I Wasn't Trying to Seduce with the Male Lead - Episode 67

Zepplin headed to the documentation office of the Department of Governance early in the morning.

The Emperor sat behind a tall stack of documents, his face weary. He looked as if he hadn’t slept at all, and his eyes appeared vacant.

“The Bormia noble family from the Department of Governance has all withdrawn,” the Emperor muttered in a resentful voice.

Most of the officials in administrative bodies were from the Bormia family or its branches. If the key figures had left, no matter how competent the Emperor was, work would not progress.

“Soon Lian will be here, and I’m stuck with these stupid pieces of paper.”

Those “stupid pieces of paper” were the source of what made the empire run. Why was the Emperor more concerned with Lian than the crisis in the empire’s administration? Hoping it was just a result of his overwork and sensitivity, Zepplin cautiously said, “It seems the dukes must return to their posts quickly.”

“I agree. I’ll go meet the Duke of Bormia myself and have a face-to-face talk.”

Just as the Emperor was about to rise, Zepplin bitterly held him back. “You can’t do that.”

The Emperor gave him a questioning look. Zepplin bowed his head and slowly explained. “Four ducal families, with the exception of the Calabria ducal family, have simultaneously issued a joint statement.”

“A joint statement?”

“La Floide, Rhine of abrot, Bormia Residence, and Legion of Rouen have designated the imperial family as ‘Persona Non Grata.'”

“Persona… Non Grata?”

The Emperor’s vacant eyes changed. Persona Non Grata, ‘an unwelcome person,’ was a diplomatic term used for an individual who is refused entry into a country. Having lived his life as the Emperor of the Empire, he had never once imagined being called by such a dishonorable name.

His light-colored eyes clouded with fury.

“How dare the vassals of the Empire designate me, the Emperor, as Persona Non Grata?”

“In principle, a ducal territory is an autonomous district independent from the Empire and completely subject to the duke. They have the right to refuse entry to anyone. It was probably the diplomat, Duke Ebroth, who came up with this. And since Duke Rouen, who is like a human law book, is with him, they must have reviewed it for any legal issues before executing it.”

Being rejected by four dukes at once in his own Empire was a significant blow to the Emperor’s honor.

The Emperor slammed his desk, making a loud noise. Documents scattered everywhere, but he paid no mind and roared, “Traitors who deserve to be punished by history! If they want to be stuck in that small piece of land for the rest of their lives, so be it! Make sure those damn dukes can’t set a single foot outside their territories!”

While his emotions were understandable, it was the worst possible order for the Emperor of the Empire. Zepplin’s face turned pale as he tried to stop the Emperor. “You must not officially break with the dukes. The people will become agitated, and foreign countries will see the empire’s division as an opportunity.”

“We’ll just trample all the mice that dare to challenge the empire’s authority. I have the Duke of Calabria!”

Swept away by his emotions in his exhausted state, the Emperor seemed to have no regard for foreign relations or circumstances. He went a step further and issued an absurd command.

“Bring the only proper duke in the Empire to the Imperial Palace! And tell Archduke Phaedra to come with him! I will drag those traitors out and behead them immediately!”

Since the Emperor had completely lost his reason, there was no use in trying to talk to him further. Zepplin felt devastated but decided to wait for his anger to subside. He pretended to agree with him and left the Department of Governance with the Emperor.

A prairie in the central part of the Empire. Two horses were galloping down a narrow, rugged road through dense grass. It was a two-day journey to Felicity. On the first day away from the capital, they occasionally ran into caravans or travelers, but today, only the occasional presence of wild animals could be felt, and not a single passerby was in sight.

Sky showed no hesitation in traversing such a secluded path, but Zenith was behind him, looking concerned.

“Will we really be able to meet the Count of Calabria this way?” she asked, raising her voice from her rocking horse. Sky nodded without looking back.

“I can’t shake this unease. Please explain why you think so!”

When she pulled her horse alongside his, Sky finally spoke. “You know I had Eleanor under surveillance.”

Zenith, having once been a part of that surveillance herself, knew this, of course. When she nodded, Sky continued, “They were headed towards Lian. I’m just following them.”

“How could the surveillance on the Baroness go to the Count of Calabria?”

“Because they followed the Behind Knights.”

Zenith, who had been looking doubtful, finally seemed to realize something. “Even if the Behind Knights are a highly skilled elite group, it would be impossible for all of them to infiltrate the narrow imperial palace basement. So, I expected that if I handed Eleanor over to the Princess, the ones who couldn’t follow would return to Lian.”

It would be difficult to track just Lian, who had suddenly disappeared into the vast prairie, but if a large group of people were moving quickly, tailing them would not be difficult. Zenith’s eyes lit up as she asked, “Did your plan work exactly?”

Sky smiled instead of answering. “But what exactly are you tracking? I don’t see any trace.”

“You wouldn’t. They didn’t leave any traces in the first place.”

Following an elite knight order like the Behind Knights was already a hardship, so they wouldn’t have had time to leave traces.

Sky raised his arm and showed her the ring on his finger. “This is guiding me.”

Looking at the shining string stone in the center of the ring, Zenith finally understood the whole story.

As the conversation lulled, Sky looked straight ahead again. A clear red thread cut across the prairie. He was using the thread that appeared after a light vow of truth was placed on a spy.

“How about we stop and rest for a bit?”

