Erdene’s gaze became even more hostile.

Just as unspeakable profanities were about to pour from her mouth, Rolls gave up his futile resistance.

“He, here, here it is.”

Erdene snatched the paper that he held out while bending his waist at a right angle, and immediately read what was written on it.

Silence followed, and while deep wrinkles repeatedly appeared and disappeared between Erdene’s brows, Rolls’s face alternated between turning bluish and pale white.

“Huh.”

Finally, a snicker escaped Erdene’s lips.

Erdene, who turned to look at Rolls with piercing eyes, flicked her finger and tossed the paper away.

Then, before the feebly falling paper could even touch the ground, she stomped on it as if crushing it.

“You must have been quite bored being locked up all night. Your skill at making up stories is quite impressive. You’ve thoroughly investigated Betor’s situation too. I don’t know who whispered it to you though.”

What Rolls had been scribbling frantically was, as she had expected, a brief record and report on Betor’s current situation.

It probably would have ended up in Tenek’s hands, but now it was nothing more than a piece of trash.

Erdene said,

“A rat came instead of an envoy.”

At this, Rolls, who had been completely cowed, flared up with indignation.

“Yo, Your Highness the Princess, even though you’re also a person of the Empire, how da-ack!”

Rolls didn’t understand what had happened to him for a moment.

He just felt a white flash before his eyes, and then felt an excruciating pain in his lower back.

It was only later that he realized he had hit his lower back on the corner of the ebony desk, which was as hard as iron.

Before he could even comprehend this, he realized he couldn’t breathe, and it felt like his eyeballs were about to bulge and burst.

“Kuk, kuerk…”

“If you don’t want to die right here, just answer the questions I ask. Don’t run your mouth. Understood?”

“Kkek…”

“If you understand, blink your eyes.”

Rolls’s eyes blinked quickly three times.

Barely a few dozen seconds had passed, but Erdene, who had been glaring intently at his face which had already started turning dark, released her hand.

“…Kheok! Uk! Kulluk! Kek, kek!”

“Just try vomiting here.”

Rolls didn’t particularly want to test what would happen if he did. It was fortunate that he hadn’t eaten much.

His limbs were trembling, and his eyes still felt like they were about to burst out. His waist was throbbing and aching, making it difficult to raise his upper body.

Erdene, who had been looking down with contemptuous eyes at Rolls writhing and crawling on the floor, said,

“If I ever hear you utter ‘Your Highness the Princess’ from that mouth again, I’ll make you sing with hot coals in your mouth.”

“Keheok, I, I’ll… I’ll keep that in mind.”

“And I’ll say it again, only answer the questions I ask. If you try to babble unnecessary words, I assure you, it won’t end well for you. You’ve instantly fouled my mood. Do you understand?”

“Ye, yes. Of course, Pri- I mean… Yo, Your Majesty the Queen.”

Erdene being in a bad mood was like a massive natural disaster—a flood, earthquake, or volcanic eruption—that was about to erupt right in front of them, with no way to prevent it.

When signs of a disaster appear, the best course of action for humans is to either prostrate themselves and pray to the gods or to flee. Rolls only had one of these two options.

“You spent your years serving as an attendant in the Empire’s Golden Palace. Though you didn’t seem to be particularly trusted.”

Rolls kept his head bowed and rolled his eyes without answering.

He couldn’t quickly decide whether he should affirm or deny it.

However, Erdene wasn’t looking for his answer.

Bending her knees as if to peer more closely at Rolls’s face, she said,

“Tell me briefly and accurately what the situation was like in the Imperial Palace when Father passed away.”

Rolls suddenly raised his head, his complexion drained of blood, but he looked bewildered.

Erdene knew he wasn’t the type to act in a life-or-death situation where he had to put his life on the line.

There wouldn’t be any substantial information even if she pressed him…

‘But except for those three, he’s the only one who might know any information right now.’

Erdene thought.

“Has your tongue been glued? Or can’t you remember? If you can’t remember, shall I massage your head until you do?”

“Ah, n-no! Th-that, I, I was, as Your Majesty the Queen said, I wasn’t in a position to serve His Impe- I mean, His Late Majesty the Emperor, so…”

Pak! There was a sound.

It was the sound of Erdene’s palm striking the back of Rolls’s head.

While it was a daily occurrence for her subordinate officers like Telma, for Rolls it was such a tremendous shock that his eyes, which had just settled back in, nearly popped out again.

