Hidden Tears

Noon.

Railway Military Police Headquarters.

The commander’s office.

The moment I pushed open the door, Arsen leapt out of his seat.

He crossed the room at full charge, eyebrows practically airborne, and dropped to one knee.

“Your Majesty — to behold your august countenance once more, I am beyond words!”

“Keep this up and I stop visiting.”

“Take my life!”

“Save that for your wife. She’d have been hoping to hear it.”

I held out the shopping bag I’d brought.

Arsen received it with both hands and let out a cry of reverence.

“Your boundless grace overwhelms——”

“That’s not for you. Take it home and give it to your wife. It’s a skincare set that’s been popular among demon women lately.”

“What? Ah — how on earth did you know to——”

“Give it to her, and while you’re at it, actually go home and hold her. Come on.”

Arsen clutched the shopping bag to his chest.

Two meters of demon, those enormous bull-like eyes glimmering at me.

It was a simple fact: the best gift you could give a male subordinate was something for his wife or children.

I settled into the sofa and asked,

“Speaking of which — do you have kids yet?”

“Not yet. The two of us have both been buried in work……”

“Take it easier. And when you get off today, go straight home and give your wife that gift. Don’t treat it like a royal relic and put it on a shelf.”

Arsen made a small pained sound.

“……You really are His Majesty.”

“Still doubting me? Want me to run through the proof for another five hours instead of five minutes?”

“No, no. I believe — it’s just that you look so different. Every time I face you, it still catches me off guard.”

Arsen settled into the chair across from me and continued.

“But watching you — the way you speak, the things you do — I know without a doubt it’s you.”

He placed a folder on the table.

“Jade Kedrik and Luke Kedrik. Compiled the best we could, though our intelligence capabilities leave something to be desired……”

“This is enough.”

I skimmed through it quickly.

“The elder brother Jade has such a foul temperament that he has no real friends even among the nobility, while the younger brother Luke has a broadly amicable social circle?”

“Yes. The general consensus is that the younger one turned out better.”

Arsen then set a sword down on the table in front of me.

“The sword I used years ago. It’s a bit worn, but it will hold up through fifth rank.”

“Good. That’s all I need — this won’t snap easily.”

I was currently at fourth rank.

Even with a magic blade technique, it wouldn’t shatter.

Arsen said with evident worry,

“Why not have one forged to fit you? Using a sword without a proper link——”

“Higher mana consumption, reduced output.”

“Yes. The cost would be considerable, but the Railway Military Police can cover it.”

I shook my head.

A magic blade sword required custom calibration to the user. A dedicated, personally forged weapon.

That was why swords had kept snapping in my fights since reincarnating.

Count Librata — my father in this life — had even tried to arrange it for me.

“The price alone runs into the billions, and even if I commission one today, it won’t be ready for a long time.”

And if I placed an order now and my rank continued to climb, the whole process would have to start over.

That wasn’t usually a concern.

For even the most gifted, gaining one rank takes years.

But this body of Rigen’s was growing at a rate that defied all common sense.

A couple more fights and I expected to reach fifth rank.

The thought prompted another.

“Where did my old swords end up? Are they locked away in the imperial treasury?”

“Ah — the Imperial Swords are currently embedded in the throne.”

“Why in the world are they stuck in the throne?”

My disbelief must have shown clearly. Arsen explained.

“I only know what I was told. Apparently when Your Majesty passed — when the passing was discovered — the swords were already there. Everyone assumed the empresses had done something, but……”

So by the time anyone found the emperor’s body, the swords were already planted in the throne — standing there on their own.

Arsen added,

“People tried to pull them out, thought it was unseemly, but no one succeeded. Word spread through the palace that Your Majesty’s anguish and will had taken root in them. The belief is that the swords will leave the throne only when Your Majesty returns — or when the second emperor is born.”

“……”

“Yes. But now I understand. Those swords were standing guard all along — ensuring no one presumed to sit on that throne uninvited.”

I gave a slow nod.

It wasn’t an ordinary thing. But the swords I had carried were far from ordinary.

Arsen lowered his voice.

“There is something I must say, Your Majesty. Please take greater care going forward.”

“You take care — I’ve told you to call me Rigen and you keep slipping.”

“People who once served Your Majesty, if they see you now, they will recognize you. They will know you have returned.”

Arsen’s expression was completely serious.

I rubbed my chin.

“Is it really that obvious?”

“……Enormously so. Do you remember my wife’s name?”

“Tibron. And I suggested that when you have a child, you combine your names — Aron has a nice ring to it.”

“You see? You remember every trivial thing we ever spoke about. Ordinary people don’t do that.”

Well, an emperor can’t afford not to.

Arsen spoke with genuine urgency.

“Of course, it is precisely because you are that kind of man that I and the Railway Military Police will follow you with our lives. Tell us to die and we will die on the spot. But I am afraid. That you will be discovered like this.”

“Afraid of what?”

