Reincarnated as an Energy with a System

Chapter 1728 1728: Claim to the Throne

The carriage was stunned silence by the information they suddenly received. Not a single one of them could believe what they had just heard.

Could it be true that the Reapers were the ones who had a claim to the throne?

”That would make sense, doesnʼt it?” Ning asked. ”I just need some confirmation, like if the original Emperor was a Reaper as well or not.”

”He was,” Mari said slowly. ”In fact… Reapers are only born to people who have a bloodline of the royal family. My mother has… had some royal blood in her. So do I.”

”So did your brother,” Ning said. ”And he had a claim to the throne. So if the battle was won against the republic somehow, there would be people who could claim they are of the royal familyʼs bloodline and deserve the throne as much as anyone else. And the wannabe emperor doesnʼt want that.”

”So what he does is he erases all the information about royals and reapers and has anyone who has their bloodline killed off,” Ning said.

”No,” Mari said slowly. ”But… that would mean it was the Emperor that killed my brother. That canʼt be.”

”Canʼt it?” He has been doing this for a while now,” Ning said. ”Her father was killed here some time ago. We came to find that out recently. Have other Reapers died?”

Matthew had no idea. Mari instead shook her head. ”I wouldnʼt know,” she said. ”Reapers are not something a family proudly displays. Some do, but most keep them hidden so their enemies donʼt have an idea about them. Reapers are powerful after all. No one was supposed to know my brother was a Reaper too.”

”Do you have any idea about people who have come out as Reapers?” Ning asked.

”A few. The emperor for one. And then there is… no, heʼs dead. She… is dead as well.” Mari began frowning as she thought, unconnected information that roamed freely in her mind began tying to this one thread she had formed. Everyone she knew who had been a Reaper within the Kingdom of Lenes had died.

Not a single one of them here, or in the Grand Duchy, or even the self-proclaimed Empire was alive. The deaths had happened over the course of the many years of war, so it wasnʼt such a sudden thing. But thinking about it now…

”Itʼs… itʼs true,” she said slowly. ”At least, the evidence is there for it. Strong evidence.ʼ

”Can we agree that the Kingdom of Marsh and Olvia have their own Reapers as well?” Ning asked.

”Yes, absolutely,” Mari said.

”And are those two Kingdoms helping in the war against the Republic or not?” Ning asked.

”They… are,” the woman said softly. ”Itʼs not a direct help, but they are fighting against the Republic.”

”They tend to not stick together when they fight, but they are very much against us in this war. I have lost many good soldiers to the army of the two kingdoms,” Matthew said to the side.

”Now, why would two kingdoms that donʼt want to see another person on the throne be willing to fight a battle that would help them?” Ning asked, looking at the two of them who had come up with an answer before he had even asked the question.

”Itʼs because they have a candidate of their own,” Matthew said.

”They have their own Reapers,” Mari said.

Ning nodded. He looked toward Matthew. ”When they fight, are they fighting together or alone?” he asked.

”Marsh and Olvia? Their armies donʼt fight together, but they help each other. They keep to their own and only reach out when the others need it,” Matthew said.

”So, they are fighting as closely as they can without fighting together,” Ning said. ”So we can assume they both have their own Reapers as candidates for the throne. Perhaps, when the war is over, they wish to have someone from their kingdom on the throne of the entire empire.”

Mari nodded. ”And whoever would have their person put on the throne would end up becoming the true Emperor in the shadows.”

The information was a bit too much for the two to process. Not to mention Shara who was barely following the conversation. She took some time to think through things and asked, ”Does that mean I can be the Emperor if I want to?”

Matthew paused and shook his head with a dry laugh. ”Thatʼs not possible,” he said. ”We arenʼt entirely certain what we have talked about is correct, and even if we are, you do not have the backing that one would need to become a king.”

”Before the republic falls, there will be no place for an Emperor to begin with,” Matthew said.

”But itʼs close to losing, isnʼt it?” Ning asked.

”Thatʼs what the news says nowadays. The Republicans are being pushed back through the Larganʼs Pass and more and more are either captured or killed every day. Itʼs just difficult for them to fight the soldiers of 5 different regions at once.”

”Okay, okay. Even if the scenario is likely and the republic does fail, what then?” Matthew said. ”You would have to face the candidates with 3 different kingdoms and their armies behind them. It is just impossible.”

”Itʼs implausible, not impossible,” Ning said. ”I say there is a chance, however small, that she can be put on the throne as well.”

Ning turned to look at Shara who looked toward him with her big brown eyes. ”Do you want to be the Empress who sits on the Onyx throne?” he asked her. ”That will mean making a lot of enemies, but it will also make you the most powerful woman in the entire continent.”

Shara sucked in a deep breath, failing to conceive such a possibility even. ”If I do that, can I… can I get revenge against the Emperor for what he did to me? For what he did to my father.”

”Absolutely,” Ning said.

”Then yes,” Shara said. ”I want to do it. I want to become the Empress.”