The Stand-In Empress’S Wedding Night [EN]: Chapter 79

79. Should I Not Have Intervened?

October 06, 2021

“This performance seems inappropriate for a banquet.”

He spoke to Emperor Adrian in a calm voice.

“As I mentioned before, in our Tevelo Empire, this is a performance and a competition held at every banquet.”

“Emperor Adrian, I don’t intend to criticize. However, I’m curious about your intentions in showcasing the empresses’ martial arts competition here in the Lapion Empire.”

Linelle, noticing my frown, patted my hand as if to calm me down and asked Emperor Adrian.

“We’ve been holding the empresses’ martial arts competition around this time for the past few years. Coincidentally, the Continental Hunting Competition is being held again this year, so the timing overlapped. There’s no special meaning behind it. I just thought it would be a great honor to show the performances of my lovely empresses in a place where all nations are gathered….”

Emperor Adrian gestured elegantly towards the dignitaries gathered in the banquet hall as he replied. Only the dignitaries from the Northern Continent looked embarrassed, while those in the Southern Continent’s seats applauded Emperor Adrian. I glared at Emperor Adrian, and then a question arose. Why can’t I hear that Silverfish’s thoughts today? When he kept making eye contact with me, I’m sure he was talking to me in his mind. It was strange. Perhaps there’s a separate way for him to convey his thoughts to me? Like using a different language or something….

“What benefits does the winner receive?”

At that moment, Empress Katria of the Deloy Empire raised her hand and asked Emperor Adrian, and Silverfish immediately replied.

“It’s me.”

“Well, that’s quite a tempting benefit for the empresses.”

Empress Katria nodded, but her expression was clearly mocking.

“It’s worth risking one’s life for. The benefit for the empress who wins the martial arts competition is to have me for a certain period.”

“Ugh.”

I couldn’t help but gag at Silverfish’s boastful tone.

“Empress, what’s wrong? Are you alright?”

Linelle leaned towards me and whispered with a worried look.

“I’m fine. I think I put too much butter on my bread earlier, so I feel a bit nauseous.”

I gave a wry smile and quickly took a sip of champagne. Then, I stared at Emperor Adrian, who was continuing his glib remarks with a nonchalant face.

“They will be paired up to compete, and then the winning empresses will compete again in the final round.”

He explained the rules of the martial arts competition as if boasting. New empresses who had not been in the Wonyi Palace [Emperor’s harem] for long participated in the martial arts competition held that year to gain the Emperor’s favor, and existing empresses participated because their relationship with the Emperor had become strained or because they wanted to receive attention. However, because it was a competition where they could suffer serious injuries or even lose their lives, the number of empresses who volunteered for the martial arts competition in a year was not as high as one might think. The conclusion was that whether the number of empresses participating in the martial arts competition was large or small, it was still nonsense that ended with bloodshed.

“Then, may we begin now?”

Emperor Adrian asked Linelle politely, glancing at me.

“Please do.”

As soon as his permission was granted, Emperor Adrian raised his wine glass again towards the two empresses and raised his voice. From Linelle’s point of view, he couldn’t turn down a performance that was prepared by a guest, moreover, the emperor of the Southern Continent Empire. As this was a gathering for the harmony of the continent after the war, rejecting Emperor Adrian’s proposal was a delicate matter.

“My beautiful empresses! Today, you have been given the opportunity to show your love for me to the dignitaries gathered at the Lapion Empire’s Imperial Palace. The empress who wins in this place will be granted a night with me throughout the Hunting Competition!”

I could see the empresses’ eyes sparkling with anticipation at Silverfish’s words. It was a situation I couldn’t understand at all. Empress Celina and Empress Elan, who would be competing first, stood facing each other.

“My lovely woman of the Tevelo Empire, spill the blood of the loser and come to me!”

I wanted to pour wine on Emperor Adrian’s face right away. As Emperor Adrian took a sip of wine, the martial arts competition, which he claimed was a ‘performance,’ began.

