“Why are you focusing on such a strange thing? This is an incredibly valuable ornament. Of course I’d keep it with me. It’s only about the size of my palm, so carrying it is no trouble at all.”
Christine explained it without the slightest haste.
“Besides, you’ve already gotten the pendant dirty. I don’t want it anymore. Deal with it however you like. Keep it for yourself or throw it away.”
“Your Majesty, regardless of your intentions, I’m truly grateful.”
The blonde girl held the ruby pendant in both hands and bowed to Christine.
Whatever the other woman intended, it was an undeniable fact that she had helped Fate tremendously.
Actions mattered more than intentions.
“You don’t suspect that I might have added something to the pendant?” Christine raised a brow when the blonde girl placed it around her snow-white neck without hesitation.
After all, she and Fate were nothing more than strangers who had met a few times.
“Your Majesty, you have no reason to harm me. Nor do you need to.”
The blonde girl spoke with complete honesty.
And it was indeed the truth. Christine was a pure-blooded member of the Divine Race. With her level of existence, harming an ant like her would require no elaborate scheme at all.
Fate was no longer Christine’s equal.
Besides, if you didn’t trust someone, you shouldn’t use them. Once you chose to trust them, you shouldn’t doubt them.
Fate had already chosen to believe in Christine. She wouldn’t question her now.
More importantly, she had no other choice. All she could do was take a gamble.
She really didn’t want to parade through the streets with these two enormous water bags on her chest.
“Didn’t you say this pendant could solve my current problem?”
Fate stared at the heroic, beautiful blonde girl reflected in the bronze mirror, looking troubled.
“Why hasn’t anything changed?”
“That’s exactly how it should be. What kind of change were you expecting? Even I can’t suppress Divine Blood through an external force like an enchanted item.”
“This pendant only changes how other people perceive your appearance. It also lets you deceive yourself a little.”
“So I still can’t change back?!”
Fate looked desperate. Even her pupils began to tremble.
“What? You got something for free and now you’re making demands?” Christine deliberately sounded impatient. “If you think it’s useless, throw the pendant away.”
“.........I never said I didn’t want it.”
She couldn’t change back, but wearing it would at least let her deceive herself.
She could pretend her little brother was still there.
Without it, she’d truly have to wander among the crowds with a girl’s face and these strange, oversized white valleys.
“How do I use the pendant?”
“Picture your former appearance, then inject a trace of mana into the pendant.”
“Like this?”
Fate did as instructed.
She touched her own cheek and confirmed her appearance in the bronze mirror.
Only after seeing that she had truly changed back did she finally let out a relieved breath.
“Oh? So this is what you looked like before.”
Christine had been watching Fate the entire time. When she saw Fate’s original appearance, a trace of surprise flashed through her eyes.
Then she pursed her lips.
“Is it that surprising?”
“It is, actually. I thought a stiff person like you would usually have a square, proper face. Turns out you’re rather handsome.........”
The Dawnbreak Knight-Captain was renowned across the continent and feared in every direction. Yet she had never shown her true face before anyone.
Everyone could only imagine what was hidden inside that airtight suit of armor.
Some guessed that the Dawnbreak Knight-Captain was plain-looking, or even ugly.
Otherwise, why would she always cover her face and refuse to meet anyone openly?
Others guessed that she was extraordinarily handsome. So handsome that she couldn’t show her face in public.
Those were all fairly normal guesses.
There were also more unusual theories. Some believed the armor contained no human being at all, but a mass of tentacles, a slime, or some indescribable creature.
In any case, it definitely wasn’t human.
“Hmph. You’re pretty handsome.”
Christine muttered it under her breath.
In the bronze mirror inside the tomb chamber, Fate touched her expressionless face.
The sensation hadn’t changed, but the appearance had returned to that familiar face.
“Also, thanks to the nourishment from the demon fox blood inside your body, your body has been reborn.”
“From now on, you’ll remain young forever. So stop thinking about dying all the time.”
“You’ve never really seen this world properly, have you?”
“.......From now on, live well. Live as an ordinary person.”
“.........Thank you for your generous help, Your Majesty.”
“Don’t mention it. This pendant can imitate your former appearance, but that’s all it can do—imitate.”
“The fact that you now have two extra cotton candies and one fewer lollipop is objective reality. An imitation can’t reproduce that.”
“Also, the demon fox blood has taken the dominant position inside you. From now on, a great deal of mana will accumulate in your body, but you won’t possess any 【Intent】.”
“If you want to use your Heart Arts, you’ll have to spend even more mana to condense 【Intent】 before releasing it.”
“On top of that, your physical abilities are far weaker than before. Do you understand what I mean?”
After a moment of silence, Fate nodded.
Christine’s meaning was very clear.
Fate’s current condition was more or less the equivalent of having her level reset.
“But this may not necessarily be a bad thing. You’ve lost your Heart Arts, but you can now use magic.”
“If you learn one or two inherited secret arts from the Nine Tailed Fox clan, you might even surpass your former strength.”
Fate gave a perfunctory “mm” at Christine’s suggestion.
The mere mention of “Nine Tailed Fox” clearly made her physically uncomfortable.
Christine could tell, of course.
