"How do you think His Royal Highness the Crown Prince feels about my coronation procession?" Jean asked as he accompanied Adam back to his room.
"Oh come on, Uncle, don't call me that when we're alone," Adam insisted.
"Hahaha, alright then. So, what do you think, Adam?"
"I'm glad the event went smoothly even though it was tumultuous before. I want to thank you, Uncle, for being willing to replace me as Emperor. I apologize for burdening you with this responsibility," Adam replied.
"At your current age, it's not the right time for you to dive into politics. You still need to learn a lot until the time is right and you're ready to bear the burden of the empire on your shoulders. That's when you'll truly be worthy of being called an emperor! So, it's no problem for me to bear this responsibility temporarily. Besides, I feel it's the only way for me to redeem myself for leaving at the wrong time," Jean explained with deep regret.
Adam himself liked Jean because he was his father's closest brother and the friendliest person to him. In times like this, the only person Adam could trust was Jean. After all, Jean was willing to become Emperor even though he faced unpleasant ridicule from the people, which influenced the dominant opinion of the ministers in the previous meeting. Although it was quite strange, when the vote suddenly came, the majority vote actually agreed with Jean becoming Emperor.
"What do you mean, Uncle! The deaths of Father and Mother are not your fault at all. It was the fault of the ruthless murderer who I haven't found yet!"
Jean squinted, what did Adam mean by another murderer he hadn't found yet?
"What do you mean? Isn't the murderer Sandres Cesilio?" Jean asked, trying to figure out where Adam's assumption about another murderer came from.
Realizing he had said something he shouldn't have, Adam intended not to share the information he had obtained from Sandres with anyone.
"Ah? No, it's nothing, Uncle. I was just rambling," Adam chuckled.
"Oh, I see...."
They had reached Adam's room, and Jean told him to rest. "Rest up; you'll start exhausting lessons tomorrow," he said with a laugh.
"Hahh, I'm sure you're happy to see me suffer," Adam joked. Jean just chuckled and patted Adam's shoulder as a sign that he would leave.
"Seeing you suffer? Of course, I'm happy," Jean muttered.
"Did you say something, Uncle?" Adam asked before entering his room.
"Ah? I said if you don't need to worry about the empire. I promise to advance this empire for you when you're ready to ascend to the throne. I will do my best; just wait for the results of your uncle's hard work. You don't need to think about the process; you'll only receive the results!" Jean said.
Adam smiled at that, feeling lucky to have someone like Jean.
"Thank you, Uncle. I'll go into my room." Jean's nod was the last conversation between him and Adam at that moment.
Seeing his nephew's sturdy back, Jean laughed contemptuously. Why did a strong figure like Adam fall so easily for his cunning?
"I think he also harbors some suspicion about the surprising result of the vote. However, Adam seems to choose not to find out because from the start his choice leaned towards me," Jean said.
The current Emperor looked back at the commotion at the meeting table, where the minority who rejected the vote didn't accept the result.
"I-It must be rigged!" Cerrish exclaimed.
Cerrish's eyes stared in disbelief at what he saw. All the papers had "1" written on them, with only 3 writing an X. How could this happen?
"Those 3 papers are probably mine, Duke Ellian's, and Advisor Edward's. Then the minister? Did he agree?" Cerrish speculated.
The secret ballot was perfect for covering who supported whom. Damn, whatever Jean did, they saw firsthand that there was no manipulation in the voting or cheating.
"Stop it, Cerrish's aide. You're a smart person, His Royal Highness the Crown Prince's trust. Aren't you embarrassing yourself by assuming this vote is rigged?" Gallan, the vote counter, said.
Cerrish couldn't argue, but he was itching. How could he stay silent in the face of this injustice? How could he hand over the Emperor's position to a tyrant?
"Alright, everyone stop this commotion. I know many of you feel I'm not quite worthy, or you're influenced by some baseless conspiracy. But, this is your voice. I'm not forcing you to choose me, am I? Let's announce to the people about the next Emperor's appointment. We'll face many conflicts with neighboring countries; we'll erode if we still debate meaningless rumors!" Jean asserted.
The meeting ended, concluding with Jean's appointment as Emperor.
Back to the present.
Jean didn't walk towards his room; instead, he went to the Emperor's throne, a private place used only by the emperor for personal discussions.
The guards stationed there couldn't oppose Jean's entry into the throne room because his sharp and cold eyes were piercing. Besides, without many people realizing it, after the death of the emperor and empress, the highest power in the palace fell to Jean. Although the crown prince appeared to be the highest peak of the empire at the moment, behind the scenes, Jean controlled everything.
"Ah... the throne is empty now. It's just a chair, but why am I so obsessed with it, huh? Can you hear me, Yurize?" Jean spoke to the wind.
Jean approached the throne, touched it gently, and sat on it. "So, this is the view from up here? No wonder you refused to yield to me, right?" Jean said again.
"For years, I tried so hard to be acknowledged by Father and to become the next emperor. But... why did I, who tried so hard, lose to you, who weren't even whipped when you hadn't finished your Training?"
Jean again felt the pain in his back from being whipped by the previous Emperor. He wondered why his father was so biased, why Yurize was treated as the next successor while he wasn't.
"Now I know the reason, because I'm the son of that woman, right? The woman who made Father lose his beloved empress. Hahhaha, even though I didn't ask to be born from her womb. So why do I have to bear the consequences?"
"I didn't make a mistake; I just... took back what should have been mine."
Meanwhile, Jean didn't realize that behind the curtain there was someone eavesdropping the whole time.
A young man walked away from Jean, who was sitting on the throne, without a sound. What would he do after hearing that?