A Queen’s Awakening and a Cult’s Conspiracy

War, slaughter, blood.

With brute force, she shattered conspiracies; the entire nation, united, conquered all it beheld.

She was a heaven-sent Empress.

She was the Empress by title, a mechanism employed for the nation’s sake.

Her life was not her own to command; she was not even certain if she possessed a personal identity.

Thus, she yearned to find her reflection in the eyes of others, longing for a soul that could truly captivate her own.

‘What did it mean to be an Empress?’

‘To expand territories, to conquer ceaselessly?’

She raised her spear, galloping forth on horseback.

Since she knew not the purpose of her own life, she would let it burn, swift and brilliant as a shooting star.

Yet, occasionally, in the deep hours of the night, a faint longing would surface—

‘Who will witness this glorious prosperity with me? In whose eyes can I gaze upon the splendid brilliance of the starlit river?’

Ophelia jolted awake.

Rubbing her eyes, she roused her spirits.

She had just dreamt of a girl standing amidst an endless sea of blood and mountains of corpses, her spear held aloft.

The sky was stained crimson, and no sunlight could penetrate the gore.

‘Was that Empress Antonio?’

Ophelia shook her head.

The final plea in the dream had been too akin to that of a normal, fragile girl.

The Empress in the books was always valiant and heroic, even more so than men in certain aspects.

If she were to tell her past life’s readers about that dream, they would undoubtedly declare the Empress to be OOC.

“Empress, why are you acting like a woman?”

‘That certainly wasn’t the Empress; she’s always been so valiant and dashing!’

As Ophelia rose, a sense of unease settled upon her.

She turned her head, only to see Marta sleeping beside her.

‘Hmm?’

And her undergarments seemed to have been tampered with.

‘Hmm, hmm?’

Ophelia recalled with scrutiny.

‘I… I was ill…’

‘Then, Marta had come in, saying she’d fetch hot water for me.’

‘Everything seemed fine.’

‘And then… then she started touching me…’

‘W-w-what did she do to me?! You wicked girl!’

Flushing with both shame and anger, Ophelia couldn’t resist hurling a pillow at Marta.

Marta, still caught between sleep and wakefulness, stirred.

“…Queen?”

Ophelia remained silent, glaring at her with a face full of indignant shame.

Marta, still bewildered, rubbed her eyes, then suddenly shot upright as if struck by a realization.

Her face, too, was beet red.

“Please forgive me, Your Majesty!”

Ophelia was genuinely upset.

‘How could you just assault me so casually?!’

‘While it did feel quite pleasant, you should have at least done it when I was aware!’

‘This way, isn’t it like… like being a toy, used by you at your whim…’

‘How could you just treat me like a toy!’

Just as she was about to seize the opportunity to unleash her fury, the door burst open.

Vina and Emily entered, arriving just in time to witness Ophelia’s face contorted with indignant shame, clutching her blanket to conceal her body, and Marta pleading for mercy.

The expressions on their faces instantly shifted.

“Ophe, has Marta been negligent in her duties? Why are you glaring at her with such indignant shame? And why is she begging for mercy?”

“You shouldn’t just forgive Marta so easily, you know. A knight who neglects their duties ought to be severely punished.”

Emily’s tone was heavy, and she looked at Marta with palpable anger.

Vina, quite uncharacteristically, allowed a faint curve to grace her lips.

For some inexplicable reason, Ophelia felt that this subtle smile was genuinely heartfelt.

“Let’s discuss official matters first, Emily. Once that’s settled, we can leisurely deliberate Marta’s punishment.”

Emily’s expression instantly sobered.

Vina then turned her gaze to Ophelia.

For reasons unknown, her expression held a peculiar emotion.

It was as if she had traversed countless years and ages, gazing upon an old friend from the far shore of time, as if they had known each other for an eternity and were now finally about to reunite.

Ophelia tilted her head, but Vina subtly concealed that flicker of emotion.

