Andrew is not exaggerating when he says that the fate of the world will change if something happens to this woman. This woman is supposed to be the Empress; there is no doubt about that. But she isn"t, because of one foolish mistake she made. "Was it worth it, siding with my father? Sacrificing everything?"If Mother didn"t side with father, then there is no doubt that she would be the Empress by now. Or rather Grandmother and Grandfather raised Mother to become the Empress. Everything Mother has learned since childhood, all the skills and knowledge. It was so she could become the Empress one day. But, in the end, she was met with this tragedy.
She has the skills to be the Empress, the necessary requirements. But the trust and faith of the people?
Orthez laughed, "You"ve been thinking this one through it seems like."Find authorized novels in Webnovel，faster updates, better experience，Please click for visiting.
"I"ve had the pleasure of watching everything from this position."
"That"s true. I ensured you were in a position that is equal to mine."
"And yet, I"m not your heir am I?"
"You want my throne?"
"Hardly," Andrew trailed off. "When father pa.s.sed away, you refused to take breaks when doing paperwork. You hardly slept at all. The servants on rotation and the Knights would claim that the longest they see you away from your desk is ten minutes."
She chuckled, "But then I became sick."
"No, it wasn"t sickness. It was just a sign of overwork. You couldn"t remain in your office for a long time anymore, so you tried to move your work to another place. But realized it was the same."
"The ones who came to my rescue were you and Daichi. I realized that to get better, taking breaks, and eating meals when working allowed me to work peacefully."
Andrew sighed, "In simple terms, you are very troublesome."
"Now, now this troublesome Queen has a question to ask you."
"What is it?"
"My throne, you don"t desire it at all?"
"Why are you asking me this again? Didn"t you say you"d give Lyn your throne?" Andrew didn"t know what his mother was thinking.
Orthez nodded, "Indeed, Lyn is my main choice when it comes to the throne. That girl is exactly like me, the me before I became Queen. Her ideals differ slightly, but the love she has for the town and people are the same. No matter what painful circ.u.mstances she goes through, she always gets back up on her feet. No matter how many times people kick her down, she looks straight ahead with that determined gaze of hers."
"It seems like you"ve made your mind up already. So, why are you..."
"Even if Lyn finds her own King, I was hoping that you"d still help her out."
Andrew sighed, "So, you don"t want anything to change. The same a.s.sistance I provided you..."
Orthez shook her head, "No, there are other things you can do for Lyn."
"... I don"t have the strength to protect Lyn, Mother. I apologize in advance, but you best ask one of those two from the Sound Kingdom. Even that man named Arthur is better suited."
"Because of this incidence?"
"No, I"ve looked back and reflected a great deal. It seems like ever since they came here, I can see my own shortcomings. Those people love Lyn, and that may be why they can do so much for her. But even then, as her brother, I should have been the one to show her the world. Show her that not everybody thinks of her as a cursed individual."
Andrew didn"t realize until recently. How terrible Lyn has felt about herself this entire time. When he confronted Pupillam about it, the girl apologized for not telling him. "The Princess often cries herself to sleep every night." It pained him to hear those words. While he couldn"t explain to her why they were keeping her locked up, he should have made her life in that place as comfortable as possible. But instead, he is the reason why his sister cries at night.
"She often has nightmares about the battlefield."
"She is cautious towards everybody she meets."
All those things are because of him. Just because he can"t accept other people"s kindness doesn"t mean Lyn shouldn"t.
"If you think you"re a terrible brother, then what does that make me?"
"Mother, but you"re the Queen..."
"That"s right. I"m the Queen. Everybody in this Kingdom is my family. I can"t give my own family all my attention. I have to treat everybody equally. But, you know Andrew? There is no mother, no parents out there who don"t love and want to dote on their own children. Ruler or not."
A strong gust of wind blew then; the moonlight seemed to enhance Mother"s features. "I want Lyn to take the throne. I want you to support her. I"d like the same to go for the other two as well. While fighting for the throne isn"t uncommon, I do hope that all of this doesn"t end with somebody"s death. The Empire does not need any more blood to be shed, let alone amongst relatives."
"Are you saying this..." Andrew trailed off and took a deep breath, "...depends on me?"
"Not you specifically. But, your choice will end up affecting your siblings. Andrew, you can"t forgive Zepher after what happened back then."
"Of course, not so many people were killed. So many people were hurt."
Even now, the sight from that day has yet to leave his mind. The entire church covered in blood. The blood of the innocent. Even for somebody like him, who has seen a lot of battles. That sight was disturbing.
"If I told you the truth, and that it was a set up to drive him away from the castle. What would you do?"
At that comment, his eyes widened in alarm. He felt his entire body tremble all over. "Mother, what do you mean by that?"
Orthez sighed deeply, "It"s like what I said. All of this was a setup, so he could leave the castle."
Andrew didn"t reply right away. How could he? What if he supposed to say to this?
"But why? You treated him like your own son!" Andrew could hardly find his voice. He wanted to scream; he wanted to rage. Suddenly all sorts of emotions that be bolted up stumbled out.