I Became the Tyrant of a Defense Game [EN]: Chapter 166

“You really shouldn’t just leave the palace without a word, you know?”Fernandez spoke in a soft, calm tone. “The soldiers on standby, even I, had to mobilize and search the entire Imperial City for you.” Fernandez approached me, reached out, and ruffled my hair without hesitation. This guy seems to be about 5cm taller than me. “You’re such a handful, our youngest.” “……” “Anyway… what’s going on here?” Fernandez examined the cuts and bruises on my body, then narrowed his eyes at Elysee’s sword stuck in the ground. “It looks to me like you two were having a life-or-death duel.” “……” “And that lady over there seems to be the head maid of the Winter Silver Merchant Guild.” Fernandez chuckled, looking at the sword marks all over the wall. “Daring to draw a sword against a member of the Imperial Family? We’ll have to hold the Winter Silver Merchant Guild accountable for this. We should also investigate if they had any intention of treason.” “……” “I was having trouble with the slightly reduced tax revenue this year, but this is good. Winter Silver should be able to fill the national treasury for a while.” Elysee closed her eyes tightly, as if she had given up on everything. My mouth felt dry. What should I say? What excuse can I make to defuse this situation? “……!” Then, something suddenly came to mind. Right, Ash, that bastard is a famous womanizer…! “That’s not it, hyung [older brother].” “Huh?” “Well, it’s a bit embarrassing to say this.” I grinned and casually lied. “This lady and I are dating.” “……?!” Elysee looked at me with a shocked expression. “W-what did you say?” I smiled brightly at Elysee, who was muttering in a daze, and mouthed silently. ‘If you don’t want to cause trouble for Serenade, play along, you idiot!’ ‘……!’ I pulled up Elysee, who was trembling, almost hugging her, and smiled brightly at Fernandez. “Before I went down south, I had some hot nights with this lady, you know? Her fiery personality is totally my type. But now that I’m back, I’ve only been meeting with her master. So, she got a little jealous.” “Oh…” Fernandez chuckled, as if he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “So? You had a passionate fight with your lover after a long time?” “Isn’t it normal for lovers to exchange harsh words and swords during a lovers’ quarrel, and then make up again?” “Geez…” Fernandez looked at the completely ruined building, the bloodied Elysee, and my body covered in cuts, and clicked his tongue. “You’re having a very passionate relationship, youngest. I’m so proud of you.” “Thanks for the compliment. I’m sometimes proud of myself too.” I got annoyed at Fernandez instead. “Ugh, but what are we going to do? We were just about to make up. You showed up and ruined the mood.” I turned to Elysee and smiled. “Right, honey? We were all done making up. Isn’t my brother funny? Huh?” “……” Elysee just stared at me blankly, so I whispered. ‘Smile, quickly!’ If you don’t want to get your head chopped off for attacking a member of the Imperial Family, at least pretend to be lovers! “……” Then, Elysee raised her trembling lips and… gave a grotesque smile. Eek. She’s scary when she smiles. She looks like a complete killer. There was a reason why she always had a blank expression. Anyway, as we were sticking close and grinning, Fernandez chuckled, as if he was dumbfounded. “Even so, little brother, how can you mess with your fiancée’s head maid? Don’t you feel sorry for your fiancée, Lady Serenade?” “I messed with her because she’s my fiancée’s maid. Geez, I guess I have to give my brother a lecture on how to enjoy a thrilling relationship?” “Okay, okay.” Fernandez waved his hand and glared at Elysee with stern eyes. “Hmm. Even so, the crime of drawing a sword against a member of the Imperial Family is serious…” “Oh, please, hyung! Cut her some slack! If you punish a lady for drawing a sword at me, how will the rumors spread among the ladies of the Imperial City?” “How will they spread?” “The rumor will spread that if you mess with me, you’ll end up in jail! That won’t do. Do you know how much it will affect my fun dating life?” I hugged Elysee tightly and grinned. “So, please? Please let it go. I want to continue having fun with our Elysee.” I pressed my cheek against Elysee’s and whispered. ‘Smile.’ ‘……’ Hehe. We were smiling awkwardly, as if we were the most awkward couple in the world. “Hmm…” Fernandez scanned us with a sharp gaze that was hard to read, then let out a soft laugh. “Haha, really. Our youngest, I can’t win against you.” Did it work? Or did he just play along? “Alright, alright. If you say so, it’s ridiculous for me to argue. I’ll turn a blind eye.” Fernandez waved his hand, and the soldiers began to retreat one by one, leaving the alley. As he walked out of the alley with the soldiers, Fernandez muttered softly. “But Ash, it would be better if you didn’t make such a fuss in the future.” “……” “Finish things up with the lady and come. I’ll be waiting in the carriage over there. Let’s go back to the palace together.” Fernandez disappeared out of the alley. As I let out a sigh of relief, Elysee gasped. “Kuh!” Looking to the side, I saw blood spreading from various parts of her maid uniform. It seemed she had been standing forcefully while injured. I took out a potion from my pocket and handed it to Elysee. “Drink this. You’ll feel better.” “……” “And forget about what happened today. Nothing happened between us.” Elysee stared blankly at the potion in her hand, then muttered softly. “Why?” “Huh?” “Your Highness. I am the one who tried to kill you.” “Oh, I know.” Just a few minutes ago, she was swinging her sword to take my head. “But… why are you helping me? I might try to kill you again in the future.” “I know, I know.” I clicked my tongue. “But this is how you’ll trust me in the future.” “What…” “Elysee. No matter what kind of trash I was in the