Episode 19

Eliza swallowed hard at the tone in which the emperor had uttered those words. Somehow, it was chilling.

"Alright, I suppose. I won’t find myself entangled in some throne struggle or anything of that sort, right? I want to make it clear that I’m not interested."

"It would be annoying."

"Haha, you have nothing to worry about. Our imperial family has an absolute rule: the firstborn, be it male or female, is to inherit the throne; the rest of the children have no rights to it from birth. That way, our imperial family has lived in peace without any wars for the throne since the empire was founded."

Leon explained with a kind smile.

"I see... The founder was very sensible and intelligent to implement that rule. On the other hand, if it’s going to be this way, I want to be properly educated before I’m officially introduced. I don’t want to make a fool of myself in front of the nobility or be judged or underestimated because I’ve lived like a vagabond."

"Don’t worry, no one will dare to look down on my daughter unless they want to be pierced by a thousand swords along with their entire family."

The emperor said with a benign smile that had the opposite effect.

"That's terrifying!"

"And regarding your education, you will obviously receive one befitting a member of the imperial family. Plus, you will have three months before the banquet where you will be officially introduced as the princess. I believe that is ample time for you to be prepared to face the nobility with your head held high as the emperor’s daughter."

The emperor looked at Eliza seriously, and she nodded in understanding.

"He's an odd one... his outward personality seems cold and indifferent but I think on the inside he's the complete opposite."

Eliza looked up at the emperor and nodded again.

"Thank you very much..."

"You don’t need to thank me; I’m simply giving you what should have been yours from the beginning. This is your right as my daughter."

Eliza nodded, slightly uncomfortable with his declaration.

She had truly never thought of having a royal family in this world besides Christopher. Even in her past life, she was an orphan, so being in this situation felt quite strange to her.

It was evident that both the emperor and Leon genuinely missed Eliza as their lost family member and were now trying to give her everything they couldn’t during the years she went missing.

Eliza wasn’t one for open feelings and emotions; in fact, she was quite closed off to them and struggled to accept them, because in her current situation she didn’t really know how she should feel. It was all very complex.

"Alright, we've addressed your questions, now it’s my turn. I want you to tell me everything you've lived through up to now and how you ended up in that situation, and I also want you to clarify this matter of that boy being your husband."

The emperor gazed at Eliza with a seriousness that bordered on anger, and Eliza glanced at Leon who averted his gaze as she glared at him.

Eliza sighed and decided to speak out.

"As I told you before, as far as I remember I lived on the streets as a vagabond until I was adopted by Baron Marko..."

Eliza began to recount everything to the emperor and to Leon without omitting any detail about all that had befallen the original Eliza and what she had experienced since she took her place four years ago. She also explained who Christopher was and the predicament he was in...

As Eliza continued to share her life story, the expressions on the emperor and Leon grew increasingly dark.

"And that's how I ended up awakening these powers while being tortured by those bastards, and after I finished with them, Leon appeared and we worked together to rescue the children, but... everything got out of control with the demon, and in the end, we couldn't save the children and I lost control..."

Eliza finished her story with immense bitterness in her heart, feeling somehow guilty for the children’s death.

"I promised them I’d save them but in the end... I couldn't do it..."

A sepulchral silence settled in the room.

"So... that vermin was responsible for all of this..."

The emperor's voice was so cold that it sounded terrifying.

"I suppose we'll have to pay a little visit to the grand duchy, right father?"

And Leon's voice was far more terrifying due to the innocent tone in which he said it while smiling.

"No one will touch that bastard Marko."

Eliza declared, causing both men to look at her in surprise.

"I will take care of him personally, and besides, the final blow belongs to someone else. Christopher will see to him once he wakes up, while I prepare him a little..."

Eliza's expression and words were so cold that the emperor and Leon could not argue. After all, she had every right to do as she pleased with the cause of her misfortunes.

"I suppose you have every right to do what you want with him. You have my full support, so don’t hesitate to ask."

The emperor affirmed his support.

"I'll also help if you wish, little sister. I can assist you in burning him alive if that's what you want."

Leon said with an innocent smile.

"The male protagonist is terrifying..."

"I’ll keep that in mind..."

"And regarding your marriage... it must be annulled—"

"No!"

The emperor's words were cut short by Eliza slamming her fist on the table, splitting it in two.

"Chris is my husband and will remain so until death do us part. I’ll allow everything as far as it concerns me, after all, I am supposedly your daughter, but what I will not permit not even to the emperor is to try to separate me from my Christopher... listen well, Christopher belongs to me entirely and I won’t let anyone separate him from me or harm him. Should anyone dare to try, they’ll be riddled with holes by my rifle, no matter who it is."

Eliza's gaze turned into an abyss of death that would devour anyone who dared to meet her eyes. This was the effect Christopher had on Eliza.

He belonged to her and she would not let anyone take him away. The only way that could happen is if she were to die, and at this moment the only ones who might be capable of that stood before her, which would be the last thing they saw in their lives.

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