Forsaken Priest of the Hero's Party-Chapter 12: The Fallen Princess

Grandera. The Capital of the Illumina Empire.

In the tallest spire in the Imperial Palace, there was a silent room.

Grandera, the sleepless city. A city where night and day hold no meaning. The center of the Empire’s power, where one could always hear people’s footsteps.

Where those who were in positions of power stood in a different place than others.

And those who gather and bustle, seeking any opportunity to catch their eye and advance their careers.

However, in such a city, this room was eerily quiet.

A lonely and desolate atmosphere permeated the room. No one visited this place.

Inside it stood a woman wearing a mask made of gold, and dressed in clothes made of thin golden threads.

She laughed inside the lone room.

She couldn’t help but laugh when she saw the food laid out on the table. If her tears hadn’t dried up long ago, she would have surely shed a few drops.

“So this is my share of the meal.”

A few pieces of white bread. A small bowl of soup that looked more like a puddle.

There wasn’t even a cup of milk, just dirty water.

That was the figure’s dinner.

When had she ever eaten something like this?

It was so absurd that she lost her appetite. The woman waved her hand to have the table cleared.

“You can eat it. If I’m only getting this, I can only imagine how you’re being treated.”

R𝑒ad latest chapt𝒆rs at freewebnovёl.ƈom Only.

“Princess......I’m sorry. No matter how much we pleaded in the kitchens, they say that there are many expenses from above and we need to save...”

“There’s no need for that. I’m content enough with just you by my side.”

Sometimes people don’t value things until they lost them.

Once upon a time, her residence was bustling with people and envoys. Every day gifts for her would arrive, enough to fill this entire room.

At the time, she didn’t know how cruel this world could be. There was no way she could have known.

They say true loyalty and companionship can only be found in times of hardship.

After they took out her wings and confined her in this golden cage,

Among those who once whispered honey-laced words in her ears, those who always offered their support to her......There wasn’t a single loyalist.

If anything, the servants who followed her till the very end were truly loyal.

“Even a wingless eagle can be insulted by chickens now?!”

The princess threw the cup filled with water. It wasn’t a golden cup, not a silver one.

But a wooden cup that didn’t even shatter or break as it rolled on the ground. The princess sighed and picked up the cup again. Even this was precious now.

“The room is empty. Anything that could be worth money has been handed over, and nothing is left.”

This mask and clothes were the last luxuries allowed to her.

She had to humiliate herself, begging for those who had come to see her.

She bowed her head to save those who stuck with her.

She gave all her fortunes to anyone who could help.

“We can...”

“Enough. Don’t waste your effort for someone who’s going to die soon.”

She thought she could seize the throne just by reaching out her hand, but the heavens stopped her.

For her imprudence, she was inflected with an incurable disease.

A disease that causes the body to rot away, decaying while the person is still alive.

This leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, is an illness that even divine power cannot cure. One can only endure it as misfortune, with no way to treat it anywhere.

“I am already a living corpse, just waiting for the day I die.”

“Your Highness......”

“But if I go, how will you endure this shame? That’s why I must live for as long as possible...In the end, you stayed by my side, and for that...I’m sorry.”

The Princess sighed. During her height of power, did she even care about her maids?

If they were ladies-in-waiting, daughters of nobles, that would be one thing, but usually, maids weren’t even persons in her eyes.

No matter how much she deluded herself, thinking her heart was made of steel, in the end, she was still human.

Of course, there were those she opened her heart to and trusted. Which of them is by her side now?

She could only blame and resent herself for misjudging people.

In fact, it was understandable. What elite would want to die with her?

She could understand them leaving her and running away to find a way to live.

But the fact that those she had looked down upon were the ones who stayed by her side instead, made her truly sorry and at a loss for words.

Because it meant that despite having eyes, she had failed to see who would be on her side.

The Princess then spoke, her voice raw.

“If by some miracle I’m cured of this disease.”

It was the purest sincerity, without a shred of pretense or falsehood, because there was nothing to lose and nothing to gain.

“Then I will not forget your kindness.”

As she dismissed the dinner table, another maid entered the room, opening the door.

This maid barged into the room without even knocking speaking as if making an announcement. Her tone was filled with fake politeness that hid a deep disgust.

“Princess Ardein. You have a visitor.”

“A visitor? And who would even come to see me?”

“Baron Eandrim. It seems he has urgent news. Will you receive him?”

“Who is that? There’s no reason for someone to come to see me.”

The Princess slowly rose to her feet with her maid’s help.

