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Part 1. And So, I Became the Empress
The coronation ceremony was held with grandeur. Everyone was exhausted from the previous emperor's tyranny, so the citizens of the Seven Hills Empire warmly welcomed the new empress. Even the nobility seemed to welcome, for now.
No one would dare show discomfort in the banquet hall, where a madman, who had turned the imperial palace into a bloody mess overnight with his insane killing power, was smiling broadly.
But at this ceremony, where everyone cheered, only one person couldn't smile––me, the new empress, who became so just because of a joke I had made to my brother. It felt like my head was about to explode.
As soon as I became the empress, I was buried in a tomb of pending tasks, waiting for their master. It seemed like my remaining life would be spent just cleaning up the mess left by the former emperor.
Though I had been the head of House Sutton at a young age and made it go round twice, managing an empire was a whole new ball game.
'Why does the work never end? Huh? Why it is so endless? I decided to just go ahead and work hard every single day, but why does it never seem to stop? Huh? Why, for God's sake?'
I was signing the tear-stained documents, but then I stood up from my desk. I approached Edwin, who was lounging on the couch, munching on grapes. I grabbed his collar mercilessly and shook him.
"Stop playing around and help me. Can't you see how busy I am?"
"But Raviel, if I get busy, a lot of people will be in trouble," Edwin replied nonchalantly, still munching on grapes.
Edwin Sutton, House Sutton's former cutie pie and now the Commander-in-Chief of the Seven Hills Imperial Army, was speaking the truth. Edwin being busy meant only one thing: war.
If war broke out now, I was sure to die of overwork. I threw his collar away and collapsed on the couch.
Edwin offered me a grape with a happy face, saying, "Raviel, everyone's happy now that you've become the empress. You must have the makings of a monarch."
"They would've been glad with a mutt as an empress as long as the last idiot was gone."
"A mutt? You're too modest, Raviel. They say Seven Hills has become livable again in just one season since you ascended the throne."
As he spouted this cheerful nonsense, I grabbed both of his cheeks and stretched them.
"Don't you see your sister aging three years in just one season? Huh? Don't you see it?" I asked.
"Huhu, huaha. Ahaha, heho."
As Edwin made a fuss with his squished face, I released my hands. Then he laughed with his cheeks turned red.
Why was this stupid little rascal who turned Seven Hills upside down known as the greatest lunatic?
Ah, maybe because he was the insane who beheaded the emperor and placed his sister, me, on the throne, and was now idly milking the situation, planning his next mischief?
I looked at Edwin pathetically, but he just rolled a grape in his mouth and laughed. He might be a foolish little brother obsessed with me, but I had to admit, I was no less a doting sister. Even his foolishness seemed cute to me.
Pushing the fruit plate he had offered me back to him, I said, "Enjoy them all. You love grapes."
"You should eat too. They're sweet and good."
"Don't eat the seeds. You know they give you a stomachache."
"That's old news. You worry too much, Raviel."
Edwin laughed heartily and swallowed a grape whole. He used to be so fragile as a child, getting easily sick, but now, he was strong enough to gobble up anything and be fine.
'If only his mind were as sound as his body…'
It was heartbreaking that my lovingly raised brother was now known as a lunatic. Regret washed over me.
In my past life, I failed to take care of my brother. After our father passed away, leaving baby Edwin, and our mother, too busy leading the family alone, died when I was fourteen, I focused solely on sustaining House Sutton they left behind.
I was young too, had so much to learn, and thought my four-years-younger brother would grow up fine on his own. However, Edwin left home as soon as he turned eighteen, and until my death at twenty-eight, I never saw him again.
My biggest regret, as I closed my eyes, was not taking care of Edwin. Concerned about where he was, I breathed my last, but when I opened my eyes again, I was fourteen.
So, this time, I took care of Edwin first. I embraced my little brother, who gazed at me with eyes longing for the warmth of family love, and we lived as siblings relying only on each other.
Perhaps in return for my affection, Edwin too grew up bright and healthy. Unlike before, he became a swordsmanship prodigy and, without me realizing, turned into the infamous lunatic of Philander.
If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have told him to do whatever he wanted....
As I was lost in nostalgic thoughts of the past, a plate full of peeled grapes was placed in front of me.
"Raviel, eat some grapes. I peeled them all for you," Edwin said with a big smile, offering a handful of grapes he had peeled with his large hand.
His pink hair, just like mine, gently fell over his forehead. He looked so innocent with his childish face, but I knew exactly what kind of schemes his angelic appearance was hiding.
