I Became the Master of the Empress

1 – Episode 1

The grand Alhyunsil.

Beautiful works depicting the story of the invited emperor are painted on the ceiling.

The owner of this place seems to have received power from the gods for generations. The protagonist in the beautiful mural receives the emperor’s crown from the gods.

Marble works are displayed on the surrounding walls. And the walls are decorated with gold and silver in various patterns.

But the most magnificent thing here is…

The throne.

A large chair adorned with gold, silver, and black metal. And sitting on it… she, who I once thought was close, is sitting there.

Her eyes meet mine. The knights roughly pull my arms.

Yes… it’s like being dragged with a dog.

-Thud!

Dragged all the way to the front of the emperor’s throne, I stumble.

“The sinner shall kneel!”

The steward under the throne speaks with an imposing voice, but is it because I appointed him?

Instead of feeling intimidated by his words, I stiffen with indignation…

-Thud!

“Argh!”

The knights forcefully kick my knees to make me kneel.

Enduring the pain, I look around and feel the depths of life’s despair.

Around her are the subjects gazing at me.

The one I chose as the prime minister, the royal priest, and the high-ranking officials all look at me.

The appointed courtier recites a long parchment.

“Guilty, Devian Lyon! He executed the rebels as the son of a rebel, but insulted the emperor and…”

It’s not surprising that they are already lining up to let go of their power.

In a world where parents and children kill each other for power, there is no loyalty for me.

The followers who pledged loyalty to me are now all on the emperor’s side.

Do they have any conscience, they quietly avoid my gaze.

Well… what can I do? They have already turned their backs on me.

Although I did not become the highest authority of the empire legally, I worked harder than anyone else to manage the state affairs.

I managed the chaotic state after the death of the previous emperor.

I suppressed the nobles who rebelled against the current emperor, Theodora.

I united the empire again.

I successfully found and exterminated the devil worshippers who were trying to resurrect the demon king in the dark shadows.

I turned the muddy empire into a dazzling marble.

That’s why… I tried to annul the marriage with Theodora without any regret.

A marriage where we didn’t love each other.

I only married her forcibly to survive.

So, in the end, the moment when all the risks disappeared.

I tried to annul the marriage and let her go.

Because… I thought it was the only way to repay her and the previous emperor’s kindness.

However, she did not forgive me.

So, this is how this mess came about.

In the end… is this empire coming to an end?

If I disappear now, in this empire… in order to take my place within the faction… the empire will once again be consumed by internal conflict.

Before the internal conflict can be resolved… Theodora… she will die.

In the end… it has come to this.

Wearing the attire of the highest authority in the empire, even though it doesn’t suit the theme, I did my best but in the end…

The result is heading towards destruction…

What can I say… it truly is fleeting.

When I feel the insignificance of life. I can sense the burning gazes.

I turn my head towards the gazes that seem to devour me.

A woman wearing a splendid emperor’s crown.

A golden, iridescent, splendid emperor’s crown.

But in contrast to that, a beauty with long grey hair glares at me with sharp red eyes.

Harmonious eyes with dark grey eyebrows and long eyelashes.

A suitable chest and a slender waistline.

The noble demeanor and the splendid red and crimson colors that make it even more majestic, combined with the emperor’s attire.

Her cold gaze looking down at me.

-Sigh.

As I look into her eyes, I feel a sense of emptiness.

Was I… that detestable?

I thought we had become quite close.

Perhaps it was all in my imagination.

Of course, it’s only natural for her to despise me.

After all, my father killed her father and brothers, and I was forced to marry her.

Given her strong sense of pride.

She must have wanted to make me lower my guard.

In the end… it was my fault for letting my guard down. I thought I had become close to her, the embodiment of power.

All those smiles, until now, were all lies to put me at ease.

Her attitude and tone, which had softened considerably compared to the beginning… were all schemes to deceive me.

We worked late nights together in the office for a long time, and we shared the same room and bed.

Because of that… despite the rocky start, I thought we had become friends.

So that one day, when she found someone she loved, she could marry him. I even tried to protect her innocence and return power to her.

But… in the end, she couldn’t forgive me…

You know… even if this empire may be on the verge of collapse, she still wanted to kill me, even at the cost of sacrificing it all.

Deep anger fills her crimson eyes.

Those eyes are looking down on me.

I meet her gaze.

Indeed… she is the embodiment of power.

No, she is the protagonist consumed by revenge.

When I get lost in such thoughts and feel the turning point of life.

“Therefore, in accordance with the Imperial Law, I petition for the execution of the noble subject for treason.”

The chamberlain’s words make Theodora nod her head and speak in her beautiful voice.

“Before the judgment is made, I have something to discuss with him alone. So, everyone, please withdraw.”