“……You’ve been caught up in one dangerous situation after another, from the railway terrorism onward. The empire is unsettled. No one knows who the traitors are. And yet Your Majesty is personally stepping into the front line — that is beyond reckless.”

“I’ve always been like this during wartime. Pull me about a hundred men — I’ll need them.”

“Pardon?”

“I’m going to stir things up in the capital.”

Arsen swallowed hard.

“Your Majesty, if the Railway Military Police operates within the capital……”

“I know. Your jurisdiction ends at the railway — you can’t act outside it without very specific circumstances. The capital proper belongs to the Central Police, and if you overstep, the Imperial Military gets involved too. I’ve thought it through. Whatever mess gets made, I’ll handle the cleanup. Don’t worry.”

“Is it really that serious a situation?”

“The evidence isn’t solid yet, but…… it’s all connected in too many places.”

Arsen said,

“Why not simply lead us against the Imperial Military directly? Seize the Imperial Military’s forces in the capital, and everything after becomes manageable.”

“You lunatic. That’s a coup.”

I stared at him. Arsen met my gaze without flinching.

“You are the one who was the empire’s master returning to his rightful place. How can that be called a coup?”

“Things have to go through proper order. You want to argue? Think it through — I’ve said it before, haven’t I? Ordinary people simply don’t believe I’m Sirik. You didn’t believe it right away either.”

In the reign of Prince Suyang, if Yi Seong-gye reincarnated and went to stop the execution of Danjong — nobody would believe he was Yi Seong-gye. And if they did, things would only get worse.

“Those who believe I’m truly Sirik and those who suspect I’m a fraud would split and go to war with each other. That’s an imperial civil war.”

“If Your Majesty led the charge personally……”

“It would still happen. You want me to sit on the throne I seized by force and order my own former subjects to kill each other? Pull the citizens of the capital into the middle of it?”

I said it flatly.

“And think about how it looks objectively — what you’re actually suggesting is using the Imperial Military to restore the Railway Military Police’s prestige.”

“No! I — I never intended it that way——”

“I know you didn’t. But that’s how people will read it.”

Arsen’s face drained to pale. He trembled.

I clicked my tongue.

“So forget any thought of marching on the Imperial Military. If something like that happens, I’ll be the one who has to step in and stop you.”

I shook my head.

“I’m asking you, Arsen. I came back. I don’t want to do things that way.”

“……Yes. I will remember this, and remember it again.”

Arsen lowered his head deeply.

This man was actually on the verge of doing it.

My old subordinates always had a tendency toward excessive loyalty, but this was something else.

I drew the line clearly.

“People process information through what they see. My face is too different — no one can look at me and think ‘that’s Sirik.’ Not even when they’re standing right in front of me.”

Not that I intended to keep it hidden forever.

When the time was right, I would reveal it and use it.

Arsen looked at me with a set face.

“The thought of Your Majesty buckling on a sword and stepping to the front again — it frightens me.”

“Your concern is noted and I appreciate it. But hold your own position, do the Railway Military Police’s duty, and provide the support I ask for. That is what I need from you.”

“……Understood. Your Majesty, there is something else you should know.”

Arsen’s voice dropped.

“The Fifth Empress is already in the capital. But recently, reports have come in that the Second Empress, Tiger Immortal Lang Ei, and a figure believed to be the Third Empress have also entered the capital.”

“……”

The Fifth Empress — the celestial woman currently overseeing the empire’s finances.

The Third Empress — the Queen of Assassins, leader of the dark elves, keeper of the empire’s intelligence.

Arsen continued.

“The empresses currently divide the empire between them in governance. If they learn of Your Majesty’s true identity……”

“They’ll try to kill me to keep their hold on power?”

“……It is entirely possible.”

So this was why Arsen had been so on edge.

Three empresses, moving through the same capital.

“Understood. I’ll be careful. And I’ll be making use of this. I probably won’t be returning it in one piece.”

I rose to leave. Arsen scrambled to his feet.

“Stay for lunch before you go.”

“Already eaten.”

“Then stay for dinner.”

“Why? Are you going to offer to take me to karaoke after, pay for the whole night, the full treatment?”

I said it with a smile. Arsen didn’t smile back.

“I would like to be responsible for Your Majesty’s entire life.”

“Go home and be responsible for your wife’s life instead. I’m leaving.”

Welling Manor.

When I returned, Lisera was waiting for me.

“Everyone seems deep in their work.”

“Yes. And I sent a letter to Sister Miriel saying I’d like to meet — the reply has come.”

I took it and read.

「Dear Sera,

I’ve been terribly busy lately, so it seems we won’t be able to meet for a while.

I’m doing well and having a wonderful time, so please don’t worry.

Let’s see each other when things settle down.」

“……I’ve already read the contents. What do you think?”

“It’s a lie.”

“It is a lie.”

I’d said it without thinking, and Lisera nodded quietly.

Miriel and Lisera had always been close.

“A princess too busy to spare even a moment? And even if she truly were — she would never write a letter this short.”

“……Yes.”

The letter was the exact opposite of reality.

