Chapter 4: The Strong Princess Returns
"Emilia… is she truly the child spoken of in the rumors?"
Crown Prince Caesar stood frozen, his eyes locked upon the beautiful, self-assured girl standing before the emperor. He recalled the whispers he had often overheard when first returning to the capital: that before him, the first heir to the throne had once been a princess, younger than he by several years.
Empress Sophia had, on occasion, mentioned that name to Caesar as well.
The existence of that princess was like a tear—an indelible scar—between the relationship of Empress Sophia and the emperor.
Though Sophia never revealed her feelings openly, it was clear she could never harbor affection for Emilia.
"What is her aim, appearing here today?"
Caesar's gaze fixed intently upon Emilia, deep in thought. The distance was too great to discern her features clearly; all he could see was a slender silhouette at the center of the hall.
And yet, the impression left by this sister he had never once met was sharp and unforgettable.
At Caesar's side, Grand Duke Lukas showed little interest. From such a distance, even he could not make out the princess's countenance, only the shape of her back—hardly enough to rouse his curiosity.
As for her purpose in returning to the royal palace this day, Lukas could already guess with near certainty.
Nothing more than to apply pressure upon the emperor before the eyes of the highest nobility gathered here, and thereby reclaim the station of a true-born princess.
Though Emilia had once been cast out from the palace, she was still of House Velarent. She possessed the right to vie for the throne alongside her siblings.
In the kingdom of Velarent, unless one renounced the succession by their own declaration, not even the emperor himself could strip a legitimate-born royal of their claim.
As a child, Emilia could not understand this nor defend her rights. But now, perhaps more than anyone, she understood the law in its entirety.
Unless Emilia were dead, no one could take from her the title of princess.
"It has been thirteen years since I last laid eyes upon Your Majesty," Emilia said softly, performing the courtly bow with graceful precision. Her voice was as gentle as a princess's should be, her manners flawless.
And yet her words cut keen and sharp.
"Today marks the coming-of-age of my younger sister Milim. Though I, her elder sister, bring no gift prepared for her, this day is also my own eighteenth birthday. I beg Your Majesty and Her Highness the Empress forgive my lack of courtesy."
Two princesses—born upon the very same day.
The nobles gasped, exchanging startled looks, their whispers swelling like a rising tide.
None had remembered Emilia's true date of birth. Who could have foreseen that both princesses shared it?
"Good heavens… does this not mean that His Majesty and Lady Sophia were already… entwined, even while Empress Liliane still lived within the palace?"
"An affair! At that time, did not Lady Sophia proclaim she would never be content as the emperor's second wife?"
"No wonder, then—no matter how many years have passed since Empress Liliane's death, Lady Sophia has never been fully accepted by House Velarent!"
The murmurings, though whispered, pierced easily into the ears of both Empress Sophia and Emperor Arthur.
The emperor's face hardened gravely, while Sophia's own expression remained unreadable—save for her hands, clenched tight against the folds of her gown.
The birth of Caesar had been veiled by Sophia as the unlooked-for result of a youthful, passionate love between herself and Arthur—a union that occurred before he had formally wedded Liliane. The boy had been hidden away, her secret blade waiting for the day it might be turned against the heart of her rival.
But Milim's birth—now revealed to share the very same day as another princess—could only point to one truth: that Sophia and Arthur had carried on their affair even while Empress Liliane still lived.
"Princess Emilia… I recall that you were forbidden to return to the royal palace. Your presence here today is without my leave!" Emperor Arthur's voice thundered through the hall.
Emilia's lips curved faintly, her manner entirely unrepentant—indeed, brazen in its composure.
"And why should I not be permitted to return to the royal palace!?"
She raised her hand. From her pale, slender fingers burst a surge of dark magic, twisting the very air around her.
The space warped and writhed. Nobles recoiled in terror, retreating, while royal knights rushed forth to shield the emperor and empress.
"Because I was born wielding the power of darkness rather than the power of light—does that mean Emilia D. Velarent was denied the right to dwell within the palace, cast aside from the station that was rightfully mine!?"
"Such power…! Her magic is no weaker than that of seasoned magisters!"
"Though she wields not the Light, Princess Emilia is a sorceress of rare strength. She deserves recognition as a true princess of the realm."
Even Emperor Arthur could not conceal his shock.
"Emilia, you… you have become…"
Emilia smiled—calm, radiant, and wholly certain of herself.
"A fifth-rank sorceress of the Dark Arts."
A fifth-rank sorceress—at only eighteen years of age!?
Empress Sophia's eyes widened in disbelief, fixed upon the black-haired, black-eyed princess before her.
A princess of unprecedented magical talent, whose bloodline and lineage could never be denied.
Emilia D. Velarent—she would become the greatest threat to the future throne of Caesar, Sophia's son.