Chapter 47: The Scumbag Necromancer Taking Advantage
Although Princess Helen held no real power in the court, raised as she was to be a tool for marriage alliances, she was still proud and confident. She had considered the possibility of failure, but she hadn’t expected that when she presented her ideas to her father yesterday, not a single person in the crowded throne room would support her.
The usually polite nobles, contrary to their previous courteous demeanor, all denounced her idea as childish and detrimental to the Empire.
Some ministers advised her that the money should be used for more practical purposes, not on something that only benefited the commoners.
And what were these more practical purposes? Building several magnificent statues of the Emperor to enhance his image and influence; purchasing more weapons and equipment to strengthen the army and deter the Eastern Empire; “fairly” distributing the money among the nobles to secure their loyalty; and even using it as Helen’s dowry to marry her off to the Eastern Empire, ensuring peace for a period.
Helen couldn’t understand why they wanted to spend the money in such wasteful ways. Would building statues make the Emperor beloved by the people? Would buying new equipment for the soldiers truly deter the Eastern Empire, which possessed most of the former Mynian Empire’s military might? Distributing the money among the nobles was even more ridiculous. Anyone who suggested that was an incompetent fool. As for marrying her off to the Eastern Empire, she found it laughable. The Eastern Empire’s goal was to unify the entire continent and reestablish the invincible Mynian Empire. How could her marriage change their minds?
She was even more baffled by her father’s silence as the nobles and ministers berated her. Her two brothers, standing on opposite sides of the throne room, simply watched coldly, a hint of mockery in their eyes.
Were they all just puppets, blindly following the crowd?
Her pride as a princess couldn’t comprehend this. She couldn’t understand how the royal family could be so incompetent.
Thinking back, the royal family’s voice had been a hundred times stronger when her grandmother was alive—perhaps it was her grandmother’s iron grip that had turned the Emperor and her brothers into useless weaklings.
She clearly remembered how several ministers who had been obsequious and subservient, like loyal dogs, during her grandmother’s reign now dared to openly mock her “womanly compassion” in the throne room, before the Emperor.
Helen couldn’t recall how she left the throne room. Her mind was in turmoil, unsure of what to do.
Yes, she was a princess, but just a powerless figurehead, destined to be a tool for marriage alliances. It didn’t matter which of her incompetent brothers inherited the throne. She wanted to do something truly good for the Empire, but that seemed like an impossible dream.
Helen couldn’t sleep that night. After waking up, she went through her morning routine mechanically and sat at her desk until noon, feeling helpless. She couldn’t change anything, and she had made that wager with the boy in the tavern. She had to buy them drinks and likely endure their mockery.
She instructed her personal maid to conceal her whereabouts, which wasn’t difficult in the current chaotic state of the palace. She changed into her previous robe and cloak and went to the agreed-upon tavern.
Pushing open the door, she saw the three of them still sitting there. The silver-haired girl was guzzling wine, playing cards with the blonde girl, who had a plump brown rabbit nestled on her lap, seemingly a newly acquired pet. The grey-haired boy sat quietly at a table, engrossed in a notebook.
…
“Welcome!” Dar greeted her warmly. He remembered clearly that this beautiful lady hadn’t paid for her drink yesterday, but since Abyss had covered it, he hadn’t lost any money, so he held no grudge.
She could have another free drink. That grey-haired human was very generous.
Abyss glanced up at Helen, his eyes still glued to the notebook. “You’re here? How did it go?”
Helen felt a pang of resentment. He clearly knew she would fail, yet he still asked.
She walked over to Abyss and sat down silently, not asking for a drink. “I failed,” she said quietly.
“I knew you would. Your idea was good, but you are indeed a bit naive,” Abyss said nonchalantly, his eyes still fixated on the bizarre illustrations in the notebook.
Princess Helen was on the verge of tears. “I know, I know I’m naive, but please don’t mock me anymore.”
“It’s hard to imagine what kind of education the royal family provided to make you so sheltered,” Abyss sighed softly. “I don’t want to mock you. I just feel it’s a shame. You have a kind heart and the willingness to act on your compassion, but unfortunately, you don’t understand the nobles, nor your father.”
“Are you suggesting you understand them better than I do?” Helen asked, trying to maintain her composure, but her eyes betrayed her annoyance.
“I understand people,” Abyss said with a faint smile. “Strictly speaking, it’s not me who understands them, but my companions. They’ve all experienced a lot, many of them died at the hands of others, so their insights are particularly profound.”
Helen didn’t understand what he was talking about.
Abyss casually chanted a few words, and Helen suddenly felt the space around them being shielded by something. The light outside dimmed, and the sounds of the tavern owner chewing tobacco and the female dwarf’s lute playing on the stage vanished. Having received magic lessons, she immediately recognized that she was inside some kind of barrier.
Now she finally understood the true identity of the boy sitting beside her.
“You’re a necromancer?” Helen exclaimed, her face pale with fear. “What are you going to do?!”
She wasn’t a member of the Church, but her upbringing had taught her that those who used black magic were never good people. They were outlaws who operated outside the rules, for whom killing, betrayal, and deception were commonplace. Necromancers, in particular, had been desecrating the dignity of the living and the dead since their very inception—even after her grandmother’s death, the court physician had discovered traces of necromancy on her body, although this information hadn’t been made public.
“What are you afraid of?” Abyss shrugged. “I just want to help you. You might have suffered a setback, but you must be unwilling to give up, right? Don’t you want the common people of the Empire to have access to affordable treatment for common illnesses? They would all be grateful to you, your name would be sung in their praises. Don’t you want that?”
“You… How can you help me?” Helen wanted to leave immediately, but she realized she was trapped and had no chance of escape. She forced herself to calm down. “I do want that, but your help certainly won’t be free. Tell me, what do you want?”
“Oh, you guessed it. I want this,” Abyss said, pointing.
Helen looked down and saw that his finger was pointing at her burgeoning chest.
Tears welled up in her eyes, a mixture of yesterday’s frustration and current fear. None of these black magic users were good people! Was her innocence about to be taken by this pale-faced man?
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