《Remarried Empress》 Chapter 1 - I’m About To Be Removed From The Empress’ Seat Chapter 1 ¨C I¡¯m About To Be Removed From The Empress¡¯ Seat ¡°I will ept the divorce.¡± Am I the only one who had a faint smile on my lips when I said those words? Sovieshu looked down at me with a half-relieved, half-regretful expression. Was it a charade, or was it sincere? Until now I had been a good colleague and a perfect empress. We had never fought ¡ª that is, until he brought her along. He cast me aside for his lover, but until thest moment he¡¯ll want to be a good man and a good emperor. Then there was my family and the great church which had approved of our marriage, who insisted that I not step down from the position of empress. He would certainly dislike the idea of going through a tedious divorce trial against both of these groups. He was that sort of man, and that sort of emperor. ¡°Your Majesty! This can¡¯t be!¡± Marquis Farang cried out and tried to run towards me, but he was caught by the Emperor¡¯s guards and barred from taking a step further¡­ Marquis Farang and Countess Eliza, my defenders. I am thankful to all of you. I cast them a grateful nce then turned to the court minister. ¡°Empress Navier. Do you really agree to this divorce document without any objection?¡± The court minister had a slightly angry voice. He wanted me to fight and challenge the reason for divorce. While the odds of winning the trial were none, it would cause a scandal for the Emperor and his concubine as the people heard the news. That was what the minister, my family and my friends wanted. I shook my head. A divorce trial may hurt Sovieshu¡¯s reputation, but my name may be scarred as well. It¡¯s not that I had a moral problem, but I might not be able to leverage the situation if it became tooplicated. ¡°I ept the divorce.¡± The minister closed his eyes gravely as murmuring broke out into the room. ¡°And ask for permission to remarry.¡± The moment I finished speaking, the mood changedpletely. The air stilled into a shocked silence and the minister¡¯s eyes flew open. Everyone nced at each other, unsure of what they heard. Sovieshu looked at me confusedly, a frown furrowing his brow. The minister was in a daze. ¡°Empress Navier¡­remarry?¡± Instead of answering, I stretched out my hand and pointed to one ce. As if on cue, a man wearing an embroidered veil that obscured his face burst into pleasantughter. ¡°Do Ie up now?¡± The silence was broken by the murmuring of the crowd again. The man walked through the court and stood next to me. When he took off the veil, Sovieshu leapt to his feet. ¡°Navier! That man¨C¡± ¡°Is the one I will marry.¡± The minister¡¯s eyes looked hollow. I smiled and turned the man beside me. He looked at me as if to say, ¡°You expected this reaction, didn¡¯t you?¡± Somehow I had a pleasant feeling. Even though it wasn¡¯t revenge I desired. * * The Troby family which Ie from had already produced several empresses. Among the imperial family and nobility, arranged marriages weremon. Marriage was for politics and romance was for their lovers, and it wasmon for male or female nobility to have a beloved on the side. Ossis III, the previous emperor, spotted me as a match for the Crown Prince, and from an early age I was educated by the Empress on etiquette and the workings of the imperial court. Fortunately, the Crown Prince Sovieshu and I took to each other, and we got along like good friends. We didn¡¯t see each other as lovers, but it was still something. It was the kind of rtionship where even when we fought at home, we walked into the wedding hall with a smile. A lot about us worked well together, and we were quite fortunate. The nobility saw Sovieshu and I as only a pair of cubs, and we put our heads together and discussed the country we would build for the next generation. As an adult, Sovieshu inherited the throne from thete Emperor, and after the coronation ceremony we were on good terms. ¡­For about three years. * * * It was a bad day to n for the new year. After consulting with the officials all day, I returned to my room to find mydies-in-waiting with nervous expressions on their faces. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I looked around worriedly, and one of thedies replied in a sharp voice. ¡°The Emperor went hunting and brought back a tramp.¡± ¡°Then he called us and ordered us to wash the dirty thing.¡± All thedies-in-waiting were the concubines and wives of high-ranking noble families, and they bathed only me. Fordies that did not even use their own hands to bathe themselves, it must have been a bolt from blue. But it was quite strange. The emperor knew the pride of thedies-in-waiting better than anyone else, yet he ordered them to wash a woman he brought back after hunting? ¡°What woman?¡± ¡°We don¡¯t know if she¡¯s a prisoner or a ve.¡± ¡°Her leg was trapped.¡± ¡°Leg?¡± ¡°Yes. The emperor found her caught in a trap and saved her¡­¡± Thedies-in-waiting exchanged nces among themselves. There seemed to want to say more, but didn¡¯t want to do it in front of me. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Tell me.¡± After some slight pressure, one of them reluctantly opened her mouth. ¡°Even when she was filthy she seemed beautiful. I thought I imagined it even before I washed her, but she really was stunning when I was finished.¡± ¡°Her beauty wasparable to the Duchess Tuania, the most beautiful woman in the world.¡± When they thought I was feeling ufortable, thedies added their own chorus. ¡°Of course there is noparison with you, Your Majesty.¡± My face was rather attractive. However, as a young princess and an empress, everyone tended to tter me, so it was unclear exactly how beautiful I was. As a result I would exclude myself from suchparisons. However, Duchess Tuania was known as the most beautiful woman in society. She debuted at the age of seventeen, and she was still an immacte butterfly at the age of forty. And now this mysterious woman was equivalent to Duchess Tuania? And even these high-noseddies thought so? Perhaps the Emperor really did save a great beauty from the hunting ground. There was no reason for mydies-in-waiting to notice if she was merely pretty. ¡°You can tell me anything. I can see you all have more to say.¡± When I prodded them again, anotherdy finally gathered up her courage and revealed everything. ¡°The truth is¡­the Emperor seems to be fond of her.¡± Thedy¡¯s face whitened as if she were terrified to let the words leave her mouth. ¡°The Emperor?¡± ¡°After washing her, I dressed her with clothing from someone with a simr size, and when His Majesty saw her he seemed concerned. ¡®How did you get hurt? Why are you so thin? You look pale¡­¡¯¡± ¡°That sounds reasonable.¡± At my remark thedies exchanged awkward nces between themselves. ¡°You have not been in adulthood long and may not have experienced a romantic rtionship but¡­¡± ¡°There is a certain nuance and atmosphere, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°We are on your side, even if it¡¯s difficult to hear about this.¡± ¡°And if it turns out to be nothing then it will be fine.¡± Among thedies-in-waiting, the only one my age was Lady Laura, and the rest were older than I. Their wisdom was richer than mine when it came to human affairs. ¡°I see¡­¡± I murmured in my embarrassment. Even if what thedies said was true and that the Emperor was interested in another woman he saved, what should I do? Should I go to the Emperor¡¯s room and ask him if he was interested in his captive, or drive her out, or have her work in the imperial pce? I didn¡¯t know how to react. Countess Eliza approached carefully. ¡°How about you try your luck and say that you heard he found an injured woman?¡± Everyone agreed and said I should ask in passing. ¡°Maybe say you heard it from one of the pce maids¡­¡± ¡°Just in case.¡± I nodded and smiled, praying it would not be arge issue. ¡°I will. Thank you all. His Majesty the Emperor is apassionate man, so he must have brought her here out of pity.¡± * * * When would it be a good time to ask the Emperor about the woman he found at the hunting ground? After much consideration, I decided to ask him at dinner tomorrow. Although we were husband and wife, our rooms were separated on the east and west. It was said that the rooms were ced to show that the monarchy symbolically supported each side of the country. That meaning had now faded, and now it was a perfect arrangement for the emperor and empress to live without having to touch each other. Although Sovieshu did not yet have a concubine, we ate and slept separately due to our busy schedules and different lifestyles. However, we had dinner twice a week, and that was tomorrow. Yes. It would be too meddlesome for me to visit today and ask about the woman from hunting ground. I will wait a day. I hadn¡¯t forgotten what my mother said to me before I was married. ¡°Do not interfere with Sovieshu even if he takes a concuber.¡± ¡°Is that really alright?¡± ¡°Look at history. Were there any emperors without concubines? Even Ossis II, who is known as a great military leader, has had twenty of them. Do not waste your anger on it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Navier. All you have to be for Sovieshu is be young and beautiful¡­and healthy. Do you understand my words? You can find a man like that and make him your lover.¡± Amoner would widen their eyes at this kind of drama, but this was natural in noble society where political marriages were the norm. Of course, the right of inheritance would go to the children of the married couple, but problems arose when a spouse was in love with their partner and couldn¡¯t tolerate other lovers. Political conflicts happened that way. This must have been part of my mother¡¯s concern. And so, on her advice, I was not going to go see Sovieshu today. I would ask him tomorrow evening instead. And even if he took the woman as his concubine¡­I should pretend to ignore it. ¡°¡­¡± I was not in love with him. I knew other people lived like me. Still, when I thought about my husband taking another woman as his lover, there was a lonesome feeling in the corner of my heart. Strange. I lifted my hand and ced it on my breast. My heart beat neither slow nor fast. * * * The next day, rumors of the ¡°hunting ground girl¡± spread even faster. The only ones who spoke openly about it to me were mydies-in-waiting, but even when sitting in a quiet ce I could hear the gossip among the pce. During lunch, thedies-in-waitingined throughout the meal. ¡°I heard that filthy tramp is a runaway ve. She must have gotten onto the hunting ground while fleeing.¡± ¡°The hunting ground is connected to Viscount Roteschu¡¯s estate, so she must have escaped from there.¡± ¡°If she¡¯s a runaway ve, she should be sent back immediately. I can¡¯t believe the Emperor took pity on her and made us take care of her.¡± Before dinnertime, thedies dressed me more methodically than usual. They clothed me in a glittering dress and adorned me with silver jewelry and simple pearl earrings, showering me with praise throughout. They always cared for me, but today they seemed especially adamant. ¡°No matter how beautiful the ve is, you are our Empress.¡± ¡°The Emperor will have to wash his eyes after he sees you.¡± Their efforts felt empty and passed through my ears. If Sovieshu was going to fall in love with me for dressing beautifully, shouldn¡¯t he have already done so before? All I had in my head were useless thoughts. However, even though I considered the efforts of the handmaids to be futile, I entrusted myself to them. After all the preparations were finished, I went to the eastern pce where the Emperor stayed, and sat at a dining table that was far toorge for two people. At first we only talked about recent political issues, such as the preparations for New Year¡¯s Day. I waited for Sovieshu to bring up the story about the hunting ground girl, but no matter how long I waited, he didn¡¯t mention her. It was when he was cutting his steak that I finally brought it up. ¡°I heard that you found a runaway ve at the hunting grounds. Is that true?¡± There was a ck as his knife hit the te, and his hands stopped. He looked up and stared at me for a moment. ¡°Who told you that?¡± His tone wasn¡¯t pleasant. In fact, he seemed rather tense. Seeing the wrinkle between his eyebrows, I deliberately covered up the source of the story. ¡°Everyone was talking. It was hard to miss.¡± ¡°It must have been yourdies-in-waiting.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter who told me. Again, is it true?¡± Sovieshu looked noticeably ufortable when I repeated my question. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t rush me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you heard, but what happened was that I found a woman who was badly hurt and I helped her.¡± He called her a woman, not a runaway ve¡­ ¡°I see. So where is she now?¡± ¡°Empress.¡± ¡°¡­Please tell me.¡± ¡°We have two meals a week together. We have so many other things to talk about, don¡¯t you think?¡± The iciness in his voice was clear to me. Do not get involved in this in any way. Chapter 2 - Early Signs Of An Affair (1) Chapter 2 ¨C Early Signs Of An Affair (1) ¡°Other things to talk about? Your Majesty, I did not suggest anything unusual. As the owner of the Imperial Pce, I am only asking if you brought in an injured woman. It¡¯s never happened before.¡± Was I overdoing it? I had my usual tone and gentle smile on my lips. I spoke casually in order not to appear overbearing, as if discussing the New Year¡¯s Day preparations. Sovieshu looked markedly uneasy, however. He seemed to want to avoid the topic as much as possible, and the atmosphere became increasingly ufortable. ¡°Are you asking because you¡¯re only curious?¡± Sovieshu looked at me suspiciously, and I blinked at him. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t be asking if I wasn¡¯t curious.¡± ¡°She was identally caught in one of my traps, and I brought her here so she could be treated. She¡¯s not too injured, so I¡¯ve had her put in a room with a maid to look after her.¡± ¡°...I see.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I won¡¯t call yourdies-in-waiting again.¡± Sovieshu resumed cutting his steak, the knife cracking like a woodpecker and echoing in the dining room. He usually had so much to talk about, but this time he remained silent. * Advertisement * * ¡°What did His Majesty say?¡± Advertisement When I returned to the west pce after dinner, a group of mydies-in-waiting who were gathered in my room anxiously approached me. ¡°He...he didn¡¯t say much.¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s eyebrows lifted at my lukewarm answer. She didn¡¯t seem to believe me. ¡°Then you would not be so sullen.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Talk to us, Your Majesty. That way we can be prepared.¡± ¡°He said the woman was identally caught in one of his traps. There was no mention of her being a runaway ve or anything like that...¡± Come to think of it, I didn¡¯t even get a name. Advertisement ¡°He said he was taking care of her, and he seemed unhappy to keep talking about it.¡± As soon as I finished, Laura stamped her foot with a resounding thud. The other more genteeldies gave her a look, but Laura was already pouting and not paying attention to them. ¡°Your Majesty, do you know that¡¯s exactly what my father was doing at the beginning of his affair?¡± Laura raised her voice and Countess Eliza said her name in warning. Laura, however, had already gone this far and wouldn¡¯t stop. ¡°That¡¯s what it looks like. Those are exactly the early signs of an affair. Why wouldn¡¯t he want to talk about it?¡± Thedies scolded Laura for talking too bluntly, but they did not deny her words. Countess Eliza finally took it upon herself to shoo thedies out when I was looking depressed, then sat me in front of the dressing table and startedbing my hair. Advertisement ¡°The Emperor is a man who likes to hunt. He is doing this because it must seem like a miracle to him to find a beautiful woman caught in his trap.¡± ¡°Countess.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Before...my mother told me. Even if the Emperor takes another woman as his lover, I should not let myself be hurt. There are so many cases like that, and I shouldn¡¯t expect it to be any different.¡± The middle of Countess Eliza¡¯s forehead creased. Countess Eliza had a rare marriage of love to her husband, and to such a person, my mother¡¯s advice might sound ridiculous. I continued. ¡°I didn¡¯t say this in front of the otherdies, but I am a little prepared. Even if the Emperor wees a ve woman as his concubine.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°But when he doesn¡¯t speak to me...I feel a little down.¡± Countess Eliza set theb down on the dresser. I looked up at her and asked her honestly. ¡°Whether he has ten or a hundred concubines, they¡¯re still concubines and I¡¯m the empress. He and I never loved each other to the point that we would die for each other...so theoretically, we should still be fine. Yet why do I feel so empty?¡± Countess Eliza reached out to embrace my head and shoulders. She held me still for a moment, then withdrew before speaking. ¡°Even though yours is a political marriage, you¡¯ve been together since you were children up until marriage. It¡¯s no surprise that you¡¯re upset. I would feel the same if my child were to bring someone else in as their foster parent. I would feel upset if my parents took another child and favored them because they were more beautiful. And I would feel upset if my best friend brought someone else in and was more friendly to them. It¡¯s a natural emotion.¡± ¡°Then would the Emperor feel that way if I had another man next to me?¡± Countess Eliza picked up theb and started brushing my hair again, and I took her silence as a ¡°no.¡± After a moment, she finally spoke. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t know, Your Majesty. The more powerful your love is, the harder it is to look around.¡± So I had no choice but to deal with my heartbreak by myself. I forced myself to smile. ¡°I see. I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll feel better soon. She and I won¡¯t have to meet each other...¡± ¡°Yes. Even if the ve bes a concubine, she still cannot enter into high society.¡± Being a ve didn¡¯t mean one couldn¡¯t rise in status. It was also the case for the innocent who became ves due to collective punishment caused by their family members. Every year, the country restored a certain number of ves tomoner status, but it was never the case for a runaway ve. Being a ve meant that one had a life sentence for some crime theymitted. Because a runaway ve escaped without paying the price, they were considered the same as an escaped prisoner. An extra charge of guilt was added, and a runaway ve was considered the dregs of society to aristocrats. No matter how much Sovieshuvished the woman, there was no opportunity for her to debut in high society or for me to run into her. I nodded my head and gathered myself. Yes, Countess Eliza. It was natural that I felt empty when someone who had been my husband for a long time had a sudden interest in another lover. But I couldn¡¯t get more emotional now. No matter if he had another woman, he couldn¡¯t cut me off. There was only one Empress in this empire after all. * * * ¡°The Emperor goes to see the ve day after day?¡± ¡°I heard he even brings her food himself.¡± ¡°He¡¯s acting so calm too. The audacity.¡± ¡°He even called a court doctor to treat her leg.¡± There were voices whispering between the bushes. Although the Imperial Pce gardens had flowering walls higher than one¡¯s head, I could still hear the gossip that filtered through. I designed this garden myself, and deliberately ced a nest-shaped swing chair in an area not frequented by many. It was like my secret ce. I didn¡¯t bring mydies-in-waiting here, and so people said things aloud without them noticing me. ¡®About a week has passed...¡¯ I closed my book and ced it on myp. As Sovieshu¡¯s interest in the ve woman grew, so did the stories. Everyone¡¯s attention was on the woman who managed to capture the Emperor¡¯s interest. Wasn¡¯t it fortunate that she and I never ran into each other? The next time I had dinner with Sovieshu, I didn¡¯t ask about her. I instead I acted as if nothing had happened, and brought up the New Year¡¯s preparations. I decided topromise at this point in time. Ignorance. Pretend I didn¡¯t know. But coincidence came out of nowhere and confronted me. Chapter 3 - Early Signs Of An Affair (2) Chapter 3 ¨C Early Signs Of An Affair (2) It was the day all the officials and I gathered in the conference room to discuss the preparations for the uing New Year. My throat felt clogged after speaking for so long, and after drinking a ss of warm water, I took a walk in the central pce garden to rx. Artina, the deputymander of the knights, apanied me, along with mydies-in-waiting. As I discussed with Artina about whom to rmend for the ceremony, I heard a whisper from somewhere saying, ¡°Is that her?¡± I looked around, and saw a woman sitting in a wheelchair with two other women who appeared to be maids beside her. Our eyes met, and the woman in the wheelchair struggled stand. The two maids tried to stop her, but they dropped their hands when they saw my gaze. The woman shakily gripped the handles of the wheelchair as she stood up to bow in greeting. I wasn¡¯t sure who she was. I thought she might be the ve the Emperor found, but we were near the central pce, and this was no ce for a mistress toe. I didn¡¯t think there were any cases of one even working at a high position at the central pce. Still, she greeted me even when her legs were hurt, and so I gave her a nod of acknowledgment. I turned to walk away when I heard a voice from behind me saying, ¡°Hey.¡± ¡®Hey?¡¯ Was she calling me? This was the first time I heard someone say that to me in the pce after bing empress. I turned back, flustered, and saw the woman in the wheelchair wheeling herself towards me. The maids were bewildered and called out ¡°Rashta, don¡¯t,¡± but she ignored them. Did she have something to do with me? If she did, then surely she would know I was the empress. And yet she said ¡°Hey¡± to me? I stared at her with a perplexed expression on my face, and the woman named Rashta drew near and greeted me again. ¡°I¡¯m Rashta.¡± What was I supposed to do? Advertisement ¡°Yes...Rashta.¡± She smiled, as if pleased that I called her by her first name. Did she really want me to address her like that? I was struck by curiosity, but not enough to ask why. The audience time had ended, and my brain was rotted having listened to the stories of strangers for three hours. If there was an emergency, then she would have pleaded for help as soon as she saw me. However, she was smiling cheerfully, so it didn¡¯t seem like she needed my urgent attention. Advertisement I turned around again, thinking there was nothing more to see. But as I did so, she reached out and grabbed the skirt of my dress. Mydies-in-waiting who were standing beside me were rmed and beat away her hand as if she were a zoo monkey. ¡°How rude!¡± ¡°Do you not recognize this noble!¡± Rashta flinched back in surprise, stammering. ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry, I should¡¯ve called out to you but I don¡¯t know your name...¡± She really didn¡¯t know I was the empress? Didn¡¯t I hear her whisper to the maid ¡°Is that her?¡± Laura red at Rashta and yelled at her. ¡°This is Her Majesty the Empress. Be careful of your actions!¡± Advertisement Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°What? I...I know the Empress.¡± She knows the Empress? I frowned at her strange words, and she looked into my eyes and spoke softly. ¡°I...I¡¯m Rashta.¡± Who was Rashta? Mydies-in-waiting and I were terribly confused. Did we know each other enough to share our names? In my mind I tried to recall the women of her age that visited this country with foreign dignitaries. I did not meet with every single guest. There were the guests that were weed by me, guests that were weed by the foreign ministers, guests that met with Sovieshu directly... She had never been one of my mine. Had the foreign minister ever met a Rashta? It couldn¡¯t be. If she were from a great noble family, even thedies-in-waiting would know about her even if I didn¡¯t. Advertisement ¡°Do you know me?¡± I decided to be straightforward with her, and she looked surprised. ¡°You don¡¯t know me?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Rashta looked at a loss, and she whispered to the maids, ¡°What do I do?¡± I could hear her, of course. But I was tired. I didn¡¯t even know who she was. I was about to ignore her and leave, when Rashta called out again. ¡°I am living in the eastern pce by the kindness of His Majesty the Emperor.¡± The kindness of Sovieshu? The eastern pce. The wounded legs. The woman. Ah. ¡°The ve?¡± Then why was she near the central pce? Before I could ask, Rashta¡¯s face paled. ¡°Your Majesty, forgive me for my rudeness. Miss Rashta is not a ve.¡± A maid beside Rasta came forward and corrected me. Not a ve? But mydies-in-waiting told me she was a runaway ve. If they were false rumors, then they would have informed me it was not a credible story, but there was no such statement. The ve...was more than what I expected. I didn¡¯t expect to meet her this way. I didn¡¯t care about the gossip, but she was as beautiful as the rumors suggested. Her kind of beauty wasn¡¯t like the mour and elegance of a noble like Duchess Tuania, rather, Rashta¡¯s image was soft and ethereal. Herrge, dark eyes stirred one¡¯s protective instincts, and her hair was a light silver that made her pure and innocent charm even more mysterious. Wait. Mydies-in-waiting bathed her, so why didn¡¯t they recognize her? I nced around and saw some weren¡¯t with me. Unfortunately, the missingdies were the ones that washed Rashta. ¡°Yes. Now I know who you are.¡± I nodded, and Rashta beamed. ¡°Thank goodness. Actually, I¡¯ve been wondering when we¡¯d meet each other.¡± ¡°Meet?¡± ¡°I asked the Emperor, but he kept telling me that I didn¡¯t have to bother...but I thought we should still do so.¡± Meet each other? Why? ¡°What should I call you, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°...Just call me ¡®Your Majesty.¡¯¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°That¡¯s it.¡± I didn¡¯t know why I was having such a friendly conversation with this girl of all people. Rashta seemed to feel tired and wanted to turn around, and she grunted in exertion as she moved her wheelchair. Sensing that my mood was spoiled, mydies-in-waiting grabbed onto the handles of the wheelchair and pulled her slightly backwards. ¡°Stay away.¡± ¡°Just who are you to act so friendly towards her?¡± Laura¡¯s hands were trembling in anger as she pulled the other woman back. ¡°Filthy.¡± It was then. ¡°What do you mean, filthy?¡± Sovieshu appeared, his voice like shards of ice. Chapter 4 - Compare With Whom? (1) Chapter 4 ¨C Compare With Whom? (1) The Emperor witnessed Laura insulting the woman he was in love with. It was quite a scene. Laura and otherdies-in-waiting quickly lifted their skirts to bow to him, but he gave them a hellish re. I had already seen Sovieshu a few times earlier in the pce, and I stared at him quietly instead of greeting him again. Sovieshu looked at Laura then turned to Rashta. ¡°Goodness.¡± Sovieshu sighed. Rashta¡¯s eyes were wet, probably out of surprise, and the wide look she gave him made her look like a poor frightened animal. ¡°Don¡¯t cry.¡± Despite his attempt to soothe her, tears began to drip down her face. ¡°I said don¡¯t cry.¡± Despite the unsympathetic tone in his voice, Rashta did not stop. She seemed unafraid of his infamous cold attitude. I kept staring at her. When Rashta continued to cry, to my surprise, Sovieshu pulled out a gold embroidered handkerchief and held it out to her. Her tears didn¡¯t cease even when offered the handkerchief, and he sighed and wiped her face himself. ¡°You¡¯re a handful.¡± There was a note of worry in his tone, and the corner of my heart throbbed again. No, it was natural...it was natural. I reminded myself of Countess Eliza¡¯s words, and turned around and instructed mydies-in-waiting to follow. ¡°Let¡¯s go. My legs ache.¡± Advertisement I wouldn¡¯t be able to stop Sovieshu from having a concubine, but I was free to avert my eyes from it. Thedies quickly followed after me. ¡°Wait. Stop.¡± Sovieshu called out to me before we had even taken a few steps. First Rashta, and now him? Sovieshu red at Laura and pointed to her. Advertisement ¡°Leave thatdy-in-waiting behind, Empress.¡± ¡°What for?¡± ¡°Leave her.¡± ¡°She is mydy-in-waiting. You need to tell me first.¡± Laura¡¯splexion turned pale. I also felt an ominous wind blowing through my thoughts. Surely he wouldn¡¯t punish Laura for what she said to Rashta, would he? While Laura¡¯s behavior was not exactly exemry, she was still ady-in-waiting of the Empress. Rashta, on the other hand, was not yet a concubine, nor was she even lower nobility. She was even likely a runaway ve. For Sovieshu to punish Laura would publicly disgrace her in society. As well as myself, the Empress. I stared at him, and he turned his gaze back to Laura. Advertisement ¡°She is ady-in-waiting of the Empress, but she is also my subject. How dare she speak like that.¡± ¡°Then I will scold her.¡± ¡°You think a scolding will fix someone who calls another person filthy? Surely not.¡± Sovieshu barked an order to a nearby guard, pointing his chin towards Laura. ¡°Lock her up for three days and give her only water and hard bread.¡± Laura¡¯s face whitened, and the otherdies let out a small scream of distress. ¡°That is too far, Your Majesty.¡± Advertisement I stepped forward, but Sovieshu directed his icy re towards me. ¡°She called a woman in a wheelchair who can¡¯t even properly walk filthy. Don¡¯t you think that is too far?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Well, you only watched. You probably thought that was not too far.¡± ¡°Mydies-in-waiting only stopped her because she pulled my dress.¡± The look on Sovieshu¡¯s face only turned darker. ¡°You were walking away from her.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°And what is wrong with holding a dress? Is the Empress¡¯ dress more noble than a human hand?¡± ¡°Then I will have your servant pull at the hem of your cloak. Even if your cloak is not as noble as a human hand, is that still eptable?¡± Sovieshu raised his eyebrows and smirked. ¡°Your words are meaningless. Do you really think it is the same situation?¡± ¡°Is it different?¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°Then what is the difference?¡± ¡°Rashta is not a servant.¡± I wanted to ask him if I should change my example, and what he would do if a concubine pulled on the hem of his clothes. ¡°Lock up the Empress¡¯dy-in-waiting for five days.¡± Before I could say anything else, Sovieshu increased Laura¡¯s punishment. The more I opposed him, the more he severe he became. I saw Rashta sitting behind Sovieshu with her eyes wide open, staring at him as if he was some sort of hero. The words I wanted to say threatened to leap from my mouth, but even the empress could not overturn the emperor¡¯s orders. I could call a trial to challenge Laura¡¯s punishment, but by the time the trial would be opened she would already be released. ¡°I ept the punishment, Your Majesty.¡± As I was agonizing about losing to Sovieshu, Laura quickly stepped forward. My face turned red with shame and anger. ¡°Go.¡± Rather than asking why the girl was near the main pce, Sovieshuplimented me for working hard all day. Sovieshu and I weren¡¯t passionate lovers, but we were good friends. Now we were neither. I gritted my teeth and turned away. Now I understood why my mother advised me not to get involved with the concubines. Chapter 5 - Compare With Whom? (2) Chapter 5 ¨C Compare With Whom? (2) The Imperial Pce was buzzing over the news of Laura¡¯s confinement. The gossip was that the Emperor¡¯s punishment for the Empress¡¯dy-in-waiting was an outright expression of his love for Rashta. It was her first unofficialpetition with me, and she had won. I didn¡¯t hear this with my own ears, but mydies-in-waiting were furious and told me about it. ¡°I should have been there!¡± Ady-in-waiting who had bathed Rashta eximed that were she present, she would have kept me away from the ve. ¡°But I think the Emperor really likes her.¡± ¡°I used to have admiration for him, but this time he didn¡¯t even listen to the Empress¡¯ words.¡± Despite their anger, thedies-in-waiting were worried about the future. ¡°It¡¯s only been a few days since the Emperor met her. I¡¯m worried.¡± There was nothing I could do in this situation. Sovieshu and I acted like nothing had happened when we ran into each other at the central pce. I focused on my work and tried to forget what had happened that day. When I was alone in my room, I remembered Sovieshu¡¯s cold gaze and felt the bruise in my heart, but it ached less when I kept myself busy. When Laura¡¯s imprisonment finally ended after five days, I went up to the tower to retrieve her myself. I asked the otherdies-in-waiting to bathe Laura in my bathroom and bring her some soup. I also ordered Laura¡¯s favorite cake. Advertisement A secretary sent by Sovieshu came to me to deliver a message. ¡°His Majesty the Emperor wants to see you.¡± ¡°Me?¡± Advertisement ¡°Yes.¡± What could it be? I nodded and turned to Countess Eliza. ¡°When the cake is finished, tell Laura toe here and eat. Then let her know she can rest for a few days before shees back.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± I turned and nodded at the secretary, and he quickly led the way. The atmosphere changed as we went east, even though it was surrounded by the same wall. Perhaps it was because the pce was styled inpletely different ways. I was concerned that I might encounter Rashta again, but she was nowhere to be seen in Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom. The Emperor was sitting by a small round table. ¡°You called me.¡± Advertisement Sovieshu stared at me silently as I approached him. His eyes seemed full of things to say. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± I spoke first, and Sovieshu seemed to hesitate for a moment and pressed his lips. ¡°Yourdy-in-waiting, the one who was imprisoned¨C¡± ¡°Laura. The daughter of Marquis Tarital.¡± ¡°I heard you took her back her from her prison.¡± ¡°She¡¯s mydy-in-waiting. She suffered for five days.¡± Sovieshu looked even more displeased. Advertisement ¡°Did you have to?¡± ¡°Are you asking me if I had to take care of a woman that was punished?¡± Sovieshu could clearly hear the mockery in my voice. ¡°You know what I¡¯m trying to say. In other words, you retrieved thedy-in-waiting yourself, even though you knew I would be offended. No?¡± Partially. I suspected that Sovieshu might be offended...but I also thought he might have already cooled down after five days. Perhaps after everything had settled, I could let him know that his punishment was far too much. Maybe not. ¡°I suspected you might be displeased.¡± ¡°But now you¡¯re taking care of her? If you had any thought for me, you would have sent her away. What is the emperor if the empress cares for the people he punishes?¡± ¡°It is not right to send someone away after they already received their punishment. Besides, what she did was not out of line.¡± ¡°Calling people filthy?¡± ¡°She was trying to stop someone from pulling on my clothes. A scolding would be enough.¡± The more I spoke, the stonier his expression became. ¡°So, you will keep thedy-in-waiting?¡± ¡°It is entirely up to me to decide who is mydy-in-waiting.¡± Although Laura may want to quit working in the Imperial Pce, I was going to keep her for a while. Being punished because of a runaway ve was enough to make her an outcast of high society. If I let her go, she would have no protection, let alone against Sovieshu. As empress, I would use my name to safeguard her. Sovieshu sighed and turned away. ¡°I am tired of arguing with you. Can¡¯t you just be obedient to me for once?¡± ¡°The empress does not have to bend to the emperor¡¯s will.¡± ¡°Continue on like this, and you won¡¯t even be able topare.¡± Compare? ...With whom? He stared right at me, then he put on a wry face. ¡°I see that you¡¯re tired. Please retire for the day. Go back to and take care of that misbehaving filly.¡± * * * After Empress Navier left, Sovieshu sighed and rang a small bell on the table. The door opened, but it was not a servant who walked in the room. ¡°Since when do you work?¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s puzzled expression, Rashta smiled sheepishly. ¡°I feel like I¡¯m a burden when I¡¯m not doing anything.¡± ¡°So you¡¯re going to be working now?¡± Rashta spread out her arms joyfully, and Sovieshu grinned. ¡°You can¡¯t even go around by yourself.¡± Serving the Emperor was regarded as a great honor among nobles, and was a position that even those without titles coveted. But Rashta wanted to work for the Emperor because she felt like a burden... She had no idea that the nobles would strangle each other over this position. ¡°What an unusual person.¡± Sovieshu chuckled at her oddity. For Sovieshu, there had only been two significant women in his life so far. One was his mother, a great empress, and the other was Navier, the current empress. He was familiar with the empress¡¯ imperial education and even studied together with Navier, but he thought the clumsy Rashta was incredible no matter what she did. ¡°Come here and have a snack.¡± Sovieshu rang the bell again, and the servant who had been waiting impatiently at the door came in. ¡°Pumpkin pie. Very sweet. And bring wine. A light one.¡± The servant left to fulfill the orders, and Rashta pped her hands and eximed ¡°Pumpkin pie!¡± ¡°Do you like food that much?¡± ¡°Not just any food. How many people have never eaten a bite of a pumpkin pie in their life?¡± She smiled innocently like a child, and Sovieshu found he couldn¡¯t pull his eyes away from her. ¡°The Empress doesn¡¯t even respond to jewelry, no matter how expensive it is. But you¡¯re still happy even with the little things.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t she like jewelry?¡± ¡°She does. But she doesn¡¯t have a lot of emotional ups and downs. She only expresses herself in small portions.¡± Rasta frowned and gave a sigh. ¡°She grew up beautifully and doesn¡¯t know the harsh world. Anyone would take jewelry for granted.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that the Empress is wrong, it¡¯s just that she has a lot of wealth. Even if you got her a big gem, it¡¯s not a surprise...¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. Oh my god. My prey is smarter than I thought.¡± Rashta didn¡¯t know whether he was making fun of her or not, and she blushed and puffed out her lips. ¡°Tch, you always call me prey.¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re the prey I caught in my trap.¡± ¡°So...Your Majesty.¡± Rastaughed at his light joke, then settled to speak to him again. She twisted her fingers together and ventured forward carefully. ¡°You said you¡¯d make me your concubine...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The Empress doesn¡¯t seem to know that yet...¡± Sovieshu nodded and gave her a reassuring smile. ¡°We¡¯re in no hurry, so let¡¯s take our time. Your legs haven¡¯tpletely healed yet.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not rushing, but...I had a hard time when I met the Empress before. I didn¡¯t know how to introduce myself. And what if it happens again...¡± Chapter 6 - The Empress’ Gift To The Concubine (1) Chapter 6 ¨C The Empress¡¯ Gift To The Concubine (1) ¡°The Emperor is going to take the woman as a concubine!¡± It was a typical morning. It was neither cloudy nor rainy, nor warmer or colder. Today was just like yesterday and the day before yesterday. Unusual news came out of nowhere on this ordinary day. ¡°So the Empress is busy with the New Year¡¯s preparations while Emperor takes in a concubine.¡± ¡°That¡¯s too much.¡± ¡°He should at least have waited until New Year¡¯s was over.¡± Thedies-in-waiting wereining darkly among themselves. ¡°...¡± I stared silently at myself in the mirror. I was prepared for Sovieshu to make her his concubine...but I didn¡¯t realize it would happen so soon. Judging by the timing, the ceremony might officially happen just before New Year¡¯s Day. ¡°Haaa...¡± A sighed emerged from deep inside me, and I felt nauseous at the thought of everyoneing up to me at New Year¡¯s Day to talk about it. And even if they did not speak about it to my face, I was sure to hear them whispering from behind. However, I could not ignore the fact that the Emperor was taking in a concubine no matter how much I disliked it. Advertisement ¡°When is the ceremony?¡± Thedies-in-waiting nced at each other, and eventually it was Countess Eliza who answered. ¡°Rumor has it that he wants it to happen as soon as possible. He¡¯ll want it done before the New Year.¡± Advertisement * * * Around noontime, Sovieshu¡¯s secretary came up to me again to deliver a message. It was about the concubine, and the other officials kept an eye on us in an effort to catch some gossip. ¡°The Emperor wants it to be simple, as there are otherrge events scheduled and time is tight.¡± ¡°Simple?¡± The Emperor¡¯s concubines were not recognized as part of the Imperial Family, and her children were not recognized as prince or princess. The best that could happen was to earn favor and take the title of duke, but with no im of session. Even so, it was possible for a concubine to carry the emperor¡¯s child, and it was customary to hold a banquet. It was no wedding ceremony, however. The concubine would be the center of the attention of the banquet, and wouldter sign a contract notarized by the chancellor. Advertisement ¡°Is the Emperor saying to hold a simple banquet or omit it altogether?¡± ¡°It¡¯s impossible to invite arge number of guests at such a short notice, so we¡¯ll skip the banquet.¡± ¡°Is there anything I need to handle if there isn¡¯t going to be a banquet?¡± ¡°There isn¡¯t. His Majesty said you needn¡¯t worry about it at all.¡± As far as I knew, omitting the banquet was not unusual. The inside of the hall would still be decorated in honor of the concubine that day, but instead it would be a smaller affair to dine with the Emperor, invite the people that were close to them, and sign the contract documents. But I needn¡¯t worry about it? Was it out of Sovieshu¡¯s pride or his consideration? ¡°Tell him I received his message.¡± Advertisement There was no harm to me. The secretary bowed and left. The other officials were staring at me, and when I nced up, they hurriedly lowered their heads and pretended to go back to work. ¡®Do not tremble in front of them.¡¯ They would whisper if I showed any signs of hurt. Even though the concubine was nipping away at my life, I didn¡¯t want them to think it was over just because my husband loved another woman. cing on an indifferent expression, I reviewed the n again and advised them on the necessary revisions. * * * ¡°The Emperor will sign the contract first. Then you sign on the thin ck line below his name.¡± Baron Lant, one of the Emperor¡¯s secretaries, was put in charge in educating Rashta. When the Baron finished exining the basic outline of the documents, Rashta¡¯s eyes widened and she let out a small wail. That was not usually a sound made by an aristocrat. Baron Lant stared at her for a moment, flustered, while tears streamed from Rashta¡¯s eyes. ¡°I understand what you mean, but...Rashta has no signature.¡± ¡°You can make one.¡± Rashta¡¯s face turned red at the casual way he answered. ¡°Ah...¡± Baron Lant finally realized why Rashta was struggling. ¡°You don¡¯t know how to write?¡± When Baron Lant was assigned to Rashta, the Emperor had told him she was amoner, and so he assumed that she had basic education. Perhaps the rumors were true that this beautiful prey the Emperor favored was indeed a runaway ve. There wasn¡¯t much investment in teaching ves how to read or write. ¡°I suppose you don¡¯t know.¡± He wanted to ask her if she was a ve, but he smiled, pretending not to know, and set down a nk sheet of paper in front of her. It would not be easy to teach her to write in a few days, but she could quickly learn how to draw her name. ¡°If you don¡¯t know how to spell your name, I¡¯ll write down several versions that sound like ¡®Rashta,¡¯ and you can choose one and memorize it.¡± Fortunately, Rashta quickly mastered spelling. It should¡¯ve been a frustrating task for someone who came from very, and Baron Lant was astonished. ¡°Am I doing alright?¡± ¡°You¡¯re doing excellently.¡± After praising her and receiving a smile in return, Baron Lant exined what she could expect from the signing ceremony. ¡°There will be a big banquet and all the nobles will be there. Miss Rashta can invite as many friends as she wants.¡± ¡°Wow.¡± ¡°When the chancellores up to you and unfolds the government documents, you sign it.¡± ¡°The documents¨C¡± ¡°The chancellor will keep it safe.¡± Rashta stamped her feet in delight and let out a small squeal. Baron Lant watched her for a moment before adding another thing. ¡°This is not an obligation, but...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Sometimes the empress sends a gift to the emperor¡¯s concubine when she signs the contract.¡± ¡°A gift?¡± ¡°The Empress is the owner of the pce.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°From the viewpoint of the owner, a concubine is one that will live with them in the future. This means the concubine not only receives the emperor¡¯s respect and acknowledgment, but the empress¡¯ as well if she is given a gift. If there are several concubines, the ones that receive a gift from the empress are regarded as the top concubines.¡± Rashta suddenly looked insecure. ¡°So Rashta will receive a gift from the Empress?¡± Your votes are in. The novel which will get a mass release is... ...All of them!!! The votes were close, and so I decided to release extra chapters for all three stories! The release is as follows: 2nd ce: Remarried Empress ¨C 3 chapters 3rd ce: The Male Lead¡¯s Viiness Fiancee ¨C 2 chapters Thank you all for participating! Read on for more chapters of Remarried Empress! Chapter 7 - The Empress’ Gift To The Concubine (2) Chapter 7 ¨C The Empress¡¯ Gift To The Concubine (2) ¡°I¡¯m not sending one.¡± Thedies-in-waiting exchanged relieved nces among themselves. ¡°Thank God.¡± ¡°I was so worried that Her Majesty might send her a gift.¡± There were many reasons not to send one. After Sovieshu¡¯s secretary left, I researched any precedents, just in case. Even if there was a banquet, there was no obligation to give a gift. If there were multiple concubines, one could withhold gifts to prevent certain ones from building too much power or influence with the empress¡¯ close rtives. But the situation with Rashta was neither. In any case, I had no desire to give one at all, and Sovieshu had sent his secretary to tell me not to worry about it. Why couldn¡¯t I just say ¡°Please take care of my husband¡±? ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t know if there¡¯s a reason to send one, but I won¡¯t.¡± A satisfied look came over thedies¡¯ faces. ¡°Laura would have been happy if she were here... I was thinking of going out of the pce today, so I¡¯ll tell Laura about it, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°How is Laura?¡± ¡°When I saw her the other day, she spoke angrily about ¡®that woman.¡¯¡± Advertisement ¡°Marchioness Tarithal is also furious and tells the story every time she has a tea party.¡± I thought it better that they were on my side. Sovieshu and his aides would take good care of Rashta anyway, and I didn¡¯t think those close to me needed to be supportive of her. ¡°By the way, Your Majesty...may I ask you something?¡± Advertisement ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Rumor has it that the prince of Western Kingdom ising for New Year¡¯s Day. Is that true?¡± The otherdies-in-waiting stopped talking and fixed their eyes on me. I nodded, and they squealed as they covered their faces or fanned themselves. I strained my lips to keep myself from smiling. Thedies-in-waiting had every reason to look forward to his appearance. The ¡°Prince of the West¡± was the lone younger brother of the king, who was renowned for many things. ¡°He¡¯s so handsome, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°They say eye contact is enough to put you under his spell.¡± ¡°But I hear he¡¯s quite stubborn. I wonder if even the current king of the Western Kingdom has given up on trying to get him married.¡± ¡°Are the rumors of him being a seedless watermelon are true?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But it¡¯s a bit suspicious that the king hasn¡¯t had any children, and neither the prince when he¡¯s been with many women too.¡± Advertisement I nodded discreetly as I listened to the whispers of thedies-in-waiting. The Western Kingdom was a country of great military power, virtually equal to that of our Eastern Empire. It terms of wealth, it was the richest in the world. The prince, who was said to be the first in line to the throne of such a ce, had many rumors swirling about him. I left my thoughts of Sovieshu and his concubine behind and indulged in the sugary conversation of thedies. * * * ¡°There¡¯s no banquet?¡± Advertisement When Rashta asked Emperor Sovieshu how big the banquet would be and whether she could invite her friends, she was not prepared for this blow. ¡°But the Baron said we were going to have a big party...¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you that it would be New Year¡¯s Day soon? I didn¡¯t want to rush this, but you were the one that wanted the signing ceremony as soon as possible.¡± ¡°?¡± Despite his exnation, Rashta only looked on in puzzlement. Sovieshu realized he was thinking too highly of her level ofmon sense. She seemed smarter than she appeared, but he had forgotten that she knew nothing about the nobility. ¡°It¡¯s my mistake.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It is not easy to arrange arge banquet. There are other things I am busy preparing. Time is tight, and it¡¯s rude to have onerge feast after another.¡± ¡°Ah...! But is there another banquet on the same day as Rashta¡¯s signing ceremony?¡± ¡°New Year¡¯s Day will be soon.¡± Rashta turned crestfallen as her dreams of being congratted by nobles at avish, grand banquet turned to dust. She had always wanted to see people flocking to her, and so she persuaded Sovieshu to have the ceremony as soon as possible. It was clear that the Emperor would be annoyed by this, and so Rashta did not show any signs of unhappiness and remained silent. However, her disappointment only increased on the day of the ceremony. Even if there wasn¡¯t a grand banquet, she still expected one of some sort. And when that didn¡¯t happen, she expected the Emperor shower her with apologies and a promise of gifts. There was neither a word of congrattions nor a gift from the Empress either. She felt sad as Baron Lant had told her that the pce¡¯s great halls were under the domain of the Empress. Rashta had diligently practiced her signature, but after signing the document she felt empty. When she finished, the chancellor immediately left, saying he had work to do. There was no cheering, apuse, or the feeling of ecstasy as if she had everything in the world. Sovieshu also left with a ¡°There¡¯s work I have to finish,¡± and ¡°I¡¯ll see youter.¡± When Rashta returned to her room, she buried her face in her hands. ¡°Why is it like this?¡± Rashta¡¯s maids approached and asked her what was wrong, and the hurt that she had been holding inside her finally burst. ¡°The Empress must hate me, otherwise we wouldn¡¯t have skipped the banquet or the gift. Even if she doesn¡¯t give me a present, couldn¡¯t she show her face?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Rashta. Why are you crying on such a good day...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll rarely see her anyway.¡± However, Rashta¡¯s hurt did not fade. When Sovieshu finally hurried to see her after he finished his work, he noticed she was in a somber mood. ¡°Why does my prey look so down on this meaningful day?¡± ¡°What do you mean, meaningful day? I haven¡¯t been congratted by anyone...¡± ¡°Not congratted by anyone? The chancellor congratted you. He bowed to you, and the servants as well.¡± But what Rashta wanted was the congrattions of the nobles, not the servants. She wanted to be recognized by those who lifted their chins as if they were the best in the world. ¡°The Empress must loathe Rashta...¡± As Rasta¡¯s face grew gloomier, Sovieshu was forced to confess something. ¡°The Empress didn¡¯t prepare a banquet or a gift because she hates you. I told her not to because it wasn¡¯t a good time.¡± Rashta nodded, but was clear that she didn¡¯t believe him. In this atmosphere, it was impossible for Sovieshu to rx and enjoy himself with his concubine. The next day, Sovieshu gave his secretary a gift, who in turn gave it to Rashta in the name of the Empress. Chapter 8 - The Issue Of A Lady-In-Waiting (1) Chapter 8 ¨C The Issue Of A Lady-In-Waiting (1) ¡°Your Majesty, the Grand Duke Lilteang has sent you a gift of silk from a foreignnd.¡± Thedies-in-waiting had finished preparing me for the day earlier than usual, so I sat with them as I drank my breakfast coffee. In the meanwhile, Prince Liltaiang had sent a servant bearing a gift. I looked up from my coffee cup and examine the item on the servant¡¯s outstretched hands. It was a gorgeous blue silk cloth that shone like the scales of a cussfish. I sighed and put down my coffee. The silk looked beautiful and expensive, but it was hard to ept it purely considering the intentions of the sender. Prince Liltiang was Sovieshu¡¯s uncle, and two years older than his nephew. Although he had no desire to be the emperor, he regrly bribed me and asked me for favors since I became the empress. If I epted the gift, there was certain to be difficult demands attached to it. ¡°Thank you, but tell him that I cannot ept it because it would cause a misunderstanding.¡± This had happened many times before, and the servant smiled awkwardly as if he expected it too. He murmured a respectful a ¡°Yes¡± and stepped back. ¡°The gentleman hasn¡¯t gotten tired yet.¡± When the door closed, Countess Eliza spoke her mind and the others burst intoughter. The atmosphere was so peaceful again. Quite unexpectedly, a second visitor was announced. I went to the central pce after breakfast every morning, so few visitors came here in the early hours. But two people in one morning? I allowed admittance of the visitor, although I remained curious. Fortunately, the second visitor was not a servant of a noble who offered bribes, but an official who came to coordinate the day¡¯s agenda. It was not a difficult task, and after exchanging a few words he left. Advertisement To my surprise, a third visitor appeared. This time, it was Rashta, who I thought I would rarely meet face-to-face. ¡°Rashta? Really?¡± Advertisement I looked back at the guard in surprise. He bowed his head and answered ¡°Yes¡± with a look of contempt. Countess Eliza clicked her tongue again. ¡°Why does she dare came here?¡± The guard did not know; he only stood by the door and announced the arrival visitors. However, it seemed like he felt responsible telling me the news, and he had an embarrassed expression on his face. Countess Eliza turned to me anxiously. ¡°Will you receive her, Your Highness?¡± ¡°Well...¡± Frankly, I did not want to meet her at all. Why should I be obligated to see someone that would only hurt my feelings? Someday, I may be able tough and talk with Sovieshu even if he has many beautiful concubines by his side. That time wasn¡¯t now, however, and it was still difficult for me to treat Sovieshu¡¯s lover in an easy manner. However... ¡°Let her in.¡± Advertisement Countess Eliza cried out in surprise. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± I picked up the handle of the half-full cup of coffee. I did not want to see her, but Rashta was just a concubine, and Sovieshu¡¯s first love...was it love? The first woman he loved. Sovieshu had been chilly towards me since she first appeared, and I did not want to fight with him again. Even if I could not love him passionately, I did not want to be hated by the Emperor. I could tolerate just this one visit. ¡°This our second time meeting, Your Majesty. I am Rashta.¡± I didn¡¯t know if she was pretending to neither know nor care about the incident Laura, but Rashta greeted me with a bright smile as soon as she came in. Countess Eliza did not hide her displeasure and sat back in stony silence, while I schooled my facial muscles into something as nk as possible. Fortunately, I had a great deal of practice in hiding my emotions in less than ideal situations. ¡± ...Unlike before, I am sure you are his concubine. Congrattions.¡± Advertisement ¡°Thank you!¡± I gave a mechanical greeting...what was I supposed to say now? I thought over it for a moment and decided to go straight to the point. ¡°What brings you here?¡± ¡°What brings me here?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You and I are like sisters now, Your Majesty. Family.¡± Countess Eliza was caught by surprise and choked on her cold coffee. She ced her hand in front of her mouth as she coughed and red at Rashta. I was equally bewildered. What did I just hear? Sisters? Family? ¡°Family?¡± ¡°Because we have the same husband. ¡± My smooth face almost cracked. I fought to keep down a twitching nerve. The concubine contract was literally a contract, and they were not recognized as part of the Imperial Family. During the contract a concubine could receive a favorable amount of wealth, but if the contract was not extended, she had to leave the Imperial Pce. The children born by the concubine were not considered princes or princesses, even if they were fathered by the emperor. Yet now the girl considers us family just because we had the same husband? There were so many errors in that statement that I didn¡¯t even know where to start. As I tamed my thoughts, Rashta gathered both of her hands together. ¡°May I call you sister?¡± The air chilled around me. I pressed my lips down. This was the limit of my generosity. ¡°No.¡± Rashta¡¯s expression dropped. She blinked her eyes and stared at me as if in fright. As if she never anticipated answer like this. That was more amazing to me. She practically said, ¡°Yes, let¡¯s be sisters. I took away your husband, but can we get along?¡± ¡°Is it because you don¡¯t like Rashta?¡± Herrge, doe-like eyes began to well with tears. ¡°It¡¯s not a matter about hating you.¡± Of course I hated her. ¡°You may have be the Emperor¡¯s concubine, but are not my sister.¡± I tried to exin this difficult truth with a smile, but Rashta only seemed to cry more. She must have thought I was ridiculing her. Smiling didn¡¯t work, so I wiped it away and decided to end our meeting there. ¡°Leave.¡± After Rashta left, everyone in the room looked around in shock. ¡°Indeed...I really don¡¯t know what to say about her.¡± Countess Eliza was dumbfounded. And so were the otherdies-in-waiting. Most of them had never met an emperor¡¯s concubine before, let alone one that called on the empress. With a frown, I turned to the oldestdy-in-waiting. ¡°Is that what a concubine is like?¡± Although I had been in and out of the Imperial Pce since I was young, I had never met any of the previous emperor¡¯s concubines while being educated in court. I hadn¡¯t been old enough to debut in society yet, and so I had nothing to do with the concubines of thete emperor. ¡°Concubines rarely see the empress. It would only hurt each other¡¯s feelings, and the concubines don¡¯t want to be disliked by her.¡± ¡°...¡± Maybe Sovieshu liked a character like Rashta. Countess Eliza sighed. ¡°She will needdy-in-waiting sooner orter. The Emperor says she is amoner, but I am afraid she is not like amoner at all. I wonder if any young woman would want to be thedy-in-waiting of the concubine...¡± Chapter 9 - The Issue Of A Lady-In-Waiting (2) Chapter 9 ¨C The Issue Of A Lady-In-Waiting (2) ¡°When I visited her, she told me I was a concubine, but not her sister. Is that how it¡¯s supposed to be, Baron Lant? Or does the Empress hate me?¡± After the contract signing ceremony was over, it was Baron Lant that managed most of Rashta¡¯s affairs. He visited her today without any particr purpose, and was surprised when he heard this unexpected tale. ¡°You visited the Empress?¡± ¡°Yes...she sent a gift to Rashta. I thought I should go and greet her if she sent a gift...¡± Baron Lant groaned and pinched his forehead. Rashta tilted her head. ¡°What is it? Did Rashta do something wrong?¡± ¡°Worse than that...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°The positions of Miss Rashta and the Empress are in opposition of each other.¡± ¡°Why? They both serve the same husband.¡± Is that what Rashta said to the Empress! Bar Lant was momentarily dizzy. However, Rashta¡¯s dark, huge eyes convinced him she acted out of innocence. One did not hold children ountable like adults. Rashta was more ignorant of aristocratic society than even aristocratic children, and so he had to show some consideration. But even so... ¡°Rashta, did anyone stop you when you said you were going to visit the Empress?¡± ¡°Cherily and Kisu?¡± ¡°Who are they?¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s maids. The Emperor assigned them.¡± ¡°Other than those servant girls...do you have ady-in-waiting?¡± Rashta tilted her head again. ¡°No?¡± Baron Lant stood up from his seat with a determined look. On that note, he went back to Emperor Sovieshu and reported on his visit with Rashta. ¡°Your Majesty. Rashta is now your concubine, but she is ignorant of aristocratic society. She has her maids, but she is also in need of ady-in-waiting.¡± Another secretary listening from the sidemented with, ¡°Would a noblewoman would want to serve amoner like Rashta?¡± ¡°Rashta is not the firstmoner to be a concubine.¡± Baron Lant snapped back at the secretary, then turned to plead again with the Emperor. ¡°You should at least give her ady-in-waiting to guide her in aristocratic society.¡± Sovieshu made a sound of agreement. ¡°It was something I had already been thinking about, Baron Lant.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Find ady-in-waiting that will be responsible for helping Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± * * * I was strolling through the gardens at the western pce, when I saw arge, handsome bird perched on a huge flower, picking its feathers. ¡°What a strange bird.¡± Thedies-in-waiting hadn¡¯t noticed it, as they were busy chattering on the futility of Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries trying to find ady-in-waiting for Rashta. I approached it carefully by myself. When I reached out my hand, the bird quickly hopped on. It shook its wings and nuzzled its beak against the back of my hand, as if ustomed to humans. ¡®Was this bird raised by nobles?¡¯ As I stroked its small head, I noticed a small piece of paper tied on its foot. I opened it, and found a handwritten note in small script. ¨C I¡¯m a foreign guest who will arrive at New Year¡¯s Day. Wrote this after drinking. I let out augh, and thedies-in-waiting came over to see what had happened. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s new.¡± ¡°Pretty.¡± ¡°What a handsome bird. What is it called?¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s a bird that¡¯s difficult to tame...isn¡¯t it used for hunting?¡± When I showed them the letter, thedies-in-waiting grinned and encouraged me to write back. I smiled broadly. Was this really from a drunk foreigner? There will be many foreign ambassadors arriving here for New Year¡¯s Day, so it wouldn¡¯t be unusual... Usually the birds flew towards a bird pagoda that gave off a unique scent that attracted them. It was amazing how this bird flew all this way. I took out a small pocket pen that I always carried with me, and anotherdy-in-waiting retrieved a piece of paper from nearby. ¨C A drunken bird flies back. If it finds the right way, it will be better off than its master. Thedies craned their heads to watch me write the letter and burst out inughter again. I tucked away the pen, watered the bird, then tied my note onto its leg. The bird nuzzled its beak against my hand again and flew away. ¡°How adorable.¡± ¡°That bird seems to like the Empress.¡± ¡°Yes, isn¡¯t it amazing that it only goes to the Empress?¡± When I returned to my room after listening to thedies chatter about birds, I found one of Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries waiting for me. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± It looked like he had been waiting for a while, and he answered immediately. ¡°The Emperor has summoned you.¡± Thedies¡¯ faces hardened. As well as mine. The pleasure of seeing the handsome bird disappeared, and my heart became stiff. Before, I never minded when Sovieshu called for me, but now I couldn¡¯t help but think ¡°What else is going on?¡± ¡°...I understand.¡± Rashta was now a concubine, and I turned away her attempts to be more friendly with me than was necessary. That was it. Shouldn¡¯t it be the end? ¡®Is he going to criticize me for not calling her my sister...? No. No matter how much he thinks of her, it¡¯s not to that degree.¡¯ Sovieshu had seen his mother as he grew up, and knew how empresses and concubines were like. ¡°Please wait.¡± After entering my room, I took off my walking dress and changed into a more formal one. Fortunately, I did not run across Rashta again when I followed the secretary to the Emperor¡¯s room. I walked in, and Sovieshu offered me a cup of tea and immediately entered into conversation. ¡°While concubines don¡¯t require ady-in-waiting as much as the empress, they should still have one or two to attend to them. I¡¯m will give Rashta one or two as well.¡± ¡°So I¡¯ve heard. I see your secretaries are searching around.¡± ¡°...Yet after a few days, no noblewomen havee forward.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°I think they are noting forward because the Empress, the pce¡¯s owner, is noting forward. So can the Empress herself find ady-in-waiting for Rashta?¡± Chapter 10 - I Can’t Believe He’s Doing This To Me (1) Chapter 10 ¨C I Can¡¯t Believe He¡¯s Doing This To Me (1) ¡°Nonsense! Why should the Empress provide ady-in-waiting for the concubine!¡± Thedies-in-waiting who heard my story shouted angrily. Countess Eliza, who suffered from high blood pressure, rubbed her hands behind her neck while Viscountess Verdi fanned her and spoke in a soothing voice. ¡°Thank goodness Laura is not here. She is a fiery young woman and would act unbingly.¡± I sat immobile and hadn¡¯t said a word, and thedies gave me a nervous look. ¡°What are you going to do, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Are you really going to find her ady-in-waiting?¡± ¡°No one stepped forward when the Emperor¡¯s secretaries searched for one.¡± I sighed. ¡°I wish I could say no...but he gave me a direct order himself.¡± All thedies had tears of indignation, but there was no other suitable way. I sighed again. Ady-in-waiting was usually of simr or lower rank than the noblewoman she was serving, but Rashta was not a noble at all. In this case, it would be appropriate to find one of the fallen or the lower nobles...but that posed a problem as many of them could not get to the pce. I considered it over for another moment before turning to Countess Eliza. ¡°We should start looking nearby, so please send an invitation to the youngdies and women in the capital.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± * * * ¡°A tea party with all the noblewomen?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes rounded. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Cherily, the maid who had given her the news, answered with ¡°I told you already!¡± ¡°It¡¯s hosted by the Empress. You can¡¯t even imagine how grand it is. All thedies of the capital have been gathering in the pce for hours. The invitations were sent out yesterday.¡± ¡± ...What about Rashta?¡± ¡°Ah! Even if you are not a noble, Miss Rashta, you¡¯re still a person of His Majesty the Emperor...this really is a shame.¡± Rashta¡¯s mouth turned downwards and her shoulders sagged. ¡°I thought so. The pce seemed to be noisy all day long...¡± ¡°The Empress is being unfair. She skipped the banquet because of New Year¡¯s Day, but now she¡¯s having a party that excludes Miss Rashta.¡± Tea parties and banquets differed in size and expectations of guests, but to Cherily and Rashta, who did not know about this, a party was a party, and to them it was unfair that Rashta was not invited. Rashta pushed the floor with her toes and fell back onto her bed. ¡°Rashta must be hated... ¡± ¡°The Empress is just jealous because the Emperor loves you.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you dress up and go to the pce, too?¡± ¡°But Rashta wasn¡¯t invited...?¡± ¡°Is the Empress the only one that lives here? This is Rashta¡¯s home too.¡± The two maids took turns thinking up a n, but Rashta shook her head and pulled the covers over herself. ¡°No. They don¡¯t want me.¡± The maids¡¯ eyes watered sympathetically. ¡°Poor Miss Rashta...¡± * * * Although only noblewomen were invited, the number of guests exceeded my expectations as women of high or low rank attended. I didn¡¯t even know the names or faces of some of them, as they rarely made appearances in society. The garden boasted a spread of puddings, jellies, and choctes so that everyone could walk around and eat. At first, everyone seemed a little surprised to see a buffetyout at a tea party, but soon they wereughing and talking among themselves in amusement. When the time came, I called for their attention. ¡°His Majesty the Emperor has asked me to provide ady-in-waiting for his concubine, Miss Rashta. Because it has to be before New Year¡¯s Day, I cannot search far away for one. Is there anyone of your acquaintance who would want to be apanion for Miss Rashta?¡± I did not directly say, ¡°Who among you wants to be Miss Rashta¡¯sdy-in-waiting?¡± Although the standards were lower than usual, those who lived in the capital city still had a certain amount of pride in their position. The nobles of the capital were not higher than the nobles of the provinces either, and there would be no one who would want to take the position below amoner concubine. And so I chose my words carefully. I finished and waited for someone toe forward. The women and youngdies exchanged nces, shaking their heads or shrugging their shoulders. Silence gripped the air. After an ufortable pause, Lady Alischute, Laura¡¯s best friend, cautiously spoke up. ¡°Y-Your Majesty. This has been the talk for days, but...please don¡¯t tell the Emperor what I¡¯m about to say. You musn¡¯t.¡± ¡°You may speak, Lady Alischute.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it rumored that she is a runaway ve? Someone may want to serve her even if she is amoner, except if the rumors are true instead...everyone is reluctant.¡± The otherdies nodded, putting in their own word or two. ¡°One will not be able to carry face if they be thedy-in-waiting of a runaway ve, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even if there was someone suitable for the position, they¡¯ll end up getting pped after that rumor.¡± ¡°To be thedy-in-waiting is not an honor, but an insult and a punishment.¡± The gossip seemed to have spread widely in society. The noblewomen hesitated before they asked me, ¡°Is the rumor true, Your Majesty?¡± I told them Sovieshu¡¯s answer. She was amoner who was injured by him on ident. In the evening, thedies all returned to their homes and I went back to the pce. Tonight I would have dinner with Sovieshu, and I had better inform him that I was unable to find ady-in-waiting for Rashta. To my surprise, there was no food on the dining table. Sovieshu was already seated. I looked down at the empty table, difited, and Sovieshu spoke to me in a calm voice. ¡°I heard the Empress summoned all thedies and ate snacks for hours. I was worried that you would be full, and so I did not have the table set tonight.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°I can eat with Rashta, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What about Rashta¡¯sdy-in-waiting? Have you found one?¡± ¡°I called all the women and youngdies, but none offered to serve, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°That¡¯s all?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Then there must be a reason.¡± ¡°The issue is not money.¡± ¡°What does that mean?¡± If I spoke about the rumor that Rashta was a runaway ve, I would be betraying the trust of the other noblewomen. Lady Alischute had asked me to keep it a secret, and so I did not speak a single word of it. ¡°It¡¯s only my assumption, but with the New Year¡¯s preparations going on, I don¡¯t think anyone wants to take care of anyone else for now. They would be twice as busy.¡± Sovieshu pondered for a moment then spoke in a half yful voice. ¡°Did the Empress say something strange when she called the noblewomen?¡± Although he was pretending to be amused, there was a sharp under bite to his tone. ¡°Of course not. I do not know anything about your concubine, but I wouldn¡¯t say anything strange.¡± ¡°People say things despite not knowing anything.¡± ¡°That is true. But there are some people that doubt their partner without hearing or seeing anything for themselves...¡± A sh of guilt crossed Sovieshu¡¯s face at the implied meaning of my words. We looked at each other in silence. ¡°If that¡¯s what you say, then I won¡¯t doubt you.¡± It was Sovieshu that backed down first. ¡°I don¡¯t doubt you either.¡± I stepped down too, and Sovieshu smiled and looked at me reassuringly. ¡°I was just asking, so don¡¯t be offended.¡± I was already offended, but if I fought openly with the Emperor I would lose. I concealed my crumpled pride, but nausea ran through my body. I gave him a mechanical smile and stood up from my seat. Chapter 11 - I Can’t Believe He’s Doing This To Me (2) Chapter 11 ¨C I Can¡¯t Believe He¡¯s Doing This To Me (2) Though he was desperate not to do this, Sovieshu called in his servants and secretaries and gave them an order. ¡°I need ady-in-waiting to serve Rashta. You all must have female rtives. I want each of you to rmend two people for me.¡± The Emperor¡¯s concubine was in an odd position, as both the subject of much attention and envy, as well as criticism and contempt. Sovieshu thought that Rashta¡¯s status as amoner must have hurt the nobles¡¯ pride. For this reason, some emperors married their concubine to another aristocrate to forge a noble identity, but there was too much talk about Rashta to conceal her background. For a month or a year, the nobles would only pretend to be friendly to Rashta, so long as Sovieshu continued to care for her. Because no one would volunteer, he had no choice but to give an order. ¡°She needs to have a peer, so be mindful about the age difference.¡± The servants and secretaries exchanged awkward nces among themselves. * * * ¡°You¡¯re talking about this...this runaway ve! Are you crazy?¡± ¡°Father! How can you say that to Mother?¡± Baron Lant¡¯s hands were trembling and sweating profusely. ¡°Runaway ve? No, she¡¯s not a runaway ve, she¡¯s amoner¨C¡± ¡°Even if she¡¯s not a runaway ve, it¡¯s still a problem because everyone thinks so!¡± Baroness Lant put her hands on her hips and red at her husband. ¡°You want me to serve a runaway ve? People willugh at you, and our Jess, as well as me. The Baron Lant is below a ve!¡± Baron Lant believed that Rashta was a charming and lovely woman, and that one day other nobles would fall for the new concubine. But that was the future, and it¡¯s clear that people in society today had a bad opinion of Rashta. Unfortunately, what Baroness Lant said was true. ¡°What about on your side, your niece Aesi¨C¡± ¡°Are suggesting we decide her future for her because she isn¡¯t your niece...? Even among your extended family there are at least three nieces, no?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know their personalities. They aren¡¯t just someone you can put into another person¡¯s care.¡± ¡°Oh my, see this? What¡¯s the excuse now?¡± As the Baron and Baroness Lant argued with each other, the other servants and secretaries found themselves in simr circumstances. Everyone shook their heads while talking about the runaway ve. However, they weren¡¯t in the position to back down like the Empress. In the end, Count Pirnu and Baron Lant were ordered by the Emperor to bring their female rtives to the pce for a month. * * * I thought Sovieshu would force me to inquire the noblewomen again. But somehow, three dayster, mydies-in-waiting informed me that Count Pirnu¡¯s daughter and a Baron Lant¡¯s distant rtive would serve as Rashta¡¯spanions. Setting aside Baron Lant¡¯s rtive, it was surprising that Count Pirnu¡¯s daughter would take on the job. ¡°Isn¡¯t that youngdy¡¯s name Helen?¡± I knew that the Pirnu family was a strong household. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Yet Helen somehow was thedy-in-waiting. ¡°Helen is inquisitive and has a good rtionship with her father. Maybe she¡¯s here for the Count¡¯s sake.¡± ¡°I suppose so.¡± I nodded and did not bring it up anymore. Fortunately, a few hourster, Ipletely forgot about Rashta when I went for a walk and found the handsome bird once again. Thedies-in-waiting were amazed when the bird flew and hovered before me. ¡°Oh, the bird¡¯s here again.¡± ¡°See how it goes to the Empress! Amazing.¡± The bird had another note on its leg. ¨C But I¡¯m smarter than a bird. I¡¯m sobering up now. I chuckled as I read the note. It was for no big reason in particr, I justughed. I watered the bird, then quickly wrote a reply. ¨C Looks like you¡¯re not fully sober yet. What¡¯s the bird¡¯s name? Thedies giggled again after seeing my note. Everyone mused on whether it was fun to write such letters. I kissed the bird¡¯s small head andunched it into the sky, and it pped its wings and flew away. This time I ended the letter with a question. Would the person who received the letter reply to me again? I liked to think so. * * * The name I temporarily forgot about arrived back in my ears not long after. ¡°Empress. I¡¯vee to ask you something about Rashta.¡± I was busy discussing the New Year¡¯s preparations with the minister of finance when Sovieshu brought her up. ¡°Is it urgent?¡± I nced at my watch, as if I had already finished my work day. If it was not urgent, we could talkter. There was no rush about Rashta. Instead of replying to me, Sovieshu looked at the minister, who stood up awkwardly from his seat and walked away. All the other officials followed suit. In a moment, only the two of us were left in the room. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Sovieshu looked at me beyond therge table. ¡°As I said, it¡¯s about Rashta.¡± Please, couldn¡¯t he solve the concubine¡¯s problems on his own? I nodded, pressing down the words in my throat. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Did you spread rumors that Rashta is a runaway ve?¡± ¡°That story again?¡± Except he was more specific than before. Last time he only asked if I said something strange. I looked at him in trepidation. ¡°Not only do Rashta¡¯s newdies-in-waiting do not treat her properly, but they also don¡¯t act asdies-in-waiting at all. ¡± ¡°Your Majesty, I don¡¯t want to be involved in any way with your concubine.¡± ¡°But why do they ignore Rashta at every turn, andpare everything she does to the Empress? Poor Rashta hid it and didn¡¯t say a word to me. If I hadn¡¯t seen thedies¡¯-in-waiting behavior by ident, I wouldn¡¯t have known it was happening. ¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we ask thedies-in-waiting?¡± ¡°I asked, and they said they didn¡¯t want to serve a runaway ve.¡± ¡°...You are truly unreasonable.¡± Chapter 12 - My Nest (1) Chapter 12 ¨C My Nest (1) In the end, I could not tolerate it anymore and spoke my mind. Sovieshu stared at me in amazement. My eyes were hot with unshed tears, but I bit my tongue to hold them back. The empress should not cry as a matter of pride. ¡°They said they heard rumors, not that I said them. Are you ming me for rumors for which you don¡¯t know the source?¡± ¡°No matter how much I think about it, there isn¡¯t anyone else but you who could benefit from it.¡± ¡°What would I gain?¡± ¡°Rashta is like a romantic rival to you, is she not?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it you who told me the story of Rashta being a runaway ve? You never said a word about the source of the rumor then. I didn¡¯t know before, but it could have been you from the beginning.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s usation was one-sided and insulting. I managed to steady my breath and keep myposure. But the more I tried to keep calm, the more suspicious Sovieshu seemed to be of me. It took a moment, but finally I managed to force out a voice that sounded normal. ¡°Your concubine is not a rival to me.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You are not my lover, so how can she be a threat to me?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression wavered. I straightened my back and gave him a smile practiced hundreds of times in front of a mirror. ¡°The concubine is precious to you, while I am just like everyone else. I am tiring of this, so let me say it again, Your Majesty¨Cdon¡¯t get me involved with you and your concubine.¡± I whirled around and saw myself through the door. The finance minister was nervously pacing down the hallway, and he turned his head in my direction. His eyes widened when his gaze fell upon me. It was obvious that I couldn¡¯t manage my facial expressions. I smiled at him, then quickly left the hallway and made to the western grounds. I ran to my secluded nest chair where there were nodies-in-waiting and buried myself inside. I hugged my body, and stifled my sobs as best I could. The empress does not cry. She does not cry in front of others. In my head, Sovieshu and his concubine were so small and unimportant that they could not shake me. But in my heart, there was a hole. Eventually, it turned dark. I stayed cocooned in my chair for a long time. I was sure that mydies-in-waiting were searching for me, and I slowly unfolded my body. After sitting curled in one position for hours, my arms and legs were as stiff as a wooden doll. Then, there was a piercing shriek from afar. I looked up from my nest chair, and saw arge birding down from the sky. ¡°Ah!¡± It was the handsome bird, the one that brought the note from the drunken foreigner. It headed for me again, thennded in myp and peered at me up close. It looked so adorable that I burst into giggles, and the bird blinked itsrge eyes and tilted its head. ¡°You came to see me.¡± Again, a note was tied to the bird¡¯s leg. I unfurled the note and saw written in neat script, ¨C Does it need a name? You can give it one if necessary. I studied the bird, and the bird looked back at me. Its gaze felt more prating than usual. Did it know that I was feeling depressed? ¡°Bird.¡± ¨C ... ¡°Bird.¡± ¨C ... I looked into its bright eyes, and almost believed that it understood me. No, that was foolish...but intelligent birds could understand people, right? I hesitated for a moment, looked around, then hugged the bird and whispered to its feathery head. ¡°This...is my secret ce.¡± The bird shifted and gave me a nk look. I petted the bird¡¯s back, and continued again awkwardly. ¡°There¡¯s nowhere I can cry. But here I can cry to my heart¡¯s content. It¡¯s a secret, so don¡¯t tell anyone else.¡± The bird blinked itsrge eyes again. Then, it slowly lifted a wing and brushed it against my cheek as if tofort me, and I smiled. ¡°Nice bird.¡± I kissed its head in gratitude, and the bird made a funny squawking noise and tapped the note with its beak. Did it want a reply? It was a really clever creature. Fortunately, I carried note paper and a pocket pen with me. I took them out, meditated on the right name for the bird, and wrote it down. ¨C The bird¡¯s name is ¡®Queen.¡¯ When I finished the note, I looked up to see the bird staring at my writing as if it could read the letters. The bird tapped the word ¡°Queen¡± with arge w. ¡°That¡¯s your name. If you could give this to your master.¡± I tied the note to the bird¡¯s leg, then gently hugged it again. The empress. Yes...no matter what happened, I was the empress. No matter what Sovieshu said, the concubine was the concubine and the empress was the empress. I pulled out a handkerchief, patted the swollen area around my eyes, and took a breath. Remember what my mother said ¡ª I shouldn¡¯t get involved with them. ¡°People don¡¯t expect me to be an Empress that is loved by the Emperor.¡± ¡ª ! ¡°My goal in life is not to be loved by the Emperor, either. ¡° I had learned and lived to be the most perfect empress. I was human, and I would be hurt, but I couldn¡¯t sink into despair. I already had enough pity for myself. Now I had to get up. I drew my breath, kissed the bird¡¯s head again, and let it fly into the sky. The bird seemed unwilling to part with me for a moment and circled once over my head, but it finally turned away and flew far away. I practiced my smile once more, then returned to the pce. * * * Therge bird flew straight to a nearby mountain. It skimmed the trees until it found a suitable outcrop, which was already upied with a flock of birds, andnded there. The appearance of therge bird sent the other smaller birds scattering, and therge bird perched itself on a rock in the open space. Then, incredibly, the bird transformed into a young man. He was handsome, extremely so, and his entire body was finely proportioned and shaped with well-defined muscles. ¡°Calling a male ¡®Queen.¡¯¡± The young man grumbled to himself and scratched his head. A bluebird, which was sitting on a nearby tree, hopped down and also transformed into a man, this time with blue hair. The blue-haired man pulled a red cape from another tree and started to scold the other. ¡°What do you mean? You said you were going to scout. You didn¡¯t go anywhere else, did you¨C¡± ¡°O-oh. No, I¡¯ve been scouting.¡± ¡°For beauties?¡± ¡°What are you talking about? I went to the pce, the pce.¡± ¡°...Are you sure?¡± The handsome young man grimaced when the blue-haired man stared at him distrustfully. ¡°You don¡¯t believe me?¡± The blue-haired man swung the red cape around the young man¡¯s shoulders. ¡°That will never happen. But please pay attention to your actions, Your Highness. Remember that you are the heir to the Western Kingdom.¡± Chapter 13 - My Nest (2) Chapter 13 ¨C My Nest (2) It seemed that I dropped my handkerchief when I pulled out my pen yesterday. I searched all over my room, but I couldn¡¯t find the handkerchief I usually carried with me. I went to work as usual at the central pce, then headed to the western garden during lunch. ¡°It¡¯s alright. The Empress won¡¯t be here at this time.¡± ¡°Does the Empress really own the entire pce? Only the Empress¡¯ bedroom is hers.¡± ¡°The Empress often visits here too, so why not Miss Rashta as well?¡± I heardughter and conversation as I approached my nest chair, and I stopped right before the bushes to observe what was happening. Rastha was sitting in my nest chair while a maidservant pushed it like a swing. The other maid had brought a table and was even cutting fruit. ¡°...¡± Hot anger seared through my chest. Did the concubine still not know that the western pce was the domain of the Empress? No, she must know if she was avoiding me. I could barely tolerate the fact that someone I didn¡¯t like was enjoying themselves in my chair. ¡°Well, the Empress would nevere to such a small ce. If Rashta doesn¡¯t sit in it, the chair will be lonely, right?¡± ¡°Miss Rashta...you adorable little thing.¡± ¡°You are so different from the other youngdies. You are so innocent.¡± ¡°Why? What about the others?¡± ¡°Well...nobles make their debut in society at the age of seventeen. After that, they need to be cunning.¡± ¡°There¡¯s a lot of fighting and backstabbing involved.¡± ¡°Miss Rashta, don¡¯t get involved with them, or they¡¯ll eat you alive.¡± Rashta smiled, then turned and suddenly caught sight of me. ¡°A-ah, Your Majesty.¡± Rashta jumped to her feet. The maids, who had been speaking ill of the nobility, also stepped back in surprise. Two newdies-in-waiting were nowhere to be seen. Supposedly they did not get along with Rashta, and they must have been sent back by Sovieshu or the maids. I pushed aside a few stems and approached them, my eyes fixed on the nest chair. When Rashta stood up, I spotted my handkerchief behind her dress. She had used the handkerchief to sit on my nest chair. When Rashta saw the direction of my gaze, she spoke up hurriedly. ¡°This isn¡¯t trash, Your Majesty. It¡¯s very beautiful.¡± ¡°I know the chair is not trash. It¡¯s my chair.¡± Rashta flinched at my clipped tone. I counted to the number ten in the oldnguage. That chair was my cherished possession, and this was my secret ce. I was angry that Sovieshu¡¯s concubine invaded my precious spot. ¡°I...Your Majesty? Why do you look so frightening?¡± Rashta¡¯s voice was short on breath, but I couldn¡¯t open my mouth to reply. It was not forbidden for anyone else to be here. While I never saw other people with my own eyes, anyone else could have used this chair. And yet, anger red in my chest at the thought of Rashta using it. Concubines were not supposed toe here to the western pce to see the empress. However, it was unbing for an empress to take offense for someone sitting in a chair, and those maids would certainly gossip about the nobles like they did before. I managed to steady my breathing and repeated to myself to never get angry in any way. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°The handkerchief you are sitting on is mine, too.¡± As I managed to force my anger down, Rashta turned back quickly in surprise. The maids nced at each other and bowed their heads. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. Rashta didn¡¯t know. It was just by the chair...¡± ¡°You did it without knowing. But don¡¯te to the west pce anymore. It¡¯s not good that we see each other.¡± ¡°B-but Rashta wants to be friends with Her Majesty...¡± Rashta was in tears, and the maids looked on in pity. They probably already thought I was a mean woman who was offended over a chair or handkerchief. Seeing Rashta so upset, I deliberately smiled and said something to shock her. ¡°You can be friends with the next concubine.¡± ¡°The next concubine?¡± ¡°The next concubine that the Emperor will bring in after you.¡± I only returned what she said to me. Rashta turned pale and looked at me with a wounded expression. She bowed her head and ran away, and her maids chased after her. I stood alone and gazed at my nest chair and my crushed handkerchief. I didn¡¯t feel good. It was the same chair and handkerchief that I had before, but...I found no cheer in them. * * * ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Sovieshu found himself surprised when he visited Rashta after work. As soon as he entered the room, a sobbing Rashta leapt into his arms. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Why are you crying? Did ady-in-waiting insult you again?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, when you get tired of Rashta, will you bring another woman as your concubine?¡± ¡°What? Who said that?¡± He stared at her dumbfounded, and she cried out ¡°The Empress!¡± ¡°The Empress?¡± Sovieshu frowned as if he found it difficult to believe. ¡°Why would the Empress suddenly say that to you? No, where did you meet her?¡± ¡°There is an abandoned chair in the west pce garden. No one was using it, so Rashta was ying there¨C¡± ¡°Did you go to the west pce again?¡± ¡°I went when the Empress wasn¡¯t there. And it was at the secluded garden, not near the building, Your Majesty.¡± Tears poured down Rashta¡¯s face in rivulets, and Sovieshu sighed and wiped them away with his sleeve. ¡°So, you were sitting in a chair that no one was using. And you were avoiding the Empress.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. She had a scary face, and R¨CRashta said ¡®I want to be friends with the Empress.¡¯¡± ¡°And she insinuated that I would bring another concubine when I tired of you?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t say that exactly, but she meant it. Is that really true? Will you love another woman besides Rashta? Your Majesty, are you going to cheat on Rashta?¡± ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°Are you sure? You¡¯re not the kind of man to cheat?¡± Rashta stared widely at him with her doe eyes, and Sovieshu hugged her tightly and repeated his answer. Her trembling finally calmed down. Sovieshu rubbed Rashta¡¯s back, frowning. Chapter 14 - Where Is Queen? (1) Chapter 14 ¨C Where Is Queen? (1) I returned to my pce after finishing my work, then slipped intofortable clothes more quickly than usual. I felt my head throbbing, possibly because of the constant feeling of something bothering me. I was slowly starting to understand my mother¡¯s words of ¡°Do not get involved in the affairs of the Emperor and his concubine.¡± But Mother, even if I try not to care, she keeps appearing in front of me. ¡°Countess Eliza.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. ¡°About my mother¨Cno, nevermind.¡± ¡°You want me to bring Duchess Troby?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. I¡¯ll see her on New Year¡¯s anyway.¡± ¡°You should consult the Duchess if you¡¯re feeling uneasy, Your Majesty.¡± Counsel would probably ease my mind. But if I spoke to her, my mother¡¯s mind would be a thorny path from then on, and I didn¡¯t want to burden my her with my problems. She already thought about me all the time. ¡®I¡¯ll keep it to myself for now. I can tell herter. Mother must have heard about Rashta anyway.¡¯ ¡°I will. Ah, is Lady Laura alright?¡± ¡°Yes. She wants to return to the pce as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Tell her she cane back whenever he wants. Preferably before New Year¡¯s. That way, people won¡¯t talk.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty ¡± Valueimpression ceholder Talking about Laura made me miss her bright energy. The Countess left the room for a moment, and I unpinned the jewels from my hair and ced them on the dresser. ¡®I¡¯m going to go to bed a little early today.¡¯ I should skip dinner. Instead, I sat at my desk and opened my notebook. There was the click of the door behind me, but I didn¡¯t turn around, thinking it was the Countess. However, the presence stood silent behind my back. That was not what the Countess would do. As I was dipping my pen into the inkwell, I frowned and turned around. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± To my surprise, it was Sovieshu standing behind me. How long had it been since my husband came to the western pce? Rather than being happy at his presence, I looked on anxiously. It was sure to be another difficult conversation with him. ¡°May I help you, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Why do people change so much?¡± Of course it was going to be another ufortable encounter. I had a terrible feeling, and wondered if it had anything to do with Sovieshu in my room. ¡°Change?¡± ¡°I heard about the bad things you said to Rashta.¡± Rashta. A mere small woman. But her name and presence stuck stubbornly to my feet wherever I went. ¡°What did I say?¡± ¡°You said that I would take another concubine after her.¡± ¡°Rather than trying to be friendly to me, I told her to be friendly with another concubine when shees.¡± Valueimpression ceholder ¡°!¡± ¡°Did I say something wrong?¡± ¡°She spoke without malice. Must you act so cynical?¡± ¡°...I¡¯ve changed? You¡¯ve changed.¡± ¡°Empress!¡± ¡°How many times do I have to repeat that I don¡¯t want to get involved with you and your concubine? Yet it does not stop me from hearing about her. If you and Miss Rashta left me be, I wouldn¡¯t be so cynical.¡± ¡°I had toe because it was necessary! If you hadn¡¯t said those things to Rashta, I wouldn¡¯t havee here!¡± I shouted, not from excitement, but from finding something that would hurt Sovieshu the most. ¡°Did the former emperor ever talk about Countess Sophie to the former empress?¡± Sovieshu paled when I brought up the subject of the former emperor¡¯s favored lover. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were such a gossiper.¡± He gestured his arms around the room. ¡°This room is full of beautiful furniture, and you can buy anything you want. You are cruel to someone who has lived their life pitifully.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes filled with disappointment. ¡°She was also a subject of the Empress before she was my concubine. Do you not feel sorry for her?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± As soon as I said that single word, my legs became weak. I hold on to the dressing table to prevent my legs from folding underneath myself, and that was when Countess Eliza came in the room and rushed towards me. She carefully hugged me andforted me in her arms. * * * ¡°Really? The Emperor was angry with the Empress because of Rashta?¡± ¡°I think so. They were shouting at the top of their voices.¡± Cherily gave a bitter smile, and Rashta covered her face with both her hands ¡°Wow...the Emperor is incredible...¡± The other maid, Kisu, continued the story. ¡°Not only that, but he dered a strict punishment to anyone who brings up the false rumor that you¡¯re a runaway ve.¡± The faces of the two maids blurred behind Rashta¡¯s tears. ¡°The Emperor really loves you, Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Well, how could anyone not love someone so beautiful and innocent?¡± ¡°The Emperor and Rashta are like lovers in fairy tales.¡± ¡°It really is like a fairy tale.¡± Rashta bowed her head and wiggled her toes shyly. ¡°Rashta is so happy these days. I feel like I¡¯m dreaming every day.¡± She was not prepared when a momentter, three servants entered the room to deliver arge swing chair. He mood grew even brighter. ¡°This is¨C?¡± ¡°This is a gift from the Emperor to Rashta. He said you can sit here without going to the pce.¡± Unlike the nest chair in the western pce, the fixture and decorations of this chair were all made of jewels, gold, and silver. The cushions and feather-stuffed cushions were made of the finest material and heavenly soft. Rashta burst into tears of joy and exchanged happy looks with her maids. Chapter 15 - Where Is Queen? (1) Chapter 15 ¨C Where Is Queen? (1) Iy crying in bed when I heard a tap on my window. I looked up dully, and to my surprise, I saw the handsome bird hovering outside. I hesitated before opening the window, and the bird hopped onto my bed, picked its wings and stared at me. ¡°You arrived quickly this time.¡± I wiped away my tears, and the bird peered at me with itsrge eyes, like it had seen me crying. It was such a clever bird. ¡°Is your master near?¡± The bird nodded as if it understood my words. I lifted the bird and ced it on myp, and it froze for a moment and blinked rapidly. I brushed its head then pulled the note from its leg. ¨C The bird will be named Queen, but keep in mind that he is a male. It was a short but efficient sentence again. The heaviness in my mind lifted, and I smiled at the words of this stranger who I had neither face nor name for. ¡°You¡¯re a boy?¡± The bird pped his wings as if miffed by my ignorance, but in my defense, I didn¡¯t know the difference between the males and females of this species. I patted his head again then went to my desk, and the bird followed. I took out a sheet of paper and wrote a reply. ¨C I didn¡¯t know he was male. An unexpected surprise. I rolled up the note and tied it to the bird¡¯s leg, then nced at the calendar. The New Year¡¯s celebrations were just around the corner. Some of the guests would start arriving early tomorrow at the pce... The owner of the bird was already nearby. Would theye tomorrow? * The next morning, the lord anddy of the Lux region arrived, as well as other distinguished guests from the neighboring countries. The guests¡¯ reception were divided for either me, Sovieshu, or the foreign minister. Most of the time, they went to Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty! There is an arrival from the Western Kingdom!¡± ¡°If it¡¯s the Western Kingdom...¡± ¡°Yes, I believe it¡¯s Prince Heinley.¡± The Prince was one of the few guests I had to personally greet. I nodded and stood up, and the officials supervising the guest list followed suit. I gestured to them to sit down, then walked towards arge mirror, arranged my dress, and went to the reception room. Prince Heinley was the younger brother of the king of the West, and the second son of their father. However, Heinley was the heir to the throne as the king had no children, despite already having a queen and three official concubines. Rumors abounded that because of the king¡¯s infertility and poor physical condition these days, Prince Heinley would likely inherit the throne. In spite of that, the Western Kingdom was already simr in size and power to the Eastern Empire. Of course, I would go and wee the special guest myself. I entered the White Rose room, and when I looked at the delegation I stopped breathing when I saw the man at the head. I had often heard rumors about this man¡¯s beautiful appearance. As soon as one entered into high society, one could not escape talk of Prince Heinley. Word was that he was a womanzier, he had a violent personality, he was indescribably handsome. He killed or backstabbed people with a smile on his face, or that it wasn¡¯t that the king of the Western Kingdom was incapable of having children, but that the Prince killed each of them. I could not decipher from all the rumors whether Prince Heinley was a womanizer or a cruel person. But one thing was certain. His appearance. He...he really was beautiful. His blonde hair fell into soft, tousled waves on his face, and his lips curved into a delicate bow. He bore a strong neck and broad shoulders, but what was most striking about him were his mysterious violet eyes. ¡®Even if he were to stand in the corner with his mouth shut, he would stir all kinds of rumors.¡¯ I stood opposite of Prince Heinley, admiring him as surreptitiously as I could. He was only a prince, but he was from the esteemed Western Kingdom, and so I treated him with the respect of a crown prince. I stood across from him, but before I could say anything, Prince Heinley bent one knee and reached out his hand like a knight swearing a vow of loyalty. I gave him my hand, upon which he ced a gentle kiss. But the difference between the knights was clear. The knights lowered their eyes or stared towards the front as they gave a kiss of loyalty. This man, however, stared straight into my eyes and held my gaze captive. ¡°It¡¯s an honor to meet you, Empress.¡± He released my hand and smiled, and I felt my stomach knot for some reason. I thought the rumor that he was cruel was more true than the one of him being a womanizer, as I saw no lechery in his eyes. Instead, he was like an eagle observing me from above, despite the fact that he was kneeling before me. ¡°It¡¯s an honor to meet you as well, Prince Heinley.¡± I wouldn¡¯t let myself be crushed by him, of course. I wore a dignified expression born through years of training. He smiled softly and rose to his knees. ¡°It must have been a difficult journey, and I hope you will rest and enjoy it here until New Year¡¯s Day.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve always heard praise for the imperial pce of the Eastern Empire. It¡¯s very beautiful.¡± ¡°I hope you will find it pleasing.¡± The prince¡¯s eyes squinted in a smile at the ceremonial greeting. ¡°I am already pleased.¡± * * * The amount of work required from me was halved after the arrival of the special guests, and most of what was left was for the celebrations themselves. I finished my work earlier than usual and returned to the western pce. Laura, who returned to her position as mydy-in-waiting, quickly approached me. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. How was he? How was Prince Heinley? Is he beautiful like the rumors say?¡± The otherdies-in-waiting approached in interest, teacups in hand. They set them down in various corners like the window frame, on the dresser, on the tea table, then went to work in helping me change. ¡°I heard that the Grand Duke Chrome fainted when he saw Prince Heinley. Is that really true?¡± ¡°I heard a famous theater actress went on a date with him once, then chased him for three years.¡± Although thedies-in-waiting would see him in a few days, they could not bear their patience. I replied to satiate their craving, remembering Prince Heinley¡¯s steady gaze, purple eyes and sharp charisma that could be felt from a distance. ¡°He was the most beautiful person I¡¯ve ever seen. Without a doubt.¡± Laura let out a small scream of exmation. ¡°Wow. I can¡¯t wait to see him. What was his voice like?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the best voice I¡¯ve ever heard.¡± It was not an exaggeration. Thedies put their hands on their hearts while swooning. ¡°I¡¯m already looking forward to what gossip the handsome prince will bring.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure many are already thinking about it.¡± While they were curious about Prince Heinley¡¯s appearance, they were also looking forward to the drama he would bring. I smiled as I listened to their conversation, when there was a tap on the window. It was Queen, rapping the ss with his beak. ¡°Are you here already?¡± I opened the window, and hended on the sill and blinked at me. Now that I thought about it, Queen also had gold feathers and purple eyes. It was hard to imagine that he could survive in the wild with such conspicuous colors...Suddenly, I worried if it was alright to use a bird like this as a messenger. Queen held out his foot as if he wanted me to read the note as soon as possible. I opened the note and sat at my desk, while thedies-in-waiting upied themselves in feeding Queen. The handwriting was familiar, the message yful. ¨C I arrived at the Imperial Pce. Do you know who I am? Chapter 16 - Want To Make A Bet? (1) Chapter 16 ¨C Want To Make A Bet? (1) He was already here? The guests started entering the pce today. I mentally filed through all the arrivals. ¡°...¡± It was difficult to pinpoint one person from the abundance of guests. There were Grand Duke Chrome and his wife, the Grand Duke Lilteang, the Chancellor and his family from the Northern Kingdom, the children of Duchess Cranthia from Samoneau, Prince Heinley from the Western Kingdom, Emperor Sirim of Blue Bohean... The problem was that they did note in twos or threes. Just from the Grand Duke and his wife, there were also the knights, the servants, and escorts, and then multiply that number by several times to ount for the other guests. I didn¡¯t know if the letter came from a woman or man, if they were young or old, or what status they were. It was almost impossible to determine Queen¡¯s owner. ¨C I don¡¯t know who you are. I considered it a little more and then added, ¨C Do you know who I am? I was sure they didn¡¯t know. I was one of countless people living in the pce. As soon as I finished writing the letter, Queen hopped to my side. ¡°This birdy is quite clever, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even while cleaning his feathers, he seems to be trying to make eye contact with you, Your Majesty.¡± Thedies-in-waiting burst outughing when Queen butted his head towards me. ¡°Really?¡± I stroked the bird¡¯s head, and he made a pleased sound and half-closed his eyes. I rolled up the note and tied it to the bird¡¯s leg, and he fluttered his wings andnded on the bed in a small dance before leaping back out the window. ¡°What a clever bird... The owner themselves would have to be quite intelligent to raise a bird like that. What kind of person were they? A young woman of my age like Laura? An elegant olddy or gentleman? A prodigal nobleman? A knight who knows nothing but the sword... ¡°Do you like birds, Your Majesty?¡± Countess Eliza came by my side as I stared silently outside the window. ¡°Yes. I think they¡¯re lovely.¡± The bird was truly incredible, the person who owned the bird had to be incredible as well. Countess Eliza smiled and spoke in a half-encouraging tone. ¡°Then why don¡¯t you raise one or two birds of that species, or any other species?¡± ¡°Oh yes. It would be amazing to have a chick from birth.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s bring them together!¡± It was tempting, but I thought about it for a moment and shook my head. ¡°No. Seeing one is different from raising one.¡± Queen was exceptionally intelligent because of his master¡¯s training. It was unclear whether I liked birds, or just Queen himself. If I had an animal, I would make sure I wouldmit to it before raising it. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen Viscountess Verdi since yesterday. ....¡± ¡°She had to rush back to her estate.¡± ¡°...Troubles again?¡± Thedies-in-waiting nced at each other. Unlike the rest of them, Viscountess Verdi had no mansion in the capital, and she frequently returned to her estate due to family matters. The problem was that most of the ¡°family matters¡± was often unenjoyable news. ¡°I heard the son was gambling abroad.¡± ¡°And the Viscount was with a marriedmoner woman, and the woman¡¯s husband sued.¡± Many aristocrats were like this. Viscountess Verdi¡¯s son had a gambling problem and the husband had a woman problem. ¡°Yes...¡± Viscountess Verdi was certainly burdened with hardship. I was worried, but I couldn¡¯t interfere without her asking me. My consideration would touch her pride. And even if she asks for help, it¡¯s not something that I could resolve... ¡®Everyone has problems.¡¯ I sighed and reach out to close the open window. * * * The next day, more guests arrived at the pce, starting with the arrival of the princess of the Southern Kingdom early in the morning. The time passed quickly as I exchanged greetings with her and her security was cleared. Maybe it was because of the rain, but today felt particrly hectic. It wasn¡¯t until I retired to my room in the evening that I found Queen sitting on the window frame, pining pitifully as he waited for me. I opened the window, and he crept into the room, soaking wet and shuddering. ¡°My goodness. Your master sent you in that rain?¡± ¨C ! ¡°You¡¯re shaking. I¡¯m sure you have a message.¡± ¨C ... With my tongue in my cheek in concentration, I wrapped a soft towel around his body and gently dried his feathers. Queen hesitated for a moment, but soon started dozing in my hands. I rubbed him with the towel until he waspletely dry, and carefully pulled the note from his leg. The handwriting was smudged by the rain, but this was what it said. ¨C Then shall we make a bet? The one who finds the other wins. What was it that I wrote before? ...Ah, I asked the sender who they were. They wanted to make a bet. I went to the desk and wrote a reply. ¨C What would you bet on? After I finished, I looked at Queen and back out the window again. The rain was stillshing heavily against the ss, and had been going on for hours. If I sent him out now, wouldn¡¯t he catch a cold? Queen was staring at me instead of ying with the towel. I put down my pen, and he tilted his head and flew over to the desk. He seemed to scan the contents of the note then extended his leg, as if he wanted me to tie the note. ¡°No.¡± ¨C ?! ¡°It¡¯s raining now. If I send you now, you will catch a cold.¡± The bird hesitated as if it really understood me, and I drew him in my arms and patted its head. ¡°You can sleep with me today. You can go when the rain stops.¡± ¨C ! Come to think of it...he was a male bird. Did a bird consider a human¡¯s gender? Why was he suddenly frozen? * * * I took a bath then slipped into a gown, and when I returned to my room I found Queen lying on my bed. I was going to make a separate cushion for him to sleep next to me, but he was t on his back. ¡°...¡± Could a bird sleep on its back like that? Cute. When I got closer, I marveled even more when I saw that he breathed with his beak slightly parted. He didn¡¯t wake up even after I touched him lightly, so Iy myself on the bed next to him. I kept still, feeling a warmth by my shoulders. Maybe because Queen¡¯s body temperature was high even though he was a little far away. As I stared at him in wonder, Queen opened his eyes. When I saw the purple of his irises, I was somehow reminded of Prince Heinley. Come to think of it, the Prince also had eyes like an eagle. I reached out and swept the bird¡¯s cheek, and his sharply gleaming eyes soon slid close again. ¡°You¡¯re so pretty, Queen.¡± I spoke in a soft whisper, and the bird stretched its body from wingtip to feet, then covered my arm with its wing. ¡°Good night, Queen.¡± Chapter 17 - Want To Make A Bet? (2) Chapter 17 ¨C Want To Make A Bet? (2) I woke the next day and saw Queen was gone. The window was slightly ajar, as if he had let itself out. ¡®What a smart bird.¡¯ Even more impressively, he remembered to take the note from my desk. ¡°Countess Eliza. Did you clear the paper from my desk?¡± I asked Countess Eliza just in case. ¡°No, Your Majesty. Is it gone?¡± ¡°Yes, I think Queen must have taken it.¡± Countess Eliza was also impressed with my story. I thought about the bet as I made my way to the central pce. Queen was quite intelligent, so his owner had to be as well. Perhaps it was Emperor Sirim from Blue Bohean. I heard he was quite smart. Moreover, as Blue Bohean was a maritime country, it used messenger birds the mostpared to other countries... ¡°Your face looks brighter, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve been worried about your dark moods, but I¡¯m d the New Year¡¯s celebrations seem to cheer you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I see...¡± More precisely, it was Queen¡¯s presence that lifted my mood, but if it weren¡¯t for New Year¡¯s, he never would havee to me. Countess Eliza was right in the end. I worked on my papers with a smile, and as soon as it was lunchtime, I returned to the western pce. I usually took my meals at the central pce, but I was worried that Queen would be waiting for me outside the window like yesterday. ¡°Again.¡± Queen was sitting outside the window again. Fortunately, the weather was clear and he was half-dozing off in the sunshine, instead of shivering in the rain. When I opened the window, Queen quickly came into the room and held out his leg. I pulled out the note and checked it eagerly, and once again saw the familiar handwriting. ¨C I¡¯ll bet Queen. I looked at Queen. The bird blinked hisrge eyes and tilted his head, oblivious to the contents of the letter. ¡°...¡± ¨C Gu? ¡°Your master wants to offer you, Queen?¡± As soon as I spoke, Queen jumped and pped his wings. I pulled Queen into my arms and ced him in myp, and looked down at his magnificent golden plumage. I wanted to have Queen. I have never seen such a cute, smart and lovely bird before. But...no matter what anyone else said, it was best if he stayed with his master. It would be heartbreaking if I won the bet and Queen was let go. No, that was not the best way to describe it. Queen would be abandoned by his master. I was not so happy with thepetition either. I was curious of course, but worry stopped me. The reason Queen¡¯s owner and I could send messages to each other was because we were strangers. Would we be able to talk in this familiar way even after we have discovered each other¡¯s identity? I had to be careful to preserve the dignity of my pose as empress, or else thisfortable atmosphere would disappear. ¨C Gu? The bird tapped my hand as I sat still, as if he were impatient for me to start writing I hesitated and took Queen to my desk. I set him down, took out a piece of paper, and wrote a lie. ¨C Hint. I¡¯m a man. Queen squawked and pped his wings as soon as he saw my message It sounded like he wasughing, and I felt embarrassed even though he was just a bird. I scratched his cheek, and Queen turned round and round and rubbed his head against my wrist. ¡°Do you think it¡¯s fun to lie to your master?¡± ¨C Gu! I was d he was having fun. I felt sorry for Queen¡¯s master, but...they won¡¯t find me if I wrote this lie. That way, we wouldn¡¯t be able to find each other, and we could remain faceless friends like now. ¡°You like this too, don¡¯t you, Queen?¡± ¨C ? * * * It was the day before the New Year¡¯s celebrations officially began. I greeted thest-minute arrivals, and checked on the New Year¡¯s proceedings and the special banquet for thest day. I went to the western pce again during lunch hour to see if Queen was there today, but the effort was fruitless. Instead, Viscountess Verdi, who had been away for several days, returned. She still looked quite pale and distressed, but she greeted me. ¡°If it¡¯s no trouble to you, Your Majesty, I...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Tell me.¡± ¡°Can I borrow some money? ¡± The red-faced Viscountess Verdi could not even exin the reason she needed it. ¡°About five thousand krangs...¡± The otherdies-in-waiting and I knew though, however. Perhaps it was for her son or husband. Though Viscountess had hurried back to her estate, she could not pull her family out of the mire. I promised to lend her the money without prying any further, and she repeatedly said she would pay me back and left the room shame-faced. ¡°I¡¯d rather get divorced.¡± Laura was unmarried, and didn¡¯t have much sympathy towards Viscountess Verdi. ¡°That¡¯s as good as throwing away the Lux army.¡± Countess Eliza was patient in exining this to Laura, but the youngdy still didn¡¯t seem to understand. ¡°But even if she went through divorce, wouldn¡¯t her child be considered illegitimate?¡± ¡°While it won¡¯t happen immediately, there is the possibility that he¡¯ll lose the right to inheritance. That¡¯s why she¡¯s enduring, Laura.¡± ¡°So what. If a troublemaker like him bes heir, he¡¯ll only end up sucking his family dry.¡± ¡°Hush, Laura.¡± Countess Eliza red at Laura and she pouted her lips. ¡°I¡¯m only worried.¡± * * * Viscountess Verdi returned to her estate again, but not everyone could eatfortably. As soon as I finished my lunch, I quickly returned to the central pce. Near the end of my work day, something happened as I was taking a break. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± One of the knights came inside my office and gave me an unexpected report. ¡°Prince Heinley wants to see you.¡± ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± Why him? I went outside and found him looking at a mural with his back to me. ¡°Ah. Your Majesty.¡± I approached him, and he turned his head and bowed like a knight again. ¡°I hope I am not too rude?¡± ¡°Not at all. What can I do for you?¡± ¡°I was told you would be finished with work around this time. Are you still busy?¡± Did he find out my working hours? He was right though, and I replied that I was almost done and he grinned. ¡°That¡¯s great. If you don¡¯t mind, could you show me the pce? I¡¯d like to look around, but it¡¯s so enormous that I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll get lost.¡± ¡°Ah, then mydy-in-waiting¨C¡± ¡°You.¡± I was about to give him one of mydies-in-waiting, but he interrupted me in a low voice. ¡°I wish for the Queen to do it.¡± Chapter 18 - Curiosity (1) Chapter 18 ¨C Curiosity (1) His voice was soft and sweet, but there was a note of self-important pride in it. And he had called me Queen. He was not the only foreigner to do so, but the word felt strange as I had been sending messages with Queen the bird. Did that mean...Prince Heinley was Queen¡¯s owner? Did he think I was his letter acquaintance? I had a moment of suspicion, but soon dismissed it. It didn¡¯t matter if he wrote those letters. I had no intention of meeting Queen¡¯s owner in real life. The knight standing next to me frowned as if offended. He seemed to think that it was rude for the prince to ask me to guide him around the pce. ¡°Alright.¡± Nevertheless, there was no knowing when his country would surpass the Eastern Empire. I would not stir up unnecessary trouble with a prince who might seed to the throne in the future. After a moment¡¯s thought, the proud attitude on the Prince Heinley¡¯s face vanished, reced with an innocent smile as he offered his arm to me. I took it, and contrary to his beautiful and fine appearance, his arm felt densely muscled. I let go of it in surprise, and he looked at me curiously. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± I couldn¡¯t very well say that he was more solid than I expected, so I quickly looked away. ¡°Have you ever been to the Silver Garden? It¡¯s the closest garden to the southern pce. It¡¯s very beautiful.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been around the southern pce, naturally.¡± I pondered for a moment as we walked along the corridor exiting the central pce. The central pce was primarily used for work, with many forbidden areas to outsiders, so it was inappropriate for me to show him around there. The southern pce was used to house the foreign guests, and he must have toured around the area. Then there was still the western pce...we could share a cup of tea, so the western pce should be at the end. I could escort him to the Emperor¡¯s eastern pce, but I was reluctant to run across Rashta. We could easily skip that and go to the north pce... ¡°Your Majesty?¡± I was strolling forward without saying a word, and Prince Heinley called out me. Something in his voice made my ears tingle. ¡°I was thinking about what to show you first.¡± ¡°Ah. Then I want to go¨C¡± Before Prince Heinley finished speaking, a familiar person ran towards us from the garden bushes. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Rashta. Despite my efforts to avoid here, she still appeared in front of me. I sighed, keeping on my mask as I nodded to her. ¡°Your Majesty, are you talking a walk? Rashta¡¯s taking a walk too.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I had no idea where her inexhaustible energy came from. Last time I saw her, we didn¡¯t part on the best terms. ¡°I came from over there.¡± She pointed her finger at the path she had followed, then smiled brightly and bowed to the prince. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Rashta.¡± I thought the prince would be offended by this unnoble greeting, but he smiled unexpectedly and copied Rashta¡¯s mannerism. ¡°Hello, I¡¯m Heinley.¡± Rashta¡¯s giggle was like a silver bell. ¡°You¡¯re funny! Your Majesty, who is this? I¡¯ve never seen him before.¡± Heinley introduced himself before I could. ¡°I¡¯m Prince Heinley from the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°Wow! Prince?!¡± Rashta covered her mouth with her hands, then squealed in excitement. ¡°Rashta has never seen a prince!¡± ¡°Haha, is that so?¡± ¡°You really look like a prince. From a fairy tale book.¡± ¡°Goodness. You tter me, Rashta.¡± A pink flush rose on Rashta¡¯s cheeks. ¡°Are you two taking a walk together?¡± ¡°I asked the Empress to show me around.¡± ¡°This ce is wonderful, isn¡¯t it? There are a lot of ces to see.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t seen everything, but so far, it¡¯s been incredible.¡± Unlike the nobles who were embarrassed by Rashta¡¯s speech or behavior when they first met her, Prince Heinley carried on easily with her. Rashta asked if Prince Heinley was feelingfortable, then posed him another question with a beaming smile. ¡°Well, Prince Heinley, do you want me to guide you?¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s eyebrows lifted. ¡°Lady Rashta?¡± ¡°Rashta has been exploring the entire pcetely. There¡¯s no ce I don¡¯t know!¡± Rashta nced and added kindly, ¡°Her Majesty is busy, so Rashta will do it for you.¡± ¡°Ah. Thank you, Lady Rashta. But that¡¯s all right. The Empress is a great guide. ¡± I hadn¡¯t even shown him anything yet. Prince Heinley nced at me apologetically. ¡°Ah! Then Rashta will go with you. It would be more fun if the three of us took a walk together!¡± Rashta attached herself to Prince Heinley¡¯s side, and he returned a soft smile. If he allowed Rashta to apany us, I would simply leave. I thought through the words that would give me a reasonable excuse. Busy? No, I said I was not busy. I just remembered that I was busy? No, that was too hasty. Perhaps I had to rush to the bathroom...No, absolutely not. In any case, I didn¡¯t want to create a scene of the Empress and the Emperor¡¯s concubine taking a stroll with the neighboring country¡¯s prince. There could be no such ridiculous thing. But before I even choose an excuse¨C ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Lady Rashta.¡± Prince Heinley turned down Rashta in a gentle but firm voice. ¡°Three is too many.¡± Rashta looked surprised, and Prince Heinley left her with a ¡°Enjoy your walk,¡± then calmly strode away. He was polite, but surprisingly cold. Usually when someone offered theirpany, the polite thing to do was ept. I nced sideways at his profile in surprise. Before I knew it, he returned with the prideful attitude when he asked me to guide him. I frowned in thought...he certainly had a rude personality. He really was a man that depended on his good looks. Was that the reason of the buzz in the social circles? Prince Heinley stared at me while I thought. I avoided his gaze for fear of being too obvious, when he asked me an unexpected question. ¡°Do you not find me handsome?¡± What was he talking about? I gave a slight frown, and Prince Heinley continued. ¡°It¡¯s strange. People are usually interested in me at this point. Why is the Queen so cold? Is my face swollen today? I made sure to dress finely.¡± I must have heard him wrong. I stared at him, Prince Heinley suddenly burst outughing. ...Was it a joke? ¡°My apologies, Your Majesty. You were so rigid a while ago.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°The woman from earlier, was she the Emperor¡¯s mistress?¡± Prince Heinley used the term ¡°mistress¡± instead of ¡°concubine.¡± This, too, was not typical of nobility, and it produced a smile from me. ¡°The Emperor is a strange man. How could he look elsewhere with the Queen in front of him?¡± ¡°Thank you for your kind words, but...¡± ¡°There is no need to thank me. If he cannot appreciate you, it is his loss.¡± Perhaps that was why he was called a womanizer. For a moment I was pleasantly surprised. I knew his words were meant to be pleasing to my ears, but his haughty face made me unable to ept his ttery. He looked like the type that would be unwilling to givepliments even if he was held by the throat and ordered to do so. I forced a smile, and he gave me a boyish grin in return. ¡°So, if you don¡¯t mind, Your Majesty, would you invite me to the special banquet on thest day of the New Year¡¯s celebrations?¡± Those present at the final New Year¡¯s banquet were highly distinguished guests of high status, or made great achievements, or were expected to make great achievements. However, the Emperor and Empress only invited ten guests. Naturally, most of the invitations were already sent before the New Year¡¯s, and Prince Heinley was naturally the first on that list. ¡°Didn¡¯t you already receive the invitation? It couldn¡¯t be...¡± ¡°I received it. But it was an invitation from the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.¡± When he looked at me again, his eyebrows lifted. ¡°I would rather be the Empress¡¯ guest.¡± ¡°I appreciate it, but I have already sent out all of the invitations.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you cross out the Emperor¡¯s name and write down your name below?¡± He was speaking nonsense, and he chuckled at his own words, then offered up his arm again. ¡°Shall we keep walking?¡± Chapter 19 - Curiousity (2) Chapter 19 ¨C Curiousity (2) After our stroll together, I returned to the western pce. Countess Eliza was helping me change my clothes, when she suddenly eximed ¡°Oh!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Countess Eliza was smiling at the window. I followed her gaze and saw Queen sitting on sill. That was normal, but today his back was towards us. Countess Eliza chuckled. ¡°He flew here, but when he saw you changing, he panicked and turned around.¡± ¡°Queen?¡± ¡°That bird is so clever, Your Majesty. Like a gentleman.¡± When I finished dressing, I approached the bird, but Queen still kept his back firmly towards me. He cocked his head when I approached, but didn¡¯t turn around. I spoke to him in a soft voice. ¡°I¡¯m dressed now.¡± I poked his feathery rear, and he spun around and rubbed his forehead against mine. ¡°Did you not look because you were ashamed?¡± Queen nodded his head primly. He really did look intelligent. However... ¡°Did youe here in a hurry today? Why are you tired?¡± Queen seemed exhausted from his journey when he carried the first note, but after his owner arrived at the pce, he appeared to be more at ease. He looked exhausted again today, however, as if in a rush. Queen fumbled a little, then held out his leg with another note. I petted his head and pulled out the scrap of paper. ¨C Looking for me? Queen tilted her head and stared. He then went to drink some water, keeping his eye on me. It was a long moment before I finally replied. ¨C Looking hard. And you? Queen shook the water from his beak then flew towards me. He looked at the note, then tapped my arm lightly with his wings as if to reprimand me for my lie. He was so adorable the way he reacted to my letters, and I patted his beak again. ¨C ! * * * The New Year¡¯s celebrations finally began. Fireworks glittered in the sky at night, and peopleughed and chatted in the streets by day. Although I had lived in the pce for a long time, the image that still came to mind when thinking about New Year¡¯s was the lively pre-marriage festival. I opened the window, allowing the cool yet moist morning air to tickle my nose. I inhaled and exhaled deeply, then half-closed the window and rang the bell next to my bed. After a moment, Countess Eliza entered, dressed more extravagantly than usual. ¡°You will be quite busy today.¡± The Countess smiled at me, then quickly lifted the dress she prepared from the closet. My mother had given the dress to me as a gift, a beautiful thing adorned with white pearls and undeid withyers of snowyce to give a full skirt. My mother didn¡¯t say it directly to me, but I knew that she was worried about me after the rumors about Rashta. ¡°It¡¯s the first day, so we must all dress up. On an event like this, one should look colorful, but too strong of a color would look tacky. Instead, it¡¯s better to make the queen¡¯s image stand out.¡± She exined to me that concept was ¡°The Queen of Snow¡±, then urged me to get up and wash my face. After sliding into the scented bath water and receiving a massage, Countess Eliza washed my hair and ced on light makeup to make my skin look smoother. She helped me put on the white dress, then decorated my hair with more pearls. I slipped on the white shoes, and soon it really was as if I came from a country of snow. ¡°You look so beautiful, Empress. I¡¯m not only saying this because you¡¯re here.¡± ¡°Thank you, Countess Eliza.¡± Countess Eliza seemed to want to speak more, but she smiled silently instead. Perhaps she was about to say something like, ¡°Sovieshu will be impressed when he sees you.¡± I checked the schedule on my desk one final time, then headed towards the eastern pce. From the second day onwards it wouldn¡¯t matter, but on the first day it was required that the emperor and empress enter the first grand banquet together. I found Sovieshu waiting for me outside. He smiled at me gently and extended his arm for me to take. I thought he would be more upset and longing for his lover, but I noticed no such thing in his expression. It was surprising, but I took his arm and we walked towards the grand ballroom. The doors to the hall were wide open. Four guards, dressed in splendid imperial uniforms than usual, stood on each side of the door, and one rapped on the door when they saw Sovieshu and I. An official sounded the trumpet, and the noise in the hall subsided. I took a few steps with Sovieshu at my side, and an enormous staircase stretched downwards from our feet out towards an enormous hall dotted with the colorful outfits of the guests. Sovieshu raised his hand, and everyone bowed at the same time. I took in the crowd, when something I saw made my hands clench involuntarily. Near the center of the ballroom was Rashta surrounded by foreign nobles. Chapter 20 - A False Rumor (1) Chapter 20 ¨C A False Rumor (1) He invited the concubine for the New Year¡¯s ball? It wasn¡¯t that concubines couldn¡¯t attend the celebrations, but when they did, they were usually of noble status. It was for this reason that emperors would have a low status concubines fake marriage to another noble, raising that concubine¡¯s status to countesses or marchionesses. However, Sovieshu would never take this ¡°blindfold¡± approach with Rashta. Rashta¡¯s appearance caught me off guard. I turned my head sideways, but it seemed that I was the only was surprised. Sovieshu was smiling at Rashta and nodding his head. When I turned back towards Rashta again, she curtsied shyly and looked up at Sovieshu and mouthed ¡°This is difficult.¡± Soon her gaze fell on me. When our eyes met, she smiled and mouthed out ¡°Sister!¡± Then her eyes widened as she cutely she covered her mouth in apology. ¡°She¡¯s so naive.¡± The expression on his face told me he found Rashtapletely endearing. I felt my heart twist. Despite the fact that I was his wife, I felt like a foreign object caught between the two. The nobles who bowed to us were now looking alternately between Sovieshu and Rashta. Women covered their mouths with their fans, and men whispered to each other behind their gloves. Though they kept their voices low, it was like a roar when all joined in concert. Rashta looked around in surprise and stared up at Sovieshu with a frightened face. He sighed. ¡°Empress, can you go down alone?¡± The two of us already walked in together side-by-side, and his obligations with me were over. We could go down the stairs separately, but I did not want to give the impression that we were together by force. I made myself speak. ¡°...We go down together.¡± Sovieshu turned slightly towards me in amazement, but I kept my voice steady. ¡°Many of the top foreign aristocrats are gathered here. They would think there is a rift between us if don¡¯t go down together.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°A conflict between the Emperor and the Empress could be seen as an opportunity for our enemies and the neighboring countries. We don¡¯t have to be a perfect couple, but we shouldn¡¯t look at each other unfavorably.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression twisted slightly. ¡°Ah, yes, I suppose so.¡± Rather than taking to heart what I said, he seemed to ept it as an excuse. He gave a regretful smile and reached out to me. ¡°Then let¡¯s go down together. ¡± As he escorted me down the stairs, he nodded towards the crowd and before stopping at a suitable area on the floor. He smiled and lowered his arm. ¡°Is this enough?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± With his duty done, Sovieshu made towards Rashta without looking back. I stood alone and watched him. The foreign nobles surrounding Rashta weed the Emperor with a smile and stepped back to make room for him. Rashta quickly nestled herself by Sovieshu¡¯s side. So that was what a loving partnership looked like... I wrenched my gaze away. Instead of showing pain, I feigned a smile and greeted the Duchess Tuania nearby. ¡°You organized the New Year¡¯s celebrations didn¡¯t you, Your Majesty? This is wonderful.¡± Duchess Tuania approached me with a friendly demeanor, ignoring the topic of Sovieshu and Rashta. Before long, the other noblewomen and youngdies came to me as well, and we carried on in casual conversation. ¡°Oh, look over there.¡± ¡°That¡¯s Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°Rumors say that he is a womanizer. He has such a beautiful face.¡± ¡°I hear that he mixes with dangerous pirates.¡± Because the noblewomen avoided the topic of Rashta, the conversation turned to Prince Heinley instead. ¡°Since there are more rumors wherever he goes, he must be seeing someone now, right?¡± ¡°What partner would deal with that fire of a person?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley is single...maybe there isn¡¯t one.¡± ¡°Well, he is the future king of the Western Kingdom, so it may be beneficial to marry a woman from our Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°But he seems quiet for someone who has so many rumors about him...¡± I listened to them talk about the mysterious prince, and took a ss of champagne from a passing servant. It had only a little alcohol, almost like water. I tipped the drink up to my lips, lifting my head. Through the ss I saw the distorted figure of a man. It was Prince Heinley, staring in my direction. I lowered my head and pulled the vessel away from my lips. I thought it was by chance that he was looking at me, but when our eyes met he didn¡¯t turn away his gaze. Instead, he lifted his own ss to toast me then took a drink. He tilted his head, revealing a smooth jawline. A foreign nobleman then caught his attention, and I quickly took my eyes off him. It was then¨C ¡°Even the most aloof empress cannot help but look at that face.¡± There was aughing voice from somewhere. My heart pounded, and I turned my head in the direction of the voice. The seats by the wall were upied with many foreigners and natives. There were too many people for me to know who said it, but I immediately knew who it was. A group of people were holding on to their stomachs as they howled inughter. It was hard for me to hear, but the person with that voice said something again, and theughter grew louder. Some of the giggling nobles nced sideways at me and caught my gaze, and they quickly poked each other in the ribs to signal quiet. Their reaction convinced me of the certainty of my story. They thought I was deaf to what they were saying, but I was not far away. ¡°Your Majesty...did you really give her a gift?¡± Ady had been lingering nearby, as if she had been waiting to ask me a question. ¡°A gift?¡± My voice came out sharp without me intending it. Thedy blushed and apologized, but what I wanted was not an apology. ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean, but I¡¯m not angry. Tell me, what do you mean, a gift?¡± I forced my voice to sound normal, and thedy opened her mouth apprehensively. ¡°The foreign guests don¡¯t know the rumors about ¡®that woman.¡¯ What they say is that she is the first concubine that the Emperor has epted, and you had given her all kinds of gifts.¡± I already knew the first part. But how did I suddenly give her gifts? ¡°Then a foreigner asked me...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Tell me.¡± ¡°A foreigner asked ¡®that woman¡¯ if she was alright with being in a love triangle involved with Your Majesty, and she said yes. She said that both the Emperor and Empress loved her greatly. ¡®That woman¡¯ said that immediately after she became a concubine, the Empress even sent her all kinds of precious gifts to wee her...¡± Communication with foreigners was recent. Moreover, most of the otherdies around looked surprised, as if the gossip was not a familiar topic that spread around society. In other words, the foreigners heard the rumors first and spread it to local aristocrats. I felt dizzy and my knees were weak beneath me. People wereughing at me for sending gifts to my husband¡¯s lover to gain his attention. The pride that I had mustered swiftly copsed like a sand castle because of a single false rumor. No matter how much I tried to distance myself from Sovieshu and Rashta, I was buried. Chapter 21 - A False Rumor (2) Chapter 21 ¨C A False Rumor (2) ¡°No.¡± My voice was adamant, but was clear that the rumor was going to spread like wildfire. I clenched the champagne ss and gave my legs strength. My vision swam in front of me. I just wanted to go back to the western pce and scream and rage, but I could not reveal even a tremor. ¡°Miss Rashta must have misunderstood something.¡± I spoke calmly and the otherdies chuckled and said, ¡°Is that so?¡± I didn¡¯t know whether they believed me or not. People tended to dismiss the excuses of those hurt by the gossip. I didn¡¯t want to get involved as much as possible, but now that it came to this, there was nothing to be done. I would call Rashta myselfter and ask. After taking a deep sigh, I handed over the half-full ss to a servant. ¡°Oh, I think the dance is about to start.¡± Duchess Tuania gave an exaggeratedugh. As she had observed, the musicians had stopped, flicking through their sheet music and speaking lowly to each other. There was one rule at the ballroom dance¨Cone could not dance with the same partner twice in a row. The rule allowed one to dance with multiple partners, but the partner for the first dance was considered the most meaningful. The groups began to split up and search for their partners before going to the center. Those who did not want to dance moved to the periphery. ¡®Sovieshu will have his first dance with Rashta.¡¯ Since our marriage, Sovieshu always had his first dance with me. This year, however, I had a good inkling who his partner would be this time. I pretended to look away, but I could see Sovieshu taking Rashta¡¯s hand and saying something to her. Rashta, happy, nced at me. The look in her eyes turned to an apology, and Sovieshu¡¯s head turned this way as well. I looked away before our eyes met, and I kept my chin high as I strode away. The only person who could ask the Empress for the first dance was the Emperor. No one else would ask me to dance anyway, so I thought it better to leave the area altogether to protect my pride. Duchess Tuania, the most popr woman in high society, already had a number of suitors on their knees. I couldn¡¯t help myself, but my eyes turned to Rashta and Sovieshu again. Sovieshu was talking to a nearby prime minister. Fortunately, Rashta was now looking closely at Duchess Tuania. ¡®I¡¯m d our eyes didn¡¯t meet.¡¯ I didn¡¯t want them to notice my gaze. I stuck closer to the wall, hoping that my eyes wouldn¡¯t run into them again. However, a buzzing of voices broke out around me before I could reach my intended destination. I looked around. The eyes of the crowd were glued onto the wandering figure out Prince Heinley. Two youngdies burst into giggles, their cheeks flushed in embarrassment. Many seemed to wonder who the Prince would ask for his first dance, and he seemed to bask in the attention. I was still upset by Sovieshu and Rashta, and I didn¡¯t have time to give my focus to this Prince and his rumors. It didn¡¯t matter to me who he danced with¨C ¡°Oh. You were here?¡± ¨Cuntil he came to me. The crowd murmured even more. I took out my fan and looked at him. When our gazes met, Prince Heinley lowered his eyes and smiled. ¡°I went halfway around this room to find you.¡± Prince Heinley took out a rose tucked across his chest. With the rose in his palm, he fell down on one knee and looked up at me. For a moment I was puzzled by his behavior. ¡°I think he¡¯s going to ask the Empress to dance!¡± Only after hearing someone¡¯s startled voice did I realize what was happening. Someone wanted to ask the Empress for the first dance? And that someone was Prince Heinley? My lips parted in surprise. ¡°Are you good at dancing, Your Majesty?¡± Although he knelt like a typical knight, Prince Heinley¡¯s voice was yful. I hesitated for a moment. I was already tangled up in various bad rumors about Rashta and Sovieshu. Perhaps more misunderstandings would sprout if I danced with this womanizer. However, turning down an offer could only be done after several people asked to dance or after there were already several dances. The only one who asked for the first dance is Prince Heinley. In this situation, if I refused, I would insult him¨Cat least, such a situation was considered an insult in high society. There was no other choice. ¡°Very well. Can you follow me?¡± I epted the rose he was holding, and Prince Heinley straightened up and smiled broadly. ¡°How confident! If you tread on my foot a few times, I¡¯ll ignore it.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll stay quiet.¡± He chuckled mischievously, then extended his arm. I ced my hand on it, then walked to the center of the dance floor. Sovieshu and Rashta were there as well. Sovieshu raised his eyebrow at Prince Heinley¡¯s presence. In this situation Sovieshu couldn¡¯t ask Rashta, ¡°Do you often dance?¡± ¡°Good.¡± ¡°...What do you mean?¡± ¡°The way you¡¯re looking at me. You didn¡¯t pay much attention to me yesterday. I dressed more nicely today.¡± His words were sly. ¡°Well, you don¡¯t seem to believe it.¡± Did he want me to say that yesterday he was dressed wonderfully enough to make my mouth open? Before I could find my words, the minuet began to flow from the musicians. We dipped briefly and we put our palms together. As we started spinning around to the sound of the violins, the surroundings whirled into view. Duchess Tuania, who was acimed as the butterfly of society, chose the young and handsome Viscount Landre over numerous other suitors. Duke Lilteang danced with his wife, and Laura danced with her best friend, Miss Alischute, instead of a man. And Sovieshu danced with... I didn¡¯t like this spinning dance. I had to see what I didn¡¯t want to see. The moment I sighed, Prince Heinley swung back close to me, close enough that his lips were near my ear. ¡°I know better than anyone else that unnecessary rumors spread easily.¡± I felt like my body was falling again. I looked at him in surprise, and an arrogant smile broadened his face. ¡°Do you mean the story of me sending Miss Rashta gifts?¡± He nodded as he approached again. It was surprising for one to talk about the rumors and console me. The sweet music finally came to an end. I stared at him hard for a moment to see if he was making fun of me, but it didn¡¯t seem that way. ¡°... Thank you.¡± I felt ashamed that I believed he was a womanizer, and I was grateful that Prince Heinley didn¡¯t believe the rumors about me at all. ¡°I don¡¯t believe it either.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The rumor that you¡¯re a womanizer.¡± He unexpectedly burst intoughter, and I turned flustered. Was he saying the rumors were real? I had a blush on my face, and I turned around to hide it. Now that the first dance was over, I wanted to finally go to the edge of the room. ¡°Empress, this time with me.¡± Sovieshu wouldn¡¯t stay away this time. I ced my hand in his with a small sigh. I knew he was only asking because the rules dictated he couldn¡¯t dance with Rashta again, and I was upset to have to ept. However, as I told Sovieshu, we had to set an example with our rtionship. Next to him, Rashta was asking Prince Heinley to dance. Chapter 22 - Tears That Only Queen Knows (1) Chapter 22 ¨C Tears That Only Queen Knows (1) ¡°My apologies, Lady Rashta, but I am already exhausted.¡± Prince Heinley smiled and turned away. ¡°I cannot dance twice in a row. The handsome man has a surprisingly weak constitution.¡± ¡°Then what about after you take a break? When you get your strength back.¡± ¡°Then...¡± Prince Heinley suddenly looked over and our eyes met, and his gaze softened. ¡°There¡¯s someone I want to dance with again.¡± I pondered his repeated refusal towards her. He was determined to cut her off, far different from how most nobles presented themselves. Rashta didn¡¯t expect to be rejected, and she touched her hair, disconcerted, and turned away. Our gazes met, but she didn¡¯t acknowledge me and instead turned to Sovieshu with her eyes shimmering with tears. ¡°Your Majesty, Rashta has no one to dance with.¡± ¡°Take a break. You cannot dance with the same person twice in a row.¡± Rashta was simr to Prince Heinley. He, too, had no qualms about expressing his feelings, when most nobles would be too proud to voice their thoughts out loud. ¡°Hing...¡± She whined like a baby, and the surrounding nobles chuckled, not out of mockery, but of endearment. Rashta was not noble, and her behavior was rude, to say the least, but to everyone else she was like a fresh and pure novelty. ¡°Lady Rashta, would you like to dance with me?¡± Several other noblemen approached Rashta, but she weakly replied, ¡°No thank you,¡± then trudged towards the edge of the room. Sovieshu stiffened, as if he wanted to run towards her. If the music hadn¡¯t started at that moment, he might have really gone after her, but he stayed on the floor. Coincidentally, the music was calm and the dance required some distant from one¡¯s partner. Sovieshu and I had been dance partners since we were young, and we were used to falling into the rhythm together. As children, we held onto each other withughter,ining that the steps were awkward. ¡®Those days will nevere anymore.¡¯ When I remembered holding arge map and discussing new construction projects, I felt a chill in the corner of my heart. How stupid and naive I was at the time to believe Sovieshu and I would be together for the rest of our lives. When the dance finally brought us close to each other, I still felt like we were far apart. ¡°Earlier.¡± Sovieshu spoke in a low voice. ¡°What did you talk about with Prince Heinley?¡± ¡°We had a normal conversation.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Have you heard the rumors about him?¡± What did he mean by that? I didn¡¯t say anything for a while to focus on theplicated steps, but I didn¡¯t miss the crease between Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows. ¡°What do you mean you had a ¡®normal¡¯ conversation with him?¡± ¡°He was very entertaining.¡± ¡°He¡¯s a womanizer, so of course he¡¯s entertaining. People like funny men.¡± The distance between us grew apart again. As I turned around, I saw Prince Heinley standing near a table and watching me. He smiled and waved one hand when our eyes met. ¡°I have Rashta as my concubine, so I won¡¯t tell you that you cannot take another man as your lover as well.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Still, I don¡¯t believe it should be Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°If you are with Prince Heinley, he will not be your concubine, but you will be his.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t that be disgraceful to the Empress of the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re imagining, but Prince Heinley and I don¡¯t have that kind of rtionship.¡± ¡°Good. Don¡¯t be the match for the fire that spreads everywhere.¡± ¡°He isn¡¯t¨C¡± I was about to protest that Prince Heinley wasn¡¯t like that, when Sovieshu suddenly came to a halt. The music hadn¡¯t stopped yet. Sovieshu was frozen on the floor, and I couldn¡¯t dance alone and stopped as well, jamming the traffic around us. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± What was the matter? I wondered if he sprained a foot, but Sovieshu strode away. The people around me looked on with puzzled expressions. Sovieshu finally stopped in front of Rashta. She was standing against the wall, crying. ¡°Rashta. Why are you crying?¡± Sovieshu looked at her in surprise, and Rashta stretched out her arms and hugged him around the neck. The murmur of the crowd grew louder. I could feel the nobles¡¯ eyes on me. Sovieshu and I were dancing together, before he threw me away and went to Rashta. My jaw clenched. I felt blood drain from my head as my vision turned spotty. Rashta kept crying while Sovieshu tried tofort her, and eventually her picked her up and they left. ¡°Oh my god. So it¡¯s true that the Emperor loves the concubine.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± As the two of them left, the gaze of the crowd pressed down harder on me. ¡°But I heard she was a runaway ve. Is that true?¡± ¡°What? Really?¡± ¡°Nonsense. The Emperor just said it was a rumor.¡± ¡°Watch your mouth. His Majesty said he would punish anyone that spoke of it.¡± ¡°No, wait a minute. Does the Eastern Empire allow runaways ves to be concubines? This is not possible in our Northern Kingdom. I even brought her the Sea Jewels of the Northern Kingdom as a gift.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure the Emperor did nothing of the sort.¡± The music stopped, and everyone was either looking at me or talking about Rashta. I wanted nothing more than to flee the room, but I forced myself to walk calmly away. I had no idea where I was going, but I heard someone following my footsteps and glimpsed Prince Heinley¡¯s reflection on a smooth pir. I did not feel like being civil and talking to a foreign prince. For now...I just wanted to sit somewhere. I found myself walking through an empty pce corridor. Sir Artina, the deputymander of the knights, fell into step beside me. ¡°Are you all right, Your Highness?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°You should get some rest. You look pale.¡± I nodded. I went to my chambers, passing the drawing room before going into the bedroom. I fell face down on the bed, hugging the pillow and curling up on myself. My whole body felt unbearably heavy. How much was I carrying on my shoulders? ¨C Gu.... There was a tap on ss, and I saw a Queen sitting by the window. I opened it wearily, and Queen entered, blinking hisrge eyes. I took the bird into my arms. As his heat spread from his warm little body into mine, tears burst out of my eyes. ¨C ... How could this creature provide such greatfort? I soaked in the warmth Queen gave me like a person abandoned in a bitter winter. By the time I was finally calm, I realized I had been hugging the bird for too long. He was probably annoyed. I looked up, and to my surprise, Queen was simply peering at me. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¨C Gu... ¡°You always give me strength.¡± I was embarrassed to say it out loud and whispered it in his ear, and Quinn covered his face with his wings. ¡°Sometimes you¡¯re like a real person.¡± ¨C ! Queen¡¯s eyes widened and he darted around the room, and there was amotion outside. The paper hanging above the bed fluttered, and I pulled him towards me. I rang the bell to signal my permission for them toe in, and the main door opened and voices came inside. I went into the drawing room with Queen in my arms, finding severaldies-in-waiting there, including Countess Eliza and Laura. They hade straight from the party, and were dressed more splendidly than usual. However, the clock showed that the end of the ball itself was some time away. Why were they here? ¡°Countess, what¡¯s going on?¡± Chapter 23 - Tears That Only Queen Knows (2) Chapter 23 ¨C Tears That Only Queen Knows (2) Although I wasn¡¯t expecting Countess Eliza, it was even more curious that Laura was here when she had been looking forward to the New Year¡¯s celebrations. Did I spoil the mood? Did theye after me because I ran away? Even so, I did not want to be consoled, strange as it may be. It was my pride that was injured when my husband loved another woman. There was nothing wrong with my reaction, but it was Sovieshu and Rashta that remained dignified while I shrank. I couldn¡¯t even exin this vague feeling, so I couldn¡¯t bring myself to speak about it. However, the way Sovieshu rushed to Rashta did not seem to be on their minds. Countess Eliza quickly fanned her face, and Laura kept nervously touching her curls. What was wrong? Come to think of it, everyone seemed to be quite agitated. ¡°Your Majesty. There was a messenger from the Verdi estate.¡± Countess Eliza lowered her fan as she spoke, and I stood there in confusion. ¡°The Verdi estate?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Is it from Viscountess Verdi?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. The message said that Viscountess Verdi can no longer serve as thedy-in-waiting for the Empress.¡± Viscountess Verdi...didn¡¯t she borrow money from me a few days ago? Back then she looked like she was at the end of her rope. ¡°Are you sure it was from Viscountess Verdi?¡± I looked on in bewilderment. Her household was in massive debt because of the troubled actions of the husband and son. The debt was not enough to leave them on the streets, but most of their ie had been used to pay it off. And now Viscountess Verdi was quitting her position asdy-in-waiting? Laura continued anxiously. ¡°She quit in quite a hurry. Maybe Viscountess Verdi fought with her husband or son?¡± Anotherdy-in-waiting made a suggestion with a concerned look. ¡°It might be a good idea to send someone to check on the situation.¡± ¡°I suppose so.¡± * * * The next day proved our worries over Viscountess Verdi unnecessary. I was not obligated to stand with Sovieshu to the banquet on the second day, so I rxed a little as I went to the banquet hall myself. There were many noblewomen there, including Countess Eliza and Laura, and Princess Soju from the Southern Kingdom. Princess Soju was the typical southerner ideal, sweet and generous and a skilled conversationalist. Everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to what she said, when she suddenly looked over her shoulder and said, ¡°That¡¯s her.¡± When I turned around, Rashta was walking alone, smiling at the people around her. She seemed even more dazzling in the daytime. If our eyes met, she woulde here as talk to me as if I were her sister again, so I turned my head away. ¡°Oh my God.¡± But this time, Laura was staring at Rashta. ¡°What is it?¡± I couldn¡¯t help my curiosity, and Laura answered with a re at Rashta. ¡°The blue silk she¡¯s wearing, Your Majesty. Isn¡¯t that the one Grand Duke Lilteang tried to gift to you?¡± I looked back and saw Laura was telling the truth. Rashta was arrayed in a gown of blue silk. Thedies clicked their tongues. ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang is truly incredible.¡± ¡°I know. He moved as soon as he was rejected by Her Majesty.¡± I turned back again, and this time it was Countess Eliza that spoke, her voice low and confused. ¡°I don¡¯t think the silk was the only thing that went from the Empress to her.¡± What was she talking about? This was starting to be a nuisance, but I looked back again, and his time I couldn¡¯t tear my eyes away. Viscountess Verdi was standing next to Rashta, the day after Viscountess Verdi informed me that she couldn¡¯t be mydy-in-waiting. I didn¡¯t see her at first as she was hidden by someone else, but now I could see it clearly. Viscountess Verdi was next to Rashta. Laura had been worried about Viscountess Verdi all night, and she yelled sharply. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it. Is she mad?¡± Rashta and Viscountess Verdi looked over in our direction at the source of the loud noise. Viscountess Verdi quickly avoided my gaze when she saw me. ¡°...¡± I thought the gift of blue silk from Lilteang was amusing, but this time I was upset. Thedy-in-waiting was standing next to the women who took my husband. She had borrowed a lot of money from me. I didn¡¯t know where Viscountess Verdi¡¯s n came from or how she changed her mind, but before she was the one who mocked Rashta the most. ¡°...¡± Count Eliza and Laura said something next to me, but I didn¡¯t hear them. What should I say about this? Was I embarrassed? In disbelief? Was the concubine here to take everything of mine away? No. Perhaps Viscountess Verdi was not mypanion from the beginning. Perhaps she was only with me for money, but I couldn¡¯t allow myself to look flustered. Princess Soju clicked her tongue. ¡°I don¡¯t understand the concubine system. There is no such strange system in the Southern Kingdom. In polite terms she a concubine, but isn¡¯t it still cheating? But since thew approves of her as a concubine, she holds her head high without realizing how shameful it is.¡± ¡°It¡¯s as you say. Isn¡¯t strange how she can pass in front of the Empress with her back held straight?¡± Laura fired up in defense of me, while I ignored them and picked out the sweetest champagne. Yesterday I had left my seat and fled, so I thought I¡¯d stay as long as possible today. It wouldn¡¯t be easy though. While I appreciated everything that Princess Soju and the otherdies said, I didn¡¯t want to talk about it in public. I wondered how the story would spread. Everyone would pretend to be respectful on the surface, but they thought little of me for sending gifts to Rashta and would talk about me behind my back. ¡°Shall we talk about something else?¡± In the end, I indirectly indicated that I did not want to discuss it. Fortunately, Princess Soju took no offense and redirected the conversation. ¡°Oh, I heard an interesting story about Prince Heinley this morning.¡± ¡°An interesting story?¡± ¡°It was when we were eating together in the southern pce. I heard he exchanged letters anonymously with someone in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°He said he wanted to find them, and that they should meet him at the southern pce. The gossip is everywhere.¡± Chapter 24 - I Already Knew The Truth (1) Chapter 24 ¨C I Already Knew The Truth (1) The eyes of mydies-in-waiting turned to me at the same time. ¡°Hm? What is it?¡± Princess Soju noticed their gazes and turned to me. I knew that mydies-in-waiting believed the ¡°anonymous friend¡± that Prince Heinley was looking for must be me. ¡°...¡± My thoughts were the same. Was Queen¡¯s owner...Prince Heinley? It could be a coincidence, but the chance that it was not was high. Thedies-in-waiting hesitated for my answer, but when I remained silent, they pretended not to know and turned to other things. Princess Soju¡¯s attention was caught elsewhere, but Laura leaned over to me. ¡°Your Majesty, that bird looks like a hybrid of an owl and an eagle. Do you think its owner might look like Prince Heinley?¡± Countess Eliza nodded. ¡°I agree, Your Highness. I think this rumor might be about you.¡± The otherdies-in-waiting also looked at me with their eyes shining expectantly. ¡± ...I think so too.¡± Thedies covered their mouths and exchanged excited nces. But when I added, ¡°I¡¯m not going toe forward,¡± they all turned crestfallen. ¡°Your Majesty, wouldn¡¯t it be a good idea to be friends with someone as beautiful as Prince Heinley?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley would love it even more if he found out that his letter partner was the Empress.¡±. ¡°Didn¡¯t he ask you to dance?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I want to stay a friend whose name or face he doesn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°But...¡± Laura sounded dismayed, but a re from Countess Eliza quieted her. The Countess nodded as if she understood my thoughts. ¡°Prince Heinley has many scandals involving women. He has the reputation of a womanizer, and if his private correspondence turns out to be the Empress, everyone will give her strange looks.¡± Countess Eliza gave a cold stare towards Rashta and Grand Duke Lilteang. The Grand Duke was standing in front of Rashta andughing loudly. ¡°We will have many enemies in the future, and they may think to spread malicious rumors. It¡¯s best to be cautious.¡± It wasn¡¯t until Countess Eliza finished talking that Laura gave a small ¡°Oh,¡± and nodded.. ¡°But I am a little sad...¡± * * * ¡°Sending letters when you don¡¯t know their identity is so romantic.¡± ¡°Is that true? There are so many strange rumors about Prince Heinley, so it¡¯s hard to believe anything, right?¡± ¡°But if he¡¯s lying, then he won¡¯t find his ¡®friend¡¯ in public.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t even know if the person is a friend or lover.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe the other person is married.¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s a woman, but wouldn¡¯t it be fun if it was a man?¡± The words were met with an outburst ofughter at Rashta¡¯s salon. Rashta lounged in her soft purple chair while she listened to the nobles¡¯ chatter. Cherily sat next to her, cooling her by waving a fan. As Rashta listened wordlessly to the conversation, Prince Lilteang gave a hearty chuckle and turned to Rashta. ¡°Why are you so quiet, Lady Rashta? You¡¯re not the one who wrote those romantic letters, are you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not Rashta.¡± ¡°Really? Don¡¯t you think Miss Rashta¡¯s sweet tongue would be enough to enthrall Prince Heinley?¡± Rashta smile and shook her head, and encouraged the party to continue on with their conversation. She thought nobles only told solemn stories, and she found it interesting that both ves and aristocrats indulged in the same kind of provocative gossip. She sat there drinking her tea, but she noticed that Viscountess Verdi had not said a word. ¡°Viscountess Verdi? What¡¯s wrong? Are you feeling sick?¡± Rashta spoke to her gently. Viscountess Verdi gave a start, but then shook her head and smiled. ¡°Do you want to go back to the Empress?¡± The nobles suddenly stopped talking and looked at the woman. ¡°That will not happen.¡± The Viscountess offered another smile and shook her head. ¡°Now I serve Miss Rashta.¡± The rest of the nobles turned their conversation back to Prince Heinley again, and thedy-in-waiting gave a small sigh. ¡°...¡± Rashta tilted her head and studied the older woman¡¯s profile. ¡°Viscountess Verdi, if you want to return to the empress, you can be honest with Rashta.¡± Eventually, Rashta spoke to her again after all the other nobles had left and there was only her and the two maids. ¡°I don¡¯t want to return, really, Miss Rashta.¡± Viscountess Verdi answered her quickly, but Rashta was not convinced. Viscountess Verdi, who had taken up the position as Rashta¡¯sdy-in-waiting through Baron Lant, was someone who had stood steadfastly by the Empress¡¯ side ever since she took the throne. For this reason, Baron Lant chose Viscountess Verdi, who was dire in need of money. When a formerdy-in-waiting of the Empress bing Rashta¡¯sdy-in-waiting, Rashta¡¯s reputation rose. But even Rashta was not overly familiar with Viscountess Verdi. Thedy-in-waiting was here because of money, and was not as reliable as Cherily or Kisu. Maybe Viscountess Verdi noticed the slight air of distrust, but she made excuses while having the eyes of a startled rabbit. ¡°It¡¯s not because I want to go back to the Empress, Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°But it seemed like...¡± ¡°When they were talking about Prince Heinley, I...I just remembered something about the Empress.¡± Rashta¡¯s look of distrust vanished. ¡°There¡¯s a rumor about Prince Heinley, but what does it have to do with the Empress?¡± Rashta had already been rejected by the Prince twice. Viscountess Verdi nervously fidgeted with her teacup, but she had already started speaking and Rashta was staring at her with bright eyes. ¡°The...¡± She had no choice but to confess. ¡°The letter acquaintance that Prince Heinley is looking for. It¡¯s Her Majesty the Empress...¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes rounded. Cherily, who was fanning Rashta, looked on in surprise. ¡°Really?¡± Viscountess Verdi replied with a quick ¡°Yes¡± to Rashta. ¡°But the Empress won¡¯te forward even if the letter acquaintance is Prince Heinley. She is very proud.¡± Cherily gave a giggle. ¡°Are you sure the Empress and the Prince Heinley exchanged letters without knowing each other?¡± ¡°The Empress knows now. But she didn¡¯t at the time.¡± Rashta¡¯s curiosity was aroused, but she didn¡¯t say anything and contemted the information carefully. Viscountess Verdi nced towards Rashta to see if she had said something offensive. After a long moment, Rashta finally spoke. ¡°Then Viscountess Verdi knows a little about the letters that the Empress and Prince Heinley exchanged?¡± ¡°I...yes?¡± Viscountess Verdi¡¯s voice quivered, and a yful smile spread across Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°Can we make it so it looks like the letter acquaintance is Cherily?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry? You want to deceive Prince Heinley?¡± Viscountess Verdi burst out angrily. Rashta gave a peal ofughter and held the hem of Cherily¡¯s dress. ¡°It¡¯s not deceiving. I¡¯m just ying around.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°You said it yourself, Viscountess. The Empress would nevere forward.¡± ¡°But...you would still be deceiving a member of the royal family...¡± ¡°Do you know the contents of the letter?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know about any recent ones, Miss Rashta. Prince Heinley might ask about it.¡± ¡°He may not ask.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°How did they exchange letters? Even if they passed it through someone in the middle...huh, I wonder.¡± ¡°But Miss Rashta...¡± ¡°If he finds out, we can say it was a joke. If things go well, the Prince will fall in love with Cherily. Right?¡± Chapter 25 - I Already Knew The Truth (2) Chapter 25 ¨C I Already Knew The Truth (2) ¡°I¡¯m...I¡¯m here to see Prince Heinley...¡± The woman approaching the southern pce intercepted a man passing by. The man was a knight, though not a citizen of the Eastern Empire. ¡°Who are you running an errand for?¡± ¡°Oh, no. I wanted to tell him something...¡± The knight tilted his head as he observed the woman. ¡°You?¡± Though woman was neatly dressed, she didn¡¯t look like a noblewoman. She had to be a servant working in the pce. He found it difficult to fathom why the Prince would want to meet with a foreign maid. ¡°I hear the prince is looking for his letter acquaintance...¡± The knight¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You¡¯re the one Prince Heinley is looking for?¡± Coincidentally, the knight was of the Western Kingdom, the same as Prince Heinley. At the knight¡¯s distrustful look, the maid¡ªCherily¡ªturned red and cried, ¡°Yes!¡± Rashta had persuaded her that she could y it as a joke if it didn¡¯t work out, but if it did, she could win the love of a beautiful prince. She was still terrified, however, ¡°...¡± The knight stared silently at Cherily then turned around. ¡°Come this way, please.¡± . Cherily anxiously followed the knight. Viscountess Verdi had told her about the contents of the letters, but considering the time when thedy-in-waiting returned to her estate, Cherily was uneasy about not knowing the recent exchanges. Rashta reassured her that she didn¡¯t have to know, but... ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± Cherily stopped, swallowing dryly and staring straight ahead. The knight knocked on the door and announced the maid¡¯s visit. ¡°Your Highness, a woman has arrived iming that she was the one exchanging letters with you.¡± But no matter how long they waited, no one answered. ¡°Oh. Did he step out?¡± The grumbling knight told Cherily to wait in the drawing room, and she sat motionless in the empty space. It must have been an hour before the knight finally came back and said, ¡°He¡¯s here. He¡¯ll be seeing you now.¡± ¡°What? Now?¡± The door to the empty drawing room was not closed, and the sofa she was sitting in faced towards the corridor. She hadn¡¯t seen anyone passing by. But the Prince was here? . ¡®Maybe he was inside the whole time and pretended he wasn¡¯t...¡¯ Cherily¡¯s unease grew, but she stood up quickly and followed the knight. The bedroom door opened. Inside this door, she could be humiliated, or her future could be changed. If things went well, she would be like Rashta... Cherily cautiously ventured inside the room. Inside therge space stood two windows wide open, the curtains drifting inwards from the breeze. A tall man stood between the curtains. He was partially nude, wearing only an open thin robe. ¡®That¡¯s Prince Heinley...¡¯ Cherily¡¯s eyes widened. The man¡¯s light hair scattered in the breeze. He was more handsome than the rumors even suggested. If an angel came descended to this earth, he would certainly look like this. However, the moment Cherily looked into his sharp purple eyes, she was struck by the thought he might be more devil than angel. He seemed ethereal at first nce, but soon she felt a chilling undercurrent. Cherily¡¯s instincts told her to run away. However, the moment their eyes met, Prince Heinley offered her a gentle smile, and she pushed away that instinctive feeling. ¡°My Lady, are you the one I¡¯ve been exchanging letters with?¡± ¡°Y-yes.¡± Prince Heinley raised his eyebrows, and Cherily stared back, her heart pounding. She thought he would ask for proof, but he did not say anything. Her heart thumped louder. After a long moment, he smiled. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I want to ask you for sure. The person I am looking for is very precious to me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I would be very happy if you were my letter acquaintance, but if not...I would be so disappointed that I don¡¯t know what I would do.¡± She heard the implied threat. Prince Heinley approached her and smiled benignly again. ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s you, My Lady?¡± * * * I was having friendly lunch with the nobles I knew. Princess Soju, who I had be close with yesterday, arrived at the table with a bottle of wine.* ¡°This is a speciality of our Southern Kingdom. Consider it my apology for beingte.¡± As people looked towards her, Princess Soju smiled, then seated herself and ced the wine bottle on the table. Laura turned to the Princess, who she was seated next to. ¡°Have you heard?¡± ¡°What is the gossip?¡± Princess Soju gave a broad smile. ¡°Well, I¡¯ve only just heard, so not many people are talking about it yet.¡± The table pressed Laura for the gossip, and she lowered her voice conspiratorially, her eyes shining. ¡°I heard it on the way. Someone said they knew Prince Heinley¡¯s letter acquaintance.¡± Laura¡¯s eyes fell on me, and I reflexively furrowed my brow. It was one thing for me not toe forward, and another for someone else to pretend to be me. ¡°Who did they say it was?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. I heard it was Miss Rashta¡¯s maid.¡± Chapter 26 - I’m On My Way To See You (1) Chapter 26 ¨C I¡¯m On My Way To See You (1) I became instantly suspicious. The maid possibly couldn¡¯t know about letters. Furthermore, my letter friend and I were stillmunicating with each other. Why would she tell such a fragile lie when she could so easily be caught? Did Rashta have anything to do with this? ¡®Did Viscountess Verdi tell Rashta about the letters?¡¯ Perhaps Laura was thinking the same thing, and she gave me an odd look. I shook my head at her and smiled. If the maid was caught lying, she would be responsible for it. I didn¡¯t have to worry about it. * * * Paul McKenna was leader of the Order of the Dragon¡ªa group of knights personally led by Prince Heinley¡ªas well as Heinley¡¯s personal assistant. Though not listed on the family tree, McKenna was Prince Heinley¡¯s bastard cousin, and also served as a close aide. He excelled in literature and martial arts, and the more likely it seemed that Prince Heinley would seed the throne, the more attention McKenna received as well. Everyone praised him for being a supportive knight to the free and windy prince. But that was only the story of strangers. McKenna himself viewed himself not only as the prince¡¯s support, but as his most powerful chess piece. ¡°Do you know what everyone is talking about?¡± It was the same routine again. McKenna just couldn¡¯t understand what was inside Prince Heinley¡¯s head. ¡°Why? What are they talking about?¡± Prince Heinley offered him a smile, and a muscle tensed on McKenna¡¯s forehead. He hated that sly smile. ¡°The rumor that the prince of a nation had been searching for a pce maid. It¡¯s a romantic story. Everyone is curious about it, and when I pass them by that¡¯s all they¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°This is no time to smile. What if in a few days it spreads throughout the capital?¡± ¡°Then leave me alone for a few days.¡± Prince Heinley looked on nonchntly, and McKenna sighed. ¡°Why are you allowing this deception go on? You know the maid didn¡¯t write those letters.¡± A slight crease formed between the Prince¡¯s eyebrows. ¡°How did you know that again? ¡° ¡°Do you think I only see you once every few years, Your Highness? Just by looking at your expression I can tell you¡¯re pretending. Your whole face is absolutely covered in pain, so of course she isn¡¯t the one.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°By chance, have you fallen in love with her and you¡¯re willingly letting yourself be deceived?¡± Thinking as if he understood the case, McKenna took one step back. However, the prince¡¯s face turned like stone, and McKenna realized that his assumptions were false. ¡°Then why on earth are you letting it happen? You have to tell me what you¡¯re thinking so I can prepare for what¡¯s going on.¡± Tears of frustration formed on McKenna¡¯s eyes. Even if Prince Heinley did this without intention, the results had always been the same. In most cases, it was McKenna that had to clean up the Prince¡¯s mess, whether the oue was good or bad. McKenna at least wanted a forewarning. ¡°I want to make a happy dream.¡± ¡°...That you¡¯re in love?¡± ¡°No, not like that, McKenna.¡± ¡°But why a happy dream? Do you have nightmares?¡± ¡°It¡¯s safer to wake up from a nightmare. Reality is morefortable.¡± ¡°I...suppose?¡± ¡°But what if you wake up from a happy dream?¡± ¡°It feels like a futile death.¡± Prince Heinley grinned, pretending to shoot a gun with his fingers. ¡°Exactly. I warned the maid clearly. If she tells a lie, I will be so angry that I won¡¯t know what I¡¯d do.¡± ¡°So you will make her happy then abandon her?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s smile widened even more. ¡°You have a bad personality, you know?¡± McKenna clicked his tongue. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to punish her for deceiving the royal family?¡± It would be simpler, and he couldn¡¯t see why Prince Heinley would go through the trouble of this trick. ¡°No. I believe that wounds of the heart are deeper than wounds of the body.¡± ¡± ...In extreme cases, you can jail her or flog her.¡± ¡°Of course not, McKenna. That would make me look bad. ¡± Prince Heinley then softly criticized him for being a half-wit, and McKenna clenched his jaw. ¡°Why would I break the impression of a yful and womanizing prince because of a liar?¡± McKenna sighed. ¡°Yes, Your Highness. You will do as you wish. But when are you going to see the real letter acquaintance? You already know who it is.¡± ¡°I know. But they will deny it if I tell them. And I can¡¯t say I¡¯m the bird, can I?¡± ¡°That is strictly a secret.¡± ¡°So I¡¯ll show it to you.¡± ¡°The transformation?¡± ¡°The art of finding. That my friend and I will certainly meet.¡± Chapter 27 - I’m On My Way To See You (2) Chapter 27 ¨C I¡¯m On My Way To See You (2) Banquet attendance usually dropped by the third day of the New Year¡¯s celebrations. It didn¡¯t have the priority of neither the first nor thest day, and everyone wanted to enjoy themselves in the city or socialize with the people they had befriended. That had been the pattern for three years. Until now. ¡°There are many people here today, Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza clicked her tongue. ¡°I suppose it¡¯s because of the rumors about the prince and the maid.¡± I spoke in a disinterested manner. I still hadn¡¯t decided out how I should react to this. It was both awkward and amusing to think about. Rashta¡ªwho was surrounded by other nobles sans Sovieshu¡ªwas the one that looked more concerned, however, and kept ncing at Duchess Tuania. ¡®Do they know each other?¡¯ There was the sound of the door opening. I looked up, expecting Sovieshu to enter, but it was Prince Heinley instead. On his arm was Cherily, Rashta¡¯s maid. ¡°My god. He actually brought her here.¡± Countess Eliza spoke in a whispered awe, then tutted once again. Cherily looked much brighter in a pale pink gownpared to her servant uniform. ¡°That dress looks very expensive.¡± ¡°Prince Heinley bought it for her, didn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°They look good together somehow. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s because they had been searching for someone they were in love with.¡± The room started to buzz with gossip. At that moment, Prince Heinley looked straight towards me. I nodded in greeting towards him, but he made a strange expression, then frowned and shook his head. Advertisement ¡®What does that mean?¡¯ I wondered at that unusual exchange, but before I could think about it more, Prince Heinley walked away with Cherily in tow. Sovieshu entered the room soon after, and looked round then headed towards Rashta. ¡°...¡± I turned away, picking up a ss from a passing servant. I didn¡¯t check what drink it was, until my taste buds informed me it was strawberry juice. It was very sweet, a contrast to my mood. Then, the music started to y. I was in no mood for dancing, so I settled myself on a couch by the wall and talked to guests. However, some time after, amotion in the middle of the room interrupted my conversation. I looked up and saw everyone¡¯s eyes were turned towards Prince Heinley, who looked heartbroken, and Rashta¡¯s maid, whose face was blotched red with tears. The sweet atmosphere from only a few hours ago hadpletely dissipated. One was terrified, while the other looked like he was suppressing his anger. What was happening? I couldn¡¯t hear well from here, and I stood up and made my way towards the crowd. ¡°Why did you deceive me? I told you, I was searching for someone important.¡± When I got close enough, I could hear Prince Heinley¡¯s voice and immediately understood the situation. The maid had been caught lying. She waspletely red in the face, and could barely choke out an answer. ¡°This is absurd.¡± Prince Heinley exhaled as he waited for the maid¡¯s reply. Advertisement ¡°Is this what servants do in the Eastern Empire? Deceive royalty? No, regardless of status, that is still deception, is it not?¡± It was unclear if he was ranting to himself or speaking caustically, but some nobles red at the maid and one muttered under their breath, ¡°Bringing disgrace to the country....¡± The maid heard it and turned redder than before. ¡°What happened?¡± I turned to the noblewoman next to me, and she lowered her voice to exin. ¡°I don¡¯t know exactly. They were having a friendly conversation, but I think the prince was questioning the maid.¡± She thought for a moment before continuing. Advertisement ¡°I believe that the maid didn¡¯t know the exact details of the letters.¡± ¡°I see. Thank you for telling me.¡± The noblewoman again turned to the scene of the prince and the maid. I considered the situation for a moment. If it didn¡¯t calm down, then it would be best for me to step in and interrupt. But if the maid did wrong to Prince Heinley, it was her or her master, Rashta, that had to apologize. The maid trembled, staring at Rashta as if she had the same thought. But Rashta only looked on in surprise, and seemed unwilling to step in. I had no choice. I had to do it. ¡°You know what I believe? I don¡¯t think youpletely lied to me, is that right?¡± ¡°Huh...?¡± ¡°I thought youpletely deceived me at first. But I¡¯m not a fool. I¡¯m sure that you know about the letters.¡± Advertisement Prince Heinley voice was low, but his voice easily carried in the room. I wasn¡¯t the only one that looked surprised. The maid lied, but that didn¡¯t mean she knew nothing... I didn¡¯t know if Rashta was involved, but Viscountess Verdi had to be responsible, at least. ¡°You know what I think? I think you weren¡¯t the one that exchanged letters with me¡ªbut you know who did. You are the go-between. Correct?¡± ¡°I...I...¡± ¡°Who is your master?¡± Prince Heinley smiled. ¡°Isn¡¯t your master the one I¡¯ve been looking for?¡± My tongue felt thick in my mouth. What aplete misunderstanding... Despite his bold reasoning, the prince¡¯s eyes looked cold. ¡®Is that only anger in his eyes?¡¯ Rashta, who had not said a word so far, sighed and stepped forward. ¡°I thought Prince Heinley was just a yful man when we exchanged letters. You¡¯re surprisingly sharp.¡± Rashta wasn¡¯t justing forward. She spoke with a nuance that suggested she knew him through the letters, and the nobles exchanged nces with each either. Prince Heinley looked up at Rashta with his eyebrows raised, then smiled. ¡°Lady Rashta. You sound like the person I¡¯ve been looking for.¡± ¡°That is right. The one you were looking for is me.¡± What? Were Rashta and the maid conspiring together? No, I didn¡¯t think so. Rashta¡¯s maid lookedpletely shocked. Prince Heinley studied Rashta carefully with an unreadable expression on his face. ¡°Why did you send the maid in your ce?¡± ¡°Because Rashta is the Emperor¡¯s woman. You and I are just friends, of course, but Rashta was worried his Majesty would be offended.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even though I think of you as my friend, I hope you won¡¯t take offense either.¡± Rashta rounded her eyes as she spoke, while Prince Heinley tilted his head. It was as if time had frozen when he looked down at her. Then he burst out inughter. Rashta flinched. Prince Heinley seemed to easily read Rashta¡¯s lie and he found it endlessly amusing. Or perhaps I only saw it because I already knew Rashta wasn¡¯t telling the truth... ¡°Does he know she¡¯s lying?¡± Laura whispered in my ear. So it wasn¡¯t only my eyes. Could it still be an illusion? For a moment derision shed in Prince Heinley¡¯s eyes, but then he smiled without asking for proof. ¡°I see. I wasn¡¯t offended at all. But what if you¡¯re a fake again?¡± ¡°Are you done thinking? You can check as much as you please. Rashta is confident.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s quite alright. I do not believe Lady Rashta would not lie about this.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta answered with a surety, and the corner of Heinley¡¯s mouth crept up. ¡°I hope it¡¯s true this time, Lady Rashta. The second lie is likely to make me even more angry.¡± His eyes turned to the maid who told the first lie. His friendly look from earlier was gone, and the iciness of his gaze forced the maid to bow her head. ¡°Because she impersonated you, Lady Rashta, would you take care of the punishment?¡± When Rashta nodded, he straightened his back and left. * * * ¡°Dear god, who knew she was such a fox?!¡± As soon as I returned to the western pce, mydies-in-waiting exploded in anger. ¡°Your Majesty, will you let that lowly thing go around like that?¡± ¡°Even after bing the emperor¡¯s concubine, she tried to befriend the prince of another country by lying!¡± ¡°How dare she!¡± Countess Eliza was usually soposed, but now she was fanning herself furiously. ¡°The Prince knows that Rashta is a fake, so don¡¯t be too upset.¡± I couldn¡¯t let thedies-in-waiting be, so I said something to calm them down. Thedies stared at me in surprise, as if wondering why I was socent. Laura snorted angrily. ¡°At first he seemed a bit suspicious, but then he knew it! It was obvious that he knew he was deceived!¡± Anotherdy chimed in. ¡°Maybe Rashta thinks she can trick him with her pretty face.¡± ¡°If he thought Rashta was genuine, he wouldn¡¯t have hesitated.¡± Thedies-in-waiting nodded in agreement. ¡°So Prince Heinley is deliberately letting himself be deceived by her lies?¡± ¡°I believe so. It¡¯s strange for him to be cheated twice in the same way. The only strange thing is...¡± Why? Perhaps, as one of thedies imed, he liked Rashta, regardless of whether she was lying. Chapter 28 - Heinley’s Rage (1) Chapter 28 ¨C Heinley¡¯s Rage (1) Queen used to visit me daily, but he hadn¡¯t made an appearance for thest two days. As far as I could recall, we had notmunicated ever since Rashta¡¯s maid pretended to be me. Only a few hours before that revtion, Queen had been ying in my room. My mood turned somber as I remembered his chirping and thest time I hugged him. Should I raise a bird, as just Countess Eliza said? ¡®No. Other birds are not like Queen.¡¯ ¡°Are you thinking about Queen?¡± Countess Eliza seemed to understand my innermost thoughts as I kept ncing at the window. I smiled awkwardly and didn¡¯t answer. I missed Queen, but if I said that out loud it could be interpreted as me wanting to see Prince Heinley. Due to that, I was cautious. Instead of prodding me for an answer, Countess Eliza pulled out a light pink dress from the wardrobe. The dress had a thin, falling silhouette and was a little less extravagant then the dresses of the past three days. ¡°You won¡¯t be going to arge banquet tonight, so I will dress you more elegantly, Your Majesty.¡± Tomorrow was thest day of the New Year¡¯s celebrations, as well as the day of the special banquet. However, since its attendees usually changed from year to year, there was usually a preview dinner the prior evening for the guests to be more acquainted, as Countess Eliza mentioned. It was a bit unreasonable to wear an extravagant dress to dinner when it was only a rtively small gathering. ¡°Thank you, as always.¡± ¡°I am honored.¡± Thanks to Countess Eliza¡¯s preparations, my straight hair was styled in waves and my paleplexion looked rosy. With her assistance, I slipped into the dress and studied myself in the mirror, then left for the central pce. No one came to work duringrge holidays, but I wanted to look over a few documents. I went to my office and looked over the guest list for the special banquet. In addition to having to carry polite conversation with the foreign guests, I had to familiarize myself with their culture as to not identally offend them. ¡°...¡± The most noteworthy guests were Prince Heinley and Grand Duke Kapmen. Prince Heinley was especially a prominent figure. ¡®I have to be careful with Grand Duke Kapmen as well...¡¯ Advertisement Grand Duke Kapmen was the only guest from another continent, who hailed from the great desert nation of Rwibt. He was invited not only because he was a great man, but also because he was a foreign student who graduated at the top of the magic academy. There was not much exchange across the continents, and the trade merchants did not linger long. Little was known about the court etiquette of Rwibt. One of the few books on the nation was ¡°The Travelogue,¡± written after an adventurer¡¯s visit to the desert country. I had heard that Grand Duke Kapmen had mocked the book and said it was not in the least bit urate. ¡®He¡¯s already been studying overseas for a few years, and he should be treated like he¡¯s one of us...¡¯ After some lengthy research and learning, the time for the dinner arrived. When I left my office, I found Countess Eliza and Sir Artina nervously standing outside, and they called out ¡°Your Majesty!¡± when they saw me. ¡°I was wondering if I should go in.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been checking the clock.¡± At Countess Eliza¡¯s urging, I went back to my room where she touched up my hair and makeup, before heading to the eastern pce. ¡°Sister!¡± Rashta was the first person I saw when I entered the dining room. She covered her mouth in surprise, then smiled and said, ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Advertisement My smooth expression almost crumbled. Was Rashta among the twenty special guests tomorrow? No, I had checked the list only a while ago. Sovieshu must have brought her here. While one could not attend the special banquet without an invitation, those who were not invited could still go to the dinner. A momentter, Prince Heinley, Sovieshu and Princess Soju entered the dining room. Princess Soju looked at me as if to say, ¡®What¡¯s wrong?¡¯ but I shook my head and went towards my seat. Prince Heinley said hello to me, and I only gave him a slight nod. I could feel Princess Soju¡¯s eyes in my direction, but I didn¡¯t acknowledge it and took my seat with my head pounding. It was only after a servant poured water into my ss that Princess Soju leaned over and whispered quietly to me. ¡°I thought it was a joke until a while ago.¡± Her voice was so low that I could barely hear it. ¡°What was?¡± She nced over at the Prince. ¡°Prince Heinley. I believe the rumor that he is a womanizer is true. He acts so sweetly to Miss Rashta in front of His Majesty, I thought he was some kind of human custard.¡± ¡°Pub!¡± Advertisement Her expression sent me into a coughing fit as I drank from my ss, while the Princess smiled in amusement. Prince Heinley¡¯s, Rashta¡¯s, and Sovieshu¡¯s attention turned towards me at the same time, and I quickly schooled my expression and covered my mouth with a handkerchief. Now that Princess Soju pointed it out, the atmosphere did seem strange. Prince Heinley was aloof and mysterious as always, but Sovieshu seemed more on edge than usual. From time to time he shot nces between Prince Heinley and Rashta. And Rashta...she seemed to be enjoying the situation. Her cheeks were more flushed than usual at the attention of both the Emperor and the Prince. ¡®If it had been Rashta that Prince Heinley was with from the beginning, then what would have happened...?¡¯ My heart throbbed at the sudden thought, but I soon shook it away. Even if it wasn¡¯t Rashta, Sovieshu would have still brought in a concubine one day. Princess Soju leaned towards me again. ¡°Strange. Prince Heinley was so openly sweet on Miss Rashta before. Not now.¡± I did not bother looking in their direction this time. Soon after, the table filled up with all the guests, and the servants brought in the first course¡ªmulled wine, fresh celery, salmon with potatoes, and chicken poached in wine. It was well into the middle of a long meal when, suddenly, there was a sharp crash. The dining room turned silent. Sovieshu was staring at Prince Heinley, his golden goblet spilled over his te. Everyone watched them with bated breath. ¡°That¡¯s rude, Prince Heinley.¡± Advertisement ¡°What do you mean? What¡¯s rude? Is it rude of me to point out that the one who imed to exchange letters with me doesn¡¯t know the contents of said letters? Is it rude for me to protest when I find outter she¡¯s deceiving me?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley. Watch yournguage.¡± ¡°Tell your concubine to be careful.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°This is disgraceful. First the maid, then her master Lady Rashta. Are you scorning the Western Kingdom, scorning me, or scorning my promises?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes were as wide as saucers, while Prince Heinley leaned back against his seat and stared at Sovieshu coldly. ¡°Oh, perhaps¡ªDid His Majesty order Lady Rashta to do it? Use me?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley!¡± Chapter 29 - Heinley’s Rage (2)

Chapter 29 ¨C Heinley¡¯s Rage (2)

