Chapter 202: Are you happy now, master Astrea?

Alaric took a step forward, his hand white-knuckled as he clenched his fists, his eyes a storm of blue fire.

"Answer the question, Aurelian. Was it true? Did you bury her final words while I bled for you? Did you intentionally do that while knowing how deeply I wished to hear from her?"

Aurelian looked at him for a while and then let out a sharp, jagged laugh—a sound devoid of any joy. He looked back at Julian, a twisted, bitter smile playing on his lips.

"The scholar knows," Aurelian announced, gesturing toward Julian with a trembling hand. "He read them. I made him sit in my study and read every line, every word of Bellanora’s devotion, just so I could see the light leave his eyes. I wanted him to understand that in this Empire, nothing belongs to the North—not even their grief."

A collective, horrified gasp rippled through the tiered seats. The admission was a thunderclap.

The Emperor hadn’t just confessed to a petty theft; he had confessed to a psychological cruelty that bordered on the monstrous.

But little did they know that Aurelian wasn’t confessing to the actual crime he committed.

He claimed it was because the North was growing stronger and too confident, but it was in fact because of his twisted desire towards his brother. It was because he was jealous.

"Yes!" Aurelian roared, turning to face the shocked nobility. "I kept them! I kept them because the North was growing too proud, and my brother’s heart could waver at any moment. Who knew when she would whisper sweet lies to turn us against each other? I had to monitor her words to the man who bled for me on the battlefield."

It was absurd. Too abused, and it made Julian feel sick.

What kind of logic was that? What kind of twisted...

And it was even more absurd that the nobility and aristocrats decided to go along with his logic.

"I am the Emperor! I decide what is ’necessary’ for the stability of my borders!"

He turned back to Alaric, his eyes wide and wild.

"And you, brother... You would have abandoned the war front for a single ’I love you’ written on parchment! I saved the Empire by keeping you in the dark!"

Alaric’s face went completely still. It was the stillness of a landslide before it fell. He didn’t roar. He didn’t charge. He simply stood there, his presence growing cold—a winter that could not be thawed.

"You didn’t save the Empire," Alaric whispered, the sound cutting through Aurelian’s bravado like a blade. "You just lost your brother."

Aurelian’s face went stiff at that moment, as he did not expect those words.

Julian watched from the chair. He saw the Emperor’s regal mask finally shatter. Aurelian hadn’t waited for the serum to force Julian’s hand; his own insecurity and his need to dominate the narrative had forced him to scream his guilt to the world.

The High Healer looked at the monitoring stone at Julian’s temple. It remained a steady, calm blue. Julian hadn’t said a word, yet the truth had been laid bare anyway.

"The Emperor has spoken," the Inquisitor stammered, his voice trembling as he looked at the chaos unfolding in the court. "The... the charge of withholding correspondence is confirmed by the Sovereign’s own admission."

Aurelian slumped back against his throne, looking suddenly small, his eyes fixed on Julian with a haunting intensity.

"Are you happy now, Master Astrea? You’ve seen the Sun bleed. Is that what the demon wanted?"

Julian looked up at him, a single tear of genuine pity falling down his cheek.

"I do not know Your Majesty. But from the events that took place, it appears to me that whatever took control of my body was after the chaos of the Empire,"

"Enlighten me,"

"He wanted the Emperor and the Empress dead. What would happen if the moon and the sun fell from the sky?"

"Ah," Aurelian’s lips curled. "Darkness and chaos."

Julian nodded.

With this, it should be fine, right? He had made sure that there was no loophole in his words, and he had confirmed himself not guilty.

He should be released. 𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

"Master Astrea," The Emperor called, and a chill ran down Julian’s spine. A danger sign. It wasn’t over yet. "I am not convinced that this situation will end like this."

Julian’s heart skipped, and he felt his breath hitch.

"My Empress is dead. My children have lost their mother, and it appears my life is in danger from unknown assailants." He narrated. "The only lead we have is the ’demon’ that might still be lurking in you."

"Your Majesty, I—"

"You do not know if the demon will possess you again, do you?" Aurelian interrupted him. "You never knew in the past, so you definitely will not know now. In that case, you are just as much a danger to my life and cannot be set free."

"I do not accept this!" Alaric immediately spoke up, marching into the center. The golden guards wanted to stop him from going further, but one glare from Alaric’s cold blue eyes, and they were already halting on their tracks.

Alaric turned his gaze to the Emperor as he stood behind Julian’s stone chair.

"You shall not punish Julian for the crimes he did not commit. He is a victim, just as much as you are."

"How dare you compare the likes of a mere tutor to the Sovereign?!" The head guard barked. "If sacrificing him means that our sun is safe, then—"

"Who asked you to speak?" Alaric glared dangerously at him. "You want to sacrifice Julian? Hah, what a joke."

"Lucien," Aurelian called. "Forgive the ignorant guard. He didn’t know my intent and spoke out of turn."

The head guard sank his head back and hid himself from prying eyes in shame.

"I do not wish for Julian Von Astrea to be killed for my safety. I only ask that his soul be searched."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means exactly what I said, Lucien. Hear me, all nobles and aristocrats." He announced his decree, and everyone stood up on their feet, their heads bowed to listen to the decree. "Julian Von Astrea is innocent of all charges, but for the sake of the unknown entity that is a danger to this throne, he shall be confined for four more days. In four days, his soul shall be searched."

"How do you plan to do that?" Alaric asked, grumbling and clearly dissatisfied with the four extra days of confinement. "There is no method in the Empire to search one’s soul."

"In the Viremount Empire, yes, but there is a way beyond it." He said, and Alaric was still trying to understand his intent when he announced. "I shall invite the Inquisitors from the Holy Empire."

A cold chill ran down Julian’s spine, and a collection of gasps echoed through the hall, and whispers erupted.

The Holy Empire? The Emperor was inviting the Inquisitors from their enemies?

Wasn’t this huge?