LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 206
As Lars’s words about leaving the Imperial Palace sank in, Acella’s mind seemed to simplify.
Until now, her thoughts had been so tangled and chaotic that she wanted to grab onto something, like a lifeline. She had dozens, if not hundreds, of questions for him, and it was hard to know where to begin.
‘Why didn’t you tell me about the former country?’
‘Since when did you plan this?’
‘Was your duty as my attending physician a lie?’
‘What was the content of that letter?’
‘Why did you think I would like that?’
‘Did you always want to break our engagement?’
But hearing it directly from Lars, she felt she didn’t need anything else.
Her mind was on fire. Sentences fractured, and words crumbled.
Amidst all this, Acella shouted the final two words with determination.
“I won’t go!!”
Thud, harsh breaths escaped between her clenched teeth. Her golden hair, disheveled from the struggle, brushed across Lars’s face.
“I can’t go, I can’t. You’re my attending physician! You have to be by your lord’s side. Isn’t that enough?”
With a grip on his collar, Acella leaned forward, their foreheads almost touching.
“We’re betrothed! In just one year, I’ll be an adult. Today next year, after three hundred nights! You should be holding the ceremony with me in this Moonlight Palace! But where do you think you’re going, throwing everything away and running off!!”
“Your Highness.”
Lars slowly raised his right hand and touched Acella’s cheek.
Her face burned with heat. He gently turned his hand and softly massaged the back of her neck.
“You’re too agitated. Please calm down a bit…”
“Is this a time for jokes?!”
Slap, Acella slapped Lars’s arm away. The flow of mana from her eyes intensified.
It felt like dealing with an excited elephant. While he had expected her intense reaction, he couldn’t afford to administer calming medicine now.
Lars figured that if he didn’t get to the point, he would never be able to convey his message.
“Your Highness.”
“Call me Princess! Lars, I’ve let you crawl on me for far too long. How dare you pull this kind of betrayal on me?”
With resentment boiling over, she repeatedly slammed her fists against his chest.
Thud, Lars grabbed Acella’s wrist.
The startled look on Acella’s face twisted in surprise.
“I have a request.”
Lars looked straight into Acella’s swirling eyes.
“Please come with me to the former country.”
Acella didn’t respond, only continuing to glare at him resentfully.
“…At first, I hated you, Your Highness.”
Lars began his confession slowly, as if unburdening his soul.
“I really did hate you. You probably don’t know, but I have a long-standing grudge.”
He couldn’t remember the last time he had sorted out his feelings like this to anyone.
Having looped back to the battlefield hundreds of times, his senses had dulled beyond comprehension.
It required focus to revive those feelings.
Lars tried to convey his heart to Acella, recalling their memories together one by one.
“When you acknowledged my skills in medicine, I felt quite good. Although I started my duties as your physician unwillingly, I found it quite rewarding.”
“…So?”
“When you said you liked me, honestly, I didn’t know what to do.”
He infused each word with sincerity.
“Now I understand. Your declaration of support is a heartfelt truth, without a shred of lies.”
“That’s because you’re on my side.”
“Of course. I’m your loyal subject.”
Seeing the corners of his lips lift slightly, Acella felt her mind go blank.
His face filled her thoughts.
Forgetting all the matters of the Imperial Family and Palace, she felt a yearning to stay like this forever, creeping up within her.
“Lars.”
“Yes.”
Acella finally voiced the question she had been too scared to ask.
“Do you like me now?”
Lars replied with his characteristic calm smile.
“Yes. I quite like you.”
His invitation to come with him to the former country held no other intent.
It simply meant he desired her.
…But that was a request she couldn’t accept.
Why, why. Where did it all go wrong?
Why did it turn out like this?
Acella bent low, picking up the envelope that had fallen on the floor.
“What is this?”
“When I wrote that, I thought Your Highness hated me. Hadn’t you?”
“…That’s true. Lars, do you want this contract to be fulfilled? Do you want to cancel our engagement?”
“Not right now. But I must leave the Imperial Family and go to the former country. If you absolutely refuse to let me go…”
Lars trailed off. Acella didn’t need to hear the unspoken sentence.
“Why, why must it be like this? Hmm? Why do you have to leave?”
“I have something I must do.”
“Is it something you would leave me for?”
“…Yes.”
“Don’t be ridiculous! What kind of thing is that!”
Even if he told her about the future, there was no way she’d believe him, and it might only have a negative impact.
There was no way he could confess to someone he liked that he’d become a tyrant and destroy the world, killing her in the process.
So no matter what he said, it would just sound like an excuse.
Right now, he had no choice but to express his true feelings.
Lars took a deep breath.
“Your Highness. No, Acella.”
Her golden hair suddenly stopped swaying.
“Come with me.”
In the Moonlight Palace bedroom where only the two remained, time seemed to freeze as they intertwined on the floor in silence.
From far outside, the sounds of knights charging in with cheers could be heard. The muffled background noise faded, not reaching the tympanum of the two who were focused on each other’s breaths.