Despite the anger on Sovieshu¡¯s face, Prince Heinley looked unimpressed. ¡°I¡¯m sure Rashta wrote those letters. She was confused for a moment. The contents can be confusing, can¡¯t they?¡± ¡°Does it make sense to confuse half the contents of the letters?¡± Sovieshu turned even redder the face. Princess Soju was riveted on them as if she were entertained, and she set down her fork and started eating cookies as she were watching a y. ¡°Goodness...So Lady Rashta has a poor brain? Ten things, half forgotten? If her wit is the issue, then I¡¯ll admit my wrong.¡± In an instant, the atmosphere turned ugly. I could only hear the sound of Princess Soju eating the cookies. With her lively and dependable personality, she showed her curiosity to the fullest extent. ¡°Am I the strange one here, everyone? Thedy sitting here, Rashta, called herself my friend yesterday. I believed it because I thought that a famousdy like Rashta wouldn¡¯t lie, and I spent all day honoring her. And as Princess Soju put it, I was as soft as a human custard.¡± Princess Soju flinched. ¡®Prince Heinley has good ears.¡¯ ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± The Princess automatically sided with Prince Heinley in return for him calling her out. Prince Heinley looked around and spoke again. ¡°But there was something strange during our conversation. Lady Rashta didn¡¯t know more than half of what she has exchanged with me. She knew nothing about our recent exchanges. Isn¡¯t it strange that she doesn¡¯t know half the contents, as well as the contents from only one or two letters ago? Lady Rashta¡¯s maid didn¡¯t know that as well.¡± Everyone nodded, and Rashta¡¯s ears turned red. Sovieshu red at Prince Heinley as if he could shoot lightning from his eyes. ¡°Enough of this, Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°It was supposed to be a quiet matter, but it was the Emperor of the Eastern Empire that brought it out to the open.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t a knight protect hisdy if she¡¯s in trouble? If the Western Kingdom condemns a poor woman over a trivial matter and calls that chivalry, then there¡¯s nothing left for me to exin.¡± ¡°No, no. Mydy was falsely impersonated, and I must protect her too.¡± ¡°What?¡± A yful smile lifted on the Prince¡¯s mouth. ¡°Of course, my letter acquaintance may be a man, not ady.¡± His gaze fell on me for a moment, and my heart ran cold. It urred to me that I wrote ¡®I am a man¡¯ as a hint. ¡®He¡¯s mistaken...right?¡¯ Even if Prince Heinley discovered that Rashta was the false friend, there was still no way he could tell I was the real one. It was then. Rashta, who had not said a word so far, whimpered, ¡°It¡¯s too much.¡± Everyone¡¯s eyes shifted from Sovieshu and Prince Heinley towards Rashta, who sniffled as if she were the main character in a y. One of Prince Heinley¡¯s eyebrows lifted. ¡°Why did you try to deceive me again, Lady Rashta? Why did you y a trick with the maid?¡± Rashta let out a sob. ¡°I said the contents of the letter exactly. But Prince Heinley keeps insisting it¡¯s a lie.¡± What on earth... My lips parted at that moment. What did she just say? Tears started to stream down her eyes. ¡°I think I know why you¡¯re doing this. Is it because Rashta is not the kind of person you wanted? Were all the gestures of friendship you sent to Rashta false?¡± She was the image of a tragic heroine who had been wrongly abandoned. Sovieshu clenched his jaw as he red at the Prince. ¡°Is that true?¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s shoulders jerked as heughed, then he sighed and shook his head. ¡°You must be crazy.¡± ¡°Are you using of Rashta being a liar because you saw her with His Majesty?¡± I once believed Rashta¡¯s naivety came from innocence and ignorance. Now I knew that she was deviously cunning woman. Prince Heinley clicked his tongue. ¡°Lady Rashta. You are the most brazen person I have ever met.¡± ¡°For the sake of our friendship, please don¡¯t keep saying things that will hurt Rashta.¡± Rashta dissolved into tears, and some of the surrounding nobles began to look ufortable. For those who didn¡¯t know the truth, Rashta appeared so confident in the truth that they were confused to what was real. Princess Soju was busy watching with wide eyes with her cookies in her mouth, while Duchess Tuania calmly watched the situation with her arms folded. In the meanwhile, only Grand Duke Kapmen was delicately working on his meal. With his long, sharp eyes and healthy caramel-colored skin, he moved his utensils with a dull expression, as if he found the whole affair tiresome. ¡®I shoulde forward and say that I¡¯m Prince Heinley¡¯s letter acquaintance...¡¯ I stared nkly at Kapmen as I agonized over the decision. If I sided with the Prince, the others would mock not only Rashta, but also Sovieshu who had stood up for her. However, I didn¡¯t want to see Prince Heinley be med because of Rashta. The friendship that Rashta repeatedly imed was hers was between me and Prince Heinley. At that moment, Grand Duke Kapmen, who was eating like a machine, looked paused and looked up at me in surprise. I nodded slightly as our eyes met. Kapmen stared at me without responding, then he looked at Rashta and Prince Heinley then smiled quietly. ¡®What¡¯s the matter with him?¡¯ However, it wasn¡¯t the abnormal behavior of Grand Duke Kapmen that was the problem at this moment. ¡®I wanted to stay quiet, but there is a misunderstanding. I should fix it.¡¯ I finished debating internally with myself and readied myself to speak. Everyone turned to me. They seemed to be enjoying the whirlwind of events. Only Rashta was staring at me with her eyes wide open. Suddenly, it urred to me that Viscountess Verdi must have told her I was the letter acquaintance, and I felt a sense of irony in the situation. I couldn¡¯t understand why Rashta thought she could pretend to be me and think I would stay quiet. I spoke to Sovieshu, keeping my face as still as possible. ¡°Your Majesty, I know who it was that exchanged letters with Prince Heinley...and it was not Rashta.¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s face lit up. Rashta, on the other hand, stared at me with a look of betrayal, while Sovieshu¡¯s face turned white. ¡°Empress.¡± He addressed me in a low voice. ¡°This is not a matter for you to decide. Just because you dislike Rashta doesn¡¯t mean you should take Prince Heinley¡¯s side.¡± ¡°I am only on the side of truth.¡± As soon as I was finished, Prince Heinley spoke up acidly. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress. It must be frustrating that the Emperor treats all the words from Lady Rashta¡¯s lips as truth.¡± The remark bled thest of Sovieshu¡¯s patience. ¡°I cannot tolerate this anymore.¡± Sovieshu stood up and drew out his sword. It was a decorative piece not made forbat, but it was enough to injure a defenseless person. The mood in the room quickly became tense. ¡°Prince Heinley, how dare you defile my honor. I challenge you to a duel.¡± ¡°If I kill you now, may I leave here safely? Then, I will ept the duel.¡± Chapter 30 - Wet Tears (1) Chapter 30 ¨C Wet Tears (1) Would the Eastern Emperor fight a life-and-death duel with the Prince of the West? Thetter whom was invited as a guest, with the former¡¯s concubine dividing the two? It would be quite a spectacle. If it became known to the public, the already much-criticized lives of the nobles and royal families would be the subject of further mockery and gossip. Of course, with or without the rumors, the fight should be stopped. ¡°Calm down, Your Majesty. Prince Heinley, you are our guest.¡± I raised my voice at them, and to my great fortune they were not fools. ¡°Please take your seats.¡± They both sat down, and the meal continued quietly. I¡¯ve never had such a trying meal the eve before the special banquet. My stomach turned. What on earth was happening? Was it because of Rashta or Sovieshu? Or perhaps both? No one was in the mood to eat anymore, so I finally set down my fork and patted my mouth with a napkin. After only half a meal, I stood up to see the guests off instead of offering them dessert. It would be rude to keep them in this ufortable atmosphere, and we would meet again tomorrow evening in any case. I made for the hall and the guests quickly followed me, leaving behind Sovieshu and Heinley in the dining room. As soon as the door closed, Princess Soju came up to me and spoke with a frown creased on her face. ¡°I hope we can talk more tomorrow, Your Majesty. Tonight¡¯s not a good night for conversation.¡± ¡°Of course. I hope so, too.¡± Meeting Princess Soju might have been the best thing to have happened to me this New Year¡¯s celebration. Her strong, funny and friendly nature was a joy to be around. I hugged her and whispered a fond farewell. ¡°Pleasee tomorrow.¡± Princess Soju smiled and nodded, then left with her knights down the hallway. I gave my farewells to the other nobles with more formality. When there were about a handful of nobles left, I saw Rashta approach me. I thought she had something to say, but instead of talking she stood by my side. Why was she here? I wanted to ask her that, but Emperor Sirim of Blue Bohean approached next. ¡°Pleasee and see Rashta tomorrow. Thank you foring tonight, Your Highness.¡± As soon as I bowed, Rashta mimicked me, as if we were seeing him off together. ¡°Uh...yes.¡± Emperor Sirim answered in a stammering tone, and he looked between me and Rashta then turned away. He seemed to think I was bowing to him together with Rashta. Rashta turned to look at me and asked in an amiable voice, ¡°Are you alright, sister?¡± This situation was absurd, but there was no convention or precedent that I could use to stop her. I deliberately broke away from Rashta and approached Marquis Samonew, one of our allies. However, Rashta followed my footsteps again and smiled coquettishly at him, making the Marquisugh. She continued this until there was only Grand Duke Kapmen left. Did she have to courage to approach him? She came up to him, speaking in a gentle voice. ¡°My Lord.¡± At that moment, goose flesh erupted on my skin. Her voice had suddenly changed. Earlier, she had been bright and yful, but now her tone had taken on a deeper quality. She was imitating my voice. It wasn¡¯t a perfect recreation, but it was close. ¡°Will you be attending the special banquet tomorrow?¡± Her words evaporated in the air as the Grand Duke passed us in silence. It was more embarrassing that Rashta attempted to imitate me, rather than the Grand Duke Kapmen passing by me as well. ¡°Miss Rashta.¡± She smiled and said in her usual sweet voice, ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± It was not the same person who looked at me like I betrayed her in the dining room. I suppressed my feelings and spoke as calmly as possible. ¡°I nned to ask you this after the New Year¡¯s celebrations, but now I have to know.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Why did you lie to everyone and say that I sent you gifts?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyebrows lifted in confusion. ¡°Lie?¡± She waited for me to continue. Her conscience was pricked, surely. ¡°Rashta didn¡¯t lie, Your Majesty. It¡¯s true that the Empress sent many gifts to Rashta...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know where this misunderstandinges from, but I did no such thing.¡± ¡°What? Are you angry because Rashta said she wrote the letters...?¡± I stared at her in silence, and Rashta sped her hands together as tears started to form in her eyes. ¡°But Viscountess Verdi said the Empress would nevere forward. In fact, she would the Empress would be embarrassed by this. So I didn¡¯t mean anything. I was only trying to y.¡± ¡°y?¡± ¡°And I helped you, too, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You helped me?¡± Rashta looked about ready to cry again. ¡°You didn¡¯t want anyone else to know you were the letter friend. Why are you always so scary to Rashta?¡± Before I could say anything more, the door opened, and both Sovieshu and Prince Heinley appeared, their faces stiff. They seemed to have been arguing with each other inside. ¡°...Heueu.¡± Rashta¡¯s tears finally broke. Sovieshu looked at her in surprise, then approached her and wiped her wet cheeks with his sleeve. ¡°Rashta? Why are you crying?¡± Sovieshu red at me as she sobbed harder. ¡°What happened, Empress? What¡¯s wrong with Rashta?¡± ¡°I asked her a question.¡± ¡°What did you ask her?¡± ¡°I asked why she lied when I never sent her gifts.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression tensed. ¡°You asked her about that?¡± ¡°She¡¯s been telling people, so of course I did.¡± Who else should I have asked? I stared at him wondrously. His lips were tightly pressed together, and he looked alternately between me and Rashta before he sighed. ¡°If Rashta is mistaken, shouldn¡¯t we just let it go?¡± ¡°I cannot allow my name to be used this way.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to confront Rashta. It¡¯s my fault. I sent her gifts in your name.¡± My head spun. Sovieshu gave her gifts in my name? Rashta opened her eyes wide and looked at Sovieshu, her tears clinging delicately to hershes. ¡°Is that true, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°There was a misunderstanding because of me.¡± Sovieshu nodded and murmured an apology, but Rashta shook her head. ¡°No, Rashta is so happy. You did it for Rashta.¡± I clenched my fist. I was the one who was gossiped about because of Sovieshu¡¯s and Rashta¡¯s mistake. And it was Rashta that Sovieshu apologized to, while Rashta thought it touching. Before, I had distanced myself from Rashta. I told myself that I should ignore her, that I should look away, and that I didn¡¯t care. But now¡ªI clearly hated her. And more than that, I hated Sovieshu. I impatiently spoke up. ¡°If this is your fault¡ª¡± Sovieshu, who had been immersed in the romantic mood between the two, turned his head. He looked surprised to see me, as if he thought the issue resolved. I stared coldly into his eyes. ¡°You have to take the me, Your Majesty. You admitted responsibility.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°No matter the circumstances, you shouldn¡¯t assume another¡¯s name. Isn¡¯t that right, Your Majesty? ¡± Sovieshu looked at me in bewilderment. ¡°Do we really have to deal with that here?¡± ¡°Yes. Now that you¡¯ve admitted guilt, shouldn¡¯t you be held responsible?¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu¡¯splexion paled. I noticed him discreetly ncing between Rashta and Prince Heinley. His pride was injured in front of a distinguished man and the woman he loved, but the pride he wanted to preserve was not the pride of an emperor, but the pride of a man. Should I help him protect that? No. ¡°What do you want? Do you want me to cry like Rashta?¡± ¡°I want you to apologize.¡± ¡°Apologize?¡± ¡°Please apologize for using my name.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, all right?¡± ¡°And since Miss Rashta has been spreading false information, I hope that she will take responsibility and correct it.¡± Sovieshu exhaled. ¡°Is that really necessary?¡± ¡°Are you afraid you will lose face, Your Majesty? Because my face has already been crushed.¡± ¡°If your face was crushed simply from sending gifts to Rashta, then you are poor and shallow from the start.¡± ¡°It is also poor and shallow not to correct it. Please take care of it as soon as possible.¡± ¡°The Empress should do it herself. Don¡¯t you dislike other people speaking in your name?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Why are you so narrow-minded? You were never like that before, were you?¡± ¡°I should say that to you. And don¡¯t speak impolitely to me, Sovieshu.¡± Chapter 31 - Wet Tears (2) Chapter 31 ¨C Wet Tears (2) The Empress¡¯ demeanor was as remote and as cold as a cier. Heinley stood dazed as he looked at her profile. Her low, gentle voice captivated his ears but her icy voice even more so. How would it sound if she said his name like that? Heinley swallowed dryly as his imagination made his head spin. He wanted to kneel before that overbearing empress and pour kisses on her hand. He wanted to hear her speak in that cold voice and issuemands to him. How would it feel to obey her orders and then to rebel? It had started out as curiosity. He was curious about the empress from a foreign country, and so he traveled as far as the pce to see her. Despite rumors that she was made of steel or ice, she was surprisingly soft and charming towards birds. The rumors weren¡¯t exactly wrong, however, but he was surprised to see her ordinary side. He felt sympathy for the way she put up a strong front while she cried in secret. He heard her talking to herself as she tried to hold back her tears. What the people wanted was not an emperor¡¯s beloved empress. But to him, she was incredible. He thought that beneath her strong appearance was a vulnerable figure, but he discovered beneath that was a strong figure again. The feeling of curiosity and attraction turned into anxiety after actually meeting her. Why did she ignore him when he tried to make himself known? Why did she pretend not to know him? Why wasn¡¯t she trying to look for him? Were theforts of the letters, the jokes that they had been shared, simply been a one-sided feeling? Or perhaps her pride would be hurt if someone were to take care of her. But as Heinley drew closer to her, he became angry. He didn¡¯t like seeing the things that burdened her or caused her pain. He knew from experience that controlling one¡¯s reputation was difficult, to the point that he had almost gotten in a fight about it in the past. ¡°Are you jealous of Rashta, by any chance?¡± As the Empress¡¯ jaw hardened at Sovieshu¡¯s insult, Prince Heinley was ovee with an even more violent impulse than in the dining room. The frozen empress was charming, but the things that made her that way were not. He could hear McKenna¡¯s voice in his mind, repeatedly urging him not to cause an incident. It irritated Heinley that he could not officially stand up to defend her honor. ¡°Your Majesty the Emperor. You must be more discerning.¡± Eventually, Heinley spoke. McKenna will be furious when he hears about this. Their king was bedridden, and the court affairs were in chaos. Did he really want to antagonize the Emperor of the Eastern Empire? Despite this, Heinley couldn¡¯t help but speak up. ¡°This doesn¡¯t concern you, Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a witness. How can I keep my nose out of this?¡± Heinley added a grin as he stood next to the Empress. ¡°Your Majesty, do not worry. I will be the one to spread rumors about the truth. Your reputation will not be tarnished by this mistake.¡± Things could have gotten worse if it were not for McKenna, who came running to Prince Heinley¡¯s side and stole him away. ¡°I heard you say something about reputation. Are you changing course?¡± Heinley walked in silence to the southern pce as McKenna nagged at him. ¡°Do what you usually do, Prince. Don¡¯t fight from the front, fight from behind. Why are you trying to do something that you can¡¯t do well? And why does it have to be with the Eastern Emperor? At this rate, our spying will be moot.¡± McKenna¡¯s nagging got worse as soon as he closed the door, and Heinley ignored him and pulled up a chair. ¡°What are you going to do with the chair? Are you going to hit me?¡± ¡°Sit down.¡± As McKenna sat down, Heinley touched his head and forced mana into him. With a cry, McKenna turned into a bluebird, and the clothes he wore tumbled to the ground. McKenna¡¯s eyes widened as Prince Heinley went to his desk and then held out something. -? ¡°Deliver this to Elgy.¡± ¨C ... ¡°I won¡¯t get myself in trouble, so go and deliver it. I¡¯ll fight from behind, just as you said.¡± Chapter 32 - Drink Water And Sprout (1) Chapter 32 ¨C Drink Water And Sprout (1) ¡°Prince Heinley seems to be apletely different person than the rumors suggest.¡± Countess Eliza, who was ying chess nearby, turned her head at my faintly spoken words. ¡°Hm? What did you say, Your Highness?¡± I turned my book upside down and ced it on myp. Could I tell them this? Would it sound strange? Mydies-in-waiting knew I was the real letter friend, and so there was no need for me to say anything more. However, I thought it would be helpful if I could change any of the rumors about Prince Heinley with my own words... ¡°Prince Heinley. He seems better than I thought.¡± I spoke nonchntly as I picked up my teacup from the table and took a sip. Laura, who was ying opposite of Countess Eliza, surreptitiously changed a horse¡¯s position while the Countess was not looking. ¡°Right. And he knew that the maid and the ve didn¡¯t write those letters! Ah¡ªthat was wrong. Anyway, he found out quickly. Even though he¡¯s a womanizer, he¡¯s more faithful than other nobles.¡± Countess Eliza had pped Laura on the back of the hand and restored the horse¡¯s original position on the board. ¡°Laura is right. Though he may seem like a carefree person, he¡¯s not frivolous.¡± Ady-in-waiting sittingfortably on an armchair gave a vindictiveugh. ¡°Even more so, I liked it when the ve¡¯s lie came to light.¡± Sympatheticments started to spring up from the otherdies. ¡°Did you see how his blood pressure went up when she lied so shamelessly to him?¡± ¡°The foreign nobles who mingle with her must havee to their senses by now.¡± However, Artina, who was silently standing by the door, immediately threw cold water into situation. ¡°I don¡¯t believe so.¡± At Artina¡¯s certain tone, thedies-in-waiting all turned to him with questioning expressions. The knight nervously scratched his cheek, as if overwhelmed by thedies looking at him all at once. ¡°Baron Lant is responsible for Miss Rashta¡¯s affairs, and he talks about her differently.¡± ¡°Differently? How?¡± Laura eyes were wide as she questioned him. I also looked at Artina, setting the now empty cup back on the table. I knew Baron Lant¡ªhe was Sovieshu¡¯s secretary, and quite a brilliant man. Moreover, he was extremely fond of Rashta, and it was only good for her if Baron Lant wasing forward and turning the rumors around. ¡°Because of Miss Rashta¡¯s beauty and charm, some say that the Emperor and Prince Heinley are fighting over her.¡± When two conflicting rumors spread, there would be at least one that believed one story or the other. Baron Lant had nned this out carefully. Laura shut the chessboard in frustration. ¡°I absolutely despise her!¡± ¡°Watch your mouth, Laura. You are ady-in-waiting of the Empress, and offensivenguage will only hurt Her Majesty¡¯s image.¡± ¡°I am careful in front of others, Countess Eliza. Yet still...I have no other way to express my emotions!¡± Then, as Laura cried out her frustration, there was a tap on the window. ¡°Queen!¡± It had been several days since he came herest, and I quickly got up and opened the window to let him in. I was so happy to see him after such a long time that I held him tightly. ¨C ! Queen embraced me with his wings, and Laura finally calmed down and gave a giggle. ¡°That bird is so sweet. Look how he holds Her Majesty. Maybe he¡¯s not a bird.¡± ¨C ! I scolded thedies for teasing Queen, then I gently ced him on myp and stroked his head. Queenrge purple eyes closed as he dozed off, but asionally he startled and looked at me. ¡°I missed you.¡± I confessed my feelings frankly to him, and he peered at me as if he understood me. ¡°...¡± Strange. Why did this bird remind me Prince Heinley? Well, perhaps it was because Prince Heinley was the bird¡¯s owner. ¡°Ah.¡± I almost forget to check the note on his leg. I took it the piece of paper, set Queen aside and opened it. ¨C I had wagered my identity. Why don¡¯t you want to participate in the bet? Did Prince Heinley know that I was the letter acquaintance or not? A few hours ago, I told myself that the writer was Prince Heinley, but I didn¡¯t even have the time to ask him because Sovieshu and I immediately fought... I hesitated before writing my response. ¨C Please keep our friendship by letter only. Queen watched me patiently as I wrote. As soon as I lifted my hand from the paper, he checked the contents, then made a strange noises and started jumping up and down. ¨C Gu! Gu! Gu! He seemed to be criticizing me on behalf of his owner. ¡°Don¡¯t be so upset, Queen. I prefer it this way.¡± ¨C Gu! ¡°If your master and I meet each other, we will be Eastern Empress and the Western Prince, not friends that can speak casually to each other. We would have to be careful how we behave in front of other people.¡± ¨C ... ¡°I have be a source of entertainment because of Sovieshu and Rashta. Under these circumstances, the rumors will worsen if it¡¯s discovered that I¡¯m exchanging letters with a womanizer.¡± Maybe it was because Queen seemed so intelligent, but before I knew it, I was confessing my true feelings. Queen¡¯s beak opened as if in surprise. I closed his beak shut and hurriedly added an exnation. ¡°I know your master is not as bad as the rumors say. I think he¡¯s a good person, in fact. Hm? Ha ha, why are you embarrassed?¡± Chapter 33 - Drink Water And Sprout (2) Chapter 33 ¨C Drink Water And Sprout (2) Rashta reclined on the bed, hugging a cushion and looking a picture of delicate beauty in a thinvender nightgown. Lying next to her was Sovieshu, who was sweeping his fingers through her soft silver hair. ¡°Prince Heinley is known for his cruelty and for being a womanizer. Don¡¯t trust people so blindly from now on.¡± ¡°Rashta didn¡¯t know...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Anyone can make mistakes. Just don¡¯t make that same mistake in the future.¡± ¡°But this isn¡¯t Rashta¡¯s fault, right?¡± ¡°Of course. It was that man who made a disturbance.¡± Rashta leaned her head against Sovieshu¡¯s shoulder. ¡°But I¡¯m d His Majesty protected Rashta.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d too. I hope you¡¯re feeling better.¡± ¡°Tomorrow is the special banquet! Let¡¯s just rx and socialize with people! I want to be friends with Princess Soju.¡± Rashta smiled and patted the cushion like a drum. Sovieshu, who normally would have smiled at her adoorable behavior, was like a stone. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°You...¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Rashta, you won¡¯t be able to attend the special banquet tomorrow.¡± Rashta stared at Sovieshu with wide eyes. He felt sheepish after giving her the unexpected news, except that was not the way it should be. ¡°What? Why, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°There can only be twenty special guests.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I be one of them?¡± ¡°The Empress and I invite ten people each, and we¡¯ve already sent out the invitations...¡± ¡°You can be flexible and add one more...¡± ¡°But Rashta. The moment we are flexible, the special banquet bes less special.¡± Rashta made a shocked, unblinking expression at his refusal, and Sovieshu felt forced to exin. ¡°As I said, it¡¯s only for those invited. I don¡¯t know why you think it would suddenly change.¡± ¡°Rashta is your concubine. Yourdy. Rashta thought she could go without being invited...You should have invited her too.¡± Rashta¡¯s face was red as she whimpered. ¡°Oh goodness, Rashta.¡± Sovieshu took out a handkerchief and patted away the tears that had sprung up in her eyes. But the tears gathered again, and the handkerchief was useless. ¡°Do you really wish to go?¡± ¡°I told everyone at the dinner that I would go to the special banquet.¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°You should¡¯ve asked me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s strange to ask. Besides, His Majesty took Rashta to dinner with the special guests, so of course Rashta thought...¡± ¡°It¡¯s my fault.¡± Sovieshu sighed and rubbed Rashta¡¯s shoulder, but she kept crying, waiting for Sovieshu to change his words. However, no matter how long she waited, it did not happen. ¡°So in the end, you¡¯re not taking me.¡± Rashta wept like a child, and Sovieshu clenched his jaw at the innocence of it. Having only seen the court nobles cry silently, he was amazed whenever Rashta expressed her true feelings honestly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rashta. Don¡¯t cry.¡± ¡°You saw what happened today. If Rashta doesn¡¯t go, Prince Heinley will say something to the guests. He said he was going to spread rumors.¡± Rashta had a point, and Sovieshu sighed again. However, many of the guests consisted of foreign royal family members and powerful nobles, and were considered the most important people of the year. To set aside an important guest to allow a concubine could cause an international problem. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be there. I won¡¯t let Prince Heinley say anything strange.¡± Rashta¡¯s expression was still morose. After stewing on the subject, Sovieshu finally let out a sigh. ¡°I will ask the Empress if she spare a seat. Some of the guests are subjects of this country, so we won¡¯t have to worry about an international problem.¡± * * * The morning sun shone through the thin curtains, casting shadows on the floor in the shape of the window frames. I yawned and raised myself from the bed. My heart wasn¡¯t heavy despite the incident from yesterday. Perhaps it was because of Prince Heinley and Queen... I patted my face to wake myself up, then went to the bathroom to wash my face. Behind me, mydies-in-waiting prepared the bathtub with petals and salts. My clothes were removed and I sank into the warm water, allowing my muscles to rx. I closed my eyes and leaned against the bathtub as thedies-in-waiting massaged my head with careful hands. After the bath, I put on a robe and went into the bedroom. As it was thest day of the New Year¡¯s celebration and the day of the special banquet, the dress selected for me was extravagant, but not overly so, and simultaneously captured a sense of calm and splendor. After getting dressed, I ced on my diamond earrings and crown. The crown wasn¡¯t made for ceremonial purposes, and wasn¡¯t toorge and heavy. I looked over my notes on the special guests while thedies styled my hair to match the crown. However, before they could finish, one of Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries arrived. As I was already dressed, I allowed him in, and the secretary conveyed Sovieshu¡¯s words with great embarrassment. ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor would like a word with you.¡± ¡°Now?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s about the special banquet, so pleasee quickly¡ª¡± It had to be urgent if it was about the special banquet. I nodded and ordered thedies to quickly finish my hair. ¡°We¡¯ll put it together when you get back.¡± ¡°Is that alright? I don¡¯t want to bother you twice.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°Then you can have breakfast first while I¡¯m gone.¡± Various scenarios about the guests ran through my head when I followed Sovieshu¡¯s secretary to the eastern pce. Did someone suddenly dere war? Have one of the foreign guestsined about the country? Or did one of them offend us? Has anyone suddenly announced their absence? ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I immediately questioned Sovieshu as soon as I entered his room. Rashta was sitting on the bed, but I pretended not to know her. However, I did notice her staring at me¡ªno, staring at the crown on my head, more exactly. I frowned in difort, but Rashta continued staring with a bewitched expression and did not look away. Sovieshu was the first to speak. ¡°Can you make room for one more person?¡± ¡°Is something wrong? Are there any reports that Secretary Bimeli or the Chief Magician Calenzano are able to attend?¡± The secretary and the chief magician were those who originally had reservations. They were invited by Sovieshu, but they did not attend the New Year¡¯s ceremony because they had already refused for other reasons. ¡°No, it¡¯s not them.¡± ¡°Then...?¡± Who on earth were we supposed to set up a seat for? I studied Sovieshu closely, who seemed caught in an awkward silence. ¡°I want to take Rashta with me...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Can you do that?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Empress? Why won¡¯t you talk to me?¡± I was going to apologize, but quickly shoved it down because I didn¡¯t think it was something I should apologize for. ¡°No, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s brow furrowed at my t refusal. ¡°One seat is fine. There is surely one or two people the Empress can ask.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible to ask for consent if they agree. But if Secretary Bimeli or the Chief Magician Calenzano came, they would be offended by the sudden cancetion of the invitation...for your concubine.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned even colder. ¡°I understand the connotation of your words, Empress.¡± ¡°The answer would have been the same if it had been my lover, or even if it had been another concubine that was not Rashta.¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t we exclude people such as Duchess Tuania?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to hurt the people I cherish, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 34 - Secret Friend (1) Chapter 34 ¨C Secret Friend (1) I could tell that Sovieshu believed me to be a heartless person. It was clear by the lines between his brows, which were usually not there, and the narrowing of his eyes. ¡°The empress is cold.¡± ¡°As I should be.¡± ¡°What?¡± An international embarrassment could happen if Sovieshu disregarded his guests, and the me would fall to him. But if I set aside a guest for Rashta, I would be med for doing something wrong to impress Rashta and Sovieshu. A simr rumor had already spread after Sovieshu gave Rashta gifts under my name. While that incident was disgraceful on a personal level, disrespecting guests would directly be judged by society. But Sovieshu¡¯s behavior wasn¡¯t a mistake. Even at this moment, he was smart. He was forcing me to act this way to protect himself and soothe Rashta¡¯s heart. ¡°I¡¯m not intentionally being cruel. Rashta is your concubine, not mine. I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re trying to force me to do things even you, the Emperor, cannot do.¡± I was too peeved to exin it further to him, so I deliberately turned away. Sovieshu¡¯s jaw was clenched and Rashta nced at me with a frightened look, but I wasn¡¯t feeling any better at all. I gave my farewell as etiquette dictated, and then left the room with a stately walk. * * * When I arrived at the western pce, I found thedies anxiously waiting for me. ¡°You should have eaten without me.¡± ¡°How could we? We wondered if something terrible happened again.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t look good whenever you see the Emperor these days.¡± After calming them down, we ate breakfast together, but I found it difficult to swallow. I managed to fill my stomach lightly with soup and pudding. Afterwards, thedies-in-waiting prepared themselves for the party, so I sat alone at my desk to check the schedule after the New Year¡¯s celebrations. I had to see off the foreign guests, as well as amodate those that wished to stay longer. Reports of any incidents also had to be handled thoroughly. If any foreigner had a legal problem, it had to be settled before they crossed the border. The day passed quickly, and then it was time for the feast. I made another examination of myself in the mirror, and I saw that each of mydies-in-waiting were splendidly dressed as well. ¡°Will youe to the party after the special banquet?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I have to check the time...what¡¯s wrong, Laura?¡± ¡°Alischute¡ªno, Lady Alischute is ill and cannot go to the party. If neither you nor here, I¡¯ll just show my face and leave quickly.¡± Laura, who preferred to mingle with her peers, did not seem very interested in socializing with the other noblewomen. ¡°I¡¯ll be there if you wait for me, Laura.¡± I gave her my promise, and Laura smiled with excitement and quickly went to the grand hall for the party. The otherdies-in-waiting also followed suit, while I went to the Red Rose room for the special banquet. Lively music filled the air, and the special guests were gathered together in groups of three or four. I walk towards Princess Soju, with a casual nod to everyone else, when I came across Grand Duke Kapmen first, who was holding a champagne ss. Arge statue holding a flower basket and sword and a servant carrying champagne bottles stood symmetrically on either side of him, leaving no other way to pass. ¡°Are you enjoying yourself?¡± A nod wouldn¡¯t suffice as he was right in front of me, so I smiled and spoke to him. Before I bowed in greeting, it urred to me that he ignored both me and Rashta yesterday. ¡°...Your Majesty.¡± Fortunately, Grand Duke Kapmen did not turn a blind eye to me this time. He didn¡¯t answer my question, however. ¡°Does the food suit your taste?¡± I gave him a small bow for the second time without realizing it. Instead of answering me, he stared at me again. His long, sharp eyes were something fierce. This was Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s first invitation to the banquet, and I had never interacted with this man untilst year. I had little knowledge of his character. All I knew was that he was a grand duke from a desert country, and had graduated first from a magical academy. As I waited for his reply, Kapmen asked me his own question out of nowhere. ¡°Is this the state of the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°In Rwibt, the Imona¡¯s and Imot¡¯s emotions are one. ¡° ¡°The king and queen are one. That¡¯s amazing.¡± ¡± ...You know what it means?¡± ¡°Not enough to say I¡¯m fluent. Only a few basic words.¡± When I lifted my eyebrows, he opened his eyes in surprise and continued. ¡°If Emot¡¯s lover is in front of her, she would be killed immediately.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Are you not able to do that, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid that in this great empire I cannot kill a person for no reason, even if I am an empress. A trial must be held first.¡± ¡°Foolish that you cannot eat soup out of your own bowl.¡± Was he saying that I didn¡¯t have proper control of the Rashta yesterday? However, just as there were thews in the country of Rwibt, there were thews of the Eastern Empire. In my country, concubines were legally approved. And if an empress ever killed an emperor¡¯s mistress? There was the strong possibility of being thrown into prison. Then what did that leave me? A little excitement? Should I bet my life to kill Rashta? Before giving an answer, however, Grand Duke Kapmen left with his ss of champagne. I gave a relieved sigh. He probably thought of me as pathetic. ¡®How strange. It was Sovieshu that made Rashta a concubine, so why am I the pathetic woman?¡¯ Unfortunately, Princess Soju seemed to have moved elsewhere in the room. I shook my head and looked around to find another person, when my gazended on Duchess Tuania. ¡°Queen.¡± There was a low voice from behind me. As soon as I turned my head, I found Prince Heinley right before me. ¡°How are you¡ª¡± Before I could ask him how he was, he spoke again. ¡°I¡¯d like to talk to you for a moment.¡± Chapter 35 - Secret Friend (2) Chapter 35 ¨C Secret Friend (2) Prince Heinley¡¯s expression was both serious and sad. He didn¡¯t have his usual smile or proud bearing. I nodded for him to speak, remembering that he had helped me. ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± Prince Heinley picked up two champagne sses from a passing servant, and with his eyes pointed towards a spot where the music was loudest and would cover our conversation. The open area left no room for the other guests to misunderstand, even if I was with the much-gossiped-about Prince Heinley. He was a surprisingly thoughtful man... As I admired him, Prince Heinley extended to me a ss of champagne, which I epted. He didn¡¯t drink his, however, and simply fiddled with his ss, while I still stood and waited for him to speak. Finally, he carefully opened his mouth. ¡°I read your message, Your Majesty. You want to keep our friendship only by letter.¡± ¡°You know that it¡¯s me?¡± All I had said yesterday was that I knew it was not Rashta. How did he know it was me? When I looked up at him, Prince Heinley hurriedly waved his hand and gave an awkward smile. ¡°Don¡¯t be rmed. You did not make a mistake.¡± ¡°Then ...?¡± ¡°Both Lady Rashta and her maid knew the contents of the early letters, but not theter ones. So I thought about it. It turned out that ady-in-waiting named Viscountess Verdi had transferred from the Empress to Lady Rashta.¡± So that¡¯s how he figured it out... But I was still surprised. Rumors had it that Prince Heinley was a womanizer, a cruel man, a person who kept badpany. I had never heard a rumor that he was exceedingly intelligent, and I smiled a little. But the prince still looked forlorn, and I couldn¡¯t help but wonder. He wasn¡¯t disappointed that I was the letter acquaintance, even though I¡¯d rather not have it revealed in the beginning. It would be less embarrassing for the both of us to ignore it. Why was his face so stiff? ¡°Are you alright? You don¡¯t look very happy.¡± Prince Heinley sighed as he stared at me. ¡°How can I be happy? I imagined us as good friends, but you want to pretend not to know me in real life?¡± Was that really as coldhearted as it sounds? I thought he was exaggerating, but he looked so forlorn I didn¡¯t protest. He downed his champagne ss in one smooth motion. ¡°In fact, I don¡¯t have many friends to share my thoughts with.¡± Prince Heinley set his empty ss down on the statue pedestal and continued, his voice thick. ¡°I know. It¡¯s unexpected, isn¡¯t it? Am I popr? Yes. I have many friends. I always have people around me, so you many think I am not lonely.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But that is only what you see. In fact, I¡¯m very lonely. It¡¯s not that I hate my friends¡ªI have many good ones. However, as the prince of the West, I cannot honestly share my thoughts, and always have to be conscious of others.¡± ¡°!¡± I looked at him in surprise. Those were almost my exact same thoughts. It was as if¡ªas if Queen listened to me and delivered those words straight to Prince Heinley. ¡°It¡¯s not a problem about the people, but my own, so there¡¯s no way to improve it...¡± I stared steadily at Prince Heinley, as I realized I wasn¡¯t the only one with those thoughts. I had believed Prince Heinley behaved without regard to what other people thought of him, but it was an act too... ¡°I loved being able to talk to someone without them thinking of me as ¡®Prince Heinley¡¯ or ¡®Crown Prince.¡¯ Our conversations weren¡¯t long, but I was happy to have someone exchange lighthearted letters to.¡± ¡°...¡± I was the same. I was marked as a princess early on, and this was the first time since with my family that I felt I could open up my heart. Not because there weren¡¯t good people, but because ¡°a good person¡± and ¡°a person I can reveal my innermost thoughts to¡± were not the same. ¡°I¡¯ve looked forward to those letters. Honestly, I was even happier when I knew that my letter acquaintance was you, Your Majesty. But instead you seemed reluctant and inconvenienced.¡± Prince Heinley sighed, his eyes bing moist. As I faced those eyes, I felt a wave of guilt wash over me. I sympathized with everything he said, and felt further shame. ¡°We had the same thoughts, but different conclusions.¡± Prince Heinley looked at me with those wet eyes and sighed again, his mysterious violet irises glistening like jewels under the chandelier¡¯s light. There almost seemed to be resentment in his expression. I could be his friend, or I could end it like this. ¡°I understand what you feel, Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°But you still only want to exchange letters?¡± ¡°I enjoyed them.¡± ¡°Outside of letters, it will be even more enjoyable.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You can tell me that Sovieshu¡¯s a son of a bitch.¡± ¡°Keup!¡± I choked when Prince Heinley tossed all dignity out of the window. Everyone stared at me as I coughed, and Prince Heinley lowered his voice once again and whispered, ¡°Sovieshu¡¯s a son of a bitch.¡± What kind of person... Prince Heinley raised his eyebrows and gave a silly grin. ¡°There is nothing more funny than watching someone suppress augh. Justugh if you want to. ¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you don¡¯tugh, your heart will ache.¡± Ache? Did he have experience in this? His smile faded, as did his voice. For a moment, Prince Heinley stared at the floor, his forehead furrowed in thought. ¡°Then, can you do something for me? I¡¯ll keep it a secret you, my Queen, are my letter partner. And I¡¯ll also keep secret that we are friends.¡± ¡°Are we friends?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know that we¡¯re friends, Queen?¡± He gave a strange smile, then he pressed his lips together and continued. ¡°Instead, it can be like now. If we meet by chance, please don¡¯t ignore me. And if the two of us happen to be alone, don¡¯t avoid me.¡± His voice was yful and the smile around his mouth looked light, but his gaze was serious. It sounded like a joke, but I knew it wasn¡¯t. He gazed at me with those earnest eyes, and I felt a strange sensation of my heart being squeezed lightly with fingernails. Chapter 36 - Viscount Roteschu (1) Chapter 36 ¨C Viscount Roteschu (1) ¡®They must be talking about me...¡¯ Rashta stared anxiously at the doorway, where inside was the special banquet. It should go smoothly with Sovieshu there, but she was still apprehensive. Would Prince Heinley say anything strange to anyone? The Empress seemed unlikely to spread rumors, but Rashta couldn¡¯t say the same about Prince Heinley. Rashta bit her lip and sighed again. ¡°You look blue today. Are you feeling well?¡± Baron Lant appeared by her side and smiled at her teasingly. ¡°In truth, I¡¯m not.¡± ¡°You¡¯re very honest.¡± Rashta smiled and nodded. After Sovieshu, Baron Lant was her favorite person in the pce. He was not prejudiced towards her, and when rumors of her and Prince Heinley had spread, she had heard that Baron Lant stepped up to defend her honor. Rashta couldn¡¯t help but like the older man. ¡°Rest assured, no matter how unruly Prince Heinley is, he has no choice but to yield to our Emperor. Although the Western Kingdom has been growing in power, it still cannot eclipse the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°I will do whatever I can to protect Lady Rashta¡¯s honor, so go enjoy thest day of the celebrations.¡± Rashta nodded, and her mood lifted as she smiled. Those who did not scorn her gathered around her in ones or twos, and before long she was surrounded by people who were close to her or who wanted to be close to her. She preened at their attention, and whether because they were being thoughtful or not, no one asked her why she did not go to the special banquet. Rashta sipped wine that was surely five times older than herself, and happily epted the praise that the noblesvished on her. ¡°The contrast between your silver hair and your dark eyes is so enviable.¡± ¡°It gives off the feeling of purity, like a lily-of-the-valley.¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania might need to defend her current reputation.¡± Duchess Tuania wasn¡¯t present, as she was likely attending the special banquet, and today more and more people approached Rashta instead. ¡®Today, I am the butterfly of the social circles.¡¯ Rashta was feeling pleasantly tipsy. Even before she became the emperor¡¯s concubine, she knew beauty could be a poison. It was only after much trial did she learn how to use her own beauty as a weapon, but even then she found herself walking a precarious tightrope, always in danger. But it was different here. Everyone praised her and loved her. Her protector was the most powerful man on earth, and no one couldy a hand on her. ¡°But didn¡¯t you say you were going to the special banquet? Why are you here now?¡± However, it was only less than half an hourter that someone brought up an ufortable question. Rashta stared at the woman who spoke. She was not a memorable aristocrat, and did not haverge possessions or had duties important in the Imperial Pce. This was the first time this particr noblewoman mingled with them. The other nobles turned silent at the question, but despite their curiosity, they did not speak up. ¡°It¡¯s...¡± Rashta quickly arranged her thoughts and made up a story. ¡°It¡¯s because Rashta said it was alright.¡± ¡°Oh, Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°Important foreign guests usually go to the banquet. Rather than having Rashta attend, she thought it would be better to have someone who would benefit our country. ¡± The nobles were delighted over her answer. ¡°Miss Rashta is so smart for a concubine.¡± ¡°Indeed. Many of the previous concubines only spent money and idled away, and held no interest in international affairs at all. Miss Rashta is certainly different from them.¡± Rashta smiled shyly and lowered her eyes. Their admiration was as intoxicating as a drug. ¡°Rashta should help His Majesty.¡± Rashta murmured that she wanted another drink, and a number of nobleman quickly offered her a variety of wine sses. Rashta chose a flute with a light purple liquor, and the face of the young man she had epted the drink from lit up. Suddenly, Rashta caught glimpse of someone over the young man¡¯s shoulders. Someone who should not have been there. The flute slipped from her hand, and the ss shattered on the floor. ¡°Miss Rashta, are you all right?¡± ¡°What happened?¡± Rashta was unable to answer, and quickly jerked her head. But the one who surprised her was not there anymore. ¡®Did I see it wrong?¡¯ Rashta forced her heart to calm. Perhaps it was the effects of the alcohol. ¡®I drank too much.¡¯ While the servants ced the broken ss on a tray and wiped the liquor off the floor, Rashta repeatedly nced back to where she had seen the man. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Miss Rashta?¡± Baron Lant noticed her strange behavior and turned towards where she was looking, and she quickly caught the hem of his robe to stop him. ¡°Baron Lant. I have a question.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°For the New Year¡¯s celebrations, if a nobleman doesn¡¯te on the first day...can theye on thest day?¡± ¡°Of course. Some may not be able toe to the festivities immediately.¡± Rashta lowered her voice. ¡°Do rural aristocratse to the New Year¡¯s celebrations? Rural aristocrats with small estates? Do you not help choose the guests?¡± ¡°Yes, I help choose them. And even nobility of a small estate can be invited.¡± ¡°Even if they haven¡¯t attended for years?¡± ¡°Even if they haven¡¯t attended for a long time, we still send invitations for that reason. We don¡¯t leave thempletely alone.¡± Rashta¡¯s lips started to quiver, and Baron Lant¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°Miss Rashta, what happened?¡± Rashta shook her head, then took in her surroundings agains and pushed her ss towards him. ¡°R-Rashta¡¯s going inside. I think I¡¯m drunk.¡± She answered unsteadily and waved her hand to get out of the crowd. There was nothing to worry about if she made a drunken mistake, but if not¡ªit would be dangerous. That man...Viscount Roteschu. The lord of the estate where she was a ve. He knew Rashta¡¯s face. As she was leaving, a loud voice behind Rashta proimed, ¡°What? Am I seeing right?¡± Goose flesh erupted on Rashta¡¯s back. Her face paled, and her eyes darkened in fear. Rashta was reeling, and Baron Lant hastened towards her. ¡°Miss Rashta?¡± Baron Lant called out to her anxiously, but she didn¡¯t answer. ¡°¡®Miss¡¯ Rashta?¡± The loud voice grew closer, dripping in mockery. ¡°What is this now? Have you changed your identity?¡± The surroundings became deathly silent. ¡°The world is getting better. A runaway ve gets treated like ady now? Hm?¡± Chapter 37 - Viscount Roteschu (2) Chapter 37 ¨C Viscount Roteschu (2) ¡°So you stopped looking for your letter friend?¡± ¡°Yes. If they haven¡¯t revealed themselves by now, then they never will.¡± ¡°But you wanted it badly enough to go public...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to make them feel ufortable because of me.¡± Prince Heinley kept his promise. I awkwardly cut a piece of cake across the table where he was talking to a noblewoman. From time to time he looked at me, and I just smiled and nodded, hoping it wouldn¡¯t seem odd. ¡®He¡¯s a good man...¡¯ Sovieshu would have cut off Prince Heinley if he said anything strange, but the prince said nary a word about Rashta at all. The conversation went from Prince Heinley¡¯s letters to Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s continent, his magic, and how it worked in war. The grand duke offered only a few words, and did not speak about magic though he had graduated from a magical academy. He was equally silent on other topics, but my attention turned towards the door when it opened and someone came in. It was the captain of the guard. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ Our eyes met, and he bowed towards me. Sovieshu still hadn¡¯t noticed him, as his eyes were on Prince Heinley. ¡°Your Majesty the Emperor.¡± Sovieshu turned his head, and the knight delivered his message. ¡°You need toe to the grand hall.¡± He sounded serious. There were only twenty people in the room, so everyone could hear what he said. All the guests¡¯ eyes were on him. ¡°Why is that?¡± The captain seemed reluctant to answer in presentpany, but Sovieshu picked up on it and went outside with the knight. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ I considered following them, but decided against it. If I was needed, then the knight would have spoken to me as well, and I wouldn¡¯t be required if it had to do with Rashta or anything like that. ¡®I don¡¯t need to leave.¡¯ I made up my mind and turned towards the guests again. When the time came, I left the Red Rose room and went to the grand banquet hall. I had to check on the other guests as well, and when the sun went down I had to inspect the fireworks. ¡®I also made a promise to meet with Laura.¡¯ However, the atmosphere at the grand banquet hall was livelier than I expected. ¡®Did something happen?¡¯ People usually tired out at days-long celebrations. Everyone would dress up for thest day, but the energy was usually not the same as the first. From the entrance I spied people talking andughing, and the noise grew louder as I went in. I looked around confusedly, and Laura ran over to me. ¡°Your Majesty, Her Majesty, did you hear?¡± ¡°Did something interesting happen? I¡¯ve been in the Red Rose room, so I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on.¡± ¡°Something very interesting happened.¡± Laura¡¯s nostrils were red in excitement, and she moved me to a suitable ce for conversation. Nearby, there was a spread of crispy fried seafood, small dishes of pumpkin puddings, and milky coffee. ¡°You can listen while you eat. It¡¯s an appetizing story!¡± ¡°What happened?¡± Laura pushed a pumpkin pudding and a fork towards me. ¡°Thank you, Laura.¡± ¡°You remember Rashta?¡± It was not a topic I was fond of. I grimaced slightly, but Laura continued, despite knowing that I didn¡¯t like talking about her. ¡°Do you remember the rumor that she was a runaway ve?¡± ¡°Yes, but are we not allowed to speak of it?¡± Sovieshu had said he would punish those that did. Could they speak about this in a crowded ce? I was worried, but Laura shouted out before I could stop her. ¡°She really is an escaped ve! Viscount Roteschu arrived at the party for the first time, and he recognized Rashta!¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu?¡± ¡°She was his ve, then she ran away!¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes. If the Emperor was here he would¡¯ve stopped him. Not only that, the viscount had only been in the capital for a few hours. He didn¡¯t know about the rumors about Rashta or the order not to talk about her. That¡¯s why he openly said Rashta was a ve in public!¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°Rashta said she was not, but everyone believed Roteschu. She looked mortified.¡± Laura snorted. ¡°All the nobles who came up to Rashta must have seen it now.¡± ¡°And where are they now?¡± ¡°When Rashta fainted, Baron Lant carried her to her bedroom. Then the captain of the royal guard came and took Viscount Roteschu.¡± So that was why the captain was looking for Sovieshu. For a moment, some unexined feeling welled up inside me. Was it...vindication? Yes. I thought so. Sovieshu had been furious when he suspected I spread false rumors about Rashta as a runaway ve. The resentment and sorrow I felt now turned to satisfaction. However, there was a small corner in my heart that didn¡¯t feel thrilled. Where did this ufortable feelinge from? ¡°...¡± I couldn¡¯t figure it out, and I decided to leave it be for now. In any case, did Sovieshu not realize Rashta was a runaway ve when he rescued her? However, even if he did know, I didn¡¯t think Sovieshu would hate her. He had brought her here because of her pitiful circumstances and his powerful desire to protect her. Whether he fell in love with her then or not, that was their first meeting. And whether Rashta was amoner or a fugitive ve, Sovieshu would still love her. He would try to protect Rashta from ridicule. I didn¡¯t know what would happen, but I did know that I didn¡¯t want to get involved. Chapter 38 - A Man Of Secrets (1) Chapter 38 ¨C A Man Of Secrets (1) As usual, it was futile trying to avoid getting entangled with Rashta. Each time, it was either her or Sovieshu thatted me in, but this time it was Sovieshu. Some of the foreign guests would return to their countries, while a few would stay longer at the southern pce. I returned to the western pce, leaving behind those who wanted to stay up for the drinking and revelry. I wanted to take a warm bath to relieve my fatigue of the day. Thedies-in-waiting also seemed exhausted, so instead of having them follow me, I sent them away to take their rest. However, before I could even finish drawing the bathwater, Sovieshu¡¯s captain of the guard came to see me. I had a sinking feeling the moment I saw him. For nearly a month, all the times Sovieshu summoned me out of the blue had been unpleasant encounters. What on earth did he want this time? My mood felt heavy as I walked through the long corridors, but I managed to control my expression. I hoped I could maintain it in front of my husband... Finally, I entered Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom in the eastern pce. Sovieshu was seated on a chair by the bed, and I also noted Rashta on the bed with a towel on her forehead. I turned back to Sovieshu again, who had his eyes fixed on me. ¡°...I¡¯ll take my leave.¡± The captain closed the door, and the atmosphere became even more oppressive. Sovieshu slowly opened his mouth to speak. ¡°Do you have anything to say to me?¡± His voice was curt. ¡°Why did you call me here?¡± I spoke to him just as bluntly. ¡°Is that the only thing you want to say?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m most curious about now.¡± ¡°You do not even blink at this situation.¡± The first thought that came to mind was, ¡®I must be doing a good job of controlling my facial expression,¡¯ and the corners of my mouth tipped upwards. Sovieshu seemed even more offended by my smile. ¡°Are you happy that everyone thinks Rashta¡¯s a runaway ve?¡± ¡°Are you going to take your anger out on me?¡± ¡°Empress.¡± ¡°I heard about Miss Rashta at the grand hall. I know you¡¯re upset, but don¡¯t take it out on me.¡± ¡°Did you think I called you to vent?¡± ¡°You did not?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then why did you call me?¡± He did not call me to be angry at me, but weren¡¯t his remarks derisive only a while ago? He probably thought I was happy that Rashta was discovered to be a runaway ve. Sovieshu silently watched Rashta¡¯s sleeping form. The ticking of the clock echoed in the room. Only after some time passed did Sovieshu speak. ¡°Did you really want to prove that Rashta is a fugitive ve?¡± ¡°That story again?¡± ¡°The Empress was born a great aristocrat. She had a good family, enormous wealth, great power, a beautiful mansion, and a natural wit and beauty. But in spite of that, she still wants to be on top of everyone.¡± It wasn¡¯t apliment in this situation. I looked at Sovieshu with narrowed eyes, and he sighed. ¡°Rashta had nothing. She became a ve and had no memory or her parents or family. No property, no power, no home. She is like the Empress who is smart and beautiful, but she doesn¡¯t have opportunities opened to her.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°And then she met me, and she had been trying to get these for her own. The chance to be loved, to eat a warm meal, to rx on afortable bed, to learn something.¡± She also took my husband, but I didn¡¯t say this because my pride was injured. I wanted to ask if he wanted me to sympathize with Rasta, but I couldn¡¯t say it either. I just stared at him without a word. I couldn¡¯t understand why he was talking so much¡ªwas he asking me to take care of Rashta because she was in trouble? ¡°I don¡¯t need you to understand Rashta. But you have the smallestpassion...can you give it?¡± ¡°Compassion?¡± ¡°Thepassion the Empress shows here and there¡ªfor example, towards the orphanages, elderly homes, medical centers, temples, schrship centers. Why can you not spare thatpassion to Rashta!¡± Sovieshu exploded at me, but then he stopped himself and copsed back into his chair. Rashta reached out with a groan, and he quickly took her hand. I noticed that she was wearing a shirt with wide sleeves. I wanted to clench my fist. ¡°Rashta is your concubine, so you should take care of her. I¡¯m not looking after her because she¡¯s not under my jurisdiction.¡± ¡°Who said you had to look after her? Ha. I don¡¯t want you to take care of her, so please leave her alone!¡± ¡°Have I ever provoked her?¡± ¡°Yesterday in front of Prince Heinley, when he insulted Rashta. Of the two of them, Prince Heinley and Rashta, you should have sided with Rashta. If you don¡¯t know who¡¯s telling the truth, then you should stand by your subjects!¡± ¡°As I said, I knew the truth, and sided with Prince Heinley ordingly.¡± ¡°Rashta lied?¡± ¡°It is you who believe in her innocence, not me.¡± ¡°Well, that was yesterday. How about today? Why were you trying to undermine her today?¡± ¡°You know I never spoke to Miss Rashta today.¡± ¡°Did you. You never talked to Rashta herself, but you called Viscount Roteschu from behind her back.¡± The air seemed to crack when he made the usation. I knew it couldn¡¯t really be, but it sounded like it. I red at Sovieshu. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°You wanted to prove that Rashta is a runaway ve, and so you brought Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°...I invited the viscount because of Miss Rashta?¡± What kind of ridiculous invention was this? I was dumbfounded. Sovieshu let out an exhale. ¡°Ever since I said that Rashta wasn¡¯t an escaped ve, didn¡¯t you want to prove me otherwise? Were you so offended by everyone loving her?¡± ¡°You¡¯re speaking nonsense.¡± I forced my voice to sound calm, but I felt ready to burst. Sovieshu stood straight up from his chair, his eyes shing threateningly. ¡°Who knows the guest invitations better than the Empress? You must have been working hard. You invited Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°Yes, I know the invitations very well. It was my job. However, I invited him weeks before Rashta even came to the pce.¡± ¡°He¡¯s not an important guest, so why did you invite him to the celebrations?¡± ¡°As I said before...I¡¯m not interested in every single thing concerning Miss Rashta. And you were confident that she was not a runaway ve. Under these circumstances, why would I not send an invitation to Viscount Roteschu?¡± I didn¡¯t even know she was his ve. The only connection I knew was that Sovieshu had found her on the hunting grounds near Roteschu¡¯s estate. Since then, I had never heard mention of it, and if Rashta wasmoner, then Roteschu¡¯s attendance was irrelevant. Yet somehow, Sovieshu thought I calcted Rashta was Roteschu¡¯s ve? Me? I was dumbfounded. ¡°If you have any consideration¡ª¡± ¡°You should take care of her yourself. You can¡¯t expect me to look after her, even if I didn¡¯t know she was Roteschu¡¯s ve.¡± ¡°...You¡¯re heartless. A woman who has been living in poverty her whole life now wants to stand straight, and you don¡¯t want to see it? You don¡¯t want to be tarnished? The Empress is a horrible woman.¡± Chapter 39 - A Man Of Secrets (2) Chapter 39 ¨C A Man Of Secrets (2) Roteschu nervously fidgeted his hands. He was the lord of a small country estate, though that didn¡¯t necessarily mean he was unimportant. Many heroes, military officials, and ranking nobles chose to live peaceful lives on a small estate, leaving the capital behind them as far away as possible. In some cases, it wasn¡¯t the size or geographical features of thend that was important, but its location. For instance, the region of Wirwol was located in a deep mountain valley far from the capital, but its value couldn¡¯t be ignored as it hosted the mage¡¯s headquarters and magical academy. But that wasn¡¯t applicable to Roteschu. His estate in Rimwell was not open to development, as it was the location of the Emperor¡¯s forests and hunting grounds. Naturally, he had never seen the Emperor at a distance, let alone in a private meeting. ¡°...¡± In line of the emperor¡¯s withering re, Viscount Roteschu lowered his eyes. It was a very ufortable experience. Although Roteschu¡¯s friends asionally ridiculed him for the modesty of his estate, he did not hate his position. Larger estates were under the influence of the Emperor, while Roteschu could respectably reign like a king over his own smaller one. He had never prostrated himself before anyone¡ªuntil now. He was intimidated by the Emperor, a man as young as his son, and his pride was dented for it. ¡°Viscount Roteschu. Exin what happened today.¡± Atst the Emperor spoke. For a moment, Viscount Roteschu couldn¡¯t make sense of what he meant. Earlier, the Emperor¡¯s secretary had carried Rashta to the bedroom, while Viscount Roteschu himself was arrested by the captain of the guard and dragged to this vacant room in the eastern pce. The reason why was known to everyone¡ªso why exin it again? But eventually he understood. It was amand by the Emperor to bring this all back to normal. ¡°I beg your forgiveness, Your Majesty. I frequently misidentify people¡¯s faces. The ve who fled from my estate was also beautiful like Miss Rashta and had silver hair and dark eyes, and I mistook Miss Rashta for her.¡± Viscount Roteschu bowed again and continued wheedling his way out. ¡°I have tarnished the reputation of the Emperor¡¯s concubine, Miss Rashta. Please forgive me for my mistake. ¡± His head was lowered, but his eyes glistened with interest. The young emperor continued to protect Rashta despite knowing she was a runaway ve. Roteschu was truly impressed with the young woman. She thought she could simply wash away her identity and position herself as an imperial concubine. Did the Emperor truly favor her that much? Roteschu had known back at the manor that she could keep men under her thumb, but her talent was greater than he expected. ¡°Yes. And you should remember to watch your mouth, Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡± Roteschu¡¯s lips rose into a faint smirk. Perhaps he could get away from being a little country lord and obtain a more privileged position. * * * I followed the long corridor with my guards behind me. Both head and heart were heavy, as were my footsteps. Even my dress seemed to weigh me down. Each step I took, I felt a pricking around my ribs. When I arrived at the western pce, I leaned my head against a pir to brace myself against the sick feeling inside. My pride was injured. Why was Sovieshu so stubborn when it came to Rashta? Where was the Sovieshu I knew, whose eyes glistened when he read a book on the reign of the previous emperors? ¡°Queen.¡± There was a rustling sound and a voice from down the hallway. There was only one person who called me Queen. I quickly straightened up and turned around, and found Prince Heinley standing a ways away and frowning at me. ¡°Sorry. I¡¯m not presentable.¡± I was lucky that I didn¡¯t shed tears, and I ced a smile on my face. ¡°Are you taking a walk?¡± But the prince did not react. He kept looking at my face. Were my eyes red? I turned around for a moment as he approached, and when I turned back he was nearer. Prince Heinley lifted his hand, then stopped, leaving it to hover near my face. His hand was trembling. ¡°I usually wipe away my friend¡¯s tears and hug them when they are heartbroken.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Because the Queen is my friend, can I do that?¡± I shook my head, and the prince withdrew, but he still looked sorrowful and his ears were flushed. ¡°Did your husband insult you again?¡± Again? ¡°...Why do you think that?¡± ¡°Just. I just do.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t really say. It¡¯s personal.¡± ¡°I should have met the Queen first.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°If I had been born five years earlier...damn it.¡± Prince Heinley lips quivered. I was surprised to see him in so much hurt when I hadn¡¯t even exined what happened. What was he talking about? He hesitated a moment before speaking again. ¡°If I can¡¯t offer you any constion, would you like me to send you Queen?¡± I couldn¡¯t hug Prince Heinley to calm myself, but the bird¡¯s presence would be a wee warmth. ¡°Yes. Where is Queen now?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send him to your room.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright if we see him together. I have a lot of questions about Queen...¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 40 - Queen’s Favorite Chapter 40 ¨C Queen¡¯s Favorite What was wrong? Prince Heinley looked as if he were caught by surprise, his purple eyes darting around the hall. ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± ¡°Queen¡¯s busy right now. No, I mean, Queen¡¯s quite shy. He¡¯s bashful whenever there are two or more people in the room with him.¡± ¡°What?¡± That Queen, the one who yed with mydies-in-waiting? I stared at him doubtfully, and Prince Heinley flushed. For some reason he didn¡¯t want to see Queen with me. Ah. Perhaps it was too forward if Prince Heinley came into my room or I went into his, or if we spent time together at the garden in the evening. ¡°I apologize. I made an unreasonable request.¡± We had decided not to be friendly in public. Prince Heinley groaned and ced a hand on his forehead. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that...anyway, what do you want to ask about Queen?¡± ¡°His favorite¡ª¡± ¡°The Empress.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Queen¡¯s favorite is the Empress.¡± ¡°...¡± Why was his face so red? He looked quite embarrassed. Was it childish to say that the bird looked like his human? I smiled from the charming image, but that was not what I meant to ask. ¡°Then please tell him thank you.¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°And I want to know what his favorite food is.¡± ¡°Oh...food.¡± ¡°I usually bring water to my room, but I¡¯d like to give him something to eat.¡± ¡°Queen will love anything you give him.¡± I thought Prince Heinley was responding too much from his own perspective. ¡°Still, there must be something he likes.¡± ¡°No, he¡¯s a good bird, so he¡¯ll eat anything.¡± He suddenly tightened his lips and turned his head sideways. His jaw was clenched as if he were trying to suppressughter. ...Was Queen a big eater? Or was he saying that as a joke? Before I could ask him anything else, Prince Heinley turned away to leave, saying he would send Queen. * * * When I returned to my room, I opened the window so Queen could enter when he arrived. When Prince Heinley first brought up Queen, I only wanted to hug the warm bird, but as we talked more I decided I wanted to give Queen some delicious food as well. I consulted Sir Artina on the subject. ¡°What kind of food do birds usually like, Sir Artina?¡± The imperial guard had their own messenger birds, and I surmised that Sir Artina had more knowledge of birds than I did. As expected, he answered without hesitation. ¡°Birds like insects.¡± ¡°Insects?¡± ¡°Caterpirs, mosquitoes, moths...¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± This would be more difficult than I thought... ¡°I thought I¡¯d give Queen something he¡¯d like to eat.¡± As my guard, Sir Artina was often with me and had known about Queen. ¡°Ah. Since he¡¯s arge bird he might likerge insects.¡± When I didn¡¯t reply, Sir Artina gave a soft chuckle. ¡°We have caterpirs meant for the messenger birds. I¡¯ll get you some.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Queen might not eat if them if they¡¯re are served on a te. If he¡¯s doubtful, you can feed him with tweezers.¡± I felt sick imagining picking up a caterpir with tweezers, but I nodded for now. I had promised Prince Heinley that I would take care of Queen, and I couldn¡¯t back out simply because I was squeamish. Finally, Sir Artina returned with a wooden te and set it down on the table. It was full of plump, squirmingrvae. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I nodded automatically, but as soon as Sir Artina left, I immediately backed away from the table. I was afraid they would crawl out of the te at any moment. ¡®Queen is going to eat that...¡¯ I sat hunched on the bed and peeked at the table about five or six times to check whether the caterpirs had wriggled off the te. Atst, Queen arrived. Instead ofnding on the window sill, he flew gracefully through the open window and circled the room in a glorious sweep, his eyes on me as if to confirm that I was watching his majesty on disy. After a brief circuit, hended on my knee. I stroked his neck and back, and he gave a loud cry and wiggled his tail. ¡°You¡¯re incredible, Queen.¡± Queen raised a wing at thepliment, and I thought it was now a good time to prepare the caterpirs, nervous as I was. Once again I brushed his back and hugged him. ¡°I wanted to give Queen something to eat.¡± ¨C Gu? ¡°Your master says you¡¯ll eat anything...¡± ¨C Gu! ¡°I think he¡¯s wrong.¡± ¨C ... ¡°So I prepared something that big, nice birds like the most.¡± Queen nodded enthusiastically. I picked him up and brought him to my desk. ¡°Here are some caterpirs, Queen.¡± Fortunately, thervae were still on the te, and I set him right in front of it. ¨C ! Queen pulled away, his eyes blinking wildly. Sir Artina had said that Queen might be doubtful if I fed him like this, so I stroke the bird¡¯s back again and picked up a plump caterpir with a pair of tweezers. I could feel the fine hairs on my body rise as I came near the te, but I steeled myself for Queen¡¯s sake. ¡°Come on, Queen. Let¡¯s eat.¡± The bird, however, drew even further backwards and refused to eat. ¡°Try it, Queen. It¡¯s okay.¡± I jerked my hand and got the caterpir right in front of Queen¡¯s face. The caterpir suddenly wriggled, then slipped from the tweezers andnded on Queen¡¯s head. ¨C Guuuuu! The bird leapt up with a shriek. ¡°Queen?¡± Surprised, I tried to catch him, but he was hopping everywhere like crazy. Queen leapt out the window, caterpir still attached to his head, and flew away and finally disappeared. * * * Was it the wrong kind of caterpir? Sir Artina¡¯s birds ate them and were fine. Was it because Queen was a different species of bird? I worried about Queen all night long and slept uneasily. It was him that eased the hurt caused by Sovieshu. I was heartbroken by the distrust in Sovieshu¡¯s eyes, but as soon as I remembered Queen, the image of Sovieshu was pushed away. The next day, I left my room as soon as I finished breakfast to see Prince Heinley. I couldn¡¯t visit his room, but I would likely run into him around the southern pce. ¡®I need to ask if Queen returned safely.¡¯ However, as soon as I left the pce, I discovered Prince Heinley leaning against a pir and staring at the building. ¡°Prince Heinley.¡± He turned to me, omitting the greeting bow and immediately speaking. ¡°I answered wrongly yesterday. He doesn¡¯t eat raw food.¡± ¡°Well, then I can give him cookedrvae¡ª¡± ¡°He doesn¡¯t eat that. He doesn¡¯t eat insects at all.¡± Chapter 41 - Queen’s Favorite (2) Chapter 41 ¨C Queen¡¯s Favorite (2) Rashta was entangled in a ofplicated emotions. She was grateful that Sovieshu protected her. The Emperor knew from the beginning that she was a runaway ve, of course, but his desire to safeguard her hadpelled him to cover it up even after the matter was revealed. How many other men had sweetly whispered their devotion to her before abandoning her, using their identities as a shield? Ironically, it was Sovieshu, the most powerful man in the empire, who did not do so. But fear of the past still nipped at her heels. Just when she had barely shaken off her shackles, just when people were starting to look at her as ¡°Rashta¡± instead of ¡°ve¡±, was when her identity grabbed her ankles again. If it weren¡¯t for Sovieshu¡¯s love for her, her dream would have died because of Roteschu. But what about the people who once hung onto her every word and smile? What would they do now? Rashta was worried. She hadn¡¯t yet met with the other nobles since the truth came out, and she was fearful that those smiling faces would turn into rejection. Rashta stroked the amber bracelet on her hand, but her heart did not settle. ¡®No, even if Rashta is a ve, Rashta is now the Emperor¡¯s concubine. It won¡¯t be the same as before...¡¯ Rashta hugged a doll that Sovieshu had designed for her, a soft thing made of fabric and cotton. Then, the door opened, and Viscountess Verdi entered the room with an uneasy expression on her face. ¡°Miss Rashta, Viscount Roteschu came to see you...What should I tell him?¡± ¡°The lord?¡± In the confusion of the moment, Rashta used the same title she had used in the past. Viscountess Verdi looked startled, but she didn¡¯t say a word. The viscountess¡¯s expression was reced by a kind smile, but Rashta was sure the other woman must beughing at her. If the viscountess knew about Roteschu¡¯s rtionship to Rashta, she shouldn¡¯t have mentioned him. Wasn¡¯t it the subordinate¡¯s job to keep others out of the way? Rashta was sure that if the viscountess were still working for the Empress, she would have been more responsible. Rashta bit her lip. If she had known this, she would havein down in the Emperor¡¯s room and feigned sickness. It was a mistake to return here to organize her thoughts alone. No, no¡ªthe problem was that the Emperor allowed the viscount to go around freely in the first ce. Why didn¡¯t the Emperor just drive him out? Why didn¡¯t he just kill the viscount himself or put him in prison? Wasn¡¯t Sovieshu capable of anything? Rashta held back the hot tears in her ears as she gave an order to Viscountess Verdi. ¡°Tell him to go back.¡± However, Viscountess Verdi hesitated. ¡°Tell him to go back!¡± Rashta yelled this time, but Viscountess Verdi still did not move. Are you ignoring me now too? Rashta wanted to tell in rage. The viscountess continued in a shaky voice. ¡°Well...he said if you don¡¯t let him in, you would regret it...¡± ¡°He said that?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Anger gave Rashta courage, and she gritted her teeth. ¡°Then tell him toe in. Let me see his shameless face.¡± She was determined to give him a cold bowl of abuse. However, when he entered, an ominous smile on his face, her insults died on her lips. ¡°Lady Rashta. Congrattions. You are the Emperor¡¯s concubine.¡± Viscountess Verdi, who was staring alternately between Rashta and Viscount Roteschu, rushed out of the room when Rashta red fiercely at her. Rashta turned back to look at Viscount Roteschu, who helped himself into an empty chair. ¡°Very good, I like it,¡± he said contentedly. ¡°Why are you here?¡± Rashta imitated the Empress¡¯ stern tone. Rashta¡¯s own voice was perfect in charming people, but itcked authority. The viscount let out a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯ve grown to be quite ady now, Rashta.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t thoughtlessly say my name. You will no longer simply address me as Rashta.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure that¡¯s true...for a definite period.¡± ¡°Definite period?¡± ¡°Do you know how many years a woman stays as an emperor¡¯s concubine?¡± ¡°!¡± Rashta bit her lip at the viscount¡¯s barbed remark. He was tapping his fingers against the table and bobbing his neck in time, when he noticed the bracelet on Rashta¡¯s wrist. ¡°Oh, how beautiful. Is it made of amber? Hm? Let me take a look.¡± Rashta flung her hand behind her. Viscount Roteschu frowned for a second, then smiled. ¡°The Emperor ordered me to correct my erroneous im that you were a runaway ve. Now I¡¯m being treated like a fool who cannot even recognize a person¡¯s face. Whether your secret will be revealed or not is up to me. I¡¯m thankful for the gold and silver, but it¡¯s not quite sufficient, hm?¡± Rashta turned on him wildly. ¡°Then you should not have said that from the beginning! You¡¯re shameless! You¡¯re only hiding that I¡¯m an escaped ve because the Emperor ordered you to. You¡¯re not doing this for me.¡± An insidious smile spread across Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face. ¡°Well then, why did I say nothing about the baby you abandoned?¡± Rashta paled. ¡°Baby...¡± Blood rushed to her face again, and she clenched her fists. The white of her eyes were red with blood. ¡°How dare you lie! You killed my baby!¡± Rage flooded every pore of her body. The way he so nonchntly imed that she abandoned her baby echoed hatefully in her ear, but she forced her mouth shut for fear of Viscountess Verdi overhearing them. Viscount Roteschu said ¡°Well?¡± and widened his eyes in an exaggerated circle. Finally, Rashta stood up. ¡°You can¡¯t threaten me with a baby that¡¯s already gone.¡± Viscount Roteschu chuckled. ¡°Gone...what do you mean, Rashta?¡± It was an ordinaryugh, but Rashta felt her spine chill. Roteschu¡¯s expression suddenly hardened and his tone turned mocking. ¡°I would not kill my own grandchild, my own blood.¡± ¡°You¡¯re...you¡¯re lying! I saw the body with my eyes...!¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t believe me, do you want me to bring it to you?¡± Chapter 42 - Iron Wall Defense (1) Chapter 42 ¨C Iron Wall Defense (1) Rashta felt certain her child was gone forever, but the viscount¡¯s confident manner wracked her with doubt. ¡°And Rashta, think carefully. What would people think if I were to suddenly disappear after I said you were a runaway ve? Wouldn¡¯t they say the Emperor was trying to hide something?¡± Rashta was ustomed to listening Roteschu speak as if he would trample her underfoot, but his voice suddenly took on a pleasing tone. She swallowed hard. ¡°Besides, one can¡¯t live so innocently in the Imperial Pce. So much deception to do, how could you leave that kind of work to someone who doesn¡¯t know your secret?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°You foolish creature, I¡¯m saying you should direct that hostile re towards someone else. I already know everything about you. In other words, I can perfectly be your hands and ears.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t need someone like you!¡± Viscount Roteschu tutted at her. ¡°ying dress up doesn¡¯t make you ady, Rashta. Perhaps after a time you will be able to shake off the past and be epted among the nobles, but by then, would you still be a concubine that the Emperor loves?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes trembled. ¡°The Emperor says he only loves Rashta.¡± ¡°Maybe. Maybe not. Well, how should I say this¡ªyou haven¡¯t forgotten my son, have you?¡± Rashta bit her lip. The viscount¡¯s son, who had whispered his vows of love to her, began to change as the birth of Rashta¡¯s baby approached. He started out persistent and stubborn, but gradually exhausted himself. After the baby died, Rashta had pleaded with him to run away together. Eventually he told her, I love you, but I don¡¯t want to change my life for you. ¨C You looked like you were stuck in a mire, and I wished to save you from it. But I was wrong. You are the mire, and I can¡¯t save you from it. Even any children born between use will be dragged into that mire, and trapped in it. That miserable day. It wasn¡¯t just the baby that Rashta lost. Rashta clenched her fists, and blood began to seep from where her fingernails bit her flesh. Instead of stopping, Viscount Roteschu continued to run his de-like tongue across Rashta¡¯s wounds. ¡°The more you are loved by the Emperor, the more other poor, beautiful women will look at your situation and hope. To escape their mire, they¡¯ll want totch on to the Emperor as well.¡± ¡°Then¡ª¡± ¡°Then what? Greedy nobles, foreign lords, and anyone interested in political collusion will send all kinds of beautiful women to the Emperor. And many of those women will have education and status.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You are not an empress, Rashta. If you lose the emperor¡¯s love, you go back into very.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case...it¡¯s no use whether you help me or not.¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s up to you and your ability to remain in his favor, but I can make sure no other concubine wille around orst.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°First you have to let me in.¡± Viscount Roteschu bent slightly at the waist and spoke in a low voice. ¡°If you help me and my familye to the center of power, I will y the role as your parent. Your child is my grandchild, and what is good for it is good for me. ¡± The words would have sounded tempting to Rashta if it were not for the speaker. How could a man like him ept a ve as his daughter-inw? Even a passing dog wouldugh at them. It was clear that he only wanted to keep her close to him to leech from her. Rashta¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, and Viscount Roteschu chuckled. ¡°You don¡¯t believe me. But you¡¯ll know at a nce that your child looks like you.¡± Rashta couldn¡¯t speak, frozen as if she lost all function of her body. Viscount Roteschu stared at her and stood up with a satisfied smile. ¡°Think carefully. I will continue to pretend to be an idiot who can¡¯t recognize faces, as His Majestymanded.¡± * * * The New Year¡¯s three-day celebrations came to an end, and most of the guests returned to their respective homes, save a few who requested to stay longer¡ªincluding Prince Heinley. I reviewed and filled out the period of stay for the remaining guests, their secretaries, servants and knights. When I saw Prince Heinley¡¯s leave date marked ¡°undetermined,¡± I smiled reflexively. I remembered he insisted that Queen did not eat raw food. Earlier I had consulted with an ornithologist and asked if there was a bird with such a diet, and recalled what he had said. ¡°A bird that doesn¡¯t eat raw food? Do you mean it cooks its food? Such a bird would tip the academic world, Your Majesty.¡± Perhaps Prince Heinley was not feeding Queen properly by mistake. ¡®But Queen seemed to hate bugs.¡¯ Maybe the person in charge of feeding Queen cut up the caterpirs? No wonder Queen was surprised to see a live one. Next time I would give that to him. I encountered Prince Heinley on the way back from work, so I took a walk with him and told him about my n. I wanted to inform him in case hey might misunderstand that I was trying to feed Queen some strange food. ¡°Ah...¡± After my exnation, the prince made a strange groaning noise. ¡°Prince? Are you okay?¡± ¡°Please...can you just give water?¡± ¡°An ornithologist¡ª¡± ¡°Eastern birds and Western birds have different temperaments. Western birds eat cooked food.¡± ¡°...¡± Was I supposed to believe that? I made a skeptical expression, and he looked at me imploringly. ¡°You can just pat his head. That¡¯s enough.¡± Did Prince Heinley not like other people feeding Queen? I once heard about a dog that didn¡¯t eat anything other than what the owner gave. It could be the same with the bird. I smiled and nodded, wondering if I was being rude, though the tension in Prince Heinley¡¯s face didn¡¯t loosen. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m sure feeding him is lovely, but he¡¯s already lovely himself.¡± ¡°No...but I¡¯m sorry anyway.¡± He sighed and raked his hand through his blond hair. ¡°Just. There are a lot of constraints.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Queen¡¯s birthday soon, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s his birthday?¡± Prince Heinley burst outughing, then corrected himself. ¡°I meant your birthday, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You knew?¡± I smiled weakly. Large celebrations were usually held on the birthdays of the emperors and empresses, but mine was too close to New Year¡¯s. Holdingrge parties in session with one another could hurt public opinion and ce a burden on the nobles. Since my childhood, my birthdays had been a more intimate affair of dinner with family and acquaintances. Prince Heinley didn¡¯t know this, of course. When I smiled awkwardly, he stopped walking and offered his own grin. ¡°I know the day, but I still don¡¯t know what you would like.¡± ¡°You mean as a gift?¡± ¡°I¡¯m your best friend. I want to spend that day with you, don¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°!¡± Before I could answer, I heard a rustling sound. Instead of answering Prince Heinley, I looked around and spotted someone I didn¡¯t expect to see. It was Sovieshu. Other than a single knight, he was walking alone. Sovieshu¡¯s gazended on me and Prince Heinley. ¡°...Empress.¡± Chapter 43 - Iron Wall Defense (2) Chapter 43 ¨C Iron Wall Defense (2) Sovieshu called out to me in a stern voice and frowned. ¡°You¡¯re with him?¡± I didn¡¯t want to answer, as my feelings about Sovieshu were still unresolved. ¡°Yes.¡± I offered him the bluntest reply, and the crease Sovieshu¡¯s forehead on grew deeper. ¡°Prince Heinley. How long are you going to remain here?¡± Prince Heinley replied with a broad smile, even though he had an argument with the Emperor only a few days ago. ¡°About two to three weeks, I think.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that too long? The Western king is not in the best health, and it¡¯s not good for the crown prince to stay away.¡± Sovieshu was not shy in hiding his dislike for Prince Heinley, which had built up since Prince Heinley¡¯s conflict with Rashta. Sovieshu¡¯s observation wasn¡¯t wrong, however. ¡°Thank you for your concern.¡± Prince Heinley responded with a simple smile and said nothing more. A strained silence reigned over the group. ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave first, Your Majesty. ¡± I quickly said goodbye to Sovieshu, as we would only hurt each other¡¯s feelings if I stayed any longer. However, Sovieshu looked offended and called out to me again. ¡°Empress.¡± That look...did he just want to insult me in front of Prince Heinley? That was my first thought going by past experience. To my misfortune, or perhaps it was a blessing, he spoke to Prince Heinley first. ¡°I need to talk to the Empress, and I hope that you will go your own way.¡± ¡°I was already walking with her, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I have something to say to the Empress, Prince Heinley.¡± Sovieshu cut between me and Prince Heinley, and he held out his arm for me to take. When I looked at Prince Heinley, I saw his lips were pressed tight, as if he wished I wouldn¡¯t follow my husband. I took Sovieshu¡¯s hand, feeling sorry for Prince Heinley who looked like a sad golden retriever, while Sovieshu shot a re at him. ¡°Why are you looking at the Empress with a miserable expression?¡± Sovieshu stared down at him as if he found him pathetic. ¡°The Empress was showing me around, and the Emperor has taken my guide.¡± ¡°The Empress is my wife, not a tour guide for a prince.¡± Sovieshu wrapped his arm possessively around my shoulder. I could not deny him, and sighed and walked alongside his footsteps. It wasn¡¯t until when Prince Heinley was out of sight did he drop his arm. ¡°Why are you showing around that womanizer?¡± ¡°I ran into him on the way from work.¡± ¡°Let someone else handle it from now on. There are many other people in the pce, yet he wants the Empress to guide him?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley is the sessor to a powerful nation with extensive wealth and military power. We don¡¯t have to be on bad terms.¡± Sovieshu nced towards the knight, who took a bow and stepped away. Sovieshu rested his arm against a pir and gave me a reproachful stare. I suspected didn¡¯t want me to cultivate rtions with the man who demeaned Rashta. ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t want you to take care of him.¡± I knew it. He was incredibly obvious. He smiled grimly and emphasized his words. ¡°He has a nice face, and he acts like a pet dog in front of you. But he will only bring scandal if you associate with him.¡± ¡°Scandal?¡± ¡°Other noblewomen and youngdies attach themselves to this womanizer believing they¡¯re in a rtionship. However, the Empress is one of the most honorable people in this country. You represent the Empire. Where is the Imperial Household¡¯s honor if you are swayed by a Western womanizer?¡± ¡°My honor is not tarnished by talking to him. If you don¡¯t see this friendship as a friendship with any other noble, the West would be unhappy with you.¡± ¡°You won¡¯t listen to me.¡± ¡°If this is about Miss Rashta¡ª¡± ¡°Who says it¡¯s about Rashta? Why is the name Rashta being brought up here?¡± Because she was the reason why he hated Prince Heinley. I stared at Sovieshu despite his feign to ignorance, and he gave a frustrated sigh. ¡°You truly hate Rashta.¡± ¡°I only said the name because she¡¯s the reason why you want to ostracize Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°No. You hate her, so you¡¯re using her as a shield in everything.¡± I was tired. I didn¡¯t want to answer back. ¡°I will leave if you continue on like this.¡± ¡°About Rashta¡ª¡± I took a few steps and stopped. As I turned around, Sovieshu cleared his throat, and his voice softened. ¡°Before. I spoke too harshly to you.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Three days ago.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have med you when Viscount Roteschu came...I was upset. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Sovieshu awkwardly kept staring at the ground instead of me. ¡®He loses his temper when ites to Rashta, but hees back to his senses in about three days?¡¯ I should remember that next time something with Rashta happened again. I gave a mechanical smile, nodded, and turned around again. ¡°Empress.¡± But Sovieshu called out to me once more. I turned back, and he approached me hesitantly. ¡°It will be your birthday soon. We¡¯ve been estranged from each othertely...perhaps we can go to the vi to reconcile. What do you think?¡± Chapter 44 - An Unchanging Person (1) Chapter 44 ¨C An Unchanging Person (1) To be honest, I was skeptical whether the strain between us could be relieved so quickly, but a rejection would only worsen our rtionship. ¡°...¡± I knew the rational answer was yes. An inharmonious rtionship between the emperor and empress would reveal weakness to our enemies, and even if Sovieshu loved another woman, it was my duty to show everyone that I was on good terms with him. ¡°Empress?¡± However, the answer lodged itself in my throat. My pride was bruised. It was hard to not be affected by strong emotions when my husband loved another woman and took her as his concubine. Whenever Sovieshu and I had problems before it could be ignored, but that wasn¡¯t the case anymore. Anyone with an ounce of wit knew that anytime we fought, it was about Rashta. ¡°Yes.¡± I forced a smile and nodded. ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡± When he heard my answer, Sovieshu smiled and lifted his arm again. ¡°Shall we walk together?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± We strolled the grounds wordlessly together. Our shoes echoed on the stone path, and the breeze flew pleasantly on our faces. In the past, I had taken many pleasant walks with Sovieshu and sharedfortable silences with him. It was all gone days now... I stopped myself from sighing, and Sovieshu broke the silence. ¡°Did you know that Grand Duke Kapmen is still here at the pce?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I had looked over the relevant documents of course, but why did he bring up Grand Duke Kapmen all of a sudden? I looked up, and Sovieshu exined. ¡°Kapmen wants to open diplomatic rtions between Rwibt and the Wol continent.¡± Oh...is that what he¡¯s here for? ¡°The officials have varying opinions as to whether it¡¯s beneficial or not. The Hwa continent where Rwibt is located is certainly exotic and appealing, but it¡¯s too different from the Wol continent. Moreover, we¡¯re too far away to significantly influence each other.¡± ¡°Efforts to establish trade would be a drain on the state coffers.¡± ¡°Exactly. There are so many things to discuss. What is the Empress¡¯ opinion?¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen graduated from the magical academy in Wirwol. Autonomous or not, it is clearly in Eastern Empire territory. Rwibt may be too dissimr in culture, but the grand duke has spent many years in this Empire and must have given thought to it more than anyone else. The Eastern Empire is in a rtively good position to open diplomatic rtions, so there is no reason to miss this opportunity.¡± Sovieshu frequently consulted me on various issues, and I naturally replied. He nodded in agreement. Instead ofmenting on my answer however, he slightly shifted topics. ¡°Have you ever had a private conversation with Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen. He criticized me for not dealing with Rashta properly. Should that be called a conversation? ¡°Only briefly...¡± Alright, I¡¯ll call it a conversation. Sovieshu spoke again. ¡°Kapmen said if we were to open diplomatic rtions with Rwibt, he would like the Empress to be involved.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± Sovieshu seemed to wonder what kind of words Kapmen and I shared, but I did as well. Why did Kapmen criticize me? ¡°He said he wants you in the next meeting.¡± * * * After a conversation that started with my birthday and ended with Kapmen, Sovieshu returned to the eastern pce, while I strolled around more by myself. However, thoughts of Kapmen and my birthday felt distant. Frankly...I was skeptical. Would Rashta, the one who wanted to attend a special banquet for only twenty people, passively let me and Sovieshu leave for the vi alone? Well...there was a high probability that there would be three of us there instead of two, and I would bepletely stressed out. I sighed as I approached a fountain, when I spotted Prince Heinley. I halted in surprise. He was exactly at the ce I left him. I thought he would have gone for a walk or gone back to his quarters, so what was he still doing here? ¡°Queen.¡± Had Prince Heinley sensed my feelings? He turned his head and smiled. ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone yet?¡± I approached him where he was sitting by the fountain and sshing the water with one hand. ¡°Hmm...can I tell you the truth?¡± He pulled his hand out of the water and smiled softly. ¡°I was waiting for you toe back.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°When one gets lost, one should remain where they are.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know the way?¡± ¡°Not intuitively.¡± I pulled out a handkerchief and offered it to him with a smile. He took it and dried his hand, then tucked the handkerchief away. ¡°My handkerchief.¡± He gave a chuckle as I reached out my hand in embarrassment. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll give it back to you after I wash it.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°But this way we can see each other again, right?¡± He gave an easy smile, and I nodded at his yful tone. At the same time, I remembered what he said a few hours ago. ¡°Prince Heinley. About my birthday.¡± He said he was here for my birthday, though I didn¡¯t think that was entirely true. He did seem to want to spend time with me, and I felt sorry and wanted his understanding. ¡°I don¡¯t think we can spend time and have a meal together.¡± ¡°We can¡¯t?¡± ¡°The Emperor wants to go to the royal vi. Just him and me.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± His lips parted and he blinked dazedly, until he murmured ¡°Yes, I see.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s your birthday, and you needn¡¯t feel sorry for me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Please, don¡¯t be sorry. I don¡¯t want to put pressure on you.¡± * * * ¡°You must be feeling a lot of pressure...¡± Sir McKenna stared awkwardly at the scene before him. Spread before him were various jeweled rings, prized possessions associated with various legends. Prince Heinley usually carried them in an enchanted pouch, but now he had taken them all out to examine each one. He was going to give one of these precious rings as a gift to the empress of another country. McKenna couldn¡¯t help but be perplexed. ¡°Why are you giving a ring all of a sudden?¡± ¡°Birthday.¡± ¡°Empress Navier?¡± ¡°Mmm.¡± ¡°How do you know that again? ...And isn¡¯t the gift too much? The Eastern Empire may be prestigious, but so is the Western Kingdom. There isn¡¯t a wide enough gap between the countries for you to offer such a tribute.¡± Prince Heinley put the jewels back in his pouch. ¡°I¡¯ll choose when you¡¯re not around. You¡¯re a nag.¡± He pulled out a handkerchief instead. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you see? It¡¯s a precious handkerchief.¡± The prince then transformed into a bird, holding the handkerchief in his beak and flying in front of McKenna. The prince pointed a w at his neck. ¡°You want me to tie it there?¡± McKenna fastened the handkerchief to the bird¡¯s neck, and he was rewarded with a feathery smack of a tail. Prince Heinley then flew out the window, and McKenna frowned as he watched him disappear. The handkerchief appeared to have been embroidered with the letter ¡°N¡±... ¡°Is Prince Heinley¡¯s letter acquaintance Empress Navier?¡± Chapter 45 - An Unchanging Person (2) Chapter 45 ¨C An Unchanging Person (2) After parting from Prince Heinley, I stopped by the library and researched all I could on the country of Rwibt and the Hwa continent. Although Grand Duke Kapmen had described The Travelogue as a delusional ount, it was still the most well-known book on the country. I don¡¯t know why the grand duke requested my presence at that next meeting, but I wanted to broaden my knowledge on the Rwibt culture as much as possible. ¡®I wish I had a book with more detail...¡¯ I was seated on a bench cross-referencing the Travelogue with other books when there was a tapping noise from the window. It was Queen. I opened the window and he hopped onto the sill, disying his wings. I noticed he wore a handkerchief around his neck. ¡°Did Prince Heinley tie this on you?¡± The handkerchief was my own. I smiled, and Queen tilted his head. I held Queen in one arm and petted his beak with my other hand, and checked his legs for a note. There was none this time. ¡°Are you here to show off?¡± Or perhaps he came here to return the handkerchief? He couldn¡¯t answer me of course, and simply blinked at me with his gorgeous violet eyes. I couldn¡¯t resist them, and smothered his head with kisses one after another. ¡°Queen is so pretty, especially with the handkerchief around your neck.¡± ¨C Gu! He seemed to like it so much that I couldn¡¯t bring myself to remove it. As I petted his back I thought, Queen smells good. What kind of thought was that? I put my nose to his shoulder and inhaled. ¨C ! The scent subtly reminded me of Prince Heinley. Did he wash the handkerchief and spray his perfume on it? I found it so charming that a bird smelled like this that I leaned in to whisper in his ear. ¡°You smell like Prince Heinley, Queen.¡± Queen unfolded his wings in shock. Then he covered his beak with his wings and opened his eyes wide. ¡°Queen?¡± I yfully called out to him, but Queen trembled and hopped back towards the window. ¡°Are you going already?¡± He looked so cute, and I opened my arms to him before he would fly away. However, he stiffened like ice and shook his head. * * ¡°Sometimes she says the most suggestive things...¡± Back in his room, Prince Heinley unfastened the handkerchief from his neck. His face was still burning. ¡°My scent...¡± Heinley sniffed the handkerchief. He had sprayed it with his favorite perfume after he wished it. She recognized his favorite scene right away? Heinley crouched to the ground, his cheeks flushed. The Empress¡¯ whispered words were for Queen, but he still felt his heart pound as he remembered the way her breath tickled his ear. Unfortunately, it was McKenna who ruined that embarrassing and exciting feeling. ¡°Why are you naked? Sorry.¡± Heinley red at McKenna¡ªhis secretary, his knight, his cousin, and even his friend. ¡°You¡¯ll get sick. Cover yourself up.¡± McKenna went to the closet and pulled out afortable outfit, while Heinley stood up, clicking his tongue and holding out his hand. Instead of handing the clothes over, however, McKenna had a few questions to ask first. ¡°Your Highness. The person you went to see with the handkerchief...was it the Empress of the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°Give me the clothes.¡± McKenna handed over the items, and Heinley epted them with a look that said, Why would you ask me that? McKenna kept staring questioningly, however, but Heinley offered only a vague reply. ¡°Well.¡± He dressed, then went outside the pce. He took a pathway that would allow the evening breeze to cool his heated face. McKenna was persistent, however, and stuck by his side. ¡°Your Highness, you have to be honest. Was your letter acquaintance Empress Navier?¡± McKenna ignored Prince Heinley¡¯s initial defiance. ¡°Does it matter? Just keep your mouth shut. I¡¯m recounting a good memory and your keep interrupting.¡± ¡°Is memory important when reality is right in front of you? How can I not care, Prince? Is your letter acquaintance someone you can love?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯m in favor of you in a serious romantic rtionship. However, if your partner is the empress of a powerful country, it¡¯s a different story...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You should never be involved in the empresses of other countries, powerful or not. Do you want to be politically entangled with the Eastern Empire?¡± McKenna¡¯s eyes were moist in genuine worry. Prince Heinley and Empress Navier had a dead end rtionship. Even if Emperor Sovieshu had his heart set on Rashta, no country would ever remove the sitting empress and ce a runaway-ve-turned-concubine in her position. The empress could not initiate a divorce from her husband either. And even if Emperor Sovieshu deposed Empress Navier, there was no way she would remarry a prince from another country. ¡°It¡¯s not like that. And you¡¯re exaggerating.¡± ¡°Really? Can I trust you? ¡°...¡± ¡°Why won¡¯t you answer, huh?¡± McKenna paused, then asked more carefully, ¡°I haven¡¯t asked the most important thing yet. Do you two have mutual feelings for each other? ¡± Heinley hesitated, then he held up his hand, his eyes looking elsewhere. His expression was the same, but the mood had changed. McKenna stopped his interrogation and looked in the same direction as Prince Heinley. A woman with a light purple parasol was walking towards them on the white stone pathway. It was Rashta, Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s concubine. McKenna quieted his mouth. The Emperor¡¯s lover and rising star of society hadpletely sank in a matter of days. McKenna wasn¡¯t sure about the other residences, but many of the guests in the southern pce sneered at Rashta for covering up the fact she was a runaway ve. After Viscount Roteschu¡¯s im spread, Rashta went around attempting to correct the gossip, but no one believed her. Perhaps that was why the once-shining Rashta was now in a depressed mood. McKenna looked at Prince Heinley. The prince already had stirred trouble with Rashta, and he was quite outspoken once he started talking. Whether it was a blessing or misfortune though, Prince Heinley walked past Rashta as if he didn¡¯t notice her, and McKenna was relieved and quick to follow. However, it was Rashta who called out. ¡°Your Highness.¡± McKenna huffed and pushed at the small of Prince Heinley¡¯s back. However, Prince Heinley turned with a frown, and Rashta approached them. Chapter 46 - Society’s Chewbone (1) Chapter 46 ¨C Society¡¯s Chewbone (1) ¡°Why did you call me?¡± Prince Heinley turned to Rashta sternly, and her eyes drooped. She looked miserable. ¡°Don¡¯t you have anything to say to me?¡± Her voice quivered in meekness. McKenna understood why so many people fell in love with Rashta. There was something about her distress that aroused pity in the viewer¡¯s heart. ¡°No.¡± Heinley¡¯s voice was a t monotone, however, and McKenna tutted warningly. Despite Rashta¡¯s tarnished reputation, she was still highly favored by the Emperor. McKenna didn¡¯t care what Heinley said about her behind the scenes, but the prince would have to be careful in front of her face... Prince Heinley seemed topletely disregard that, however. ¡°Don¡¯t you have anything to say to me? I think you do.¡± Rashta¡¯srge eyes glistened and filled with tears. McKenna knew what wasing. Prince Heinley could appear light and casual, but at the drop of a hat he could be cold and frightening. Prince Heinley¡¯s frigid gaze intensified, and Rashta, who seemed intimidated, started to cry. ¡°You are a wonderful man.¡± McKenna didn¡¯t expect those words to leave her mouth. Rashta gazed at Prince Heinley with her dark eyes, not a trace of fear on her expression. On the contrary, she looked deeply moved. Who reacted to a cold attitude like that...? McKenna¡¯s eyebrows twisted in disbelief at her unusual behavior, and Prince Heinley, too, frowned in surprise. Rashta gave a sheepish smile as she wiped her eyes with one hand. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You must be embarrassed by Rashta¡¯s sudden crying.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°After the rumor spread, people began to treat Rashta horribly. They used to be sweet, but now theyugh and mock Rashta.¡± She finished dabbing her tears with her sleeve, but as soon as she lowered her arm she choked up again. ¡°But Prince Heinley is the only one who treats Rashta the same way...of course we¡¯re not on good terms, but Rashta was just touched...¡± The urge to protect her strengthened even more when she was crying. Some nobles only treated other nobles with kindness, and looked down at people with lower status. It was likely those same people had terribly humiliated Rashta. ¡°I see.¡± Despite the pitiable sight before him, Heinley continued to speak with cold formality. He seemed to have no opinion on her situation, and he checked his wristwatch and said, ¡°Well, that¡¯s enough,¡± then walked away without another word. McKenna, feeling sorry for Rashta, smiled awkwardly at her and followed Prince Heinley. ¡°Your Highness, I know you¡¯re on bad terms, but that was a little too cold, wasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°You want me to show courtesy to someone who tried to deceive me? Who used me of being a liar?¡± What extraordinary talent. McKenna was certainly offended on Heinley¡¯s behalf, but he had momentarily forgotten about it when he saw Rashta cry. He tilted his head in thought, while Prince Heinley turned back towards the southern pce. ¡°More importantly, when is Elgying? Did you deliver the letter?¡± ¡°I delivered it properly. But why did you call him all of a sudden?¡± * * ¡°Duke Elgy udia?¡± I stared at the minister in bewilderment and he nodded. ¡°Did hee here as part of a delegation mission?¡± ¡°No, he said he stopped by for sightseeing.¡± Foreign guests rarely visited a month or two after the New Year¡¯s celebrations. There were no festivals at this time, and those who did stay past New Year¡¯s did it so they wouldn¡¯t have to visit again. Why would Duke Elgy udia, who couldn¡¯t attend the New Year¡¯s celebrations on the ount of being too busy, suddenlye now? ¡®Ah, perhaps he came to see Prince Heinley?¡¯ Duke Elgy udia was known to be a close friend of the prince. So...a yboy friend. I wondered at this, but I signed the documents permitting his stay, and continued on with my work. I heard the name Duke Elgy again while having dinner with thedies-in-waiting. ¡°Your Majesty, did you hear? Duke Elgy udia came to the pce today.¡± ¡°Of course she knows, Laura.¡± ¡± Oh, I see. So you know too? Who Lord Elgy was with all day?¡± I cut my sd with my knife. ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± Laura snorted, ¡°No.¡± ¡°He was with the ve, Rashta.¡± Ah...Rashta. ¡°That¡¯s surprising.¡± Since Duke Elgy was Prince Heinley¡¯s best friend, I thought he would avoid Rashta on principle. Laura continued on nervously. ¡°They didn¡¯t just meet. They were together all day long. I heard they were very close to each other.¡± Anotherdy-in-waiting, who was waiting for her turn in the conversation, followed Laura¡¯s words quickly. ¡°Not just that. They were so close, they caused quite some trouble.¡± What happened? I looked at her questioningly, and she shook her head and clicked her tongue. ¡°Duke Elgy and Rashta were walking together when they came across a noble. He said he knew Rashta was a runaway ve and insulted her for being with the duke. As soon as the noble finished speaking, Duke Elgy punched him.¡± * * * The table in Rashta¡¯s drawing room was loaded with a diverse assortment cakes¡ªlight pink strawberry cake, yellow banana cream cake, melon cake... The desserts, tailored to Rashta¡¯s taste, were created by the Emperor¡¯s chef and were made to perfection in both appearance and taste. However, these dishes were not for Rashta today. ¡°Thank you for earlier, Duke.¡± Rasta smiled and thanked Duke Elgy sitting opposite her. She was deeply grateful to him. Although Viscount Roteschu retracted his remarks about Rashta being an escaped ve within a day, everyone was reluctant to believe him. As she feared, Rashta quickly became estranged from the nobles. Her friends stopped visiting her, and the flow of gifts disappeared. What was most upsetting, however, was the asional glimpses she saw of their gazes. Some nobles showed contempt, others curiosity, some pity, and others vague interest. But Duke Elgy was different from all of them. He treated her kindly, like when she was treated as an aristocrat during New Year¡¯s. At first Rashta believed it was because Duke Elgy was ignorant about the rumors, but soon she saw with her own eyes that he didn¡¯t care about it at all. He even threw his fist at the nobleman who taunted her. He was a royal, he was a duke, he was a beautiful man who surrounded himself with the love of women¡ªand he punched someone for her. Rashta was ttered beyond measure, and so she invited him to enjoy her favorite food. ¡°Thank you. I only respond that way to rude people, by the way.¡± ¡°Well, as you may have heard, there are bad rumors going around about Rashta. They¡¯re false, of course.¡± ¡°Does this always happen?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡ª¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing to be ashamed of. The ones who are rude are the ones who should be ashamed.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I suppose it happens a lot.¡± Duke Elgy propped his arm against the chair arm and uttered a low swear word. ¡°That bastard. Saying you¡¯re a ve in front of you. So what if you¡¯re a ve? I should have thrashed his mouth more.¡± ¡°Those are scary words, Duke...¡± ¡°I originally came here to see a friend, but I¡¯m d I met you first. If I weren¡¯t there, no one else would stand up to that ruffian.¡± His friend was probably going crazy that he didn¡¯t show up yet. He rubbed his eyes and wondered if he was concerned. ¡± He has a mean temper. ¡± Duke Elgy was so different from the nobles Rashta met before. He seemed rough like a mercenary from a street bar, yet simultaneously had a sophisticated and noble air. She found it even more amusing to see the contrast of this muscr, big-mouthed noble eating dainty cakes. And he didn¡¯t care if she was a ve... Rashta especially liked him. ¡°Anyway, miss, let¡¯s make it so it doesn¡¯t happen in the future. There¡¯s no way those ruffians will suddenly disappear.¡± ¡°Right...¡± ¡± You¡¯d better take care of it as soon as possible. ¡± ¡°There¡¯s no way to fix it. Viscount Roteschu spread those rumors himself, and people don¡¯t believe him even when he says it¡¯s false.¡± ¡°Pass it on to someone else. It¡¯s faster than an exnation.¡± Duke Elgy answered her bluntly and swallowed another bite of yellow cake. ¡°Pass it on?¡± ¡°The role as society¡¯s chewbone. Shift it to someone else.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 47 - Society’s Chewbone (2) Chapter 47 ¨C Society¡¯s Chewbone (2) The pce was shrouded in morning fog when I awoke. I opened the window and leaned my head out, allowing the cool air to cleanse my body. Today was the day I would discuss opening diplomatic ties with Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡®I have to be at my best.¡¯ I mentallyposed myself. When I tied the curtains together, I discovered a letter on a window sill, secured underneath a stone so it wouldn¡¯t fly away. ¡®Prince Heinley?¡¯ I opened the letter and saw Prince Heinley¡¯s handwriting. ¨C Trust me. ¡°?¡± What did he want me to trust him for? I was surprised, but I felt happy receiving a letter after a long while. Unfortunately, I couldn¡¯t send a reply right away since Queen was gone. I tucked the paper in a drawer and went to the bathroom to wash my face in cold water. Afterwards I rang a bell, and thedies-in-waiting entered to prepare me for the day. ¡°You¡¯re having a meeting at a round table, aren¡¯t you? You¡¯ll be seated next to people, so we shouldn¡¯t choose a dress that¡¯s too wide.¡± Countess Eliza selected a ck dress that fell almost in a straight line, and then arranged my hair. ¡°If Queenes when I¡¯m away, please give him some water.¡± ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°And allow him inside if it rains. Sometimes he gets caught in the rain outside the window.¡± I left Countess Eliza with my requests, then took a deep breath and left the room. I believed I could face this. * * * The meeting convened at 10 a.m. It was a rtively small assembly¡ªpresent were the finance minister, the foreign minister, important officials from each department, Grand Duke Kapmen, Sovieshu and myself. The topic was the opening of diplomatic rtions with Rwibt, and the benefits, losses, and feasibility. There were a total of eight continents in the world, with little exchange between them. The Wol continent, where the Eastern Empire is located, and the Hwa continent, where Rwibt was located, were rtively closepared to other continents, but even so, it was still a long distance. It would take time to generate profits from private trade, and quickmunication was essential in state-led transactions. Given the situation, it was difficult to reach a conclusion. However... ¡®Why does Sovieshu look like he¡¯s in a foul mood?¡¯ He glowered through the discussions. He was supposed to lead the meeting, but he made it difficult to offer free opinions and the officials kept looking at him. ¡®Is it because of what happened between Duke Elgy and Rashta? He shouldn¡¯t bring that with him to work...¡¯ I lifted my head from the map and swallowed my sigh, when I encountered Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s gaze. His expression was neutral, neither antagonistic nor favorable. When our eyes met, he nodded, and I nodded in return. * * * The meeting crawled slowly, and by the end of it I was in charge of the matter at Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s rmendation. His reasons were iprehensible, considering his attitude towards me at New Year¡¯s Day. ¡®Grand Duke Kapmen.¡¯ I finally closed the meeting, and the room emptied. I followed Grand Duke Kapmen out into the hallway. ¡°Do you have a moment? I want to ask you something.¡± ¡°Yes. Go ahead and ask.¡± ¡°Why did you rmend me to take charge?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen raised his eyebrows. ¡°You don¡¯t like it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m just curious. A few days ago...¡± He criticized me for how I dealt with Rashta¡ªorck of it. I didn¡¯t say it out loud, but his lips curved up as if he understood what I meant. Was he smiling? That made me quite upset. ¡°Because it holds true.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°There is no one else who could be in charge other than the Empress.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°When I spoke of the Imona and Imot, you were the only one that understood what that meant.¡± He rmended me for that reason only? I hurried to exin. ¡°As I said before, I only know a few words. I wasn¡¯t being humble, it was true.¡± ¡°Yes, but many people don¡¯t even know those words.¡± Thenguage was not apulsory subject at the academy ...Was it really alright to leave me with this serious task based on that alone? I couldn¡¯t show weakness as empress, however, so I finally nodded. Now that it hade to this, I had to fill in the gap with effort. ¡°Please, if you¡¯ll excuse me.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen gave a slight bow as if he had nothing more to say, then turned and walked down the corridor. Tang tang tang. The sound of his shoes echoed with each step he took. I turned my head and went the opposite direction, and when I saw Sovieshu through the open door of the conference room, leaning against a table. He had been brooding throughout the meeting, but now his expression looked even darker. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± I was worried and approached him, but I regretted it as soon as I did. Did something happen with Rashta? It was impossible for me to ask this, but I couldn¡¯t ignore Sovieshu when he was looking like this. ¡°You look grim. Are you alright?¡± Instead, I avoided reason and only asked about his current state. However, the words that left his mouth stunned me. ¡°Empress. Do you have a preference for foreigners?¡± Chapter 48 - The Butterfly Of Society (1) Chapter 48 ¨C The Butterfly Of Society (1) Did I have a preference for foreigners? What on earth was he talking about? I threw him a reproachful look. It was hard to understand what he meant. Was this because I spoke to Grand Duke Kapmen? ¡°I won¡¯t stop the Empress from paying attention to other men, but I hoped they would not be foreigners.¡± As I suspected. I was about to say I couldn¡¯t refuse Grand Duke Kapmen, but then I changed my words. ¡°It¡¯s not something you need to concern yourself with.¡± I kept getting involved in strange misunderstandings, especially with Prince Heinley, but it was Sovieshu who brought in a concubine first. It was unlikely I would bring in my own lover as retaliation, but in any case, Sovieshu shouldn¡¯t criticize me in what I do. In my view, that was fair. Sovieshu, however, he seemed to have different ideas. ¡°How can I not care? Are you not my wife?¡± ¡°...¡± I wanted to retort, ¡°Did you consult me before taking in Miss Rashta?¡± but I knew he would say I brought her up again because I was jealous. Sovieshu exhaled in a dignified manner. ¡°Do you like Lord Kapmen? To the point that he makes you sigh?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t misunderstand. We only spoke of this one thing.¡± ¡°Yes, well, I¡¯m d to hear that...but I¡¯d like you to be more mindful.¡± * * * After that was another meeting with the finance minister and treasury officials on the annual state budget, which included the sry of the court officials, royal guards, as well as the budget for various events. ¡°The tax revenues are about the same asst year.¡± ¡°While the system is expected to be unchanged, we don¡¯t know the costs.¡± ¡°We can usest year¡¯s budget n.¡± ¡°Alright. Overall there is no national conflict expected, so we can set it simr tost years.¡± So far, everything had gone smoothly. Complications arose, however, when it came to Rashta. The emperor usually gave his concubines a considerable, though unfixed, amount of money each year. Because there was no standard and each emperor paid different amounts, it was difficult to reference to previous cases. ¡°Do you have a separate ount book for Miss Rashta? It should be easy enough to calcte.¡± ¡°The books did note to the treasury. Since there is no money assigned yet, it should be listed under your ount. The Emperor is providing for her now.¡± ¡°Is that so.¡± I didn¡¯t think Sovieshu was going to give me the ount books somehow. ¡°What if we use Countess Malti as an example here, Your Majesty? She was amoner before she became a concubine early in the emperor¡¯s rule.¡± ¡°Prices have gone up since then, so I don¡¯t think they¡¯reparable.¡± ¡°We still have to use some precedent. Once the amount is set it will be hard to lower it, but if there is a new concubine¡ªah, sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. You¡¯re right, we should be sure.¡± The meeting went on longer than I thought, and when I left the room with the finance minister, the air was already cold. The sun was still out, but the sky was not that bright. ¡®I missed lunchtime.¡¯ My meeting with Grand Duke Kapmen went from morning until afternoon, and from the afternoon onward I missed my meal when I met with the finance minister. When I realized I hadn¡¯t eaten, I suddenly felt hungry and hastened my stride. I also wondered if Queen had dropped by. I hurried along, and at the fork leading to the eastern and western pces, I saw the hem of a blue skirt peeking from the bushes. Sir Artina, who was following me, frowned. ¡°Who is that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I answered with a shake of my head. As if I was heard, the owner of the protruding skirt stepped away from the bushes, revealing it to be Viscountess Verdi. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± When our eyes met, she broke away and her eyes darted around. After making sure no one else was here, she urgently beckoned at me. However, I didn¡¯t approach and Sir Artina rebuked her. ¡°Rude.¡± Viscountess Verdi shook her head vigorously. Desperation flickered on her face, then she looked around again and came up to me. ¡°I have something urgent to say. I may not be yourdy-in-waiting anymore, but I can¡¯t rest easy until I tell you this.¡± Her lips trembled. I prevented Sir Artina from admonishing her again and signaled Viscountess Verdi to continue speaking. The viscountess pressed her hands together. ¡°I think Viscount Roteschu knows something about Miss Rashta. A weakness.¡± ¡°Weakness?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t hear the details, but I think she¡ª¡± The sound of something snapping interrupted her. I turned towards the direction of the noise, but Viscountess Verdi had disappeared into the bushes again. ¡®What was that all of a sudden?¡¯ I looked where Mrs. Verdi had stood, then saw someone else approaching me again. It was Rashta. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± She looked thinner than before and had dark bags under her eyes. She greeted me with a short bow and spoke in a feeble voice. ¡°Who was there just now?¡± I shook my head, and she peered closely at the bushes where Viscountess Verdi had disappeared. I didn¡¯t know if she spotted the viscountess or not, but it was clear she suspected someone had been there. Rashta sighed. Instead of asking more about the disappeared person, she looked back at me gloomily. ¡°Well...Your Majesty. Is it alright if Rashta asks you something?¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°It¡¯s about the Duchess Tuania.¡± Chapter 49 - The Butterfly Of Society (2) Chapter 49 ¨C The Butterfly Of Society (2) I was certain she was going to ask about Sovieshu. Or perhaps Prince Heinley or Viscountess Verdi. I didn¡¯t expect her to ask about this. ¡°Duchess Tuania?¡± Why her? I stared at Rashta, and she answered in a small voice. ¡°Is Duchess Tuania easy?¡± I thought I heard wrong. Easy? ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± I frowned at her, and she carefully examined my face. ¡°Are you upset?¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania is a good person and a good friend.¡± ¡°Well...¡± Rashta hesitated, twisting her hands together. ¡°There are always men at Duchess Tuania¡¯s side.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°The Duchess seems to enjoy being with men too. I don¡¯t know if that¡¯s allowed when she¡¯s already married.¡± She looked up in embarrassment, then waved her hands in protest. ¡°Rashta is not asking for bad reasons. Rashta is asking because she doesn¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania is popr with everyone, both men and women.¡± She didn¡¯t seem to believe me. ¡°But at the party, she was always with men...¡± I sighed. She was asking me because she didn¡¯t understand? That was worse in my view. It was better if she had some idea what she was saying, but if she was asking out of ignorance, she could unintentionally tarnish someone¡¯s reputation. At the very least, it was fortunate that she was asking this when there were only the two of us. ¡°It only appears that way at parties, because men and women pair together to dance.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°There is nothing wrong with Duchess Tuania, so don¡¯t say anything else like that from now on.¡± Rashta gave a small ¡°yes¡±, and I turned around and walked back to the western pce. However, even after I returned to my room and spoke with mydies-in-waiting, Rashta¡¯s strange question continued to gnaw at me. ¡®Why would she ask about Duchess Tuania?¡¯ Presently, Rashta was disliked and shunned in society. Although the popr Duke Elgy sided with her, it would not be easy to restore her image. If she was interested in gossip... ¡®Then by any chance?¡¯ ¡°Countess Eliza.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Are there any bad rumors about Duchess Tuania recently?¡± ¡°Not that I know of.¡± ¡°Oh, I heard that Viscount Langdel has been utterly lovesick since he danced with Duchess Tuania at New Year¡¯s.¡± Countess Eliza gave a chuckle at the story. ¡°He must bepletely wild about her.¡± Noblemen falling in love with Duchess Tuania was not an unusual urrence. I wondered if Rashta was trying to shift the topic of gossip towards someone else. Was I worrying for nothing? Well, in any case, Rashta didn¡¯t have the social clout to influence people. It had only been a day since Duke Elgy met her as well, and there was no way he could spread strange rumors for her either. ¡°...¡± However, I felt uneasy as I remembered the way Rashta constantly nced at Duchess Tuania at the New Year¡¯s ball. ¡°Why do you ask, Your Majesty? Did you hear something?¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s face twisted. ¡°Why would she do that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know...just tell me right away if you hear anything strange.¡± * * * I kept busy with preliminary research about Rwibt¡ª Ipiled information from tourists, merchants, and explorers who were recently at the Hwa continent, but their time was spare and they couldn¡¯t abandon their jobs. I was so busy that I forgot my birthday wasing. Surprisingly, it was Sovieshu that brought it up. ¡°It takes several hours to go to the vi by carriage, so we should finish up our work and leave the day before.¡± I was just finishing the imperial budget before submitting it for approval to Sovieshu. At Sovieshu¡¯s sudden reminder, I put my feather pen down on the inkwell. It took me a few seconds before I realized what he was talking about. ¡°Ah. Birthday...¡± ¡°Oh goodness.¡± Sovieshu chuckled as if he found my dazed reply amusing. ¡°The empress really doesn¡¯t care about anything when she gets into her work.¡± It was a teasing remark. ¡°Can you guess whose birthday I was talking about?¡± ¡°I remember now.¡± ¡°You should remember your own birthday.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Do you mind if we leave a day early?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll schedule it.¡± I flipped through my schedule, and Sovieshu spoke up again. ¡°Do you remember the tree nted at the vi?¡± I nodded, and Sovieshu stretched himself lightly as he reminisced. ¡°It was when you were still crown princess and very small. You were cute back then.¡± ¡°...¡± This time I smiled. In the Eastern Empire, there was a story of a wish tree, and superstition had it that if you made a wish while nting a tree, it woulde true. When I was a princess I was very short for my age, and I found it especially stressful when I was always surrounded by adults. After worrying alone, with no one to share these feelings with, I finally nted a wish tree. The rule was that I had to shovel the ground and nt the seedlings myself. However, I was young and small, and after a few hours of inefficient digging, I hugged the seedling and passed out from exhaustion. When I woke up, I found Sovieshu digging the hole. ¨C Your Highness! If you dig, I¡¯ll have to do it over again! ¨C It¡¯s all right. We¡¯re a couple. A couple is like one body, so it doesn¡¯t matter if you or I do it. ¨C ...Really? ¨C Yeah. That¡¯s what my father the emperor said. Shoveling was a tough job, so I relented and allowed Sovieshu to do it. After digging a decent-sized hole, I ced the seedling in it and covered the base with dirt. I put my hands together and made a wish, and Sovieshu said, ¡°What did you wish for?¡± ¨C ...I asked to be taller. ¨C Why? It¡¯s nice to be small. ¨C I follow the Empress and she always goes beyond a partition. But the screen is bigger than me, so I can¡¯t see... After that I felt unwell with body aches, and Sovieshu got into trouble because his palms were ragged. Sovieshu was always taller and stronger than I was, but he was still young too. The ends of my mouth tipped up in a smile. When I looked at Sovieshu, I saw him smiling as if he were remembering as well. ¡°But that tree worked, didn¡¯t it? Now you¡¯re very tall.¡± I smiled wordlessly, picking up the feather pen again and looking down at my papers. A bitter feeling mixed in with the memories. After all, my wish was not about my height. Back then, I prayed that Sovieshu and I would keep a good rtionship for the rest of our lives. ...But it didn¡¯te true. Chapter 50 - Don’t Cry, Queen (1) Chapter 50 ¨C Don¡¯t Cry, Queen (1) Gifts from friends and rtives began to arrive five days before my birthday. My family was already was moneyed, but after I became empress I lived a more luxurious lifestyle. Of course, much of my wealth was spent on various welfare projects and state subsidies, and I didn¡¯t often buy things for my own pleasure. Because of this, most of the gifts given to me were meaningful, rather than expensive. Especially the one my mother sent me... ¡°The duchess must have been worried about you, Your Majesty.¡± I smiled awkwardly as Countess Eliza pored through my mother¡¯s gift, a semi-annual magazine called La Trang, which contained portraits of the most popr actors of the day. My mother sent me one that featured only male actors. It was not meant to hurt Sovieshu, but perhaps she thought that taking my own lover would settle my mind, and actors were a popr choice among nobles. ¡°Ah, this one¡¯s wonderful. Look at this man, Your Majesty. His shoulders are so broad.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this one better? That one has bad rumors about him.¡± ¡°What rumors?¡± ¡°His sexuality is apparently rather strange. Well...Al¡ªHmm. I¡¯ll keep them anonymous. A baroness said that she and that actor tried to y with fire, and she ended up nearly burning for real.¡± (TN: ¡°y with fire¡± can also refer to a short but passionate romance.) ¡°Really?¡± ...Thedies-in-waiting seemed to enjoy the gift more than I did. Meanwhile, my father had sent me thetest fashionable dresses, as well as rare books, fabrics, and jewelry from abroad. There was also an anonymous gift...called the ¡°Elixir Of Love.¡± ...It was too awkward for me to use. * * It was two days before my birthday. Most of the presents had already arrived, and by tomorrow morning I would leave for the royal vi. I packed a suitcase for two days and spread several books on my bed. As I was deciding which ones to take, I heard the sound of wings pattering in the air. Queen? I rushed to the half-opened window and widened it even further. It was Queen, but he couldn¡¯t easily enter the room like usual. His small head bobbed in and out of the window frame, and when I looked over I saw him carrying arge box tied with string. ¡°Queen!¡± Surprised, I stretched out my hand, and Queen deposited the box and flew through the window. He fell onto my bed and panted for breath. ¡°Did you bring this by yourself?¡± I tested the box Queen brought. It was quite heavy even in my hand, and I was surprised that he carried this himself. He was arge bird, but he was still a bird. Queen lifted his head, nodded helplessly, then flopped again. ¡°Prince Heinley has gone too far. He should¡¯vee in person or asked someone else to bring it here.¡± ¨C ! ¡°Why are you shaking your head? Didn¡¯t Prince Heinley make you do this?¡± ¨C ... ¡°You don¡¯t like me saying bad things about Prince Heinley?¡± He nodded his head. ¡°Alright...I¡¯ll be nice.¡± Queen had no energy to lift himself up, and settled in with a flop of his wings. I patted his rear, he was so startled that he jolted, but then he went limp as if he were feeling weak again. I sat beside Queen and put the box on myp. What in the world did Prince Heinley send? ¡°Ah.¡± Inside was arge cake, and on the lid of the box was a letter. I opened it to read the contents. ¨C I think I¡¯m good at cooking. I hope someone willpliment me. Queen had risen and seated himself quietly next to me, and stole a nce in my direction. I ced one hand over Queen¡¯s shoulder, and dipped a finger from my other hand into the frosting and ced it between my lips. It had a simple, sweet taste of fresh cream without any greasiness. ¡°Did he make the cream all by himself?¡± ¨C ? ¡°It¡¯s delicious.¡± Iughed, and Queen shook his tail and rubbed his head against my arm. ¡°It must have been heavy. Thank you for bringing this to me, Queen.¡± ¨C Gu! ¡°I¡¯ll thank Prince Heinley separately.¡± ¨C Gu! ¡°Your owner is a very nice person.¡± ¨C ! ¡°Haha, why are you so embarrassed?¡± I ced the cake to one side, then ced Queen on myp and kissed his forehead. He turnedpletely into stone. I found his reaction so amusing that I smothered him with more kisses here and there. Afterwards, I took the cake to the table, cut a slice and ced it on a ce. I soon discovered that the cake wasn¡¯t the only gift. ¡°Ah...¡± I let out an involuntary gasp. Embedded in the soft sponge were jewels of various sizes and color. I plucked one out and discovered it was a blue-colored diamond. I felt a poke, and turned and saw Queen blinking up at me with hisrge purple eyes, as if he was worried about my reaction. He looked so serious that I couldn¡¯t help but answer honestly. ¡°It¡¯s a little too much.¡± ¨C ! It was eptable to receive gifts even more extravagant than this from a foreign delegation. But Prince Heinley had given this as a friend. The cost wasn¡¯t a problem to him, of course, but the meaning of the gift was ambiguous. I set the jewel aside, and when I saw Queen I looked at him in surprise and hugged him. ¡°Why are you crying, Queen?¡± Chapter 51 - Don’t Cry, Queen (2) Chapter 51 ¨C Don¡¯t Cry, Queen (2) Because Queen had burst into tears and flew away, I decided to visit the southern pce myself. ¡®It¡¯ll be fine as long as I don¡¯t stay too long.¡¯ I want to thank Prince Heinley for the cake anyway, but I was mostly worried about Queen. ¡°Oh my. Empress Navier.¡± A knight of the Western Kingdom was astonished when he saw me. I was in front of the quarters where Prince Heinley was staying, and another knight with blue hair came rushing towards me. He recognized me, but more than that, his gaze indicated that he seemed to know something. Mydies-in-waiting knew that Prince Heinley and I exchanged letters, and there had to be someone on his end that knew about me as well. Still, I had to guard myself to those even close to the prince, so I smiled faintly at him. ¡°I have a message for Prince Heinley. Is he inside?¡± ¡°I¡¯m d you came. I was worried because he came here crying.¡± ¡°...The prince came crying?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry? Oh, no, not the prince, the bird. It¡¯s a bird. The prince¡¯s mean bird came crying.¡± The blue-haired man added that the prince never cried, then hurriedly knocked on the tightly closed door and shouted. ¡°Prince, Her Majesty the Empress is here!¡± About three seconds passed. I thought I heard a loud noise from inside, perhaps something like falling furniture, but then it was silent. I looked at the blue-haired knight to see if everything was alright, but it seemed unperturbed by the loud noiseing from the room. A few minutester, the knight opened the door after a signal that it was okay toe in from the inside. ¡°Thank you.¡± I slowly entered the room, curious to what that was all about. Prince Heinley¡¯s room was clearly of the southern pce, yet it was somehow unfamiliar. His scent lingered faintly in the air, and there were unusual items scattered here and there. Prince Heinley, standing in the middle of the room, was the most familiar thing in this strange space. Advertisement ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I had something else to do...¡± As I quickly looked around the room and stared at him, the prince smiled and kissed me on my hand before stepping back. Something else¡ªdid that mean he was washing up? It looked like he had hastily thrown on his clothes. He usually had nary a wrinkle on his carefully selected attire, but he looked rather rumpled at the moment. I could see his skin peeking through the loose buttons of his shirt, but it would be awkward if I pointed it out. It wasn¡¯t like there weren¡¯t people that wore their shirts like that. I turned my eyes on the prince¡¯s face, wondering whether to ignore it or point it out, only to see something that caught me by surprise. His eye were red and there was a wetness on his eyshes. It was obvious that he had been crying a little while ago. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t havee. This was bad timing.¡¯ I awkwardly turned away my gaze. Did he cry while taking a bath? How embarrassing it must be for him to visit so suddenly. I was truly sorry. ¡°Did you receive the cake?¡± However, because it was strange to have a conversation without looking at his eyes, I finally turned my head again. Prince Heinley was staring at me with moist purple eyes. I heard that animals often take after their master. Was this the reason? Suddenly I realized that Prince Heinley¡¯s eyes looked very simr to Queen¡¯s. Advertisement ¡°Oh no. Did you not get it?¡± It wasn¡¯t until the prince questioned me again did I manage to shift my focus away from his wet eyes. ¡°I received. I just wanted toe here to say hello and thank you.¡± ¡°Thank goodness. I was worried Queen wouldn¡¯t deliver it properly. ¡± ¡°Yes, it looked a little heavy for him to carry.¡± ¡°I wanted to take it myself, but Queen insisted on carrying it himself....He¡¯s unexpectedly strong, so don¡¯t worry.¡± Prince Heinley gave anguid smile, but his eyes were still misty, making him look less arrogant and proud than usual. ¡°Would you like a cup of tea? Oh, was the cake delicious?¡± Advertisement ¡°It was delicious. Did you make it yourself?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a hobby. I even have my own kitchen in the West. Are you good at cooking?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never done it before...so I don¡¯t think I am.¡± ¡°I have heard that those who can cook and those who can¡¯t are made for each other. I suppose that means the Queen and I are meant to be.¡± That story was unfamiliar to me. I looked at him with a frown, and he turned red and scratched his nose. ¡°I suppose the saying doesn¡¯t cross countries.¡± ¡°I suppose not.¡± ¡°Is there something you wanted?¡± Advertisement ¡°I...Your Highness. I wanted to see Queen.¡± ¡°Queen? Why so suddenly...?¡± ¡°He was crying so hard when he left. I¡¯m worried about him.¡± As I spoke, I paid attention to signs that Queen was somewhere in the room. However, I could neither hear nor smell a bird. Prince Heinley smiled awkwardly. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can do. Queen went hunting.¡± ¡°Hunting?¡± ¡± I don¡¯t know exactly what exactly he went hunting for, but he goes out alone to fly in the capital.¡± ¡°Did hee in crying?¡± ¡°Somewhat? But he was quite alright.¡± The blue-haired knight worried that Queen came crying, but Prince Heinley said otherwise? I couldn¡¯t help but be curious, but Prince Heinley looked calm. If the owner said it was alright, then it had to be. I nodded reluctantly. ¡°I see. That¡¯s a relief.¡± I nervously brushed the skirt of my dress. There was nothing else I had to say. I said, ¡°I¡¯ll see you again,¡± and nced towards the entrance as a signal that I wanted to leave, and Prince Heinley quickly strode forward to open the door. He didn¡¯t stop there however, and followed me as I stepped outside. I looked at him curiously, but he simply smiled and asked me which direction I was going. ¡°So how was the gift?¡± I pointed to one direction, and Prince Heinley fell into step beside me. When I nced back briefly I spotted the blue-haired knight, who ducked his head hurriedly when our eyes met. I turned my head around again. ¡°Queen? Was the gift not to your liking?¡± ¡°Oh, I liked it. Thank you, Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it too much?¡± ¡°!¡± How did he know that? I looked up with a start, and Prince Heinley exined with a faint smile. ¡°I was a little worried. Of course, I am friends with you, but we haven¡¯t known each other for a long time. I thought you might feel burdened.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°I hope you don¡¯t feel pressured. The western kingdom is a jewel capital and many of the mines are owned by the Imperial Family. ¡± Feeling relieved, I nodded, and the prince smiled and ced one hand on his chest. ¡°Thank goodness. I was worried.¡± ¡°I can see why you¡¯re mistaken to be a womanizer.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because you¡¯re friendly and caring.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not a womanizer, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Of course I believe that.¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯tpletely believe this face.¡± Well, at the New Year¡¯s celebrations he hadughed when I said I didn¡¯t believe the rumors he was a womanizer. He smiled awkwardly, and murmured in a gloomy voice. ¡°It¡¯s because of my friend. He truly is a flirt.¡± ¡°Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°You heard of him?¡± Is there any noble who hadn¡¯t heard rumors of the two of them? But instead of being honest, I asked more questions about the Duke Elgy. ¡°Duke Elgy recently came to the southern pce. Did he say he liked it here?¡± After he arrived, most of what I heard about him had to do with him and Rashta. It was said he often apanied Rashta, and there was no mention of Prince Heinley, who was supposed to be a close friend. That was why I questioned Prince Heinley, to know if he and Duke Elgy had a fight. Prince Heinley¡¯s expression subtly shifted. I stopped walking for a moment in worry, and Prince Heinley stopped as well. ¡°As a matter of fact, Your Majesty, I have a favor to ask of you.¡± Hepletely sidestepped my question. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been worried about how to say it. Now that you brought it up, I think I¡¯d better ask for a favor.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Stay out of side in front of Duke Elgy. ¡°...¡± What did you mean by this? I looked up in amazement, but Prince Heinley looked more serious than ever. ¡°Can you do that?¡± ¡°But why?¡± ¡°Any woman who gets entangled with the Duke Elgy is doomed to unhappiness.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Sometimes he¡¯s like a living cursed doll or a real ghost story. If you catch his eye...¡± Was this a joke? A form of ttery? I smiled, but Prince Heinley lowered himself slightly so that his brilliant purple eyes were level with me. ¡°I¡¯m telling you, please. Never, ever look beautiful in front of him.¡± Chapter 52 - Ice Doll (1) Chapter 52 ¨C Ice Doll (1) It was the day before my birthday. As we were only staying at the vi for two days, I didn¡¯t have much pack. I worefortable, low-heeled shoes instead of my formal ones, and donned a waterproof cape in case of rain. ¡°Enjoy Your vacation, Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza, who was not apanying me on my trip, carefully fixed my buttons, and mentioned she was thinking of going home for the two days I was gone. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Countess Eliza. I will take care of her.¡± Countess Jubelughed and patted Countess Eliza on the back, who narrowed her eyes and lowered her hands. I smiled as I watched the two opposite personalities exchange nces without speaking. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± When I arrived at the central pce, I found Sovieshu standing in front of the carriage. He was dressed in his usual formal clothes, and I didn¡¯t see his luggage or his servants following him. I gave him a questioning look, and Sovieshu exined with a regretful expression. ¡°I have a matter to attend to. Can you go ahead?¡± ¡°Is it that urgent? You don¡¯t have to push yourself to go the vi.¡± ¡°It¡¯s urgent, but notpletely so. It is not an issue that the Empress needs to visit for her birthday.¡± I didn¡¯t mind, but I decided not to answer. Sovieshu smiled softly and wrapped his arms around my shoulders. ¡°You need rest after all the hard work you¡¯ve done. After I finish my work, I¡¯ll leave in the evening.¡± The vi was twelve hours journey away from the capital. If he left in the evening, he would travel all night until morning. I was worried, but...it had to be fine. Come to think of it, sitting face-to-face with Sovieshu would be supremely awkward, and so I climbed into the carriage without protest. * * * Countess Jubel fell asleep as soon as she got into the carriage, while I spent my time reading a book. That was for about two hours, until motion sickness from the swaying of the carriage overwhelmed me. I closed my book and looked out the window. The carriage was on a well-maintained road leading out of the capital, and I saw yellow farnd stretching out before me. Farmers and scarecrows were scattered about the field, and somewhere I could hear children¡¯sughter. ¡°I hope this trip will improve the rtionship between you and the Emperor.¡± I turned my head and saw Countess Jubel yawning. Our eyes met, and she shrugged. ¡°I couldn¡¯t say that in front of Countess Eliza.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s difficult for nobles to divorce, Your Majesty. There are many politicalplications and disagreements about how to divide assets. Who would take more benefits? But if one doesn¡¯t care for the loss, one can divorce at any time.¡± ¡°But I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a shame, but yes. You¡¯re the Empress. No matter how much you hate the Emperor, you cannot initiate divorce first. So it¡¯s better to get along.¡± Countess Jubel began to nod off again. I leaned my head against the backrest with both hands on my knees. I agreed that it was better to be on good terms with the Emperor. However, there was something that I could not agree with Countess Jubel on. Divorce... Could I improve our rtionship just because I couldn¡¯t divorce him? It was this part that I disagreed with. To others, the fact that I wasn¡¯t in a position to divorce Sovieshu may elicit sympathy...In any case, there was no way that anyone treated poorly by their spouse wouldn¡¯t be pitied. Sovieshu waspletely blind when it came to Rashta, and asionally ended up using me because of it. But even if I could get divorced, I had no desire to do so from Sovieshu. I was groomed to be the empress from an early age, with rigorous training and specialized education throughout my childhood into adulthood. I didn¡¯t know if I fit the aptitude or not, but to be empress was my destination in life. It would be a lie if I said that I was alright with my husband bringing in a concubine and treating me coldly. Our marriage was political, however, and while it was hard, I could carry the burden. I didn¡¯t want to lose my lifelong work simply because Sovieshu loved someone else. If there really came a situation where I could tolerate it no longer, then perhaps¡ª? * * * ¡°Your Majesty, look at this!¡± Rashta ran to Sovieshu with an engraved pendant given by Duke Elgy from Blue Bohean. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Rashta burst into the room with arge smile and then stopped in surprise. ¡°Wow...¡± Rashta covered her mouth as she stared at Sovieshu before her. ¡°Your Majesty, you look wonderful...¡± He was dressed in a ck and white suit, different from the fancier outfits of the New Year¡¯s celebration. He smiled weakly, not looking in the mirror. Rashta quickly went ot his side and admired him from top to bottom. ¡°You look good everywhere. Aren¡¯t you being too shameless by looking this handsome?¡± ¡°You tter me.¡± Rashta gave a small giggle then held out her hand to him. ¡°Look at this.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the crest of Blue Bohean.¡± ¡°Wow. Your Majesty¡¯s genius. You recognized it right away?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened in admiration again, and Sovieshu gave a small smile and rubbed her back with one hand. It was a strange reminder that Rashta was from another world, as nobles were almost obligated to memorize the crests of other houses. ¡°Why are you dressed so nicely?¡± She ced the pendant in her pocket. In truth she had shown the pendant from Duke Elgy to Sovieshu because she wanted him to be jealous. She was taken aback when he seemed rather calm, however, as if he were ignorant of her intentions. ¡°I told you a few days ago. I have to go to the royal vi.¡± ¡°Oh...Rashta thought you were supposed to leave by morning, but it was cancelled. You said you¡¯d be back the day after tomorrow, right?¡± Sovieshu nced at the clock and nodded. ¡°Make yourselffortable here, Rashta.¡± Sovieshu lightly kissed Rashta¡¯s cheek and turned away. ¡°Rashta will see you off.¡± She followed him enthusiastically, rambling away about her day. While Viscount Roteschu hadpletely destroyed her reputation, Duke Elgy¡¯s appearance had slowly drawn back some of the nobles to her. She was both happy and relieved, and she wanted to tell all of this to Sovieshu. She stopped speaking, however, when she saw a silver jewelry box inside of Sovieshu¡¯s carriage. Her eyes widened. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a present for the Empress.¡± ¡°...Empress?¡± Chapter 53 - Ice Doll? (2) Chapter 53 ¨C Ice Doll? (2) Rashta¡¯s eyes widened even further. ¡°You¡¯re taking it to the vi?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Empress¡¯ birthday.¡± After Sovieshu¡¯s reply, Rashta looked surprised and questioned him again. ¡°Who¡¯s going there?¡± ¡°It will be the Empress, myself, the servants and the knights. There are no guests other than ady-in-waiting. Why?¡± Rashta covered her mouth with her hands. She looked so rmed that Sovieshu frowned at her. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°Rashta didn¡¯t know it was the Empress¡¯ birthday.¡± ¡°Oh, is that so?¡± ¡°No one said anything...¡± ¡°We want to be as quiet as possible. It¡¯s not an open party, so only close friends or rtives know.¡± ¡°Viscountess Verdi could have mentioned it. She would have known.¡± Sovieshu smiled when Rashta pouted her lips. ¡°You must be unhappy to only find out about her birthday now.¡± ¡°We¡¯re still family. Rashta could have given something...¡± Sovieshu gave a chuckle. ¡°You¡¯re very kind.¡± Rashta twisted her fingers. ¡°Well... ¡± It was about time for Sovieshu to leave, the coachman looked over at the pair of them. ¡°I¡¯ll see you soon, Rashta. If I leave toote, it will be difficult for the coachman to drive.¡± Sovieshu took a step into the carriage when Rashta quickly grabbed his sleeve. ¡°Rashta?¡± He turned around curiously. ¡°Can you take Rashta, too?¡± ¡°You?¡± Sovieshu blinked in surprise, and she nodded hurriedly. ¡°Rashta couldn¡¯t get a gift for the Empress, and if Rashta doesn¡¯t celebrate her birthday she will be disappointed.¡± Sovieshu couldn¡¯t undo the skeptical expression on his face, and he was unconvinced that Navier would be disappointed by ack of gift. However, he couldn¡¯t say that the Empress would probably dislike it if Rashta came along. ¡°Bring Rashta with you, Your Majesty. She can liven the mood.¡± ¡°The mood?¡± She mimed drinking alcohol and Sovieshu replied with a faint smile. ¡°You don¡¯t have to do that much.¡± ¡°Still, let Rashta go. It¡¯s a family party, and I¡¯m family.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It will only be myself and the Empress.¡± Rashta¡¯s cheeks puffed out and she folded her arms. ¡°Oh dear. You¡¯re sulking.¡± Sovieshuughed and pinched her bright red cheek. ¡°Do you really want toe?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like when you¡¯re alone with another woman.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t protest when I brought up the vi the other day.¡± ¡°I thought you were going alone or in a group for work.¡± Rashta was being cute and energetic, and the carriage driver gave an involuntary chuckle. She quickly looked down at her toes. Sovieshu checked his watch then stroked her shoulder soothingly. ¡°Later it can just be the two of us. Is that enough?¡± ¡°When? On Rashta¡¯s birthday?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Rashta prefers being in groups.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°But Rashta likes being with you alone, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You are a greedy person.¡± He grinned at her, and she quickly put her arms around him. ¡°Rashta wants a lot of people for her birthday, and then have you aler.¡± Her delicate scent tickled his nose. Sovieshu kissed her lightly on the cheek and answered, ¡°Yes¡± before boarding. The carriage driver snapped the reigns, and Rashta waved at the retreating carriage. Before it disappearedpletely, she lowered her arm. Sovieshu had promised he would spend time with herter, but now he would be alone with the Empress. She tried not to worry. She couldn¡¯t have stopped him even if she had known in advance. ¡®It will be alright. The Emperor and Empress are in a typical marriage.¡¯ Rashta pped her cheeks and returned to her room at the eastern pce. She would have a ss of champagne and a good night¡¯s sleep. However, someone was already waiting for her there. Her heart dropped to the floor when she recognized the despicable figure standing in the corridor. She braced herself, then walked up to Viscount Roteschu. He was standing in front of the door, yawning with his hand in his pocket, but he grinned as soon as he saw Rashta. * * * The windows at the vi had thin, translucent curtains. Because the curtains were rarely in use, aesthetic was emphasized rather than practicality, and I woke up to bright sunlight in my eyes. I decided the curtains needed changing right away. It was only after I sat up groggily in bed that I realized I was in a different ce, and it was my birthday. Sovieshu... It was 7 a.m. ording to my watch, and considering that it took about 12 hours to get here from the capital, I doubted that he had arrived yet. Perhaps by the time I had breakfast, he would have arrived and then fallen asleep. I yawned again and got out of bed. I remembered my usual routine, but realized that I didn¡¯t bring any work. Today really was a day for idle reading and resting. It had been a while since I spent the whole day on myself. After concluding that this trip was a good idea, I went to the bathroom, brushed my teeth, and took a quick shower. ¡°Your Majesty, you should¡¯ve called me!¡± Countess Jubel gave a sudden exmation when I left the bedroom with my hair already done. ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you to call!¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯m just going to rx today.¡± ¡°Well, I suppose. What would you like for breakfast?¡± ¡°Just bread and juice, please.¡± While Countess Jubel was busy preparing breakfast, I went into the drawing room and took my unfinished book out of the bag. I opened my book and reclined against an armchair. After some time, I heard the door open. I thought it was Countess Jubel at first, but the footsteps sounded heavy. When I looked up, I saw a smiling Sovieshu in a suit. ¡°You came here to rest and you¡¯re reading?¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± I closed the book and stood up. Despite the fact that he was smiling, he looked exhausted, as if he had been riding in a carriage all night. ¡°Did you just arrive?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He pointed his finger towards the window, and through it I spotted several servants unloading the carriage. Sovieshu spoke, his voice a murmur. ¡°I¡¯m tired.¡± He copsed on the couch next to me, and put his head backwards and closed his eyes. ¡°...¡± He looked like he was about to pass out from exhaustion. I touched his forehead and found it was warm. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sire?¡± Maybe he was asleep. Then, Sovieshu opened his eyes and stared at me with wide eyes. ¡°You have a slight fever. You should sleep.¡± I carefully took my hands off his forehead and made to stand up. ¡®Is there an official on standby?¡¯ Sovieshu grabbed my wrist as soon as I was about to get up. I looked back at him, and he ordered me to stay before getting up to leave the room. When he returned, there was a silver box in his head. ¡°A gift?¡± ¡°You knew it right away.¡± Sam smiled lightly and held the gift towards me. It was a music box. When I opened the lid, tinkling music floated out, and a shining ring was disyed in the center. There was also a silver ne and earrings on either side of it. ¡°Thank you.¡± With a smile, Sovieshu lifted the ne from the box. ¡°Allow me.¡± I hesitated and took the box with one hand, and with the other I lifted my hair and turned around. His hands felt feverishly hot against my neck as he ced on the ne. Then suddenly, something warm and smooth touched my neck. ¡°!¡± Chapter 54 - Shall I Tempt Her? (1) Chapter 54 ¨C Shall I Tempt Her? (1) I was staring at the earrings in the box when I looked up in surprise. Once again I felt his lips gently caress my ears. I let go of my hair and closed the lid on the box. As soon as I turned around, Sovieshu crushed his lips against mine. Instead of reciprocating, however, I kept my mouth closed and backed away. Sovieshu looked surprised, but when our eyes met he smiled and he held out his hand carefully to me. ¡°...¡± I stared at his lean fingers and shook my head. ¡°Empress?¡± His voice was soft, but I shook my head again. I didn¡¯t know why he wanted to kiss me all of a sudden, but I didn¡¯t want to do it with him now. He had been with Rashta for over a month. It was awkward to kiss those lips that had already kissed someone else. ¡°...Alright.¡± Sovieshu lowered his arm, and the roompsed into an ufortable silence. He stared at the chair I had been sitting on a moment ago, while I stood still with the music box in hand. It took me a moment to realize that music was still trickling from the box, and I shut the lid. Sovieshu turned his eyes away from the chair, looked at the box, then looked at me again. ¡°Sometimes...you are like a colleague, not a spouse.¡± ¡°A spouse is also a colleague you walk with life through together.¡± ¡°If spouses and colleagues are the same, then what¡¯s the point of marriage?¡± Sovieshu sighed and left the room, iming he was tired. I heard the door close. I closed my eyes and took a shuddering breath. A momentter the door opened again, and when I opened my eyes I saw Countess Jubel entering, ncing backwards over her shoulder. She set down the tray of bread, juice, and jam, but she kept looking back. ¡°Your Majesty, did you fight with the Emperor?¡± She must havee across Sovieshu on the way here. ¡°The Emperor seems to have a fever, so please send the official.¡± I ignored her question and picked up a te. ¡°I want to eat alone. Will that be all right, Countess Jubel?¡± * * * I was leftpletely alone in the room, going through the mechanical movements of eating my breakfast. The bread was crisp on the outside and soft on the inside, and the strawberry jam was a sweet as a spoonful of sugar. The green grape juice was cool and refreshing as well, but I found I couldn¡¯t enjoy the taste.Was it because of the hollow feeling in my heart? I was confused for a moment whether I was eating or not. Finally, after nibbling only half the bread, I set it down. I took a sip of juice when I saw a familiar bird by the window¡ªgolden feathers, purple eyes, arge size, a handsome beak... ¡°Queen?¡± It looked like him, but how could be here? I walked over to the window to open it, and therge bird hopped inside the room. ¡°Queen!¡± It was really Queen. For whatever reason, my eyes started to sting with tears. ¡°How did youe here, Queen? Were you looking for me? ¡± Queen nodded, then wrapped his wings around me in an embrace. ¡°Queen?¡± It was as if he were trying tofort me. No matter howrge a bird was, it couldn¡¯t be bigger than a human, so Queen¡¯s wings didn¡¯tpletely cover me. He wrapped himself around me as much as he could, however, and my heart was moved by his effort. I kissed him on the forehead and he froze as usual, but he did not pull away. Was he really trying to cheer me up? I had heard that some animals could instinctively sense human emotions. Perhaps Queen knew what I was thinking and didn¡¯t even realize it. I pulled him away from my arms and set him on myp to hug him again. ¡°I might not be able to live without you, Queen.¡± ¨C ! ¡°What if you have to go back to the Western Kingdom?¡± ¨C ... ¡°Should I follow you?¡± Queen nodded enthusiastically and cawed. ¡°Where on earth did Prince Heinley get a handsome boy like you?¡± As if trying to make himself look more beautiful, he widened his ws and looked at me withrge, clear eyes. -¡°Should I bring a bird the same kind as Queen?¡± ¨C ! ¡°Queen, if I get you a baby brother will you be nice to him?¡± This time Queen shook his head violently, and I couldn¡¯t help but double over inughter. Suddenly¡ª ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Countess Jubel burst into the drawing room. She looked surprised to see Queen in my arms, but she shook her head as if it were not the time. ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor has copsed!¡± What? ¡°Where is he now?¡± ¡°We moved him to a nearby vacant room and called the official.¡± ¡°Send him to the capital and tell him to bring a doctor. Just in case.¡± I hurriedly stood up and set Queen down by the window sill. He looked like he didn¡¯t want to go, but I couldn¡¯t y with him now. ¡°Be a good boy. Go to your master, Queen. Ah, wait. Countess Jubel.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Please give Queen some water. He flew a long way.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Queen, get some water and rest before going back, alright?¡± I kissed Queen on the forehead and rushed out of the room. Chapter 55 - Shall I Tempt Her? (2) Chapter 55 ¨C Shall I Tempt Her? (2) ¡°Well. Have you considered it?¡± Rashta sat crouched in her chair, ncing suspiciously over at Viscount Roteschu. She had seeded in sending him back the night before because it waste, but he had returned in the morning. ¡°Considered what?¡± ¡°Joining me.¡± Viscount Roteschu spoke in a leisurely manner, as if he had no intention of leaving. Rashta clenched her coffee cup, resisting the urge to throw it. ¡°The nobles all want to get back in your favor again. Isn¡¯t this all due to my help?¡± ¡°Your help? It was Duke Elgy that helped me.¡± ¡°And wasn¡¯t it because of me that Duke Elgy went to your side?¡± Rashta smiled bitterly at his brazen answer. He gave a small hum as he gathered his hands together and rested his chin on them. ¡°I need some money now.¡± He wanted money? Rashtaughed derisively at his request. Though she had expected it, she couldn¡¯t believe that he was asking for money this early in the morning. ¡®How can anyone be like this?¡¯ She had hated Viscount Roteschu for a long time, but now he was even worse. However, he was a man of influence and power, while she had nothing. She had buried her hatred under her fear, but now that the fear had gone, the hateful feelings that had once been clouded over began to emerge. Like now. ¡°You said you would help Rashta.¡± She spoke coldly, suppressing the urge to yell abuse at him. ¡°You¡¯ve done nothing yet you want money?¡± ¡°I went to all kinds of parties uninvited to save your reputation. Wasn¡¯t that help?¡± ¡°Nothing helped until Duke Elgy appeared.¡± Her voice was harsh and she quickly continued. ¡°Just so you know, Duke Elgy doesn¡¯t care if I¡¯m a ve or not, so don¡¯t try to ckmail me for this.¡± ¡°He said that now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Tsk tsk tsk tsk tsk. Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue and leaned back against his chair. ¡°You actually believe that. You¡¯re running out of time, Rashta.¡± She didn¡¯t want to speak to him anymore. She leaned over the ring the bell, but he pushed it aside. ¡°My silencees with a price, Rashta. I¡¯m raising your baby, so you should at least be willing to pay the expenses.¡± ¡°The expenses?¡± ¡°Do you know how much it costs to dress, raise and feed a baby? You should pay for it, of course. Do you think I should raise him for free?¡± Rashta¡¯s jaw dropped. His lofty manner sparked her anger, but ranting at him was not the answer to the problem. She didn¡¯t even know if the baby was hers. ¡°...How much do you need?¡± ¡°Well, the cost of living and food has gone down...let¡¯s see. A hundred krut or so will do.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Jewelry is an eptable payment if you don¡¯t have money.¡± Rashta went to her jewelry box and took out three of her smallest, unattractive rings, then held it out to him. She thought it was a waste, but it was better than him spreading rumors about a baby. ¡°Oh, these are beautiful.¡± Viscount Roteschu selected a ring he was satisfied with and tucked it in his breast pocket. As Rashta watched him, she thought, ¡®This is not the time. I need to find out about the baby before he makes any bigger demands.¡¯ Before Viscount Roteschu would bring the baby, she had to go to his estate and confirm his identity herself. And if he turned out to be fake... Rashta gripped her skirt tightly. Whatever would the oue, she might just go mad. ¡°Ah, Rashta. Can I give you a piece of advice?¡± Viscount Roteschu stood up from his seat, looking down at Rashta with a mocking smile. ¡°Yesterday, the Emperor and Empress went to the vi, didn¡¯t they?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°They must be having a good time with only the two of them there. The Empress might try to change the Emperor¡¯s feelings.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°You understand that the best.¡± He gave an amused giggle, and winked at the cane leaning against the table. ¡°Poor little Rashta with no one to help her. If the Emperor tired of you, you will be abandoned. So think about epting my help. I expect you to be a little more cooperative next time. ¡± He patted her on the shoulder and whistled as he left. As soon as he was gone, Rashta hurled her mug across the room. * * * The anxiety Viscount Roteschu caused her only grew when Baron Lant came to her at dinner. ¡°Miss Rashta, I¡¯m afraid the Emperor may not be able toe back tomorrow.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rashta was forced to swallow her steak, and she looked at Baron Lant in surprise. ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t today the Empress¡¯ birthday? Why wouldn¡¯t hee back tomorrow?¡± ¡°That was the original n...¡± He sighed. ¡°The Emperor is sick. A man rushed here from the vi to inform us.¡± He didn¡¯t look optimistic about the Emperor¡¯s condition, and Rashta felt her blood drain. ¡°His Majesty is sick...¡± Her face turned pale, and Baron Lant believed she was deeply concerned about her lover. ¡°Oh no, Miss Rashta, it¡¯s not that serious. Don¡¯t worry.¡± But she wasn¡¯t listening to his words. Was Sovieshu really sick? Perhaps the Emperor and Empress wanted to spend more time together because they were getting along? But even if he was sick, that was still a problem. If the Empress stayed by his side and cared for him, he might forget his feelings about Rashta. ¡°Miss Rashta really loves the Emperor.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Rasta hesitated before posing a question. ¡°Baron Lant, can Rashta go to the vi? Rashta wants to look after His Majesty.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Granting permission is beyond my power.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°But the Emperor and Empress will send for you if they wish you to be there.¡± Rashta nodded nervously. The next day, however, the news became worse. Although Sovieshu was not seriously ill, his fever refused to subside and he had to stay another week longer. That was not good for her. ¡®But the Emperor and Empress were not romantic even before I became a concubine.¡¯ Their rtionship had been staid for years now, and she didn¡¯t reckon they would be close all of a sudden. Rashta tried to stay calm, but it didn¡¯t work. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s threats about her baby fogged her mind, and with the anxiety about the Empress thrown on top of it, her heart raced. The third day after Viscount Roteschu¡¯s visit, Duke Elgy brought up his concerns about Rashta¡¯s state. ¡°My dear, you haven¡¯t been looking goodtely. Are you alright?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Is it because the Emperor is sick?¡± ¡°Well...¡± Rasta hesitated before speaking carefully. ¡°Rashta feels a little sorry for the Empress.¡± ¡°What about Her Majesty all of a sudden?¡± ¡°The Emperor¡¯s unwell, but it¡¯s the Empress who is staying in the vi to nurse him. Even when it¡¯s fine for her toe back.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But even if she stays, the Emperor will constantly be thinking of Rashta while he¡¯s ill......Because of that Rashta feels ufortable.¡± At her morose expression, Duke Elgy snorted. Rashta widened her eyes at him. His jaw was clenched as if he were trying to hold backughter. ¡°Why are you smiling?¡± ¡°Ah, sorry. But it¡¯s a very obvious lie, Miss.¡± ¡°No. Tch. Rashta is serious.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but when ites to men and women, I¡¯m knowledgeable, right?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. You were just so cute.¡± He looked at her with a thoughtful expression, and then shook his head and continued yfully. ¡°You seem concerned that the Empress will be close to the Emperor again.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± ¡°How about this?¡± Duke Elgy leaned in close, and her face turned red. She couldn¡¯t resist her curiosity, however, and said ¡°What?¡± What he said next surprised her. ¡°Shall I tempt the Empress? If she loves me, she won¡¯t be close to the Emperor. Would that make you feel better?¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°...¡± He pulled away from her and stared at her with shining green eyes. Rashta blinked and paused for a moment, but eventually shook her head. ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°Why? I¡¯m confident.¡± ¡°The Empress has lived her whole life surrounded with fine things. On the contrary, she would likely be more attracted to a very ordinary man.¡± ¡°Hmm?¡± ¡°But the duke is of high birth...If we were to give the Empress a lover, wouldn¡¯t an ordinary person be better?¡± Chapter 56 - Duchess Tuania (1) Chapter 56 ¨C Duchess Tuania (1) The court doctor shifted the stethoscope with a serious expression, and fifteen minutester he finally pulled away the cool metal instrument. ¡°How is he?¡± ¡°His fever is a little lower than yesterday.¡± Everyone around made a sound of relief. Sovieshu had copsed after his fight with me, and while I did not think it was my fault, I was troubled. I could be relieved now as well. ¡°Thank you foring immediately.¡± ¡°Not at all, Your Majesty. It is only my duty.¡± After the doctor and everyone else filed out of the room, I pulled over a chair to Sovieshu¡¯s bedside. He cracked open his eyes and fixed his gaze right on me, while I took a towel from a cold basin beside him, squeezed it, and ced it on his forehead. He flinched as soon as the towel touched his skin. ¡°It¡¯s cold.¡± ¡°You¡¯re overworked.¡± ¡°I heard. I was awake when the doctor said that.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s not waste this trip to the vi.¡± I sighed as I remembered the sudden awkward kiss Sovieshu ced on me. ¡°Are you alright? You should take a break.¡± He spoke brightly, but I could detect a note of tiredness. Nevertheless, I was happy he had more energy. I took the towel from his forehead, dipped it back in cold water, and ced it back on him. ¡°Cold...¡± Sovieshu groaned again and then murmured an apology. ¡°Your birthday was ruined because of me. I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°We return here every year. Don¡¯t mind about it.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t help but mind.¡± ¡°There is next year¡¯s birthday.¡± ¡°But your birthday is once this year...huu. Talking to the Empress is like...¡± ¡°Like talking to a colleague?¡± Sovieshu pulled a face when I echoed his words. ¡°Do you know you¡¯re being somewhat unkind?¡± Somewhat unkind? It was outright derision, I thought. ¡°The doctor said you had to rest for a few more days. Shall I call in Rashta?¡± Sovieshu stared at me as if he couldn¡¯t believe I what I said. I meant it this time. I knew he would rather have her take care of him than me. Of course, as I didn¡¯t want the three of us to be together, I would return to the imperial pce if she came. Wasn¡¯t this what Sovieshu wanted anyway? He only needed one person. ¡°Empress...are you being sarcastic?¡± ¡°Does it sound that way?¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°No.¡± I answered with a single word and looked down, while Sovieshu flicked his eyes sideways towards me. ¡°You don¡¯t have to bring Rashta.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to be disappointed.¡± ¡°But isn¡¯t this good for the Empress?¡± Except whenever Rashta was upset, he always med me. On the other hand, if Rashta came here and I returned to the pce, it would actually be helpful. I had a lot of work to catch up to. Instead of answering, I ced more ice in the bowl, then took the towel from his forehead and soaked it again. I ced the cold towel on the back of his neck, and he jumped and grabbed my wrist. ¡°Are you angry with me?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Really.¡± ¡°Alright. Stop ring at me.¡± He sighed, taking the towel off his neck and cing it on the quilt. ¡°Don¡¯t call Rashta.¡± Was that really alright with him? When I looked up, I saw Sovieshu¡¯s eyelids drooping downwards. ¡°She¡¯s beautiful and charming when she talks, but I¡¯m notfortable with that now. I have a headache....so I¡¯d like it to stay quiet.¡± Rashta would be upset. Ever since she became his concubine, she made sure to never be far away from Sovieshu. I simply nodded and ced the cloth back on his forehead. * * * My suspicion that Rashta would be upset was right. After a week¡¯s rest we returned to the imperial pce, and Rashta, who had been waiting in the garden, jumped inside the carriage before either of us could step out. Rashta locked Sovieshu into a fierce hug, while all she did for me was bow awkwardly. It was not unusual for a concubine to be seen by the empress, but her attitude was different, considering she had been overly friendly to me before. While she couldn¡¯t bear being from Sovieshu, she seemed more concerned that he was alone with me. She and Sovieshu seemed unwilling to detach themselves from each other, so I went to the central pce alone and ordered the officials to bring me all my work that I had put off. Since then, daily life continued. I spent a little more time at the central pce catching up on a week¡¯s worth of work, while Sovieshu lessened his overtime hours following the doctor¡¯s advice. Rashta still clung to Duke Elgy during the day while taking care of Sovieshu at night. I sometimes ran into Prince Heinley while going out for walks, and Queen brought back letters now and then. Ah, but there was one change. Sovieshu summoned me less to make outrageous usations about Rashta. He¡¯s gotten back on track with affairs concerning her, and there was less reason to make demands. Thankfully I didn¡¯t run into her often anymore, and I naturally became less fatigued even though my work increased. My heart was still sorrowful when it came to Sovieshu, but after a few years like this, perhaps we could be like a normal royal couple. We would live a moderately dull but peaceful life, without the worry of abandonment or renunciation. * * * The next time I saw Rashta again was at a tea party hosted by Duchess Tuania. Adjacent to the central pce was a small mansion called the Crystal House. The exterior was not made of crystal, as the name suggested, but with ss arranged at various angles that made the entire house sparkle with light. I heard that in the past, a concubine that was loved by the emperor lived here. Nowadays it was mainly lent to nobles for a day or two. It was the Crystal House that Duchess Tuania borrowed to host her tea party, and today I was able to finish my work early and join her. ¡°I was afraid you were too busy toe, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± I greeted Duchess Tuania and sat down at a table in the garden. There was a selection of tea and coffee at the table, as well as a range of cookies, cakes, and other delicacies covered with ss lids. The atmosphere was turning ripe for greeting the noblemen and women. ¡°Oh dear. We must bete.¡± A voice came from the garden entrance. I looked past a cake, and saw a man with wavy blond hair I had never seen before. Next to him was Rashta, who was being escorted by him. ¡®Oh. Is that Duke Elgy?¡¯ The man¡¯s eyes fell on me. Chapter 57 - Duchess Tuania (2) Chapter 57 ¨C Duchess Tuania (2) He studied me for a moment, but I didn¡¯t turn away. Although Prince Heinley had warned me that Duke Elgy was like a living cursed doll or a real ghost story, it would be strange if I suddenly avoided him. It was only a brief moment, but if felt like time had slowed down as the man smiled brightly and approached me. ¡°Your Majesty. It¡¯s a pleasure to finally meet you.¡± ¡°You are Duke Elgy udia?¡± ¡°You recognized me right away?¡± It was the first time I had met him, but he had a strikingly beautiful face that could not easily be forgotten. The man next to Rashta could only be Duke Elgy as well. The duke bent his knee and reached out his hand. I ced my hand in his, and he offered a gentle kiss before letting me go with a faint upturn of his lips. I smiled ceremoniously and looked towards Duchess Tuania. Duke Elgy was a well-known socialite, so it was unsurprising that she had invited him. What was more curious was that she had invited Rashta as well. However, as soon as I saw the look on Duchess Tuania¡¯s face, I knew that she didn¡¯t intend Rashta to be here. Duke Elgy must have brought her as his partner. The fact was evident in the subsequent conversation between Duchess Tuania and Duke Elgy. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize that Duke Elgy would bring Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°I thought bringing Rashta to a socialite party such as yours would help Rashta too. Is that alright, My Lady?¡± ¡°I¡¯m embarrassed that a man of renown like Duke Elgy would tter me.¡± While the two were exchanging reproaches disguised as greetings, Rashta bowed to me too, while I drank my tea with a silent acknowledgment. But I could not taste the tea at all. It was because of Rashta. Her presence alone made me want to leave. However, if I was seen avoiding Rashta, it would be the social gossip among the nobles for a week. I didn¡¯t want to be spoken of in the same sentence as her, and so I was forced to stay here until a after few others had left. My worry only grew after Duke Elgy, finishing his intimate conversation with Duchess Tuania, sat opposite me with Rashta. Fortunately, she and I didn¡¯t have the opportunity to exchange words. ¡°Did you hear about Baron Riven?¡± ¡°I heard that he wanted his bastard son to be his sessor, and the baroness ended up divorcing him, right?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the baroness from the Chrome kingdom? I heard she left with their children and went back to her family.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t Baroness Riven the sister of Miss Aleisia?¡± ¡°What¡¯s she doing these days?¡± ¡°I heard before New Year¡¯s¡ª¡± But as Duchess Tuania was talking about Aleisia¡¯s recent affairs, Rashta asked in a small voice, ¡°Who is Aleisia?¡± The question was not directed to the duchess, but she seemed to have heard. Duchess Tuania paused, while the person sitting next to Rashta replied in a mischievous voice. ¡°She¡¯s Rashta¡¯s predecessor.¡± ¡°Predecessor?¡± ¡°She was once a concubine of the previous Emperor.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Rashta widened her eyes and blinked. ¡°If Miss Aleisia¡¯s sister is a baroness, is Miss Aleisia originally a noblewoman?¡± ¡°Yes. It was at a ball that her and the previous emperor met.¡± ¡°So how¡¯s Miss Aleisia doing now?¡± It was if the atmosphere had been doused with cold water. Everyone stopped talking and focused their attention on Rashta. Some looked at her with curiosity, others with sympathy, yet others with spite. The person who answered Rashta didn¡¯t look happy and said, ¡°Well.¡± Miss Aleisia¡ª ¡°I heard she was forced to leave. What a pity.¡± It was Duke Elgy who answered, and Rashta looked sideways in surprise. He smiled as Rashta stared at him, a crumple between her brows. ¡°The emperor quickly tired of Miss Aleisia. She had the shortest time as concubine than any other concubine. It was all over so fast...¡± Surely Duke Elgy knew that it was not a story for someone like Rashta. However, he waspletely calm, and smiled as he took a sip of tea. Rashta blinked herrge eyes. She had been upset when I once mentioned another concubine after her. It must have been unthinkable back then, but now she was confronted with a concubine who had taken the same road as hers and had a bad ending. Rashta waspletely frozen, and some nobles turned their eyes towards her in pity. I thought Rashta would remain tight-lipped, but instead of staying silent, she quickly erased the surprise on her face and spoke, her face red. ¡°I hear that the nobles have many lovers. It seems to be true.¡± Some jumped in to sympathize with her. ¡°There are some couples with no other lovers.¡± ¡°There are not many like Countess Eliza.¡± ¡°Political marriages are more the norm.¡± Rashta nodded one at each of their words and smiled back. ¡°Right, of course...actually, Rashta was very surprised when she heard that the Duchess Tuania had five lovers. But now that I heard it is natural, I feel like I¡¯m going through a new world.¡± This time, there was a wave of silence. Everyone¡¯s mouth was open. Duchess Tuania¡¯s forked clinked down on her te. ¡°Ah.¡± Rashta turned red, covering her mouth with her hands. ¡°Was it something I shouldn¡¯t say? I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not something you should say, because it¡¯s ridiculous nonsense, Miss Rashta.¡± Duchess Tuania¡¯s voice was as dangerous as thin ice. Rashta repeatedly apologized, but the duchess¡¯ face did not soften. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, My Lady. Miss Rashta is not used to the etiquette of the nobility. She¡¯s only repeating what she heard.¡± When Duke Elgy sided with Rashta again, Duchess Tuania finally stood up. ¡°I find it unbearable that there are two people so rude that they cannot even observe etiquette. Especially you, Duke Elgy. If you wanted to bring someone who didn¡¯t know how to behave, you should have taught them the least bit of pretense. Rudeness is worse than pretense.¡± ¡°Oh, are you angry?¡± ¡°Yes. Today¡¯s party ends here. I¡¯m sorry to have brought you to this strange asion, Your Majesty.¡± Chapter 58 - Duke Elgy’s Warning (1) Chapter 58 ¨C Duke Elgy¡¯s Warning (1) The stronger the light, the more visible the shadows. Duchess Tuania had reigned as a pir of high society for twenty years, and as such had umted many enemies. However, with all herurels and repute, even they couldn¡¯t speak ill of her. They remained quiet, but were always anxious to talk about her faults. Rashta¡¯sments in front of Duchess Tuania yesterday afternoon had given them the ammunition they needed. Those who secretly hated the duchess gathered in Rashta¡¯s reception room tough and gossip. ¡°Actually, Miss Rashtained a little after hearing Duchess Tuania¡¯s words.¡± ¡°To be honest, does she truly have only five lovers? How many men chase after her? Are they all unrequited loves?¡± ¡°The duchess does get around.¡± ¡°The real Empress always sits quietly, while Duchess Tuania always carries her head as if she were the queen of society.¡± To them, Rashta was like a shield¡ªsomeone who could speak out inly and badly against Duchess Tuania, but who would not be ignored by society. All they had to do was to air their catty remarks behind the shield that was Rashta. ¡°Rashta only said what she heard...¡± ¡°To be honest, the rumors have been around for a while. I couldn¡¯t speak about them because I didn¡¯t have the right words, and I was afraid of being caught by the duchess¡¯ followers.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t those followers strange too?¡± The nobles whispered with Rashta in the middle, and it was not until three or four hourster that they stood up. ¡°How did Rashta do?¡± As soon as they left, Rashta approached Duke Elgy, who had been watching the conversation from the sidelines. He smiled, lowering his eyes. ¡°Well done, Miss.¡± Rashta twisted her body back and forth at hispliment. ¡°It¡¯s alright?¡± ¡°Yes. Nice start.¡± ¡°But...will people turn away from Duchess Tuania?¡± ¡°No, not too much at the moment.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Right now, just this. Checking to see if there are anyints. Stirring things up.¡± ¡°Oh...then what should I do now?¡± As Duke Elgy looked at Rashta¡¯s naive expression, he burst intoughter and rose from his chair. ¡°You can do it all by yourself from now on, right?¡± ¡°Rashta doesn¡¯t like this¡ª¡± ¡°As I said, Miss.¡± He approached Rashta, then leaned down and whispered in her ear. ¡°You¡¯re cute, but I told you it¡¯s hard to deceive me in areas like this.¡± ¡°Tch.¡± Rashta shot him a look of loathing, and Duke Elgy chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m not insulting you, so don¡¯t be upset.¡± Rashta pouted and raised her eyebrows. Duke Elgy opened the door of the reception room and walked out into the hallway. ¡°Where are you going?¡± Rashta ran to his side, and he turned and shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m going out for a while. You don¡¯t have toe. I¡¯m not going for a stroll.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°Just...wait.¡± * * About four to six times a year a massive public ball was held, an event where evenmoners could attend. I was in the middle of a long conversation with the culture minister to decide on the date. He hurriedly excused himself to go the bathroom, and I stepped outside the office for a moment to relieve my fatigued eyes. ¡®I¡¯ll take a walk.¡¯ I stared down the long corridor and began to walk slowly, hoping to rx. After only a few steps, however, I noticed Duke Elgy leaning on a pir not far away. Why was he standing there? When I stopped and looked at him, he smiled and straightened himself to bow to me. ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting here for three hours. You must be very busy.¡± His wavy, golden hair swayed with his bow. I became all the more curious¡ªhe waited three hours just to see me? I tried to remember if he had a prearranged meeting with me. If it was urgent, he should have sent someone to give a report... ¡°How can I help you?¡± Duke Elgy smiled and murmured, ¡°Ah. Straight to the main point.¡± ¡°Very good. Quick. Do you happen to know I¡¯m a friend of Heinley¡¯s?¡± ¡°I heard.¡± ¡°You heard.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You heard it.¡± What on earth did hee here to say? Duke Elgy mumbled ¡®heard¡¯ to himself and suddenly frowned and looked down at the floor. An awkward silence passed. He stood there for about three minutes before he spoke again. ¡°I¡¯ve heard from Heinley a few times about you, Your Majesty. Did Heinley say anything about me?¡± Not often, but once. And it wasn¡¯t ttering. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard much.¡± I answered him honestly, and he fixed me with his gaze as he took a couple steps closer. ¡°Did he say anything strange?¡± ¡°Strange...?¡± ¡°Anything unpleasant.¡± Heinley did, but I couldn¡¯t answer that. I shook my head and said no, while Duke Elgy sighed and ced his hand on his forehead. ¡°It¡¯s just the way he is. He always says bad things about me to someone he likes.¡± Prince Heinley? ¡°He¡¯s been telling people I¡¯m a cursed doll or a living ghost story...¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lie, so there¡¯s no need for you to pay attention to it.¡± ¡± ...I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re saying this to me, or your intentions.¡± ¡°When I saw you yesterday, I didn¡¯t think you would socialize with people like Heinley.¡± ¡°What kind of person is that?¡± ¡°The same kind as Heinley and me. Someone who¡¯s frivolous.¡± Yesterday I had only smiled and nodded my head, and barely opened my mouth to say hello. When the tea party was cut short, I left. He had barely seen me and decided what kind of person I was from that? ¡°But if there is a difference, Heinley is a man who wants someone to be hisplete opposite, and as for me, I¡¯m a frivolous man who wants to get along with frivolous people.¡± ¡°Does that mean I¡¯m not fit to be the prince¡¯s friend?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m here to give you some advice.¡± Advice? ¡°Heinley is a two-faced man, Your Majesty. He says one thing in front of you, and does something different from behind. He can both smile and hurt people.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t trust the sweets he offers.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you Prince Heinley¡¯s close friend?¡± Why would Prince Heinley and Duke Elgy speak ill of each other? As soon as I spoke, Duke Elgy smiled nonchntly. ¡°It was Heinley who called me here in the first ce. Didn¡¯t he say that?¡± He shook his head and continued. ¡°For a few years Heinley¡¯s been setting up¡ª¡± Before he could finish speaking, there was a knock on the wall. I turned around, and saw Sovieshu staring at me and Duke Elgy. ¡°Another foreigner again.¡± Duke Elgy bowed at Sovieshu and left with an innocent smile. Chapter 59 - Duke Elgy’s Warning (2) Chapter 59 ¨C Duke Elgy¡¯s Warning (2) As soon as Duke Elgy was gone, Sovieshu turned to face me. ¡°I think it¡¯s clear by now. A man from the Western Kingdom, another from Rwibt, and another from Blue Bohean. You clearly have a preference for foreigners, don¡¯t you?¡± His mad spection returned. I had been hoping that everything would stay quiet. Sovieshu frowned and pointed at the duke¡¯s retreating back. ¡°You don¡¯t have much experience with other men besides myself. Just because he speaks with a silver tongue it doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s a good man.¡± On the contrary, Duke Elgy was a man of blunt speech, but instead of correcting Sovieshu I looked at him dumbfoundedly. ¡°Then what kind of man is a good man?¡± ¡°...¡± If he had a conscience, he would not say himself. But Sovieshu had no conscience. ¡°Me?¡± Really? I lifted my eyebrow at him, and his expression turned disgruntled as he sighed. ¡°Anyway, I want you to be careful in your behavior.¡± ¡°And I¡ª¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I will look for a handsome, youthful Eastern Kingdom man.¡± He stared at me silently, then mumbled ¡°Yes¡± and left. I sighed. I couldn¡¯t fathom what was in Sovieshu¡¯s head. It didn¡¯t matter to him that he brought Rashta, but he didn¡¯t want to hear that the Imperial couple had other lovers? ¡°Your Majesty. Were you looking for me?¡± As I pressed my hand against my temple, the minister hurried over from the bathroom. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. My digestive system has been working uptely.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± We went back into the office, but I found it difficult to concentrate, and I eventually cut the meeting short. ¡°We¡¯ll talk again tomorrow. Let¡¯s go get some rest today.¡± ¡°Oh, very good.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t concentrate very well either, so don¡¯t worry about it.¡± After the minister left, I sat with my arms crossed and stared at the stack of documents on the table. Sovieshu was being Sovieshu... But what did the Duke Elgy mean? What had Prince Heinley been setting up for years? It couldn¡¯t be a building. A n? The word ¡°n¡± would make sense. ¡°...¡± I would have to ask Prince Heinley. He had called Duke Elgy here, and yet both of them were trading disparaging remarks about the other. ...It was strange. * * * ¡°Your Majesty, does this feel good?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Majesty. Is this good?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Rashta stopped kneading Sovieshu¡¯s shoulder when he failed to answer her repeated questions. She leaned her head over his shoulder, and Sovieshu, startled, turned his head sideways, causing their lips to almost brush against each other¡¯s. Rashta smiled, lightly kissed his cheek, and hugged him. ¡°What are you thinking about that you won¡¯t listen to Rashta?¡± Her voice was charming, but it contained a pout. ¡°Oh...I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s about national matters, Rashta can¡¯t help much.¡± After apologizing, she shrugged her shoulders and then sat down at the table across from him. Sovieshu shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s not about national matters.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Rashta spoke in half absent-minded voice. Sovieshu usually didn¡¯t share his day¡¯s work with Rashta. He told her whenever he felt like it, which wasn¡¯t often, so she asked him without thinking. However, he pitched his own question. ¡°Come to think of it, Rashta. Duke Elgy gets along with you, doesn¡¯t he?¡± Duke Elgy? Why did Sovieshu bring him up all of a sudden? Rashta replied, puzzled. ¡°He¡¯s close to Rashta. What is it?¡± His next question was even more surprising. ¡°Is Duke Elgy close to the Empress?¡± Rashta winced slightly. ¡°Why are you asking?¡± ¡°I saw the pair of them having friendly conversation this afternoon.¡± Sovieshu gave a low exhale. ¡°Earlier...¡± Rashta told him that Duke Elgy had left for a while, and that she hadn¡¯t seen him for for hours. ¡°He didn¡¯t say where he went. So he must have gone to the Empress.¡± Rashta remembered Duke Elgy¡¯s confident and yful proposal to tempt her. ¡®Is he really trying to seduce the Empress for me?¡¯ Rashta silently pursed her lips. ¡®Not, not for me...¡¯ He must have done it for himself. She was somewhat offended, and Sovieshu noticed and called out to her in a strange voice. ¡°Rashta?¡± Rashta hurriedly smiled. ¡°No, the Empress doesn¡¯t get along with the Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, Duke Elgy is a friend of Rashta¡¯s.¡± At her quick reply, Sovieshu smiled at her adoringly. ¡°What?¡± ¡°You truly are gentle and kind.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Are you defending the Empress just because I might misunderstand her?¡± ¡± Oh...you noticed?¡± Rashta covered her face with her hands, and Sovieshu nodded and hummed. ¡°You¡¯re not wearing the ring I gave to you, are you?¡± ¡°Ring...¡± Rashta lowered her hands. Despite her pretty face, her hands were ugly and coarse due to the hardships in her childhood. When Sovieshu had seen the roughness in her hands, his eyes trembled. Sovieshu leaned over to take Rashta¡¯s fingers. ¡°A silver ring with a red jewel in it. Do you remember?¡± ¡°Oh? Yes.¡± ¡°The red jewel is known as the ¡®Red me Star¡¯.¡± ¡°?!¡± Rashta recalled the three rings that Sovieshu had given her. One of them must have been a silver ring with a red jewel. She thought it was the cheapest because it was the smallest, but it must have quite a reputation to have its own name. ¡°Don¡¯t you like it?¡± Rashta¡¯s expression twisted as she realized she gave the precious ring to the person she hated the most. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to pressure you if you don¡¯t like it. But there¡¯s a spell on the jewel. The effect isn¡¯t obvious if you put it on for a short time, but wear it for longer and eventually it will remove the scars.¡± The ring was magical! Rashta dropped her head onto the table with a thump. ¡°Rashta?¡± ¡°Ooooh...what a waste.¡± Sovieshu stared at her, and she groaned into the wood. ¡°I found a poor maid and gave it to her. I didn¡¯t know it was that kind of ring...¡± After staring at her in short surprise, Sovieshu burst intoughter. ¡°What? Haha!¡± Rashta wanted to cry. ¡°Your Majesty, is there another ring with that same effect?¡± ¡°There is but...¡± ¡°If Rashta asks you for another one...is that alright?¡± ¡°Well, if you want a simr one, then very well.¡± Could she have it now? When Rashta stared at him with enormous eyes, and Sovieshu smiled awkwardly. ¡°The Empress has one.¡± Chapter 60 - Desert Flower (1) Chapter 60 ¨C Desert Flower (1) As soon as Viscount Roteschu visited the next day, Rashta hounded him about the ring. ¡°What did you do with the ring Rashta gave you?¡± Viscount Roteschu was assaulted with a barrage of questions before he could even seat himself. ¡°What did you do with the ring?¡± ¡°I sold it.¡± ¡°You sold it?!¡± ¡°Why not? It doesn¡¯t involve you anymore.¡± Rashta had been willing to trade for it if he still had it, and she let out a frustrated ¡°Hu!¡± ¡°I sold it for more money than I expected. I thought you gave a cheap ring on purpose, but you have done well for me.¡± Rashta¡¯s blood pressure rose even more at Viscount Roteschu¡¯s vile smile. However, the ring was out of her hands now. Sovieshu had to obtain a new one. Rashta mentally counted backwards from ten, then pointed her finger at a chair across the table. ¡°Sit down.¡± ¡°No more of your impudence.¡± Rashta was uncharacteristically angry about the ring, but he wasn¡¯t intimidated. ¡°If you are on the same side as you say, you will no longer be in the lead. Don¡¯t be so rude to Rashta.¡± Viscount Roteschu shot her an irritated look, but as Rashta took out her fan and began to cool herself, his anger subsided as he saw the jewels shing on the fan. It wouldn¡¯t be long before he acquired those as well. Smiling in anticipation, Viscount Roteschu took his ce with a screech of his chair. ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. We¡¯re like colleagues now.¡± Rashta stared at him with a contemptuous look, but he continued. ¡°Have you made up your mind? My patience is running out.¡± ¡°You have to convince me first.¡± ¡°With what?¡± ¡°You said you would help Rashta. Whether you¡¯re truly helping or not, show your ability.¡± ¡°Ability?¡± Rashta snapped the fan into her palm. ¡°You said you would reveal my baby if I didn¡¯t cooperate. But if you ruin our arrangement even when we¡¯re on the same side, it would still be a loss for you. So you have to at least show me your ability.¡± ¡°Hmm...So what kind of skills do you want to see?¡± ¡°Find out a weakness of Duchess Tuania¡¯s. Something that could start a bad rumor.¡± * * * I had dinner twice a week with Sovieshu, and that was today. I recalled our unpleasant conversation yesterday, but I couldn¡¯t avoid him. I changed from my diplomatic clothing into afortable light blue dress and headed towards the eastern pce. To avoid any awkward conversations, I carefully ran over the words I wanted to say. As I walked down the hall towards the room where I would have my meal, I ran into Rashta. The aftermath of the vi was still unchanged, and Rashta bowed carefully and stepped aside. ¡°I¡¯m d you aren¡¯t pretending to be friendly and calling me ¡®sister¡¯ anymore.¡± This distance was eptable to me. I took a few steps past her when she spoke. ¡°Excuse me...Your Majesty.¡± Rashta quietly called to me from behind. I stopped and turned around, but she hesitated. ¡°What is it?¡± It was as if Rashta¡¯s words were caught in her throat. What was she trying to say? With a frown, she slowly began to speak. ¡°Your Majesty has Prince Heinley. A close friend.¡± Why was she talking about Prince Heinley all of a sudden? She once imed that she was his letter acquaintance. Was she trying to pull something again? However, what Rashta said next took me by surprise. ¡°So please don¡¯t touch Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°What?¡± Why would I bother with him? ¡®She thinks I would touch Duke Elgy?¡¯ An exhale escaped from my mouth. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about.¡± ¡°When I was in trouble, he was the only one on my side who listened to me and trusted me.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°Please...don¡¯t be offended. Your Majesty, you have so many friends, so please don¡¯t take my only one...¡± ¡°I won¡¯t. ¡± I didn¡¯t know why she misunderstood me, but the idea waspletely ridiculous and I immediately cut it down. ¡°I don¡¯t know why this concerns you, but do not worry. Duke Elgy is not my friend.¡± Rashta smiled in visible relief. ¡°As it¡¯s said.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve coveted what was mine, but I haven¡¯t coveted what was yours. I¡¯m not so deprived that I have to take from someone else.¡± ¡°!¡± A look of distress shed on Rashta¡¯s face, but I ignored it. I brushed past her with a look as cold as Sovieshu¡¯s. * * * When I entered Sovieshu¡¯s room, his secretary, Count Pirnu, was already inside. I was unsure if they were deep in a long conversation, but Sovieshu was sitting in front of the table while Count Pirnu was standing beside him. I saw quietly opposite of Sovieshu, thinking that the count would leave soon given that he already had his hat in hand. Sovieshu wouldn¡¯t have allowed him toe here in the first ce if he didn¡¯t mind being overheard. ¡°A ring with healing magic, correct?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Are nes, bracelets, and swords eptable?¡± ¡°No. It should be a ring. No, no. A bracelet is fine, too.¡± ¡°Very well. They¡¯re extremely rare, and the search will be very wide.¡± ¡°Find one anyway, and as soon as you do, buy it.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Count Pirnu gave a low bow to Sovieshu and I, then left the room with the close of the door. Sovieshu smiled in my direction and rang a bell to summon the servants. They had been waiting beforehand, and immediately brought in avish dinner of grilled goose skewers, stew, and bread with cheese. After the servants left, I directed the conversation to the scene from earlier. ¡°Don¡¯t you already have a ring with a healing spell, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Oh...yes. But I don¡¯t have it now.¡± ¡°I see.¡± He didn¡¯t seem to want to tell me why it was gone. Instead of questioning him further, I ate a spoonful of stew. I thought I was relieved to find a topic of conversation, but now I was at aplete nk. The room lie inplete silence, as we had been taught at an early age to not make loud sounds with our untensils against the dishes. Only after emptying his bowl of stew did Sovieshu speak. ¡°Empress, if you don¡¯t mind, can you lend me the Desert Flower until I find a new ring?¡± Chapter 61 - Desert Flower (2) Chapter 61 ¨C Desert Flower (2) The ¡°Desert Flower¡± was my ring, obtained from a trader who returned from Rwibt. It had been handed down through the generations by the desert tribe¡¯s greatest warriors, and also contained a powerful healing spell. I didn¡¯t use it much, so I didn¡¯t mind lending it to him... However, my gaze unknowingly turned to Sovieshu¡¯s smooth hands. It had neither a scratch nor scar. ¡°Do you truly need it?¡± Sovieshu answered bluntly. ¡°I just want to lend it to someone who has injured hands.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Let me borrow the ring, and I promise to return it.¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s hands must be rough.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes widened. I set my fork down, then wiped my mouth with a napkin and smiled at him. ¡°You don¡¯t need to use it on yourself. You can¡¯t lend it to other nobles out of the blue, and you can¡¯t sell anything you borrow. You¡¯re certain that you can get it back. Surely the person you want to give it to must be Rashta.¡± Sovieshu stared at me in silence, then sheepishly ced his forehead in his hand. He gave a long sigh. ¡°Won¡¯t you lend it to me?¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°However, there is a condition.¡± ¡°A condition...¡± ¡°Please lend me one of your magical items as coteral.¡± Sovieshu gave a shockedugh. ¡°Do you think I will not return it?¡± ¡°No. But I may have a person I want to lend it to.¡± ¡°To lend it to...Who?¡± ¡°Did you not tell me yesterday? You didn¡¯t want me to associate with foreigners, so I will look at our young countrymen instead.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face stiffened. ¡°So, you will lend the Emperor¡¯s items to a young countryman?¡± I nodded my head and coolly took a sip of my water. It was a lie, but if he was going to take my ring, I needed security. Sovieshu threw me a dirty look and stood up. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to lend it to me, just say no. I¡¯ll pretend this didn¡¯t happen.¡± * * * I couldn¡¯t finish my bowl of stew after that, but I was still hungry. ¡®I¡¯ll have to ask Countess Eliza for some ice cream.¡¯ I would feel a little better after I ate. Perhaps it was satisfaction from Sovieshu¡¯s twisted expression, but my stomach felt less upset than when he used me of spreading rumors about Rashta being a runaway ve or when he thought I brought Viscount Roteschu. I was walking through the Western Pce when I spotted a couple of figures. ¡°Prince Heinley? Queen?¡± Prince Heinley was standing and holding Queen. My heart lifted as I approached them, but I discovered that I was mistaken. ¡°That is not Queen, is it?¡± The bird was a little smaller than Queen, and his feathers were blue instead of gold. Its face waspletely different as well. ¡°This is Queen¡¯s underling.¡± ¡°Underling? Not his friend?¡± ¡°He is his friend, but officially he¡¯s an underling.¡± Prince Heinley smiled as he patted the bird¡¯s heard. The bird made a disgruntled expression, and I chuckled. ¡°Prince Heinley¡¯s birds are all very expressive.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Queen has a surprised face, a sad face, and a shy face.¡± I reached out and touched the bird¡¯s head. He, too, was very gentle in nature and remained still, even though he was being touched by a stranger. ¡°He has a grumpy face.¡± ¡°He always looks like this. He always has a face like, ¡®I don¡¯t want to do that.¡¯¡± At the end of Prince Heinley¡¯s words the bird turned even sulkier, but the bird was so cute that I kept stroking him. ¡°Can I hold him?¡± I assumed I could, but Prince Heinley answered with surprising firmness. ¡°That¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t hold him?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He didn¡¯t seem willing to exin further, and I nodded. ¡®I would also like to raise a bird of my own...¡¯ The bird looked so pitiful that I touched its neck, and Prince Heinley suddenly stepped back. When I looked up, he smiled softly. ¡°I think the bird is anxious to go back to the room.¡± ¡°...He looks calm.¡± ¡°His heart is beating louder. He¡¯s actually a shy and cowardly creature, unlike the brave Queen.¡± I didn¡¯t know if the blue bird was a coward, but he was certainly glowering at Prince Heinley. Instead of deigning the prince with his displeasure, however, the bird stood up and wearily flew away. ¡°I¡¯ve never seen such a spiritless bird.¡± ¡°He¡¯s always like that.¡± ¡°Is he sick?¡± ¡°He¡¯s fine. He¡¯s justining.¡± ¡°Comining? What for?¡± ¡°Hm, indeed. Am I in trouble because I stopped the Empress from giving him a hug?¡± I didn¡¯t know if he was talking to himself or asking me. Prince Heinley had an unusual look on his face as he stared at the bird¡¯s back with his arms folded. Then, as if he felt my gaze on him, he turned and smiled at me. ¡°I¡¯ll have to ask himter why he¡¯s angry.¡± ¡°Can you talk to birds?¡± ¡°Yes. He¡¯s probably angry because I stopped the Empress from hugging him, and he¡¯s going to hit me ten times on the rear.¡± I burst outughing. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Oh, I was reminded of Queen.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I sometimes pat Queen on the rear.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°He has a cute behind.¡± ¡°Oh...thank you.¡± ¡°What?¡± Why was Prince Heinley so red? I looked at him quizzically, but his eyes refused to meet mine. Ah. Was it because I was so inly talking about rears? With a face that red, he really wasn¡¯t a yboy as the rumors suggested. ¡®He is surprisingly pure.¡¯ I thought he wouldugh, but I didn¡¯t continue because he was so embarrassed. I quickly changed the subject. ¡°I remembered I wanted to ask you something, Prince Heinley.¡± Prince Heinley looked at me with one hand covering his med cheek. ¡°Yes. Ask me, Queen.¡± ¡°I met Duke Elgy yesterday...¡± ¡°Ah. I see.¡± He frowned as if he disapproved of the encounter. ¡°Did he disrespect you?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± ¡°That is a blessing.¡± ¡°Instead he said something strange...¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s expression was tense. ¡®I¡¯m not sure I can tell him the bad names, can I? Duke Elgy said he was a frivolous man.¡¯ While Duke Elgy and Prince Heinley were best friends in name, I doubted that rtionship right now. Instead, I asked about something else. ¡°He said it was you who called him here.¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°He also said you¡¯ve been setting up something for years.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 62 - Red Flame Ring (1) Chapter 62 ¨C Red me Ring (1) ¡°What?¡± ¡°I think it must be some kind of n. What is it?¡± Prince Heinley looked surprised. He didn¡¯t answer, and closed his mouth and looked downward. When I saw his calm face, I remembered my first impression of Prince Heinley. ¡®That¡¯s right. He only smiled after we were acquainted. Before, I thought he seemed cold.¡¯ Even if he may have just been thinking, the mood was chilling. ¡°I...¡± It was not long before Prince Heinley looked up at me and spoke, his expression softened. ¡°Queen, I don¡¯t want to lie to you.¡± His answer had many implications. Good and bad. ¡°Yes.¡± On the good side, he was proving how serious his friendship was. He didn¡¯t make excuses when the other option was riskier. On the bad side...he was up to something, and he couldn¡¯t tell me. It crossed my mind that whatever it was could be personal or contain confidential information of his country. But there was likelihood that the n involved bringing Duke Elgy into the Eastern Empire... ¡°You don¡¯t have to answer if you can¡¯t.¡± I smiled and spoke in a casual tone, and Prince Heinley stared at me with nervous eyes and sighed. * * * McKenna leaned against the wall of the drawing room as he waited for the prince to return. He had a mind toin to Prince Heinley for calling him a foolish bird in front of the foreign empress. He was most definitely not a foolish bird. He sulked even more as he remembered how Prince Heinley told him to y a pet bird. However, McKenna¡¯s mood changed when the prince entered the room and copsed onto the couch. ¡°Your Highness? Are you alright?¡± McKenna wasn¡¯t worried, not initially. He knew how strong Prince Heinley was, and it wasn¡¯t often he had to be concerned about him. However, Prince Heinley unexpectedly waved his hand away. ¡°Your Highness?¡± McKenna leaned down to peer at him carefully. McKenna was the one that had been forced to y as a pet bird in front of the Empress, but it was Prince Heinley who had a look of defeat. ¡®Did it not work out as he thought?¡¯ ¡°Your Highness, did the Empress say anything bad?¡± McKenna ced his hand on Prince Heinley¡¯s shoulder, but the prince shrugged it off. There was no anger in his face over what had happened. McKenna was starting to worry a little. ¡°Did you hear anything bad?¡± ¡°Well, McKenna.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m listening. Speak.¡± ¡°I think I like her more than I thought.¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s reply, however, was aplete nonsense. McKenna frowned. ¡°What?¡± Prince Heinley buried his face in his hands and gave a shuddering breath. ¡°I think I made a slip of the tongue.¡± ¡°A slip of the tongue? In front of the Empress?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± McKenna was more puzzled by his answer. ¡°What did you say that made you sad?¡± ¡°What if she¡¯s wary of me now?¡± ¡°Wary?¡± ¡°Studying me with those sharp eyes...aah.¡± The prince stood up from the couch and fell into his bed with a groan. He had rambled incoherently at all of McKenna¡¯s questions, and the knight looked at Prince Heinley in surprise. ¡°Did she find out you can change into a bird?¡± ¡°Not that.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Something else.¡± * * * Although I considered Prince Heinley a good person and a good friend, even differences could cause good people to be enemies. However, being an enemy did not necessarily mean being a bad person¡ªit only meant that they stood opposite of me. As soon as I returned to my room, I summoned Sir Artina to give him a mission. ¡°Sir Artina. There is something I want you to look into. Be discreet.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Prince Heinley and Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°What?¡± Sir Artina, who knew Prince Heinley was the owner of Queen, looked at me in surprise. He seemed to think it strange that I wanted to investigate someone I was already sending letters to. ¡°Duke Elgy is understandable...but Prince Heinley as well?¡± ¡°Yes. I want you to focus on their activities before New Year¡¯s, before they came here to the Imperial Pce.¡± Sir Artina looked suspicious, but he was a model knight. Instead of questioning me, he gave a short ¡°Yes¡± and left the room. Afterwards, I walked towards the window and leaned my head against the frame. The Western Kingdom was the Eastern Empire¡¯s most powerful rival, but they were neither too distant or too close. In the meantime, what could Prince Heinley do by bringing in Duke Elgy? * * * I remained busy for the next five days. The public ball was to be held a month earlier thanst year in exchange for a generous sum paid by Grand Duke Lilteang, and the relevant documents had been approved and distributed. There was also good news. For the first time, a child from a state-sponsored orphanage earned a schrship to attend the academy of magic. It was imperative to nurture magical talent. No matter how much one spent, magic was a priceless talent. As a symbolic gesture, the officials rmended that someone in the Imperial Family should present the schrship, and I was willing to assume the role. I didn¡¯t remember all the children raised at the orphanage, but I did know a fair number of them, especially the child who was chosen. I was happy to do the honor of congratting them. However, the trip would take more than a day, and so I visited Sovieshu¡¯s office to consult him. I found him sitting at his desk, turning over a small ring in his hands. ¡°I thought you lost it?¡± The Red me ring, which Sovieshu said was gone, was right before his eyes. I stared at him in puzzlement, and he smiled. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s amazing.¡± ¡°Did you find it?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say I found it.¡± ¡°?¡± Sovieshu set down the ring on his desk. ¡°I gave this ring to Rashta, but she said she felt sorry for a poor maid and gave it to her.¡± ¡± ...The Red me ring?¡± ¡°I suppose she didn¡¯t know about the spell. When I told her about it, she was upset.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s voice turned fond, and he continued. ¡°I asked Count Pirnu to look for a ring that had a simr property. You remember that from a few days ago, right?¡± ¡°I remember.¡± ¡°And Count Pirnu gave this to me today. He bought it from an auctionst night, not realizing that it was already mine...¡± He smiled faintly. ¡°Isn¡¯t it amazing?¡± ¡°I see.¡± I wasn¡¯t impressed at all, but I was still obliged to answer. Sovieshu tucked the ring inside his breast pocket. I thought my answer was too brief, so I spoke further. ¡°If the maid was poor, she likely needed the money and sold it.¡± ¡°I agree. But information about jewelry, especially magical items, is difficult to find. The average person would not know to sell it for its full price. I told Count Pirnu to find out how much the woman who sold the ring received.¡± The corners of Sovieshu¡¯s mouth lifted in pride. ¡°Rashta is kindhearted. I want to make sure her good deed was done properly.¡± Chapter 63 - Red Flame Ring (2) Chapter 63 ¨C Red me Ring (2) Eight days after Rashta asked Viscount Roteschu to uncover Duchess Tuania¡¯s weakness, the viscount paid a visit. ¡°You¡¯re earlier than expected.¡± Rashta spoke to him in a sharp voice and ordered Viscountess Verdi to take away the tea. ¡°Oh dear. You won¡¯t even serve me tea?¡± ¡°No. And I didn¡¯t send her away because of you.¡± ¡°Then?¡± Rashta did not reply. She didn¡¯t want to tell Viscount Roteschu that she didn¡¯t trust Viscountess Verdi. ¡°Hm. You don¡¯t want to say.¡± Viscount Roteschu seated himselffortably in a chair and smiled. ¡°Speak quickly. Have you found anything useful?¡± ¡°Indeed. It was not that hushed, so the information wasn¡¯t hard to find.¡± ¡°What information?¡± Rashta waited in anticipation for his answer. Viscount Roteschu grinned and pulled a gossip magazine from his bag. ¡°What is this?¡± Rashta took out the gossip magazine and unfolded it. It was dated from twenty years ago. ¡°Read it.¡± The magazine included topics on trendy designers, fashionable hat shops, popr actors, weddings that month, and restaurants. Although the fashion was two decades old, Rashta was still dazzled by the pictures. Why was she looking at this? She flipped the pages with a frown. With her limited reading ability she could only glean some information through the pictures or simple words, but she couldn¡¯t tell what Viscount Roteschu was talking about. Annoyed, she set down the magazine and stared at the viscount, who gave an ¡°Oh¡± and took the magazine away. ¡°I thought the Emperor taught you everything.¡± He smiled as if to reassure her that he was not making fun of her, and pointed to a section of the magazine. ¡°Nian, a beautiful youngdy; Marquis Tuania, who devoted himself to the Church; and Lord Ren¨¦, Nian¡¯s fianc¨¦. This is the most talked about story here.¡± Rashta frowned. ¡°I told you to find information about the Duchess, didn¡¯t I?¡± ¡°Here, Lady Nian is now Duchess Tuania.¡± Viscount Roteschu exined with a click of his tongue. ¡°You think she was a duchess from birth?¡± ¡°Then is Marquis Tuania the Duke Tuania now?¡± ¡°The man we call the Marquis Tuania here is the eldest son of the Duke Tuania at the time. Now everyone calls him ¡®Lord Marian¡¯.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°At the time, the sessor was this man. But now Nian¡¯s fianc¨¦, Ren¨¦, is Duke Tuania. ¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll speak of them with their current titles, as it¡¯s confusing. Lord Marian fell in love with his younger brother¡¯s fianc¨¦e, Duchess Tuania.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It¡¯s in the gossip pages, but it¡¯s true. He even chased after her and they had a good rtionship. But when the Duchess Tuania finally married Duke Tuania, Lord Marian waspletely shocked, and he gave up his inheritance and went into the Church.¡± Rashta opened her eyes wide. ¡°Why give up everything?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. The problem was, Lord Marianmitted suicide within a week of entering the Church. Since then the Duchess has had the reputation of a femme fatale. The gossip was all aze.¡± Rashta¡¯s gazed at the magazine with keen interest. ¡°This is the duchess¡¯ weakness, isn¡¯t it? People wondered if she killed him.¡± ¡°There were more rumors after that, but there isn¡¯t any more information because the publisher went out of business.¡± ¡°More rumors...?¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania had a baby seven months after she married the duke. The duchess imed the baby was born prematurely, but people said the baby looked like Lord Marian¡¯s.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°At the time, the father-inw, Duke Tuania, was so angry that he drove not only the journalists out of business, but publisher as well.¡± Rashta swallowed hard. This was it. The rumor could be reignited, and the role as the chewbone of society would pass over to Duchess Tuania. ¡°How do you like it?¡± Viscount Roteschu looked on with a smile. Rashta nodded and took some jewelry from her jewelry box and handed it to Viscount Roteschu, who epted it with glee. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°There¡¯s more I want you to do.¡± ¡°More?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re on my side, you have to keep working.¡± Rashta ced another jewel in Viscount Roteschu¡¯s hand. ¡°You said Lord Marian killed himself in the church, did you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Buy the people around the church and spread this story.¡± ¡°Story?¡± ¡°Before Lord Marian died, a beautiful woman visited the church several times.¡± ¡°Hmm. It may seem obvious that someone¡¯s trying to attack Duchess Tuania. Will such rumors be enough?¡± Rashta raised her eyebrows andughed. ¡°It will be enough.¡± Rashta remembered Duchess Tuania at the ball. There was another man around her that was always staring at the duchess with a darkened expression. ¡®That man is a duke.¡¯ Although many would side with the duchess, if someone with a simr status expressed doubt, it would certainly fracture opinions. After Viscount Roteschu left, Rashta nervously paced the room in excitement. She could now pass her suffering to someone else. Duchess Tuania was highly visible in high society, and so when the gossip broke, everyone would talk about it. ¡®By then, the rumor will disappear that I was a runaway ve.¡¯ Rashta chewed on her lower lip and sank onto the couch. As soon as this was sorted out, she needed to find out about the baby...and that was not something she could trust Viscount Roteschu on. ¡®It would be even more difficult if I chose the wrong person. Isn¡¯t there anyone I can trust?¡¯ * * * ¡®Strange...¡¯ Count Pirnu walked down the corridor and tilted his head in deep thought. The more he puzzled over it, the less he understood. Then, at the intersection where the central pce and the western pce met, he almost ran into the subject of his thoughts. ¡°Oops. My apologies, Count.¡± Viscount Roteschu was quick to leave with a smile and apology, as if he knew Count Pirnu¡¯s face. Count Pirnu looked behind him. The viscount¡¯s step had a lightness to it. ¡°Hmm...¡± Count Pirnu stared briefly at the back of his head, then headed straight to the Emperor¡¯s office. As usual, the Emperor wasboring under a mountain of paperwork, but soon as Count Pirnu came in, the Emperor looked up. ¡°Ah, Count. Have you found it? How much did the maid pay for?¡± It was two days ago when Count Pirnu informed the Emperor of the Red me Star he had bought at the auction house. The count had sought information from the auction house, but the person who put the ring in the market had gone to another region, and it had taken two days to track him down. Count Pirnu approached the Emperor with a serious expression. ¡°Your Majesty, I heard the ring was paid its proper worth.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡± ¡°But there is something strange.¡± ¡°Strange?¡± ¡°Well...the merchant said the person who sold him the ring was not a maid.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°It was Viscount Roteschu.¡± Chapter 64 - Heinley’s Specialty (1) Chapter 64 ¨C Heinley¡¯s Specialty (1) Rashta looked at the jewel box with a deadened expression. It had once brimmed with jewels from the Emperor, but now she could see to the bottom of the box. Rashta covered her face with her hands and sighed. ¡®It¡¯s all Viscount Roteschu¡¯s fault.¡¯ Had it been more than a month since she became concubine? There were still some remaining gifts from Sovieshu and foreign nobles. She heard that an allowance was paid by the imperial family to maintain her standard of living, but nothing hade into her hands yet. All her jewels were lost to Viscount Roteschu, and she couldn¡¯t ask the Emperor for more. ves only owned personal items if it was given to them by their masters or lovers, but the nobles that Rashta saw did not like to be openly asked for gifts, no matter how wealthy they were. While they used their power to approach Rashta, she wanted to be immune to their riches. It was a double-edged sword, and she thought the Emperor wouldn¡¯t be any different. ¡®If I can only figure out if the baby Viscount Roteschu has isn¡¯t mine, I won¡¯t have to be dragged around like this.¡¯ Rashta sighed and set the lid back on the old jewelry box. Then, she heard the door to the parlor room click open, and she hastily shoved the jewelry box back into the drawer and closed it. As soon as she straightened up, someone knocked on her bedroom door. ¡°Yes.¡± Rashta quickly strode over to open the door. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± It was Sovieshu. Rashta leapt at him and nuzzled him with her cheek in greeting. However, instead of hugging her back as he usually did, he pushed her away. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Her heart sank as she saw the dark expression on his face. Did she say something wrong? ¡°Rashta, I need to ask you something.¡± ¡°Wh-what? ¡± Rashta stamped down on her nervousness and smiled at him cutely. ¡°It¡¯s about the ring.¡± ¡°Ring...¡± ¡°The ring with the red jewel.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you gave it to a maid?¡± ¡°Why are you asking all of a sudden...?¡± ¡°I have a question.¡± Rashta¡¯s heart hammered in her chest as she looked at Sovieshu¡¯s face. He didn¡¯t look angry, but he wasn¡¯t smiling either. If he already thought that she gave the ring to the maid, why was he asking about it now? Did he find out something? Did he discover that she gave it to the viscount? Perhaps he wanted to ask the maid to return the ring. In any case, all options were disastrous. If he was going to ask, this was herst chance¡ªherst chance to tell a lie. Rashta decided it would be better to be somewhat truthful. ¡°Well...actually, I didn¡¯t only give a ring to a maid, Your Majesty.¡± His eyes widened. ¡°You gave rings to several people?¡± ¡°Two people. One was a maid, and...well, the other was Viscount Roteschu.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s forehead creased. Seeing his expression, Rashta knew that she had made the right choice. She didn¡¯t know how, but Sovieshu hade here knowing that Viscount Roteschu had the ring. She sighed deeply and sped her hands together. ¡°All the rings looked simr to me...In truth, I don¡¯t know if the person who took the ring you¡¯re talking about is Viscount Roteschu or the maid.¡± ¡°Why did you say you gave it only to the maid?¡± ¡°I...I think you would be upset if I told you I gave a ring to Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°Indeed. I don¡¯t like that at all.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face was stern, and Rashta quickly grabbed his forearm and hugged it. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. But I really wanted to repay him for lying for me.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t lie for you. He was only taking responsibility for what he said.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. There¡¯s no need to thank him.¡± He cast a doubtful eye on Rashta. ¡°You didn¡¯t just give it out of gratitude, did you? Were you threatened?¡± ¡°Oh no. What could Rashta be threatened with?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The rumors about very had already spread. It¡¯s not really like that, Your Majesty.¡± She wished she could tell him she was being threatened, but desperation forced her to lie. If Sovieshu knew that Viscount Roteschu was ckmailing her, Sovieshu would surely punish the viscount, who in turn would tell Sovieshu about the baby and drag Rashta down with him. ¡°If you say so, then I believe you...¡± Sovieshu lowered his eyes and gently ced his hand on Rashta¡¯s cheek. ¡°If he¡¯s threatening you, Rashta, don¡¯t give him anything and let me know. Do you understand?¡± Rashta nodded quickly. ¡°I will.¡± However, Sovieshu still looked apprehensive. ¡°That is an order, Rashta. No, I¡¯d better check every day for now.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°When your allowance paymentse in, I¡¯ll leave it to Baron Lant to manage it until you are able to do it yourself.¡± Rashta paled. She could not give Viscount Roteschu money or jewelry if Sovieshu was watching her finances. And when it came to that... ¡®No! He¡¯ll spread the story about the baby!¡¯ * * * Wirwol was known as a magical city, but despite its prestige, it was located deep in a mountain valley. It was surrounded on all sides by mountains, and there were two magnificent buildings on the eastern and western parts of the city. The magical academy on the eastern side was my stop for today. I was here to honor the first student admitted from the orphanage I sponsored. ¡°Congrattions.¡± I hugged the girl I met at the dean¡¯s office, and the red-faced child replied in a scarcely audible voice. ¡°Thank you...¡± I was worried because she wouldn¡¯t be able to socialize with her friends when she left the orphanage, but I was proud that she came this far, and hugged and patted her on the back. Shepletely froze. Finally, the girl bowed and left, and the dean of the academy gave a chuckle. ¡°She is a good girl and has many talents.¡± ¡°Yes. I look forward to it.¡± After discussing the child¡¯s sponsorship in more detail, the dean offered to give me a tour of the school. Wirwol was near the border, but it was still territory of the great Eastern Empire, and so he gave special consideration to me. ¡°I¡¯m worried because the number of mages these days keeps decreasing.¡± ¡°We received a simr report. Do you know the cause yet?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯ve been researching everywhere, but the rate of magical expression has been going down.¡± ¡°The more mages there are, the more can that be recruited into our national defense.¡± As we walked along a long stone corridor, I saw a freestanding wall that was not connected to the others. Hanging on the wall were several portraits. ¡°These are...¡± I walked closed and looked at it, and the dean exined. ¡°Portraits of the academy¡¯s top graduates.¡± Ah, yes. The most recent portrait was that of Duke Kapmen. On closer examination, there was also a portrait of the current dean as a young man as well. But there was something strange. ¡°Why is this frame empty?¡± One portrait bore no image. I looked at it curiously, and the dean was somewhat flustered as he replied. ¡°It was left nk because someone who came through the exchange program took the top spot for a while. They weren¡¯t a regr student.¡± ¡°They weren¡¯t from the academy, but they were at the top? That¡¯s fantastic. Who was it?¡± I was surprised to have not heard this achievement. The dean replied in a quiet voice. ¡°Prince Heinley of the Western Kingdom.¡± Chapter 65 - Heinley’s Specialty (2) Chapter 65 ¨C Heinley¡¯s Specialty (2) I looked back at him in astonishment. The prince, who was already famous for his handsome face and flirty personality, had be the highest ranked student? If that was the case, then rumors should have spread... ¡°I¡¯ve never heard this before.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not something the academy is proud of.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Well, that was a shame. ¡°Prince Heinley had made a special request, as a matter of fact.¡± ¡°What did he ask for?¡± ¡°He said not to tell other people.¡± ¡°...¡± But the dean just revealed it to me? Was that alright? He quickly noticed my puzzled expression. ¡°But it¡¯s fine. Prince Heinley visited just yesterday.¡± ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± I was sure he was still in the pce when I left yesterday...although I couldn¡¯t have known when he would have left. ¡°Yes, he arrived here out of the blue. He came here to enjoy himself, and he said if a guest came by and asked about the empty frame, it was alright to answer.¡± ¡°I see.¡± The timing was too coincidental, but I passed it over. Rather, the discovery that I found more concerning was that Prince Heinley could use magic. Prince Heinley...ording to Duke Elgy, he had been nning something for years. If he really could use magic, there was a possibility I wouldn¡¯t be able to find out what it was, as mages were so rare that the field hadn¡¯t been studied extensively. After finishing the tour around the academy, the dean saw me off at the main gates. To my surprise, I saw Prince Heinley walking this way with his blue-haired knight. The prince¡¯s expression turned surprise as he spotted me, and he turned to my direction. ¡°Queen? Oh my goodness. You¡¯re here.¡± Prince Heinley approached me with a radiant smile. The prince¡¯s knight, in contrast, looked very unhappy. It seemed directed towards Prince Heinley, as if he had heard something unpleasant from him. The knight shook his head, only to rece his expression with professional solemnity when he saw me. Meanwhile, Prince Heinley kept smiling. ¡°Isn¡¯t it a coincidence, Queen?¡± ¡°It is. I didn¡¯t expect to meet you here, Prince Heinley.¡± ¡°I have some business here.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes. And while we didn¡¯t n this encounter at all, our meeting seemed to have been fated.¡± His talk about fate seemed a bit exaggerated, but I smiled as I enjoyed his unexpected appearance as well. ¡°May I ask you what you¡¯re here for?¡± ¡°The dean wanted to see me.¡± ¡°...¡± The dean told me that Prince Heinley visited unexpectedly. However, I couldn¡¯t bring myself to contradict and embarrass the smiling prince. Oh...was this part of Prince Heinley¡¯s n? While I contemted this, Prince Heinley spoke in a careful voice. ¡°This was meant to be. Would you like to have dinner with me, Queen?¡± I didn¡¯t have anything else on my schedule, and so I agreed. ¡°Yes.¡± * * * ¡°It¡¯s a drink made from apples and honey. Do you like sweets?¡± ¡°In moderation.¡± ¡°Then it will suit you.¡± Prince Heinley had brought me to what he said was his favorite restaurant, and he rmended me various food and drinks from the menu. ¡°Have you ever had soup made with beer?¡± ¡°Once?¡± ¡°This is a specialty here. It¡¯s the best. I rmend it.¡± ¡°What if it¡¯s not to my taste?¡± ¡°Then you can hit me.¡± He smiled and pretended to strike himself on the forehead, then called the waiter to order our food. The knights that apanied Prince Heinley and I were seated a few tables away. The waiter quickly set down an appetizer of fried bread. I delicately tore the bread with my fingers, then looked up to see Prince Heinley smiling at me instead of eating. However, I didn¡¯t feel ufortable by his gaze. I wondered if he was nning anything that was harmful to the Eastern Empire, although I was doubtful. ¡°I¡¯ve always had this thought.¡± ¡°Say it, Queen.¡± ¡°Prince Heinley looks a lot like ¡®Queen.¡¯¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, with the blond hair and purple eyes.¡± Both man and bird were very handsome as well, but I wouldn¡¯t say that. Prince Heinley¡¯s mouth tipped into a smile, and he leaned over towards me. ¡°Take a close look. Is is true? Do I look like a bird?¡± I looked into his deep purple eyes, and realized why his stare did not make me feel ufortable. It was because his eyes were so mesmerizingly beautiful. ¡°Your eyes are very beautiful. Did you know that?¡± Meanwhile, Prince Heinley expressed a thought simr to my own. He smiled and murmured, ¡°They truly are¡± before leaning back into his seat. ¡°Do you alwayspliment women like this?¡± ¡°Does the Queen always bewitch people like this? With your eyes?¡± ¡°That¡¯s an exaggeration.¡± ¡°I know. It was a difficult question, so I just said whatever came to mind.¡± A momentter, the waiter brought a small cart loaded with our tes of food. I nervously brushed the skirt of my dressed as the waiter set the tes on the table, and as soon as he stepped away, I addressed Prince Heinley again. ¡°I hear you are very good at magic.¡± I wanted to ask him before, but I feared of appearing too straightforward. Prince Heinley smiled sheepishly as he pushed an amber drink in front of me. ¡°You must have heard from the dean. Yes, a little.¡± ¡°You were a top student.¡± ¡°What, did he tell you that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know much about magic, but I do know that each mage has different skills. Is that right?¡± ¡°I may never be able to do the magic my opponents do, but my opponents would never able to do my magic either.¡± I asked my next question as casually as I could. ¡°What is your specialty, Prince Heinley?¡± Some liked to boast about their magic in excess, while others hid itpletely. It was not a question I expected Prince Heinley to answer, but if he did, it would be easier to guess whether his n involved magical power. In addition, depending on what his magical ability was, I might have to stop Sir Artina from investigating him in case of discovery. Prince Heinley hummed and then softly chuckled. ¡°I¡¯ll just say¡ªflying in the sky.¡± ¡°Flying? That¡¯s wonderful! Can you take someone else with you?¡± ¡°It depends on who it is.¡± ¡°How about me? Can you take me?¡± I said it half-jokingly, but I wanted to find out more about his abilities. I didn¡¯t expect him to take me and fly away, but I wanted to know what he was capable of. ¡°Oh....¡± Prince Heinley mumbled and avoided my eyes. ¡°You¡¯re kind of, uh, heavy for me to carry, Queen.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Oh, please don¡¯t misunderstand. I don¡¯t mean that you¡¯re heavy, I mean that you¡¯re heavy if I have to carry you in the sky.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Are you angry?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not saying much. You look upset...¡± ¡°No.¡± Chapter 66 - Slush Fund (1) Chapter 66 ¨C Slush Fund (1) Afterpleting my mission at Wirwol, I stayed for another day before leaving early in the morning for the Imperial Pce. It was evening when I finally arrived. ¡°I¡¯ve added rose-scented bath salts to help relieve your fatigue, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± To my gratitude, Countess Eliza had timed the preparation of my bath with my arrival. I dipped my foot into the hot water, then felt a tingling sensation as I gradually submerged myself. ¡°How was your trip to Wirwol, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It was quite enjoyable.¡± ¡°Thank goodness. I was worried because it was such a short schedule.¡± ¡°What happened here while I was gone?¡± My muscles ckened in the warm water and I began to feel drowsy. Countess Eliza poured water over my shoulders as I tried to chase away sleep, but my eyelids felt heavy. ¡°Oh...don¡¯t even ask. It was very noisy.¡± ¡°Noisy?¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania and a young noblewoman fought. There was even hair-pulling involved.¡± Any thought of sleep shattered as I turned around in amazement. I was wide awake. Who fought with who? Hair-pulling? ¡°Duchess Tuania?¡± ¡°Duke Elgy rented an entire opera house and held a surprise party. Almost every important socialite went.¡± ¡°Was Duchess Tuania invited? ¡± ¡°Yes. But during the party, I saw the Duchess Tuania and Duke Elgy talking with each other on the balcony.¡± I remembered their previous conflict at Duchess Tuania¡¯s tea party. Did Duke Elgy apologize to her? ¡°They were the most popr man and woman, and everyone was wondering what they were talking about. The first person who left the balcony was Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°Was Miss Rashta around?¡± Laura cut into the conversation. ¡°Rashta was invited, but she was talking to Grand Duke Lilteang at the time.¡± Most of mydies-in-waiting seemed to have been there. Countess Eliza sighed heavily and continued. ¡°Then, someone asked Duke Elgy how attractive he thought Duchess Tuania was.¡± ¡°Did he say anything negative?¡± ¡°I heard him say he could see why so many men fell in love with the duchess.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened afterwards. Later, there was amotion when Duchess Tuania had pped Duke Elgy on the cheek. In front of so many people, too.¡± Laura was pacing as if she was impatient to speak, and eagerly jumped in again. ¡°It was a frenzy from there! Duchess Tuania pped Duke Elgy¡¯s cheek like this. Pak! Then Duke¡¯s Elgy face twisted back. Suddenly, a woman ran over and pulled Duchess Tuania¡¯s hair from behind!¡± What on earth...? I looked up at Laura and she quickly exined. ¡°She was one of Duke Elgy¡¯s former lovers. She was chasing him after their separation.¡± ¡°She was ordered to leave the capital yesterday.¡± ¡°Does anyone know why the Duchess Tuania hit Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°No.¡± So no one knew why, but that would mean only more people would talk about it. ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, Your Majesty. Over two dozen of these incidents happen a year, right?¡± ¡°Everyone will gossip then move on to the next thing.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± I stirred my hands in the slightly cooled water. I checked the time, then got up twenty minutester and pulled on a bathrobe. Incidents like Duchess Tuania¡¯s and Duke Elgy¡¯s happened frequently in high society, and only the characters involved changed. As Empress, I could not step beyond the line of governmental authority, and I had no choice but to let the incident go. In any case, I would hurt the duchess¡¯ pride if I mentioned it. As I went out in my bathrobe, ady-in-waiting brought me an iced tea. ¡°Thank you.¡± I nodded as I epted the cup, and nced at the window habitually. To my surprise, I saw a familiar silhouette through the darkness. ¡°Queen?¡± The cup fell from my hand, and I quickly ran over to the window to open it. The bird hauled himself inside, exhausted. ¡°Queen, are you alright?¡± He looked tired, as if he had traveled farther than usual. Did Prince Heinley take Queen to Wirwol? But if he did, he would¡¯ve put the bird in his cage and brought him in his carriage... Taking caring of Queen was my first priority, however, and I took him in my arms and sat on my bed. ¡°Drink this, Queen.¡± Laura had brought cold water in a bowl, and Queen gulped it down greedily. As soon as he was refreshed, he flew up and circled the room three times. ¡°Are you alright now?¡± ¨C Gu! ddened by his response, I stood up and approached him. I wanted to hug him for a long time and kiss his cute forehead. However, Queen, who usually stood as still a doll, dodged my touch. ¡°Queen?¡± Hended onto the table and peered at me strangely, as if he were worrying about something. Queen? Is everything alright?¡± I looked at him in concern. Queen tilted his head from side to side, gave what seemed to be a sigh, and came right near me. Then, he took my sleeve in his beak and tried to fly up. ¡°Queen?¡± For some reason, he wanted me to lift my hand. I obliged, but he kept trying to go upwards to the ceiling. I tried to pull away my arm, but he kept pping his wings until he finally fell back onto the ground in exhaustion. Never had I heard a bird pant so loudly, nor seen one sit with its legs stretched out in front of it. Were all the birds like this? He looked the image of a tired man. I reached out carefully to touch his head, and Queen closed his eyes and weakly rubbed his head against my palm. ¡°Queen, what¡¯s wrong?¡± ¨C Gu... ¡°Ah! Queen, are you...¡± ¨C ! ¡°Are you trying to take me somewhere?¡± ¨C ... I supposed so. ¡°Where do you want me to go? I¡¯ll catch up if you fly ahead.¡± I picked up the fallen bird and asked if I could kiss his forehead, but he did not reply. Instead, he checked his wings, like a man looking at his hands, then sighed and flew out the window. ¡®What was he doing? Was he really trying to take me to Prince Heinley?¡¯ Chapter 67 - Slush Fund (2) Chapter 67 ¨C Slush Fund (2) It was about two hours after I arrived to the central pce for work. My eyes were throbbing, and I went outside to take a break. When I stepped out, I saw Rashta crouching down at the grass and staring at the ground. Perhaps she had heard the door open, and she looked around and said ¡°Ah¡± as soon as she saw me. She approached and gave me a bow. ¡°Well...Your Majesty. If you don¡¯t mind, could you spare a few minutes?¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°I...¡± Rashta looked around. As I was right outside my office, there were guards around the building, as well as Sir Artina standing right behind me. Rashta seemed to want to talk alone, but the knight made no move to leave. I gave him a meaningful nce, and he took a few steps backwards. However, when Rashta spoke, it was in a hushed whisper. ¡°Your Majesty, I hear that concubines receive an allowance...¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°How much is it?¡± ¡°About thirty thousand krangs a year.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. It was more money than she expected. ¡°R-really?¡± I nodded, and she covered her mouth with both hands. However, her expression looked gloomy when she spoke again. ¡°When can I get it?¡± ¡°Early next month. Why? Do you need the money now?¡± I knew that Sovieshu was providing for her at the moment, but I asked her anyway. Rashta shook her head and put her hands together. Her words seem stuck in her throat, but after a few false starts she was able to force her words out. ¡°Well...Your Majesty. Is all the money you give to Rashta on record?¡± ¡°I keep the books.¡± It would remain not only on the bookkeeping records, but in historical ones as well, where future generations could read it. I did not bother to mention this however. Rashta hesitated again before speaking. ¡°Then...Your Majesty. Yesterday, the Emperor said that Rashta¡¯s money would be managed by Baron Lant...¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Yes, well. I mean¡ªsome of that money...can you give it to Rashta separately?¡± ¡°Separately?¡± Was she afraid of Baron Lant keeping an eye on her expenses? ¡°Even if Baron Lant is in charge of the money, it¡¯s still yours. If you¡¯re concerned it will be joined with Sovieshu¡¯s, there¡¯s no need to worry.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that...but if you give me fifteen thousand out of the thirty thousand krangs¡ªor even ten thousand¡ªand don¡¯t write it down...is it possible? I hear there is a lot of double bookkeeping...¡± Was she trying to create a slush fund? It wasn¡¯t a good thing, but it wasn¡¯t impossible. It sounded like she was only trying to divide up what she had. But it wasn¡¯t my business. ¡°You should receive permission from the Emperor first.¡± ¡°I heard the Empress takes care of the money...¡± ¡°But the Emperor manages everything about you. Ask him yourself about this.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes turned away in embarrassment. She muttered to herself, and left. * * * ¡°Why the troubled face?¡± When Duke Elgy spotted Rashta¡¯s expression when he walked into the room, he burst outughing. Rashta¡¯s cheeks were swollen and red, and she hugged her pillow more tightly. Her expression didn¡¯t brighten the way it usually did when she saw Duke Elgy. Sensing that something must have happened, Duke Elgy took a nearby chair and stared at Rashta. With the sight of her silver hair trailing in delicate strands down the pillow, she was truly was a beauty irresistible to an emperor¡ªeven when she was pouting. ¡°The Empress is so cold.¡± ¡°Cold? Did you fight?¡± ¡°Can I fight in my situation?¡± ¡°The Empress not the type toe forward and start a quarrel.¡± ¡°You know the Empress?¡± ¡°I¡¯m a good judge of people¡¯s personalities. Not in detail, but a good estimation.¡± ¡°So the Duke says the Empress has a good personality who doesn¡¯t start a quarrel?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say she has a good personality...more cold, as you said. How should I put it? She acts like an empress, she thinks like an empress, and she speaks like an empress.¡± Duke Elgy nodded as he recalled the woman he had only encountered twice. Navier was the perfect stereotype of an empress. ording to his sources, she had shadowed the former empress at an early age and took her lessons from her. Navier was likely cast in that same mold. ¡°What you think is goodness is in reality her drawing a line between herself and others.¡± ¡°You know that from only seeing her briefly?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t brief. I was watching her at the tea party. But what¡¯s really going on, Miss?¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta hesitated and she looked into Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes. The duke chuckled softly with one hand resting on his back. ¡°You don¡¯t have to talk if you don¡¯t want to.¡± Rashta paused, but she knew that he was the person she trusted the most in this world. He helped her in her most difficult time and protected her from the nobles¡¯ gossip. In the end, Rashta decided to confess. ¡°I asked her if she could give me some money without recording it in the books.¡± Duke Elgy let out augh. ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°I need money...¡± ¡°Is there something you want? Tell the Emperor. He would do anything for you.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I¡¯m upset. The Emperor ordered Baron Lant to manage the money, and I can¡¯t use it.¡± Why couldn¡¯t she use money that someone else was managing? Duke Elgy noticed that Rashta was not saying anything. Instead of asking about it, however, he made his own suggestion instead. ¡°If you need the money, shall I lend it to you?¡± ¡°My Lord?¡± ¡°I am quite wealthy.¡± He added in a mischievous ¡°Well?¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°I will write the loan and the exact amount. Why don¡¯t we do that?¡± ¡°Even if you loan the money now, I have to tell Baron Lant when I pay you backter. It still the same. It would be suspicious if he knew I borrowed money!¡± ¡°Baron Lant won¡¯t manage it forever. After a few years, you will do it yourself, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but...¡± Sovieshu had suggested that he would allow her to govern her allowance after she learned about financial management. If she studied hard and hid the fact that she was paying off Viscount Roteschu, Baron Lant¡¯s supervision could be removed after a year or two. ¡°Why don¡¯t we write down the loan? I won¡¯t ask for the money back for five years.¡± ¡°Well...¡± ¡°Instead.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°There is a condition.¡± ¡°Paying interest?¡± Duke Elgy chuckled and waved his hand. ¡°What is interest between friends? You only need to pay the loan amount.¡± Rashta knew how some people ended up as ves when they failed to pay off their debts or went bankrupt. She had heard how dangerous it was to borrow money at high interest, and was relieved that Duke Elgy did not ask for it. ¡°Then what is the condition?¡± ¡°Can you tell me why you need money?¡± ¡°...What?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to stop you if I think you¡¯re being scammed.¡± ¡°Scammed?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a good reason if you¡¯re spending money without informing the Emperor. If it turns out you¡¯re investing in a scam, you should stop.¡± He seemed like he was joking, but there was genuine concern in his voice. Rashta stared at Duke Elgy for a moment. She wondered if he would help her if he knew the whole truth, but it was not necessary to take the risk if the situation was stable. But Rashta needed someone who could help her immediately. Someone who knew her situation and would notugh or point fingers at her, but treat her withpassion. Right now, the only person that fit that criteria was Duke Elgy. Although the Emperor epted her even when he knew she was a fugitive ve, her rtionship with him was different than with Duke Elgy¡¯s. With the Emperor, it was love, and with the duke, it was friendship. Love could cause disappointment and rejection. Friendship was sympathetic,plimentary, supportive... Rashta swallowed nervously. ¡°Actually...¡± Chapter 68 - Who Will Wear The Red Dress? (1) Chapter 68 ¨C Who Will Wear The Red Dress? (1) Lately I had the feeling that someone was following me. I knew exactly who it was. It was Rashta. My husband¡¯s concubine. ¡°Very well. Then the concept of the ball will be a masquerade.¡± ¡°It was very well-received in the previous emperor¡¯s reign, so we¡¯re sure everyone will enjoy themselves.¡± ¡°But with everyone covering their faces, security has to be¡ª¡± I paused. ¡°Your Majesty? What is it?¡± ¡°¡ªthorough.¡± The culture minister looked at me with a puzzled expression. I turned my head and apologized for my rudeness. I had seen Rashta down the corridor. She was not looking at me, but I could see her talking to her maids. ¡°...¡± This behavior had been going on for days. It was not harmful, but it subtly nagged at me. When I looked over to Rashta again, the minister stared at me and spoke carefully. ¡°Your Majesty, do you want to say something about Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t she here yesterday?¡± ¡°Yes, she was.¡± He looked alternately between me and the other woman. I bit my lip. Yesterday, when I was working on another assignment, she was nearby. It was the same situation with another minister two days ago. In the eyes of the different ministers, it seemed like a brief encounter, but from my point of view it was no coincidence. As soon as I continued to stare at her, the culture minister gave augh. ¡°I hear she¡¯s been about, but don¡¯t worry too much, Your Majesty. She is only a low-born concubine and doesn¡¯t know royal etiquette yet, but it will get better.¡± If I showed concern over someone stalking me, why did that make me the oversensitive one? I took offense at his attempt to soothe me, but I masked it. ¡°Go now.¡± The minister walked down the long corridor, still looking between me and Rashta. I waited for a few moments for him to finally disappear, then asked Sir Artina to bring Rashta to me. She continued to pretend to converse with her maids and looked at me in surprise when the knight approached her. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, she walked over to me. ¡°Wh-why are you calling for Rashta?¡± Rashta approached with a frightened face, while her two maids nked her sides. There was no need to waste time on idle conversation, so I simply went straight to the point. ¡°Why are you following me?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say that you haven¡¯t been. I¡¯ve been seeing you around for the past several days.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Rashta blushed and twisted her fingers. I couldn¡¯t see it, but I could guess she was wiggling her toes as well. Her maids looked around with frightened expressions, as if I would yell at the slightest provocation. I ordered the maids to go elsewhere as they were making the atmosphere ufortable, and they moved away hesitantly. ¡°Well...¡± Rashta spoke in a careful voice. ¡°Duke Elgy says you are a typical empress.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Rashta is not from the nobility, and there are many things I do not know about. Sometimes things don¡¯t make sense even when Baron Lant exins them to me...¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°So I want to learn from you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta looked up at me with imploring eyes. ¡°I want to be like Her Majesty the Empress. But...I don¡¯t think you¡¯ll want to teach me etiquette...so I wanted to learn from a distance.¡± Whether she realized it or not, she had said something correct. I wouldn¡¯t teach her etiquette. ¡°If you want to learn, tell the Emperor or ask Viscountess Verdi to teach you.¡± Rashta winced as the Viscountess Verdi¡¯s name was brought up. Although the viscountess was herdy-in-waiting, they did not seem on good terms at the moment. ¡°What I want to be is like you, Her Majesty. Duke Elgy said that you are the perfect empress.¡± ¡°And so you want to follow me.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t bother you, so why don¡¯t you pretend not to see me? I¡¯ll be at a distance and you won¡¯t notice me. Well?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have called you if I didn¡¯t notice you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be more careful.¡± I suddenly remembered the time when Rashta imitated the way I spoke in front of Grand Duke Kapmen and the other guests at the New Year¡¯s special banquet. The memory of it chilled my spine. It was not morally wrong for her to try to watch and learn from me, and as a runaway ve she likely wanted to rush into the upper echelons. However, I hated the woman who took my husband and imitated my mannerisms. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you got that idea, Rashta.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Sovieshu is in love with you, and you arepletely different from me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°You also have Duke Elgy¡¯s friendship. Why do you think you need to follow me?¡± After forcing myself to be polite to her all this time, I had no more patience for civility. ¡°If you follow me without me noticing, then I will not be able to stop you. But if you see you with my own eyes, I will tell the knights to remove you. So do note near me.¡± * * * For the next few days, it was as if Rashta really was invisible. Although she cropped up from time to time, the frequency with which she did noticeably decreased. To an outsider, it may look like I was overreacting to her, but she wisely avoided me and there was no need to send a knight to remove her from my presence. But I didn¡¯t feel any better. Time wore on, and finally the day of the public ball arrived. It was a dance where all people, regardless of their social status, could attend. Commoners and nobles only met on few asions. When the public perception of the nobles became low, the Imperial court held a ball to boost approval. While the mood was not bad under Sovieshu, it was still important to maintain goodwill, and what I selected to facilitate this was a masquerade ball. I wore a dress entirely made of vivid red fabric and ced a plumed white mask on my face. My identity as empress wouldn¡¯t be hidden as I would be among my guards anyway, but I still wanted to dress in the spirit of the asion. ¡°Everyone will be so amazed.¡± ¡°I wish you wore this color all the time, Your Majesty. Your skin tone matches this shade of red very well.¡± ¡°They won¡¯t be surprised. There will be all kinds of beautiful costumes at the masquerade ball.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s hard to wear a color as strong as this, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Is that apliment?¡± ¡°Hmm...¡± I entered the ballroom exchanging light jokes with thedies-in-waiting, but it soon turned out that their jokes were all too literal. Shortly after entering the ballroom, everyone was amazed at my clothes. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± It wasn¡¯t just wasn¡¯t the kind of amazement thedies-in-waiting expected. Chapter 69 - Who Will Wear The Red Dress? (2) Chapter 69 ¨C Who Will Wear The Red Dress? (2) I tried to keep my expression as straight as possible as the murmuring in the room grew louder. There was another woman wearing a dress almost identical to mine. I recognized her instantly from her unusual silver hair and delicate mouth. ¡°Oh my God.¡± Countess Eliza murmured in a shocked voice while the room swayed in front of my eyes. From the bright red dress to the shoes, ne, earrings, and even the white plumed mask¡ªthe concept and arrangement were the same. Rashta turned her head towards the direction of the crowd¡¯s interest, then gave a surprised ¡°Oh?¡± when she saw me. The roompsed into silence. No one spoke, but their thoughts were clearly written on their faces. If they looked at my and Rashta¡¯s expressions, it was clear that neither of us nned this on purpose. Everyone held their breath in anxiety and interest. I stood still and looked at Rashta. I had a lot to say to her, but I didn¡¯t approach her first. Whether if it was for an excuse or an apology, she was the one who had toe to me. I was taught that the empress didn¡¯t go to her inferiors to give excuses. Rashta came up to me, looking genuinely surprised. ¡°Your Majesty, your costume...with Rashta...¡± She hesitated. ¡°Did you intentionally wear something like Rashta?¡± Countess Eliza had a burst of anger. ¡°That¡¯s rude, Miss Rashta.¡± An unpleasant feeling rose up to my neck, but I remained calm and gave her a light smile. ¡°I came here as myself. Weren¡¯t you the one that wanted to imitate everything about me?¡± I smiled but I kept my voice as cold as possible, while Rashta looked at me with a puzzled expression. ¡°Why would I do that now? This time, Your Majesty, you¡¯re dressed like me, right?¡± ¡°Why you?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°This will only make both of us aughingstock, so there¡¯s no need for this. You should understand that from now on.¡± I deliberately told her, ¡®If you wear the same dress, we both lose, and I know that.¡¯ Anyone who heard this would know that I wouldn¡¯t go out of my way to make a fool of myself, other than those that didn¡¯t want to believe my words. Rashta inhaled sharply with a stunned expression. As a politician I knew how to defend myself with calcting lines, while she defended herself with her face. As I brushed past her, she took off the mask she was wearing and tossed it to the floor. I walked straight to my prepared seat without looking back, and Countess Eliza and the otherdies-in-waiting settled near me. Meanwhile a group of men moved in on Rashta to cheer her up. Don¡¯t cry, I heard them say. Among them seemed to be somemon folk, who were looking alternately between me and Rashta with surprise and curiosity. Some people spoke in hushed tones, but they couldn¡¯tpletely mute their conversation. Sir Artina leaned over to me and spoke in a low voice. ¡°Should I take care of those saying rude things?¡± ¡°Leave it be.¡± I answered as nonchntly as I could and leaned back against my seat. It was easy to wield power in public, but doing so could lead to great after effects. People liked the powerful, but they hated them using their power. If I tried to stop them from talking just because of my mood, it would inevitably lead to a fallout. ¡°The person who arrived first should be considered the first one to wear the dress.¡± ¡°You mean the silver-haired noblewoman?¡± ¡°She looks innocent to me.¡± ¡°Why would the Empress try to copy another person¡¯s clothing?¡± ¡°Oh, I heard the silver-haired woman is the Emperor¡¯s concubine. And she¡¯s not a noble, she came from themon people like us!¡± ¡°Really? So the Empress tried to sabotage her?¡± I ignored the frustrating conversation and maintained my coolposure. It seemed as if those men weremoners, and they werepletely possessed by the mysterious and innocent appearance of Rashta. They gazed at her as if she was a fairy from another world. I hid my trembling feet. I heard others side with me and say that Rashta was the one that copied me, but it was the bad stories that affected me more. Rashta looked the same¡ªdespite people siding with her, her expression wasn¡¯t good. I took my eyes off her and forced myself to think about something else. For instance, who gave the details of my outfit to Rashta? While I was angry with her at the moment, the most important thing wasn¡¯t her. ¡®Who was it that leaked the information to her?¡¯ It was difficult to pinpoint the culprit, as the dress wasn¡¯t chosen in a day. There were many times, methods, and people who couldmunicate those words. Once again it was Laura who spoke in open fury for me. ¡°Countess Eliza, is this how other concubines behave? I¡¯m so angry!¡± ¡°Because concubines are legal, it¡¯s hard to touch them when they are favored. Many concubines have done worse, Lady Laura.¡± ¡°How could it be worse?¡± ¡°If you look at the previous empresses¡ª¡± Countess Eliza suddenly paused, covering her mouth with her fan and looking at something over my shoulder. I turned my head and found Sovieshu entering the room. He had disregarded the dress code and dressed in a in suit, while Rashta gleefully rushed to his side. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± She called out to him in a sweet voice. Her eyes were red as she clung to Sovieshu and told him something, but I couldn¡¯t make it out from here. However, he nced in my direction, and our eyes met. I smiled wanly at him and nodded. Rashta also looked at me as she hung to Sovieshu¡¯s arm, and I gave her a nonchnt smile as well, then deliberately turned away towards Countess Eliza. I could hear the chatter of the young men and women excited to see the Emperor and Rashta up close. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza said my name anxiously. I gave her a reassuring smile and reached for my ss of wine. Once I touched it I immediately regretted it, but it was toote. I lifted my ss and took a sip. However, Countess Eliza kept trying to tell me something with her eyes. I looked to the side again, and saw Sovieshu was approaching. Oh...he must being here to sit next to me. Rashta still clung to his arm. ¡°Ha ha ha, I was so surprised when the Empress and Miss Rashta came in with the same dress!¡± Even Grand Duke Liltiang partook in the gossip. ¡°Actually, Miss Rashta wore it first and then the Empress appeared.¡± ¡°But it looks different because they each have a different atmosphere.¡± I smiled lightly and took another sip. Those who sided with Rashta were saying that I copied her. The people I disliked were here, and my heart clenched even more. However, my smile was wiped from my face at Sovieshu¡¯s next remark. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s incredible. I asked the Empress toe in a red dress.¡± Chapter 70 - Are You Jealous? (1) Chapter 70 ¨C Are You Jealous? (1) ¡°?!¡± No. He couldn¡¯t have said that. My head whirled towards Sovieshu. Why would he lie...? My husband approached me, then leaned over to kiss my cheek. ¡°You are beautiful beyond imagination, Empress. Thank you for granting my request.¡± I didn¡¯t know why he would invent such a thing, but I quickly responded as if his words were true. ¡°Whatever color you wish, simply say it.¡± ¡°Oh...it was the Emperor¡¯s request.¡± Grand Duke Liltiang looked embarrassed, but then he quickly smiled and amended his words. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see them get along so well.¡± The group surrounding Rashta exchanged nervous nces with each other. Rashta¡¯s expression, on the other hand, was dark. Even with Sovieshu by her side, she looked unhappy. I watched Sovieshu take a drink, but his gaze was fixed elsewhere and I couldn¡¯t ask him why he helped me. I held on to my ss like a lifeline as I stared around the hall. Thedies-in-waiting stayed with me at first, but as they became bored, one-by-one they began to peel off in different directions. The nobles who were sitting close to the Emperor went to the dance floor as soon as the music began. Surprisingly, Rashta went somewhere else instead of lingering here. ¡®Is she going to Duke Elgy?¡¯ No, I had heard Duke Elgy left the pce a few days ago. Perhaps she just wanted to socialize with everyone? I was caught up in my thoughts when a voice spoke up from my side. ¡°So who copied who?¡± I turned to my side. Sovieshu was looking at me with a gentle expression. ¡°Who do you think?¡± ¡°To be honest...¡± His voice was a low whisper in my ear. ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± ¡°Yet you sided with me?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t approve?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like it. Miss Rashta will be upsetter.¡± ¡°Even so, I had no choice but to help you.¡± ¡°What do you mean, you had no choice?¡± ¡°The empress is the face of the Eastern Empire. You represent the honor of the Imperial Family. Isn¡¯t the answer obvious?¡± ¡°I see.¡± His answer eased my confusion. Convinced, I looked back towards the front as bright light and cheerful music began to fill the room. Masked men and women held each other¡¯s hands, smiling and moving their feet jovially to the music. Even if someone wasn¡¯t a skillful dancer, they had a smiling look on their face. Themoners enjoyed the novelty of the ball, while the nobles seemed to be excited about the less formal atmosphere. There was a cheer from somewhere in the room. I turned towards the sound, and saw Rashta dancing alone in the center of a high stage. Her silver hair gleamed in the air as her light feet waltzed and twirled, and the crowd was drawn to her like a moth to me. Themoners in particr seemed cheerful, and pped their hands whenever Rashta spun around. I noticed that Sovieshu¡¯s admiring gaze was also fastened on her. ¡°Why don¡¯t you go and dance with her?¡± The words involuntarily left my mouth. Sovieshu turned to look at me. ¡°Over there?¡± His eyebrows lifted in surprise. ¡°You seem to want to go.¡± I answered with a nod of my head, and he gave me a strange look. ¡°Are you jealous?¡± ¡°Jealous? Me? ¡± ¡°Or is it sarcasm?¡± ¡°Who says it¡¯s sarcasm?¡± ¡°When are you going to break the habit of speaking like that when you¡¯re angry?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it the same?¡± ¡°You know, I think...¡± Sovieshu bowed his head in a moment of thought, then turned back towards me with a serious expression on his face. I wondered what he was going to say. ¡°By any chance, when my empress mother brought you around, did she teach you how to fight with words? Why is it that you always refuse to support even one word of mine?¡± ¡°You want to know?¡± ¡°To be honest, a little.¡± ¡°Well then, why don¡¯t we put down the crown for half an hour and have a heart-to-heart talk? In a neutral zone? Then I¡¯ll give you my mind.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°You said that once when we were children. Do you remember what you did afterwards?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯m not falling for it again. I clearly don¡¯t like it.¡± * * * ¡®What are they talking about?¡¯ Rashta stopped dancing and brushed the sweat off her face as she stepped down from the stage. She frowned as she saw the Emperor¡¯s and Empress¡¯ heads leaned towards each other in conversation. They looked quite serious... Rashta¡¯s heart sank. The Emperor never discussed state affairs with her, or his job, what he¡¯s been doing, what he was worried about, and so on. She enjoyed his warm eyes and attention, but she felt uneasy whenever the Emperor and Empress talked about something so seriously. ¡®Duke Elgy has gone to Rimwell...¡¯ She had no word from him since he went down to Roteschu¡¯s estate to investigate the matter about the baby. She wondered if he was doing his job well. Rashta had stopped dancing, unable to cope with her rising anxiety. There was something else that captured her attention, however. From across the room she spotted Duke Tuania, who, unlike the ever-popr Duchess Tuania, was sipping his wine alone. Rashta smiled to herself and approached him. Chapter 71 - Are You Jealous? (2) Chapter 71 ¨C Are You Jealous? (2) Sovieshu and I kept arguing, and I waved my hand after I got tired of his drivel. I didn¡¯t want to talk anymore. The same was true of Sovieshu, who wore a sour expression and called a passing servant to fetch more wine. ¡°Will you have a drink, Empress?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I¡¯ll have cake.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going to gain weight.¡± ¡°It¡¯s better than being drunk in public, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t get drunk. But if you eat at this time of day, you¡¯ll get fat.¡± ¡°Even if I gain a bit of weight, I have a tailor on hand.¡± Sovieshu scoffed into his wine as I put a forkful of cake into my mouth. At that moment, music began to flow in the room again, and everyone on the dance floor changed partners. Sovieshu and I had the uninteresting job of simply sitting here at the table, but we had to keep up formal appearances. I picked a strawberry from a slice of cake and put it in my mouth, while Sovieshu looked around with a bored expression. Suddenly, his gaze halted. I followed the direction of his stare, and saw Rashtaughing and talking with someone in a corner. I couldn¡¯t see who it was as they were hidden by the crowd¡ªno, now I could see them. It was Duke Tuania, smiling as if he were enjoying his conversation with Rashta. ¡®Will Sovieshu be jealous?¡¯ I nced to the side, but Sovieshu had already turned away and handed a servant his empty wine ss. ¡®He¡¯s not jealous?¡¯ Though he kept ncing at them every once in a while, he seemedrgely unperturbed. Was it really alright for his lover to smile and talk to other men? Was he not jealous? ¡°...¡± Yes. He trusted her. I shook my head. What was so important about Sovieshu¡¯s reaction anyway? It was between them. It would be strange if I was caught watching them, so I took another bite of cake again. ¡°Queen.¡± A familiar voice called to me. I looked up, and saw a man in a glittering gold mask approaching me. I immediately knew who he was by the name he addressed me. ¡°Prince Heinley.¡± He smiled underneath his mask. ¡°May I sit with you? I¡¯m not good at dancing.¡± ¡°Why, though? You¡¯ve been flying about very well.¡± Prince Heinley and I turned towards Sovieshu, who was looking at the prince and holding up his ss of wine. ¡°Your Majesty, how are you?¡± Prince Heinley greeted him btedly with a smile, but Sovieshu¡¯s expression remained cold. Oh...yes. The pair of them had almost gotten into a fight over Rashta. Sovieshu¡¯s hatred for Prince Heinley was not out of jealousy, but out of insult. The cake suddenly felt stale in my mouth. I set down my fork and handed my te to a servant. * * * As soon as I returned to the pce, I instructed my aide to find out who leaked the information about my dress. He looked skeptical as he received my orders, however. Was that even possible? What I wore was not confidential, and some noblewomen requested this kind of information in advance so their dresses wouldn¡¯t ovep. As expected, after three days the aide could pinpoint any one person to be the culprit. ¡°Manydies and gentleman had asked, and there were too many people who had answered, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I see...¡± It was evening. Laura, who had been out for Lady Alischute¡¯s birthday, returned earlier than expected. ¡°Your Majesty, Countess, did you hear?! There¡¯s shocking news!¡± Laura burst into the room, and Countess Eliza frowned at her. ¡°Laura, I told you not to run in front of Her Majesty.¡± ¡°There is no time for manners, Countess!¡± ¡°There is always time.¡± ¡°This is urgent! How could this be a time for manners?¡± Laura rushed over to me and copsed by my side to catch her breath. She was a healthy woman, and must have run here from a distance. Countess Eliza was too overwhelmed with curiosity to nag her, instead choosing to sit next to her, while the otherdies-in-waiting paused their chess game. Laura took in a deep breath as everyone crowded around her. ¡°It¡¯s about Duchess Tuania.¡± ¡°Laura, if you¡¯re talking about Lord Marian or Duke Elgy, you¡¯re a step behind.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the story, Countess Jubel.¡± Laura looked affronted, as both of those stories had already been widely circted. To be precise, one was an old scandal had been revived, and the other was when Duke Elgy was pped on the cheek. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°Duke Tuania told the Duchess he would divorce her.¡± ¡°What?¡± Thedies covered their mouths in astonishment. I was also shocked, and I set my book aside. Why Duke Tuania? ¡°Is it because of rumors about Lord Marian?¡± At Countess Eliza¡¯s question, Laura nodded. ¡°Yes. I heard him yelling, ¡®Is he my brother¡¯s son?¡¯ and that he couldn¡¯t help but be suspicious.¡± ¡°But he never said it before, so why is he mentioning it now?¡± One of thedies-in-waiting feigned a smile, while Countess Jubel clicked her tongue. ¡°Shortly after Lord Marian went into the church, Duchess Tuania visited the temple at the request of the former duke. Before that, they had a close rtionship. From the standpoint of the current Duke Tuania, he would be suspicious if he heard these kinds of rumors. Keep talking, Laura. ¡± Laura looked alternately between the two, then continued. ¡°And he didn¡¯t like that the Duchess got into a fight with another woman. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was because there was something between Duke Elgy and her.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s too much.¡± ¡°The Duke must be frustrated that paternity tests are not allowed by the Church.¡± ¡°There used to be talk from some time ago. Someone said to the former duke, ¡®Is it possible that the baby may be Lord Marian¡¯s?¡¯ He replied, ¡®Is he not still my grandchild anyway?¡¯¡± Thedies-in-waiting tsked collectively. Paternity tests had once been considered infallible, until the Rumpel case thirty-five years ago. A woman went to the Church to found out who her child¡¯s father was, but the father had an identical twin brother. As the priest examined the results, he concluded that both men were the baby¡¯s fathers, revealing a loophole in the paternity tests. However, even if there was a w, those particr circumstances were so rare... ¡°It¡¯s kind quite strange, actually. Duke Tuania said they conceived the baby before they were married, but since they were wedded, the Duchess hasn¡¯t gotten pregnant since.¡± ¡°Maybe Duke Tuania is too proud to admit he¡¯s infertile.¡± The supposed affair of Lord Marian and Duchess Tuania happened when I was still young enough that I had no idea of themotion at the time. Why was it dredged up now after it had been buried for ten years? ¡°Does this have something to do with Miss Rashta?¡± Thedies-in-waiting stopped chattering and turned towards me. They were unsure why Rashta¡¯s name was brought up all of a sudden, and in all fairness I had no proof. However, Rashta recently asked me about Duchess Tuania, and soon after a scandal broke...was that too weak of a connection? ¡°What did Duchess Tuania say, Lady Laura?¡± ¡°She said she would never divorce. It may even go to trial.¡± Thedies-in-waiting began to talk about the possibility of the duchess winning the trial. * * * I found the timing of this situation unusual, so I asked thedies-in-waiting to find out why Duke Tuania suddenly brought up the problem. I suspected Rashta must have fanned the duke¡¯s anxious mind, but that alone was not cause for punishment, not unless she actively manipted information. ¡®But it wouldn¡¯t hurt to know.¡¯ If Rashta caused this, she could not simply be treated as a naive ve-turned-concubine. She had the ability to influence society and manipte public opinion, and one had to be wary of such enemies. However, four days after hearing the news of the Duke Tuania¡¯s intention to divorce, something more shocking happened. ¡°Empress! Rashta was stabbed by Viscount Langdel!¡± Chapter 72 - A Sudden Change (1) Chapter 72 ¨C A Sudden Change (1) Viscount Langdel was a young man besotted with Duchess Tuania. When he was selected as the duchess¡¯ dance partner at the New Year¡¯s ball, he beamed as if he had the world in his hands. That same young man stabbed Rashta... ¡°He must have thought it was Miss Rashta who started the rumor about the Duchess Tuania.¡± Thedy-in waiting who delivered the news looked surprised. ¡°How do you know?¡± ¡°Tell me the details.¡± ¡°Everything started out fine at first. It was Rashta who let him in her room. I don¡¯t know why.¡± Rashta must have allowed him in because she knew he was a lovesick young man. She had watched the men who gathered around the duchess at the New Year¡¯s celebrations. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can say this, but...¡± The maid started muttering in an apologetic way, but then she waved her hands as if to ignore it and started talking again. ¡°Duke Elgy came in and kicked down the door, saying he smelled blood, and fortunately he hit¡ªno, he stopped Viscount Langdel. The viscount was seized on the spot.¡± ¡°Duke Elgy? He¡¯s returned?¡± ¡°Yes, but that¡¯s not the important part, Your Majesty. When Viscount Langdel was caught, he kept shouting that Rashta that ruined Duchess Tuania...¡± Thedy-in-waiting nced at me. ¡°That¡¯s why I was surprised when you mentioned Duchess Tuania all of a sudden, Your Majesty. Is there really something there?¡± Although we both approached this from different situations, we coincidentally came around to the same subject. ¡°How is Miss Rashta doing?¡± * * * ¡°How is she?¡± The doctor felt for Rashta¡¯s pulse. Her face was pale and sweaty as she gave a low moan, but no answer was forting from the pce doctor. ¡°How is she?¡± Sovieshu repeated himself, looking at the bandages wrapped around Rashta¡¯s abdomen. She looked in a terrible state. The doctor sighed and stared at Sovieshu as if to urge him to be quiet. ¡°Just tell me!¡± Sovieshu voice raised to a yell, and the doctor closed his eyes. ¡°Your Majesty, please be quiet for a moment. I can¡¯t concentrate.¡± Sovieshu retreated and paced the room with his arms folded, anxiety eating away at him. He felt like he was going crazy. The doctor had already said the injury was not life-threatening after his first examination, so why was he doing this now? After a few paces he came face-to-face Duke Elgy, who had been standing nearby. The duke greeted him with a light smile, and Sovieshu pped him on the shoulder. ¡°Thank you. You saved Rashta.¡± He was so worried earlier that he forgot about the duke¡¯s existence. ¡°It was just luck.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Sovieshu nodded and began to pace again, oblivious when Duke Elgy kept watching him carefully. ¡°...¡± Duke Elgy tilted his head. He had saved Rashta, but Sovieshu made no mention of the fact that another man came to his concubine¡¯s roomte in the evening. Duke Elgy was amazed to see the emperor deal with it so coolly. ¡®Is he surprised or¡ª¡¯ His thought was interrupted by the pce doctor¡¯s voice. ¡°What is this? How strange!¡± Duke Elgy turned his gaze from Sovieshu towards the doctor, who had let go of Rashta¡¯s wrist and was feeling her stomach instead. ¡°Can you press the injury like that?¡± Sovieshu snapped at the doctor, but he just smiled. ¡°Not this part. And I¡¯m not pressing hard, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu was about to give him another warning, when the doctor gave a whoop and turned to Sovieshu. ¡°Congrattions, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Congrattions? Congrattions on what?¡± ¡°There is a baby in Miss Rashta¡¯s stomach!¡± The other men in the room froze. ¡°Baby...?¡± Sovieshu looked at Rashta¡¯s stomach in surprise. It looked t to him. ¡°Baby?¡± ¡°I believe Miss Rashta became pregnant after the time you rescued her from the woods, Your Majesty.¡± A stunned silence filled the room. Sovieshu covered his mouth with his hand. ¡°Baby...¡± * * * As I readied myself for work, I stared into the mirror while Countess Eliza trimmed my hair with a serious face. She noticed me looking at her and gave an awkward smile, but her expression remained stiff. ¡°Is everything alright, Countess Eliza?¡± She answered with a sigh. ¡°In truth...There are many things worry about.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but agree. There had been an influx of incidents all at once¡ªDuchess Tuania was in the process of divorce, while Viscount Langdel stabbed Rashta for revenge... Laura was plucking at the plume on my hat when she spoke. ¡°What will happen to Viscount Langdel?¡± She sounded worried, as the viscount was a moderate acquaintance of hers. Stabbing an emperor¡¯s concubine was a definite crime, and the viscount was currently being held in jail. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll find out more.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe Viscount Langdel did that. It¡¯s impossible to believe.¡± Ady-in-waiting opened her mouth to console Laura, but before she could, anotherdy-in-waiting came in the room. ¡°Your Majesty. The Emperor is here.¡± ¡°At this time?¡± It was still early in the morning. Sovieshu was here in person instead of a messenger? I looked in puzzlement at thedy-in-waiting. ¡°Let him in.¡± Despite my vexation, I didn¡¯t have any choice, and thedy-in-waiting gave a noise of affirmation and hurried out. I turned away from the mirror and looked in the direction of the door, and a few momentster, Sovieshu entered my room. I wondered what words offort I should offer him. To my surprise, however, he did not look distraught. Instead of anger or sadness, somewhere on his face was a subtle joy. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Was Rashta¡¯s injury less severe than expected? Yet that was still no reason to be happy about it. ¡°Is Miss Rashta all right?¡± The reply he gave left me stunned. ¡°Rashta is pregnant.¡± For a moment, I couldn¡¯t process what I had heard. Who was pregnant? Rashta? ¡°...I can¡¯t offer my congrattions.¡± The honest words involuntary left my mouth. Sovieshu looked at me with a critical eye, but it was true. I couldn¡¯t celebrate this with him. ¡°It may not be recognized as a part of the imperial family, but it¡¯s still my first child.¡± ¡°I know.¡± My heart thumped in my chest, but his face seemed strangely chilled. Perhaps my face was equally cold too. ¡°You don¡¯t have to give your congrattions. Starting from next month, however, I hope will you increase the allowance as much as any other concubine that has children.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I would have done that anyway. ¡°Rashta is not awake yet, but her injuries are not life-threatening.¡± I didn¡¯t respond to this information Sovieshu gave me, keeping my eyes fastened on a couch instead. I counted the flowers and leaves on the pattern. Sovieshu sighed heavily, and did not look back when he left the room. Even after he was gone, I simply stood frozen. I must have remained there for a while, when I noticed a figure sitting on the window sill. Queen was perched there with his beak open. The window hadn¡¯t been shut, so he must have sat on the window sill and waited for me to notice him. Did hee in during the conversation? Either way, I was fortunate. As I approached, Queen flew into my arms, and I squeezed his body tight and buried my face in between his feathers. Queen wrapped me with hisrge wings as best he could. I could hear his small heart beating loudly. ¡°Thank you...it¡¯s so much better to have someone hold you.¡± It was a hug better than a thousand words. Chapter 73 - A Sudden Change (2) Chapter 73 ¨C A Sudden Change (2) The news spread in a matter of hours. Everyone stole surreptitious nces at me at the central pce, and hurriedly quieted themselves when I passed by. As soon as it was time for dinner, I sent the workers back. Despite my sess in keeping myposure calm all day, my facial muscles were fatigued. What should I do when Rashta¡¯s baby was born? I remembered how the previous empress treated the emperor¡¯s illegitimate children. She had treated most of them fairly enough, but she was cold to the children of the concubines she particrly disliked. ¡°...¡± It wasn¡¯t going to be easy. People were sympathetic to young children, and both Rashta and Sovieshu were so beautiful that their baby would surely be as lovely as a fairy. If I were cold to such a precious child, who was also the Emperor¡¯s first baby, my reputation would be ruined. Everyone would stare at me and whisper, ¡®What is wrong with her?¡¯ Furthermore, if I didn¡¯t want that child to get any foolish ideas, I had to give birth to my own legitimate child before the age gap became too great. As soon as I entered my room, I fell into an armchair and took a deep breath. It was as if the surrounding air was trying to crush me. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± My hand was resting on my temple as I lifted my head and saw Countess Eliza near me. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Prince Heinley is here. He seemed to be in a hurry to see you...¡± ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± I sat up from the chair. Why was he here? Since bing a secret friend, Prince Heinley hadn¡¯te to visit me outright, choosing only to exchange the customary greetings and pleasantries when we met outside. I had also visited him only once when I was worried about Queen. If he hade in person, it must be urgent. ¡°Bring him in.¡± Concerned, I quickly went out to the drawing room. There was no need for me to change clothes as I hadn¡¯t undressed from my formal ones yet. The same time I entered the drawing room, Prince Heinley walked in. ¡°Would you like tea, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Yes, thank you, Countess.¡± As soon as Countess Eliza closed the door behind her, Prince Heinley walked up to me and held up his arms in the air. ¡°I¡¯ve been wanting to console you. Can I give you a hug, as a friend?¡± I stared at him, and Prince Heinley looked at me encouragingly. ¡°Friends hug each other forfort.¡± Oh...that was what he was here for. He came running here to cheer me up. A sense of relief flooded body. ¡°Alright.¡± As soon as I stepped towards him, he hugged me tightly. I couldn¡¯t help but notice the firmness and broadness of his shoulders. I leaned my forehead in, inhaling a familiar scent. It was always the scent of Queen. Did Queen smell like the prince or did the prince smell like Queen? Although Queen¡¯s hug wasforting, Prince Heinley¡¯s body was muchrger. I felt safe as I was engulfed in his arms. Everything is fine, his body seemed to say, and between the familiar scent and unfamiliar arms, the turmoil in my mind settled. Even the sound of his heartbeat granted me a sense of security. It was healthy and loud and fast. ¡°I really...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I really must be a rotten jerk, Queen.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°I came here tofort you because I was afraid you were upset. But I was having bad thoughts in the meantime.¡± ¡°Bad thoughts?¡± What was he talking about? I pulled away my forehead in confusion and stepped back, while Prince Heinley lowered his arms. His face was red as he slightly backed away. ¡°Was I too close to you?¡± I looked at him worriedly, and he gave a tentative ¡°Huh?¡± His ears turned red and he waved his hands. ¡°I wasn¡¯t having bad thoughts about that, Queen. Absolutely not. I¡¯m not the kind of person who gets excited like this.¡± ¡°...¡± Excited...? I stared at him. ¡°I¡¯m going crazy.¡± Prince Heinley covered his eyes with both his hands as if he wanted the ground to swallow him. ¡°You didn¡¯t even ask me in the first ce. I dug myself into this, didn¡¯t I?¡± ¡°...A little.¡± At the sound of his distress, my mouth couldn¡¯t help but turn up. ¡°Well, I¡¯m smiling in the middle of this. Human emotions areplicated.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯m d that my embarrassment made you smile.¡± The prince sighed and then gave a chuckle. Just then, Countess Eliza came in with the tea. She set the tray down on the table, then hurried out to leave the pair of use alone again. I held up a teacup for him, and he carefully epted it. I could feel his hand trembling as our fingers brushed against each other. His gaze was cast downwards when I looked up at him, but he slowly lifted his eyes, revealing purple irises from underneath his soft gold eyshes. It was captivating. ¡°If Prince Heinley was a woman...¡± ¡°Hm?¡± ¡°The Emperor would fall in love with you. Your eyes are gorgeous.¡± ¡°What a peculiar way to give apliment.¡± He stared at me for a moment then burst intoughter, then brought his cup to his lips. ¡°If I were a woman, I would be the Queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°Mydy-in-waiting?¡± ¡°We can stay together all day.¡± ¡°Do you wish to be mydy-in-waiting?¡± ¡°Not that. Focus on the part after that, Queen.¡± There wasughter again. After hearing the news about the baby, I was happy to find relief with Prince Heinley, though I knew it was a temporary prescription and I would feel nauseous again after he left. As I was about to bring up the topic about the bird Queen, Countess Eliza knocked on the door again. ¡°Your Majesty, Duchess Tuania is here.¡± Duchess Tuania? ¡°Bring her in.¡± What was she doing here at this time? I had a good rtionship with the duchess, but there was no asion for noblewomen to visit me in the evening without an invitation, not unless they were mydies-in-waiting. I was just as surprised as I knew she was loaded down with her problems. Was there something she needed me to do for her? When Duchess Tuania came in, her eyes were wet. ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave, Queen.¡± Prince Heinley sensibly realized it was not a conversation he should be involved in, so he gave a nod to the duchess and left. I took the duchess¡¯ hand and led her to sit on the couch. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you alright?¡± Duchess Tuania¡¯s back was straight and her posture was graceful, but she looked more worn than usual. As soon as she sat on the couch, she took both my hands in hers. I waited for her to speak instead of prodding her, and finally the duchess managed to choke out the words caught in her mouth. ¡°Your Majesty, I am so ashamed to ask you this, but...please save Viscount Langdel.¡± Chapter 74 - Kindness (1) Chapter 74 ¨C Kindness (1) ¡°Speak slowly, Duchess.¡± I squeezed her hand as I spoke in a soothing voice. The duchess looked at me, her wide eyesced with pain. ¡°He won¡¯t go to trial, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°No trial?¡± ¡°The viscount¡¯s case won¡¯t go to the chief judge.¡± The chief judge was one of the duchess¡¯ advocates. If he had secretly told the duchess, it was likely that it was true. ¡°Why? Ah, is it because Miss Rashta is pregnant?¡± The duchess bit her lip and nodded. ¡°Yes. I believe the Emperor will not charge Viscount Langdel for attempted murder of that woman, but for the near death of a royal baby.¡± In that event, execution was the indisputable oue for Viscount Langdel. Sovieshu would want it to happen either way. If the case went to the chief judge, Sovieshu would be worried what Viscount Langdel would say at an open court. ¡°I¡¯ve heard that after he stabbed ¡®that woman,¡¯ he was yelling.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Viscount Langdel...¡± The duchess took a deep breath and looked at me with earnest eyes. ¡°Viscount Langdel is an upright young man. He wouldn¡¯t do this for no reason.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I know. Even if he had a reason, he shouldn¡¯t stab someone. But at least try get him a trial. That way, he can defend himself...!¡± A tear escaped Duchess Tuania¡¯s eye and slipped down her cheek. It must be painful that a man who defended her honor was now under threat of execution. In the past, Duke Tuania¡¯s brother had taken his own life because of his love for Duchess Tuania. She never let herself show it, but the incident may have been traumatic for her. ¡°I was considering talking to him myself.¡± I rubbed her back and waited until she calmed down a little, and Duchess Tuania looked up at me with rounded eyes. ¡°Will you?¡± I nodded in affirmation. ¡°I have my own suspicions as well.¡± ¡°You mean...?¡± ¡°I suspected Miss Rashta was trying to discredit you.¡± ¡°Then is the rumor true?¡± ¡°I will find out more myself.¡± Duchess Tuania tightened her fists. ¡°Right now, the Emperor is away. I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll send Viscount Langdel to trial, but don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll visit the viscount. ¡± ¡°Thank you. Thank you, Your Majesty.¡± The duchess inhaled deeply. I gave her my handkerchief, but she simply took it in her hand and did not wipe her tears. After a long moment, she folded it up and asked, ¡°Can I have it?¡± Why a handkerchief? ¡°Yes.¡± Despite my puzzlement, I agreed. The duchess put the handkerchief away and breathed a heavy sigh. Her next words gave some me rification. ¡°However it works out for Viscount Langdel...I will repay this act of kindness to you someday.¡± ¡°Kindness? Don¡¯t say that. It¡¯s not enough to be called a kindness.¡± ¡°You reached out your hand to me in my most difficult time. That is kindness.¡± The duchess stared at me for a moment. ¡°Can I hug you once?¡± I nodded, and she leaned over and wrapped her arms around me, rubbing my back as if to console me. She then pulled away. I looked at her questioningly, but she simply smiled and stood up. Without exining, Duchess Tuania bowed gracefully and left the room. * * * The next day. I sent one of my knights to look into Viscount Langdel¡¯s status. The knight returned earlier than expected, right before noon time. ¡°Viscount Langdel¡¯s interrogation is over, and the Emperor has made a decision, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°He will be sentenced to death.¡± ¡®Will that reallly happen...¡¯ ¡°Thank you for letting me know.¡± I left my office and headed straight to the prison where Viscount Langdel was being held. The guards looked surprised to see me, but they did not obstruct me from entering. Sovieshu must not have ordered them otherwise. There were six rooms on the first floor of the prison where nobles were held, five of which were empty. I went to the only cell that was upied. Although there were bars, the cell itself was furnished like an ordinary civilian room. Viscount Langdel was seated with his head in his hands, and he weakly lifted his head up as he heard my approaching footsteps. His eyes widened in surprise, and when he tried to stand up, he teetered and stumbled onto the bars. As my eyes adjusted to the dark, I noticed that his face was bruised and blood trickled from his split lips. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. I should bow, but my legs won¡¯t cooperate.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. You don¡¯t have to bow.¡± I remembered when he once looked as happy as a child when he was chosen by the duchess at the New Year¡¯s ball. Now he was in a dark jail cell, a bruised and broken man. ¡®But why is he smiling?¡¯ My question was soon answered. ¡°Is everyone talking about what that woman did to the duchess now?¡± ¡°!¡± Viscount Langdel mumbled through his broken lips. ¡°I shouted. Everyone knows, I screamed loud.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It was stupid, now that I think of it. I should have confirmed the information I found, instead of visiting that woman first. I was too quick to end it...¡± So that was why he yelled at Rashta as he was being held down by Duke Elgy. Viscount Langdel leaned weakly against the wall, a self-mocking smile on his face. After a moment¡¯s consideration, I told him the truth. ¡°No one is talking about it. The matter is buried.¡± Viscount Langdel pulled back in surprise, his eyes wide. ¡°Buried? What that woman did is buried?¡± ¡°It was forgotten when it was discovered that Rashta is pregnant.¡± ¡°Then...haaa. Pregnant? Pregnant. It can¡¯t be.¡± Viscount Langdel clenched his fingers in his hair as if to tear it out. He still had a smile on his face. He wasn¡¯t there when everyone heard about Rashta¡¯s pregnancy, and Sovieshu didn¡¯t seem to have mentioned it to him either. ¡°Viscount. You will be executed without trial.¡± Viscount Langdel clenched his teeth as if he hadn¡¯t known that either. He put his hands around his head, and made a pained sound and started muttering incoherently. I leaned down to his level, but he was in too much agony to notice me. ¡°Viscount. Look at me.¡± He turned to me at my voice, but his eyes were unseeing. I drew his attention by hitting the bars with my fingers. ¡°Viscount. Look at me.¡± His eyes finally focused on me. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t tell you this if you were going to die.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Do you understand what I mean?¡± ¡°Is there a way to save me?¡± ¡°There is.¡± ¡°How...?¡± Chapter 75 - Kindness (2) Chapter 75 ¨C Kindness (2) As soon as he asked the question, he answered it himself. ¡°Are you going to afford me one of your three immunity privileges?¡± ¡°It¡¯s simr.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty...the Emperor is using me of almost killing a royal family member. Immunity cannot be used for crimes against the Imperial Household.¡± ¡°That is my problem.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°All you have to do is tell me exactly what happened.¡± ¡°...I have already told the Emperor, but to no avail.¡± Viscount Langdel weakly lifted the corners of his mouth. ¡°He will punish me, no matter what evidence I show. To him, that woman is more important to him than the duchess.¡± I tapped the iron bars again. ¡°Tell me everything first.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°As I followed the rumors about the duchess, I ended up at a vige near the church where Lord Marianmitted suicide.¡± He must have been determined to hunt it down all that way. ¡°They were talking about the duchess and Lord Marian at a bar. I traced the story back to people who first spoke those rumors.¡± His expression twisted. ¡°They all said the same thing. A noblewoman dressed in certain clothes looked a certain way and, at a certain time, visited someone. It was strange. Everyone said the exact same thing, when real truth can sometimes change when passed through several people¡¯s mouths. Besides, didn¡¯t it happen long ago?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I intentionally trapped the question, and asked the same question to everyone separately. As expected, once they broke off from the prepared answer, they were unable to match responses.¡± Someone must have given them money to rekindle the rumors. ¡°But that wasn¡¯t enough to tell me who did it. I didn¡¯t even think that woman was the culprit at the time.¡± His eyes shone fiercely. ¡°So I brought pictures of those who were recently active in society, and asked the people to point their finger to who paid them. I had them pick out the pictures separately, with the assumption they would all cover for the same person. There was only one picture that was not chosen.¡± Rashta would not have been in the lineup, as she had been in the pce this whole time. ¡°It was Viscount Roteschu.¡± Viscount Langdel seemed unable to suppress his hatred. ¡°That woman was the one who instructed him to spread those rumors.¡± ¡°Why did you think it was Rashta?¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu didn¡¯t even have a ce in society until he became entangled with that woman. First he insults her, then he goes around praising her. Then the poor lord goes around spending lots of money.¡± ¡°Did you tell any of this to the Emperor?¡± ¡°Yes. It didn¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Did you investigate this by yourself? Do you have any reports?¡± ¡°Yes, I do.¡± ¡°Where is it?¡± ¡°My study desk...it¡¯s just inside the drawer.¡± After a pause, I went outside and called Sir Artina. ¡°Go to Viscount Langdel¡¯s mansion and find an investigation report. It¡¯s in the drawer of his study. Immediately.¡± After Sir Artina left, I returned to Viscount Langdel¡¯s cell. He looked at me questioningly. ¡°Why the report?¡± ¡°I think I can use it to save you.¡± He didn¡¯t seem to fully process my words at first, but then his eyes filled with tears. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania was the one who asked me to save you.¡± A look of surprise flitted across his face before he began to cry. ¡°How is she?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Is she not upset because of me?¡± The viscount truly seemed to love the duchess. Looking more miserable than before, he put his forehead on his knee and sniffed. To love a woman even when his life was at stake... His actions against Rashta were far from chivalrous, but his feelings towards Duchess Tuania were strong. ¡°You are not entirely innocent.¡± Viscount Langdel took his head off his knee and looked at me. ¡°I can change your punishment into exile.¡± ¡°You¡¯re saying¡ª¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Tell me if you have anything to pack. I¡¯ll inform your butler.¡± * * * When I returned to my room, I wrote down the list of items Viscount Langdel requested. I then summoned ady-in-waiting close to Duchess Tuania, and ordered her to go to Viscount Langdel¡¯s mansion and deliver my note to the butler. Not long after thedy-in-waiting left, Sir Artina returned. ¡°While I was collecting the documents, I saw the pce investigators on horseback.¡± ¡°Did you run into them?¡± ¡°I stayed away just in case.¡± Sovieshu would try to bury the results of Langdel¡¯s investigation. ¡°Well done.¡± I took the report from Sir Artina and skimmed it. It was as the viscount said, with the exception of one section. ¡®Did Viscount Roteschu receive the Red me Star from Rashta and sell it to the auction house?¡¯ Viscount Langdel cited the ring as proof that Viscount Roteschu was connected to Rashta.... ¡®How did he know?¡¯ A ring with a red jewel. Not many people knew that it belonged to the Emperor, fewer still that he gave it to Rashta. Even I didn¡¯t know until Sovieshu asked me about the Desert Flower Ring. But how did Viscount Langdel know about this? ¡®No, it¡¯s not important right now.¡¯ Right now, I had to deal with Viscount Langdel¡¯s fate. I stowed the report in a secret drawer in my desk and headed to the central pce. I went to Sovieshu¡¯s office instead of my own. He was studying his papers with a thoughtful expression, when he looked up at me in surprise. ¡°Empress? What happened?¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t seem to know about my visit to Viscount Langdel yet. ¡°Well.¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Viscount Langdel.¡± ¡°...The Empress should not interfere.¡± ¡°Change his punishment from execution to exile.¡± ¡°I said do not interfere.¡± Sovieshu spoke in a firm tone and waved his hand as if he found the conversation annoying. ¡°If that¡¯s what you¡¯re here to talk about, leave.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°There are many reasons for me to be upset right now, but Rashta is pregnant. Viscount Langdel may not have intended it, but he almost killed my baby.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t it matter why he did it?¡± ¡°No. His reasons don¡¯t matter to me, only that my baby almost died.¡± He pointed his finger at the door. ¡°So if you¡¯re here to fight, get out.¡± ¡°Then I suppose I¡¯ll have to handle the results of Viscount Langdel¡¯s investigation myself.¡± I turned around and took a few steps towards the door, when Sovieshu stopped me. ¡°Wait. What do you mean, handle the results of the investigation yourself?¡± ¡°The reason he stabbed Miss Rashta. The case of the false rumors about Duchess Tuania.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°An incident separate from your baby¡¯s near death.¡± Chapter 76 - Do You Have Compassion? (1) Chapter 76 ¨C Do You Have Compassion? (1) Sovieshu stared at me for a moment, then let out augh. ¡°What do you mean? Will the Empress spread bad rumors about Rashta unless I change Viscount Langdel¡¯s punishment to exile?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m just trying to prepare a report. Oh, do you know there¡¯s a report?¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll fall for that?¡± ¡°Fall for it or not, it doesn¡¯t matter. You will handle Viscount Langdel ording tow, and I intend to deal with Miss Rashta ording to thew.¡± ¡°And how will you do that?¡± ¡°Miss Rashta spread false information to discredit Duchess Tuania, encouraged the Duke to divorce her, and undermined the duchess¡¯ reputation in society. She¡¯s aggressive enough to buy people. For this she must be locked up in jail and whipped.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s gaze could sting one¡¯s skin. He seemed to find my suggestion genuinely preposterous. ¡°No matter how much you hate Rashta, how can you defend someone that¡¯s tried to kill her?¡± Sovieshu red at me with a face like thunder. ¡°The same as you if you were defending someone whose honor was intentionally destroyed.¡± ¡°Are those equivalent? What Rashta does ismon in society.¡± ¡°Then everyone will understand if this happens. It¡¯smon in society.¡± ¡°For you to say this...¡± Sovieshu turned away, breathing deeply. He cooled down a little, then turned sharply back towards me. ¡°Does the Empress have nopassion?¡± ¡°I do. That is why I¡¯m trying to save Viscount Langdel.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°May I ask you a question?¡± Sovieshu glowered at me instead of answering, and I raised my eyebrows questioningly. ¡°Does the Emperor havepassion only for Rashta?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You always ask me, ¡®Don¡¯t you feel sorry for Miss Rashta?¡¯¡± It was meant to be a biting response, but Sovieshu did not immediately answer. It wasn¡¯t justpassion he had for her. For a moment we stared at each other in silence. Sovieshu seemed to be in internal conflict with himself. He was mad at me, and he didn¡¯t want to have Rashta whipped, but he also didn¡¯t want to let go of Viscount Langdel... ¡°Very well.¡± After a long pause, Sovieshu finally surrendered. However, somehow I was not happy with my victory. ¡°There is a condition.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°The report. Give it to me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give it to you after Viscount Langdel leaves.¡± I replied with as much calm as possible. Sovieshu¡¯s jaw tightened, then he rang a bell on his desk. The door opened and a secretary came in. ¡°I will change the punishment on Viscount Langdel. He will be exiled, not executed.¡± Sovieshu raised his eyebrows at me expectantly. Instead of answering, I bowed courteously and left the office. I hadpleted a lot of work, and it wasn¡¯t even evening yet. The sky was still bright and people were bustling about. The world was peaceful in the hours of a man¡¯s life being decided. During this time, everyone was busy talking about the emperor¡¯s first baby. My heart filled with unexinable emotions, and I stared towards the eastern pce. Somewhere in therey Rashta. Although she had not yet awakened, her world had changed. A childless concubine could easily be abandoned by the emperor. However, a concubine with children had a connection left, even if the emperor¡¯s heart cools and she quits the concubine life. ¡°...¡± I won the battle against Sovieshu and seeded saving Viscount Langdel. Why didn¡¯t I feel relieved? I sighed and turned around. ¡°Queen?¡± As soon as I turned around, I saw Queen was sitting on a rock, holding a proper letter envelope in his beak. A few people passed by, and he ducked behind the bushes. When they were gone, he emerged again, and I was so confused that Iughed. I approached him, and Queen ced the envelope in my hand and flew away. ¡®I was going to hug him.¡¯ After pulling away my outstretched arms, I sat on a bench and opened the envelope. Unlike the previous short notes, it contained a proper letter this time. -My elder brother¡¯s not feeling well. I worry. -Do you remember the blue-haired knight? He¡¯s my knight, secretary and cousin, and he seems to want to be my enemy these days. -How to get revenge on those who hurt you. 1. How about making a beautiful, well-known, respected man as your lover? -How to get revenge on those who hurt you. 2. Ask Prince Heinley. Perhaps because it was not a note, the content was longer than usual, although it was written in fragmented pieces. It was also unclear whether I shouldugh or not. The story of revenge and the blue-haired knight were interesting, but his brother was sick... Prince Heinley¡¯s older brother was the king of the Western Kingdom, and was apparently not feeling well. If he worsened, Prince Heinley may have to go back home and stand by as the sessor. The thought of Prince Heinley and Queen leaving made me feel sick. Although we had known each other only recently, I felt the mostfortable with them. ¡°Why the long face?¡± A voice spoke from my side. Startled, I turned and saw Prince Heinley with a wicked smile on his face, and behind him was the blue-haired knight. The knight bowed when our eyes met, and Prince Heinley approached and offered me his arm. ¡°Do you mind if I walk with you for a while, Queen?¡± I thought it would help me rx. I rose up from the bench and took his arm, feeling his muscles flex beneath my hand. My eyes unknowingly nced downwards. All I saw was clothes. I¡¯ve been escorted by others several times, but...Prince Heinley had amazing muscles. While he looked quite slender on the surface, but he was surprisingly solid underneath. ¡®You¡¯re crazy, Navier! How can you think that of a person escorting you?¡¯ My face was flushed with shame, and Prince Heinley turned to me curiously. ¡°Are you hot, Queen?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your face is red.¡± ¡°Ah yes...it¡¯s a little hot.¡± As soon as I finished speaking, there was a cold breeze and goose flesh popped on my skin. Prince Heinley¡¯s knight sneezed from behind us, and I bit my lip in embarrassment. My face was hot at the sound of Prince Heinley holding back hisughter. Chapter 77 - Do You Have Compassion? (2) Chapter 77 ¨C Do You Have Compassion? (2) ¡°You must be healthy, Queen. You won¡¯t catch a cold.¡± ¡°...A little.¡± I awkwardly clutched his arm, and Prince Heinley gave a faintugh. I squeezed my skirt tightly and held up my chin before steering the conversation in a different direction. ¡°Your letter needs some exercise. You must be worried.¡± ¡°Puhu¡ª¡± ¡°!¡± I really just wanted to pass out for the next five hours. My head was scrambled about the contents of the letter. But the words already left my mouth, and Prince Heinley was desperately biting his lips to hold back theughter. ¡°Yes. I had a lot of trouble choosing strong stationery. I had to make sure it wasn¡¯t torn in Queen¡¯s beak.¡± Although he tried to remain calm, his straight face copsed at his joke. I scowled, and Prince Heinley tried to wave his hand apologetically. But he was still busyughing. ¡°Sor¡ªhaha¡ªsorry.¡± ¡°I said it wrong.¡± ¡°I know. You wanted to ask me if I exercised a lot, didn¡¯t you, Queen?¡± ¡°No, I was going to ask about your brother¡¯s health.¡± ¡°Well, my brother doesn¡¯t exercise much.¡± Really...this prince? I stopped because I didn¡¯t like ying games. I made my expression cold, Prince Heinley immediately sobered. ¡°My brother said he was feeling worse than before. He¡¯s not in danger yet, but he has always been weak.¡± ¡°Thank goodness¡± would be a bad response. Just because his brother wasn¡¯t in danger yet, didn¡¯t mean he wouldn¡¯t be in dangerter on. I had an anxious expression on my face, and Prince Heinley smiled as if to lighten the atmosphere. ¡°Have you thought about my suggestion?¡± ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°How to get revenge, one and two.¡± He cleared his throat loudly. ¡°I rmend number one.¡± ¡°You mean have a beautiful, respectable man as my lover?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want a fake lover...¡± The prince¡¯s voice trailed off as he looked at me, and I suddenly wondered if the fake lover referred to himself. I knew he didn¡¯t like Sovieshu. However, he had been teasing me earlier so I paid him in kind. ¡°Are you referring to Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± ¡°No!¡± ¡°Not Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°But are there any other beautiful, respectable and great men?¡± ¡°...¡± Heinley pouted his lips earnestly, and I leaned in close to his face as if to inspect how handsome he was. I burst outughing, and I grinned at him to see if he understood my joke. ¡°Are you joking?¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious.¡± ¡°!¡± So that was why Prince Heinley teased me earlier. It is quite fun to see his reaction. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± ¡°I am?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to look like I¡¯m having an affair I someone don¡¯t want.¡± ¡°...Was that part of a joke?¡± ¡°Why?¡± His face turned sullen. I felt bad for teasing him, but he looked quite cute rather than pitiful. I walked side-by-side with him, forcing myself to hold back myughter. After that, we walked wordlessly all the way to the Crystal House. I don¡¯t know why Prince Heinley didn¡¯t say anything, but I couldn¡¯t find time to talk because I was looking around. The sky was especially beautiful today. It became awash with red as the sun went down, and Crystal House glistened like a giant ruby. I watched the scene for a moment. I¡¯ve seen it several times before, but my mind was nk and I couldn¡¯t think of anything to say. ¡°If I go to the Western Kingdom...¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s cautious voice broke the silence. I turned my head and saw him looking at me. Perhaps it was because the sky was dimming, but his violet eyes looked darker than usual. ¡°Western Kingdom...?¡± ¡°Will you miss me?¡± The sound of bird cries echoed from afar, and I stared at him as I processed his question. Return to the Western Kingdom? That¡¯s right. Prince Heinley was the sessor and he would eventually have to go back to his country, taking Queen with him. ¡°...¡± It was as if I stopped hearing. Was I too used to them? I already felt a sense of loss with the knowledge that my friends would go to a faraway ce. Why was this? Come to think of it, I never truly parted with friends and family before. While I hadn¡¯t seen my family much since I married, they were never far away. ¡°...I will miss you.¡± I managed to keep myposure, and as I listened to my voice it sounded like a courteous remark. ¡°Sincerely.¡± Prince Heinley gave a sad smile. ¡°I¡¯m not leaving right now.¡± I didn¡¯t know how to reply. I turned my head back to the ruby-like roof. When I nced sideways, I saw Prince Heinley taking out a watch and checking the time. ¡°It¡¯ste.¡± He offered me his arm again to escort me back to the western pce. * * * Sovieshu stared intently at the report sitting on the desk in front of him. Marquis Karl, his chief secretary, stood by his side and looked at him in concern. ¡°Your Majesty, are you considering what to do with Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°What can I do? Do you want me to punish a pregnant woman?¡± But the Emperor had been thinking for two hours already... Marquis Carl carefully offered his opinion. ¡°While it¡¯s an unexpected matter, Your Majesty, a low-rank concubine wishing to live in high society must be able to defend herself to some degree.¡± ¡°Defend...¡± ¡°I heard that the Duchess and Ms. Rashta confronted each other at the tea party. Wouldn¡¯t that be something worthy of punishment?¡± ¡°...Well.¡± Sovieshu frowned in thought. ¡°If you¡¯re worried about what will happen in the future, why don¡¯t you tell me what you¡¯re thinking?¡± ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. ¡± ¡°This is my business, not yours.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Sovieshu sighed and handed the report to Marquis Karl. ¡°Should I destroy the report?¡± It was clear that that was what Sovieshu would ask of him. However, after thinking for another moment, Sovieshu gave an unexpected answer. ¡°...I¡¯ll keep it.¡± Chapter 78 - Good Visitors, Bad Visitors (1) Chapter 78 ¨C Good Visitors, Bad Visitors (1) ¡°I¡¯m pregnant...?¡± Sovieshu nodded, and Rashta looked dazed. This surprise news was given to her as soon as she woke up. Rashta covered her belly with her hands. ¡°I¡¯m pregnant...¡± ¡°It may be scary because it¡¯s your first pregnancy, but...thank you.¡± Sovieshu leaned down and embraced Rashta tightly. He could feel her trembling in his arms, and he rubbed her back and repeatedly murmured his gratitude for her. He had always wanted a baby, and he had always wanted to be a father. Apart from simply needing a sessor to the throne, a happy family was his ideal dream. How was it that a concubine that had only been in his life for a few months made ite true? But despite his happiness, harbored a sense of unease. The best n was to have a child with the Empress first. A concubine¡¯s children could not be sessors, but the rtionship between parent and child can not be severed so easily. Clever bastard children were the seeds of many quarrels. Sovieshu never wanted that to happen among his generations. With an illegitimate child born first, he was both happy and anxious. ¡°Your Majesty, we have our baby here...¡± But Sovieshu could not share his concerns to the mother of his baby. He ced his hand on Rashta¡¯s stomach with a smile, pushing away his unease. ¡°Isn¡¯t this incredible?¡± ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t feel anything yet...but it¡¯s amazing.¡± The pce doctor standing to the side spoke up carefully. ¡°Miss Rashta, were you having irregr periods?¡± She nodded. ¡°Yes, so I never thought about getting pregnant. It was always irregr...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll prepare you medicine and healthy foods. For the time being, please focus on your prescribed diet.¡± The doctor left, and Sovieshu seated himself by Rashta¡¯s side. ¡°If there¡¯s anything you want to eat, anything you want to have, just tell me.¡± ¡°Anything?¡± ¡°When a mother is happy, so will the baby.¡± ¡°!¡± At that moment, tears started to fill her eyes. ¡°Rashta?¡± Sovieshu looked at her in surprise, but Rashta curled up and buried her face on her knees. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you sick? Should I call back the doctor?¡± ¡°No, not that...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted to hear that.¡± ¡°Rashta?¡± Sovieshu was bewildered by her reaction, and he lifted her chin. She wasn¡¯t crying cutely as usual, instead her body wracked with sobs as if she couldn¡¯t care less what she looked like. After crying hard for a long time, Rashta threw herself into Sovieshu¡¯s arms. ¡°You¡¯re Rashta¡¯s savior, Your Majesty. You don¡¯t know how much Rashta loves you.¡± However, Rashta¡¯s soaring happiness plummeted after she met with Duke Elgy the next day. She was grateful for his help, but when he spoke to her it was with a grave expression. ¡°I¡¯ve been to Rimwell, Miss. The child that Viscount Roteschu is keeping...I think that¡¯s your baby.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes grew wide. She never had words of congrattions when she had her first child, but now it was like a needle in her heart. ¡°Did you ask the Church for an examination?¡± Rashta covered her belly with her hands. She was afraid that the eldest child, born unloved, would grab the ankle of the second child, who would live in love. Duke Elgy shook his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°If there¡¯s no examination...¡± ¡°It was a baby boy. He looks just like you.¡± ¡°!¡± The blood drained from Rashta¡¯s face. Now that it was true, there was nothing to be done except to give Viscount Roteschu money in return for his silence. As he looked down at Rashta, Duke Elgy smiled and made a suggestion. ¡°As I¡¯ve told you before, I can lend you the money you need, Miss.¡± He made it sound so easy. Rashta, who was not able to afford the money right away, was terrified. ¡°How much?¡± In the past, she had been very cautious about borrowing money. However, things had changed. She was now carrying the Emperor¡¯s baby, and she was wildly happy. The money would be avable in a few years, and she had to prevent Viscount Roteschu from entering her life no matter the cost. ¡°Any amount.¡± Rashta hesitated for a moment. ¡°Then is it possible to borrow a thousand krangs...?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll lend you ten thousand.¡± He sat down and took a piece of paper out of his pocket, then ced it on the table. It was an unsigned promissory note. He wrote his name and signature and put ¡°10,000 krangs¡± on the amount. ¡°Here.¡± He then took out two 5,000 krang slips from his breast pocket. It was issued from the top credit lender on the Wol continent. ¡°Thank you...¡± Rashta signed the promissory note from Duke Elgy and epted the slips. This would keep Viscount Roteschu¡¯s mouth shut for at least a little while. ¡°You¡¯ll get worn out if you kept getting swept away, so think of a means to shake it off.¡± ¡°Is there a good way...?¡± ¡°Well, in this case, I don¡¯t know.¡± Duke Elgy stood up a gave a word of encouragement to Rashta, who smiled at him. As he was leaving the room, his hand stopped on the doorknob and he and turned back. ¡°But Miss.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°The baby in your womb now. I wonder if it¡¯s a daughter or son?¡± * * * ¡°I see...she¡¯s awake.¡± It was evening time. After work, Laura delivered to me the news that Rashta was safe. Thedy-in-waiting also added that Sovieshu gave Rashta arge armchair as a gift. I sat in front of my desk and smiled as calmly as possible, but the otherdies-in-waiting stopped ying chess and flocked to my side for more gossip. It turned out that Rashta wasn¡¯t the only news of the day. ¡°Duchess Tuania has decided to divorce the Duke. They couldn¡¯t agree on anything, however, so they went to court over property division.¡± ¡°Viscount Langdel was exiled yesterday, Her Majesty.¡± But the most unexpected news was not even about them. ¡°Your Majesty, what do you think of Viscount Roteschu? The man who imed Rashta was a ve.¡± Rashta¡¯s old master... While the topic of him was long buried, I wasn¡¯t ignorant of him. But why suddenly bring him up now? Thedy-in-waiting leaned in and whispered to the group. ¡°I heard that Viscount Roteschu wants to move to the capital city. He¡¯s looking for a house near the pce.¡± As soon as I heard those words, my mind turned to Rashta. Although Sovieshu had forced Viscount Roteschu to renounce his im that Rashta was his ve, their past rtionship would never be gone. Viscount Roteschu had even gone around manipting information about Duchess Tuania for Rashta. And now he was moving near the pce? ¡®Is Rashta being ckmailed?¡¯ As I stewed over this information, Laura cut in with her own gossip. ¡°I heard that he¡¯s not only looking for a house, but a nanny as well. Does he have a baby at home?¡± I didn¡¯t want to say this out loud, but...I didn¡¯t want to get involved, even if Rashta was being threatened. I¡¯ll only focus on myself. It would be difficult if she asked Sovieshu for help, but she was not my job. As I listened to the conversation on Rashta, I opened my drawer and rummaged through my items. ¡®Oh?¡¯ Something rolled into my hand. When I pulled it out, it was a pretty pink bottle about the size of my palm. ¡°Huh? Isn¡¯t that from before?¡± Laura, who had been talking about Viscount Roteschu, diverted her attention. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it a gift? It¡¯s a love potion, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± I didn¡¯t use it as the sender was anonymous, and left it in my drawer andpletely forgot about it. After I received it, I went to the vi, and then Sovieshu got sick, and so on. ¡°You didn¡¯t open it at all, did you?¡± ¡°I believe it¡¯s just a joke.¡± Laura came near and peered at the bottle. She seemed curious about the love potion. ¡°Could it be real?¡± ¡°Of course not. If it were real, people would talk about it.¡± ¡°But there are all kinds of things in this world, Her Majesty.¡± If there was a true love potion, wouldn¡¯t there at least be rumors? I looked at the bottle hesitatingly, and Laura had an encouraging expression in her eyes. ¡°Try it, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even if I use this, there¡¯s no situation for me to use it for...¡± I trailed off nervously. In response, Laura mouthed, ¡®Emperor.¡¯ Chapter 79 - Good Visitors, Bad Visitors (2) Chapter 79 ¨C Good Visitors, Bad Visitors (2) Afterwards, each of thedies-in-waiting went to their usual business. Before I went to sleep, Iy in bed and stared at the bottle. ¡®What was the intent of the person who sent this?¡¯ Did they pity me for losing my husband to Rashta? Or was it a poison? Ah...right. Grand Duke Kapmen graduated from the magical academy, so perhaps I could ask him. Prince Heinley seemed to be good at using magic as well, but he was only a transfer, so he may be weak on magical theory... The next day. There were discussions about diplomacy with Rwibt to be had, so I took the bottle and went to one of the vacant rooms in the pce. I scheduled Grand Duke Kapmen and I to meet here, and he soon arrived. ¡°I heard you were looking for me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Have you written the export and import prospects we talked about previously?¡± ¡°About half...¡± ¡°Let me take a look.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°What are the total number of traders crossing from Rwibt to the Wol continent?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if there are any traders who are really doing this.¡± ¡°We need some meaningful numbers before we can create a state-led business. There needs to be a minimum guarantee of safety. We may want to make a preliminary deal first for market research purposes.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Is there anything else you can trade from the Hwa continent to the rest of the world?¡± At the suggestion of trading with other countries, Grand Duke Kapmen furrowed his brow. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°I¡¯d like you to find out. Trade between the two countries is good, but we can create the infrastructure where our two countries be intermediate distributors between the continents and receivemission.¡± ¡°I see.¡± After some more discussion, we finished the conversation, and I took the chance to tell him about the love potion. ¡°I heard that you were at the top of the magical academy...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know about magic potions, do you?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen looked at me as if asking why I was talking rubbish. I suspected this man disliked me. He did rmend me as an important trade representative, and he did listen carefully to my opinions, but I could sense his opinion on other things. ¡®Does he hate personal rtionships?¡¯ ¡°No.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°...I know about potions.¡± ¡°Ah. Yes.¡± Oh. I thought he had answered in the negative. The timing made my heart skip a beat. I pressed my hand against my chest, and then pulled out the pink bottle. ¡°Will you take a look at this, if you don¡¯t mind?¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen lifted his eyebrows and took the bottle to inspect it. ¡°A love potion...¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It came in as a birthday gift, and the note said it was a love potion.¡± He frowned even deeper. ¡°I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s true. And I¡¯m ufortable because it was sent anonymously.¡± I thought I looked foolish for keeping it, so I added that I expected no benefit from it. But there was no change in Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s expression. ¡°But it¡¯s a gift, so I don¡¯t want to throw it away. If you don¡¯t mind, can you confirm whether it¡¯s harmful or not?¡± With slightly dismissive look, Kapmen said somethingpletely unexpected. ¡°I don¡¯t know if this is harmful, but these potions are on the ck market. It works to some extent.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of this potion before...¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s only distributed on the ck market, it¡¯s a genuine drug.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen seemed quite interested, and he said ¡°Wait¡± then shook the bottle. After that, he opened the lid and smelled it. After a few inspections, he spoke in a nomittal tone. ¡°It seems to have some effectiveness.¡± ¡°Then if someone drinks this...?¡± ¡°They will fall in love with the first person they see. Well, it¡¯s not exactly love, but it gives them the physical symptoms of love¡ªthe heart beats faster, the face turns red...hmmm, and so on.¡± I burst intoughter because it was so strange. Was the love potion given to me not out of malice, but out of pity that I lost Sovieshu to Rashta? Grand Duke Kapmen briefly nced at me before continuing. ¡°You can use it on Emperor Sovieshu if you wish. Just make sure that the first person he sees is you.¡± ¡°!¡± I was taken aback, and he shrugged as if he hadn¡¯t said anything strange. I smiled awkwardly and gave a murmured agreement. It hurt my pride to attract Sovieshu¡¯s attention, and frankly speaking, I couldn¡¯t trust the potion itself. Grand Duke Kapmen assured me that it was alright, but there had to be a reason why I never heard of it. Besides, a simple sniff test couldn¡¯t give that much information... Did my face show signs of disbelief? When I reached out to take the bottle back, Kapmen pulled it possessively back towards him. ¡°You don¡¯t believe me...¡± he said, then opened the cap. ¡°I¡¯ll prove to you the results.¡± ¡°No, you don¡¯t have to¡ª¡± ¡°I have the antidote.¡± ¡°The antidote?¡± Before I could ask why he had something like that, Grand Duke looked at me and took a sip. My eyes met his in surprise. The door suddenly opened and someone came in. ¡°Empress?¡± Chapter 80 - Anxious Men (1) Chapter 80 ¨C Anxious Men (1) The person who came in was Sovieshu. ¡°I heard you were with Grand Duke Kapmen¡ª¡± He was holding a thick stack of files, but he frowned as soon as he saw Kapmen. I looked back and saw the duke was standing with his body facing away. ¡®Oh, yes. He can¡¯t look at my face.¡¯ I thought our eyes had met. He must have turned around as soon as he drank the potion, and so hadn¡¯t yet taken effect. Did it matter that he was looking at me right before he drank it? Regardless, from this point on, it seemed that he would fall victim to whomever he faced next. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± Sovieshu, unaware of what was happening, frowned and stepped between me and Grand Duke Kapmen. He didn¡¯t look surprised the duke was there, but he seemed displeased that he kept showing his back. ¡°Hello.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen still didn¡¯t turn to greet him, and Sovieshu¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°Where are you looking at? I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°...There¡¯s a situation.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen seemed to believe in the effectiveness of elixir and was desperately trying not to look at Sovieshu. By now I wondered if the potion was real. If it was...ah. That mightplicate the situation. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen, I said look here.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, what brings you here?¡± I quickly interrupted. Sovieshu turned to me, and I indicated the files he was holding. ¡°Are you here to deliver these?¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu only narrowed his eyes and did not heed my words. On the contrary, he gave a sardonicugh when he realized that I was deliberately covering for the duke. ¡°What were you doing? Why is one trying to hide his face and the other trying to protect him?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s lips twisted as he looked alternately between Grand Duke Kapmen and me. ¡°Was he kissing you, Empress? Are his lips swollen?¡± He grabbed Grand Duke Kapmen by the shoulder and forced him to turn around. Oh.... Sovieshu stumbled back unexpectedly, dazed at the sight in front of him. ¡°Nnng.¡± As soon as Sovieshu touched him, Kapmen made a small noise with his eyes closed. That short groan...evoked the imagination in a strange way. Sovieshu quickly withdrew his hand and stared at him in shock. My mouth also dropped in amazement, as Kapmen stared at Sovieshu with shining eyes. The Grand Duke. The blunt and arrogant Grand Duke. The Grand Duke who openly ignored me as empress. His gaze waspletely fixed on Sovieshu, as if I had disappeared from the earth. The potion seemed to work, and now Grand Duke Kapmen was in love with Sovieshu. The normally brusque-mannered man was now staring at the Emperor with a misty-eyed expression. rmed, Sovieshu stepped back and swiftly turned towards me. ¡°Why is he doing that?¡± Could I say anything about the potion? Grand Duke Kapmen approached Sovieshu and smiled at him. ¡°It¡¯s good to see you like this. You look handsome today, as always.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face stiffened. He knew Grand Duke Kapmen did not normally act this way. After staring at the duke for another moment, Sovieshu handed him the file he was holding. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re ying at, but control yourself.¡± He spoke in a coldly formal voice and left the room. Did he run away...? It looked like it. Sovieshu¡¯s hurried footsteps finally faded away. I was still dumbfounded when I turned back to look at Grand Duke Kapmen. Though the situation was funny, I didn¡¯t know if I couldugh when this could turn out seriously bad for him. ¡®Wouldn¡¯t he want to go after Sovieshu?¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen remained stock-still, though he was still red in the face. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I tried to approach him cautiously, but Grand Duke Kapmen held out his hand to stop me. ¡°Don¡¯te.¡± Don¡¯te? Ah, perhaps¡ª! ¡°Are you jealous of me?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen was now in love with the Emperor, and I was the Emperor¡¯s wife. However, Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s brow furrowed. ¡®What?¡¯ The expression on his face wasn¡¯t different from before. Instead of jealousy, but he had a red face and moist eyes. An expression that looked like curiously like...excitement. Dted pupils, red nose, trembling lips... ¡°Grand Duke?¡± ¡°Call me Kapmen.¡± ¡°?!¡± ¡°Damn it. Don¡¯t listen to me. More effective than I thought... ah...¡± ¡°Grand Duke...¡± ¡°Call me Kapmen...no, please go. ¡± I looked at him in confusion, and he waved his hands quickly in the air. ¡°The potion is more effective than I thought. Right now, I love you to the point where I¡¯m willing to risk a strange misunderstanding from your husband to protect you. At least that¡¯s how it feels. ¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°When I look at you, all I see are your lips, neck, and beautiful eyes. And when I breathe...What perfume do you use? It¡¯s wonderful.¡± ¡°...¡± The potion truly had a powerful effect. Grand Duke Kapmen, in attempt to stem the babbling flowing from his mouth, closed his eyes and pressed his fingers on his temple before continuing. ¡°This is the situation now, so please leave. If I don¡¯t smell you, I¡¯ll be fine soon. Then I can go back to my room and take the antidote.¡± He clenched his fists and sweat beaded on his tanned skin. I nodded and quickly let myself out of the room. I gave a fleeting nce backwards. The door remained closed. When I returned to my room, I felt a strange sensation inside of me. If you are loved by someone, would they still listen to you from the other side of the door? How would it feel to have someone go crazy because of you? I became restless because I had never experienced it before. Chapter 81 - Anxious Men (2) Chapter 81 ¨C Anxious Men (2) The next day, I asked ady-in-waiting to pay a visit to Grand Duke Kapmen to see how he was doing. ¡°What happened yesterday?¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen had some trouble with the Emperor. We hadn¡¯t the chance to talk afterwards.¡± Thedy-in-waiting gave a sympathetic nod before leaving, and I sat at the table to wait for her to report back. Grand Duke Kapmen said yesterday he would return to his room and drink the antidote, so he should be fine by now. I was more worried if he came across Sovieshu again yesterday. To my surprise, thedy-in-waiting did not return alone, but was apanied by Grand Duke Kapmen. I went to the parlor room to greet him. He looked somewhat different than yesterday. He normally worefortable, practical outfits, but today his attire was much finer, and his was hair also meticulouslybed back, emphasizing his strong jawline. When I looked into his eyes, I noticed they were moist again. ¡°Are you all right...?¡± Kapmen didn¡¯t look well, but I asked him anyway out of politeness. He shook his head and asked for a private conversation. I nodded, and thedies-in-waiting left as quick as they could. When we were alone, he spoke in a tight voice, as if exhausted from heavy restraint. ¡°I missed you. I was dying to see you...no, listen.¡± Immediately following the humiliating words came an awkward smile. Still, he seemed more in control than yesterday, and I had him seated at a table. ¡°Is there no antidote?¡± In all honesty, while his predicament was amusing, I was far more worried about him. It was my first time seeing that human eyes could be filled with such affection, but Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s current behavior would look strange to any outside observers. The problem was, he was obligated to keep meeting me for our diplomatic negotiations. ¡°There is. It didn¡¯t work.¡± ¡°Oh...do you have another antidote? The other antidote could be the wrong one.¡± I thought would be suspicious if he had the correct antidote in the first ce. Instead of answering, however, Grand Duke Kapmen put his hands together and awkwardly stared out the window. ¡°Grand Duke?¡± Was this the effect of medicine? He looked quite sheepish. ¡°Would you like me to cover my face?¡± I looked at him anxiously, but he shook his head. ¡°No. Then I just won¡¯t be able to see your face. It won¡¯t work.¡± ¡°...¡± Did the mean the potion worked even when I¡¯m not in front of him? The potion was influencing his words, but he sounded clear here...what should I do? In any case, it was hugely embarrassing. The speaker must be experiencing a more hellish feeling. ¡°It¡¯s not the wrong antidote.¡± ¡°Why are you so sure? It wasn¡¯t an antidote for a love potion, was it?¡± ¡°...¡± Why didn¡¯t he answer? Surely... ¡°It was?¡± I looked at him in astonishment, and he pursed his lips. ¡°Yes.¡± My eyes widened. Why did Grand Duke Kapmen already have an antidote for that specific drug? He nervously tapped the table with his fingertips before making a confession. ¡°It was a gift from me.¡± ¡°The love potion?¡± ¡°...Yes. I didn¡¯t expect its effect to be this powerful.¡± My mouth opened in surprise as I processed the information. Grand Duke Kapmen was the anonymous sender of the love potion. I knew the duke was behaving oddly now because of the potion, but he would have been sober when he first sent it to me. My mind nked on a suitable response, and when Grand Duke Kapmen spoke it was in a stiff voice. ¡°It was frustrating.¡± ¡°Frustrating... ?¡± Ah. ¡°Is this about me, Sovieshu and Rashta?¡± I remembered the time when Grand Duke Kapmen had ignored both me and Rashta, then left as if I wasn¡¯t good enough. Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s shoulders dropped. ¡°I know it was foolish, but I didn¡¯t like to see you struggling. ¡± So the love potion was some kind of constion? It was hard to tell if he was serious. I stared at him, but he looked away with a frown on his face. An embarrassed silence cloaked the room, punctuated only by the unusually loud ticking of the clock. Finally, Grand Duke Kapmen heaved a sigh. ¡°I shouldn¡¯t keep furtherpany with you. I keep bing interested in you, and I shouldn¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°Are you going to leave now?¡± ¡°Can I hold you?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯m going.¡± He stood up from his seat and walked to the door, and I followed him from behind. He half-opened the door, then suddenly turned back. The wildness in his dark gaze left me stunned. ¡°...¡± ¡°...¡± An oppressive silence reigned, and when I swallowed it was like dry needles in my throat. The look in his eyes were not the same as those of his usual indifference and pity, nor the ones of yesterday¡¯s anxiety. Laura¡¯s words drifted to the front of my mind: love someone who can love you back with the intensity of a man starved for a hundred years. That was exactly how Grand Duke Kapmen was looking at me. He raised his hand to cover his eyelids. ¡°We shouldn¡¯t run into each other until the effects disappear by themselves.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± It seemed that way to me. * * * The man on his knees had been speaking for quite a while now, but his story didn¡¯t quite enter my ears. He finally said, ¡°My God...¡± then dissolved into tears. At the sight, I immediately felt pity for him. His situation must have been serious if he came all this way to the audience chamber, out of tens of thousands of people who mored to step foot in here. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity. My heart broke in sympathy, so I gathered the fractured bits of his story in my head and pieced it together. I gave my words of sincere constion and the man sobbed again. After the final visitor left, the officials closed the heavy door of the audience chamber. I sighed and touched my forehead. Few people came to the audience room to give good news. Why not bless a baby? They all came to give unjust, outrageous and sad stories. As a result, it was not easy to concentrate fully on them as I worried about a dozen other problems. Just like today. I slowly rose from the throne. ¡°Is your joke over?¡± Before I could fully stand up, however, Sovieshu spoke and I lowered myself back into my seat. I gave him a questioning look, and he leaned back on his throne and looked at me with cold eyes. ¡°On hindsight, I waspletely deceived.¡± ¡°Deceived?¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. His face was red¡ªbut was it from looking at the Empress?¡± ¡°To my eyes, he looked like that when he saw you. No?¡± ¡°!¡± Sovieshu recoiled in disgust, I quickly left my seat this time. Before I exited the audience chamber, I looked back and saw Sovieshu watching me. I kept my expression as smooth as possible when I closed the door. I turned around, and this time I saw Prince Heinley leaning against a pir, as if waiting for me. When our eyes met, he smiled quietly and lifted the documents he was holding. ¡°I came here to talk to you about something. Will that be alright?¡± Chapter 82 - Sovieshu’s Anger (1) Chapter 82 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Anger (1) I considered guiding him into an empty room, but in the end I decided to take a stroll. Prince Heinley fell into step beside me. ¡°What kind of documents are those?¡± I assume he waited for me to discuss something, but Prince Heinley did not show me the papers. When I reached out my hand to take them, he pulled them from my fingertips with a smallugh. ¡°Stop fooling around. What is it?¡± Prince Heinley chuckled again and then handed over the documents. ¡°!¡± I looked at the papers, then looked back at him in surprise. The document had a cover, but there was nothing inside. I stared at him in bewilderment, and he smiled apologetically. ¡°I apologize. I thought it was more natural if we met this way.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need to fool around like this.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to do anything that makes Queen feel ufortable.¡± I gave a sideways nce at him, and noticed that he was looking at me. His expression was soft and his violet eyes were lit with an unusual warmth. I handed the documents back to him awkwardly and he epted it, but his gaze didn¡¯t break. I pushed his cheek away, and he turned his head straight andughed. ¡°Then why are you here if there¡¯s nothing to talk about?¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s not true. I do have something to discuss.¡± ¡°?¡± I had a feeling that it wasn¡¯t about anything good. His smiling face instantly turned gloomy, and he scratched his chin as he struggled to find his words. He seemed to be debating with himself whether it was alright to speak or not. ¡°Prince Heinley?¡± ¡°I told you a few days ago that my brother wasn¡¯t in good health.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Oh. ¡°Is he worse?¡± ¡°It seems so. I¡¯ve received another letter again, but now it¡¯s bad.¡± ¡°!¡± My feet stopped walking before I even realized it. The health of the Western King was a serious matter that might bring political repercussions to the Eastern Empire, not to mention the grief of my personal friend Prince Heinley... Under these circumstances, I shouldn¡¯t want to stop Prince Heinley returning to the West. If he became king, our meetings would likely be sparse in the future, and we would never be able to talk so familiarly to each other as we did now. The thought did not ease my sorrow. I looked at him with an uneasy expression. ¡°Then...are you returning to the Western Kingdom?¡± ¡°Not immediately. But probably soon.¡± ¡°I see...¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s brow furrowed. ¡°I have to go before my brother dies to hear his will.¡± The king must be in serious condition if he was giving his will. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you leave quickly then?¡± Now I was really worried about the king¡¯s health, but Prince Heinley unhappily kicked the stones on the ground. ¡°Prince?¡± ¡°Sometimes the weight of things is different...¡± ¡°?¡± With a sigh, he immediately shook his head and gave a heavy smile. It was then¡ª ¡°Your Majesty.¡± There was a rustling sound and Grand Duke Kapmen strode up towards us. I was taken aback by his sudden appearance. ¡°I didn¡¯t know you were here.¡± He shouldn¡¯t be around me when he was still under the potion¡¯s influence, and I was afraid that Prince Heinley might misunderstand our rtionship. No, not just him, but anyone else too. ¡°Yes. I came out to cool off.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen replied calmly and looked up and down at Prince Heinley. I recognized the duke¡¯s expression from the New Year¡¯s ball. It was a critical eye that judged one¡¯s opponent in detail. Prince Heinley also frowned. I hastily pulled him away and gave a short goodbye to Grand Duke Kapmen, then turned back to Heinley. ¡°Let¡¯s keep walking. We have more to talk about.¡± I was worried that love-stricken Grand Duke Kapmen might say something strange to Prince Heinley. However, I failed to separate the two. Grand Duke Kapmen reached out his hand, in expectation that I would step away from Prince Heinley. Prince Heinley looked dumbfounded, and his lip curled in warning. ¡°Leave her.¡± It was me who held onto Prince Heinley¡¯s arm, but Grand Duke Kapmen spoke as if it were the opposite. The drug that coursed through the duke¡¯s blood strongly clouded his reason. ¡°You. Is this the behavior of a grand duke from the Hwa continent?¡± Prince Heinleyughed as if he found the whole situation absurd. However, Grand Duke Kapmen stepped between me and Prince Heinley without an answer. I couldn¡¯t help but feel small while the tworge men stared down at each other. The atmosphere between them was so ugly it was difficult to intervene. ¡°How strange. Queen was standing in front of me, so why is this man here?¡± ¡°Jealousy.¡± ¡°Jealousy?¡± I almost choked and I tugged on the hem of Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s clothes. I was afraid that at this rate, he would even say he loved me. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. Prince Heinley. Stop it.¡± Despite my efforts to pull his clothes, Grand Duke Kapmen red at Prince Heinley with cold eyes, and Prince Heinley returned him a challenging look. His usual smile was reced with a look of thunder. It seemed to be the prelude of a fight. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. Please don¡¯t do anything you¡¯ll regretter.¡± ¡°!¡± I felt sorry for him in the end, but I kicked his heel with the toe of my shoe. He jerked towards me as if he wereing back to his senses, but at the moment, Prince Heinley pushed him aside. ¡°Prince!¡± Despite my protest, he gave a grin that didn¡¯t fit the current situation. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Queen?¡± ¡°...Don¡¯t push him.¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t see you at all with this guy in front of me.¡± However, he gave an apologetic sigh. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Are you mad at me for pushing him?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not angry¡ª¡± ¡°Prince Heinley isn¡¯t fit to associate himself with you.¡± Was it starting again? My head hurt. Just as I was hoping it would calm down, it escted again. Prince Heinley stared at Grand Duke Kapmen with a grin. He looked scary even when he smiled. Chapter 83 - Sovieshu’s Anger (2) Chapter 83 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Anger (2) A serious fight seemed inevitable at this point. I gave a worried nce at Sir Artina, who nodded his head and gently squeezed the hilt of his sword. At that moment¡ª ¡°Your Highness! Your Highness!¡± Someone came running from a distance and was calling to the prince. I turned around, and saw it was the blue-haired knight that often followed Prince Heinley. Sir McKenna, was it? He stopped in front of us, gasping for breath before speaking urgently. ¡°Your Highness, I think you should go now!¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Sir McKenna hesitated as he looked at Grand Duke Kapmen. The knight seemed unsure whether he should speak in front of him. I turned to Prince Heinley and nodded at him. ¡°Go quickly.¡± I would rather he hurried, but he stared at me with a regretful look then carefully knelt on one knee. He lightly kissed the back of my hand, keeping his eyes fixed on me the entire time. Sir McKenna shifted in impatience. ¡°I¡¯ll speak to youter.¡± His voice was soft as he stood up, and when I nodded, he turned around and left with Sir McKenna. Unlike his slow, gentle kiss, the speed of his pace was brisk. I wondered if it had anything to do with the Western King... I stared at the back of Prince Heinley¡¯s head and sighed. ¡°Are you friendly that prince?¡± I suddenly remembered Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s presence and quickly turned to him. He was looking at me with a strange expression. ¡°Are you friendly that prince?¡± He repeated himself. ¡°I think he¡¯s a great man.¡± I couldn¡¯t say I was friendly with him, but I didn¡¯t want to lie, so I gave a moderate answer. However, Kapmen¡¯s face only twisted. I observed him carefully. ¡°Are you...jealous?¡± ¡°It seems so. I was about to grab his throat earlier.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Yes, it was hard for me to control my mouth.¡± I offered him a sympathetic smile, and he gave a careless shrug. ¡°It¡¯s incredible how much emotion drives someone.¡± ¡°...How do you feel?¡± ¡°Have you ever been jealous?¡± ¡°Jealous...¡± Sovieshu pushed me to take care of Rashta. That painful feeling in my heart¡ªwas that jealousy? ¡°Maybe.¡± As soon as I agreed with him, Grand Duke Kapmen gave an unexpected reply. ¡°You admit it too easily.¡± ¡°You were the one who was so frustrated you gave me a love potion.¡± He gave a bellowingugh, and he put his hands in his pockets and lowered his gaze. ¡°Did I spoil your mood?¡± ¡°Watching the Grand Duke struggle is not so bad... ¡± ¡°Do you find me amusing?¡± ¡°Do I have to answer?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen pursed his lips. ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯ve ever been so intensely jealous, so let me tell you¡ªit¡¯s like something invisible is yelling next to my heart. And I want to listen to that voice.¡± ¡± ....What is it saying?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That invisible something is whispering to me now. We can¡¯t let you learn our intentions.¡± Iughed thinking it he was joking, but I soon realized he was serious. He looked at me quietly for another moment, then gave a sigh. ¡°Just looking at one person can be very fulfilling. At the same time, it makes one feel insecure. In many ways...It¡¯s a strong potion.¡± ¡°When will the effects¡ª¡± I was about to ask when the effects would fade, when I heard the sound of someone else approaching. I looked around and saw Sovieshu. His eyes were cold. ¡®Why does he look so grim? Did he overhear the conversation?¡¯ ¡°He wouldn¡¯t have heard it.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen murmured a reply as if he read my mind. ¡°?!¡± I was amazed at his timing, and he spoke again in a low voice. ¡°He wasn¡¯t close enough to hear our words.¡± I looked back at Sovieshu. The closer he came, the icier his expression. If he did hear the conversation, it would be a misunderstanding. Sovieshu waved his hands at the servants and knights nearby, and they stepped away. Sovieshu turned towards me. ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°...What do you mean?¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen, Prince Heinley. Which one?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you mean.¡± Sovieshu looked at Grand Duke Kapmen with derision. ¡°Two foreigners must be an attraction for the Empress.¡± He was here now, but he seemed to have been watching since Prince Heinley was present. ¡°It¡¯s a misunderstanding.¡± I cut off his words. Prince Heinley was only a friend, and although Grand Duke Kapmen had been in love with me for a while now, it was only because of the potion. Sooner orter, that would dissipate. Sovieshu didn¡¯t seem to believe me, however. ¡°Why can¡¯t you be careful of your behavior at this time?¡± ¡°What is ¡®this time?¡¯¡± ¡°The pregnancy of an emperor¡¯s firstborn. Is this the time to have a scandal with other foreign men?¡± ¡°...Why not?¡± ¡°Why not?¡± Sovieshu frowned at me like I didn¡¯t know. I knew. It was the same reason I couldn¡¯t openly be friends with Prince Heinley. It had only been a short time since Rashta became Sovieshu¡¯s concubine, and she became pregnant with the Emperor¡¯s first child. If I had a scandal with another man at this time, scious gossip would spread about the Imperial family, and there was no dignity involved in that. I understood the need to be careful, but it felt different when Sovieshu pointed it out. ¡°You want me to be careful of my actions for your first child?¡± ¡°My first child? A baby of the Imperial family also means they¡¯re your child.¡± ¡°No. Whether there are a hundred or a thousand of them, your concubine¡¯s baby is not my baby.¡± ¡°Empress!¡± ¡°And as for the birth of your child, it is your happy asion, not mine.¡± Sovieshu stared at me with a hostile expression. ¡°After all, Rashta¡¯s baby can neither be an imperial prince or princess. Everyone knows that.¡± ¡°So if they¡¯re neither a prince nor princess, they¡¯re not a baby of the Imperial family?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s thew. And no matter how set your mind is, in fifty or one hundred years, everyone won¡¯t even know who those children are.¡± Sovieshu stared at me incredulously, then gave a hollow smile. ¡°The Empress truly is selfish.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°No matter how much you hate Rashta, are you already wary of her innocent unborn babies?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I wonder if the Empress even regards me as a husband¡ª¡± But before Sovieshu¡¯s words continued, a fist came out of nowhere and struck him on the face. It was Grand Duke Kapmen. Chapter 84 - You’re The Empress (1) Chapter 84 ¨C You¡¯re The Empress (1) Sovieshu briefly stumbled, but instead of falling, he used the momentum to strike back at Grand Duke Kapmen. The grand duke blocked Sovieshu¡¯s fist with his hand, but he flinched as two of his fingers bent backwards. ¡°Stop it!¡± I tried to step between the two. Sovieshu was adept at sword fighting and basic martial arts, but since he was in the emperor¡¯s office, he did not train hard. Kapmen, however, was a mage who could inevitably spend more time on research. When it came to a fight, it was obvious who would win. No, no matter who won, it would still be a problem. Fortunately, Sovieshu and Grand Duke Kapmen separated, but they continued to stare down at each other. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Seize him!¡± ¡°Aag!¡± The tension had eased only for a second, and thenmotion red again. Servants retreated from the scene while knights arrived at the same time. Some of the knights came to Sovieshu¡¯s side, while others surrounded Grand Duke Kapmen. Those who did drew their swords and pointed it at the foreign man. Grand Duke Kapmen stared casually at Sovieshu, despite the wall of swords surrounding him. ¡°Stand down!¡± I gave orders to the knights, but they did not listen. ¡°I order you all to stand down!¡± I shouted again, then turned towards Sovieshu. The knights¡¯ first priority was the Emperor¡¯s safety. ¡°Stand down.¡± Only after Sovieshu¡¯s order did the knights lower their swords, but they did not sheath their des. They warily watched the grand duke¡¯s movements, ready to stab him the moment he posed a threat. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen held up his hands. ¡°My major is magic, so I can attack you from here.¡± The knights were surprised, then narrowed their distance to the grand duke. Suddenly, under one of the men¡¯s feet, there was a sh white light and the crackling of electricity. The man was startled, and he backed away and fell to the ground, while the other knights put up their swords. Grand Duke Kapmen clenched his fist, white sparks flying and crackling from his hand as he red at the knights threateningly. His specialty must be in electricity. The knights nced uncertainly at each other, as they knew a fight could mean death. ¡°I said stand down.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue and waved his hand, and the knights finally lowered their swords again. Sovieshu, however, seemed wholly unintimidated by Grand Duke Kapmen, and looked at him with a sneer. ¡°Well, it looks like Grand Duke Kapmen has a heart for the Empress, doesn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°Only because I have a human heart.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Is itmon sense to ask your partner to be friendly to a baby born from an affair?¡± ¡°An affair.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°Do you not know that Rashta is an official concubine?¡± ¡°The Empress did not give her official approval.¡± ¡°Aha. Is the only woman that the Rwibt Emperor loves his political partner? If that¡¯s the case, then I can understand that cultural difference.¡± Little was known about the Hwa continent, but there have been several rumors that stimted people¡¯s interest. Among them were stories of harems among the royalty and upper aristocracy, and how they collected beautiful women to fit their tastes. The stories may have been greatly exaggerated, but it was true that harems existed. Sovieshu knew of this, and Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s brow furrowed deeply. ¡°...¡± Sovieshu had a smug smile on his face, as he had seeded in pointing out Kapmen¡¯s hypocrisy. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re nning, but I don¡¯t trust a man that seems to be driven by emotion. To spare your reputation, I won¡¯t imprison you.¡± He turned away coldly. ¡°But I¡¯ll have to rethink my deal with Rwibt.¡± Sovieshu left with his men, leaving behind Grand Duke Kapmen, Sir Artina and I. I turned towards Grand Duke Kapmen in pity. Although he had been carried away because of the potion, it had involved me. ¡°Grand Duke, I¡ª¡± I tried to apologize, but he firmly cut in. ¡°You don¡¯t have to apologize. It¡¯s my fault that I was unable to ovee my emotions at that moment.¡± * * * ¡°What happened?¡± Prince Heinley pressed Sir McKenna as soon as they arrived at the prince¡¯s quarters. He had hurried, feeling uneasy about the situation. ¡°There is an urgent message.¡± McKenna hurriedly closed the door and approached Prince Heinley standing near the table, then handed him a letter. ¡°Is it from my brother?¡± Prince Heinley pulled the letter out of the envelope and unfolded it. His expression grew increasingly worried as he scanned the contents. McKenna stood beside Prince Heinley and carefully watched him. There was another letter sent to McKenna himself, and so he already knew the news the prince received. Wharton III, the king of the Western Kingdom, was in failing health. Prince Heinley was asked to return. After reading the letter, Prince Heinley ced the letter on the table and gave a heavy sigh. ¡°Are you alright?¡± McKenna scanned the prince¡¯s face, and Heinley shook his head and stared at the table. ¡°The kingdom is stable and there is a wide gap between the Prince and the second heir to the throne...but you should go home soon.¡± ¡°I know. I have to listen to his will.¡± Prince Heinley and Wharton III were not close as brothers, but they didn¡¯t have a terrible rtionship, nor did they have a bloody race over the throne. Though their personalities were different and Heinley liked to stray from the original circle, they got along in moderation. Heinley wasn¡¯t happy to hear that his own brother was dying. It was the same with McKenna as well. Though he was a bastard cousin and could not officially be counted as the king¡¯s family, he wasn¡¯t unfeeling. ¡°Your Highness...¡± ¡°I have a headache.¡± Prince Heinley pulled out a chair to sit on it, thenid his head on the table. ¡°Shall I go to Emperor Sovieshu and inform him you¡¯ll be going back?¡± ¡°I do it.¡± ¡°I...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll tell him.¡± ¡°And as for your letter friend...¡± ¡°...McKenna.¡± ¡°Yes, My Prince.¡± Prince Heinley slightly raised his head and stared vacantly into space. Then he turned to McKenna. Sensing that Heinley¡¯s mind was in turmoil, the knight called to him carefully, ¡°Prince?¡± ¡°What are the odds I¡¯ll marry her?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± The prince sighed and buried his head on the desk again. Chapter 85 - You’re The Empress (2) Chapter 85 ¨C You¡¯re The Empress (2) Grand Duke Kapmen told me not to worry about his mistake, but I couldn¡¯t set it aside. Even if it was his fault that he struck first, I was in charge of diplomatic rtions with him. However, I couldn¡¯t go to Sovieshu right away. He would still be emotional, and I needed for him to cool down. ¡®Let¡¯s meet tomorrow and talk.¡¯ After I made my decision, I returned to my room. ¡°Is it true, Your Majesty?¡± Laura ran up to me as soon as she saw me. ¡°Is it true that Grand Duke Kapmen and the Emperor got into a fist fight?¡± She grabbed both my hands, her eyes sparkling in anticipation. Before I answered, Countess Eliza interrupted. ¡°Did you already have dinner?¡± ¡°They did exchange blows, Lady Laura. And Countess Eliza, I don¡¯t have an appetite and will skip dinner.¡± After answering each of them in turn, I took off my cumbersome gown. ¡°How did theye to blows? I heard that they fought over you, Your Majesty. Is that true?¡± ¡°You should eat something. How about a clear soup?¡± Again, twodies-in-waiting asked their questions almost simultaneously. Count Eliza looked at Laura with a slight frown, but Laura was determined to know the whole story. ¡°There was only a slight misunderstanding, Lady Laura. And could you give me some vegetable soup, Countess?¡± Again, the two replied at the same time, and Countess Eliza stepped out of the bedroom to bring back the soup. Laura took my side and began pouring out questions again. I filled her in until she was satisfied, and then she gave a sigh. ¡°I hope that Grand Duke Kapmen likes the Empress.¡± ¡°Lady Laura.¡± ¡°Then the Emperor will realize how important the Empress is. Of course, I feel sorry for thinking of using Grand Duke Kapmen that way too.¡± Later that night, I wondered if Prince Heinley would send me a letter regarding his hurried departure, but one did note. Before going to bed, Queen arrived briefly, his eyes more shadowy than usual. He allowed me to stroke his head and I asked him ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± but he gave a cry and flew away again. * * * The next day. After breakfast, I checked my schedule and found that it was quite full. ¡®He may be more unreasonable if I visit him in the middle of the day or right after work.¡¯ After making the calctions in my head, I decided to have a conversation with Sovieshu before he went to the central pce, and so I headed towards the eastern pce. When I arrived, Sovieshu was still dressing. ¡°The Empress came to visit me this time. This is a surprise!¡± Fortunately, he seemed calmer than he was yesterday. Our eyes met in the mirror, and he smiled quietly as he fixed a silver button. I was relieved to see his good mood. ¡°I have something to say.¡± ¡°I suppose. Youe to me only when you have something to say.¡± His voice was mischievous, and he batted away the servants who were helping him dress. ¡°Leave.¡± The servants stepped away and exited the room, closing the door behind them. ¡°Yes. What brings you here?¡± ¡°The deal with Rwibt. Are you really going to reconsider it?¡± Sovieshu turned his head away from the mirror. ¡°Are you talking about yesterday?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Why?¡± ¡°I am in charge of diplomatic rtions, so I¡¯m asking.¡± Sovieshu narrowed his eyes at me. ¡°So are you here to convince me to go ahead with the deal?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Sovieshu grabbed ab and attempted to do his hair by himself. Whatever shape he was trying to make his hair, it didn¡¯t work. He set down theb on the table in front of me and frowned heavily, before ncing over to me. ¡°Consider the benefits the Eastern Empire will gain from trading with Rwibt.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s hair, which did not have in product in it yet, looked soft. He tried to fix his hair to give a sharper impression. ¡°How do you know if we¡¯re going to benefit or lose from the rtionship with Rwibt?¡± ¡°We¡¯ve been doing research. The trade with the Hwa continent has elements that can satisfy both the curiosity of themon people and the nobility.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t spend money on curiosity.¡± ¡°Nobles don¡¯t grudge spending money on curiosities. And if there¡¯s a flow of supply,mon people can easily buy Rwibt¡¯s exotic goods.¡± ¡°The distance is enormous. Will the profit offset the cost from that?¡± ¡°We can make it that way.¡± ¡°So it¡¯s vague promises after all.¡± Sovieshu turned away from me again, but he kept his eyes on me through the mirror. I stared at him too. It was quiet for a moment, and his mouth twisted. ¡°Empress. After I was hit yesterday, you didn¡¯t even ask me if I was alright.¡± ¡°Are you alright?¡± He scoffed as I answered quickly. ¡°Frankly...well. I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°You look fine.¡± ¡°No, not that. The deal with Rwibt.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re anxious about the loss, we can make a budget.¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s not that.¡± So? What was eating at him? I looked at him in bewilderment, and Sovieshu stared at me with a shrewd look. ¡°Is it profit and gains that the Empress wants for the Eastern Empire? Or is it love that you¡¯ll get?¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± I spoke in a firm voice, but Sovieshu remained calm. He turned back to me and walked around the table to look at me squarely in the face. His dark eyes were filled with aplicated emotion. I could see myself reflected in them, my own face smoothly calm. Maybe it was because I had practiced thoroughly...? Sovieshu¡¯s eyes were cold as he spoke. ¡°Which is it, Empress?¡± He slowly lifted his hand and tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear. I avoided his gaze and said what I wanted to say all this time. ¡°You¡¯re mistaken, Your Majesty. But even if I want love. It¡¯s funny. ¡± ¡°...Funny?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve proudly shown off your concubine at parties, so I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re so obsessed with interfering with my love affairs.¡± ¡°Interfering?¡± Sovieshu gave a harshugh. ¡°Not for my sake, but for Miss Rashta¡¯s.¡± Sovieshu snapped, hitting the table with his fist with a loud bang. ¡°How can you say that? A concubine is just a concubine, and the empress is the empress.¡± Chapter 86 - Heinley Departs (1) Chapter 86 ¨C Heinley Departs (1) As the sound echoed beyond the door, Rashta hugged herrge doll. ¡®A concubine is just a concubine...?¡¯ The guards standing in front of the door exchanged awkward nces. Rashta bit her lip. She stared at the door with a tearful face, then turned her heel and returned to her room. Viscount Roteschu was right. No matter how much Sovieshu loved her, Rashta was still a concubine. Her position was dependent on the fickle emotions of one man. Rashta summoned Viscountess Verdi to ask her a question. ¡°Lady Verdi.¡± ¡°Yes, Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°Among all the emperors¡¯ concubines...has anyone been loved by the emperor all her life?¡± Normally, Rashta would have avoided exchanging words with Viscountess Verdi as much as possible. However, the viscountess seemed more familiar with these matters than the two other serving girls. They way Viscountess Verdi averted her eyes with a troubled look gave Rashta the answer she needed. ¡°No?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not unheard of.¡± ¡°But not many, is it?¡± ¡°...That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°...¡± As Rashta started to cry, Viscountess Verdi hurried to appease her. ¡°But it¡¯s alright, Miss Rashta. A long as you have a child, you will not be cut off from the Imperial Family even without the Emperor¡¯s favor. The baby will be your strength.¡± ¡°Rashta¡ªRashta wants a baby that she can love and care for! I don¡¯t want to use the baby that way!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t mean it like that...¡± There was a soft knock. Rashta closed her mouth, and the door to the parlor room opened and Cherily came in. ¡°Miss Rashta, Viscount Roteschu is here.¡± Rashta dismissed Viscountess Verdi from the room and allowed Viscount Roteschu in. She was still upset, and seeing the viscount made her even more so, but she was unable to throw him out. ¡°Why are you here this time?¡± Rashta didn¡¯t bother hiding her contempt, but Viscount Roteschu seemed wholly unperturbed. ¡°I¡¯m thinking of moving.¡± She had heard he was looking for a house to live in the capital. She spoke through her clenched teeth. ¡°So?¡± ¡°I need a house.¡± ¡°How much do you need?¡± Rashta remembered the money Duke Elgy lent her. Ten thousand krangs was arge sum. She didn¡¯t know how much a house cost, but... ¡°Hmm. I think about half a million krangs.¡± ¡°Half a million?¡± Rashta jumped to her feet in rm. She had never imagined Viscount Roteschu would demand such a sum. ¡°What kind of house is that expensive!¡± ¡°It¡¯s a house with a garden. Actually, the house costs four hundred thousand krangs, but one hundred thousand goes to renovation.¡± Rashta¡¯s hands shook by how casually he answered. ¡°There¡¯s no need to live in that big a mansion alone!¡± ¡°Live alone?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s eyebrow lifted at her. ¡°I will bring my grandchild with me. Your child, Rashta.¡± ¡°You will?!¡± ¡°Well, I can¡¯t leave the little one alone in the country, can I? What a heartless mother.¡± Rashta trembled in bewilderment and rage. ¡°Oh dear, Rashta. Do you think it¡¯s wasteful to spend money on your own child?¡± Viscount Roteschu looked at Rashta and smiled at her like a leech. * * * No matter how hard I tried, I found it difficult to understand Sovieshu. He doesn¡¯t love me, so why on earth... My head was dizzy and my chest tight. I started to feel sick to my stomach, so I finally left the pce and walked outside. I remembered that Prince Heinley had left in a hurry, and my steps automatically turned towards the southern pce. ¡®Oh?¡¯ However, as I walked through the southern pce, I saw Rashta in the corridor across the way. She didn¡¯t notice me in her hurry, and she looked quite pale. ¡®Is she not feeling well?¡¯ She approached the door to someone¡¯s room, and a momentter it opened. It was Duke Elgy. Rashta entered the room first, but Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes met mine, and he grinned before closing the door. ¡°...¡± What did I care? I made my way towards where Prince Heinley stayed. Coincidentally, he was walking this way, and we stood opposite each other in the middle of the hallway. ¡°...Queen. ¡± He stared at me for a moment then gave anguid smile. ¡°We came across each other just as I was going to see you.¡± ¡°Did you want to tell me something?¡± ¡°I have a lot to say, and I¡¯vee to say them.¡± He pointed towards the garden. ¡°Do you mind if I walk with you for a while?¡± I nodded, and we fell in step together. Small winter petals that bloomed above us in the trees rustled in the wind and drifted downwards. I felt something heavy ced on my shoulders. It was Prince Heinley¡¯s coat. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it cold?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re cold, then why did you give me your coat...?¡± ¡°I thought you would be cold as well.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not cold.¡± ¡°Thank goodness.¡± I smiled at his strange words, and when I looked into his purple eyes he returned a smile as well. I inhaled the scent of his coat. It smelled simr to Queen. He awkwardly adjusted the coat on me, then continued walking. ¡°You may have guessed, but...¡± It was silent for a moment, the only sound the rustling of our clothes as we walked. Prince Heinley slowly spoke. ¡°I think I have to go back to the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°...I see.¡± I was already prepared for this. Nevertheless, sadness rose in my heart. However, I could not reveal this to the person whose brother was on the edge of life and death. The crunch of our footsteps on the fallen leaves sounded unusually loud. The wind suddenly got colder, and I clutched his coat more tightly around me. Neither of us said a word. It wasn¡¯t until we walked a fair distance that Prince Heinley broke the silence again with a soft voice. ¡°Can we keep exchanging letters?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Thank goodness.¡± I smiled and nodded. I may not be able to see Prince Heinley often anymore, but Queen wille. And even though the frequency of the visits would be reduced, we can still meet. I tried to uplift my heart with this knowledge, but somehow it wasn¡¯t good enough. ¡°Queen...Queen may be busy.¡± Prince Heinley stopped walking. When I looked up at him, he heaved a small sigh. ¡°I may have to send another bird. Will that be alright?¡± ¡°Why will Queen be busy?¡± ¡°The bird is a symbol, in many ways.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send the blue bird you saw before.¡± I once thought he was just simply a good prince, but I suppose I¡¯ve be very close to him and Queen. His goodbye made my footsteps feel as heavy as lead. My first parting with a friend was more frustrating and terrible than I thought. I nodded, then turned and started walking again. Chapter 87 - Heinley Departs (2) Chapter 87 ¨C Heinley Departs (2) Prince Heinley parted from the Empress, then he immediately went to Emperor Sovieshu to give him his news. ¡°You¡¯re returning to your country?¡± When Sovieshu heard the report, he stared at Prince Heinley then murmured to himself for a moment. ¡°And the Grand Duke too...¡± Prince Heinley didn¡¯t say anything. Destroying the future to prove one¡¯s love was what emotional five- or six-year-olds did. The atmosphere hardened as the two men observed each other for a while. After a brief moment, Sovieshu gave a smile. ¡°Very well. Have a safe return.¡± Later, Prince Heinley sought out Duke Elgy, but there was already someone else with him. ¡°I¡¯ll make it up to you.¡± A familiar voice wasing from the duke¡¯s room. ¡°Absolutely...thank you so much.¡± It was a woman¡¯s voice. Prince Heinley hid himself and waited for his friend to be alone. Soon the door to Duke Elgy¡¯s room opened, and Rashta emerged. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Miss.¡± After the sound of small footsteps faded away, Prince Heinley stepped from behind the pir and walked towards Duke Elgy. ¡°I was waiting for you toe out.¡± Duke Elgy smiled, even though Prince Heinley had appeared out of nowhere. ¡°You¡¯re always hiding here and there.¡± ¡°I came here to talk to you.¡± ¡°Are you returning home?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about something else.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Instead of speaking, Prince Heinley pointed to the open door, and both men entered Duke Elgy¡¯s room. As soon as the door closed, Prince Heinley spoke. * * * When I woke up the next morning, Prince Heinley had already left. The bearer of the somber news was Sir Artina, who informed me that the prince had left swiftly at dawn. ¡°I see.¡± I had said goodbye to him yesterday, but if I had known it was ourst meeting, I would have said a few more words. I had assumed I would see him again the next day. Although we had a strange start, we had grown to be good friends. I should have said that. But it wasn¡¯t just Prince Heinley and Queen who left me. I went to the central pce for work, but I was so depressed that I went back to the western pce for lunch with mydies-in-waiting. There they gave me unexpected news. ¡°Your Majesty, Duchess Tuania is leaving the capital.¡± ¡°Leaving the capital? Then the divorce¡ª? ¡± ¡°The judge must have ruled in favor of the Count because of Viscount Langdel.¡± ¡°Then¡ª!¡± I felt a stab of guilt. I had seeded in saving Viscount Langdel, but the information he found was buried, which put Duchess Tuania at a disadvantage in the trial. ¡°...¡± As I reproached myself, Laura shook her head. ¡°Don¡¯t be too sad, Your Highness. Duchess Tuania wanted to say thank you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Duchess Tuania?¡± Countess Eliza pulled out a small letter from her inner pocket. ¡°She asked me to deliver this to you.¡± After thedies-in-waiting left after finishing the meal, I took out the letter and spread it open. ¡ª I know what you did for Viscount Langdel. Thank you for doing me this kindness. I know you¡¯ll me yourself, so I¡¯m leaving you this letter. ¡®Duchess...¡¯ ¡ª I decided to follow Viscount Langdel. He tried to give his life for me, and now I want to be with him. It would be best if all this didn¡¯t happen at all, but in the future, if you are in any difficulty, I will surely repay you. Please burn this letter after reading it. Although there was no signature, I recognized Duchess Tuania¡¯s handwriting. I looked down at the paper for a moment, then lit a candle and burned the letter. ¡®Viscount Langdel¡¯s pure love for her eventually drew her heart...¡¯ Duchess Tuania was a wise woman and would ovee anything. The letter seemed to burn slowly first, but soon the me rapidly ate through the paper. Finally, all that was left was a small scrap between my fingers. I set it down on the table, then blew out the candle. Prince Heinley, Queen, and Duchess of Tuania. Three people were gone. Two went far away, and one¡¯s destination was unknown. I sank into a depression. That night, I waited for Queen to tap the window with his beak, but it remained quiet. I opened the window, and wind blew in that was so cold that it gave me gooseflesh. ¨C Isn¡¯t it cold? Prince Heinley¡¯s question yesterday seemed toe back from the wind. ¡°It¡¯s cold.¡± I gave ate reply, then left the window open as I curled into my nket. There was no sign of Queen the following morning. * * * ¡°Achoo!¡± ¡°Oh no. You must have a cold, Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza, who came to attend to me in the morning, was surprised when I sneezed. I blew my nose and nodded in embarrassment. ¡°I suppose so.¡± Most likely it was because I slept with the windows open. ¡°Shall I cancel today¡¯s schedule?¡± Countess Eliza looked at me anxiously. I checked my calendar and asked her to do so. ¡°And call the pce doctor.¡± A mild cold wouldn¡¯t matter, but something more serious would be a problem. I couldn¡¯t blow my nose noisily in front of the people and ministers I had to have serious discussions with. ¡°Please bring me somethingfortable to wear.¡± As Countess Eliza left to call the pce doctor, anotherdy-in-waiting came to help me into a warm, thick dress. I didn¡¯t wear any other ornaments on me. Later, Laura brought some clear soup and I had breakfast alone. About half an hourter, Countess Eliza returned with the pce doctor. After I was rmended bed rest, the doctor diagnosed me with a mild cold, and told me not to strain myself and then prescribed some medicine. As soon as I took it, I closed my eyes. When I opened them again, it was already midday. Ady-in-waiting hadn¡¯t taken away the medicine container yet, and the window was firmly shut. I looked at the closed window, then stood up to open it again out of habit. Perhaps Queen wille while I¡¯m asleep... Countess Eliza, who came in with a towel andrge basin, saw me and immediately started chided me. ¡°Oh no. There¡¯s a strong wind chill and you can¡¯t leave the windows open, Your Majesty.¡± She set the basin next to the bed and closed the window. I wanted to open it again, but I didn¡¯t want to argue when she was worried over me. ¡®As long as I¡¯m in the room and I¡¯m awake, it¡¯ll be fine.¡¯ I could open the window for Queen then. I watched as Countess Eliza dipped the wet towel into the hot water and squeezed it, then used it to warm my hands and feet. ¡°You need to get well soon.¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°Oh, and on my way to retrieve the pce doctor, I heard that Lord Koshar will soon arrive in the capital. ¡± ¡°Elder Brother?¡± First came joy, and then anxiety. Lord Koshar was a good brother to me...but he was a bit of a delinquent. He wouldn¡¯t start fights, but once there was an argument, it sometimes turned violent. When I became empress, my father had worried that my brother would cause an ident that would harm my reputation, and he hurriedly sent my brother away to an outer region. Would my brother be able to sit still when he sees that Rashta is pregnant...? Chapter 88 - It’s Darkest Before Dawn (1) Chapter 88 ¨C It¡¯s Darkest Before Dawn (1) I thought I would be lonely after all my good friends left. The reality was rather the opposite; Sovieshu decided to hold a banquet in celebration of his first baby, and I was busier than before. ¡°You mustn¡¯t go.¡± Laura shook with anger. ¡°Even if it¡¯s with a group, or close friends, you shouldn¡¯t attend.¡± There were different obligations between attending a banquet versus arge ball, but if I didn¡¯te to celebrate Sovieshu¡¯s baby, I may end up hurting Sovieshu. I didn¡¯t want to ask my friends to make me feel better. ¡°I know.¡± My face was of forced calm, but irritation bubbled beneath the surface. I didn¡¯t want to smile while everyone celebrated Rashta and the Emperor, nor did I want to have to feign ignorance when people stared at me. However, the banquet was already scheduled, and I could not back out. Four days after Sovieshu decided on the banquet, I walked around the pce mechanically, giving instructions. Eventually I stole away and hid myself away at a secluded bench. I sat there, suppressing the anger that was mounting in me. Four days ago, it was Sovieshu¡¯s secretary that told me there would be a banquet for the first child. Sovieshu had the wisdom to have his secretary deliver me the news, and then he went on an inspection trip to another province. I hadn¡¯t seen him since. With my current mood, there was a chance I would step on his foot as soon as I saw him. I sat there alone, when I became aware of the sound of approaching footsteps. I didn¡¯t want to lift my head, so I lifted my hand to shade my eyes. It would likely be a government official, a court official or a knight anyway. They would turn around or pass. ¡°...¡± However, the footsteps halted in front of me. I lowered my hand and raised my head. It was Sovieshu. He must have just arrived back from his inspection, as he was wearing a dark brown travelling cloak and his hair was unkempt. Our eyes met, and he spoke with a slight frown. ¡°Are you feeling unwell?¡± I could hear voices instructing servants to unload luggage not far away. There was also the mingling of other voices that were difficult to make out. ¡°I¡¯m fine. You just arrived?¡± ¡°Yes...but are you really alright?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I had imagined stepping on his foot before he came here. Now I wondered what to do now that he was right in front of me. It was difficult for me to stay in his presence, so I stood up from the bench and smoothed out the rumpled skirt of my dress. ¡°You must be tired, so go get some rest today.¡± I gave him a perfunctory smile and turned around. However, Sovieshu repeated himself once again. ¡°Are you really alright?¡± The question was the same, but this time the nuances were strange. When I turned around, he was sending me a dark gaze as if he were trying to figure out my thoughts. I looked at him suspiciously. I didn¡¯t think he was asking me this question because he saw my sagging figure on the bench. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I smiled, pretending not to know. Sovieshu, however, decided to be blunt. ¡°By any chance, do you dislike me holding a banquet weing the baby?¡± It was an embarrassingly forward question. He looked at me straight in the eyes. If he asked this as soon as he arrived, did he really need to bother asking? In any case, I answered honestly. ¡°I don¡¯t want to attend, but since I have to host it, I¡¯m sure I¡¯ll dislike it all the more.¡± ¡°The empress is still so cold. No affection at all.¡± ¡°The same is true of you, Your Majesty, who knows that I¡¯d hate to organize the banquet, but still instructed me to do so.¡± Sovieshu sighed and pressed his temples. It was clear what kind of woman he thought I was. I¡¯m sure he thought of me as frigid and cruel. ¡°...Do you have any idea why I¡¯m holding this banquet?¡± ¡°Do I need to know?¡± It was easy to guess why. He wanted to show off Rashta. He was happy to have his first child. Or he wanted to hurt my feelings. Or perhaps it was all three. ¡°You said it before. Rashta¡¯s baby is not officially part of the Imperial family.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Perhaps one day, they will be forgotten in history, as you said. But at least when we are alive, people will think of the baby as the firstborn of the emperor.¡± ¡°And you asked me to prepare a banquet to admit it?¡± ¡°Whether you admit it or not, it is what it is.¡± I pressed my lips tightly and looked sideways, avoiding his eyes. I was afraid I would lose if I didn¡¯t look away. My neck was stretched and my jaw clenched to keep my face impassive. ¡°The baby...maybe it can be your baby as well. I hope you won¡¯t hate it even before it¡¯s born.¡± My forehead creased at Sovieshu¡¯s words. Why was he speaking about this? Why would Rashta¡¯s baby be my baby? I looked at him in incredulity. Sovieshu stared back at me with his dark eyes. ¡°Do you understand what I mean?¡± ¡°You¡¯re asking too much of me.¡± As soon as I snapped, Sovieshu sighed and turned away from me with heavy footsteps. After walking a few paces, he carefully opened his mouth to speak. ¡°We have been married for a long time.¡± Why was he talking about that now? I stared at him guardedly. I didn¡¯t know what he would say, but I had an ominous feeling. ¡°We don¡¯t have a baby yet.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Of course we¡¯re both young, and so we may have one someday. But...¡± His face grew darker. ¡°It may not happen.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t happen when you were younger and healthier than you are now.¡± I stared at him in shock. Sovieshu looked more ufortable when he spoke, too. The sight made my heart thud stronger in my chest. ¡°So what you mean is...¡± I tried to keep my voice as level I could, but it trembled. ¡°If we don¡¯t have a baby, Rashta¡¯s baby may be recognized as a part of the Imperial family?¡± He frowned. ¡°I¡¯m talking about the worst case. And if it is, don¡¯t hate a baby who¡¯s not yet born.¡± ¡°The more you say it, the more I dislike it.¡± ¡°It could be a good child.¡± ¡°Considering who it takes after?¡± ¡°....Are you implying that Rashta or I have bad personalities?¡± ¡°Whoever it takes after, the baby won¡¯t like me. And I won¡¯t like it.¡± After saying my words, I gave a quick bow and turned my heel and left. Sovieshu called me from behind, but I didn¡¯t look back. Somewhere in my heart, smoke clouded up in me. It burned my nose and made my eyes feel numb. There was a buzzing sensation in my brain. When I returned to the central pce, I went back to work as mechanically as possible. I needed Queen¡¯s warmth. I needed Queen more than ever. Chapter 89 - It’s Darkest Before Dawn (2) Chapter 89 ¨C It¡¯s Darkest Before Dawn (2) ¡°...I¡¯m worried.¡± Sovieshu murmured to himself as he sat at his desk and studied his papers. Count Pirnu looked up from a report about book distribution. ¡°Yes?¡± Sovieshu sat stiffly with his chin propped on his hand. A heavy sigh left his mouth. ¡°Your Majesty? Are you all right?¡± Sovieshu hesitated at first, but in the end he answered. ¡°I¡¯m worried that the empress will be hostile to the baby.¡± ¡°Ah...Does she hate it?¡± ¡°I believe so.¡± Count Pirnu gave a nod of agreement. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. In rare cases, favored illegitimate children can be a threat to a sessor.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s mouth twisted. ¡°Isn¡¯t it too early to worry about when we don¡¯t even have a sessor?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°She is like a cold de. As an Empress is she remarkable, but...¡± He closed his eyes with a heavy sigh. ¡°If she has ill feelings towards baby, I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll treat it with that cold, knife-like nature.¡± Count Pirnu thought it was too early to worry, but he epted the Emperor¡¯s words. Sovieshu had looked forward to being a father, and the baby would be the firstborn of the Emperor. It was natural for Sovieshu to be concerned. ¡°What do you think, Count?¡± ¡°Well...I am actually more worried about Lord Koshar than the Empress.¡± ¡°Koshar? Hasn¡¯t Koshar gone to Palme?¡± ¡°Duke Troby seemed to have given his son permission to return now.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression hardened as he remembered that man. Koshar Troby was the elder brother of Empress Navier. Since Sovieshu had been Navier¡¯s fianc¨¦ since childhood, he was familiar with Koshar. He resembled his beautiful sister, and was skilled in martial arts. Unlike the ice-like empress, however, Koshar was like a volcano. His hot temper was useful when directed elsewhere, such as the sparsely popted frontier of Palme were dangerous bandits thrived that called themselves the ¡°Eternal Thousand.¡± Duke Troby sent his son there less for the purpose of defense, and more to redirect his violent personality. In an explosive situation, he could be deadly. ¡°...¡± Sovieshu pursed his lips in thought, while Count Pirnu smiled awkwardly. ¡°But now that his sister sits on the empress¡¯ seat, he should be a little better behaved than before. Do not worry too much, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t worried before you told me this.¡± ¡°...My apologies.¡± Sovieshu gave Count Pirnu a disapproving look before returning to his papers. However, the Count¡¯s words left a deep imprint on his mind. Koshar Troby cared for his sister terribly. Would he be willing to leave Rashta, Navier¡¯s romantic rival, untouched? Sovieshu had a throbbing headache, and eventually called the pce doctor. *** The same time. Koshar, the subject of everyone¡¯s concern, casually stopped by arge women¡¯s clothing store, bringing mischievousughter inside with a friend. Marquis Farang, who apanied Koshar, stopped and looked around with a red face. ¡°Is this really necessary?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Koshar?¡± There was no reply, and the marquis looked sideways. Koshar was staring at a dress that a young girl would wear. ¡°If I buy this for Navier...¡± ¡°It won¡¯t fit. It never does.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Your sister is no longer a child.¡± ¡°I suppose so, indeed. Time passes so swiftly...¡± ¡°Hey. Don¡¯t distort the past. She was already tall when you left.¡± ¡°She¡¯s still a little sister in my memory.¡± Koshar scratched his nose andughed. Marquis Farang clicked his tongue and asked for the tailor. ¡°Excuse me. Please help us.¡± As soon as the tailor approached, Marquis Farang pointed towards Koshar. ¡°My friend is looking for a dress for his sister.¡± The tailor spoke in a kindly voice. ¡°Do you know her size, Sir?¡± Koshar nced at Marquis Farang, then turned back and replied mildly. ¡°About this tall...¡± ¡°Ah, she must be quite tall. What is her body type?¡± ¡°A lovely body shape...?¡± ¡°...I¡¯m not sure what that shape is. Can you be more specific?¡± Koshar shook his head, and the tailor made a puzzled look. She turned towards the marquis, but he also shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s difficult to fit the clothes if you don¡¯t know her size.¡± ¡°I still want to buy something. I haven¡¯t seen her in years. Don¡¯t you have anything suitable?¡± ¡°If it¡¯s something you can buy without knowing the size, how about a hat?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll take it.¡± The tailor disyed to them a variety of hats, and Koshar began to look over each one carefully. But even this was not easy. The tailor had pulled out a total of thirty-five hats, and all the other customers in the store gathered to watch the activity. Marquis Farang was so embarrassed by the women that he quickly stuck to the wall, while Kosharpletely immersed himself in the selection process. Finally, he picked five colorful hats and left the clothing store. Marquis Farang tutted at his friend. ¡°Do you like your sister that much?¡± ¡°She¡¯s such a lovely girl. And¡ªah, look at that.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°That bread. It must be delicious if so many people are lining up. I¡¯ll bring one to Navier.¡± Koshar pushed his way through the crowd, the marquis clicked his tongue again and followed his friend. They stood in line for ten minutes. As Marquis Farang¡¯s patience was starting to run low, his ears caught a snatch of conversation. ¡°And the Emperor¡¯s concubine...?¡± ¡°Yes, my cousin works as a maid in the pce. The concubine is pregnant.¡± ¡°So she¡¯s pregnant before the Empress. What happens then?¡± Koshar, who was holding on to the shopping bags full ofce and frill, suddenly turned around. Chapter 90 - The Grand Duke’s Proposal (1) Chapter 90 ¨C The Grand Duke¡¯s Proposal (1) Sovieshu¡¯s words from yesterday lingered in my mind. The morning chill brought fresh goosebumps onto my skin, but it did not cool the fire inside of me. The sound of birds reminded me of Queen and only served to make me more depressed. A concubine¡¯s child cannot be a prince or a princess. And yet Sovieshu suggested that if we could not conceive a child together, perhaps I would adopt it... I didn¡¯t like it. It was preferable to have any other baby than one born between Sovieshu and Rashta. No matter how much I thought over it, I didn¡¯t think I could love the baby. No, I was quite sure I wouldn¡¯t. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s voice broke my reverie, and I wrested my gaze from the window. I was so lost in thought that I didn¡¯t even realize she was nearby. ¡°What is it?¡± I tried to look casual, and she spoke to me in a lowered voice. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen is here.¡± ¡°He is?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I walked into the parlor room and found Grand Duke Kapmen standing with his hat in one hand. It was the first time I¡¯d seen him since he struck Sovieshu. I nced at his hand to see if he was alright, but he didn¡¯t look hurt. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Thank you for your concern.¡± Did he notice my gaze? Grand Duke Kapmen responded bluntly as he briefly waved his hand. It was then I made a sudden realization. Advertisement ¡°The potion has worn off.¡± I looked back in amazement, but when he responded, his voice was cold. ¡°You sound like you were just waiting for us to part. Did you want me gone?¡± I stared at him in surprise, and he sighed and apologized. ¡°...I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m in an unstable emotional state. It¡¯s why I twisted what you said. I hope you will understand.¡± ¡°Ah. Then the potion is still...?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± When I observed him more closely, I noticed that his hand holding his hat was trembling. More worries sprung up in my mind twentyfold. Advertisement ¡°Does the drug usuallyst this long?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what worries me.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen sighed again. At the same time, he adjusted the space between his feet and mine. He seemed to want to keep some distance from me. ¡°You said you created it, right?¡± ¡°I wanted to make something for the ck market when I was an academy student...the potion doesn¡¯t usually work like this.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen sighed once again and fidgeted with his hand. ¡°How effective is it usually?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just the feeling when you first fall in love. It¡¯s not supposed tost as long as this, and the antidote should have worked.¡± Advertisement ¡°Have you ever used it on a person?¡± ¡°Of course I have. That¡¯s why I gave it to you.¡± He sighed for a third time. ¡°The drug had already been around for a few years. If it worked this powerfully in the first ce, it would have spread wildly by now.¡± That was true. The symptoms Grand Duke Kapmen disyed was not of mere infatuation, but of overwhelming, feverish passion. Such a drug...it would have many uses. ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s a side effect?¡± I looked at him anxiously, but he didn¡¯t answer my question. ¡°...I¡¯m leaving the empire.¡± This time. Advertisement He was here to say goodbye. At that moment, my eyes started to go blurry. I was not as close to Grand Duke Kapmen as I was with Prince Heinley or Queen or Duchess Tuania, but my heart was suffering through these repeated partings. I started rambling before I even realized it. ¡°What about trade? What about diplomatic rtions? It¡¯s still in progress. If you go away¡ª¡± ¡°The Emperor doesn¡¯t want it.¡± ¡°I am in charge of this.¡± ¡°But as long as it¡¯s rted to state affairs, you cannot make deals without your husband¡¯s final approval.¡± My heart pounded, but for a different reason. I was angry. I was angry that my entire effort to establish diplomatic rtions with Rwibt had crumbled away like a sandcastle, all because of Sovieshu¡¯s feelings. I stood there with my lips pressed shut, and Grand Duke Kapmen clenched his hand. ¡°Don¡¯t be upset.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Please. If you¡¯re upset now, my heart hurts so much. Please...¡± He pressed down on his bosom, looking distressed. I forced a smile for him, but it didn¡¯t seem to work, and so I changed my words to another direction. ¡°So the diplomatic rtionship ispletely over?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen gingerly lifted his hand from his chest, as if to check if his attempt to suppress his feelings worked. ¡°Since I cannot create an alliance with the Eastern Empire, I will look to other countries. It doesn¡¯t matter which ones.¡± ¡°...I see.¡± I swallowed the lump in my throat, and gave him a hollow smile as I bowed. ¡°Thank you for telling me the circumstances.¡± ¡°I will look around other countries to find out how to remove the effects of the drug.¡± When he finished speaking, he kept his eyes on me. I gave him my reluctant blessing. ¡°I...I hope your alliances go well.¡± I knew he worked hard, and wished for him to find a better trading partner. On the other hand, I didn¡¯t want that for him either. My stomach seemed to turn. ¡°...though I¡¯m only being half sincere.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen widened his eyes, then burst intoughter. He doubled over so hard that he had to wipe tears from his eyes. Did the love potion increase his response to my words? I didn¡¯t know why he wasughing, but he was doing it so much that I began to feel embarrassed. I felt as if I had betrayed an obvious desire. ¡®He might say something behind my back.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s fine. It was so cute.¡± ¡°What?¡± He offered a silent smile, and I didn¡¯t know what to say. Sometimes, the way he spoke...it was as if he were answering the thoughts in my mind. I shifted awkwardly. Grand Duke Kapmen opened his mouth to speak again, but then paused. Wasn¡¯t he going to say goodbye? Did it hurt him to say it? Would it be better if I said goodbye first? I would remember him as the person who showed me what it felt like to be loved. He wasn¡¯t as dear to me as Prince Heinley, but I enjoyed knowing him in the time that we had. I tried to give my farewell first, when the grand duke gave an unexpected proposal. ¡°Let¡¯s go together.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I want you toe with me. I¡¯d love you to.¡± I stared at him in amazement. What? I was frozen to the spot, and he brought his hat to his chest. ¡°Your heart will only rot if you stay here. Let¡¯s go to the Hwa continent. You¡¯ll live without any pain, and you¡¯ll be surrounded by all the good things in the world.¡± ¡°Grand Duke...¡± Was it the potion speaking again? But even though I waited, he did not correct his words. As he stared into my eyes, he held out a trembling hand towards me. ¡°I will do all the preparations if you allow me.¡± Chapter 91 - The Grand Duke’s Proposal (2) Chapter 91 ¨C The Grand Duke¡¯s Proposal (2) I couldn¡¯t believe my ears for a moment. I almostughed, but when I saw Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s eyes, it died on my lips. His eyes spoke inly of his anxiety. A man who I knew for his blunt speech and his confidence was now afraid of my rejection. Perhaps it was because of the potion, but at this moment he was sincere. A feeling of regret welled up in me. However...I shook my head. ¡°No ¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. Think rationally. You¡¯re doing this because of the potion.¡± ¡°I know. I know...I¡¯m alright.¡± Was he? I drew my brows together in a frown. ¡°No. You¡¯re not alright.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my emotions. It¡¯s up to you to reject it, but please don¡¯t treat my feelings callously.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. I know you. You¡¯re only proposing this because of the potion.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You will feel guilty about it when it wears off.¡± I deliberately spoke with a smile, but Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s expression did not lighten. I sighed. ¡°Don¡¯t bet your life with me in what you feel at the moment, Grand Duke.¡± ¡°When this drug wears away, how can you be sure that my emotions will go back to normal? ¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t like me at first, remember?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my enemies I don¡¯t like.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I just felt frustrated.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s face was carefully nk, but something about him was pitiable. His offer, however, was not something to be decided by sympathy and impulse. I deliberately looked away. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. You may find what I¡¯m doing is frustrating, but...this burden is not difficult for me to carry.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I admit it is painful for the Emperor to love another woman while he is cold to me. But I am the empress.¡± I let out a small, unintelligible sound and I turned my head back. ¡°I have lived and learned to be an empress all my life. This is my dream and reality. I don¡¯t want to lose my life simply because of the suffering my husband is putting me through.¡± When Grand Duke Kapmen spoke, his voice was heavy with regret. ¡°It¡¯s a great belief, but a dangerous one.¡± ¡°How is it dangerous?¡± ¡°What will you do if your husband asks you for a divorce first?¡± That wouldn¡¯t happen, but he continued before I could reply. ¡°You have such a strong identity as an empress. But if you divorce the Emperor, you will not longer be the empress. I¡¯m afraid you will fall apart then.¡± I tly denied his words. ¡°That won¡¯t happen. The Emperor is not a fool.¡± I was serious. Sovieshu wasn¡¯tpletely devoid of reasonable judgment. However, Grand Duke Kapmen coldly refuted me. ¡°He was already a fool the moment he turned away from you. People addicted to love are likely to act on impulse and do things they would never ordinarily do. Such as the way I punched your husband.¡± ¡°!¡± He heaved a sigh. It seemed like there was more he wanted to say, but he didn¡¯t. Instead, he carefully asked a question. ¡°Before I go, can we hug?¡± A light embrace wasmon among the nobles, so I agreed. As soon as I gave permission, he stepped forward and pulled me in. But it wasn¡¯t the hug I had in mind. Where had his calm and heavy attitude gone? His hug was impatient and intense. I was short on breath as I was locked tightly in his arms. His forehead touched my shoulder. This...this was not a simple embrace. ¡°Grand Duke.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± I didn¡¯t think this was a good idea, and I called his name carefully. Fortunately, he retreated. When he released me from his grip, I saw his expression was carefully smoothed over. He gave a calm and polite bow, ced his hat on his head, and walked towards the door. He gave onest backwards nce, then left. I copsed onto the couch as soon as he was gone. Could it be the aftermath of his emotional whirlwind? I felt numb, but I didn¡¯t have the luxury to stay that way for long. ¡°Your Majesty, Lord Koshar is here.¡± Within fifteen minutes of Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s departure, my older brother, Koshar, came to see me. ¡°Navier!¡± As soon as Countess Eliza opened the door for me, my brother bounded into the room and embraced me. He was just as strong as Grand Duke Kapmen, but his arms were morefortable. When I sat still, my brother buried his forehead in my shoulder like Grand Duke Kapmen as well. Was it natural for tall people to position themselves like this? ¡°Navier. Your shoulders are damp.¡± I looked at him confusedly. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°There¡¯s some water on your shoulder.¡± ¡°!¡± As soon as my brother pulled away, I touched my hand to the spot where Grand Duke Kapmen ced his forehead. It really was damp. ¡°Ah...¡± Did the Grand Duke...cry? He cried and then left with a nk face like that? I put down my hand as my heart sank with regret, while my brother watched me closely. ¡°You look somber, Navier. Is it because of your husband and that woman?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°How dare he make you so miserable.¡± I looked up at my brother in surprise, and saw that he was grinding his teeth as he clenched his fists. ¡°All themoners are talking about your husband and the concubine.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± So Koshar must have heard everything. I looked downward, feeling unsure of myself. I didn¡¯t want to hear my brother talk about my husband being in love with another woman. Of course, I knew it woulde up someday, but... As soon as I dropped my gaze, I saw shopping bags near my brother¡¯s feet. I deliberately changed the subject. ¡°What are those?¡± ¡°Gifts.¡± My brother delicately held out the shopping bags to me like he was giving me a bomb, and I leaned from the couch to ept them. ¡°Can I open them?¡± However, my brother didn¡¯t say yes. ¡°Check themter. I¡¯m not going to run away with the gifts.¡± He stood in front of me. ¡°Where is that woman staying, Navier?¡± ¡°What woman?¡± ¡°Oh my clever sister. Where are you pretending you don¡¯t know? The woman with the bastard child. Along with that damn asshole.¡± ¡°Brother!¡± I quickly stood up and covered Koshar¡¯s mouth. ¡°Watch yournguage. It¡¯s dangerous.¡± The pce had many ears and eyes. Everyone here was my aide, but I remembered that Viscountess Verdi had once been close to me. Even my owndies-in-waiting could betray me depending on the circumstances. My brother¡¯s eyes shed and he pulled away my hand. ¡°Everyone knows that my personality is garbage anyway. Where are they, Navier?¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m gonna kill those two bastards.¡± My hand flew to cover my brother¡¯s mouth again. I gave a harried nce towards Countess Eliza, she sent all thedies-in-waiting out of the room. After they were all gone I locked the door securely, then pushed my brother onto the sofa and hissed at him in a low voice. ¡°Be careful, brother. People will find fault in any small thing you say.¡± ¡°I meant it.¡± He answered firmly, and his eyes were sharp. I was worried. He really did seem serious. I was afraid that my brother would do something that I wouldn¡¯t be able to control. Chapter 92 - The King Of The West (1) Chapter 92 ¨C The King Of The West (1) ¡°It¡¯s more dangerous if you¡¯re serious! You can be put to death if you harm the Emperor!¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll kill the woman.¡± ¡°Personal grudges are also a felony.¡± I pointed my hand towards my brother¡¯s stomach. ¡°And Rashta¡¯s baby is the Emperor¡¯s baby.¡± ¡°A bastard?¡± ¡°A child of a concubine. The Emperor is greatly anticipating it.¡± My brother looked at me with a face that said, ¡®What does that have to do with anything?¡¯ My head was pounding. If it were any other person, I could make excuses and say the words were spoken in the heat of passion. But not my brother. My brother was a man who followed words with actions. No, he was a man who acted on his passions. ¡°Very well, Navier. Then I won¡¯t let that woman give birth to the baby.¡± ¡°If you touch the baby, you will face an even heavier punishment.¡± It was a great sin tomit murder inside the Imperial pce, but an even greater one to harm the Emperor¡¯s bloodline. Viscount Langdel was almost executed, not by stabbing Rashta, but by threatening the life inside her belly. Even though thew didn¡¯t treat the concubine¡¯s children as princes or princesses, they weren¡¯t treated like ordinary aristocrats either. ¡°Brother. Even if you kill Miss Rashta as you say you will, do you think the Emperor will not take another concubine?¡± But despite my attempts to calm my brother, his temper would not cool. He paced around the room with his hands around his head, while I rummaged through the shopping bags and pulled out one of the gifts. It was a hat. I ced it on my head, hoping it would make him feel better. I fixed my hair and showed myself to him, but my brother was angrier than any hat couldfort. He stopped at my desk and red at my calendar. ¡°A banquet?¡± My daily schedule was marked on my calendar, including the banquet for Rashta¡¯s baby. ¡°Brother.¡± I hurried up to pick up the calendar, but my brother was faster. He had already glimpsed it, and he turned to me dumbfounded. ¡°Why do you have to organize the party for them?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just that one. I¡¯m responsible for all the parties in the pce.¡± My brother kept his mouth firmly shut as he fixed his gaze at me. However, his next words were not about the banquet. ¡°The hat looks good on you.¡± His unexpected praise took me by surprise, but before I could respond, he turned his heel and left. I watched him anxiously, then removed my hat and ced it on the couch. I stood there frozen until I heard the sound of a bird squawking near the window. My mind cautioned me that it could be an intruder, but I opened the window anyway and leaned out my head. It was hard to tell where the bird¡¯s sound wasing from. The bird¡¯s cry reminded me of Queen. A sense of unease stirred in me. I was scared that something might have happened to Prince Heinley and Queen. I didn¡¯t think they would have arrived in the Western Kingdom yet. Would they get there safely...? *** Prince Heinley¡¯s entourage was passing through the Borayong mountains. Despite Navier¡¯s expectations, however, Prince Heinley himself and McKenna had already arrived in the Western Kingdom. Prince Heinley was in the king¡¯s bedroom. The bed itself was a splendor of beige and golden tones, with the headboard itself decorated with fine gold embellishments. The man lying on the bed, however, was in a less majestic state, and had sunken, bloodshot eyes and a pallid face. Heinley gripped the hand of King Wharton III, his brother and the king of the West. With each rattling breath the king took, Prince Heinley¡¯s heart sunk further. It had taken a while for Wharton III to recognize his younger brother, and when he spoke, it was with a rasping breath. ¡°Heinley...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Heinley...¡± ¡°Yes, I¡¯m here. I¡¯m right beside you, my brother.¡± Prince Heinley squeezed King Wharton III¡¯s hand. ¡°Heinley...get married.¡± Prince Heinley grimaced. Even before his brother was ill, he had always nagged him about taking a wife. However, he couldn¡¯t reply coldly to his sick older brother. Without speaking, Heinley held on to Wharton III¡¯s hands, and the king stared dimly back at him. A smile appeared on Wharton III¡¯s face, as if he noticed his brother¡¯s unhappy expression. ¡°I¡¯m not nagging. You must get married, Heinley.¡± ¡°...I understand.¡± ¡°If I die...you will be king. You need a sessor.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°For the king...to wee a queen...is not a choice...but a responsibility.¡± Heinley heaved a sigh. ¡°You¡¯re still making this difficult.¡± ¡°The country deserves a good woman...not a woman that is lovely to your eyes... but a queen that will love the people.¡± A face came into Prince Heinley¡¯s mind. A queen who was lovely to him and was able to love his people. But that woman already had a man beside her... His heart throbbed. ¡°What if there is a woman who is both?¡± ¡°Good. Don¡¯t let her go.¡± Wharton III smiled not as a king, but as a brother. ¡°If you marry, stop being a womanizer.¡± Heinley had pretended to be a flirt to create a lighthearted image, but he regretted it now that he had a woman he liked. His mouth tipped upwards in a smile. ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Yes...I¡¯m sure you will do well...with the country.¡± Heinley sighed and tapped his brother on the back of the hand. ¡°Is there anything else you need to tell me? Nothing difficult, I mean.¡± Although they were never bosom brothers, Heinley¡¯s heart was burdened with sadness and regret. Wharton III blinked slowly, then turned to stare nkly at the bed¡¯s canopy. Heinley gave a small smile. ¡°You must have nothing else to say.¡± Wharton III smiled along with Heinley and spoke in a low voice. ¡°Look after your sister-inw.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t let other nobles ignore you...¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°No matter what anyone says, I will protect you...¡± Wharton III¡¯s trembling lips closed, as if merely speaking took a massive effort. He sucked in a few heavy, slow breaths. It was getting slower now. His grip on Heinley¡¯s hand gradually loosened, and Heinley gently lowered his brother¡¯s hand. The king¡¯s chest, which had been rising and falling, was no longer moving. ¡°...¡± Heinley closed his eyes and sped his hands together. Tears streamed down his cheeks. The doctor stood up from behind him to check the king¡¯s pulse, and then spoke in a somber voice. ¡°...The King has passed.¡± Those who silently stood beside the wall came and knelt before the new king. Heinley opened his eyes slowly, and looked down at them through his blurry vision. Chapter 93 - The King Of The West (2) Chapter 93 ¨C The King Of The West (2) I was sure that my brother would cause an incident, but fortunately he stayed quiet for a few days. Perhaps he was so frustrated that he couldn¡¯t focus his anger on one person¡ªSovieshu. My family managed to persuade my brother toe home. It was not his ce to vent his anger at Sovieshu or Rashta, otherwise, he would put his life and position at risk. ¡®...I¡¯m in a position where I can¡¯t do anything either.¡¯ The moment I became angry with Rashta, the Emperor would use me of being a wicked bully to the poor concubine. On the other hand, if I became angry with Sovieshu, I would be criticized as an ipetent empress who couldn¡¯t control her emotions. If I took it out on him, I¡ªand perhaps my family¡ªwould be at risk. And yet, if I tolerated Sovieshu and Rashta, I would be seen as stupid and foolish; not only me, but my entire family. I stared at myself in the mirror, and a strangeugh escaped from me. A wicked woman, an ipetent empress, or a foolish broad. Was there any way out of this maze? ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza called me from the parlor room. I rang a bell in permission, and she came inside with a gloomy look. ¡°Countess? Are you alright?¡± Her expression made me nervous. I had a series of unfortunate eventstely, and so I was immediately afraid. My prediction was half true. ¡°Delegates from the Western Kingdom have arrived.¡± The bad news wasn¡¯t about me, but my premonition was right. ¡°A death obituary.¡± ¡°Yes. King Wharton III has passed away.¡± Prince Heinley¡¯s older brother... I imagined the prince¡¯s smiling face falling into sadness, and my heart suddenly felt heavy. *** That night, no moon nor stars were seen in the heavens. The sky looked ck because of the clouds, but I could asionally make out a hazy grayish-yellow circle in the dark. With one arm propped on the window, I stared glumly at the scene. ¡®There will be a feast for Rashta¡¯s baby in a few days.¡¯ Could I keep my mask on? I had been doing it for years, buttely it seemed to slip away from me more. More precisely, I tired of constantly keeping my facial expressions in check. ¡®...In the end, I¡¯ll do it if I must.¡¯ The cold wind sent goosebumps on my cheek. Drops of water began to plop onto my arm, one by one. I took my arm off the window and closed it, but as soon as I did, I saw a blue bird flying in the dark. ¡°Ah!¡± Queen¡¯s underling? I was so surprised I opened the window again. I wasn¡¯t sure at first, but I turned out to be right, and the blue bird flew through the open window. Unlike Queen, who like a grand entrance, the blue bird seemed more hesitant and cautious. ¡°Are you Queen¡¯s friend?¡± I spoke to him even though he was a bird. Since Queen was intelligent, I thought this one would be the same. The blue bird nodded and even lowered himself in a bow. ¨C Jjaek. The bird held out his foot and offered me the note attached to it. ¡°Did Prince Heinley send you?¡± ¨C Jjaek. I pulled the letter off his leg with the utmost care. When I opened it, the blue bird came to my side, as if to read the letter with me like Queen did. I looked at the paper on myp as I rested my face on one hand. ¨C I only think of you, my Queen. You¡¯re the only friend who can bring mefort. I need it. His handwriting was noticeably shakier than before. Though there were only a few words written on the paper, the sorrow in them was palpable. ¨C Jjaek... I set the letter down, and the blue bird cried weakly. I went straight to my desk, then picked up a pen and set it to paper, but my hand didn¡¯t move. I didn¡¯t know what words I should say tofort him. He said I was the only person who could do so, but...what on earth could I say when his brother died? If I were with him, I could simply sit with him without saying anything. What could a few written words do? ¨C I hope that you are not hurting too much. In the end, I only wrote a cliched sentence. *** The day after the blue bird flew away, Grand Duke Kapmen left the pce as well. He didn¡¯t say goodbye to me, possibly because of the love potion, but he had sent someone to give me a book about Rwibt as a gift. The delegation who announced the Western king¡¯s funeral also returned to their country. It was a series of farewells and separations. It seemed to me that I was the only one affected by all these partings. Everyone else mored over the new King of the West, and when they tired of that, they talked about Rashta¡¯s baby. Although most were wary to gossip out loud in the pce, rumors were more open at the southern pce where there were many foreigners. ¡°Didn¡¯t Prince Heinley like Lady Rashta, too?¡± ¡°Yes, and I heard that the Emperor and the Prince fought over her as well.¡± ¡°You know why they fought? Miss Rashta and Prince Heinley were letter friends, and the Emperor was jealous.¡± ¡°Prince Heinley must be heartbroken by Lady Rashta¡¯s pregnancy.¡± My footsteps halted at the garden near the southern pce. I came here to remind myself of the things I enjoyed, but the unpleasant stories followed me here as well. ¡®I¡¯ll just go back.¡¯ I took a deep breath, then turned and walked in the opposite direction of the corridor. However, at the crossroads of the eastern, western, and southern pce, I came across someone unexpected. We had never introduced ourselves to each other before, but he was a man clearly in my memory. ¡°Your Majesty, I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m seeing you here. I¡¯m so thrilled.¡± It was Viscount Roteschu, the one who imed that Rashta was a ve. There was an insidious smile on his face. He gave me a bow and smiled, but instead of conversing with him I made my way back to the western pce. ¡®I hear he¡¯s been frequenting the Imperial Pcetely. Is he meeting with Rashta?¡¯ How strange. I thought he was her enemy. Why would Rashta ept Viscount Roteschu? ¡®It seems that she can be threatened too...¡¯ *** ¡°I met the Empress on my way here.¡± It was the first words Viscount Roteschu said as soon he saw Rashta. She frowned at having to be in the presence of someone she didn¡¯t like. It was a bad omen if Viscount Roteschu talked about the Empress. He had only mentioned her once before, when hepared Rashta to her. ¡°What else are you going to say?¡± She gave him a cold re, and Viscount Roteschu grinned. ¡°Nothing. I just wanted to say that her aura looks different from yours.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Just that she has a noble look in her eye...¡± ¡°Are you saying Rashta doesn¡¯t look like that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe after you drink court water for twenty years, there might be a resemnce.¡± Viscount Roteschu smiled wickedly. ¡°Of course, if you haven¡¯t been expelled by that time.¡± ¡°!¡± Rasta stared wide-eyed at Viscount Roteschu, but he continued on calmly. ¡°Do you have anything to eat?¡± ¡°If there¡¯s nothing else, go back to your business.¡± ¡°You¡¯re heartless.¡± Rashta clenched her shaking fists. Although they had agreed to be on the same side, she absolutely hated the viscount. ¡®I have to do whatever he says...¡¯ She let out an exhale, then looked sternly into his eyes. ¡°What are you here for this time?¡± ¡°Well, I need some money quickly.¡± Rashta opened her mouth in amazement. ¡°Again? I just gave you five hundred thousand krangs, didn¡¯t I?¡± ¡°I spent it on finding a house.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a big house, so I need a lot of servants.¡± Rashta clenched her fists harder, her fingernails biting into her palms. How could a person be so hateful? Despite Rashta¡¯s pure look of loathing, however, Viscount Roteschu smiled and continued. ¡°And since I have a lot of family, I need more hands.¡± ¡°There are only two people in your family. You and the baby.¡± ¡°Two?¡± He lifted an eyebrow at her. ¡°There¡¯s more?¡± Viscount Roteschu let out a bark ofughter. ¡°I¡¯m bringing my son and daughter, of course. You think I would only bring your baby?¡± Rashta¡¯s faced whitened at his words. ¡°What?¡± She panicked and looked at him with trembling lips. ¡°Who are you bringing?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s lip curled in satisfaction. ¡°Why? Don¡¯t you miss my son?¡± Chapter 94 - Is It Impossible? (1) Chapter 94 ¨C Is It Impossible? (1) Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son was n. n Roteschu. Rashta bit her lip. He was the man Rashta once loved, the man who then abandoned her, and... Was the father of her baby. ¡°This isn¡¯t what you promised!¡± Rashta¡¯s anger burst out of her. Viscount Roteschu had said he¡¯d keep all the figures in the past secret, and she had no choice but to doubt his intentions. Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue. ¡°Not what I promised? When did I promise to keep the baby locked up?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t ask that.¡± ¡°Well, we don¡¯t need to reveal the baby to society.¡± ¡°What about n or Rivetti? Will they stay at your mansion when they get here? What if your children talk about Rashta in society?!¡± ¡°They don¡¯t even know you¡¯re the Emperor¡¯s concubine.¡± ¡°For how long?¡± ¡°If they do find out, I can keep them disciplined.¡± Despite his reassurances, Rashta felt uneasy. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. n is the father of your child, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°He will keep his mouth shut for the sake of his baby.¡± Rashta still could not calm. There was no way she would believe a man who already broke his promise once. ¡°It can¡¯t be helped. n is better at caring for Ahn than I expected, so we can¡¯t keep him out.¡± ¡°Ahn?¡± ¡°The name of your son.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes trembled as he spoke of her child. Viscount Roteschu continued without missing a beat. ¡°How about this¡ªdo you want to meet your son?¡± Rashta gave a surprising answer. ¡°No.¡± She spoke without hesitation, but her expression said otherwise. At the ensuing silence, Viscount Roteschu gave a low chuckle, then left the room. Rashta started pacing the room back and forth, her lips pursed in confusion. She carried the baby for ten months, and loved him with all her heart. As soon as she recovered from the shattering pain ofbor, her baby was killed. The shock of it had driven her mad, and she had lived in a state of pain and distress for months, until she decided to run away from Viscount Roteschu¡¯s estate, determined to die. But now Viscount Roteschu imed the baby was alive, and now the enemy and the lover who abandoned her was raising that baby. Viscount Roteschu had said the child was dead to drive her to insanity, and now he said the child was alive to drive her to insanity. Rashta was tired of being manipted by something she had never seen. It was like her child caught her ankle and dragged her deeper. However, she couldn¡¯t help but worry over him at the same time. Rashta stopped circling the room and copsed into tears. *** ¡°How does it feel to have a baby?¡± The room turned quiet, and I took my eyes off my book and looked around. Thedies-in-waiting were looking at each other with stiffened expressions. ¡®Ah...¡¯ I must have caused a misunderstanding, so I quicklyughed and pointed at my book. ¡°It¡¯s about this story.¡± The preparations for the banquet were almostplete. Because of that, I had less work than usual and had been able to spend my time more leisurely. My words had caused thedies-in-waiting to freeze. ¡°Would you like to have a baby, Your Majesty?¡± Countess Eliza spoke to me cautiously, and I shook my head as Iughed. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that.¡± Just because I didn¡¯t mean it, however, it didn¡¯t mean that my thoughts weren¡¯t entirely devoid of the topic of babies. Now that Rashta was pregnant, I thought I should have a baby soon as well, in case of mishaps that may ur in the future if our babies had arge age gap. Thew decreed that Rashta¡¯s child did not have the right to session, but thew was not always followed. But having a baby now would be difficult between me and Sovieshu... ¡®My god.¡¯ But no matter how much I denied it, the awkward atmosphere in the room did not abate. ¡°I¡¯m going to give Miss Rashta¡¯s baby a present. Do you all have something prepared?¡± I quickly brought up another topic to distract thedies. It was not a pleasant one, but the awkward atmosphere dissolved away. Thedies grumbled, but no one said ¡°Why would you give Miss Rashta¡¯s baby a present?¡± When one celebrated the birth of the Emperor¡¯s baby, one should present a gift. ¡°I prepared clothes. Something that can save my face, but nothing that requires too much effort.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t decided what to prepare.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve chosen baby trinkets...I¡¯m still thinking about it, but I might change it.¡± As I listened to the conversation, Countess Eliza turned to me cautiously. ¡°Have you thought about what gift to give, Your Majesty?¡± Thedies stopped talking and looked at me. I answered with a nod. ¡°I¡¯m going to give the baby a decorative sword.¡± ¡°A sword? You¡¯re going to give that to the baby?¡± Laura jumped up angrily as if she didn¡¯t like the answer. ¡°Why would you give such a precious gift? You should just give a knitted hat, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Laura, that would make her aughingstock.¡± ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t more strange to be considerate?¡± ¡°Laura.¡± The countess shook her head firmly at Laura, who was heavily breathing through her nose. I wanted to say that I had a purpose, but I kept my mouth closed. I didn¡¯t want my words to leak out the same way it did with the dress incident. It was unclear whether the leak was intentional, but it was still better to take caution. ¡°Lady Laura, I¡¯ll tell you the detailster.¡± Chapter 95 - Is It Impossible? (2) Chapter 95 ¨C Is It Impossible? (2) The Western king¡¯s funeral arrangements were made after his death. Preparing them in advance was considered a bad omen, no matter how severe the king¡¯s condition was. As such, the new king was required to organize his coronation as well as the funeral at the same time. Heinley might have been able to share the burden with a queen, but he was single and was busier as a result. After a hectic day, Heinley somberly made his way to the temporary underground crypt where his brother¡¯s coffin was ced. He wanted to remember his brother alone in a quiet and cool ce, but when he arrived, there was already a familiar figure standing there. It was Heinley¡¯s sister-inw and former Queen, Christa. ¡°Sister-inw?¡± Heinley called to her awkwardly and approached. They did not meet face-to-face often, but when he did, he felt strange calling her ¡°sister-inw¡± when she was usually called ¡°Your Majesty¡±. Christa turned her head to look at him, and smiled weakly and wiped her eyes with her fingertips. She looked like she had been crying. ¡°Are you all right?¡± Heinley stopped at about five steps away from her. ¡°Where are yourdies-in-waiting? Why are you alone in this cold ce?¡± ¡°I wanted to be alone here.¡± ¡°You might catch a cold.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not that weak.¡± Instead of arguing, Heinley pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and offered it to her. Christa had tears in her eyes again. ¡°Thank you.¡± She reached out her hand, but just as soon as her fingers were about to touch it, Heinley pulled back the handkerchief with an apology. Christa chuckled when she saw that the initial embroidered onto the handkerchief was not Heinley¡¯s own. ¡°It must be someone else¡¯s.¡± ¡°Ah...yes. Someone very important.¡± ¡°Important?¡± ¡°As important as the sun.¡± She studied the handkerchief but could not surmise the name the initial represented. Heinley tilted his head and pulled out a different handkerchief. ¡°Thank you.¡± She stopped specting the owner of the other handkerchief and dabbed her eyes. ¡°Before my brother¡¯s death, he left a will to protect you.¡± Christa¡¯s eyes widened with the handkerchief still held up to her eyes. However, she soon lowered it and gave a watery chuckle. ¡°He is a kind man.¡± ¡°If someone does or says anything to you, please let me know.¡± ¡°Thank you for your words.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just words.¡± At the sincerity of Heinley¡¯s words, she gave a nod. ¡°I will.¡± Heinley exchanged a few more words with Christa before he left the crypt. Next he made for a temporary office he was using until the coronation was over. McKenna was buried in a pile of papers, and he stood up with a groan when he spotted Heinley. ¡°We¡¯re running out of time, and we¡¯re short of ten.¡± ¡°That is not enough.¡± ¡°You made me go ande back all the way from the Eastern Empire.¡± Heinley ignored McKenna¡¯sints and looked down at the letters on the desk. ¡°These are the coronation invitations.¡± McKenna exined quickly before Heinley even asked. ¡°Even small children will know you will be crowned king, but the coronation should still be open to major foreign leaders.¡± Heinley nodded and flipped over one of the letters. ¡°What about the letters to be sent to the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°Not those. Here they are.¡± McKenna picked up four letters from the other side and Heinley confirmed all the recipients. Three of them were addressed to certain other nobles, while one was for the Emperor and Imperial family. And a member of the Imperial family... ¡°There is no chance, Your Highness.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t said anything, McKenna.¡± ¡°Are you wondering if the Eastern Empress wille?¡± ¡°McKenna...sometimes it¡¯s more annoying when you tell the truth.¡± ¡°Shall I tell you hopeful lies instead?¡± Heinley shot McKenna and irritated look, while McKenna fixed the prince with a concerned expression. ¡°Your Highness, I¡¯m sure you know...but she is the empress. Not only that, but an empress of a powerful country.¡± ¡°Should I give up because she can never be my queen?¡± ¡°What else can you do but give up?¡± ¡°...You have a smart head.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Count them again.¡± McKenna sighed and moved his hands busily, pretending to be looking over the invitations. However, he couldn¡¯t ignore Heinley, drunk on his first love. Heinley suddenly looked thoughtful, and McKenna had a sudden chill down his spine. Heinley had a very rational personality, but that didn¡¯t mean he did things normally; sometimes his behavior was quite dangerous and adventurous. The look on his face was reminiscent of that. ¡°Your Highness.¡± McKenna said his name before Heinley could speak. Heinley turned to him, and McKenna proposed something he had been thinking about for weeks. ¡°As it¡¯s the will of the former king, why don¡¯t you prepare for a wedding?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t have a partner, McKenna. Who would it be?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll find one.¡± ¡°The one I want is far away.¡± ¡°You still have to find one. There may be a match for you nearby.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t tell me it¡¯s you.¡± McKenna suddenly became angry at Heinley¡¯s words. ¡°Don¡¯t tell terrible jokes.¡± Heinley gave an icy smile. ¡°You just said I can¡¯t marry anyone I want, but it has to be someone close to me.¡± He was in an unpleasant mood. McKenna started speaking weakly at first, but soon his voice gained strength. ¡°First of all, take a look at all of the brilliant women in the Western Kingdom. You¡¯re always traveling abroad, and you have no interaction with your citizens.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look at me like that, Your Highness. You may find another love like Empress Navier.¡± ¡°Of course there are many wonderfuldies here, too.¡± Heinley sighed heavily. ¡°But what I want is her, not the woman who looks like her. No matter who much they resemble her, there¡¯s no point.¡± *** The days that I anticipated came slowly, while the days I dreaded suddenly came right under my nose. On the day of the banquet honoring Rashta¡¯s baby, the sun rose as usual, and by noontime the carriages began to converge into the pce. As it was a celebration of the Emperor¡¯s first baby, there were numerous visitors. Through a window I watched the carriages stream inside, thevishness of the carriages indicating the wealth and importance of those who would attend. ¡®Will those peoplee to the same idea as Sovieshu?¡¯ The idea that I should ept Rashta¡¯s baby because I will never have one of my own? ¡®...Well, even if they don¡¯t think that, the Emperor¡¯s firstborn is still an important event.¡¯ Even if Rashta¡¯s baby did not seek a session, it could not be ignored by the nobles. As long as the child didn¡¯t lose the Emperor¡¯s favor, they were likely to be a high-ranking noble such as a duke or grand duke. After taking a deep breath, I turned around and went back to my room, changed my clothes, and went to the banquet hall. It was not as formal an asion like the New Year¡¯s ball, so everyone was alreadyughing and talking. It was easy to spot Sovieshu and Rashta. Rashta was sitting on a soft couch specially ced at the back center of the hall, while Sovieshu stood by her side. Behind the couch were piles of gifts received from the guests. It was already a substantial amount, considering that the banquet had only started about an hour ago, and many still approached her holding colorful gift boxes. Some guests looked reluctant to be here, but others seemed genuinely eager to impress her. When I came closer, the crowd quietly stood back. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± As soon as Rashta spotted me, an angelic smile spread on her face. ¡°It¡¯s so nice to see you, Your Majesty. It had been an hour and I didn¡¯t think you wereing.¡± Unlike Rashta, however, Sovieshu seemed nervous. The nobles curiously looked on. I presented my gift in silence. It was hard to discern what the object was, as it wrapped in shiny paper and tied with a ribbon. Rashta took it with both hands, looked at Sovieshu, then pulled the ribbon. She hadn¡¯t opened the other gifts, so she must have wondered what her present was. Or perhaps she wanted to show it off to the others. ¡°Oh, this is...!¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. Chapter 96 - The Meaning Of The Gift (1) Chapter 96 ¨C The Meaning Of The Gift (1) Rashta¡¯s face lit up with joy as she opened the present. ¡°Oh my God! Thank you, Your Majesty! How beautiful!¡± ¡°Do you like it?¡± ¡°Yes! It truly is gorgeous.¡± Rashta turned over the sword several times, her eyes shining in admiration at the jewel-studded hilt and finely etched details on the de. ¡°To have such a beautiful sword...¡± She couldn¡¯t help smiling and making exmations of appreciation. Clearly she didn¡¯t understand the meaning of the gift... ¡°I¡¯m d you like it.¡± I didn¡¯t think it was necessary to exin it to her, and so I turned around. ¡°Well...Your Majesty.¡± Rashta called out to me. I looked back at her, and she set the sword down on the sofa and came up to me with her hands folded on her stomach. What was she doing? She stood in front of me, gently rubbing her belly. ¡°Thank you very much foring. I¡¯m so happy. Rashta really wants to be friends with Her Majesty...¡± Her lovely voice, innocent demeanor, and warm gaze was enough to make up for herck of court etiquette in other nobles¡¯ eyes. Her charm failed to impress me, however. I turned around instead of answering. I wasn¡¯t the woman of honor this day. I wanted to spend a few minutes greeting other friends and then retire to my room, but Rashta seemed to have more to say. ¡°Your Majesty, is...is it alright if I ask you a favor?¡± I looked at her indifferently. ¡°What kind of favor?¡± Rashta put her hands together and looked at me with herrge, dark eyes. ¡°I hope you will bless my baby.¡± Many people often came to me to bless their baby, and Rashta¡¯s request wasn¡¯t unusual. However... ¡°I must decline the request ¡± This time, however, I didn¡¯t want to do it. I didn¡¯t think my blessings had any significant effect, and even if they did, I didn¡¯t want to bless Rashta¡¯s baby. Rashta¡¯s eyes widened as if she didn¡¯t expect me to refuse in public, looking the image of a kicked puppy. ¡°Will the child that receives my blessing be happy?¡± Rashta¡¯s face reddened. ¡°But if you still want it, I¡¯ll do it.¡± Rashta blushed to her ears and lowered her eyes. The pitiable sight seemed to stimte Sovieshu to action, and he looked at me angrily and hissed at me in a small voice. ¡°Is this really necessary?¡± Some people turned at the sound, and Sovieshu looked around and lowered his voice further. ¡°Do you have to embarrass me in front of all these people?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to be embarrassed.¡± ¡°You bless babies almost every day. Is it so hard for you to do it one more?¡± ¡°Sometimes words are heavier than a thousand gold pieces of gold.¡± ¡°Do you understand what you¡¯re saying?¡± ¡°I do. I¡¯m sure you didn¡¯t want to hear it at a time like this.¡± Sovieshu fixed me a stony re, and the nobles around us looked on even more curiously. I spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. ¡°If you don¡¯t want drama, stop making it out to be one.¡± Sovieshu kept his face expressionless and turned around as if he were fed up. As Sovieshu stood by Rashta, she looked up at him with wide eyes and rubbed her hands on her belly. I couldn¡¯t see Sovieshu¡¯s expression because his back was turned to me, but it was obvious that they were in a world of their own. I didn¡¯t want to be here anymore, and so I turned around, but then changed my mind. I turned back and approached the sofa instead, and Sovieshu stared at me intently. ¡®What are you going to do?¡¯ was clearly written all over his face. I walked between the two and spoke to Rashta. ¡°Do you still want my blessing? If you really want it, I¡¯ll do it.¡± I addressed Rashta, and then looked to Sovieshu. Although he wanted me to give a blessing, Sovieshu did not look happy, as if he suspected I had hidden a knife in my sleeves or skirt. But I did not hide knives in my clothes. I hid them in my tongue. Rashta gave arge smile and nodded. Her hand swept her stomach once more. I spoke slowly, staring at the belly that still showed no signs of swelling. ¡°Dear child. Be like the sword I have gifted you. Gorgeous and beautiful.¡± Rashta was smiling. Did she really think I would curse her? Rashta looked up at Sovieshu brightly. ¡°The Empress blessed our baby!¡± Despite Rashta¡¯s delight, Sovieshu stared at me with a suspicious look. I wondered what he had to say. He didn¡¯t look away, but he silently wrapped Rashta¡¯s shoulders with his hands. Read the full chapter on WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. *** Rashta settled back on the sofa as she gently caressed her stomach. She ced her hand on her belly whenever she wanted to talk to her child. ¡®Baby, look at them. Those proud nobles all came here to see you.¡¯ ¡®Baby, look at them. Those people who would despise you for being a ve are now offering you gold and silver.¡¯ ¡®Baby, look at them. They are all below you.¡¯ This experience was different from when Rashta gained attention from being Sovieshu¡¯s concubine. She felt joyful at carrying the Emperor¡¯s baby and receiving the love of the people. Her status was once dependent on the whims of Sovieshu, but now she was the mother of his firstborn child, and no one could change that. Even the Empress, who treated her as if she were invisible, had given her a gift and blessed the baby! Rashta smiled as she stroked the beautiful de given by Empress Navier. When her child was grown, she wanted them to be admired and have that sword at their waist, as proof that the child was loved by the Empress. The Empress may or may not be infertile, after all. ¡®If I can remove Viscount Roteschu...¡¯ The viscount was the only ck cloud in her and her family¡¯s future. So far, she hadn¡¯t seen him here... As soon as that thought came to her, however, she saw a face that made her heart freeze. ¡®He is...!¡¯ Chapter 97 - The Meaning Of The Gift (2) Chapter 97 ¨C The Meaning Of The Gift (2) It wasn¡¯t Viscount Roteschu. But it was a man she wanted to avoid even more. The man standing there with his green eyes and dark brown hair was n Rimwell. Known as a mild-mannered man, he was also the son of Viscount Roteschu and the former lover of Rashta. She stared back at him. The shock of his appearance came a moment toote when she realized she wasn¡¯t waking up. How? Why was he here? Viscount Roteschu did say he would bring him to the capital, but... Rashta turned as white as a sheet as she protectively wrapped her stomach with both hands. ¡®If n says even one wrong thing...¡¯ n didn¡¯t move, and simply looked on at Rashta as if he were a stone statue. Though he was not as terrified as she was, he looked like he was on the verge of tears himself. ¡°Miss?¡± Duke Elgy called her from her side, and she hastily rearranged her expression and turned to give him a smile. ¡°When did you arrive?¡± Instead of answering, the Duke Elgy turned his head in the direction she had been looking at. ¡°Who were you watching?¡± Rashta grabbed Duke Elgy¡¯s sleeve in rm, and he turned back to look at the slender, scarred hand that clutched him. ¡°Nothing. I was just thinking.¡± Rashta made up a story and quickly dropped her hand. Duke Elgy looked back in the direction that she was staring at, but n had already left. Rashta gave an inward sigh of relief. She didn¡¯t know what n would do, although ording to Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words, his son wouldn¡¯t reveal the truth. ¡°Was it a bad thought?¡± Duke Elgy propped himself against the sofa Rashta was sitting at with one hand. He looked positively wolf-like, and thedies nearby swooned. Duke Elgy did not avoid the attention as a socialite, and instead made his posture even more inviting. Rashta gave augh at his bravado. ¡°Not really.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t look so well.¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± Rashta tilted her head cutely and lifted the sword up to him. ¡°Look at this.¡± Duke Elgy seated himself next to Rashta, and the surrounding nobles started to buzz. The duke was known to be a yboy, and now he was sitting close to the Emperor¡¯s concubine. However, neither Duke Elgy nor Rashta paid attention to the crowd¡¯s reaction. ¡°Was this a gift?¡± ¡°Yes. The Empress gave it to Rashta.¡± ¡°The Empress?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift for the baby.¡± Rashta smiled more widely to push away her nervousness about n. ¡°May I see?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta handed over the gift, and Duke Elgy withdrew the sword halfway from its scabbard. A smile flickered across his face as he inspected the hilt and de with a careful eye. ¡°How do you like it?¡± The duke nodded in satisfaction. ¡°It¡¯s a very fine sword.¡± Rashta beamed with pride, but she sensed that something was off about Duke Elgy. ¡°What is it? Is there something strange about the sword?¡± ¡°Nothing strange, but...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Did the Empress say anything special when she gave this to you?¡± ¡°She blessed my baby to be as beautiful as the sword.¡± The smile became clearer on Duke Elgy¡¯s face. Rashta looked at him curiously, and he exined. ¡°Miss. This sword is indeed very expensive, but it¡¯s purely decorative.¡± ¡°Decorative...?¡± ¡°It has no practical use as a weapon. It cannot be used in a duel, let alone a war.¡± Duke Elgy looked in the direction of the Empress. She was surrounded by her close associates, and was also watching the duke. He continued to speak to Rashta as he kept his gaze fixed on the Empress. ¡°To give you this sword means to live in splendor and beauty, but also to not work.¡± ¡°That¡ªthat ...!¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s a blessing, too.¡± Duke Elgy murmured to himself as he dreamed of being able to live without working, but Rashta was already in a state of shock. The words were unpleasant in and of itself, but she was even more ashamed that she praised this gift in front of everyone else. The nobles were intelligent, so they must have understood the Empress¡¯s purpose. Rashta was the only one who didn¡¯t know. How ridiculous she must look to receive a gift that was given in mockery! ¡°The Empress...insulted me...¡± Rashta pressed her lips tightly together as tears began to brim her eyes. She was pathetic. Eventually the tears spilled over to her cheeks, and Sovieshu rushed to her side. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Rashta? What happened?¡± Sovieshu red at Duke Elgy, but the duke bowed gracefully and stepped away from the sofa. ¡°Rashta, why are you crying on such a happy day?¡± Sovieshu ignored the duke¡¯s bow and did his best tofort Rashta, but despite his efforts, she couldn¡¯t stop crying. She was already frightened when she saw n earlier, and she couldn¡¯t bring herself to speak. Sovieshu rubbed Rashta¡¯s shoulder, and he red back at the nobles for an exnation. They quickly approached and reported the conversation between Duke Elgy and Rashta. Her shoulders began to tremble even harder, and Sovieshu sighed. ¡°Duke Elgy has a careless tongue.¡± ¡°The duke only helped Rashta not to look stupid, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t cry. You are the woman of honor today.¡± ¡°But...but I¡¯m so sad.¡± Her shoulders heaved with sobs, and she looked up at Sovieshu with her dark, jewel-like eyes. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me? You knew what the Empress meant, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡°...¡± Instead of giving her an answer, Sovieshu patted her on the shoulder. His unspoken answer was clear as day. Rashta was once again convinced that Duke Elgy was far more dependable. She was correct in her decision to confide about her other baby to the duke rather than Sovieshu. Looking down at her trembling lips and eyshes, Sovieshu gave another a sigh. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you could handle it, Rashta.¡± Rashta covered her belly with her hands and bowed her head. ¡°I¡¯m scared.¡± ¡°Scared?¡± Rashta spoke in a tiny voice. ¡°The Empress looked down on me and the baby in front of everyone. If she¡¯s this outspoken, what if the Empress harasses the prince or princesster...?¡± All she wanted was constion and a promise that Sovieshu would protect their baby. Because the Empress spoke so harshly, she expected Sovieshu to side with her. However, Sovieshu was more surprised than anything else. It was because Rashta called the baby a prince or princess. Sovieshu wasn¡¯t the only one. The nobles listening in on the conversation noticeably stiffened and looked at each other. Chapter 98 - – You Can’t Be Royal Family! (1) Chapter 98 ¨C You Can¡¯t Be Royal Family! (1) Rashta seemed oblivious to the stir that her words caused. She lowered her head and looked weakly at the floor, but it wasn¡¯t her slip of the tongue that caused her to be gloomy. Sovieshu shot a silent rebuke at Viscountess Verdi standing nearby. However, she shook her head. She didn¡¯t talk to Rashta every day, let alone had heart-to-heart conversations with her. Viscountess Verdi had no opportunity to tell Rashta that her baby couldn¡¯t be royalty, and even if she did, she would be seen as provoking Rashta. That was the case for thedy-in-waiting. Sovieshu, however, had no such excuse. Unwilling to deal with this in front of the nobles any further, Sovieshu tried to pull Rashta up from the sofa. ¡°Rashta, stand up.¡± Rashta was startled back into awareness, and she looked up at Sovieshu with tear-filled eyes. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go back.¡± ¡°Oh, Rashta¡¯s fine, Your Majesty. I can handle it.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to run away, Your Majesty. Rashta can ovee it.¡± Sovieshu was caught in a bind. The first thing young nobles learned as they made their debut in society was to swallow their pride and retreat. They may be at the top of hierarchy in their homes and estates, but as they entered high society, they were thrown into a setting where everyone else was richer, higher, and more powerful. The same was true even of a duke¡¯s offspring, and only the Imperial family was the exception to this food chain. Rashta knew nothing of the aristocracy, however, and as a result, she stubbornly tried to preserve her pride, leaving Sovieshu in a quandary. Sovieshu walked ahead of her, with a firm nce indicating that she should follow. Only then did she realize that he wasn¡¯t going to appease her. He seemed to want to tell her something that he couldn¡¯t say in public. Rashta hurriedly followed Sovieshu. *** ¡°...Why would he do that?¡± As I muttered to myself, Laura looked at me curiously then turned her head in the direction I was looking at. Duke Elgy was sitting next to Rashta on the sofa, leaning towards her and speaking. ¡°Wow. Can they sit close together like that?¡± Laura clicked her tongue. As she observed, the distance between Duke Elgy and Rashta was almost nonexistent. Laura wasn¡¯t the only one; other nobles were casting curious looks at the pair sitting on the sofa. Sovieshu had nced at Duke Elgy and Rashta, but he turned his head back towards his chief secretary and continued his conversation. ¡°Duke Elgy must have eyes on his feet if he keeps socializing with her.¡± Laura grumbled in small voice and turned back to her friend, unwilling to look anymore. Almost at the same time, Duke Elgy cast a nce at me, and he smiled faintly when our eyes met. It was a friendly smile, but I wasn¡¯t fooled. They were talking while touching the gift I gave to Rashta. Duke Elgy said something, and Rashta¡¯s smiling face quickly hardened. I didn¡¯t know what he said, but it certainly provoked a reaction from her. Did that man suddenly smile at me? Ridiculous. However, he could smile as much as he wanted. I smiled gently back in return. Duke Elgy looked startled for a moment, but soon lifted his lips and turned his head. *** Sovieshu took Rashta to his bedroom to calmly exin several things to her. ¡°Rashta. Your baby cannot be a prince or princess.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rashta stared at him in surprise. ¡°What are you talking about? Why?¡± ¡°Children of concubines don¡¯t receive that title.¡± ¡°What?¡± She continued to stare at him in bewilderment. ¡°But they¡¯re the emperor¡¯s children, aren¡¯t they? Don¡¯t all the emperors¡¯ children count as royalty?¡± ¡°It¡¯s only the children with the empress who have that title.¡± ¡°W-what?¡± Even after listening to his exnation, she still couldn¡¯tprehend it. An emperor¡¯s child could not be considered a prince or princess? ¡°Then what do you call my children? Aren¡¯t they part of the Imperial family?¡± Sovieshu was torn. He had enjoyed regaling Rashta stories of the nobles and Imperial family, but he couldn¡¯t do it this time, let alone tell her that her children may try to hurt the Empress¡¯ children. ¡°The children will be high nobility. They won¡¯t be royalty, but they will be treated well.¡± Despite his efforts, Rashta started to cry. ¡°This not right, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta.¡± ¡°My baby and the Empress¡¯ baby will have your blood. She became an empress only through marriage anyway, and the empress is not the emperor. But why are only the babies of the empress considered royalty?¡± Rashta continued to cling on stubbornly. ¡°That is thew.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a shamw. You can change it.¡± ¡°Rashta.¡± ¡°The emperor is thew. You can do anything you please.¡± Sovieshu was forced to delve into a lengthy exnation for the reason and the history of thew, but Rashta remained unmoved. ¡°My baby is deprived of their identity because of another baby who is not born and might never be born. Rashta can never understand. It does not make sense.¡± In the end, Sovieshu was forced to draw a line. ¡°Even if you don¡¯t understand it, it is aw that is written in the great church, and even the emperor cannot change it by himself. So from now on, don¡¯t talk about princes or princesses in front of others. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± She choked up in shock. ¡°Your Majesty¡¯s baby...¡± ¡°I will love them and give them vast wealth and power. Even if they are not called a prince or princess, everyone will know they¡¯re my child. All they won¡¯t have is legal session, so there is no reason to be disappointed. Alright?¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta pressed her lips together and did not answer. She turned away from him, and Sovieshu sighed. ¡°If the empress is infertile and can¡¯t have children, then it would be a different story. ¡± ¡°...How?¡± ¡°Perhaps the baby will be adopted by the Empress, and then they will be recognized as royalty.¡± Sovieshu couldn¡¯t stay long here and had to return to the banquet. After he left, Rashta huddled in a corner, hugging her legs and dropping her forehead to her knees. She would bear the Emperor¡¯s child, but they would not be considered royalty. It was too unfair. It was all because she wasn¡¯t an empress. Rashta burst into tears. Sandry, a maid who had been waiting and listening to their conversation, walked over tofort her. ¡°Don¡¯t cry, Miss Rashta.¡± Sandry had reced Cherily, thetter who quit her job as a maid after the scandal with Prince Heinley. ¡°But the tears keeping out.¡± Rashta spoke sadly, wiping her eyes with her sleeves. ¡°Rashta is amoner, and I¡¯m grateful to be loved by His Majesty. But the baby. This is His Majesty¡¯s child. How upset will you be if your child is not treated as your own?¡± ¡°Miss Rashta...¡± ¡°Even if the Empress has a baby, they will be younger than mine. Her child will be treated like a prince or princess, and my child will be sad to live beneath them...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, Rashta. Many years have passed since the Empress has be an adult, and she still hasn¡¯t given the Emperor a child.¡± ¡°But Rashta has a baby, right?¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s proved that there¡¯s nothing wrong with the Emperor, so it¡¯s very likely that the Empress is infertile. As the Emperor said, Rashta¡¯s baby may eventually be adopted by the Empress.¡± Chapter 99 - You Can’t Be Royal Family! (2) Chapter 99 ¨C You Can¡¯t Be Royal Family! (2) The same time the maidforted Rashta, n was weeping in amazement from havinge across his former lover. He had heard about the emperor¡¯s concubine named Rashta at a social gathering after he came to the capital, but at the time he did not think she was the same one he knew. He was in a different location now, and a ve could not meet the emperor. However, he attended the party when he heard about the simrities between hair and eye color. When he discovered that the Emperor¡¯s concubine was indeed his former lover, his heart trembled violently. ¡°Father, did you know?¡± As soon as n managed to gather himself together, he returned to the mansion to speak to Viscount Roteschu. n found his father inspecting the interior of the mansion with his hands behind his back. When his son confronted him with the question, he muttered ¡°What are you talking about?¡± but his eyes did not fall from the magnificent mural. ¡°The Emperor¡¯s concubine, Rashta, is the Rashta we know.¡± Viscount Roteschu frowned and turned to face his son. He saw n¡¯s trembling lips, and he clicked his tongue impatiently. ¡°You went to the pce banquet? When I saw the invitation was gone I thought it must have been Rivetti.¡± Viscount Roteschu did not look at all surprised that Rashta was the Emperor¡¯s concubine. n¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°You knew?¡± n thought his father would be as shocked as he was, but he bore an air ofplete nonchnce. Viscount Roteschu stroked his beard with one hand and pointed at a couch with another. ¡°Sit down.¡± When n took the seat he indicated, Viscount Roteschu continued. ¡°In truth, we were able toe here to the capital because of Rashta.¡± ¡°What?¡± n looked at his father, dumbfounded. ¡°Why Rashta? Ah, is it because...¡± It must have shocked her to find out about her son¡¯s survival. n nodded at his conclusion, but the viscount spoke sternly. ¡°I can¡¯t give you the details.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°Act like you don¡¯t know her.¡± ¡°But Father. If Rashta is safe, you have to tell me all about her.¡± n tried to protest, but Viscount Roteschu was dismissive. ¡°As you may have heard, the Emperor is deeply in love with Rashta.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°That means if you and Rashta are discovered, you may be incriminated. Do you understand?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°So watch your mouth. Pretend you don¡¯t know Rashta at all.¡± ¡°But Father¡ª¡± ¡°Father will take care of everything.¡± Get full chapters and artwork at WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. *** It was the day after the party that my brother and his friend, Marquis Farang, came to visit me. ¡°Shall we go for a walk, Navier?¡± I was on edge expecting my brother to cause an incident at any moment, but he surprisingly remained calm throughout our stroll. Although we ambled along a pce trail for more than half an hour, he did not mention Rashta or her baby. ¡°Did you rest well at home? It¡¯s nice to be back after a long time, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Veryfortable. It would have been better if you had been there.¡± ¡°I¡¯lle and see you when I can.¡± ¡°No need, I¡¯m here to visit you.¡± ¡°Is that so? Ah. And Marquis Farang? How are you nowadays?¡± ¡°Your brother nags me more and more.¡± My brother narrowed his eyes at Marquis Farang¡¯s response. However, the marquis grinned impishly and continued to act tortured because of my brother. ¡°You two get along.¡± ¡°Koshar has deficient qualities everywhere else, but he¡¯s lucky enough to have good friends. Like myself, or you, Your Majesty.¡± As I watched the both of them, I remembered my childhood and smiled. It had been that way for a long time. It was nice to see him stay so frank even after we had grown up. Just as we were entering the path to the eastern pce, I spotted Rashta leaning against a stone wall. My footsteps halted, and my brother asked me what was wrong. I was of two minds about how to deal with this: part of me wanted to keep going, while another wanted to turn and take another route. If I turned around, I would feel like I was avoiding Rashta, and my pride would be bruised. However, I felt uneasy, not knowing what my brother would do if he saw her. Before I could decide, however, Rashta looked at us in surprise and approached. My brother did not recognize her at first. If he did, he likely would have thought of her as the viin who tormented his sister, but it was fair to say at the moment she looked as lovely as a fairy. ¡°Your Majesty, Rashta has something to say to you.¡± Only after Rashta revealed her name did my brother¡¯s expression twist into something more gruesome. Rashta looked at Koshar and lifted her eyebrows, perhaps in surprise that my brother and I looked so alike. Instead of greeting him individually, however, she continued. ¡°I heard it was very bad that you gave Rashta a sword, Your Majesty.¡± I sighed, not because of her words, but because of the situation. I didn¡¯t want to argue with Rashta in front of my brother and Marquis Farang, but I didn¡¯t want to roll over because of her usations either. If I did, my brother would get angrier, and others would think Rashta¡¯s influence wasrger than it really was. ¡°It¡¯s not a bad gift for someone who is not covetous, is it?¡± I answered in a chilling voice, but Rashta spoke back firmly. ¡°No. Whether some is covetous or not, it¡¯s bad. And you mocked Rashta in front of everyone.¡± Despite her clear voice, she looked unhappy. She paused and took a deep breath, and ced a hand on her bosom. ¡°But Rashta decided to put up with Your Majesty¡¯s insult. Even if you continue tough, despise, and ignore Rashta, Rashta will endure.¡± ¡°Are you ashamed of the truth? You must have a high opinion of yourself.¡± ¡°Rashta is the woman the Emperor loves. If Rashta doesn¡¯t value herself, it¡¯s rude to His Majesty.¡± ¡°Does your value exist only when you are loved by the Emperor?¡± ¡°!¡± A mncholy expression stole over Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°No matter what you say, Rashta will bear it all. For the sake of the future children, Rashta doesn¡¯t want to fight the Empress...¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Did she think I would hurt her future children? An unpleasant feeling started to rise in me, but Rashta¡¯s words stunned me even more. ¡°The Emperor told me. The Empress is likely infertile, so she will be the stepmother of Rashta¡¯s babies.¡± Chapter 100 - Only I Can Protect Myself (1) Chapter 100 ¨C Only I Can Protect Myself (1) ¡°What?¡± Iughed in amazement. I asked her to repeat herself in stunned surprise, but as soon as I finished someone else stepped forward. ¡°What did you just say?¡± It was my brother. His face resembled mine, but he looked terrifying when he scowled. He was a warrior battle-hardened on the frontier, and the atmosphere around him instantly changed when he got angry. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Rashta took a hesitant step back, surprised by Koshar¡¯s aura. As my brother approached her threateningly, she staggered further backwards. ¡°Oh!¡± She fell on her buttocks, her hand shooting out to protectively wrap her stomach. I quickly walked up to my brother and caught his sleeve. ¡°Stop it.¡± Almost at the same time, Marquis Farang grabbed Koshar by the arm and tugged him. ¡°Let it go. Don¡¯t get involved.¡± At that moment, Rashta looked up with a frightened expression and gave a sharp scream. ¡°Aaaaah! My stomach!¡± She crawled on the ground with a look of agony. ¡°Why are you pretending to be hurt?¡± Koshar looked ready to explode. Rashta was still holding onto her stomach, and when I saw the image my heart dropped to the floor and I felt as if ice-cold water had been doused on my head. A crowd started gathering as Marquis Farang tried to pull my brother away. ¡°My stomach hurts! Aaaaah, my stomach hurts!¡± Rashta continued to scream. Some of the crowd knew of my brother¡¯s notoriety. A few people rushed to the central pce for help, while others approached Rashta to examine her condition. The guards, along with Marquis Farang, attempted to hold back my brother¡¯s rage. ¡°You there! You dare say Navier is infertile and expect her to raise your children! I¡¯ll cut out your tongue!¡± Koshar continued to yell even as he was pushed back. Rashta¡¯s eyes trembled in fright. It was true she said those words, but it was hard to refute him when he was yelling, so she didn¡¯t say a word back. Koshar was heaving and panting for breath, and the guards and Marquis Farang finally managed to take him away. Rashta looked up at me and sobbed pitifully. I noticed that her forehead was soaked in a cold sweat, so she must not be faking an illness. She seemed to be mouthing something at me, as if asking for help. I didn¡¯t know what she was expecting. The councilmen wille soon. There were many officials around, and there were guards to help or carry her. There was nothing I could do for her. I stared down at her for another moment, then turned and went to find my brother. *** Read full chapters and view artwork at WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. ¡°Is Rashta alright?¡± The pce doctor was studying Rashta with a serious look on his face, and Sovieshu couldn¡¯t help but be impatient. Rashta looked at the doctor, her eyes wet with tears. ¡°The baby. Is the baby fine?¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue in frustration. ¡°Is there something wrong with the baby?¡± ¡°The baby is the most important thing for Rashta.¡± ¡°You are more important than an unborn baby.¡± ¡°But Rashta...¡± ¡°Stop. Don¡¯t get too agitated.¡± He wiped the cold sweat on her forehead with a towel and nced at the doctor. It was a signal to answer quickly. The doctor took a step back and replied gloomily. ¡°Miss Rashta needs to be stabilized, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Are you saying she¡¯s hurt?¡± Sovieshu replied sharply. ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± The pce doctor gathered his hands together as if in apology. ¡°You have to be very careful in the early stages of pregnancy, and she is not physically strong. Try to avoid situations like these in the future, otherwise she may miscarry.¡± As soon as the doctor left, Sovieshu angrily kicked the sofa. Rashta¡¯s cheeks were tracked with tears as she gripped her nket. Sovieshu closed his eyes and managed a deep breath before calmly speaking. ¡°Rashta. Watch your words in front of Koshar. He is a man quick to anger. I¡¯ll put a restraining order on him, but I don¡¯t know what he¡¯ll do when my eyes are turned away.¡± Rashta looked at him in surprise. ¡°Watch my words?¡± ¡°I heard from other people that you spoke ill of the Empress, namely about infertility.¡± ¡°A-ah no, Your Majesty!¡± She vigorously shook her head, but she remembered Koshar shouting his usations at her wildly in front of the crowd. There were so many witnesses, and Sovieshu didn¡¯t look like he believed her. She choked up. ¡°It¡¯s not true...¡± She should have opposed Koshar¡¯s words then, but at the time her stomach hurt so much that she couldn¡¯t exin herself. It was clear to her now that the people believed Koshar¡¯s words immediately. She found it so unfair, but instead of denying it, she burst into tears. ¡°The Empress first told Rashta that she was worthless!¡± However, Sovieshu unexpectedly defended Navier. ¡°The Empress is someone who manages her image to the extreme.¡± Rashta flushed at his reply. Instead of siding with Rashta, Sovieshu believed Navier. A feeling of uneasiness soared in her. At this rate, she seemed to have fallen on her own after pouring insults at the Empress. ¡®It¡¯s true that I fell by myself. But if such a scary persones near you, you can¡¯t help but be surprised and fall down.¡¯ She bit her lower lip. Was it because of stress? Her belly was starting to ache again. The pain of a few hours ago stirred in her memory, as well as the Empress¡¯ cold stare at the time. The Empress had looked down on her when she was asking for help... ¡°Rashta.¡± Sovieshu attempted to soothe her, but she still couldn¡¯t bring herself to speak. She was miserable. She wasn¡¯t a dog that could let her anger go once she was scolded. What if Sovieshu would misunderstand that she was a bad woman and then abandon her? The concubine¡¯s position was not a stable one, and she could be driven out or neglected if Sovieshu started to dislike her. ¡®Like the concubines of the previous emperors.¡¯ What would happen if she was expelled from the Imperial Pce? How much money will Sovieshu give her to support her baby? Or perhaps her baby will be taken away, and she would be the one kicked out. That wasn¡¯t her only problem either. The Empress¡¯ brother or Viscount Roteschu might try to look for her and kill her then. Rashta¡¯s heart went cold. She had already been abandoned, her baby stolen, and she had nearly died. She didn¡¯t want to suffer the same fate again. ¡®Not like this.¡¯ The Empress may be a dignified figure, but she was cold-blooded. Her brother was violent and rude. The nobles treated her like a cute novelty, but they could easily turn their backs on her. And although she loved Sovieshu, she could not trust and depend on him. Rashta soon realized that she was the only one who could protect herself and her baby. As soon as she finished thinking, she spoke in a soft voice. ¡°Rashta did not say anything about infertility to the Empress. Even if Rashta¡¯s words were misunderstood...Rashta carries the Emperor¡¯s baby. I don¡¯t deserve to be pushed.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°Koshar pushed you?¡± ¡°Yes. He didn¡¯t push hard, but he pushed me.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s gaze suddenly turned steely. ¡°That man...¡± Sovieshu had been briefed on the aftermath of the incident, but no one knew the cause of Rashta¡¯s fall. By the time the crowd had gathered, she was already on the ground and Marquis Farang and Navier were trying to stop Koshar, so no one knew the exact sequence of events. But Koshar pushed Rashta? If Rashta had said Navier did it, Sovieshu wouldn¡¯t have believed her. However, Koshar was just the kind of man to do such a thing. ¡°Get some rest for now.¡± He pulled a nket over Rashta¡¯s trembling form and left the room. His calmsted only a few steps, however, and when he returned to his room, he summoned his chief secretary, Marquis Karl. ¡°Marquis Karl, make sure that youpletely ban Koshar Lilder Troby from entering the Imperial Pce until further notice.¡± ¡°What? A restraining order...?¡± ¡°A suspension is not enough.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty, Lord Koshar is the Empress¡¯ brother and sessor to Duke Troby.¡± ¡°That is why I only went this far. However, he was determined to push Rashta.¡± ¡°Lord Koshar pushed Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°ording to her.¡± There was an uncharacteristic note of doubt in Sovieshu¡¯s words. Marquis Karl recalled that Sovieshu kept Viscount Langdel¡¯s report instead of throwing it away. Chapter 101 - Only I Can Protect Myself (2) Chapter 101 ¨C Only I Can Protect Myself (2) ¡°I¡¯m forbidden from entering the pce?¡± I was with my brother when the Emperor¡¯s messenger came to give him the news. The messenger shrank back when Koshar yelled angrily at him. ¡°Yes. And if you push or threaten Miss Rashta again, you will be punished for threatening the Imperial family.¡± ¡°Who was pushing who?!¡± Koshar gave a roar, tearing a cushion with his fist, and the messenger scurried away. ¡°Can you believe this!¡± Koshar didn¡¯t calm even after the messenger escaped the room. ¡°I pushed her?! Would she even be fine if I pushed her?¡± ¡°Brother.¡± ¡°Navier. Is there a problem with her tongue or your husband¡¯s ears?¡± ¡°Brother.¡± My attempts to calm him went unheard. I approached Koshar and knocked him on the back. He held the torn cushion close to his bosom and ground his teeth, but after a moment he slumped and apologized. ¡°...I¡¯m sorry for the cushion.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. How about you? Are you alright now?¡± ¡°Had you not been there, I might have beaten the servant who delivered the message.¡± ¡°Drop your temper.¡± ¡°But¡ª!¡± ¡°You¡¯ll regret it.¡± I waspletely dejected by this news, but I was sure that my brother, who caused this, felt far worse. In a situation where the people on ¡°our¡± side were many and Rashta was one, my fiery-tempered brother simply approaching Rashta would already be considered a threat. If she had spun that as my brother¡¯s fault, that would have been much more understandable. However, she imed that she fell because my brother pushed her. Wasn¡¯t that aplete lie? Sovieshu even believed her and gave my brother a restraining order. It was the same when Prince Heinley was asking about the letters. Rashta was a duplicitous woman. ¡°You need to be careful in the meanwhile, brother.¡± ¡°Careful about that damn woman?¡± ¡°Did you hear how the Duchess Tuania got divorced?¡± ¡°Somewhat.¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s the one who yed a part in the divorce. She stirred up old rumors about Duchess Tuania and manipted them to be far worse.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°She¡¯s not just a concubine. She¡¯s clever.¡± Sovieshu unequivocally believed in Rashta¡¯s words, and Rashta herself had the ability to manipte public opinion and win people¡¯s favor. In the midst of that, she was also bearing the Emperor¡¯s first child. It was best not to collide with her. My brother looked at my face, and couldn¡¯t hold back the swears in his mouth. ¡°Shit! Damn rotten thing!¡± *** Full chapters and artwork only on WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. That night, Koshar found himself drinking with his friend Marquis Farang. ¡°Hey, drink slowly.¡± Marquis Farang looked on worriedly as Koshar drank like a fish, but the marquis¡¯ concerns were dismissed. ¡°I want to get drunk. Leave me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m worried that you¡¯ll get drunk and cross the pce wall.¡± ¡°You can stop me, right?¡± ¡°Are you serious? I can¡¯t stop you even when you¡¯re sober, so why do you think I can stop you when you¡¯re drunk?¡± Koshar snorted and poured another strong drink in his ss. ¡°My mother and father nagged me as soon as I got home. It will be bad for Navier if I take any action, so for her sake I have to keep a low profile.¡± ¡°...Koshar.¡± ¡°I said a low profile. This is the way it has to be after all.¡± Koshar spilled more liquor into his mouth and mmed the ss down on the table. ¡°I¡¯m so mad, I¡¯ve never done anything to deserve punishment!¡± ¡°Well. This time it was undeserved.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t push that bitch!¡± ¡°I saw. You should avoid her.¡± Marquis Farang did not add that ordinary people stumbled back from Koshar because they were afraid. What his friend needed now was a voice offort, not criticism. However, Marquis Farang¡¯s words failed to ay Koshar. ¡°If that woman has a baby, one day she will devour Navier. One has to strike first.¡± Koshar took a drink, and choked on his liquor. He gave a hacking cough to clear his throat. ¡°You¡¯re going to strike her? The Emperor¡¯s concubine?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find out her weakness.¡± ¡°Really. You can¡¯t even enter the Imperial Pce.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t go in. But my money and power can.¡± ¡°Well...that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°You can go in.¡± ¡°What? You¡¯re drawing me into this? ¡± Marquis Farang looked like he had swallowed something sour. ¡°Well. Fine, I¡¯ll follow you. So what are you going to do to dig up her weakness?¡± ¡°It depends on what the weakness is.¡± ¡°When you were briefly speaking with the Empress earlier, I asked around. There had been a rumor going around that the woman was a ve.¡± ¡°ve?¡± ¡°At the New Year¡¯s celebrations, someone named Viscount Roteschu imed that Rashta was a runaway ve of his.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°But he amended his words and said he had the wrong person.¡± ¡°Can we use that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s going to be difficult for Viscount Roteschu to change his words back. The Emperor went to great lengths to bury that rumor.¡± Koshar replied in a low murmur. ¡°We¡¯ll decide how we¡¯re going to take advantage of that weaknesster.¡± He took a small pouch from his pocket and handed it to Marquis Farang. ¡°Let¡¯s buy some people to solve this.¡± Marquis Farang nced inside the pouch and saw sparkling jewels, obtained from the bandits they had driven out from Parme. ¡°The jewels were collected by the bandits, so it¡¯s difficult to track down the owner even if they are discovered.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± The marquis nodded and pocketed the jewels. Koshar tapped his finger on the table. ¡°There¡¯s one more thing.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I need an effective abortion-inducing drug. Something that harms the mother as little as possible.¡± Marquis Farang¡¯s eyes widened. If they were going to obtain an abortive drug... ¡°Are you serious?¡± A dangerous smile spread across Koshar¡¯s lips. Chapter 102 - A Silent Condemnation (1) Chapter 102 ¨C A Silent Condemnation (1) ¡°Your Highness. Lady Muney has arrived and is waiting for you in the drawing room.¡± Heinley was sitting on his bed and studying a property list. He looked up at McKenna, then set down his list with a frown. ¡°Who is Lady Muney?¡± ¡°The twelfth candidate for queen. You should meet her.¡± Heinley sighed. His days were like this ofte. McKenna would bring a young noblewoman from a well-known and wise family and get them to meet. Heinley though that half of them seemed toe from the same family. As rumored, he was not interested in any of them. ¡°Isn¡¯t it time to stop, McKenna?¡± ¡°We can stop once you have chosen a queen.¡± Heinley sighed again but did not argue back. He knew better than anyone that McKenna¡¯s reasons were justified. ¡°I don¡¯t need to be married until another year or two.¡± ¡°Better if it was sooner, Your Highness.¡± ¡°...Maybe you¡¯re right. Otherwise, my sister-inw would be caught in the middle.¡± There were many significant changes when a generational shift urred. Fortunately, people were the most open to change at this time, and it was a critical period when the new queen would organize the court in her own way. Heinley was close to Christa, and was ustomed to the system and methods she had established when she was queen. However, if Christa¡¯s system remained for too long after Heinley became king, it would be difficult for the new queen to make changes. It was for this reason that McKenna was concerned. Heinley stood up with a grim look on his face. ¡°Alright, I should go. Even if I say no, I should still see her. There¡¯s no reason to create unnecessary grudges.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± McKenna quickly helped Heinley pull on his jacket. ¡°But why did you keep looking at the property list?¡± ¡°To create a new knighthood title.¡± ¡°Title?¡± ¡°Yes. It will have a nice name.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°And it will be given to the most courageous and loyal knights.¡± ¡°Will that be necessary? Aren¡¯t there already many good knights?¡± ¡°We¡¯re constantly in need of talent, McKenna. Who knows if in a few years, there will be so few knights you can count them on one hand?¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°If I create a highly desirable title, the knights willpete with each other for it. One of the virtues will be loyalty, which is naturally beneficial for me.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°The question is how to make it desirable¡ª¡± Heinley suddenly halted, lifting his hand to signal McKenna to be quiet. McKenna had a bewildered expression on his face, but he soon realized what Heinley was up to. As they talked, they soon arrived at the parlor room where Lady Muney was waiting. There were quiet voicesing from the room. Heinley crept up to the doorway. ¡°I didn¡¯t say anything I couldn¡¯t say, did I?¡± ¡°It was quite impertinent.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry Christa, but you are no longer queen anymore, am I right?¡± ¡°The position is vacant, but I¡¯m the closest one to it at the moment.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. You¡¯re the furthest away from it. None of the nobles can sit on that throne.¡± ¡°No one can say otherwise to me until a new queenes. And even if I had to take a step back, I would still be the former queen. Should I listen to such talk from you, Lady Muney?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the one who came in first and gave me all kinds of orders.¡± ¡°I can say that to anyone whoes into my house.¡± ¡°This is not your house, is it, Christa?¡± ¡°...What?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the king¡¯s mother, and if you continue to stay at the royal pce, you will feel ufortable about the new queen. You¡¯ll continue to act like you¡¯re the reigning queen.¡± ¡°Lady Muney!¡± ¡°In the old days, your predecessors went to Compshire¡¯s mansion. That¡¯s the custom.¡± There seemed to be an argument between Lady Muney and Queen Christa. McKenna murmured in half awe and half astonishment. ¡°She truly is a noble¡¯s daughter.¡± When the new king inherited the throne after the previous king¡¯s death, the previous queen¡¯s position wasn¡¯t ignored either. If she was the king¡¯s mother, she would naturally be honored more than the king, but if she wasn¡¯t the king¡¯s mother, this policy¡¯s purpose was to block the power of the previous queen. This was why Wharton III asked Heinley to take care of Christa, for fear of her shing with the one rising to the top. ¡°I feel sorry for Christa, but that is how power is distributed.¡± Heinley tapped the door instead of answering McKenna. At the sound of the noise, the pair inside the room stopped talking immediately. Heinley opened the door, and Lady Muney and Christa looked taken aback. Heinley greeted then both with his customary smile. McKenna nced at Christa with a signal to leave, allowing only the other two to remain in the room. However, before Christa left, Heinley spoke to Lady Muney first. ¡°What you said Lady Muney. I heard it all.¡± Lady Muney¡¯s eyes widened in surprise, as well as Christa¡¯s. McKenna opened his mouth to protest Heinley¡¯s words, but Heinley continued before he could say a word. ¡°It is a realistic problem, Lady Muney. But it is not for you to worry about.¡± He subtly sided with Christa. Lady Muny paused, then gave a murmured acquiescence and smiled again. She gave a formal bow and left. However, the tension did not dissipate even after she exited the room. Christa seemed deeply embarrassed, and McKenna gripped his hair and gave a frustrated groan. He didn¡¯t seem to like the fact that Heinley let Lady Muny go without even talking to her for five minutes. ¡°Your Highness, I¡¯m telling you...you¡¯re too much.¡± ¡°By letting her leave?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t get Empress Navier out of your mind.¡± ¡°You say that, but you¡¯re the one that can¡¯t get the other noblewomen out of your mind, can you?¡± ¡°Your Highness, for your sake¡ª¡± ¡°Not for mine, but for the noblewomen.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Although you are in a hurry to choose a queen, a few days won¡¯t be enough to properly integrate her. Right now, I have the coronation and various other things to organize. Let¡¯s take care of those first.¡± Heinley patted McKenna on the shoulder several times and left the parlor room. He was likely going back to his bedroom to look at his property list again. McKenna caught up to Heinley¡¯s side and dropped his voice to a whisper. ¡°If you want the Empress as your queen, you¡¯ll have to wage war to have her.¡± Heinley looked startled. ¡°Of course, war will someday happen. But the people will not wee a queen who brought war to them.¡± Heinley didn¡¯t say a word back. He entered his bedroom, but instead of looking at the property list, he sat at his desk and took out a paper and pen. Chapter 103 - A Silent Condemnation (2) Chapter 103 ¨C A Silent Condemnation (2) ¨C I wish you were the queen. It¡¯s not easy when McKenna is trying to rush it. How good would it be to be queen of the Western Kingdom... The blue bird¡¯s head tilted as he peered at Prince Heinley¡¯s letter, then he suddenly stretch his wings wide and trembled. I thought he must have been injured, but when I looked at him he seemed...angry, in fact. Of course it wasn¡¯t clear because it was a bird¡¯s face, but at least it appeared that way to me. ¡°Are you alright?¡± I looked at him carefully, and the bird folded his wings and suddenly became very quiet. ¡°Queen is great, but you¡¯re amazing too.¡± ¨C ? ¡°It¡¯s almost like you¡¯re a person.¡± ¨C ! ¡°Prince Heinley keeps very smart birds.¡± Ah, wait. He¡¯s not a prince anymore. However, it seemed strange to call him King Heinley now. I tapped the bird¡¯s beak with my finger, but the bird hopped backwards away from my touch. ¡®He¡¯s smart, but he¡¯s certainly different from Queen.¡¯ ¡°I won¡¯t touch you.¡± After smiling and apologizing to the bird, I returned to the letter. ¨C Coronation day is not far away. There will be a delegation from the Eastern Empire. Will youe as the head delegate? Coronation day... I checked the date on the letter and looked at the calendar. There were no major events during that time, and it was customary for the members of the Imperial Family to attend coronations anyway. However, I didn¡¯t want to promise my appearance and then suddenly be unable to go due to unforeseen circumstances. ¨C I¡¯ll check my schedule. I wrote a nonmittal answer and tied it to the bird¡¯s leg. ¡°Please deliver this to him.¡± I reflexively lifted my hand to pat him like I did with Queen, but the blue bird dodged me again. I sheepishly set down my hand, and the bird pped his wings several times and then flew out the window. I watched him until he was out of sight. What would it be like to exchange letters with Heinley again after so long? The events of the past several months came to me like a hazy dream. It wasn¡¯t long after Rashta arrived, but back then my friends were close... A chilly draft blew, and I made to close the window when I was suddenly interrupted. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± There was amotion in the parlor room and my name was called out. After signalling that they coulde in, Countess Eliza and thedies-in-waiting burst into the room. Everyone¡¯s eyes were feverish. ¡°Is something wrong?¡± I looked at them in bewilderment, and Laura puffed her nostrils. ¡°Someone put abortive drugs in Rashta¡¯s food!¡± ¡°Miss Rashta? Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes! I heard that the Emperor recognized it.¡± I had no idea how he did, but if this were true, no wonder thedies came running. The eastern pce would be in even more of an uproar. ¡°Did Miss Rashta ingest any of the drug?¡± It didn¡¯t sound like she did, but still... ¡°It was discovered in advance this time.¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s words seemed meaningful. ¡°¡®This time¡¯?¡± ¡°The Emperor called the pce doctor, and he said that Miss Rashta had already eaten a small amount several times before.¡± Who did this? On second thought, I realized that I hadn¡¯t asked the most important question yet. ¡°Are Miss Rashta and the baby safe?¡± ¡°The drug itself does little harm to the parent, so Rashta herself is fine.¡± ¡°And the baby?¡± It suddenly urred to me that whoever poisoned Rashta would be someone around me. Who else would benefit from killing her baby? ¡°I suppose it¡¯s weak, but it¡¯s still fine.¡± I worried that Sovieshu would think, ¡®If the baby disappears, what will the empress gain?¡¯ I remembered all the other times Sovieshu summoned me whenever there was any perceived slight against Rashta. There was no indication that this would not repeat itself. ¡°Your Majesty, can I get you a warm cup of tea?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I just want to be alone...¡± After Countess Eliza and the otherdies-in-waiting left the room, I pledged to myself that I would not be hurt if Sovieshu called me again. But Sovieshu and I did not speak. Not until the day we ate our meal together. *** Full chapters and artwork at WordExcerpt and Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. Sovieshu didn¡¯t inform me if he didn¡¯t want to eat, or didn¡¯t want to meet, or if he was too busy today, so I crossed into the eastern pce at dinnertime. ¡°Inform the Emperor that I am here.¡± I gave my instructions to the servant at the door of Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom, and he quickly went inside. When he came out, however, his expression was dark. What was going on in there? The servant approached me and spoke. ¡°Your...Your Majesty. His Majesty said that...well, he didn¡¯t say anything.¡± The servant looked embarrassed, and I raised my eyebrows. ¡°He didn¡¯t say anything?¡± ¡°No.¡± The servant looked at me almost as if he were sorry. He didn¡¯t alter his words, so it must be true. ¡°Go in one more time and tell him.¡± I repeated my order again, and the servant entered the room. After several moments, he came out again. ¡°The Emperor still says nothing.¡± He looked ready to cry, and the knights stationed at the door nced at each other. I narrowed my eyes at Sovieshu¡¯s door. Somehow I had been suffering under the illusion that he wasn¡¯t cing me on me. ¡®But he already was.¡¯ Instead of arguing with me, this time he was giving me a silent condemnation. A sigh escaped my mouth. Why did he always find me at fault for anything that had to do with Rashta? *** ¡°I me the Empress.¡± The chief secretary, Marquis Karl, squeezed the handle of his coffee cup in surprise. He was simply here to discuss the matter of the Western King¡¯s coronation, but somehow the psychological warfare between the Emperor and Empress erupted again. It was better done face-to-face, but Sovieshu would not allow the Empress to be sent in his room... ¡°Marquis Farang bought the abortive drugs, but that doesn¡¯t necessarily mean it¡¯s connected to the Empress...¡± ¡°Marquis Farang is Koshar¡¯s best friend, and Koshar is a hot-tempered man. You don¡¯t think it¡¯s connected?¡± ¡°Even the Empress would not resort to this.¡± ¡°Yes. I know that too.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°But she ismitted to disliking Rashta.¡± Sovieshu stared coldly at the floor. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t the Empress, as intelligent as she is, have been able to imagine how Koshar would react with just one word from Rashta?¡± ¡°I...¡± ¡°I¡¯m already being quite tolerant by refraining from dragging Koshar away and torturing him, am I not?¡± Chapter 104 - If I’m Right, Apologize (1) Chapter 104 ¨C If I¡¯m Right, Apologize (1) Koshar was not to be tortured? Despite his attempt to harm the Emperor¡¯s child? Marquis Karl was furthered confused by Sovieshu¡¯s intentions. It was obvious to anyone that Sovieshu cherished Rashta. He had concealed the information that Viscount Langdel gathered regarding Rashta and Duchess Tuania, and immediately believed that Rashta was pushed by Koshar with no evidence. Though blinded by love Sovieshu appeared to be, Marquis Karl seemed to glimpse a shadow of doubt in him. Sovieshu nced out the window. From here, one could see the covered walkway leading to the western pce, although one could only see the passersby if they came out from under the roof... ¡°Your Majesty, if you are concerned, you can tell the Empress toe in ahead of me. My issue is not urgent, so I cane backter.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure she¡¯s already gone.¡± ¡°You saw her?¡± ¡°No. But she¡¯s the empress.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°She would never do anything to hurt her pride.¡± ¡°Then why don¡¯t you go to the western pce, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I am too angry to do that.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty, it is certain that Marquis Farang sought the abortive drugs, correct?¡± ¡°My investigator ispetent.¡± Instead of giving a definite answer, Sovieshu stood up. ¡°I¡¯m tired. Would you like to walk for a while?¡± Sovieshu stood up and approached the door. From here it was more difficult to tell if the Empress had already left. Marquis Karl thought it would be better for Sovieshu to go to the western pce, but he didn¡¯t argue the point and got up as well. They passed through the parlor room and exited the door, and as soon as Sovieshu stepped out onto the hallway he stiffened. The Empress was still standing there. Even Marquis Karl was startled and hurriedly bowed his head. ¡°I thought you already left.¡± Sovieshu muttered under his breath, his eyebrows furrowed. *** At first, I thought to go back. I would have done so if I were my usual self, but this time I refused to yield to him. So I stood in ce and waited for Sovieshu toe out. ¡®Anytime now.¡¯ Fortunately I didn¡¯t have to wait long. He opened the door, and I noticed that his posture was slumped, perhaps out of worry for Rashta. However, his expression turned to displeasure as soon as he saw me. ¡°I thought you were gone. Why are you standing here? Do you want to serve a punishment or something?¡± I smiled as coldly as possible but answered casually. ¡°I thought you wanted this.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°And so I showed myself.¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t reveal any hurt in his pride, nor made mention of the fact that he had ignored me, but his eyes trembled. His mocking voice turned into a cold sneer. ¡°The Empress always surprises me, regarding Rashta¡¯s case as well as this.¡± ¡°And you are a clich¨¦ regarding Rashta.¡± Sovieshu leaned in towards me and lowered his voice so he wouldn¡¯t be heard by the others. ¡°I don¡¯t think the Empress is in a position to do this to me. How about asionally repressing that pride of yours?¡± ¡°Why should I?¡± ¡°I am covering your brother¡¯s crime for you.¡± ¡°You think it was my brother that poisoned Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t?¡± In all honesty, I couldn¡¯t say with confidence, ¡®My brother is not like that.¡¯ While a concubine¡¯s offspring had no right of session, it was impossible to block them from inheriting their share of wealth. In particr, when a husband and wife¡¯s rtionship turned sour, one of them would give almost all their wealth and property to their favored children. However, if a concubine¡¯s child was killed outright, the perpetrator was punished byw. Even a covert attempt at murder was likely to leave traces or rumors, and so aristocrats and royals secretly attacked each other¡¯s concubines using abortive drugs. However, I couldn¡¯t agree with Sovieshu¡¯s im. ¡°No.¡± I spoke inly, and Sovieshu snorted. As he continued to speak quietly into my ear, I could feel strands of my hair fluttering underneath his breath. ¡°The arm will bend more easily inwards than outwards. I don¡¯t think the Empress¡¯ judgment has been clouded yet.¡± (TN: Meaning a person will be more inclined to help people who are connected to them rather than people from the outside.) ¡°You ignored me and wouldn¡¯t let me enter your room.¡± ¡°I was holding back my anger. I can¡¯t work if I look at you.¡± Sovieshu took a half step backwards, gave me a final nce, and then brushed past me. He must be going to Rashta¡¯s room, but it wasn¡¯t in that direction. His footsteps halted, and he turned his heel and approached me again. ¡°I was going to move on. But I can¡¯t because I¡¯m angry. You believe your brother is innocent, don¡¯t you?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°Then you should investigate yourself. Who gave Rashta the drug?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that your job?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s my job. But if I step up to investigate, it will hurt you!¡± ¡°?!¡± ¡°If Koshar is the criminal, my people will be angry at him for trying to hurt my child. No matter how careful I am, I will be forced to reveal the truth.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t pretend to be concerned about me.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression twisted, and he leaned in with a threatening growl. ¡°Investigate it. Thene to me and apologize if I¡¯m right.¡± *** Get full chapters and artwork at WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. Later that night, I had taken a bath and Countess Eliza wasbing my hair. ¡°The maids and the chef were expelled from the pce.¡± ¡°Expelled...?¡± ¡°They hadn¡¯t noticed that the drug was mixed in the food.¡± ¡°Was there anything about catching the culprit?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± ¡°I see.¡± After Countess Eliza left, I sat alone in front of the dresser and looked at my face. I couldn¡¯t understand Sovieshu¡¯s intentions. Did he really make that decision for my sake? Or was he trying to make me feel guilty so I couldn¡¯t touch Rashta? ¡®To find the answer, I have to find the truth.¡¯ The next morning, I asked Countess Jubel to call for Marquis Farang. It would be best to talk to my brother in person, but he was banned from entering the pce. I heard that my father was so furious that he couldn¡¯t even step out of his own home. The only person I could ask about this was Marquis Farang. ¡®But it¡¯s strange. How did Sovieshu notice that Rashta¡¯s food contained the drugs? If Rashta didn¡¯t even know, it must be something that doesn¡¯t look obvious...¡¯ Chapter 105 - If I’m Right, Apologize (2) Chapter 105 ¨C If I¡¯m Right, Apologize (2) The next day, Marquis Farang arrived as soon as he heard my call. He was just in time for lunch, so I asked him to sit with me for a meal. He ate quietly for about ten minutes before I brought the subject up. ¡°I¡¯ve known you since childhood, so I¡¯ll be straightforward with you.¡± ¡°Hmm. The potatoes are a little salty.¡± ¡°This isn¡¯t about the food.¡± ¡°I thought so.¡± Marquis Farang smiled and wiped his mouth with a napkin. ¡°But I think you¡¯ll need to say a few more words.¡± ¡°An abortive drug was found in the meal of the Emperor¡¯s concubine, Rashta.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard. It is a terrible thing.¡± ¡°Do I know the person who did such a terrible thing?¡± ¡°Your Majesty...you know almost all the nobles.¡± ¡°It was a noble who did it?¡± ¡°A servant or maid wouldn¡¯t need to do something like this.¡± Marquis Farang ced a potato in his mouth and smiled elegantly. However, his hands were trembling. He always did that when he lied in front of me. He caught me looking at his hands and he cleared his throat. ¡°Well, you don¡¯t have to worry about it, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be in a position where I have to worry about it.¡± ¡°Then you can ask the chef to make the potatoes less salty. Let¡¯s not fuss over such terrible events.¡± I stared at him silently, and he raised his hand and scratched his cheek. His hands were still trembling. I narrowed my eyes at him, and he started looking distressed. ¡°You look scary like that. It¡¯s just like Koshar.¡± ¡°Marquis Farang. Are you sure that I don¡¯t have to worry about this?¡± Marquis Farang looked on the verge of tears. ¡°Why ask me something I know nothing about?¡± ¡°Did my brother order you to do it? ¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The Emperor thinks it¡¯s my brother¡¯s fault. Are you sure this something I don¡¯t have to worry about?¡± Marquis Farang didn¡¯t look surprised when I told him that Sovieshu suspected Koshar. That made me more certain that my brother and Marquis Farang were involved with this. The marquis sat frozen for a moment, then he finally gave a deep sigh and mumbled in a small voice. ¡°Rest assured, Your Majesty, you will never find any conclusive evidence.¡± ¡°You destroyed the evidence?¡± ¡°It is difficult to get rid of evidence that we purchased the drug. It does very little harm to the mother, so it is very expensive and sale is highly restrictive.¡± With his head down, the marquis folded his napkin into a strange shape and set it down next to his te. ¡°But while we can¡¯t get rid of the evidence that we bought the drug, we can manufacture evidence that someone else nted them.¡± He had folded the napkin into a swan with a broken wing. ¡°If things go wrong, we have an actor who will say he did it.¡± His hands were no longer trembling. He was not lying anymore. Marquis Farang poked the beak of the swan and smiled at me. A fog rose in my heart, and a defeated sigh escaped me. ¡°Marquis Farang. It is important that you are not noticed...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But the fact that my people did such a thing cannot be ignored.¡± My emotions wrestled within my breast. I was angry that my brother and Marquis Farangmitted a terrible act for me. But my pride was also hurt that Sovieshu was right. ¡°Your Majesty. If there is light, there is a shadow.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t say it was something you had to do. I know it¡¯s not.¡± ¡°Koshar did wrong by any moral standard. Without a doubt.¡± ¡°But he did it for me, right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look at his dark side.¡± ¡°Marquis Farang?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Do not make judgments for me.¡± ¡°!¡± *** Marquis Farang finally left, but I was even more upset. What to do with Sovieshu now... To tell a lie would be shameful. I knew everything anyway, and the thought made me squirm. However, it wounded my pride to have to apologize to him. I spent all day and night thinking about what to do. ¡°Your Majesty, are you alright? You look pale.¡± ¡°I was thinking about something...¡± I couldn¡¯t tell mydies-in-waiting about the abortive drug, so I gave Countess Eliza a reassuring smile. She didn¡¯t seem convinced by it, but she didn¡¯t pry any further. Fortunately, the Western Kingdom delegation arrived in the afternoon, so I could set aside those worries for a while. I encountered Sovieshu in the White Rose Room, but he didn¡¯t ask me how my progress with the investigation was going. He treated me formally, and I received the delegation¡¯s greetings with a calm look on my face. ¡°...To this day, King Heinley says he greatly enjoyed his time in the Eastern Empire before his ascension to the throne.¡± When the delegate finished speaking, a nobleman behind him came up with a long golden box. Marquis Karl, Sovieshu¡¯s chief secretary, opened the lid and pulled out a scroll from inside. He handed it to Sovieshu, who then opened the scroll and read its contents. Sovieshu nodded, then handed the scroll back to Marquis Karl. Throughout the process, I looked at the faces of each of the delegates. I did not know them, except for the knight that often apanied Heinley. I had hoped he would have brought Queen or the blue bird... I knew I could not go to the Western Kingdom in the present situation I was in, and I wished I could have sent it by letter. I swallowed my regret and smoothed the expression on my face. My skin prickled as I felt a gaze on me, and I turned my head to see Sovieshu looking at me with cold eyes. He turned his head away, but he still looked displeased. ¡°Please tell this to King Heinley. As you may know, the Empress of the Eastern Empire is very busy and valuable to our country, and so she cannot travel far.¡± After hearing his words to the delegation leader, I understood why he looked so grim. As I was lost in my thoughts, the delegate had asked Sovieshu whether I could be the imperial representative for the coronation ceremony. ¡°I will send Grand Duke Lilteang on the mission.¡± After his refusal, Sovieshu leaned over to me and spoke in a low voice. ¡°Are you still investigating the drug?¡± *** Get full chapters and artwork at WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. After meeting with the delegation, I went back to my room and sat dazedly at my desk. There was a rap on the window. I quickly approached, and saw a blue bird holding arge bag of envelopes. When I opened the window, the blue bird flew in and ced the bag in front of me. ¡°Did you bring all this?¡± The bird nodded and copsed on the bed with less decorum than he usually did. After giving the bird some water, I quickly opened one of the letters. ¡ª You didn¡¯t give me a definite answer, but you would have told me straight away if you couldn¡¯te. May I look forward to meeting you? I¡¯ll be happy to see you, Queen. Chapter 106 - The Choice This Time (1) Chapter 106 ¨C The Choice This Time (1) Prince Heinley¡¯s letter was filled with anticipation, and he seemed pleased at the prospect of my attendance. ¡®It would have been better if the prince hadn¡¯t had any expectations...¡¯ As Prince Heinley guessed, I did consider going when I wrote that letter. But with the present problem... ¡®What should I do?¡¯ I couldn¡¯t go to the coronation under these circumstances. I was blindsided by the scandal of poison ced in Rashta¡¯s food, and Sovieshu was convinced that Koshar was the culprit. Soon after, I found out that my brother and his friend had done it. It would be difficult for me to leave the country for any extended period of time. ¡°Huuu....¡± I went to my desk, took out some stationery, and dipped my pen in the inkwell. ¡°But I¡¯m d the prince sent me the blue bird one more time.¡± The delegation would arrive to the Western Kingdom with an announcement that Grand Duke Lilteang was lead representative, but I wanted to be the one to exin this to Prince Heinley myself. ¡ª I have many urgent things to attend to and I regret that I cannot make the long journey. I send you my congrattions. As I wrote the letter, the blue bird started making strange noises next to me. I stopped writing and looked up to find the bird staring at the letter. As if he sensed my gaze on him, he suddenly nced sideways and began picking at his feathers. ¡°?¡± He seemed as if he was trying to pretend he wasn¡¯t looking. It was quite adorable, but writing the letter now was my priority. I wrote down a few more lines, then tied the letter to the bird¡¯s leg. When I finished, he immediately flew straight out the window as if in a hurry. I watched him disappear into the sky for a moment, then closed the window and went to the parlor room. After deliberating with myself until the evening, I made a decision. It was useless to debate whether I should tell a transparent lie that would be easily detected by Sovieshu, or if I should swallow my pride and apologize to him. The more I worried about it, the moreplicated it would be. If I apologized, it would be the end of the story; if I lied, I would have to hold on to it. I might change my mind if I waited until tomorrow morning, so I decided to pay a visit to Sovieshu despite theteness of the hour. ¡®Perhaps Sovieshu is with Rashta.¡¯ I only just realized this as I was walking down the eastern pce corridor, but I didn¡¯t want to dy my apology. Fortunately, Sovieshu was alone in his bedroom, and he let me in at once. ¡°Have youpleted the investigation?¡± He asked me straight as soon as I entered the room and he closed the door. He knew what I was here for. Well. At least I didn¡¯t have to bring up the topic. ¡°Yes.¡± I nodded, and he raised his eyebrows and waited for my reply. A feeling of irritation swelled in me, but I forced my lips to form the words. ¡°As you said¡ª¡± Before I could finish speaking, Sovieshu ced his palm over my lips. I closed my mouth. What was he doing? I stared at him, and he spoke. ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°...What do you mean?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to say it.¡± ¡°You wanted an apology.¡± ¡°I said that in a fit of anger.¡± ¡°Is Miss Rashta not hurt?¡± ¡°Why are you talking about Rashta now?¡± Well, it was the incident between my brother and Rashta that made him want an apology in the first ce. However, he seemed in an unpleasant mood when I brought her up. Instead of saying something about Rashta, Sovieshu unexpectedly gave me a warning. ¡°Since an apology was made, remember this. This time I¡¯ll look the other way in order to protect you. However, your brother tried to kill my child, and if something simr happens in the future, I will choose to protect my child.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Do you understand?¡± I was in disbelief that Sovieshu was covering up my brother¡¯s actions just to protect me. The more usible exnation was that he wanted to prevent a major scandal erupting in public. I came here to apologize for my brother¡¯s terrible mistake, but now it was not necessary to even speak of such a story. ¡°I¡¯ll keep it in mind.¡± I answered with as much calm as possible, but Sovieshu spoke more seriously. ¡°You are a wise person, so I don¡¯t expect you will make the same mistake twice. Truly.¡± *** Sovieshu stood by the window and looked out at the walkway. He couldn¡¯t see the Empress, but he saw a shadow pause for a moment before heading towards the western pce. It was only then that Sovieshu confirmed that the she hadpletely gone, and he closed the window and left the bedroom. He headed for Rashta¡¯s room nearby. ¡°Miss Rashta is asleep, Your Majesty.¡± The new maid, who was dozing against the wall of Rashta¡¯s parlor room, suddenly stood up straight and reported quickly to Sovieshu. She was the newly assigned serving girl after the previous ones were expelled. Sovieshu nodded, but walked straight into the bedroom where Rashta was lying in arge bed. He slowly approached and looked down at her. Instead of waking her up, he brushed a stray lock on her cheek and sat next to the bed. With a worried expression, he leaned down and carefully ced his ear against her stomach. It was then. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Rashta, who he thought was asleep, called him in a hoarse voice. ¡°Did I wake you?¡± ¡°Hmm...yes. But it¡¯s all right. Rashta likes to see your face as soon as she gets up.¡± She gave a shy smile as Sovieshu lifted his head up. ¡°You won¡¯t hear a sound. It hasn¡¯t even started moving yet.¡± ¡°Are you alright? Are you in pain anywhere?¡± ¡°In thest few days, Rashta had a throbbing heart, aching stomach, and a sore back. Rashta thought it was because of the pregnancy...but it might be because of the poison. My stomach still hurts a little, so it must have been very strong.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s fingers paused, and he soon looked distressed. ¡°Get well soon. But rest assured that it won¡¯t happen again.¡± ¡°Did you catch the criminal, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I will eventually. Anyway, I expelled the chefs and maids, and the neers will be more careful.¡± Rashta sped Sovieshu¡¯s hands and looked at him with herrge, pretty eyes. ¡°Your Majesty. Rashta thinks she knows who tried to kill Rashta and the baby.¡± ¡°...Who do you think it is?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell you who it is. But they are probably driven in a corner too.¡± ¡°What, you mean the Empress?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t tell you. I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But Your Majesty, no matter who the criminal is, we have to protect our baby. By every means.¡± *** The next day, I called Marquis Farang again, and he quickly answered my summons. ¡°Are you still angry?¡± ¡°I have a favor to ask.¡± ¡°Is it something difficult?¡± ¡°Stop him from doing the same thing again.¡± I wanted to tell my brother to stop causing trouble, but I omitted it as I thought it would sound rude. Marquis Farang¡¯s eyes drooped as if he were trying to elicit pity, but I knew his true nature. If Koshar was the type tosh out in anger, Marquis Farang was the type to join in calmly. If my brother asked him to obtain the poison, the marquis would have pretended to be surprised before jumping at the opportunity. ¡°Promise me.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, as you know, Koshar is a difficult person¡ª¡± ¡°I know he is.¡± I spoke inly, and Marquis Farang gave a stiffened smile. He didn¡¯t answer this time, however. ¡°I told you two days ago. The Emperor knows who the culprit is.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I am sure of it. He will let it go this time, but if you do anything to harm his baby again, he won¡¯t sit back.¡± It wasn¡¯t until I told him about Sovieshu¡¯s warning did Marquis Farang looked serious. ¡°So exercise caution, both of you. Consider yourself fortunate that the Emperor is overlooking it. I don¡¯t want the use of abortive drugs either.¡± Chapter 107 - The Choice This Time (2) Chapter 107 ¨C The Choice This Time (2) ¡°Mage shortage...¡± Heinley sat at his desk and ran through the report. It was a highly ssified document copied secretly from the mages¡¯ office when he was in the Eastern Empire. He gave a contemtive hum, as he had an interest in the declining number of magic users. The exact number was not known, but the speed of the decrease was unexpectedly significant. ¡®Mages are a pir of power in the Eastern Empire.¡¯ Heinley gave a thin smile and closed the report, when his eyes were caught by a blue bird fluttering right outside the window. When he approached and opened the window, the blue bird quicklynded inside the room and panted for breath. ¡°You¡¯re already back?¡± Heinley smiled and stroked the bird¡¯s tiny head with his finger, then unfastened the letter from his leg. The bird jerked his head away sulkily, and as soon as Heinley took the letter, he stepped back and transformed into a man. It was McKenna, of course. Heinley had seen the transformation countless times and didn¡¯t bother looking at him, and focused on checking the letter instead. ¡°I suffered for this.¡± ¡°You can have ten more days of vacation.¡± ¡°There are some things I know without you having to say them.¡± Heinley curved his lips and scanned the letter, but his smile soon faded away and was reced with a gloomy expression. McKenna already knew the letter¡¯s contents, and he sheepishly stepped back and tried to make himself busy by pulling on some clothes. ¡°McKenna.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± ¡°She can¡¯te.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t feign ignorance with me.¡± ¡°I...yes.¡± Heinley sighed heavily, then folded the letter and ced it in a drawer. ¡°Don¡¯t overwork yourself. You should think about your health...¡± Heinley pressed his eyes and sat down at the desk again. He was upset, and he didn¡¯t want anyone to badger him. ¡°Your...Your Highness.¡± McKenna, now dressed, came up to the desk instead of leaving the room. ¡°What is it?¡± Heinley looked up, and McKenna exined carefully what he had heard on his trip. ¡°In fact, the Eastern Empire was quite noisy. It caused quite a stir when a drug that causes abortion was discovered in the emperor¡¯s concubine¡¯s food.¡± Heinley raised his eyebrows. ¡°And the Empress is tied up because of that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± ¡°There is more behind the scenes that you¡¯re not telling me. What is it?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a story that very few of the Eastern Empire nobles know. Only that...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°That it¡¯s rumored it was the Empress¡¯ brother that put those abortive drugs.¡± McKenna reluctantly added that he wasn¡¯t sure if he could tell this story. Meanwhile, Heinley was in shock. ¡°What about the Empress? Is she alright?¡± ¡°Both the woman and the baby who consumed the drug are fine.¡± ¡°But the Empress? ¡°I¡¯m sure she¡¯s fine, considering she didn¡¯t eat it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it. How is Emperor Sovieshu treating the Empress?¡± ¡°Everything had calmed down by the time I arrived, so I don¡¯t know.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression twisted. He remembered how Emperor Sovieshu favored Rashta at the special banquet. As Heinley looked back, he recalled the face of someone who was upset and his heart began to hurt. ¡°So the Empress can¡¯te because of that.¡± ¡°I believe so.¡± ¡°But for her to act indifferent because I might worry...¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it so she won¡¯t appear weak to the Empire?¡± It was a fairly objective observation, but Heinley shook his head. He simply sat there, and McKenna decided to leave for the door. Although Heinley looked deeply troubled, it was his private problem. Just as McKenna was about to open the door, however, Heinley spoke up softly. ¡°Not like this.¡± McKenna took his hand off the doorknob and slowly turned around. Heinley was standing with an inscrutable yet sad expression on his face. He seemed determined to do something. ¡°Stay there, McKenna.¡± He pulled out a sheet of paper and began to quickly scribble something on it. Within a few moments he finished, and he held the letter out to the knight. ¡°Please do one more thing for me. Pass this on to Elgy.¡± ¡°You want me to go back to the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the fastest.¡± McKenna epted the letter with defeated resignation. *** Get full chapters and artwork on WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. Sovieshu decided to hold a small party to cheer up Rashta. Although no formal invitations were sent, it was still a royal event and many gathered to attend. A third of the guests wanted to get close to the emperor¡¯s concubine, while another third took this as an opportunity to make connections with upper nobility. The Empress was not present, so the center of attention fell to Rashta. Sheughed and chatted with the guests, beaming as she received their praises and ttery. However, her smile vanished as soon as she saw a face she didn¡¯t want to see. ¡°This youngdy recently moved here to the capital from a remote rural area. She¡¯s a charming woman, so I wanted to introduce her to you, Miss Rashta.¡± A noble approached Rashta to introduce her to another guest. It was none other than Rivetti, Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter. Rashta was so taken aback that she didn¡¯t notice that the noble had given augh of amusement, nor that several nobles around exchanged mischievous nces. They were the ones who constantly spoke to n about ¡°The Emperor¡¯s concubine, Rashta.¡± Although old rumors had been buried under a number of other high-profile scandals, some nobles still wondered or were convinced that Rashta was indeed Viscount Roteschu¡¯s former ve. Some even ced bets, saying that if Rashta truly was the viscount¡¯s ve, she would react to n or Rivetti. Rashta suddenly realized that the meeting with Rivetti was deliberately nned. Instead of bing angry, however, she forced herself to take on a cheerful smile. ¡°We haven¡¯t met before.¡± Rivetti gave a look of surprise, but soon returned a smile as well. Rashta kept up her pleasant expression, but her heart was sinking to the floor. But before she could say something to Rivetti¡ª ¡°Excuse me, excuse me.¡± n suddenly appeared, taking his sister by the arm and saying that they had to rush back to the house. He nced at Rashta, but he didn¡¯t greet her, let alone pretend to know her name. Like they wereplete strangers. n and Rivetti left. The excitement broken, the small crowd dispersed in disinterest. The onlookers watching the situation spoke gently to Rashta again, but she could not enjoy the party as before. She felt ufortable being among the people who intentionally brought Rivetti then turned around and pretended to not have any malice. Instead of mingling with the nobles any further, she looked for a chance and left the room. However, she came across n not that far away. He hesitated when he saw her, then approached. ¡°My father told me to pretend not to know you, but I thought I should tell you about Ahn.¡± Chapter 108 - I Have To Take It From You (1) Chapter 108 ¨C I Have To Take It From You (1) Ahn was her baby¡¯s name, a piece of information given to her by Duke Elgy. But now that name was spoken on that man¡¯s lips. Rashta turned pale and hurried to cover n¡¯s mouth. ¡°Are you threatening Rashta?¡± n looked surprised by her informal tone of speech, but he then shook his head morosely and pushed away Rashta¡¯s hands. ¡°It¡¯s not like that. Really.¡± ¡°But knowing that Rashta is the Emperor¡¯s concubine...then bringing up that topic. Is it not a threat?¡± ¡°I heard you set up the mansion in the capital for Ahn.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. The only person who knew she paid for the residence was Viscount Roteschu himself. Although Duke Elgy had lent her the money, he did not know what she was using it for. For n to say those words meant that Viscount Roteschu must have told him about it...but did the viscount also tell his son that he used ckmail to do it? ¡®No. Viscount Roteschu wouldn¡¯t want to tell his children that he¡¯s a ckmailer.¡¯ ¡°So?¡± She only responded coldly to him. ¡°Ahn is healthy. He¡¯s so beautiful and looks just like you.¡± ¡°...So?¡± ¡°I thought I should tell you.¡± ¡°Why do you need to tell Rashta?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been through so much. Especially when you thought Ahn was dead.¡± ¡°You saw me suffer but chose to ignore me.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was so scared.¡± ¡°Rashta was scared, too.¡± ¡°I know, but I was more afraid. You had nothing to lose, but I did. I didn¡¯t think it was the right time to leave everything and choose you¡ª¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about the past.¡± Rashta looked at n with naked contempt and echoed his words. ¡°Rashta has a lot to lose now. You¡¯re going through the same thing, so you understand me, right?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Your father told you to pretend not to know Rashta. Then do it. And tell your rude sister to behave properly.¡± Although Rashta saw Viscount Roteschu as a detestable creature, to her n was far more hateful. Those cold words left her mouth without hesitation. Rashta red at n for a moment as if he were an insect, then brushed past him. Despite her cool outward demeanor, however, her heart was pounding wildly in her chest. She found it positively exhrating to turn the tables on her former lover and master. n however, was concerned when she said she didn¡¯t want to see Ahn. Eventually, Rashta decided to find Duke Elgy. The only person she could consult about this was with him. There was no one in front of his room, but she simply opened his door and walked in. She may seem presumptuous to anyone else looking, but Duke Elgy had given her his permission to do so. That alone gave her more confidence to trust in him. As soon as Rashta entered, she heard Duke Elgy muttering to himself. ¡°That bastard...¡± Rashta looked in his direction and saw him reading a letter in one hand. There was a blue bird sitting by the window. ¡°Duke?¡± When Rashta called to him, the blue bird startled then flew off in surprise. ¡°Miss. You¡¯re here?¡± Duke Elgy folded up the letter and tucked it away. Rashta approached him with a question on her lips. ¡°Is there bad news?¡± ¡°Oh no, not that.¡± ¡°You said something that sounded harsh.¡± ¡°I think my friend is going crazy.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Nothing you have to mind, Miss.¡± Rashta wondered who this crazy friend might be, but Duke Elgy didn¡¯t seem to want to talk about it, and she didn¡¯t pry any further. Instead, she told him about meeting n and Rivetti, and what n had said about Ahn. ¡°As I said before, n is that one who abandoned Rashta to misery. Rivetti is n¡¯s younger sister, and she secretly harassed me because she didn¡¯t like me being with her brother. They both know about my baby, and I¡¯m worried what will happen.¡± After absorbing the information, Duke Elgy replied to her with aid-back manner as if her issue wasn¡¯t severe. ¡°If Viscount Roteschu told n to pretend not to know you, then he wants him to stay in ce. His children are probably aware of the restrictions.¡± It was only until Duke Elgy said those words that relief rushed through Rashta. She thought the same way, but it was more reassuring when someone else repeated it. ¡°Is that what you¡¯re here to talk about?¡± ¡°Perhaps...Do you know the person who put the poison in Rashta¡¯s meal?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think anyone knows. Luckily, you¡¯re not hurt. Why?¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But why?¡± ¡°A few days before that...Rashta made a personalmitment. Rashta will protect herself and her baby.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a good stance.¡± ¡°Yes. The problem is, as soon as I made that decision, I found out I was eating poison.¡± Rashta wrapped her hands protectively around her belly. ¡°I¡¯m afraid this will happen again in the future. Is there any way to avoid it?¡± ¡°There are two ways.¡± ¡°What are they?¡± ¡°One is to ask the Emperor for help. Don¡¯t ask him directly, just keep saying that you¡¯re scared. He¡¯ll do anything for you.¡± That course of action was too passive, and she had already done that. Rashta shook her head. ¡°What about the other way?¡± ¡°Sometimes the best defense is offense. Before you get attacked, get rid of the people that might attack you first.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened at his bold words. That way was more aggressive, but it was a usible course of action. She considered it seriously for a moment, but soon turned sullen and shook her head. ¡°Rashta¡¯s enemy has higher status, more power, and more wealth. Is that possible?¡± ¡°Do you know who your enemy is?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Does the enemy with more power mean Her Majesty the Empress?¡± Rashta hesitated, then nodded. ¡°At first, Rashta wanted to be close to her. Like sisters, of course. Rashta is lower than her, but since everyone always praised the Empress, I believed she would also give her love and consideration to me.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think she feels that way now?¡± ¡°She made Rashta a liar andughingstock in front of Prince Heinley because of a misunderstanding. She insulted Rashta by making everyone think I copied her dress. She gave Rashta a sword to mock me, and stood still when her brother pushed me.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Then she attacks Rashta¡¯s baby just because she¡¯s infertile. Even if Rashta doesn¡¯t like the Empress, what did the baby do!¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°I hate the Empress now. I¡¯m scared.¡± Her expression turned to slight terror. ¡°If the empress attacks Rashta, how can she defend herself? I can¡¯t attack the Empress first.¡± Duke Elgy tapped his fingers thoughtfully against his cheek as he stared closely at Rashta. After some time, a smile spread across his face. ¡°There is only one way to stop the empress from attacking.¡± ¡°There is?¡± ¡°You need to be the empress yourself.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine. Whoever holds the position of empress can change quite often.¡± Rashta eyes widened in surprise. Although she had yearned for the Empress¡¯ possessions, this was something that had never crossed Rashta¡¯s mind before. Her greatest dream was simply to have a happy pce life, with the love of the Emperor and the friendship of the Empress, and then have her own children be princes or princesses. But to be the empress herself...? ¡®But a ve can¡¯t be an empress.¡¯ Rashta¡¯s face paled and she shook her head. ¡°You¡ªyou shouldn¡¯t say that!¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult. As I said, who sits in the empress¡¯ seat can often change.¡± Rashta¡¯s trembling fingers did not easily calm, and Duke Elgy called to a servant to serve her a weak alcoholic drink. Rashta only took a few nervous sips, her hand continuing to shake the whole time. ¡°Can it be...?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°But with Rashta¡¯s origins...that¡¯s impossible.¡± ¡°Then why not change where youe from?¡± ¡°Change?¡± ¡°Say that your ¡®real parents¡¯ were actually nobles, and you were lost in some kind of ident. Something like that.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 109 - I Have To Take It From You (2) Chapter 109 ¨C I Have To Take It From You (2) Duke Elgy leaned down to rest his arms on his knees, and he whispered conspiratorially to her. ¡°Now imagine it. Your parents were looking for a lost baby. Then, when you became the Emperor¡¯s concubine and rumors of your beauty spread, they came to see you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like a fairy tale...¡± ¡°It is a fairy tale. That¡¯s why people like it, right?¡± A gleam entered into Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes. ¡°Miss, do you have family?¡± ¡°...No.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter. There are plenty of poor nobles who can serve as your parents.¡± Duke Elgy gave a chuckle of satisfaction. ¡°It may look too obvious if we choose a noble family from the Eastern Empire, so I¡¯ll arrange one from my country.¡± Rashta was too dazed to answer properly. False parents...not criminal parents who made their daughter a ve, but proud ones. The status that she considered a shackle on her life, was so easy to rece! At the same time, she felt regret regarding Sovieshu. She wished she had lied and told him about the false noble parents from the start. Why didn¡¯t she? ¡®Because the Emperor didn¡¯t intend to make Rashta the empress, that¡¯s why.¡¯ ¡°Miss.¡± The duke waved his finger in front of Rashta, drawing her focus away from her thoughts. ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Do you understand what I¡¯ve said?¡± ¡°I do...¡± ¡°It may seem easy, but it¡¯s dangerous. However, I think this is the only way you can protect yourself from the empress.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± She spoke with a resolute expression on her face, and Duke Elgy covered his mouth and chuckled. ¡°Very well. But you must promise me one thing.¡± ¡°Rashta will pay you back when she bes empress!¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°No matter what anyone says, don¡¯t ever ept a paternity test. Otherwise, everyone will find out that you are not rted to your parents by blood.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta smiled and agreed. She twisted her fingers nervously when she asked her next question. ¡°Well...what happens after that? What should I do after I change my background? Just because I¡¯m a noblewoman doesn¡¯t mean I be empress.¡± Duke Elgy replied to her question with his own. ¡°I heard that you couldn¡¯t read. Can you read now?¡± Rashta blushed and answered in a small voice. ¡°I can read simple books. I can also write.¡± ¡°Keep studying, and take a lot of sses.¡± A strange expression crossed Rashta¡¯s face when she heard those words. ¡°Why that look on your face? Do you hate studying?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that...it¡¯s just that studying doesn¡¯t seem to be a way of attacking...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have a choice. Empress Navier has a good reputation.¡± ¡°She¡¯s packaged well.¡± ¡°Whether it¡¯s the packaging or not, a direct attack on her would only cause bacsh. The first thing you need to do is raise your profile as high as the Empress¡¯, and at that point you can fight.¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s words implied that Rashta, as she currently was, was not at the same level as the empress. She became sulky, but was forced to acknowledge the reality of it. ¡°The nobles ignore Rashta because of prejudice. But will it stop just because I study?¡± ¡°Of course not. That¡¯s why you will go for themon people. Make them think you can represent them.¡± ¡°Ah ...!¡± ¡°You know that half the council members aremoners, right? In truth, a rank-and-filewmaker is simply an honorary position and doesn¡¯t perform much function. But they hold a lot of meaning for themon people. We simply have to get thesewmakers to support you.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°The Empress is popr, but she has an overly aristocratic image. She was born into a prestigious family, and became a princess even before her societal debut and engagement to the crown prince.¡± Rashta tried to imagine the Empress¡¯ childhood, but it was hard for her to do so. She had no idea what it was like to live such a life. Really, what was the difference between the empress and herself? Why was the empress born a princess and she was born a ve? Rashta¡¯s face darkened, and Duke Elgy studied her expression. ¡°No matter how well the Empress treats themon people, they cannot help but feel the walls between them. Dig in the cracks. Be sure to create your image as someone who can understand and sympathize with themoners. ¡± * * * Yesterday, Sovieshu had thrown a small party for Rashta. I didn¡¯t attend as I wasn¡¯t hosting it, and it wasn¡¯t an official asion in any case. However, I did hear that the event was well-attended, and there still seemed to be some of yesterday¡¯s heat remaining in the central pce. I easily overheard several court officials whispering about yesterday¡¯s party, but the news didn¡¯t sound bad. After looking over the important issues that had to be resolved for the day, I returned to the eastern pce as soon as possible. I lounged in my parlor room with mydies-in-waiting, when Laura returned from yesterday¡¯s outing. She handed the bags that upied her hands to Countess Jubel before quickly approaching me with shining eyes. ¡°I did what you asked, Your Majesty!¡± It was something I had been waiting for. Laura¡¯s exuberant expression alone told me that the n had worked well. ¡°Lady Alischute introduced Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter to ¡®that woman¡¯ in front of a crowd!¡± ¡°What was her reaction?¡± ¡°That woman tried to hide her expression, but it was toote.¡± Laura couldn¡¯t help but giggle. ¡°And Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter didn¡¯t even think about managing her own expressions!¡± After having my own reputation tarnished because of Rashta, Laura seemed giddy at my request. She stamped her feet in excitement, then smiled sheepishly when Countess Eliza shot her a re. Her meekness didn¡¯tst long however, and she pped the sofa with renewed energy. ¡°But just when things were getting interesting, a stranger pulled Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter away.¡± ¡°A stranger?¡± ¡°He must be Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son. Oh, and the daughter¡¯s name is Rivetti, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You did well, Laura.¡± Laura preened at thepliment. ¡°Please let me do it again.¡± ¡°What kind of person is Lady Rivetti?¡± ¡°She¡¯s very bright. She hasn¡¯t made a formal debut in society yet. Alischute seems to like her.¡± ¡°Tell Alischute to befriend her and bring Rivetti back to me.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty!¡± When Laura left the parlor room to wash up, Countess Eliza spoke. ¡°I thought you didn¡¯t want to get involved with that woman. You must have changed your mind.¡± ¡°The chance to live in ignorance has passed.¡± Although the attempt to poison the baby was an evil n, Rashta still said that I was infertile and then lied about Koshar pushing her. She wanted her baby to be part of the royal family, and so I was going to let her know in advance¡ª ¡°A proper line must be drawn.¡± Chapter 110 - Duke Elgy’s Suggestion (1) Chapter 110 ¨C Duke Elgy¡¯s Suggestion (1) The party¡¯s gossip entered Sovieshu¡¯s ear. As it was a rtively small event, the rumor that the Emperor¡¯s concubine had encountered Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter did not cause a storm in the social circles. Sovieshu had only heard what happened as he had sent his secretary to be his eyes and ears. After hearing Count Pirnu¡¯s report, Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned serious. ¡°I¡¯m worried.¡± ¡°It will take some time for the rumors to disappearpletely. It¡¯s fortunate that Lord n, Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son, took her away before things grew bigger.¡± Count Pirnu spoke words meant to reassure the Emperor, but they did bear truth. Sovieshu¡¯s expression, however, did not loosen. ¡°That¡¯s not the problem.¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°The nobles ignore Rashta too much.¡± Count Pirnu gave a chuckle, as if the suggestion were untrue. ¡°There are some nobles that ignoremoners, but more people think that Rashta is a sweet and lovely concubine. Such purity is rarely seen in high society.¡± ¡°Do they think of her as too soft?¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°She¡¯s sweet and lovely. Good for a first impression, but that¡¯s all.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°It would be apliment to a normal aristocrat, but Rashta will soon be my baby¡¯s mother. The nobles have to respect her to some degree.¡± ¡°s...yes. They wouldn¡¯t have yed such a trick on her in the first ce if she were respected.¡± Count Pirnu gave a sheepish smile. Sovieshu was right, but was it possible to increase the status of a concubine who was rumored to be a former ve? Perhaps it could be done with Rashta, but it would take a lot of time. Besides... ¡°Your Majesty, I have something else to report.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It is about Viscount Roteschu, who you mentioned before.¡± Sovieshu had his interest piqued by Viscount Roteschu ever since the incident with the Red me Star ring, and he kept an eye on the viscount through the incident regarding Duchess Tuania. Not only did Sovieshu surveil Roteschu¡¯s Rimwell estate and newly purchased mansion, but he also monitored all of his movements. There was nothing of note so far. However, Count Pirnu seemed to want to say something. ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°There are a suspicious number of peopleing in and out the viscount¡¯s residence.¡± ¡°Are they his own people?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. They ask about Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°They want to know if she really is a ve or amoner.¡± ¡°Yes, I believe that¡¯s the purpose.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°Find out who is behind it.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± When they finished discussing Rashta, Baron Lant, who had been quietly listening to the two men¡¯s conversation, carefully addressed the Emperor. ¡°What is it?¡± Baron Lant took a step closer to Sovieshu. ¡°I have something to report on Miss Rashta. Actually, Miss Rashta told me to pass on a request.¡± ¡°Request?¡± Baron Lant was Rashta¡¯s most favored man out of Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries. Sovieshu lifted his eyebrows at him, and the baron replied in a sheepish voice. ¡°Yes. She wants to learn aristocratic etiquette to help her in court life.¡± ¡°Aristocratic etiquette?¡± ¡°I believed it¡¯s because of the same reason Count Pirnu mentioned.¡± The nobles ying a prank on her at the party would certainly motivate her. ¡°Very well. Assign her the best teacher.¡± Sovieshu readily agreed. Rashta hadn¡¯t even learned to properly write yet. There were many things for her to learn before she could live respectably as a concubine. But even as Sovieshu ordered a teacher to be assigned to her, a pang of regret throbbed in his heart. ¡°I¡¯m afraid that Rashta¡¯s charm will disappear.¡± ¡°She will only act more formally, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even ten-year-old children behave simrly to the adults after they had been given aristocratic lessons. Rashta will be the same as the other nobles, with her fresh new qualities gone.¡± There was a gloom about Sovieshu, but he did not retract his words. Rashta wouldn¡¯t be exciting if she was like everyone else, but because she was pregnant with his baby, her character couldn¡¯t be ignored. Sovieshu heaved a sigh and dismissed his two secretaries. *** It was the day when the delegation would depart to celebrate the coronation of Heinley I. The mission¡¯s representative, Grand Duke Lilteang, seemed very pleased to lead the trip. He kept smiling to himself when he listened to Sovieshu¡¯s words of encouragement, but when I gave my own farewell address, he fixed his face into a solemn expression and looked downwards in an indifferent manner. He used to persistently stick to me even after I continually turned down his bribes. Now that he was friendly with Rashta, he no longer had to act in a way that hurt his pride. Could that be the reason for the cold atmosphere between Grand Duke Lilteang and I? Sovieshu stood by my side, but he didn¡¯t bother to talk to me. After a time, I went to an upstairs window to watch the delegation as they slowly exited the courtyard gates. The crowds gathered to see the procession as it snaked its way down therge road away from the capital. It saddened me to watch the horses and carriages gradually be more distant. The little bird was moving away as well. It was always something, and then another thing. Heinley and I would not be able to meet for various reasons. Those days were over. ¡°I can only live with the hope that your nation¡¯s peace is also your wellbeing.¡± When the procession waspletely out of sight, I started to feel restless and left the window. I descended the steps one-by-one and put my mind in order. As I went through the winding corridors to return to the western pce, a familiar, cocky voice called out to me. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± I turned my head and saw Duke Elgy, looking casually rumpled with his partially unbuttoned shirt and creased clothes. He grinned as he fastened a button and approached me. ¡°It¡¯s been a while.¡± He was a friend to Prince Heinley, but we had never been close. On the contrary, Rashta was much friendlier to him, which was why I regarded the duke with uneasy reluctance. I had only spoken to him a handful of times, but... ¡°I wanted to visit you once in a while. I don¡¯t often have the chance.¡± ¡°Yes. I hope there will be a good opportunity someday.¡± ¡°Ha ha. Do you mean not now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid not.¡± ¡°Then do you mind if I walk with you for a while? Only while our paths ovep.¡± I tried my best to politely pass him by, but Duke Elgy deliberately held on to the conversation. No matter how ufortable I might feel, he was still the duke of Blue Bohean, and I could not refuse him so openly. ¡°Very well.¡± He smiled at my agreement, then spoke more kindly than before. ¡°I thought Her Majesty was going to be part of the delegation to the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m too busy.¡± ¡°They¡¯ll be very disappointed.¡± ¡°!¡± Who did he mean? Was he talking about Heinley? When I looked up at him, Duke Elgy smiled and corrected my thoughts, saying ¡°Lady Rashta.¡± ¡°What makes you think so?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think Lady Rashta likes it when the Empress is far away?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Was that too close to the bone?¡± ¡°Well, that sounds like something she would say.¡± Duke Elgy gave a deep-throated chuckle in agreement, and continued to walk by my side. ¡°What does Her Majesty think of Lady Rashta?¡± ¡°I feel the same way most empresses feel about concubines.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± He gave anotherugh. ¡°Why do you avoid questions so well?¡± ¡°Is there a response you wanted?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± I had no idea what this man intended. Why was Rashta¡¯s friend acting affably towards me and asking me strange questions? Did he want me to curse at her? ¡°If you have something to say to me, say it, Duke.¡± I decided to be more straightforward, and fortunately he did not sidestep me this time. ¡°It is an ugly thing to harass the weak, Your Majesty.¡± There was a strong implication to his words. The weak meant Rashta. But what did he mean by the ¡°ugly thing¡±? In the end, however, it didn¡¯t matter. ¡°I did not touch her first.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But if a weak persones running at you with a knife, you can¡¯t allow yourself to be stabbed simply because they¡¯re weak.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°If the Duke meets a weak enemy, will you throw away your weapon and hide your fists?¡± Duke Elgy did not answer and fell into silence. Meanwhile, we arrived near the western pce. I wasn¡¯t inclined to invite him inside, and indicated that this would be where we would part. The duke was still seriously mulling over my words, but when our eyes met, he smiled. ¡®Why is he smiling like that?¡¯ It was a strange moment to say goodbye. ¡°Can you hit me just once?¡± I was stunned at this absurd request. ¡°Why should I?¡± He wanted me to hit him out of nowhere. It was ridiculous. I shot him an incredulous look, and he murmured under his breath in reply. ¡°I want to ease my guilt.¡± ¡°Guilt? What guilt are you talking about?¡± Instead of exining, Duke Elgy pointed his hands in two directions, one where he should go and one where I should go. ¡°Here we are, walking together. Now we need to take different paths. I hope you will return safely.¡± Was the guilt he described because he sided with Rashta? If not... It suddenly urred to me that Heinley was the one who brought Duke Elgy here. And those two had nned something. Could the Duke Elgy¡¯s apology be because of their ns? Chapter 111 - Duke Elgy’s Suggestion (2) Chapter 111 ¨C Duke Elgy¡¯s Suggestion (2) Viscount Roteschu settled onto a plush sofa and contentedly sipped his tea. He was truly blessed. A splendid mansion, numerous servants, a noble status, his hometown that he could return to at any time, two reliable children, good health, and a sessful ve that put him up here. How wonderful! Now there were only three things left he that he wanted: his wife¡¯s health to improve so they could enjoy their happiness together, his son to marry a woman from a good family, and his daughter to marry a man from a good family. He had high hopes for his two children, especially Rivetti. n had no talent at all, and these days he spent too much time pampering a ve-born baby. n was not so stupid that he would jeopardize the family name, but he didn¡¯t make it any better either. But he wasn¡¯t like his beautiful and smart sister, Rivetti. With Viscount Roteschu¡¯s support, she could climb up high on the socialdder. ¡°Rivetti! Rivetti!¡± He was in high spirits and called out to her in a sing-song voice. The butler who served him his tea answered. ¡°Lady Rivetti is out with her new friends.¡± ¡°Friends?¡± ¡°They are all people from great families.¡± Viscount Roteschu gave a wide grin at the butler¡¯s reply. ¡°She has a nice personality, too. She gets along well with anyone!¡± ¡°Of course.¡± The deacon agreed enthusiastically. Viscount Roteschu himself nodded in satisfaction, but as soon as he saw his son feeding his baby in a chaise lounge, his mood immediately turned sour. ¡°Tell him to feed himself! Why are you messing with that bottle?¡± ¡°How can a baby feed himself?¡± ¡°He should be able to do it in nine months!¡± ¡°...In ten months.¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue. ¡°It¡¯s not the time to take care of a ve child, you idiot. Your sister is going to make her societal debut this year. Do you realize how important this is?¡± ¡°Time goes by so fast...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t just sit at home looking after a baby! Go socialize with other noble families!¡± Viscount Roteschu was so worked up over his son that he even started to shout. This wasn¡¯t the first time it happened, and the butler calmly poured another cup of tea while the viscount continued to yell at his son. ¡°Why don¡¯t you interact with other young men so someone can escort your sister to her debutante!¡± ¡°She wouldn¡¯t like whoever I choose. Rivetti says I have strange tastes, Father. She¡¯s supposed to choose her own partner anyway.¡± Viscount Roteschu drank his hot cup of tea in anger. At the same time, the baby burst into tears. After quickly putting down the baby bottle, n skillfully calmed the baby. The sight furthered the Viscount¡¯s anger, and made him feel as if he was about to explode. It was true that the baby was their own blood and had to be taken care of, but Viscount Roteschu could not understand why his son was so fond of a child that he couldn¡¯t even show in front of others. It was then. ¡°Kyaaaag!¡± There was an excited squeal from the hallway and the sound of footsteps quickly approaching. Viscount Roteschu set down the teacup and looked at the door as it opened. His lovely daughter Rivetti burst inside the room. She must have had a good time with her friends, and his pleasant mood returned again. ¡°Come here, sweetheart. You¡¯ll catch a cold. Butler, get her a nket.¡± ¡°Yes, master.¡± The butler nced at a servant, who quickly left the room to run the errand. Rivetti ran up to her father. ¡°Did something good happen, Rivetti?¡± He was ready to praise her even if it was nothing special, and he spoke to her with a smile. ¡°Yes!¡± But Rivetti¡¯s next wordspletely dashed his hopeful expectations. ¡°Father, I will get to meet Her Majesty the Empress!¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face immediately turned to stone. ¡°Who will you get to meet?¡± ¡°The Empress!¡± Rivetti face was of open glee and she stamped her foot in excitement. She had longed to see the Empress ever since she was in Rimwell. ¡°Good for you.¡± Viscount Roteschu grabbed the bottle and tossed at his ignorant son¡¯s forehead. ¡°Father?¡± Rivetti was wide-eyed from her father¡¯s strange behavior. Viscount Roteschu suddenly rose from his armchair as if he were in a mad panic. ¡°Where are you going?¡± ¡°To the pce. And Rivetti?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll talk about thister. Don¡¯t do anything else today, understand?¡± Chapter 112 - Another Secret (1) Chapter 112 ¨C Another Secret (1) Viscount Roteschu went straight to the pce to meet Rashta. She greeted him with her usual look of disdain, but he ignored it. He wouldn¡¯t kill his golden goose over a moment of anger, let alone a golden goose that had the Emperor wrapped around her finger. However, no matter how shocked Viscount Roteschu was by the new developments, he was not as shocked as Rashta. ¡°Why will the Empress meet with Rivetti?¡± Rashta eximed in surprise. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I came here as I thought it would be better to inform you.¡± Rashta took stock of this new information and muttered to herself. ¡°...The Empress is digging into Rashta.¡± She was convinced of it, and nervously bit her lip. She should have considered that the Empress would go poking around, or that Rivetti would have gone chasing after her. However, there was not much she could do despite her anger. ¡°Keep them quiet. Both Rivetti and n.¡± All she could do was apply pressure on Viscount Roteschu. ¡°Of course.¡± Viscount Roteschu hade running to her with unwee news, and now he had arge smile on his face. Rashta¡¯s anger red when she saw it. She wanted to violently overturn all the tables and chairs in the room, but the Emperor would find out if she did so. ¡°Why is everyone bothering Rashta? Rashta just wants to live a quiet life!¡± Although Viscount Roteschu didn¡¯t have anything else to say, he didn¡¯t go away. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to leave?¡± Rashta red at Viscount Roteschu. He usually made excessive demands from her, whether it was money, jewelry, a big mansion, or money to hire more servants. The fact that he was likely to do so again caused her temper to rise. ¡°Oh no. Don¡¯t get too excited.¡± Viscount Roteschu smirked and settled himself deeper in his chair. ¡°There¡¯s no need to rush me.¡± ¡°What else do you want?¡± ¡°You speak too quickly, Rashta.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too slow, so Rashta had to quicken it.¡± Viscount Roteschu shrugged and pretended to look around, then asked if she had a calendar. ¡°Calendar?¡± She stared at him nonplussed, and he chuckled. ¡°Spring is debutante season, don¡¯t you know?¡± She knew that, but she didn¡¯t know why he brought it up. ¡°So?¡± Rashta looked at him with a foreboding feeling, and he smiled again. ¡°I have a debutante this spring.¡± Rashta¡¯s expression stiffened. She could guess where this was going. A debutante made their official debut into society at a ball, and so everyone dressed up as beautifully and as expensively as they could. Viscount Roteschu must be expecting her to pay for a dress. ¡°Did you already spend the money you took before?¡± Rashta seethed in irritation. She had already received arge amount of jewelry as baby presents, so this time she wouldn¡¯t have to borrow money from Duke Elgy or Baron Lant. However, whether she had money or not, she did not want to be threatened, nor be forced into giving that rotten Rivetti a dress to wear. ¡°I¡¯m not asking for money.¡± ¡°...?¡± ¡°There are many famous designers who work for their high-profile clients for free.¡± ¡°So?¡± ¡°So have your own dress tailored for my daughter.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Of course, you should only use the finest fabrics and jewelry. No need to let the money go to waste.¡± It¡¯s my money, not yours, Rashta fumed inwardly. There was nothing more she wanted to do than to kill Roteschu. If she thought about her future as an empress...wouldn¡¯t it be better to do it now? Rashta¡¯s eyes red, but a smile spread on Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face. ¡°Rashta, just in case¡ª¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even think about it.¡± Heughed as she stared defiantly at him. ¡°Did you think I would simply stroll into the Imperial Pce without a backup n?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°If anything happens to me¡ªwhether I¡¯m dead or if I¡¯m unable to take action¡ªthere are people here and there that will spread your secret within a day.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. Here and there. How many people knew the secret? Looking down at the trembling Rashta, Viscount Roteschu grinned and left. *** ¡°Viscount Roteschu visited Miss Rashta again...?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°...Very well. Thank you for informing me.¡± After Sir Artina reported the news of Viscount Roteschu, I returned to the book about Rwibt that Grand Duke Kapmen had given to me. Although trade with his country was still a long way off, it was still something I was looking into. Countess Eliza sent out the maids who were cleaning the room before turning to me with a question. ¡°Is it because Lady Rivetti ising tomorrow?¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± Laura red and she let out a snort. ¡°I think they¡¯re trying to shut Lady Rivetti¡¯s mouth beforehand.¡± ¡°Perhaps.¡± I gave the same answer as before and nodded. Thedies-in-waiting exchanged anxious nces with each other, but I casually returned to my book. My calm indifference wasn¡¯t for show. In truth, I did not expect Rivetti to tell me about Rashta anyway. ¡°What I want isn¡¯t information from Miss Rivetti.¡± Of course, it would be useful if I could learn about Rashta¡¯s past, but it wasn¡¯t necessary. Thedies-in-waiting looked at me in wonder, and Inguidly flipped a page of my book. ¡®All I want to do is give Rashta a warning.¡¯ If I met with Rivetti, Rashta would wonder why I did and be frantic from worry. That was all I wanted. She had to know she could never be in a dignified and honorable position. I closed my eyes. She needed to be more careful about her behavior. Chapter 113 - Another Secret (2) Chapter 113 ¨C Another Secret (2) Rivetti kept changing clothes in preparation for meeting with the Empress the next day. Lady Alischute had said the Empress had the iciness of a high noble. What kind of person was that? Rivetti had no idea. ¡®I heard that daughters of great esteem may bedies-in-waiting to the Empress. Does that mean I can¡¯t...?¡¯ Rivetti sighed. Although she lived in a mansion at the capital, she was still ady from a little country estate. There was little chance that she, a woman who had no connections, could be ady-in-waiting. She continued to scour her wardrobe and try on dresses when there was a knock on her door, and Viscount Roteschu let himself in. ¡°Father!¡± Rivetti hugged the viscount and then let him go. ¡°How do you like this dress? Does it look good on me?¡± However, he was silent and did not give his usual enthusiastic praise. ¡°Father?¡± She looked at him concernedly and sat them both on her bed. ¡°Rivetti. If you are to meet the Empress tomorrow, be careful what you say.¡± His expression was unusually grave. ¡°I see. My father is very worried that I might be rude in the pce.¡± Rivetti answered with confidence, misunderstanding the meaning of her father¡¯s words. ¡°I won¡¯t be rude in front of Her Majesty.¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s expression only turned more serious. ¡°You have to be more careful.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t disgrace myself, Father.¡± ¡°No. About Rashta and An.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Whatever the Empress may ask, don¡¯t speak a word about them, or say that Rashta was your brother¡¯s lover. Do you understand?¡± Rivetti¡¯s brow crinkled. After seeing Rashta at the party a few days ago and finding out that she had be the emperor¡¯s concubine, Rivetti had wondered how the ve had risen to such a great position. No matter how much she asked Viscount Roteschu or n about it, they wouldn¡¯t answer a peep. ¡°Rivetti. Do you understand my words?¡± ¡°...The Emperor will be jealous if he founds out that my brother was Rashta¡¯s lover and has a baby.¡± ¡°Yes. A powerless family like us will be destroyed under the Emperor¡¯s wrath. Be careful.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Why do you think the Empress would suddenly summon a young woman whoes from a weak family, and who has not even made her social debut?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because Lady Alischute¡ª¡± ¡°No, the Empress wants to use you to keep Rashta in check. Rashta is the Empress¡¯ rival.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not being used by anyone!¡± ¡°Remember. You¡¯ve never met Rashta.¡± Rivetti had a burst of anger, but Viscount Roteschu did not back down. His heart ached at the sight of his daughter¡¯s sullen face, but if things went wrong, there would be more than just that to deal with. ¡°Act wisely.¡± Viscount Roteschu stood up and let himself out of the room. His daughter may still be immature, but she was bright. She wouldn¡¯t do anything to harm the family. *** It was the day Alischute would bring Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter to the party. After I finished my audience duties, I toured various departments to decide where to allocate the national budget and review the progress of various projects. My work went smoothly, and I returned to the western pce and changed my clothes. Meeting aristocratic children was nothing new, but today I had a different purpose, and I took more care in selecting my clothes. After preparing the tea and cookies, Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter arrived a little earlier than expected, along with several otherdies that came to visit. ¡°Ah, hello¡ªno, how are you, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Wee, Lady Rivetti.¡± ¡°You know my name...?¡± Her face turned red as she stammered hello. She was far cuter than I expected. I didn¡¯t have much contact with Viscount Roteschu, but somehow his daughter seemed to look at me with admiring respect. The party was about two hours, and after it ended, Countess Eliza spoke to me. ¡°Lady Rivetti seems very fond of you, Your Majesty.¡± I gave a silent smile, and the countess continued teasingly. ¡°Her face turned red when she came in, and she looked quite disappointed to leave.¡± Countess Jubel was gloomier though, as if she there was something else more important than talking about Rivetti¡¯s character. ¡°It¡¯s a shame you didn¡¯t ask her about Miss Rashta.¡± Countess Jubel seemed to have expected to find out more about Rashta¡¯s past. The otherdies-in-waiting nodded in agreement and chimed in. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything about Miss Rashta, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Maybe Rivetti wouldn¡¯t help Her Majesty.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I hope we didn¡¯t cause her to be more cautious.¡± Even the otherdies-in-waiting started to be worried. They wondered if Rashta found out that I invited Rivetti, then told Sovieshu, perhaps my husband would be angry with me again. If fact, that was something I considered as well. However, I had invited Lady Rivetti to show Rashta, ¡®You cannot attack others with lies.¡¯ I wasn¡¯t going to let myself be the only one to be provoked. But... ¡°It went better than I thought.¡± Yes, was a good thing to call Rivetti... To reassure thedies, I smiled and took a sip of my tea. ¡°She gave me enough information.¡± Thedies-in-waiting nced at each other in bewilderment. Lady Rivetti was charming, but she hadn¡¯t said a word about Rashta. Somedies wore expressions of confusion, while others smiled widely as realization dawned on them. Later that night, after most of thedies-in-waiting left to sleep, Countess Eliza remained. She was one of thedies who understood me, and when it was only the two of us, she spoke quietly. ¡°Lady Rivetti seems to know ¡®that woman¡¯ very well. Right?¡± I nodded my head. Rashta was so beautiful that she was often a subject of discussion, and it was impossible for Rivetti not to hear of her. Nevertheless, Rivetti didn¡¯t say a single word about Rashta. I concluded that she was forced to keep her mouth closed. ¡°If Rashta was formerly Viscount Roteschu¡¯s ve, she would find both the viscount and his daughter a thorn in her side.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Viscount Roteschu had even humiliated Rashta in public, which made it even curiouser that they kept meeting in the pce. Sovieshu must know and ept that Rashta was a ve, despite his attempt to quash the rumors. If Viscount Roteschu was ckmailing Rashta, it was not because of her background. Taken together, there was only one answer¡ªthe secret Rashta had hidden was not that she was a former ve to the Roteschu family. ¡°Perhaps Rashta has another weakness she wants to hide.¡± And it wasn¡¯t just Viscount Roteschu who knew about the weakness. ¡°Let¡¯s investigate the surroundings of Viscount Roteschu and Lady Rivetti. There¡¯s nothing wrong with knowing what secret they¡¯re ckmailing with.¡± Chapter 114 - What Do You Want Me To Say? (1) Chapter 114 ¨C What Do You Want Me To Say? (1) Rivetti swayed down the white corridor in a dream-like mood. She had only seen the Empress¡¯ likeness from a portrait before, but now she saw Her Majesty sitting and drinking tea before her up close. The Empress even smiled at her and invited her to another tea party a few dayster. To Rivetti, this was far more thrilling than a spectacr new mansion and countless servants. ¡®I should bake some cookies for the tea party. I¡¯m sure the Empress like it. Rivetti¡¯s cookies are the best in the world!¡¯ However, her good mood soured as soon as she saw Rashta at the other end of the corridor. Rashta stood with her arms folded, apparently waiting for Rivetti. ¡°What do you want?¡± Rivetti skipped the greeting as her eyes swept over the former ve. Rashta had always been beautiful, but now she truly looked like an angel. Rivetti wasn¡¯t impressed, however. She had hated Rashta ever since n started a rtionship with her, and the feeling remained the same even though the pair were no longer together. ¡°Did you meet the Empress?¡± Rashta harbored simr feelings towards Rivetti, ignoring any pleasantries and going straight to the point. ¡°The Empress? You¡¯re a little short on words.¡± ¡°What did you say to her?¡± ¡°It¡¯s still short.¡± ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. So what.¡± ¡°...Did you talk?¡± ¡°Talk about what?¡± Rashta couldn¡¯t say the words, ¡°About your brother the baby,¡± and she pressed her lips shut. A smug smile spread on Rivetti¡¯s face. She knew what Rashta wanted to say, and noticed that even though Rashta was now the Emperor¡¯s mistress, she was still shackled to the past. If it was uncovered, it may even destroy her. ¡°I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about, Rashta. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± Rivetti gave a teasing smile. ¡°Why would I talk about you to Her Majesty the Empress? You¡¯re worth nothing.¡± Rashta¡¯s cheeks flushed with anger at the insult. ¡°I¡¯m worth nothing?¡± ¡°Just like being with my brother didn¡¯t make you a noble, being with the Emperor won¡¯t make you royalty.¡± A mockingugh left Rivetti¡¯s mouth. Rashta¡¯s anger burst, and she pped Rivetti on the cheek. It happened before she even realized what she was doing. Rivetti gave a stunned cry. ¡°You¡¯re crazy!¡± Rivetti raised her hand to hit her back, but Rashta flinched and covered her stomach. Rivetti paused. As her father Viscount Roteschu observed, Rivetti was a bright girl. She remembered whose baby Rashta was carrying and she gritted her teeth. They could trade insults, but this could not be a physical fight. No matter how much the noblesughed at Rashta, she was still the Emperor¡¯s concubine, and she was carrying his baby. ¡°Even with violence you¡¯re still lowly. Lowly!¡± Rashta¡¯s anger swelled again. However, she regretted pping Rivetti, not because Rashta felt guilty, but because she worried how Viscount Roteschu would react. He doted on his daughter terribly. The two women locked gazes with each other. Eventually, the vicious encounter ended when Rivetti brushed past Rashta. ¡®What should I do...¡¯ Rivetti finally disappeared, and Rashta nervously bit her thumb. Rivetti would certainly tell her father that Rashta had hit her, and then Viscount Roteschu woulde and demand more money... Rashta could not tell her own side of the story to Sovieshu. On top of it all, she still had to obtain a debutante dress for that arrogant and awful Rivetti. *** ¡°Did you enjoy yourself today?¡± I was having dinner with Sovieshu. He spoke up as I was silently mixing my sd and dressing. ¡°I heard you invited some of the nobles for a get-together. How was it?¡± Was he being sarcastic because I didn¡¯t invite Rashta? Or because I did invite Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter? At this moment, however, Sovieshu did not look angry or sneering. He was simply cutting the fish on his te. ¡°Yes, I felt quite renewed afterwards.¡± I answered the question as usual instead of bringing up the subject of Lady Rivetti. Sovieshu nodded. ¡°Yes. You should invite people you like and spend more time with them. You are too preupied with work, so it¡¯s good to take a break every so often.¡± ¡°I will.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget that your well-being is the well-being of the country.¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± I responded normally, but I watched Sovieshu with a careful eye. We had been fighting a war of nervestely, but now his attitude was simr to that before Rashta appeared. ¡®Why is he like this?¡¯ Did Sovieshu change his strategy? Instead of forcing me to treat Rashta well, did he decide to set an example? Perhaps he thought that if he treated me well, I would be kinder to Rashta too? I turned over various theories in my mind, but I couldn¡¯t solve the puzzle that was Sovieshu¡¯s way of thinking. Instead, I decided to bring up the topic of work. ¡°I heard that the mages¡¯ office requested that we send over a grand schr. Is that right?¡± ¡°You heard right.¡± Technically speaking, matters regarding the mage¡¯s office and grand schrs weren¡¯t under my jurisdiction. However, the mage army was the bastion of power for the emperor, and any issue regarding them was cause for concern. ¡°Is it because of the decline in mages?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± He pressed his fingers against his forehead with a grim expression. ¡°So far, it¡¯s not clear whether the number of mages born is decreasing. But there is a report iming that a mage can suddenly revert to being non-magical.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to confirm it myself.¡± It was best that he did so, as it was not umon for someone to im they were a mage as part of a hoax. I nodded thoughtfully and considered the circumstances if it were true. Loyalists to the crown were allowed a certain number of private soldiers and a degree of autonomy within thew. No matter how great the lord was, however, they could never hire mages. That privilege was exclusively for the Imperial Family, and it was the emperor¡¯s source of power that the lords and nobles bowed to. But if there were fewer mages... ¡°Empress.¡± Sovieshu interrupted my thoughts in a low voice. I turned my gaze back to him, and he made an unexpected request. ¡°Just smile once.¡± ¡°?¡± What was the asion? I found it strange, but I smiled as he requested. ¡°...No, not like that.¡± However, he wasn¡¯t satisfied. He shook his head and asked again. ¡°Not a smile that you practiced in the mirror. Show me a real smile.¡± When I frowned, Sovieshu reached out to the air and pretended to raise the ends of my mouth. ¡°You used to smile well before.¡± What was he talking about? I stared at him, and he breathed a weary sigh. ¡°You used to smile at me. From the bottom of your heart.¡± ¡°I¡¯m still smiling from the bottom of my heart.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°I really am smiling.¡± ¡°I mean from pleasure thates from true joy.¡± ¡°Then shouldn¡¯t there be joy and happiness first?¡± In retrospect...I had very little to smile about since Queen left. I simply spent my time chatting with thedies-in-waiting. To my surprise, Sovieshu nodded in agreement with me. ¡°Yes, it must be for something joyful.¡± He rang a bell on the table. Soon after, a servant appeared, pushing a cart bearing a te andrge silver lid. ¡®What is this?¡¯ I watched in wonder, and Sovieshu gestured to the lid with his eyes. ¡°Open it.¡± When I took off the lid, I found a silver ring resting inside. Sovieshu studied my face as he spoke. ¡°How do you like it?¡± ¡°Is it a gift?¡± His tone turned slightly disappointed. ¡°It is. Is there anything else you want to say?¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Sovieshu was still staring at me. What did he expect? Oh. He had wanted me to smile. I smiled faintly and thanked him again. However, Sovieshu repeated once more, ¡°Do you have anything to say?¡± ¡°What else should I say?¡± ¡°Is ¡®thank you¡¯ all that you have?¡± ¡°This a ring from Sodenbrunn. It was made by the three master craftsmen of Allit¡¯s Workshop, and wasmissioned by Emperor Carl Myron during the war 156 years ago. Since then, the ring¡¯s whereabouts had been unknown.¡± Was that what he wanted me to say? Sovieshu sighed and gestured to the food with his hand. ¡°Just eat.¡± Chapter 115 - What Do You Want Me To Say? (2) Chapter 115 ¨C What Do You Want Me To Say? (2) Rashta turned over a page of the sketchbook. The designer watched with nervous eyes as the young woman casually looked over their borate drawings, and swallowed dryly in anticipation of Rashta¡¯s response. Rashta was the toast of the town among the nobles and themon people. Every designer wanted her to wear their dress to the ball. ¡°Huuu...¡± Rashta sighed. ¡°You don¡¯t like it?¡± The designer¡¯s expression turned crestfallen. Rashta shook her head and closed the sketchbook. ¡°Yes, I don¡¯t like it. It¡¯s so pretty.¡± The designer, who had wanted to cry, was suddenly bewildered. She didn¡¯t like it because it was pretty? ¡°Perhaps...you want a simpler style?¡± Did Rashta have a preference for that kind of style? She didn¡¯t like dresses that were too pretty? Rashta shook her head again. ¡°No.¡± The designer was puzzled, but Rashta soon dismissed them with a wave of her hand. The designer left, and Rashta dropped her forehead to a sofa pillow with a heavy sigh. She had to choose a debutante dress for someone she loathed, so how could she say that the more beautiful the dress, the less she liked it? Rashta did not want to deign Rivetti with even a small handkerchief. ¡°If there¡¯s nothing you want to pick, shall I make some more inquiries?¡± Viscountess Verdi sat down next to Rashta. Although the viscountess was initially reluctant about her, she had been trying to stay close after Rashta became pregnant with the Emperor¡¯s baby. ¡°It¡¯s not like that.¡± Rashta shut her eyes and answered in a sullen tone. It was then that they were suddenly interrupted. ¡°Miss Rashta, Miss Rashta!¡± The maid Delise burst into the room. She was one of the two maids newly assigned to Rashta. Although Delise had no special career as a maid, she loved her first master and was strong-willed and motivated. For this, and the fact that she was inexperienced, Sovieshu had chosen her. ¡°Don¡¯t speak so loudly Delise.¡± Despite Viscountess Verdi¡¯s scolding, the maid simply shrugged. ¡°It¡¯s fine. What is it, Delise?¡± Rashta gave a kind smile, and Delise quickly approached her. ¡°Her Majesty the Empress is going to throw a tea party soon.¡± ¡°Tea party?¡± Rashta looked at Viscountess Verdi, who calcted the dates in her head for a moment before speaking. ¡°Yes. She usually holds a tea party around this time for the youngdies of the capital.¡± Rashta looked down at the floor. She knew not to expect an invitation. ¡°So what do I do? The Empress is not going to invite Rashta.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, she¡¯ll be sending out invitations now. You will certainly be invited.¡± Rashta knew not to have any expectations, but she clung to a sliver of hope. Although the Empress clearly hated her, she still had a sense of dignity. Ignoring Rashta so openly could cause the Empress to appear cold and lose face. However, even as rumors spread of other nobles receiving invitations, one did note to Rashta. When Duke Elgy came to visit her, she finally burst into tears. ¡°Rashta is the most powerless person here. The Empress is trying to iste Rashta.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Miss? What happened?¡± After hearing about the tea party, Duke Elgy clicked his tongue. ¡°The most influential person in society should not take the lead in ignoring you. It¡¯s no different from bullying, is it not?¡± ¡°Yes. The Empress is that kind of woman.¡± Rashta gave a tear-soaked sniffle. ¡°Have you found foster parents for Rashta?¡± ¡°Hmm. Not yet. The conditions need to be met aspletely as possible.¡± ¡°Conditions...?¡± ¡°I have to find a person who has actually lost a child.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°Leave it to me. More importantly, how are you going to handle this?¡± ¡°Handle this?¡± ¡°The Empress is trying to get rid of you. Will you simply allow yourself to be hurt?¡± ¡°But...Rashta hasn¡¯t been invited.¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s best not to go anyway.¡± ¡°Then what should Rashta do?¡± More tears threatened to spill over her eyes. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me to try to make friends with her. I¡¯ve tried enough.¡± There was a warm smile in Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes as he sat closer to Rashta. ¡°Hold a tea party on the same day as the Empress.¡± If Sovieshu exuded a cold and arrogant charisma at the height of his power, Duke Elgy was the exact opposite. Although he was of high social standing, he did not mind lowering himself to people when needed. Rashta¡¯s cheeks reddened as Duke Elgy gazed into her eyes. ¡°It¡¯s no use having a party on the same day. The nobles would never choose Rashta over the Empress.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Then why suggest it? Rashta would be more of a joke.¡± ¡°If you do nothing, nothing will happen.¡± ¡°So you want me to be a joke?¡± She looked at him, bewildered, and Duke Elgy smiled and shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s to get sympathy.¡± ¡°Sympathy...?¡± ¡°The Empress invited the nobles but not the Emperor¡¯s concubine.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°See it like this: The Empress and the concubine held a tea party on the same day, but the nobles did not go to the party hosted by themoner. It was because of the Empress.¡± Duke Elgy smiled dangerously and pressed his finger on the end of the sofa. ¡°Do you feel differently now?¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°As I said, it¡¯s themon people that you should go after, and themon people don¡¯t know anything about the nobility. If you¡¯re going this far to create rumors, then make a story that¡¯s exciting.¡± ¡°Make a story...?¡± ¡°Say the Empress deliberately threw a tea party on the same day as you.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 116 - A Person Who Spreads Rumors, A Person Who Exploits (1) Chapter 116 ¨C A Person Who Spreads Rumors, A Person Who Exploits (1) Several days ago, I promised Rivetti and several other young women that I would hold a tea party soon. I sent invitations to all the attendees that day in honor of my promise. I usually held a tea party for all the nobles in the vicinity at this time of the year, and so having Rivetti in attendance would not give reason for Sovieshu to be angry. Rashta was not a member of the nobility, so I did not invite her. The day of the tea party, Rivetti was lightly teased for having dressed up as if she were going to a ball, but she generally got along well with the other nobles. The atmosphere of the party was bright and pleasant throughout. When the party ended and most of the other nobles left, I suggested that Rivetti take a walk with me. ¡°R-really?¡± Rivetti voice trembled, and she hurriedly joined my side with a delighted cry. We walked the promenade beginning in the western pce and leading towards the Silver Garden. I did not ask her about Rashta or the Rimwell estate. If Viscount Roteschu had given Rivetti any advanced warning, I wouldn¡¯t want to raise their guard. ¡°I-I have a portrait of you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°A portrait of me? Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I...I bought it.¡± ¡°They sell those kinds of things?¡± ¡°They¡¯re very popr. I have them all assorted by type.¡± ¡°If you bought them by type, then there¡¯s more than one?¡± ¡°Oh, well...¡± ¡°Five?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Ten?¡± ¡°...¡± Her cheeks turned pink and embarrassed tears threatened to spill over her eyes. ¡°Th-thirty.¡± ¡°Do you really have thirty portraits of me?¡± Rivetti nodded and flushed to the tip of her ears. ¡°I¡¯m not a freak.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think you were.¡± Rivetti¡¯s shoulders drooped in relief and she burst into a giggle. However, she still looked like she regretted making her embarrassing confession. ¡°Don¡¯t cry because you think you¡¯re strange, hmm?¡± ¡°I...yes. Alright.¡± ¡°There are still tears. Are you sure you¡¯re alright?¡± ¡°Yes...it¡¯s just that I don¡¯t think the portrait is as wonderful as the Empress.¡± As we were strolling down the pathway, I saw Rashta emerge from the southern pce. Next to her was Duke Elgy. She wasn¡¯t too far away, and our eyes met. Rivetti¡¯s good mood darkened as soon as she saw Rashta. Rivetti noticed me looking at her and hastily rearranged her face into something more pleasant, but I had already seen the hostility in her eye. She would survive well in high society. Rashta and Duke Elgy approached the both of us. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to see you again, Your Majesty.¡± Duke Elgy shed a smile, and then nced at Rivetti next to me. She flinched under his sharp eyes and leaned in closer to me. ¡°Who is this cute youngdy beside you, Your Majesty?¡± Duke Elgy looked at me with a beaming smile. It didn¡¯t seem like apliment that was made with good intentions. Meanwhile, Rashta stared at Rivetti with open displeasure. I was about to introduce Rivetti as ¡°Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter,¡± but when I saw Rashta¡¯s face, I changed my mind. I remembered what the concubine had wanted to call me before. ¡°She¡¯s a new youngdy here.¡± I deliberately praised Rivetti, then gave her my sweetest, gentlest smile. ¡°I like her so much I wish she could be my younger sister.¡± Rivetti had been ring at Rashta, but then she jumped and blushed when I called her my sister. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Rivetti spoke in stunned awe. My smile broadened. ¡°If it¡¯s not too much of a burden, would you ever call me your sister?¡± Rivetti¡¯s eyes widened as thoughts of Rashta werepletely forgotten her mind. Rivetti¡¯s reaction really was cute. I adjusted her cape and rubbed her shoulders in a familiar manner. Though my actions were deliberate, Rashta looked much more hurt than I expected. On the contrary, I was inwardly taken aback by it. ¡®The rtionship between Rashta and Rivetti might be much worse than I thought...¡¯ *** That night, Rashtained to Sovieshu that no one hade to her tea party except for Duke Elgy, and all the other nobles had gone to the Empress¡¯ party instead. ¡°You should have held it another day.¡± Sovieshu thought it was strange, but he hugged Rashta in sympathy. ¡°Rashta didn¡¯t know that no one woulde.¡± ¡°If someone received an invitation from both you and the Empress, they would go to the Empress¡¯ party of course.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think she invited every single noble.¡± Rashta puffed her cheeks and pouted. Although Duke Elgy had told her that no one woulde, she had assumed that at least one or two of the nobles that didn¡¯t receive an invitation from the Empress would have arrived. But even those who were not invited by the Empress did note to her party. ording to Duke Elgy, they did not want to appear to be in conflict with the Empress. And yet, the wounds left on Rashta¡¯s heart did not go away. And then, there was Rivetti. How could that hateful and wretched Rivetti be treated like a cute little sister by the Empress...? ¡°Don¡¯t worry about too much about it. Duke Elgy is worth ten men.¡± ¡°Does the Empress hate Rashta a lot?¡± ¡°The Empress is...is like wood.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°She is indifferent to her own feelings, much less other people¡¯s.¡± Chapter 117 - A Person Who Spreads Rumors, A Person Who Exploits (2) Chapter 117 ¨C A Person Who Spreads Rumors, A Person Who Exploits (2) Disappointed by the failure of the abortive drugs, as well as the continued nuisance towards Navier, Koshar was more determined to dig up information on Rashta on his own. Navier had said, ¡°Even if you take out Rashta, the Emperor will bring in a new concubine.¡± And so what? It was a matter of removing them too. And if another concubine appeared again? Hit them once more. All emperors had concubines, but what did it matter? The emperors were not married to them. ¡®It would have been easier if her husband was not the emperor.¡¯ Koshar kept his eyes fixed at the back of Viscount Roteschu¡¯s head as he trailed him. After several days of investigation, Koshar knew that Viscount Roteschu was helping Rashta. In fact, the viscount did not even hide the fact, iming that because his mistake had caused Rashta trouble, he wanted to pay her back... ¡®No way.¡¯ Just then, Viscount Roteschu entered a bar. Koshar waited a moderate amount of time outside before going in. The bar was full of activity andmotion. Most of its patrons weremoners, but since it was a vintage establishment, there were some nobles scattered about. Viscount Roteschu was sitting at a table, seemingly enjoying the atmosphere. He had two more friends sitting across from him. The table in front of them was empty, as if they hadn¡¯t been served yet. Koshar tried to find a seat nearby, but there were none, so he was forced to take a table on the second floor. He couldn¡¯t make out the viscount¡¯s voice, but he was able to look down on him from his new vantage point. ¡°What would you like to order, sir?¡± A waiter who looked no older than sixteen years old appeared next to him. Koshar pointed towards Viscount Roteschu¡¯s table. ¡°Same thing they¡¯re having.¡± The waiter turned his head to where Koshar was indicating. ¡°It¡¯s better if you go sit with them for conversation.¡± Koshar slipped the waiter a small jewel, and the waiter¡¯s eyes widened before he tucked the small treasure away. Sometimes he received tips in silver coins, and one time one gold coin, but this was the first time he had ever received such arge payment. ¡°Please wait. I¡¯ll bring your order soon.¡± The waiter bowed his head quickly and hurried to the first level. As Koshar watched, he could see the waiter wandering around Roteschu¡¯s group and serving their order. Koshar finally rxed and leaned back into his chair. He started to take in the conversation of the surrounding patrons. Once he did, however, he couldn¡¯t rx. ¡°Then Her Majesty the Empress...?¡± ¡°Yes. The Emperor¡¯s concubine had a tea party, and the Empress held one on the same date on purpose.¡± ¡°Wow. I can¡¯t believe it. So the Empress is bullying her?¡± ¡°Well, no one attended the concubine¡¯s party.¡± ¡°A concubine is only a concubine. Things like that happen too.¡± ¡°Of course. But the concubine is amoner like us. Maybe they look down on her because of that.¡± ¡°Yes. The nobles torment and ignore her.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve seen the concubine before at a ball. She¡¯s a true sweetheart.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard that as well. All the nobles were acting condescending, and she¡¯s the only one that got along with themon people.¡± ¡°Even without seeing it for myself, it¡¯s obvious how she¡¯s treated in the pce.¡± ¡°I¡¯m on her side.¡± ¡°Yes, the Empress is just one of those people.¡± Although his ears snatched up conversations here and there, it was clear that people were talking about the Emperor, Empress, and the concubine. Koshar studied the various people who were speaking. About half of them seemed suspicious. Some spoke as if they knew the Empress¡¯ intent, and were cleverly spreading rumors that she was a bully. However, even more unpleasant rumors were starting to fly about. ¡°The Emperor is spineless and the Empress is a cruel woman.¡± ¡°If you have a concubine, you should protect them properly.¡± ¡°How could amoner like Rashta be a concubine? The Emperor must have forced her into it.¡± ¡°Perhaps. The Empress is not aware of it and only torments Rashta...tch.¡± At first Koshar suspected that these were sent by the Emperor¡¯s people, but it seemed not to be the case, as they were cutting down even the Emperor. ¡®Was it her?¡¯ Koshar clenched his fists. *** It was four days since the tea party. Marquis Farang came to tell me the gossip going around recently. ¡°For that rumor to go around...¡± It was not a pleasant story to hear. He looked sympathetically into my eyes as he sipped his coffee, then he set down his cup and made a confession. ¡°Koshar heard.¡± ¡°My brother...¡± How upsetting it must be for him to hear such nder against his younger sister. My heart hurt. Marquis Farang continued in a hesitant voice. ¡°Don¡¯t be so angry, Your Majesty. Koshar heard the rumors but did not do anything.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m not angry. I¡¯m sad.¡± ¡°Oh?¡± ¡°Truly.¡± The marquis looked at me, perplexed, and before speaking carefully. ¡°Would you like me to do something about it? I¡¯m can make Rashta look like a wicked woman.¡± ¡°That will eat away at me.¡± ¡°How so?¡± ¡°Some will believe our side¡¯s words, but some will believe Rashta¡¯s words. If that continues, thenter on the idea that ¡®Both of them are the same¡¯ will arise, and the Imperial Family will be aughingstock.¡± The marquis gave a shudder and grumbled. ¡°But you won¡¯t y into her hands.¡± ¡°People will look at the actions, not the words.¡± ¡°And your actions speak for itself. But Your Majesty, people do not believe in perfection. Will they always admire you if you do the right thing? No. And while the people love heroes, and what they like even more is a fallen hero.¡± ¡°Marquis Farang. ¡®That woman¡¯ can manipte public opinion for her own benefit, but I can¡¯t. I am the empress, and I must think of my country and people.¡± I didn¡¯t know if Rashta was behind this new wave of rumors, or if it was Duke Elgy, or Viscount Roteschu. I suspected Duke Elgy myself. No matter who did it, however, all three of them were foolish. ¡°Whether I¡¯m cast as the viin or Rashta, in the end the Emperor will be regarded as a spineless man who bends too easily others. It would hurt his dignity. Poor public opinion makes governance difficult.¡± ¡°Do you care for His Majesty in the midst of this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a long-term perspective.¡± Would I shine if Sovieshu became an ipetent emperor? No. If he was removed, I would be a deposed empress. No matter how horrible he was, I had to take care of him as long as he was on the throne. Even if it hurt me right now. Besides... ¡°Keep an eye on Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°Do you mean the yboy?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It would cause enough problems if Rashta manipted public opinion for her own personal ambitions, but... It was downright dangerous if Duke Elgy were involved. He was a foreigner who had no interest in the strength of the Eastern Empire. Duke Elgy himself said that Prince Heinley had called him here and had been nning something. There was nothing wrong with being careful. *** At the same time. King Heinley I was the newly coronated monarch of the Western Kingdom. People danced to lively music in celebration, while foreign delegates cast interested nces to that young, unmarried king. Heinley smiled and did his best to be rxed as he received and thanked his guests. He heard the excited chatter of the crowd, but the smile that floated to his lips was a sharp line. His mood was even more pronounced when he saw Grand Duke Lilteang, the envoy from the Eastern Empire. Heinley was crestfallen when he learned that the Empress would note to his coronation, but he did not reveal his disappointment to Grand Duke Lilteang. The duke was delighted by Heinley¡¯s hospitality andughed gaily during their conversation. However, when Grand Duke Lilteang brought up the topic of a potential queen, Heinley couldn¡¯t help but be piqued. ¡°You still haven¡¯t found a queen. Is it because of Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°...Why do you think so?¡± ¡°Hahahaha. All the nobility in my country thinks so.¡± Prince Lilteangughed loudly, still seemingly believing that Heinley was in love with Rashta. McKenna, who was standing behind Heinley, nearly clicked his tongue in disapproval. Heinley continued to smile stiffly in the meanwhile, a feat that could be considered impressive. However, when the Grand Duke insulted Empress Navier to praise Rashta, McKenna was so shocked that his mouth dropped open. ¡°The Empress has been treating Rashta like leftover rice since the concubine became pregnant. If you saw the way Empress Navier harasses Miss Rashta, Your Majesty, your heart would be broken.¡± McKenna was right about to block Heinley¡¯s ears, when the king gave an unexpected response. Chapter 118 - I Want To Be Like You (1) Chapter 118 ¨C I Want To Be Like You (1) ¡°Is that so?¡± Heinley did not try to clear up the misunderstanding. McKenna¡¯s eyes widened asrge as discs. What was wrong with Heinley? McKenna couldn¡¯t fathom his thought process. Grand Duke Lilteang simply smiled, and he remained uncorrected and ignorant even after he walked away. ¡°Even if you don¡¯t tell the truth about who you like, why didn¡¯t you clear up the misunderstanding?¡± McKenna confronted Heinley when the two of them were alone. The knight¡¯s bewilderment was up to his chin, and Heinley grinned as he undid the buttons on his jacket. ¡°Who would that please?¡± ¡°First of all...me. Because then I wouldn¡¯t be so confused.¡± ¡°Other than that?¡± ¡°Well, for the distant future, it would be good for Grand Duke Lilteang. He would have said less arrant nonsense in front of you.¡± Heinley finished undoing all the buttons of his jacket and tossed it to the side. Meanwhile, McKenna took his clothes and folded them carefully while he waited for Heinley¡¯s reply. Heinley was a king while McKenna was born out of wedlock, but he still had royal blood. However, they were used to doing this themselves, as they traveled often outside of court. ¡°I¡¯ve thought about your advice.¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t I get rid of the misunderstanding? It¡¯s because I followed your advice.¡± ¡°...When did I ever say such a thing?¡± ¡°No one would wee a queen that brought them war.¡± ¡°Y...yes. I said that.¡± McKenna stared at Heinley in confusion. What did that have to do with not clearing the misunderstanding with Grand Duke Lilteang? Heinley smiled, sitting on the bed with only his pants on. ¡°We¡¯re going to go to war, aren¡¯t we?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a war I decided on because of Queen. At least, it wasn¡¯t the trigger.¡± ¡°It is never the trigger.¡± On the contrary, it was the exact opposite. When McKenna was in the Eastern Empire, he thought Heinley might give up the war because of Empress Navier. Despite Heinley¡¯s constant poring over maps andw books every day, he had sent the empress secret letters for months. McKenna ended up being mistaken, however. ¡°But if there¡¯s a story about how I love Queen, people will always think of her in rtion to war. They¡¯ll resent her as the cause of it.¡± ¡°Well, I suppose.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to entangle Queen that way. You were right. I¡¯ll leave it to someone else.¡± McKenna¡¯s eyes trembled. ¡°You¡¯re right, but...there¡¯s been a change in you?¡± ¡°You¡¯re smart, McKenna.¡± ¡°You are too easy to interpret, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°McKenna?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll put a shield on her so she¡¯ll be protected from ndering tongues.¡± McKenna was momentarily dumbstruck. He understood what Heinley meant, but he couldn¡¯t help but worry. Heinley had long been preparing for war with the Eastern Empire. In the midst of it, he met with Empress Navier and fell in love with her. Passionately. With great intensity. McKenna didn¡¯t know what Heinley was nning next, but he didn¡¯t think that he was going to force the Empress to his side. Could that proud woman be able to ept that her opponent was also her friend? ¡°McKenna. After I crush the Eastern Empire, I¡¯m going topletely fill the mouths of the people who insulted Queen with stones.¡± ¡°Stones...¡± ¡°After doing that, I¡¯ll stitch them up and make them kneel and grovel before her.¡± Heinley gave a wicked smile, and McKenna clicked his tongue. ¡°Very well, Your Majesty. However...shouldn¡¯t you be worried whether Queen Navier will ept the king of the country who attacked her?¡± ¡°Should I?¡± ¡°Yes. Love and friendship will be shattered first...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You couldn¡¯t even win her heart as a prince of a country. How are you going to win her heart as the enemy king?¡± ¡°Birds dance when they court each other, McKenna. We are birds.¡± ¡°A courtship dance...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think it will work?¡± Heinley was so earnest that McKenna did not know whether he was joking or being serious. McKenna turned his gaze away and lied. ¡°It will work. Dance well.¡± *** Spring was slowly beginning to awaken thendscape. The days weren¡¯t as cold, although the wind could still bite at the tip of one¡¯s nose. I was reading a book by an open window. I was almost finished reading all the books Grand Duke Kapmen had given me, and this was one of three remaining left. Still, it was a pity that no trade agreement could be made with Rwibt. If things had worked out well, being the hub of trade between two continents could have brought great benefits... ¡®The delegation will soon return from the coronation.¡¯ I wanted to hear straight from Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s mouth that Heinley safely ascended to the throne. I looked at the green leaves that were just beginning to emerge from the branches outside, and reached out and grabbed the window handle. Spring brought new warmth, but it was still too chilly to leave the windows open for a long time. Before Ipletely closed the window, however, I saw a blue bird flying towards me. The bird made a circle around the window, then swooped in andnded on the window sill. ¡°Queen¡¯s friend!¡± It was the other bird Prince Heinley raised. I shouted in joy at his appearance, and the bird hopped towards me. After closing the window and bringing him a bowl of water, I noticed a ring ne around the bird¡¯s neck. ¡®Why is that there?¡¯ I thought it was strange, but I didn¡¯t touch the ring and simply opened the letter from the bird¡¯s leg. The answer to my question was written inside. Chapter 119 - I Want To Be Like You (2) Chapter 119 ¨C I Want To Be Like You (2) ¡°Rashta can¡¯t choose.¡± Rashta grumbled out aint as she set down a sketchbook of designs. ¡°These clothes are all pretty, too. Why is everyone so talented?¡± It was almost the day of the debutante ball, and she still hadn¡¯t selected Rivetti¡¯s dress. Viscount Roteschu demanded it in two days, but Rashta had difficulty choosing. ¡°The dress can¡¯t be pretty, but Rashta can¡¯t look careless either...¡± She flipped through another sketchbook. However, the designers who came to Rashta were all famous for their work, and the debutante ball was known for its beauty and splendor. It was difficult to find anything that wasn¡¯t beautiful. ¡°Or should I just pick something safe that anyone can wear?¡± It would be a sight to see people in simr dresses in a group together. ¡®Simr dress?¡¯ Rashta was struck with a sudden idea. She remembered themotion it caused when she and the Empress wore the same dress, and a n began to form in her head. ¡®What if I dress Rivetti in the same clothes as me?¡® Then, people will talk. They had restrained themselves thest time it happened because of the Empress¡¯ high status, but Rivetti was vulnerable. Rashta was the star of society, while Rivetti was only from a small estate. If their dresses were the same, Rivetti would be the one used of copying. Neither her nor Viscount Roteschu could say that they had ckmailed Rashta into giving them a dress. The corners of Rashta¡¯s mouth lifted, and she called for the maid. ¡°Do you have the dress I chose?¡± ¡°Yes, Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°Have another one made in a smaller size. Here are the measurements.¡± Rashta held out a piece of paper with Rivetti¡¯s body measurements on it, given to her by Viscount Roteschu. The maid didn¡¯t know that Rashta was being ckmailed, and was surprised to learn that Rashta was choosing someone else¡¯s debutante dress. ¡°You¡¯re going to give someone else the same dress?¡± ¡°Yes. She doesn¡¯t know what to choose for herself.¡± ¡°But...wouldn¡¯t it be noticeable if the dresses were the same?¡± ¡°But no matter how you think about it, Rashta¡¯s dress is the prettiest. I don¡¯t want to give her something less pretty.¡± ¡°Miss Rashta...how are you so nice?¡± The maid gave a heartfelt sigh. A faint smile graced Rashta¡¯s lips, just like the Empress¡¯. *** It was the day of the debutante ball. The ball itself was not as splendid as the one on New Year¡¯s, but the atmosphere itself was lively with the many new faces formally entering society. Looking at all thevish and colorful costumes had be a source of entertainment itself. ¡°I¡¯m going to dress like that in all the balls from now on.¡± ¡°The amount ofce and jewels is sure to lessen after a year or two, though.¡± Even mydies-waiting giggled among themselves and pointed at various guests. The mood was lighter than usual, as Emperor Sovieshu found himself too busy to attend. ¡°Lady Rivetti is over there.¡± Because of their familiarity now, Laura happily pointed to Rivetti. The youngdy was mingling with other newly debuted young men and women. She was as cute as a hen¡¯s chick with her short curly hair and yellow dress. I casually waved at her, and her eyes widened and she blushed. ¡°She really likes you, Your Majesty.¡± Countess Eliza spoke with a warm smile. I nodded despite the guilt for having done a background check on a youngdy who admired me. The music began, and the guests began to pair up to dance. I watched the hall as the song drifted in the air. Most of the attendees to the ball were the debutantes, their rtives and acquaintances, and others in the social circles who wanted to look at the fresh new faces. Duke Elgy, well-known for being a socialite and womanizer, did note. The debutantes were probably too young for him. However, what was surprising was that Rashta was nowhere to be seen either. ¡®Did she note because of Rivetti?¡¯ I wondered to myself as I took a small bite of cake that a servant brought to me, and savored the taste of sweet whipped cream and peanuts on my tongue. As I was working on my dessert, I heard the buzz of conversation rise in the room. I looked up and saw thete arrival of Rashta. The dress she was wearing... My eyes shot back to Rivetti. She was wearing the same dress Rashta was. Rivetti was blissfully dancing with another young man, ignorant of what was happening. ¡°That again¡ª!¡± Laura ground her teeth. ¡°That woman is making Rivetti look like a copycat this time!¡± It was only after the music ended that Rivetti spotted the dress Rashta was wearing. Rivetti¡¯s eyes widened. Her face turned red in shame as she heard the guests gossip with each other. I felt terrible for her. Despise Rashta¡¯s own look of surprise, I knew it had to be intentional. Rivetti looked ready to burst into tears while the nobles continued to stare and murmur at her. Unable to watch this anymore, I stood up and approached her, and the guests parted with surprise on their faces. I took off my cape to ce it on Rivetti¡¯s shoulders, and she stared at me withrge eyes. ¡°I suppose this type of dress is in fashion. Will this help make it look a little different?¡± I smiled at her, and Rivetti¡¯s eyes rounded even more. She gasped out her relief and praise, and I patted her shoulder and took her to the table where I was sitting. I looked back at Rashta. What was she thinking wearing the same dress again? I wondered what was going on in that woman¡¯s head. Surprisingly, Rashta wasn¡¯t looking at Rivetti. She was looking at me instead, and busily writing something down in a small notebook. Chapter 120 - A Chance To Erase The Past (1) Chapter 120 ¨C A Chance To Erase The Past (1) Some of the teachers that Sovieshu assigned to Rashta were once my own. ¡°No way!¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s face turned white in anger when she heard the news. Meanwhile, I was rxing my feet in a bath of warm water. ¡°What happened?¡± Countess Eliza worked on calming herself, while I asked another deputy for more information. Rashta had no knowledge of court etiquette, so lessons were expected, but I didn¡¯t expect her to have the same education as I did. Was she really trying to copy my educational background? Besides, how many teachers did she actually have? ¡°It¡¯s not the schooling of a crown princess, but the same education you received when you were still under Duke Troby.¡± Ah...that was it. It was when I was a princess that my education ovepped with Sovieshu¡¯s. I had assumed that those who taught the crown prince and princess would also teach Rashta. But... ¡°She must have more than just one or two teachers.¡± That was an obvious fact. The deputy nodded. ¡°She has lessons in court etiquette, dance, life philosophy, painting, piano, and so on. All from the basic teachers of young, social aristocrats.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I signaled that the deputy could leave. He exited the room, and I leaned backfortably into my chair. ¡°Why does that woman keep following you, Your Majesty?¡± Count Eliza¡¯s expression was of cold anger. ¡°First she copies your dress, then your education.¡± I murmured in reply. ¡°She wants to be like me even more.¡± ¡°Do you think so?¡± I nodded my head. It was not umon in society for one to mimic the educational career of a favorite role model. Educators also received a lift in status when their students would go on to rise in social prominence. The education system that nurtured Duchess Tuania and I had be famous that way. If Rashta were an ordinary aristocrat, I might have considered it cute that she was following my footsteps. However, she was the woman that took my husband. A sense of unease and displeasure roiled in my gut. I felt the same as Countess Eliza towards this news... I remembered the special banquet during the New Year¡¯s celebration, when Rashta imitated my actions and voice as I greeted the envoys. Yesterday, I watched her write something down in her notebook. ¡®How far will she go to mimic me?¡¯ At this point, I could no longer feel the warmth from the water. I finished the foot bath and called for Sir Artina. ¡°How is the investigationing along?¡± As soon as he arrived, I asked about Viscount Roteschu and Rivetti. ¡°Nothing of importance yet.¡± Sir Artina answered in a hushed voice, and I nodded to show that he was free to leave. The thought of Rashta mimicking me hung over me like a cloud. I understood that I couldn¡¯t expect any results from an investigation in only a day or two, and even if a huge secret was revealed, I hadn¡¯t yet decided how to handle it. ¡°Well...Your Majesty.¡± Instead of leaving, however, Sir Artina tentatively spoke up. I looked up at him in curiosity, and he approached me and lowered his voice again. ¡°There isn¡¯t anything major to disclose, but there is one thing.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°There have been quite a high number of maids and servants who have been let go while working for Viscount Roteschu.¡± As Sir Artina said, this wasn¡¯t necessarily damning information. There were many nobles whose harsh and demanding nature led to a high turnover of household employees. ¡°I see.¡± I nodded carefully and didn¡¯t let myself be disappointed by the weakness of Sir Artina¡¯s information. But his words didn¡¯t end there. ¡°I approached those who were dismissed by Viscount Roteschu, and I heard a story from one of the maids.¡± He lowered his voice even further. ¡°There is a secret area in the mansion that no one except the family members and head butler can enter.¡± ¡°Secret area...?¡± Countess Eliza chimed into the conversation. ¡°But Your Majesty, Sir Artina. Many nobles have secret areas in their homes.¡± I agreed with Countess Eliza. Nobles often kept secret rooms or areas to hide treasures or heirlooms. Sir Artina nodded in agreement as well. ¡°Yes, which is why I didn¡¯t report immediately.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°But there is one more strange thing.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu has a young baby, but no one has ever seen its face. It¡¯s only being raised in the secret area.¡± So it wasn¡¯t about treasure or heirlooms...but a person. The baby? ¡°How interesting.¡± I heard that Viscount Roteschu had brought a baby when he moved into the mansion. Was it that same baby? I tried to deduce several things about it: perhaps the baby belonged to one of his unmarried children, or nephew, or some other distant rtive¡¯s. But hiding the baby? It stirred my curiosity. What if the baby wasn¡¯t just Viscount Roteschu¡¯s secret? ¡°...¡± ¡®Am I overthinking this?¡¯ *** Read full chapters on WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon It was four days after the debutante ball when Viscount Roteschu finally learned about the events that transpired there. Rivetti tried to remain silent about it, but eventually she couldn¡¯t contain her outburst. ¡°I simply sitting still, and Rashta made me look like a fool! She found out what dress I wore and purposely wore the same thing! How did she do that?¡± Not knowing that her dress was chosen by Rashta, Rivetti thought that Rashta had somehow schemed to obtain information on her. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face turned purple, and he didn¡¯t tell his daughter that he ckmailed Rashta into giving her a dress. The next day, Viscount Roteschu confronted Rashta. ¡°I told you to give my daughter a dress for the debutante ball, not to make her aughingstock!¡± In the face of Viscount Roteschu¡¯s anger, Rashta simply sat on her chair as she studied her small notebook. ¡°Rashta!¡± When he screamed at her, she set her notebook upside down and tilted her head. ¡°What?¡± At the sight, Viscount Roteschu¡¯s temper rose. ¡°You y a prank just because of a dress. You won¡¯te out of this amused.¡± ¡°Who gave you a free dress when you didn¡¯t have one?¡± ¡°?!¡± Viscount Roteschu recoiled in surprise when she spoke in a calm tone. It was strange that Rashta kept her expression as shielded as possible when he argued with her. ¡°That doesn¡¯t suit you.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t suit me?¡± ¡°You look like you¡¯re putting on a mask.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Rashta tilted her head to one side again, looking cold and distant. She stared at him as she raised her voice to rebuke him. ¡°Argue with your daughter, not Rashta. You should keep your child in line.¡± ¡°Who do you think is in charge here?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s jaw dropped open in incredulity. It was as if it were Rashta, not Rivetti, that underwent a debutante. It had only been a few days since hest saw Rashta, so how could she have changed her way of speaking so much? Rashta again looked at her notebook she had ced on herp. She put the notebook back down, then set her face before continuing to speak. ¡°Rivetti has a loose tongue. Are you really going to allow her to be near the Empress? What if she says something she shouldn¡¯t?¡± ¡°She¡¯s not loose-tongued.¡± ¡°You¡¯re too blinded to see any faults with your child.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to even see your own child, let alone his faults.¡± Rashta flinched at Viscount Roteschu¡¯s usation. The viscount was pleased to see Rashta¡¯s mask finally slip a little. He¡¯d rather deal with her like this, rather than the assertive way that made him nervous earlier. However, Rashta¡¯s shield came back around her like needles on a hedgehog. ¡°Don¡¯t threaten Rashta.¡± ¡°You are not forced to do anything you¡¯re afraid of.¡± ¡°...Viscount. Didn¡¯t you say that if you fell, I would fall too?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same the other way around. If I fall, I won¡¯t be alone.¡± Viscount Roteschu gave a sharp bark ofughter. He still looked down on the former ve, and he did not take her threat seriously. ¡°And?¡± Rashta stared at him coldly while she rested her chin against her hand. With her other hand she touched her belly, which was growing little by little each day. ¡°Even if the past is revealed and Rashta loses favor, Rashta still has a baby with His Majesty¡¯s blood. The Emperor still epts Rashta even if she is a ve, so he may even ept the past.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°But not you. Remember.¡° Chapter 121 - A Chance To Erase The Past (2) Chapter 121 ¨C A Chance To Erase The Past (2) ¡°Don¡¯t contradict Jim¡¯s words.¡± Viscount Roteschu kept his lips firmly shut at Sovieshu¡¯s authoritative tone. Sovieshu had been a strong prince since childhood. It was easy to think of him as a man who was wrapped around the fingers of a former ve, but his expression now made it difficult to look at him directly. ¡°I beg your forgiveness, Your Majesty.¡± Viscount Roteschu remained as calm as possible as he asked for forgiveness, before quickly adding, ¡°I caused a misunderstanding before, and now I¡¯m doing my best to make it up Miss Rashta. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here.¡± ¡°Someone like you would want help Rashta?¡± Viscount Roteschu reddened at Sovieshu¡¯s question, his pride injured. At the same time, he feared the emperor¡¯s sharpness towards him. Rashta was right¡ªit was uncertain if Sovieshu would turn against Rashta even if he learned about her past. ¡°Rashta will be taken care of by Jim, and nothing is required of you.¡± ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu cast Viscount Roteschu a final dirty look before passing by him. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s skin was covered in a cold sweat, and it was only when Sovieshu disappearedpletely that he finally managed to gather himself together. Even with Rashta¡¯s help, he couldn¡¯t make a name for himself in high society if the Emperor hated him. Sovieshu¡¯s icy re worried him. While Viscount Roteschu¡¯s mind was stuck on the Emperor, the Emperor himself, however, forgot all thoughts of Viscount Roteschu as soon as they parted ways. Sovieshu opened the door to Rashta¡¯s room and entered. Rashta was rxingfortably in an armchair and reading a small notebook. His chest tightened at the sight of her round belly, which was starting to show. He was thrilled to think that his child was growing there. ¡®I wish it was with the Empress, but...¡¯ He shook his head. Despite his reluctance to admit it, he half believed that the Empress was indeed infertile. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Rashta noticed Sovieshu approaching and lifted her head to smile at him. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Rashta set her notebook on the table, while Sovieshu knelt down to hold her waist and lean his cheek against her belly. ¡°I¡¯m well. It¡¯s a pleasure just to have you.¡± ¡°...Did you change your way of speaking?¡± ¡°I¡¯m learning manners. I still have to improve more, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. The way you used to speak was cute.¡± ¡°Even if I change my way of speaking, Rashta is still Rashta, right?¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± He chuckled, and asked that she stay in her armchair while he sat opposite of her. ¡°How are your studies?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve only just started. But it¡¯s very fun.¡± She smiled and pointed to the desk. It was stacked with open books and piles of papers, evidence of someone hard at work. ¡°Rashta will be your lover you will boast of.¡± ¡°You are already lovable, Rashta.¡± ¡°I want you to be proud.¡± Sovieshu gave a light chuckle. ¡°As the emperor, of course I would want to show you off.¡± ¡°I...¡± Rashta hesitated and blinked. She almost wanted him to say ¡°I just want you to be lovely.¡± But it was hard to say out loud. She looked at him cutely, when she noticed something that Sovieshu¡¯s expression was darker than usual. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Although Rashta called him to carefully, he did not immediately respond. ¡°Your Majesty? Is something wrong?¡± What if he met Viscount Roteschu on the way here? Did he say anything? Uneasy, Rashta forced a smile. After a long moment, Sovieshu finally spoke. ¡°Someone is trying to look into you and Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°...Who?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Anyway, don¡¯t have him visit so much.¡± She didn¡¯t ask that damnable viscount toe here. Rashta¡¯s mouth twitched with resentment, but she couldn¡¯t say anything. Sovieshu looked at her earnestly. ¡°And Rashta. If someone is threatening you, please tell me. I may be able to charge them so they can be expelled or executed.¡± Chapter 122 - I’m Yours Too (1) Chapter 122 ¨C I¡¯m Yours Too (1) Could that terrible man be executed? Was that possible? Rashta¡¯s eyes trembled. It was difficult to know whether Sovieshu was trying to get her to talk, or if he was being heartfelt. But if he really was serious, why didn¡¯t he do it when Viscount Roteschu first appeared? ¡®It has to be a lie.¡¯ ¡°Rashta.¡± Sovieshu carefully spoke her name again. ¡°If someone is threatening you over something you¡¯re hiding, please tell me. Once you start getting dragged by threats, there is no end.¡± Rashta was shaken. What if she told him the truth? He already knew that she was a ve, and epted her despite her history. Perhaps if she told him she had a baby with another man in the past... ¡®No.¡¯ Rashta crushed that thought. She remembered n, the man she thought was kind and gentle. n, a man who seemed ready to give up everything for their love. n, who abandoned her at thest moment. Sovieshu may be different, but she didn¡¯t want to risk everything on that assumption alone. ¡°Rashta has nothing to hide, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta gave a tinklingugh. However, Sovieshu¡¯s expression was still firm. ¡°Your Majesty...?¡± She looked at him uneasily. Did he know she was lying? He brushed aside a strand of her hair with his fingers, but he still looked worried. ¡°Your Majesty, Rashta is absolutely fine. Nothing to feel guilty about.¡± It was not until Rashta repeated herself that Sovieshu finally nodded. ¡®But who is investigating Viscount Roteschu?¡¯ The Empress, or perhaps another noble? Rashta clenched her fists. Whoever the enemy was, they would not find her secret. When she became pregnant in the Rimwell estate, Viscount Roteschu, ashamed and embarrassed, locked her away to prevent any outsiders from knowing about her. Although it caused her pain and distress at the time, it meant only a few knew about her secrets. She only had to keep careful watch on Viscount Roteschu, n and Rivetti. ¡°Your Majesty, please don¡¯t me Viscount Roteschu for nothing.¡± Rashta ced her hands together and looked at Sovieshu with wide eyes. ¡°If he¡¯s hated for no reason because of Rashta, Rashta won¡¯t be able to endure the guilt.¡± ¡°Alright. There¡¯s no need to worry.¡± With a relieved smile, Sovieshu patted Rashta on the shoulder and turned away. ¡°Wait, Your Majesty.¡± As she watched him leave, she stood up and approached directly behind him. Sovieshu looked back at her, and Rashta widened her eyes again. ¡°Your Majesty, can you put Rashta to bed?¡± Although she received Sovieshu¡¯s reassurances, she was still anxious about the knowledge that someone was attempting to dig up her past. She wanted Sovieshu tofort her. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rashta.¡± He nced at his watch and answered immediately. ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t. I have work to do.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°How about this?¡± He spoke in a soothing voice, then led Rashta back to the armchair and ced a soft nket on her knees. ¡°Rx here.¡± *** After Sovieshu left Rashta¡¯s room, he headed straight to his office. His chief secretary, Marquis Karl, was waiting inside. Sovieshu settled himself at his desk before going straight to business. ¡°How is the investigation?¡± Marquis Karl slipped a piece of paper towards him. ¡°I did the research as you said. But there is nothing worth mentioning yet.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Sovieshu furrowed his brow and tapped his fingers against the wood. ¡°There must be something...¡± Masters and runaway ves never had good rtionships, while Viscount Roteschu visited Rashta frequently. The more they met, the more that Viscount Roteschu¡¯s im that ¡°Rashta is not my ve¡± seemed usible. However, Sovieshu was unconvinced. And so, suspicious that Viscount Roteschu might be ckmailing Rashta, Sovieshu ordered Marquis Karl to investigate. ¡°What does Miss Rashta say, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no such thing.¡± ¡°Even if you will take care of it?¡± ¡°Yes. She doesn¡¯t want to be a burden on me.¡± Sovieshu sighed and shook his head. ¡°No matter how much I think about it, she¡¯s still naive.¡± ¡°What if you were to make a usible excuse to send Viscount Roteschu away?¡± ¡°My intentions would be obvious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue. Several months had passed since the viscount made his explosive im, but hisments had not been entirely forgotten. If Viscount Roteschu were to be expelled for no reason, it would only solidify belief among nobles that Rashta was indeed a runaway ve. Rashta had also earnestly requested that Sovieshu not touch Viscount Roteschu. Sovieshu sighed and waved his hand. ¡°We¡¯ll just have to wait and see. You may leave.¡± ¡°Well...Your Majesty.¡± Instead of heading for the door, however, Marquis Karl hesitated. ¡°What is it?¡± Sovieshu pulled out a stack of paper from a drawer, closed it, then looked back at Marquis Karl. The marquis¡¯ expression was dark. Sovieshu looked at him questioningly, and Marquis Karl spoke in a slow voice. ¡°While I was investigating Viscount Roteschu, I noticed some unusual people.¡± ¡°Unusual people?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not the only one investigating Viscount Roteschu.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s mouth was set in a hard line. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± At the question, Marquis Karl closed clenched his jaw. Although he was the one to bring up the topic, it seemed he found it difficult to answer. ¡°Who is it?¡± It was only after Sovieshu repeated himself did Marquis Karl heavily reply. ¡°It looked like Lord Koshar.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face hardened. ¡°That troublemaker again?¡± ¡°There also seems to be another investigation from Countess Eliza, who appears to have been ordered by the Empress.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue again with a look of annoyance. ¡°She said she wasn¡¯t interested in Rashta at all. Not only is the Empress spying on Rashta, but the Empress¡¯ family as well.¡± ¡°What should I do? There¡¯s nothing yet on Viscount Roteschu from the investigation.¡± A furrow formed between Sovieshu¡¯s brows, and he muttered to himself. ¡°This is trouble.¡± Koshar was a problem once more. The Empress herself paid keen attention to the Imperial Family¡¯s public and personal image. Even if she found out something about Rashta, she wouldn¡¯t do anything to jeopardize their reputation. But her brother Koshar was different. He was the type of person to rain flyers to all the nobles as soon as he obtained clear evidence that Rashta was a ve. And if there were other secrets, he was sure to reveal them all as well. ¡°Leave.¡± Sovieshu wanted to think alone, so he dismissed Marquis Karl from the room. When the door clicked shut, Sovieshu stood by the window and half-closed his eyes. Being a runaway ve was a great disgrace in society, for Rashta and the future baby. At the very least, Rashta was a concubine and could simply leave high society if things got out of hand, but the baby could never do that. ¡®What will I do...¡¯ He opened his eyes again and looked out the window with a grave expression. He worried about the treatment his child would receive for having a ve mother. Chapter 123 - I’m Yours Too (2) Chapter 123 ¨C I¡¯m Yours Too (2) After listening to the citizens¡¯ affairs in the audience chamber, I stayed only as long as I needed and left my seat as soon as it was over. Duke Tuania wanted to cancel his divorce with Duchess Tuania and reunite with her, and had wanted to see the necessary documents. ¡°If you¡¯re not busy, I have something to say to you.¡± Before I could leave, however, Sovieshu called me first. I turned around, and he stood up from his throne and approached me. Two guards were posted outside the audience chamber, but other than that, we were alone in the hall. Sovieshu spoke in an annoyed tone. ¡°Does your brother have any sense of reason?¡± His words echoed loudly in the empty audience chamber, and he immediately lowered his voice. ¡°He¡¯s been doing something else since the incident with the abortive drug.¡± ¡°Something else?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°Whether I know or not, you have to tell me what it is so I can decide.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know.¡± He lifted his eyebrows and his voice dropped to a mutter. ¡°No, you wouldn¡¯t have anything to do with this. If you were involved, you wouldn¡¯t be doing the same thing.¡± Same thing...? ¡°Lord Koshar is investigating Viscount Roteschu.¡± Ah. My brother too? Inwardly I was surprised, but I kept my face expressionless. Meanwhile, Sovieshu narrowed his eyes in usation. ¡°I¡¯m sure he¡¯s looking into Rashta as well.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Just like the Empress.¡± Instead of answering him, I stared quietly into Sovieshu¡¯s dark eyes. The sound of the bejeweled clock in the room seemed exceptionally loud in the chamber. Sovieshu looked at me, then turned away. ¡°Guard your honor as an empress.¡± I already did that. If I had decided to cast off my honor, I would have already torn off Sovieshu¡¯s hair several times by now. It might make me feel better for a while, but I knew it would only cause a bigger storm. ¡°I will. As always.¡± I didn¡¯t want to argue with him, so I simply agreed. As I turned around again, Sovieshu spoke up. ¡°What on earth are you so unhappy about?¡± I looked back at him, and he continued with sincere curiosity. ¡°That girl has nothing, and you have everything.¡± ¡°She has taken His Majesty the Emperor.¡± You, my husband. Sovieshu gave an emptyugh. ¡°I am already yours. Don¡¯t talk nonsense.¡± I made a noise of disbelief. Sovieshu was mine? ¡°And did I lend His Majesty to Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Unless I have done so, His Majesty is not my own.¡± Sovieshu stared at me with a strange look. ¡°...You¡¯re jealous of Rashta.¡± ¡°Whether I love you or not, we are already legally married.¡± ¡°It would have been nice to hear that you¡¯re jealous because you love me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°But of course you won¡¯t say that. Because you don¡¯t love me.¡± I was taken by surprise by his words. Although his dark eyes trembled in hurt, I was satisfied to see it. He was like the sensitive mimosa nt whose leaves folded on itself when touched. ¡°If you have nothing more to say, I¡¯ll go.¡± I turned my heel, and Sovieshu called me yet again. ¡°Empress.¡± What was it this time? When I looked back, Sovieshu had removed the sensitive mimosa mask and reced it with the handsome emperor. ¡°I¡¯ll be gone for two days to investigate the loss of the mages¡¯ power.¡± ¡°You¡¯re going in person?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s real.¡± ¡°I see.¡± I suddenly became worried at his words. The mages were the source of power for the Eastern Empire. Although the military army was a considerable force, they were not as powerful as the mages. ¡°Come back safely.¡± I spoke from the heart this time. ¡°...¡± However, Sovieshu did not answer. I thought he ignored what I said, but then he slowly spoke. ¡°Would you like toe with me?¡± ¡°For the investigation?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t work the whole trip. Maybe take a break on the way back.¡± He paused as I stared at him, and then he listed ces famous for their tourism and recreation. He wanted to idle away after work. I shook my head. ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned to disappointment. ¡°You can¡¯t?¡± ¡°I was already away for a few days on my birthday.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°If we both leave now, there will be no one to hold audience again untilter.¡± ¡°It¡¯s only two days.¡± ¡°Those who have been seeking an audience have been waiting outside the pce for days.¡± *** ¡°The Empress puts work over His Majesty.¡± Rashta sped Sovieshu¡¯s hand and spoke over and over. Instead of answering her, Sovieshu simply shut his eyes. Rashta stared intently at his grim face. He usually looked like a majestic emperor, but when he closed his eyes at the thought of the Empress rejecting him, he looked like an ordinary man. ¡®What kind of words did the Empress say to make him like this?¡¯ Rashta gazed at the Emperor¡¯s profile, which was picturesque even when he was angry, and then murmured softly again to him. ¡°How could the Empress do that to you?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes were still closed. Rashta lightly kissed his cheek and whispered her confession to him. ¡°You alwayse first to Rashta.¡± ¡°The Empress is simply busy.¡± ¡°Rashta can¡¯t rece the Empress, but...¡± She trailed off, and Sovieshu opened his eyes and looked at her. She leaned her head against his shoulder. ¡°Would you mind if Rashta came along?¡± ¡°You?¡± ¡°Rashta can¡¯t help with work, but Rashta can help you. And helping you helps the country.¡± ¡°It won¡¯t be a fun journey.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± She looked up at Sovieshu and smiled brightly. ¡°It¡¯s important to go with His Majesty.¡± Rashta sadly stroked her stomach with one hand. ¡°And I don¡¯t want to be alone in the pce when you¡¯re gone. It¡¯s scary. Who might try to hurt our baby...?¡± Sovieshu remembered the poison attempt and nodded. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡± ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty.¡± Rashta leaned her head again on Sovieshu¡¯s solid shoulders and embraced his arms. She remembered the advice Duke Elgy had given her. ¡®Rashta is not the empress yet. Rashta needs to go around and get the support of themon people.¡¯ Chapter 124 - Exploding At A Touch (1)