past, the current me doesn’t want to make your master unhappy. I mean it.” Elysee looked at me with wide eyes. I gave her a bitter smile. “I don’t know how I should act to not make her cry, but what’s certain is that if you die, your master will be sad.” “……” “So, what happened today, you trying to kill me, didn’t happen.” It’s not just for Serenade’s sake. The Winter Silver Merchant Guild is important for the city development plan of Crossroads and securing the mana stone distribution line. I can’t let them be destroyed because of this. Besides, Elysee is one of the few SSR-grade swordsmen in the game. I could use her in the game, so there’s a possibility she’ll come under my command later. I have to keep her alive for the future. I helped Elysee sit on the ground. Elysee still looked up at me with a bewildered gaze, holding the potion in her arms. “Then, see you later.” I gave her an awkward smile in response to her gaze and walked forward. Outside the alley, Fernandez’s carriage was waiting for me. “……” Elysee stared blankly at me as I walked away until the very end. *** Inside the carriage returning to the Imperial Palace. “Don’t get involved with the Winter Silver Merchant Guild anymore. Whether it’s your fiancée or her maid. Stop seeing them.” Fernandez suddenly said. “We’re going to break off the engagement in a few days anyway, so it’s not good to keep asking for favors.” “What?” I asked in surprise. “Break off the engagement?” Fernandez looked at me with a puzzled expression. “Why are you surprised? Did you forget already? It was all decided a long time ago.” Fernandez’s carriage was spacious. And it was equipped with all sorts of documents and stationery so that work could be done inside the carriage. Fernandez, leaning back on the velvet seat opposite me, continued to work on documents with a quill pen, saying. “We only used that merchant guild for the national road project.” “……” “Those guys worked hard to pave the roads using their nationwide distribution network. And that’s not all? They took charge of the entire project and covered half of the project costs.” Fernandez laughed out loud. “They were so eager, thinking they would become in-laws with the Imperial Family. Haha! Poor fools.” “……” “No matter how much of a nuisance you are, there’s no way Father would marry you off to a daughter of such a low-born merchant guild… a family that bought their noble title with money.” Fernandez, who had been talking without losing his smile, frowned when he saw me stiffen. “What’s wrong, Ash? You weren’t worried that we would actually marry you off to such a lowly family, were you? You cute little thing.” “No, I…” “Thanks to you selling your name, the roads of the Empire have been neatly maintained throughout the country. The road project is also nearing completion, so there’s no need to maintain the engagement anymore.” “……” “Now that they’ve served their purpose, the Imperial Family will slowly devour the Winter Silver Merchant Guild.” I clenched my fist tightly. So, that’s how it is. The Imperial Family intended to use and discard the Winter Silver Merchant Guild from the beginning. Was this what Serenade sensed… and why she was so anxious? “Those merchants are also funny. Whether they buy a title with money or form a connection with the Imperial Family, their lowly history won’t disappear. They’re willing to give up their liver and gall just to mix a drop of Everblack blood into their family. What’s so great about bloodlines?” The man with the noblest bloodline in this world said that with a sneer. Immediately after, Fernandez made an ‘ah!’ sound and smiled warmly at me. “Sorry, sorry. It might be unpleasant for you to hear that. Your mother was also a commoner, so you wouldn’t want to hear such things.” “……?” “I’ve been told many times to fix this insensitive part of me. Haha, it wasn’t intentional. Sorry.” I blinked blankly. What? Ash’s mother was a commoner? “Enough with the small talk, let’s talk about the future.” Fernandez changed the subject as if nothing had happened. “As you’ve already heard, there will be a victory celebration party in a week. Until then, please stay quiet and don’t cause any trouble.” Fernandez looked at me with warm eyes. “As soon as Larc hyung-nim [older brother] returns from the Western Front, we’ll wake Father from his hibernation. It’ll be the first time in a while that the four of us can have a ‘Guardian Council’ meeting.” “……?” Incomprehensible words came one after another. The Emperor’s hibernation? The Guardian Council? What the heck is this guy talking about? “I know you have a lot of complaints about being in charge of the Southern Front. I also know that the situation of stopping the monsters is overwhelming. That’s why I understand why you were angry this time. But Ash, we, as guardians, have also had a difficult time.” “……” “Please bear with it a little longer for now, and tell Father directly at the meeting. If Father allows it, I’ll also draw more troops from the center and send support to the South.” I couldn’t follow the story, so I kept my mouth shut. Fernandez, understanding that as me being dissatisfied, soothed me with gentle words. “Everything is for the sake of protecting the Empire from the fate of destruction.” “The fate of… destruction?” I frowned. This word… it feels like I’ve heard it somewhere before… “Yes. To rebel against that fate, we will protect the Empire by any means necessary, even if it means sacrificing everything else.” Fernandez reached out and warmly held my hand. A gentle smile formed on his lips. “The four of us swore together that day.” I looked at Fernandez with trembling eyes. The fate of destruction? And rebellion against that fate? Protecting the Empire even if it means sacrificing everything else? What the heck are these things? ‘What… what are the people of this Imperial Family doing…’ In the center of the world, what are they doing?