How long had they been in a standoff?
What thoughts were contained in each other’s faces?
With a sorrowful expression, Acella shook her head, breaking the silence.
“You know it can’t be.”
A trembling voice, full of pleading.
“Lars, just as you have something you must do, so do I. You know this well.”
“Acella, it may be better for you not to become an Empress.”
“That can’t be true.”
Acella firmly denied it.
She had never wavered in response to Lars’s continued suggestions.
She was born to be who she was.
Being of royal blood, born in direct lineage to the Emperor and having succession rights meant she was no longer an individual. It was questionable whether she could even be called human.
Acella had grown up feeling the heavy weight of that obligation on her entire being.
Choosing to leave the Imperial Family and lead another life had never even existed as an option.
“I oppose this, Lars.”
“What do you mean oppose?”
“I’ll make you a proposal. Anything you desire, I’ll make it happen. Did you need the country for your purpose? I’ll give you one. Just a little.”
Acella grabbed Lars’s shoulders with her hand tightening.
“Just give me a little time. One year. Until the day I marry you, I’ll eliminate any other heirs and ascend to the throne. Do you want power? Or wealth? I’ll ensure you can use what you need freely. …Even if.”
Acella’s lips trembled. Her voice cracked.
“If you want a concubine, I’ll allow two. Do you want that barbarian? Or perhaps a hero? Anything will do. I’ll fulfill all your desires. So.”
Acella’s words wrapped around Lars like a sweet serpent.
Lars felt himself sinking into her, slowly becoming entranced.
“So… stay by my side.”
Acella’s plea.
That was quite a shock for Lars.
He could never have imagined her asking someone for something.
He could feel vividly how much she wanted him, how unwilling she was to let him go.
“Acella.”
“…Please.”
Acella buried her head in Lars’s chest.
It was as if she couldn’t bear to hear his answer, avoiding confrontation.
For the first time, Lars felt his heart waver at Acella’s side he had never thought he would see, a side he believed he would never see.
Back when he had treated her.
He had genuinely wished for her recovery, driven solely by the determination to make her healthy.
But then, his feelings had mostly stemmed from his duty as a doctor.
It didn’t matter when he treated her or wished for her health; this time, he thought only as a human, Lars Gothberg.
For the first time, he seriously thought about wanting to be there for Acella.
‘…If I stay by Acella’s side.’
All his plans would be in vain, and he wouldn’t be directly involved in the former country, causing issues in diplomacy, the pharmaceutical factory, and national power overall.
But who was Acella?
She was a woman of iron, someone who turned every spoken word into action, no matter the circumstance.
If anyone could forcibly claim the throne within a year, gaining sufficient influence, it was her.
Thinking of the tyrannical rule she unleashed in the future, then neither the former country, nor the nobility, nor the allied forces would become a problem.
With the empire’s overwhelming power, she could rule it dictatorially, manipulating it all according to Lars’s intentions.
In the end, erasing the remaining bad endings might be possible that way.
‘…Is it really possible?’
Even if he became happy connected to Acella in the Imperial Family, wouldn’t it be useless if the Empire fell to the Demon King’s army?
‘Is there really such a convenient path to obtain everything in the world and reach a good ending?’
Wasn’t it Acella herself who said everything comes with a price?
Of course, if it truly was possible, there would be no reason to refuse.
‘…What to do?’
It was at that moment while Lars was contemplating.
[You are at a crossroads.]
The Status Window appeared.
*
―――――――――――
Warning
– You are at a crossroads.
– This choice cannot be reversed.
Good Ending
[Path of Hua Tuo]
– ■■ years later, again in ■■ at 61% → 65%
Hidden Ending
[Path of Desire]
– The attending physician ■■■ and ■■■ 51%
There is only one ending.
―――――――――――
The options appeared on the Status Window.
It was indicating that now was a crucial turning point, just as before.
‘This means… I’m choosing between the good ending and the hidden ending. If I stay in the Imperial Family…’
―――――――――――
– ■■ years later, again in ■■ at 65% → 0%
– The attending physician ■■■ and ■■■ 51% → 78%
―――――――――――
‘The route to the good ending disappears.’
Conversely, if he left the Imperial Family, the probability of a good ending would remain.
Neither option led to a bad ending.
And judging by the words, it seemed both paths would involve Acella.
Before him stood the princess, golden hair holding him close, preventing his escape.
Which choice would lead to a better way for them?
‘I can figure one out.’
He touched the Status Window.
Now was the moment to use this.
―――――――――――
– Using the Ending Viewing Right.
– Experience the hidden ending [The attending physician ■■■ and ■■■].
―――――――――――
His vision faded to black.
When he opened his eyes, she was right in front of him.
“Ras.”
“When you should be awake, you’re dozing off. Truly a mystifying man you are.”
The face he had encountered at the brink of death several times in the future.
With waist-length silver hair and fingers delicately holding a wine glass.
The Golden Witch.
Empress Acella.
She flashed a bright smile.
“Come here, let’s enjoy the world’s ruin together.”