Chapter 124 ¨C Exploding At A Touch (1)

Trantor: Srednazm Editor: Crystal Crater I went to therge courtyard inside the pce gate to see off Sovieshu on his two-day trip. Rashta was also present, dressed simply in a white dress. I kept my gaze firmly averted from her as usual, but from the corner of my eye I could tell she was looking at me. I was bothered by it. Our eyes met unexpectedly, and I saw that she was shooting me a re. This was rare for Rashta, who usually kept her expressions smoothly serene. When I stared back at her she immediately blushed and lowered her head... That was certainly surprising. ¡®Did something happen?¡¯ I turned my head back to Sovieshu, and saw that he was looking at Rashta with a concerned expression. ¡®Is there a problem between them?¡¯ I looked on in curiosity, but then I looked away and kept as straight a face as possible. It wasn¡¯t until Sovieshu stepped into the carriage did I finally understand why Rashta had been ring at me. ¡°Rashta is jealous of Her Majesty the Empress.¡± Rashta quietly approached me, bowing to me slightly while mumbling in a weak voice. ¡°Rashta loves the Emperor but must suppress her feelings. Meanwhile, the Empress does not even love His Majesty...¡± ¡°Did the Emperor tell you that you couldn¡¯t go with him?¡± ¡°?!¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened in shock. If I had replied, ¡°You have the nerve saying that¡± instead, it would not be befitting of an empress. Instead of engaging in conversation, I extended my fingertips and pressed them lightly near Rashta¡¯s eyebrow. ¡°Your Majesty...?¡± She looked up at me with wide eyes. Her soft eyes drooped even more and resembled that of a rabbit¡¯s. ¡°Take some pressure off your eyes, just like that.¡± I pulled away my hand, and she blinked confusedly for a moment. She didn¡¯tprehend what I was saying at first, but when realization dawned on her, she turned red. I didn¡¯t want to spend one more second in conversation with her, so I turned around and went back to my room. There was still some time before my audience duties, so I was thinking to take off my shoes and rx a bit. However, when I entered the room and settled against my armchair, Sovieshu¡¯s words came back to me. ¡®Stop looking into Rashta.¡¯ He didn¡¯t say it tantly, but he was talking directly about me. That, or my brother. ¡°Haaa...¡± It hade to this unfortunately, but it couldn¡¯t continue this way anymore. I asked Sir Artina and Countess Eliza not to continue their investigation because Sovieshu had found out. ¡°But wouldn¡¯t it be better to still investigate them?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be more careful.¡± Countess Eliza and Sir Artina wanted to see the job to the end, but I tly refused. After another moment¡¯s consideration, I called in Marquis Farang under the pretext of asking for advice. ¡°It¡¯s best you stop looking into Viscount Roteschu for a while.¡± ¡°Uh...How did you know?¡± ¡°His Majesty told me.¡± ¡°How did he find out?¡± Marquis Farang rubbed his forehead,pletely taken aback. This was a different reaction than when I caught him poisoning Rashta. Maybe he had been confident that this time he wouldn¡¯t get caught. ¡°I don¡¯t know. But try to keep quiet for a while.¡± ¡°Is His Majesty...angry?¡± ¡°...Anything about her makes him angry.¡± Marquis Farang lifted his eyebrows and then lowered them back with a sigh. ¡°I see.¡± However, he did not give a definite answer. ¡°Marquis Farang.¡± I addressed him in a more authoritative tone, and he let out a sound of hesitation as he covered his mouth with a hand. ¡°Well...it would be best if we could keep quiet.¡± ¡°Is there a reason you can¡¯t?¡± ¡°Koshar went out for a drink yesterday. He heard something that wasn¡¯t so good.¡± Not good? I was curious to know what that meant, but Marquis Farang wouldn¡¯t give further details. ¡°It¡¯s about me.¡± I could make a guess, and the marquis gave a stiff smile. ¡°Well...people rush into gossip...¡± ¡°I must be the topic of it.¡± ¡°...¡± Marquis Farang looked ready to cry, and I closed my mouth to encourage him to keep talking. ¡°As you know, Koshar is a bit...you know. The moment he heard something bad about you, he got a bit angry and...¡± ¡°Did he hurt somebody?¡± ¡°Luckily I was there to resolve the situation, both during the fight and with the person who was hurt.¡± Marquis Farang tried to add more words in my brother¡¯s defense. ¡°He won¡¯t stop. It¡¯s happened a few times recently. I¡¯ve had it up to here trying to hold back his temper.¡± ¡°Then isn¡¯t everything alright?¡± ¡°It happened yesterday, it hasn¡¯t even been 24 hours yet.¡± Marquis Farang sighed. ¡°Koshar is still furious.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think he¡¯ll calm down?¡± ¡°Well, at least until before I left.¡± ¡°Before you left?¡± ¡°I had been trying to mitigate the situation, until you called me here.¡± I also felt uneasy after listening to Marquis Farang¡¯s words. Koshar must have been furious if even Marquis Farang had trouble calming him down. Would my elder brother listen to me if I told him to stay put? Or would he be more angry, using me of looking out for Sovieshu¡¯s feelings? ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much, Your Majesty. I¡¯ll handle it.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll take my leave.¡± Marquis Farang nced at his watch, got out of his chair, and quickly picked up his coat. ¡°I¡¯d love to stay longer, but I¡¯m concerned about leaving Koshar alone. I¡¯ll visit again.¡± Chapter 125 - Exploding At A Touch (2)

Chapter 125 ¨C Exploding At A Touch (2)

Trantor: Srednazm Editor: Crystal Crater Just as Marquis Farang and Navier had feared, Koshar was in a murderous mood. He was not even close to exploding as he had already done so. Blood pulsed in his veins like hotva. Koshar wasn¡¯t to be found at the Troby residence either. As soon as he heard Viscount Roteschu had left his home, Koshar went in pursuit of him. Before he could get to him, however, severalrge, burly men stepped in his way. Koshar tried to sidestep them, but they continuously blocked his path. The men checked to make sure that no one else was around, then grabbed Koshar by the cor. ¡°Are you the pretty boy, Koshar Troby?¡± Koshar frowned. He had gotten into fights many times, but rarely did anyone instigate it when they knew who he was. The only ones who were foolish to do so werepletely wasted and not in a sane state of mind. But if these people were confirming if he was from the Troby family, then that meant... ¡®Someone has sent them after me.¡¯ He let out a bark ofughter. Therge man tightened his grip on Koshar and sneered at him. Koshar shed him a wink, and the man roared directly at his face. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re¡ª¡± But even before the man could finish speaking, his vision whirled as he was bodily thrown to the ground. The other burly men were surprised to see theirrade so easily flipped over, but they outnumbered Koshar and charged at him. The encounter didn¡¯tst long. Koshar, who had raged through countless battlefields, would never lose to some street boys who used their fists. Koshar drew his sword. ¡°You coward! Using a weapon!¡± ¡°Well, aren¡¯t you the cowards for charging at me when I was outnumbered.¡± Koshar swiftly defeated the five men, and he pointed his sword at them when they tried to run away. He walked over to the burliest man of all, pressing his weapon at the man¡¯s groin. ¡°Who ordered you toe after me?¡± ¡°Wh-what do you mean, ordered?¡± The man tried to remain faithful to his employer, and Koshar gave a wicked smile and said, ¡°Bye-bye, future children!¡± Frightened, the man suddenly blurted out the information. ¡°It was a skinny middle-aged man! I don¡¯t know his name!¡± There were many skinny, middle-aged men, but Koshar roughly sketched out who it was. Viscount Roteschu. Koshar¡¯s expression darkened, and the burly man gave a sharp intake of breath. Koshar flipped his sword and struck his head and every other man¡¯s head with the hilt of his sword to knock them out, and then hid their bodies in an alley. Then, he called for a servant to confirm Viscount Roteschu¡¯s location. ¡°He¡¯s gone to the pce.¡± ¡°By carriage?¡± ¡°No, he¡¯s walking. It seems that he¡¯ll enter through a side entrance.¡± ¡°Get my horse.¡± The servant brought the horse, and Koshar climbed on and moved quickly, the servant riding behind him. When they neared the pce, Koshar dismounted and ordered the servant to take the horse elsewhere. Koshar remained hidden by a road where anyone travelling to the pce had to take, then spotted Viscount Roteschu¡¯s form approaching. Koshar leapt out and grabbed him, and dragged him to a deserted road. ¡°Oh my god! What¡¯s going on?¡± Viscount Roteschu struggled with all his might, but could not escape Koshar¡¯s strong grip. ¡°Get off me, you brat! Let me go!¡± Viscount Roteschu shouted at the top of his lungs, and Koshar pulled out his dagger and held it next to the viscount¡¯s face. ¡°See this?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°If you yell one more time, I¡¯ll drive this into your throat.¡± ¡°O-oh...!¡± Viscount Roteschu shook with anger, but fear won over. Koshar was infamous for his animalistic fury, and Viscount Roteschu didn¡¯t want to die a slow and painful death on this lonely road. Viscount Roteschu fell quiet, and Koshar struck the side of his neck, knocking him out. Koshar brought the viscount¡¯s body into an abandoned mansion, throwing him inside a room with no windows, and then closing the door. Though Koshar hadn¡¯t prepared any ropes or chairs in advance, the room was furnished with them, as if someone had brought them there for a simr purpose. Koshar gagged and tied the viscount to the chair, then pped his cheeks to wake him up. Viscount Roteschu stirred before his eyes flew open, and, panic-stricken, he tried to break free when he saw Koshar¡¯s menacing expression. However, the gag muffled his yells and the rope restricted his movement. At best, he could only rattle the chair to the point where it almost tipped over. The viscount panted with effort, and Koshar grinned and touched the viscount¡¯s ear. ¡°I¡¯m going to take the gag off now, so don¡¯t scream. If you do, your ear will hurt very much.¡± Your ear, of course, not mine. Koshar whispered it so quietly that the viscount could only shake with terror. Despite the warning, however, Viscount Roteschu started screaming as soon as the gag was removed. In response, Koshar grabbed his head and cut off one of his ears. Despite Viscount Roteschu¡¯s doubts before, he now experienced first-hand the terrors associated with Koshar. Pain exploded through his body, and he thrashed against his restraints. Koshar crammed the gag back in his mouth again to stifle his screams, and tossed the half-torn ear onto the floor while humming a tune. Viscount Roteschu was half-conscious at this point, but he didn¡¯t ck out and managed a re at Koshar. When Koshar brushed his forehead with blood-stained fingers, the viscount realized that there was no point trying to resist. The beast did not have an iota of empathy in him. As Viscount Roteschu fell quiet, Koshar patted him on the shoulder and praised him, saying he should have been like this all along. A secondter, Koshar struck him with his fist. Why was Koshar hitting him when he was sitting still! The viscount tried to say something about the unfairness, but he couldn¡¯t open his mouth to speak as Koshar¡¯s fists continued to pummel him from all directions. Koshar used him like he was a punching bag, and just as the viscount fainted, Koshar took out his pocket watch. Then, he put it away and stared at the limp man tied to the chair. Koshar knew from experience that his victim wouldn¡¯t die, and he had calibrated his assault to cause intense pain but not disability. Koshar pped Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face to wake him up again. The man blinked open his bloodshot eyes. ¡°Awake now, are you?¡± Koshar smiled and gave his greetings, and took the gag out. Viscount Roteschu said nothing this time, but a few small groans left his lips. Koshar did not hit him this time, and instead pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the viscount¡¯s bloodied lips. ¡°I was just going about as peacefully as possible to get the information I needed. Why did you have to be so violent?¡± ¡°Violent? You¡¯re the one who was¡ª¡± Viscount Roteschu mped his mouth shut when he saw Koshar¡¯s eyes. Viscount Roteschu, after hearing that Koshar was investigating Rashta, had sent men with the orders to hurt Koshar so badly that he would be disabled for the next few months. That was probably when Koshar found out. Koshar pulled up another chair and sat in front of him. ¡°Are you helping that woman?¡± ¡°What woman?¡± ¡°The Emperor¡¯s concubine.¡± ¡°I...I...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even try to lie to me.¡± ¡°...¡± Viscount Roteschu closed his mouth. He had visited Rashta so frequently that everyone knew they had a rtionship. Koshar grinned. ¡°Speak.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°About that woman.¡± ¡°What about her...¡± ¡°Anything that would be of interest to me.¡± Koshar did not even bring up the subject of how Viscount Roteschu hired men to attack him, as if he thought that matter long forgotten. Instead, his mind was bent on finding information about Rashta. Viscount Roteschu gulped. ¡°She¡¯s amoner.¡± ¡°Born a ve, right? She¡¯s a runaway ve. You said it yourself.¡± ¡°Well...that was a misunderstanding...¡± ¡°Viscount, do you know how patient I am?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Not very much at all.¡± Koshar lifted his lips in a horrible smile, and Viscount Roteschu felt a shiver run down his back. It was a type of smile one made before they killed someone. Viscount Roteschu hurriedly answered. ¡°Yes, Rashta is a runaway ve!¡± ¡°I already know that. Next?¡± ¡°Next?¡± ¡°Her being a runaway ve was already known publicly for some time. Something else.¡± Viscount Roteschu tried to rack his brain for what Koshar would want. Koshar was already rich, so bribes were out of the question. At the same time, Viscount Roteschu needed to appease him with a weakness of Rashta¡¯s. Viscount Roteschu yelled his answer as soon as he found it. ¡°A baby! She has a baby!¡± Chapter 126 - The Keeper Of Secrets (1) Chapter 126 ¨C The Keeper Of Secrets (1) Trantor: Srednazm Editor: Crystal Crater ¡°Do you want me to help her with her baby?¡± Koshar burst out into mockingughter. ¡°Is that your sincere plea? Why don¡¯t you say your sentence correctly?¡± Viscount Roteschu shouted suddenly. ¡°No, I mean Rashta has had a baby before!¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Koshar stared at him for a moment and then gave him anguid hum of satisfaction. ¡°Really?¡± Koshar suspected that Viscount Roteschu held the key to destroying Rashta. He didn¡¯t expect there would be a baby. ¡°Who is the father?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t know? Why don¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°Even though my estate is small, I have more than one or two ves. I can¡¯t watch every one of them!¡± ¡°Hmmm.¡± ¡°Since it was a miracle at the time, maybe it was a passing traveler...¡± Out of fear, Viscount Roteschu did not reveal that Rashta¡¯s lover was his son n. He couldn¡¯t risk dragging his son into it. Fortunately for Viscount Roteschu, Koshar was not interested in who the father was. ¡°Where is the baby?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who the father is, and the mother abandoned the child and ran away. I had to raise it myself.¡± Koshar roared a triumphantugh. He had intended to hunt down Rashta¡¯s weakness, and this was the treasure that he was rewarded with! Viscount Roteschu swallowed nervously as he watched Koshar celebrate. Would this destroy Rashta? Viscount Roteschu turned his head around, trying to find a way to escape. Koshar¡¯sughter faded away, and he gave Viscount Roteschu a pleasant smile. ¡°Good. What else?¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing else, really!¡± ¡°Think carefully. There has to be.¡± ¡°No, there isn¡¯t!¡± Koshar bent down in front of Viscount Roteschu and stared into his eyes, as if he was boring into his inner thoughts. Viscount Roteschu gulped and endured the piercing gaze. He was as vulnerable as if he were thrown naked in front of a tiger. Luckily, Koshar seemed to believe in his words. ¡°Is there any evidence that Rashta was a ve?¡± ¡°Evidence?¡± ¡°Evidence enough to convince people that it¡¯s true.¡± ¡°If Ie forward and say it¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯ve already done that, and then reversed your words. Your testimonycks credibility.¡± Koshar spoke in a casual tone, but his fingers danced at the hilt of his sword. Viscount Roteschu did not have to have the threat exined to him, and he shouted quickly. ¡°I have a certificate of sale!¡± ¡°A certificate of sale?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a ve trade certificate! It contains a description of Rashta¡¯s appearance.¡± *** Viscount Roteschu and Koshar were not alone in the abandoned mansion. While Koshar was an excellent warrior with sharpened senses, he could not detect every minute sound, especially over Viscount Roteschu¡¯s screams. One did not have to be extraordinarily talented to hide. ¡®How can this be?¡¯ The other man who had snuck in was an investigator sent by the Emperor¡¯s chief secretary, Marquis Karl. He had been ordered to tail Viscount Roteschu, and hade to witness the scene. It was difficult to make out Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words from his swollen face, but the investigator knew that they spoke of Rashta. Apparently, she was a ve and had given birth to a baby before... The emperors¡¯ concubines were not always single, however. Some were married to another partner and even had children with them. Lying about it was notmon though, and it appeared that Viscount Roteschu and Rashta had been actively deceiving Sovieshu. The man held his breath and listened for more, but the conversation had gone quiet. He swallowed. Marquis Karl had instructed him to find out what was being used to ckmail Rashta, and his task was aplished. However, he was unsure what to do with the dire situation. ¡®Should I save Viscount Roteschu?¡¯ He was not confident he could beat the notorious beast that was Koshar. He had also snuck in under the shelter of Viscount Roteschu¡¯s screams, but the manor was silent now. The man continued to hold his breath for a long time, relying on his body clock to tell the passage of time. He saw Koshar smile and wave to Viscount Roteschu. ¡°Bye.¡± Koshar turned around. He seemed to be leaving by himself. ¡°W-wait! What about me?!¡± Viscount Roteschu cried out. He was terrified he would be abandoned in this empty, decrepit manor alone. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be gone. Someone else will rescue you soon.¡± Koshar threw out the remark casually. The man who was hiding was rmed for a moment, but he soon dismissed it as a coincidence. If Koshar knew where he was, he would have caught him and dragged him out already. Many viiness men probably came and went at this mansion, so it was likely Koshar meant that one of them woulde by Viscount Roteschu. ¡®Wait, isn¡¯t that more dangerous?¡¯ The man discreetly wiped his sweaty palms across his shirt. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s cries for release pierced his eardrums, but he did not save the viscount. He escaped and went straight to Marquis Karl to deliver his report. ¡°My Lord, I found out what Viscount Roteschu is ckmailing Rashta with.¡± Marquis Karl quickly pulled the man into a room. ¡°Tell me quickly.¡± The man told Marquis Karl everything he saw and heard, and the marquis¡¯ eyes widened at the information. Some of the Emperor¡¯s secretaries knew or were convinced that Rashta was a runaway ve, including Marquis Karl, so that wasn¡¯t a surprise. But a baby... ¡°Well.¡± Marquis Karl paced the room nervously, and the man spoke up carefully. ¡°What will you do?¡± It was a difficult question for the marquis to answer. He looked out the window and murmured to himself. ¡°The Emperor is absent.¡± After half an hour of thought, he went to his desk to write a letter to the Emperor, then summoned a servant. ¡°His Majesty has gone to Greenram. It¡¯s an official visit, and it won¡¯t be difficult to find his location. Deliver this letter to him at once.¡± ¡°Yes, My Lord.¡± When the servant left, Marquis Karl dropped into his seat and gave a weakugh. ¡°Baby...¡± Chapter 127 - The Keeper Of Secrets (2) Chapter 127 ¨C The Keeper Of Secrets (2) Trantor: Srednazm Editor: Crystal Crater ¡°So the number of mages is actually decreasing?¡± ¡°Yes, it has been happening for nearly two decades. The problem is, the rate of decline has increased dramatically in recent years.¡± ¡°What is the cause?¡± ¡°We¡¯re still trying to find out.¡± It was midnight. Sovieshu leaned back in his armchair as he recalled his conversation with the head of the mages office. Heced his fingers together and rested them beneath his chin, and thought about the consequences the situation would have. The number of valuable mages were decreasing... The Eastern Empire still had great national strength, with its army being the next strongest force. However, the mages far outstripped them in power. What if the mages disappeared? Other countries would take advantage of this vacuum to strengthen their own nations. ¡°We¡¯ll need to increase the size and budget of the army.¡± As soon as he made his decision, he took out a piece of paper and wrote down a list of directives to be given to his officials. He was about halfway through when a servant came to him, informing him of the arrival of one of Marquis Karl¡¯s messengers. ¡®Marquis Karl?¡¯ Sovieshu ordered him in. Marquis Karl knew that he was busy on his inspection tour. The messenger who entered the room look exhausted, as if he hade in a great hurry. ¡°What is it?¡± Sovieshu skipped the greeting and went straight to the point, wondering about the cause of urgency. The messenger bent his knee and held out an envelope. ¡°Marquis Karl has ordered this delivered to Your Majesty.¡± ¡°A letter?¡± Sovieshu took the envelope and pulled out the paper. ¡°...¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes swept over the letter as he read it. Then at one point, he froze like a wooden puppet. The man who delivered the letter looked at Sovieshu concernedly. What was it? As Sovieshu¡¯s expression grew darker, the messenger felt even more awkward. Finally, Sovieshu closed the letter. ¡°First, save Viscount Roteschu, and then confine Koshar to his home.¡± The man looked at Sovieshu in surprise. He had no idea what the letter contained, but it was shocking that the Empress¡¯ brother was to be ced under house arrest. However, the messenger was not in a position to express his opinions to the Emperor. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The man bowed and then hurried out again. *** Viscount Roteschu had said he would visit the Imperial Pce, but he hadn¡¯t yet returned. n, who had been absentmindedly looking after the baby, began to worry when his father still hadn¡¯t returned the next day. ¡®Did something happen?¡¯ Uneasy, n dressed himself in his best clothes and prepared to enter the Imperial Pce. It was obvious who his father went to go meet. Rashta. n would ask her about his father, but he wanted to see her again too. Before he left home, he clipped off a lock of the baby¡¯s hair, wrapped it in a soft cloth, and tucked it in his bosom pocket. The Imperial Pce had various entrances, some which were easy to ess, and some that weren¡¯t. n¡¯s heart beat wildly in his chest as he went in one of the easier-to-ess entrances, and waited nervously in the courtyard with the message that he wanted to meet Rashta. Not long after, a maid approached n and led him into another small, quiet garden. He was not familiar with the Imperial Pce¡¯s geography, but it was certainly not Rashta¡¯s ce. Rashta appeared and n smiled reflexively when he saw her. However, her expression remained stone cold. ¡°What is it?¡± She stopped five steps away and spoke in a low but sharp voice. n flinched at her hostility, but after a moment¡¯s hesitation he pulled out the cloth from his pocket. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°I wanted to give this to you...¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Hair.¡± ¡°Is this a joke?¡± ¡°Hair inside.¡± Rashta pped away his hand, and the cloth fell to the ground. The fine fabric unfolded, revealing a lock of silver hair that was the same color as Rashta¡¯s. ¡°Oh...I¡¯m sorry. I thought you¡¯d like it...¡± ¡°That child is yours, not Rashta¡¯s. Why would I like it?¡± ¡°Right. Yes. I¡¯m sorry.¡± n apologized, but he couldn¡¯t suppress the disappointment swelling within him. He thought that Rashta arranging a mansion in the capital for them meant something. ¡°You came here because of this?¡± She looked at n with annoyance etched across her face. Whatever his intentions were, she considered the man in front of her a threat. The two of them being together would not look good. n made a small noise as he remembered his real purpose ofing here. ¡°Did you meet my father yesterday?¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu? No.¡± Rashta frowned at her reply. ¡°He didn¡¯te?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°He said he went to see you, and I haven¡¯t seen him since...¡± n trailed off weakly. Afterwards, Rashta ordered the maid to escort n away. When he was gone, she fretfully pressed her lips together. Viscount Roteschu went to visit her and then disappeared? Any other time she would have assumed he had just changed his mind, but Sovieshu had told her a while ago that someone was tailing the viscount. Was there a connection? Sovieshu was away, and there was nothing he could do here. Rashta cursed inwardly and was about to leave the garden, but she paused when she saw the cloth and lock of hair that n had dropped. ¡°...¡± She looked around, and then bent down to pick up the cloth and hair. The hair really was the same color as hers, but it was softer, like a baby¡¯s. Rashta stared at it trembling eyes, then rolled up the cloth and went back to her room. *** That night. The messenger arrived at the capital and conveyed Sovieshu¡¯s order to Marquis Karl, who made arrangements to have Viscount Roteschu rescued at the abandoned mansion. It was left to the Emperor¡¯s Imperial Guard to confine Koshar in his house. It was difficult to control Koshar by pure physical force, and so it was done with the authority of the Emperor. Koshar regailed what he saw and heard to his friend Marquis Farang, who listened to his story and spouted praises. They were interrupted by amotion outside, and Marquis Farang went out onto the staircase and observed the entrance hall. The guards were informing Duchess Troby the Emperor¡¯s orders. Marquis Farang hurried back to Koshar¡¯s room. ¡°The Emperor¡¯s guard are here. They¡¯re cing you under house arrest.¡± ¡°Ha.¡± ¡°Maybe he knows that you threatened Viscount Roteschu and wants to silence you.¡± There was the sound of several people climbing up the stairs. ¡°I won¡¯t stay here. I¡¯ll go to the Empress and tell her about this.¡± Marquis Farang opened the window and jumped out. *** Read full chapters on WordExcerpt or Crystal Crater¡¯s Patreon. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± I was reading thest book on Rwibt left by Grand Duke Kapmen, when Countess Eliza leaned in close and whispered nervously in my ear. ¡°Marquis Farang hase to see you.¡± ¡°At this hour?¡± My eyes fell on the clock. It was veryte. ¡®Something¡¯s wrong.¡¯ If Marquis Farang hade to visit me at this time, it had to be serious. ¡°Let him in.¡± I closed the book and set it down the window, then stood up to go to the parlor room. A momentter, the door opened and Marquis Farang came in with an ominous expression. Chapter 128 - The Storm Shall Blow (1) Chapter 128 ¨C The Storm Shall Blow (1) ¡°I apologize for myte arrival, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Farang greeted me, and I waved my hand to signal that everyone else should leave the room. Countess Eliza noticed, and brought the two other maids out with her so I could speak in private. ¡°What is it?¡± As soon as we were alone, Marquis Farang sat in a chair and urgently recounted me the news: the fact that Rashta was a runaway ve, that she had given birth to a baby before she met Sovieshu¡ª ¡°Baby? Rashta¡¯s baby?¡± ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t know who the father is, but Viscount Roteschu is taking care of the baby because Rashta ran away and left it behind.¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s baby...¡± I had heard rumors that Viscount Roteschu was keeping a baby, and while I never said it out loud, I had suspicions that it might be Rashta¡¯s. ¡°No one knows who the father is. Are you sure?¡± ¡°Well, ording to what I heard. If they¡¯re raised and sold as a ve anyway, it doesn¡¯t matter who the father is.¡± Marquis Farang replied in cold sarcasm and waved his hand before continuing. His next piece of news was not about Rashta, but of my brother and Sovieshu. Koshar had violently assaulted Viscount Roteschu to collect information from him, and in response, Sovieshu sent his guard to confine my brother to his home. Perhaps he suspected that Koshar might try to spread evidence that Rashta was a ve. ¡°We were one step behind.¡± I tried to warn my brother about his rash behavior, but now the situation had devolved. I sighed, but Marquis Farang grinned and shook his head. ¡°We were one step ahead.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Because Viscount Roteschu is in league with ¡®that woman¡¯, he won¡¯t disclose her secrets to His Majesty. And because His Majesty doesn¡¯t trust Koshar at all and hates him, Koshar likely won¡¯t say anything.¡± ¡°By that you mean... I should tell His Majesty about Rashta¡¯s secret?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I know you don¡¯t like preying on people who are weak.¡± Marquis Farang stared at me with a fierce expression in his eyes. ¡°But Your Majesty, wouldn¡¯t it be better if the flesh of cattle was eaten rather than the flesh of a noble and elegant swan? One only needs to wash away the blood and residue.¡± *** After Marquis Farang left, Countess Eliza wordlessly brought me a cup of hot coffee. I sat by the parlor window and stared at the moon, lost in thought. Rashta had an astonishing past, she was unwilling to tell it to Sovieshu. In the days when she became beloved by the Emperor, she had attacked my brother with lies and mimicked me, all because she was the weakest and most vulnerable in the household. Passing over Rashta¡¯s actions those days was thepassion that Sovieshu demanded of me. It was a matter of my pride. Moreover, Viscount Roteschu could not be trusted. He told Koshar that Rashta left her baby behind. Did she abandon it, or had she lost it unwillingly? I heard from Sir Artina that Viscount Roteschu keeps the baby hidden. If Rashta abandoned the baby, then why was it necessary? Now that Viscount Roteschu and Rashta were cooperating, the viscount had incentive to cover up the past. A normal master and ve wouldn¡¯t have had such a rtionship. ¡°...¡± However...Marquis Farang was also right. Treating Rashta as an outsider or overlooking her past was only possible when we could ignore each other. Now with my brother under house arrest, clinging on to appearances was foolish. ¡®First, let me talk to Sovieshu about my brother.¡¯ *** Navier wasn¡¯t the only soul wrapped up in disquieting thoughts. In a carriage headed towards the capital, Sovieshu tried to focus on the issue of the declining number of mages, but his mind kept turning towards Rashta. Rashta already had a baby. The fact that she did was obviously shocking, as well as the fact that she had a lover, but that wasn¡¯t the major issue to him. For Sovieshu, the problem was that Rashta had lied to him. Nevertheless, Sovieshu could not find it in his heart to me Rashta unconditionally. He still remembered her pathetic and pitiful form when he first rescued her, and he didn¡¯t want to judge her yet without knowing if her baby was stolen, abandoned, or anything else. Sovieshu arrived at the pce early the next morning without clearing his thoughts. First, he went to visit Rashta. ¡°Miss Rashta hasn¡¯t woken yet, but I¡¯ll get her for you.¡± The maid made to leave to wake up Rashta, but Sovieshu waved her away and walked into Rashta¡¯s room. She was slumbering peacefully in bed. Sovieshu sighed and leaned by the door to watch her, when gaze fell onto something unusual on the table. He moved closer to it, and saw a lock of beautiful silver hair. He furtively touched it with his fingers. ¡®Did she cut her hair?¡¯ He thought it was Rashta¡¯s hair, but after a moment, he thought it had the appearance and texture of baby¡¯s hair. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Rashta was sitting up and calling to him in a sleep-slurred voice. She got out of bed, asking why he was here, but her face turned deathly pale when she noticed what he was looking at. ¡°Your...Majesty?¡± Her voice trembled in terror. ¡°Ah, I-I trimmed my hair a little earlier. I think I left that by mistake.¡± Before Sovieshu could answer, she ran over, quickly grabbed the hair, then went back to the bed. Her awkward behavior spoke volumes. He was certain of it¡ªthe hair was from her first baby. ¡®Did she abandon the baby?¡¯ He clicked his tongue. Perhaps Rashta had no choice but to say goodbye to the baby, and she secretly kept the hair because she missed her child. Rashta¡¯s situation had suddenly be more sympathetic, and the final thought yed a final role in changing Sovieshu¡¯s mind. However, the question of lying had not been solved yet... ¡®She didn¡¯t tell me for fear that I would leave her.¡¯ He pretended not to know anything. Chapter 129 - The Storm Shall Blow (2) Chapter 129 ¨C The Storm Shall Blow (2) Sovieshu left and took a stroll through the gardens on the way back to the eastern pce. When he returned to his bedroom, he called for Marquis Karl. The marquis, who had been waiting for Sovieshu¡¯s return, quickly arrived. He was tense, as he knew Rashta¡¯s secret along with the Emperor. ¡°Wee back, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Any news on Koshar?¡± ¡°Lord Koshar quietly remained in the mansion.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The problem with Miss Rashta is...¡± ¡°I¡¯m considering divorce.¡± ¡°You wish to end Miss Rashta¡¯s concubine contract?¡± ¡°No. I mean with the Empress.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s words blindsided Marquis Karl. The marquis expected that Sovieshu would want to remove Rashta as concubine, or perhaps that he would take out his anger against Koshar. He had no clue why the Emperor¡¯s ire was directed towards the Empress. ¡°Why the Empress so suddenly...?¡± ¡°The Empress cannot control that unruly Koshar.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°It is already the second time Koshar has caused an incident. It hasn¡¯t even been that long after the poisoning incident.¡± ¡°Miss Rashta is...¡± Sovieshu rubbed his forehead as if he had a headache. ¡°Although I am disappointed with Rashta, she is already pregnant with my baby. Attacking her would be like attacking my baby.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty, divorce...¡± Marquis Karl looked devastated. Empress Navier did not have the image of a loving and benevolent monarch, but she was admired by the public for her sword-like practicality and regal bearing. But divorce. ¡°It may not be my ce to say this, but divorce is extreme, Your Majesty. Please reconsider.¡± Marquis Karl spoke honestly at risk of the Emperor¡¯s wrath. ¡°If Lord Koshar is the problem, then you only need punish him.¡± The marquis was so concerned that he felt it was his duty to prevent divorce between the Emperor and Empress. ¡°Isn¡¯t Koshar the queen¡¯s brother and sessor to the Troby family?¡± ¡°But it¡¯s not fair to ce Lord Koshar¡¯s guilt on the Empress...it truly isn¡¯t.¡± Sovieshu breathed a sigh. ¡°If Koshar¡ªthe only sessor to the Troby family¡ªis punished, the position of the family will be shaken. The Empress will also be put in an embarrassing position.¡± He sat in a chair and spoke in a somber voice. ¡°If the Empress is disgraced, no matter how hard she works, there will be people who will be spiteful towards her.¡± Marquis Carl did not immediately understand Sovieshu¡¯s words and blinked. ¡°Yes?¡± Sovieshu said he was going to divorce the Empress. His line of thinking was iprehensible to Marquis Karl. ¡°This is the only way to protect the Empress from the fallout. I have considered other ways, but this is the best path.¡± ¡°You want a divorce to protect Her Majesty?¡± ¡°I will punish that criminal Koshar without fail. But if I do nothing about the Empress while I punish him, her image will be harmed.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But think of it the other way. If I divorce the empress while punishing Koshar, everyone will think it¡¯s too heavy a punishment. As you do now.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Even if she was divorced, she would not remarry by convention, and she will stay alone. Sympathy will go to the Empress.¡± Sovieshu stroked his chin and narrowed his eyes. ¡°In the meantime, I will raise Rashta to the position of empress.¡± It was a series of shocking statements. Marquis Karl nearly fainted. ¡°Your¡ªYour Majesty!¡± ¡°I will have Rashta act as empress when the baby is born and until the point the baby is a year old. That way, the child will have legitimacy as a royalty.¡± ¡°No way! Miss Rashta...I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty, but Miss Rashta is not the type of person who can fulfill the duties of the position!¡± ¡°She will be a new mother after giving birth. She just needs to sit in the seat for a year, and do some basic work.¡± ¡°She still won¡¯t be able to. She may be lovely and beautiful, but national affairs aren¡¯t something you do with your face!¡± ¡°Yes. Everyone will think so.¡± ¡°What?¡± Marquis Karl looked at Sovieshu with a bewildered expression. ¡°Even if she ispetent, everyone willpare her to the Empress and they will miss her. Naturally, public opinion to shift to reinstate the former Empress...¡± ¡°Surely...Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Then I will put the Empress back on the throne.¡± Sovieshu closed his eyes, his brows knitted together. ¡°It will take about two years. If the Empress doesn¡¯t ept the divorce, it will be longer because of the trial.¡± Marquis Karl was stunned by Sovieshu¡¯s long game. The marquis barely managed to stammer out the words he wanted to say. ¡°But...Your Majesty, ah, the Empress may have a baby at ater date.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°...The Empress is infertile. She can¡¯t.¡± He spoke in a low voice, but his words were firm. Marquis Karl didn¡¯t understand why Sovieshu was so sure that the Empress couldn¡¯t bear children. Although they had been married for a long time, they were both still rtively young and healthy. ¡°But Your Majesty¡ª¡± Sovieshu interrupted. ¡°It¡¯s no use trying to change my mind. I¡¯m going to protect my baby, and I won¡¯t leave Koshar unpunished.¡± Marquis Karl leaned against a table next to him. Sovieshu, meanwhile, looked downwards at the floor, and did not say any more words to Marquis Karl. Sovieshu had made a difficult decision on his own. Moreover, he seemed unwilling to reverse the decision. ¡°So, Your Majesty, do you want to bury Miss Rashta¡¯s past?¡± Marquis Karl suppressed his desire to run home immediately and take a bath in hot water. ¡°I don¡¯t n to raise a baby that was conceived in the past, but I don¡¯t want to hunt it down and kill it either. The child has no rtion to me.¡± Lovers would ordinarily feel betrayed or jealous if their partner had such a past. Sovieshu was being rather light. ¡°Your Majesty. Wouldn¡¯t there be great opposition in seating amoner as an empress? If it¡¯s for the sake of the baby, why not have Rashta marry into a noble family?¡± ¡°If a woman from a good family rises to the position of empress, public sentiment wouldn¡¯t be so eager for Navier. It would be harder to reinstate her.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°There will be opposition, but Rashta has my baby. It¡¯s not without precedent. If it doesn¡¯t work out, then she can be part of an adequately fallen noble family.¡± ¡°But what about Miss Rashta? After she bes empress, do you think she¡¯ll give up her position so easily?¡± ¡°I know that she is not greedy. She¡¯s kind and smart. She knows it¡¯s not the ce for her.¡± ¡°Her greed may develop while she is in the empress¡¯ seat.¡± ¡°If she doesn¡¯t want to step down, I can make her.¡± Sovieshu folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. ¡°There was the incident where Rashta conspired with Viscount Roteschu to destroy Duchess Tuania. That¡¯s enough to force her.¡± ¡°!¡± Marquis Karl stared at Sovieshu¡¯s face. The Emperor hadn¡¯t thrown away Viscount Langdel¡¯s report and had instead kept it. The marquis wondered if Sovieshu had nned this since then. A storm would surelye. Marquis Karl sighed and looked at Sovieshu with aplicated stare but he knew he could not do anything to change the Emperor¡¯s mind otherwise. Finally, he gave a slow nod of agreement. Chapter 130 - Abandonment (1) Chapter 130 ¨C Abandonment (1) Time didn¡¯t go by quickly, perhaps because I had something important I wanted to say. My eyes opened at dawn, and I had to shift quietly as to not wake the maids too early. I read a book, but it was difficult to concentrate. I ended up feeling exhausted at breakfast rather than rxed. After I finished eating, washing and dressing, I went to the central pce and came across Sovieshu. Besides wanting to talk to him about my brother, there was another topic I wanted to bring up. ¡°Empress.¡± When Sovieshu saw me, he stood up from his desk and smiled gently. His attitude was more friendly than usual, despite the fact he was keeping my brother in custody. What on earth was in his mind? I stared at him, but instead of talking about Koshar, he set down his papers. ¡°Did you have breakfast?¡± I went to his desk and lifted the documents. One was a report on the decline of mages, and the other was a directive to increase military spending. ¡®Is he expanding the army to rece the decreasing number of mages?¡¯ ¡°Empress?¡± ¡°Oh. Ah, yes.¡± ¡°Healthes first. You should take care of yourself.¡± Sovieshu gently offered his advice to me with a smile. It wasn¡¯t just my imagination, and he really was acting kinder than usual. ¡®Is he sorry that he put my brother under house arrest?¡¯ Whenever Sovieshu unexpectedly treated me in a gentle manner, my first instinct was to be suspicious. I returned a smile, and Sovieshu gave an amused chuckle. ¡°Is it so strange for me to ask you to take care of your health?¡± ¡°...I don¡¯t think I have anything to say in this situation.¡± ¡°I always hope the Empress is healthy.¡± ¡°As do I.¡± Why was he like this? Sovieshu¡¯s friendly expression then melted away. There was still a smile on his lips, but deep sorrow pooled in his eyes. I felt even more awkward looking into them, and then Sovieshu started speaking about national affairs. ¡°I met Calenzalo, the chief mage.¡± Yes. It was easier to talk about work like this. I quickly responded. ¡°So about the man who imed that he lost his powers. Was he really a mage?¡± ¡°Unfortunately.¡± ¡°What caused the disappearance of his powers? Did they find out the cause?¡± ¡°They don¡¯t know yet. We don¡¯t know why magical power is disappearing, nor why the number of mages is shrinking.¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡± ¡°But I¡¯ve heard something else that bothers me.¡± Something that bothered him? ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°The chief mage said that the decline of mages has been a constant phenomenon for nearly two decades.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard of it.¡± ¡°Yes. Back then, the numbers of sages and wizards alone was quite a considerable figure.¡± ¡°That means...¡± ¡°Yes. They say that the numbers have decreased sharply in recent years.¡± ¡°That¡¯s certainly concerning.¡± We danced around each other like we had something to say, but kept avoiding the topic. From the standpoint of Empress of the Eastern Empire, what Sovieshu said now was something to be seriously considered. And yet, I had a hard time concentrating on his words because my head was full of other thoughts. I forced myself to nod, and Sovieshu spoke again. ¡°Do you remember the child from your nationally sponsored orphanage? The one sent to the magical academy?¡± ¡°Evely.¡± It was only when Sovieshu mentioned her that I could fully concentrate on his words. ¡°What about that child?¡± There was no reason for him to bring her up specifically, and I became anxious. Sovieshu replied in a heavy voice. ¡°I heard that she is not adapting well to the academy.¡± ¡°Because her life circumstances have changed.¡± ¡°No, not only on that level.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Calenzalo doesn¡¯t know if it¡¯s peer problems, personality problems, or if it¡¯s because she has difficulty adapting to the new environment.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s words were troubling by themselves, but we had just been talking about mages whose magical powers have disappeared. If he mentioned that child¡¯s name next... ¡°At first, she disyed a lot of magical ability, and was motivated to attend her sses and work hard. Two professors praised her for being quite skillful. But gradually her mana began to decrease, and she couldn¡¯t keep up with the sses.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°When she became depressed, everyone considered it to be a matter of effort or environment. But at a time when the mages know magical powers are disappearing, everyone is watching her.¡± My heart broke as I remembered the girl who was so nervous yet excited at the prospect of attending the Academy. To fall behind on sses because onecked effort or basic knowledge was one thing, but for one to lose their magic ability... ¡®I¡¯ll write her a letter.¡¯ I looked down at the floor with mixed emotions. When I gathered my senses again, I realized that the surroundings were too quiet. Sovieshu was not speaking anymore. I looked at him, he stared back at me with an unreadable expression. ¡®Does he remember that he confined my brother now?¡¯ As I gazed back into his heavy eyes, I knew it was time for us to have a more private conversation. I had been impatiently waiting for this moment since yesterday. ¡°I am Evely¡¯s sponsor, so I¡¯ll take care of her matters.¡± I spoke calmly, trying to keep my face as neutral as possible. ¡°And, if you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like to ask how long you intend to keep my brother under house arrest.¡± In one sentence, the friendly glint in Sovieshu¡¯s eyes disappeared, only to be reced with cold ice. ¡°It will be soon.¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s important to know to what extent he¡¯s released.¡± It wasn¡¯t just about releasing him from house arrest. Sovieshu stared silently at the papers he set down on his desk. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± He replied in a dark voice. ¡°...Empress, I cannot believe what your brother says or does.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°What I believe is that you can¡¯t control him, and he will never change.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even if he changes, it won¡¯t be before my baby was born. Do you agree?¡± Sovieshu suddenly turned to me and spoke in a determined voice. ¡°I¡¯m telling you this, since you already know that your brother is under house arrest.¡± Sovieshu got out of his seat and stood in front of me. He looked right into my eyes. ¡°I will banish your brother to protect my child.¡± There was not a tremor in his voice, and he didn¡¯t look like the same gentle person he was only just a while ago. ¡®While I spent all night long choosing the words to say to him, he was deciding what to do with my brother.¡¯ I realized that he had already fully made up his mind. When I gathered my emotions, I found myself biting my lower lip. Sovieshu noticed, and he lifted a finger near my face. ¡°Of course, it doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯ll banish him forever.¡± I turned around quickly, as I couldn¡¯t bear to face him. ¡°It will be an informal banishment, and I will allow Koshar toe back if he repents of his crime.¡± ¡°...¡± When I said nothing, Sovieshu lightly gripped me on the shoulder and turned me around. I tried not to show any emotion, but it was a futile effort. I took a quick deep breath and spoke in a simple tone. ¡°Do you have to do this?¡± ¡°I could ask that same question to your brother.¡± ¡°What exactly are you going to banish my brother for?¡± ¡°You only heard that your brother was put under house arrest, but did you hear that he violently assaulted a person?¡± ¡°Did you not hear that that person had my brother attacked first?¡± ¡°Ah, I heard.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°But that is your brother¡¯s im. Regardless, it¡¯s true that he violently assaulted Viscount Roteschu, just so he could hurt Rashta, and my child that she is carrying.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes trembled more angrily at the topic of Viscount Roteschu. I don¡¯t know how Sovieshu found out about Koshar violently attacking Viscount Roteschu. My brother did have a fiery personality, and it was possible that he ambushed the viscount on the roadside. However, Sovieshu didn¡¯t act like he understood that Koshar was ambushed by Viscount Roteschu¡¯s men, and he showed more anger when Koshar attacked the viscount instead. But what about Rashta? ¡®Did he hear about Rashta¡¯s past?¡¯ I hesitated to speak, but at the moment, Sovieshu turned around and sat roughly at his desk. ¡°No matter what you say, I cannot forgive Koshar again. If you¡¯re asking me to, forget it and leave.¡± Chapter 131 - Abandonment (2) Chapter 131 ¨C Abandonment (2) While I was writing a letter to Evely, I had to put down my pen several times. My mind kept turning away to other thoughts. ¡®Sovieshu truly loves Rashta.¡¯ Every time I thought about this, my heart ached and my chest felt heavy. Sovieshu was going to banish my brother because he posed a risk to Rashta and the baby... Well, Sovieshu had said that it would be unofficial. If it went to court, he probably feared that a scandal about Rashta may be uncovered. He wanted to drive the narrative that my brother ¡°attacked the viscount¡±, not ¡°attacked the Emperor¡¯s baby.¡± If Koshar was charged for thetter, the court would dig and find out that Viscount Roteschu and Rashta were closely connected, and in the process, the story of Rashta being a runaway ve would spread. That would be something Sovieshu would want to stop before it began. But then what? Would he really allow Koshar toe back if he reflected and repented of his sins? I honestly couldn¡¯t believe it. Why would Sovieshu want to banish a man for the sake of an unborn baby, but allow him to return after the baby¡¯s birth? Sovieshu was trying to keep Koshar away because he was burdensome to Rashta. With the stormy thoughts in my head, it took two hours to finish the page-and-a-half letter to Evely. I encouraged Evely not to get too frustrated, and that I would continue to support her whether her grades were good or bad. I found I couldn¡¯t even write proper words offort, because I myself had too much nervous energy. ¡°Deliver this letter to this address tomorrow.¡± I felt bitter as I handed the envelope to Countess Eliza. Afterwards I paced the room, worrying about Sovieshu, Rashta and my brother. It was a long while before I finally left my room. I wasn¡¯t going to spread rumors about Rashta¡¯s past in the social circles, but I was going to use it as my hand so my brother wouldn¡¯t be banished. As I walked down the corridor, a cold wind blew against my back. It was as if it was pushing me to go to Sovieshu. I took several deep breaths and went into the eastern pce. Because the eastern pce was the domain of the emperor, it was rtively peaceful during the day, and even quieter at night. The sound of my footsteps echoed so loudly in the corridor that I deliberately lifted my heel to make as little sound as possible. On the way to Sovieshu¡¯s room, I had to pass Rashta¡¯s room, and I came by an unexpected acquaintance. It was Viscountess Verdi, my formerdy-in-waiting who betrayed me and left to serve Rashta. She stood nervously by the door, and her eyes widened as she saw me. ¡®Should I acknowledge her?¡¯ The air was tense with uncertainty. I nced at her for a moment, and she looked so flustered that she didn¡¯t know what to do. ¡®It¡¯ll be awkward to say hello to each other.¡¯ Viscountess Verdi was unlikely to greet me, so I turned my head away. I didn¡¯t even bother rebuking her for not acknowledging the empress. However, as I walked a few steps past her, she called out to me unexpectedly. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Her voice was so faint that I was initially unsure whether I heard her or not. She sounded sorrowful. I looked back, and I saw Viscountess Verdi standing by the door in tears. She had betrayed me and went to Rashta, and seemed to have found herself in an even more difficult situation. She was likely hoping forfort, but now was not the time for me to do so. I tried to turn around, but Viscountess Verdi spoke again. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress.¡± She left with those words, and disappeared as quiet as a ghost behind the door. ¡®She seemed to have something to say.¡¯ Why did she leave without saying anything else? Was it something she found difficult? I paused, looking in the direction of the viscountess¡¯ disappearance. The door was ajar. Normally, I would have thought it was a mistake, but it was the ce where Viscountess Verdi had just been standing with a tearful face a moment ago. My eyes were drawn through the door. ¡®What did she want to tell me?¡¯ I pondered over it, but her intentions were difficult to understand. I decided to go my way. ¡°But Your Majesty...divorce? Wouldn¡¯t the Empress¡¯ family object to it?¡± I was surprised to hear a voice from beyond the door. I stopped. The owner of the voice was Rashta.   ¡®Divorce?¡¯ Chapter 132 - The Greatest Thing Is Love (1) Chapter 132 ¨C The Greatest Thing Is Love (1) ¡®n is no good for my life!¡¯ Sovieshu had seen the lock of hair and left, and Rashta fought to suppress her mounting anger. It was fortunate that the baby¡¯s hair was the same color as her own, otherwise Sovieshu would have asked why she was keeping it. Rashta immediately flung the hair into a wastebasket. She had wanted to keep it as a recollection of her baby, but once again her firstborn had almost caught her ankle. She and her child were at odds with each other. Throwing the hair away did not make her feel any better, and so she shut herself in her bedroom all day. Various problems pressed in on her at all sides¡ªsomething had happened to Viscount Roteschu, Sovieshu had discovered the baby hair, and several people were investigating her past. Everything was so difficult and tiring. In the meanwhile, her lover, Sovieshu, hadn¡¯t shown his face to her since that night. Rashta was scared that he might have btedly realized that the hair wasn¡¯t hairs, or that Viscount Roteschu was ying a trick on her. It was then she realized that everything she clung to was an illusion. How perilous it was to findfort in one person¡¯s kindness. At this point, she could only tremble in fear. If Sovieshu¡¯s love and affection cooled, she would lose everything that she had without being able to put up a resistance. ¡°Miss Rashta, His Majesty the Emperor is here.¡± Rashta blinked and pulled herself up from the armchair. She was so lost in thought that she hadn¡¯t even realized the maid was there. ¡°His Majesty is here?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t hee into the bedroom?¡± ¡°He wanted a drink. Pleasee to the parlor room.¡± Rashta hurriedly put up her hair and left the bedroom. Sovieshu was a picturesque image as he sat poised on a chair, and the new maid Delise, was setting the table for drinks. When Rashta saw Delise, her heart started to tremble. Her movements were paced as slowly as a snail¡¯s. The maid ced down drinking sses and a bottle of champagne. ¡®Why is she like that?¡¯ When one saw that another person looked anxious, one couldn¡¯t help but feel anxious as well. Rashta approached Sovieshu, and spoke with more affection in her voice than usual. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Delise set down the food at a normal pace and then left. Fortunately, Sovieshu seemed to have no interest in Delise. Rather, he didn¡¯t look interested in anything at all. He was leaned back against his chair in thought, but he came to his senses when Rashta repeatedly called his name. She stood in front of Sovieshu and spoke lovingly at him. ¡°Rashta waited all day for His Majesty!¡± Sovieshu gave her an endearing smile. Despite her day of anxious worrying, Sovieshu did not seem mad at her. Rashta was genuinely relieved, and she sat across the table from Sovieshu with a small chuckle. ¡°Would you like a drink from Rashta?¡± When Sovieshu nodded, she quickly poured a clear golden liquid in a champagne ss. He epted the ss from her, but he did not drink from it, only rolling the stem of the ss between his fingers. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± He didn¡¯t look angry, but what if he was? A wave of fear swept over Rashta again, and she called his name. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. Rashta is listening to you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Be the empress for a year.¡± Rashta thought she had heard wrong. The words that left Sovieshu¡¯s mouth was a total reversal of Rashta¡¯s expectations. Perhaps Sovieshu had been listening to what Duke Elgy had said. Instead of feeling joy at the news, terror gripped Rashta¡¯s heart. As she froze, Sovieshu looked at her and sighed. ¡°Well, it might be too burdensome to you.¡± Rashta could barely open her lips. ¡°What...what do you mean? What about the Empress?¡± ¡°I intend to divorce her.¡± Divorce! Rashta was overwhelmed by a variety of emotions¡ªrelief, happiness, trepidation. Her mouth fell open. Sovieshu thought Rashta was extremely ufortable, and thought she had no great desire for the Empress¡¯ seat. Rashta covered her cheeks with both hands. ¡°It¡¯s only for one year, so you won¡¯t be too burdened.¡± ¡°Why...one year...for such an important position.¡± ¡°In one year, your baby can officially be a prince or princess.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± Sovieshu gazed at Rashta gently and reached out and covered her hand. ¡°If you can bear the position for one year, I will never leave you for the rest of my life.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. She didn¡¯t know the purpose of the one year, but this was an extraordinary opportunity. While Duke Elgy had told Rashta to prepare to face the Empress, she wasn¡¯t ready yet, and he knew it. She had just started her education, and although she had a lot of sympathy from themon people, garnering support forws was a different matter. Rashta knew that even those who disliked the Empress would be dismissive of Rashta in the position. But the candy offered to her smelled temptingly sweet. Even with the schooling Duke Elgy advised her to take, it was no use if Sovieshu didn¡¯t divorce the current empress. Would such an opportunitye back again? Why prepare to face the Empress, when she could be the empress herself? Sovieshu had said it would be only for a year, but she hadn¡¯t the first clue aboutws and state affairs. But if the baby to be born would receive Sovieshu¡¯s love... If she studied hard and yed the role of the Empress well... ¡°But Your Majesty...divorce? Wouldn¡¯t the Empress¡¯ family object to it?¡± ¡°Of course they would.¡± ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°I will take care of it, so there will be no need to worry.¡± Rashta firmly held Sovieshu¡¯s hand and closed her eyes. She was scared, but her excitement was greater. She could barely breathe as her heart seemed to stop. For her to be able to rise from very into the empress¡¯ seat. ¡°Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You only need to study hard and keep your body healthy.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± Sovieshu tightly squeezed Rashta¡¯s scarred hands. ¡°And don¡¯t tell this to anyone. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Rashta understands.¡± He rubbed her backfortingly. ¡°Is there anything you want to eat?¡± ¡°Hmm...nothing.¡± ¡°You can be greedy.¡± ¡°Rashta only needs His Majesty.¡± As Rashta whispered in a gentle voice, she leaned her head gently against Sovieshu¡¯s shoulder, and he wrapped his arm around her. Chapter 133 - The Greatest Thing Is Love (2) Chapter 133 ¨C The Greatest Thing Is Love (2) After an hour or so, Rashta fell asleep next to Sovieshu. He had a maid bring in a cushion, and he ced it against her head before quietly leaving the room. Normally he would have carried her to bed, but he didn¡¯t want to do it today. He pitied Rashta for being separated from her baby, but he was reluctant, knowing that she lied to him. He opened the door to the corridor, but instead of going back to his bedroom, he looked around. ¡°?¡± Was it an illusion? A familiar fragrance seemed to linger in the air. It was the scent of the rose bath which the Empress enjoyed. After a moment of thought, Sovieshu called for Viscountess Verdi and the maids. ¡°Did the Empresse visit?¡± ¡°We haven¡¯t seen her, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu shook his head, and he left thinking that the Empress hadn¡¯t been there. As he made his way down the dark corridor, he recalled what Marquis Karl had said to him earlier in the day. ¡°Why don¡¯t you tell the Empress your n in advance? Even if you n to eventually reinstate her to her position, she will be surprised and hurt by your actions.¡± ¡°If I could, I would.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue. He well understood Navier¡¯s strong pride, as well as theck of affection for Rashta¡¯s baby. Navier would not be able to ept Sovieshu leaving her to protect a baby she didn¡¯t like. *** My vision swam before me, and there was a strange ringing in my ears. I concentrated on moving my feet. Left, right, left, right in order, though my legs could barely support me. I had to stop several times and lean against a wall before I finally made it to my room. I sat by a window and recalled what I had heard. Sovieshu...Sovieshu had promised to make Rashta empress. After he divorced me, he would make Rashta empress... His friendly voice. Rashta¡¯s excited voice. Voice voice voice! My chest ached to the point that breathing was painful. I leaned back, my hand resting on my heart. I had never considered it an option that Sovieshu would try to divorce me. It was true that we weren¡¯t married for love, and we had fought because of Rashta in recent times, but didn¡¯t we have anything that could be called friendship? What happened to those times when we used to put our heads together and nned to make the country strong? We were a couple, so where in the world did that man go? Was my brother¡¯s dislike of Rashta and her baby so intimidating to Sovieshu? What would happen to me if we were divorced? The words of Grand Duke Kapmen came to my mind. If I divorced Sovieshu, I would no longer be empress. I thought his words ridiculous at the time. Now Sovieshu really did want to divorce me... I clenched my hands and tucked my forehead onto my arm. After a while like this, I managed to stand up and head for the study. I took out a book on the brief history of the Eastern Empire, and brought it to my room to scour it. Amoner concubine...empress... ¡°...¡± After studying the book back to front, I put it down in dismay. There was no case where an emperor took amoner concubine as his first marriage. However, there had been asions when amoner became empress after the original died or was ousted. It was rare, but there was precedent. ¡®What will be of me now?¡¯ I closed the book, put it on the table, and took a deep breath. I didn¡¯t know how long I remained in that state, and when I opened my eyes again, the red dawn was glowing palely through the curtains. My eyes stared at the view, but everything felt hopeless. No matter how hard I lived, however hard I tried, love was the only great thing in the end. The romantic words of minstrels rang true, and the central driving force of the world was love. Because of Sovieshu¡¯s and Rashta¡¯s passion for each other, everything I had was taken away. Our important families, the time we spent together, the long work and education, and even the vows we exchanged, was consumed by another greater love. ¡°Oh my god, Your Majesty!¡± Countess Eliza, who came in with another maid to prepare me for my bath, cried out in dismay when she saw my pallidplexion. She ordered the maid to fill up the bathtub, and then hurriedly approached me. ¡°Did something happen, Your Majesty?¡± I stared at her with heavy eyelids. She looked like a silhouette of white after I had gazed at the sun for a long time. ¡°Oh my word.¡± I knew I was in a bad state. Countess Eliza looked around, and became further confused when she found the history book on my desk. It was strange for someone to be depressed after reading up on history. ¡°By any chance...does it have to do with Lord Koshar?¡± Countess Eliza looked at me with concern, and I replied in a nk voice. ¡°Yes.¡± I stood up from my seat, taking note of Countess Eliza¡¯s bewildered expression. I realized that was not the time for me to be like this, and I couldn¡¯t allow myself to be sorrowful if I was soon to be ousted. Even if Sovieshu was considering divorcing me, it wouldn¡¯t be today. And if he did go through with the divorce, I had no choice in the matter anyway. There was no empress who could go against the emperor¡¯s wishes, no matter if she came from the greatest family, or if she was a terrifying empress, or even if she gave birth to a great sessor. The best I could do was stall the trial. Most importantly, I had toe up with a way to survive afterwards. ¡°Today...please give me a pink dress.¡± I took a quick bath and asked Countess Eliza to make me look as bright as possible. She masked my sunken eyes with makeup and clothed me with a beautiful pink dress to throw off the gloomy atmosphere. Sovieshu didn¡¯t know that I heard his conversation, but he was probably thinking of me. He probably whispered his promises to Rashta all night. I didn¡¯t want to show him that I was defeated. Meanwhile, Countess Eliza helped me select my jewelry, then she informed me that she would send my letter to Evely by eleven o¡¯clock this morning. After I listened to her, I decided instead it would be better to see Evely in person. Moreover, my heart had been somewhere else when I wrote that letter, so my true feelings weren¡¯t expressed. I thought it would be better tofort the child myself. ¡°Don¡¯t post the letter. I¡¯ll go see her myself.¡± Afterwards, I went to the audience chamber as calmly as possible. As soon as I approached it, however, my heart started to pound again. The shocking news I heard yesterday rushed into my head once more¡ªof Sovieshu promising his love to Rashta, of how he would throw me away. Sovieshu was set on divorcing me. I wondered how he would see me and treat me. ¡°The bright colors look good on you.¡± Unexpectedly, he was no different from usual. Because of that, I was able to find my usualposure. Being in the same room as him still unsettled me, but at least I could outwardly project calm in front of him. I smiled and thanked him for thepliment, then I ignored the hand he held out for me and walked up to my seat. ¡°Didn¡¯t you see my hand?¡± ¡°I pretended not to see it. Please ignore me.¡± ¡°...Is this because of your brother?¡± ¡°I want to get some air.¡± ¡°Shall we go for a walk?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to Wirwol to see Evely.¡± ¡°Wirwol? When? It will be a tight schedule nning for it now.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I n to go alone.¡± Chapter 134 - My Standards Are High (1) Chapter 134 ¨C My Standards Are High (1) Navier had said she would go to Wirwol immediately, and Sovieshu had been unable to catch her when she left. He was frustrated that she had rejected his offer to apany her, but there were a few other things he had to take care of while she was away. ¡°Where is Viscount Roteschu?¡± ¡°He¡¯s receiving treatment in the southern pce.¡± ¡°Is he incapacitated?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Very well. Bring him to me.¡± Sovieshu summoned Viscount Roteschu and questioned him about his rtionship with Rashta. The viscount was smart enough to know that it was the Emperor¡¯s men that saved him. He assumed that the Emperor already knew what he said to Koshar, and he cried out and repeated what he had confessed. However, Sovieshu¡¯s response was cold. ¡°So you were ckmailing Rashta in return for hiding her baby.¡± ¡°No, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Then why would Rashta keep looking after you? She loathed you to the point of running away.¡± Viscount Roteschu looked at Sovieshu, and realized that the Emperor had just as much interest in hiding Rashta¡¯s past. The viscount was unsure if the Emperor was doing it out of love or because Rashta was pregnant with his baby, but his attitude was clear. Viscount Roteschu quickly flipped through his thoughts and told a lie. ¡°Miss Rashta keeps in touch with me because I¡¯m raising her baby.¡± He bowed his head and huddled his shoulders to look as humble as possible. ¡°I wanted to be helpful to her, of course. But ckmail? It was nothing of the sort. Our rtionship is like...well, it¡¯s more like a deal.¡± Sovieshu narrowed his eyes. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words seemed to align with the facts. Rashta didn¡¯t always try to hide the viscount¡¯s visits, and she had even kept a lock of her baby¡¯s hair. With each new discovery, the viscount¡¯s words sounded more and more usible. Viscount Roteschu gave a sigh of relief when he thought Sovieshu was no longer suspicious of him, but the Emperor¡¯s inquiry was not over. ¡°Where is Rashta¡¯s ve trade certificate?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You told Koshar about it.¡± He heard about that?! The viscount flinched in surprise, while the Sovieshu looked down at him coolly. Worried that the Emperor would say ¡°Why did you keep it without destroying it?¡± and find fault in him, Viscount Roteschu quickly prostrated himself on the ground. ¡°I left the certificate to the Bear Corporation, and it¡¯s likely Lord Koshar went there to take it.¡± *** After the meeting with Viscount Roteschu, Sovieshu visited Koshar personally at the Troby mansion. Koshar was surprisingly quiet as he remained locked in his room on the second floor. Although he was not allowed to leave, he was served meals and the room was furnished with a bathroom. Sovieshu did not intend to converse with the man for long, and immediately went to the point. ¡°You will be banished.¡± Although he had known Koshar and Navier since childhood, Sovieshu never had a good rtionship with the elder Troby brother. Koshar did not look surprised at Sovieshu¡¯s promation, as if he had been expecting it. In fact, Koshar replied in cold sarcasm. ¡°Do you know what your little ything is like?¡± ¡°I heard everything. Well done.¡± Sovieshu did not rise to Koshar¡¯s provocation, which only further stoked Koshar¡¯s anger. ¡°Well done?¡± ¡°If it hadn¡¯t been for you stepping forward I wouldn¡¯t have known what happened in the past.¡± Sovieshu spoke casually, and he looked around the room. ¡°Where is Rashta¡¯s ve certificate?¡± ¡°Well, I had a hunch about the fellow with one ear and a big mouth, but what a light tongue he has.¡± ¡°Preferable to you who has light fists and mind.¡± Sovieshu smiled. Koshar stared back with cold eyes and returned the grin. ¡°Of course.¡± Sovieshu frowned at Koshar¡¯s sudden change in attitude, and the reason for it soon became clear. ¡°The certificate came from the Bear Corporation. But one of your knights confiscated it.¡± Sovieshu looked at him with skepticism, but Koshar continued on breezily. ¡°Of course, I thought it was under your orders. But judging from your reaction, that¡¯s not true, is it?¡± Heughed and spread his arms wide. ¡°Feel free to search this ce. I really don¡¯t have it.¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu gave Koshar a steely re and ordered Marquis Karl to find the certificate. However, after running through the premises with a fine-toothedb, it was nowhere to be found. Men were also sent to the Bear Corporation, and they confirmed that Koshar had indeed taken the certificate. The men scoured the mansion again, while Sovieshu sat down on a parlor room couch with his arms folded. However, no matter how thoroughly the men searched, no certificate was found. Sovieshu¡¯s anger started to grow. With the certificate gone, Rashta could potentially be under suspicion as a ve in the future. ¡®Was it the Empress¡¯ doing?¡¯ Sovieshu remembered that Navier knew that Koshar had been detained in his home only a few hours after it happened. Many of the knights were loyal to Navier. Because she disliked Rashta, she would never hand him the certificate even if it was in her possession. Sovieshu¡¯s brow furrowed in suspicion. ¡®I¡¯ll have the men search the Empress¡¯ room while she¡¯s absent.¡¯ Sovieshu left the mansion empty-handed, but before he did so, he spoke to the Troby couple. ¡°Duke Troby, Duchess Troby. Do you know that your son has done everything he could to kill my baby?¡± ¡°I heard yesterday.¡± ¡°I will not officially ce me on your family for the Empress¡¯ sake. But Koshar is hereby banished from this country.¡± Although Duke Troby had been informed by the Emperor¡¯s guard of the incident, he stumbled when he heard the severe punishment. The duchess grabbed the duke¡¯s arm to support him, and she nced at Sovieshu. Sovieshu¡¯s heart skipped a beat when he saw the resemnce of her eyes to Navier¡¯s, but he continued on firmly. ¡°Keep in mind that while exiled, Koshar has no legal authority in the Eastern Empire, and will be imprisoned as soon as he crosses its borders.¡± _____________ TN: Hello dear readers! I have a message for you from the owner of the site. Hello dear @Remarried Empress readers! So, as you may know (or not but now you know), apany is doing a KR to EN localized trantion of a KR game, namely VISUAL NOVELS... among them includes +20 NAVER novels licensed from NAVER SERIES... Remarried Empress is one of them. And I think Return of the Female Knight... though I¡¯m not sure. We¡¯ll be doing a coboration with thepany to get the KR version of the app game tranted to EN, of course. Thepany would like an insight and knowledge if you guys would be willing to support this venture once released? What are your thoughts on ying the game(s)? Each series will have about 15 episode on average and each episode up to 3k words. Justment your thoughts below and your willingness to support it and I¡¯llpile screenshots to send to them. I¡¯d greatly appreciate it. We might even get to expand our coboration efforts into different markets if this is proven sessful (physical book publication for one... I know I¡¯m dying to hold a physical copy of Remarried Empress). Thanks, Jud Chapter 135 - My Standards Are High (2) Chapter 135- My Standards Are High (2) I had a lot of work to do. Wirwol was still bright and bustling with activity. Although it was the city of mages, the decline of magic did not yet seem to darken the mood. Young schrs passed by with bags of research equipment, and a tall woman looked lost in thought as she weaved a golden wind through her fingers. Young students were spotted here and there, hugging thick textbooks and speaking in jargon. The knights who followed me looked around with curious expressions, and I deliberately walked at a slow pace as they looked around. When I passed by the restaurant that I had dined in with Heinley, my footsteps stopped on their own ord. It had only been a year, but it seemed like a lifetime ago that we wereughing and chatting happily inside the restaurant. That time was difficult for me because of Sovieshu and Rashta...but that could now be considered peaceful,pared to my brother¡¯s banishment and my imminent ousting as empress. The restaurant gave me a strong sense of longing, and I ended up entering with the excuse that I was hungry. When I looked at the table where I once sat with Prince Heinley, I saw the back of a familiar-looking figure. ¡®Prince Heinley?¡¯ Impossible. A king wouldn¡¯te here. But that light blond hair and straight posture looked just like his. I suppressed my surprise and approached slowly. I sneaked a look at his face, pretending to just sit nearby. However... ¡°Prince?¡± It was really Prince Heinley. My mouth spoke of its own ord, and Prince Heinley, who was studying the menu in serious thought, nced up at me. ¡°Que¡ª¡± Prince Heinley jumped to his feet in surprise. He quickly closed his mouth when he realized he almost called me by my name in the restaurant. The look on his face was bright. When I saw his selfless expression, the shadow in my heart disappeared and I smiled. ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡± He muttered,bing his hair back with one hand. ¡°What a coincidence!¡± I instructed the knights to sit at another table, then turned back to Prince Heinley. ¡°May I join you?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± He quickly stood up and pulled out the opposite chair for me to sit in. I seated myself, while he went back to his own seat and rested his cheek against his hand. ¡°You have no idea how surprised I am. I didn¡¯t expect to see you at this restaurant.¡± It was fascinating that we met here again. Was this ce a special memory for him? ¡°I¡¯m surprised as well. Prince Heinley is now¡ªah.¡± He wasn¡¯t a prince anymore. I smiled awkwardly when I recognized the mistake, but he simply smiled back. ¡°You can just call me Heinley.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s a little too much.¡± ¡°Even more so if you don¡¯t say my name properly.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°Please. Just call me Heinley.¡± Even if it was just his name, Heinley was skilled in giving whispers that were like drops of sugar. Amazingly, as he repeated his preferred method of name calling, he began ying with the rim of his ear while avoiding eye contact. His face reddened, making him look like he was still a free prince. That form of his was cute, but it brought about a real concern. ¡°I didn¡¯t realize you were here. How did you get here?¡± There was no one around him that looked like his entourage. ¡°Hmm.¡± Heinley smiled awkwardly and fiddled with the cup in front of him. ¡°Ah. Well.¡± When he btedly noticed that he only had a drink, he called for a waiter and ordered several items on the menu. ¡°Are you fine with it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Heinley¡¯s order was the same food we shared together in the past. He smiled, his chin resting on his hand. ¡°In truth, I snuck out to avoid all the nagging from the courtiers.¡± He sounded so serious that I almostughed. ¡°You came here secretly?¡± I looked back at him in amazement. ¡°Can a king simply sneak out like that?¡± Was that possible? It sounded dangerous. Heinley chuckled and whispered to me conspiratorially. ¡°No one is more talented at escaping the royal family than I am.¡± ¡°That sounds risky.¡± ¡°Sometimes the most amazing and wonderful things happen when one takes risks. Like today.¡± My heart warmed that he chose to describe our meeting this way. Whether his words were empty or I was being delusional, at least his he made me feel good. Iughed and shook my head, and Heinley gazed at me. ¡°I missed you.¡± ¡°!¡± My eyes rounded in surprise, and Heinley continued with a gentle smile. ¡°The days I spent with you, Your Majesty, were myst days as a free prince.¡± I noddedfortably after listening to him. Heinley was going through a difficult transition as king at this point. I recalled the time when I first took the throne. Despite the fact that I shadowed the former empress and was given extensive education, once I was coronated, everything seemed strange and frightening. While I was given the tools to seed in the position, I was afraid my choices would bring harm to people. Heinley was likely struggling with the same problem. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Heinley. You will be brilliant.¡± ¡°That wasn¡¯t the cause of my distress.¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°Someday...well, I¡¯ll tell you when I get the chance. It¡¯s too personal.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Thank you anyway. But it¡¯s not too hard to keep things going.¡± I looked at him in puzzlement, and he smiled confidently and picked up his teacup. The waiter pulled up with the food cart, so we paused our conversation. After the waiter set down our food and left, Heinley put down his teacup and continued. ¡°It¡¯s another matter that¡¯s on my mind, not work.¡± ¡°Another matter?¡± Heinley hesitated, embarrassed, then finally confessed. ¡°My people keep asking me to choose a queen.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°I say I¡¯m fine, but they keep insisting that I get married as soon as possible.¡± Heinley let out a tired sigh. ¡°There is no young woman betrothed to you yet?¡± I was chosen as a child to be the future wife of the Crown Prince, and I found it strange that Heinley did not already have a marriage partner chosen for him at his age. ¡°I wasn¡¯t the crown prince, so I was a little freed from that problem.¡± Heinley shrugged and gave a furtive nce at me. ¡°But the queen I need is someone who needs to be involved in state affairs immediately. No matter how clever one can be, it¡¯s difficult to run a nation without a Crown Princess.¡± Heinley had a point, and as I nodded, he spoke in a lower voice. ¡°Besides, after I saw you, my standards became higher.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just apliment, it¡¯s true. I can¡¯t ept a queen unless she¡¯s like you.¡± His tone was humorous, but the look in his eyes was serious. I smiled awkwardly and avoided his gaze. My mood turned bitter. Sovieshu was trying to divorce me, while Heinley wanted to wee a queen just like me... Heinley cupped his teacup with both hands and looked into my eyes. ¡°Really, sometimes I think. If you were the Queen of the West, the people would love you.¡± Chapter 136 - Do You Really Want Me To Be Queen? (1) Chapter 136 ¨C Do You Really Want Me To Be Queen? (1) Heinley¡¯s words were both amusing andugh-worthy. Sovieshu¡ªmy husband¡ªwanted to leave me, and I was stuck waiting for the inevitable divorce. Sovieshu had used me of being cold-hearted and withoutpassion. And yet, the king of another country praised me by saying that the people would love me...What a strange thing to say. ¡°Thank you for thepliment.¡± I smiled to hide the bitterness in me, but Heinley noticed my unease at once. ¡°Queen? You don¡¯t look well. Did something happen?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°No? Then¡ª?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Queen?¡± He looked at me earnestly, but I didn¡¯t answer. No matter how good of a friend he was, I didn¡¯t want to show him my humiliation. Talking to him about Sovieshu¡¯s imminent divorce with me would distress me to no end. Heinley studied me carefully, and though I refused to say a word, he didn¡¯t pry. Instead, he hesitated for a moment, then continued on with a serious expression on his face. ¡°My words were not empty praise. I meant it.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want a queen unless she¡¯s like you.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°No, I wish you were my queen. There is only one queen.¡± His voice was firm. He was not joking. I stared at him and his cheeks flushed red, but he didn¡¯t turn away from my gaze. I could sense the heat in his eyes. Heinley was just beingplimentary when he said he wanted a queen like me, but those words... Embarrassed, I sipped a spoonful of soup. I could still feel Heinley¡¯s eyes on me, and I smiled half-jokingly at him. ¡°And what if I epted?¡± The soup was still hot. I ate another spoonful and looked up Heinley. I expected him tough at my joke, but he made no sound at all. ¡°!¡± My eyes widened in surprise when I saw his face. His expression was lit up like the sun. ¡°That would be incredible.¡± ¡°I was joking.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not. If youe to my side, I will have you as queen immediately.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I swear on my life.¡± We had been talking about Heinley taking a queen for himself, so how on earth did the conversation turn into an oath on his life? I kept silent instead of answering. I couldn¡¯t tell if he really meant it, or if he was saying words tofort me. But I wasn¡¯t unhappy with what he said. ¡®This is how it feels like to put honey on a wounded heart.¡¯ It was bitter, but sweet. ¡°Thank you for your words, Heinley.¡± Truly. ¡°I only speak the truth on what I see.¡± We both stopped talking for a while and continued eating. I didn¡¯t want to say anything because of the mixture of sadness and gratitude in me, and Heinley didn¡¯t speak either, and so the table remained quiet. Then, at the end of the meal, he spoke. ¡°Why are you here, Queen? I don¡¯t believe this is an official visit.¡± ¡°One of my sponsored students attends the magical academy.¡± ¡°They¡¯re in the academy? That¡¯s great.¡± ¡°She¡¯s a gifted child. I came to visit her.¡± ¡°Ah. Are you here to support her?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to console her.¡± ¡°For...?¡± ¡°I hear that she¡¯s losing her mana.¡± ¡°!¡± The fact that the mages¡¯ power was declining was not something I could hide. Heinley, in particr, was already a mage himself and had attended the academy, so he likely knew of the phenomenon. As expected, Heinley¡¯s surprise onlysted a moment. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Both of us finished eating, and so we stood up. Heinley, however, was quiet. When I first told him about the decreasing magic, he didn¡¯t seem shocked at all. His face was serious, as if he were bothered by something. Because of this, I didn¡¯t ask if he wanted toe along with me, and we parted at the restaurant entrance. I went to the dean¡¯s office, but then to my surprise, Heinley was already there. I was startled at the sight, and Heinley looked up and toasted his cup of coffee in the air. A smile broadened on my face. ¡°Are you following me?¡± Heinleyughed and refuted me. ¡°Queen followed me. I came here first.¡± I didn¡¯t know if he really was following me or not, but his visit was casual while I came with an appointment, so the dean turned his attention to me first. ¡°Here is Evely¡¯s report card.¡± When I asked about the child, the dean showed me her weekly academic report. ¡°As you can see, she performed quite well in the beginning.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Well, she had a hard time adapting to liberal arts and general knowledge, but she¡¯s good with spells, and she scores highly in magical sses.¡± The girl was inconsistent with some of her subjects, but as the dean noted, she did well in all magic-rted sses. The dean sighed, then flipped through the files quickly to show the most recent document. ¡°And this is hertest report.¡± Heinley, who was watching from the side, clicked his tongue. The liberal arts and general knowledge grades moved up to the middle, but her grades for the magical sses plummeted. Only her sses on theory remained adequate. The dean gave a regretful sigh and closed the file. ¡°The child is having a hard time, but she can¡¯t keep up no matter how hard she works. She seems to be under a lot of pressure not to disappoint you, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Thank you for your visit, Your Majesty. Yesterday, she fainted from over-training.¡± ¡°Is she alright?¡± I looked at the dean in surprise, but he shook his head gloomily. ¡°No. After that, her mana...waspletely gone.¡± Chapter 137 - Do You Really Want Me To Be Queen? (2) Chapter 137 ¨C Do You Really Want Me To Be Queen? (2) Would Evely feel more burdened if I went to visit her? And yet, she would still be under pressure even when I wasn¡¯t there. I worried that I would have a worse effect on her, but in the end, I decided to see her. The child needed someone to support her during this hardship. Heinley followed me but did note in to see the child, and I entered the room alone. Evely was nervously pacing the room ever since she received news that I would visit, and when she saw me, she immediately burst into tears. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± She started off with a small sniff, but then it broke into a full out sob. The heartbreak in her voice caused my own eyes to moisten. After she had calmed down a little, I sat down with her on her bed. ¡°Your ability is valuable, but the loss of it doesn¡¯t make you any less so. Your path went to the right, and now you¡¯re just going to change course and go left.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Whether you be a mage or not, you are my precious Evely, and I will continue to support you. So don¡¯t overwork your body, alright?¡± The child¡¯s shoulders shook as she wept. ¡°I hoped to live for Her Majesty.¡± ¡°Evely...¡± ¡°It¡¯s my lifelong purpose to be useful to Her Majesty. I had nothing but magic, so I have to be a mage for the Empress. But the disappearance of magic...it¡¯s like the value of me as a person is gone.¡± I tried my best to soothe Evely, but she wasn¡¯t easilyforted. When I finally came out of the room, I was emotionally exhausted. Heinley was leaning against the wall next to the door with his eyes closed. I thought he tired of waiting for me, but he opened his purple eyes...and he looked upset. ¡®Is Heinley also worried about Evely¡¯s progress because he¡¯s a mage?¡¯ *** After my work at the academy was finished, I decided to walk around with Heinley for a while. I wanted to talk to him some more, as we hadn¡¯t met in a long time and may not see each other for a few more years. There were knights waiting outside the academy. They were loyal to me, and would keep my business here at Wirwol confidential. However, I didn¡¯t want to be seen spending too much time with other men. After the divorce, however..the idea was tempting. ¡°You can wear this.¡± The dean lent Heinley and Irge hooded robes meant for students, and the pair of us walked side-by-side wearing the same outfit. Since we did not look like outsiders, no one paid any special attention to us. Heinley asked me about my meeting with Evely earlier, and I answered honestly. ¡°It was better that I didn¡¯te at all. I didn¡¯t seem to be muchfort to her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡± ¡°For her, magic wasn¡¯t just an ability.¡± Heinley spoke in a heavy voice. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to eavesdrop, but...I heard that part.¡± I didn¡¯t say anything for a while. Then, I confessed in a low voice. ¡°I can understand how she feels.¡± ¡°Queen?¡± He smiled at me in a way that suggested he disagreed with me. To anyone who didn¡¯t know I was about to be divorced, I¡¯m sure my words sounded strange. I forced my mouth to lift in a smile. Yes, the details were different, but I was in a simr position to Evely. I had no choice but to suffer Sovieshu¡¯s decision to divorce me. I could resist it with all my might, but all it did was stall my inevitable ousting from the throne. During a long divorce process, my reputation would fall as well. People may swear at Sovieshu at first, but if I forced a long and tiring trial, people would me me for clinging to my pride. ¡°She believes she has no worth unless she is a mage.¡± ¡°This...¡± ¡°She thinks her valuees from her magical abilities...and I feel the same way.¡± Heinley cleared his throat. ¡°What?¡± He misunderstood, thinking that I agreed with Evely. I knew my words sounded strange, so Iughed and continued. ¡°Evely¡¯s magic, to me, is equivalent to the empress¡¯ seat. My value and usefulnesses from being empress.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°If it¡¯s gone...I would feel just as hopeless. Miserable and deste. As if the future before me had disappeared.¡± ¡°Queen?¡± ¡°...¡± Yes. It was painful when Sovieshu brought Rashta and came to despise me, but I had others to sympathize with me, and I was able to stand because I was empress. What I learned my entire life, what I had been holding on to, was living as an empress, not as Sovieshu¡¯s wife. But it would all soon be gone. I had no idea what it would be like to just live as ¡°Navier¡± and not ¡°Navier, the Empress.¡± I wouldn¡¯t be able to act with my normal spirit if everyone treated me awkwardly. With my brother banished as well, my family would be mocked and ridiculed. Heinley looked momentarily taken aback, and he tried to smile. ¡°Why are you thinking about how it would feel to lose the throne?¡± ¡°...¡± His face darkened when I didn¡¯t answer. ¡°What happened?¡± I didn¡¯t reply again. Heinley stopped walking and turned toward me. ¡°What¡¯s going on, Queen?¡± I stood dazedly and looked up at Heinley. I came here to cheer up Evely, but after talking to her, my shock only increased. And now, after voicing my fears aloud, it was as if it materialized into a real horror and choked me by the neck. ¡°Queen?¡± What should I do? What was I going to be? I wasn¡¯t going to be the empress anymore...how was I supposed to live? Suddenly, my body began to tremble. ¡°Queen? Queen!¡± Heinley looked at me with frightened eyes. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Queen? Queen?¡± I tried to say that I was alright, but my lips shook and my voice stopped. My shuddering didn¡¯t abate, and he cupped my face with both his hands. ¡°Navier!¡± Chapter 138 - I Liked Him More Than I Thought (1) Chapter 138 ¨C I Liked Him More Than I Thought (1) Heinley had a moment of stunned doubt, but then his face brightened. The words he said to me earlier were not empty, and he looked genuinely joyful. I too couldn¡¯t believe that I considered his crazy offer. Heinley opened and closed his mouth several times before whispering to me quickly. ¡°If...if you would be my queen, I would be the happiest man in the world.¡± Then his voice turned solemn as he made a promise. ¡°I will do my best to make you not only the happiest woman in the world, but the happiest person.¡± His eyes glistened, and the corners of his mouth were stretched into a wide smile as if he couldn¡¯t help himself. He was like arge dog that had been reunited with its owner after ten years. Heinley reminded me of my pet Retriev in that situation, one of the happiest creatures I had ever known in my life. Retriev was arge dog that had been born in the same year I was. Anxiety still pressed on my mind. One side tried to whisper reason to me and reassure me that I was fine. On the other hand, it was as if the inside of my mouth was rotted. It could appear too calcting that I already found a remarriage partner before my actual divorce. Well, looking at it another way, it was Sovieshu who had found a remarriage partner first. ¡°I promise you.¡± I opened my mouth and spoke my vow to Heinley. ¡°I will make a good queen. Not only to you, but to the people.¡± I meant it. That was the only way to express my gratitude. And that wasn¡¯t the end of it yet. ¡°Queen...¡± ¡°And I will never interfere if you ept another woman to love as your concubine.¡± ¡°!¡± At that moment, Heinley¡¯s expression shook as if it were about to copse. His eyes widened in shock and he stared at me. ¡°Heinley?¡± He blinked when I called his name, and he gave a stiffened smile. ¡°Concubine?¡± The word sounded uncertain on his tongue, as if he never expected it. Horror swept over me. I realized I had made a huge mistake. Why on earth did I bring up the topic of concubines before we were even married? ¡°I meant that just in case.¡± He looked like he would fall over in sheer astonishment, and I hurriedly tried to amend my words. However, my offer to him was true. Even if Heinley took a concubine for himself...I was already prepared. This time. Historically, the majority of emperors and kings had concubines. Heinley¡¯s brother had several lovers himself. The few that did not have any were usually not married in the first ce. I once thought that if there was an emperor that didn¡¯t take another concubine, it would be Sovieshu, but that assumption proved wrong. Could Heinley be different? Yes, I suppose so. But I did not want to be taken by surprise again. While Heinley was not as much as a yboy the rumors suggested, it was clear he lived a life of freedom. Heinley took me firmly by the chin and spoke in a quiet voice. ¡°Queen, if you don¡¯t mind, would you let me know the details?¡± Despite his initial joy, his expression soon turned serious. ¡°I¡¯m wondering why you suddenly offered me a political marriage.¡± I realized I was still holding my hand over his, and I quickly lowered it. Heinley also took his hands off my face. ¡°Of course, whatever the reason is, I will never persuade you to reconsider otherwise.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°But Queen. If you¡¯re to be my queen, then we¡¯ll be married. We¡¯ll...we¡¯ll be husband and wife.¡± Suddenly, Heinley stopped talking and began to fan his face. He looked embarrassed to say the words ¡°husband and wife,¡± and his cheeks were stained red. I was curious about what he was going to say, but first I held his hand to calm him down. ¡°Are you feeling better now?¡± His face was still flushed, but he smiled and scratched his cheek before continuing to talk again. ¡°Yes, we¡¯ll be married. I want to know why you agreed to this, Queen.¡± If Heinley really wanted to take me as his queen, then so be it. My suggestion was oundish and unprecedented anyone who heard it. Now that I was here with Heinley, I was going to tell him about my situation. Before I could speak, however, two people approached us, and we both ceased our conversation. One of the people wore an academy cloak, while the other was dressed in ordinary clothes. They stopped right in front of us, and the one in ordinary clothes bowed deeply before me. ¡°My apologies, Your Majesty. You had been gone for a long time, and we were worried when we did not hear from you.¡± The dean must have sent the escort just in case. Heinley nced at his watch. Indeed, time flew by far faster than expected. We shared a brief smile, knowing that we had simr thoughts. When the man in ordinary clothing looked at Heinley, Heinley suddenly lowered his hood with his hand. ¡®Ah. He had said he came here secretly.¡¯ It would be troublesome if rumors spread that I met him here, even more so that I was facing divorce as an empress. ¡°Very well. Let¡¯s go back.¡± I spoke as calmly as I could, then looked at Heinley and mouthed ¡°letter¡±. *** Read the full chapters on WordExcerpt. The moment Navier nced at Heinley and mouthed ¡°letter¡±, he felt as if his knees would give way beneath him. After she left, he staggered to the ground and leaned his head backwards against a pir. He couldn¡¯t believe what had just happened. ¡®I met Queen...¡¯ In truth, it wasn¡¯t a coincidence that the two met in Wirwol. As soon as Heinley heard that Navier woulde to this region, he took flight and rushed here in a hurry. The meeting at the restaurant, however, was indeed a coincidence, and Heinley was ecstatic about it. How likely was it for two people to think of going to the same restaurant at the same time? His luck didn¡¯t end there. He and Navier ate together, walked together, and even dressed in the same clothes. While there were also twenty-three people around them wearing the same uniform, to Heinley they were invisible. He covered his mouth with one hand and thumped his head against the pir in disbelief. He was proposed to. Queen, who he was willing to have at any cost, proposed marriage to him directly. This would be enough to satisfy the nobles¡¯ impatience and McKenna¡¯s nagging. Several passersby looked strangely at Heinley as he kept grinning wildly to himself alone. However, his expression turned grave soon after. The happiness of marriage was tainted with a dark shadow¡ªof a marriage of convenience, the talk concubines, a promise not to interfere... He didn¡¯t know what Empress Navier was going through, but he was saddened that there was no mention of love. ¡®I just need a throne for her.¡¯ He looked down at the ground, and the passersby continued to whisper to themselves. Heinley didn¡¯t even hear a word of it. He stood up and forced a smile. ¡®But I¡¯m d she changed her mind.¡¯ Navier wanted a throne, and he had a throne. Besides, so what if it was a marriage of convenience? As long as she stayed by his side, they would have the opportunity to be closer. ¡®But what on earth happened...¡¯ Chapter 139 - I Liked Him More Than I Thought (2) Chapter 139 ¨C I Liked Him More Than I Thought (2) A few dayster, I made my return trip to the Imperial Pce. I recalled my agreement with Heinley. He would give me the position of queen, and I would give him my experience as a ruler. However, when I considered the idea more calmly in the carriage, I felt regret. He had epted my proposal, but what if he came to reason now? No matter how happy he was, this deal was a loss to him. If a rumored womanizer like himself were to marry me, the scandal between us would erupt and spread throughout many countries. For a monarch who has to throw away his old, frivolous image and take on a dignified weight and figure, this wouldn¡¯t be a nice matter. Furthermore, marriage between foreign monarchs was usually done with the intent to create a political alliance. I couldn¡¯t expect that after divorcing Sovieshu. Meanwhile, my family, well-known for producing the empress of the Eastern Empire, could not help Heinley with the domestic politics of the Western Kingdom. ¡®If he doesn¡¯t change his mind, then I must simply do my best.¡¯ Fortunately, I had some advantages that would help Heinley. I would bepared opposite of him. My cold judgment would bnce Heinley¡¯s free-spirited image. I could use my experience as empress to empower his position... ¡®Rwibt!¡¯ Yes, Grand Duke Kapmen had said he would continue to look for diplomatic partners. Perhaps we could arrange a rtionship between the Western Kingdom and Rwibt! As I thought about what I would do after going to the West, I shook my head and took a deep breath. I wasn¡¯t sure how far Heinley nned for this, and I was getting ahead of myself. Finally, the carriage stopped, and I took out my hand mirror to freshen up my face. ¡®If Heinley marries me and then falls in love with another woman, it won¡¯t be as difficult as with Sovieshu.¡¯ Just then, a sudden realization struck me hard on the back of the head, and I lost myposure. When the knight came around to help me out of the carriage, he looked at me in surprise. ¡°Your Majesty! Are you all right?¡± I took the knight by the arm to bnce myself, and I put on a smile and assured him that I was fine. However, the sudden thought I had made me feel dizzy. The carriage door closed behind me, and as I walked with the knight, I heard greetings from various people here and there. I strolled down the corridor feeling utterly hollowed out, while I gradually began toe to terms with my realization. I... I liked Sovieshu. I didn¡¯t know if there was a distinction between love as a man and woman or the friendship we shared for a long time. But I liked Sovieshu very much. Even more than I thought. ¡°...¡± Admitting it didn¡¯t make any difference. I did not intend to remain with him simply because I liked him. *** ¡°Your Majesty! The Emperor has sent Lord Koshar away!¡± However, despite the realization of my affection for Sovieshu, the wounds only grew deeper. I couldn¡¯t cling to him. I had to find a way to protect what I had left. The news that he had banished my brother made me ache with pain and loneliness. Did Sovieshu have any affection for me anymore? ¡°Did you hear where His Majesty went?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. It happened so suddenly...¡± Countess Eliza was crying as she told me the news, while Laura paced around the room. I buried myself in an armchair, half-resigned. ¡°I knew he would be exiled. But for it to happen so quickly...¡± ¡°It seems like the Emperor was waiting for you to leave, Your Majesty.¡± I couldn¡¯t believe Sovieshu banished my brother. I closed my eyes to calm my uneasy heart, and Countess Eliza spoke to me in a careful voice. ¡°Will you send money and letters to Lord Koshar?¡± ¡°I should.¡± I stood up from my armchair and went to my desk. When I went to open the drawer, however, I paused. There was a delicateyer of makeup powder between the gap of the drawer door. I swept my fingers through it, collecting the powder on my fingers. ¡°...¡± It was a silvery color, but so subtle that it was hardly noticeable unless one knew to look for it. I had left it in the drawer before leaving Wirwol, just in case someone tried to open it. ¡°Your Majesty? Is there something wrong?¡± As I stopped and looked at my fingers, Countess Eliza approached me. I quickly brushed the powder from my hands. ¡°Has anyonee by my room while I was away?¡± ¡°Thedies-in-waiting took a vacation and went home.¡± I went out into the hall and asked the same question to the guards. ¡°Only the maids whoe here to clean, Your Majesty.¡± ¡®I don¡¯t think it¡¯s the people who alwayse and go in my room...¡¯ ¡°What is it, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a trace of someone searching my room.¡± Thedies-in-waiting who attended to me and the guards outside the door looked at each other in amazement. One of the guards then recalled something. ¡°Come to think of it, Your Majesty. A few days ago, a collective summons was issued, and we were absent for a while.¡± ¡°Collective summons?¡± ¡°Yes. Each pce guard was called in order.¡± Did the intruder visit my room in the meantime? ¡°Who issued the summons?¡± ¡°The knightmander.¡± ¡®Sovieshu...!¡¯ An unpleasant idea urred to me. I quickly went back into my room and looked at the ce where I kept Heinley¡¯s letters hidden. If the knightmander were involved in this, he might have taken them. Sovieshu would use any tool at his disposal to divorce me. Chapter 140 - Don’t Come Here (1) Chapter 140 ¨C Don¡¯t Come Here (1) Unfortunately, today was the day I would dine with Sovieshu. Because I had just returned from my trip, I could put it off on the excuse that I was tired. Instead of doing so, however, I quickly washed, changed, then went to the eastern pce as soon as it was time. ¡°How was Wirwol, Empress?¡± Sovieshu smiled at me, as if he hadn¡¯t had my room searched while I was gone. ¡®Didn¡¯t Sovieshu give the order?¡¯ I couldn¡¯t let my guard down. He had confided to Rashta about how he would divorce me, and then treated me calmly the next day. I wasn¡¯t the only one who knew how to control my facial expressions. ¡°I met the dean and Evely at the academy.¡± I sat down at the prepared table. ¡°Is she alright?¡± ¡°She¡¯s struggling with the loss of her powers.¡± ¡°Ah...is she still losing it?¡± ¡°When I arrived, it waspletely gone.¡± Sovieshu blinked in surprise. ¡°Oh.¡± He shook his head sadly. ¡°She must be very upset.¡± ¡°She said she felt worthless.¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡± Sovieshu looked genuinely worried. ¡°If her mana is gone, then she can¡¯t attend the magical academy...how about moving her to a regr academy and giving her some support?¡± Unlike the magical academy, where tuition and amodation werepletely free, regr academies were expensive. As a result, there were two types ofmoners that attended these academies¡ªthose who were not nobility but were too wealthy to ignore, and those who were smart enough to receive schrships. Nobles, on the other hand, were allowed to enter any school as long as they passed the entrance test. As a result, there was a great deal of tension between the nobles andmon people. For me to push Evely there? The child who almost became a mage? ¡°I will do it if it¡¯s what Evely wants, but I strongly rmend against it.¡± ¡°But it won¡¯t be easy to send a child that went to the magical academy back into society.¡± ¡°I asked the dean to revise Evely¡¯s schedule. Most of her magical sses are now theory-based. The schrs will research together on how to restore her mana.¡± ¡°Research? Make the child a subject?¡± ¡°Evely agreed.¡± Sovieshu looked at me incredulously, and went on to criticize me. ¡°She¡¯s in a difficult position. She¡¯s just a child. Shouldn¡¯t you, the empress, stop her from making that choice?¡± ¡°It was the best thing for the child¡¯s mental wellness.¡± ¡°If it doesn¡¯t seem like her path, you need to know how to make her give it up.¡± ¡°It¡¯s Evely who decides whether it was her way or not. Not you, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes trembled. He held his goblet tightly and stared at me, until he finally turned away. Sensing his sudden weakness, I blurted out the question I¡¯ve been wanting to ask him all this time. ¡°Did you search my room?¡± He flinched slightly. Instead of answering, he carefully cut his grilled lobster and posed a question of his own. ¡°Are you hiding something from me?¡± ¡°No.¡± The weakness I had seen in him suddenly disappeared. He snorted and stood up, then walked away somewhere. I continued to eat, and he returned, carrying a small box. There was no lid on it, and he overturned the box, spilling the contents inside. I could tell immediately that they were my letters with Heinley. Sovieshu really had gone through my room and stolen my letters. ¡°Hiding nothing, you say?¡± Sovieshu spoke in a cold voice and sat down casually in his chair. ¡°Yes.¡± I stared at him calmly. ¡°It wasn¡¯t necessary to tell you.¡± ¡°Not necessary?¡± ¡°You have terrible table manners.¡± ¡°You exchanged private letters with the womanizer king. You didn¡¯t think to tell your husband?¡± ¡°When Miss Rashta takes etiquette lessons, you can sit side-by-side together.¡± Sovieshu angrily gulped down his goblet of water. In the meanwhile, I picked out each scrap of paper that was stained with food and sauce. We hadn¡¯t actually exchanged many letters. When I picked up the fourth one, Sovieshu mmed down his ss then snatched the letter from my hand. He quickly grabbed the other letters, ced a candlestick to his side, then held the end of one letter to the me. I threw a furious re at him. ¡°What are you doing now?¡± ¡°I¡¯m burning them.¡± When he finished with one, he threw the scrap aside, then held up a second letter to a candle. ¡°The letter friend that Prince Heinley had been looking for before. Was it you?¡± ¡°Why ask a question you know the answer to?¡± ¡°Did you have fun?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Was it fun to connive with Prince Heinley and make Rashta look like a liar?¡± Sovieshu burned each of the letters, brushed the ashes from his hands, and stared at me with a grim expression. I feigned augh. ¡°Didn¡¯t you already know that Miss Rashta lied about that?¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s behavior is a separate matter. The Empress should notugh at Rashta.¡± ¡°I think she said for sure that she was not Prince Heinley¡¯s friend.¡± ¡°You said it mockingly in front of others.¡± I really wondered what was going in Sovieshu¡¯s head. Rashta had acted deceptively towards Prince Heinley, but he insisted that she was the one being treated unfairly. ¡°If you really cared, you would havee to me and quietly revealed the truth. Or you would have told Rashta not toe forward because you already knew it was someone else.¡± It was useless to try to reason with him. He was just trying to get me out of the way to make Rashta the Empress. No matter what I said, I was the viin here. ¡°My food is a mess. I can¡¯t eat it anymore.¡± Instead of continuing to fight about the past, I stood up from my chair as gracefully as I could. ¡°I¡¯m not done yet.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll consider your words. After all, you¡¯re going to say it¡¯s all my fault, right?¡± Sovieshu got up from his chair and stood right in front of me. He looked into my eyes and spoke forcefully. ¡°You probably used messenger birds for the letters. Not anymore. I will order the knights to shoot all the birds that try toe to your room.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t see why with whom I exchange letters with has anything to do with you.¡± ¡°I am your husband.¡± ¡°But you are not my lover, are you?¡± ¡°What?¡± I turned aside and left the room without answering. What good was it realizing that I actually liked him? Sovieshu turned into apletely different person when it came to Rashta. My eyes filled with hot tears, and I walked as quickly as I could. Fortunately, when I managed to go outside and take a breath, my tears subsided. Maybe I had gotten used to this, or maybe I had been prepared. However, I became curious about one thing. I thought Sovieshu searched my room to find a reason to divorce me. Why would he burn the evidence with his own hands? ¡°...¡± Well, there were one or two things that I didn¡¯t understand about him. I cleared my head, and hurried back to the western pce. When I arrived at my bedroom, I asked Countess Eliza to bring me a blue cloth. ¡°You mean a blue cloth, not a blue dress?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Blue was the color symbolizing danger. Sovieshu had threatened to shoot all the birds that woulde to my room, so I wanted to hang a blue cloth ahead of time. I couldn¡¯t get in touch with Heinley by messenger bird anymore... Although I felt gloomy, my first task was to make sure no birds died. ¡°Please get it as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± When I saw the end of Countess Eliza¡¯s dress as she went into the drawing room, I realized that I had made a mistake. ¡°Just a moment.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Get me a red cloth, not blue.¡± The symbol of danger in the Western Kingdom was the color red. Queen was smart, but he was still a bird. If he was trained as a bird of the West, he would know that a red g meant not toe near. Chapter 141 - Don’t Come Here (2) Chapter 141 ¨C Don¡¯t Come Here (2) ¡°You mean that Empress Navier will be the queen of the Western Kingdom?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...did you ckmail her?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I apologize. I didn¡¯t mean to suggest that you were a bad person. If not, then why would the Empress be queen?¡± ¡°There seemed to be a reason, but she couldn¡¯t say more because we had parted quickly.¡± Heinley momentarily fell into silent thought. ¡°Perhaps Emperor Sovieshu is about to divorce her.¡± ¡°Oh. Oh, my god.¡± McKenna¡¯s eyes widened when he fully absorbed the fact that Navier and Heinley would be wed. ¡°She surprisingly may be well-suited.¡± ¡°Surprisingly?¡± ¡°Empress Navier. She usually follows rules perfectly.¡± Whatever the circumstances were, it was unprecedented that an empress of a country proposed to the king of another one. McKenna didn¡¯t know if he could describe it as a proposal, but... ¡°Was it done with sincerity?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t joke about that, McKenna.¡± ¡°What about you? Did you ept wholeheartedly?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Heinley looked at McKenna as if to say, ¡®Don¡¯t ask such an obvious question.¡¯ ¡°Well, we were going to start a war, use Miss Rashta as a shield, and take the Empress hostage...but this is certainly better than the original n. But it won¡¯t be easy, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I know. There is so much to prepare.¡± A carefree smile flitted across Heinley¡¯s face. ¡°But I cannot make an empress a queen.¡± It was a joke, but it wasn¡¯t easily understood. McKenna blinked in confusion, before his eyes widened in realization, and he leapt to his feet. Heinley was referring not to a Western Kingdom, but a Western Empire. ¡°Your Majesty, you mean...!¡± ¡°There¡¯s a lot of hard work ahead of you, McKenna.¡± Normally McKenna would haveined in frustration, but he looked on at Heinley with deep happiness and admiration. The people of the Western Kingdom had a slight sense of inferiority to the Eastern Empire. Although each country¡¯s strength and ability was roughly equal, the West was treated as a second tier country after their forces were defeated by the mage army. Foreign countries followed the Eastern Empire¡¯s example, and while Western Kingdom was nowhere a weak country, it was treated as such. Discontent was bound to grow. Heinley smiled at McKenna and pped his back jovially. ¡°Come on, I was going to do it anyway. Don¡¯t you remember our promise?¡± ¡°I do...I¡ªI am happy though.¡± Heinley teased McKenna for a little longer, and then pulled out a letter. ¡°Deliver this to Empress Navier.¡± McKenna gave a grumbled sniffle. ¡°Now that it¡¯s turned out like this, more letters will be exchanged. My poor long-suffering wings.¡± However, McKenna still had a smile on his face. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. But from now on, we need to be careful, as the contents of the letters are things that should not be exchanged in a normal matter.¡± ¡°You talk as if it already wasn¡¯t.¡± In a sh, McKenna transformed. As his clothes fell to the ground, a beautiful blue-feathered bird flew upwards. Heinley tied the letter to the bird¡¯s ankle, stroked his head, and opened the window. A corner of Heinley¡¯s chest swelled with pride. The feeling had rested in him ever since he met Navier in Wirwol. While he was saddened that the Empress did not love him, he was happy enough to cover it all up. Meanwhile, McKenna, a staunch opponent of Heinley¡¯s love for Navier, unexpectedly said that she was suited for him. There may have been a slight sense of sarcasm, but Heinley couldn¡¯t help but smile. There was a knock on the door, and a secretary outside asked for permission to enter. Heinley rang the bell on the wall as a signal, and the secretary came inside. ¡°Your Majesty. There is news from the spy in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°The sessor to the Troby family had tried to harm the Emperor¡¯s baby, and was subsequently banished.¡± Heinley lifted his brows in surprise. Empress Navier came from the Troby family. ¡°The Empress¡¯ brother was banished?¡± ¡°Yes. Emperor Sovieshu sent knights to confirm the departure.¡± Heinley jumped to his feet. ¡°Where is he now?¡± ¡°He no longer seems to have any involvement with Emperor Sovieshu, and the spy did not choose to follow him.¡± Of course, the spy did not know of Heinley¡¯s unrequited love for Empress Navier, and so he had no good reason to track Koshar. ¡°Find the Empress¡¯ brother and bring him to me.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. ¡± After the secretary left, Heinley sat down on a chair and crossed his legs. As McKenna said, Empress Navier was a strong follower of rules and convention, so something serious must have happened if she hade to Heinley. ¡®Does Queen¡¯s brother¡¯s banishment have anything to do with this?¡¯ *** As soon as McKenna received his orders to deliver Heinley¡¯s letter, he flew to the Eastern Empire without a day of rest. He had been back and forth several times, and was familiar with the route to the Empress¡¯ bedroom. When McKenna approached the window, he spied a red cloth hanging from it. McKenna had a moment of foreboding, but then he smiled when he remembered that red was a symbol of good fortune in the Eastern Empire. ¡®I thought she was cold. She has an unexpected charming side to her!¡¯ She must have hung the cloth symbolizing her marriage to Heinley. ¡®Perhaps Empress Navier also has feelings when ites to King Heinley as well.¡¯ McKenna swooped down towards the window, but then a stabbing pain to his side caused him to gasp. He fell down, down, down. Chapter 142 - Between Us Are Secrets (1) Chapter 142 ¨C Between Us Are Secrets (1) As I kept staring at the writing on the report, my eyes started to hurt and I returned to my room. I had been feeling dizzy. These days, my eyes continuously throbbed when I looked at the dense characters. ¡°I haven¡¯t tidied up the room yet, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± I dismissed the maid andy down on my bed. She already cleaned the room three times a day anyway, and the room was always clean. As I leaned against my bed and pressed my eyes, I caught sight of blue feathers on the window sill. ¡®Did Heinley send a letter?¡¯ It reminded me of the blue bird that was Queen¡¯s friend. I approached the window on my knees and studied it. The only blue bird that came in my room was Heinley¡¯s, but I didn¡¯t see the bird anywhere. Instead, I spied something reddish on the wall below the window. ¡®Blood?¡¯ My own blood seemed to chill, and I hesitantly stretched out my fingers. I touched the red stain. As soon as I felt the liquid on my fingertips, I quickly withdrew my hand and looked at my fingers again. It was clearly blood. It was even still wet! ¡®No...!¡¯ Did the blue bird get hurt when it came here? Several days ago, Sovieshu had warned that any birds that came near my window would be shot with arrows. I leaned my head out the window and looked downwards, but no bodies were seen. That didn¡¯t alleviate my anxiety though, and I went outside and searched through the western pce gardens. There was no bird at the area beneath my window. Was it a coincidence? I went back to my room and left the window open just in case, and asked Laura to keep watch for any birds. At work, however, I still couldn¡¯t concentrate. ¡°You look tired, Your Majesty.¡± Even my deputy advised me to go in and rest. I took his council and hurried back to my room after I finished all my essential work as the empress. ¡°Lady Laura. Are there any birds that flew here?¡± Laura shook her head. ¡°No. I sat by the window all this time, but none came.¡± Was I overreacting? Laura stood up and left, and I took her ce in the chair and looked out the bedroom window. I didn¡¯t see any archers outside, but that didn¡¯t mean anything. I was sure that Sovieshu¡¯s men concealed themselves when watching the area. As my gaze was fixed on the empty sky, I suddenly heard a noise from the parlor room. I closed the window and went out, only to find one of Sovieshu¡¯s servants standing in the parlor room with a food cart. On it was arge round te with a silver lid. Countess Eliza and Laura were standing beside him. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I turned to Countess Eliza, but the servant quickly answered in her ce. ¡°His Majesty the Emperor ordered this to be delivered to you.¡± ¡°Food?¡± Why this so suddenly? The servant smiled and uncovered the te. ¡°This.¡± Sitting on the te was a roast bird. The aroma of spices wafted in the air as soon as the lid was removed. ¡°Wow! It looks delicious!¡± I heard Laura pping in delight. But my mind was nk. My eyes could only see the blue feathers ornamenting the roast. ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Blue feathers...roast bird... The sight of dark golden oil and red and green fruits never looked so sickening. I looked at the plump legs and body of the bird, and bile rose to my mouth. ¡°Ugh!¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± I mped my hand to my mouth as thedies-in-waiting ran over to me. My vision seemed to turn white, and the sight of roast meat seemed to swirl in front of my eyes. Blue feathers, blue feathers...red blood under the window and blue feathers...! ¡°No...ah, no!¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Doctor! Get a doctor! Hurry!¡± The sound of a bell, someone running but with far away footsteps, the m of a door opening and closing all like a dizzy party dance¡ª Someone held me and thumped me on the back, but my senses kept falling away as if my soul was already halfway out of my body. *** ¡®Bird?¡¯ Rashta was on her way to the southern pce when she spotted a small creature that had fallen on thewn. The bird¡¯s body was pierced by arge arrow. ¡®Is someone hunting here?¡¯ She frowned. Her etiquette teacher had told her that hunting in the pce was prohibited, and the rule applied to everyone¡ªves,moners, and nobles. She approached the bird in wonder. ¡°Poor thing.¡± Rashta was not very interested in birds, but it was her first time seeing one with such blue feathers. ¡®Rashta would look like a noble to raise such a bird in a golden cage.¡¯ Like Duke Elgy... ¡®What?¡¯ Why did she think that raising this bird would make her look like a noble? She realized that this was not her first time seeing a blue bird. There had been one with Duke Elgy before. ¡®It looks like the bird from then.¡¯ Rashta looked around, took a step closer to the bird, then was startled when the bird opened its eyes and broke into a sad cry. The bird was alive. Not only that, there was a small note tied to its leg. ¡®Is that the bird Duke Elgy uses as a messenger?¡¯ She hesitated, stretched out her hand, and pulled the letter out. If this was for Duke Elgy, it would have to be delivered. She opened and read it while walking to the duke¡¯s room. -If there is some difficult matter you are going through, thinking about it breaks my heart. -If you share your suffering with me, Mckenna will squeeze out his wisdom for you. It didn¡¯t look like it was about anything important...but it seemed to be a love letter. ¡®Was this sent by Duke Elgy¡¯s girlfriend?¡¯ Rashta tilted her head, and when she arrived at his room she delivered the letter. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Rashta picked it up on the way back.¡± ¡°Wow. That¡¯s exciting.¡± He thought that she was ying games with him, and he smiled and opened the letter. After a moment, his brow furrowed, and he looked back at her. ¡°Where did you find this?¡± ¡°It was tied to a blue bird.¡± The duke¡¯s expression darkened, and Rashta was convinced that the bird was indeed meant for him. ¡°A bird?¡± ¡°It was hit by an arrow and it was on the ground¡ª¡± Duke Elgy jumped to his feet before she could finish speaking. He ran out of the room, leaving her behind, before finallying back with the injured bird in his arms. She looked warily at it, sure that the bird would soon die. ¡°Is it the Duke¡¯s bird?¡± ¡°Ah. My bird, yes. Thank you.¡± He ced the bird on the bed, took a bottle of liquor from the shelf, and poured it on the bird¡¯s wound. The bird screeched and writhed in pain. He finally stopped, then he turned to Rashta apologetically. ¡°I can¡¯t treat the bird when you¡¯re here. Can you go back?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t Rashta help?¡± ¡°I can take care of it. Oh. And thank you for retrieving the letter, as well as your story. ¡± He paused for a moment before continuing again. ¡°Did you read the letter?¡± ¡°Oh...I...¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. If you find a fallen letter, read it to your heart¡¯s content.¡± Rashta gave a cute smile, and Duke Elgy put his finger to his mouth conspiratorially. ¡°Keep the contents of the letter secret. I don¡¯t want anyone to know I have this rtionship with the owner.¡± Owner? Who was it...? Rashta was curious, but she nodded and left. When she returned to her room, she called for Viscountess Verdi. ¡°Lady Verdi. Do you happen to know who McKenna is?¡± ¡°McKenna?¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s someone connected to Duke Elgy.¡± Viscountess Verdi replied that she didn¡¯t know, but Arian¡ªa new but experienced maid¡ª spoke up. ¡°The McKenna associated with Duke Elgy is likely Heinley I¡¯s assistant.¡± ¡°Heinley I? King Heinley?¡± ¡°Yes. He is a close friend of Duke Elgy, and is King Heinley¡¯s closest aide.¡± Rashta recalled meeting Prince Heinley when he stayed at the pce. Back then, there was also another man with blue hair that stuck to Heinley like a ma. Was that him? She recalled the words Duke Elgy said to her earlier. ¨C Keep the contents of the letter secret. I don¡¯t want anyone to know I have a rtionship with the owner. The words echoed constantly in her mind. A letter that seemed to whisper love and could not be shared... Rashta covered her mouth in embarrassment. Chapter 143 - Between Us Are Secrets (2) Chapter 143 ¨C Between Us Are Secrets (2) I opened my eyes to see the ceiling above me, and for a moment I couldn¡¯t understand why I was lying down. My gaze remained fixed upwards and no other thoughts entered my head. Except there was something very terrible... I shut my eyes shut again. I was tired, my eyes hurt so much, and the back of my head was sore. Someone grabbed my hand, and I turned my head to see who it was. It was Sovieshu. His eyes were widened in worry, and when our gazes met, he tightened his grip painfully. ¡°Are you all right?¡± The sound of his voice caused the events of earlier to rush back into my head. A blue bird, the one that Heinley held, the one that delivered letters to me, the one that read the letters beside me, the one that dipped its head to drink a bowl of water... And then the body of a roast bird, golden crisp skin that was seasoned and sauced, red blood beneath the window! My stomach roiled and I wanted to retch again. Sovieshu hastilyid his hand on my mouth and shouted out loud. ¡°Get the pce doctor!¡± I shoved his hand away and red at him as icily as possible. ¡°I don¡¯t need one.¡± ¡°You suddenly fainted. You were standing in a daze and you copsed!¡± After listening to Sovieshu recount the events, I now understand why my head was sore. There was a pressure on my forehead, and I lifted my fingertips to find a bandage wrapped around it. Sovieshu tried to touch me again, but I pushed him away. ¡°Empress. Navier.¡± ¡°Leave, and don¡¯t call me by my name.¡± ¡°Empress, I¡ª¡± ¡°Get out.¡± I turned my head away. He had warned me that he would kill any birds. But for him to go as far as to roast it and send it to me? Goosebumps crawled on my flesh. It wasn¡¯t that I didn¡¯t eat meat. It was different, in the same way it was different when a person you didn¡¯t know died versus a person you did know. A bird was the same. I had no words for the horrible fate of that adorable bird that ended up as roast. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You were in such shock¡ª¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t that your purpose?¡± Sovieshu pressed his lips together and finally confessed. ¡°It was a different bird. It was not the one that flew to your room.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true!¡± Lie! What about the blue feathers on the sill or the blood under the window! ¡°What about the feathers around the roast? Are those the feathers of another bird?¡± Blue birds were conspicuous and a symbol of danger, so they were not raised here in the Imperial Pce. How could it be another bird? ¡°It was true that a blue bird was shot. Its feathers were picked up and used. But the meat sent to you was not that bird.¡± ¡°Tell me a lie that makes more sense.¡± I ordered him to get out again, and Sovieshu arose. He didn¡¯t leave, however, and he kept looking back at me. The look in his eyes only made me even angrier. The bird was dead from an arrow, I copsed in shock, and Heinley had lost a bird. So why was Sovieshu the one that looked at me as if he were in pain? His apology and lies were all deception. If he were sorry in the first ce, he wouldn¡¯t have tried to psychologically terrorize me! No matter how much he hated me exchanging letters with Heinley, if he had once ounce of care for me, he would have done no such thing. He would have been content with just killing the bird at the very least! I clenched my nket between my fists to stop myself from beating him with my pillow. ¡°Get out.¡± Sovieshu finally turned away and left the room. I turned over to my side and pulled the nket over my head. Hot tears filled my eyes and I sobbed into the sheets. After several hours like this, I decided I needed to tell Heinley about this. I couldn¡¯t tell him that Sovieshu had turned the bird into roast, but...but I had to let him know his bird was dead. ¡®But without the bird, there¡¯s no way to contact Heinley.¡¯ After a moment of consideration, I decided to go see Duke Elgy first. We always had unusual conversations, but it wasn¡¯t like we didn¡¯t look at each other. He was Heinley¡¯s friend as well, so he would know about to contact him. I didn¡¯t know if I could divulge to him every single detail, but I at least had to inform him of the circumstances. I crawled out of bed and stepped into the parlor room. Thedies-in-waiting gathered there all turned their heads towards my entrance. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Laura started crying in relief, and I felt guilty for making everyone around me worry. ¡°Did you all worry?¡± ¡°You suddenly fainted...It was such a fright...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Don¡¯t cry, Lady Laura.¡± I assured thedies-in-waiting that my condition wasn¡¯t serious and that I had simply been tired, and then went in search for a cloak. Thedies tried to follow me outside, unwilling to leave me unattended, but I told them I was fine and took Sir Artina with me. ¡°I was worried, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I hadn¡¯t held myself the best way in front of everyone.¡± ¡°I hope you will pay attention to your health, Your Majesty. You have been looking paletely.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I had just felt...off.¡± Sir Artina, usually so silent, was concerned about how I fainted and nagged me all the way in the journey to the southern pce. I smiled continuously to appease him, and we finally arrived at Duke Elgy¡¯s room. ¡°Can you wait here for a moment?¡± ¡°Will you meet with Duke Elgy alone?¡± Sir Artina looked quite anxious about it, but the words I had to say to the duke were private. I repeated my order to Sir Artina, and then came up to the door. I heard a faint groan as I stood in front of the room. ¡®Is the Duke injured?¡¯ It was a voice full of pain. As I was about to knock on the door, I spotted a blue feather on the nearby grass. I stared at it for a moment, then slowly walked away from the door towards the window. The curtain was drawn, but there was a slight gap so I could see inside. I leaned forward and looked towards where the sound wasing from. To my shock, Heinley¡¯s assistant, McKenna,y naked in the room. Chapter 144 - Suspect The Blue Bird (1) Chapter 144 ¨C Suspect The Blue Bird (1) Why was McKenna lying there naked...? Shouldn¡¯t he be in the Western Kingdom? I had no idea why Heinley¡¯s closest aide and knight was lying in Duke Elgy¡¯s bed. Moreover, he was groaning as if he were in pain. A momentter, I realized I was peering at the man through the window like a spy. I was about to leave the window to knock on the door, but McKenna¡¯s gaze suddenly locked onto mine. His eyes widened, and he hastily drew a nket over himself. ¡°Your Majesty? Why are you here?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I want to ask you.¡± ¡°Huh? Oh yes, this is...¡± McKenna¡¯s eyes darted around in panic. He opened his mouth as if he were about to say something, but then the door squealed open and the merry voice of Duke Elgy filtered through the room. ¡°McKenna, you don¡¯t have to dress when you¡¯ll have to take it off anyways.¡± Duke Elgy held a box in his hand, but he stopped dead when he saw me by the window. A look of surprise stole over his face, then he whistled andughed wildly. ¡°We¡¯ve been caught again.¡± McKenna cried out in frustration. ¡°Stop the weird jokes from now on!¡± ¡°How fun. I like this.¡± ¡°No! I mean, this is a joke. Sorry.¡± Did he think that I didn¡¯t know what a joke was? That seemed to be the case when McKenna suddenly apologized to me instead of protesting against the Duke Elgy. ¡°It¡¯s fine. If you¡¯re busy, shall Ieter?¡± I would just close the curtain and y along, but McKenna continued to protest. ¡°Please, it¡¯s a misunderstanding!¡± ¡°...¡± I don¡¯t know why everyone tried to take me so seriously. McKenna hurriedly tried to make his exnation. ¡°I was on an errand for King Heinley, and I was injured and ended up here¡ª¡± His words stopped and he doubled over in pain. ¡°Sir McKenna?¡± I almost ran into the room to help him. ¡°Are you alright?¡± The nket slipped, revealing a bandage around his torso. He kept on groaning, and I saw that the linen was spotted with red. ¡°Blood....!¡± My eyes widened amazement, and Duke Elgy quickly dragged McKenna back into bed, murmuring at him to be quiet. ¡°See, this is why you¡¯re called bird-headed.¡± Duke Elgy opened the box he brought. I couldn¡¯t see its contents from my vantage point, but from what I saw Duke Elgy pull out of it, I guessed that it was a first aid kit. Instead of treating the wound, however, he immediately turned to me. ¡°Can youe backter, Your Majesty?¡± Was I disturbing them? However, McKenna¡¯s injury seemed serious. Could Duke Elgy treat it by himself? ¡°Shall I call a doctor for you?¡± It could cause a fuss if McKenna was discovered here, but it was hard to ignore the wound, and his hands were trembling in agony. However, McKenna shook his head. ¡°No, thank you. I¡¯m fine.¡± The pce had ces where visitors coulde and go, but the southern pce was not one of them. Why would McKenna, a close aide of a foreign king, be found in the middle of the southern pce? I wrung my hands worriedly. ¡®I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on here, but...¡¯ It would be difficult to exin away a suspiciously injured person, so I turned towards Duke Elgy. ¡°Duke. I have a favor to ask of you.¡± ¡°Me?¡± He smiled as he held a bandage in his hands. ¡°Even when I asked you to go, you didn¡¯t. I wonder what you¡¯re going to say to me?¡± ¡°Are you still a friend of King Heinley¡¯s?¡± ¡°Well, that is an unexpected question.¡± He burst intoughter. ¡°Why are you asking that all of a sudden, Your Highness?¡± ¡°When you meet King Heinley, tell him his blue bird is dead.¡± Hisughter suddenly disappeared. He raised his eyebrows and looked at me with a curious expression. ¡°The blue bird is dead?¡± McKenna started coughing loudly. ¡°Yes. And that even in the future it will die¡ª¡± I didn¡¯t know how to finish it. At this point, Heinley was clever enough to work out what Sovieshu had ordered. I didn¡¯t bother to talk about the roast bird because it was too horrible. I took two steps back, and saw McKenna behind Duke Elgy¡¯s shoulder. He was still clearing his throat awkwardly and staring at me. *** ¡°Is she saying that you¡¯ll be killed as soon as you¡¯re discovered?¡± After Empress Navier gracefully departed, Duke Elgy turned back to McKenna. ¡°I suppose she knows I was hit by an arrow.¡± ¡°Is there something strange going on behind her?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°She said it with such a grim look.¡± Duke Elgy pretended to slice his throat with his finger, imitating the Empress¡¯s words of ¡®In the future it will die.¡¯ However, McKenna shook his head. ¡°She probably meant that whoever shot the arrow would continue to do so in the future.¡± ¡°She said it with a straight face. Like you were going to be killed.¡± ¡°No. Oh, why do you keep doing that?¡± McKenna suddenly moaned in pain, clutching his head with both his hands. ¡°What is it, Bird Head? Hurts?¡± ¡°The letter you told me to deliver. I didn¡¯t...¡± ¡°You mean that incredibly sappy letter?¡± ¡°Sappy! It was a very clean and simple letter!¡± ¡°So you did read it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Be thankful I didn¡¯t say it was made of butter instead.¡± Duke Elgy approached the bed McKenna was lying in, then took out the gauze, tweezers, and disinfectant out of the first aid kit. ¡°When you¡¯re delivering Heinley¡¯s letter in the middle of this, you¡¯re basically promoting ¡®I¡¯m the blue bird.¡¯¡± McKenna sighed. He had yet another problem. From the look of things, it seemed that he couldn¡¯t go back and forth from the Empress¡¯ chambers anymore. He didn¡¯t know how many more secret messages he had to deliver in the future. *** I returned to my room, but all I could think about were Duke Elgy and McKenna. I wondered why the knight was here and why he was hurt. My eyes alighted on the blue feather on my desk. The feather was retrieved from the window sill...and reminded me of McKenna¡¯s blue hair. Heinley¡¯s bird was injured, and McKenna was hurt too...was that a coincidence? A person couldn¡¯t change into something else. The strange timing frustrated me, and my suspicion only grew the next day. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Around breakfast time, Laura came in the room and caused amotion. ¡°You were looking for a bird that was hurt yesterday!¡± ¡°Is there an injured bird?¡± ¡°Yes! I heard someone say they saw Duke Elgy hugging an injured bird!¡± Yesterday¡¯s events seemed all the more strange after I heard Laura¡¯s story. A blue bird was wounded by an arrow, Duke Elgy rescued the injured bird, and a hurt McKennay in his room... Meanwhile, McKenna was in the pce on an errand for Heinley, and no one knew he was here... As soon as I finished holding my audience duties, I went straight to the court mage to consult him. ¡°Can a person change their form with magic?¡± The court mage looked at me peculiarly, but he answered with a serious tone. ¡°You mean into bird, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Yes, but it doesn¡¯t have to be a bird. It can be any animal.¡± The mage crossed his arms in thought. ¡°No. There is no mage that is characterized by animal transformation.¡± Was I off the mark that McKenna was the blue bird? But the mage¡¯s words did not end there. ¡°But there is a record of the ¡®Bird Headed Tribe¡¯.¡± ¡°Bird...Headed?¡± Have I heard this before? That name seemed to stir a memory. ¡°It¡¯s not a well-known story. The records are very old, and I¡¯m not even sure it¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°But if it is, there¡¯s a im that werewolves may be part of that group.¡± McKenna and werewolves...did not seem to match. The mage smiled and waved his hand. ¡°It¡¯s a strange im. Even if that was real, they wouldn¡¯t be monsters like werewolves. The Bird Headed Tribe was said to be no different from walking and talking people, whereas werewolves went mad at the full moon. The Bird Heads did not have that trait.¡± ¡°Where are the tribe members now?¡± ¡°Gone. Their numbers naturally diminished, faded only into legend.¡± ¡°Is there any chance that any of them would be alive?¡± ¡°Perhaps. If they are, they wouldn¡¯t reveal themselves.¡± The mage chuckled to himself. ¡°You can tell by the fact they were recorded not as the ¡®The Bird Tribe¡¯ but rather ¡®The Bird Headed Tribe¡¯ that they did not have good rtions with normal people.¡± Was it possible that McKenna could be a part of that tribe? What if the blue bird that flew to me was actually McKenna? It was a far-reaching conclusion, but it was my best guess. ¡°Why are you asking all of a sudden, Your Majesty?¡± The mage looked at me with interested eyes. Perhaps he wanted to know I had found some traces of such people. ¡°I was only curious.¡± I made up an excuse and left the mage¡¯sboratory. Chapter 145 - Suspect The Blue Bird (2) Chapter 145 ¨C Suspect The Blue Bird (2) McKenna was either the bird or not. Was it a coincidence that he and the bird were injured at the same time? I ended up breaking several pen nibs while mulling over this question. ¡°Your Majesty, shouldn¡¯t you take a rest today?¡± The court officials who knew of my fainting spell kept suggesting that I take a break from work. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I changed my pen nib again. ¡®I should be happy that McKenna¡¯s the bird, right?¡¯ That meant that Heinley¡¯s blue bird lived. I was concerned that I might have done something unbing in front of him, but I soon shook the thought. I never patted his rear, or hugged or kissed him, or changed my clothes in front of him. It was only with Queen that I¡ª ¡°!¡± Was Queen another one of Heinley¡¯s subordinates? I snapped my pen nib in horror. ¡°It¡¯s not that she¡¯s weak, it¡¯s that she¡¯s full of vigor.¡± My ears caught the sound of a court official whispering, and I started from my thoughts. ¡°I¡¯m tired, so I¡¯ll go first.¡± I hurriedly walked out of the room. The thought that Queen was a member of the Bird Head n was like thorns in my body. ¡®I¡¯ll ask Heinleyter.¡¯ If Queen was one of Heinley¡¯s subordinates... I arrived at the western pce thinking all kinds of horrified thoughts, when I spotted one of Sovieshu¡¯s servants standing in the hallway in front of my room. The servant was holding some kind of wheeled, elongated stand, and a cloth concealed the top of it. Mydies-in-waiting surrounded it with wide eyes. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress! ¡± The servant greeted me as soon as he saw me. ¡°What is this?¡± The voice that emerged from my mouth wasn¡¯t as confident as I wanted. I still remembered thest ¡°gift¡± Sovieshu had sent me. The servant spoke with pride. ¡°It is a gift from the Emperor to Her Majesty.¡± ¡°Gift?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The cloth covering the stand was pulled off, revealing the identity of the ¡°gift.¡± It was a blue bird in a cage. ¡®Thank goodness it¡¯s alive this time.¡¯ It was a beautiful and elegant gift, but I could only see this as some kind of mockery. ¡®Does he intend for me to think of the roast bird every time I see this?¡¯ Whether Heinley¡¯s bird was actually dead or not, Sovieshu wanted to hurt me thoroughly. The servant left, and thedies-in-waiting moved the cage into the parlor room. The bird seemed quite gentle in personality, and it stared at me intelligently as tears pricked my eyes. Whenever I looked at the bird, I could only remember yesterday¡¯s shock. I couldn¡¯t bring myself to look after it. Finally, I called for Countess Eliza to return the cage. *** Rashta was nervous. Several days had passed since Sovieshu had promised to make her empress. She thought he would have notified the empress of divorce by now, but he had yet to act. ¡°What is he thinking...?¡± Rashta hugged herrge doll and paced nervously around the room. This morning, her anxiety grew even higher when Sovieshu prepared a beautiful blue bird to give to Empress Navier. A blue bird. An elegant blue bird fit to be raised by a noble. As soon as Rashta wanted a bird of her own, Sovieshu had chosen to gift one to the Empress instead. She was set to explode into a fit of anger. However, Rashta paused and heard the sound of something being dragged outside her door. She set down her doll and peeked outside. A man was passing down the hall, pulling a cage on a wheeled stand. ¡°What is that?¡± The servant replied with a rather worried face. ¡°This bird was given by the Emperor to the Empress.¡± ¡°But why bring the bird back here?¡± ¡°Her Majesty asked that it be taken back.¡± The servant seemed nervous as he spoke, as if he were afraid to return the gift to the Emperor. ¡°His Majesty isn¡¯t here at this time of day, so you¡¯ll have to leave the bird in the hallway. But if the bird is left out here, it might catch a cold.¡± The servant only looked even more worried. Rashta quickly stepped out and reached out her hand. ¡°Please give it to Rashta. Delise will deliver it.¡± *** At the same time, Koshar was travelling down a long road. He was filled with unease. It wasn¡¯t that he was worried that he could not seed the Troby family, nor that his reputation had plummeted. He did not have to worry about eating or lodging either, as he had plenty of money and jewelry from Marquis Farang and Empress Navier. The thoughts that upied his mind were far different. How could he get revenge on Sovieshu and Rashta? What could he do so that his sister couldfortably reign as empress? Just then, a voice called him from behind. Koshar tugged the reigns on his horse and looked back. ¡°Lord Koshar! Lord Koshar!¡± A man with a bristling beard was running towards him. ¡®A bandit.¡¯ Koshar¡¯s hand went to the sword on his waist, but he spied no weapon on the bearded man as he approached. The man stopped in front of Koshar, bending over to catch his breath, before finally speaking. ¡°Too¡ªtoo fast, too fast, too fast...haa, haa¡ªI thought I missed you.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I¡¯m from the Western Kingdom. I was sent by King Heinley.¡± ¡°The Western Kingdom?¡± At present, Koshar was located on the border of the Northern Kingdom. Why would someone from the Western Kingdome here? ¡°Why the Western King?¡± ¡°He told me to bring you back. He wants to talk about your sister.¡± Chapter 146 - A Blindfolded Man (1) Chapter 146 ¨C A Blindfolded Man (1) Koshar snorted at the bandit. ¡°What kind of scam is this?¡± ¡°Sc...scam. Really!¡± ¡°So, is the king trying to get me to invest in something? Did he say there was a good prospect somewhere?¡± ¡°Invest!¡± The man cried out in dismay and pointed to the symbol of the Western Kingdom on his chest. ¡°Look at this! It¡¯s real.¡± Koshar studied the crest for a moment and nodded, and the man¡¯s face turned to relief. However, just because the symbol was real, didn¡¯t mean that Koshar cared that the Western King was trying to find him. He spoke bluntly. ¡°I won¡¯t answer a summons from the Western King. Even if it¡¯s about anything rted to my sister.¡± ¡°But!¡± Koshar still did not look believing. The man grunted frustratedly to himself, but he knew Koshar¡¯s reaction was understandable. How many foreigners would follow if he told them that a neighboring king was looking for them? Perhaps if it was done in a more formal manner, it would have been more believable. However, the man had to travel quickly and secretly, and thus his appearance was more than questionable. Still, Koshar was known for his muscles rather than his brain, and the man never expected he would react like that...! Koshar snorted and tugged his reins. In the end, he did not leave, but stared at the man expectantly. When the man looked at him in confusion, Koshar responded. ¡°Well? Shouldn¡¯t you guide me?¡± ¡°What?¡± The man didn¡¯t think Koshar woulde along, so why all of a sudden...? He stared in bewilderment, but Koshar did not bother exining himself. ¡°Go. Lead me.¡± The man started and walked ahead. ¡°Come this way.¡± However, Koshar did not intend to see the Western King meekly. He recalled the rumors that the Western King had fallen head over heels in love with Rashta at the New Year¡¯s celebration. When Koshar had gathered information to find Rashta¡¯s weakness, he heard that Heinley¡¯s love was to the extent that he argued publicly with Emperor Sovieshu. Koshar did not trust King Heinley. No matter how much he thought about it, there was no reason for the Western King to call him. However, Koshar was expelled from his country, and he had no work and no rights. So he followed along. If the Western King really summoned him... He was going to persuade the king to take him to Rashta. *** Rashta stared at the bird¡¯s blue feathers. She didn¡¯t know what species it was, but she felt an air of nobility around it. However, this was not the time to admire the bird¡¯s appearance. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Rashta murmured and reached for the bird. She gripped a handful of its feathers, before taking a deep breath and yanking them out. The bird screeched and fluttered in surprise, but the cage prevented any means of escape. Rashta reached out again and pulled out more of its feathers, and the bird cried out and pecked her hand with its beak. She jerked her hand backwards. The bird gave Rashta a dark re. If she put her hand in the cage again, she really might get hurt. Rashta pulled away as she had enough feathers anyway, and she brushed the feathers off the floor and hid them in a pillowcase. ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± Rashta once again apologized to the bird. Despite her guilt, she was determined to protect herself and her baby. Although the Empress¡¯ violent brother was banished, the rest of her family remained. Apart from Sovieshu¡¯s promise to make Rashta empress, she had to secure her own safety by any means necessary. Even if it meant that she had to do a terrible thing. ¡®How was I driven this far?¡¯ This was all because of the Empress¡¯ hostility. If the Empress and her brother had not attacked her first, Rashta was convinced that she would not have done this. She sat down in an armchair, ced her hand on her belly, and sobbed. A few hourster the sky had darkened, and when Sovieshu entered the room, she was still crying. Sovieshu looked exhausted when he walked in, but when he saw Rashta, he immediately became alert. ¡°Why are you crying?¡± Rashta pointed towards the cage. Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows flew upward when he saw the missing feathers on the bird. ¡°Why is it in this state? No, why do you have this bird?¡± ¡°The Empress sent the bird back, and Delise took it and gave it to Rashta.¡± ¡°Why are its feathers like this?¡± Sovieshu walked up to the cage, examined the wound, and pressed his lips tightly as if he were trying to quell his anger. ¡°Rashta doesn¡¯t know.¡± She shook her head, sniffling. She was sorry for the way the bird was ring at her, but she thought she could repay it and raise it for herself. Rashta put her hands together in a begging gesture. ¡°Your Majesty, now that the Empress has abandoned the bird, can Rashta keep it?¡± Sovieshu stared at the bird without a reply. He was deeply offended that his present was returned this way. Rashta begged him again, wiping away her tears. ¡°Your Majesty. Rashta wants to take care of it. It¡¯s so pitiful.¡± Sovieshu looked back at Rashta and gave a weary sigh. ¡°Why do you want a bird that someone else has abandoned? I¡¯ll buy you a new one.¡± ¡°This creature has a life too. How can you throw it away?¡± ¡°Who said I will throw it away?¡± ¡°Huh? You won¡¯t?¡± ¡°I will raise it.¡± ¡°Why will you keep the bird that Her Majesty has abandoned?¡± Rashta looked at him nervously. His reaction did not make sense. She didn¡¯t expect him to raise a bird himself. The Emperor was a proud man, and he was supposed to be furious that the Empress ruined and rejected his gift. The Emperor wasn¡¯t as angry as he should be. Was it because he still had feelings for the Empress? He said he was going to unseat her. Did he change his mind? If Rashta had been able to read Sovieshu¡¯s mind, she would have been relieved instead of anxious. Sovieshu was indeed angry. The Empress had fainted because Prince Heinley¡¯s bird had died, and then she had plucked the feathers out of the bird he had sent her. He wanted to confront the Empress and ask what she was doing. It was true that during the hours that the Empress was unconscious, Sovieshu suffered a fear as if he were submerged in ice water. He was afraid that she would copse again. However, the anger that had lost its way in his body had reignited again. Without a word, Sovieshu took the cage and left Rashta¡¯s room. Chapter 147 - A Blindfolded Man (2) Chapter 147 ¨C A Blindfolded Man (2) Sovieshu¡¯s anger was not resolved the next day, and he ended blowing up on Marquis Karl. The chief secretary hade into the office holding a new report on ¡°Loss of Mana in Mages,¡± and he was surprised when he saw Sovieshu crossing his arms and wearing a terrifying look. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression was so abnormal that the marquis instinctively shrank. ¡°What is it? Did something happen?¡± ¡°Nothing. Nothing.¡± ¡®But your face is...¡¯ Marquis Karl presented his report while looking into Sovieshu¡¯s eyes. The Emperor took the documents with one hand and nced at it quickly, but his expression did not improve at all once he saw the nature of its contents. Marquis Karl surreptitiously tried to leave the room when Sovieshu called out to him. ¡°Did you find the certificate of sale yet?¡± ¡°Certificate? Ah yes, Rashta¡¯s ve certificate...¡± ¡°You haven¡¯t forgotten, have you?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t.¡± Marquis Karl sighed. ¡°As you know, we found nothing on the Empress or her brother.¡± ¡°So you dropped it?¡± ¡°No. Afterwards, I remembered what Lord Koshar said, and checked the knights¡¯ quarters.¡± Marquis Karl¡¯s face grew darker. ¡°But it hasn¡¯t been found.¡± A certificate of sale did exist. It was confirmed by Viscount Roteschu, Lord Koshar, and thepany that Roteschu had entrusted it to. But Sovieshu hadn¡¯t even seen a shred of that paper yet! Why did he even n to divorce the Empress? The uncertainty would never go away unless the sale certificate waspletely destroyed, but it was nowhere to be found even after searching every ce they could search. As Emperor, he could use his power to search every single citizen¡¯s home in the empire, but giving such an order was tantamount to promoting the existence of such a certificate. ¡°Haaa...¡± Sovieshu sighed and pressed his fingers against his throbbing temples. He pursed his lips and stared at the wall, but he couldn¡¯te up with anything. ¡°I don¡¯t have much time. I¡¯m going crazy.¡± He needed to finish the divorce and remarriage before Rashta had a baby. The Empress would not go down meekly. His anxiety only grew when he calcted the time he had left for his n. ¡°We need to find the certificate quickly and destroy it...¡± Marquis Karl just stood there in silence. Meanwhile, Sovieshu murmured to himself as he stewed in his thoughts. ¡°I didn¡¯t want to use the blindfold method...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°If I can¡¯t get rid of the trade certificate, then it can¡¯t be helped.¡± ¡°What are you talking about, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I should use the method that previous emperors often use with their concubines.¡± Marquis Karl understood immediately. ¡°You want to wash Rashta¡¯s identity?!¡± ¡°Yes. If the certificate of salees along, this is the only way to dispute it.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s voice was harsh with irritation. ¡°Bring me the right person from fallen nobility. It would be best if they were a little older. It doesn¡¯t matter if they¡¯re a couple, or just a man or a woman.¡± A frequent method used to change a concubine¡¯s status was to have a fake marriage with another noble. However, because Sovieshu had to marry Rashta within a year, he could not take the course of action. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty ¡± ¡°As soon as possible.¡± Marquis Karl bowed and left the room, and Sovieshu leaned back in his chair and closed his heavy eyelids. He was still angry about the blue bird. Empress Navier¡¯s pale face kept hovering before him. If he wanted to divorce her... Marquis Karl bowed and left the room, and Sovieshu leaned back in his chair and closed his heavy eyelids. He was still angry about the blue bird. Empress Navier¡¯s pale face kept hovering before him. Trying to make this divorce happen caused many surprises. Simply thinking about it made him feel uneasy. *** After my anger at Sovieshu sending the bird died down, thoughts of McKenna and the blue bird came back to my mind. After giving it some thought, I decided to go to Duke Elgy and ask him myself. ¡®I wonder what McKenna¡¯s condition is...¡¯ I went to the southern pce and tapped on Duke Elgy¡¯s door. There was no response. When I knocked on the door again, a voice answered from right behind me. ¡°Yes.¡± It was a voice full ofughter. I turned around, and saw Duke Elgy holding a handful of baby¡¯s breath flowers in his hands. ¡°Would you like it?¡± I nced at his smiling face as he held out the bouquet of flowers. Instead of epting it, however, I asked him a question. ¡°It¡¯s fine. Is Sir McKenna inside?¡± Instead of answering, Duke Elgy responded with his own nonsense. ¡°No one has ever rejected these. I¡¯m embarrassed now.¡± ¡°...Sir McKenna?¡± Why was this man ying with me? I sighed and epted the flowers in hope that he would answer me properly. ¡°You receive flowers with a sigh now? Wow. This is the first time I¡¯ve ever been this embarrassed.¡± ¡°Sir McKenna?¡± ¡°Very peculiar person.¡± ¡°Answer me.¡± ¡°Just like a knife.¡± Was he joking with me? I tilted my head at him, and he stared at me andughed. He answered with a wicked smile. ¡°You stimte the spirit of a challenge, you know?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Is this why Heinley is attracted to Her Majesty?¡± ¡°McKenna mustn¡¯t be here.¡± If he were actually in the room, he would havee out as to not be troublesome. I handed back Duke Elgy the flowers instead of exchanging more words with him. Somehow my hands were full of energy, but I tried to not express them. Duke Elgy held the bouquet of flowers, but as I turned around and walked, he kept following me and babbling. ¡°McKenna wasn¡¯t as badly hurt as he appeared, so he went back.¡± ¡°I wish you had told me earlier.¡± Why is this man so slippery? I wondered what Duke Elgy¡¯s and Rashta¡¯s conversations were like. Rashta would say, ¡°Rashta, Rashta,¡±, and Duke Elgy would say whatever he wanted. Would their conversation ever progress? I wondered about it. However, I had another inquiry. It was about the reason why McKenna was here in the first ce...but if he was gone, could I ask Duke Elgy instead? ¡°I¡¯d like to ask you a question.¡± ¡°Please do.¡± ¡°Is McKenna a bird?¡± If McKenna was the blue bird as I expected, then Duke Elgy would know it too. Laura said that he had picked up the blue bird from the garden. The duke answered with a giggle. ¡°Well. He¡¯s close to it, but not.¡± ¡°Then, is he part of the Bird Headed Tribe?¡± The tribal name sounded like a swear word, so I spoke with as serious expression as I could. The duke suddenly threw back his head and burst intoughter. It was so loud that I looked around in embarrassment. After a time, hisughter finally died down. ¡°What kind of new insult is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± I was embarrassed, so I spoke in a roundabout way and left. *** After Empress Navier disappeared, Duke Elgy smiled to himself by the walled fence. He found it amusing the way the Empress said ¡°Bird Headed Tribe¡± with her distinctive cold expression. Why was Heinley attracted to people who were so in and uninteresting? Was it her appearance that he liked? Duke Elgy shook his head. He couldn¡¯t believe that the Empress had already taken a legend so seriously. He murmured to himself, remembering the way she calmly asked about the lost tribe. ¡°She¡¯s quick on the uptake.¡± Chapter 148 - Two Couples (1) Chapter 148 ¨C Two Couples (1) It was the day of the monthly State Council. Numerous senior ministers andmittee members gathered at the pce, and while Emperor Sovieshu was obligated to attend, my duties as empress were slightly different. My presence at the meeting was not mandatory, and I only made an appearance when my own duties and affairs were on the agenda. I checked my schedule today and found that I was free. After half an hour of thinking, however, I decided to attend the meeting, and sent a message informing the assembly. I knew that Sovieshu would divorce me soon, but it had been quiet, and I was anxious. Perhaps he was going to publicize the divorce today. ¡®Did McKenna return to Heinley?¡¯ How would Heinley react? Now that things had gottenplicated, would he give up on me being his queen? Or was he trying to find another way to get in touch? I mulled over my thoughts as I walked down the corridor, and before I knew it, I arrived at the hall where the meeting was held. Sovieshu looked at me as I entered, but then turned his head away without a greeting. ¡®He pretended to be sorry. But he revealed his true colors as soon as I turned away his gift.¡¯ Instead of waving to him, I sat in my seat and looked straight ahead. asionally, I felt his sidelong nce towards me, but I did not look back at him. Wepletely ignored each other during the meeting, and even during the recess. When the meeting reconvened, the atmosphere became even more awkward. The first in line was Lord Palme, who mentioned my brother. ¡°After Lord Koshar left for the capital, the Eternal Thousand bandits rose up again. They spread their tyranny, and even the merchants do note to Palme anymore. Please, Your Majesty, have the grace to wipe out the bandits.¡± Lord Palme wasn¡¯t talking about my brother¡¯s expulsion, but Sovieshu¡¯s face immediately darkened at the mention of him. Sensible nobles gave warning nces to Lord Palme, but because the security of the lord¡¯s ownnd and people were at stake, he only looked on eagerly at Emperor Sovieshu. ¡°I¡¯ll look into it.¡± Sovieshu replied in a hard voice. Afterwards, another noble stepped up. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Baron Lant wasn¡¯t next on the agenda, but he raised his hand and stepped forward. My heart ran cold. Baron Lant was Sovieshu¡¯s secretary. Would he be the one to start talking about my divorce? I gripped the arm of the throne tightly. Sovieshu, who would have normally dismissed the baron for speaking out of turn, asked him, ¡°What is it?¡± My anxiety pulsed stronger. ¡°It is about Rashta¡¯s parents.¡± However, Baron Lant brought up the topic of Rashta, not me. ¡°Parents?¡± ¡°Yes. There is a couple that im to be her parents.¡± Sovieshu leaned forward interestedly. ¡°Who are they?¡± Baron Lant nced around, then spoke. ¡°They are from the Kalen family.¡± I knew of them. They were a well-established family two generations ago, but when the princes fought over the throne, they backed the wrong prince and ended up falling. So Rashta belonged to that family? ¡°Is it true?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I will have to verify the uracy.¡± ¡°I hope it is true.¡± What an opportune time for Rashta¡¯s noble parents to appear when Sovieshu was about to divorce me. It was hard not to burst out into cynicalughter as I listened to Sovieshu and Baron Lant speak. So Sovieshu would give Rashta noble parents. As a child, he hated it when his father, the previous emperor, did this. It was absurd to see Sovieshu doing the exact same thing now. ¡°...¡± I noticed that Sovieshu¡¯s ears were red. Were we thinking the same thing? ¡®But from a different perspective...how much does he love Rashta that he¡¯s willing to dress up a y that he doesn¡¯t like?¡¯ I thought he would keep to his convictions. ¡°I will bring the couple to youter.¡± Baron Lant stepped back, and the assembly muttered at each other at the strange turn of events. Some thought this a trick arranged by Sovieshu, while others thought it was real. Sovieshu beckoned the next person that was supposed to be in order. The next man was Ambassador Lingall of the country of Blue Bohean. He had a confused expression on his face, and he kept looking back towards Baron Lant. His steps slowed as he approached the throne. ¡®What¡¯s wrong with him?¡¯ His unusual behavior immediately caught my attention. When he finally opened his mouth to speak, I knew why. ¡°I...well, Your Majesty the Emperor. As a matter of fact, a couple in Blue Bohean came to see me a few days ago and told me a strange story.¡± ¡°A strange story?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, Miss Rashta, your concubine, seems to be the couple¡¯s lost daughter.¡± ¡°...¡± For a moment, Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned utterly bewildered like a roon¡¯s. I clenched my jaw and bit my lips. A low rumble ofughter escaped from the ministers¡¯ mouth. Baron Lant stared at the ambassador with widened eyes, who seemed to realize that he was in a troubled situation. ¡°That...well. The couple are also nobles.¡± I nced towards Sovieshu. ¡°She must have six parents.¡± I spoke quietly enough that only he could hear, and his ears flushed. I turned my head towards the front again, while the rest of the ministers fought to contain theirughter. I wondered how this had happened. Sovieshu nervously tapped the arm of his chair. ¡°One of the couples must be a fraud. Maybe both. Either way, the criminals will not escape. Lock them all up!¡± *** ¡°What? Did that really happen?¡± Rashta, who had been in a state of depression since the blue bird, went to visit Duke Elgy. She burst out in gleefulughter when he recounted what happened at the meeting. ¡°You shouldn¡¯tugh.¡± She immediately turned sheepish. ¡°Rashta understands. Are they both yours?¡± ¡°No. I bribed the couple from Blue Bohean.¡± ¡°Ah, the one you told Rashta about¡ª!¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Rashta yelled out ¡°Thank you!¡±, but then she soon frowned. ¡°Are the ones brought by Baron Lant frauds?¡± Duke Elgy smiled. ¡°They are fakes bought by your lover.¡± ¡°My lover? Ah...!¡± She covered her mouth with both hands. ¡°His Majesty!¡± The Emperor had told her that he would make her empress, but since then she had seen no movement. He must have been preparing this behind her! Rashta was deeply moved that Duke Elgy and Sovieshu had done the same thing for her. She smiled as a pink blush rose to her cheeks. ¡°You are both cute. To do this for the sake of Rashta...¡± Duke Elgy smiled as he leaned his arm against his chair. He looked pleased somehow. Rashta tilted her head at him. ¡°What happens now?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t have four parents, so one couple will be branded as a fake.¡± ¡°Which one?¡± ¡°Which one do you want to be real?¡± ¡°The...the one that people will believe.¡± The corner of Duke Elgy¡¯s mouth lifted as if he liked her answer. ¡°That¡¯s the right answer.¡± ¡°Which one will people believe?¡± ¡°The nobles likely think that the couple Baron Lant presented were fake. Fake parents or fake marriages are often used to cover up identities. The Emperor would have done this.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°But another couple appeared, and their confidence in them would be higher. His Majesty cannot prepare two pairs.¡± ¡°So Rashta will say that the couple Duke Elgy arranged are Rashta¡¯s parents?¡± ¡±Well, aren¡¯t you smart?¡± Duke Elgy gave her a smile, and she giggled in reply. Now that she had fake parents, she was now considered a nobledy. Duke Elgy had told her that she needed to have the support of themon people and the trust of the council to challenge empress. However, Sovieshu was now raising her to that position. Everything was perfect now. Everything... ¡°Ah, Miss. There¡¯s something to keep in mind.¡± ¡°Rashta must appease the ministers?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a long way to go. The other one.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I mean the fake parents.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You must treat them like your real parents.¡± ¡°What? They only lend their names for money, didn¡¯t they?¡± ¡°Then people would only see an imitation.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Your goal is not to just be a concubine, but an empress. A concubine with fake parents may be overlooked, but an empress¡¯ background will be scrutinized.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°They will treat you like their long-lost daughter. Treat them as if you missed them in a dramatic fashion. That¡¯s the way it must be.¡± Chapter 149 - Two Couples (2) Chapter 149 ¨C Two Couples (2) The same time Rashta was having a pleasant meeting with Duke Elgy, Sovieshu was deep in serious thought. Sovieshu also knew that everyone would consider the noble couple brought by Baron Lant to be fake. Ironically, however, the Blue Bohean couple appeared more credible. The story of a poor aristocratic girl that was reunited with her parents was more interesting than a concubine having her identity changed. If the optics were done right, everyone would go crazy over the story. The problem was...Sovieshu was made into aughingstock because of this incident. He closed his eyes against the dizziness swirling in his head. Following his father¡¯s footsteps led to disaster. Even Empress Navierughed at him. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Baron Lant looked on nervously. He felt guilty, as he was the one who hired the fake couple. It wasn¡¯t his fault, to say the least. The ministers were required to submit the agenda items at the State Council, but Ambassador Lingall made no mention of Rashta¡¯s parents. Baron Lant did not either, but it was for dramatic effect. He regretted his actions. If he had just written it down on the agenda...Ambassador Lingall might have questioned him first. The Emperor would not have been publicly embarrassed. ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Sovieshu was far from fine, but he lied for his faithful servant. However, a note of exhaustion tinged his voice. Sovieshu, whose eyes had been closed this whole time, slowly opened. There was no confusion in them anymore, only a resolution in having made a decision. Baron Lant and Marquis Karl exchanged nces with each other, but they had no idea what the Emperor was thinking. ¡°Baron Lant.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°The couple you brought. Where are they being held?¡± ¡°They are not exactly criminals, so they are locked up on the first floor of the western tower. Both couples.¡± Despite its name, the west tower was not located on the western side of thepound. It was originally in the west, but with the addition of the central pce, its use was also changed. The western tower was mostmonly used to temporarily hold nobles who were under suspicion but open to questioning. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Sovieshu raised himself from his seat, and Baron Land and Marquis Karl quickly followed. After arriving at the western tower, however, Sovieshu entered the first floor alone, leaving the other two behind. The fake couple bought by Baron Lant knelt in forgiveness when Sovieshu opened the window attached to the door. ¡°Have mercy, Your Majesty! We were deceived too!¡± ¡°Baron Lant said it was your wish that we would be Rashta¡¯s parents!¡± ¡°We never meant to deceive!¡± Sovieshu nced downwards at the wailing nobles. They didn¡¯t have much the appearance of one¡ªtheir cheeks were thin, and theirplexions were pale. It was why Sovieshu had chosen to do his business with them. He opened his mouth, judging that the couple would follow his words. ¡°The name of the person who deceived you...¡± ¡°It¡¯s Baron Lant! Baron Lant! ¡± ¡°Is Koshar Lilder Troby.¡± ¡°What?¡± The couple was blindsided by the Emperor¡¯s words. Though they were not intimately involved with high society, they knew basic information. Koshar Lilder Troby was the Empress¡¯ elder brother, and heir to the Troby family. ¡°No, I don¡¯t understand...¡± ¡°Think carefully.¡± ¡°No, it was definitely Baron Lant.¡± Sovieshu coolly tapped the bars on the window. ¡°Think again.¡± When the couple realized the Emperor¡¯s will, they looked surprised. The Emperor was trying to ce the me on the Empress¡¯ brother. The couple exchanged frightened nces. They were ordinary and decent people, and lying meant that the Empress¡¯ brother and family would suffer. The couple was even fond of the Empress, but if their lives were at stake, they would put themselves first. No matter how good the Empress was, it meant nothing to them if they weren¡¯t alive. ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Come to think of it, that was the name.¡± ¡°What about his face?¡± ¡°He was...¡± ¡°Beautiful. Just like the Empress.¡± ¡°Yes, he was.¡± ¡°What about his eyes?¡± ¡°Blue...¡± ¡°It¡¯s green. What about hair color?¡± ¡°Blond!¡± ¡°Yes, he has dark blond hair.¡± The couple grabbed each other¡¯s trembling hands. How on earth did they get involved in this? They were only doing the asional actions of fallen nobles. They thought they could simply lend their name, collect their money, and live in peace. It was painful and miserable telling a lie. But they had more reason to be afraid. ¡°Testify this in public.¡± ¡°Y-you will spare us?¡± ¡°What did Koshar offer you in exchange for lying?¡± ¡°He offered to give us money.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you five times that amount.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°¡®Koshar ckmailed you to lie. If you seeded in being Rashta¡¯s parents, he would give you orderster. When he was banished, however, you did not hear what the orders were. Correct?¡± ¡°Yes! That¡¯s right! Yes!¡± Sovieshu left the ¡°fake parents¡± behind, and as soon as he returned to his room, he called for Marquis Karl. ¡°Bring me the divorce papers.¡± Marquis Karl was stunned. Although Sovieshu had mentioned his intentions to divorce before, the marquis did not expect it to go ahead so suddenly. Chapter 150 - Meeting In The Western Kingdom (1) Chapter 150 ¨C Meeting In The Western Kingdom (1) ¡°Are you really getting divorced, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t say I was.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face was set. Marquis Karl left the room with a somber expression, and returned about fifteen minutester with some documents in his hand. It was a divorce application from the High Priest. Sovieshu ced the application in the middle of his desk, dipped his pen into an inkwell, and looked down at the paper. Even now, Marquis Karl fervently hoped that Sovieshu would change his mind. ¡°...¡± But there was no change. The pen tip hovered on top of the paper. A drop of ck ink fell onto the white sheet, and Sovieshu immediately started writing the reasons for divorce. He wrote how Koshar Lilder Troby pushed Rashta when she was pregnant, how he kidnapped and assaulted Viscount Roteschu, and how he bribed a noble couple to pretend to be Rashta¡¯s parents. Sovieshu attempted to end it all by banishing Koshar, but the man continued to pursue Rashta and her baby afterwards. Sovieshu had to protect that faint life in her womb. Finally, Sovieshu set the pen down, closed his eyes, and lifted his head up. The Empress¡¯ pale face after she had fainted drifted into his mind¡¯s eye. His heart felt as heavy as a stone, and the anxious feeling in him grew. Was this the right choice? ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl¡¯s voice broke him from his thoughts, and Sovieshu opened his eyes. After cing the divorce papers in an envelope, he sealed it with wax and stamped his seal. He quickly held out the letter to Marquis Karl, as if the letter were about to explode. The marquis epted it with both hands, but he hesitated in leaving the room and mumbled iprehensibly. ¡°Go. Deliver it.¡± Marquis Karl kept mumbling after receiving the order, and Sovieshu threw him a questioning look. The marquis gathered his courage and spoke. ¡°Your Majesty, do you really need to do this? Perhaps you need some more time to think...¡± ¡°Am I not doing this because I don¡¯t have the time?¡± ¡°The Empress is still young. Whether she¡¯s infertile is still inconclusive.¡± ¡°As young as she is, she hadn¡¯t produced a baby for years.¡± Sovieshu closed his eyes with a pained expression. ¡°Without my baby, the next in line will be Grand Duke Lilteang. But the reality is that his son, Sheir, is likely the one to follow.¡± ¡°The young lord Sheir...¡± Marquis Karl could not bring himself to finish speaking. Grand Duke Lilteang was an ambitious man, but he was aware of his own capabilities and showed little interest in the throne. Although his son Sheir was a fine boy, his weak will caused him to be easily swayed. If Sheir became emperor, he would be the most indecisive ruler in history, while his father would wield the true power behind his son. It was a situation that could easily lead to corruption. ¡°But Your Majesty. Perhaps the Empress may have a baby soon. We can wait a few more years, and if there isn¡¯t one, you can look into finding a new sessor.¡± ¡°In those years, my first child will have grown. What if that firstborn is hurt by the fact that their much younger sibling is the heir?¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu waved his hand. ¡°It¡¯s just as rumored. The Empress is infertile.¡± Marquis Karl hesitated before asking. ¡°Why are you so sure?¡± He kept wondering how it could be. He knew that Sovieshu dreamed of bing a father, but Marquis Karl could not understand why he was so sure Empress Navier was barren. Sovieshu seemed about to answer the question, but then he shook his head. ¡°Deliver the letter. I will have to tell the High Priest privately in any case.¡± ¡®Even if you speak to the High Priest, I can¡¯t hear it when you do.¡¯ Marquis Karl thought these words inwardly to himself, but he could not bring himself to say them out loud, and left. *** Viscount Roteschu had not visited Rashta in weeks. The viscount had been kidnapped and assaulted by Koshar, his ear had been cut off, and he was kept in bed all day for treatment. But no matter how skillful the medical car, his ear could not be saved. ¡°I¡¯m relieved that your eardrum wasn¡¯t injured. It was only the outer flesh.¡± ¡°My ear is cut off, and you think that¡¯s good news!¡± ¡°It¡¯s better than having your eardrum injured.¡± ¡°It would have been better if it were never cut off at all! You son of a bitch, get out! Get out!¡± n squeezed his child in his arms as Viscount Roteschu swore at him. He worried that his father seemed half out of his mind, while Viscount Roteschuy in bed, angrily huffing for breath. ¡°Father, don¡¯t you want to hug him?¡± ¡°Get out! Get out!¡± n thought Viscount Roteschu would feel more rxed if he hugged his grandson, but he quickly left the room when Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face turned as purple as a sweet potato. As n walked with his crying baby, his thoughts turned to Rashta. He wanted to show that their baby looked just like her... Suddenly, he ran into Rivetti carrying a bowl of soup up the stairs. ¡°What were you doing?¡± ¡°I went to visit Father.¡± ¡°With that lump? Leave him be. It will only make Father worse.¡± ¡°...That ¡®lump¡¯ is your nephew.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. But when I look at its face, I can¡¯t think of anything good.¡± ¡°Rivetti.¡± ¡°I could love him as a nephew. But he doesn¡¯t look like you¡ªhe looks like Rashta split herself.¡± Rivetti squeezed past him with the bowl of soup. n sighed and kissed his baby¡¯s lovely forehead. As he went down the stairs, he heard a sudden yell from Viscount Roteschu¡¯s bedroom. Curious, n climbed back up the stairs and entered his father¡¯s bedroom again. ¡°Father?¡± Viscount Roteschu was trembling as he stared at a newspaper. ¡°Father? Are you alright?¡± n pressed the baby to Rivetti¡¯s arms and approached his father. ¡°Father? Are you feeling sane?¡± ¡°You damn boy! Of course I¡¯m sane!¡± Determining that the viscount seemed fine, n took the baby back in his arms. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? I heard the sound of a pig being strangled.¡± Viscount Roteschu flung the newspaper at his son, and it fell limply against his shoulder. n picked up the newspaper, set it on a table, and unfolded it with one hand. What was it that made his father so angry? There wasn¡¯t much in the way of interesting content in the newspaper¡ªan up-anding bakery called B and Haley, ads about dressmakers and designers, family scandals...it was just as usual. ¡°Huh?¡± n paused at one part. There was a story of how two pairs of couples imed to be themoner concubine¡¯s parents. Both couples were nobles. ¡°Noble parents?¡± n murmured to himself in amazement. The article is obviously about Rashta. Noble parents? Viscount Roteschu furiously kicked off his nket. ¡°It¡¯s impossible! As if that brat had noble parents!¡± n turned towards his father. ¡°Do you know who Rashta¡¯s parents are?¡± ¡°I know that those parents are fake! They¡¯re frauds!¡± Viscount Roteschu panted as he swung himself out of bed. ¡°Father, you can¡¯t get up yet!¡± Rivetti was too frightened to stop him, and Viscount Roteschu roared for a servant. ¡°Get my clothes! I have to go to the pce!¡± ¡°Father!¡± ¡°Noble parents? That¡¯s ridiculous. I wonder where those swindlers are from. Or perhaps they were paid to be fake parents!¡± As long as Viscount Roteschu had Ahn, he could continue to threaten Rashta. However, he did not intend to share his gold mine with others. He wouldn¡¯t let anyone near with a pickaxe! Anger drowned out his pain. When Viscount Roteschu arrived at the pce, however, Rashta was nowhere to be seen in her chambers. Chapter 151 - Meeting In The Western Kingdom (2) Chapter 151 ¨C Meeting In The Western Kingdom (2) That moment, Rashta was at the western tower with Sovieshu. There were several other nobles present, along with two journalists. ¡°These are the people iming to be your parents, Rashta.¡± Sovieshu presented the couple to Rashta. She exchanged a few words with each of them carefully, and Sovieshu calmly watched. He didn¡¯t know whether the Blue Bohean couple were truly her parents. He had had them interrogated, and there were several usible reasons why Rashta could be considered their biological daughter. Ambassador Lingall also confirmed this information advance, and reported it a few days after the couple arrived. Whether they were Rashta¡¯s true parents or not, Baron Lant¡¯s couple had to confess that they were fake. If both couples were revealed to be frauds, then another couple would have to be brought in again. At least this time, they could im they found out about Rashta through the newspapers... ¡°Ah.¡± Rashta¡¯s sigh entered Sovieshu¡¯s ears, and he turned and nced at her. Her eyes were wet as she stood in front of the door of the Blue Bohean couple¡¯s cell. ¡°I think these are my parents.¡± The noble couple also began crying. ¡°We don¡¯t know how long we have been searching for you.¡± ¡°We could only think about how much you had suffered.¡± It was a truly emotional reunion. The journalists¡¯ hands quickly flew over their notebooks, and several noble onlookers were dewy-eyed. None of them asked for proof of a blood test, as doing so was considered shameful among both nobles andmoners. It was never used except for the most necessary of circumstances. After the brief reunion, Sovieshu ordered the prison guards to open the cell door. The noble couple walked out, and they pulled Rashta into their arms and cried again. Sovieshu waited a moment for them to calm down, then issued them a warning in a low voice. ¡°If you are frauds, keep in mind that your necks will be on the execution stand.¡± The Blue Bohean couple¡¯s eyes were wide with fright, but they nodded. Rashta guided them away to her room. As Duke Elgy advised, she would treat them just like her parents. Just for now. However, when they arrived in front of her chambers, an unpleasant man was standing right outside her door. Rashta stiffened at the sight of him, but she kept her voice steady. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°I came as your guardian. What is this?¡± ¡°My guardian? Why are you my guardian?¡± Rashta calmly presented her new parents. ¡°These are my guardians.¡± ¡°Guardians? Are they the ones in the newspaper? They imed to be your parents?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not arguing with you.¡± Viscount Roteschu huffed angrily. ¡°No, they¡¯re frauds!¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s outburst gave Rashta a sense of satisfaction. It made her gleeful to see him squirm. ¡°My parents are not frauds!¡± Rashta yelled at him outright, and Viscount Roteschu only grew even more purple in the face. ¡°Parents!¡± Instead of answering, Rashta took her parents into her room. ¡°He¡¯ll go away.¡± When the door closed, Martha, one of the parents, spoke in concern. ¡°Are you alright?¡± ¡°Fine.¡± Rashta answered in a brusque manner and gestured for them to sit on the couch. She sat across from them and looked at each of them awkwardly. ¡°Martha and Gillimt...is that what you said your names were?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Thank you for saying we¡¯re your real parents, Miss Rashta.¡± They conversed for a while. Marsha and Gillimt had very kind personalities¡ªwas it because Duke Elgy had chosen them? They were so warm and caring that Rashta wished that they were her real parents. The more she talked with them, the more she wished it was real. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve heard from Duke Elgy, but we really lost two daughters.¡± ¡°We were forced to flee when we were attacked by a group of bandits. Each child was taken by a nanny...and we have never heard of them since.¡± ¡°We had been looking for our daughters all this time.¡± ¡°We looked for so long, and shamefully used up the entirety of our fortune.¡± Marsha and Gillimt each took one of Rashta¡¯s hands and held it tightly. ¡°One child is the same age as Miss Rashta. The second is a few years younger.¡± ¡°We¡¯re still looking for her.¡± ¡°There¡¯s still one more daughter.¡± After briefly sharing their story, they asked about Rashta; what she liked, how she had been, why her hands looked so scarred... As Rashta talked about the past, she cried and hugged her parents. Although they were fake parents hired to wipe away her past identity, being loved by these people filled her heart. She had been worried whether they wanted to use her like Viscount Roteschu, but it seemed like she wouldn¡¯t have to worry about it. ¡°Rashta is an orphan...but if I had my parents, they would be the same as you.¡± *** Viscount Roteschu returned home in a much fouler mood than Rashta. He would never forget her rejection. He had been assaulted and maimed by Koshar because of her, while she enjoyed herself as she covered up her identity and took in fake parents. This was uneptable. What ideas would she getter after she gave birth to the Emperor¡¯s baby? ¡°I must take the initiative.¡± *** Koshar finally arrived in the capital of the Western Kingdom, and was passing through the pce gates. In just a few days, the man who escorted him had fallen in love with Koshar and regaled him with various stories. The man had heard rumors Koshar was a terrible rogue, but didn¡¯t find it to be necessarily true. Koshar indeed had a fiery personality and a short temper, but he wasn¡¯t as extreme as the rumors suggested. However, the man was most enamored with Koshar¡¯s fighting abilities. The decisive incident urred when they encountered a group of bandits at the border. Koshar easily dealt with the ten bandits by himself, and to the man¡¯s eyes, he was the attractive viin in a hero¡¯s story. ¡°If I were a woman, I would certainly fall in love with Lord Koshar.¡± ¡°I want you to carefully consider my thoughts.¡± ¡°Something good?¡± ¡°I see you have no regard for them.¡± ¡°Hahaha! I actually have a sister who looks like me. She¡¯s not yet married.¡± ¡°Did we arrive? Ah, there.¡± ¡°Lord Koshar? Lord Koshar! Not that way! Come back!¡± The man managed to catch Koshar and bring him to the prearranged meeting ce. To Koshar¡¯s surprise, King Heinley was already waiting for him there. A message was sent when Koshar had passed through the main gates, but he didn¡¯t expect the king to wee him at his immediate arrival. Why was King Heinley so eager to see Koshar Lilder Troby? Chapter 152 - Why Call Me Elder Brother? (1) Chapter 152 ¨C Why Call Me Elder Brother? (1) ¡°Lord Koshar. This is King Heinley I of the Western Kingdom.¡± The escort abandoned his yful manner and introduced King Heinley, and Koshar bowed to Heinley with perfect gentility. The man imagined Koshar to be too much of a ruffian to seed the Troby family, but when it came to it, Koshar had impable manners. The man stared between Koshar and Heinley, in suspense for what kind of conversation they would have. ¡°Good work. You may go.¡± Heinley ordered the man to go away, and he was forced to turn around in disappointment. Koshar watched the scene with a close eye. He remained outwardly calm, but he was still surprised inside. It wasn¡¯t because the bandit-looking man offered to introduce him to his sister, but because the Western King seemed to be eagerly anticipating Koshar¡¯s arrival. ¡®This is good, in any case.¡¯ Now that he met the king, he wouldn¡¯t have to abandon his vendetta against the concubine. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Koshar opened his mouth to give his formal greeting. Before he could say anything, however, something astonishing happened. ¡°Elder brother. It is my humble honor.¡± King Heinley called him ¡®elder brother¡¯. Koshar blinked in surprise. ¡°...What?¡± Koshar was rendered speechless. He stood as frozen as a statue, and Heinley gave a small chuckle. ¡°Ah. It seems you don¡¯t know how to react.¡± Actually, Heinley himself was unsure what to do beyond this point as well. He had only been thinking about bringing Navier¡¯s brother to the kingdom, but hadn¡¯t considered any ns beyond that. He simply knew that to gain favor from Navier, he had to gain favor from her family. In Heinley¡¯s eyes, Koshar was marked ¡°Priority number one.¡± Simrly, Koshar, who didn¡¯t know the reason for his summons, was stalled on what words to say. Although Koshar had asional quarrels with Sovieshu since childhood, in an official capacity, he always treated the Emperor with civility. Koshar had taken the same etiquette lessons as Navier, but a king from another country had never called him ¡°elder brother¡± out of nowhere. ¡°What is the meaning¡ª¡± Heinley gave an ¡°Ah¡± and pointed at the door with a wide, friendly smile. ¡°Please enter first. We can talkter after you¡¯re refreshed and rested. Are you tired?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You bear a great resemnce to your sister.¡± ¡°?!¡± *** The room prepared for Koshar wasfortable, spacious, and luxurious. It had a soft beige interior, and the timber and workmanship on the furniture were of the finest quality. The bathtub was filled with warm water and sprinkled with rose petals, and clothes were prepared that fit his measurements. ¡®How does he know my size?¡¯ Not knowing that Heinley had prepared clothes of all sizes, Koshar felt like he had been possessed by a ghost. ¡®If I listen to him, then I¡¯ll find out all his reasons.¡¯ After changing his clothes, Koshar was led by a handmaid to King Heinley. When Koshar entered the room, somehow, Heinley looked worse than before. He was sitting at a table, his expression dark and his forehead crumpled. When he saw Koshar, however, he got up, weed him, and called him ¡°brother¡±. ¡°I thought the color red would suit you, brother.¡± ¡°Your Majesty. I apologize, but you keep calling me ¡®brother¡¯...¡± ¡°Ah. Let me exin.¡± Heinley, however, suddenly found it difficult to speak. Koshar waited patiently, and after about five minutes, Heinley confessed. ¡°In truth, I don¡¯t know what to say.¡± ¡°...About?¡± ¡°What is certain is your sister. I promised to marry her.¡± Koshar had taken a sip of water, and he choked when he heard Heinley¡¯s words. Heinley quickly offered him a handkerchief. Koshar held out his hand to ept, when he saw the initials embroidered on it. It had Navier¡¯s initials. That meant this handkerchief¡ª ¡°Ah. This.¡± Heinley quickly withdrew the handkerchief, then pulled out another one to offer him and smiled awkwardly. ¡°My apologies. I often take that one out first.¡± ¡°That handkerchief is...¡± ¡°It originally belonged to Empress Navier.¡± Koshar thought so. That handkerchief was clumsily embroidered by his father¡¯s unskilled hand. ¡°I know. My father gave it to her as a gift.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± Heinley smiled, turning slightly red in the cheeks. ¡°So it came from father-inw.¡± Koshar was d he wasn¡¯t drinking water this time. He could hardlyprehend everything that the young king had been saying. Father-inw? No, why does the king have that handkerchief? ¡°Ah. Empress Navier gave it to me.¡± Koshar kept staring at it doubtfully. ¡°She tied it around my neck.¡± Koshar was caught drinking water again. He coughed roughly into his hand as Heinley knocked him sympathetically on his back. Empress Navier tied her handkerchief to that king¡¯s neck? ¡°It was in secret.¡± Heinley quickly added to his words, recalling that she had tied it to him when he was a bird. ¡®She tied him up in secret!¡¯ Koshar gripped his cup more tightly. His head was spinning. What was going on here? Why did Empress Navier tie a handkerchief to the king¡¯s neck? Heinley pressed the handkerchief to his chest and continued with a proud smile on his lips. ¡°The situation is urgent, so I¡¯ll exin first. I promised to marry Empress Navier.¡± ¡°By chance...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the exact circumstances. But Her Majesty the Empress proposed to me first.¡± ¡°N-Navier!¡± ¡°This is only a guess...but I believe Emperor Sovieshu is preparing to divorce the Empress.¡± Koshar¡¯s face froze in shock. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Koshar¡¯s face was quite simr to Navier¡¯s, and Heinley found that his heart was pounding. ¡°As I said, I don¡¯t know the details. But she is not the one who would propose to me for no reason.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Sadly, she offered me a marriage of convenience.¡± Navier. Koshar¡¯s precious sister, whose only dream was to grow up to be empress. If she nned to marry the Western King, there must be a reason. ¡°I see.¡± Koshar nodded. He knew that Sovieshu was deeply in love with his concubine, and that she was also pregnant. People in love could leap into doing crazy things. Perhaps Navier heard of Sovieshu¡¯s divorce from the concubine. However... ¡°It seems you epted the offer. Why?¡± He didn¡¯t understand. Navier was in a politically difficult position, and had offered a proposal before getting divorced. Why would Heinley ept it out of nowhere? Navier was a lovely woman of course, but marriages between nobility and royalty weren¡¯t meant to be romantic. Koshar weighed the advantages and disadvantages. King Heinley must also have a mind full of calctions. However, Heinley¡¯s answer was disarmingly simple. ¡°I love her.¡± Koshar blinked his wide eyes. What? Chapter 153 - Why Call Me Elder Brother? (2) Chapter 153 ¨C Why Call Me Elder Brother? (2) ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°I love her. So I epted her offer immediately.¡± Heinley¡¯s proud deration stunned Koshar, and thetter was forced to reassess his impression of the other man. Heinley transformed from ¡°a scumbag king¡± to ¡°a king of good taste¡± in Koshar¡¯s eyes. Yes. A sovereign king of a nation should have excellent judgment. Koshar soon swelled with pride. Come to think of it, the young king had a handsome face and a charismatic atmosphere. He would look good standing next to his younger sister. However, a sliver of doubt remained inside Koshar. Rumor had it that Heinley was a huge womanizer... ¡°I¡¯m not a womanizer.¡± When Koshar¡¯s eyes narrowed in suspicion, Heinley quickly noticed what he was thinking. ¡°I may appear that way, but it was intentional. I¡¯ve never crossed the line.¡± ¡°Intentional?¡± Heinley did not want to exin this part. There were two reasons why he pretended to be a free lover: one was to blind people¡¯s eyes as he prepared for war, and the other was to appear to be rtively less qualifiedpared to his brother. However, neither reason was worth telling Koshar. The war preparations were confidential, and it would be dishonorable to say he was lesser than his brother. When Heinley remained silent, Koshar shifted the topic. ¡°I understand that you promised marriage to Navier. What about the process? What did you decide to do? Are you sure she is getting divorced?¡± ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡± Heinley sighed. ¡°Oh, listen while you eat, brother.¡± Koshar wanted to tell him to stop calling him ¡°brother¡±, but he bit his tongue and picked up his fork. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Originally, Empress Navier and Imunicated by messenger bird.¡± ¡°Messenger bird?¡± ¡°Yes. This time as well, we decided tomunicate the finer details through messenger birds.¡± Heinley¡¯s face darkened. ¡°But as I was taking a bath, I received some bad news.¡± ¡°What news?¡± ¡°I believe Emperor Sovieshu noticed that the Empress and I were inmunication.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°We can¡¯tmunicate directly anymore...and I¡¯m worried. I need to find another way.¡± ¡°Do you have a n in mind?¡± ¡°I have a friend staying in the capital, so I considered sending a bird through him instead.¡± Heinley shook his head. ¡°But I don¡¯t believe it will work. Emperor Sovieshu likely will keep a lookout for any suspicious birds from now on.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression was grave. Koshar set down his fork and studied the young king carefully. He didn¡¯t know much about Heinley. This was the first time he had met him in person, and the rumor among the social circles was that he was a womanizer, along with Duke Elgy. However, Heinley did not act like a frivolous man. He even had someone bring Koshar here to the Western Kingdom. The king seemed genuinely concerned for Navier, and even if it was love from a tomcat... ¡®It¡¯s better than being divorced and doing nothing.¡¯ Koshar knew that being empress was not simply holding a seat. He had watched as Navier grew from a child who watched other children ying through the window, to one whose tenacity and passion was only focused to that of bing empress. She couldn¡¯t y because she had to be the empress. She couldn¡¯t eat because she had to be the empress. She had to endure this because she had to be empress. Navier repeated these thoughts to herself, giving up on her childhood for her future dream. Koshar could only imagine how much pain she would experience being ousted from the throne without any wrongdoing. It was for that that Koshar decided to join hands with the entric King Heinley. ¡°I have a way.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°My friend, Marquis Farang, lives right outside the capital. He can ept the letters.¡± ¡°Ah! I can send letters to that ce!¡± ¡°He won¡¯t look at the contents. You can send messages to Navier through him.¡± Heinley¡¯s face brightened. *** ¡°Although ¡®that woman¡¯s¡¯ story was published in the newspapers, no one outside is in an uproar.¡± ¡°Everyone is speaking as if she were a fairy tale character.¡± There was no good news among the stories gossiped by thedies-in-waiting. Rashta would love this. When the people heard that themoner concubine had found her lost parents, they called her ¡°a living fairy tale.¡± If Rashta were to ascend to the position of empress, there would be even greater public fixation. Themon people would surely rejoice. It only hurt me to think about it, so I turned my thoughts to figuring out a way tomunicate with Heinley. The best n I had was borrowing Marquis Farang¡¯s messenger bird, but that also had its problems. The bird may go straightaway to Heinley, but I didn¡¯t know how Heinley¡¯s bird coulde straight to my room. Speak of the devil¡ªas I deliberated over my options, the man I had been thinking of came to see me. ¡°What is it?¡± When thedies-of-waiting left, Marquis Farang smiled and held out a letter. ¡°I have something to deliver.¡± To my surprise, it was a letter from Heinley. ¡°How did you¡ª?¡± ¡°I was asked by Koshar.¡± ¡°Brother!¡± ¡°What is it? He asked me not to read it and to deliver it quickly.¡± I shook my head in wonder and epted the envelope. I broke open the wax seal and quickly pulled out the letter. ¨C I¡¯d like to hear more from you. We should make ns together. Do you have time, or do you need to move quickly? ¨C I met your brother. He looks strikingly simr to you. I miss you. ¨C What color do you like? What kind of room would you like? Let me know and I¡¯ll furnish your room in advance. When I saw it was Heinley, my worries faded away. I gave a soft chuckle. He had a skill for making me feel at ease, even as I was dealing with these things... ¡°I don¡¯t know what letter it is, but it seems to be a good one.¡± ¡°Ah. Marquis Farang.¡± I forgot that he was still standing there. When I btedly noticed his presence, he gave a yful grin. ¡°So it¡¯s a good letter. You should reply. The messenger bird is still in my home, so I will send it back.¡± ¡°...Was it a blue bird, perhaps?¡± ¡°Yes. I put him in a feeder, so he should be eating right now.¡± Chapter 154 - They Are Lying (1) Chapter 154 ¨C They Are Lying (1) I nodded, but then paused. Feeder...? I remembered how Queen was revolted at the sight of bugs. I worriedly wondered if the same thing would happen again with Queen¡¯s subordinate. ¡°Your Majesty? You don¡¯t look well.¡± Marquis Farang looked at me anxiously. ¡°Are you all right?¡± I quickly shook the thoughts of Queen from my head. Yes. That was not important now. If McKenna was the blue bird, then... ¡°Is the blue bird injured?¡± Marquis Farang shook his head. ¡°I did not look closely. But one wouldn¡¯t use an injured bird as a messenger, right?¡± I suppose the bird hadn¡¯t been acting strangely enough to warrant a close look. A stumbling or limping bird would naturally stand out. Was McKenna the same bird that came in and out of my chambers? I couldn¡¯t be sure. ¡°You must like birds.¡± ¡°No, but...Marquis Farang.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Can you check if the bird is injured? If it has an arrow wound?¡± ¡°That won¡¯t be difficult.¡± Marquis Farang chuckled. ¡°You do like birds.¡± ¡°I have another strange request...¡± Marquis Farang raised his eyebrows as if to say ¡°What else do you want to ask for?¡± I knew my next words would sound crazy, but I continued. ¡°If the blue bird hasn¡¯t eaten anything at all, would you mind removing him from the feeder?¡± ¡°What?¡± Marquis Farang looked at me inplete puzzlement. ¡°Do you know that bird?¡± ¡°...I think I might.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not hard. Birds like feeders.¡± ¡°Please.¡± ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s strange, but I will.¡± Marquis Farang nodded. Relieved, I went to my desk, took out some stationery, and dipped my pen in the inkwell. I should reply to Heinley¡¯s letter. ¡°...¡± I turned my pen in my hand, but nothing came to mind. What should I say to him? I nced backwards, and Marquis Farang lifted his hands with a smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t peek.¡± Embarrassed, I looked back down at the paper again. I would write something short as usual. The letter couldn¡¯t be too lengthy anyway, as a bird had to carry it. There was so much I wanted to say, and I did my best to summarize it. -The Emperor wants to leave me and remarry his concubine. I overheard him promise that he would divorce me. The faster the proceedings, the better. -I¡¯m amazed you met my brother. I want to see you, too. ¨C I like gold. This seemed right. I folded the letter and held it out for Marquis Farang. He was leisurely sitting on a couch and drinking a cup of coffee, but he stood up and quickly epted the letter. ¡°I heard Koshar may be in the Western Kingdom for some time.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°King Heinley likes to live freely and unapologetically, so Koshar may get along with him more than Emperor Sovieshu. ¡°I hope so.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± Marquis Farang offered me hisforting words and set down his coffee cup. ¡°I must go now.¡± ¡°Already?¡± ¡°If you want an early reply.¡± Marquis Farang smiled, waving the letter in his hand as he left. When he was gone, I sat by the window, feeling a little better. It was good to be in contact with Heinley again. The blue bird seemed safe also... The thoughts that gued me in the carriage came back. What will I do when I get to the Western Kingdom? My first period as empress had been difficult. Would the second time be better? I was confident in my work and my long career; it was the personal rtionships that had been tumultuous. I was also the empress of another country, and I would be at the center of curious talk. It was difficult to determine whether that would lead to political exclusion, or openness to a better direction. ¡°...¡± Was I getting too ahead of myself? My face turned red as I stared into the distant sky, but fortunately I was interrupted as I heard Countess Eliza calling me from the parlor room. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± I quickly opened the door and went outside. However, judging by the expression on Countess Eliza¡¯s face, the news didn¡¯t seem to be good. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I felt my heart skip a beat. Countess Eliza pressed her clenched hand against her chest, and spoke with an amazed tone. ¡°They say it¡¯s false that ¡®that woman¡¯s¡¯ fake parents were bought by Baron Lant!¡± ¡°What do you mean false?¡± ¡°It was Lord Koshar who ordered them to act as fake parents!¡± ¡°Impossible.¡± I nearly choked on my breath. If my brother had bribed them, then Baron Lant could not have done it. Laura, who was knitting in the parlor room, gave an outraged yell of ¡°Nonsense!¡± ¡°Get me my cloak, Lady Laura.¡± She quickly went to my bedroom to retrieve it. I ced the cloak around my shoulders and left my chambers. ¡®I need to meet the couple in person.¡¯ Chapter 155 - They Are Lying (2) Chapter 155 ¨C They Are Lying (2) Rashta was sitting down with a white notebook on a white desk. The feather pen in her hand was also white, and as she dipped her head in concentration, her hair of pure silver flowed to the side. Her dress was white as well, making her look the perfect image of an angel. However, Sovieshu¡¯s expression was far from admiring as he looked down at the angel Rashta. He looked dissatisfied as he studied her notebook. Rashta twisted her hands and gave him a nervous nce, and when their eyes met, she gave him her saddest, most doe-like expression. However, Sovieshu¡¯s face remained unchanged. ¡°Keep writing.¡± Tears started to form on Rashta¡¯s eyes. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Sovieshu frowned at her. ¡°Rashta, you haven¡¯t even filled a third of it. Keep going.¡± He sounded unusually stern. Rashta finally put down her pen and looked at him with a sniffle. ¡°I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t memorized it all yet. There¡¯s too much, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta. These are simply the basics. You must memorize the names of officials in the country, their head of family, their title, their rtives, their characteristics, the number of people in the department, and the tasks that belong to the state.¡± ¡°I know, I know...¡± Rashta was in tears. She didn¡¯t know how she could possibly memorize all this... ¡°I¡¯ve only had the book for four days, Your Majesty.¡± The book was as thick as half the span of a hand, and she had been given it from her tutor and ordered to memorize it. She could read and write to some extent, but she was not yet proficient, and yet was still expected to memorize a whole book ofpletely dull information. Her tutor didn¡¯t even give her enough time to work on it¡ªthe deadline was a mere week. Rashta felt like she was reaching her breaking point. Sovieshu hade to check up on her, himself expecting that she had memorized the whole book by the fourth day. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if he asked her some questions and she gave him answers? Sovieshu did not do even that. He simply asked her to open up an empty notebook and write down everything she memorized. ¡°It has already been four days, hasn¡¯t it?¡± What was even crazier were Sovieshu¡¯s expectations. ¡°Four days, hasn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Rashta, this takes maybe one, two days to memorize.¡± ¡°Is that possible?¡± ¡°I memorized it in a day.¡± ¡°You are you, Your Majesty! No one else can do it!¡± ¡°The Empress also memorized in a day.¡± Rashta bit her lip. Sovieshu wasn¡¯t trying to mock her, but she was even more embarrassed and ashamed by the implications of her inferiority. ¡°Even now I¡¯m learning fast, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta. That may be fine under normal circumstances, but not now. Do you understand?¡± ¡°I understand...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to do the advanced curriculum. Just the basics.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Memorize one book each day. Then when you be empress, you will be able to do the simple work.¡± ¡°One book a day?¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible if you study all day.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes welled up in frustration, and she finally burst into tears. Sovieshu looked taken aback. ¡°I only just learned how to write, Your Majesty! I¡¯m different from the Empress, she¡¯s been studying since she was a child!¡± Sovieshu let out a weary sigh. If Rashta were only to remain as a concubine, he wouldn¡¯t have to force her to learn these things. However, she had to y the role of empress for a year. He didn¡¯t expect her to do well, but she had to do the basics at a minimum. ¡°I¡¯ll check up again tomorrow, so don¡¯t cry.¡± Rashta¡¯s sobs grew louder at the mention of tomorrow, and the servant girl Delise quickly extended her handkerchief. Sovieshu took it and wiped Rashta¡¯s tears. When Rashta stopped crying, he set down the handkerchief and praised Delise. ¡°Your maid is considerate this time.¡± Rashta gave a soft hup as she looked towards Delise, startled by Sovieshu¡¯s praise towards her. The maid flushed and she shook her head. When Rashta saw it, her sobbing quickly dissolved and she grew concerned. ¡®She was like that before. Why does she keep turning red when she sees my man?¡¯ At that moment, a servant came up to Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, the Empress has gone to the western tower.¡± Sovieshu had been staring down at the partially-filled notebook, but he soon frowned when he heard mention of the western tower. That was where the fake parents bought by Baron Lant were detained. The Empress must have heard that it was allegedly Koshar that bribed the couple. If she spoke to them for any significant period of time, she might find out he was behind it. Sovieshu urgently left the room and book behind. *** When I arrived at the western tower, the dozing guards in the hallway suddenly awoke and jumped up from their wooden chairs. They looked at me and each other with sheepish embarrassment. ¡°You can keep sleeping.¡± ¡°No, my apologies.¡± ¡°Where is the couple that Baron Lant brought?¡± ¡°They¡¯re over there, Your Majesty.¡± The guard pointed to the far end of the hallway. I walked towards the door, then opened the viewing window. The couple had heard my footsteps, and their faces were already peering through the bars. When they saw me, they nced at each other. Was there anyone else they expected? The sight of them angered me. They may have found themselves in trouble since Rashta said the other couple was real, but they had dragged my brother into this, who waspletely unrted to this case. ¡°Hail to the Empress.¡± ¡°Greetings, Your Majesty.¡± The couple greeted me, but I did not return the courtesy, instead going straight into interrogating them. ¡°Did my brother order you to pretend to be fake parents?¡± Theirplexions paled and they lowered their eyes. They didn¡¯t even make eye contact with me as they said ¡°Yes, yes.¡± ¡°He did.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. Your Majesty¡¯s brother, Lord Koshar, threatened us.¡± ¡°We had no choice.¡± I quelled my rising anger and spoke as calmly as I could. ¡°Do you know what my brother looks like?¡± The wife answered quickly. ¡°His eyes are green.¡± I said ¡°No,¡± and then they looked at each other in dismay. ¡°But I¡¯m sure...¡± ¡°He has dark blue eyes. You don¡¯t even know the color of my brother¡¯s eyes, do you? Did you really meet him?¡± They looked incredulously at each other, but only for a moment. The husband quickly corrected himself. ¡°On second thought, it was blue. We were confused because we saw him in the dark. ¡± ¡°...Hair color?¡± ¡°It was blond.¡± ¡°It¡¯s ck.¡± I lowered my voice and stared at them. ¡°Was it so dark that you saw it wrong?¡± This time the wife hurriedly spoke up. ¡°I think it was ck. We couldn¡¯t see it properly because he was wearing a hat! ¡± Watching them speak was apletely absurd exercise. My brother had green eyes and dark blond hair like me. But this? Blue eyes and ck hair? They had never even met my brother. If they had seen him with their own eyes, they wouldn¡¯t have been easily swayed by my suggestions. Instead of correcting them, I turned to Sovieshu standing next to me. He had watched me question them without saying a word. Our eyes met, but unlike the couple, we were good at managing our facial expressions. He stared at me with a smooth face as I spoke to him. ¡°Did you hear that, Your Majesty? They have never seen my brother.¡± ¡°You¡¯re pressuring them, so they¡¯re speaking nonsense.¡± ¡°Pressuring them?¡± ¡°Yes. You stood there and told them the wrong hair color to confuse them.¡± I nced back towards the husband and wife. The couple, who had initially been unaware of Sovieshu¡¯s presence because of the narrow window, looked suddenly frightened when they heard his voice. ¡°My brother has red hair and red eyes, so are you saying you lied because you were afraid of me?¡± The man and wife suddenly shouted again, staring at Sovieshu. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°We were afraid and lied. Lord Koshar had red hair and red eyes!¡± Look. Did they meet my brother? I raised my eyes towards Sovieshu, whose face was as stiff as a stone statue. Chapter 156 - A Secret Story (1) Chapter 156 ¨C A Secret Story (1) I thought Sovieshu would not fall for that couple¡¯s ridiculously obvious lies. Instead of epting my point, however, Sovieshu tly refused it. ¡°If the Empress insists on calling a soybean a red bean, then most people will call it a red bean.¡± The moment I saw his determined expression, I could see his intentions. Whether the couple¡¯s words were true or not was of no importance to him. He was intending to divorce me regardless, and would use any excuse to do so. The fact that the brother of the Empress was banished after attempting to harm the Emperor¡¯s baby, but repeated his attempt to attack the baby again? That was enough grounds to im divorce. It was a fight of justification. It didn¡¯t matter whether people believed it or not; in the decades toe, it would be recorded as true. He must have heard the false testimony before me. But what did he do then? ¡°!¡± Instead of continuing to argue with Sovieshu, I exited the western tower and returned to my chambers. ¡°Your Majesty, have you met the couple ¡± ¡°What did they say?¡± ¡°Did they dare lie when they saw you, Your Majesty?¡± Thedies-in-waiting gathered around me worriedly, but now I could not afford to reassure them. Instead, I called the lieutenant, then gave orders to him and thedies-in-waiting. ¡°Please confirm the location of all the Emperor¡¯s secretaries.¡± Everyone looked bewildered, but they bowed and scattered to carry out my request. I sat in the parlor room and anxiously waited for all of them to return. After about half an hour, they all started to return with their reports. One secretary was in the audience chamber, another was with Sovieshu, some others were in their offices... There was only one person who was absent. ¡°Marquis Karl is not in the pce.¡± ¡°Where is he?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. He had said he would be out of the pce for a few days, but he didn¡¯t say why, only that he was ordered to.¡± It was him. Upon hearing the lieutenant¡¯s words, the picture soon became clear. In order for the Emperor to get divorced, he must first file an application with the High Priest. It was evident that Marquis Karl went to the High Priest with a petition under Sovieshu¡¯s orders. I bit my lips. It was as if there was a rat eating away at my heart. What was the divorce procedure like? After Sovieshu filed for divorce... The High Priest woulde. He woulde and talk in person with Sovieshu. After that, the court would be gathered, and I would be asked a question. Would I ept Sovieshu¡¯s divorce? If my answer was ¡®yes¡¯, then we would be divorced. If I said ¡®no¡¯, then we would undergo a long and drawn out process. Of course, victory always went to the emperor. And then... ¡®Ah!¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty, are you all right?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, what is it?¡± The frustration and anxiety must have been revealed on my face, and thedies-in-waiting called to me worriedly. I made up an excuse, went into my bedroom alone, and took out some stationary. I sat down at my desk and began penning a letter to Heinley. The letter was long, but the contents were simple.Read more new novels on With divorce imminent, I had wanted to remarry as soon as possible. I used to think that marrying Heinley would solve everything, however, I was struck with a sudden terrible thought. No empress or queen in history ever remarried after divorce. If a member of a royal family remarried a noble, the rtionship would beplicated in many ways. Sovieshu may also try to stop my remarriage. If I wanted things to go smoothly, then when the High Priest came, I should obtain clear consent for remarriage. After I finished writing my letter, I ced it in an envelope and sealed it with wax. I returned to the parlor room before the seal was even dry. Thedies-in-waiting and Sir Artina were still in the parlor room. They looked anxious. ¡°Sir Artina.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Give this to Marquis Farang and tell him to send this by messenger bird.¡± I extended the letter to Sir Artina. I added no other exnation. Marquis Farang would know what to do. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Sir Artina took the letter with both hands and quickly left. ¡°Your Majesty, what on earth is going on?¡± Thedies-in-waiting were more worried after Sir Artina left, but I could tell them nothing. The less they knew, the better. There was already a leak concerning my dress. This was more important than a dress, and so my actions had to be carried out as carefully as possible. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. After everything has settled...I¡¯ll let you know.¡± After that, I stayed in my room and anxiously waited for Sir Artina¡¯s return. Marquis Farang¡¯s home was just outside the capital. ¡®It won¡¯t take long to get there by horse.¡¯ I checked my watch several times, just waiting for the moment when Sir Artina would return and say, ¡®I delivered the letter to Marquis Farang.¡¯ Finally, Sir Artina arrived, and I quickly stood up. ¡°Did you tell him?¡± But Sir Artina¡¯s reply was devastating. ¡°Failed to deliver ¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Marquis Farang was not in his residence, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Where did he go?¡± ¡°I heard from his butler that the marquis had packed up his things and left, saying that he was going to see a friend. But he didn¡¯t say where he was going.¡± He went to the Western Kingdom! To see my brother! ¡°He went to the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°The Western Kingdom?¡± ¡°You came to see me a few hours ago, so he wouldn¡¯t have gone that far. Find him and deliver the letter. You must do it.¡± Sir Artina looked surprised, but he nodded with a determined expression and left. I copsed on the bed,pletely exhausted. Not it all depended on how quickly Sir Artina could catch up with Marquis Farang. The letter must be delivered to Heinley before the High Priest arrived... Was it possible? *** For a few days thereafter, I found myself in a dazed, floating state. However, I was busier than ever, though not because my schedule was normally this packed; this timest year had no events and was rtively rxing. I was busy because I had many things to finish before getting divorced. Rashta would be the next empress. She would have to hold an audience every day or so, and set up a budget for the Imperial Pce...the thought of it made me nervous, but with the help of Baron Lant, she could imitate me from past precedent. Sovieshu would also provide state officials to assist her. The problem was with my orphanages, nursing homes, support facilities for single parents, free hospitals and meal services. Had I run them under my name or my family¡¯s name, I would be able to keep running them after the divorce. However, they were operated under the Imperial Family. While most of the money came from me, I could not run an Imperial institution unless I was the empress. Rashta would have to oversee them. I didn¡¯t know if she would use her money to fund them, and since I couldn¡¯t go to her and ask for the authority to do so, I had to n the budget and administrative arrangements several years in advance. ¡®In a few years, Rashta will adjust to the position of empress.¡¯ Themoners cheered for Rashta. She was the heroine that they loved and admired. After being so loved, and having a few years to adjust to the position, she would be able to take care of my work. ________ Chapter 157 - A Secret Story (2) Chapter 157 ¨C A Secret Story (2) I waited for Sir Artina for days, but it was the Duke Elgy who unexpectedly came to visit me. ¡°Hmm. You definitely show when you¡¯re ufortable.¡± I wondered why this man came to see me, but Duke Elgy simply smiled, hung his coat on the back of an armchair, and sat down. While I had nothing to say to him, I was still the empress, and he was still a guest in my country. I had also visited him without prior notice, and so I smiled at him as well. ¡°What brings you here?¡± Duke Elgy evaded the question, instead looking at my desk and clicking his tongue. ¡°What¡¯s the reason you have so many documents?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just work.¡± ¡°Do you work alone? What about an assistant?¡± An assistant would be suspicious if they saw that I was nning for several years in advance, so I was forced to work alone. When I asked Duke Elgy again what he hade for, he kept his mouth shut and stared at me. ¡°Duke? Why do you look like that?¡± He looked up at the ceiling for a moment and then quickly shook his head. ¡°You¡¯re going to kill me out of guilt.¡± ¡°Guilt?¡± What was he talking about? I gave him a quizzical stare, but he just propped his head against his hand and looked at me. I don¡¯t know how long he did that, but then he finally stood up and excused himself from the room. ¡®What¡¯s wrong with him?¡¯ His esoteric behavior puzzled me, but there was no time for me to go after him and ask what he meant. Even before Sir Artina¡¯s return, before the divorce, before the High Priest¡¯s arrival, there were so many tasks to do that I didn¡¯t have enough time even when staying up all night. I asked Countess Eliza to bring me a snack, then I sat back at my desk again. All I wanted now was for Sir Artina to arrive before the High Priest did. The next day, however, brought the arrival of the High Priest. The pce whispered in amazement. He only visited when something truly important was happening, even going so far as to decline an invitation to the New Year Ball. There was still no word from Sir Artina. As soon as the High Priest arrived at the Imperial Pce, he went straight to see Sovieshu. When I heard that they were speaking privately behind a locked door, my legs threatened to buckle underneath me. No, I would be fine. Sovieshu may interfere with the remarriage application, but there would be a way. Heinley did not change his mind about the proposal. You don¡¯t have to ask for a second marriage when you approve a divorce... *** The High Priest recalled how young Sovieshu and Navier were on their wedding day. The higher up in session, and the greater the status, the moremon it was to be married at a younger age. The priest couldn¡¯t help but remember how the couple looked as young adults. He had spoken teasingly to them at the time, calling the pair a couple of chicks. The young groom and bride shouted in reply ¡°He¡¯s the chick, I¡¯m the eagle¡± and ¡°She¡¯s the chick, and I¡¯m the eagle¡±. It was a lovely time. They held each other¡¯s hands and beamed when they looked at each other, and clung to each other¡¯s side throughout the reception. Because the young Naiver had spent hours on her heels, Sovieshu carried his bride on his back, causing the people tough. The High Priest was certain that the couple¡¯s future would be filled with happiness. But divorce. Divorce! As soon as he entered the pce, he met straightaway with Sovieshu. When the door closed and only the two of them were in the room, the High Priest looked on at the Emperor with amazement. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu. What does this mean? Divorce?¡± The young groom, who had held his bride¡¯s hand throughout the marriage vows, had now be a mature adult man. His body was firm and masculine, and his long legs were crossed as he sat. Beneath his neatly styled hair was a face so perfect that he appeared as a living statue from a temple. However, underneath the cold, dignified presence of this man, was a young groom who had loved his bride. ¡°Tell me I¡¯m mistaken.¡± The High Priest spoke from the heart, sitting in the chair opposite the Emperor. However, Sovieshu demolished his expectations. ¡°It¡¯s true. I intend to divorce the Empress.¡± ¡°Emperor Sovieshu!¡± ¡°Have you read the divorce papers?¡± ¡°I have, but the Empress is not at fault!¡± ¡°She did not cause it, but she is the cause.¡± ¡°The Empress¡ª¡± ¡°I cannot control Koshar.¡± ¡°What about infertility? What is this story?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned grave, and the High Priest spoke more firmly. ¡°If you say that the Empress is infertile, there must be a clear reason why you believe so.¡± ¡°...What I tell you cannot leave these walls.¡± The High Priest thought infertility was merely an excuse. While the Empress had not born children after all these years, there was no other convincing reason to suspect that she was barren. Sovieshu seemed to have different ideas, and the High Priest started to be uneasy. Sovieshu paused for a long moment, before finally speaking. ¡°It happened when I was still the Crown Prince...¡± *** The princess¡¯ diet was being restricted before arge event.¡°Wouldn¡¯t her belly be covered by a skirt? Anyway, what¡¯s wrong if she¡¯s a little chubby?¡± Sovieshuined to the official in charge of the event, but he paid no heed. The crown prince and crown princess would be revealed to the public, and people would flock to see the young couple. They had to look as perfect as possible. ¡°You mustn¡¯t let up either.¡± Even Sovieshu had less food than usual, atop the four hours per day of rigorous sword practice, training with the knights, and horseback riding. The official in charge was not willing to give up the beautiful appearance of the betrothed couple. ¡®Navier gets strength from eating.¡¯ In the end, Sovieshu decided to beg for his mother¡¯s help, and went to the Empress¡¯ chambers. His mother was not in the room. However, there was a box on the table that contained appetizing-looking cookies. It was half-wrapped with shiny paper and silk ribbons¡ªperhaps it was a present? The maid must have been packaging it before she went out to bring some tea to Sovieshu. Of course, he knew well enough to leave a gift alone, but... He looked around at his surroundings. The maid hadn¡¯te back yet. He quickly snatched the box of cookies and left. ¡°Your Highness?¡± The maid returned with the teapot and called out to him, but Sovieshu ran away without answering. He went straight to the Navier, who was reading a thick book in her room. ¡°Navier!¡± As soon as he entered, she smiled brightly and ran towards him. ¡°Your Highness!¡± He locked the door, took Navier to a corner of the room, and opened the box of cookies he had pilfered. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°Eat.¡± ¡°Are we allowed? Well, alright.¡± Navier reached a conclusion by herself, then reached out for a cookie immediately. She bit into one, and a smile soon spread across her face. ¡°You eat some too.¡± ¡°You eat. I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re hungry, too. I heard you can¡¯t have any snacks.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If I eat all of this alone, they¡¯ll notice I¡¯m not fasting and I¡¯ll be caught right away. ¡± Navier picked up a cookie and held it to Sovieshu¡¯s mouth. The two children delightedly shared the cookies with each other. A few hourster, however, Sovieshu found himself in enormous trouble. The empress was umonly angry. ¡°The cookies were for Countess Sophia!¡± Countess Sophia was his father¡¯s favorite concubine. Sovieshu turned sullen. ¡°You can make them again. No, but why are you giving her sweets?¡± The empress made an impatient noise, but she spoke honestly. ¡°The cookies areced with a drug. Its main effect is to cause miscarriage, but infertility is also a side effect.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes widened in amazement. ¡°Answer me, Prince. The cookies...did you eat them?¡±The Empress stared at him with anxious eyes. When Sovieshu gave a small, almost imperceptible nod of his head, the Empress let out a wail. ¡°I heard you went to see the princess. Did you eat them together?¡± He told a lie. ¡°I ate it alone.¡± Although he was young, he knew he had to keep this a secret. He shivered inwardly and then lied again. ¡°I asked her to eat it together with me, but she wouldn¡¯t.¡± Chapter 158 - Hoping For Happiness (1) Chapter 158 ¨C Hoping For Happiness (1) Sovieshu lied to his mother. Navier had eaten the drugced cookies. ¡°The side effects do not manifest with everyone.¡± After Sovieshu finished his story, he pressed his hand against his temple and closed his eyes. ¡°Until adulthood, I thought I would be fine as I had only eaten it once. My mother had used a lot of the drug, but Navier and I were healthy and young. Our diet had also been reced with ingredients that would neutralize the drug¡¯s effects.¡± But they had no baby. ¡°After I became an adult, I wondered if the reason we had no children was because the drug affected the Empress or me, or both.¡± After Rashta became pregnant, however, he became certain it was the Empress that was barren. The High Priest looked on soberly at Sovieshu¡¯s story. The Empress had not be pregnant, all because of a drug she had unknowingly consumed years ago. That was enough to assume her infertility. In addition, the incident involved the former empress, Sovieshu¡¯s mother. She had already been embroiled in a series of scandals, and had caused a number of concubines to suffer greatly. Another scandal could not be ced upon her, and Sovieshu had to keep his mouth shut to protect her honor. The High Priest thought it unusual at first that the former empress did not break up the young couple, even though her future daughter-inw may be infertile. The average empress likely would have had the Crown Princess reced as a precautionary measure. It seemed that the former empress may have harbored a soft spot for Navier. The High Priest was convinced of this. ¡°I cannot give up my only flesh and blood. I have to protect my child.¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s heavy words, the High Priest gave a sigh. *** I kept staring at the printed words before me, but I couldn¡¯t make any sense of them. I read the document over again. Everything would be settled soon; who knows how things would turn out. My mind kept straying towards wondering what kind of conversation the High Priest and Sovieshu were having. Three hourster, when I received word that the High Priest wanted to see me, I felt a strange sense of relief. ¡®He¡¯lle.¡¯ I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. ¡°Why is the High Priest visiting you?¡± Countess Eliza had informed me that he had arrived, but her expression was uneasy. ¡°I do not know...I¡¯ll have to see him first.¡± Countess Eliza nodded and went out of the room. After a moment, the door opened again and the High Priest entered. I remembered how he looked when he had teased Sovieshu and I as we made our wedding vows, but this time his beard was white from the years. He closed the door, but he did not approach me immediately. He simply fixed me with an observant stare. His eyes, although warm, trembled beneath his wrinkled visage. I smiled at him awkwardly, and he murmured, ¡°You know,¡± then his shoulders and chest suddenly dropped as if he finally figured out how to breathe. He had been worried about how to tell me that Sovieshu wanted to divorce me. ¡°Pleasee here.¡± I stood up from my desk and pulled out a chair for him. He walked forward with heavy steps, deciding on the right words to say. ¡°So it came to this.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Empress Navier. The two of you were very close.¡± ¡°It was just a sandcastle.¡± The High Priest pressed his lips together. He wanted to object and say that that wasn¡¯t true at all, and in a sense, I thought the same way. All the smiles Sovieshu and I shared were not built of sand. But that was already in the past. He had found new love, and I was just a passerby. The High Priest ced his hands on the table and clenched his fists several times. Meanwhile, Countess Eliza brought in coffee and cookies, looking on at the scene with anxious eyes. She left the refreshments on the table, but the High Priest did not touch the food. ¡°It¡¯s not too sweet.¡± I invited him to eat, but he shook his head. No, he gave a hard stare at the cookies and gripped his chest. ¡®Does he hate cookies?¡¯ His reaction was more intense than I expected. Should I have the cookies taken away? As I thought of what to do, he spoke again, informing me of the reason why Sovieshu applied for divorce. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu has stated the grounds for divorce are because the Empress¡¯ brother, Lord Koshar, pushed the Emperor¡¯s pregnant concubine, kidnapped and harmed Viscount Roteschu to find out the concubine¡¯s weaknesses, as well as bribed fake parents to scam her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all nonsense.¡± ¡°...And because the Empress is infertile, Emperor Sovieshu must protect the concubine¡¯s baby.¡± ¡°Again, that¡¯s nonsense.¡± The High Priest gave a sigh, but I spoke in a more firm tone before. ¡°I cannot ept any of it.¡± Even if I knew Sovieshu was preparing to divorce me in advance, I could not ept such insulting reasons. I had to say no, even if it would not have much effect on the divorce proceedings. The High Priest gave another heavy sigh, and he put his hands together in a pleading gesture. ¡°Why have you two grown so far apart?¡± ¡°There is only one reason.¡± ¡°One?¡± ¡°The Emperor¡¯s heart went to someone else. That is all.¡± The High Priest exhaled, then looked at me with grave eyes. ¡°I will proceed with the divorce process, but this will not be easy for you. Do you understand?¡± Instead of answering, I responded with a softugh. Afterwards, the High Priest left. I ate all the cookies he left untouched, then sat back down at my desk. My heart was calm even though the High Priest hade here to deliver me bad news. No matter how dreadful the situation was, I always kept myposure. Fortunately, it was not difficult to focus on my work. Late evening arrived, and a maid came to inform me that Sir Artina had returned. I set my pen down in surprise. Sir Artina? The timing waste, but I had no other choice. I hurried out into the parlor room, and I saw Sir Artina standing there with a face lined with exhaustion. His hair, which was usually clean and neat, was muddy and tangled. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty.¡± I sat Sir Artina down in a chair. I wanted to ask immediately if he had delivered the letter, but he looked in terrible condition. Thedy-in-waiting asked if we would like coffee or tea, and Sir Artina, instead of speaking, gestured to her in affirmation. As soon as thedy-in-waiting left, he finally spoke. ¡°Marquis Farang had taken off so fast, and it had taken longer than expected to catch up to him. But I managed to deliver it to him before he crossed the border.¡± ¡°Deliver? The letter?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I immediately came straight back, but if Marquis Farang was travelling at the speed he did then, he would have crossed the border into the Western Kingdom...in fact, he may even be in the capital by now.¡± I felt like I was about to burst. Finally, finally, the letter was delivered! And yet...Read more new novels on It was toote. The High Priest came and the interview ended. The divorce court would be held soon. King Heinley could not make it all the way here in time. Chapter 159 - Hoping For Happiness (2) Chapter 159 ¨C Hoping For Happiness (2) At the same time. Viscount Roteschu was still seething with anger at Rashta. When it was only the two of them, Rashta would look down on him to some extent, but when she was with her parents, she was outright brazen in her disrespect. Even though Viscount Roteschu was not one of the more powerful nobles, he still reigned like a king over his estate. He was stunned to be insulted by his own former ve. ¡°We¡¯ll see. Does she think I¡¯ll let it go on like this?¡± He blew his nose into the nket. How could he get revenge against Rashta without ruining her value? How could he break her and make her obedient to him? As he crumpled back into bed, he saw his son, n, pass by. In his arms he was carrying the infant that looked like Rashta. Ahn giggled lovingly as n made cooing sounds at him. That stupid idiot! Viscount Roteschu shook his head, pitying that his son so adored a child that could not officially take the family name. As Viscount Roteschu gazed at the baby, however, a thought struck his head and he shouted ¡°Aha!¡± The baby. His grandson was Rashta¡¯s weakness! Shouldn¡¯t he show Rashta the baby at least once? No matter how much she was favored by the Emperor, that didn¡¯t mean she was invulnerable. Viscount Roteschu smirked and called n. ¡°Come here, n.¡± ¡°What is it, Father?¡± When n approached, Viscount Roteschu held out his hands as if he were going to take the baby away. ¡°Father?¡± n¡¯s eyes widened. It seemed strange that his father, who once refused to touch the baby, wanted to hold Ahn of his own ord. The baby extended his hands, smiling brightly. Viscount Roteschu, grinning viciously, smiled and said, ¡°Yes, I am your grandfather.¡± However, Viscount Roteschu changed his mind less than half an hourter. A friend who often came to give him social news visited him. ¡°Viscount. Did you hear?¡± ¡°What? Anything unusual?¡± ¡°The Emperor may have a divorce!¡± Viscount Roteschu stared in astonishment. ¡°What do you mean? Divorce?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. The High Priest arrived out of nowhere and interviewed the Emperor and Empress in turn.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You doubt it? Of course it means divorce. Don¡¯t you understand?¡± Viscount Roteschu did not understand. Since childhood, he lived a life far from capital politics, and did not know how the Empress¡¯ divorce would proceed. When he listened to his friend, it finally brought rity. His friend drank three sses of water as if he were astonished by this news as well. ¡°It must be because of Miss Rashta. His Majesty is so captivated by her. Completely head over heels!¡± Viscount Roteschu had a much different reaction from his friend¡¯s excitement. The Emperor¡¯s divorce from the Empress was because of Rashta? He decided he had to carefully watch the situation. He didn¡¯t know how this would all unfold¡ªwould Rashta benefit or be harmed by the divorce? There was no way to know. If sparks spattered on Rashta, then he would leave the capital immediately. If it benefited her, then he would take advantage of it! Rivetti, however, had apletely different reaction. She hade to pick up the tea from her incapacitated father and his friend when she heard the news. She dropped the cup she was holding and screamed. ¡°Impossible!¡± The friend was startled by the sound of breaking ss. Rivetti¡¯s eyes were wide with shock. Did he say something wrong? While the friend blinked confusedly, Rivetti whirled around and fled to the room. ¡°Rivetti? Rivetti!¡± Viscount Roteschu knew that Rivetti revered the Empress as an idol, and he got out of bed and called out to his daughter. However, his legs were in so much pain that he fell to the floor with a loud thump. Rivetti went to her room, put on her cloak and gloves, and left. She soon arrived at the pce after urging her carriage driver to go fast, then went to a guard and requested to see the Empress. Rivetti had tea with the Empress, and she had asked to call her sister, so perhaps they were close¡­ As the young nobledy burst into tears, the guard eventually called to one of the Empress¡¯dies-in-waiting and told her the story. ¡°Rivetti Rimwell is crying because she wishes to visit Her Majesty.¡± Thedy-in-waiting knew Rivetti¡¯s name and passed it on to Navier. *** I didn¡¯t expect Rivetti toe crying to me this night. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ I blinked in puzzlement, but I couldn¡¯t send away a young woman who hade to me thiste. As I went out into the parlor room, she was crying over a cup of hot cocoa that thedies-in-waiting had given her. At my appearance, she jumped and wept louder. ¡°Lady Rivetti?¡± As I approached her in surprise, I more clearly saw the river of tears streaming down her face. ¡°Your Majesty. Your Majesty. Is it true?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Are¡ªare you truly going to be divorced?¡± Thedies-in-waiting noticeably stiffened after her question. I could tell the same question was on their lips after the High Priest¡¯s visit, but they closed their mouths and pretended not to know. Rivetti¡¯s straightforwardness shocked them. ¡°Lady Rivetti! Excuse me!¡± Countess Eliza quickly scolded her, but the curiosity was evident on her face too. It had alreadye to this¡ªwhat more could I hide? Everyone knew about the divorce process between an emperor and empress. ¡°It¡¯s fine, Countess Eliza.¡± I replied to her with as much calm as I could, and I gave a gentle smile. ¡°That is correct, Lady Rivetti.¡± Laura screamed. The otherdies-in-waiting also began to murmur among themselves. Rivetti burst into tears, and thedies ran towards me. ¡°Is this true?¡± ¡°Was that why the High Priest came to talk to you?¡± ¡°Was the Emperor asking for divorce from you, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be!¡± ¡°You cannot ept it!¡± The more thedies spoke, the more red their faces became. Rivetti managed to calm down somewhat, and she spoke in a bold voice. ¡°It¡¯s because of Rashta, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Your Majesty. Is what is happening because of Rashta?¡± Thedies fell silent at the same time. Everyone seemed to have the same thought, even though they did not say anything. I pondered for a moment on what to say. Rashta had a rtionship with my husband, slept with him, mimicked me, made aughingstock out of me, and lied about my brother and me. Sovieshu was involved with another woman, slept with her, humiliated me, made us aughingstock, and destroyed our trust. Whatever Rashta did, he sided with her, wanted to make her empress, and decided to divorce me. If someone had greater responsibility for the divorce, it was Sovieshu. Emotionally speaking, they were both responsible. Rashta was just as bad as Sovieshu. But how could I express such aplicated feeling in a few words? ¡°I¡ªI will avenge Her Majesty.¡± When I didn¡¯t say anything, Rivetti spoke up, clenching her fist. ¡°I will definitely take revenge.¡± ¡°¡­It¡¯s alright.¡± I smiled and patted her back. How could she take revenge? One is the emperor, and the other would soon be empress. Rashta hated Rivetti. There was a greater chance that Rashta would take her own revenge. ¡°Rivetti. Just think of yourself, not revenge.¡± ¡°No! If¡­if you get divorced, then I¡¯ll follow you, Your Majesty! You can live with me! I¡¯ll support you!¡± That was certainly not possible. It is an honor among the nobles to serve the empress, but not a castaway. Besides, I could not take Rivetti to the Western Kingdom with me. ¡°Lady Rivetti, you are a very kind and wonderful person. How can I keep you waiting?¡± After smiling and soothing her, I leaned in and whispered in her ear. Don¡¯t get entangled with Rashta. Don¡¯t get obsessed with the past, and focus on being happy in the present. After I requested a knight to escort Rivetti home, I went to my bedroom and wrote a letter to my handmaids and to Sir Artina. Whether my remarriage was sessful or not, I would have to say farewell to them. I wanted to do so in advance. Thank you so much. Thank you for everything. Forget all your anger and be happy. ¡°¡­¡± Tears formed in my eyes as I wrote. The droplets fell onto the paper, so I looked up at the ceiling. Suddenly, there was a loud thump by the window. ¡®Is it the blue bird?¡¯ I turned my head in surprise. McKenna knew about the arrows. Was he here again? I ran to the window in amazement, and there was a bird on the window sill. But it was not the blue bird. ¡°Queen!¡± Chapter 160 - Not Stand Alone Long (1) Chapter 160 ¨C Not Stand Alone Long (1) As soon as I saw the fallen golden bird, I let out a cry. ¡®No!¡¯ I hurriedly drew Queen to my bosom and then shut the window. It upset me that the archers were still out there, but I had to take care of Queen first. I drew the curtain for privacy andid him on my bed. ¡®Is he dead? Queen, you¡¯re not dead, are you?¡¯ My hands ran over his neck and chest, and to my relief, I found out that he was still breathing. I pressed my ears to his heart, and tears welled up in my eyes when I heard a strong, steady beat. I felt arge wing cover my head, the bird¡¯s feathery chest warmed my cheek. The tears finally spilled over, and I lifted my head and looked at Queen. He was staring at me with hisrge, intelligent eyes. Looking at him, my heart felt more brittle than usual. ¡°Queen...don¡¯t die.¡± ¨C Gu. No, it wasn¡¯t the time for me to be like this. I got out of bed and brought a first-aid kit. Inside the box were some ointment, bandages, and gauze. I went out to the parlor room, took a bottle of wine, went back to my bedroom and locked it, then approached Queen. He was blinking weakly, but his eyes seemed to smile at me whenever our gazes met. A deep ache throbbed in my chest, like someone had stabbed me in the ribs. ¡°Everything will be alright.¡± I forced myself to smile, but the tears kept falling. ¡®This is not the time. I have to treat Queen first.¡¯ I set down the wine bottle and roughly wiped my wet cheeks with my palm. When I lowered my hand, Queen stretched out his foot and gave a chirp. ¡°Does your foot hurt?¡± I leaned in to inspect his leg, but it looked fine. Queen sang out again and shook his leg. ¡°Ah.¡± Now I could see the letter tied to Queen¡¯s leg. ¡°Alright.¡± I took the letter and left it on the table. ¨C ! Queen widened his eyes, as if in disbelief that I didn¡¯t read the letter. ¡°You first.¡± Heinley was a dear friend, but so was Queen. The bird¡¯s health took precedence at this moment. ¡°Let¡¯s see.¡± I carefullybed through his thick feathers to find the arrow that hit him. ¡°Ah.¡± There was a wound, but no arrow. ¡°You¡¯re fine.¡± I thought Queen had been seriously injured when he crashed against the window. The arrow had grazed him, but it hadn¡¯t prated into his body. ¡°You gave me a fright.¡± ¨C ? Queen must be exhausted after flying a long distance and escaping a near fatal attack. He still had a wound, so I lifted his feathers and poured wine on the broken flesh. Queen¡¯s eyes widened and he tried to squirm away, so I locked him with a one-armed grip to prevent him from escaping. ¡°It¡¯ll hurt, but be patient.¡± After I poured the wine, I blotted the wound with gauze and applied some ointment. I gently blew over the ointment, and Queen stretched out his limbs again and widened his eyes. ¡°Does it hurt too much?¡± ¨C ... ¡°It¡¯s done.¡± I patted his eyes and cheeks, and Queen quickly settled down. I pressed a light kiss to his beak, then bandaged his wound. He sat in a strange position with his hips hanging over the bed, and he fluttered his wing to test the bandage wrapped around it. ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you again, Queen.¡± He was such a cute and lovely creature, so I left him another kiss on his forehead. Then I opened the letter written by Heinley. ¨C I¡¯m not far away. I¡¯d like to meet you in person. ¨C Come to the Duke Elgy¡¯s room anytime tomorrow. The letter¡¯s contents surprised me. Heinley was here? And he was in the Duke¡¯s room? Again? ¡®Is the Duke¡¯s room easier to break in than the rest of the pce?¡¯ How on earth did Heinley get to the southern pce? Did hee in disguise? No, how did Heinley get here so fast? Sir Artina had just arrived a few hours ago. How did Heinley get here so soon after he received the letter from Marquis Farang? *** ¡°A messenger bird came into the Empress¡¯ chambers?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s brow furrowed upon hearing the report that arge, golden bird flew through the Empress¡¯ bedroom window. The archer who had been encamped near the western pce answered quickly. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu sighed. The Empress must have already heard about his intention to divorce after meeting with the High Priest. This was not an ideal situation. Did she want tomunicate so badly that she was willing to let one or two birds die? Unhappy about these events, Sovieshu clenched his fist and took in a slow breath. However, the scene of the Empress after she had fainted hovered in front of his eyes. They were about to divorce. She must be in shock by now. He had no courage to see her face, and no energy to fight with her again. ¡°Very well. Let it go.¡± He spoke in a heavy tone. ¡°Understood, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°And there is no need to shoot the birds that enter the Empress¡¯ chambers anymore.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± When the archer left, Sovieshu sighed again. He rang a bell and ordered a servant to bring him a bottle of strong drink. He downed several sses. Chapter 161 - Not Stand Alone Long (2) Chapter 161 ¨C Not Stand Alone Long (2) The next morning, I woke up to check up on Queen. Hey curled up in the nest I prepared for him on the seat next to the bed. Before, he had always flown away secretly at night. Was he that tired from the journey and the arrow injury?¡°Why are you curled up like this?¡± He opened his sweet eyes and looked at me. His beautiful purple orbs reminded me of Heinley. Heinley... Was he with Duke Elgy right now? I kissed Queen¡¯s breast and got out of bed. ¡°Oh my word, Queen?¡± Countess Eliza¡¯s eyes widened in surprise as she entered my bedroom. Her shock grew when she spotted the bandage wrapped around Queen¡¯s wing. ¡°This must stay secret.¡± Queen waved one wing in familiar greeting to Countess Eliza, then tucked back into his nest. The Countess smiled and nodded. After I bathed and dressed with Countess Eliza¡¯s help, I was informed that one of Sovieshu¡¯s messengers was here. I went to the parlor room, and the servant looked at me with a grave expression. ¡°Your Majesty. The Emperor has called an emergency state meeting.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°He hopes that you will attend the meeting as well, Your Majesty.¡± After the servant finished speaking, Countess Eliza shifted ufortably. ¡°Very well. I will.¡± I answered as calmly as I could and gestured to the servant to leave. But I was not calm inside. It felt as if the floor would fall away from me. ¡®The divorce truly is near.¡¯ No matter how prepared I was, I felt no better. My tongue was dry and my stomach twisted in knots. Thedies-in-waitingy the breakfast and cutlery on the table, but I couldn¡¯t stand the smell of food. ¡°Don¡¯t take part, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Say that you¡¯re unwell.¡± ¡°Why should Her Majesty go to such a ce?¡± They also seemed worried that the purpose of the emergency state meeting was about the divorce. Some of thedies-in-waiting were angry, and some were crying. However... ¡°It¡¯s alright. Even if I don¡¯t attend, the divorce will happen anyway.¡± However, it would be better to see for myself how things progressed. I also wanted to see Sovieshu¡¯s face. The day after he promised Rashta that he would divorce me, he was kind to me, as if he harbored some regrets. I wondered how he would treat me in public. Would he act like I was a bothersome leech to get rid of? Or would he be sorry about our old friendship? In any case, I didn¡¯t think he felt guilty. I wanted him to see me, and I wanted to witness the guilt eat away at him. There were lovers that parted amicably with each other. In the face of a one-sided divorce, did I need to ease his conscience? No. ¡°I¡¯ll change my clothes.¡± After a moment of gloom, I asked Countess Eliza to take off my blue dress. I considered whether I shoulde in the room in stately fashion, or wear something that would stimte Sovieshu¡¯s guilt. In the end, I chose a simple white dress with few details. I wanted to stir his guilt as much as possible. I left my hair loose and walked out. The emergency meeting was to be held in the audience chamber. When I arrived, the guards opened the door without meeting my eyes. As I walked in the hall, the focus of the nobles and officials inside suddenly turned towards my entrance. Arge range of emotions were reflected in their eyes, but the audience chamber was deathly silent. The sound of a water droplet falling would sound as loud as a crash. Sovieshu was sitting on his throne as his gaze fell on me. I straightened my back, and walked to the front of the room. When I arrived at my throne, I sat down on it as if nothing had happened. My eyes calmly stared straight ahead, but beside me I could feel a nervous energy emitting from Sovieshu. From the corner of my eye, I spied his fingers fidgeting on his knee. ¡°Empress...¡± It wasn¡¯t long before Sovieshu called me. I finally turned my head towards him. As soon as our eyes met, he apologized to me with a firm expression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. But I never¡ª¡± ¡°No more apologies.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want it, so save your breath.¡± ¡°Empress, I¡ª¡± He tried to say something, but he was interrupted when the door opened again. It was the High Priest. Once again, a tense silence stretched over the room. The High Priest stood before us with a frown on his face, and the nobles nced at each other as they held their breaths. After a moment, Sovieshu rose from the throne, and the nobles all bowed simultaneously. He waved his hand, and then spoke in a heavy voice. ¡°I wish to divorce Empress Navier.¡± The nobles may have already pieced together the clues when the High Priest came to interview Sovieshu, but they all gulped as if they heard the news for the first time. Murmurs started to spread like oil lit on fire. ¡°Please reconsider, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Not this, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Emperor...¡± Simr voices of persuasion popped up everywhere. I kept my face as nk as possible and looked straight ahead. Being informed of a divorce in front of everyone was disgraceful, no matter how prepared I was. Keeping my feelings as hidden as possible was the only way to protect my dignity. ¡°It¡¯s already decided.¡± Sovieshu cut off the nobles¡¯ words. I lost track of time after that. All I remembered was that a divorce court would be held soon. A court wasn¡¯t the same as a trial; in the first court meeting, the High Priest would call me, Sovieshu, and the nobility, and the priest would ask me if I agreed to the divorce. As soon as this emergency state meeting ended, I was followed by sympathetic gazes. I ignored their stares and walked out of the audience chamber at the same pace as usual. As soon as I left the chamber, however, I saw Rashta standing outside, not too far away. Her body was half-concealed by a pir she was standing behind, her eyes filled with pity. She slowly approached me. ¡°The Emperor is doing too much. To do it so publicly...¡± Her somber looked dissolved into full-on tears. ¡°Her Majesty hated Rashta, but Rashta did not hate Her Majesty. Even if Her Majesty is gone, Rashta will remember her.¡± She made it sound like I was going to die. Irritation welled up in me, but what use was it exchanging words with this child? ¡°You don¡¯t have to remember me.¡± I turned away and headed straight to the garden. Heinley asked me to meet him in Duke Elgy¡¯s room, but the idea of seeing people made me feel ustrophobic. I just wanted to spend time by myself for the moment. I went to my favorite garden and gave an order to my guards. ¡°Please leave me alone for a while.¡± The words of a soon-to-be-divorced empress had a great effect. There was no one after me right now, so the guards quietly retreated. I smiled and enjoyed my solitary stroll, and after a reasonable amount of time, I headed to the southern pce where Duke Elgy stayed. When I knocked on the door, I heard a ¡°Who is it?¡± from inside. I had been invited, so Duke Elgy must know that I wasing. Just in case, I deliberately gave a vague answer. ¡°It¡¯s me.¡± I waited for a moment, then I heard the sound of footsteps rapidly approaching. The door opened. I looked up from where I had been bleakly staring at the ground, but it was not Duke Elgy I came face-to-face with. It was Heinley. ¡°Heinley?¡± Was Duke Elgy gone already? No, we were supposed to meet here... I panicked for a moment, but Heinley smiled at me. ¡°Queen.¡± ¡°How can you be here?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for you. I¡¯ve always waited, but today I waited a little closer.¡± I entered the room, and Heinley closed the door and smiled back at me. He slightly twisted his foot as if he were nervous, then held out his arms and looked at me. Did he want to...? It looked that way. ¡®Does he want to hold me?¡¯ I hesitated, then leaned my head in towards him. My cheek awkwardly touched his shoulder. I held my posture, but Heinley burst into amusedughter. Heat flooded my face and I tried to pull my head away, but he stopped me. ¡°Queen. Can I really hug you?¡± ¡°Alright.¡± As soon as I answered, he wrapped his arms around me and hugged me tight. I allowed my head to rx against his broad shoulder, and his hair tickled my face. His blond locks were as soft as a bird¡¯s feathers. As the area of physical contact grew, so did my awkwardness, but I calmly kept my posture. Heinley¡¯s shoulders trembled lightly as he whispered in my ear. ¡°I heard everything.¡± ¡°What¡ª? Ah.¡± He must have heard about the emergency state meeting today. With all the news, even the gossip must have flowed to the southern pce quickly. The state meeting had gone on for hours, and I didn¡¯te here until after it finished. I replied in a soft voice, feeling powerless. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I awkwardly pulled back my arms, then patted Heinley on the back. ¡°Really.¡± I was trying tofort him because he looked so somber all of a sudden. As soon as my hands touched his back, however, he noticeably stiffened. I nervously snatched my hand back. ¡°I¡¯m grateful to have you here.¡± Heinley let go of me and backed halfway, then bent on one knee and extended his hand like at our first meeting. I held out my hand, and he closed his eyes as he pressed a kiss against it. He opened his eyes again, keeping his gaze fixed on me. ¡°I hope you will not stand alone long.¡± ¡°Because of you, it won¡¯t be.¡± ¡°As soon as you are divorced, I hope that you will be approved for remarriage.¡± Chapter 162 - The Night Before The Divorce (1) Chapter 162 ¨C The Night Before The Divorce (1) I took Heinley¡¯s hand and nodded, grateful that he said exactly what I was thinking. Heinley smiled and slowly raised himself back up. My hands naturally fell away, and I sped them together awkwardly. After rejoicing in the reunion, I blushed at the thought of him hugging me again. Unlike myself, however, Heinley seemed moreposed. ¡°Would you like some coffee?¡± ¡°Yes, thank you.¡± I rearranged my facial expression into something more appropriate and sat down on the sofa. He moved to one side of the room, and there were the sounds of rattling utensils as he prepared to boil water in a kettle. The coffee powder seemed to have been prepared in advance, since enough for only two portions were ced on the side. Did Duke Elgy prepare all this? ¡®Ah.¡¯ ¡°Where is Duke Elgy?¡± I didn¡¯t see him here. ¡°I sent him away. Do you have something to tell him?¡± ¡°Sent him away?¡± ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t want all three of us together.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Truthfully speaking, I¡¯m like the incarnation of jealousy.¡± ...Incarnation? Heinley gave a shy smile as he busily moved around his hands. ¡°Duke Elgy is a true womanizer. I didn¡¯t want him around.¡± He looked embarrassed despite his somewhat mean remark, and my previous curiosity resurfaced. If Duke Elgy and Heinley friends, why did they always back stab each other whenever the other was not there? If I asked Heinley this, however, then he would discover that Duke Elgy was speaking badly of him. I didn¡¯t intend to drive a wedge between the two, so I kept silent. Meanwhile, the water finished boiling, and Heinley held the kettle and poured the water into the cup. As he did so, he looked at me and gave me a smile so beautiful that it could make an artist gasp. It would have been even more perfect if he had been paying attention and realized that the cup was overflowing. He gave a start when he realized his mistake, and his ears turned red as he quickly wiped the coffee cup with a napkin. I tightened my jaw to keep myself fromughing. Fortunately, my facial expressions behaved, and I looked normal by the time he handed my finished coffee to me. ¡°I usually don¡¯t make these mistakes...¡± ¡°Anyone can make mistakes. It¡¯s alright to be human.¡± ¡°I want to look dignified.¡± ¡°It was entertaining enough¡ªno, it was impressive.¡± ¡°It¡¯s more embarrassing when you say that with such an elegant smile, Queen.¡± Heinley sat on the opposite sofa with a grumble, and I clenched my jaw again to suppress myughter. His sloppy side made him seem...perfect. I knew that he was the king of an entire country, but I kept seeing him as a young prince. I took a sip of coffee to keep myself fromughing. Unfortunately, the mood only turned awkward after that. I drank my coffee in silence, and Heinley drank his coffee in silence. The atmosphere was so quiet that one could hear a petal fall. Our eyes met identally, and Heinley smiled at me again. The awkwardness melted away a bit, but it was determined not to die when thoughts of marriage caused embarrassment to surge in me. I hadn¡¯t felt this way before; I had grown up with the idea that I would be wedded to Sovieshu since I was a child. Yet now, I was red-faced at the thought of being married to Heinley, even if it was for political convenience. ¡®I¡¯m really marrying Heinley?¡¯ I shouldn¡¯t have thought that. I gripped my cup to quell the urge to flee the room. Heinley didn¡¯t seem to think I was acting strange, fortunately, but... Oh no. Once I thought about marriage, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about it. I tried to steer the conversation elsewhere so I wouldn¡¯t have to dwell on it. ¡°Where is Duke Elgy? I don¡¯t see him.¡± ¡°I sent him away.¡± I already asked that earlier. Heinley gave a light chuckle, and I red at the bottom of my coffee cup. I was so carried away by the atmosphere that I forgot my words. I shouted silently at the coffee cup, and it seemed to help me find my footing in the conversation again. ¡°It¡¯s possible the Emperor may prevent you from attending the divorce court.¡± No, not just possible, it was certain the Sovieshu would try to stop Heinley. Sovieshu hated Heinley because of how he treated Rashta, and when Sovieshu found out that I had exchanged letters with the Western prince, he was furious. If Heinley appeared out of nowhere and went to the divorce court, he would certainly be barred from attending, disregarding the fact he wanted a second marriage. It was absolutely impossible to get remarried on the day of divorce. When one is approved for remarriage, one¡¯s new partner must be with them. Despite my anxiety, however, Heinley answered with a nonchnt smile. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Queen. We¡¯ll be ready.¡± ¡°Ready...?¡± ¡°Yes. After the divorce is approved, please ask for the second marriage immediately.¡± Heinley gave a delightedugh, exining that he would show up at the right moment for maximum dramatic effect. Surprisingly, hisughter soothed me. Heinley really did have aforting personality. As the tightness around my heart loosened, another forgotten question came back to me. ¡°Did you receive my letter?¡± ¡°Yes. I came as soon as I did.¡± ¡°But how did you get here so quickly?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°You came not long after Sir Artina returned. I¡¯m d to see you, but...¡± As soon as I learned Heinley was nearby, I couldn¡¯t help but wonder how he did it. I had momentarily forgotten the question due to the stressful situation, but now it came back to me again. I set down my coffee cup and waited for his answer. Heinley, who was usually so confident, twisted his hands in uncharacteristic nervousness. ¡°Well...I can¡¯t tell you right now, Queen. But I will after we are married.¡± Apparently it was confidential. I didn¡¯t mean to embarrass him by intruding on his secrets. ¡°Very well.¡± I answered with arge, reassuring smile. Heinley spoke again. ¡°May I ask you a question?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the first thing you want to do after we get married?¡± ¡°After we get married?¡± Heinley smiled at me, but his face suddenly stiffened when he realized the implication of his words, and he waved his hands wildly in the air. ¡°I don¡¯t mean the first night. No, it was weird to ask that. It was never meant to be a dirty question.¡± I didn¡¯t think about it that way, but my cheeks flushed at his words. Heinley, meanwhile, looked like he wanted the ground to open up and swallow him, so I took pity on him and answered him honestly. ¡°I can¡¯t wait to see the ount books.¡± ¡°The...ount books?¡± ¡°If I can take a look at the books, I can assess the budget flow in the Western Kingdom. I need to get acquainted with my work quickly.¡± ¡°...¡± Chapter 163 - The Night Before The Divorce (2) Chapter 163 ¨C The Night Before The Divorce (2) The past few days had been unbearable for Marquis Farang. No matter how long he waited, he hadn¡¯t seen King Heinley in the Western Kingdom for days. He had delivered Navier¡¯s letter, and he intended to remain until Heinley wrote back. While using a messenger bird was faster, some aspects ofmunication were inevitably lost¡ªsuch as the receiver¡¯s reaction when they received the message. When Marquis Farang had first delivered Navier¡¯s letter to Heinley, the king smiled and epted the letter joyfully. The king and empress unexpectedly seemed to be on good terms. When Marquis Farang saw his reaction, he decided to deliver Heinley¡¯s return letter personally. For the first few days, King Heinley said he was too busy to write a reply, and Marquis Farang didn¡¯t think much about it. Heinley was a newly crowned monarch after all, and it wasn¡¯t surprising that he was up to his neck in work. Marquis Farang wanted to meet with Koshar anyway, so he decided he could wait. However, time stretched by, there was still no reply from King Heinley. ¡°Is he so busy that he doesn¡¯t have any time?¡± Marquis Farang¡¯s patience started to thin, and he turned to McKenna, the King¡¯s closest aide. The exnation McKenna gave surprised him. The king had left. Marquis Farang hadn¡¯t heard about that. His mouth opened in bewilderment, but the answer remained unchanged. ¡°But why all of a sudden...¡± ¡°It was an emergency.¡± McKenna offered Marquis Farang a sympathetic look. ¡°Please wait in the pce. He won¡¯t be too long.¡± It was a small note of constion, but to Marquis Farang it was uneptable. Empress Navier had sent her closest aide to tell Marquis Farang to deliver the letter, and he carried out his task post-haste. It wasn¡¯t as if Navier was simply asking Heinley how he was doing. Marquis Farang didn¡¯t know the contents of the letter, but he knew the urgency of the delivery signaled how important it was. But to wait here for King Heinley to finish his work? Marquis Farang couldn¡¯t do that. ¡°I¡¯lle backter.¡± In the end, Marquis Farang decided to leave the Western Kingdom, and he rushed to his room and packed his clothes. *** After the day I visited Heinley, I couldn¡¯t leave the empress¡¯ pce. The same was true for mydies-in-waiting. 150 years ago, an empress had her husband assassinated before their separation officially took ce. Since then, it was decreed that an empress pending divorce would remain confined in the pce until the first court meeting took ce. I was trapped. Perhaps because I was waiting for something big, time passed by quickly and slowly at the same time. Time crawled while I busied myself in the day, but when night came, time came and went like a blink of an eye. ¡®Now that Heinley is here and I¡¯ve spoken to him properly, at least I can tell my parents about my remarriage.¡¯ While I intended to remarry after my divorce, it didn¡¯t mean I was joyfully counting down towards it. As the days passed, my heart became heavy and my mind reeled in turmoil. For the first two days, thedies-in-waiting cried every time they saw me. After a while though, they tried to speak to me with forced cheer. The day before the divorce court, Sovieshu entered my room. My body was tense with stress, and when I saw him, my mind went nk. I remembered the day of our wedding. We were too young to be nervous, and because we were used to being around each other, weughed and talked the day before our wedding. On the day of our coronation, however, I remembered being so nervous that I couldn¡¯t even drink water. The fact that no one would correct my mistakes for me terrified me. It was apletely different experience. Why did I remember that day? My stomach turned in anxiety and I grimaced. Meanwhile, Sovieshu leaned wordlessly against the threshold, eyes zed as if he were also lost in thought. Finally he blinked and approached me, and Countess Eliza quietly closed the door behind him. With the divorce just around the corner, Sovieshu looked surprisingly normal. He still was handsome, and he appeared healthy. ¡°Are you here to say goodbye? ¡± I didn¡¯t want him to see that I was crushed, so I held myself casually. Last night I wanted to tear my hair out because of him. Now, however, I felt like an emptied vessel. ¡°...We will go our separate ways soon.¡± Sovieshu spoke in a low murmur as he avoided my question. Or was this his way of saying goodbye? At any rate, his words were almostical. It won¡¯t be long until we part. A smile twisted across my lips. ¡°From now on, we will have more days apart than days together.¡± I spoke with a tone of finality, knowing that the divorce would be our end. His answer, though, seemed to indicate he didn¡¯t understand that at all. ¡°I want you to stay with me after the divorce.¡± I almost snorted. What caused him to make such a bizarre suggestion? Was it out ofpassion? A show of courtesy for a friend he¡¯s known for a long time? It wasn¡¯t that there weren¡¯t empresses who stood with their husbands even after divorce. It was an unpleasant arrangement, but it wasn¡¯t an unprecedented one. ¡°When we are divorced, we will be strangers. So it cannot happen.¡± ¡°Stay.¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°A divorce won¡¯t make us strangers.¡± Those were unusual words for Sovieshu, but not untrue. Divorce wouldn¡¯t make us strangers, even if we couldn¡¯t get along. We would still have feelings for each other¡ªeven love and hatred¡ªand no matter how much we would try to forget each other, we couldn¡¯t cut out our entire past. My heart became heavy as I looked at him, and I thought that perhaps he felt guilt too. But wasn¡¯t that presumptuous for the person who initiated the divorce in the first ce? I opened my mouth to tell him that, but Sovieshu carefully took my hand. I summoned my strength and pulled my hand away from him. *** Sovieshu¡¯sst visit allowed me to clear away the feelings of emptiness inside me. Although anger reced it, it gave me the drive to push towards a better future. After I partook myst meal as empress, Countess Eliza spoke to me with a bleak look in her eyes. ¡°What would you like to wear, Your Majesty?¡± Thedies-in-waiting, who had been calm for a few days, dissolved into tears again. I cleared my throat a few times to prevent my voice from cracking. ¡°I¡¯d like the same clothes as usual, please.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The room waspletely silent as I was dressed, save for the unusually loud rustling of the clothes. After I finished dressing, I paused to look at myself in the mirror. Behind me, I could see thedies-in-waiting weeping. Laura was crying most of all... I let out a heavy sigh. Nothing seemed like it would change a month ago, and before I realized it, everything seemed to have changedpletely. It would have been hopeless had I not promised to remarry Heinley, but I still felt grieved by my situation. I didn¡¯t even have a moment topose myself, as Sovieshu¡¯s knights came into my room, saying it was time. I supposed they were going to take me to court now. Did Sovieshu arrange this so I wouldn¡¯t run away? The knights stood in silence around me, before one spoke in a somber voice. ¡°Are you ready?¡± ¡°Yes. Let¡¯s go.¡± I answered calmly to hide my sorrow, and took a step forward. However, the knights nced at each other, and they all bowed down and knelt before me. The weeping of thedies-in-waiting grew louder. Chapter 164 - I Ask Approval For Remarriage (1) Chapter 164 ¨C I Ask Approval For Remarriage (1) Rashta realized that her life would soon changepletely. The people in the Imperial Pce were generally friendly towards her, but in thest few days, it had been to an exceptional degree. When she walked, the nobles would discreetlye to side and talk to her, though the subject was often about how pitiful the Empress was. It was obvious that the nobles wanted to seek favor with Rashta. On the day of the divorce court, Rashta let out a delighted giggle as she thought of how much more people would change when she became empress. It was true when Rashta told Navier that she didn¡¯t hate her¡ªnot in the beginning at least. Of course, Rashta¡¯s dislike of the Empress grew over recent months. Now that things havee to this, Rashta even felt a little pity for Navier. In the end, however, Rashta valued herself more than the Empress. Just because Navier found herself in a tragic situation, didn¡¯t mean that Rashta would waste her good fortune. ¡°This is Rashta¡¯s era.¡± ¡°Hmmm?¡± ¡°When everyone gathers together, it will be for you.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course! I¡¯m so proud to work for you these days, Miss Rashta.¡± Delise smiled broadly, and Rashta smiled back in return. Secretly, Rashta thought Delise didn¡¯t have anything to boast about. It was Delise¡¯s first time serving as a maid, and she didn¡¯t always do her jobpetently. Her only merit was her personality, but that advantage could not be used by an empress. ¡®Along with Delise...I should make Viscountess Verdi quit her job asdy-in-waiting as well.¡¯ It would be below an empress such as herself to have a lower viscountess serve as herdy-in-waiting. Rashta was also doubtful about Viscountess Verdi¡¯s loyalty, and oftentimes the viscountess made her feel ufortable. As Rashta was deciding upon which clothes she would wear for the divorce court, Duke Elgy came to visit her. ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you in a long time.¡± Rashta smiled brightly at Duke Elgy and ushered him in the room. When he entered, he grumbled in exaggerated disappointment. ¡°I can¡¯t believe you kept such an important story secret from me. I¡¯m heartbroken, Miss.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. It sounded like Duke Elgy was upset that he didn¡¯t know about the Empress¡¯ divorce in advance. ¡°How did you find out?¡± She looked back at him in surprise, and he vaguely mentioned that he had an inkling. ¡°Are you disappointed? I¡¯m sorry. His Majesty told me to keep it a secret.¡± Rashta gathered her hands together in apology and gave him her sweetest smile. ¡°Well, it can¡¯t be helped.¡± Fortunately, Duke Elgy didn¡¯t seem that upset, and he shed a grin. ¡°Everyone has secrets.¡± ¡°Do you have a secret?¡± ¡°Yes. You must have seen it already.¡± ¡°Me? Oh, that...¡± Rashta remembered the strange letter from King Heinley and smiled awkwardly. Duke Elgy offered a smile in return, but it was unclear whether it was meant to be joking or serious. ¡°But that¡¯s not the only thing you¡¯re not telling Rashta. You haven¡¯t been in your room thest few days.¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s because of that foul-tempered bird.¡± ¡°Bird? That blue bird?¡± ¡°Another bird. One that keeps me wanting to pull my hair out.¡± ¡°Do you like birds?¡± ¡°A little.¡± He gave a light answer, then turned his gaze towards the various dresses Rashta hung in the middle of the room. They were all mostly white dresses. ¡°Are you going to the divorce court today, too?¡± ¡°Yes, but Rashta is still deciding what to wear ¡± ¡°Do you want me to choose for you?¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes twinkled as he asked her the question, and Rasta gave a silveryugh and nodded. ¡°You¡¯re good at choosing?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve seen many women¡¯s dresses.¡± He ced his hand on his chin thoughtfully as he studied each dress, then pointed to the shiniest and most morous of them. ¡°That one is the best.¡± ¡°That one? Wouldn¡¯t it be better to dress more inly?¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t this a bad day?¡± ¡°A bad day for the Empress, yes, but not for you. You have to show yourself to the people. It¡¯s your world now.¡± *** When I entered the hall where the divorce court would take ce, everyone was already there. The nobles, the officials, my parents whom I missed so much... Marquis Farang was there too, having rushed back from the Western Kingdom just in time. His face was pale as if he only just learned of the divorce. When I met his eyes, I saw that he was biting his lower lip so hard it almost bled. The knights were firmly by my side, so we were unable to exchange words. Perhaps after the divorce, we could talk as much as we wanted. When I had dressed a while ago, my anxiety caused the palms of my hands and the soles of my feet to tingle. Now that I was here in this massive hall among everyone, I couldn¡¯t feel a thing. I looked in front of me. Sovieshu was up there, and the spot where I usually stood beside him was empty. Meanwhile, the High Priest stood in the middle of the tform. Behind Sovieshu was Rashta, clothed in an elegant white dress. She usually preferred simple attire, but today her dress was so ostentatious that it could be worn for a New Year¡¯s celebration. I wondered what kind of advice she received. There was a time and ce for these kinds of disys. Didn¡¯t anyone tell her that she looked garish like that? ¡®...It doesn¡¯t matter.¡¯ The door closed with a heavy thud, and the room fell into a hushed silence. This was just the beginning. I boldly approach the High Priest. ¡°...¡± Nobody dared open their mouths. After I took my ce on the tform, the High Priest sighed briefly, looked down at the documents before him, and then spoke. ¡°Empress Navier...Empress Navier of the Eastern Empire. Your husband, Emperor Sovieshu, has requested to divorce you.¡± The High Priest¡¯s voice echoed clearly in the hall and prated everyone¡¯s ears. I continued to stare at him in silence. ¡°If you ept the divorce, Empress Navier, you will no longer be empress, you will be stripped of all rights as a member of the royal family, and you will not be allowed to use the royal family name.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The couples¡¯ vow, which they swore before God, will be annulled, and Empress¡¯ Navier and Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s statuses heretofore will be single.¡± The High Priest turned to me, but did not say anything about the reason for divorce. ¡°Will you ept the divorce? If you don¡¯t, you may im the right to file a suit.¡± I replied as indifferently as possible. ¡°I ept the divorce.¡± Chapter 165 - I Ask Approval For Remarriage (2) Chapter 165 ¨C I Ask Approval For Remarriage (2) Am I the only one who had a faint smile on my lips when I said those words?Sovieshu looked down at me with a half-relieved, half-regretful expression. Was it a charade, or was it sincere? Until now, I had been a good colleague and a perfect empress. We had never fought ¡ª that is, until he brought her along. He cast me aside for his lover, but until thest moment he¡¯ll want to be a good man and a good emperor. Then there was my family and the great church which had approved of our marriage, who insisted that I not step down from the position of empress. He would certainly dislike the idea of going through a tedious divorce trial against both groups. He was that sort of man, and that sort of emperor. ¡°Your Majesty! This can¡¯t be!¡± Marquis Farang cried out and tried to run towards me, but he was caught by the Emperor¡¯s guards and barred from taking a step further¡­ Marquis Farang and Countess Eliza, Sir Artina, my defenders. I am thankful to all of you. I cast them a grateful nce then turned to the High Priest. ¡°Empress Navier. Do you really agree to this divorce document without any objection?¡± The High Priest had a slightly angry voice. He wanted me to fight and challenge the reason for divorce. While the odds of winning the trial were none, it would cause a scandal for the Emperor and his concubine as the people heard the news. That was what the High Priest, my family and my friends wanted. I shook my head. A divorce trial may hurt Sovieshu¡¯s reputation, but my name may be scarred as well. It¡¯s not that I had a moral problem, but I was going to remarry the king of another country. Complicating the political situation would only make that more difficult. ¡°I ept the divorce.¡± The minister closed his eyes gravely as murmuring broke out into the room. ¡°And ask for permission to remarry.¡± The moment I finished speaking, the mood changedpletely. The air stilled into a shocked silence and the High Priest¡¯s eyes flew open. Everyone nced at each other, unsure of what they heard. Sovieshu looked at me confusedly, a frown furrowing his brow. The High Priest was in a daze. ¡°Empress Navier¡­remarry?¡± Instead of answering, I stretched out my hand and pointed to one ce. As if on cue, a man wearing an embroidered veil that obscured his face burst into pleasantughter. ¡°Do Ie up now?¡± The silence was broken by the murmuring of the crowd again. The man walked through the court and stood next to me. When he took off the veil, Sovieshu leapt to his feet. ¡°Navier! That man¨C¡± ¡°Is the one I will marry.¡± The High Priest¡¯s eyes looked hollow. I smiled and turned the man beside me. He looked at me as if to say, ¡°You expected this reaction, didn¡¯t you?¡± Somehow I had a pleasant feeling. Even though it wasn¡¯t revenge I desired. In the midst of this all, Heinley and I were the only ones that looked happy. The buzzing of the crowd only grew at the surprise appearance of the King of the West. Sovieshu¡¯s jaw dropped open, and Rashta let out a cry. ¡°It can¡¯t be!¡± She looked no less stunned. For some reason, she was looking between Heinley and Duke Elgy, but not Sovieshu. Duke Elgy was acting surprised as well, even though he knew Heinley was here. The High Priest cleared his throat several times, still looking astonished. After a moment, he spoke to me again. ¡°Empress Navier, is this true? Prince¡ªno, King Heinley, do you truly mean this?¡± Heinley replied before I had a chance to. ¡°Yes, I wish to have Navier the Emp-¡­Navier, to be my queen. Sovieshu scoffed. ¡°What are you doing in another country?¡± Heinley kept his tone level as he turned to Sovieshu. ¡°Proposing.¡± It was a clear attempt to provoke Sovieshu, and the High Priest frowned at Heinley in warning. ¡°King Heinley ¡± Heinley quickly made himself look pure and pitiful, and he pleaded to the High Priest. ¡°Your Grace. I wille back in an official capacityter, but if I miss this opportunity now, then it will be toote. This is sudden, I know, but please consider it and grant your approval.¡± I held my breath as I waited for the High Priest¡¯s decision. I expected him to grant permission, but the situation around me felt so fragile. Sovieshu cut in with a dangerously low voice. ¡°High Priest. It is clearly illegal for King Heinley to attend this court without permission.¡± The High Priest looked at me in silence, and I stared straight back at him. He seemed to ask, Was this your idea? I couldn¡¯t know for sure if he was saying that, but I nodded. At that moment, my heart seemed to stop. Would the High Priest say no? The old man¡¯s mouth opened to speak, and I swallowed dryly. I felt Heinley touch my palm, and I gripped his hand as if I were clinging for dear life. The High Priest¡¯s gaze fell on our intertwined fingers, and it appeared then that he made his decision. ¡°I approve the remarriage of Navier to King Heinley.¡± His voice seemed to pierce my chest. Simrly, Heinley exhaled as if he had been holding his breath. He, too, was worried that the High Priest would not give us his approval. Heinley turned to face me, and he gave me a smile that was as bright as sunshine. He had no hesitation in disying his feelings in front of everyone. I awkwardly tilted my mouth upwards, when I caught sight of Sovieshu. He looked like he had been struck in the back of the head. His mouth opened to say something, but then the High Priest raised his hand to address the whole room. ¡°The divorce court is over.¡± After he dered the meeting closed, he looked at me and Heinley and told us to approach. It was only a few steps, but we walked side-by-side together. This was just like the first time when I exchanged wedding vows, with the High Priest there, the tform¡­but this time, the man beside me was different. I wondered if the High Priest was thinking the same thing. He gave us a rueful smile and recited a phrase congratting us as a newly married couple. However, it wasn¡¯t with the same joy as the first time he said those words to me. Although he allowed this marriage, he seemed confused and displeased about the unexpected oue. ¡°Your Grace. Thank you.¡± Heinley smiled and bowed upon receiving his blessing. ¡°I will hold a proper ceremonyter and invite you.¡± ¡°¡­I have already given my approval, so there is no need. I am busy, so don¡¯t call me a second time.¡± The High Priest spoke in a curt tone, and then turned to me with aplicated expression. ¡°Empress Navier. No, Queen Navier. I approved this request because I believed in you since your childhood. This will not be an easy road.¡± ¡°Thank you, High Priest.¡± He looked back at Heinley again and offered his final words of advice. ¡°Host a grand wedding and invite many people. When you leave, go out proudly.¡± ¡°Thank you. I will certainly invite you to the wedding.¡± ¡°I¡¯m busy.¡± The High Priest repeated his excuse, and then nced behind him. Sovieshu was standing there, looking like a volcano ready to explode at any moment. Rashta was still staring between Duke Elgy and Heinley, her usual smile waspletely wiped from her face. Sovieshu¡¯s face and fists were red with anger. Our eyes met. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± We stared at each other without a word. I couldn¡¯t think of anything to say. It was too noisy here. Although I stood at the center of the incident, I felt as calm as if I were in the eye of a hurricane. Meanwhile, Sovieshu¡¯s dark, coal eyes glittered in fury. As soon as the High Priest wiped the sweat off his brow and stepped aside, Sovieshu approached me slowly. Chapter 166 - Sovieshu’s Shock (1)

