The Villainess is my fiance: But she is gentle towards me-Chapter 194 -: I have given him a better place to rule.
"Why wouldn’t I dare?"
The moment this cold voice echoed, a shiver ran down everyone’s spine.
The entire square fell silent.
The ten thousand people standing there turned pale as they slowly lifted their heads, their eyes fixed on the sky, searching for the source of that voice.
Fear spread like a wave. Some held their breath. Others felt their legs go weak. No one dared to speak.
Charlotte’s mother, the queen, nervously bit her lips.
Her hands trembled beneath her sleeves.
The last time she had seen her daughter was three years ago.
That day, Charlotte had looked at them with cold eyes and said they were no longer her parents.
She had turned her back without hesitation.
The queen knew they were at fault.
She knew they had hurt their daughter deeply.
Still, part of her heart wondered if cutting ties completely was too harsh, all for that delinquent.
But those thoughts faded quickly.
Right now, she was only nervous.
Nervous because she had not seen her daughter for so long.
And afraid of what kind of person Charlotte had become after all these years.
As everyone stared at the sky, another lightning bolt cracked with a thunderous roar.
With that lightning, a figure appeared in the air.
It was a woman.
Her face was very beautiful, like it had been carved from jade.
Yet the cold look on her face made her seem like a block of ice. There was no warmth in her eyes.
Her red hair fluttered in the wind, dancing wildly in the air.
Her red eyes looked down at everyone below, calm and cold, as if she was looking at strangers.
In her arms, she was holding a baby.
The baby also had red hair.
"Charlotte..."
The emperor whispered her name. The moment he saw her expression, a cold feeling spread in his heart.
In truth, he had loved his daughter very much.
Everything he had done back then, he had done for her sake.
But when she cut all ties with them, he too had grown angry. In that moment, he felt hurt. Did they really mean so little to her?
But now, all those feelings melted away the instant he saw her again.
His gaze slowly shifted to the child in her arms, and a deep sigh escaped his lips.
’Did... he die?’
This single question echoed again and again in Vined’s mind.
His heart felt like it was being torn apart.
He had always known that his son might already be dead, yet seeing Charlotte standing alone made it impossible for him to accept it.
A tired and defeated sigh left him as he stared at the baby in her arms.
"Vivian’s... child..."
He murmured softly as he recognized the baby.
It was easy to tell. Except for the hair color, the child looked exactly like Vivian when he was a child.
The same face. The same features. The child resembled his father in every way.
Tears slowly fell from Vined’s eyes as he looked at the baby sleeping peacefully.
From the baby’s size, it was clear he had not been born long ago.
Vined wanted to step forward. He wanted to hold his grandchild, even just once.
But he held himself back.
He looked at Charlotte again and let out another heavy sigh, his heart filled with regret and pain.
Charlotte slowly descended onto the platform.
The moment her feet touched the ground, she looked around calmly. Her gaze soon stopped on Vined.
He was staring at the baby in her arms.
His face was filled with regret and pain.
Tears hung in his eyes, as if he wanted to reach out and hold the child, but did not dare to do so.
Charlotte sighed inwardly.
Since she was young, because of Vivian, she had seen this man as her own father.
Seeing him like this made her heart feel bitter. She felt a trace of regret for him, watching him suffer in silence.
But this was not the time for such feelings.
She turned her head and looked toward the emperor and empress.
Her lips curved into a smile.
Yet there was no warmth in it. The smile was cold.
"Father," she said calmly, "you were choosing your successors without even all the candidates present?"
The emperor looked at her. His face was filled with mixed emotions....shock, joy, pain, and guilt. He took a deep breath and forced himself to stay calm.
"Didn’t you say," he replied, "that we were no longer your parents?"
Charlotte’s smile did not change.
"I never said I didn’t want the throne," she replied evenly. "Did I?"
"You—"
Hearing her words, the first prince, who was already pale from fear, managed to speak.
But before he could finish, Charlotte turned her gaze toward him.
The moment their eyes met, his face turned even paler.
The words stuck in his throat, and he fell silent, not daring to say another word.
The air around them grew heavy. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞
The emperor felt a deep sense of regret as he watched his children staring at each other, their eyes filled with killing intent.
