By the time Rodmenlin was sipping the tea poured by the maidservant, he saw the infamous Imperial Princess once more, and his eyes lit up again.
Though rumors about this Princess spread wildly, very few actually knew her, or had even seen Velis in person.
Rodmenlin had only caught glimpses of Velis from afar before, and it was only earlier at court that he had seen her up close.
Back then, Velis had possessed an etiquette befitting a lady that contradicted the outside rumors, and beneath the cover of her beauty, there was even a touch of delicate, endearing girlhood.
Now, Velis wore a plain white dress, with a red ribbon draping down from her snow-white neck and tied into a knot at her waist.
A very simple outfit, yet it only further accentuated the hostess’s elegant beauty, noble as a pure lotus.
Her fiery red hair fluttered in the wind. The moment Velis entered, the room was filled with fragrance, brimming with spring.
Rodmenlin quickly rose to pay his respects, and Velis raised her hand, gesturing for him to sit back down.
However, even this Inquisition Official himself didn’t notice the flicker of disappointment that crossed his face when Velis sat down in a chair far away from him.
“All of you, leave.”
Velis waved her hand, and the guards and maidservants around her acknowledged the order and retreated, keeping their distance.
Then, this Imperial Princess turned her gaze to her guest.
“Might I ask if the Inquisition Official has come here because there’s been progress on the case?”
Her red lips parted slightly, her voice sweet and melodious. If Velis hadn’t had such a terrible reputation, she might very well have been able to compete for the title of the Empire’s greatest beauty.
Suppressing the stirring in his heart, Rodmenlin silently cursed himself for being so old yet still getting flustered over a young girl.
He quickly stood up and bowed. “The reason I’ve come, the outward excuse is that, but more than anything, I wished to speak with Your Highness about the current affairs at court.”
“Oh?” Velis crossed her legs and asked, “Regarding matters at court, my father has already reached his conclusions. Does the Inquisition Official perhaps hold a different view?”
“I wouldn’t dare… it’s just…”
Rodmenlin glanced around, then gritted his teeth. On his honest, square face with wide-set eyes, a resolute, determined expression appeared.
“It’s just that I have something I wish to say to Your Highness, the Princess…”
“Mm, go ahead.” Velis seemed rather uninterested, as if she didn’t really want to know.
The next second, Rodmenlin raised a question: “Your Highness, don’t you find it strange?”
“Strange about what?” Velis pretended not to know.
“Since you were just attacked yesterday morning, by all rights the Inquisition Office should have intervened immediately, and it would have been the normal choice to halt or postpone your Inaugural Speech.”
“Yet His Majesty the Emperor personally attended, and insisted that Your Highness complete the Inaugural Speech. In such a situation… Your Highness was completely unprepared, and even injured…”
Rodmenlin paused and looked at Velis’s expression, but she merely gave him a look telling him to continue.
He had gambled right!
“Wouldn’t such an approach be exactly like expecting you to fail your inauguration? And I’ve heard that the Vice Dean Mark, along with some professors and teachers, deliberately made things difficult for you…”
Rodmenlin’s implication was already quite clear. Velis let out a scoff and asked calmly.
“Rodmenlin, do you know how many times over your words have earned you death? In any era, sowing discord between father and daughter, especially in the Imperial family, is a crime worthy of execution, is it not?”
Hearing this, Rodmenlin immediately trembled all over and prostrated himself on the ground, crying out repeatedly, “I wouldn’t dare! I was merely speculating based on facts, feeling indignant on Your Highness’s behalf!”
What an act. But it was far too clumsy.
Was there not a single decent actor in this other world?
Velis let out a helpless sigh. “Enough, Inquisition Official. There’s no one else here, so drop the act. Go on, what else do you want to say?”
“Your Highness!” Rodmenlin stood up and gave a bow.
Then his tone shifted.
“But after you were attacked again at night, His Majesty the Emperor’s handling was like a completely different person. Not only did he personally look into the matter, he even summoned all of us officials to the palace and gave us a thorough scolding…”
“Actually, he’s been waiting all along for us to say that name—!”
