Chapter 486 --486
She met her grandmother’s gaze directly. "I cannot give the Su family or their political allies that kind of ammunition. I need to show my face. I need to show them that I am perfectly fine, entirely untouched, and ready to take my place."
The grandmother frowned deeply, clearly hating the logic even though she knew it was politically flawless.
"The Marcuset family does not give a single damn about the whispers of useless capital nobles," the grandmother stated, her voice laced with absolute arrogance. "If you need time to heal your heart and your body, we have the military might to buy you that time. We can completely shut the capital’s mouth. You do not need to force yourself into the snake pit tomorrow just to prove a point."
Hearing that, Heena paused for a moment. She looked at her grandmother, her phoenix eyes dark and unreadable, and then asked a single question.
"Grandma, if you were in my position, and someone actively tried to hurt you or your family... what would you do?"
The grandmother’s expression instantly shifted. The warm, gentle affection completely vanished. A new smile flashed across her wrinkled face—a chilling, venomous smile that looked exactly like a viper baring its fangs.
"Well," the grandmother whispered, her voice laced with absolute, bloodthirsty malice. "I would tear them apart."
Heena looked at her grandmother and nodded. "That is exactly it, Grandma. I want to hold the capital—no, not just the capital. The entire country. I want our reach to go as far as possible. I want anyone who steps foot inside this empire to know the name of the Marcuset family, and I want them to tremble at the mere thought of us."
She leaned forward, the icy, calculated ambition of a conqueror bleeding into her voice. "I do not want us to stay hidden in this estate all the time, just waiting for the Emperor or some new Crown Prince to decide that our family is a convenient little lamb to be sacrificed on the political altar."
Heena looked deeply into her grandmother’s eyes. "Let’s put Grandpa aside for a moment. Men like him, honorable soldiers who fight on the front lines, can never truly understand the insidious games played in the dark. You have ruled this household and navigated these waters for decades. I don’t need to tell you what kind of real game goes on inside the Imperial Court. If someday, a minister decides to frame us for treason... how long would it take for our entire family to die? And how long would it take for us to prove our innocence?"
The grandmother remained entirely silent, listening calmly as Heena laid out the brutal truth.
"I looked through the imperial history," Heena continued, her tone chillingly pragmatic. "Within this empire, over the last hundred years, more than thirty-five prominent households were completely uprooted. All nine generations of their families were slaughtered because they were found guilty of treason. And out of those thirty-five? Twelve of them were fiercely loyal sovereigns who bled for the empire. Some of them were eventually able to prove their truth—but only after their heads were already rolling on the execution grounds."
Heena’s hands tightened into fists in her lap. "If they decide to kill us, and we miraculously survive and prove our innocence, what then? The Emperor will just say, ’’Oh, you proved your innocence, my mistake,’’ and move on. Why should we accept that, Grandma? We are the military. We are the Vanguard. We willingly jump into the fire pit to bleed and die while those useless nobles sit in their lavish rooms enjoying themselves. So why should I let those bastards judge our worth?"
She let out a heavy breath, her eyes burning with resolve. "I don’t know exactly what I am going to do yet. But I know one thing: something massive and deadly is brewing inside this capital. We are standing directly on the tip of the knife. I need to go to the Palace, find out exactly what is happening, and completely break their schemes apart."
Heena paused, looking at the silent matriarch. "Did I say anything wrong, Grandma?"
The grandmother simply looked at her for a long moment. Then, she shook her head and completely burst into laughter.
"Now I understand," the grandmother wheezed, wiping a tear of mirth from her eye. "Now I finally understand why your biological mother never liked you."
Heena froze.
The grandmother reached out and gently, softly touched Heena’s hair. "Your way of talking, your absolute ruthlessness... it is as if the heavens took both your grandfather’s terrifying presence and my venomous personality and forged them perfectly into you. You are so unbelievably sharp that trying to hide anything from you feels entirely impossible."
The old woman’s eyes softened with immense pride. "Go on, then. Do it. I give you my absolute blessing. We do not give a single damn about anyone else in this capital. And even if this Marcuset family is destined to be destroyed someday... it should be completely destroyed by your hands, and absolutely no one else’s."
Heena let out a small, genuine chuckle, the tension finally leaving her shoulders. "The Marcuset family is not built to sit silently and wait for death. If someone dares to touch you or Grandpa, I will personally tear off their face."
The grandmother patted Heena’s cheek affectionately, offering one last fond smile. Then, entirely without warning, her aura completely flipped back to that of an eccentric old lady.
"Oh! By the way," the grandmother said brightly, clapping her hands together. "Your wedding attire is currently being prepared. I have already chosen a few dress designs, you should come look at them later."
Heena blinked, suffering a severe case of emotional whiplash. "No, Grandma. Listen, I absolutely do not want that traditional, suffocating type of wedding attire with the heavy, solid gold jewels pulling on my head and all that nonsense. I hate it."
"Excuse me?" The grandmother raised a haughty eyebrow. "You think I would force you into that tacky, outdated junk? You see, I have always wanted a grand, dramatic style of wedding for you. I chose designs with massive, sweeping skirts that trail along the ground when you walk, like a beautiful western gown. I really love it. So you are going to check the dresses, and you are going to like them. Okay?"
Before Heena could even open her mouth to argue, the grandmother stood up swiftly.
"Oh, my goodness, look at the time! I have so many things to do. You just stay here and rest!" With that flawless excuse, the terrifying matriarch of the Vanguard swiftly escaped the room, practically fleeing to avoid any debate about the dresses.
Left alone in her room, Heena just stared at the closed door before bursting into genuine laughter. It looked like she really needed to work hard to protect this ridiculous, wonderful family.
The next morning arrived with a heavy, oppressive atmosphere.
True to her word, the grandmother didn’t try to stop Heena from going to the Imperial Palace. She allowed her granddaughter to completely take the reins.
But behind the locked doors of her chambers, Heena was fighting a silent, agonizing war.