Secrets of the Villainous Empress

Chapter Two: The Descendant of an Ex.

The female lead was a saintess. Saintesses signify the gods' blessings on the land as they can commune with the gods. They were very rare, so they proved essential, especially to the conquered nations that were yet to accept him as their Emperor fully. If a saintess is treated poorly or does not show up after a major political change, like the formation of an Empire, then there would be a full-on war as the other countries reject the change because they sought approval from the gods. That is how significant religion is and how important the female lead was. Yet, the Emperor would not divorce me according to his council and occasionally insist that she be kept as the royal concubine.

I was torn; without his title, he was easy to kill. However, many would lose their lives if a war broke out, so when the female lead called me to the temple, I followed.

On arrival, the gods claimed that I had distorted the plot enough that I was no longer an extra, but I was also not accepted as the female lead.

They warned that if I happened to die, like all extras, I would disappear without a trace, but I would not be forgotten by the male lead who held strong feelings for me. So he would be forced to live in a world that only he knew of my existence. This situation would not sit well for him, as he was used to a life of murder and debauchery, he would claim madness, and every year, on the anniversary of my death, the day his pain hurt the most, he would murder countless in then claim insanity. This, unfortunately, would result in the untimely death of the female lead once she joins the imperial family, leading to the collapse of the entire Empire.

The gods offered three choices: leave them to their fate and pray that I do not die, two, be erased from existence, and the gods can start the events once more from his exile as in the novel or the third one, become a saintess and thereby stay by the male lead’s side.

Hah! Why do I have to live with a man who only followed his whims with no regard for another? Why do I have to care for a world that only takes? Why do people have to be forgotten?

We should all go to hell together, was my response, but…in that madness, there was a kind mother, a generously loving father, a mischievous sister and a knight that shone even in the madness of the palace. So, one more time, I need to see my sister. I need her to have a chance to survive this madness, so I chose the second option on the condition that my family would be spared their fate.

Of course, the correct answer to the gods was obviously the third, so they did not take it kindly that I was unwilling to ‘take one for the broken world’ as that option was safer in terms of results. Instead, they asked me to take responsibility for anything that would go awry, as they did not have the full power to turn back time without consequences.

While my family was spared, The male and female lead followed the book's path; only the Emperor felt no love for the female lead. In fact, he felt empty, as though he were missing something vital to his existence. So after the birth of the crown prince, he neglected his duties as a husband and drowned himself in politics, hoping to find his answer. The Emperor’s brother wooed the saintess, and one thing led to another, and a second royal heir was born, this time a girl.

No one was happy about this fact, especially the Emperor, and when news reached the key powerhouses in the Empire, a war broke out. Millions died, and thousands were forced to fight a war that did not interest them. The change was beyond the gods, and the laws that bound extras were broken.

The broken laws gave birth to ‘Remembrance Day’. A day when people, amid war, broke down and wept due to the overwhelming forgotten memories of their fallen loved ones that flooded them. Another change after Remembrance day was that people were no longer driven by their roles but by their feelings and memories, and through this confusion, the world became more realistic.

Shortly after that, a peace treaty was declared, and the five territories forming the Cursix Empire decided on appointing five ruling ducal households and one Emperor. This was to allow the second prince and the abandoned saintess to be placed in a position of authority as a means of acknowledging the overly religious territories.

While the Emperor/Empress ruled the entire continent and were the final authority, they were centrally in May Flower territory, at the heart of Cursix. The rest of the Ducal houses were appointed territory wise: Akonia, the northern territory, a land of rare minerals inhabited mainly by Non-humans appointed the Tissir family; Nissa, the western territory, a land of scholars appointed the Luciano household, The southern Isles, a merchant city appointed the Nichols household, and Lastly, Fiosal, the eastern territory, a coastal land mostly known for hotels and tourism appointed the Alistan Household.

The fifth ducal house was in Mayflower, under the same name as the Emperor as they were related.   

Naturally, this was not the outcome the gods favoured because the laws of causality that ensured that people were bound thoughtlessly to their roles were broken. The gods could no longer ensure their hands were at play and peace and prosperity guaranteed, and for that reason, I was the one to bear the responsibility.

My role is clear cut; if there is a hero in need of motivation, the gods will make me a bandit that will kill someone close to the hero, and later the hero will want to be a Knight that protects, or in some cases, they will go on an adventure to find me and settle the score. Still, in the midst of the adventure, they will learn and see many beneficial things.

If a child needed to be kind, but the people around him were cruel, forcing him to grow guarded, I would be sent to be their only friend and teach them the joys of kindness.

If a man was hard and bitter, and the gods wanted him soft and trusting for a future role, I would be sent as a pesky village child who would pester them until they grew to love the company of others.

If a master was at death’s door, with no one to pass on his technique to, I would be there… again, and, again, and again, and again, again again again…cursed to live until needed dead.

By that logic, I have been a slave, a slave owner, a baron, a pauper, a dragon’s apprentice, a knight, a son, a daughter, a priest, a saintess, a killer, a lover, an affair, a maid, a merchant, a mother, a father, a victim, a doctor, a patient…I have been everything and nothing all at once.

There was a time I broke, but even that did not free me from my role, so I designed six rules with the help of a tao hermit that I had spent one of my lives helping. Three of the rules were flexible, based on my role, but three were for my sanity and, thereby, inflexible.

One, always be honest, two, never take anything personally and lastly, three, never hold on, whether, to life, a favour, or a promise. 

Once I mastered the rules, the burden eased, and I could etch out the hidden joys of semi-immortality, no matter how few.

My life span can run from fifty years to three days, I can either be born, these roles last the longest, or I can inherit a body. But each of the lives I live has had its own validity.

That is the nature of my curse.

 {Role Identified}

The sound of the system gifted to me by the gods after being a saintess in one of my lives jolted me from my thoughts.

“What is my identity, and what is my role?” I asked as I tried to stand from the bed, but my entire body protested.

“Hell, plus what the hell is wrong with this body.”

 {The name of the body that the host has inhabited is: Azalea Oleander Cursix}

-Cursix?!...no…-

 {You are the current Empress of Cursix Empire}

-Ah…crap-

 {Your current role is to toughen the coward of the West, Lord Aleu Diox Luciano of the Luciano Household}

 {Cu-}

“Stop! Stop! stop!” I interrupted the system. “What is my relation to the first Emperor, Allios Cursix?”

  {Do I start with that or the question the host had asked prior, ‘Hell, plus what the hell is wrong with this body?}

“Start with the relationship.”

 {Initiating the family tree diagram}

“No need for that, just summarise.”

 {Understood, the body the host is inhabiting is a descendant of the First Emperor of Cursix}

-Has this ever really been anyone's dream? To be a descended of that one awful ex?-