"Eddy, why are you provoking the Pargos ducal family again?"
"When?"
"Are you going to lie when I have a pile of reports from the Imperial Inspection Bureau? Want to be scolded?"
Edwin clicked his tongue and pouted.
"They won't accept you as their leader, Raviel. Don't worry. I'll push them aside and reclaim their duchy."
"Eddy, if you provoke House Pargos, House Delmoi will also rise. Then the other ducal families will start making noise too."
"I'll just brush them all aside then."
"No."
"Ugh, why not?"
"Why not? What kind of question is that, you lunatic? It's been less than a year since the emperor changed. Are you planning to start a civil war or what?"
"They will start trouble even if we don't intervene. It's better to strike first, Raviel."
I threw a grape at Edwin, who was spouting nonsense. He annoyingly caught the grape with his mouth and grinned.
I also knew that Duke Pargos was uncomfortable with my ascent to the throne. And it wasn't just him. All four ducal families, each in their own way, had shown their discontent.
The Seven Hills Empire was formed by the union of seven families, but three of them, including the previous royal family, House Haldeir, had already vanished into history due to struggles for the throne.
The remaining four ducal families, managing the borders in the north, south, east, and west, stayed out of central politics. However, to be fair, they too had reasons to aim for the throne.
With a new empress emerging from an unexpected Count's family, they might be reevaluating their positions. Thus, as Edwin said, a civil war might break out if things went wrong.
Ugh, I really couldn’t have that. I already had too much on my plate.
I firmly shook my head and said, "I'm trying to find a way to persuade them. So, don't act rashly and stir things up, Eddy. I'm warning you."
"Alright. If you say so, I'll behave."
"Please, just behave. If possible, stay put."
"Yeah, yeah," Edwin nodded with a less-than-trustworthy answer.
Feeling uneasy, I found it necessary to assign someone to keep an eye on him.
“By the way, you really seem cut out to be the empress, Raviel.”
“Who's spreading such terrifying nonsense?”
“You reestablished the Imperial Inspection Bureau in just three months. I heard the new chief is quite stubborn.”
'Ugh, that's the least of it, Eddy. It was incredibly tough.'
The former chief inspector, Cecil, had quit in disgust at the former emperor's rule, taking her subordinates with her and leaving the whole bureau in shambles. Without the empire's eyes functioning properly, who would know what the nobles were up to?
It took two months of daily letters to barely persuade her to return. If I had put this much effort into writing love letters, I could have been married off three times.
Fortunately, with the return of our broad-minded chief inspector, managing the empire became a bit easier, though.
No, actually, it didn't. What good did the Inspection Bureau do? The imperial palace was still full of the former emperor's useless flunkies, from the Lord Chamberlain to the head secretary, all of them.
Eventually, I just signed the dismissal of the remaining head secretary. His assistant, the deputy, seemed sharp, so I appointed him as the new head.
Deciding to replace the Lord Chamberlain as well, I made the shocking choice to promote our family's butler who had been working hard for House Sutton.
Three months of personnel changes had cleared some of the mess, but we were yet short-staffed. Those who were somewhat capable either couldn't handle the workload and resigned or feigned illness when faced with the choice between going home or going to prison.
'Gosh… I need people. Someone smart, obedient, healthy, and won't write resignation letters.'
I wished someone to just sign documents or attend morning governmental meetings on my behalf.
Actually, I was tired of dealing with whiny nobles, so someone to simply attend the nobility meetings would be great. But where to find such people? If I could, I would chain them up and make them work. That fierce desire surged within me.
I calmed myself, closing my heavy eyes. I had to put myself together and shouldn’t become a tyrant even if I became the empress unwillingly.
Finding hardworking, healthy people might be possible, but those who wouldn't run away when things got tough were rare.
I knew too well that offering high pay wasn't enough. There had been many times I wanted to hit my brother with this crown on my head and run away, even when I was the ruler of this vast empire.
Since I couldn’t really chain someone up, maybe some bait I could throw?
'… Ah, there's one.'
"Eddy."
"Yeah, Raviel?"
"I’m thinking of getting married."
"Eh? All of a sudden?"
I nodded with a bright smile. Surely, no one would run away if their wife was the empress. They would be too afraid of being caught and executed.
'Good. Great idea.'
It might not be enough with just one person, so how about adding some concubines too?
Maybe about four, each skilled in different fields. That might give me a chance to breathe...