He leaned back against the chair, lifting his chin slightly, indicating to Heidrich to stop talking and just leave.
With his mind temporarily diverted from state affairs, he began to feel something was off in his head— the sensation of tightness in his head was becoming more intense.
Not only were the black spots at the edges of his vision increasing, but even Heidrich kneeling in front of him began to distort and change abruptly.
Damn it!!
Nero pressed his forehead, cold sweat instantly soaking his clothes: [System!]
He had disabled the system before the private conversation, but since the System usually monitored his brainwave activity, he hadn’t noticed the onset of the symptoms at all.
Before he could even wait a few seconds, he couldn’t hear what Heidrich was saying anymore.
The hallucinations were more intense than any previous time, the floor of the study collapsed with a bang, and the smell of burning flesh filled his nostrils.
The cold command sounded from all directions, loud and noisy, but the content was only one thing: total destruction.
Even though he knew it was a hallucination during illness, Nero instinctively reached for anything he could grab.
However, his remaining sanity made him aware that others were present, so he clenched his teeth tightly, refusing to make a sound.
In the midst of his endless fall, he managed to grab hold of something that felt like metal armor.
“General Heidrich, His Majesty is not feeling well, you should leave.”
The White Wolf Knight hugged the shaking figure on the chair tightly, pressing Nero’s head into his cloak, his voice trying to sound calm.
The last time he saw Nero like this was on the way back from the Delta Fortress.
At that time, Nero pointed a gun at him, asking him to read the rules of executing a derelict emperor.
He knew that Emperor Karagu had some kind of mental illness, and he had vaguely guessed it.
But this guess, whether for him or for Nero, was so cruel that it was unimaginable.
His first reaction was that he must get Heidrich out to protect his young master’s secret.
Heidrich stood there, seemingly oblivious.
His face gradually turned pale, his body like ice.
“Haven’t you heard me, General?”
The White Wolf Knight gritted his teeth, turning his head and shouting, “Wolf Knights!”
But soon, before the Wolf Knights could forcibly remove him, Heidrich lifted his foot and mechanically walked towards the study door himself.
“You all leave as well,” the White Wolf Knight ordered the intruding Wolf Knights. “Close the door.”
The study door closed.
“Your Highness.”
The White Wolf Knight circled around from behind the chair. During this period, he held Nero’s hand tightly.
“Your Highness, can you hear me?”
He knelt in front of Nero, calling out softly, his posture almost pleading.
“Your Highness…”
Nero’s face was as white as paper, even the rosy lips had lost all color.
His red eyes were unfocused, his expression changing unpredictably, only his hands were gripping the White Wolf Knight’s right arm as if for dear life.
“Tie…”
Nero squeezed out a few words from his trembling lips.
“Tie my hands, gag my mouth… any other orders I give… don’t… don’t follow…”
“Alright, Your Majesty. I’ve got you.”
The White Wolf Knight was also trembling.
But he removed the cold armor from his hands and firmly grasped Nero’s thin wrists.
With his other hand, he covered Nero’s still trembling lips.
The young emperor’s face was so small that one hand covered most of it, forcing the knight to constantly adjust his strength to avoid suffocating Nero.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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He no longer resembled the little prince who had grown up with him but looked more like a strange wild beast sizing up its prey.
“Your Highness?”
That look made the White Wolf Knight’s heart ache sharply. Sensing Nero struggling and even trying to kick him, he quickly leaned forward, pressing the boy completely into the chair cushion, pinning his thin wrists high above his head.
In this position, Nero’s weakened feet couldn’t actually kick his armor; they could only flail uselessly behind the knight’s waist.
After a brief, silent standoff, Nero’s body went limp, slowly collapsing into the chair cushion.
The System’s voice grew nearer, flickering in and out amid the harsh static noise: [… Teacher? Teacher Xu? It’s me, your system! How are you feeling, are you okay?]
The System was clearly panicked too: [What’s going on? Why is this episode so sudden, completely different from before… Wasn’t the full onset supposed to happen after differentiation?]
System: [Teacher, are you recovering? This System is almost done, please wait a moment… Sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle sizzle]
As Nero’s chaotic brainwaves began to settle, he suddenly slumped into the chair, silent and motionless.
