Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 34 Part 5

It was nothing more than a wedding announcement.

“The emperor hasn’t even held the wedding yet, so why are you whining as if everything is over?”

“…Father.”

“Do you think your sister Edea became empress so easily? Do you know how hard the emperor tried to avoid marrying her? If I consider all the money I spent on bribing nobles and the efforts I put into pleasing the Empress Dowager, I could have bought the entire capital and still had some left over.”

“To suit the Empress Dowager’s taste, Edea changed everything—from her diet to her clothes, even her hobbies.”

“……”

“Have you ever made such efforts? Have you ever desperately clung to something, yearning for it with everything you have?”

Hearing her father’s rebuke, Vivia was left speechless.

“All you do is pout and complain when things don’t go your way. That’s why you’re inferior to Edea. When something didn’t work out, she fought tooth and nail until it did. If she wanted something, she would go to any lengths to obtain it.”

That was why Edea had tried to hold on to both the emperor and her lover, Jerata.

But in the end, her greed had led to her downfall.

“If you can’t marry the emperor, then find a way to make it happen.”

“H-how…?”

Vivia stammered, her throat dry.

“I can’t just barge in on the emperor now. That woman will be right beside him.”

“What does an obstacle matter? If it’s in the way, you remove it.”

“……?”

“Just like with Countess Müller—get rid of her.”

Vivia’s expression changed slightly.

As he continued speaking, Marquis Delph took a deep breath, excitement making his voice tremble.

“There’s still a small amount of allium left.”

A deadly plant unknown even to the emperor.

As long as it existed, he would never know why Edea had died.

The twisted expression on Marquis Delph’s face softened.

His earlier agitation subsided, replaced by a composed demeanor.

“If she disappears, the position of empress will be vacant once more. The Balkan Trading Company? No matter how much noise they make now, it will all be forgotten in time.”

“……”

“If I’m released from house arrest, the nobles who support us will return. If you kill Eleanor, they will push for the marriage even more strongly.”

A dead woman couldn’t come back. If the emperor wanted an heir, he would have no choice but to choose from the remaining noble ladies.

Since Prince Hail was blind, inheriting the throne would be difficult for him.

That meant, in the end, everything would circle back to Delph.

“Well? Will you do it?”

“……”

Vivia lowered the hand covering her cheek.

The area where she had been struck was swollen and bruised.

But she couldn’t bring herself to resent her father.

His proposal sounded far too tempting.

Seeing the change in her expression, Marquis Delph smirked, as if finally finding her useful.

“Yes, that’s the spirit. A Delph should at least have such ambition in their heart.”

“…If I kill Eleanor, will you handle the aftermath?”

“Of course. Didn’t I take care of Countess Müller? No matter how much money it takes, it won’t be an issue.”

Even if it cost tens or hundreds of thousands of gold, Marquis Delph was confident.

As long as Vivia became empress.

Once that happened, his wealth would multiply many times over.

“You’ll understand once you become empress.”

There was a secret hidden in the Eastern Palace.

The former residence of Edea, once the empress, now abandoned after her death.

“There is a secret garden in the Eastern Palace.”

“A secret garden?”

“A garden filled with dozens of allium plants.”

“……!”

This was the first time Vivia had heard of such a thing.

She listened closely to her father’s words.

“Allium normally blooms blue. The purple petals were intentionally cultivated to be poisonous.”

During the reign of Oth III, he had ordered all traces of allium to be erased.

“Oth III didn’t just burn all the allium used for landscaping—he also executed all the botanists and researchers associated with it. Sometimes, he resorted to threats.”

“What was so dangerous about that flower?”

“Allium was first created by Oth III himself. He designed it to poison and kill his father, Leopold II.”

The Delph family had produced many empresses throughout history.

Leopold II’s wife, Criasta, had also come from the Delph family.

As soon as Criasta gave birth to Oth III, Leopold II sought to marry a foreign princess. To prevent this, the Delph Remarriage Act was created.

But there was another hidden story behind it.

“While Criasta was pregnant, Leopold II was already having an affair with a foreign princess.”

“…That’s unbelievable.”

“Oth III found out when he grew older. He learned that his father had cheated on his mother while she was carrying him. And that the woman his father had an affair with later became his stepmother. Worse yet, she tried to kill him.”

His hatred for his father burned intensely.

So, with the secret help of his mother’s Delph family, Oth III poisoned his father and took the throne at a young age.

His stepmother and her son were exiled, according to historical records.

But in reality, they were executed by his own blade.

After that, Oth III actively used allium.

Mostly to eliminate his enemies.

Whenever internal or external conflicts arose, if someone died of a sudden heart attack, it was almost certainly due to Oth III’s intervention.

In his later years, he even ensured that no records of his covert operations remained, meticulously erasing all traces.

And—

“Oth III wished for his secret to be guarded by the Delph family, his maternal lineage.”

“……”

“At the same time, he wanted future emperors to inherit allium. If used correctly, it could be the ultimate weapon.”

That was why he created the secret garden in the Eastern Palace.

