Vol 3. Chapter 63: Miss Blood Butterfly
After carefully studying the intelligence Moxiao had provided, everything about Xue Tianao—from his clothing to his every word and gesture—had been modeled after Miss Yu's "ideal partner."
Convinced that his acting skills were second to none, Xue Tianao had intended to combine gentleness with domineering confidence, hoping to dramatically increase her affection for him in one stroke.
Little did he know...
Everything Moxiao had told him had actually been meticulously fabricated by Xiao.
Every action Xue Tianao believed would increase Miss Yumo's favorability was, in reality, continuously grinding against her nerves.
His clothes.
The decoration of the hall.
The dishes laid across the table.
Even his "confident" words and "overwhelmingly domineering" behavior.
Without exception...
Every single one of them made Miss Yumo even more irritated.
His claims about drawing clear boundaries between himself and the women in his harem disgusted Yumo even more.
Compared to a womanizer, Miss Yumo hated irresponsible scumbags far more.
The thought that a man like this was actually the Child of Destiny—and that someone as adorable and kind as Mengxi was destined to end up with him in the future—filled her with uncontrollable anger.
As a result...
The moment Xue Tianao confidently performed his self-satisfied kabedon, a shadow involuntarily fell across Miss Yumo's beautiful face.
"...You really are... pretty disgusting."
Yumo, who had originally intended to continue exchanging polite pleasantries, completely lost any interest in pretending.
Without the slightest hesitation, she shot Xue Tianao a look of pure disdain.
Truthfully, Miss Yumo hadn't intended to be this blunt.
After all, she was currently acting as the young lady of the Black Rose Family.
She didn't want her own words and actions to end up damaging the relationship between the family her children had built and the Child of Destiny.
Therefore...
After coldly speaking those words, she still felt a slight pang of guilt.
But recalling her earlier conversation with Xiao...
Yumo's heart soon settled once again.
Meanwhile...
Upon hearing those words—especially the word "disgusting"—Xue Tianao froze on the spot.
Miss Yu's reaction had completely exceeded his expectations.
Not only had he failed to see the adorable sight of her blushing...
He had instead received the evaluation of "disgusting."
"Disgusting."
Ever since obtaining his handsome appearance and becoming Crown Prince...
Who had ever described him that way?
That single word instantly dredged up memories he had long wished to forget.
His fists unconsciously clenched tightly.
A trace of displeasure appeared within his azure eyes.
However, considering that he still needed to win over the young woman before him, Xue Tianao forcibly suppressed the urge to lose his temper.
Even so...
He was thoroughly confused.
'What's going on? Her reaction... isn't right.'
There was no joy.
Only obvious disgust.
Wasn't Blood Butterfly supposed to like this kind of domineering man?
Could Moxiao's intelligence actually have been wrong?
Xue Tianao frowned deeply.
Still, as someone who had survived countless political schemes, he quickly realized that his current approach clearly wasn't working.
Without hesitation, he abandoned his "domineering CEO" act and returned to his usual refined, gentlemanly demeanor, putting on an expression of complete innocence.
"Miss Yu, those words seem rather unfair. Have I... done something to make you unhappy?"
"..."
However, after giving the blond man beside her a brief, indifferent glance, Miss Yumo completely ignored him.
Instead, she quietly lowered her head and began eating the desserts on the table.
Several seconds of silence passed.
Only then did Miss Yumo slowly speak.
But instead of answering Xue Tianao's question...
She asked one of her own.
"Laluo-Antalov, Liboke, and Viskor. As I recall, when Your Majesty was still Crown Prince, those three never left your side. Why haven't they been seen lately? I heard they were assassinated. Does Your Majesty know anything about that?"
"Hm? Laluo and the others?"
Although Xue Tianao's face remained calm, his heart skipped a beat.
Because by now...
Those former "brothers" of his had already been eliminated by his own hand after choosing a different path.
Laluo-Antalov, Liboke, and Viskor had all been individuals whose value had reached Rank A.
They had undoubtedly been of tremendous help to Xue Tianao.
However, because they had disagreed with him regarding how to deal with the late emperor and the royalist faction, the three had ultimately chosen to leave him and head for the Crimson Leaf Empire.
In Xue Tianao's eyes...
That was nothing less than betrayal.
At the same time, he could never tolerate people with Rank A value joining a rival nation.
What if they one day assisted the Crimson Leaf Empire against the Snow Night Empire?
To eliminate that possibility...
He had secretly dealt with them himself.
Anyone of high value who did not belong to him...
Xue Tianao's preferred solution was simple.
Destroy them.
Originally, this had seemed like a trivial matter.
So why was this young lady suddenly bringing it up?
A trace of seriousness flashed through his eyes.
Still...
The act had to continue.
Immediately, Xue Tianao adopted an expression of profound grief.