Chapter 166 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (1)

What was he going to say? Would he give me words of anger, or would he wish me well? He certainly wouldn¡¯t say he was happy that I was remarried. Sparks seemed to fly from his eyes, so it couldn¡¯t be good. ¡°Empress. No, Navier. What is wrong with you?¡± Surprisingly, his voice was rtively calm. While the fire in his eyes was undeniable, his tone was so steady that he didn¡¯t seem angry at all. ¡°This marriage proposal, exin it.¡± I rxed in front of him, then replied with a nod. ¡°I know the answer you want.¡± He wanted to know why I got married right after our divorce, and why it was with Heinley. However... ¡°I know, but I won¡¯t answer.¡± I kept my voice as level as possible. ¡°It¡¯s none of my ex-husband¡¯s business.¡± Sovieshu almost staggered backwards at my response. ¡°Ex-husband?¡± He stared at me with an incredulous look. ¡°Ex-husband?¡± He opened his mouth, and sharp bark ofughter escaped from his lips. ¡°Yes, ex-husband. I¡¯m your ex-husband...¡± Sovieshu¡¯sposure broke. A blue vein pulsed on his forehead and he smiled in defiance. He took one step closer to me, his voice was dangerously low as he spoke. ¡°I am still your emperor. And I won¡¯t allow my ex-wife to get married.¡± So it came to this. I suspected this would happen, so I did well in getting the High Priest to approve the remarriage in front of him... The High Priest stepped back into the conversation and clicked his tongue disapprovingly. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu. This falls under my authority.¡± Someone nearbyughed. It was rather loud, and Sovieshu¡¯s face hardened and his ears turned even redder. Didn¡¯t this situation look like a ridiculous y now? Sovieshu¡¯s re swung between me and Heinley, and then he turned his heel and stormed out the hall through a side door. I wanted to say thank you to the High Priest, but he also turned away to follow Sovieshu out the exit. With both the Emperor and High Priest gone, the room suddenly burst into a cacophony of noise, much like a whole host of instruments ying at once. My parents, thedies-in-waiting and Marquis Farang ran towards me and bombarded me with questions. ¡°Navier, what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Navier, suddenly remarrying¡ª¡± ¡°What happened, Navier¡ª¡± They noticed Heinley, but he was not just a foreign prince, but a king now, and so they targeted me instead. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t tell you all in advance.¡± I apologized to them in my embarrassment. The n had to be kept secret to eliminate any chance of it going wrong. These people who cared about me must have been upset...but fortunately, thedies-in-waiting did noty me on me. Rather, they held me and cried joyfully. ¡°No, this is wonderful.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know how gratifying this is.¡± ¡°I almost broke my teeth grinding them when the divorce was approved!¡± Laura clenched her fists and made a vow. ¡°I just made up my mind! I will go abroad and follow Navier!¡± ¡°Laura, that¡¯s¡ª¡± ¡°You¡¯ll need ady-in-waiting after you be queen there anyway!¡± Laura, unlike the other women, initially became mydy-in-waiting to learn court etiquette. However, I was hesitant to take Laura to a foreign country. Then, Countess Jubel spoke up. ¡°Then Laura and I will follow you, Navier.¡± ¡°Countess Jubel?¡± Laura didn¡¯t expect Countess Jubel to volunteer, and she looked up in surprise. Countess Jubel continued to speak. ¡°Countess Eliza may find it difficult to follow you abroad, since she is on good terms with her husband. However, my husband and I have been separate for a long time. It will take him a year to notice that I haven¡¯t gone home.¡± ¡°...¡± I stared at Countess Jubel, and she gave a sly chuckle. ¡°He doesn¡¯t even know if I was homest night.¡± Her humorous demeanor made me smile. ¡°I¡¯d be d if you could apany me, Countess Jubel...¡± I was still somewhat hesitant. Heinley, who had been quietly watching from the side, stepped in and nodded in greeting to Laura and Countess Jubel. ¡°On behalf of my wife, thank you. She will be treated better there, so please feel free toe with her.¡± Laura made a choking sound at the word ¡°wife¡±, and my parents blinked dazedly. They still seemed to be having a hard time epting this new situation. ¡°Ah, Mother-In-Law, Father-In-Law.¡± When Heinley addressed my parents, they seemed even more taken aback, and they gave each other uncertain nces. Sensing their hesitation, Heinley leaned his head towards them and said in a quiet voice, ¡°Your son is in the Western Kingdom.¡± My parents¡¯ eyes widened in surprise, and my father burst into tears. My mother didn¡¯t cry, but she looked extremely relieved. She would have been happy enough that I wouldn¡¯t be abandoned as an ex-empress, but she was even more grateful that her exiled son was alright. As I watched the scene, I stood a little straighter. My heart no longer felt empty, or angry, or grieved. Even though I underwent the shame of divorce and deposition, everyone around me was smiling and rejoicing in my approval for remarriage. Happiness swelled inside my bosom, crowding out the sorrow and anger that had so haunted me for so long. I was especially grateful towards Heinley. Without him...I would be standing here listening to thedies-in-waiting attempt tofort me. My parents would me themselves for sending me to be crown princess, and everyone would look at me in pity. However, even if I found myself in an asion that called for tears of joy, I did not want to cry in front of people, either. I took a deep breath, and smiled at Heinley to calm my eyes. *** Rashta followed Sovieshu, thinking about how cruel the Empress was. ¡®Ah. But I¡¯m the empress now.¡¯ Rashta knew that Navier only stood by Sovieshu to be empress, and that the woman did not love her husband. That was enough to consider Navier as snobbish and power-hungry. But for her to marry another king as soon as she got divorced? She truly was greedy for power! In the process, Navier never thought at all about the ridicule Sovieshu would face. ¡®No. He¡¯s a strong man.¡¯ Rashta clicked her tongue sympathetically and trailed behind Sovieshu as he went straight to his chambers. When she entered his room, she saw him leaning against a table with one arm and breathing hard. His eyes looked lifeless, as if he were still thoroughly shocked by what happened earlier. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± The sight brought tears to Rashta¡¯s eyes. ¡®Poor thing.¡¯ She pressed a hand against her mouth and approached Sovieshu. He was still breathing hard, and his brow furrowed when he nced up at Rashta. A stiff smile spread on his lips. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rashta. I want to be alone for now.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± She stifled a sob, then covered his hand on the table with both of her own. Her voice quavered as she spoke. ¡°Your Majesty. Prince Heinley¡¯s letter friend...is actually the deposed empress.¡± Sovieshu turned his eyes towards Rashta. He already knew that. He also knew that Rashta pretended to be the letter friend. However, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder why she would bring this up. Rashta cast herrge eyes downwards, looking like a sad angel. ¡°Since then, the deposed empress has been having an affair with Prince Heinley.¡±¡°!¡± ¡°Rashta wanted to protect the empress...so Rashta pretended to be the letter friend.¡± Sovieshu stared sharply at her. She looked at him with clear eyes, wiping away the dripping tears with the back of her hand. ¡°But if I knew she would back stab you like that...I would have told you earlier. Rashta made the wrong decision, Your Majesty.¡± As Sovieshu stared at her weeping form, his expression became strange. Chapter 167 - Sovieshu’s Shock (2) Chapter 167 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (2) News of the Imperial Family swept the country like wildfire. People were in awe over this national scandal, and talk of ¡®What Would You Do In The Imperial Family¡¯ soon became a fad. Naturally, every magazine covered the story with glee. However, most of them had a degree of error or falsehood. The most credible magazine by far was Lorudin, an official publication that had exclusive ess to the pce. When Lorudin reported news of the empress¡¯ divorce and remarriage, everyone was shocked. The story was so outrageous that no one believed it until it came from them. Remarriage Of A Deposed Empress! the headline red. Although remarriage was not prohibited, no divorced empress in history had ever done so. Regardless of who the former empress was, the emperor still had a visible position, and there was no reason to furtherplicate politics. While she could take younger lovers, she never remarried. The social circles were a small world, and many people¡¯s eyes followed the former empress¡¯ lives after divorce. iming the highest seat for a woman in the empire and then reappearing in the lower ranks was also a sore point of pride for a former empress. But not for Empress Navier. Not the empress famous for her cool demeanor and sharp intelligence. She not only remarried, but she remarried the King of the West! Everyone was stunned by this unprecedented move. ¡°Good for her. Rather than living in this country as a deposed empress, she might as well go to the Western Kingdom and be queen.¡± ¡°Yes, she can live freely there, but people¡¯s eyes will follow her for the rest of her life. Do you think that it¡¯s that easy?¡± ¡°If the Emperor lives with his concubine, why can¡¯t the Empress remarry?¡± ¡°But it¡¯s a matter of courtesy. How can you remarry in a matter of seconds?¡± ¡°Alright. Then what does she be? Other countries will look down on us.¡± ¡°If the Empress of the Great Eastern Empire bes a Queen of the Western Kingdom, then it is a betrayal to our country.¡± After the surprise wore off, people¡¯s opinions soon became divided. Some were in favor of Navier¡¯s remarriage, and others dered she was crazy. Others sympathized with her, but said it was not good for the country. Considering the power the former empress held, some wanted to prevent the remarriage and suggested they hold on to her carriage so she couldn¡¯t leave. Around lunch the next day, Navier had a bitter smile on her face when she heard the reactions. *** ¡°It¡¯s a story that can have many opinions.¡± My face was calm. I was already prepared for this. ¡°I am only an empress to them.¡± It wasn¡¯t something I could control. For the people, I was a part of the nation and the national identity. They would be more generous if I were merely a friend or family member that found new life after a divorce, but to see their empress leave and go to another country was humiliating for them. Marquis Farang looked into my eyes and smiled brightly. ¡°No, but you are meticulous. How could you use me as an errand boy and not say a word?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing to be sorry about.¡± Marquis Farang lifted his little finger. ¡°Please remember that Marquis Farang made a great contribution to your remarriage.¡± I smiled at his good humor. The estate manager, who had been busy scribbling a list for half an hour, set down his pen and raised his upper body. He was the steward of the Troby family¡¯s wealth, and hepiled a list of my personal property. ¡°Is it done?¡± The estate manager rubbed his neck and gave a small chuckle. ¡°It is done. Don¡¯t worry, My Lady. I¡¯ll take care of everything, down to thest hairbrush.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Marquis Farang turned his eyes towards me. ¡°Are you going to bring everything of yours from the empress¡¯ pce?¡± He also seemed to be asking whether that included money and jewelry, and I nodded my head. ¡°I think so.¡± It may be cheap, however...I knew exactly who was going to reside in that pce after me, and I didn¡¯t want to leave any of my things behind. After all, once you became empress, you can decorate the ce as you liked, and throw away any old items. I didn¡¯t like the idea of Rashta tossing my old things, so I decided to bring them myself. Estate managers were usually inclined to click their tongue and say that nobles spent toovishly, but this one seemed pleased with my decision. As he hummed and checked over the list again, I looked towards the arch doorway. There, Heinley was standing with my parents, hard at work trying to gain their favor. It was not easy to remain sullen for long in Heinley¡¯s presence. ¡®...That¡¯s cute.¡¯ Last night, Heinley suggested to my parents that they should move to the Western Kingdom, but they declined. They couldn¡¯t stop me or my elder brother from going there, but they were high-ranking nobles here in the Eastern Empire... Perhaps Heinley was still trying to convince them. Suddenly, Heinley turned to me with a smile, and he and my parents walked in my direction. The estate manager said, ¡°It¡¯s awkward to be this close to the king,¡± and stood up and went upstairs. My mother came up to me and spoke right away. ¡°Navier. What are you going to do now? How long will you stay here?¡± Ah, perhaps that was what the three of them were talking about. I answered quickly. ¡°I can leave anytime, even now. I¡¯ve made arrangements.¡± It wasn¡¯t official, but it wasn¡¯t good for King Heinley to stay here too long. Unexpectedly, however, Heinley made the opposite suggestion. ¡°I have a carriage ready...why not stay for another fifteen days and then leave?¡± I looked at him in concern, and he spoke with a shine in his eyes. ¡°I¡¯ll have time to win points with Queen¡¯s parents.¡± My parents, who were more ustomed to Sovieshu, found Heinley¡¯s speech awkward, and they nced at each other. Marquis Farang was the only one who seemed to find the situation amusing, but my father shot him a re, and the Marquis suddenly raised his hand. ¡°Oh, I just remembered something.¡± He ran towards the front door and opened it, but he suddenly froze. I looked at him questioningly and approached. I saw that his expression was like stone as he stared through the open door. When I turned my gaze to see what he was looking at, I saw a strange scene before me. A line of guards surrounded the front gate like a wall Chapter 168 - Shocked Together With Heinley (1) Chapter 168 ¨C Shocked Together With Heinley (1) ¡°Please stay here a moment.¡± Marquis Farang walked out towards the gate and spoke to a guard, but the guard gave no sign that he acknowledged him. Marquis Farang then climbed up arge rock near the wall and peered over it. He came back inside, clicking his tongue. ¡°Not only have the knights surrounded the front gate, but the entire mansion as well.¡± No, no. Sovieshu, are you trying to lock me up? I rushed to the front gate. When the knights saw me, they exchanged embarrassed nces with each other. They seemed to pity me, but they did not step aside. ¡°Why are you here?¡± ¡°Sorry, Your Ma¡ªNavier.¡± ¡°How long are you going to keep standing there?¡± ¡°As long as His Majesty orders.¡± The knight¡¯s voice was firm. ¡°I¡¯m going to see His Majesty in person. Get out of the way.¡± I angrily tried to open the gate, but the knights blocked my way. ¡°!¡± I stared up at them in amazement, but they kept their positions while refusing eye contact with me. I was about to go back inside, when I heard Heinley¡¯s cold voice approach. ¡°Keeping the King and Queen of the Western Kingdom in custody. Don¡¯t you know this will turn into an international incident?¡± I thought he was talking to himself at first, but it sounded like he was giving a threat. The knights pressed their lips together, but it was a different person who answered. ¡°Who cares about international affairs when someone takes another person¡¯s wife?¡± It was Sovieshu. I didn¡¯t see him arrive in his carriage behind the line of knights, but he soon walked forward, and the knights parted to allow him ess. The white bars of the iron gate served as a barrier between us. Sovieshu looked at me and Heinley. ¡°I¡¯ve never taken ¡®another person¡¯s wife¡¯.¡± ¡°My my, King Heinley. You shouldn¡¯t have caused such a disturbance yesterday if you were going to tell a lie.¡± ¡°You had nothing to do with Navier the moment you were divorced. And she¡¯s not just ¡®another person¡¯s wife¡¯.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s gazed sharpened at Heinley¡¯s words. Did Sovieshu not have enough sleep? I noticed dark bags under his eyes. He held himself with dignity as usual, but he looked tired. I thought he would be celebrating with champagne after the divorce. Maybe he didn¡¯t want to have a toast after I remarried? I felt like gloating, but I kept a calm face to avoid giving too much attention. However, when it came to Sovieshu, his control slipped when he was fatigued. He grabbed a gate bar roughly with one hand and rattled it threateningly as he sneered at Heinley. King Heinley, the yboy king. You seduced the innocent Navier, didn¡¯t you?¡± That was unfair to Heinley, as I was the one that proposed to him. Probably for my sake, however, Heinley kept his calm and gave no answer. Eventually I stepped forward and said, ¡°I proposed.¡± Sovieshu stared at me as if I had just smacked him. ¡°Do you want to side with him that much?¡± Despite my confession of truth, he still seemed to believe that Heinley tempted me to his side. ¡°Yes.¡± There was a pause, and then Sovieshu let out a deliriousugh. ¡°Are you doing this to get revenge on me?¡± ¡°Revenge?¡± ¡°Did you choose him to make me angry?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know that he¡¯s an immature womanizer? You don¡¯t have to ruin your life to get revenge.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not ruining it.¡± ¡°Navier. He¡¯s only using you.¡± ¡°We¡¯re using each other.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°!¡± Sovieshu looked startled by my answer. The strange thing was that Heinley, who had been smiling by my side, had widened his eyes in shock at the same time. Oh...s. Under these circumstances, it was probably best that I didn¡¯t announce that our marriage was of political convenience. It was awkward to correct it here, so I decided to apologize to Heinleyter, then turned back towards Sovieshu. His ck eyes burned with fury. The look on his face made it seem like I had taken away his throne. ¡°With the path you were going, and with who you were walking it with, you shouldn¡¯t be surprised, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I want to be with you, Navier!¡± ¡°And yet, yesterday you annulled our rtionship at the divorce court.¡± ¡°That was...¡± Sovieshu opened and closed his mouth a few times, then shot Heinley a re again. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to send you to this novice who knows nothing about you.¡± Heinley still seemed numb after hearing my answer earlier. He didn¡¯t respond immediately, even though Sovieshu was shooting arrowheads at him. ¡®Is he still in shock?¡¯ I gently tugged the hem of his sleeve and waved my hand in front of him, and he blinked into awareness and smiled. ¡°But now I have plenty of time to learn about Navier, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°King Heinley...!¡± Sovieshu lunged forward and grabbed the bars with both his hands. This time, however, he didn¡¯t have the chance to speak further. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl, who had been standing next to Sovieshu, addressed him in a small voice. ¡°There are too many eyes around here.¡± Sovieshu blinked and finally looked around. ¡®This.¡¯ Indeed, there were many eyes. Many people had gathered to watch, curious about the knights surrounding the mansion and the loud argument taking ce at the front gate. Sovieshu gritted his teeth and shot a re and Heinley and me, but he quickly turned his heel and climbed back into his carriage. It soon disappeared. The knights, however, remained, and they did not move an inch. There was no longer any reason to stay out here, so Heinley and I returned inside the mansion. I exined the situation to my parents, and my mother vowed that the Emperor would not be able to contain her entire family. She asked me if I would disguise myself as a maid. I really would be trapped here if I stayed for fifteen days. We sent a maid out as a trial, and soon found out that that n would bepletely useless. Though the maids were allowed to enter and exit the grounds, they were thoroughly checked. When a servant climbed over a wall, he was tossed back over. My family went out one-by-one to see exactly who was confined, and it soon became clear that the guards only had two targets¡ªme and Heinley. The next day, my parents tried to meet with Sovieshu to plead for my release, but he refused to see them. By this point I became nervous. ¡®The longer I¡¯m held here, the worse it will be for Heinley...¡¯ He was a solitary king in a foreign nation, and he had remarried the former empress. I worried that Heinley¡¯s reputation would be tarnished, even in the Western Kingdom. ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± Were my feelings written on my face? Heinley stood with me by the window and looked over at the barrier of knights. He took my hand carefully. ¡°It¡¯s best to leave quietly and without creating a disturbance. However, I prepared for the worst.¡± ¡°You mean Sir McKenna?¡± ¡°Yes. In a few days, the Western Kingdom will lodge a formal protest.¡± The corner of Heinley¡¯s mouth tilted upwards. ¡°Your ex-husband is a cowardly man, but he is a good emperor. He¡¯ll be forced to withdraw his guards.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± I was d to hear that... ¡°Rather, Queen. I¡¯d like to ask you something.¡± ¡°Anything.¡± ¡°About...what you said yesterday.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I...¡± There were so many things I said yesterday, and I don¡¯t know what he was talking about. When I looked over at him, Heinley dropped his gaze, then shook his head with a smile. ¡°Never mind.¡± ¡®What is he thinking?¡¯ Ah! By any chance? ¡°Is it about what I said about a political marriage?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I said it without thinking.¡± Heinley stared at me nkly, then scratched his cheek and smiled. ¡°Not that...¡± No? Heinley sighed. He gripped my hand tight, and spoke to me in a soft tone. ¡°I don¡¯t merely think of you as a political partner.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I just wanted to say that.¡± Chapter 169 - Shocked Together With Heinley Chapter 169 ¨C Shocked Together With Heinley ¡°Your Majesty. Even if you confine Navier, King Heinley must be released soon.¡± Marquis Karl looked worriedly at Sovieshu as he offered his best counsel. It had already been four days since the former empress and King Heinley were prevented from leaving the mansion. Since the residence was rtively visible, the people of the Western Kingdom would find out that their king was trapped in the Eastern Empire capital. If this risky situation continued, it would certainly escte into an international problem. ¡°The Western Kingdom¡¯s power is not to be taken lightly, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu knew that. He had been suffering a headache for four full days because of it. He closed his eyes and pressed his fingers against his temple. Marquis Karl¡¯s nagging, which repeated everything he knew, only added to his fatigue. ¡°You cannot let the rtionship go wrong.¡± ¡°...¡± Sovieshu waited for Marquis Karl¡¯s nagging to continue, but it strangely ended there. He expected at least five more paragraphs detailing his mistakes. Sovieshu half-opened his eyes and nced towards his secretary. Marquis Karl was looking at him with a hesitant expression. Sovieshu sighed. ¡°What is it you want to say?¡± At the Emperor¡¯s permission, Marquis Karl drew himself up and spoke. ¡°Your Majesty. Because this is a marriage between two countries, why don¡¯t you send a congrattory gift to show your generosity?¡± ¡°Congrattory gift?¡± ¡°Yes, for the wedding anniversary of King Heinley and¡ª¡± ¡°Gift?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes darkened. His face seemed to say ¡°Are you crazy?¡± Marquis Karl lowered his gaze as if the words he had spoken weren¡¯t quite right. In truth, he thought conciliation was best for the country. It would be better if Navier were treated as ¡°esteemed noble daughter of the Eastern Empire¡± rather than ¡°the divorced empress¡±. The future rtionship between the Eastern Empire and Western Kingdom may be strained, but maintaining it was the best course of action. However... Marquis Karl awkwardly put his hands together. The problem of embarrassment between the countries was tremendous. If Sovieshu gave his ex-wife a congrattory gift, some may view him as a generous person, but others may think he was crazy. Sovieshu thought the notion ridiculous, regardless of his unpleasant feelings. He didn¡¯t want to speak harshly to his favorite secretary, but he gritted his teeth. ¡°Then you send a gift when your wife remarries another man. Like a better man would.¡± Afterwards, Marquis Karl left. Sovieshu mmed his desk with his fist. Despite his anger, he knew he could not keep King Heinley any longer, nor Navier, whom the High Priest directly approved for remarriage. Although there was no wedding, the High Priest already left the capital, and he would instruct that all official documents would record Heinley and Navier as a married couple. As such, that also made Navier the queen of the Western Kingdom. That only made Sovieshu angrier. Navier remarried. She and Sovieshu had been together since childhood. He thought they would part for only a time, and then see each other again. But that damn Heinley... ¡°Shit, Heinley Heinley Heinley!¡± He roared and pounded the desk with each word. The blue bird in his office woke up in surprise and stared at him through the cage. It must be thinking he was crazy. Sovieshu finally raised his arm to his forehead, took a deep breath, then rang the bell on the desk. A servant walked in the room, and Sovieshu barked an order at him. ¡°Get me Duke Elgy!¡± When Duke Elgy was finally brought into the room, Sovieshu immediately went straight to the point. ¡°I hear you¡¯re a friend of King Heinley, Duke.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. We¡¯ve known each other since we were children.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve heard of everything that happened between me and King Heinley.¡± ¡°Well...¡± Duke Elgy smiled vaguely as if he were embarrassed to answer. Sovieshu stared at him coldly. ¡°I can¡¯t hold the Western King for long, so I¡¯m considering sending him back.¡± ¡°Thank God.¡± ¡°Can you take King Heinley from the Troby mansion?¡± ¡°Take¡±? Duke Elgy thought the word choice was strange. Why not ¡°bring¡±? ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I want you to go to the Troby residence and take only King Heinley.¡± Duke Elgy then realized Sovieshu¡¯s intentions. Because Heinley and Sovieshu were in a bitter feud, it would look as if Sovieshu were backing down if he released Heinley. On the other hand, if Duke Elgy¡ªa friend of King Heinley¡ªrescued the king, Sovieshu would preserve his pride. Duke Elgy inwardly admired the Emperor¡¯s cleverness. ¡°Very well. What about Navier?¡± ¡°It¡¯s King Heinley that¡¯s urgently needed in the Western Kingdom now, not Navier.¡± Duke Elgy hesitated for a moment, but then smiled and made a noise of agreement. He stood up and left the room. Afterwards, Sovieshu summoned all of his secretaries. ¡°Find aw that prohibits an empress from remarrying. Whether it¡¯s history, code, etiquette¡ªscour every scrap of paper you can. Do it as soon as possible.¡± *** A few hourster, after Duke Elgy deemed it enough time for Sovieshu¡¯s order to be delivered to the guards, he climbed into a carriage and travelled to his destination. His thoughts were troubled. He could not yet confront Sovieshu head on, but this was an opportunity to gain his favor. If Duke Elgy handled this personal request well, he could gain the Emperor¡¯s trust. However, his friendship with Heinley had to be considered. Heinley was deeply infatuated with Navier. Wouldn¡¯t he be frustrated to leave Navier behind? Heinley and Duke Elgy had simr short-term goals, but their end purposes were different. Because of this, they maintained a cooperative rtionship and exchanged power and information as needed, and did not interfere with each other¡¯s ns. In this case, however, gaining Sovieshu¡¯s trust would mean hurting Heinley. Heinley may be angry at Duke Elgy, but their partnership wouldn¡¯t break as long as they sharedmon goals. On the other hand, ¡°rescuing¡± both Heinley and the former empress would cause Sovieshu to distrust him. Heinley would certainly be grateful to Duke Elgy, but it wasn¡¯t a useful move. They were already allies. ¡°Hmmm.¡± Duke Elgy hummed and tapped his cheek. ¡°There¡¯s an answer. I wonder what wille out.¡± Chapter 170 - Sovieshu’s Shock (3) Chapter 170 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (3) How could we break this? How could we get through that wall of knights? I lingered in the corridor, asionally ncing out the window and looking at the barrier. No matter how hard I thought, however, I couldn¡¯te up with a n. The knights thoroughly inspected anyone who entered and exited the grounds, so covering my face was out of the question. If I tried to go over the wall, I¡¯d only be pushed back, and the road for the carriages was blocked. Hope of escape seemed distant. As Heinley said, our only choice was to wait for the Western Kingdom to lodge an officialint. Was I too selfish in remarrying? Heinley¡¯s name was tarnished because of me, and my heart grew heavy. Just as I was passing by a window, a strange sight caught my eye. Arge ck carriage wasing in! ¡®How?¡¯ All carriages had been kept out in case of any escape attempts. I rushed down the stairs towards the front gate. ¡®Is it Sovieshu?¡¯ The guards wouldn¡¯t allow him in if it were anyone else. However, the carriage door opened, and the person who stepped out was not who I expected. It was Duke Elgy. Heinley¡¯s¡ªand Rashta¡¯s¡ªfriend. ¡°Heinley?¡± Duke Elgy spoke to a servant who tied up the carriage, then when he saw me approach, he smiled. The servant seemed relieved by my presence. He seemed confused by the fact that a stranger would suddenly visit the mansion without prior notice. I signaled for the servant to continue his work and walked up to Duke Elgy. The Duke scratched his cheek in embarrassment, but he offered me his hello. ¡°Greetings. How are you?¡± ¡°...As you can see.¡± I offered him a light smile. ¡°I¡¯m not sure whether that¡¯s positive or negative.¡± ¡°It depends.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think you¡¯re doing well.¡± ¡°Are you here to see Heinley?¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s mouth twisted slightly. ¡°Yes. How¡¯s Heinley doing?¡± He called Heinley by name as I did, even though he had already been crowned king. As far as I knew, Duke Elgy didn¡¯t even go to Heinley¡¯s coronation. Did the Duke still have a close friendship with him? If I asked Duke Elgy this, I knew he would not answer. Anyway, their friendship was irrelevant right now. I nodded and spoke again. ¡°Did the Emperor tell you toe see Heinley?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I supposed as much.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve always had this inkling, but you have a sharp intuition.¡± The guards wouldn¡¯t have let the carriage in if it weren¡¯t on Sovieshu¡¯s orders. There was nothing particrly clever about the observation, but I said nothing of it, and instead pointed towards the garden with my eyes. ¡°Before you meet Heinley, I want to talk to you first.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s not the Emperor¡¯s meaning, but...¡± ¡°Your meaning.¡± Duke Elgy nced away as if he were considering the idea, then smiled and gave a bow. ¡°If youmand me.¡± *** I took him to a garden that was not often used, and looked around to confirm that no one else was here. Duke Elgy burst out intoughter, as if he found my behavior amusing. ¡°So, what¡¯s the secret story?¡± ¡°Something that people don¡¯t know. Something that I hope my family doesn¡¯t know more about.¡± ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to it.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, he strode near me, and his eyes shone as he leaned against the red brick garden wall with one hand. He looked like a picture of a popr socialite, smiling flirtily as if the whole world centered around him. I suddenly wondered if Heinley acted the same way as he swept through the social circles all over the world. ¡®I should ask himter.¡¯ ¡°You¡¯re not speaking, so it must be something difficult to say. How do you know I like that?¡± ¡°Duke. Are you friends with Miss Rashta?¡± ¡°...Ah. That¡¯s not the way I thought it would go.¡± Duke Elgy was a frivolous character, but not a thoughtless one. He pulled down his arm and looked at me seriously. The corners of his mouth were still yful, though his mood had changed. I looked around again and spoke. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if Miss Rashta does this identally or not.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°But if you think she will harm the people of the Eastern Empire, tell me as soon as possible.¡± On the day of my divorce, I noticed that Rashta wore an ostentatious dress that did not fit the context of the situation. In addition, her juvenile speech was unchanged from the day she first came to the pce. Clearly there was no one near her who would give her any real advice, even if she was willing to fight. It would be less of an issue if Rashta were to remain a concubine, but Sovieshu intended to elevate her as Empress. As I just told Duke Elgy, I didn¡¯t care what Rashta did alone. I¡¯ll hardly ever see her now. However, I did not want Rashta to destroy her position or the people of the Eastern Empire. Although I was now the Queen of the West and will now live for the West... The Eastern Empire was still my mothend, even if I didn¡¯t be the empress in the first ce. Duke Elgy, who usually had an answer for everything, just sighed at my words. ¡°Oh my.¡± ¡°Is that too hard?¡± Duke Elgy was a friend who helped Rashta during her hard times. ¡°Why do you want this to be a secret?¡± I wasn¡¯t asking this to benefit Rashta, but my parents or Heinley would be upset if they heard my request. I thought I¡¯d look too soft if I told Duke Heinley that, so I responded with an impassive look. ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s difficult.¡± Duke Elgy looked at me as if I¡¯d said something wrong, then pivoted the conversation in another direction. ¡°As I was in the carriage, I was struggling with a dilemma.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I just barely came to a conclusion.¡± ¡®What does he mean?¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s difficult for me toe forward like this. It¡¯s like you¡¯re picking up a knife and stabbing my conscience.¡± ¡°Conscience?¡± Duke Elgy sighed again and muttered something about it. I still didn¡¯t follow the meaning of his words. I looked at him with raised eyebrows, and he waved his hand and chuckled. ¡°Well, it¡¯s not my ce to interfere between Miss Rashta and the former empress.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Go to your room quickly, take as few items as you can, ande to the back entrance.¡± I didn¡¯t even think that Duke Elgy knew where the back entrance was. His face lit up as he remembered something else. ¡°Ah, where is Heinley?¡± ¡°Why the back entrance?¡± ¡°Because you are the wife of a friend, this has to be done secretly.¡± Secretly...ah, then!¡°Are you trying to get me out of here?¡± My eyes widened in surprise. Of course, Heinley did have a friendship with Duke Elgy. ¡°Your reaction is really not fun.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Was that praise I heard?¡± ¡°For helping me escape. You may be a little shady, but you have a good side.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 171 - Sovieshu’s Shock (2) Chapter 171 ¨C Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (2) I wondered what to pack, but I excluded anything that could be bought in the Western Kingdom. Instead, I chose items that were hard to buy and had sentimental value. There were ways to have my other belongings movedter, so I packed only a minimum number of things. When I finished, I stopped by my parents to inform them about Duke Elgy, then went to the back entrance. I looked through the window pane on the door. ¡®Did Duke Elgye out yet?¡¯ He was not visible, but his ck carriage was there. There was already a driver sitting in the front seat as if he were ready to leave. Was the Duke going to smuggle me out in that carriage? A short momentter, Duke Elgy and Heinley appeared. Heinley didn¡¯t carry much in his hands. ¡°Queen!¡± He had seen me only a couple of hours ago, but he smiled and raced towards me as if we had been parted for years. Duke Elgy grinned knowingly, but Heinley didn¡¯t seem to care. As I smiled and looked at him, Heinley looked around and raised his eyebrows. ¡°What about Father-in-Law and Mother-in-Law?¡± As we were about to leave, he seemed to wonder why my parents weren¡¯t here. ¡°Perhaps...¡± ¡°I spoke to them already.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°The necessary people are here. I told my parents to go out for a walk and behave as usual, just in case.¡± ¡°I see...¡± Heinley nodded in admiration, but Duke Elgy¡¯s expression was strange. ¡°I wondered who you resembled, and you look like your parents.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it natural for people to take after their parents?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t look like my parents at all.¡± He shrugged his shoulders and then opened the door. The guards did not look inwards at the mansion, perhaps as ast courtesy for the former empress. Because of that, the carriage was able to park by the back entrance without drawing suspicion. I boarded the carriage swiftly just in case. Duke Elgy came in next, but he shut the door before Heinley got on. I wondered why, and Duke Elgy said ¡°Excuse me¡±, before reaching diagonally upwards at the carriage roof. ¡°?¡± ¡°The Emperor onlymanded that Heinley be released.¡± His fingers pressed down on something, and there was a click from the carriage bench I was sitting on. Surprised, I moved myself to the other side, and Duke Elgy smiled and removed the cushion. He grabbed the edge of the bench and lifted it up, revealing arge empty space inside. The bench was lined in thick leather, so it was difficult to know there was an empty space even if one tapped on it. ¡°This is...¡± I looked down in amazement, and Duke Elgy pointed at the secret box with his hand. ¡°Sorry, but you have to go in there.¡± *** The knights inspected the inside of Duke Elgy¡¯s carriage before it left. It was wide and there was not much luggage, so there was little to check. Duke Elgy had his cane and King Heinley had a brown leather bag, but it was notrge enough to hide a person. The only other person was the carriage driver. When the Emperor¡¯s knights stepped back and signaled that they could pass, Duke Elgy smiled and nodded at them. Once the door closed, his expression turned into a frown. The knights did not notice that the former empress had escaped until a full two dayster. Sovieshu didn¡¯t realize either, and during that time he only kept pushing his secretaries to find a way to cancel her remarriage. They scrutinized through all existing records from avable emperors, reviewed cases from other countries, and scouredw books from the first page. However, only the High Priest had authority over royal marriages, and no matter how much material was searched, no other alternatives manifested. ¡°There has to be a case like this. Among the many empresses of history, there had to be one that remarried!¡± He needed just one. Sovieshu kept pressuring his men for answers, but no matter howpetent they were, they couldn¡¯t make up the past. Even if they tried to manipte history, there were a hundred more historians to correct them. In the end, Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries had to rely on more liberal interpretations. ¡°There is no way to undo it, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Even if the High Priestes in person, the remarriage cannot be canceled unterally.¡± ¡°There was an incident twenty years ago. It wasn¡¯t a remarriage, but the king of the Southern Kingdom called the High Priest to cancel his marriage within three days.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°The High Priest refused to cancel the marriage.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression only darkened, and the secretaries hurriedly put their heads together to find another solution. ¡°But there is precedent of canceling a divorce, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Canceling a divorce?¡± Sovieshu had seen several nobles request a cancetion of their divorce. Oftentimes nobles fought and split over concubines or family politics, but when they reconciled again, they would ask their divorce to be canceled. Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries continued to exin. ¡°Yes, it¡¯s not widely used, but surely there must be precedent of an emperor canceling divorce.¡± ¡°Canceling a divorce would lead to a double marriage, and the second marriage would naturally be annulled, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°!¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes widened at this unexpected boon. ¡°Divorce...is canceled?¡± He tapped a finger nervously on the throne, and the men nodded. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. Thus, the remarriage will be canceled.¡± Sovieshu let out augh. Him, canceling a divorce now. ¡°Is there any other way?¡± ¡°No, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu closed his heavy eyelids. Cancel the divorce...cancel the divorce... But why did he get divorced in the first ce? It was because the Empress was infertile and he needed a sessor. If the divorce was canceled and he had no sessor, the n was useless. ¡°...¡± He thought on it for some time, then decided to go to the Troby mansion. He wanted to see Navier. Seeing her would help make up his mind. To Sovieshu¡¯s shock, however, she was not there. ¡°Where¡¯s Navier?¡± He turned on Duchess Troby angrily, but she imed she did not know. He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth. Duke Elgy had stolen the Empress! It must have been when he sent him to take King Heinley. Sovieshu stormed furiously out of the mansion and roared his orders. ¡°The Empress has escaped! Find her! Send men to every gateway and seize every woman who looks like the Empress!¡± Chapter 172 - Awkward Position (1) Chapter 172 ¨C Awkward Position (1) The box lookedrge, but it didn¡¯t feel that way once I was inside. I hugged my knees and thought to myself ¡®What on earth am I doing now?¡¯ No matter how one looked at this situation, I wasn¡¯t a queen, but a fugitive. The carriage rode smoothly, but the box was located near the wheels. Every small bump jolted my body, causing my head to hit the top of the box, followed by my rear and legs on the floor. After several painful impacts, I managed to find a position that subjected me to slightly less abuse. ¡°Queen, are you alright?¡± From time to time, Heinley would speak reassuringly to me. ¡°Queen, we¡¯ll cross the border soon.¡± Instead of speaking, I knocked on the wall of the box in reply. I knew my voice sounded weirding out of the box. The first time Heinley had said, ¡°Are you alright?¡± I had replied, ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I heard Duke Elgy break out into giggles, and I blushed in embarrassment. However, even the knocking seemed to entertain Duke Elgy. I heard himugh again, followed by Heinley snapping at him to stop. It didn¡¯t help, and I bit my lip. ¡°What? You¡¯re smiling too. The only difference is that you¡¯re not making a sound.¡± Because of Duke Elgy, their conversation seemed to suddenly stop, but I knew that Heinley must be silently arguing with him. ¡®Haaah...¡¯ I sighed and closed my eyes tightly. I¡¯d rather go to sleep. Time would fly quicker that way. *** I guess my mind was more tired than I thought. I remembered closing my eyes and thinking of sleep. When the box lid opened and I blinked dazedly at the rush of fresh air, I realized that I really must have dozed off. Heinley was smiling at me from above, and I smiled back sheepishly. ¡°It¡¯s like a scene from a myth. As soon as she opened her eyes and looked at me, I felt my heart pounding.¡± I flushed at hispliment. I was grateful for it, of course, but the words were over the top for my taste. I unfolded my knees and shakily got to my feet. ¡°Ah. Carefully now.¡± Heinley held out a hand to help me up. ¡°It¡¯s bad for you to stay in one position, so quickly now, Queen.¡± After I drew myself to full height, I brushed down my wrinkled dress and smiled back at him. I spoke before he could give me any more embarrassingpliments. ¡°Have we arrived?¡± ¡°No. This is a border town.¡± ¡°But the guards...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they¡¯ve received any orders just yet.¡± Despite his words, he gave a cautious nce outside the carriage. ¡°We¡¯ll be there soon.¡± I climbed out of the boxpletely, took Heinley¡¯s hand, and stepped down the carriage. Duke Elgy was talking to the carriage driver with a serious face. When he saw me, he smiled and waved at my slightly disheveled self. In the meantime, I turned around to take in our surroundings. The border towns were all important ces in our country, and I had visited all of them at least once. My own brother had also been exiled to a border town. ¡®Ah. This must be Lux.¡¯ Though this was not the border town where my brother stayed. ¡®I was asleep this whole time we traveled here?¡¯ I blinked my eyes in surprise, and Duke Elgy finished speaking to Heinley and approached me. ¡°This is as far as I can apany you.¡± ¡°Thank you, Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°I also had fun too, Queen.¡± It wasn¡¯t lost on me that he called me ¡°Queen¡±, as in the Troby mansion he had called me ¡°former empress¡±. I suddenly felt conscious about Heinley¡¯s reaction, and I nced over to him. He was smiling lightly. ¡°Ah. It¡¯s annoying. That happy face.¡± Heinley looked rxed as he listened to Duke Elgy tease him. In fact...Heinley and Duke Elgy seemed quite friendly. They wouldn¡¯t talk so casually otherwise. Duke Elgy clicked his tongue. ¡°I can¡¯t say if this is a good merchant group, but I¡¯m certain they¡¯re a reliable one. They¡¯re waiting for you, and you can go there and meet them, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Heinley...?¡± Did they talk to each other while I was sleeping? Heinley turned towards me, but he didn¡¯t look surprised. ¡°If we go together, we¡¯ll look suspicious.¡± ¡°Will you use another merchant group? Or a mercenary?¡± ¡°Well...not really. I¡¯m going alone.¡± ¡°That¡¯s dangerous. We should go together.¡± It was unlikely that Sovieshu would try to capture Heinley again, but the lone king couldn¡¯t cross the border by himself. This ce wasn¡¯t often frequented, but there could be bandits like the Eternal Thousand, and he might even be robbed! Heinley, however, gave me a confident smile and said he would be fine, and Duke Elgy made a simrment in agreement. ¡°Heinley is swift and elusive, so don¡¯t worry about him.¡± I wanted to protest and say that it was dangerous, but I held my tongue. I had seen Heinleye to Wirwol by himself, and he had even entered the Eastern Empire pce undetected. While my concern did not go away, I nodded in assent. If Heinley really was skilled at moving alone undetected, then my presence may only endanger him. ¡°So then, Heinley. I¡¯ll go too. Queen, be safe.¡± Duke Elgy departed in the ck carriage that brought us here, and Heinley and I walked into an ordinary-looking inn. A woman approached and looked alternately between us. ¡°Which person am I transporting?¡± I raised my hand, but my heart was throbbing fast in my chest. A few days had passed since my divorce, and I was sure that my face was spread all over posters in the empire. Rumors of the divorced and remarried empress would have reached even to the most isted of border towns. My long cloak and hood concealed my face, but if she asked me to take it off... ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± The woman didn¡¯t ask anything, and turned around and left. ¡®Am I going just like that?¡¯ I looked at Heinley, seeking reassurance, and he smiled at me. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve worked with them a few times¡ªah, and they didn¡¯t know that I was a prince. Anyway, they¡¯re perfect for this job.¡± Well, if that¡¯s what Heinley said. I nodded at him in return and followed the woman. Heinley followed me at some distance, then watched me climb into another carriage. He was there until the carriage started. The woman spoke to me, so I looked at the other side for a moment, and then looked out the window. He was gone. I heard a bird¡¯s cry overhead. Chapter 173 - Awkward Position (2)

Chapter 173 ¨C Awkward Position (2)

The woman was supposedly a part of a merchant group who served as an agent for other important peoples. She talked nonstop. She never went too far in talking about herself, nor did she ask about me at all. All I heard from her was gossip she picked up from her acquaintances and colleagues. I tensed when she broached the subject of the newly divorced and remarried empress. Still, it was interesting to hear the people¡¯s reaction to the incident for myself. ¡°I support Her Majesty¡¯s actions.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Well, some people say she was acting selfishly. But it¡¯s not their business, so they shouldn¡¯t criticize.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t request the divorce, it wasn¡¯t discussed with her, and it was one-sided. But after the divorce? Just screw it all, don¡¯t you think?¡± I nodded hard, almost as if to say ¡°thank you.¡± ¡°Yes. Screw it.¡± (TN: she uses a formal tone in her sentence) ¡°But your tone is very strange.¡± ¡°!¡± The woman continued to talk, until the carriage stopped so we could eat. During the meal, a new carriage driver appeared, and he changed the horses and climbed on to the driver¡¯s seat. Afterwards, the woman and I got back into the carriage. I assumed we would be traveling all the way to the Western Kingdom capital, and I stared out the window to enjoy the scenery outside. I don¡¯t know whether Sovieshu¡¯s knights were on the hunt for me, but everything seemed to have worked out well enough so far. Contrary to my expectations, the woman dropped me off before we crossed the Western border. She left me at a small vige in a neighboring country, informing me that I was supposed to be taken here. She parted with a brief ¡°Take care¡±, and then vanished. I stood in this strange ce alone. Not long after, Heinley appeared on arge horse. I blinked my eyes in surprise. ¡°When did you get here?¡± He came from inside the vige, not from the outside. In other words, he arrived before I did, even though my carriage did not stop for lodging. ¡°I arrived a little earlier.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see you at all¡ª¡± ¡°Our paths didn¡¯t ovep.¡± So did I travel by highway, and Heinley took a shortcut? Well, he didn¡¯t seem to have arrived by carriage. I nodded my head, and he smiled and reached out his hand. ¡°Do you know how to ride?¡± *** It had been a long time since I rode without abandon. Heinley had even prepared riding clothes for us, and I was so excited that as soon as I got on the horse, I urged it to a full gallop. ¡°Queen, aren¡¯t you going too fast?¡± Heinley sounded slightly panicked as he clutched my waist from behind. The wind whipped away his words. I turned my head back at him and smiled. ¡°I like this.¡± Most nobles participated in recreational sports, including horseback riding. I was too busy for it after I became empress, but I used to love riding. Before I became the crown princess, I used to ride a pony alone in the garden, and after I became crown princess, the incumbent empress presented me with a beautiful ck horse. Sovieshu liked horse-riding too, so together we would... ¡®I should stop thinking about that.¡¯ Whenever I thought about the past, it was always about Sovieshu. I had taken for granted that he had always been with me then. I forcibly pushed away thoughts of him, then realized that Heinley was too quiet. ¡®Does he not like going fast?¡¯ ¡°Heinley?¡± I called him urgently. ¡°...Yeah.¡± He answered right away, but his voice sounded weak. ¡°Are you scared? Should I slow down?¡± I looked at him concernedly, but he shook his head. As he did so, I felt his chest shift against my back. I suddenly felt self-conscious about our closeness, so I squeezed the reins tighter. I hadn¡¯t ridden in a long time, and I wanted to sit up front. That meant that Heinley¡¯s hands gripped my waist so tight that there was no room between our bodies. ¡°Heinley.¡± ¡°Yes, Queen.¡± ¡°You...you can loosen your grip a little...¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll fall.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s terrifying.¡± Heinley wasn¡¯t self-conscious because of me. Was I the only one? My body was stiff for nothing. ¡®Because we¡¯re so close, Heinley probably feels that.¡¯ I felt like I was the only one acting weird, and I sped up so I could feel the wind and ignored Heinley¡¯s hands. It didn¡¯t work, so I eventually slowed down a bit. Wait, what was that? I could feel a faint trembling on my back. I remembered how Heinleyughed silently with Duke Elgy when I squatted in the box. Maybe if Heinley and I switched positions now...but that would still leave us in an awkward arrangement. Sitting in the back would mean that I would have to hug Heinley from behind, like he was doing to me now. Then he would definitely feel my heart pounding wildly on his back. I had no good options before me. Heinley looked at me with a smile. ¡°I¡¯ll hold the reins together with you. Is that alright?¡± That meant he wouldn¡¯t have to hug me so tightly. I nodded my head. ¡°That would be better. It was a little cramped...¡± Heinleyughed and reached for the reins. He didn¡¯t cover his hands on mine, but our fingers brushed against each other. Not only did our hands touch, but the length of our arms as well. I bit my lip and forced myself to look straight ahead. He only hugged my waist earlier, but this time I was surrounded by the cradle of his arms. ¡°I think...riding a carriage is a good idea.¡± ¡°I hear you like riding horses.¡± ¡°I also like riding carriages.¡± ¡°But the horse is faster, Queen.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we get another horse?¡± ¡°It would be hard to get another one now...and even if we do, stopping for one will dy us for too long. The Western Kingdom is only a little further away, and McKenna is waiting. Why? Do you feel sick?¡± I couldn¡¯t tell him that I was embarrassed by the feel of his chest, arms, and hands, so I replied with a ¡°No.¡± As he said, we didn¡¯t have the time to stop. ¡®He doesn¡¯t mind, and it¡¯s weird that I¡¯m the only one who¡¯s self-conscious. This is...natural. We¡¯re only riding a horse together.¡¯ I swallowed back my foolishness, and tightened my grip on the reins. Chapter 174 Heinley: ¡°Oh, right, Queen. You mention you like gold?¡± Navier: ¡°Hm? Oh, the letter. Have you read it?¡± Heinley: ¡°Yes. By the time I left, the room wasn¡¯t finished yet ... ...¡± Heinley gave a small smile. Heinley: ¡°Maybe it will be decorated with gold when you arrive. Please look forward to it.¡± Navier: ¡°I like gold, but the room doesn¡¯t have to be gold.¡± Heinley: ¡°Nevertheless, my wife resembles gold.¡± Navier: ¡°!¡± Heinley: ¡°If I lie next to you, my view will be as pleasing as gold.¡± Navier: ¡°If so, I will simply turn my back and go to sleep.¡± Heinley: ¡°Simr to our current arrangement, perhaps?¡± Navier: ¡°!¡± In order not to forget that we are riding on a horse, I gain control of the reins as hard as possible. Heinley was like this the whole time on the horse. We talked lightly, but at some point, we talked about the fact that we are a couple. Each and every time, I showed surprise. Ever so often he mentioned that he¡¯s a husband, that I¡¯m his wife, and a partner, and whenever he said this, my face became hot. But I can¡¯t tell him to ¡®Don¡¯t say that¡®, I can¡¯t say anything else ... Heinley: ¡°By the way, Queen. Did you know that... there is no queen¡¯s pce in the western kingdom?¡± Navier: ¡°Then where do I sleep?¡± Heinley: ¡°There are three rooms on the same floor, among which are themon bedrooms and the queen and king¡¯s room, which is an adjoined room.¡± Navier: ¡°... ...Why do you have such a structure?¡± Isn¡¯t that too ufortable for having a structure like that? No matter how good the couple¡¯s rtionship is, sometimes you want to be truly alone, but aren¡¯t we married only in name. ... Heinley eximed softly again. Heinley: ¡°The King and Queen are always using a single bedroom.¡± Does that mean you are looking forward to the first night? I am somewhat surprised. However, Heinley¡¯s voice this time was not yful, and the tone is quite serious. I hope my question didn¡¯t seem rude. So are we really going to use the same bed? Either way is usible ... ... First, I want to get off the horse. When the border finally appeared, I heaved a sigh of relief. It¡¯s good to get out of this shameful arrangement. However, the tension returned when I saw the train of carriages, guards, and Sir McKenna waiting behind the border. Gradually, I slowly pulled the reins of my horse and approached them across the border. When the horse stoppedpletely, two guards from the Western Kingdom approached and took control. Meanwhile, Heinley got out of the horse first and reached out to me. When he took my hand and I came down, McKenna approached me, greeted me first, and asked Heinley a question. McKenna: ¡°Your Majesty, I sent two horses, but why are you only riding one?¡± Two horses? When I looked at him, Heinley shook his head expressionlessly. Heinley: ¡°You¡¯re wrong, McKenna.¡± McKenna: ¡°Yes? Did I make a mistake? I¡¯m certain I¡¯ve sent two horses.¡± Heinley: ¡°There is only one horse.¡± Heinley, who spoke suddenly, looked at me. When his eyes met mine, he chuckled, sheepishly implying that McKenna made a mistake. When McKenna drew a funny impression of Heinley from behind, Iughed and shook my head, andtely, I¡¯ve noticed the looks on the guards¡¯ faces and immediately became flustered. The guards who were out to escort Heinley appeared to be trying to keep their solemn expressions, but the eyes and lips seemed to tell otherwise. McKenna noticed my expression and smiled confidently. McKenna: ¡°I was very surprised to see the Queen who I¡¯ve only heard from the rumors.¡± ... ... I don¡¯t think my face has a look of awareness after calling my title. I wondered if they have caught me in another awkward moment. But if I¡¯ve seen here embarrassing myself further, my mood will get worse. I smiled, pretending to calm down. Meanwhile, McKenna quickly opened the door of the carriage. McKenna: ¡°Please enter, Your Majesty.¡± ... ... I do not know whether it is a good thing or a bad thing. When I was called Queen, I was seen failing to react, so I quickly got into the coach. But even when I entered, the guards¡¯ eyes that I had seen before were not easily erased from my mind. Even the guards devoid of such expression were sharp to notice. How will the people of the Western Kingdom see me, the nobles who I will meet in social circles? Who will I meet in the Eastern Empire when I be Queen? The scene seen through the window was slightly different from the Eastern Empire, and from this moment on, there was no possibility of being tracked by Sovieshu. My mind bes moreplicated than when I ride on a horse. Navier: ¡®I¡¯ll be fine. I did so well. I had worked hard.¡¯ As I was thinking, Heinley called me softly, ¡°Queen.¡± He sat opposite me and stared at me. When we make eye contact together, those soft eyes bend slightly. Heinley bowed slightly, then said as he put his hand on mine. Heinley: ¡°It¡¯s okay. A queen is also an empress that everyone will love.¡± If so, I wouldn¡¯t have had divorce ... ... Heinley tends to overestimate me. Heinley¡¯s reassurance didn¡¯t help me much, but it had calm me down a little. Navier: ¡°Thank you. I¡¯m a bit excited.¡± Heughed and nodded, but he, too, could not rx until the convoy stopped. Fortunately, after Sovieshu brought Rashta, I became ustomed to receiving people¡¯s scrutiny. To pretend to earn that look. Thanks to that, when I arrived at the pce and got off the carriage, I could smile calmly when I saw arge number of court officials. However, my heart trembled with vague uncertainty. Curiosity, worry, hope, interest, displeasure ... ... Dozens of people with lots of emotion carry a sparkling optical illusion effect like a chandelier. I smiled at them and put my hand on Heinley¡¯s arm. Seems like it worked, they stopped for a moment and bowed quickly. ¡°We see Your Majesty and the Queen.¡± Chapter 175 He was tantly condemning Heinley for personally bringing me over. Even though he seemed to know that I had already be the Queen, his words held no hesitation as he referred to me merely as ¡®one woman¡¯. ¡°Sir Yunim!¡± McKenna eximed in anger, but Heinley calmly warned him with a smile on his face. ¡°My, I have a man here in front of me who appears willing to risk his life just to say a few words.¡± At the remark, the expression of the knight ¡®Sir Yunim¡¯ became rigid. He immediately apologized for being inconsiderate. ¡°I have been rude. I am Yunim, Captain of the Royal Guard.¡± However, he stubbornly added some malicious words. ¡°My Master was in danger while escorting Lady Navier, so I forgot to mind my tone. I apologize.¡± ¡°Sir Yunim, just as I am your master, so is Lady Navier. Mind your manners.¡± When Heinley warned him directly, he reluctantly rxed his gaze, stepped back and apologized. As Heinley tried to take me to the queen¡¯s room after repeated warnings, he stepped forward again and said, ¡°My apologies, Your Highness. The queen¡¯s room cannot be used until the wedding.¡± Heinley seemed to be on the verge of the explosion after hearing this. His smile hadpletely disappeared, and the atmosphere suddenly became dark. Even when we met, I thought he looked sharp when he had an inexpressive face, but... The expression on his face waspletely different now, it was frightening. Feeling my gaze, Heinley smiled again, but it was different from the smile he showed me in the carriage. However, now was not the time to observe Heinley¡¯s expression. After recovering slightly from my shock, I quickly grabbed Heinley¡¯s arm. ¡®Don¡¯t step forward.¡¯ Heinley¡¯s arm muscles flinched in surprise from the grip. But he didn¡¯t say a word, most likely realizing my intentions. It was seemingly difficult to contain himself, his jaw was still tense. I smiled to look natural and repeatedly touched his arm with my thumb as a sign that he had done well. This was not a matter for which Heinley should act. The knight was not angry because I had been a foreign empress, but because Heinley was detained in the Eastern Empire while trying to bring me here. Looking at the atmosphere since I arrived, the people of the Western Kingdom still seemed to regard me as ¡®The Empress of the Eastern Empire¡¯ rather than ¡®The Queen of the Western Kingdom¡¯. I am sure this man thinks so too. In such a situation, Heinley shouldn¡¯t continue to take my side, and punish a subordinate who spoke frankly even at the risk of being reprimanded by him. Long term, this would not be good for me at all. Besides, the knight was acting as he thought was right, willing to suffer his master¡¯s wrath. Such a man is not one to submit to power; with this kind of person one must earn their recognition and trust. Yes, to get a proper ce here, I will have to earn the recognition of those people on my own. I smiled deliberately and spoke in a soft voice. ¡°If those are the rules here, then I must follow them.¡± Sir Yunim hesitated for a moment, as if he thought it was strange that I didn¡¯t get angry. He apologized without giving up his suspicious expression. ¡°My apologies.¡± I then asked him with the ¡®benevolent but dignified smile¡¯ that I had practiced hundreds of thousands of times during my days as Crown Princess. ¡°So, is the room where I will stay in ready?¡± I don¡¯t know if he had it all figured out, but he responded immediately. ¡°You can stay in one of the rooms for distinguished guests.¡± I immediately shook my head, following his logic. ¡°You said I can¡¯t use the queen¡¯s room until the wedding? But we¡¯ve already exchanged our wedding vows, my status is definitely queen. For that very reason I cannot agree to stay in a guest room.¡± ¡°!¡± Sir Yunim frowned, puzzled by my change in attitude. I continued to look at him with the same smiling expression. It is true that I had to earn his recognition and trust, but I also had to be respected. I had to make it clear how much I was willing to give in. ¡°Uh, uh...¡± McKenna was staring nkly at the confrontation between me and Sir Yunim. When I looked at him, he spat out something iprehensible. He looked over at Heinley and said, ¡°Well, then, um... Why don¡¯t you share your room? No, I don¡¯t mean using the same room, Your Highness has another room downstairs...¡± But before McKenna finished speaking, footsteps were hearding from the hallway. McKenna stopped talking. I turned my head toward the sound, and saw ady in a blue dress approaching us. Surprisingly, when she appeared, Sir Yunim¡¯s expression softened a bit. On the contrary, McKenna seemed ufortable. ¡®Who is she?¡¯ While I was pondering, thedy came over to greet me. ¡°Greetings, Lady Navier. I am Christa, Queen of Wharton III.¡± (T/N: Wharton III was Heinley¡¯s brother.) She smiled sweetly at me and suggested, ¡°I came to greet you and heard part of the conversation. You seem to be having problems with your temporary residence, so if you don¡¯t mind, why don¡¯t you stay in the queen¡¯s detached pce?¡± It was the best suggestion I had heard so far. Heinley frowned in dissatisfaction, but I epted. After expressing my appreciation, she took the initiative and told me to follow her. Heinley tried to follow me, but this time I must go alone. I waved my hand in denial and followed. However, I was really disconcerted inside. I never expected the former queen would still be in the royal pce. Thete Empress of the Eastern Empire deliberately took her aides with her from the imperial pce when Sovieshu and I ascended the throne. If she had stayed, it would have been difficult for me to establish myself in the imperial pce. Having studied the system of session in the Western Kingdom, I assumed that the former queen of the West would be in the Compshire Mansion. Although I thought we would meet someday, I did not expect that she would be staying here. It wasn¡¯t simply because it was ufortable to be together. Because Heinley didn¡¯t get married right away, she probably continued to take care of the duties within the royal pce, even after she stopped being the queen. The pce employees must be those she hired when she was queen. Who would they obey if she stayed here? Of course it would be her. Whether Christa is a good person or not¡ªno, if she is a good person, it would be even harder to make a ce for myself here. It is a big problem. As I worried, Christa, who was walking beside me, asked me in a low voice, ¡°Is the rumor true?¡± ¡°What rumor?¡± ¡°I heard that as soon as you were divorced, you married His Highness.¡± ¡°...That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Oh, my God.¡± At my frank answer, she smiled, covering her mouth. It was a friendly, but dignified smile. But her smile faded and she was suddenly silent with a grim expression. She looked very sad. ¡°Christa? Are you all right?¡± When I asked her worriedly, Christa looked at me with a confused expression. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°...¡± Strangely enough, she seemed to have no idea what she had done. ¡°Nothing. Nothing.¡± Is it because of herte husband? Instead of saying that her expression was very grim a while ago, I simply smiled. It was then. One of the courtiers, who was passing by, greeted Christa naturally, saying, ¡°I¡¯m d to see you, Your Highness!¡± I don¡¯t know if the courtier had noticed me, but he called Christa ¡®Queen¡¯ in front of me with a very calm attitude. Christa was surprised and corrected his words. ¡°Queen? Didn¡¯t I say you shouldn¡¯t call me that now?¡± ¡°Your Highness, I am pleased to see you.¡± But the courtier responded with a bright smile. ¡°Your Highness has continued to y the role of queen. The new queen is a foreigner and loves her country very much. Would she be willing to give everything for ours? For us, you are the only queen.¡± Chapter 176 - Awkward Position (1)

Chapter 176. Awkward Position (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy At the daring remark, Christa nced at me, puzzled. If she were to correct him again, it would look like she was scolding him, so she was trying to make him realize who I was... Unfortunately, the courtier didn¡¯t realize it. Not understanding anything, the courtier continued to ¡®praise the real queen.¡¯ Christa looked at me desperately this time. She seemed to want me to step forward and tell him the truth. I felt sorry for Christa... but I didn¡¯t step forward. Instead, I looked at the courtier in silence. This was what I worried about before. Two queens with little age difference in between them. The royal pce, where a natural transition of power did not take ce and therefore there were technically two queens. I wanted to see the courtier¡¯s honest attitude about this. One was no longer the official queen, as of a year ago, but continued to y the role of the queen. Her friends, family and supporters were all here. Most of the courtiers must have also been hired by her. In contrast, the other became the queen, but she was a foreigner, and her family, friends and supporters were all in another country. She had no rtionship with the courtiers of the Western Kingdom. It was obvious which queen the courtiers sympathized with, but I wanted to confirm this with my own eyes. After that, we met more courtiers and simr situations continued to happen, but I stood still until the very end. ¡°Um... I hope that didn¡¯t affect you too much.¡± As we reached the detached pce, Christa spoke to me carefully, as if she were worried. She had a sad smile on her pale mouth. ¡°They¡¯re just used to me, they¡¯re good people. They feel sorry for my current situation, but I¡¯m sure they will soon follow you.¡± ¡°I see...¡± I answered a little slowly, as to not sound too dry. However, I did not agree with her at all. Most of the courtiers we met on the way so far praised Christa, calling her ¡®Queen.¡¯ Meanwhile, they said that I am a foreigner, a cunning woman who remarried as soon as she divorced her husband, and arrogant since I came from the Eastern Empire. What else did they think of me? Some of the courtiers who had seen me get out of the carriage approached Christa with a smile, and when they saw me standing next to her, they closed their mouths in horror... ¡®If I were not present, they would have said the same things as everyone else.¡¯ They are obviously behaving for Christa. They¡¯re good people who are there for her even if she was no longer queen. But would they good people for me too? ¡°...¡± ¡°Lady Navier?¡± But to tell you the truth, I didn¡¯t mention it because it reminded me too much of when Rashta came into our lives... Of course, the situation between Christa and me was different. She was Heinley¡¯s sister-inw, not his wife. However, it seemed simr in the sense that she was being shaken out of her position by a neer. Christa was relieved when I looked into her eyes and smiled at her. When we arrived at the detached pce, she stepped forward slightly and opened the door. ¡°It¡¯s here.¡± I tried hard to hide my troubled mind and followed her inside. Christa spoke with a proud voice. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± The detached pce was indeed beautiful. Sunlight dimly illuminated the foyer. Even the furniture, which seemed to beid out in an unorganized way, had a vintage feel to it. Although, I was a bit puzzled, as it looked very much like the Crystal House of the Eastern Empire. ¡®I had heard from the former empress that many buildings in foreign countries were modeled after the Crystal House. Perhaps this was one of those...¡¯ But if I mention it, I could be seen as someone arrogant from the Eastern Empire. So I didn¡¯t talk about it, I simply reflected and repeated that it was beautiful. However, even after showing me the entire interior, Christa was hesitant to leave. As soon as I wondered why, she carefully opened her mouth with her hands intertwined. ¡°You may not want to talk about this, but... I feel like I have to. Um... Lady Navier. I have a favor to ask you.¡± ¡°What favor?¡± ¡°The people employed here, the courtiers, are far from retirement age.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°They are the people I hired.¡± Sighing, Christa looked at me with deer eyes and continued, ¡°As I said before, they are good people. Lady Navier, they can be of great help to you, they are diligent and honest workers.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, I¡¯d like you not to change any of the courtiers.¡± I tried to keep my expression as neutral as possible, but it was difficult. I could understand how she felt asking for this favor. When royal authority is reced, there are mass changes in personnel. She would be sorry if they were fired because of her. However, it was not an easy request to ept. Courtiers are people who live next door to one another within the royal pce, but aren¡¯t they all Christa¡¯s supporters right now? Tranted by NovelUtopia Even when I had my own people in the imperial pce, Rashta always knew about my actions. But living in a pce full of people who are not on my side? Instead of establishing myself as a queen, it was obvious that every movement would cause gossip, as it did on the way here. But her concerns were not iprehensible, so I thought for a moment and then came to an appropriate conclusion. ¡°I will leave those who work in ces where there is no contact with me.¡± ¡°Where there is no contact...?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to leave those who work in ces where they might meet me. Even if I don¡¯t fire them, I will have to change their ce of work.¡± Christa¡¯s expression darkened. The people who worked in the ces the queen frequented were certainly the ones closest to her. She seemed to feel bad about that. However, instead of asking me again, Christa nodded with a smile, ¡°I see.¡± ¡°It seems I asked for too much. I apologize.¡± * * * ¡°Your Highness the Queen! How did it go with the Empress of the Eastern Empire?¡± When Christa returned to her room, thedies-in-waiting approached her and asked about Queen Navier. They were thedies-in-waiting that Christa had been with since she became queen, they were her friends and sisters. Christa shook her head with a bitter smile. ¡°She¡¯s already keeping an eye on me.¡± ¡°Oh no, what happened?¡± ¡°It was inevitable. She heard the courtiers call me Queen while she was by my side.¡± ¡°By your side? Why did the courtiers do that when she was there?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t introduce herself, she just stared without saying a word...¡± At Christa¡¯s words, thedies-in-waiting clicked their tongues. ¡°I¡¯ve heard that she¡¯s very clever. I guess she¡¯s already choosing who she¡¯s going to expel.¡± Christa sighed and sat down in her chair. ¡°Queen, you must not let yourself be pressured now.¡± ¡°You have to be the first to act!¡± Thedies-in-waiting, who had been by her side since she reached the highest position, grumbled angrily, but Christa shook her head and muttered, ¡°I¡¯m not the queen anymore, how could Ipete for power?¡± Christa smiled sadly. She would have felt a little better if some youngdy from a noble family in the Western Kingdom had be the queen. Tranted by NovelUtopia She was now someone who was in a position no different than Navier was a few days ago. When she heard this rumor she had sympathized with Navier. ¡®It was a strange and unpleasant feeling that she should take my ce to get out of her pitiful situation. Besides, as someone who remarried...¡¯ ¡°She took the queen¡¯s position as soon as she was kicked out of the empress¡¯s position.¡± ¡°There is no reason why you cannot be the queen!¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you also remarry another king, Lady Christa?¡± Thedies-in-waiting offered words offort, but these had little effect. * * * Although Navier and Christa understood each other¡¯s situation, both were in an awkward position where they could not back down. After gathering his officials and courtiers, Heinley admitted that he was imprudent in going to the Eastern Empire alone. However, he emphasized that he did so by choice, not because Navier had called him. ¡°She is the woman I have always adored and admired. I respect her extraordinary ability as an empress, and I brought her here with that in mind. But as soon as she arrived, you regard her as some kind of unicorn?¡± The officials and courtiers who went out to see the remarried empress arrive coughed and looked down. It was surprising that the empress, of whom they had only heard rumors of, remarried with their yboy king, so they were a little curious. There were no objections to this. ¡°The Empress of the Eastern Empire suddenly appeared as the queen, nothing was ever mentioned about it. people still consider Christa to be the queen, and of course it¡¯s not easy to treat the empress of another country as the queen immediately.¡± Only Marquis Ketron, a cousin of former Queen Christa, refuted, but he had to keep his mouth shut when Heinley spoke while pointing a finger to his chest. ¡°In that case, I will take care of those who cannot treat her as the queen, be it you or anyone else who thinks the same way.¡± *** After Christa left, I sat alone at the table, thoughtful. Suddenly, there was a knock on the window. When I approached the window and opened it, Heinley was standing there with a bouquet of jewels. Chapter 177 Chapter 177. Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy I knew about bouquets of flowers, but a bouquet of jewels... ¡°What does this mean?¡± When I asked him, flustered, he repeated the exnation from before. ¡°The Western Kingdom is the capital of jewels; whose mines belong to the royal family. We have many jewels.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you like jewels?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that...¡± It was like the jewels he put on the cakest time. Was it a Heinley custom to spread jewelry everywhere? Anyway, it was embarrassing to receive such a thing all of a sudden. If it was a bouquet of flowers, I would have received it with a light heart. As I hesitated, he asked me worriedly. ¡°Are you still restless?¡± ¡°I wish it was a bouquet of flowers.¡± As I smiled awkwardly, Heinley insisted, pointing with one of his fingers to small red flowers among piles of jewelry. ¡°Here are some flowers, so it¡¯s also a bouquet of flowers.¡± When Iughed at hisment, Heinley scratched his cheek, feeling embarrassed. ¡°We are now husband and wife, Queen. Please ept it.¡± His face lit up immediately when I epted the bouquet of jewels. I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s so happy just because I epted his gift... He looked adorable. So, I turned around, telling him toe in. I went to open the door. However, unexpectedly, Heinley came in through the window as soon as I took a step back. ¡°Heinley?¡± I stopped walking to the door and raised an eyebrow, silently asking why he wasing through the window. He then muttered awkwardly. ¡°Habit...¡± ¡°Do you usually do that?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes moved back and forth as he didn¡¯t know what to say. This was not the typically behavior of a king. Besides, if I kept asking him, it would only embarrass him, so I turned around and deliberately changed the subject. ¡°I heard you were having a meeting?¡± Heinley immediately followed the subject I raised. ¡°Nothing was discussed at the meeting, so it ended quickly.¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been gone a long time. Did something bad ur?¡± ¡°The worst thing was that I disappeared.¡± Heinley responded jokingly, but soon his expression became serious and continued. ¡°You asked me not to intervene, so I kept my mouth shut, but... Queen. I want to make it clear to everyone that you are my wife and the queen of this ce.¡± He seemed to be talking about the moment I stopped him when Yunim was being disrespectful to me. I shook my head. ¡°Everyone knows that now.¡± ¡°In that case, they must behave properly. Otherwise, I will let them know more clearly.¡± ¡°Heinley, there are things you can help me with, but there are others I must do for myself.¡± I put the bouquet of jewels on the table and held his hands. ¡°Thank you, but even the emperor, Sovieshu, could not control Rashta¡¯s reputation. I have to do this personally.¡± ¡°...¡± Heinley¡¯s lips moved, but finally he epted in a weak voice. ¡°That¡¯s fine, but if there¡¯s anything I can help you with, don¡¯t hesitate, even for a second, to tell me.¡± ¡°Thank you. I do need something.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± At my words, Heinley¡¯splexion lit up and he looked at me affectionately, as if trying to convince me to tell him. * * * ¡°Are you asking me to send Sir Yunim¡¯s sister as ady-in-waiting?¡± McKenna opened his eyes wide at Heinley¡¯s request, who had gone to the queen¡¯s detached pce as soon as the meeting was over. Just a few hours ago, he¡¯d witnessed perfectly how the captain of the guard treated Navier. However, he was asking him to send his sister to the honorable position of ¡®queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting¡¯. ¡°It is only temporary. Two of herdies-in-waiting from the Eastern Empire decided to be herdies-in-waiting here as well, but they have not yet arrived.¡± ¡°But even so...¡± Angry, McKenna frowned. Having yed the role of the messenger of love, and even being hit by an arrow, McKenna couldn¡¯t help but side with Navier. ¡°Besides, Sir Yunim was too rude. Your Majesty was caught in the Eastern Empire because of the queen? Did the queen, who was in the Eastern Empire, drag you away somehow? Did Your Majesty not fly there with your own wings?!¡± Heinley, who nodded in agreement, asked in surprise. ¡°Come to think of it, I haven¡¯t seen Brother Koshar?¡± Koshar, who spent several days with Heinley, was an older brother who deeply loved his sister, willing to do anything for her. Judging by his personality, he should have been the first to appear as soon as his sister arrived. It was strange that he was still nowhere to be seen. ¡°Nor does he seem to have gone to the detached pce.¡± ¡°Ah. Surely he will avoid her as much as possible at this time. Well, he may be somewhere nearby.¡± ¡°Avoid? Why?¡± ¡°He¡¯s worried about appearing now and bing a nuisance to the Queen...¡± Heinley raised an eyebrow, and clicked his tongue in pity. McKenna shrugged. ¡°In fact, Lord Koshar has a somewhat... bad reputation.¡± ¡°... I¡¯ll have to do something to change his reputation.¡± ¡°I think it¡¯s best to think about that in the future.¡± Heinley nodded and walked over to the desk, a pile of papers had umted on his desk while he was away. Heinley sat down, rolling up his sleeves. ¡°Ah, the wedding preparations must be done quickly.¡± He opened the lid of the inkwell, took out a quill and dipped the tip in ck ink. At that moment, he asked, ¡°Hmm?¡± while looking at McKenna. ¡°The wedding preparations, you won¡¯t do them, right?¡± McKenna was also staring at him. ¡°That¡¯s right. Usually... the queen does it.¡± Usually, the queen is the one who takes care of the wedding preparations for the crown princess, but the current case was very different from ¡®usual¡¯. Heinley and McKenna¡¯s expressions simrly darkened. Christa was no longer the queen, and Navier is the current queen. Of course, even if she no longer had any status, it would look better if the former queen, Christa, made the wedding preparations. But this would not be good for Navier. To prepare for the national wedding, the courtiers needed to be directed and supervised for a few weeks. And in the process, Christa¡¯s position could be strengthened. However, asking Navier to prepare her own wedding would be the same as asking high society to devour her. If she prepares it grandly, they would devour her for being too extravagant. If she prepares it simply, they would devour her for underestimating the Western Kingdom. McKenna asked anxiously. ¡°What should we do?¡± Chapter 178 ¡°What else could we do? I¡¯ll do it myself.¡± ¡°I knew you would say that, but...¡± Heinley¡¯s answer made McKenna¡¯s words blur at the end. ¡°But?¡± ¡°Even if Your Highness made the preparations, it would be the same.¡± McKenna sighed. ¡°If you prepare a big wedding, everyone will say it¡¯s extravagant because you¡¯re blinded by love¡ª¡± ¡°I will self-proim emperor.¡± McKenna froze for a moment, then said with difficulty, ¡°Say it again¡ª¡± He opened his eyes expectantly. He was thinking he had heard wrong. ¡°On the wedding day, I will self-proim emperor.¡± When Heinley repeated his words, McKenna covered his mouth with one hand and his eyes opened wide. Only then did he understand correctly. ¡°Then...!¡± ¡°No matter how grand the wedding, no one will ever consider it extravagant.¡± ¡°My... My heart. My heart is beating so fast.¡± McKenna muttered in astonishment. It was a little early, but it was still a choice with more advantages than disadvantages. Navier would be the first Empress of the Western Empire, which would renew the image of her quick marriage. The hostility towards Navier, because she was a foreigner, would be overshadowed by the glory of the title. But unlike McKenna, who agreed with this, Heinley had a heavy expression when he spoke of self-proiming emperor. ¡°Your Highness?¡± McKenna called Heinley concerned. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to self-proim emperor, then what could you...?¡± Heinley shook his head. ¡°I have to do it.¡± But even as he spoke, he had a cold face. Actually, he was thinking about his older brother. The Western Kingdom was not a country that distributednd to nobles. The number of nobles with military merit was also limited. The reason why the Western Kingdom could gather an armyparable to that of the Eastern Empire was because the royal family possessed unparalleled wealth and the kingmanded the army. These two factors, their vast wealth and concentrated military power, made the royal authority of the kingdom naturally strong. However, under the reign of Heinley¡¯s older brother, Wharton III, the royal authority weakened somewhat. King Wharton III was a weak man by nature, spending most of his time ill. As a result, at times he couldn¡¯t help but think that the best thing would have been to stay by his brother¡¯s side during those times. Of course, that would have only made the awful rumors of poisoning stronger. Heinley sighed. Fortunately, although the royal authority was weaker than it had been in his father¡¯s time, it was still strong enough. Reducing the number of mages on the other side did not mean an increase in the number of mages on this side, so a good army still had to be maintained... ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°McKenna. What about the student from the magic academy?¡± ¡°The student named Evely? The one Your Highness asked me to return the mana to?¡± ¡°Yes. How is she now?¡± ¡°Well, it takes a long time to take away the mana, but it takes even longer to give it back.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Heinley nodded. Then he looked at the papers to really concentrate on the work. Hesitantly, McKenna asked. ¡°Your Highness, do we really have to give the mana back?¡± He seemed a little dissatisfied. ¡°Of course.¡± At Heinley¡¯s immediate response, the dissatisfaction on his face grew stronger. McKenna said bluntly, frowning. ¡°It costs too much. Too much. Besides, she¡¯s from the Eastern Empire, if she gets her mana back, it¡¯ll be going back to the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°It¡¯s only one person. Just do it.¡± ¡°...¡± *** Meanwhile, Sovieshu moved anxiously around the room, waiting for news of Navier. However, no matter how long he waited, no news came. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Rashta looked uneasily at Sovieshu. He came for prenatal education, but his mind seemed to be elsewhere. Instead of being happy about his divorce, he was anxious about finding the deposed empress with a heavy look on his face all the time. Even now, he seemed to be overlooking the promise to make her the Empress. ¡®I¡¯m d that the deposed empress has gone to the Western Kingdom.¡¯ If Navier had stayed in the Eastern Empire with Sovieshu in this state, she would have been so worried that she could not even sleep. ¡°Your Majesty, people murmur that the deposed empress left as if she were fleeing.¡± Rashta could not help but say something tofort Sovieshu. ¡°You do not have to worry; her reputation has been damaged a lot. Everyone is on Your Majesty¡¯s side.¡± Did it work? Sovieshu stopped wandering, looked at Rashta for a moment and spoke, ¡°Rashta.¡± Rashta quickly approached Sovieshu and looked at him tenderly. ¡°Tell me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°... Who told you that?¡± ¡°Duke Elgy told me.¡± Upon hearing Duke Elgy¡¯s name, Sovieshu¡¯s expression was distorted. Sovieshu was convinced that it was Duke Elgy who helped Navier escape. Duke Elgy was also a member of a foreign royal family, so Sovieshu could not say much, but he waspletely angry. In an effort not to show his anger, Sovieshu tried to avoid raising his voice at Rashta. ¡°Don¡¯t meet with Duke Elgy anymore.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± ¡°He¡¯s not the kind of person you think he is.¡± Rashta did not know that Sovieshu had sent Duke Elgy to the Troby Mansion to take Heinley away. She thought Sovieshu was jealous of the Duke. Now, without the Empress Navier, she was the only one who could be called Sovieshu¡¯s woman. ¡°You have nothing to worry about, Your Majesty. It is Your Majesty that Rashta loves.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Duke Elgy is just a friend...¡± Sovieshu looked at Rashta, wondering what she was talking about. Rashta smiled with a shallow expression. Sovieshu realized that Rashta had misunderstood him, but he just nodded and sat down on the couch next to her, not wanting to embarrass her with a correction. ¡°I came here for prenatal education, but we only talked about heavy things. So, shall we start?¡± *** At the same time of the night. After receiving a letter with the king¡¯s seal from McKenna, Sir Yunim, captain of Heinley¡¯s royal guard, did not return to his temporary residence, but to his home. ¡°It has been a long time since youst came, hasn¡¯t it?¡± Rose, Yunim¡¯s sister, greeted him sleepily. After yawning, she instructed her maid to bring some food. ¡°Here, take it.¡± Yunim took off his heavy coat and gave Rose the letter with the king¡¯s seal. ¡°What is this?¡± Rose yawned again and opened the letter given by Yunim. ¡°It is a king¡¯smand for my sister to be the new queen¡¯s temporarydy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°Me?¡± Chapter 179 - Same Strategy (2) Chapter 179. Same Strategy (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy Although she could refuse the king¡¯s order to be ady-in-waiting, doing so would have her marked by the king. Furthermore, it was a great honor to be the queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting, and virtually no one would refuse, unless it was a very special circumstance. Rose nced at the king¡¯s order with a serious expression beforeughing. ¡°Oh, this?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s obvious and pathetic?¡± Yunim murmured with regret, pulling the heavy sword from his waist and cing it on the table. Roseughed and read the letter again. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? You think it¡¯s funny.¡± ¡°Huh.¡± Rose smiled and looked at Yunim. ¡°She seems to be using her brain. She¡¯s acting like a good queen, even when she addressed me.¡± ¡°This happened because my brother was arrogant in front of the Queen, wasn¡¯t it?¡± It was only a few hours ago, but the rumors of what Sir Yunim did to Navier had already spread. Meanwhile, Yunim snorted, puzzled to learn that his sister already knew. ¡°I see that the queen and I have one thing inmon: an impetuous brother with a bad temper.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t hit anyone.¡± ¡°If you say so.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°In any case, that¡¯s how things have turned out. It¡¯s alright. I will observe the new queen as herdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°Can you do that?¡± ¡°Just to see what kind of queen she is, what she can do for the country, that sort of thing. Right?¡± Tranted by NovelUtopia *** Around 11 in the morning, Yunim¡¯s sister came to see me. ¡°I am Rose Quebel, I will serve temporarily as the queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting.¡± I looked at her as I ced the book in myp. I had no way of knowing her intentions, but unlike her brother, she was educated on manners. However, her asional sideway nces showed that she was also very cautious. ¡°Thank you for epting, Lady Rose.¡± I smiled, put the book aside and stood up. ¡°I hope I can count on you.¡± ¡°Of course, Your Highness the Queen.¡± She said politely, staring at me. From her look, she seemed curious about what I would do. I asked her immediately. ¡°Can you take me to the boutique?¡± Rose, who probably didn¡¯t expect me to request something of her so quickly, so she replied, ¡°What?¡± Puzzled. ¡°I¡¯d like to go to the boutique.¡± ¡°Ah... yes, the boutique.¡± Rose blinked in shame, but soon left the room with a casual smile, saying, ¡°Follow me.¡± I followed her slowly, watching her steps. There is nothing that reflects a person¡¯s nature more clearly than their walk. In fact, I had prepared several scenarios while waiting for Yunim¡¯s sister. I was going to deal with Yunim¡¯s sister depending on what type of personality she had. If she was soft-hearted and shy, I was going to be kind. If she was a porcupine that had taken out its spikes beforehand, I would give her time to get used to it. If she was a person who submitted to power, I thought about visiting Heinley, and if I should earn her recognition... ¡®I would need to exceed her expectations.¡¯ ¡°It is here, Your Majesty.¡± When we entered the boutique, the dressmaker and her assistants rushed over to greet me. I epted their polite greetings, then smiled and called Rose. ¡°Lady Rose.¡± She was watching me in silence, but when I called her, she answered with a smile. ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± I told her, pointing to the clothes I was wearing. ¡°I brought very few clothes.¡± To be exact, only the clothes I was wearing. Rose opened her eyes wide. She was probably thinking how in a hurry I was when I ran away that I couldn¡¯t even bring any clothes. ¡°I see. Then you¡¯ll need new outfits.¡± I kept smiling and asked her. ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s why I need you to get me six outfits as soon as possible.¡± ¡°I understand. What kind of outfits?¡± ¡°Three to wear daily, two to wear to work, and one to wear at a simple banquet just in case.¡± ¡°And the specific style you want... ¡± I guess she wanted to ask about the price range. I told her with a smile, pretending not to know what she wanted to tell me. ¡°I don¡¯t know much about the Western Kingdom¡¯s style, so I¡¯ll leave it to Lady Rose.¡± This way, no one could criticize the way I dress. I deliberately gave her the order in front of the others. If Rose were to prepare strange outfits, people would immediately know whose fault it was. Rose said she would, but she felt more cautious about me than before. I pretended not to notice and asked her to show me the pce. ¡°I would like to be familiar with the ce.¡± ¡°... Yes, Your Highness.¡± After leaving the boutique and going down some stairs, we arrived at the pce through a long corridor. I had heard that it was a very rich country. True to its reputation, the pce of the Western Kingdom was no less majestic than that of the Eastern Empire. The pce had a brighter tone, with jewels embedded everywhere. When I saw it, Iughed, remembering the words of Heinley, who repeatedly emphasized that his kingdom was the capital of jewels. ¡®It is like a bird that likes to shine.¡¯ Bird... Bird? ¡°...¡± ¡°Queen? What is it?¡± ¡°Ah. No, no. It¡¯s nothing.¡± I remembered the hypothesis that ¡®McKenna was the blue bird,¡¯ which I had forgotten for a while. I¡¯ll ask Heinley when we meet again. If McKenna was the blue bird, Heinley would know for sure. ¡°Let¡¯s keep going.¡± However, when I started walking again, I suddenly heard stealthy footsteps. ¡°?¡± Those footsteps were not Rose¡¯s. When I turned around, I saw a man dressed elegantly with a pen on his lips. At that moment, he lost his bnce and fell. He immediately got up and dusted off his pants, but stopped moving when he realized I was watching him. ¡°Who is that?¡± I asked Rose, and she whispered to me. ¡°He¡¯s a journalist authorized to enter the pce.¡± Journalist... ¡°He is not someone with whom Your Highness should be associated.¡± Rose added quickly. ¡°It is best that you meet another time, when an interview is scheduled.¡± She looked a little ufortable, as if she wanted to take me somewhere else. Since a lot of things have happened in high society, it¡¯s easy to be a good prey for journalists. That seemed to be the reason. ¡°Aren¡¯t there more journalists authorized to enter the pce?¡± Since I kept asking her, she exined in a tone that clearly indicated that she could not avoid my questions. ¡°A total of three newspapers are currently authorized to enter the pce. For each newspaper, only one journalist has permission to enter.¡± But if there was only one journalist behind me, did that mean that the other two were tailing Christa? Or did Christa not like journalists walking around the pce? Either way, it could be beneficial in the current situation. Instead of going elsewhere, I deliberately approached the journalist and asked him, smiling as softly as possible. ¡°You seem to want to ask me something. What is it?¡± The journalist opened his eyes wide, dumbfounded, as if he didn¡¯t expect me toe directly to him. Rose also called to me impatiently, ¡°Your Highness.¡± The journalist was smart. After a moment of puzzlement, he immediately took out his notebook and asked. ¡°How could you get married again so quickly?¡± Tranted by NovelUtopia *** Meanwhile, Duke Elgy walked beside Rashta, advising her. ¡°You have to approach the journalists, miss. By listening to their questions, you will know what the people of the country want.¡± Coincidentally, the strategy he mentioned to Rashta was simr to that of Navier¡¯s. However, Rashta did not pay much attention to his advice. Rashta remembered Sovieshu¡¯s words to not approach Duke Elgy. Even after that, she came to see Duke Elgy the next day, so naturally she was worried. ¡®But I couldn¡¯t help it.¡¯ Rashta pouted. Baron Lant was kind and intelligent, but he was still a subordinate of the emperor, and Viscountess Verdi was not at all reliable. The new maid, Delise, seemed loyal, but every time she saw Sovieshu, she behaved in a way that made Rashta feel ufortable. Finally, the experienced maid, Arian, did well at her job, but was too quiet to know what she was really thinking. Duke Elgy was one of the few people Rashta could trust at the pce. Rashta regretted not being able to tell him that she would soon be the Empress. If she had, Duke Elgy would stop talking about how to be Empress and would instead give her advice on what to do once she ascended the throne. ¡°Besides, journalists are important to increase your reputation. Even if you are the kindest person in the world,moners cannot see you in person.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°No matter how bad the rumors are, the nobles have a chance to see you and judge you for themselves, butmoners don¡¯t have that chance. So if you want to target themoners, stay close to the journalists.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t...¡± When Rashta mumbled out her words, Duke Elgy asked, bewildered. ¡°Can¡¯t you? Miss, you had said that you wanted to be the Empress to protect yourself and the baby. Have you changed your mind?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°Do you think you¡¯re safe now that Empress Navier is gone?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. No one will hurt Rashta now.¡± ¡°The next empress might reject you even more.¡± Rashta pursed her lips, turned and smiled, suppressing the desire to say that it wouldn¡¯t happen. Chapter 180 - What Heinley Wanted to Do (1)

Chapter 180. What Heinley Wanted to Do (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy ¡°Miss. It¡¯s a serious matter... Don¡¯t take it lightly.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. You want me to be friendly to all the journalists? That¡¯s it, right?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Someone who is friendly to both my enemy and me is not an ally after all, right?¡± Rashta wanted to cry. She would like to talk about the deposed empress, and then about her new parents. However, Duke Elgy was currently talking about a subject too boring for Rashta. ¡°Miss, do you know how many types of journalists there are?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°There are only two kinds.¡± ¡°Good journalists and bad journalists?¡± ¡°Journalists who are friendly to the nobility and journalists who are hostile to the nobility.¡± ¡°Since journalists friendly to the nobility will also be friendly to the imperial family, should Rashta stay close to these journalists?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that simple.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Just because they are friendly to the nobles does not mean they are friendly to the imperial family, nor does being hostile to the nobles mean they are hostile to the imperial family.¡± Rashta grabbed her head with both hands. She felt like shouting ¡®Stop!¡¯ ¡°If the rtionship between the emperor and the nobility is bad, the emperor must be close to journalists hostile to the nobility. In other words, it is a war of wits.¡± ¡°Ah... Yes. I understand.¡± ¡°But themoners are undoubtedly hostile to the nobility, Miss. Be aware of this difference and decide who to be close to.¡± Rashta sighed and responded. ¡°Rashta needs the support of themoners, so Rashta needs to be close to the journalists friendly to themoners.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But you mustn¡¯t be hated by the journalists friendly to the nobility either.¡± ¡°Uh... how do I know who is friendly tomoners and who is friendly to nobility?¡± ¡°You only have to read the articles of thest three years.¡± Rashta finally squatted and waved her hands. ¡°My baby doesn¡¯t want to hear that! Tell me a funny story!¡± Duke Elgy stared at Rashta, and he soon burst outughing. When Rashta looked at him pouting, Duke Elgy shook his headughing. This side of her was very cute. However, he did not praise her openly. Eventually, Rashta looked down with a smile. *** People expect two things when they read a newspaper. The truth or the desired response. What was needed for the current question was not the truth, but a desired response. So, what was the answer that the people of the Western Kingdom wanted...? The majority of the people hated that their king was made aughing stock because of amorous whims. Such amorous whims were only entertaining in royalty, when the king and the crown princes were not involved. It would be the same for the people of the Western Kingdom, especially since Heinley¡¯s brother had several concubines. They must have been tired of these kinds of stories... Well, it would be best to highlight the romance without mixing up the political. However, if the romance is too intense, it bes an affair, so it is necessary not to cross the line. ¡®I¡¯d like to talk to Heinley first before answering, but...¡¯ If you postpone your response once, saying you will respond at another time, theter response willck credibility. At that point, no matter how good the answer is, anyone will think it¡¯s made up, so I¡¯ll respond now. As soon as I finished reflecting, I responded with a slight smile. ¡°I arranged everything before my divorce.¡± ¡°?!¡± ¡°His Highness the King gave me the strength at that time.¡± Of course, in answering, one must leave a bait for the opposite party to bite. The astute journalist understood the implications of my words and asked in surprise. ¡°Did you know beforehand that you were going to get a divorce? ¡°... I heard it.¡± I could have answered more clearly, but this would have been enough. The journalist opened his mouth in surprise and Rose¡¯s expression was also one of surprise. Then she looked at me with pity. Tranted by NovelUtopia *** Tranted by NovelUtopia Around six o¡¯clock in the afternoon. As the detached pce did not have a kitchen, Rose went personally to the central pce to take care of my meal. Naturally, Rose met with her brother, Yunim. As soon as Yunim saw her, he asked her what she thought of the queen, and Rose responded with surprise, ¡°She doesn¡¯t show feelings in either good or bad situations. ¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Literally that.¡± Yunim added, after thinking about it for a moment. ¡°You are trying to appease me.¡± ¡°Is that what you think?¡± ¡°Do you think I can¡¯t see that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± After that, Rose lifted her skirt slightly and pointed to her swollen feet. ¡°Do you see this? I¡¯ve been walking around all day, showing her the royal pce.¡± ¡°How far did you have to walk to make your feet so swollen?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t even mention it, you don¡¯t know how meticulous she is.¡± Rose shuddered, waving her hands slightly. The queen entered each room, checking every inch of the interior, as if she were a spy and not the queen. Naturally, they encountered several courtiers, and it was strange the reaction of some when they saw the queen. ¡°Instead of a tour of the royal pce, it seemed like a way for people to see her face...¡± As Rose tilted her head, Yunim asked her. ¡°How would youpare her to Christa?¡± ¡°I was only by her side for one day. I don¡¯t know much.¡± ¡°What about her personality?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to tell in one day.¡± ¡°And what about herpetence?¡± ¡°She¡¯ll do well, there are rumors about this circting everywhere. I haven¡¯t seen anything wrong with my own eyes.¡± Rose responded frankly, then hesitated and admitted, ¡°To tell you the truth, I didn¡¯t dislike it. As long as she walks a little less I can continue to be herdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°...¡± Yunim frowned slightly, as if he had expected such a response. *** Tranted by NovelUtopia Rose had not yet arrived. ¡®How long has it been since she left?¡¯ As I looked at the clock, I tried to calcte the distance between the central pce and the detached pce, after walking around here all day. It was not a short distance. Going back and forth with tired legs would also make her walk a little slower... However, even considering the above, she was taking too long to return. So, she must be talking to someone. Who could it be? ¡®She probably met with her brother.¡¯ No, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s Christa, as she would do it another time or not talk as much as she does now. If it was to stab me in the back, she wouldn¡¯t be taking this long, so I guess it¡¯s Yunim. In that case, what is she talking about? Maybe she¡¯sining that her feet hurt because she walked so much today... I pressed the corners of my mouth to hold back theughter. ¨C Knock-knock Oh, I guess it¡¯s here. I quickly removed my fingers from my lips and stood up. ¨C Knock-knock However, the knocking did not seem toe from the door. In fact, those knocks wereing from the window. Chapter 181 - What Heinley Wanted to Do (2)

Chapter 181. What Heinley Wanted to Do (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy It was just like yesterday. When I opened the window, Heinley was standing there. The only difference was that today, instead of a bouquet of jewels, he was holding a lunchbox with an ivory-colored gold leaf. ¡°Heinley, is that...?¡± ¡°Queen, can we eat together?¡± ¡°Miss Rose is not back yet.¡± Heinley smiled, tapping the lunchbox he was holding. ¡°It¡¯s for both of us to eat.¡± This reminded me of a time in my childhood when Sovieshu would bring me cookies. I was disconste for a moment, but I quickly stopped thinking about it and epted with a smile. Heinley jumped through the window immediately. Again. When I raised my eyebrows, it was toote, but... ¡®I should change that habit of his, right?¡¯ I will scold him when we are a little morefortable with each other. With this promise in mind, I sat face to face with Heinley at the table. Heinley put the lunchbox down, removed the lid and asked, ¡°How was your day?¡± ¡°I met a journalist.¡± ¡°Journalist? Ah. There are three of them hanging around.¡± Of course, Heinley seemed to know who they were, his eyes curling strangely. ¡°Which one did you meet?¡± ¡°He had navy blue hair, tied up in a ponytail...¡± ¡°Oh, I know who he is.¡± I told him the questions he asked and the answers I gave. ¡°Although you omitted many things, that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Even now I still think... I will always be grateful to you.¡± ¡°Queen, I¡¯ve always told you. It was I who wished to have you as my Queen.¡± When he finished speaking, his hand moved forward slowly, like a snail. He reached his hand to my side of the table and stopped. Was he asking me to take his hand? When I looked down awkwardly and put my hand over his, Heinley quickly grabbed my hand like a carnivorous nt waiting for its prey and asked me, ¡°What did you think of Miss Rose?¡± ¡°A carnivorous nt...¡± ¡°What? Is she that bad?¡± ¡°Pardon? Oh, no. She¡¯s smart.¡± Heinley asked another question, tilting his head, not realizing that when I said ¡®carnivorous nt,¡¯ I meant his hand. ¡°Any otherdy-in-waitings you want besides Miss Rose?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to think about it carefully.¡± As I answered, I slid my hand out of his. During the days of being a crown princess, I would naturally know who to keep by my side and who to keep away. Even if I were not the crown princess, as long as I was from the Western Kingdom, I would first take women with good reputations or those who were close to me asdy-in-waitings. However, I was in neither position, so choosing ady-in-waiting was no easy task. Heinley mumbled, ¡°I understand,¡± as he gazed regretfully at my hand, which I removed from his. The sadness in his eyes was evident, and I put my hands together and smiled awkwardly. It is often like this when I am with him. It is awkward, but at the same timefortable and tickling. However, I was also worried. If we had a wedding, we would have to have our wedding night. It¡¯s already so awkward... I was worried before the wedding night came, about what would happen on the wedding night, and seeing his face afterwards. Even then... would we still be able to see each other as colleagues? Thinking about the wedding night, I feel like a kitten is licking my heart with its rough tongue, I felt even more awkward... This feeling was strange, so I deliberately looked at the lunchbox andplimented the person who had prepared the food, even though I didn¡¯t know who it was. ¡°I did it myself.¡± However, the response I received was totally unexpected. ¡°Really?¡± I asked him in surprise because it was something I would never have thought of. Heinley nodded and whispered, ¡°Queen, can I ask you a favor?¡± ¡°Favor?¡± ¡°We are a couple now.¡± ¡°... That¡¯s right.¡± Why did he suddenly mention it? As I looked at him anxiously, Heinley said in a low voice. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to do.¡± I held my breath at Heinley¡¯s words and looked around. There is something he wants to do now that we are a couple... What did he mean? I was perplexed, I didn¡¯t know what he was thinking when asking a question like that. No, I actually had an idea. Kiss... Could it be a kiss? Maybe he wants more intense physical contact. I was inexplicably nervous. I looked at him awkwardly, with my hands intertwined. How did I kiss Sovieshu? I do not know. Since my childhood, everything had progressed so naturally... Should I refuse or should I ept? When I looked at his lips, they looked very pure and seductive. ¡®Well, we are a couple, so we can¡¯t live without kissing.¡¯ After a brief consideration, I decided to ept his kiss. So I prepared myself mentally, pretended to be calm and allowed him to do so. ¡°You can do it.¡± It was definitely not because of Heinley¡¯s beautiful lips that I allowed him to kiss me. Heinley smiled broadly, and quickly picked up the fork. ¡®Fork?¡¯ Then he pricked the white fish in the lunchbox, put it to my mouth and said, ¡°Ah.¡± I opened my mouth, puzzled. Then something tasty came into my mouth. I chewed the fish mindlessly and swallowed. Heinley looked at me with bright eyes while I was still puzzled, ¡°What did this mean?¡± What about the kiss? When I asked him embarrassed, he whispered with a soft smile. ¡°This has always been my wish.¡± I whispered even more puzzled. ¡°... I have hands too.¡± It was clearly a voice of puzzlement, but the words that came out of my mouth were too harsh for him to notice. When I looked at him, regretting my words, Heinley apologized in shame. ¡°Does Queen not like this? I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that, I...¡± ¡°?¡± I pressed my lips together tightly. How could I tell him that I was prepared for a kiss? I wasn¡¯t impatient to kiss him, I just made an error in judgment and prepared for it. But if I said this, it would sound like I was waiting for him to kiss me. Instead of exining it honestly, I grabbed the cherry tomatoes from the lunchbox and put them into his mouth, one after the other. ¡°Queen? Too many, too many. Slow down.¡± ¡°Open your mouth.¡± ¡°Queen, just a little slower¡ª¡± ¡°You said you wanted this as a married couple.¡± ¡°Ugh, Queen, let¡¯s start with...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t spill anything. Eat it all.¡± Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia *** Rose stopped in front of the door and stepped back in amazement at the king¡¯s groans of pleaing from inside the room. She looked at the door with her eyes wide open. It was not long before her face grew flushed. The Empress of the Eastern Empire was said to have a sharp personality. In many ways, it seemed to be true. She acts without hesitation... Rose pressed her cheek with one hand, and quickly left the corridor of the detached pce with the bowl in her hand. Tranted by NovelUtopia *** After giving him all the cherry tomatoes, Heinley¡¯s mouth was stained red all over. He grumbled slightly in disgust as he wiped his mouth with a handkerchief. ¡°I wasn¡¯t expecting this violence.¡± But after a moment¡¯s thought, he changed his words with a smile. ¡°Still, I liked it because Queen did it.¡± He was so understanding. Suddenly, I felt remorseful for taking it out on him because of my own mistake. ¡°I will do it for you.¡± In the end, I couldn¡¯t stand it. I got up, stood next to him, grabbed the handkerchief, and wiped his mouth. He left his face in my care quietly, even though I would have preferred him to close his eyes. Heinley was staring at me. When he blinked, his goldenshes glowed softly. As I watched his purple eyes appear and disappear, it reminded me of Queen. Oh, speaking of which... ¡°I wanted to ask you something. Now I remember.¡± At my words, Heinleyughed. ¡°Ask me anything, Queen.¡± ¡°Is McKenna, by any chance, your blue bird? ¡°!¡± Chapter 182 - Suspicion of Navier (1)

Chapter 182. Suspicion of Navier (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy Heinleyined with a long face. ¡°This isn¡¯t the time, is it?¡± His beautiful smile faded, then he lowered his head, visibly grim. So I withdrew my hand, gave him back his handkerchief, and returned to my seat. ¡°Is McKenna the blue bird?¡± When I asked him again, Heinley looked around the room as if he were in trouble. But in the end, he couldn¡¯t take it anymore and with a slight sigh, he admitted, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± My mouth opened by itself. Although I was almost certain, it was still amazing. I couldn¡¯t believe that a person could be a bird... This was really amazing. Additionally, that bird was one of Heinley¡¯s subordinates. Could it be that this tribe really existed? I asked, without hiding my curiosity. ¡°So, is Sir McKenna a member of the Bird Headed Tribe?¡± Heinley didn¡¯t answer right away, as he startedughing frantically as soon as he heard my question. First it was Duke Elgy, and now Heinley... I bit my lower lip and stared at Heinley. I know it sounds a little strange when I uttered the name of the tribe, but it¡¯s not my fault. The problem was naming it that way in the first ce. ¡°Well.¡± Heinley bit his lips hard to contain hisughter and nodded. However, it took him about three minutes to respond correctly. ¡°That¡¯s true, but it¡¯s better not to call it that, Queen.¡± ¡°Oh. Has it changed its name?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that. But, um, it¡¯s not a name that the tribe members like.¡± Come to think of it, that name was given by those who were against them. I thought it was rude, so I nodded and asked. ¡°Then why not change the name?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Instead of Bird Headed Tribe¡ª¡± Heinley bit his lips again as his shoulders shook, so I decided to avoid that tribe¡¯s name as much as possible. ¡°By the way, Queen, where did you hear that information?¡± ¡°I heard it from the court mage.¡± ¡°Oh... I see.¡± Heinley raised his eyebrows and smiled coldly. Although he was smiling, he looked serious. What¡¯s wrong? Was it confidential? When I looked at him worried, Heinley smiled as if it was no big deal. ¡°It¡¯s confidential... is that it?¡± I was very worried, but when I asked him, Heinley waved his hand. ¡°It¡¯s confidential that the tribe is still alive, but it¡¯s no secret that the tribe existed.¡± ¡°You have a gloomy expression......¡± ¡°It¡¯s just, there are certainly many talented people in the Eastern Empire.¡± Heinley seemed to love his country more than I imagined. It was admirable, but from my position as Queen of the Western Kingdom and a native of the Eastern Empire, it was a difficult statement to answer. I simply nodded, and asked another question when he seemed to be feeling better. ¡°There is one more thing I would like to ask you.¡± Instead of saying ¡®ask me anything¡¯ as before. This time, Heinley smiled anxiously, afraid of what I would say. I looked him in the eye and asked him more carefully this time. ¡°Perhaps... Queen is also a bird of that tribe?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Is Queen also one of your subordinates?¡± Heinley shuddered, put his hands together and looked down. Although he seemed to be standing still, I could see his hair shaking a little. I tilted my head and looked at him intently. Heinley remained in that state for a while before asking. ¡°If Queen is also a person... would that make you feel bad?¡± Queen. My lovely Queen. Queen, who brought me a cake, cried for me, spread his wings and hugged me. If it¡¯s just a bird, I wouldn¡¯t feel bad. But if it¡¯s a human... I hesitated to answer, ¡°A little.¡± It¡¯s not that Queen did anything to me that would make me feel bad, but that I was too open with him. That was the reason. Now that I think about it, Queen always turned away when I changed clothes, and he never tried to kiss me. When I hugged him, he would get as stiff as a doll. This was the problem, I had hugged him, kissed him, and changed clothes in front of Queen. It didn¡¯t matter if Queen was just a bird, but it would be truly embarrassing if Queen was one of my husband¡¯s subordinates. Heinley smiled awkwardly and muttered, ¡°I see,¡± hurriedly burying the fork in the lunchbox. ¡°Th-This is delicious, too.¡± Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia *** ¡°So in the end you couldn¡¯t tell her?¡± The next day, McKenna listened to Heinley as he recalled the incident, and clicked his tongue. Heinley was lying on his desk, covering his head with both hands. ¡°She would feel bad. At that moment my hair became white with anxiety.¡± ¡°You told her that I¡¯m a bird...¡± ¡°That¡¯s different, it wouldn¡¯t make her feel bad!¡± ¡°Fortunately, I was never as close to the Queen as you were.¡± ¡°I am a very independent bird,¡± added McKenna with a proud smile. Heinley looked at him with disdain and sighed. ¡°I must tell you the truth, but...¡± He feared that Navier would look at him coldly and despise him when she knew the truth. Her cold, cruel eyes were so attractive that it caused shivers down the spine just to look at them, but he did not want those eyes to show hostility to him. Eventually, McKenna clicked his tongue again while Heinley was suffering in silence. ¡°You can¡¯t hide it forever.¡± ¡°I know. I have to tell her.¡± Everything about his tribe was confidential, not to be talked about openly. But family was the exception, so now he could tell Navier. In fact, he had been preparing to reveal Queen¡¯s secret to Navier. Heinley sighed and raised his head. ¡°I will do so when herdies-in-waiting from the Eastern Empire arrive.¡± ¡°Countess Jubel and Lady Laura?¡± What is the reason? McKenna swallowed his words, but Heinley responded, realizing what he meant. ¡°You need someone tofort you when you¡¯re in shock.¡± He was already convinced that Navier would be deeply shocked. McKenna didn¡¯t know that Navier had patted Queen on his rear, kissed him, hugged him and cried by his side. He clicked his tongue thinking, ¡®His Highness is really strange.¡¯ However, when he left the room, he also became anxious, and hesitated. ¡®I have nothing to do with it... right?¡¯ Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia Tranted by NovelUtopia *** ¡®Why was Heinley so anxious?¡¯ I fell asleep thinking about it. It was also the first thing that came to mind when I woke up in the morning. As I was washing my face, brushing my teeth, taking a bath, looking at the dress Rose rushed to bring me, putting it on and doing my hair... Even when I coughed while eating a very spicy dish that I had never tasted before in the Eastern Empire, Heinley¡¯s anxious expression didn¡¯t disappear from my mind. The reason for his anxiety was not entirely unknown. In fact, I had an idea. Perhaps because Heinley is Queen, and that was why he was so surprised? If Heinley had been a little calmer, I wouldn¡¯t have thought about it. His attitude was noticeably different when he talked about McKennapared to when he talked about Queen. If he was not Queen himself, why was he so surprised? ¡°Where would you like to go today, Your Highness?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Highness?¡± The members of the Bird... Tribe must definitely be rted by blood. Heinley and McKenna are cousins. Until now I had thought McKenna¡¯s maternal line was from the Bird... Tribe. Because of the prejudice that a country¡¯s royal family would not be of the Bird... Tribe. But what if it was unexpectedly the paternal line? Then both Heinley and McKenna could be human birds. Heinley¡¯s anxious reaction, the blood rtionship... Everything fitted perfectly with the fact that Heinley was Queen. ¡®Is he Queen?¡¯ Besides, didn¡¯t Queen and Heinley have purple eyes and golden hair? ¡®Oh, my goodness.¡¯ The more I thought about it, the more I felt the shivers. I covered my mouth with both hands as I remembered the soft body of Queen. Chapter 183 - Navier’s Suspicion (2) Chapter 183. Navier¡¯s Suspicion (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy He was a really lovely bird, so every time I thought he was cute, I would pat his rear. Now that I think about it, every time I patted his rear, the bird would get stiff. Is that why he woke up first when he fell asleep next to me? How many times have I kissed Queen? ¡°Your Highness!¡± ¡®Oh, my.¡¯ I looked up in amazement, I had been immersed in a whirlwind of thoughts. Rose looked at me anxiously, with both hands on the table. Her face was also closer than usual. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I asked in surprise, and Rose asked back out loud, ¡°Are you all right? I¡¯ve called you several times already.¡± ¡°Ah, ah. I¡¯m sorry. I was deep in thought.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t look well.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I was just thinking about something...¡± Curious about my thoughts, Rose tilted her head and asked carefully. ¡°Is it because of Christa?¡± ¡°Christa?¡± Who is Christa... Ahh. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that.¡± I quickly shook my head, showing her the ¡®queen¡¯s smile.¡¯ I was so focused on Queen¡¯s issue that I wasn¡¯t paying much attention to my surroundings. Only after Rose mentioned Christa did I remember that I still didn¡¯t have all the influence of the previous queen. Figuring out if Queen is Heinley is not the most important thing. But at this moment¡ª ¡®Heinley is good at escaping difficult situations, isn¡¯t that because he¡¯s a bird?¡¯ ¡ªI couldn¡¯t help it. Sitting here, my thoughts kept going in that direction. I got out of the chair and apologized to Rose. ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. But it¡¯s not because of Christa.¡± ¡°I understand...¡± Rose didn¡¯t seem to believe me, but suddenly she blushed and muttered, ¡°Ahh,¡± looking down. ¡°Of, of course. You must have a lot on your mind.¡± ¡°?¡± Why did she suddenly look so embarrassed? While I was confused, Rose hurriedly asked. ¡°Oh, you¡¯ve seen the whole pce, where do you want to go today?¡± In the capital, there was another ce worthy of being called ¡®pce,¡¯ but it was in apletely secluded ce, so I would have to take a carriage. ¨C I didn¡¯t need to go there right now, so I shook my head. ¡°For the moment I would rather stay... Ah. Do you happen to know where my brother is staying?¡± I had heard that my brother was staying at the Western Kingdom Pce. Strangely enough, I hadn¡¯t seen him yet. In fact, I thought he would be the first to wee me... Did he go somewhere? ¡°You mean Lord Koshar?¡± Rose asked me right away, mentioning my brother¡¯s name. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± As I expected, it seemed to be true that my brother was staying here. Nodding, Rose tilted her head for a moment and said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I think he¡¯s staying in one of the rooms for distinguished guests.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go over there.¡± When we toured the pce, we also passed by the rooms of the distinguished guests, but did not enter. I thought it would be rude to look around when people were actually using the ce to stay. However, if I had known this, I would have looked for my brother there. I¡¯m a little regretful, but now I could go look for him. ¡°Yes.¡± Rose went to the rooms of the distinguished guests, and I followed her as I looked inside the pce again. There was an official standing in front of the hallway of the distinguished guest rooms. When I indicated my brother¡¯s name, he immediately informed me, ¡°Lord Koshar is staying in the third room on this side of the corridor.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I formally waved at the official, then went to my brother¡¯s room and knocked on the door. My heart was pounding at the thought of seeing my brother again in the Western Kingdom. My parents decided to stay in the Eastern Empire, but I am d my brother is here with me. ¡°...¡± However, there was no response from within, no matter how long I waited. Is he out?¡¯ In fact, my brother did not like to stay in one ce. Maybe he had gone out for a few days. I didn¡¯t necessarily have to see him today, so I decided toe back another time, and turned around. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the library.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± But just as we started walking, there was the loud sound of footsteps, and a huge knight appeared. The knight, who wasing this way, stepped aside as soon as he saw us, as if ufortable dealing withdies. But when Rose and I were about to pass by him, his eyes widened and he shouted. ¡°Lord Koshar?¡± He then pointed at me. I don¡¯t know if he confused me with my brother, or if he was surprised to see that I looked like him. But it was clear that he knew my brother. He stayed like that for a while, and when Rose eximed, ¡°Insolent!¡± He finally asked, ¡°Queen Navier?¡± He knelt down and apologized. ¡°My apologies, Your Highness. You look so much like Lord Koshar...¡± When I said not to worry, the knight stood up and introduced himself. ¡°My name is Aprin, Your Highness. I am not a member the Royal Guard, but I was knighted personally by His Highness Heinley.¡± I nodded and quickly asked him. ¡°Pleased to meet you, Sir Aprin. You seem to be looking for my brother...¡± I felt anxious. I couldn¡¯t understand why a knight of Heinley would be looking for my brother. The knights of Sovieshu only visited Koshar for bad reasons. Although Heinley was not Sovieshu, my brother was still the same. Since many people were talking about me behind my back at the Western Kingdom Pce, I was worried that this might have led to a fight. ¨C However, Sir Aprin¡¯s response was unexpected. ¡°Oh, yes. He¡¯s been avoiding me.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Ever since I led him to the Western Kingdom I have really wanted to be close to him. But he keeps avoiding me.¡± He looking for my brother because he wanted to be close to him? A knight of Heinley? And was my brother avoiding such a knight? Although I was d it wasn¡¯t because of a fight... I frowned at a different issue. My brother liked to be surrounded by strong people all day long, talking about swords, horses, wars and tactics, so why was he avoiding a knight who looked so strong? As I looked at him bitterly, the knight asked me with distrust. Chapter 184 ¡°Come to think of it, since the queen appeared he has be more difficult to find. Perhaps... the queen is hiding Lord Koshar?¡± ¡°How rude!¡± At Rose¡¯s exmation, Aprin knelt down again and apologized loudly. He seemed increasingly strange, arousing my curiosity without realizing it. This Aprin was the least knight-like knight I had ever seen. His actions, his words, and even his looks. ¡®Was he really a Heinley¡¯s knight?¡¯ It was questionable. My brother didn¡¯t usually get along with ¡®typical knights.¡¯ Because he couldn¡¯t stand the way the nobles often quarreled. Other nobles, even if they were angry, would keep smiling and talking sarcastically. But when my brother got angry, he would immediately explode. So he seemed to get along better with ¡®atypical knights...¡¯ What had to have happened for my brother to avoid him? I looked at him bitterly, but decided to resolve this misunderstanding first. ¡°I also came here to look for my brother, but he was not there, so I was just about to leave.¡± Aprin, as if he had been slow to understand my words, eximed, ¡°Oh, I see.¡± Then he naturally came over to my side. As I walked out of the corridor where the rooms of the distinguished guests were and down the stairs, he was beside me talking about his family. ¡°So I have a younger sister, she is very nice and lovely... She is good at everything she does, Your Highness.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°But she is too naive. I¡¯m a little worried because she doesn¡¯t even notice men.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Of course, although naive, she¡¯s still intelligent and brilliant. You know that, right?¡± How could I know about his sister that I¡¯ve never seen before? I thought about it in my mind as I continued to respond affirmatively to his words. However, I did not understand why this man kept walking in the same direction as me. As a result, after about 30 minutes. I told him directly that I would go somewhere else. ¡°Excuse me, Sir Aprin.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± ¡°I am thinking of going to the library now.¡± ¡°I understand. I can rmend a good book!¡± ¡°.... I don¡¯t need your rmendation.¡± ¡°Then can the queen rmend one for me?¡± But it didn¡¯t work. The knight seemed to have no intention of leaving my side. I suspected that Christa had sent him to spy on me, and that finding my brother was just an excuse. However, that was not the case either. As we walked down a corridor, we encountered ady-in-waiting, and at that moment Sir Aprin made a remark aloud. ¡°She¡¯s ady-in-waiting for the former queen!¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Is she still here?¡± Had he been sent by Christa, he would not have said anything that would have embarrassed thedy-in-waiting aloud. Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting looked at Aprin and me in turn, but not knowing what to say, she ran out with a flushed face. Aprin acted as if he were my subordinate, so she seemed to have misinterpreted that remark as mine. Aprin seemed unaware that he had embarrassed Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting. ¡°I¡¯m very popr. Everyone flushes at the sight of me.¡± ¡®...Is he just a tactless person?¡¯ Anyway, I couldn¡¯t go to the library with this noisy knight, so I decided to just go the way I had memorized yesterday. Rose remained quiet with a sullen expression, as if she didn¡¯t particrly like Aprin, but since he had no intention of leaving, she had no choice but to ignore him and talk to me. ¡°By the way, Your Highness, don¡¯t you intend to have moredies-in-waiting?¡± ¡°Two of my formerdies-in-waiting from the Eastern Empire will being soon.¡± ¡°There will be three of us. But that is not enough, Your Highness.¡± ¡°I will increase the number gradually as I observe the situation.¡± While we were talking about myck ofdies-in-waiting. Sir Aprin, who seemed to be listening in silence for some reason, suddenly raised his hand and spoke. ¡°My Queen! I rmend my sister as ady-in-waiting!¡± Rose, who had been tolerant of him, shook her head quickly and gently grabbed my arm as soon as those words came out of his mouth. It was a sign that I should not do this at all. ¡®Does Rose know her?¡¯ Of course, when one is in high society, one knows the faces and names of many people, even if it is not someone they were close to... I didn¡¯t respond immediately and turned to look at Rose, as Aprin begged me desperately. ¡°She is a very nice, perspicacious and vigorous girl. She will be a great help to Your Highness. It would be an honor for our family if you would ept her. I would never forget Your Highness¡¯s kindness!¡± ¡°... Could you tell her toe see me tomorrow?¡± He looked so sad that I couldn¡¯t help but make an appointment for tomorrow. Aprin nodded and finally walked away from me, running excitedly. Looking at his back, Rose waited for him to disappearpletely before speaking honestly. ¡°Your Highness, do not make Sir Aprin¡¯s sister yourdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°Do you know her, Miss Rose?¡± ¡°Not personally, but she is very famous.¡± Famous? ¡°Does she cause a lot of problems?¡± ¡°She¡¯s like Sir Aprin. Unrestrained.¡± Oh... ¡°Keeping that girl by your side will cause you to lose your dignity, Your Highness.¡± It makes me feel anxious up to a point. But I already made an appointment with her for tomorrow, I couldn¡¯t take it back. ¡°For the moment, I¡¯ve decided to meet her tomorrow. I will see and judge.¡± *** When I met her the next day, I immediately realized why Rose did not want Sir Aprin¡¯s sister to be mydy-in-waiting. ¡®Oh...¡¯ ¡°I am Mastas Violet, Your Highness.¡± She greeted me with a loud voice and the atmosphere around her was... truly vicious. It was frightening. Rose said she looked like Aprin. For the moment, at least, she had the same aura about her. Despite being a knight, Aprin seemed careless and rude. Violet gave the same impression. Besides, what was that hanging on her back? ¡®A spear...?¡¯ ¡°... I am Mastas, Your Highness.¡± The huge spear that peeked out from behind her light purple dress decorated withce and pearls was too incongruous. As I stared at the weapon, Mastas blushed and scratched her cheek. ¡°Oh this... I learned that one must keep their weapon by close at all times and never let go.¡± Rose¡¯s face twisted. ¡°It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Mastas.¡± I greeted her with a smile, trying not to show how surprised I was. But as soon as she heard my words, she asked, ¡°Miss Mastas?¡± so deeply moved that a surprised expression almost appeared on my face by reflection. When I raised an eyebrow and stared at her, Mastas apologized by waving her hands. ¡°My apologies, since I was knighted, everyone has called me only Sir Mastas.¡± ¡°Have you been knighted?¡± For some reason, Mastas answered ¡°Yes,¡± with a gloomy look. Then, she looked into my eyes and asked hesitantly, ¡°Um... what does ady-in-waiting do, Your Highness?¡± Rose said behind her back, ¡°Look at her. Absolutely not,¡± between her lips. I hesitated and asked for tea first. Despite hearing this, Mastas stood by and did nothing, Rose took her by the arm and dragged her out of the room. After the distant footsteps of the two different youngdies disappearedpletely, I leaned back on the armchair and thought about it. ¡®Why did Sir Aprin push his young sister towards me, who did not even know what ady-in-waiting was?¡¯ It¡¯s as if he had... an ulterior motive. Chapter 185 - Man In The Fountain (2) Chapter 185. Man In The Fountain (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy ¡°Who wants to be herdy-in-waiting?!¡± Heinley coughed while drinking a ss of water. ¡°Sir Mastas.¡± McKenna responded awkwardly. Heinley repeated his question, fanning his flushed face with one hand. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Why? She was so dedicated to being Miss Mastas that I guess she wants to take advantage of this opportunity.¡± Heinley frowned. ¡°Why was she so obsessed with that?¡± The siblings Aprin and Mastas belong to the Underground Knights, formed by Heinley with ¡®his own people.¡¯ They were not just ordinary members, though. Aprin was the Underground Knights¡¯ leader, and his sister, Mastas, was themander of the second division. Their identity was currently veiled so that missions could be carried out in secret, but Heinley nned to reveal the Underground Knights and have them be his own knights once he proimed himself emperor. However, he could not believe that themander of the second division was going to be the queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting. Heinley pressed his hand to his forehead due to the oing headache. He appreciated Mastas as his subordinate, but he did not want to have her as his wife¡¯sdy-in-waiting. She was even famous within the Underground Knights for being rough with her hands. ¡®So, would she cut my wife¡¯s steak with the same hands as she cut off her enemies¡¯ heads?¡¯ McKenna clicked his tongue. ¡°This is all because of Sir Aprin. He was so obsessed with Lord Koshar that he chased him everywhere. In the end, it resulted in this.¡± ¡°Wait. What are you talking about? Who was obsessed with who?¡± ¡°Sir Aprin. He wanted to introduce his sister to Lord Koshar, so he chased him every day while Your Highness was away.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Sir Aprin must have used his head for this. If his sister bes ady-in-waiting for the queen, she will naturally have the opportunity to meet Lord Koshar. For Sir Mastas, bing the queen¡¯sdy-in-waiting would make her ady that no one could ignore. I am sure he persuaded her that way.¡± McKenna grumbled. Though he looked like a bear, he thought like a sly fox. Heinley opened his mouth in puzzlement. Then McKenna asked him. ¡°Your Highness, changing the subject, are you going to train tonight? You must be very tired. Would you like me to cancel?¡± Tranted by NovelUtopia *** Tranted by NovelUtopia After spending a day with Mastas, I was even more indecisive. She was lousy as ady-in-waiting, but I liked her very much as a person. She had been knighted. She was really great and disciplined in her every action. Also, she was only difficult at first, but once she understood what ady-in-waiting was doing, she performed quite well. Unlike her fearsome aura, she had a very gentle personality. I don¡¯t know why, but as I spoke she looked at my profile in a daze. Honestly, she was cute. If I hadn¡¯t asked her to have a ¡®mock high society argument,¡¯ I might have taken her as ady-in-waiting anyway. But after the ¡®mock high society argument,¡¯ I knew that I should not let Mastas be mydy-in-waiting. Less than five minutes after the argument started, she pulled out hernce and shouted, ¡°I swear by this spear, that I speak the truth. If it is a lie, I will give you my head, otherwise you will give me yours.¡± There are times when thedies-in-waiting argue on behalf of the empress or the queen. For that reason, I made a mock argument. The result was obvious. She made small mistakes and was impulsive in front of me. Nothing else mattered, if she did this at a high society gathering... Although my brother was also impulsive, I could not have such ady-in-waiting. But because of the confession Mastas made awkwardly before leaving, I could not immediately refuse her by saying, ¡°I cannot have you as mydy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°When my brother asked me to be ady-in-waiting out of the blue, I didn¡¯t know what it would be like. Now I think I¡¯d really like the life of ady-in-waiting.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t even hear you say that you would cut off my finger for making a mistake... The queen is really kind.¡± I became worried about the environment she wasing from, where someone would cut off your fingers for making mistakes. Rose gave me some serious advice as soon as Mastas left. ¡°Ladies-in-waiting are not chosen with the heart, Your Highness. Never, absolutely never. Especially now, when the queen is beingpared to Christa. You should not be aughing stock because of ady-in-waiting.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Both Sir Aprin and Sir Mastas, are oddballs who were knighted, but are not even epted by the knights themselves. You must not get involved with them, Your Highness.¡± Even if Rose didn¡¯t say it, I have always paid a lot of attention to the etiquette of mydies-in-waiting. Thedies-in-waiting were like my mirrors; at times I would have to take responsibility for their actions mistakes. Even Laura, my most energetic and outspokendy-in-waiting, used textbook etiquette when necessary. But Mastas... was a burden. What if she stabbed someone with her spear at a party after I make her mydy-in-waiting based on feelings? Despite this, I still liked her. Maybe it¡¯s because not many people have taken my side since I arrived in the Western Kingdom. She wasn¡¯t someone I had nned to have by my side, like Rose. Eventually, I left the detached pce alone without finding an answer. I had no one to guide me, but I had already memorized all the paths. Especially this area, which I had memorized perfectly. I was not afraid to get lost, so I was going to walk alone to breathe the night air. Breathing the night air would help calm me down and organize my thoughts. ¡°....¡± By the way, how long have I been walking? When I heard a fluttering sound, I looked up and could see big birds flying in a row. I blinked, rubbing my eyes with my hands before looking at the birds again. ¡®Is it an illusion?¡¯ Is that really Queen over there...? I would have been sure if I had also seen the blue bird. But at first nce there was no blue bird, so I wondered if I had really seen Queen. I hesitated for a moment, and then followed the birds in the direction they were flying in, arriving at an abandoned pce from which it was rumored ¡®ghosts came out of.¡¯ Rose was very frightened when she told me about this ce. When I asked her why the abandoned pce where such rumors were circting was still intact, she replied that all the workers who tried to knock it down ran away after seeing the ghosts. However, I am not afraid of that, so I went straight in. But when I heard a sshing from the central fountain, I involuntarily shuddered. ¡®Are there really ghosts here?¡¯ After hiding behind a pir, I looked into the fountain. Peeking out, I could see a bird in the fountain¡¯s water jet. ¡®Oh, it was a bird.¡¯ Iughed, thinking I had gotten too scared. Embarrassed that I was afraid of ghosts, I bit my lower lip and looked at the fountain. The bird inside was sshing water around with its wings. Eventually, the bird flew slightly forward,pletely revealing its face and feathers. It was Queen. ¡®So I was right, the bird I had seen was really Queen.¡¯ But where did the other birds go, and why was Queen alone here...? I was puzzled, but continued to watch. Amazingly, Queen shook his head due to the water and he became a man in the blink of an eye. Literally, in the blink of an eye. The bird, now turned into a man, brushed back his light blond hair that was wet and stuck to his face with one hand as he grumbled. I covered my mouth to prevent a scream from sounding out. The man was... a naked Heinley. Chapter 186 - Moving (1) Chapter 186. Moving (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Eyljee I froze as I stared dumbfounded at his naked body. His body was submerged up to his thighs in the fountain, leaving everything above exposed. His body was packed with muscle, as I had assumed in the past when he escorted me. He looked very different from when he was wearing clothes. His abdomen, thighs, corbone, and broad back made him look like a statue in a temple. His beautiful wet skin looked somewhat sensual, and his handsome face waspletely visible with his hair flipped back. Water droplets glistened all over his body under the moonlight, making him look like an elf. However, he also had a strange part attached to his body. That huge part... I don¡¯t think any statue in a temple would have it, nor would an elf. ¡®When he turned into a bird, did he lose his clothes?¡¯ I suspected that Queen was Heinley. However, checking it out with my own eyes made my heart beat very fast. Especially because I saw him in a very stimting way. ¡®Although I had suspected he was a bird; I didn¡¯t expect him to be naked...¡¯ So, I hugged, kissed and patted Heinley on the rear...! To prevent myself from screaming, I bit my tongue hard. Seeing Heinley¡¯s naked body in front of me, I was thinking about what I had done when I had him in my arms. I should be mad at Heinley for deceiving me, for being so cruel and for separating me from ¡®Queen¡¯. But I was too bewildered that I couldn¡¯t even feel angry. Besides, I was too embarrassed. As I bit my lips, Heinley came out of the fountain and went somewhere. After waiting there for a moment, I looked around and hurried back to the detached pce. ¡®Angry... I should be angry.¡¯ As soon as I got back to my room, and racked my brains trying to get out as much anger as possible. I should be angry at him for deceiving me without intentionally letting him know of what I had been feeling. It was only normal to feel this way. But no matter how hard I tried, all I could think about was his naked body. His naked body left...a strong impression on me. It dwelled on my mind. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ I wanted to give Heinley a chance to be honest. Since he said that everything about the bird tribe was confidential, I had never thought that he intentionally deceived me. So now that we are married, I wanted to give him a chance to be honest. But what if he were to admit it honestly? Naturally, he¡¯ll think of me hugging him and patting his rear... Again, the Heinley that appeared in the fountain had appeared like an illusion. Finally, I buried my head in a pillow. ¡®...Should I pretend not to know?¡¯ *** The next day. Shocking news also reached Sovieshu in the Eastern Empire. ¡°So Navier is in the Western Kingdom...¡± After receiving the report from his subordinate, Sovieshu smiled and rested his hand on his forehead. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, she settled in the royal pce.¡± Sovieshuughed as if he was listening to a good joke. With the distance between the Western Kingdom and the Eastern Empire, several days must have passed since Navier stayed at the Western Kingdom Pce. He continued tough out loud in a state of despondency. The strong sense of betrayal made him shudder. As angry as she was, how... how could she immediately be the queen of another country? He could not understand it at all. If she didn¡¯t harbor any feelings for him from the beginning, how could she remarry so soon? ¡®Damn.¡¯ He regretted burning the letters she exchanged with Heinley. Perhaps there was a secret message hidden in those seemingly ordinary letters. Sovieshu suppressed his anger and ordered his subordinate to leave. As soon as he left, he gritted his teeth and stomped his foot. Navier had been his wife from a very young age. Not a concubine, but a wife. A wife who had always been by his side and should continue to be by his side in the future. Other than that, the Navier Family was a prestigious family that produced empresses. The empress did not leave the same family all the time to avoid marriage between close rtives. But among all the families, it was the most prestigious for having produced thergest number of empresses. ¡®A woman from that family married the King of the Western Kingdom?¡¯ Sovieshu clenched his fist and punched the wall repeatedly. Surely she was angry, but isn¡¯t there a line that must not be crossed? Sovieshu considered Navier¡¯s actions to be beyond the ¡®line¡¯. ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± Sovieshu in the end could not calm his anger, so he called Marquis Karl and ordered, ¡°My wedding to Rashta must be hastened.¡± ¡°Are you...sure?¡± ¡°We should have the wedding before the baby is born. But a wedding is also exhausting, so it¡¯s better to do it before the pregnancy is too far along.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°I want the wedding to be as grand as possible.¡± Marquis Karl nodded and looked worriedly at Sovieshu. Only now did he notice that Sovieshu was more agitated than usual. Marquis Karl also noticed that the area around Sovieshu¡¯s eyes was slightly reddened. ¡°Your Majesty...?¡± ¡°Navier will have toe to the wedding... I¡¯ll make her regret it.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Sovieshu closed his eyes tightly. Navier had not yet had her wedding. If she was going to have a wedding, the invitations would also arrive here. He intended to have his wedding before Navier¡¯s, so that Navier would regret it when she saw his splendid, grandiose wedding. He knew this was shameful, but he had no other way to appease his anger. ¡°Sigh...¡± After venting inside, Sovieshu asked casually as he struggled to calm his agitated mind. ¡°What is the public opinion about Rashta now?¡± ¡°It has always been good, but now it is better because of the rejection of Navier¡¯s actions.¡± ¡°I see, that¡¯s a relief.¡± The high society people were trying to look good in Rashta¡¯s eyes. Sovieshu knew that would happen. In fact, all they were trying to do was to look good themselves behind Rashta. Not that they expected Rashta to be the empress. On the contrary, even those who were close to Rashta were more likely to be shocked if she became the empress. Although not manymoners became empresses, the nobles always opposed those who did. Of course, she now had noble parents, but the early image of her would not disappear so easily. ¡°Public opinion is important to Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes. But... I don¡¯t know if the current public opinion will remain as it was when it¡¯s finally announced that Miss Rashta will take the position of the empress.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± Sovieshu, who had repeatedly clenched and extended his fists, finally sat down at his desk and ordered, ¡°Give Rashta¡¯s parents a worthy honorary position to look after their image.¡± Chapter 187 - Moving (2) Chapter 187. Moving (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: vy When Baron Lant visited her, Rashta was conversing with her parents. ¡°We¡¯re leaving now, right?¡± ¡°They must have things to talk about, let¡¯s go.¡± The fake parents were in the middle of aughing conversation with Rashta, but as soon as Baron Lant arrived they immediately stood up. ¡®They are very attentive.¡¯ Rashta looked at them with satisfaction, she really liked them. They treated Rashta lovingly, as if she were their real daughter, but still polite and respectful. She loved the way they behaved, and the more she saw them, the more she liked them. ¡°See youter then, mother, father.¡± Rashta provided an affectionate farewell to them in front of Baron Lant. However, Baron Lant stopped the couple who were about to leave. ¡°Ah, you can¡¯t leave.¡± The couple stopped anxiously between the sofa and the coffee table, not understanding his words. Rashta also stared at Baron Lant, not understanding the situation. ¡°Why?¡± When Rashta asked, Baron Lant smirked and offered her the light yellow parchment he was holding. Rashta epted the parchment in bewilderment. Opening up the rolled up paper, she slowly read what was on it. Her fake parents became increasingly nervous and looked over at Rashta anxiously. After a while, Rashta¡¯s eyes widened at Baron Lant. She then turned to her parents and eximed, ¡°His Majesty has appointed my father as an official!¡± Rashta¡¯s fake father asked perplexed, ¡°An official?¡± His lips fell open in surprise. Rashta¡¯s fake mother covered her mouth with both hands and looked at Baron Lant. The fallen noble couple, who had barely been able to retain their title, had never held any office. Rashta jumped up and down gleefully. ¡®His Majesty is doing this to make me the Empress.¡¯ Rashta immediately realized Sovieshu¡¯s intentions as she shed tears of happiness. Her fake mother followed suit, smiling as she wiped her reddened eyes with a handkerchief. ¡°This is what happens when one has a good daughter.¡± ¡°You are our treasure, Rashta.¡± Baron Lant smirked as he watched Rashta embrace and rejoice with her fake parents. It was a shame that Empress Navier was no longer around, but that aside, he liked these three together and wished all was well for them in the future. A young girl who lost her parents as a child and lived a hard life. A couple who had searched for their daughter to the point of spending all their wealth. A family that had been separated for more than ten years was dramatically reunited and, from now on, the road ahead of them was a path of flowers. It was like a moving y, and Baron Lant ended up sobbing. ¡°Why are you crying Baron...¡± When Rashta smiled and asked yfully, Baron Lant smiled awkwardly. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m crying.¡± ¡°Baron...¡± ¡°There will be many good things toe, I¡¯m sure.¡± After Baron Lant left, Rashta took her fake parents¡¯ hands and asked them, ¡°Tomorrow there will be a tea party. Would you like toe and share the good news?¡± Sovieshu gave his fake parents an office, probably wanting to consolidate their position in high society. As he wished, Rashta would present their fake parents with their new status to the nobility and show everywhere her good rtionship with her parents. *** The next day. Rashta¡¯s fake parents attended her tea party for the first time. Rashta felt proud, seeing how the nobles greeted her parents. The atmosphere was overall very good. Now, she was sitting in the same ce where Duchess Tuania used to hold her tea party. Next to her were her fake parents who loved her more than anyone else in the world, or at least pretended to, and her parents were nobles with an official position. The annoying deposed empress had gone to another country and remarried, so she would never return. Rashta carried the emperor¡¯s first baby in her womb. Sovieshu promised her the position of empress, and the baby in her womb would be the next emperor in the future. All was well. But there were still problems left¡ª the promised period as empress of one year, and the family of Viscount Roteschu.... ¡®If I be pregnant again, the period as empress will be extended. His Majesty does not want to have illegitimate children. Besides, he loves Rashta.¡¯ Actually, she wasn¡¯t so much worried about the period only being a year, but more about Viscount Roteschu... The higher his status, the more annoying it will be in the future.... ¡®I¡¯ll have to get rid of Rivetti¡¯s loose tongue, the pitiful n, and the Viscount¡¯s trash. Then the baby...¡¯ At that moment, she heard a cry suddenly. Rashta awoke from her thoughts and looked beside her with a startled face. Her fake mother was sobbing. ¡°Mother?!¡± When Rashta called out to her in astonishment, the nobleman opposite said in bewilderment, ¡°This... Forgive me, I spoke of something I shouldn¡¯t...¡± ¡°What did you speak about?¡± ¡°About... about her two lost daughters, and the one she still hopes to find...¡± The nobleman bowed his head, embarrassed. Rashta fidgeted and looked at her fake mother. Marsha, who had been searching for her daughters until the fall of her family, heard her own painful story. Her face turned pale and it didn¡¯t look like she would stop crying. The eyes of the nobles were on Rashta. They believed that Rashta was Marsha¡¯s real daughter, her first daughter, so they seemed to assume that Rashta wouldfort her mother. The fake father was already hugging his wife and crying with her. Rashta, though somewhat reluctantly, got up and hugged her fake mother as well. The daughter they lost had nothing to do with her, but the others considered that girl to be her own sister. ¡®Apparently, if I want these fake parents to be like my real parents, I¡¯ll also have to act like I want to find my fake sister.¡¯ ¡°Rashta wasn¡¯t considerate enough, mother. The first thing I have to do is find my sister...¡± Rashta sobbed, hugging her fake mother and promising. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Rashta will definitely find her sister.¡± The fake mother asked in tears upon hearing Rashta¡¯s promise. ¡°Really? You¡¯re really going to look for your sister?¡± ¡®Is she really my sister, though?¡¯ Rashta was inwardly upset, but nodded hurriedly. ¡°Of course.¡± After barely calming the fake family, the nobles¡¯ eyes reddened and they sobbed. They seemed to think this scene was very moving. Seeing this, Rashta sat back down as if nothing had happened. But after that, no matter how much sheughed and chatted, she found it hard to concentrate on the tea party. She didn¡¯t even want to hear from her own son. The idea of looking for a fake sister whom she didn¡¯t share a drop of blood with, and whom wouldn¡¯t be useful, was very upsetting. If it hade from her heart or Marsha had asked her privately, it would be different, but she hated it because it was a promise she was forced to make in the moment. Even her fake mother who burst into tears in this situation was irritating to her. However, Rashta didn¡¯t me her. It was another nobleman who first brought up the story of her lost daughters. ¡®Should I have made the noble couple brought by Baron Lant my parents?¡¯ Rashta sighed inwardly, and finally rose from her seat, saying she would go wash her hands. Actually, she would take a breather for a while to calm her irritation. But during her second walk around the vicinity, she saw Duke Elgy. Rashta quickly approached him. He too attended the tea party, but sat far away and only talked to the otherdies. She was going to ask him to sit a little closer, but Duke Elgy was already talking to someone else. Rashta stopped and frowned. The man Duke Elgy was talking to was the nobleman who had brought up the story of her fake mother¡¯s lost daughters. Chapter 188 - It Was Still Awkward (1) Chapter 188. It Was Still Awkward (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Eyljee Although she couldn¡¯t hear the conversation, they both had a serious expression. ¡®What are they talking about?¡¯ Rashta watched the scene in silence. She wanted to move closer to eavesdrop, but the ground was grassy so she would obviously make noise if she tried to get close. Rashta narrowed her eyes. Duke Elgy was a socialite, but rumor had it that he was a yboy, and he hung out mostly with women. Whether he caused a scandal or not, his friends were mostly women. As far as she knew, at least. Even earlier at the tea party, wasn¡¯t he talking only to thedies? However, the person he was talking to now was a nobleman. Why would hee all this way to have a serious conversation with a nobleman? Normally, she would think it was strange. But, because of what had just happened, she felt a weight on her heart. ... But that night. When the nobleman, who brought up the story of the lost daughters in front of their fake fathers, came to her room to apologize, Rashta¡¯s heart was immediately relieved. Because he himself mentioned Duke Elgy¡¯s name in his apology. ¡°Duke Elgy was very angry.¡± ¡°Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°Yes. Saying that at the tea party was disrespectful not only to her mother, but also to Miss Rashta.¡± ¡°... It wasn¡¯t that much, it¡¯s just that you brought up a sore subject out of nowhere and it hurt our feelings.¡± ¡°I apologize, Miss Rashta.¡± ¡®So that¡¯s why they were having a serious conversation.¡¯ Rashta felt relieved and let out a sigh of relief. There was only one person she could trustpletely, and that was Duke Elgy. She wondered if she should not have ced her trust in Duke Elgy, whom she had confided with all her secrets. For a while, she was feeling anxious. Fortunately, the misunderstanding had now been cleared up. Watching the beautiful Rashta sigh, the nobleman who made the inappropriate remark said thoughtfully, ¡°By the way, Duke Elgy seem to like Miss Rashta very much?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± asked Rashta hesitantly. ¡°Nothing, he just asked me toe apologize to you without a second thought...¡± The nobleman smiled sarcastically, as if he suspected there was something between Rashta and Elgy. ¡°Well, it¡¯s easy for a charming beauty like Miss Rashta to captivate any man¡¯s heart.¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta did not respond. However, after the nobleman left, she blushed and lowered her head. Didn¡¯t Duke Elgy have that kind of rtionship with King Heinley? No? Was that letter just a joke between friends? Well,e to think of it, Duke Elgy is rumored to have been involved in scandals with many women. If he had such a rtionship with King Heinley, he would not have been involved in such frequent scandals. ¡®Also... Duke Elgy had been especially nice to me since we met. Even I had heard that he liked me from his own mouth, but I just took it as a joke.¡¯ Rashta looked at the ground in embarrassment as she bit her lips. The nobleman¡¯s words from before tickled her ears. ¡®No, I don¡¯t think so.¡¯ As she pondered inwardly, Rashta blushed even more and fanned herself with her hands. ¡®By the way, when will the wedding be held?¡¯ *** ¡°He said it will be as soon as possible, he will personally take care of it.¡± The next day, Rose, who came as soon as dawn broke, told me what she heard from her brother as she served me food. The meal she brought consisted of clear pumpkin soup, scrambled eggs and three kinds of jam with uncut baguette. As I looked at the pretty tes she ced on the small table, I asked, ¡°Did he really say he would personally prepare the wedding?¡± Earlier, he had told me that the wedding should be held as soon as possible and I agreed with that. However, it was a bit surprising to hear that Heinley was going to prepare the wedding personally. ¡°Yes.¡± Rose put all the dishes on the small table and asked quietly, noticing my expression, ¡°Do you... do you want to prepare it yourself?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°Then why are you so surprised?¡± ¡°His Highness is very busy at the moment.¡± ¡°Oh, well. That¡¯s true.¡± But he couldn¡¯t leave the wedding preparations to Christa because she might further extend his dominance. I smiled involuntarily as I imagined him meditating toe to this conclusion. But what came to my mind next was the scene fromst night again, and I immediately put on a serious face. ¡°Your Highness, you really don¡¯t want to prepare it yourself...?¡± Rose asked again anxiously because of my serious expression. ¡°No.¡± I replied with a smile and grabbed a spoon. But the figure of Heinley...that had already arisen in my mind didn¡¯t fade. Since Heinley had brought up the subject of the wedding, I should meet with him to find out more about it. How could I have a proper conversation with him while feeling so awkward? I tried not think of him and focused on eating, but his image had once again shed into my mind with unrivaled intensity as I nced at the food. After taking a few spoonfuls of clear soup, I put down the spoon and stood up. ¡°That¡¯s all you¡¯re going to eat?¡± ¡°I have something to think about.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not because you don¡¯t like Western Kingdom food, is it?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± I smiled deliberately, and asked her to tell me the exact time because I was going to see Heinley today. *** After spending about two hours in my room, I left in time to meet Heinley. I was still embarrassed to see Heinley¡¯s face, but I still couldn¡¯t help it. I walked around, counting repeatedly in my mind from 1 to 100 and 100 to 1. But once I arrived in front of Heinley¡¯s office, my embarrassment had disappeared when I met an unexpected person in front of the door. ¡°Navier, long time no see, how have you been?¡± It was Christa, the former queen. She looked at me, then looked at Rose who was standing behind me with a smile. But I didn¡¯t answer anything in particr. Anyway, the door opened, so we both walked into the office without further conversation. Heinley stood up from his desk and his eyes grew wide, seeing us walk in together. Chapter 189 - It Was Still Awkward (2) Chapter 189. It Was Still Awkward (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Vy ¡°Why are you two together...?¡± ¡°We just happened to meet at the door.¡± After a brief exnation, Heinley quickly grasped the situation, ¡°Ahh!¡± Christa was quiet, but as soon as Heinley stepped out from behind his desk, she spoke her mind. ¡°Your Highness, I hear you n to prepare the wedding yourself, is that true?¡± Heinley stopped beside his desk and looked at her with a serious face. ¡°Yes. So you¡¯ve heard, sister-inw.¡± I looked at Christa too. ¡®She came here for the same reason I did.¡¯ Christa looked a little tense. When she caught Heinley¡¯s gaze and mine, she looked even more tense. She smiled awkwardly and spoke cautiously, ¡°Your Highness, if I may. I would like you to leave the wedding preparations to me.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyebrows rose. ¡°To Sister-inw?¡± ¡°It is rare for you to prepare your own wedding. As your sister-inw and former queen, I am best suited to prepare the wedding on behalf of you two. That would be best.¡± Heinley smiled awkwardly and opened his mouth. He seemed to want to say no.... I said it first, before Heinley could speak. ¡°It¡¯s a marriage that started differently than others, it¡¯s also best to make the preparations differently. Do what you decided in the beginning, Heinley.¡± Had I not intervened, Heinley would also have refused, but to him, Christa was the wife of his brother who died early. It would be awkward for him to confront Christa directly. I thought it would be better if I did it. Christa looked at me with a raised eyebrow, not imagining that I would object. She didn¡¯t look angry, but she did look a little surprised. Instead of arguing, she lowered her gaze and muttered, ¡°I see...¡± Then she apologized. ¡°I came here because it seemed right to take care of it as your sister-inw and former queen. Apparently, I didn¡¯t read the atmosphere properly. I¡¯m sorry.¡± She looked helpless and disappointed. Herplexion was already pale. When she apologized quietly, it felt strange. Instead of speaking further, she left the office in silence. I frowned as I stared at the door. I felt as if I had intimidated her. As if I had pushed a weak animal that bared its teeth helplessly. It was strange. I never felt this way about Rashta, who was in a more pitiful position than Christa. In a way, I felt particrly bad after confronting Christa, so I frowned. On second thought, it seemed to me that it was due to a difference in etiquette. Rashta often made remarks beyond mymon sense. She wanted to go ces she shouldn¡¯t, touch my things, and have me treat her like my sister. There were even times when she imitated me so tantly that I got goose bumps. But Christa¡¯s weak side was within mymon sense. Maybe that¡¯s why I felt so bad. Of course, the human mind isplex, so it¡¯s hard to know clearly.... ¡°Queen?¡± I guess I was too deep in my thoughts. When Heinley approached and called out to me, I quickly looked at him in surprise. Heinley looked at me with a worried expression. ¡°You have a grim expression, are you alright?¡± ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡± Heinley frowned at my words, as if I didn¡¯t seem alright at all. ¡°You asked me to stay out of it... but in my opinion, Queen. I think I should tell my sister-inw to refrain froming to my office. Don¡¯t you agree?¡± Heinley asked me the question carefully. ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± I shook my head. It wasn¡¯t good for him to get involved in this matter in any way. Instead of talking about Christa, I moved onto the subject I hade for. ¡°Ah. I came here for something too.¡± ¡°Queen, did you want to prepare for your own wedding?¡± ¡°Not exactly. I came to see if there was anything I could do to help.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s for Queen, so I¡¯d like to take care of it myself.¡± ¡°I understand...¡± ¡°Of course you¡¯ll have to help me with your wedding dress. It can¡¯t be done with my measurements.¡± Heinley added yfully and smiled sweetly. But the moment he mentioned ¡®measurements,¡¯ I remembered his naked body in the fountain, which I had forgotten for a moment when I saw Christa, and my face heated up. I hurried to lower my head, but the angle was even worse. Finally, I lifted my head and turned to the side. ¡°Queen, are you angry?¡± I just needed to stay this way for a moment. Heinley walked over to the side I was facing, bending his knees. He then looked me closely in the eyes. As I looked directly into his purple eyes, my face heated up even more. When I bit my lower lip and turned to the side again, Heinley was confused and moved to face me again. ¡°Queen? Are you really angry?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Queen?¡± After circling around, I thought about how this wouldn¡¯t solve anything. That¡¯s right. It¡¯s not something to be ashamed of forever. I had decided to give him a chance to be honest. I was ashamed, but I couldn¡¯t let him keep deceiving me. To keep it up would be annoying and awkward for Heinley himself. I finally decided to speak up, ¡°Heinley. By any chance-¡± I was about to ask him if he was deceiving me on something. But the moment I saw his expression full of concern. What came out of my mouth waspletely different. ¡°Invite Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression turned rigid. ¡°What?¡± The Grand Duke¡¯s name,ing out of nowhere, seemed to have puzzled him. I was puzzled, too. I had intended to talk about Grand Duke Kapmen only after the wedding. Why did I mention him all of a sudden? I inwardly reproached myself, but I had already done it. I appeared calm as if I had intended from the beginning to bring up this topic, and merely said what I had nned to say in a few weeks¡¯ time. ¡°Do you remember the Grand Duke Kapmen? I¡¯m sure you met during the New Year¡¯s celebrations.¡± ¡°How could I not remember him?¡± Heinley muttered with a strange smile. Maybe it¡¯s because Heinley almost had a fight with him. Although Heinley couldn¡¯t get angry because he was in front of me, he couldn¡¯t help his expression from distorting. ¡°Queen, do you want to invite him?¡± ¡°When I was in the Eastern Empire, we worked together to establish intercontinental trade between the two countries.¡± ¡°Intercontinental... trade?¡± However, his distorted expression quickly turned serious when I mentioned trade. ¡°I hear you.¡± I continued speaking. ¡°But it was ruined when he and His Majesty got into a fight.¡± ¡°Ah, I heard about that. Besides...¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes flickered to my fist. ¡°Is that true?¡± Then, he touched a finger to his cheek. He seemed to refer to the blow Grand Duke Kapmen gave Sovieshu. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Although I can understand him, that was too reckless.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen, at the time, was under the effects of the love potion. Come to think of it, has he been able to get rid of the effects? As I reflected, Heinley took my hand. ¡°Sit down. Don¡¯t stand.¡± He then led me over to his desk and asked me to sit in the chair, leaning back against the edge of the desk as I sat down. It may not have been intentional, but naturally Heinley¡¯s lower body was lined up at my eye level. ¡°!¡± I clenched my fists and turned the chair toward the window. Again, the angle had been the problem. I asked, pretending to be looking out the window through a gap between the curtains. ¡± I want to finalize the trade. If you invite him, I¡¯ll try to make the trade between Rift and the Western Kingdom sessful.¡± Heinley murmured in a slightly muffled voice. ¡°If Queen has worked on it, of course there will be a high probability of sess...¡± ¡°This is the first state-led trade with this continent. Although direct trade will be beneficial in itself, if trade with this continent bes popr, we will make Rift and the Western Kingdom trade intermediary countries.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Even merchants who have had difficulty getting involved in trade will feel more at ease getting involved in a state-led business, so it will be even better to get investments.¡± I spoke with determination towards the window. The business viability had been thoroughly examined in the Eastern Empire. At that point, Heinley murmured in a muffled voice. ¡°But Queen, do you have to look over there to speak?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Please look at me when you speak.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If you¡¯re really not angry with me, it¡¯s strange that you keep avoiding my gaze.¡± ¡°I... I¡¯m not avoiding your gaze.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Chapter 190 - Wedding Dress (1) Chapter 190. Wedding Dress (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe ¡°I avoid your conscience.¡± ¡°What?¡± Heinley didn¡¯t seem to understand my words. In fact, I didn¡¯t understand my words either. ¡®But honestly, I couldn¡¯t tell him I was avoiding his lower body.¡¯ In the end, our conversation ended awkwardly after only discussing the subject of Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°So, you agree to invite the Grand Duke?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Heinley looked like he wanted to ask me something. I had something to ask him, too. But we parted ways awkwardly, without telling each other what we really wanted. ¡°Let¡¯s go, Miss Rose.¡± ¡°I thought you would¡¯ve stayed a little longer.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have much to say.¡± Rose seemed surprised that I got out so quickly. To a certain extent, most people in the Western Kingdom believed that Heinley and I had a great love for each other. What I said the other day to the journalist also implied that... But instead of prying, she said with a smile, ¡°There¡¯s no need to say more than necessary, right?¡± I walked at ease beside her as she naturally guided us away. But once we left the main pce and were heading towards the queen¡¯s detached pce, I saw Christa standing at a corner of the road. Behind Christa was thedy-in-waiting who had heard Sir Aprin¡¯s words. As soon as I saw her, I knew that Christa was here for that matter. I approached Christa and asked her, ¡°Were you waiting for me?¡± It didn¡¯t seem to be a pure coincidence that Christa, who had left before me, was here. ¡°Yes, I was waiting for you. I need to tell you something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I heard that one of your subordinates insulted mydy-in-waiting.¡± I knew it. Christa was waiting for me here to speak in defense of herdy-in-waiting. Christa spoke quietly but firmly. ¡°Please do not allow this to happen again in the future.¡± Despite it being a request, her attitude was firm. Moreover, the fact that her request was for the sake of one of her own made her look dignified. Suddenly, I felt sorry. Because we were in opposite positions, I couldn¡¯t properly interpret all of her actions... besides, she kept making difficult requests, but... Her attitude of caring and protecting her own was really admirable. If we didn¡¯t have a rtionship ofpeting for power, we would have gotten along well. But as much as I liked her personality, I was clear about how I should respond, ¡°Sir Aprin is not my subordinate, but His Highness¡¯. Such a request, you should make directly to His Highness.¡± ¨C Chapter advanced in NovelUtopia *** After bumping into Christa I began to think in a slightly different direction. Christa knew how to take care of her own, furthermore, her attitude was refined and regal. She must have many talented people by her side. We were about the same age, so most of the noblewomen I would want to have asdies-in-waiting must have been taken by Christa. Under the circumstances, it was clear that the n to take some time to observe the high society of the Western Kingdom before choosing a woman to be a newdy-in-waiting would not be very effective. Surely all the people who could bedies-in-waiting to the queen, Christa already had. Even if there were some left, they were most likely not interested in beingdies-in-waiting from the beginning or had a good rtionship with Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting. So... ¡°Can you hand a letter to Miss Mastas asking her to be mydy-in-waiting?¡± I had no choice but to show a bit of adventurous spirit. Rose, who had been pensive for over an hour after meeting Christa, became rmed when I suddenly mentioned Mastas¡¯ name and asked, ¡°Lady Mastas?¡± ¡°Yes, I intend to appoint her as mydy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°But Your Highness. As you could see, that youngdy... is not fit for the position ofdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°That is why I intend to bring her.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think Christa had to take many risks¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Come to think of it, it does seem strange to me... May I ask you a question, Miss Rose?¡± ¡°Oh. Yes. Ask me anything.¡± ¡°You¡¯re smart and your etiquette is perfect. Why weren¡¯t you Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting...?¡± Rose was an excellentdy-in-waiting. She was a tactful, clever, and graceful noblewoman. At first, I asked Rose to be ady-in-waiting to appease Yunim, but now I¡¯m quite pleased with her. So it¡¯s strange, why didn¡¯t Christa take Rose? ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s a little embarrassing because you¡¯re suddenly ttering me. ¡± Rose smiled awkwardly, scratched the top of her nose, and sheepishly confessed, ¡°Saying it that way makes me feel embarrassed because you make it seem like I rejected Christa. Well, she never offered me to be herdy-in-waiting in the first ce. Hmm, I think it¡¯s because Yunim is a subordinate of His Highness Heinley.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t Sir Yunim a knight of the royal guard before?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but... uh, he wasn¡¯t the leader.¡± Rose closed her mouth in shame after speaking. The king back then was Heinley¡¯s brother. It seemed awkward to say that the knight of the guard who was supposed to protect the former king was Heinley¡¯s subordinate. Instead of asking further, I smiled and took her hand. ¡°That¡¯s a relief. I like Miss Rose very much.¡± Rose¡¯s eyes grew wide, she smiled shyly and whispered, ¡°Indeed... so do I.¡± ¨C Chapter advanced in NovelUtopia *** The next day around 11 am, Miss Mastas came to see me with a broad smile, probably because she received my letter. ¡°Your Highness!¡± She raised a hand and waved but lowered it quickly at Rose¡¯s sharp look. But she was still smiling. She was a very cheerful youngdy. However, she was not the only visitor. ¡°Ah, Your Highness. I ran into them on my way here.¡± With that said, Miss Mastas quickly stepped aside. Behind her I could see a row of people holdingrge boxes. ¡°Your Highness, it is an honor to meet you. I am the best designer in the Western Kingdom, McLinnan.¡± The person standing at the doorway in front of me introduced herself with great honor, rummaged around in her bag, pulled out a magazine, and held it out. Miss Mastas handed me the magazine. As I flipped through it, on the third page of the magazine, I saw a portrait of her face, her name, and the name of her store, among others. With the qualification of.... the best. While I was puzzled, she smiled and asked with the same expression as in the portrait. ¡°His Highness Heinley ordered me to make your wedding dress, wedding reception dress, and some other dresses. If I may, can Ie in?¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± Designer McLinnan entered as I granted her permission, followed by the number of people holding boxes. In addition to the boxes, I also saw clothing racks covered with arge cloth. Designer McLinnan rubbed her hands together, looked me up and down, and beamed, ¡°Good. Very good.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I was instructed to make Your Highness the most morous wedding dress. I was a little worried that the dress would be so shy that people will turn away. But I think Your Highness will look spectacr.¡± Smiling to the point where her mouth seemed longer, she opened a box, pulled out five thick albums and confidently eximed, ¡°I¡¯ll make you a dazzling and sparkly dress!¡± Chapter 191 - Wedding Dress (2) Chapter 191. Wedding Dress (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe While Navier was looking over the designer¡¯s dress designs. Coincidentally, Rashta was also in the middle of a conversation with a designer Sovieshu had sent. But the atmosphere was a bit different. ¡°Should I dress as in as possible?¡± Rashta was puzzled and repeatedly asked the designer. ¡°Isn¡¯t it Rashta¡¯s wedding?¡± She had heard from Baron Lant that His Majesty dered that the wedding should be as grand as possible. She kept imagining what kind of dress she would wear. She felt disgusted that this designer had the audacity toe in and tell her that she should dress as in as possible. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°His Majesty asked me to make a dress that would tter you.¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re trying to say that a morous, beautiful dress doesn¡¯t tter Rashta?¡± When Rashta asked on the verge of tears, the designer got nervous and waved her hands frantically. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean that.¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it sounded like to Rashta.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that... It-it¡¯s because Rashta is very popr amongmoners.¡± ¡°Even amoner doesn¡¯t like everything in.¡± ¡°Yes. But if the wedding is extremely morous, and even the dress as well, it will be...different from the image people expect from Rashta. That¡¯s it.¡± ¡°If the wedding is morous but the dress is in, Rashta will be buried alive.¡± Rashta refuted the designer¡¯s words. For Emperor Sovieshu, this will be a remarriage. Besides, he had just been divorced. People would stillpare her to Empress Navier. ¡®Wearing a in dress on this asion...¡¯ Rashta grew even more annoyed at the designer¡¯s actions. This designer was definitely deliberately trying to make her look ridiculous. ¡°Not at all. Rashta is very beautiful. You don¡¯t need a lot of essories to shine-¡± ¡°What dress did the deposed empress wear?¡± In response to Rashta¡¯s question, the designer showed her Navier¡¯s wedding dress design. It was very morous. ¡°...¡± When Rashta pursed her lips tightly and expressed her dissatisfaction with tense silence, the designer became even more nervous. Rashta grew suspicious of the designer and asked, ¡°It was you who designed the deposed empress¡¯ dresses, am I right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I designed her wedding dress, her wedding reception dress, and many other dresses.¡± Rashta spoke sadly, sensing that her suspicion was true. ¡°You like the deposed empress, so you want Rashta to wear a in dress so that Rashta will be criticized while beingpared to her, right?¡± ¡°Absolutely not. It all depends on the atmosphere-¡± Rashta pointed her finger at Navier¡¯s wedding dress design. ¡°I want my dress to be more morous and beautiful than that one.¡± As soon as the designer scampered out, Rashta angrily leaned back on the couch and kicked a cushion. For Rashta, the designer was determined to rmend a in dress just so she wouldn¡¯t stand out any more than the deposed empress. Would themoners like an empress in a in dress? She didn¡¯t think so. At that moment, another person came. It was Duke Elgy. But he was not alone, there was a man beside him whom she had never seen before. ¡°Duke. Who is...?¡± When Rashta asked, Duke Elgy sent the man into the corridor and said, ¡°Miss, do you remember what I exined to you about journalists?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened and nodded, ¡°You brought a journalist?¡± ¡°He is amoners¡¯ journalist. Miss, did you receive a marriage proposal from His Majesty?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°The rumor is circting that you will marry His Majesty.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± Rashta, who could not tell Duke Elgy the truth, felt sorry and lowered her gaze. Duke Elgy let out augh. ¡°What are you sorry about? I only brought him here because he heard the rumor and wanted to interview you.¡± Rashta looked up at Duke Elgy with a puzzled look. Although he had exined to her about the interview and the journalists, she had hardly paid any attention then. She didn¡¯t remember anything except that it wasplicated and that she should be careful with her words. As Rashta blinked, Duke Elgy exined with a chuckle,¡±Miss, you should just mention in the interview that your marriage is a victory for themoners.¡± ¡°Rashta is now of the nobility...¡± ¡°But say it like this. Say that even though you only recently found out you were nobility, you still think and act like ¡®all of you¡¯.¡± ¡°Agreed.¡± ¡°And say, when you be the empress, you will be with themoners.¡± Rashta was nervous but did as Duke Elgy instructed. When the interview with themoners¡¯ journalist was over, this time a nobles¡¯ journalist came, and Duke Elgy advised her again before the interview. ¡°Emphasize sweet romance and dramatic love with His Majesty Sovieshu.¡± ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I say that I will be with the nobles?¡± ¡°That would be contradictory.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Emphasize unconditional love. That would please them.¡± Rashta again did as Duke Elgy instructed. Afterward, she waspletely exhausted. Sheid down on the bed as soon as the second interview was over. Rashta, lying on the bed, felt inexplicably strange. ¡®I will be the Empress and ascend to the highest position in the country. But it¡¯s annoying to not be able to express myself freely. Will I have to be this careful every time I speak in the future?¡¯ ¡®I don¡¯t like that very much...¡¯ Lying in that state, she felt a faint fetal movement in her womb. Rashta, who was limp, clutched her belly with both hands. ¡®Was it my imagination?¡¯ Right now she felt nothing. But the fetal movement she felt when she thought it was strenuous wasforting. Rashta covered her belly with her hands and murmured in a daze. ¡°Mommy will try her best, my baby.¡± *** The hours flew by quickly as I looked through the five full albums of dress designs and picked out a few for my wedding dress. But there was still so much to do. McLinnan wanted to take my measurements, so I got up and stood up straight with my arms outstretched on either side. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. ¡°Come in.¡± Even though someone was taking my measurements, I answered the door without hesitation because I was wearing thin clothes anyway. It was Heinley. ¡°I came to see if everything is going well...¡± Heinley stopped talking and stood in the doorway, staring at me for a while. Then he grinned from ear to ear as if he liked something. I wasn¡¯t sure what he was so pleased about, since I hadn¡¯t tried on any dresses yet. Eventually, he left the doorway and entered the roompletely. The people who were originally talking immediately fell silent. Heinley quickly approached us and asked the designer. ¡°Which designs did you choose?¡± He sat down to examine a couple designs chosen by me and those rmended by the designer. All of a sudden, my hip bumped against Heinley¡¯s head. I was trying to not pay attention to him, but I ended up pushing him without realizing it. Heinley froze with an album in his hand, and I was bewildered as well. I pushed him so fast it looked like I was throwing him out of here. ¡°Hmm, well, maybe you want to keep your wedding dress a secret.¡± Heinley mumbled awkwardly and put the album down. Then he looked anxiously at his pocket watch and left saying he had forgotten he was busy. When he left, however, the atmosphere became more awkward. Even Designer McLinnan, who had been talking the whole time, became quiet. After she took my measurements, I sat down on a couch and clutched my head with both hands. I didn¡¯t mean to make him feel bad. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ *** ¡°She must be angry with me.¡± Heinley muttered uneasily and growled. McKenna, who came into his office holding some papers, clicked his tongue at Heinley¡¯s distress. ¡°What did you do to make her angry?¡± ¡°... I don¡¯t know. I can¡¯t think of anything.¡± ¡°But there must be something, right? Her Majesty the Queen doesn¡¯t seem like one to get angry for no reason.¡± Heinley pursed his lips tightly in distress, before speaking again, ¡°Actually, yesterday my wife was about to ask me something, but suddenly changed her mind...¡± ¡°About what?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. She suddenly brought up the subject of Grand Duke Kapmen. But I¡¯m sure she was going to say something else.¡± Heinley ruffled his hair, feeling uneasy. ¡°Maybe she found out that I¡¯m Queen, and that¡¯s why she¡¯s angry.¡± Chapter 192 - Knowing The Truth (1) Chapter 192. Knowing The Truth (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe McKenna raised his eyebrows, ¡°Did she find out?¡± Heinley shook his head, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± But it wasn¡¯t hard to guess. Especially when she asked him about Queen¡¯s identity after asking about McKenna¡¯s identity. Navier must¡¯ve thought Queen was a subordinate of Heinley. But Heinley was so surprised at the time that he reacted strangely. He thought she wouldn¡¯t notice because he hadn¡¯t said much, but she suddenly turned cold and refused to look him in the eyes. There was a high chance that she was angry after finding out the truth. ¡°If it troubled you so much, why didn¡¯t you tell her?¡± ¡°Are you always like this? If there¡¯s something that bothers you, do you just act on it?¡± McKenna pondered the question for a moment, then replied, ¡°I... I consult with His Majesty.¡± ¡°What would I say?¡± ¡°If it bothers you, tell the truth.¡± ¡°Well. I must practice my words,¡± Heinley sighed and stood up. It was only a matter of time before he had to confess anyway. ¡°I wanted us to pick out a dress together...¡± ¡°Oh. You went to pick out a dress and got kicked out?¡± Heinley huffed and slowly grasped the couch cushion. McKenna hurriedly put down the papers he was holding and rushed out. *** After Heinley left, I paced back and forth in my room anxiously, regretting my action. Of course, I had done it unintentionally, but that was only from my perspective. From Heinley¡¯s perspective, I had inconsiderately pushed him. He must have been shocked and embarrassed. Besides, there were other people around... I pressed my cheeks with both hands and took a deep breath. ¡®I have to apologize.¡¯ ¡°Miss Rose,¡± I called out. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m going to see His Majesty the King, can you bring me something to wear?¡± Rose seemed relieved to hear my request and immediately brought me a yellow cloak. She seemed concerned that Heinley and I were fighting. However, as I was getting ready to leave, Heinley arrived at my door. At the sight of him, my stomach plummeted, this must be bad news. I asked my twodies-in-waiting to leave and put on a straight face. Even though it waste at night, he was still dressed in the same clothes he wore during the day. He was probably so shocked that he hadn¡¯t even thought of changing his clothes. We looked at each other for a moment. Heinley was the first to break the silence, ¡°I have something to confess.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡®What did he mean?¡¯ If he came to see me in the middle of the night, it must be about something serious, isn¡¯t it? The nerves in my stomach grew. I had no idea how he would respond to what I did to him earlier. However, what came out of Heinley¡¯s mouth waspletely different from what I had expected. ¡°I am Queen.¡± ¡°...¡± I thought he would haveined and expressed himself negatively. Not that he would end our marriage over this, but he would say he was regretful to some extent at least. I couldn¡¯t believe he just revealed his identity to me. Heinley smiled awkwardly and muttered, ¡°Judging by your expression, it looks like you already knew, didn¡¯t you?¡± ¡®!¡¯ ¡°I am sorry, Queen. I didn¡¯t mean to deceive you.¡± Heinley apologized repeatedly, staring at me sincerely. It was like his eyes were trying to let me know how truly sorry he was. ¡°Queen, in our tribe we are not allowed to reveal our identity, except to our family. That¡¯s why I couldn¡¯t tell you, but I have no intention of deceiving you anymore. I¡¯m serious.¡± I shook my head and tried to tell him it was alright. I also had to apologize for pushing him earlier. ¡°Heinley,¡± I said as I extended my hand towards him. All of a sudden, Heinley turned into a big bird, and I stopped moving. I was confused. Why did he transform so suddenly? Heinley, who had turned into a bird, blinked slowly as he looked into my eyes. He looked so cute. Was he trying to use his charming appearance as a tactic to soothe my ¡®anger¡¯? Heinley, no, Queen, who was looking at me with all kinds of lovely expressions, had his big eyes wide open. It was truly a lovely look. When Queen approached me hesitantly and tilted his head, I almost reached out to hug him out of habit. Before, I was more worried that he was a subordinate of Heinley because that would¡¯ve meant I had hugged, kissed, and patted the rear of one of my husband¡¯s subordinates. Perhaps because I was assuming the worst, I wasn¡¯t too angry when I found out Heinley was Queen. I understood that he couldn¡¯t tell me because it was confidential. But... I turned around, withdrew my hands and said, ¡°I¡¯m not angry, Heinley. Really.¡± My face heated up again. Although the Queen perched before me right now looked like a cute and lovely bird, I also knew that in the blink of an eye he could turn into Heinley. I couldn¡¯t hug him knowing this. If I hugged the bird, it would be like hugging Heinley... naked. ¡ª Gu... ¡°Really. I¡¯m not angry...only a little.¡± Queen¡¯s eyes welled up with tears. Reluctantly, I reached out my hand and stroked his head. Queen closed his eyes and rubbed against my hand. It was so endearing. Even if it was Heinley rubbing his head against my hand, it would still be lovely... ¡®Oh my gosh! What am I thinking?!¡¯ I pulled my hand away from him and pleaded, ¡°It¡¯s alright, I¡¯m not angry. Honestly. But go back... go back to your normal form again where I can¡¯t see you.¡± ¡ª ! I sat there for almost half an hour after Heinley left, then opened the door and walked out. Rose, who was teaching Miss Mastas something, saw me leave alone and asked in surprise, ¡°Queen? Why did Your Majestye out alone?¡± Miss Mastas immediately looked over my back and grew puzzled as well. ¡°His Majesty Heinley went out the window,¡± I replied matter-of-factly. As soon as I responded, they both gaped at me in disbelief. But it quickly changed to an expression of astonishment after they entered my room. ¡°Oh, Queen! His Majesty Heinley¡¯s clothes are here...¡± ¡®!¡¯ ¡°His Majesty Heinley really went out the window!¡± My dazed mind suddenly returned to normal as if a bucket of cold water had fallen on me. ¡®Was Heinley so shocked that he didn¡¯t take his clothes with him?¡¯ I rushed back into my room and found all of Heinley¡¯s clothes strewn across the carpet. Even his underwear. Chapter 193 - Knowing The Truth (2) Chapter 193. Knowing The Truth (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Miss Mastas looked into my eyes and asked, ¡°His Majesty left naked...?¡± Rose and even Mastas, Heinley¡¯s knight, didn¡¯t seem to know that Heinley could turn into a bird. I ruffled my hair at the awkwardness of the situation. I was in such an embarrassing position. How should I answer? Even worse, Rose¡¯s neck had turned red. She seemed to be imagining a crude scene. Shouldn¡¯t I tell her that it wasn¡¯t what she was thinking? But what exactly should I say to dissuade her? That I just took his clothes off before he left, and nothing else happened? That... would make me look even stranger. So I responded with, ¡°It¡¯s alright, It doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°We¡¯re a married couple.¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°...¡± Mastas looked towards the window and muttered slowly, ¡°Erm... Of course, you¡¯re a married couple. But the problem is, any other person that sees His Majesty naked, is not married to him.¡± The more I spoke, the stranger Heinley and I seemed, so instead of continuing, I quickly bent down and picked up Heinley¡¯s clothes. If it was just his outerwear, I would have asked mydies-in-waiting to pick it up. But I couldn¡¯t ask them to do that because his underwear was also amongst the pile. As I held his clothes in my arms, I smelled the perfume Heinley used to wear. At that moment, Queen¡¯s sad expression came to my mind. A couple of days before my birthday, he had put in a lot of effort to bring me a cake. However, when I said it was a little too much, he burst into tears and flew away. ... So it was Heinley who cried that day. That¡¯s why his eyes were red when I visited him. Heinley... he seemed to have a sensitive heart. I wonder if he¡¯s crying again right now. At the thought, my heart grew heavy with worry. I felt extremely sorry all of a sudden. I hesitated before finally asking, ¡°Miss Mastas, has His Majesty ever misunderstood you?¡± Mastas was one of Heinley¡¯s knights, so she should be familiar with his usual behavior. At my question, Mastas blinked and replied, ¡°What kind of misunderstanding?¡± ¡°Well, he thinks I¡¯m angry when I¡¯m really not...¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been angry before, but His Majesty has never cared much.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m guessing what happened was His Majesty misinterpreted the situation and thought Your Majesty was angry. So... he went out the window in shock?¡± She asked with wide eyes. ¡°...Something like that.¡± ¡°Uh...¡± She averted her eyes and spoke again, ¡°I can imagine why His Majesty was so shocked... No nevermind, I can¡¯t imagine anything, so don¡¯t worry about it... What I meant to say is that His Majesty smiles a lot, that¡¯s it, he just smiles.¡± ¡°He just smiles?¡± ¡°Yes. Regardless of what he is thinking, he hides everything with a smile. I¡¯ve never seen His Majesty in shock,¡± Mastas added, looking at me carefully, ¡°If His Majesty was so distressed about the queen being angry that he left out the window naked, wouldn¡¯t it be better if you were honest and just told him you aren¡¯t angry?¡± I was puzzled by what Miss Mastas just told me. I thought Heinley was very emotional. But apparently, he didn¡¯t show his emotions much. So was he only showing his true emotions in front of me? In any case, she was right. ¡°Be honest...¡± I mumbled, nodding as I walked out with his clothes in hand. ¡°Queen!¡± she called out. ¡°I will go to see His Majesty. I must be honest and clear up the misunderstanding.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that, it¡¯s just... I can see everything. It would be better if you wrapped those clothes in a piece of cloth.¡± ¡°!¡± *** Sovieshu, who had just changed intofortable clothes, was sitting on Rashta¡¯s bed singing a song for the baby. Rashta was lying on a pile of soft fluffy pillows. She couldn¡¯t stop smiling as Sovieshu sang. The emperor was singing to her belly. A year ago, this would have seemed unimaginable to her. Rashta moved her hand to stroke Sovieshu¡¯s ck hair. How could he be so lovely? n had rejected even his own child because of his status. But Sovieshu, who had a much higher status than n, had done everything possible to avoid having an illegitimate child. For prenatal care, he would sometimese to talk to her belly and sing to it at night. Whenever Rashta saw Sovieshu¡¯s efforts in taking care of the unborn baby, she felt like crying. ¡°Your Majesty is very good at singing,¡± sheplimented. ¡°Because I learned it.¡± ¡°Is singing included in the education of the imperial family?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just a part of the imperial family¡¯s education. It¡¯s a lessonmonly taught in high society.¡± ¡°The baby will remember their father¡¯s voice well.¡± Sovieshu smiled and caressed Rashta¡¯s belly with his hands. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. ¡°Who is it?¡± Sovieshu asked sharply, looking towards the door. All traces of his newfound fatherly demeanor disappeared. Maid Delise came in and said, ¡°Your Majesty, Marquis Karl is here.¡± Sovieshu nced at the clock on the wall, ¡°At this hour?¡± ¡°Yes. He says he has something urgent to show you...¡± ¡°Tell him to wait in the living room.¡± Delise replied, ¡°Understood,¡± and went out. Rashta looked at Sovieshu with wide eyes as he stood up, ¡°Are you leaving already?¡± ¡°Marquis Karl wouldn¡¯te without a good reason.¡± Sovieshu tucked her in, pulling the sheets up to her neck, and left the room. Marquis Karl was anxiously pacing the room with a newspaper in his hand, not bothering to sit on the couch. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Sovieshu asked. Marquis Karl quickly extended the newspaper to the emperor, ¡°Look at this, Your Majesty.¡± He frowned and epted the newspaper. It was a newsletter from the Western Kingdom. The contents of the newspaper were... Sovieshu¡¯s expression froze. He spoke in disbelief, ¡°Navier had overheard me promise Rashta that I would divorce her?¡± *** It was toote, so I tried to calm my racing heart and waited until the next day to approach Heinley. I quickly dressed as soon as dawn broke and left the queen¡¯s detached pce. I wanted to clear the air with him before he entered the conference room. Unexpectedly, my brother came out of the office. It seemed that he had just paid Heinley a visit. I ran to him in surprise, ¡°Brother?¡± My brother¡¯s eyes widened and he extended his arms, mirroring my movement. I embraced my brother who was holding me just as tightly. He mumbled a few iprehensible words. I looked up when I felt his shoulders shaking, he was crying. My brother hugged me for a while, finally letting go when Mckenna walked out. He pulled out a handkerchief, wiped his eyes, and smiled, ¡°It would have been better if we had beenpletely alone.¡± ¡°Brother...¡± ¡°When I heard about your divorce, Navier, my heart broke.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Just because you married His Majesty Heinley doesn¡¯t mean the scars left from your divorce will just disappear.¡± ¡°...¡± My brother hugged me tightly once more. After staying in this position for a bit, McKenna coughed and my brother let go of me once again. ¡°I thought I¡¯d get see you as soon as I got to the Western Kingdom,¡± I said sadly. My brother replied to my dejected tone as he folded his handkerchief and put it back in his pocket, ¡°I¡¯ve been avoiding you because I feared I would cause you trouble.¡± ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what happened in the Eastern Empire. I haven¡¯t stopped thinking about it since I heard about your divorce. It was probably my fault that it happened. If I had just stayed calm, maybe you wouldn¡¯t have gotten a divorce...¡± While what he said might be true, I knew that even if my brother hadn¡¯t done anything, Sovieshu would still have left me. Because he loved Rashta. He had to get rid of me somehow if he wanted Rashta to sit at his side. In fact, after banishing him, Sovieshu took advantage of my brother¡¯s name to get rid of me. Instead of talking about it further, I smiled and deliberately joked, ¡°So you¡¯ve been avoiding me, but you still meet with Heinley?¡± ¡°His Majesty said he would add my name in the ¡®Knights¡¯ Expedition¡¯ before the wedding.¡± ¡°Knights¡¯ Expedition?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a tradition of the Western Kingdom. Apparently, the king¡¯s knights travel through a few cities to provide support to people.¡± Ohh... Yes. Come to think of it, I¡¯ve heard of something simr. It is said that the reputation of the knight who best handled the situations would instantly skyrocket. ¡°...I appreciate that.¡± I could see why Heinley wanted my brother to participate in the knights¡¯ expedition. He seemed to be nning to elevate my brother¡¯s reputation in the Western Kingdom. I hugged the clothes in my hands tighter. My brother smiled awkwardly and praised him as well. ¡°I¡¯ve only heard frivolous rumors about him. However, he is very thoughtful in many ways...¡± ¡°I agree.¡± ¡°You must like him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± Well... Liking someone doesn¡¯t necessarily imply that one is in love. ¡°That¡¯s right¡± How embarrassing. After saying goodbye to my brother, I carefully walked into the office. Heinley was standing awkwardly in the center of the office, flushing as soon as our eyes met. ¡°Queen.¡± He didn¡¯t approach me as usual, instead, he hesitated. I had avoided him earlier, so he seemed unsure if it was right to approach. Although I was still embarrassed to look him in the eyes, this time I gathered the courage to approached him. Heinley sped his hands together tightly and looked at me with trembling eyes. ¡°Queen, I¡ª¡± I interrupted him, ¡°I¡¯m really not angry.¡± ¡°But you have avoided me. Queen, I-I wish you wouldn¡¯t avoid me anymore.¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t avoiding you because I was angry,¡± I repeated this to him, swallowing the urge to turn around and leave, ¡°Do you want me to be honest with you about why I¡¯ve been avoiding you?¡± Heinley responded hastily, ¡°Yes. If you¡¯re not angry at me, please be honest.¡± ¡°You might be surprised.¡± ¡°On some days, I would get so anxious that I can¡¯t fall asleep at night. I don¡¯t want you to hate me, Queen. Please tell me.¡± His eyes were trembling, his pupils looked noticeably darker than normal. I took a deep breath and hugged his clothes as if they were an amulet. It was hard to tell the truth, but Heinley did, even though he feared it would make me angry. He proved his bravery, so I had to prove mine. After taking a deep breath, I confessed it to him as casually as possible. ¡°I saw you naked.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard because the image of you keeps popping up in my mind.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I can¡¯t look you in the eyes. I just keep remembering it.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 194 - . Rashta’s Anxiety (1) Chapter 194. Rashta¡¯s Anxiety (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Heinley stared at me dumbfounded. He didn¡¯t seem toprehend what I had just said. I took a breath to appear as calm as possible. It was hard for me to say it twice. ¡°I... I see,¡± he finally mumbled, half covering his face with his hands, ¡°You saw me... ah, that¡¯s why you avoided looking me in the eyes...¡± ¡°Are you surprised?¡± ¡°Honestly... One moment,¡± he stopped to turn around and quickly fanned himself with his hands. It certainly wasn¡¯t intentional. Not only was his neck red but so were his ears. Heinley turned around again after a while, but from the looks of it, fanning himself didn¡¯t seem to have any effect. Heinley asked as he grabbed his neck, ¡°By the way, where did you see me like that?¡± ¡°I saw you at the fountain in the abandoned pce.¡± ¡°Oh. At the fountain. Then I...¡± ¡°You were soaked with water.¡± Heinley again covered his face with both hands. On the other hand, by telling the truth, my initial embarrassment lessened. The power of the truth was immeasurable. I was still embarrassed, but at least now I can talk to him face to face. But now Heinley is the one unable to look me in the face. The office went temporarily silent. I didn¡¯t feel ufortable, but for some reason, I couldn¡¯t open my mouth. I wanted to talk to him, but at the same time, I didn¡¯t want to say anything. The atmosphere was extremely strange. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to... just hold hands in silence at a time like this? As soon as I thought about it, Heinley reached out his hand and touched my fingertips, as though he was hesitating to do so. I looked away and grabbed his fingertips. Instantly, his body faintly trembled. When I looked up at him, I saw Heinley smiling as he looked at me. The moment our eyes met, he grasped my hand tightly and asked with an even wider smile, ¡°Have you eaten yet?¡± ¡°Not yet...¡± ¡°Would you like to eat together?¡± When I nodded, he intertwined his fingers with mine and walked over to the desk, pushing the small bell on the side. A momentter, an attendant entered. The attendant flinched when his gaze flicked over to our intertwined hands. Feeling more embarrassed, I turned my head toward the window. *** We were in the middle of eating. It was awkward at first, but as we talked, that feeling gradually dissipated. At one point, we even began to talk morefortably, but then Heinley asked carefully, ¡°By the way Queen, does the image of me really keep popping up in your mind?¡± As soon as I heard that, the end of the sd cabbage got stuck in my throat. He quickly offered me a ss of water when I started coughing. ¡°It must be true if you¡¯re so surprised about it.¡± After having some water, I responded firmly, ¡°Not anymore.¡± Of course, it was a lie, but there was no way to tell. Unfortunately, Heinley was very sharp. ¡°No. That¡¯s not what you said a moment ago.¡± ¡°You misunderstood me,¡± I lied once again. But he was persistent and asked again, ignoring my words, ¡°Queen. Does my image keep popping up in your mind?¡± ¡°I said no.¡± ¡°Queen.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°After our wedding, I¡¯ll be able to show you my body every day.¡± Although I drank some more water to avoid choking, it was unavoidable when I heard his words. Tears welled up in my eyes as I coughed. I red at him sharply. Heinley lowered his eyes shyly in response and held out a handkerchief to me. But he immediately regretted it and put it away. However, I had already recognized the handkerchief. It was the handkerchief that had been tied around Queen¡¯s neck. I confronted him, ¡°Isn¡¯t that mine?¡± Hearing my confident tone, Heinley reluctantly handed me the handkerchief and defended himself, ¡°You didn¡¯t ask me to give it back...¡± ¡°Because I gave it to the bird.¡± ¡°I am the bird. So Queen gave it to me.¡± I was about to argue back, but suddenly the thought of Heinley¡¯s neck intruded into my mind. Heinley is naked when he bes Queen. Does that mean that, at the time, he was naked with a handkerchief tied around his neck? ...don¡¯t think about it. It was a very embarrassing image, so I handed the handkerchief back to him instead of arguing. ¡°Queen?¡± ¡°I wasn¡¯t thinking anything.¡± Heinley, who was folding the handkerchief, bit his lips hard. Because of my thoughts, I ended up saying something I shouldn¡¯t have. So I deliberately put on a cold expression. But instead of stopping there, Heinley whispered with a smirk, ¡°Queen. If there¡¯s anything you want to see, you can tell me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I can make Queen¡¯s imaginatione true.¡± ¡°!¡± *** Sovieshu repeatedly folded and unfolded the newspaper throughout the night. He read Navier¡¯s interview from cover to cover, over and over again. He had no idea how many times he had done it. Even after memorizing the interview word for word, Sovieshu could not take his eyes off the paper. He felt his heart twisting, the pain so strong that he couldn¡¯t sleep. ¡®Did she hear when I promised Rashta that I would divorce her? Did Navier hear it with her own ears?¡¯ It was hard to guess how much it had affected her because of her proud personality. He was finding it difficult to breathe, it was like he was suffocating. He felt like his head was about to explode as his heart twisted and turned. Sovieshu pounded his heart with his fist several times. For some reason, just thinking about it was painful. He kept repeating this action throughout the night. By the time the sun rose, even just touching that area caused him pain. His servants noticed his bruises when they helped him change his clothes. After instructing the rmed servants not to make a fuss, Sovieshu ordered Marquis Karl to be summoned. He sat on the bed and closed his eyes. As time went on, he began to think that this must have been some kind of misunderstanding. Chapter 195 - Rashta’s Anxiety (2) Chapter 195. Rashta¡¯s Anxiety (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe ¡®When I told Rashta about the divorce, I was very clear about the one-year period. But I didn¡¯t say who the empress would be after the year was over. Maybe that¡¯s why Navier misunderstood. Did she think I would bring in another empress after Rashta? No, she probably didn¡¯t even hear that part. Yes. That must be it. I have to let her know the truth.¡¯ Navier, who had already remarried, might note back right away, but Sovieshu felt he should at least clear up the misunderstanding. ording to rumors, Heinley was a well-known yboy. Such a man would hurt Navier. Navier married him out of shock, but it was clear he would eventually cause her pain. Sovieshu wanted to let Navier know he had no intention of abandoning her... This way, she woulde back here after she gets upset. Sovieshu got out of bed and walked over to the desk. He took out a piece of paper and quickly began to write a letter. Although he did not know what to do after clearing up the misunderstanding, for him, this came first. He felt the only thing standing between him and Navier was this misunderstanding. He was confident things would somehow work out once the issue was resolved. After writing the letter and sealing it with wax, Marquis Karl arrived, ¡°Your Majesty, you called for me?¡± Sovieshu handed the sealed letter to Marquis Karl. There was no name of the sender or the addressee on the letter. Marquis Karl epted it in bewilderment, ¡°This is...¡± ¡°It is for Navier.¡± ¡°You mean the queen?¡± The corners of Sovieshu¡¯s eyes rose at the word queen, and Marquis Karl immediately closed his mouth. Sovieshu continued, ¡°King Heinley might prevent her from receiving it, so it must be secretly delivered to Navier directly.¡± *** There was someone else who was just as disturbed as Sovieshu. ¡®Rashta is getting married...¡¯ It was Viscount Roteschu. Roteschu frowned and stared at the gossip magazine. He was upset all because of a news item that appeared in the magazine today. The news that Rashta was going to marry Emperor Sovieshu. ording to the gossip magazine, many merchants came and went from the imperial pce to prepare for her wedding. Expensive jewelry, carpets, silks, and rare items from Rwibt were entering the imperial pce in carriages one after another, and famous florists suddenly became very busy. While the gossip magazine noted the news had not been officially acknowledged by the imperial family, it insisted there would be a wedding, arguing that there was no other reason for these merchants to being and going. The so-called ¡®experts¡¯ in the magazine also predicted there would most likely be a wedding soon. Some imed the marriage would not be with Rashta but to a youngdy from another great noble family. However, there were no young unmarrieddies of the same age as Sovieshu in any noble familyparable to the Trobi Family, the family of Queen Navier. There were many youngdies in lower-ranking families, but if this was a political marriage, then it did not make sense that he would have divorced Navier to bring a youngdy from a lesser family. Therefore, the majority of opinions was that it would not be a political marriage, but a marriage out of love, and the bride would be Rashta. ¡®Heavens. She really will be the empress.¡¯ Knowing Rashta was a ve, Viscount Roteschu shook his head. He was surprised, but also felt very strange. ¡®How derisory this world is. To think the ve I used to own would be the empress.¡¯ On the other hand, n, Roteschu¡¯s son, waspletely discouraged by the news of Rashta¡¯s marriage and locked himself in his room. His daughter, Rivetti, was angry and frightened, ¡°As soon as she bes the empress she will take revenge on us, father!¡± ¡°No, why do you say that?¡± ¡°Because we know her secrets.¡± ¡°Huh, all the more reason for her to be careful.¡± ¡°What if she hires an assassin to kill us?¡± Viscount Roteschu snorted, but he couldn¡¯t help but feel anxious. Even though he was secretly raising Rashta¡¯s baby just in case, the anxiety didn¡¯t disappear. What if Rashta decided to kill her own child? At that moment, someone knocked at the door. The visitor was an employee of the imperial pce Viscount Roteschu had bribed. Ever since he started ckmailing Rashta, Viscount Roteschu regrly bribed the imperial pce staff. The knights and nobles would keep their mouths shut because they had a stronger sense of loyaltypared to those who only worked in the imperial pce for remuneration. Of course, he lied to them iming he was gathering information for Rashta, and due to Rashta¡¯s poprity among themoners, this excuse was well epted. The employee who visited Viscount Roteschu was one of those people. ¡°What is wrong, do you have something important to say?¡± Roteschu asked as he hurried to let the employee in. Considering how things were right now, even a little information would be important. However, the information given by the employee was more valuable than expected, ¡°His Majesty secretly sent a letter to the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°To the Western Kingdom?¡± he inquired. ¡°Yes. Secretly, without any official record.¡± Afterward, the employee left with the extra payment. Viscount Roteschuughed wildly. A good idea urred to him as soon as he heard the employee¡¯s words. He quickly got ready and went to visit Rashta. *** Entering her room, Rashta greeted him indifferently, ¡°What do you want?¡± It was the first time the two had seen each other since Viscount Roteschu saw Rashta with her fake parents. Roteschu smiled as he sat on the couch across from Rashta, holding back his anger, ¡°Do you know what news I have for you?¡± ¡°You are trying to ckmail me again,¡± Rashta spoke coldly and sat down opposite to him. Then, Viscount Roteschu said with a smile, ¡°I heard the Emperor has sent a letter to Empress Navier.¡± ¡°Empress? You mean to the deposed empress.¡± ¡°Well, to the deposed empress.¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta raised her eyebrows. On second thought, Rashta realized that the point was not whether to call her empress deposed or empress. A letter? ¡°What¡¯s the letter about?¡± she asked. ¡°That I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you steal the letter?¡± ¡°Being an envoy of His Majesty, the messenger must not be ordinary. How could I have the money to hire a mercenary capable of snatching the letter from him?¡± ¡®But I¡¯ve given him a lot of money.¡¯ Rashta swallowed the words that were about toe out of her mouth, she knew what Roteschu was trying to say. He had note just to convey this information. He was now¡ª ¡°Do you think you¡¯re a good informant? Rashta can find out something like that too.¡± ¡°But you didn¡¯t know that,¡± Viscount Roteschu smiled with narrowed eyes and leaned forward with his hands on his legs, ¡°I told you. I told you, you needed me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°We both know each other very well. But what about your fake parents? They only know your good side and don¡¯t you want them to only see your good side?¡± Rashta couldn¡¯t answer. Marsha and Gillimt were good people, but her rtionship with them was like a sandcastle. No matter how well they treated her, Rashta was not their biological daughter. They didn¡¯t even know yet that their fake daughter was really a ve. ¡°Rashta, Rashta. People like us must hold hands to stand,¡± Viscount Roteschu whispered persuasively. Rashta leaned back on the couch and moved her lips nervously. Last night, Sovieshu had sung a sweet luby to her belly, yet today he secretly sent a letter to Navier. If it was about something bad, he would have sent it officially. However, knowing he sent the letter secretly, she was sure it was a letter of apology. This morning, Rashta received a newspaper from the Western Kingdom, which had published an interview with Navier. Maybe Sovieshu was apologizing for that. Rashta said as she nervously wiggled her fingers, ¡°Haven¡¯t we been holding hands before?¡± ¡°Of course... that¡¯s true,¡± The corners of Viscount Roteschu¡¯s eyes curled up in satisfaction. ¡°Anyway, if it¡¯s because of the deposed empress, you can rest easy, Rashta. Will the queen, who remarried, reallye back?¡± ¡°Rashta is not worried about the deposed empress.¡± ¡°Okay, okay.¡± ¡°Really.¡± ¡°Well, you don¡¯t have to worry about His Majesty looking at other women either. I¡¯ll take care of that.¡± At Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words, Rashta pursed her lips and nodded, ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Ah, I saw the gossip magazine, did it say you might get married?¡± ¡°Watch your mouth.¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯ll be careful, my Empress.¡± Roteschu, who let out a frivolous chuckle, held out his empty hand. He was asking for money again. Rashta was angry, but she suppressed her anger and gave some jewels to Roteschu. Viscount Roteschu smiled, pocketed the jewels then got up. ¡°Until next time then.¡± Having gotten what he wanted, he headed for the door to leave. ¡°Wait,¡± Rashta called after him. When he stopped, Rashta approached Roteschu and asked him for a favor, ¡°There is someone I need to find.¡± ¡°Someone? Who?¡± ¡°A girl a little younger than me.¡± ¡°Is she the same age as Rivetti?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I need you to help me find her anyway. She¡¯s my parents¡¯ second daughter.¡± Viscount Roteschu looked at Rashta, wondering if she meant it. Rashta became even more disgusted at the look on Roteschu¡¯s face. She was already very angry at the idea of finding her fake sister. ¡°First find her.¡± When Rashta repeated the request, Viscount Roteschu muttered, ¡°Well...¡± and shrugged, ¡°I¡¯ll find her first. What exactly is the name of your fake parents?¡± Chapter 196 - Keep Pampering Me (1)

