if I regain my freedom, may I return to the palace?”

In response, Karl smiles and says, “As long as you don’t bother with whatever the young lady does once she’s free, it should be fine, right?”

“I see…”

I can’t grasp what the Duke wants.

But… the thought of being able to return to the palace again brings relief…

*Sob…*

Tears flow.

***

The next morning.

“Ugh… my head…”

I’ve finally returned to the palace.

I stayed at Dr. Victor’s house, drinking with him until late yesterday.

Having drunk this much after a long time, my head hurts as if it’s about to split.

“Would you like some water?”

“Ah… thank you.”

I drink the water someone hands me.

*Gulp… Gulp.*

“Hoo-ha! Feels like I gained some weight.”

Thought it was just water and took a sip. It was refreshing honey water.

As expected, Agrifa…

He’s a genius who sees everything.

When I inwardly approved of Agrifa’s actions,

Agrifa’s voice reaches me.

“I’ve cleanly finished the task you assigned yesterday.”

Yesterday… What did I ask him to do… Ah!

I told him to bring Ifa’s hair.

“Well… about that?”

In response to my question, Agrifa nods, revealing a long black hair neatly tied with a ribbon, contained in a small box.

“Did you cut it neatly?”

Agrifa tilts his head at my words.

“Well… they handle tasks neatly, but the princesses…”

Seeing Agrifa hesitate, I press on.

“Why? What happened?”

“Yesterday, Princess Hwantaen came to the Duke’s office.”

– Embarrassed.

Is it because I arrested Ifa?

I ask, wondering.

“Perhaps… because of Ipha?”

Looking at Agripa, who nods slightly in response to my words, I realize my assumption is correct.

“We also need to persuade Theodora on this side…”

Anyway…

Will I be able to have a conversation with Theodora, who is now filled with anger?

Although the conversation with the Imperial Faction is over, I haven’t persuaded Theodora yet.

No, I’m not sure if I can persuade her in the first place.

After all, I’m taking authority away from the noble Imperial family.

And it doesn’t end with taking it away.

I have to deal with the bad reputation spreading within the empire.

Perhaps I will be left with a stain.

A power struggle within the empire, trying to divide it with the support of the Imperial Faction…

*Sigh.*

There’s no choice; I’ll just do what needs to be done.

I don’t have ill feelings towards her. I just do what needs to be done.

Thinking that way, I let out a sigh.

“Ah… as expected, there’s no choice but coercion, right?”

“Yes… considering Lady Hwantaeh’s personality, it seems that’s the only method.”

Listening to Agripa’s words, I stroke Ipha’s hair gently…

So soft…

In times like these, feeling the softness while touching a woman’s hair.

A fleeting, groundless thought crosses my mind, wondering if I’ve become a bit dissatisfied lately.

“It’s absurd.”

To think of dissatisfaction; if there is strength in harboring desires, one should stabilize the current situation even for a moment.

Soon, I find myself putting hair into a box and getting lost in thought.

“Perhaps it’s better to obtain Empress Mama’s signature rather than just Theodore’s.”

While the signature of Hwang Tae-nyeo is unique in its own way… If it’s the signature of the Empress, the future Hwang Tae-hu, wouldn’t it carry more weight?

Agrippa responds with a puzzled expression to my words.

“There might even be rumors of persecuting Empress Mama.”

“Is that so…?”

I erase the thought of obtaining the signature of Empress Mama from my mind.

Knowing how well she has fulfilled her role as the mother of the empire’s citizens…

I don’t want to unnecessarily disrespect her.

Especially, as a woman who has lost both her beloved husband and child at once. I can’t even begin to fathom how painful that must be.

“Let’s deal with the piled-up work first. Don’t tell Hwang Tae-nyeo that I’ve returned.”

Because the immediate tasks at hand are like mountains… I’d rather postpone the complicated matter of meeting Theodore.

With that, I gaze at the immense amount of documents on my desk and pick up the one at the very top.

“What’s this…?”

A government agency establishment proposal recently commissioned to Agrippa.

I pick it up and scan through it.

Crazy… the amount…

From the initial budgeting, something seemed off.

Looking at the budget, costs for equipment, maintenance, training, etc… an enormous amount is allocated.

Especially… the labor costs are insane.

As I examine the establishment plan, I find myself lost in contemplation.

The budget seems to be the most significant issue…

Although the name hasn’t been decided yet. This institution will lead our victory, preventing the Demon King from descending upon this land.

“Agrifa, did you see the plan you brought up… no matter how I look at it, the budget seems beyond a joke. Is there any chance it can be reduced a bit in the middle?”

Agrifa nods in response to my words.

“It’s actually roughly estimated, so if it goes up, it goes up; it won’t go down.”

I let out a sigh at her words.

“Well…, isn’t it too expensive?”

In my petulant words, Agrifa responds.

“That’s based entirely on the tasks demanded by the Supreme Commander. I’ve drafted the budget accordingly.”

Well… what I demanded might be excessive.

Alright… this should be somewhat manageable for the upcoming war a little later, right? Well, it seems a bit possible then…

However, cautiously, I ask Agrifa, considering that if it increases further from here, it could become a problem.

“So… is there a possibility of a significant increase from here?”

Smiling brightly at my question, she says.

“Wouldn’t that be obvious? I’ve never dealt with a government institution of this kind, so I planned it somewhat generously, but… if it breaks, it breaks; it won’t decrease for sure.”

Agrippa’s resolute answer gives me a headache.

“Sigh…”

Where should I draw the finances from now?

The Empire’s main source of income, Epirus and Ezeb, has fallen through.

To fill that void, the surplus funds of the Grand Duchy of Francesco are scheduled to fill the Empire’s finances, but it’s clear that the income has decreased significantly since the previous emperor’s era.

After Valoran’s successful rebellion, the local nobles and free cities are refusing to pay taxes.

Furthermore, even the direct territories of the Empire, Epirus and Ezeb…

They might have classified me and Valoran as rebels and refused to pay taxes at their own discretion, but upon hearing the news of the alliance between me and the imperial faction, they promised to pay all the outstanding taxes, including the ones that were neglected.

It’s quite a substantial amount, but Epirus and Ezeb are now under the imperial faction.

Perhaps the finances will decrease from next year.

“But if we increase taxes for the devotees… they won’t stay quiet, will they?”

“Indeed, they won’t.”

“They find all sorts of excuses, such as windows or marriage, to squeeze taxes out of people… it’s exasperating.”

First, I need to crack down on the anti-imperial faction and then consider revising the complicated tax system…

I let out a sigh.