"Ah... to be honest, they disappeared during a secret mission. I've been terribly worried about them. They were my good brothers. After they vanished, I dispatched countless Royal Knights to search for them, but even now... we've found nothing. Sigh... I truly wonder where they ended up..."
At that moment...
Xue Tianao genuinely looked like a caring commander worried about his subordinates.
Unfortunately...
His performance failed to produce even the slightest reaction he had hoped for from the black-haired girl.
While quietly eating another bite of dessert, she merely opened her lips slightly and absentmindedly responded,
"Oh."
Seeing her reaction, Xue Tianao frowned.
'Could it be... that she's discovered something?'
...
Before he had much time to think,
The black-haired girl, who had been suppressing her irritation for quite some time, spoke again.
A faint crimson light quietly flickered within her ruby-red eyes.
"Besides, Your Majesty, there are actually quite a few other things I'm curious about. The royal funeral... the Soul Pearls... how the southern nobles were dealt with... the extraction of materials for the Mana Fission Bomb... the massacre of the Kalvido Family... I have to say, Your Majesty has certainly been busy lately. Not only have you been preparing for your coronation ceremony, you've also had to deal with quite a remarkable number of other matters."
Miss Yumo's tone sounded full of admiration.
But to Xue Tianao...
Every word dripped with sarcasm.
At that instant,
The emperor slowly withdrew the smile from his face.
His expression gradually darkened.
Because every subject she had just mentioned...
Was unquestionably something Xue Tianao had desperately tried to keep hidden.
Although he firmly believed those dirty deeds had all been necessary to secure the empire's stability and prosperity...
He also knew perfectly well that if they were ever exposed, his reputation would suffer a devastating blow.
His public support might even collapse entirely.
At that moment...
Xue Tianao became certain.
The black-haired girl before him truly knew a considerable number of his secrets.
He had thought everything had been handled flawlessly.
Yet she had still uncovered them.
It seemed he had underestimated the intelligence network of the Black Rose Family.
They were merely a noble house from the Sadik Empire...
Yet they had managed to investigate so deeply within Sky Dome.
Come to think of it...
The explosion at Marquis Keweibote's estate had probably been the Black Rose Family's doing as well.
Xue Tianao fell silent for a moment.
A short while later, however, a relieved smile slowly appeared on the emperor's face.
Since she already knew all this...
There was no longer any point pretending.
He might as well lay everything on the table.
"Heh... I never expected Miss Yu to know so much. And to ask me so directly. May I ask why?"
"Nothing in particular. I'm simply curious. I wanted to know what Your Majesty is really thinking. You're supposed to be the Child of Destiny, yet the things you've done... such as creating Soul Pearls... don't seem like the actions of someone chosen by fate."
"So you really do know."
"...The Child of Destiny's responsibilities?"
Hearing that, Xue Tianao immediately laughed in contempt.
"Miss Yu, the responsibility of the Child of Destiny is very simple. To save this world. To eradicate the Abyss Demons in the north. To bring peace to this continent. In order to accomplish that goal, the sacrifice of a small number of people is absolutely necessary. As for those Soul Pearls you mentioned... if sacrificing a few hundred insignificant lives can create a powerful Seventh-Tier expert, then why wouldn't I do it? After all, a truly powerful Seventh-Tier individual is worth far more than an entire army."
"Sacrifice? Including your own brothers and sisters? The subordinates who once followed you? And the southern nobles who helped found the empire?"
"Brothers and sisters? No. They were merely unstable elements that threatened the empire. Had they remained alive, there was a very high chance they would have raised armies and rebelled against my rule. Should I spare them? And wait for a civil war? As for Laluo and the others, rather than allowing them to join the Crimson Leaf Empire and threaten the Snow Night Empire in the future, I'd rather let them sleep forever in their homeland. And those southern nobles? They certainly made contributions. But now they themselves have become a destabilizing force within the empire. Those who need to be eliminated must be eliminated. Conveniently enough, I had more than enough justification. Besides, the imperial treasury had grown rather empty. The wealth they accumulated just happened to rescue our nation's finances. Hahahaha."
"Did you really have to wipe them all out? Even the children?"
"Otherwise? Leave behind future enemies so they can come seeking revenge?"
"You..."
"...You're even more cruel than I imagined."
Faced with the black-haired girl's relentless questioning, Xue Tianao almost found it amusing.
He even looked at Miss Yumo with unconcealed disbelief.
"Heh... Cruel? Honestly, what surprises me even more is that someone like you—the young lady of the Black Rose Family—actually cares about things like this. As far as I know, your Black Rose Family has done no shortage of similar things within the Sadik Empire. So why are you suddenly sympathizing with foreigners? I have to admit, you've truly surprised me, Miss Yu."
Smiling meaningfully, Xue Tianao slowly bent forward.
His face drew close to the black-haired girl's.
"Oh no..."
"I suppose I should say..."
"...Miss Blood Butterfly~"
Yumo: ...