Chapter 196 ¨C Keep Pampering Me (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Even after Viscount Roteschu left, her troubled mind did not calm down easily. Rashta paced around her room as she looked at the clock. Sovieshu wasn¡¯t going toe back untilter. Rashta nervously stepped out into the corridor, looked around, and headed for the Western Pce. After the empress left, the West Pce remained calm and quiet. All the bustlingdies-in-waiting of the West Pce returned to their homes while the number of maids and servants was greatly reduced. They only came once a day to clean the corridors, but Rashta knew that it was not yet time for the maids toe and clean. She quickly entered the West Pce. This was her new hobby. She would enter the Empress¡¯ room to improve her mood. When she asked Sovieshu for the key, he found it absurd but gave it to her without any problems. It was an empty room anyway, so he didn¡¯t care what she did. The inside of the room hadn¡¯t even been cleaned because the new empress hadn¡¯t been chosen yet, so Rashta went in and out of that room avoiding people¡¯s gazes. Today was the same. Rashta quickly closed the door as she entered the room. She felt better after closing the door behind her. Rashta leaned against the door and gazed at the morous empty room. The furniture was still there, but it wasn¡¯t being used by anyone. Strangely, this ce felt extremely gloomy. ¡®It will get better if I use it,¡¯ Rashta thought to herself as she walked around the room. Even if she was just wandering, Rashta felt better already. Rashta, who felt like the empress, smiled as she imitated the body movements she had seen Navier do before. She was not good at studying. No matter how much she studied, she did not get good results. But her way of speaking and behaving was already quite noble. One of the etiquette teachers, who had taught Navier, was so surprised that she asked, ¡°How can you look so much like Navier?¡± ¡®The important part is etiquette, the way you speak and the way you behave.¡¯ She was sure everyoneparing her to the former empress would be surprised on the wedding day. This made Rashta¡¯s mood much better. Definitely much better. Since she arrived, Rashta started going through all the furniture in the room one by one. Then suddenly, she found something strange. ¡®What is this?¡¯ The top of the chair, which at first nce didn¡¯t seem unusual, stuck out a bit. When she took the pad cushion off the chair, she unexpectedly came across a wooden box. What she thought until now was a mere chair, actually concealed a wooden box. But that wasn¡¯t the most surprising thing by far. There was a pile of documents inside the wooden box. ¡®Are these documents of the deposed empress?¡¯ Rashta pulled out the documents out of curiosity. ¡®Application for state funding?¡¯ Some of the documents were rted to that topic. Others were rted to orphanages. After looking at the clock and confirming that she still had time, Rashta sat down and examined the documents carefully. The documents were written in easy-to-understand words, so she could tell what they were about if she read them carefully. They included orphanages, nursing homes, support facilities for single parents, free hospitals, meal services, among others. These were institutions that Empress Navier had personally sponsored under the name of the Imperial Family. Moreover, there was even a letter at the end of the documents. Rashta held the documents with one hand and the letter with the other. ¡®To Miss Rashta...¡¯ The letter was in a quiet style, where she expressed that she could no longer provide support for these ces after the divorce because she sponsored them under the name of the Imperial Family. It also mentioned that it was not possible to apply for state funds now, because state funding was renewed every year. She had prepared an application for state funding in advance for when Rashta became the empress, so when that time came, she should submit this application for state funding under her name. However, there were now many organizations receiving state funding, so it could be rejected due to budgetary problems. If that happened, Navier indicated that Rashta should go ahead with her own money under the name of the imperial family, as she did before. Other than that, she spoke of nothing else. It was a monotonous letter, such as one would give to their sessor. If there was one point she revealed her feelings, it was when she pointed out that Rashta should not sponsor them under her name because things could get messed up. After reading the letter, Rashta felt really strange. As if to exacerbate this feeling, something fell out. It was two promissory notes of an enormous sum. If the contents of the letter were true, this was the amount of money needed to be able to sponsor these institutions for two years. ¡®The interview was true. She really did know about the divorce.¡¯ Rashta frowned. She felt even more unpleasant about feeling sorry for the Empress deep inside, but she couldn¡¯t admit that Navier had been a formidable Empress. To acknowledge this would make her feel bad for getting rid of a good Empress. But Rashta couldn¡¯t think of herself as a bad person. The empress was lucky enough to be born as such, but Rashta had a hard time getting here. Even after she got here, she was still struggling to survive. Although Rashta hadn¡¯t caused any harm to the Empress, Empress Navier tried to push her away. Didn¡¯t Empress Navier try to get rid of Rashta, but she ended up being driven out by her own actions? ¡®That¡¯s right. Wouldn¡¯t it have been different if she hadn¡¯t used abortion pills or asked her brother to attack me in the first ce?¡¯ Then she would have lived without being ousted from the position of empress. The deposed empress had brought this on herself. Rashta could not believe that she had now written a letter that could make anyoneugh. It was hypocritical. ¡®She despises Rashta, right?¡¯ Fully convinced, Rashta angrily took the promissory notes, letter, and documents. ¡®Shouldn¡¯t they be sponsored under Rashta¡¯s name?¡¯ Rashta snorted in disgust. ¡®Things could get messed up? She only said that because she didn¡¯t want Rashta¡¯s reputation to rise.¡¯ Sponsoring these organizations would allow anyone to gain people¡¯s trust. ¡®I¡¯ll do it all under Rashta¡¯s name. Isn¡¯t it Rashta who will do it? Why should I write it under the Imperial Family¡¯s name?¡¯ Chapter 197 - Keep Pampering Me (2)

Chapter 197 ¨C Keep Pampering Me (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe It was a few days after my brother left for the knights¡¯ expedition. ¡°Aren¡¯t Lord Koshar and Your Majesty the Queen twins?¡± Mastas, who was diligently polishing the spear on herp, asked unexpectedly. She looked up at me as I pondered over what the question was about, ¡°We are not twins.¡± When I responded with a smile, she said, ¡°Oh...¡± and nodded. Seeing this, Rose grinned wickedly and gently nudged Mastas in the ribs. ¡°He interests you?¡± Mastas nodded casually, ¡°Yes.¡± When Rose looked at her in surprise at her confident answer, Mastas continued speaking casually, ¡°My brother says he¡¯s very strong. I¡¯d like to test him.¡± ¡°By test, you mean a fight, right?¡± As soon as Rose asked suspiciously, Mastas nodded, ¡°Yes,¡± she replied as she looked at Rose as if she were a pervert. ¡°Queen! Don¡¯t you think Miss Rose¡¯s mind is very dirty?¡± After being together for several days, the two seemed to get along much better. When Laura and Countess Jubel arrived, this ce would be even more lively. I missed Countess Eliza and the otherdies-in-waiting, but fortunately, I was also happy with the new ones I met here. ¡®Ah!¡¯ It¡¯s true. As I smiled at both of them, a good idea suddenly urred to me. ¡°Miss Rose.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Who is the most popr person in the Western Kingdom¡¯s high society?¡± Rose nodded and named two individuals, ¡°Duke Liberty and Miss Muney.¡± ¡°Two people?¡± ¡°Originally the most popr was Heinley. He was followed in poprity by Duke Liberty and Miss Muney, but now things have changed. No one can treat His Majesty as a popr socialite now that he has ascended the throne.¡± Rose added after a moment¡¯s reflection, ¡°Ah, Duke Liberty and Miss Muney are close rtives. Duke Liberty is the brother of Miss Muney¡¯s mother.¡± ¡°Would it be possible to meet them both?¡± As soon as I asked, Rose smiled as if she had realized my intentions. ¡°You want to persuade both of them, no?¡± But the following was not positive, ¡°It¡¯s a good idea, but it won¡¯t be easy.¡± ¡°Are they Christa¡¯s subordinates?¡± ¡°Duke Liberty.¡± ¡°What about Miss Muney...?¡± ¡°She and Christa don¡¯t get along so well, they even once had a fight.¡± In that case, I guess it¡¯s alright, no? When I raised an eyebrow, Rose shook her head and continued, ¡°Miss Muney was originally one of the candidates for Queen.¡± ¡°That¡¯s alright.¡± ¡°Not only that. She¡¯s also a very ambitious youngdy with a domineering personality. I don¡¯t think she likes to serve others...¡± ¡°That¡¯s still alright. She doesn¡¯t have to be my subordinate.¡± Duchess Tuania was not my subordinate either. She was just my friend. Rose seemed troubled by my words but replied, ¡°I¡¯ll arrange an appointment.¡± I nodded and rose from my seat. At the thought of Duchess Tuania, I came up with an even better idea. ¡®Why didn¡¯t I think of it sooner?¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Rose asked. ¡°I need to see Sir McKenna.¡± ¡°Not King Heinley?¡± Taking with me Rose and Mastas, who were surprised, I went to see McKenna. McKenna seemed puzzled to see me but greeted me with a soft smile. After everyone left the office so I could talk to him privately, I carefully asked, ¡°I know you can turn yourself into a bird... can I ask you a question about that?¡± McKenna seemed more puzzled when I brought this up, but simply replied, ¡°Yes.¡± I realized that McKenna was worried I would be angry for having deceived me. But I didn¡¯te all this way for that reason. ¡°In bird form, how long would it take you to find someone?¡± When McKenna heard my question, he responded with a bit of relief, ¡°Is there someone you want to find?¡± ¡°Yes. Is that possible?¡± ¡°Do you know their location?¡± ¡°No. I¡¯m sure she¡¯s not in the Eastern Empire, but I don¡¯t know anything else.¡± ¡°In that case, it would be a bit difficult.¡± However, contrary to expectations, McKenna said it was a bit difficult to find someone like that. Even if he searched in bird form, he would have to check the faces one by one. It would be possible if he knew the approximate location, but it was hard to find someone guided only by ¡®she¡¯s not in the Eastern Empire¡¯. ¡°It might work to put up wanted posters,¡± McKenna said with a smile. His suggestion surprised me. I returned to the detached pce. The person I was looking for was Duchess Tuania. I would rather not find her, than look for her with wanted posters. I thought about it for a moment and this time I asked Rose, ¡°Do you remember the journalist who interviewed me before?¡± ¡°Yes. That journalist¡¯s interview with the Queen appeared in a newspaper and became a topic of conversation.¡± ¡°Is that journalist still at the royal pce?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°Can you call the journalist? Navy blue hair...¡± ¡°Yes.¡± About two hours after asking Rose to call the journalist, I was able to meet the journalist I had seen before. ¡°My name is Janan, Your Majesty.¡± The journalist looked nervous because he didn¡¯t know why I had called him. However, when he looked at me there was a glint of intelligence in his eyes. ¡°I called you because I would like you to write an article in the newspaper as if it were another interview.¡± ¡°What do you want the article to be about...¡± ¡°About how well I¡¯m adjusting to the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± Janan seemed to not understand why I wanted him to write something like that. However, he nodded more calmly and answered confidently, ¡°It¡¯s not difficult.¡± ¡°I want you to write that I am adjusting well to the Western Kingdom, there are many good people here, but sometimes I miss my old friends... something like that.¡± ¡°Is that all Your Majesty needs...?¡± ¡°I would also like the names of my friends to appear in the article.¡± Janan was confused, but nodded and pulled out his notebook. I mentioned among the names of mydies-in-waiting, the name of Duchess Tuania. After Janan left. I stood by the window feeling satisfied, while Rose and Mastas went to bring dinner. I called the journalist to find Duchess Tuania, so I intentionally put her name among those of mydies-in-waiting. Duchess Tuania was smart and insightful, so after reading the interview article she would realize right away that I was looking for her. She promised to help me someday. If that was true, Duchess Tuania woulde to see me... ¡®If Duchess Tuaniaes here, she would also sooner orter dominate the high society of the Western Kingdom.¡¯ The only way to be loved by the people is to show it with actions. In the end, the people loved the queen for what she offered not for her speeches. But in high society it was different. They were already people of enormous wealth and reputation. It was difficult to approach them simply by ying the role of queen well. I had to approach them personally, and for that, I needed a socialite. A socialite who was on my side. ¡®Duchess Tuania could y that role quite well.¡¯ At that moment, there was a knock at the door, so I set my thoughts aside and quickly opened it. The person standing at the door was Heinley, not my twodies-in-waiting. ¡°Heinley?¡± Heinley¡¯s face looked somewhat downcast, so I asked in confusion, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± He looked at me with a heavy expression, then took my hand gently, kissed the back of it, and replied to my question with another, ¡°Queen, are you lonely?¡± What was he talking about? Why was he asking that out of the blue? It was strange. ¡°No?¡± I will definitely miss my parents in the future. But it hasn¡¯t been long enough to cry from loneliness. Heinley looked at me with wet eyes. Although I wasn¡¯t lonely, he didn¡¯t seem to believe what I was saying. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡®Did he hear something from someone?¡¯ Concerned, he whispered, ¡°I heard... about an article saying Queen is very lonely...¡± ¡°Did the journalist tell you? That fast?¡± ¡°On my way here I met the journalist. When I asked him what had happened, he told me Queen asked him to publish an article in the newspaper about her being lonely...¡± I don¡¯t know if the journalist made that up on purpose or if he misunderstood me. The situation was awkward but also quite funny, so I shook my head and replied, ¡°It¡¯s not like that, Heinley.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to be lonely, Queen.¡± ¡°I really am fine.¡± ¡°If you wish... I can spend the night by your side as ¡®Queen¡¯.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Whatever you do, I will be still. Please, pamper me as much as you want. Like before. Would that make you feel better?¡± ¡°...¡± I didn¡¯t know what expression I put on, but Heinley quickly changed his words to imply that it was a joke. It was a good choice. I calmly warned him, ¡°Next time youe as ¡®Queen,¡¯ I¡¯ll put clothes on you.¡± I pretended to be considerate, but I was only teasing Heinley about what he had just said. He smiled and asked if it was alright for me to dress him in bird form, ¡°Will you dress me yourself? Should we dress the same as a couple?¡± But just as I was about to respond, I saw my twodies-in-waiting over Heinley¡¯s shoulder. They seemed to have brought dinner. Instead of responding to Heinley, I thought I¡¯d call them first. The twodies-in-waiting looked like their jaws were about to drop. But... why? Their eyes were wide, stunned to say the least. When I thought about why they had that expression, I realized Heinley¡¯s words were very strange. Especially the part about ¡°spending the night by my side as ¡®Queen¡¯.¡± They didn¡¯t know Heinley was ¡®Queen¡¯, so they may have thought he was wearing my dresses... Oh no! I shook my head frantically at them and quickly dragged Heinley into my room. ¡°Come with me.¡± He was my husband now. I couldn¡¯t let another rumor like the ones about him being a yboy and naked kinge up. Rushing in, I mmed the door harder than expected. Hearing the door m in front of me, naturally, my face contorted. I wondered if Heinley was alright. I turned to him and his eyes were wide open, his body caught between my arm and the door. Chapter 198 - Breaking Point (1) Chapter 198. Breaking Point (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe I did not intend to be in such a dominant position. When I withdrew my embarrassed hand, Heinley¡¯s expression of embarrassment quickly dissolved, and he whispered with grinning eyes, ¡°My heart was pounding just now, Queen.¡± ¡°Are you joking in a situation like this?¡± ¡°I¡¯m joking because we¡¯re in a situation like this.¡± ¡°...Well. Ignorance is bliss.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Heinley, who was unaware that mydies-in-waiting had misunderstood our conversation, seemed perplexed by my words. I tapped the doorknob for no reason and sat down in a chair at the tea-table. Heinley pranced over with light steps, as if jumping for joy, and sat down opposite to me. ¡°Don¡¯t you feel so lonely when I¡¯m next to you?¡± Hearing that, I understood why Heinley was still joking. He was still anxious about my interview. I was grateful for such consideration, so I reached out and took his hand, ¡°I¡¯m really fine, Heinley. It¡¯s inevitable to miss my old friends, but I don¡¯t feel lonely here.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°There¡¯s Rose, there¡¯s Mastas, there¡¯s my brother... and there¡¯s you here too.¡± ¡°!¡± Heinley smiled broadly, happy to hear those words, and muttered, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± As I looked at that smile, I felt a strange tingling sensation. It was difficult to even stay in the same ce, to the point where I had the urge to walk everywhere. In the end, I couldn¡¯t stand it. I got up and walked slowly around the room. But it didn¡¯t work very well, so I quickly moved on to another topic, ¡°I¡¯ve seen the ce where the wedding is being prepared.¡± ¡°Are you talking about the Grand Banquet Hall?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± ¡°What did you think?¡± Fortunately, Heinley followed this topic. Perhaps it was a topic that mattered more to him, he even listened with a twinkle in his eye to my words. Heinley continued, ¡°I ordered the Great Banquet Hall to be decorated as morously and beautifully as possible. How did it look to you, Queen?¡± There was still a tingling feeling in my hands and feet, but I tried my best to answer as calmly as possible, ¡°It¡¯s looking nice.¡± ¡°What a relief!¡± ¡°But I¡¯m worried that the wedding will be too morous.¡± ¡°That¡¯s okay. The Western Kingdom is the capital of jewels.¡± I don¡¯t know how many times he has said that this country was the capital of jewels. At this point, I became curious. Just how many jewels were produced here to be able to boast about it? As I wondered, Heinley murmured anxiously, ¡°It must be absolutely dazzling. Absolutely.¡± He seemed to have thought I was frowning because I didn¡¯t want a morous wedding. I shook my head, ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want it to be morous.¡± There are times when simple is appropriate and times when morous is appropriate. Now, you could find reasons for the wedding to be morous or simple, so there was no need to oppose it just because he wanted it to be fancy. I was just concerned that it was on an excessive and meaningless level. What¡¯s wrong with him? Heinley¡¯s expression was strange. He had a half-smiling face like he wanted to brag about something. Because of his strange expression, I called him by name, ¡°Heinley, what¡¯s wrong?¡± Heinley then mumbled sheepishly, ¡°Well, I have no choice but to tell you now... I wanted to do it in a really cool way.¡± ¡°In a cool way? What do you mean?¡± ¡°A confession.¡± ¡°A confession...¡± He had something to confess... Ah! ¡°No way...Really?¡± Was he trying to say that he likes me? Looking up in embarrassment, Heinley asked, even more surprised, ¡°Uh? You guessed it?¡± I looked at him in surprise, trying to calm my racing heart. Was he really trying to say he liked me? I felt so embarrassed. ¡°I didn¡¯t guess. Well, maybe a little... I was just trying to get an idea of what it might be.¡± Heinley admired me with a really surprised look, ¡°You¡¯re definitely a Queen. How many moves did you anticipate?¡± ¡°...¡± I closed my mouth and lowered my gaze ufortably. In fact, it was strange. Was he talking about the benefits of marrying him? Of course, there were many. But for a confession, I thought of many possibilities, and one of them was love. Probably not as lovey-dovey as Sovieshu and Rashta¡¯s, but even if it was weak, he might feel some kind of attraction towards me. However, among the things that crossed my mind, it seemed to be one of the less likely ones. Even if he felt an attraction toward me, I thought it was more of a friendship. But I couldn¡¯t help but be embarrassed, he wouldn¡¯t confess this, right? No, rather, how should I react if he did confess it? Heinley, who was surprised, smiled softly and took my hands, ¡°I wanted to surprise you. It¡¯s a little sad to know that you already expected it.¡± ¡°That is disconcerting.¡± ¡°Yes. You¡¯ll be busier. But it will be worth it. In fact, it was only a matter of time.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°On our wedding day, you will be the First Empress of the Western Empire.¡± Heinley beamed and looked at me proudly with a radiant face that dreamed of a bright future. But at that moment, I hadn¡¯t fully understood his words. Empress? It wasn¡¯t the confession I had expected... Why did he mention this all of a sudden? ¡°Queen?¡± I was so puzzled that I couldn¡¯t control my facial expressions, so Heinley asked hurriedly, ¡°Queen? Don¡¯t you like it?¡± *** I didn¡¯t realize how incredible Heinley¡¯s words were until the next day. First Empress of the Western Empire. He intended to proim himself Emperor. Chapter 199. - Breaking Point (2) Chapter 199. Breaking Point (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe My heart was overflowing with so much joy that I grasped the sheets as soon as I woke up and stretched them repeatedly. In fact, everyone wondered why the Western Kingdom did not proim itself as an Empire. I didn¡¯t know the answer either. What everyone was sure of, however, was that the Western Kingdom had the power and wealth to be an Empire. My heart was beating fast, our wedding day will be the moment when the Kingdom bes an Empire. Undoubtedly, this event will be engraved in history. It was overwhelming to know that I would be part of that history. It was also amazing and admirable to see Heinley, who had been far from the throne, move forward in this way. ¡®I must be a good empress.¡¯ Although it is true that even if it did not be an empire, I still have to be a good queen. As the first Remarried Empress and the first Empress of the Western Empire, I had to be more careful with my actions and focus on the role of Empress. ¡®No, now is not the time to think about that.¡¯ I hurriedly got out of bed and picked up the book I was reading every day since I arrived here. In this book, the clerk of the Western Kingdom recorded the king¡¯s meetings for about twenty years. After a while, mydies-in-waiting came to help me change clothes for breakfast, but except for those moments, I did not stop reading the book. I was so absorbed in the book that I didn¡¯t even realize the passage of time. Rose called out to me, ¡°Your Majesty. Mondrae, a journalist from the Blue Newspaper, would like to meet with Your Majesty the Queen.¡± ¡°Blue Newspaper?¡± ¡°It¡¯s one of the three newspapers that has permission to ess the royal pce.¡± As soon as I heard that, I knew what was going on. The three newspapers that had permission to ess the royal pce must bepeting with each other, but I had granted two interviews to only one of them. So this journalist must havee here in a fit of anxiety. The problem was... that he came to interview mete, so he will want to write as sensational of an article as possible. That means he was likely to ask ufortable questions. ¡°What do you want to do?¡± After thinking about it for a while, I answered, ¡°Let him in.¡± I couldn¡¯t avoid him forever anyway. Rose left with a worried face, and soon the journalist named Mondrae entered. Mondrae had the figure of a burly gentleman. Seeing him enter with a determined look, he seemed to be well prepared. Yet I greeted him with a smile as if I hadn¡¯t noticed. After the greeting, Mondrae made a couple of formalpliments. I thought he would ask the difficult question, but it started quite normally. ¡°Your Majesty¡¯s reputation is widely known, much has been heard about your ability. So, Your Majesty must be a good queen for the Western Kingdom.¡± What is hidden behind those words? He continued, ¡°But I¡¯m also a little worried.¡± Here goes. ¡°The reputation that Your Majesty earned as Empress was, essentially, because of your great love for the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°...¡± It seemed that the difficult question he chose was a bit more difficult than expected. I couldn¡¯t speak without thinking, so Mondrae continued with a very anxious face, ¡°It won¡¯t be a problem as long as the Eastern Empire and the Western Kingdom do note into conflict but... if the two countries were to one daypete for an advantage, what would Your Majesty do in this awkward position?¡± *** Sovieshu was restless, he could not stop wondering if the letter he sent to Navier had reached her hands without any inconvenience. ¡®Did the knight carrying the letter suddenly lose his way? Could he have encountered a very strong bandit who stole the letter? What if the knight was unable to hand over the letter because of a sudden heart attack?¡¯ Sovieshu was too worried that he might lose the letter. Even if a very strong bandit appeared, he wouldn¡¯t be able to steal the letter, but right now Sovieshu couldn¡¯t stop having wild thoughts. Just imagining that something bad could have happened to the letter made him shudder. He was confident that when the letter reached Navier¡¯s hands, everything would go back to the way it was before. However, although he was restless, he still had to go into the audience chamber. ¡®I must be going mad¡¯. He already felt troubled, but there were many requests today to bless couples who would be getting married. Sovieshu did not want to see any of them, so the atmosphere naturally became heavy. However, the couples that made this request epted the heavy atmosphere as the dignity of the emperor. This was because Sovieshu managed his facial expression properly and smiled kindly at all times despite his insincere blessing. Fortunately, thest people he would see in the audience chamber today were not a couple in love, who was getting married. They were a married couple with a girl of about fourteen. ¡°This girl will be our daughter from today on. We beg you to bless this girl, Your Majesty.¡± Just like bringing a newborn baby to be blessed, they brought their adopted daughter to be blessed. This time, Sovieshu sincerely blessed the girl¡¯s future. Then he suddenly remembered the orphan that Navier supported. After finishing his duty in the audience chamber, Sovieshu went out into the corridor and ordered Marquis Karl. ¡°Bring Navier¡¯s aides to the office.¡± As he went to the office and checked some ims, two of Navier¡¯s aides came in. ¡°You are Navier¡¯s aides?¡± he asked. The two aides became nervous at Sovieshu¡¯s sudden call, and they became even more anxious when Sovieshu mentioned the former empress. They feared that the emperor would take his anger out on them. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°There was an orphan that Navier took care of on her own. Who was responsible for that?¡± When Sovieshu mentioned the orphan that Navier had taken care of, one of the aides stepped forward, puzzled, ¡°It was my duty, Your Majesty.¡± ¡®Why is the emperor asking such a question?¡¯ the aide thought. His expression froze, unable toprehend the situation. Sovieshu continued with what he wanted to say, ¡°That girl, I heard her mana disappeared.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°How is she now, what about the patronage?¡± ¡°She¡¯s still at the Magical Academy, and as far as I know, she¡¯s receiving patronage from Duke Troby...¡± ¡°You¡¯re no longer responsible for that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m working in another department now,¡± replied the aide, ring at Sovieshu. After Navier¡¯s divorce, he had naturally switched departments. Sovieshu nodded and ordered, ¡°It is no longer necessary for Duke Troby to fund her.¡± The aide was surprised by Sovieshu¡¯s words and immediately asked, ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°That girl, do you know what she looks like?¡± ¡°Yes. I used to periodically meet with her to see how she was doing.¡± ¡°I want to see her, so bring her here.¡± The aide was even more perplexed. Sovieshu had ordered to bring the girl because Navier was very fond of her, so he wanted to support her directly. However, Sovieshu was against leaving that girl, whose mana had disappeared, in the Magical Academy. If she stayed in that ce, the girl would continue to regret losing her mana and think that she was useless. Sooner orter she would have to face reality, so he preferred to bring her in and help her find another future. Sovieshu would even allow her to stay in the capital if the girl agreed. Then, when Navier returned one day, she would be relieved and happy. However, the aides were uneasy because they couldn¡¯t imagine that Sovieshu, who had candidly abandoned the empress, would take care of the girl whom Navier cherished very much. *** The two aides weren¡¯t the only ones confused about Sovieshu¡¯s actions. ¡°Did he order to bring in a woman?¡± Rashta asked dumbfounded when she heard from Viscount Roteschu that Sovieshu had ordered to bring a woman. ¡°Speak clearly. A woman or a girl?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. But, being a student of the Magical Academy, she must be about the same age as Rivetti.¡± ¡°Magical Academy...¡± Rashta groaned. She felt hurt that Sovieshu had ordered to bring in a girl who was talented in magic. Having gotten rid of the great noble Navier, her head was spinning at the thought of a mageing this time. She thought Sovieshu would never cheat on her. Was it a misconception? Others might think Sovieshu was having an affair with Rashta, but Rashta didn¡¯t think Sovieshu¡¯s love towards her was a simple affair. Sovieshu and Navier had a political marriage. Neither Sovieshu nor Navier loved each other. Rashta frowned as she rubbed her hands together. He¡¯s bringing a girl in before the wedding. What if Sovieshu changed his mind and made the other girl the empress? She was anxious. Even if she isn¡¯t an adult right now, she would be one in about a year if she was the same age as Rivetti. Since the age difference between Sovieshu and the girl was not too big, she could be his partner without any problem. Unlike Rashta, Viscount Roteschu said with rtive optimism, ¡°It is not yet known what he ordered to bring her for. Let¡¯s wait and see.¡± ¡°...¡± But his next words were contradictory, ¡°Plus, haven¡¯t I already told you? It is necessary to be on guard beforehand.¡± Rashta wrapped her belly with both hands. Viscount Roteschu continued to add fuel to the fire, ¡°It might be a misunderstanding now. But it may be true someday.¡± ¡°Stop trying to provoke Rashta, and think about how to prepare for that moment.¡± ¡°Hmmm, but I can¡¯t think of another one...¡± Viscount Roteschu hummed mischievously at Rashta¡¯s rebuke. The main reason he hade to see Rashta was to make her feel anxious, to make her realize how much she needed him. The more anxious Rashta felt, the better it was for him. After Viscount Roteschu left, Rashta finally leaned back on the couch, resting her head on it, and closed her eyes. She wanted to immediately run to Sovieshu and ask him about the girl he¡¯s bringing. If he brought her for work purposes, Rashta would be so relieved. However, Rashta was worried that Sovieshu would consider her interrogation as annoying jealousy. Moderate jealousy might bring you closer to your partner, but excessive jealousy could make your partner tired. After seeing Viscount Roteschu off, Delise carefully addressed Rashta, ¡°Um... Rashta.¡± She continued, ¡°His Majesty the Emperor is not that kind of man. Don¡¯t worry too much.¡± She had overheard the entire conversation between Rashta and Viscount Roteschu while waiting to the side. However, Rashta did not feel any better at Delise¡¯s reassurance. She knew that Delise clearly liked Sovieshu, so it was very annoying to see her siding with him. Rashta grumbled with a serious look, ¡°I don¡¯t know how much you think you know His Majesty, but do you think you know His Majesty more than Rashta, his wife?¡± Delise realized that Rashta had taken offense to Rashta and immediately shut her mouth. Chapter 200 - Repaying Navier’s Favor (1)

Chapter 200. Repaying Navier¡¯s Favor (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Delise left Rashta¡¯s room with the dirty dishes. On the way, she encountered Arian, Rashta¡¯s other maid. Unlike Delise, who was working as a maid for the first time, Arian was very experienced. She was always willing to help Delise, who had many shorings and made mistakes frequently. ¡°Erm... Arian,¡± she said. Because they had this kind of rtionship, Delise decided to tell Arian about what had just happened to ask for advice, ¡°It seems that Rashta was angry with me because I expressed myself badly.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. So about the short vacation I will take this afternoon... Should I still go? Won¡¯t she be even angrier if I went on vacation in the middle of this situation?¡± Arian smiled slightly at Delise¡¯s worried expression. ¡°When the wedding preparations are in full swing, we¡¯ll be busier. Busy with the wedding preparations, busy during the wedding, and even busier after the wedding. It¡¯s going to be hard work for a few months, so go and enjoy your short break.¡± Delise was a little relieved after hearing the kind advice and replied, ¡°Yes.¡± At nightfall, although she was still worried, she trusted Arian and returned home as originally nned. She lived in the capital, so it wasn¡¯t too far away. Delise¡¯s older brother Joanson enthusiastically teased his sister when she returned after a long time. ¡°Howe you have a darker expression if you work in the imperial pce? Everyone in the imperial pce has glowing faces, howe my younger sister is wilting?¡± But when Delise¡¯s face turned very dark, Joanson asked in surprise, ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Is work too hard?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that...¡± Delise hesitated before confessing in general terms about what happened with Rashta. ¡°Rashta seems angry with me.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I said something to cheer her up, but her mood got worsened because of it.¡± ¡°Did you say something you shouldn¡¯t have?¡± ¡°It seems like it...¡± ¡°You must have been sensitive at the time. It can¡¯t be helped. Just wait and it will pass.¡± ¡°Tch. I know. But if not. Is there any other way?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Don¡¯t worry about it.¡± Delise clicked her tongue repeatedly, angry that her brother wasn¡¯t taking her side, and then asked sullenly, ¡°Did you like Rashta that much when you met her before?¡± Joanson was themoners¡¯ journalist that Duke Elgy had brought along to interview Rashta. Delise asked because she also knew that her brother and Rashta had met. Joanson acknowledged her with a happy face, ¡°Yes. Rashta said that she will be on the side of themoners without any fear, and with much pride, as if she does not care about the opinion of the nobles.¡± ¡°Seriously?¡± ¡°Yes. She is an amazing person.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The nobles might ignore her. Although she is a noble now, she grew up as amoner. She will be the hope of themoners. She dered so.¡± ¡°Well...¡± ¡°So, as siblings, we must support her from the inside and the outside. Alright, Delise?¡± Joanson spoke with a twinkle in his eye, you could see he really liked Rashta. Delise was worried about Rashta¡¯s sarcastic voice, but finally agreed, ¡°Alright.¡± *** What would Your Majesty do if the Eastern Empire and the Western Kingdom were one day topete for an advantage? Yesterday. Journalist Mondrae asked me this provocative question. I replied, ¡°That would be very rare, but even if that were to happen, it¡¯s not something I have a choice in.¡± It may have seemed like an evasive answer, but it was the truth. A Queen or Empress was primarily in charge of internal affairs. Although I had nned to invite Grand Duke Kapmen here to lead intercontinental trade, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a question of, ¡®which side to be on,¡¯ as the journalist tried to make it seem. While it would be a pity for the Eastern Empireter, it was Sovieshu who cut off negotiations with Grand Duke Kapmen in the first ce. Nevertheless, his question caused a small stir within me. I pondered in a daze for a while, until the good news came. It was news about Laura and Countess Jubel, mydies-in-waiting from the Eastern Empire. ¡°They arrived in the Western Kingdom?¡± I asked. Rose answered, ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. They wille to visit as soon as they can.¡± The news Rose brought made my heart skip a beat. It was even hard to concentrate on the book I had been engrossed in for the past few days. Of course, I liked Rose and Mastas, but I had a special fondness for Laura and Countess Jubel because of the years we spent together. They were even there for me when I was going through the toughest time... So I wanted to see them soon. When they both came to see me a few hourster. We hugged and shared our deep affection in this faraway country. ¡°I waste because my parents didn¡¯t want to let mee,¡± Laura professed. ¡°I was a littlete because I had many things to resolve, Your Majesty the Empress,¡± Countess Jubel, who called me Your Majesty the Empress, raised her eyebrows and muttered, ¡°Oh no.¡± before adding, ¡°Now it¡¯s Your Majesty the Queen, right? I¡¯m not used to it.¡± ¡®You can call me ¡®Your Majesty the Empress¡¯ again after the wedding,¡¯ these words were about toe out of my mouth, but I restrained myself and did not show any sign of it. Heinley asked me to keep this secret. Only a few people knew about it, and it would be revealed to everyone at the wedding. ¡°Wee, Miss Laura, Countess Jubel.¡± They both hugged me repeatedly, d to see me, and eventually greeted Rose and Mastas as well. The awkward exchange of greetings between the four of them was a bit funny to watch. Especially Mastas who was not used to interacting with noblewomen. She was regrettably frozen. But once she realized that Laura was very cheerful and bright, she began to talk without difficulty. Rose also seemed to fit well with Countess Jubel¡¯s personality. When I was in the Eastern Empire, Imented about all the bad things that happened one after another since Rashta¡¯s appearance. On the contrary, good things were surprisingly happening one after the other since I got to the Western Kingdom. Around the evening. Another person came to visit me that I was delighted to see. ¡°Duchess Tuania!¡± I gasped. It was Duchess Tuania, whom I had hoped to bring here through the interview. Chapter 201 - Repaying Navier’s Kindness (2) Chapter 201. Repaying Navier¡¯s Kindness (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Duchess Tuania hugged me back with reddening eyes when I stretched out my arms and hugged her. She hugged me tightly before letting me go and smiled, ¡°I am no longer ¡®Duchess Tuania¡¯.¡± Oh. That¡¯s right. But what should I call her? Viscountess Langdel? Did she marry Viscount Langdel? As I hesitated, she whispered with a charming smile, ¡°Call me Nian.¡± Nian was her given name. If she wanted me to call her by her given name, that meant... ¡°I¡¯m tired of marriage,¡± Duchess Tuania, no, Nian said with a shrug. ¡°So what happened to Viscount Langdel...?¡± I thought she would marry the Viscount. In the letter sent before she left the capital, she seemed determined to ept Viscount Langdel. Nianughed yfully, ¡°We are lovers. If I were to be pregnant, then I would think about getting married. I don¡¯t want it to be an illegitimate child. But if not, I¡¯d rather it stay that way.¡± She seemed to feel deeply betrayed by Duke Tuania, who filed for divorce immediately without believing in her. I understood how she felt. I hugged her once again without saying anything. After that, the two of us sat and talked over coffee and snacks. Nian told me about her days outside the capital. ¡°I traveled from ce to ce. I wandered all over the country.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t it hard?¡± I asked. ¡°It would have been hard if I¡¯d been doing it for a few years, but it¡¯s only been a few months. I had a good time.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that.¡± ¡°After leaving the Eastern Empire, you know what surprised me the most?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°When I heard about your marriage to King Heinley.¡± By the time we finished catching up. Nian asked me with a twinkle in her eye, ¡°If you went through the trouble of using a newspaper to summon me, there must be something you want to ask me, right? What is it?¡± As expected, she came to see me after reading the article in the newspaper. So, I told her honestly, ¡°Heinley¡¯s older brother, the former king, died young, so Christa, the former queen, is also very young. She seems to have fulfilled her duties as queen well.¡± ¡±Hmm. There isn¡¯t a queen mother in the western kingdom, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Besides, as long as Heinley was single, Christa continued to y the role of queen until I came along.¡± Nian immediately understood what I meant and clicked her tongue, ¡°There must be a lot of people following her.¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s why I called you here, Lady Nian.¡± I took her hands firmly and asked, ¡°I need your help. Use your skills to conquer the high society of the Western Kingdom.¡± Nianughed unreservedly, ¡°That¡¯s easy.¡± Her attitude made my heavy heart a little lighter. ¡°Thank you.¡± Nian smiled after I expressed my thanks and said, ¡°I said I would definitely repay your kindness.¡± ¡°...Thank you so much.¡± ¡°Ah. Queen.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Viscount Langdel is also grateful. He will also support you, Queen.¡± *** Unlike Navier, who was happy, Heinley was sullen. Navier had been busy with Laura and Countess Jubel during lunchtime. And in the evening, she was busy with Duchess Tuania, so he had not even been able to meet with her today. He understood Navier wanting to be with her friends after they spent a long time without seeing each other. But even though he understood, he also wanted to be with Navier. McKenna looked at him and clicked his tongue, ¡°You¡¯ll see her for the rest of your life, why are you so restless about not being able to see her for one day?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t we newlyweds?¡± At Heinley¡¯s reply, McKenna seemed to feel some regret and muttered, ¡°Because we didn¡¯t take the opportunity to go out and clear our minds, Your Majesty.¡± As the two conversed, one of Heinley¡¯s aides knocked on the door, asking to see him in a hurry. Unless the aide was on duty, he should have gone home or be preparing to leave by this time of night. What did he want to report so suddenly? ¡°Let hime in.¡± He was puzzled, but Heinley allowed him to enter. As soon as the aide entered, he reported with a pale face, ¡°Your Majesty, unidentified knights are stationed near the capital, just standing by.¡± ¡°Unidentified knights?¡± Heinley frowned. If the Eastern Empire was known for its army of mages, the Western Kingdom was famous for its infantry and cavalry. There was a limit to the increase of the number of mages, but such a limit did not exist for pure military power. Even if they were dealing with unknown knights, it would be impossible for thousands to gather out of nowhere. He didn¡¯t understand why his aide looked so pale about a few knights. ¡°Why don¡¯t you find out who they are, and simply have them leave if you consider them dangerous.¡± At Heinley¡¯s light reply, the aide responded heavily, ¡°I can¡¯t do that... they appear to be Supranational Knights.¡± At the mention of ¡®Supranational Knights¡¯, Heinley¡¯s and McKenna¡¯s mood became heavy at the same time. After letting his aide know he could leave, McKenna hurriedly asked Heinley when they were alone again, ¡°Your Majesty, could they have sensed something?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°If they noticed that we are involved in the decline of mages...¡± In the Wol Continent, there was the Wol Alliance, to which most of the countries in the Wol Continent belonged. It was an alliance of which not only the Eastern Empire was a part, but also the Western Kingdom. The Supranational Knights were managed by the Wol Alliance. Their exact name was ¡®Shadow Knights¡¯, and officially, they worked to preserve peace. However, they were notorious for the actions they took to nip any ¡®threat to peace¡¯ in the bud to ensure peace. While the phenomenon of the decline of mages arose naturally, it was Heinley who elerated it. He would definitely be in trouble if the Supranational Knights had noticed. He couldn¡¯t help but feel nervous knowing they were stationed outside the capital. ¡°McKenna.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Go find out and personally investigate what¡¯s happening.¡± ¡°Understood,¡± McKenna replied with a stiff face and hurried out. Heinley sat anxiously at his desk, waiting for McKenna to return. Although the Western Kingdom was a powerful enough country to be an empire, that didn¡¯t mean it was capable of waging war against the entire world. The same was true for the Eastern Empire. As long as the alliance did not shatter or be nominal, the countries involved were to regard each other with respect. ¡®This is a real problem.¡¯ After about two and a half hours, McKenna returned. Fortunately, McKenna did not have a grim expression, but Heinley asked hurriedly, ¡°What¡¯s happening? Are they really Supranational Knights?¡± ¡°It¡¯s... It¡¯s a little strange.¡± ¡°What do you mean by strange?¡± ¡°They indeed are Supranational Knights. But they don¡¯t seem to be after us.¡± ¡°They¡¯re not after us?¡± Heinley became more puzzled. So, did that mean there might be real danger inside the capital? The Supranational Knights did most of their missions in secret. Even Heinley couldn¡¯t know what they were here for. ¡°There¡¯s something even more strange.¡± ¡°Even more?¡± ¡°The man leading the Supranational Knights is Viscount Langdel, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What!?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyebrows rose. Viscount Langdel... Heinley had met him at the New Year¡¯s celebrations. Wasn¡¯t that the young man who followed Duchess Tuania around like a shadow? ¡°Was he really a shadow?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Hadn¡¯t he been exiled for stabbing Rashta?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Heinleyughed loudly. He remembered the man¡¯s naive face. What¡¯s more, Langdel looked like he was about to die of love. How could he be a supranational knight with such a face... *** The next day, when Heinley met with officials, Viscount Langdel officially requested an audience on behalf of the Supranational Knights. Since he was informed that he was waiting outside the capital, Heinley assumed this would happen, so he let Viscount Langdel in. He was curious as to what had brought him here. ¡°He¡¯s a Supranational Knight?¡± ¡°Such a young man?¡± The officials gathered in the conference room whispered among each other as they watched Viscount Langdel enter with a gentle expression. Although the Supranational Knights were notorious, they rarely showed themselves properly in front of others. Therefore, the officials gathered here were surprised to see someone from the Supranational Knights in the conference room in broad daylight. Heinley smiled looking at Viscount Langdel, and said, ¡°Long time no see.¡± ¡°My name is Langdel, Commander of the 5th Division of the Shadow Knights,¡± Viscount Langdel saluted politely but did not smile. Still, with a soft smile, Heinley asked, ¡°I have been informed that Supranational Knights are stationed outside the capital. What is the reason for this? My people are uneasy about your men. Depending on the response, you will have to be prepared to leave. The officials looked at King Heinley in surprise at his harsh words. But Viscount Langdel¡¯s response waspletely unexpected by Heinley. ¡°The queen saved my life in the past.¡± The officials were surprised once again. This was a story even Heinley didn¡¯t know, so he raised his eyebrows, ¡°My wife?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, I would like to return that kindness. I ask that you allow me and my knights to serve as the queen¡¯s personal knights until her official guard is determined.¡± The leader of the alliance had the authority to immediately summon the divisions of the Supranational Knights, three of which only carried out direct orders from the leader of the alliance. However, the remaining seven knight divisions acted independently despite having the name of the Supranational Knights. This was the first time they¡¯ve wanted to be personal knights. The whispers grew louder. Did Heinley know this beforehand? The gazes of those present focused on Heinley. Heinley knew nothing about it, but casually smiled and said, ¡°Ask her yourself.¡± Chapter 202 - Kapmen’s Suffering (1) Chapter 202. Kapmen¡¯s Suffering (1) ¡°Uh I see... that¡¯s good,¡± Christa muttered with a bitter smile upon learning that one of themanders of the Supranational Knights hade to serve Navier. He was even saying that she was his savior. Being the Queen of the Western Kingdom, she also thought that this was a good thing for her country. However, she was definitely bitter that she wasn¡¯t that person. After thinking for a while, Christa went to the flower garden she tended herself and ordered herdies-in-waiting, ¡°Make a flower basket with those flowers and give it to Navier.¡± ¡°Oh my. Do you want to send her a gift first?¡± Thedies-in-waiting asked angrily. As Christa¡¯s potential enemy, Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting disliked Navier from the beginning. And after Navier¡¯s subordinate tantly insulted one of them, they truly detested Navier and herdies-in-waiting. They could not believe that she wanted to send a gift to Navier. ¡°Why are you doing this, Queen?¡± ¡°Whether I like it or not, that doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°As long as Navier doesn¡¯t do anything wrong, as a former queen, I must show friendliness to the current queen,¡± Christa sighed and added, ¡°Besides, one of themanders of the Supranational Knights came here to be on her side. What¡¯s the point of fighting?¡± Eventually, one of thedies-in-waiting reluctantly began to pick Christa¡¯s precious flowers and ced them in a basket. While she was making the flower basket, the otherdies-in-waiting continued to talk to Christa about Navier. ¡°Queen, it is useless for you to try to get along with her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± another one added, ¡°That person already considers the queen an enemy.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you hear that she contacted Miss Muney?¡± Christa frowned as she helplessly fiddled with the ribbon on the flower basket. ¡°Miss Muney?¡± The twelfth candidate for Heinley¡¯s Queen. It was that youngdy who told Christa to her face that she should leave the royal pce because she was no longer queen. As for Christa, she most certainly didn¡¯t like that person. But did Navier call her? ¡°Navier is trying to get Lady Muney on her side.¡± Christa sighed again, muttering with a stiff expression, ¡°Navier sees me as a total enemy...¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Otherwise, she would have remained quiet until the wedding, taking advantage of her smarts for the country¡¯s sake.¡± ¡°If she has called Miss Muney, it means she wants to get rid of Christa.¡± ¡°You must do something, Queen.¡± Thedies-in-waiting urged Christa restlessly. Christa was not the only one to lose power since Navier¡¯s arrival. The queen¡¯sdies-in-waiting also experienced the same. If Heinley had married a youngdy from the Western Kingdom, they would be in a better position than they are now, for no youngdy could surpass their influence in high society. Besides, King Heinley was a yboy. A yboy who could have dozens of concubines in the future. The Queen in a marriage of convenience would be lonely and marginalized. Without the king¡¯s heart or power in high society, bing a queen in name only. At that moment, thedies-in-waiting snorted in exasperation, ¡°You have to do something about this, Christa.¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s not possible to get rid of her, you should at least subdue her.¡± ¡°You must not allow that woman to take away your position in high society.¡± Christa smiled sadly with a pale face and replied, ¡°What should I do? If our rtionship is bad publicly, other countries and people willugh at us. His Majesty won¡¯t like it if I¡¯m hostile towards her in private. Besides, I don¡¯t even have power right now...¡± *** While Nian was conversing with mydies-in-waiting. Viscount Langdel himself unexpectedly came to see me. ¡°Queen Navier.¡± Viscount Langdel¡¯s eyes twitched as he looked at me, then he awkwardly bowed on one knee to greet me. ¡°I did not expect to see you here,¡± I said to him. He hesitated as if he didn¡¯t know what to say. I was going to rise from my seat to help him to his feet, but Viscount Langdel shook his head and said, ¡°I havee to repay your kindness.¡± I didn¡¯t do what I did in the hope that he would repay me, but instead of refusing, I epted the offer, ¡°Thank you.¡± Although I wasn¡¯t sure what Viscount Langdel could do to help me, I was already grateful to have people close to me in a foreign country like this. ¡°I am very happy that you and Lady Nian are here. That is enough for me.¡± However, Viscount Langdel¡¯s ¡®repayment of kindness¡¯ exceeded my expectations by far. ¡°I have led my knights here. Please allow us to be your personal knights,¡± he proposed. Viscount Langdel came with his knights? That surprised me. Viscount Langdel was a noble without territory. While he had a mansion in the capital, no noble without territory could raise a private army with just a mansion. But Viscount Langdel had his own knights... I learned what this meant from an attendant sent by Heinley after Viscount Langdel and Nian left. The knights led by Viscount Langdel were not ordinary personal knights, but Supranational Knights. ¡°Supranational Knights!¡± Mastas yelled. She jumped for joy as soon as she heard that. ¡°I¡¯ve always wanted topete against them! That¡¯s great!¡± ¡°Miss Mastas, that would be being rude to the Queen,¡± one of mydies-in-waiting chided. She brushed it off, ¡°I don¡¯t think it would be rude, I can secretly request an unofficial duel.¡± Mastasughed heartily. The otherdies-in-waiting were trying to calm her down while she wondered how many days she would need to take them on one at a time every other day. Sitting on the couch, I murmured, overflowing with joy, ¡°I received much more than I gave.¡± Rose also asked with a look of excitement, ¡°But Your Majesty, Lady Nian, won¡¯t youe as herdy-in-waiting? Like Countess Jubel and Laura?¡± I replied with augh, ¡°Nian couldn¡¯t work as ady-in-waiting.¡± Nian liked to socialize. She was a woman who attracted the attention of high society and that made her feel full of life. Bing mydy-in-waiting would inevitably limit the number of people she could meet. As honorable as this position was, it was not suitable for her. Perhaps thinking the same thing, Laura and Countess Jubel, who knew Nian well, burst outughing. However, while we wereughing and chatting, another visitor came. Having met friends from the Eastern Empire one after another, I wished to see if this person was also from the Eastern Empire, so I hastened to say, ¡°Let him in.¡± The visitor was indeed from the Eastern Empire. However, he was not a friend. I knew his face, but... ¡°Navier, I havee to give you regards by order of His Majesty the Emperor.¡± As soon as the visitor spoke, Laura and Countess Jubel¡¯s face froze. He smiled bitterly as if he had anticipated this atmosphere. Then he twisted his lips as if he had something to say to me. Seeing this, I asked mydies-in-waiting to retreat and asked, ¡°What have you reallye for?¡± My assumption that he hade for another purpose was correct. The visitor quickly pulled something out of his pocket and held it out to me. It was a letter. Chapter 203 - Kapmen’s Suffering (2)

Chapter 203. Kapmen¡¯s Suffering (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Once I epted the letter and opened it, I saw Sovieshu¡¯s handwriting, which was so familiar to me. ¡°...¡± After I finished reading the letter, I folded it, put it in the envelope and ordered him to leave. ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting outside, feel free to call me.¡± With that said, the visitor quietly left. Apparently, he seemed to think that I would send a reply to Sovieshu. I closed my eyes and put my hand to my forehead. ¡®A reply...¡¯ The contents of Sovieshu¡¯s letter werepletely unexpected. It said that he really had no intention to divorce me like he had promised Rashta because it would only be for one year. He didn¡¯t want his child to be illegitimate, so after she gave birth, he would elevate me back to the position of empress. All kinds of strange, hard-to-understand emotions were welling up inside me. It was as if... these emotions were wrapped in a thick cloth, impossible to urately distinguish. What I was sure of was that my rtionship with Sovieshu was over. It still hurt and was ufortable to think about him. But whether he was repentant or if it was a love-hate kind of thing, Sovieshu and I would not remarry. I was already married to Heinley. Heinley reached out to me when I needed it most, does he want me to leave Heinley ande back to his side? That would never happen. Besides, what if Rashta had the baby and I went back to being the empress? Then I would be that baby¡¯s stepmother, but I wouldn¡¯t want to ept it as mine. That child did not choose Rashta and Sovieshu as its parents. I didn¡¯t want the child to suffer. I couldn¡¯t love a child I didn¡¯t even want to be near. The same would be true for Rashta¡¯s child. Although I had been the empress first, the child would think that I had taken its mother¡¯s position. Despite being a legitimate child, that child would hold a grudge against me for being the empress. Even if, as Sovieshu had said, Rashta would only be empress for a year, there would inevitably be this awkward dispute awaiting me. ¡®I will not reply to the letter.¡¯ Finally, I personally went outside and told Sovieshu¡¯s envoy to leave the Western Kingdom as I had no intention of sending a reply. *** After Sovieshu¡¯s envoy left, I still had mixed feelings. Even when I tried to read my book, my attention waspletely elsewhere. I sat on the couch and stared dazedly out the window. I felt as if I was in the Western Kingdom and the Eastern Empire at the same time. The butterflies flying outside the window resembled the ones I saw in the Western Pce of the Eastern Empire. How long had it been since then? At that moment, Heinley¡¯s figure appeared at the window. I thought I was hallucinating, but it was certainly real. After getting up and opening the window, I sighed and asked, ¡°Are you trying to get in through the window again?¡± Heinley looked like he was about to say something, but in the end, he only took half a step back and replied, ¡°No. I just came here to talk, Queen.¡± ¡°You were going toe in through the window.¡± ¡°I really only came to talk.¡± ¡°You are no longer a prince. You must pay attention to your behavior.¡± ¡°Are you worried about me?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be moved by something so strange.¡± ¡°Are you scolding me? I like Queen scolding me, too.¡± Heinley was seeing the bright side of everything I was telling him. In this state, it was obvious that pointing out his mistakes would do no good. Instead of continuing to nag at him, I asked, ¡°What brings you here at this hour?¡± As far as I know, he shouldn¡¯t be working right now... He was indifferent when Iined about him, but as soon as I asked him this, he put on a grim expression. Then he turned his head and scanned thewn for no apparent reason. Thinking about what could cause this, I asked him, ¡°Is it because you heard that an envoy from His Majesty the Emperor came to see me?¡± Heinley replied, ¡°Yes,¡± and looked me in the eye, ¡°I was afraid it would affect you...¡± ¡°I received a letter.¡± ¡°A letter!¡± He didn¡¯t seem to know that I had received a letter. Well, he had no way of knowing because I had asked everyone to leave at the time. ¡°But I didn¡¯t send a reply.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Heinley¡¯s expression became brighter as if he was relieved. I reached out my hands, grabbed him by the shoulders, and very clearly proimed, ¡°I¡¯m your wife now. You don¡¯t have to worry about unnecessary things, Heinley.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes widened a little at my response, and he whispered with a smile so wide that the corners of his eyes curved, ¡°Queen... my heart is beating fast.¡± I didn¡¯t know if those were empty words, but his face was a little flushed. It made me happy that he felt relieved. Somehow, seeing him like that made me want to bite his cheeks. If I bit his cheeks, would strawberry jam flow out from inside? This wild thought made me feel very embarrassed. My feelings toward Sovieshu werepletely chaotic. In contrast, when I looked at Heinley, I didn¡¯t know why but I found him so cute and lovely. At that instant, I felt the need to respond... the pressing need to respond to his words. But what? I don¡¯t know. After considering for a moment, I repeatedly said, ¡°Rx.¡± *** Meanwhile. Instead of looking for a country to establish a trade alliance with, Kapmen was still looking for ways to counteract the effects of the love potion on his body. After wandering from ce to ce, he decided to go see one of his professors at the magical academy. At first, Kapmen¡¯s professor grabbed his head when he heard that his students had made some kind of love potion to sell on the ck market. ¡°Fools, Fools! What were you doing behind my back, you troublemakers! ¡°...I am ashamed, professor.¡± ¡°Even if other students behaved recklessly, you, Grand Duke Kapmen shouldn¡¯t have done the same!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I can¡¯t believe you got involved in the ck market with such a dignified face that you looked like a straight arrow... Oh no my head, oh my head,¡± Kapmen¡¯s professor grunted for a long time. But still, when his student told him what happened to his body after drinking the potion, his professor examined him from head to toe. ¡°Has it been a long time since you drank the potion?¡± ¡°I drank it shortly after the New Year¡¯s celebrations were over.¡± ¡°It hasn¡¯t been that long.¡± The professor pressed Kapmen¡¯s body in different areas and asked him, ¡°How long does it normally take for the effects of the potion to wear off?¡± ¡°If one drinks the antidote, one should be better in an instant, and even if one does not drink the antidote, one should be better in a week,¡± Grand Duke Kapmen replied, clutching a locket with Navier¡¯s portrait embedded that he had bought in a store. ¡°Even being a love potion, it doesn¡¯t produce true love. At first... I thought it was because the effects were exceptionally strong, but...¡± The professor nced at Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s locket but did not notice that the woman¡¯s portrait inside was the former empress. ¡°Have you tried the antidote made with a mixture of poppies and ck lilies?¡± ¡°Many times.¡± ¡°With the antidote made with a mixture of marigold and holly?¡± ¡°I have also tried that.¡± ¡°Have you tried mixing red carnations with banyan berries?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± His professorined and continued to ask him simr questions. However, Kapmen, being one of the top graduates of the magical academy, had already tried every possible treatment. As his professor¡¯s expression darkened, so did Kapmen¡¯s. Squeezing the locket, Kapmen asked, ¡°Can¡¯t anything be done about it, professor?¡± Unrequited love was extremely painful. Grand Duke Kapmen thought his symptoms would improve if he didn¡¯t have Navier around, so he left the pce as if he were running away as soon as he had the chance. But two dayster, Kapmen realized he had made a big mistake. Every time he saw her, he felt better. The very thought of never seeing her again caused deep pain to conspire in his heart. He didn¡¯t know how many times he had wandered alone in the capital in the middle of the night before he realized the situation he was in. Among his belongings, he already had dozens of portraits of Navier. However, that didn¡¯t make his burning thirst diminish, and now even he was afraid of himself. At this rate, he would end up visiting Navier and begging her to make him her lover. ¡°Hmmm...¡± After thinking for a while, the professor finally opened his mouth, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to solve it. But I can think of three possible causes.¡± ¡°Three?¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s none of the three. They are only deductions. It¡¯s easier to find a solution when one knows the cause.¡± ¡°Professor, what are they?¡± ¡°Because it is a potion made by yourself it is especially effective on the Grand Duke. That¡¯s why the love potion has worked so well on you.¡± ¡°What about the second one?¡± ¡°Lately, not only is mage mana disappearing, but the number of people manifesting as mages is also decreasing drastically. That means the mana bnce is extremely unstable, so perhaps this has influenced it.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The ultimate cause...¡± The professor looked suspiciously at Grand Duke Kapmen and said, ¡°Before you drank the potion, couldn¡¯t you have already been in love with the person you im to have fallen in love with after you drank it...? Well, that¡¯s just what I think.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It could be about something moreplex.¡± At that moment, his professor¡¯s assistant knocked on the door and shouted, ¡°Professor! A man from the Western Kingdom hase to see Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± Chapter 204 - Sovieshu’s Shock (1)

Chapter 204. Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Vy The envoy returned to the imperial pce while Sovieshu was reading reports in his office. Seeing the envoy return, the official bribed by Viscount Roteschu rushed to his mansion. As soon as the envoy entered his office, Sovieshu questioned him before he could approach the desk. ¡°What about her reply?¡± His eyes were loaded with anticipation. The Emperor seemed certain that Navier would send a reply, which made the envoy ufortable. But he could not lie, he had to be honest, ¡°Navier sent no reply, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu was puzzled. He thought he had misheard. A faint smile soon emerged on his expression, ¡°Then she asked you tomunicate something to me.¡± The envoy replied with an expression of awkwardness. ¡°I am sorry, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face gradually turned cold, and his eyelids began to tremble. Now, he could not understand the envoy¡¯s report at all. Was there no reply? How is it possible that there was no reply? Despite me clearing up the misunderstanding, she still did not reply to the letter? While the emperor was deep in thought, the envoy continued the report with difficulty, ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Do you remember Viscount Langdel?¡± ¡°Why do you mention him?¡± ¡°Viscount Langdel and Duchess Tuania are in the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°What? Why are they there?¡± ¡°And Viscount Langdel...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°He is themander of the 5th Division of the Supranational Knights.¡± As soon as the envoy finished speaking, Sovieshu jumped up abruptly. He clenched his fists and asked coolly, ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Even after the envoy left, Sovieshu could not calm down. Even if it was the Wol Alliance, as long as the Eastern Empire had its mage army, they would be no match for the empire. But that didn¡¯t mean that facing them wouldn¡¯t be a hassle. The Supranational Knights were very annoying and tenacious. Moreover, the Wol Alliance behind them was even more so. Sovieshu swallowed the curses that were about toe out of his mouth. He was also hurt and angry at Navier¡¯s attitude. How could she not send a letter in response? How could she not say anything even though I had cleared up the misunderstanding? At that moment, a thought arose.... Does Navier think the contents of the letter are a lie? Does she think I made it up to persuade her? It could be so. Does she find it hard to believe me because she is hurt? Yes, that¡¯s it. That must be it. Sovieshu moved restlessly from one side of the room to the other. *** Later in the evening. After learning that Duchess Tuania was in the Western Kingdom together with Viscount Langdel, Duke Tuania entered Sovieshu¡¯s office andined that he wanted his wife back. This further increased Sovieshu¡¯s anger. In the end, Sovieshu could not stand it and shouted at Duke Tuania. ¡°It was you who did not believe in your wife and got divorced!¡± This was also what he wanted to say to himself, but did not want to admit it. ¡°But Your Majesty! Miss Rashta was the one who told me that my wife was having an affair with another man!¡± Sovieshu was startled at the unexpected mention of Rashta¡¯s name. Sovieshu remembered Rashta conversing with Duke Tuania on the day of the masquerade ball. Sovieshuughed and said, ¡°Don¡¯t lie.¡± Then he added coolly, ¡°Why me someone else for your absurd misunderstanding? That day, you seemed to enjoy conversing with Rashta.¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s unexpected reply, Duke Tuania had no choice but to go into details. ¡°At first she asked me if it was alright for two people to canoodle in the imperial pce, because she was so embarrassed to have seen a nobleman and a noblewoman touching each other! I wasughing because I thought she looked so naive!¡± ¡°So Rashta didn¡¯t mention your wife.¡± ¡°Not directly. But when I asked her who she saw doing that, she described her appearance to me, and it was certainly my wife¡¯s appearance! I would know the hidden features on her body...¡± Sovieshu¡¯s heart felt heavy, but said firmly, ¡°In any case, it was you who misunderstood.¡± After Duke Tuania left, Sovieshu leaned on his desk with a headache and put his hand to his forehead. He was already distressed over the Navier affair. What Duke Tuania said had further weighted down his heart. He knew that Rashta had a naive and a calcting side. Moreover, he recognized that to survive in high society, one could not simply be naive. But he didn¡¯t want to hear about that other side of Rashta. *** However, that was not the end of the bad news for Sovieshu. The next morning, as Sovieshu was reading a report that had arrived at midnight while dressing, Marquis Karl gave him another piece of bad news. ¡°Your Majesty, Grand Duke Kapmen is on his way to the Western Kingdom.¡± Sovieshu immediately crumpled the report in his hands. His patience had run out. Pressing down hard on the report, he asked Marquis Karl sternly, ¡°What did you say?¡± *** Completely enraged, Sovieshu locked himself in his room, canceling all nned meetings. He paced around his room as he organized his thoughts. Almost two hourster, Sovieshu calmly walked out of his room. However, deep down he was filled with anger and a firm determination. Sovieshu would make Navier regret leaving him. And he would make here back after she regrets not having believed in his sincerity. To do that... ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°When is Navier¡¯s wedding?¡± ¡°They will also rush the wedding, so it will more or less coincide with Your Majesty¡¯s.¡± ¡°My wedding must take ce before Navier¡¯s, so the date will have to be moved up.¡± ¡°As youmand.¡± ¡°And... send an official invitation to the King of the Western Kingdom. I want them to attend the wedding.¡± Marquis Karl asked anxiously, ¡°Do you think they wille?¡± In his opinion, it was unlikely they woulde. But Sovieshu said with a cold smile. ¡°They wille to see the Duke and Duchess Troby.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Chapter 205 - Sovieshu’s Shock (2)

Chapter 205. Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Sovieshu, who had instructed Marquis Karl about the wedding, asked him how the wedding preparations were going. After discussing what silks to use, what other people to invite, etc., he went to Rashta¡¯s room. Rashta was trying on a dress at the moment. After seeing Sovieshu, Rashta smiled broadly and eximed sweetly, ¡°Your Majesty!¡± The new dress was almost finished and she was trying it on, so she looked very happy. ¡°Your Majesty, how does Rashta look?¡± Rashta stepped down from a small box and gracefully turned in front of Sovieshu. The long dress slowly swayed to the rhythm of Rashta¡¯s movement. She looked as beautiful as a fairytale princess, which made the designer feel pleased. Due to Rashta¡¯s insistence, the designer ended up making the morous dress that Rashta wanted. Contrary to her expectations, Rashta also looked good in this morous dress, which made her proud. But as soon as Sovieshu saw Rashta¡¯s dress, he said firmly, ¡°It¡¯s too morous.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened and she asked, ¡°But isn¡¯t it beautiful, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It is beautiful. But I would like it to be iner.¡± Sovieshu spoke as if he was replying to Rashta, but he was actually talking to the designer. The designer bowed her head and replied, ¡°I understand.¡± Rashta gaze flitted between Sovieshu and the designer in surprise. Then, when Rashta burst into tears, Sovieshu and the designer looked at her more surprised. Rashta sobbed andined to Sovieshu, ¡°I want to wear this dress, Rashta wearing this dress will look very good by Your Majesty¡¯s side!¡± ¡°You can wear a morous dress another time. Wear a in dress this time. Won¡¯t there be many parties to attend in the future?¡± ¡°It is important to wear this dress on the most special day.¡± Rashta added with a sad expression, ¡°Rashta wants to be worthy to stand by Your Majesty¡¯s side.¡± Sovieshu wanted to refuse, but he had heard that stressing a pregnant woman was not good for the baby in her womb. Seeing her whole face flushed, Sovieshu finally sighed and agreed, ¡°It¡¯s alright. You can wear it.¡± *** I finished reading the Western Kingdom clerk¡¯s records for the past 20 years. Now it was time to read the administrative records of former queens. ¡°Your Majesty is always reading books,¡± Mastas grumbled, she was so active and did not to like this... ¡°It¡¯s always been like this, even in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Really, Laura?¡± ¡°Of course. Always books, books, and more books.¡± ¡°Ugh.¡± Mastas and Laura were talking enthusiastically about me, while Countess Jubel pretended not to be interested in the conversation, but was discreetly sympathetic. In front of the door, Viscount Langdel¡¯s knights took turns standing guard. The scene brought back memories of my days in the Eastern Empire, which made me smile along with them. It was at that moment... ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Rose, who had gone to get coffee, came in and said with a strange expression, ¡°One of Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting is here.¡± ¡°Of Christa¡¯s?¡± ¡°Yes, she brought a flower basket.¡± A flower basket... Although it seemed absurd, I let her in anyway. ¡°My name is Imaru, Your Majesty.¡± It was the first time I had seen thisdy-in-waiting of Christa¡¯s. After greeting politely, she pushed the flower basket she was holding with both hands slightly forward and said, ¡°Christa heard that Your Majesty has gotten personal knights, so she asked me to hand this to you as congrattions.¡± When Rose stepped forward and received the flower basket, Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting added, ¡°These flowers were grown by herself.¡± ¡°Please pass on my thanks.¡± The flowers were vivid and beautiful, and the basket was also beautifully decorated. But as soon as Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting left, Rose snorted, ¡°She must be uneasy about Sir Langdel¡¯s knights. She has ignored Your Majesty all this time, but now of all times she sends a gift.¡± Countess Jubel also asked coldly, ¡°Shall we throw it away?¡± Rose looked at her in surprise, then smiled and added, ¡°Just kidding,¡± pointing to the undecorated table. ¡°I¡¯ll put it there, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°All right.¡± After a moment of thought, I asked Rose, ¡°Miss Rose, send a bouquet of acacia flowers to Christa in return.¡± I would have liked to send her flowers from my garden, too, but I hadn¡¯t grown any yet. ¡°It¡¯s a gift she sent to look good. Do you have to send one in return? Anyway, I don¡¯t think she was really happy to send this gift.¡± Mastas seemed to dislike the idea, but... ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether she sent it sincerely or not.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°A false friendship is much better than being in conflict.¡± *** Days passed, but Christa did not show any friendly action since then. However, there were some changes. Now mydies-in-waiting got along very well with each other, and I got used to having knights standing guard at the door. Nian woulde with Viscount Langdel every two or three days to hang out, and it was great fun to see them together. Perhaps it was because I now knew that Viscount Langdel was not an innocent young man with a crush, but themander of the 5th division of the dreaded Supranational Knights. Every time I saw him concentrating and reacting to both Nian¡¯s words and actions I couldn¡¯t help butugh. Although I tried not tough because it might seem impolite. But despite these peaceful days, I felt ufortable whenever I looked down at my desk drawer. It was because Sovieshu¡¯s letter was in that drawer. If I could bring back the Sovieshu from my childhood, I would like to sit in front of him and ask, ¡°...What are you really thinking about?¡¯¡± That Sovieshu was more honest in expressing his emotions than the one now. As I was about to open Sovieshu¡¯s letter to read it again, someone knocked at the window. I looked back and saw Heinley at the window again! I left the letter in the drawer, walked over to the window, and closed the curtains. ¡°Queen?¡± A voice of bewilderment sounded from behind the curtains, I wanted to see him like this at least once. If I kept opening the window for him he wouldn¡¯t stoping this way. ¡°Queen? I¡¯m sorry, Queen?¡± Heinley called me repeatedly as if he were really surprised. I deliberately counted 30 seconds and pulled open the curtains. Heinley was so dejected that he squatted down, resting his hands on the windowsill. Once I opened the window, he looked me in the eye and apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m used to seeing you this way...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just allow Queen toe in through the window,¡± he added, ¡°So, may Ie as Queen?¡± ¡°If you¡¯re willing to dress.¡± ¡°...Will you dress me yourself?¡± What did he expect? Sly Eagle. ¡°What brings you here at this hour?¡± Evidently, it was still time to work. ¡°I have good news and bad news. I just wanted to give them to you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°The good news is... our wedding date has finally been set, Queen.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Before long, we will undeniably be a married couple.¡± ¡°We are already married and undeniably a married couple.¡± ¡°What we did was an oath before God. Now we will proim before the whole world that I am your husband and you are my wife.¡± Looking at Heinley speaking with satisfaction, I felt like pinching his cheeks. The way he spoke... confused me. I remembered how I mistook it for a love confession when he tried to tell me about the self-promation of empire. But I acted calm, and asked him, ¡°What¡¯s the bad news?¡± ¡°Um, well...¡± Is it worse than I thought? Heinley hesitated a little and said, ¡°The Emperor of the Eastern Empire sent an invitation to attend his wedding.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°He hopes that we can attend. In case I can¡¯t, he at least wants Queen to attend.¡± After he finished speaking, Heinley looked me in the eye, ¡°Are you going?¡± He told me this was bad news, was it because Heinley didn¡¯t want me to attend? But I answered him right away without hesitation, ¡°I¡¯m going to go.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°I want to see my parents and my friends.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to miss the opportunity to see the people I love just because he¡¯s there.¡± As soon as I spoke, Heinley quickly said, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you.¡± I immediately declined, ¡°You don¡¯t have to.¡± It¡¯s not because I was ufortable with him going with me but becausest time we were temporarily detained at Troby Mansion on Sovieshu¡¯s orders. That must still be an unpleasant memory. I didn¡¯t want to make him go there again. But Heinley replied with a smile, ¡°I want to go with you. My parents and my friends are there too.¡± Heinley¡¯s parents were in the Eastern Empire? ¡°Ah.¡± I guess he meant my parents. When I opened my mouth in surprise, Heinley grumbled in a joking tone, ¡°They seemed to feel very ufortable around me when we met. This time, I¡¯ll make sure they ept me as their beloved son-inw.¡± ¡°...I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll like you now.¡± Heinley had saved me from beingpletely disgraced. He chuckled and moved his head closer. Then he kissed me lightly on the cheek. ¡°!¡± I was so surprised that my eyes widened in shock. Then, he pulled his head back a little and looked me in the eyes, seeing that I remained motionless, he moved his head closer again and pressed his lips against my cheek. This time, it was even longer. He eventually pulled back and smiled shyly. ¡°When will you ept me as your beloved husband?¡± Chapter 206 - Road To The Eastern Empire (1)

Chapter 206. Road To The Eastern Empire (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Vy Heinley¡¯s question left my mind aplete mess. When will I ept him as my beloved husband? He¡¯s already lovely, no? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s what he means. Does he want me to give him love? I am confused. I thought about my rtionship with Sovieshu, but I never had a conversation like this with him. Those experiences werepletely useless. While hesitating, Heinley sighed and muttered, ¡°Your eyes look like those of an astonished rabbit.¡± ¡°I...?¡± ¡°Answer me another time, Queen.¡± *** Heinley left afterwards. Standing by the window frame, I leaned against it. This made me feel much better. I hadn¡¯t realized it, but my face seemed to have heated up. When I put my palms on my cheeks, they were really warm. Is it because Heinley... is younger than me? Or is it because he¡¯s a yboy? He was saying those sweet things too casually. I didn¡¯t dislike him, but... As I was thinking about that, there was a knock at the door. I hurried to open the door to see if it was Heinley again, but the ones who came in were Rose and Countess Jubel. Where had they gone? They had baskets full of fruit. ¡°What were you doing?¡± ¡°We went to an orchard that¡¯s in the Royal Pce, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I will peel them for you.¡± As the two sat on the couch, peeling the fruits and serving snacks on a te, I stared out the window again. Eventually, it came to my mind what Heinley had said about the invitation to Sovieshu¡¯s wedding. Since I was going to the Eastern Empire, mydies-in-waiting would apany me, so of course I had to tell them. ¡°His Majesty the King was here until recently.¡± ¡°His Majesty?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think I saw him then...¡± ¡°He came through the window. He just wanted to tell me some news.¡± Rose, who had finished peeling the fruits, put down the knife and looked at me. Countess Jubel put down the te of snacks on the tea table and also waited for my words. ¡°Our wedding date has been set.¡± Their faces lit up at my words. ¡°Atst...!¡± ¡°Designer McLinnan will be busier, Your Majesty.¡± However, their faces darkened as soon as I told them about Sovieshu¡¯s wedding. ¡°And Heinley and I have been formally invited to the wedding of His Majesty the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.¡± It seemed as if they had drunk a ss of salt water. ¡°I have decided to go.¡± When they heard my answer to the invitation, their faces got even worse. The two exchanged nces in silence. The dissatisfaction showed in their expressions. But eventually they sighed and epted it. As I was about to talk more on the subject, there was another knock at the door. Rose went to open the door, while I sat on the couch looking in that direction. The visitor was a well-dressed man with a big gray beard. Who was he? As I looked at his totally unfamiliar face, he bowed toward me. After I nodded, the man entered the room and introduced himself, ¡°I am the Head Butler of the Amares Family, Your Majesty.¡± Amares Family? That name sounded familiar? Ah. I remember it. It appeared a couple of times in the records I had been reading. As far as I know, that family held the title of Marquis. Why would that family send their Head Butler here? When I looked at him puzzled, the butler said politely, ¡°Your Majesty, I havee on behalf of Miss Muney.¡± Muney! He was one of Muney¡¯s subordinates. I wanted to meet with her with the intention of getting her on my side, as she had great influence in the high society of the Western Kingdom. I nodded and he continued. ¡°Miss Muney is very honored that Your Majesty the Queen would like to meet with her. She will be delighted to visit you once you let her know the date and time.¡± There was no need to set a distant date. ¡°Tell her toe visit me tomorrow at one o¡¯clock in the afternoon.¡± *** Muney arrived half an hour before the appointed time. I had considered that possibility, so tea and snacks were already prepared. ¡°My name is Muney, Your Majesty the Queen.¡± I watched Muney carefully as she greeted me politely. She was a youngdy with gray eyes, with a straight and firm posture. She had a dignified expression and her manner of speaking was graceful. ¡°I am honored that you wanted to meet with me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I have wanted to meet you ever since I heard about you.¡± ¡°I, too, have been looking forward to this moment ever since I heard that Your Majesty the Queen had arrived. I was wondering when you would call me.¡± It wasn¡¯t just her expression that gave off confidence, her bold and sincere words naturally made me smile. Although her aura was different, it felt like I was looking at a young Nian. Instead of beating around the bush, I asked her directly, ¡°I see. If you were waiting for me to call you, it¡¯s because you want something from me, right?¡± Miss Muney smiled slightly, and asked in return, ¡°Your Majesty called me to help you integrate into the high society of the Western Kingdom, right?¡± She¡¯s smart. That¡¯s even better. When I nodded pleasantly, she asked this time more carefully than before. ¡°What would I gain by helping Your Majesty the Queen?¡± At her bold but clever question, Laura, standing by the door, raised her head menacingly. From the look on her face she seemed to be thinking, ¡®What is wrong with her!?¡¯ Resisting the desire tough, I replied, ¡°What do you want in return?¡± From her earlier question I could tell she was looking for something in particr, but Muney¡¯s demand waspletely unexpected, ¡°Please drive Christa out of the Royal Pce!¡± Chapter 207 - Road To The Eastern Empire (2)

Chapter 207. Road To The Eastern Empire (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe When I raised an eyebrow and looked at her in disbelief, Muney spoke again, ¡°You¡¯ve probably heard that I had a big fight with Christa. Because of that, even His Majesty Heinley said some not very nice words to me.¡± Muney, whose face became rigid like she was angry just thinking about it, took a deep breath and continued, ¡°Since then, the nobles who follow Christa have brazenly ganged up to intimidate me and my friends.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it was on Christa¡¯s orders or if those nobles are acting angry on their own. But she¡¯s the focal point, and once she leaves the royal pce, that group will disperse.¡± She continued with a look of determination, ¡°In any case, Christa should have gone to Compshire¡¯s Mansion when the former king passed away. Even if she does not want to go there, she must leave the royal pce. It is natural to drive her out, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°... I will think about it.¡± After Muney left, I called Rose and Mastas to tell them about this before asking them if the rtionship between Muney and Christa was that bad. Mastas didn¡¯t seem to know much about it, but Rose answered after reflection, ¡°They didn¡¯t have that big of a fight, but it¡¯s true that since the rumor of an argument spread, there was a split in high society, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I see...¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t think it¡¯s just because of the situation in high society that Miss Muney is being so inflexible.¡± Then what¡¯s the reason for it? Rose frowned as if she was making a great effort to remember and said, ¡°Miss Muney is the only child of Marquis Amares. It is my understanding that Marquis Amares adopted his nephew to seed him. Rumor has it that Miss Muney wanted to seed the Marquis directly.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°That nephew is Duke Liberty¡¯s third child, who is on Christa¡¯s side.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that.¡± ¡°Miss Muney wants to get rid of Christa so she can get rid of her adopted brother?¡± ¡°Well, maybe...¡± That was a possibility. She seemed to have a strong sense of pride, so she might have asked for me to deal with Christa instead of asking for what she really wanted¡ª to help her be the sessor. Laura asked uneasily, ¡°Your Majesty, what do you intend to do?¡± I leaned back on the couch instead of answering. By joining hands with Muney I could naturally bring half the forces of high society closer to me. However, she had bepletely hostile toward Christa. As I have told mydies-in-waiting before, a false friendship is better than being in conflict. Should I step forward or pretend to be on good terms with Christa for the time being? *** I had been thinking about this for days, but it wasn¡¯t easy toe up with an answer. Meanwhile, the delegation that would attend Sovieshu¡¯s wedding was being properly organized, and before I knew it the day of departure had arrived. It was a strange feeling to return to my homnd as the Queen of another country. Before departing. I took several deep breaths as I looked at myself in the mirror in myfortable travel attire. When I stepped out with a forced expression on my face, the carriage was already waiting. Surrounding the carriage was not Western Kingdom Knights, but Supranational Knights. After receiving their greetings, I got into the carriage. This carriage wouldter join other carriages and cavalrymen near the main gate of the royal pce. ... Why isn¡¯t she here? I could not see Mastas inside the carriage. My otherdies-in-waiting were arranging their luggage. ¡°Miss Laura, have you seen Miss Mastas?¡± When I asked worriedly, Laura shook her head. Rose and Countess Jubel didn¡¯t know anything either. It was time to depart. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty the Queen!¡± I saw Mastas through the window approaching hurriedly from a distance, with arge spear on her back and covered with a cloak. ¡°Miss Mastas!¡± I quickly got down from the carriage, and in an instant, she was in front of me. Then she said, jumping up and down, ¡°Your Majesty, did you hear that? Didn¡¯t you hear it? Please tell me you didn¡¯t hear it yet!¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t hear anything. What happened?¡± ¡°I heard from my brother!¡± Her brother... ahh. That rough-looking knight. Was his name Sir April? When I nodded, she smiled and said, ¡°My brother is also participating in the Knights¡¯ Expedition, and apparently he¡¯s in the same group as Your Majesty¡¯s brother!¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s Sir Koshar, no?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Sir Koshar¡ª¡± Rose said coldly beside me, ¡°Miss Mastas, where is your luggage?¡± Mastas stopped talking and went to pack her things. Because of this, I couldn¡¯t help but wiggle my fingers anxiously as I waited in the carriage for her to return. Mastas returned nearly half an hourter, got into the carriage, and finished speaking, ¡°Sir Koshar is doing a good job on the ¡®Knights¡¯ Expedition.¡± ¡°Do you mean it?¡± When I asked surprised and happy at the same time, Mastas eximed, ¡°Yes!¡± with a broad smile. ¡°Do you know how he has be popr?¡± ¡°?¡± That made me nervous. That question... sounded as if he had be popr in a different way than the others. I looked at her fearfully, but she exined more enthusiastically, ¡°Normally if one hears about unfair circumstances, one takes legal action after investigating. But Your Majesty¡¯s brother¡¯s fist shoots out after investigating!¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Although legal punishments are fine, from the position of those affected it is not enough. Preferring the perpetrators to get their deserved beating.¡± I put my hand to my forehead in shock, but Mastas even shook her fist in the air in excitement, ¡°It¡¯s the first time something like this has happened, so everyone is cheering for him!¡± ¡°...¡± While I was stunned, Mastas asked me with a twinkle in her eyes. ¡°Your Majesty, what kind of person is your brother? He seems to be greatly admired.¡± *** At first, I was worried when she started to talk about my brother. However, I was slowly relieved as Mastas kept saying good things. He is a little... different from the others, but the important thing is that he is loved as a knight by the people. As long as the people of the Western Kingdom are happy with my brother, that¡¯s enough. I leaned my arm on the carriage windowsill and looked out. As thoughts of my brother diminished, I thought more and more about the Eastern Empire. I had mixed feelings. I wanted to show my parents how well I was living thanks to Heinley. But at the same time, I wondered if it would still hurt to see Sovieshu with Rashta. I know I couldn¡¯t tell anyone, but honestly... I was also wishing Sovieshu would be surprised to see me. I wanted to show him. I wanted to show him how well I was living without him. Was that too childish a thought? As I pondered, the carriage stopped. We have already arrived? But all I could see out the window was a forest path. Looking confused at the door, I suddenly heard a voice call, ¡°Queen¡± on the other side of it. As soon as I opened the door, Heinley was standing there. He smiled looking at mydies-in-waiting and asked, ¡°Queen, can just the two of us ride in the carriage?¡± Before I could answer, mydies-in-waiting looked at each other and hurriedly got out. They headed for the other carriage that was ready for me. Instead of stopping them, I awkwardly closed the window. ¡°Huh? Why are you closing the window?¡± Heinley got into the carriage and quickly sat down across from me. After making himselffortable, he knocked on the wall behind him and the stopped carriage began to move again. Before I asked him why he hade, Heinley answered first, ¡°I came because I wanted to be with you.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± I replied calmly and turned my gaze to the window again. But I had just closed it, so I couldn¡¯t see anything out the window. Why did I close it? I reproached myself, then nced at him and saw that he wasn¡¯t watching me. I opened the window again and pretended to be contemting thendscape. ¡°Haha.¡± ¡°!¡± I heard a low, suppressedugh from inside the carriage, but I deliberately ignored it. Fortunately, theughter soon faded. After a while, I suddenly felt like seeing Queen. Queen. My lovely eagle. It was so shocking when I discovered that Heinley was naked when he became Queen, that I was embarrassed just to see Queen. However, it seemed that as time went by that feeling was fading. I wanted to see Queen again. It s true that Heinley was naked when he became Queen, but... he has feathers. Come to think of it, aren¡¯t a bird¡¯s feathers like a human¡¯s clothes? That made me want to see Queen even more. At this point, I felt that if I hugged his small body tightly, my confused mind would calm down. ncing sideways, Heinley was smiling as he watched me. After hesitating for a moment, I asked him, ¡°Can you be Queen?¡± ¡°Now?¡± ¡°I want to hug him.¡± As soon as these words left my mouth, he became a golden feathered bird in an instant and flew towards me. I asked him to be Queen. But when Queen approached me, my heart started beating fast. Maybe it was because of his clothes spread out in front of me. But upon closer inspection, Queen was just Queen. I didn¡¯t feel ugly nakedness. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean Heinley¡¯s naked body was ugly, that wasn¡¯t the reason I didn¡¯t want to see him naked... Relieved, I finally reached out my hand. When I gently touched his feathers, Heinley blinked and a smile formed in his eyes. I couldn¡¯t believe he was smiling even as a bird. No, that was my Queen. Gathering more courage, I stretched out both hands and raised Queen. I felt happy and nostalgic to have Queen on myp again. I slowly hugged Queen. This scent. I missed this scent. Chapter 208 - . Meeting Sovieshu Again (1) Chapter 208. Meeting Sovieshu Again (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Vy Queen blinked his purple eyes. Navier hugged his body with both arms, not moving a muscle. Queen, who was motionless like a doll, looked up stealthily. He could see Navier¡¯s chin. Her nose was higher up, followed by her lushshes. Her eyes were closed. Navier¡¯s body swayed for a moment. ¡®She fell asleep.¡¯ Queen¡¯s eyes narrowed. He briefly examined Navier and gently pulled out one of his wings from her embrace. Then he checked again that Navier was still asleep and made an effort to free the other wing. Queen, after checking for thest time that Navier was stillpletely asleep, chirped happily with both wings freed. Of course, he had to be careful not to make a sound. ¡®Gu! Gu!¡¯ Queen twittered inside and immediately wrapped Navier in his soft wings. Despite having enveloped her with his wings, Navier would barely be able to feel the contact. However, she would be very cozy because of his feathers. Queen stayed on Navier¡¯s chest, also closing his own eyes. He wanted to sleep next to her like this. If there was such a thing as happiness, being together like this would be¡ª. ¨C Thud! However, a sudden jolt caused Navier¡¯s body to fall to the side. Queen spread his wings out to try and protect her, but his wings were notrge enough to cover Navier¡¯s entire upper body. *** I felt a sharp pain on the side of my head. I opened my eyes in surprise to find myself copsed on the floor of the carriage and crushing Queen. ¡°Queen!¡± Did he hurt his wing? Panicking, I quickly got up and examined him. Fortunately, he seemed fine. He even stretched out his two wings and lightly touched my head. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Actually, the side of my head hurt a lot, but I lied to hide my embarrassment. Then, he began to look around inexplicably. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Heinley had be Queen, so naturally he couldn¡¯t say anything. Upon careful inspection, I noticed that the carriage was tilted. Something must have happened. When I opened the window, I heard Yunim¡¯s voiceing from outside. ¡°Your Majesty Heinley, are you all right?¡± But Heinley, who was supposed to answer, was currently in his bird form. ¡°His Majesty is well.¡± When I eventually responded instead, Yunim was silent for a moment before speaking up again, ¡°Your Majesty Heinley, I think you shoulde take a look at this.¡± As I listened carefully, I could also hear the sound of carriage wheels. Then, Queen looked at me. ¡°Return to your human form.¡± I whispered quickly, put his clothes aside and closed my eyes. Soon after I heard a soft voice say, ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± With my eyes closed, I smiled quietly and nodded. My husband is a bird. Isn¡¯t that cute? Suddenly, the carriage jolted once again. Startled, I reflexively opened my eyes and tried to hold onto the sides. However, almost at the same time, somethingrge pressed me to the floor. After waving my hands in bewilderment, I realized that Heinley had lost his bnce while dressing and slipped. It was Heinley¡¯s body that was pressing down on me. My eyes widened in shock. Heinley¡¯s face was right in front of mine. He looked embarrassed and shocked as well. ¡°I¡¯m- I¡¯m sorry.¡± Heinley stammered, his face was flushed and he tried to put his hands on the floor of the carriage. However, he ended up putting his hands on mine. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t do it on purpose, Queen.¡± I turned my head to the side and whispered, ¡°It¡¯s alright...You can get off of me.¡± It was very embarrassing to know that his naked body was on top of me. Fortunately, our faces were so close that I couldn¡¯t see anything else. But that didn¡¯t mean I wasn¡¯t aware that he was naked. ¡°Yes. Immediately, immediately.¡± Heinley mumbled and hurried to get up, avoiding my hands. But this time he slipped on the skirt of my attire. Our noses almost touched. We might have even gotten hurt, but Heinley reached out his hands to brace himself off the floor and avoid collision. On the other side of the door, Yunim shouted again, ¡°Your Majesty, are you all right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine!¡± ¡°Do you want me toe in?¡± ¡°No!¡± Heinley said adamantly to Yunim and tried to get up, but slipped again. Our bodies became even more entangled. Embarrassed, I tried to push him off. But it was his naked body that I touched. Warm and firm... I became more embarrassed, so I took my hands off his naked body and tried to pull away. Because the carriage was tilted and my skirt was spread out on the floor, if Heinley tried to stand up he would slip again. But Heinley groaned as soon as I started to slide away, so I asked worriedly, ¡°What happened?¡± Did I hurt him? Did my jewels prick him? Lifting his body a little, Heinley murmured flushed, ¡°Don¡¯t move, please. It¡¯s a little... stimting.¡± Don¡¯t move? Stunned, I looked down. I would have preferred that Heinley did not separate from me. When Heinley lifted his body a little, I could immediately see why he had told me not to move. ¡°Ah!¡± I eximed in shock, and Heinley flinched. I hurriedly looked up, but again made eye contact with Heinley. Then I turned my eyes away, overwhelmed. I couldn¡¯t even ask for outside help in this situation. It wouldn¡¯t be any good. I could only think of one way. ¡°Hang tight.¡± ¡°What?¡± After that, I lowered my hand and picked up the skirt that was spread across the floor of the carriage. I heard Heinley mutter in a very low voice, ¡°God, God....¡± ¡°Done.¡± As soon as I finished, Heinley stood up leaning one hand off the floor and the other off the wall to avoid my attire. I turned my head towards the wall. My face was burning and my ears were ringing. If there was a hole here, I¡¯d bury Heinley in it right now. I heard him put on his clothes, but didn¡¯t open my eyes. Not long after, I heard the sound of the door opening. Only then did I open my eyes and look. Heinley¡¯s clothes were wrinkled, his neck and face werepletely flushed. Oh my god. I didn¡¯t notice it before because I was too embarrassed, but there were lipstick marks on his neck. Rose, who was gawking at him, turned her head towards me. In a panic, I hurriedly closed the door. Chapter 209 - Meeting Sovieshu Again (2) Chapter 209. Meeting Sovieshu Again (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Apparently one of the wheels of our carriage hade loose, but there were spare wheels, so it was possible to rece the wheel and continue the trip. After that, nothing relevant happened in the next few days, so we arrived safely in the Eastern Empire. By then, I had mostly recovered from the shock. Every time I was alone with Heinley, I felt ufortable because what happened that day woulde to mind.... Still, we both did our best to keep ourposure. At least I did. However, when it came time to pass through the Eastern Empire¡¯s capital, I was so nervous that I could not even think about the carriage incident. Crossing the capital¡¯s walls, I half-opened the window and the curtains. I looked out the window silently like this. I could see people in the surroundings curiously observing the carriages of the Western Kingdom. Surely they heard rumors that Heinley and I wereing. Do they think I¡¯m riding in one of these carriages? Perhaps they think that the empress, who left and remarried, has the impudence toe back. It was natural but still did not feel good. When I leaned my head against the carriage wall and closed the windowpletely, Countess Jubel, sitting across from me, said firmly, ¡°These people are not Your Majesty¡¯s followers. Don¡¯t give importance to that.¡± Laura immediately added, ¡°That¡¯s right, if Your Majesty had only epted the divorce and lived locked up for the rest of your life, those people wouldn¡¯t have done anything for you, right? Don¡¯t bother with that.¡± Do I look too depressed? I patted my cheeks with both hands, then smiled and replied, trying to look casual, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m fine.¡± *** Before going to the Imperial Pce of the Eastern Empire, we first stopped by Troby Mansion. We would stay here today, and go to the Imperial Pce tomorrow. As soon as I got off the carriage, my parents and rtives, who had heard the news in advance, rushed over and surrounded me. Seeing me, my father again burst into tears unable to contain himself, while I could barely hold back my own. Hugging my mother as well, sharing the joy of having reunited us, Heinley immediately approached my father, smiling and saying, ¡°Father, Father.¡± I don¡¯t know if I should say it was a good thing, but... my father seemed to have stopped crying because he was puzzled. After we stood there for a while, talking about what happened during the time we were apart, we went to the dining room and continued conversing. I had so much to tell that I couldn¡¯t stop talking. For his part Heinley, who was standing next to me, looked at me silently as if in amazement. ¡°Why were you looking at me like that?¡± I asked him as I led him to his room after eating. He told me that he was amazed to see me talking so much for the first time... Later, after taking a bath in his room, Heinley went to see my parents again, striving to achieve his goal. I exchanged greetings with familiar faces as I wandered around the mansion after a long time, asionally running into Heinley next to my parents. Unfortunately, my parents seemed to still feel ufortable being with Heinley. It was understandable. Sovieshu had been their son-inw for many years, but now they had apletely different son-inw. Still, I felt that everything was going well, so I kept walking around and then headed to my room to restfortably. *** Sadly, the next day we had to leave Troby Mansion. ¡°We will also be attending the party.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see you again the day after tomorrow.¡± My parents were also sad, but tried not to show it too much. Heinley and I got into the carriage, and headed for the imperial pce. However, when the carriage passed through the main gate of the imperial pce, I felt strange. I was really nervous when we entered the Eastern Empire¡¯s capital. But now there was only a subtle andplex feeling inside me that was difficult to define clearly. It was like when I received the letter from Sovieshu. As I listened to the rattle of the horses¡¯ hooves and the carriage rolling, I felt my head spinning. The view outside was so familiar that it was disturbing. I spent many years of my life in this ce. I never thought I woulde here pretending I didn¡¯t care... When the carriage stopped, my heart fluttered. Controlling my expression as much as I could, I got out of the carriage. It was Count Pirnu, Sovieshu¡¯s secretary, who received us. I was not the only one who was disturbed. When we saw each other face to face. Count Pirnu¡¯s eyes were also trembling slightly. ¡°Wee, Your Majesty the Queen of the Western Kingdom and Your Majesty King Heinley.¡± But he greeted me firmly, and I nodded as calmly as I could. Count Pirnu hesitated for a moment before pointing with his hand. ¡°Please,e this way.¡± I knew exactly where he would lead us¡ª The White Rose Room. . That room was where distinguished guests were received. It was there that I met Heinley for the first time. In front of the White Rose Room stood the Knights of the Sovieshu Imperial Guard. When they saw me, their faces froze. I smiled as if I hadn¡¯t noticed, and waited for Count Pirnu to let us into the room. Eventually, the door of the White Rose Room opened and we were allowed to pass. Inside was Sovieshu, his secretaries, and other nobles. Did he hear that I wasing? Sovieshu seemedpletely unperturbed. I noticed the empty throne next to him. The throne where I used to be to receive distinguished guests. I looked at Sovieshu again. He was staring at me with a determined expression. But unlike his expression, his eyes seemed sad. We stared at each other for a moment. Contrary to what I expected, nothing came to my mind. What about Sovieshu? How long will he remain like this. ¡°Your Majesty,¡± Count Pirnu whispered to him. Only then did Sovieshu open his mouth as if he had awakened from a spell. ¡°I know it has been a hard journey... I appreciate the gesture of friendship shown by the Western Kingdom.¡± His expression was impassive and his voice serene. He did not seem like the man who had been stunned a moment ago. He looked at me again but said no more. *** ¡°Who is here?¡± Unlike Sovieshu, who managed to hide his true thoughts and remain expressionless, Rashta could not do it. While checking her finished dress onest time, she was perplexed to hear that Navier would be attending the wedding. ¡°How did this happen?¡± Baron Lant, who gave her the news,ughed awkwardly, ¡°She is a person who puts affairs of state first. Since she was invited, she must have considered that it was best to ept.¡± Once Baron Lant left. Rashta became so anxious that she began biting her nails. Soon after, she asked the designer, ¡°I also want all the essories to be morous, from the headpiece to the jewels.¡± The designer asked in surprise as she stuck pins into her dress, ¡°What? Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Rashta spoke firmly. ¡°Everyone willpare Rashta to the deposed empress.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but...¡± ¡°The deposed empress came to the country she left, how much must she have prepared herself so that her dignity would not be trampled upon?¡± Rashta¡¯s words were reasonable. However, Rashta¡¯s demand did not fit with the taste of the designer. ¡°The dress is morous, if the essories are morous too, you could be overshadowed.¡± The designer advised, but Rashta insisted, ¡°It¡¯s Rashta¡¯s wedding. On my wedding day, I don¡¯t want to lose to anyone.¡± The designer had no choice but to choose morous essories before leaving. Looking at the dress on the hanger, Rashta felt a little relieved. With that dress, she was sure she wouldn¡¯t lose to Navier. Still, her anxiety did not disappear. After pacing back and forth for a while, Rashta came up with a good idea. Chapter 210 - Sovieshu’s Shock (1)

Chapter 210. Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe I never imagined that I would one day stay in the Southern Pce reserved for distinguished guests! Looking around the room prepared for the Queen of the Western Kingdom, I couldn¡¯t help butugh. One doesn¡¯t really know what the future holds. It was unimaginable a year ago, or even a few months ago. Putting aside my restlessness, I first took off my gloves and also my suffocating outerwear. Then I unpacked my luggage to change into something morefortable and stylish. Finally, I called a maid to organize the rest of my luggage. While I was sitting on the bed, Rose and Mastas arrived after they finished arranging their own things. Laura and Countess Jubel were not present, because I ordered them to rest at their respective homes while we were in the capital. ¡°It feels strange that the four of us are not together,¡± Mastas grumbled as soon as she arrived as if she missed Laura, someone she got along well with. Rose smiled grimly, she also seemed to have be very close to Countess Jubel, ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Spending every day together, it was inevitable that they would be close. That¡¯s probably why Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting kept close around her. However, the time we spent alone was short. Because all the nobles of the Eastern Empire who had been by my side asdies-in-waiting came to visit soon after. ¡°Countess Eliza!¡± Among them was Countess Eliza, who had been my headdy-in-waiting. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress!¡± Countess Eliza, who called me as she usually did, blinked in embarrassment as soon as she spoke. Then the otherdies-in-waiting burst outughing and she smiled awkwardly. After a while. We brought two tables into the drawing-room, where we gathered for snacks and coffee. It had been a long time since we¡¯d seen each other, so we had a lot to talk about. ¡°I¡¯m adapting well. Miss Rose and Miss Mastas here have been a great support to me, besides I¡¯ve met my brother there again.¡± ¡°What about His Majesty Heinley? How is your rtionship going?¡± ¡°...¡± When I smiled awkwardly instead of answering, the faces of thedies-in-waiting from the Eastern Empire turned fierce. I shook my hands quickly, and Rose answered before I did. ¡°Although I don¡¯t know how good their rtionship is, when they¡¯re together they seem... very happy.¡± She blushed as she spoke. She was probably thinking about the carriage incident. Thedies-in-waiting smiled and tried to pry further. ¡°Why? What have you seen?¡± ¡°Does His Majesty Heinley treat our Navier very well?¡± Rose smiled ufortably as if it was difficult for her to continue talking on the subject. But there was no need for her to answer because Heinley himself came to my room. ¡°Greetings to Your Majesty The King of the Western Kingdom.¡± Thedies-in-waiting greeted him in surprise, Heinley gave the characteristic mascot smile and waved his hand. Then he approached me and asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you neglecting your husband too much? I stopped by because I was jealous, Queen.¡± My formerdies-in-waiting were startled. When I sent a withering stare towards Heinley to stop talking nonsense, he looked at me sadly, reached out his hand, and took mine. ¡°I miss you.¡± He spoke like a huge puppy thirsting for love, and I heard thedies-in-waiting gasp at the same time. However, I frowned. Regardless of how he behaved when it was just the two of us, he was still the king of a country. Shouldn¡¯t he behave with more dignity in front of other people? Pointing it out here would hurt his image, so in the end, I just smiled with a forced expression. *** I spent the rest of the day quietly sharing with mydies-in-waiting and the next day as well. When I was the Empress I rarely spent a whole day rxing because I always had work to do. Now that I was no longer the Empress, I could rest like this at the Eastern Empire Pce. It was ironic, but I tried not to show it and just smiled. Finally, the day before the wedding arrived. Until yesterday, I had been enjoying the time with my formerdies-in-waiting. But today, my tongue suddenly became stiff and my restlessness intensified. I paced back and forth in my room, then went for a walk. Unexpectedly, Heinley was nearby, so we decided to take a walk together. As we strolled in silence, we passed the ce where I had walked with Heinley when I was still the Empress. ¡°Do you remember?¡± Heinley asked with a smile, thinking the same thing, ¡°We were walking by here talking about Queen¡¯s birthday.¡± ¡°I remember.¡± ¡°Queen tried to feed me insects.¡± ¡°!¡± Oh, that¡¯s right. I didn¡¯t know Heinley was Queen back then. Iughed thinking about that. ¡°Were you really that surprised?¡± ¡°Even now seeing insects scare me.¡± ¡°At the time, you said that Western birds ate cooked food, right?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You looked surprisingly terrified.¡± Heinley smiled sheepishly. I was amused that Heinley, who was always so sure of himself, would show signs of weakness, so I teased him. ¡°Queen is not afraid of insects?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± At my brag, Heinley pped his hands and eximed in admiration. ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°So if we have a date night and an insect shows up Queen can handle it.¡± ¡°?!¡± ¡°Except for the insects, I¡¯ll handle everything.¡± ¡°That...¡± When I looked at him, feeling slightly worried at the thought, Heinley was smiling strangely. It was obvious he knew I was lying. Embarrassed, I smiled while biting my lips. After we had been talking for a while, I felt a heavy gaze on me. As I was about to ask Heinley what he ate when he became a bird, I turned my head to where the gaze came from. It was Sovieshu. Seeing him made me remember the past once again. Back then, I was walking next to Heinley while we were talking about Queen, and Sovieshu appeared just like he did now. Will this part be the same as before too? It was a bit ridiculous to think that, so I just greeted Sovieshu with a slight smile as he approached. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to see Your Majesty the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.¡± Sovieshu remained motionless with his lips firmly closed without responding to my greeting, looking between Heinley and me with an angry expression. He then asked Heinley, ¡°King Heinley, could you allow me to have a moment alone with Navier?¡± Chapter 211 - Sovieshu’s Shock (2)

Chapter 211. Sovieshu¡¯s Shock (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Rather than stepping back, Heinley tly refused. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. You seem a bit angry... I cannot leave my wife next to another man who is angry even if it is His Majesty who asks.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face became even more rigid. ¡°Another man?¡± After looking quietly at Sovieshu for a moment, Heinley said with a smile, ¡°Navier is my wife.¡± [The Empress is my wife, not the prince¡¯s tour guide.] Heinley¡¯s words ovepped with Sovieshu¡¯s words from a few months ago. Sovieshu¡¯s face twisted as if he had had the same thought. But regardless of his intentions, Heinley was right. Back then, Sovieshu had drawn a very clear line between Heinley and me, because we were strangers. This time, Sovieshu and I were the strangers. Sovieshu spoke to me without even looking at Heinley, ¡°Navier, I have something to tell you.¡± ¡°Go ahead, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Just the two of us.¡± Although we were strangers, I was curious about what he wanted to tell me, so I would¡¯ve liked to hear it. Besides, Sovieshu was not only my ex-husband but also the emperor of a powerful country. The rtionship between us and Sovieshu was already bad. There was no need to reject him outright. When I turned my head to hint this to Heinley, he was looking at me with the same expression he had then. The expression of... a sad golden retriever. He looked like he would shake his tail and start whining if I walked away. Seeing that expression, I couldn¡¯t bear to leave Heinley alone to go with Sovieshu. In the end, I changed my mind. ¡°My apologies, Your Majesty. If it¡¯s not an urgent matter, my duty right now is to be at my husband¡¯s side.¡± I was about to tell him that if he had something to talk to me about, it could be another time, but Sovieshu then shouted with a strange expression, ¡°Navier!¡± His reaction was even stranger as if he was hurt that I was the one cheating. Sovieshu looked at me with a stunned face, then looked fiercely at Heinley, turned, and left. I sighed and stared at Heinley, who was clinging to my hand with both of his, ¡°Are you alright?¡± When I asked worriedly, Heinley nodded with a flushed face. Then he bent his knees and rested his head on my shoulder. *** When the wedding day arrived, the hustle and bustle could be felt from the morning. Even though I was at the South Pce, the chaos was the same. During the day there would be a wedding and a procession. In the evening there will be a wedding reception. Due to the busy schedule and the influx of distinguished guests from all over the world, everyone at the Imperial Pce seemed hectic getting ready. I also started getting ready early in the morning, Rose and Mastas were even busier getting ready while helping me too. In particr, Rose, who was urging Mastas to behave ¡®like ady.¡¯ ¡°Leave that spear here, please!¡± ¡°The spear is ady¡¯s base!¡± ¡°No! It¡¯s neither ady¡¯s nor a knight¡¯s base! Not even a knight attends a party with a spear on him!¡± At that moment, someone sent by Countess Eliza came. ¡°Queen Navier, Countess Eliza asked me to inform you that Rashta¡¯s wedding dress is very morous.¡± Hearing this, I looked at the dress I had decided to wear. It was moderately morous. I had chosen this dress because I thought that if I attended in a in one after remarrying the king of another country, people would think I was self-conscious. But as soon as I heard the words of Countess Eliza¡¯s messenger, I changed my mind. ¡°Please transmit my thanks to Countess Eliza.¡± I gave the messenger a gold coin and thanked Countess Eliza for her consideration. Wedding dresses are usually morous. However, Countess Eliza even sent someone to inform me about the dress, meaning that Rashta would be wearing an incredibly morous dress. In this scenario, if we both wore a morous dress we would look like two peacocks. ¡°I¡¯d better wear this dress.¡± I chose a in dress that I had brought just in case. *** After I finished getting ready, I met up with Heinley to go to the wedding hall. The wedding hall was splendidly decorated, Sovieshu¡¯s effort was evident everywhere. It was not all encrusted with jewels as it was in the Western Kingdom, but the workmanship was still impable. Especially the pirs with magic engraved on them that glowed naturally were truly amazing. Sovieshu... made such preparations for Rashta, just to make her the Empress for one year? What an absurd lie. When I thought of Sovieshu, who was hopelessly in love with Rashta, pressuring his subordinates for the wedding preparations, one corner of my mouth naturally curved up. I¡¯m d I didn¡¯t reply to that letter. In any case, because of the trouble Sovieshu had gone through, the eyes of those present were not so focused on me. I could hear people murmuring, but no one approached me. I sat next to Heinley in the seats reserved for distinguished guests, hoping the wedding would go quickly. After half an hour, the great silver bell hung at the front of the wedding hall rang. Then, the High Priest came out through a small door next to the tform. He looked more tired than on the day of the divorce as if disgusted by repeated visits to the Eastern Empire. His expression became even more peculiar when he saw me. I greeted him, bowing slightly with a smile, but the High Priest shook his head, smiling forcibly. The hall fellpletely silent in the presence of the High Priest. He unfolded the scroll he held and recited, ¡°Let the bride and groom enter.¡± Then, the small bell next to the silver bell rang, following which the ¡®Bride¡¯s Door¡¯ and the ¡®Groom¡¯s Door¡¯ opened simultaneously. The two doors were in opposite directions, the bride and groom would enter on separate paths, which would meet in the middle to form a single path. This was a formality symbolizing that the bride and groom, who had traveled different paths, would now travel the same path through marriage. Sovieshu, who came out of the groom¡¯s door, looked as good as ever. A handsome, imposing, and dignified man. Even in this absurd situation, he looked very dashing. He was staring at Rashta, not turning to look at me for a second. They must be very happy. Rashta also looked beautiful and elegant. Her appearance, which in itself was amazing when we first met, now looked like a perfectly white moon, perhaps because of Sovieshu¡¯s love or because of the delicious food at the Imperial Pce. However, the moment Rashta crossed her path, and stood next to Sovieshu. Her dress, which had been covered by the chairs and guests, was fully revealed, and I was so surprised that my eyes twitched. What is she wearing? Rashta¡¯s dress wasn¡¯t just morous. No, even if I were to ignore the dress, What were those essories on her arms and hair? With all that, she looked more like a Christmas tree. Looking at Sovieshu again, his expression was different from a moment ago. He didn¡¯t have a happy expression when he saw the bride. He had a slightly angry expression with his jaw tense. Sovieshu did not look at Rashta with excitement but instead, was puzzled. If the designer was in front of him right now, he would probably beining to her for dressing Rashta like this. Faintughter could be heard all around. The arrogant nobles seemed to be mocking Rashta¡¯s dress. Rose also muttered under her breath. ¡°I can¡¯t believe she¡¯s wearing something so funny with that face. Did she originally have that kind of taste, Your Majesty?¡± This made me think of the clothes Rashta wore when I was still the Empress. She wore mostly white clothes, avoiding morous designs. Because of that, Rashta looked like a lovely wildflower, among all the extravagant flowers. Her appearance was refreshing to the nobility, and also served as a strong attraction for Rashta to establish herself in high society. But on her most important day, she appeared out of nowhere in such a ridiculous dress... anyway, Rashta herself had a satisfied face. As she passed by me, she shed a confident smile that spoke for itself as if she had won. In the midst of this absurd situation, Rashta and Sovieshu walked together and stopped in front of the High Priest. At that moment, the High Priest asked as he opened the holy book. ¡°Does Sovieshu Vict, Emperor of the Eastern Empire, ept to marry Rashta Isqua?¡± ¡°I ept.¡± ¡°Does Rashta Isqua ept to marry the Emperor of the Eastern Empire, Sovieshu Vict?¡± ¡°I ept.¡± ¡°Sign here.¡± After Rashta and Sovieshu signed the marriage certificate, the High Priest kept the paper inside the holy book, proiming the birth of a new emperor couple in the Eastern Empire. Those present apuded, and Sovieshu turned around, showing a gentle smile. Although her dress was ridiculous, Rashta¡¯s smile was brighter than ever. They both looked very happy. It looked like a fairy tale scene. Looking at this beautiful couple, I thought, ¡®I hope they are not happy¡¯. Chapter 212 - Sovieshu’s Wedding (1)

Chapter 212. Sovieshu¡¯s Wedding (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe I must definitely not be a good person. I know that many people wish their ex-spouse to be happy. However, I feel it would be very unfair if the two people who threw me out, lived happily ever after. So, the only thought in my head was, ¡®I hope they¡¯re not happy.¡¯ But not to the point of, ¡®Rot in hell!¡¯ ¡°Let¡¯s invite them,¡± Heinley whispered softly beside me. Did he notice my thoughts? ¡°Let¡¯s invite those two too.¡± Will they attend just because we invite them? I don¡¯t think so. When his warm hand touched mine, my momentarily disturbed mind, returned to normal. His whisper and touch made me feel better. ¡°It¡¯s alright,¡± I whispered, grabbing his hand. As we intertwined our fingers, I wasforted to have a ce to hold on to tightly. But suddenly I felt a gaze on me and realized that Sovieshu was staring at us. Other people, too. I deliberately gripped Heinley¡¯s hand tighter. Does he feel that his ex-wife is ruining his wedding? Sovieshu¡¯s expression was distorted. Even Rashta, who was beaming beside him, noticed it and followed Sovieshu¡¯s gaze. Looking at me, Rashta frowned slightly. *** The next event after the wedding ceremony was the parade. A wedding parade in which the Emperor and Empress would ride through the capital in the same carriage. Althoughpleting the route in an ordinary carriage would not take long, in a parade carriage it would take three to four hours because it moved at a slower pace. At this point, a small problem arose. They were supposed to get on the parade carriage right after the wedding ceremony. Rashta, who made her way to the carriage with the help of Viscountess Verdi, was stopped by Sovieshu. ¡°Change your clothes,¡± he told her. Traditionally, the bride and groom would parade in their wedding attire to show their people how they looked as they sealed their wedding vows. Other nobles would also gather around to watch. But when Sovieshu suddenly asked her to change her clothes, not only was Rashta surprised, so were the other nobles. After reflection, the nobles quickly agreed with Sovieshu¡¯s words. If she appeared dressed like that in front of the people, it could be a disaster. Rashta grumbled with a sad expression, she seemed to really like her morous dress. ¡°Rashta was told to go to the parade like this.¡± Sovieshu tried to appear more determined, but eventually sighed and ordered her. ¡°At least take off those essories. They look ridiculous.¡± ¡°Ridiculous...¡± ¡°You look like a Christmas tree.¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s harsh words, Rashta was forced into a nearby empty room next to Viscountess Verdi. After a while, Rashta came out. Having removed all the essories, she really looked as beautiful as an angel. Although the dress was still extremely morous, Rashta stood out above it. However, she got on the carriage with a sad expression, seeming to prefer her previous look. Only then Sovieshu got on the carriage and moved his head ever so slightly as if to look in our way. In the end, he didn¡¯t and simply instructed, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± At the back of the departing carriage, white silk ribbons with gold edges fluttered beautifully. As I watched this scene, I got into the next carriage with Heinley. Feeling a little nervous, I grabbed onto the carriage railing with one hand and grabbed Heinley¡¯s hand with the other. The parade carriage had no cover, so I had to stand the whole way. In other words, I would have to face the stares of the people of the Eastern Empire I left behind. I couldn¡¯t help but be tense. Now was no time to pay attention to Rashta¡¯s dress. The Western Kingdom was also a powerful country, so we would be right behind the Empress and Emperor¡¯s carriage... It was the perfect position for the people to see Rashta and me alternately. I took several deep breaths to appear as indifferent as possible, and gripped the carriage railing tightly as the carriage began to sway. I heard a loud cheer as we began to move through the streets. It was the people of the Eastern Empire cheering for Rashta. ¡°Oh my! She looks like an angel!¡± ¡°Rashta!¡± ¡°Over here!¡± I had heard that Rashta was incredibly popr among themoners. It was clearly noticeable as we passed through the streets. The people¡¯s cheering for Rashta was louder than it had been at Sovieshu¡¯s parade with me in the past. The atmosphere among the nobles andmoners waspletely opposite. Probably relieved by the fervent cheering, Rashta was smiling broadly and waving to everyone. Her bright and charming appearance made people even more excited. However, the cheering turned to near deathly silence as I passed them next to Heinley. ¡°...¡± I had heard that about half of the people were not opposed to my marriage. Apparently, even those people did not expect me to personally attend Sovieshu¡¯s wedding. Wherever I passed, it became amazingly quiet. I was trying to hide my embarrassment by keeping my chin up as I made an effort to remainposed. Heinley gripped my hand even tighter. Chapter 213 - Sovieshu’s Wedding (2)

Chapter 213. Sovieshu¡¯s Wedding (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe The wedding reception was held in the evening. I took off my in dress and put on one suitable for dancing. As I changed my dress, mydies-in-waiting had somber faces. Even though they were not by my side at the parade, it was probably because they saw the reactions of the people of the Eastern Empire, I tried to encourage them, but to no avail, so in the end, we were silent together. In fact... I wasn¡¯t in a position to encourage anyone either. It didn¡¯t feel good at all to be ignored by the people I cherished. Also, I felt very sorry that Heinley, a dazzlingly handsome man from afar, was also ignored for standing next to me. No wonder Yunim didn¡¯t like me. Sighing, I finished changing my clothes before I realized it. I went to the banquet hall with Heinley. Fortunately, there was no one in the banquet hall ignoring me. The Troby Family was still in the Eastern Empire and had a great influence. Unlike themoners who could ignore me if they wanted to, the nobles had many interests, so they could not recklessly ignore me. Many people close to me were present..... It was embarrassing to see their faces because of what happened at the parade, but luckily they were all sensible enough to pretend they didn¡¯t know what had happened earlier. After about thirty minutes, I was able to mingle with my friends,ughing as if nothing had happened during the parade. However, it was the same situation when Sovieshu had the first dance with Rashta. The nobles looked at me with pity, but this time I felt pretty good. Compared to the three hours during the parade in dead silence, this was much better. Eventually, Sovieshu and Rashta¡¯s dance ended. When others could dance, Heinley immediately extended his hand to me. ¡°Queen, may I have this dance?¡± I ced my hand over Heinley¡¯s and we headed to the center to dance. I could feel the murmurs around me and Sovieshu¡¯s gaze on me, but I pretended not to notice and focused on the dance with Heinley. Later, Duke Elgy unexpectedly approached me and asked me to dance. Why is he interested? I couldn¡¯t understand, he was Heinley¡¯s friend and a member of the Blue Bohean Royal Family. He even hid me in a carriage so I could escape from the Western Kingdom. Although I felt awkward, I agreed to dance with him and asked him in the middle of the dance. ¡°Why did you ask me to dance?¡± But Duke Elgy just danced to the music with a heavy, perturbed face. He didn¡¯t respond to my words. He seemed to be deep in thought. I don¡¯t know what he could have been thinking as we danced. When the music finally ended, we released our hands. Only then did Duke Elgy speak carefully, ¡°Your Majesty Navier.¡± However, before he could continue his words. ¡°Queen Navier,¡± Sovieshu approached and asked me to dance first, ¡°May I request a dance?¡± In an instant, silence spread through the hall. *** Honestly, I was reluctant to do this. But Sovieshu was the Emperor of the Eastern Empire. After refusing to take a walk, it was difficult to refuse the groom¡¯s request. Besides, it would be rude of the wedding guests to refuse the newlyweds at the reception. It was unavoidable. I agreed to dance with Sovieshu and we headed to the center. When I appeared next to Sovieshu, the people there quickly retreated as if they were avoiding a trap. Looking at each other face to face before the music yed, a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu swept over me. It was so strong that I got goosebumps. But when the music started, my feet, unlike theplex emotions, moved naturally. It was only recently that we got divorced and besides, we have danced together most of our lives. My body naturally epted him as my dance partner. As we danced Sovieshu didn¡¯t say a word. He just looked at me, grabbing and releasing my hands repeatedly. Then, when it got to the part where we had to lightly hold hands, he asked me quietly. ¡°What is your answer?¡± I immediately understood which answer he was referring to. ¡°Didn¡¯t the envoy tell you?¡± I asked. ¡°Did you have something to say?¡± ¡°No, nothing.¡± ¡°...¡± I heard Sovieshu grind his teeth. However, at that moment I was making a turn, so I wasn¡¯t sure I had heard right. After finishing the turn, Sovieshu looked calm. In that state, he asked again, ¡°You have nothing to say to me?¡± ¡°What do you want me to say?¡± ¡°I... I didn¡¯t want to lose you.¡± ¡°Today is Your Majesty¡¯s wedding.¡± He didn¡¯t want to lose me? He was holding hands lovingly with Rashta throughout the entire parade. I couldn¡¯t help but snort. Sovieshu looked at me in surprise. Then, I asked him because I was really curious, ¡°Did you think I would be happy to receive a letter in which you said you would make me the Empress again in a year?¡± Sovieshu shuddered. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s because I had hit the nail on the head or because he hadn¡¯t thought of this, but I kept talking, ¡°How are you so sure that one year won¡¯t turn into two? What if you have a second child in that time, will it be extended?¡± ¡°Navier.¡± ¡°A yearter, even if you keep your word¡ª¡± Just then the music ended. Sovieshu and I reflexively stopped. The distance between us was still close because of our posture at the end of the dance. I continued quickly in a low voice, ¡°I don¡¯t want to raise nor be the mother of Your Majesty¡¯s child with Rashta, I would not like it if after raising that child to reject me growing up, hearing words like ¡®its mother¡¯s enemy¡¯.¡± When I finished speaking, I took two steps back and looked at him. Sovieshu looked even more surprised. His mouth was slightly open and hisplexion was pale. Anyone who looked at him would realize that I had said something to him. After a moment, I bowed politely, turned, and walked away. We had only exchanged a few words, but I was already tired. Fortunately, after Heinley, Duke Elgy, and Sovieshu asked me to dance one after another, no one else did. Was it also mentally exhausting for him? I nced at Sovieshu as I sipped my drink, he too was sitting in a chair and did not dance again. Duke Elgy was talking with other young nobles. Heinley, who was next to me, seemed to want to dance with me again... ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± I didn¡¯t have the strength, so I didn¡¯t want to dance again. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Tomorrow we¡¯ll have another chance.¡± Tomorrow will be the second reception, which will probably have a masquerade ball as its theme. The mere mention of ¡®masquerade ball¡¯ brought back bad memories. Even the thought of having to attend a third reception made me feel terribly exhausted. But I didn¡¯t want Heinley to worry, so I smiled and nodded. At that moment, I heard many voices from a distance. They were voices of surprise and admiration. What¡¯s wrong? Looking in that direction, I saw a lot of people gathered in that area. Is someone doing some interesting stunt? Although I was curious, I didn¡¯t feel like going to see it. I calmed down and ate the pineapple slices Heinley had brought me. Rose, who had been walking around for a while, came up to me and said, ¡°Your Majesty the Queen. That... person.¡± Rose seemed reluctant to say her name, but I could imagine who she was referring to. She was talking about Rashta. Rose was on my side, so it was hard for her to call Rashta ¡®Her Majesty the Empress¡¯ in front of me. When I nodded and stared at her, Rose whispered, ¡°In celebration of her marriage, she will donate arge sum of money to numerous institutions in need of help, such as orphanages and nursing homes.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes, about twenty million krangs.¡± ¡°...Seriously?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a huge amount. That¡¯s why everyone is so impressed.¡± Twenty million krangs... Trying to contain myughter, I opened my fan to cover my mouth. It was exactly the amount of the promissory notes I had left. I advised her not to use them under her name because it could lead to problems. How could she do it so openly? Is Rashta smart or the opposite? But it¡¯s already done. This could raise her reputation, or cause her problems. Now it all depended on her luck for ignoring my warning. *** However, after returning to my room that day, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about it. Should I have been more specific in the letter? I didn¡¯t give her an exact exnation as to why I shouldn¡¯t use that money on her behalf. In a way... I didn¡¯t because I thought Rashta would naturally understand as soon as she saw the promissory notes. If things weren¡¯t going to getplicated, I might have let it slide this once. But after Rashta¡¯s behavior today, I wondered if I should exin the situation to her in more detail. There was another part of me that objected, ¡®Why should I? She is the Empress now. Besides, I was not an empress who left her position on her own ord, but an empress who was ousted and forced to divorce.¡¯ After careful consideration, I finally made a decision, I would only tell her what was necessary to put my mind at ease. And the next day, the masquerade ball began and as soon as I walked in, I saw Rashta. There she is. But as I was about to call Rashta over to talk, I became concerned as I remembered how she had thrown herself on the floor and insisted that my brother had pushed her. Is there any guarantee that she won¡¯t do it again while we¡¯re talking? Thinking about it for a moment, I came up with an excellent idea. An excellent idea to be able to talk to Rashta alone and prevent her from lying like that again. I waited for the opportunity patiently, then approached Rashta and proposed, ¡°Your Majesty the Empress, will you dance with me?¡± Chapter 214 - Come Back, Navier (1) Chapter 214. Come Back, Navier (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Rashta became nervous as I approached. When I held out my hand and asked her to dance, her eyes widened. ¡°Huh?¡± She looked like she would never have expected it. The surrounding nobles were also puzzled. Although we had our faces covered by a mask, those present could clearly recognize that we were the new empress and the former empress. It was strange to everyone that I suddenly asked Rashta to dance. I silently pointed with my other hand to the dancing stage. Rashta looked confused, but got up and followed me, perhaps to prevent me from saying something awkward out loud. When we stood in the middle of the stage, the music stopped with an unusual violin screech, the musicians were also surprised. There was a moment of silence. Then, about 30 secondster. The music started again. Probably out of consideration for us, the music yed was not necessarily meant for a man and a woman to dance. The dance steps were identical, so you just had to move the same. Rashta calmly asked while adopting a dance posture. ¡°Do you want to defeat Rashta that badly?¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You dance better than Rashta, that¡¯s what you want to hear right now.¡± ¡°...¡± She had a really unique imagination. But there was no reason to praise her, much less waste time on unimportant things. ¡°Let¡¯s make it look like you¡¯re a good dancer.¡± I concluded firmly, and got to the point, ¡°If you ever find yourself in trouble next to Baron Lant, ask Marquis Karl for help.¡± ¡°Huh? What?¡± Rashta was even more puzzled, her eyes widened again. As if she couldn¡¯t understand why I was saying this out of the blue. I didn¡¯t want to delve too deeply into the subject. So I simply continued, ¡°Marquis Karl is a subordinate of His Majesty, but he is a just man who is not swayed by personal feelings. If it¡¯s for the country, he¡¯ll help you.¡± ¡°What are you...?¡± ¡°It is not necessary topletely push away those who seek only power and profit. Even some of those people are talented, it¡¯s just that they pursue different goals. However, they should not be part of one¡¯s close aides, and in case they are, one should always keep an eye on what they pursue.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°You¡¯d better stay away from the person who picked out your outfit today.¡± Rashta waspletely stunned, she even stumbled a little in the dance. Her eyes were full of confusion. I know. I don¡¯t have to tell her any of this. But... ¡°I¡¯m not doing it for you. It¡¯s advice for the sake of my home country.¡± After I coldly added that, Rashta¡¯s gaze finally turned slightly haughty. ¡°What about the promissory notes I gave you? Have you given them to anyone else yet?¡± However, her haughty gaze quickly disappeared after those questions. She stopped staring at me at the mention of the promissory notes, her gaze darting around with a paleplexion. ¡°Hmm, Rashta doesn¡¯t quite understand what you¡¯re talking about...¡± ¡°If you can get them back, do it. If you can¡¯t, you¡¯ll really have to fund the institutions with your own money from now on.¡± Rashta snorted. She thought I was saying that because I didn¡¯t want her to take advantage of my money. Not so much, Rashta. I was afraid that a problem would arise because of that money and that the institutions I had funded would be implicated. Legally, just because a problem arose for Rashta did not mean that those institutions would also have a problem, but a sponsor would not donate to an institution involved in a scandal. However... instead of pointing out possible scenarios, I decided to stop here. I just told her how to prevent the worst. If I went into detail I might end up shooting myself in the foot. Not so much because of the money I gave her, but rather because Rashta has already med others for her mistakes on different asions. If I gave her more information, she could prepare to me someone else again in case a problem aroseter. At that moment, Rashta suddenly copsed on the floor and began to scream. ¡°Ah, my belly!¡± She began to moan in pain, ¡°My belly hurts!¡± I looked down quietly at Rashta. I don¡¯t know if it was true or false but continued to cover her belly. ¡°Rashta!¡± Sovieshu rushed over in astonishment. Rashta sobbed and clutched his arm. ¡°Your Majesty, my belly hurts so much...!¡± Sovieshu turned his gaze to me. We looked at each other expressionlessly. His lips were trembling, but instead of saying anything, he simply scooped Rashta into his arms. However, he kept looking at my face. Although I supposedly had hurt Rashta, his face reflected no such thought. He was literally just staring at my face. Why? Was he recalling the time we were dancing together before he threw me away and went with Rashta? ¡°Good heavens.¡± Heinley came up to me, grabbed my hand, and advised Sovieshu in a soft voice. ¡°Your Majesty, you had better take her to the pce doctor soon.¡± Rashta writhed in the air, her hands pale. Seeing that she was actually in a cold sweat, it must be true that her belly ached. Sovieshu finally left with Rashta in his arms. The nobles looked in my direction. I could clearly feel their eyes on me, but I nonchntly grabbed two sses of champagne from a passing servant. I handed one to Heinley, and immediately took a sip from mine. It was good to have spoken in front of the nobles. Whether or not it hurt, Rashta will definitely me me. *** ¡°Well?¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s cold question, the pce doctor withdrew his stethoscope and quickly replied. ¡°It was just a scare, she¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°What happened to her?¡± ¡°It seems to be due to stress.¡± ¡°Stress?¡± Sovieshu looked at him with a face of, ¡®What stress could she have?¡¯ The pce doctor smiled awkwardly. That was something Sovieshu should know better than he did. When the doctor eventually left, Sovieshu walked over to Rashta, who was lying on the bed, and grabbed her hand. Rashta clung tightly to Sovieshu¡¯s hand. ¡°Your Majesty, did you see? The Empress ckmailed me. I¡¯m scared.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t see anything.¡± ¡°The Empress ckmailed me.¡± Sovieshu sighed at Rashta¡¯s words. ¡°What did the Empress ckmail you with?¡± ¡°She...¡± Rashta hesitated. For someone to ckmail you, that person must know a weakness of yours to pressure you with. She knew this better than anyone else because she had been ckmailed by Viscount Roteschu before. Therefore, it was difficult to make up her words before Sovieshu. She obviously couldn¡¯t mention the promissory notes. In the end, Rashta covered herself with the sheets, tears welling up in her eyes. Sovieshu sighed heavily at the sight. She did seem to be under some stress. From Sovieshu¡¯s viewpoint, the Empress was not someone who would take advantage of others¡¯ weaknesses to ckmail them. However, the intentions of the speaker and listener did not always coincide. Rashta could have taken the Empress¡¯s words as ckmail. Either way, Rashta was visibly frightened at the time. ¡°Rest.¡± Sovieshu stroked her wavy hair, patted the sheets several times, and left. They had both unconsciously called Navier¡ª Empress. Rashta frowned when she realized this fact. ¡®Stupid!¡¯ Rashta med her own mouth. Rashta had called her Empress so many times that it still came out of her mouth involuntarily. The wedding ceremony was held yesterday, and now the Empress of the Eastern Empire is me. There is no reason to call the Queen¡ª Empress. Chapter 215 - Come Back, Navier (2) Chapter 215. Come Back, Navier (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe ¡®And she¡¯s still acting as if she¡¯s superior... insolent!¡¯ Rashta, whose pride had been wounded, regretted not having done anything and covered her belly again due to the growing pain. ¡°Ugh...¡± She wasn¡¯t pretending. Unknowingly, facing Navier put enormous pressure on her. ¡®Now she¡¯s not only after me, but also after my baby.¡¯ Rashta regarded all this as Navier¡¯s scheme. She was a smart woman, so it had to be a psychological attack. However, as the pain subsided, Navier¡¯s words began to unsettle her. ¡®Hmm...What was she talking about?¡¯ For Rashta, the question of asking for help from Marquis Karl and about it not being good to have around those who only came for power were nonsense. ¡®Does she think I¡¯m so stupid that I haven¡¯t learned anything?¡¯ But she was troubled by the question of promissory notes. ¡®Is something wrong with the promissory notes?¡¯ Rashta had examined them carefully, so she could not remember any names on the promissory notes. She anxiously racked her brain, but she was sure they were nameless promissory notes. Besides, she had already given the promissory notes to Baron Lant. ¡®Thest couple of days have been celebratory, so Baron Lant should still have the promissory notes. Would it be alright to ask him?¡¯ Rashta changed her mind after a moment¡¯s consideration. If she told him that she would recheck the promissory notes, Baron Lant would be puzzled. However, that didn¡¯t mean she could take back the promissory notes and give the cash ordingly. ¡®She was just talking nonsense.¡¯ Rashta suppressed her nervousness and tried to calm down. ¡®Smile! You must show a dignified image to His Majesty from now on!¡¯ *** I didn¡¯t want Sovieshu to misunderstand, so I left the promissory notes with Rashta instead. ¡®Look at me. Am I not a good empress? Do you still want to divorce me?¡¯ It would have looked like I was saying that to Sovieshu. ¡°...¡± ¡®Forget it. It¡¯s already out of my hands.¡¯ I shook my head and put that aside, then left the Southern Pce. In a few days, I will leave the Eastern Empire. After that, I will rarelye here. This might even be thest time, so I wanted to say goodbye to this cepletely. ... How long have I walked? Not far away, I saw a bright light. What was that? I followed the light and to my surprise Duke Elgy was sitting on a huge rock. The small light came from the ne he was holding. Should I pretend I didn¡¯t see him? But hearing my footsteps, he turned his head. Now I had no choice, I walked over and asked him, ¡°What is that?¡± Duke Elgy did not expect to meet me in this ce, he seemed as surprised as I was. Then he smiled and opened his palm, ¡°It¡¯s a ne. A ne with a bit of magic.¡± He rolled the ne in his palm as if to show it to me. Then the ne glowed even brighter as if a little firefly was wandering inside it. As I looked at it curiously, Duke Elgy asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you feel sad?¡± It was an unexpected question. What did he mean? I took my eyes off the ne and stared at him. Duke Elgy gazed silently into my face, his expression... the same as yesterday. The same somber expression he had when we danced. He was Heinley¡¯s friend, but he was also Rashta¡¯s friend. It was a very happy time for Rashta. So why did he have that expression? It¡¯s strange. ¡®Can it be?¡¯ At that instant, a thought popped into my head, Maybe... ¡°Do you like Miss Rashta?¡± So he had that expression because Rashta got married? Oh,e to think of it, she¡¯s not ¡®Miss Rashta¡¯ anymore. ¡°Do you like Empress Rashta?¡± When I asked, correcting my words, Duke Elgy raised his eyebrows andughed. But the next thing he said was the same question as before. ¡°Don¡¯t you feel sad?¡± ¡°Sad...?¡± ¡°Because of what happened at the parade.¡± Is he saying that because people ignored me during the parade? Is that why his expression was so somber? What happened at that moment had nothing to do with him. It seemed strange to me, but I answered honestly, ¡°It was inevitable.¡± Duke Elgy repeated my words ¡°It was inevitable...¡± then muttered coldly, ¡°People are like that. They only remember thest thing. Regardless of what one has done, if they don¡¯t like thest, they turn their backs on you right away and forget everything else.¡± Instead of answering, I just stared him in the eye. Unless he was a fool, it seemed that what happened brought back bad memories. Was it someone around him, or had he experienced something simr himself? At that moment, Duke Elgy smiled as he put the ne in his pocket. ¡°Queen, you are truly understanding. If I were in your position, I would be a little angry.¡± His words of sympathy mixed with a mocking tone were just as usual. However, he seemed more distressed than usual. Was it because of the sudden change in his expression? If we were close, this is where I would ask him, ¡®What happened to you?¡¯ However, since we didn¡¯t have that kind of rtionship it was awkward for me to ask such a personal question. So I nodded, pointing my finger in the direction I was headed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have interrupted your alone time. I will leave.¡± Duke Elgy smiled sweetly and rose from the rock. ¡°I will escort you on your way.¡± *** Today was thest wedding reception and I was supposed to spend much more time with Heinley. Yesterday, before we parted to our rooms, Heinley took me firmly by the hand and grumbled, ¡°Since we came here only hang out with your friends. Please hang out with me too.¡± He wore a sad expression, his broad shoulders drooped. I felt sorry for him, so I promised him that I would spend more time with him today. On second thought, it was true. Before the celebrations, I hung out with my friends. I only danced with him once on the first day. On the day of the masquerade ball, after Sovieshu took Rashta away, I stayed a little longer and then also returned to my room. It was no wonder Heinley was lonely. What I wanted most was to skip thest wedding reception, but I put on a purple dress that matched Heinley¡¯s eye color and went looking for him. I was going to take him out of his room myself to try to cheer him up. After we had some fun, I would take him for a walk... However, as I was about to knock on Heinley¡¯s door. ¡°Navier.¡± I heard Sovieshu shout my name. As I turned around, I saw him approaching unescorted. As soon as I saw him, I remembered Rashta covering her belly at the masquerade ball. Is he here to discuss yesterday¡¯s incident? I said firmly, ¡°Those present should have seen it all. I did nothing.¡± Sovieshu approached and asked in surprise, ¡°What are you talking about?¡± What am I talking about? ¡°Aren¡¯t you here to me me for Empress Rashta¡¯s copse?¡± When I asked him coldly, Sovieshu eximed as if I had pped him. ¡°Hell! What nonsense are you talking about? I¡¯d never believe that!¡± He would never believe that? Doesn¡¯t he remember the times he med me for what happened to Rashta? Staring at him silently, Sovieshu stiffened as if he had been thinking about that too. However, as he had said, he didn¡¯t seem to be here to discuss what happened to Rashta at the masquerade ball. But I didn¡¯t let my guard down, Sovieshu muttered, ¡°Oh my goodness,¡± and put his hand to his forehead. ¡°So, what brings you here?¡± When I asked, removing all possible emotion, Sovieshu pointed to my room with his gaze. As if he wanted us to go inside to talk. I shook my head. ¡°If you have something to say, do it here.¡± Although as a foreign queen, it was not the proper attitude toward the emperor of a powerful country, as an ex-wife, it was natural to act this way toward her ex-husband. I did not want to be alone with him in the same room. Sovieshu¡¯s eyes twitched. Was what he wanted to tell me that important? I thought he would leave in anger. But after looking at me intently for a moment, Sovieshu actually opened his mouth, ¡°Come back.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to be another man¡¯s wife.¡± *** ¡°I don¡¯t want you to be another man¡¯s wife.¡± Hearing the voiceing from the other side of the door, Heinley froze. He put his ear to the door and pressed his hand against his heart. His heart was pounding. ¡®What does this mean...?¡¯ Chapter 216 - Handsome (1) Chapter 216. Handsome (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Heinley had been a little strange after we attended the wedding. He seemed discouraged... On the way to the wedding, he had enjoyed our time together in the carriage. However, on the way back, he looked depressed. Even though we were in the same carriage, he tried not to look me in the eye. I was worried, so I asked him what was wrong, but there was no answer. He would only hold my hand asionally, and at one point he asked, ¡°You¡¯ll always be by my side, right?¡± ¡°Why are you saying something so obvious?¡± When I replied with a smile, he quietly put his cheek on my hand, closing his eyes. He even kissed my hand softly at times. ¡°Heinley?¡± I asked. It was cute, but it tickled. Then, he asked me a question simr to the previous one. ¡°You¡¯re my wife, right?¡± Why does my prince bird say such obvious things? I thought it was because he was tired on the way back. However, after returning to the Western Kingdom, Heinley¡¯s mood remained simr. Even when he came to visit me, he paced back and forth anxiously and sighed as if he had something to say but couldn¡¯t. He still did not respond when I asked him what was wrong. Nothing changed for several days until I decided to take the initiative and encourage Heinley. He had been hurt in many ways in the Eastern Empire. He went to the Eastern Empire for me, so I wanted to make him feel better. But what should I do... how could I encourage the depressed Heinley again? I was struggling with this problem for a while. As I kept thinking, I unconsciously noticed Rose knitting. A ball of soft yellow yarn and needles. When I saw those two things, a good idea popped into my head. Clothes! I can make clothes for him. *** Heinley was sitting in a dangerous position on his windowsill, staring up at the sky. There was a stack of papers piled on his desk that he was supposed to be working on, but now even that was out of his sight. The day of thest wedding reception reyed agonizingly in his head to the point where he felt on the verge of insanity. ¡ª Come back. ¡ª I don¡¯t want you to be another man¡¯s wife. ¡ª We are a married couple, Navier. What did Queen respond to such nonsense? Heinley wished he could have eavesdropped on it all. Queen¡¯s voice was so calm and low that he could not hear her response from the other side of the door. However, he believed that she rejected him because he heard Emperor Sovieshu shout in annoyance, ¡®Navier!¡¯... Still, his anxiety did not disappear. It was his understanding that Queen and Emperor Sovieshu had grown up together. They had once been as close as siblings. What if Queen¡¯s feelings for Sovieshu were love-hate? What if she wanted to give him another chance? Heinley cocked his head slightly to one side as he thought of all the bad things that could happen. He even thought that Queen woulde to see him at any moment and bring up the subject, saying, ¡®Sorry, but¡ª¡¯ It was then... ¡°Your Majesty.¡± A knight entered and informed him that Rose, Navier¡¯sdy-in-waiting, had been here. Heinley then asked, ¡°What for?¡± ¡°Her Majesty the Queen has something special to give you, she said toe visit her when you have time.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°What does Navier want to give me?¡± ¡°I just know it¡¯s something self-made. Your Majesty,e down from the windowsill. It is dangerous.¡± Is it a dish...? It¡¯s not a divorce notice, right? Uneasiness and anticipation surged throughout him simultaneously. Heinley hurried down from the windowsill. *** Heinley appeared less than five minutes after Rose returned. ¡°I said toe when you have time,¡± I chided him with a chuckle. Heinley excused himself and smiled as if embarrassed, ¡°I had casually taken a break.¡± Once mydies-in-waiting had quietly hurried out, Heinley asked me with a twinkle in his eye, ¡°I heard you wanted to give me something. What is it?¡± Did he reallye during his break? Watching his expression, he seemed to havee running because he was curious about the gift. His expectation-filled attitude made meugh. His previous depressed appearance had certainly lessened a bit. I quickly opened a desk drawer, pulled out a wrapped gift box, and handed it to him. ¡°It¡¯s small.¡± Heinley murmured about the gift I handed him, examining the box from all sides. I guess he was curious about what was inside. ¡°Open it,¡± I said with a smile. Heinley looked at me and pulled the end of the ribbon. The box was fully revealed as the ribbon that carefully tied the wrapping fell off. Heinley quickly opened the box lid as if he was impatient to see what it was. ¡°...What do you think?¡± I asked him as he looked at the gift in amazement. He slightly gaped at it. Then he reached into the box, pulled out the gift I gave him, and lifted it up a bit. ¡°What do you think?¡± I asked him again. Inside the box, were the clothes I had knitted for ¡®Queen¡¯. I had told him in the past that I would dress him if he appeared in front of me again in ¡®Queen¡¯ form. Suddenly, when I saw Rose knitting, I remembered those words and it urred to me to make him clothes. Although at the time I said it as a punishment Heinley seemed to really like it... ¡°It¡¯s cute. Did you make it for me to wear when I turn into a bird?¡± Heinley burst outughing as he looked at the clothes as if they were baby clothes. Just as I expected, he looked very happy. The gloom of thest few days faded, and his face became bright once again. It was a relief, that his mood was much better. I looked at Heinley and proposed, ¡°If you be Queen right now, I will dress you.¡± Heinley startled and looked at me, his eyes asking, ¡®Seriously?¡¯ To show that I was serious, I sat down on the couch and gently patted myp. As soon as I did, Heinley disappeared, and I saw something shaking inside his clothes on the floor. Queen came out through his clothes and hurried over to me. He came to the front of the couch and looked up, I picked him up and put him in myp. Like the old days. His eyes widened and twitched. Pretending not to notice, I grabbed the knitted clothes and put them on Queen. ¡°Cute.¡± After I finished dressing him, I sang to him while stroking his head. I sang softly, humming. He seemed to feel so at ease that his eyes gradually narrowed as I sang until they finally closedpletely. Looking down after finishing the song, I saw Queenpletely asleep. His chest rose and fell steadily, his eyelids twitching asionally as if he were dreaming. ¡°How cute.¡± I stared at him and kissed him gently on the forehead. Chapter 217 - Handsome (2)

Chapter 217. Handsome (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe ¡®Is he bipr?¡¯ Heinley, who had been depressed all morning, spent the entire afternoon smiling. McKenna looked at him suspiciously. Not only was he smiling, but he was also giggling as he touched his forehead. On the way to the conference room, he stared at a pir that reflected his face in it and he said, ¡°I¡¯m cute.¡± McKenna looked anxiously at Heinley. Better to daydream than to be depressed. Heinley had always maintained an attitude of absolute self-confidence, so it worried him that his emotions were now so unstable. At that moment. Heinley, who was walking excitedly, stopped abruptly and covered his mouth with one hand. Then he looked at nothing with serious, deep eyes, frowning. He seemed surprised to have realized something btedly. ¡°Your Majesty? What is it?¡± McKenna asked quizzically, Heinley looked around and finally whispered, ¡°If I marry soon...¡± But, Heinley was unable to say it, so he closed his mouth. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± What if he marries soon? McKenna was curious about the rest, and asked, ¡°What were you going to say?¡± But Heinley remained silent, not answering. McKenna asked repeatedly, ¡°Your Majesty? Your Majesty?¡± Only then did Heinley speak with concern, ¡°McKenna. How is my image?¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡¯s? Your Majesty, you may not look it, but you are smart, dignified, and romantic...¡± ¡°Not the image you see. My external image.¡± ¡°Well then, you¡¯re not smart, you¡¯re not dignified, nor are you romantic.¡± Heinley sighed, shook his head, started walking again. That wasn¡¯t the answer he wanted. Actually, what he wanted to ask was about the first night after the wedding ceremony. After that night, the next meetings would take ce considering each other¡¯s wishes, but the wedding night would take ce regardless of that. He didn¡¯t say anything, but just thinking about that day made his heart beat faster and faster. It felt so good to touch the person you love. How would it feel when I actually held her in my arms? He couldn¡¯t even imagine. But suddenly a thought came to his mind. He... He had no experience in ¡®that¡¯. The problem was his yboy image. Although Navier didn¡¯t seem to think he was as promiscuous as the others, she believed to some extent that Heinley was a yboy. Navier wouldn¡¯t think I was good at all ¡®that¡¯ if I was a yboy? Of course, he was sure to do well once he learned and became familiar. But if he couldn¡¯t get it right on the wedding night, would there even be a second night? Heinley wanted to be the perfect man for Navier. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± McKenna called him with a firm expression; he was genuinely concerned. Heinley waved his hand to indicate he was fine, then changed the subject. ¡°When will everyone arrive from the Knights¡¯ Expedition?¡± ¡®I don¡¯t think he was thinking about that,¡¯ McKenna thought and answered calmly, ¡°It¡¯s a long road, but they will arrive today.¡± ¡°Then the weing ceremony is scheduled for tomorrow.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Ah! I must tell the Queen to prepare a handkerchief.¡± *** ¡°A handkerchief?¡± McKenna came to visit me and told me that I should prepare a handkerchief. ¡°Yes, all the knights who participated in the ¡®Knights¡¯ Expedition¡¯ will be arriving today.¡± ¡°There will be an event.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. To be precise, today they will gather at the outskirts of the capital, and tomorrow they will depart from there to the Royal Pce in the corresponding ceremonial costume. Many people usuallye to see them.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Once the parade is over, eachdy ces a handkerchief in her knight¡¯s pocket. I think it would be best if Your Majesty the Queen would join us at that time.¡± Thinking about the silence I received from the people in the Eastern Empire, I was a little worried. ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry too much, Your Majesty.¡± As if he knew what I was thinking, McKenna smiled gently and reassured me, ¡°Sir Koshar is one of the most popr knights on this expedition.¡± *** The next morning. I wore a formal dress and pulled my hair up in an elegant bun without leaving a single hair loose. It was not a party, but today I would meet the knights who participated in the expedition as well as the youngdies and noblewomen rted to them. We wouldn¡¯t dine together, but we would at least greet each other while waiting for the knights. I was not yet entrenched in high society, so I definitely should not take the asion lightly. After checking myself in the mirror several times to make sure I looked good, I got into the carriage and exited the pce gates at the scheduled time. Heinley left before me, so only Rose, Mastas, and the Supranational Knights followed me. As I stepped out of the carriage, the noblewomen who had arrived first greeted me courteously. ¡°It is an honor to see Your Majesty the Queen.¡± ¡°Greetings to Your Majesty the Queen.¡± Since we did not have a close rtionship, they could not start a conversation first, so they just looked at me silently after greeting. When people who are not close are in the same ce, the person with the highest status is supposed to initiate the conversation. But instead of talking to them, I asked Rose, ¡°When will it start?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about to start, Your Majesty.¡± As soon as she finished speaking, the sound of a battle horn was heard in the distance. However, since the gates of the capital could not be seen from here, once the sound faded, all was quiet again. There was an awkward silence for a moment. But not long after, loud cheers began to be heard in the distance. The knights seemed to being this way. I could feel the cheering getting closer and closer. I could hear names asionally, but the voices were so mixed up because of the loud cheering that it was hard to make out what was said. Gradually they grew stronger, like the waves of the sea. Finally, the knights could be seen from here. They came on horseback in rows of three. People cheered for them and sprinkled flower petals from their baskets on them. Surprisingly, my brother was one of the three in the front row. And, contrary to my worries, no one ignored him. I could also hear some people shouting, ¡°Koshar.¡± As I watched in amazement, Mastas said to me from the side, ¡°The three most popr knights are in the front row, Your Majesty. Behind, the next three. After there, it is only in order of arrival.¡± My brother smiled and waved to those present as if he felt awkward. Before the sight, I swelled with pride. I was both proud and moved. Eventually, the knights disciplinedly stopped as they approached us, and at McKenna¡¯s signal, dismounted their horses. Among those knights was my brother. My brother took a few steps forward and smiled as he looked at me silently. I thought we would go together toy out the handkerchiefs, or in line. However, as my brother continued to move forward, no one else moved. ¡®Do I have to be the first to ce it?¡¯ Looking at Heinley, he winked at me and nodded. So, I pulled out my handkerchief and walked over to my brother. Suddenly I noticed that in the second row was Sir April, Mastas¡¯ brother. After nodding slightly towards him in greeting, I ced the handkerchief in the breast pocket of my brother¡¯s ceremonial suit as if it were an essory. *** The time I had to see my brother for the first time in a while was short. After returning from the expedition, the knights who participated were to report the details in the conference room. I was relieved to see him awkward and embarrassed but adjusting well. I wish my brother could gradually get rid of the bad reputation he had in the Eastern Empire... That night, I visited the temple and prayed briefly. But the next day, I was surprised to learn that my brother¡¯s image was much better than I thought. ¡°What is this?¡± Around noon, Rose had brought a stack of letters. These letters came from senders from different families. Opening one to read, the contents were simple but friendly. The same was true for the other letters. Why did they suddenly send these letters? When I looked at Rose puzzled, she said as she looked at Mastas, ¡°The youngdies at yesterday¡¯s weing ceremony must have fallen in love with Sir Koshar.¡± With my brother? ¡°Really?¡± I asked her to tell me more about it, Rose said, looking again at Mastas, ¡°Sir Koshar is as beautiful as a painting. He¡¯s given a great performance this time, so I¡¯m sure in the eyes of the youngdies he¡¯s wonderful.¡± Mastas added excitedly, not realizing that Rose was looking at her. ¡°Besides, he¡¯s the sessor of an influential family in the Eastern Empire and the Queen¡¯s only sibling.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± When I nodded awkwardly, they both looked at me strangely. ¡°Isn¡¯t that always the case?¡± ¡°Sir Koshar must be popr in the Eastern Empire too, no?¡± Not at all. My brother had a bad reputation. Since the age of seven, my brother¡¯s poprity had plummeted. However, it was impossible for them and the youngdies not to know about my brother¡¯s rumors. Since rumors about my brother did not originate in the Western Kingdom, were they considered exaggerated here? Perhaps. And the next day. I received more letters than yesterday, which confirmed my suspicions. People in the Western Kingdom thought his bad reputation was exaggerated. At first, I found this situation awkward. But on second thought, it seemed like a pretty good thing. Maybe Nian and my brother would be able to make a ce for me in high society without Muney¡¯s help? Joining forces with Muney would be an easy way to fit into the Western Kingdom¡¯s high society. However, if I took this path I would lose the other half that supported Christa, which was not good in the long run. Not everyone had to like me, but there was also no need to turn half of high society into enemies at the same time. Although I had to be careful in selecting my close aides, I wouldn¡¯t mind getting a little close to Christa if it was a moderate friendship. For now, I¡¯ll go see Christa again. Is there even the slightest chance that we will get close? Having made up my mind, I changed my clothes and left the detached pce. As I walked down the corridor, I saw foreign carriages and people going to the main pce. The patterns of the carriages looked familiar. Do they look like Rwibt carriages? As soon as I thought about it, I saw Grand Duke Kapmen. He epted the invitation. Grand Duke Kapmen, who was walking calmly with a grave expression, turned his head this way. Did he feel my gaze on him? Chapter 218 - Kapmen And Heinley (1) Chapter 218. Kapmen And Heinley (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe I walked toward him with a smile. However, the moment I noticed his twisted face, I took a step back. The effects of the potion still hadn¡¯t worn off?! His expression twisted even more as I stepped back. Now, I was absolutely sure. The effects of the potion had definitely not worn off. But why? It had been a long time already, no? While I was thinking about that, Grand Duke Kapmen seemed to want toe this way. No way. I stepped back again. Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s expression darkened noticeably, but I couldn¡¯t do anything about it. The way the Grand Duke spoke under the effects of the potion was so strange that anyone would misunderstand him. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± After calling me, Mastas, who was following me, asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go the other way. There seem to be a lot of people around here.¡± I quickly turned to the other side, pretending to be calm. *** ¡®Ah...¡¯ Kapmen unconsciously stretched out his hands, as if reaching for someone. Then, he closed his hands and lowered them, standing there in a daze, looking at the skirt of her dress as she walked away. It was like a butterfly flying away, fluttering in the wind. ¡°Grand Duke?¡± The squire who had apanied him from Rwibt, was giving instructions for the luggage to be taken out of the carriage when he called Kapmen. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Navi...¡± TL/N: Navi is the romanization of ¡®??¡¯, meaning ¡®Butterfly¡¯. ¡°Butterfly?¡± The squire looked around in bewilderment. There were no flowers nearby, much less butterflies. [Is the Grand Duke seeing strange things again?] The squire¡¯s perplexed voice echoed in Kapmen¡¯s head. ¡°...No.¡± Kapmen turned around reluctantly. ¡°Hmm, where should I go?¡± He then asked, and the official who hade to wee him quickly replied, ¡°To the Hall of Stars. I will show you the way.¡± Kapmen nodded and followed him. The ¡®Hall of Stars¡¯ was a ce that lived up to its name. Arriving at the hall under the guidance of the official, Kapmen looked up at the ck ceiling. Countless different types of jewels shone like stars in the sky. Was it to show the wealth of the country that the ce where distinguished guests were received was like this? In the middle, a long red carpet stretched across the floor, with officials standing on either side. King Heinley was also standing by the throne at the other end of the carpet. ¡°My apologies, Grand Duke. You must put down your sword,¡± whispered the official who had led him here. Kapmen pulled the sword from his waist and handed it to him, then walked toward King Heinley. Stopping about six paces from him, he bowed his head slightly in greeting. ¡°Congrattions on your coronation, Your Majesty.¡± Heinley smiled and replied, ¡°Thank you.¡± For a moment, the two stared at each other without saying a word. Kapmen remembered thest asion when they met. That day he had struck Emperor Sovieshu, but the confrontation had started with Heinley, a prince at the time. The corners of Kapmen¡¯s lips turned up. He could hear what other people were thinking, so he noticed that King Heinley was thinking back to the exact same event he was. However, at the moment King Heinley grinned and said, ¡°I would also like to hear your congrattions on the wedding.¡± Kapmen frowned, the slight smile on his facepletely disappeared. An ordinary person in this situation would feel awkward and get carried away by those words. [What can I do if he gets too close to Queen?] But Kapmen had clearly heard Heinley¡¯s thoughts. Moreover, as soon as he heard ¡®Queen¡¯, there was a storm of calm inside him. Once he was swept away by the storm, his mouth opened on its own. ¡°Congrattions on the wedding.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°It will be like a dream to see her wear the wedding dress.¡± ¡°?¡± Frowning, Heinley shouted, ¡°What are you trying to say?!¡± His voice carried across the hall. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Forget my words,¡± Kapmen added awkwardly. He didn¡¯t want to cause trouble again and leave as if he was being kicked out of the Western Kingdom. How much did he regret hitting Emperor Sovieshu back then? It wasforting at the time, but that feeling didn¡¯tst long. In the end, it became a big problem. The trade did not materialize and he could not stay at Empress Navier¡¯s side any longer. He could not repeat the same thing this time. Heinley, however, already seemed offended. [I must restrain myself. I must restrain myself. I must restrain myself.] These words were repeated by the grinning Heinley inwardly, revealing his true thoughts. [I am different from Emperor Sovieshu. I will not be driven by jealousy. Queen told me I was cute.] But Kapmen¡¯s regret disappeared again at the mention of ¡®Queen¡¯ in Heinley¡¯s thoughts. ¡°Those were empty words.¡± The effects of the potion, which seemed to have stabilized for a moment, suddenly spiked. ¡°...What did you say?¡± ¡°Thank you for the invitation.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t that.¡± ¡°Congrattions on the we¡ª¡± Kapmen bit his lips. He¡¯d said it before with no problem, but this time he wasn¡¯t able to congratte him on his wedding. Seeing him react like that, Heinley¡¯s expression darkened. *** Meanwhile, Sovieshu¡¯s expression was also dark. He was reading the invitation sent by Heinley to attend their wedding in the West Kingdom. ¡°Is he in his right mind?¡± Sovieshu muttered as he looked at thevishly decorated letter, with ivory-colored details. There was even a phrase in the letter that read¡ª ¡®For our friendship.¡¯ Sovieshu crushed the letter and threw it away when he realized that it was not written by Navier. Chapter 219 - . Kapmen And Heinley (2)

Chapter 219. Kapmen And Heinley (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl opened his mouth in surprise. Letters sent by the rulers of neighboring countries were supposed to be kept. However, he crushed it into a ball and then threw it on the floor. It was important to keep it for future generations. Sovieshu stood up coldly and began to step on the letter. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl called him again in an attempt to stop him. But he immediately fell silent and let Sovieshu do as he pleased. Come to think of it, future generations who might read this letter would learn about the rtionship between Emperor Sovieshu and King Heinley... At least they would think so. Sovieshu only returned to his ce after stepping on the letter a few more times. However, he was still angry. When he saw Heinley¡¯s letter, he remembered Navier holding his hand tightly. Once he sat down, he leaned back in his seat. As he closed his eyes and began to massage his temples, he heard Navier¡¯s voice. ¡ª No. A firm, cold voice. ¡ª No. No, no, no, no, no, no. The incessant repetition of her voice made his head ache even more. Sovieshu opened his eyes again and only then did the voice disappear. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Marquis Karl called out worriedly to Sovieshu. But Sovieshu did not answer, he simply sighed heavily. On the day of thest wedding reception, he impulsively went to visit Navier. When he saw her standing in front of King Heinley¡¯s door, he suddenly regretted everything. He felt that everything was wrong. A sense of dread rose up inside him as if the world would copse if he did nothing to make things right. He didn¡¯t know why. Even now. But at that moment, that sense of dread was so intense that Sovieshu couldn¡¯t help but approach Navier and say, ¡ª Come back. I don¡¯t want you to be another man¡¯s wife. We are a married couple, Navier. Judging by her face, Navier looked a little surprised. Her eyes opened wide and she looked at him as if to say, ¡®What are you talking about?¡¯ Then, she raised an eyebrow and said with a slight smile, ¡ª No. That simple answer made him furious. The unknown dread was reced by anger. So instead of insisting, he turned around and left. But why do I remember it now with such sadness? Why was the feeling of emptiness greater than the feeling of anger? ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Marquis Karl called out to Sovieshu again. Sovieshu finally put aside his thoughts and said, staring at the crushed letter on the floor, ¡°Navier seems to want to provoke me.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s obvious she¡¯s pretending to have a good rtionship with King Heinley in front of me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Let¡¯s keep the invitation for now.¡± Sovieshu closed his eyes again after indicating that he could leave. However, Marquis Karl just picked up the crushed letter and hesitated to leave. Sovieshu opened his eyes and stared at him. What is the matter? When their eyes met, Marquis Karl carefully expressed, ¡°Your Majesty, I would like toment on something regarding the Empress¡¯s donation.¡± ¡°Navier¡¯s?¡± ¡°... Rashta¡¯s.¡± ¡°Ah. Rashta.¡± Sovieshu frowned and said, ¡°What about Rashta?¡± ¡°She said at the wedding reception that she would donate 20 million krangs, right?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Is it possible for her to donate that amount?¡± ¡°I already confirmed that part with Baron Lant. It will be through imperial promissory notes.¡± ¡°Imperial promissory notes?¡± Marquis Karl asked puzzled, and Sovieshu replied as if it was normal, ¡°They must have been left by Navier.¡± ¡°Queen Navier?¡± Marquis Karl¡¯s eyes widened in shock. So Empress Rashta acted like a kind person while using Queen Navier¡¯s money! ¡°In that case, wouldn¡¯t you have to get them back, Your Majesty?¡± But Sovieshu calmly replied, ¡°It¡¯s already done. Anyway, there won¡¯t be any trouble unless I report it. Let¡¯s forget about it.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°It will also help improve Rashta¡¯s image.¡± ¡®Will that be alright?¡¯ Marquis Karl was worried. Not about this matter, but about Sovieshu. Although he seemed to miss Navier, he was still protecting Rashta. What if his current actions lead him to greater regret in the future? That was what really worried the Marquis. Meanwhile, Rashta was now savoring the greatest happiness. She slowly looked around the Western Pce, feeling proud. Elegant arched staircases, rooms for her guards, a spacious foyer, a splendid drawing-room, and a magnificent bedroom... All of this was hers. In the imperial pce, this building was exclusively for the empress. Here she will have her child and livefortably. After a long time, her child will ascend to the throne. When her child became the new emperor, she would be the emperor¡¯s mother. ¡®I will give birth to and raise the ruler of this vast empire!¡¯ Rashta shivered as she looked out the window, overwhelmed by her emotions. She climbed up from the bottom on her own. She was different from those who were lucky enough to be born into rich and powerful families. Theyzily followed a set path all their lives, but she did not. She came off of the cliff and climbed the steep terrain to the top. Rashta smiled. Now that she had be the Empress, she thought it was all over. She considered it her victory, the happy ending. The Empress of the Commoners? She never wanted to be that in the first ce. What didmoners do for themselves? She hated the nobles, but she also hated themoners. If she had to choose any... she would choose the ves. ¡®Now it¡¯s all up to me!¡¯ The Empress¡¯s power is immense. Rashta pressed her fist against her chest. Otherwise, she felt her heart would burst out at once. The scene of the wedding reception. Just thinking about that moment gave her goosebumps. The shouts of joy from those present... ¡°Everyone loves Rashta.¡± Once rumors spread that she had donated 20 million krangs, her poprity would increase even more. A future surrounded by flowers, silk, and jewels would be in store for her. Rashta turned around, pleased. However, her onlydy-in-waiting, Viscountess Verdi, had no expression of joy. ¡°What is it?¡± Rashta approached her quietly, and asked, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you smiling?¡± Viscountess Verdi replied dazedly, ¡°What?¡± Rashta looked at her carefully, tilting her head slightly. ¡°Why aren¡¯t you smiling? Is it because you don¡¯t like Rashta being here?¡± Viscountess Verdi was surprised and quickly denied it, ¡°No, of course not.¡± ¡°Is it because you remember the deposed empress? Diding here make you miss her?¡± ¡°No, not at all,¡± the Viscountess hastily denied. Rashta looked at her suspiciously with her arms crossed. When she was a concubine, she had to be wary of others. A concubine had no power. Even legally there would be no problem if someone intimidated her. The nobles had only been kind to her because of the Emperor. But now she was the Empress. If someone bothered her, that person would have to take the consequences. She wanted to try this as soon as possible. ¡°It really isn¡¯t like that, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Then I want an exnation.¡± Rashta smiled and lifted Viscountess Verdi¡¯s chin. ¡°Why do you look subdued on such a happy day?¡± ¡°!¡± Viscountess Verdi hesitated, but Rashta¡¯s mood was such that if she didn¡¯t tell the truth, she would be in real trouble, so she finally confessed, ¡°The drawing-room was supposed to be filled with gifts from the nobles.¡± Rashta panicked and replied, ¡°What?¡± Gifts? She was in her bedroom now, but she had just passed through the drawing-room. The drawing-room was clean and furnished, but she hadn¡¯t seen any gifts. Rashta went back to the room to check. As she had already expected, there were no gifts. ¡°Should there really be gifts?¡± When Rashta asked suspiciously, Viscountess Verdi replied, ¡°I have only experienced this once in the past, but certainly half the room was filled with gifts when Empress Navier first came here.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It took her several days to go through the gifts and write letters of thanks. I remember it clearly.¡± Rashta frozepletely at Viscountess Verdi¡¯s words. She felt as if the blood was being drained from her face, suddenly turning cold. What did this mean? During the wedding receptions, all the men wanted to dance with her, and all the women spoke kindly to her. Everyone, regardless of age or gender, praised her. Then why? Why didn¡¯t anyone send a gift? Eventually, her face twisted sharply. The answer was obvious to her. Navier. What did the deposed empress do while in the Western Empire? The people ignored her and the nobles were kind to Rashta. That¡¯s obviously why she spread bad rumors about me everywhere. Besides, she¡¯s smart enough to do that. ¡°How despicable...¡± Rashta muttered, grinding her teeth. Seeing her reaction, Viscountess Verdi took a bewildered step back. ¡°I¡¯ll do the same.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go to her wedding and do the same.¡± At that moment, she noticed a small gift. It was a difficult gift to distinguish because it was on the soft rugs. Rashta quickly ran over and picked up the gift. Then she swore. No matter who sent this gift, I will offer my sincerest friendship to that person. Upon opening the gift, she found a small ring but with arge jewel. The name of Duke Elgy was written on the inside. Chapter 220 - Grand Duke Kapmen Hates The Queen (1) Chapter 220. Grand Duke Kapmen Hates The Queen (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Although it was amazing to see Kapmen again, there was no time to be cooped up in the detached pce, worrying about my future. So I went to visit Christa, as I had originally nned. ¡°Navier,¡± Christa murmured in surprise as soon as she saw me, she had no idea I woulde to visit her. She greeted me soon after. ¡°I did not expect to receive your visit.¡± ¡°I came to see how the acacia flowers I sent were,¡± I replied. Christa seemed surprised for a moment, but immediately smiled and asked one of herdies-in-waiting to prepare the table. Momentster, Christa¡¯sdy-in-waiting put jasmine tea and snacks on the table before leaving. Once we sat face to face, I asked her, ¡°Did you like the Acacia Flowers?¡± ¡°I really... liked them, Navier.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d.¡± She smiled and sipped her tea. I waited for her to finish before asking her another question, ¡°Are they likely to bloom again?¡± Acacia flowers meant friendship in the flowernguage. Christa should be familiar enough with high society to understand what I meant. Indeed she understood my words immediately and looked down into the cup of tea in silence. She thought about it for a moment before answering, ¡°To know if they will bloom in the future it is necessary to take good care of them. But I am sure they are alive.¡± Christa had no intention of pretending with me. When I heard her answer, I was relieved. So with more courage, this time I expressed myself frankly, instead of asking another indirect question. ¡°We¡¯ve both done simr things, so it¡¯s better not to talk about it.¡± Christa, who was stirring the tea with a teaspoon, stopped. ¡°I don¡¯t want to get into unnecessary psychological warfare.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°In the end, it won¡¯t result in anything good for you or me.¡± I examined her as I finished my words. Christa was still motionless in the same posture she stopped in. Only after a moment, she moved her stilled hand again, slowly stirring the tea with the teaspoon. Then suddenly she spoke with a smile, ¡°I know that too.¡± Christa looked really exhausted as if she had given up everything. ¡°I don¡¯t want to fight either. But... right now I hope we can both befortable with this distance between us.¡± Her response alsocked strength. I pondered her words, then smiled broadly and said, ¡°That¡¯s all right,¡± rising from my chair. Satisfied with her suggestion. But on the way to the detached pce, Rose asked me, ¡°How did it go?¡± and I answered in the negative, ¡°The result was not good.¡± On the surface, Christa¡¯s words sounded as if she epted the reconciliation. Didn¡¯t she say she didn¡¯t want to fight? But the words that followed. ¡®Right now I hope we can both befortable with this distance between us,¡¯ was the real problem. It is Christa who would benefit from maintaining the current situation, not me. Christa showed no hostility towards me, even leaving room for rapprochement. At the same time, she suggested that we maintain the current distance. In this way, she was maintaining the situation that favored her, preventing future problems, and even if they arose, she now had a way to avoid them. If at any time I became anxious about the slow progress of the situation and tried to act hostile, she would say she intended to approach me. ¡°I¡¯ll have to choose another way.¡± Perhaps, unlike what I thought, Christa was just being sincere. But whether it was calcted or not, continuing with the current situation would still be detrimental to me. So I couldn¡¯t simply trust Christa¡¯s words and wait for her to change her mind, while I remained isted from high society. I considered for a moment and then ordered, ¡°Send Miss Muney Corydalis and Geldya flowers for me. Do it secretly.¡± In the flowernguage, Corydalis meant secret, and Geldya meant cooperation. Muney would understand. Rose understood what I meant, then nodded andughed. Mastas didn¡¯t understand at all though and asked, ¡°What? Rose, why are youughing? Your Majesty, are youughing too?¡± ¡°You¡¯re too loud.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because you areughing except for me. Why is that?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t act so impulsively in front of Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Ah, but I just want to know.¡± However, as I was walking towards the detached pce, watching Mastas and Rose arguing. Unexpectedly, I saw Kapmen not far away. He walked alone around the detached pce in a different attire than before, sighing and observing it. What was Grand Duke Kapmen doing here...? As I was thinking about it, he suddenly raised his head and looked at me. Our gazes met again. It was awkward, but it was already the second time. If I avoided him again, mydies-in-waiting would find it strange. When I went to visit Christa I was able to avoid him because where he was there were so many people. But now, Grand Duke Kapmen was alone, and on top of that, he was on the path I was to follow. Eventually, I walked over and greeted him pretending to be calm. ¡°How have you been, Grand Duke?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen moved his lips as if he wanted to answer. However, nothing was heard. Looking at him, he had an extremely embarrassed expression. He seemed like he was about to die of embarrassment. Only his lips kept moving, and then he covered his mouth with one hand. Before, I had noticed that he had failed to neutralize the effects of the potion. But now looking at him in front of me, it seemed that the effectiveness... had not diminished at all either. I was perplexed. Even mydies-in-waiting looked puzzled at how the Grand Duke of a foreign country was staring at me. But when Grand Duke Kapmen finally turned and walked away without a word, Rose and Mastas snorted angrily. ¡°Who does he think he is to tantly ignore Your Majesty the Queen?¡± ¡°Shall I bring him back right now?¡± ¡°...It¡¯s Grand Duke Kapmen of Rwibt.¡± Rose and Mastas were surprised to hear who the Grand Duke was. I didn¡¯t know if they had heard his name before, but they immediately eximed, ¡°Ah, him?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, he¡¯s one of the top graduates of the Magical Academy, right?¡± ¡°Still, it was too rude.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. He¡¯s a shy man,¡± I dissuaded Rose and Mastas, quickly returning to the detached pce. But I was really worried. The effects of the potion were still very strong. Could we still proceed with the negotiations? Chapter 221 - Grand Duke Kapmen Hates The Queen (2)

Chapter 221. Grand Duke Kapmen Hates The Queen (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe There was one person who observed all of this from hidden behind a pir. That person was one of Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting. She watched the situation carefully, and when she saw the strange atmosphere between Grand Duke Kapmen and Queen Navier, she excitedly returned to inform Christa. ¡°My Queen, I have discovered something really good.¡± ¡°Something really good?¡± ¡°Do you know Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen of Rwibt...¡± ¡°Yes, he must havee for the wedding.¡± Christa nodded. What good was it that he hade? The visit of a foreign guest was always wee, but in this case, the purpose of it had nothing to do with her. Thedy-in-waiting smiled and whispered, ¡°But when I saw Grand Duke Kapmen with Queen Navier, I had the impression that he harbored a strong hatred for her.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± Christa thought about it for a moment and asked quizzically, ¡°Hadn¡¯t he stayed in the Eastern Empire for a while?¡± ¡°Something must have happened then.¡± ¡°Do you think so...?¡± ¡°It was obvious he hated her. When Queen Navier greeted him, the Grand Duke ignored her. Rose and Mastas were grumbling angrily.¡± Thedy-in-waiting burst out in gleefulughter and suggested with a bright face, ¡°My Queen, take advantage of this opportunity. Get Grand Duke Kapmen on our side!¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen...¡± ¡°Yes. Doesn¡¯t Queen Navier want to use Sir Koshar to gain poprity among the youngdies? That said, Grand Duke Kapmen is also a handsome man who would not lose to Sir Koshar. If you use the Grand Duke, you could keep the youngdies on your side.¡± *** ¡®How can I change their minds?¡¯ After much thought, Rashta first sent invitations to all the nobles living in the capital. ¡°Unless it is for a special circumstance, no one can refuse the Empress¡¯s invitation.¡± And just as Viscountess Verdi said, all the nobles gathered in the garden, but they seemed puzzled by the sudden invitation. Arge table was set in the garden and covered with extravagant dishes. The food was extremely eye-catching, and the taste was up to par. The emperor¡¯s chefplied exactly with Rashta¡¯s order. Even the nobles, who were puzzled by the invitation, were surprised to see the sweet castle on the table. A river of ice cream flowed around the sweet castle, and jams made from all kinds of fruits were in cookie carriages. ¡°How wonderful!¡± As the nobles admired the prepared food, Rashta smiled elegantly and said, ¡°I prepared it especially for all of you.¡± The nobles were even more surprised to see Rashta than the sweet vige of treats presented on the table. Her manner of speaking was simr to that of Empress Navier. Rashta normally spoke in a high and lovely tone, but now, even her tone of voice was lower than usual. Some with a keen eye also noticed that Rashta¡¯s elegant red dress was simr to the clothes worn daily by Empress Navier. It was not exactly the same design, but it was definitely close. The nobles exchanged nces silently. ¡°Everyone, please take your seats.¡± Rashta smiled elegantly and invited them to sit, as she herself sat at the head of the table. Then she continued in a calm voice. ¡°A lot has happened, but now everything has stabilized.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°This is a new era. I want to establish friendships and maintain good rtions with everyone. Infighting among the nobles is also a nuisance to His Majesty the Emperor.¡± Smiling, Rashta raised her champagne ss to make a toast. The nobles followed suit and raised their sses. After taking half a sip of champagne, Rashta lowered the ss and ced her hands on her belly. ¡°I am sorry I can¡¯t drink with you any more than that. For the baby¡¯s sake, I¡¯ll stop here.¡± At the mention of the baby, the bewildered nobles immediately smiled and began to give their blessings to Rashta. It was funny to see her imitate Empress Navier so openly, but she was right. Now a new era had begun, and Empress Navier would never return. If she had stayed being just the former empress, there was a possibility that she would return. But didn¡¯t she remarry the king of another country? In this scenario, it would be best to be on good terms with the current empress. Even if the empress changed back, the difference was in the baby in Empress Rashta¡¯s belly. ¡°You will have a healthy baby, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°It will be a wonderful baby, whether it looks like the Empress or the Emperor.¡± ¡°Truly angel-like.¡± ¡°Have you thought about your baby¡¯s name, Your Majesty?¡± She was just thinking about it. Rashta stroked her belly, smiling at the nobles¡¯ praise. She wanted to show them who owned the western pce, who would be above them from now on, and who carried the next emperor in her womb, whether they recognized it or not. ¡°Its name¡ª I don¡¯t know. His Majesty the Emperor will decide.¡± Rashta smiled and stroked her belly once more, but she was disturbed. The image of a newborn baby¡¯s body came to her mind at that moment. The small body that Viscount Roteschu had shown her, iming that the baby had died just after birth. It was certainly not Rashta¡¯s baby, but the body was not fake. Rashta had held the dead baby in her arms, sobbing from the bottom of her heart. At that moment, she was not frightened, even though she knew it was a corpse. She just felt grief-stricken, torn and heartbroken. Whose baby was that? Where did Viscount Roteschu get that poor baby from? Then, her thoughts turned to her real baby... her first child, Ahn. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Viscountess Verdi called out to her carefully. Only then did Rashta realize that she had been faxing off and quickly smiled. None of that matters now. It was all part of the past, a painful past. Now, both she and the baby in her belly would be happy. At that moment, a loudugh was heard from the side of the table. It was a maliciousugh. The environment immediately became quiet. Rashta looked at the seat where theughter came from. There was a tall man with tinum blond hair sitting there. His eyes were yellow, and he exuded an intellectual air as if he were a schr. He also had an attractive face... Rashta realized who he was. On the day of Empress Navier¡¯s divorce, this man had run to her before being stopped by the emperor¡¯s guards, shouting without understanding why she had to get divorced. Rashta med herself for inviting him. She knew that some of the nobles living in the capital had been on Empress Navier¡¯s side. However, she sent invitations to everyone except the Duke and Duchess Troby. She wanted them to see with their own eyes who was the master of the empress¡¯s pce now. ¡®So I invited him, too...¡¯ She regretted her decision btedly. ¡°I just find it a bit ironic that the person who proudly dered that she would be the ¡®Empress of the Commoners¡¯ is now trying to get close to the nobles...¡± At the obvious venom in his words, Rashta ordered him with a frown, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to have a friendly rtionship with me, leave right now.¡± Marquis Farang muttered, ¡°Oh, how scary,¡± and immediately stood up. ¡°Since it¡¯s an order, I have no choice but to leave.¡± Then, he waved his hand and left. Some nobles looked at each other and followed Marquis Farang, saying they had a stomachache, were going to the toilet, or remembered an urgent matter. The number grewrger andrger until it reached more than a third of those present. Rashta clenched her fists, biting her lips hard. Chapter 222 - Don’t Leave Me (1) Chapter 222. Don¡¯t Leave Me (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe After the short tea party. Rashta called Duke Elgy, told him what happened, and angrily asked, ¡°I did exactly what you said, why did he talk like that?¡± It was Duke Elgy who advised her on what to say in interviews. Back then, Rashta had followed his advice thinking it would be for the best. However, she was enraged when Marquis Farang openly made a sarcastic remark about the interviews, and many of the nobles seemed to agree with his words. ¡°Did you purposely tell Rashta the wrong answers?¡± At Rashta¡¯s question, Duke Elgy smiled as if he hadn¡¯t heard correctly, ¡°What?¡± ¡°If not then why is everyone being so... rude to Rashta?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes filled with tears as she spoke sadly. It was the first tea party she had ever held and she felt so happy. It was one she had worked hard on. The first tea party to get close to all the nobles had been ruined. More nobles remained than those who followed Marquis Farang. But after the Marquis and just over a third of the nobles left, the atmosphere among the remaining nobles was very strange. Although many were trying to cheer her up by speaking ill of Marquis Farang, many others exchanged nces with each other andughed. Rashta¡¯s attention was mainly focused on thetter. ¡°Ah, it¡¯s just that.¡± Duke Elgy smiled slightly. Even though Rashta was deeply angered, the Duke had a nonchnt attitude as if her anger was irrelevant. When Rashta red at him, Duke Elgy said with a smile, ¡°You¡¯re still naive.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Did you expect everyone to show a favorable reaction towards Your Majesty the Empress?¡± ¡°What do you mean...?¡± ¡°Your Majesty the Empress had to choose between nobles andmoners.¡± Duke Elgy looked at Rashta with an expression of, ¡®Do you get it?¡¯ ¡°You weren¡¯t in a position to choose everyone, so the best choice was themoners.¡± Rashta shouted in exasperation, ¡°You told me I would have the support of themoners, but you never told me I would be the enemy of the nobles!¡± Duke Elgy remained unperturbed. ¡°The reaction of themoners towards Empress Navier at the parade and the reaction of themoners towards Your Majesty Empress Rashta. Have youpared the two?¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± ¡°That reaction was obtained by choosing the majority of the citizens, themoners. What happened today was also because of that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry.¡± Duke Elgy smiled and gently reassured her, ¡°The nobility will change their minds for Emperor Sovieshu and the soon-to-be-born baby.¡± ¡°... Really?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta was much more relieved at Duke Elgy¡¯s confident answer. Once she calmed down, she felt ashamed and regretful. She was so surprised that Marquis Farang had left with just over a third of the nobles, that she vented her anger at the Duke. ¡°I¡¯m sorry,¡± Rashta apologized in a barely audible voice, ¡°Rashta was sensitive earlier, what happened was really surprising.¡± ¡°I know. You got angry as soon as I came here.¡± ¡°I... I¡¯m so sorry.¡± Duke Elgy replied with a smile, ¡°Alright.¡± However, she felt a certain detachment in his attitude. As if there was a wall between them, nothing like the closeness from before. ¡°Hmm... Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you call Rashta ¡®Miss¡¯ now?¡± Rashta asked, thinking that the estrangement she felt from Duke Elgy might be because of this. His way of speaking was really strange. Until a few days ago, Duke Elgy affectionately called her ¡®Miss¡¯. He was more approachable than now. But after the wedding, his attitude was no different from when he treated other people. ¡°You used to affectionately call Rashta, Miss, Miss...¡± When Rashta asked directly, Duke Elgy smiled, lifting one end of his mouth. ¡°You¡¯re the Empress now, I can¡¯t address Your Majesty like that anymore.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°It¡¯s time to keep a distance between us.¡± Rashta looked at him stunned and eximed in surprise, ¡°No!¡± ¡°There is no such thing in our friendship!¡± ¡°It has been decided since Lady Rashta became Your Majesty the Empress.¡± On the contrary, Duke Elgy spoke so decisively that not a hint of regret could be felt. Rashta¡¯s eyes widened in shock. Duke Elgy was the only one who sent her a gift when none of the nobles did. So, she had decided yesterday to establish a sincere friendship with Duke Elgy. But now they had to keep a distance between them? He was the only person Rashta really trusted. ¡°No way!¡± Rashta was startled and approached Duke Elgy. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you angry? Is it because Rashta was angry?¡± ¡°Angry? How could I get angry when Your Majesty the Empress has every right to ask?¡± ¡°Then why do you suddenly want to distance yourself...¡± Rashta begged him on the verge of tears, ¡°Don¡¯t do this. Rashta has no one else to trust.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you have His Majesty the Emperor?¡± ¡°Rashta loves him, but Rashta doesn¡¯t trust him.¡± ¡°...¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened, surprised by her own words. It was something she had always thought about. However, she was scared because it was the first time that had evere out of her mouth. Rashta got nervous and hurriedly averted her gaze. ¡°Hmm, it¡¯s not that Rashta doesn¡¯t trust His Majesty, it¡¯s just...¡± Duke Elgy chuckled and asked, ¡°Do you trust me more than His Majesty?¡± Fortunately, he didn¡¯t seem to find it wrong. Rashta nodded in relief. Then she held out her hands and said, holding Duke Elgy¡¯s hands, ¡°Please address mefortably when we are alone, alright?¡± ¡°Then, should I keep calling you ¡®Miss¡¯?¡± ¡°Just... just call me by my name please.¡± Duke Elgy chuckled again, ¡°I have never called you only by your name. Now that you are the Empress, do you want me to call you only by your name?¡± Rashta nodded, holding his hands tighter. ¡®He has done so much for me, but I got angry for a moment and it almost destroyed our rtionship. No, more importantly, I never imagined that Duke Elgy would say ¡®it¡¯s time to keep a distance between us.¡¯ Of course, I had thought he would always be there for me.¡¯ ¡°When we¡¯re alone, you can do that, right?¡± Once Rashta asked anxiously, the corners of Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes curved strangely. ¡°Is that okay with you?¡± Over Rashta¡¯s shoulder, his expression resembled that of a sated beast. But Rashta didn¡¯t notice his expression and continued to insist. ¡°When we¡¯re alone, you may as well talk at your leisure.¡± Once she finished, Rashta made a, ¡°Huh?¡± sound to press him to give an answer. Only then did Duke Elgy¡¯s expression rx per usual. ¡°Lady Rashta knows how to get what she wants from people.¡± Unlike before, she felt no wall even though he used respectfulnguage. Rashta was relieved, but pressed him again, ¡°Didn¡¯t I say you could speak at ease, huh?¡± ¡°I appreciate it, but the closer we get, the more we have to follow etiquette.¡± Hearing Elgy¡¯s words, Rashta regretted having suspected him before even more, even if it was only briefly. ¡®Duke Elgy is a man who does not mix up public and private affairs... How could I doubt such a man...?¡¯ As she regretted it, Duke Elgy subtly asked, ¡°By the way, Lady Rashta, how do you manage your money?¡± ¡°How do I manage my money?¡± Rashta looked at him in surprise at the sudden mention of money. ¡®Does he want me to pay back the money I borrowed from him?¡¯ She could pay it back now that she became the Empress. However, she didn¡¯t even know how much money she had nor how much she could use now. Noticing Rashta¡¯s surprised expression, Duke Elgy casually asked, ¡°Now that you¡¯re the empress, you¡¯ll handle your own money, right?¡± Chapter 223 - Don’t Leave Me (2) Chapter 223. Don¡¯t Leave Me (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe The day after Duke Elgy¡¯s visit, Rashta made a resolute decision and called Baron Lant. Once he came, she asked unfalteringly, ¡°When Rashta was a concubine, Baron Lant managed the money. Do you remember?¡± Baron Lant immediately replied, ¡°Of course. I am still in charge of managing the money, Your Majesty.¡± Baron Lant showed a worried expression as he spoke. He could imagine for what purpose Rashta mentioned this. ¡®She wants to manage the money on her own...¡¯ As expected, Rashta broached the subject. ¡°Now Rashta has be the Empress. I may look young, but I¡¯m all grown up. Besides, I¡¯ve been studying hard.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Now I want to manage it on my own. It¡¯s a natural right as an empress.¡± Baron Lant replied with an awkward smile, ¡°But Your Majesty, the Emperor¡¯s approval is needed first.¡± ¡°What do you mean, the Emperor¡¯s approval is needed?¡± Rashta got angry. ¡°Matters rted to the Imperial Pce¡¯s budget are not under the Emperor¡¯s authority, but under Rashta¡¯s authority. So His Majesty¡¯s approval is not necessary.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°Then return the authority to Rashta now, Baron Lant.¡± ¡°I am sorry, Your Majesty. It is the Emperor who has the final say in this.¡± ¡°!¡± When he noticed that Rashta was really surprised, Baron Lant said in a slightly embarrassed manner, ¡°Managing money is a terrible headache. Your Majesty won¡¯t find it any fun at all.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t done it yet, so I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s fun or not...¡± ¡°But currently you can use the money as you wish, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta wants to manage it all on her own.¡± At Rashta¡¯s determined words, Baron Lant said with an awkward smile, ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll ask His Majesty the Emperor directly about it.¡± *** A week before the wedding, the distinguished guests began to arrive. However, being the bride I was not there to wee them. Of course, even though this left me with free time, I still had a lot of studying to do. But asionally, when I heard loudughter in the surroundings, I couldn¡¯t stop my heart from pounding. The wedding. After the wedding... I will truly be the Queen of the Western Kingdom. Although I was already the Queen, from then on I could help Heinley by fulfilling my duties as one. However, there was a part of me that was worried. The wedding night... Although I had previous experience, it wouldn¡¯t do much good in this case. Suddenly, I was embarrassed when what happened on the wedding night came vividly to my mind. ¡®Will I be able to look Heinley straight in the eye after the wedding night?¡¯ Just thinking about it made my face warm. Besides, he... ¡°Your Majesty? Your face is very red. Do you have a fever?¡± Hearing Laura¡¯s question, I hastily closed the book. It was absurd, but I was ashamed at the possibility that Laura had noticed my thoughts. ¡°It¡¯s a little warm in the room.¡± Deliberately getting up from my seat, I went to the window and opened it wide. Laura followed me and tilted her head as she continued to talk. ¡°It¡¯s a beautiful day. Hopefully, it will be like that on the wedding day.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°All will be well now, won¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Yesterday, Miss Muney sent a flowerpot, and Duchess Tuania, no, Lady Nian, made her way into high society.¡± Hearing Laura¡¯s words, I nced at the ageratum flowerpot on the desk. That was the flowerpot Miss Muney had sent with the butler yesterday, full of light purple flowers. This was her answer¡ª Trust. She epted my offer to ally with us in secret. Besides, as Laura said, Nian also got into the high society of the Western Kingdom safely, or rather, forcefully. She did not deny the rumors surrounding her in the Eastern Empire. On the contrary, she took advantage of them to be the main topic of conversation, receiving invitations to parties from far and wide. She also openly used her ¡®femme fatal¡¯ image instead of hiding it. Taking advantage of it, she attended the parties with the rumored Viscount Langdel on her right and young nobles of the Western Kingdom on her left. Regarding this, Rose expressed the following, ¡°the nobles of the Western Kingdom werepletely stunned at the appearance of this bolddy.¡± Will all really be well? Will Sovieshue to the wedding? Rashta too? I just hope my parents wille. Come to think of it... Sovieshu acted strangely. Why did Sovieshu tell me that? ¡ª Come back. I became the first empress to remarry, did he think I wanted to be the first empress to remarry twice? Besides, why did he want me toe back? He loves Rashta and even married her, right? Along with that, they will have a child in a few months. At the time it seemed ridiculous, so I simply replied, ¡®no¡¯. Now, I was really curious to know what went through his mind. I thought I knew Sovieshu well, but now I couldn¡¯t even imagine his reasons. Thinking about it made me feel uneasy, so I backed away from the window. ¡°I need some fresh air.¡± ¡°Why not prepare something to eat? We can have a pic, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Should we?¡± I wouldn¡¯t have time for this after the wedding. When I finally agreed with a smile, Laura excitedly ran to Rose. ¡°Let¡¯s pack lunch so we can go have some fun!¡± We left with a basket containing white bread, cheese, three kinds of sandwiches, and fruit juice. We were going to a sunny spot near the detached pce to eat and hang out. But we had to stop suddenly. One person had arrived there first. It was Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Grand Duke.¡± When I called out to him in a low voice, he turned his head in surprise. Grand Duke Kapmen stood up hastily and put the locket in his hand around his neck. Then he tucked the end of the locket inside his clothes and greeted me with a stiff smile. ¡°We meet again.¡± ¡°That¡¯s because I¡¯m staying here.¡± ¡°Here?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen frowned and looked at the detached pce in the distance. ¡°That¡¯s the queen¡¯s pce? It looks a little small.¡± ¡°I stay there temporarily until the wedding day.¡± ¡°Ahh,¡± Grand Duke Kapmen nodded and murmured awkwardly. ¡°I have been around here since I came to the Western Kingdom without knowing that, so we crossed paths again,¡± Grand Duke Kapmen said with a smile, looking surprised. But soon his ears began to turn red. His rationality was tinged again by the effects of the potion. ¡°But that¡¯s fine. At least I got to see you like this.¡± Thud! I purposely dropped the basket in my hands to the ground. Grand Duke Kapmen looked puzzled. Pretending it had been an oversight, I looked at the basket and asked thedies-in-waiting, All the food has gone bad. Could you prepare more?¡± Although mydies-in-waiting looked at each other, they quickly left with the basket. As they walked away, the faint sound of their footsteps on the grass could be heard. Only after we werepletely alone, I asked Grand Duke Kapmen, ¡°You still haven¡¯t counteracted the effects of the potion?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to counteract the effects of the potion.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I just can¡¯t do it.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen muttered some barelyprehensible words. He looked annoyed, probably misunderstanding my words. But immediately after controlling his expression, he asked me dryly, ¡°Was it Heinley who invited me, or you, Navier?¡± ¡°It was me.¡± ¡°Thank you. It makes me feel very happy. ...For what reason?¡± Seeing Grand Duke Kapmen first whisper with a flushed face, then continue stiffly, was strange indeed. However, I had already experienced this a few times in the Eastern Empire, so I knew somehow how the effects of the potion affected his rationality. He used to say some nonsense and some sensible things. I replied, pretending not to be aware of his nonsense, ¡°I invited you to make it happen the trade with Rwibt that was not possible in the Eastern Empire.¡± Chapter 224 - Kapmen’s Black Heart (1) Chapter 224. Kapmen¡¯s ck Heart (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Maybe Grand Duke Kapmen replied with an impassive expression, ¡°I see. I figured as much.¡± ¡®Figured as much?¡¯ ¡°King Heinley had no reason to invite me.¡± Oh... Grand Duke Kapmen is smart. As I admired him in my head, Grand Duke Kapmen turned around and muttered, ¡°Damn.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± What¡¯s wrong with him all of a sudden? Did the potion¡¯s effects intensify again? Embarrassed, I stopped myself before touching him. If it were anyone else, I would lightly touch them and ask if they were all right. However, I didn¡¯t know how Grand Duke Kapmen would react due to the potion¡¯s effects... ¡°Don¡¯t touch me.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen said firmly. He seemed to be thinking the same. ¡°Your touch will destroy me.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Please ignore myst words.¡± I looked back and saw that mydies-in-waiting had not yet returned. Well, that¡¯s normal because all the food had been ruined when the basket fell on the ground. It would take a while to prepare it again. Feeling relieved, I asked him between my teeth, ¡°Is there no way to counteract the potion?¡± ¡°I tried many ways, but nothing worked.¡± ¡°Nothing at all?¡± ¡°Nothing at all.¡± ¡°So, now...¡± What do you n to do? I swallowed the question that was about toe out of my mouth. Come to think of it, it¡¯s a really big problem. What if the potion¡¯s effects don¡¯t wear off for years? Even worse. What if the potion¡¯s effects don¡¯t wear off for the rest of his life? When I looked up with this scary thought, Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯splexion looked unusually pale. I hesitated before asking him, ¡°How was it when you were away from me? What was it like when you were away from me? Did the potion¡¯s effects decrease?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t received the invitation, I probably would havee to see you anyway.¡± ¡°...¡± This was not good. The gentle wind suddenly became strong. As a result, the hair behind my ear pped wildly. As I was doing my hair after the wind died down, Grand Duke Kapmen carefully reached out his hand. He tried to gently brush the hair covering my face to the side but quickly withdrew his hand as if his fingers had touched fire. The awkward atmosphere made me take a step back. I knew he was doing it because of the potion¡¯s effects. But that didn¡¯t mean it wasn¡¯t ufortable. ¡°So, should I assign one person to handle the trade-rted stuff to avoid working face-to-face?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not necessary. It would only make conversations difficult.¡± ... Will you be alright? ¡°If you ask how much it hurts me to see you, it¡¯s very painful. Damn it. Stop it.¡± It was pitiful to see Grand Duke Kapmen giving orders to himself. How much would that attitude hurt his pride? That¡¯s when I had a good idea. ¡°Maybe, if you do this?¡± ¡°Do what?¡± ¡°Can you make another bottle of that potion?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen frowned as if he thought I would say something crazy. ¡°Drink the potion, and look at someone else this time.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Even if you fall in love... this time it will be with someone you are not rted to at all.¡± Isn¡¯t that a good idea? At my suggestion, Grand Duke Kapmen gave a little chuckle. ¡°And if I happen to end up in love with two people at the same time, won¡¯t that make the situation worse?¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°It¡¯s painful enough to love one person like that. I don¡¯t think I can bear to be in love with two people.¡± *** [How much would that attitude hurt his pride? How pitiful.] Kapmen couldn¡¯t help but sigh at the tickling voice in his head. Strange as it might seem, every person had an inner voice. Just as people¡¯s voices were different, the voices inside were different. Queen Navier¡¯s inner voice made him feel a pleasant tickle when he listened to it. It was a low voice, like a whisper. Because of that voice, every time Queen Navier thought of his name, ¡®Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯, he got goosebumps. It was like that from the first meeting. It had been the same since then. Even now he was beside himself over the potion. ¡®Would you pity me?¡¯ Kapmen had stifled the question that threatened toe out of his mouth at any moment. Once Queen Navier had gone elsewhere with herdies-in-waiting, he leaned against a white picket fence and closed his eyes. After staying there for a long time, Kapmen decided to return to his room. However, an unknown woman was standing in front of the door. The woman, who looked like nobility, said with a smile when Kapmen approached, ¡°Are you Grand Duke Kapmen?¡± [It¡¯s definitely him.] ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Lady Christa would like to greet a special guest such as yourself personally, so please follow me.¡± ¡°Who is Lady Christa?¡± [Who does he think he is?! He doesn¡¯t know Lady Christa?] ¡°His Majesty Heinley¡¯s sister-inw. The former queen.¡± [Should I tell him that Lady Christa is on bad terms with Queen Navier? When would it be timely?] As usual, he heard both voices mixed together. Kapmen was silent for a moment, trying to distinguish the voices. It was better when he heard them separately. But when he heard both voices at the same time, he had to distinguish which was the authentic one. Sometimes the people he was talking to would look at him strangely because he got confused on this part. Once he finally did, Kapmen quietly declined, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m tired.¡± The noblewoman¡¯s face became rigid. He just said he was getting tired, without making any excuses. [How rude!] Kapmen said it, knowing it was rude. Not intending to drag out the conversation, he asked coolly, ¡°May I go in now?¡± In other words, he wanted her to step away from the door. When the noblewoman, whose pride had been wounded, stepped aside, Kapmen opened the door without a word and entered his room. Chapter 225 - Kapmen’s Black Heart (2) Chapter 225. Kapmen¡¯s ck Heart (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Kapmen had been so rude that he thought Christa would not seek him out again. But around the evening of that same day, to his surprise, Christa, the former queen, came to visit him in person. This time, Kapmen could not be so rude as to kick her out. ¡°Come in.¡± Once Kapmen invited her into the room after exchanging greetings, Christa smiled quietly and entered. Kapmen ordered the squire to bring coffee and other refreshments before asking Christa to sit at the tea table. But instead of sitting in front of her, he remained standing and asked, ¡°To what do I owe your visit?¡± ¡°Since you are a distinguished guest, I considered it natural toe and greet you personally.¡± [This man is Kapmen...] Christa¡¯s voice was calm. Her inner voice was the same. Kapmen muttered coldly, ¡°I see.¡± He didn¡¯t really like to interact with other people. It was no fun at all to converse and listen to other people¡¯s thoughts at the same time. Besides, ording to herdy-in-waiting¡¯s thoughts, Christa and Queen Navier did not have a good rtionship. Kapmen resented that, so he wanted her to speak up quickly and leave. However, no matter how blunt he was, he couldn¡¯t suddenly tell her to ¡®get out¡¯ without a reason. Kapmen instead just stared at Christa silently, as if telling her to get to the point. Christa asked hesitantly. ¡°Do you have any inconveniences?¡± [I must be polite.] ¡°If you have any inconveniences, let me know, Grand Duke.¡± [I need to have him on my side.] Kapmen frowned and replied firmly. ¡°If I have one.¡± ¡°Which one? Ah, I only ask because I want to help you.¡± [Tell me anything... I¡¯ll help you.] ¡°Thank you, but that¡¯s not necessary.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I will get help from the right person.¡± Christa¡¯s eyes twitched at Kapmen¡¯s response. [Am I not the right person?...He means don¡¯t meddle in his business?] ¡°Alright...¡± At this point, Kapmen thought that Christa would leave. However, Christa hesitated to get up. Instead, he heard her anxious inner voice. [How could I make this man my guest... He doesn¡¯t seem to hate just Queen Navier, but everyone.] Kapmen raised his eyebrows. He couldn¡¯t understand why Christa, the former queen, was acting like this in front of him. [What am I doing here?... Does this make any difference?] Fortunately, Christa finally stood up, smiling helplessly as if she couldn¡¯t do anything about it. [I¡¯ll talk to him again some other time as he seems to want to be alone at the moment]. Relieved, Kapmen walked her to the door. However, Christa¡¯s sad thoughts that followed caught his attention. [There are so many handsome men like this. Why did she choose Heinley among so many men?] Kapmen couldn¡¯t help but call out to Christa, ¡°Wait.¡± The potion¡¯s effects began to shoot up again. His heart was dyed ck. ¡°Huh?¡± Christa looked back, puzzled. Kapmen was still blunt, but he spoke with a softer manner, ¡°The coffee hasn¡¯t been served yet. Let¡¯s sit in the meantime.¡± The voice of Navier, whom he met earlier, rang in his ear like an auditory hallucination. ¡ª Can you make another bottle of that potion? *** In the evening, Sovieshu, who visited Rashta, said in a stern voice, ¡°You want to manage the budget as the Empress?¡± Baron Lant seemed to have informed him. Rashta sped her hands together and said, ¡°Yes...¡± her voice barely audible. She only wanted what was due to her in her own right. When Sovieshu asked her like this, Rashta became depressed. As Sovieshu looked down at her silently, Rashta hesitated and muttered, ¡°I know that managing the imperial budget is part of the empress¡¯s role.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Rashta became the Empress, but still doesn¡¯t know what to do... so Rashta thought it best to start with what one knows.¡± Rashta said, looking at Sovieshu with frightened eyes. ¡°Rashta wants to be a good empress, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Rashta.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You will only be in the Empress¡¯s position for one year, I had already told you.¡± ¡°Ah, I know, but... even for one year I truly want to be the Empress.¡± Rashta looked at Sovieshu like a weak animal with big eyes. ¡°Rashta wants to fulfill those duties even for one year.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°In the first ce, you didn¡¯t entrust Baron Lant to manage Rashta¡¯s money because it was spent on strange things. It was because of Viscount Roteschu.¡± Rashta reached out her hands slowly and said, grasping Sovieshu¡¯s hands tightly. ¡°Rashta is no longer being ckmailed by him, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu held Rashta¡¯s hands tightly. But the answer was a firm refusal, ¡°You still haven¡¯t learned enough to manage the budget, Rashta.¡± ¡°I have studied hard...¡± Rashta had a sad face. ¡°You want me to be a pretend empress?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that you can¡¯t fully y the Empress¡¯s role.¡± ¡°But it sounds like this...¡± ¡°You will attend audiences with me every day from now on. Let¡¯s do that first.¡± Rashta pursed her lips feeling annoyed. She needed to manage the budget on her own as soon as possible to be able to repay Duke Elgy. Besides, she also needed money to give to Viscount Roteschu. Although she had joined hands with Viscount Roteschu, Rashta knew he wouldn¡¯t do anything for free. She didn¡¯t want to waste money. However, it was important to use the money on these two things. ¡°You have to take it easy. It¡¯s barely just the start.¡± Sovieshu lightly pet Rashta¡¯s back, who was stiff, ¡°Even for the baby¡¯s sake you should take it easy.¡± ¡°... Yes.¡± Rashta replied helplessly. Sovieshu stroked her hair soothingly, but she wasn¡¯t very happy. ¡°Um... Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°So, what about punishment?¡± ¡°Punishment?¡± ¡°If a noble looks down on Rashta, can that noble be punished?¡± ¡°Why? Who looked down on you?¡± ¡°Marquis Farang looked down on Rashta at the first tea party as the Empress.¡± ¡°Ah. Marquis Farang.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue. ¡°He¡¯s a good friend of Koshar. Besides, the Troby¡¯s and the Farang¡¯s are close families. You won¡¯t get him to get close to you, so forget it.¡± The Empress¡¯s position should not be looked down upon by anyone, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°He openly insulted you?¡± ¡°Rashta felt insulted.¡± ¡°I was informed of what he said.¡± Rashta was surprised by Sovieshu¡¯s words. Did someone inform him? Who did? Was it one of the nobles present at the tea party? Or was it someone from the Imperial Guard who was there? Viscountess Verdi? the maids? the servants? She was displeased that Sovieshu had found out from someone else¡¯s mouth what he said. ¡°Although you might have felt insulted in that situation, he didn¡¯t say enough to be punished.¡± ¡°He was sarcastic in front of everyone present, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°But in the end he didn¡¯t do what you ordered him to do?¡± ¡°!¡± As Rashta muttered, Sovieshu kissed her forehead gently. ¡°I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re so agitated.¡± ¡°Well...¡± ¡®Because it is obvious that the nobles look down on me. Also, I have be the Empress, but nothing has changed yet except my ce of residence.¡¯ Rashta replied in her mind. Suddenly, she remembered to ask, ¡°More importantly, Your Majesty. Are we going to the Western Kingdom wedding?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned cold, as if it was a topic he did not wish to discuss. However, to Rashta this topic was important. ¡°Since they came all this way first, I think it¡¯s only appropriate to go too.¡± ¡°You really think so?¡± ¡°I would like to congratte Queen Navier on her new start.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll harass me again, but...¡± Sovieshu sighed. ¡°You¡¯re pregnant, traveling there will be very hard.¡± ¡°I still can.¡± When Rashta spoke firmly, Sovieshu stood up and said, ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡± Rashta also stood up, following Sovieshu, and asked him in surprise as he was about to leave the bedroom. ¡°Where are you going, Your Majesty?¡± But Sovieshu simply left. Stepping out into the corridor, Sovieshu almost bumped into Rashta¡¯s maid, Delise. Delise bowed to Sovieshu in astonishment and apologized, ¡°Pardon me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right.¡± Sovieshu waved his hand to dissuade Delise, and left the Western Pce immediately. Delise stared at Sovieshu¡¯s back as he walked away, but quickly came to her senses and walked through the drawing room to Rashta¡¯s bedroom. Rashta was sitting in an armchair, frowning with her hands on her belly. Her beautiful angelic face looked very sad. ¡±Only such a person can be loved by His Majesty.¡¯ Admiring her inwardly, Delise said to Rashta, ¡°May I arrange your bed, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It was normal after marriage to continue using the same sheets and pillowcases from before marriage for a few days. Now that that period of time had passed, Delise was going to rece the pillowcases and sheets with new ones. After changing the sheets, she ced a small warm stone inside. Then she began to change the pillowcases for new ones. Then Delise pulled out the case of arge, soft pillow that Rashta had used in the East Pce. At that moment. A handful of blue feathers came out from inside. Chapter 226 - Dinner Between Sovieshu And Heinley (1) Chapter 226. Dinner Between Sovieshu And Heinley (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Delise couldn¡¯t remember this immediately. ¡°Bird feathers?¡± She reached out and examined a feather. The blue was very beautiful. ¡®But why is this here?¡¯ Delise nced at Rashta. Rashta had a nk stare, still sad and with her arms folded. Did she put this here out of some kind of superstition? Delise, who was pondering what this was about, suddenly remembered the events of a few months ago. ¡®Oh! Maybe!¡¯ Emperor Sovieshu had given Empress Navier a blue bird, and she refused it. That bird certainly had these same blue feathers. Moreover, at that time it did not have as many as it should have. When she asked why, Rashta replied that the empress had plucked them. ¡®It was Rashta who plucked the bird¡¯s feathers, not Navier?¡¯ Surprised, Delise¡¯s eyes opened wide, but she suddenly felt a frosty atmosphere. It was originally quiet, but now it had be even quieter... Delise felt an inexplicable shiver run down her spine, and slowly turned her head. Rashta was leaning back in the armchair, staring at her. When their eyes met, Delise froze as her heart pounded. ¡®Did I see something I shouldn¡¯t have seen?¡¯ Despite that, Delise believed in Rashta¡¯s character, which her brother imed, and tried to speak calmly. ¡°Your Majesty. Your Majesty the Empress these bird feathers...¡± But even before she could finish speaking, Rashta shouted thunderously. ¡°AHH!!¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Delise was startled and tried to move closer to Rashta, but when Rashta shouted, ¡°How could you do this!¡± She reflexively backed away. Delise was startled and tried to approach Rashta, but instinctively stepped back when she shouted, ¡°How could you do this?!¡± ¡°Huh? What?¡± ¡°How dare you pluck His Majesty¡¯s feathers?¡± Delise was so surprised that she didn¡¯t even notice that Rashta misspoke. Delise waved her hands hurriedly. ¡°Oh, no, I didn¡¯t do it, I was changing the pillowcase, when this¡ª¡± ¡°AHHH!!!¡± As Rashta screamed again, the door opened and several people came in. ¡°¡±Your Majesty the Empress?¡±¡± ¡°¡±Your Majesty the Empress!¡±¡± It was the other maids; Arian, Viscountess Verdi, and her guards. Rashta without even turning to look at them, covered her mouth with one hand and shouted at Delise, ¡°I can¡¯t believe you plucked the feathers off a live bird, how could you do this?!¡± Delise, horrified, hastily knelt down in front of Rashta, ¡°Certainly not, Your Majesty! I, I thought that was the work of the former empress¡ª¡± *p!* Rashta pped her on the cheek, shutting Delise¡¯s mouth. There was a loud sound and Delise¡¯s head snapped to the side. ¡°How dare you pluck His Majesty¡¯s feathers?! Also, you put them inside Rashta¡¯s pillow. It¡¯s clearly an attempt to harm Rashta!¡± But as Rashta screamed repeatedly, Delise only stuttered without a sound of pain, ¡°Ah, no, no!¡± Even so, Rashta still had a cold attitude, so Delise hurriedly pleaded with Viscountess Verdi. ¡°Please say that¡¯s definitely not true, Lady Verdi!¡± But Viscountess Verdi, who was unaware of the reasons, quickly stepped back to avoid being involved. Then, Delise clung to the guard with whom she was on good terms. ¡°I did absolutely nothing, please stop Lady Rashta!¡± But even the guard, who had always greeted Delise with a blush on his cheeks whenever he saw her, coolly brushed her hands away and stepped back. It was an attitude as if trash itself had touched him. Although no one knew exactly what was going on, they assumed it was something bad. Delise was deeply hurt, but she suddenly begged Rashta. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry, please forgive me!¡± ¡°No! Rashta can¡¯t have a creepy girl like you as a maid.¡± When Rashta ordered the guards, ¡°Take her away!¡± The guards quickly reached out and roughly grabbed Delise by both arms. Although she was being treated roughly, the young guard was indifferent toward the beautiful Delise. Delise struggled, but in the end she couldn¡¯t ovee the difference in strength and was dragged down the corridor. ¡°This gave me goosebumps!¡± Rashta cried out, her face deathly pale. From her expression she looked truly horrified. When everyone finally surveyed the room, they noticed a removed pillowcase, with blue feathers scattered around it. ¡°What is that, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It was Delise who plucked the feathers from His Majesty¡¯s bird and put them inside Rashta¡¯s pillow. Fortunately, I caught her.¡± Rashta looked trembling in another direction and ordered, ¡°Get that out of here right now! No, burn it!¡± Arian, another maid, gathered the feathers around the pillowcase with a heavy face. ¡°Get rid of the pillow too.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Once Arian came out, Viscountess Verdi said, ¡°I¡¯ll bring you hot tea¡± before quickly following her. Rashta slumped on the armchair after everyone left. In fact, she was really scared. She was rubbing her arms as she suppressed her fear. Back then, she didn¡¯t know what to do with the feathers, so she had hidden them first. Then, so much happened that she forgot about it. Rashta frowned, berating herself and spitting curses in her mind. ¡°Was that too much? Should I have pretended not to know?¡± Once she calmed down a little, she felt strange remembering how Delise had been dragged away for no reason. However, she couldn¡¯t change her mind now. ¡°The empress has enormous power... I can¡¯t believe I can get rid of a person with a single word.¡± At that moment, Viscountess Verdi returned and handed Rashta a hot herbal tea. Rashta examined Viscountess Verdi closely as she epted the tea. After dealing with Delise, Viscountess Verdi, who had been a nuisance earlier, re-entered her vision. Viscountess Verdi suddenly felt ufortable, but asked without showing any sign, ¡°Need anything else?¡± ¡°Nothing else...¡± ¡®She¡¯s definitely smart. I don¡¯t like her, but that doesn¡¯t mean she has any way of catching me.¡¯ However, Rashta decided to postpone the elimination of Viscountess Verdi. Delise could have used her as soon as the situation arose, but Viscountess Verdi could not. Besides, despite everything she was still of the nobility, and seemed to be on good terms with some nobles. More importantly... Now that this happened, she recalled the attitude of the noblewomen who attended her first tea party as empress. What would happen if after bringing those noblewomen as mydies-in-waiting, rather, they tried to find a weak point to take advantage of it? She preferred to stay only with Viscountess Verdi. At Rashta¡¯s indifferent words, Viscountess Verdi was relieved and walked out saying, ¡°alright.¡± Rashta closed her eyes, and sipped the hot tea. As the hot tea entered her body, the circting heat gradually lessened her tension. In any case, the blue feathers were now a thing of the past. ¡®I think I can rx now. I was nning on getting rid of her at some point anyway.¡¯ But before she could rx, a horrible thought suddenly came to mind. ¡®What if Delise holds a grudge and spreads bad rumors about me?¡¯ People were prone to believe false rumors. Rashta had taken advantage of this to bring down Duchess Tuania, and now she was frightened to think that the target might be her. Delise seemed sincere and charming, wouldn¡¯t it be easy for her to spread false rumors? She was currently being looked down upon by the nobles. Clearly it would not be good in the long run for themoners, who were on her side, to be swayed by strange rumors. ¡®I¡¯ll have to shut her mouth forever.¡¯ Rashta hastily rang the little bell, and said as soon as Viscountess Verdi entered, ¡°Come to think of it, that¡¯s too serious a crime. Mistreating His Majesty¡¯s bird is to harm the Empress, isn¡¯t it?¡± Viscountess Verdi swallowed hard, she had a bad feeling. Rashta spoke coldly, avoiding her gaze. ¡°She has done a horrible thing, so she must be punished ordingly. Have her tongue cut out and imprison her.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 227 - Dinner Between Sovieshu And Heinley (2)

Chapter 227. Dinner Between Sovieshu And Heinley (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Rashta gave those orders?¡± Sovieshu asked in surprise to hear from his secretary, Count Pirnu, the orders given by Rashta yesterday. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, I have confirmed that she is imprisoned.¡± Sovieshu smiled forcedly. He had learned from the Duchess Tuania case that Rashta was not always good. Although it was understandable that she was now cautious because of the abortive drugs incident in which the maids were involved, the orders to cut out Delise¡¯s tongue and imprison her was frightening. Count Pirnu asked with a frown as he wondered if Sovieshu thought the same. ¡°What will you do, Your Majesty?¡± Sovieshu sighed, his face stiffened. Suddenly, he remembered that Rashta had hinted to him in the past that it was the Empress who plucked the blue bird¡¯s feathers. Of course, she did not me the Empress directly then, but the nuance in her words made it clear. ¡°... For now, it is best to do nothing. I¡¯ll listen to her reasons personally.¡± Sovieshu immediately got up and went to visit Rashta. Rashta looked sad about Delise. Once she saw Sovieshu, she ran over and hugged him tightly. ¡°Your Majesty. Did you hear?¡± ¡°Yes, I heard.¡± Sovieshu saidfortingly, gently cing his hands on Rashta¡¯s shoulders. ¡°You must have been very surprised.¡± ¡°Yes. My belly hurts again from stress too...¡± Sovieshuforted Rashta. Once Rashta calmed down and began to smile, he asked, ¡°Rashta hadn¡¯t you told me in the past that Delise received the bird returned by the Empress, and then she gave it to you?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Rashta shuddered for a moment, but immediately replied with a dismayed look. ¡°At the time, Rashta thought that the deposed empress had acted alone. However, it seems that Delise was working for the deposed empress.¡± Although Rashta responded immediately, Sovieshu¡¯s uneasiness did not disappear. After returning to his room. Eventually, he decided to just check it out for himself and ced the cage in the middle of the room. The smart bird had be fond of Sovieshu, as it emitted its characteristic squawk as it followed his hand with its head. Sovieshu stroked the bird¡¯s beak and ordered an attendant to call Rashta. ¡®It¡¯s a smart bird, so it will react to whoever had mistreated it.¡¯ He wanted to put the bird near Rashta to see how it reacted. *** Although the wedding date was not far away, Sovieshu and Rashta still had not arrived. So I naturally assumed that they would not attend the wedding. ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang will probablye as a representative of the Eastern Empire.¡± When I mentioned Grand Duke Lilteang, surprisingly, Heinley responded with a smile. ¡°That¡¯s good too.¡± ¡°Is it good for Grand Duke Lilteang toe as a representative of the Eastern Empire?¡± He didn¡¯t want Sovieshu and Rashta toe? When our eyes met, Heinley smiled slightly and whispered. ¡°Ah. There¡¯s something I really want to do when I see him.¡± ¡°What do you want to do?¡± I had no idea what he wanted to do. But Heinley didn¡¯t respond, just smiled and sipped his tea. However, two days before the wedding, both Rashta and Sovieshu arrivedpletely unexpectedly. This fact, will truly be a story about the imperial family that will be known for many years toe. As I wondered if Heinley would be alright with them showing up, at this point, I could feel even mydies-in-waiting silently examining my mood. The answer came in the evening, along with surprising news. ¡°His Majesty Heinley?¡± ¡°Yes, His Majesty Heinley.¡± Heinley invited Sovieshu to dinner alone. ¡°Are you sure Sovieshu didn¡¯t call Heinley, but Heinley invited Sovieshu to dinner with him?¡± I asked several times, puzzled. Heinley and Sovieshu had been on bad terms ever since they first met. Although it was Heinley who wanted to invite Sovieshu to the wedding, he only did it so that he would ¡®witness our union¡¯. They were going to dinner together just the two of them... ¡°I¡¯m sure, Your Majesty. I heard that he ordered all his subordinates to leave to have dinner alone with Sovieshu.¡± But every time I asked her, Rose replied that she was sure. I was truly worried, so I walked over to the window, opened it, and looked out towards the main pce. Heinley... thinks I¡¯ll be overwhelmed by Sovieshu¡¯s presence. *** Sovieshu was as curious as Navier. ¡®Why did King Heinley invite me to dinner with him?¡¯ Shortly after starting to eat, Sovieshu finally asked Heinley directly, ¡°Why did you call me?¡± It was a short question. Heinley immediately responded with a smile. ¡°In a way I don¡¯t like you, but in a way I¡¯m grateful to you. So I wanted us to eat together at least once.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°Grateful?¡± Although he had answered his question, Sovieshu could not understand it. When Sovieshu looked at him with an expression of¡ª ¡®What are you talking about?¡¯¡ª Heinley exined as if it were obvious. ¡°Because you yourself divorced Navier. Thanks to you, we¡¯ll soon be husband and wife.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Speaking man to man, I had a crush on Navier from the moment I met her.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression became rigid. Heinley¡¯s smiling face looked as sweet as sugar, but when Sovieshu saw it, he naturally clenched his fist tightly, wanting to punch him. ¡°Oh, thinking about it like that, it¡¯s as if Your Majesty has arranged our marriage.¡± ¡°King Heinley...¡± ¡°I thank you again, Your Majesty. Had you not divorced Navier, I would have suffered alone, chasing her shadow.¡± At Heinley¡¯s irritating, grinning attitude, Sovieshu was very upset and said sarcastically. ¡°Navier will realize someday how despicable you are.¡± ¡°That will not happen. Because unlike Your Majesty, she will never find anything despicable in me.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue inside. Why had he suddenly called me? Did he want to taunt me? ¡°Haha.¡± Sovieshuughed incredulously, as Heinley took his knife and fork calmly. However, Sovieshu suddenly seemed to find it amusing, even shaking his shoulders andughing louder, at which point Heinley stopped cutting the meat and stared at Sovieshu. This time, Heinley frowned. ¡°Overconfidence creates opportunities. Seeing you now, soon enough I¡¯ll have a chance.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I lost my wife to a miscalction, but I¡¯ll be ready to get her back at any time.¡± ¡°She doesn¡¯t love you, Your Majesty. Nor is she an object that you can get back whenever you want.¡± ¡°Precisely because she¡¯s not an object, the moment Navier wants toe back, I¡¯ll be able to get her back, right?¡± Smiling quietly, Sovieshu leaned toward Heinley and added, ¡°You have two faces, King Heinley.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°That¡¯s why Navier seems to trust you so much. And that¡¯s why Navier will want toe back to me.¡± This time, Heinley showed a forced smile, but Sovieshu continued speaking. ¡°Two-faced people like you hide many secrets.¡± Smiling, Sovieshu added in a whisper. ¡°Like the fact that you nted Duke Elgy in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 228 - Don’t Even Think About It… (1) Chapter 228. Don¡¯t Even Think About It... (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta paced anxiously around her room. The day after ordering Delise to be imprisoned, Sovieshu called her to his room, but she didn¡¯t go on the pretext that she had abdominal pain. But soon the pain became real, probably because she kept thinking about what happened, so she called the pce doctor, and he prescribed some medications. From that day on, she felt nervous about the unhappy look she often received from Sovieshu. After she became pregnant, Sovieshu would sit by her bed to sing lubies to her when Rashta was about to fall asleep. Sometimes Sovieshu didn¡¯t because he was busy, but whenever he went to her bedroom he would sing to her for about an hour. However, after the Delise incident, the time he sang lubies to her decreased to about thirty minutes. ¡®He doesn¡¯t believe Rashta¡¯s words.¡¯ Rashta felt sad just thinking about it and bit her lower lip hard. To her, Sovieshu clearly had feelings for Delise. Delise was beautiful and charming, and that had always worried her. Now that Delise was imprisoned formitting a crime, he was evidently upset. ¡°It¡¯s unfair.¡± Rashta sobbed while sitting on the couch. ¡°Delise tried to harm Rashta. Doesn¡¯t that even matter to His Majesty? Rashta was in danger, does that mean Delise is more important to him?¡± When Arian heard Rashta¡¯s words as she set the freshly brewed tea down on the tea table, she felt a chill. Rashta had imed that it was Delise who plucked the bird¡¯s feathers. But that day Delise had been away for hours running errands. Even though she knew that Rashta was falsely using Delise.... there was nothing she could do. As an experienced maid, she had seen her masters frame their subordinates many times. Lost pearls, ruined shoes, missing money bags, spies, and so on. What she had learned from working as a maid for so many years was that you should not refute your masters when they tried to frame their subordinates. If you did, you would only be punished or expelled along with the person framed, it wouldn¡¯t help anything. The chill Arian felt was not because sweet and lovely Rashta had used and given terrible orders against Delise. It was for talking to herself. Arian got goosebumps watching her talk to herself. Rashta obviously should know that she had framed Delise. However, as she talked to herself, did she really seem to consider Delise as the culprit? ¡®Did she act even while alone, or...?¡¯ Rashta¡¯s gaze settled on her. Arian stopped thinking, turned around and left her room. Either way, it was none of her business. She just had to keep quiet and do her job. *** ¡®At this rate, not only will I be ridiculed, but I won¡¯t even be able to show how well I am.¡¯ After grumbling for hours, Rashta came back to her senses as she felt a movement in her belly. ¡®Yes. Now is not the time to be like this.¡¯ Despite being pregnant, she hade all this way to show Navier how well she was. Just as Navier had gone to the Eastern Empire to persuade the nobles, she wanted to persuade the nobles of the Western Kingdom to take revenge. To do so, she first needed to put aside the Sovieshu issue and find a way to get revenge immediately. ¡®But how? If only Duke Elgy was with me at this moment.¡¯ Rashta regretted that Duke Elgy did note with her, but quickly ordered Viscountess Verdi and her guards. ¡°Find out how the deposed Empress is doing here, how well she has adjusted, and if she has any problems.¡± Soon after, Viscountess Verdi discovered that Navier was in a delicate confrontation with the former queen, Christa. ¡°Are you sure? I can¡¯t believe you figured that out so quickly. Did youe to that conclusion yourself?¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t seem to be a secret.¡± ¡°Really? Phew... My sister betrayed His Majesty believing she would live well. But it seems quite the opposite.¡± The information the guards subsequently discovered was simr. Convinced that Navier was still adjusting here, Rashta bit her finger in careful thought. Then, she instructed, ¡°Call Christa. She¡¯s the former queen, and Rashta is the empress, so she¡¯lle, right?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t give orders to nobles from another country. However, I don¡¯t think she would refuse an invitation considering your position.¡± ¡°Then invite her.¡± Having instructed Viscountess Verdi, Rashta now called Arian and ordered. ¡°Prepare simple food. I¡¯ll eat with the former queen when shees.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Ah, one more thing. Bring drinks that have a very strong aroma and taste.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± ¡°A sweet wine would also be nice.¡± Soon after, Arian returned with simple food. Crunchy sandwiches made of finely chopped sweet potatoes, sugar and cheese, very sweet drinks, fruit champagne and so on. Once Arian left after leaving the food on the table, Rashta mixed the champagne with one of the sweet drinks and shook it. Just then, Christa walked in and greeted her. ¡°It is my honor to meet Your Majesty the Empress of the Eastern Empire.¡± Being greeted with such politeness, Rashta momentarily forgot her original purpose and felt an inexplicable pleasure. Her mood improved as the former queen of another country bowed politely to her. Rashta said with a sincere and kind smile. ¡°Wee, Lady Christa.¡± On the contrary, Christa smiled awkwardly. She had seen in the paper that Sovieshu and Rashta had promised to marry before the divorce. Although she herself did not have a good rtionship with Navier, she did not like this. ¡°Have a seat.¡± However, this was the Empress of a powerful Empire, so Christa sat quietly. Rashta hurried to sit opposite and smiled radiantly. ¡°I¡¯ve heard a lot about Lady Christa in the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I have heard that you are elegant, intelligent and kind. Seeing you now, it really seems true.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Rashta asked politely as she poured Christa the drink mixed with alcohol. ¡°Were you surprised by Rashta¡¯s sudden invitation?¡± ¡°A little...¡± Christa epted the ss and drank, thinking that now she would start talking about the main topic. However, Rashta¡¯s words were surprisingly about herself. ¡°Well... as you know.... Rashta went through a somewhatplicated process to get married. My parents are respectable nobles, but they¡¯re not from the Eastern Empire, and as a child, I was separated from them and raised as amoner.¡± Christa nodded as she took another sip of the drink. In fact, Christa had heard that story before. Whether it was true or not, there was a lot of gossip about it in the Western Kingdom. Meanwhile, Rashta kept talking. ¡°Because of that, Rashta¡¯s debut in high society was bted, and there are no particrly close nobles.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Also, all the nobles in the Eastern Empire are on Navier¡¯s side, so Rashta feels isted there.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry to hear that.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t me them. It hasn¡¯t been long since Rashta learned etiquette.¡± Rashta smiled sadly and gripped her hands tightly, Christa¡¯s eyes widened in surprise at her strange behavior. Looking at the surprised Christa, Rashta said with a genuine expression. ¡°That¡¯s why Rashta would like to get closer to all the nobles of the Western Kingdom.¡± Chapter 229 - Don’t Even Think About It… (2) Chapter 229. Don¡¯t Even Think About It... (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Christa was a little surprised by Rashta¡¯s unexpected behavior. Here was a woman with devilish charm who rose to the position of Empress after having been the concubine of Emperor Sovieshu. Even in the Western Kingdom Rashta was much talked about for this reason. Everyone thought she was a femme fatale with a deadly charm. But to Christa she seemed like a naive country girl. Moreover, it was shocking to see the Empress of the Eastern Empire make such confessions about her poor integration into high society and her inexperience with etiquette. ¡°During my stay here, I would like to be friends with Christa.¡± At Rashta¡¯s request with an angelic look, Christa nodded reflexively. In fact, when she was informed of Rashta¡¯s invitation, Christa assumed that she nned to use her to confront Navier. Christa naturally found it strange that she talked so much about herself. She thought Rashta would get to the point now. However, not only did Rashta not mention anything else about Navier, she acted like ady making her debut into high society. Christa found it pleasant to listen to her talk about various topics because it seemed that she was really unfamiliar with high society. Once Christa let her guard down Rashta switched to the topic she wanted. ¡°Um, I hope you don¡¯t take offence to what Rashta is about to say. Rashta doesn¡¯t know much about nobility hence the question.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Even though Navier was an empress, she remarried His Majesty Heinley of the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Can¡¯t Christa remarry?¡± Christa looked at Rashta with a stiff face. While thedies-in-waiting asked her because they were concerned, she was disconcerted that Rashta, whom she had just met, brought up the topic of remarriage. ¡°The only case of a marriage of convenience that Rashta knows about is Navier¡¯s... Perhaps because it was a marriage of convenience, Navier had no feelings for His Majesty. That¡¯s why she immediately remarried His Majesty Heinley.¡± Despite realizing that Christa was not happy to talk about this, Rashta continued, ¡°If this is amon pattern in nobility marriages, then Lady Christa also had a marriage of convenience...¡± Eventually, Christa interrupted her firmly. ¡°I don¡¯t want to talk about it.¡± ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Rashta hastily apologized with a surprised look. However, sheughed inwardly at Christa¡¯s firm response. ¡®She must be in love.¡¯ Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t have gotten so serious. ¡°Let¡¯s drink some more.¡± Pretending not to notice, Rashta offered Christa more drink mixed with alcohol. The drink was taking effect and as time went on Christa became more and more rxed. When Christa looked drunk, Rashta asked, ¡°It¡¯s not like you¡¯re remarrying for an affair like Navier did. You lost your husband, but Lady Christa can¡¯t remarry. It¡¯s unfair, right?¡± If Christa refused again to speak on the topic, she would make her drink more. But Christa smiled bitterly, and Rashta exulted. ¡®Almost there!¡¯ After a few murmurs, finally Christa slightly opened her heart. ¡°Although I could marry any man in the world, I can¡¯t marry the only man I want.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°... He doesn¡¯t feel the same about me.¡± Smiling helplessly, tears gathered in Christa¡¯s eyes. Rashta smiled brightly and held out a handkerchief. Rashta originally intended to make her feel that she had been kicked out of power in order to take advantage of her in some way. However, she uncovered more interesting information than expected. ¡®So she likes Heinley.¡¯ *** One day before the wedding.... Heinley and I went to the ceremonial hall to rehearse the wedding ceremony first. Heinley nned to proim himself emperor, so his closest aides were also gathered here. It was being discussed what would be the ideal time for him to proim himself Emperor of the West. He should do so at the time when he would receive the most attention. However, because of the various opinions it was difficult to reach an agreement and the discussion went on longer than expected. Eventually, Heinley and I headed to a corner of the ceremonial hall to take a short break. I took the opportunity to ask him something that has bothered me since yesterday. ¡°What did you talk to His Majesty Sovieshu aboutst night?¡± Heinley stopped short as he was trying to intertwine his hand with mine. Because our fingers touched I immediately felt Heinley flinch. I looked at Heinley gently, taking his hand first. Sovieshu tormented him? What did they talk about? Then Heinley sighed and grumbled. ¡°It¡¯s unfair.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You¡¯re cruel.¡± What? ¡°Holding my hand and asking me with that look, you leave me no choice but to answer.¡± As I burst intoughter, Heinley reluctantly replied. ¡°I just chose the right words to make His Majesty Sovieshu lose his temper. ¡± At his words I stoppedughing. Heinley? Are you serious? I was surprised. Is Heinley acting like that too? But soon, the events of the special New Year¡¯s banquet shed through my mind. Heinley... had openly imitated Rashta¡¯s way of speaking in front of Sovieshu to anger him. Come to think of it, it was true. He was like that. I had forgotten because since we had be close he had been very gentle, but before we got close, I thought Heinley had a simr personality to Rashta. He was good at pissing people off whileughing... I frowned at the thought. Heinley asked, staring at me. ¡°Are you mad at Heinley?¡± I couldn¡¯t help butugh at the way he spoke. Heinley once again imitated Rashta¡¯s way of speaking, looking at me with a big smile. ¡°Don¡¯t get mad at Heinley.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t imitate that way of speaking.¡± Although being Heinley, it sounded cute. It was the way of speaking that I hated the most. Heinley grinned and whispered, leaning his head lightly on my shoulder. ¡°Wife, I really like you.¡± He looked cute, so I rubbed my head against his. However, I noticed that his close aides were gaping at us, and I hastily put on a serious face. Of course, I also raised my head again. However, McKenna was already chuckling. I quickly stared at Heinley with a stern expression and said what I thought was necessary, ¡°Heinley. You don¡¯t have to get along with His Majesty Sovieshu, but you also don¡¯t have to fight the Emperor of a country with simr national power.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It¡¯s better not to cause unnecessary trouble.¡± The atmosphere was good, but it suddenly changed. Heinley¡¯s expression became rigid. I was sorry to see that expression, but I had to say it. ¡°You are my husband, but at the same time you must take care of the Western Kingdom.¡± Heinley did not answer. Does he intend to continue making trouble? ¡°Heinley.¡± Only once I called his name did Heinley look up. But what he said softly was not a response to my words. ¡°I have something to confess to you.¡± He was trying to divert the topic of conversation. I frowned and tried to tell him again, but¡ª ¡°I have no experience.¡± What Heinley said left me speechless. What... did he just say? While I was shocked, Heinley whispered in my ear. ¡°So you must lead me on the wedding night.¡± My mind went nk even though I knew he had deliberately changed the topic. I hadn¡¯t mentioned it, but that had been hovering in my mind all along. But what did he mean? He wanted me to lead him. Is he asking me to take the initiative? Heat rose in my face, so I lowered my gaze. If only he would pretend not to notice. However, Heinley tilted his head until our foreheads touched, looked me in the eye, and made fun of me. Chapter 230 - The First Empress (1)