“Do you think we’re going on a picnic? You’re still saying such things.”

Even after being rebuked, Zenith was persistent. “The treatment in the capital was only an emergency measure. You sent someone to the Princess to buy some time before we left Felicity, so I don’t think you need to overdo it.”

She seemed worried about Sky’s wound reopening.

Even though he had sent a message to the Princess, there was no time to spare. Even so, Sky slowed his horse. It wasn’t to listen to his subordinate, but because he had discovered something.

“They’ve arrived.”

A shadow flickered on the horizon. Although they had only just noticed it, the other side must have known about their presence long before they came into view.

As they came to a complete stop and waited, a knight order in a neat formation soon came into clear view, their majestic figures illuminated by the setting sun.

Sky’s gaze was fixed on the man at the very front of the center. Even with his hood on, he could tell at a glance that it was Lian Calabria.

“What if they don’t stop when they see us?” Zenith asked nervously, seeing that the knights weren’t slowing down.

Sky shook his head as if that wouldn’t happen. As if to prove him right, the knights brought their horses to a halt at an astonishing speed a little way from them.

“It’s been a while, Count Calabria,” Sky said loudly, starting the conversation.

Ryan didn’t answer and just stared at him.

“I have something important to tell you. Could you spare a moment?”

“I’m quite busy.”

The quiet plain clearly transmitted Lian’s low, hard voice. Although he was a future archduke, his current status as a count meant he showed no deference to Sky, who was a duke.

But Sky didn’t even flinch, and with a smile, he urged him again. “It won’t hurt you to listen. I’ve brought the story you’d most want to hear.”

Lian seemed reluctant, but he soon moved his horse. “It seems I need some explaining.”

As he approached, Sky immediately and candidly told him everything that had happened Lian remained expressionless throughout, but his marble-like forehead furrowed toward the end.

“Did you come all this way to confess that you were the one who handed Eleanor over to the Princess?”

“Is that what my story sounded like?”

Sky smiled, and in contrast, Lian’s expression worsened.

“Hiding her in the mansion has its limits, so I made a bold attempt to save her completely.”

“And you failed,” Lian said coldly, his nose turned up slightly. “If you hadn’t provoked Eleanor with guilt and made her leave the mansion, she wouldn’t have had to suffer in that dark basement.”

“Even if it’s my fault, I don’t owe you an apology,” Sky said, still smiling. “You and Eleanor don’t have any real relationship right now.”

Lian bit his red lip. Next to him, Zenith looked at Sky with a “Why are you doing that?” expression. It was an unnecessary provocation, but it was interesting to see the man who seemed to have no emotions show a flicker of disturbance with just one remark.

“Even if I were to die, I wouldn’t close a door that might lead to the other side and come back,” Lian said, his tone one of condemnation towards Sky, who had barely escaped from the magical beasts.

He seemed to want to end the conversation quickly, so Sky dangled a carrot again. “Well, I’ll make up for the mistake I made myself.”

“How?”

“I’ll distract the Princess for 24 hours so she can’t issue a command of death while you remove the part where the mark of subservience is engraved.”

It was a clearly unconventional proposal. Even Zenith looked horrified, but there was no change in Lian’s purple eyes.

“Why would you do that?”

“Because I don’t want Eleanor to die in the basement because of my mistake.”

Lian’s expression didn’t show any expectation that he could do it.

“It shouldn’t be a disadvantageous proposal for you. After all, aren’t you going to the basement to save Eleanor anyway?”

After a moment of thought, Lian spoke dryly. “Do as you wish. Whatever you do, I’m going in.”

“Then please postpone that entry for about a week from today.”

Lian flatly rejected Sky’s request. “I can’t do that.”

As expected, it seemed he planned to go directly to the Imperial Palace as soon as he arrived in Felicity. Sky said to him as he had prepared in advance, “Don’t worry. Eleanor will be safe during that time. I’ll take responsibility for keeping the Princess from accessing the basement.”

“It seems your plans don’t always succeed.”

Despite the direct criticism, Sky didn’t lose his composure. “You don’t have a good way to get out of the vow of subservience anyway. Do you want to behead Eleanor with your own hands as soon as you save her, or just die in front of her eyes?”

When the attack was returned, Lian’s well-defined eyes twitched. He was silent for a while before throwing his last word. “Exactly one week.”

When the desired answer came, Sky raised one eyebrow.

“I can’t wait any longer than that.”

“Don’t worry. That’s enough.”

After they had agreed, Lian turned around without a moment’s delay. Even though they were going in the same direction, he seemed to have no intention of traveling together, and he soon led his subordinates and disappeared.

Watching him go, Zenith muttered, “He’s very stiff considering you’re taking on such an important task for him.”

Zenith seemed very displeased that her lord had been disrespected. However, Sky was not only unbothered by Lian’s cold attitude but even pleased by it. The aloof and cold man was starting to acknowledge him.

“Don’t be upset. He’s just jealous.”

“Jealousy…?”

Instead of explaining, Sky turned his horse’s head toward Felicity. “Let’s go straight back to the capital.”

“Since you’ve achieved your goal, can’t we rest for a bit?”

“I’ll rest plenty when we get to Felicity, so that’s enough nagging.”

There was a lot of work to do in the capital. Sky’s mind raced as he cut across the prairie he had been riding on all day.

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