They are all characters I control.

So that second sister-in-law liked to have affairs with knights, coachmen, servants, maids' husbands, horses... and so on. She was quite promiscuous.

Every day, nobles and even commoners would discuss who the second prince's wife was with.

The affair between the second sister-in-law and the second brother was one of the most talked-about things in the capital back then; otherwise, how could Claire have possibly ascended the throne?

As for Claire's second brother, he chose to remain silent!

If you want to make a living, how can you not wear a green hat?

As long as he becomes emperor, who will dare to say he's being cuckolded?! So my second brother was quite aggressive in colluding with the nobles, and my second sister-in-law herself was also from a noble family.

These things were common knowledge back then, but now it seems that not many people know about them.

Otherwise, this prince wouldn't be so proud of his lineage.

"Sister! How could you..." Elena covered her mouth with her hand, took a few steps back, and looked at her sister.

Her surprise at this moment was genuine; she was truly astonished by Claire (Lia).

How dare they call him a bastard in front of Prince Alvin?

"This is outrageous! How dare they insult His Highness Prince Alvin like this!"

"Shameful! I never expected the eldest daughter of the Rost family to say such a thing."

"She should be executed!"

"If the royal family knew, they would be furious."

"You should know that the royal family is working diligently and working hand in hand with the church to govern the empire in an orderly manner. How dare Miss Lia insult the royal family like this."

"..."

The surrounding chatter actually calmed Prince Alvin down considerably, even though his hand was already on the hilt of his sword.

If there weren't so many people around, he would have already drawn his sword.

No one could insult the royal family like that, especially not my grandmother who had fought against the terrifying rule of that evil god Claire all those years ago.

It is precisely because the royal family had an evil god in the past that the current royal family is so kind and friendly.

His own father was affectionately called the "good old man emperor".

Taking a deep breath, Prince Alvin struggled to suppress his anger and said, "You... cough, you must pay the price for what you said. You should know that questioning the royal family is a very serious offense. Do you understand what you said?"

His voice was a little hoarse, but Prince Alvin managed to remain calm.

"What? Did I say something wrong?" Claire raised an eyebrow nonchalantly.

Although not many people know about the absurd things my second sister-in-law did back then.

However, it's not impossible to prove that Prince Alvin is a bastard, and that the current royal family is full of bastards.

"Since you say your father and grandmother are of royal blood, have you ever been to the royal treasury?"

Claire initially targeted other members of the royal family to prevent the church from emptying that treasury.

The royal treasury was left behind by the ancestral hero king, and only his royal bloodline can open it.

Each royal heir can choose a gift from the treasury upon birth.

This is equivalent to the "first birthday celebration" in the previous life.

Claire's second brother had five children, none of whom were able to access the royal treasury.

He still remembers the look of anger on his second brother's face, which had turned green, and the expressions of the nobles trying to suppress their laughter.

It seems the Church had no choice but to select a bastard as a puppet because they couldn't find any royal blood.

"When the Hero King founded this empire, he stuffed all the good things he had collected into the royal treasury."

"I remember that every descendant of the royal family has to visit the royal treasury once they reach the age of walking. Can you open that royal treasury?"

"If you're of royal blood, why don't you try opening the royal treasury? Not only you, but even your father and grandmother couldn't open it."

Upon hearing this, Prince Alvin, who had been suppressing his anger, felt as if a thorn had been plunged into his heart.

These words stirred up a long-held doubt in his heart.

Just as Claire said, originally, members of the royal family would enter the royal treasury to choose treasures after they were born.

However, no such ceremony was held when he was born, and he had never even seen his father and grandmother enter or leave the royal treasury. He asked his father about it, but his father only said that they should be self-reliant and not rely on their ancestors.

Could it be that his father and grandmother really didn't have royal blood? Is that why they weren't included in the royal treasury?

"You are extremely rude! Not only do you question Prince Alvin's lineage, but you also question the current emperor and that queen!"

The outburst of indignation from the sidelines awakened Prince Alvin from his reverie.

"Exactly! Don't insult His Highness Prince Alvin with such absurd words!"

"You must know that His Highness the Prince has been blessed by the Archbishop! How can you question the Archbishop!"

"They must be severely punished! I suggest that His Highness punish Leah, and also the Rost family!"

"That's right! Your Highness, this is no ordinary disrespect; we must strike hard!"

Looking at the crowd now supporting him, Prince Alvin realized that his earlier wavering had been a bit foolish.

Yes, you know, the archbishop of the church has blessed himself.

Regardless, the church is the authority.

“Miss Lia, you will pay for what you said. Insulting the royal family is unforgivable.” Prince Alvin, having composed himself, took a step forward and stared intently at Lia before him.

As a member of the royal family and the future emperor, Prince Alvin must uphold the reputation of the royal family.

In particular, the royal family had previously produced an evil god named Claire, who killed the church's archbishop.

Therefore, the royal family today places great importance on its reputation.

“Hehe…” Claire remained completely unfazed.

His mocking gaze shifted from Prince Alvin to Elena, who stood to the side as if it were none of her business.

Elena looked at Claire (Lia), who was still courting death, and she was naturally gloating.

But when Claire said the next sentence, her expression changed drastically.

"Yes, you're right. I deserve to die. Not just me, but my whole family deserves to die. Your Highness, please wipe out my entire family."

