Chapter 106: A Servant of Rome
Marcus was not a fool who could not understand the meaning of her words.
She wanted to have a conversation with him alone, after getting rid of the others.
Her sticky gaze revealed her desire and ambition, which she could not hide.
Marcus weighed her value dozens of times in his mind.
Should he spare her or kill her?
If he spared her, how would he use her?
His cold heart, which had already sunk, was not shaken by her seductive figure.
He was a physically strong man, so he naturally had some lust.
He would not be normal if he did not feel anything when such a beauty openly tempted him.
At first, he thought of enjoying her as much as he could while pretending to go along with her.
If he had not stopped by Rome from Gaul and came straight to Egypt, he might have done so.
But the faces of his young daughter and son were still clear in his mind.
He could not make the choice to mingle with a woman he did not love, leaving his children and wife behind.
Besides, Berenice was not his ideal type.
He gave a small order to Spartacus in a low voice.
Spartacus left without questioning him.
Berenice looked puzzled, and Marcus smiled softly and poured wine into her cup.
“I ordered him to prepare the place. I will invite the Pharaoh as soon as it is ready. I would appreciate it if you could wait a moment.”
“Oh, I see. You are very considerate. I don’t mind staying with you in your bedroom.”
“It won’t take long. But it’s boring to wait without doing anything, so why don’t we have a chat? There was a big incident in the eastern power Parthia recently, wasn’t there?”
Berenice scratched her earlobe as if she had never heard of it.
Even if Egypt and Parthia were far apart, she could not have missed such a big event.
Marcus explained kindly without losing his smile.
“I’m talking about the incident where Phraates, who was on the throne, was killed by his sons Orodes and Mithridates. Now Orodes rules Parthia, and Mithridates rules Media, right?”
“Ah, yes. I remember. I heard that report.”
The king of Parthia called himself Shahanshah, meaning king of kings, but his royal power was not enough.
There was constant strife around the throne, and several kings were assassinated and ended their lives.
Phraates, who had made an alliance with Pompey, was no exception.
He ruled Parthia for 13 years, but he was eventually killed by his two sons and lost his throne.
Orodes II and Mithridates III agreed to cooperate and rule Parthia for now, but such an agreement was unlikely to last.
Parthia was in a situation where a civil war could break out at any time.
Rome was also paying close attention to this precarious situation.
If Parthia’s situation changed drastically, it could threaten the stability of the eastern provinces.
Marcus had already made a connection with Mithridates III beforehand, so he received information quickly and accurately.
Even if that was not the case, Egypt had to be sensitive to the situation in the east.
Of course, the reason why Berenice knew about this incident was because she felt sorry that she had not killed Auletes and taken his place like that.
She still regretted that in her heart.
“Parthia is a powerful country. Egypt may not have to fight Parthia directly, but if the balance of power in the east is shaken, Egypt will also be affected. Parthia was able to expand as it did partly because the Seleucid dynasty was distracted by Egypt.”
“Of course, I know that much. That’s why I received detailed reports on the change of kings.”
“I see. How do you think the civil war in Parthia will turn out? There is a great general named Surena among the nobles who support Orodes. Maybe Orodes has an advantage?”
“Well… maybe so?”
Berenice avoided his gaze awkwardly and trailed off.
She looked like she knew nothing at all.
A bitter smile crossed his face.
‘She really is serious.’
It was clear that she had never heard of the name Surena before.
No, he doubted if she could even tell the difference between Orodes and Mithridates.
But because she was so simple-minded, Marcus felt like sparing her life.
If she had been a little less naive, he would have executed her without hesitation.
Fortunately for Berenice, Spartacus came back to the barracks and announced that the preparations were done.
Marcus got up from his seat and reached out his hand to Berenice.
“Let’s stop the complicated talk and go now, shall we?”
“Yes. Let’s get to know each other better.”
If they were left alone without any interference, it would be Berenice’s showtime.
She confidently followed Marcus to the prepared bedroom.
The place that Marcus had prepared was spacious and cozy.
But there was one strange thing: the room was divided into two.
There was no need for two rooms if they were going to sleep on one bed.
She did not understand why he had divided the space like that.
Anyway, all she had to do was seduce Marcus and make him her man.
She decided not to care about trivial things and cooed in a seductive voice.
“Hehe, what should we do? Right now? Or after we learn more about each other?”
Berenice slipped off her thin linen cloth and revealed her beautiful body.
It was a sight that any man would lose his mind over.
