HTRE 07

Chapter 7

“Please come out. It will start soon.”

What dispersed the crowd was, as expected, the fireworks that were about to begin.

The attention that had been focused on the Crown Prince and Eroika temporarily faded. People headed toward the balcony to watch the fireworks.

Amid the commotion, Ethan took her to a corner.

“Eroika, are you okay? It seemed like they were talking about something.”

Only after leaning lightly against the wall did Eroika relax.

“I think I need to make the first move. Before the Crown Prince notices.”

Ethan took off his outer coat and draped it over Eroika’s shoulders. He thought the slight trembling of her slender shoulders was just his imagination.

“Don’t be too hasty. There must be a way somehow.”

Boom.

As soon as he finished speaking, a loud sound rang out. It was the signal announcing the start of the fireworks.

As Eroika nodded, fireworks were reflected in her eyes.

Ethan turned his head and looked up at the sky.

“They said the fireworks in Franz were much bigger than you could imagine. They were right.”

In the sky, colorful sparks repeatedly bloomed like flowers before fading away. The sound of the fireworks exploded loudly, and Eroika’s face was brightly illuminated by the sparkling lights.

So this must have been what the fireworks she watched from beyond the mansion as a child looked like.

She could not take her eyes off the dazzling sight. Large and beautiful fireworks danced before her eyes.

“Eroika, make a wish.”

“What?”

Eroika, who had been staring blankly at the fireworks, raised her head at Ethan’s words.

“They say if you make a wish when the seventh firework explodes, it will come true.”

It was when the fifth firework exploded.

She turned her head for no particular reason and met Kylef’s gaze from afar.

His eyes had been fixed on her ever since they came out onto the balcony.

Eroika covered her eyes with Ethan’s collar. Only after Kylef disappeared from her view did she close her eyes.

And she began to make her wish.

Not to the white light that had granted her first wish, but to someone else.

No one would ever know what her wish was.

When morning came, the impatient Bosarba invited Eroika to lunch.

Eroika attended the Emperor’s luncheon together with Ethan.

While the royal families of various countries were staying in Franz, Eroika was the first guest to be invited. It also meant that she had aroused Bosarba’s curiosity.

This was entirely because of her beautiful appearance.

“I wonder if you remember the food in Franz. Eroika, I heard you left the Empire when you were young.”

As light conversation continued, Bosarba began asking about Eroika in earnest.

Kylef happened to be there as well, so the Emperor’s question was appropriate. Eroika had to deceive Kylef, who knew everything about her. Before he could approach her first, like he had yesterday.

“Actually, I don’t remember anything. There was a small accident in Palestian. I have no memories of when I was young, Your Majesty. My memories begin in Palestian.”

Kylef stopped cutting his meat with his knife.

There was no way for him to know whether those words were true or not. However, he finally understood her behavior from the previous night. Why she had treated him like a complete stranger.

“How unfortunate. Then you must have lost all memories of your father as well. Then what made you decide to return to Franz?”

“I was curious because it is the land of my homeland, but more than anything, I wanted to restore my family.”

Eroika calmly began telling the story she had prepared beforehand.

“Later, when I grew older, I heard about my late father. I was told that our family disappeared because of his mistake. I want to correct my father’s mistake. Your Majesty, I would like to ask you to grant me the title of Duchess of Claudius.”

Eroika’s first goal was to reclaim the name of her lost family.

Bosarba fell into deep thought.

When Eroika first appeared, she had shown the Black Ivory Moon in front of him to prove her identity. However, he could not easily hand over a ducal title based on that alone.

“Hmm… But Claudius originally meant those who protected the Empire. With your body, it seems you would have trouble protecting even yourself, let alone the Empire…”

Bosarba looked over her body with lecherous eyes.

It was also true that her excessive beauty was somewhat irritating to him.

Why did all beautiful creatures shine on their own without making any effort?

“If you prove something, I might consider it…”

Although he was clearly looking down on Eroika because she was a woman, there was some logic behind his words.