She had only brought it up to confirm how much Fate hated the Nine Tailed Fox.
“Finally, one more warning. Your body is structured differently now.”
“Using either 【Mana】 or 【Intent】 will make the demon fox blood inside you boil. That will cause the pendant to stop working.”
“Understood?”
“..........I understand.”
Fate looked down at her hands and silently nodded.
“Where are we?”
Only then did Fate notice the furnishings around her and the stone chamber where she stood.
The chamber was spacious and square. Wall lamps burned in all four corners.
A stone table stood beside a stone chair, holding silver wine cups and goblets. Several porcelain burial objects were arranged nearby.
A large oil painting hung in the main room. It depicted a knight leaning on a sword.
Written in the Karno language beneath it were the words:
“Forever remembered. Immortal in glory.”
Fate finally recalled that she seemed to have been lying down earlier.
She had broken through a lid and crawled out of something.
Without a word, she looked toward the stone coffin in the center of the main tomb chamber.
The coffin was inlaid with gold, silver, and precious gems.
After a long while, she rubbed the back of her head.
This made absolutely no sense.
“How long have I been dead?”
After a moment, Fate realized how ambiguous that sounded and changed her wording.
“How long has it been since I faked my death?”
“About two months, I’d say.”
Christine answered carelessly. She had always been rather numb to the passage of time.
That was only a rough estimate. From the time Fate had come to her asking to die until her burial, around two months had indeed passed.
“To put it simply, someone found your body after you faked your death. They recognized you and reported it to the Imperial Capital.”
“After the Imperial Empress, Beatrice, learned about it, she had you reburied beneath the Imperial Palace.”
Christine wound a strand of hair around her finger as she explained.
Fate clearly had no idea what was going on.
“So we’re beneath the Imperial Palace in the Imperial Capital?”
“Yep.”
“Then, Your Majesty, how did you get here?”
“Pfft. With the Karno royal family in this state, intermarrying with humans has clearly made them stupid.”
“Never mind a tomb. I could sneak into the Empress’s bedchamber without anyone noticing.”
Christine spoke with open disdain.
“.......Why would she bury me beneath the Imperial Palace?”
Fate ignored Christine’s nonsense and looked puzzled.
“How should I know? You ask me, and I’m supposed to ask who?”
“I’m not close with the current Empress of the Karno Empire. If you want to know, go ask her yourself.”
A hint of ill intent curled at the corners of Christine’s lips.
“That is, if you want to lose your freedom again.”
“If I remember correctly, the little princess of the Karno Empire had a blood feud with you. You killed her father, didn’t you?”
“...........”
“So after you supported her until she came of age and secured the throne, she couldn’t wait to strip you of your power.”
“She was probably afraid you’d launch another purge of the court.”
“...........”
A fragment of memory flashed past.
The Imperial Palace was filled with desolation. Broken walls and ruins stretched in every direction.
Blood stained the noble throne and crown red. Flames soared into the sky.
Firelight illuminated the black-haired girl’s pale, tragic face.
She knelt on both knees, her luxurious princess dress soaked in blood.
She said nothing.
Tears filled her violet, jewel-like eyes.
Lying in the pool of blood was her own family.
Her imperial father.
The knight signaled for his subordinates behind him not to attack the girl.
Then he silently walked over.
“You’re not going to kill me?”
The girl lifted her beautiful eyes, glittering with tears like crystal.
She stared at the tall knight without expression.
“The guilty have already received their punishment.”
The knight’s voice was deep and heavy.
“Everyone hopes the new Empress will learn from this lesson and never walk the same path.”
“........If you don’t kill me, I’ll take your head one day.”
The girl spoke each word slowly and clearly.
“Good.”
The knight didn’t grow angry at her threat.
“I’ll wait for you to come for revenge.”
“But you’re too weak right now. You can’t become a proper ruler, much less my opponent.”
“If you want revenge, you’ll have to study.”
“Study how to become a wise ruler. Only then will you be able to complete your revenge.”
“Until that day....”
The knight paused.
Then he dropped to one knee before the girl and met her gaze.
“I’ll serve you faithfully. I’ll clear away every obstacle until you can stand on your own.”
................
“.........How are the people of the Empire doing now?”
The memory faded, and Fate slowly let out a breath.
“The people? How would I know?”
Christine pouted.
“You can go see for yourself.”
“Compared to that former demon tyrant, things are definitely much better. They’d already hit rock bottom, so every road leads upward.”
“The people have been given time to recover. Restoring the economy and national strength is only a matter of time.”
“That’s good.”
Fate nodded.
At last, she seemed willing to set down the burden on her shoulders.
Her “student” had graduated.
She had already become a ruler capable of standing on her own.
“So, what are you planning to do next?”
“I want to travel,” Fate said. “I want to visit different countries as an ordinary passerby.”
“Oh? You want to admire your own ‘masterpiece’?”
“The world belongs to everyone in the world. It shouldn’t be called my personal masterpiece.”
Fate corrected her.
“Suit yourself. But before that, I have one question.”
“What?”
“Do you have money for traveling?”
“............”
The question left Fate completely speechless.
A look of embarrassment appeared on her face.
