The appearance of the Crown Princess of the Ruvens Empire came as a big surprise to everyone present. But people were even more alarmed when they noticed that she did not come here empty-handed.
— Ah! It's blood!
The clothes, shoes, and even the face of the heir to the throne were stained with blood. The marks of her shoes left terrible bloody marks on the immaculate parquet of the banquet hall.
Such an eerie sight obviously caused panic among people. Someone screamed, and someone lost consciousness. But most of them froze in place, afraid to make a sound.
The Empress was the first to have a voice.
— Kaena Gessen de Ronan! — The woman screamed, clenching her teeth.
Upon hearing her name, the uninvited guest smiled slightly.
— It's been a long time, Mother.
Upon reaching the stairs, the Crown Princess threw the bag she was carrying right at the emperor's throne. It was from him that the most blood flowed.
— A-a-a-a-a!
The Empress screamed heart-rendingly at the horror picture unfolding in front of her. To everyone's attention, something bloody rolled out of the bag. This "something" turned out to be a human head.
The emperor's face was pale, he could not utter a word, as if he was about to faint at any moment.
For a long time, no one dared to do anything.
After hesitating, Jerica de Ronan was the only one who could approach and look at her sister's "gift".
The second princess shuddered when she was able to identify the jewelry on the head of the deceased — a chain of white gold. A sign of the ruling power and a state treasure. This was usually worn by all monarchs of the imperial dynasty of Thursia.
Unable to believe her eyes, the princess swallowed. She slowly got up from her knees. Responding to the emperor and Empress, who stared at her expectantly, the girl said:
— This... The Emperor of Thursia.
— Wh-what?
— This head belongs to the Emperor of Thursia.
There was silence in the Imperial Throne Room.
The Empress clutched at her heart as if it was hurting her.
Regardless of the horror that had just occurred here, the Crown Princess had broken the law by returning to the capital without an official summons from the emperor. She had to take responsibility for it.
— D-dear!
The Empress called her husband, but he only continued to tremble helplessly on the spot.
In the end, she had to take matters into her own hands.
The Empress trembled with anger all over her body when her and the emperor's plan to eliminate the crown princess failed, but she tried to control her emotions.
— What do you think you're doing?!
In the midst of all this commotion, only Kaena de Ronan had a sinister smile on her lips.
The woman, a little over twenty years old, had a beautiful face. The dark brown hair and golden eyes that inspired fear in most of the inhabitants of the Empire were beautiful. And the cruel expression frozen on that very face was strangely in harmony with her appearance, making the crown Princess even more attractive.
Involuntarily, admiration could stir in the soul of some people, but almost immediately they suppressed this feeling. What's the use of a beautiful shell? After all, this man's personality was worse than the devil himself from the depths of the underworld.
"I have prepared a gift for you in honor of the anniversary of the founding of the empire," she said innocently, "This is the most valuable thing that I managed to get during my campaign. I thought Your Majesty would like it...
The Empress's face continued to distort.
— Get this filth out of here immediately!
But in response to the Empress's shout, the guards did not move, as if their feet were chained to the floor. In truth, even if they were later accused of disobeying the imperial order, each of these people reasoned that it was much more dangerous to approach the place where the Crown Princess was now.
The Empress continued to call out to the guards until her voice became hoarse.
Finally, when she realized that she was left in a desperate situation, the woman turned to her stepdaughter and gave her a piercing look.
— You... you... How do you understand all this?! — The Empress held up an angrily shaking finger.
Kaena answered the angry stepmother quite casually.
— Following the will of His Majesty, I fulfilled the mission assigned to me and won the victory at the border. As a gift and out of filial respect, I decided to present you, Father, the empire of Thursia.
— ...
Many people were left amazed by this and shut their mouths.
Based on the words of the Crown Princess, it might have seemed that she was just passing by and accidentally captured a neighboring empire. Is it a joke? Even those who had never been to the palace before had heard many terrible stories about this woman.
"A cold-blooded, ruthless psychopath."
