Chapter 40
Theodore scrutinized his younger brother’s face as he sat before him. The child’s expression remained impassive. He looked like someone simply enjoying an ordinary tea time, appearing completely unruffled despite having just uttered something outrageous.
Who is this child, really? Could he be a prophet who hears the voice of God? Blair, who had been sitting quietly, spoke again.
“No, Brother. Please help me meet with Imperial Princess Adriana directly. That would be better. The sooner the better. Tomorrow would be fine. Please arrange for us to meet somewhere private.”
“Why?” Theodore asked in bewilderment.
“Well, because the Princess needs to become the Emperor?”
A bomb dropped in the quiet room of Theodore. Yet the person who had dropped it acted as if what he’d said was nothing significant. Blair calmly sipped his cooled tea. Theodore’s eyes widened in shock.
“What?!”
Theodore’s scream-like exclamation echoed throughout the room. After confirming Theodore’s shocked expression, Blair smirked.
* * *
Theodore’s face was troubled as he headed to work at the Imperial Palace. He hadn’t slept at all the previous night. By the time he had finished ruminating over the bombshell his brother had dropped, dawn had already broken. He barely acknowledged the coachman’s greeting. Theodore leaned back against the backrest with a complicated expression. Even the rattling sound of the carriage wheels against the ground irritated him. He couldn’t concentrate.
The midnight conversation with Blair flashed through his mind. He had said the Princess should become Emperor and they needed to act as quickly as possible. And of course, he had been shocked. But Blair had acted as if it was nothing significant. It seemed like they were discussing something momentous, yet he alone was on edge and being sensitive.
“Oh my, why are you so surprised?”
Whether Theodore was horrified or not, Blair had remained as calm as if he were discussing tomorrow’s dinner menu.
“Emperor?” Theodore had questioned with bulging eyes.
“Well, before we get into the details, I should tell you one more thing. Actually, His Majesty the Emperor doesn’t have long to live.”
Theodore slammed his hand on the table.
“You’re saying something terrible. Can’t you keep quiet?”
Theodore shouted hysterically. For the first time in his life, Theodore was angry with Blair. He flung open the door and looked around to ensure no one was eavesdropping. As someone who had lived only an ordinary, sensible life, he couldn’t follow what his young brother was saying. After confirming no one was around, Theodore carefully closed the door, only to have Blair’s voice pierce his back.
“It’s true. He has at most five years left. The current Emperor will pass away before then. But right now, the Crassia Empire doesn’t have an official successor. There should have been more power struggles. With two grown children and another coming of age this year, it’s absurd that there’s still no successor. This should have been decided long ago.”
Blair sipped his cold tea.
“I guarantee, if a successor isn’t determined immediately, this empire will soon fall into chaos. Determining a successor isn’t something that happens quickly, right? Without a clear successor, after the Emperor’s death, factions will split and fight for the throne. The Emperor’s position is exceptionally attractive, isn’t it?”
Blair smiled faintly. It was something he had experienced firsthand in the past. Prophesying what he had directly experienced – Blair inwardly smiled at his own contradiction. There was still time to rectify the situation before Adriana and the Emperor died.
Theodore’s expression revealed his confusion. He had no idea what basis Blair had for saying the Emperor would die. But excluding that, everything Blair said was correct. Currently, the Crassia Empire had no designated successor to determine the fate of the throne. As Blair said, if the Emperor were to die suddenly, a power struggle would ensue – any sensible person could predict that. And Theodore was the most sensible person in the empire.
Theodore looked at his young brother with a complicated, confused expression. He wanted to say something, but nothing coherent came out. What is this child, really? The more he looked, the more unfamiliar Blair seemed. The outer shell was the same, but it felt like someone else was sitting inside.
“What reason is there for the Princess not to become the successor?” Blair countered with a smile.
“Among the four imperial children, the Princess has the best maternal lineage. She’s the only grandchild of the Sichen Ducal family. Plus, she’s the eldest. She’s already appeared at many official events, making her highly recognized among the imperial citizens. Even combining all her siblings’ recognition wouldn’t match Princess Adriana’s. In the Crassia Empire, which follows primogeniture, there’s no reason why Princess Adriana shouldn’t become Emperor.”
