The Tyrant Empress is Obsessed with Me

33 – Zulat Prison

Prison Day 1.

“It doesn’t matter what kind of person you were outside. Once you enter this hellish prison, Zulat, all of you are nothing more than equal prisoners. Do you understand?!”

Prison Day 3.

“Oh, Ascal, sir. How are you finding prison life? If you have any discomforts, please let me know. I’ll take care of it right away.”

“Well, I feel refreshed when I wake up in the morning and prison life suits me very well. But the bread for breakfast is a bit hard…”

“Oh dear! I’ll give those supplies officers a good talking to. The bread shouldn’t be hard, no no. I didn’t know there was such a serious problem.”

Chesha, the warden of Zulat Prison, which had never allowed any prisoner to escape since it was built on a remote island, carefully brushed the dust off Ascal’s prison uniform.

“I’ll fix that immediately. Have another pleasant day in prison.”

“Yes, Warden, please take care of yourself as well.”

Ascal left the warden’s office.

Despite his suspicion, Ascal had pointed out some land for purchase, and since the discovery of the magic stone, the warden has treated him extremely well.

The guards waiting outside saluted Ascal.

“It’s time for lunchtime exercise. Would you like to rest in your cell today, or…?”

“I might as well get some exercise; my body’s feeling sluggish.”

“Understood. Please follow me.”

The guard led Ascal to the prison exercise yard.

Already, the other prisoners, excluding Ascal, were enjoying their limited free time to the fullest.

“Over here! Kick the ball this way! You idiots!”

“No, give it to me, not that moron!”

The guard squinted his eyes.

“Tsk tsk, I gave them freedom, but they can’t even maintain order. It’s truly the look of a prisoner, don’t you think, Ascal?”

“Heh, it can be like that.”

The guard glanced around to make sure no one was watching and whispered quietly to Ascal.

“How many times would you like to bet on the horse today?”

“The number 3 horse.”

“Thank you.”

The guard left with a bright expression to buy the betting ticket.

Ascal, who was left alone, looked up at the clear sky.

Screech-

A seagull was flying around.

From No ble mt L dot c om

People say you can’t predict what’s going to happen in a person’s life, and just a few days later, he found himself imprisoned.

‘It was a bit strange.’

Ascal recalled an incident that happened not long ago.

After he wrote an article about the jeweled frog, the imperial guards arrested him immediately and sent him to prison without a proper trial.

Not just any prison, but the worst prison in the empire, Zulat, where only the most heinous criminals were held.

It felt as if someone had been waiting for him.

‘No matter how I look at it, it seems like someone intervened.’

There were two conditions for this to be possible.

First, a person with such an immense power who could touch Ascal, who is currently one of the most influential figures in the empire.

In the first place, the charge of manipulating market prices was a trivial offense. To send him to prison without substantial evidence, they needed that kind of power.

Second, they needed to have a grudge against Ascal. Sending him to Zulat prison, where it’s difficult to get out once you’re in, showed the level of their resentment.

‘…The second princess?’

She had power, and she had a grudge.

The first person that came to mind was Serena. It might be possible for her, who had a life motto of destroying everything that didn’t belong to her.

‘No.’

It seemed like a plausible deduction, but there was a contradiction.

The very fact that the second princess sent an invitation to Ascal the very day he was sent to prison. It was unlikely that she would send him to prison without getting a response.

So, excluding the second princess?

The emperor, the crown prince, the ministers…

It wouldn’t be the emperor. If Ascal had fallen out of the emperor’s favor, he would’ve already disappeared like dew on the gallows.

It’s even less likely to be the crown prince. The person who directly asked Ascal to help take down Count Devar would not send him to prison. He didn’t have such a twisted personality to set a trap.

‘The ministers.’

Ascal remembers.

When he had met the Emperor, he remembered the sight of the eunuchs whispering flattery on both sides of him.

-If there hadn’t been eunuchs beside the Emperor, you would have already become a minister.

And the testimony of Section Chief 1.

It seemed that the most likely ones who sent him to prison were the courtiers around the Emperor.

“Ascal, let’s play.”

A big man, almost a giant, approached Ascal with an awkward gesture.

Ascal snapped out of his thoughts and looked at the man.

“Alright. What should we play?”

“Let’s play with string. String.”

His name was Zerob.

The giant man brought a string and skillfully created shapes with his fingers.

“I like playing with string the most. hehehe.”

Zerob looked a bit ferocious, but he was a kind friend.