Empress Celina, the elder, held twin swords in both hands and made a chilling sound as if sharpening the blades, while Empress Elan, the younger one, spun a long spear with a sharp blade like a windmill. The two empresses slowly retreated as if they had made a promise, creating distance. They were making space to charge at each other. Empress Elan charged at Empress Celina with a terrifying momentum. Empress Celina skillfully parried Empress Elan’s youthful spirit and looked for an opening. She stretched out her sword, but this time Empress Elan quickly turned her torso to the side to dodge it. The two of them explored each other, repeatedly threatening each other by holding their weapons to each other’s faces several times. The two of them had similar martial arts skills, but Empress Celina’s experience seemed to be slightly ahead of Empress Elan’s spirit. I didn’t care who won, but I hoped they would end it without causing too much harm to each other. According to Emperor Adrian, even if you inflict a wound on your opponent first, the game continues unless the opponent kneels. Clang-! The empresses began to struggle, holding their weapons against each other. Empress Celina was definitely pushed back in terms of strength. However, she would have developed the ability to cope with crises that she had built up while fighting against numerous empresses during her long years in Wonyi Palace.

“Ah!”

As expected, my prediction was correct. Empress Celina took advantage of the force pushing her back against Empress Elan. She lowered her body and pretended to fall, aiming for Empress Elan’s lower body to disrupt her balance.

“Ooh!”

“That’s right!”

“Oh my, goodness!”

The cheers and screams of dignitaries from various countries mixed together and echoed throughout the banquet hall. This was because Empress Celena, who succeeded in knocking down Empress Elan, slashed Empress Elan’s right face with her sword. Red blood oozed from Empress Elan’s face, and blood dripped onto the beige marble floor in an instant. At first glance, it looked like red roses were blooming here and there. I swallowed hard, clutching the armrest of the chair tightly with my hand. I wanted to jump between the empresses and stop this reckless game right away. But it seemed that I was the only one who thought this game was disgusting. Even the dignitaries from the Northern Continent, who had been embarrassed at first, were now immersed in the game and began to enjoy it. In particular, Prince Tesler and Princess Resilia of the Shattonil Kingdom looked as excited as the dignitaries of the Southern Continent. The two siblings were enjoying the empresses’ confrontation more than anyone else. Empress Elan’s expression, which had been so confident, wavered greatly. Her cheek seemed to have been cut deeper than expected. The wound would heal over time, but the scar would be permanent. The blood would gradually stop, but the tears shed because of the scar would not stop easily. I unconsciously put my hand on the burn scar on my right face and looked at Empress Elan. I felt sorry for her because I knew too well how she would feel every time she looked at her face in the mirror. If Empress Celina wins this competition, she will take Emperor Adrian’s side during the Continental Hunting Competition. But that was not a permanent benefit, but a temporary one. In comparison, the wounds they would suffer would remain forever. As Empress Elan staggered and stood up again with a flustered face, Empress Celina took advantage of the momentum and kicked her stomach hard with her foot. Empress Elan’s shoe print was imprinted on Empress Elan’s stomach, which had been covered with see-through fabric, and she fell back again. Oh, no! Empress Celina climbed onto Empress Elan’s body, which had fallen, and raised her twin swords high. I quickly looked around at the people gathered in the banquet hall. Everyone was focused on the two empresses. Linelle also had a wine glass in her hand and couldn’t take her eyes off them. Now is the time. I deliberately pretended to stretch out my hand and knocked Linelle’s hand, causing him to spill the wine glass.

“Oh my! I’m sorry, Your Majesty.”

“It’s okay.”

As he turned his head to the side, Chief Steward Stian quickly approached and wiped the wine spilled on his hand with a napkin. After diverting Linelle’s attention for a moment, I picked up a knife on the table and threw it towards Empress Celina’s arm. Linelle didn’t see me, but someone else might have witnessed it. If so, what would happen afterwards, well… I didn’t have time to think that far. If I didn’t step in, Empress Elan seemed like she would suffer an irreversible wound. But, in this short moment, an amazing thing happened. At the same time as I threw the knife, the large chandelier hanging from the center of the banquet hall ceiling went out with a click. The bright banquet hall became dim. Who is it? It can’t be a coincidence… I had someone in mind. I looked up at Commander Marcrom, who was standing to my left.

“Didn’t you say it was an easy job? I can’t believe you’re making me do such a difficult cleanup on my first day of work.”

Commander Marcrom whispered to me as he sat down, pretending to tie his shoelaces.

“Th, thank you.”

What would have happened if Commander Marcrom hadn’t become my escort today! I felt dizzy belatedly after committing the act.

“Aaaagh!”

Then, a sharp scream rang out from the darkness. Did the knife I threw hit Empress Celina’s hand too hard? No, even so, it wouldn’t have caused a major injury from that distance, would it? Besides, there was a time difference between the timing of when I threw the knife and the scream. The banquet hall, which suddenly went dark, and the terrible screams that followed. With the addition of the dignitaries’ panicking sounds, the banquet hall quickly turned into chaos.