Chapter 230. The First Empress (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Iposed myself and approached him. However, before I could even greet him, Kapmen turned around and went somewhere else. It¡¯s a relief... but why did he suddenly leave? Wasn¡¯t he here waiting for someone? At that moment, mydies-in-waiting approached and urged me, ¡°It¡¯s time to prepare for the wedding, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°There is a lot to do from now on. Also, today you must go to bed early!¡± ¡°Hurry up!¡± Although Mastas looked puzzled, she also hurried me. I took onest nce at Kapmen¡¯s back, and quickly followed mydies-in-waiting to the detached pce. *** Heinley stared at Navier as she walked away. While he enjoyed the time at Navier¡¯s side, when she said not to cause unnecessary trouble with the Eastern Empire, he was actually saddened. Navier had said it in another sense, but her words stuck in his chest like a dagger. Moreover, Sovieshu¡¯s ominous warning that ¡®Navier would leave him when she realized he was two-faced¡¯ made him ufortable. ¡°Your Majesty. Aren¡¯t youing in? Didn¡¯t you just need a moment to go to the bathroom? Why are you in here like this?¡± ¡®Is this the bathroom?¡¯ McKenna murmured behind him thesest words. Heinley asked, leaning back dazed against a pir. ¡°Will Queen want to go back to him... if she finds out I¡¯m trash?¡± As a loyal subordinate, manyforting words arose in McKenna¡¯s mind. ¡®Why would Your Majesty be trash? Because you have done everything for the sake of the Western Kingdom, because Your Majesty has taken care of our country like Emperor Sovieshu takes care of the Eastern Empire, does that, and much more, make you trash...?¡¯ However, theforting words that came out of his mouth were those of a thoughtless close cousin, ¡°Trash can be recycled. You can rest easy.¡± When Heinley red at him, McKenna quickly fled to the ceremonial hall. * * * Atst the wedding day arrived. From this day on, I will finally be the Queen of the Western Kingdom. No, Heinley will proim himself Emperor, so I will be the First Empress of the Western Empire. A slight pressure and emotion invaded me. The first empress... Even though I will be the first empress, the Western Kingdom was a country that already had its foundationsid. The size, wealth and military power of the country were already enough to consider it an empire. Even once it became the Western Empire, there will be very little that needs to be restructured. But even so, when the kingdom became an empire, I would certainly need to change a few things since this ce would be my new home. ¡°Heavens, Your Majesty. Stop frowning.¡± ¡°Ah. Sorry.¡± ¡°I apply pearl powder to your forehead to brighten it up, but you keep frowning, so it¡¯s ruined before it sets properly.¡± I hadn¡¯t been able to do anything. Yesterday I had to go to bed early, because it is said that after a good night¡¯s sleep, the skin looks healthier and makeup looks better. As soon as I woke up in the morning, I had to take three types of baths and get massages. Since then, mydies-in-waiting spent hours doing my makeup and hours doing my hair. ¡°We¡¯re finished!¡± Just as I began to tingle in every muscle in my body, Countess Jubel eximed and pped her hands. It was a relief. If I had to wait any longer, I really would have needed to take a walk. ¡°Look in the mirror, Your Majesty. You are very beautiful!¡± Rose eximed excitedly. I came to my senses and looked in the mirror. I didn¡¯t want to make a fool of myself like Rashta. Oh my! I loved how I looked in my wedding dress. It was surprisingly morous. Even though I had tried it on before, it was even more amazing now that I was wearing it with my hair and makeup done. When I turned around, the wide skirt of the dress fluttered and made a clinking sound. At the same time, the dress shimmered. How beautiful! Oh, you should have a portrait in your wedding dress! ¡°Thank you, Miss Laura.¡± This was because the skirt of the dress was covered with jewels, for in Heinley¡¯s words, ¡®The Western Kingdom is the capital of jewels.¡¯ Although mydies-in-waiting admired the beautiful dress.... Fortunately, Heinley today would proim himself Emperor. Otherwise, without news like that, everyone would think I was obsessed with jewels. Before the wedding ceremony began... All the distinguished and noble guests were already gathered in the hall, while I waited in a small adjacent room prepared in advance for the bride. We had already exchanged our wedding vows, today¡¯s ceremony would be just a formality. Strangely, I felt a tingling in my hands. Heinley should be in the small room on the other side. Will he be as nervous as I am? I guess so. He said it was his first time... Ah, of course, marriage, what was I thinking? ¡°Your Majesty the Queen, you may enter now.¡± As I paced around the room without sitting down for fear that my dress would wrinkle, the official in charge of the state event finally indicated that I could enter. I nodded, then went out and walked slowly down ¡®the bride¡¯s path.¡¯ On the other side, Heinley was also entering the hall. Once our eyes met, he smiled so brightly that it was obvious to anyone. The excitement was so clearly reflected in his expression, that in order to contain theughter, I had to strain to control my facial muscles. Laughing moderately in front of those present would not be frowned upon, but I could notugh out loud. I walked and walked continuously. The bride¡¯s path... The path on which I lived alone without Heinley... The path Sovieshu was also on. Before bitter thoughts arose, our paths merged into one. We smiled slightly at each other, then turned and headed toward the High Priest. Our hands naturally brushed at that moment, and Heinley grasped my hand firmly. Chapter 231 - The First Empress (2) Chapter 231. The First Empress (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren We didn¡¯t usually walk hand in hand. I felt embarrassed, but I also held his hand tightly. The High Priest, who had insisted in disdain that we not invite him, smiled slightly at us as if he couldn¡¯t help it. However, once we stopped in front of him, he whispered as he opened the sacred book. ¡°I asked not to be invited.¡± Then, smiling, the High Priest asked Heinley ording to procedure, ¡°You both walked separate paths until your paths joined and you began to walk together as husband and wife. King of the Western Kingdom, Heinley Alles Lazlo, agrees to walk together with Navier Ellie Troby the rest of the path?¡± I was a little surprised. That certainly wasn¡¯t the typical wedding line. As I looked at him in surprise, the High Priest smiled yfully. Probably because we had exchanged our marriage vows in the Eastern Empire he suited the phrase to the current situation. However, the High Priest¡¯s yful smile disappeared as soon as Heinley said, ¡°Wait a minute.¡± When the groom did not answer the question of whether he epted the bride and instead asked the high priest to wait a moment, murmurs arose from the seats of the distinguished guests. Having rehearsed this yesterday, I waited quietly while watching everyone¡¯s reactions. However, after seeing Rashta¡¯s smiling face I stopped. There was no need to watch the people who expected to see me suffer on this day. Looking to my side, Heinley was still smiling calmly despite the bustling crowd. ¡°First I need to announce something.¡± To everyone¡¯s surprise, his tone was different from usual. The distinguished guests looked at each other, puzzled. Heinley waited for them to calm down a little, then spoke in a strong voice. ¡°From this moment forward...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°The Western Kingdom will be the Western Empire, and I, Heinley Lazlo, will reign as the First Emperor of the Western Empire.¡± There was an air of dignity in Heinley¡¯s tone. The distinguished guests were even more surprised than when Heinley said, ¡®Wait a minute.¡¯ As if they couldn¡¯t understand what was going on. But when some of Heinley¡¯s closest aides, who were already prepared for this, apuded, the people of the Western Kingdom immediately followed, pping and cheering together. Even the distinguished guests apuded being swept up in the confusion of the moment. The murmurs gradually turned into a greatmotion that echoed throughout the hall. Seeing the journalists busily waving their hands, I looked back at Sovieshu. Sovieshu had a paleplexion, but his expression was indifferent. Was he annoyed? Or did he think I was obsessed with being an Empress? In any case, he was managing his expression very well. In contrast, Rashta¡¯s expression was as if he had snatched the crown from her head. Turning around again, Heinley recited on his own in front of the High Priest. ¡°I, Heinley Alles Lazlo, Emperor of the Western Empire, do ept Empress Navier Ellie Troby as my wife.¡± The High Priest frowned for a moment as he watched Heinley do well on his own. Still, Heinley continued and asked me, naturally changing my title, ¡°Does Navier Ellie Troby, Empress of the Western Empire, agree to marry Emperor Heinley Alles Lazlo?¡± ¡°I do agree.¡± I said with a smile, then the High Priest took out the marriage certificate. It was the same marriage certificate signed in the Eastern Empire. The High Priest said quietly, crossing out the lines that read ¡®King¡¯ and ¡®Queen¡¯, ¡°Please sign again on the side.¡± After Heinley and I signed, the High Priest closed the sacred book, officially proiming our union. At the same time cheers broke out louder than before. The wedding reception began. Heinley and I were the first to dance together. I felt his hands on my neck and waist more clearly than ever. Was it because of what will happen in a few hours? In contrast, Heinley was not at all pleased because of the jewels on my dress. ¡°You¡¯re wearing too many jewels, My Queen. I feel like I put my hands on armor...¡± I try to act stern. ¡°You¡¯re a shameless eagle. What do you expect? Just dance.¡± At the stern scolding, Heinley whispered with a grin. ¡°Lucky no one can read my thoughts.¡± What was he thinking? Maybe...he had thoughts simr to mine? However, I preferred not to ask. Instead, I grabbed him more firmly around the waist. Then, I caught a glimpse of Grand Duke Kapmen in the crowd. After a series of turns while dancing, he was gone before I knew it. Was he alright? He had a really somber expression both yesterday and today. Maybe it¡¯s because of my wedding. He could be so in love with me right now for the magic potion, that he was jealous... ¡°Look at me.¡± Heinley realized immediately that I was worried about Grand Duke Kapmen, and whispered. ¡°Wife, now just look at me.¡± You¡¯re being too greedy.¡± When I mockingly rebutted, Heinley proudly replied, ¡°My Queen is now my woman, and I¡¯m your man.¡± Heinley murmured, ¡°We belong to each other¡±, before naturally kissing my forehead and leaning back. ¡°Take me, my Queen. Hold me, wrap me in your arms.¡± How adorable. How many years is he younger than me? Even in this form, he was still cute. However, Heinley was unexpectedly greedy. I had never seen anyone describe marriage as an act of possession. After our first dance, we walked to the thrones holding hands. Sitting in our seats, one of the officials in charge of the event came over with a tray of food. Heinley took the tray and ced it in hisp, staring at me. No way... does he want to feed me in front of everyone?! ¡°I¡¯d like to feed you, My Queen. Just likest time.¡± I thought so. Although it was fine to show that we had a good rtionship, feeding me in front of everyone was not something we should do as emperors. I kept my mouth shut and shook my head quickly. Fortunately, Heinley was smart, so he reluctantly handed me a fork. ¡°Another time, when it¡¯s just the two of us.¡± As time passed, other nobles also began to dance on stage. Perhaps because of Heinley¡¯s self-promation, the atmosphere was much livelier than at a typical party. People¡¯s voices were bing more energetic and their expressions brighter. Especially the people from the Western Kingdom looked really excited. As I silently watched, I noticed that no one paid any attention to the jewels that covered the entire hall. Well, the Kingdom had be an Empire, so now it wouldn¡¯t matter how morous the decorations were. Come to think of it, I couldn¡¯t see Duke Elgy.... ¡°Why didn¡¯t Duke Elgye?¡± He was a friend of Heinley¡¯s. ¡°I invited him, but I don¡¯t know why he didn¡¯te.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Once Heinley started talking to McKenna, my brother came over and we chatted a little. However, some youngdies, probably the ones who sent the letters, kept staring at my brother with dazzling eyes, so I ended up sending him over there. ¡°Brother, don¡¯t just stand by my side, also dance and have fun.¡± Unresisting, he calmly approached the youngdies and talked to them. Was my brother doing this for me? Although he looked very awkward. After that, I conversed with mydies-in-waiting for a while, and when they left to dance, Nian came over and greeted me. ¡°You are now Her Majesty the Empress again.¡± Smiling charmingly, she added in a yful tone, ¡°This title suits you better.¡± The unknown nobles of the Western Kingdom, or rather, the Western Empire, who were following Nian agreed with her remark. Without realizing it, Nian seemed to expand her influence rapidly. Once Nian left, I slowly looked around me. Muney was not near me, but she smiled and waved discreetly at me when our gazes met. High-status nobles close to Heinley approached me and openly expressed their goodwill towards me. Obviously, Heinley did not make the decision to proim himself emperor overnight. So they assumed that I was the reason Heinley did it, and they were grateful. Sovieshu ... I wonder what he¡¯s thinking. Although he had aposed attitude, he waspletely alone, rejecting anyone who approached him. ¡®What about Rashta? Haven¡¯t I seen her?¡¯ For some reason, Rashta wasn¡¯t attracting attention. She stood out everywhere for her beautiful and wonderful appearance. ¡®Oh, there she is.¡¯ I can see why she hasn¡¯t stood out. She was doing her best to be inconspicuous. Why was she acting like that? That wasn¡¯t her personality. ... Ah, I get it. It¡¯s because of Nian. *** Although the heat rose inside her, Rashta tried to keep a low profile as much as she could. This was because Duchess Tuania and Viscount Langdel were here. She didn¡¯t want to see them, so she tried her best to avoid them by moving from side to side, but since she was the empress, the eyes of those present always followed her. Fortunately, no one tried to stop her to talk as she passed. Rashta managed to approach Christa after walking around the hall a few times. At this point, she nned to cause a ruckus by taking advantage of Christa¡¯s feelings. However, before she could even pretend to know Christa. She suddenly heard the sound of a fan being unfolded, and a loudugh. Turning around, Rashta saw Duchess Tuaniaing towards her, surrounded by a group of gentlemen anddies. As well as Viscount Langdel, who had pounced on her with a knife in the past. Feeling an instinctive fear, Rashta hurriedly left the area once again. Chapter 232 - Wedding Night (1) Chapter 232. Wedding Night (1) After the wedding reception, the moment I most dreaded finally arrived¡ª the wedding night. The wedding night when I would have to take the lead. Will I be able to do it well? ...I had no experience taking the lead in such a rtionship. Of course, I should be able to do it, but will I have the courage? I don¡¯t think I could even lift my face in embarrassment! But I couldn¡¯t stand idly by in front of the inexperienced Heinley. I¡¯m in trouble. I couldn¡¯t stop repeating inside myself, ¡®I¡¯m in trouble, I¡¯m in trouble¡¯. Meanwhile, time passed quickly, and I could finally enter the Queen¡¯s Room, which I was forbidden to enter until the wedding took ce. I suppose it should now be called the Empress¡¯s Room. In the room there was a bed that surprised me a little, as there was a shared bedroom between Heinley¡¯s room and mine. When this pce was built, did the King of the Western Kingdom have such an intimate rtionship with the Queen? Why was it designed with such an annoying structure? Putting that aside...this room was really incredible. Heinley deliberately had it decorated in gold. In fact, the whole room glowed in gold tones. The difference was seen in the details; dark gold, light gold, and so on... But without a doubt it was all gold. As I watched in amazement, thedies-in-waiting following me, one after another, eximed in admiration, ¡°It is so beautiful that it has noparison with the detached pce, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s truly pretty. You¡¯ll be staying here from now on, won¡¯t you?¡± ¡°Oh, where are our rooms? Where, Miss Rose?¡± ¡± This way.¡± As Rose went out into the corridor to show thedies-in-waiting to the rooms where they would be staying, I sat alone on the bed, squeezing the soft sheets. As I opened the door to this room, I remembered Yunim¡¯s expression and chuckled. He may not be pleased that this room is now officially mine. However, he has been surprisingly quiettely. Was his hostility toward me gradually diminishing? Let¡¯s hope so. After a while, thedies-in-waiting, who had finished looking at their rooms, excitedly exined how they were structured. ¡°There¡¯s a bed, there¡¯s a closet, and there¡¯s a desk in there!¡± ¡°The dressing table is all silver, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°The closet went from here to there!¡± It seemed that it was not only my room, but also eachdy-in-waiting¡¯s room that was very sumptuous. ¡°I will see them another time?¡± When I asked them with a smile, mydies-in-waiting who were making a fuss instantly fell silent. As I wondered why, they began exchanging nces with each other and grinning. ... I think I know what they are thinking. I guess they think I should take a bath and go into the shared bedroom now. Well, it¡¯s already evening... Is Heinley taking a bath in his room? Before we went upstairs, Heinley¡¯s secretary stopped him in a hurry. He said there was an urgent report rted to the outskirts of the Kingdom. So Heinley probably wasn¡¯t in his room yet. ¡°You must take a bath immediately, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make your body smell like a subtle fragrance of flowers. I have a perfume of lilies and roses, it is currently the most fashionable.¡± ¡°I brought some bath bombs that will make you feel like you¡¯re in the clouds.¡± As mydies-in-waiting tried to drag me away, I firmly resisted. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Laura looked puzzled because I wasn¡¯t moving. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I pointed a finger at the door. ¡°Wait a moment. I want to get some fresh air.¡± ¡°Now?¡± ¡°His Majesty the Emperor is not yet in his room...¡± I wanted to take advantage of the night breeze to soothe my hot face. After today the rtionship between Heinley and I will change. I don¡¯t know if the change will be positive or be somewhat awkward. So I wanted to enjoy the time that was left before that happened. This tingling feeling. *** After going down a few steps, I stepped out onto the veranda. I put my hands on the railing, and inhaled the night breeze that blew past the tip of my nose. The cold air filled my lungs as it passed. But still the heat on my face did not diminish. I looked toward the party hall where there were still people from the reception. I could hear asional explosions of fireworks, and the lights were clearly visible from here. In addition, I could see peopleing out to get some fresh air, lovers sneaking out to enjoy their secret love, and Grand Duke Kapmen.... Grand Duke Kapmen? Grand Duke Kapmen was alone? Standing... on the veranda over there. Although his expression could not be seen properly from here, at first nce he looked very lonely and depressed. Most likely because of the effects of the potion. When Grand Duke Kapmen was talking nonsense mixed with a sincere tone, it was funny and even made meugh a little. Come to think of it, it¡¯s a really scary potion. Love can be a strong poison to the point that one can be lovesick. Were the potion¡¯s effects so strong that suffering was inevitable? Unfortunately, even in that case it was because of a mistake made with his own hands. Then, suddenly, Grand Duke Kapmen looked this way. He was definitely looking at me. I felt our eyes meet despite the distance... He didn¡¯t turn his head, so I turned around first and left the veranda. I was about to have my wedding night with Heinley. Knowing how he felt about me, I couldn¡¯t greet him calmly. Eventually, I returned to my room after wandering around. ¡°You¡¯ve arrived just in time.¡± ¡°A moment ago ¡®His Majesty the Emperor¡¯ also entered his room.¡± ¡°Miss Mastas, why do you put so much emphasis on ¡®His Majesty the Emperor¡¯?¡± Mastas and Rose quarreled as usual, so I went first into the bathroom with Countess Jubel. As Laura had said earlier, therge bathtub was filled with bubble like clouds. As I undressed and stepped into the bathtub, a warm sensation began to spread from the tips of my toes. I closed my eyes for a while to enjoy the warmth, but opened my eyes once I began to feel drowsy. I rinsed again after applying a little of the perfume of lilies and roses. At the end, I put on the robe that had been prepared with the wedding dress. ... My hands were shaking. Fortunately, looking in the mirror, I felt a little more sensual than usual. Will Heinley also wear a robe like this? Although it was made so that we could both wear it as a couple... I don¡¯t know how Heinley would look in this kind of clothing. Looking around awkwardly, I made up my mind and asked mydies-in-waiting to leave. The structure of this ce was somewhat peculiar. There was a bedroom between my room and Heinley¡¯s, but there was no door that would allow ess to that bedroom from the corridor. One could only enter that bedroom, through my room or Heinley¡¯s, and not even thedies-in-waiting could enter without permission. After taking a few deep breaths, I suddenly heard a muffled noise from inside the bedroom. Heinley had entered first. I took onest deep breath, walked slowly and put my hand on the doorknob. Steeling myself, I carefully turned it. As the door opened, the bedroom that had remained hidden until now was revealed. Chapter 233 - Wedding Night (2) Chapter 233. Wedding Night (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Oh...¡± In fact, it was just a bedroom. The only furniture inside was a bed with a fluffy rug underneath it. The bed in this bedroom was evenrger than the bed in the Empress¡¯ Room and the Emperor¡¯s Room, which in themselves were veryrge. Was it really a ce just for sleeping? However, it didn¡¯t feel empty because there were bunches of baby¡¯s breath flowers around. There was also a subtle glowing from the bed. What function did it have? As I looked around, I heard ¡®My Queen¡¯ from behind me. To my surprise I saw Heinley standing against the wall next to the door that connected my room to the bedroom. As expected, he was wearing the same robe as I was, but... ¡°Ah.¡± Feeling embarrassed, I hastily turned around. I could see most of his chest because the belt of his robe was tied loosely. As I tried to avoid eye contact out of awkwardness, Heinley came over and gently wrapped his arms around my waist from behind. Then he kissed me on the ear, on the cheek, and once more on the ear, whispering. ¡°Teach me quickly.¡± I felt so embarrassed and awkward, I was on the verge of tears. Also, heat rose from the areas where his lips passed. And probably because he had just bathed, his lips were moist. ¡°Go... Go to the bed.¡± At my careful words, Heinley chuckled softly, and went to the bed with his eyes on me. Then he sat down on the bed, stretching out his arms with his legs slightly spread. ¡± Come quickly.¡± He had asked me to take the lead, but did he really want me to? However, I slowly approached feeling a little calmer. In an instant, I was standing between Heinley¡¯s legs. But it seemed that this was as far as he would go in his bold behavior.. He looked at me with an unknown expression, and I swallowed hard, staring into his mysterious pupils. His still damp hair made him look more attractive than usual. I reached out my hand slowly, and ran it through his hair. Heinley then closed his eyes and raised his head slightly, he seemed to say ¡®I¡¯m in your hands¡¯. ... So cute. He¡¯s like a big puppy. A very gentle puppy. His attitude gave me a little courage. I slipped my fingers through his hair to stroke it, as it gently tangled around my hands. After doing this some more, I lightly kissed his forehead and whispered. ¡°Go up. Move more to the center.¡± Heinley opened his eyes and smiled, obediently climbing onto the bed. Although I hesitated, I pushed his chest slightly so that hepletelyid his upper body down. Once my fingertips touched his naked body, Heinley flinched for a moment, buty back on the bed without protest. In this position, he stared at me and whispered with eyes full of expectation. ¡°I don¡¯t mind if you¡¯re rough.¡± ¡°Naughty eagle. You don¡¯t mind if I¡¯m rough... or do you want me to be?¡± When I asked with a smile, Heinley mumbled, ¡°As you wish is fine,¡± then reached down with one hand to grab the belt of his robe to untie itpletely. Once he untied his belt, his upper body was fully exposed. Dropping my slippers to the floor, I climbed onto the bed on my knees and slid onto his abdomen, straddling him. ¡°Argh.¡± Heinley let out a suffering sigh, as if he couldn¡¯t take it anymore, and put his hands on my thighs. Although his hands were touching my robe, I felt as if they were directly touching my skin. As the heat quickly rose in my face and I bit my lower lip, Heinley¡¯s hands slowly ran up the sides of my body, stopping near the upper tailbone. ¡°Wife, how do you see me from above?¡± ¡°... Lovely. And naughty.¡± ¡°You only make it naughtier.¡± His whispers tickled my eardrums. I slowly stretched my hands out and roamed his upper body. Heinley moaned, as I caressed his skin with my hands, from his chest to his neck. But still, he continued to move his hands slowly in a bold manner... At this point, I grabbed his hands, and pressed them firmly to the bed near the side of his face. ¡°Wife?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you ask me to take the lead today?¡± ¡°!¡± I kissed a surprised Heinley a few times on the cheeks, before slowly cing my lips on his. Wanting to fully enjoy the moment, I lowered my hands and slowly removed his pants. Ah. ...This part was alreadypletely prepared. ¡°My sly eagle.¡± When I burst outughing at how cute he was, Heinley blushed up to his ears, grabbed the belt of my robe and tugged lightly on it. ¡°It¡¯s embarrassing, please do it while kissing me.¡± *** Sovieshu returned to where he was staying as soon as Navier left the party hall. After spending some time sitting on the bed in a daze, he went to the window and leaned his head against the window frame. He felt dizzy and broken. Even right now he felt nauseous, and as if his heart was about to shatter into pieces. The image of Navier smiling as she held the hand of that damned king appeared before his eyes. He clenched his fist. ¡®Will she now be in the room where the wedding night will happen?¡¯ When that thought came to his mind, he turned white as a sheet. He hated to see Navier smiling next to Heinley, rather than that the Western Kingdom had be an empire. He hated to see them dancing together, and he hated the fact that that damn kid kept sticking to Navier as if they were really close. ¡°Huhh.¡± Sovieshu clutched his chest and bent over from the pain in his heart. It was very painful. The pain was strong enough to suppress his anger. His wife, who had smiled next to him, now stood next to another man. This fact alone made the blood in his head boil. He felt as if the blood was going to leak right out of his eyes. In the end the blood did note out of his eyes, but from his nose. Sovieshu took out a handkerchief and wiped his nose as the blood dripped. ¡°Navier... Navier, Navier...¡± Suddenly, he wondered if she had felt the same way when he brought Rashta. ¡®If she was angry, because she didn¡¯t show it, did she suppress her feelings?¡¯ ¡°... No way.¡± Sovieshu muttered at once, grinding his teeth. ¡®If so, I would have noticed it at some point, but Navier didn¡¯t seem to be affected. She had no interest in me. That¡¯s why she acted so indifferently.¡¯ However, he thought it was just as well. Because if Navier had experienced these same feelings, it would have been awful. His legs weakened. Sovieshu sat down on the floor with his back to the window. He leaned his head against the wall and lowered his handkerchief. ¡®Am I drunk?¡¯ He could see the Navier of the coronation day in front of him. The Navier of that day held out her hand to Sovieshu. ¡°We must go quickly, Your Majesty.¡± Frowning, she continued in a reproachful tone, ¡°Everyone is here.¡± ¡°Navier...¡± Sovieshu replied unconsciously,pletely drunk. ¡°I can¡¯t get up, Navier.¡± ¡°What are you saying?¡± She pretended to look at him sternly, and then reached out her hand again. ¡°Let¡¯s go fast.¡± ¡°Really, I can¡¯t walk.¡± ¡°Just take my hand.¡± She said clearly. This was not what he remembered from that day. He had prepared from the beginning for the coronation ceremony with great dignity and did notin that he could not stand up. ¡®So who was the Navier in front of me? What the hell was this?¡¯ When he thought about it, he recalled that this happened shortly before the coronation day. ¡®That was probably the first time I got drunk. Did that matter now?¡¯ ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu tried to reach for his wife¡¯s hand. However, the moment their hands ovepped, Navier¡¯s illusion vanished. He was about to get up when he fell on his back again, hitting his head against the window frame. However, he cared more about the illusion that vanished before his eyes than the pain of the blow. ¡°Navier? Navier?¡± Sovieshu shouted her name in bewilderment and waved his hands in the air. ¡°Navier? Where did you go?¡± ¡®She was right in front of me. Where did she go? Where did she go just now?¡¯ ¡°Navier?¡± He muttered and managed to get up. He was reeling from the terrible effects of the alcohol. Scared, Sovieshu rushed to open the door and came out shouting. ¡°Navier! Marquis Karl? Find Navier!¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl, surprised, supported Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, you are drunk!¡± ¡°Karl, Navier, Navier is gone. Navier!¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl quickly carried Sovieshu back to his room while supporting him. ¡°Bring me some sobering medicine.¡± He immediately instructed one of the guards, then helped Sovieshu lie down on the bed. Rashta, who hade to get Sovieshu to sing a luby, stood in the corridor, stunned, before hastily turning around and running away. Chapter 234 - Healthy (1) Chapter 234. Healthy (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta hurried back to her room. Her heart was beating uncontrobly. ¡®What does this mean? What did I just see?¡¯ Her mind was in chaos. ¡®Why was Sovieshu... Why was Sovieshu like this? Acting as if he missed his ex-wife?¡¯ ¡°No, that can¡¯t be.¡± Rashta shook her head. ¡®This can¡¯t be true now...¡¯ Rashta¡¯s face turned pale. As much as she tried to deny it, Sovieshu¡¯s attitude under the influence of alcohol made it all too obvious. As soon as she recognized this fact, a deep fear washed over her. Sovieshu had been her benefactor and savior, the one who lifted her from the bottom, but he was also the person who knew her weaknesses. If he let her go she would plummet again with nothing she could do to stop it. There was also no bloodline to hold on to since the baby had not yet been born. ¡®Calm down. The deposed empress has already remarried. It¡¯s useless for him to regret it now.¡¯ Rashta scratched her skin while biting her nails. Her belly started to hurt again, probably as a result of all the stress. ¡®But even if he didn¡¯t bring back the deposed empress, what if this caused him to turn cold to Rashta? What if he med Rashta for the divorce and walked away?¡¯ Then he would bring another woman. Sovieshu was an emperor, young, and extremely handsome. Many women would take his hand if he wanted it. Either by choice, or for the sake of their families. ¡®No way, absolutely not.¡¯ Elgy. She needed Duke Elgy. Rashta quickly got into bed and curled up. She wished to hear from Duke Elgy that everything would be fine. She wished he wouldfort her with his exceptional mind. However, there was no way Duke Elgy, who had not evene to the Western Empire, would appear out of nowhere. ¡®How long have I been like this?¡¯ Rashta opened her tightly closed eyes and removed her fingers from her mouth. A firm determination emerged in her uneasy eyes. That¡¯s right, there is no time to act like this. If she had stayed crying inconsbly and fallen into despair the day she lost her first baby she would never have gotten this life. Rashta had run from that ce of her own free will to cling to a new life. The same was true now. If she remained as is, trembling with trepidation, the end would be obvious. ¡®I must protect what is mine.¡¯ When she was a concubine the emperor¡¯s love was everything. All her power came from the emperor. However, now at least she had her own power. Even as the Emperor he could not divorce again for a while because of public opinion. He had to hold out for at least a few months. By then the baby will have been born and will be the Emperor¡¯s firstborn no matter what anyone else said. ¡®In the future the baby will protect Rashta. But until then, Rashta has to protect the baby.¡¯ Rashta got up from the bed and paced the room. ¡®What should I do? What should I do? ...Face the deposed empress head-on?¡¯ There was no reason to avoid the deposed empress, no reason to avoid Viscount Langdel, and no reason to avoid Duchess Tuania. The deposed empress betrayed the emperor, and although she currently held the position of empress, she was the empress of a country that had just proimed itself an empire only yesterday. Viscount Langdel is a wicked ruffian who tried to stab a weak and unarmed girl. And isn¡¯t Duchess Tuania also a frivolous woman who uses her feminen wiles to drag men behind her? ¡®There is no need to be pressured by such people. Why should Rashta be discouraged when the perpetrators hold their heads so high?¡¯ Isn¡¯t Viscount Langdel the leader of a knightly order? If that¡¯s the case, that¡¯s great. I¡¯ll expose how disgusting he is in front of everyone. Rashta was firmly determined. *** As soon as I woke up I felt a lightness. As I felt around with my hands I heard a chuckle and opened my eyes. Looking up, I saw Heinley staring at me and chuckling. ¡°Wife, did you sleep well?¡± Ahh... Right. Yesterday... I buried my face in his chest from the flood of memories that arose in my mind. Although I think I fell asleep around dawn, I didn¡¯t remember the details well. But when I woke up I wasying in Heinley¡¯s arms. I didn¡¯t feel my body sticky either, ah.... ¡°Did you wash me?¡± When I asked awkwardly, Heinley lightly bit my earlobe. ¡°You don¡¯t remember?¡± ¡°Remember?¡± ¡°You asked me to prepare the bathtub with rose scented bath bombs, lots of bubbles and wash your hair with fruit shampoo.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember.¡± Heinley smiled and rubbed his cheek against mine. Feeling embarrassed, I hugged him tightly and hid my face. After he mentioned the rose scent and the fruit shampoo, I could tell Heinley wasn¡¯t lying because those used to be my tastes. Then, I suddenly realized that Heinley¡¯s hair smelled like my favorite scent also... He washed it with the same stuff. As soon as I noticed it, my face got even warmer. ¡°I¡¯d be happy to die like that, My Queen.¡± Isn¡¯t Heinley embarrassed now? Although he wasn¡¯t being shy at all, his ears were still red. Meanwhile, Heinley, who kept nibbling my ears, started traveling down my neck. Then he kissed my corbone lightly. ... I was confused by his current behavior. We were friends, but we were only bound together by a marriage of convenience... However, he acted like he was dying for me. ¡°My Queen. My wife. Navier.¡± After calling my name, Heinley slowly and naturally began to move his lips further down my corbone. He had said that he was a fast learner. And they weren¡¯t empty words. His soft lips running light kisses down my skin were wonderful. But... ¡°It¡¯s morning.¡± I had to prepare for the next reception. I couldn¡¯t stay in bed for much longer. As I pushed his forehead Heinley rubbed his face against the palm of my hand and kissed my wrist. ¡°Heinley. We cannot, not now.¡± After insisting again Heinley finally moved aside with a regretful expression. Why doesn¡¯t he look tired... despite trying so hard yesterday? Did he have such good physical stamina? I nced at his profile. His face that had made me exim in admiration when we first met, looked even more handsome now that he wasying down. When I reached out to touch his lips and the tip of his nose, Heinley smiled again, kissing my wrist and then palm. After caressing his cheeks a few times, I unconsciously uttered a few words from the bottom of my heart. ¡°I hope this time I can have a baby.¡± Chapter 235 - Healthy (2) Chapter 235. Healthy (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As if he had heard something unexpected, Heinley tilted his head and asked, ¡°A baby?¡± I nodded and caressed his lips with one finger. I wanted to have a baby not because I liked the idea of it, but for the imperial family, as the sessor was very important. Not only because the stability of the country was at stake, but also because if the line of session went awry, nobles or even royalty from another country could take the throne out of nowhere. Thetter as a result of marriage between members of different royal families. In fact there was just such an emblematic case. The third prince of Ahn married a princess of the Northern Kingdom, but both died of a gue. The right of session belonged to the third prince, so eventually Ahn was absorbed into the Northern Kingdom. Even in the Western Kingdom, no, in the Western Empire, the right of session passed to Heinley because his brother had no sons. ¡°Yes. My Queen, our baby will be really lovely if it looks like you .¡± I smiled and replied, ¡°But I wish it to look like you.¡± However, a slight feeling of uneasiness arose within me. Sovieshu had said that I could not have a baby. Of course, I thought it was nonsense, but now I am worried. What if... what if it¡¯s true? While I was lost in thought, Heinley got out of bed first. What is he going to do? He then hurried back and forth from his room to the bedroom, approaching me with small pancakes and a ss of milk on a te. The pancakes were topped with sweet syrup and whipped cream. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°My Queen, do you mind if I feed you now?¡± ¡°...¡± Why was he so obsessed with feeding me? Maybe it¡¯s because he¡¯s a bird. Eventually, Heinley started feeding me pancakes straight to my mouth. It was nice. However, in the middle of the meal Heinley started to tell me something unbelievable. ¡°My Queen. In fact, the bed we are in now is made entirely of mana stone.¡± I stopped eating and my eyes opened wide. Mana stone? Isn¡¯t that extremely expensive? When I looked up in surprise, Heinley smiled and continued, ¡°The King of the Western Kingdom has been a mage for generations. And under a special environment, also his wife bes a mage.¡± ¡°Bes... a mage?¡± Is that even possible? What Heinley said was shocking and amazing! Even I, who didn¡¯t know much about magic, was clear that for magic one required a special kind of talent. I couldn¡¯t believe that an ordinary person could be a mage! If so, not only the Magic Academy, but also the association, would be brought down. ¡°But the method is a little embarrassing... and it¡¯s absolutely secret, My Queen.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the secret?¡± ¡°Uh...¡± Heinley was very embarrassed to exin it, but it was only after hearing it that I realized why he was so embarrassed to say it. When a mage and a mana stone are connected the mana circtes between the two. Naturally, once the mage lies down on the mana stone bed, the mana circtes between the mana stone and the mage. The principle is the same... even if there was an ordinary person between the mage and the bed. If the mage did not ept the mana that flowed to him from the mana stone, the mana flowed into the ordinary person¡¯s body in the process of return, and thus the mana continued to umte in the ordinary person¡¯s body... ¡°Really?¡± When I asked, perplexed, Heinley replied, ¡°Yes,¡± with great embarrassment. ¡°But if that were all, it would be known to other countries.¡± ¡°Sounds easy, but it¡¯s hard to create an environment like this.¡± ¡°You mean the mana stone bed?¡± ¡°Even a nail-sized mana stone is very expensive. Also, most mana stones are small to be carried around, so it¡¯s inefficient to make a bed. As well, there must be a mage in the couple.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± I see. It certainly could be difficult for all those conditions toe together. Also, it was a very embarrassing method. While stunned, Heinley added with a smile. ¡°What I meant was that the body bes very healthy as it gets used to mana. So you don¡¯t have to worry so much about a baby.¡± I said I was hoping to have a baby ¡®this time¡¯. He seemed to notice my concern. His thoughtful consideration made me feel a tickle around my heart. But soon I had a strange thought. ¡°So is Christa a mage too?¡± I hadn¡¯t heard anything about that. Besides, didn¡¯t Heinley¡¯s brother die early because he was weak? Heinley shook his head with a grim face. ¡°There is a drawback to this method.¡± ¡°Drawback?¡± ¡°If one cannot handle a mana stone of this size, rather...¡± ...Rather? However, Heinley said nothing more. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. We won¡¯t have any problems.¡± ...We? *** After that, Heinley didn¡¯t give me any more details. He had a very grim expression, so I didn¡¯t insist any more. It seemed to be rted to his brother¡¯s cause of death. However, I was curious about what he didn¡¯t finish saying. If one could not handle the mana stone, would one die? Christa looked healthy, so is it the mage who takes all the risks? Will Heinley be alright? Even after attending the reception, this thought kepting to my mind. At least Heinley looked very lively on the outside. Besides, although Heinley¡¯s brother had a short life, that was not the case for all the Kings of the Western Kingdom. In fact, there were some very long-lived kings... While absorbed in my thoughts, I suddenly saw Sovieshu in a corner. He was drinking wine with a paleplexion just like yesterday. He was alone again today. Looking at his face, I didn¡¯t think he should drink anymore. What on earth were his subordinates doing that had not yet taken Sovieshu away? But upon closer inspection, I saw his secretaries and knights not far away, looking anxiously at Sovieshu. It wasn¡¯t that they didn¡¯t want to take Sovieshu away, rather it seemed that he had driven them all away so that he could be alone. What about Rashta? Shouldn¡¯t Rashta step in and intervene at a time like this? She was not even... close to Sovieshu. Looking across the way, I saw Rashta sitting near the piano, surrounded by men, whileughing happily. Yesterday, she was running around to avoid Nian. She was probably rxed today because Nian was not in attendance. Still, why weren¡¯t they together if they were newlyweds? The emperor and the empress had to show in front of people that they had a good rtionship, even if it was false. However, it¡¯s none of my business now. I sighed and was about to turn my head when my eyes met Rashta¡¯s eyes. Instead of turning her head, Rashta stared at me. But at my wedding reception I didn¡¯t want to have a confrontation with my ex-husband¡¯s wife to avoid any remarks, so I turned my head after shing a smile. Just then, Grand Duke Kapmen approached and asked Heinley to speak alone. ¡°May I have a moment of your time, Your Majesty?¡± Once Heinley left to talk to Grand Duke Kapmen, I had some round sugar-coated snacks while chatting with Mastas. But I barely ate a couple of snacks. Rashta, who was far away, approached me. At this point, I let out a sigh. I thought she would keep her distance after what happened yesterday. What is she up to? Still, I felt lucky that this happened when Heinley was not present. Rashta approached me and said in a friendly voice. ¡°Congrattions on your marriage, sister.¡± ... sister. Why was she so obsessed with it? I managed to manage my expression when I was about to frown naturally. But Rashta continued, ¡°You used to say that you couldn¡¯t be a sister to a concubine of low status, but... now that we are both empresses, and it has been revealed that my status is that of a true noblewoman, can we be like sisters? I¡¯m qualified, right?¡± Oh, she doesn¡¯t call herself in the third person anymore? That¡¯s unbelievable. I don¡¯t know if I was hallucinating, but the way Rashta spoke was somewhat simr to mine. As I thought about it, I heard murmurs all around me. I also realized that the eyes of those present were on us. The confrontation between the ex-wife and the current wife. It was certainly interesting. Besides, we are both empresses. Rashta blushed, heat rising in her cheeks as if she was happy to attract the attention. Blushing, she looked like a cute doll, but.... I smiled and helped her cool off, ¡°If you want a sister so badly, you can be the sister of Sovieshu¡¯s next concubine since you would have the same husband.¡± It worked. Immediately, the blush disappeared from her face. Rashta asked as if she had be the protagonist of a tragedy. ¡°Are you saying that His Majesty will have an affair with another woman?¡± But I wasn¡¯t interested in ying along. ¡°Don¡¯t even ask me, that¡¯s your business.¡± At my blunt response, Rashta raised her eyebrows, looking quite angry. I wondered if this would cause her to cross the line. ¡°It¡¯s true. Your Majesty Navier is infertile, so you don¡¯t have time to worry about anything else.¡± Chapter 236 - Two Confused Men (1) Chapter 236. Two Confused Men (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren It certainly crossed the line. The faces of thedies-in-waiting beside me immediately stiffened. Finally, Mastas couldn¡¯t take it anymore, but when she was about to say something, a voice mixed withughter was heard. ¡°You say that like an experienced person?¡± It was my brother. Even before she turned around, Rashta flinched as she recognized his voice. However, she was quick to look at my brother with an innocent expression. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Fortunately, I was in front of Rashta, so I could see the change in her expression. More importantly... will my brother be alright? Will he lose his patience here? I was a little worried, but fortunately, my brother answered Rashta with a smile. ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean much. I only ask because Your Majesty of the Eastern Empire speaks as if you¡¯ve already had a baby.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand your meaning.¡± ¡°It has no deeper meaning.¡± My brother, who mentioned it again, added in a joking tone. ¡°I am not trying to imply that Your Majesty the Empress of the Eastern Empire has a hidden child.¡± Although he said it jokingly, it was true. Probably because of this Rashta¡¯s face became noticeably rigid. Rashta moved her lips as if she wanted to ask if it was a threat. But she couldn¡¯t simply ask, ¡®Are you ckmailing me?¡¯ In that case, she would be acknowledging it as a weakness. In the end, Rashta was finally forced to smile and say in the same yful manner. ¡°You¡¯re a little bit rude.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Your words have thorns in them.¡± ¡°My words. So what¡¯s in the words of a person who thoughtlessly calls someone else¡¯s sister infertile? Knives? Daggers?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Oh,e to think of it, I left that there.¡± ¡°Neither knives or daggers.... Besides, Rashta doesn¡¯t know what you mean.¡± This was the way Rashta originally spoke... Although on the surface she was smiling, in reality she was very nervous. Fortunately for Rashta no one seemed to notice that detail. ¡°No, it¡¯s not something Your Majesty knew about. I had it in my possession.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°An important document with the Empress¡¯s name on it.¡± I don¡¯t think he¡¯s suddenly talking about a document with my name. The document my brother is talking about must have Rashta¡¯s name on it. What kind of document did my brother lose? Also puzzled, Rashta asked, ¡°A document?¡± ¡°I identally left it at the pce. Ah, of course, at the Pce of the Eastern Empire. I remembered it now that I saw Your Majesty the Empress.¡± Rashta didn¡¯t seem to understand yet. Although she seemed reluctant, she couldn¡¯t answer immediately. ¡°You should look for it carefully. It seemed like an important document.¡± My brother smiled and looked at me, but went elsewhere. Ah! The document my brother was talking about now, could it be Rashta¡¯s ve trade certificate? * * * Meanwhile, Heinley walked alongside Grand Duke Kapmen. The atmosphere between the two was strange. Heinley was annoyed and ufortable, while Kapmen had mixed feelings, thinking about what he would do. ¡®Should I really go this far? She¡¯ll be sad if I do, did I still have to move on?¡¯ With every step he took, Kapmen¡¯s mind flipped back and forth like a coin. [What did he call me for? It¡¯s a nuisance. I need to hurry back to be next to My Queen]. However, he became even more determined as he heard Heinley¡¯s thoughts. The next thing that came to Heinley¡¯s mind were the memories of the wedding night, which ended uppletely overwhelming his reason. Kapmen¡¯s eyes werepletely red once he stopped. ¡°What do you want to talk about?¡± When Heinley saw Kapmen stop, he asked with a smile. He still considered this a nuisance, but he had no intention of being like Sovieshu, who got carried away by his emotions and threw out Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°I know you were busy, I apologize for calling you out to speak alone.¡± Kapmen spoke calmly, concealing his true intentions, then raised two of the champagne sses that a servant had on a tray. After the servant nodded and left, Kapmen extended one of the sses to Heinley. ¡°That¡¯s all right. I was just a little busy.¡± Heinley epted the ss Kapmen offered him. ¡°More importantly, what can I do for you?¡± ¡°Ah, I¡¯d like to talk about the trade.¡± ¡°About the trade?¡± Heinley nodded, raising the champagne ss to his lips. ¡°That¡¯s right. Once the wedding celebrations are over, Her Majesty Empress Navier will begin to fulfill her role as Empress. I hope that trade with Rwibt will be a priority.¡± Kapmen unconsciously stared at him. His tant stare shook Heinley¡¯s senses. ¡®Why is he staring at me like that?¡¯ Feeling ufortable, Heinley lowered the champagne ss again. I looked at him very intently. Kapmen btedly realized his mistake and smiled, pretending to be unconcerned, but Heinley cleverly extended his champagne ss to Kapmen and said, ¡°How about exchanging drinks?¡± Kapmen smiled as if puzzled. ¡°You have strange tastes.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll be intertwined in many ways in the future.¡± Despite his remark, Heinley continued to offer him his champagne ss. Kapmen exchanged his ss with Heinley without much trouble. He then drank the champagne immediately. Seeing this, Heinley smiled awkwardly and wondered, ¡®Am I overreacting?¡¯ Hearing Heinley¡¯s thoughts, Kapmen looked down and smiled internally. He had poured the potion into both sses just in case. So the result would be the same even if the sses were exchanged. Unknowingly, Heinley drank the champagne relieved. At that moment, Kapmen hurried off somewhere else, keeping his gaze downward. ¡°Kapmen? Grand Duke?¡± Heinley called Grand Duke Kapmen in confusion, but he didn¡¯t stop. ¡®What a strange man.¡¯ Heinley clicked his tongue as he shook his head. ¡°Um... Your Majesty?¡± Christa then approached cautiously, calling Heinley. ¡°Sister-inw?¡± ¡®Why did Christae here all of a sudden?¡¯ Heinley looked at Christa in surprise, and his heart pounded as soon as their eyes met. Heinley swallowed hard. He was suddenly drawn to Christa, as if he couldn¡¯t get her out of his mind. Heinley couldn¡¯t help but ce his hand on his chest. ¡®What on earth is going on?¡¯ Christa also swallowed dryly at seeing him like this. Before, when she drank coffee with Grand Duke Kapmen, he said something very strange to her. He told her that if she loved and wanted to get close to Heinley, go when and where he directed her. It was at this time, in this ce. Of course, she did not believe his words. However, it was extremely close to the banquet hall, so she came all this way just out of curiosity. But Heinley was looking at her... with a shocked expression. Also, as if he wanted to deny something, he shook his head and bit his lips. ¡°Your Majesty? Are you alright? Your face is red.¡± Christa reached out her hand carefully, watching his expression. Heinley took a step back, but his face was still red. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Christa called out to Heinley in a voice half-expectant and half-worried. Heinley pressed his flushed face with his palms and gritted his teeth. ¡®It was Grand Duke Kapmen. He gave me something strange!¡¯ He was acting weird and his heart pounded uncontrobly. Heinley managed to open his mouth, he intended to tell her she¡¯d better leave. ¡°Sister-inw.¡± But the voice that came out was sweet, too. Heinley felt desperate as he noticed that his own voice was out of his control. Meanwhile, Christa was thrilled to hear that voice. Also, those eyes. Those moist eyes longing for affection. She had dreamed of this moment for over a decade. Now she would take proper care of him. When Christa noticed the cold sweat on Heinley¡¯s forehead, she pulled a handkerchief from her pocket. She knew Grand Duke Kapmen had done something. But whatever it was, none of that mattered to her now. This moment was like a dream to her. ¡°Your Majesty. You¡¯re sweating.¡± Christa raised her trembling hand and ced the handkerchief on Heinley¡¯s forehead. ¡°I¡¯ll wipe your sweat.¡± Heinley couldn¡¯t move, feeling as if he was in a state of sleep paralysis. His body was out of his control. And this scene was seen by thedies of the Western Empire, who came out of the banquet hall to get some fresh air. Thedies looked at each other, and quickly left the area. Chapter 237 - Two Confused Men (2) Chapter 237. Two Confused Men (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren However, thedies were deeply outraged at that brief scene. ¡°How could the groom, who had just married yesterday, be with his sister-inw in such an intimate atmosphere!?¡± ¡°How could Christa do this?¡± ¡°How shameful! Although it ismon to have concubines, isn¡¯t Christa His Majesty¡¯s sister-inw?¡± ¡°The former king must be rolling over in his grave!¡± ¡°There¡¯s nothing strange about it.¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t Christa used to love His Majesty?¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°It was a famous story. It is said that when she became the crown princess she kept wailing and crying. I thought it was a false rumor because it seemed that thete king and Christa had a good rtionship...¡± ¡°Oh, my!¡± ¡°Still, why on earth did His Majesty do this as soon as he got married?!¡± ¡°People don¡¯t change that easily.¡± Thedies, who coldly condemned Heinley and Christa¡¯s behavior, quickly headed for Navier. Because the wedding had just taken ce, they were deeply indignant that Emperor Heinley was doing these things with his sister-inw. Even the former queen, for whom they felt sorry, now seemed wicked. Feeling sad, thedies suddenly rushed to the banquet hall to be her force. Meanwhile, Kapmen walked the corridors with his eyes down, oblivious to this fact. He intended to go to his room and take the antidote at once. However, suddenly a feeling of emptiness came over him. ¡®What shall I do next?¡¯ When his heart, which had been boiling with jealousy, calmed down, a deep regret welled up within him. Kapmen was stunned for a moment, and eventually made a decision. ¡®As Navier said, it is best for me to love someone else. In order to suppress the potion¡¯s effects, which is causing havoc with my emotions, it would be best to direct my suffering love to another. Then the two warring feelings will collide and I won¡¯t have to go through this anymore.¡¯ Desperate, Kapmen stood still for a moment as he thought about where to go. Just then, he heard a cry from the balcony of this floor. Kapmen walked there and as he entered he was startled. Rashta was sobbing, leaning against the railings. ¡®No, not this woman!¡¯ Kapmen tried to turn around hastily, but his eyes had already met Rashta¡¯s. ¡®How could things get soplicated!?¡¯ Kapmen pursed his lips, but at that moment the tears umted in Rashta¡¯s eyes and spilled down her cheeks. Due to the strong potion¡¯s effects, he couldn¡¯t help taking off his coat. ¡°Grand Duke?¡± To Rashta¡¯s surprise, Kapmen covered her with his coat. Rashta¡¯s eyes widened, surprised by Kapmen¡¯s attitude, who normally treated her with disdain. ¡°This...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t cry.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± ¡°If you cry, I¡¯ll be sad.¡± The bewildered Rashta stood up quickly, while Kapmen turned around cursing his tongue. *** Did something bad happen? For some reason Heinley did not return after going to talk alone with Grand Duke Kapmen. It would not be easy to find them both, so after spending some time in the hall, I went back to our rooms first. When I asked Yunim, he said Heinley had already returned. Why did hee back alone without saying anything? He wasn¡¯t like that... It was strange, but once I got into my room, I went to the shared bedroom and knocked on Heinley¡¯s door. ¡°Heinley, may Ie in?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Heinley?¡± However, the response I heard from inside the room was one of refusal. ¡°My Queen. I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t feel good right now.¡± ¡°Do you want me to get you some medicine?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine. I think I¡¯ll feel better after I rest.¡± His voice was weak. He was starting to scare me. Could it be that the side effects from using the mana stone bed were manifesting in Heinley already? *** While Navier was curious about Heinley¡¯s attitude... Kapmen, who was about to leave, ended up sitting on a balcony bench next to Rashta, pushed by the potion¡¯s effects. Kapmen now thought that the stars shining in the heavens resembled Rashta, so he uttered profanities inside. This potion was almost a curse! Besides, even in the midst of all this, his feelings for Navier were still intact, and every time he looked at the moon in the sky, for him, it resembled Navier. ¡®I must be going crazy.¡¯ Rashta, unaware of what was going through Kapmen¡¯s mind, loudly expressed her disgust at what had happened earlier. ¡°... So her brother got into it with Rashta... isn¡¯t that too much?¡± ¡°That is too much.¡± ¡°It was almost a threat. Rashta only cared about her sister.¡± [How many people will have heard that the deposed empress is infertile? Will this affect the position of the deposed empress?] Kapmen smiled inwardly as Rashta whimpered. She was a beautiful woman with a lovely voice. Moreover, her inner voice was soft and warm. However, it was truly ironic that having such a sweet inner voice, she had such tantly malicious thoughts. Although he knew Rashta was lying, and it angered him that she said offensive things towards Navier, he was concerned about Rashta¡¯s frail appearance. It was due to the potion¡¯s effects, but he couldn¡¯t help it. Rashta, who noticed Kapmen¡¯s gaze, smiled as she clutched the coat he had given her with her hands. There were more than a few men who had reacted like this, intoxicated by her appearance. Kapmen¡¯s attitude was not new to Rashta. [Men have no choice but to love Rashta. Heinley loved Rashta at first, too.] Kapmen smiled slightly, listening to her confident thoughts, and quickly stood up when he felt the potion¡¯s effects subside a little. ¡°I will leave now.¡± He had to get back to his room quickly before he could do another foolish thing because he was out of control. ¡°Ah, the coat...¡± ¡°You can keep it.¡± But as he turned around, Kapmen heard Sovieshu¡¯s thoughts. [Anyway, she will not hold the position of Empress for long.] He had a calm voice. When Kapmen looked up he saw Sovieshu leaning on the railings of one of the upstairs balconies. He was looking precisely in this direction. Once Kapmen bowed his head in greeting, Rashta looked in that same direction, wondering, ¡®What¡¯s wrong?¡¯ She stood up in surprise to see Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty! This is...¡± She tried to excuse herself, but Sovieshu left the balcony without a word. Rashta hurriedly left the balcony where she was with Grand Duke Kapmen and went upstairs. However, Sovieshu was already gone. Rashta panicked for a moment, but soon calmed down. ¡®No. That¡¯s better. He seemed to think Rashta was a trapped fish, so he was calm. It was about time His Majesty knew how loved Rashta is. Now that he has seen someone like the Grand Duke approach me, he will be jealous and worried.¡¯ Rashta, who thought better of it, smiled softly and went back downstairs to stop Grand Duke Kapmen instead of going after Sovieshu. ¡®I must make him understand that if he continues to miss his ex-wife he will lose me too.¡¯ ¡°Grand Duke. Let¡¯s talk a little more.¡± *** The next day I tried to see Heinley, but was informed that McKenna hade for him on urgent border business. Instead, he left for me a te of scrambled eggs and bread. As I looked at the te I suddenly felt anxious. The wedding night was a formality. After we slept together for the first time, was the friendship we had built lost? I was even embarrassed every time I thought Heinley might like me. But yesterday, thedies were exceptionally kind to me. Yes. Oddly enough, thedies of the Western Empire treated me well. That was quite an achievement. Our marriage was not for love anyway.... Maybe I got carried away by the passion he showed on the wedding night. Hugging me, saying that he loved me, that he would be happy even if he died like this, whispering that he didn¡¯t want to leave my side, and holding me in his strong arms all night long.... I really think I got carried away by that... It was possible that Heinley was just excited because it was his first experience. To appease my bitter feelings, I went out into the garden. There, I met Grand Duke Kapmen. Grand Duke Kapmen was startled for a moment, but soon approached me. When I saw him, I remembered the moment our eyes met on the day of the wedding night. I deliberately put aside personal matters and broached the subject of trade. Grand Duke Kapmen followed suit immediately and we talked for a while. But as we walked, Rashta appeared and greeted us. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. Sister. Good morning.¡± How long would she keep calling me sister? I didn¡¯t like it, but I showed a calm expression and returned her greeting. Grand Duke Kapmen at my side, also greeted her calmly. ¡°Good morning.¡± Rashta stood in front of Grand Duke Kapmen, smiled charmingly and asked him gently, ¡°Grand Duke, did you return safelyst night?¡± Last night? Were they together? What was going on? While I was surprised, Grand Duke Kapmen opened his mouth. ¡°My coat yesterday...¡± ¡°Ah, the coat. I have it.¡± Rashta looked at me, as if they were talking about a secret. Should I leave this situation? As I thought about it, I heard Kapmen¡¯s firm voice. ¡°I want it back.¡± The strangeness didn¡¯t end there. Rashta asked, looking puzzled at Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Why are you acting like this now, Grand Duke?¡± Why was she so puzzled? Isn¡¯t Grand Duke Kapmen always so cold? ¡°Please send it through an errand boy.¡± After Rashta left, I asked curiously. ¡°What happened between you two?¡± Then, Grand Duke Kapmen replied firmly, ¡°Nothing happened.¡± ¡°?¡± *** Although he said nothing happened, Kapmen was actually a little shocked. Kapmen was sure that yesterday the potion¡¯s effects worked toward Rashta. However, when he woke up this morning he felt better. Now it didn¡¯t matter if he saw Rashta. The problem was that the potion¡¯s effects were still working toward Navier. ¡®What¡¯s the reason?¡¯ Kapmen thought it was strange, and he wondered if it was the same for Heinley, so he rushed over to see him as soon as he finished talking to Navier. Just then, Heinley was talking to Christa. ¡®I drank it twice, the effects of the second potion disappeared quickly, but not the first...¡¯ ¡°I was drunk and lost my head for a moment. I¡¯m sorry. When I get drunk I¡¯m not fully conscious.¡± ¡°You were drunk?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. But, as others may misunderstand, from now on when I¡¯m drunk, please don¡¯t worry about me and pass by.¡± Heinley clearly remembered that Christa was the one who approached him first and wiped his forehead, but even then he assumed it was his mistake. Instead, Christa, who had her hopes set on yesterday, felt that she was losing strength in her legs and that she would copse at any moment. Although when she wiped the sweat from him, he suddenly ran off as if he had regained consciousness. She thought Heinley had just been surprised by his feelings for her... ¡°Or call McKenna or some official.¡± Heinley spoke coldly and decisively. Christa looked at him with trembling eyes and left as if she were running away. Kapmen realized that the love potion¡¯s effects on Heinley had also worn off within a day. ¡®If the potion¡¯s effects are no stronger than before, then why are the potion¡¯s effects still intact towards Navier?¡¯ The hypothesis that his teacher mentioned to him was ringing in his ears. He said Kapmen was in love with her before he drank the potion so it proved to be more effective. ¡®Was I always... in love with Empress Navier?¡¯ Chapter 238 - Confessions (1) Chapter 238. Confessions (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta returned to her room and mmed the door. She threw herself on the bed as soon as she entered, squeezing a pillow. Her head felt warm and her surroundings cold. Rashta snorted as she punched the pillow. ¡®He¡¯s a very bad person. Really bad! How could Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s attitude today be so different from yesterday?¡¯ Yesterday he was definitely in love with her, but today he has been just as cold as before. ¡®It¡¯s only been one day!¡¯ Not even a full day as only about ten hours had passed. ¡®The deposed empress must have done something again!¡¯ Rashta was sure of it! As Grand Duke Kapmen showed interest in her, Navier hurriedly approached him in the morning to seduce him. She had done this with Sovieshu, and now with Grand Duke Kapmen as well. ¡®She pretends to be a very dignified woman, but in reality that¡¯s thest thing she is.¡¯ Rashta grunted angrily at the thought. She believed that Navier seduced Prince Heinley in the Eastern Empire, and that here she seduced Sovieshu again. And now she was after Grand Duke Kapmen too! ¡°She hated that the Grand Duke fell in love with me.¡± Rashta snorted. There were people like that. People who always wanted to be the center of attention. In Rashta¡¯s eyes, the deposed empress was one of those people. However, Rashta soon shook her head. ¡®Right now I don¡¯t have to worry about that.¡¯ She was delighted that a handsome man like Grand Duke Kapmen was after her, but that was all it was. ¡®Did I no longer need to use him to arouse Sovieshu¡¯s jealousy?¡¯ Rashta got out of bed, setting the pillow aside. ¡®Yes. What is more important now is what the deposed empress¡¯s brother said.¡¯ Rashta bit her nails, frowning. ¡®What is the document with my name on it?¡¯ A document that could be used as ckmail... The answer was not long ining to her mind. ¡®The ve trade certificate!¡¯ *** Rashta had finished her pondering, but before she could visit Sovieshu... Sovieshu came forward, calling her first. ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor wishes to see you.¡± Rashta got up from the couch with a smile as she knew this would happen. ¡®I imagine he¡¯s calling me because he¡¯s jealous.¡¯ She tried to stay calm, but in the end she couldn¡¯t keep it together. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± That said, Rashta looked in the mirror and straightened her clothes. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Once she reached Sovieshu¡¯s room, the knight opened the door for her. As she entered, Rashta organized her thoughts to speak to Sovieshu. ¡®First I¡¯ll need to calm my jealous husband... then I¡¯ll let him know how Koshar treated me. Sovieshu will be so angry that he will then deal with Navier¡¯s brother.¡¯ However, the first thing Rashta heard from Sovieshu was an order, not something of jealousy. ¡°You are the empress, watch your actions.¡± Rashta was momentarily taken aback at the harsh words that she had not expected. She racked her brain, thinking over Sovieshu¡¯s words. As a result, she came to the conclusion that it was another form of jealousy. The empress¡¯s dignity was just an excuse, he didn¡¯t want her to see other men. Rashtaughed inwardly, and replied sweetly, ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡± However, Sovieshu¡¯s expression became stiffer at her beaming smile. ¡°This is no joke, Rashta.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Due to the experience gap I don¡¯t expect you to measure up to Navier, but at the very least, shouldn¡¯t you make sure the deficiencies are not noticed?¡± ¡°What deficiencies?¡± Rashta asked, feeling her pride wounded. Sovieshu¡¯s words were too offensive to be said out of jealousy. ¡°You came to another country¡¯s national wedding as a distinguished guest, did you have to talk like that?¡± ¡°What did Rashta say?¡± ¡°You mentioned that Navier is infertile in front of everyone.¡± ¡°What I said is true.¡± ¡°That shouldn¡¯t be said to a newlywed couple, whether it¡¯s true or not. Besides, it could have escted into a diplomatic conflict.¡± Navier, who loved the Eastern Empire, would not allow this incident to go that far. Sovieshu was convinced of that by her nature. Although this incident would still be a disgrace to the Eastern Empire. Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. The image of Sovieshu looking for Navier came back to her mind. She felt a dizzying pain, as if a thin knife had pierced her heart. Finally Rashta asked on the verge of tears. ¡°Your Majesty... don¡¯t you care one bit what she said against me?¡± If he knew about this, she assumed he also found out what happened before and after. How could he say this? It must be the work of the deposed empress and her brother! ¡°The deposed empress said that I should call Your Majesty¡¯s next concubine sister. And her brother threatened me!¡± ¡°Threatened you?¡± Sovieshu asked, frowning. ¡°How did he threaten you?¡± ¡°He...¡± Rashta was about to tell him everything as it was, but ended up shutting her mouth. Koshar¡¯s threat could be divided into two. The first was that he knew about her hidden child. The second was that the ve trade certificate was in the Eastern Empire Pce. Both were hard to tell. Especially the one about her child! Rashta was unaware that Sovieshu knew about her first child, so she chose to speak only about the ve trade certificate. ¡°The deposed empress¡¯s brother spoke about a document from Rashta¡¯s past.¡± ¡°From your past?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Does he still have it?!¡± Sovieshu asked in surprise this time. For the sake of the baby to be born, the matter of Rashta¡¯s past had to be dealt with carefully. The disappearance of the ve trade certificate that had been in Viscount Roteschu¡¯s hands had bothered him all this time... He was surprised when Rashta mentioned it. ¡°I don¡¯t know. He only mentioned that it was in the imperial pce.¡± Rashta replied, while Sovieshu was puzzled by her words. ¡°In the Imperial Pce?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Sovieshu muttered. ¡°I looked for it there, but I couldn¡¯t find it.¡± At this point, Rashta realized that the ve trade certificate on which her name appeared hade from the hands of Viscount Roteschu himself. Koshar¡¯s threat was not simply empty words, but that document was actuallyying around somewhere. ¡°Is it true that the certificate was lost?¡± Rashta asked, her face turning pale. ¡°Rashta¡¯s ve trade certificate is lost?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Tell me Your Majesty, it is also Rashta¡¯s business.¡± When Rashta grabbed him by the arm and pleaded, Sovieshu had no choice but to tell her. ¡°It¡¯s true that Koshar took the certificate from Viscount Roteschu himself. But then the certificate disappeared.¡± ¡°Is it not in the house? In the house of the deposed empress?!¡± ¡°I looked around every corner, but I couldn¡¯t find it. I¡¯ve already looked everywhere.¡± Rashta covered her face with both hands. How could this happen? Is it possible that some passerby found the certificate? The imperial pce wasrge, many people lived and passed by. Even some parts of the pce were open to any visitor. However, the certificate disappeared there... ¡°Why? Why didn¡¯t you ever tell Rashta about it?!¡± Unable to stand the stress, Rashta clutched her dress and screamed. Chapter 239 - Confessions (2) Chapter 239. Confessions (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley appeared at lunchtime, his face pale. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, My Queen. I received an emergency report from the border.¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. It¡¯s normal to be busy with work.¡± I spoke as calmly as possible with a smile. However, it was strange. Heinley usually said ¡®My Queen this, and My Queen that¡¯ with a smiling face. Today he just clenched his fists repeatedly and wouldn¡¯t even look me in the eye. ¡°Heinley? Are you all right?¡± When I asked worriedly, Heinley closed his eyes tightly. Did he really have an adverse effect due to the mana stone bed? He then hesitated for a moment before finally speaking, ¡°You may believe it¡¯s an excuse... but I think Grand Duke Kapmen poured something strange in my drink yesterday.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen? You mean when you went to talk to him alone?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± What did the Grand Duke pour into his drink? ¡°Is it by any chance rted to you locking yourself in your room?¡± His attitude was particrly odd yesterday. Heinley went upstairs alone and locked himself in his room. Heinley didn¡¯t respond instantly this time either. Eventually, he managed to open his mouth. ¡°Yes, it had to be a strange potion. I didn¡¯t feel any enchantment, or anything poisonous. After I drank that, I felt like I had sleep paralysis.¡± Unable to speak further, Heinley looked down. From his words I could guess what the potion was that Grand Duke Kapmen had poured into his drink. The love potion. I remembered the suffering expression he had as he looked at me from the veranda on the day of the wedding night. He may not have been able to control himself... a fit of madness. The first time, he punched Sovieshu, and now he took advantage of the potion. In any case, seeing how nervous Heinley was, he must have reacted to someone. And now... ¡°The potion¡¯s effects, do you still have them?¡± I asked, trying to sound as calm as possible even though my heart was pounding. Grand Duke Kapmen had said that the potion¡¯s effects did notst long, no more than a week. However, Grand Duke Kapmen himself was suffering from side effects, so I was worried. Heinley and I just had a marriage of convenience, so I knew that someday he might bring someone he really loved as a concubine. But I didn¡¯t want it to be that way. Grand Duke Kapmen had suffered so much since he fell in love with me because of the potion, I didn¡¯t want Heinley to go through the same thing. No, more than that, if Heinley out of nowhere left me for someone else...? Out of nowhere... Out of nowhere? Huh? ¡°No. The potion¡¯s effects wore off at dawn. On its own.¡± ¡°So then why are you so nervous?¡± ¡°My eyes started to wander as soon as I got married.¡± Heinley spoke with difficulty, looking down at the table with clenched fists. His pupils seemed to quiver rapidly, not long before the corners of his eyes reddened. ¡°Heinley?¡± I was surprised, why would he cry now? Puzzled, I approached him and stared at him. I knew better than anyone how strong the potion¡¯s effects were. They were enough to make Kapmen fall madly in love with me. Heinley was affected by it too, but I didn¡¯t want to see him suffer for this. ¡°Heinley, look at me... Heinley?¡± After calling him a few times, Heinley mumbled in a sad voice, ¡°My Queen, I didn¡¯t mean to hurt you.¡± ¡°Heinley.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to be like your ex-husband.¡± ¡°Heinley...¡± ¡°My Queen, I¡¯m too ashamed to look you in the eyes.¡± ¡°Heinley, it¡¯s not your fault.¡± ¡°I love you, My Queen.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I love you. I love you, but right now I can¡¯t bear that I got carried away by a potion like that.¡± ¡°Huh ... huh?¡± As I had tried tofort Heinley, I withdrew my hand in confusion. I didn¡¯t understand what he had just said. Loves Me? Heinley? Me? ¡°Am I not the kind of man you like?¡± Tears seemed to gather in his eyes about to spill down his cheeks. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that at all...¡± I half muttered. It was still hard to understand what he was saying. Did Heinley like me? Was I the first person Heinley saw after drinking the potion? That¡¯s the reason Heinley likes me... No, actually on other asions I also perceived signs of this. But still, this is...? ¡°It seems that the potion is still having an effect, Heinley.¡± ¡°No, the potion¡¯s effects really did wear off at dawn.¡± ¡°But it is not possible that you love me.¡± I stood up hastily. ¡°My Queen!¡± Heinley reached out and lightly grasped my dress, looking up like a puppy just before it was being abandoned. I stroked his hair and gently removed his hand. ¡°You seem a little emotional right now, first calm down.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not doing this out of excitement. No, of course I¡¯m emotional. But it¡¯s not because of the potion.¡± Heinley looked at me sadly. If I left in this situation, Heinley would probably misunderstand and think I was mad at him. I repeated, cupping his cheeks with my hands. ¡°For now, just calm down.¡± ¡°My Queen...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not mad.¡± Still not calming down, Heinley buried his head in my dress. *** It took him almost two hours just to calm down. However, he wasn¡¯t approaching me as boldly as usual, but instead was looking shyly into my eyes. It was heartbreaking to see him like that. At the same time, I was angry at Grand Duke Kapmen. After all he had suffered from his own potion, how could he give it to Heinley? ¡°I thought you were suffering from the side effects of the mana stone bed.¡± ¡°No, there¡¯s no problem with that.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± It was only after we had lunch together that I learned why Heinley had received emergency reports from the border two days in a row. ¡°We¡¯ve received reports that the Eternal Thousand bandits are expanding their presence.¡± ¡°They¡¯reing this way?¡± ¡°Rather than targeting us directly, they seem to be increasing their overall scale.¡± The Eternal Thousand bandits was a name I had heard many times since I was in the Eastern Empire. When my brother was on the border he often fought with those bandits. Were they lurking around here too? ¡°It doesn¡¯t hurt to be prepared to deal with them, so we¡¯re double checking defensive lines.¡± ¡°My brother can help against the Eternal Thousand bandits.¡± Although it was not his responsibility, he was an expert in the martial arts, who even fought as a hobby. I omitted thetter because there was no need to mention it... At my rmendation, Heinley smiled awkwardly. ¡°In fact, Sir April made the same rmendation.¡± *** After Heinley settled down to some extent. I went to visit Grand Duke Kapmen. The strange way Rashta acted when she saw him this morning surely had something to do with the potion. Otherwise, Rashta would not have looked so puzzled at Grand Duke Kapmen. If she was there because she wanted to get close to him, she would have tried to stay smiling as beautifully as possible. I went to the ce where Grand Duke Kapmen was staying and knocked on the door. After a short wait, the door opened and Grand Duke Kapmen appeared. He was dressed as elegantly as usual. Hisplexion was pale, but he still looked rtively well. When our eyes met Grand Duke Kapmen called out to me in a low voice. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± There was no strength in his eyes. So did he feel bad? In other circumstances, I would have left and talked to him when he felt better. But... This had been too much. I remembered how Heinley had felt about the brief appearance of the potion¡¯s effects. The Grand Duke would only stay for a while, for the sake of the trade. I was sorry if he wasn¡¯t feeling well now, but I had to take this moment to make that clear to him. However, before I could speak, Grand Duke Kapmen apologized first while lowering his gaze. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, forgive me.¡± ¡°... Do you know why I¡¯m angry?¡± When I asked him coldly, he nodded helplessly. I put a hand on my waist and looked at him with the sternest expression I could. ¡°I¡¯m very, very disappointed.¡± I said coldly, and his head bowed even more. Before I continued, I thought for a moment about what to say, Do I emphasize again that I am disappointed? Or do I say I didn¡¯t know he was this kind of person? Or me him for trying to hurt me in the same way as when I suffered because of Sovieshu...? As the words appeared and disappeared from my mind, Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s face darkened. It was as if he could hear the insults that I uttered inside my head. Was he afraid of what I was going to say? After some thought, I found the right words. ¡°Pretend you don¡¯t know me from now on, unless it¡¯s for work.¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± I know that he had not yet managed to counteract the potion¡¯s effects and that he was suffering a lot from it. However, due to the trade with Rwibt, Kapmen still had to stay here. So I had to make it clear to him, lest the same thing happen again. As expected, Grand Duke Kapmen, surprised by my words, gripped the door frame so hard that it broke. His eyelids trembled, and his eyes looked darker than usual. However, I did not take back my words. He bit his lip hard and closed his eyes. After a brief pause, he said something unexpected, ¡°Why aren¡¯t you thinking about anything now?¡± At that moment, I was so shocked that my eyes widened. His next words were exactly the same as... my thoughts. How? Is it a coincidence? ¡°How? Is it a coincidence?¡± As soon as I took a bewildered step back, he said hurriedly. ¡°I¡¯m not a monster!¡± ¡°!¡± At this point, I realized that his expression was tinged with fear and my expression reflecting in his dark pupils was simr. Grand Duke Kapmen looked at me stunned for a moment. Why is he acting like this? As I thought about it, I shook my head quickly. I can¡¯t believe he¡¯s able to read other people¡¯s minds. How could he have that ability!? I got goosebumps. Instead of being wonderful, it would cause people to feel ufortable, or awkward, and not want to be around him. No one in this world would want their true thoughts to be known. Did he intentionally let me know? When our gazes met again, Grand Duke Kapmen acknowledged in a subdued voice, ¡°It is my ability, but it is also my weakness.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Now you know. So if something like this happens again, even if you let everyone know, I will ept it.¡± That said, the Grand Duke took a step back and finished, ¡°Even if you make it public now... I will ept it.¡± Chapter 240 - I love you. I love you. I love you (1) Chapter 240. I love you. I love you. I love you (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren His eyelids trembled as he looked down. I clenched my fists, looked at him and said, ¡°Don¡¯t move. Wait here.¡± Then I moved to a ce where I could be alone. I wanted to organize my thoughts. However, I could not think freely in front of Grand Duke Kapmen. When I reached a ce where there was no one, I sighed as the tension dissipated. Then, I took a deep breath for a moment to calm my nerves. I was still angry that he made Heinley take that potion. Heinley suffered a lot because of it. Even now, he was looking into my eyes with a forlorn expression. However, Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s expression when he told me about his weakness reminded me of Heinley¡¯s expression when I found out about the bird-headed tribe. But... leaving aside his fear-tinged expression... his ability was really awkward. I couldn¡¯t believe he was able to read people¡¯s minds. asionally, really very asionally, I would think of Heinley in the fountain, or in bed moaning. Grand Duke Kapmen knew it too. ¡°....¡± After reflecting for a while, I organized my thoughts and went back to see Grand Duke Kapmen. He was still standing there, clutching something that looked like a small locket. Once I got closer Grand Duke Kapmen immediately concealed what he was holding and made an expressionless face as if he would ept whatever I said. At that moment, I opened my mouth, ¡°What you did affected not only me, but also Heinley, and could have led to an international conflict.¡± ¡°... I know.¡± Kapmen calmly acknowledged. I stared at him and mentioned the condition for reaching an agreement. ¡°For trade between Rwibt and the Western Empire to be possible, you must allow three uses favorable to us to be included.¡± Kapmen raised his downcast eyes to stare at me, as if he didn¡¯t expect me toe out with this. I looked at his face casually, repeating in my mind, ¡®I mean it, I mean it, I mean it.¡¯ I had thought a lot about what to do about it. Should I let it be a state affair, end the trade, send him back...? However, the distance between Rwibt and the Western Empire was too great for it to be a state affair. Moreover, both countries were on different continents with little interaction with each other. Only a few adventurous merchants came and went, and rarely at that. If Rwibt were also on the Wol Continent a mediator could be found, or have this country handle the affair. However, with Rwibt located on another continent, that was impossible. So, I considered it would be best to get a clear benefit from this deal. Of course, I needed Heinley¡¯s consent on this part. ¡°How favorable would those uses be...?¡± Kapmen asked with narrowed eyes. ¡°Demands will be made withinmon sense. Absurd demands could cause Imona and Imot to refuse to trade.¡± TL/N: Imona and Imot are the names for the Kings and Queens of Rwibt. Grand Duke Kapmen nodded. ¡°Even your clever tricks are like an angelic melody... it¡¯s fine.¡± I bit my lower lip in shame at his nonsense. Come to think of it, it was strange. Even though Heinley drank the potionte at night, he imed that the effects wore off at dawn. Why did the Grand Duke of Kapmen remain the same after so many months? Our eyes met again. Grand Duke Kapmen must have heard my thoughts, but he didn¡¯t answer. ¡°Do you know the reason?¡± Once I asked him directly, he was forced to answer, ¡°It¡¯s because I love you. No, this is nonsense. It¡¯s my own potion, so apparently it¡¯s stronger in me.¡± ¡°Why wasn¡¯t it the same with Rashta?¡± Judging by Rashta¡¯s behavior, he also reacted toward her, although only temporarily. ¡°It¡¯s because you were the first person.¡± Kapmen replied calmly and lowered his gaze. His dark eyes disappeared under his silvershes. I stared at him for a moment, but I didn¡¯t have the ability to read people¡¯s minds. Naturally, I didn¡¯t know if that remark was true or not. In any case, Grand Duke Kapmen still loved me.... I stopped thinking and spoke, ¡°There is one more thing I want you to do.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen raised his eyes to look at me once more. ¡°What is it?¡± However, his expression immediately became rigid, as if he had just read my mind. Sorry, but I had no ns to change my mind. Although Grand Duke Kapmen had a terrifying ability, it was still very useful. Judging from the difference in attitude between this morning and now, he felt guilty for the great harm he had done to us, at least towards me. So he would definitely do me a favor. It doesn¡¯t matter that he knows that I was trying to take advantage of his guilt and love potion to benefit from his ability. Grand Duke Kapmen kept his mouth shut, stared at me for a long time, and eventually answered. ¡°I will.¡± ¡°... Thank you.¡± After that, we were silent. There seemed to be no more to say, so I awkwardly pointed behind me with one finger. ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡± Then, Kapmen called out to me as I turned around. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± He walked slowly toward me, and said weakly, like a person who had been starving for a week. ¡°I love you. I really do.¡± ¡°!¡± He¡¯s getting carried away with the potion¡¯s effects again, right? As I looked at him in surprise, he continued slowly. ¡°I mean your husband does.¡± * * * After returning to my room, I paced around for a while with mixed emotions. Heinley... did he really love me? Heinley? My first thought was, ¡®Why?¡¯ Of course, Heinley himself had told me he loved me. I don¡¯t think Kapmen, who could read other people¡¯s minds, was going to lie now that he felt guilty... However, I couldn¡¯t understand why Heinley loved me. When did he start loving me? In the past, there were times when I wondered if that was the case... Has he loved me since then? Or did he fall in love after we got married? If not... He had liked our whole wedding night. It couldn¡¯t have been then, right? Heinley wasn¡¯t a real yboy, but he was a popr man in high society. I didn¡¯t mean it was bad. I just didn¡¯t understand why he would fall in love with me despite meeting so many attractive women. I wasn¡¯t trying to put myself down, it¡¯s just that I wasn¡¯t an interesting person to hang out with. In conversations I tended to listen more than I spoke, and although I liked jokes, very few people understood mine. Although I didn¡¯t hate hanging out with other people, I preferred to stay in my room reading books and documents. I had a very boring personality. Moreover, this uninteresting personality was not umon. We were both young among the nobility. But we had different tastes. However, did Heinley really love such a boring person like me? Even my ex-husband, Sovieshu, left me and looked the other way. Did Heinley really love me? Suddenly, I heard a loud thumping of my heart. I was so startled that I came to my senses and realized it wasn¡¯ting from my heart, but from the shared bedroom. When I opened the door, I found Heinley lying on the bed hugging my pillow. Upon seeing me, Heinley quickly sat up and made an excuse, ¡°I wasn¡¯t smelling it. Absolutely not.¡± His embarrassed figure was so adorable that I impulsively approached him and hugged his head. ¡°My Queen?¡± After a moment, Heinley called out to me in bewilderment. ¡°My Queen... This position... is a little shameful.¡± I continued to hold his head in my arms, pretending not to know. I smelled a familiar scent, the scent of my Queen. This man loved me. I felt my heart shudder at the unexpected truth. But the fear was even greater. As if holding a bouquet of flowers on the edge of a cliff. Love. Love was a feeling that seemed sweet and beautiful, but was it really so? That feeling had driven the cold Grand Duke Kapmen into confusion, made him impulsive, and made the rational Sovieshu foolish and impulsive as well. And how did it end? I don¡¯t know what would happen in the future with Grand Duke Kapmen because of the potion, but look at Sovieshu... He loved Rashta enough to cover up all her faults. He bragged as if it was the love story of the century, but not long after he asked me to return to his side. He threw me out to make Rashta the Empress. Yet now he wanted me back as the Empress. That¡¯s what love was. That was all. If Heinley loved me, then could he have married me not out of necessity, but out of love? How long will lovest? And what will happen when he stops loving me. That was what I feared. While deep in thought, Heinley muttered in a barely audible voice. ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to answer right now. We¡¯re married anyhow, so I¡¯ll be by your side forever waiting for your answer.¡± Heinley dropped the pillow he was holding, then wrapped his arms around my waist and closed his eyes. For a moment the words disappeared from our world. Chapter 241 - I love you. I love you. I love you (2) Chapter 241. I love you. I love you. I love you (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The next day. As I walked quickly through the corridors, I saw all kinds of carriages driving away along the white road. The distinguished guests who came to the wedding were leaving one by one. My parents woulde once everyone left. They didn¡¯t want to interact with Rashta or Sovieshu. After watching the carriages drive away, I kept walking quickly. I wanted to go to a quiet ce to calm my troubled mind. What has been going on since yesterday?! However, as I passed near the detached pce, I saw familiar ck hair. I stopped abruptly as if a hand hade out of the ground and grabbed my ankle. It was Sovieshu. He was standing near the detached pce where I had stayed for a long time. Did he think I was still staying there? Or...? At that moment, Sovieshu turned his head towards me. When our eyes met, he immediately approached me. He was wearing a morefortable suitpared to the ones he wore at the wedding. Well...Rashta was pregnant, so they would hardly stay for much longer. He didn¡¯t smell of alcohol. It seemed that he hadn¡¯t had any liquor today. I addressed Sovieshu as if he were any other emperor of a foreign country. ¡°Your Majesty, are you leaving today?¡± Instead of answering, Sovieshu¡¯s expression twisted. From his gaze, he seemed to have a lot to say, but he remained quiet. In my case, I had nothing to say, so I didn¡¯t speak either. After staying like this for a while, I said finally, ¡°There is nothing to say, so I will leave.¡± In the past I always tried to smile when I was beside Sovieshu in front of the gaze of others. The emperor and empress should look good together. It was the same when Sovieshu brought Rashta. Some might say that I had no pride, but I still smiled beside Sovieshu. Likewise, now she could not be quiet in front of Sovieshu because others might misunderstand the situation. Although I would not reject the emperor of a powerful empire for no reason, I also did not want to create a sad and unpleasant atmosphere with my ex-husband. However, Sovieshu called out to me in a low voice. ¡°Navier.¡± He was probably going to say something, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t have called me. I stopped and stared at him with an expressionless face. ¡®..Well alright, if he had something to say, go ahead...¡¯ Fortunately, one of my strengths was to show a cool, calm, and indifferent expression. After a long hesitation, Sovieshu ended up asking a question. ¡°Navier. Everyone... makes mistakes, right?¡± What was his intention in saying this? Was he trying to say that he divorced me by mistake? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s what he means. I hope not. Wouldn¡¯t it be cruel if he almost ruined my life by mistake? ¡°My mistake was arrogantly nning everything on my own. I should have told you. I¡¯m sorry I didn¡¯t do that.¡± ¡°!¡± Moving a little closer to me, Sovieshu asked, ¡°What can I do to get you back?¡± His eyes, which were drier than usual, looked like rough gemstones. But what was I supposed to say?! ¡°Although our rtionship as a couple ispletely broken, you are still the emperor of my home country. So take good care of the Eastern Empire, as you have always done.¡± I spoke in as calm a voice as possible. Even if he had divorced me by mistake, or worse, even if he had divorced me because of the effects of Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s love potion, there was no turning back now. Sovieshu smiled helplessly, as if he expected this answer. I had no advice to give to Sovieshu. Unlike Rashta, we had learned everything together. Of course, he knew as much as I did. He just had to think clearly. However, I could tell by his next words that he was beside himself. ¡°I love you.¡± I looked at him in surprise, he seemed to have received a severe blow to the head. ¡°Are you kidding me?!¡± A rough voice came out of me on its own. I couldn¡¯t help it. Did he love me now?! I could understand if he wanted me toe back because he needed my help. It must have been exhausting to do all the work we used to share. But he said he loved me? To me? And right after celebrating my wedding? Instead of saying something else, Sovieshu repeated it, ¡°I love you.¡± I felt suffocated. I looked at him unable to even breathe before finally asking angrily, ¡°What¡¯s the point of saying it now? Did you think that would make mee back to your side?!¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then?!¡± ¡°So that you wouldugh at me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I wanted to let you know that your ex-husband is an idiot who arrogantly left you and then instantly regretted it. That he is suffering from realizing his true feelings toote. So the divorce.... more than something hurtful, would be something you couldugh at.¡± For some reason, I felt a slight heat in my eyes, and something flowed along my cheeks. Staring at him, I began to remember every moment lived in the Eastern Empire. The times he doubted me, the pains he caused me by siding with Rashta, the day he left me alone in front of everyone to go after Rashta, the expulsion of my brother, and finally the day he asked me for a divorce. The memories went further and further back in time, the day Rashta arrived, the dinner we had together before he brought her, the time he smiled saying that the best empress was his wife, the coronation day, our wedding, and even the day we got engaged... I didn¡¯t want to cry, but the tears kept streaming from my eyes. I wanted to hit him with a pillow like in the old days. I wanted to ask him why he abandoned me. We weren¡¯t deeply in love, but we were definitely friends. No, I actually liked him. How could he do this to me? Were we not supposed to be together the rest of our lives? Even though it waste, I wanted to scream and cry. He was my husband, and I was his wife. How could he do this to me? I knew my face looked terrible, but this time it was impossible to manage my expression. I hadn¡¯t even brought a handkerchief. Eventually, as I stood there with tears spilling down my cheeks, Sovieshu raised a hand. But instead of wiping away my tears, he clenched his fist. ¡°When you think of us, remember this moment. Suffer no more for the hurt I have caused you. Justugh at your miserable ex-husband who now seeks to cling to you.¡± Chapter 242 - Show His Face (1) Chapter 242. Show His Face (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren On the return trip silence reigned inside the carriage. Rashta did not speak as excitedly as before, and Sovieshu said nothing as he stared out the window. Rashta put her hand on her bulging belly and looked at Sovieshu several times. Seeing that Sovieshu said nothing as if his soul had been drained, she couldn¡¯t help but speak first, ¡°Your Majesty. Is there anything you would like to say to Rashta?¡± Finally when Sovieshu looked at Rashta she lifted her hand from her belly. After an odd three-second silence, Sovieshu smiled warmly and lowered his arm leaning against the window. ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you bored?¡± ¡°About that certificate... You didn¡¯t say anything to Rashta.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not sorry you didn¡¯t tell Rashta...¡± ¡°When you¡¯re a little stressed, don¡¯t you cry because your belly hurts? If I had told you, you might have copsed from the shock.¡± Once Rashta pursed her lips, Sovieshu sighed, smiled and spoke in a soft tone. ¡°Come on, don¡¯t be mad. Is there something you want?¡± ¡°Do you think Rashta¡¯s mood will be improved by a gift? Do you think Rashta is a puppy that calms down just with a piece of meat?¡± ¡°You¡¯re more lovable than a puppy.¡± ¡°That... that¡¯s true.¡± ¡°In any case, are you trying to say that you don¡¯t need anything now? How thoughtful. I understand your words.¡± When Sovieshu looked away again, resting his chin on the windowsill, Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®For real? He really won¡¯t give me anything just because I don¡¯t need it?¡¯ For real! When Sovieshu seemed to be deep in thought again, Rashta finally burst into tears with a small cry. ¡°Rashta? Why are you crying again?¡± ¡°I hate you, Your Majesty. Don¡¯t make fun of Rashta.¡± ¡°When did I make fun of you?¡± ¡°Just now. You said you wouldn¡¯t give Rashta anything.¡± ¡°I thought I understood you didn¡¯t need it?¡± ¡°I never meant to say that!¡± As Rashta spoke sternly, Sovieshu had a half-smiling, half-twisted expression. When Rashta stared at him and asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Sovieshu shook his head with a slight smile. ¡°Nothing, nothing. What gift do you want?¡± ¡°Your Majesty must do something for me.¡± ¡°What can I do to improve your mood?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Tell me.¡± ¡°Empress Navier.¡± ¡°Why do you name Navier?¡± ¡°Don¡¯tpare Rashta to Empress Navier.¡± ¡°When have Ipared you to her?¡± ¡°You said harshly that you didn¡¯t expect Rashta to measure up to Empress Navier.¡± ¡°I see. I won¡¯t do it anymore. So is that alright?¡± Rashta just nodded at Sovieshu¡¯s new promise. *** While Sovieshu and Rashta returned to the Eastern Empire. Heinley called a few close aides, including McKenna, into his office to discuss what had happened after he proimed himself Emperor. Even before he proimed himself Emperor, the Western Kingdom was already showing the status of an empire, but as it formally moved from kingdom to empire, all official documents needed to be reced... The same applied to diplomatic processes. Heinley quickly flipped through the documents, and checked the details of the meetings with diplomatic delegations during the wedding celebrations. Most countries honored the Western Empire and its Emperor, but some were dissatisfied. Separating the countries into two groups, Heinley ordered McKenna. ¡°Have a delegation visit this group of countries and this other group alternately.¡± ¡°Would it not be better to treat both groups of countries differently? Those who honored us and those who did not.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°And we must also find out if those who honored us as an empire, it was not just because of the moment.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Have a report drawn up considering this.¡± McKenna moved his hands busily, marking Heinley¡¯s ssified documents in different colors and putting them in separate envelopes As he did this, he suddenlyughed. ¡°It will be a hellish month for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with all the work to be done.¡± ¡°Only just the Ministry of Foreign Affairs?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t Marquis Ketron the reason you can finish it all at once?¡± Heinley chuckled, agreeing with McKenna. Once he ascended to the throne, Heinley quickly reced those he did not consider necessary, and left in their original positions those he believed essential, one of which was Marquis Ketron. Marquis Ketron had served as Foreign Affairs Minister since the former king, Wharton III. He was also one of Christa¡¯s closest aides. Although he was a thorn in Heinley¡¯s side, so far there was no suitable person to rece him. So Heinley had no choice but to entrust this position to him. ¡°He is thorough at least in his own work.¡± When he thought of Marquis Ketron, he naturally also thought of the Christa matter. Heinley sighed. ¡°I must also take care of the matter of my sister-inw...¡± ¡°His Highness Wharton III, asked you as ast will to take care of your sister-inw.¡± ¡°...¡± McKenna said worriedly. ¡°If Christa went to Compshire¡¯s Mansion on her own, I don¡¯t think anything would happen. But if you forced her, people would talk about it.¡± Although he had not been elected to the throne through a political strife between brothers, the position of the weaker older brother, and the healthier, more intelligent younger brother, had been the subject of rumors. His infertility, the asional assassination attempts, troubles with the nobility... People took for granted that Heinley was behind it all. As much as Heinley stepped away from the political scene, suspicious nces seeped into him like blood. Will Heinley send Christa to Compshire despite thest will of his older brother, his predecessor? Also against Christa¡¯s wish? Those who liked to make a scandal would find fault with this, too. ¡°I know, but...¡± Heinley frowned as he remembered Christa approaching him with a handkerchief after his body went stiff from the potion. She knew he was in a strange condition, but she wiped off the sweat without calling anyone. And her flushed face along with her trembling gaze... Heinley sighed deeply, closing his eyes. When he attended parties in different countries with Duke Elgy more than a few youngdies looked at him like that. Heinley knew perfectly well what that expression, and that look, meant. He could not allow his sister-inw to stay here after that. However, his brother¡¯sst will did not represent the only problem. Navier. Navier had already told Heinley not to intervene. ¡®So what would Navier think if I kicked Christa out?¡¯ ¡°I¡¯ll have to discuss this matter with my wife first.¡± McKenna grumbled, frowning at Heinley¡¯s heavy voice. ¡°Compshire¡¯s Mansion is an incredible mansion, in fact it¡¯s like a pce. No, it really is a pce, except it has no facilities to amodate troops.¡± ¡°It¡¯s in the City of Art.¡± ¡°Yes,I know. It¡¯s a ce with a festive atmosphere all year round. I don¡¯t know why she doesn¡¯t want to go there. In that mansion her voice will be heard as the owner of the ce, evidently it¡¯s better than being restricted here.¡± McKenna, who didn¡¯t know that Christa liked Heinley, seemed genuinely unable to understand. Heinley chuckled, but felt a heavy weight on his heart. Chapter 243 - Show His Face (2) Chapter 243. Show His Face (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Small tea parties and banquets were held for the distinguished guests who still remained in the imperial pce. However, the official wedding celebrations were over, so I took some time to make a to-do list. ...... 1. Check the Imperial Pce Budget. Look at the ount ledgers. ¡î¡î 2. Check employee numbers, positions, sries and duties. 3. Check the social welfare policies of the Western Empire. 4. Making preparations for trade with Rwibt ¡ª Where do I start? How do I contact Grand Duke Kapmen? A letter? Send someone? I don¡¯t know. 5. Investigate Miss Muney¡¯s family situation. 6. Send a birthday gift to Princess Soju. 7. Send a thank you gift to the High Priest. Could it be a donation? 8. Learn more about the history of the Western Empire. There are things I still don¡¯t understand. 9. I need aides. 10. I need an office! ...... However, as I wrote what came to mind, I felt a gaze on me. It was Mastas. She was staring at the notebook with her mouth half open. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± When I asked, Mastas smiled awkwardly and said, ¡°Because there are so many question marks.¡± ¡°Ah, this is not an official document. I just write whateveres to my mind.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Mastas stared in amazement at my list, and as soon as I tapped her arm to stop, she said sheepishly, ¡°Ahh. This is impolite,¡± and quickly went elsewhere. Before long, she returned with a white basket. The basket was filled with all kinds of envelopes. ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked as I put down the pen, Mastas exined with a smile. ¡°These are letters for Your Majesty the Empress.¡± ¡°Letters?¡± I knew what that meant. ¡°They were sent by the youngdies who have a crush on my brother, right?¡± I smiled naturally. I remembered my brother, who was ufortable among the beautifully dressed youngdies. But Mastas immediately replied, ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°No?¡± ¡°The senders¡¯ signatures are fromdies like this.¡± Mastas quickly extended a letter from the basket to me for confirmation. ¡°Ladies?¡± Did the youngdies convince their mothers to send me letters? Do they want me to approach their families to proceed with the marriage? First, I opened the gold envelope and took out the letter. When I opened the letter folded in three parts, clear and wless handwriting was revealed. ¡°...¡± ¡°What does it say?¡± I said to Mastas, ¡°One moment,¡± then I pulled out another letter and read it. ¡°...¡± After doing it a few more times, Rose poked her head out curiously. Rose, who had brought another basket, acted simrly to Mastas. They didn¡¯t know anything. After reading almost twenty letters, I said confidently. ¡°Mastas you are right. These letters were sent by thedies.¡± The letters were cordial and friendly, full of congrattions on the wedding and a willingness to approach. Immediately after the self-promation, the families close to Heinley were very nice to me, so I expected thedies of those families to send me these kinds of letters. But aren¡¯t these too many?! I also found it strange that other high societydies saw me on thest day of the reception and decided ¡®not to reject me immediately¡¯. It was my understanding that half of the high society was on Christa¡¯s side. No matter how careful I acted, they would be prejudiced towards me... This was strange. Still, for the moment I had to respond. ¡°Miss Laura, I think it is necessary to get more stationery.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Miss Rose, could you look into this matter?¡± ¡°Yes. don¡¯t worry.¡± Whatever the purpose, if they really meant well, I would be grateful. However, if what they were after was to approach me in order to then try to stab me in the back, I would have to be cautious. *** Arriving at the Imperial Pce of the Eastern Empire, Rashta ordered Viscount Roteschu toe to the pce tomorrow at 10 a.m. through a messenger. ¡°An order?¡± Viscount Roteschu was upset by Rashta¡¯s message, but visited her at ten o¡¯clock the next morning as ordered. Rashta asked him coldly when he arrived. ¡°The ve trade certificate. Where is it now?¡± The certificate had originally been left at the bear corporation. However, Koshar had gone to get it after cutting off Roteschu¡¯s ear. Viscount Roteschu tantly pretended to be unaware of this fact. ¡°Of course it¡¯s in my hands.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Rashta narrowed her eyes, biting her nails. While Roteschu continued to pretend to have it. ¡°Of course. Who else could have it? ¡°It wasn¡¯t lost?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Lie!¡± When Rashta shouted and threw the cup at the wall, Viscount Roteschu flinched and shrugged his shoulders like a turtle. The cup that flew out hit the wall and shattered into pieces. Fragments scattered dizzyingly across the floor. ¡°A-Are you crazy?¡± The astonishment was such that Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue, but closed his mouth immediately upon seeing Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°Are you sure?¡± Rashta tilted her head as she asked in a deep voice, as she was ready to throw the other cup at his face instead of at the wall if he said the wrong thing. Viscount Roteschu kept his mouth shut. He believed that she would change a little after having power. That happened naturally with everyone. But he didn¡¯t expect her to change so much or so fast... Viscount Roteschu just clicked his tongue without even thinking of trying to put her in her ce, like in the past, by saying, ¡®You¡¯re not even within my son¡¯s reach¡¯. ¡°How does Your Majesty know about that certificate?¡± Viscount Roteschu could not show his anger, so he smiled forcedly. ¡°It¡¯s all because of that Koshar. It was him who stole the certificate.¡± Rashta looked coldly at Viscount Roteschu and ordered him, ¡°I don¡¯t want to see you. Get out!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I said get out!¡± Viscount Roteschu got up reluctantly. Rashta red at him, pulled the ring off her finger and tossed it at his feet. ¡°Keep it.¡± The jeweled ring sparkled beautifully as it rolled across the carpet. Viscount Roteschu bent down, picked up the ring and left the room with a smile. But as soon as he stepped out into the corridor, his expression turned terribly cold. ¡®How dare she be so arrogant?¡¯ Although others considered her as ¡®the hope ofmoners¡¯ or a ¡®real fairy tale¡¯, to Viscount Roteschu, Rashta was nothing more than a ve he could use. No matter how high her position, Viscount Roteschu could not think of her as a noble. That narrow thought stoked Viscount Roteschu¡¯s anger. ¡®I¡¯ll have to teach her a lesson.¡¯ He had done nothing to correct her behaviortely, but Viscount Roteschu was determined to suppress Rashta¡¯s spirit now. As soon as he arrived at his residence, he instructed n. ¡°n. Ask for an audience.¡± n asked puzzled, ¡°An audience?¡± Whether amoner or a nobleman, if one asked for an audience one could speak to the emperor. As a result, there were so many people applying for an audience that the waiting line was extremely long. Those applying for an audience had to endure that long waiting line before they were received. Why should I apply for an audience now? ¡°Why an audience?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t Rashta participate in the audiences?¡± Hearing Rashta¡¯s name, n stiffened. Roteschu smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m sure she will want to see her son. Take Ahn and show Rashta his little face.¡± Chapter 244 - Who Are You? (1) Chapter 244. Who Are You? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren n¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°But then¡ª¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue. ¡°You¡¯re an insensitive, indifferent man. How can you not understand her feelings?¡± ¡°Her feelings?¡± ¡°She acts cold on the outside, but deep down she is not like that. She even gave us this mansion to take care of her son, whose face she has never seen. She must really want to see him.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± n brightened at Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words. ¡°I see. Rashta is still kind and affectionate.¡± However, n immediately became concerned and asked, ¡°But the baby looks a lot like Rashta, Father. Won¡¯t people also find... his unusual hair color suspicious?¡± ¡°Just hide his hair with a cap. Don¡¯t you have those bos that babies wear? Once Viscount Roteschu condemned his worried attitude, n was slowly convinced. ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Hurry to apply for an audience, there are many people interested.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± n left with the baby in his arms. Viscount Roteschu smiled wickedly as he watched him leave. *** It waste at night. Afterbing my hair and putting on a gown, I went to the shared bedroom. As I entered, Heinley quietly came out from behind my door and lifted me up. In the blink of an eye, both my feet were floating in the air. ¡°Heinley!¡± When I grabbed onto his neck in surprise, he did a little turn with me in his arms, smiled and leaned his head against mine. When I held him tighter for fear of falling, Heinley rubbed his forehead against mine and asked. ¡°I surprised you?¡± ¡°Why do you always hide?¡± ¡°It¡¯s funny... Don¡¯t you like it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that, but...¡± Would he be offended if I asked him if this was also a bird-headed tribe habit? As I was hesitating Heinley walked straight to the bed and put me down. Once I sat on the bed, he sat next to me. Then, he stroked my hair. His gentle touch made my eyes close on their own. Forcing myself to stay awake, I asked him. ¡°How long were you hiding behind my door? I didn¡¯t hear any noise.¡± ¡°Hmm well... about five minutes ago...¡± ¡°Five minutes?¡± ¡°...Actually, ten minutes.¡± ¡°You were hanging out by the wall for ten minutes!?¡± My eyes widened when I heard that he had waited for ten minutes. As soon as I looked at him in surprise Heinley avoided my gaze and removed his hand from my hair. This time he pressed the soft part of my fingers and smiled. He then asked, as we naturally held hands. ¡°My Queen. Wife. Is there anything you want to say to me?¡± ¡°Yes, good thing you asked.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± ¡°...¡± Heinley¡¯s expression became rigid. He seemed to have instantly grasped the importance of my words. I straightened up and told him about the deal with Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen admitted his guilt. In return, I agreed with him to include three favorable uses for us in the trade between the Western Empire and Rwibt.¡± ¡°I see..¡± ¡°Do you also agree?¡± ¡°Of course I do.¡± ¡°If you have any other ideas...¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s fine.¡± ¡°But that expression...?¡± ¡°Ah. I just thought My Queen would tell me something else.¡± When I narrowed my eyes, Heinley added quickly. ¡°But this is also very important. Yes... I understand, My Queen.¡± Was Heinley expecting something else? Was there something I should tell him? ¡°My Queen, do you have anything else to tell me?¡± From his insistence with that question, he seemed to want to hear something specific. Since I didn¡¯t answer, Heinley asked outright, ¡°Do you want a hint?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°The hint is... married couple.¡± After a moment¡¯s thought, I realized his intentions. ¡°I know.¡± The corners of Heinley¡¯s mouth turned up slightly. I told him to wait there for a moment, then quickly went to my room and brought the to-do list I had done during the day. ¡°My Queen?¡± I sat back down on the bed and said proudly as I handed the notebook to Heinley, ¡°I wrote down what I had to do.¡± He wanted to see this, right? Just because we are married doesn¡¯t mean there are no secrets. However, married couples tell each other a lot of things. Heinley probably wanted that. However, Heinley barely mumbled, ¡°Oh...¡± with a bitter expression. Wasn¡¯t this what he wanted? Then he added, ¡°It¡¯s a good n.¡± ¡°Is it boring?¡± I had fun writing and reading things like this, isn¡¯t it like that for others too? ¡°Wife, it¡¯s not boring. It¡¯s not boring, but...¡± Then suddenly, his eyes widened and his gaze focused on every word in the notebook. Before I knew it, he was holding the notebook with both hands. After reading the notebook about five times, Heinley handed it back to me and said, ¡°It really is a good n, wife.¡± ¡°But you still have the same expression.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll get you the aides and have the office ready as soon as possible..¡± He didn¡¯t respond to my words, but I let it go. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°No, I think it¡¯s better for My Queen to pick the right people.¡± After nodding, Heinley abruptly stopped talking. Why did he keep quiet now? When I looked at him puzzled, Heinley said hesitantly, ¡°I didn¡¯t write anything... I have nothing to show you.¡± Ah, he thought I had handed him my notebook for that. Instead of saying that wasn¡¯t the case, I pointed out that it was a real shame, ¡°Really? I would have liked to read yours too.¡± Otherwise, he would have been embarrassed. Fortunately, it worked. But in the blink of an eye, his smile disappeared, he covered his face with one hand and looked down. What¡¯s wrong with him this time? Looking at him closely, his face was also flushed. Why was that? While I was puzzled, Heinley shook his head and asked me again. ¡°My Queen. The first thing you told me was very important, the second was very helpful, but what I wanted to hear was something more personal.¡± ¡°More personal?¡± I didn¡¯t understand what he meant. Could he mean that our bodies spoke for themselves or something like that? From his face, he didn¡¯t seem to have that intention... So, did he want me to answer his confession? I had a little idea, but I shook my head pretending not to know anything. ¡°I don¡¯t know, I don¡¯t know what you mean.¡± But instead of asking more, Heinley just sighed,y on his side and extended his arm. The problem was that his arm was invading my space. It was right on my pillow. Also, even though I repeatedly looked between his arm and his face, he didn¡¯t pull his arm away. Eventually, I told him inly and a little embarrassed. ¡°Heinley, this is my space.¡± ¡°What?¡± I wanted him to move his arm away. ¡°It¡¯s my space.¡± After repeating it emphatically, Heinley¡¯s eyes widened and he slowly withdrew his arm. ¡°If you want to sleep with your arm outstretched, lie a little further to the left, Heinley. The bed is big enough, so you can do that.¡± After gently patting his retracted arm, Iy down on the bed and put out the me of themp. However, as soon as the bedroom was dark, I felt a slight wind blow beside me. ¡°?¡± As I wondered why, Heinley shook his shoulders with tight lips. ¡°Heinley?¡± As I turned themp back on and sat up, Heinleyughed as if he couldn¡¯t take it anymore. It wasn¡¯t long before he managed to calm down and apologized sincerely. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I-I just wanted My Queen to sleep using my arm as a pillow.¡± ¡°!¡± Chapter 245 - Who Are You? (2) Chapter 245. Who Are You? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As I slept, a delicious scent suddenly arose. The desire to not want to get up collided with the desire to smell that delicious scent more. I shook my head from side to side with my eyes closed, but eventually woke up to hear an awkwardugh nearby. ¡°Heinley?¡± As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw Heinley standing next to a food cart. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± When I asked, while sitting on the bed, Heinley removed the silver lid on the trolley. There was an omelet and dark coffee. ¡°Breakfast.¡± That¡¯s not what I meant... Howe the trolley is here...? Did he bring it when he got up? Looking at him in surprise, Heinley took a piece of the omelet with his fork. After I opened my mouth and ate it, he asked with a proud smile. ¡°How does it taste?¡± ¡°Delicious, but...¡± ¡°I am a good chef?¡± ¡°You¡¯re really good.¡± ¡°It¡¯s my hobby.¡± Many nobles didn¡¯t know how to cook, much less the imperial family. He was a really wonderful man. And such a man confessed that he loved me. As she pondered, Heinley again poked at another piece of the omelet. ¡°Is there anything else you¡¯d like to eat, My Queen?¡± ¡°And you will do it all for me?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Heinley continued to feed me excitedly, as I opened my mouth awkwardly. After doing it several more times, I couldn¡¯t bear it and had to ask. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Yes, My Queen?¡± Is... Is this a habit of your tribe? ¡°?¡± ¡°Birds usually feed each other. Were you fed...?¡± Heinley frowned as if he had never thought about what I said. Then he stared at me for a moment and crossed his arms with a serious expression. Did I make a mistake? Did he feel bad because I treated him like a bird? Looking thoughtful, Heinley confessed after a moment. ¡°I¡¯m not sure, My Queen. But now that you mention it, I think so too.¡± ¡°Although my father was very strict, curiously, he always made sure to feed me.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I was never very close to my brother, but strangely he also fed me.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Come to think of it, I have had this in mind from the moment I fell in love with My Queen, ¡®I must be the one to feed her.¡¯¡± So if we have a child, would Heinley feed it? That would be lovely... At that moment, a strange idea arose in my mind. ¡°Heinley, there is something that makes me very curious, no, it is important.¡± ¡°Yes, My Queen?¡± ¡°Maybe those of your tribe...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Are they born as eggs?¡± *** Sovieshu called Marquis Karl to give him secret instructions. ¡°Rashta¡¯s ve trade certificate could be inside the imperial pce. Find it and bring it to me.¡± Marquis Karl asked anxiously. ¡°Is that true, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure. That¡¯s what Koshar told Rashta.¡± It was possible that Koshar had intentionally lied because of his hatred of Rashta. However, two facts were undoubtedly true. That Koshar had taken the bear corporation¡¯s ve trade certificate, and that the certificate was currently missing. ¡°You must search carefully, otherwise this could be known.¡± Marquis Karl replied with a firm expression. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± If the ve trade certificate came out before Rashta¡¯s baby was born... No, it would be a big problem if it came out even after it was born. He had to find it at all costs. *** Meanwhile, Rashta was already looking for the certificate on her own. Sovieshu had many close aides who acted for him with their mouths shut, but Rashta had none. Duke Elgy was a friend, but not a subordinate. So she had to find the certificate without anyone¡¯s help. ¡°Greetings to Your Majesty the Empress.¡± ¡°Good morning, Your Majesty.¡± However, everyone recognized her as the Empress, so it was awkward to move around secretly. Everywhere Rashta passed, people bowed their heads in greeting. Unless Rashta greeted first, there would not be a long conversation, but her actions were limited because she was under the gaze of others. ¡°It is over there? Or is it in that corner over there? I think there¡¯s a hole on that side too...¡± Rashta stomped on the floor, unable to quietly bend down to look in any corner due to her status as Empress. She thought it would be easy to be Empress. But in this case it was a nuisance. ¡®I need close aides or subordinates as soon as possible.¡¯ As an empress, she was supposed to be able to handle people with her fingertips. Rashta grumbled as she desperately searched around. However as she walked down the path that led to the main pce, she suddenly saw a magnificent carriage. ¡®Who could it be?¡¯ She thought it was a carriage used by a distinguished guest heading for the southern pce, but the carriage turned off the path to the southern pce and headed straight for the main pce. Rashta eyed the carriage suspiciously, as it was unusual for one to go that far. Probably sensing her gaze, the coachman stopped the carriage. Then, he got down from his seat and greeted Rashta. ¡°It is an honor to see Your Majesty Rashta.¡± Rashta nodded in greeting, then jerked her chin toward the carriage and asked. ¡°Who is in that carriage?¡± But the coachman¡¯s reaction was strange. He did not answer the question. He just looked around the ce as if it was hard for him to answer. ¡°Who is there?¡± When Rashta asked with a frown, the coachman stared at Rashta and said, ¡°It¡¯s... It¡¯s Miss Evely.¡± ¡°Miss Evely?¡± Rashta frowned. She had no idea who this Evely was. After bing Empress, Rashta discovered that there were just too many nobles in this world. Nobility from the perspective of a ve, and nobility from the perspective of an empress, werepletely different. ¡®How could I know who she was just by the name ¡®Evely¡¯?¡¯ ¡°Who is Miss Evely?¡± Rashta asked directly this time, but the coachman didn¡¯t answer, even more hesitant. Rashta frowned again, and suddenly a very unpleasant fact came to mind. The coachman had greeted her aloud saying, ¡®Your Majesty Rashta¡¯, so the person in the carriage must have heard. However, that person did not have the courtesy toe out to pay due respect to the Empress. Rashta angrily ordered in the direction of the carriage. ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are, but you have no manners. Come out and pay your respects right now!¡± Momentster... The carriage door mmed open and yellow shoes appeared. From the carriage came a girl Rashta had never seen before. A girl who looked the same age as Rivetti. Rashta was startled when she was about to shout at the girl. Although Rashta was sure she didn¡¯t know her, the girl was staring at her as if she were an enemy. The cold stare made Rashta flinch. However, she soon became even angrier. ¡®Is she staring at me like this even though she knows I¡¯m the empress?¡¯ It was truly disrespectful! ¡°Who do you think you are to look at Rashta like that?¡± The coachman was embarrassed, so he hurriedly approached the girl named ¡®Evely¡¯ and said, ¡°Miss Evely, this is Her Majesty the Empress. Hurry up and pay your respects.¡± The coachman looked scared, but he was more scared of Rashta. Finally, the girl reluctantly opened her mouth. However, the words that came out were neither greeting nor apology. Neither Rashta nor the coachman expected it. ¡°You are not the Empress I know.¡± Her eyes were full of dissatisfaction, her voice muffled, and her words bold. Those three things stoked Rashta¡¯s anger. Rashta could no longer contain her anger and stepped forward. Just at that moment, Baron Lant, who came running from the main pce, said, ¡°Your Majesty, she is a guest of the Emperor!¡± Chapter 246 - A Very Important Question (1) Chapter 246. A Very Important Question (1) ¡°His Majesty¡¯s guest?¡± Rashta asked coldly, to which Baron Lant replied, ¡°Yes.¡± After ncing at Evely with growing unease, Rashta asked this time, ¡°What kind of guest?¡± However, Baron Lant hesitantly responded with an ufortable expression. ¡°You will knowter, Your Majesty.¡± Rashta pursed her lips, suppressed her anger, and said. ¡°This girl said that Rashta is not the Empress.¡± She was trying to contain her anger as much as possible because this was Baron Lant. ¡°I think Rashta has the right to know who this girl is.¡± ¡°That is...¡± Baron Lant nced at Evely, not sure what to do. Evely, the cause of the trouble, stood there without even blinking. With her chin up and looking disdainful, an attitude that also annoyed Baron Lant. It was difficult to respond to Rashta¡¯s words, but Evely seemed to want to make the situation worse. Finally, he shouted at Evely. ¡°Miss Evely, apologize to the Empress immediately. What on earth are you doing?!¡± Still, Evely responded sullenly. ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything.¡± ¡°Precisely that is the problem! You must show Her Majesty, the Empress, the proper respect!¡± ¡°As far as I know, Her Majesty, the Empress, is definitely someone else.¡± ¡°Miss Evely!¡± Baron Lant¡¯s face waspletely red with anger, and Rashta was puzzled. ¡®Who on earth did this girl think she was to refuse in this way? From how angry Baron Lant is, I don¡¯t think she¡¯s a youngdy of nobility.¡¯ *** Although there was somemotion, Baron Lant was in no position to scold Evely any further. Emperor Sovieshu was awaiting her arrival. He had already been informed that she wasing in this carriage, so Baron Lant should take Evely to Sovieshu without further dy. Rashta snorted at the mysterious girl¡¯s arrival, but had to reluctantly step aside when Baron Lant indicated that Sovieshu was waiting for her. Evely raised her head and looked at Rashta with sharp eyes before following Baron Lant. ¡°She is the Empress, so pay attention to your actions.¡± After entering the main pce Baron Lant started to give a little advice to Evely as they walked down one of the corridors. ¡°Was it necessary to pretend not to recognize, or acknowledge, Her Majesty the Empress?¡± However, Evely did not respond to his words at all. Baron Lant clicked his tongue, thinking that she really did have a haughty and rude personality. Baron Lant did not properly introduce Evely to Rashta because he did not know the reason why Sovieshu wanted to see Evely. She was the girl whose mana had disappeared. Even if she was once a mage, she was now useless. That said, this girl didn¡¯t seem very attractive for a concubine either. She had no backing, no status, no beautiful face, and no good personality. She waspletely different from Rashta, who always smiled andforted the people around her, even in difficult situations. With that personality, even if she became a concubine, she would be kicked out in no time. Baron Lant clicked his tongue again inwardly. His thoughts coincided at one point with Evely¡¯s. He didn¡¯t know why she was being called here now that she wasn¡¯t a mage. ¡®I¡¯ll find out soon enough.¡¯ The imposing door opened before her eyes. Evely took a deep breath and stepped inside. ¡®Oh!¡¯ As soon as she took a few steps inside, Evely let out a small gasp. It was because of the appearance of Emperor Sovieshu, who was sitting at his desk. Originally Evely hated Emperor Sovieshu. Because of him the person she respected, loved, and admired the most had left for a distant country. Evely thought that Emperor Sovieshu was really stupid and mean. Also that this personality would clearly show on his face. But when she saw him in person, Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s face was more than handsome, it was radiant. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, the emperor said with an unexpected smile. ¡°If you stay there, it would be difficult to talk to you.¡± Baron Lant indicated from behind her to ¡®go further inside¡¯. Evely, who walked hesitantly, came within three steps of the desk. Sovieshu, who was handsome from afar, looked even more handsome up close. Evely remembered Navier, whom she admired more and more every time she saw her. And immediately, she imagined the Emperor and Navier side by side. ¡®How wonderful it must have been to see them together.¡¯ While Evely felt some regret, as she noticed that there was a lot of silence around her. As soon as she came to her senses she saw that the Emperor was staring at her. The way he stared at her without saying anything was veryplicated and disconcerting. Any noble would have quietly waited for the Emperor to speak, but Evely felt suffocated by the Emperor¡¯s stare, so she eventually spoke first, ¡°I wonder why you called me, Your Majesty.¡± Baron Lant red fiercely at her from behind and whispered, ¡°Miss Evely.¡± His voice was threatening, but Sovieshu waved him away. ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard it yet?¡± ¡°I have heard it.¡± ¡°Then why do you ask?¡± ¡°Two people contacted me, the first person told me that I had incurred the Emperor¡¯s wrath by being patronized by the Empress.¡± Hearing this Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows immediately rose. So thought Navier¡¯s aides... ¡°Then the next person told me that I would be the Emperor¡¯s second concubine.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows, which had been raised, rose even more before he burst intoughter. ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Which one is true?¡± Sovieshu burst outughing once more at the bold question. ¡°Neither one. First, I do not hate the Empress. Second, even if I did, it would be absurd to hate you just because she patronized you. Third, you are too young to be my concubine.¡± ¡°Then why did you call me here?¡± ¡°You¡¯re smart and talented, but you¡¯ve been caught up in the phenomenon of the decline of mages.¡± ¡°... yes.¡± ¡°Just because your mana disappeared doesn¡¯t mean your intelligence disappeared too. It is an unusual case, so I n to support you to take advantage of your talent. Having finished speaking, Sovieshu rang the little bell to summon Baron Lant. Baron Lant entered, but Sovieshu did not take his gaze from Evely and spoke again, ¡°There are those who are dedicated to the scientific study of magic. One of them needs an assistant, so I would like to rmend you. Do you agree? ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°Baron Lant, take the girl to meet Lord Axel.¡± ¡°As youmand, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°After that, take her to Countess Reygess. Evely?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°She will take care of you until you can stay alone.¡± With nothing more to say, Sovieshu raised the pen on his desk and ordered them to leave. However, Evely took another step forward and said, ¡°Um, Your Majesty.¡± When Sovieshu looked up, Evely boldly asked. ¡°I can work as a maid in my spare time, so please allow me to stay at the imperial pce.¡± Baron Lant clicked his tongue at her bold words, but Sovieshu asked calmly. ¡°There are many rooms avable, so on that side there is no problem. However, you may be the victim of false rumors. You don¡¯t mind?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡± ¡°Then...¡± Thinking for a moment, Sovieshu ordered Baron Lant. ¡°Better prepare a room for her in the Southern Pce.¡± Chapter 247 - A Very Important Question (2) Chapter 247. A Very Important Question (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Shortly after remarrying, Emperor Sovieshu brought a beauty, who had been a mage, to live in the imperial pce. Although he posed her as a mage¡¯s assistant, she was soon to be his second concubine. Just as Sovieshu had warned Evely these kinds of rumors began to spread within hours. Of course, these rumors also reached Rashta¡¯s ears. ¡°Where is she going to stay?¡± Rashta asked, puzzled. Her expression was so fierce that Viscountess Verdi hesitated, while Rashta ground her teeth and clenched her fists. She remembered this girl¡¯s haughty and rude behavior a few hours ago. Some time ago she had heard from Viscount Roteschu that Sovieshu would bring a girl from the magical academy. It was evidently her. Besides, Sovieshu really intended to make her his concubine! ¡®I haven¡¯t even... I haven¡¯t even given birth, how was he able to do this?¡¯ Rashta sighed, sitting stunned on the couch. Noticing Rashta¡¯s expression, Viscountess Verdi silently picked up the tea, and tried to sneak out of the room. But before she could leave... Rashta called her first. ¡°Viscountess Verdi.¡± Viscountess Verdi was forced to turn back. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty the Empress?¡± ¡°Although Rashta is limited in what an Empress can do, can Rashta at least ce maids elsewhere?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Find daughters of prisoners who can serve as maids. Girls who have a good rtionship with their parents. Better yet, if their families are in a difficult situation.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Viscountess Verdi¡¯s eyes widened at Rashta¡¯s unexpected order. Daughters of prisoners? ¡°Your Majesty, what do you intend to use those girls for?¡± ¡°Rashta has only one maid left. More are needed.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± Rashta added with a gleam of cleverness in her eyes, ¡°And one must be sent to the mage girl.¡± ¡°As youmand...¡± ¡°One more thing.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll organize a tea party, send invitations to the noblemen in the capital.¡± ¡°The noblemen?¡± ¡°Yes. Only to the noblemen.¡± After Viscountess Verdi left Rashta wrapped her arms around her belly. Blindly imitating Empress Navier was not turning out as she expected. ¡®On second thought, wasn¡¯t it Empress Navier who came out defeated after giving her all? Yes, that¡¯s right. I don¡¯t need to imitate her, except in her role as Empress.¡¯ She had forgotten it while trying to please the nobles. Now that Sovieshu had brought this girl, Rashta came to her senses. ¡®If I can¡¯t get the affection of the nobility as Empress, I¡¯ll get all the men to love me. If I can¡¯t get a group ofdies-in-waiting, I¡¯ll get a group of maids. I¡¯ll also crush that mage at once to prevent her from bing a real problem.¡¯ *** Arge carriage rattled along the carefully made gravel road. The carriage stopped in the garden in front of the imperial pce. McKenna, who was waiting there, quickly approached and opened the carriage door. ¡°Wee to the Western Empire.¡± The couple in the carriage were startled when someone who was neither a knight nor a coachman opened the door. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°I beg your pardon. I am McKenna, Chief Secretary to the Emperor of the Western Empire.¡± When McKenna revealed his identity, the couple were surprised and hurried out of the carriage to greet him. ¡°Thank you for weing us in person.¡± McKenna responded to the greeting once more and quickly examined the Duke and Duchess Troby. The couple looked very much like Navier, so he considered them close despite the initial cold treatment. The Duke and Duchess Troby also examined McKenna in their bewilderment. McKenna was the closest aide to their second son-inw, Emperor Heinley. Moreover, they had grown up together. ¡®You can tell a lot about people by their friends.¡¯ Of course, there are cases where this saying didn¡¯t fit, but with a rtionship like Heinley and McKenna¡¯s, who have been together since childhood, it fit perfectly. It was a way to find out more about their son-inw. ¡°His Majesty the Emperor is waiting for you. Pleasee this way.¡± McKenna addressed the couple in the most affectionate and cordial voice possible as Heinley had ordered. McKenna led the Duke and Duchess Troby to the Hall of Stars, where distinguished guests were received. There, Heinley stood in front of the throne with several officials and knights on either side of the path to it. Like most of the distinguished guests entering this hall, the Duke and Duchess Troby were awed by the majesty of the ce. However, more surprising was that even in this incredibly majestic ce, Heinley shone dignifiedly without being buried or suppressed. Rather, his light blond hair and purple eyes seemed to sparkle with the light reflecting all around. Heinley waited for the Duke and Duchess to approach. Once they were a few steps away, he stepped down from the tform where the throne was situated and grasped their hands. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Shocked, Duke Troby stepped back half a step, but quickly approached again to avoid embarrassing the emperor. ¡°Wee, Mother. Father.¡± Heinley smiled broadly, speaking to the Duke and Duchess affectionately. Although they had already experienced this treatment from Heinley at Troby Mansion, they did not expect him to do it in front of other people, even his own subordinates, so Duke and Duchess Troby smiled in embarrassment. ¡°My Queen, ah. That¡¯s the nickname we use between us. My wife missed you both very much. Of course, so did I.¡± The Duke and Duchess¡¯s eyes twitched at hearing the nickname they used between them. The expansion of his family¡¯s power had raised the rm of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire at the time, so Duke Troby deliberately decided to step down from holding office in the Empire since his daughter, Navier, had been chosen as crown princess. He was both grateful and ufortable with Heinley¡¯s remarks. However, he had not forgotten the proper etiquette for addressing an Emperor. ¡°Thank you for your hospitality, Your Majesty. Also, my congrattions on your title of Emperor of the Western Empire..¡± ¡°My congrattions too, Your Majesty!¡± Finally, as the couple formally greeted him, Heinley thought as he looked at them, ¡®My Queen looks a lot like her parents.¡¯ *** The days passed quickly as I checked the number of people employed at the pce, their positions, functions, experiences and performance. I couldn¡¯t even bother to eat lunch, so I asked Countess Jubel to leave the food on my desk, and kept checking the documents. I wanted to finish it as soon as possible since this work served as the basis for everything else. ¡°Are my mother and father here?¡± Even though my parents came from far away, I didn¡¯t want to go see them right now, however. ¡°Yes, they are with the Emperor now. His Majesty sent a man to report¡ª¡± ¡°Do I have to go now?¡± That¡¯s all I needed to know. When I asked with some regret, Rose raised her eyebrows and continued after the brief interruption. ¡°¡ª He would like to converse at this time alone with them, so Your Majesty the Empress must wait until dinner.¡± What? ¡°Really?¡± At thosepletely unexpected words the feeling of regret disappeared. Did Heinley have something to discuss alone with my parents? ¡°What does he want to talk to my parents about?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t know.¡± As Rose cocked her head, Mastas quickly intervened. ¡°I think I know. It is definitely that.¡± ¡°That?¡± ¡°Now the confrontation is not between the Eastern Empire and the Western Empire? I think he¡¯s asking them about the Eastern Empire¡¯s weaknesses. I¡¯m positive.¡± Laura¡¯s eyes grew wide as this was about her own country. Rose nodded in agreement after a moment¡¯s thought. ¡°It is a possibility. Although His Majesty may seem unconcerned, when he speaks it is definitely not to talk nonsense. That¡¯s what my brother has told me.¡± ¡°!¡± *** Duchess Troby frowned, ufortable. ¡°You want to know what Navier likes?¡± Chapter 248 - Go At The Same Time (1) emarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 248. Go At The Same Time (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren After the official wee... At Heinley¡¯s suggestion to go to Navier, Duke Troby asked cautiously, ¡°If Your Majesty does not mind, we would like to speak for a moment alone, without Navier. It¡¯s nothing urgent, but...¡± His expression became rigid, as if he thought Heinley would refuse. But Heinley agreed without hesitation. ¡°Alright.¡± Still, the Duke and Duchess Troby were not relieved. What they wanted to say to Heinley was a request from ordinary parents, ¡®Please take good care of our daughter.¡¯ However, they were not sure if it would be appropriate to speak as if he were an ordinary son-inw, since this was the Emperor of the Western Empire. Nevertheless, they were too worried about Navier to say nothing. They were just as worried about Koshar, but the Koshar issue was not something to ask Heinley about. Koshar depended on himself. However, a marriage was different. No matter how well one spouse did, if the other was a disaster, the marriage would turn into a nightmare or break up. Although they did not migrate to the Western Empire with their children because of their strong loyalty to the Eastern Empire and the Imperial Family, the couple loved Navier and Koshar dearly. So despite his embarrassment, Duke Troby spoke up. But contrary to expectations, Heinleyughed at the Duke¡¯s sincere request. ¡°Isn¡¯t that obvious, father-inw?¡± ¡°It seems obvious, but it often isn¡¯t...¡± ¡°I love my wife. To be precise, it is an unrequited love.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about it, you can rest easy.¡± Heinley said thesest words with a very serious expression, holding back the next words that almost came out of his mouth, ¡®I¡¯ve said it many times, why do they still not believe in me?¡¯ Perhaps because their first son-inw was a mess and they were immediately pushed towards their second son-inw, so the only way to dispel that mistrust was with actions. Instead of making promises about the future, Heinley took the opportunity to ask. ¡°I also have something to say to both of you.¡± Duchess Troby asked suspiciously, a little nervously. ¡°What is it?¡± Heinley saw Navier again reflected in her mother, then happily asked. ¡°What does my wife like?¡± The Duke and Duchess Troby exchanged puzzled nces. But that question was only the beginning. A lot of questions arose next. ¡°Please tell me about my wife¡¯s childhood.¡± ¡°What is it that my wife hates? Ah, it¡¯s not to tease her, that¡¯s to be avoided.¡± ¡°Does my wife like birds?¡± ¡°Do you have any childhood portraits of my wife?¡± ¡°Has my wife ever told you about me?¡± The Duke and Duchess Troby each answered truthfully. This was better than showing no interest at all. ¡°... Navier had a big dog. She was very fond of it because they had the same birthday.¡± When Heinley asked, ¡°What did the dog look like?¡± They were quiet for a moment. Light golden fur,rge, and very handsome... what they were about to say sounded as if they were describing the emperor in front of them. They both thought the same. ¡°Why did you two suddenly stop talking...?¡± Looking at their son-inw, the Emperor of the Western Empire, ask with a smile, Duke and Duchess Troby couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°?¡± *** Dinner with my parents didn¡¯t go well. My father burst into tears again while my mother tried to calm him down as usual. However, she also seemed overwhelmed with emotions, although she didn¡¯t say anything and just cut the steak with the knife repeatedly. Instead, Heinley had a strange expression to the point that I couldn¡¯t even recognize it. Still, it made me happy to see them both. Andter in the shared bedroom... ¡°What did you talk about with my parents?¡± ¡°That¡¯s a secret even for My Queen.¡± ¡°Even a conversation with my parents is a secret despite the fact that we are married?¡± ¡°There is also loyalty between me and your parents.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t done anything wrong, My Queen. Don¡¯t look at me like that.¡± ¡°I know. It just seems like you suddenly became closer.¡± I was curious what they talked about without me, because Heinley and my parents seemed to have gotten closer. Although not enough to talk andugh openly with each other, my parents seemed more at ease with Heinley than the two times he was in the Eastern Empire. ¡°Don¡¯t you like me getting close to your parents, My Queen?¡± ¡°No way!¡± Heinley chuckled. Then he patted the side of his bed and groaned, ¡°Wife, how long will you keep reading?¡± It was a very dark night, the faint sound of rain could be heard outside the window. Originally, I nned to check the records of the imperial pce officials until dawn, so I told Heinley to go to bed first. However, Heinley insisted that I stay by his side, so I had no choice but to read a book in the mana stone bed. ¡°Until I get sleepy.¡± When I answered honestly, he let out a sigh and slid his body stealthily over the bed until he was close to me. Then, he gentlyid his head on myp and kissed my calf naturally. He pushed back his own hair slightly so it wouldn¡¯t be in the way, and smiled sensually as he untied his robe. ¡°Wife, I¡¯ll forget everything I¡¯ve learned. I need to review and apply it. Will you leave me alone in this?¡± Looking down, he grabbed my wrist with the loose robe, fully open, and kissed my skin repeatedly. At the same time, he stared at me as if asking, ¡®Won¡¯t you do anything?¡¯ Once I sighed, knowing he wouldn¡¯t stay still, the corners of his mouth turned up slightly in a triumphant smile, then naturally he took the book in my hand and put it aside. In the blink of an eye, he was looking down on me from above. There was no time to be surprised, Heinley reached out his hand and ran it through my hair, kissing me on my forehead, on my eyelids, and on my ear as he whispered. ¡°Please check if I have learned properly.¡± *** When I returned to my room after breakfast with Heinley, Laura had already prepared my bath and was waiting to help me. ¡°Today you don¡¯t need to help me bathe. You can go back to your room to rest.¡± ¡°Ah, then I¡¯ll wait here and help you get dressed!¡± Laura said with a broad smile, but I told her that Countess Jubel would help me dresster. Laura left in annoyance, but I had no choice. I had marks all over my body... After pacing the room awkwardly, I hurried into the bathroom and took off my robe. Seeing my body reflected in the mirror I felt embarrassed. Is kissing one¡¯s whole body like this also a habit of the birds of that tribe? Like birds tearing out their feathers with their beaks... Or do other people do this too? I was curious, but I couldn¡¯t ask anyone. My face was burning just thinking about what had happened. I hurried into the warm water. Perhaps because Heinley had rxed the muscles in my limbs this morning, I started to feel sleepy again as soon as I stepped into the warm water. Iy drowsily in the water, gently bobbing my head up and down, and it was only when I heard Countess Jubel knock at the door that I came back to my senses, surprised. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Looking at the clock, it had been an hour since I entered the bathroom. I got up from the bathtub even more surprised and quickly covered my whole body with arge towel. Chapter 249 - Go At The Same Time (2) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 249. Go At The Same Time (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Joanson paced worriedly around his room. Then through the small drawing room, through his sister¡¯s bedroom, through the kitchen, through the dining room, through the bathroom, through the garden and back through the drawing room... He moved from ce to ce, unable to stay still for a moment. It was the only thing he could do. It had been a long time since he hadst heard from his sister who regrly sent him letters. Although his sister lived in the imperial pce, she was not far away. His sister lived close enough to get in contact within a few hours at most through a messenger. ¡®So why haven¡¯t I heard from her?¡¯ It was the first time he had not heard from his sister since she entered the imperial pce as a maid. ¡®It¡¯s worrying. Damn, is she really all right?¡¯ At first, he thought that his sister had attended the wedding of the Emperor and the Empress of the Western Empire. Because his sister had told him that the new Empress, Rashta, had only two maids, herself included. At the time Joanson had admired the new Empress, ¡°What a simple woman, she is truly humble!¡± That memory was still vivid in his mind. The Empress would not go alone to a distant country, so she must have taken all her maids on her journey. Joanson thinking this way calmed his anxiety a little. But days after the arrival of the Empress and the Emperor, he still had no news of his sister. Only rumors of a second concubine of the Emperor. At this point, Joanson began to seriously worry about his sister¡¯s whereabouts. Eventually, Joanson decided to go to the imperial pce to find out the whereabouts of his sister. Since he hade to the pce several times as a journalist, the guard recognized Joanson¡¯s face and let him in immediately. Joanson went through aplicated process to be able to talk to the pce¡¯s internal affairs official. ¡°I haven¡¯t heard from my sister, Delise, in a month. Ah, my sister works here.¡± ¡°Your sister?¡± ¡°Yes, she is a maid of the Empress.¡± ¡°Are you sure you haven¡¯t heard from her in a month?¡± ¡°It¡¯s... It¡¯s about a month, not exactly. Maybe a little more or a little less...¡± The pce internal affairs official clicked his tongue as if in annoyance and said casually. ¡°If she was a pretty-faced maid, she probably ran away with some knight who fell in love with her.¡± Joanson clenched his fist tightly as he resisted the urge to shout, ¡®How dare you talk about my sister like that?!¡¯ After all, he was in no position to make a fuss. ¡°Still, you can check it out.¡± When Joanson handed him some silver coins, the official asked condescendingly, ¡°Yes, where does your sister work?¡± It was a question he had already cleared up. The official had not even paid attention to Joanson¡¯s words earlier. Joanson became angry, but quickly responded before the official could change his mind. ¡°In the West Pce, where Her Majesty the Empress resides.¡± Joanson said exactly what he had heard from his sister. The pce internal affairs official nodded and looked at the list of employees in his hands. However, the answer the journalist received was totally unexpected. ¡°You said your sister¡¯s name is Delise, right? That girl seems to have quit the job.¡± Joanson objected even more confused, ¡°How can that be?! Take a closer look!¡± The official responded sullenly. ¡°I don¡¯t know, but your sister is no longer here.¡± Joanson, who retreated without much sess, decided to head straight for the Empress¡¯ pce. She had only two maids in her close circle, but many officials had to help her in various tasks. Someone had to know the whereabouts of his sister. But he couldn¡¯t find his sister either. ¡®Something is going on.¡¯ Concerned, Joanson began to pace around his room again. ¡®I¡¯m sure something is going on... what should I do?¡¯ Thest ce his sister had been was in the pce, so he needed to search there. Even if he could ess it, he could not casually search the western pce, the Empress¡¯ pce. ¡®I need to find a way...¡¯ After racking his brains, Joanson came up with a brilliant idea. Empress Rashta. He could personally ask the Empress who lovedmoners. That would be much easier than trying to search the western pce. As soon as he had made up his mind, Joanson applied for an audience. ¡°How long will I have to wait?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a long waiting list. You¡¯ll have to wait at least a week.¡± After that, he tried to find someone who would agree to swap their audience¡¯s turn. Everyone had been waiting a long time to make their case before the Emperor and Empress, so no one wanted to swap their turn for one near the bottom. But Joanson did not stop insisting and managed to change his position on the waiting list with someone else further ahead. Now he only needed to wait two days. ... And on the day when it was his turn to go to the audience chamber, which was located in the main pce, Joanson was elegantly dressed. In the audience hall, the thrones of the Emperor and Empress stood side by side in the background, with a long carpet stretched out in front of them. People were lined up in order on the carpet, waiting their turn toe forward and state their case. Joanson immediately got in line to wait his turn. However, the line did not move as quickly as he expected. After a while, his legs even began to ache. He felt increasingly worried, he had no idea where, or how, his sister was. ¡°Ahn, aren¡¯t you a good boy? Shh... be a good boy, my baby.¡± Still, Joanson, who was waiting alone, was in a better position. In fact, there were many people who had brought their babies, just like the man in front of him in line. Also, the baby kept waving his arms and legs while making sounds that were difficult to understand. Every time the baby started to whine, the man would say, ¡°Ahn, aren¡¯t you a good boy? Ahn, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± He looked busy trying to soothe him. ¡®If he took that bo off the baby, he¡¯d cry less.¡¯ Joanson clicked his tongue when he saw that baby with such an annoying bo. However, he opted not to give the stranger any advice. Meanwhile, the line gradually thinned out, until finally it was the turn of the father holding the baby. ¡°Come forward and pay your respects to His Majesty, the Emperor and Her Majesty, the Empress.¡± When the emperor¡¯s secretary announced, the father with the baby in his arms stepped forward and courteously greeted Emperor Sovieshu and Empress Rashta. At that moment. Joanson noticed that the Empress¡¯ expression became extremely rigid. He did not know why, but the Empress¡¯ expression was as terrifying as the edge of a sword. ¡®What¡¯s wrong?¡¯ As he wondered this, the father with the baby in his arms asked the Empress in a desperate voice. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress, this baby has never been in his mother¡¯s arms. The Empress is like the mother of all the citizens of the Eastern Empire, so please take the baby in your arms and bless him as a mother would.¡± But the Empress remained motionless. Murmurs began to spread. Chapter 250 - Coldness (1) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 250. Coldness (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As the murmurs grew louder, Rashta was forced to reach out her hands. n carefully stepped forward and handed the baby to Rashta. Awkwardly, Rashta held the baby. A face very much like hers was just below her nose. Rashta was terrified as soon as she saw the baby¡¯s dark eyes. The baby was obviously her son. Although his hair was covered with a bo, n once gave her a lock of the baby¡¯s hair. So she knew even his hair looked like Rashta¡¯s. Sovieshu, sitting next to her, admired the baby¡¯s face. ¡°He¡¯s so cute.¡± Rashta was even more terrified hearing his voice and hugged the baby to hide his face. The baby, who was whimpering, surprisingly, calmed down as soon as Rashta hugged him. But as Rashta hugged the baby, she remembered the small lifeless body she had held in her arms. She felt nauseous and shivery as she recalled the events of that time. A deep fear came over her. Her hands and legs trembled for fear that at any moment the baby in her arms would spit up blood and die instantly. Moreover, Sovieshu saw the baby¡¯s face. ¡®Didn¡¯t he find it strange to see a baby that looks a lot like me?¡¯ Eventually, Rashta couldn¡¯t take it anymore and hastily handed the baby back to n. ¡°He¡¯s a beautiful baby.¡± n quickly reached over and held his son lovingly. Rashta nced at him and immediately averted her gaze. Cold sweat ran down her forehead. She couldn¡¯t look Sovieshu in the face. But it was an unnecessary worry. Sovieshu already knew that this baby was Rashta¡¯s child. To Sovieshu, Rashta missed and loved her baby. So he thought he understood her stiff expression, even idealized it. Sovieshu felt sorry for Rashta, thinking that this expression was due to how sad she was to see her child she missed so much. Although he recognized that Rashta was not as innocent as he imagined, at least this love seemed pure and sincere. While n, Rashta, and Sovieshu were deep in their own thoughts, the Emperor¡¯s secretary signaled n that his turn was over and to retire. *** ¡°Ahn. Your mother was sad to see you.¡± n whispered to the baby as he walked down a long corridor after exiting the audience chamber. ¡°She was probably sad she couldn¡¯t be with you.¡± The baby didn¡¯t cry, his ck eyes shone, and he struggled to wrap his little arms around n¡¯s neck. n suddenly became sad. ¡®I¡¯m the one who should be sitting next to Rashta. Why was Rashta sitting next to another man?¡¯ *** Meanwhile, the emperor¡¯s secretary instructed Joanson to move forward. Joanson, amoner¡¯s journalist, quickly moved forward to the designated ce and courteously greeted the Emperor and Empress. ¡®Do I know him?¡¯ When Rashta saw Joanson, she was sure she had seen his face somewhere. She soon remembered the journalists she had met before the wedding. ¡®Yes. No doubt this man is amoner¡¯s journalist.¡¯ When Rashta had said she would live for themoners, he was so moved he had showered her with praise and that moment stuck in her memory. In fact, he even praised Rashta in an article the next day, saying that she was the future of the Eastern Empire, the light and hope of themoners. Rashta chuckled in relief. ¡®He¡¯s someone who supports me, so he won¡¯t say anything bad.¡¯ As she felt at ease again, a soft and beautiful smile appeared on her face. Although she still fretted at the thought of what had just happened, she was gradually able to judge it rationally. ¡®n brought the baby here as a threat. Probably because I had been harsh with Viscount Roteschu a few days ago. The Viscount was trying to remind me that he had the baby in his hands. Everything would be fine as long as I calmed him down properly.¡¯ While Rashta was deep in thought, Sovieshu asked, ¡°What brings you here?¡± ¡°My sister worked at the pce, but I haven¡¯t heard from her for a month. I was worried because we always exchanged letters, so I went to see the pce¡¯s internal affairs official and he gave me the puzzling answer that she had quit the job.¡± Rashta, who thought he would praise her, frowned. ¡®Why is he talking about his sister all of a sudden?¡¯ Besides, it sounded like a pretty serious matter. Sovieshu listened to Joanson with a firm expression. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°My sister was born and raised at home, so even if she had quit her job she wouldn¡¯t go anywhere else. We have never fought, nor is there any reason to. The pce¡¯s internal affairs official said she must have run away with some knight who fell in love with her, but my sister is single, so there is no reason for her to run away.¡± Nobles were free to have concubines, so even if the knight was married, there was no reason to run away. ¡°That makes sense.¡± Sovieshu nodded and asked. ¡°Who did your sister work for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Delise, a maid close to the Empress.¡± Rashta¡¯s face turned white at Joanson¡¯s words, as if all of her blood had been drained. Sovieshu nced at Rashta. When he said she was a maid close to Rashta, Sovieshu immediately knew who Joanson¡¯s sister was. He meant the tall maid who worked for Rashta. Sovieshu clicked his tongue inwardly. He remembered Rashta¡¯s order to cut out the maid¡¯s tongue and imprison her. ¡°It¡¯s a pity.¡± Rashta muttered helplessly. ¡°Empress, do you know what happened to my sister?¡± Joanson asked Rashta hastily. He still believed in Rashta, so he was confident he could find his sister as long as he clung to her. Rashta shook her head and replied sadly. ¡°I only had two close maids, so they had a lot of work to do. Delise quit because she felt it was too hard. Since then I haven¡¯t heard from her.¡± ¡°If my sister quit, she should havee home!¡± ¡°I know. It¡¯s very strange.¡± Hearing Rashta¡¯s words, Joanson showed a desperate face. Sovieshu intervened as he watched Rashta lie with ease. ¡°Rest assured that this matter will be thoroughly investigated, do not worry.¡± ¡°Thank you, Emperor! Thank you, Empress!¡± After Joanson hurriedly took his leave and left, the audience proceeded as usual. Rashta¡¯s expression returned to normal again. But as soon as the audience ended, Rashta asked Sovieshu with a frightened face. ¡°Are you really going to tell the journalist the truth?¡± Having made use of the Empress¡¯ power, Rashta assumed that Sovieshu knew of Delise¡¯s punishment. Sovieshu asked her coldly. ¡°Didn¡¯t you think this would happen?¡± ¡°Delisemitted a serious offense first!¡± ¡°Then you should have told her family.¡± ¡°Rashta... Rashta is the Empress, so I thought I could do that.¡± ¡°You can do it. But you won¡¯t be able to avoid criticism.¡± ¡°Rashta did nothing wrong, Your Majesty!¡± However, Rashta has repeatedly refused to go to Sovieshu¡¯s room... The blue bird, whose feathers she had plucked, was still in Sovieshu¡¯s room... She feared that the bird would react strangely to seeing her. If the bird were frightened, Sovieshu would immediately realize that it was not Delise who plucked its feathers. Sovieshu sighed deeply. Then he deliberately left without telling her how to handle the situation. Rashta stomped on the floor repeatedly before going to Duke Elgy in panic. Chapter 251 - Coldness (2) Chapter 251. Coldness (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Duke!¡± When Rashta entered the room she called Duke Elgy in tears. The Duke was perplexed by Rashta¡¯s pitiful voice. ¡°Rashta? What¡¯s wrong?¡± Rashta stomped onto the floor angrily and quickly sat down in a chair at the table. Although Duke Elgy was still perplexed, he brought Rashta¡¯s usual favorite snacks. Rashta waited for Duke Elgy to sit next to her and then started talking about what had happened in the audience chamber. ¡°Rashta once severely punished a maid for trying to harm Rashta.¡± Duke Elgy raised his eyebrows, as if this was the first time he had heard it. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Rashta had no choice. If you forgive someone like that you never know what that person might do in the future.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°But Rashta did not know that her brother was a journalist, moreover, themoners¡¯ journalist who interviewed Rashta.¡± ¡°Ah...¡± Duke Elgy sighed lightly. That attitude made Rashta even more frightened and saddened. ¡°So, that journalist came to the audience chamber and asked to find his missing sister. What should Rashta do?¡± ¡°Where is his sister?¡± ¡°Imprisoned...¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell him that she was imprisoned formitting a crime?¡± ¡°He wouldn¡¯t believe she was imprisoned for a crime. Even if she admitted guilt, he would hate Rashta...¡± ¡°Then His Majesty will take care of it.¡± Rashta shook her head quickly. ¡°His Majesty is angry with Rashta for punishing her. His Majesty actually secretly liked that maid because she was very pretty.¡± Duke Elgy raised his eyebrows again. ¡°Besides, that maid also admired His Majesty.¡± Rashta spoke helplessly, but quickly added. ¡°However, that was not why Rashta punished the maid.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta looked at Duke Elgy with teary eyes. ¡°His Majesty will not help Rashta. He just left in anger without saying a word. I don¡¯t know what to do, I¡¯m scared.¡± Duke Elgy smiled gently and spoke in a soothing voice. ¡°Rashta is the Empress, if things went very wrong, the imperial family¡¯s dignity would also be affected. Besides, you have his child in your womb, no doubt in the end he will intervene to deal with this matter. You can rest assured.¡± His voice didn¡¯t waver in the slightest despite being soft, giving Rashta a sense of assurance. Rashta felt relieved and covered her belly with her hands, then looked at Duke Elgy with tear-filled eyes. ¡°It would have been very difficult for Rashta without the Duke.¡± ¡°I am d to be of help to Rashta.¡± Duke Elgy answered as if it were natural. His answer sounded so trustworthy Rashta¡¯s eyes reddened again. Duke Elgy¡¯s attitude waspletely different from Sovieshu¡¯s cold reaction. Duke Elgy looked at Rashta¡¯s trembling back and gently extended his arm around her shoulders. Rashta was surprised for a moment, but soon took refuge in Duke Elgy¡¯s arms without saying anything. Like a poor deer, she buried her face in Duke Elgy¡¯s chest. The corners of Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes curved slightly. * * * Since I did not yet have my own office, I took the ten ount books from the state archive and stacked them on the desk in my room for review. I thought it would be best topare the ledgers while I organized the sries and duties of the employees. But before I could finish all this, McKenna brought me other documents. ¡°Since the Western Kingdom has be an Empire, it is necessary to be in ordance with that status. Fortunately, Your Majesty, the Empress, knows more about it than anyone else. It really is a relief!¡± The documents contained a series of tasks to be reorganized, jobs that would disappear, jobs that would emerge, jobs that would be merged or separated, and so on. But it was all superficially addressed and McKenna wanted me to change it to make it implementable. It wasn¡¯t difficult, but it did require a lot of work. When I stared at him in a daze, McKenna coughed and averted his gaze. But judging from the slightly raised corners of his mouth, it was evident that he was d to have less work to do. In the end, it turned out to be a very busy day doing three things at the same time. Also, since my parents were still in the Western Empire, I tried to eat with them at least once a day, so I had even less time. Rose and Mastas were surprised when they first saw me working with three pens and six notebooks lined up, but Laura said with obvious glee. ¡°That woman has no match as The Empress.¡± Countess Jubel also burst outughing as if pleased, ¡°That is true. His Majesty Sovieshu will have a hard time.¡± But in the middle of work, there was a knock at the door. The person who entered was one of Heinley¡¯s secretaries. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± When I asked curiously, he said with a forced expression that barely concealed his joy. ¡°The Emperor has asked me to take Your Majesty to a ce he wants to show the Empress.¡± A ce Heinley wants to show me? As soon as I heard his words, I imagined what ce he meant. My office! When I showed Heinley the to-do list, he smiled and said he would have it ready as soon as possible. Judging by the way he called me, the office must be finished. ¡°let¡¯s go!¡± The ce Heinley¡¯s secretary took me was to Heinley¡¯s own office. Does he want me to stop by his office first? But that was not the case. Unexpectedly, the door across from Heinley¡¯s office opened and Heinley stepped out. As soon as our eyes met, he smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s this way.¡± When I entered, I found a wonderful office with entire walls covered with bookshelves and arge desk ced by the window. In addition, there was a small reception area attached to the office. The office was decorated and painted in a harmoniousbination of green and gold. ¡°Oh...¡± ¡°Do you like it?¡± ¡°Very much, I like it very much!¡± As I nodded in sincere admiration, Heinley said with a happy smile. ¡°Since I thought it best for you to personally choose your aides, I only chose the candidates. I think you will like them because they are all talented, hardworking, and loyal people, My Queen. If not, I can choose them again.¡± As I opened and closed my hands with joy, arge hand ovepped one of mine. Looking up at him, Heinley naturally intertwined his fingers with mine while pretending to be focused on something else. *** We sat across from each other on the windowsill, chatting withughter for a while. As time passed, the topic of conversation shifted to Christa. Heinley¡¯s expression became rigid as we began to talk about Christa, but he soon spoke to me awkwardly about Christa¡¯s unusual behavior at the wedding reception. Then he stared at me and said he didn¡¯t know how to deal with it. He wanted to send Christa to Compshire, but was in a difficult position because of his brother¡¯sst will that many people knew about. I was also confused. Instead of directly saying, ¡®I think my sister-inw likes me,¡¯ Heinley just told me about Christa¡¯s behavior. But even with that, it wasn¡¯t hard to tell who upied Christa¡¯s heart right now. And strangely, after hearing those words, the excitement of seeing the office suddenly faded. Was Christa in love with Heinley...? If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 252 - Rivetti’s Grand Plan (1) Chapter 252. Rivetti¡¯s Grand n (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren At that moment, I felt a sudden urge to tell him to send Christa to Compshire. Heinley didn¡¯t know how to deal with Christa in this situation, so if I said this to him, no doubt he would. My mouth opened on its own. Fortunately, the habit of thinking several times before acting suppressed the urge. Calm down... Although sending Christa to Compshire through an imperial order was a way out of the current awkward situation, it would not be good in the long run. There were many nobles in the Western Empire who followed Christa. Besides, Compshire was asrge a city as the capital, and a splendid scene for high society where artists and minstrels gathered. Even if she was forced to go there, Christa¡¯s influence in high society would not diminish. Rather, tofort her lonely heart, she would invite more nobles to the mansion. Her influence in high society would be greater. Heinley¡¯s brother¡¯sst will was that he would care for Christa here. Heinley was already suspected of King Wharton III¡¯s infertility and early death. In such a scenario, people might be even more suspicious of Heinley if he forced Christa to go to Compshire. Christa had to go to Compshire on her own, no matter what. ¡°My Queen?¡± As I sat in silence, Heinley called out to me anxiously. ¡°You¡¯re fine?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I replied with a smile. I still felt a weight on my heart, but I also had the feeling that everything would be all right. I remembered that the day after the wedding reception manydies sent me letters. At the time, I had wondered what it was about. Now that Heinley told me about the incident at the wedding reception, I think I knew the reason. Maybe the situation was better than it seemed. But... Putting that aside, why did I feel so ufortable? *** When I finished moving the ount books and documents that were in my room to the office, it was time for lunch. Having worked so hard, I thought about just eating with mydies-in-waiting. But in the middle of the meal, I heard some unexpected news. ¡°It¡¯s about what Your Majesty asked me to investigate. I found out.¡± The one who spoke was Rose. I put down the spoon and stared at her. I had asked Rose to investigate why thedies suddenly sent me friendly letters. I wanted to confirm with what intentions those letters were sent. But I couldn¡¯t believe she had the answer so soon. ¡°Well?¡± ¡°There¡¯s a rumor circting secretly...¡± ¡°A rumor?¡± Why was Rose having trouble saying it? ¡°Miss Rose?¡± When I called to her quizzically, she confessed with a very displeased expression. ¡°His Majesty the Emperor and Christa are rumored to be in a secret rtionship.¡± As soon as she finished speaking, there was a clink. It was the sound of Laura¡¯s fork dropping into her silver bowl. When Laura¡¯s expression became really fierce, Mastas silently took a knife from in front of her and put it in Laura¡¯s hand. Rose snorted and continued speaking, ¡°It is said that at the reception, His Majesty, the Emperor, allowed Christa to wipe his forehead while he stood still. It seems that severaldies witnessed it.¡± Laura, who came to her senses, clenched the knife tightly and said in a stern voice. ¡°Did that really happen at the reception, at the wedding reception?!¡± When Rose didn¡¯t answer, Laura snorted, almost spitting fire. Seeing me silent, Laura became even more enraged. ¡°Your Majesty! Send her to Compshire immediately! You can¡¯t just wait for the Emperor! You know it, you can¡¯t pass it up!¡± ¡°Miss Laura!¡± When Countess Jubel called her name coldly, Laura closed her mouth. However, she could not calm down and kept huffing angrily. Heinley had already told me about this incident, so I deliberately said with a smile trying to sound as calm as possible. ¡°It¡¯s a misunderstanding. His Majesty the Emperor already told me what happened that day.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d if that¡¯s the case...¡± Laura and Countess Jubel still looked very worried. When Rashta first appeared, I said everything would be fine. Laura and Countess Jubel looked distressed because of that memory. ¡°I¡¯m alright.¡± I smiled repeatedly, trying to reassure them. ¡°It¡¯s definitely a misunderstanding. Besides, this incident could be a blessing in disguise.¡± Truth be told, I was not well at all. That strange, unpleasant difort I felt when Heinley told me about Christa still lingered. But no doubt this incident would be a blessing in disguise. ¡°A blessing in disguise?¡± Mastas asked, puzzled. ¡°All thedies here felt sorry for Christa¡¯s situation, so they didn¡¯t even bother to look at me properly. But now they send me friendly letters.¡± Laura nodded, but Rose rebutted with a worried expression, ¡°But Your Majesty, sympathy is not the same as respect.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°In the end, the affection that arises from sympathy has a limit, right? Your Majesty is the highest status person in the empire, so eventually they will consider that you should not be the object of sympathy and will close their hearts again.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. At least I¡¯ll have a chance to be looked at without prejudice.¡± ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°They used to look down on me no matter what I did. It may be temporary, but the walls they had built in their hearts havee down. This is an opportunity, and it¡¯s up to me to seize it.¡± Chapter 253 - Rivetti’s Grand Plan (2) Chapter 253. Rivetti¡¯s Grand n (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°I¡¯m back, Father.¡± n looked tired, but his face overflowed with happiness as he entered the mansion. ¡°Did you meet Rashta?¡± At Viscount Roteschu¡¯s question, n replied nkly, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What did Rashta do?¡± ¡°Just....¡± ¡°Did she like it?¡± ¡°She seemed to like it.¡± n remembered Rashta holding the baby with red eyes. He thought her sad, weak look came from joy. When Rashta was pregnant, she loved the baby so much that she talked about it all day long. Also, when she thought the baby was dead, she appeared to go half crazy. n believed that Rashta¡¯s great love for the baby was still intact. Viscount Roteschu chuckled with satisfaction. Then he murmured, stroking his beard. ¡°Now that a second concubine has also appeared, that insolent girl will be obedient.¡± n and Rivetti looked up in surprise. ¡°A second concubine?¡± ¡°Father, what are you talking about?¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue. ¡°How is it possible that young people like you are less informed than your old father? One must keep one¡¯s eyes and ears wide open to survive in high society!¡± Rivetti pursed her lips. After Empress Navier, whom she most admired, left for the Western Empire she felt really empty. She had no interest in anything, sotely she had not been hanging out with her new friends. Naturally, she was not informed of what was going on. Simrly, n preferred to take care of Ahn rather than socialize with other socialites. He did not leave the mansion, so he was less informed than Rivetti. ¡°I heard that Emperor Sovieshu brought a girl, who supposedly had been a mage, and lodged her in the Southern Pce. Everyone says that she will be his second concubine.¡± ¡°He has Rashta and still thinks of a concubine?¡± n asked in bewilderment. He couldn¡¯t understand how the Emperor could fixate on another woman while having Rashta by his side. ¡°Wasn¡¯t Rashta also a concubine?!¡± Rivettished out annoyed at her brother, but suddenly a good idea urred to her and she shut up. When he saw his daughter¡¯s eyes glowing, though she had been moody all along, Viscount Roteschu reluctantly asked. ¡°What does that glow in your eyes mean? What are you thinking about?¡± ¡°It is not far-fetched.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Father, I will be His Majesty Sovieshu¡¯s third concubine!¡± n, who drank tea in silence, spat out all the tea he had in his mouth. The tea that shot out of his mouth sshed onto Viscount Roteschu¡¯s face. At his father¡¯s fierce gaze, n became frightened and hurriedly lowered his head. Viscount Roteschu chided Rivetti as he wiped his face with a handkerchief. ¡°What nonsense are you saying?! What concubine, or what anything! You¡¯re marrying a young nobleman from an important family. A man who has eyes only for you, who never cheats on you, or deceives you. Who has no concubine, who is sincere and good-hearted.¡± However, Rivetti¡¯s eyes continued to glow. ¡°I will seduce the Emperor, and make tears of blood flow from Rashta¡¯s eyes! Then I will mercilessly leave His Majesty the Emperor!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°At that time I will have taken my revenge on both of them! I will make them pay for what they did to Navier!¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue at his daughter¡¯s childish and fanciful n. It didn¡¯t seem possible anyway, so he didn¡¯t even try to stop her. Instead, n realistically pointed out the futility of Rivetti¡¯s n. ¡°Do you think His Majesty the Emperor will notice you when he has already had Navier and Rashta as his wife?¡± ¡°What? What¡¯s the problem with me?!¡± Then, a soft cushion went flying. n, who was hit on the head by the cushion, hastily hugged Ahn, got up and fled to his room. *** It had now be Heinley¡¯s habit to prepare breakfast. As I slept, I caught a whiff of an appetizing smell. As soon as I opened my eyes, I saw Heinley sitting on the bed looking at me with the trolley to the side. When our eyes met, he lightly kissed my forehead, and when I covered my face with the sheets, he kissed my exposed fingers with which I held those sheets. Finally, when I reluctantly pulled the sheets down, he pushed the trolley away with his feet and whispered that he wanted to stay by my side a little longer. Heinley liked to stay snuggled up next to me, so I had to be very attentive to get through the morning duties. *** ¡°How are you...so healthy?¡± Right after, while eating the soup he had prepared himself, I regretted my words. What I said sounded a little strange, so I quickly added, ¡°I mean your physical condition...¡± It got even weirder after saying that, so I just kept my mouth shut. ¡°My Queen doesn¡¯t have enough stamina.¡± Heinley sighed. ¡°You have great stamina.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to a good teacher, My Queen.¡± ¡°!¡± When I stared at him with narrowed eyes, he smiled cleverly and turned into a bird, got on myp, opened his cute eyes and pretended to be an innocent bird. It was a new trick he had recently learned, and he did it every time he thought I was going to get mad. He knew that way I wouldn¡¯t get angry. ¡°Bad bird!¡± He was so cheeky that I pped his butt while he was still in bird form, but then he turned into a naked man and took advantage of this to tease me even more. ¡°Naughty hands. Don¡¯t you watch where you touch?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re in bird form, it¡¯s fine because you have a lot of feathers.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t actually only touch it when I¡¯m in bird form.¡± ¡°!¡± When I stared at him again with narrowed eyes, Heinley turned into a bird and tried to fly away. But he had no way to get out of the bedroom, so I caught him. ¡ª Gu! ¡°Why don¡¯t you pretend to y innocent?¡± ¡ª Gu... ¡°I will not fall for it again.¡± *** After the chaotic breakfast. There was a little problem when it was time to get dressed after taking a bath. Now that the weather was getting hotter, I had to wear thin clothes. Heinley... Because of Heinley I had marks all over my body. Being the empress, no, even if I wasn¡¯t the empress, I couldn¡¯t calmly walk around with these marks on my body. In the end, Countess Jubel who had chosen long, thin dresses, got a little angry, ¡°Your Majesty. The short sleeves on this dress are pretty, and the revealing neckline on this other dress is also beautiful. There are so many dresses I would like you to wear, but because of the emperor... the options are very, very limited.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°It is not Your Majesty¡¯s fault. But please tell the Emperor.¡± After nodding with an awkward smile, Countess Jubel sighed and pulled out again the dress I had worn a few days ago. ¡°This is the only one there is to cover all those parts with marks.¡± When I put on this dress and went to the office, unexpectedly Heinley was inside. He was leaning on my desk, looking over a document I was working on. ¡°Heinley?¡± Once I called his name, Heinley put the document down and smiled. ¡°My Queen¡¯s handwriting looks a lot like My Queen.¡± I don¡¯t know what it meant that my handwriting looked like me, but I¡¯ve been told that I have beautiful handwriting. I knew I would have to sign many papers, so I had practiced a lot together with Sovieshu. Instead of answering, I approached him and pulled down the cor of his jacket coat a little. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°... I can see it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Red marks.¡± I can see why Countess Jubel didn¡¯t want Heinley to leave these kinds of marks on my body. ¡°Ah,¡± Heinley rubbed his neck, smiled slightly and looked at my well-covered neck. ¡°Should we be careful until the fall?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, the clothes are now thinner and shorter.¡± ¡°Is it alright to do it where no one can see it?¡± Instead of answering, I asked, while pretending to look over the document he had left on the desk. ¡°What brings you here?¡± ¡°Ah, I came for the State Council.¡± ¡°The State Council?¡± ¡°Now that we can attend together, I thought you might like to go...¡± ¡°Can we go together?¡± ¡°If you are asking about the former Queens, some attended and some did not. As far as I know, my sister-inw did not attend. I heard that My Queen often participated in Eastern Empire meetings.¡± ¡°I only attended meetings where my presence was required.¡± I didn¡¯t attend meetings where I didn¡¯t have to. It was a waste of time. Heinley raised his eyebrows and said, ¡°Ahh.¡± He probably didn¡¯t know this. After a moment¡¯s thought, I told him I would go with him. He came to my office just to tell me this. Also, I would also like to see what a meeting is like here. *** As I expected, the officials were puzzled when I appeared in the conference room next to Heinley. They were used to the queen not participating in the meetings. I tried to ignore that atmosphere, and focused on the meeting in silence. Fortunately, they only stared at me at first. After a while they were all absorbed in their own business. That was normal. In the conference roomnguage was a sword, and information and wit, a shield. Even if they were pursuing the same goal, there were often conflicts of interest among the officials. They were so busy looking after their own interests that they didn¡¯t have time to notice me. But even in the midst of this, there was someone who took aim at me. It was Marquis Ketron, Christa¡¯s cousin. He nced at me sideways the whole time, and when the subject of the Eternal Thousand bandits finally came up, he pointed at me openly and asked a difficult question. ¡°There is one territory that is most likely to be attacked by the Eternal Thousand bandits, but there are a total of five nearby territories around it. All six territories want us to send troops to them in case of an emergency situation, but if we provide support to all six territories, our troops would be widely dispersed. The Eastern Empire has been fighting the Eternal Thousand bandits for a long time, so the Empress must have a lot of experience in this. Please, I would like to hear your wise opinion, where does Your Majesty think we should provide support?¡± Chapter 254 - Rashta’s Wrath (1) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 254. Rashta¡¯s Wrath (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren In the Eastern Empire, the Emperor had a powerful mage army, allowing his lords to possessnds and private soldiers. In contrast, the Western Empire limited the possession ofnd and private soldiers because its main force was in the conventional army. In other words, the Emperor of the Western Empire controlled the military power alone, but he also had to shoulder the responsibility that this entailed on his own. As far as I know, there were troops stationed on the border of the Western Empire. Most likely Marquis Ketron was talking about additional support. What should we do? As Marquis Ketron said, if we concentrate support troops in one ce, it will be much easier to defend. If, on the contrary, the troops were divided among six ces, then the defense would bepromised. Dispersing troops among territories unlikely to be attacked woulde at a great cost in human and economic resources. But even the slightest possibility remained a real threat and fear for the residents there. If Heinley did not provide support, residents would be upset and resentful of the country. ¡°That¡¯s what you, as foreign minister, must think.¡± Before I could respond, Heinley coldly interjected. ¡°How ipetent are the officials under mymand that you have to ask the Empress who has been in the Western Empire for less than a year to take care of your duties?¡± Marquis Ketron became angry, but immediately responded to Heinley¡¯s rebuke with a smile. ¡°Wasn¡¯t Empress Navier renowned for her intelligence from her days as Empress of the Eastern Empire?¡± Seeing his insistence on pointing out that I had been the Empress of the Eastern Empire, it is evident that I am not liked by Christa¡¯s cousin. Heinley tried to say something again, but this time I spoke first. ¡°We have to attack.¡± Heinley looked at me in surprise. I elevated the credibility of my words by speaking in a calm voice. ¡°If we don¡¯t know which way they wille, then we have to attack first. That way, the troops will not have to disperse.¡± Marquis Ketron immediately rebutted. ¡°What do you think the Eternal Thousand bandits will do if we attack them?! They will invade the Western Empire! Ah, since you are from the Eastern Empire you don¡¯t care about the situation of our Empire?¡± ¡°Marquis Ketron. Watch your tongue.¡± At Heinley¡¯s cold voice, Marquis Ketron finally kept his mouth shut. However, his eyes were still filled with dissatisfaction. Heinley was young and it had not been long since he ascended the throne. Moreover, when he was a prince, he preferred to wander around other countries rather than expand his forces. For these reasons, the forces left behind by Heinley¡¯s brother did not appear to be very loyal to Heinley. If these forces were not loyal to Heinley, then I did not need to win them over. Heinley would get rid of these people at any time. Besides, the Marquis was a supporter of Christa. As soon as I finished assessing the situation, Iughed lightly as if mocking. Marquis Ketron¡¯s gaze, which did not move away from me, became fierce. He seemed to snort inwardly, ¡®Are you mocking me?!¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty, why are youughing?¡± ¡°Marquis Ketron really doesn¡¯t seem to know anything about the Eternal Thousand bandits.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°They are bandits who are driven exclusively by profit. They don¡¯t take revenge personally. If they deem it unprofitable, they will give up and go elsewhere. As you say, I am from the Eastern Empire, so I know very well how they operate.¡± Marquis Ketron was so taken aback by my words that even his neck turned red. But instead of staying still, he continued tosh out at me. ¡°Your Majesty¡¯s words sound good, but when you analyze it, it is ridiculous. For what Your Majesty says to be possible we should deal them a severe blow to the point that they would consider it a loss to face the Western Empire again. However, the Eternal Thousand bandits are not an opponent that can be easily suppressed. And still, Your Majesty wants to deal a severe blow to them to limit their behavior? It¡¯s like to bell the cat!¡± TL/N: ¡®to bell the cat¡¯ means to attempt or agree to attempt an impossibly difficult task that if achieved, will benefit everyone. ¡°Sir Koshar has fought more than 50 battles against the Eternal Thousand bandits, so he has a lot of experience when ites to them. Sir Koshar will be able to handle it.¡± I even pointed out who was going to bell the cat. Besides, he was my brother. Finally, Marquis Ketron could say nothing and closed his mouth. After that, no one addressed me again. *** Once the meeting was over. I called my brother and told him about the situation on the border of the Western Empire with the Eternal Thousand bandits, as well as the discussion between Marquis Ketron and me at the State Council today. At the end, I asked him, ¡°You can handle it?¡± Of course, I was sure my brother could. When my brother was in the Eastern Empire, even though it wasn¡¯t his job to deal with the Eternal Thousand bandits, he stepped forward and shook the battlefield. It was like my brother¡¯s hobby. Facing the Eternal Thousand bandits, he felt free. As expected, my brother said casually as he burst outughing. ¡°It¡¯s been a while since Ist met with those bad guys.¡± I was relieved by that attitude. However, I noticed Mastas staring at my brother in shock. ¡°Mastas?¡± I didn¡¯t understand why, so I called her name quietly. My brother also noticed her expression and was puzzled. No wonder, from her expression it looked like my brother had stolen her soul. When she came to, her eyes sparkled and she shouted, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. I¡¯m sorry, Sir Koshar. It¡¯s just that I was suddenly a little curious.¡± ¡°Curious?¡± ¡°I¡¯m curious about Sir Koshar¡¯s ability to deal with the Eternal Thousand bandits as if they were nothing!¡± Mastas really loved to fight. Surprisingly, my brother asked her calmly. ¡°If you¡¯re so curious, would you like toe with me?¡± Mastas became excited, but then hesitated and replied, ¡°No.¡± ¡°My duty now is to protect the Empress. However, I wish I could fight Sir Koshar another time.¡± In the end, my brotherughed out loud at her direct attitude. *** If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 255 - Rashta’s Wrath (2) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 255. Rashta¡¯s Wrath (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Meanwhile... Rashta examined themon women who had been gathered in the western pce, whose parents were prisoners. The women gathered were of different ages, since it only mattered that they wanted to work as a maid. However, all women with children were excluded, she was going to use their parents as bait to control them, so even if she ckmailed these women with their parents, they might abandon them for the sake of their children. Simrly, women who had a bad rtionship with their fathers were excluded. Rashta looked at them closely, one by one, as she casually asked them several questions. ¡°What is your name?¡± ¡°Have you ever worked as a maid?¡± ¡°The Imperial Pce haspletely different rules than outside that must be followed, so etiquette is very important. Do you agree?¡± Most of the women gathered here were also marked by society because their fathers were prisoners, so they could not even get proper jobs. They knew that Rashta had called them to be more than just maids, but they still did not want to miss this opportunity. Working as maids in the imperial pce they would receive a much higher sry than an ordinary maid. In addition, the empress could pardon prisoners several times a year. They desperately needed Rashta¡¯s help. ¡°Nice eyes.¡± Rashta smirked at the women¡¯s determined expressions. ¡°But I can¡¯t hire them all.¡± After asking about their strengths, Rashta ordered Viscountess Verdi to first take them all to another room. And once Viscountess Verdi returned, she ordered her to bring them all back in. ¡°All of them?¡± Viscountess Verdi asked in surprise at the thought that Rashta would hire them all. At first, Rashta said she would only hire about ten. But the number of women gathered here was too many. ¡°Isn¡¯t that too many? Since they have to be trained, it is preferable to hire gradually, Your Majesty.¡± Rashta smiled broadly. Of course, she had no intention of hiring them all. ¡°I¡¯m going to do a test.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s a test....¡± ¡°Bring them in first.¡± Viscountess Verdi did not understand Rashta¡¯s intentions, but brought the women back in. The women returned to the waiting room without knowing the reason. However, they were greeted by Rashta¡¯s shouts. ¡°Rashta¡¯s precious pearl earrings that were here disappeared! One of you must have taken them! one of you must have taken them! Who was it?¡± The women looked at each other puzzled. They had never even seen said pearl earrings, much less taken them. No, it was strange to leave pearl earrings in the waiting room in the first ce. But they couldn¡¯t object to that, to the Empress. Besides, Rashta seemed really angry. Seeing no one step forward, Rashta acted as if she was angrier and raised her voice. ¡°Don¡¯t any of you know who took them or are you pretending not to know? If youdies cover for each other, Rashta will have no choice but to punish you all!¡± After that, Rashta stormed to her bedroom. As the women trembled Viscountess Verdi cleverly followed Rashta into her bedroom. ¡°How are they?¡± ¡°They are very frightened.¡± ¡°Bring them here one by one. Before you let them in, advise them secretly that if they tell the truth they will not be punished.¡± Hearing Rashta¡¯s words, Viscountess Verdi understood the situation. Rashta wanted to see how her prospective maids would get out of this difficult scenario. Viscountess Verdi did as Rashta instructed. The Viscountess led the first woman into Rashta¡¯s bedroom, and whispered to her, ¡°If you saw anything, be honest. Her Majesty is kind-hearted, if you tell the truth I am sure she will forgive you. Otherwise, you could all receive the same punishment.¡± Some were so frightened that they lied. Others named the person who seemed most suspicious, or the easiest to use in their opinion, iming that person was the culprit. Others even tantly lied that they had seen the scene of the theft. However, some kept saying they didn¡¯t know anything. In the end, Rashta decided to hire those who lied. ¡°Is it alright?¡± ¡°Yes. Flexibility is required to work at the Imperial Pce. You know this, right?¡± ¡°But they could lie depending on the situation. Although on some asions it may benefit Your Majesty, on others it may not.¡± ¡°I know. But Viscountess Verdi, if they want to save their parents they have no choice but to be loyal to Rashta. The cleverness of those women will end up being used for Rashta¡¯s benefit.¡± ¡°But...¡± Viscountess Verdi preferred not to be around anyone who might make false usations at their convenience. She didn¡¯t care if it was just one or two, but she couldn¡¯t believe that such people would be all over the western pce. Just imagining it was horrible. Rashta smiled wider. ¡°The test doesn¡¯t end here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Instead of exining further, Rashta went to the women who had been discarded. She then apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry to have suspected you. But if this gets out, it will damage Rashta¡¯s reputation, so I hope you will keep it a secret.¡± All the women nodded in agreement. The next day, Rashta ordered her guards to visit the homes of the women who had been deliberately discarded and ask about what happened yesterday at the pce. There were some who kept their mouths shut, and others who were so frightened that they confessed the facts. Rashta additionally hired those who kept silent. Later, she sent to Evely a maid chosen for being a good liar. *** By then Evely already had a maid sent by the Emperor. Evely, who had never had a maid before, was already very ufortable with this maid. But when the Empress also sent her a maid, she was really reluctant. It didn¡¯t look good, the current empress was the one who took the position of her benefactress after causing her divorce. ¡®And suddenly she sent me a maid? Wasn¡¯t the rtionship broken from the day I arrived here? It is suspicious.¡¯ But Evely, who lost her mana and had no support, could not refuse the ¡®kindness¡¯ of the empress and send the maid away. In the end, Evely had no choice but to ept the maid the Empress sent. However, she never let her guard down with the maid sent by the empress to prevent her from making false usations. Fortunately, Evely was the court mage¡¯s assistant, and spent a lot of time with him, so she didn¡¯t interact much with the empress¡¯s maid. Then one day. The maid, who was helping her get ready for work, noticed Evely¡¯s neck and eximed in admiration, ¡°Miss always wears this ne, right? It looks very expensive!¡± The maid sent by Rashta received several orders beforeing here. One of those orders was to find out if Evely had any gifts from the emperor. The maid knew that Evely was a mage¡¯s assistant, with a low sry and an orphanedmoner. The maid was convinced that this ne had been a gift from the emperor, as she could not have bought such an expensive ne on her own. ¡°It is a gift from the magic academy. Nothing important.¡± Evely spoke firmly, and put the ne inside her clothes. In fact, the ne was an item that came from McKenna on Heinley¡¯s order, made especially to return her mana, and sent to the dean to be given to her. However, Evely was unaware of this. ¡°Does the academy give that kind of gift?¡± The maid murmured, smiling at Evely¡¯s words. Inwardly, she was still convinced that it was Emperor Sovieshu who gave her that ne. The maid had a better eye than Evely, so she knew the ne wasn¡¯t just a little expensive. ¡®Why would the magic academy give her such a ne?¡¯ Rashta, who heard her maid¡¯s story, had the same thought. ¡°Rashta knew.¡± Rashta ground her teeth and rewarded the maid for her good work with a ruby and diamond bracelet. ¡°Find the opportunity to steal or destroy that ne.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you seen her meet personally with the Emperor?¡± ¡°She always goes out to work. I can¡¯t follow her.¡± Rashta suppressed her anger and let the maid out. After the encounter with Delise¡¯s brother, Sovieshu became even more distant. Of course, Sovieshu would still visit her and sing lubies, check if there was anything she wanted to eat, and then order the chef to send her lots of food. Once a day he would send the pce doctor to examine her, and he would also give her gifts. However, Rashta believed that Sovieshu was not as warm as before. Sovieshu said that he did not like Navier for being a typical noblewoman, and turned his attention to her innocent and fresh self. Therefore, it was very likely that he would turn his attention to another woman who was sensible and smart, saying that he did not like her for being ignorant. ¡°Baby, you must be born soon.¡± Rashta murmured, covering her belly. But the answer came from outside. There was a knock at the door, and Viscountess Verdi reported that it was the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. Rashta let them in. Although they were fake parents, they sometimes cared for Rashta as if she were their real daughter. She wished at this moment to beforted even a little. But their words were not at allforting. ¡°Rashta, did you find your sister?¡± Chapter 256 - Sly (1) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 256. Sly (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta was dumbfounded for a moment. She felt as if a small hammer had hit her head. ¡®Sister? How could she be my sister?¡¯ However, the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua seemed to be serious. Rashta wondered if they had gone crazy. ¡®What was going through their heads, did they forget that we are a fake family?¡¯ ¡°... I¡¯ll find her.¡± However, Rashta reluctantly said something she really didn¡¯t mean. ¡°I¡¯m certainly looking for her. You don¡¯t have to worry too much about that.¡± Viscount and Viscountess Isqua were very cheerful and polite people. Nor were they greedy. Such a personality,bined with the loss of their daughters and their wealth, easily elicited sympathy. The nobles shed tears after conversing a little with the couple. Then they said to Rashta. ¡°You have to treat your parents well. We have gone through so much hardship trying to find our daughters.¡± Rashta responded with a smile, ¡°I know.¡± Due to the atmosphere, if she didn¡¯t respond that way, she would be a bad daughter. But inside, Rashta got angry every time they talked about finding their daughter. ¡°I¡¯ll soon be able to find her whereabouts.¡± At Rashta¡¯sforting words, the couple wiped away their tears with a handkerchief, feeling relieved. However, things didn¡¯t seem to end there. As they hesitated rather than walked out, Rashta suppressed her anger and asked, ¡°Do you want something else? Am I not looking for my sister?¡± Her fake parents sobbed and told Rashta, ¡°Yes, we heard you. But how can you search this vast country on your own?¡± ¡°We¡¯ll look for her too, can you help us?¡± ¡°We think the most efficient way is to make a search team. We definitely won¡¯t use it for anything else.¡± In other words, they wanted money. Rashta did not immediately respond. Certainly, the couple did not spend money on just anything. However, in the past they spent all their wealth on the search. Now they seemed to think that to find their daughter, they could take not only their own wealth, but also other people¡¯s. ¡°It¡¯s to find your little sister, don¡¯t you want to?¡± As Rashta didn¡¯t answer, the couple sobbed deeply. A fire burned inside Rashta as she clenched her fist. Rashta could not stop her parents no matter how much power she had as Empress. If the rumor spread that she was skimping on money to find her missing sister, everyone would point to her and say she had a cold heart. This was especially true because Rashta herself had benefited greatly from the dramatic family reunion. Rashta had no choice but to say yes. ¡°Ask Baron Lant for whatever you need.¡± *** I was very busy for a few days. I had to choose my aides, and my brother began to prepare to go into battle against the thousand eternal bandits. Due to the need to conduct an assault to deal with the thousand eternal bandits, the entire preparation process was carried out very quickly. And on the day my brother left the capital with a military force divided into six troops, Rose reported to me what she had researched about Muney. ¡°As instructed, I did research on Miss Muney¡¯s Family.¡± ¡°What did you find out?¡± ¡°The son adopted by Marquis Amares, Miss Muney¡¯s father, who was to be sessor, was originally his wife¡¯s nephew.¡± ¡°His wife¡¯s nephew?¡± ¡°Yes. He is the son of Duke Liberty, whose name is William. Ah, Duke Liberty is Miss Muney¡¯s maternal uncle and is on Christa¡¯s side.¡± I had heard Duke Liberty¡¯s name before. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Although he is not Marquis Amares¡¯ direct nephew, both families have been rted by marriages between their members since the past, so he is also rted to Marquis Amares.¡± ¡°I see...¡± That¡¯s why he was brought with him. He was still of his own blood. ¡°Also, this young man named William was originally known for his intelligence, so everyone regretted that he was their third son. He was much smarter than the Duke¡¯s eldest son, but he couldn¡¯t be the sessor.¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°I heard that Duke Liberty gave his beloved son to Marquis Ketron to seed him, and that Marquise Amares also agreed to take her own nephew as an adopted son to be the sessor.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t the Marquis and Marquise Amares know that Miss Muney wanted to be the sessor?¡± ¡°They knew of her ambition, but seemed not to trust her. In contrast, their adopted son William is rumored to have always been brilliant...¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°The title will pass to their adopted son, but they will turn over almost all the estate to Miss Muney.¡± When I decided to cooperate with Muney, I did so with the thought of persuading her mother. But if Muney¡¯s mother was already on her nephew¡¯s side... ¡°It will be difficult to get support from her family members.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Since Miss Muney will keep most of the wealth, people do not understand why she tries to take away the only thing her adopted brother will really receive.¡± From Muney¡¯s perspective, it was all hers in the first ce, but her cousin showed up to take away her title. Did people think Muney was a selfish sister who didn¡¯t want to give her brother anything? ¡°Miss Rose, have you met William?¡± ¡°He rarely appears at high society meetings. Marquis Amares brought him in early on as his sessor, so he often takes him around with him to learn about his future duties.¡± There are many unfavorable conditions. Given the intention to leave the wealth to Muney, people would think that Marquis Amares was making a sensible decision for the sake of the family, rather than despicable. ¡°Well, first we need to prove that Miss Muney is far superior to William.¡± Rose looked at me puzzled. ¡°Is that even possible? I don¡¯t think Marquis Amares will change his mind unless there is a noticeable difference. It would be cruel of the Marquis to discard him because he no longer needs him, having adopted him as a sessor.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s turn the tables.¡± ¡°Turn the tables?¡± *** If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 257 - Sly (2) Remarried Empress ¡ª Chapter 257. Sly (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Marquis Amares was not currently an official of the Eastern Empire, but at the time he made great profits on various state-run projects. That was in the records. His family also handled many important businesses. With this in mind, I ordered Muney and William to be called. Later, they both came to my office without knowing the reason. William didn¡¯t seem to understand anything, and Muney seemed surprised that I had called her openly when I asked her to ally with us in secret. Besides, I had called her along with her foster brother. After examining them, I handed them both an identical document that I had prepared beforehand and said, ¡°I called you both to help me with a trade matter.¡± ¡°Trade?¡± ¡°What do you mean...?¡± ¡°You know that right now there is a member of the Rwibt Royal Family in the Western Empire, right?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes, I understand it is Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± The two still seemed not to understand my intentions. I spoke with a smile, deliberately not looking at Muney. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen and I have decided to conduct the first trade between countries on different continents.¡± Both were startled. But William soon raised a real concern. ¡°But isn¡¯t the distance too far? I don¡¯t know if the gains will be enough topensate for the long distance and the risks.¡± He seemed to know a lot about trading. Muney said at once, as if not to be outdone, ¡°Your Majesty, I understand that private traders who tried this were unsessful. It must be approached with care.¡± I looked at the two alternately with a smile. ¡°That¡¯s why I called you both. To approach it with care.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I need advance information on Rwibt. Gather relevant information and find out what items could be traded to cover the disadvantages.¡± Muney¡¯s jaw dropped and William frowned uneasily. ¡°I have heard that Marquis Amares has exceptional business ability. As far as I know, he was sessful in many state-run projects. Since you are the ¡®sessors¡¯ of the Marquis, your ability must be on a par with him. Prove it.¡± *** That night, I told Heinley what I did while we ate dinner. After listening carefully to what I had to say, Heinley asked with concern, ¡°They are both inexperienced, is it alright to leave this task to them? Although Miss Muney is smart, she has never worked formally, and William has learned a lot from Marquis Amares, but he has never been in charge.¡± Iughed, ¡°Of course I won¡¯t leave it in their hands.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes grew wide at my words. I was going to tell Heinley, ¡®Even for me, who learned under the former empress for over a decade, it wasn¡¯t easy when I became the person in charge, of course I wouldn¡¯t leave anything important in the hands of two inexperienced people,¡¯ but I desisted. I didn¡¯t want to remind Heinley of my days in the Eastern Empire. ¡°I will do a proper investigation separately. But once I have their results, anyone will be able to appreciate who is useful.¡± Heinley raised an eyebrow. ¡°What if they¡¯re both useless?¡± ¡°Then no matter who the sessor is, the Amares Family will have no future. So I will support Miss Muney who is on my side.¡± ¡°What if they¡¯re both useful?¡± ¡°It would be very helpful to me.¡± ¡°Even if both are useful, what would you do if Miss Muney¡¯s foster brother was better than her?¡± I stopped cutting the meat and stared at Heinley. Earlier he had listened to me intently. I don¡¯t know since when, but Heinley had a yful expression. Does he find it fun to ask ¡®difficult¡¯ questions and listen to my answers? ¡°Huh, My Queen? What do you n to do in that case? Will you still continue to support Miss Muney out of friendship?¡± He seemed to be joking with me, so I tapped the knife intentionally against the table and pretended to say coolly. ¡°I¡¯ll support the one who is useful to me. I¡¯ll find a way to use the other.¡± But I became worried after I spoke. People didn¡¯t usually get my jokes very well. What if Heinley thought I was really heartless and cold? I didn¡¯t want him to see me that way. But Heinley... ¡°My Queen, I get excited every time you act this way.¡± It was a strange reaction. He didn¡¯t seem to get my joke, but he didn¡¯t seem to think I was heartless and cold either. Rather, he was quite flushed and was looking at me with one hand on his chin... I don¡¯t know why his gaze was so deep at this moment. ¡°Sometimes I think about it. You have slightly strange tastes.¡± If he had a simple yful expression before, Heinley now seemed extremely thirsty. Combined with his dark, sensual eyes, I couldn¡¯t imagine what exactly was going through his head. Why now? At what point did he get so excited? The corners of Heinley¡¯s lips curved slightly. Then, he asked in a still yful voice. ¡°What do you think my tastes are?¡± ¡°It is...¡± ¡°It is?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay to say it. We¡¯re a married couple.¡± ¡°It¡¯s like sometimes you like me to treat you rudely.¡± Come to think of it, it was always like that. Heinley would blush when I had a cold attitude or responded sharply. He was especially excited when I pressed his hands against the bed on our wedding night. Maybe... he really did have those tastes? But it was so awkward that I didn¡¯t say anything else. I simply grabbed my fork, poked a piece of the steak, and put it in my mouth. Before I knew it, the atmosphere became so strange that I couldn¡¯t even tell that I was eating. My mouth was dry, I was thirsty. It was Heinley¡¯s gaze. He was looking at me with eyes full of heat. Finally, I put my fork down on the table and drank some water. But before I could swallow the water he said ¡°Yes. I really like it when you¡¯re rough.¡± ¡°!¡± His overly sincere words made me choke. As I coughed, Heinley reached out his hand with a broad smile. Then he whispered, wiping my eyes as I continued to cough. ¡°You¡¯re beautiful.¡± When I red at him, Heinley reached out his other hand and pushed the dishes aside. Then he leaned across the table toward me and whispered in my ear. ¡°Don¡¯t you like it when I do this?¡± Suddenly, Heinley pushed my hair away from my face. When his hand touched my ear, I involuntarily trembled. It really seemed to be true when he said that, ¡®I only need to learn something once to master it¡¯. Where did the eagle go that trembled with shame on the wedding night? But since I didn¡¯t respond, Heinley soon asked with a downcast expression. ¡°My Queen, do you really not like me doing this?¡± The eagle that had approached me with such pride and confidence looked like a huge, repentant puppy right now. I was confused, but... ¡°I don¡¯t dislike it.¡± I cleared my throat for a few moments before responding. It was a risky answer, but if I didn¡¯t, he would once again take advantage of my lovely Queen to try to convince me. As soon as he heard my answer, he became confident again and started kissing me. I felt a little cheated. No way... he just pretended to be down discouraged?! * * * If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 258 - Queen Only Loves His Body (1) Chapter 258. Queen Only Loves His Body (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Marquis Karl was reporting to Sovieshu about Duke Elgy. ording to Marquis Karl¡¯s report, there were many rumors about dangerous pirates associated with Duke Elgy. But all those rumors were unfounded, so it was hard to tell if they were simply false rumors. Once Marquis Karl finished, Sovieshu let out a small mockingugh. ¡°Everyone knows that the royal families of maritime countries are in cahoots with pirates.¡± Sovieshu said so because Duke Elgy was from the Royal Family of the Maritime Country ¡®Blue Bohean¡¯. ¡°Okay. Anything else?¡± ¡°Duke Elgy has had several love scandals in high society.¡± ¡°That is well known. How could it be called a rumor?¡± ¡°But there is something strange.¡± ¡°Strange?¡± ¡°Especially in the most serious love scandals, it seems that Duke Elgy always turned out to be the victim, so the other side had to pay a great price.¡± ¡°A great price?¡± ¡°Those details are not known because the other side remained silent in all cases, but...¡± Marquis Karl added with concern. ¡°I think he is a bad fellow in many ways. It is customary to allow distinguished guests to stay as long as they wish, but wouldn¡¯t it be better to send Duke Elgy away even if an excuse has to be made?¡± Then Marquis Karl hesitated for a moment before speaking again, ¡°Duke Elgy has a close rtionship with the Empress, and it worries me because rumor has it that everyone he had a scandal with did not end well.¡± *** The noblemen who attended after receiving the invitation sent by Rashta were impressed. The tea party was no sham. Therge white tablesid out in the garden of the Crystal House looked impable, the tablecloths subtly reflecting the sunlight, giving a very morous appearance. The tables wereden with all kinds of delicious dishes, such as crispy baked cookies, chocte-dusted nuts, light pink and light yellow meringues, and peach pudding, among others. Everything was so well prepared that it would make anyone sigh. What puzzled the noblemen was that around the morous tea tables only they were there dressed in suits. Nodies were seen chatting happily around the tea tables. Are theyingter? Has the time of the tea party been changed? Are we too early? The nobles had various guesses. But Rashta appeared soon after, and their questions were forgotten. When Rashta appeared in a dark purple dress and an umbre, the noblemen¡¯s eyes sparkled.They could not help but marvel. Who else could wear such a splendid and dignified color with such purity!? Rashta, who stood alone in a purple dress, looked like a lc blooming in the undergrowth. ¡°Wee.¡± Rashta smiled sweetly, graciously weing the nobles. ¡°I hope everyone has a good time.¡± Then Rashta took a grape from a te and popped it into her mouth. In an instant, the nobles¡¯ eyes darted to Rashta¡¯s mouth. Instead of eating the grape right away, Rashta put the round grape between her reddish lips and sucked on it. The grape, which revealed a light green color inside, slowly disappeared from her lips, into her mouth. The scene aroused obscene thoughts. The noblemen who watched this held their breath unconsciously or swallowed dryly. Rashta said slowly with a smile, ¡°delicious,¡± and sat down at the head of her table. ¡°Everyone sit down. Why are you all standing there staring at me?¡± Rashta smiled, raising the corners of her mouth slightly. She thought she knew men well. But she didn¡¯t know how to hold their hearts. If she had known, n would not have betrayed her. But she definitely knew how to catch them in no time. In Rashta¡¯s experience, men who did not belong to the nobility were attracted to noblewomen. They fantasized about noblewomen, elegant and intelligent. In contrast, noblemen fantasized about women not belonging to the nobility. They considered noblewomen to be snobbish and calcting, that women not belonging to the nobility were the only ones who could give genuine love. Rashta only had to show them what they wanted. However, this behavior of Rashta¡¯s soon led to bad rumors in high society. It was not umon for noblemen to invite only noblemen to hang out, and for noblewomen to invite only noblewomen to hang out. But inviting only nobles of the opposite sex to a tea party had never happened in the history of the Eastern Empire. At least that¡¯s what the nobles thought when they heard about Rashta¡¯s ¡®Men¡¯s Tea Party¡¯. Even the noblemen, who attended Rashta¡¯s tea party and were fascinated by her charms, did not take Rashta¡¯s side in this. High society was a single set, in which the nobles were divided not by men and women, but by interests and factions. The noblewomen excluded by the empress belonged to the same family as the invited noblemen. Naturally, they had no choice but to side with their family. Rashta was hurt when n preferred his family over love, and this time she made the same mistake again. The reason was that she could not fully understand noble families. Moreover, the fact that Rashta was so close to Duke Elgy generated even more suspicions about her behavior. Among the conservative and closed-minded nobles, many were not happy that the true empress, Navier, had been disced by amoner empress, about whom many bad rumors were circting. They did not even flinch when they learned the news that the Viscounts Isqua were Rashta¡¯s real parents. Although she had noble blood, they still considered her amoner because she had grown up as one. Did being an Empress mean meeting other men to hang out with?! Even her friend with whom she always hung out was a member of the royal family of another country, a well-known yboy. They were outraged, considering that Rashta was not worthy of belonging to the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire. Behind the scenes, Marquis Farang also yed an important role in rocking the boat, he was very angry that Koshar had been banished. ¡°Aren¡¯t Isqua Viscounts fallen nobles from a foreign country? Should they be treated as nobles in our country? Even having a respectable position.¡± Marquis Farang referred to Viscount and Viscountess Isqua as a rolling stone, subtly instigating authoritarian nobility. ¡°Moreover, the blood of a fallen foreign noble family will run through the Crown Prince¡¯s veins. It would be different if it were a foreign royal family or a foreign high status family.¡± Due to the tense atmosphere, Baron Lant finally went to visit Rashta and advised her with concern, ¡°Your Majesty. Bad rumors have been circtingtely.¡± ¡°What do you mean by bad rumors?¡± ¡°This...¡± ¡°What is going on? What are the rumors?¡± Baron Lant did not want to tell the vulgar rumors as is, so he advised her of the best possible, ¡°Duke Elgy has a bad reputation, Your Majesty. Unpleasant rumors are inevitable to arise if you hang out with him. He is not someone worthy of being close to the Empress of the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°People don¡¯t like Rashta hanging out with Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. And the fact that a few days ago you organized a tea party with only noblemen...¡± ¡°How outrageous.¡± Rashta sternly showed her displeasure. ¡°Is it not bad to see a friendship strangely? People who misunderstand others as they please are bad, people who are misunderstood without doing anything are not bad.¡± Rashta did not ept Baron Lant¡¯s words at all. Surprised, Baron Lant tried to advise her again, but eventually left without getting anything and asked Sovieshu to take over. Sovieshu had also heard rumors about Rashta everywhere, so he immediately and bitterly advised Rashta that night. ¡°I¡¯ve been hearing bad rumors about youtely. Be careful, Rashta.¡± Although Rashta felt aggravated, she finally answered ¡°Yes¡± with discouragement. But inwardly she found it very unfair. ¡°It¡¯s all the fault of that mage girl in the Southern Pce.¡± Rashta pointed to Evely, the potential concubine in the Southern Pce. ¡°But I hear she¡¯s always working...¡± ¡°The nobles speak ill of Rashta because His Majesty protects and cares for that girl. It would all be over if His Majesty would sternly order to stop such nonsense.¡± Viscountess Verdi thought Rashta¡¯s conclusion was a little odd, but she dared not say so to avoid angering her. If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 259 - Queen Only Loves His Body (2) Chapter 259. Queen Only Loves His Body (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Arian, the experienced maid, did notfort Rashta because she did not care, and the neers who had just be maids did not dare to speak to the empress, so they also kept their mouths shut. Rashta spent the whole night in anguish without anyone¡¯sfort, and finally went to the Southern Pce to meet Evely as soon as dawn broke. She went there because she intended to visit Duke Elgy anyway. ¡°Who are you?¡± However, as soon as Evely saw Rashta, she was terribly rude to her. Her attitude was not at all polite, and her eyes were full of contempt. ¡°Who I am?¡± Rashta was shocked. Some nobles did not recognize her as Empress and made snide remarks, but at least they kept etiquette when addressing her. Rashta got angry seeing this girl who had appeared out of nowhere behave like this. Actually, Evely was more unfamiliar with imperial etiquette than Rashta, but knowing that Evely was a mage, Rashta didn¡¯t even consider that. ¡°You are rude.¡± Rashta frowned as she mimicked Navier, speaking coldly and with dignity. However, her Navier-like voice made Evely¡¯s expression darken. ¡°You met me the other day. You heard from Baron Lant that I am the Empress. How dare you be so rude? Do you want to be imprisoned?¡± ¡°If you imprison me, His Majesty will not stand idly by.¡± Evely used Sovieshu, whom she had not seen since the day of her arrival, as a shield. Sovieshu was the most effective shield against Rashta. She shuddered as her anger grew. ¡®How dare this rude girl, who does not even keep etiquette before me, be so conceited as to use my husband as a shield?¡¯ Rashta was extremely angry. ¡°Whose side do you think His Majesty will take, mine as Empress or yours asmoner?¡± Rashta muttered, staring at Evely as she pretended to be calm, and was about to tell Viscountess Verdi to arrest the girl immediately for disrespecting the Empress. But first, Evely spoke with a cold smile, ¡°Soon you will be my sister. Don¡¯t be so hard on me, sister.¡± Due to her stay in the Southern Pce, Evely met many distinguished guests visiting the Eastern Empire. They were interested in her because she had been a mage and told her many interesting things. Among ¡®those interesting things¡¯ was what the current Empress called the former Empress during her days as a concubine. Evely had already learned that Rashta called Navier ¡®sister¡¯ in public. Unaware of this fact, Rashta cried out in horror as soon as Evely called her ¡®sister¡¯. ¡°How could I be your sister?!¡± Goosebumps rose on her skin. This arrogant girl who settled in someone else¡¯s house, like a coiled snake, to take her husband away from her at any opportunity, all while appearing friendly in front of others. This gave her the chills. Evely raised her eyebrows and exined with a smile, ¡°I heard that having the same husband makes us sisters, right?¡± Rashta, realizing that Evely was being sarcastic, immediatelyughed coldly, ¡°Geez. I was wondering where the stone came from, it turned out to be a stone thrown by the former Empress.¡± ¡°The former Empress?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what you heard, but the situation is different now. The former Empress only had a marriage of convenience with His Majesty, she never wanted him. If it was that kind of rtionship, you could be my sister. But my marriage to His Majesty is for love, so of course you cannot be my sister.¡± ¡°How do you know Navier never felt anything for him?¡± ¡°I certainly know better than you do. I was with her much longer.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°So don¡¯t ever call me sister again. I don¡¯t want to hear that from you.¡± ¡°Sister, sister, sister, sister, sister, sister, sister.¡± As Evely said ¡®sister¡¯ consecutively in mockery, the veins in Rashta¡¯s temples tightened. Irritated, Rashta tried again to order Viscountess Verdi to take Evely away. But once more, something happened first. ¡°What disrespectful behavior is this!¡± This time, Rashta¡¯s fake parents appeared. They were also staying at the Southern Pce, and approached upon hearing amotion. When Viscount Isqua saw the girl, who had been the most talked abouttely, treating his daughter disrespectfully at the Southern Pce, he pounced angrily and pped Evely on the cheek. ¡°Insolent. How can amoner treat the Empress like that?!¡± At the sharp rebuke Evely¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. Viscountess Isqua also insulted Evely coldly. ¡°You are a bold and malicious concubine, don¡¯t act like you want to approach my daughter with such a foul mouth!¡± Evely¡¯s eyes, which had grown wide in surprise, narrowed coldly. Far from being depressed, Evely had a fierce look on her face. Viscount Isqua clicked his tongue in puzzlement bewilderment, ¡°Who are the parents of this rude girl? Well, if they had raised you right, you wouldn¡¯t have sold your body to be the emperor¡¯s concubine at your age.¡± Evely was angry, but Rashta was smiling happily. Unless they found their real daughter, Viscount and Viscountess Isqua were her parents no matter what. ¡°That¡¯s enough, father. That¡¯s enough, mother. No need to wear yourself out talking to someone like her.¡± Rashta quickly calmed her fake parents with an affectionate voice, pushing them both from behind to go with her elsewhere. Looking at their backs, Evely couldn¡¯t help but shed the tears she was holding back. For Evely, who grew up in an orphanage, the insults from Viscounts and Viscountess Isqua were extremely hurtful. ***Navier sent gifts to the High Priest, Princess Soju and others, implicitly revealing her personal connections. She also exchanged letters with other countries, including countries with which the Western Empire did not have a good rtionship. Navier¡¯s handpicked aides began working in her office, after which she advanced her work as Empress at a breakneck pace. When Navier¡¯s aides finished their first day¡¯s work, their colleagues approached them at the same time to ask, ¡°How did the famously renowned Empress Navier work?¡± The aides answered in unison. ¡°She¡¯s like a machine.¡± ¡°I was so curious that I stared at her face for 15 minutes, and she passed from one document to another without a single change in her expression.¡± Navier was already recognized for suppressing Marquis Ketron during the State Council. People were fascinated with the steel Empress they had only heard about. There was no one who hated the Empress for her good work. Unless it was an enemy. The most pleased with Navier¡¯s speed and ability to take care of her work was McKenna. ¡°Do you see this, Your Majesty? The document brought by one of the Empress¡¯s aides? It is the document for the institutional reorganization of the Empire. You just have to approve it for further implementation!¡± McKenna was jumping for joy, practically dancing. Bing an empire was an honor, but it also meant more work. But Heinley¡¯s expression was somber, even seeing McKenna¡¯s joy. McKenna kept showing his joy while pretending not to notice his expression, but eventually asked him worriedly. ¡°Why do you have that expression? Don¡¯t you like it? Don¡¯t you like me to be a little morefortable?¡± Heinley responded reluctantly because he knew McKenna would not stop insisting, ¡°A little. But it¡¯s not because of you, so don¡¯t worry.¡± ¡°Sure? Something happened?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°So if something happened... What is it? If it was work rted you would have told me right away... it is a personal matter, right?¡± Heinley clicked his tongue at McKenna¡¯s insightful words, but in the end quietly confessed his concern. ¡°I have a little problem. No, maybe not a little problem.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°My Queen...¡± ¡°The Empress?¡± ¡°I think she only loves my body.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a relief that she at least loves your body?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes narrowed at McKenna¡¯s cold words. ¡°I wonder if you¡¯ll say the same when you get married.¡± ¡°My path to marriage has already been blocked by Your Majesty. How could I get married when I don¡¯t even have time to go home?.¡± ¡°Why? Next to my brother Koshar, you are the most popr perfect son-inw these days.¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t even have time for the wedding.¡± McKenna spoke clearly as he snorted. Eventually, he gave Heinley some sincere advice without further sarcasm. ¡°For true love to emerge, you need to share moments together. Your Majesty and the Empress are always busy working during the day, perhaps you don¡¯t have much time to get close to each other?¡± If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 260 - Can You Handle It? (1) Chapter 260. Can You Handle It? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley intended to answer, ¡®you haven¡¯t even had a romantic rtionship,¡¯ no matter what he advised. But after hearing McKenna¡¯s words, it seemed quite reasonable. That was true. Both Heinley and Navier were too busy. Navier was so passionate about her work that she seemed addicted. Even a few days ago, shemitted the heinous act of bringing some work into the matrimonial bedroom. Heinley considered the matrimonial bedroom a space just for them, so that was really uneptable. He felt as if the country stood between Navier and himself. But the problem was that Heinley was busy too. He had meetings several times a day, and he had hundreds of reportsing in from different countries. He had dozens of official documents that needed to be signed urgently, and also things to prepare in secret. Otherwise, Navier would have found time to be with him no matter how busy she was. In fact, there were several asions when Navier visited during a break, but left when informed that Heinley was busy. Of course, he didn¡¯t know. Once Heinley muttered, ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± McKenna hastened to say, ¡°I think role-ying is necessary.¡± ¡°Oh. That¡¯s a good idea, but I don¡¯t think My Queen wants to do it yet...¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it about ¡®that¡¯?¡± ¡°You have a very lewd mind, Your Majesty. I mean creating a dangerous situation to save her. Men and women usually be closer that way.¡± At McKenna¡¯s words, Heinley realized that the role-ying he was thinking about was different from the one McKenna was talking about. Heinley finally understood what McKenna meant. This also seemed quite reasonable. But considering his secretary had never been in a romantic rtionship... ¡°Still, I can¡¯t deliberately put My Queen in a dangerous situation.¡± Heinley said firmly. It was good to get close, but it was horrible to put the person you love through a dangerous situation. However, he soon came up with a good n. ¡°Oh... I could be the one in a dangerous situation.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Finding me trembling in a pitiful state, my wife wille running to save me.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°She will see me as if I were a helpless puppy. She will be so moved that she will love me.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Huh, Huh, Huh... Stop it, McKenna. Take care of the preparations for the hunt. Just to go hunting with my wife and other close people.¡± * * * One evening after another usual busy day. ¡°Going hunting?¡± Heinley asked me as Iy on his chest at the same time he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me to his side. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s not a bigpetition. It¡¯s just a little fun to relieve stress¡± I stared at Heinley as I yed with his fingers. Heinley¡¯s skin was still soft and smooth. Come to think of it, he was at an age of full vigor. Both my brother and Sovieshu loved outdoor activities at this age, such as hunting, horseback riding, and so on. In contrast, Heinley was cooped up in the Imperial Pce working all the time. He seemed to exercise every day, but that wasn¡¯t enough.... ¡°Alright.¡± I agreed with a smile. I didn¡¯t like hunting, but I did like horseback riding. It would be nice to ride a horse again. ¡°The preparations for the hunt-¡± ¡°McKenna will do it. Don¡¯t worry, My Queen.¡± Suddenly, a cry like McKenna¡¯s echoed in my ears. Every time I saw him, heined about how busy he was. Is he going to be alright making preparations for the hunt...? I was a little worried, but I was also too busy to reach out to help. So I kept quiet. A few dayster, Heinley and I went together to a hunting ground near the Imperial Pce. The number of people who apanied us for the hunt was small. McKenna, Mastas, Countess Jubel, some nobles, Heinley¡¯s guards, the Transnational Knights, among a few others. Although it might seem that enough servants had been brought along for convenience, they were still few. Upon arriving at the hunting ground, the servants began setting up tents and making preparations to eat outdoors incredibly quickly. They also began to build a temporary storehouse to put the hunted animals in as one brought them in. Even before the tents were finished, all of us who were going to hunt mounted the horses. I mounted a white horse and lightly stroked its head. At first we all rode together. Rather than hunting, it was more like we were chatting on horseback. As prey appeared over time, the atmosphere changed to a hunt. Mastas was especially animated, and vowed to capture a bear as she wielded her spear. ¡°I have heard that bears do not live here, Miss Mastas.¡± ¡°Countess Jubel, bears live everywhere.¡± ¡°Hmm, that¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve heard that.¡± The other nobles happily expressed that they were going to hunt something, and the knights also seemed excited. In the midst of this, Heinley suddenly looked at Guard Captain Yunim and said, ¡°I want to go alone with my wife, so follow me at a distance.¡± ¡°It¡¯s dangerous, Your Majesty.¡± Yunim objected in surprise. But since Heinley didn¡¯t seem to give up, Yunim nced at me to stop him. Lately, Yunim¡¯s hostility toward me had greatly diminished. He was a little more polite than when I first met him. But before I could say anything, Heinley said firmly, ¡°It¡¯s not dangerous,¡± then looked at me and asked. ¡°Do you agree, My Queen?¡± I nodded in agreement. The hunting ground was notrge, and the guards would follow us from a distance anyway. Besides, I heard that since it was a hunting ground close to the imperial pce, there were no dangerous animals. If a dangerous animal came out to a private house, it would cause a bigmotion, so everything waspletely under control. It was not an overreaction for Countess Jubel to click her tongue when Mastas said earlier that she would hunt a bear. In the end, Yunim withdrew in dissatisfaction and Heinley asked me toe over. ¡°Okay.¡± I agreed with a smile and rode alongside Heinley. If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 261 - Can You Handle It? (2) Chapter 261. Can You Handle It? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The ride on horseback was pleasant. The sunlight fell through the leaves of the tall trees, and reflected finely on Heinley¡¯s hair. Every time Heinley smiled, he gave off a nature-like scent. I loved the way his hair fluttered in the wind. Every time our gazes met, he would smile to the point where his eyes curved. In those moments, I felt a tingle in my heart as if I was being stroked caressed with a feather. After a while, Heinley suddenly rode forward quickly on his own and said, ¡°Huh? There¡¯s something over there, My Queen.¡± I followed him despite being confused, but Heinley stopped his horse and smiled awkwardly. ¡°My Queen, I can go alone.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say there was something?¡± I asked as I pulled out the bow I had on my back that I hadn¡¯t been able to use until now. Heinley¡¯s eyes widened and he waved his hands. ¡°It¡¯s not that.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just... that I¡¯d like to go alone right now. It¡¯s a gift I want to give My Queen.¡± After he finished talking, Heinley rode quickly again, and asked me to follow him from a distance. What had he seen? Although it seemed strange to me, I did exactly as he asked. Just in case, I held the bow in my hands unstrained. As I looked around unable to see Heinley, I suddenly heard a scream not far away. It wasn¡¯t a loud scream, but it was definitely Heinley¡¯s voice. I turned my horse and headed in that direction in a hurry. Unexpectedly, Heinley was in a duel with a small, fluffy, little fox. A duel? Should it be called a duel? His horse was nowhere to be seen, and Heinley bared his teeth at the fox. Instead, the fox wagged his tail back and forth as if he were ying. When I got off the horse, the fox came running towards me like a deer, and acted cute again. He was a very affectionate fox. When I scratched his chin, he made a peculiar sound and wagged his tail while smiling like Heinley. It was cute... Heinley didn¡¯t like foxes? Why would he act that way with such a small, tame animal? When I looked at him puzzled, Heinley shouted hurriedly. ¡°My Queen, that fox is pretending to be tame right now!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious, It¡¯s cute on the outside, but in reality it¡¯s evil and wicked! It¡¯s dangerous!¡± As I stroked the fox¡¯s head, Heinley¡¯s voice gradually faded. When the fox approached Heinley docilely, he pretended to have suffered and said, ¡°My Queen, you saved me. You are my savior.¡± ¡°I did nothing.¡± ¡°Your very presence helped me.¡± It was suspicious. When I squinted slightly, Heinley suddenly grabbed one leg and said pretending to be in pain, ¡°Ow, ow! I think I fractured my leg falling off the horse, My Queen.¡± He fractured his leg falling off the horse? But he didn¡¯t have a scratch on the rest of his body? It was even more suspicious. However, since Heinley put his hand to his forehead and muttered feebly, ¡°I have a fever,¡± I first held him and helped him onto my horse. ¡°It reminds me of the past. Although it¡¯s not old enough a memory to call it that.¡± Heinley whispered as he hugged me tightly from behind. His voice was pleasant to listen to, but I frowned because the body temperature I felt as our bodies came into contact kept bothering me. He didn¡¯t seem to have a fever either. *** ¡°But why did you fight that fox?¡± McKenna clicked his tongue at Heinley, lying on a bed with a fake bandage and an unnecessary wet towel on his forehead. Even in the eyes of the pce doctor, Heinley had no injury, despite the well-ced bandage. Heinley responded in disgust. ¡°As much as I waited, the only animals that showed up were foxes and squirrels. There was no point in fighting a squirrel, right?¡± ¡°Ugh. Still, how could you fight that fox?¡± ¡°Why ignore a fox?¡± ¡°It all depends on the type of fox. We¡¯re talking about that cheerful little fox, right? That fox that¡¯s so cute that no one would let go? That fox who has a mind as big as Your Majesty¡¯s?¡± Heinley shut his mouth angrily. He was upset because the dramatic scene he had created didn¡¯t work at all. Besides, McKenna was speaking so inconsiderately that he wanted to press his lips together and shake them hard from side to side. Noticing his expression, McKenna clicked his tongue and reluctantly encouraged him. Still, Her Majesty took care of you, right? She even praised your cute performance. ¡°Don¡¯t point it out. That¡¯s the problem, the praise!¡± He acted desperate, but was immediately caught by the person who wanted him to love him. Inevitably he felt embarrassed. Unable to bear the embarrassment, Heinley crawled under the covers. He looked like a turtle with his head hidden, so McKenna shook his head. Just then, the door opened softly and McKenna turned his head. The one who opened the door and poked her head in slightly was Navier. Navier raised an eyebrow at the lumpy nkets and silently mouthed, ¡°Heinley?¡± When McKenna smiled awkwardly and nodded, Navier cautiously entered the room. Then she looked coldly at Heinley, who was under the nkets. Navier¡¯s expression was so terrifying that McKenna discreetly stepped aside. He didn¡¯t want to be swept away by the storm. *** Why is he so embarrassed after doing something so cute? I looked at Heinley, who also looked cute wrapped in the nkets, and McKenna wisely hurried out. Hearing the sound of the door closing, I sat up in the bed and leaned over the lumpy nkets. ¡°Stop bothering, McKenna.¡± At that moment, I heard a faint murmur under the nkets. Holding back augh, I leaned even closer, the body under the nkets twisted and I heard a sullen voice again. ¡°What nerve you¡¯ve got, McKenna. Stop it at once.¡± At the moment I was about to say, ¡®it¡¯s me¡¯ because of how cute he looked. ¡°You¡¯re heavy, so get off me.¡± ¡°!¡± Heinley ¡®repeated¡¯ those words. Even though I got off him, Heinley still wouldn¡¯t get out from under the nkets, as if he really thought McKenna was the one who pushed on him. Insolent eagle, he¡¯d told me twice that I was heavy, did he really think I was heavy? I once asked Heinley worriedly if I was heavy when I was on top of his body at night. At first, he replied, ¡®You are as light as a feather.¡¯ But after repeatedly asking him to be honest because he was evidently lying, Heinley replied, ¡®It¡¯s just a pleasant feeling of presence,¡¯ pulled my body to his and hugged me. Then Iid all over him, and he mumbled that he was fine incessantly. I thought it was true. But... What? You¡¯re heavy, so get off me?!! *** If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 262 - Christa’s Gamble (1) Chapter 262. Christa¡¯s Gamble (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Christa was currently in a difficult situation because of a rumor circting in high society. Originally, Christa used to have a very good reputation in high society. She was kind and careful with her words, as well as modest, despite being the queen. After her husband brought in other women, sympathy for her grew, and the nobles admired her for standing firm. After her husband died, opinions were divided in two. One half felt sorry that she had lost her position as queen at such a young age, and the other half criticized her staying in the imperial pce. However, those who criticized her also agreed that her situation was unfortunate. Ever since she became queen, she had been worried about not having children, worried about her husband¡¯s concubines, worried about Prince Heinley¡¯s reputation, and suddenly she was forced to leave her position as queen. But after the wedding reception, a strange rumor began to circte that had undermined her reputation. ¨C Christa and His Majesty Heinley are having an affair. Nobles tended to be tolerant of having concubines, but they had their own standards. Was she having an affair with her husband¡¯s brother? This was something that horrified the nobility. As the matter seemed to turn serious, ady-in-waiting to Christa spoke up awkwardly. ¡°Queen, I think it best for now to go to Compshire and observe the situation. Of course it¡¯s a false rumor, but at a time like this, it doesn¡¯t hurt to be cautious.¡± Go to Compshire? Christa¡¯s expression quickly stiffened at herdy-in-waiting¡¯s suggestion. She didn¡¯t want to. She would have afortable life in Compshire, but she would be treatedpletely differently, as if her moment had passed. Even her close circle would be disced, being considered ¡®the past generation¡¯. Including family and friends. Going to Compshire was to hand over all power to Navier, making Christa a trace of the past. In other words, Navier would be ahead while she would stay behind waiting for her trace to disappear. ¡°Isn¡¯t it just a rumor? Besides, it also affects His Majesty Heinley, why am I the only one who should avoid it?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true... but the Emperor has always had a bad image...¡± ¡°Instead, no one had that image of the queen, so it¡¯s even more surprising.¡± Christa was saddened. Divorced Navier got a handsome new husband, how could she, who was still in mourning, be treated like that? Besides, she was not much older than Navier. At simr ages, it was very painful for one to have new hope, while the other is to be the dreary past. Christa¡¯s sad expression made herdies-in-waiting nearly cry along with her. Christa stared nkly at the picture on the wall in the distance. After a long time. Christa finally came to a conclusion. She had made a firm decision. ¡°Going now to Compshire would mean to ept the end of my life. I will stay there waiting for my death without any purpose.¡± ¡°Queen! No, absolutely not!¡± ¡°As long as that rumor circtes, nothing will change if I go to Compshire. The rumor will follow me. If I leave as if I were running away, the rumor could grow stronger.¡± Speaking in a calm voice, Christa clutched her skirt and lowered her gaze. What she nned to do now would be very risky. But she didn¡¯t want to lose everything without doing anything. At least she wanted to fight. Under half-closed eyelids, her eyes shone brightly. ¡°Since it hase to this, I must take advantage of the rumor.¡± *** In the evening, instead of going to the matrimonial bedroom, I put all the papers on the desk in my room and went to work. I was having a hard time concentrating because my mind kept going to the matrimonial bedroom, but right now I found Heinley so frustrating that I didn¡¯t want to see his face. Although my thoughts were divided, I tried to concentrate as much as possible on my work. Fortunately, I gradually regained my concentration. But suddenly, I heard a knock from the door of the matrimonial bedroom. The only ones allowed in that bedroom were Heinley and me, so it was definitely Heinley. Instead of answering, I deliberately flipped the paper over as I dipped the pen into the inkwell. Still, he kept knocking on the door. ¨C Knock-knock, knock-knock-knock, knock-knock-knock-knock, knock-knock-knock-knock-knock... Far from stopping, he began to knock rhythmically. Want to see who wins? I definitely won¡¯t open the door. Let him do what he wants. I snorted and grabbed the pen again. But it was hard to ignore that noise while working. Eventually, I grabbed the papers and crept out of my room, moving to the spare room across the corridor. The spare rooms were rarely used, but they were kept clean and had desks to use. I ced the papers on the desk and sat in the chair. However, since there was a great distance between the desk and the door, I also found it difficult to concentrate because I felt nervous with my back to the door. I had no choice but to move closer to the door. When I put a cushion by the door and sat on it, I finally felt a little at ease. After cing the papers in myp and opening the door a little carefully, I felt even more at ease. Good, so I can find out if Heinleyes out of his room. ¡°...¡± But no matter how long I waited, Heinley didn¡¯te out. Could he... still be knocking on the door? I couldn¡¯t hear anything from here, so I had no way of knowing. As I looked through the papers I felt a strange worry. What if he knocks on the door for so long that he fractures his hand? Or tore his skin? That moment I collected all my papers, and opened the door to return to my room. ¡°!¡± My heart skipped a beat when I saw Heinley standing in front of the door. When did hee out? Wasn¡¯t I attentive at all times? Looking at him in bewilderment, Heinley murmured with a distressed expression, ¡°Do you detest me so much, My Queen? So much as to run all the way out here?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t run away, I had too much work to do...¡± As I tried to exin why I was here, something came up inside me. Why didn¡¯t I go into the matrimonial bedroom? If Iined, ¡®You said I was heavy,¡¯ I would look like a little girl obsessed with trivial things. In the end, I hesitated before making up an excuse with another intention, ¡°You injured yourself falling off the horse. I assumed in that state you would be ufortable with me lying next to you.¡± ¡°My Queen. You know nothing happened to me, you¡¯re doing it on purpose, right? Are you teasing me?¡± ¡°Think first who started teasing.¡± I said sharply, turned around and headed for my room. Heinley followed me and insisted. ¡°I¡¯m sorry for my poor acting. I just wanted to get My Queen¡¯s attention, even if it was like that.¡± I really... wanted to smack and kiss that mouth. Why was he talking so cute? When I stared at his mouth, Heinley hesitated and quickly added, ¡°Of course, that doesn¡¯t mean I didn¡¯t do anything wrong.¡± ¡°Obviously.¡± ¡°Are you very angry, My Queen?¡± ¡°Not that much. Besides, it wasn¡¯t your poor acting that made me feel offended.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Think about it carefully. Though I don¡¯t know if your conscience will be as heavy as I am.¡± ¡°!¡± * * * If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 263 - Christa’s Gamble (2) Chapter 263. Christa¡¯s Gamble (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren McKenna was happy because his main workload had decreased since Navier joined the workforce. Navier was now taking over many of the tasks, which McKenna had been temporarily in charge of. However, Navier¡¯s addition to the work team also brought about something bad, which ironically was a ¡®dy in work¡¯ because of Heinley. After the wedding to Navier, Heinley often fell into ¡®personal worries¡¯, at which time his productivity drastically decreased. Whenever that happened, McKenna was also forced to slow down his work pace. Just like now, ¡°McKenna, I have a question.¡± ¡°Again. What is it, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Again? Again?¡± When Heinley narrowed his eyes, McKenna covered his mouth slightly with a fist and squeaked, ¡°cheep,¡± pretending to be cute. In a way, he did it to evoke his bird-like appearance, but it was terrible to do it in front of his cousin at his age. Although McKenna was handsome, in Heinley¡¯s eyes he was just a distinguished friend. The human by nature was a forgetful, self-indulgent animal. Heinleypletely forgot that he was also deliberately acting like a cute bird in front of Queen and became annoyed, ¡°You¡¯re a real pain sometimes, you know that?¡± ¡°... What do you want? I¡¯m busy. His Majesty hasn¡¯t approved anything for 45 minutes, so I¡¯m really busy right now.¡± ¡°If I haven¡¯t approved anything, shouldn¡¯t you be freer?¡± ¡°It¡¯s my mind! My mind is overloaded! Please approve something!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do that after I ask you a very important question.¡± ¡°Needless to say, this is a question about the Empress. What is it about?¡± When McKenna asked resignedly, Heinley shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s about you.¡± ¡°Are you going to let me go so I can get married?¡± ¡°Remember when I curled up in bed?¡± ¡°When?¡± ¡°After My Queen found out I was acting. When I crawled under the covers in shame.¡± ¡°Ah... Yes. That time.¡± ¡°You got on top of me?¡± ¡°Why would I do something so distasteful?¡± When McKenna responded with disgust, Heinley paled and asked. ¡°McKenna. By any chance, did My Queene to see me that day?¡± McKenna raised his eyebrows. That day, seeing Navier¡¯s cold expression, which seemed poised for a couple¡¯s fight, he discreetly left the room. He didn¡¯t ask about what happened afterwards. He didn¡¯t want to get involved in a couple¡¯s fight. Until now, McKenna had naturally assumed that Heinley had spoken to Navier. However, Heinley didn¡¯t even know she had been there... ¡°Yes. Why do you ask? What really happened?¡± At McKenna¡¯s response, Heinley screamed covering his face with both hands. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± McKenna startled and craned his neck to look at Heinley¡¯s expression hidden under his hands. He looked very distressed. ¡°Why? What happened? You thought it was me and you got angry?¡± ¡°Being squished, I naturally assumed it was you and...¡± ¡°And?¡± ¡°I said you were heavy.¡± McKenna cocked his head. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that?¡± Heinley looked at McKenna in disbelief. McKenna didn¡¯t really seem to know what the problem was. ¡°My Queen hates that word. I think she¡¯s mad at me for it.¡± ¡°What? Why?¡± McKenna¡¯s eyes grew wide and he asked again not understanding the reason. ¡°You only told her that she was heavy because she really seemed heavy to you, why would she get angry?¡± But as soon as he finished speaking, he heard a low voice behind him and felt chills. ¡°I see. If it¡¯s the truth, a woman can¡¯t get angry because she¡¯s told she¡¯s heavy. So you think I¡¯m really heavy, are you also curious why I got angry, Heinley?¡± McKenna slowly looked back. Navier was standing in the doorway with a bright smile. In an instant, her expression turned fiercely cold. It seemed that at first contact, icicles would shoot out. *** Ignoring the two men¡¯s stiff expressions, I walked in and said coolly, ¡°I have something to deliver.¡± Then, I extended the papers I had to McKenna. McKenna took the papers nervously, walked over to Heinley andid them on his desk. ¡°My Queen!¡± It was then that Heinley stood up hastily and smiled. He wanted to use his handsome face and lovely smile to cover up his mistakes. I smiled indifferently at him and pointed at the papers. I was going to quickly say what I had in mind. Truth be told, I wasn¡¯t so angry that I didn¡¯t want to look at him. Compared to the times Rashta called me sister, and Sovieshu med me for everything rted to Rashta, this was nothing. But before I could speak, ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Yunim suddenly appeared at the office door and called Heinley. As I turned around, I noticed he had a worried expression, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Heinley also stopped looking embarrassed in front of me and asked with an emperor-like expression. Is something really going on? Yunim answered with great difficulty, ¡°Christa is here.¡± Heinley frowned and ordered. ¡°Ask first what brings her here.¡± Then he examined my gaze. I set aside my half-joking cool attitude and lightly put my hand on his shoulder. Even though she came on her own, Heinley hadn¡¯t stopped looking at me since Christa was mentioned. I wanted to tell him it was okay. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± However, Yunim spoke with an even more concerned expression than before. ¡°I think you should receive her, Your Majesty.¡± What¡¯s wrong? Yunim¡¯s expression was unusual. I nodded to Heinley as a sign of, ¡®It¡¯s alright, let her in.¡¯ Heinley frowned, but eventually allowed Christa to enter. After a while, Christa came in with Marquis Ketron. But there was definitely something strange going on. She seemed to have overlooked her outfit. Her dress was darker than usual, and she had no essories. Her hair wasn¡¯t really done either, it was tied in a simple way. What was even stranger was that Yunim was staring at me with a very sorry expression. What was happening? Yunim¡¯s expression, Christa¡¯s appearance, and Marquis Ketron¡¯s angry look. I had a bad feeling. Christa looked at me, but just spoke to Heinley without even a greeting, ¡°Your Majesty, could I speak to you alone for a moment?¡± ¡°Sorry, sister-inw.¡± Heinley tly refused, and secretly signaled me not to leave. I had no intention of leaving anyway, so I stepped closer to Heinley and looked at Marquis Ketron. Marquis Ketron¡¯s angry look was too annoying. It was an angry look, but ... why did it seem so fake? He was like a good but inexperienced actor trying to show off his acting skills to the fullest on stage. As if she knew this would happen, Christa said with a bitter smile. ¡°I see. Then I¡¯ll tell you here. I¡¯vee with a proposal.¡± Proposal? ¡°A proposal?¡± For a moment, Christa stopped talking and held her breath. Instantly, the entire office was thrown into a strange tension. I had a hunch that something terrible woulde out of Christa¡¯s mouth. In that dry atmosphere, Christa spoke slowly, ¡°Take me as your concubine.¡± Her words sshed like cold water in the dry office. Everything became silent. A total silence. No one spoke. I was also very surprised. This... was an unexpected proposal. Concubine? She wanted to be his concubine? From Heinley¡¯s face, he seemed not to believe what he had heard. Christa, who surprised everyone, had aplicated expression. I couldn¡¯t even imagine what she was thinking. Her words were beyond mymon sense. ¡°Sister-inw, I think I misheard.¡± After the silence, Heinley spoke coldly with an impassive face. A face that showed not a trace of emotion. But even in the face of his cold attitude, Christa didn¡¯t back down, ¡°It¡¯s not a bad proposal. My family and I will help you stabilize the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Sister-inw.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression darkened. ¡±Your family has a duty to help stabilize the Western Empire as nobles of this country.¡± Christa asked with a grim smile. ¡±Your Majesty, surely you must have heard of the rumor circting between you and I recently, right?¡± After bringing up her own scandal, she tightly grasped Marquis Ketron¡¯s arm and stared at Heinley in a pitiful manner. ¡°I keep thinking of Your Majesty, as people murmur.¡± ¡°Sister-inw!¡± As if he didn¡¯t want to hear any more, Heinley covered his ears and ordered Yunim. ¡°Yunim! Get my sister-inw out of here.¡± Yunim hurriedly approached, but Marquis Ketron stopped Yunim. Christa smiled as she looked at Heinley. As if all this fuss had nothing to do with her. ¡°I know, Your Majesty doesn¡¯t think of me. But even if it was just once, Your Majesty epted me, right?¡± ¡°Sister-inw!¡± ¡°We certainly had a secret meeting, and manydies witnessed it. Because of that fact, my dignified image and reputation was ruined. If no one had witnessed it, I would keep it as a one-night dream, but in this situation, there is no way around it. We are adults. Your Majesty and I must take responsibility for what happened that night.¡± If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 264 - The Possessive Attitude Begins To Appear In Silence (1) Chapter 264. The Possessive Attitude Begins To Appear In Silence (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ording to Rose, high society literally turned upside down. The nobles, who had been whispering about the secret meeting between Heinley and Christa, were stunned to learn that Christa openly asked him to make her his concubine. It was hard for them to understand this unusual move by Christa. I too found it difficult to fully understand her intent. But if I had to guess... ¡°She must have felt that she couldn¡¯t escape the scandal even if she went to Compshire.¡± If she went to Compshire now, it would give the impression that she was on the run, which might be frowned upon by the nobles. She had no way to escape the scandal no matter what she did, so she chose to break through head-on. Perhaps, Christa was trying to gamble everything on this move. ¡°Still, I can¡¯t believe she¡¯s clinging to the Emperor¡¯s ankles! She¡¯s wicked!¡± Mastas believed that Heinley was definitely not that kind of person, and was furious to learn of the rumor. In contrast, Laura and Countess Jubel spoke ill of Christa, but reserved their opinion on Heinley. They pretended to believe Heinley because I stood up for him, but after everything Sovieshu had done to me, they actually thought Christa¡¯s words might be true. They seemed concerned that Christa would be the second Rashta and Heinley the second Sovieshu. ¡°What¡¯s even funnier, Your Majesty, is that Christa¡¯s entire family decided to support that farce.¡± ¡°They had no choice.¡± If Christa was found to be lying her family would be humiliated along with her, so no wonder they took this position. After mydies-in-waiting left, Heinley came to my room and swore in a calm voice with trembling eyes. ¡°My Queen. I swear. Nothing happened.¡± ¡°Of course, I believe you.¡± I never doubted him. After calming Heinley down, I asked him to find a way to solve this problem. But I had no intention of sitting idly by. I didn¡¯t expect to use this so soon.... I went to my desk and pressed a small button inside. When I pressed this button, a secret space the size of a drawer appeared, here.... Here it is. It was a list I had received from Grand Duke Kapmen. Although somedies-in-waiting had remained by her side out of affection, I was sure there were those who wanted to stop working for her. With this in mind, I once asked Grand Duke Kapmen to investigate Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting. This list was the result. A list of Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting, their families, their usual dissatisfactions, their degree of loyalty to Christa, and so on. I put the list on the desk. And from the list, I chose those who had little loyalty and were dissatisfied with the current situation. After choosing them, I ordered mydies-in-waiting to bring them in secretly. ¡°No matter what Christa does, she won¡¯t be able to regain the lost power she has already lost.¡± They had been called without knowing the reason, so I repeated to them what they used to think, what they feared most; ¡°Christa has no children, so it makes no sense for her to target His Majesty and me. Surely she will not receive too severe a punishment for what she did being the former queen. But will you be able to enjoy the same glory as you do now? Besides, what will your families and children think?¡± Thedies-in-waiting shuddered. Originally, I had only intended to arouse their fears, but the results appeared all at once. Still, there were Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting for whom loyalty was more important than anything else, but of course those I didn¡¯t call. ¡°Think carefully, if you change your mind,e to the next State Council and reveal the truth.¡± I deliberately spoke calmly, then stood up and added, ¡°You don¡¯t need to lie, nor is that what I want. You just need to tell the truth about where Christa really was at the time she ims to have had a secret meeting with His Majesty.¡± *** While Navier investigated and called herdies-in-waiting to disprove Christa¡¯s im, Heinley called on Old Duke Zemensia, Christa¡¯s father. Old Duke already had a severe headache from his daughter¡¯s shocking statement. When Heinley called him in the middle of this, the old Duke assumed he would be up to no good and came with a stiff face. Even if she had caused this trouble, she was still his daughter. Old Duke intended to defend Christa no matter what Heinley said. For the sake of Christa, his family, and himself. It would not be easy to confront the emperor, who was known to be a cunning man, but the Old Duke was confident in his vast experience. He was sure he would not hesitate, whatever cards the young emperor used. But as he entered the room, and saw Heinley sitting casually on afortable couch, the old duke sensed that this confrontation would not be easy. ¡®He must be bluffing.¡¯ The old duke hated Heinley¡¯s free spirit, so he tried to turn his thoughts around. But as he sat down, Heinley stared at him with a smile, making him feel ufortable. ¡°You called me, Your Majesty.¡± Still, the old duke greeted him as politely as possible. But Heinley got straight to the point, ignoring the old duke¡¯s greeting. ¡°Is there really any need to pretend with me?¡± ¡°What do you mean...¡± The old duke knew at once what Heinley meant, but avoided it and raised his heavy eyelids to look at Heinley. Heinley was still sitting on the couch nonchntly. As was the smile on his lips. Rather, the smile deepened at the old duke¡¯s evasiveness. Heinley asked politely again. ¡°She may manage to save her honor right now, but what about what happens next? Will she be able to handle the consequences?¡± His tone was kind, but the content was threatening. The old duke stopped evading him, smiled, and replied by also pretending to be kind. ¡°On the contrary, you will lose the position of emperor if you can¡¯t handle the consequences.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°Your reputation will be affected by this, but Christa openly said that she would take her responsibility. So she dered that she would be your concubine even though she had been the queen. This is a brave act. However, Your Majesty refuses to take responsibility along with Christa. How do you think people will see this?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not good for either side, but the side that takes responsibility is better off... that¡¯s what you mean.¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯m exaggerating? If you throw Christa out, or use this as an excuse to harm those around her, Your Majesty¡¯s reputation will inevitably suffer. You¡¯ve already taken a married woman from another country as your wife, right?¡± Monarchs cared about their reputation. Heinley chuckled, then straightened his crossed legs. However, in his eyes there was no hint of fear or anger. Instead, he stared at the Old Duke with a raised chin. ¡°You don¡¯t seem to understand, Old Duke. My reputation is already garbage in that sense. It can¡¯t fall much further.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°No matter what I do, all I hear is garbage this or garbage that. So the question here is. What do you think people will say when I start taking down the Zemensia Family, the Ketron Family, and other rted families? Aren¡¯t you curious?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes curved slightly. ¡°I am very curious.¡± The old duke ground his teeth. ¡°Are you threatening me?¡± Heinley replied, a smile reflected even in his eyes. ¡°Think what you like.¡± *** If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 265 - The Possessive Attitude Begins To Appear In Silence (2) Chapter 265. The Possessive Attitude Begins To Appear In Silence (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren An official contract was required to be the emperor¡¯s concubine. In principle, it was only the emperor who could write this concubine contract of his own free will, but as it was a delicate matter, Christa¡¯s case had been referred to the State Council. Unexpectedly, Heinley agreed all too easily to take Christa¡¯s case to the State Council. Could it be because he was prepared? In any case, several nobles, officials, and I attended the meeting. Even Christa. Christa was dressed neatly in ck, as if she were at a funeral. Heinley had a sullen expression beside me, but when the meeting began, he became so calm that I could not read his expression. The officials expressed different positions, That it hase to Christa having to be his concubine, that this matter was ridiculous, that even if there was something between Christa and Heinley a concubine contract could not be made, among others... However, since severaldies saw Christa and Heinley together at the wedding reception, most seemed to believe Christa. Although it was strange that Old Duke Zemensia remained silent when it was about his daughter, everything went as expected. I knew how much this situation affected Heinley, but he acted throughout the meeting as if he didn¡¯t care. It hurt me to see him like this, but I decided not tofort Heinley in front of those present. This matter had not yet been resolved, if those present saw mefort Heinley, they would think I was trying to provoke Christa. Heinley acted like he didn¡¯t care because I had asked him to beforehand. I could tell that he really ¡®acted like he cared¡¯ rather than ¡®didn¡¯t care¡¯ because he wouldn¡¯t stop ruffling his hair and looking into my eyes. In any case, I had to wait until everyone was fired up to definitely turn the situation around, so I waited like a crouching beast about to attack. I considered that that moment would be when the criticism against Heinley would increase the most. A few days ago, two of Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting informed me that they would testify. When I gave the signal, the two would step forward and let everyone know that Christa was not with Heinley on the night in question. ¡°The former king directly asked Emperor Heinley to protect Christa. It was even hisst will on his deathbed, but Emperor Heinley disrespected his sister-inw right after he got married!¡± ¡°What are you trying to say?! Watch your words, Marquis Ketron!¡± ¡°Then I should say that it was not a disrespect, rather an honor?¡± As I was about to give the signal, a foreignnguage that was difficult to understand was heard. It was thenguage of Rwibt. At the sudden foreignnguage, the officials who argued loudly fell silent at the same time. Everyone turned their heads towards the ce where the voice came from. As those present looked on in silence, Grand Duke Kapmen slowly walked to the center. I looked at him in bewilderment. Although I used the list he gave me to contact Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting, I did not ask him to help me in this. It was unexpected that the Grand Duke would show up now. But the surprising part started here. ¡°I tried not to meddle in other countries¡¯ affairs as much as possible, but since this is also my business, I must intervene.¡± ¡°Is it also the Grand Duke¡¯s business? What are you talking about?¡± At this point I became slightly nervous. Is he thinking of revealing the whole truth? But in the current situation, this truth was even worse. Talking about the ¡®love potion¡¯ would stimte the imagination of those present. Unconsciously, I also nervously awaited his words. ¡°Emperor Heinley was with me that night.¡± ¡°!¡± However, Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s words were urate. He only took advantage of what happened. ¡°Really? Grand Duke Kapmen, aren¡¯t you lying to make yourself look good in the eyes of the Emperor? Marquis Ketron asked coldly, but Grand Duke Kapmen actually lied quite calmly. ¡°Many people must have seen me leave the ballroom with His Majesty that day. I don¡¯t know if His Majesty met Christa as I went elsewhere for a moment, but¡ª¡± The Grand Duke nced at Christa before continuing, ¡°I then met with His Majesty again to discuss the trade.¡± He seemed to have read Christa¡¯s mind and determined with certainty that they parted ways after a moment. The fact that Grand Duke Kapmen left the ballroom with Heinley was something that many witnessed. Even those on Christa¡¯s side recognized this part. Of course, that did not change their opinion about what happenedter between Heinley and Christa. However, Grand Duke Kapmen himself stepped forward and imed that he had been with Heinley the entire time. Christa¡¯s face darkened as she watched the situation without saying a word. She also didn¡¯t know where Heinley had gone after the meeting between them, so she also seemed to wonder if this was true. Oh my. Come to think of it, Grand Duke Kapmen had met Rashta. If the first person he saw after drinking the love potion was Rashta, then Grand Duke Kapmen hadn¡¯t met anyone else before. Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s whereabouts were unknown, so he took advantage of that. Rashta, who knew that Grand Duke Kapmen was not with Heinley the whole time, was not here. In any case, it went well. Quickly, I winked at Christa¡¯s twodies-in-waiting to step forward. The twodies-in-waiting immediately walked to the center. But they were not just two. There were three otherdies-in-waiting. No way. Did they change their minds? As the number increased more than expected, I felt ufortable. Even though the five were thedies-in-waiting I called to testify... there was still a possibility that they might choose to defend Christa at thest moment. At that instant, I clenched my fist nervously. ¡°Christa came back early that day.¡± Thedies-in-waiting who stepped forward said what I was waiting for. ¡®Good!¡¯ I shouted inwardly. ¡°She didn¡¯t look good when she returned to her room. She didn¡¯t look like someone who would have enjoyed a secret meeting.¡± ¡°She went back out about two hourster.¡± ¡°But she didn¡¯t take long toe back, then she stayed in the room.¡± Even the other threedies-in-waiting were all quick to talk about the events of that day. McKenna smiled and gave thest blow to Marquis Ketron. ¡°While Christa was outside, His Majesty was meeting with his secretaries. As I exined earlier.¡± ¡°...¡± Marquis Ketron immediately looked at Heinley with a twisted face, but Heinley¡¯s expression was hard to read. Heinley remained that way throughout the meeting, rather than defending himself. When the ce fell silent, all attention naturally turned to Christa. Christa was pale, but still held her head up proudly. *** The next day in the office, one of my aides approached me and gave me the news that Christa had left for Compshire. I nodded quietly and I continued with what I was doing. I felt my aide looking at me strangely, but I deliberately kept an inexpressive face. Though inwardly I sighed in relief several times. Christa¡¯s gamble over this scandal ended up forcing her to leave, but if things had gone as she nned, my Heinley would have carried the stigma of having seduced his sister-inw. Just thinking about it made my heart shudder. As soon as I met Heinley at dinner time, I hugged him around the neck tightly. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°... You¡¯re mine.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I put my head on his shoulder and caught his scent. It was so familiar andforting that it calmed my heartbeat a little. ¡°My Queen, you¡¯re not angry anymore?¡± Taking advantage of the asion, the sly bird asked, with a smile, to know if everything was now all right. Rather than answer, I kissed him. If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 266 - How Long Will Love Last? (1) Chapter 266. How Long Will Love Last? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren It was only a small kiss. But in the blink of an eye, he had wildly taken control of the situation. Before I knew it I was on his thighs, before I knew it I was lying on the table and before I knew it Heinley was under me... I was out of breath. Seeing his neck covered with red marks all over, I thought I had gone crazy. As soon as Heinley noticed where my gaze was going, he smiled and teased me. ¡°I thought I heard that we weren¡¯t supposed to leave marks where they could be seen?¡± My student, who used to leave a hundred marks on me before he noticed the first one, seemed to be fully conscious despite kissing me intensely. As he caressed my ears naughtily, I tried to rise from his chest, but he wrapped his arms around me and pulled me closer to him. ¡°Sorry. You can leave the marks, so keep going.¡± Running my fingers over his nose, lips, and neck, I shook my head and stood up. ¡°We haven¡¯t had dinner yet.¡± ¡°Do you want dinner now?¡± ¡°Get up.¡± Taking his hand to help him up, Heinley said he¡¯d go wash his face first. Heinley appeared after a while with a downcast expression as I sat at the table. I found it funny, but I didn¡¯t tease him. I could somewhat understand how Heinley felt. ¡°My Queen, sometimes you seem like a yful god who holds me in her palm just to watch my reaction. Do you know that?¡± ¡°If the High Priest could hear you, he woulde at once to break up the marriage.¡± Although it hadn¡¯t been much of a joke, Heinley burst intoughter. As I wiped my mouth with a napkin and stared at him, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a little silly. I liked that heughed at my joke. Few people understood and reacted to my jokes. Feeling better, a smile arose naturally. ¡°My Queen. What you said... earlier, can you repeat it?¡± ¡°If the High Priest could hear you, he woulde at once to break up the marriage.¡± ¡°No, not that.¡± This time I wasn¡¯t really joking. Heinley burst intoughter again. His shoulders shook as he pressed his fist to his lips, and his eyes curved into a crescent shape. ¡°I meant before the kiss.¡± I guess he meant that I mumbled, ¡®You¡¯re mine¡¯. I hastily picked up the fork and lightly stirred the peas. I said it for the excitement of the moment. I was embarrassed to say it consciously. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember...¡± ¡°You said that I was yours.¡± Oh, very kind of him. Heinley, who had voluntarily refreshed my memory, again insisted. ¡°Now that I¡¯ve reminded you, tell me.¡± How hard could it be to repeat those words? But seeing his eyes so bright, it was really hard for me to tell him. As I stirred the peas again in embarrassment, Heinley changed the direction of the question. ¡°Now are you ready to ept my heart?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°But I do think it¡¯s not good to stay in a rtionship with someone you don¡¯t want...¡± I was going to say I wasn¡¯t feeling well. But before that, our gazes met. Heinley seemed to be pleased with this remark alone. He smiled broadly, he must have interpreted my words as a positive sign. Seeing that cute expression, I was really genuinely curious. I hadn¡¯t even been particrly nice to him. How had I gotten such a man for a husband? However... I smiled slightly at him and turned my attention back to the peas. I think Heinley loves me. It was impossible not to notice by the way he looked at me and acted. But it was hard for me to imagine that Heinley would be unconditional forever. I¡¯m sorry, but I didn¡¯t believe in longsting love, let alone eternal love. It would be easy to ept Heinley¡¯s heart. I was already filled with his love. The bouquet he gave me grew bigger every day to the point where I could barely see the precipice in front of me. One step. Just one more step, and I would fall madly in love with him. But after that what would happen next? The higher, no doubt, the more painful the fall would be. Heinley¡¯s love was so sweet that the end would be even more bitter. It would be iparably more painful than it had been with Sovieshu. It wasn¡¯t right to hold onto the wish that he would love only me for the rest of his life. It was better to prepare for the worst. So it was better to keep some distance now. Keeping a distance will make it not too painful if you fall in love with someone else. Christa was a good example. She had been smart enough to get the support of many nobles, but in the end, she ended up destroying herself for love. Even if she hated me, Christa wouldn¡¯t have expressed it if she hadn¡¯t loved Heinley. Rather than making me a bitter enemy, she would have used thest will of the former king as a shield, clinging to the position of the pitiful former queen. I didn¡¯t want to go through that. * * * If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 267 - How Long Will Love Last? (2) Chapter 267. How Long Will Love Last? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°What¡¯s going through your pretty head?¡± Heinley stared at Navier as she slept. At dinner, she looked so cute as she stirred the peas that he wanted to memorize that scene and treasure it. Now she had a really serious expression. She was definitely not thinking of anything good. Heinley was very curious whenever Navier made that expression. What was she thinking? Why did she have such a serious expression? He lightly kissed Navier on her cheek, ear, and temple as she slept. Then he rubbed his forehead against her shoulder. ¡°I love you.¡± He whispered softly in her ear, but didn¡¯t get an answer. ¡°I love you.¡± Still, Heinley whispered in her ear. Anyway, if she were awake she wouldn¡¯t give him an answer either. It wasn¡¯t awkward at all. ¡°I wish to upy your heart, even for just a day.¡± Heinleyid his ear against her chest. The beat of her heart was veryforting. This time, he raised his left hand and ced it over his own heart. His heart was beating a mile a minute. Heinley chuckled quietly. ¡°So, can My Queen believe in my heart too?¡± He lightly kissed Navier¡¯s shoulder and, unfortunately, had to get out of bed. He wanted to stay in bed next to her, but he had work to do. After covering her with the sheets, he kissed Navier onest time on the cheek and quietly left the matrimonial bedroom. Mastas, who was yawning while leaning against the corridor wall, adjusted her posture with sleepy eyes. ¡°Your Majesty, you sent for me?¡± ¡°Have you rested welltely?¡± Heinley asked with a smile, and went downstairs without even hearing an answer. After a while, they arrived at the office where the lights were off. The knight of the imperial guard guarding the ce immediately turned on the lights and opened the door. Mastas continued to act like a noblewoman without etiquette, yawning or stretching her back. However, once the door was closed, she immediately straightened her posture and stared at Heinley. There were also many loyal knights in the imperial guard, but Heinley¡¯s rtionship with the Underground Knights was more special. Heinley trusted the Underground Knights, he had formed and raised since he was a prince, more than the imperial guards. This trust was often reflected in secret orders. That was precisely the case now. Heinley sat down at his desk and asked, ¡°Mastas. Do you know about the incident with my sister-inw?¡± ¡°How could I not know? How could I not know about the incident that so distressed the Empress?¡± Mastas responded with a snort and Heinley frowned. Thereafter, Mastas spoke of how difficult the incident had been for Navier. She also spoke enthusiastically of the tremendous resolve Navier had shown in dealing with it. Heinley listened intently. Once Mastas finished speaking, he sighed and muttered. ¡°Yes. Even with my sister-inw in Compshire I can¡¯t rest easily. Just because she¡¯s gone meekly now doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s all over. There are still plenty of people left who support her.¡± Although he threatened Old Duke Zemensia and managed to stop his immediate actions, he could not guarantee that they would all stand idly by. ¡°If I get rid of everyone at once, the strange rumor that I poisoned my brother will grow stronger.¡± ¡°And we don¡¯t know who exactly started that rumor.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why we have to be careful. A rumor is a way to divert attention. They decided to lower their heads for now, but we don¡¯t know what my sister-inw¡¯s supporters will do.¡± Mastas began to think, ¡®But what did His Majesty call me for?¡¯ Although he called herte at night because he supposedly had something to order her to do, he was justining about the situation. But this was just a little introduction. ¡°Mastas. We have to attack thistent threat, right?¡± ¡°Of course, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°So what should I do? What should I do to make sure my sister-inw doesn¡¯te back to torment My Queen?¡± ¡°Go after her and kill her? I can disguise myself as a bandit.¡± Mastas¡¯ response was extremely harsh, with no respect for the former queen. This was the difference between the imperial guard and Heinley¡¯s personal knights. Unlike the imperial guard, Heinley¡¯s personal knights treated both the former king and the former queen mercilessly and without regard. Heinley smiled softly and replied, ¡°No.¡± ¡°So, threaten her? You don¡¯t know what will happen to you if someone recklessly spreads another false rumor again.¡± Heinley shook his head. ¡°That¡¯s not safe.¡± Heinley considered Christa a proud noblewoman, so he had thought she would leave for Compshire once the scandal spread. However, Christa made an unexpected move that defied everyone¡¯s expectations. Heinley didn¡¯t want to be caught off guard again by relying on vague assumptions. ¡°So...¡± Mastas was finally speechless. He didn¡¯t want to kill her. He didn¡¯t want to threaten her. But he didn¡¯t want to leave it at that either. In any case, he had no idea what to do. ¡°There were people on my sister-inw¡¯s side when she lied, people who even said they would follow her to Compshire now, right?¡± ¡°...Yes.¡± ¡°When they¡¯re in the mansion with my sister-inw, be sure to block all the doors and windows to prevent them from getting out.¡± ¡°!¡± Mastas looked at Heinley in surprise. Did he want to lock them all up? Heinley added with a hand on his chin. ¡°Block the doors and windows, but also make sure it doesn¡¯t look like that from the outside. It must look like they won¡¯te out because they don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°Water, delicious drinks, alcohol, and tasty food. Make sure that the mansion is filled every day with these things.¡± Heinley murmured with a broad smile. ¡°I¡¯ll take good care of her.¡± *** When I woke up in the middle of the night, I didn¡¯t feel the usual familiar warmth. This had rarely happened since I had slept next to Heinley. Although it felt warm under the covers, it couldn¡¯tpare to Heinley¡¯s warmth. I tossed and turned in bed until I finally decided to get up, put on my slippers, and go out into the corridor. Of course, he was not a child, and there were many guards around. Even if he sprained his foot, he would be taken care of immediately. Still, I was worried. ¡°Have you seen where His Majesty has gone?¡± ¡°He has gone to his office.¡± He went to work at this hour? After the knight¡¯s response, I went downstairs slowly. But there was no need to go to his office because I met Heinley on the stairs. ¡°My Queen?¡± Seeing me, Heinley hurried up the stairs, took off his cloak and put it over me. ¡°It¡¯s cold, why did youe out.¡± I half lied. ¡°Because I couldn¡¯t see you...¡± I woke up because I couldn¡¯t feel his warmth, and I was embarrassed to say that I had gone out because I was worried about him. ¡°You might catch a cold. It¡¯s still cold at night.¡± A cold in this weather? ¡°Why are you so worried?¡± ¡°Because I care about you so much.¡± Heinley whispered and wrapped me tightly in his arms. *** In the Eastern Empire, a banquet was organized to wee the warm weather. To celebrate this warm weather, nobles attended a banquet wearing thin clothing. However, this was just an excuse to organize a banquet. On this asion the banquet was organized by Sovieshu to examine Elgy. Sovieshu mingled with the attendees as he nced sideways at Elgy. But there was nothing unusual in sight about Duke Elgy. He looked like an ordinary high society yboy. However, just as Sovieshu set the empty ss down on the servant¡¯s tray and was about to take a new one. He heard a low shout nearby, ¡°Oh my!¡± Looking back, not far away, a youngdy with short dark brown hair was looking at her dress with an embarrassed face. Part of her dress looked damp as a ss rolled on the floor next to her. Apparently, her drink had spilled onto her dress as she dropped the ss. ¡°What should I do?¡± The youngdy muttered as if she was in trouble and looked around, as if looking for someone to help her. Her gaze soon turned to Sovieshu. ¡°?¡± Is that youngdy asking me to help her? Sovieshu found it absurd. Me, the Emperor? She did not appear to be under the influence of alcohol... Sovieshu ordered the servant, who was at his side, to help the youngdy. The youngdy was Rivetti. She had intentionally spilled the drink on her dress to catch Sovieshu¡¯s attention. Although her father and brother mocked her, she maintained her firm determination to seduce Sovieshu to avenge Navier. However, Sovieshu turned his attention back to Duke Elgy without giving her another thought, so Rivetti was saddened. Except for a few with good eyes, the rest justughed and overlooked Rivetti¡¯s attempt to ¡®attract the Emperor¡¯s attention¡¯. Truth be told, the attendants didn¡¯t even know what Rivetti had tried to do. But not Rashta. Rashta red at Rivetti. She hated Rivetti, so she saw all her actions 125 times even more disgusting. ¡®She tried to seduce my husband with that poor acting!¡¯ Rashta was furious. Despite having be the Empress, she could do nothing against Rivetti at the banquet. Of course, she couldn¡¯t attack Rivetti after the banquet either because Viscount Roteschu would know. When their gazes met, Rivetti frowned and turned her head away. She was anything but polite to the empress. Rashta gritted her teeth and regretted that she couldn¡¯t get rid of her right now, but then an idea urred to her. Why not have Viscount Roteschu destroy his daughter with his own hands? Chapter 268 - Between His Role As Emperor and His Role As Husband (1) Chapter 268. Between His Role As Emperor and His Role As Husband (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Viscount Roteschu was also at the banquet, so it was not difficult to call him. Rashta ordered Viscount Roteschu to visit her after the banquet was over. Roteschu went to see her around nine at night. Rashta let him into the drawing room and ordered all her maids out. Left alone, the Viscount¡¯s eyes sparkled with intrigue at the thought that she would speak of a secret. Rashta started to speak while hiding her darkest intentions. ¡°Can you get a skilled and secretive mercenary?¡± Viscount Roteschu smiled proudly, ¡°It¡¯s not hard for me to get a mercenary.¡± ¡°A mercenary capable of killing for money.¡± Viscount Roteschu was a little surprised, but this time he replied with a sinister smile. ¡°Of course.¡± Once Roteschu left, Rashta was overjoyed. I can¡¯t believe I can use Viscount Roteschu¡¯s own hands to kill the despicable Rivetti! If all went well, Rivetti would die, and Viscount Roteschu would be happy not knowing what he had done. What if I confess the truth to himter? Wouldn¡¯t he go crazy? But as she woke up after a good night¡¯s sleep, uneasiness came over her. What if Viscount Roteschu tried to use this against her in the future? She already had a rtionship with him she couldn¡¯t stand, would it be alright to add another weakness to the list? After much thought, Rashta decided to visit Duke Elgy. Anyway, she wanted to tell him about the offense to their friendship by Sovieshu and Baron Lant. When Rashta told him about Sovieshu and Baron Lant¡¯s concerns, Duke Elgy smiled nonchntly. ¡°It is up to Rashta to decide whether or not to believe the rumors. It is not the rumors that are important, but the truth.¡± ¡°Duke Elgy is a great man, I don¡¯t understand why bad rumors circte.¡± ¡°Envy.¡± ¡°Yes. You are one of the most handsome men I have ever seen. You have a strong charm that stands above the rest.¡± Rashta confessed, staring at Duke Elgy, who was rxed despite the bad rumors. However, Duke Elgy¡¯s expression became extremely serious when Rashta told him that he asked Viscount Rostechu to get a mercenary. Seeing that expression, Rashta grew more uneasy and asked. ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s a suitable request for Viscount Roteschu?¡± ¡°It depends on what you want the mercenary to do. What are you going to order?Rashta hesitated, unable to say, ¡®I¡¯ll have him kill Viscount Rostechu¡¯s daughter.¡¯ At Rashta¡¯s hesitation, the Duke continued as if it didn¡¯t bother him, ¡°Whatever you order, you must make sure that the mercenary brought by Viscount Roteschu is not his subordinate.¡± Rashta worried. Viscount Roteschu had an evil mind, and he was impatient to find another weakness to use against her. The mercenary brought in by Viscount Roteschu would probably be his subordinate. ¡°It would be hard to believe in a mercenary brought by Viscount Roteschu. What should I do?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°And if you get someone...¡± ¡°That¡¯s not a problem.¡± ¡°Great!¡± Rashta was delighted, but Duke Elgy shook his head. ¡°I can get someone, but the problem is the same. You¡¯ll first have to make sure that person is not my subordinate.¡± ¡°But the Duke is different from that evil Viscount, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Duke Elgy smiled subtly. ¡°But Rashta, aren¡¯t you looking for someone to do something you can¡¯t even tell me?¡± That was true. Rashta returned to her room and pondered as she drank tea. No matter through whom she got a mercenary, she had to exercise extreme caution. Of course, it could not be through Viscount Roteschu. And if she did it through someone else, she might end up with a second Roteschu. ¡®Rashta must get the mercenary.¡¯ After much thought, Rashta made up her mind. ¡®Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to stay calm.¡¯ Although it might be a bit dangerous, Rashta decided to personally go to the ce where she had lived as a ve. * * * Meanwhile. Koshar, who had led the cavalry and stormed the temporary barracks of the Eternal Thousand bandits, was in the midst of a confrontation with the Celestial Lord of the Eternal Thousand bandits, Kelderek. The Celestial Lord of the Eternal Thousand bandits had already retreated to the rear with his woundedrades in a hurry, and all the cavalry Koshar had brought was lined up in three rows. Kelderek wiped his hand across his forehead to wipe off the sweat, but cursed furiously when he realized it was blood. ¡°What are you doing here?! Can¡¯t you live without seeing our faces? Huh?!¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you being too rude to a friend you haven¡¯t seen in a while?¡± ¡°Friend? You¡¯re a bastard!¡± ¡°I even came all this way because I missed you.¡± ¡°Get out! Please get out of my life!¡± The Western Empire knights who followed Koshar exchanged nces with each other. It was amazing to see the leader of the dreaded Eternal Thousand bandits throw a tantrum in front of Koshar like a seven-year-old child. At the same time, it was pleasant to see Koshar sarcastically mocking him. ¡°Your affection is no longer the same? I¡¯ll stay here so I can see your face.¡± ¡°You filthy bastard!¡± Kelderek snorted as he wiped off the blood. But Koshar was still smiling and showed no signs of backing down. He looked like a kindly knight by his handsome appearance, but Kelderek knew better than anyone how crazy Koshar was. During his stay on the border of the Eastern Empire. He thought at first that Koshar was a hapless young nobleman with a burning sense of justice. But after seeing Koshar appear from time to time on the battlefield waving his sword, and asking him to y with him because he was bored, Kelderek realized that he was a true lunatic! Kelderek also realized this on one asion when he infiltrated the city and saw Koshar in his nobleman¡¯s attire. He was not a nobleman with a burning sense of justice, but a lunatic who had learned manners and controlled his madness! In front of other nobles, he pretended to be a ¡®young knight who couldn¡¯t adapt well to the nobility¡¯. ¡°Abominable bastard!¡± Kelderek cursed again, and motioned for his subordinates to stand down. ¡°Leaving?¡± Koshar asked, raising his eyebrows in disappointment. Then Kelderek pulled the horse¡¯s reins and the horse whinnied. The bandit leader, mounted on the horse, shouted angrily. ¡°I¡¯ll go somewhere else. I¡¯ll go somewhere else where you¡¯re not!¡± * * * If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 269 - Between His Role As Emperor and His Role As Husband (2) Chapter 269. Between His Role As Emperor and His Role As Husband (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Fighting the Eternal Thousand bandits should not pose any major difficulties for my brother. He has been chasing them for years as a hobby... However, I couldn¡¯t help but worry even though I was confident in my brother¡¯s ability. There were many unexpected situations in a battle. What if my brother gets caught in a trap? For the past few days, I had been anxious about it. Mydies-in-waiting were worried to see me like this. At first, I would reply, ¡°It¡¯s nothing,¡± whenever mydies-in-waiting asked me what was wrong. But, because they were so worried, I eventually confessed to them how I felt honestly. Hearing my unease, Mastas surprisingly stepped forward, ¡°I¡¯ll go check it out before I get back from my vacation. I¡¯ll see how he does.¡± Mastas had told me she would be taking a vacation soon... but my brother went down to a remote border town. Is she going all the way down there to see my brother? ¡°Miss Mastas, is your house far from there?¡± That seemed too much to me, so I asked Mastas. If she answered that it was far, I was going to tell her not to go. For some reason, Mastas muttered depressedly at my words. ¡°Ah, well...¡± ¡°If so, you don¡¯t have to go there.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m also curious about how he fights against the Eternal Thousand bandits.¡± I was about to refuse again, but I stopped myself. Mastas was interested in my brother and that was probably why she offered to go. Although she didn¡¯t act like nobility, Mastas was a really nice person. In any case, I didn¡¯t want to unterally interfere with Mastas¡¯ interest in my brother. Finally I thanked her sincerely, and Mastas was startled, ¡°No need Your Majesty, I¡¯ll go that way anyway. Really.¡± After I finished talking with Mastas, I went out to look for my parents. My parents would not be staying long in the Eastern Empire. I wanted to spend more time with them before they left. ¡®There they are.¡¯ As I went up to the second floor terrace I could see my parents. They were walking with Heinley along a path that was clearly visible from the terrace. Seeing the three of them walking together, a soft wind blew in a corner of my chest. I was suddenly overwhelmed, so I put my hand to my chest as I looked at my parents and Heinley. Was there a more touching scene than watching your loved ones get along? If Heinley¡¯s parents were alive... I could have been as good to them as Heinley is to my parents. It was sad to think about this. I couldn¡¯t imagine a life without my parents. I would get lonely quickly. Was there a deep loneliness under Heinley¡¯s smiling face? When Heinley said something, my parents startedughing. As I watched the scene, I made up my mind. I will make him happy as much as he makes me happy. I still don¡¯t believe his love willst forever. But that aside, he was already my husband and my family. *** They did not know that Navier was watching them from above. They crossed a beautiful path covered withvender and cornflowers, and entered a garden full of tulips. Even Navier couldn¡¯t see them here. Perhaps fortunately. The atmosphere between the three became heavy as they entered the garden. This was because the topic turned away from family and personal matters, to focus on state affairs. ¡°There can be two empires on the same continent. There are even records of the existence of four empires at one time.¡± ¡°You mean the time of war between the four emperors. The Emperor of the East, The Emperor of the West, The Emperor of the North, and the Emperor of the South.¡± ¡°Yes... There may be many emperors. But the more emperors, the fiercer thepetition.¡± Duke Troby continued with concern. ¡°Sovieshu aside, Navier has a deep affection for the Eastern Empire. Despite what happened, it¡¯s still the country where she grew up.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Your role as emperor and your role as husband will not always be aligned. That¡¯s what worries us.¡± ¡°...¡± Heinley could not easily respond to Duke Troby¡¯s words. Duchess Troby also added heavily. ¡°Even if the Eastern Empire and the Western Empire manage to coexist in harmony, the position of the kingdoms and other allied powers will change as there will be two emperors. You will face each other directly or indirectly.¡± They were both right, so Heinley didn¡¯t know what to answer. Originally, Heinley had no intention of marrying Navier. It was not in his ns to fall in love with the Empress of the Eastern Empire on his reconnaissance trip there. For Heinley, meeting Navier had been the greatest happiness of his life, but it was also true that several of his life ns changed as a result of this love. Seeing his son-inw lost in thought, Duke Troby spoke cautiously and kindly, ¡°Hopefully it won¡¯t happen, but even if his role as emperor and his role as husband were to change in the future, I hope Navier won¡¯t get hurt.¡± * * * While Rashta was looking for a way to go to the Rimwell Estate, she learned something unexpected. ¡®The Empress is looking for something very important.¡¯ This rumor had slowly spread through the imperial pce. However, Rashta heard about it now. ¡°What are you talking about?!¡± Rashta shouted, her legs were numb. After attending the wedding in the Western Empire, Rashta moved busily in search of the certificate Koshar had mentioned. She didn¡¯t leave it in the hands of others, because it was a certificate that represented a great weakness, so she had been looking for it on her own. ¡®I can¡¯t believe a rumor hase up about this!¡¯ Rashta angrily ordered Viscountess Verdi, ¡°Find out immediately who started that rumor!¡± When she searched the rooms or the gardens, Rashta found it difficult to escape the stares of people in the vicinity. However, the fact that she was known to be ¡®looking for something¡¯, was definitely a rumor started by someone close to her. As expected, the culprit was caught in no time. ¡°Forgive me, Your Majesty! Forgive me!¡± It had been one of Rashta¡¯s newly hired maids. ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to start any odd rumors! I just told someone who was watching Your Majesty walk from one ce to another that you were looking for something.¡± The maid cried and pleaded with sped hands. She really didn¡¯t have any bad intentions, she just thought it was all right to talk about it. Rashta¡¯s eyes zed fiercely, she grabbed the maid¡¯s chin and snarled, ¡°Didn¡¯t I make it quite clear that in the imperial pce you were to be careful with your actions?¡± The maid repeatedly begged for forgiveness, but Rashta had no sympathy. Besides, she was the first newly hired maid to cause a problem. To prevent a simr case from happening in the future, Rashta felt it necessary to give a severe punishment as a warning to the others. Rashta, firmly determined, ordered Viscountess Verdi, ¡°Viscountess Verdi. What do you know about this girl¡¯s father?¡± ¡°Her father is sentenced to death. However, the execution has not been carried out, despite having spent several years in prison, due to his good behavior.¡± Rashta coldly ordered. ¡°Have him executed.¡± Viscountess Verdi looked at Rashta in surprise. However, Rashta felt no remorse. This was not an innocent man, this was a man who would be executed sooner orter. For a prisoner to be sentenced to death he had to havemitted a serious crime. She found no problem. The maid, who had heard Rashta¡¯s order, crawled on her knees, grabbed Rashta by the legs, and repeatedly begged her to forgive her, but eventually copsed from exhaustion. After regaining consciousness, the maid immediately went to Rashta and continued to plead with her. But Rashta lied to the maid. ¡°Your father has already died by hanging.¡± Although he had not yet been executed, she deliberately invented it to hurt the maid. Since the maid had just started working in the pce, she thought that one word from the empress would have him executed in a matter of moments. The maid¡¯s lips trembled with rage. Her father had been sentenced to death for murder, but the victim her father murdered was an unscrupulous criminal who had kidnapped and murdered her younger brother for a few pennies. For this reason, her father had not been executed despite having been sentenced to death and her rtives were not dragged through the guilt-by-association system either. She could not believe that it had all ended in such an absurd way. The maid angrily lifted the chair next to her and pounced on Rashta. ¡°Die!¡± If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 270 - Another Heinley Personality (1) Chapter 270. Another Heinley Personality (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The chair was light and backless, but the maid swung it with all her might, so Rashta could be seriously injured if she was struck. Rashta instinctively shielded her belly, and Viscountess Verdi hastily pushed the maid from the side. The chair brushed past Rashta¡¯s forehead. Then the maid, who swung the chair with her whole body, lost her bnce and fell to the floor along with the chair. ¡°Argh!¡± Rashta covered her belly, curled up, and screamed. When the maids who witnessed this scene became terrified and made a fuss, guards outside the door rushed into the bedroom. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Seeing the empress in pain, the broken chair on the floor and the maid furious, they rushed to lift Rashta in rm. The maid who swung the chair tried to lunge at Rashta again, but the guards hurriedly restrained her and pressed her to the floor. The maid struggled and her eyes zed. Her anger was greater than her fear. At this point, she wanted to finish off Rashta at any cost. However, she was no match for the rough and robust guards. Rashta touched her forehead as she stared at the maid. She felt dizzy and her belly throbbed, but above all else, her forehead hurt a lot. Viscountess Verdi put her handkerchief over Rashta¡¯s wound and ordered one of the guards. ¡°Get the pce doctor!¡± When the guard rushed out, Rashta asked, ¡°The pce doctor?¡± She seemed not to know that she was bleeding from her forehead. ¡°I think you suffered a cut on your forehead.¡± Rashta did not realize that her hand was stained with blood until she heard Viscountess Verdi¡¯s words. Seeing her red hand, Rashta paled. About fifteen minutester, the pce doctor appeared, and another fifteen minutester Sovieshu appeared. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± Rashta, who was being attended to by the pce doctor, stood up as soon as Sovieshu entered and spoke on the verge of tears, ¡°It hurts Rashta so much...¡± Rashta was relieved to see his face, but at the same time, frightened. The maid should be punished severely for attempting to assassinate a member of the imperial family, but Rashta was worried that she would talk about her father¡¯s execution. In the Delise incident, Rashta ordered her tongue cut out as soon as it happened to prevent her from speaking. This time, the guards suddenly entered the bedroom and blood was flowing from her forehead, so she forgot to close the maid¡¯s mouth. ¡°What happened?¡± Seeing Rashta¡¯s forehead, Sovieshu asked in surprise, ¡°A maid attacked Her Majesty.¡± ¡°Is the injury serious?¡± ¡°Fortunately not, but...¡± As the end of the pce doctor¡¯s words trailed off, Sovieshu approached the bed and brushed the hair away from Rashta¡¯s forehead. The injury could not be seen because of the bandage. ¡°She has a cut on her forehead.¡± ¡°Is the cut deep?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do my best, but... I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll be left with a scar.¡± Rashta looked at the pce doctor in surprise. He hadn¡¯t mentioned this to Rashta, so she had just found out about it too. ¡°A scar?¡± Sovieshu put his hands on the surprised Rashta¡¯s trembling shoulders. ¡°A scar can fade with time. It¡¯s a relief that it¡¯s just a small scar.¡± Rashta was about to yell at him that having a scar on her face was no relief, but Sovieshu was already asking the pce doctor another question. ¡°And the baby?¡± ¡°All right, but I think it¡¯s better to be careful.¡± Sovieshu nodded in relief and left the bedroom to enter a small room where the maid was locked in. The maid was on her knees, with both hands tied tightly behind her back by the guards. The maid was clever. As soon as Sovieshu entered, she quickly shouted instead of apologizing orining. ¡°Your Majesty, the Empress executed my father!¡± Hearing her words, Sovieshu immediately raised his eyebrows. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°The Empress executed my father as punishment! I made a mistake, but it absolutely wasn¡¯t serious enough for her to kill my father, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°What are you talking about? No prisoner has been executed recently.¡± To execute a person required Sovieshu¡¯s final approval. If someone had been executed, it was impossible for Sovieshu not to know. Even more so if the execution was to be carried out by order of the Empress. ¡°But Her Majesty said...¡± Just then Rashta appeared and hurriedly intervened, ¡°That maid is scared because she spread a strange rumor about Rashta, Your Majesty. Rashta didn¡¯t kill anyone. Rashta wouldn¡¯t do such a dreadful thing.¡± The maid¡¯s face paled at those words. Sighing, Sovieshu signaled a guard to investigate and prepare a report on what happened. While he wanted an urate report on what happened, he knew roughly what was going on. He understood the maid¡¯s indignation upon hearing of her father¡¯s supposed death, but that doesn¡¯t mean she could attack the empress with a chair, who was pregnant with the next emperor. She even cut her forehead. This had been a crime serious enough to be punishable by death, even if it wasmitted by a high-status noble. ¡°It¡¯s a pity, but a crime is a crime. First imprison that maid.¡± After giving that order, Sovieshu took Rashta back to her bedroom and advised her. ¡°Rashta, you can¡¯t execute a person hastily unless it¡¯s rted to the murder of a member of the royal family.¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s the Empress?¡± ¡°Even if it is the Empress.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty, the maid started the rumor that Rashta is a strange person. She wanted to ruin the Empress¡¯s image...¡± ¡°Still, one cannot hastily execute a person.¡± ¡°Although Rashta was not the Empress when Viscount Langdel¡ª¡± ¡°He stabbed you with a knife and was caught in the act.¡± Rashta burst into tears and put her hands on her sore head. ¡°Your Majesty is too cold. All you do is scold Rashta, you don¡¯t care in the least.¡± Sovieshu sighed again and patted the top of Rashta¡¯s head. ¡°Neither that maid nor her father can be hastily executed.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t order her father executed!¡± ¡°Empty words or not, you said it. For those who consider you to have the power to carry it out, it would never sound like empty words.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I figured as much... there¡¯s too much you don¡¯t know to handle this position.¡± Rashta was surprised at Sovieshu¡¯s harsh remark. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Sovieshu shook his head and went out to summon Viscountess Verdi and her guards. Momentster, he came back in and instructed them in front of Rashta. ¡°From now on, if Rashta decides to harm anyone by relying on her position as ¡®Empress¡¯, I must be informed before carrying out her orders. Whoever breaches this, will have to take full responsibility.¡± Rashta felt deeply insulted. She couldn¡¯t believe he had brought them here to say this. Now the employees of the Empress¡¯s Pce will assume that the Empress had no power! ¡®His Majesty put honor before love.¡¯ Depressed, Rashta was left crying alone in her bedroom. Did his love fade or had he always been like that? She considered it absurd for Sovieshu to scold and insult her when she was the victim. ¡®No. He hadn¡¯t always been like this. Evely? Probably because of that girl named Evely.¡¯ No, Rashta was sure. After falling in love with that girl, Sovieshu had changed. Rashta sobbed for a while, but due to the throbbing pain in her forehead she quickly recovered. The pain, in turn, allowed her to realize the reality of the situation. If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 271 - Another Heinley Personality (2) Chapter 271. Another Heinley Personality (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren At this rate, Sovieshu will try to make Evely the third empress, snatch my child from me, and divorce me. Just like what happened with Empress Navier! I must act smart and calmly. Empress Navier had an affair while married to Sovieshu, so immediately after her divorce she left with that man, but since I have devoted myself only to Sovieshu, I am in a difficult position. Rashta quickly rummaged through her jewelry box and pulled out arge, beautiful sapphire ne, giving it as a reward to the maid who ratted out her colleague. ¡°Is this for me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How beautiful...¡± ¡°Do what you want, you can sell it or keep it. By the way, your mother is in prison, right?¡± ¡°Huh? Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll use my immunity privilege to get her out of prison.¡± *** I got used to my big work load, and my aides also got used to my way of working. Because of that, the efficiency and speed of work increased naturally. Now I was sure that I could do some other tasks at the same time. I ordered an aide to send a letter to Grand Duke Kapmen to discuss trade matters with Rwibt. Grand Duke Kapmen sent a reply about four hourster, and after that, we corresponded three or four times a day. A few dayster, the aide asked doubtfully, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to meet to talk in person?¡± ¡°When necessary. Right now there¡¯s not much to say.¡± I casually made up an excuse while putting off meeting with Grand Duke Kapmen. However, my aides seemed to find it even stranger as the days passed. The contents of the letters we exchanged were getting longer and the interval between each one shorter. My aides seemed to be thinking worriedly, ¡®Did they fight?¡¯ Fortunately, before their suspicions grew stronger, William and Muney each showed up with their own investigation reports. I ced them on my office desk and read the reports slowly. First Muney¡¯s, then William¡¯s. The two sessors looked at each other sideways and waited anxiously for my response. Their expressions looked really serious and cautious. After a moment, I asked the two as I put the report in my hands down on the desk, ¡°Did you do the investigation together?¡± They both shook their heads, puzzled. Chuckling, I extended William¡¯s report to Muney, and Muney¡¯s report to William. ¡°Would you like to read it?¡± In less than three minutes, both of their faces became rigid. It was definitely understandable. Their reports were quite simr, even in the errors. ¡°I don¡¯t know who copied whom, but it wasn¡¯t a good choice. I¡¯ve done my own separate investigation, and there¡¯s a lot of incorrect data in these reports.¡± Muney and William looked puzzled. It was hard to tell who was pretending, and who wasn¡¯t, as both had quite convincing expressions. ¡°This investigation is shameful. I¡¯m disappointed. You¡¯d better leave, I¡¯ll take care of this.¡± I deliberately spoke sharply and ordered them both to leave. That night, Heinleyughed as I told him about what happened. ¡°I didn¡¯t imagine that about them. How unexpected.¡± ¡°You think that¡¯s funny?¡± ¡°Like I said, I didn¡¯t imagine that could happen.¡± With my head on his chest, I lifted a hand and stretched his cheek. ¡°But was the report really that bad?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t that bad. I was just trying to trick them.¡± Heinley smiled, his eyes curved as if he¡¯d read my thoughts, ¡°You did it to find out who copied the report, that will be the first one to visit you.¡± I nodded and bit his cheek. Now that this had happened, there was only one thing I could do. Wish it wasn¡¯t Muney visiting me. ¡°My Queen? I¡¯m nervous of you biting my cheek with such a serious look. I feel like you were trying to rip it off me.¡± *** Three days passed, but contrary to expectations, neither Muney nor William came to see me. Both seemed to be clever. So what should I do now... I was pondering carefully as I walked along, when I heard some whispering. But the content was very strange. ¡°A ghost. Are you sure?¡± ¡°Oh, how scary. Don¡¯t say that. I won¡¯t be able to go out at night!¡± ¡°It¡¯s real. I don¡¯t know how many people have seen it already!¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard about it too. It¡¯s said to be a male ghost with a crown on his head.¡± ¡°Really? Then it¡¯s possible that it¡¯s the Late King Wharton III.¡± ¡°Why would he be a ghost?¡± ¡°There is a rumor that His Majesty Heinley poisoned the Late King.¡± The first part was a funny story. Even in the Eastern Empire, there were asional fusses over ghostly apparitions. But thest part seemed rather malicious. Although I had heard of that rumor too, I couldn¡¯t believe it had been mixed up with the ghost story. Instantly, the nobles on Christa¡¯s side came to mind. Were they the ones who spread the rumor? Christa went to Compshire, but many nobles and officials who supported her stayed here. Since they supported Christa, they could do nothing if she suddenly lost all her strength. Is it possible they were targeting Heinley to try to turn the situation around? But I looked like the only one who was concerned about this. When I went to see Heinley around lunchtime, he already knew about the rumor. However, he didn¡¯t seem to think it was rted to Christa¡¯s alies. On the contrary, he asked me with a twinkle in his eye. ¡°My Queen, are you scared of ghosts?¡± ¡°If so, I can stay by your side from sunset to sunrise.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m not scared.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a ghost, aren¡¯t you scared?¡± ¡°Not really.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Actually, I am scared, My Queen. So... will you stay by my side from sunset to sunrise?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t think this is rted to Christa¡¯s supporters?¡± ¡°Of course I think we should investigate it as well. But other than that, I¡¯m scared, My Queen. I believe in ghosts.¡± In fact, as soon as the sun went down, he stayed with me in my room even while I was working or reading. ¡°I¡¯m scared, can we take a bath together tonight, My Queen?¡± ¡°No.¡± Although it seemed a little suspicious, Heinley was acting like he was really scared of ghosts. So I decided to reveal the ghost¡¯s true identity for his sake. In the middle of the night, I went with my guards to the ce where the ghost appeared. I didn¡¯t sleep in the shared bedroom so I wouldn¡¯t have to worry about Heinley waking up. However, there were already other visitors at the ce where the ghost supposedly appeared. ¡°Search carefully. There must be a device.¡± Heinley was the first person I saw. ¡°What if it really is a ghost?¡± McKenna was the second person. ¡°There is no ghost. I don¡¯t care if one appears either.¡± Who was this man who looked like my husband, and said without hesitation that there was no ghost? Heinley, the one I knew, trembled in fear of ghosts. Should I consider this other personality of my husband as the third person? ¡°But Your Majesty. If the ghost of the Late King appears, what should be done?¡± ¡°Sprinkle salt.¡± If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know so we can fix it as soon as possible. Tip: You can use left, right, A and D keyboard keys to browse between chapters. Chapter 272 - Things That Start To Show (1) Chapter 272. Things That Start To Show (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta no longer needed the care of the pce doctor, so she visited Sovieshu and asked, ¡°I am very shocked by what happened, Your Majesty. May I go to the quiet countryside to recuperate and clear my mind?¡± ¡°To the countryside?¡± ¡°Yes, the pce doctor said that Rashta had to rx for the baby¡¯s well-being. But there¡¯s a lot of trouble here.... right?¡± Rashta wanted to go to Rimwell. Although the chair incident was unpleasant, she had been looking for a way to go to Rimwell for some time, so she considered this her chance. ¡°Where do you n to stay?¡± ¡°Moire.¡± Moire was a small rural territory right next to Rimwell. ¡°I¡¯ve been there before. The fresh air and beautiful scenery still linger in my memory.¡± Fortunately, Sovieshu agreed immediately. ¡°Take many guards with you.¡± In fact, Sovieshu not only provided her with many guards and especially sturdy carriages, but also hastily purchased a nobility vi in Moire. She could have stayed at the residence of a noble family, but he had decided that it would be better for Rashta to enjoy her time freely in her own residence rather than stressed with all the unnecessary formalities. Also, Rashta had been very depressed over the past few days, after the bandage was removed, and saw the scar left on her forehead. It was a scar that ran from her forehead to one end of her eyebrow, the scar was a little thicker and longer than the pce doctor expected. After cutting herself bangs to hide the scar, she felt a little better, but she still needed to calm her body and mind. ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty!¡± Rashta was sincerely grateful and pleased. Recently Sovieshu acted aloof, so she was very d that he had cared for her as before. However, the day after her arrival in Moire, Rashta slipped out of the vi, immediately after leaving a maid in her ce. She went to a nearby vige in a carriage she had prepared in advance to meet a man who used to admire her long ago. It was this man who helped Rashta escape from Viscount Roteschu¡¯s hands. If he still remained loyal, then she could entrust him with the task she had in mind. She had previously conducted an investigation that revealed a shocking fact. The man lost an eye to severe punishment by Viscount Roteschu for helping her escape, but still he did not fail to defend Rashta and never said anything about it. ¡®If he loves Rashta so much, then I can trust him.¡¯ Rashta went to his house, convinced. ¡°Do you remember me?¡± ¡°Rashta...¡± The man burst into tears when Rashta removed her hood. Even the basket in his hands fell to the floor, sobbing, unable to pick it up. After entering the house and asking how he was doing, Rashta exined her situation with a sad expression. ¡°I barely managed to live like an ordinary person, but Viscount Roteschu keeps threatening Rashta.¡± ¡°He¡¯s despicable scum!¡± ¡°Rivetti has behaved shamelessly in an attempt to steal Rashta¡¯s husband...¡± When Rashta began to cry, unable to speak anymore, the man snorted and punched the table angrily. While the man loved Rashta, he also had a deep resentment against Viscount Roteschu. Hearing that the Viscount and his family were picking on his beloved Rashta, the blood in his veins began to boil. ¡°So, you ran away again? Buting here is not a good option, Rashta.¡± ¡°Pix, I came here to see you.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the only one who can help Rashta. Please help me.¡± ¡°What can I do? How can I help you?¡± This man would be willing to give his life for Rashta. Rashta put her hands on his gaunt cheeks and burst into tears. Her appearance was so pitiful that the man vowed to protect the angel before him in any way possible. ¡°It won¡¯t be a difficult request. I wouldn¡¯t ask you to do something like that.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Ask me for anything you want.¡± ¡°Trustworthy and...¡± ¡°Trustworthy and?¡± ¡°Skillful...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°I want to hire an assassin.¡± The man waspletely shocked. He was amoner and had many bad friends. Naturally, he knew a lot about the dark side of the world. Although he had never resorted to them. But this delicate and sweet ve wanted to hire an assassin! ¡°Rashta, do you want to kill Viscount Roteschu? Those who are skilled enough to kill nobles are really expensive.¡± ¡°Rashta will take care of that.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Pix. It might go wrong, so it¡¯s better if you don¡¯t know the details. I don¡¯t want to cause you any trouble.¡± In the end, the man searched different guilds for the assassin who would be useful for this job while Rashta rested at home. Of course, he never revealed Rashta¡¯s name in the process. A few hourster, Rashta went alone to the assassin¡¯s guild that Pix indicated. Surprisingly, the assassin¡¯s guild was located on the outskirts of the territory. Besides, the guild headquarters seemed like a quiet, secluded store, definitely not a ce where horrible things were done. ¡°What brings you here?¡± At the very polite question from the clerk at the counter, Rashta handed over arge jewel she had brought. The clerk smiled subtly and said, ¡°One moment, please.¡± After about ten minutes, the clerk reappeared and opened the door behind him. ¡°Pleasee this way.¡± As she entered, Rashta could see a long, narrow corridor. There were numerous rooms on both sides of the corridor, and the clerk pointed to the end of the corridor with a finger. ¡°Don¡¯t go into any rooms, just keep going that way.¡± Although she felt a pain in her stomach due to nerves, Rashta did as instructed. At the end of the corridor was a small,pletely white space, with only a desk and two chairs ced in the center of it. As she paced back and forth, unable to sit still in a chair, a tall man, with a mask covering his face, appeared shortly after from the same direction Rashta came from. His eyes were so cold and sharp that one could tell at a nce that he was doing nothing ordinary. The man dragged the chair in front of Rashta nonchntly and sat down, but even after sitting down, he just stared at Rashta in silence. Rashta, who couldn¡¯t wait, opened her mouth with difficulty, ¡°You¡¯ll do anything for money?¡± The assassin nodded silently. Then, Rashta asked hesitantly. ¡°Do you know Pix?¡± When the assassin nodded again, Rashta asked more cautiously, ¡°If I give you money... would you kill Pix too?¡± If the assassin said no, she was going to change her words, saying, ¡®I was just trying to see how far you were capable of going,¡± and if he said yes, she was really going to ask him to kill Pix as a test. She wanted to check how heartless and skillful he was. The assassin nodded once more. ¡°Then kill him. Call it a test.¡± The assassin got up, saying, ¡°Wait here a moment.¡± It had been quite a while as far as ¡®wait a moment¡¯ was concerned. Rashta felt like three or four hours had passed. What the hell is he doing? Just as Rashta was getting tired of waiting, the assassin reappeared holding something wrapped inside a cloth. As he approached the horrible smell of blood intensified. Rashta covered her nose and jumped up. What is this smell? She felt nauseous. Unfazed, the assassin casually put down what he was holding on the table. When he released his strong grip, the cloth fell slowly, revealing a little of what was inside. Seeing the disheveled hair and eye patch, Rashta couldn¡¯t stand it and threw up. Despite Rashta¡¯s state, the assassin ended uppletely unveiling the head inside. Looking at the head on the table, Rashta vomited again. However, she was soon d. The assassin was heartless and skillful. If she used this man, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem to get rid of Rivetti. Wiping her mouth with her sleeve, Rashta asked, ¡°Can you kill nobles too?¡± Chapter 273 - Things That Start To Show (2)

Chapter 273. Things That Start To Show (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The assassin also nodded this time. Rashta, who considered asking the assassin to kill Viscount Roteschu once and for all, soon changed her mind. Didn¡¯t he say that in case he died he had everything ready to spread rumors about me? ¡°So, can you kill Rivetti? Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter.¡± The assassin epted. Rashta took a bunch of jewels out of her pocket and handed them to this man. However, she changed her request at thest moment. ¡°No, don¡¯t kill her. Sell her as a ve to another country, is that possible?¡± Rivetti considered her a filthy ve and scorned her. ¡®The filthy ve will now be you.¡¯ *** During dinner, I looked carefully at Heinley. Two nights ago. Although he said he believed in the existence of ghosts and was afraid of them, he led his men to the ce where the ghost with a crown on his head appeared and I watched him act calmly. But instead of calling him out on the spot, I went straight to my room. Now I remembered it again, so I thought I¡¯d put Heinley to the test. Yesterday he hadn¡¯t stayed at the pce on another urgent matter. ¡°Are you still scared of ghosts?¡± ¡°Very much so, My Queen. But by your side I feel safe.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. My Queen, you give me courage.¡± Smiling softly, Heinley extended his hand across the table. When I ced my hand over his, he grabbed it, kissed the back of it and smiled even wider. His smile was charming and his attitude was lovely. However, I narrowed my eyes at him because he was trembling. He looked cute pretending to be weak, but it was also strange. He seemed like a huge hound dog whimpering and being excessively pitiful. In any case, one thing was clear. Heinley was a man who showed a different image as he saw fit. It was obvious that he had a slightly different attitude when he was with mepared to when he was with others. *** The next day, Heinley reflected suspiciously on Navier¡¯s expression yesterday. Navier¡¯s expression, which was usually cold and sometimes gentle, was really strange yesterday. Navier seemed to want to say something... but in the end she didn¡¯t say anything special. Heinley felt ufortable, so he paced back and forth across his office with his hands sped behind his back. But he soon put those thoughts aside. Because the spy stationed in the Eastern Empire came in person. The spy reported on the ¡®phenomenon of the decline of mages¡¯ ongoing in the Eastern Empire. ¡± ... there is a high risk in extracting mana from a skillful mage.¡± ¡°By high risk you mean it doesn¡¯t work? Or-¡± ¡±There have been several cases where in trying to extract mana the opposite has happened, it has increased even more.¡± ¡°... It¡¯s a difficult situation.¡± Heinley frowned and pressed his temples. One skillful mage was usually more useful than ten beginner mages. It was a great loss for the Western Empire to further increase the mana of already talented mages. ¡°Then it is best to extract the mana just after it manifests in a person or when it is not yet well established.¡± Heinley considered this a real headache and clicked his tongue. In this scenario, the war he aimed for might have to be dyed a little longer. As Heinley pondered this, the spy continued. ¡°And this may not be so important, but Emperor Sovieshu has a new concubine.¡± ¡°A concubine? A different concubine than that woman named Rashta?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Is that concubine a mage? If not, I¡¯m not interested.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not currently a mage, but she¡¯s an assistant to a court mage.¡± ¡°A court mage?¡± A court mage uses someone who is not a mage as an assistant? Heinley found this fact strange, so he waited to hear the rest of the story, ¡°What¡¯s more unusual is that this is a person who lost her mana while attending the magical academy. I was wondering if it was rted to our n...¡± ¡°How can he ce his own concubine, who has lost her mana, as an assistant to a mage. Emperor Sovieshu is too greedy.¡± Heinleyughed. He caused quite a stir when he divorced Navier and remarried not long ago, did he already have another woman as a concubine already? But after a while, Heinley asked as if he had realized something, ¡®¡±You said she lost mana while attending the magical academy?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Her name is...¡± ¡°Her name is Evely.¡± Heinley immediately recognized the girl¡¯s name. She was the orphan girl that Navier visited at the magical academy to give her encouragement. An intelligent and outstanding girl. What did Emperor Sovieshu have in mind having that girl with him...? In any case, this was not good at all. The mages of the Eastern Empire were brilliant andpetent. If the side effects that urred when extracting mana from mages were studied along with Evely¡¯s case, it could be discovered that the phenomenon of the decline of mages had been artificially amplified. ¡°First of all, we will stop extracting mana from the mages in the capital of the Eastern Empire. It¡¯s better to avoid trouble.¡± Although it might seem silly, Heinley quickly changed the order. He didn¡¯t want to ruin everything, so he made a cautious decision, ¡°Instead of extracting mana from the mages who already belong to the Eastern Empire¡¯s Imperial Family, it¡¯s better to make sure that the number of mages doesn¡¯t increase.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± However, unlike usual, the spy did not leave immediately after finishing with the report. When Heinley stared at him, wondering why, the spy opened his mouth cautiously, ¡°Your Majesty, if you don¡¯t mind... may I make a personal remark?¡± ¡°Go ahead.¡± When Heinley allowed it, the spy said in a firm voice. ¡°I agree that Her Majesty Navier is a good empress worthy of respect. However, I am concerned that because of Empress Navier, Your Majesty will not be able to go ahead with the ns you have been preparing for a long time.¡± Instead of getting angry with the spy, Heinley chose to defend himself and evade hisment. After the spy left, Heinley asked McKenna. ¡°Do you think the same, McKenna?¡± Chapter 274 - The Ghost’s Commotion (1)

Chapter 274. The Ghost¡¯s Commotion (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren McKenna thought about it for a moment before responding, ¡°Hmm, I¡¯m not sorry at all. Can I be honest?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°While it would be nice to go ahead with the ns, doesn¡¯t it take a lot of time and effort to stabilize the country that has truly be an empire? It might be more beneficial to stabilize the country than to push for a war.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine to build strength for the next generation, and leave the glory for future generations.¡± Sighing, McKenna looked at Heinley and voiced his opinion as his cousin. ¡°It is important to fulfill the wish of a lifetime, Your Majesty. But if you be obsessed with it to the point of sacrificing your happiness, that would also be very sad.¡± McKenna finished in a quick voice, ¡°I don¡¯t want Your Majesty to live in regret. I would rather you be happy.¡± It seemed to embarrass him to say this slowly, even though they were like brothers. At McKenna¡¯s earnest and honest opinion, Heinley became lost in thought. *** ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Countess Jubel¡¯s question snapped me out of my thoughts. Looking down, the embroidery I had started to do to calm down a little was ruined. ¡°I was thinking about the ghost¡¯smotion.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t the Emperor say not to worry about it?¡± ¡°He said so, that¡¯s true, but¡­¡± ¡°It worries you?¡± I nodded, set the embroidery hoop aside and rose from the armchair. ¡°You never know how even a little rumor can change things. It would be best to quash it before it grows. Especially if the intentions of the person who started the rumor are not good.¡± But how should I do it? There were ways to attack the rumor once it was known who had started it. However, finding the person who started the rumor would not be easy. With Viscount Langdel¡¯s help, I even hid knights at the ce where the ghost supposedly appeared, but that didn¡¯t work either. Well, if it was easy to catch, Heinley would have done it by now. Heinley seemed to be trying to catch the culprit in his own way. However, the answer to this question came from who I least expected¡­ it was the day I called Grand Duke Kapmen to my office to discuss, in person, the items to be traded as the meeting could not be postponed any longer. ¡°So, as we have discussed, the items to be traded can be essential goods on the Hwa and Wol continents, non-essential goods on the two continents, useful goods not avable on both continents, exotic luxury goods, some grains and fruits, among others.¡± Who would be a good trader to take care of market research? If it were about your heart, I¡¯d like to take care of it myself, but it¡¯s not like that¡­ Damn it.¡± ¡°The Emperor¡¯s help is needed in this part. I haven¡¯t been in the Western Empire for a long time either, so I don¡¯t have detailed information about the trade groups.¡± Although Kapmen was still under the same effects of the potion, it was much more efficient to meet in person than to have a discussion through letters. When the meeting was over, I walked Kapman to the door to see him off. However, Kapmen repeatedly nced at me without saying a word. He seemed to hesitate about something. Just as we reached the door, Kapmen brought up a truly unexpected fact. ¡°It is led by Marquis Ketron, and Duke Liberty turns a blind eye.¡± He said no more. After that, he left quickly. But I understood at once what he meant. The ghost¡¯smotion is led by Christa¡¯s cousin! *** ¡°It is entirely possible that it was him.¡± When I told Heinley that I found this out with the help of Grand Duke Kapmen, he frowned and grumbled. ¡°Besides, he can use illusionary magic. He must have used that magic to cause the ghost¡¯smotion.¡± ¡°Marquis Ketron is a mage?¡± I asked in surprise. Until now I didn¡¯t know that the Minister of Foreign Affairs was a mage. Wouldn¡¯t it be more appropriate for him to work in a department rted to magic? Well,e to think of it, neither Grand Duke Kapmen nor Heinley, who were exceptional mages, work in magic-rted fields. ¡°Isn¡¯t Duke Liberty Miss Muney¡¯s maternal uncle?¡± ¡°Yes, My Queen.¡± Muney¡¯s adoptive brother and rival was the Duke¡¯s second son¡­ I¡¯ll think about thister. Now I had to put an end to the ghost¡¯smotion. ¡°Heinley, may I take care of this matter?¡± ¡°My Queen? Of course you can, but¡­ what do you n to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll use the eye for an eye and tooth for a tooth method.¡± At my determined words, Heinley smiled broadly. He seemed to like it. ¡°Have you thought of a particr way?¡± ¡°I have thought about it.First, I¡¯ll ask Viscount Langdel for some of the more agile transnational knights. Then I¡¯ll make sure that Marquis Ketron can¡¯t wake up for at least a week.¡± Heinley nodded and asked with an incredulous expression. ¡°Is that really ¡®an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth¡¯, My Queen?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Not really¡­ it sounds like ¡®I¡¯ll work it out with fists¡¯.¡± Heinleyughed, clutching his stomach as if it was really funny. But when I red at him, he noticed my expression and quickly got himself under control. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I wasn¡¯t making fun, I was justughing because I like My Queen¡¯s boldness.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to apologize. I was just waiting for you to stopughing.¡± ¡°¡­ I¡¯m sorry, My Queen.¡± He really didn¡¯t have to apologize. When I frowned, Heinley looked more embarrassed. Lest he continue to misunderstand me, I told him my n in more detail, ¡°If the ghost stops appearing as soon as Marquis Ketron loses consciousness, it will be obvious who the culprit is. Then, this time, we will spread the rumor.¡± The rumor was ¡®an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth¡¯. Of course, the difference was that Marquis Ketron spread a false rumor, and we will spread the truth¡­ Only then did Heinley understood my words, but eximed. ¡°You¡¯re not going to use your fists!¡± ¡°I said no.¡± Who the heck does he think I am? * * * When Viscount Langdel heard my request, he dly epted it, saying it would be easy. Instead, he asked me to leave the specific n in his hands. Transnational knights had a unique way of acting, different from other knights. I agreed. The next evening, Viscount Langdel came to see me to announce the sess of the n. ¡°The ghost will no longer appear.¡± ¡°Did you make sure Marquis Ketron was put to sleep?¡± ¡°Yes, it will take him seven to ten days to wake up.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± After expressing my gratitude, he immediately withdrew, saying that it had not been a difficult request. I was concerned that Marquis Ketron¡¯s aides or Duke Liberty might use a different method to continue the ghost¡¯smotion. But apparently this depended solely on Marquis Ketron¡¯s magic. Since Marquis Ketron was put to sleep, the ghost never reappeared. Neither Heinley nor I had to spread any rumors. People began to murmur on their own. They were outraged, convinced that Marquis Ketron had done it as revenge for Christa¡¯s expulsion. *** Chapter 275 - The Ghost’s Commotion (2)

Chapter 275 - The Ghost¡¯s Commotion (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Aftermissioning the assassin to turn Rivetti into a ve, Rashta immediately returned to Moire¡¯s vi. The first few days were painful as the image of the dead man¡¯s head constantly came to her mind, but as time passed, the shock faded, and the thought of Rivetti bing a ve made her feel very happy. Thanks to this, she was able to spend the rest of the time happily enjoying the countryside, and only when it all became boring did she return to the imperial pce. Viscount Roteschu visited her the day after her arrival. ¡®Ah, right. I also asked Viscount Roteschu to find a mercenary.¡¯ Rashta remembered this fact she had forgotten. As Viscount Roteschu waited in the drawing room, Rashta pondered for a moment. She had found an assassin to kidnap Rivetti. Did I really need a mercenary from the Viscount? She thought it would be a waste of money. However, she quickly changed her mind, ¡®I need it¡¯. She needed many people to use as her arms and legs. As long as I make a request in which there is no problem in having Viscount Roteschu as an aplice, it would be fine to use this mercenary. Her mind made up, Rashta finally left the bedroom. As she entered the drawing room, Viscount Roteschu sat where he usually did, and beside him was a man in a hooded cloak concealing his face. ¡°What took you so long toe out?¡± Viscount Roteschu was annoyed and pointed at the man next to him, ¡°This is the mercenary I found. He¡¯s very skillful. He can do whatever you want, as long as he receives the appropriate amount of money.¡± Rashta asked, looking him up and down, ¡°Can¡¯t you take off your hood?¡±The same happened with the assassin. Why do they cover their faces? However, the mercenary refused. Because of the work they did, they never revealed their faces publicly. Many people held grudges against them. ¡°Then how can I recognize you?¡± Rashta asked with a frown. As for the assassin she personally hired, she knew his nickname and the location of the assassin¡¯s guild, so it was fine. Besides, he was quite slim and tall, a figure that could be recognized at a nce, even from a distance. However, the person in front of her did not have an unusual figure, so it was impossible to recognize him with a cloak. The mercenary showed him his index, middle, and ring finger on which he had the same ring. He seemed to want her to recognize him through them. ¡°Alright, but I can¡¯t hire you right away. I¡¯d like to see how skillful you are first.¡± The mercenary nodded as if asking what he had to do. Rashta held back the urge to shout, ¡®Kill the person next to you!¡¯ Instead, she thought it over and said, ¡°Go tonight to Duke Elgy¡¯s and bring me the bracelet he wears on his wrist. However, you must not, for any reason, harm him.¡± After Viscount Roteschu left with the mercenary. Rashta hurried to visit Duke Elgy. She wanted to inform him in advance and ask him to understand her. Rashta believed that Duke Elgy would tell her, with a smile, not to worry because it wasn¡¯t really dangerous. But when Duke Elgy heard it, he responded coolly. ¡°Rashta, you really take advantage of me.¡± His voice was full of displeasure. ¡°Duke Elgy?¡± Rashta called him, puzzled. ¡°Never, absolutely never. You are the person Rashta trusts the most, that¡¯s why Rashta left this in your hands. Really.¡± ¡°You leave something in the hands of the person you trust the most that puts his life at risk?¡± However, Duke Elgy still looked cold. With a peculiarly bitter smile, he folded his arms and looked at the wall. Rashta was saddened as he didn¡¯t even want to look her in the eye. The mercenary¡¯s test was for tonight. There wasn¡¯t much time left, but it wasn¡¯t like she could cancel it now. In the end, she took a step back and dejectedly returned to the West Pce. She thought about talking to Duke Elgy again once his anger had passed. Duke Elgy stood by the window and stared at her back. Before long, there was no trace of anger in his expression, but a broad smile. When Duke Elgy hadpletely lost sight of Rashta, he called his squire and ordered him, ¡°Take care of the preparations.¡± *** Anxious, Rashta could not sleep all night. She couldn¡¯t stop thinking about whether the mercenary would bring the bracelet correctly and whether Duke Elgy would still be angry. ¡®It¡¯s okay. After I go tomorrow to apologize, his anger will disappearpletely.¡¯ Rashta knew it was best to wait for him to calm down a bit, so she forced herself to rx. But at 4:00 in the morning, when the mercenary appeared with Duke Elgy¡¯s bracelet, Rashta was furious. There was blood on the bracelet. As he held out the bracelet the three rings on his fingers glowed red in the candlelight. ¡°What does this mean?!¡± When Rashta shouted angrily, the mercenary casually excused himself, ¡°Duke Elgy was too strong and had guards, so I had no chance to take the bracelet without bloodshed.¡± Although Rashta was seething with anger, she at least recognized his skill. Duke Elgy looked strong even at first nce. Being able to defeat not only the Duke, but also ovee the guards, certainly the mercenary must have been very strong. After breakfast, Rashta immediately went to the Southern Pce. As expected, Duke Elgy was angrier than yesterday. He had a cold expression and didn¡¯t even smile when he saw Rashta. What was more serious was that he said he would leave the Eastern Empire. ¡°What do you mean you¡¯ll leave?¡±) ¡°As I said. I have no reason to stay anymore, so I¡¯ll leave.¡± ¡°Where will you go?¡± ¡°Home.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t go!¡± Rashta hastily clung to the Duke Elgy. ¡°If the Duke leaves, Rashta will be left alone in this cruel and merciless ce. His Majesty no longer treats Rashta as he used to, and the others only notice Rashta¡¯s crown. Only the Duke treats Rashta like Rashta, if you leave¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I¡¯m really disappointed about yesterday. Rashta, I felt like you were taking advantage of my friendship.¡± As Duke Elgy began to pack his luggage, she noticed that the area where he used to ce his bracelet was bandaged. ¡°Please leave me alone.¡± Rashta was forced to return to the Western Pce. But all she could think about was that Duke Elgy would leave. Rashta burst into tears as she looked at the bloody bracelet the mercenary had taken from Duke Elgy. Whenever the nobles here turned their backs on her, Duke Elgy was the only one who sided with her. Even after she became a concubine, even after she became an empress. He was the only friend who was not prejudiced despite knowing she was not of noble origin. That person had be angry and was about to leave. This fact was frightening and hard to take in. Would I be able to carry on without Duke Elgy? Rashta pressed her chest, she had to admit it. ¡®I think I like Duke Elgy.¡¯ Sovieshu was the prince who rescued her when she was in the most difficult time, but he was so fickle that he easily abandoned anyone. However, Duke Elgy had always been by her side. Although she still loved Sovieshu, she was sure that this love would gradually disappear because of his attitude. On the contrary, her feelings for Duke Elgy only grew. Rashta turned and ran back to Duke Elgy. Duke Elgy was outside carrying his luggage in a carriage. ¡°I have to tell you, I have to tell you something!¡± ¡°There is nothing more to talk about.¡± ¡°You have to listen to me! It¡¯s an order!¡± Rashta eximed firmly and led Duke Elgy into the room. But Duke Elgy turned to leave as soon as he entered. Rashta stood behind him and cried out desperately with tears in her eyes¡­ ¡°I like you. I love you. Please don¡¯t leave.¡± Rashta, who stood behind Duke Elgy, couldn¡¯t tell he was smiling. Chapter 276 - Thinking One Step Ahead (1)

Chapter 276 - Thinking One Step Ahead (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Duke Elgy said decisively with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but it sounds like you¡¯re just saying that on impulse.¡± However, his voice was not as cold as before. Rashta realized this and was filled with hope. ¡°Rashta, I think you¡¯re confused right now because your rtionship with His Majesty is not good. Or are you pretending to be confused on purpose?¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious. Really serious. Just the thought of Duke Elgy leaving is so painful, how could this not be love?¡± Rashta spoke hurriedly and hugged Duke Elgy from behind. ¡°Please be my lover, Duke.¡± Duke Elgy was surprised. Lover? It was not umon for a member of the royal family of another country to be a lover of the empress or the emperor. However, this case was a little different. ¡°I also have feelings for Rashta, so bing your lover is not the problem.¡± ¡°Then what is?¡± ¡°You have no power as empress. Unfortunately¡­ you are now an empress in name only.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°If I, a member of the royal family of another country, be your lover, I will lose my reputation in my home country.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll not always be an empress in name only. I can promise you that.¡± ¡°That is out of Rashta¡¯s reach.¡± Rashta¡¯s pride was wounded. Duke Elgy had always given her strength, so she did not want to hear this from him. But Duke Elgy finally removed his hand from the doorknob and turned around, so she stopped thinking about it and looked at him anxiously. ¡°But people mightugh less if Rashta gives me a gift of great value by signing the lover contract.¡± ¡°A gift?¡± Remembering the enormous amount of jewelry and dresses she received from Sovieshu after signing the concubine contract, Rashta was quick to ask, ¡°What do you want? Money? Jewelry?¡± ¡°Of that I have a lot. So much I¡¯d never finish counting.¡± ¡°Then¡­¡± Duke Elgy pretended to reflect and eximed, ¡°Ah! A territory. Give me a territory near the coast.¡± Rashta was surprised. He wanted a territory? ¡°As you know, my country is a maritime kingdom, so it¡¯s convenient near the coast.¡± ¡°Hmm, but Rashta doesn¡¯t have that power¡­¡± ¡°If not, you can¡¯t have me, a member of another country¡¯s royal family, as a lover.¡± Duke Elgy said firmly, and looked at Rashta with great regret. ¡°It¡¯s better not to go any further for both our sakes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll find a way!¡± Rashta hastily clung to Duke Elgy and shouted. ¡°Rashta will find a way!¡± * * * ¡°There¡¯s much talk that the Empress held Duke Elgy back when he was about to leave.¡± Marquis Karl reported with a grim face. Sovieshu¡¯s expression wavered for a moment. ¡°Were they seen publicly?¡± ¡°It is said that while Duke Elgy was loading his luggage into the carriage, Rashta rushed over to him. After that, the two went into his room and had a long conversation. In the end, Duke Elgy brought down his luggage, deciding to stay.¡± Marquis Karl was very worried. People thought that the empress of poor origin only damaged the image of the imperial family. There were many empresses who had lovers, but none went around ying the couple in love. The more malicious ones scoffed, saying that they did not know whether Rashta entered the room with Duke Elgy and detained him with her mouth or with her body. Of course, those who said that belonged to the sort of person that others would look down on for their rude words, but there was inevitably a point where the worse the rumor, the more attractive it was to hear it. ¡°It seems that the more innocent a person is, the faster it darkens.¡± Sovieshumented. Although she had a clever side and sometimes showed behavior out ofmon sense, Sovieshu thought Rashta was truly innocent. Surrounded by calcting people, Rashta looked like a wildflower bearing the strong wind alone. He believed that Rashta¡¯s purity had to be protected. All people are influenced by their environment, so I knew Rashta would one day change. But he didn¡¯t expect it to be so fast¡­ ¡°Your Majesty, shouldn¡¯t we stop the Empress? I¡¯m afraid if she continues like this, the Imperial Family will be aughingstock.¡± ¡°Theughing stock started from the time she showed up at the wedding in that dress that looked like it was covered in seaweed, and we didn¡¯t stop her.¡± Sovieshu muttered coldly, and shook his head. ¡°Let¡¯s leave her for the moment. What¡¯s more important now is the baby in her belly. Do you have anything else to report?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not about the Eastern Empire¡­¡± ¡°?¡± Sovieshu frowned at Marquis Karl¡¯s hesitation. However, he quickly realized what Marquis Karl wanted to talk about. It was about the Western Empire. The sensitive issues of allied, enemy, and powerful countries, Sovieshu read directly through the newspapers or was informed by his secretaries. Even if they were not important to the Eastern Empire at the moment, one never knew whether one could profit from such informationter on. So it was not unusual for Marquis Karl to talk about the Western Empire. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s fine. Just say it.¡± Sovieshu spoke casually, he didn¡¯t seem ufortable. ¡°It¡¯s a scandal between former Queen Christa and Emperor Heinley.¡± However, as soon as he heard Marquis Karl¡¯s words, Sovieshu¡¯s expression became rigid. ¡°What?¡± Marquis Karl spoke of when the scandal took ce, how it came about, how it was resolved, and so on. ¡°It turns out that at the time former Queen Christa imed to have been with Emperor Heinley, she was with Grand Duke Kapmen. In the end it was proven that she had lied, and left as if she was fleeing to Compshire Mansion.¡± Sovieshu smiled bitterly as he remembered that Grand Duke Kapmen had been with Rashta that night. He couldn¡¯t believe the Grand Duke would lie like that. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen must have done it to help Emperor Heinley, or to help Navier.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Sovieshuughed coldly. ¡°I knew it, that shameless yboy, he was just pretending to be a man deeply in love.¡± Marquis Karl shut his mouth when he realized that Sovieshu spoke with hatred towards Emperor Heinley. Sovieshu sent Marquis Karl to go and rest. However, feeling as if the inside of his stomach was boiling, Sovieshu stood up and then sat down repeatedly on the couch, not being able to stay still. Navier looked happy, she thought she had met someone who loved only her. But did he cheat on her right after the wedding? Sovieshu was furious and wanted to punch Heinley in the face. He wanted to make sure that Navier was not suffering. However, he wondered if it would be appropriate to give a letter, or a gift, to Navier asfort. Navier had strong pride. She would definitely not eptfort from her ex-husband. After some pondering, Sovieshu came up with a good idea. *** Chapter 277 - Thinking One Step Ahead (2)

Chapter 277 - Thinking One Step Ahead (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren At that time, Mastas had just arrived where Koshar was. She had first gone to Compshire to carry out Heinley¡¯s order, and once her work was done she stopped by to keep her promise to Navier. It was not difficult to find the troops sent from the imperial pce. ¡°Do you see that little hill over there?¡± ¡°Yes. The hill with three big trees side by side, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, you¡¯ll see a vast nd behind that hill. That¡¯s where the troops should be stationed.¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Mastas asked people in order to find the ce where Koshar was. Indeed, after reaching the top of the hill that the old man indicated, a series ofrge tents could be seen, along with a temporary stable and several campfires. Mastas quickly descended towards that ce. ¡°I am looking for Sir Koshar.¡± However, Koshar wasn¡¯t there. On the contrary, a knight informed her that he was in the vige. ¡°Sir Koshar went to vige to buy some things?¡± ¡®I just came here from the vige!¡¯ Mastas thought about waiting to meet him, but in the end changed her mind and headed back to the roadside vige. So, she decided to ask each person, ¡°Have you seen a very handsome man?¡±, looking directly for Koshar. ¡®How long have I been like this? The knight told me he was around here somewhere¡­¡¯ As she walked around, she heard the sound of weapons colliding with each other. ¡®Is it a fight?¡¯ The sound of weapons shing was heard in rapid session. Then loud curses were heard, followed by sobs. Mastas ran toward the sobs. If gangsters were bullying people, she was going to teach them a lesson! However, the scene she saw upon arrival waspletely unexpected. There were people being bullied. The problem was that there appeared to be only one bully and about fourteen victims. Most of the people being bullied were burly men with rough and dangerous appearances. Each was stuck with his back to the other and with their hands tied together, so they could only move sideways. The bully was a handsome man with impressive blond hair, who shot arrows at them as if he was having fun. The shots did little damage because the arrows had no points, but all those who were hit sobbed, as if in pain. Mastas¡¯ jaw dropped in bewilderment. There were exactly fourteen different weapons lined up on the ground. At first nce, it appeared that this blond man had snatched away the weapons of these fourteen individuals before humiliating them like this¡­. ¡®Huh? That man?¡¯ Mastas btedly realized that that man was Koshar, who was normally smiling broadly beside Empress Navier. Mastas unconsciously pointed a finger at him and eximed, ¡°Ah!¡± Hearing the voice, Koshar stopped ying and turned his head toward her. The moment their eyes met, Koshar said nothing, but Mastas was convinced that he must have been cursing inside. In fact, Koshar thought he was in trouble. He came to buy a gift for Navier, but robbers suddenly appeared and he had to fight. When he defeated two, five came; when he defeated five, nine came; when he defeated nine, a crowd came. He couldn¡¯t stand the fact that the robbers intended to steal the jewelry and dresses he wanted to give as gifts to Navier. In the end, he was just venting his anger. That was the scene that Navier¡¯sdy-in-waiting now saw. She had a surprised expression¡­ he was sure she would tell Navier about this. Navier would shake her head immediately in disappointment. It was easier for Koshar to handle a gangster than ady-in-waiting. Koshar felt he was in trouble because he did not know how to handle his sister¡¯sdy-in-waiting. He thought first to stop her. Koshar, who btedly cleared his thoughts, lowered his bow and smiled to make conversation. ¡°Hi? What are you doing in a ce like this.¡± But as soon as he greeted her, Mastas snapped out of her amazement and suddenly shouted, ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± Then she reached a hand behind her back and pulled out arge spear. Firmly wielding the spear, Mastas shouted as she ran. ¡°I would like us to have a duel, Sir Koshar!¡± Koshar frowned. A duel so suddenly? Although it could be a joke, Mastas acted as if she was serious. Koshar looked at her puzzled and refused. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t fight my sister¡¯sdy-in-waiting.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no problem, it¡¯s fine!¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not fine.¡± Seeing the twinkle in her eyes, she also seemed to be crazy about martial arts, so Koshar quickly changed his mind. ¡®If I handled her properly I could get her to keep her mouth shut, right?¡¯ ¡°Well, I ept, but can you promise me one thing?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You won¡¯t tell Navier about anything you just saw.¡± ¡°Agreed!¡± When Mastas shouted excitedly, Koshar smiled and drew his sword. Fortunately, she was ady-in-waiting who spoke hisnguage. Of course, he had no intention of fighting in earnest. If he made a mistake and hurt thedy-in-waiting even a little, Navier would be angry. ¡°Let¡¯s get started!¡± But after exchanging a few attacks, Koshar regretted his decision. He realized that his opponent was not a person he could casually handle wielding his sword. He had to get serious. But if he fought seriously, he could really hurt her. What should I do? Should I faint her? Or try to strip her of her weapon at the right moment? As he hesitated to do this or that, something hit his head. Koshar blinked in a daze. Before his eyes, the face of the astonisheddy-in-waiting blurred. Three secondster, he immediately copsed. ¡°Oh no, Sir Koshar!¡± *** Chapter 278 - Eyes and Ears (1)

Chapter 278. Eyes and Ears (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Since it was raining, I went out into the garden next to Heinley with an umbre. Hearing the sound of the rain as we took a walk reminded me of my brother, so I asked, ¡°Do you think Miss Mastas has already met my brother?¡± Heinley replied, ¡°Probably,¡± and pulled my shoulder toward him. ¡°Come closer, My Queen. You¡¯ll get wet.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it have been better to each use an umbre?¡­¡± Is it necessary to be stuck to each other to share an umbre? ¡°By the way, My Queen. Does Brother Koshar have no intention of getting married? As a nobleman, it seems that he is taking a long time to get married. I haven¡¯t even heard of a fianc¨¦e.¡± ¡°My brother is not interested in anything but fighting and swords.¡± That said, the rumors aren¡¯t good for a political marriage either¡­ As much as a political marriage was a marriage between noble families, no father would want to marry his daughter to a ruthless man. ¡°It always amazes me how different My Queen and Brother Koshar¡¯s personalities are.¡± ¡°Really? But you also¡ª¡± ¡®have a different personality than your brother,¡¯ I quickly swallowed thesest words. It hadn¡¯t been long since Christa¡¯s incident ended. I¡¯d rather not say that. I quickly changed my words. ¡°Ah, your birthday ising up. Is there anything you¡¯d like to have, Heinley?¡± ¡°No, nothing.¡± I thought so. ¡°But there is something I want to do.¡± After Heinley finished speaking, he stopped and suddenly hugged me from behind. When I looked up, I realized that he was watching me with a strange expression. It was definitely a racy request. I could tell by his expression. Because of that, I couldn¡¯t help but swallow hard. I was embarrassed by the loud sound caused, but I spoke calmly as if nothing had happened, ¡°I¡¯ll consider it if it¡¯s not far-fetched.¡± ¡°What do you mean by far-fetched?¡± ¡°!¡± He didn¡¯t want the ¡®kind¡¯ of gift I thought? My eyes widened, even more embarrassed. ¡°I mean don¡¯t ask for a gift that¡¯s hard to get.¡± But that wasn¡¯t a good excuse either. As soon as I spoke, I felt a wave of remorse. It was stupid! How could I make such a cold excuse?! It was his first birthday we would celebrate together, but I didn¡¯t want him to ask for a gift that was hard to get! I felt deeply regretful. I moved a little closer to him and grabbed his free hand. Heinley tensed. It wasn¡¯t long before I felt a deep sigh go down my neck. ¡°My Queen, what are you going to do by having me in your palm?¡± ¡°In my palm?¡± ¡°You control me just by holding my hand.¡± Heinley held our intertwined hands tighter.Then he raised my hand, along with his, and lightly kissed the back of it. ¡°I did it¡­ because my words were much colder than I thought.¡± I confessed sincerely and gently withdrew my hand. His lips on the back of my hand felt soft and pleasant, but there was no need to do this outside, right? While it was good that the emperor and empress were a happily married couple, that did not mean that we had to be affectionate everywhere. Heinley pulled me even closer to his chest and adjusted the position of the umbre. As time went on the rain decreased, it seemed that it would soon stop. When I reached a hand out from the umbre to feel the rain, Heinley whispered as he looked at me. ¡°Hmm¡­ actually, I¡¯d like to take a bath together.¡± I was enjoying the cold raindrops falling on my palm, but I quickly withdrew my hand in surprise. ¡°As a birthday present, let¡¯s take a bath together.¡± ¡°¡­ You¡¯re sly.¡± Heinley didn¡¯t deny it. I hesitated and said to get out of the situation, ¡°I¡¯ll think about it.¡± His birthday was still a few months away. ¡°If you don¡¯t want to take a bath together, let¡¯s at least enjoy a day just for the two of us, My Queen. With no one else.¡± I nodded and asked, ¡°Why are you so obsessed with taking a bath together?¡± In truth, he wasn¡¯t so insistent on it as to consider it an obsession. Still, I couldn¡¯t believe he wanted this out of so many possible gifts. Didn¡¯t he also say he wanted to take a bath with me while pretending to be scared during the ghostmotion? I was naturally puzzled. Heinley calmly replied. ¡°I¡¯d also like to see My Queen soaking wet.¡± As I was about to say, ¡®That¡¯s the only reason?¡¯ A scene came to mind. The scene where Heinley changed from bird to his human form at the fountain. He certainly looked very handsome soaking wet under the moonlight, tossing his hair back. ¡°That¡¯s right. You looked very handsome soaking wet Heinley.¡± When I quietly admitted it, Heinley smiled with his eyes as if to say, ¡®You finally recognize it?¡¯ But he immediately raised his eyebrows and stared at me. The rain had just stopped, so I stepped out of the umbre and walked forward with quick steps. *** Chapter 279 - Eyes and Ears (2)

Chapter 279. Eyes and Ears (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Evely nervously went to Sovieshu. After Sovieshu put her as an assistant to a court mage, he assigned her a maid. If she needed anything, she could tell the maid. Besides, he would send her additional money every two weeks. The maid sent by Rashta was a nuisance, but that aside she felt at ease. Although Sovieshu had been very considerate in many ways, he did not call her to talk alone, and Evely spent her days oblivious to Sovieshu¡¯s existence. That¡¯s why Evely couldn¡¯t understand why he had suddenly called her. Did Sovieshu find out that I lied in front of Rashta, pretending to be favored by him? If so, it would be a little embarrassing. Evely was nervous, hoping that wasn¡¯t the case. Fortunately, he did not call her on the matter that concerned her. ¡°Navier cared a lot about you, right? If you agree, can you give Navier a gift from me?¡± Evely¡¯s eyes widened and she asked, ¡°A gift?¡± ¡°Yes. But don¡¯t say it¡¯s a gift from me. Make it as a gift from you.¡± ¡°Alright, but¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have you join the next delegation I send to the Western Empire, is that alright with you?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s fine as long as I can see Navier.¡± ¡®But why on my behalf? Can¡¯t he just send it? Is it really necessary to go to all that trouble to give a gift?¡¯ Evely realized the reason as she stared at Sovieshu. Their rtionship had be awkward after the divorce. ¡°It would be too obvious to go suddenly, so it¡¯s best to go to Emperor Heinley¡¯s birthday party.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll call you back by then.¡± ¡°I understand, Your Majesty.¡± As soon as she got answers to her previous questions, new ones arose. Evely became very curious. ¡®Didn¡¯t Emperor Sovieshu divorce Navier because he loved Rashta? Then why did he care about Navier? Did he feel guilt?¡¯ Evely initially thought that Emperor Sovieshu was in love with Rashta to the point of not leaving her side. However, upon hearing the various rumors since arriving at the imperial pce, Emperor Sovieshu did not seem to care much for this second empress. It was even rumored that the second empress was having an affair with a member of the Royal Family of Blue Bohean¡­. ¡®Then why did he divorce?¡¯ Evely, immersed inplicated thoughts, went out into the corridor in a daze. Navier had already remarried, knowing the answer would not make her return nor would it make Sovieshu leave Rashta, who was pregnant¡­ Suddenly, she heard a whisper as she took a few more steps, ¡°What is such a despicable person doing here?¡± Evely frowned and looked in the direction of the voice. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua looked at her with disdain from the stairs. Perhaps because Sovieshu¡¯s room was nearby, they didn¡¯t insult her as strongly as before, but theypletely showed their displeasure with their expression. Evely also put on a disgusted expression. She could still remember the harsh words they said to her. She hated meeting them face to face. ¡®A child is just like parents.¡¯ Evely ignored them, turned around and walked in the opposite direction. * * * Meanwhile,moner journalist Joanson¡¯s patience was wearing out with each passing day. He had requested an audience, meeting with the emperors and informing them about his younger sister. He even got the answer that his sister¡¯s case would be investigated. ¡®But why have I still not received news from the imperial pce?¡¯ It had been a long time since his sister disappeared. Joanson felt anxious just imagining that something bad could have happened to his sister. Finally, he changed strategy and decided to question the maid who worked with his sister, Arian. She was an experienced maid and skilled in her work, often spoken of by his sister because she was always helping her in one way or another. He was going to wait for her to leave the imperial pce. It was difficult to know the schedule of the pce employees, so Joanson settled into an inn near the pce and waited there for the maid. Eventually, the effort paid off. That day, Joanson ate a simple egg dish, sitting by the window of his room on the second floor. He used his fork to take his food, but did not take his eyes off the main door of the pce. Suddenly, a small door opened next to therge main door, and he saw a womane out of it. Joanson stopped eating and ran over there. It may not have been the maid named Arian. In fact, that was the case on six other asions. But as always, Joanson approached the maid and asked, ¡°Are you, by any chance, Arian?¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right.¡± This time he was right. It was her. At that moment, Joanson saw the maid in front of him as a glimmer of hope, But just in case, he asked again, ¡°Are you the Empress¡¯s personal maid?¡± Arian replied calmly. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Joanson suddenly burst into tears. He couldn¡¯t believe he finally had a way to find traces of his sister. Just thinking about it put a lump in his throat, Joanson wailed and apologized, ¡°I¡¯m sorry I came here out of the blue.¡± Arian narrowed her eyes, as if this seemed strange to her. Before she left, Joanson rushed to introduce himself, ¡°I¡¯m Delise¡¯s brother. You know who Delise is, right?¡± For the first time there was a real change in Arian¡¯s expression. ¡°Are you Delise¡¯s brother? The journalist¡­¡± Joanson nodded hastily. ¡°Yes, I am. I¡­¡± Joanson was about to speak but stopped.He took a step back and looked around with a growing fear that had arisen btedly. If his sister had really disappeared here, he had to be careful what he said. There might be people around who wouldn¡¯t want him to find Delise. ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, can we talk somewhere else?¡± But Arian shook her head and hurried away. She didn¡¯t even try to turn her head, as if Joanson was a gue. She also seemed to be frightened. That attitude further aroused Joanson¡¯s suspicions. Joanson followed Arian and called her, ¡°I want to know about my younger sister. My sister disappeared. Delise was grateful for how much you helped her. Since you worked with her, maybe you can tell me why my sister suddenly disappeared.¡± Joanson chased after her in tears. ¡°Please help me find my sister. No, you don¡¯t have to help me. Just tell me what you know!¡± Arian, who was walking away quickly, stopped. Did she change her mind because of my desperate attitude? She turned her head and nced at Joanson. From her gaze, she seemed hesitant to speak or not. ¡°Please, I beg you!¡± When Joanson pleaded again, Arian said hesitantly, ¡°It¡¯s hard for me to talk about it for fear of my life.¡± It was hard for her to talk about it for fear of her life. Was there a more terrifying sentence? Joanson¡¯s fear grew even more. Arian¡¯s words sounded as if his sister had already died. As Joanson sobbed in despair, Arian¡¯s expression darkened. She approached him and spoke very quietly so no one else could hear. ¡°People are not all they appear to be.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°If you think carefully about my words, you will get the answer. Doubt the person you believe in the most. That¡¯s all I can say.¡± Joanson was stunned for a moment. Arian looked at him with mixed feelings, turned and disappeared with hurried steps. *** Three dayster. When Arian came back to the pce after her brief vacation, she headed to the library to return the book she had rented before. Writing her name on the return slip, she walked over to the bookshelves that stood alone, saying that she would put the book back in its ce. To her surprise, Sovieshu stood among the bookshelves with his hands sped behind his back. After politely greeting the Emperor, Arian muttered under her breath as she handed him the book, ¡°I did as you ordered, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Well done.¡± Sovieshu gave a short answer, took the book and ced it on the bookshelf in front of him. Everything Arian had hesitantly told Joanson had been on Sovieshu¡¯s orders. She was still afraid of Rashta and thought she was not to be trusted. No one would be loyal to a person who gives severe punishment for a single mistake. Arian was realistic, and cautious, so she knew it was better to be loyal to the Emperor with stable power, rather than to Rashta, who could attack her at any moment. ¡°As long as you do what I say.¡± Sovieshu spoke quietly. ¡°You¡¯ll be fine.¡± *** When Koshar woke up, he saw the same face he had seen just before he lost consciousness. Grayish hair and eyes as ck as a squirrel¡¯s. Koshar sat up in bed, putting his hands on his throbbing head, ¡°How did I get here?¡± Looking around, he realized it was a shabby room. There was a bed, a dresser, two chairs, and a table¡­ ¡°Ah, you fainted. You were brought to this humble inn nearby.¡± Mastas muttered nervously at Koshar¡¯s question. ¡°Who brought me?¡± ¡°I did.¡± Mastas replied, staring back at Koshar. Then she quickly rose from the chair, bowed and shouted loudly, ¡°Forgive me, Sir Koshar! I didn¡¯t know Sir Koshar was weaker than I thought!¡± ¡°¡­ Weaker?¡± ¡°I have learned not to bully the weak! Forgive me. I should have been more considerate.¡± At Mastas¡¯ sincere apology, Koshar opened his mouth in bewilderment. But Koshar in the end opted not to tell Mastas, ¡®It¡¯s my fault for letting my guard down.¡¯ ¡®On second thought, thedy-in-waiting wouldn¡¯t say anything bad to Navier now that she¡¯s hurt her brother. Yes. I¡¯m d it turned out that way.¡¯ Although he hadn¡¯t nned it, Koshar smiled in relief. Mastas had hurt the empress¡¯s brother, so she shrugged her shoulders in fear, but when she saw Koshar¡¯s smile, she was stunned for a moment. His smile was like sunlight shining on water. Mastas suddenly felt very thirsty, and hastened to drink water that was on the table. It was hard to believe that the knight would lose consciousness from being barely hit by the shaft of her spear. However, she was immediately convinced when she saw that subtle smile blossom. ¡®He must be weak because he¡¯s such a handsome man!¡¯ At exactly the same moment, Koshar thought, ¡®Is she drinking all the water in that huge bottle at once?¡¯ Koshar¡¯s eyes widened for a moment, but it seemed impolite, so he quickly turned his head away, pretending not to notice. After drinking all the water, her thirst decreased, her eyes shone and her mood improved. Then, Mastas asked, ¡°By the way¡­ there¡¯s a festive atmosphere in this ce, right? I can hear music everywhere, did something happen?¡± *** Chapter 280 - Which One? (1)

