A Happy Life in the Empire - The Princess Once Called a “Failure” Becomes the “Most Important Person” as a Hostage in the Empire - Chapter 19

One hour earlier.

While Sophia was receiving a report from Alto about the bandits—

This was the royal palace of the Luminar Kingdom.

Beyond the high-ceilinged corridors, there was a quiet room.

Usually, servants would be present, but today, they were all gone.

Only three people were in the room.

King Julius, Princess Clarissa, and Prince Leopold—

These three sat around the long table in the center of the room.

The fact that the servants were sent away meant this was a serious matter.

And that matter was none other than the assassination plan for Crown Prince Alto of the Elysion Empire.

“That crown prince… he managed to survive somehow, didn’t he?”

Julius leaned his large body against the heavy chair.

A dark red cape draped over his shoulders, and deep wrinkles lined his forehead.

His amber eyes were filled with frustration.

“To think that failure was right beside him and still couldn’t poison him. Truly a disgrace.”

Clarissa brushed back her pale pink hair.

Her jeweled hair ornament swayed as she spoke bitterly.

The “failure,” of course, referred to Sophia.

“I can appreciate the swift action, but failure is meaningless. It makes me question if she is really my daughter.”

Julius clicked his tongue.

They had completely believed the false information released by the duke.

“Father, wouldn’t it be better to lure him somewhere suitable and deal with him there? For example, how about the Kingdom’s Founding Festival?”

Leopold smoothed his dark brown hair and stroked his beard as he spoke.

“No, Leopold. Such an act would only give the Empire an excuse. If the crown prince were to die within our kingdom, the Empire would surely retaliate. Since our military strength was drastically reduced when we surrendered, we have no means to fight back. First, we must trigger internal strife and weaken them. That is our priority.”

“Father is right.”

Clarissa nodded in agreement.

“But…”

Leopold wanted to argue, but no words came out.

He knew his father’s reasoning was sound.

Still, unwilling to accept it, he made one last attempt.

“Then let’s finish him off inside the Empire! We can send assassins while we visit—”

“If it were that easy, we wouldn’t be struggling now. You know that, don’t you?”

Julius spoke with an exasperated expression.

This time, Leopold had no choice but to fall silent.

“Father, what will we do now? Since there was an assassination attempt, the Empire will surely tighten the security around the crown prince. Sending secret messages to Sophia will also become difficult.”

“I can’t stand this! In the last war, we had the upper hand until the enemy used that insane strategy. There’s no way I can accept being under their rule!”

Leopold raised his voice in anger.

“Calm yourself, Leopold. I feel the same. That’s why we are secretly rebuilding our military, aren’t we?”

“Even so, Father…!”

They couldn’t see a way to break through their current situation.

Yet, Julius and the others couldn’t bring themselves to give up.

“Father, Brother, if we think realistically, using the failure would be the best option. For some reason, the crown prince values that reject. There must be more ways to use her.”

“Indeed… Perhaps we could manipulate some bandits into kidnapping the failure. Then, we lure the crown prince and his guards into a trap and eliminate them there.”

“That sounds perfect. And if we dispose of the failure in the process, the Empire wouldn’t even suspect us.”

“That’s too much, Clarissa. Failure or not, Sophia is still our bl00d. Killing her would violate the ‘Bl00d Pact.’”

Leopold objected.

Julius also nodded in agreement.

“In that case, we should sever ties with her. If she is no longer part of the family, it wouldn’t be breaking the ‘Bl00d Pact.’ There might be some backlash from the citizens, but that girl was never qualified to participate in battle anyway. People will forget soon enough.”

“Cutting ties, huh… I see, in that case—”

Julius was speaking when—

Suddenly, a loud explosion echoed from outside the palace.

“What is that…!?”

Julius jumped to his feet in surprise.

Clarissa and Leopold reacted the same way.

However, the next moment—

“Ugh…!”

Clarissa and Leopold collapsed to the floor.

“Clarissa! Leopold! What happened!?”

Julius, who had been looking out the window, turned around in an instant despite his heavy frame.

Clarissa and Leopold had lost consciousness.

“Someone! Is anyone there!?”

Julius shouted, but no one answered.

To keep the assassination discussion a secret, they had emptied the palace of people.

His voice could not reach the knights waiting outside.

“If that’s the case, I’ll carry them out myself— Hm? What is this?”

A single piece of paper fluttered through the window on the wind.

(I was sure the windows were closed…)

The paper drifted down and landed before Julius.

On instinct, he picked it up.

“There’s writing… A letter?”

Without thinking, Julius read the contents.

—

Julius, this is a warning.

It would be wise not to anger me any further.

—

The moment he finished reading, the letter was engulfed in green flames and vanished.

A magic similar to the one used in the kingdom had been cast upon it.

(The letter just now…! Alto…!)

Julius’s face stiffened.

Sweat formed on his forehead.

“Ugh… uhh…”

“What just happened…?”

Clarissa and Leopold sat up.

They looked around in confusion.

What they saw was Julius, his face pale.

“Father, what is wrong? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost…”

Leopold furrowed his brows and asked.

Clarissa also looked at Julius with a puzzled expression.

“…Cancel it.”

Julius muttered, his shoulders trembling.

His voice was weak, like an animal cornered against a wall.

“Huh? Father, what did you just say…?”

“The assassination plan is canceled! Never think of doing something foolish again! Do you understand?!”

Julius shouted.

Clarissa and Leopold’s eyes widened.

For a moment, they were speechless.

“Why so suddenly…? If we back down now—”

“Silence, Leopold!”

Julius roared, silencing the room.

Then, he explained to them what had just happened.

“So you’re saying… he could kill us anytime he wants…!?”

Clarissa’s face twisted in fear.

“………………”

Leopold said nothing.

He realized that fighting back against Alto was impossible.

If he made any reckless moves, he would die before even reaching him.

The overwhelming difference in strength was painfully clear.

“We can never go against the Empire again…”

Julius hung his head.

His face was filled with fear and despair, and his hands and feet were drenched in cold sweat.

And so, the royal family’s conspiracy was completely crushed.

Alto’s counterattack had removed their fangs entirely.

Sophia would not learn of this until much later.