Upon hearing this, Elena realized that the other person was her half-sister.

"Yes! I'm sorry, Your Highness! My sister's emotions are unstable. What she said was just a momentary impulse. She must have been influenced by some kind of dark magic. Please, Your Highness and everyone else, don't blame her!"

Looking at Elena kneeling on the ground pleading for her, Claire snorted mockingly.

This whole mess happened because of Elena's antics, and all the idiots around her, including Prince Alvin, were standing up for her.

This idiot only just realized that she and he are from the same family.

If this matter really blows up today, then Elena will die too.

"I understand, Elena. Get up quickly. I forgive your sister Lia. Everyone, please don't tell anyone about what happened today, for Elena's sake."

Sure enough, Prince Alvin spoke.

From the very beginning, Claire foresaw the ending.

That guy is a complete idiot, he's wasting my time.

Chapter 8 Returning to My Alma Mater

The little disturbances caused by Elena and the bastard prince ended rather anticlimactically.

Claire left the classroom in a bad mood; the commotion had wasted almost ten minutes of his time.

There's only half an hour to log in, and it's too late to go back to the Rost family now, and there's not much free time even if you run back.

Rather than rushing back to the Rost family, Claire felt it was better to spend the rest of her time at the Royal Academy.

Come to think of it, the last time he visited this royal academy was over a hundred years ago.

Claire glanced around at the familiar scenery of the Royal Academy before her and walked along the pebbled path laid out by the academy.

He also studied at this Royal Academy when he transmigrated to the top.

Even after he ascended the throne and became emperor, he would often come back to visit, and each time the still young and innocent noble ladies would surround him, cheering and screaming.

But things have changed, and he is now imprisoned in an unknown dungeon.

At this point, the only way to see the outside world is through the game system, where you can temporarily control Lia's body.

Claire paused, looked up at the Gothic-style tower not far away, and felt much more at ease.

"The library is still there. It seems those promoted from the commoners are far more loyal than the Marquis of Rost's ancestors..."

Speaking of which, this library is still intact.

So, those things you set up in the library back then should still be there, right?

Claire pondered for a moment, then headed toward the library.

As he stepped through the library's heavy doors, a scent of old paper, ink, and faint magical incense wafted towards him.

The towering bookshelves reach the dome, and the spiral staircase connects the different floors, creating a tranquil and solemn atmosphere.

A few students, dressed in shabby clothes, sat at long tables, engrossed in their studies. The only sound in the air was the rustling of pages turning. This place was a completely different world from the garden tea parties of the aristocratic students outside.

But without a doubt, he liked the atmosphere here more.

His frequent visits to the Royal Academy to admire the young ladies and mature noblewomen were merely incidental; his real purpose was to visit the young and vigorous lads.

If we want to break the monopoly of the nobles who hold the upper class, we must establish a 'civil service examination' system in another world, and this Royal Academy Library is where he cultivated talents back then.

In fact, Claire's 'examination system' went very smoothly back then.

The Rost family, which originally only held the title of baron, was actually promoted at this time. It can only be said that not everyone can maintain their original passion after truly ascending to the ranks of power.

Following the rows of bookshelves in the library, Claire first arrived at the area where history is recorded.

He glanced through several books that recorded nearly 150 years of history.

The brutal and incompetent rule of the evil god emperor Claire Ethan is well documented, but his reforms are either ignored or downplayed as "the price of disrupting the imperial order."

Almost every book records the ending where the evil god emperor Claire is purified by light.

The location of the seal and specific details of the dungeon were not mentioned at all.

Most people who have read these records believe that Claire, the evil god emperor, has been defeated.

"It seems that the only way to find clues about what happened back then is to go to the Rost family." Claire put down the thick history book in her hand.

After all, the first Marquis Rost was one of the culprits who betrayed him and led to his sealing away.

That traitor might know something.

But I don't have time today. I hope Liya will be home when I log in next time, that would save time.

With that thought in mind, Claire turned her head and looked towards the deeper parts of the library, to those relatively quiet areas where the book covers were more brightly colored.

The area was filled with artistic photographs and albums of women; on the surface, it appeared to be the earliest section of books on physiology.

There were no students around who seemed to be approaching that area; after all, who comes to the library specifically to look at those kinds of books?

But Claire knew that things weren't as they seemed.

After glancing around, Claire slipped into the bookshelf filled with brightly colored covers and then pulled out several books one by one according to the magic circle.

The next moment, the covers of a third of the books on the bookshelf, which originally looked like sketches, changed their appearance.

Not only on the surface, but even the title and content of the book have changed.

Among them are items such as "Upgrade Spells for Fire Magic", "Knights' Formation Tips", and "Swordsmanship Notes of a Hundred-Battle Knight".

These were skill books that Claire prepared to train and select commoner students to participate in the "Imperial Examination," with the aim of helping them quickly improve their abilities.

Claire was somewhat surprised to find that these skill books were still preserved here.

These skill books can now be put to good use by Lia.

"Lia's magical reserves are ridiculously large, but her elemental perception is pitifully weak, rendering her conventional magic paths useless..."

Claire's gaze swept across the bookshelf in front of her, and she began to select skill books suitable for Leah.

Soon, he had three skill books in his hands.