Chapter 280. Which One? (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren When the ghost¡¯smotion was over, I remembered something Kapmen had told me at the time, but I had put aside. Duke Liberty turned a blind eye even though he knew of the ghost¡¯smotion being caused by Marquis Ketron. Muney¡¯s rival, William, was Duke Liberty¡¯s son. Although he sent him up for adoption, William and Duke Liberty did not have a bad rtionship. It was a decision he had made for the sake of his son¡¯s future. So, William was also influenced by Duke Liberty¡¯s thoughts? It was true that the Amares Family was almost neutral now, but it could change course if William became the sessor. One more reason for Muney to be the sessor. However, it was a family matter in a way, neither Heinley nor I should intervene. In the end, I called Muney after much reflection. Originally, the secret agreement with Muney was to keep Christa away. Now that she waspletely away, there was no reason to be extremely careful. Shortly after I called her, Muney appeared, She looked exhausted, as if she hade running. ¡°You wanted to see me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Were you busy?¡± ¡°No, I was nearby.¡± I asked an aide to bring the tea. After a while, the aide returned and I extended to Muney a cup of tea. Once she calmed down, I confessed honestly, ¡°The task I gave you earlier was a scenario I deliberately set up so that you could show your abilities.¡± Muney stared at me with the teacup in her hand. ¡°I am sorry for what happened.¡± Why did she say that? Muney didn¡¯t move as she held the teacup. Not even her eyelids. Her flushed cheeks grew redder. She looked embarrassed. ¡°Miss Muney, is something wrong?¡± When I asked curiously, she blinked several times, lowered the teacup and set it on herp. Eventually, she hesitantly confessed, ¡°The previous report. Actually it was me who copied it, Your Majesty.¡± This was unexpected. It was never known which of the two had copied the report, but naturally I did not believe it was Muney. I felt that her personality was simr to Nian¡¯s, with such strong pride that she would not copy anyone even if she was in an unfavorable position. ¡°Why did you do that? I didn¡¯t think you were that kind of person.¡± When I said disappointed, Muney hesitated to exin, ¡°I did it because I was angry.¡± ¡°You were angry?¡± ¡°My father found out I waspeting with William on the same task.¡± ¡°Was that a problem?¡± ¡°That alone wasn¡¯t a problem.¡± Muney snorted with an angry face. However, she also looked hurt. ¡°The problem was that my father helped him. He wanted William to defeat me.¡± Oh. ¡°I was so angry that I copied William¡¯s research. Although I originally wanted to base my research on other issues.¡± Muney¡¯s words were surprising. But more than Muney copying William¡¯s report, I was more surprised by something else. ¡°That¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I let you down.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it.¡± It is understandable that a young inexperienced person would unintentionally write an erroneous report. Therefore, she did not expect a perfect report from them. However, if Marquis Amares was involved in the report, it was a different matter. He was a man with a lot of experience and business ability. He should be better than me in this field. But did he overlook such obvious mistakes to me? It didn¡¯t make sense. Clearly Marquis Amares had exined with another intention to William. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± While I remained silent, Muney twiddled her fingers anxiously. I concluded after telling her what I thought, ¡°There are two possibilities. Unlike what was known, your father was a supporter of Christa, or else in the hope that you would do better than William, he deliberately gave him false information.¡± Either way, he was definitely different from the current image. Muney thought about it for a moment, then smiled ruefully, ¡°Surely it¡¯s the former. My father wouldn¡¯t give William false information for me.¡± ¡°Paying attention from now on is the only way to know which one it is.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In any case, what I can do for you is to set up another stage where you can demonstrate your talents. It¡¯s up to you, Miss Muney, to push your opponent and shine. You have to do it yourself.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°I understand that made you angry. But I hope you don¡¯t mess it up next time by being too focused on William.¡± After giving her another chance, Muney asked in a low voice, ¡°Aren¡¯t you disappointed in me?¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m disappointed.¡± How could I not be disappointed? It would have been better if she had acted more rationally. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t break our alliance.¡± Duke Liberty was hostile to Heinley, and his son was not to be trusted. Naturally, I could only give Muney another chance. ¡°¡­ Thank you. I wasn¡¯t much help to you, so I thought you wouldn¡¯t bother to continue with the alliance.¡± ¡°It is not right to hold a person¡¯s hand when you need it and release it when it is no longer useful.¡± *** Heinley was very happy to hear the news of Koshar¡¯s victory and the retreat of the thousand eternal bandits. The report also noted that Koshar had be quite the hero to the locals, and a series of vige festivities were being held in his honor. After reading the report, Heinley asked McKenna with a smile, ¡°When Koshar returns, I¡¯d like to make him the first golden knight. What do you think?¡± The golden knight was a new position created by Heinley after he ascended to the throne. It was a sort of honorary position that could be awarded to knights other than the Imperial Guard, although it could only be awarded to two people a year by selecting those ¡®deeply loyal¡¯. Heinley wanted to use this position to raise the loyalty andpetitive spirit of talented individuals. But he had not yet decided who should be the first golden knight. In many ways, Koshar seemed to fit the position perfectly. McKenna agreed with a smile, ¡°No one will be able to refute it.¡± ¡°Would it be too tant to also ce Viscount Langdel as a golden knight?¡± ¡°Yes. Most people won¡¯t be in favor.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± Heinley felt sorry for that, but gave up quickly. Instead, he went to the empress¡¯s room as soon as he finished his duties to give her this good news. *** Chapter 281 - Which One? (2)

Chapter 281. Which One? (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Paying attention from now on is the only way to know which one it is.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In any case, what I can do for you is to set up another stage where you can demonstrate your talents. It¡¯s up to you, Miss Muney, to push your opponent and shine. You have to do it yourself.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°I understand that made you angry. But I hope you don¡¯t mess it up next time by being too focused on William.¡± After giving her another chance, Muney asked in a low voice, ¡°Aren¡¯t you disappointed in me?¡± ¡°Of course, I¡¯m disappointed.¡± How could I not be disappointed? It would have been better if she had acted more rationally. ¡°But that doesn¡¯t break our alliance.¡± Duke Liberty was hostile to Heinley, and his son was not to be trusted. Naturally, I could only give Muney another chance. ¡°¡­ Thank you. I wasn¡¯t much help to you, so I thought you wouldn¡¯t bother to continue with the alliance.¡± ¡°It is not right to hold a person¡¯s hand when you need it and release it when it is no longer useful.¡± *** Heinley was very happy to hear the news of Koshar¡¯s victory and the retreat of the Eternal Thousand bandits. The report also noted that Koshar had be quite the hero to the locals, and a series of vige festivities were being held in his honor. After reading the report, Heinley asked McKenna with a smile, ¡°When Koshar returns, I¡¯d like to make him the first golden knight. What do you think?¡± The golden knight was a new position created by Heinley after he ascended to the throne. It was a sort of honorary position that could be awarded to knights other than the Imperial Guard, although it could only be awarded to two people a year by selecting those ¡®deeply loyal¡¯. Heinley wanted to use this position to raise the loyalty andpetitive spirit of talented individuals. But he had not yet decided who should be the first golden knight. In many ways, Koshar seemed to fit the position perfectly. McKenna agreed with a smile, ¡°No one will be able to refute it.¡± ¡°Would it be too tant to also ce Viscount Langdel as a golden knight?¡± ¡°Yes. Most people won¡¯t be in favor.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°I think so.¡± Heinley felt sorry for that, but gave up quickly. Instead, he went to the empress¡¯s room as soon as he finished his duties to give her this good news. *** ¡°I¡¯m d to hear that my brother managed to deal with the Eternal Thousand bandits.¡± I trusted him, but was relieved to hear from Heinley¡¯s mouth that everything had worked out well. I smiled naturally once the tension in me dissipated. Heinley quickly continued, saying that wasn¡¯t the end of it. When Heinley ascended to the throne he had created an honorary knight position, and he wanted to bestow that position on my brother. ¡°Don¡¯t you think there will be people who don¡¯t like it?¡± Of course I agreed, but at the same time it worried me. However, Heinley remarked on how much other countries had suffered from the Eternal Thousand bandits, praising my brother for his enormous contribution in preventing the Western Empire from getting involved in such a conflict. Although it was true, I felt embarrassed to hear it from him, so I nodded slightly. After chattering for a long time, Heinley eximed, ¡°Ah!¡± as if he had remembered something and went to his room after asking me to wait a moment. Soon after, Heinley appeared with arge green liquor bottle. ¡°What¡¯s that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift from Grand Duke Kapmen as an apology for what happened before.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen? Heinley sat down in a chair at the table and showed me the bottle of liquor. ¡°It is a very precious liquor that the Royal Family of Rwibt drinks.¡± Just as he said, thebel on the liquor bottle was written in the Rwibtnguage, and on it was also a symbol representing the royal family. Helping to solve Christa¡¯s case, as well as the ghost case, and giving Heinley a separate gift¡­. Grand Duke Kapmen seemed to continually strive to make up for the mistake of that day. ¡°Let us drink together, My Queen.¡± ¡°Right now?¡± Heinley brought two sses and ced them on the table, removed the cork and poured the liquor. The bottle was green, but the liquid inside was golden and shiny. ¡°The liquid is pretty.¡± ¡°Yes, it is.¡± When I raised the ss and took a sip, it tasted unexpectedly sweet. A taste so sweet and smooth that it didn¡¯t taste like liquor. ¡°It¡¯s delicious.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Heinley seemed to like it so much that he drank all the liquor in his ss quickly. Without cheese or sandwiches, we drank sessively. As we became more at ease, theughter became more frequent. Heinley looked cuter than usual, and the light in my room seemed brighter. The floor and ceiling were spinning. Laughing happily, I rested my head on Heinley¡¯s shoulder, who immediately grabbed me around the waist and pulled me to him. I kissed him naturally, and I could smell the sweet scent in his mouth. And¡­ ¡°?¡± When I regained consciousness, I was lying on the bed. I had a pillow in my hands, which was half torn. What happened? As I threw the pillow aside in bewilderment, the white feathers from inside the pillow flew out. This is¡­ the shared bedroom. I was on the manna stone bed. It looks like I came straight to the shared bedroom, after being drunk, because I was still wearing the same dress. By the way, Heinley? Where¡¯s Heinley? Did he get up first and went to prepare breakfast? As I yawned, recalling what he did every morning, I saw something golden between the sheets. Queen? It was Queen¡¯s rear. Heinley became Queen because of the liquor? How cute! I smiled and quickly grabbed Queen with both hands. After picking him up, I ced him on myp¡­ ¡°Heinley!¡± *** In recent days, a terrible rumor had been circting in the capital of the Eastern Empire. It was about a maid who had been sentenced to death after hitting the empress with a chair. People wondered if that maid was crazy. ¡°¡±She dared to swing a chair at the empress! How could there be such a crazy person in this world?¡±¡± ¡°No one would.¡± ¡°She has nomon sense.¡± ¡°It is said that she is the daughter of a prisoner condemned to death, she couldn¡¯t find work because of her father, so the Empress hired her so she could survive. She is very ungrateful, right?¡± When people heard the rumor, they began to whisper in disgust. But then, a rather famous newspaper published an article totally contrary to people¡¯s opinion. [None of Empress Rashta¡¯s maids have been by her side for long. None have resigned of their own free will. This has been the case from her days as a concubine to the present day, and the maids have been punished and expelled for all sorts of reasons, such as abortion pills, fraud, aggression, etc¡­ with the former Empress Navier, who is now the Empress of the Western Empire, only two women resigned from their maid work, but the reasons were that one would marry and the other was pregnant. They were not expelled after being punished. Even the maid who resigned because of her pregnancyter returned. So why did such problems arise with Empress Rashta? Was she being attacked for having been amoner? However, all maids aremoners. If she would be inconvenienced for having been amoner, it would not be with the maids. At this point, I really wonder if this is a problem rted to Empress Rashta¡¯s personality, which even her subordinates can¡¯t bear.]. Rashta enjoyed reading themoners¡¯ newspaper, where articles praising her were often published. Because of this, she was able to read this article immediately. Once Rashta read it, she was terrified and went to visit Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, look at this.¡± Sovieshu epted the newspaper from Rashta¡¯s hands. He then quickly read the article and said with a sigh, ¡°It seems like that journalist is angry.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that journalist?¡± ¡°Look at the journalist¡¯s name. Isn¡¯t he the brother of the maid you sent to prison?¡± ¡°Ah! It can¡¯t be, it¡¯s the journalist who appeared in the audience hall..¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s him.¡± Rashta shuddered as she remembered themoners¡¯ journalist who had pleaded with her to find his sister. ¡°No way, is he doing this because he thinks his sister disappeared because of Rashta?¡± Then she moved even closer to Sovieshu and begged him. ¡°Your Majesty. Please stop that man from writing articles like this. Rashta¡¯s image may be affected.¡± However, Sovieshu shook his head and said heavily, ¡°He seems to be very resentful. You never know how he might react if cornered, so it¡¯s preferable to leave him alone.¡± ¡°Leave him alone? Are you serious?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a rumor that will disappear on its own if nothing happens to reinforce it in the future.¡± Sovieshu pointed at the article and exined, ¡°It¡¯s an exaggerated argument that just fits the situation, without concrete evidence in the first ce. Such an argument is hardly sustainable. It¡¯s like a beehive. It¡¯s best to leave him alone for now.¡± ¡°¡­ It¡¯s okay.¡± To Rashta, Sovieshu¡¯s words sounded quite reasonable. However, she no longer fully trusted Sovieshu. In the past, she would have believed him without hesitation, but now she found it difficult to do so. Just as he had pushed Navier aside as soon as she appeared, Rashta thought that perhaps Evely¡¯s appearance had caused him to lose his interest in her. Eventually, Rashta went to see Duke Elgy to ask him about this. And about twenty minutester. Sovieshu burst intoughter when he heard that Rashta had gone to see Duke Elgy. It was a dejectedugh. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± When the knight asked, Sovieshu waved his hand. ¡°Nothing. Let¡¯s leave it at that.¡± It was the baby¡¯s health that mattered, not Rashta¡¯s reputation. ¡±She can have whatever hobby she wants if it makes her feel at ease.¡± *** In the meantime. William, reunited with his family at Liberty Mansion after a long time. William was talking excitedly about all sorts of things, and also mentioned ¡®the task given by the empress¡¯ a few days ago. William said it lightly, but Duke Liberty¡¯s expression turned serious when he heard this, ¡°What is it, father?¡± William asked with concern. Did I say something wrong? Or was he upset that I had done the task given to me by the empress? However, the words Duke Liberty spoke next werepletely different from what William expected. ¡°If you have another chance in the future, pay more attention and do it right.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°If you meet the empress again, watch your actions and be sure to earn her trust.¡± ¡°What?¡± When William looked at him puzzled, his elder brother said in a tone of, ¡®Don¡¯t you get it?¡¯ ¡°Father wants you to be part of the Empress¡¯ faction.¡± William was surprised and asked, ¡°Are you serious?¡± He knew that his father and brother were not in favor of the empress. But suddenly, they wanted him to be of the empress¡¯ faction? ¡°I don¡¯t think the strange test the Empress put you both through was to help you. It was probably to help Muney.¡± ¡°I heard that Muney had no contact with the Empress either.¡± ¡°In any case, it¡¯s the result that matters.¡± Smiling broadly, Duke Liberty stroked William¡¯s hair. ¡°If you stand out above Muney you¡¯ll earn the Empress¡¯s trust. She is a pragmatic person.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°Do whatever it takes to be part of the Empress¡¯ faction.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll go the opposite way from my father and brother, right?¡± When William spoke sadly, Duke Liberty burst intoughter. ¡°No. If we do this, our family won¡¯t be affected even if one of the two sides copses.¡± The broad smile on his face disappeared once William left. Duke Liberty turned to his eldest son with a serious look, ¡°Our ship has too many holes in it. I¡¯ll try to fix it, but at this rate we¡¯ll sink. So you must help your younger brother. He could be thest hope to save our family.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to side with the empress at once?¡± ¡°Even if we supported the empress now, she would never really trust us. If we can¡¯t get close, there¡¯s no need to wag our tail just yet.¡± Once Duke Liberty said his point of view, he pulled an envelope from his breast pocket and handed it to his eldest son. ¡°Look at this.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a letter Christa left before she left.¡± His eldest son opened the envelope in surprise. The letter referred to what Christa had heard from Rashta. [ording to that woman, the decisive cause of Empress Navier¡¯s divorce was not herself, but the Empress¡¯ infertility. I kept my mouth shut because Imented what might happen if this fact became known to the world, but now that things havee to this point, I wonder what good it did to keep my mouth shut.] His eldest son looked at Duke Liberty with a stiff expression. ¡°Father, this is¡­¡± ¡°First we need to check if it¡¯s true. We need to treat this matter very carefully.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Send someone to Empress Rashta to check it out.¡± *** Chapter 282 - The Devil Shows His Friendliness (1)

Chapter 282. The Devil Shows His Friendliness (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Queen¡¯s small bodyy inert on the bed, more stretched out than usual, with his beak slightly open and his drooping head. He looked like a seaweed. ¡°Heinley. Heinley? Heinley!¡± I tried to wake him up several times, but Queen didn¡¯t move a muscle. I moved out of bed on my knees with Queen in my arms. The pce doctor! The pce doctor! No, not the pce doctor! Heinley was not Heinley right now! But that was a secret, I couldn¡¯t reveal that he was a bird. So, should I bring in a veterinary doctor? Is Queen¡¯s body the same as that of an ordinary bird? What was normally done in this situation? Normally¡­ McKenna! McKenna could also turn into a bird. Therefore, he should know who normally treated Heinley when he was injured in his bird form. I quickly left the shared bedroom after cing Heinley back between the pillows. ¡°Miss Rose, please call McKenna. Hurry up.¡± While Rose went to find McKenna, I quickly showered, changed my clothes that smelled of alcohol, and tied my hair up. Shortly after I started pacing around the room, McKenna appeared. ¡°Your Majesty, what¡¯s wrong? I was informed that it is an urgent matter.¡± After asking Rose to leave, I said to McKenna, ¡°Stay here for a moment.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I quickly hurried into the shared bedroom, took Queen in my arms, and returned to my room. Seeing Queen inert, McKenna was startled, ¡°Oh my, His Majesty is drunk!¡± Huh? Drunk? I still hadn¡¯t exined anything that had happened. When I looked at him in surprise, McKenna raised his eyebrows and covered his mouth with both hands. ¡°Oops, not drunk?¡± When I told him the details, McKenna¡¯s eyebrows rxed and he took his hands away from his mouth, ¡°So, he really is drunk. He tends to turn into a bird when he¡¯s drunk. Well, that¡¯s much better than people who turn into an angry dog.¡± ¡°Still, how can he still be unconscious after a day has passed?¡± ¡°Sometimes this happens when he drinks in his bird form.¡± Drinking in his bird form? Was that possible? ¡°If you leave him like that, he¡¯ll wake up on his own.¡± McKennaughed at me. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry, Your Majesty.¡± Only then was I relieved. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mention it. It¡¯s my duty.¡± After McKenna left, I took Queen back to the shared bedroom, put him to bed, and returned again to my room to ask Countess Jubel to bring a clear soup. The soup was quickly prepared. When I entered the shared bedroom with the soup, Queen was still lying inert on the bed. I left the soup bowl on the bedside table, then sat down next to Queen and carefully touched his body. Looking at him closely, I was d. It was evident that he had fallen sound asleep due to the influence of alcohol. Seeing how at ease he was, I naturally smiled. No¡­ no way. I was in trouble. Anyone could tell that I was falling more in love with Heinley with each passing day. If I had looked closely from the beginning, I would have noticed that it was because he was drunk. I didn¡¯t even notice that, so I urgently called McKenna. ¡°What should I do?¡± Although I asked out loud, Heinley was asleep, so he wouldn¡¯t be able to answer. I leaned down and rested my head lightly on his chest. When the warmth of his body reached my forehead, my eyes closed on their own. ¡°What should I do, Heinley? You have so many secrets. If I loved you, it would certainly be hard to bear.¡± This is all because you¡¯re sly, Heinley. After checking that he was sound asleep, I pet his rear, and kissed his soft forehead. * * * Just as McKenna said, Heinley woke up three hourster. It was very cute and lovely to see him p his wings while asking with his eyes what had happened. But from that day on, I waspletely absorbed in work. I was trying to keep my mind upied so as not to fallpletely in love with Heinley. Even if I liked him, not loved him, or even if I loved him only to the point so as not to suffer, I wanted to hold that line. Fortunately, there was much work to be done, so I didn¡¯t need to create it. Trade with Rwibt also progressed rapidly, as the first three test teams were formed. Now we had to wait for the results they would bring back, and based on those results determine the corrective actions to be taken. Once I had expressed my good wishes to the three test teams before they set out on the trip to Rwibt, I returned to the office exhausted. After working for several days on only three hours of sleep, fatigue was starting to get the better of me. I drank two cups of strong coffee, but my eyelids still felt very heavy anyway. In the end, I seemed to have fallen asleep. When I opened my eyes, my body was tilted to one side. Why hadn¡¯t I fallen? What was I leaning on now? Looking up, I could see that I was leaning on Heinley¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Heinley?¡± When did he get here? Once I called him puzzled, Heinley startled and inadvertently bumped my head with his. ¡°It¡¯s not too much.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Did it bother you to see me passed out like that because of the alcohol?¡± ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been avoiding me since the day I passed out from too much alcohol.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t avoided you. We always see each other at night.¡± ¡°Only at night.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Every time I visited you during the day you¡¯re busy.¡± ¡°I was really busy.¡± It was true. I wasn¡¯t trying to avoid Heinley, I was just trying to finish as much work as possible. ¡°I understand.¡± Heinley stared at me with a frown and said, ¡°You¡¯re trying to avoid me by being busy, right? You work on things that could be left forter.¡± ¡°¡­That¡¯s not true.¡± When I answered again, Heinley took my hand firmly and asked, ¡°So, did it bother you that I became Queen while so drunk?¡± As he held my hand firmly, he stroked the back of it with his thumb, but he wore a very worried expression. ¡°Absolutely not.¡± I denied it again, Heinley closed his mouth and lowered his gaze. I didn¡¯t want to hurt him. Really, I didn¡¯t. I just wanted to keep a line so I wouldn¡¯t get swept away by the current. It broke my heart to see Heinley sad, I felt guilty. Should I have expressed my feelings more clearly? But how? I think I love you, but I only want to love you in moderation, should I say that? Unable to resist the impulse, I kissed him, put my hand on his soft blond hair and stroked it, tilted my head and rested my forehead against his. ¡°You¡¯re so handsome, Heinley.¡± I whispered, softly kissing his face. ¡°My Queen¡­ Navier.¡± When I slipped my hand into his shirt and bit his earlobe, Heinley let out a low moan. I put my feelings inside a box by force, but they finally came out, suddenly finding this man so lovely that it was hard to resist. I slowly moved my hands down towards his pants as I caressed his entire body. ¡°Heinley. Spread your legs.¡± But before I could reach my treasure, Heinley tightened his legs and turned backwards. As I wondered why he did this, he gave me a reproachful look. ¡°Heinley?¡± As soon as I spoke his name, his mouth opened and closed a couple of times. I don¡¯t know why, but he had a veryplicated expression. After a while, Heinley covered his face and asked, ¡°My Queen. Are you only¡­ interested in my body?¡± *** Chapter 283 - The Devil Shows His Friendliness (2)

Chapter 283. The Devil Shows His Friendliness (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren In a few hours there would be a tea party. Rashta arranged the bangs that covered the scar and put on a light,fortable dress that didn¡¯t strain her bulging belly. Lately, she felt her body heavier, her legs numb and frequent tugging in her belly. She was going to the bathroom more often and her limbs were swelling even when she was still. Despite Viscountess Verdi¡¯s efforts to alleviate her difort, it didn¡¯t work. ¡°My baby. It looks like you¡¯ll be born soon.¡± Rashta whispered to the baby as she caressed her belly. Recently, she had also been worried about the baby¡¯s sex. So far she hadn¡¯t cared whether it was a boy or a girl. It was fine with her if it was a boy because it would cement his position as sessor at once, but even if it was a girl, she could have a boyter. Rather, she thought it would be better to have a girl and then a boy. However, now that she was further away from Sovieshu, she knew that the baby had to be a boy. The Eastern Empire had never had a reigning empress. For her child¡¯s sake as well as her own, the baby to be born had to be a boy. At that moment, someone knocked at the door. It was a maid. ¡°A knight asked me to deliver this envelope to you.¡± The maid extended the envelope to Rashta, then added hesitantly, ¡°He asked me to deliver this envelope to you and for Your Majesty to return a reply¡­ he also gave me money for doing this.¡± ¡°How much?¡± ¡°A lot.¡± What was the letter about? Rashta opened the envelope and took out the letter, while the maid waited to the side. Her eyes ran over the letter quickly. After so many reprimands from Sovieshu, she could now read and write fluently. After reading the letter, a smile of joy appeared on Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°Is it good news?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fun news.¡± Rashta went to her desk with the letter in her hand, took out a nk piece of paper and dipped the tip of the pen in ink. [I do not know for sure if Navier is infertile. However, even though she was married for a long time to His Majesty Sovieshu, she was unable to have a child, that is why I believe it. What is certain is that the reason His Majesty divorced Navier was because of the infertility problem]. ¡®If Sovieshu thought Navier was not infertile, he would not have divorced her to marry me.¡¯ Rashta thought that Sovieshu¡¯s divorce with Navier was clear proof of her infertility. Rashta found it fun to write this. She was thoughtful for a moment and wrote a final sentence that sounded a little kinder. [But it would be a shame if she lost her position just because of an uncertain assumption. Navier will be a good empress, so I hope she won¡¯t be backed into a corner by uncertainty]. After putting the letter in an envelope and affixing her seal, Rashta handed it to the maid. Viscountess Verdi began tob Rashta¡¯s hair again, while she hummed in a better mood. However, that mood changed as soon as she attended the tea party. The topic of the soon-to-be-born baby came to the forefront, but it was because of the words of a nobleman who said with concern, ¡±When the baby is born, hopefully it can grow strong¡­¡± It was a voice of desire, but if one listened carefully, one could realize the malice in his words. Even another nobleman added, ¡°The Troby Family has been loyal to the Imperial Family for generations. But it may not be loyal to the next emperor.¡± Are these nobles cursing my child¡¯s future? Disgusted, Rashta stared at them with a frown. The nobleman who brought up the subject of the Troby Family waved his hand and said quickly, ¡°Well, it¡¯s a difficult rtionship to handle.¡± Even after this excuse, Rashta was still in a bad mood. But inside, she knew he was right. The Troby Family were displeased with her, so naturally they would not be loyal to her child. Even when that child was raised as the crown prince, or even when he came of age and became the emperor, they might still be displeased and block his path. Rashta felt chills just imagining it. Although members of the Troby Family rarely worked as government officials, they had great influence in high society. Also, Marquis Farang. What of him? He had inherited the position of marquis as a young man, had a rebellious personality and held a deep grudge against Rashta for the banishment (exile) of his friend Koshar. This man would not support her child either. ¡®I have to take care of this.¡¯ Once she returned to her room after the tea party, Rashta knew what she had to do. She had already done some bad things to survive in the imperial pce. She had no problem adding a couple more to the list. ¡®I¡¯ll protect my baby.¡¯ She was going to eliminate anyone who might block her child¡¯s path. As soon as Rashta made up her mind, she called Viscount Roteschu¡¯s mercenary. The mercenary appeared less than three hourster. Rashta threw arge jeweled ne at the mercenary and ordered him, ¡°You said you also killed for money, right?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± ¡°You can kill nobles?¡± The mercenaryughed as if he had heard a joke. ¡°There¡¯s no difference between killing nobles ormoners.¡± Those words were pleasant for Rashta to hear. ¡°Then kill the Duke and Duchess Troby.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°They went to the Western Empire for a while, but they¡¯ll be back soon. You don¡¯t have to rush to kill them. Just do it before Rashta¡¯s baby is born. So kill them however you want when you¡¯re ready.¡± The mercenary replied after a moment¡¯s thought. ¡°If you want me to kill the Duke and Duchess Troby, you¡¯ll have to pay more. It¡¯s more difficult and dangerous.¡± ¡°Never mind the money.¡± ¡°It¡¯s ten thousand krangs.¡± ¡°Ten thousand krangs?¡± Rashta was startled. The amount was higher than she expected. ¡°Are you saying that to kill one person you need ten thousand krangs?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not one, it¡¯s two. Besides, it¡¯s not like killing two passersby. There must be many guards around them, and to kill them I¡¯ll have to pass through all of them.¡± ¡®Still, wasn¡¯t ten thousand krangs too much?¡¯ Rashta bit her lower lip. He was a mercenary that Viscount Roteschu had brought in, and unfortunately he was just as greedy as the Viscount, ¡°After I kill them I will also have to escape, and the Troby Family will send people to kill me. Their daughter, who is in the Western Empire, may try to kill me as well. If you have to risk your life and even think about your safety afterwards, ten thousand krangs really isn¡¯t much, right?¡± She had nothing to refute. Rashta finally sent the mercenary away saying that it was fine. ¡®Ten thousand krangs¡­¡¯ But ten thousand krangs was still too much money. When she asked Baron Lant for money, he would give it to her right away, but if she told him she needed ten thousand krangs, he would ask for the reason. He was an annoying man. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ In the end, Rashta decided to ask Duke Elgy for help again. There was no one else who could give her such arge sum of money. Fortunately, this time Duke Elgy took Rashta¡¯s hand with a smile, ¡°Of course I¡¯ll give it to you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m always sorry¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. You¡¯ll pay me back for everything, right?¡± ¡°Of course. Don¡¯t worry.¡± Whenever Duke Elgy lent her money he made sure to put it in writing on a document. Rashta wrote her name on the document and stared at the Duke. When their gazes met, Duke Elgy asked with a smile, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Rashta shook her head. ¡°I was just thinking that the Duke is really beautiful.¡± ¡°You¡¯re beautiful too.¡± ¡°No, actually¡­ if the devil existed I think he would look like you.¡± ¡°The devil?¡± The corners of Duke Elgy¡¯s mouth lifted as if he found it amusing. ¡°No offense. It¡¯s just that I remembered what I¡¯d heard somewhere. The devil is beautiful so that he can enchant people¡­¡± Chapter 284 - Painting (1)

Chapter 284. Painting (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren What¡¯s worse? That Heinley thought I was trying to avoid him, or that I was only interested in his body? The first made me look like a cold-hearted woman. The second made me look like a floozy. Thinking about this I couldn¡¯t stay calm, so I put down my pen and got up from my chair. What did I do wrong? The mood flowed like that, didn¡¯t it? I just get carried away with the moment. So then why? Was it because I touched him? He was touching me too. So when he touched me, it was love, but when I touched him, I just wanted physical gratification? Was I only interested in his body? If I was only interested in his body, I wouldn¡¯t be concerning myself with anything else. I wish it was like that, I would have enjoyed every day, working during the day and ying with his body at night! It was painful because I was not only interested in his body, but even more¡­ If he often talked about taking a bath together, doing it in other ces, in other positions, role-ying, and any number of things! How could I be the dirty one for putting my hands in his pants a little!? ¡°Your Majesty? You seem disturbed.¡± As I paced the drawing room with pursed lips, mydies-in-waiting also looked anxious. I shook my head at Countess Jubel¡¯s concern, ¡°It¡¯s just that aplicated problem came up. It¡¯s all right.¡± Then Laura ran up like a squirrel and asked, ¡°What happened? Discuss it with us, Your Majesty! Then, we might be able to find a quick solution to your problem. It is said that several heads together can always find a way, right?¡± Thank you, Laura. But I couldn¡¯t say that my husband considered me a nympho who only wanted his body. I couldn¡¯t discuss this embarrassing matter with anyone. What¡¯s to discuss? If someone found out about this, I would die of embarrassment. At that moment, there was a knock at the door. ¡°I¡¯ll go!¡± Laura, who ran to the door excitedly, hurried back shortly after and shouted, ¡°Your Majesty, Grand Duke Kapmen is here to see you!¡± Oh¡­ Good heavens. It can¡¯t be! Of all times¡­ The Duke came right now! ¡°Can you tell him toeter?¡± ¡°He said it was an urgent matter¡­¡± ¡°An urgent matter?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about the first three test teams!¡± I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists, but there was nothing that could be done. ¡°Let him in.¡± My God, I hope nothing that happened before with Heinley does not cross my mind in front of Grand Duke Kapmen. *** Three youngdies of simr age were sitting side by side on a flight of stairs, and in front of them tworge dogs were y biting each other¡¯s tails. The dogs barked and jumped happily, but the youngdies had bored expressions. With the departure of the Duchess Tuania, and even the Empress Navier,tely high society had be drastically dull. Large and small parties were held in different parts, but there were no parties organized by very high status nobles, which was a little boring. Only when high-status nobles hosted a party, a great diversity of personalities gathered. Duke and Duchess Troby had gone to the Western Empire, while Duke Tuania was depressed and stayed cooped up in his mansion after getting divorced. Marquis Farang was the kind of man who preferred huntingpetitions, fencing and training carrier pigeons to parties. Marquis Karl rarely hosted parties, perhaps because he was the emperor¡¯s chief secretary, while the youngdies were reluctant to go to parties hosted by Grand Duke Lilteang because of his bad temperament. And Empress Rashta met only with men, so the youngdies were bound to be bored. Eventually Rivetti, who was sitting quietly, asked curiously, ¡°Have you ever had a romantic rtionship?¡± Alischute looked at Rivetti in surprise, ¡°Is there someone you like?¡± Alischute had been Laura¡¯s best friend, but since Laura left for the Western Empire, she had been hanging out with Rivetti and Anne. Rivetti thought, ¡®Why should I say if there is someone I like?¡± and answered resolutely, ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then why are you suddenly talking about romantic rtionships?¡± Anne, who was listening quietly, said in a serious voice, ¡°Romantic rtionships are for after marriage. It¡¯s not good for rumors to spread that you dated before marriage, Rivetti.¡± Rivetti pursed her lips. She was also well aware of the nobles¡¯ philosophy of ¡®separating love from marriage,¡¯ but those words annoyed her a bit due to the fact that it led to the divorce of Navier, the empress she liked the most. ¡°It¡¯s not a romantic rtionship because I like anyone. It¡¯s because it¡¯s necessary.¡± ¡°Why? To get married?¡± ¡°To a certain extent.¡± Alischute and Anne, who were bored, looked at Rivetti with a twinkle in their eyes. ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°Who do you want to marry?¡± ¡°Is your father against it? If not, ask your father to raise the marriage with his family.¡± Rivetti¡¯s lips twisted. If she could, she would have already done it. But she was aiming at the Emperor, not at an ordinary noble. Besides, she was doing it out of revenge, not love. She intended to seduce him and then toss him aside. Her father and brother would not help her in this. Of course, even if they wanted to help her, her family did not have enough status to persuade the Emperor to take her as his concubine. ¡°That¡¯s not possible. I¡¯ve tried to seduce him, but he doesn¡¯t seem to be interested in me.¡± ¡°How old is he? Is he too old or too young? Maybe that¡¯s why he¡¯s not interested in you.¡± Anne had made another smart remark. Rivetti hesitated, thought about it, and replied, ¡°He¡¯s older. But there¡¯s not much of an age difference.¡± ¡°You¡¯re radiant and energetic, isn¡¯t that your charm? You must expose it.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you show yourself strong? ?When there¡¯s a huntingpetition, shoot an arrow splendidly in front of him.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to shoot an arrow.¡± ¡°Then ride a horse splendidly!¡± The youngdies gave their opinions, but it wasn¡¯t very helpful. Eventually, Rivetti forgot about the seduction topic as sheughed and joked with her friends. She onlymented it, after parting from them. ¡®Ah! How did we get from the seduction issue to the topic of that palmistry?¡¯ Rivetti patted herself lightly on the head,menting her stupidity. Still, she enjoyed hanging out with her friends. Rivetti walked casually back home. But halfway there, she felt someone following her. Rivetti stopped and looked back. ¡®Was it my imagination?¡¯ Although it was getting dark, there were quite a few people passing by here, so she could not determine if anyone was following her. Despite feeling a little uneasy, Rivetti finally kept walking. There were many passersby, so she figured no one was tantly following her. ¡°¡­¡± But after a few steps, she was once again ovee by an unpleasant fear. Although she walked busily for a while, the strange sensation did not disappear. Rivetti stopped again and looked back. People were stilling and going normally. There was no sign of anyone following her. ¡®Is it my imagination?¡¯ Rivetti, who half turned her gaze to the front, looked back again when she became aware of a startling fact. It was the passersby! It was the same passersby! She was sure they were the same people as when she looked back the first time. At this point, Rivetti panicked and got goosebumps. She turned her head to the front quickly and ran off. Then, the passersby stopped and turned their gaze to her back at the same time. A child squatting among wooden crates in the corner of an alley watched the scene, licking a lollipop. That was thest day Rivetti was seen. *** Chapter 285 - Painting (2)

Chapter 285. Painting (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren For fear of thinking about what happened to me with Heinley in front of Grand Duke Kapmen, I counted from 1 to 10 repeatedly from the moment he appeared. Grand Duke Kapmen paused to say through tears ofughter, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. It¡¯s hard for me to understand you like this.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you understand me ok?¡± ¡°I hear your inner voice at the same time.¡± What should I do? I couldn¡¯t stop counting in my mind. Grand Duke Kapmen smiled awkwardly. But soon his expression became really serious and he said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what thoughts you are trying to keep me from knowing, but after you hear this you won¡¯t be able to think of anything else. One of the first three teams that left for the test trade has been detained in Whitemond.¡± He was right. Immediately, I couldn¡¯t think of anything else. The Western Empire was rich in jewels and various natural resources, it was also the country with thergest number of mines, but it had no sea. The Western Empire was surrounded by mountains and other countries. There was no water shortage in the Western Empire because there were manyrge rivers andkes, but there was no naval force. In contrast, the Western Empire had an exceptional army due to its geographical conditions, so it did not need it either. For this reason, the Western Empire had leased several ports, the closest being Whitemond. The Western Empire had used the port of Whitemond for more than twenty years, and one of the teams from this mission was scheduled to pass through that port to go to Rwibt. Being the shortest distance, it was also the team that was expected to get the best results. But was it arrested? ¡°Was there a problem?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the details. My subordinate, who was supposed to join the team and lead it, was dyed because he felt ill, but once he arrived in Whitemond the team had already been arrested.¡± I got up from the couch hurriedly. ¡°I¡¯ll have to talk to Heinley first.¡± Although I was in charge of this, it was not something I could solve on my own if it was a problem between countries. Why were they arrested? Why was the team arrested? Hadn¡¯t Whitemond been an allied country since the West was a Kingdom? Why not now that the Western Kingdom became the Western Empire? I hope the reason is not rted to that. Otherwise, it couldn¡¯t be easily solved¡­ I met Heinley as soon as I got to the front of his office. ¡°My Queen. In fact, I was going to look for My Queen.¡± He wasing out of his office next to McKenna, who had a very serious expression. Did Heinley have a smile?¡­ Did I see wrong? Yes, I think I saw wrong. He also had a serious expression. ¡°My Queen, have you heard?¡± ¡°About what happened in Whitemond?¡± ¡°Yes. We received the information through a carrier pigeon, even the team members don¡¯t know why they were arrested.¡± *** Sovieshu, who came out dressed as amoner, stopped in front of a store on his way to an undercover investigation. The knightmander, who followed him, averted his eyes in the direction in which Sovieshu was looking. It was a ss-fronted store, so you could see a painting inside in which a well-known person appeared. The knightmander sighed inside. That person was the former empress. Empress Navier in arge painting. Sovieshu stood still for a moment, lost in thought, before entering the store. ¡°Wee!¡± The store owner rushed over excitedly as the front door opened. However, the store owner¡¯s footsteps naturally slowed down upon seeing Sovieshu. Although he was dressed inmoner¡¯s clothes and his face was half-covered, there was a pressure that naturally arose from Sovieshu. The store owner, who had dealt with nobles on countless asions, quickly realized that Sovieshu was a man of very high status and kept silent. Those of high status did not like to be asked questions first. It was better to let them watch freely. Thanks to this, Sovieshu could fully appreciate the painting hanging on the wall without disturbance from anyone. In the painting, Navier was sitting indifferently in a red dress. What was unusual was that Sovieshu himself appeared lying on herp. Sovieshu frowned at the stabbing pain. He felt short of breath. ¡°Young master?¡± The knightmander hurried over to Sovieshu to assist him. ¡°Nothing is wrong.¡± Sovieshu waved his hand to indicate that he was well, and tried to ease the pain by lightly tapping his aching heart. He had kept himself as busy as possible to forget the suffering he experienced in the Western Empire. Why did I have to see this painting here¡­ He felt shivers as he remembered the unbearable pain. Sovieshu turned around and left the store. However, he didn¡¯t even manage to take three steps outside before he returned and said to the store owner, ¡°Sell me that painting.¡± Although it was a store selling paintings, the owner did not originally intend to sell that painting. He wanted to leave this painting hanging in the store as a good luck charm. However, the intense pressure Sovieshu emanated was too great to refuse. The store owner said hesitantly, ¡°That painting is very expensive.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter.¡± Determined, Sovieshu handed him a small money pouch. Then, he ordered the knightmander to cover the painting with a ck cloth and take it to his bedroom. Once the undercover investigation was over, Sovieshu quickly returned to the pce. ¡°And the painting?¡± ¡°It is in Your Majesty¡¯s bedroom. I was waiting for you to tell me where you want to hang it.¡± Sovieshu asked that the painting be hung where he could see it while lying in bed. Once the knightmander left, Sovieshu sat on the bed and looked at the painting carefully. It was a really vivid and beautiful painting. Sovieshu spat a curse and clutched his head. His eyes began to burn. He was fine now after suffering so much in the Western Empire. Why did this suddenly appear¡­ But despite the pain, he couldn¡¯t take his eyes off the painting. One slightly hot day when there was hardly any wind blowing, he had gone on a pic with Navier in the field inside the Imperial Pce. That day, while lying on Navier¡¯sp, he pressed her chin andughed at her. Navier, who was stroking Sovieshu¡¯s hair, tugged on it as if she had done it identally. Consequently, Sovieshu turned around and tickled her feet. Sovieshu could still vividly hear Navierughing at the tickling¡­ ¡°Damn.¡± Once again, his eyes tightened and a deep pain came over him. As he was breathing hard, tears began to fall down his cheeks. ¡®What does this mean? Why now?¡¯ Even the painting looked blurry from tears. As he wiped away tears with his hands, he found something in the painting he didn¡¯t like. Navier¡¯s eyes. Instead of looking at him, her eyes were looking elsewhere. ¡°Where are you looking at?¡± Sovieshu asked the Navier of the painting, as if she could answer. Navier had her gaze raised. ¡®Why wasn¡¯t she looking at me?¡¯ This annoyed him, it seemed as if she was looking at someone else. ¡°Navier.¡± Sobbing uncontrobly, Sovieshu approached the painting and pressed his forehead against Navier¡¯s dress. ¡°Navier. Don¡¯t look away. Look at me.¡± There was no response. Sovieshu fell to his knees and finally said between sobs, ¡°Navier, I miss you. Navier, I want to see you. Navier, I hope youe back.¡± Chapter 286 - Navier Angry (1)

Chapter 286. Navier Angry (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Before going to bed. Sovieshu managed to calm down after much sobbing, and began toment deeply. He considered himself a fool for impulsively buying a Navier painting. ¡®How many peoplee and go to clean my bedroom¡­ Worse, there were people who saw the painting as it was being hung on the wall.¡¯ Getting under the covers, Sovieshu vowed to himself to remove the painting tomorrow. However, what Sovieshu did the next morning was not to remove the painting. On the contrary, he called the pce painter. When the pce painter arrived, he showed him the painting and ordered, ¡°Change the direction in which the eyes of the painting are looking.¡± ¡°What eyes do you mean¡­?¡± The painter asked carefully. There were two people in the painting, both looking in different directions. Navier was looking to one side while Sovieshu was looking at Navier. The sensations conveyed by the painting would change drastically depending on the direction in which the eyes were to look. The painter thought Sovieshu would tell him to change the direction in which his eyes were looking. But Sovieshu¡¯s request was quite the opposite of what the painter expected. ¡°Make Navier look at me.¡± The painter was puzzled for a moment. Is he serious? Sovieshu had an indifferent expression. At least, he didn¡¯t seem to be joking. ¡®Well, no one would joke about something like that.¡¯ When the painter nodded and stepped back, Sovieshu sat down on the bed feeling more at ease and appreciated the painting again. *** Grand Duke Kapmen, Heinley, McKenna, the officials involved, and I, met to discuss what happened in Whitemond. We discussed it for several hours. ¡°Have there been any disputes recently? Not from our perspective, but from Whitemond¡¯s, an act that may have upset them.¡± ¡°No, until now there was no problem.¡± ¡°What about the Whitemond Ambassador? Does he know anything about it?¡± ¡°He is also confused and is contacting the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.¡± ¡°The team members say they did nothing wrong, but perhaps they did it unconsciously, Your Majesty.¡± Various opinions emerged, but the reason the team was arrested remained unknown. McKenna said with concern, ¡°The worst case scenario would be that Whitemond acted this way because they disliked the self-promation of the Western Empire. If that were the case, it will be a small¡­ no, it will be a big problem.¡± Heinley nodded and instructed, ¡°That is true, Marquis Ketron. Ask those of Whitemond what this action is due to.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen, please tell your subordinate to stay close by, and keep an eye on the situation.¡± ¡°I will do so.¡± After nearly three hours of meeting, Marquis Ketron hurriedly left with his followers. Can he really be trusted? As I watched his distant back with a nk stare, Heinley said beside me, ¡°I don¡¯t think he¡¯s that stupid.¡± However, he had already acted stupid once. Hadn¡¯t he tried to heighten the scandal between Christa and Heinley? ¡­ Well. There were a lot of people who saw the secret meeting between Christa and Heinley, so he probably calcted that it was a lie worth taking a chance on, and acted ordingly. In any case, Heinley knew Marquis Ketron better than I did. So I nodded because I trusted Heinley, not the Marquis. Heinley nodded too, then we stared at each other. But it didn¡¯tst long. As soon as I remembered how we parted thest time, I blushed. When I turned my head sharply, Heinley rushed to take my hand. At that instant. Grand Duke Kapmen looked stunned at Heinley, and left as if he was running away, saying he had urgent business to attend to. I don¡¯t know what was going through Heinley¡¯s head to make Grand Duke Kapmen leave in such a manner¡­ ¡°My Queen.¡± When I tried to go somewhere else, Heinley called me and squeezed my hand. Looking back, he had a soulful expression. ¡°Are you going to leave me alone?¡± Although his gaze was capable of making anyone¡¯s heart flutter, I had already discovered that Heinley was an excellent actor. I couldn¡¯t tell if his look was genuine. Besides, who made us feel awkward in the first ce? ¡°Isn¡¯t it time to work?¡± I spoke tly and turned away. I wasn¡¯t lying, so I went straight to my office. I was in my living room before, but now that this had happened, I was going to look into some questions about it. It was possible that the case of the team detained in Whitemond would not be resolved anytime soon, so I would have to consider bringing in another team. But before I could get to my office, Heinley approached me from behind. ¡°My Queen, are you angry?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± ¡°You look angry.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not angry. I just don¡¯t respond to nonsense. ¡± ¡°You are angry.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you busy? You should go to work too, Heinley.¡± Even though I picked up my pace, Heinley stayed by my side. Perhaps because of his long legs. Eventually, I stopped and looked at him with my arms crossed. Heinley stopped at the same time and with a very sorrowful expression said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I was very emotional at the time. If I had known you would be so upset, I wouldn¡¯t have said anything.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I thought we were getting closer, but now we¡¯re starting to drift apart¡­ I¡¯m really sorry.¡± Heinley took my hand firmly and rubbed the back of it with his thumb. Hearing his apology made me feel guilty. I was the one trying to reduce the time I spent with him against my will. Although I was upset that he said I only wanted his body, Heinley could be upset too. He had told me on several asions that he loved me. Maybe out of fear of loving him I made him lonely? My heart ached as I remembered Heinley smiling broadly with my parents. I had decided to make him happy. How did we get back to this again? Heinley put his hands on my neck, lifted my face with his fingers and stared at me. ¡°My Queen. Why do you look so sad? I don¡¯t want to see you like this.¡± Chapter 287 - Navier Angry (2)

Chapter 287. Navier Angry (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren I felt twice as guilty. The words, ¡®Are you acting again?¡¯ came to the tip of my tongue, but the desire to want to pull at his cute lips along with how lovely he looked kept me from speaking. Heinley, probably thinking my ¡®anger¡¯ persisted, lifted my right hand with his two hands and gently rubbed his cheek against my palm. ¡°Don¡¯t be angry. Yes?¡± How could I be angry looking at his lovely face? Finally, I made up my mind. ¡°I¡¯m not angry.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just that¡­¡± After hesitating, I confessed truthfully, ¡°I think what you said at the time might be true.¡± I had just thought about this. I was struggling not to love Heinley, but I couldn¡¯t help but find him lovely. In a sense, didn¡¯t I really just love his body? But then, because I felt this weight in my heart¡­ Smiling slightly, Heinley moved his lips a few times. Then, just as he was finally going to say something, a shout came out of nowhere. ¡°Young Master, you can¡¯t go that way!¡± Soon after I looked in the direction of the voice with curiosity, a little boy appeared from the bushes. Who is he? I stared puzzled at the little boy I¡¯d never seen before, and Heinley said, ¡®Ah,¡¯ frowning. ¡°Do you know him?¡± When I asked him quizzically, Heinley replied with a cocked head, ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve seen him before¡­¡±. Although he looked familiar, he didn¡¯t remember him well. On the contrary, the child recognized Heinley instantly and shouted, ¡°Dad!¡± ¡­ Dad? Looking at Heinley in bewilderment, he shook his head hastily and eximed as if he had remembered, ¡°Ah. This is McKenna¡¯s nephew!¡± ¡°Then you¡­¡± ¡°No, this child has nothing to do with me.¡± Despite his harsh words, Heinley smiled and promptly carried the child as he came running up, saying, ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°How have you been, Sally?¡± ¡°My name is not Sally.¡± But it looked like he didn¡¯t even remember his name. ¡°So, your name is Sen?¡± Just then a voice came from behind, ¡°It¡¯s Sebastian, Your Majesty.¡± When I turned my head, McKenna appeared with his hands on his waist, as if he was annoyed. The child also shouted to McKenna, ¡°Dad!¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty the Empress. He¡¯s my nephew, he has nothing to do with the Emperor. He wanted to see the imperial pce, so I allowed him to go to certain areas. I don¡¯t know how he got here.¡± Calling McKenna dad, the child ran to him. McKenna carried him and tried to calm the restless child in his arms while saying that the little boy liked to stop other people from marrying. His words were not nice, but it was obvious he loved his nephew. As I smiled thinking it was a cute scene, this time the little boy called to me, ¡°Dad!¡± Heinley whispered, ¡°Dad,¡±ughing as if he found it funny. After ncing coldly at Heinley, I walked over to the child in McKenna¡¯s arms and stroked his head, then the child whimpered for McKenna to put him down, and this time he came to me. He was a very nice child. ¡°Baby, how old are you?¡± ¡°Twelve years old¡­¡± ¡°Why do you lie even with that? Your Majesty, he is three years old.¡± ¡°Twelve years old!¡± ¡°You¡¯re three years old!¡± As I watched McKenna argue with his nephew, a woman I had never seen before was being forcibly taken away by knights. She repeatedly imed, ¡°I¡¯m really not a suspicious person!¡± But when she saw McKenna, she shouted with a face that looked like she was going to cry, ¡°Grand Master!¡± ¡°How did you get arrested again?¡± ¡°I was arrested for making a fuss in the imperial pce while going after the young master, Grand Master, please let these knights know that I am not a suspicious person!¡± All members of the McKenna Family are loud. I couldn¡¯t help butugh as McKenna revealed the identity of the child and the woman to the knights. After a while, McKenna apologized to us, taking the child and the woman elsewhere. As I watched them walk away, my eyes suddenly fell on Heinley. Sovieshu was impatient to have a child. What about Heinley? From the way he carried the child whose name he couldn¡¯t even remember well, was it possible that Heinley wanted it too? When I had been worried about whether I could have a baby, Heinley told me about the secrets of the manna bed and his words made me think that, even if I really was infertile, this time I could have a baby. However, despite making love so often, there was still no sign of being pregnant. Without realizing it, I put my hand on my belly. It¡¯s t¡­ t. I shuddered as I remembered Sovieshu¡¯s words. Just because the mana bed restores the body could I really get pregnant? Heinley¡¯s brother and Christa could never have a baby, right? If we can¡¯t have a child either¡­ *** A baby¡­ Sitting in a rocking chair, I put my hand on my belly and tried to think about what it felt like to be a mother. I couldn¡¯t imagine it. Would it have been different if I¡¯d had a younger sibling? I didn¡¯t spend much time with young children either. Suddenly, I remembered how happy Heinley looked as he held the little boy, whose name I didn¡¯t even know. Although he didn¡¯t say anything, did Heinley deep down inside want a child as much as Sovieshu? With a sessor, his throne would be even more solid, right? ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor is here.¡± ¡°Now?¡± It¡¯s a good time, but¡­ why did hee all of a sudden? We had just had a meeting about Whitemond. It wasn¡¯t even time to have dinner together. It was fine if he came to try to end the awkward atmosphere, but¡­ I couldn¡¯t help but feel a little nervous. Just as Grand Duke Kapmen had suddenlye with bad news about the team sent to Whitemond, Heinley probably had something urgent to tell me, right? My guess was correct. ¡°My Queen, there is something unpleasant I must tell you.¡± Heinley sat across from me and opened his mouth with difficulty. ¡°It¡¯s about that woman.¡± It was Rashta whom Heinley referred to as ¡®that woman¡¯. And Heinley didn¡¯t usually talk about Rashta or Sovieshu in front of me unless it was important. Straightening my posture, I stifled the growing anxiety. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°That woman hired a mercenary for an assassination.¡± The fact that Heinley told me this¡­ ¡°Is she targeting me?¡± I asked, feeling confused and speechless. But Heinley shook his head. ¡°She goes after father and mother.¡± ¡°You mean my father and mother?¡± Surprised, my voice naturally rose. It would have been absurd for Rashta to want to murder me, but it seemed even more absurd for her to want to murder my parents. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°That I don¡¯t know. They¡¯re not even the kind of people who would confront that woman openly.¡± Heinley was right. My parents are the kind of people who would stay in their mansion if they didn¡¯t want to see Rashta and Sovieshu. That¡¯s why it seemed stranger to me. Why my parents? And why now? The days when Rashta was the concubine and I was the empress were a thing of the past. Me, I was already in the Western Empire, and she had taken the position of the Empress of the Eastern Empire. Why did she have to attack my parents now¡­.. Ah. ¡°She thinks that my family will stand in the way of her child.¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s the problem, too.¡± ¡°Is the mercenary very skilled?¡± I asked hurriedly, very concerned. But then, Heinley said with a slight smile, as if to put me at ease, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, My Queen. My informant exchanged the mercenary hired by that woman for a subordinate of his.¡± ¡°An informant?¡± ¡°Yes. Thanks to him I was able to know that.¡± ¡°Ahh.¡± I pressed my hand against my heart. Hearing Heinley¡¯s words calmed my racing heart a little. ¡°The deadline is also long enough so you can rest easy for now.¡± Heinley¡¯s voice reassured me, but he still had a serious look. ¡°But that woman may have hired more than one mercenary, so it doesn¡¯t hurt to take precautions.¡± ¡°I have to tell my parents. it is necessary to reinforce their security.¡± I replied as calmly as possible, but a me ignited within me. When I was in the Eastern Empire I had overlooked Rashta¡¯s actions because the same were under Sovieshu¡¯s responsibility. Sovieshu had much more power than Rashta, and it was he who made her his concubine, so Sovieshu had to take responsibility for Rashta¡¯s actions and words. Besides, if I had used all my power to suppress Rashta, I would have ended up being seen as an evil empress. In the end, people sympathize with the weak. However, Rashta was now in a position to take responsibility for her actions. But what she does as soon as she has power is try to assassinate my parents? ¡°I can¡¯t just stand idly by.¡± Chapter 288 - Rescue (1)

Chapter 288. Rescue (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley looked a little surprised. Why was he surprised? Did I say something I shouldn¡¯t have? ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± I don¡¯t think I said something I shouldn¡¯t have. ¡°What¡¯s strange about it?¡± At the direct question, Heinley raised his eyebrows and replied with a smile, ¡°Nothing. I¡¯m just surprised that My Queen wants to take action personally.¡± What¡¯s so surprising about that? No one would stand idly by if someone tried to harm their family. Even a very calm person would step forward to protect their family, but I was not such a calm person. Heinley hastened to add, ¡°When I was in the Eastern Empire, My Queen didn¡¯t seem to want to properly deal with that woman. I thought you didn¡¯t even want to get involved with her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, I didn¡¯t want to get involved with her.¡± Every time I got involved with Rashta Sovieshu med me for everything. In the end, I didn¡¯t even want to be near Rashta. Besides, my dignity also wouldn¡¯t allow me to intimidate Rashta away from Sovieshu¡¯s gaze. ¡°But now things have changed.¡± Things have changed a lot. If before Rashta was a powerless concubine who was totally dependent on Sovieshu¡¯s grace, now she was an empress who could live perfectly well without his grace. Being the empress, she could harm my parents without hindrance. Even when I thought she was a concubine without power, didn¡¯t she contribute greatly to my brother being kicked out and Sovieshu divorcing me? I couldn¡¯t ignore her. Heinley asked, ¡°Do you have any ns in mind?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll make it so she can¡¯t pay attention to anything else. I¡¯ll keep her busy with her own affairs.¡± After Heinley left, I called an aide and gave him orders, ¡°Find a trade team that interacts with the Eastern Empire Bear Corporation and bring in the leader.¡± ¡°From a small orrge team?¡± ¡°From arge team would be better.¡± Not long after, my aide brought in the appropriate team leader. ¡°I understand that you interact regrly with the Bear Corporation of the Eastern Empire?¡± The leader of the trade team responded cautiously because he did not know the reason he had been summoned. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I have an assignment for you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m at your service, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing difficult, so you can rx.¡± When I told him he could rx, the team leader became more nervous and sped his hands tightly. He seemed to think I would make an unreasonable demand. But he really didn¡¯t have to be nervous. I had a n in mind so that Rashta couldn¡¯t think of anything else, and that n didn¡¯t hurt the team leader at all. ¡°What do you want me to do¡­?¡± ¡°When you trade with the Bear Corporation, induce them to check that promissory notes are being issued and used properly. That¡¯s all.¡± It¡¯s easy, right? ¡°The promissory notes?¡± ¡°Yes, whatever excuse you use is fine. You can say that you¡¯ve heard that counterfeit promissory note scams have be popr, or that a trade team has suffered significant losses because of counterfeit promissory notes, you can scare them by making something like that up.¡± The merchant swallowed hard. ¡°Is that really all you want me to do?¡± ¡°That¡¯s all.¡± The merchant didn¡¯t expect it to be that easy, so he replied relieved that he would do it. *** The official sent to Whitemond had returned to the Western Empire and immediately went to see Heinley in his office to report the results of his visit, ¡°The team members are safe. They didn¡¯t cause any trouble.¡± ¡°Then why were they detained?¡± Heinley asked, leaning his elbows on the desk. Although he had a slight smile, he took this as an offense. In fact, Heinley wondered if such a small kingdom would have acted this way even if it were a trade team of the Eastern Empire. The answer was ¡®no¡¯. Looking Heinley in the eye, the official said, ¡°Whitemond seems to regard the West as a threat because it proimed itself an Empire.¡± Heinley frowned, and smiled, ¡°A threat?¡± It was an imposing voice. The official nodded and carefully exined. ¡°Yes. They thought our soldiers would invade them while pretending to go to the port disguised as merchants.¡± McKenna, who listened off to the side, clicked his tongue and said, ¡°Now that we have be an empire, they must have thought we would seek to establish vassal states.¡± Heinley muttered regretfully. ¡°We have been allied countries for a long time, but they acted this way on the pretext that they were concerned. It¡¯s really a pity.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes were on the Whitemond Minister of Foreign Affairs who hade to the Western Empire. The Whitemond Minister of Foreign Affairs was embarrassed and quickly bowed to apologize. ¡°I apologize, Your Majesty.¡± In this situation, the Whitemond Minister felt as ufortable as if he were sitting on spikes, so he could not help but sp his hands together tightly. Heinley addressed that Minister directly. ¡°Go back to your country right now, and make sure they know that we won¡¯t hesitate to take our swords, if Whitemond ever acts ¡®this way¡¯ towards the Western Empire again.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Once Whitemond¡¯s Minister of Foreign Affairs nodded deeply and left the office with the official, Heinley satfortably cross-legged and narrowed his eyes. He seemed to be thinking about something, but he had a look of happiness that didn¡¯t match the situation. ¡°What is it, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to trust again an allied country that has betrayed us. Don¡¯t you think so, McKenna?¡± ¡°You mean it¡¯s hard to trust them even if they reopen the port of Whitemond for us?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But why do you keep smiling, Your Majesty? You look happy that Whitemond stabbed us in the back.¡± ¡°I seriously look happy.¡± Heinley said, as he pressed the corners of his upturned lips with his hand. ¡°I just thought it would be nice to have our own port.¡± ¡°You¡¯re thinking of invading Whitemond?¡± ¡°They were the ones who got scared and stabbed us in the back. Even if they change their minds now, what about next time? What would happen if they betrayed us again at a more important time? ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°For now, I¡¯ll have to do the math.¡± *** Chapter 289 - Rescue (2)

Chapter 289. Rescue (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley always cooked for me. So today I was going to cook for him topletely eliminate the awkward atmosphere between us. I headed for the kitchen that Heinley often used. The neat and tidy kitchen showed that it was designed with an emphasis on aesthetics, rather than practical use, but was equipped with everything necessary. After rolling up my sleeves, I thought about what dishes I could cook. Corn chowder? Mushroom Soup? Vegetable Soup? Actually, I had virtually no experience. ¡­ Should I make an omelet? It was a ssic dish. The most important thing was that I would do it by myself for him. Yes. I¡¯ll make something simple but delicious, instead of something I don¡¯t know how to make well. As soon as I made up my mind, I cracked the eggs into a bowl and beat them well with a fork¡­. an hourter, at dinner, I served Heinley the omelet I had made myself. Heinley happily ate a piece of the omelet. ¡°How does it taste?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the most delicious omelet I¡¯ve ever tasted in my life.¡± I know they were empty words, but they made me feel good. As I watched him eat, I tried to suppress the conflict of ¡®love or stability¡¯ that was going around in my head for the past few days Just then, Heinley asked me, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to eat My Queen?¡± ¡°Ah.¡± Only then did I realize that I had barely tasted the food on my te. Heinley suggested I try the omelet I had made myself. ¡°You should try it too, My Queen. It¡¯s really delicious. I mean it.¡± I took a piece of the omelet with a fork, popped it in my mouth, chewed it a couple of times and immediately swallowed it. But it was strange. It looked delicious as he said, but it didn¡¯t taste good. Also, the taste of the omelet left in my mouth was somewhat unpleasant. Suddenly, I felt as if I had made a chick¡¯s mush instead of an omelet, which turned my stomach even more. Once I hurriedly drank a ss of water, Heinley asked in a shaky voice, ¡°My Queen? Does it have any ingredients you can¡¯t tolerate?¡± ¡°No. I just don¡¯t have an appetite.¡± ¡°Are you feeling all right?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s justck of appetite.¡± Heinley reached out and ced his palm on my forehead. His palm felt cool and pleasant. As I closed my eyes, Heinley murmured, ¡°You have a slight fever. I¡¯ll call the pce doctor, My Queen.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. No need to call the pce doctor for not having an appetite.¡± I shook my head quickly, spooned some of the sd made by the chef into my mouth and smiled forcedly. The reason for myck of appetite was obvious. I heard that Rashta wanted to kill my parents, wouldn¡¯t it be strange to have a good appetite?. The pce doctor would think I was exhausted from overwork, thus interfering with my duties. I still had a lot of work, so I didn¡¯t want him to call the pce doctor because of these symptoms. *** When Viscount Roteschu, who had not been to visit Rashta for days, asked her, ¡°Have you by any chance seen Rivetti?¡± Rashta almost let out a cry of extreme joy. ¡®That assassin did it!¡¯ ¡°No. What happened?¡± Rashta asked, suppressing the delight in her voice. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s expression darkened. ¡°She hasn¡¯t been back home for days.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Rashta asked indifferently, and added firmly, ¡°I know nothing. Rashta isn¡¯t close or rted to her, right? I¡¯m not interested in anything to do with her.¡± Viscount Roteschu frowned, but did not reply. He was so worried about Rivetti that he didn¡¯t even seem to want to argue. ¡°She¡¯s not a child, she can go have fun without your consent. Worry about what I asked you to do.¡± Finally, Viscount Roteschu left. The next night, the assassin hired by Rashta came to see her. The assassin entered Rashta¡¯s room with surprising ease. Rashta almost screamed in terror when she saw the assassin standing by the window. However, she soon recognized the assassin¡¯s peculiar figure and asked hurriedly, ¡°What happened to Rivetti?¡± Rashta asked excitedly, to which the assassin replied indifferently. ¡°I kidnapped her and handed her over to an illegal ve trader. The money from the sale¡ª¡± ¡°Give it to me. I¡¯ll buy delicious food with it. I¡¯ll give you the respective payment separately.¡± When the assassin gave her the money he had brought, Rashta immediately pocketed it before giving him the agreed payment. She was worried because the assassin had discovered her identity and hade all this way, but those who belonged to the assassin¡¯s guild were renowned for their silence. This was because an assassin who revealed a client¡¯s identity was useless, and whatever happened, the client¡¯s identity had to be kept secret. After checking the money and jewelry, the assassin nodded and turned to leave through the window. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± Rashta stopped the assassin and asked, ¡°When that girl is sold by the ve trader, report to me where he sold her. Of course, I will pay you for this.¡± When Rivetti was plunged into despair, Rashta nned to go see her and say, ¡®How does it feel to be amon ve?¡¯ The assassin nodded again and disappeared in the blink of an eye. Rashta sat on the bed and rejoiced. ¡®Rivetti will either cry with apletely defeated expression, or spit curses of despair.¡¯ Rashta clutched her belly, she found it pleasant to imagine that she could take revenge on an enemy in the same way. Soon after, when the maid Rashta had sent to Evely came to see her after managing to steal Evely¡¯s ne, Rashta¡¯s spirits rose even higher. ¡°Good job. You¡¯re reallypetent.¡± Rashta handed her arge jeweled ne and ordered, ¡°Keep watching the girl and let me know immediately if you notice anything strange. If Her Majesty is seeking her out, send her gifts, or anything like that.¡± ¡°Of course. Trust me, Your Majesty.¡± Left alone in her bedroom, Rashta snorted as she examined Evely¡¯s ne closely. This caused her good mood to wane. Rashta threw the ne on the ground and stomped on it several times. *** Meanwhile, Rivetti found herself in a situation where she didn¡¯t know what was going on. On her way home from hanging out with her friends, she saw a terrifying scene. A scene of a crowd of people following her while pretending to be passersby. She tried to run away scared, but lost consciousness after being attacked by someone. When she woke up, she was locked in a cage where wild animals used to be kept. Suddenly, she saw a really evil-looking manughing and giving money to another man covered with a cloak. ¡°Our customers enjoy destroying the dignity of haughty nobles. They are very popr. Still, they be filthy ves after a few years. Look for me again the next time you need to sell another noble.¡± Rivetti shuddered in fear. Filthy ves? Where did this kidnapper take me? When the kidnapper left, the evil man looked at Rivetti as if she were a big piece of gold and said with a smile. ¡°It seems someone has a deep grudge against you.¡± ¡°Please, please help me, I¡¯ll give you as much money as you want!¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t I get more money selling you than you could give me?¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not true!¡± ¡°Besides, how do I know you¡¯ll keep your word if I release you?¡± The evil man smirked and left. Rivetti, locked in a dark cage, called out to her father and brother in tears. But there was no way they could hear her from theirfortable home. Rivetti spent four whole days in terror. During this time, twelve cloaked people came one after another to see her, discussed the price with the evil man and then left. It was extremely painful to watch before her eyes as they calmly negotiated her price. Rivetti realized how cruel and heartless humans were. No one tried to rescue her even though it was obvious that she had been kidnapped. And thest customer toe in on the fourth day bought Rivetti. He asked how much the others had offered, and without hesitation offered double the highest amount. Rivetti was forced to follow thisst customer, with both hands tied tightly behind her back and gagged. She couldn¡¯t remember how much she cried the ride in the carriage. Finally, the carriage stopped in front of a simple and beautiful mansion. Rivetti used to dream of such a mansion, but even this ce was beyond her imagination. However, when thisst customer took off the cloak covering his body, Rivetti stopped crying and her eyes widened. Underneath the cloak he wore the uniform of the Knights of the Imperial Guard. He set the cloak aside and politely apologized to Rivetti. ¡°I¡¯m sorry I scared you, Lady Rivetti.¡± He untied the ropes that bound Rivetti¡¯s hands and removed the gag before stepping back again. Staring at the knight, Rivetti asked between sobs, ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°My name is Oreleo, a member of the Knights of the Imperial Guard. His Majesty ordered me to rescue Lady Rivetti.¡± ¡°His Majesty?¡± Surprised, Rivetti¡¯s eyes widened even more. Why does he now mention Emperor Sovieshu? No, how did Emperor Sovieshu know that I had been kidnapped? If it were the child of a Grand Duke, the Emperor could directly order his knights to rescue it, but Rivetti knew that her family had no such status. Therefore, she could not believe that Sovieshu¡¯s name came out of nowhere. While Rivetti was puzzled, the knight said, ¡°Lady Rivetti, Rashta is the culprit for your kidnapping.¡± Chapter 290 - Evely’s Necklace (1)

Chapter 290. Evely¡¯s Ne (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rivetti was startled to hear Rashta¡¯s name. ¡®Rashta was the culprit for my kidnapping?¡¯ Although they had a bad rtionship, she felt chills to hear that Rashta had been the culprit of her kidnapping. Rivetti still despised and considered Rashta a filthy ve, but she did not belittle her power. It was truly terrifying that the Empress of the Eastern Empire was behind this. Rivetti shivered wrapping her arms around her own body. Although she was safe now, she was afraid of what Rashta might do in the future. Was Rashta trying to erase the traces of the past? Did she intend to eliminate the Rimwell Family to erase her past as a ve? ¡°My family¡­¡± ¡°Is safe.¡± At the knight¡¯s calm reply, Rivetti managed to shake off the greatest of her fears. She still had a tough road ahead, but fortunately she had confirmed that her family was safe. ¡°By the way¡­ how did His Majesty know that I had been kidnapped and sent Sir Oreleo?¡± ¡°A maid attacked Rashta and left a scar on her forehead. After what happened, the Emperor assigned someone to escort Rashta secretly, concerned for her safety.¡± Secretly? Why did he secretly assign someone to her? When Rivetti blinked in confusion, the knight quickly added. ¡°Rashta doesn¡¯t usually like to go out with her guards.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± ¡°Ultimately, that¡¯s how we were able to learn that Rashta had hired an assassin to get rid of Lady Rivetti. I¡¯m d it was possible to rescue you safely.¡± Rivetti nodded. In fact, that was the most important thing. Then the knight exined to Rivetti, ¡°You must stay here for a while, Lady Rivetti.¡± ¡°What? Here?¡± Rivetti looked around in surprise. Finally, she entered and was able to appreciate the interior of the simple but impable mansion. The mansion was well organized and cozy, but the furniture and couches looked new. It looked like an uninhabited ce. ¡°This ce¡­?¡± ¡°It is a mansion owned by the Emperor. I¡¯m sorry, Lady Rivetti. If you return to the capital now, you might be attacked again.¡± Recalling the attacker she had seen, Rivetti hurriedly said. ¡°The attacker had a very peculiar figure! I¡¯ll give my statement about it, maybe we can capture that assassin!¡± ¡°Even if we catch that assassin, another one will soon appear.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± At the knight¡¯s firm words, Rivetti sighed and sat down on a couch. ¡°I¡¯ll be back for you when the time is right. In the meantime, make yourself at home. Forget about the terrifying things that happened.¡± Rivetti recalled the crowd of people who had followed her and those who negotiated her price while she was locked in a cage. Compared to Rashta, those people were not far behind, they were also terrifying. Rivetti nodded. If she were to return to the capital with the current situation, no doubt her family and friends could be hurt. ¡°Yes, I will stay here. Thank you for saving me. Please convey my thanks to the Emperor as well.¡± ¡°Lady Rivetti. Remember this day.¡± ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°It will definitely be useful in the future.¡± *** The knight who left Rivetti in a safe mansion, immediately returned to the capital in the carriage and went to Sovieshu. Arriving at his office, the knight handed him a brief report that he had hastily prepared. After reading it, Sovieshu nodded and praised him. ¡°Good job. It must have been very hard.¡± Once the knight left, Sovieshu put the report in a drawer of his desk. Before closing it, Sovieshu nced inside the well-organized drawer. All of Rashta¡¯s crimes were contained here. At least all the crimes he knew about. A few hourster, feeling disturbed, Sovieshu ordered his secretary to take Rashta to his room. However, Rashta pointed out that she couldn¡¯t walk very far because her belly hurt, so she asked Sovieshu toe over. She made the excuse that her belly hurt, probably because she didn¡¯t want to see the blue bird in his room. Sovieshu didn¡¯t expect Rashta toe to his room either, he just pressed her on purpose. In the end, he went to Rashta. Rashta stood in front of the West Pce, nervous that she had feigned momentary difort to evade his request, but when she saw Sovieshu, she hurried over and spoke affectionately. ¡°Your Majesty, Rashta did not have the strength to go to the East Pce. I feel better now, but I felt a lot of pain in my belly a while ago.¡± ¡°It seems that your belly hurts very often, have you called the pce doctor? ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s appropriate to constantly call such a busy person¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s his job. Even if you feel a little bad, make sure you call him.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Once they entered the Empress¡¯s room, Rashta looked expectantly at Sovieshu. The atmosphere was mellow after a long time. She thought about taking this opportunity to improve the rtionship between the two, which had be a little awkward. ¡°Hmm, Your Majesty. You haven¡¯t sung to Rashtately¡­ the baby in Rashta¡¯s belly wants to hear Your Majesty sing.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s weakness was the baby, and Rashta knew that perfectly well. Although Sovieshu was silent for a moment, he soon sat down beside Rashta and sang a beautiful song softly. Rashta closed her eyes as Sovieshu sang. She felt as if that beautiful song tickled her ears. As soon as the song ended, Rashta had fallen into a drowsy state and was lying on Sovieshu¡¯s shoulder with her eyes closed. She liked Duke Elgy, who was always at her side, but she also liked Sovieshu. When he was in a good mood, he was sweeter than any man she had ever met in her life. ¡°Do you have something to tell me?¡± Even his sudden voice was low and soft. Rashta shook her head still with her eyes closed. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Think it over, do you really have nothing to say to me?¡± Sovieshu asked once more. His voice wasn¡¯t even cold, but Rashta was startled to hear the same question again. What is wrong? Why does he ask that question? Did he find out about something? Rashta raised her head and opened her eyes. In fact, she had recently carried out many things behind Sovieshu¡¯s back. A series of events came to Rashta¡¯s mind at the same time. However, she could not reveal any of it. ¡°No.¡± Rashta lied tly and stood up suddenly. ¡®Come to think of it, I also have something to question Sovieshu about.¡¯ She had intended to keep it to herself a bit longer before bringing it up, but¡­ in this situation, she felt it best to use it now. ¡°Your Majesty has something to exin to Rashta, right?¡± Rashta asked coldly, and put her hands on her waist. Sovieshu narrowed his eyes, leaning back on the back of the couch. ¡°Well. There seems to be something you want to discuss. What is it?¡± Rashta walked over to her dresser and opened a drawer. She reached into it, pulled out a ne and held it up to Sovieshu¡¯s face. ¡°What does this mean?¡± Sovieshu took the ne. The ne might look very expensive, but it did not fit Sovieshu¡¯s standards. It was too shiny and unrefined. ¡°What is this trinket?¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s direct question, Rashta gaped with a puzzled expression. Then, Sovieshu asked once more. ¡°I asked what it is, Rashta.¡± Rashta stammered with a ¡®isn¡¯t it?¡¯ expression. ¡°Isn¡¯t it a gift Your Majesty gave Evely when you brought her as a concubine?¡± Sovieshuughed as if he found it absurd. ¡°You underestimate my good taste.¡± Rashta, who had been angered by how expensive the ne looked, felt embarrassed. Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s words seemed to imply that she had bad taste. ¡°In any case. I assume, from what you just asked, that this ne belongs to Evely, right?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°You shouldn¡¯t take a ne that doesn¡¯t belong to you.¡± ¡°It made me very jealous that Your Majesty cared for another woman. I picked up the ne at the Southern Pce, but I purposely did not return it. I¡¯m sorry.¡± Sovieshu put the ne in his coat pocket. ¡°I¡¯ll have someone return it for you.¡± *** Chapter 291 - Evely’s Necklace (2)

Chapter 291. Evely¡¯s Ne (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren A few days ago, when it became known what happened in Whitemond, only the people involved met toe to a conclusion. But today, when the official meeting was held, even people who were not directly involved attended to discuss the matter. Of course, all the people who were not directly involved were from the Western Empire, so if things with Whitemond were not resolved well, they would also be affected in some way as well. That was probably why the attendees were enthusiastic and strongly held various opinions throughout the meeting. ¡°Even if this incident is resolved without much trouble, you never know when Whitemond will betray us again. We have to attack before we¡¯re attacked! ¡°What is the need to create a conflict? First, let¡¯s observe how the situation develops.¡± ¡°Do you mean to say that action must be taken after disaster strikes? What about our people who will lose their lives in the process?¡± ¡°If we go to war when nothing has happened yet, what crime will the innocent people of Whitemond havemitted?¡± ¡°If the people of the Western Empire or the people of Whitemond have to be sacrificed, of course it must be the people of Whitemond. we are of the Western Empire!¡± ¡°This is not a simple problem with Whitemond. This is a fight between a country that disapproves of our self-promation as an empire and a country that must establish itself as such! ¡°It is time to show our status and power as an Empire. Whitemond must be used as an example!¡± They talk about war with ease. Well. Even if the people of Whitemond felt ufortable, they should havemunicated with the Western Empire first. Why did they suddenly arrest the team passing by? I could barely keep my lips from twitching, as I wanted to express my opinion. It was delicate for me to intervene in a problem between countries when I had been here for less than a year, so I had to be careful with my words. The people of the Western Empire still considered me a foreigner. Fortunately, the topic of the meeting changed after a long discussion, and thereafter the tense atmosphere calmed down somewhat. But when the meeting was about to end. A nobleman raised his hand to ask to speak. McKenna, who was in charge of the meeting, gave him permission to do so. The nobleman hesitated and took several steps forward. Why was he shaking so much? Was this his first time? MMaybe he was a new official. I looked for a moment at the man whose name and face I didn¡¯t remember, then lowered my gaze as I thought of other things. However, I looked back at the trembling official upon hearing his unexpected words, ¡°It is rumored that the Emperor of the Eastern Empire divorced Her Majesty Navier because she is infertile.¡± Naturally, I frowned. As I looked at him with narrowed eyes, the official¡¯s trembling became more intense. Why was he shaking so much? ¡°Of course, I don¡¯t believe in an absurd rumor like that.¡± If he didn¡¯t believe it, he wouldn¡¯t bring that up here. ¡°But it is a very frightful and important rumor, so I felt I should ask the Empress if it was true.¡± The nobleman, sped his hands, stared at me and asked as if he was going to cry, ¡°Your Majesty the Empress, is the rumor true?¡± While it was this nobleman who addressed me, it was probably someone else who persuaded him to ask such a question. Naturally, my gaze fell on Marquis Ketron. Christa¡¯s cousin. Marquis Ketron looked at me with the corners of his lips turned up. When our eyes met, his smile widened. ¡°Of course not.¡± At my firm reply, his smile became even stranger. On the contrary, Heinley had an icy expression. Once the meeting was over, I deliberately approached Marquis Ketron. The nobles who were conversing with him greeted me hastily and left instantly. Marquis Ketron greeted me calmly and boldly. I suppose the Marquis had no intention of hiding the fact that he had asked a low-status official to bring up the rumor of my infertility. His face seemed to say, ¡®I did it.¡¯ Did he know he had a truly wicked and insidious smile? Instead of epting his greeting, I said tly in a low voice, ¡°Even if I were infertile, the next empress would not be from your family.¡± ¡°What do you mean¡­?¡± ¡°No matter how much you cling to false hopes, it is useless.¡± Marquis Ketron frowned. It seemed that he did not expect me to speak so bluntly. He also opened his mouth. From his expression, it was obvious that he wanted to say something that would make me angry. Alright, I¡¯m ready. But before Marquis Ketron could speak, a long spear passed by me from behind. Marquis Ketron quickly reached out his hand and grabbed the spear, stopping it just before it struck him in the forehead. It was a Knight of the Imperial Guard standing behind Heinley who threw the spear. The knight was surprised and hurried to apologize to Heinley, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. It¡¯s possible to make a mistake.¡± He might have made a mistake, but in this case, wouldn¡¯t it be Marquis Ketron, who was about to be struck by the spear, to whom he should be apologizing? Perhaps thinking the same, Marquis Ketron showed an expression of disgust. ¡°You really like to take revenge like a child.¡± Finally angry, he spat out some words that I did not know against whom they were directed, politely said goodbye and left the meeting room first. *** While I was taking a bath, I remembered what Marquis Ketron had said through another official. Leaving aside what he intended to aplish with his words. Was such a rumor really circting? Why hadn¡¯t I heard about it before? If such a rumor was going around, Nian or mydies-in-waiting would have told me. So then did Marquis Ketron make it up? Why would the Marquis make up such a rumor? Did he really make it up or did someone tell him about it? Was it Rashta or a noble of the Eastern Empire? I don¡¯t think it was Sovieshu. The Marquis would not have made up a rumor that did not exist at all. Mainly, because the risk of doing so was too great. For that reason, he also created two safety measures, ¡®speak through someone else¡¯ and ¡®speak as if you don¡¯t believe the rumor¡¯. I think I spent too much time thinking. Before I knew it, the warm water had gone cold. After getting out of the bathtub, I toweled my body dry, put on a robe, and left the bathroom. I stood in front of the mirror to towel dry my hair as well. Meanwhile, I could see Heinley sitting in an armchair through the mirror. He had a serious expression, with his head bowed and not even moving a muscle. He had been like that for a while. I wrapped my hair in the towel, pulled it back, and walked over to him. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I noticed he was reading an encyclopedia of fish. ¡­Does he like fish because he¡¯s a bird? ¡°You like fish?¡± I asked, finding it lovely that he was reading an encyclopedia of fish so intently. Heinley was slow toe to as he was immersed in the encyclopedia, and smiled mysteriously, ¡°Ah. I¡¯m getting ready to fish. I saw a ratherrge fish prowling around today.¡± ¡°Do you like fishing?¡± ¡°Very much.¡± Why does he look so evil if he¡¯s smiling sweetly? I reached out to touch Heinley¡¯s cheek. Then he rubbed his cheek against my palm. ¡°I¡¯ll cook you a delicious fish after I go fishing, Queen. I hope the Marquis suits your taste.¡± The Marquis? Chapter 292 - Falling Into A Trap Set By Oneself (1)

Chapter 292. Falling Into A Trap Set By Oneself (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren In the Western Empire, there was no rumor of Navier¡¯s infertility. But from now on, everyone would start talking about it. Marquis Ketron chuckled with satisfaction. The seeds had been well sown. It was not possible to know in a day or two if the Empress was infertile or not, so as time went on the doubt would grow, strengthening the rumor to the point where it would get out of control and take care of the rest on its own. Until then, he just had to be patient. A few dayster, Marquis Ketron began to investigate the reason for Koshar¡¯s exile from the Eastern Empire. Currently, it was difficult to attack Koshar because of his enormous poprity, but once the rumor of Navier¡¯s infertility spread, a very interesting scenario could be seen. But in the midst of the investigation. ¡°Marquis, I heard an incredible rumor.¡± His subordinate, sent to investigate Koshar, returned with an unexpected rumor. It was a rumor of a hidden mistress of Emperor Heinley. ¡°Hidden mistress?¡± ¡°Yes. It is said that a Knight of the Imperial Guard often goes to her house to bring her whatever she needs. Also, there is always a in-clothed guard in front of the door.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± It was a believable rumor. Prince Heinley was the most famous yboy in high society next to Duke Elgy. He went about the world leading a life of debauchery, but apparently he had only one hidden mistress. In fact, it was more incredible that he only had one hidden mistress. ¡°She recently moved to a nearby town, and when she found out that His Majesty Heinley had married, she acted strangely and burst into tears.¡± Marquis Ketron frowned. ¡°It is equally curious. His Majesty is the kind of person who doesn¡¯t care about rumors that circte about him. What need does he have to keep her hidden?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Perhaps she is not a mistress of the past but of the present. There¡¯s also the fact that the Emperor went to the trouble of sending a Knight of the Imperial Guard to take care of her and¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. It¡¯s quite likely.¡± After careful thought, Marquis Ketron personally went with his subordinate to the town where that woman lived. After waiting for nine hours hiding near her house, a knight in a cloak actually appeared and extended to the woman a basket covered with a white cloth. ¡°Thank you as always.¡± The woman was grateful, but epted the basket as if it were something natural. Marquis Ketron held his breath. The knight who brought her the basket was a Knight of the Heinley Imperial Guard, and the man in front of the door dressed in in clothes¡­ was definitely also a Knight of the Heinley Imperial Guard. The Marquis clearly remembered his face because he was nearly struck by the spear he ¡®identally¡¯ threw at thest meeting. ¡®A woman who lives in hiding and two Knights of the Imperial Guard!¡¯ A dark smile spread across Marquis Ketron¡¯s face. His smile darkened even more when a handsome blond child ran out from inside the house towards the woman. Marquis Ketron, who had observed the situation for several days, finally decided to approach her. At first, she was very suspicious of Marquis Ketron¡¯s intentions, but when he revealed his identity and offered to help her after expressing all sorts offorting words, such as ¡®I know what you¡¯re going through¡¯, she let him into the house albeit with some hesitation. ¡°Is the blond child your son?¡± ¡°Yes. He¡¯s my son.¡± ¡°By any chance¡­ is he His Majesty¡¯s son?¡± ¡°¡­ I think so.¡± Marquis Ketron was delighted. ¡°Then why are you staying here? Why don¡¯t you take the child to the Imperial Pce?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to be a nuisance to His Majesty. He¡¯s newly married¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. If you appear out of nowhere and im to be his mistress, His Majesty will act puzzled. If His Majesty doesn¡¯t recognize you, no one will.¡± The woman took out a beautiful pendant and whispered, ¡°His Majesty gave it to me as a token of love, even if I have this will everyone think I¡¯m lying?¡± Marquis Ketron rejoiced inwardly. In fact, the pendant had the emblem of the imperial family. A woman he had dated in the past and had been close enough to give her a pendant with the emblem of the imperial family. Marquis Ketron chuckled inwardly, calcting that this woman would be extremely useful. ¡°Can you give me that pendant? I¡¯d like to show it to His Majesty.¡± However, the woman pocketed the pendant and drew a line coolly, ¡°Why should I trust the Marquis?¡± Marquis Ketron tried to persuade the woman a couple of times, but seeing that it wouldn¡¯t work, he offered her his own emblem. It was his family¡¯s emblem. ¡°Take this. Let¡¯s exchange emblemster.¡± Only after receiving the Ketron Family emblem did the woman give him the pendant. Once he returned to the capital, he met alone with Heinley to discuss the rumor of Navier¡¯s infertility. ¡°I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the case, but if it turns out that the empress is actually infertile¡­¡± ¡°That won¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°I speak in a hypothetical case, Your Majesty. You must be careful not to get carried away by emotions in such an important matter.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°If the Empress is infertile, will you choose the next empress from my family?¡± ¡°Whether or not I let myself be carried away by emotions, the next empress will not be from your family.¡± ¡°But Your Majesty will not want the Empress to be injured by the same thing twice.¡± ¡°It definitely won¡¯t happen, Marquis.¡± At Heinley¡¯s categorical refusal, Marquis Ketron showed a feigned smile. But as soon as he returned home, he decided to reveal to the world the existence of the woman Heinley had hidden. ¡°Will that be all right?¡± ¡°There is a great risk in revealing that the child is of the imperial family. Although she believes that her son is His Majesty¡¯s, there is no certainty of that. However, isn¡¯t that woman undoubtedly His Majesty¡¯s mistress? At least that¡¯s how others will see it.¡± Marquis Ketron visited the woman with confidence and suggested, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to return to His Majesty¡¯s side? I set the stage. You only have to reveal at that time that you are His Majesty¡¯s mistress. Then, you will also be able to enjoy all that the current empress enjoys.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not that greedy.¡± ¡°It¡¯s about taking what is rightfully yours. Not just receive some baskets.¡± She thought about it for a moment before murmuring gratefully. Two dayster, on the day of the State Council, Marquis Ketron brought the woman with an expression of satisfaction. Chapter 293 - Take The Bait (2)

Chapter 293. Take The Bait (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren When Heinley looked at the woman in surprise, Marquis Ketron¡¯s satisfaction grew. ¡®He¡¯s an insolent brat. This wouldn¡¯t have happened if he had listened to me earlier.¡¯ Marquis Ketron muttered sarcastically, though inwardly. It would have been more fun if the empress had been present on this asion, but she was unable to attend the state council because she was too busy with other matters. With every step the woman took towards the center, she attracted more attention from those present. Unlike what Marquis Ketron expected, Heinley acted as if he knew the woman, ¡°Long time no see, Lady Aliya.¡± ¡°My name is Meliya, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Forget that part.¡± However, Marquis Ketron considered this situation much better. Seeing that they had a pleasant conversation in front of everyone, people would believe even more in the old love between Heinley and the woman. ¡°Well. Lady Meliya. What brings you here?¡± When Heinley asked calmly, Marquis Ketron bit his lips to hide his smile. ¡°I came here on a prior promise with Marquis Ketron.¡± But upon hearing the woman¡¯s reply, Marquis Ketron¡¯s good mood halved. ¡®What nonsense she is saying¡­! While it is true that I brought her here, how can she openly say that I was the one who encouraged her to do this!¡¯ Heinley¡¯s gaze fell on Marquis Ketron. ¡°What did he promise you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to say here. I can let you know exactly what he promised me in private. But he didn¡¯t keep his promise, he forced me to do absurd things that annoyed me and then he discarded me. That¡¯s why I¡¯m here.¡± Marquis Ketron was stunned. What was this woman talking about now? The woman acted as if there was some kind of agreement between herself and the Marquis. The attention of those present turned to Marquis Ketron as they heard these significant words. The Marquis could stand it no longer and stepped forward, speaking in as calm a tone as possible, ¡°That youngdy imed to be the mistress of His Majesty the Emperor. I considered it probable, so I promised to bring her before His Majesty. I thought I had kept my promise by bringing her here. But it seems the youngdy does not think the same.¡± As soon as he finished speaking the woman rushed at Marquis Ketron, shouting, ¡°Traitor!¡± But the knights stopped the woman before she could reach the Marquis. ¡°What the hell is wrong with you!?¡± Marquis Ketron shouted angrily, and the woman eximed while showing the Ketron Family emblem. ¡°You promised me, you even gave me this, are you trying to pass me off as a mad woman in front of His Majesty? You are truly cruel!¡± Marquis Ketron¡¯s ears turned red as those present began to murmur. The Marquis clenched his teeth. He could show everyone the ne with Prince Heinley¡¯s emblem, but then it would be clear that he had encouraged her to go against Heinley. Once the State Council was over, Marquis Ketron angrily approached the woman. ¡°What the hell did you do?¡± The woman smiled nonchntly and replied, ¡°I did what you wanted. Just pointed it in another direction.¡± She had a really calm and confident demeanor. She seemed firmly convinced of her actions, not even afraid to cause a stir at the State Council. Back at home, Marquis Ketron realized he had fallen into a trap and immediately went to Heinley¡¯s office. ¡°Was it a trap of Your Majesty¡¯s? That woman was your subordinate?¡± At Marquis Ketron¡¯s forceful words, Heinley¡¯s eyes widened enormously as if to say, ¡®What are you talking about?¡¯ He had such a puzzled expression that Marquis Ketron thought for a moment, ¡®Was I wrong?¡¯ Marquis Ketron was silent due to uncertainty. Keeping that expression, Heinley pulled the Ketron Family emblem from his pocket. ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± Still wide-eyed, Heinley passed the emblem three times in front of the Marquis¡¯s face, and smiled broadly as he put it back in his pocket. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Many people are curious. They want to know what exactly is the rtionship between that woman and Marquis Ketron, what did the Marquis promise her, etc. What should I do? What should I answer, Marquis?¡± Marquis Ketron ground his teeth angrily. But he could not answer. Heinley winked at him and patted him twice on the shoulder. ¡°While I think about what answer to give, you should also think about your behavior from now on.¡± Heinley muttered and left first. For his part, the marquis shouted and stomped his foot heavily on the floor. As McKenna stood in the corridor waiting for Heinley, he clicked his tongue as he heard the shoute from the office. ¡°He tried to harm Your Majesty once again, he should be thankful he¡¯s still intact. What an idiot, right?¡± ¡°Magic, family, talent as a diplomat, I wouldn¡¯t hesitate to rece him if hecked one of these three. It¡¯s a shame.¡± Heinley also clicked his tongue and handed the emblem to McKenna, ¡°This will be hisst chance.¡± Heinley then acknowledged the great work of the Knight of the Imperial Guard who had thrown the spear at Marquis Ketron and guarded the woman¡¯s house for weeks. * * * Once again, Viscount and Viscountess Isqua bullied Evely. She had been invited to a tea party by the distinguished guests of the Southern Pce, but there they were too. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua seemed very polite, perhaps because of the people present in the ce, but they did tease Evely asionally. Birds of the same feather always fly together, even those who had been kind to Evely in the end were also nobles, so when Viscount and Viscountess Isqua made insulting jokes about Evely¡¯s status, theyughed instead of stopping them. Evely realized that the kindness of the distinguished guests of the Southern Pce had not been as sincere as she thought. They only acted like high-status nobles giving alms to a ¡®nicemoner¡¯. Depressed, Evely returned to her room and untied the ribbon at the top of her dress with one hand as if to rip it off. After undressing as if removing a suffocating coat, she hurried into the bathroom. As she bathed, Evely realized she was missing the ne she always wore. ¡°My ne!¡± Evely came out of the bathroom with a towel, without drying herselfpletely, and looked for it among her clothes, under the bed, under the rug, etc. But the ne was nowhere to be found. After dressing, she headed back to the tea party, but it wasn¡¯t there either. ¡°Tsk!¡± Evely clicked her tongue, went back to her room and pounded on the table. She always wore it. She didn¡¯t know when, where, or how it disappeared. Seeing that it wasn¡¯t in her room, she thought maybe she hadn¡¯t lost it today. Evely, who was furious, suddenly noticed something strange. ¡®Huh?¡¯ Evely calmed down and checked her own body for mana. She could feel the mana how the mana circted through her body, it was little, but her mana had returned. ¡®How?¡¯ When she wore the ne, she did not feel anything no matter how hard she tried to check it before going to sleep. She didn¡¯t know the reason then, but upon checking it now, it seemed that the mana that had returned to her body was so little that it was buried under the mana in the ne, so it couldn¡¯t be distinguished. However, now that she didn¡¯t have the ne, she could tell that her mana had returned. Evely jumped for joy, and ran to the court mage. ¡°Mage! My mana is back!¡± The mage, who had told her not to run through the corridors of the Imperial Pce, shouted with happiness. The two embraced each other with great joy. The court mage took a while toe to his senses and asked in surprise, ¡°How? When did it return?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. The ne I was wearing was a mana ne. I also don¡¯t know exactly when the mana returned because that ne suppressed it.¡± ¡°Mana ne?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Did that ne return your mana?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Evely shook her head sadly. ¡°Besides, I lost the ne. I don¡¯t know if it was stolen or I dropped it.¡± ¡°I will speak to the Emperor to have his subordinates search everywhere for it.¡± The court mage assured her clever assistant. Then, he went straight to Sovieshu¡¯s office, told him what happened and asked, ¡°So Your Majesty, please send your subordinates to search every corner of the Imperial Pce to find Evely¡¯s ne. If that ne really helped Evely regain her mana, it might also help solve the phenomenon of mage decline.¡± Sovieshu raised his eyebrows, took out a small box from a drawer and held it out to him, ¡°Could this be it?¡± Chapter 294 - What Matters Is That He Likes It (1)

Chapter 294. What Matters Is That He Likes It (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Inside the box was a precious jeweled ne. It was Evely¡¯s ne that Rashta had supposedly picked up at the Southern Pce. Sovieshu had intended to give it to her earlier, but he was so busy with work that he had forgotten about it. ¡°Take a look at it.¡± The court mage politely epted the box handed over by Sovieshu with both hands. The mage examined the ne like a hungry dog while Sovieshu watched his gaze intently. Eventually, the court mage¡¯splexion brightened. ¡°I don¡¯t know if this is Evely¡¯s ne, but it certainly contains mana.¡± ¡°Take it away and ask Evely if it¡¯s hers.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°In case it is hers, borrow it from her to study.¡± ¡°And if it¡¯s not hers¡­¡± Sovieshu remembered Rashta, who had asked him if he gave this ne to Evely, and answered simply, ¡°Yes it is.¡± He sounded confident. The court mage bowed to Sovieshu and left. Then went to Evely. Evely anxiously awaited the mage¡¯s return to hisboratory with his other assistants, and approached as soon as he entered. ¡°What did His Majesty say? Will he help me?¡± ¡°Here, look for yourself.¡± The mage held out the box. Evely took it quickly and screamed at the sight of the ne. She was so happy that she even stomped heavily on the floor, and asked, ¡°How did you get it so quickly?¡± ¡°It seems His Majesty had picked it up.¡± ¡°What? This?¡± Why would the Emperor pick up a lost ne in the Southern Pce? Evely found it strange, but didn¡¯t ask the details. She imagined what had happened just by thinking about it a little, but she didn¡¯t want to confirm this unpleasant fact. ¡°In any case, this is good, Evely. If this ne really has restored your mana, then you can get the rest back!¡± This was what really mattered now. When the court mage eximed excitedly, Evely clenched her fist and nodded, ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Other mages might as well get their mana back.¡± Evely put her fist to her chest. Her heart was beating fast. She was very happy. For a mage to lose mana was terribly painful and desperate. Evely knew this very well, so she wanted to be of help to mages in her same situation. ¡°I hope so.¡± After these words from Evely, another court mage¡¯s assistant, who had reached over to grab the ne, suddenly cried out in pain. Evely paused and looked in his direction. The senior assistant swayed as if struck by lightning. ¡°Senior Assistant?¡± Before she could ask, ¡®What happened to you?¡¯ He fell to the floor with a thud. It urred in the blink of an eye. The sound of his head hitting the ground echoed violently, like an old tree falling. ¡°Asuya!¡± The court mage ran in terror to his disciple and shook his shoulders desperately. ¡°Asuya! What¡¯s wrong? Hey!¡± The court mage repeatedly shouted his disciple¡¯s name before nervously cing his hands on the desk. Without thinking, he took several books and ced them under his disciple¡¯s head. He unbuttoned the stifling buttons and rolled up his sleeves, but he was still unconscious. ¡°Evely, get the doctor!¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Evely, surprised and bewildered, hurried out of theboratory. The mana stone in the ne, which was thrown to the ground, glowed and darkened, but neither Evely nor the court mage had seen the scene. The fallen disciple woke up after a whole day. Although he had hit his head hard when he fell, fortunately nothing happened to him. He had a bruise around his shoulder de, but it was not serious either. A horrible truth awaited him. The loss of his mana. He had beenpetent enough to be an assistant to a court mage, and was full of passion for magic. However, in this short period of time, all his mana had disappeared. ¡°It can¡¯t be!¡± The assistant fainted again from the shock. Upon being informed of the incident, Sovieshu went to visit him immediately and did his best tofort the desperate assistant. The assistant was touched by the emperor¡¯s personal support, but he could not stop from falling into despair. For him, who had lived as a mage all his life, he felt empty at the loss of mana. Sovieshu promised the assistant, ¡°I will definitely find out the cause and return your mana.¡± In fact, he worked on it relentlessly from that day on. He first sent for Evely and the court mage, as well as the other assistants, to hear each one¡¯s version of what happened. Although they all witnessed the same, each would remember it from their own perspective. Therefore, Sovieshu intended to put together an objective ount of the different points of view. Having reached this conclusion, Sovieshu called Evely again. She had brought the ne that originated this incident, so she had to rify where it came from. ¡°Who ¡®exactly¡¯ gave you the ne?¡± ¡°The dean.¡± ¡°He didn¡¯t say anything special when he gave it to you?¡± ¡°He just said that wearing the mana ne could help me feel the mana¡­¡± After Evely left, Sovieshu called one of his secretaries and ordered, ¡°Go to the academy to talk to the dean. Find out about the provenance of Evely¡¯s ne.¡± * * * Chapter 295 - What Matters Is That He Likes It (2)

Chapter 295. What Matters Is That He Likes It (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren That which is prepared in advance works best. Heinley¡¯s birthday was no different. It was still a few months away, but I began to think about the gift. Heinley insisted on taking a bath together, but that was out of the question. At tea parties, the nobles would no doubt ask me, ¡®What gift did you prepare for His Majesty?¡¯ ¡®I will take a bath with His Majesty. I will be his gift, wet and covered in bubbles.¡¯ I couldn¡¯t answer something like that, right? It was very indecent just thinking about it. It was not a random assumption. The nobles would want to avoid giving the same gift as me, so they would definitely ask me this. I really needed a gift that I could talk about with confidence when someone asked me what gift I had prepared for Heinley¡­ A true gift, a gift I could tell others about¡­ What could it be? After much thought, I finally decided. A cake. Make him a birthday cake. When I made him the omelet, Heinley was delighted. I won¡¯t give him just a cake as a gift, but I know he¡¯ll be very happy if I add a cake to his gift. Just the thought of his bright expression made me feel pleased. I rubbed my chest with one hand as I tried to calm my racing heart. Once I made up my mind, I knew clearly what I needed to do next. Seek my mother¡¯s help. I¡¯ll bake him a cake in the Eastern Empire style, Troby Family style. When my father, brother and I had birthdays, my mother would bake the cake for us to cut in the morning. It was very strange. My mother didn¡¯t like to cook, but she always baked a cake for our birthday, and it was very delicious. I wanted Heinley to try it too. Coincidentally, my mother was still with me in the imperial pce. Isn¡¯t it great? So I immediately went to my mother and asked her for the cake recipe. ¡°The cake recipe?¡± My mother¡¯s eyes widened slightly at my request, as if she had no idea why I wanted this. Soon, my mother smiled broadly. ¡°You don¡¯t like to cook, Navier.¡± ¡°It¡¯s for Heinley¡¯s birthday, mother. I want it to be a special memory just like it was for us.¡± ¡°Heinley loves you very much. He won¡¯t want you to cook for him if you don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°Mother, Heinley doesn¡¯t know. Besides, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t like to cook.¡± I just preferred not to. My mother put on an indifferent expression at my words. ¡°Well. I don¡¯t know if you should do that.¡± But after I repeatedly asked her for the recipe for her special cake, she finally relented, pulled out a piece of paper and wrote something in detail. ¡°Done. Just do what is written here.¡± The ingredients and the steps to follow were written on the paper. ¡°Thank you.¡± After thanking my mother several times, I borrowed Heinley¡¯s kitchen, and practiced baking the cake. I beat the mixture until my arms were tired and then made the whipped cream. However, the finished cake tastedpletely different from my mother¡¯s cake. I tried a couple more times, but the result was the same. Finally, I went back to my mother to ask her to make it. ¡°Mother, the cake doesn¡¯t taste the same to me like yours does.¡± ¡°Did you do it exactly as I wrote it?¡± ¡°I followed the steps and ingredients to the letter, but the taste ispletely different.¡± ¡°¡­¡± I handed her back the recipe she had given me and asked, ¡°Mother, could you show me how to make it?¡± My mother looked at the recipe I handed back to her with a cold expression. She looked like she was about to open her mouth and say, ¡®You can¡¯t even make this¡­?¡¯ But no matter how long I waited, my mother remained silent. ¡°Mother?¡± When I called her because I couldn¡¯t wait any longer, my mother sighed and confessed. ¡°Actually, the cake was made by the chef.¡± What? Her words were so shocking that I thought I had misheard. Who was it that made the cake? The chef? ¡°Mother, you didn¡¯t make that cake for our birthdays¡­¡± ¡°No, it was the chef.¡± I looked at my mother puzzled. My mother still had a nk expression, but she didn¡¯t look me in the eye. Then she turned to the side, and asked me as if it was normal, ¡°Navier, you want to see His Majesty happily eat ¡®your own cake¡¯, right?¡± ¡°Yes, Mother.¡± ¡°Get a delicious cake and say you made it yourself. That¡¯s what you must do.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Think about it. Eat a tasteless cake made by you, or eat a delicious cake that he thinks is made by you. What would make His Majesty happier?¡± In the end, my mother smiled and patted me on the back, saying that I should keep it a secret from my father. *** While Navier was shocked by the truth she had just learned, Team Bizzarri arrived in the capital of the Eastern Empire after departing days earlier from the Western Empire. Pirence Danju of Team Bizzarri, entered the Bear Corporation headquarters. ¡°Wee!¡± The people of the Bear Corporation, whom he had contacted beforehand, greeted him politely. But they didn¡¯t seem to do so out of respect for Team Bizarri; instead, they greeted him with excessive politeness to demonstrate the greatness of the Bear Corporation. At least that¡¯s what Pirence Danju felt. ¡°Haha, thanks for the hospitality!¡± However, despite feeling ufortable, Pirence Danju did not express it at all. On the contrary, he raised his voice andughed as if he was very happy. In another circumstance, he would have said with a tone of sarcasm, ¡®Why don¡¯t you guys act normal?¡¯, but today he had something important to do. It was a secret request. Actually, the request itself was not that difficult, but he was nervous because it was from Empress Navier. ¡°The president is waiting for you in the reception room.¡± As he looked inside, the Bear Corporation President¡¯s secretary approached and kindly guided him in. When he entered the reception room, he saw the President of the Bear Corporation sitting at the desk with the necessary documents for the meetingid out on it. The two exchanged greetings and a few words of courtesy. Soon after, they discussed a number of issues with the purpose of reaching an agreement at this meeting. Near the end, the President of the Bear Corporation of the Eastern Empire handed him a promissory note in exchange for the purchase of special jewels from the Western Empire. ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Pirence Danju epted the promissory note, and examined it carefully. It was to verify its authenticity. He usually acted this way, so the President of the Bear Corporation just drank a little of his drink, although he was offended. However, his behavior turned out to be different than usual as time went on. Danju examined the promissory note much morepared to other asions. ¡°Is there a problem?¡± Bear Corporation¡¯s president asked, annoyed. ¡°Ah, sorry.¡± Danju felt the time was right, so he quickly did as Empress Navier had requested. ¡°I hope you are not offended. I do this becausetely I have heard a lot of cases of counterfeit promissory notes.¡± Chapter 296 - Cold Person (1)

Chapter 296. Cold Person (1)

The president called the secretary again and ordered him, ¡°Bring detailed reports of promissory notes issued as well as returned promissory notes for this past year.¡± ¡°All of them?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I will have to go up to the top floor¡­ so it will take me a little time, president. It¡¯ste, wouldn¡¯t it be better to check tomorrow? I will take it to your office early tomorrow.¡± ¡°No, I need to check it now. I don¡¯t think I can sleep if I don¡¯t.¡± Because of the president¡¯s heavy voice, the secretary¡¯s face darkened as he wondered if something serious had happened. The secretary appeared with arge box after about an hour. The president immediately pulled out the reports of the promissory notes issued and confirmed his suspicions. Here there was no record of the issuance of these promissory notes either. Then he pulled out the returned promissory notes after they had been used, and changed his reading sses for special ones. With these sses he would be able to distinguish the promissory notes of Empress Rashta. The Bear Corporation put special marks on the promissory notes that were issued to the Emperor and Empress. Just by observing the promissory notes that came out of the Imperial Family, one could know in advance where to invest, what would prosper, what would copse, and so on¡­ so it was a convenient method used by the Bear Corporation in secret. ¡°Sigh.¡± A heavy sigh came out of the president¡¯s mouth. As he expected, the Bear Corporation had not issued any promissory notes to the Imperial Family in thest year. So, there were two options. The huge donation that made people praise Empress Rashta was actually money given by the Emperor or she had used promissory notes from the former Empress. ¡®In either case, it was disappointing.¡¯ If it was the first, it wasughable that she had acted as a kind person taking advantage of the emperor, and if it was the second, it was a truly wicked act for her to use the former empress¡¯ money. The president, who had hoped that Rashta was truly the light of themoners, was very disappointed. However, his disappointment was not the real problem. The president went down to the drawing room and took the crumpled newspaper that was in front of the firece. He recalled that this newspaper had been read this morning by his daughter-inw and she had said to him, ¡°Father, have you read this? Journalist Joanson must have had a huge fight with Empress Rashta. He has attacked her again. Didn¡¯t this journalist usually only write articles praising the Empress?¡± At the time, he didn¡¯t pay much attention to her because he was ying with his grandchildren. ¡®Here it is.¡¯ The president, who found the article written by Joanson, returned to his room with the newspaper in his hand and opened it under themplight. After reading the article carefully with his sses on, his concern took a clear form. Journalist Joanson, who did not expect to write an article about nobility meetings, rted that Empress Rashta only met with noblemen to hang out, and ended with this. ¡ª Is it scary to look down from the top? Those who have climbed thedder of status seem to have no intention of looking down. ¡®He previously wrote in an article that Empress Rashta framed her maids to rece them¡­¡¯ Rashta, who had be empress amidst the cheers ofmoners, in less than a year as empress had already starred in all sorts of scandals. It seems that the journalist still knows nothing about the promissory notes¡­ What if the promissory notes used by Empress Rashta were not the Emperor¡¯s, but really those of the former Empress? What if the former Empress asks for back the promissory notes she left behind, or if someone close to the former Empress realizes this? Even if he kept his mouth shut, he didn¡¯t know which way the promissory note issue would blow up. ¡®It¡¯s worrisome.¡¯ Empress Rashta had distributed a huge donation through the Bear Corporation, and both received high praise. Now it was beneficial to the Bear Corporation, but if Empress Rashta fell, the Bear Corporation would suffer the same fate. ¡®I should take measures beforehand to disassociate us.¡¯ The president began to think in a totally calcting manner. *** Chapter 297 - Cold Person (2)

Chapter 297. Cold Person (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The next day, he headed early to the Bear Corporation headquarters to sweep the floor himself while he organized hisplicated thoughts. He used to do this when his head started to ache from thinking so much. An employee who knew the president¡¯s habit asked him in surprise when he saw him like this. ¡°President, is there something that worries you?¡± ¡°Hmm. It is a matter about Empress Rashta.¡± ¡°Empress Rashta?¡± Is there something rted to the Empress that we should be worried about? The employee tilted his head thoughtfully. Suddenly, a memory came to his mind, ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°By any chance, is it rted to what happened a while ago?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know? When the president was away, Emperor¡¯s knights came to look for something rted to that woman.¡± ¡°That woman?¡± ¡°Yes. She was not the Empress back then.¡± The employee¡¯s words led the president to a clear conclusion. Draw a line. The president considered that it would be the most convenient. Even if the emperor¡¯s knights had note because of Empress Rashta, scandals had broken out one after another about the current empress who was less than a year old. That was certainly not a good sign. When the president¡¯s face turned cold, the employee looked at him curiously, ¡°President¡­?¡± ¡°I must send someone to the imperial pce.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I need to find out something.¡± After these words, the president handed the broom to the employee. For his part, the young man was perplexed to suddenly receive it. The president immediately went to his office and called his secretary. The secretary entered with a haggard face because he hadn¡¯t slept well, but seeing the president¡¯s bright eyes, he patted his own face and asked, ¡°What do you want, President.¡± ¡°Send someone to the imperial pce to report that our old promissory notes have been counterfeited.¡± ¡°What?¡± The secretary was startled, ¡°Isn¡¯t that a lie? Besides, how does it benefit us to say that our old promissory notes have been counterfeited?¡± ¡°Our old promissory notes are not in use, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true, but¡­¡± ¡°There is no problem because the Emperor does not have any old promissory notes, yet ask the Emperor for all the promissory notes to exchange them for new ones just in case. It only takes a day, so he should not worry.¡± The secretary¡¯s expression turned puzzled. He had no idea why the president was acting so strangely. *** Since a response had not yet been received from Whitemond, the incident wasbeled ¡®important¡¯ and moved slightly off the priority list. Pending a response, Heinley began to deal with what needed to be done right now. To find out if other countries also felt threatened by the Western Empire, he sent a delegation with a handwritten letter personally to each country, and discussed with his trusted men the possibility of increasing the defense budget in preparation for future events. These were delicate matters that needed to be handled with care. Maybe that¡¯s why Heinley, who used to approach me at night with renewed energy,fell asleep today as soon as hey down on the bed. As I watched him sleep, I gently ced my hand on his body. When I began to caress his wless, smooth skin, Heinley scowled. Even exhausted he looked handsome. I crept up to his face after a moment¡¯s hesitation. I rested my head on one hand, and with the other I yed with his face. Lovely, he is lovely. So lovely that he¡¯s dangerous. Heinley¡¯s eyelids twitched as I gently blew out his eyshes. He frowned again and buried his face in the pillow. How lovely! I put my hand in his hair and stroked it. It felt pleasant to touch it with my fingers. I froze for a moment as I kissed his forehead repeatedly because I thought I might have woken him up. I checked his breathing and, fortunately, he was still sleeping peacefully. I was relieved, so I yed with his cheeks and eyes again. I felt confused looking at him. Do I love him? Am I about to love him? I love him, but I don¡¯t want to acknowledge it? Although I had feelings for Sovieshu, I only realized it just before the divorce. I was too slow in that regard. I never thought I was slow before, but now I realize how slow I am. How could Heinley confess and swear love to me without fear or doubt? Wasn¡¯t he afraid that I would leave him? How could I be so sure that he loved me? As I yed with his hair as usual, I felt a strange itch on my fingertips. I stroked his hair a little faster to dispel the itch, but still the sensation did not go away. What¡¯s the matter? It wasn¡¯t just an itch because it hurt. It felt worse than an insect bite. The moment I finally tried to remove my hand from his hair, Heinley suddenly opened his eyes and turned his body to the side in fright. A thud was heard as he fell out of bed. ¡°Heinley?¡± Why did he act like that? I was shocked. When I put my hands on the bed to get up, I lost strength in my arms and fell face down. What the hell¡­? Weak on the bed, I opened and closed my mouth. I was so bewildered I couldn¡¯t even speak. Just then, I could see why Heinley suddenly turned away. Blue ice, almost white, appeared where Heinley had been sleeping. ¡°Heinley?¡± Nervous, I called him back as I slowly got out of bed. What was going on? Naturally I got scared because I couldn¡¯t understand the situation. Did someone break into our bedroom? Some unseen enemy froze only Heinley¡¯s side? ¡°Here I am, Queen.¡± Heinley responded as he stood up in front of me. I was even more surprised to see him. His hair was covered in white ice as if he had rolled across a field of snow. *Tap, tap.* Heinley, who shook the ice out of his hair, looked at the side where he had been sleeping and at me. I couldn¡¯t tell what he was thinking about. ¡°It looks like your body is slowly beginning to change.¡± ¡°My body?¡± ¡°Like I told you, the mana could circte through your body with the help of this bed¡­ and me.¡± Heinley grabbed my hand, with which I had stroked his hair, and lifted it carefully. ¡°You mean that ice was made by me?¡± ¡°Probably.¡± As Heinley touched my hand very carefully, I examined my hand as well. The itch from a moment ago had disappeared, and instead my fingertips were quite cool. Apart from that, there was nothing strange. I didn¡¯t have ice on my hand, nor was it particrly cold. ¡°Can you do it again?¡± Heinley asked, looking at my hand ufortably. Shook my head. I was just ying with Heinley¡¯s body while he slept. I wasn¡¯t thinking about doing anything, I didn¡¯t want to attack him. Even now, I didn¡¯t know what happened, so doing it again¡­ ¡°Are you sure I did it?¡± When I asked again, he immediately replied, ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Heinley, didn¡¯t you do it?¡± ¡°No. Absolutely not.¡± Heinley spoke firmly and slowly released my hand. Then he smirked and murmured, ¡°Now it really is your nickname.¡± ¡°My nickname?¡± ¡°The Ice Empress.¡± ¡°¡­.¡± ¡°It could also have been the Iron Empress. I¡¯m d it wasn¡¯t.¡± Heinley spoke in a joking tone,ughing as he shook out his hair, which still had traces of ice in it. ¡°It¡¯s a little scary to have your hair covered in iron¡­¡± *** I was so excited that I couldn¡¯t sleep a wink. Did I use magic? Really? Really? It was so amazing that I felt strange. I never wanted to be a mage. Now that I could be a mage, I was too excited. Even with breakfast in front of me, I wasn¡¯t provoked to eat. ¡°If you can¡¯t use it normally, it hasn¡¯t fully manifested yet. Right now mana must be looking for the most suitable ability for you.¡± ¡°The most suitable ability¡­ Does that mean that the most suitable ability for me is ice? Am I a cold person?¡± Chapter 298 - Premature Birth (1)

Chapter 298. Premature Birth (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren When I asked uneasily, Heinley bit his lip hard and looked at me with shaky eyes as if trying to contain theughter about to burst out. Did I say something funny? As I stared at him puzzled, Heinley barely managed to swallow hisughter and exined, ¡°Your ability would not be ice because My Queen is a cold person. Besides, it¡¯s still too early to say it¡¯s ice.¡± ¡°But your hair and the side of your bed is frozen¡­¡± ¡°Although you¡¯re right about that, you can¡¯t tell if it¡¯s ice, snow, or water, until it fully manifests.¡± ¡°Ahh¡­¡± I was still in a daze. It was the first time I had felt this way since I became the Empress of the Eastern Empire and assumed the responsibilities ordingly. I felt as if I was entering uncharted territory that I knew almost nothing about. Somehow I got goose bumps. As I tried to control my heartbeat, Heinley suddenly murmured in an anxious voice. ¡°I wish I could guide you and help you better, but it¡¯s difficult to exin because it manifested in me as a child.¡± ¡°Is that necessary?¡± ¡°No, but it¡¯s good to have the help of an expert to hone the ability. Even if it¡¯s only for a short time.¡± Come to think of it, Heinley stayed at the magical academy for a while even though he wasn¡¯t a regr student. So, he went to get help. ¡°I think it would be best if I went to the magical academy¡­¡± Perhaps because the academy was located in the Eastern Empire, Heinley¡¯s expression turned dark. After the tense moment, Heinley suddenly asked with a frown, ¡°By the way, My Queen. Haven¡¯t you eaten too littletely?¡± *** The secretary, whom Sovieshu sent to find out about Evely¡¯s ne, returned a few dayster and reported with a stiff expression. ¡°The dean says a sponsor sent that ne to Evely. But he refused to reveal the identity of that sponsor.¡± He seemed to have used strong words to try to open the dean¡¯s mouth. The displeasure that was clearly evident in the secretary¡¯s expression gave an idea of the situation at the time. ¡°He¡¯s good at keeping his mouth shut.¡± Sovieshu waved the pen in his hand and smirked. The more difficult it was to obtain information, the more valuable it was. Sovieshu intended to open the dean¡¯s mouth even if he had to wrench his jaw. ¡°I¡¯ll have to personally go to Wirwol.¡± Although Wirwol was said to operate as an autonomous region, it was still territory of the Eastern Empire. He thought to remind the dean that the Eastern Empire did not oppress Wirwol out of consideration, not because it did not have the power to do so. After the secretary left, Sovieshu called Marquis Karl to check his schedule. He had so much work that he had almost no days off. Now he was busier because he was also in charge of Navier¡¯s work. ¡°Is it possible to rearrange my schedule? I need to go Wirwol.¡± ¡°There are several items on the schedule that cannot be postponed. I think this item can be changed.¡± While they were in full discussion, another secretary, Count Pirnu, entered and reported. ¡°Your Majesty, a member of the Bear Corporation is here.¡± ¡°If it is not urgent, tell him toeter.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it can be said to be urgent¡­ he made a strange request.¡± ¡°A strange request?¡± ¡°He says there was a situation where someone tried to counterfeit the old promissory notes issued by the Bear Corporation.¡± ¡°The promissory notes?¡± Sovieshu frowned. Marquis Karl was also startled and turned to look at Count Pirnu. The Bear Corporation¡¯s promissory notes had been used by the Imperial Family for generations. The fact that someone tried to counterfeit the promissory notes was a very serious problem. ¡°Fortunately, that situation didn¡¯t escte because they were old promissory notes.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°In order to prevent simr incidents, the Bear Corporation is going to rece the higher amount of promissory notes with other promissory notes made with a new method. The promissory notes used by Your Majesty are of a higher amount so they can be reced, if you decide to do so it will not take more than one day.¡± Since the promissory notes were not to be used immediately, Sovieshu agreed without hesitation, ¡°All right.¡± *** The Bear Corporation member was escorted by Imperial Guard Knights to the headquarters. The Imperial Guard Knights made sure the man entered the Bear Corporation headquarters and met with the president before leaving. ¡°Here you go, President.¡± ¡°Good job.¡± The president took the envelope with the promissory notes, and put it on the desk, opened a drawer, took out the special sses to distinguish the Imperial Family promissory notes and put them on. Indeed, they were all Imperial Family promissory notes. Next, he took out the ount book of promissory notes issued and the detailed usage report to check the number and amount of each one. He did this quickly and carefully. As this was an important matter the president checked it about four times, and sighed, taking off his sses. ¡®What Empress Rashta used were promissory notes from Empress Navier!¡¯ It was not possible to distinguish between the Empress¡¯s promissory notes and the Emperor¡¯s promissory notes. However, Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s promissory notes perfectly matched the issue date, and the total amount. In other words, there was no way they were from Empress Rashta. In this case, there was only one answer. Empress Rashta used the former empress¡¯s money as if it were her own. ¡®Empress Rashta is truly wicked.¡¯ The president clicked his tongue. Being the president of arge corporation for many years, he had also be a calcting person. In many cases he put profit before justice. However, he never used any money other than his own. Besides, it was about Empress Navier. Didn¡¯t she get divorced because of Empress Rashta? How she could dare to use Empress Navier¡¯s money¡­ she even took advantage of that money to elevate her reputation and get people¡¯s praise. There were many worse emperors and empresses in the world. Many were killing tens of thousands of people or ruining their country by charging more taxes than necessary. Perhaps Empress Rashta was less reprehensible than them. But she was certainly despicable. Chapter 299 - Premature Birth (2)

Chapter 299. Premature Birth (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The President of the Bear Corporation had eaten on several asions with Empress Navier. Honestly, she was a cold empress. During each meal, he was terrified to think whether the person in front of him was a book of etiquette or even alive. But he did not hate Empress Navier. Although the Empress did not show him a friendly smile, neither did she betray him with a mask of kindness, let alone change her word after turning around. Navier was not a warm person, but she was trustworthy and loyal. Although she did not embrace the poor with a kind andpassionate heart, she certainly cared for them better than chatty people. When Rashta became empress, the president spent several anxious days with mixed feelings. It was painful to see how the innocent Empress Navier was disced as if she had done bad things. At the same time, he was d that the new empress was ofmoner origin and had a kind heart. When she donated a huge sum of money, he marveled that she was truly a good person. In the end, he simply decided to adapt to the new times. Focusing on further expanding and strengthening his trade team. But he discovered the dark hidden truth with his own hands. The president closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair as a feeling of emptiness and destion quickly came over him. ¡°It can¡¯t be¡­¡± Closing his eyes, he muttered with a sense of dejection, tears inexplicably appeared at the corners of his eyes. Empress Rashta dered that she would donate arge sum of money to numerous institutions in the midst of her wedding, to which Empress Navier had also been invited. He heard those who praised Rashta mutter that Empress Navier was shameless. The President agreed to a certain extent. How could she attend her ex-husband¡¯s wedding to her new husband? Of course, it was a state affair, but she could have pretended to be ill and sent a delegation on their behalf. ¡®As was to be expected of a remarried empress, she must be a little shameless.¡¯ He thought at the time as he looked at the cold Empress Navier. But it had been a misconception. A prejudice. The President regretted it as he imagined how Empress Navier must have felt when Empress Rashta had distributed her money and received the praise of the people. It was unfair. She must have felt upset and sad. Even the coldest people had feelings. She must have been speechless. He remembered the cheers of themoners toward Empress Rashta at the wedding parade and the near deathly silence as Empress Navier passed them in the carriage. ¡°It can¡¯t be¡­¡± The president groaned inexplicably. He felt sorry for how unfair and how painful it must have been. He got that way even though he didn¡¯t particrly like Empress Navier. The president, who had been sobbing for about 15 minutes, came to himself btedly when he heard knocking at the door. ¡°President?¡± The secretary, who came in with a stack of documents, approached the president in surprise when he saw his red eyes. ¡°Are you all right?¡± Waving his hand to indicate that he was fine, the president ordered in a cold voice, ¡°Forget it, forget it. Find a journalist named Joanson and bring him here.¡± * * * The journalist wondered why the President of the Bear Corporation would call him. Normally, this would not have been the case. ¡°Thank you foring.¡± The president pointed to the chair across the desk. Joanson looked doubtfully between the president and the chair before taking a seat. ¡°You sent for me?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t look so good.¡± ¡°I have been very busy.¡± ¡°Have you been busy gathering information to write articles against Empress Rashta?¡± Joanson¡¯s hand stopped as he calmly opened his notebook. However, he soon looked up fiercely. ¡°So it turns out that the president is a fervent supporter of Empress Rashta? I had heard that you two had a very good rtionship.¡± The president knew he had found the right person when he saw that expression. But for some reason, Joanson was very upset right now. ¡°Be more rational.¡± At the president¡¯s stern voice, Joanson cocked his head in bewilderment. The strength with which he held the pen in his hand was also noticeable. ¡°I don¡¯t need a foolish journalist who can¡¯t recognize whether a person is an enemy or an ally. Get out.¡± The president spoke coldly and rang the small bell on his desk. As soon as the secretary entered, the president said, ¡°Show the guest out.¡± Then, as if he was not at all interested in Joanson, the president turned his chair to one side and pulled out a newspaper. The secretary tugged on Joanson¡¯s arm. ¡°Please leave now.¡± Why the hell did he call for me then? Joanson found the president¡¯s actions absurd. What does he care if I write bad articles about Empress Rashta? Joanson snorted and followed the secretary to the door. But after three steps, he returned, sat down in the chair and apologized. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t think clearly.¡± Only now did he understand the strange nuance in the president¡¯s words. Couldn¡¯t I recognize whether a person was an enemy or an ally? Normally an enemy would not say this. Instead, a person who wanted to be an ally would say it. His rationality, which had been buried in all sorts of negative and intense emotions after his younger sister¡¯s disappearance, slowly returned. It did so at just the right time. ¡°I¡¯m not that foolish.¡± The president let out augh and turned the chair back to the front. The secretary left, closing the door discreetly. Joanson opened his notebook again, ced it on hisp and looked at the president with burning eyes. The president first tested him with the articles he wrote against Empress Rashta, and then hinted that he was not an enemy. It was clear that what the president wanted to tell him was rted to Empress Rashta. ¡°Empress Rashta caused a stir in the middle of her wedding by dering that she herself would donate twenty million krangs in promissory notes. Do you remember?¡± As he expected, Empress Rashta¡¯s name came out of the president¡¯s mouth. The corners of Joanson¡¯s mouth curled up. ¡°How could I not remember? I praised her for a week for that. It was the only good thing she did.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ do you know whose the promissory notes are?¡± ¡®Why is he asking that question?¡¯ For a moment, Joanson¡¯s expression was a little hesitant. ¡°Are not the promissory notes from Empress Rashta?¡± When the president nodded, his expression turned cold. ¡°So the Emperor was trying to raise his wife¡¯s prestige.¡± ¡°Unfortunately, the Emperor has not made use of his promissory notes.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Joanson, who blinked in bewilderment, stood up terrified after btedly understanding his words. The chair fell to the floor with a crash. ¡°No way¡­!¡± ¡°The promissory notes are from the Empress Navier.¡± ¡°What¡­ what the hell are you saying?!¡± Joanson¡¯s hands trembled as he listened to the president tell what he himself had found out. Joanson was stunned to learn that Rashta had taken advantage of those promissory notes in front of Empress Navier in the middle of her wedding. Empress Navier, born into a good family, ate well, lived well and reached the pinnacle of power. She onlycked the love of her husband. At first, Joanson found it absurd that people who had to think about how to make ends meet would worry about Empress Navier. Concubine Rashta, who had gone through all sorts of hardships to get to that position, was more pitiful than Empress Navier. Even after she became a concubine, the nobles mocked her and the Empress treated her coldly, but did people still pity Empress Navier? He considered it truly absurd. Although sheter suffered a bit from the divorce, Empress Navier eventually remarried the king of a neighboring country. Joanson came to think that she had been born with some natural blessing to be able to lead such a quiet life. But was the money that Empress Rashta donated from Empress Navier? Did she even do it in front of Empress Navier and was praised by those present? Joanson was speechless. The world he until now thought he knew seemed to have been turned upside down. Just as he was surprised that Empress Rashta, the light and hope of themoners, was linked to his sister¡¯s disappearance, he was also surprised that Empress Navier, a cold-hearted noblewoman , held back as she watched Empress Rashta¡¯s strange behavior. ¡°This¡­ this is really¡­¡± The president ordered him firmly. ¡°Write an article about this. We don¡¯t know what reprisals the imperial family might take, so don¡¯t assert itpletely, just enough to cast doubt.¡± Joanson was caught up in his emotions, but the president was apletely calcting man. The president ordered him firmly. It was not because of his emotions that he called Joanson and gave him this order. He had lost confidence in Empress Rashta and had decided to disassociate himself from her because he had a bad feeling about her future. ¡°Be sure to make it clear that the Bear Corporation and Empress Rashta have nothing to do with each other. I mean to draw a line.¡± *** Sitting limply in her armchair, her maids brushed her hair and washed her face with a soft cloth. As they continued to fix her hair, Rashta took a newspaper from another maid to read. The maid¡¯s expression was very strange, but Rashta didn¡¯t think much of it. She just thought there would be some interesting news. After a while, Rashta¡¯s hands trembled as she read the newspaper. The trembling gradually spread throughout her body. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± The maid looked at the empress in surprise as shebed her hair. Rashta¡¯s face was as white as snow. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°My belly¡­ my belly¡­¡± The newspaper Rashta had held in her hands spread as it fell to the floor. The maid¡¯s gaze shifted to the article that raised suspicions about the empress¡¯ promissory notes. Her eyes widened for a moment, but as Rashta¡¯s body swayed, the maid took her eyes off the newspaper and held her. Rashta began to scream in pain as her entire face was drenched in cold sweat. Suddenly, she copsedpletely. ¡°The doctor, the pce doctor! Bring the pce doctor! * * * ¡°Your Majesty, the Empress is going into prematurebor!¡± Chapter 300 - Rashta’s Disappointment (1) Chapter 300. Rashta¡¯s Disappointment (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Moments before, Sovieshu had asked his secretary to bring Rashta to his room. But Rashta had refused again and Sovieshu muttered coldly. ¡°Always using the baby as a shield.¡± Although he honestly didn¡¯t expect her toe, it surprised him that she always made the same excuse. The secretary looked Sovieshu in the face. ¡°If you ask a little stronger¡­¡± ¡°Forget it. I don¡¯t want her to say again that her belly hurts or some such excuse.¡± After Sovieshu shook his hand, he grabbed a box from a small table, opened it and approached the birdcage. The blue bird stopped scratching and rushed in front of Sovieshu, opening its beak immediately. Sovieshu examined the yful bird as he poured some of the food from the box into the feeder. It was still a little thin, but now it had nice plumage. Sovieshu smiled bitterly as he watched the bird eat from the feeder impatiently. This bird, which he had tried to give to Navier but had been sent back, now became his little peace. And he was disappointed to conclude that it was Rashta who plucked the feathers of this lovely bird. How could she do that to such a weak and delicate bird? ¡°After¡­¡± ¡°I am listening, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°After the baby is born, I will assign a nanny to take care of it.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I will need someone to take care of the baby when I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to start reading parenting books.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Babies are small and weak.¡± The secretary was silent as he could not understand Sovieshu¡¯s thoughts. Won¡¯t Rashta take care of the baby when His Majesty is busy? Does that mean that the nanny will take care of the baby when His Majesty can¡¯t and the rest of the time he will do it on his own? Does His Majesty want to take over his child¡¯s upbringing entirely? Several questions were about toe out of his mouth, but he managed to remain silent. The secretary was puzzled. The imperial family, like the nobility, was not primarily responsible for child rearing. The responsibility usually fell to the nanny. In any case, Sovieshu would not change his mind because of his secretary¡¯s opinion. ¡°What about the ve certificate? Haven¡¯t found it yet?¡± ¡°My apologies. It would be easy to find if I could count on the help of many people, but that is not possible, so progress is not as fast as might be expected, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You must get it as soon as possible. As soon as possible.¡± Once the secretary left, Sovieshu stuck his fingers through the birdcage and stroked the bird for a moment before sitting down on his bed. With his forehead resting on his sped hands, he closed his eyes and suppressed his anxiety. He had saved Rivetti because he knew of the crimes Rashta hadmitted, but also to keep Viscount Roteschu¡¯s mouth shut. Besides, he had several ns in case the ve certificate came to light, but it would be best to find it and destroy it. As Sovieshuy in bed for a while, pressing his temples with his fingers, he heard an unexpected voice, ¡°Your Majesty, the Empress is going into prematurebor!¡± Sovieshu jumped up. Prematurebor? When he opened the door and stepped out into the drawing room, he saw that his assistant had an expression that made it difficult to tell whether he was happy or concerned. However, Sovieshu btedly understood the situation. ¡°Prematurebor!¡± At that instant, Sovieshu hurried out and ran straight to the West Pce. *** After two deliveries, Rashta realized that the pain was the same no matter where she gave birth. Rashta cried out and writhed with her hands on her belly from the pain, while she felt her insides shudder. The pain, which seemed to never end, slowly lessened after a few hours. Rashta eventually began to gasp with her whole body drenched in sweat. ¡®It must be a boy.¡¯ Rashta thought as shey limply on the bed. ¡®It has to be a boy.¡¯ When she had a special rtionship with Sovieshu, she didn¡¯t care if it was a boy or a girl, but now the situation had changed. It had to be a boy. There would be no second chance. At Rashta¡¯s side (beside Rashta), Viscountess Verdi eximed with joy, ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty, it¡¯s a really beautiful baby!¡± Rashta didn¡¯t have the strength to answer, so she just turned her head to the Viscountess¡¯s side. She blinked several times, trying to clear her blurred vision. Viscountess Verdi held the baby wrapped in a soft cloth. The baby¡¯s cries spread throughout the room. Meanwhile, the maids brought a basin of warm water and a couple of small towels to clean Rashta¡¯s body. ¡°And the baby?¡± Rashta asked Viscountess Verdi in a weak voice. ¡°Is it a boy?¡± Rashta clearly saw how Viscountess Verdi¡¯s smile turned rigid in an instant. ¡°So it¡¯s a girl,¡± Rashta muttered in a daze, ¡°A girl.¡± Her vision blurred again. Rashta closed her eyes tightly and bit her lips in an attempt to hold back tears. ¡®This can¡¯t be. It had to be a boy.¡¯ A deep sense of despair slowly rose within her as if she was sinking into a slimy swamp. Rashta clutched her head with both hands as tears spilled down her cheeks. ¡°Uh¡­¡± For both the baby¡¯s sake and her own sake, it definitely had to be a boy. But it turned out to be a girl. Rashta shuddered with vague anxiety. Thebor pains subsided, but now her heart ached. ¡°Your Majesty. Look at the baby.¡± Viscountess Verdi tried to hand her the baby, but Rashta shook her head and waved her hand. ¡°Later.¡± Now she was so disappointed that she didn¡¯t want to look at the baby. ¡°I¡¯ll hold herter.¡± When the baby began to cry again, Viscountess Verdi rocked her in her arms to try to calm her. At that moment, a maid ran up and asked Rashta. ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor asked me to ask if he maye in.¡± ¡°Has the Emperore?¡± ¡°The Emperor has been waiting at the door for hours.¡± Rashta rubbed her eyes, stretched her arms and said to Viscountess Verdi, ¡°Give me the baby.¡± In Rashta¡¯s arms, the baby calmed down in an instant. ¡°Tell His Majesty toe in.¡± The baby waved her tiny hands as if she could recognize her mother. A deep love for the baby and intense disappointment. These two contrary feelings made Rashta cry again. ¡°Rashta?¡± Sovieshu uttered Rashta¡¯s name in surprise as he entered the room. Rashta struggled to suppress her tears and smiled at Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, she is a truly beautiful baby.¡± Sovieshu quickly approached the baby and held her in his arms. ¡°Beautiful¡­ a beautiful girl.¡± Rashta repeated. Sovieshu¡¯s face lit up when he saw the baby, but Rashta didn¡¯t notice because she was wiping her tears. Sovieshu held the baby carefully in his arms, a little nervous not knowing where he should put his hands. Perhaps the baby was too small because she was premature. However, Sovieshu looked at the baby¡¯s wrinkled skin lovingly. He too could not contain himself and tears came to his eyes. To protect this baby, he divorced the woman he loved most. For the sake of this baby. ¡°Your Majesty, you must hold her this way.¡± Viscountess Verdi showed him how to do it. ¡°Is that all right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Sovieshu properly held the baby in his arms, and carefully caressed her red, wrinkled skin with hisrge hands. Chapter 301 - Rashta’s Disappointment (2)

Chapter 301. Rashta¡¯s Disappointment (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Did Rashta give birth? ?So soon?¡± The news did note at a good time. We had gathered as a family to celebrate my brother¡¯s return after solving the problem with the thousand eternal bandits. It was a really bad time. My family¡¯s faces contorted in different ways as the news broke. The secretary, who brought the news of the birth of Rashta¡¯s baby, had first murmured that it was ¡®sensitive news¡¯. In fact, the secretary indicated to Heinley that he preferred to tell him in private, since it was news from the Eastern Empire. But Heinley ordered the secretary to say it in the presence of everyone, probably wanting to show a dignified image in front of my parents, my brother, and me. In the end, the celebration of my brother¡¯s return fell apart. Leaving my parents and brother behind, Heinley asked his secretary in a heavy voice. ¡°If she gave birth now, it¡¯s a premature baby, right?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a girl, a princess.¡± This time the secretary looked at me when he answered. I kept expressionless and just walked casually. ¡°Hmm¡­ Your Majesty. Besides.. the Emperor sent an invitation.¡± ¡°What invitation?¡± ¡°An invitation to a banquet to celebrate the birth of the first descendant of the imperial family.¡± ¡°He invited us both?¡± ¡°Well. At the bottom of the invitation was a sentence that said, ¡®It is not necessary to attend.\\\''¡± The corners of my mouth curved reflexively. It was not usual to add that sentence to an invitation. What Sovieshu meant in other words is¡ª ¡®I sent the invitation out of formality, but do not attend¡¯. I could understand him. If I appeared next to Heinley on the day of his child¡¯s birth celebration, Sovieshu would feel ufortable. ¡°The baby was born prematurely. What an irony of life.¡± After the secretary walked away, Heinley snorted in a cold voice. ¡°Isn¡¯t it, My Queen?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t she indiscriminately attack Lady Nian about her premature baby? But now her baby was also born prematurely.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. ¡± I had heard that Sovieshu did all the work, so I don¡¯t think she gave birth prematurely because she was overwhelmed. ¡°Something bad must have happened.¡± Four hourster, I learned from Nian what had happened. ¡°I heard that woman donated a huge sum of money at her wedding. Apparently, suspicions have been raised that this money might be from Your Majesty.¡± Surprisingly, it seemed that the incident of the promissory notes I had uncovered to protect my parents was what shocked Rashta so much that she gave birth prematurely. Well, I don¡¯t think that¡¯s the only reason she gave birth prematurely. ¡°It¡¯s pleasant. Don¡¯t you think, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± Nian, who didn¡¯t know that I had been the one to uncover the promissory notes, smiled with satisfaction at what had happened. But I felt strange. Even if unintentionally, wasn¡¯t this the first time I had hurt Rashta? I wonder how Sovieshu would react if he found out it was me. Although I knew how he would react if I were the empress and Rashta the concubine, it was unclear to me now. ¡°Is the baby healthy?¡± ¡°She¡¯s a healthy baby girl despite being born prematurely. She¡¯s just a little small.¡± ¡°Sovieshu must be very happy to have gotten what he wanted most.¡± I couldn¡¯t help but smile as I imagined Sovieshu. Not out of joy, but out of disgust, helplessness. For Sovieshu, that baby symbolized the happy family he wanted to protect, even if it meant getting rid of me. And for me, that baby was what drove uspletely apart and almost dragged me to the bottom. I knew it wasn¡¯t the newborn baby¡¯s fault, but I couldn¡¯t feel happy. To tell the truth¡­ now I cared less about what it had to do with them. I was more drowsy than surprised by the news. I think I even fell asleep on an armrest of the couch because when I opened my eyes again I couldn¡¯t see Nian or mydies-in-waiting. ¡°Lady Nian? Countess Jubel? Miss Rose? Miss Laura?¡± Confused, I called them one by one and realized that I had spent too much time asleep. I guess they all left without waking me up when they saw that I had fallen fast asleep. I think I¡¯ve rxed too much since I¡¯ve been here. As the Empress, I shouldn¡¯t be like this. As I reproached myself, I saw the end of a golden feather through the half-open door. ¡°Queen?¡± I called out to him as I stood up. Why does Heinley stay there? ¡°Queen.¡± By the time I opened the door, Queen was gone. ¡°Queen?¡± When I looked up puzzled, I saw a plump butt running away quickly, wiggling from side to side. Did he want to y hide-and-seek? He looked really lovely running around like a penguin, so I deliberately followed him with slow steps. But strangely, he passed through the corridors turned into a bird. ¡°Queen?¡± Why was he walking around the pce like that? When I quickened my pace in surprise, Queen pped his wings and also quickened his pace. Although it would be difficult to catch him because of how fast he moved his feet, I had to do it. I don¡¯t know why, but I felt I had to catch Queen firmly. I lifted my skirt a little and ran towards him. I ran through long corridors and down a spiral staircase. Queen approached the throne in the hall and finally stopped. ¡°Why did youe here?¡± Relieved to have finally caught him, I lifted Queen up. Queen then pointed one of his wings towards the throne, groaning anxiously. What about the throne? As soon as I looked in the direction Queen pointed, I was startled and took a step back. A huge eagle clung to the throne with its wings. It had a fierce look as if it belonged to it. What does this mean? Does that eagle covet Heinley¡¯s throne? When I swooped over furiously and swatted the monstrous eagle¡¯s butt, it reluctantly left the throne, stared at me, and suddenly began to shrink. In an instant, the monstrous eagle shrunk to the size of Queen, then became smaller than Queen, and finally much smaller. Its beautiful golden feathers turned into white fur as soft as a baby¡¯s skin. When I hugged the monstrous eagle because of how lovely it was, it chirped and began to act as if it were docile, rubbing its face against my palm. The eagle was as cunning as Heinley¡­ just when I thought this. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Hearing Nian¡¯s voice, I suddenly woke up. ¡°Are you alright?¡± ¡°Where¡¯s the baby monster?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Chapter 302 - Successor (1)

Chapter 302. Sessor (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren It was a very vivid dream. I still remembered clearly how Queen ran like a penguin, and how the monstrous eagle clung to the throne. Nian left after telling me that I looked tired, and mydies-in-waiting left after telling me to go to bed to rest. As soon as Iy down on the bed, I fell asleep again. But this time I didn¡¯t dream about the monstrous eagle or Queen. In fact, I didn¡¯t dream at all. When I finally woke up, it was already dinner time. What was amazing was the story Heinley told me that night as we ate dinner together. ¡°I fell asleep while working during the day, and I had a very strange nightmare.¡± ¡°What nightmare?¡± ¡°Well¡­ I have a collection of jewels.¡± That much I knew. It was evident that Heinley was very fond of jewels because he always presumed that his country was the capital of jewels. A variety of rare jewels were disyed in his room and in the meeting room. ¡°When I went into my room to clean the jewels, I found an unfamiliar egg among them.¡± ¡°An egg?¡± ¡°Yes. It was gold mixed with green, even prettier than the jewels. It was so pretty that I cleaned it and warmed it with my hands. But out of nowhere, out came a baby bird.¡± A baby bird¡­ ¡°It had few feathers and tiny wings, but it was lovely. So I held it against my chest and stroked it, but the baby bird whined for this and that jewel to eat. What terrified me was that I gave it all my jewels.¡± Heinley muttered with a pale face as if he was horrified at the mere thought of it. ¡°I think I went crazy in the dream. In any case, when I fed it the jewels, the bird grew so big that it became huge in an instant.¡± A huge bird¡­ The monstrous eagle I saw in my dream came to mind. As I nodded with a sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu, Heinley shuddered and continued, ¡°Suddenly, the ce changed. This time, the huge bird wrapped itself around my throne and asked me too. It annoyed me, but strangely I couldn¡¯t even reprimand it, so I quickly turned to My Queen for help.¡± The sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu was even stronger. Didn¡¯t it seem to coincide with my dream? ¡°I managed to get that huge bird away from my throne with My Queen¡¯s help.¡± Heinley shook his head and asked with a serious expression. ¡°Could it have been a premonitory dream that someone harbored hidden intentions against me?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but¡­ I had a simr dream.¡± ¡°What? Really?¡± When I told Heinley about my dream, his eyes widened. While they didn¡¯t quite match, they appeared to be very simr. Soon Heinley¡¯s expression became really stiff, so I deliberately reassured him with affectionate words, ¡°The dream we had is so simr that it seems we really have be apletely rapport couple.¡± I feared that he would regard this dream as a premonition and worry about a rebellion. Of course, one must have a contingency n to deal with a rebellion. However, one should worry when some signs of that can be seen, falling into that worry right now would only make one¡¯s mind fatigued. ¡°So you don¡¯t have to worry, Heinley. I don¡¯t think this is a bad premonitory dream.¡± Heinley put a hand to his cheek and spoke slowly, ¡°No, My Queen. I wasn¡¯t surprised by that¡­¡± ¡°Then why?¡± ¡°On a distant continent there is a belief that if a couple have the same dream it means a baby is on the way.¡± What? His words made meugh out loud. ¡°That¡¯s absurd.¡± ¡°But a baby eagle appeared. Isn¡¯t that significant, My Queen?¡± ¡°Not at all.¡± I shook my head. Heinley¡¯s eyes sparkled, I didn¡¯t want to disappoint him. ¡°I got my periodst month. Don¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°Yes, but you shouldn¡¯t have gotten it again these days.¡± That¡¯s true, but¡­ ¡°Even if I had a baby in my womb, I would be two or three weeks pregnant. You still can¡¯t know for sure if I¡¯m pregnant.¡± On many asions banquets were hastily held in the belief that the wife was pregnant, but in reality was not. I didn¡¯t want to go through the same thing. However, Heinley remained positive. ¡°Then it could be. It could be that you¡¯re pregnant, My Queen.¡± I shook my head again. The more hope one has, the more painful the disappointment. Even if it was true that I was pregnant, I preferred to wait for a while to be sure. ¡°My Queen, why don¡¯t you let the pce doctor check you out?¡± But for some reason, Heinley insisted. Heinley used to obey my will most of the time, unless it was in bed at night. When I frowned, Heinley apologized with great regret, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, My Queen. But you work all day, sometimes until dawn the next day. If there¡¯s any chance you¡¯re pregnant, I think it¡¯s best to know in advance so you can take the necessary precautions.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because there¡¯s a lot of work to do.¡± ¡°My Queen, you have to rest properly even if you are not pregnant.¡± When I was in the Eastern Empire, the pce doctor also told me to rest. Would it be different with the pce doctor of the Western Empire? No. It would be the same this time. What would be different is that Heinley would take all the work away from me if the pce doctor said something like that. Although that hadn¡¯t happened so far, it was entirely possible given how attentive Heinley was to me. ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley held out his hand, calling to me in a gentle voice, ¡°Navier. Yes?¡± As soon as I was about to tly refuse, he immediately became Queen, and I remembered the baby eagle rubbing its cheek against my palm as if it were weak. ¡°¡­. All right.¡± I wasn¡¯t thrilled about it, but reluctantly agreed. ¡°But don¡¯t get your hopes up too much, Heinley.¡± The next day, as soon as I changed my clothes after breakfast, Heinley called the pce doctor. Fortunately, Heinley didn¡¯t tell the pce doctor to ¡®check to see if I was pregnant.¡¯ He was worried that I was ufortable, so he told the doctor it was for a general check-up. As the pce doctor checked me up, Heinley looked at me anxiously. I was a little nervous, so I tried to think of other things. On Whitemond, on the delegations that should have arrived on the Hwa continent, and so on. Eventually, the pce doctor¡¯s hand descended to my belly. Unconsciously, I stared at the doctor¡¯s lips. At that point, the pce doctor slowly opened his mouth. *** Chapter 303 - Successor (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°The baby His Majesty fought so hard for turned out to be a princess¡­¡± Marquis Karl muttered helplessly. His expression was full of disappointment. He didn¡¯t even bother to hide it. Marquis Karl would have been overjoyed if this was a princess born in a normal situation. However, for this princess he had given up an extraordinary empress. It was inevitable to have high expectationspared to a descendant of the imperial family born in a normal situation. Under the circumstances, a baby girl would only be a loss for the Eastern Empire. The baby had silky hair, ck eyes and well-defined features. Her skin was wrinkled and reddish when she was barely born, but a few dayster it turned (became) white and smooth. The baby that looked like Rashta was the most beautiful girl Marquis Karl had ever seen. However, what Sovieshu needed now was not a beautiful baby, but a healthy and intelligent sessor. Although he felt sorry for the baby girl, Marquis Karl could not help but feel dissatisfied. Eventually, Marquis Karl asked Sovieshu directly. ¡°Your Majesty, will you have a second child with Rashta?¡± As the emperor¡¯s close aide, he knew that Sovieshu had been gathering evidence of Rashta¡¯s crimes, which would be her weakness. Naturally, he did not believe that Sovieshu would have a second child with Rashta. But he asked anyway. Sovieshu shook his head as he held the baby, then Marquis Karl said in an impatient voice, ¡°Your Majesty, in that case you should divorce Rashta as soon as possible, and this time bring a youngdy from an honorable family to have the prince.¡± He married Rashta for the baby in her womb, but that baby had already been born. Marquis Karl saw no need to choose Rashta who was in a difficult position in many ways to have a second child. ¡°The baby was born when Rashta was the empress, so the baby girl will still be a princess even if she is deposed.¡± The baby touched both Sovieshu¡¯s chin and cheeks with her small hands as she squealed. Sovieshu shook his head again with a grave expression after listening carefully to Marquis Karl. ¡°If a new empress arrives, this baby will find herself in a difficult position.¡± ¡°Do you really intend to keep Rashta as the Empress?¡± ¡°By no means do I n to. I intend to divorce Rashta. If a quick divorce is not possible¡­ I¡¯ll have to employ a harsher method.¡± ¡°And what about the Prince?¡± Marquis Karl wondered who would give birth to the Prince. Suddenly, an image came to his mind and his eyes widened, ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, do you still expect Navier toe back?¡± ¡°I wish so. But even if Navier doesn¡¯t return, there won¡¯t be a next empress.¡± Marquis Karl was puzzled. ¡®Rashta will be deposed, but there will be no next empress¡­ So what about the prince? What about the sessor?¡¯ Sovieshu looked with narrowed eyes at Marquis Karl as if he could clearly read his thoughts. Then Sovieshu said with his daughter in his arms, ¡°This baby has my blood, so it doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s a girl or a boy.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I will raise this baby as my sessor, Marquis Karl.¡± Marquis Karl was stunned for a moment. Shocked, he btedly eximed, ¡°Your Majesty! The Eastern Empire has never had a reigning empress! Only a prince born of the Empress can be his sessor!¡± Marquis Karl was so astonished that he could not keep his mouth shut. Although there were times when it was the Empress Consort and the Empress Mother who actually ruled, they only did so through the Emperors. ¡®But Sovieshu will make the princess his sessor!¡¯ ¡°That has never happened in history nor is it stipted inw, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°When this girl bes the first reigning empress, a precedent will be created in history. Nor does thew stipte that only a prince can be the sessor. It¡¯s just a custom, right?¡± After speaking firmly, Sovieshu held and looked at his daughter tenderly, ¡°The princess will be named Glorym. May all the splendor of the world shine upon this baby.¡± Marquis Karl sat on the couch on weak, wobbly legs. ¡°But many will object¡­¡± ¡°Of course I won¡¯t make it public until the time is right. We have to prepare slowly.¡± Sovieshu spoke categorically, and looked his daughter in the eyes. Dozens of things were already going through his mind. ¡®My daughter will be intelligent, and she will be even more so with the best teachers. She will need to acquire practical skills and learn about political affairs from a young age.¡¯ Without an empress, this girl will have to dominate high society, so it will be convenient to establish connections early on. ¡®Mages¡­ yes, the priority is to solve the phenomenon of the decline of mages.¡¯ The power of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire came from the mages. In order to easily suppress the opposition of the archaic nobles, he had to reorganize the strength of the mages and take absolute control. ¡®This army must also bemanded properly¡­¡¯ ¡°There is much to do, my baby.¡± The baby made a strange sound, stretching her little hands in the air. ¡°Grow healthy and smart.¡± Sovieshu whispered, cing his fingers between her little hands. As if she could understand, the baby held Sovieshu¡¯s fingers tightly. Unable to calm his startled heart, Marquis Karl stared at him in a daze before sighing deeply. Well. Times change and every story has a starting point. If the baby were to be as intelligent a woman as Empress Navier, then it would be quite likely. ¡°Your Majesty. Do you intend to tell Rashta that you n to make the princess your sessor?¡± Sovieshu frowned and said with determination, ¡°Of course not.¡± * * * Chapter 304 - Viscountess Verdi’s Decision (1)

Chapter 304. Viscountess Verdi¡¯s Decision (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Once Rashta had recovered somewhat, a banquet was held for three days and three nights to celebrate the birth of Sovieshu¡¯s first baby. Numerous nobles and distinguished guests, who had received an invitation beforehand, gathered at the Imperial Pce with carriages full of gifts. They were excited to meet the baby born to the Emperor and Empress, who were admired for their beauty. When they entered the banquet hall, everyone was very impressed to see the rumored Princess Glorym. The princess, who resembled Rashta, was as charming as a little fairy. The baby looked small and fragile, perhaps because she was born prematurely, but it didn¡¯t seem to have been detrimental to her health. ¡°She is a really beautiful baby.¡± ¡°She is already so lovely, Your Majesty must be very pleased.¡± ¡°I have never seen a princess who looked so smart, Your Majesty!¡± Those present came forward at the same time to congratte Sovieshu. Sovieshu held the baby in his arms like a proud otter that does not separate from its calf. That protective attitude of the emperor made those present involuntarilyugh. ¡®Right now I¡¯m the only one who is suffering.¡¯ Rashta thought as she contemted the happy scene. Leaning back in a soft armchair, Rashta stared dazedly at her daughter in Sovieshu¡¯s arms from a distance. Three times. That was the number of times Rashta had seen her daughter after the birth. Suddenly there were murmurs about the incident of the promissory notes followed by voicesughing among themselves. Those present seemed to mock her for what had happened. Rashta put her hands on her belly, where the swelling had not yet gone downpletely, and pursed her lips. The nobles who realized that Sovieshu now only had eyes for his baby, began to change toward Rashta. Since Sovieshu would not even allow Rashta to be near her daughter, people thought that Sovieshu, angered by the incident of the promissory notes, had deliberately separated the baby from Rashta. It was so even in Rashta¡¯s eyes. Although he sent numerous doctors to take care of her body¡¯s recovery, a real wall could be perceived in Sovieshu¡¯s attitude. But Rashta was not inside that wall. There was only her daughter and Sovieshu himself. *** ¡°Didn¡¯t you know?¡± ¡°So¡­ it was true.¡± ¡°¡­ I never liked her.¡± ¡°Well, in the end she is amoner from a fallen noble family¡­¡± Rashta slowly stopped walking and looked towards the direction where she heard several voices. ¡®If they¡¯re going to talk about me, why don¡¯t they do it in a ce where I can¡¯t hear them?!¡¯ But Rashta did not know that at one point Navier had heard such murmurs. The maids behind Rashta did not know it either. Only Viscountess Verdi, who had a pale expression, was aware of this fact. Recalling the events of the past year that seemed to ovep, Viscountess Verdi spoke bitterly, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Your Majesty. It¡¯s not worth worrying about.¡± ¡°How can I not worry when I can hear them?¡± Rashta replied coolly, but from her expression it looked like she was on the verge of tears. ¡®Why is this happening to me?¡¯ The world had changed after the birth of her daughter. While for others the world became brighter and livelier, for Rashta, it became darker. In the days of celebration for the birth of the princess, she was not the center of attention. The baby received all kinds ofpliments from the attendees, and Sovieshu received all kinds of praise. But Rashta, who gave birth to the baby, became aughing stock. ¡®How is this possible?¡¯ During the months she had carried her daughter in her womb, she had made an effort to take care of the princess. The baby was like her alter ego, born from her own body. So then why¡­ ¡°Who do you think will be the next empress?¡± ¡°Most of the youngdies of His Majesty¡¯s age are already married¡­¡± ¡°So youngdies Laura¡¯s age will be the candidates?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it possible that Miss Evely will be the Empress?¡± ¡°No way, His Majesty will not ept amoner as Empress twice.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true. Commoners seem to have no shame even if they are smart. Just look at the Empress who bragged about someone else¡¯s promissory notes¡­ what the nerve.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t Princess Soju still single?¡± Rashta stopped as she approached the voices, surprised that they were talking so soon about the next empress. Are these really the same people who said I was lovely and beautiful no matter what mistake I made? Despite the incident of the promissory notes and Sovieshu¡¯s cold treatment, it was not exactly that that made them change their attitude. There were already hints of this disdain from before. To be precise, since she became the Empress. The nobles, who had been tolerant of all her actions when she was a concubine, suddenly began to judge harshly everything she did as soon as she ascended to the top. As if the fact that she became the Empress had been the trigger. Well, they were always like that. Only they used to talk secretly before, and now they do it tantly. Rashta wanted to scold them, but in the end she left the way she came. It was not because she was afraid of them. In fact, it was because she feared that after making a fuss, what little affection Sovieshu had left for her would disappear. The promised time as empress was one year. If she had given birth to a boy, that period could have been extended, but now it was impossible. She had to remain as calm as possible until she found a way not to be thrown out. *** There was one person who observed the scene from a distance. It was Baron Lant. As he came down the stairs, he saw this through the window and clicked his tongue. Although he could not hear anything, it was not difficult to roughly understand the situation. Apparently, Rashta overheard the nobles talking about the rumors circting while she was taking a walk. Seeing how she walked away with her paleplexion, it was clear that they were making really nasty remarks. ¡®There are only maids around her, so no one is able to step forward.¡¯ If instead of maids it weredies-in-waiting around her, they would have stepped forward when they overheard such scornful remarks. It was not because thedies-in-waiting had a greater sense of justice than the maids, but because thedies-in-waiting had the status to do so and not be looked down upon. In contrast, the maids were stillmoners no matter how much they were maids of the empress. It was impossible for a maid to angrily intervene in a conversation between nobles, unless she was willing to take the consequences. Baron Lant left the documents in his hands at the secretariat and immediately went to Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, I have something to tell you.¡± ¡°Is it urgent?¡± ¡°It¡¯s about the Empress.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s urgent. Later.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s change of attitude toward Rashta was noticed even by Baron Lant. Even if he really was busy, Sovieshu used to put it all aside to listen to him when it came to Rashta. In the end, Baron Lant had to wait a couple of hours before he couldmunicate what he wanted. ¡°Your Majesty, I think you should be more attentive to the Empress.¡± Sovieshu frowned as he pressed his tired eyes. ¡°I assign her the best doctors to take care of her 24 hours a day. The chef prepares her all the proper food and appetizers for a woman who has recently given birth, and I fill her room with all kinds of gifts. What else am I supposed to do?¡± Certainly, in material things he gave her in abundance. However, no matter how much jewelry and good food he would send her, it meant nothing as long as Sovieshu did not go to see her. More importantly¡ª ¡°You haven¡¯t let the Empress be with the princess¡­¡± Baron Lant muttered helplessly and looked to the side. There was a cute baby crib that didn¡¯t fit in with the formal office. There was no need to look at who slept in the crib. It was already known to everyone in the Imperial Pce that Sovieshu took care of the baby from time to time while he worked. ¡°Baron Lant. Do you think Rashta, who plucked the feathers off a fragile little bird to me Navier, will take good care of her own daughter?¡± Sovieshu smiled bitterly. ¡°A bird and a baby are different, Your Majesty. Just because one is good at hunting does not mean one is a ruthless person.¡± ¡°If you observe how someone behaves you can tell what that person is like. In any case, I will divorce her.¡± Contrary to the harsh words, Sovieshu remembered Rashta with her first baby in her arms. ¡°Your Majesty, let the baby be with the Empress even for a little while. Do it for the sake of the princess. Surely the princess misses her mother¡¯s arms too.¡± After much thought, Sovieshu sent the baby to Rashta at night. Viscountess Verdi was overjoyed when an aide to the Emperor brought the princess. She quickly held her. Viscountess Verdi was by Rashta¡¯s side during her pregnancy and delivery, so she grew fond of the princess whom she had barely seen. She was very upset that Sovieshu would not even let her get close to the baby. She was very happy to be able to hold her in her arms again. ¡°How can the princess be so calm and beautiful?¡± Viscountess Verdi smiled broadly as she held the baby. Then she hurried over to Rashta, who was lying in her bedroom, and showed the baby, ¡°Your Majesty, look at the princess. An aide to the Emperor brought the princess.¡± ¡°My daughter?¡± Rashta got up at once. Her shadowed face also brightened. However, she could not ept the baby and merely clenched her fists repeatedly. Joy followed by anguish, sadness and grief welled up inside her. The baby was lovely, but she felt tormented as she remembered how her position had copsed in an instant because of this baby. ¡°Your Majesty, take the princess in your arms.¡± Rashta hesitated when Viscountess Verdi tried to give her the princess, but did not hold her. However, as soon as the princess began to cry from the awkward position she was in, Rashta couldn¡¯t help but reach out her hands quickly and hold the baby in her arms. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, baby. Mom¡¯s sorry, baby.¡± Rashta lightly patted the baby¡¯s back and rocked her. Chapter 305 - Viscountess Verdi’s Decision (2)

Chapter 305. Viscountess Verdi¡¯s Decision (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As her small body iled in her arms, Rashta felt an emotion rise up her chest. She had given birth twice, but this was the first time she had held a baby in her arms like this. Maybe that¡¯s why she felt so strange, though she liked it. ¡°The baby is wiggling.¡± When Rashta murmured, the baby blinked with tear-filled eyes as she looked at Rashta. In that instant, Rashta realized. She could never me this girl. She already loved her daughter. As soon as she was aware of this fact, the emptiness and weakness she felt before disappeared. She was determined to protect her daughter. ¡®Yes. I have to be strong.¡¯ This was no time to stand idly by. If she was thrown out of the empress position, her daughter would be raised by another woman. A smart and astute youngdy from a good family would be the Empress. No matter that the new empress was as good as an angel, their children would still bepared, the family of that empress¡¯ mother, and even the people around her, would reject the first princess. Even if the nobles looked down on her, she was determined to maintain her position as empress. Only in this way could she protect her daughter. At this point, the princess¡¯s crying stopped. Perhaps because the baby was in her mother¡¯s arms or because she was in a morefortable position. In any case, the intense vitality that could be felt throughout the princess¡¯ body diminished drastically when she calmed down. She seemed inert. Rashta stared in horror at the princess with her head bowed. Suddenly feeling the same sensation of the past when she held the dead baby in her arms. At the grisly horror that swept over her from head to foot, Rashta gasped and threw the baby away, ¡°Out! Out of my sight!¡± After throwing the baby, Rashta trembled as she clutched her head with both hands. She felt as if there was a sickening corpse smell on her arms, so she hastily swiped them across her knees and the sheets to get it off. ¡°Princess!¡± The baby, who had been thrown to the floor, was crying inconsbly. Only then did Rashta calm down a little and asked with a nk stare. ¡°Is she, is she alive?¡± Viscountess Verdi remembered Delise for a moment, whose tongue Rashta had cut out and imprisoned after she saw something ¡®she wasn¡¯t supposed to see¡¯, and the maid whose father was nearly executed for talking too much. At the thought of what Rashta had just done, Viscountess Verdi swallowed hard. ¡°Is she alive?¡± Rashta asked again in a rough voice. Viscountess Verdi knew what wasing. She had witnessed a scene ¡®she wasn¡¯t supposed to have seen¡¯, so Rashta would try to kill her. Rashta was now stunned, but would no doubt do so once she came to her senses. The Viscountess stepped back, holding the baby tightly. ¡°Viscountess? Do you not hear me? ?Is the baby alive?¡± Rashta asked in bewilderment. Viscountess Verdi barely managed to open her mouth to say a few words. ¡°The baby¡­ looks shocked. Please wait a moment. I¡¯ll go examine her.¡± She spoke quietly, so as not to irritate Rashta, took another step back, and hurried out of the bedroom. Then she left the drawing room and ran down the corridor. She feared that the knights and maids under Rashta¡¯smand woulde after her at any moment, so the Viscountess desperately ran to the East Pce with the baby in her arms. When Rashta finally came out of the shock caused by the dead baby, she realized that Viscountess Verdi had gone somewhere with the princess. She also realized that Viscountess Verdi had seen her throw the baby to the floor. ¡°Oh no!¡± Rashta hurried out into the corridor and asked one of the knights stationed at the door. ¡°And the Viscountess Verdi? Where has the Viscountess gone with my baby?¡± The knight responded with a puzzled look. ¡°She ran off in that direction with the baby in her arms.¡± Rashta turned pale and ordered, ¡°Catch that bitch! Right now! That bitch has kidnapped my daughter!¡± The knights were startled for a moment and looked at each other. They considered it far-fetched that the Empress¡¯s onlydy-in-waiting kidnapped the Princess in the Imperial Pce. But from her red eyes and pale face, it seemed it was no joke. The knights went after the Viscountess in haste. However, Viscountess Verdi had already arrived at the East Pce. The Knights of the Imperial Guard came to her aid as they saw her running scared. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°His, His Majesty, I need to see His Majesty.¡± Viscountess Verdi pleaded desperately. She wore a terrified expression, so the Knights of the Imperial Guard immediately informed Sovieshu. Hearing that Viscountess Verdi wasing with the princess in her arms, Sovieshu let her into the drawing room. As soon as Viscountess Verdi saw Sovieshu, she fell to her knees and cried out through tears, ¡°Your Majesty, the Empress threw the princess to the floor! Please protect the princess!¡± *** The pce doctor was slow to open his mouth, but then spoke quickly. ¡°Pregnant! You¡¯re pregnant!¡± He repeated these words several times, unable to suppress his astonishment. Then he jumped to his feet and stared at me with his eyes wide open. ¡°Empress! Oh, my! Oh, my! Oh, my!¡± I looked at the pce doctor quizzically. I couldn¡¯t think of anything, it was as if my mind was nk. Looking at him puzzled, the pce doctor coughed and smiled awkwardly, ¡°Congrattions, the Empress is pregnant!¡± Heinley clenched one hand into a fist and covered his mouth with the other. I could see how his fist trembled slightly. Heinley, who had remained as if absent, suddenly looked back at me with tear-filled eyes. When he removed his hand from his mouth, I saw him bite his lip. ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley called to me in a shaky voice, stretched out his arms and hugged me tightly. ¡°Are you sure? Isn¡¯t there a high probability of misdiagnosis in the early weeks of pregnancy?¡± However, as soon as I asked the pce doctor firmly, Heinley¡¯s arms went limp. The pce doctor quickly responded to my question, ¡°Of course, it ismon to misdiagnose at this time. But Your Majesty, I have never been wrong on this.¡± When I was in the Eastern Empire I witnessed several misdiagnoses ¡®on this¡¯, so I preferred not to take it for granted yet, ¡°When can we know for sure?¡± ¡°In two weeks it could be known for sure.¡± ¡°Okay, check me again then.¡± I asked the pce doctor not to tell anyone about this, and the doctor in his excitement, said he reluctantly understood. ¡°But until then, you must reduce your workload and take more time to rest, Your Majesty.¡± After the pce doctor left, I ask Heinley as well, ¡°Heinley, don¡¯t tell anyone about this. There are people who would make fun of us for revealing that I am pregnant without first confirming it.¡± It was weird. Although I spoke calmly as usual, the voice that came out seemed shaky. Why? It was the same even after I coughed a couple of times before speaking again. As I bit my lip in confusion, I suddenly felt a strange tingling all over my body. Later I could understand what I was really feeling. I was afraid and anxious. What if the doctor says it was a misdiagnosis? When that thought came to mind, my whole body shuddered. I rubbed my hands together nervously and wrapped my arms around my body, but the feeling didn¡¯t go away. Then Heinley wrapped me in his arms. Chapter 306 - Rashta’s Despair (1)

Chapter 306. Rashta¡¯s Despair (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren After that day, time passed very slowly. But when I thought about the pregnancy at night, it seemed to go by too quickly again. Perhaps because of the situation, Heinley just hugged me tightly even when we were lying in the shared bedroom. This naughty eagle, whose eyes were always full of lust, did not usually behave in this way. However, he never brought up the subject of pregnancy or talked about babies. Heinley probably didn¡¯t want me to feel overwhelmed. I had already decided to have the pce doctor check me out again. Snuggled up against Heinley¡¯s chest, I stroked his chin and cheeks to calm my anxiety. It must be difficult for a chatterbox to keep his mouth shut. I admired the effort he made for me by not saying anything for two weeks. As I stroked his hair a day before the checkup, I untied the knot of his robe and rested my ear on his chest. Once I heard the pleasant beat of his heart and felt the warmth of his body, my chaotic mind gradually calmed down. Since when did this man begin to mean so much to me? Did it make any sense now to try not to love him? Imented inwardly, letting out a slight sigh. How will we feel tomorrow when we lie down here again? Tomorrow we¡¯ll know if¡­ ¡°Do you want to kill me, My Queen?¡± ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Oh my¡­¡± Heinley, who let out a moan, kissed my forehead and pulled his body out from under me, saying, ¡°Wait a moment.¡± Then he scurried away like a mouse and moaned again. At that moment I realized that I had groped his naked body a lot, which had greatly stimted that part of Heinley. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°You¡¯re cruel¡­¡± Heinley muttered helplessly and left the shared bedroom. As I looked toward the door that led to Heinley¡¯s room, I grabbed his pillow and hugged it. With the pillow that still held his warmth between my arms, I fell asleep. * * * The next day. The pce doctor who came to see me, almost at noon, seemed very tense. He even had a tragic expression before beginning the checkup, as if the salvation of the world depended on his next words. Heinley squeezed my hand affectionately as the pce doctor pulled out his medical tools, but immediately withdrew it at the pce doctor¡¯s request. I swallowed hard and breathed slowly. My heartbeat felt like the ticking of a clock. ¡­ How long is he going to check me? It was time to know the result. The pce doctor put aside the medical instruments, and bowed deeply to me, ¡°Congrattions, Your Majesty! There is no doubt that you are pregnant! You have a baby in your womb! As soon as he finished speaking, a sob was heard from the side. As I turned my gaze, I saw Heinley looking at me with tear-filled eyes. No sooner had our gazes met than he rushed to take my hand and embraced me with the other. The pce doctor didn¡¯t stop him, this time he didn¡¯t say anything. Only Heinley¡¯s sobs could be heard in the quiet room. Nothing crossed my mind again, the pce doctor smiled as if he expected to see me happy, but eventually looked at me with a puzzled expression. It wasn¡¯t until he left after giving some instructions that I realized my head was empty. As my thoughts returned, I wanted to call the pce doctor to check me again. Is he really sure? He didn¡¯t make a mistake? Do I really have a baby in my womb? Me? ¡°A baby¡­¡± ¡°Seems like that nasty baby eagle was our child, My Queen.¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t nasty. It was lovely and cuddly.¡± At my firm words, Heinley kissed me several times on the cheek and said, ¡°You¡¯re right, it was a very lovely baby eagle.¡± Then he picked me up and held me in his arms suddenly, so I clung to his neck reflexively. ¡°Heinley!¡± ¡°If I spun around like this a lot, you¡¯d feel dizzy, right?¡± Heinley kissed me all over my face, then set me down on the couch, turned into a bird and started dancing. He didn¡¯t look like the same man who hadn¡¯t said anything in two weeks. Not even before those two weeks had he mentioned that he wanted to have a child. Was he that happy about this? As I watched Queen dance, who could not be said to be a good dancer,ughter finally broke out as the tension dissipated. Suddenly, I was touched and my eyes filled with tears. I¡¯m pregnant. I¡­ I¡¯m going to be a mother. Although I never dreamed of being a mother, I never thought I wouldn¡¯t be. Bing Empress, I naturally must have a child. This was tied to the position of the Empress. But this¡­ was different. Knowing that I actually had a baby in my womb waspletely different from what I had imagined. It went beyond a matter of obligation and happiness. ¡°My child.¡± The life growing inside me in a totally unexpected way gave me a strange excitement and fear at the same time. This baby taught me how amazing a woman was to be able to procreate, and also the fear of knowing that its life depended solely on me to be born healthy. When I thought that in a few years this baby would grow up to be just like us, talk about all kinds of things,ugh, and y a role in the world, I realized how amazing it was to be a parent. It was a perspective I had never considered before. This life, which was in my womb and whose existence was uncertain two weeks ago, would be a lovely baby in less than a year. When I ced my hands on my belly, tears finally spilled down my cheeks. Queen stopped dancing and approached me, resting his face on my belly. Then he spread his big wings, covering my belly and my waist. We stayed like that for a long time¡­ ¡°The more I think about the child we will have¡­ the more my heart races, My Queen.¡± ¡°Are you happy?¡± ¡°The very existence of the baby to be born is the fruit of our love.¡± *** Chapter 307 - Rashta’s Despair (2)

Chapter 307. Rashta¡¯s Despair (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley made a series of small mistakes throughout the day. McKenna frowned every time he saw Heinley make a mistake in writing, spill the bottle of ink on the desk, and rewrote the documentspletely. He also confused the names of his secretaries and wore his cloak backwards. When he ate, he did not use the cutlery properly as if he were absent minded. A smile constantly shed across his face, which made McKenna feel rather ufortable. ¡°You seem very happy, what happened?¡± Finally McKenna couldn¡¯t help but ask him directly, but Heinley shook his head, ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± After the pce doctor left, and we calmed down a bit, Heinley intended to announce my pregnancy at once. He excitedly said that he would make this news known to my father, mother, brother, nobles, subordinates, the country, and even foreigners. But I told him not to do so. ¡ª Let¡¯s take this opportunity to identify the troublesome people. ¡ª To the troublemakers¡­ Ah. perhaps¡­ ¡ª Those who attack us now will not suddenly stand still just because our child will be born. We must identify and reduce the power of anyone who might pose a threat before our child is born. Heinley looked sad, but soon agreed with the long-term vision. As the rumor of infertility grew, the rest of Christa¡¯s forces would emerge like a swarm of bees. By their actions, it could be determined if they could be saved, even if they were now on Christa¡¯s side, or if they werepletely useless. But a few dayster, Heinley and I decided to tell McKenna about the pregnancy. It was unavoidable. The pce doctor urged me to sleep at least seven hours, eat at a specific time, and reduce my current work to a quarter. ¡®It is the early stages of pregnancy that are most dangerous, Your Majesty. You must take special care right now. Eat, have fun, rest, watch and listen to good things, and don¡¯t work until dawn!¡¯ Toply with the pce doctor¡¯s instructions, McKenna would have to take over much of my work, as he did before I married Heinley. McKenna jumped for joy at first to learn that I was pregnant, but was quickly depressed to hear that I would have to cut back on my workload. In this scenario, he couldn¡¯t say no, so he finally replied, almost in tears, ¡°That¡¯s fine,¡± with a heavy voice. ¡°I was already used to my previous work schedule, I know I only live to work. Your Majesty will be able to rest seven hours a day, although I will only be able to sleep for two hours.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t leave you so much work, McKenna.¡± ¡°Even if Your Majesty doesn¡¯t, the person next to you certainly will¡­¡± McKenna¡¯s face, which looked depressed, suddenly brightened and he asked, ¡°Since it¡¯s a secret, you can¡¯t prepare the baby¡¯s room all at once, but you can make the nest!¡± ¡°The nest?¡± ¡°I will make the nest, Your Majesty. Baby birds are small and delicate, so the nest must be made carefully. The trend these days are silk nests.¡± Wait a minute. What nest? *** Sovieshu frowned at Viscountess Verdi¡¯s words. Had she suddenlye to say that Rashta had thrown the princess to the floor? But he cared for the baby first. Sovieshu took the baby from Viscountess Verdi¡¯s hands and examined her as she cried inconsbly. At first nce the princess didn¡¯t appear to have suffered any injuries, but certainly something had happened to her. ¡°Why does the baby cry like that? Daughter. Princess!¡± Sovieshu cried out in despair as he tried tofort the baby. ¡°What happened? What happened to the baby?!¡± ¡°The Empress threw the princess, threw the princess to the floor!¡± Viscountess Verdi spoke again through tears. The baby¡¯s crying shook the whole room. ¡°Call the pce doctor! No, I¡¯ll go myself.¡± Sovieshu then moved to leave with the baby in his arms in a hurry. ¡°Don¡¯t believe a word she says, Your Majesty!¡± Rashta shouted in front of the drawing room door, who hade running with her guards to catch up with Viscountess Verdi. Due to the dramatic situation, the door to the drawing room was still open. Rashta entered the drawing room and eximed with a pale face. ¡°Your Majesty, Viscountess Verdi is mad! It was that woman who threw the baby!¡± Viscountess Verdi¡¯s eyes widened enormously and she retorted, ¡°Lie!¡± Rashta continued as she red at Viscountess Verdi, ¡°After throwing the princess, she fled with the baby in her arms for fear of being punished by Rashta. Your Majesty, that evil woman tried to kill our daughter! ?She deserves to be executed for trying to kill the princess! She must be executed!¡± Sovieshu looked between Viscountess Verdi and Rashta with a frown. ¡°Your Majesty. Think about it. Would Rashta throw our daughter to the floor? That is absurd.¡± Rashta spoke in a tearful voice and held out her hands toward the baby. Instead of giving over the baby, Sovieshu took a step back. Throwing a newborn baby to the floor was something a sane person would not do. So while it was true that Rashta had a crueler side than he thought, he wondered if she had really been able to throw her daughter. Also, he wondered if there was any reason for Viscountess Verdi to throw the baby on the floor. Just then, in the drawing room where only the baby¡¯s crying could be heard, the sudden screech of a bird was heard. The sound came from the bedroom. At that moment, the pce doctor arrived. Sovieshu had tried to go personally, but was hindered by Rashta, so a subordinate of his had gone to fetch him. While the doctor was examining the baby, Sovieshu brought the bird in a cage into the living room. As soon as the bird saw Rashta, it let out an even louder high-pitched chirp, capable of shattering eardrums. The chirp wasn¡¯t pretty or clear at all. Rashta took a startled step back. ¡®It can¡¯t be,¡¯ the bird¡¯s reaction finally convinced Sovieshu. Sovieshu red at Rashta as he ordered her to leave. ¡°Your Majesty, Viscountess Verdi¡­¡± ¡°Get out.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, Rashta¡­¡± ¡°I said get out.¡± His cold voice drove Rashta back. But Rashta tried to remain firm when she saw that Viscountess Verdi was still kneeling in front of Sovieshu. This caused anger to erupt inside her. ¡®The Viscountess betrayed Navier, so she had nowhere to go. Thanks to me, she got a ce where she even received money. How did she dare?¡¯ Rashta gritted her teeth, but there was nothing she could do now. Is that cunning bitch sobbing in front of Sovieshu as if she were the princess¡¯s mother? ¡°All right, I¡¯ll leave. But Your Majesty, don¡¯t forget that Rashta would never hurt the princess. That woman is aplete stranger, and Rashta is the princess¡¯ mother.¡± After speaking as calmly as possible, Rashta turned around and returned to the Western Pce. When Rashta left, Sovieshu closed the drawing room door and asked Viscountess Verdi, ¡°You have a child, right?¡± ¡°Yes. Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Have you ever raised a baby?¡± ¡°Yes. We didn¡¯t have the money to hire a nanny¡­ so I cared for my child on my own.¡± Viscountess Verdi responded in panic at the odd question. Sovieshu nodded. Then he said somethingpletely unexpected. ¡°I¡¯ll prepare a room for the baby next to mine. Stay there with the princess and take care of her.¡± In other words, he wanted her to be the princess¡¯ nanny. Viscountess Verdi hastily bowed her head until her forehead touched the floor and repeatedly eximed through tears, ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty!¡± *** Chapter 308 - Real Father (1)

Chapter 308. Real Father (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Once Viscountess Verdi also left, Sovieshu anxiously asked the pce doctor, ¡°How is the princess?¡± ¡°She was very frightened, but fortunately nothing of consequence happened to her. If she had fallen straight to the bare floor, it would have been dire, Your Majesty. A baby is fragile, it can suffer serious injuries if thrown with a little force on a hard surface.¡± It was a relief that the baby was wrapped in thick nkets and that the ce where she fell was a soft carpet. Otherwise, the baby could have ended up with irreversible injuries. As the shock wore off, anger came over Sovieshu. He thought Rashta was being sly to protect herself, but she had gone too far by throwing the baby to the floor. Just thinking about it made him want to depose her right now. However, he imagined the kind ofments he would receive if he kicked out the woman he had been married to for less than a year, besides the fact that she was the mother of his newborn daughter. Even people who despised Rashta would feel sorry for her. People change their minds constantly. They could despise Rashta at the same time they pitied her. If he made public what Rashta had done to the baby, he could not only kick her out, but also imprison her for life, but he was worried that the adult princess would be shocked to find out about this. ¡°If she had stayed quiet, she could have lived surrounded by luxuries like a former empress for the rest of her life. What a fool.¡± So far, Sovieshu had documented every one of Rashta¡¯s crimes. He ignored it all to silently assemble a list of crimes, to the point where others might wonder if he didn¡¯t care what she did. However, these documents were firewood. Firewood that he did not yet know if he would use, but that if he did, it would burn brightly. It was the kind of firewood that the more it was stacked, the more intense the fire would be. In the end, that firewood would turn into a big fireball. What Rashta did to the baby was beyond what Sovieshu could ignore. Sovieshu rocked the restless baby, trying to control his anger. But his eyes sank dreadfully. ¡®It definitely won¡¯t be a simple divorce, Rashta.¡¯ *** Meanwhile. Rashta felt betrayed by Viscountess Verdi and was very hurt that she had thrown the baby on the floor. Returning to the West Pce, Rashta screamed and started breaking all the things in her room. ¡°Ahhh¡­ Ahhhh! Daughter! Mommy didn¡¯t mean to do that!¡± As she sobbed, she was more affected by what she did to the baby than by the betrayal. Then, Rashta knelt on the rug where the baby had fallen, and wailed with her hands on her cheeks. ¡°Daughter, Mommy really didn¡¯t mean to do that¡­¡± Although she was devastated to have thrown her precious daughter to the floor, the eerie sensation of holding a dead baby in her arms remained so vivid in her memory that she wasn¡¯t sure she wouldn¡¯t do it again. ¡°Ah¡­ Ah¡­ baby¡­ my baby. My daughter.¡± ¡®How painful it must have been. How scared she must have been.¡¯ Rashta looked as if she had half gone mad as she thumped her chest miserably. At that moment, there was a knock at the door. ¡°Beat it! I don¡¯t want anyone toe in! Nobodye in!¡± Rashta shouted angrily, lifting only her upper body. But the person on the other side of the door immediately entered without giving importance to Rashta¡¯s shouts. That person was Viscount Roteschu. ¡°Why are you here? Why!? Get out! That¡¯s an order! I said that¡¯s an order!¡± Despite Rashta¡¯s shouts, Viscount Roteschu approached her and said, ¡°This is no time for this. Get up. Your real father hase to the capital!¡± Viscount Roteschu was able to enter thanks to the guards. Rashta had locked herself in her room screaming, so the frightened guards deliberately allowed Viscount Roteschu to enter. The guards, who believed that Viscount Roteschu and Rashta had a good rtionship, thought that the Viscount could calm Rashta down. The maids thought the same. Not to mention that they weremoners. Even if Viscount Roteschu entered without permission, they would not even consider stopping him. However, contrary to what they expected, Viscount Roteschu waspletely unaware of what had happened to Rashta. He thought the matter of Rashta¡¯s real father was more important than anything else, so not only did he notfort Rashta, he didn¡¯t even care about her. Rashta staggered limply and her expression became nk. Then she grabbed Viscount Roteschu by the cor and shook him with all her might as tears spilled down her cheeks. If only this bastard hadn¡¯t given me a dead baby! If only I had not held in my arms the dead baby, whom I believed to be the son I had waited for nine months! Then I would have been able to calmly hold my daughter in my arms, sing her a luby, whisper that I was her mother and tell her that I was happy to see her. I would have knitted bos for the baby, who looked like me, and I would have put on her scarves the beautiful embroidery I had recently started to learn. As soon as the warm little body in her arms, the tiny fingers reaching for her, the adorable ck eyes, and the fresh baby scent came to her mind, Rashta¡¯s heart broke. She whimpered and pped Viscount Roteschu. ¡°You bastard! You¡¯re a bastard! A damn bloody bastard! Die!¡± Rashtashed out at Viscount Roteschu. ¡°Stop it! Stop it! Stop it!¡± Viscount Roteschu shouted, unable to shake off Empress Rashta. Soon after, Rashta loosened her grip and released him helplessly, only then did Viscount Roteschu snort and straighten his disheveled clothes. ¡°The Empress must not act like this.¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Rashta tried to p him again, but this time the Viscount nimbly dodged her by pulling his body back, and clicked his tongue. ¡°How can I tell you the news of your father if I keep quiet?¡± Finally, a mysterious light appeared in Rashta¡¯s anger-filled eyes. ¡°My father? Viscount Isqua?¡± ¡°Is it necessary to act in front of me? I¡¯m not talking about your fake father. I¡¯m talking about your real father. That swindler.¡± Her ck eyes twitched quickly. A moment ago she was a little out of it, so she couldn¡¯t understand his words. Only now could she understand the Viscount perfectly. ¡°My real father?¡± Rashta asked with a look of bewilderment. ¡°How can there be news of my father?¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue again. ¡°That¡¯s normal, I suppose he¡¯se for a piece of the pie upon learning that you¡¯ve be the Empress.¡± Her pale face abruptly distorted. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Well, he didn¡¯te directly to ask for money. He came to my house and showed me your portrait. Then he said, ¡®our Rashta has made it¡¯¡ª¡± ¡°Maybe¡­ he only came to you for that.¡± ¡°He said he¡¯d be back.¡± Rashta spoke coldly. ¡°It is not possible that I have the blood of amon ve.¡± ¡°I tried that excuse too, but he was sure.¡± ¡°Get rid of him.¡± Rashta spoke firmly, she had a determined look. He had abandoned her when she was a ve, but now he was looking for her. Evidently, he did not seem to have good intentions. However, Viscount Roteschu was indifferent. ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask His Majesty?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t His Majesty know all about your background? Yet he turns a blind eye. I think this matter would be better resolved if you ask His Majesty instead of me, don¡¯t you think?¡± ¡°What are you saying? Don¡¯t you ask me for money to help me in cases like this? Viscount Roteschu¡¯s expression immediately twitched, ¡°I told you Rivetti had disappeared.¡± ¡°¡­ You still haven¡¯t found her?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, I haven¡¯t been able to find her. So in addition to finding my own daughter, I have to find the real daughter of your fake parents as you ordered me to do.¡± Rashta bit her lips. ¡®That¡¯s all, can¡¯t he do three things at once?¡¯ The words, ¡®Can¡¯t you get rid of him while you look for them?¡¯ came to the tip of her tongue. However, Rashta was responsible for Rivetti¡¯s disappearance, so she couldn¡¯t open her mouth. ¡°Not that it¡¯s a bother, but because I¡¯ve been so busytely. I can hardly see n¡¯s face.¡± Viscount Roteschu sighed, and raised his head to look at the wall clock. As if trying to let her know he was very busy. ¡°I¡¯ll leave tonight in a carriage to go all over the Parme Region. So don¡¯t look for me even if it¡¯s urgent.¡± In the midst of this, Viscount Roteschu took a handful of jewels. The reason was that he needed to pay for a lot of travel expenses to get around. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Once Viscount Roteschu left, Rashta stood up and nervously paced the room. Chapter 309 - Real Father (2)

Chapter 309. Real Father (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren It would be best to speak with Sovieshu to resolve this matter, as Roteschu had said. But less than two hours had passed since he had sided with Viscountess Verdi and ordered her to leave. If I go now and ask him to help me¡­ will he help me? By reminding him that I had ve blood, won¡¯t he get rid of the princess and me for being too much trouble? After some reflection, Rashta decided to visit Duke Elgy first. He was the man she trusted most in the world. *** The babies of his tribe were forced to turn into birds for several hours a day. That¡¯s why a nest was necessary. When I asked McKenna what would happen if they didn¡¯t spend several hours a day as birds, he replied nonchntly. ¡ª They can be birds at any time naturally. I put the spoon down on the table and looked at my belly, which was still t. Then I remembered the bird I saw in my dreams. Does that mean my baby will be able to turn into a lovely bird? Like Heinley? When the baby turns into a bird, Heinley should be able to take care of it better than I can. A baby is small, but in bird form it would be even smaller. I imagined Heinley happy to hold the baby bird, no bigger than the size of my palm, on his chest. I also immediately imagined the baby wrapped in a soft nket with only its face uncovered. Would I be able to take good care of it? Although I was nervous, the corners of my mouth naturally turned up. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Mastas called me because it seemed strange to her how I moved my lips. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± I answered immediately, and smiled deliberately with regret. I knew that mydies-in-waiting would be very happy if I told them I was going to have a child. I was sorry I couldn¡¯t do it. My pregnancy was still a secret. I had decided to use this to set a trap, so I had to be careful. ¡°Ah, Your Majesty. About Sir Koshar¡­¡± Fortunately, Mastas changed the subject. ¡°He was much weaker than I thought.¡± What? However, the new subject turned out to be very strange. Was my brother weak? ¡°When I saw Sir Koshar I thought, ¡®Amazing. So that¡¯s what it means to be innocent¡¯.¡± Also¡­innocent? That can¡¯t be true. ¡°¡­ You¡¯re not getting the wrong person, Miss Mastas?¡± At my question, Mastasughed and shook her hands, ¡°No, Your Majesty. It¡¯s impossible to mistake that face.¡± I was puzzled¡­ Was my brother starting to take care of his image now? Or did he act unusually civilized in front of Mastas? *** When the rain finally stopped after two days, I opened the window to look out at the scenery. The surroundings were filled with fresh air in no time. Raindrops gathered on the green leaves and yellow petals, glistening like pearls in the sunlight. The garden became even more beautiful. Then, I tried to speak in the same way as Heinley. ¡°It¡¯s a good day to fish.¡± ¡­ I won¡¯t do it again. It does not quite fit me. Later, I sent invitations to nobles to hold a simple tea party, even to nobles with whom I had a bad rtionship. Mydies-in-waiting helped me with the letters, put them in the envelopes and wrote the addresses on them. But they couldn¡¯t help but ask puzzled when they saw some of the names, ¡°Will you also invite these people?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, those people were very close to the former queen.¡± ¡°Their own families are on good terms with the former queen¡¯s family.¡± Even being a tea party, mydies-in-waiting seemed to be concerned about inviting nobles with whom I did not have a good rtionship. Mydies-in-waiting pointed to those I had jokinglybeled with them as ¡®Danger Level 2¡¯. The higher the level, the more hostile it meant they were towards me. At level 3 were the Ketron Family, the Liberty Family, and the Zemensia Family. At level 2 were those who clung to these families like leeches, and took pride in it. It was only natural that mydies-in-waiting were puzzled. I was inviting a Danger Level 2 group without taking any countermeasures. Still, I didn¡¯t change my mind. These invitations were a trap to further strengthen the rumor of my infertility. Wouldn¡¯t it be useless to invite only those who were on my side? Once the invitations were sent out, I ordered to set up a big table in the garden and prepare the food. After about three hours, the people who received the invitations began to gather. They greeted me and sat down while also greeting each other. Even while drinking tea and eating, the atmosphere was cheerful and warm. People ssified at Danger Level 2 did not cause any problems. If this good atmosphere continued throughout the tea party, the group I had invited today would drop from Danger Level 2 to Level 1. Then, I would invite another group of hostile nobles to test them. ¡°Have you heard? Miss Imaru is going to have a child.¡± But about thirty-five minutester, they finally showed their true colors. I deliberately pretended to wipe my mouth with a handkerchief to hide my smile. ¡°Oh, so soon? Hasn¡¯t Miss Imaru only been married for about three months?¡± ¡°It¡¯s been almost four months since she got married. She must have gotten pregnant soon after the wedding.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good news!¡± It might seem like casual news of a youngdy who became a noblewoman and got pregnant. It might even be something to celebrate. However, Imaru was Christa¡¯s favoritedy-in-waiting. In other words, they indirectly mocked me for not being pregnant yet, whereas a person who had marriedter would give birth first. Maybe I should move this group up to level 3. ¡°By the way, Your Majesty. When can we hear such good news from you?¡± At least the person who had just spoken would certainly rise to level 3. I put on a serious expression while trying to suppressughter. ¡°That is a matter for the Emperor and Empress. It is none of your concern.¡± After Mastas¡¯ cold words, thefortable and cheerful atmosphere immediately disappeared. Some of those who belonged to Danger Level 2 began to take off their masks. ¡°Why are you so upset, Miss Mastas?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a question. The Empress¡¯s child represents the future of our country.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. That¡¯s a question one should be able to ask.¡± ¡°The Empress¡¯s pregnancy could put an end to that ¡®rumor¡¯¡­ right?¡± As those from Danger Level 2 looked at each other andughed, the atmosphere turned cold. ¡°What rumor? I haven¡¯t heard anything about it.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know that rumors of the Empress were circting?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know there was a rumor going around about the Empress?¡± The situation soon turned into a heated argument between those on my side and the nobles in the Danger Level 2 group. If I were to allow this to continue, the situation could get even worse. It wasn¡¯t like an empress to let a fight break out. I had to stop them smartly. When I felt the time was right, I opened my hand to drop my cup of tea. The cup of tea shattered into pieces with a thunderous sound as it hit the ground. The eyes of the Danger Level 2 nobles and even the nobles on my side widenedpletely. ¡°Ah. I dropped it by ident.¡± I told a preposterous lie, smiling more coldly than usual. ¡°The sessor is important, but more important is to stabilize the country right now. Isn¡¯t there a delicate disagreement with Whitemond and other foreign countries?¡± It was a prepared line intended to make others believe that the sessor issue made me ufortable. It worked so well that several Danger Level 2 nobles whispered maliciously. I had to memorize their names. *** Chapter 310 - Heinley’s Childhood (1)

Chapter 310. Heinley¡¯s Childhood (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As soon as I entered the matrimonial bedroom after dinner, I quickly took out my notebook and adjusted the ¡®Danger Level¡¯ of the nobles who were at the tea party. Those who looked regretful when they saw my ufortable attitude, I moved them down from Level 2 to 1. Those who made the bad remarks I moved up to Level 3, and I intended to watch them more closely in the future. It was fun to do this. ¡°What¡¯s that, My Queen?¡± Heinley asked, poking his head over my shoulder. Then, he spoke again as he checked the names in the notebook, ¡°Those are the nobles with whom there¡¯s a bad rtionship, right?¡± Of course, the names were also familiar to him. ¡°I¡¯m trying to do it like you.¡± ¡°Like me?¡± ¡°I also want to go fishing.¡± Well, to me this seemed more like setting a trap than going fishing. After he nodded, I exined what happened at the tea party. Heinley listened to me with a strange expression and bit his lower lip hard as soon as I finished speaking. ¡°Heinley?¡± When I caressed the corners of his mouth with my hand to stop him from biting his lip, he kissed each of my fingers and smiled broadly. I don¡¯t know why he looked so happy. Once Heinley stopped smiling, he said, ¡°I want our child to look like My Queen.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Well, I just thought it would be very cute.¡± No way. Heinley smiled like that because I¡¯m cute? Sometimes I thought about it, Heinley had strange tastes. He was the cute one. A baby that looked like me would not be cute. Even as a child I wasn¡¯t cute. Instead, the baby would be cute if it looked like Heinley. This reminded me again of the baby bird from my dream. Although it was clearly cunning, it acted as if it was innocent. It was really cute¡­ Now that I think about it, I was a little worried. How could I raise a child with that personality? Such a child would pretend to be obedient in front of me and cause trouble behind my back. When a child of the imperial family caused trouble, the number of people who were affected was muchrger. But it wouldn¡¯t just be a troublemaker, it would be a cunning troublemaker¡­ wasn¡¯t that a big problem? ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Yes, My Queen.¡± ¡°Can you tell me about your childhood?¡± Heinley hesitated a moment before asking with a bright expression. ¡°Are you interested in knowing more about me, My Queen?¡± ¡°Yes. It is said that children are the reflection of their parents. Our child might look like you, so I want to be prepared. Or rather, to imagine it.¡± If our child¡¯s personality was like mine, he wouldn¡¯t be difficult to raise. I had been a very obedient child. It was not to boast. So assured my parents, Sovieshu¡¯s parents, the butlers, and everyone who had watched me grow up. What about Heinley? Kind and cheerful on the outside, but very naughty and capricious on the inside. Even now as an adult¡­ No, you have to look on the bright side. Our child could be naughty like Heinley in front of me, but obedient like me behind my back¡­ No, this would still be a problem. It would be better to hear about Heinley¡¯s childhood first to judge. ¡°Heinley, tell me.¡± When I finally asked in earnest, full of anticipation and trepidation, Heinley responded with a slight frown. ¡°Well, I personally don¡¯t agree that one is the reflection of one¡¯s parents.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I was very independent.¡± Ah¡­ ¡°Were you obedient as a child?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember very well.¡± He definitely wasn¡¯t obedient as a child. ¡°But I remember going with McKenna everywhere, My Queen.¡± As I looked at Heinley, who had a slight smile as if he was remembering good times, I could see the personality of our unborn son in his eyes and I grew even more uneasy. Well. This was just my position. My position because I had been quiet in my childhood. Maybe Heinley would prefer a child like him. ¡°Heinley. Would you like our child to have your personality?¡± ¡°Ah, that could happen. My Queen, you are cruel.¡± Hmm¡­ What did he mean by that? *** After I got pregnant, McKenna took over much of my work, so I had a lot of free time. There were pros and cons. This was one of the cons. I didn¡¯t know what to do with the sudden increase in free time. I had so much free time that strange things came to my mind. Currently, I could not get yesterday¡¯s subject out of my mind. The subject of ¡®the personality of our unborn child¡¯. In the end, I put aside the unread book and visited McKenna. He had grown up with Heinley, so he could speak objectively about Heinley¡¯s childhood. But McKenna was meeting with Heinley, so I had to call him quietly through the half-open door. ¡°McKenna¡­ McKenna¡­¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Fortunately, McKenna understood my intentions and was quick to approach. ¡°Your Majesty, why are you hiding like this? You don¡¯t have to work, so you don¡¯t have to hide.¡± ¡°I came to ask you something.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve been close to His Majesty since childhood, right?¡± ¡°Huh ah, yes¡­ we¡¯ve always been close.¡± ¡°What was His Majesty like as a child?¡± McKenna¡¯s expression twitched in less than half a second at my question. Then he looked me in the eye, smiled broadly and replied, ¡°He was cheerful.¡± But no doubt his expression waspletely different from just a moment ago. It was obvious that he didn¡¯t want to talk about it, ¡°I¡¯m just curious. I wonder if our unborn child will look like me or His Majesty.¡± This really worked. After McKenna mumbled to himself for a while, he quickly turned his head to check that Heinley was still focused on work and whispered, ¡°I¡¯ll tell you about Heinley properly. Come here tonight at eight o¡¯clock.¡± There was no need to be so formal¡­ ¡°I¡¯ll also bring some portraits of His Majesty Heinley as a child.¡± That would be nice. ¡°All right.¡± Chapter 311 - Heinley’s Childhood (2)

Chapter 311. Heinley¡¯s Childhood (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren After I told mydies-in-waiting that I was going to meet with McKenna, Mastas escorted me to the office door at the appointed time. McKenna had arrived first and was waiting for me inside with arge box. Was there a portrait of Heinley as a small boy in that box? ¡°Ah, Your Majesty.¡± It seemed like there was. McKenna opened the box as soon as I entered, took out a small picture frame from inside and showed it to me. ¡°This is a portrait of His Majesty as a child.¡± Although I hadn¡¯t exactlye to see this, I was also curious, so I reached out and grabbed the picture frame. Was Heinley seven or eight years old in this portrait? He looked to be about that age. When I saw little Heinley, I couldn¡¯t help but exim, ¡®Oh my, he really looks like a troublemaker.¡¯ Why did he have the face of a bratty child? Why did his cheeks puff out like he was upset? In contrast, he was always smiling now. ¡°Heinley was angry at the time?¡± ¡°Yes. The portrait was done against his will.¡± ¡°Look at this one too, Your Majesty.¡± The next portrait McKenna gave me showed an even smaller, smiling Heinley. Here he was five or six years old? ¡°Oh my.¡± I could not help but exim again. Even in the portraits in which he came out with a smile, that didn¡¯t take away from his unruly nature. I was so curious that McKenna showed me some more portraits. As I examined them carefully, several puzzling questions came to mind. Hadn¡¯t Ie here to hear about Heinley¡¯s childhood? Why did McKenna have this? Why did he keep so many portraits of his cousin? ¡°Did you get along very well with Heinley?¡± Although I got along very well with my brother, I didn¡¯t have that many portraits of him. At most I had two or three, but I didn¡¯t even know exactly where they were stored. When I asked curiously, McKenna smiled, put the portraits back in the box and said, ¡°Whenever His Majesty Heinley did something wrong, the queen asked to have his portrait taken for the record and to use as a disciplinary measure on him.¡± ¡°Heinley¡¯s mother?¡± ¡°Yes. His Majesty hated to sit still, so she punished him that way.¡± Oh, so that¡¯s why he used to show up with a bratty child¡¯s face. ¡°Originally, the portraits were to be given to His Majesty when he was older, but His Majesty was caught trying to destroy the evidence when he was 12 years old. Since then, I¡¯ve been in charge.¡± It was nice to hear that, but no doubt¡­ in his childhood he was a troublemaker. My hands went up to my belly naturally. The baby had not been born yet, but I could already imagine my child causing trouble. I knew nothing about disciplinary measures. Until now I had never thought about parenting or babies. Of course, it won¡¯t cause any problems if it looks like me¡­ no, if he looks like me, he might have the same problems I do. As I pondered this, McKenna smiled and pulled out another portrait. ¡°The story behind this one¡ª¡± But before he could begin to speak properly, there was a knock on the door. Looking back, Heinley was leaning against the door with a forced smile. *** As Rashta walked through the Southern Pce, the distinguished guests strolling around exchanged nces and whispered to each other. Everyone knew of the Emperor¡¯s change in attitude towards Rashta. However, few were sympathetic. Most seemed to enjoy the fact that Empress Rashta was in a difficult position. Clenching her fists, Rashta walked with her back straight and her head high. But as soon as she entered Duke Elgy¡¯s room, she fell to her knees as if she hadpletely copsed. ¡°Rashta?¡± Surprised, Duke Elgy helped her stand up. ¡°What happened to you?¡± Rashta responded through tears. ¡°People hate Rashta. Everyone hates Rashta.¡± Duke Elgy clicked his tongue. Unlike Viscount Roteschu, he was already aware of what happened in the East Pce. So heforted Rashta. ¡°His Majesty will calm down soon. Even if not, Rashta has me.¡± But Rashta hadn¡¯te for that, so she shook her head quickly, ¡°No, it¡¯s not that. There¡¯s another more serious problem right now.¡± ¡°Is there a more serious problem?¡± When Duke Elgy asked in bewilderment, Rashta exined with trembling hands, ¡°Rashta¡¯s real father visited Viscount Roteschu. He will no doubt try to ckmail Rashta.¡± ¡°Your real father?¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s eyebrows raised, he looked very surprised. Rashta nodded immediately. ¡°What should I do? Viscount Roteschu is too busy to help Rashta. He said to speak to His Majesty, but His Majesty won¡¯t help Rashta at this time.¡± ¡°Do you know what your father wants?¡± ¡°Surely money.¡± Rashta said sternly and tightly gripped the hem of her dress. As the fear disappeared, the anger increased. Because of her father she became a ve, because of her father she lived as an orphan. ¡®But now he hase to see me. It must not be for a good reason.¡¯ ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do about it.¡± Rashta muttered nervously. The mercenary hired through Viscount Roteschu had beenmissioned to assassinate the Duke and Duchess Troby, and the assassin she personally hired had been sent to Rivetti. It would be difficult to hire another of that level right away. Even if it was possible, she waspletely reluctant to kill her real father. She preferred to send him to a ce where she would never have to see him. Duke Elgy patted Rashta¡¯s back gently and clicked his tongue as if in pity. ¡°There is no alternative. In this case, it will be better to give the money he asks for.¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid that it will be a bad habit and he¡¯ll keep asking for money, not just once or twice¡­¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s the best way to appease him. No matter how much money he asks for, he¡¯ll probably keep his mouth shut because he¡¯s Rashta¡¯s real father.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. How much money do you think he¡¯ll ask for?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Rashta shook her head. ¡°But Rashta doesn¡¯t have enough money to give him right now. Just a small amount.¡± Duke Elgy smiled as if he found it funny that she was worried about that nonsense, walked over to the desk, wrote something on a piece of paper and brought it over. It was a check with a huge sum of money written on it. However, Rashta did not immediately ept it like she used to, and muttered, ¡°If you do this, Rashta¡­ Rashta seems to be getting too much¡­¡± Not much time had passed since the case of the Empress Navier¡¯s promissory notes came to light, so she was wary of suddenly epting a huge sum of money. ¡°It¡¯s fine. It¡¯s not an inordinate amount of money.¡± Duke Elgy, who added in a sweet and soft voice, ¡°Not for the first or second time?¡± Offered the check to Rashta again. That was true. Rashta soon convinced herself and epted the check. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°Friends should help each other.¡± ¡°The port you wanted¡­ Rashta will try to give it to you.¡± *** Chapter 312 - Greed Of Her Real Father (1)

Chapter 312. Greed Of Her Real Father (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Duke Elgy stood out on the filthy streets. Drunks talking nonsense, gangs fighting for control of territory, and even tavern keepers angry to the point of throwing out drunken patrons, kept their mouths shut as Duke Elgy walked by. He was much taller than the others and had an arrogant expression, with an attire that seemed so high-ss that it was even difficult to look at him. In anyone¡¯s eyes, Duke Elgy was either a high-status nobleman or a member of the imperial family. The people here knew well that it was a loss to fight against such nobles. However, one had the courage to do so. ¡°Hey.¡± That person was so small that he shouldn¡¯t even be considered an opponent. There were people who despite their short stature fought well, but this man didn¡¯t even look like that. Everyone who had shut their mouthsughed among themselves, muttering that the thin man had a lot of guts, but that he didn¡¯t know it was suicide. However, the man approached Duke Elgy as if he were an acquaintance. ¡°Thank you for helping me find my daughter.¡± ¡°I helped you find your daughter? When did I do that?¡± ¡°Well, not directly. But didn¡¯t you make it possible for me to meet Viscount Roteschu?¡± The man smiled wryly and continued speaking in a friendly voice. ¡°In any case, I know you helped me for an ulterior motive. That¡¯s why you asked me to pretend not to know you the next time I see you. So I will not greet you again, nor pay you for what you did.¡± It was a soft but malicious voice. The corners of Duke Elgy¡¯s mouth turned up in a twisted way, and he looked at the silver-haired man who was still close to him. His clothes were old but did not look cheap, and he had well-defined features despite being small. This man, who would be quite popr if he were well groomed, was Rashta¡¯s real father. When Elgy stared at him, the man smiled even more wryly. Then, with his hands shoved in his pockets, he asked quietly, ¡°By the way, what is your rtionship with my daughter? Huh? Well, it doesn¡¯t matter what rtionship you have with her. What matters is that you sell information about my daughter, isn¡¯t that right?¡± The man moved closer to Elgy and held out his palms. ¡°So give me money. That or I¡¯ll tell my daughter everything you¡¯re doing behind her back. I need money to keep my mouth shut, alright?¡± He wiggled his fingers with a mischievous expression. He would soon see his daughter to get money out of her, he seemed really happy to be able to get money out now too. ¡°You¡¯re contemptible.¡± Elgy was surprised. Although he had met all sorts of evil people in his risky adventures, he could count shameless people like this guy on the fingers of one hand. The man seemed not to care what Elgy thought, he kept his hands outstretched and mocked the Duke. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? You seem to have a lot of money, but you resent paying to keep it a secret that you sell information about my daughter¡ª¡± But before the man finished speaking. Elgy grabbed his head with one hand and mmed him against a nearby wall. Those around them fled in shock. The man struggled with both hands. ¡°What the hell! Let go of me! Let go of me!¡± Elgy didn¡¯t let go. Instead, he reached out his other hand and grabbed the man¡¯s neck as if to crush it. ¡°Say what you want. I don¡¯t care.¡± As his windpipe was being squeezed and his head pressed with tremendous force, the man waved his arms in panic. Hastily pounding on the wall where his head was pinned, the man begged for his life. Elgy released the man just before his eyes turnedpletely white, and walked away without even threatening him. The man coughed a few times and wiped tears from his eyes. As much as he wanted to curse, Elgy was already far away. The man smiled awkwardly as he looked at his back. ¡°How can a nobleman have those eyes? They look like those of a murderous bastard.¡± Then, the man said angrily, ¡°It¡¯s fine. I¡¯ll do as you say. I¡¯ll tell my daughter everything. My daughter is the Empress! My daughter is the Empress!¡± The man¡¯s loud voice reached Elgy¡¯s ears. ¡®I won¡¯t even have to intervene.¡¯ Elgy shook his head at the man¡¯s confident shouts he could still hear. *** Today was the day her real father had decided to visit her. Rashta spent the entire morning in shock. Rashta not only hated her father because she had been a ve, but because he never gave her love. Now my shameless father will appear in front of me. ¡°Your Majesty, is it all right not to prepare any dishes?¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. This is not a special guest.¡± The maid left immediately at Rashta¡¯s reply. But her expression was filled with curiosity. The maid wondered who wasing, why the empress was so pensive, and why she didn¡¯t want tea and snacks to be prepared. The maids did not know that the person who woulde to visit the empress was her real father. Rashta ground her teeth. In fact, untilst night, she didn¡¯t know either. Although Viscount Roteschu had told her that her father would be back, she hadn¡¯t expected it to be so soon. Even Rashta had thought that maybe if she didn¡¯t look for him, he wouldn¡¯t appear. Butst night, a messenger sent from Roteschu Mansion destroyed Rashta¡¯s hopes. While she was deep in thought, the maid entered again and let her know that her guest had arrived. ¡°Take him to the drawing room.¡± Rashta counted to a hundred before going to the drawing room. As soon as she entered, she saw a strange man sitting on the couch. His back was slightly hunched and he gave an unpleasant impression. He had well-defined features, but it was all buried under his wicked expression. Rashta clenched her fist and chose to take a deep breath. This man was both strange and familiar to her. ¡°Rashta, my daughter.¡± Chapter 313 - I Love Any Side Of You (2)

Chapter 313. I Love Any Side Of You (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The man got up from the couch with a wide grin. ¡®Rashta, my daughter.¡¯ Rashta shuddered as shepared her childhood father to the man before her. The man was not a father like Sovieshu. He called Rashta sweetly, but he didn¡¯t love her, he didn¡¯t mistreat her, but he didn¡¯t take care of her either. The man always had an excuse for Rashta. ¡®Because of our status, I can¡¯t take care of you.¡¯ He was a very carefree man in that sense. He didn¡¯t even remember her birthday, and sometimes confused her name. ¡°You¡¯ve grown up well. You¡¯ve be a great person.¡± ¡®Even a stranger could say that.¡¯ Rashta looked at the man coldly and asked, ¡°Why have youe?¡± The man put on a sad expression. ¡°Why did Ie? I came because I heard about my daughter, Rashta. I heard that my daughter was doing well, so naturally I wanted to find her.¡± ¡°Why didn¡¯t you think to find your daughter when she was suffering?¡± ¡°Oh.. you¡¯re angry.¡± The man raised his eyebrows in surprise, and approached with open arms. Rashta turned to the side to avoid him. She felt nauseous. She wanted this man to take care of her before, but now she didn¡¯t even want him to touch her. ¡°Go away! Go away and don¡¯t appear in front of me again. For me you ceased to exist from the day you left me. It¡¯s better for me not to have you. Don¡¯t cling to my ankles and go away.¡± Rashta red at him. She didn¡¯t say it thinking that he would really leave. He hade to ask for something, he wouldn¡¯t obediently leave after being insulted. Still, the reason she said this was in case he made a difficult request. She wanted to make him feel at least a little guilt for ckmailing his own daughter. If he felt guilty, he probably wouldn¡¯te back. The man¡¯s eyes widened. He was taken aback that Rashta, who had always longed for affection, had coldly scorned him. ¡°Are you very angry with your father, my daughter?¡± When Rashta was about to leave the drawing room without answering, the man hurriedly said, ¡°Rashta. Do you know a man who is very tall and handsome?¡± ¡°There are so many men like that.¡± ¡°His hair is a mix of brown and blond. His eyes are green. He gives the impression of being very strong. Ah, he wore his coat over his shoulders.¡± Immediately, the image of Duke Elgy came to Rashta¡¯s mind and frowned. ¡®He talks about Duke Elgy? If so, why is he suddenly mentioning Duke Elgy?¡¯ The man smiled broadly. ¡°He told me how to meet you.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Although I epted his help, he didn¡¯t seem to have good intentions. I¡¯m your father, your real father. I had to tell you.¡± Rashta smiled forcedly. ¡®What the hell is he saying?¡¯ Duke Elgy cared for her better than her real father, who never gave her a bit of love. ¡®Did Duke Elgy give him any information? Still, didn¡¯t hee to ckmail the daughter he abandoned?¡¯ Rashta didn¡¯t bother to refute him, just went into her bedroom and closed the door. ¡°Rashta. Rashta.¡± The man hurried after her and knocked on the door. After knocking several times on the bedroom door, Rashta came back out and looked at him with disdain. ¡°Haven¡¯t you left yet?¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Rashta. If it¡¯s someone you like, I shouldn¡¯t have said anything.¡± When one is in love it is natural to turn a blind eye. The man realized that Rashta was in love with that nobleman. So no matter what he said, she wouldn¡¯t believe him. As soon as he came to that conclusion, rather than speak ill of the terrifying nobleman, the man smiled and went to the point. ¡°Rashta, actually¡­ these days have been hard for your father. I hope my daughter can help me.¡± The man cared more about profit than revenge. He would have liked his daughter to deal with that nobleman for him, but his true interests came first. ¡°What kind of help? Money?¡± ¡°Yes. Uh¡­ your father wants to set up a trade team.¡± ¡°How much do you need?¡± ¡°Good things happen when one has a good child.¡± The man smiled happily and said the amount. While she was d that the amount was less than she had expected, she was annoyed by her father¡¯s false words. Rashta eventually realized something strange. ¡°How? Trade team?¡± Rashta had been a ve because her father had been. Her father had be a ve because he hadmitted a scam. Normally, if onemitted a crime punishable by life imprisonment as amoner, one and one¡¯s family received the punishment of bing ves, and even if one did notmit a crime of such magnitude, one could be a ve for a term. The ¡®term¡¯ here was not a question of time, but of money. In general, those who received this type of punishment the most were those who were convicted for money matters. Those sentenced to be ves for a term, could only be released from very immediately if a certain amount of money was collected, one part was returned to the victims and the other part was paid as a fine to the state. This was the case with Rashta¡¯s father. And as far as Rashta knew, ves could not set up a trade team. Rashta¡¯s father answered casually, ¡°Your father worked hard to raise the money to be freed from very.¡± Rashta looked at the man in astonishment. How could he say that so calmly? ¡°And me? What about me?¡± Rashta asked angrily. ¡°I became a ve because of you, but you abandoned me so you could be amoner? How could you do that?¡± Although she was now the empress, she still felt ufortable because of the ve certificate. If it were not for that certificate, her situation would have been much better. Of course, Rashta could have been officially freed when she became a concubine, but then everyone would have found out that she had been a ve, so Sovieshu chose to create a false image of her, despite not having destroyed the ve certificate. Had she been freed from very before she became a concubine, none of this would have bothered her. ¡®How could he do that? Did he raise the money to free himself from very alone?¡¯ ¡°Ah, obviously I also thought of freeing you.¡± Her father smiled awkwardly and made up what happened, ¡°But when I went to see you, I found out you were dating Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son and I assumed you had a good life, so I thought he would set you free. He certainly had a lot more money than I did.¡± ¡°Are you serious?¡± ¡°Really. I went to see you. I left when I heard you were well.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie! Did you leave when you knew I was well? No! You left because of a selfish decision.¡± Rashta staggered as she screamed angrily. She almost fell over, but her real father didn¡¯t help her. He merely clicked his tongue instead. ¡°Jeez, why do you have to yell.¡± Rashta leaned back to regain her bnce. After taking a deep breath in that state, She stared at her father and said firmly, ¡°I won¡¯t give you a penny! If you really want to set up a trade team, that¡¯s your business! Rashta doesn¡¯t care!¡± Her real father looked at Rashta with an expression of disbelief. Then he frowned and asked sternly, ¡°Gosh, you¡¯re a bad daughter. Is that the way to treat your father who saw you born and raised?¡± ¡°How about you? Do you want to take money from your own daughter who was a ve because of you?¡± ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to me that you became the Empress. You owe me that pretty face of yours. You don¡¯t know what reciprocity means¡­ How ungrateful!¡± Rashta was shocked to the point that she found it hard to breathe. How could such a person exist? After speaking angrily, the man suddenly smiled and said, ¡°Rashta, do you think I¡¯ll stay calm if you throw me out like this? I¡¯m your father and it¡¯s your duty to take care of me. If you abandon me, I¡¯ll have no choice but to tell everyone what an ungrateful and bad daughter you are.¡± *** As I cocked my head to the side, I could feel a burning gaze behind me. Ah, Heinley caught me digging into his past! ¡°McKenna?¡± ¡®Take me with you!¡¯ I swallowed thesest words. ¡°I forgot something.¡± Then I tried to follow McKenna with quick steps as I strove to maintain the empress¡¯ dignity. ¡°Where are you going, My Queen?¡± However, I was immediately stopped. When I turned around awkwardly, Heinley looked at me with a mocking expression. ¡°I just remembered that I forgot something.¡± At my excuse, Heinley¡¯s eyes widened, he reached over and stretched my cheeks. ¡°Don¡¯t be bold.¡± I purposely tried to sound cold, but Heinley smiled casually. ¡°I learned something new about My Queen. You know what it is? When you are in an awkward position you are more cold and dignified.¡± How did he notice that? It was a secret method I used to hide it. Because I was in an awkward position, I showed a more determined expression. Heinley put his hands on my cheeks, kissed the tip of my nose three times and smiled. ¡°How lovely. How beautiful. I love every time My Queen acts like this.¡± When I avoided his gaze, he moved his body to make eye contact with me and when I lowered my gaze, he leaned in to look me in the eye. Stop! In that posture, Heinley quietly asked with a broad smile, ¡°My Queen, what were you talking about with McKenna?¡± ¡°I just¡­ wanted to know about your childhood.¡± I confessed sincerely. Although I kept the intention behind it hidden. No, he had heard it all, so why was he pretending not? ¡°I want to know more about you.¡± When I answered again without revealing my intentions, Heinley smiled with even more narrowed eyes. He seemed to be in a good mood. ¡°You lie.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°My Queen, you don¡¯t lose your elegance even by lying.¡± Heinley pulled his hands away from my cheeks and straightened his back. Then, I looked him in the eyes. Could he be angry? ¡°Are you angry?¡± When I asked carefully, Heinley shook his head. ¡°No, it¡¯s not that. It¡¯s just that I¡¯m embarrassed.¡± ¡°What embarrasses you?¡± ¡°I was a little naughty as a child. I didn¡¯t want My Queen to know about it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll also tell you about my childhood. What do you think?¡± ¡°My Queen seems to have grown up without causing any trouble, right?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I knew it.¡± Heinley chuckled as he rubbed his forehead against mine. Then he picked up a small portrait McKenna had left behind. Heinley held up the portrait of himself with puffy cheeks as a child and looked at it with a smile. In a way, he looked lovely. Heinley¡¯s mother¡­Heinley¡¯s mother, who ordered a portrait to be made of him whenever he caused trouble, probably thought the same. Maybe that¡¯s why each of the portraits had been kept despite being a punishment? As soon as I thought about this, I realized that I had worried unnecessarily until now. Whether it was a naughty child, or a quiet child, I would love my child. It made no sense to fear at this point. ¡°I think it would be nice to have twins.¡± I muttered naturally. Heinley, who was taking the portrait out of the picture frame, asked in surprise, ¡°What?¡± ¡°One child who looks like you, and one who looks like me. I think it would be nice to have twins like that. Or to each have a bit of both of us?¡± ¡°My Queen¡­¡± ¡°And give me the portrait. Don¡¯t even think about destroying it.¡± As soon as I raised my hand, Heinley handed it to me sullenly as in his childhood days. I held Heinley¡¯s portrait tightly in my arms and smiled triumphantly. *** Chapter 314 - Joanson’s Warning (1)

Chapter 314. Joanson¡¯s Warning (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Have you heard? About the baby¡­¡± ¡°Yes, I heard that the Empress and the Emperor are taking a medicine that aids conception.¡± ¡°Huh? That¡¯s a bit different from what I¡¯ve heard. I understood that they were undergoing fertility treatment.¡± ¡°Is that true?¡± ¡°Yes, I heard it from the pce doctor¡¯s cousin. About the medicine, it could also be true.¡± ¡°So, is the Empress infertile as rumored?¡± ¡°Shh.¡± ¡°If that¡¯s the case, isn¡¯t it really a delicate matter? His predecessor had a healthy younger brother during his reign, so there was no problem, but His Majesty Heinley doesn¡¯t even have a younger brother!¡± *** It seems that the seeds Heinley and I nted were slowly sprouting. While mydies-in-waiting told me the rumors that were circting, I drank a tea that would not harm the baby. It was a tea brought directly by the pce doctor, and the supposed medicine that was talked about in the rumors. The reason it was rumored to be a fertility medicine or to aid in conception was because I had asked the pce doctor to bring it wrapped up that way. Heinley and I pretended that we had been secretly prescribed an unknown medicine, and we would change the subject whenever anyone tried to talk about the sessor. Because of this, no one around me had brought up the subject of the baby or the sessor recently. Not only those who supported me, but also those who were left on Christa¡¯s side. Fortunately, everything was going ording to n. However¡­ ¡°It¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°Yes! I don¡¯t know why they do this, they should mind their own business!¡± That came out of my mouth involuntarily. Mastas shook her fist in the air, thinking that my words were directed at the nobles. ¡°That¡¯s enough! They must be taught not to mess with the Empress. It would be nice to make them walk on their hands for several hours!¡± I shook my head. Although I was grateful that Mastas was angry about it, at this point I wasn¡¯t talking about the fish that took the bait. What struck me as strange were those who remained still, both Marquis Ketron and Duke Liberty. People Ibeled as Danger Level 3. Until now, I was sure it had been Marquis Ketron who started the infertility rumor. It was another nobleman who mentioned it in the middle of a meeting, but he gave the impression of being controlled by Marquis Ketron. At the end of the meeting, we exchanged words that also led me to that conclusion. ¡®Why then? Why doesn¡¯t Marquis Ketron make a move now? Why is Duke Liberty so quiet again now?¡¯ They¡¯re being cautious¡­ anyone would think so. But if so, they would have been cautious from before. Duke Liberty aside, what was more suspicious is that Marquis Ketron, who brought up the infertility issue first, now stood idly by. Is it because of the humiliation he was subjected to by trying to use Heinley¡¯s yboy image? After much thought, I went to Heinley¡¯s office and asked for his opinion, ¡°What do you think, Heinley?¡± In the Eastern Empire, I could have figured it out on my own. I grew up observing the nobles there. In contrast, I still didn¡¯t know the nobles of the Western Empire well. Of course, there were many nobles I had befriended over the past few months. Except for some families that harbored bad intentions, many nobles opened their hearts to me. Still, six months ago I didn¡¯t even know them. Even if it were a close noble, it would be difficult to fully understand his character and decipher his true intentions. Evidently, I was not close to Marquis Ketron. To decipher his intentions, I knew little about him. So I had no choice but to seek Heinley¡¯s help. ¡°I heard that Marquis Ketron and Marquise Ketron had a falling out.¡± ¡°Is it because of the previous incident?¡± ¡°It may be partly because of that.¡± Heinley sighed and added, ¡°Come to think of it, Marquis Ketron has three smart children. Marquise Ketron probably had a huge fight with Marquis Ketron for not really being on my side.¡± Since Heinley was the only one left of the true Imperial Family, did he decide to keep his head down for now? For the future of his children? Heinley sighed again, ¡°Of course, going on like this would have been exhausting for both sides.¡± He was right. I finally leaned back on the couch after being very worried and said sincerely, ¡°I guess setting traps is not a field I¡¯m good at.¡± ¡°The best part of fishing is waiting, My Queen.¡± ¡°It¡¯s boring to wait blindly not knowing if the other person is going to react.¡± ¡°So how did My Queen deal with political enemies in the Eastern Empire?¡± When I stared at him with my arms crossed, Heinley quickly shook his hands. ¡°No, just because you dealt with your political enemies doesn¡¯t mean you¡¯re a bad person. There are times that it is necessary. That¡¯s what I mean.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t have much trouble.¡± When I was in the Eastern Empire, I had consolidated my position under the support of the former empress, so there were few who tried to fight openly. Even in those cases, I had manydies-in-waiting on my side, and my own family was powerful¡­ Still, it seemed like a subject that interested Heinley, so I told him about my experiences. It was then that my palms began to itch. As I unconsciously scratched them, I had a simr sensation to earlier, when I had frozen Heinley¡¯s hair. As soon as I thought about it, my hands itched even more, so I put them on the desk to warm them up. At that moment, a thin piece of ice appeared on the desk unexpectedly. The piece of ice moved across the desk until it stopped near Heinley on the other side. ¡°Ahh¡­¡± As I looked at my hands in surprise, Heinley asked. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I was just a little surprised.¡± Seeing this phenomenon a second time made it even more amazing. Since it hadn¡¯t happened again, I wondered if it had been a fluke, or if the mana had disappeared. But it hadn¡¯t. I closed my hands repeatedly, waved them in the air a few times and finally ced them on myp. At this point, I felt an intense gaze from Heinley on me, so I looked up, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± When I asked because of his strange expression, Heinley raised his own mouth with his index finger and muttered, ¡°Now that I remember, we forgot about the matter of the magical academy after the pregnancy became known. Although you need to go to the academy at least once, I don¡¯t know if it would be better for you to go as soon as possible or in the future.¡± *** Chapter 315 - Joanson’s Warning (2)

Chapter 315. Joanson¡¯s Warning (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Daddy. Try it. Daddy.¡± The baby went ¡°bubu¡± andughed. Sovieshu smiled as happily as if the baby had called him dad, gave her a kiss on her belly and repeated, ¡°Daddy. Try it. Daddy.¡± When the baby went ¡°bubu¡± again, Sovieshu was moved and murmured, ¡°My princess, my princess is very smart.¡± The baby burst outughing again. Viscountess Verdi smiled ruefully at this scene as she brought a bottle of warm milk for the baby. Although Sovieshu looked good with the baby in his arms, how many people did he have to sacrifice for this? Just thinking about it made her feel bad. The princess looked really lovely waving her hands. The Viscountess was wrong to think that she would not be able to love her because she was Rashta¡¯s daughter. After bing the princess¡¯s nanny, Viscountess Verdi grew more attached to the lovely princess with each passing day. When Viscountess Verdi approached, Sovieshu handed the baby into her arms. Viscountess Verdi received and held the princess deftly. But in the midst of the pleasant moment, there was a knock on the door. ¡°Your Majesty, it¡¯s Marquis Karl.¡± Seeing the princessughing in Viscountess Verdi¡¯s arms, Sovieshu reluctantly left the baby¡¯s room. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Your Majesty. There is something you must see.¡± Marquis Karl spoke seriously. Just by looking at his expression, one could tell that he had note for anything good. ¡°I¡¯ll show you in a quiet ce.¡± Sovieshu led Marquis Karl into his drawing room and asked, ¡°What is it?¡± Marquis Karl took out a folded newspaper he had inside his suit. ¡°There is an article about the Empress.¡± While the Marquis did not dare to say it directly, Sovieshu epted the newspaper and opened it. His eyes quickly swept over the contents of the newspaper. Soon after, Sovieshu found out what Marquis Karl wanted to show him. ¡°What does this mean?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression also darkened. *** The article itself was not very relevant within the newspaper. It was in a small section at the end of it. However, the content of the article was shocking. The journalist rted that he had met with a man who imed to be Rashta¡¯s real father and, although he made it clear that he could not be sure, he detailed each of the man¡¯s statements. The man who imed to be Rashta¡¯s real father made three main statements. He worked so hard to support his daughter that he didn¡¯t even know she had be the Empress. His daughter seemed to have sought fake fathers among the nobility because she was ashamed of being amoner. He visited his daughter, but was rejected and thrown out. This was a summary of the extensive article, but some people would be confused by the convoluted statements. Sovieshu rubbed his temple. These articles about high-status individuals were usually written anonymously by journalists. However, this journalist proudly revealed his name. Even this was unfavorable for Rashta. By revealing his name in an article like this, he gave it more credibility, which would lead to the formation of a certain public opinion. Although now it was just a baseless im¡­ ¡°What about the ve certificate? You still haven¡¯t found it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s hard to find because you have to look for it secretly.¡± A burning lump rose in his throat. Sovieshu sighed, trying to calm his anger. However, his anger rose even higher instead. Although Rashta would soon leave the position of empress, that was not the case with his daughter. His daughter would be in a difficult situation if Rashta was confirmed to be a ve. Even a normal princess would be. But it was especially true for Glorym because she would be the first reigning empress of the Eastern Empire. ¡°Where is this journalist now? Who is this man who ims to be Rashta¡¯s real father?¡± Sovieshu shook his head. ¡°No. First I have to check if what this man says is true, where is Rashta?¡± *** Rashta was in the Western Pce with the journalist. Initially, she had been reluctant to call the journalist because Sovieshu had greatly reduced her power, asking to be informed first when she exercised her authority as empress. But as soon as she saw the name of the person who wrote the article about her real father, she changed her mind, convinced that she couldn¡¯t stand idly by. The journalist was Joanson. He was the journalist who went to the audience chamber and asked to find his sister. Before that, the journalist who described her as the hope of themoners after interviewing her. Each time this journalist met her, his expression was different. At the first meeting, he looked at her with bright eyes; at the second, he looked at her with eyes full of despair, and now he looked at her more coldly than ever. Rashta asked Joanson with a sad expression. ¡°Do you hold a grudge against Rashta?¡± ¡°No at all, Your Majesty.¡± Joanson answered immediately. But even as he said this, he had a somber expression. ¡°Rashta has seen all the absurd articles you¡¯ve published, but Rashta has turned a blind eye because you should be free to publish whatever you want. Still, this time, have you not gone too far?¡± Rashta looked at Joanson with tears in her eyes. ¡°You interviewed Rashta before the wedding, so you know how much Rashta suffered for her parents. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s heartless to do this?¡± Rashta couldn¡¯t sleep after throwing the baby on the floor. Because of that, she had dark circles under her eyes and a pale face, her appearance was very pitiful. Even the coldest person¡¯s heart would soften at the sight of Rashta like this. But this was not the case for Joanson. He felt deeply betrayed by the Empress. He was also convinced that Rashta had hurt his sister. Therefore, he didn¡¯t care about anything she said, he would not be moved. Joanson crossed his legs and responded calmly, ¡°As a journalist, it was my duty to publicize the im of that man, Your Majesty.¡± Meanwhile, he carefully observed Rashta¡¯s attitude. Nobles hated it whenmoners crossed their legs in front of them. At best, the nobles would merely scowl, and at worst, some ordered their subordinates to break their legs. Knowing this, Joanson crossed his legs to watch Rashta¡¯s reaction. Of course, Empress Rashta grew up amongmoners, so she might be different in this respect, but he still thought that if she really had noble blood, she would react to such a posture. So Joanson continued to speak naturally. ¡°Didn¡¯t I write it clearly in the article? ¡®There is a man who makes such a im¡¯.¡± It wasn¡¯t just an excuse. In fact, in the article he published about the man who imed to be Rashta¡¯s real father, the journalist did not assert that he was. Since his words were coherent and his face had a certain resemnce to the empress¡¯, Joanson wrote the article, but added the sentence, ¡®there is such a im¡¯. Rashta¡¯s face turned red with anger. ¡°Do you publish any nonsense that is said? Even if a child ims to be the Empress¡¯ bastard child?¡± ¡°The words of the man who imed to be the Empress¡¯s real father were coherent.¡± ¡®Because he¡¯s a swindler!¡¯ Rashta swallowed the words that were about toe out of her mouth. Joanson¡¯s eyes narrowed as he examined Rashta. She didn¡¯t react to the fact that he was sitting cross-legged¡­ ¡°Do you remember my visit to the audience chamber, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I remember.¡± ¡°My request has not changed. Please return my sister to me. That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°Rashta has nothing to do with your sister¡¯s disappearance. Why won¡¯t you leave me alone?!¡± ¡°Nothing I have written has been made up. Every published article has research behind it.¡± Joanson uncrossed his legs and stood up. ¡°Until my sister returns, I will not leave Your Majesty alone.¡± Chapter 316 - Why Is He Here? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Rashta repeatedly squeezed the armrests of the chair. Her eyes were on the beautiful tapestry on the opposite wall, but her mind wasn¡¯t really focused on the tapestry. She was remembering Joanson¡¯s warning. Rashta eventually got up from the chair. The more she thought about it, the more severe the headache became, so she was going to lie down on the bed to take a nap. What better ce to forget and escape from reality than a sweet dream? ¡°Your Majesty. The Emperor is here.¡± But now it seemed that she wouldn¡¯t even be able to escape. Hearing that Sovieshu hade, Rashta muttered in fear and helplessness. ¡°Let him in¡­¡± In the past, his very presence made her feel good. How did it turn into such an unpleasant rtionship in less than a year? Rashta looked sadly at the man who entered. Unlike the haggard Rashta, Sovieshu still exuded dignity and charm. But he had a very cold expression, which made Rashta even more frightened. He had read the article! ¡°Is that true?¡± Sovieshu got to the point. He asked immediately as soon as he closed the door. As Rashta feared, he seemed to have read the article in today¡¯s paper. ¡°I asked if that is true, Rashta. Is it true what is imed in the article?¡± Rashta responded weakly. ¡°Did youe here in search of an answer or do you already have one?¡± Her wretched voice and pale expression could elicit pity, but Sovieshu¡¯s gaze remained indifferent. ¡®Where did the man who sang lubies to my belly a few months ago go? The current Sovieshu took my daughter from me.¡¯ ¡°Will you believe Rashta¡¯s answer?¡± ¡°What if I don¡¯t believe you?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Be honest. You need to tell me now so I can help sort it out.¡± Rashta bit her lip. Looking at the newspaper spread out on the coffee table, Sovieshu continued, ¡°Whether that person is your real father or not, it¡¯s not your fault that he showed up so unexpectedly. I don¡¯t intend to me you for this. So be honest with me. Let¡¯s make this easy.¡± ¡°If Rashta lies¡­. Will His Majesty also abandon Rashta?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t waste my time.¡± ¡°What do you mean, let¡¯s make this easy?¡± ¡°Rashta.¡± She felt really suffocated by Sovieshu¡¯s voice. Rashta hesitated and answered, ¡°He¡¯s not my real father.¡± Rashta lowered her eyes to avoid Sovieshu¡¯s gaze. Seeing Rashta stay like that for a while, Sovieshu calmly said, ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Then, he turned around and walked out. He did not ask again if it was true. Did he realize I lied? Fearing that he would return at any moment, Rashta froze in terror, swallowing hard. However, Sovieshu did not return and she btedly regretted it. She didn¡¯t want to be a nuisance to Sovieshu, so she said that man was not her real father. Even if Sovieshu sorted it out, she didn¡¯t want him to think in the process, ¡®She¡¯s an ipetent and stressful woman.¡¯ Sovieshu already knew about Rashta¡¯s lies. As soon as he entered the office, he mentioned this to Marquis Karl, ¡°In the end she lied.¡± ¡°Again?¡± ¡°Yes. Again.¡± Marquis Karl sighed, ¡°¡­ But this time I feel a little sorry for her. It must have been because of that man that Rashta became a ve. And now he has reappeared.¡± Sovieshu nodded. That was why he had intended to help her if she answered honestly, it was an opportunity he had given her. ¡°What are you going to do, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°If I leave him alone, he will harm my daughter. Such a person has no scruples and there is no way he will change in the future. He must be dealt with discreetly before it¡¯s toote.¡± ¡°Shall we do it now?¡± ¡°There are a lot of attentive people right now. It will be better to deal with him once people¡¯s attention shifts to another matter¡­ or after I leave the capital.¡± *** ¡°Well, it¡¯s better to do that as soon as possible. Later on the pregnancy will be very advanced¡­¡± Heinley, who had been quietly caressing my belly, finally decided how to handle the matter of going to Wirwol. He seemed to think it would be better to go now rather than some other time in the future. ¡°But the pce doctor indicated to me that the first few months require the most care.¡± The cushion on my back had shifted, so I reached back to adjust it. Leaning back on the cushion, Heinley naturally ced his hand on my belly again and replied, ¡°That also worries me a lot, My Queen. Butter on it can¡¯t be hidden that you¡¯re pregnant.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± When my belly grows, everyone will know that I¡¯m pregnant. The news will reach other countries as well. Heinley sighed. ¡°Aren¡¯t the neighboring countries on alert since we proimed ourselves an empire? If word gets out that you¡¯re pregnant, your life could be in danger down the road.¡± ¡°You are right.¡± ¡°I prepared arge,fortable carriage. Think of it like a few vacation days.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I answered, and put my hand over Heinley¡¯s hand on my belly. Heinley turned his hand to intertwined his fingers with mine and whispered, ¡°My Queen. If we go to Wirwol, we¡¯ll pass that way too.¡± ¡°Where we dined together.¡± ¡°Yes. That ce.¡± Our minds were connected, Heinley kissed my hand and smiled broadly. Although you never knew when ice was going toe out of my hand, he didn¡¯t seem the least bit afraid. I leaned over to kiss Heinley¡¯s forehead. Although we were going to Wirwol to settle the mana issue, we both wanted to go out together after such a long time. That¡¯s where I asked him to marry me¡­ As soon as we decided, we started to prepare for the trip. As it was not an official visit, but a short visit, the preparations took less time. Mainly the essentials were prepared, and the carriage was decorated like an ordinary noble carriage. Heinley asionally mentioned the names of the delicious restaurants in Wirwol, saying with great enthusiasm that we would go one by one. But two days before we left. An urgent message came from Whitemond. The King of Whitemond woulde in person to meet with Heinley. He wanted to discuss the port issue in person, not through a delegation. Given the time the message arrived, the king must have already left his country. Whitemond was not a distant country. If the king left immediately after sending the message, he would arrive here by the time Heinley and I had departed, unless some special circumstance arose. I held his cheeks with both hands andforted Heinley who was in pain. ¡°Stay. I can go alone.¡± I felt sorry for Heinley, who was excited about the trip together, but it couldn¡¯t be put off. ¡°No, My Queen. It¡¯s dangerous.¡± ¡°Viscount Langdel said he would escort me with the Supranational Knights. What could be dangerous?¡± ¡°But¡­¡± ¡°Heinley. The king of another country is going to visit us in person. We can¡¯t both be absent at the same time. Especially you.¡± Heinley nodded reluctantly after I spoke firmly. Although he seemed to act emotionally at times, Heinley actually had no problem separating public matters from personal ones. ¡°I¡¯ll be back as soon as I learn about mana.¡± Once promised, Heinley again nodded dejectedly. *** Chapter 317 - Why Is He Here? (2)

Chapter 317. Why Is He Here? (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Silence reigned in the rattling carriage. Although I still had no appetite, I didn¡¯t feel dizzy from the motion of the carriage and the wind was fresh. With this clear sky, the weather was perfect for a trip. ¡®I really wanted us toe together.¡¯ As I leaned against the carriage window watching the greenndscape transform into magnificent buildings, I couldn¡¯t help but feel a little sad. The image of Heinley chattering beside me kepting into my mind. Since when did he invade my mind so naturally? ¡°Looks like we¡¯re almost there, Your Majesty.¡± I was deep in thought when I heard Countess Jubel¡¯s animated voice. At that moment, I remembered what had happened before I left andughed. The fact that I could be a mage was also a secret, but I would only keep it as a trump card. I didn¡¯t need to hide it from everyone like I did with my pregnancy, so I told mydies-in-waiting about the purpose of this trip. Mydies-in-waiting were so excited that they all wanted to apany me. Seeing Rose and Laurain together, Countess Jubel couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°You seem to be cheerful, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Well, I was thinking that next time I shoulde with Miss Rose and Miss Laura¡­¡± Just as Mastas was about to speak, the carriage stopped and Viscount Langdel opened the door. ¡°We have arrived, Your Majesty.¡± Viscount Langdel extended his hand to me and I stepped down from the carriage. ¡°Thank you.¡± By the way¡­ was he all right? He had a somber expression in the sunlight. Could it be because he was far away from Duchess Tuania? ¡°I¡¯m sorry you had to escort me on this long trip.¡± I apologized, thinking it might be my fault, but Viscount Langdel immediately responded. ¡°What? No, no. You are my savior, my mistress if only temporary.¡± Although he denied it, he did not have a good face¡­. As I pondered whether it would be impolite to ask, Viscount Langdel murmured as he extended his hand to Countess Jubel to step down from the carriage as well. ¡°Actually it¡¯s because of Nian.¡± Countess Jubel asked hurriedly before stepping down from the carriage. ¡°What happened to Nian?¡± In the Eastern Empire, Nian was the focus of high society gossip. Since I had arrived here, rumors about me had not stopped circting, so she had remained a bit behind the scenes. The Countess seemed curious because she hadn¡¯t heard anything about Nian in a long time. Viscount Langdel responded sullenly. ¡°It¡¯s all because of Marquis Liberty.¡± Why him? Marquis Liberty was the eldest son of Duke Liberty. He did not officially hold the title of marquis, everyone called him marquis because he was the sessor. He was also the older brother of Wihan, Muney¡¯s adoptive brother. After Countess Jubel stepped down from the carriage, Mastas refused Viscount Langdel¡¯s hand and asked, ¡°You mean the shy weasel?¡± ¡°Yes, that weasel.¡± Weasel? Countess Jubel¡¯s eyes sparkled as if she heard a man had stepped between Viscount Langdel and Nian, so she asked, ¡°Why a weasel?¡± Viscount Langdel answered grimly, ¡°I think he fell in love with Nian. He shows up at any party Nian hosts or attends, no matter how small orrge.¡± Countess Jubel let out augh and shook her hands as if he had made a fuss over nothing. ¡°I thought it was serious. He¡¯s not the first man or the second behind her, why do you care so much?¡± ¡°He has a higher status, more stable¡­ and has a gentle appearance.¡± Mastas quickly stepped in andforted Viscount Langdel, ¡°The Viscount also has a gentle appearance.¡± ¡°Is that apliment?!¡± ¡°Of course! The Viscount is also a great weasel.¡± ¡°Is that really apliment?¡± At times like this, Viscount Langdel did not look like a fearsomemander of the transnational knights. Seeing Viscount Langdel nod at Mastas¡¯ apparentpliment, I bit my lips to contain myughter. But Viscount Langdel, who was walking leisurely, suddenly stopped and his expression became rigid. His innocent face disappeared, and the fierce expression of the knightmander instantly emerged. What¡¯s the matter? (What¡¯s wrong?) I turned my head in the direction he was looking. The reason was easy to understand. Sovieshu¡­ There was Sovieshu. He too had a stiff expression, as if he didn¡¯t expect to see me here. The knights behind Sovieshu looked ufortable. The bright atmosphere suddenly turned heavy. We looked at each other awkwardly for a moment, then carefully approached each other as if someone had pushed us. We both upied too high a position to pretend that we had not seen each other. As emperor and empress of powerful countries, we had to show mutual respect. Besides, this was a straight road. If I wanted to avoid him, I would have to pass through the bushes on either side. It would look like I was running away. About three paces away, we stopped again. I greeted him politely with the smile of an empress. ¡°I heard about the baby¡¯s birth. Congrattions.¡± ¡°¡­ Thank you.¡± Sovieshu answered awkwardly. I lifted the corners of my lips and nodded without saying a word. Then I added, ¡°Did you give the baby the gift from me, or did you throw it away?¡± When Rashta became pregnant, I chose a sword as a gift for her child. A splendid and beautiful, but decorative piece. A sword that meant living without working, or living effortlessly. Sovieshu¡¯s expression froze quickly. ¡°Well. That gift you gave to Rashta, so I don¡¯t know where it is.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± I nodded and looked in the direction I was supposed to go. That was the direction from which Sovieshu appeared. I was undecided. Could I say goodbye and be on my way? Could I tell him to let me pass, that I had business to attend to? ¡°Stand back.¡± I guess not. Sovieshu ordered his knights to stand back. Then, I directed a look that expressed the same to the knights behind me. Viscount Langdel frowned, but said nothing. Although Wirwol functioned as an autonomous region, it was still territory of the Eastern Empire, so Sovieshu could ask, ¡®What is an exiled person doing here?¡¯ For some reason though, he seemed to be trying to avoid him. Lastly, I also asked Countess Jubel and Mastas to stand back. I could not ignore his request lightly, he was still the Emperor of the Eastern Empire. As soon as everyone walked away, Sovieshu asked, ¡°I thought you would live well. Why have you lost so much weight?¡± Surprisingly, he sounded quite upset. It was true that I had lost weight, I hadn¡¯t eaten muchtely. But I couldn¡¯t say that I had lost my appetite because I was pregnant. While I remained silent trying to find an answer, Sovieshu asked again. ¡°Is it because of your husband?¡± *** Chapter 318 - Believe (1)

Chapter 318. Believe (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°No.¡± I spoke as firmly as possible. ¡°In that case, Navier¡ª¡± ¡°I said no.¡± ¡°You cane back whenever you want.¡± But Sovieshu went on to say what he wanted. ¡°Listen to me. I said no. I said no.¡± Although I spoke a little annoyed, Sovieshu stuck to the same line. ¡°Don¡¯t be proud.¡± ¡°Sovieshu.¡± Why was he acting this way? Even though at my wedding he had confessed to me that he loved me¡­ I thought he had epted that I be happy next to Heinley. Thosest words stuck like a lump in my throat. It was suffocating and tingling, so I licked my lips several times. ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡± But in the end I swallowed it all, took a step back, and said goodbye, ¡°It seems there¡¯s nothing more to say.¡± However, Sovieshu was not yet finished, ¡°I heard it.¡± Now what? ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°I know your husband has made you suffer.¡± ¡°Who told you that?¡± ¡°A lot of people.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know who told you, but you should fire him. He either handles very bad information or has poor judgment.¡± ¡°Navier. Put aside your pride.¡± Ahh¡­ my goodness! Sovieshu. As I repressed the urge to pull his hair out with my bare hands, I said, drawing another line, ¡°Your Majesty Sovieshu. Now I am happier than ever. I don¡¯t know what you heard, but it¡¯s none of Your Majesty¡¯s business. You are my ex-husband. From the moment we divorced, what happens in my life is not your concern.¡± ¡°Are you happier than ever? Happier than when we had a good rtionship?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s tone and mine naturally changed between friends who grew up together, spouses who divorced, and rulers of powerful countries. I looked at him in silence. Was I happier in my childhood? Of course, the happiest times were in my childhood, before I was hurt. I never went through anything bad. Hope for the future shone brightly. I was only surrounded by people who loved me. A time when there was no political struggles, when I did not suffer a single betrayal, when my brother lived with my parents, Sovieshu¡¯s parents adored me, Rashta did not exist, and Sovieshu was my best friend. My parents were healthier and younger. When I came home after a hard day of ss, I would hold on to my parents as tight as I could to forget the tiredness. Yes. It was a very happy time. But wasn¡¯t it the man in front of me who took it upon himself to destroy those days? ¡°My childhood was also happy.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression brightened clearly, ¡°But I was only happy because of my childhood, not because Your Majesty was by my side. Do you understand? If I could cut with a pair of scissors the moments when I stood next to Your Majesty in those days, I would have cut them all out long ago.¡± However, his expression darkened again as soon as he heard these words. I looked at him coldly as if to say, ¡®It¡¯s enough? Can I go now? ¡°I found out about what happened between Emperor Heinley and the former Queen Christa.¡± Hearing what he had just said, I was finally able to understand why Sovieshu was so insistent today that Ie back. Sovieshu feared Heinley would abandon me as he had done. ¡°It¡¯s just a rumor.¡± ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes. Even if it were true, it¡¯s none of Your Majesty¡¯s business.¡± I didn¡¯t want to exchange any more words with Sovieshu, it was mentally exhausting. I turned around, shaking my head with a truly disgusted expression. ¡°I¡¯ll go on my way.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll apany you.¡± ¡°There¡¯s no need.¡± ¡°Empress.¡± I don¡¯t know what words woulde out of my mouth if he kept insisting. I put politeness aside for a moment and went on in silence. ¡°By the way, Empress.¡± However, Sovieshu called me back and approached me from behind. Why didn¡¯t he try to talk like that before the divorce? I wanted to smack him upside the head. ¡°What brings you here?¡± ¡°Your Majesty need not know.¡± ¡°If an ordinary person hade, you would be right. But being the Empress of the Western Empire who came, I should know.¡± Finally, I had to stop again. As I turned around with a frown, he was standing with such an unusual expression that he didn¡¯t look like someone who was cleverly taking advantage of his position. Although I frowned, he was right. Wirwol was said to function as an autonomous region, but the emperor kept his eyes closed so that the mages could operate freely. Wirwol was definitely territory of the Eastern Empire. ¡°I came to see the dean.¡± Reluctantly, I told him the reason for my visit without going into detail. I didn¡¯t care that he knew this. ¡°Why the dean?¡± ¡°Do I have to tell you that too?¡± ¡°Is it a secret?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± This time, Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned really dark. It was such a sudden change of expression that I feared I had misspoken. What¡¯s wrong with him? As I looked at him in surprise, he asked carefully. ¡°Are you also involved in this matter?¡± ¡°What matter?¡± I don¡¯t know what he was talking about, but from his very serious expression it seemed like a delicate matter. ¡°The phenomenon of mage decline.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± If it was ¡®increase¡¯ instead of ¡®decline¡¯, it might have something to do with me. Evidently, he wasn¡¯t asking that. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± Sovieshu muttered under his breath. Then he added without even waiting for an answer, ¡°If you really don¡¯t know, I¡¯d advise you to be careful of Emperor Heinley.¡± *** Finally, I was able to turn away from Sovieshu to go to the dean¡¯s office, but he left my mind confused. His words still haunted me. Why did he first ask me if I had any connection to the phenomenon of mage decline and then tell me to watch out for Heinley? My uneasiness worsened when I met with the dean. The dean, whom I hadn¡¯t seen for some time, had a worse expression than usual. His cheerful image had disappeared, and three deep wrinkle lines formed on his forehead. Now, Sovieshu¡¯s strange words came to mind, and I felt worried. Still, pretending not to notice, I greeted the dean in a friendly manner, ¡°Sorry for the sudden visit.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay¡­¡± The dean bowed slightly ufortably. It was evident that he did not care to watch his expression. I was sure that the dean¡¯s expression was not bad simply because he was in a bad mood. He seemed to be upset with me. But I pretended not to notice again, gave him a present, and brought up the reason for my visit. ¡°Dean. I actually came to ask for your help.¡± ¡°Help?¡± ¡°It has to do with mana¡­¡± At that moment, before I could even finish my words, the dean interrupted me and said tly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. I can¡¯t help you right now.¡± As I imagined, he was displeased with me. That made me a little sad. We weren¡¯t close enough to spend time together, but I thought we had a rtionship of mutual respect. The dean¡¯s cold attitude disappointed me. I didn¡¯t want to show weakness, so I asked casually. ¡°Is it because I went to the Western Empire?¡± There was no other reason for the dean to have a cold attitude toward me. However, the dean denied it. ¡°Not at all, Your Majesty. Please don¡¯t misunderstand me. I weed Your Majesty¡¯s second marriage with open arms.¡± Then? ¡°Why all of a sudden¡­?¡± ¡°I am a mage and a citizen of the Eastern Empire.¡± What did he mean by that? He didn¡¯t like that I became a mage because it would contribute to the power of the Western Empire? But he had already helped Heinley a little, right? Besides, the dean didn¡¯t even know that I could be a mage. ¡°Until the current suspicions are proven false, I have no choice but to stay away from the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Suspicions?¡± ¡°¡­ forgive me.¡± I understood less and less what was going on. ¡°It¡¯s not rted to Your Majesty. Although it might, I don¡¯t think the Empress is that kind of person.¡± The dean added as he looked at me with mixed feelings. ¡°¡­ I hope not.¡± Chapter 319 - Believe (2)

Chapter 319. Believe (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren In the end I came alone to the restaurant Heinley and I had nned toe together. I sat at the same table as before, ordered the same dishes from the menu and, as I waited for the food to arrive, pondered Sovieshu¡¯s and the dean¡¯s words. Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned dark when he mentioned the phenomenon of mage decline. The dean emphasized that he was a mage and a citizen of the Eastern Empire, furthermore he spoke of ¡®suspicions¡¯. What ¡®suspicions¡¯ exactly? Do they both think that the Western Empire caused the phenomenon of mage decline? Perhaps that is the case. Otherwise, the dean¡¯s cold attitude and Sovieshu¡¯s sudden seriousness, who had been begging me toe back, made no sense. However, the suspicions were truly absurd. How could the Western Empire do such a thing? What kind of person would Heinley be? ¡­ What kind of person. I suddenly remembered that I, who didn¡¯t have a bit of mana, was bing a mage. I also remembered the side effects of the mana bed that Heinley told me about. I felt an inexplicable tightness in my chest. I forced myself to drink some cold water to dispel the doubts. Although Heinley was quite cunning, he couldn¡¯t be that cruel. How could he be stealing the mages¡¯ mana? The image of Evely suffering was so vivid in my mind that I couldn¡¯t believe that Heinley was the cause of it. It was nonsense. Fortunately, the waiter brought the food I had ordered before I gave it any more thought. But by then I had lost all appetite. The appetite that I hadn¡¯t had for a while. Even though my stomach growled with hunger, I frowned at the mere act of putting food in my mouth. While I was trying to eat against my will, an employee brought me today¡¯s newspaper. ¡°Umm¡­ Lady. Here you go.¡± Sitting alone with a frown didn¡¯t seem appropriate. ¡°Thank you.¡± I said with a forced smile and opened the newspaper with one hand. My mind was confused, so I wanted to think about something else. As soon as I opened the newspaper, my attention immediately focused on Rashta¡¯s name which was in an article. What is this? I left the spoon to hold the newspaper properly. Had a man appeared who imed to be Rashta¡¯s real father? This was news that had not yet reached the Western Empire. I had told Countess Jubel that I had something to think about, so she sat at a separate table behind me. Just now, she leaned back to see if I had also received a newspaper from the employee and whispered, ¡°Your Majesty, did you see this in the newspaper?¡± ¡°I just saw it.¡± ¡°Oh my. What¡¯s this all about? I¡¯ll take the newspaper. Is there anything more delicious?¡± I read the newspaper carefully. The man who imed to be Rashta¡¯s real father had appeared a few days ago. Of course, Rashta denied it. I could imagine it. After she made up noble parents to dispel rumors that she had been a ve, she would never ept amon man as her real father. Even if he really was. However, she seemed to have changed her mind in the end. She said that the man who imed to be her real father had raised her as a child for a time, even though he was not actually her father. The man also suddenly changed his stance after Rashta made such a statement, he agreed with her words. The reporter named Joanson, who wrote the article, questioned this between the lines, ¡®how could a person change his side of the story so drastically?¡¯, and subtly raised suspicions that the man had been threatened or received money. ¡°It¡¯s amazing, it¡¯s amazing. Your Majesty. Did you read this part?¡± I nodded as I continued reading the article. Countess Jubel called me noisily again. ¡°That woman must have made this journalist angry. He¡¯s raising suspicions from several angles.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The journalist apparently targeted the real father in the article. Is he a swindler? But the fact that he dared to raise the issue of money and threats indicated that it was actually an article he had written to hurt Rashta. In any case, it seemed that Rashta dered that she would support both the newly appeared man and her real noble parents. But this journalist attacked Rashta in thest part of the article while pretending to be worried about her. [The Empress really has a good heart. It is very kind of her to want to support both, but an empress must also have determination. Ordinary people often fall victim to scammers for being too kind, if the Empress acts the same way it could harm the whole country. Wouldn¡¯t it be better for Her Majesty to take a test at the temple to find out who her real parents are, and thus support only them?] ¡°Good heavens! How can it taste so good?!¡± I could hear Countess Jubel¡¯s cheerful voice behind me. I drank water and folded the newspaper. Earlier, I was so focused on what happened with Sovieshu and the dean that I didn¡¯t notice the whispers about Rashta. Everyone in the restaurant was talking about her. From; ¡°There is also the case of the promissory notes, Empress Rashta is a liar,¡± To; ¡°This journalist always speaks badly of Empress Rashta. His words are not to be trusted.¡± ¡®Wouldn¡¯t she live happily with her daughter? What happened, Rashta?¡¯ *** A few dayster I was back in the Western Empire. Upon arrival I had to calm Heinley, who came up to me like an anxious puppy. Then I told him what happened with Sovieshu and the dean. ¡°I know you would never do that. There seems to be a misunderstanding.¡± ¡°So you didn¡¯t get any help with the mana?¡± ¡°No. In fact, I wanted to visit the dean again, but¡­ I didn¡¯t because he was upset.¡± I gripped Heinley¡¯s hand tightly, kissed the back of it, and said, ¡°You wouldn¡¯t hurt other people with such lovely hands.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Heinley. I don¡¯t think you would make other people suffer like Evely suffered.¡± ¡°My Queen¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask Grand Duke Kapmen about the mana. The Grand Duke took sses at the academy from start to finish, so he could help me.¡± I didn¡¯t bother to talk about Rashta. There was no need to. Heinley hugged me tightly without a word. That night, lying on Heinley¡¯s chest with my eyes closed, all the worries of my trip to Wirwol melted away. Before I knew it, he had be a special person to me. This prince from a neighboring country, who was both like a huge puppy and a cunning eagle, was now my husband. Just being by his side made me feelforted. Immersed in the fragrance of his body, the weariness of the past few days washed over me and I fell asleep as I caressed Heinley¡¯s muscles. When I opened my eyes again, I was puzzled that Heinley was not next to me. I thought maybe he had something to do, so I was going back to sleep. However, I suddenly felt very hungry. I wanted to eat the bread that Heinley used to make. I hadn¡¯t eaten well in days, so I got up and went out to look for Heinley. He¡¯s not in his room¡­ So I went to his office. The office door was closed. At that moment I unconsciously touched the doorknob, thinking about returning to the bedroom. A thinyer of ice came out of my hand, the knob froze, and after a slight click, the door opened almost noiselessly. Heavens! Tomorrow I should meet with Kapmen! As I stared perplexed at my hand, I heard a soft voice through the slightly open door. ¡°Send the little crow to check on the situation. If he believes that because of that ne we could be discovered, he must do whatever it takes to get it back.¡± Chapter 320 - Denial (1)

Chapter 320. Denial (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley called McKenna into his office in the middle of the night. As soon as he entered, Heinley told him, ¡°I think we have a problem.¡± McKenna asked bitterly. ¡°A problem at this time of night?¡± ¡°It¡¯s rted to the phenomenon of mage decline.¡± McKenna cocked his head. ¡°How can there be a problem?¡± The logic for stealing mana from a mage was simple. However, it was not easy for all the conditions to be met, so people did not realize that simple logic. It was only because of a terrible ident in his childhood that Heinley even became aware of these conditions. ¡°It¡¯s because of the mana ne.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± McKenna let out a slight sigh. ¡°It¡¯s still not certain that the ne is a real problem.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± McKenna nodded and asked, ¡°So, should I go there to check out the situation?¡± He wanted to go check on the situation so he could take a break. Work has been hardtely. McKenna volunteered again, happy about the excellent idea he hade up with. ¡°There¡¯s no one better than me to do this. I¡¯ll go check to see if the ne poses a real problem, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You have work to do, McKenna.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Just kidding. You¡¯ll draw too much attention. You¡¯ve already been hit by an arrow.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression changed between concern and seriousness, then he thought for a moment before he continued. ¡°I would like to send someone who is inconspicuous and cautious.¡± ¡°What do you think of the crow? He¡¯s small and fast.¡± ¡°All right, send the crow to check on the situation. If he thinks that we¡¯ll be discovered because of that ne, he must do whatever it takes to get it back.¡± ¡°I get it.¡± ¡°If he can¡¯t bring it back, then he must destroy it.¡± ¡°So it will be.¡± Once Heinley was done with the matter, he patted McKenna on the shoulders and headed for the door to leave. At the same time, McKenna sighed inside himself. He was done with today¡¯s work. He would now return to his room to get some rest and try to resolve some issues with Heinley in his dreams. However, Heinley remained standing in front of the door instead of opening it. Although he only had to turn the doorknob, he stared at it with his hands down. As McKenna approached he asked, ¡°What is it, Your Majesty?¡± It was then that Heinley let out an, ¡°Ahh¡±. There was no other response. As soon as McKenna looked at the doorknob Heinley was staring at, he immediately shouted, ¡®Huh?!¡¯ The doorknob was white. ¡°What happened?¡± The doorknob had turned so white that even the naked eye could tell it was frozen, and the ice on top of it seemed to rise 0.7 cm. Someone had just frozen the doorknob. McKenna was quick to murmur in surprise, ¡°Ice Mage¡­!¡± Only a mage would be able to do this, but as far as McKenna knew, there were no ice mages currently in the imperial pce. In fact, there were very few mages in the Western Empire. ¡°Your Majesty, it seems that someone was spying on us! Is it the Eastern Empire? Has the Eastern Empire infiltrated a spy into the imperial pce? McKenna asked in panic. However, Heinley¡¯s expression was calm. Heinley put a hand on the doorknob without a word. When his hand touched it, the ice came off the frozen doorknob easily. *** Crow. Ne. discovered. Are these three the key words¡­? Instead of running away when the conversation abruptly ended, I should have walked in and asked directly, ¡®What are you talking about?¡¯ After I wandered around for a while, I went back to bed andy on my side. But Heinley¡¯s words kepting into my head. Was he really involved in the phenomenon of mage decline? What connection could there be between a crow and a ne? What if Heinley had to do with such a phenomenon¡­ What should I do? I remembered how Evely had sobbed at having lost her mana. At that moment, I heard the sound of the door being opened. The sound ran through every inch of my body. I hastily closed my eyes and wrapped up in the sheets. As soft footsteps approached, my heartbeat quickened. Then I felt the presence of a person close to my face. ¡°Are you asleep?¡± The voice that whispered in my ear was low and affectionate. It was clearly from my Heinley. ¡°Sweet dreams.¡± His voice was warmer than the sheets. After he kissed me on the cheek with his full lips, he carefullyy down on the bed and pulled me into his arms. I could feel Heinley¡¯s muscr chest touch my back and his breath on the back of my neck. Hugging me, Heinley fell asleep. My heartbeat gradually calmed down. I removed my hand from the sheets and ced it on his arm that was wrapped around me. Even if Heinley was stealing the mages¡¯ mana, I couldn¡¯t me him. He seemed to have apetitive spirit against the Eastern Empire. In fact, it was a rival country. Heinley was the Emperor of the Western Empire, so it was only natural that he would want his country to be at the top. The students of the Magic Academy came from all over the world, but the proportion from the Eastern Empire was the highest. In fact, most of the academy¡¯s graduates were absorbed by the Eastern Empire¡­. I came from the Eastern Empire. My parents, my brother, my family, my ancestors and my friends were all there. I loved my country as much as Heinley loved his. I would love the Western Empire as much as I loved Heinley, I would love the people of the Western Empire as much as I loved the people of the Eastern Empire, and if both empires were fighting for the same interest, I was determined to give my all for the Western Empire. However, I couldn¡¯t trample on the Eastern Empire to love the Western Empire. If Heinley was involved in the phenomenon of mage decline, he should know how I felt. Although rationally I could understand, emotionally I couldn¡¯t help but resent him. So¡­ I hope not. Chapter 321 - Denial (2)

Chapter 321. Denial (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As soon as I woke up the next day, the first thought that came to my mind was, ¡®I¡¯m hungry.¡¯ I wanted to eat Heinley¡¯s baked bread. That thin, crusty bread. It was only when the urge to eat bread subsided a bit that I remembered what had happened yesterday. While I was shocked by the unexpected reality, Heinley softly called me ¡°My Queen¡±. As I sat up hurriedly, I saw Heinleye in from his room with a food trolley. ¡°Did you get up early?¡± ¡°My Queen, I know you haven¡¯t been able to eat welltely. I made breakfast mainly thinking about the food you love.¡± ¡°This smell¡­¡± ¡°Ah, don¡¯t you like the smell of breakfast?¡± I shook my head and walked quickly to the front of the food trolley. Removing the light yellow cloth covering the dishes, I could see an omelet, vegetable soup, and the baked bread I wanted to eat. I couldn¡¯t stop my hand from going straight to the bread, I tore off a piece, dipped it in the soup and chewed it. My taste buds, which had been unable to perceive vors for almost ten days, finally began to work. ¡°It¡¯s delicious.¡± ¡°It pains me to see My Queen eat in such a hurry.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it normal to eat like this if it¡¯s delicious?¡± ¡°I feel like you wanted to eat, but couldn¡¯t.¡± ¡°Coincidentally, I really wanted to eat this.¡± Bringing a piece of bread back to my mouth, I pointed to what was left. Only after I finished eating did I begin to worry about my image. ¡®What a fool I¡¯ve been! I ate it all without waiting for Heinley.¡¯ Fortunately, I didn¡¯t eat Heinley¡¯s bread as well¡­. As soon as I thought about it, Heinley even offered me his own baked bread. ¡°What happened to Whitemond?¡± Once I felt satisfied, I was able to ask as if nothing had happened. Although inside I was very embarrassed, I didn¡¯t show it at all. Actually, I wanted to ask him about the conversation he had with McKenna yesterday. However, I was afraid he would reply, ¡®I have been preparing to invade your country.¡¯ I wasn¡¯t ready to hear that. So I¡¯ll put that question aside for now. I was also very curious about the results with Whitemond. When I arrived, the king had already left. ¡°What did the king say? Since he came all this way, it seems he didn¡¯t want to go to war either¡­¡± ¡°The king says Whitemond can allow us to use the port again.¡± ¡°That¡¯s great, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Well, it was a little ambiguous.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Before we can use the port, he demands that we sign a treaty that the port will never be used as an excuse to invade them. Also, he wants the agreement to be certified by the Wol Alliance.¡± ¡°If we ede to their demands, will we be able to use the port as before? Will it make no difference?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°In that treaty will there be any use that allows us to fight back in case of danger?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It was quiteplete. Would it even include a use that the treaty would have no effect as long as the port was not used? Not to start a war, but to be able to respond to provocations from the other side. But with this use, wouldn¡¯t Whitemond be agreeing to be invaded as long as the port was not used? ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°Instead of theplicated way, we should take the easy way¡­¡± Heinley, who was muttering to himself, turned his gaze and discreetly changed his words, ¡°I need to think about it some more.¡± *** While Navier and Heinley hid their true thoughts. Christa¡¯s father, the Old Duke Zemensia, was in his home study. Behind him, a subordinate was looking around uneasily. The subordinate was surprised that Old Duke Zemensia did nothing despite the strong rumor circting about Empress Navier¡¯s possible infertility. Not that he had decided to side with the Empress, but rather that he had no idea of her intentions as she didn¡¯t show any reaction. ¡°It will be difficult for Marquis Ketron to make a move right now. The Marquise decided topletely change the family¡¯s position after the Marquis¡¯ scandal.She considers the future of her children more important than the loyalty between the Marquis and the Former Queen, so she seems to pressure the Marquis to stay quiet.¡± The subordinate continued nervously. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we define our position as soon as possible? Between taking revenge or changing sides.¡± Finally, Old Duke Zemensia spoke in a harsh voice while silently staring at the cover of a book. ¡°Most likely the infertility rumor is a trap.¡± ¡°Do you mean that the Empress is not infertile?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not just that she¡¯s not infertile, but that it¡¯s possible she¡¯s pregnant. Otherwise, she wouldn¡¯t be so confident in setting this trap.¡± The subordinate¡¯s eyes grew wide. ¡°Wasn¡¯t it Marquis Ketron who started that rumor? Besides, whenever the sessor is brought up, the Empress changes the subject with a serious expression.¡± ¡°Do you think the Empress Navier, who ruled the Eastern Empire, can¡¯t even manage her expression?¡± ¡°Ahh¡­¡± ¡°That sly as a fox emperor has also let the rumors pass. They are definitely up to something.¡± ¡°I see. Then what should we do?¡± The subordinate asked with a worried face. ¡°At the moment it¡¯s best to be cautious, so we¡¯ll keep our mouths shut.¡± Old Duke Zemensia spoke heavily, slowly turned around and looked at the picture frame on the desk in his study. On the picture frame, a little Christa was sitting on hisp smiling broadly. The Old Duke, with tears in his eyes, opened his mouth helplessly, ¡°What I want now is to see my daughter. Is Christa still not responding?¡± ¡°No. It seems she was very upset that the Old Duke did not intervene to defend her.¡± The Old Duke, who stood stunned for a moment like a dead tree, lifted the picture frame thaty on the desk. ¡°Then I shall have to go personally.¡± *** Viscount Roteschu had set the arid frontier of Palme as the starting point in the search for Rivetti and also for ¡®Rashta¡¯s sister¡¯. Palme was the ce where an infamous bandit group operated, the Thousand Eternals. Although they weren¡¯t currently as active around this ce, they were when Viscount and Viscountess Isqua lost their daughter. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua did not lose their daughter in the Eastern Empire, but they had said that they were caught up in an attack by the thousand eternal bandits, so there was a possibility that their other daughter had made it this far. Viscount Roteschu was too busy with both searches. It had not been an exaggeration what he told Rashta, he didn¡¯t even know how n was these days. Sometimes he worried about what n might be doing because of his foolish personality, but he tried to convince himself that nothing bad could happen. n had always stayed home to take care of his son. After several days of searching, Viscount Roteschu finally discovered a lead on the real daughter of the Isqua Family. He learned that the girl might have been sent to the Derose Orphanage after going through two foster parents. That was not the lead he wanted having spent days searching mainly for information about Rivetti. But he went to that orphanage anyway. He had hoped to find leads on his own daughter while searching for the Isqua Family¡¯s daughter. ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ What was her age range? Do you know her physical traits? If you don¡¯t know anything about her personality it doesn¡¯t matter, children¡¯s personalities are constantly changing. Besides, if she was caught up in a group of bandits, it¡¯s very likely that her personality has changed drastically¡­ Hmm. You don¡¯t even know her physical traits.¡± As the orphanage director searched through the records of the time when the Isqua Family lost their daughter, Viscount Roteschu looked quizzically at the portrait of the Empress Navier hanging on the wall of the director¡¯s office. In fact, this orphanage was supported by Empress Navier. It was also an orphanage that Rashta had supported with Navier¡¯s money. ¡°Oh, how fortunate.¡± At that moment, the director let out a sigh and smiled. Then he turned the document he was examining toward Viscount Roteschu. ¡°Only two girls entered our orphanage back then.¡± ¡°Only two?¡± ¡°We didn¡¯t want to take in anyone else because we were full, but we had no choice but to take in two more due to the unfortunate circumstances the girls were in.¡± Viscount Roteschu hastened to look at the document the director had shown him. There were two small portraits side by side. One of the portraits had ¡®withdrawn¡¯ written underneath it. ¡°This girl¡­¡± ¡°As I said, two were taken in. One left five years ago because luckily her real parents came to get her. So this is the only girl.¡± The director pointed his finger at the girl without a note underneath and smiled broadly. ¡°She is the pride of our orphanage. Her name is Evely.¡± Chapter 322 - Sovieshu’s Fear (1)

Chapter 322. Sovieshu¡¯s Fear (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡®Isn¡¯t Evely the mage that Emperor Sovieshu wants to make his concubine?!¡¯ Viscount Roteschu jumped up in excitement. If this were true, it would be a great event. People would think that the two daughters of the Isqua Family would be the emperor¡¯s wives, while Rashta would feel that everything had been taken from her by Evely. Viscount Roteschu decided to be cautious. These matters had to be handled carefully. As soon as he left the orphanage, he summoned the mercenary who had introduced him to Rashta and ordered, ¡°There is a girl named Evely in the Southern Pce. Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s potential concubine. Bring me some of her blood.¡± Viscount Roteschu handed him a small bottle that he had prepared beforehand. Over the next few days, Viscount Roteschu focused on finding any leads on Rivetti as he awaited the mercenary¡¯s return. *** Meanwhile, the old Duke Zemensia of the Western Empire had left the capital for Compshire. He went to see his daughter, Christa. If Empress Navier was really pregnant, he would have to change ns. That was why he wanted tofort his daughter before thinking about his future actions. ¡®She must be very angry.¡¯ He remembered thest time he saw his daughter. It was in the meeting room. His daughter looked at him several times nkly, but her eyes cried out for help. The oue might have been different if he had intervened. But even if the oue had changed, Christa would not achieve the glory of before. So the old Duke gave up Christa for the sake of his grandson who had greater potential. As a result, she became angry. Christa left for Compshire without even seeing his face. Since then, he kept sending her letters even though she did not answer them. The old Duke sighed. He had chosen the most beneficial path for the family, but that didn¡¯t mean he didn¡¯t love his daughter, so he was heartbroken. Finally, the carriage stopped in front of Compshire¡¯s Mansion. Being the ce where the former queens spent the rest of their lives, the mansion wasvishly decorated. When the old Duke was about to get out of the carriage, he realized that the carriage had not yet entered the mansion, so he sat back down and asked the coachman, ¡°Go a little further in.¡± But instead of the coachman¡¯s answer, he heard a small argument. As he opened the window and peered out, he saw the knights, who guarded the perimeter of the mansion like walls, urging the coachman to retreat. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± When the old Duke asked with dignity, the coachman approached and answered quickly, ¡°Master, they insist that the carriage cannot enter.¡± The old Duke frowned. He had heard that the knights of Compshire¡¯s Mansion didn¡¯t let anyone in, but he certainly hadn¡¯t expected that to include his father. ¡°Did you let them know who I am?¡± ¡°Yes. They still refused.¡± One of the knights who had blocked the carriage¡¯s passage approached the old Duke and apologized firmly. ¡°My apologies, Duke. Christa ordered not to let anyone in.¡± ¡°I am her father.¡± ¡°She instructed that no exceptions be made, not even to members of her family.¡± ¡°Go ask her again.¡± At the old Duke¡¯s cold order, the knight nced at another knight as if there was no other choice. The knight who received the signal ran to the mansion. However, the answer he brought back was the same, ¡°Christa doesn¡¯t want to see anyone, not even her father.¡± The old Duke¡¯s face turned stiff. But instead of shouting, he asked calmly. ¡°So, no one from the outside has seen Christa?¡± *** ¡°Something¡¯s not right. It¡¯s strange.¡± Old Duke Zemensia, who rented an entire inn, muttered as he entered the bedroom on the top floor. ¡°Christa doesn¡¯t meet with anyone?¡± After a servant dropped off the luggage and closed the door, the subordinate responded, ¡°She seems to want to be quiet.¡± Wasn¡¯t that understandable? If she had pride, she would probably want to hide for a year or more. ¡°Master, what do you intend to do now? Will you send someone a couple more times before you return?¡± However, the old Duke shook his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then¡­¡± ¡°Look for an agile mercenary.¡± ¡°What?¡± The subordinate was surprised and asked, ¡°Are you nning to infiltrate the premises?¡± ¡°Do you think I¡¯ll be able to avoid those knights with this body?That¡¯s why I want you to get an agile mercenary. I want him to go in for me.¡± ¡°But Christa doesn¡¯t want to see anyone¡­¡± ¡°I know.¡± The old Duke extended a finger and pointed at the subordinate. Next, he asked with a puzzled look. ¡°Isn¡¯t it strange? Christa likes to socialize with others. She takes so much care of other people that she neglects herself.¡± The old Duke¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°I can understand that she¡¯s mad at me, but it¡¯s not normal for her not to want to see anyone.¡± The fact that she left the throne and went to Compshire did not mean that she would be incarcerated. The former queens lived a dream life even after leaving the throne, and nobles from home and abroad visited to pay their respects. The influence the former queens had in high society was not diminished just by going to Compshire. ¡®So why would she remain so quiet?¡¯ Chapter 323 - Sovieshu’s Fear (2)

Chapter 323. Sovieshu¡¯s Fear (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Of course, it is possible that her behavior was different from former queens because she left in shame. However, it wasn¡¯t like Christa to turn everyone away. She would at least have epted the visits of her followers. The duke¡¯s fears were realized a few hourster. The mercenary, who sneaked into the mansion in the middle of the night, returned to the inn before dawn and reported to the old duke. ¡°All the windows and doors in the mansion are blocked. There are some open windows that are situated too high and are so small that absolutely no one could get through there.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°There was a small aperture at the bottom of the front door. It seems that food and drink are brought in through that space.¡± The old Duke understood the situation immediately. ¡®Heinley, that bloody Emperor has imprisoned my daughter!¡¯ He shook his hands angrily. Even after the mercenary left, he couldn¡¯t even sit up in bed. He felt distressed, disgusted, and indignant, as if his body would explode if he stayed still. How could a brilliant girl, who cared about others, be imprisoned and isted!? He was angered by the way the cunning emperor acted behind the scenes as he pretended to cover up the scandal by sending Christa to Compshire. Even now, there were those who were concerned because they felt that the measures taken by Emperor Heinley had been too soft. But what made him angrier was that in this situation he did not have the power to get rid of the knights and free his daughter. Unable to suppress his anger, the old duke threw a bottle of wine that was on the table to the floor. When the bottle shattered with a crash, red wine flowed across the floor like blood. ¡°Emperor Heinley, I will not let this go...¡± In that way, the old duke immediately left Compshire and returned to the capital. What he did as soon as he returned to the capital was to get a food called ¡®Jesslen¡¯. That food tasted good and was healthy, but it had a negative effect on the fetus. It was a food that every pregnant woman should avoid. ¡°Will you give it to the Empress?¡± The subordinate asked the old duke in surprise, ¡°Isn¡¯t it dangerous?¡± If she was pregnant, she would not eat it even if he sent it to her. Instead, she might begin to doubt his intentions. However, the old duke replied, ¡°No. Soon there will be a great prayer to be organized by the emperor. This food will also be an offering in the great prayer.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The old duke smiled maliciously, ¡°She has to eat what is served there. Have someone make sure it¡¯s put on the altar.¡± *** In the Western Kingdom there was an event called ¡®Great Prayer¡¯ in which offerings were presented to the king and queen. The time hade to celebrate it. It was expected that the event would still be held despite having be the Western Empire, so I asked my aides to exin the event to me and practiced a bit. Overall, what I had to do was not difficult. I was just a little worried about having to eat at the event. ¡°... a total of six foods are presented as offerings. The priest checks that they are not poisoned. Then the foods are to be consumed by the Emperor and Empress.¡± Lately I couldn¡¯t eat anything, except for some of the dishes Heinley prepared. I didn¡¯t have morning sickness, but my stomach would turn whenever I put something in my mouth that I didn¡¯t want to eat. I really had to eat six different foods... ¡°You don¡¯t have to eat it all, but just enough to make a good impression, Your Majesty. Be careful not to spill the food. Although it¡¯s not serious, it¡¯s considered unlucky to spill food.¡± That was very serious. An emperor or empress was never to do anything that was considered unlucky because if something bad happened in the future, it would immediately be attributed to them and they would easily be the target of people¡¯s resentment. Even if they were really unrted. I thought about it for a while. What if I revealed that I was pregnant so I wouldn¡¯t attend the event? Wouldn¡¯t it be terrible if I ended up throwing up something I didn¡¯t want to eat? However, the infertility rumor trap, set by Heinley and I, was working too well to reveal my pregnancy at this time due to the event. How many times had I already updated the nobles¡¯ danger level? Heinley was striving to gradually reduce the power of high-danger families, either by not entrusting them with any tasks, or by entrusting them with tasks that had a high probability of failure. Is it okay to remove the trap just because I didn¡¯t want to eat a bit? No. Certainly not. Well, it¡¯s not like there¡¯s going to be food that¡¯s harmful to the baby, right? I¡¯ll just have to make an effort. *** However, the situation was worse than expected. After a few simple procedures, when the food that had been examined was ced in front of me, I almostughed wryly. On the table was food that was nutritious, but could not be eaten by pregnant women. I thought it would be fine as long as it wasn¡¯t food like this. Unfortunately, that was exactly what was served. Heinley also frowned as he recognized the food I couldn¡¯t eat. When our gazes met, he smiled forcedly. ¡°Emperor Heinley? Empress Navier?¡± Since neither Heinley nor I were eating, the priest who was helping us lead the event called us in a surprised voice. I put my hands on my belly. It had been about two months. In fact, I wanted to dy the baby announcement as long as possible. At least until Heinley¡¯s birthday. By then, the hostile nobles would be practically decimated at Heinley¡¯s hands. But because of the current situation, there was no other way out. I couldn¡¯t eat this, so I had to reveal the truth. With a bright smile, I looked alternately between the priest and Heinley. Since I had decided to reveal it, it was best to do so with as happy an expression as possible. ¡°Empress Navier?¡± The priest called back to me in bewilderment. Instead of answering, I extended my hand toward Heinley. Heinley seemed to understand me and quickly grabbed my hand. Then he raised it, kissed the back of it and smiled splendidly at the priest. The priest¡¯s face, who was forbidden to have a love rtionship, began to blush. No matter how married we were, anyone would wonder what we were doing now in front of a priest who couldn¡¯t date anyone in his life. Heinley turned his head to look at the nobles. The nobles were not embarrassed, but seemed puzzled to see the emperor and empress so sweet to each other, without eating what had been served to them. With a broad smile, Heinley leaned over to me, ced his hand lightly on my belly and said loudly, ¡°This time I¡¯ll have to eat alone. God won¡¯t want his child to get sick from eating this.¡± The nobles didn¡¯t immediately understand. Then, I smiled at them with overflowing happiness. If this food didn¡¯t appear here by coincidence, it was someone¡¯s dumb n. ¡°I have two months...¡± It was enough to tell the truth. *** ¡°Who... Who¡¯s pregnant?¡± Sovieshu, who had Glorym on hisp, dropped the baby¡¯s toy he was holding in one hand at Marquis Karl¡¯s report. As a result, the princess burst into tears. Sovieshu took the baby in his arms, patted her on the back and asked Marquis Karl. ¡°It can¡¯t be. Repeat what you just said.¡± ¡°Navier is pregnant, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl spoke again in a deep voice. Sovieshu jumped to his feet. His eyes widened in shock. ¡°Who told you? Is it someone you trust?¡± ¡°Navier revealed it personally in front of the nobles of the Western Empire at an event.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes withered like a nt without any water. The princess iled in his arms and pped his stiff face with her small hands. When the princess began to pull his hair, Sovieshu finally came to his senses. But he still had a distorted expression. Sovieshu¡¯s hands trembled so much that Marquis Karl repeatedly raised his own hands. He feared that the Emperor would drop the baby. Fortunately, Sovieshu did not drop the baby and sat back on the couch. He held the princess tightly in his arms as if she were hisst hope and let out a sigh. After Marquis Karl left, Sovieshu stroked the princess¡¯s hair in confusion. Fierce storms raged in his head. ¡®Navier is pregnant. Pregnant... Wasn¡¯t Navier infertile?¡¯ During the years they were married they were never able to have a child. ¡®She got pregnant less than a year after she went to that country?¡¯ Sovieshu shook his head. ¡®No, no. It can¡¯t be.¡¯ He didn¡¯t want to ept it. He didn¡¯t want to ept that Navier was not infertile. Just then, he looked at the painting hanging on the wall. Thanks to the arrangement made to her eyes, Navier was now looking at him in the painting. Sovieshu exhaled heavily. ¡®If Navier was not infertile, had all the ns and the divorce been in vain? I left Navier for a child, but it turns out she wasn¡¯t infertile...¡¯ All his movements and thoughts stopped. He even stopped breathing. Sovieshu¡¯s arms, which held the baby, tensed. Sovieshu looked down with fearful eyes. He saw the beautiful silver hair that resembled Rashta¡¯s. The silver hair on her little head was as soft as amb¡¯s coat. Sovieshu had never seen such silky hair before. But his eyes were tinged with fear. ¡®What if the one who is infertile..... was not Navier, but me?¡¯ Chapter 324 - My Mother’s Concern (1)

Chapter 324. My Mother¡¯s Concern (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As soon as I made it known that I was pregnant, the priest who was helping us lead the ¡®Great Prayer¡¯ event waved his hands hurriedly, ¡°It came close to bing a serious problem. You absolutely must not eat this food, Your Majesty.¡± He had a frightened look. It was probably because the imperial family was at a critical point since the time of the former king. The priest quickly removed the food. ¡°Is it okay to do this?¡± When I asked him just in case, he waved his hands again and said anxiously, ¡°Of course, of course. We cannot harm the future of the Western Empire while praying for it.¡± As we exchanged a few words, murmurs began to be heard all around. Most of the nobles had bright faces and voices. For both the nobles who supported Heinley and those who did not, the session issue was important. Moreover, the fact that I was a foreigner was both a weakness and a strength. Since I shared no blood ties with any family in the Western Empire, all the nobles wished to be my child¡¯s future aides. Heinley kept a gentle smile and, once themotion died down, decided to continue with the event. When we all met for lunch at the end of the event, old Duke Zemensia approached with a ss of wine. ¡°My sincerest congrattions, Your Majesty.¡± There were already many nobles who came up to congratte me, but I didn¡¯t expect the old Duke Zemensia to do so as well. Isn¡¯t he Christa¡¯s father? I don¡¯t think he¡¯s someone who really wanted to congratte me. It wasn¡¯t easy to ept his congrattions without hesitation. Although I thanked him with a smile, I could not let my guard down since I did not know his intentions. The old Duke only showed his true colors after he pretended to be friendly, ¡°Still it was unfair.¡± ¡°Unfair?¡± ¡°The Empress¡¯s pregnancy is a national celebration and everyone¡¯s hope, but it was kept secret for two months. Even we nobles didn¡¯t know that Your Majesty was pregnant, and we never ceased to be worried about the session issue.¡± Oh¡­ I wondered if the food that was harmful to the pregnancy had been served intentionally, and if so, who had done it. There was a high probability that it was this man who was behind it. Some nobles who were talking excitedly about the baby were startled to hear the words of the old Duke Zemensia. They seemed to be those who had on at least one asion expressed concern about the session and the rumor of my infertility. Old Duke Zemensia whispered in their ears like a snake now that they were immersed in joy. He had hinted with his words that, ¡®the empress must have kept her pregnancy a secret to test them¡¯. ¡°It was necessary to be careful in the early stages of pregnancy.¡± Heinley spoke calmly with a smile. Then he withdrew the empty ss from my hand and this time struck back. ¡°Besides, it hasn¡¯t been said all the time that nothing is wrong, that there are other things to worry about, that affairs of state are more important right now. The fault lies with those who didn¡¯t believe us, with those who had malicious thoughts.¡± As Heinley and old Duke Zemensia exchanged sly smiles, the faces of several nobles darkened at Heinley¡¯s words. *** That night, mydies-in-waiting, my parents, and even my brother made a fuss. ¡°It was unfair of you to keep it a secret even from us! Ahh¡­ I¡¯m d you¡¯re pregnant! Still it was unfair! But I¡¯m happy¡­ Ahh!¡± Laura repeatedly got upset, cried and rejoiced. ¡°So, first we have to prepare the baby¡¯s clothes? Or rather some toys? No, no, what¡¯s more important is the crib¡­. What design would be ideal for the crib?¡± Suddenly, Rose began to talk about what she knew. Countess Jubel, who had extensive experience in marriage, pregnancy, and parenting, boasted with raised shoulders, ¡°What could a youngdy who is not married know about that? Leave it all to me, Miss Rose. Leave it to me, Your Majesty.¡± However, Rose did not seem ready to give in, ¡°Countess Jubel. I have seen and heard many things, so I can handle it too.¡± ¡°Your, Your Majesty. Is it alright for you to remain standing? No, you need to lie down, or rather sit down.¡± Mastas panicked, as if I had suddenly be a sick person. Once I sat up, I turned to look at my brother and he looked very pensive. Is he pacing around the room because he can¡¯t sit still for a moment? In contrast, my father didn¡¯t move or say anything, wiping his tears with a handkerchief. He seemed to want to congratte me wholeheartedly, but unfortunately he had a lump in his throat¡­ every time he opened his mouth, the words wouldn¡¯te out. At first, my mother repeatedly patted my father¡¯s back tofort him, but eventually told him to get out of her sight if he wanted to cry. My father became saddened, stood against the wall in a corner and began to cry louder. As I smiled awkwardly, my mother put her hand on my belly and gently stroked my hair. ¡°My dear daughter. You are still too little for me. I can¡¯t believe my little girl is going to be a mother¡­¡± ¡°Mother, I¡¯m not really little.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll understand when you have your children. No matter how much they grow up, they will always be to their parents little and helpless.¡± My elder brother, who had been reprimanded severely instead of being treated like a helpless person every time he got into trouble, moved his lips as if he wanted toin. ¡°But I¡¯m nervous.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I want to raise my child well.¡± My mother wrapped her arms around my head and patted me on the shoulders. My mother¡¯s sigh ran through my hair. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I can do it, mother.¡± ¡°You were an exceptional child. Very smart and obedient.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not easy for a smart person to teach others. It¡¯s fine if your child takes after you, but if by any chance¡­¡± My mother¡¯s gaze drifted for a moment between my brother and my father. ¡°If by any chance your child is not so obedient, I worry that you won¡¯t be able to handle it.¡± I must never tell my mother about Heinley¡¯s childhood. ¡°I¡¯ll do my best, mother.¡± ¡°I wish I could stay by your side to help you.¡± I also wished my mother could stay here with me¡­but my mother loved the Eastern Empire. Unable to ask her, I rested my forehead on my mother¡¯s chest. Just then, my brother asked as if he had read my mind. ¡°Mother, can¡¯t you stay here with Navier?¡± I had some hope too, so I looked at my mother. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it¡­ Honey, you can turn around ande over here.¡± ¡°Wife¡­ our¡­ our Navier¡­ our Navier is still a baby, but our baby¡­ Ahh.¡± My mother frowned at his words. Seeing this scene, Mastas pressed her lips together and lowered her head. My father smartly hurried away, turned around and took out his handkerchief. *** Chapter 325 - My Mother’s Concern (2)

