Chapter 555: The Easy Way Out
"What did they say?"
The question left Primrose’s lips the moment Edmund returned to his office after escorting the envoys from the Vellmoria Empire out of the palace.
"They said they found a lead that might help us locate Averon," Edmund replied as he closed the door behind him. "But it’s very faint, so there’s no guarantee it will lead anywhere."
He didn’t complain when he saw his wife sitting in his chair. Instead, he simply took a seat in the chair across from her.
He paused for a moment before adding, "Honestly, I don’t think that was the real reason they came here."
Primrose tapped her fingers against the desk before asking, "They wanted to bribe you?"
"They wanted to bribe me," Edmund confirmed immediately.
Edmund picked up a sheet of paper and slid it across the desk. "They didn’t ask me to abandon the case," he explained. "They just want me to stay quiet about it."
Primrose read the document in silence. According to its contents, the Emperor of Vellmoria was willing to grant Edmund and his envoys full immunity to enter and leave the empire whenever they wished. In exchange, Edmund would keep the matter involving Averon and the Count of Veloria from spreading any further among humans and beastkins.
"They want to conduct a quiet investigation because they want to protect their reputation," Primrose said.
She placed the paper back on the desk. "Full immunity is a tempting reward, but if the people of Vellmoria continue believing humans are noble while beastkins are the only monsters, then this agreement doesn’t really solve anything."
Edmund nodded. Leaning back in his chair, he said, "You’re right. From a political standpoint, my position would become more secure. But in the eyes of the people, they might think the Emperor only offered this because he’s afraid of me."
Primrose nodded in agreement. "That’s true. In the end, nothing would really change." She looked at him. "What did you say to them?"
The moment she asked, Edmund looked away.
For some reason, he suddenly found the wall far more interesting than his wife. Unfortunately for him, Primrose had already heard his thoughts.
[I did something bad, my wife.]
Primrose remained perfectly still, but she lifted one of her eyebrows.
[I... flipped a table in the guest room.]
She pressed her lips together. "I see..."
"I kicked them out," Edmund admitted aloud. "And I told them to investigate the case properly instead of looking for the easiest way out."
A second later, he covered his face with both hands and slowly lowered his forehead onto the desk.
[Wife, I did something terrible. I let my emotions get the better of me.]
[I ruined everything, didn’t I? Why do I keep making mistakes?]
[Maybe I’ve been right all along. Maybe I don’t deserve to be king. Maybe I—]
Edmund forced himself to stop thinking when he felt a gentle hand patting his head.
"You did the right thing, husband," Primrose said.
Edmund slowly turned his head, and only then did he realize that Primrose had lowered her own head onto the desk as well.
Now they were lying across from each other, their eyes meeting at the same level.
A faint smile appeared on Primrose’s face. "If you had accepted the Emperor’s offer, that would have been the same as betraying your people."
Her voice was calm, but there was no doubt in it. "I don’t want people to keep looking down on you, and I don’t want them to keep believing that humans are somehow better than beastkins."
She reached out and gently brushed a strand of hair from his face. "They’ve spent years judging your kind for every mistake you make, so let’s keep fighting."
"Let’s fight until the truth comes out." Her smile widened slightly. "And let’s keep fighting until people finally realize that beastkins aren’t the only ones capable of doing terrible things."
Edmund gently took her hand and brought it close to his face.
For as long as he could remember, he had always thought that dealing with politics was exhausting.
No matter how hard he worked or how many sacrifices he made, it often felt as though nobody truly took him seriously. To many people, he was simply the beast king, the ruler they doubted before he even had the chance to prove himself.
Because of that, there had been countless moments when he wondered whether all of his efforts were meaningless.
But things were different now. Ever since Primrose had entered his life, she had stood beside him without hesitation.
She believed in him when others didn’t, she defended him when others mocked him, and little by little, she had even changed the way the people around her saw him, helping them notice the parts of Edmund that everyone else had ignored for so long.
For the first time in years, Edmund was beginning to realize that perhaps the problem had never been that he was unworthy.
Maybe he had simply spent too many years listening to the wrong people.
His fingers tightened slightly around Primrose’s hand. The warmth of her skin grounded him in a way nothing else could.
"I will keep trying," Edmund said at last. He brought her hand to his lips and pressed a gentle kiss against it. When he looked up, his eyes remained locked on hers. "And I won’t let you down."
Primrose’s expression softened. Slowly, she leaned closer until only a small distance remained between them.
"You will never let me down, Edmund," she whispered.
They remained like that for a while, enjoying the rare moment of peace between them.
Eventually, Primrose was the first to sit up straight again. "Alright," she said with a small sigh. "We still have something else we need to discuss."
"The skull?" Edmund guessed as he straightened his posture as well.
Before Primrose could answer, he continued, "I’ll do it."
Primrose immediately frowned. "What?"
She stared at him for a moment. "You do know what I was about to ask you, right?"
Edmund nodded. "I know." His expression remained calm. "I heard everything through the ring. That’s why, I’ve already thought about it. And I’ve decided to do it."
He noticed that Primrose had gone quiet, so he asked, "Do you not want me to?"
"Of course I don’t!" The answer came out so quickly that even Primrose looked surprised by it. "Well..." She immediately looked conflicted. "Maybe I do, but... no. No, no, no. It’s still too dangerous."