“It took half a day for the divine palace to collapse, didn’t it? How long do you think the imperial palace will last?”
Even those who pretended not to be listening were startled and looked at Leticia.
“What about the mansions of the nobles here? How long would it take for their properties, territories, farms, and mines to turn to ashes? How long would it take for their lives to disappear?”
Leticia was undoubtedly smiling. But none of the people looking at her could laugh.
“Have you ever wondered how long it would take for my wings to destroy all of that?”
“What, what did you say?”
The emperor, who barely regained his composure, raised his voice.
“Collapse the imperial palace? You dare utter such words in front of me? Your insolence knows no bounds! Do you think I acknowledged you because I summoned you here? Ridiculous!”
The emperor stomped his foot.
“I called you because I was curious about the face of the imposter who mocked the empire with unholy power! I called you to show you the majesty of the imperial palace!”
“Your Majesty, please calm down! This banquet was held to welcome the Queen Consort!”
“Silence! You dare defend an imposter? You still haven’t come to your senses!”
“Whether she is an imposter or not, you should at least treat her properly. There are many eyes watching… Ah!”
“I did not call you here to welcome you! It was at the saintess’ request!”
The emperor pushed Dana aside and shouted.
“She personally asked me! To stop her mad daughter! To make you know your place! I only summoned you to help her!”
The emperor’s eyes glared.
“Wings? Nonsense! You must be using the evil dragon’s power! Deceiving everyone as an imposter!”
“An imposter. Even the crown prince swore loyalty to me. Are you saying his power is also fake?”
“Yes! He too was merely swept away by evil power. That’s why he swore loyalty to someone like you… Argh!”
The emperor couldn’t finish his sentence. With a cracking sound, the ground beneath him sank. He barely kept his balance on the sunken marble. He widened his eyes as he looked down at the ground.
Soil was oozing out through the cracked marble. Wriggling branches came with it. Leticia smiled softly.
“It’s the power of the earth. Thanks to the crown prince’s oath of loyalty, I too can control the power of the earth. To let you see whether it’s evil or not, I summoned the spirits.”
At the same time, the branches that pierced the marble shot up and coiled around the emperor’s ankles, quickly binding his thighs.
“What, what are you doing! Release this at once. I said release it!”
“Your Majesty… That’s why I told you to stop…”
The princess mumbled weakly. Traumatized by the power of the earth, she eventually fainted. Banessa, who was nearby, quickly supported the princess.
“Banessa, move the princess to the lounge. I will follow shortly to check on her condition.”
“As you command.”
“Stop! You lowly thing! How dare a mere Principality knight touch anyone! I said stop! Put my daughter down at once!”
“The princess needs rest. Please remain calm.”
“What are you, to speak of my daughter’s need for rest! I decide what happens with my daughter!”
“Do not worry about the princess. After treating His Majesty, I will personally look after her.”
“What did you say? Who is treating whom? You think you can treat me?”
“You are not in your right mind, Your Majesty.”
Leticia took a step towards the emperor. At the same time, several things happened.
Clang! The emperor’s knights drew their swords and blocked Leticia.
Whoosh! A sudden gust of wind blew the knights back. The knights, who took a few steps back, barely opened their eyes. They gasped in panic.
“A sandstorm?”
A hazy sandstorm, which could never occur indoors, was forming a large circle.
“This is impossible.”
Ahwin, who coldly glared at the knights, bowed to Leticia.
“I apologize for moving before you gave the order, Lady Leticia. I acted first because they dared to draw their swords against the saintess.”
Ahwin said.
“I apologize, but I now seek your permission. May I, with your approval, tear these insolent fools to pieces?”
“We will decide their fate later. For now, please ensure that no one approaches.”
“As you command.”
While Leticia gave orders to Ahwin, the emperor had already been bound hand and foot. Despite this, he continued to shout endlessly.
“You wretch! Withdraw your demonic power immediately! Hurry!”
“If my power is demonic, then what power clouded your judgment, Your Majesty?”
“Silence! My judgment is flawless! There’s nothing wrong with me!”
“Nothing wrong, yet you praise Josephina? The emperor of the empire?”
Leticia stared at the emperor calmly.
“Is it drugs?”
“What?”
“Are you addicted to drugs? Is that why you obey my mother?”
“Drugs? Nonsense! Shut up! Shut up, I say!”
The emperor raged even more violently. Leticia nodded slightly.
“As I thought.”
Leticia approached the emperor. He widened his eyes. Someone in his mind screamed.
‘I must flee. I must avoid her! Her hand must not touch me!’
He had to escape so that her healing power could not purify his body…!
“Get away from me!”
Slice! The moment Leticia’s hand touched the emperor, the branches binding him were cut all at once. The struggling emperor fell backward and hit the ground hard. The nearby knights rushed over.
“Call the imperial physician! Hurry!”
“Ugh…”
Leticia withdrew her hand from the emperor and furrowed her brow slightly.
‘Who did this? Who cut the spirits?’
Then she saw a black claw moving away from the severed branches.