Miriel was not having a wonderful time. She was in a situation that demanded worry, heaped on top of worry.

The Fifth Empress would know this perfectly well — and yet she wasn’t acting.

That could only mean Jade’s connections to the Empire Liberation Army ran deeper than she could account for. She was still measuring the full extent of it.

I kept that reasoning to myself. No point frightening Lisera before it was necessary.

“Amelia mentioned that an invitation has arrived from House Kedrik — a party tomorrow evening.”

Lisera’s voice carried a quiet resolve.

She turned toward me, her eyes still carrying that absence of light.

“I want to see Sister Miriel. Will you go with me?”

“That was exactly what I was about to say.”

Right then.

Time to go rescue one daughter alongside another!

A dark room.

A human man smiled.

“Well then, Princess Miriel — I look forward to your presence at my party tomorrow evening as well. Do grace us with your company.”

“……”

The girl sitting in the white chair flinched.

Long, beautiful platinum-blonde hair.

White wings at her back.

A face that called to mind an angel made real — but right now that face was tight with fear and a terrible strain.

The human man looking down at her platinum hair, Jade Kedrik, tilted his head with a show of patience.

“No answer? I went to the trouble of coming in person to extend this invitation myself. Surely that deserves a response.”

“……”

“There’s no need to be so apprehensive. I haven’t laid a finger on Your Highness — not once. You have nothing to fear. If you were a few years older, that might not be the case — but for now……”

“……You are being disrespectful to Her Highness!”

One of the attendants watching from the side burst out, unable to contain himself.

Jade turned to look at him.

Slap!

He struck without hesitation.

A blow channeled through magic.

The attendant’s nose erupted with blood instantly, and his entire body lurched backward.

Jade didn’t stop there.

Thud. Thud!

Two more strikes in quick succession.

When the attendant who had stepped forward went limp with a broken nose and collapsed, still Jade did not stop.

He looked ready to beat the man to death.

“Stop — stop it!”

The girl who had been frozen in place screamed herself hoarse.

Jade, one hand still fisted in the attendant’s hair, looked back at her with a smile.

“Ah. So you will come?”

“……I’ll — I’ll come. I’ll be there. So stop. Please stop.”

“There we are. All I’m asking is for you to come and be present. I am, in fact, a perfect gentleman.”

Who would believe a man with blood on his knuckles saying that with a grin?

“I will not harm Your Highness in any way. You have my word.”

“……I — I know. I believe you.”

“Wonderful! One last thing — what happened here today must remain between us. As far as anyone is concerned, you attend because you find my company slightly agreeable. A pleasant back-and-forth between a man and a woman, yes?”

An absurd thing to say.

But Jade smiled with the comfortable cruelty of a man who expected compliance.

“If word of this were to get out — I would have no choice but to reveal what I know. And that would cause considerable trouble for a great many people, wouldn’t it?”

The girl — Miriel — pressed her fists together in her lap and lifted her eyes.

Her face was rigid.

“……I understand. Please leave.”

“Of course! Ah — don’t trouble yourself too much over this fellow. He’s still breathing. Patch him up and he’ll be fine.”

“……”

Thud.

Jade gave the slumped attendant a casual look.

He turned and walked toward the door.

Footsteps growing distant.

The moment they faded completely, Miriel rose from her chair and knelt beside the attendant.

“Are you alright?”

“Ugh — mmph……”

The attendant had lost consciousness, face covered in blood.

Miriel looked down at him, chest hollowing out with pain.

He had stood up for her. She hadn’t been able to protect him.

She couldn’t call for help from anyone.

If she did, they would be pulled into this too.

“……I’m sorry.”

Miriel’s shoulders shook as a quiet sob escaped her.

Drop.

A tear slid from her jaw and fell.

Onto the attendant’s ruined face.

“Ugh — nngh……”

The face that had been shattered slowly began to mend.

The broken nose straightened, pulling itself back into place.

As though he had drunk a healing potion.

“Ah — aah……”

With every tear she shed, healing spread across his wounds.

Miriel let them fall, one by one, onto the attendant’s face without trying to stop them.

She didn’t have to force anything.

The grief tearing through her chest was real enough.

This was the secret Jade was holding over her.

The secret Miriel had let slip.

If it became known to the world — it would fall on every celestial, not just her.

The method by which celestials produced their healing medicines was a secret above all secrets. If it were exposed, it would make celestials prey to be hunted for what their bodies held.

She had been warned of this all her life.

She could not draw Lisera in. She could not draw anyone in. Doing so would only make things worse.

So she only had to endure it herself.

If she kept enduring, it would be resolved.

Her mother had said so.

Hold on a little longer. I will handle this. Do not show your tears to anyone — we don’t know who else might discover the secret.

Miriel had steadied herself with those words, over and over.

But within the tears, a voice slipped out, exhausted and small.

“……Daddy.”

Her father, no longer in this world.

He was the one who had always told her — if you want to cry, cry as much as you need to.

The following day.

The party hosted by House Kedrik began.