He dry heaved a couple of times without having eaten anything, and trembled while pressing his forehead to the ground.

Erdene glared at him with irritated eyes.

“Speak accurately. Don’t stutter.”

“Hik, sa-save… save me! I really, really don’t know anything. His, His Late Majesty suddenly had indigestion one day, and though he got better after that, I only heard that he somehow couldn’t regain his strength. And it wasn’t even a full month before he became bedridden!”

Indigestion, bedridden. Erdene felt as if someone was hammering those two words into her ears like nails.

If not that, it felt like her head was being struck repeatedly with a solid chisel, as if carving wood or breaking stone.

‘Father had a healthy constitution.’

When she heard Rolls’s words, that was the only thought that came to Erdene’s mind.

Her father, the late Emperor of the Empire, had been so robust that he hadn’t even caught a cold once until he was over fifty.

Although war and overwhelming work had followed him throughout his life, he was so sturdy that he had never even suffered from a headache.

“Becoming bedridden due to indigestion, does that make any sense? If you don’t answer truthfully, I’ll bury you right here!”

As Erdene’s voice sharply rose, Rolls, terrified, shook his head like a madman.

“It’s true! That’s really all I know! I, I don’t know anything else. Your Majesty the Queen, please spare my life! I beg you!”

Tears fell in round droplets onto the carpet, leaving stains.

Seeing Rolls, a man of some age, pleading with tears made Erdene feel even more desperate.

He wasn’t bold enough to lie or distort the truth even in this situation.

‘Indigestion… He lost his strength due to indigestion and rapidly weakened, becoming bedridden. And not long after, he passed away. Does this make any sense?’

She hadn’t been able to find out the details about her father’s death. The short letter from the battlefield returned much later with an even shorter reply.

It said that the Emperor, now the late Emperor, her father, had passed away due to a sudden illness, and to prevent chaos in the Empire, Tenek had decided to succeed the empty throne.

‘Sending me here in a hurry was all part of the plan too, I suppose.’

Erdene’s fist clenched the loose sleeve of her garment.

The fabric, not of particularly good quality, quickly crumpled and then tore with a ripping sound.

“Stand up.”

At her command, Rolls stood up abruptly as if possessed.

Then his back, which had been struck against the corner, started to hurt terribly, but he couldn’t even let out a groan.

Erdene said,

“Sit down. And take out a new paper and write down exactly what I say.”

Rolls immediately prepared as she ordered. He gripped his trembling wrist tightly after dipping the pen nib in fresh ink.

“Write without missing a single letter. Write, ‘Betor is prosperous, and Erdene has become a queen in name only, with no duties or authority.'”

Only the sound of the pen nib scratching the paper was heard, eerily loud.

As Rolls looked back, Erdene continued,

“The king of Betor is wise and capable, but shows no interest in Erdene.”

Again, only the sound of writing continued. The pen nib that had been moving with a scratching sound gradually slowed down, and Rolls turned to look at Erdene with an anxious expression.

“Yo… Your Majesty the Queen. Why are you having me write such content…”

“Shut up and write.”

Erdene’s voice was filled with murderous intent as if she had just emerged from hell.

Rolls didn’t ask any more questions and wrote down what she dictated like a puppet.

“Even if we push our demands inland, it seems we won’t be able to gain much using Erdene as leverage.”

The writing was finished. Erdene quickly scanned what Rolls had written and said,

“Deliver this exactly as it is to my brother.”

“Y-yes, I understand.”

Rolls took out an envelope he had prepared in advance, folded the paper and put it inside, and then, as if to show her, sealed the envelope with wax.

However, the anger did not disappear from Erdene’s face.

“Remember this. While you’re making your report, my former subordinates will be watching you from all directions. If you utter even a slightly careless word, I’ll make you beg for death instead.”

“I under… I understand. Your Majesty the Queen, I’ll do as you command. Please spare my life!”

Erdene moved her leg swiftly as if even the touch of his hand on her garment was distasteful.

Then, as if some thought had occurred to her, she spoke these words to Rolls’s back as he lay flat on the floor,

“Do you think I would easily let go of what has fallen into my grasp? Not at all. I could return to the Empire at any time. I could claim the throne that should have rightfully been mine. So don’t even think about disobeying my words from the start. If I hear even the slightest hint that you’ve taken my advice lightly, I will never let it slide. I’ll strip the flesh from your skull and make a footrest out of it.”

Rolls’s eyes grew wide with fear.

“So, conduct yourself accordingly. Understood?”