KFBRV Pt 2 Ch 2
- 6 days ago
- 6 min read
The First Edict: Imprison anyone who tarnishes Lady Odette's honor through word or action.
This command possessed absolute logic. After all, Odette suffered immensely from vicious rumors. Granting her peace in death constituted a ruler's natural duty.
For the typically orthodox Johan, this mandate represented an uncharacteristically personal directive, yet he reigned as a Transcendent. Losing his Purifier naturally evoked profound grief.
Furthermore, rumors of him weeping inconsolably at her funeral validated this extreme measure.
The Second Edict: The Crown Prince has sworn a Chivalric Vow to Lady Odette, mandating that she receive the corresponding formal honors.
A Chivalric Vow?
That archaic custom emerged briefly during the era of barbarism before fading into obscurity.
It belonged to a maddeningly romantic age where men threw gauntlets at each other's faces and pierced throats with spears, ending duels solely to impress a lady.
The vow contained extreme declarations: "My life now belongs to you; please use it without hesitation."
It pledged to prioritize the lady's commands above all imperial law. It promised that upon the lady's death, the knight would embrace lifelong celibacy and live as a walking corpse.
This commitment posed a scandalous contradiction for the Crown Prince, the very foundation of the nation.
However, compared to the third edict, the second mandate was registered as entirely reasonable.
The Third Edict: The Imperial Family appoints Lady Odette as the sole Crown Princess. No other woman shall ever hold this title.
This document included meticulous implementation rules regarding the treatment of the deceased Odette as the Crown Princess.
It bestowed upon her the Imperial Palace's most beautiful residence, the "Palace of Heaven," and detailed her future ceremonial protocols.
The most controversial clause sparked fierce opposition: "Odette holds no obligation to fulfill any duties of the Crown Princess, including marriage."
This statement meant she would receive complete royal treatment and privileges while bearing zero responsibilities.
How could she become the Crown Princess without marrying the Crown Prince?
Furthermore, the girl has already died. Reading the edict was like taking a bullet to the skull.
The mandate possessed zero legal flaws, fueling the collective madness and proving Johan drafted it with absolute precision rather than blind rage.
Even after the Emperor hired an army of lawyers to scrutinize the document, they failed to find a single loophole to invalidate it.
The Crown Prince undeniably lost his mind.
The lawyers clicked their tongues while reading the mandates.
His ice-cold voice echoed through the banquet hall.
[Johan] "I'm the Crown Prince. I can't escort a commoner."
[Charlotte] "Your Highness."
This excessively callous, absolute rejection clashed with the formal atmosphere. Charlotte's face flushed crimson from the public humiliation.
Her reaction made perfect sense. This banquet welcomed ambassadors dispatched from the Kingdom.
With every major figure from both the Empire and the Kingdom present, a hospitable environment held utmost importance.
Consequently, nobody in attendance anticipated Johan publicly rejecting the Empire's sole high-ranking Purifier. Charlotte herself failed to predict this outcome.
[Johan] "You've got to demand your rightful treatment as a Purifier from the Empire, not me. I acknowledge your value, but don't break the rules so carelessly."
He directed his intense gaze at Charlotte, yet his words carried a broader target.
Never associate me with this woman again.
This statement served as a crystal-clear warning to every noble in the room. Those secretly conspiring to help Charlotte purify Johan flinched in unison.
[Charlotte] "Your Highness."
Despite his firm boundary, she tightened her grip on his sleeve. She took a deliberate step toward him.
[Charlotte] "Forgive my presumption, but they're spreading nasty rumors about your sanity across the Empire."
[Johan] "And your point?"
[Charlotte] "Why don't you use me to silence those whispers?"
She dropped her voice to a murmur. She ensured this clandestine proposal reached only his ears.
[Johan] "Why'd I bother silencing them?"
His indifferent expression betrayed zero interest in her offer.
[Charlotte] "You've always loved the Empire more than anyone. You've got to understand how anxious the citizens become over these rumors—"
[Johan] "My reputation isn't your concern. Don't cross the line."
He severed her sentence and yanked his arm. The navy-blue fabric slipped cleanly from her grasp.
[Charlotte] "B-but the rumors claim Lady Odette's ghost's tormenting you."
Despite his freezing apathy, she stubbornly finished her thought.
