If You Leave Without a Word - Chapter 250

‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.

That was how the Nikephos Empire was born.

Founded in the aftermath of the collapse of dozens of neighboring states, the empire had been locked in a constant struggle against the remnants of those fallen kingdoms.

Even though the wars of conquest were declared over, the truth was that the real conflict had never truly ended. Over more than a decade, an uncountable number of soldiers had died, whether anyone noticed or not.

So when the Crown Prince declared that there would be no more war, the implications were profound. Refusing to wage war might save a few lives in the short term, but in the long run, it could endanger hundreds or thousands of the empire’s own citizens.

The heir to the empire couldn’t possibly be ignorant of such truths, which made it almost inevitable that the nobility would turn away from him. If Vlahova had had another son, the nobles would have supported that heir instead without a second thought.

Unfortunately, the Emperor had no other sons. He claimed that, having suffered through a bitter struggle with his own brothers for the throne, he wanted to spare his son the same pain, and so never produced another heir.

Few believed this explanation, however. The nobles’ consensus was that even the mightiest Emperor in history had simply failed to sire more children.

Sensing this discontent, Grand Duke Norfolk seized his chance to solidify his own position. If there was no alternative, then he would create one.

The Emperor might have only one son, but he also had a younger brother—someone who had fought alongside him in the wars. That person was the Grand Duke himself, and it was all too easy to remind the nobles of this fact.

First, the Grand Duke opened his estate to the nobility of the capital, inviting them to his home.

In the past, most had refused for fear of offending the Emperor, but with the Emperor now bedridden and unable to leave his chambers, there was little left to fear.

One by one, the nobles gathered at the Grand Duke’s mansion, listening to tales of his valor in battle, reminded of just how formidable he had been as a warrior.

Yes, here stood a royal who had personally fought in the wars of conquest—so different from the timid Crown Prince, who seemed interested only in inheriting a golden age that his father had built for him.

If Grand Duke Norfolk had once fought with his life on the line to found the empire, surely he could be trusted to defend it in the future as well.

Such confidence in the Grand Duke spread quickly among the great houses.

It was all part of his psychological game. To manipulate public opinion and sway hearts was laughably easy for him, especially when faced with the naïve Crown Prince, who didn’t even realize his own position was in jeopardy.

Mernich had never before seen his position threatened, so he likely didn’t even realize how precarious things had become. The Grand Duke was determined to strengthen his base as much as possible before the Emperor could reappear and reassert control.

Everything was going exactly as he had planned.

Three months had passed since his return to the capital. All of this had happened in just a little over a hundred days. All he needed now was a decisive blow to push the Crown Prince aside completely.

The Grand Duke was entirely absorbed in plotting his next move.

It wasn’t until a few days later that he realized the reason all this had been possible was the absence of the one courageous knight who had always kept order in the capital under the Emperor’s command.

“Your Grace! There’s word from the acting commander of the Capital Guard—they’ve returned to the city!”

It had been easy enough to make the weakly Mernich ill. As the Grand Duke pondered the use of a subtle, traceless poison, a name he’d almost forgotten resurfaced unexpectedly.

“Who is the acting commander of the Capital Guard again?”

“Marquis Cain Vernat, Your Grace.”

“What? Who?”

“Cain Vernat, the Marquis. He was seen at dawn today at the capital’s main gate.”

Now that he thought about it, he remembered hearing that the Marquis had been demoted to acting guard commander after falling out of favor with the Emperor just before leaving the capital.

The Grand Duke stroked his chin.

“Did Vernat return alone?”

“He was accompanied by Duke Kristin.”

So the two of them had returned together. The Grand Duke quickly calculated what kind of trouble Cain Vernat’s return might cause.

Would the Marquis still have any influence in the capital? Would being seen with the Kristin daughter be to his advantage?

After weighing it, the Grand Duke decided it wouldn’t matter.

He’d already won over a significant number of nobles in the capital. Public sentiment was with him, not the Crown Prince. What difference would the return of a knight—no longer in the Emperor’s favor, and not even of royal blood—really make?

Besides, the Grand Duke had in his possession a devastating secret about Vernat. There was nothing to be afraid of.

After calming his briefly startled nerves, the Grand Duke returned to his plotting.

But there was one thing he had overlooked: unlike himself, who always put self-preservation above all, Cain Vernat was the kind of man who, once he set his sights on a goal, wouldn’t hesitate to lay down his life to achieve it.

And so, after a long time of emptiness and cold silence, the long-abandoned mansion finally welcomed its master home.