Chapter 35
03_The story of Rufus, the king
Sarubia died.
Her death marked a sudden upheaval in everything.
The king perished, and the throne was left vacant. The very foundations of the country began to tremble.
The common folk learned that the king had tried to kill Rufus. They also discovered that innocent people had been sacrificed in the process.
In response, Crown Prince Viren hurriedly tried to manage the situation. He ordered the execution of Rufus and Baroness Inferna and sought to ascend the throne himself.
However, the people had turned their backs on the royal family long ago.
The citizens were furious, and they had no intention of suppressing their welling resentment.
The fate of the country, now entwined with the crown prince who had forsaken his people and the people who had rejected him, was sealed.
Rebellion broke out.
Rufus and Baroness Inferna, who were awaiting execution, were liberated by a rebellion consisting of common folk. Unwillingly, Rufus became the leader of the rebellion. Once again, he took to the battlefield to protect his family.
Crown Prince Viren’s head was separated from its neck.
The other princes who had raised armies to kill Rufus were also killed. The nobles who opposed him and the rebellion were all subdued.
Rufus couldn’t understand why he was swinging his sword and killing people. But the reason didn’t matter.
Sarubia was dead.
The presence that had meant everything to him was gone. The world without her was like an empty chessboard.
Everything seemed meaningless and hollow.
Rufus no longer knew what he wanted.
And so, a year-long, blood-soaked war continued.
And finally.
“Long live King Rufus!”
“All hail our only monarch, King Rufus!”
Rufus found himself reluctantly seated on the throne.
Everyone praised Rufus’s name.
Everyone bowed their heads before Rufus.
Everyone trembled before Rufus’s majesty.
Rufus gazed down at his kneeling subjects with vacant eyes.
It didn’t matter.
Everything was meaningless, and everything was empty.
Even when presented with the splendor of gold and silver and all the marvels of the kingdom before him.
Even with the people swearing allegiance and bowing their heads before him.
Rufus did not smile.
***
Another night arrived.
Today marked one year since Sarubia’s death. Rufus stood alone at the highest point of the palace.
The night air was cold. As the chilly breeze covered his skin, he recalled her words.
‘I’d rather freeze to death than sleep amidst warmth.’
Sarubia.
She had an unusual dislike for heat.
If only she could have experienced a day like today, how wonderful it would have been.
Rufus looked down at his hand. It was a red magic stone, glowing eerily in his palm—the magic stone of the demon king, which he had gifted to Sarubia before. He never imagined it would be the last memento she left.
‘Sarubia.’
Rufus silently counted that beloved name in his heart.
How many times had he called it?
Thousands, tens of thousands, or even billions of times. He called it every time he missed her.
Sarubia had clearly said she would be by his side when he died.
But now she was gone.
The last trace she left was her grave. Her flesh had already returned to the earth.
Sarubia was no more.
What did her vision of Rufus’s death truly mean?
It was a moment when Rufus was immersed in his conscience.
“Lord Rufus.”
Someone called his name.
“Why are you out at this late hour?”
It was Princess Sordid.
No, she was no longer a princess. Queen Sordid. She had become the consort of King Rufus. It was a marriage neither of them desired. Rufus resented Sordid for mistreating the woman he loved and insulting his grandmother. Sordid, in turn, resented Rufus for killing her father and brothers. Their marriage was purely for political reasons.
At that point, with the king and princes all dead, Princess Sordid was the sole remaining heir to the royal bloodline. Some nobles argued that if even Princess Sordid were cast aside, the legitimacy of the royal family would vanish.
Sordid, now Rufus’s wife, knew her position well. If she fell out of favor with this man, she would die. Sordid tried every means to turn Rufus’s heart, but he had never even allowed her into his bedroom.
“Do not mention my name lightly,” Rufus coldly rebuked Sordid.
“Lord Rufus, I’m only concerned and came to see you. I am your wife—”
“Leave.”
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