“Simon, there won’t be a next time.”
Alexia reversed the sword and held it upright in front of Simon.
Simon released the Witch’s corpse from his grasp, retrieved his longsword from her hand, and sheathed it once more.
“It was Her Majesty the Empress who ordered me to find the person. This method was a bit risky…”
“I meant, you should have told me first, instead of letting me sit on that throne, knowing nothing at all.”
Alexia reached out and gently brushed Simon’s shoulder.
“I can accept this kind of method and am willing to take such risks, but I can’t accept you not telling me anything.”
Her voice grew softer.
“To ascend the throne behind me, I lost almost all my family, and everything I once had, becoming someone even I no longer recognize. There is no one trustworthy left by my side. Don’t make me truly alone…”
The slight tremble in her words seemed to betray her fear.
Simon’s pupils flickered, unable to believe Alexia would say this to him.
He lowered his head slowly.
“I’m sorry, Your Majesty…”
“In private, you can call me by my name. ‘Your Majesty’ is too distant.”
Alexia interrupted.
Simon was taken aback, then quickly corrected himself.
“This was indeed my oversight, Alexia. I promise you, there won’t be a next time.”
“Really? There won’t be a next time?”
Alexia exhaled lightly.
She bent down, pinched Simon’s chin, lifted his head, and then, as if in revenge, bit down.
The taste of blood mingled in their mouths.
“Your Majesty…oh!”
A woman’s voice suddenly came from outside the door.
“Shh~”
Gerald pressed down on the veiled woman beside him.
“Her Majesty is busy.”
The woman looking inside through the broken door grew increasingly red-faced, never expecting to witness such a scene upon coming up.
A moment later, Alexia finally released her bite, rolled the blood from her lips into her mouth, and swallowed.
She walked nonchalantly towards the two outside the door.
“Nine September Nine, the magic tool you made didn’t work at all.”
As she spoke, she pulled a pocket watch from her chest and tossed it toward the woman.
“What? What do you mean it didn’t work?”
Nine September Nine, who had been named, froze, catching the pocket watch with a bewildered look.
“Huh? Hm! Wait! Your Majesty… if it didn’t work, then how did you survive?”
Realizing this, Nine September Nine stared at Alexia in disbelief.
“Your Majesty, you… you mean…”
Oh! My god! Did you just… force it through?!
Even with the Magic-Prohibiting Barrier still active in the Imperial City, that’s impossible!
Is Her Majesty’s Spiritual Power really that monstrous?
“Mm?”
Alexia waved her hand, indicating she didn’t wish to continue the topic.
“Your Majesty, all the cultists within the Imperial Capital have been completely eradicated.”
Gerald reported to Alexia.
“Let Simon verify. I’m tired now. Whatever issues remain, the three of you handle them yourselves.”
“I will escort Her Majesty back.”
Simon licked his bitten lips.
Alexia’s temper, once flared, was truly overwhelming.
Normally, she would never get hurt, but this time, it was real blood.
After Simon returned Alexia to the Palace, he went back to the Cathedral.
Simon spoke to Gerald.
“I hope you remember what we discussed earlier. Since you know so much about the conditions of the lower people, you should understand Alexia isn’t truly acting recklessly.”
“Though her actions are indeed a bit too radical…”
Simon sighed.
“Forget it, her methods are certainly extraordinary.”
Even he found it hard to justify Alexia’s actions, but he didn’t think that was enough for everyone to condemn her.
“But I really don’t understand why everyone thinks she’s a tyrant, a villain.”
Throughout the entire Empire, it seemed that aside from himself, even Gerald, the Imperial Capital’s Archbishop, felt the same.
It’s not right. It’s unreasonable.
Even after explaining so much to Gerald, Gerald still told him he believed Alexia deserved to die.
It’s as if the feeling was implanted into their instincts, impossible to erase no matter how much you explained or what facts you presented.
Gerald naturally understood Simon’s intent, wanting him to investigate why this was the case.
He immediately nodded.
“Does this count as a meritorious service from following the dragon?”
“Then you’ll have to ask Her Majesty about that.”
“…Forget it, let’s just pretend nothing happened.”
Gerald had no desire to deal with Alexia.
“Uh…Simon, there’s nothing wrong with this magic tool! What does Her Majesty mean?”
All the while, Nine September Nine had been fiddling with the pocket watch, unable to find any problem with the magic tool, and finally approached in curiosity.
She wore a loose and ill-fitting black robe, her hands hidden beneath wide sleeves, and the layered hem at her feet looked as though she might trip at any moment.
Her face was veiled in black, revealing only a pair of eyes with deep, heavy circles beneath them.
Aside from her smooth black hair, her entire appearance could only be described as unkempt.
Nine September Nine, Alexia’s direct Court Mage.
During Alexia’s reign as Empress, she was responsible for all magic tool development within the Empire.
However, her existence remained a secret to the entire Empire.
Because she held another identity: Witch.
In the game, she played the role of the Secret Black Merchant within the Imperial Capital.
As for her true Witch name, even Simon did not know.
All information about her was hidden in the fragments of goods scattered across the store shelves.
Yet, with only those scattered clues, it was impossible to piece together a complete image of Nine September Nine.
Simon took the magic tool from her hand and examined it.
“You set a Threshold, didn’t you?”
“Ah! Yes!”
Nine September Nine nodded.
“Of course there has to be a Threshold, or else this magic tool would explode!”
“Then did you ever consider what would happen if the magic exerted by the user exceeded the Threshold?”
Hearing this, Nine September Nine immediately realized.
“It would…do nothing…”
The Threshold would automatically trigger the Insurance Mechanism, causing the magic tool to shut down on its own.
“Good, then it seems you’ve found the problem. Next, I hope you can withstand Her Majesty’s questioning.”
Simon returned the stopwatch to Nine September Nine, then glanced at the Witch’s corpse on the ground.
“But before that, there’s something else you need to take care of.”
“Oh, oh, oh! I know, I’ll go verify her identity.”
A mechanical tentacle emerged from under Nine September Nine’s black robe and wrapped around the Witch’s corpse.
“I want a conclusion before Her Majesty finishes resting.”
“Is it really that urgent?”
“Would you rather face Her Majesty’s wrath head-on?”
“Uh… that does sound worse.”
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