A Mastermind? No, I'm just the Live-In Son-in-Law-Chapter 101: The Emperor’s Shadow

“How do you know the Emperor’s secret?”

“...Good question?”

“Hah, are you trying to brush it off again?”

The lady, who had looked momentarily dazed at my words, soon frowned deeply and took a step closer to me.

“Normally, I might have let it slide, but not this time.”

“Why not?”

“I can clean up after most of the incidents you cause, but the Emperor is the exception.”

She was right.

No matter how much authority Meredia Embergreen currently wielded as the acting head of House Embergreen, things changed if the opponent was the Emperor.

The immense power held by the Empire’s only ducal house was enough to keep even the Imperial family in check — but it was still only check, nothing more.

Moreover, the current Emperor, Lilith Winter Clouds, was someone who had successfully completed a coup and seized total control over the Imperial family’s power.

Compared to Meredia, who had yet to fully purge the elders and factions within her own house, it was obvious who would have the advantage in a direct clash.

‘Not that I can just brute-force it like in the original story.’

If it ever truly came down to it, a military confrontation might have to be considered, but even the chances of success for that were uncertain after today’s events.

If the Emperor was lurking somewhere around our mansion — close enough to keep Lunelle within view — then there was no way the lady or the other executives wouldn’t have noticed.

Yet Lunelle had clearly been under the influence of a power presumed to belong to ⊛ Nоvеlιght ⊛ (Read the full story) the Emperor for quite some time now.

“Fine. I won’t press you on how you know.”

“......”

“But I do need to know what you know.”

Meredia sighed lightly as she watched me scratching the back of my head awkwardly, then lowered her voice as she questioned me.

“Depending on the strength of the information you have, our odds might improve.”

“Our odds...”

“Whether we can leash the lion or not — that’s what I mean.”

Thankfully, it seemed the lady intended to cooperate with me after all.

Well, after everything we’ve been through together, it’d honestly be disappointing if she didn’t.

“Lady Meredia, could you lend me your ear for a moment?”

“Hmm?”

“Haha. I know it’s a little late to worry about security, but I think this one’s better kept just between us.”

I leaned in close to whisper the original information — something only I would know at this point — into her ear.

“...What did I just hear what did I just hear what did I just hear...”

Booming noises sounded in succession as Sasha, who had rushed in thinking the interview was over, ended up overhearing something she absolutely should not have.

She was now holding her ears and muttering to herself, and I really needed to avoid another incident like that.

“Listen carefully. The Emperor is actually—”

“...Master.”

Just as I was about to quietly share the highest-level classified information into Lady Meredia’s ear —

“Lunelle?”

Lunelle suddenly interrupted from behind, looking like a soaked, forlorn puppy.

“Why the hell are you barging in and ruining—no, never mind.”

Meredia, momentarily about to explode in a fit of curses at the worst possible timing, saw Lunelle’s terribly serious expression and sighed heavily, turning her head away.

“Please... please forgive my disgrace...”

“Disgrace? What are you talking about?”

“I dared... disobey Master’s orders...”

“No, that wasn’t your fault, was it?”

Thus, I naturally ended up facing Lunelle, who for some reason was acting even more submissive than usual today.

I smiled awkwardly and began gently coaxing her.

“No matter how much you sever ties from the past, when it comes crashing back into your face, it’s natural for the bond to faintly reconnect.”

“......”

“So it’s not your fault. Even I would’ve wavered.”

At that, Lunelle rolled her eyes around for a moment, gauging my reaction, then suddenly seemed to firm her resolve and opened her mouth again.

“...I have a request.”

“Yes, please say anything.”

“My two... the ones who were once my blood kin...”

Looking slightly puzzled, I listened — and was left stunned by her next words.

“Please... could you spare their lives?”

“What?”

What came out of her mouth was, astonishingly, a plea for the lives of her two younger siblings, who were lying collapsed behind her.

“If you wish, you may take my life instead.”

“......?”

“So long as you let them live.”

No, hold on.

This is making it sound like this sacred interview hall was actually some kind of wicked execution trap set to kill them.

What the hell suddenly brought this on?

***

“Why are you suddenly saying that?”

“...Master, please.”

“No, let’s at least hear your reason.”

Whitney, who had been tilting his head in confusion for a while, finally let out a sigh at Lunelle’s continued pleading and began listening to her.

“They have lived their whole lives overshadowed by me.”

Lunelle’s slightly trembling voice began to spill out.

“Richard Misthylene, Evangeline Misthylene. Both of them awakened their sword aura at a young age. Had they been born into an ordinary family, they would have been treasured.”

Whitney scratched his head as he listened, his expression growing more serious.

“But they were born, of all places, into the Misthylene Count’s House where you were.”

“...Exactly.”

