The Baddest Villainess Is Back - Chapter 185
He opened his mouth wide in disbelief, looking Arma up and down before, with a stern expression, he calmly rang the small bell on the sofa table.
A servant waiting outside entered the room.
“Do you need anything, Your Highness the First Prince?”
“Yes.”
He nodded calmly.
“It seems my youngest brother is unwell. Summon the imperial physician immediately.”
“Yes, Your Highness…”
“Please hand over the position of Crown Prince, as I wish to become Emperor.”
Arma quickly cut off Silvran’s nonsense, getting straight to the point.
The Emperor had told Arma to get Silvran’s approval. Likely, it was the Emperor’s way of making Arma pay the price for living under the title of Crown Prince that he had never truly obtained.
“…It seems my little brother has gone completely mad. Fetch the Emperor’s personal physician immediately!”
“I want to become Emperor.”
Silvran placed his palm on Arma’s forehead.
“You don’t have a fever. Strange. Perhaps it’s something you ate. Once the physician arrives, be sure to tell him. I’ll also check if there was any issue with today’s dishes…”
“Brother, I’m not joking. I said I want to become Emperor.”
At Arma’s calm and resolute words, Silvran, who had been making a fuss, furrowed his brows.
Arma had always kept his distance from the goings-on of the palace, never wanting to be involved with them.
“You want to become Emperor?”
“Yes, so please yield the position of Crown Prince to me.”
Silvran brushed his hair back, his expression hardening.
“You want me to give up the position because you want to be Emperor?”
“Yes.”
“And you think that’s something you can just say to me?”
Silvran’s sharp gaze locked onto Arma, who met it without flinching.
“What’s gotten into you all of a sudden?” Silvran asked in a calmer voice.
“I’ve found someone I care about.”
Silvran’s eyes twitched slightly.
“So, you want me to give up the throne?”
“… ”
“You’ve never really been interested in the throne anyway. I’ll guarantee you a life without obligations, with only the rights that come with it.”
Silvran pressed down on his chest, feeling an inexplicable sense of discomfort.
As much as he wasn’t overly attached to the throne, it still felt like it should be his.
Arma, looking slightly troubled, spoke again.
“From now on, I’ll call you ‘brother’ regularly, and I won’t avoid or try to kill you.”
“…Have you been trying to kill me?”
“Occasionally.”
Arma admitted honestly.
“This brother of yours is deeply disappointed! I’ll have to think long and hard about this! Don’t… Don’t show your face around here for a while!”
Silvran pointed a trembling finger at Arma, his mouth wide open in disbelief, then stormed out of the room, still shaking.
Arma sighed, frowning slightly.
He knew that even after storming out like that, his brother would brood over it and eventually come back for another conversation. That was why Arma didn’t bother to stop him.
‘Roxelyn, I miss you.’
Arma, thinking of the dreams he’d been having lately—dreams of a world he didn’t know—murmured quietly with a weary expression as he leaned back.
***
“Good afternoon, Roxelyn.”
“The moment I saw you, my good afternoon was ruined.”
“Oh dear, that’s truly unfortunate.”
“Isn’t it more unfortunate that you don’t realize the problem is you sitting here?”
Gerun Wilfred, shaking his head as if in mock sympathy, froze mid-motion as he raised his teacup.
With a smile on his face, he looked up at the man who had interrupted and taken a seat at their teatime.
“I heard the Young Duke was busy, but apparently not.”
“I have time to protect my daughter.”
At her father’s stern words, Gerun Wilfred lowered his eyebrows in an exaggerated expression of sympathy.
Roxelyn, unfazed by his familiar and irritating behavior, calmly sipped her tea.
“One might think I came here to torment Roxelyn.”
“I can’t leave my daughter alone with a man foolish enough to ask someone with a living father if they’d like to become his daughter.”
As Duke Bellion grumbled, biting off his words, Gerun Wilfred let out a low chuckle.