Her words are met with resistance from her attendants.

“Your Highness! You do not know what this treacherous rebel is capable of! Please take his life!”

“Yes, Your Highness! Do you not know how much he has defied the Empire until now?”

Ugh… How did these nameless people end up in such a position based solely on their abilities?

I want to ask even them if they have defied anything, but… I am exhausted now.

So, I silently watch them.

They abandoned me…

They didn’t seem that foolish…

Or is Theodora doing all this just to turn everything into ashes?

The reason my army is stationed here in Roma… is for my safety and to thwart any suspicious activities.

But if I am betrayed and killed, it’s hard to predict what unsupervised troops will do.

Putting aside my revenge… they will pillage and burn this splendid city of Roma.

So, I secretly mock these foolish subordinates.

“Enough!”

The knights halt at Theodora’s dignified yet low voice.

Seated on the throne, she gazes at her attendants with an emotionless expression.

“Did I not command you?”

“H… Your Majesty…”

Foolish sycophants eager to win her favor by any means.

“Are you defying the imperial decree?”

Before the avatars of revenge and power, they shrink endlessly.

“T-then we shall take our leave.”

The courtiers and knights withdraw like so.

-Kwung!

As the massive doors close, only she and I remain.

I recall her words from before we were married.

“I will surely… make you suffer… a miserable death, and feed your body to the dogs.”

Is this how it was destined to end?

Spilt milk.

Since the moment I resolved to kill Valarang, I had already reconciled with death, having narrowly escaped it several times. Now, I am not afraid of death.

So, I ask Theodora out of curiosity.

“How did you manipulate them?”

They were originally officials appointed by me.

If they could betray so easily, they must have been given something in return.

“You taught me. With legitimacy, the whip, and reward. With these three, one can rule people.”

Was it the absolute power of the emperor’s position, or coercion and reward, that made them yield?

*Sigh.*

I taught her, but in the end, it has come to this.

Later, when I’m gone, instead of becoming a saint as I hoped, she might actually be the one to kill me for revealing my wish for her to become one.

“And… You’re going to annul our marriage soon, so I heard you’re trying to come to my side on your own.”

What?

Her words instantly complicate my thoughts.

A petition for annulment to transfer the power I hold safely. The fact that they know about the current situation, involving only me, the Pope, and her…

“Theodora… Did you leak it?”

I’m preparing for an annulment with her. Only she and I know.

She must have leaked it for revenge.

This situation is not good.

If this fact spreads, I might end up dead by the Empress’s hands within my faction, trying to quickly… take my place.

The empire… will ultimately fall into his hands.

It’s my fault for believing in Theodora in the end.

I’ve come to accept the situation now.

Is it because I’ve given up?

Surprisingly, I feel at ease.

“Sigh… Congratulations… It has turned out as you said.”

But Theodora doesn’t respond to my words.

She rises from the throne and approaches me.

Gracefully walking over the red carpet, she gently lifts my chin and locks eyes with me.

Her lively gaze scans my face thoroughly.

What is she up to? Does she hope to see me tremble in fear?

-Tsk.

“Why? Hoping I beg for my life?”

I won’t beg for something as trivial as life. Even if… I may have made her life miserable, I have saved and enriched many more.

Even if I were to go back in time, I would make the same choices. Therefore, there is no room for regret in that decision.

Of course, it was not easily achieved.

It was made possible by the sacrifices of many soldiers, Theodora, and myself, all to prevent the resurrection of the Demon King and revive the empire for three long years, day and night.

But now, my body and mind are completely exhausted.

In the end, she will lead this empire to its destruction.

Still… I stopped the resurrection of the Demon King… Let’s be satisfied with that.

Humanity will not perish.

As I prepare to face death calmly, she starts to act strangely.

“W-what are you doing?”

Theodora kneels and sits on my leg.

She looks at me with sad eyes.

Is it like the figure of a woman, anxious that her lover might disappear somewhere?

No way. How much she must hate me.

“Why… are you trying to leave me?”

“It was your power. I’m just returning it.”

Her words and expression don’t make sense in the current situation.

I had expected her to be delighted that her revenge had finally succeeded and that she would enjoy tormenting me, but I hadn’t anticipated this gloomy reaction.

“But… why are you trying to leave me?”

I lift my head with a blank face at her repeated question.

“What…?”

“Was it because I didn’t take my purity… that you were planning to annul the marriage someday?”

Right. To withdraw gracefully later on.

If she hadn’t entered into a marital relationship with me, she could have annulled our marriage at any time.

That’s why I calmly state the truth.

“Yes…”

She looks at me with fiery eyes, then clenches her lips.

And…

-Smack!

