Too Lazy to be a Villainess novel Chapter 404

Chapter 404: Treson, Judgement and A Father

[Haldor’s POV—Imperial Palace—Same Night]

The palace burned with motion.

Boots thundered across marble halls. Orders were shouted. Magic flared in corridors where fear had once lived quietly. Torches lined the walls like watchful eyes.

But I heard none of it; all I heard was my own heartbeat.

Lavinia was gone, not missing, but taken.

And that single truth was enough to turn the empire into a cage I wanted to tear apart with my bare hands.

I marched through the Eloria capital city, sword already drawn, armor half-fastened, and rage fully awake.

"Search every door again!" I roared. "Even the sealed doors! I don’t care if they were locked for decades—break them! No matter how scared they are or how rotten they are, break every single place."

Knights scattered at once.

Osric caught up beside me, breath sharp. "We’ve searched the outer city. No trace of magic trails beyond the walls."

"That’s because they never left," I growled. "She wouldn’t be taken beyond the capital. It would be too risky for them—Rey sealed every border with his magic."

We rode without pause.

Every alley.Every broken street.Every forest path.Every nearby village.

Torches burned through the night like angry stars. Knights scattered in every direction, shouting her name, tearing open doors, and questioning shadows.

Nothing.

No scent.No trail.No magic.

Only silence.

A knight stumbled toward me, breath ragged. "There’s... no sign of Her Highness. What do we do now, Your Highness?"

My hands trembled on the reins.

Where are you, Lavi...? I hope you’re all safe.

The thought struck deeper than any blade. The city that once felt alive now felt like a coffin. Every second without her felt like the world was slipping away from me piece by piece.

Osric placed a firm hand on my shoulder.

"She is strong," he said steadily. "You know that. She was raised in fire. Don’t let fear blind you now."

I swallowed hard.

"You’re right..." I whispered. "She’s strong, and I need to be strong too."

Then—A horse thundered toward us.

"YOUR HIGHNESS!" a knight shouted, nearly falling from his saddle. "WE HAVE FOUND HER HIGHNESS!"

Every breath in the courtyard froze.

My heart slammed against my ribs.

"Where?" I demanded.

He panted, eyes wide. "She was taken by Clonal Zerith... inside the imperial palace. The old nursery chamber."

For a second, the world went silent. Zerith, the palace, and her childhood room. My blood turned to fire. I didn’t answer. I kicked my horse forward with everything I had.

"Move!" I roared.

Horses surged after me. Armor clashed. The palace gates burst open as we rode like a storm back toward the heart of the empire.

Hold on, Lavinia. I’m coming, and anyone standing between me and you—will learn what it means to touch the crown and live to regret it.

***

[Moment Before—Before Marshi Broke the Door—Emperor Cassius’s POV]

"Can you track her?" I demanded.

Rey stood in the center of the corridor, both hands raised, runes circling his wrists like burning stars. Sweat ran down his temple as magic gathered around him.

"I am trying," he said through clenched teeth. "One thing is certain... she is not far."

My grip tightened around my sword; not far meant she was still inside my palace. Inside my walls. Inside the very heart of the empire, I swore I would never fail to protect her.

I turned sharply, scanning the corridor. Guards stood frozen, fear written across their faces. Even the torches trembled as if the palace itself knew its princess was in danger.

"She used herself as bait," I growled. "Just to expose the traitor..."

My jaw tightened.

And I let her.

I looked at Marshi. The great beast paced in circles, flames bleeding from his mane, claws tearing shallow marks into marble. His roar echoed like thunder trapped in a cage.

"He hasn’t left the palace," I said slowly.

Rey’s eyes snapped toward Marshi."Because he can feel her energy here," he answered. "And so can I. But Astreon’s magic is blocking us. Their spell is folding the space around her."

I stepped closer. "Then break it."

Rey clenched his fists."I need one clear signal. One crack in their veil and I can—"

SWOOOOOSH! FLASH!!!!!

A violent surge of green and gold light exploded from the eastern wing of the palace. The air shook. Windows rattled. The floor beneath our boots trembled as if struck by divine thunder.

Rey’s eyes widened.

"THERE."

I turned sharply.

The nursery wing. The place where I once hung my photo banners so my daughter would never forget my face when I rode to battle.