It pained his heart. Because of that regret, he turned to look at his wife.
She too looked regretful.
But her gaze was fixed on the child in Charlotte’s arms.
The child’s red hair was the same as Charlotte’s.
And Charlotte was holding the baby so carefully. It was obvious whose child it was. Without thinking, the empress took a few steps forward.
Then she stopped.
Her eyes moved around the platform.
’Where is Vivian?’
She frowned slightly.
As far as she knew, the child was Vivian’s.
And she knew her daughter well. Charlotte would never come alone if Vivian was still alive. She would never leave him behind.
Unease filled her heart.
She looked at Charlotte and asked,
"Charlotte... where is Vivian?"
Charlotte turned her gaze toward her mother. Her expression did not change.
"He is dead," she replied flatly.
The moment those words left her mouth, everyone’s face turned pale.
The empress froze. Her voice trembled as she spoke, her words echoing across the platform.
"W-What? How?"
Charlotte looked at her calmly and said, "He died from illness. The same illness he had been suffering from for the past fifteen years."
"Illness?"
"Fifteen years?"
The crowd was shocked. None of them had known about this. Whispers spread instantly, disbelief written on every face.
Yet on the platform, there was one person who was not shocked.
Instead, he was relieved.
Duke Ravan Tramplin let out a quiet sigh.
’So the curse took him in the end,’ he thought.
He looked at Charlotte, and joy surged in his heart. All this time, he had been worried. What if Vivian was cured? What if he did not die?
He knew it well. Once that curse was broken, that cripple would become unstoppable. He would be the cause of his downfall.
But now, Vivian was dead.
At last, Duke Ravan felt like he could breathe easily.
The threat he feared the most was gone.
As everyone was still processing the news, Charlotte turned toward her father and said,
"I want the throne."
The words hit the crowd like a blow.
Everyone was still trying to understand what they had just heard, yet she had already said something that made them swallow hard.
The emperor looked conflicted as he stared at his daughter. He himself was still shaken.
He knew how deeply Charlotte had loved that man.
Now he was dead, leaving a child behind. The emperor understood that his daughter must be carrying great pain in her heart.
And yet, at this moment, she was demanding the throne.
He did not know her reason.
He did not want to disappoint her. But he also could not disappoint his son, to whom he had already promised the throne.
The emperor took a deep breath.
"Charlotte..."
He was about to speak.
Before he could finish, she spoke again.
"And I want it now."
The square fell into complete silence.
The first prince could not take it anymore.
"That’s enough!!" he shouted.
His voice echoed through the square.
"Who do you think you are?" he continued loudly.
"Demanding the throne like you have the right to it!"
He pointed at Charlotte, his face twisted with anger.
"Didn’t you leave this family yourself? Didn’t you say you didn’t belong here? Then why do you want the throne now?"
Though his voice was loud, his heart was beating wildly.
Fear still froze his body, but he was not foolish. He had clearly seen his father hesitate. And he understood one thing very well—
If he did nothing now, everything would slip out of his hands.
So he pressed harder.
He reminded his father, very clearly, of how Charlotte had left the family on her own.
Cleverly. Completely. He knew that would weaken his father’s hesitation.
"You have no right here," he said firmly. "If you want, I can grant you a dukedom. You can rule your own land."
He finished speaking and looked at Charlotte.
Charlotte did not even glance at him.
Her eyes never left her father.
After listening to his son, the emperor’s gaze slowly grew firm.
He took a breath and said, "I can’t give you the throne. I have already promised it to your brother."
Charlotte finally spoke.
"So," she said calmly, "I can’t have the throne because you already promised it to my brother?"
"Yes," the emperor nodded.
Charlotte smiled.
But it was not a warm smile.
She nodded slowly.
Then—
She snapped her fingers.
Chik.
The sound was sharp and clear.
In the next instant, a flash-like cutting sound echoed across the square.
Everything went silent.
The first prince’s eyes widened in shock.
His vision suddenly spun.
Then—
Thud.
His body fell heavily to the ground.
Horror spread across every face present.
Charlotte stood there calmly and said, "Now you don’t need to think about him."
Her voice grew even colder.
"I have given him a better place to rule."
The square was dead silent.
And everyone finally understood—
Charlotte was no longer asking for permission.