Of course, this might seem like an exaggeration, but since these words referred to the crown princess of this country, they sounded more than plausible. It was not for nothing that the eldest daughter of the ruling family of Rouvens was called a demon who possessed the human body.
"She kills people without hesitation."
When Kaena mentioned him, the emperor shrank into his shoulders in fright. He couldn't admit that he was scared to death of his own daughter.
Meanwhile, the same sarcastic grin remained on Kaena's face. She seemed amused by the whole situation.
Finally, the ruler of the empire, Ruvens, gathered his courage and spoke.
— How... How did you manage to take over the empire of Thursia?.. — His voice faltered.
The army of the Crown Princess sent with her numbered less than a thousand people. This amount was not enough even to guard the borders, let alone participate in a full-scale war. Capturing an entire kingdom with such a tiny army is definitely beyond the power of an ordinary person.
— It happened by accident.
— Wh-what?
— After completing your assignment, Father, I was thinking about what to do next. There's not much to do on the southern border, and I got bored. And then an idea came to my mind, — she continued carelessly, — If we just enslave this country, then the threat of a second uprising on their part will be eliminated once and for all.
The Emperor froze.
— N-but... how so...
— Being on the border, I had a little problem with weapons, — Kaena confirmed the above, — Most of my soldiers died in the first battle, so I had to summon dark spirits. After they occupied the bodies of the dead soldiers, the power of my troops increased significantly.
«...»
The Emperor felt dizzy and staggered, barely able to stay on his feet.
— Those... Dark spirits?..
— yes. They have served me well as loyal pets. But don't worry, Father. Before I came back, of course, I dispelled all the magic, — she added with a smile.
«...»
The banquet hall was full of terrified people. No one could believe what they had heard. Only a caustic grin remained on the lips of the heir to the throne.
Anyone can summon the spirits of the other four basic elements if they have abilities and can deeply feel the elements.
However, dark spirits were extremely rare. They love the extreme pain, despair, and malice of their summoners, as well as those with blood on their hands and who can naturally dissolve into darkness.
It is very difficult to summon a dark spirit belonging to the highest demonic race. Not to mention taming him and making him act on his own.
But now, the Crown Princess has bluntly stated that she has captured the neighboring empire with the help of an army of the living dead...
At that moment, the emperor grabbed the handle of the throne to keep from falling.
Trembling, the emperor realized the terrible feeling that had gripped him. It was as if he had met a beast while unarmed.
"Don't tell me that I gave birth to this monster!.."
Could his daughter really be a demon? Otherwise, how did she manage to get along with these damned creatures?..
The Emperor froze in fear, unable to utter a word. Therefore, it was Kaena who broke the silence first.
— Your Majesty, are you satisfied with my gift?
The Crown Princess was smiling mockingly.
The Emperor cleared his throat. Overcome with fear, he clenched his fists tightly.
— You... You did a good job! — He stammered, — This is truly worthy of the title of heroine of the empire. As a reward, you... You can ask me for anything you want.
The Empress turned to him with an angry look. But the emperor ignored her outrage.
Could he really refuse the Crown Princess at such a moment? It would be tantamount to voluntary suicide.
Kaena de Ronan chuckled.
— Thank you for your generosity, Father. I will definitely think about what kind of reward I want to receive.
A drop of sweat ran down the emperor's face. He nodded weakly.
— And now I think I'll go. The journey took a lot of time and tired me out. I want to get some rest.
— Of course, go ahead...
The Crown Princess turned around and left the banquet hall as quickly as she entered. Leaving everyone present in the company of shock and horror.
When the girl disappeared from view, leaving pools of blood behind her, the sighs of people who were holding their breath all the time began to be heard.
The Empress was beside herself. His blood was boiling with anger.
She stared after the departing Crown Princess, clenching her fist to the point that her veins stood out. Jerica looked at her mother with concern. She tried to touch her shoulder, but the Empress ignored her, continuing to shake with rage.
"This vile creature... I have to deal with her today!"