“Whenever an empress was chosen from the Delph family, the reigning emperor could freely use allium. The secret garden was planted with countless purple flowers for that purpose, and only the head of the Delph family was entrusted with its secret.”

However, after Oth III, Heinrich II married an empress from the Nestor family.

That empress was none other than Lennoch’s mother, the current Empress Dowager.

Hearing all this, Vivia finally understood why her father was so obsessed with making her empress.

Marquis Delph clicked his tongue.

“The allium seedlings we originally possessed were all burned months ago.”

They needed new ones.

“That’s why, Vivia, you must become the empress this time.”

***

Upon returning to the palace, Eleanor did not head to her office but instead made her way to the emperor’s study.

She intended to see Eger first.

Along the way, palace officials who had heard of her engagement approached her with congratulations, but she had little time to spare.

She simply nodded or exchanged brief greetings before hurrying down the corridor.

‘How has the investigation progressed?’

While Lennoch was away, he had temporarily entrusted Eger with overseeing matters, including Saruka’s case.

Estimating the time from the position of the sun outside, Eleanor quickened her pace.

By now, those who had just read the morning papers must have been quite shocked.

Meeting all of them today would be impossible.

“Lady Eleanor.”

Eger, who was in the study, welcomed her warmly.

“Where is His Majesty? Did you come alone?”

He had naturally assumed they would arrive together.

Since the emperor’s carriage had departed earlier, he had expected them to be holding hands when they entered.

Eleanor chuckled softly as she sat across from him.

“We captured a suspicious village chief from Caroline’s plantation. His Majesty went directly to the interrogation chamber. He also plans to question Saruka while he’s there.”

“Then, what about Rachel’s son…?”

“Vito has been given a room to rest with the child he’s close to. Ah, and His Majesty has decided to grant Lord Childe a new title in recognition of his contributions.”

“So, he finally did it.”

As he prepared tea, Eger clicked his tongue.

The once-wild and reckless Childe had actually succeeded in achieving something.

This was as astonishing as the sun rising in the west.

After warming the teapot to the right temperature, Eger placed a cup in front of Eleanor.

“Congratulations on your engagement, Lady Eleanor.”

“Thank you. I’ve been hearing a lot of congratulations today.”

“Was it difficult getting here? I assume many people stopped you.”

“I just exchanged a few pleasantries and moved on.”

Taking a sip of tea, Eleanor got straight to the question she had been most curious about.

“Has Duke Mecklen reported to the palace today?”

She had only heard later that he had left before dawn.

Had he really returned?

Fortunately, Eger nodded.

“Yes, he came in today. Surprisingly, he was working as usual.”

Eger had passed by his office and noticed the lights on, so he had gone in.

After missing just one day, Ernst had been buried under a mountain of paperwork.

Even with Eger’s unexpected visit, Ernst showed no reaction, simply continuing his work at an overwhelming pace.

Feeling overwhelmed by the storm of productivity, Eger had left quietly.

“What exactly happened there? You did meet him at the plantation, didn’t you?”

“It’s a long story.”

Eleanor took another sip of tea before summarizing the events for Eger.

She explained how things had unfolded at the plantation.

She left out, however, the details of Ernst’s tears and emotions when he had looked at her.

Hearing all that had transpired in just one day, Eger frowned. “Looking at the bigger picture, Caroline was truly formidable. Did she really have such a capable subordinate hidden at the plantation?”

“She served the Mecklen family for a long time. It would be foolish to completely dismiss her abilities.”

“Then could she have more hidden assets?”

“It’s possible.”

“…I can’t even imagine.”

Eger shook his head.

“Saruka is hiding many secrets too, but compared to him, she seems even worse.”

“Has he given a statement?”

“No, he hasn’t said a word.”

Recalling the interrogation chamber from yesterday, Eger let out a deep sigh.

“At first, I thought Caroline had some kind of leverage over him. But watching him, I realized… there doesn’t seem to be any particular attachment between them.”

“……”

“It feels like something is missing in him. Also, he seems obsessively fixated on the idea of revenge.”

Eleanor, listening carefully, tilted her head slightly. “That is quite unusual.”

“Normally, enduring such horrific torture would break a person mentally. What is keeping him going?”

“…Is the torture really that terrible?”

“Don’t even ask. I only took a brief look yesterday, and it gave me chills.”

Eger adjusted his glasses and shuddered.

“I’ll never set foot in there again. Just the sight of it gave me nightmares last night.”

“You’ve had a rough time.”

“His Majesty likely left you behind because he didn’t want you to see such a gruesome place. No sane person could endure staying there long.”

Eleanor simply nodded silently.

By now, Lennoch was probably deep in questioning.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door.

“Come in.”

Eger and Eleanor both turned toward the entrance.

The person who entered was none other than Baroness Berenice.

Seeing that the person he had been looking for was present, Berenice smiled faintly.

“Lady Eleanor, it’s fortunate you’re here.”

“What brings you here?”

“The Empress Dowager has summoned you.”