“But the Princess is a woman, and her health is weak…”
Theodore’s voice had grown much quieter. Even he knew his counterargument lacked persuasiveness. But what Blair was saying went far beyond common sense. Though not incorrect, there were societal norms that generally prevailed.
True, the Crassia Empire did operate on the principle of primogeniture. But nowadays, that law was rarely observed. Even in most noble families, titles and property were passed to second sons if they were male. Only in cases of an only daughter would titles be transferred to her. Even then, it wasn’t uncommon for male nephews from collateral lines to be adopted and inherit the titles. When the family name changed, inheritance rights were lost.
This was especially true for the imperial throne. In the thousands of years of Crassia Empire’s history, there had never been a female Emperor.
“That’s too flimsy a reason, Brother. Being a woman isn’t a valid reason. There’s no law anywhere stating that a woman can’t become Emperor in this country. Rather, the Crassia Empire fundamentally follows primogeniture.”
“Blair, there truly hasn’t been a single female Emperor until now. Even in neighboring countries, there are no queens currently ruling.”
“Ah, Brother, you’re still young, why are you so old-fashioned and narrow-minded? What does it matter if there’s no precedent? As I said earlier, Princess Adriana can become the first female Emperor. Precedents are created when needed. This decision will become a new precedent for future generations. If we establish this precedent now, female Emperors will continue to emerge in the future. If we keep repeating that it can’t be done because there’s no precedent, it will only perpetuate the same situations. Wouldn’t it be boring if things always stayed the same?”
Blair raised his index finger and wiggled it from side to side. It was quite a disrespectful gesture to show to a brother ten years his senior. But Theodore, overwhelmed by the shock as if he had been struck powerfully on the back of his head, didn’t register the rudeness of the gesture. Blair continued:
“Moreover, Princess Adriana has been rumored to be intelligent since childhood. Even when determining the successor for noble families, careful consideration is given. This is about deciding who will rule the Crassia Empire for nearly 50 years. It shouldn’t be about personal bias, but about who is the most intelligent and qualified to become Emperor.”
Blair’s words were all correct. Excessively correct. The problem was that his words were all theoretically right. Theodore wanted to refute but had nothing to counter with. His mouth clamped shut.
“The reason the Princess is currently weak is because she’s been poisoned. Once she’s detoxified, she’ll quickly regain her health. I’ll try to get the antidote. If I ask Clara, it shouldn’t be too difficult to obtain.”
“Blair.”
“Wouldn’t it be interesting? Creating the first female Emperor in the empire?”
Theodore fell into thought. Blair didn’t interrupt Theodore’s thoughts and quietly sipped his tea. Theodore was quite intelligent. He would quickly grasp that Blair’s words had validity and represented a feasible scenario.
In truth, there was a fundamental flaw in Blair’s argument that could overturn everything. Both the claim that Adriana was currently poisoned and that the Emperor would die soon wouldn’t hold up if Theodore didn’t believe it. If Theodore didn’t believe his words, Blair had no way to proceed.
While he might somehow prove that Adriana was poisoned, there was no way to prove information about the Emperor’s natural death if it was dismissed as false. But Theodore’s mind, shocked by information he hadn’t even considered, couldn’t reach that far. And Theodore had affection for Adriana. That affection compromised his solid judgment. Additionally, Blair’s inexplicable calmness and confidence eliminated any remaining doubts.
In reality, Theodore could have said he would resolve the poisoning issue but let another sibling ascend to the throne. But Theodore, entangled in Blair’s words, had no capacity to think that far. He was currently entranced by Blair.
After a short while, Theodore hardened his face and looked at Blair.
“So, what are you planning to do? No, what should we do? Do you have something in mind?”
As if he had been waiting for those words, Blair pulled his lips into a smirk. Leaning very close to Theodore, he whispered,
“Please let me meet the Princess, tomorrow if possible.”
[To be continued in the next part…]
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
