At Reinhardt's words, Marquis Arjen's eyes trembled.
'How did he know?
No, how long has he known?'
When he heard that Madeleine had poisoned Cornelia, he thought his daughter was foolish.
You should have handled it confidentially, without anyone knowing—like he did.
Even though he thought he had covered his tracks perfectly, he was in a momentary panic when he realized that this immature person knew about it.
But that was only for a moment.
'True, there is no evidence.
He's clearly just trying to solicit information.'
The Marquis regained his composure and decided to feign ignorance.
“Archduke, I have no idea what you are talking about.”
“What do you mean...”
Reinhardt removed his hand from the Marquis's shoulder and sat down across from him.
After a moment, he spoke with a smile on his delicate face.
"What I'm saying is that the foolish Empress was giving the Emperor daily a tonic provided by her brother, but it was actually poison.
She made sure it was given in small doses over a long period so that it would not be detected in the tests."
Reinhardt sat at an angle, resting his chin on his hand, and stared at the pale Marquis Arjen.
As if he was watching something amusing.
"Marquis Arjen, did you really think I was making baseless assumptions about you?
I would never do such a thing.
Arrogance is something only fools like you display."
'Has he always been like this?'
The young royal never hesitated to do anything for the empire.
He was always kind to the weak, humble despite his intelligence, and possessed outstanding leadership—an impeccable character without faults.
Furthermore, he had distanced himself from power, declining major positions at the emperor's encouragement.
However, the Reinhardt in front of Marquis Arjen now seemed like an unknown monster manipulating humans, so mysterious that his true nature could not even be measured.
"What do you want from me?"
Reinhardt replied, his expression steely, with authority.
“First, get on your knees.”
In a situation where he was vulnerable, refusing this order could lead to unpredictable consequences.
Marquis Arjen slid off the sofa and knelt down, and Reinhardt smiled contentedly.
“Good, now you are at the correct eye level.”
Even though that was extremely insulting, Marquis Arjen couldn't say a word.
He was fully aware of the obvious dominance his opponent possessed.
'If the Archduke opens his mouth and poison is detected, I'm done.'
Then Reinhardt spoke.
“Marquis, will you be my dog from today on?”
At those words, Marquis Arjen held back his anger and stared at Reinhardt.
Reinhardt curled his lips and continued.
“A loyal dog that obeys my commands and only listens to me.”
The title was derogatory, but it basically meant becoming a close follower.
'Even if he has my weakness, that's too much.
My nephew is going to be Emperor, not the boy who hasn't even achieved the title of Archduke yet.'
Although he was currently under the supervision of the Emperor and exiled from the capital, his nephew, Franz, was to become Emperor.
If he chooses the Archduke, he will be separated from Franz.
Just when Marquis Arjen was about to say something out of frustration, Reinhardt interrupted him.
“Oh, I see.
Does it hurt your pride to be asked to become a vassal to a mere Archduke when you are the uncle of the future Emperor?”
As Arjen's face hardened at the precise words that stabbed him, Reinhardt raised the corners of his mouth.
“If that idiot Franz becomes Emperor, how long do you think the empire will last?
Ten years at most?”
Instead of responding, Marquis Arjen clenched his fists at Reinhardt's sharp comment.
It was very rude to say that, but honestly, even he couldn't help but think that the empire had no future with Franz as Emperor.
'Yes, he will be lucky if it lasts even ten years.'
However, Reinhardt did not stop there; He struck at the heart of the problem that Marquis Argen had in mind.
“Moreover, Franz will not be able to challenge the Emperor’s will.
How can he exercise power from outside the capital?”
Indeed, this was the reason why Marquis Argens was so angry at the decree of banishment.
Franz had no intention of defying the Emperor's will, nor did he have the intelligence to come up with a justification that would allow him to circumvent him and return himself to the capital.
“So, is that why you summoned me today—to make fun of me?”
“No, I'm sure I stated that clearly.”
As the voice of the one commanding him to become his dog echoed in his mind, the Marquis's face flushed with anger.
“I'm leaving!”
At that moment, Reinhardt called out to his retreating back.
"Are you thinking of giving up like this?
Do you intend to live as a failure, forever exiled from the capital?"
“Archduke!”
