WETRIED TRANSLATIONS

Wizard of the Abyss

[Translator – Aren]

Chapter 155 - Past (5)

The one who had been trying to assassinate Sharmia had been the Emperor himself.

Before shock could even set in, understanding came first.

'...Right, of course.'

No matter how chaotic the Empire had been before Sharmia, it was still a nation that ruled over dozens of vassal states.

Could the imperial palace really have been built so carelessly that it allowed dozens of assassins to enter every month? No matter how senile the old tiger had become, no matter how deeply he’d sunk into greed and division, a beast was still a beast.

Even if they allowed infiltration, they should have uncovered the ones behind it long ago. The fact that they hadn’t meant only one thing…

No one dared to investigate properly.

"Now, drink."

"Yes..."

Regardless of the reason, the situation was rapidly getting worse.

Sharmia, not even daring to refuse, politely picked up her teacup with both hands.

I clenched my teeth as I watched.

The princess would not die here. I had come from a confirmed future, and in that future Sharmia endured her fate and fought against Scarlet Abyss.

So this horrific attempt would fail. It had to…

But how?

"Hmm..."

Her pink lips touched the hot teacup.

My Tide Sense told me that the only one guarding the door was a Knight loyal to the Emperor, acting on his orders. There was no one else who could stop this assassination.

Sharmia would collapse after she drank the tea. The Emperor would promptly call the Knights, escort her to a healer, and declare he would find whoever poisoned the tea. Soon after, an unrelated servant, who would conveniently carry a mark tying them to an anti-imperial faction, would be arrested.

As countless futures flashed through my mind, there was only one truth that remained.

Right now, the only one who could save the princess…

...was me.

"...?"

Sharmia tilted her head, realizing the tea wasn’t entering her mouth.

I had created a small gap between the tea and her lips with my currents, preventing her from swallowing any of it.

In other words, I had interfered with the past.

The Emperor, noticing her confusion, asked casually,

"Does it taste strange?”

"N-no. It’s truly delicious. Maybe because you poured it yourself, Father.”

It was fortunate that their relationship wasn’t close.

Sharmia seemed startled by her own lie, and the Emperor simply nodded to it, narrowing his brows.

"...That’s good.”

After briefly glancing at her lowered teacup, he moved his hand to his waist.

He gripped the hilt of a greatsword that looked like it could cleave a horse in two with ease.

"Has the fever started yet?”

"The court mages said it would probably happen tonight.”

"I see."

...Was it even possible to stop what came next?

I miraculously managed to get past the teacup without raising suspicion, but if I tried to stop the sword too, that would definitely turn into open confrontation. And I still didn’t have the confidence to escape with the princess.

Even if I did escape, what then? Everything would only become more tangled.

As I clenched my fist nervously, the Emperor suddenly let out a sigh and released his grip from the hilt.

"You…will become a great wizard.”

"Th-thank you.”

"I’m tired. You may leave.”

"Yes..."

After Sharmia bowed and left, the Emperor, now alone, pressed his fingers against his temple and sank into a nearby chair.

He looked genuinely exhausted as he let out a low groan.

It seemed that he had at least some aversion to killing his own daughter.

... I mean, then why was he trying to kill her to begin with? Was he insane?

No matter how I looked at it, the future was getting darker by the minute.

"Why didn’t she tell me about this…”

If the Emperor himself was trying to assassinate Sharmia, then the situation became far more complicated.

This wasn’t just another assassination attempt. If the Emperor wanted her dead, then he would succeed sooner or later.

The death of the princess, after awakening as a wizard, would also mean the end of this world. The world I was in.

"This is bad.”

Even as I sighed, I decided on my course of action.

At the very least, after Sharmia suffered through her Soul Fever tomorrow, she absolutely couldn’t be killed by the Emperor.

I quietly slipped out of the banquet hall and out of the imperial palace.

I had some work to do.

* * *

The streets of the Empire, beyond the palace walls, were—

nothing like what I remembered.

Not even close.

"Gnophesian slave, only 3 silver! Still young! Doesn’t even know the language, so she won’t be able to escape!”

"Hey, you. Selling here is illegal.”

"Ah, I’ve prepared a little gift for our competent guards.”

"...Hmm."

I was speechless, watching a slave trade happening in broad daylight and the guards being bribed to look the other way.

The palace, at least, still resembled what I knew, minus the assassins. But out here? Crumbling buildings, beggar-filled streets, and rough mercenaries with swords strapped to their backs, laughing crudely as they passed.

It was a complete cesspool. The streets were thick with filth, reeking as if they hadn’t been cleaned in years.

This was—the Imperial Capital?

And this was only a little over 10 years ago?

Before Sharmia’s reforms, the Empire was utterly rotten and broken.

Even considering the time that had passed since this past, this was just far too drastic a transformation. Sighing, I headed straight for my destination.

My Tide Sense had already found them. Deep in an alley, tucked far out of sight, I found exactly the kinds of people I was looking for.

"Tsk, thought it was a natural-born, but it was just a slave using a magic tool to raise his value.”

"What about the eyes?”

"He had a star tattoo on his eyeball under his eyelid. He only showed it when using the magic tool.”

"Damn, you really see all kinds of crazy bastards.”

As expected, Scarlet Abyss was already active at this very moment.

Of course, they were in the Empire as well. I strode over and grabbed the two just as they were about to turn away.

"...?"

"What the hell is with this brat?”

I hesitated, wondering how to explain myself, then realized that I didn’t recognize them.

