# Chapter 81
Chapter 81
Cayena noticed how sore her hands were.
It felt like she was exerting a lot of force; she saw a red handprint on Raphael's hand.
“I'm very sorry.
I was very surprised…
Raphael gently ran his hand over her fingers.
He comforted her, as if saying everything would be okay.
His hands warmed her.
Gradually, his reason returned.
“I'll prepare the carriage.
“Thanks.
Cayena was about to pull her hands away, but Raphael didn't let go.
“I'll go with you.
She raised her head in surprise.
She couldn't say he didn't need to go with her.
To tell the truth, she was relieved he was around.
In the end, Cayena headed to the palace with Raphael by her side.
They didn't speak to each other on the carriage ride to the castle.
Lost in thought, she looked out the window.
What could she do now.
What could she do in the future.
What she had to protect.
Cayena definitely organized her thoughts.
The court ladies welcomed her as soon as the carriage stopped.
Vera couldn't sleep after hearing about the second kidnapping attempt the night before.
“How is your body?
How could such an unpleasant thing happen again…?
Vera, on the verge of tears, looked at Cayena.
“I am fine.
I was ready for something like that.
Beside them was Olivia, whose face didn't look good either.
Cayena reassured them: — I'm very well.
You have nothing to worry about.
Instead, I heard that the emperor coughed up blood – what happened?
“The doctor is with His Majesty now.
“And Rezef?
“He left to investigate your incident.
He will probably hear the news soon and return to the palace.
Cayena felt her head throb.
“It’s really not easy.”
She had already experienced the loss of her father.
She thought that with her previous two lives, she had become desensitized to it.
But unlike the objective mind, the body reacts to death.
"Henverton Gillian is also dead and gone.
I just have to get rid of the things that threaten me."
Cayena said to the ladies: — Olivia, help me.
Everyone else can follow Vera's lead to hold down the fort.
“We obey your command.
“I will go to see His Majesty.
Cayena rushed to the emperor's chambers.
Raphael silently followed in her footsteps.
When Cayena arrived in front of the room, a doctor was coming out.
Cayena immediately asked, “How is Your Majesty?”
The doctor bowed to the princess and replied: — After taking his medication, His Majesty expectorated blood while rinsing his mouth with tea.
His condition is not critical, but he must rest.
Cayena knew that the emperor's symptoms from being poisoned had worsened.
“This is also Rezef’s work.”
She replied that she understood and sent the doctor away.
Cayena glanced at Raphael before entering the emperor's room.
Raphael opened his mouth as soon as their eyes met.
“I'll be here, waiting for you.
Cayena nodded and entered the room.
Inside were the two main pillars of the imperial family: Chancellor Debussy and Commander Jed, leader of the knights.
They bowed sharply to Cayena.
The emperor was conscious.
When he saw that the princess had arrived in the room, he said reprimandingly: — Everyone is making a fuss about nothing.
I was informed that you were at Duke Kedrey's mansion.
“I came as soon as I found out.
I apologize for not being by your side.
The emperor shook his head.
“What could you have done?
It's my fault I let you out even though one of your accomplices wasn't caught.
Not that Cayena had taken a small number of escorts.
It was Yester's arrogance that resulted in the attack on the temple annex.
The church, which was obviously angry about the incident, was sure to search the entire capital for the perpetrators.
The paladins, the knights of the temple, now had a reason to act.
It would be very noisy for a while.
This could intimidate Rezef and other nobles who could be suspected of attacking Cayena.
They would be moving carefully and silently for a while.
“I'm sorry, Your Majesty.
I didn't think they would dare to enter the temple.
Emperor Esteban leaned back against the cushion.
Supported by Chamberlain Luden, he appeared to have aged greatly.
The chancellor read the mood and said: — Your Highness, Prince Rezef will expose the one who dared to harm His Highness and underminer temple authority.
You don't need to worry, Your Majesty.