‘A demon beast?’
As she stared, the cut branches came back to life and pierced the demon beasts.
‘It’s a demon beast. Mother’s wings have arrived here.’
Leticia immediately turned her gaze to find Josephina. As expected, Josephina was standing at the entrance of the banquet hall, seething. Leticia’s eyes narrowed as she recognized the middle-aged man standing behind her. Kuhn. The dark wing who controlled the demon beasts.
‘They took advantage of the moment I focused on the emperor.’
If Kuhn had faced her openly, he would never have stood a chance against Leticia. Josephina quickly approached her, looking at Leticia with a seemingly pitiful expression.
“Leticia, I can’t believe you did this. This banquet was prepared by His Majesty for your sake. What on earth are you doing, with such esteemed guests present!”
Josephina’s voice was as gentle as ever. Leticia found it both absurd and amusing how Josephina still played the role of the kind mother to the end. Leticia smiled softly, watching Josephina’s mouth twitching as she forced a smile.
“His Majesty seemed unwell, so I tried to help him. I can now use the power of healing.”
“Healing power?”
“Oh! Mother, you didn’t know? Recently, Kailas swore loyalty to me. Thank you, Mother, for passing on your wings to me.”
Josephina’s composure finally broke. Leticia spoke to the trembling Josephina, now shaking with rage.
“I think it’s time for me to leave. Since both His Majesty and the princess are absent, there’s no need for me to stay.”
Leticia slightly bowed her head.
“I hope you enjoy the banquet, Mother. I heard you lost several wings. You should take this time to forget your worries, even if just for a moment.”
Because you will soon lose the rest of your wings, too. Josephina’s eyes widened at the softly added words. Her fingers started to tremble. Leticia slowly looked around. She met the gazes fixed on her and spoke steadily.
“I’m sure we will meet again. Until then, farewell.”
Leticia walked past Josephina. Ahwin glared coldly at Josephina before following Leticia. As soon as they entered the dim corridor, a wind blew. Soon, hysterical voices were heard.
“Leticia! Leticia! I will kill you! I will kill you!”
“Calm down, saintess. First, we need to manage the aftermath of this banquet.”
“Check the emperor’s condition. He couldn’t have broken free from the addiction already, right?”
“Do not worry. He is still intoxicated and not in his right mind.”
“Did you check properly? Is he still addicted? Leticia said she used her healing power! The addiction might have been lifted!”
“The girl’s touch on the emperor was momentary. That is not enough to purify even his fingertips, let alone his soul.”
“Still, do not let your guard down! Watch carefully to ensure she never approaches the emperor again!”
Leticia chuckled lightly at Kuhn’s voice carried by the wind spirit.
“Mother truly doesn’t know the true power of the wings. She has no idea how great the healing power is.”
The healing power had already seeped into the emperor. Leticia’s touch had connected with the emperor’s body. Even if it was as small as a seed, it carried the saintess’ wish, slowly but surely purifying the emperor.
***
At the exact time the banquet was being held in the imperial palace, a carriage stopped in front of an old, dilapidated mansion on the outskirts of the capital, looking as if it could collapse at any moment. The coachman shivered and spoke.
“We’ve arrived.”
There was a taboo among the coachmen of the capital: never go to the haunted house. If you went there, you would have bad luck for a week. The mansion they had just arrived at was one of those places. Once, the courtyard of the mansion had been piled with unclaimed corpses. People whispered that the mad magician was responsible for those bodies.
‘Money is a curse.’
The promise of ten times the usual fare had forced him to come here. With a creak, the carriage door opened. A man in a black hood appeared. The man pulled out a purse and handed it to the coachman.
“Thank you.”
“Y-yes.”
The coachman, who had taken the purse indifferently, was startled by its unexpected weight. When he peeked inside, he found it filled with gold coins. It was much more than the promised tenfold fare.
The irritation that had filled him to the brim vanished instantly. The coachman quickly tucked the purse into his coat. He jumped down from the driver’s seat and ran to the man.
“Sir! When will you be returning? I will wait here for you!”
“Wait for me?”
“You will need a carriage to return. There are many rumors of ghosts around here! It will be difficult to find a carriage for the return journey!”
“There’s no need.”
“Oh, please, don’t say that. I will wait. Just tell me roughly when you’ll be back…”
“I must wait for the mansion’s owner to return, so I can’t say. Now, go.”
“The mansion’s owner?”
The coachman asked in disbelief. How could there be an owner for a place that had been abandoned for over ten years?
“Please, reconsider…”
“I said go.”
At the man’s firm tone, the coachman flinched and hunched his shoulders.
‘Could he be a noble?’
One thing he had learned from his many years as a coachman was that commoners should never meddle in the affairs of nobles if they wanted to stay alive.
“Oh, I apologize for not recognizing a distinguished person. Take care, sir.”
Fearful that his purse might be snatched away, the coachman bolted. The man ignored the fleeing coachman and approached the mansion. He slowly lowered his hood. Dietrian, with his sunken eyes, looked at the closed door and grasped the handle.
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