Chapter 130: Chapter 38. Condition

The long-awaited meeting of the Council of Ministers took place today.

All the statesmen, led by all the high-ranking ministers and officials, gathered in one hall to decide the fate of the imperial crown.

Since today was the last day of the deadline that was given to the current Crown Princess in order for her to come to the palace and accept her regalia on her own, they decided not to delay this matter any longer.

As the current regent of the empire, the Empress was also present at this meeting, although she could not vote. According to the law, members of the imperial family could not participate in such votes, in order for the final decision to be the most impartial.

For this reason, the woman remained here to a greater extent in the role of an outside observer, while other dignitaries discussed this issue.

The second princess also occupied one of the seats at the round table here. Since the girl was not only a princess of the empire, but also a captain of the Imperial Army, her presence here was considered no less important. Since Jerica could not participate in the voting, she did not engage in confrontations between the ministers, and just listened to this dialogue from the sidelines. Her expression was somewhat worried, and, in fact, the girl hadn’t left a certain bad feeling since the morning.

But, however, all the attention was now focused on another person in the audience.

— ...So, based on the results of today’s discussion, I propose to proceed to voting. Please raise your hands, those who agree to disqualify the current Crown Princess from her title.

As soon as the first minister of the empire called for the long-awaited vote to begin, a tense silence immediately fell in the assembly hall.

As expected, the majority of votes were cast to depose the Crown Princess from her title. Some of those present abstained from voting. And only a few people were in favor of keeping her place. However, in any case, the outcome of this vote seemed a foregone conclusion from the very beginning.

Since the overwhelming number of officials supported this decision, the First Minister, Nadan Leslie, concluded that perhaps a second vote was not necessary. At that moment, he exchanged glances with the Empress, and the woman nodded at him silently.

For this reason, he was about to open his mouth to announce the council’s decision on this matter, when suddenly...

The wide doors leading to the assembly hall suddenly swung open.

— Mother, Council of Ministers, I apologize for my tardiness. I hope I haven’t come too late yet?

As luck would have it, this man’s unpredictable visit at the most inopportune moment ruined everything as usual.

As soon as a young woman with brown hair and golden eyes like a predator suddenly appeared in the room, all the ministers instinctively got scared and shuddered. After all, all the inhabitants of the palace still had a clear memory of that fateful day when a real massacre was staged in the imperial palace.

For this reason, almost everyone present lost their composure and became seriously scared. All except one person.

The Empress jumped up from her seat at the same moment.

— What’s that supposed to mean? You’ve been missing for who knows where all this time, and you’ve finally come back just now! I’m asking, where have you been all this time?

Despite the fact that the unexpected visit of the Crown Princess created a rather tense situation, but because of her inner anger, Valencia could not restrain herself and even raised her tone.

However, her hated stepdaughter, as usual, answered her with a sly smile.

— It so happened that there were matters in my residence that did not require delay. For this reason, I had to stay late.

«Huh? Business?»

What the hell could be more important than inheriting the title of emperor?

Beside herself with anger, Valencia Gross de Ronan clenched her fists.

In other words, the words of this scoundrel could be interpreted in no other way than by spitting in the direction of the imperial crown.

Although it was a completely outrageous excuse and a complete disrespect for the traditions of the empire, the Empress still tried to restrain herself. Taking a deep breath, she lowered her tone and said:

— Anyway, you came too late. The Council of Ministers and I have already held a vote on your deposition, and according to its results...

However, at that moment, Kaena interrupted her.

— I’m sorry. But has my term really expired? — she asked.

— what? — The Empress frowned.

— Isn’t today the last day of my deadline? This means that since I am here now, this vote cannot be considered valid.

— ...

— So what do you say, Mother? Can I still be here? — Kaena grinned as if nothing had happened.

The Empress, still indignant inwardly, clenched her teeth.

Even if she was categorically against it, but it was really hard to argue with the words of this bastard. Legally, since the appointed term of succession had not yet expired, Kaena could still take the throne in her rightful right. Besides, not to mention that, in fact, this madwoman could just try to capture him by force at any moment...

Based on these concerns, Valencia still had to moderate its ardor. In the end, having accepted the situation, she asked a question:

«In that case, did you really come to inherit the throne?»

Kaena de Ronan chuckled.

«Why not? Mother, you’ve always been well aware of my intentions. But... I have only one condition that I hope you will agree to.»

«what? What other condition could there be in such a situation...?!»

Sensing the growing tension, Valencia stared at her with piercing eyes.

«What exactly are you talking about?» The Empress inquired coldly.

The Crown Princess continued unperturbed:

— As you know, our empire has been in conflict with the Ruberon Empire for quite some time. And despite the fact that my father once concluded a peace agreement with them, it seems to me that it is about to be violated.

The Empress frowned even more. She couldn’t understand why this girl would suddenly bring it up at a time like this.

It is true that the Ruberon Empire has long been a source of concern for their empire. Since it was a fairly powerful power, not inferior to the Ruwen Empire, the late emperor decided that instead of wasting unnecessary resources on a war with them, the best solution would be to conclude a peace agreement with them. It has been in effect for the past fifteen years.

However, recently, everything has changed. Due to the current unstable situation in the Ruthven Empire related to the death of the emperor, the Ruberon Empire has become significantly emboldened. After all, their military camps were already very close to the borders of the empire, which created a rather dangerous situation. For this reason, the issue of succession to the throne also needed to be resolved as soon as possible in order to resolve this situation.

However, Valencia still didn’t understand why her stepdaughter was bringing up the subject right now.

«What are you getting at?» she asked bluntly.

However, contrary to all her expectations, Kaena de Ronan unexpectedly stated:

«Let me go to the border of our empire to settle this matter.

The Empress was momentarily speechless from surprise.

«You... Are you saying that you’re going to go to war?» she asked immediately.

«That’s right.»

— But... — she faltered, — What, in that case, will happen to the issue of succession to the throne...?

The Crown Princess’s lips stretched into a thin smile.

«I think it won’t take long to resolve this issue,» she said, «or rather, I’m asking you to give me just a month. Yes, I think that will be enough. As soon as this war is over and I can be at peace with the fate of our empire, I will return and properly accept my obligations to the crown.

Suffering a strange premonition about this venture, Valencia couldn’t help but ask:

«But in that case, why not take the throne first? Why wait a month for this?»

The Empress couldn’t help but suspect something was wrong and was waiting for an answer to her question.

«After leading the empire, I will no longer be as free in my actions as I am now,» Kaena said, «My responsibility to the empire will not allow me to risk my life so easily. Besides, by going to the battlefield, I can leave the imperial palace vulnerable without its ruler. For this reason, I want to resolve this issue right now. I hope that you, Mother, will be able to look after the empire in my absence.

The woman’s blue pupils narrowed suspiciously. However, in the end, she sneered maliciously and said:

— Well, as you wish. In that case, we can postpone the issue of the coronation until the day you return.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read