The emperor nodded and asked, “Is Rezef investigating the incident again?”
“Yes.
Cayena went to her father's side and held his hand.
She tried to remember what the emperor was like at this time in his original life.
His memories were not very clear.
She didn't know what he looked like before he died, how wrinkled he was, or how coarse his silver hair had become.
It was understandable since she didn't visit him often.
Had she seen his face when she placed flowers on his well-treated corpse in the temple?
At that time, she shed a few tears, swept away by the atmosphere.
But the corpse made her uneasy and she left almost immediately.
She didn't know how much she was criticized for being a bad daughter.
She didn't even care.
Was it because she came back after living a difficult life?
His father, who leaned weakly on the bed, was neither as frightening nor hateful as before.
“How did things end up like this?”
Then, a servant silently tried to remove the teacup.
Cayena looked at that movement and saw that the teacup was still almost full.
There was poison there.
She asked the servant: — Was there a problem with the medicine?
“No, Your Highness.
The medicine was properly mixed.
“And the tea?
There was no discoloration on the silver spoon?
“Yes, Your Highness.
Cayena laughed inside.
It was a blatant lie.
“How do you know that?
What if it's a poison that can't be detected by the spoon?
But in this case, the problem was not the poison that did not react to the silver, but rather the spoon that was not silver.
Cayena took the cup from the maid's hands.
“You can't tell with just one person.
She drank half of the remaining tea.
The servant was surprised and shocked.
“Y-Your Highness?
Cayena checked the rest of the tea.
She handed the cup to the maid, whose eyes were half-closed in apprehension.
“Just in case, you should try this too.
“…
“I told you to drink!
— The servant was paralyzed.
He knew the tea contained poison.
“He has no way of knowing.”
She stared him straight in the face, as if she would never look away until he finished drinking.
The servant finally drank the rest of the tea.
His face turned grim, like a person about to fall and die.
When he emptied the teacup completely, he had an expression that looked like he wanted to vomit.
Cayena looked at him sternly and then turned away.
“You look fine, so it's probably okay.
Of course the servant was fine.
The poison that Rezef used was not a poison that killed people immediately.
It was something that killed, gradually making the body sick.
“Double-check how the medicine is made, just to be sure.
And make sure there are no abnormalities in the tea.
Emperor Esteban silently watched all this happen.
He weakly patted the back of his daughter's hand.
“I thought your temper had died.
Despite his words, he didn't seem to be finding fault with her.
“It is at these times that we must regulate Your Majesty's environment.
“The fact that you know how to think like this shows that you have become a proper adult in the imperial family.
“Please don't say that.
I still have many things I need to learn from you, father.
“That's right.
Did you enjoy taking care of internal affairs for ten days?
“…why is he asking me this?”
Of course, once she had power, she inspected the various departments, rooted out corruption, and fixed the leaking treasury.
While this certainly helped set the imperial house on the right path, it was no longer under Cayena's jurisdiction.
It wasn't something to be discussed in this situation.
“It was my first time doing a job like this, so it hadn't gone well,” she replied humbly.
“You don't need to be so modest.
Taking care of a cash flow leak is not an easy job.
“You flatter me.
“I'm very old now.
Every day, I feel like my body is not the same as before.
“Your Majesty…
“But now that the princess is all grown up and doing well as part of the imperial lineage, I am relieved.
Cayena became more and more confused as he continued to speak.
The emperor spoke as if he had something to give.
“I remember that I did not give you compensation for your work as a princess.
Cayena looked at the emperor with a slightly surprised expression.
She had already received the letter to appoint Raphael asmilitary ruler of the west in exchange for his governance of internal affairs.
It was true that few people knew about it, but the emperor seemed to be gifting something to her officially, with the chancellor and the knight commander as witnesses.
The emperor opened his mouth.
“Starting today, I grant Princess Cayena Hill the same authority as the Chancellor to serve as my regent.
Everyone in the room was stunned.