“Did Duke Pheleon not know that he had twin daughters? If someone hid Empress Your Majesty as soon as she was born, or… no, if so, there must have been no awareness of a threatening existence. What in the world happened?”

Certainly, it was an inexplicable story.

“Let’s leave the thoughts there for now.”

Lyselia frowned slightly.

“At this point, we can only hope that Duke Pheleon wakes up and says something.
“……? What’s this again?”

Esellion reached into his robe and pulled out something.

It was an envelope with the seal of the Pheleon family.

“This is a promissory note sent by the Pheleon family to the temple over the years. A substantial sponsorship has been sent annually in the name of the Pheleon family.”

It was common for noble families to send sponsorships to temples.

The problem was not the sponsorship itself but the fact that they were sending it to the distant and faraway Delarta, not the temple within Eliaaden.

There must have been a reason for it.

“The reason I visited the Pheleon family today is related to this. The Delarta’s High Priest wanted to convey the fact that the temple in Delarta supports my reinstatement as the rightful heir to the throne, opposing King Verhoet’s tyranny. After that, I planned to request the support of the Pheleon family.”

A faction had emerged opposing King Ricardo, who had seized power through rebellion, hoping for Prince Esellion’s restoration. In Delarta, sporadic civil wars were already underway.

The most crucial thing in waging war was money. Esellion was desperate, and that’s why he didn’t hesitate to come all the way to Eliaaden.

“In a family that sends such generous sponsorships, there must have been a reason for hiding the child they were looking for and not talking about it.”

There couldn’t have been such a reason.

Serben muttered with a stern face.

“It might be the opposite. They sent money to keep the child hidden and to keep them quiet.”

“Maybe. However, if Duke Pheleon didn’t know about it, it would mean it was the deed of someone else. Someone who could impersonate the Duke. The Duchess.”

Lyselia quietly exhaled.

The fragments of words spoken by the demented Duke were now falling into place.

“The Duchess.”

“Duchess Pheleon, are you saying? It’s been twenty years since the Duchess passed away.”

“If there was a substitute?”

“Ah, it’s possible. Since the sponsorship was sent every year, there must have been someone the Duke trusted enough to entrust the task even after death.”

Lyselia added.

“It might be related to the child’s nurse.”

“Nurse… Do you have any guesses about what that might be?”

“It seems like the nurse was there. In that room. She was there for a while when the child was young, and afterward, I couldn’t see her anymore.”

Her expression soured for a moment.

“Lyselia.”

Esellion’s hand descended onto Lyselia’s hand, which was resting on her knee.

Esellion, who had risen from his seat and kneeled next to Lyselia without her noticing, placed his forehead on their clasped hands.

“No, does it have to be like this…?”

Serben, behind Esellion, made an awkward gesture, as if trying to stop him. However, he couldn’t reach out. The Queen wouldn’t stop, and the Royal Guard couldn’t intervene without her permission.

Serben’s whispered words didn’t reach Esellion’s ears.

With a deeply pained expression, he muttered these words.
“Please tell me what I should do. If you want to punish the High Priest, I will do so. The High Priest is already dead, but if I become king, I will forever erase his name from the temple.”

“It’s an old matter. Moreover, if you are looking for someone to blame, it’s more appropriate to blame Duke Pheleon than the High Priest.”

“I… I don’t know what to do. Knowing that you’ve endured unjust and painful times fills me with an insurmountable rage.”

Serben, who had been holding back the words “Why are you like this?” opened his eyes forcefully.

“Beep!”

Whoosh!

A crimson flame burst beyond the window of the study.

“……Pipi?”

Lyselia, who had heard Pipi’s voice, turned her head. Astonishingly, the crimson flame melted an entire window. Through the shattered window, Pipi fluttered inside.

“Beep!”

Pipi sharply pecked Esellion’s palm.

“Pipi! What are you doing? That’s not okay.”

Lyselia hurriedly grabbed Pipi.

“Beep! Beep!”

Pipi, within Lyselia’s grasp, flapped its wings and made a loud noise.

It was a demand not to stop, as it was extremely angry right now.

Half of it was swearing at Esellion, not even knowing who he was. It was berating him for daring to put such a heavy burden on its small head.

“What is that bird…?”

Rather than being surprised, Esellion, looking confused, raised his head.

Serben, feeling a sense of relief for some reason, answered.

“It’s a Phoenix. Prince, you may not know about the Empire’s beginning, but the Phoenix is also a symbol of companionship.”

“A real Phoenix…?”

Esellion had a deeply troubled expression.

As Serben said, the Phoenix was proof that Lyselia was the Empress. Esellion had now seen with his own eyes that Delarta’s Prophet had become the Empress of the Empire.

As if to prove that, Rascal came next.

Bang!

The study door opened loudly, and the Duke’s butler, who looked pale, announced Rascal’s arrival.

“Yo, Your Impe, Imperial Majes, ty has co, come.”

The butler’s trembling words seemed belated.

Rascal had already entered the study and was prying into the space between Lyselia and Esellion.

Lyselia asked with a slightly surprised expression. Not that she didn’t think so, but she didn’t expect to see Rascal now.

“Why did you come by?”

Ignoring Esellion completely, Rascal grabbed Lyselia’s hand.

“I missed you.”

With a movement stickier than usual, Rascal pressed his lips to the back of her hand.

“I couldn’t stand it anymore.”