With a darker expression, Lunelle continued.

“It’s awkward for me to say this myself, but by the time I turned ten, there was no one who could best me in swordsmanship.”

“......”

“And so, it was inevitable that my father, who was as mad about the sword as I was, poured everything into me.”

At first glance, Lunelle’s words might have sounded boastful, but no one listening, including Whitney, found them disagreeable.

There was no need to cite specific examples — even the brief spar earlier with her siblings had proven Lunelle’s unmatched skill.

“...And because of that, my siblings lived their lives in the shadows.”

“......”

“It wasn’t just darkness. It must have been a hell of relentless, cruel training.”

Thus, the words spilling from Lunelle’s mouth carried even more weight.

Though they were never lacking in talent, to even follow faintly behind the footsteps of someone considered a future Sword Saint candidate like Lunelle would have demanded immense effort and suffering.

“Evangeline was well past the age when she should have debuted in society, but instead of dresses, all she had were calluses. Richard, I know, endured harsh abuse disguised as training from our father.”

And contrary to what the siblings themselves might have thought — that no one understood — Lunelle fully grasped it.

“To be honest, much of it is my fault. I was so obsessed with the sword that I lived without seeing anything else.”

“......”

“Because of my selfishness and my fall from grace, my siblings had to taste a hell they never wanted.”

And she knew well why her siblings now looked at her with such hateful eyes.

Though she had known deep down, Lunelle had always avoided confronting that truth.

And even now, avoiding it would have been the easier choice for her.

“Therefore, I beg you. Please, forgive my two siblings.”

Yet for some reason, Lunelle did not run from it this time.

“I know very well that my siblings came to dig into you and me, Master. That alone is enough to warrant a death sentence.”

“Hmmm...”

“But somehow... somehow, could you not show mercy?”

Instead of being the sword and tool she had vowed to become, she was now pleading for her Master to stay his blade.

“Let me ask just one thing.”

Of course, Whitney had no intention of truly harming the siblings in the first place — he had only planned to deal with them lightly and send them away — but even so, this turn of events was a little bewildering.

“Is this decision of yours made as my sword, or as their elder sister?”

Resting his chin in his hand, Whitney thought it over before smiling faintly, realizing that understanding the heart of the situation was more important than anything else right now. freёwebnoѵel.com

“...I don’t know.”

Of course, Whitney’s smile turned a little chilling, and Lunelle, bowing her head unconsciously, answered in a trembling voice.

“But I just... wanted to say this.”

Yet despite her face filled with confusion, Lunelle’s next words came out firm and unwavering.

“You are admirable, Lunelle.”

Watching Lunelle with immense pride, Whitney quietly placed his hand on her shoulder and whispered.

“To think you could move beyond being just my loyal sword and tool, and express your personal feelings.”

“Ah...”

“I’m so touched I don’t know what to do.”

Of course, Whitney genuinely meant the praise and encouragement he sent this time as well.

“P-Please... f-forgive my i-impudence...”

“...No, I said I liked it, didn’t I?”

But Whitney, lowering himself to meet Lunelle’s eye level where she knelt on the floor, wore an even more chilling smile — whether his sincerity was properly conveyed, no one could say.

“But are you really willing to forgive them?”

“E-Even if they have committed offenses against you, Master... I do not have the right to forgive them...”

Anyway, Lunelle, still kneeling and trembling under Whitney’s chilly gaze, somehow managed to respond properly to the renewed question.

“I see.”

But with Whitney’s next words, Lunelle instinctively looked up, eyes wide, and blankly stared at her Master.

“Even if those two are connected to the ones who destroyed your mana circuit?”

“...What?”

“Even so, Lunelle — would you still be able to forgive your siblings?”

The words that spilled from Whitney’s mouth were enough to shake Lunelle to her core.

***

And in fact, the shock wasn’t limited to Lunelle alone.

‘...What did he say?’

‘We’re... connected to them...?’

Thanks to the results of their grueling training, Evangeline and Richard, who had already somewhat regained their senses and were secretly eavesdropping on the conversation between Lunelle and Whitney, also froze in shock.

‘But if he says we have someone backing us...’

‘There’s only one possibility...’

Though not as perfect as Whitney’s, the two siblings exchanged glances from where they lay collapsed, their eyes sharpening as they chewed over the realization.

‘The one who ordered us to take part in this interview...’

‘The one who promised to erase our debts if we uncovered the secret behind Lunelle’s condition...’

And the more they thought about it, the more cold sweat ran down their foreheads.

‘...It’s His Majesty the Emperor, isn’t it?’

An overwhelming existence, a mountain so high they could only bow before it, given their fallen status as the children of a ruined noble house.

Only now did they realize the terrifying truth — that such a being had long since extended a dark hand toward their family.