Rodmenlin stopped, not uttering that name.
And hearing this, Velis understood his meaning. This was also a point she herself wasn’t entirely clear on.
Emperor Lubas’s attitude after Velis had been attacked twice was wildly inconsistent, but if one considered it under the assumption that [the rumor that the Emperor doesn’t like the Second Imperial Princess is true], then it made perfect sense.
“So, Lord Rodmenlin has come to me seeking a reward?”
Velis naturally knew what name Rodmenlin hadn’t spoken—Nightfall.
That underground organization belonging to Velis!
Though many people weren’t aware of Nightfall’s existence, let alone who its master was, that didn’t mean the Inquisition Office and the Emperor didn’t know.
With just a little investigation, one could trace Nightfall back to Velis.
But those who had attacked Velis last night were Nightfall’s own people?
That was the truly ironic part.
If Rodmenlin spoke it out at court, Emperor Lubas would likely immediately order the organization to be wiped out.
As for why Rodmenlin didn’t say it, Velis didn’t believe it was merely because he wanted to preserve the Nightfall organization for her.
In his way of thinking, he probably still assumed Velis needed this organization and didn’t want it destroyed by the Empire, which was why he hadn’t said anything…
But in Velis’s view, Nightfall was already riddled with holes, and keeping it or not didn’t really matter anymore.
However, the previous Velis hadn’t had much communication with the Inquisition Office and their relationship wasn’t close, so at this moment, she was curious as to why he was doing this.
This gesture of goodwill might have come suddenly, but there must be some reason behind it.
“I wouldn’t dare!” Rodmenlin quickly shook his head. “I merely heard a rumor that recently, His Majesty the Emperor wanted to establish another institution or organization of some sort, in order to strip away the Inquisition Office’s power within the Empire…”
Hearing this, Velis was taken aback.
This piece of news was quite explosive. But since it hadn’t come true yet and was only speculation, it didn’t seem so urgent.
Velis narrowed her eyes and spoke out Rodmenlin’s purpose for coming.
“So then, Inquisition Official believes that my father, deliberately using these two assassination attempts against me, is doing so first to rebuke you all for your incompetence, for suffering repeated setbacks, and for allowing thieves to infiltrate the Imperial court inside and out, using that as a pretext to carve up your power and build a new apparatus?”
“And second, to also use this to wipe out my strength, secure his throne, and suppress the ambitions of his own children to rise to power?”
Hearing this, Rodmenlin was so frightened he prostrated himself completely: “I wouldn’t dare! I’ve never even had such thoughts!”
His voice was hoarse from shouting, but the act was also quite obvious, as if he was afraid Velis wouldn’t see through it.
“Wouldn’t dare? Or never even thought of it?” the Imperial Princess asked softly in return.
For a moment, the entire hall fell into silence.
Such speculation was no longer a simple matter. If it ever leaked out, neither of them present would have any good days ahead.
Rodmenlin would certainly face severe punishment, dragging his family down with him.
And as for Velis, though she wouldn’t suffer much, maliciously speculating about her own father would certainly not end well either.
Such matters could be big or small, entirely depending on the Emperor’s attitude.
So words like this could only be spoken in private. If spread, it would benefit neither of them.
But since things had reached this point, Rodmenlin had already achieved his purpose for today.
So he decided to pour more fuel on the fire.
“Your Highness, have you ever considered that the world is full of ruthless, venomous people? What you’ve done, in our eyes, is merely something laughable and trivial. There are countless great villains far more deserving of criticism than you…”
“But why is it, that across the entire Empire, only your infamy spreads so fiercely, and yet there’s no one within the Empire trying to stop it?”
At this point, Rodmenlin’s target seemed to be pointing at the current Emperor, as if trying to tie Velis to his war chariot.
And in truth, if Rodmenlin’s information and speculation were true, then neither of them had a path of retreat.
A faint smile curled at the corner of Velis’s mouth. “It seems the Inquisition Official came here today with every intention of succeeding.”
PS:
For the sake of the story, the next chapter needs to be rewritten.
For now, just one update.
If I can finish rewriting it and it works out, I’ll post it tonight.