What Became of the Tyrant After the Pregnant Empress Left - Chapter 255

“Well… since you promised to get me Tennilath’s blood through your deal with him, I figured I’d mention it. Thought it might affect your plans. What do you think? Still manageable?”

“……”

Ysaris’ lips parted soundlessly. The news was so unexpected, it felt like a blow to the back of her head.

‘Kazhan is… fine? Why?’

She hadn’t wished for his suffering. But she hadn’t hoped for his well-being either.

……No, if she was honest, she’d wanted him to regret what he’d done to her. There were moments she’d ached for him to feel the sting of loss as deeply as she had. Yet she’d also prayed no harm would come to innocents because of it—her own emotions were a tangled mess.

“How… unexpected. That Kazhan is doing well.”

‘Kazhan. Kazhan Tennilath.’

The name still felt foreign on her tongue. In her lifetime, she’d barely heard or spoken it.

As a princess, she’d known him as Cain. As an empress, she’d addressed him as Your Majesty. Even after losing her memories, she’d called him Cain again. No wonder his true name refused to stick.

So she made a point to say it now. Kazhan. She’d done so ever since they parted.

It was an effort to see him clearly—not as Cain, not as the Emperor, but as Kazhan.

Though she didn’t know why.

“It might complicate my plans. I never imagined he’d be… unaffected by our separation.”

She’d considered several ways to obtain Tennilath blood. Her purified blood—capable of easing his ability’s side effects—was the first bargaining chip. She’d planned to offer an exchange.

“You can’t sleep properly without me, can you?”

If refused, she’d steeled herself to meet him a few times as payment. Lena had given her three years; surely by then, she could face him again.

But all this assumed he’d want the deal. If Kazhan felt nothing—if the rumors of his stability were true—she had no leverage left.

“How could he…?”

The whisper slipped through her teeth, laden with unspoken questions.

‘You loved me, didn’t you? When you thought I was dead, you tore the world apart. Now you’re fine just knowing I’m alive somewhere?’

‘Or did you realize, after we parted properly, that your love meant nothing? Was it just an obsession—so shallow it could fade this easily? Were all your vows, your promises that I was your everything, just lies?’

‘Which version of you was real? Did you ever truly love me?’

“Hah.”

She dragged a hand down her face. A chill settled in her chest, as if she’d swallowed ice.

‘The Cain I loved… was just another illusion, like his false identity. You really are irredeemable.’

‘No wonder you never tried to contact me. How foolish of me to miss you even a little.’

‘No—I didn’t miss you. Mikael just mentions you sometimes, that’s all…’

“…Bastard.”

Pregnancy had made her emotions volatile, and now they veered into reckless resentment. Truthfully, she’d seize any excuse to hate Kazhan. Grinding her teeth at the man who defied all objective judgment, Ysaris hissed:

“I’ll keep our contract one way or another, Lena. If all else fails, I’ll stab him myself.”

“No need to rush. Calm down first.”

‘Maybe I shouldn’t have told her.’

Ignoring Lena’s awkward handwave, Ysaris added coldly.

“Without my ability, his side effects will consume him eventually. Let’s see how long he lasts.”

* * *

Contrary to Ysaris’ fury, Kazhan had already collapsed—he just hid it well.

“…Thus, the summer festival concluded successfully. However, if we expand the harvest festival similarly in two months, the winter budget will be strained. While we have reserves from early this year, there’s no need for extravagance. Might I suggest keeping subsequent events at last year’s scale?”

“…Maybe I should’ve taken her on a date back then.”

“Pardon?”

The noble presiding over the morning meeting blinked at the Emperor’s non sequitur. Kazhan’s crimson eyes—fixed blankly on the distance—slowly closed, then opened to pin the man in place.