Free Web NovelChapter 28: Ambition
In the majestic Imperial Palace that sat precisely at the center of the royal capital of the Holy Kingdom...
The night wrapped the surroundings in a shroud of solemn silence, the sky adorned with a fully complete moon—a brilliant full moon pouring its silver glow upon the marble balconies.
Upon that very balcony, which possessed a perfect view of the enchanting moon, Princess Sylvia stood completely alone, monitoring the distant horizon as her eyes reflected the glitter of the stars. She was surrounded by an aura of deep loneliness, to a degree that made King Maron—who had just entered through the balcony door—feel a pang of pity for his niece as he watched her in that miserable state.
Despite that pity, King Maron realized in the depths of his heart that his niece’s desire would never be fulfilled; for as it is said in the proverbs of the wise: "It is enough to look at the moon to realize with absolute certainty that you cannot reach it." And Cain was, to them, like a distant galaxy. King Maron had often thought that the disease of "overambition" and arrogance was what killed the members of the royal "De Marven" family in the past and brought the haughty among them to ruin. And because he personally was not highly ambitious and preferred safety, he had succeeded in remaining alive until now.
He moved two steps forward and called out to her in a calm tone, "Are you sad because he sent his subordinates here on his behalf, instead of coming himself?.."
The King wanted to console her and ease her burden despite everything. Even though he knew full well that her intense love for Cain—or whatever it was she harbored for him—was a dark tunnel that could drag the entire kingdom to hell, he could not stand idly by while watching Sylvia, the Grand Princess who had suppressed and subjugated all her brothers with her sharp intelligence to become the Crown Princess of the kingdom, in this miserable and broken state.
Sylvia replied coldly and briefly, without even turning to look at her uncle:
"I expected that from him... Honestly, this absence proves nothing. And if your purpose in coming is to tell me ’stop doing this,’ I will never listen to you."
King Maron wondered desperately within himself how to convince his stubborn niece that they were, in the end, mere political figureheads, and that the entire kingdom was being controlled and its strings pulled from behind the curtain by Cain alone. If Cain wanted to remove them from the throne and replace their family tomorrow, he could do so in the blink of an eye, and he would bring people a thousand times more competent than them to manage the country.
The King sighed and said, "Honestly, that was indeed one of my plans when I came... but I know very well that you are stubborn and will not listen to advice. Therefore, I changed my mind and came to ask you another question..."
Sylvia did not turn... instead, she lowered her line of sight to watch her young half-siblings from her deceased father, the former King, playing in the vast flower garden in front of the balcony, bright smiles gracing their fresh faces. They were running after one another and playing in innocence, bearing not a single shred of the anxiety or worries that weighed heavily upon her shoulders.
She said in a cold tone, "Then... why did you come?"
The King sighed once more; in the end, Sylvia was Sylvia. Even if he was her uncle and held the title of King, she did not grant him traditional respect due to her mental superiority over him. The King said in a serious tone:
"Honestly... I wanted to know if you are doing all this and risking yourself because you truly love Cain? Or because you are a practical woman by nature and simply want to be beside a powerful and terrifying person like him to guarantee you the summit? In the end, you have always been a woman who seeks mutual interests... but the dangers you are placing before yourself now—you won’t be the only one to bear their consequences if his wrath erupts."
Sylvia replied to him in a decisive tone:
"And what do you care about what I do? I am the one who will die in the end if I make a mistake, not you."
King Maron de Marven could do nothing but shake his head and say in resignation, "I will support your decision... full support without backing down.
If what you seek toward Cain is driven by true love, then it does not matter if we end and our family perishes; because I know that love is something illogical, a blind thing that you cannot control, which completely blinds your mind to reality and logic. But if you are doing this merely because he is extremely powerful and you want to raise your status and authority, then I have no business in the matter and will not intervene."
Sylvia laughed quietly all of a sudden... but her laughter was not because of King Maron’s words, but rather because one of her little brothers in the garden had put on a royal attire too large for him and began delivering funny speeches as if he were a real king amidst the other children who were applauding him.
The scene was highly endearing, to the extent that it caused her lips to part into a warm smile, but she quickly returned to her usual cold and stern face.
She turned toward her uncle and said sharply,
"Uncle... do you know who I am facing in this game? You know her well and you know her terror... It is the Blood Empress, Lucy Montgrad! If my matter were merely a reckless desire for greater authority or a fleeting throne... why then did I refuse to marry the protagonist Hykes when he offered that to me previously, despite his power and luminous status?"
The King replied immediately, confirming,
"I know... but although I do not understand from where all this courage and audacity came to you to know how to continue in this... I will support you. I will not stand in the way of my niece’s goals, even though I... with honesty and certainty, know that you will achieve nothing of this, and you will come out of this attempt with heavy losses that might end your life."
Sylvia said as her eyes blazed with a terrifying gleam,
"And I know that as well! I know with my entire being, and every single atom in my body knows—those very atoms that tremble in terror and freeze when I look at Lucy’s face or remember her existence... I know perfectly well that I might not succeed... But! I cannot stop myself from trying! What if I succeed? What if I become better than her in one thing that attracts him to me?"
The King interrupted her in a sad tone, fгeewebnovёl.com
"This is a losing confrontation, Sylvia..."
But Sylvia did not continue the theoretical argument; instead, she signaled with her hand toward the remnants of darkness inside, gesturing to one of her close maids to come and bring the secret item she had prepared in advance. The obedient maid nodded her head and went swiftly, sorting through the hidden boxes for a mysterious wine bottle and returning with it shortly after... a glass bottle emitting a dark crimson glow... specifically: the [Soul-Melting Wine].
Sylvia raised the bottle with strange expressions, saying as her eyes gleamed with obsession,
"This is the very same wine that Cain consumed years ago before entering his hotel room... and that despicable Lucy was waiting for him in his room, and under the influence of alcohol, they did that together.. If... if Cain consumes this wine once again, and finds me this time lying on his bed, and we do that together under the influence of this wine... won’t he love me and become bound to me as well against his will?"
King Maron was violently shocked. His steps recoiled backward as he trembled, whispering in sheer panic,
"No.. No.. No! Are you completely insane?! This wine, even if it is at the Noble Level, estimates indicate that Cain’s magical power is far higher than the Prince level. Offering it to an entity like Cain is absolute suicide and will rip your body apart!"
But Sylvia smiled... and this time, fierce, sharp expressions filled with genuine madness—no less than that of a yandere—overspread her face.
"No... it is not suicide, my uncle... I have secretly contacted and acquainted myself with one of the extremely powerful witches of the Forbidden Forests... Using her rituals and a simple trace of the targeted person, such as a hair or a drop of blood, she can add and blend it into the composition of this wine, to make that person—even if they are at the Immortal Level... fully affected by the dose and driven by their instinct!"
King Maron stood frozen in his place like a statue, the blood freezing in his veins. He could not utter a single word, knowing that his niece had already taken her first steps toward the brink of destruction.
