Became The Son Of The Final Boss [EN]: Chapter 145

145.

My father walked in silence.

I thought he would ask something, but his silence stretched on.

I didn’t particularly open my mouth either.

One by one, the retainers of Daejeon [a major city or region, depending on the context] left, and before I knew it, only my father and I were walking inside the Imperial Palace.

A place I had never been to.

My memory tells me I came here every day, but strictly speaking, that wasn’t me.

As a child, confined to my room, whenever I couldn’t bear it, I would grab the door right in front of me and cry.

Living as Arun Cal Leord, I had never visited this place even once.

‘The heightened emotions must be because I am Arun now.’

As memories intertwined, a sense of nostalgia welled up.

The retainers who had disappeared reappeared one by one.

The door opened, and we went inside.

Every building in the Imperial Palace has an owner and people who use it according to the purpose of the building, but this place alone was empty.

The garden was filled with flowers welcoming spring, and because it was untouched by human hands, various weeds were also present. Walking past the dilapidated fountain and the cracked ground, I felt a sense of melancholy.

We entered the palace.

Even as we walked toward what appeared to be the dining hall, my father remained silent.

The retainers busily lit the lights in the dining hall and prepared the food.

‘The dining hall shows signs of use.’

Unlike the garden, which had been neglected for a long time, the dining hall had almost no dust, and the wooden table was glossy.

I vaguely guessed that my father occasionally ate here alone.

“Sit down.”

At my father’s words, I took a seat.

My mother’s palace, and the Empress’s palace.

In the dining hall of the Empress’s Palace, which occupied the center of the Imperial Palace and was so large that it contained four separate palaces, my father spoke about my mother for the first time.

“Iriel was a wise woman.”

The food was all prepared, and the fragrant smell stimulated my nose, but I focused on my father’s voice.

Filling the wine glass, my father continued wistfully.

“And she was bold. When I first met Iriel, the desire for revenge that filled my heart disappeared. Walking the path of blood with her, who loved nature and people, was not a good fit. Iriel’s family was also destroyed, but she accepted that as the destiny of the times and the flow of fate, unlike me.”

Before I knew it, I exclaimed, “Ah.”

It was the first time.

‘Ron Cal Leord… the only woman he ever loved.’

Hearing my own backstory directly from his mouth was a strange experience.

The current father was nothing like the one who decided to destroy three families because Kayla had been taken away.

“After founding the Empire, I decided to leave the battlefield where I had lived for so long. Iriel had a child in her womb, and she was happier than anyone else. The ones who destroyed my family and Iriel’s family were still alive, but that was no longer important.”

My father telling me about my mother. I was unexpectedly finding answers to my worries about what my father’s real purpose was and what his hidden heart held.

“I named the child Arun. Iriel’s body weakened a little after giving birth, but she quickly recovered. Watching the child grow day by day, Iriel was the happiest person in this palace.”

Happiness.

Like my father said, a man rose up in the midst of a warring era, built an empire, married the woman he loved, and had a child.

Isn’t that a happy ending like any other novel?

“I took many wives and had children, but Iriel was the only one I truly loved. I kept only her in my heart.”

Having concubines is not a flaw in this era’s culture. Moreover, my father is the Emperor of the Empire. There was no problem with having several women as wives.

“Externally, there was no one to oppose me, but internally, the so-called Guardian families and local forces remained as potential threats. Iriel did not want any more wars to be waged now that a mighty empire had been established.”

It wasn’t something I expected to come out of my father’s mouth, a man who seemed to believe the desire for conquest was the reason for his life, but I now realized why he had so many wives.

‘My mother didn’t want war, and my father took the daughters of various families as wives to suppress internal threats.’

It was common for the Emperor to be connected to the daughters of major families and local forces through marriage, but it was really unexpected that my father’s real purpose was to prevent war.

“Welcoming others besides Iriel was painful. Both she and I were hurting. If I had another way, I probably would have chosen it, but the past is irreversible.”

The early days of a nation are bound to be unstable. Nevertheless, my father was admitting he was wrong.

“And Iriel started to get sick.”

My father’s voice changed.

From a voice longing for his loved one, he returned to his usual self.

A callous, sharp voice.

“She started to suffer so much that I couldn’t believe she was a high-level spiritist [one who practices spiritism, communicating with spirits]. I searched all over the Empire, no, the continent, for someone or something that could cure Iriel.”

“Did she die of an illness?”

My father smiled faintly.

“I thought she died of an illness. I thought it was a punishment from the heavens. I thought the resentment of the thousands and tens of thousands of people who lost their lives to my sword had gathered, and the heavens had punished me.”

Before I knew it, my body trembled.

“Iriel died from a curse.”

* * *

My father picked up his fork as if to say he would tell the rest of the story after the meal.

I ate too, but I didn’t know if the rice was going in through my nose or my mouth.

‘My father loved my mother more than I had imagined. And that’s still the case. My mother didn’t die of an illness; she died from a curse.’

