Chapter 107
“…But how did we suddenly manage to get in here?”
Fay asked, her expression showing she was willing to let the matter slide for now.
“I referenced that thing you humans use—magic.”
“You can use magic now? Like a fireball? You can make fire too?”
“How big of a fire?”
His counterquestion—asking her to name the size she wanted—left Fay speechless. If she asked for a large flame, he might misunderstand and demonstrate by burning the entire city down.
Then again, even a ‘small’ fire might end the same way with this brilliant but completely reckless monster of an invoked.
“Not now! I never told you to start a fire!”
“? I know.”
Only after he clearly agreed not to start one did Fay relax enough to hug him.
She felt a little disappointed that their moment had been interrupted so abruptly. Still, this was hardly a place where they could continue when someone might walk in at any moment.
“Let’s clean this up and go back home.”
Before Virelda could scold them, Fay decided it would be best to erase all the evidence and leave.
Alnazir didn’t look very enthusiastic about the idea.
“I haven’t finished making the cake yet.”
“We can finish it at home.”
So much for promising to behave, was he already rebelling again? Fay felt a brief pang of annoyance, but she smiled and kissed his cheek.
Alnazir nodded slowly, wearing a strange expression as he accepted the kiss.
“Right. If we prepare a safer place, we’ll be able to make many more things.”
Many more things? Was he talking about making several kinds of cakes?
Fay thought it was a bit ambitious for someone who could barely cook at all, and cautiously stepped out of the pantry.
* * *
Meanwhile, public opinion in the Empire was far from favorable toward the Golden Army returning empty-handed.
The citizens couldn’t believe that witches had infiltrated the imperial palace and abducted the Emperor. The soldiers, meanwhile, doubted the box the witches had given them, claiming it contained the Emperor’s head.
“The box will be empty. If the witches had any sense, they’d never hand it over so easily.”
Some believed the inside was empty. Others claimed it probably held nothing more than a stone the size of a human head. Conspiracy theories spread like wildfire.
Enduring the citizens’ harsh gazes and mockery, the army finally returned to the imperial palace—only to find yet another problem waiting for them.
“That was quite the blunder.”
The moment the Supreme Commander appeared, the First Prince, Lynus, criticized him sharply.
The commander could tolerate accusations from anyone else, but Lynus’s rebuke felt particularly unfair.
After all, Lynus himself had been responsible for the palace’s security. If the Emperor had been properly protected in the first place, there would have been no kidnapping at all.
The commander desperately wanted to argue back, but he held his tongue.
Most of the imperial princes had gathered in the audience chamber. In the center, seated on the throne, was the Emperor—without his head.
The sight of a headless body sitting upright on the throne was grotesque, yet no one dared comment on it.
Everyone avoided looking directly at the Emperor. Instead, they stared at the commander and his men as they entered.
“Bring the box to His Majesty.”
Lynus gave the order.
The commander approached the Emperor’s feet and knelt. A strange smell brushed past his nose. Though heavy perfume had been applied to hide it, the stench of decay was unmistakable.
For a moment he wondered if the Emperor was already dead and glanced at Lynus. Strangely, Lynus—standing closest to the throne—didn’t seem bothered by the smell at all. He merely smiled confidently and ordered the box to be opened.
As everyone held their breath, the commander slowly placed his hand on the wooden lid.
He had tried many times during the journey, but the box had never opened—no matter what force he applied. The same might happen again.
With trembling hands, he touched the lid.
Click. The lock released.
“Maybe it’s empty,” someone whispered.
Though it was only a murmur, the hall was so silent that everyone heard it.
Lynus made no attempt to identify the person who had spoken such ominous words. Maintaining his arrogant expression, he simply glanced toward the box.
The commander took a deep breath and lifted the lid. Inside, wrapped in cloth, was a round object.
“Open it.”
At Lynus’s command, the commander reached in to remove it.
At that exact moment, the Emperor’s body—which had sat motionless like a corpse until then—suddenly began to move.
The Emperor’s arm groped blindly through the air, unable to see where it was reaching. The motion was disturbingly unnatural.
The commander couldn’t possibly throw the Emperor aside. So he had no choice but to watch helplessly as the headless body collapsed forward onto him.
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