I Became a Dark Fantasy Villain

Diana, who had frozen with her eyes wide, slowly tilted her head and said, "You mean… not you—the Emperor thinks that?"

Ian shrugged. "I appointed the Second Princess as the acting archduke, under the pretext that I needed to prepare to support the royal family. He probably hasn’t completely let his guard down, but since it came from the daughter he cherishes most, he’ll believe it to some extent."

Diana narrowed her eyes slightly, lifting her glass. "So that’s why he’s ignoring the Great Church, buying time."

"Partly, yeah. But I think he also wants to make sure as many survivors as possible return home."

She frowned more deeply, still not quite following.

Sharp as she is, she hadn’t caught the implication.

Then again, not every fairy was born with political instincts like Thesaya. She’d even honed hers at the cost of her life.

Well, everyone has their strengths.

He swirled his drink and said, "They’ll make excellent hostages to use against His Highness Hyked. The more hostages, the better, right?"