The Royal family of Xandria only held about a ton of Aether Ores in their inventory, which was the largest portion of their wealth.
Giving away 20% of it to a criminal organization, Kain couldn't believe that his son would even think of doing such a thing.
"The attack on the train, Was that you as well?" Ning asked.
"Which attack?" the prince asked.
"The one when your sister was returning back to the capital," Ning said.
"Yes, that was me too," he said.
While the Emperor was in shock at the horrific things his son had planned towards his own family, Ning started getting curious about how he even got the news.
'Just the next morning, the assassins were on the train. We hadn't told them we were returning or anything. How did they even recognize us?' he wondered.
"When exactly did you learn about your sister's existence?" Ning asked.
"Right after my cousin called my uncle. I was the first one to learn since I was with my uncle," the prince said.
"Your uncle?" Ning asked confusedly. The prince didn't have a sibling, so where did the uncle come from? Ning couldn't help but wonder.
"The Duke, he's my brother-in-law," the Emperor said from the side.
"Ah, I see. That makes sense," Ning said. "That makes a lot of sense."
He finally realized why they were attacked so fast. He understood why the terrorists were in the Duke's house. He understood why he was attacked today, and understood why the terrorists had wanted the gems.
It was all because of this piece of a shit prince.
The Emperor's face was unsightly. His son hadn't just tried to kill the royal family members, his plan was going to kill himself, just like his father did.
The Emperor started shaking once more as his thoughts ran wild. He imagined a day when he himself would have to kill his son, just as he did to his father.
Ning saw this and couldn't help but sympathize with the Emperor. Over the course of the last 40 years, his father's death still haunted him.
"Guards!" he shouted. He couldn't bring himself to deal with his son as he couldn't trust himself to not hurt him.
The guards that were sent outside came back in a hurry.
"Your Majesty," they kneeled before him.
"Take my son and escort him out to the front of the palace. Then, give him 50 lashes. From today onwards, he is to not hold the status of a royal family member and is to be forever be kept to his own chambers. He shall never be allowed freedom," the Emperor announced.
The guards wore shocked faces, but they did what they were told to do.
Ning silently removed his domination skill from the prince, and suddenly, the prince started shouting.
"Father, I'm sorry. I'm sorry father. Please don't punish me, father please!" he cried out as he was dragged away by the guards.
The punishment seemed quite tame for someone with such horrific plans in his mind. He had even killed his own stepmother. Ning wanted to at least cut an arm or a leg, but… he supposed that was perhaps because he didn't understand the love of a father.
He could see the Emperor beat himself up on the inside while watching his son get taken away. He did what was right… but that still hurt him.
Ning could hear the sound of the Empress crying outside while her son was dragged to the front.
The Emperor stood up and walked outside as well. He went to the front of the palace, where the people were already gathering to see what was happening.
The Emperor then gave an announcement, letting the people learn of the Prince's punishment. He kept the crime as vague as possible, but those who knew even the slightest about what had happened could point their fingers towards him.
Lisa was there. She cried, learning that the reason her mother died that night during the assassin attack was because of her eldest brother.
The Empress asked the Emperor to rethink the punishment, but the Emperor wouldn't budge.
The crowd watched as the Emperor's guards lashed the prince a full 50 times, and then he was dragged away.
The Emperor returned back to the Throne room and Ning walked behind him. As soon as he entered the room, he fell to the ground and started crying.
He couldn't show his vulnerable self on the outside, but on the inside, he cried. Ning had seen it all already, so the Emperor didn't care about him.
"This is all my fault," the Emperor said. "I was too passive in my choice of a successor. Had I made it clear that one of them would become the successor, this would've likely not have happened."
"Don't beat yourself over it. You would've only increased the threat on that one person if you had made a choice," Ning said. "Although, it would have helped settle down internal conflicts if you did choose."
"I… I thought it was obvious," the Emperor said. "Adrian doesn't like doing anything political, and Elizabeth was happy in the City of beginnings. So, I thought it was obvious that Gillian was the one that would be my successor."
'I see, so he always knew where his daughter was,' Ning thought. He saw the Emperor start to have a hard time breathing again as he realized what the had done to another one of his family.
'This guy's trauma…' Ning sighed.
"Do you want my help?" Ning asked.
The Emperor calmed himself and asked, "Help with what?"
"I can get rid of your memory of your father's death. You will remember it to be just as everyone else does," Ning said.
The Emperor looked up in surprise. "You can do that?" he asked.
"Yes, I will remove the prince's memories too," Ning said. "Once I remove the memory, no one in the Empire, but I will remember the truth."
"No, one more person will remember the truth," the Emperor said.
"Who?" Ning asked, but then he remembered. "Ah, the Commander General. Where is he? I will remove his memories too."
"He is in the City of Beginnings right now," the Emperor said.
"The City of beginnings?" Ning asked in surprise.
"Yes, he's the one that helped my daughter survive the assassin attack 10 years ago," the Emperor said.
Ning realized who he was talking about.
"Ah, the boss!"