“Zelda, are you okay?”

Linelle asked, holding my hand.

“I’m fine. I’m sorry for bothering you because I spilled the wine. Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Not at all. Don’t worry about it.”

About a minute passed, and the small chandeliers lined up on both sides of the banquet hall lit up one by one. And then came the dignitaries’ screams.

“Kyaaaaaa!”

“Oh my, goodness! What happened while the lights were off?”

“Is the competition o, over like this?”

The dignitaries all stood up from their seats and looked at the center of the banquet hall, uttering one word at a time. They couldn’t believe the situation unfolding before their eyes.

“I won. Your Majesty!”

Empress Elan shouted, wiping her blood-soaked face with her sleeves, looking back and forth at Emperor Adrian, Linelle, and me. And Empress Elan said something to me with her mouth. Thanks, to, you. I could read her lips. She seemed to think that I had helped her in the moment of crisis. I threw a knife at Empress Celina’s arm to buy time, and when Commander Marcrom turned off the chandelier lights, Empress Elan did not miss the opportunity to turn the crisis into an opportunity. I lowered my gaze to Empress Celina, who had fallen to the floor. She was already dead. I jumped up from my chair without realizing it. And I quickly scanned the marble in the center of the banquet hall with my eyes. It’s gone… I couldn’t see the knife I threw. It must be lying around Empress Celina, but no matter how much I looked around, the knife was not there. I narrowed my eyes and continued to look around, and then I saw Empress Elan’s hand going over her pants pocket. The end of the silver knife’s handle was slightly protruding from her pants pocket. Did she hide the knife in her pocket because she was worried that I might get into trouble? Or, to hide the fact that she received help? My head ached at this unbelievable situation that happened in an instant. In a flash, one person lived and one person died because of me. Even if it wasn’t me, one of them would have died. No, wouldn’t they have been injured but not died? My heart was in turmoil due to the unexpected situation. My heart started beating erratically. I stood there with a blank expression, looking at the two empresses whose joy and sorrow were mixed.

“Empress, sit down.”

Then Linelle’s voice, which had become somehow cold, pulled me back to the chair. After sitting down, I carefully looked at his profile. Linelle was staring straight ahead with a blank face. He was quietly watching the dead Empress Celina being taken out of the banquet hall by the Tevelo Imperial Palace servants.

“Your Majesty….”

As I carefully called him, he cut me off.

“Later.”

“……Yes?”

“You have something to say to me, don’t you.”

“Ah, that’s….”

“Let’s talk about it tonight.”

At his firm voice, I just nodded.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

I couldn’t say anything more to him and turned my head to stare at the center of the banquet hall. The servants of the Tevelo Empire were quickly wiping away their blood and sweat that had fallen on the marble floor. In the blink of an eye, the fierce traces of the empresses on the marble floor disappeared completely. Whether the brains of the dignitaries from various countries were also completely emptied, the expressions of shock that they had a little while ago disappeared, and they picked up their wine glasses again, clinking them against each other and waiting for the next match. I was curious about Emperor Adrian’s expression, so I looked at him. He was just making an expression that one of the many empresses had disappeared before his eyes, nothing more and nothing less. Emperor Adrian smiled and got up from his chair.

“May we proceed with the next match?”

All the dignitaries applauded in response. Linelle raised one hand and frowned slightly, and the applause stopped.

“One of your empresses has died. Not injured, but lost her life. Let the remaining empresses’ blood be shed in the Tevelo Imperial Palace. I think the other dignitaries have seen well enough how brave the women of Tevelo are.”

Linelle looked at the dignitaries sitting at both tables once and said to Emperor Adrian. The dignitaries from the Northern Continent nodded in agreement with his words, but the dignitaries from the Southern Continent had a somewhat disappointed expression. But it was the decision of the Lapion Empire’s Emperor, so they reluctantly followed his words.

“However, we must see the game to the end….”

Only Emperor Adrian insisted on continuing the competition. I looked at Emperor Adrian with a contemptuous gaze. Then, he winked at me secretly, taking advantage of the gap when Linelle’s gaze was directed elsewhere.

‘Ha, I should have thrown the knife at Silverfish’s face!’

As I picked up another knife on the table, Linelle grabbed my hand.