The head of House Claudius had traditionally been someone who possessed a special power or was highly skilled with the sword.

He could not simply place Eroika, who had yet to prove anything, in the position of head of the family. The name Claudius was not something that could be obtained easily.

“If you are curious about my abilities, please ask me to do anything. If necessary, I will prove myself.”

Eroika did not back down at all despite the Emperor’s obvious provocation. Whatever it was, she was ready to show what she could do.

“What can you do? Cook? Or perhaps you would like to show us your embroidery?”

Bosarba’s rude mockery rose higher and higher. However, it was not enough to disturb Eroika’s composure.

“Would swordsmanship be enough?”

Nothing was known about her special power, but she was confident in her swordsmanship. At Eroika’s bold voice, without the slightest tremble, Kylef doubted his ears.

To speak of swordsmanship with such a delicate body, one that looked as though it had only ever held a kitchen knife or something similar. It sounded ridiculous, but it aroused Bosarba’s interest.

The absence of Claudius, who had protected the Empire, had clearly threatened the Empire. But on the other hand, it had strengthened the imperial authority. Halshatar had been able to monopolize the power it had once shared with Claudius.

Bosarba’s power was strong, but it was not enough to protect the Empire. Because of that, more and more factions were beginning to question the Emperor’s qualifications. For Bosarba, the appearance of a new Claudius was not pleasant at all.

Still, even if Eroika’s words were nothing more than empty boasting, it seemed better to confirm them.

To see whether he could keep her by his side.

If her existence seemed likely to threaten his position, he would have to take action quickly.

At the same time, he found it irritating that a woman who had suddenly appeared was asking for a ducal title.

“Swordsmanship… Yes, that will do. If you cross swords with a knight of Franz and defeat him, I will acknowledge your qualifications.”

The Emperor’s proposal was rather extraordinary. For Eroika, it was an extremely welcome proposition.

As Ethan’s knight, Eroika was accustomed to crossing swords with grown men every day. She was confident she could easily defeat most knights.

However, the Emperor was not so easygoing either.

“The First Sword of Franz, Kylef, would be a suitable opponent.”

The person Bosarba pointed to was none other than his younger brother, Kylef.

Kylef, who had been quietly listening to the conversation, frowned. He had given up on his meal a long time ago, but he had been quietly listening because he wanted to know what they were discussing.

That woman who claimed to have lost her memories was making an absurd gamble over the position of Duchess. Could she really have lost all her memories and gone crazy?

“Kylef, what do you think?”

“I refuse.”

The moment Bosarba asked, he firmly refused.

“It is a disgrace to the Imperial Family.”

He said it bluntly.

Kylef was a genius swordsman. People avoided crossing swords with him because they said that once they stood before him, he could read every sword path. On top of that, his overwhelming strength was one of Kylef’s greatest weapons.

Even Franz’s elite knights avoided Kylef. For him to use his sword against a woman would be a disgrace.

“Does His Highness the Crown Prince consider it a disgrace to cross swords with the descendant of Claudius, who protects the Empire?”

Eroika’s bold provocation, knowing full well that he could not possibly be unaware of this fact, was directed at Kylef.

“Everyone here will judge me as nothing more than a woman. But I intend to accept His Majesty’s proposal under the name of Claudius. Please do not put your personal feelings first. Think of the honor of the Empire and its subjects.”

Whether her words moved Kylef’s heart or not, they certainly strengthened Bosarba’s position.

Her unwavering eyes pierced straight through Kylef.

“Yes. She is right. Is it not irresponsible for a knight to pretend not to know the sword of someone who wishes to prove herself? Accept her challenge, little brother.”

Bosarba’s mocking sneer could almost be felt. He seemed happier than ever to have the chance to ridicule his younger brother after such a long time.

However, refusing any further would be, just as she said, a blow to his honor. He had no justification to argue against her, so he had to accept.

As soon as Eroika saw Kylef reluctantly nod, her heart began to pound.