His clothes and hair were soaked through.
Nero rested for a long time before slowly propping himself up on the White Wolf’s arm, sitting up straight.
In that moment, he had already made his decision.
The White Wolf Knight didn’t even confirm if his consciousness had returned, almost immediately releasing him.
His large hands, still trembling slightly, gently massaged Nero’s wrists, which were marked with red indentations from being restrained.
Nero watched him rub his wrists.
“Your Majesty, shall we go to the Royal Medical Academy for a routine check-up?”
The White Wolf Knight asked softly, his voice still trembling.
He had followed Nero in exile for many years and was a top-tier warrior who had killed countless enemies on the battlefield, yet he had never shown such a side in front of Nero.
“I will select the most discreet medical officer for you. If he dares to leak any information about Your Majesty’s health, I will—”
“We can do the check-up. Especially to check if I have consumed any abnormal food recently, or if there are any unknown allergens,” Nero spoke.
Compared to his clothes and silver hair soaked in cold sweat, his expression and tone were unusually calm, to the point of being cruel.
“But the mental assessment part is no longer necessary. Skip it.”
The White Wolf Knight was taken aback for a moment, but immediately agreed, “Okay, Your Majesty. We’ll do as you say.”
“I’ll listen to you…”
Nero chuckled softly.
He shook his head and reached out to grab one of the White Wolf Knight’s ears.
The White Wolf Knight quickly leaned his head into Nero’s palm, and after massaging Nero’s wrists, he began to touch the finger marks on Nero’s cheeks.
When he covered Nero’s lips, he used a bit of force, and now there were clearly visible red fingerprints on Nero’s snow-white jaw.
The White Wolf touched them with trembling fingertips, his heart pounding painfully.
“Did Heidrich see it, huh?” Nero turned his face slightly, calm as he spoke, “Where is he now?”
“He’s still waiting outside the study door, Your Majesty.”
“Let him in to see me.”
Seeing that the White Wolf Knight was about to get up immediately, he added, “Wait outside for a while first, I’ll talk to him about some things.”
The White Wolf Knight was stunned.
“Your Majesty!” he exclaimed anxiously, “For safety’s sake, I cannot—!”
“I will call you back in after I finish.”
Nero grabbed one of the White Wolf Knight’s wolf ears again, leaning closer to him.
Looking at his knight, his gaze was somewhat complicated, but in an instant, he suppressed all emotions.
“In the entire Empire, I will never force you.”
He said softly, “Always remember this, you stupid wolf.”
With that, he released the wolf ear, letting the White Wolf Knight go outside.
Nero looked through the study’s glass window towards the rose garden in the deep night.
He didn’t wait long before he heard the footsteps of a man.
Heidrich stood silently before him. His face was pale, his eyes dark.
He was always meticulous about his attire, ensuring the placement of his tie pin and cufflinks was precise to the last millimeter.
But now, the man’s military uniform collar was slightly loose, the buttons at the collar were undone, probably just having loosened his tie outside to catch his breath.
Heidrich’s Family was ruined by the madness of Emperor Karagu.
Therefore, Nero understood that when it came to madness, Heidrich must be highly sensitive—even if he didn’t want to, this sensitivity would not be compromised.
“Do you know, General?” Nero tapped his fingers on the table.
Though his silver hair was still damp on his forehead, his tone and gaze were nothing like those of someone who had just had a severe episode.
“The night before we set out for the Delta Fortress, I read your writings.”
Heidrich swallowed nervously.
His gaze on Nero was like that of someone staring at a poisoned silver needle that could pierce his heart mercilessly, leaving him with nowhere to escape.
His voice was almost inaudible as he responded, “Which one, Your Majesty?”
“I read them all.”
Nero said, “The most impressive thing you said was, ‘Whether willing or not, the Emperor is never the noble master of the Empire, but the Empire’s only slave.'”
Heidrich slowly lowered his head.
At this moment, he seemed more like a patient than Nero, a person whose body had become stiff due to intense emotional turmoil.
“However, it was just the impetuous and immature musings of a youth.”
He lowered his head slowly, his voice barely audible as he continued, “Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”
“No, I think it’s quite good.”
Nero smiled faintly, “Because only with such mental preparation can you develop your unique way of serving your sovereign. Isn’t that so?”