Who would dare to endure Ron Cal Leord’s anger?

My father took a sip of wine and said.

“Traces of the curse were spread all over the continent.”

It wasn’t a desire for conquest. My father was taking revenge. How much more am I going to be surprised today?

“While conquering many kingdoms and increasing the Empire’s influence, I chased down every trace of the curse without missing a single one. Recently, I discovered that the traces were connected to a single point.”

“Could it be the Kingdom Alliance?”

My father shook his head.

“No. Right here, the place I built with care for Iriel, the Empress’s Palace, which was created by restoring the appearance of her family as much as possible, as she often said.”

“Then are you saying that it was not the kingdoms that cursed my mother, but someone from within?”

“The kingdoms are also involved. Austin and Beregon did something very stupid.”

My father’s smile deepened.

“They seemed impatient with your growth and contacted the Pyreon Kingdom. And the Pyreon Kingdom is also one of the places where traces of the curse were found.”

I clicked my tongue.

“It’s as if all the families and kingdoms on the continent conspired to curse my mother.”

“That’s right. That’s the conclusion I came to.”

Before I knew it, my eyes widened. I was just saying that as a metaphor for the frustrating situation, but that’s my father’s conclusion.

“It was the same when I lived as a prince of the Dyer family. Everyone feared me and wanted to kill me at the same time.”

I had nothing to say.

Having power in a warring era is enough to be the object of vigilance and even elimination.

My father was a genius and reached Sword Master [a high rank in swordsmanship] faster than anyone else.

I thought Olivia was faster, but that was before I saw the Empire’s history books.

‘Not only swordsmanship, but also magic and spiritism reached an incredible level at that young age.’

“I wanted to bury my revenge in my heart and just live quietly with Iriel, but the times wouldn’t leave me alone. Maybe it would have been better to just end the revenge and return as a wild man, rather than building an empire.”

I couldn’t help but comfort my father’s words filled with regret.

“It’s no one’s fault.”

“I know. I’m just angry that Iriel couldn’t fulfill her destiny because of me.”

We returned to the story of Beregon and Austin.

“Traces of the curse remain in the Northeastern Kingdom Alliance, the Pyreon Kingdom, and the southern city-states. Beregon and Austin are directly connected to the Pyreon Kingdom, and Yan is directly connected to the Kingdom Alliance.”

Enemies inside and out.

I thought the imperial power was very strong, but after hearing this, it was no different from a scarecrow.

‘Does that mean my father’s overwhelming power is suppressing everything?’

My father asked me.

“You can guess now, can’t you? The reason why Duke Austin and Beregon are still alive.”

“They are also related to my mother’s death in some way, and if someone inside dies, the related people who may be outside might hide.”

“That’s somewhat correct. So, I proceeded with everything in the name of conquest. Unifying the continent into one empire! I will bring peace to the people in the great empire. I will create a world without war. It’s a plausible cause.”

“I feel like you actually think that way to some extent.”

My father chuckled.

We didn’t talk about that anymore.

“I had no expectations for you.”

I lowered my head at the sudden words.

“I showed you an ugly side in the past….”

“If you conquer the Pyreon Kingdom in the Eastern Expedition, capture the king and ask him. In what form is he related to Iriel’s death, and how deeply is he connected to Austin and Beregon.”

The royal families of conquered kingdoms were mostly exterminated.

Some royal families survived, but they all lived under surveillance in the imperial provinces, having forgotten their surnames.

‘Those who are not related to my mother’s death.’

My father concluded.

“Now that the story is roughly over, let’s get up.”

Before I knew it, I asked a question.

“Are you still continuing the war because you are angry?”

“Iriel asked me, holding a dying girl in her arms during the war, ‘When will the tragedy of the continent end?'”

My father asked me instead.

“The tragedy of the continent, where people kill and are killed, originates from the greed of those called royal families and prestigious families. So, I thought the answer was to leave only one imperial family on the continent. What is your answer?”

I couldn’t answer easily.

“Many people worked together to take away the person who was everything to me. The work of organizing them and unfolding what she wanted in my own way overlapped a lot.”

If my father’s words are true, it would be difficult to find royal and prestigious families that are not related to my mother’s death.

Revenge and unification.

“I told Iriel, ‘If I can kill thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands today to protect millions tomorrow, I will cut down hundreds of thousands with my sword.'”

“There may be other ways.”

My father nodded.

“Of course, there can be. I will honor Iriel’s spirit and create the war-free world she wanted in my own way.”

My father added one last thing.

“You create your world in your own way.”

Before I knew it, I interrupted my father. It was no different from a statement that would firmly establish my position as Crown Prince. My world, my way, a declaration to firmly acknowledge me as the Crown Prince.

-Don’t resent your father too much. He is a lonely person. And if many things are allowed to you, please stay by your father’s side.

Those words written in my mother’s spiritism book were no different from a will, and they showed how much my mother loved my father.

“My mother thought of you until her last moment.”