As the chamber emptied of servants and attendants, leaving only the emperor and the empress dowager, the emperor settled into a chair, gazing down at his mother with an air of boredom. He tapped the armrest of the chair rhythmically, his demeanor sharp and detached.
"You are not to leave, even after the funeral," he said.
"But this frail, ailing body of mine is unfit for such ceremonies. To attend would only bring disgrace upon Your Majesty," she replied softly.
"How could you be without worth, Mother? You’ve already accomplished something of great importance," the emperor replied, his praise sounding hollow.
The empress dowager’s lips twitched slightly, unimpressed. She had always acted in service of her son, and this time was no different. Faced with the ultimatum he had presented, there was no choice but to concede.
"We will abolish the custom of burial sacrifices. That way, you will remain as the empress dowager forever, a mother to the emperor. And Kang, too, will live and not be taken away."
The emperor had spoken with resolute finality when he made the offer.
"Life must first persist for it to hold meaning. Better to endure humiliation in life and reap its rewards than to seek honor in death."
If the empress dowager harbored any doubts about her son’s resolve, his chilling threats dispelled them entirely. Resistance, she understood, would lead to death. His logic, twisted as it was, rang true—life held meaning only when it persisted. To seek honor in death was akin to owning treasures one could never use.
"Are you truly planning to make him your empress?" she asked cautiously as she stepped from the ornately patterned floor toward her son.
The emperor clasped her hands in his own, a soft smile playing on his lips.
"It seems like such a monumental issue, doesn’t it? Father sought to kill Kang for the same reasons…."
"It’s unprecedented in history," the empress dowager interrupted. "Moreover, it defies the natural order. That child is your own son—your son, not anyone else’s. No nation has ever taken a biological son as empress...."
"And how many nations would dare make a child, who could just as easily be their grandson, a crown prince?"
The emperor finished the sentence she could not. He gripped her shoulders firmly, his tone unwavering.
"You always told me, Mother, that this position is one where anything is possible. If anything can be mine, why not an empress who is also my son?"
The empress dowager closed her eyes, her heart sinking. Her son had lost his sanity. Beneath his flawless exterior lay a soul that was twisted, shrouded in shadows, and selfish to the core—yet disturbingly tender in his own warped way. It might have been easier if he had been devoid of that misplaced affection.
She sighed, stroking the back of his hand with maternal care, before asking softly, "When did you begin to harbor such feelings for him?"
The emperor’s gaze drifted for a moment, as if revisiting a distant memory, before he chuckled mischievously.
"Does it matter whether I loved him as a son or as a lover? What’s important is that I love him, isn’t it?"
Yeonhon had always been a creature of his own will. The former emperor had raised him this way, and the empress dowager, too, had allowed him to act as he pleased under the guise of freedom. It was too late to impose limits now. To object would be futile and perilous—he would view it as little more than an inconvenience and might sever her head without a second thought.
The empress dowager cast a fleeting glance at her husband’s lifeless body, her expression dismissive. Power, even when concentrated in a single person, was inherently transient. But the authority her son wielded now brimmed with the vigor of youth, a sharp contrast to the waning influence of her late husband.
Her decision was clear. To survive, she must stand by her son. She could not afford to relinquish the privileges and luxuries she enjoyed as the empress dowager. To die for honor was a fool’s path. The dead could not speak, and honor taken to the grave was worth less than refuse.
Thus, her course of action solidified: she would fortify her son’s power, and in turn, her position. Any act of defiance would only end in ruin. And who better to ensure the preservation of power than the emperor, chosen by the heavens themselves?
"Have you discovered the way to align your will with divine decree?"
"What do you mean?"
The emperor smirked arrogantly.
"The Son of Heaven is the mandate of Heaven.”
He was already an emperor chosen by the Heaven, and he believed with absolute certainty that the heavens would never forsake him.
"When has the Son of Heaven ever waited for heaven’s command? What I declare is heaven’s will, and what I desire is heaven’s will."
His overwhelming hubris sent a chill down the empress dowager’s spine, though she responded with a victorious smile.
"The heavens cannot abandon their emperor," he declared with unshakable confidence. "Not when the alternatives are so pitifully unworthy."
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Hi! Prominence is in my kofi! This novel is a modern adaptation of Hongyeom, with almost the same tagline, except for the addition of incest and bestiality.
Its omegaverse, and I firmly believe this is their reincarnation lol. You'll see. It's only 3 volumes, so it's not too detailed like Hongyeom. This novel will be released here after we complete the main story~