The sunlight finally ushered in a new day.
The endless screams and screams stopped, and the wafting smell of blood also disappeared.
The main hall of the Imperial Palace looked completely different from usual.
All of Ruvens' cases, big and small, were handled here. Meetings were also held here every morning. Priests, members of the Imperial Family, and nobles were always standing on the beautifully laid red carpet, bowing their heads before the Emperor.
However, today was different.
There was a foul smell of blood in the air, and the corpses were piled up like garbage bags. Most of these people were lying on the floor, cold as corpses.
The Crown Princess's thin lips curved into a smirk, as if she was pleased with the job she had done.
— Let's go.
— Yes, Your Highness.
Kaena, who smiled a chilling smile, stood up from her seat. After that, as she was leaving the main hall, she stepped on several corpses.
As the footsteps of the Crown Princess and her people gradually faded away, the few survivors began to leave their shelters. Some pretended to be dead, some hid behind corpses, and some managed to hide under the rubble of destroyed structures. And all this in order to survive.
"Is it finally over...?"
The few surviving maids and servants shuddered when they saw the bodies of the people they served. After that, they started shouting for the guards at the top of their voices.
Previously, the soldiers of the Imperial Army could not interfere in the battle, as the main hall was completely occupied by the soldiers of the Crown Princess. This place was like an isolated island. However, now hordes of guards have poured in here. First of all, of course, they were concerned about the welfare of the imperial family.
— Your Majesty!
As soon as the "cleansing" began in the palace, the Empress used the people around her as human shields. This allowed her to save her life. However, despite the fact that she was not physically seriously injured, her mental state was deeply disturbed. The woman was trembling and shaking, as if she was on the verge of going crazy.
The emperor, in turn, managed to hide behind his throne. His left leg was seriously injured by a column fragment that hit him. Because of this, the emperor could not move on his own. Both spouses looked terribly pale.
— Your Majesty, lean on me!
The commander of one of the army units hurried to the emperor's aid and helped him up.
— Your Majesty, we are... We should send a chase after... — The knight stopped when he couldn't even pronounce her name.
The emperor, white as snow, stared at him with crazed eyes.
— Are you crazy? — he barked.
— Excuse me?
— Right now, just help me walk!
The emperor was shouting at his subordinate, on the verge of a nervous breakdown. The commander swallowed and lowered his head.
— Yes, Your Majesty...
The Emperor and Empress were helped to leave the scene, and they immediately went for a medical checkup. After that, help came to the second princess. It so happened that at that moment she turned out to be the only capable person capable of offering at least some resistance to Kaena.
Based on this, Jerica was badly injured right now. The knights took the girl by the arms and helped her walk forward.
Despite the fact that the girl herself needed help, she was still trying to stay conscious. The princess opened her eyes with difficulty and looked around the entire main hall. Everything was covered in blood.
— Someone... Did anyone survive? — The princess's weak voice seemed to crack.
The knight who was leading her by the arm hesitated before answering.
— A few, but... There are survivors.
Jerica de Ronan exhaled heavily.
— Where... Where is she now? — there was a counter question.
«.....»
— We don't know... — The knight stammered, — Her Highness has just left the palace...
The second princess didn't say anything else and only gritted her teeth. What her older sister had done today was truly monstrous. The coronation ceremony, which was supposed to be the happiest day, turned into a bloody nightmare.
Most likely, even decades later, descendants will remember this day as one of the worst in the history of the empire.
So many nobles and common people died today. Kaena Gessen de Ronan has crossed every acceptable line.
Jerica couldn't let it go. The Crown Princess had to stand trial and receive the punishment she deserved. But the girl did not have time to finish the thought, as her sober mind was rapidly leaving her. Due to overexertion and blood loss, Jerica lost consciousness.
The knights immediately placed her on a stretcher and carried her to the imperial infirmary, where other members of the royal family were being treated. The remaining soldiers were cleaning up the bodies and wiping away the bloodstains. They gathered the corpses of the nobility and servants in one place.
As soon as the few injured people were helped to leave the place, an ominous silence reigned in the bloodstained main hall. At that moment, there was a rustle and creak of chairs in the empty hall. Two people who preferred to wait for the end of all the commotion to leave their shelter got out from under the countertop.
— Oh, Father... Are you okay?
Yufil bumped his head while getting out from under their shelter. He clutched his bruised head and let out a soft moan.
The guy's face was pale, which made him seem worried. That's understandable. It would be a miracle if a person could still keep their mind intact in such a situation.
There was a lot of blood on his clothes, face, and blue hair. But not his own.
— I'm... fine. Yufil, you're not hurt either, are you?
The heir of the family nodded, and then spoke again in a cracked voice:
— Father, what will happen now?..
— ...
— I saw it... I've seen it. The woman who arranged all this. She's right...
Suddenly, there was an agonizing ringing in the Duke's ears. He clutched his head.
— Uh-huh...
Corpses lay everywhere on the floor like sandbags. All these people were killed by a woman who was recently brought to their house by his youngest daughter. A commoner... no. The crown Princess of this Empire.
Duke de Walt squeezed his eyes shut. He couldn't believe that all this was really happening.
The day the Duke had been looking forward to turned into a nightmare. Last night, together with their eldest son, they came to the coronation ceremony with the intention of having a good time. But instead, they almost died. And it's all the fault of one woman.
The Duke could hear the incoherent mumbling of his son, who was trembling and shaking.
— That's it... What's going to happen to us?
Even though they had managed to escape death today, the Duke also had no idea what was going to happen. The fact that they were still alive now was truly a miracle.
At some point, the duke really thought that they were finished.
In the midst of the massacre, with blood gushing everywhere, Victor lifted the tablecloth of the table they were hiding under just a few centimeters to assess the situation. And that's when he made eye contact with the mad Crown Princess. The golden irises that looked like the pupils of a wild beast were undoubtedly looking right at him.
"This is the end!" The duke's soul sank when he thought that he and his son were going to die right now. He was praying like a madman inside.
However... To his surprise, everything did not happen as he expected. It might have been just a moment, but it seemed like an eternity to the Duke. Kaena de Ronan was the first to look away. She never did anything.
Even when the Crown Princess was leaving the main hall, she walked past their table without turning around. This made Victor even more puzzled. He couldn't figure out why this crazy woman had spared their lives.
And at the same time...
The Duke looked at his hand, which was cut by a piece of glass, with a blank expression on his face. At that moment, the thought occurred to him.
— Camille... — The head of the family muttered in a hoarse voice.
His daughter was still at home, unaware of what had happened. For some reason, Victor's body trembled and became hot. He vividly recalled the horror he had experienced that night. Ringing screams, the clink of metal and the disgusting smell of blood. On top of that, most of the bodies were not just mutilated, but hacked up.
The nobles' limbs were shredded and scattered on the floor. The Crown Princess was doing all this just for fun. She was laughing, as if enjoying the bloodshed.
"No, this crazy stuff...!"
Duke de Walt clenched his fists very tightly. Before he realized it, the man had resolutely risen to his feet. Yufil looked at his father with a confused face.
— We're going back.
— what? — The heir of the family stuttered in mid-sentence.
— I urgently need to notify Sir Gilton that an attack is being prepared on our estate.