Odette.
At the mere mention of that name, his previously indifferent eyes flashed with lethal intensity.
[Johan] "You don't have the right to dare speak her name."
Charlotte gasped. The suffocating pressure radiating from him intensified, crushing her lungs and restricting her airflow.
Did people not praise him as a righteous man? This current madness threatened to strangle her on the spot.
Crackling sparks echoed in the hall, reacting violently to his murderous fury.
Is he planning to use his ability on me?
She stood as the Empire's sole remaining Purifier. She wasn't the lone person questioning his intentions. The banquet guests stared at them in mounting alarm.
She decided to retreat.
[Charlotte] "I-I'm sorry, Your Highness. I didn't mean to anger you. I acted with arrogant presumption. P-please, take my life."
She lowered her gaze and collapsed to her knees, prostrating herself on the floor.
Her modest, country-style gown clashed harshly with the luxurious surroundings. Her pathetic, violently trembling frame projected the exact image of a powerless commoner unaccustomed to such grand banquets.
This status as a commoner offered one distinct advantage. It provided an easy excuse for catastrophic blunders. This strategy explained her dramatic overreaction.
Charlotte craved any form of response from the Crown Prince.
However, the Crown Prince refused to spare her a single glance. He simply smoothed his sleeves and strode confidently out of the banquet hall.
She kept her face buried in the floor long after his departure. Following a brief pause, several nobles approached her.
[Woman] "Stand up, Miss Charlotte. Don't let this hurt your feelings. His Highness is incredibly ruthless these days. He's changed into an entirely different person."
Rising with a noblewoman's assistance, Charlotte lifted her face and forced a bright smile.
[Charlotte] "I'm fine. I made a presumptuous request of His Highness."
This brave facade amplified her pitiful aura.
[Man] "You call that ruthless? He's completely lost his mind."
A provincial noble drinking in the corner of the ballroom chimed in.
This middle-aged man received a hair-loss remedy from Charlotte several months ago. Ever since, he worshipped her as his savior, showering her with goodwill at every social gathering. He also harbored a deep, long-standing hatred for Odette.
[Man] "Didn't I tell you, Madam? His Highness acted completely deranged during the funeral mass in Meursault. He's got the eyes of a pure lunatic!"
Intoxicated by the alcohol, he allowed his words to flow with a harsh, vulgar edge, mimicking the tone of a private tavern conversation.
He owned a small estate in the Meursault region. Though his status paled in comparison to central aristocrats, he wielded significant influence within his local territory. This regional power granted him front-row access to Odette's funeral mass.
The grotesque spectacle of Johan obsessively kissing her rotting corpse from a few feet away traumatized the man and induced sheer nausea.
Therefore, the romanticized distortion of that horrifying scene frustrated him immensely.
Before the official edicts dropped, not even his fellow nobles believed his frantic claims of the Crown Prince's madness.
Naturally, more aristocrats now shared his exact sentiment, yet the commoners continued to swallow the fabricated tales. They imagined a Crown Prince pressing a devout kiss of reverence onto the deceased Purifier's hand. They maintained their profound love and absolute faith in a prince who had already descended into lunacy.
This middle-aged man continuously spewed his complaints regarding the nation's blind trust in a deranged royal.
[Man] "How's that disgusting act a kiss of rever—"
[Woman] "Oh my! My husband! He drank too much and must've hallucinated. Hahaha."
The provincial noble's wife urgently slapped her hand over her husband's mouth. Any further rambling risked an immediate execution for insulting the imperial family.
The era of offering honest advice based purely on Johan's historically forgiving nature vanished two years ago.
A Johan driven mad by Odette's ghost would sever a mere provincial noble's neck without a second thought.
[Woman] "Ahem, ahem. Anyway...... don't fret over His Highness' actions, Miss Charlotte. You didn't do a single thing wrong."
Charlotte offered a cautious nod.
[Charlotte] "I'll do that, Madam. Thank you for your concern."
She relocated to the banquet hall's designated lounge.
Once the comforting women dispersed, she sat alone on a plush sofa, her expression shifting to cold calculation. She tilted her head.
[Charlotte] "This makes zero sense. It's completely different from my past life. Johan's supposed to remain consistently sweet to me."
She crossed her arms in deep contemplation.
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