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Chapter 40 Part 3 – The thing that tumbled into my hands was a ruby that is a testament to the hegemony of the continent. When I became frightened by the shadows of the evil princes, Seraphy pointed out a fantastic solution

Aquilegia

「It’s amazing isn’t it. I’ve seen a lot of rubies, but I’ve never seen anything like this.」

Bradd boasted about the ruby as if it was his.

Was that compliment of yours about this ruby!! Why did you have to say it in such a misleading way…..!!
I’m certain that I’ve never seen such a monstrous ruby, even in my previous「108 times」when I was a queen.
Even in the morning when the sun had not yet fully risen, it was brilliantly shining red as if it were emitting light on its own.

「…100-carat-plus pigeon blood ruby!? That’s ridiculous!! Impossible!!」

Seraphy leaned forward in astonishment.

「Hahaha, the munchkin caught a ruby!! When she was drowning, the chain of the pendant that was floating around got caught on your neck by accident. Such a great coincidence!! What a stroke of luck.」

Come on! Why are you talking as if I’m a shrimp or a crayfish? You should at least make it a sea bream!

Bradd was optimistically impressed with the situation, but Seraphy seemed to be troubled.

「A ruby pendant like this getting caught by chance? That’s impossible…. The odds are minuscule….. No, strange things happen all the time in the ocean. I can’t be surprised by every little thing that happens…..」

Umm, what a perfect logic.
Are you starting to turn into a comedian as well?

「I wonder if it’s some kind of treasure from a mansion that was washed away in the flood.」

Mary stared in wonder at the sheer size of the ruby.

「That’d be impossible. Something like this would definitely be well-known in the merchant society. There’s no way I’d never heard about this ruby. This doesn’t belong to anyone. So it could be a relic from an undiscovered archaeological site, or a historical treasure whose whereabouts are unknown…. And if that’s the case…. There’s a possibility that this is……」

While saying that, Seraphy’s eyes sharpened as he peered at the ruby from a different angle.

「….From this angle, the brilliance can be seen in the shape of an eye….. As I expected, this is….the 「True Emperor’s」Ruby of God’s Eye…..!!」

At the same time, I started to tremble as I finally realized the true identity of this ruby.
My head, which had been dulled by the cold, finally started to work again.

「…..Uwah, that’s creepy. It really looks like a sleepy, big eye.」

「It’s called the Ruby of God’s Eye, because depending on the angle, the way the brilliance is reflected looks just like an eye. ….Oh, be careful not to touch it with your hands….if the legend is true, it’d be better to be cautious…..」

Bradd was peering curiously at the ruby when Seraphy said that, then Bradd let out a grunt of disgust, but I was no longer paying any attention to him.
I thought I picked up a lizard, but I was shocked to find out that it was actually the child of a vicious man-eating dragon.
I felt like I had been hit with a murderous hard punch that numbed the core of my head.

T-This is the cursed ruby ​​of the「True Emperor」that was missing……!!
An occult item that is also called a「willful jewel」that identifies and curses unworthy owners.
A super-dangerous property that has killed many royals and aristocrats to go insane and die…..!! There are quite a number of deaths that were recorded in the official records of the royal family and there was even a theory that an unknown poison was actually applied to the item.
However, the actual item has been missing for a long time, leaving only its name just like a ghost story.
At least, even I, who was a queen in my previous「108 times」, have never seen it before.
And yet, why is Seraphy, this ruby, and all kinds of dangerous things arbitrarily coming at me one after another this time!?

「Owaaaahh……!!」

I was so terrified that my body went weak and I could not utter any words.
Bradd and Mary looked at me worriedly as I paled and staggered.

「Scarlet, what’s wrong with you!? You didn’t even get scared by the demon dog Gallam. Why are you so frightened!! Is this a cursed ruby or something like that​​!?」

Bradd frowned anxiously.

Yeah, you’re right, this is a cursed ruby.
As usual, you have a keen intuition.
Seraphy, who seems worried and is not letting Bradd and Mary touch the ruby, probably knows about the myth of the cursed ruby.
But that’s only half of the reason why I’m scared.
That’s not what makes this ruby so dangerous.
This is a ruby that could trigger a continental war.
In order to explain why, we must first talk about the「True Emperor」.

・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・ ・

There are nine kingdoms in this continent.
There are four small kingdoms and five large kingdoms, including Hydrangea.

Well, the small kingdoms belong to one of the factions of the large kingdoms.
And this is a long-term problem.
The current situation of the continent is that these five large kingdoms have been skirmishing with each other for a long time.
I feel that it would be better for everyone to be content with their existing territories and work hard to become a wealthy country, rather than wearing themselves out. However, the five large kingdoms are not on good terms and trade between nations is not going well, so I guess it can’t be helped.

These countries have been skirmishing against each other, but a long time ago the continent was united.
The person who accomplished this feat was the「True Emperor」.
He was a king from Hydrangea with red eyes and mysterious power.

At that time, there was a fighting race called the Light Bat Tribe on the continent and they were rampaging freely, but no one could compete with them. Well, the image of light and bats really don’t match though.
I wonder if they’re a diurnal fruit bat……

The True Emperor gathered warriors from all over the continent and led them into a fierce battle against the Light Bat Tribe.
After a fierce battle, he exterminated the Light Bat Tribe, and then formed a coalition government with other influential people who cooperated with him. That was the Alliance of Nine Kingdoms. It was the prototype of the current Nine Kingdoms.

Even though it was a coalition government, the charisma of the True Emperor was so great that it was practically an empire ruled by the True Emperor alone. However, since he was a benevolent and wise emperor, the people were happy to be liberated from the Light Bat Tribe, and an era of peace was ushered into the continent.
This is the story of「True Emperor」.

The「True Emperor」had no direct lineage.
There was a distant relative, though. Which is the ancestor of the current royal family of Hydrangea, but that’s a different story from the current one, so I’ll talk about it later.
When the True Emperor was on his deathbed without a successor, he left behind a mysterious jewel that could identify the next「True Emperor」,「the Ruby of God’s Eye」, along with his last will.

「The one who is chosen by the Ruby of God’s Eye shall be the next True Emperor. …..However, keep this in mind. If someone that is unworthy touches the ruby, the judgment of the God’s Eye will descend upon him. If no one can accomplish this……then eventually someone with red eyes like mine will appear in a distant bloodline and be recognized by the Ruby of God’s Eye. If that person is a man, let him inherit the throne of the True Emperor. If that person is a woman, then the hero who marries her shall take the title of True Emperor.」

It’s a ridiculously troublesome will.
That will is so terrible that I think the True Emperor was actually under a lot of stress and was just trying to get revenge.
If he was a wise emperor, he should have thought about the influence of his words.
Since it was the last will of the True Emperor with mysterious power, it was like an absolute prophecy.
Everyone really believed it.
They were so confident that they were the next True Emperor that they rushed to touch the Ruby of God’s Eye.
…..and the Ruby of God’s Eye acted as a cold-hearted judge.
It was as if the Ruby of God’s Eye could see into the depths of people’s hearts……
The Ruby was not only a judge, but also an executioner.
Those who were not approved by the Ruby died instantly one after another after touching it.
It was terrible…..