BBYW Vol. 4 Interlude 8 (WN)
by nellstewartThe Empire’s Red Rose 8
【POV: Marquis Dagon】
“Damn it! That fool of a woman…!”
Drinking alone in my personal residence in the capital, I smashed my fists against the table.
I, Sargue Dagon, am the head of the prestigious marquis house of Dagon, one of, if not the most, renowned long-standing clans in the empire.
The cause behind my current irritation was the woman who recently took the title of empress.
Rossellia Baal…fourth child of the previous emperor, the sole princess among the imperial siblings.
Historically, the Baal Empire has favored the ascension of male heirs to the throne: there was no precedent for a female to take the throne.
Because the other three siblings lost their rights to the throne, out of sheer coincidence that woman was put on the throne.
In the Baal Empire, men are seen as righteously superior to women, a line of thinking I too naturally adopted.
To see an inferior creature rise to a higher rank than mine and dare — the arrogance! — ordering me around made my blood boil.
“A mere woman, nothing but an oven for children to come out of, went as far as refusing to listen to my advice…! Just recalling it makes me furious…! What does she even have, despite that face and body…!?”
I gulped down the wine remaining in the glass, then slammed it back on the table.
I was originally in the service of the second imperial prince, Grett Baal.
He was not first in line to the throne, but he was well versed in politics and knew the most effective way to use money and power.
Investments and bribes accumulated under him from merchants all over the country, of which some trickled in my pockets as well.
(Who would ever imagine he would go mad like that…!)
Grett, however, ended up losing in the conflict against the neighboring kingdom, and after the third prince — Cerros Baal — revolted, he lost his sanity and resurrected a forbidden weapon.
Because of that, the whole country was ravaged, agricultural and industrial production suffered a heavy blow…and the money flowing in my coffers ground to a halt too.
After Grett’s fall, I too was accused of conspiring with him; in order to be pardoned, I had to run left and right, pleading to various people for help.
As a result, my hidden reserves of money were mostly gone, and the name of the Dagon clan was not unscathed.
(And to top it all off…the next emperor is a woman!? A woman! A milkcow, on the throne! Oh homeland, how far have you fallen!?)
I downed another glass, which again hit the desk with a bang. It was probably too much for the ceramic, which produced a large crack.
“Dammit all…!!”
I threw the glass against the wall. The cracked thing could not possibly withstand the impact, and shattered in pieces.
“Blast it, that glass was imported…! Easy…easy now, Sargue Dagon…a man of your caliber cannot lose his temper like this…”
I took a deep breath, to calm down my boiling spirits.
No noble worth of his title could let anger take over themselves.
I needed to regain my composure, and figure out a way to get rid of that woman.
“Right…it’s not all bad news. Since a woman managed to get on the throne, there is hope for me too, in the future…”
I chuckled to myself, then imagined my future prospects.
The empress, Rossellia Baal, was pregnant — but there was no husband at her side.
Pairing that with the fact that in this country, men still have a privileged position over women…
If I could somehow manage to become her husband, I could then push her out of the way and take the throne for myself.
There’s still the problem of the child in her belly…but it’s not unusual for pregnancies to fail. I just have to line the pockets of some servant, and have them serve her poison or something.
(Yes…yes…I can be emperor…! I will rise to the top of this country!! Aah…I cannot wait…!)
The throne was extremely appealing, naturally, but the thought of turning that woman in my plaything made blood rush to my crotch.
What else is a woman for, anyway!? Be grateful that you’ll have my attention and maybe even bear my child!!
“We have to purify your womb first, though!! To think that it was Maxwell who impregnated you makes it all the more disgusting!!”