I Abandoned the Male Lead Who Cheated with the Villainess - Chapter 170
‧₊˚ ☁️⋅♡𓂃 ࣪ ִֶָ☾.
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Since ancient times, it has been said that the goddess Novnie had green eyes. These green eyes, symbolizing wisdom and intelligence, were passed down through generations to the human descendants who gathered these traits from animals. This legacy continued in the royal family of the Sortenic Empire, who enjoyed great glory.
‘Therefore, green eyes are proof of being truly descended from the goddess Novnie, the symbol of the Emperor and the imperial family.’
But what about purple?
Wasn’t it the color of the fox who cunningly whispered love to the goddess Novnie and ruled as the king of animals?
‘So when and how did this purple, which was never associated with the Emperor’s symbol, transform into the Emperor’s mark?’
Aiden relentlessly dug into this question. His obsession was so intense that it was hard to believe such strong determination could belong to a child. It was as though something was driving him, like Novnie herself was guiding his hand.
Finally, young Aiden uncovered all the truths.
The sudden change in the noble color, the requirements to hold the Emperor’s mark, the manipulated founding myth, and the reason why the green eyes had to be soiled…
The one behind it all was none other than…
‘The Pope.’
The temple.
When Aiden realized this, he felt as though the world had spun around him, like it had flipped over in an instant. It was unbelievable. His hands shook, and a wave of exhaustion and shock made his body feel like it was going to collapse.
‘Why?’
The Novnie religion was the state religion of the Sortenic Empire. It was a religion rooted in the founding myth, and it had been with the empire from the moment it was declared. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that the empire and the religion had endured together all this time because of the strong belief that people had in Novnie.
‘But the temple deceived us.’
If Aiden hadn’t been the Crown Prince, hadn’t inherited his father’s extraordinary intellect, superior physical abilities, and innate magical powers, he would never have uncovered the truth. The temple had concealed it so well.
‘The temple does not worship Novnie.’
Aiden’s trembling hands, once shaking from shock, now trembled with fury. They were worshiping a new god.
‘The Pope…’
The most devout, the closest to god among humans, had sat in that position, and the temple had begun to worship the person sitting there. They spread his words as if they were the words of the god Novnie herself.
At first, Aiden might have looked up to the Pope, thinking he was truly devout and a good man.
‘But power corrupts, and power creates corruption in humans.’
At some point, the Pope began to claim himself as a god. This meant that the Pope needed absolute power befitting a god. He sought to rule over the emperor, who was just another human.
‘The absurd idea that “the emperor’s mark is the emperor’s symbol” was created for this very reason!’
The temple had quietly moved beneath the surface for a long time. It spread the idea among the people of the Sortenic Empire, who firmly believed the teachings of the Pope, that purple wasn’t inherently bad. They provided a seemingly convincing reason, claiming that the myth only mentioned two colors, thereby justifying the new teachings.
‘Ah, yes. The temple couldn’t openly admit its preference for purple because of the fox in the mythology.’
Aiden clenched his teeth involuntarily. The thought of his family suffering because of the temple’s petty actions made him seethe with rage.
The temple and the imperial palace, despite being in opposition, maintained a subtle symbiotic relationship, so it didn’t take long for this story to reach the ears of the central powers.
‘The ‘rebellion against the purple-eyed rulers’ would have been incredibly sweet to those who had resentment toward them or those who couldn’t rise further without green eyes. The temple, ever so adept at manipulating hearts and effectively controlling politics, seized this opportunity.’
Thus, the false truth that ‘the true emperor’s mark is the one with the purple eyes’ was completed. The concise summary of it was chilling, but the thought of the temple’s devious plans, spanning hundreds of years, made Aiden shiver.
The fact that this purpose had been passed down for generations meant that the temple had been corrupt for ages.
‘And when the time came, the temple chose my father as the decisive figure to crush the imperial palace and rise to power.’
Aiden now realized that the temple had influenced his father’s ascension to the throne. His mother, having known this, had sought refuge in the temple.
‘But why didn’t she take me with her?’
The question didn’t linger for long.
‘She experimented on it herself.’
The temple and the imperial palace were virtually one and the same. Just because the emperor couldn’t touch the Queen who had fled to the temple, it didn’t mean the Pope couldn’t either.
“Mother…”
A single tear fell from Aiden’s eye as he bit his lip. His mother must have passed away without anyone knowing. If the temple had been safe, his mother would have called for him long ago. The saying ‘no news is good news’ sometimes doesn’t apply, and sadly, this was one of those times.