In other words, they were Lower Tiers like Withered Grass and Vile Blood.

After dealing with enough of them, I knew they were easy to handle.

"Eyes down."

"G-ghk?!”

-Crack!

The guys who had just glared at me were instantly crushed to their knees.

It wasn't that difficult. In a blink, fear filled their eyes as they looked up at me. I got straight to the point.

"Why are Lower Tiers in the capital?”

"…A-are you an Upper Tier?”

"I don’t recall permitting you to ask questions.”

"Gaaahk!!”

-Creak.

I bent his finger just short of breaking it, to which the other one panicked, hurriedly pulling out a Gospel.

"W-we were just collecting natural-born! We didn’t know we weren’t allowed in the capital! Please, just this once, show us mercy…”

"Hmm."

I snatched the Gospel and read through it.

Now for my real purpose. If the Emperor was connected to Scarlet Abyss, and if Fallen assassins were already swarming in, then this wasn’t something I could handle without preparation.

I was also curious what Scarlet Abyss’ goals had been 10 years ago.

I quickly flipped through the pages. There was no request about infiltrating the palace. Most of them were about abducting natural-born and other covert operations. At this point in time, they were clearly still working discreetly.

Which meant they wouldn’t dare enter the palace directly.

But—

"They’re quite involved."

"...Huh?"

A few nobles were actually connected to Scarlet Abyss, which was completely unimaginable in the present.

Of course, it made sense that some would exist. I remembered them well, since they were families Sharmia would later wipe out for treason.

They were quite useful.

The problem was whether what I was about to do was really acceptable…

'I’ve already interfered with the past.'

Now that I did it once, a second time wouldn’t make any difference.

And more importantly, I had to do this.

"Do not tell anyone you met me.”

"Y-yes!”

Leaving the terrified Scarlet Abyss members behind, I turned toward the nobles’ estates.

The best way to stop an assassination?

Make it impossible for one to happen.

* * *

Sharmia was uncomfortable with her father.

To be precise, she was afraid of him.

"...Uugh."

"Oh my, is the water too cold?”

"No. It’s just right.”

In the massive bath large enough to hold a hundred people, the maids, including the head maid, were tending to her hair so it would always shine.

That was when Sharmia recalled her father’s cold gaze once again.

A look so empty it made her shiver just thinking about it.

Sharmia had been raised under hundreds of eyes since birth.

That’s why she could read the emotions hidden in people’s gazes.

Awkwardness when they saw her, fear of making mistakes, faint resentment toward her parents. She could see all of that.

But there was just one exception.

She couldn’t read anything from her father’s eyes.

When she was younger, she hadn’t found it that strange. She had never known any other kind of family, so she simply assumed that was what fathers and daughters were like.

But at the last hunting festival, she saw a wolf licking blood from its muzzle while staring at her. That was when a sense of déjà vu hit her.

Her father had the same emotionless eyes.

Eyes that did not regard her as a living being.

From that moment she realized that her father was looking at her as if she were nothing but a tool.

...That she could no longer treat her father as a father.

"Haah..."

Perhaps misreading her expression, the head maid smiled gently and asked,

"Are you nervous, Your Highness? Because of the Soul Fever?”

"Hmm, a little.”

"Don’t worry too much. You will surely become a great wizard.”

"Thank you.”

In truth—she felt nothing at all.

'Will anything even change if I become a wizard…?’

She knew very well that being royal didn’t automatically make one a superior wizard.

The daughters of prominent families became powerful not because of talent, but because of rare elixirs, superior education, and environments where they were forced to work hard.

Right now she was already drowning in imperial studies like geography, etiquette, and history. Adding magic to that list didn’t really excite her… If anything…

'It’ll just get more annoying. It’s already a pain as is.'

...That was the only thought filling her mind.

Even now, she did all of this only because she had no other choice, but sometimes, Sharmia indulged in small fantasies.

If she were to deliberately lose the succession struggle and be exiled to the countryside.

If she could live on a small estate, growing an orchid with her own hands, pruning branches, watering the trees, and watching the fruit slowly grow.

Wouldn’t that be a happier life than anything?

As she smiled at a future she knew she could never reach, the bathroom door suddenly burst open.

Another maid rushed in, clutching a piece of paper.

"H-head maid! It’s an emergency!”

"...What is it?”

The head maid rushed out, her expression turning stern.

"Well, the thing is…”

The maid glanced briefly at the princess, and the head maid, who understood at once, closed the door so they could speak in private.

"Well, today, several nobles in the capital were suddenly abducted. And the kidnappers said that if their demands aren’t met, they’ll abduct Her Highness as well…!”

"Calm down. We’ve had countless threats like that before, haven’t we?”

"N-no, the problem is…where this note was found…”

"...?"

"In Her Highness’ bedchamber.”

"...This must be handled quietly.”

"It’s already too late…”

"Why? Who did you tell?”

"It’s not just Her Highness’ bedchamber…the message was found in His Majesty’s chamber as well.”

"?"

"And not only that. There are notes posted all over the palace…Ah, there’s one here, too…”

But the door hadn’t been fully closed, so everyone could hear what they were talking about.

Sharmia frowned slightly and fell into thought when she heard those words.

'Assassins are getting pretty bold these days.'

But at the same time, it was rather foolish.

Breaking into the Emperor’s bedchamber was practically another form of sure-fire suicide.

As she thought that, another thought appeared in her mind.

'...Ah, well, at least fewer people might come after me now...'

Of course.

She didn’t realize that was exactly the point.

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