In This Life I Will Be The Lord Novel - Episode 230

The Lombardi carriage, carrying Grandpa and me, sped towards the Imperial Palace.
Although we were going because the Emperor was in critical condition, Grandpa didn’t seem particularly anxious.
“Today has been long.”
He had enough composure to say such words, comforting me, who must have been tired.
“Indeed, it really has.”
I shrugged my shoulders as if I couldn’t help it and replied.
“But you haven’t asked why I’m taking you with me, this old man.”
“I thought you must have something to show me.”
“Yes, you’re right.”
Grandpa smiled and nodded.
And in a subtle voice, he asked me.
“What do you think is the relationship between the Durelli Imperial Family and Lombardi, Tia?”
“Perhaps a kind of business partner?”
“Business partner?”
“Yes. From the very beginning when the Lambru Empire was founded, the two families moved together, and even now, though they bicker, they are bound by various relationships, whether they like it or not.”
The answer lies in how emperors have treated Lombardi throughout generations.
Even though they couldn’t tolerate Lombardi’s existence and disliked it so much.
No emperor has ever tried to eliminate the Lombardi family.
They only attempted to suppress the Head’s influence.
“You’ve been observing very well.”
Grandpa smiled, satisfied with my answer.
“And there’s only one reason why the Head of Lombardi goes to the Imperial Palace when the Emperor passes away. To confirm the Emperor’s death with their own eyes.”
This is a bit unexpected.
I leaned away from the back of the chair and asked.
“Confirm his death?”
“The Durelli Imperial Family has entrusted a lot of money to Lombardi, other than the assets publicly attributed to the Imperial Family.”
“A kind of slush fund, then?”
“That’s right. Only the Emperor knows of its existence and can use it.
And when the Emperor passes away, ownership of that money temporarily transfers to the Head of Lombardi.”
“Ah, so that’s why…”
What immense trust.
To hand over money accumulated over a long period entirely to the Head of Lombardi.
“And the Head of Lombardi is to reveal the existence of those assets and hand them back when a legitimate successor ascends the throne after the former Emperor.”
“Legitimate successor.”
The weight of that phrase was considerable.
As I quietly mulled over the words, Grandpa added an explanation.
“For now, it refers to the Crown Prince who has gained the consent of the regional representatives, especially Lombardi. Of course, there have been exceptions.”
Having said that, Grandpa let out a short, dissatisfied sigh.
“Things have become very troublesome.”
The sound of Grandpa stroking his bearded chin echoed in the carriage.
“You mean there’s no ‘legitimate successor’?”
“That’s right. Jovanes has always hated even mentioning a successor, so no one would guess his true intentions.”
“Then. If His Majesty the Emperor truly passed away.”
I tried my best to suppress the urge to curse and asked.
“Then the authority to choose the successor…”
“Lies with the Empress.”
Damn it.
After all that trouble, after finally, finally changing the Western representative from Angenas to Brown.
Now, the authority to directly choose the successor!
“To collapse at such a time of all times. Jovanes, you fool.”
Grandpa clicked his tongue and said.
“But, Grandpa.”
“What is it, Tia.”
“Why aren’t you surprised?”
Grandpa tilted his head.
He seemed to not understand my question itself.
“When you received the news that His Majesty was in critical condition. You weren’t surprised at all.”
Grandpa had simply calmly informed the family of the letter’s contents and risen from his seat.
“His Majesty was usually healthy. So the message that he was in critical condition was sudden.”
“Hmm.”
Grandpa seemed to fall into thought for a moment.
And after a short silence, he called me in a low voice.
“Tia.”
“Yes, Grandpa.”
“Now that I’m this old, I’ve realized one thing.”
“What is it?”
“That a person reaps what they sow.”
I agreed with that statement.
Do good and receive rewards, do bad and receive punishment.
Everyone hears that as they grow up.
“And Jovanes poisoned his father, the former Emperor.”
“Poisoned… him?”
I’m learning a lot of things I didn’t know today.
I was a little surprised.
The Emperor’s death is kept secret.
Ordinary people don’t even know the Emperor’s health condition.
They just suddenly hear the news of the Emperor’s passing one day.
“Since Jovanes poisoned his own father, I knew a day like this would come eventually.”
“But since you said ‘reap what you sow,’ do you think someone poisoned His Majesty?”
“…I told him to be careful about what he ate and drank.”
Grandpa clicked his tongue softly and muttered instead of answering.
And then he looked at me.
“The Second Prince and the Empress. Which of the two do you think it is, Tia?”
In the moonlight streaming in from outside, Grandpa’s brown eyes shone coldly.
At the same time, my somewhat confused mind felt calmly organized.
“You mean that’s the only thing Lombardi needs to worry about right now?”
Grandpa smiled faintly.
I watched Grandpa for a moment, then turned my gaze out the window.
Grandpa didn’t seem to expect an immediate answer from me either, as he fell back into thought.
I recalled what happened a few days ago in the carriage on the way back to Lombardi after handing Bellezac over to Selal.
“Estira told me to give you this.”
I handed Perez a small box.
“One bottle of Titian spider venom you asked for, and one bottle of antidote.”
“Thank you.”
Perez replied, closing the lid of the box.
“I’ll put it to good use.”
I didn’t ask Perez how he planned to use it.
Perez didn’t explain it to me either.