My chest burned.

"That means..." I whispered.

ROOOOOAR!!!

Marshi launched forward like a comet of fire, smashing through the corridor, flames licking the ceiling as he charged toward the light.

I drew my sword in one smooth motion.

"So the pendant awakened," I said coldly. "The elves’ blessing... protected her."

Rey nodded grimly. "She triggered ancient magic. Whatever they tried to do to her—failed."

Good.

But failure only made traitors desperate.

"Move," I commanded.

I ran.

Not as emperor, not as ruler, but as a father whose child was surrounded by enemies inside his own home. My boots thundered down the hall. Guards scrambled after me. Rey followed, magic blazing brighter with every step.

"They chose the wrong chamber," I snarled. "They chose the wrong child."

The corridor ahead glowed with unnatural light, gold and green clashing with dark Astreon runes. 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

And as I ran toward it, only one thought burned in my mind: Anyone who laid a hand on my daughter tonight...would not leave this palace alive.

***

[Lavinia’s POV—Present Time—Nursery]

ROARRR!!!!

Marshi’s roar shattered the air like a living storm.

The robed Astreon man stumbled backward, collapsing onto the floor, his body trembling as flames reflected in his widened eyes. The heat alone forced Talvan and Sirella to shield their faces.

I straightened despite the chains, my pendant still glowing faintly against my armor.

I smirked.

"You wanted a divine beast," I said calmly. "You wanted power. You wanted my death."

"What you found... is my guardian."

"LAVINIA!!!" Papa’s voice tore through the chamber like thunder.

CLANG!

"Silence," he said softly and that was worse than a shout. "You chained my daughter in the room where she learned how to wall. You used foreign magic inside my palace. And you dared to call this treason politics."

Talvan’s knees shook. Sirella sobbed behind him. Zerith could not even lift his head.

Papa’s eyes burned.

"There are crimes that deserve execution," he said. "And then there are crimes that deserve to be remembered."

He turned his head slightly toward Ravick and the Black Knights flooding in.

"Chain them."

They moved instantly.

Papa looked back at Talvan.

"You will not die today," he said quietly. "You will stand in court tomorrow. You will confess and then you will executed."

Then his gaze flicked to the robed Astreon priest.

"And you..." he turned his gaze to the robed man.

He trembled under it.

"Do you think Astreon will escape this audacity?" he hissed weakly. "Your empire has begun to rot from within. Do you know who will make Astreon rise and Eloria fall?"

I smirked.

"Of course he doesn’t." I stepped closer, Marshi’s flames lighting my shadow tall against the nursery walls.

"But let me inform you, general Luke Valethorn. Your own man."

The Astreon priest’s eyes widened in horror. "No... he would never betray Astreon—"

I cut him off sharply.

"Betray?" I laughed, low and cruel. "He is not betraying anyone."

I leaned down so he could hear every word.

"He is protecting the empire he swore his sword to. He is protecting the land that raised his son. He is protecting the throne where his daughter-in-law will sit as Empress."

My voice hardened like steel.

"That is not betrayal. That is loyalty."

I straightened.

"You may call it treason. You may call it heresy. You may call it sacrilege." My eyes burned crimson in the firelight. "But history will call it this—ASTREON’S FALL BY THEIR OWN PEOPLE."

The robed man collapsed to his knees, gasping as if the words themselves had crushed his lungs.

Sirella sobbed.Talvan stared at the floor like a broken statue.Zerith could not meet my eyes.

Then Ravick stepped forward, his black cloak whispering like death.

"By order of His Majesty and the Crown Princess of Eloria," he declared, "you are all under arrest for treason against the throne."

Chains snapped shut.

One by one.

No mercy.No hesitation.

They were dragged away screaming, begging, cursing—but none of it mattered anymore.

Marshi’s flames slowly dimmed. Rey’s magic faded. The nursery returned to silence. Papa stood beside me, his hand heavy on my shoulder.

"This night ends," he said, "but the cleaning begins."

I looked at the broken room where I had once learned to walk, and now... where traitors had fallen.

"Yes," I replied softly. "The empire will wake tomorrow... purified."

And that was how the night ended.

Not with peace.

But with judgment.