The arrival of Aldria silenced the entire hall; any murmuring was completely extinguished as she walked, everyone was... Afraid of her.
One justification for this fear was all the various moments of destruction this woman had caused; she was unshakable and had no scruples when it came to protecting hers.
This was truly true, Aldria was an extremely loyal woman to herself, and if she did something that would cause problems for hers, she would solve it herself; her personality was simple and imposing.
She was the intelligence, the strategy, the very existence of the Empire and its prosperity; she was the true Emperor, she was the supreme Matriarch who commanded everything; this was the impression Dante had, unlike the Emperor in front of him, this woman had a much purer and more real aura than the Emperor.
'What a woman...' Dante murmured watching that woman descend the stairs with such... grandeur.
"Oh, dear." Adam said looking at his wife who showed no reaction, like an empty shell, she bowed slowly and observed the scene, with a small greeting to Velryna who nodded. "It's good to see you're safe, little one," She said and Velryna commented. "I'm well protected." Aldria looked at Dante analyzing him thoroughly, but then turned again to Velryna, "Can we talk?
I want to know how you've been." And for the first time, she smiled, Velryna looked at Dante as if seeking approval and he nodded.
Soon, the two walked away together and Dante was left alone, Nafiri had already left earlier and in front of him was only he and the Emperor, as Ethan had also left when a secretary bothered him with something.
"Let's go upstairs, we need to talk." Adam said in a completely serious way and Dante had completely changed.
Following the Emperor up the stairs, they reached a closed balcony, and both entered and locked themselves out.
The Emperor stared at him for a few seconds, as did Dante, in a matter of seconds, an assassin appeared behind him and pointed a dagger at his neck, but Dante didn't even move.
"Could you explain to me what this is?" He commented, but the Emperor paused and sighed, "What are your intentions?"
"A very rude way of asking what I want with your daughter, but we'll play your game," Dante said and an invisible dagger appeared at the Emperor's neck.
Aaralyn was already waiting to kill him at any moment, well, she thought she would.
"So you were prepared too." Adam said looking at Dante, who was calm unlike him who was surprised by the situation.
"Entering enemy territory is like this, isn't it? Despite loving Velryna, I don't trust a father who allows his son to hunt his sister," Dante said, making Adam feel bitter, but it was true.
"So, what do you want, Arthur? If that really is your name," The Emperor commented as Aaralyn pressed the dagger into his neck.
"Let him go, he's not a threat." Aaralyn followed his command and disappeared, the reason? Vex flew over the emperor and any slight attack movement, he would die, Dante wanted to give him a sense of control, fortunately, the Emperor was a wise man and had his assassin withdraw.
"Let's not talk here." Dante said and summoned his mental world, a representation of himself.
The place was a completely calm sea with no sign of life whatsoever, this was because Voralith and Eldrax had hidden while they were there, a table formed with two chairs.
"Make yourself at home," Dante said and sat down as he waited to see what the Emperor would want.
The Emperor sat down and crossed his hands, looking at Dante, who was completely unconcerned.
"What do you want with my daughter?" He questioned, Dante just looked at him, "The best."
"That was vague," he replied.
"Being vague doesn't mean being empty, being vague I open a range of possibilities, the best family, the best kingdom, the best opportunity, the best husband. There are many paths when you wish the best for someone," Dante said, leaving the Emperor completely speechless.
"You're quite skilled with words, so let's be honest here. Is your interest in her genuine?" Dante, on the other hand, just chuckled. "Of course it is, it would be blasphemy to insult me that way," Dante replied, snapping his fingers backwards.
"Come on, Emperor, you wouldn't have this conversation with me without some kind of request," said Dante, and the Emperor's expression shifted. "Seems like nothing escapes you, does it?"
"Soon, I won't be able to stop Ethan from taking over the Kingdom. I don't know how much longer I'll be here, so protect her at all costs," he revealed. Dante, on the other hand, had already suspected something.
An emperor passing his position to his horrendous son, for various different reasons that could be easily resolved by him refusing to pass the baton to the next.
"Is he ill?" Dante questioned. His strength was no longer the same, and just by that fact, he already suspected.
"Poisoning. I've tried every form of cure, but nothing worked, not even the hero's blessing," he revealed, and Dante nodded. It wasn't the first time he had seen this; he himself had experienced the hero's blessing, so if someone had managed to overcome the anti-poison barrier, it meant it wasn't just a poison, but rather something accompanied by many dark things.
"I don't know who you are, I don't know if you're Ziriel or Arthur, or whoever you are, but get Velryna out of this kingdom as soon as the coronation happens," Adam said with a heavy look. Dante could feel the concern coming from the man, and he agreed with his action. First, protect my daughter; the rest is secondary. That's what Dante saw at this moment.
"It's going to be difficult," he replied to the Emperor, who stared at him, awaiting a response. "What do you mean?" he questioned.
"There won't be any coronation, Adam. Your son is going to die," Dante said, looking at Adam, who seemed surprised by the words, but he wasn't nervous at all, just truly surprised.
"What do you mean by that?" he asked, and Dante smiled. "You know, Emperor, there's something called honor, and your son is one of the greatest scum I've ever seen. First, he kills a child out of envy; ten years later, he manages an illegal slave market and tortures a dragon hatchling. Can you believe that?" Dante said, and the Emperor looked at him passively, with regret.
"When I met you, you were imposing, intimidating, and exuded a passive aura of nobility. But seeing you now, you seem like a doddering old man nearing death," said Dante, disrespecting the Emperor, who could barely rebut his insults, but Dante wasn't after him.
"How much time do you have?" Dante asked. "Not much more than a week after the coronation," he replied.
"Does Aldria know about this?" "Yes, she's the one who has been seeking a cure, but hasn't found anything."
Dante sighed lightly as he massaged his temple. Currently, he was in a good situation; he could now use the Emperor as support to overthrow Ethan before the coronation. However, the Emperor's illness factor... Dante felt at a crossroads.
On one side, Ethan sovereign, possibly with hidden support, since he managed one of the auctions of the demon cult; on the other, the Emperor, about to die and only he could crown the next Emperor. And the third way was himself, Dante, and his thirst for revenge that could interfere with his desires and discernments of the general problem.
"Hey, I'm going to kill your son in the worst possible way. Will you accept that?" Dante spoke, and the Emperor didn't hesitate to respond. "Do as you wish, just ensure Velryna survives."
"Ugh." He sighed heavily and looked at the Emperor. "Why did you expel Hellsing from the Empire?" Dante asked. Adam, not understanding the reason for the change of conversation, just said, "I didn't want them to suffer because of Ethan, but they didn't want to leave. It didn't leave me any choice.
I'm not afraid of that woman, but I don't want enmities, especially after what my son provoked ten years ago," he answered honestly.
"Oh, good," Dante replied relieved; for a moment, he thought he'd have to kill this weak Emperor too.
"Well, you really avoided the destruction of your kingdom. Congratulations, Adam," said Dante as his transformation began to fade. It seemed like time had run out, but as he was within his domain, his original form remained.
Adam saw the man in front of him morphing, his long red hair and his pair of horns. He couldn't help but be completely astonished by the sight of Dante.
"It's good to see you again," Dante said with a smile as he crossed his legs over the table.
"My dear Valentina would probably kill you if she knew you expelled Hellsing like that. Congratulations on saving your kingdom!" he said with a smile as his horns grew slightly.
"So you're alive, Dante Scarlet," said Adam. He quickly recognized who was in front of him.
"Oh, that was quick. Well, am I back?" he laughed like a demon in front of an angel.