Ascal continued the string play with a small smile.

It was Ascal who started talking to the gloomy Zerob after he entered the prison. Since then, Zerob followed Ascal closely.

“I’d be happy to spend my whole life in this prison with Ascal. It’s fun. hehehe.”

“…That might be true.”

Perhaps it was because of the remote island, but the air was clear.

Even the occasional sea breeze wasn’t bad.

There was nothing to worry about.

Just eating, defecating, and sleeping would end the day’s schedule.

‘Maybe being a prisoner was my destiny? …I feel a sense of deja vu.’

Ascal spent the exercise time playing with Zerob.

“Sob sob. Chief! I came here! You’re still alive, right!”

“Don’t you see me standing right in front of you? Sushia.”

In principle, visitations are prohibited at Zurat Prison.

However, when the power of a noble family and the personal authority of the prison director are combined, such absurd things can happen.

Sushia shed tears upon seeing Ascal’s emaciated face.

“Our Chief, look at your face, it’s half gone. What should we do?”

“It’s just that I’ve lost some weight. On the contrary, my health has improved because of a regular lifestyle.”

“You don’t have to lie in front of me like that… Sigh.”

Really though.

The prison food was surprisingly delicious.

Susi-A stared out the window for a while, listening to the commotion outside before calming down and continuing the conversation.

“Since the director suddenly got arrested, the appraisal department was thrown into chaos. The empire became incredibly noisy too…”

“Is that so.”

“The entire appraisal department, they started a strike with their lives on the line. They said they wouldn’t work unless you were released.”

That was a bit unexpected.

Ascal was surprised.

Under normal circumstances, if the emperor didn’t approve, they could have instantly lost their heads. But the fact that they were still fine meant the emperor was still watching how the situation would develop.

“Even the Meme race working in the empire joined the strike. They said they had to protect the benefactor who made the way for them.”

“…Why would they do that?”

“So don’t worry, Director. Above all, the crown prince is furious and has vowed to thoroughly clarify this matter. They say even the Third Princess has protested vigorously.”

Yulia?

‘I thought she’d run away as soon as I lost my value to her.’

It was a strange situation.

There seemed to be more people supporting him than he initially thought…

“I couldn’t just sit still either, so using my connections, I found the culprits behind this incident.”

“The culprits?”

“Sure enough, it was Duke Seves and Count Galtanar. They conspired to frame you, Director.”

Susi-A sneered, seemingly angry.

Duke Seves, Count Galtanar.

They were the ones from that time, when they had angered the emperor.

As expected, their scheme was behind everything.

“How could they just send the empire’s manager to prison without even a proper trial?”

“I thought it was a bit strange.”

“But don’t worry, Director. I’ll definitely get you out.”

“No, it’s actually perfect right now.”

“?”

As Ascal knew, even if the empire fell, Zurat would only change its affiliation and still remain intact.

In a way, staying quietly in prison might be a good choice.

Fresh air, comfortable routine, and delicious food.

Life in Zurat’s prison was quite tolerable if you could only get the powerful on your side.

“Anyway, I brought some newspapers so you can keep up with the news outside.”

Sushia proudly brought in the contraband.

The prison guard glanced over and looked away.

It was a victory of power.

“Thank you.”

“Don’t worry too much, Director. Things seem to be going quite well. I’m sure your name will be cleared.”

Usually, those words only mean that things don’t go well, and the name isn’t cleared.

“Visiting hours are over, your Grace.”

“I’ll go, Director. But you must stay healthy!”

“Alright.”

Sushia continued to look back, delaying the time as if she had lingering regrets. When the guard couldn’t take it anymore and urged her, Sushia reluctantly left.

‘I’m still grateful she came to see me, even by boat.’

Ascal revised his evaluation of Sushia slightly upwards in his mind.

Evening.

After finishing his day’s work, Ascal went to his cell and opened the newspaper Sushia had given him.

‘I should at least know how things are going in the world.’

As expected.

▶ Imperial’s Sleeping Dragon, Locked Up in the Worst Prison.

The first headline was about himself.

And below that…

▶Attention to the White Magic Tower, the Jewel Frog?

▶Crown Prince Kain: “I Will Not Let This Matter Slide.”

▶Duke Sénestià Expresses Regret Over This Incident

▶The Mysterious Race Begins a Strike on a Racial Scale

▶Third Princess Yulia Awakens from Long Seclusion and Speaks at an Official Ceremony

“Well, chaos has ensued.”

Ascal quietly closed the newspaper.