EPILOGUE

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--Evander POV--

"Do you think she is in a better place?" I asked.

"...I would like to believe so," My younger brother replied.

"And what about him?" I turned my gaze to the grave in the distance.

"I hope he is paying for his sins no matter where he may be," He sighed, crossing his arms before squatting down in front of mothers grave.

"Will she be proud of me?" I mumbled to myself.

"For killing the man that made her life a living hell? Yes, I am as certain of that as I can be, especially if it comes to mother. With her, you can never tell," He smiled a small smile, remembering one of many fond memories that we shared with her.

"Why do you say that?" I curiously asked with a raised brow.

"Because... Mother isn't one to wish pain upon anyone no matter how badly they have hurt her. And father, like her, is a complicated man. Unlike us, there was once a time where she loved him, in fact, she may have never stopped loving him,"

"You sound confidant," I squatted down beside him, brushing the few fallen petals off of her grave and smiling a small smile as I ran my finger over the stone.

"I am always confident, brother," Ambrogio chuckled and I chuckled with him but my moment of small happiness quickly faded away as I reminded myself of the fateful day upon which I witnessed the murder of my mother.

"Everything alright?" Ambrogio asked, nudging me.

"I wonder... If only we had gotten there a bit earlier, by a few minutes, or even seconds... Despite how strong-willed a woman mama was, she could not hurt a fly. I was supposed to protect her, I told her that I would always protect her, but-"

"-But we couldn't," Ambrogio cut me off, I turned to look at him.

"You are not the only one that vowed to protect her... There is not a day that has passed since her death where I haven't regretted my actions on that day... If I had gone to meet her just a little earlier, she could still be with us right now, laughing and smiling, but alas, she is not,"

It was my turn to comfort him, placing a hand on his shoulder, I shared a broken smile with him, one which he only scoffed at, rolling his eyes.

"This regret is not something that will go away, possibly ever. But mama would not want us to be this way... I will live my life, thinking of her every day and cherishing our time together as I move forward... And I wish the same for you, brother,"

"Mama may be gone, but we still have each other... We always will," I said, jokingly punching his chest and he chuckled but nonetheless, nodded his head in agreement.

A few moments of comfortable silence passed between us as we sat in front of mothers grave and every few minutes, we would spare a glance at the gravestone that stood a few feet away from mothers. That other grave was fathers. 

I made sure to bury them some distance apart from each other and no one disagreed.

"How is it going with that woman you met on the street?" I eventually asked.

"What woman?" Ambrogio played innocent.

"Do not joke with me, brother... People see, and people gossip, and as future Emperor, I have no choice but to listen in," I smirked a childish smirk, and he blinked, a look of surprise on his face which quickly faded away as he scoffed, trying, and failing, to hold back a smile.

"Her name is Ariadne... I met her on the street a few days ago, she was giving out roses to the people, a smile on her face, filled with laughter... She reminded me of mother," He smiled a fond smile, I couldn't help but smile with him.

"...I wish you all the best," I whispered.

"Enough about me, it is time we head back to your banquet... Mother would have had our heads by now if she were alive," I laughed at his sorry excuse of changing the subject, but agreed, and got up.

Turning my head, I spared a last glance at my mothers grave, reminding myself of her unforgettable smile before turning back around and heading back into the palace.

"It is your own coronation. We cannot have the new Emperor wandering off," Ambrogio continued to add fuel to the fire, trying his best to get the attention off of him and onto me, succeeding once I caught sight of my uncle standing by the open doors which led to the palace.

"There you are," Uncle Julius said.

"It is my coronation day, an important day... I cannot not see my mother on this day," I gave my honest excuse and my uncle smiled, nodding.

"As it should be," He said. "...She will be proud," Placing a hand on my shoulder, he smiled and I smiled back, blowing my hair out of my face.

"I know," I whispered.

I was the new Emperor of this Empire and with my brother and uncle standing on either side of me with my mother watching over me from the afterlife, I know that I will do my best to keep this Empire standing as proudly as it is.


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And here, comes the end of my beautiful journey with this book. 

I truly hope you readers enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, it was one heck of a thrilling adventure. Thank you to everyone who has supported me in writing this book.

This book, as well as the rest of the books from this series, is available to buy on Amazon as a paperback. So, if you loved this series and wish to support me then feel free to buy it.

 So, if you loved this series and wish to support me then feel free to buy it

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