“I have already informed all nobles that an emergency military preparedness meeting will be held the day after tomorrow.

The agenda includes how to counter this statue, the followers of the Transient Wanderer, and how to address enemies on all sides.”

She produced the statue she held in her hand—the one clad in a black robe, raising a staff aloft.

“The Empire’s strategy is indeed cunning.

To prevent the Sages from thwarting their war, they have even enlisted non-human creatures.

We cannot solely rely on the Sages; we must be prepared for a protracted conflict.”

Ophelia pondered silently.

‘This plot point wasn’t in the book.’

‘The Kingdom’s capital was impregnable throughout the entire story, and the Transient Wanderer truly was just a transient, merely a backdrop for Desire Bubble.’

‘Followers of the Transient Wanderer appearing in the capital?’

Ophelia racked her brain, trying to recall the nature of the Transient Wanderer.

‘Those who worship the Transient Wanderer believe that time flies, and all things will eventually end.’

‘Therefore, everything is void, and everything is permissible.’

‘These followers of the Transient Wanderer are exceptionally pure.’

‘Pure good, pure evil.

Because of their purity, their actions are utterly unpredictable.’

“Let’s discuss the matter of the cultists with the nobles.

With internal strife and external threats, we must gather all wisdom.”

Vina rubbed her temples, speaking with a slight headache.

“And then, we can chat about the punishment,” she said, shifting her tone, her eyes glinting playfully, her voice light.

Marta nodded.

“I wish for Her Majesty to punish me privately; I ask that you two do not interfere.”

Ophelia blinked in surprise.

‘Eh?’

Vina looked at Ophelia.

“However, I believe the one who truly deserves punishment is the Queen, for her charm is simply too great, attracting everyone around her.

What do you think, Emily?”

‘W-w-wait? How is the victim at fault here!?’

****

“With my blood, I nourish the divine body.”

“With my bones, I fortify the divine form.”

“With my soul, I nurture the divine essence.”

In a dimly lit space, a group of figures clad in black robes gathered.

They chanted ceaselessly, their eyes vacant, while before them, flames writhed and rose like some unspeakable monster.

Behind them stood several more figures, also in black robes, their faces obscured.

“Have you heard? The Empire is about to wage war on the Kingdom,” one of the black-robed figures behind them said to the one standing at the forefront.

“I am aware.”

The leading black-robed figure replied with a faint voice.

“What… what shall we do? If we seize this opportunity, the Kingdom might crumble, yet being invaded by the Empire is not our desire either.

However, if we allow the Kingdom to defeat the Empire, a newly victorious Kingdom will undoubtedly be united, and our own chances would become slim.”

The black-robed figure behind them inquired.

The leading black-robed figure subtly raised her head.

Beneath the hood, a cascade of long, yellow hair was revealed as she spoke:

“We must assist the Kingdom in winning, but we must also seek a wedge.”

“The Queen.

In a few days, I will seek out the Queen privately, and I will persuade her to join us.

I have seen the way she looks at those children; she must be one of us, a comrade.”

“If the Queen is unwilling to join, then we shall use the divine miracle of our god to control her mind, bending her to our will.”

“The Queen!” The other black-robed figures exchanged glances, then each nodded in agreement.

“However, you must be cautious.

It is said that our god and another deity are at odds with each other—I recall the other being called Desire Bubble?

If the Queen bears the divine mark of Desire Bubble, you might fail, or even be controlled in reverse…”

“Are you jesting?” The leading black-robed figure shook her head.

“How could the Queen possess the power of Desire Bubble?

Evil gods can scarcely enter our capital; we are an absolute exception.”

“Make preparations.

Once the military preparedness meeting the day after tomorrow concludes, we shall commence our actions according to their movements.”

The black-robed figures nodded, then vanished into the darkness, leaving only the leading figure.

She extended a hand, opening her palm to reveal the unspeakable, roaring flames within.