But Marcus was no longer moved by it.
His eyes did not linger on her slender waist or tempting hips.
Instead, he was filled with the new shape of the plate armor that he had been designing recently.
‘Not the ugly solid armor, but something more Roman and majestic…’
Compared to the sharp and cold beauty of steel, Berenice’s beauty seemed to fade.
He lost his sexual desire, which had risen without his notice, as he imagined some perfect forms of armor.
Marcus picked up the report from Tadius, which contained the situation in Parthia, and lay down on the bed.
He only gave Berenice a quick glance.
“Please go to the bedroom next door and rest. I have to read some important reports before I sleep.”
“What?”
Berenice was stunned by his cold and indifferent attitude, which was completely different from before.
She looked around for a moment and then smiled awkwardly, batting her long eyelashes.
“Are you shy? Don’t worry. I’ll take care of everything.”
“I have a wife and children. I don’t feel ashamed of such things anymore.”
The friendly tone and gentle smile that he had shown earlier were nowhere to be found.
He did not even look at Berenice anymore.
He turned the pages of Tadius’s report and spoke in a careless voice.
“We will go to the palace together tomorrow. You can rest there until I call you. Then we will proceed with the succession ceremony.”
“Succession? What do you mean by that…?”
“Of course, I mean returning the throne of Pharaoh to Auletes. Did you really think I was on your side?”
“…”
Berenice felt like she had been hit by a blunt object on her head.
She could not understand it at all.
She could not believe what he was saying now.
Why did he act like that before, then?
Marcus shook his head slightly, clicking his tongue.
He could read her mind.
“I showed you the minimum courtesy because you were still the Pharaoh before the official succession. After all, Egypt is a friend of Rome, and the Pharaoh is the king of Egypt. I had to save your face in front of other people.”
“I, I, I will never give up my position! I am the living god of Egypt! Amun-Ra’s incarnation! No one can order me to abdicate! How dare you, you barbaric Romans…!”
“Sigh… Do I have to explain everything from scratch? Well, I guess that’s why I decided to spare you, since you don’t understand any of these procedures.”
He lowered his voice, and Berenice felt a chill.
She thought of his innocent eyes, his lustful gaze, his gentle attitude, and realized that they were all fake.
She shivered.
And she did not understand what he meant by his words.
“What, what do you mean by sparing me?”
“Don’t you think why I bothered to go through this tedious process? I could have just declared you a rebel and not recognized you as the Pharaoh. Then I wouldn’t have to deal with this complicated situation. But then you would have been nothing but a rebel, and Auletes would have cut your throat in anger.”
“But, but then…”
“You should thank me for giving you a chance to save your life. I made it possible for you to keep your life.”
“Ha! I get it now. You’re saying that if I don’t want to be branded as a rebel and lose my head, I should abdicate and step down on my own? And then you’ll spare my life?”
“Your father will still want to kill you, though.”
Berenice bit her lip.
Considering Auletes’s obsession with the throne, he would not spare his daughter who threatened his position.
Marcus was right.
He would try to kill her by any means possible.
“No way! Why do you choose that old man? He can’t give you any pleasure. I can give you much more than him. Don’t you want to be the first Roman to conquer the Pharaoh?”
“You should have prepared something more appealing to my heart if you wanted to persuade me. I gave you almost two years, but all you prepared was your body… That’s an amazing confidence, to think that you can keep your throne with that. I’ll give you credit for that.”
“Then, then I’ll promise you what Auletes promised you. How about that?”
“No. You don’t have the ability to lead Egypt. Egypt is an important grain supplier for Rome. We can’t have a ruler who can’t maintain the minimum stability. Your role is over. You should step down now. Do you understand what I’m saying?”
“I, I am, I am the servant of Rome?”
“Not just you. Pontus’s Pharnaces, Armenia’s Tigranes, they are all kings of their kingdoms, but they are also servants of Rome before anything else. If you can’t accept that fact, then you have to give up your status as a protectorate of Rome.”
Berenice clenched her lips and said nothing.
She wanted to kill that arrogant Roman right now, but she realized the miserable reality that she had no power or authority to do so.
Marcus did not even look away from the report and pointed his finger at the exit of the bedroom.
“If you don’t like what I’m saying, then go out right now and go back to the palace. Or stay there quietly until tomorrow and come out with me to the palace. Then I’ll let you go to Rome with your life.”
She felt nothing but contempt for him.
How could he be so indifferent to her?
She offered to be his woman. How could he act like that in front of her?