Her illness had already progressed to the point where it was difficult for her to stand alone.

However, since someone went through all this trouble to see her, she wanted to meet them.

Ardein slowly made her way towards the reception room.

“Baron Eandrim greets Her Imperial Highness the Princess.”

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know you.”

“Your Highness. I am merely a low-ranking noble who cannot even participate in politics, but how could I not know the hero of the Empire? How could I not know of Princess Ardein’s prestige?”

Baron Eandrim wasn’t part of her old faction.

To be precise, he was a person of such low status that no faction would even reach out to him.

He was not someone the Princess would have taken a liking to.

Since she always coveted talented people, only the best of the best were allowed to serve under her.

That’s why when her downfall happened, those influential people all fled away. After all, if you can’t even avoid the fire falling at your feet, you can’t be called talented.

“I have not pledged loyalty to Your Highness, but even if I had wanted to, I wouldn’t have been qualified. I wouldn’t have even had the chance to stand by Your Highness’s side.”

“Cut to the chase, Baron. Or did you come all the way here to speak with this living corpse for your own amusement?”

“Your Highness, forgive me, but I only wished for you to know that I am still loyal to the Empire.”

When a Nation is in decline, one needs to be talented to sell the country’s information.

When a Nation collapses, you need to be an exceptional person to sell the entire country and get away with it.

It’s not that talented people aren’t trustworthy, but it is a fact that the current Empire is in decline.

Dedicating oneself to a country showing signs of collapse is the work of a patriotic martyr, not a capable person.

It may differ from person to person, but what a capable person prioritizes is themselves, not the country.

Baron Eandrim was not a capable person. He couldn’t even betray the country.

But before that, he had strong patriotism.

He wasn’t here for the Princess.

But for the Empire.

He wasn’t here to see the Emperor’s daughter. But the Hero who could salve this Nation.

“I believe I have found the cure. Your Highness.”

“Lies! Not even the strongest priests of the Trinity Church could cure me.”

“Indeed, those priests couldn’t even cure my cavities. However, my rotting teeth are now intact.”

The Baron opened his mouth and showed his teeth.

Yet, the Princess couldn’t believe in him at all.

“I met a priest who serves an unknown God. He is currently residing in Larpentia a small city in the south. If you hurry before he leaves there, you may be able to meet him.”

“How could a lesser God heal what even the Goddesses cannot?! Do you take me for a fool just because I look like this? Are you mocking me, Baron?”

“Your Highness. I have said what I came to say. Whether you believe it or not is up to you. However, allow me to say one last thing. Your Highness, Miracles do not come to those who do not seek them out.”

Then, the Baron rose from his seat.

“If you still have even a glimmer of hope left, go to Larpentia and search for a priest named Kyle. While I cannot be sure whether or not he will heal you, at this point, you have nothing to lose.”

The Baron himself was aware of this. Of this small possibility.

Whether that priest could save the Princess or not, one wouldn’t know until they tried.

And if it failed, he wasn’t confident he could handle the aftermath.

That’s why he was backing down now.

“As I am now, I don’t even have the influence to borrow a carriage. The coachmen would not want to accompany me right away. The temples are displeased that I am even cowering here.”

The Princess lamented.

“Larpentia is very far from the Capital, Baron. If I travel by horse, I might not even make it. Is it really worth it?”

Horseback riding is a very physically demanding activity.

At the peak of her strength, the stamina required for riding a horse would have been nothing to her,

But now, it could potentially deal life-threatening damage.

“Your Highness. When you were on the battlefield, you were an invincible warrior who did not fear death.”

Suddenly, the Baron, who was about to leave, stopped and spoke.

“But why now have you become a coward who cannot take a single step forward out of fear of death?”

“A coward...”

“I have delivered my message. Do as you wish with this information, Your Highness.”

Long after the Baron left,

The Princess stood rooted in her spot, thinking about his words,

Soon, a hollow laugh escaped her.

Indeed, the Baron wasn’t wrong.

“I will go.”

“Your Highness!”

“Stay here and make the arrangements in case I die. I’m sorry for being such an incompetent sovereign.”

She silently called for a maid and told her to prepare a horse. She packed a few items for the journey, but nothing more.

The maids tearfully opposed this, but the Princess’s resolve was firm.

“Even if I die, I won’t die a coward.”

If she was going to die anyway, she’d rather die on horseback. She wasn’t heading to Larpentia Hope.

She just wanted to take one last journey to conclude her life.

Being cooped up in this palace, waiting for death, was more detestable than death itself.