When the Marquis Argen's angry outburst—
“I will become emperor.”
At Reinhardt's words, the Marquis's eyes widened.
"What?"
Reinhardt, always with a smiling face, was known to circle around the Emperor.
He never went against the Emperor's wishes, and only did things that pleased him.
For example, when he was asked to become the commander of the Imperial Knights…
Even when offered the most tempting rewards, Reinhardt always refused.
However, it was now unbelievable that such a person would discuss treason.
"If you follow my orders well, I promise you a reward.
It will be a sweeter power than using Franz as a puppet."
Faced with an unbelievable situation and an offer he could not refuse, Marquis Arjen was stunned.
Then—
“So, decide.
Either you die here without a sound or you become my dog and survive,”
Marquis Arjen laughed blankly.
It seemed as if he was given a choice, but there was no real choice.
He was just a toy being played by a monster.
'I shouldn't have come to this palace…'
At the same time, he thought, 'However, someone like him could only exercise power for so long.
Until the day I die.’ Marquis Arjen lowered his head and spoke.
“I swear my loyalty.”
At that moment, Reinhardt was about to smile contentedly.
“But only if you answer one question.”
"What is it?"
“No matter how capable the Archduke is, you need a proper justification to usurp the throne of the current Emperor.”
“This is wrong.”
"What?"
"Why would I grab it?
There's an easier way."
“What kind of...”
“I will become the Emperor’s son-in-law and inherit the throne.”
When Marquis Arjen heard this, he doubted his ears.
After all, he knew that the Emperor only had one daughter.
“Are you saying Cornelia is still alive?”
At that moment, Reinhardt suddenly got up and kicked the Marquis in the stomach.
"Yes!"
As the Marquis groaned in unexpected pain, Reinhardt whispered, "You'd better never mention that name again.
Her name is now entirely mine."
As he met Reinhardt's crazy golden eyes, the Marquis instinctively felt that a wrong answer might mean death here.
“I will keep that in mind, sir.”
Reinhardt returned to his seat with a satisfied smile.
However, Marquis Arjen was still troubled by unanswered questions.
'How on earth is Cornelia still alive?'
At that moment, as if reading his thoughts, Reinhardt spoke.
“You seem curious about how the princess is still alive.”
"no."
“No; you should know.
This whole situation was directed by the Emperor from the beginning.”
"What do you mean by that …?"
After a moment of confusion, the Marquis understood everything.
“Then, since my family and Duke Brant’s family are powerful, use the princess as an excuse to get rid of me, so that when Franz becomes Emperor, I will not be an obstacle.”
“It's good to see you understand so quickly.
It's worth being a follower.”
The Marquis laughed at that.
He never imagined that he, the Crown Prince's uncle, would end up thinking about making someone else emperor.
‘However, since public opinion of Franz currently is poor, siding with him might be a better bet.
The key is to secure Cornelia.'
“In this case, locating the princess is the priority...”
"Don't worry.
I've appointed a helpful dog at her side.
So... you should forget about the princess."
Faced with Reinhardt's increasingly menacing gaze, the Marquis had no choice but to remain silent.
Reinhardt, watching him, raised one corner of his mouth and spoke.
“In five years, Cornelia will be declared dead and separated from the Duke of Brant.”
A cruel smile appeared on Reinhardt's face.
“When that time comes, all I need is to make her choose me.”
Flutter-!
A white bird flapped its wings and flew out the window.
Before him stood Janet, and Sardine approached with a wrinkled face.
“Janet, are you sending a message now...?”
Janet furrowed her eyebrows and pointed her finger at the bird.
"What?
Look at his legs."
Sardin couldn't help but show an embarrassed expression.
There was nothing attached to the bird's legs.
“I apologize.
I made a mistake.
My lady ordered me to remain alert.”
Janet relaxed her expression and spoke.
“It's okay.
It's normal to be sensitive since the lady is about to give birth.”
Sardin sighed and spoke.
"Thank you for your understanding."
At that moment, someone called out to Janet.
It was Cornelia.
“Janet, can you come in for a moment?”
Janet smiled at Sardine and said, “Then, excuse me.”
Janet turned her back on Sardin and turned to Cornelia, her smile fading.