“I’m sorry, but I prefer someone who can entertain me outside the bed as well. I don’t like people who can’t communicate with me. They are just a nuisance. If you want to please me, you should read some books and broaden your horizons. You have a decent foundation, so if you work hard for a few years, I might give you a second look.”
“What, what are you saying? Who do you think you are, to talk to me like that? I am Berenice, the descendant of the great Ptolemaic dynasty!”
Tears welled up in her eyes as her pride was shattered.
Marcus decided to crush her ego even more.
To use her as a useful card in the future, he had to lower her high nose first.
“You should also remember that I hold your lifeline. Calm down and think about your situation. If you behave well, I will treat you as the royal family of Egypt.”
He closed his mouth as if the conversation was over.
Berenice put on her clothes that she had taken off earlier.
She realized that she could not do anything to Marcus, no matter what.
She felt powerless for the first time in her life.
She turned her head for the last time before crossing over to the next room.
The man who rejected her was still reading the report without any care.
She held back her tears of anger and resentment and lay down on the bed.
Maybe Cleopatra and Arsinoe had expected things to go this way.
No, they must have.
Berenice concluded that she had fallen into her sisters’ trap from the beginning.
She gritted her teeth and muttered.
“Just wait. I don’t know what you two are plotting, but it won’t be easy for you either.”
She was confident in one thing: her eye for men.
Marcus was not someone who could be easily swayed by Cleopatra or Arsinoe.
Berenice closed her eyes, hoping that her hateful sisters would end up in a similar situation as hers.
※※※※
The next day, as soon as the sun rose, Marcus marched to the palace of Alexandria with Berenice in front of him.
With this, the Roman army occupied the palace of Alexandria with Berenice’s consent.
The soldiers guarding the palace and the bureaucrats did not dare to say anything.
Auletes walked straight to the throne and sat down.
No one objected to his rightful claim.
Berenice trembled as she acknowledged Auletes as the true Pharaoh.
Auletes pointed his finger at Berenice and ordered.
“As the rightful Pharaoh, I command you. Execute that traitor.”
The guards bowed deeply and answered.
“O incarnation of Amun-Ra, we obey your command.”
Berenice’s face turned pale.
She hid behind Marcus’s back.
“Um… I’m sorry, but I told you that would be difficult.”
Marcus raised his hand and stopped the guards from approaching.
“Berenice inherited the throne legitimately and returned it to you. And Rome does not execute losers. Berenice is my prisoner now. You have to follow Rome’s custom.”
Auletes had heard this before.
Marcus had said something like that yesterday.
But he was not satisfied.
He had been unjustly driven out of his throne and had to flee to another country.
He wanted to make everyone involved pay for their crimes.
“She will always be a source of rebellion as long as she lives. She must die now!”
“Berenice did not lead the rebellion herself. She was deceived by the rebels who opposed you. They meddled between Rome and Egypt. That’s why Rome annexed Cyprus, and you did not know what was going on because they distorted the information. They used Berenice to commit this shameful act.”
The people who were waiting for their fate in the corner jumped up.
“Are you kidding…?”
“Silence!”
A Roman soldier slammed his shield on the ground, making the terrified bureaucrats shut their mouths.
Auletes nodded his head with a fierce smile, understanding Marcus’s words.
“I see. So those vile rebels plotted against me and prepared their scheme carefully. How could I have agreed to Cyprus’s annexation if I had known about it? Would I have just watched it happen? This whole situation is their fault.”
“That’s right. They committed an unforgivable sin. Whatever punishment you decide for them, Rome will support it.”
They were doomed anyway, since they could not escape the charge of rebellion.
Marcus suggested that Auletes clear his name by blaming everything on them.
He had agreed to take Berenice with him, so he thought it would be nice to throw him a bone.
Auletes gladly accepted it.
Cleopatra watched this whole process from the side and felt a chill.
Arsinoe seemed to be mesmerized by Marcus’s coolness, but she was different.
‘This is too smooth to be true…’
She could not tell what was planned and what was improvised.
Maybe this was all planned from the moment Marcus came as an envoy, or even before that.
Of course, it was still a faint suspicion.
It was hard to believe that anyone could foresee and manipulate the future so well.
But if this was all planned, who could stand against him?
Cleopatra glanced at Marcus with a trembling gaze.
He felt her eyes and gave her a gentle smile.
She smiled back, trying to keep her composure.
She was a little scared, but also strangely excited by his mysterious aura.
< 106. Servant of Rome > End
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