Heidrich opened and closed his mouth, but remained silent.
At that moment, he felt an unprecedented hatred for the unique bond of understanding between him and Nero.
Because he even knew every word Nero was about to say next.
“‘If my sovereign strays from his path—'”
Nero suppressed his smile, his expression mild as he recited, “‘I will step over him mercilessly and bring back to the Empire slaves truly loyal to it.'”
Heidrich looked at him.
His eyes now were nothing like those of a strategic and victorious general; he resembled someone about to be drowned.
It was hard to imagine that just a few minutes ago, he had knelt fervently before his Emperor, watching those soft rose lips move with every word, each one so beautiful and moving, making him fall even deeper into the trap of roses and fire.
Just a few minutes, and everything had changed.
Nero saw him remain silent and gradually turned more severe, “So, will you remember this sentence, General?”
“…”
“Answer me.”
“…”
“Hermann Heidrich, your Emperor is asking you a question. Will you remember?”
“…I,” Heidrich’s cold blue eyes trembled, his face growing paler, “I will remember, Your Majesty.”
With that, his usually straight legs, which never bent easily, suddenly seemed to lose strength, and he knelt before the silver-haired Emperor behind the desk.
“Good.”
Nero looked at the Sword Bearer he had chosen himself, his stern gaze finally softened.
“Repeat it, and then swear to me.”
“Your Majesty, I beg of you.”
“Swear to me.”
The System, which had just finished straightening out Nero’s brainwaves, was now also quietly watching everything in the study with its hatred value panel.
Perhaps because Heidrich looked so pitiful at that moment, it hesitated before quietly reporting to Nero:
[The Hexagon’s Hatred Points has just slowly risen to 98. By the way, why does this System feel that the Main System’s definition of ‘hatred’ is a bit biased? Shouldn’t it be more appropriate to call it ‘negative emotion ‘ or ‘pain’ or something like that…]
Nero interrupted it: [Exchange for health points.]
System: [Oh…]
The System operated for a moment and then reported in a small voice: [Teacher’s current leg health: -19400/100].
Nero turned his gaze back to the man at the desk. After waiting for a moment, he heard the hoarse voice of the black-haired General, speaking in a tone almost inhuman, softly saying:
“…I swear to you, Your Majesty.
“If my sovereign were to deviate from his path, I will… I will mercilessly step over him, bringing back to the Empire slaves truly loyal to it.”
Nero nodded, picking up the administrative report on the desk again, “You may take your leave, General. Remember to rest before setting out. The journey from the Capital to the Heka Star System is relatively long. Once the recruitment plan for talents is over, I will join you in Heka Star System.”
Heidrich remained kneeling before the desk.
He tried to stand up by supporting his knees, but somehow, the first attempt failed.
On the second attempt, he managed to slowly rise, propping himself up with his knees.
The man turned and walked towards the door of the study.
Before he could touch the door handle, he heard the footsteps approaching from inside the room, and the White Wolf Knight swiftly pushed the door open and entered.
The knight hurriedly passed by him and walked to Nero’s side.
After making sure that the young Emperor had no abnormalities, he seemed to let out a long sigh of relief.
Heidrich watched them.
His hand still gripped the door handle, his gaze slightly unfocused.
After watching for a while, he softly spoke in a tone close to self-talk, barely audible to Nero:
“…You will always be more cruel to me, Your Majesty.”
“And I… should have long been accustomed to it.”
aOUUUHHHHH he cannot become an alpha, it would be the same ending as in the books! the wolf knight gently blindfolding him, Heidrich overpassing him and setting the New Order in his steed…. Becoming an alpha is his end! such as the tragedy of this family
Other comments mentioned this too, but … did it state somewhere that this madness only affects alphas? I wanna know.
And yes, the path feels so tragic, but everyone is struggling towards a brighter future!
I think it was that all the Kaisis emperors were alphas, and they all suffered from madness after going to the battlefield for a long time 🤔 so overtime it became correlated
Turns out future chapters delve more into it haha.
The veteran readers are more enlightened
Poor Heidrich…he now has the duty if executing Nero because Alexei was spared 😭 I really wish this had a harem ending…
Hoping for extras of an alternate universe where this happened (coping) 🙏