“Ugh!”

Roughly pushing against my shoulders, she flips me over.

“I must be such a fool… I thought one day you’d be taken with me.”

Is my arm broken?

My elbow hurts.

“It was a foolish thought.”

In her clear yet gloomy voice, I sense a perplexing emotion…

“Well…?”

“It’s okay, if you don’t… I can be the one taken.”

“Huh?”

As she speaks, her gaze changes.

From a gloomy voice to a sticky, obsessive voice…

“Did I… think you’d let go of me?”

From the sad gaze, it turns sticky with obsession, greed… and a hot gaze of desire…

“What… what?”

The moment I try to grasp the current situation.

-Snap!

She roughly tears my shirt.

-Plop!

Buttons rolling on the floor.

And as I look at Theodora, who is smiling wickedly at me, my mind goes blank.

Right now… what are you doing?

Her bewitching red eyes shine.

The red eyes narrow sharply.

“Like that… shaking my heart… Did you think you could leave me?”

I’m speechless in her unsettling atmosphere.

“No!, I will never… never leave you alone to leave me.”

The face of Theodora, saying such things, is filled with a deep smile.

The cold, chilling smile makes my arms tingle.

“What on earth are you doing right now…?”

Instead of my words, her red eyes become sharper.

“Like this… after making me like this! You think you can leave me?”

Shocked by her unexpected reaction, I open my mouth in a stupid tone.

“W-what are you talking about?”

“If that’s the case, then why did you treat me well? Why did you risk your life for a mere replaceable scarecrow?”

“That’s… your place.. uh…”

I gasp unknowingly as her hand plunges into my torn shirt.

Her cold and smooth hand running through my bare chest.

“Oh my… you…”

She looks at me as if finding it amusing and whispers in my ear.

“Making such sounds… it’s hard to endure. Hm…”

And slowly, they whispered in my ear…

-Mm…

Making a vulgar sound, they whispered in my ear.

“Hm… what… what are you doing?”

A strange sensation I’ve never experienced before sends shivers down my spine.

“What am I doing, you ask…? Nullifying the marriage… preventing it from happening. And…”

Gradually, their hand descends, touching my waistband, Theodore.

“Since you won’t intoxicate me… I can only intoxicate you.”

-Snapping.

Unbeknownst to me, I involuntarily swallow my saliva in response to their unexpected action.

But it seems like it was heard a little too loudly.

“hehehe…”

Theodore, with her eyes gleaming red, as if finding amusement in the sound of my saliva, smiles.

Her eyes, a mix of unfamiliar darkness and wickedness, gaze at my lower body.

“Did you get excited? I thought you didn’t have any s*xual desires since you sleep every night. I was worried.”

“W-What?! I… I also have desires, you know?!”

-Snickering.

Theodore gives a wicked smile.

Lost in her utterly enchanting smile, I blankly stare at her.

“Oh my… If I had known, I wouldn’t have bothered thinking such things.”

I… Pull yourself together! This is her provocation!

As I regain my composure, I ask her about the curious remark she made.

“What do you mean…?”

As I speak, she brings her index finger close to her lips.

“Are you curious?”

Um… I shouldn’t be curious about this.

As I hesitate for a moment, she whispers in my ear again.

“A twenty-three-year-old… Don’t you want to take the virgin of the Empress who knows nothing about men…?”

*Gulp.*

Unintentionally, I swallow hard.

And then, as if finding this situation amusing, she looks down at me, puts her finger to her lips, and seems to be contemplating something.

“Or… do you want to make the Empress your own slave? Is that more to your taste?”

“Uh… It’s not about my taste, it’s just that…”

What… What kind of situation is this?

“I’m new at this… I may not do it well(?), but I’ve read books and learned a bit from Mary, so…”

What…? What did you learn from my younger sister?

In an instant, in Theodora’s eyes as she looks down at me, the word “lust” is clearly visible.

*Gulp!*

She looks at me and swallows hard.

What… what’s going on?

“That… I… your family’s… enemy… sniff!”

Before I could say anything, something warm, moist, and slightly rough brushes against my neck.

-Slurp…

And she starts sucking on my neck.

A strange sensation.

The sensation is so unfamiliar that I unconsciously let out a moan.

“Ugh… stop…!”

“No… I won’t! I won’t let go! Today, you will… be mine, I’ll erase any way for you to leave my side!”

Her unfamiliar expression of obsession is so unfamiliar.

I must have seriously misunderstood something.

That’s probably because in the original work, she was a crazy person seeking revenge and a manifestation of power.

What on earth is going on here?!

Something seems seriously wrong with this incomprehensible situation.

Where did it all go wrong?

How did it end up like this?

I recall the day I first met her.