I also fell into thought, like Grandpa.
Perez and the Empress.
Who among the two poisoned Jovanes?
“We’ve arrived at the Imperial Palace.”
At the coachman’s announcement, Grandpa and I both emerged from our thoughts.
And as we opened the carriage door and stepped out, we both frowned simultaneously.
“It seems something has happened at the Imperial Palace, Grandpa?”
The area around the Imperial Palace was chaotic.
Soldiers were moving in groups, and Imperial Knights were rushing into the Emperor’s Palace.
“…Let’s go to Jovanes’s bedchamber.”
Grandpa said to me, quickening his pace.
As soon as we entered the corridor leading to the Emperor’s bedchamber, we could tell at a glance what was happening.
“Move aside, Second Prince!” The Empress’s highly agitated shout echoed through the corridor filled with knights.
“Quite a sight.”
Grandpa said in a low voice.
“To stand facing each other with knights wearing swords lined up in front of the Emperor’s bedchamber.”
The Empress and Perez stood glaring at each other.

“What did you just say?”
The Empress asked the imperial physician in a trembling voice.
“His Majesty… has overcome the crisis?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
The imperial physician bowed his head in the ominous atmosphere.
At that moment, the tightly closed bedchamber door opened, and Perez appeared.
“Second Prince?”
“…It seems the news has already reached the Empress’s Palace.”
Perez’s tone carried a hint of displeasure as he said that.
“…And the Prince was already here?”
“I found His Majesty collapsed.”
Perez said in a calm voice.
“How…”
Empress Lavini was just about to open her mouth to pry into the situation.
The bedchamber door opened again, and two soldiers escorted a person out.
It was Chief Maid Otuah.
“We will take her to the Knights’ barracks.”
“Do not let anyone approach her until I go.”
“Yes, Your Highness the Prince.”
Chief Maid Otuah, half-dragged by the soldiers, her arms held, looked at the Empress.
‘Foolish woman!’
The Empress bit her lip.
Chief Maid Otuah must have foolishly given herself away.
Titian spider venom was a deadly poison that few people knew about, and its symptoms were similar to a general sudden death, making it unlikely to be detected.
But something was strange.
She expected to be dragged away immediately, but Perez kept glaring at Empress Lavini.
The moment she realized that, the Empress unconsciously smiled.
‘There’s no evidence!’
And another thunderous realization struck her.
“Move aside, Prince.”
Perez was standing guard in front of the bedchamber door.
“I must confirm His Majesty’s condition myself.”
The Empress said, clenching her fists in exhilaration.
“…You cannot.”
The Emperor is dead!
The Second Prince is now trying to hide the Emperor’s death at all costs!
“I am the Empress of this Empire!”
Although Chief Maid Otuah, who had been dragged away, was unsettling, she wasn’t someone who would easily open her mouth.
As long as her beloved family was in Angenas’s hands, Chief Maid Otuah would never betray the Empress.
So Lavini’s voice grew louder and louder.
“His Majesty is safe. But it is an imperial command that no one be allowed in.”
“Ha!” Command, what command!
A dead Emperor couldn’t speak!
The Empress snorted unconsciously.
“His Majesty is resting now.”
“Then I have the right to confirm his condition!”
Finally, her loud, shouting voice echoed resoundingly through the empty corridor.
Perez, who had been staring at Lavini, asked.
“Why are you doing this?”
“?”
“His Majesty, who is unwell, has said he will not meet anyone, so why are you being so stubborn?”
“Stubborn?!”
“Do you not believe my words that His Majesty is safe, or are you convinced that he couldn’t possibly be?”
Perez’s red eyes stared coldly at the Empress.
“I think it’s the latter. I’m curious about the reason.”
“…Move aside.”
The Empress said, taking a step closer instead of answering.
Thud.
“No.”
Perez moved a step to the side, blocking the Empress’s path.
“Step back.”
The moment he said that and grabbed the Empress’s shoulder.
“How dare you, a filthy thing, lay hands on me!”
Slap!
The Empress slapped Perez’s cheek.
“Do you think I’ll back down just because a mere wretch like you blocks my way?”
The Empress said that and called a servant.
“Go and announce it immediately!”
The servant, who had hesitated for a moment after receiving the Empress’s command, quickly ran down the corridor.
And a moment later.
“Your Highness, move aside!”
“How dare you defy an imperial command, come to your senses!”
The Imperial Knights, who had rushed at the call of the Empress and Perez respectively, growled at each other.
Those who received the news late also joined their respective factions, and the corridor in front of the bedchamber gradually became packed.
“You should be ashamed as knights of the Imperial Family!”
“Who are you to say that to whom!”
A tense atmosphere, as if swords would be drawn at any moment, flowed between the two factions of knights.
“Move aside, Second Prince!”
The Empress shouted loudly once more.
A hint of a smile played on her face.
Even with such a loud commotion, there was no reaction from inside the bedchamber.
This would be impossible if the Emperor were alive.
The Empress was certain of victory.
The Emperor’s absolute power seemed to be right before her eyes, as if she could reach out and grasp it.
It was then.
“What in the world are you doing?!”
With a loud roar, the knights parted like a wave.
“Empress! Prince! Both of you, come to your senses!”
At the end of the corridor stood Rulac Lombardi, his hands clasped behind his back, his eyes filled with fury.