Reborn as a Leader: King's Debauchery, SSS-Yandere Harem and Evolution-Chapter 45 - Seraphina’s Bewilderment

"Do you expect me to believe that you’ve depleted your kingdom to this state simply for revenge, due to your crush?" Seraphina looked at him incredulously, unable to fathom that anyone could go so far for the sake of love.

This was the last thing she was willing to accept.

"You think I’m lying?" Akhil remained just a half-hand’s distance from her, his eyes taking on a deep shade of pastel pink as he narrowed them beneath the fox mask.

He could see that she was struggling to believe his story, and he had no intention of retreating without making it sound plausible.

"Indeed, I do. For love’s sake? Is this some sort of joke?" Seraphina kept her gaze steady, demanding to hear the truth behind his claim that he had intentionally allowed his kingdom to fall to such depths for revenge against the Empire.

Why wouldn’t he have chosen to strengthen his kingdom instead to exact his revenge? The flaws in his narrative were glaringly apparent.

There was no loophole in what he said, but the motivations he presented had so many inconsistencies.

Who, for even a moment, could consider taking revenge not on a specific individual but on an entire Empire—all for a woman he had barely known for a few years?

Who in their right mind would risk everything for love?

"A joke? I see, you’ve never truly been in love, Lady Seraphina," Akhil replied with a smile, his eyes softening as he glanced at Astara, who appeared composed but was struggling to make sense of his claims.

She, too, found it hard to grasp whether he truly meant what he said; her sentiments aligned more with Seraphina’s assessment.

Taking revenge in the name of love was conceivable, but it was absurd to contemplate waging war against a whole Empire over a one-sided affection for someone.

No one could credibly believe his narrative; why would anyone, even in a fit of insanity, think it worthwhile to confront an entire kingdom?

"What? Mind you, Sir Lysendric, but I already have a fiancé," Seraphina interjected, narrowing her gaze as she revealed this piece of information.

Since the king was already aware of her situation, it seemed prudent to clarify that his assertion about her lack of understanding love was misplaced.

She folded her arms across her chest, firmly standing her ground.

"Pfft! So, you’re marrying for political gain, just like Lady Astarra." Akhil chuckled, his words clearly provoking a reaction from Seraphina.

Her eyes darted toward Astara, while Seraphina couldn’t deny the political undertones of her own forthcoming marriage.

Nevertheless, there had been genuine connections established over a few shared dinners between her and her fiance.

"Sigh, you ladies seem to be mistaking contracts for love," Akhil said, shaking his head in dismay. He moved toward the desk and took a seat upon it, picking up a pen and a piece of paper that lay there.

With a few quick strokes, he began scribbling something down.

"And do you know what love is?" Seraphina went along with the conversation, seeing through him as he attempted to shift the narrative away from the fact that he had demanded information from her and had been denied.

His revelation of so much information was hard for her to believe, especially since he should have known that she could easily sell this information to the Empire. This small Vandreat kingdom had been trying to exploit it from the very beginning, using the information guild.

A war could erupt in no time, and it wouldn’t take half a day for the Empire to obliterate the entire Vandreat kingdom.

"Hm, do these things for me, and I will reveal to you what it feels like to be truly loved," Akhil said, passing his notebook to Seraphina.

She appeared visibly dissatisfied with his casual tone, aware that such misleading words, if spoken normally, could have resulted in the death of anyone who had attempted to flirt with her.

However, her focus was now on extracting information from this king, who was clearly revealing himself as she glanced at the notebook in her hands.

The first line she read among the seven was:

[1. Inform the Empire that the Vandreat Kingdom was using them for their own benefit.]

’!?’

’What the...’ Even before she could process the other lines, the first one was enough to cause her to look back at him. Akhil had folded his arms with a smirk, his expression tugging at something within her. Reflexively, she inquired, "What is your intention this time?"

’Bingo,’ Akhil thought, realizing that her words indicated she believed his initial claim of using the Information Guild against the Empire.

The fact that she now assumed he wanted her to share this information with the Empire showed he had successfully guided her understanding in a particular direction.

This wasn’t the first time Akhil had dealt with intelligent people.

In his past life, he had orchestrated even dangerous plans, going so far as to take medications strong enough to suppress his mind, which could have resulted in brain damage, all for the sake of exacting revenge.

Now, in this world, one could just be thinking about how far he could go to get revenge on the Empire? 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"You already know that the four noble families under the Vandreat Kingdom are heading towards the Royal Capital," he stated clearly, glancing at Astara, who was the first to react as if she understood precisely what he aimed to achieve before Seraphina did.

The shocked look in her eyes revealed her grasp of his intentions, and even the masked man seemed to understand that they were clever enough to link his words.

Yet, to lead these three into his trap, he decided to drop a few more breadcrumbs, adding, "When the Empire sees 50,000 men gathering here to wage war, wouldn’t it result in a bloody misunderstanding?"

’!?!’

"T-This?!" Astara blurted out, losing her composure as she stood, causing her chair to fall.

She turned to Lysandric, realizing that he was attempting to incite conflict between the Empire and the aristocracy of Vendreat.

Seraphina’s hands instinctively clenched the paper in her grasp as she comprehended Akhil’s strategy to use the Information Guild against the Empire.

However, she countered, "Do you really think the Empire would lose to a mere 50,000 men?" Seraphina’s voice was firm, understanding that even if the Vandreat Kingdom had 50,000 men, they couldn’t achieve anything significant against the strength of the Empire.

She believed in his potential to wield the Information Guild’s power, but it seemed he had miscalculated the data; despite the strength of Vendreat’s soldiers, opposing the Empire would still lead to defeat.

"Haah, I am falling for you, Seraphina. You know, I have a fondness for smart people," Akhil declared, jumping off the desk and approaching Seraphina.

He was keenly aware of Astara’s noble pride, which had led her to look down on him because of his impure bloodline for so long. He wondered what Seraphina, another member of the noble lineage, would do if he laid a hand on her.

Yet, he did—gently tracing his fingers over the edge of her fox mask to clearly see a small feather tattoo near her neck without her noticing it, he instructed, "Read the second line on that paper."

’.....’ Seraphina was taken aback by his gesture and instinctively wanted to pull away. However, her gaze, compelled by an unseen force, followed the line of sight down to the paper in her hand.

As she moved to the second line, her eyes widened, and she muttered in shock, "N-no, you can’t be serious!?"