Chapter 325. My Mother¡¯s Concern (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°All the people close to Her Majesty seem to be ted.¡± Heinley said, ¡°Yes?¡± and cocked his head. ¡°I mean the Troby Family and herdies-in-waiting.¡± McKenna stood beside him with a yellow letter in his hand. ¡°They haven¡¯t stopped crying andughing since yesterday.¡± The corners of Heinley¡¯s mouth turned up in a warm smile. ¡°I¡¯m d they are very happy about the news.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, you should join as well.¡± ¡°Hmm. I know.¡± ¡°You can do this tomorrow or the day after.¡± McKenna, who spoke as if he were sorry, handed Heinley the yellow letter in his hand. Heinley epted the letter and asked a question instead of replying. ¡°Did you see My Queen¡¯s expression when old Duke Zemensia sneered in her face, McKenna?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t she have a smile on her face?¡± ¡°What? What were you doing looking at my wife¡¯s expression so closely?¡± McKenna looked at Heinley puzzled, unable to understand. Heinley snorted and opened the letter McKenna had handed him, thinking to himself that it wasn¡¯t true. ¡°My Queen had an angry expression. My Queen is only supposed to think of good things since she¡¯s pregnant. This needs to be over with quickly.¡± A ruthless smile appeared on his face as he muttered and nced at the letter. At that moment, another secretary announced the visit of old Duke Zemensia. ¡°You sent for me, Your Majesty.¡± After the old Duke entered the office, he came within five paces of Heinley¡¯s desk and bowed his head.He had a nonchnt expression. He did not look like the same person who yesterday turned on the Emperor and Empress to use them in front of the nobles. While McKenna thought that he was indeed an old fox, he took the yellow letter he had shown Heinley. ¡°I sent for you because I found something interesting, old Duke.¡± The old Duke looked up without a trace of emotion. His attitude reflected that, whatever it was, he had nothing to fear. As soon as Heinley made an eye signal, McKenna handed the yellow letter to the old Duke. ¡°What is this?¡± The old duke asked in a heavy voice, took the letter and opened it. Instantly, his expression tensed slightly. Chin propped on his hand, Heinley looked at the old duke as if he found him amused. Soon after, the old Duke returned the letter to McKenna. He probably lowered his gaze to hide the fear in his eyes. ¡°What do you think, old Duke?¡± Heinley asked with a smile. Then the old Duke answered directly. ¡°My handwriting has been forged.¡± ¡°Forged?¡± ¡°I have written no such letter, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°But I found it, old Duke.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a fake letter.¡± ¡°Is it incredible that you dare to deny it even after seeing the letter in your own handwriting? In the letter it is clearly written, ¡®the empress is pregnant, so prepare food that is harmful to the baby in her womb, it must not be poisonous because it will not pass the priest¡¯s check¡¯.¡± ¡°Do you think I would leave a letter if I had given that order?¡± Heinley nodded shamelessly at the old Duke¡¯s question. ¡°Yes, I think so. Why did you leave it, old Duke? Evidence must always be destroyed to avoid inconvenience.¡± Old Duke Zemensia found the young emperor¡¯s words absurd. In the first ce, he had not written such a letter. Moreover, he would never leave a letter that could cause trouble. The letter was certainly a fake. ¡®No matter how good his little tricks are, he¡¯s still too young.¡¯ Old Duke Zemensia clicked his tongue inwardly. ¡°Are you taking revenge because I brought up the recent infertility rumor in everyone¡¯s presence? If that¡¯s the case, it makes no sense. Isn¡¯t the Empress already pregnant?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not revenge, old Duke. It¡¯s just an investigation.¡± However, Heinley firmly denied it and rang the small bell on his desk. ¡°I need the library¡¯s borrowed books record.¡± There was a clear click of the door being opened. ¡®Pathetic, how could my daughter suffer for someone so pathetic?¡¯ Annoyed, the old duke turned his gaze toward the slowly opening door. But as soon as the door waspletely opened, his eyes widened. The old duke was stunned. The woman who entered with a record book gave a dignified and gentle impression. She had dark blue eyes, brown hair¡­ a face much like Christa¡¯s. But it was not her uncanny resemnce to Christa that surprised old Duke Zemensia. The woman looked very much like Christa, but not to the point where he could not tell any difference. What surprised the old duke was the rope around her neck. ¡°What the hell does this mean¡­?¡± It was clearly a thick rope used to carry out executions by hanging. Even the shape of the knot. Heinley ignored the old duke¡¯s reaction and reached out his hand. The woman gently ced the book in Heinley¡¯s hand and left. ¡°Here it is, old Duke.¡± Heinley tapped the desk lightly with one hand to draw the old duke¡¯s attention back to him, then gave the book a little shake. ¡°What¡¯s this all about?¡± ¡°This is the record of books borrowed from the library, old Duke.¡± ¡°What does it have to do with me?¡± ¡°Here are the titles of the books your grandson has borrowed.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­¡±Heinley, who muttered as he turned the pages, stopped near the middle. The book titles flowed naturally from Heinley¡¯s mouth, ¡°Food that can be harmful, medications to be careful with, what a pregnant woman should not eat¡­Heavens. Your grandson has a unique taste in books, don¡¯t you think?¡± Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s face paled. This was a threat. He could repeatedly assert that the letter was fake. As long as he did not ept the usation, he would have no major problems. His poprity in high society might be affected, but that was all. The emperor could impose punishment on him by his own will, but in that case the nobles would consider the emperor a tyrant. The young emperor was gued by bad rumors and even arbitrarily married the empress of the neighboring country. This would further damage the image of the young emperor, who was considered undisciplined and self-centered. So now Emperor Heinley was threatening him. He wanted the old duke to acknowledge the fake evidence. Otherwise, his daughter would be hanged. Even if she wasn¡¯t hanged, Christa would die if Heinley stopped sending her food or poisoned it. If he kept everything closed after killing her, even the fact of her death would be buried. Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s countenance grew paler. The emperor before him was not a young man who suddenly ascended the throne. He was a cunning man who carried out ruthless ns under a smiling face. ¡°Old Duke. Answer me.¡± Once he closed the record book, Heinley urged the old Duke Zemensia in a kindly voice. ¡°Is this letter a fake? Or is your grandson just too curious?¡± Chapter 326 - Bring Her First Child (1) Chapter 326. Bring Her First Child (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Old Duke Zemensia was at a crossroads. He had to choose between him or his daughter. If he made the decision thinking only of his own life, he would not have hesitated. Of course he would save his daughter. The problem was that if he admitted that he had intentionally prepared food to harm the imperial family, his entire family would also be in danger. His wife, his son, and even his two charming grandchildren¡­. ¡°Your Majesty is truly ruthless.¡± The old duke muttered in shock. Although he had prepared food harmful to the baby in her womb, he didn¡¯t even know for sure that she was pregnant. Even if he had been sure she was pregnant, he would not have done it with the intention that she would eat it. He just wanted the Emperor and Empress to suffer a little public humiliation. He wanted everyone to realize that behind the emperor¡¯s sweet cover there was only poison. Although this was also not a good thing, wasn¡¯t this revenge milder inparison to what his daughter suffered from being locked up in a deste mansion like an animal? This was nothing more than a usual dispute between high society nobles. However, this ruthless emperor threatened to kill a human being to appease his momentary displeasure. How could he be so indifferent when ites to a human life? To old Duke Zemensia, ustomed to the indulgent and kindly former king, Emperor Heinley seemed a despicable tyrant who would devastate the country. He would have preferred Heinley to wield the sword. But this emperor forced him to wield the sword and choose who to stab. Wasn¡¯t that from a cruel person? When their eyes met, the corners of the emperor¡¯s mouth turned up slightly. The old duke¡¯s expression twisted. With that face, the Emperor made people think, ¡®His Majesty is being too mild.¡¯ With that face! But the old Duke had to choose. He had to choose between sacrificing Christa or his family. ¡°That letter¡­ it wasn¡¯t written by me.¡± His eyes were bloodshot with anger. ¡°It¡¯s a shame.¡± Emperor Heinley whispered under his breath, ¡°It is truly a shame,¡± and pushed away the statue on the desk with one hand. The statue shattered as it fell to the floor. *** My father, who had finally stopped crying, was nowpletely focused on choosing a gift for the baby. Before I knew it, designers were here, and fashionable baby clothes filled the room. There were also many albums of baby clothes designs. As I looked at the clothes closely, I barely managed to escape the enveloping temptation. Since the pce doctor told me that I should rest well, now I had nothing to do. Yesterday was the same. But it made me feel bad that Heinley was working while I was enjoying myself. ¡°His Majesty is inside?¡± However, McKenna¡¯s expression in front of the office was strange. When he saw me, he became suspiciously nervous and smiled awkwardly. ¡°Well, His Majesty is very busy at the moment. He seems to have a lot of work to do. Hmm¡­ Anyway, the pregnancy has already been announced. Huh¡­ What¡¯s that? Is that His Majesty Heinley¡¯s clothes?¡± ¡°It¡¯s baby clothes.¡± ¡°Oh, the baby clothes are simr in size to His Majesty Heinley¡¯s. You understand what I mean, right? When he¡¯s in bird form.¡± No, I think Heinley¡¯s is bigger. In any case, it was an absurdparison if only to pretend. ¡®Why is he acting like this?¡¯ When I saw the man who came out of the office door a few momentster, I knew the answer to that question. The old Duke Zemensia¡­ It was about Christa¡¯s father, the man who yesterdayshed out at us in public for hiding the fact that I was pregnant in an attempt to set a trap for the nobles. McKenna was worried that I would run into him. Old Duke Zemensia, who took a few steps slowly, looked in my direction. His eyes fixed on me, and on the basket of baby clothes I was holding. Then his gaze turned fierce as his big eyes narrowed. He stared at me as if I were the enemy who had driven Christa out. Once McKenna coughed, he shook his cloak vigorously and reluctantly left. Viscount Langdel, who stood behind me, said in a low voice, ¡°His gaze is not good. We need to reinforce your guard for the time being, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± I wonder if Heinley pressed him severely because of yesterday. His expression became totally fierce within a day. As I watched his distant back, Heinley also came out of the office. ¡°My Queen!¡± Calling me affectionately, he hurried to my side, pulled out clothes that were in the basket, and asked me. ¡°Is this mine?¡± What was going on? What did Heinley talk about with the old Duke to make them act so strangely? *** Chapter 327 - Bring Her First Child (2) Chapter 327. Bring Her First Child (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°My baby, hold mommy¡¯s hand¡­. my baby, my sweet baby¡­¡± A murmur came from the bushes. Viscount Roteschu was about to enter the Western Pce when he suddenly heard the voice. ¡°Rashta?¡± It sounded like Rashta¡¯s voice. Viscount Roteschu turned around and headed for the source of the sound. There was a small circr space cleared between the bushes with short grass. Rashta was sitting there in arge nest chair, holding a doll in her arms and murmuring. ¡°My baby¡­¡± Seeing Rashta murmur while stroking the doll (as she stroked the doll), Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue in astonishment. ¡°Has she really gone crazy?¡± Suddenly, Rashta stopped and looked up. When she saw Viscount Roteschu, her dull eyes came alive again. Then, she pushed the doll away with a frown. ¡°I was practicing how to hold a baby.¡± Viscount Roteschu felt calmer as he heard her sharp voice full of resentment. ¡°I couldn¡¯t hold my baby. I couldn¡¯t hold her well, so I have to practice. I can¡¯t drop her again. Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to see her face anymore.¡± ¡°What nonsense are you saying?¡± As he was listening to her talk, Viscount Roteschu quickly approached her. Looking around him, he said in a low voice, ¡°Wake up. I have information about the daughter of the Isqua Family you asked me to find.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t look for her, there¡¯s no need. Do you think I¡¯m interested in finding someone else¡¯s daughter?¡± Rashta, who spoke decisively, stared at Viscount Roteschu and let out augh, ¡°In fact, you¡¯re looking for someone else¡¯s daughter even though your own daughter is also missing.¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s eyes reddened for a moment at the mockery. Rashta reached up, pped him twice on the cheek, and smiled. ¡°You¡¯re being punished. I lost my child because of you, so you lost your child too.¡± ¡°Have you really gone mad?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t care what you think. Rashta is busy, so speak at once and then leave.¡± Viscount Roteschu snorted with a frown. ¡®What on earth had happened to make her change so much while I was away?¡¯ Although he hated Rashta, he considered her as sly as a fox, even though she was at times naive and clumsy. However, in the current Rashta he did not see that at all. Still, Viscount Roteschu did not care about Rashta¡¯s suffering. Instead of asking Rashta about what was going on, he hastened to tell what he had discovered, ¡°She is most likely the real daughter of the Isqua Family.¡± ¡°She? Navier?¡± ¡°Evely! The mage who stays in the Southern Pce!¡± ¡°Evely? The mage?¡± Anger seeped into Rashta¡¯s eyes, who seemed to have lost her spirit. ¡°It¡¯s her?¡± ¡°Yes!¡± Rashta dropped the doll and grabbed Viscount Rostechu by the throat. ¡°Are you sure? You¡¯re not doing this to make fun of Rashta?¡± ¡°Why would I make fun of you? What would I have to gain¡­?¡± ¡®You are my source of money!¡¯ Viscount Roteschu said inwardly to himself. Why would hee to pass on this information when he was so busy trying to find Rivetti? Because Rashta was indeed his source of money and the future of his family. However, it angered him that Rashta, who had to win the emperor¡¯s heart to get money out of him, was not focused. Finding Rivetti was all about money, money, and more money. ¡°No way.¡± Rashta squeezed Viscount Roteschu¡¯s neck, pushed him back, and muttered, ¡°It can¡¯t be her! It can¡¯t be her among so many people! The test, did you do the test?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t do the test. In the temple they refused even though I got her blood. They say that the people involved to be tested must go personally. There have been so many irregrities, such as blood exchange, that nowadays no tests are done unless the people involved are present.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s false. It¡¯s false.¡± Although Rashta said it with a smile, inside she was nervous. ¡°It can¡¯t be true that the girl who used to call me sister is their real daughter.¡± ¡°Rashta, you can¡¯t just say it¡¯s false. You have to check it properly, even if it means forcibly taking her to the temple.¡± ¡°What¡¯s the point of checking it out? You know it¡¯s no use for me to try to check it! Rashta, who shouted loudly, burst outughing, pointed her finger at Viscount Roteschu and spoke sarcastically as if she understood his intentions. ¡°You¡¯re lying to hurt Rashta, aren¡¯t you? Isn¡¯t it strange that you have found in a few weeks the daughter that Viscount and Viscountess Isqua couldn¡¯t find for years? Yes. It¡¯s a lie. It can¡¯t be true.¡± ¡°I also don¡¯t know why they weren¡¯t able to find her in years. Was it because they searched in other countries, or because they searched superficially, or else because they simply have no brains? In any case, I¡¯m telling the truth. I don¡¯t know if Evely is really their daughter, but there¡¯s definitely a high probability.¡± The corners of Rashta¡¯s eyes began to redden. Despite her pitiful appearance, Viscount Roteschu had no time to worry about her now. He stretched out his hand quickly. ¡°Give me some money. I have a very skilled informant, but he demands a lot of money.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°You also send money to the mansion so n can stay well. He is raising your son.¡± When Rashta removed the jeweled bracelet from her arm and handed it to him, Viscount Roteschu epted it without hesitation. Then he turned away as if his business was over. Once Viscount Roteschu came out from the bushes, he could hear behind him again, ¡°My baby, hold mommy¡¯s hand¡­¡± Viscount Roteschu inexplicably got goosebumps, so he rubbed his arms. ¡°Has she really lost her mind?¡± *** ¡°The mana ne was stolen?!¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°You have no idea who did it?¡± ¡°I was very attentive to security, but someone took it without a trace.¡± Next to Marquis Karl, the court mage looked like he was on the verge of tears. He had barely begun to investigate the one clue that was found to the phenomenon of mage decline. The ne had disappeared, so he was very upset. Sovieshu recalled that Heinley used birds to exchange letters with Navier. ¡°They are able to control the birds.¡± Marquis Karl asked, ¡°What shall we do, Your Majesty?¡± Sovieshu did not respond immediately, but instead looked at the court mage and asked, ¡°Clearly, it is very difficult to continue the investigation at this time. What can we do to reduce our damage right now?¡± ¡°Not for sure, but it will be better to stay away from mana stones for now.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t mana stones make it easier to use magic?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Even Miss Evely recovered her lost mana with the help of a mana stone. There have also been a few cases of sudden mana increase. However, my assistant lost his mana because of a mana stone. Since then, I kept him near the mana ne, but the mana did not return¡­¡± The court mage, who was saddened at the thought, managed to finish his words a momentter. ¡°We don¡¯t know under what conditions mana disappears and increases, so it¡¯s best to stay away from mana stones.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right. We¡¯ll do exactly as you say. Marquis Karl, also contact the magic academy to have them prevent their students from using mana stones in the meantime.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl nced for a moment at Sovieshu¡¯s side of the desk as he left the office together with the court mage. Emperor Sovieshu had not brought the princess for several days. Before, he had always tried to have her by his side. What made him change his mind? He did not remove the cradle, but the empty cradle made it seem even stranger. Once outside the office, the court mage asked as if he had a simr thought in mind. ¡°Doesn¡¯t His Majesty take the princess with him ofte?¡± ¡°The princess is still very small and sometimes cries, which must interfere with his work.¡± The court mage asked this time in a dubious voice. ¡°Well, it¡¯s normal for babies to cry. Is it not rather because of the news that Empress Navier is pregnant?¡± In response, Marquis Karl tly denied it. ¡°By no means.¡± Since very few people knew for sure that Sovieshu filed for divorce due to Navier¡¯s infertility, the court mage nodded instantly, ¡°Yes. You are right.¡± However, Marquis Karl¡¯splexion turned darker. In fact, he was really worried that Sovieshu would stay away from the princess for that reason. And that worry was correct. Sovieshu first wandered around the office while looking at the empty cradle, then wandered around the corridors. In the end, he could not resist going to the baby¡¯s room. There, the princess slept peacefully in herfortable crib. ¡°She is a very calm baby.¡± Viscountess Verdi said quickly. Sovieshu waved her away and walked over to the crib. He looked at the sleeping baby¡¯s face and gently touched her cheek. The baby opened her eyes slowly, recognized his face, smiled sweetly and made some sounds. With a wrenching pain in his chest, Sovieshu picked up the baby with a frown. The baby only giggled lightly, tugging at Sovieshu¡¯s cheeks and ears. Sovieshu struggled to find a corner of the princess that looked like him as he let her y with his face. Eyes, nose, mouth, hair, hands, feet, skin¡­ But there wasn¡¯t. The baby looked nothing like him. There were only two people who looked like the baby. Rashta and her first child. Sovieshu remembered Rashta¡¯s first child, whom he had barely observed. It was his understanding that Viscount Roteschu was raising him. ¡®I need to take a closer look at that child.¡¯ To Sovieshu, that child was only Rashta¡¯s first child, so when he saw the child for the first time he did not pay much attention to him even though he noticed his resemnce to Rashta. But now¡­ After cing the baby in the crib, Sovieshu returned to his office and called a knight who acted in the shadows. ¡°Go at once to Viscount Roteschu¡¯s Mansion and bring Rashta¡¯s first child, along with Viscount Roteschu.¡± *** Chapter 328 - McKenna Is Not Prejudiced (1) Chapter 328. McKenna Is Not Prejudiced (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren As Sovieshu awaited the knight¡¯s return, he was so nervous that his lips were dry. Unable to sit up, he wandered between the drawing room and the baby¡¯s room, asionally checking the princess¡¯s face. Time passed very slowly. But unlike the impatient Sovieshu, the baby sleptfortably. Finally, he heard a heavy voice call out to him. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Momentster, the knight entered with a man holding a small child in his arms. Although the man the knight brought was not Viscount Roteschu, neither was he apletely unfamiliar face. ¡°You must be¡­¡± Sovieshu remembered the man who came to the audience chamber to ask for the child to be blessed. Yes. It was the same man who had held Rashta¡¯s first child in his arms. ¡°n Rimwell, Your Majesty. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son.¡± But it wasn¡¯t this man he wanted to see. ¡°Did I send for you?¡± n responded in a fearful voice to Sovieshu¡¯s words. ¡°My sister has not returned for several weeks¡­ my father is away because of it.¡± ¡°Sister? Ah. Yes, your sister.¡± Sovieshu, who was about to reprimand n, softened at his exnation. Certainly, Viscount Roteschu must be very busy now. ¡®It¡¯s okay. Anyway, it didn¡¯t make much difference whether Viscount Roteschu or n came.¡¯ After some reflection, Sovieshu ordered, ¡°Come closer with the child.¡± n looked at Sovieshu in terror and took two steps back, startled at the sudden order. ¡°What for?¡± Hugging the child firmly, n asked, ¡°What for, what for¡­¡± He had found it strange that Emperor Sovieshu suddenly asked him to bring the child. But he found this even stranger. ¡°I have something to check.¡± When n took another step back, Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows rose ordingly. He didn¡¯t intend to hurt the baby, he just wanted to look at him closely for a moment. ¡®Why was he running away?¡¯ Viscount Roteschu had told him that he didn¡¯t know who the child¡¯s father was, so he had no idea it was n. Both n and Viscount Roteschu only cared for Rashta¡¯s child. But that protective attitude seemed strange enough to raise suspicions. ¡°I ordered you toe closer.¡± Sovieshu repeated the order slowly and clearly. Only then did n realize that he could not oppose the emperor, so he went over and handed the baby to him. ¡®What a strange young man.¡¯ Sovieshu epted the baby, disgusted with n for how he treated him. But as soon as Sovieshu saw the baby, his thoughts about n disappeared. His face turned darker. The baby looked more like Glorym than he remembered. Then a slight suspicion arose. ¡®How can they be so simr? Is this child¡¯s father the same as Glorym¡¯s¡­?¡¯ Sovieshu inwardly denied it. ¡®It is absurd. Glorym and this child only look like Rashta. No wonder Glorym doesn¡¯t look like me. Due to the dates, it is impossible for the first child of Rashta and the princess to be from the same father.¡¯ Sovieshu tried his best to think positively. He had no other choice. In fact, the only way to dispel this doubt would be to go to the temple to take a paternity test. To take a paternity test was embarrassing, even for nobles who considered it natural to have concubines. Moreover, he would have to go in person to take a paternity test. If the emperor went to the temple with his daughter to take a paternity test, the image of the imperial family would bepletely destroyed. He would if there was a situation where he had to prove it, but it would be shameful to do so when no one distrusted. Sovieshu was horrified to see his daughter reflected in a strange child, so he hurried to return him to n. Ordering n to wait a moment, Sovieshu entered the baby¡¯s room and held the princess lying in the crib. When Sovieshu brought the princess, n¡¯s eyes widened. His eyes, which wandered over thevish decorations of the Imperial Pce, now fixed on the face of the princess. However, n¡¯s eyes soon stopped on the princess¡¯ clothes. Afortable baby dress made from the highest quality fabrics, which were only produced a few per year, and soft socks on her pretty feet. The socks were adorned with small pearls. npared the princess to his son. He made an effort to dress him well, but there was a distinct difference from the princess¡¯ clothes. Even a child from an ordinary noble family couldpare better with the princess. Since Viscount Roteschu, who managed the economic part of the family, did not want his grandson, n could not even raise his son like those of other nobles. Besides, he had raised his son alone, isted in a mansion. Two identical babies, withpletely different lives¡­ he couldn¡¯t stopparing them as a fire slowly grew inside him. But his disturbed mind crumbled at Sovieshu¡¯s question. ¡°That child. Who is his father?¡± n looked at Sovieshu in surprise. ¡°What?¡± ¡°I asked who the father of that child is.¡± ¡°Ah, that¡­¡± n lowered his head at Sovieshu¡¯s fierce stare. His father had told him that the emperor didn¡¯t know who Ahn¡¯s real father was. ¡®Was the Emperor asking that question because he had found out something? Or was he just curious because Ahn looked so much like the princess?¡¯ Although he felt uneasy, n soon spoke exactly as Viscount Roteschu had told him. ¡°That I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. I, I just¡­¡± ¡°If you went to the audience chamber to ask for this child to be blessed, you must have a genuine bond. But don¡¯t you know that?¡± ¡°I grew attached to him as I raised him. He¡¯s such a lovely little boy¡­¡± ¡°Did you grow attached to him?¡± ¡°Yes. Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Unable to ovee the pressure exerted by the emperor, n lowered his head again. His hands, with which he held his son, did not stop shaking. Fortunately, Sovieshu let him go. ¡°It¡¯s okay. You can go.¡± ¡°Thank you. Thank you.¡± n bowed and hurried out of the room, not knowing what he was thankful for. As soon as n closed the door, he lost the strength in his legs and almost copsed. He felt suffocated in that room. Once he stepped out into the corridor, he finally caught his breath. But n would not have been relieved if he had seen the fierce expression with which Sovieshu looked at his back as he walked away. He had begun to suspect that Ahn¡¯s real father might be n. From the moment n left the room where he found it difficult to breathe, his thoughts of Sovieshu faded with every step he took. Instead, his mind was filled with thoughts of Rashta and Ahn. n went straight to the Western Pce and told the knight at the front of the pce that he wanted to meet with the Empress. *** Chapter 329 - McKenna Is Not Prejudiced (2) Chapter 329. McKenna Is Not Prejudiced (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Once my parents anddies-in-waiting calmed down a bit after the shock of my pregnancy news, I took a day off and went to visit Grand Duke Kapmen to deal with the magic issue. I used magic twice unconsciously. Both times with bad results. The first time I froze Heinley¡¯s hair, which was dangerous, and the second time I messed up the doorknob by freezing it. So far, I hadn¡¯t had any major problems because I had rarely touched other people directly, but once my child was born I would want to caress it. In the worst case scenario, I could freeze the baby, so I had to resolve this as soon as possible. ¡°Did you use magic?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen asked with a puzzled expression upon hearing my words. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± He couldn¡¯t seem to believe it. Certainly, it was rare for someone who never had any talent for magic to suddenly be a mage. Although there were cases of people who manifested as mages after adulthood, it wasn¡¯tmon. ¡°Yes. It was like ice. Maybe it¡¯s water magic.¡± ¡°From freezing my heart to freezing everything around me, what can¡¯t you do?¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°¡­ Ignore the first half¡­ the second too.¡± ¡°I know it¡¯s hard on the Grand Duke.¡± ¡°I just hope that one day the effects of the potion will wear off.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure it will be so.¡± ¡°Will you pray for me, my angel?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± ¡°Ignore that too.¡± ¡°I will.¡± Fortunately, the awkward atmosphere slowly dissipated as we began to talk about magic. Although Grand Duke Kapmen was off topic at times, he was one of the top graduates of the magical academy. When I told him about my past experiences, he immediately exined calmly. ¡°It¡¯s not that difficult. It¡¯s not that Your Majesty made a mistake.¡± ¡°Then I¡¯ll be able to handle it?¡± ¡°Of course. In fact, you¡¯ll be able to control it naturally over time. That¡¯s how it is in most cases.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t wait for it to happen naturally.¡± ¡°I understand. You mentioned that both times the magic came out of nowhere, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Even when you can¡¯t control mana, magic doesn¡¯te out of nowhere. You must have been driven by something you wanted to get or know.¡± I remembered Heinley¡¯s lovely head and the closed doorknob. I wondered what was going through Heinley¡¯s head, and I wondered what they were talking about on the other side of the door¡­ ahh. Grand Duke Kapmen moved his lips slightly as if he had read my thoughts. However, he seemed to refrain from saying, ¡®You see,¡¯ because it would be too obvious what he had done. ¡°I get what you mean. But if magic arises every time I¡¯m interested in something, isn¡¯t that a more serious problem¡­?¡± ¡°First, let me teach you how to distinguish the flow of mana. Magic has no rules, it¡¯s rted to instinct, so you have no choice but to feel the mana and control it by yourself.¡± Once he finished speaking, Grand Duke Kapmen approached me and raised his hand. As if he wanted to grab my arm. However, he didn¡¯t and hesitantly lowered his hand. When I looked up wondering what was wrong with him, he muttered with an awkward expression. ¡°I have to grab your arm.¡± What? ¡°It¡¯s okay?¡± His question was not easy to answer. I wouldn¡¯t mind if it was someone else who was teaching me. But being Grand Duke Kapmen, it was a little ufortable¡­ As I hesitated, Grand Duke Kapmen sighed and said, ¡°Ask the Emperor, maybe he can do it too.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t all mages do it?¡± ¡°No. In my case, I learned it working as a teacher¡¯s assistant when I was in the magical academy, usually no one pays attention to other people¡¯s mana.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s exnation was not a boast, but a fact. I waited until lunchtime to go exin the situation to Heinley. I thought he might as well, but he waved his hand in a surprisingly tense manner. ¡°My Queen. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s a good idea.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t have let you go to the academy alone if I could¡­ If I tried I could do it, but I feel it¡¯s dangerous.¡± ¡°Why?¡± When our eyes met, Heinley averted her gaze and murmured, ¡°There was one time I tried to do something like that and it didn¡¯t work as expected¡­¡± What is wrong with him? He seemed to have some trauma rted to this. In the end, I decided to have Grand Duke Kapmen help me feel the mana in front of Heinley. ¡°Empress Navier, hold out your hand.¡± Although Heinley didn¡¯t know that the Grand Duke fell in love with me after drinking a potion, he couldn¡¯t hide his unease when Grand Duke Kapmen grabbed my hand. While I tried hard to pretend not to be aware of his expression, I turned my attention to my hand held by Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Please focus on the sensation going up along the length of your arm.¡± ¡°All right.¡± It was hard for me to concentrate at first because I was worried about Heinley. But once I closed my eyespletely, I felt a tingling around the palm of my hand. ¡°Huh.¡± ¡°Can you feel it?¡± ¡°Just a little¡­¡± After a while, I felt it again. This time around my wrist. It was a strange sensation. It was like a very faint electric shock. It wasn¡¯t painful, but it was definitely felt. ¡°I can feel it. It¡¯s a tingling.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of the nature of my mana. Now I¡¯ll put some more in.¡± Just as I was about to nod to concentrate on my arm, someone suddenly pulled my hand away from Grand Duke Kapmen. As soon as I opened my eyes in surprise, I saw Heinley in the middle of the Grand Duke and me with a flushed reddened face. With one hand gripping mine and the other gripping Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s forearm. ¡°Heinley?¡± Looking at him with a quizzical expression, Heinley said with a stiff smile. ¡°My Queen. I myself will learn it from the Grand Duke and do it.¡± ¡°It could relive your trauma¡­¡± ¡°Jealousy seems to suppress the trauma.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen chuckled as if he had read his thoughts. In any case, it was convenient for me. I preferred Heinley to do it, so I quietly stepped aside. Heinley stood where I was a moment ago, the two of them hesitated and joined hands. Wait¡­ what the hell were they doing? I unconsciously bit my lower lip as I watched the scene. It was very funny. Why did they both have that expression? It was a face of utter displeasure. But I couldn¡¯tugh because they would both feel embarrassed, so I looked at them with a deadpan face. Just then, the door burst open and McKenna ran in. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty!¡± He had a very serious expression. McKenna had permission to freelye and go from Heinley¡¯s office. He seemed to have rushed in on urgent business¡­ As soon as he saw Heinley and Grand Duke Kapmen with their hands sped together, McKenna was perplexed. ¡°Wait, what are you guys doing?¡± His expression got even worse when he saw me standing off to the side. ¡°Empress, what are you looking at?¡± McKenna¡¯s pupils quivered rapidly. ¡°Why, why do our Emperor and the Grand Duke hold hands so amicably, and why does Your Majesty look at them so happily¡­¡± Btedly, Heinley and Grand Duke Kapmen let go of each other¡¯s hands. Taking about five steps back. ¡°It¡¯s because of me.¡± When I stepped forward to try to fix the situation, McKenna said with narrowed eyes, ¡°Ah, of course, it¡¯s because of the Empress. Well, the basics are bread and coffee, but if it¡¯s coffee with milk so much the better.¡± He spoke in a very solemn tone. However, what kind of metaphor was that? ¡°I don¡¯t care what the three of you do by mutual agreement. But don¡¯t ask me to y the role of jam.¡± Jam? ¡°Ah, this isn¡¯t the important point.¡± McKenna patted his own head before grimly eximing, ¡°Christa hasmitted suicide!¡± *** Chapter 330 - Isolated (1) Chapter 330. Isted (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren After Navier and Grand Duke Kapmen left, Heinley sat back in his desk chair and asked McKenna. ¡°Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, the knights confirmed it.¡± ¡°Why so suddenly? I thought she might get bored, so I added an entertainment area. I also let some of her friends in to keep herpany. She was given all the food she liked. Why did shemit suicide? It¡¯s arge mansion, right?¡± ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because of the letter you sent her?¡± Heinley let out an ¡°Ahh,¡± at McKenna¡¯s words. Although he knew why McKenna said it, he didn¡¯t agree. ¡°Because of the letter in which I said that old Duke Zemensia decided to abandon her for the sake of her nephews?¡± ¡°It must have been very shocking. Even on the day of the council of state, she seemed very disappointed in the old Duke.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Did she think her father, who abandoned her once, would not abandon her again?¡± ¡°Well, each person thinks differently.¡± McKenna clicked his tongue as if a little sorry and asked, ¡°In any case, the dead can¡¯t be revived. It¡¯s over. What do you n to do now?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t leave a will before shemitted suicide?¡± ¡°No, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Make one up and bring it.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°In it she must me her father.¡± After a moment¡¯s reflection, Heinley added as if a good idea had urred to him, ¡°Thedies-in-waiting who were incarcerated with my sister-inw will be given onest chance.¡± *** ¡°What the hell are you saying?! Christamitted suicide!¡± Old Duke Zemensia jumped to his feet. The n he was working on right now flew off the desk. The subordinate, who brought the news, looked down in sorrow. Old Duke Zemensia shook his head as his hands trembled. ¡°It can not be, it¡¯s a lie! My daughter is so strong she would never take her own life!¡± Soon after, his shocked eyes turned menacing with a fiery fury. ¡°Heinley, that damned emperor killed my daughter and disguised it as a suicide!¡± Through the open window he could hear the voices of his two grandsons fighting over a little foal. ¡°Brother, don¡¯t touch what is mine.¡± ¡°You never want to share, you¡¯re too greedy.¡± Each one raised their voice to point out the injustice. The old duke walked over to the window to close it. Then, his subordinate said with a shrug. ¡°Master, there has been found¡­ a will.¡± The old Duke, who was watching the two children run freely around the private fields, turned around. ¡°A will?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right¡­¡± ¡°What does the will say!?¡± ¡°Christa says in the will that being abandoned by the old Duke broke her heart. Of all people, she expected to receive support from the old Duke. She was so hurt that she had no reason to live anymore.¡± The old Duke¡¯s eyes twitched, feeling a stabbing pain deep in his chest. Tears clouded his eyes, he lost his bnce and writhed. ¡°Master!¡± The subordinate quickly held up the old Duke. ¡°Sit over here, over here.¡± Once the old Duke sat down in the armchair, the subordinate shifted back and forth impatiently. The old Duke leaned back in the armchair in astonishment. After a moment, he shook his head. ¡°Fake! It¡¯s a fake will!¡± ¡°Thedies-in-waiting who went to Compshire with Christa imed the will was true.¡± ¡°What!?¡± ¡°They also said that Christa held a grudge against you ever since she came to Compshire. When she was doing well, you stood by her side as a person willing to do anything for her, but as soon as she became useless, you abandoned her for the sake of your status and grandchildren.¡± Duke Zemensia¡¯s eyes twitched again. ¡°No! Impossible! It¡¯s a lie!¡± The old Duke¡¯s bellow stopped theughtering from the other side of the window. Then, he got up from the armchair, pulled his sword from the wall and shouted, ¡°This was all done by Emperor Heinley.¡± A fire burst from his eyes.. Did he not warn me that he would hang my daughter? Even if Christa really hadmitted suicide, couldn¡¯t she have been influenced by Heinley?¡¯ He felt strongly that Heinley was behind this. ¡®How else could Christa have found out that I had decided to abandon her again if she was confined?¡¯ As far as the old Duke knew, only the two of them were aware. ¡°Damned Emperor! I¡¯ll never leave him alone! Never!¡± The furious old duke¡¯s blood pressure shot up, then he staggered and copsed back into the armchair. ¡°What about Ketron? What is he doing? His cousin is dead, but I haven¡¯t even seen him!¡± *** ¡°Although Marquis Ketron is despicable and a bit careless, he¡¯s smart.¡± Heinley casually sipped his tea and continued indifferently. ¡°He didn¡¯t even show his face when he spread the infertility rumor, just fanned the mes behind the scenes. Now that my sister-inw died, he won¡¯t step forward either.¡± ¡°Well. he¡¯s stepping forward in another direction.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I heard that Marquis Ketron sent the Empress a cradle imported from the Hwa continent.¡± ¡°What? Now?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Huh? He¡¯s changing sides faster than I expected.¡± ¡°It could be an arbitrary action by the Marquise Ketron. The time the Marquis tried to take advantage of Your Majesty¡¯s alleged affair with Christa, it backfired on him. Since then, the rtionship between the two has deteriorated.¡± Heinley nodded, saying that might be the case. In any case, this incident produced aplete break with the old Duke. Since this was a family that had cemented its reputation over generations, it would not fall immediately. However, the rtionship between Heinley and the old Duke had reached a point of no return. ¡°How does Your Majesty intend to act now? The old Duke won¡¯t believe that Christa hasmitted suicide.¡± Chapter 331 - Isolated (2) Chapter 331. Isted (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°That¡¯s right. He won¡¯t sit idly by while he thinks I¡¯m to me.¡± ¡°Even the time we had a problem with the Eastern Empire, everyone wanted to back down, but in the end we received an apology from Grand Duke Lilteang because the old Duke didn¡¯t step back.¡± ¡°Oh, I really liked the old Duke back then. Especially when he roared, ¡®Do you think because our country is small, our pride is small too..¡¯?¡± Heinley, who sighed and shook his head, soon smiled and spoke casually. ¡°Anyway, now that it¡¯se to this, we have to take advantage of his fierce temperament that only looks ahead and pounces.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It is necessary to make him more enraged so that he bes openly hostile towards me, to the point where his close aides think, ¡®Isn¡¯t it dangerous to be on his side?''¡± Being part of the Western Empire was above being a close aide to old Duke Zemensia. ¡°Why not me him for some crime?¡± ¡°We need to let everyone see him go mad with their own eyes. Best not to intervene directly, McKenna.¡± Heinley calmly handed Christa¡¯s will to McKenna. ¡°Old Duke Zemensia tried to disgrace me to iste me among the nobles. So in turn I will make it look like he has gone mad to iste him among the nobles. ¡± ¡°I understand¡­ but why are you giving me the will?¡± ¡°Send it to the old Duke. Offer him my sincere condolences.¡± *** I never thought Christa wouldmit suicide. The unexpected news seemed to have shocked everyone. I sat on the couch in my room and looked at the flowerpot by the window. It was the flowerpot Christa had sent me. I tried not to think about it too much, this kind of news is not good during pregnancy¡­. However, it kepting to my mind. While of course I didn¡¯t like Christa, I wasn¡¯t happy to hear that she had died. I would have preferred her to remain healthy in Compshire, filled with resentment. I shook my head quickly to push thoughts of her away. Instead of staying seated, I walked around the room and out into the drawing room. Fortunately, it worked. As I entered the drawing room, a new problem came to mind. The problem was the cradle sent by the Ketron Family. A cradle of the highest quality that ced me in a difficult position. The cradle itself was magnificent, but since it was sent by Marquis Ketron, who had always been hostile, there were divided opinions on what to do. In fact, the drawing room was filled with gifts for the baby that the nobles sent every day. At that moment, there was a knock at the door of the drawing room and a knight informed me of the arrival of Grand Duke Kapmen. Was it because of the mana lesson? Heinley had strangely interrupted us while teaching me. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± It seems that was not the case. Upon entering, Grand Duke Kapmen seemed less calm than usual. His voice was also loud. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I have something to report about the trade teams.¡± This made me nervous. The time he came to see me like this was to tell me that a team had been detained in Whitemond. I looked at him with concern. What happened this time? However, what appeared on Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s lips was a bright smile. ¡°I received a message from one of the test trade teams!¡± ¡°A message¡­¡± ¡°It turned out great! The trip went great!¡± *** Rashta considered Viscount Roteschu and the Isqua Family to be leeches sucking her money. The situation became even moreplicated now that her real father joined them. ¡°He wants money again?¡± ¡°Yes, he is not in good health and needs money to cover medical expenses¡­¡± Rashta wrapped both hands around her head. The maid, whom Rashta sent to her real father to run errands, looked down as if she regretted her words. However, the truth is that the maid was not at all regretful. Rashta¡¯s real father had be greedier when it came to getting money out of her, but he was quite generous to the people around him. This maid was among those people. ¡°He was in good health a few days ago! What kind of medical expenses does he have?!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯m just passing on his message.¡± Eventually, Rashta took out a few jewels from her jewelry box and handed them to the maid. Once the maid left, Rashta copsed on the bed and rolled back and forth. She believed that there was not a single person who loved her. Not a single person! ¡®No. I have Duke Elgy.¡¯ Just then, Viscount Isqua and Viscountess Isqua came to visit her. ¡®Are they here to ask for more money?¡¯ Rashta was uneasy, but the couple didn¡¯t seem to be here today for money. ¡°Is it true that His Majesty doesn¡¯t want to let you see the princess?¡± ¡°You¡¯re the mother, how can he not let you see the baby?!¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t Viscountess Verdi yourdy-in-waiting? Why did thatdy-in-waiting suddenly be the princess¡¯ nanny?¡± Seeing the couple worried about her, Rashta burst into tears. It¡¯s been a long time since anyone hasforted her, and when someone finally took her side, the tears overflowed as if a dam had copsed. After a long cry, Rashta sobbed and whispered, ¡°It¡¯s all because of the future concubine, Evely.¡± ¡°Evely? Why that girl?¡± ¡°What did she do to you?¡± ¡°She didn¡¯t do anything directly. But if it weren¡¯t for that girl, His Majesty would have no reason to suddenly turn away from Rashta.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. A person in love bes blind.¡± Rashta wept even harder in the Viscountess¡¯ arms, and looked up slightly to examine their expressions. Viscount and Viscountess Verdi talked about how ordinary Evely was. Far from considering that she might be their real daughter, they had faces of anger and rejection. ¡®That¡¯s a relief.¡¯ Rashta felt better. There didn¡¯t seem to be an instinctive attraction to her through blood ties or anything like that. But she couldn¡¯t take it lightly. Just as Viscount Roteschu had discovered about Evely, so could they. Although they were now intoxicated by the glory of being ¡®the Empress¡¯ parents,¡¯ fully immersed in high society, one never knows how long it willst. ¡°I don¡¯t like that girl to stay in the imperial pce.¡± That said, Rashta took out a handkerchief and wiped her eyes. They hated Evely so much that they wouldn¡¯t suddenly go for a paternity test. However, she preferred to send Evely away as a precaution. Send her to a ce where neither of them could find her. The scenario would not be good if she took the initiative to throw Evely out. Even more so if the situation went awry and it was discovered that Evely was their real daughter. So it was necessary for Viscount and Viscountess Isqua to throw Evely out on their own, in a fit of ¡®extreme love¡¯. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Rashta. It seems the girl is not apetent mage. Needless to say, you are the most beautiful. Sooner orter, His Majesty will lose interest in that mage.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, he¡¯s just a little curious because she¡¯s a mage.¡± After they left, Rashta let out a deep sigh, went back to bed andy on her stomach. Once calm, she remembered that there was another urgent matter to attend to besides Evely¡¯s. Rashta opened the calendar to see how much time was left of the one-year deadline Sovieshu had promised her. Yes, a deadline. She was a temporary Empress. In the time she had left, she had to win back Sovieshu¡¯s heart and get her baby back. Otherwise, she would never see her daughter again. ¡°Arian!¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Borrow a baby.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Yes, a baby. Borrow a baby the same size as Rashta¡¯s daughter. I¡¯ll give you the money, just ask to borrow it for six hours a day.¡± ¡°It¡¯s because of the princess, you can say that the princess needs a friend her age.¡± Arian was confused, but nodded and walked away. Rashta then exhaled heavily. ¡®I just have to practice holding a baby. Then I¡¯ll be able to hold Glorym in my arms without dropping her. A teddy bear is not like a baby.¡¯ Rashta patted her own cheeks and shook her shoulders. ¡®No matter how difficult a situation is, Rashta always pulls through. This time, Rashta has to pull through too.¡¯ She had to find a way to deal with Evely, get her daughter back, win back Sovieshu¡¯s heart, handle her real father, and take care of the journalist. The journalist was getting so much attention that it was hard to deal with him right now, but there had to be a way. That was for sure. Just then¡­ ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Arian, who had gone out, came back in and reported. ¡°A young man named n wants to see Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Who?!¡± ¡°n Rimwell.¡± Rashta jumped to her feet and almost screamed, ¡®Has he gone mad?¡¯ However, Arian¡¯s next words drowned out the scream. ¡°He brings a child.¡± ¡°A child?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± At first, she was so stunned that she couldn¡¯t speak. She had a strong urge to order her to get him out immediately. But Rashta soon changed her mind. On second thought, it might be a good thing. She needed a baby to practice on. Wasn¡¯t this the child that caused her trauma? Her first child looked a lot like the princess, so wouldn¡¯t it be better to practice with this child? ¡°Okay. Let him in.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Momentster, n appeared with a small child in his arms, whose face was practically hidden by nkets and a big hat. Rashta closed the door to the drawing room after ordering no one to enter, and looked disdainfully at n. She let him in because she thought he would be useful because he came with the little child, but she couldn¡¯t stand it when she saw him. ¡°How shameless. Why did youe here?¡± ¡°Rashta¡­¡± ¡°Is Rashta a friend of yours? Call me Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I had some business to attend to at the Imperial Pce, so I decided to take the opportunity to stop by so you could see your son¡­¡± ¡°What business?¡± ¡°Nothing important¡­¡± n spoke hesitantly. Rashta then looked disdainfully back at his apparently innocent expression and held out her hands. ¡°Give him to me.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ it¡¯s okay.¡± n nervously removed his hat and handed his son to Rashta. Rashta held the baby with both hands and looked at his face. Even though she knew it, she felt strange to see a face so simr to the princess¡¯. But because of the age difference, her first child had more defined features. ¡°What¡¯s his name?¡± ¡°Ahn. His name is Ahn.¡± ¡°It¡¯s in very poor taste.¡± Rashta, who spoke coldly, turned her attention back to the little child¡¯s face. For some reason, she felt a little tingle in her heart. Cold sweat ran down her back and her arms were tense. n looked stunned at her touched expression and opened his mouth. ¡°I actually came to tell you something, Rashta.¡± ¡°I told you not to address me that way.¡± ¡°Rashta. Ahn is also your child.¡± ¡°To you, I am ¡®Your Majesty¡¯.¡± ¡°Ahn is the first child of the Empress. The first child of the Empress of the Eastern Empire.¡± Rashta, who frowned at n¡¯sck of etiquette, suddenly rposed her expression as she had a bad feeling. ¡°How could he be my child? He¡¯s yours.¡± ¡°Ahn is also your child. Rashta, my Ahn is also the empress¡¯ child, isn¡¯t it too pitiful that he lives like a bastard child?¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t he at least deserve to be treated like a quasi-prince?¡± Rashta looked at n with wide eyes. n smiled broadly with an expectant, hopeful look, as if he were in a dream. ¡°In the past¡­ you used to be a ve with no chance to help your child, but not anymore. So there¡¯s no need to hide it, right? It would be wretched if Ahn had to live like a bastard while his younger sister lived like a princess.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes tinged with fear. *** Chapter 332 - I’ll Give You A Chance (1) Chapter 332. I¡¯ll Give You A Chance (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren After the death of the former queen, who exerted a strong influence in the country, the world returned to calm. The weather became warmer, and the scent of cornflowers permeated every corner. The clothes of the nobles gradually became lighter and more colorful, like the flowers that bloomed in the gardens. Heinley spent days learning from Kapmen how to help me feel the flow of mana. As I sat nearby reading children¡¯s books, parenting rted books, and sometimes yed the piano. Lately, I also went to the bathroom more often. My mother began serious discussions with my father about the possibility of extending their stay in the Western Empire. I also told my parents that Rashta had hired a mercenary to take their lives, but it only came down to one attempt thanks to Heinley. However, theyughed out loud that one mercenary would not be enough to take down the Troby Family. In any case, these were generally quiet days, except for the asional thoughts of Christa that popped into my head. It was in the evening after a visit to the capital that Heinley spoke of the banquet. ¡°I think we should organize a banquet to celebrate the pregnancy. What do you think, My Queen?¡± When I was falling asleep on the couch, I looked at him surprised by his unexpected question. A banquet? Naturally, it brought back memories of the banquet Sovieshu arranged for Rashta. And of the unpleasant feelings then. I reflexively objected. ¡°Heinley, it won¡¯t be long until your birthday party. It would not be good to organize a banquet now because it would ce a burden on those who attend.¡± Although it was an excuse, it was true. In fact, when I was in the Eastern Empire, I didn¡¯t celebrate my birthday because that day was close enough to New Year¡¯s Celebrations. But instead of giving up, Heinley massaged my shoulders and insisted, ¡°Then we¡¯d better organize a simple banquet.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°To also celebrate that trade with Rwibt is on the right track.¡± Heinley seemed to really want to organize the banquet, so I reluctantly nodded. If he wanted to do it so much, I couldn¡¯t refuse. ¡± Alright.¡± Why was he so happy? Heinley opened his mouth wide in excitement and asked me quietly, ¡°My Queen. I¡¯ll write the invitations.¡± ¡°That¡¯s my role¡ª¡± ¡°My Queen, you can¡¯t spend too much time sitting at your desk. Now is the time of highest risk.¡± ¡°In the early stages a woman was more prone to miscarriage. Even for any small effort, mydies-in-waiting would get nervous.¡± But that didn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t sit down at my desk to write some invitations. ¡°Then let¡¯s divide the work.¡± Although I tried to make a deal, Heinley also immediately refused. ¡°No, I¡¯ll do it alone.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°My Queen, just rx. Listen to music and go to the theater.¡± Well alright, I didn¡¯t care if he did. However, why did he have such a happy expression that he couldn¡¯t keep his mouth shut? Seeing him like this, he was definitely up to something... *** ¡°That bastard...¡± Sovieshu spat out loud expletives, crushed the invitation, in his hands, sent by the Emperor of the Western Empire himself, and threw it away. The invitation, which had been balled up, bounced off the wall and rolled across the floor. Sovieshu closed his eyes, snorting heavily. He was so angry that his vision blurred. ¡®Did he want me to go congratte his wife on her pregnancy? Did he really ask me if I could do that given the past rtionship? Besides, did he dare ask me for advice as a father who had gone through his wife¡¯s pregnancy and childbirth?¡¯ ¡°Bloody lunatic.¡± Heinley wrote an invitation as if he had been a lifelong friend of Sovieshu. However, Heinley was just making fun of him. Sovieshu kicked the invitation that rolled on the floor while grinding his teeth. Everyone knew what would happen if Sovieshu attended the event. While attending a national wedding might be considered a state affair, it was quite unusual for an Emperor to attend a banquet in honor of the future child of other rulers. ¡®Still, did Heinley want me to attend? Less than a year after the divorce? Who would see me attend the banquet and think, ¡®The Eastern Empire and the Western Empire are on very good terms!¡¯?¡¯ No one. Everyone would scoff and point fingers behind his back. Thinking that Emperor Sovieshu still had feelings for his ex-wife. What infuriated him the most was that it was true. *** ¡°Your Majesty.¡± At that moment, Marquis Karl called out to him on the other side of the door. ¡°Come in. What is it?¡± After entering the bedroom, Marquis Karl closed the door firmly and reported in a low voice. ¡°I heard that Rashta was crying in Duke Elgy¡¯s arms.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyebrows rose. ¡°Now?¡± ¡°No, not now. I knew because the rumor spread. It must have been yesterday.¡± Yesterday was the day that Sovieshu ordered Rashta¡¯s first child to be brought in forparison with the princess. Sovieshuughed out loud. ¡°If the rumor spread, it means everyone in the imperial pce is talking about it.¡± Marquis Karl made an ufortable face. That seemed to be the case. Rashta met Duke Elgy again despite the shameful rumor that was already circting about them. Besides, Sovieshu was beginning to fear that the infertility was him after he learned of Navier¡¯s pregnancy. The princess was identical to her older brother. She only resembled Sovieshu in the number of fingers and toes. As unpleasant as it was to hear that Rashta had gone forfort in Duke Elgy¡¯s arms, what actually worried him was that the princess was not his child. ¡°You told me yesterday that n went to see Rashta right after he met with me.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Majesty, what is it?¡± ¡®If the father of Rashta¡¯s first child was n... that would mean that Rashta burst into tears in her current lover¡¯s arms because it brought back memories to see the father of her first child? Did she confess what was happening to Duke Elgy so that he wouldfort her? Is it also possible that her current lover was the real father of the princess?¡¯ Sovieshu forcefully shook off the growing anxiety that Rashta¡¯s story produced. ¡®No, the times do not fit. It is absurd. The same goes for the son of Viscount Roteschu. Due to the times it is impossible that he is the real father of the princess.¡¯ However, distrust still pushed his head from side to side. ¡®Is there any chance that there is a third man?¡¯ He was btedly annoyed that Rashta held a tea party with only noblemen. ¡°I really don¡¯t like any of this.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, are you all right?¡± ¡°I never thought a year could be so long.¡± ¡°Do you want me to ask Rashta to watch her behavior?¡± ¡°Have you ever heard a goldfish talk?¡± ¡°The teacher who taught Rashta once said, ¡®although her learning ability is slow, she¡¯s not dumb¡¯.¡± ¡°I know Rashta isn¡¯t dumb, which makes me even angrier. It may seem like she doesn¡¯t understand the implications of her behavior, but it¡¯s just that she doesn¡¯t really care.¡± After thesest words, Sovieshu ordered the marquis to leave. He then picked up the invitation that he had balled up. He smoothed out the invitation, read it again with a frown, and crushed it. It was very unpleasant. However... ¡®I think I should send a gift. Navier might be overwhelmed if I sent a gift, but wouldn¡¯t she be disappointed if I didn¡¯t?¡¯ Moreover, it was customary to send gifts between ruling families of the same continent for their first unborn child. Unless the rtionship was particrly bad or on its way to being. ¡®What gift should I send? What kind of gift should I send to Navier¡¯s child?¡¯ Sovieshu¡¯s eyes suddenly fell on the altered painting. His expression became distorted. A child born between him and Navier. The image of that child that hade to his mind hundreds of times since his youth, appeared once again before his eyes. ¡®Navier¡¯s child. The child that could... have been mine.¡¯ He felt suffocated, as if his lungs were being pressed hard. Sovieshu forced himself to shake his head. Whether a prince or a princess, one day he would see it. Just thinking about that moment already made him feel short of breath. Sovieshu leaned his forehead against the painting and pressed his lips together. ¡®I hope the child only looks like Emperor Heinley. I hope the child doesn¡¯t look like Navier.¡¯ Chapter 333 - I’ll Give You A Chance (2)

Chapter 333. I¡¯ll Give You A Chance (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley finally learned the method to sense the flow of mana from Grand Duke Kapmen. Thest few days had been so boring that I was eager to learn it right away. Although I had not revealed my impatience, I wanted Heinley to teach me how to control mana as soon as possible. Once I learned to control mana, I would show my parents what I could do, so I told them in advance, ¡°There¡¯s a surprise I¡¯ll show you soon.¡± However, Heinley shook his head when I asked him to hurry up and help me control mana. ¡°Not now, My Queen.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I just learned it. It¡¯s dangerous.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be more dangerous if you forgot it over time?¡± ¡°First I have to test if I can do it right.¡± ¡®What kind of test? How was he supposed to test it?¡¯ I frowned and looked at Heinley with a face like, ¡®Are you serious?¡¯ However, Heinley was adamant when it came to my safety. ¡°It¡¯s useless for you to look at me in such a lovely way.¡± I let out a sigh. He would never give in on a matter like this. ¡°How do you n to test it?¡± Finally, when I asked a little uneasily, Heinley responded with a meaningful smile. ¡°I have a test subject.¡± ¡°A test subject?¡± ¡°Yes, so please be a little patient, My Queen. After I test it, I¡¯ll help you control mana.¡± ¡°Okay...¡± ¡°Are you upset, My Queen?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re upset...¡± ¡°Not really.¡± ¡°My Queen...¡± ¡°What do you want?¡± Heinley, who looked at me stunned for a moment, shook his head with a sad face. ¡°Well. If My Queen says no, it¡¯s no. I was worried because you answered me with a few words, but I¡¯ll trust My Queen.¡± *** ¡°Your Majesty? Who did you fight with?¡± Heinley lifted his downcast gaze at the sound of McKenna¡¯s cheery voice. ¡°What happened? Why are your eyes puffy?¡± McKenna took a step back, amazed at his depressed expression. ¡°Nothing. Where is Marquis Ketron? Has he not arrived yet?¡± ¡°It¡¯s almost time for him to arrive...¡± Just as he answered, an attendant entered to announce that Marquis Ketron had arrived. McKenna hurried to sit down and straightened his back proudly. ¡°Let him in.¡± Heinley spoke in a firm voice. Then he watched Marquis Ketron enter with his arms folded on the desk. There was no force in the Marquis¡¯s steps as he entered. The corners of his mouth drooped, and his arrogant eyes wavered. Normally he looked like a seahorse, but today he looked like a half-dried seaweed. His pale, darkplexion hinted that the rumors of his recent family troubles were true. ¡®Maybe it¡¯s also because of his cousin Christa¡¯s death,¡¯ McKenna thought to himself. However, Heinley¡¯s expression did not change as he watched the powerless Marquis Ketron. He did not have a face of happiness, nor ofpassion. Heinley remained in a crossed arm posture, and once Marquis Ketron came within five paces of his desk, he asked in a deep voice, ¡°What is old Duke Zemensia¡¯s weakness?¡± Marquis Ketron looked at Heinley very surprised. After the news that Christa hadmitted suicide everyone was in shock. The old Duke went to visit Marquis Ketron today and told him that Heinley was surely involved in this, so he asked Marquis Ketron for his help in making a n because no doubt the Emperor intended to eliminate everyone who had any connection with Christa. A couple of hourster, he received the imperial order to go to the pce. Now, Marquis Ketron¡¯s mind was a mess. His cousin¡¯s suicide, his uncle¡¯s request, the series of private meetings with the Emperor, the conflict with his wife, the cold stares of his children... Everything was a mess. He was afraid, but the confusion was greater. Now he asks me about my uncle¡¯s weaknesses? ¡°Why do you ask me that sudden question...?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you understand, Marquis?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I¡¯m giving you a chance to change sides.¡± Marquis Ketron¡¯s eyes fluttered intensely. ¡°You mean...¡± ¡°Sell your uncle.¡± Marquis Ketron¡¯s eyes fluttered even worse. ¡°Your Majesty, what are you saying?¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong with that? Old Duke Zemensia sold his daughter to cover up his own crimes.¡± Heinley continued to corner him, not giving him time to think calmly. ¡°It¡¯s not as difficult a decision as the old Duke¡¯s. If you tell me your uncle¡¯s weaknesses, I¡¯ll forget all you¡¯ve done.¡± ¡°But...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know why you hesitate so much. It¡¯s easy. Look at it this way. Don¡¯t you think the old Duke who sold his daughter to save his life wouldn¡¯t sell his nephew?¡± After thinking about it briefly, Marquis Ketron opened his mouth. ¡°His weakness is his two grandchildren.¡± A smile came across Heinley¡¯s face. ¡°I see. He loves them so much that he didn¡¯t mind sacrificing his daughter.¡± Marquis Ketron¡¯s heartbeat quickened. Is it true? Is it true what he is saying? Did the old Duke really abandon Christa? Or is he trying to separate me from the old Duke? It was hard to imagine that the old Duke would have abandoned Christa for his own sake, but it would be different if it were for the sake of his son and grandchildren. He adored his two grandchildren very much. Even at the state council before Christa left for Compshire, the old Duke didn¡¯t open his mouth. Still, what on earth had happened to make him abandon Christa again? From the time Christa left for Compshire until now, the old Duke had been silent. This was strange. Heinley stared at a puzzled Marquis Ketron, and eventually opened his mouth. ¡°Thank you for telling me your weakness. But that was too easy to erase your crimes, don¡¯t you think?¡± What else did he want? Marquis Ketron looked at Heinley in surprise. This was something even McKenna didn¡¯t know, so he was surprised as well. ¡°What else do you want...¡± ¡°Your body.¡± McKenna dropped the papers he held in his hands instantly, while Marquis Ketron took a step back. ¡°What?!¡± Chapter 334 Chapter 334. Jealousy and Happiness (1) Come to think of it, I think I treated Heinley more coldly than I should have during the day. Lately, not only had I increased the number of times I went to the bathroom, but I had also increased the number of times I became angry in an instant, unable to control it. Thinking about this made me feel suddenly guilty, I considered that I had been cruel and heartless to treat a lovely eagle like Heinley so coldly. ¡°Countess Jubel.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Did you ever fight with Count Jubel?¡± ¡°Ugh, more than a few times. I can¡¯t stand to see his face. I¡¯m sure it¡¯s mutual.¡± ¡°How did you used to fight?¡± ¡°We used to insult each other.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± ¡°Did you fight with the Emperor?¡± ¡°No, we didn¡¯t have a fight. His Majesty didn¡¯t get upset with me. I was the one who treated him coldly.¡± Countess Jubelughed and handed me the cup of tea she had brought. ¡°Pregnancy can cause a lot of emotional ups and downs.¡± I hope Heinley thinks the same so he doesn¡¯t feel hurt. However, I¡¯ll apologize to him at dinner time. I shouldn¡¯t have treated him coldly, since he did it to take care of me. ¡°Um, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Tell me, Miss Mastas.¡± ¡°Your Majesty usually seems cold, so I don¡¯t think you should worry about that.¡± What? At that moment, Rose tapped Mastas on the back with the chessboard she brought, ¡°Ouch! What did you hit me with on the back? Why do you hit me all the time?¡± When Mastasined, Rose red at her and waved her hands. I was able to interpret it as, ¡®there was no need to say that.¡¯ ¡­ I always seem cold. I smiled awkwardly and drank the tea Countess Jubel gave me. Heinley will be here soon. It¡¯s better not to worry too much. I just have to express myself properly while looking him in the eye. However, it was McKenna who appeared ten minutester with a serious expression. I was surprised because McKenna rarely came to see me. He even asked mydies-in-waiting to step out for a moment. Did something really happen? Once we were alone, McKenna quickly approached me, put his hand around his mouth and said, ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. What I will tell you now must be kept absolutely secret. Can you promise me that?¡± Although I nodded, I looked at him with a puzzled expression. Then McKenna quietly confessed, ¡°His Majesty Heinley made a strange request to Marquis Ketron.¡± ¡°A strange request?¡± ¡°Heinley told him he wanted his body!¡± McKenna shook his head wildly and continued, ¡°At first I couldn¡¯t understand what he meant. After that, His Majesty Heinley told me to leave the office because it was hard to concentrate.¡± Looking at me with quizzical eyes, McKenna asked, ¡°Your Majesty, do you know what it means?¡± Heinley wanted Marquis Ketron¡¯s body. Besides, he had to concentrate. Earlier, he had told me that he needed someone to test his mana control. Ah, I think I know. Marquis Ketron was a mage. He intended to use his body to practice what he had learned from Grand Duke Kapmen. I nodded at McKenna¡¯s question. Then he pounded his chest with his fist and said, ¡°My goodness! I¡¯m definitely on the Empress¡¯ side on this. You believe me, right?¡± ¡°On my side?¡± ¡°Absolutely!¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± Although I didn¡¯t understand why he seemed so anxious, I thanked him for being on my side. Come to think of it, McKenna has helped me a lot since he was just a blue bird to me. Even if he just wanted to help Heinley, he was also helping me. ¡°I appreciate you telling me about it. Now I can happily wait for Heinley.¡± ¡°What?!¡± However, McKenna was startled at my words and took a step back. ¡°Happily?¡± He had an expression of disbelief. Could it be that McKenna didn¡¯t agree with Heinley using someone else as a test subject? Is that why he seemed uneasy? Well, I didn¡¯t think much of it because it was Marquis Ketron, but it was terrible that Heinley would experiment on someone else for my sake. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, McKenna. But you shouldn¡¯t be so surprised. His Majesty does this for me.¡± ¡°He does this for the Empress?¡± ¡°Oh, you didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not normal to know!¡± ¡°I see. In fact, I don¡¯t know much either. Still, His Majesty is right to ask for Marquis Ketron¡¯s body for me.¡± ¡°It was the same earlier with Grand Duke Kapmen¡­. Your Majesty, I don¡¯t understand what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Nothing special. I just want to learn something new, McKenna.¡± McKenna startled again and stepped back. ¡°Are you all right?¡± When I stood up bewildered, McKenna hurried to the door and asked from there. ¡°Your Majesty, do you also want me to be part of your ¡®new knowledge¡¯?¡± ¡°I¡¯d like to. If you can help¡ª¡± Before I could finish my words, McKenna bowed his head hastily, and rushed out saying that he needed to go to the bathroom urgently. As I stared nkly at the swinging of the door, Laura walked in and asked, ¡°What happened to McKenna? His face was pale.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± I shook my head. It was just like the time he mentioned about the jam. What was he thinking? ¡°By the way, Your Majesty. I ran into Lady Nian today when I went downtown! She was fighting with Viscount Langdel!¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I didn¡¯t believe it either because I thought they would never fight. I don¡¯t know why they fought.¡± Come to think of it, wasn¡¯t Viscount Langdel concerned that Marquis Liberty was courting Nian? I hope it¡¯s not rted to that. ¡°Your Majesty, do you have any ideas?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you have an ¡®it can¡¯t be¡¯ face a moment ago?¡± ¡°No.¡± As I moved from one side of the drawing room to the other to avoid Laura¡¯s bright eyes, fortunately Heinley then appeared. ¡°My Queen? Are you ying tag?¡± I had to apologize to Heinley, so I rushed him into the shared bedroom and closed the door. Although Heinley was puzzled, he didn¡¯t object. However, perhaps because he remembered what had happened earlier today, he kept his eyes fixed on my expression. ¡°I¡¯m sorry about what happened during the day.¡± Then Heinley and I apologized almost at the same time. ¡°You don¡¯t have to apologize. I¡¯m the one who has to apologize for childishly losing my temper.¡± ¡°My Queen, that I acted with your welfare in mind is no reason for you to put up with what you don¡¯t like.¡± ¡°Heinley, this time it was definitely my fault.¡± ¡°No, I should have expressed myself better. Besides, you spoke calmly even though you were angry. You didn¡¯t lose your temper.¡± We quickly let our feelings flow to the point that our worries faded away. In the end, we smiled at each other. It was all thanks to Heinley. Although if I were to say this, he would say that it was thanks to me¡­ ¡°Well, My Queen. I think I can safely help you feel the flow of mana now.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course. I¡¯m sure. I checked several times. I¡¯ve improved a lot.¡± He is not going to tell me that he has experimented with Marquis Ketron? I don¡¯t know if I should say it. If I do, wouldn¡¯t McKenna get in trouble? As I hesitated, he grabbed my hand and kissed the back of it. ¡°I¡¯ll start with this.¡± ¡°Is kissing also part of the procedure?¡± ¡°It is.¡± ¡°Is it absolutely necessary?¡± ¡°It¡¯s helpful to do it.¡± ¡°Who told you that?¡± ¡°I myself.¡± He is as sly as a fox. As he chuckled, he kissed the back of my hand again and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you like it?¡± To be honest, it felt good. ¡°I can¡¯t stop you if it¡¯s helpful, so it¡¯s fine if you do it.¡± *** Chapter 335 - Jealousy and Happiness (2) Chapter 335. Jealousy and Happiness (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Leaning against a tree trunk, Rashta recalled the conversation she had with Marquis Karl an hour ago. ¡°You must be more careful with your actions, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What did Rashta do? Currently everyone picks on me, so I can¡¯t do anything.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you go to see Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°Yes. I met with him. Duke Elgy is the only one who cares for Rashta and isn¡¯t swayed by rumors. Rashta can¡¯t even see a friend?¡± ¡°Your Majesty. In today¡¯s newspapers, even in themoners¡¯ newspaper, there was an article in which it is stated that the Empress and Duke Elgy have frequent meetings alone.¡± ¡°Marquis Karl, Rashta also read it. The journalist who wrote that article is Joanson. He always speaks ill of Rashta!¡± ¡°People don¡¯t think the same.¡± ¡°His Majesty does notfort Rashta. Can¡¯t Rashta seekfort from someone else?¡± ¡°Not in your position.¡± ¡°You lie. The Empress of the Eastern Empire can even have lovers. It¡¯s unbelievable that Rashta can¡¯t meet a friend in such a country. It makes no sense.¡± ¡°Your Majesty is in a different situation than other empresses. After the Emperor forcibly divorced Navier, whom everyone trusted, Your Majesty Rashta ascended to the position of Empress. The marriage came about because of the fairytale love story between Your Majesty Rashta and His Majesty Sovieshu.¡± Rashta clenched her fist and banged her head against the tree. ¡®What am I supposed to do? Sovieshu was the one who brought another concubine, Sovieshu was the one who took me away from my daughter, and Sovieshu was the one who treated me coldly!¡¯ Rashta believed that she had done nothing wrong. If he had not brought another concubine, if he had not taken her away from her daughter, and if he had not treated her coldly, there would be no whispers. ¡®My friendship with Duke Elgy remained the same as before. Isn¡¯t it strange that false rumors were spread as soon as I lost Sovieshu¡¯s favor?¡¯ So for her it was Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s fault. Rashta also didn¡¯t like themoner¡¯s newspaper that Marquis Karl mentioned. ¡®Joanson... I must find a way to deal with that journalist...¡¯ Joanson, who wrote bad articles about her, also posed a problem for her. That journalist talked about the secret meetings between Rashta and Duke Elgy, pretending to be on her side and stated that he could not believe it. He then wrote an article about the princess. On the surface, he showered praise on the princess, but the problem was the first sentence of the article. ¡ª The Princess was born prematurely, but she is a healthy baby girl. After reading the article about the empress¡¯ secret meetings, the fact that the princess had been born prematurely would raise suspicions. It was clear that Joanson had truly dark intentions. ¡®It¡¯s exhausting.¡¯ The more she tried toe to her senses, the worse the situation got, and the stronger the pressure in her chest became. Rashta pounded her fist against her chest. Her fake parents, her real father, and Viscount Roteschu, often took money from her. Viscountess Verdi, who was her closest aide, had betrayed her. She could not see the princess¡¯ face, and the demented n asked her to make his son a quasi-prince. This was stressful enough. However, it didn¡¯t even end there. A journalist named Joanson used to write malicious articles about her as revenge for the disappearance of his younger sister, Sovieshu treated her coldly since he fell in love with another woman, and it was very likely that the wicked woman who took her husband from her was the real daughter of her fake parents. They approached her from all directions, reaching out their hands to squeeze her neck. Just then, she overheard a group of nobles chatting as they took a stroll. Rashta hurriedly hid. She had no reason to hide, but did so reflexively now after she would receive only criticism from people. However, these nobles unexpectedly spoke favorably of Rashta. ¡°... At that point I told her to get the hell out of here. That girl named Evely made a furious look and insulted us. She said that if our lost daughter, who grew up as an orphan, met people like us, she must have suffered a lot...¡± ¡°Oh my! How could she say such ugly words to parents who have lost a daughter?!¡± ¡°Then I told her she was a harlot, that my daughter would never get involved with a married man. This made her very upset.¡± ¡°She seems nice at first nce. But that girl is too arrogant.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not polite. She has no etiquette. She doesn¡¯t even know her position.¡± ¡°Commoners be haughty after they gain power. That¡¯s whymoners shouldn¡¯t be mages.¡± ¡°Not really. Let¡¯s all look at Rashta. She was so pure and kind even when she didn¡¯t know her parents were nobles.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s true. Back then, Her Majesty really did look like a bright wildflower.¡± Rashta smiled sadly. ¡®The Viscount and Viscountess Isqua have made other nobles speak well of me.¡¯ Although they also took money from her, they were the only ones who gave it back. The couple, who finished their speech about how pure and kind Rashta was, now insisted that Sovieshu should take better care of Rashta. Rashta listened to the conversation happily as she was hidden in the bushes. Sleep began to overtake her as the praise she had not heard in quite some time went on. But she waspletely awakened by the name that came up soon after. ¡°Are you going to the banquet to celebrate Navier¡¯s pregnancy?¡± Puzzled, Rashta¡¯s eyes went wide. ¡®Pregnant? Who¡¯s pregnant?¡¯ ¡°I don¡¯t know yet. I might make a little trip because I had a good rtionship with Navier.¡± ¡°There was a rumor that the reason the Emperor divorced Navier was probably because of her infertility. In the end it was just a false rumor.¡± ¡°There are many false rumors. Wasn¡¯t Emperor Heinley said to be a famous yboy? If it were true, would he be so attentive to Navier?¡± Rashta swallowed hard. Her heart raced in a different sense than before. Her whole body began to itch as an unpleasant feeling came over her. ¡®Navier? Wasn¡¯t she infertile?¡¯ After learning that Sovieshu suspected Navier¡¯s infertility, Rashta fully believed it. She was convinced that Navier was infertile. ¡®How could she be pregnant? Besides, did she have a good rtionship with Emperor Heinley? This... this is absurd. It makes no sense.¡¯ Inside her clenched fist, fingernails dug into her flesh. The tip of her nose burned with resentment. ¡°Why am I suffering so much? Did she dump everything bad in her life on me and leave to make a happy home?¡¯ Rashta couldn¡¯t even see her daughter¡¯s face, while Navier was happily pregnant. ¡®Actually, Rashta was the woman Prince Heinley fell in love with first.¡¯ Chapter 336 - Why Does She Keep Showing Up? (1) Chapter 336. Why Does She Keep Showing Up? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡®I should have paid attention to Heinley when he showed interest in me.¡¯ Rashta waited for the nobles to move away before she emerged from the bushes and headed for Duke Elgy¡¯s room. Every time she heard the crunch of grass as she stepped down, her anger rose. ¡°Don¡¯t you look well?¡± Duke Elgy asked, immediately noticing Rashta¡¯s deep anger. ¡°I heard bad news.¡± Once Rashta confirmed that no one was around, she closed the door. ¡°Bad news?¡± ¡°How would the Duke feel if someone you have a bad rtionship with became happy?¡± ¡°Not very well. It would be a little unpleasant.¡± ¡°It¡¯s the same for Rashta. A woman Rashta hates is living happily. Rashta doesn¡¯t like that. That woman dumped her misfortunes on Rashta and left to be happy.¡± ¡°Who are you talking about?¡± ¡°... There is such a woman.¡± Rashta spoke vaguely and pointed to therge suitcase behind Duke Elgy. ¡°By the way, where are you going?¡± ¡°Ah. I¡¯m going to visit the Western Empire for a while.¡± ¡°The Western Empire? Why?¡± Rashta worriedly approached Duke Elgy. Gently gripping a corner of his suit with both hands. ¡°Will you abandon Rashta?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll just be gone for a while. I want to see Heinley.¡± ¡°Why him...¡± ¡°I¡¯ll congratte him on his first child.¡± Rashta¡¯s expression darkened. She was in a bad mood about it. Her insides seemed to twist when she heard that Duke Elgy would be going to congratte him. ¡°Oh, right. The Duke is a close friend of His Majesty Heinley.¡± ¡°Your Majesty Rashta isn¡¯t going?¡± ¡°Why would Rashta go there?¡± ¡°You should have received a formal invitation. Don¡¯t you want to go?¡± ¡°She should have received a formal invitation, doesn¡¯t she want to go?¡± Rashta whispered in a depressed voice. ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to. Rashta recently hasn¡¯t been treated like an Empress even in the Eastern Empire. Would Rashta be treated well in another country?¡± ¡°Every country should treat its distinguished guests with the utmost courtesy. You are the Empress of the Eastern Empire, so you will certainly be treated well.¡± Truth be told, Rashta did not want to see Navier unt her happiness. She didn¡¯t want to see the woman who pushed her into a well and left to be happy. However, she wanted to see Emperor Heinley one more time. Rashta believed that Heinley had interest in her back then, but she was so obsessed with Emperor Sovieshu that she pretended not to notice. In the end, Heinley married Navier. Now that her situation had changed, she thought the oue might be different. Whether he was still interested in her or not, she wanted to test the waters. Besides, Duke Elgy would also go to the Western Empire... ¡°On second thought, there¡¯s no special reason not to go.¡± ¡°Shall we go together?¡± ¡°I would like to, but I don¡¯t think His Majesty would allow it...¡± Rashta sighed with regret. Although she unexpectedly wanted to visit the Western Empire, Sovieshu immediately granted permission when she asked him. Rashta was d, she didn¡¯t even have to try to convince him. ¡°Can I really go?¡± ¡°You seem depressedtely. It will do you good to go on a trip.¡± ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Watch Navier while you¡¯re there and learn how an empress behaves.¡± Although his naive attitude seemed suspicious, since it was a request from herself, Rashta eventually confirmed her visit to the Western Empire and began to prepare for the trip. After a few days, Rashta left for the Western Empire, apanied by Grand Duke Lilteang. Duke Elgy left separately, by a different route from the rest of the group. The next day, Marquis Farang left to meet his friend Koshar, and Sovieshu sent Evely, whom he had intended to send for Heinley¡¯s birthday. Many other nobles also went to visit the Western Empire on their own, so the bustling imperial pce suddenly seemed to fall silent. At this time, people¡¯s attention was focused on the Western Empire. Sovieshu took the opportunity to send his close knights to Rashta¡¯s maids. *** Meanwhile, old Duke Zemensia called his grandchildren to tell them about their aunt Christa. ¡°Your auntmitted suicide for the sake of the family, for the sake of your future. So you have to study hard and be great people, to strengthen our family and avenge your aunt. Do you understand?¡± Although Christa did not voluntarily sacrifice herself for these children, it was for the sake of these children that old Duke Zemensia abandoned Christa. Even though he had to give up his daughter, he wanted his grandchildren to honor and remember Christa¡¯s sacrifice with dignity. Or rather he did it because his daughter had been too pitiful in the end. However, the two children had an annoyed expression. ¡°Why do you guys have that face?¡± Once Duke Zemensia asked sternly with some suspicion, his grandson answered sullenly, ¡°My friends make fun of me because of my aunt, they say she was a liar.¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°I heard that my aunt was so crazy about the emperor that she tried to disgrace the Empress, that¡¯s the reason she ended up in Compshire. What sacrifice did she make for us?¡± ¡°Do you believe such nonsense?¡± ¡°Yes. What do we care if my auntmitted suicide? My aunt is my father¡¯s sister, not mine.¡± ¡°Child...rude child!¡± Angry at his grandson¡¯s words, old Duke Zemensia pped him across the cheek. As soon as he burst into tears, his granddaughter, who was by her brother¡¯s side, shouted angrily, ¡°Grandpa, why did you hit him! My brother didn¡¯t say anything wrong! Even if it¡¯s true that my aunt died for us, that was her choice, we didn¡¯t ask her to do it!¡± ¡°You are heartless!¡± Old Duke Zemensia cried out in horror. ¡°Your aunt held birthday parties for you at the imperial pce, invited your friends over to y, organized events just for children, and gave you all kinds of gifts! What need did your aunt have to do all that? How can you be so cruel?!¡± Just then, a sharp cry was heard through the open door, ¡°Oh my! Father-inw!¡± When he turned around, he saw Duchess Zemensia approaching in disgust. The Duchess, who was soon at her children¡¯s side, eximed as she embraced her crying son. ¡°You hit him just because you didn¡¯t like what he said?!¡± ¡°Nirhia!¡± ¡°He¡¯s right! Because of Christa we are in a terrible position! There will be a banquet in celebration of the first child of the imperial family, and neither my husband nor I were invited! The other nobles make fun of us every time they see us! It¡¯s all because of Christa!¡± ¡°Nonsense! Thanks to my daughter you held your head high with pride for years, but now that she¡¯s dead you¡¯re not on her side because others make fun of you?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it natural to be on someone¡¯s side only when it¡¯s useful?¡± ¡°Nirhia!¡± Old Duke Zemensia shouted angrily, his eyes bloodshot. The butler, who approached the room after hearing the raised voices, paced back and forth while thinking that his master¡¯s blood vessels might burst at any moment, so he eventually went in to assist the old Duke. Duchess Zemensia coldly red at the old Duke and walked out with the two children. ¡°Those children... those children, how can they be like that...¡± Certainly, Christa definitely did not sacrifice herself voluntarily. However, he sacrificed his daughter for the sake of his grandchildren, and his daughter died deste from abandonment. Her body brought from Compshire couldn¡¯t even close her eyes from the resentment inside her. ¡°How could I choose to save them instead of my daughter?!¡± The old Duke gasped for breath and clutched his chest. ¡°Master!¡± The butler hurried to seat the old Duke in a nearby armchair. The old Duke gripped the armrests of the armchair tightly and gasped repeatedly. ¡°Butler... Butler.¡± ¡°Yes, master. Here, here I am.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t given in to that damned emperor¡¯s demands for the sake of those two children, I would have managed to keep my daughter here. Even if the family copsed, I would have been able to protect her!¡± Tears streamed down the old Duke¡¯s cheeks. ¡°But those heartless children... when Christa was the queen, those children always followed her and said that their aunt was the best...¡± The old Duke, who remembered his two grandchildren, his son, and daughter-inw, going to Christa every time they needed something, especially money, felt that his heart would burst and he kept pounding the armrests. ¡°Master...¡± The butler, who had watched Christa grow up since she was born, also had tears in his eyes and wiped them away with his sleeves. ¡°My daughter. My Christa. My baby.¡± The old Duke burst into tears and covered his face with both hands. At the thought that his daughter had died without being able to close her eyes because of what he himself had done to her, his heart ached as if it were being crushed. What¡¯s worse is that he couldn¡¯t kick them out even though he was so angry. If he kicked them out, his daughter¡¯s death would be in vain. Besides that he would be left without a family. He had not heard from his nephew, Marquis Ketron, these days, and Duke Liberty, for some reason, was trying to approach the Empress through his two children. ¡°Master...¡± The sobs of the old Duke and the butler filled the gloomy mansion. Chapter 337 - Why Does She Keep Showing Up? (2) Chapter 337. Why Does She Keep Showing Up? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The day of the banquet had arrived. To separate it as much as possible from Heinley¡¯s birthday, the banquet to celebrate my pregnancy had to be held on short notice. On each invitation was also added the message, ¡®We hope to see you again soon, so do not feel pressured toe on this asion.¡¯ Due to the short notice, it was not possible to get a response from the guests, so it was not known who woulde. Of course, I assumed that all the nearby nobles woulde, but not many foreign guests. But as soon as they started to enter the hall, there were, surprisingly, many foreign guests. People I missed also came, one of whom was Marquis Farang. ¡°It¡¯s a little strange to see you here.¡± Marquis Farang joked and hugged my brother. As I approached he said with aplicated expression, ¡°Your Majesty, how have you been?¡± ¡°Fine. Thanks to His Majesty Heinley¡¯s care. How have you been?¡± ¡°I have felt lonely since Your Majesty Navier, who cared for me, left.¡± Hearing the depressed Marquis Farang, my brother looked at him with a deadpan expression. Marquis Farang pretended to be extremely embarrassed, and hastily covered his mouth. But soon he acted as if he was annoyed, spread his fingers slightly apart and spoke between them. ¡°Did I say something wrong?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to joke so friendly with my sister.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t even talk? I¡¯m just a funny friend.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want you to act like you¡¯re too close to my sister.¡± ¡°Huh? Are you jealous? You don¡¯t want to lose me, right?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you just shut your mouth?¡± ¡°Good advice.¡± Once Marquis Farang fell silent again, my brotherughed and put a hand on his shoulder. Seeing the two of them joking and having fun for the first time in a long time, I naturally smiled. My brother looked very happy to be reunited with Marquis Farang. Looking over at Heinley, he seemed to be having a good time with Duke Elgy. The two were separated from the rest, talking quietly. Oh. In the middle of the conversation, Heinley suddenly pressed Duke Elgy¡¯s cheeks when he frowned. Duke Elgy¡¯s mouth had turned into that of a fish. As I stared quizzically at the shape of his mouth, Heinley told him to smile. Once the Duke smiled reluctantly, Heinley lowered his hand. ... What were they talking about? *** ¡°Why hasn¡¯t Your Majesty done anythingtely? I feel like I¡¯m doing the work alone.¡± ¡°What are you saying, Elgy? You don¡¯t even do the work directly.¡± ¡°Even so, I do more than Your Majesty. Why don¡¯t you help at all now?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t take that path.¡± ¡°Is it because of Empress Navier?¡± At Duke Elgy¡¯s question, Heinley looked over at Navier in silence. Not far away, she was surrounded by friends from the Eastern Empire. As he intently watched Navier¡¯s neck that moved slightly each time sheughed, the beautiful strands of her hair that swayed with each gesture, the bright smile that asionally appeared, and her eyes that repeatedly curved into a crescent shape, Heinley whispered. ¡°After all, it is My Queen¡¯s home country.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°Realistically, it would not be easy to win a life-and-death war against the Eastern Empire. Even if we were to win, we would not be able to destroy it. Although we can reduce the number of mages that will emerge in the future, the same is not true for the number of current powerful mages. Even this has been hindered, so it¡¯s not as effective as before.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t your goal the conquest of the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°That was in the past.¡± Heinley smiled bitterly. ¡°My Queen loves the Eastern Empire, loves her people, and loves her friends. Besides, My Queen¡¯s family has its roots in the Eastern Empire and a territory they have cared about for generations.¡± ¡°That is true.¡± ¡°No matter what the reason for the war, if the Eastern Empire is notpletely destroyed, there will be records. Historians will say that My Queen, who became the Empress of the neighboring country, plunged her home country into the war for revenge. In fact, all countries will say the same, except the Western Empire.¡± Heinley¡¯s brow furrowed. ¡°I do not want My Queen to receive such a stigma.¡± As Heinley pretended to rub the corners of his lips with his fingers, Duke Elgy shed a smile and said with a raised eyebrow, ¡°So, have you decided to quit?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know yet.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay, do what you want. Anyway, I won¡¯t lose my share.¡± ¡°Do you intend to go ahead?¡± ¡°There¡¯s no reason to quit now.¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s determined gaze shifted to the front door, where there was no one. ¡°I¡¯m going to go ahead.¡± As soon as he finished speaking, a woman in a white dress that swayed as she walked entered the front door. The white dress sparkled under the chandelier light. ¡°It¡¯s Empress Rashta of the Eastern Empire!¡± The official in charge of announcing the entrance of the guests named Rashta in a loud voice. Just then, the corners of Duke Elgy¡¯s lips turned up. ¡°The time ising to reap the fruits.¡± *** I was chatting with Princess Soju from the Southern Kingdom who unexpectedly came all the way here. Princess Soju and Mastasmunicated surprisingly well with each other, the things they said were so funny that I couldn¡¯t stopughing with my hands on my belly. Suddenly, Princess Soju averted her gaze and murmured as she ced her hand on her forehead. ¡°I thought she wouldn¡¯t daree.¡± As I followed her gaze, I saw Rashta enter the hall. Her eyes immediately shifted to me. However, it wasn¡¯t just that. As soon as she saw me, she approached without hesitation. Once she stopped in front of me, Rashta smiled broadly and opened her mouth to speak. Chapter 338 - Attract Attention (1) Chapter 338. Attract Attention (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°I hear you are pregnant. Congrattions, Empress Navier.¡± Princess Soju turned her head with a disdainful sneer. She had only seen Rashta as a concubine trying to imitate me. She did not want to acknowledge her current position. In fact, I didn¡¯t want to see Rashta either. By the way, why didn¡¯t she enter earlier together with Grand Duke Lilteang? Did theye separately? ¡°Yes. Thank you.¡± Well, that doesn¡¯t matter. I merely replied curtly with a smile. Those who knew of the rtionship I had with Rashta watched us with bated breath. For my part, I looked at Rashta in silence. Now that she congratted me, I was curious as to what she really wanted to do. She would probably give me a gift. In the past, she didn¡¯t like that I gave her a decorative sword, so she may have brought a gift that I disliked also. ¡°Ah, I brought you a gift.¡± It waspletely as I expected. No, correction... It was a little different than I expected. The gift Rashta held out to me didn¡¯t turn out to be a gift I hated. ¡°It looks familiar to me.¡± The decorative sword I had gifted her. It was exactly that sword. Actually, Rashta was giving it back to me. ¡°Isn¡¯t life amazing?¡± She asked me, the corners of her eyes curved into a crescent shape and her voice was very sweet. Rashta pretended that she had no bad intentions. But if what she really wanted from me was to make me angry, she wouldn¡¯t get it. ¡°Thank you for giving it back.¡± I epted her gift with a smile and deliberately chose the words ¡®give it back¡¯. Then, I spoke softly so only Rashta could hear. ¡°Actually, I never wanted to give you anything of mine.¡± Rashta¡¯s expression stiffened, but I paid no attention. *** As if she didn¡¯t want to stay any longer, Rashta looked at me coldly, turned and walked away. After Rashta moved away considerably, Princess Soju, who was hiding behind Mastas, slowly returned to my side and asked, ¡°I disliked her before, but now I dislike her even more. Don¡¯t you think her mood has changed a little?¡± ¡°She looks colder.¡± In the past, she always tried to look helpless and pitiful. I heard that bad things have happened in the Eastern Empire, she might have changed because of that. While I was lost in thought, Marquis Farang asked. ¡°Your Majesty, did you see the gift Emperor Sovieshu sent you?¡± Although he seemed to be having fun with my brother, his ears must have been tilted towards here. ¡°He sent me a small chariot through Grand Duke Lilteang.¡± As I watched Rashta¡¯s distant back, I noticed she was heading in Heinley¡¯s direction, so I stared at her as I spoke, ¡°A small racing chariot of the highest quality.¡± But Marquis Farang shook his head and said, ¡°No, I don¡¯t mean the gift he sent you through Grand Duke Lilteang.¡± ¡°He sent another gift?¡± ¡°Yes. He sent a girl named Evelie or Evely.¡± The unexpected name caught my attention. I looked away from Rashta and asked Marquis Farang in surprise. ¡°Evely? Are you sure?¡± When I asked puzzled, Marquis Farang murmured, ¡°Ah. Hasn¡¯t she arrived yet?¡± Shouldn¡¯t Evely be at the magical academy? ¡°Are you sure it¡¯s Evely?¡± Once I asked again, Marquis Farang described some of Evely¡¯s features. As soon as I replied that she seemed to be the same Evely I knew, he said with a cocked head, ¡°She left around the same time I did, so she should have arrived by now. I thought she woulde to see you immediately. Where else could she have gone? It¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°She could have gotten lost...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so. She surelyes with a coachman.¡± That was true. If she came as a gift from Sovieshu, she would note alone. I had a bad feeling. Did shee across bandits or robbers on the way here? Did the carriage break down? In any case, I was worried. Eventually, I ordered the situation investigated because one of the guests had not arrived. ¡°She¡¯ll be fine, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Farang assured. *** But contrary to what the Marquis had assured. Evely did not show up that night, nor the next morning, norter. It had gotten to the point that I was afraid that something bad had happened to her. Evely did not even show up at the end of the banquet. As a result, I couldn¡¯t help but worry about Evely even when I sat down to dinner with some of the distinguished guests who still remained in the imperial pce. I couldn¡¯t focus on dinner, but a clearughter woke my mind. When I saw who wasughing, my mood quickly worsened. Theughter was Rashta¡¯s. ¡°Of course. Perhaps it wouldn¡¯t have been Navier and Your Majesty Heinley sitting next to each other, but Your Majesty Heinley and I.¡± The more I listened to her, the more obvious it became thatughter was not the problem. What nonsense was she talking about? ¡°Then Empress Navier and I would be in opposite positions, right?¡± Everything she said was nonsense. I remember that Rashta had always been like this. Heinley repeatedly denied it, but Rashta justughed as if it were a joke and insisted on that point. Naturally, Heinley¡¯s expression darkened with each passing second. Chapter 339 - Attract Attention (2)

Chapter 339 - Attract Attention (2)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°The Empress of the Eastern Empire says very strange things. None of that would have happened.¡± ¡°Even if Your Majesty Heinley doesn¡¯t want to admit it. In fact, it is the truth.¡± ¡°Oh. Since when is an assumption the truth?¡± ¡°Because you always have such a wicked sense of humor with Rashta.¡± ¡°Empress Rashta.¡± ¡°Rashta just talks about the old days, what¡¯s wrong with that?¡± Why wasn¡¯t Heinley as blunt as usual? Why did he allow her to continue to talk nonsense? ¡°Don¡¯t you remember the letters, Your Majesty?¡± Ah. It¡¯s because of the letters. He seemed not to speak firmly to Rashta for fear that she would talk about the letters we had exchanged in the past. If it became known that I had exchanged letters with Heinley before the divorce, my enemies would be the ones who would be most happy. They would use me of having had an affair with Heinley, and emphasize that the divorce was not Sovieshu¡¯s fault but mine. After Christa¡¯s death, the position of those who followed her fell drastically. Although in the Western Empire, it wouldn¡¯t do me much harm to hear a rumor that I had an affair with Heinley, they might cling to that. ¡°Your Majesty Heinley, what Empress Rashta says is not a lie. Although now Your Majesty only has eyes for Empress Navier, before it seemed that you liked Empress Rashta.¡± Heinley pressed his temples as he heard about the letters. This time Grand Duke Lilteang intervened and said that Heinley really liked Rashta. Heinley sighed as he looked at Rashta. He had the face of a person without a n and seemed to be thinking about what to say in this situation. ¡°Empress Rashta, you are obsessed with my husbands.¡± I ended up talking because I couldn¡¯t bear to see him like this, ¡°Or is it that you are obsessed with me?¡± *** ¡°When did you start to be interested in this?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°At first you weren¡¯t interested at all in nobility, gossip, and so on.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Huh? Won¡¯t you really tell me? That¡¯s mean, I thought we were friends, huh?¡± At his colleague¡¯s insistence, Joanson finally answered, ¡°I was always interested, but not enough to write articles about it.¡± Despite the clear annoyance in his voice, his colleague did not leave his side and asked another question, ¡°But how did an interest you kept quiet suddenly be so definite? How?¡± ¡°Why are you so curious?¡± ¡°Everyone is, not just me!¡± His colleague eximed with a twinkle in his eye. ¡°It¡¯s surprising that you suddenly revealed such an interest in nobility, high society parties, gossip, and so on¡­ but what¡¯s more surprising is that you spread all kinds of rumors as soon as you revealed that interest. You are now the most famous journalist in the Eastern Empire. Don¡¯t you know that?¡± His colleague¡¯s words were true. When Joanson began to smear Empress Rashta, not many agreed with him. It was the same when he began to raise suspicions about her. However, the situation had changed. Newspapers in which Joanson wrote about Empress Rashta were now sold like hotcakes. He had be one of the most popr journalists. People¡¯s anger towards Empress Rashta increased with each of his articles. ¡°Are you really not going to tell me how you got it?¡± Joanson eventually answered indifferently to his nagging colleague. ¡°A high-status noble provides me with the information.¡± His colleague¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°A high-status noble? Really? A high-status noble tells you the gossip of high society?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you trust that person?¡±, His colleague asked bitterly, ¡°Do you know that many of the nobles are not to be trusted? Is that noble any different?¡± Joanson lifted one corner of his mouth. ¡°I don¡¯t trust that person either.¡± His colleague¡¯s expression became more confused. ¡®How can you write such delicate articles if you don¡¯t trust that person?¡¯ Formoner journalists who could not attend high society parties in person, the gossip of the nobles was a risky subject to broach. ¡®Besides, how could he get such valuable information from a high-status noble he didn¡¯t trust¡­?¡¯ The bewilderment on his colleague¡¯s face made Joansonugh. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I don¡¯t trust the high-status noble who provides me with the information, but I¡¯m sure that noble detests the same person I do.¡± ¡°Who is that noble?¡± Instead of answering, Joanson stood up and asked, ¡°Will Empress Rashta return to the empire this afternoon?¡± *** It was around 3 o¡¯clock in the afternoon when Rashta returned to the Eastern Empire. She was quite satisfied with her visit to the Western Empire, so she hummed happily in the carriage. It had been a long time since she had felt so good. Although she went through some troubles, it was nothingpared to what she had suffered in the Eastern Empire. To the point that she didn¡¯t mind. ¡®I can understand that Emperor Heinley is no longer in love with me.¡¯ It was not such a surprise as to disturb her joy. ¡®I deserve it because I was the one who rejected him first.¡¯ Rashta even considered the confrontation with the Empress insignificant. She found it unpleasant to argue face to face with her, and hated to see Navier being congratted by everyone, but those feelings were only momentary. The polite attitude of the people of the Western Empire toward the Empress of the Eastern Empire made her so happy as to overshadow those annoyances. Duke Elgy was right. Despite her situation in the Eastern Empire, the people of the Western Empire treated Rashta as the Empress of the Eastern Empire. Ever since it was discovered that she had used Navier¡¯s promissory notes on her behalf, ever since a journalist named Joanson began to tarnish her reputation, and ever since her daughter was taken away by Sovieshu, she had not felt so respected. ¡®I tried to see Glorym a few more times. Still, His Majesty refused to show me my daughter. Wouldn¡¯t it be better if I stayed in the Western Empire?¡¯ As the carriage entered the suffocating Imperial Pce, Rashta thought with regret. ¡®Come to think of it, it might be a good idea. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to be treated as a distinguished guest than to be a forgotten empress here?¡¯ Eventually, the carriage entered the garden of the Western Pce. ¡®But does that mean that His Majesty Sovieshu will be free to see other women? I don¡¯t like that.¡¯ Her excitement faded as she saw the familiar garden. Her flushed cheeks regained their color and the tingling inside her also disappearedpletely. Her desire to live in the Western Empire as the Empress of the Eastern Empire was unrealistic¡­ Rashta quickly became depressed and grabbed at the carriage curtains. This feeling was intensified when he saw n at the entrance of the Western Pce. He held Ahn in his arms like a weapon. ¡®Why is he here? Did hee again to make the absurd demand that his son be treated as a quasi-prince?¡¯ She had already given him a severe written warning. ¡®Did he forget my words?¡¯ Rashta thought angrily. The carriage stopped near the entrance as Rashta watched Ahn and n through the window. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± n, who had his eyes on the carriage, held his son more firmly as if he had realized who was inside. From the first moment Rashta saw his face, she felt really ufortable. In contrast, n¡¯s expression brightened just at the thought of Rashta riding in that carriage. Rashta forced herself down from the carriage as she fought the urge to order the coachman to turn the carriage around. If she were to walk away after seeing them, it would cause strange rumors. She had to move on with dignity. Once Rashta got out of the carriage, she approached n and asked him in a low voice. ¡°What are you doing here?¡± ¡°I¡­ I only came¡­¡± n did not finish his words and hugged his son to his chest. Fortunately, this time the child wasn¡¯t crying, so he didn¡¯t attract as much attention from the people around. ¡°Let¡¯s talk inside.¡± Rashta couldn¡¯t throw him out, so she hurriedly walked ahead. However, she stopped after a few steps when she heard a screech sound from above. When she looked up, she saw arge bird that seemed to be used as a carrier pigeon. It had a letter tied around its leg, but Rashta lowered her head again. She had no rtion to thisrge bird. ¡®Now what¡¯s important is to send n back as soon as possible.¡¯ Rashta walked once again to enter the West Pce first. Just at the moment n was about to follow her with the little child in his arms, the long bird, which seemed tame as it scratched its fur, suddenly swooped down. ¡°Get out!¡± Startled, n waved his free hand. But the bird wasn¡¯t frightened, spread its wings and swooped down faster. Ahn was scared, so he clung to his father. Therge bird brushed past the little child. After a moment ofmotion, the bird immediately flew away to another ce. Rashta was startled when she turned her head, ¡°Nooo!¡± The hat that covered the child¡¯s head rolled on the ground as if it had been hit by the bird¡¯s wings or legs. Rashta hurried to run to the hat. By the time she reached out to grab the hat, the attention of the people around had already focused on little Ahn. Chapter 340. Cornered (1)

Chapter 340. Cornered (1)

Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Evely was found a few days before most of the guests had left, but by the time the knights brought her to the imperial pce, the festive mood had already dissipated. ¡°Evely!¡± The carriage door opened once it stopped in the courtyard. Evely, who had grown bigger than I could have imagined, appeared without strength. Evely looked very weak when she got out of the carriage. She was thinner and her skin paler than when she was in the orphanage. However, she had a better countenance than thest time I saw her copsed from the loss of her mana. ¡°Your Majesty, I am d to see you again after a long time.¡± I stopped her from bowing and asked a guard to take her to my room. After Evely followed the guard, I turned my attention to the knights who found her. They were the 5th Division of the Supranational Knights,manded by Viscount Langdel. ¡°The girl who greeted me a moment ago. Where did you find her?¡± I asked a knight who participated in the search for Evely. ¡°She was lost in the Moon Forest.¡± The Moon Forest was a ce near the path from the Eastern Empire to the Western Empire. Many people fell there because they took the wrong path. The Moon Forest itself was densely wooded and hadplicated terrain, so people often got lost inside. ¡°There were also some knights and envoys from the Eastern Empire.¡± Behind the green carriage of the Western Empire, from which Evely had gotten off, a damaged carriage could be seen. It was even missing a wheel. ¡°Were the rescued people in that carriage originally?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. When we found them the carriage was already damaged. It¡¯s not easy to get out of the Moon Forest, and they also were carrying a lot of luggage, so they could only hope to be rescued.¡± ¡°They must have had a bad time.¡± ¡°Yes. But there¡¯s something strange.¡± ¡°Something strange?¡± ¡°Look at the carriage. Isn¡¯t one sidepletely wrecked? At least one person must have been injured. However, everyone is unharmed.¡± The knight added significantly, ¡°It looks like magic.¡± ¡°Was there a mage in the group?¡± ¡°Not officially. When I asked, no one stepped forward.¡± I knew Evely was a mage. However, didn¡¯t Evely lose her mana? Of course, it would be great if she had recovered it. ¡°First of all, check the identity of the rescued people and where they were located inside the carriage. It is possible that the culprit is among them.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± As the knight turned to his colleagues to do as I had ordered, Heinley approached me and asked as if he had overheard the conversation. ¡°My Queen, are you sure the culprit is among them?¡± ¡°Although I was surprised that Sovieshu sent Evely, it¡¯s impossible for him to send a delegation without first ordering to check the condition of the carriage.¡± Heinley raised an eyebrow. ¡°He may have forgotten.¡± ¡°He was the worst as a husband, but as an emperor he was never so careless.¡± There might even be a disguised knight in the delegation. Anticipate potential dangers and n countermeasures in advance.That¡¯s how Sovieshu acted. ¡°He is a person who would not only check the condition of the carriage, but also prepare two or three spare wheels. Someone definitely caused the carriage to be damaged. Probably¡­ whoever was located farthest from the wrecked side is the culprit.¡± As I spoke, I noticed that Heinley¡¯s expression was not good. He looked a little sad. ¡°Heinley?¡± Why did he have that expression? Heinley put his hands to his face and rubbed his numb eyes with his thumbs, then muttered with his eyes half closed like a cat being petted. ¡°I don¡¯t like it when My Queen says nice things about him.¡± ¡°Did it sound like apliment?¡± I didn¡¯t mean it with that intention. I just meant that it couldn¡¯t have been a mistake about the carriage given his personality. However, Heinley nodded with a shadowed face. Then he repeatedly rubbed his forehead against my shoulder. ¡°Heinley, it¡¯s not dignified for the emperor to do this in public.¡± Once I murmured in concern, he reluctantly stopped. Still, he pouted his lips. I sighed and kissed him lightly on the cheek. However, he¡¯s sly¡­ Heinley was clearly no longer sad. Now he only pretended so that I wouldfort him. When I stared at him, he turned slightly and covered his face with his hands. As if he knew that he would look very sad and lovely. In fact, that bothered me for a moment. How was he so clear about the impression he would make? Heinley kept ncing at me, as if he wanted to see how I wouldfort him now. So I told him honestly. ¡°Heinley. Every time you act like that you look so lovely.¡± From his slight smile, he seemed to like what I had said. ¡°Do you often use this tactic with other women?¡± He could barely speak to my question. ¡°My Queen?¡± This was the reaction I expected. Heinley lowered his hands and turned to me. As if a leopard, who mimicked a cat, stopped pretending to be weak. ¡°My Queen. There are no other women. You know¡ª¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°You know my past, while I don¡¯t know yours. That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°!¡± Even without casting a spell, Heinley froze instantly. I smiled pleasantly inside. Did he think I didn¡¯t know how to be jealous? ¡°My Queen, I¡­¡± ¡°I need to go see Evely.¡± ¡°Wait, My Queen?¡± *** When I went to my room, I was informed that Evely was with mydies-in-waiting. I couldn¡¯t believe she was with mydies-in-waiting. They hadn¡¯t met Evely. What¡¯s going on? I was surprised, but I went to mydies-in-waiting¡¯s room first. There, Laura wasbing Evely¡¯s hair in front of the dressing table. Before I knew it, Evely was dressed beautifully with her hair braided. But embarrassed by her appearance, Evely¡¯s face blushed and her eyes looked down at her own feet. ¡°Evely.¡± At the utterance of her name as I approached, Evely jumped up with a face full of life. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± From the way Lauraughed, she seemed to find it fun to be with Evely, who was almost her own age. Even in the Eastern Empire, Laura always went out to have fun with youngdies her age. ¡°I¡¯ll get something to drink!¡± Once Laura left, Evely walked over to me, grabbed my hands and bowed. ¡°I heard it was Your Majesty who sent the knights to find us. Thank you. I always get help from Your Majesty.¡± ¡°No need to thank me, tell me what happened.¡± Chapter 341

Chapter 341

I asked Evely to sit down again, but she looked awkward sitting alone, so I pulled up another chair and sat down across from her. Evely still looked awkward and tried to get up. ¡°You must be tired after all you¡¯ve been through. It¡¯s okay for you to sit still.¡± ¡°But that would be rude...¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± As I tried to keep Evely from getting up, Laura brought a refreshing fruit juice made from a mixture of apples, grapes, ice, and sugar. Evely hesitated as soon as she received the drink, but finally calmed down. She then took a few sips and exined the situation. ¡°His Majesty Sovieshu asked me to deliver a gift to you. He entrusted it to me because it is a personal gift apart from the official gifts. On the way here, suddenly one side of the carriage copsedpletely.¡± ¡°Oh my!¡± ¡°In the end, we got out of the carriage to try to find our way back, but it wasn¡¯t easy... the carriage was also packed with official gifts for the Empress. They were precious and heavy, so it was difficult to carry them. Still, we all helped each other as we tried to orient ourselves in the dense forest. Fortunately, the knights arrived soon.¡± ¡°That¡¯s a relief.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all thanks to Your Majesty.¡± The credit is not mine. However, I couldn¡¯t say this because Evely would feel awkward again. Instead of refusing to receive her thanks, I asked her about the magic I was curious about. ¡°Did you heal the wounded?¡± I didn¡¯t know if Evely could heal with her magic. Even when I helped finance her studies, I was only informed that she had been admitted to the magical academy, but I didn¡¯t hear anything about her magic. Many people tried to hide their magic, so I never asked. However, now things were a little different. I wasn¡¯t curious about what kind of magic Evely used, what I wanted to know was if she had recovered her mana. Although I thought Evely would answer without hesitation, she remained silent with her eyes down. ¡°Evely?¡± When I called out to her in surprise, her face blushed and she sped her hands together nervously. While I wanted to know, I also didn¡¯t want to push her. So I didn¡¯t insist and changed the subject. ¡°What kind of personal gift did the Emperor of the Eastern Empire send me?¡± ¡°Ah, that...¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°It got a little ruined when the carriage broke down.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡± Evely rose from the chair, squatted down in front of the slightly battered satchel thaty on the floor against the dressing table, and undid the sp. After a click was heard, the satchel opened to reveal a small box wrapped in a handkerchief. The box was also dented in one corner. ¡°Your Majesty, here you go.¡± Evely handed me the box and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what it contains.¡± I wondered what Sovieshu had sent through the girl I used to be a benefactor for. After we exchanged a few more words, I went back to my room and put the box sent by Sovieshu on the table. I was confused as to why he sent me this. I wasn¡¯t sure I should open it. He had already sent several official gifts. One was a small racing chariot sent through Grand Duke Lilteang and the others I had not yet seen. In any case, they were gifts brought by the delegation that came with Evely. So what could this be? No matter what it is, should I see it? The other gifts had been given by the emperor of a neighboring country. This was clearly a gift from ¡®Sovieshu¡¯ to ¡®Navier¡¯. After I stood still pondering for a while, I carefully held the box in my hands and opened it. *** Ever since it became public that the child in n¡¯s arms was identical to Rashta, the imperial pce employees had been talking about it every time they met. ¡°My goodness! So the child is the Empress¡¯...¡± ¡°He definitely is. They¡¯re like two peas in a pod.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t see it wrong?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t just me who saw it. When the hat flew off, the Empress¡¯ face turned pale and she cried out in terror, ¡°Nooo!¡± The servant who imitated Rashtaughed. All the employees who sat down to talk about what happened found it funny and clutched their stomachs. A maid who worked at the Western Pce before Rashta became the Empress sneered with her arms folded. ¡°It¡¯s a real disaster. She never revealed that she had had a child. It is obvious that she cheated on His Majesty so that she could marry him. Isn¡¯t that how a swindler acts?¡± ¡°His Majesty didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°Of course he didn¡¯t know! Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have left Navier to marry her.¡± Not only servants and maids gossiped, the high-status nobles also talked about the child who resembled the princess. ¡°So that young man named n is the father of her first child?¡± ¡°First we have to find out if that child is the Empress¡¯ child.¡± ¡°He must be. That¡¯s why that young man went to see the Empress.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t the Empress an iparable beauty? If the little boy looks like her, he¡¯s definitely her child.¡± ¡°Her child... That¡¯s terrible!¡± ¡°A terrible scandal. If this is true, wouldn¡¯t her position as Empress be questionable?¡± It was inevitable that there would be such an uproar. That day, many witnessed the scene. Even those who at first didn¡¯t know what was going on turned their heads when Rashta cried out in shock. In the midst of this situation, n had refused for days to answer whose child it was that looked so much like the princess. There were people who spread rumors that Rashta had previously had a child, and that she had hidden it in order to remarry. However, those who raised such rumors were the kindest. Those who spread more provocative rumors whispered, ¡°Even though theye from the same womb, it¡¯s amazing how much they look alike.¡± ¡°It seems that fathers should also be doubted.¡± ¡°Who knows if her first child and the princess are from the same father.¡± Of course, behind the provocative rumors was Marquis Farang and his followers. These rumors also reached Rashta¡¯s ears one after another. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Rashta wondered in tears, alone in her room. She wanted to wait for the rumors to die down, but the rumors grew louder as the days passed. ¡®That damned Marquis Farang is trying to destroy me with his filthy mouth!¡¯ Despite the rumors that spread, n did not step forward to deny them. Even if he did, no one would believe him. However, since he kept his mouth shut, the rumors snowballed. Rashta asked Grand Duke Lilteang to organize a great banquet, and at that banquet she said tly, ¡°The princess is my first child and I was never married before. That little boy is not my child.¡± She had taken a firm stance, but even that didn¡¯t work. After many saw two virtually identical children, no one believed Rashta¡¯s words. ¡ª People keeping to the mansion to investigate. Rashta, help me. n, who was the cause of the trouble, sent a letter with these words. ¡®I should have killed that bastard! I should have taken care of him, not Rivetti!¡¯ As soon as Rashta received the letter, she tore it to pieces in a rage. ¡®What should I do... what should I do, what should I do... even in this situation, His Majesty hasn¡¯t spoken. Isn¡¯t he supposed to quell the rumors for the princess¡¯ sake?¡¯ Rashta racked her brain and finally came up with an answer. ¡®Why not pass the role of ¡®society¡¯s chewbone¡¯ to someone else, as I did in the past with Duchess Tuania?¡¯ However, that would not work now. Back then, this ruse had been made possible by the enormous poprity of Duchess Tuania. Currently, such a person did not exist in high society. As time went on, people began to talk that Emperor Sovieshu should take a paternity test. Sovieshu, who had not spoken out until now, gave his approval. ¡ª If this can put an end to the unfair rumors about the princess and the empress, of course I will do it. After this, people began to whisper that Emperor Sovieshu was also not sure that the princess was his daughter. He had taken advantage of people¡¯s doubts so that Rashta couldn¡¯t refuse. ¡®No!¡¯ However, Rashta could not ept the paternity test. ¡°It is perfect. Now that Her Majesty has to go to the temple, she can also prove that Viscount Isqua and Viscountess Isqua are her real parents, which has always been a subject of controversy.¡± Marquis Farangshed out at her again! Chapter 342 Chapter 342. Rashta¡¯s Despair (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The princess waved her little hands as she went, ¡°bubu, bubu.¡± Sovieshu smiled broadly and pressed the baby¡¯s cheeks with his fingers. ¡°My baby. Who¡¯s daddy? Who¡¯s daddy?¡± ¡°Bubu!¡± ¡°Who is daddy?¡± ¡°Abubu!¡± Viscountess Verdi stared at Sovieshu. The Emperor was evidently an affectionate father. Even in this situation, he frequently visited the princess to take care of her. Not as attentive as in the past, when he used to take her to his office, but much more so than an ordinary emperor. In Viscountess Verdi¡¯s eyes, the Emperor and the Princess were like a ss cup just before it broke. At times, Sovieshu would hold the baby in his arms and pat her on the back with a somber expression. At other times, tears welled up in his eyes even though he had a smile. The baby¡¯sughter brought Viscountess Verdi out of her thoughts. Just then, Sovieshu burst into tears as he held the baby. Viscountess Verdi looked away and hurriedly left. Sovieshu sobbed in silence for a while, tears spilling down his cheeks and his broad shoulders shaking. The baby didn¡¯t know what was going on, so she just looked around the room with wide open eyes. She was full of curiosity about the world, and everything seemed fun to her. Eventually, Sovieshu raised his head to examine the baby. Today he also tried to find the resemnce he had to the princess, as he had dely. Again, there was no resemnce. Sovieshu reached out and carefully fixed the baby¡¯s soft hair, which had be tousled. ¡°My baby. Princess.¡± ¡°Bubu...¡± ¡°Princess.¡± After Sovieshu affectionately called the baby a few times, he carefully ced her in the splendid cradle. As he began to rock the cradle gently, the princess¡¯s eyes slowly closed. She was a very sweet baby, not even her personality resembled his. Sovieshu¡¯s gaze darkened, he removed his hand from the cradle and walked away. Sovieshu always wondered if the princess had his blood, though he feared to know the answer. It would have been a humiliation for the emperor to take the initiative to do the paternity test. Fortunately, that foolish young nobleman named n, created this situation with his own hands. The paternity test, which he wanted to do but could not, had been raised by the people. In this scenario, Sovieshu only had to say that he was forced to take the paternity test ¡®for the sake of the princess and the empress¡¯. If it turned out to be true that the princess was not his daughter, he might be seen as a lovesick fool in the Eastern Empire, but he thought that more people would sympathize with him. However... He wanted to believe in Rashta onest time. Sovieshu watched the baby sleep peacefully, then shook his head and left his room. Not in the current Rashta, but in the Rashta he had wanted to protect. He didn¡¯t know what had made her change like that, but the Rashta of before definitely had no contact with other men. Unless he had misjudged her, Glorym would be his daughter. Definitely. Definitely. Definitely. *** When I opened the lid of the box dented in one corner, I saw a light blue jewel. Inside it shone a fairy-like white color. I sighed unconsciously. Legend has it that this jewel, called the ¡®fairy tear¡¯, came from a fairy who lost her husband and fell into an eternal sleep. It was very, very precious. There are many precious jewels, but few with a story as mysterious as this behind it. The jewel was sent by Sovieshu. My ex-husband. What was the point? Now that I remember, I asked him for this jewel for my birthday a few years ago. Sovieshu agreed at first, but then changed his mind. ¡®I¡¯ll give it to you when we have our first child.¡¯ Did he remember that promise? An unknown emotion welled up inside me, I clenched my fist and put the jewel back in the box. He had not epted that I was happy at Heinley¡¯s side. Why did he send this? Why did he send a jewel that reminds me of our happy days? Also, this precious object was not sent as an official gift, but as a personal gift. It would have been better if he had sent it through the delegation, along with the other gifts that I had not yet seen. After I closed the box, I finally called Evely to return it to him. ¡°Can you return this to Emperor Sovieshu?¡± However, Evely quickly shook her head and said quietly, ¡°Ah... I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. But... it puts me on the spot.¡± ¡°I can¡¯t keep it. It¡¯s a gift from my ex-husband.¡± ¡°His Majesty Sovieshu ordered me to give it to you. If I were to return it to him...¡± Evely spoke in a weak voice with her hands sped tightly. Only after I heard those words did I understand the awkward position Evely was in. Being the Empress of the Western Empire, I did not mind returning my ex-husband¡¯s gift. However, Evely was still a citizen of the Eastern Empire. In the end, I had no choice but to let her leave. Then I ced the box on a small table as I reflected. Sovieshu had secretly given it to me through Evely. If I gave it to someone from the Eastern Empire delegation... even if I specified that it was to be ¡®returned¡¯ to the Emperor, it would look like a gift from me to Sovieshu. The only alternative was to return it secretly with someone from the Western Empire. For that, I would have to get someone whopletely believed in me to the point where that person wouldn¡¯t even consider it strange that I secretly sent something to Sovieshu. Was there a person who would fulfill that and want to go to the Eastern Empire to meet Sovieshu? Should I talk to Heinley first? But wouldn¡¯t he be offended? Every time he heard me speak well of Sovieshu, he was saddened. If I told him that Sovieshu sent me a very precious gift, wouldn¡¯t he feel sad and worried? Still, I had to tell him. But I must do it in the right words and at the appropriate time. While I was deep in thought. Unexpectedly, Grand Duke Kapmen came to visit me and asked me a strange question. ¡°Your Majesty, are you close to Miss Evely of the Eastern Empire?¡± Chapter 343 Chapter 343. Rashta¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Why?¡± Once I asked him curiously, his expression turned serious. ¡°I¡¯m jealous. I want to be close to you too.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± ¡°It was foolish, Your Majesty. Please forgive my impoliteness. I came here because Miss Evely had strange thoughts.¡± ¡°Strange thoughts?¡± ¡°I want to hide this ability as much as possible because you might be afraid of me, but I still tell everything to my beautiful ice that I can¡¯t get close to... ah, I¡¯m sorry. The Eastern Empire suspects the Western Empire attacked their mages.¡± Due to Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s incoherent words, I did not immediately understand the relevance of what he said. After about thirty seconds, I asked in surprise. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s eyes narrowed briefly as he spoke. ¡°Looks like there¡¯s a good reason to suspect...¡± Instantly, I remembered the order given by Heinley to McKenna and the dean of the magic academy¡¯s attitude towards me. It seemed that Evely had indeed regained her mana, but she tried to hide that fact from me. Grand Duke Kapmen added as he stared at me, ¡°They lost the conclusive evidence in the middle of the investigation, so the matter will not be made public.¡± For a moment, I thought these words had been just to reassure me after he read my thoughts. My legs weakened at once, so I sat down on the couch. My heartbeat quickened and my expression darkened. I had tried to pretend not to notice the situation, but it had alreadye to this point... Grand Duke Kapmen didn¡¯t think it would turn out this way, so he hesitated and put his hand to his forehead. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t I have said it?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Thanks for letting me know.¡± It wasn¡¯t Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s fault. He was surprised to learn that the Eastern Empire¡¯s mages suspected that the Western Empire was mainly responsible for the phenomenon of mage decline, so he came to inform me. After Grand Duke Kapmen left, I remained sitting on the couch. I felt as if my mind was flying through the dark evening sky. When I came to my senses, Heinley knocked on the door. ¡°Come in.¡± I spoke weakly. I didn¡¯t have the strength to get up, so I leaned back on the couch and closed my eyes. I didn¡¯t even have an appetite. No matter how many delicious dishes Heinley prepared, I didn¡¯t want to eat today. Should I ask Heinley directly about the phenomenon of mage decline? Even if it came out of his mouth that he wanted to harm my country? I felt a heavy pressure in my chest, until Heinley¡¯s voice reached my ears. ¡°Queen? What is this box?¡± Ah, the box! *** When Duke Elgy brought in the fake parents, he advised Rashta never to agree to a paternity test. Naturally, if she were to take a paternity test, it would quickly be discovered that they were fake parents. Recently, the controversy over her fake parents had been raised by the appearance of her real father. So Rashta took Duke Elgy¡¯s advice and insisted that she would not take a paternity test. It was as if she had put on a blindfold, but there were people who understood Rashta at the time. It could be considered a humiliation to take a paternity test. One would prefer to resolve the matter without this method as much as possible, especially nobles. ¡°Isn¡¯t it suspicious that she refuses a paternity test?¡± ¡°Does that mean her daughter is not a princess but an illegitimate child?¡± ¡°Oh my! It would be terrible if the Emperor¡¯s only descendant turned out not to be!¡± There were manydies in other noble families who had been raised to be the next empress, while Rashta had no one to back her up. The only one who could help her was Viscount Roteschu. But the Viscount was in search of Rivetti, so she had not seen him at all. If he didn¡¯t send letters or people to ask for money periodically, it would be impossible to know if he was still alive. ¡®What should I do... What should I do now...¡¯ Rashta paced back and forth across the room with heavy footsteps. If she were to take a paternity test, it would be discovered that she was not of nobility. Fortunately, her real father was now amoner. Being the child of amoner was better than being the child of a ve. Although she would no longer be able to make her daughter the Emperor¡¯s sessor, several empresses who preceded her had also been ofmoner origin. ¡®No, no, no. In that case, my Glorym would be scorned.¡¯ Rashta unconsciously tugged at her hair. She rubbed her scalp roughly and crumpled to the floor. She was too scared and worried to bear it. Although she could not take a paternity test, the more time passed, the more doubts there were about the real father of the princess. She could not even turn to Duke Elgy in this situation. Clearly, if she were to visit Duke Elgy, who had been embroiled in several scandals, it would only add to the rumors. ¡®What should I do, what should I do...¡¯ After a long reflection, Rashta came to a conclusion. ¡®I¡¯ll take a paternity test.¡¯ The only reason she couldn¡¯t agree to take a paternity test was because of her real father and her fake parents. ¡®I¡¯ll make them disappear.¡¯ Although people might find it strange that they disappeared at the same time, if the Isqua Family and her real father disappeared, it would be impossible to know the truth. Once she came to this conclusion, Rashta waited first to hear from her real father. He used to send her maid to ask for money, and it was time for her toe. If she contacted her real father first, he might find it suspicious. So she had to wait for him to approach first, as usual. Of course, she was a little worried. However, her real father sent the maid despite the recent rumors about Rashta. ¡°Greetings, Your Majesty. Here you are...¡± As soon as Rashta received the letter from the maid¡¯s hands, she involuntarily shed tears. This had taken a load off her mind. She was undoubtedly worried about what might happen if her real father acted differently this time. However, he acted as he always did. ¡®Why do I feel such strong pain in my chest?¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty?¡± As Rashta shed tears, the maid asked in surprise. ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡®How dare she ask if I¡¯m all right?¡¯ She must know about the recent rumors about me, but she still asks if I¡¯m all right?¡¯ Rashta held back the urge to scream. She just red fiercely at the maid with her wide eyes. She gave an eerie impression like that of a sea monster in the depths of the ocean. The maid flinched, so she lowered her gaze. Rashta bit her lower lip and ordered the maid to leave her alone. Finally, she opened the envelope after taking a deep breath. As she pulled out the letter, an unwanted hope rose within her again. ¡®This time. Maybe this time he wanted to behave like a good father.¡¯ She was annoyed with herself for having that hope, but it was how she felt. Rashta pulled out the letter and read it quickly. ¡®I need money for this... I also want to do this...¡¯ he asked for the same as always. He didn¡¯t even bother to write her words offort. He only mentioned how difficult these days were for him. However, the amount requested was higher than usual. Not that he waspletely unaware of the rumors, but that he only cared about the money. Tears streamed down her face. Rashta tossed the letter aside, squatted on the floor and covered her face with both hands. Then she touched her fingertips to the scar on her forehead, which had been caused by a maid in the past. No matter how much she covered it with her bangs, the scar was still there, and it bothered her a lot. Rashta scratched the scar with her fingernails as she thought. ¡®Why was I born a ve? Why did I have to be the daughter of that trash? Why was Navier born a noble? Why did Navier have loving parents and live happily?¡¯ She knew that Navier must have gone through some hard times too, but not as hard as hers. It was different from the start. Rashta had to fight because she had nothing. She wanted to have a lot. She wanted to be loved, she wanted tough and she wanted to be happy. She wanted someone who truly loved her, not a father who abandoned his daughter, nor a man who promised her love and did not protect her. To love and be lovedpletely. Without being discriminated against for being a ve. ¡®Is that wrong? Is that so wrong? I took away her position as empress... I took away her husband... Yes, I did. Is that why I¡¯m being punished like this?¡¯ Rashtaughed through tears. ¡®No way, no way. Absolutely not.¡¯ Rashta had always been unhappy as to say now that she was suffering because she took away Navier¡¯s position as empress. Rather this time she tried to change her unhappy life with her own hands. But her unhappiness became even greater. ¡®Why? Why are happy people always happy, and why are unhappy people always unhappy? Do I find myself unhappy that I didn¡¯t settle for my life? What would have happened if I had conformed? Was I supposed to live my whole life as an obedient ve in the hope that one day my father woulde to rescue me?¡¯ Rashta sobbed and pounded her fist on the carpet. Each time her fist hit the carpet, the more the splendid ring on her right hand sank into her flesh. Blood flowed down her hand, but she felt no pain. She felt as if the splendid ring bit into her flesh and whispered, ¡®This position is not for you. You don¡¯t fit in such a high position. You are not worthy of me.¡¯ As tears streamed down her cheeks, Rashta suddenly stopped crying. She had changed her mind. Chapter 344 - He Really Loves Me (1) Chapter 344. He Really Loves Me (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Although I had done nothing wrong, as soon as Heinley asked me about the box, I immediately answered, ¡°It¡¯s nothing.¡± Heinley didn¡¯t question my words, he walked over to me and kissed me on the cheek. ¡°So then why do you look so uneasy? Huh?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but sigh. ¡®Should I tell him about the box sent by Sovieshu first, or should I ask him about ¡®it¡¯ that I was trying to ignore?¡¯ ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°I was thinking.¡± ¡°From your expression, it doesn¡¯t seem like you were thinking of anything happy...¡± Heinley stared at me as he leaned toward me. He was right, so I nodded, ¡°I have two things to tell you.¡± ¡°Were you thinking about whether you should say them?¡± ¡°No, I was thinking which to say first.¡± I needed to say both. So after thinking about it, I decided to start with the most important. With the box that Sovieshu gave me, I was only worried that Heinley would get jealous. So it was more important to resolve the matter of the phenomenon of mage decline. ¡°Isn¡¯t it easy to say?¡± Heinley whispered with a hand on his chin. ¡°What¡¯s wrong, My Queen?¡± ¡°Are you involved in the phenomenon of mage decline?¡± As I was about to say, ¡®Are you the culprit?¡¯ I chose my words better. ¡°Are you involved?¡± To call him ¡®culprit¡¯ in this situation would be to treat him as if he were a bad person. Of course, if he really was involved with the phenomenon of mage decline, he had already affected hundreds of people... Heinley would be a bad person to them. In the blink of an eye, Heinley¡¯s face became as cold as if it was covered by a thinyer of ice. ¡°Navier.¡± He spoke to me in a stiff voice. His eyes, less warm than usual, fixed on me. His icy appearance, without even trying to disguise it, made him seem colder than I could have expected. Not that he was angry with me. It¡¯s just that at my one question, his lovable and kind mask that he always wore disappeared. ¡°Heinley.¡± It broke my heart to see his stiff expression, not even trying to excuse himself. ¡°Heinley.¡± I called to him again, and ced a hand on his cheek. ¡°Heinley.¡± I called his name a third time and kissed his upper lip lightly. Only then did Heinley¡¯s eyes tremble. His goldenshes rose and fell over his purple eyes. ¡°Navier, My Queen. Navier, I...¡± ¡°I¡¯m not ming you.¡± When Heinley looked down, his purple eyes werepletely hidden. ¡°Heinley. I just want you to be honest with me.¡± The room waspletely silent, only the ticking of the wall clock could be heard. As if reality had faded away and there were only the two of us left in this world. I felt that no matter what Heinley said at this point, I would ept it without hesitation. When Heinley slowly looked up, his hidden eyes were revealed again. ¡°My Queen.¡± As soon as he called my name, the atmosphere enveloped in a magical and wonderful silence was instantly broken. Reality dragged us back into the room. Suddenly, the tension awakened a fear in me that made me shudder. ¡°Not right now.¡± Heinley first merely answered my question. Then he put his hand over mine, which was on his cheek, and immediately exined. ¡°Mages are the pirs that have made the Eastern Empire the most powerful country, they are the strength of the Emperor himself. It is true that I have harmed the mages as a way to suppress the Eastern Empire. But not any more.¡± Heinley looked at me in fear. ¡°My Queen, I married you who are of the Eastern Empire. It is for you that I do not intend to start a war against that empire. I mean it.¡± ¡°And Evely¡ª¡± There was no need to finish the question, Heinley confessed on his own, ¡°It¡¯s true that she lost her mana because she got caught up in my ns. But I was also the one who returned her mana. For your sake, My Queen. Because it was painful for you to see that girl like that.¡± Different emotions arose in me at the same time. Feelings so mixed that it was hard to distinguish between them. I licked my lips, cupped his face in my hands and rested my forehead against his. In the midst of all thisplexity, there were two clear feelings for me. Guilt and Gratitude. As I promised myself before, I could not stop Heinley without a good reason just because he had ns to start a war against the Eastern Empire. Still, I would not like it. My husband would attack my country, my family and my friends. Fortunately, Heinley said that for my sake he would not start a war against the Eastern Empire. Although it seemed that he had nned it for a long time, he gave up for my sake. ¡°My Queen.¡± I was grateful to him, but I was sorry that his image as Emperor of the Western Empire would be affected because of me. Still, I couldn¡¯t say, ¡®Don¡¯t worry, attack my country and my family.¡¯ Of course, in a corner of my mind also hovered the thought that if we had not married, we would have be enemies. ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley called me again. He seemed frightened because I stood still without saying a word. I had to say something, but what? I searched through the various thoughts going through my head, and chose one. The one most appropriate for this moment. ¡°Thank you for thinking of me.¡± I whispered in his ear. Chapter 345 - He Really Loves Me (2) Chapter 345. He Really Loves Me (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Heinley flinched and spoke softly as well. ¡°You¡¯re not angry?¡± ¡°You decided to not go to war for me.¡± ¡°Even though I was the one who hurt Evely?¡± ¡°It was also you who returned the mana to her.¡± ¡°If I hadn¡¯t taken it from her in the first ce, she would have been stronger than she is now.¡± It seemed that her mana still hadn¡¯t fully returned. This was about Evely, so I couldn¡¯t speak on her behalf. ¡°Aren¡¯t you disappointed in me, My Queen?¡± I first answered to myself, ¡®I¡¯ve known for a long time that you are a very cunning person.¡¯ Then I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m not disappointed.¡± ¡°My Queen...¡± If Heinley had simply acknowledged it and apologized, perhaps I would have felt differently than I do now. Or even if he had said that he loved me, but that the war was absolutely necessary for his country, I would have reacted differently. However, he said that he would not continue with what I feared most. What could I say to the man who had given up his ambitions for me? Then, I remembered his confession that he loved me. ¡°Heinley.¡± This man meant it. He really did love me. In the midst of my daze, my attention was caught by Sovieshu¡¯s gift still on the desk. Suddenly, I was curious. How would Sovieshu have acted in this situation? ¡°...¡± Well, I don¡¯t know. Now I did not understand how he acted. When I was in the Eastern Empire, I never imagined that the proud Sovieshu would continue to send me such gifts after the divorce. ¡°By the way, My Queen. You wanted to tell me two things. What¡¯s the other...?¡± Heinley asked in a nervous voice, while I was deep in thought. The muscles in his shoulders and arms stiffened as if he was worried once again, he didn¡¯t know it was about Sovieshu. ¡°It¡¯s not about you.¡± ¡°?¡± ¡°Sovieshu sent me a very precious gift.¡± ¡°You mean the handicrafts the delegation brought?¡± ¡°No, a personal gift.¡± ¡°A personal gift...¡± Heinley muttered with his gaze on the dented box on the desk. ¡°Is it that by any chance?¡± I nodded. ¡°I¡¯d like to return it because it¡¯s a heavy burden to receive this from Sovieshu. But if I send it personally, it might cause misunderstanding. Can you do it for me?¡± Heinley¡¯s expression darkened. Then he nced at me several times, while he bit his lower lip in difort. He seemed about to get jealous like when I said that Sovieshu was cautious. However, he didn¡¯t behave as usual, in the end he sighed and rested his forehead on my shoulder. ¡°My Queen. Did you deliberately choose this order to speak?¡± ¡°Are you disappointed?¡± When I asked Heinley in his own words, heughed sweetly and lifted his head to look into my eyes. Then we kissed, uniting our hearts. *** ¡®He¡¯s not the kind of person who would leave just because I asked him to. He¡¯ll hold on to my ankle for the rest of his life!¡¯ At first, Rashta was going to ask him to please disappear from her life, even if it meant giving him an important part of her possessions. She thought that even an upright person would not hesitate. It seemed that her real father knew the journalist Joanson well, so he should know her situation better than anyone else. But he didn¡¯t care. Rashta realized that she had been wrong. Unless she died, her father would always hold on to her. No, maybe even after her death he would still hold on to her. Through Glorym! ¡®I have to get rid of him.¡¯ Rashta ground her teeth. Despite how her real father had treated her, she hadn¡¯t thought of getting rid of him until now. Harming her real father was like destroying a shrine. ¡®Come to think of it, he is the cause of all my misfortunes, not a shrine. The rotten roots must be cut off.¡¯ Firmly determined, Rashta fixed her hair as she looked at herself in the mirror, took off the ring that had sunk into her flesh and ced it on the table. Blood fell from the bloody ring and drew a scarlet line. Rashta took her red gloves, put them on and went straight into the drawing room. In the drawing room, the maid sent by her father was sitting on the couch, chatting with other maids about how well she lived now. She burst intoughter after saying that perhaps she could be the Empress¡¯ stepmother. When the maid btedly noticed Rashta¡¯s presence, she hurriedly stood up, sped her hands together and bowed her head. The maid thought that Rashta would be angry, so she looked at the Empress in fear. But on the contrary, Rashta smiled and said in a sad tone, ¡°I¡¯d like to send a present to my father, but I think it¡¯s too heavy for you to carry alone.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, don¡¯t worry. I have strength.¡± ¡°Even if you have strength, you won¡¯t be able to carry it. This might be thest present, so Rashta put in a lot of things.¡± ¡°Thest present?¡± ¡°I¡¯m currently in a very difficult position. It¡¯s impossible for you not to know.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Besides, I want to see my father¡¯s face onest time. So I would like him toe in person, can you tell him?¡± The maid answered ¡®yes¡¯ nervously. ¡°Ah. I almost forgot.¡± ¡°What?¡± The present is very big, so it will attract attention. If a rumor spread that he received a precious present from Rashta, it wouldn¡¯t be good for my father either. So make sure you tell him not to let anyone see him on his way here. He cane through the back entrance. Rashta then went back into her room and picked up the ring she had left on the table. She didn¡¯t wipe the blood off the ring, but deliberately covered it with more blood from her own finger. To finish, she put on a light ck cloak, kept the ring in a small pocket and concealed a dagger inside her wide right sleeve. Eventually, Rashta said she would take a walk and left the West Pce. She headed for the back entrance. There was no special scenery to see, and down this road one would take more turns to get anywhere else, so neither those who liked to appreciate the scenery nor those who were busy with work used this road. Her real father wouldn¡¯t want to expose himself either, so Rashta was sure he woulde this way. After waiting for a while, her real father appeared. He walked with his head held high, arms outstretched and a cocky smile on his face. Rashta was hiding in the bushes as she waited for her real father to approach. But suddenly she saw a knight behind her real father. ¡®Who is it?¡¯ Rashta frowned, ¡®Did hee with my father?¡¯ That didn¡¯t seem to be the case. Her real father was startled when the knight called to him from behind. The knight spoke politely for a moment. Then her real father nodded a couple of times and followed him with a greedy smile. Rashta followed them through the bushes, but in the end she returned to her room because she didn¡¯t want to be caught. Rashta was so nervous that she couldn¡¯t even sit on the couch. ¡®What happened? Who took my father? Was it His Majesty?¡¯ As she pondered, she saw a glimmer of hope. ¡®Yes. It was His Majesty! He definitely intervened for my sake and the princess¡¯. Although her rtionship with Empress Navier at the masquerade ball was already distant, Emperor Sovieshu took her side when she attended in a dress almost identical to mine. Because Navier was the Empress. Even now that our rtionship has turned cold, he will naturally take my side in this critical situation. Because now Rashta is the Empress.¡¯ *** Rashta¡¯s assumption was half true. ¡°What did you do with him?¡± In response to Sovieshu¡¯s question, the knight bowed his head and said, ¡°I broke his face, and locked him in the depths of the dungeon.¡± Sovieshu had ordered to secretly deal with Rashta¡¯s real father once people lost interest. However, Sovieshu dared to deal with him now because the situation became extremely delicate. If it were discovered that Rashta was not the daughter of the Isqua Family, it would not only be Rashta who would be in trouble. Even if the paternity test concluded that Glorym was his daughter, the princess¡¯ future would bepromised by Rashta¡¯s real father. So he had no choice but to end the problem beforehand. Besides, since he took care of this man when Rashta called him to the imperial pce, he could use this to his advantage in the future. ¡°Your Majesty, what do you intend to do with Viscount and Viscountess Isqua?¡± The corners of Sovieshu¡¯s lips twisted. The couple thought Sovieshu didn¡¯t know that they were actually Rashta¡¯s fake parents. So maybe... ¡°If they agree to take a paternity test, they can stay in the imperial pce, if not, tell them to leave the pce. They won¡¯t want to get caught up in this and lose the rest of their honor, so they will probably flee immediately.¡± Chapter 346 - One Step Closer (1) Chapter 346. One Step Closer (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Thinking that Sovieshu had taken care of her real father, Rashta summoned Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. It was Duke Elgy who brought the couple. Sovieshu seemed to know that the couple were fake parents, but Rashta wanted to make them leave on their own just in case. ¡°... this worries me because of the rumors that have arisentely.¡± After Rashta told them about the situation and asked them to go away for a while, the couple answered with tears in their eyes. ¡°Alright. We would never do anything to hurt you.¡± Although when they asked for money to find their real daughter they were a nuisance, at least they were better than her real father at times like this. ¡°Thank you. I¡¯ll call you toe back when circumstances improve.¡± ¡°Remember that you can also call us if you need help.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Rashta sobbed and hugged the couple. ¡°I wish you two were my real parents.¡± As soon as Rashta said this, Evely came to her mind, so she took a startled step back. Then, she handed the couple the money she intended to give them along with the money she originally intended to give to her real father. Unless Evely died or disappeared, she would never call the couple again. This could be the goodbye and thest great present for them. ¡®Given such generosity, they won¡¯t say anything bad about me even if they leave for another country.¡¯ The Viscount sighed, epted the money and said sadly, ¡°Thank you, Rashta.¡± The Viscountess hastened to add. ¡°We will never forget you.¡± ¡°If we leave at once, people might find it strange, so it¡¯s best to wait for the right time.¡± Rashta also thought it would be best, so she nodded in agreement. Later, she went to visit Sovieshu. The guard told her that Sovieshu would only receive her in his bedroom. Rashta had not wanted to enter his bedroom because of the blue bird, but Sovieshu confirmed in the incident with Viscountess Verdi that the bird was afraid of her, so now it did not matter. Rashta had no choice but to enter Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom. But as soon as she entered, she opened her mouth in surprise, she didn¡¯t even have time to remember the days when she had been loved by Sovieshu. It was because of arge painting hanging on the wall. The painting had been hung so that it could be better seen from the front as one sat on the bed. ¡°That¡¯s...¡± Rashta frowned and hesitantly approached the painting. Actually, there were two paintings. One showed Princess Glorym, lyingfortably in the cradle with a beautiful smile on her face. And next to it... was the painting that surprised her, in which an unpleasant face appeared. The Empress Navier. Sovieshu appeared lying on Empress Navier¡¯sp as she looked at him with a cold expression. Rashta felt something pop in her head, she was stunned. Regardless of what anyone else said, she was now Sovieshu¡¯s wife. The High Priest personally approved of Empress Navier¡¯s divorce from Emperor Sovieshu, and he also approved Rashta¡¯s marriage to Sovieshu. ¡®How dare Sovieshu hang in his bedroom a painting of a woman who is already the wife of another man!? And next to the painting of the princess!¡¯ Rashta clenched her fists, she felt her blood boil. Sovieshu came out of the bathroom and looked at Rashta¡¯s back with aplex expression. But Sovieshu¡¯s expression became indifferent and dull when Rashta, who noticed his presence, turned around. Rashta red at him resentfully, but Sovieshu showed no change in his expression. The bird let out a strange high-pitched screech as it rattled itself against the cage. The bird¡¯s screech broke the tense atmosphere. ¡°Do you have something to tell me?¡± Sovieshu asked as he approached the cage to calm the bird. Rashta initially nned at first to ask Sovieshu if he had killed her real father. If Sovieshu answered yes, she would thank him with some sadness. She wanted to thank him because now she didn¡¯t have to harm her real father with her own hands. She wanted to tell him that he had been the one who had always saved her in the most difficult times, who had always supported her, even though the rtionship had recently taken a turn for the worse. She also wanted to tell him that he did not have to worry about the princess affair. Saying this, she thought that Sovieshu would feel bad about killing his wife¡¯s father despite the reason. However, she lost confidence as soon as she saw the painting of Empress Navier in his bedroom. She began to wonder if Sovieshu would really feel bad about killing her real father. When the firm belief that Emperor Sovieshu loved her was shaken, it all seemed to copse. Sovieshu, who calmed the blue bird, sat indifferently on the bed, dried his wet hair with a towel and ordered. ¡°Speak at once.¡± ¡®He¡¯s not worried that others will see the painting of his ex-wife in his bedroom.¡¯ Rashta¡¯s face contorted. Her finger, in which she didn¡¯t even feel pain when the ring sank into her flesh, began to ache. ¡°Your Majesty...¡± In the end, what came out of her mouth was not what she meant to say, ¡°Do you love Rashta?¡± She was serious. But Sovieshu answered with a frown, ¡°What does that matter now?¡± ¡°Please tell me. It¡¯s very important!¡± ¡°Rashta. I don¡¯t have time for your tantrums.¡± ¡°If instead of Rashta it had been someone else who fell into the trap, would Your Majesty have saved that person?¡± ¡°Rashta, I have no bizarre taste for collecting injured humans. Of course, if it had been someone else, I would have saved and treated that person as well.¡± ¡°If it had been another a woman.... would Your Majesty also have taken her as your concubine?¡± Sovieshu looked at Rashta with aplicated expression, but did not answer. Rashta didn¡¯t know whether Sovieshu¡¯s silence meant ¡®yes¡¯ or ¡®no¡¯, so she eventually mumbled reluctantly, ¡°I came here to tell you that I will take a paternity test...¡± *** When Rashta agreed to participate in the paternity test, the suspicions that had spread like wildfire slowly began to fade. ¡°It seems to be a false rumor that the princess is another man¡¯s daughter because of how sure she is.¡± ¡°Even so, isn¡¯t it true that she concealed the existence of her first child in order to be the Empress?¡± ¡°That is true, but it is too serious to doubt the princess¡¯ father .¡± ¡°If the princess is proven to be the emperor¡¯s daughter after the paternity test, all those who have spread absurd rumors will be in trouble.¡± ¡°Hmm. The answer will be revealed in the temple.¡± People believed that Rashta had a reason to be so confident. Of course, even if the princess was proven to be the emperor¡¯s daughter, Rashta¡¯s innocent image would bepletely destroyed because she had hidden her past. But the rumor that ¡®the princess was not a princess¡¯ was so scandalous that it caused this to be rtively buried. Both nobles andmoners paid attention to the paternity test. However, contrary to everyone¡¯s expectations, the paternity test was somewhat dyed. Soon it would be Emperor Heinley¡¯s birthday. Regardless of the paternity test result, there would be chaos for a while. If the imperial family went to a ce full of high-status nobles from other countries all in a mess, they would be aughing stock, so it would be better to end this dishonorable matter after the foreign event was over. It was a great relief to Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. Now the couple did not need to leave as if running away because they would have enough time. They would stay for a few more days, and then leave for a reasonable reason before the day of the paternity test arrived. This time was also valuable and useful for Rashta. She visited Duke Elgy even though she knew the absurdments that would arise again. Chapter 347 - One Step Closer (2) Chapter 347. One Step Closer (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren She had something very important to ask him. Except for Duke Elgy, she had no one else to entrust this task to. ¡°Miss Rashta?¡± Duke Elgy raised an eyebrow, as if surprised by Rashta¡¯s visit. ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t visit me for a while.¡± ¡°I¡¯vee to ask you a favor.¡± Hearing this, Duke Elgy asked with a smile without any hint of annoyance, ¡°What is it about? Since it is a request from Rashta, I will do whatever it takes to fulfill it.¡± Rashta looked at the duke with trembling eyes and opened her mouth with difficulty. ¡°Please... kidnap n¡¯s son.¡± ¡°You mean your first child?¡± ¡°He is not Rashta¡¯s child!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Rashta¡¯s first child is dead. But his spirit clings to the princess and Rashta. If that child is still here, we will be lost.¡± Duke Elgy looked at Rashta expressionless for a moment, then smiled and asked, ¡°What do you want me to do after I kidnap him? Do you want me to kill him?¡± Rashta hastily shook her head. ¡°No, not that.¡± ¡°What then?¡± ¡°Leave him in a home... a home that longs for a baby. Not in the Eastern Empire. In a distant country...¡± ¡°Do I have to go to a distant country?¡± Duke Elgy frowned slightly, ¡°This time it¡¯s aplicated request.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll give you anything in return...¡± ¡°Rashta, you have not even given me the port you promised me. I won¡¯t pressure you to repay me for all the money I lent you or the many other favors, since I did it out of friendship. But I was a little disappointed that you wouldn¡¯t keep your word with the port.¡± Rashta bit her lower lip nervously. ¡°I will definitely, definitely give it to you. But as the Duke knows, Rashta isn¡¯t in a position to give something so valuable at the moment.¡± ¡°I know. However, I¡¯m a little worried that Rashta will just use me, and then discard me as soon as I¡¯m no longer useful.¡± ¡°That will never happen!¡± ¡°I want to believe it too, but there are always people who deceive.¡± Duke Elgy nodded, approached Rashta with a devilish grin and asked. So, could you assure me in writing that you will give me the port in the future?¡± *** I left the matter of Sovieshu¡¯s gift in Heinley¡¯s hands, and the fear that he would start a war with my country also disappeared. But as soon as these two worries disappeared, a new one arose. Of course, unlike the previous ones, this worry was not so heavy as to oppress my heart. It was a lighter worry, but one that I wanted to address properly. It was about Heinley¡¯s birthday gift. ¡°Just take my advice.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s insincere?¡± ¡°Whether it¡¯s made by a chef or made by yourself, the ingredients and time don¡¯t change. Besides, you have to pay a little more for the chef. Why is it insincere?¡± ¡°...¡± What gift to give Heinley, that was the question. My mother was still inclined to, ¡®If you want to give him a cake, hire a good chef and pretend you made it yourself.¡¯ That way, I wouldn¡¯t force Heinley to eat a cake that wasn¡¯t delicious. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it some more.¡± In the end, I decided to seek advice from people other than my mother. But the others weren¡¯t much help either. ¡°A birthday gift for your husband? There was never anything like that between my husband and me.¡± Countess Jubel assured, and Laura added in bewilderment, ¡°I¡¯ve never had a rtionship... what I can tell you is what the gift my friends gave me was like. Over a year ago, I was surprised with a cake that came out of a stand that could rise..¡± Mastas said, ¡°The gift could be a sword or a spear. I¡¯ve also heard of vases that have be popr recently.¡± Later, my father¡¯s next words made my mother wince, ¡°Hmm, a birthday gift. I really like the special cake your mother makes for my birthday. Every year I eat it, it¡¯s just as delicious.¡± ¡°It brings me to tears, I don¡¯t know what to say, father.¡± ¡°Huh? Are you mocking me, Navier? I¡¯m sorry. I still can¡¯t understand your jokes.¡± ¡°... No.¡± When I asked my brother, he said it would be better to give him clothes, hats and shoes... Rose preferred that we spend time together and Nian opted for sexy underwear. ¡°You don¡¯t think His Majesty would like you to give him sexy underwear.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it more of a gift to me that Heinley wears sexy underwear?¡± Nian sat cross-legged and chuckled softly. ¡°It¡¯s kind of a domino effect.¡± ¡°Domino effect?¡± ¡°I once gave my lover sexy underwear as a gift. I¡¯ll keep it a secret who I gave it to. In any case, I was happy to see him with the sexy underwear on. Seeing me happy, made him feel happy too.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so explicit, Lady Nian.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I leave out a lot of details?¡± It¡¯s a problem, now I won¡¯t be able to look Viscount Langdel in the eye for a while. First, I pretended not to care at all as I sipped my tea with an expressionless face. However, among the many rmendations, Nian¡¯s rmendation was the one I liked the most. Of course, I wouldn¡¯t give Heinley such a gift. Although Heinley would look great in sexy underwear, I had to take care of my image as empress. After I returned to my room, I thought about going to ask McKenna¡¯s opinion. Luckily, McKenna came to see me first. ¡°What? A birthday gift for His Majesty Heinley? There is a dance that His Majesty does when he is very happy. I think he¡¯ll like it very much if you dance it with him.¡± Naturally, he wasn¡¯t much help either. ¡°...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a joke, I¡¯m serious. His Majesty Heinley once told me, ¡®a woman who can master this dance is my ideal type¡¯.¡± ¡°... Really?¡± ¡°Yes, he told me when he was six years old. He¡¯s a smart man, he must still remember it.¡± I know what dance McKenna was talking about. When my pregnancy was confirmed by the pce doctor, he danced that way and turned into ¡®Queen¡¯. He looked cute, but I didn¡¯t want to dance that way with him. It was cute because he danced and turned into a bird... Once I sighed, McKenna said, ¡°I¡¯d forgotten¡± he smacked his head and spoke earnestly, ¡°I came because of the carriage incident. All the members of the Western Empire delegation were investigated.¡± ¡°What was the result?¡± ¡°As Your Majesty said, the person seated farthest from the wrecked side of the carriage was the culprit.¡± Chapter 348 - Gift (1) Chapter 348. Gift (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Just what I thought. What I didn¡¯t understand is why someone would order that. ¡°Who ordered it? For what reason? To ruin the gifts sent by Emperor Sovieshu? Or what else...¡± Maybe it¡¯s Rashta¡¯s order. I don¡¯t think she had a reason, but most of the hostility Rashta had shown toward mecked precisely that. However, what McKenna revealed was unexpected, ¡°It was ordered by the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua.¡± ¡°Really?¡± I remembered the couple who used to act like good people. Although we never had a proper conversation, I remembered them clearly because they were indirectly rted to my brother¡¯s banishment. ¡°Yes. The culprit confessed that he received a huge sum of money to cause an ¡®ident¡¯.¡± ¡°Why did they give that order...?¡± Do they hold a grudge against me? Or is it against Sovieshu? It was my understanding that Rashta and Sovieshu currently did not have a good rtionship. Since they had taken Rashta as their daughter, were they angry with Sovieshu? ¡°It was because of Miss Evely.¡± McKenna¡¯s words were again unexpected. ¡°Evely?¡± Why Evely? *** ¡°It was Viscount and Viscountess Isqua who ordered the carriage ¡®ident¡¯. They intended to harm you.¡± Evely muttered sullenly in response to my words, ¡°They must have done it because of what they misunderstood. The Viscount and Viscountess Isqua think.... think... I am.¡± But unlike me, Evely wasn¡¯t surprised that the couple tried to hurt her. Maybe they didn¡¯t get along. However, there were so many gaps in Evely¡¯s words that it was hard to understand. What did Viscount and Viscountess Isqua think of Evely? ¡°Hmm...¡± ¡°Evely?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t misunderstand me, Your Majesty. Absolutely not, absolutely not.¡± What was she talking about? Evely sped her hands together, looked carefully into my eyes and shyly confessed. ¡°The couple thinks that I am Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s second concubine. That¡¯s why they hate me so much.¡± ¡°His concubine?¡± ¡°Never, Your Majesty!¡± As if afraid that I might misunderstand, Evely jumped to her feet and waved her hands hurriedly, ¡°I became an assistant to the court mage, and I live in the Southern Pce. His Majesty Sovieshu has given me manyforts, hence the misunderstanding.¡± Sovieshu was taking care of Evely? That was a surprise. But now that I think about it, it made sense for Evely to run this errand for Sovieshu if he was taking care of her. It would be really strange if he called Evely from the magic academy to run an errand. Money aside, perhaps it was because of that misunderstanding that the person responsible for loosening the carriage wheel agreed to the couple¡¯s request. ¡°You don¡¯t feel ufortable living there?¡± ¡°No. The court mage and the seniors are all good people. I don¡¯t have to see His Majesty Sovieshu, so I don¡¯t feel ufortable.¡± Despite that, herplexion was still dark. ¡°Only Viscount and Viscountess Isqua messed with you?¡± ¡°... Rashta also thinks that I am His Majesty Sovieshu¡¯s concubine, but I deliberately did not try to clear up the misunderstanding. I wanted to make her angry.¡± Evely blushed and lowered her head. She looked so cute that I couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Did you manage to make that woman angry?¡± Evely looked at me with wide eyes at my question. Then she smiled and nodded quickly. ¡°You did well. Thank you.¡± As soon as I thanked her, Evely blushed even more and turned a little. ¡°By the way, Evely. Are you sure to stay there?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Viscount and Viscountess Isqua still mess with you. They were even able to cause an ident in the delegation¡¯s carriage to hurt you... and it could be worseter on.¡± ¡°Yes. That¡¯s likely.¡± I felt that Rashta might be behind this, but I chose not to mention it for now. Instead, I carefully suggested to Evely. ¡°Why don¡¯t you stay in the Western Empire?¡± I had little hope that Evely would agree to stay in the Western Empire. Now that she has recovered her mana, she must want to learn many things. It would be hard for her to leave the position as the court mage¡¯s assistant. She would rather return to the magical academy than stay in the Western Empire. As I expected, Evely weakly refused. ¡°If I stay here now, I will just be an ordinary girl who has received Your Majesty¡¯s grace. I will be of no use to the Empress. I will only receive Your Majesty¡¯s help as in the past... But if I learn a lot from the court mage, I will be a useful person for the Empress. At that time, I will definitely stay by Your Majesty¡¯s side.¡± I nodded with a smile of understanding. However, perhaps because Evely felt bad about rejecting my suggestion, she clenched her fist and added after a moment¡¯s thought, ¡°If Your Majesty needs me, I wille immediately even if I am in the middle of another matter. You don¡¯t have to worry about me either, I¡¯ll be fine. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua acted that way because I am far away. In fact, they only spoke ill of me when I was at the South Pce. Sometimes behind my back and sometimes to my face.¡± *** Although the banquet was over by the time Evely arrived, the delegation left after a few days. Unlike when they arrived, they departed back in two carriages. In one carriage was carried separately the criminal who loosened the wheel of the carriage by order of the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. The criminal will probably be punished for trying to ruin the gifts sent by the Emperor Sovieshu once he returns to the Eastern Empire. He could have been punished in the Western Empire, but that would mean that the punishment would have been less severe because it could cause conflicts between countries. I also wrote a separate letter to Sovieshu, in which I informed him that Viscount and Viscountess Isqua used to mess with Evely. I don¡¯t know if he will believe me. If the regret he showed in front of me wasn¡¯t a lie, then he will pay attention to it. After the departure of thest guests, the Western Empire entered fully into the preparations for Heinley¡¯s birthday. Chapter 349 Chapter 349. Gift (2) Trantor: Aura The day before Heinley¡¯s birthday I changed my mind about the gift. I opted to select different types of gifts and leave the final choice up to Heinley. I would separate each gift into a box and have Heinley choose one at random. Of course, I¡¯ll tell Heinley in advance that, ¡®each gift was prepared with the opinion of people close to me in mind.¡¯ In this way, Heinley will find it as much fun as a game. Even if he chooses the sexy underwear, it won¡¯t look like I put that gift in for an ulterior motive. Once I made up my mind, I really enjoyed doing it all. I looked forward to tomorrow. However, Heinley told me at night, ¡°Queen, there¡¯s something special I want as a gift.¡± To be honest, I was disappointed. I had prepared everything carefully, but now there was something special he wanted. I tried to hide my disappointment as I asked him, ¡°What is it? Do I have time to get it?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± What exactly did he want? When I asked him to tell me, Heinley was silent with hesitation. ¡°Heinley? What do you want?¡± Did he notice my disappointment? Is that why Heinley is like this? I was worried, so I put on my best face again and asked in a soft voice. ¡°You can ask me whatever you want. It¡¯s your birthday.¡± Heinley stared at me as he said, ¡°Are you sure it doesn¡¯t matter what I ask for?¡± I don¡¯t think he would suddenlye out with, ¡®I want to take over the Eastern Empire¡¯. ¡°Of course.¡± I nodded with a smile and caressed his face. Heinley finally confessed in relief, ¡°The jewel that Emperor Sovieshu sent you. Can I keep it?¡± I didn¡¯t expect him to want that at all. I couldn¡¯t say anything for about fifteen seconds. I was really puzzled. Why that? ¡°... You mean the fairy tear?¡± Shortly after, I asked him because I thought I had misheard. But that wasn¡¯t the case. ¡°Yes. It¡¯s a jewel I¡¯ve always wanted.¡± It may be because it¡¯s a well-recognized jewel... When I looked at him curiously, Heinley smiled awkwardly, ¡°The jewel is not to me, Queen.¡± I knew he liked jewels, but not to this extent. For a moment, I didn¡¯t know what to say. I was confused as to whether it was right to give the precious gift my ex-husband sent me to my current husband. But on second thought, it wasn¡¯t inappropriate. Sovieshu had wanted to give my ring to Rashta, though in the end he couldn¡¯t. ¡°Okay. You can keep it.¡± Thinking about it brought back bad memories, so I didn¡¯t object. However, I had no idea what Heinley wanted it for. *** The day of his birthday was hectic from dawn. Carriages of various sizes entered the imperial pce one after another. At the ce where the carriages were parked, the coachmen conversed happily while the servants took out the loads. The boisterous atmosphere reached its peak at nightfall, when the party began. However, not everyone wasughing and chatting merrily. At first nce, some people had a particrly stiff face. Among them, the most obvious were the Whitemond delegation, the son of Old Duke Zemensia together with his daughter-inw, and Count Pirnu, Sovieshu¡¯s secretary. Why did he suddenly invite the Zemensia Family, with the exception of Old Duke Zemensia? Why did he suddenly invite Whitemond, despite the strained rtionship between the two countries? Heinley really couldn¡¯t be stopped. Also, why did he wear the ¡®fairy tear¡¯ that Sovieshu sent me as a ne? If his intention was to have one of the members of the Eastern Empire delegation recognize the ¡®fairy tear¡¯, he had seeded. Count Pirnu had a very grim and unpleasant expression. Heinley smiled more than usual every time his eyes met mine as he ignored the fierce stares. Still, there must have been dark clouds behind that radiant face. After a while, the special ambassador of the Whitemond delegation approached me. ¡°Ambassador Klein.¡± As soon as I pretended to know him, he greeted me politely. I looked up discreetly at Heinley. The Whitemond matter had to be handled carefully, so I preferred Heinley to be at my side to talk to the special ambassador. But Heinley approached Grand Duke Lilteang, perhaps he didn¡¯t notice that the Whitemond Ambassador approached me. Unfortunately, it would be impolite to call Heinley over to my side, who was in the middle of a conversation with someone else. In the end, I decided to deal with Whitemond¡¯s special ambassador in my own way, I greeted him in a calm voice and showed the splendid smile of an empress. ¡°Earlier, I could not express my thanks properly. I appreciate youring here for His Majesty Heinley. Whitemond¡¯s gifts were also really thoughtful and nice.¡± ¡°It is an honor to know that our gifts were liked by the Imperial Family, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°How about the party? Are you having fun?¡± ¡°Although high society birthday parties are simr in Whitemond, I am always surprised by the cultural differences. Especially this hall, it is decorated with so many jewels that it blinds my eyes. It¡¯s very morous.¡± This extravagant decoration was not part of the culture of the Western Empire, but of Heinley¡¯s taste... I still nodded with a smile. After we exchanged a few words, the Ambassador of Whitemond finally brought up the real issue. ¡°Your Majesty, as you know, our two countries that have always boasted of a solid alliance now have serious differences.¡± ¡°Yes, I did not expect the sudden arrest of the trade team by Whitemond.¡± When I pointed out that Whitemond had initiated the conflict, while the special ambassador tried to me both sides, his expression became stiff. ¡°Of course... it¡¯s our fault.¡± But he soon let out a deep sigh and confessed. ¡°As you may also know, the King of Whitemond personally visited His Majesty Heinley to seek reconciliation between the two countries after that incident. However, His Majesty Heinley has still not responded to the reconciliation and continues to send troops near the border, so the whole country is afraid.¡± I didn¡¯t know Heinley was sending troops near the Whitemond border. Is that some kind of threat? The special ambassador helplessly confessed with folded hands, ¡°Whitemond definitely does not wish for war, Your Majesty. It only hopes that the Western Empire, which will only be more powerful in the future, does not look down on Whitemond.¡± I didn¡¯t know Heinley was sending troops near the Whitemond border. Is that some kind of threat? The special ambassador helplessly confessed with folded hands, ¡°Whitemond definitely does not wish for war, Your Majesty. It only hopes that the Western Empire, which will only be more powerful in the future, does not look down on Whitemond.¡± ¡°In that case, why did you arrest the trade team?¡± ¡°Your Majesty has never lived in a small country, so you may not understand our position. Any movement of a powerful country scares us, that¡¯s why we react that way.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Your Majesty, please mediate between Emperor Heinley and Whitemond. Your Majesty Navier¡¯s reputation is well known. We are sure that you will be able to convince Emperor Heinley. Please, I hope you have mercy on the people of Whitemond, if a war breaks out there will be countless dead and wounded.¡± After the special ambassador finished, he extended an envelope to me. ¡°And this is a gift.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t Whitemond send the gifts already?¡± ¡°These were gifts for His Majesty Heinley. This is a gift for not being able to attend the banquet for her pregnancy. It is a gift for the unborn baby.¡± When I checked the contents, there were two drawings. One of a warship and the other of a merchant ship. As well as two documents in which the right over these ships was indicated. Once I looked at him in surprise, the special ambassador said hurriedly, ¡°We have prepared a warship and a merchant ship that look exactly like the ones in the paintings. I¡¯m sure the baby will like them.¡± They prepared the gift in all seriousness. Do they think I can exert that much influence over Heinley? Chapter 350 Chapter 350. Determination (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren If he had given it to me privately, I would have rejected it immediately because it was a bribe. But since it was a gift given at an official event for an official reason, it was difficult to refuse. It would be impolite to do so in a ce like this. ... maybe that¡¯s why he gave me the gift now. Besides, that the gift to the Western Empire were ships, which had no ports, made their intention clear. This gift itself could only be used if the rtionship between the two countries was restored. ¡°Thank you.¡± I epted the gift with a smile. But it seemed impolite to leave at once, so I thought about it for a moment and gave him some advice, ¡°I know why you want us to sign a non-invasion pact, but that would be a unteral pact that would tie us hand and foot.¡± ¡°How could that be possible? The Western Empire is a powerful country that can speak with dignity even if it breaks the pact, but Whitemond is a small country that wouldn¡¯t dare to invade the Western Empire even if a pact is not signed.¡± ¡°But didn¡¯t Whitemond arrest our trade team?¡± ¡°That was...¡± ¡°Of course it wasn¡¯t an invasion. However, we appreciate our people as much as Whitemond does.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand what Your Majesty means.¡± ¡°If we sign a non-invasion pact, Whitemond should also sign a simr pact. That way you can¡¯t attack our people who use the port like you did at that time.¡± After the special ambassador went somewhere else deep in thought. I went to find Heinley to tell him about this. But Heinley was nowhere to be found. Wasn¡¯t he talking to Grand Duke Lilteang near the musicians? In the end, I asked the servants passing by so I could find him, ¡°Have you seen His Majesty Heinley?¡± Although there were many people to talk to, I wanted to tell Heinley about the conversation I had had with the special ambassador as soon as possible. But before I could find Heinley, I heard amotion. What is going on? Themotion came from the garden on the veranda. I saw that people gathered there to see what was going on. When I approached themotion, I saw a little boy drowning in the pond as a maid desperately tried to pull the boy out. ¡°Middelen!¡± A man and a woman, who appeared to be the little boy¡¯s parents, cried out in tears... The Duke and Duchess Zemensia? So Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s grandson was the one who fell into the pond? Eventually, the maid managed to pull the boy out of the pond. The maid was so exhausted that she copsed. ¡°Get the pce doctor! Quick!¡± Duke Zemensia shouted loudly, while the Duchess approached her son to check on him. Some servants rushed out to call the pce doctor. Then Duke Zemensia pointed to one person and eximed in an angry voice, ¡°He pushed my son!¡± The person he pointed to was Grand Duke Lilteang. What is going on...? Grand Duke Lilteang was not in the crowd, but he shouted indignantly as he was pointed out. ¡°What did I do?!¡± ¡°I saw it with my own eyes! You pushed my son when you walked past him!¡± ¡°That is a false usation!¡± ¡°It isn¡¯t! Emperor Heinley saw it too!¡± Wasn¡¯t Heinley with Grand Duke Lilteang? How was he with Duke Zemensia when the incident urred? People¡¯s gaze that was on Grand Duke Lilteang and Duke Zemensia now wandered in search of Heinley. Curiously, Heinley was not far from Duke Zemensia. When the crowd¡¯s gaze settled on Heinley, he nodded with an expression of deep regret. ¡°I saw it too, Grand Duke Lilteang.¡± After Christa¡¯s suicide, the Zemensia Family had been shunned by high society, but remained a part of the Western Empire. However, most of the Western Empire always sided with their own high-status nobles in conflicts with other countries. For that reason, upon hearing that Grand Duke Lilteang of the Eastern Empire had pushed a child of the Western Empire into the pond, people¡¯s eyes turned cold and fierce. ¡°That¡¯s not true!¡± Grand Duke Lilteang shouted. The atmosphere around him became so gloomy that he flinched and hurriedly fled in fear. ¡°Catch the Grand Duke Lilteang.¡± Fortunately, this ce was located in the imperial pce, so there were knights stationed around to act in situations like this. At Heinley¡¯s words, Grand Duke Lilteang could not even take five steps before he was caught. Although he was not forcibly held by the arms or forced to kneel out of consideration for his status, the Grand Duke had no choice but to stop because he was surrounded by burly knights. Duchess Zemensia¡¯s cry resounded everywhere like lightning. Heinley ordered without hesitation to take Grand Duke Lilteang to the Moon Hall. Once the pce doctor arrived to attend to Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s grandson, I also went to the Moon Hall. Concerned about the chaotic situation, Mastas, Viscount Langdel, and Countess Jubel were quick to follow me. ¡°How could he push a child into the pond?! What a wicked man.¡± Mastas looked indignant as we walked through the corridors. Although she also detested the Zemensia Family, she put the honor of the Western Empire above all else, so she was very angry with Grand Duke Lilteang. In contrast, Viscount Langdel did not express his anger with vehemence, but maintained a serious expression. Countess Jubel was annoyed by the Grand Duke¡¯s reckless behavior, rather than the danger to Duke Zemensia¡¯s son. ¡°He caused another problem again. He used to cause problems with his words, but this time he did it with his own hands.¡± Since the Imperial Family had few members, there was often no choice but to send Grand Duke Lilteang as the ¡®representative of the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire¡¯. Generally, there were no problems. Grand Duke Lilteang desires power, so he is more careful with his actions. However, the Grand Duke couldn¡¯t hide his hostility once he disliked someone, so he tries to unleash it by any means. Like he did when I was the Empress of the Eastern Empire. He changed his n as soon as Rashta appeared, he stopped trying to bribe me and went directly against me. Perhaps that was why Countess Jubel was not at all surprised that Grand Duke Lilteang had caused a serious problem. In the past, Grand Duke Lilteang had been publicly shamed by Old Duke Zemensia for talking nonsense. Before I knew it, we arrived in front of the Moon Hall. However, the door was tightly closed and four knights guarded it. Among the knights was Rose¡¯s brother, Sir Yunim, who asked me carefully when he saw me, ¡°Would you like me to tell the Emperor that Your Majesty is here?¡± His attitude was very kindpared to the rude way he used to treat me. Countess Jubel, Mastas, and Viscount Langdel looked at me at the same time. They seemed to wait for my answer. ¡°Your Majesty...!¡± When all was quiet, faint cries of despair could be heard on the other side of the door. It was the voice of Grand Duke Lilteang. After a moment¡¯s consideration, I changed my mind. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. When he is done with his business, tell him I¡¯ll wait for him in my room.¡± Chapter 351 Chapter 351. Determination (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren ¡°Your Majesty! I didn¡¯t push him! It is the truth!¡± Inside the Moon Hall, Grand Duke Lilteang insisted on his innocence with a pale face. But it was useless. ¡°Duke Zemensia¡¯s usation is true. I was there when you pushed his son.¡± Grand Duke Lilteang looked like he was about to cry. ¡°I didn¡¯t push him! I just¡­¡± ¡°You hit him in the shoulder. Well, it might have been bad luck for him to fall into the pond.¡± ¡°Yes! I just hit him in the shoulder, I didn¡¯t expect the little boy to trip and fall into the pond!¡± ¡°But it happened. The little boy fell into the pond, so you, Grand Duke, dared to harm the son of a high-status noble of the Western Empire.¡± Grand Duke Lilteang protested with tears in his eyes. ¡°If Your Majesty hadn¡¯t told me in the first ce that he was Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s grandson, I wouldn¡¯t have done it!¡± Heinley raised an eyebrow sullenly, ¡°You say that as if I pointed out the Old Duke¡¯s grandson for you to push him.¡± ¡°You said that Old Duke Zemensia even abandoned his daughter to protect his grandson! Your Majesty knows¡­ knows¡­ that I lose control easily!¡± ¡°No more excuses. It is embarrassing.¡± Grand Duke Lilteang pursed his lips, but Heinley was right. Although Emperor Heinley¡¯s intention could be doubted after what had happened, it was definitely not strange. As Emperor Heinley said, he did not talk about pushing the Old Duke¡¯s grandson. He only said who the little boy was and that Old Duke Zemensia was very fond of him. After that, Heinley went to greet other people. However, Grand Duke Lilteang did not believe that Heinley, who had attended countless high society events, had told him that without any intention. Grand Duke Lilteang caused trouble whenever he got carried away by his emotions, a w that had always worried those around him. Even once, when the Western Empire was still a Kingdom, he made a mistake by speaking impulsively. With that in mind, did Emperor Heinley really inform him about his old enemy¡¯s weakness without any intention? Moreover, it was strange that Duke Zemensia saw exactly that brief moment of the push, and that Emperor Heinley was by his side. As far as he knew, the Zemensia Family hadpletely lost Emperor Heinley¡¯s support. However, it was Grand Duke Lilteang who ended up in an unfortunate situation. ¡°I will make a formalint to Emperor Sovieshu about this matter.¡± Heinley was sorry that this had happened on his birthday, and ordered that the Grand Duke be locked in a room for distinguished guests. Two Underground Knights, who waited inside the hall, approached and held the Grand Duke by both arms. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty!¡± The two knights mercilessly pulled out Grand Duke Lilteang as he resisted. It waspletely different from the behavior of the knights outside, who did not touch him so as not to disgrace him in front of the others. After Grand Duke Lilteang was dragged out the back door, McKenna, who watched quietly, clicked his tongue and stepped forward. ¡°I had imagined it when he mocked Empress Navier in front of Your Majesty, but he really is a person who acts more than he thinks.¡± ¡°Yes. In any case, I didn¡¯t expect you to push the little boy straight into the pond. How is he?¡± ¡°He was quickly rescued by the maid, so his life is not in danger.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ send him some medicine that¡¯s good for themon cold.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think his parents will give it to him.¡± ¡°It¡¯s just a show of goodwill.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ???s ??????? ?s ?????? ?? who answered dutifully, reflected for a moment and asked, ¡°By the way, even if we make a formalint to the Eastern Empire about what happened, won¡¯t Emperor Sovieshu ask us to send back the Grand Duke? His Majesty might say that he would be duly punished. I know they are not close, but the Grand Duke is still one of the few members of the Imperial Family.¡± ¡°In a normal situation, it would be like this.¡± Heinley sighed and rose from the throne. ¡°But now, isn¡¯t there a stir in the Eastern Empire because it is not known whether the princess has the Emperor¡¯s blood?¡± ¡°Right.¡± ¡°If it turns out that the princess is not the daughter of Emperor Sovieshu, then Grand Duke Lilteang and his son are next in the line of session. But Emperor Sovieshu is young and Duke Lilteang is much older, so it is actually his son who could be the sessor.¡± The corners of Heinley¡¯s lips twitched. ¡°Won¡¯t Emperor Sovieshu want to get rid of Grand Duke Lilteang just in case?¡± ¡°Oh.¡± ¡°Let Emperor Sovieshu know that what Grand Duke Lilteang did was heinous, and as he himself confessed, it was worse than expected. In order not to damage the image of the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire, he will only be locked in a tower for about five years.¡± ¡°Yes, as youmand. In which tower will the Grand Duke be locked up?¡± ¡°In the Red Tower.¡± The ¡®Red Tower¡¯ was a scary ce from which it was rumored that one could not leave without bloodshed. The name ¡®Red Tower¡¯ was due to the fact that the stairs of the tower were stained red by blood. The inside of the tower was spotless, as it was used to lock up high status nobles, but no one wanted to go in there. ¡°Yes.¡± McKenna responded with a smile, to which Heinley added with a smile as well, ¡°One more thing.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°Keep his mouth shut with a stone.¡± *** After I waited about two hours in my room, Heinley rushed in and apologized. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, My Queen. I was toldte that you were expecting me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s all right. I asked Sir Yunim to let you know after you finished your business.¡± ¡°Still, Yunim is an inconsiderate knight.¡± ¡°Heinley, I asked him.¡± When I spoke firmly, Heinley approached me like a tame fox andid his head tenderly on my shoulder. ¡°If I had known earlier that My Queen was waiting for me, I would have put aside my business toe at once.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why I did it.¡± Heinley gently bit my neck and then my ear. His warm breath brushing against my skin tickled, so my shoulders rose naturally. ¡°Stop.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just so happy to see you¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m happy too. But you¡¯re a bird, not a dog.¡± Heinleyughed softly, epting my words. That¡¯s when he saw the pile of gifts behind me and asked in surprise, ¡°My Queen? Are they all for me?¡± ¡°I already gave you the gift you wanted.¡± ¡°That was just to show off¡­¡± Heinley seemed to remember that he deliberately wore the jewel that Sovieshu sent me in front of his secretary. Heinley quickly became depressed. ¡°Just kidding. This is the gift I really prepared for you.¡± But as soon as he heard my words, his shoulders rose again, he smiled broadly and asked, ¡°All of them?¡± ¡°Just one.¡± Then, I gave him a kiss on the cheek and asked him to sit on the bed as he was about to get depressed again. ¡°There¡¯s something I have to tell you first, Heinley.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t we open gifts first?¡± I wanted to talk about Whitemond, but¡­ it¡¯s Heinley¡¯s birthday. In the end, I put off the Whitemond issue. I then exined before asking him to unwrap a gift, ¡°These are gifts that I prepared based on the suggestions of people close to me. What each gift box contains is different, so choose one.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t I keep them all?¡± ¡°That wouldn¡¯t be fun.¡± In fact, I would give him all the gifts. It may be tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, but today only one. Heinley sighed regretfully at my words, but soon agreed, walked over to the pile of gifts and began to think seriously. Then he chose the box that was located at the bottom. ¡°I¡¯ll take this one, My Queen.¡± When he finished speaking, he grabbed one end of the ribbon wrapped around the box. At that instant, I rushed to stop his hand, which was about to pull the ribbon. Chapter 352 Chapter 352. Repentance Is Bitter (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren The box Heinley chose contained the sexy underwear. I had hesitated to put it among the gifts, but in the end I was swayed by desire. Since Heinley is a naughty eagle I thought he would like it too, so I partly did it for fun. However, I had put it on the bottom as it would be less likely that he would choose it. When he chose that box, I regretted my folly. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°Heinley, choose another one.¡± ¡°Huh? You told me to choose any...¡± ¡°I just realized I made a mistake. This is not a gift for you.¡± ¡°What? Then who¡¯s it for?¡± ¡°It¡¯s, it¡¯s for Viscount Langdel.¡± Heinley had an expression that he didn¡¯t believe me in the least. It was understandable. He couldn¡¯t believe that I had put a gift for Viscount Langdel next to his birthday gifts. It was an absurd excuse. I¡¯m sorry, Viscount Langdel. In any case, I hurriedly snatched the box from him, shoved it under the bed and said again, ¡°Choose another one.¡± At times like this, I was d that my expression was impassive. It was impossible to tell that I was embarrassed. ¡°Are you going to take away the next gift box I choose?¡± ¡°No. I definitely won¡¯t do it again.¡± Heinley looked at me with dubious eyes for a moment, but chose another gift box. It was a beautiful shiny gift box wrapped in gold and silver paper... but how did he manage to choose this one too. This was McKenna¡¯s rmended gift. Do the Heinley dance with him! No, I don¡¯t me Heinley. I was foolish to agree to what McKenna said even though it seemed crazy to me. Inwardly, I reproached myself. Heinley is a funny man with a great sense of humor, so I wanted to match him. But why did I try to do it now even though I knew I wasn¡¯t good at jokes? In fact, what I had in mind was for Heinley to first choose a ¡®normal¡¯ gift, then I would tell him that he could keep the others as well. In that way, I expected Heinley to say, ¡®My Queen, you have a great sense of humor!¡¯ However.... ¡°Hmm. My Queen, did I choose wrong?¡± While I was deep in thought, Heinley took out of the gift box the drawing of a human form doing dance steps and asked me sadly, ¡°Is this the losing gift?¡± I guess he asks because it¡¯s not a good drawing. It¡¯s a drawing I did roughly to represent the ¡®dance¡¯. It seems that wasn¡¯t a good idea. ¡°I drew it.¡± ¡°Oh, My Queen! You are very creative with your drawings! In about 300 years, this drawing will be recognized as a work of art!¡± ¡°... I know I don¡¯t draw well. You can choose another gift box¡ª¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to.¡± ¡°Give it to me anyway. I¡¯ll give you the first gift you chose.¡± I snatched the drawing from him, took out the box I had put under the bed and handed it to him. ¡°I wonder what¡¯s in here.¡± Heinley muttered. He seemed to be very curious about the first gift he had chosen, so he hurried to open the box. Immediately a gasp was heard. ¡°My Queen. Did you want to give this to Viscount Langdel?¡± Heinley seemed to get it, so he didn¡¯t stop teasing me no matter how many times I said otherwise, ¡°Why this gift?¡±, Viscount Langdel likes this?¡±, ¡°Why did you put a gift for Viscount Langdel with my gifts, My Queen?¡±, ¡°Besides, what did that drawing mean, My Queen?¡± Only when the wine ss in my hand began to freeze did Heinley shut his mouth. What I had in mind didn¡¯t work, so now that Heinley had chosen the two gifts I had prepared as a joke, I gave him all the others. I also realized that this kind of prank could not be made by just anyone. When a person as rigid as me tried to make a prank, I ended up bing the butt of it... After we spent almost two hours opening the other gifts whileughing, I finally talked about the Whitemond issue, ¡°Heinley, I have something important to tell you about Whitemond.¡± ¡°My Queen. That¡¯s not a pleasant subject.¡± ¡°I must tell you while my memories still remain clear.¡± I patted the back of Heinley¡¯s hand because he kept stroking my toes as if he wanted to have a little more fun. After he sat up straight, I told him about what happened in the hall. I told him about what the special ambassador asked me to do, the gift he gave me, and the advice I gave him. Heinley listened to me with a serious expression. Then he asked me as soon as I finished speaking, ¡°How would My Queen like this to be resolved?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want war either.¡± ¡°My Queen is a pacifist?¡± ¡°It would be foolish to promote peace unconditionally. But I think it is better to avoid war as much as possible if there is no clear justification or rationale. It is not right to drag countless people to their deaths just for a small gain.¡± ¡°The Western Empire is powerful, My Queen. It would not be a problem to forcibly take control of the port of Whitemond.¡± ¡°After we proimed ourselves an Empire, Whitemond is not the only nearby country that looks at us warily, Heinley. If we attack Whitemond for immediate gain, all other countries would distrust the Western Empire and try to keep their distance. They could also join forces with the Eastern Empire in the event of a war.¡± Heinley nodded repeatedly as he listened to me. From his expression, he seemed to seriously ponder my point of view. ¡°I¡¯m not saying this because of the gift of the two ships.¡± ¡°Huh? Ships? The gift was two ships?¡± ¡°A merchant ship and a warship.¡± In fact, it was the first time that I received ships as a gift. ¡°Would you like me to show them to you?¡± Since Heinley was interested, I quickly went for the envelope given to me by the special ambassador and handed the paintings of the ships to Heinley. ¡°What do you think?¡± Heinley was taken aback for a moment. Uh... Does it look like he wants them? Chapter 353 Chapter 353. Repentance Is Bitter (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Arriving at the Imperial Pce, Evely debated whether to return to the Southern Pce or to inform Sovieshu that she had aplished what he had asked her to do. Although Evely felt she had to visit Sovieshu, she worried that there would be unnecessary rumors because he had not called her. Besides that she didn¡¯t feelfortable talking alone with the Emperor. Evely hesitated all the while as she unloaded her luggage, but in the end decided to inform him at once. ¡®Since it¡¯s a private matter, I¡¯d better inform him on my own.¡¯ Her decision was correct. Sovieshu didn¡¯t call her at once because he thought she would be tired, but he was very anxious to know if Evely had delivered his gift and how Navier had reacted. As soon as Evely entered his office, Sovieshu quickly asked, ¡°What happened to the gift? Did you give it to her?¡± Evely couldn¡¯t even give a polite greeting, sped her hands together and hurried to answer, ¡°Yes. I personally delivered it to the Empress Navier.¡± ¡°What did she say?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°What did Empress Navier say when she received the gift?¡± ¡°Ah, that...¡± ¡°What about her expression? How was her voice?¡± However, Evely didn¡¯t expect Sovieshu to ask about this. Evely¡¯s eyes darted from side to side in embarrassment. Sovieshu understood the situation as soon as he noticed her difort and smiled bitterly, ¡°It¡¯s alright. The Empress Navier has always been indifferent no matter what I give her.¡± But unlike the bitterness in his voice, his eyes were full of longing. Evely bowed her head more and wiggled her toes uncertainly. ¡°Thank you for running the errand. You can go now.¡± Evely was so embarrassed that Sovieshu decided not to ask any more questions. Once Evely left, Sovieshu went to his bedroom, sat on the bed, looked at Navier¡¯s painting and said to himself, ¡°I wish I had given it to her earlier when she had asked me...¡± His deste voice echoed in the bedroom. Still, he felt a little better knowing that the gift had been delivered. Sovieshu was also d that he had been able to keep the promise even if it waste. ¡®Although I don¡¯t think Navier will remember the promise...¡¯ About two hourster, when a man from the Western Empire who came with the Eastern Empire delegation handed him a letter from Navier and a letter from Heinley in the drawing room, his expression darkened. After reading the two letters, his expression worsened even more. ¡®Did an envoy try to harm Evely on the orders of Viscount and Viscountess Isqua?¡¯ It was a disgrace to the Eastern Empire for an envoy to do this. Moreover, Evely had been sent by him on an errand. Of course, the delegation did not know that Evely went to the Western Empire to run a secret errand for Emperor Sovieshu. Still, that did not diminish the crime. ¡ª ... For what that envoy did, he could even be punished by the Western Empire. However, isn¡¯t he one of the envoys who came on behalf of the Eastern Empire? If that envoy were to be punished by the Western Empire, it could harm the reputation of Emperor Sovieshu, so I¡¯ll leave this matter in the hands of the Eastern Empire. Unlike Navier¡¯s letter, in which she only expressed her concern for Evely, the letter sent by Heinley exuded mockery in every word. He emphasized that the culprit was an envoy from the Eastern Empire with the sole intention of mockery. The letter disguised as consideration was an offense. The only serious part of the letter was the endnote. ¡ª By the way, there is no need to be lenient. He wanted to shred this unpleasant letter. But Sovieshu clenched his teeth to suppress the urge and ordered to immediately summon Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua did not know the reason why they were summoned. As soon as they entered, Sovieshu asked in a cold, deep voice, ¡°Rashta asked them to do it?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, what do you mean...¡± ¡°Rashta asked them to harm Evely?¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s direct question, Viscount and Viscountess Isqua eximed in bewilderment. ¡°No way.¡± ¡°We do not know what you are talking about, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°We have not harmed that girl, nor did the Empress ask us to.¡± Sovieshu leaned backfortably in the armchair and spoke in a calm, but creepy voice, ¡°So the Emperor of the Western Empire lied to harm a couple of unknown fallen nobles?¡± Blood drained from the couple¡¯s faces. ¡°The Emperor of the Western Empire discovered that you ordered to cause an ident in the delegation carriage and reported it to me. I repeat, the Emperor of the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± ¡°That means that because of you, who are not from the Eastern Empire, our country was mocked by the Western Empire.¡± A pent-up anger seeped into Sovieshu¡¯s every word. Although the couple flinched, they refused to answer. Sovieshu rose from the armchair andughed. ¡°I see that it is useless to ask you. I have no choice but to interrogate the culprit to find out.¡± It was then that Viscount Isqua hurriedly spoke up to stop Sovieshu, ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Sovieshu did not sit back down on the armchair, but stared at the couple coldly. His expression seemed to indicate, ¡®If you have something to say, say it. I¡¯ll decideter whether to believe you¡¯. Viscountess Isqua reluctantly confessed after reflection, ¡°It was us, Your Majesty. But we did not want to disgrace the Eastern Empire or hurt anyone.¡± Viscount Isqua continued quickly, ¡°That is true. We only wanted to scare Miss Evely from returning to the Imperial Pce.¡± This alone was serious enough, but not as serious as ¡®the crime of getting their hands on the Emperor¡¯s possessions and giving the Western Empire a reason to ridicule the Eastern Empire¡¯. Although many rumors circted that Evely was the Emperor¡¯s concubine, until she was an official concubine, she was only amoner. Nobles were not usually punished severely for harassingmoners. ¡°You lie to the end.¡± But Sovieshu did not believe the couple¡¯s words. The couple came from the same country as Duke Elgy, who was a troublesome guest whose behavior was suspicious. Now that Sovieshu and Rashta did not have a good rtionship, there was no way Sovieshu would believe the couple¡¯s words. ¡°Forget it. I¡¯ll have to ask the culprit directly.¡± Sovieshu spoke coldly as he watched them carefully. Then ordered, ¡°Bring in the man Emperor Heinley ims is the culprit!¡± After a while, an official with his hands tied behind his back was dragged there by two knights. The couple was horrified to see how the official was treated rudely despite his position. When the arrested official testified before Emperor Sovieshu that the couple persuaded him to destroy the carriage in order to harm Evely, the couple was startled and their eyes widened in fear, ¡°That¡¯s not true!¡± ¡°We only told you to scare Miss Evely, not to destroy the carriage!¡± They seemed genuinely upset. However, the official was so startled at the words of Viscount and Viscountess Isqua that he shouted in despair, forgetting that Emperor Sovieshu was in front of him. The shouts of the three people made the quiet ce be very noisy. Sovieshu pressed down hard on his temples and spoke categorically, ¡°Shut up all three of you.¡± *** Sovieshu wanted to seriously question the couple and the culprit, but he couldn¡¯t investigate the matter at this time. Once the delegation that attended Emperor Heinley¡¯s birthday party returned, Sovieshu was to have a paternity test. By then, Viscount and Viscountess Isqua were not supposed to be here, not even imprisoned. Eventually, Sovieshu ordered after much thought. ¡°The official must be locked up in prison. In the case of the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua, keep them under the watch of my knights to ensure that they do not escape.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Before the paternity test, lock them in a secret room away from the gaze of the people.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s head began to ache, he sat on the bed and clenched his teeth. Koshar also often caused trouble that made his head hurt, but at least he didn¡¯t dishonor the country. Not only did Duke and Duchess Troby not cause any trouble, they didn¡¯t even expose themselves too publicly. ¡®How could Rashta¡¯s fake parents do this!¡¯ Chapter 354 Chapter 354. ve Certificate (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Sovieshu paced around the drawing room unable to manage his rising anger, until he eventually rang the little bell over the table intensely and ordered a knight, ¡°Summon Baron Lant!¡± Once Baron Lant entered, Sovieshu spoke coldly. ¡°How can you be so useless?!¡± ¡°What¡¯s wrong, Your Majesty?¡± Bewildered, Baron Lant hastily knelt down on his knees. Sovieshu¡¯s expression was so cold and fierce that it seemed like it would freeze the entire ce. It was different from his usual impassive expression. Clearly, he was very angry. ¡°Your Majesty, why did you send for me...?¡± ¡°I gave you the order to take care of Rashta, did you think that you only had to make sure she was alive?¡± ¡°Your, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°She hasn¡¯t learned anything, but what the hell do you do?! How can it be that you never know about the problems that arise rted to Rashta?!¡± Baron Lant paled and bowed his head at Sovieshu¡¯s rebuke. Sovieshu¡¯s look became frightening. His pent-up anger exploded, but he truly considered that Baron Lant had beenpletely useless. Among Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries, Baron Lant was the one who was supposed to help Rashta. However, Baron Lant was not involved in any of Rashta¡¯s problems. In the first instance, it seemed that Baron Lant was innocent, but it also meant that Baron Lant had not taken good care of Rashta. In contrast, Arian, a maid of Rashta¡¯s, had provided much information to him. ¡°It¡¯s my fault, Your Majesty.¡± Baron Lant apologized in a somber voice. He guessed that Rashta had caused another problem. Although Baron Lant understood Sovieshu¡¯s anger, he felt it was somewhat unfair. When Rashta arrived at the imperial pce, she initially sought Baron Lant¡¯s advice and help. However, as she spent more time as a concubine and grew closer to Duke Elgy, Rashta stopped seeking Baron Lant¡¯s support. After Baron Lant was put in charge of managing her finances, she barely spoke to him. Baron Lant sincerely wanted to help Rashta, but there was no way he could do that if she didn¡¯t confide in him. Baron Lant did not tell Sovieshu because he knew the emperor would consider it an excuse, so he kept his mouth shut and looked at the floor. Sovieshu let out a heavy sigh and waved his hand. ¡°Stand up.¡± Baron Lant stood up helplessly, sped his hands and waited for the Emperor¡¯smand. Sovieshu asked as he pressed down on his throbbing temples. ¡°The ve certificate. Hasn¡¯t it been found yet?¡± The situation turnedplicated, so he had to prepare for the worst. Now that he had dealt with Rashta¡¯s real father and her fake parents, it remained to find out if the princess was his real daughter. It would be troublesome if the ve certificate suddenly appeared. ¡°That...¡± ¡°Answer clearly.¡± ¡°No.¡± Sovieshu med himself for hastily elevating Rashta to the position of Empress despite the potential risk, worried that the baby in her womb would not be a legitimate child. That would have been the case if the lovely princess had been born outside of marriage... That didn¡¯t mean he had forgotten about the ve certificate. On the contrary, he knew that Koshar had been thest person to have the certificate, so that time Sovieshu sent his guards to confine him at home with the intention that he would have no chance to hide it. Sovieshu thought that would make it easy to find. However, neither Duke Troby nor Marquis Farang had the certificate. That too was not in any of the houses of the knights who had watched that Koshar did not escape, not even in the Imperial Pce. So in the end, the rooms of distinguished guests in the South Pce were secretly searched. It was risky to search the rooms of distinguished guests. Even the slightest carelessness could cause serious problems. No distinguished guest who discovered that their room had been searched would dare to make a fuss before the Eastern Empire, but there would be no need to act like friendly countries anymore. Sovieshu stared at Baron Lant as he wondered if he should keep a useless man as his secretary. It was then.... ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty!¡± From the other side of the door, Marquis Karl¡¯s urgent voice was heard. ¡°Come in.¡± As soon as Marquis Karl entered the drawing room, he shouted, ¡°Your Majesty! The ve certificate! The ve certificate!¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression turned cold. ¡°Did someone make it public?¡± ¡°No! The ve certificate has been found!¡± Sovieshu jumped up, the coldness gone from his expression. ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Where?¡± ¡°It was in Duke Elgy¡¯s room.¡± At Marquis Karl¡¯s words, Sovieshu was startled. Baron Lant¡¯s eyes also opened wide in surprise. He had thought that it might be found in the Southern Pce, but not in Duke Elgy¡¯s room. Even if it hade from Rashta¡¯s own room it would not have been so shocking. ¡°Duke Elgy used to keep his room fully guarded, so it was difficult to search it, but after thest asion when he met with Rashta, he quickly left somewhere with the guards. Thanks to that, it was possible to search every corner of the room.¡± Marquis Karl spoke in a shaky voice to contain his anger. ¡°The certificate waspletely hidden inside the carpet.¡± Marquis Karl did not like Rashta, but this matter was rted to the reputation of the Eastern Empire. He was very angry to discover that a distinguished guest had maliciously concealed Rashta¡¯s secret. Especially since that distinguished guest was Duke Elgy, from whom several scandals had arisen with Rashta. ¡°It¡¯s more scum than rumored.¡± At Marquis Karl¡¯s words, Baron Lant nodded reflexively. Duke Elgy would not keep the ve certificate hidden with good intentions. If he had done it for his lover, he would have destroyed the certificate, not hidden it that way. ¡°In any case, I am d to hear that the certificate has been found.¡± Baron Lant murmured carefully. Sovieshu sat back in the armchair with his jaw clenched. That¡¯s right. Apart from the fact that he was angry with Duke Elgy, it had been fortunate to find the ve certificate. Now, once it was proven that the princess had his blood, there would be no more problems. The rumor that Rashta hid her past to rise to the position of empress would never disappear, but he nned to depose her after only a year anyway. He might even take advantage of this to do it a little earlier. ¡°Here you go, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl handed Sovieshu the ve certificate. Sovieshu confirmed the authenticity of the certificate after carefully examining it, then tore it to pieces and burned it on the spot. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it have been better to keep it?¡± ¡°There are many ways to put pressure on Rashta. The fact that she has concealed her past is enough, it¡¯s not even necessary to bring up anything else. This certificate could harm the princess, so I¡¯d rather not have it.¡± ve certificates were treated very rigorously because a person¡¯s status was at stake. So that they could not be forged, they were stamped with a seal that could not be reproduced, and there were no copies. Now that he had burned it, no one will look down on the princess for her ve blood. Baron Lant sighed deeply. Sovieshu looked at the ashes that remained, and frowned as he pushed his hair back. ¡°There¡¯s also Duke Elgy to deal with.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. It is very suspicious that he concealed the certificate. It is rare for a person who likes scandals.¡± Baron Lant hastened to step forward and sided with Rashta, ¡°Duke Elgy may have seduced the naive Rashta. Doesn¡¯t everyone know that Duke Elgy is a yboy?¡± When Baron Lant pointed out Rashta¡¯s naivety, Marquis Karl¡¯s and Sovieshu¡¯s expression darkened at the same time. Marquis Karl and Sovieshu could not agree that Rashta was naive after she invited only noble men to tea parties, after she hid her rtionship with n, and so on. However, they were sure that Duke Elgy was a perverse yboy several steps above Rashta. Duke Elgy starred in more scandals than could be counted. Rashta did not rise to that level. ¡°Where did Duke Elgy go?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. He only said he would be back soon.¡± ¡°Duke Elgy must be sent back to his country as soon as he returns, that he concealed the ve certificate was very serious.¡± Powerful countries took such pride in their prosperity that they treated high-status distinguished guests very well, especially royalty from other countries. Regardless of the demands and personality of the guest. In contrast, it was more difficult to serve distinguished guests the weaker the country. Despite this, he could not allow Duke Elgy to remain at the Southern Pce. ¡°Duke Elgy might refuse, so you send a man to Blue Bohean to report to the King. Duke Elgy has been involved in several scandals with the Empress, so it is best that he leave the Eastern Empire so that it will not be dishonorable to both parties.¡± ¡°As youmand, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°The paternity test will be done as soon as the delegation that attended Emperor Heinley¡¯s birthday party returns.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Send someone to the temple to set the date.¡± Now that the ve certificate issue was settled, all that remained was the paternity test. As long as the princess had his blood, Sovieshu could make his lovely daughter the highest status noble in the world. The mother¡¯s blood didn¡¯t matter. Once the two secretaries had left, Sovieshu sat for a moment with his eyes closed before he visited the baby¡¯s room. ¡°Glorym. My daughter.¡± The baby suddenly woke up as if she had heard her father¡¯s voice and looked at him with her pretty eyes. Sovieshu took the baby out of the crib and rocked her in his arms. ¡°You are my daughter, right? My daughter.¡± Chapter 355 Chapter 355. ve Certificate (2) Trantor: Aura Unlike the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire, which was as calm as if it was on the eve of a storm, the Zemensia Family, of the Western Empire, was right in the midst of one. It all started with the argument between Duke Zemensia and the Old Duke. ¡°Father, Emperor Heinley immediately avenged Middelen. For your grandson, Emperor Heinley locked up Grand Duke Lilteang in a tower, willing to go face to face with the Emperor of the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Christa is already dead. She died of her own fault. If Christa had gone quietly to Compshire from the start, you, my wife, my children and I would be as well as ever.¡± A fire appeared in the Old Duke¡¯s eyes when his son spoke ill of his dead sister. Duke Zemensia said what he felt even though he knew his father would not like it. ¡°It is a pity that she died, but what matters most are those who are alive. We need to put aside the grudges over Christa¡¯s death and board the new ship, father.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Empress Navier is already pregnant. Finally the Imperial Family has a direct sessor. Even the nobles who did not look favorably on Empress Navier now bow to her.¡± The Duchess, who had remained seated quietly at his side, also added, ¡°That¡¯s true. Everyone who approaches Empress Navier praises her. She even treats with kindness those who were not polite to her before. We too have to forget our grudges and think about the children¡¯s future.¡± The Old Duke listened in silence to his son and daughter-inw, but after a while he eximed because he couldn¡¯t stand it any longer, ¡°Idiots! You¡¯re a couple of idiots!¡± ¡°Father!¡± ¡°You want to side with the Imperial Family because Heinley supposedly avenged my grandson? I don¡¯t know what I¡¯ve done to deserve such a naive son like you!¡± ¡°Father, it¡¯s true! Grand Duke Lilteang has been taken to a tower. I saw it with my own eyes.¡± ¡°Idiot! Idiot!¡± The Old Duke clenched his teeth to suppress the desire to insult him worse. ¡°Although Grand Duke Lilteang is famous for his loss of self-control, he is not crazy enough to cause serious trouble in such a ce.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang has caused several serious incidents. He also holds a grudge against you. Besides, he didn¡¯t do it openly, there was hardly anyone around the pond where Middelen was.¡± If other nobles had been the witnesses, an investigation would probably have been conducted in a formal manner. But since it was the Emperor together with Duke Zemensia, the sentence in this case was immediate. Of course, imprisoning Grand Duke Lilteang directly in a tower was a measure that could anger the Emperor of the Eastern Empire. Even if Emperor Heinley had been a witness. Duke Zemensia believed that Emperor Heinley was willing to take such a risk to protect his people. However, the Old Duke considered that point suspicious. ¡°Father, you always think he has an ulterior motive. Do you hate Emperor Heinley that much?¡± ¡°You are an idiot, an idiot. Emperor Heinley has marked us as his next target, but you want to support the person who ended your sister¡¯s life.¡± Unable to understand each other, father and son kept silent and turned their heads in different directions. No matter what his son said, Old Duke Zemensia would not believe Emperor Heinley. He was convinced that Emperor Heinley had deliberately put his grandson in danger to deal with Grand Duke Lilteang. He didn¡¯t know how exactly Emperor Heinley had done it, but it wasn¡¯t normal for so many coincidences to happen at once. The Old Duke clenched his fist, unable to bear his anger. An idiot son, an idiot daughter-inw, and selfish grandchildren. This was the family he had. He was really angry that Emperor Heinley was ying with his mind and that of his family. *** Sovieshu believed that everything was settled, and that it only remained to wait for the paternity test. The temple set the date for the test, so the nobles in the Eastern Empire looked forward to the arrival of that day. Regardless of the test result, calm would not return to the Eastern Empire in the near future. The test result will only determine the future of the princess, it will not erase Empress Rashta¡¯s past. Amoner who imed to be the Empress¡¯s real father disappeared after he boasted on several asions about how much money he had obtained, but the nobles didn¡¯t think much of it. After all, this was a man who appeared one day out of nowhere to take money from his supposed daughter. It was not unusual for him to disappear again in search of more money, so it was easy to determine that the Viscount and Viscountess Isqua who stayed behind while that man disappeared were the Empress¡¯s real parents. However, two other unexpected scandals urred amidst the silence. One in the Eastern Pce and one in the Western Pce. It was n who caused the scandal at the Western Pce. n sent letters to Rashta that Ahn had disappeared, but Rashta ignored him all the time, so he went to see her personally and made a fuss. ¡°How dare you make a fuss in the Imperial Pce? Take him to prison this instant!¡± Rashta was so angry that she ordered the guards sent by Sovieshu to imprison n. Later, Rashta wanted to take n out because it was not convenient for her that he was here, but the guards did not allow it because Sovieshu ordered to hold n in preparation for the paternity test. ¡°I was going to capture it anyway. Fortunately he came on his own.¡± Sovieshu spoke coldly and forbade any visits to n. However, soon there was also a scandal in the Eastern Pce. It was quiet on the outside, but it shook Sovieshu¡¯s heart. Count Pirnu, who had attended Heinley¡¯s birthday party, returned before the rest of the delegation to report. ¡°Your Majesty. Emperor Heinley wore your precious ¡®Fairy Tear¡¯ as a ne at his birthday party.¡± ¡°What the hell are you saying? Are you sure about what you saw?¡± ¡°Yes, I checked it several times. It was definitely the ¡®fairy tear¡¯.¡± ¡°That bloody...¡± ¡°Navier must have given it to him. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t make sense.¡± Sovieshu really wanted to smash him. He didn¡¯t like Heinley in the least. He thought that Navier might return the gift, but never that she would give her current husband the gift sent by her ex-husband. ¡°Navier...¡± Sovieshu was so surprised that he whispered his ex-wife¡¯s name in vain. He couldn¡¯t believe this from the honorable Navier. However, the unpleasant news didn¡¯t end there. ¡°Umm... Your Majesty...¡± Count Pirnu reported in a careful voice as he watched Sovieshu¡¯s somber expression. ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang caused another problem.¡± ¡°Another problem? What nonsense has he said this time?¡± ¡°No. This time it¡¯s more serious.¡± Count Pirnu¡¯s face darkened, ¡°He pushed Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s grandson into a pond.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°What?!¡± Count Pirnu recounted the details of the incident as objectively as possible. He tried not to mix his personal opinion. Sovieshu¡¯s expression became rigid as he listened to the ount. He rested his elbows on the armrests and rubbed his chin. Count Pirnu¡¯s ount seemed a little strange to him. He knew that Grand Duke Lilteang resented Old Duke Zemensia and that he used to lose his temper easily. Even in the Western Kingdom he had been shamed several times for his impulsive behavior. Although he had deliberately tripped people he didn¡¯t like to make them fall to the floor, he never pushed a child into a pond in the middle of a party... ¡°How is the child?¡± ¡°He was rescued right away without a scratch. From what I could find out before I went back, he didn¡¯t even catch a cold.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s suspicions grew. Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s folly was worse than usual. The child against whom he vented his grudge was not injured. Besides, was it Emperor Heinley who witnessed the scene...? ¡°Emperor Heinley locked up Grand Duke Lilteang in a tower. He said he will keep the Grand Duke locked up in his country for five years. The delegation will bring the respective letter from Emperor Heinley.¡± If the situation were normal, Sovieshu would have brought back Grand Duke Lilteang for the pride of the Eastern Empire, no matter what he had done. But after much thought, Sovieshu this time decided to ept Emperor Heinley¡¯s sentence. He had many doubts, but it suited him to do it. In case the princess was not his daughter, it would be much better if Grand Duke Lilteang was not in the Eastern Empire. ¡°What do you intend to do, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It is a shame for the Eastern Empire that he hasmitted such a crime in another country. It is not a bad idea to take this opportunity to put an end to his explosive personality. So we will not intervene.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Count Pirnu also agreed because he did not like Grand Duke Lilteang. Sovieshu pondered over something with a serious expression after he made that decision. He then wrote a letter and handed it to Count Pirnu. ¡°Send it to Emperor Heinley.¡± Chapter 356 Chapter 356. Paternity Test (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s letter was quickly sent via carrier pigeon. Heinley frowned at the letter, but acknowledged it with a bitter smile once he read it. ¡°I know that too.¡± Puzzled, McKenna asked, ¡°What does it say?¡± ¡°That I always covet what is his. His wife, his jewels, everything he owns.¡± While not ¡®everything¡¯, Emperor Sovieshu had much of what Heinley desired. An army of mages, a system that attracted new mages through the magical academy, many talented people, a vast ocean, ports, geographical advantages, and even Navier, the perfect wife who was now by his side. ¡°Huh? Don¡¯t we have more jewels?¡± McKenna asked in bewilderment, he didn¡¯t know about the ¡®Fairy Tear¡¯. The Western Empire had more jewels than any other country. Emperor Sovieshu was in no position to talk about jewels. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu sent my wife a jewel as a gift. I wore it as a ne at my birthday party to show it off to everyone. I guess he sent this letter because someone informed him.¡± McKenna opened his mouth in surprise, but Heinley¡¯s expression seemed so sad that he made no joke. Instead, he encouraged him, ¡°Your child with the empress will be very smart and brave. The Western Empire could have a port of its own in the next generation. No, I¡¯m absolutely sure. Your child already has two ships before birth.¡± Heinleyughed at McKenna¡¯s words, ¡°It¡¯s true. I never received a ship as a gift.¡± ¡°You see.¡± ¡°I should read war stories to my baby as part of prenatal education.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s not prenatal education.¡± ¡°This is how a brave child is born.¡± ¡°I have heard that the Empress reads fairy tales full of dreams and hopes to the baby every day as prenatal education. Will the Empress allow you to read war stories to the baby?¡± ¡°I can do it while My Queen is asleep.¡± ¡®He¡¯s likely to have another marital problem and ask me, a single man, for advice.¡¯ McKenna, who guessed what would happen, clicked his tongue and suddenly changed the subject. ¡°This is not the time for this. Princess Charlotte of Whitemond is here to meet with you.¡± After Navier told Heinley about the conversation she had with Whitemond¡¯s special ambassador, and her opinion that it would not be wise to start a war because it had recently be an empire. Heinley discussed it with McKenna and his trusted men. He then called Whitemond¡¯s special ambassador along with the rest of the delegation to his office and discussed the problem between the two countries for several hours. In the end, Heinley proposed a rapprochement on the basis that both countries would sign a non-invasion pact. And now, Princess Charlotte hade from Whitemond with the answer to that proposal. Heinley was indifferent. ¡°Of course we agree, thank you. That will be the answer, what other choice does Whitemond have?¡± ¡°Even so, the King of Whitemond sent the princess as a member of the delegation. Since we have decided to maintain good rtions between the two countries, we must be polite.¡± Heinley muttered that he knew, got up from the armchair and headed for the Hall of Stars. Several officials, nobles, and the Whitemond¡¯s delegation were already gathered there. When Heinley appeared, everyone greeted him at the same time. Heinley erased his earlier expression of displeasure, stood at the emperor¡¯s throne with a faint smile and weed the Whitemond¡¯s delegation. ¡°Wee. I see the King of Whitemond sent the princess, so I imagine the response will be positive.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Although she must have felt offended that she had waited for Emperor Heinley for half an hour after she arrived at the Hall of Stars, Princess Charlotte smiled gently and expressed her gratitude. ¡°Thank you for your leniency in the face of the mistake Whitemond made. The team members were released and treated as distinguished guests. Whitemond¡¯s special goods were added to the trade team¡¯smercial products..¡± ¡°That is good news.¡± ¡°Also, once the trade team finishes their business in Rwibt, a Whitemond merchant ship will wait for them there.¡± It was an unexpected decision to have a Whitemond merchant ship wait on that continent, where there was little trade. No one knew how much time the trade team would stay, so that meant Whitemond was prepared to endure the inconvenience. The nobles sighed in astonishment. At that very moment, Marquis Ketron shouted loudly, ¡°The exceptional Empress Navier has been a godsend for the Western Empire!¡± Marquis Ketron praised Navier, but the atmosphere instantly turned cold. The nobles and officials looked at Marquis Ketron in silence. They thought that Marquis Ketron was like a vampire bat. However, they soon began to agree with a broad smile. ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°It was Empress Navier who initiated this.¡± ¡°She has achieved great results in less than a year, I look forward to the future.¡± ¡°If all goes well, the Western Empire could be a trade power without a single port!¡± Although Marquis Ketron acted like a brazen vampire bat, they had to agree with him, otherwise it would appear that they did not recognize Empress Navier¡¯s achievements. For this reason, the nobles and officials praised Empress Navier almost in unison. Heinley snorted at the scene. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly at the interesting praise. However, the boisterous atmosphere turned heavy as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over their heads when Princess Charlotte said, ¡°To seal the reconciliation between the two countries, my father wants to celebrate a royal marriage. That is why he sent me as a member of the delegation.¡± Those present fell silent and looked at Emperor Heinley at the same time. A marriage of convenience between Emperor Heinley and Princess Charlotte would be possible. Although it would be improper to call it a marriage because there was already an empress, it was not umon for a beautiful young princess from a small country to be the concubine of the emperor of a powerful country. So now Princess Charlotte would be... A knight who witnessed the situation, discreetly left the ce and ran to the Empress¡¯s room. *** ¡°Princess Charlotte came because the King of Whitemond wants to celebrate a royal marriage.¡± When I heard about the arrival of Whitemond¡¯s delegation, I stayed in my room in the hope that the response would be positive. Unexpectedly, Sir Yunim rushed into my room and spoke to me about Whitemond¡¯s response. ¡°Really?¡± When Rose asked sharply, Sir Yunim answered in kind. ¡°Sister, do you think I would lie about this?¡± My heart raced. I knew Heinley would one day have a concubine, but I couldn¡¯t help but feel a pressure in my chest when that moment finally came. ¡®I don¡¯t want to.¡¯ This was the first thought I had. ¡°His Majesty Heinley is not that kind of man. Empress Navier, you need not worry. He will refuse.¡± Mastas spoke hurriedly beside me, but the only thought that came to mind was, ¡®I don¡¯t want to, I don¡¯t want to, I don¡¯t want to...¡¯ I got up from the couch and pretended to be calm, ¡°First... I would like to check the situation.¡± ¡°I will guide you.¡± Sir Yunim guided me to the delegation¡¯s location. It was in the Hall of Stars. The door was open, probably because there were so many people. I tried to sneak a peek, but because of that, several people noticed my presence. Although I felt embarrassed inside, the people who saw me began to apud strangely. This drew everyone¡¯s attention to me. ¡®What¡¯s going on here? Why do they apud me?¡¯ As I tried my best not to frown, a beautiful woman approached me and greeted me politely. ¡°I am Princess Charlotte of Whitemond, Your Majesty. I have heard that the empress yed a very important role in the reconciliation between our two countries.¡± She was a very attractive woman, with a cheerful and confident voice. I nodded with a forced smile, but it pained me. Although I didn¡¯t ept Heinley¡¯s feelings because I didn¡¯t want to get hurt when this happened, it was already too painful. Was it just an illusion that I had not epted Heinley¡¯s feelings? Had I fallen in love with him before I realized it? I felt my heart melt. If Rashta was like a slowly drawn bowstring, Princess Charlotte was like an arrow that pierced my heart suddenly. Heinley wanted to have a port. Princess Charlotte could give the port to Heinley without going to war. I found it hard to even breathe. When I looked at Heinley, I saw that he had a stiff expression. Was he sorry? He said this would never happen, but it did. Well, this wasn¡¯t his fault. Nor did I expect Whitemond to propose a royal marriage to seal the reconciliation between the two countries. Seeing him made it more painful, so I averted my gaze and greeted the princess with a forced smile. ¡°Yes. Wee, Princess Charlotte.¡± ¡°I spoke to Emperor Heinley about the royal marriage. Since Your Majesty¡¯s approval is also necessary, I was going to discuss it alone with youter. But since you havee here we can talk about it right now.¡± My approval... to be Heinley¡¯s concubine. My hands trembled and my heart contracted. Still, I smiled. I didn¡¯t want to suffer, so I had been mentally preparing myself for this moment. However, how can you not suffer when it hurts so much? It seems I wasn¡¯t ready yet... ¡°Your Majesty. I want to marry your brother, Sir Koshar.¡± What?! Chapter 357 Chapter 357. Paternity Test (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren, HB168 Once the delegation sent to the Western Empire returned, the case of Grand Duke Lilteang was officially made public. Everyone began to talk about it. There were those who had suspicions like Sovieshu, but concluded that it would be better to keep their mouths shut. There were others who were indignant that the Western Empire would arbitrarily imprison Grand Duke Lilteang. But as the paternity test date approached, Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s case was naturally forgotten. Finally, the day of the paternity test arrived. That same day it became known that Viscount and Viscountess Isqua had left the Western Empire amidst themotion caused by the case of Grand Duke Lilteang. ¡ª We found clues about our other daughter. The paternity test can wait, but the clues will be useless if we dy, so we must leave immediately. We promise to do the paternity testter. That was the justification they gave. Many found it suspicious, but the couple had already disappeared. Besides, the most important matter now was to know whether the princess was the Emperor¡¯s daughter. Whether Empress Rashta was the daughter of a fallen noble family or of amoner was not an urgent matter. *** Moments before getting in the carriage to go to the temple, Rashta saw the princess after a long time. The princess was in the arms of Viscountess Verdi, who had be her nanny. ¡®Babies grow up so fast.¡¯ Rashta noticed that the princess had grown a lotpared to thest time she saw her. ¡°Viscountess Verdi.¡± When Rashta called out to her, Viscountess Verdi did not look up and cautiously replied, ¡°Yes.¡± Even though Rashta was in a difficult situation, Viscountess Verdi was still afraid of her. Rashta looked at her sharply and asked coldly, ¡°Do you also believe that the Princess is not the Emperor¡¯s daughter?¡± Viscountess Verdi didn¡¯t understand the reason for Rashta¡¯s question, but answered without hesitation, ¡°I do believe that Princess Glorym is the Emperor¡¯s daughter.¡± In fact, this was the answer that Viscountess Verdi was bound to give as the princess¡¯ nanny. Viscountess Verdi thought that was not the question Rashta really wanted to ask. However, Rashta just stared at Viscountess Verdi with mysterious eyes. She did not ask the real question. She didn¡¯t even mention that she wanted to hold the princess in her arms, she simply got in the carriage. Viscountess Verdi frowned in difort, and got in a separate carriage. Sovieshu¡¯s change in attitude left a deep scar on Rashta. In contrast, Viscountess Verdi¡¯s betrayal left her with an imperceptible scar. Rashta herself didn¡¯t even realize how much her betrayal had hurt. What Rashta really wanted to ask Viscountess Verdi was why she saved her when the maid rushed at her with a chair to kill her. Every time she remembered that Viscountess Verdi had saved her, she felt a mixture of anger and curiosity. ¡®Why did she save me if she would betray me anyway?¡¯ As the carriage started off, the rattle made her body shudder. Rashta closed her eyes and ced her hand on her belly like usual. When the carriage finally arrived at the temple, Rashta stepped out and lifted her shoulders proudly. She was sure of the test result. She knew that Sovieshu and the nobles would use her past as a pretext to attack herter, but she would never admit it. Once the paternity test issue was resolved, that would be the end if she didn¡¯t admit to her past. At most, she would be deposed, but she could not be severely punished without any proof. As long as she wasn¡¯t punished severely, she would be able to hold out somehow. Rashta believed that if she held out for a few years, the princess could save her. Or perhaps Duke Elgy coulde to her rescue, just as Emperor Heinley had rescued Navier. ¡®Duke Elgy?¡¯ Rashta looked up at a temple pir with a frown. ¡®Could it be because I just thought of him? How could Duke Elgy be here?¡¯ Rashta saw a man who looked like Duke Elgy pass behind a pir. When Rashta stopped to stare, a knight called out to her in bewilderment. ¡°Empress?¡± ¡°Wait a moment.¡± Rashta walked to where she saw Duke Elgy. However, Duke Elgy was not there. There was only a priest sweeping. ¡°Has no one passed this way?¡± At Rashta¡¯s question, the priest answered quietly. ¡°No, I¡¯ve been here sweeping alone.¡± ¡°... Thank you.¡± It may not have been Duke Elgy, but Rashta was sure she had seen a man pass this way. Although she found it strange, she turned around and thought. ¡®Maybe the man I saw was this priest. Don¡¯t his clothes flutter just like Duke Elgy¡¯s? Besides, priests do not lie.¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty, you must hurry, the Emperor is waiting for you.¡± Said the knight coldly, as he believed that Rashta was dying on purpose. Rashta nodded, and headed to the ce where the paternity test would be conducted. Sovieshu and Viscountess Verdi, who hade in another carriage, were already there. As soon as her eyes met Sovieshu¡¯s, she remembered Navier¡¯s painting in his bedroom. Rashta could not bear it and turned her gaze to the princess in the Viscountess¡¯ arms. The princess smiled sweetly at Rashta. When Rashta also smiled and waved at her, the princessughed. The baby seemed to recognize her mother. Rashta¡¯s eyes filled with tears as she felt her heart break, but she bit her lip to hold back the tears. Soon everyone who doubted the princess would have to shut their mouths and bury their heads in the ground. She had been a crybaby before, but now she didn¡¯t want to satisfy the nobles who longed to see her suffer. ¡°Stand here.¡± At the test site stood a lectern-like structure with two tes ced on top of it. The priest directed the Emperor and the Empress to stand on either side. Sovieshu took the baby from Viscountess Verdi¡¯s arms and stood where the priest indicated. Rashta approached hesitantly. Ironically, their positions were simr to when they sealed their wedding vows. The priest in charge exined what they needed to do. ¡°Just drop some of your blood into this te. I will hold the princess.¡± One te was already filled with a clear liquid, and the other was empty. Sovieshu handed the princess to the priest, pricked the tip of his thumb with a dagger, and dropped his blood on the empty te. Rashta did not dare to prick a finger, so she extended her hand to Sovieshu. On that hand, Rashta still had wounds from when she, herself, hit it against the floor. Sovieshu hesitated for a moment, but quickly grabbed Rashta¡¯s wrist, lightly pricked her thumb and made the blood drip onto his own. As the blood of the two mixed, the priest poured some of the clear liquid from the other te into the te of blood. Then, he gently pricked the baby¡¯s thumb with a special tool. The princess burst into tears as she felt a sharp pain. As the blood flowed from the princess¡¯s finger, Sovieshu frowned sadly. The baby¡¯s cry echoed terribly in the silent temple. Everyone present held their breath as they watched the priest drop the blood from inside the special tool onto the te. When the blood of the three mixed with the special liquid, bubbles formed. If the Princess was the daughter of the two, the mixed blood would clear up until it disappeared. If not, the viscous blood would remain. After a while, the priest finally dered with a pale face, ¡°The Princess is not the daughter of Emperor Sovieshu!¡± Chapter 358 Chapter 358. Love (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: SaWarren, HB168 Sovieshu¡¯s face stiffened, his eyes darkened and the atmosphere around him became heavy. When Rashta took several steps back, the small distance between them widened. She turned pale and denied it desperately. ¡°No! No! No! It can¡¯t be! Your Majesty, this doesn¡¯t make sense!¡± Sovieshu, who remained motionless, sighed lightly. ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense?¡± He was quick to mutter in a deste voice, ¡°Yes. As you say, this really doesn¡¯t make sense.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t mean that...¡± Sovieshu clenched his fists repeatedly. He was very angry, but he couldn¡¯t vent here, so he looked even angrier. In fact, not only was his mind in chaos, but he was also ovee with all kinds of negative emotions. It was very painful that the princess, whom he loved so much, was not his daughter. Those present stood in silence, unable to breathe. No one knew what to say in this unprecedented situation. Only the princess, surprised by the blood that had been drawn, continued to cry intensely. ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± After a while, Sovieshu called out to his secretary in a deep voice. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl, who was also shocked by what had happened, quickly approached. Sovieshu then muttered helplessly. ¡°What am I supposed to do now?¡± ¡°Your Majesty...¡± However, when Sovieshu spoke again, his voice was determined. ¡°Bring that man.¡± ¡®That man?¡¯ Rashta, who was devastated, raised her head curiously. Suddenly, there was amotion. When Rashta looked in that direction, she saw Sovieshu¡¯s men dragging n in. ¡®Why is n here?¡¯ Startled, Rashta shouted, ¡°Your Majesty!¡± But rather than answer, Sovieshu turned to the priest, ¡°Priest.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Do another paternity test to see if the princess is this man¡¯s daughter.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s order was categorical and cold. Rashta eximed in astonishment as she felt the blood drain from her entire body, ¡°Your Majesty, let¡¯s repeat the test! It doesn¡¯t make sense! The Princess really is our daughter! The test must be repeated!¡± Sovieshu became angrier when Rashta asked him to repeat the test, his patience had run out. He didn¡¯t want to suffer that humiliation again, he didn¡¯t want to hear again that the princess was not his daughter. However, he did want the test to be done with n. ¡°Let me go! Let me go! Rashta! Rashta!¡± n shouted her name desperately as he was dragged in. When he brazenly uttered the Empress¡¯ name, those present whispered to one another. Rashta ignored n and tried to approach the princess. ¡®No doubt someone has manipted the test result. I don¡¯t know what that person did, but it was manipted. Otherwise, this would not have been the test result.¡¯ If she didn¡¯t hold the princess herself and draw her blood to check the result, she would never believe it. ¡°Your Majesty, it must have been manipted. If not, it is because too little blood was drawn from the princess. If more is drawn, the correct result will be obtained.¡± The priest took a step back and shouted with a frightened look, ¡°Not much more blood can be drawn. The baby couldn¡¯t take it!¡± The princess¡¯s crying grew louder. Sovieshu¡¯s face became even stiffer than before. The nobles present also looked at Rashta with displeasure. It would be cruel to draw more blood from that little baby unnecessarily, even if it wasn¡¯t the princess. n was terrified and asked Rashta for help, but no one cared about him. Sovieshu, who felt that the more time passed the more he would be aughing stock, coldly ordered. ¡°Do the paternity test.¡± ¡°Yes, yes, Your Majesty.¡± The priest returned to his position in the structure and said to Rashta, ¡°Empress. Please stand here.¡± But Rashta stepped back and shouted, ¡°I won¡¯t do it unless the test is with Emperor Sovieshu! I¡¯ll not take a paternity test with that man! It¡¯s an insult to me! Your Majesty! Absolutely not!¡± With fists clenched and teeth bared, Rashta looked like she would attack anyone who came near her. She was still the Empress of the Eastern Empire, so there was nothing to be done if she tly refused to take the paternity test. The priest hesitated and looked at Sovieshu, who was frowning. n hastily knelt down and begged. ¡°Your Majesty, I have nothing to do with the Princess. I only met Rashta again after she became your concubine.¡± Rashta was so enraged that he still called her directly by her name that she hit n in the shin with her heel, with all her might, and blood spurted out. ¡°Ah.¡± n finally closed his mouth and bent over in pain. Sovieshu watched the pathetic scene, then gestured to the two knights near Rashta. Once they received the order, the two knights surrounded Rashta, grabbed her by the arms and dragged her in front of the structure. This was not the way to treat the Empress, but none of the nobles were surprised. Now that the situation had reached this point, Rashta would not be able to remain in the position of empress. It would only be a matter of how much she would endure, in what manner she would fall, and whether she would be punished once she was deposed. One knight held Rashta in front of the structure while the other extended her hand and pressed hard on the wound made by Sovieshu in the previous test. Blood flowed from the wound again, falling into the newly ced te. ¡°Let me go! Let me go! I am the Empress! You can¡¯t do this! Your Majesty, I am still the Empress! You can¡¯t do this!¡± Chapter 359 Chapter 359. Love (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The hearts of some weak nobles were softened by Rashta¡¯s miserable screams, but most did not bat an eyelid. The two knights released Rashta once her blood was drawn. Rashta staggered back, then cried and pushed the knights. But that didn¡¯t relieve her anger, so she clenched her fists and struck the knights who treated her harshly. As she was still the Empress of the Eastern Empire, the knights received Rashta¡¯s blows without resistance, as Sovieshu gave no special orders. But their faces turned darker with each blow, and some of the smart nobles clicked their tongues. They knew that if Rashta divorced or was removed from her position in the future, it would be these knights who would remain with her. It was foolish to make them her enemies. ¡°Hurry up.¡± Once Sovieshu spoke coldly, two other knights grabbed n and dragged him to the structure. Rashta stopped hitting the knights. The knights¡¯ attitude towards n was harsher than before, even hard to see. As soon as they dragged him into the structure, they forcibly extended his hand and cut the center of his palm with a dagger without hesitation. ¡°AHH!¡± As n screamed in pain, a lot of blood fell onto the te. ¡®It doesn¡¯t take that much.¡¯ The priest trembled as he dropped some of the princess¡¯s blood, previously extracted with the special tool, and mixed it with the clear liquid from the temple. Just as before, it bubbled. But this time the bloodpletely cleared. ¡°The princess is this man¡¯s daughter. The Princess is this man¡¯s daughter, Your Majesty!¡± At the priest¡¯s deration, the murmurs suddenly became louder. Sovieshu felt tears fall down his cheeks as he ran his hands over his eyes. Surprised to see the Emperor¡¯s tears, those present took pity on Sovieshu, who had been deceived by n and Rashta. ¡°No, it¡¯s really not true, Your Majesty! I even hate to see this man¡¯s face! How could the princess be the daughter of someone so loathsome?!¡± Rashta screamed madly and knocked over everything on the structure. ¡°There is no way I would have a child with such a man, when I had Your Majesty by my side! Your Majesty, the princess is your daughter! Your only daughter!¡± Rashta screamed in despair, but the nobles present considered her more pathetic. ¡°No matter how difficult the situation is, how dare she speak to the Emperor like that.¡± ¡°It is disrespectful.¡± ¡°Even if she wears fancy clothes and sits on the empress¡¯s throne, she will never be able to purify her blood.¡± Those present scorned Rashta due to the disrespectful manner in which she addressed the Emperor. Joansonughed in the distance as he wrote an article. What will happen when it bes known that Rashta¡¯s story was a sand castle built on a lie...? A vicious smile appeared on Joanson¡¯s face. People liked heroes, but at the same time they secretly envied them. A hero with a high approval rating wouldn¡¯t have much trouble, but it was not easy to maintain. Even Empress Navier, who had impable behavior, was criticized for her cold-as-iron and inhuman attitude. Rashta¡¯s current approval rating was well below that level. With all the scandals she had been involved in, her approval rating was dropping day by day. Themoners had high expectations for Rashta, and even revered her as the hope of themoners. Despite her origin, they expected Rashta to be much better than Empress Navier and save their pride. But since she failed to measure up and only bad rumors arose one after another, the high expectations turned into a bitter sense of betrayal that made the criticism louder. If Rashta started to fall amidst all of this, those who secretly envied her would enjoy it because they could proudly disy their dislike, while those who sincerely appreciated her would turn high expectations and affection into fierce hatred. Joanson himself was the epitome of affection for Rashta turned to hatred, mostly due to his sister¡¯s disappearance. The more disappointed he was in Rashta, the more ashamed he became to have admired her. To hide this shame, he criticized her harshly in his articles. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty, I really have no rtion to the princess!¡± n grabbed at Sovieshu¡¯s shirt, but thetter pushed him away mercilessly. The knights kicked him so that he would not dare approach the Emperor again. n groaned as he wrapped his arms around his battered body, but no one took pity on him. Sovieshu detested him to the point that he wanted to rip his head off. He was very angry because this foolish man not only humiliated him, but now he dared to call his own daughter ¡®the princess¡¯. The priest looked around as he gathered the instruments that had been thrown on the floor by Rashta. Just then, a person appeared who had not been called, a person who had not exactlye to observe. ¡°Oh. Are the test results out yet?¡± It was Duke Elgy. *** ¡°I was very surprised to see you suddenly appear.¡± The meeting ended after Princess Charlottemunicated the unexpected request to me, and I went out with Heinley for a walk in the garden. Heinleyughed as he rubbed his chest. As if he was still surprised that I had suddenly appeared. I wouldn¡¯t have done it if I had known that the princess didn¡¯t mean to be his concubine. So I pretended to ask, puzzled, ¡°Did that surprise you so much?¡± ¡°My Queen, you had a very angry face.¡± ¡°That...¡± ¡°Besides, you looked away as soon as you saw me. You were trying to suppress your anger.¡± That was true. There was a little misunderstanding. No, there was a serious misunderstanding. I thought Princess Charlotte wanted to be Heinley¡¯s concubine. That¡¯s why I felt so ashamed that I couldn¡¯t even raise my head after I found out that it had been a misunderstanding. I especially felt sorry for Princess Charlotte. I was d I had done my best to smile in front of her. If I had shown her a bit of my cold side, I¡¯d probably be locked in my room right now not wanting to see anyone. ¡°It¡¯s just that...¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I was a little confused.¡± I answered weakly in a low voice. Although it was due to Sir Yunim that I misunderstood the situation, I still felt an ache in my chest at the memory of what happened. The mere thought that Heinley might have a concubine was painful and it broke my heart. ¡°My Queen...¡± I had decided not to ept his lovepletely, not to love this man so deeply, so that I could walk away even if he hurt me. Unbeknownst to me, this man had prated deep into my heart. When I found out that he could turn into a bird, I should have realized that this man could easily break through my shield. At some point he managed to reach my heart. Did he notice how I felt? ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley called me quietly, took my hand between his, ced it on his chest and said, ¡°You can rest easy. I will never allow my brother Koshar to marry someone he doesn¡¯t want to. I will never pressure him to marry for political reasons, so you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± Ah. He didn¡¯t notice at all! ¡°You¡¯re not a perceptive person.¡± ¡°What?¡± While I spoke to Princess Charlotte, Heinley approached with a serious expression, almost stopping our conversation. Now that Heinley said these words to me, it seems he approached me in haste because he feared that I would be offended by Princess Charlotte¡¯s request to marry my brother. ¡°I¡¯m not trying to brag, but I¡¯m very perceptive, Queen.¡± ¡°If someone told you that, you¡¯d better doubt what that person tells you in the future.¡± ¡°My Queen, even you told me once that I¡¯m perceptive.¡± ¡°... I¡¯m the exception. Always.¡± ¡°Of course, My Queen is the exception. Always.¡± ¡°I am the exception because you love me.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°You are the exception for me.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°You are the exception because...¡± I omitted thest words and turned my head. Although I looked in another direction, I could feel Heinley flinch because he still held my hand against his chest. When I looked back at him, his purple eyes were wide open, full of confusion. ¡°My Queen, a moment ago...¡± ¡°A moment ago?¡± ¡°My Queen. What were you about to say a moment ago?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you say you¡¯re very perceptive? If it¡¯s true, you should be able to figure it out yourself.¡± ¡°I can guess, but I want to hear it from you.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll ask my brother what he thinks about Princess Charlotte¡¯s request.¡± ¡°No. Why do you suddenly change the subject, My Queen?¡± ¡°I love you.¡± ¡°My Queen, don¡¯t make too much of it...¡± Heinley froze, unable to even finish his words. He lifted his hand and shut his jaw. Heinley looked at me with a strange expression, unable tough or cry. Chapter 360 Chapter 360. What Will Happen To The Princess? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Duke Elgy carried a child who looked around with fearful eyes. He was identical to the princess. Of course, he also resembled Rashta. ¡°Why do you have Ahn?! Ahn!¡± n shouted and ran towards the child, but was immediately blocked by the knights. ¡°Duke Elgy. What are you doing here?¡± Sovieshu now had a severe headache. As soon as Duke Elgy appeared amidst this chaos, his anger increased. In any case, Duke Elgy calmly answered, ¡°I don¡¯t know how this child came to me. I heard that the child¡¯s father and mother were here, so I came to return him.¡± n, who had been pressed against the floor by the knights, cried out, ¡°Ahn! Ahn!¡± Duke Elgy nced briefly at n, then turned his attention back to Sovieshu. He seemed really worried. Sovieshu was curious about Duke Elgy¡¯s true intentions, but now there was no way to find out. However, it had be clear that Duke Elgy did not care about Rashta. After the knights released n on Sovieshu¡¯s order, n ran to the Duke to snatch Ahn from him. But the Duke handed the child over to him without resistance. Rashta was overwhelmed with all sorts of emotions when she saw him. She had asked the Duke to take Ahn to a family who wanted a child. She did not understand why he had appeared here, nor why he had used the expression ¡®the child¡¯s father and mother¡¯. However, now was not the time to think about that. ¡°Your Majesty, the princess is really your daughter. Please believe me. Your Majesty has always believed in me. Please believe in me once again.¡± Rather than argue with Duke Elgy, Rashta pleaded with Sovieshu again. But it was useless. Sovieshu was so angry and hurt by this situation that he didn¡¯t want to hear any excuses now. When he first met her, Sovieshu considered Rashta as pretty and delicate as a wildflower. Innocent, honest, and without greed. He thought she waspletely different from the nobles. While he was disappointed by her numerous times when she was his concubine, Sovieshu believed that Rashta truly changed after bing the Empress, as she tasted power and was looked down upon by the nobles. However, this conviction disappeared once it was revealed that the princess was not his daughter. Does the fact that the princess is not my daughter mean that Rashta mocked me even in those days full of her purity and joy? Since when? Since when did Rashta deceive me? Was it really been a coincidence that she fell into the trap at the hunting ground? At that moment, one of the nobles present shouted, ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty! We should also take this opportunity to find out if the rumor that Rashta lied about her past is true!¡± ¡°Yes! We should also find out if that little boy is Rashta¡¯s child! We need to know if Rashta deceived His Majesty about her past in order to get married! The nobles agreed one after another. Rashta was enraged. Her eyes became bloodshot as she watched the nobles demand that the empress take a test to find out if the child was her son. Rashta suddenly wanted to shout, ¡®Emperor Sovieshu epted me even though he knew all about me.¡¯ Rashta was annoyed that Sovieshu was ying the victim while she and the princess were in a bind. Rashta wasn¡¯tpletely incorrect. Although Sovieshu did not know about Ahn and n, he did know that she was a runaway ve and decided to deceive the nobles. Of course, most of the nobles would not believe her. But Rashta would be satisfied to sow doubt in some of those present, as she wanted to harm Sovieshu as much as possible. It would only take a moment to reveal this secret, but there was no guarantee that it would turn out the way she wanted. In contrast, it would be an ace in the hole if she kept the secret. Rashta clenched her teeth and nced at n. ¡°She has no shame.¡± ¡°She wanted to make the illegitimate daughter she had with Viscount Roteschu¡¯s son a princess. It wasn¡¯t enough for her to hide her past!¡± ¡°His Majesty will be divorced soon, right?¡± ¡°What divorce? He should throw her out.¡± ¡°His Majesty left Empress Navier for someone like that, tsk tsk....¡± The nobles talked non-stop. ¡°Your Majesty, it¡¯s a mistake! The princess is your daughter, I swear it! Please, let¡¯s repeat the test! Your Majesty! Please! One more time! Please!¡± Rashta cried out pitifully again, but it did not move Sovieshu at all, ¡°It has already been made public that she is not my daughter. It has already been made public that she is that man¡¯s daughter. Is there any need to repeat the test? How many more times do you want to humiliate me, Rashta?¡± ¡°Your Majesty... I¡¯m telling you the truth. The results of both tests were absurd.¡± Sovieshu did not feel sorry for her. His shock at the fact that the princess was not his daughter and that Rashta might have deceived him from the start, made him colder than ever to Rashta. Sovieshu coldly told the priest and the knights, ¡°Do a paternity test on that child. I don¡¯t need to see this.¡± Then he turned and left the temple. Rashta tried to chase Sovieshu, but was stopped by the knights. ¡°You must obey the emperor¡¯s order to take the paternity test.¡± ¡°¡®Let me go! Let me go!¡± Rashta tried to shake off the knights, but they didn¡¯t care since they had been beaten by Rashta before. The empress would soon be deposed anyway. n, who still held Ahn in his arms, was roughly dragged away again. In the process, Ahn nearly fell to the floor, but the little boy was unharmed because he was quickly caught by the priest. Viscountess Verdi, who now held the princess in her arms, watched the situation with bated breath and decided to follow Sovieshu. Sovieshu¡¯s heart skipped a beat as he nced at her, but he didn¡¯t order her to stop following him. Instead, he got into the carriage and left without a word. After Viscountess Verdi got into the carriage in which she hade with the princess, her carriage followed Sovieshu¡¯s carriage. Viscountess Verdi wrapped her arms around the princess, whose eyes were reddened, patted her back and murmured, ¡°Princess, I¡¯ll protect you. No matter what others say, to me you are still a princess.¡± Since she had taken care of the princess so far, even from before she was born, Viscountess Verdi had be very attached to the baby. She didn¡¯t care if the baby wasn¡¯t a princess. She felt sorry for the baby who would be judged by everyone through no fault of her own. She hoped that Sovieshu would still love the baby, or, at least, that he wouldn¡¯t treat the princess too coldly. ¡°Bu... bu...¡± ¡°Princess. His Majesty loves you, but he is a little angry now. He will soon hold you and take care of you again...¡± Chapter 361 Chapter 361. What Will Happen To The Princess? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Emperor Sovieshu, Marquis Karl, and Viscountess Verdi returned to the imperial pce first. Everyone who saw their faces knew the answer before the test result became known. People gathered in groups to try to guess what was toe. ¡°Will Empress Rashta be deposed?¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine if she is deposed. She should also be severely punished.¡± ¡°I am more interested in what His Majesty will do with the Princess.¡± ¡°Yes. His Majesty loved the princess so much that he always had her by his side.¡± ¡°What princess? She¡¯s a bastard.¡± As people gossiped, Sovieshu headed for his room, but on the way there he changed his mind and went to his office. Then, he frantically set to work. Sovieshu read, approved, corrected, wrote and chose which reports to return without even changing his posture. It could be expected, but in this situation it was clearly not normal. Marquis Karl worried about the future as he watched Sovieshu. Sovieshu had left Empress Navier, who had been by his side since childhood, for this daughter, who turned out not to be his. At this moment, he must be speechless. Sovieshu didn¡¯t want to throw out the baby he loved so much in an instant, so he was in a difficult position. People would think Sovieshu was a fool if he kept another man¡¯s daughter, but if he threw out the fake princess, he would be considered cruel and heartless. It was ironic. There was a time when Navier thought that if she exerted her power on Rashta, she would be considered a viin, but if she stood idly by she would be treated like a fool. The difference was that Rashta would soon be deposed. Her daughter with another man, conceived in her days as a concubine, would no longer be treated as a princess. Even if Sovieshu wanted Glorym to live as a princess, she could not stay in the imperial pce. However, Sovieshu did not say a word about what he would do with the princess. Two hourster, when Baron Lant came to report that Ahn was also the child of Rashta and n, Sovieshu finally put down his pen and closed his eyes. A heavy tension invaded the office. After a while, Sovieshu opened his mouth with a gloomy expression. *** News from the Eastern Empire had not yet reached the Western Empire. Heinley repeatedly knocked over the ink bottle with his elbow or the back of his hand. He seemed to be in a daze due to Navier¡¯s confession. Her confession was brief, but it was enough to make his heart race. Navier¡¯s ¡®I love you¡¯ still tickled his ear. But McKenna was not amused by Heinley¡¯s clumsy behavior. He eventually lost patience. ¡°Your Majesty. Unless you are doing this on purpose to annoy me, please pay attention to your surroundings.¡± ¡°I¡¯m a loved man, McKenna.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I¡¯m loved.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Heinley smiled proudly as he stretched his shoulders. McKenna frowned because he didn¡¯t know what happened to Heinley to make him behave like that. He couldn¡¯t even guess, so he was ufortable that Heinley was so happy. ¡°Ah!¡± Suddenly, McKenna had an idea. ¡°I know why you feel so happy. Do you expect that when Princess Charlotte marries Koshar, Whitemond will at least give you a port?¡± ¡°... McKenna, you have no heart. How can you only think about the benefits?¡± When McKenna looked at him in bewilderment, Heinley sped his hands together and said with excitement in his eyes, ¡°Think about it, McKenna. At some point my child will ask me. ¡®Dad, dad, why did you and my mother get married?¡¯ Then I¡¯ll be able to answer: Your father and mother married for love.¡± ¡°But that was a lucky case, you can¡¯t always marry who you love.¡± Heinley, who hade out of his dreamy state, looked at him sharply., ¡°What I meant was that marriages are usually arranged...¡± McKenna didn¡¯t want to talk about this any further, so he asked, ¡°Why do you have that look?¡± ¡°McKenna. Don¡¯t you want to get married?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a joke, I¡¯m serious. Isn¡¯t there someone you like? Someone with whom you wish to start a family?¡± ¡°What are you saying?¡± Heinley¡¯s expression was serious, so it was obvious he wasn¡¯t kidding. McKenna felt embarrassed, smiled awkwardly and quickly changed the subject. ¡°More importantly, Your Majesty. Did you know that Old Duke Zemensia had a fight with his son? Heinley noticed that McKenna did not want to talk about marriage. But this new subject was also enjoyable, so he immediately answered. ¡°Yes. Old Duke Zemensia will be consumed in his wrath. We need only add fuel to the fire.¡± Heinley smiled as he looked at the ink-stained documents. He clearly remembered that Old Duke Zemensia tried to harm Navier and his child with food not suitable for a pregnant woman. Heinley definitely wouldn¡¯t turn a blind eye. ¡°Your Majesty has so much on your mind that sometimes... I worry that you can¡¯t handle it all.¡± ¡°McKenna. Are you making fun of me?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that.¡± *** McKenna left the office to take a breather. Although Heinley took it as a joke, it was not. McKenna was really worried. Judging by Heinley¡¯s behavior, his rtionship with Empress Navier was very good, Empress Navier and the baby in her womb were healthy, it was said that the Eastern Empire would soon be rocked by a huge scandal, the incident with Whitemond had been resolved favorably, and the Zemensia Family seemed to be crumbling due to infighting. Everything was going well, but McKenna felt ufortable. As he pondered about the reason for his difort, he saw Grand Duke Kapmen sitting alone against a tree. His brow was furrowed, as if he wasn¡¯t thinking of anything good. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± McKenna had a good opinion of Kapmen because he had helped during Christa¡¯s case. So he approached Kapmen and greeted him in a friendly manner. If he could help him with his problems, he would. Kapmen returned the greeting arrogantly, but McKenna asked without any displeasure. ¡°Are you worried about something? You don¡¯t look well.¡± ¡®You have your own worries.¡¯ Kapmen revealed a cold smile and answered honestly only inside himself. Kapmen¡¯s frown was due to the fact that Navier¡¯s name had appeared several times in McKenna¡¯s thoughts. It wasn¡¯t just McKenna. People thought about Navier so muchtely that it was hard for him to walk the streets. ¡°Well, you don¡¯t seem to want to talk to me.¡± McKenna smiled embarrassed by Kapmen¡¯s reaction. Once McKenna left, Kapmen leaned back against the tree again and closed his eyes. The first trade team had done well, and the second team had done much better, so the future was bright. However, he did not feel the same joy as the others. Kapmen was so wracked with pain in his heart that he thought Navier had better freeze his heart with her magic. Just then, he heard Navier¡¯s inner voice nearby. Kapmen jumped up unconsciously. It was as if he saw a light in the distance. *** Strangely, I couldn¡¯t look Heinley in the face after I told him, ¡®I love you¡¯. As I stood in front of him, my heart fluttered and a faint smile appeared on my face. He¡¯ll be back in the evening. As I took a stroll to soothe my heartbeat, I saw Grand Duke Kapmen not far away, between the trees. His hair swayed gently as the wind blew. When his eyes met mine, his calm expression became distorted. He must have read my thoughts about Heinley. But more than fear, I felt pity. I felt sorry that Kapmen had to suffer every day from the same pain I experienced when I misunderstood Princess Charlotte. Grand Duke Kapmen eventually turned and left quickly. Mastas, who was next to me,ined in disgust. ¡°Why didn¡¯t hee over to greet His Majesty? That makes me annoyed.¡± Rose scolded Mastas. ¡°He may not have seen her. Haven¡¯t you noticed that you¡¯ve treated people harshly since yesterday?¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s definitely not like that.¡± ¡°Ever since Princess Charlotte arrived yesterday, you¡¯ve been in a bad mood.¡± ¡°That¡¯s...¡± ¡°Mastas, is it because Princess Charlotte wants to marry Sir Koshar?¡± Chapter 362 Chapter 362. Is He Happy? (1) ¡°What?! Why would I care about that?! What do I have to do with him?!¡± Mastas immediately refuted Rose, but she was very upset. Her shouts startled me as I tried to clear my troubled mind. I noticed that Mastas¡¯ face was flushed. ¡°Miss Mastas? Are you all right?¡± ¡°I, I really didn¡¯t think about that.¡± Mastas¡¯ answer to my concern was strange. ¡°I¡¯m only interested in strong people. Sir Koshar is weak and innocent., I don¡¯t care if Sir Koshar marries!¡± I remembered that Mastas once asked me to take food beneficial for the body¡¯s recovery to Koshar. Besides, it was suspicious that she was so nervous. Could it be that Mastas is in love with my brother? Mastas usually expressed her opinion firmly. I expected that in a case like this she would say, ¡®I only like him because he¡¯s the Empress¡¯s brother!¡¯, or ¡®I only like him because he¡¯s a strong man!¡¯, or ¡®No, I don¡¯t like him!¡¯ But before I could inquire, Mastas had already walked away. As I looked at her, Rose, who had started all this, muttered with her arms crossed, ¡°This is suspicious.¡± ¡°Empress, what will you do if Mastas is in love with Sir Koshar?¡± Countess Jubel asked. Unlike Rose¡¯s serious attitude, Countess Jubel seemed to find the situation amusing. She knew that my brother had a bad reputation in the Eastern Empire. For that same reason, Laura said with a smile, ¡°In terms of personality, I think they would make a good match.¡± But Rose disagreed, so she spoke realistically and worriedly. ¡°Mastas is a good girl, but she¡¯s a little clumsy. Besides, I don¡¯t think Mastas is from a family worthy of marrying Sir Koshar...¡± Mydies-in-waiting stopped talking and looked at me. ¡°My brother¡¯s opinion is what matters.¡± Truth be told, both matches had strengths and weaknesses. Princess Charlotte was smart and determined, so she would be able to control my temperamental brother, and due to her status as a princess, it would be an honor for Koshar to marry her. However, my brother became easily angered, so it could be a problem if he became the son-inw of the King of Whitemond. In contrast, Mastas would get along well with my brother because she liked weapons, but as they were both easily angered, no one would be able to stop them if they caused trouble... In any case, my parents were here. There was no need for me to intervene. Still, that night I asked my brother directly. ¡°Did you hear that Princess Charlotte wants to marry you?¡± ¡°Yes...¡± ¡°What do you want to do? Do you want to marry the princess, or do you want to marry another youngdy?¡± My brother was so embarrassed that he didn¡¯t even look me in the eye, and he took a while to answer. ¡°I¡¯m not interested in marriage, but I¡¯ll have to do it if I want to help the family. In that case... I think Princess Charlotte is the best choice.¡± ¡°Do you know Princess Charlotte?¡± ¡°No, but it will help the family.¡± That¡¯s true. ¡°But it could be very stifling for you.¡± I was worried because my brother lived a lifestyle with much more freedom than most young gentlemen. I feared that he could not endure the traditional life of the nobles. ¡°I only caused trouble by living my way. I never helped our parents or our family. Now, I want to be useful.¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Once I marry the princess, I¡¯ll have to live in Whitemond. But it will be a shame not to be able to see my nephew often. I have no doubt that your baby will be lovely.¡± I felt inexplicably moved, and the feeling didn¡¯t go away, even after my brother left. I sat in a daze at the dressing table for a while until I heard a knock at the door. ¡°Come in.¡± I waited a moment, but no one came in, although I was sure that someone had knocked on the door. It was strange. Normally, mydies-in-waiting and guards would announce their names before knocking on the door. Could it be Heinley? Puzzled, I got up and personally opened the door. I knew it. Heinley was standing there, carrying my favorite dish. ¡°Heinley?¡± When I said his name in confusion because I didn¡¯t expect to see him here, Heinley held out the te of food, ¡°Here you go.¡± ¡°Why are you suddenly bringing me this?¡± ¡°I got the signal to bring this.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t send any signal.¡± ¡°... Our child sent it.¡± Liar! When I narrowed my eyes, Heinley quickly kissed me on my right cheek. ¡°Give that kiss to our child from his dad.¡± ¡°Stop joking.¡± I felt so embarrassed that I spoke firmly, but this time Heinley kissed me on the lips. ¡°My Queen, that kiss is for you.¡± Seeing me blush, Heinleyughed. ¡°It looks like you liked it.¡± Heinley spoke slyly and wrapped me in his arms. I was worried that our rtionship would be awkward after my confession. But on the contrary, I felt morefortable. I was resting my head against his chest when I impulsively asked him, ¡°Would you like to take a walk with me?¡± Chapter 363 Chapter 363. Is He Happy? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 It was a dark night. The moonlight was barely visible because of the dense clouds, but thanks to the oilmp Heinley carried in one hand it was not too difficult to see the path. Also, Heinley was holding my hand firmly, which made me feel very safe. How long have we walked in silence? ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley suddenly asked yfully. ¡°My Queen, when did you start falling in love with me?¡± ¡°Is it important?¡± ¡°I want to write it in my diary.¡± ¡°Then I won¡¯t tell you.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lie, I won¡¯t write it down. Tell me.¡± ¡°If you¡¯re not going to write it down, why should I tell you?¡± ¡°Should I write it down?¡± ¡°You see. I won¡¯t tell you.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°In the emperor¡¯s diary, all important events are recorded for future generations.¡± A knight behind us let out a soft chuckle. It was an insignificant talk, but since it was among the emperor and the empress, he must have found it amusing. As I thought about not answering anymore because I felt embarrassed, Heinley asked me with a persuasive tone. ¡°My Queen. Be honest.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Do you avoid the question because it is not easy to answer?¡± He didn¡¯t mind at all that the knight chuckled at our conversation. In any case, Heinley was right. ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t know when I started to fall in love with you.¡± It was only when I misunderstood Princess Charlotte¡¯s intentions that I realized I loved him. I made an agreement with Sir Yunim and mydies-in-waiting to keep the misunderstanding a secret. Heinley shook his head in disappointment. ¡°That can¡¯t be.¡± ¡°You do know when you started to fall in love with me?¡± ¡°Yes, I know.¡± ¡°Then tell me.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve always been in love with you, and with each passing day I fall more in love with you.¡± Why is he so good with his words? ¡°Queen. There are many moments that made me fall in love with you, if I had to tell you each one, I could do it.¡± ¡°Tell me at least three.¡± ¡°You were the first woman who lied to me about being a man.¡± Heinley lowered his voice so only I could hear him. ¡°You were the first woman to pat my rear.¡± ¡°Stop.¡± I reached out with my hand to cover his mouth, but Heinley continued to speak with his mouth covered. ¡°You were the first woman to feed me insects.¡± ¡°Did you pick those three on purpose?¡± His words made me seem like a strange person. When I looked at him, annoyed, Heinley answered cheerfully, ¡°Yes.¡± Then he kissed me and asked, ¡°My Queen, isn¡¯t there something for you in which I was the first? No matter what it is.¡± Really? ¡°You were the first man I lied to about being a man. You were the first man I patted on the rear. You were also the first man I tried to feed insects to.¡± I didn¡¯t like that he made me seem like a strange person, so I purposely returned his words. However, Heinley immediately asked me with a smile. ¡°So we¡¯re meant for each other?¡± He was so cute that I couldn¡¯t hold back theughter. At that moment, I tripped over a rock that I did not see. Heinley quickly grabbed me. Although I managed to regain my bnce, I deliberately leaned against his body. Since my head was on his chest, I could hear his heartbeat. The smell of fresh grass mixed with the night wind made me feel truly happy. I was also curious. I wondered if the man who had abandoned me was happy now. *** Sovieshu was disconste. ¡°I can¡¯t have a child with the title of princess when she doesn¡¯t have my blood. Glorym is not even my illegitimate child, so remove her from the position as a princess.¡± Rashta concealed her past. However, since Sovieshu married her and signed the marriage certificate in front of the High Priest, a formal procedure was needed to remove Rashta from the position of empress. In contrast, Glorym became a princess only because she was the Emperor¡¯s daughter. Since it was revealed that she was not his daughter, a single word from Sovieshu was enough for Glorym to lose her position as princess. Although both the Emperor and the Empress could legally have concubines, Glorym was conceived when Rashta was not yet the Empress, and worse, Glorym did not have the Emperor¡¯s blood. Even if Glorym was raised as a noble, she couldn¡¯t be recognized as a member of the imperial family. Naturally, she couldn¡¯t remain a princess. The only option he had left was to adopt Glorym, but Sovieshu, ovee with anger, didn¡¯t even consider it. Sovieshu might change his mindter, but right now, he didn¡¯t even want to see the baby¡¯s face. Especially since she looked so much like Rashta. Still, he did not throw the princess outpletely. He asked Viscountess Verdi to take care of her in a secluded room. Although it had been proven that Glorym was not his daughter, the love and time Sovieshu devoted to the baby would not suddenly be forgotten. This caused Sovieshu to be even more disconste about removing her from her position as princess. He remembered the princess smiling happily, crying in the crib next to his office desk, and making strange sounds like ¡®abu-abu¡¯. Sovieshu felt a deep ache in his heart after he personally deposed the baby. But he had no one to talk to about his pain, and no one tofort him. As he held the highest position in the Eastern Empire, there was no one with whom he could share his worries. Navier used to y that role, but she was away in another country now. Marquis Karl was a loyal secretary, but not a friend who could share his pain. After he suffered all day, he returned to his bedroom, leaned his forehead against Navier¡¯s painting and sighed heavily. ¡°Navier... I don¡¯t understand why this happened to me.¡± The cold frame cooled his head a little. Sovieshu recalled the dinner he had with Navier after he brought Rashta to the Imperial Pce. Back then, Navier had wanted to say something to him, but he repeatedly avoided the subject because it was about Rashta. Many other fights happened leading up to the divorce, so that wasn¡¯t a big fightpared to the ones that followed, and yet it stuck in his memory. He still remembered Navier¡¯s expression that day. ¡°I should have listened to you back then.¡± Sovieshu slowly closed his eyes and exhaled in pain. *** However, Rashta now suffered more than Sovieshu. After the temple visit, Rashta was full of resentment towards Duke Elgy. At first, she was so shocked that she could not even express it properly. Now, as she remembered what had happened, it all seemed so unfair that she was overwhelmed with emotions. She still couldn¡¯t ept it. She wondered how the princess had suddenly be n¡¯s daughter, and why Duke Elgy had appeared with Ahn. In less than a day, Glorym was no longer the princess and became theughingstock of the Eastern Empire. This was so painful that it was hard for her to breathe. ¡°What about the princess?¡± After learning that Sovieshu ordered Glorym removed from the princess position, Rashta tried to find out more from a maid, but she was only told that Viscountess Verdi had left the princess¡¯s room with the baby. Rashta wanted to see the princess, but no one would tell her where she was. A few hourster she asked again, but this time the maid was cold. ¡°I don¡¯t know. Wouldn¡¯t it be quicker if you found out for yourself?¡± She looked at Rashta as if to say, ¡®Why do you call your daughter a princess? She isn¡¯t anymore.¡¯ Her scornful attitude hurt Rashta¡¯s pride. She was disgusted that the maid, chosen by Rashta herself, would act like this. Even if she was to be deposed in the future, she was still the Empress of the Eastern Empire. Even the knights had no choice but to hold back their anger as Rashta beat them at the temple. ¡°Is that the way to address the empress?¡± Unbeknownst to anyone, Rashta had deliberately hired needy women to ensure their obedience. She didn¡¯t understand why the maid rejected her now. The maids she hired were genuinely good to her at first, but when Rashta imprisoned one of their fellow maids, and nearly had the maid¡¯s father killed, merely due to a slip of the tongue by the maid, respect for Rashta shifted to fear. In addition to this, other pce employees decided to stay away from the empress¡¯s new maids due to the negative rumors about Rashta. From then on, the maids stopped following Rashta and just did their jobs. Now that the princess, who was Rashta¡¯sst pir, was removed, they began to think, ¡®Why be polite to someone who will fall anyway?¡¯ They calcted that in order to keep their jobs when a new empress came to the western pce, they would have to distance themselves from Rashta. Chapter 364 Chapter 364. Rashta¡¯s Despair (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Rashta muttered in annoyance and bewilderment. ¡°How insolent you are...¡± ¡°It is Your Majesty who is insolent. How dare you deceive the emperor with a cuckoo daughter?¡± ¡°Cuckoo? Did you just call the princess a cuckoo?¡± [TL/N: A bird thatys its eggs in the nests of other birds.] ¡°She¡¯s not a princess anymore. She also wasn¡¯t born to a married noble couple, so she¡¯s not a noble either.¡± The Western Pce maidscked proper etiquette ,unlike other pce employees, so they didn¡¯t speak respectfully. Rashta couldn¡¯t stand it and pounced on the maid, who tried to run away, but Rashta ran and kicked her in the calf first. ¡°Ahh!¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if I¡¯m a cuckoo or if the princess is a cuckoo, you¡¯re an insect! An insect that can be eaten by a cuckoo or any other bird. I¡¯m the Empress! Don¡¯t forget that I can kill you!¡± ¡°Stop it! Stop it! Ahh!¡± ¡°Stop it, stop it! Shut your filthy mouth!¡± Rashta was not used to swearing, but during the course of her life as a ve she had received many insults. The maid managed to run away in terror as Rashta insulted and assaulted her. Rashta was so angered by her insolent words that she chased after her, but as soon as she was out the door she collided against Duke Elgy¡¯s firm chest. She stumbled and Duke Elgy quickly reached out to hold her. ¡°Duke Elgy...¡± Rashta looked at him in a daze, but soon her expression became distorted. Seeing him reminded her of the prior day¡¯s events, and a sudden feeling of betrayal and disappointment came over her, overshadowing her concern for the future and her anger with the maid. Rashta said between clenched teeth, ¡°You¡¯re a bad... bad person.¡± Rashta stared at him with tears in her eyes. Duke Elgy was the one who always helped her during difficult times, the only one who gave her strength when everyone mocked her, so although she felt hurt, she was also a little hopeful. ¡°Why did you do that?¡± Rashta asked in a dull voice. Rather than answer, Duke Elgy sighed as he examined Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°You don¡¯t look so good.¡± ¡°Why did you do that?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go inside to talk.¡± ¡°Why...¡± ¡°It¡¯s not a good idea to talk here.¡± Upon hearing Elgy¡¯s words, Rashta realized that she was in the corridor. The knights standing on either side of the door were staring at them very curiously. Rashta flinched, turned, and entered the room. Duke Elgy followed her silently and closed the door. Then, he naturally tried to sit down on the couch, but stopped when Rashta shouted, ¡°Don¡¯t sit down!¡± ¡°Alright.¡± Although it was unpleasant, Duke Elgy answered calmly and straightened his bent knees. Rashta felt more hurt and asked again. ¡°Why did you do that?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Duke Elgy smiled before continuing, speaking softly, ¡°Do you want to know why I didn¡¯t do what you asked me to do after I kidnapped Viscount Roteschu¡¯s grandson? Or why did I take him to the temple? Or...¡± There were thick thorns embedded in every word. Rashta wanted to cover her ears. She couldn¡¯t believe what he was saying. He didn¡¯t stop there. Duke Elgy carried a folder with him. He paused, then put it on the table and opened it, revealing a stack of promissory notes and the document in which she promised to deliver a port to him. ¡®Could it be... ¡® Rashta looked very surprised at Duke Elgy. ¡°Or, do you want to know why I¡¯ll make these documents public?¡± Her guess was correct. Rashta barely managed to speak. ¡°No, no way...¡± ¡°It¡¯s time for you to pay me what you owe me.¡± Rashta stared at Duke Elgy in shock. She would have never imagined this. Strangely, even though he had already betrayed her at the temple, she didn¡¯t think he would force her to pay her debts. ¡®Duke Elgy wasn¡¯t so heartless.¡¯ Rashta asked, her voice trembling ¡°Why? Why are you doing this to me?¡± ¡°Your way of speaking has changed.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I liked it when you referred to yourself by your own name.¡± Rashta did not understand what Duke Elgy meant, she felt that her way of speaking was no different than before. Rashta could not believe what was going on. She couldn¡¯t see Sovieshu¡¯s face, nor did she know where the princess was. Nor could she leave the Western Pce, so it was like she was imprisoned. And Duke Elgy had betrayed her. Nothing seemed real. Rashta eximed angrily, ¡°What do you want from me?¡± ¡°Does it hurt?¡± ¡°Did you think it wouldn¡¯t hurt?¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s nonchnt expression made her feel even more detached from reality. Rashta tried to regain herposure. But as much as she tried to calm down, tears welled up in her eyes. Rashta clenched her fists and cried as she pounded on the couch. ¡°What did I do to you? Why are you doing this to me? What did I do wrong? Weren¡¯t we friends?¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t friendships lost over money?¡± ¡°Did I threaten you?! You offered to lend it to me! Besides, these promissory notes don¡¯t even have a payment date!¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Rashta recovered her courage after thisst cry. Although she said it spontaneously, it made sense. A ray of hope arose within her. ¡®Yes, the promissory notes did not specify when the money should be returned. It is a clear act of harassment for him to ask me for repayment right now.¡¯ ¡°If Your Majesty were still in an honorable position, I would not have urged you to return the money.¡± However, Elgy answered with a slight smile as if he knew what Rashta was thinking. Rashta flinched at Elgy¡¯s words. ¡°What are you talking about...?¡± Rashta muttered, confused, but soon understood Duke Elgy¡¯s words. When power is solid, a promissory note with no payment date may not be a problem. But now, there were all kinds of scandals about Rashta. If the promissory notes were made public at a time like this, everyone would be shocked by their existence. Theck of a repayment date didn¡¯t matter. So Rashta flinched again and asked, ¡°Did you always intend to collect from me...? You never lent me money just to help me.¡± ¡°You caught on fast. A lot of them didn¡¯t understand until the end.¡± ¡°A lot of them? What do you mean...?¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t you heard the rumors about me? I¡¯m a very despicable and evil man.¡± Rashta frowned and her expression instantly became rigid. She remembered Sovieshu¡¯s advice that it would not be good to stay by Duke Elgy¡¯s side due to the bad rumors about him. But back then, Duke Elgy had proven his friendship to Rashta. He supported her when everyone rejected her. He supported her even more than Sovieshu. Until now, he had been the person she trusted the most. Back then, she believed that Sovieshu¡¯s advice was due to jealousy... Chapter 365

Remarried Empress

admin6-7 minutes Chapter 365. Rashta¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Rashta opened her eyes in shock and asked, ¡°I don¡¯t understand what happened. What drove you to do this?¡± ¡°Like I said, it¡¯s for the money.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t lie!¡± Duke Elgy still had a friendly smile, which made him all the more scary. Astonished, Rashta took a step back, and his smile became softer and gentler. ¡°Does it matter why I did it?¡± ¡°It matters... It matters a lot! What did I do wrong?¡± Although Rashta had recoiled from him instinctively, she shouted indignantly. ¡°What did I do for you to do this to me? I could expect it from Empress Navier. But why you?!¡± ¡°If I were you, I¡¯d be more curious about something else.¡± ¡°Something else?¡± Rashta¡¯s heart pounded and her legs felt weak, so she leaned against the couch. Duke Elgy spoke casually, ¡°Well. You¡¯ll find outter. In any case, you don¡¯t seem to have the ability to repay me right now. And I don¡¯t think you will be able to repay in the future either. Am I right?¡± Rashta looked at him without saying a word. She wanted to tell him that she would give him the money right away, but he was right. Since Baron Lant managed her money, she had no money at the moment. Most of the jewelry and other valuables she received as presents ended up in the hands of the Isqua couple, Viscount Roteschu, and her real father. Even after she stopped meeting Duke Elgy as often due to the rumors, the demand for money from others continued. She had also spent a lot of money to hire a mercenary and an assassin. ¡°Certainly, you can¡¯t. However, the port is different. Your Majesty is not yet divorced, so I only have to show this document to the Emperor.¡± ¡°You... you are an evil man.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes filled with tears that fell onto her lips, which had turned pale. She looked so pitiful that even the coldest person would sympathize with her. Her heart ached because she really trusted Duke Elgy. This waspletely different from the shock she felt when she found out that Sovieshu loved Navier. Sovieshu was the man who saved her when she was in despair, the man she had loved. But Duke Elgy was the only person in whom she ced her trust, faith and friendship. She felt her world crumble as the person she trusted the most acted so distant. Rashta couldn¡¯t bear it and asked again, ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°You¡¯re insistent.¡± ¡°Just tell me why you are doing this to me. What happened?¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°I don¡¯t get it! We got along well, right? You said you felt sorry for me, that it wasn¡¯t my fault that I was born a ve. I...¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s not your fault you were born a ve, miss.¡± Duke Elgy used to call Rashta ¡°miss¡± during the days when she had been a concubine. At the time, when he talked this way she felt reassured. Rashta looked at him, perplexed. ¡°...¡± ¡°I kept it to myself.¡± ¡°What...?¡± ¡°I pondered whether I should use it. In the end, I decided against it.¡± ¡°What are you talking about?¡± ¡°Nonsense. But don¡¯t think this is the end of it. The person who gave it to me seemed to have a different opinion than me.¡± ¡°Wait. What are you talking about? What are you talking about?!¡± Duke Elgy smiled and brushed a lock of hair away from Rashta¡¯s face. ¡°I too have felt curious to know why. I know what it feels like. Though knowing the reason doesn¡¯t change anything, it¡¯s unbearable not knowing why.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes wavered slightly. It was very difficult for her to understand what he was talking about. ¡®Has he hit his head?¡¯ However, her disappointment and doubts suddenly vanished. ¡®What does it matter now? A traitor is a traitor, and this man is scum.¡¯ ¡°Go to hell!¡± ¡°Of course I¡¯ll go. I¡¯vee to take you with me.¡± Without hesitation, Rashta raised her hand and pped Duke Elgy on the cheek. The p echoed loudly in the room. A red handprint was drawn on his cheek. Drops of blood started to fall from one of the red lines that formed on Duke Elgy¡¯s wless skin. Rashta¡¯s ring was stained with blood. Although it must have hurt a lot, Duke Elgy smiled as if it was nothing. He really looked like a devil that came from hell. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, miss. You won¡¯t be alone.¡± Duke Elgy whispered to Rashta without a hint of anger, then grabbed the folder and left. ¡®What did he mean by that...¡¯ Rashta thought about it for a while, but soonughed, feeling empty. ¡®Never mind what he meant.¡¯ Rashtaughed as tears welled up in her eyes. Rashta finally came to a conclusion as to when things had started to go wrong. First it had been for n, then for this evil man. Nothing that drives a person crazier than an unknown evil. *** Once Duke Elgy left Rashta¡¯s room, he headed to Sovieshu¡¯s office. Sovieshu frowned for a moment when he was announced, but allowed him to enter. He also wanted to talk to Duke Elgy. ¡°I¡¯m d to see Your Majesty.¡± Duke Elgy politely greeted him. Sovieshu looked at Elgy with eyes full of hostility and displeasure. A few days ago, he had tried to send Duke Elgy back to his country using the excuse of Rashta¡¯s scandal. But after what happened in the temple, Sovieshu was also curious. What exactly did Duke Elgy want? At first, he thought the Duke hated him, but after he dared to bring Rashta¡¯s first child to the temple, it seemed that his hatred was directed against Rashta. However, that didn¡¯t fully exin his actions either. Now he had a chance to find out the answer. After thinking about it, Sovieshu hid his scorn and calmly asked, ¡°Why did you go to the temple on the day of the paternity test?¡± ¡°Because I didn¡¯t know what to do with the poor kid.¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious, Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°I see. Then I will be precise.¡± Duke Elgy took the folder with which he had surprised Rashta earlier and ced it on Sovieshu¡¯s desk. The document and the carefully arranged promissory notes were revealed. Sovieshu¡¯s eyes widened slowly. ¡°Even if the borrowed money can¡¯t be repaid, I at least want to take the port.¡± Chapter 366 Chapter 366. Prenatal Education (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°Your Majesty, Duke Liberty is here to see you.¡± ¡°Why does he want to see me?¡± When I asked, bewildered, Countess Jubel shook her head. I heard recently that Duke Liberty had surrendered, like Marquis Ketron. But unlike the Marquis, who had hung upside down like a bat, Duke Liberty only bowed slightly so as not to lose his dignitypletely. I also didn¡¯t expect anyone other than Heinley toe to see me all of a sudden. Since bing pregnant, I did no more work than necessary, and I had to put it off whenever I felt a little tired or unwell. Due to all that, his visit was most unexpected. There was no reason for Duke Liberty to visit me, personal or work-rted. However, thinking about it carefully... Although Duke Liberty had been a close aide to Christa, they didn¡¯t share blood ties, and he never directly confronted me or Heinley. He maintained a position such that he could back down at any time. So, did hee because he wanted to take my side? Did it also have to do with William? [TL/N: William is the youngest son of Duke Liberty. He was adopted by Muney¡¯s father. ] ¡°Let him in.¡± Rather than treat him coldly, I greeted him with a polite smile. Although we had differences, there was no need to be open enemies. After exchanging pleasantries, he began to talk like any other nobleman as we discussed High Society, the Western Empire, and Whitemond. Suddenly, Duke Liberty stared at me in silence for a moment, and carefully broached the subject he hade for. ¡°Your Majesty, I don¡¯t know how you will take what I am about to tell you...¡± ¡°All right. Say it.¡± ¡°Did you have a bad rtionship with Rashta in the Eastern Empire?¡± What? Why is he talking about Rashta now? I didn¡¯t think he really wanted to know about how we got along. Although it was suspicious, I tried to maintain a calm expression. He sighed, took out an envelope, and handed it to me. ¡°Your Majesty, take a look at this.¡± I epted the envelope, opened it, and took out the letter, ¡°... My infertility was the reason for the divorce?¡± The content of the letter was unpleasant. Judging by the content and wording, it seemed that Rashta had written the letter... I forced myself to smile. Even now that we were far away, she would not leave me alone. I didn¡¯t know why she was trying to attack me by sending such a letter to a nobleman from my country who happened to oppose me in principle. Isn¡¯t she Empress of the Eastern Empire? Did she think that she should be the only Empress in the world? Or is her happiness based on seeing others unhappy? As I looked at the letter, Duke Liberty said, cautiously, ¡°I don¡¯t know for certain why the Empress of the Eastern Empire sent me this letter, but I can guess.¡± Although I could also guess why, I asked, ¡°Really?¡± ¡°She thought that she could distance the nobles from Your Majesty with this letter.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that the only possibility? Why else would she send me a letter like this out of the blue?¡± Duke Liberty sighed and shook his head as if Rashta was a terrible person. His attitude amused me. The letter could be a weakness for Rashta if it became known that she wrote it. She wouldn¡¯t send it to Duke Liberty out of the blue like he imed. She must have realized that he disliked me. However, Duke Liberty must havee here even though he knew I would think that. ¡°I see.¡± The fact that Duke Liberty handed me this letter from Rashta was a sign that he would lower his tail. It was quite clever. Since I was pregnant, the letter wouldn¡¯t be useful anyway. He seemed to want to gain my trust by offering me a useless weapon. Although there was some hostility, as long as he did his part, it would be possible to forget the differences of the past. Rather than remain adamant, I smiled and drank the tea. Duke Liberty smiled awkwardly and drank his tea as if he had realized my intentions. ¡°Such a letter is a clear offense to the Western Empire. I don¡¯t know how she could write this.¡± ¡°Yes. I can¡¯t believe that Empress Rashta won¡¯t leave you alone now that you are here. Your Majesty must have had a hard time in the Eastern Empire.¡± We had a nice conversation for a while. But suddenly, Duke Liberty asked, worriedly, ¡°Since Your Majesty is from the Eastern Empire, you must know Lady Nian well, right?¡± It was an unexpected question. Why does he mention Nian? When I looked at him puzzled, he coughed and covered his mouth with his fist. ¡°Actually, Your Majesty. Umm... I¡¯m embarrassed to say this, but... if I don¡¯t, I think there will be misunderstandings.¡± Misunderstandings? What is he going to say? ¡°If my son is still pursuing Lady Nian, can you tell her to coldly reject him?¡± *** ¡°Duke Liberty said that?¡± That night, in our shared bedroom, I told Heinley about the conversation with Duke Liberty. Heinley tilted his head as if confused by my words. ¡°What do you think it means?¡± ¡°Well, it could mean literally what he said, or maybe not...¡± ¡°You¡¯re not sure?¡± ¡°... No.¡± It was no wonder Duke Liberty¡¯s son had fallen in love with Nian, or that Duke Liberty was worried. Nian was unmarried, but she had a love affair with Viscount Langdel, the Commander of the 5th Division of the feared Supranational Knights. Duke Liberty wouldn¡¯t want to get in trouble with Viscount Langdel or with me, so this must be a headache for him. However, Heinley was right. ¡°I¡¯ll have to ask Nian first.¡± ¡°Are you going to ask her?¡± ¡°There¡¯s something that makes me a little uneasy.¡± Viscount Langdel himself had told me about the situation with Marquis Liberty already. Whether it had been calcted by Duke Liberty, or whether Marquis Liberty had really fallen in love with Nian, this matter needed to be cleared up. Nian would know if Marquis Liberty was approaching her with evil intentions, or if he was truly blinded by love. ¡°My Queen.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°What will you do with the letter? The letter sent by that woman.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll send it back.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it a secret letter?¡± ¡°Just because it¡¯s a secret letter doesn¡¯t mean it¡¯s necessary to send it back secretly, right?¡± Rashta used to be in an inferior position, but she had power when she wrote and sent the letter. As it was sent to attack the Empress of the Western Empire, there was no need to hide it anymore. I was going to make a formalint. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Heinley immediately agreed. His face was full of happiness, pleased with my answer. Why did he like it so much? I was curious, but I soon found out by myself. Heinley also held a grudge against Rashta. First, she had ordered a maid to pose as Heinley¡¯s letter friend, then she herself posed as his friend, and in the end, she branded Heinley a liar when he revealed the truth. As I thought about it, I remembered how supportive Heinley had been to me ever since then, so Iid my head on his chest and fell asleep. *** Chapter 367

Chapter 367

When I suddenly woke up, I heard some murmurs. How long has it been since I fell asleep? The voice was low and pleasant, but the things it said were a little strange. Was I in the middle of some kind of sleep paralysis? I don¡¯t think so, since I could move my hands pretty well. I opened my eyes, weakly, and saw Heinley lying on my belly with a book in his hands. Is he reading from the book out loud? It was the first time that I had seen him do this. Was it a newly acquired habit? As I gradually woke up, Heinley¡¯s voice became clearer. ¡°King Oldrao took his spear and lunged at his enemy. He pierced his enemy with his spear, making arge hole in his chest, from which a lot of blood spurted out. Then, he withdrew the bloody spear and cut off his enemy¡¯s head. He disyed it as if it were a trophy and eximed, ¡®From now on, for every drop of our blood that is spilled, we will make them pay in kind; we will not tolerate any more persecution of our people...¡± What¡¯s that? I couldn¡¯t help but frown. Why is he reading that near my belly? ¡°Baby. You must have muscles and strong bones. It is better to have long arms to fight well...¡± ¡°Heinley?¡± Finally, I couldn¡¯t stand it and called out to him. Heinley was startled and stammered, ¡°Queen? My, my Queen!¡± ¡°What are you doing?¡± When I asked him about his suspicious behavior, Heinley flinched and hugged the book against his chest tightly. However, I could see the title of the book between his arms. ¡°The King of War? Oldrao¡¯s War Memoirs?¡± *** Duke Elgy left after making the shocking statement. Sovieshu sat in a daze, deep in thought. The desk was littered with the papers left behind by Duke Elgy. He had said they were copies. ¡°It can¡¯t be...¡± Sovieshu let out a heavy sigh. The sum of money Rashta had borrowed was sorge that it made him curse, but he could still afford to pay using his personal wealth. There would be no need to touch the country¡¯s funds. However, the port waspletely different. It would be absurd to simply hand it over, but it would not be easy to refuse. If Sovieshu did not want to hand over the port, he would have to prove that Rashta had never been fit to be empress, which would invalidate the document. He could also resort to other grounds to refuse, such as the fact that Rashta held the position due to special circumstances, her poor intellect, Duke Elgy¡¯s infamous reputation, and so on. Duke Elgy wouldn¡¯t sit idly by. He would probably request arbitration from the Wol Continental Alliance. The problem was that once arbitration was initiated, all the countries would find out. What would happen next was obvious. The dignity of the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire would fall to the ground, and everyone would mock him because he left the Empress Navier for a concubine who gave away a port. The more he thought about it all, the more his anger grew. Rashta could not conduct the duties of an empress, because she had grown up in a different environment. Sovieshu could understand that. But, couldn¡¯t she avoid causing trouble? All she had to do was to eat and sleep quietly for one year, and she could live surrounded by luxuries for the rest of her life. Was that so difficult to do? Was it so hard to loaf around for one year? How could an Empress be so crazy that she wouldmit to cede a territory to the royal family of another country? Not even a fool would do it. ¡°It¡¯s crazy.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s anger continued to grow. Now, all he could do was to choose between losing the port and losing honor. Of course, if it turned out that Duke Elgy tried to seduce the Empress to take advantage of her, then his reputation would suffer. However, his reputation had always been bad. In contrast, the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire had always been admired. Sovieshu stood to lose more in the end. After a while, Sovieshu stood up and rang the little bell on the desk. When Marquis Karl entered, Sovieshu coldly ordered, ¡°Find Viscount Roteschu.¡± *** As the sun¡¯s rays broke through the clouds, the sky was tinged with a red light that slowly turned blue. Viscount Roteschu wandered with a gloomy face through the streets as the traces of dawn faded. ¡®A girl suddenly ran out as if she was being chased, and those walking around her stopped to look at her like ghosts. It was strange. It looked like a horror scene.¡¯ Viscount Roteschu recalled the story a little boy had told him. The little boy was so frightened that he went home immediately, so he didn¡¯t know who the people were, nor what had happened next. But the Viscount learned from a drunk that, on that same day, someone had offered everyone on the street free drink and food at a nearby bar. Supposedly, that person wanted to celebrate, so people ran to the bar and became intoxicated by the festive atmosphere. Even little children who usually yed in the alleys went to the bar with their parents and received sweets. ¡®The streets were intentionally cleared of passerby that day. So howe there was a crowd staring at the running girl?¡¯ Viscount Roteschu clenched his teeth. He was convinced that someone ordered an attack on Rivetti. But he couldn¡¯t guess who had done it. He didn¡¯t know who would want to get rid of Rivetti at such a high cost. Although Rivetti was immature, she wasn¡¯t the kind of person who would arouse such deep hatred. However, he had to pause the investigation due to articles that appeared in that day¡¯s newspaper. The princess, the daughter to whom Rashta gave birth, was not the Emperor¡¯s daughter. She was the daughter of the same man who fathered Rashta¡¯s first child. Upon hearing the news, most people would say, ¡®Oh, my gosh! That¡¯s crazy!¡¯ But this was not the case for Viscount Roteschu, because Empress Rashta¡¯s first child was his grandson! That day, Viscount Roteschu saw multiple articles in the newspapers and felt like his head would explode. When he first went out to look for Rivetti, he feared that n would get into trouble. Now, his fears had be true. People talked about it with excitement, but he felt overwhelmed and aged. He found it hard to even think. As long as the father¡¯s identity was unknown, only Rashta would be med for cheating the emperor with a fake daughter. However, Viscount Roteschu could not believe that in this case his son had been identified as the father. The fact that Rashta had a first child with n could be overlooked by the emperor, but he could not ignore that the princess also had n¡¯s blood. ¡®I never talked about n, not even when that damned asshole Koshar cut off my ear. Why did thise out now?¡¯ Although Viscount Roteschu wanted to repeat the paternity test, he knew he did not have the power to do so, which made his headache worse. He had built up many connections with the money he received from Rashta, but would these friends still be on his side in such a delicate situation? He was only the lord of a small territory with no influence. He wasn¡¯t sure anyone would listen to him. His fear only increased when he learned that the Emperor was looking for him. Chapter 368 Chapter 368. Promise Of Revenge (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 When Viscount Roteschu arrived at the Imperial Pce, two Imperial Knights stationed at the back entrance approached him. ¡°What can I do for you?¡± Viscount Roteschu asked, scared, and one of the knights answered sternly, ¡°Follow us.¡± Viscount Roteschu flinched, but didn¡¯t resist. As much as he wanted to turn and run, the thought of what might happen to Rivetti and n if he fled brought him back to his senses. So he followed them, even though taking each step was difficult. Before long, they arrived in front of the emperor¡¯s office. ¡°He¡¯s here, Your Majesty.¡± A small bell rang inside. The knight opened the door and motioned to Viscount Roteschu. He swallowed hard before entering. ¡°I heard you were looking for me, Your Majesty.¡± Viscount Roteschu bowed deeply. Sitting at his desk, Emperor Sovieshu red at Viscount Roteschu. He had a very cold expression, and, had the Viscount been able to read his mind, he would have known that inside, his feelings were even worse. Sovieshu was enraged at the thought that the princess had Viscount Roteschu¡¯s blood. The very sight of his face was infuriating. Rashta had been this man¡¯s daughter-inw, and his family seemed determined to ruin the Imperial Family. ¡°Raise your head.¡± However, the voice that came out of Sovieshu¡¯s mouth was calm. Viscount Roteschu hadn¡¯t made eye contact with Sovieshu yet, as he was bowing so deeply. When their eyes met, Roteschu shivered at the Emperor¡¯s cold expression. No matter what he intended to say, it would certainly not be good. ¡°I¡¯ll tell you where your daughter is.¡± Unexpectedly, Sovieshu mentioned Rivetti. ¡°What?¡± While Viscount Roteschu looked at him puzzled, Sovieshu coldly exined, ¡°Rashta kidnapped her and sold her into very. I was able to rescue her and protect her from Rashta, as she might try to harm her again if she knew your daughter was safe.¡± Viscount Roteschu blinked in a daze several times. He hadn¡¯t expected to find out about Rivetti¡¯s whereabouts while meeting the Emperor. Besides... it was Rashta who spent a huge amount of money to harm my daughter? Viscount Roteschu recalled that the two of them were on bad terms ever since they were at his estate. Of course, Rashta back then was in no condition to confront Rivetti, so her hatred was one-sided. Rashta must have held a grudge against Rivetti. And since she was being ckmailed by Viscount Roteschu, perhaps she unleashed all that resentment against Rivetti. Viscount Roteschu frowned. ¡®I thought that filthy ve would obediently cooperate, but she even dared to attack my daughter.¡¯ He was horrified and angry that she had gone to such lengths to hurt someone she hated. Amid his indignation, Viscount Roteschu was quick to notice a strange point. ¡°Your Majesty... why are you telling me this?¡± He didn¡¯t understand, since Sovieshu was angry because of n. ¡°You and your son will die anyway for deceiving the Imperial Family.¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s eyes widened. A merciless smile spread across Sovieshu¡¯s lips. ¡°Do you want to save the other two?¡± *** Viscount Roteschu was anxiously walking down a corridor of the imperial pce. No doubt when Emperor Sovieshu had asked him if he wanted to save the ¡®other two¡¯, Rivetti must have been one of them since he told him where she was. But he did not know who the other was. He hoped that Rivetti and his wife were the ¡®two people¡¯ the Emperor would allow him to save. He also wanted to save n, even if he had to give his life in return, but n was too embroiled in this matter. There was nothing he could do for n. He at least wanted Rivetti and his wife to live. Neither the princess nor Ahn were important to Roteschu. Viscount Roteschu was so terrified of death that his legs became weak, and he squatted down in the corridor. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s funny that we meet here.¡± At that moment, he heard a voice that seemed kind above his head. However, it hid traces of mockery. When he looked up, he saw Marquis Farang looking down at him. Roteschu knew that Marquis Farang was a friend of Empress Navier and her brother. Since Rashta and Empress Navier were enemies, Empress Navier¡¯s brother attacked Viscount Roteschu, who supported Rashta from the outside. So, although they had never really interacted with one another, their rtionship was not good. Viscount Roteschu forced himself to stand up and asked sullenly, ¡°What do you want?¡± Marquis Farang answered with a chuckle. ¡°Nothing. It¡¯s just that life seems fun to me.¡± ¡°Fun...?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s voice distorted for a moment. He and his son were about to die. It infuriated him that this man called it ¡®fun¡¯. As Viscount Roteschu red at him, Marquis Farang spoke calmly, ¡°Don¡¯t be so angry. You were smart enough to help Rashta take down Empress Navier, so you¡¯ll ovee this obstacle as well.¡± It was clear from Marquis Farang¡¯s words that he knew Viscount Roteschu¡¯s situation well, which made thetter even more angry. ¡°How could I have taken Navier down?! What did I do?!¡± ¡°You and I are not close, so, of course, I don¡¯t know exactly what you did.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°But I look forward to seeing what you¡¯ll do.¡± A mysterious smile appeared on Marquis Farang¡¯s lips. Viscount Roteschu swallowed hard. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Chapter 369 Chapter 369. Promise Of Revenge (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°Did you not understand my question?¡± When I looked at him with my head cocked, an awkward smile appeared on his stiff face. Heinley shifted backwards on the bed unsteadily, with the book still in his arms. The moment he reached the edge of the bed, he slowly stood up and backed toward the door. Anyone could tell he wanted to run away. ¡°What are you doing?¡± I asked coldly. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Although he answered with a pleasant voice, he still moved towards the door. ¡°Come back here. Take five steps forward.¡± Hearing the determination in my voice, Heinley sighed. However, he approached with big steps. I didn¡¯t expect him to do that. By the fourth step he was on the bed and by the fifth he was inches from my face. He was cute, but I could tell he was trying to use his handsome looks to soften me up, so I frowned and said. ¡°Step back. Take a step back.¡± Unlike the big steps he took to approach me, this time Heinley only took a small step back. ¡°I¡¯m not kidding.¡± I spoke coldly and Heinley finally stepped back properly and lowered his head. The book in question was still in his arms. ¡°Give it to me.¡± Once I reached out with my hand, Heinley hesitated before finally handing me the book he had been reading on my belly. I knew it. I assumed it from the first moment. ncing at the contents, I could see that it was a war novel. A novel that recounted many bloody events. He was reading this on my belly? As I stared at him with my arms crossed, Heinley excused himself and forced a smile. ¡°My Queen... it¡¯s believed that one can influence a baby¡¯s future by speaking to it in its mother¡¯s womb.¡± ¡°So you expect our child to be a king of war?¡± ¡°That would be nice...¡± ¡°I read children¡¯s books to the baby to keep its mind clean. Do you poison our baby¡¯s mind while I sleep?¡± ¡°It¡¯s just that... I want a brave child to be born.¡± Looking into my eyes, Heinley added, stuttering, ¡°The little bird I saw in my dreams was very naughty... it needs to be educated early on.¡± What? Naughty? Isn¡¯t he talking about himself? ¡°The little bird I saw in my dreams was very cute and obedient, Heinley.¡± ¡°Really? No, that can¡¯t be.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine if you want a brave child. But you have to omit some parts when you read a war novel. Why did you read that part where a lot of blood came out of the enemy¡¯s chest when he was pierced by the spear?¡± ¡°It¡¯s that... the baby must know exactly what war means. Otherwise, many people will suffer... the baby must learn that war itself is cruel...¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to teach our child about war as it grows up?¡± Heinley didn¡¯t seem to agree with me, but I had already made up my mind. I pointed at the door with the book. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°Get out!¡± ¡°My Queen...¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you want to educate our baby in my womb? This is also education. The baby must learn that if one does bad things, one will be punished. Even its father.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes were opened wide. *** ¡°His Majesty looks so depressed that I suppose hisst meal did not digest well.¡± McKenna spoke cheerfully when he saw Heinley approach him dejectedly. McKenna was working overtime sitting on some steps near the office, with a in oilmp beside him, a wooden board on hisp and papers on it, ¡°That¡¯s very pleasant!¡± Although Heinley red at him, McKenna, whose eyes were tired from workingte at night, held his ground with a certain drowsiness. ¡°No matter how scary you look at me, that¡¯s what I feel.¡± ¡°Sometimes I really hate you.¡± ¡°I often hate Your Majesty.¡± Heinley sighed and sat down next to McKenna. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°The war memoirs book I told you about earlier for prenatal education.¡± ¡°You didn¡¯t, right?¡± ¡°I did. My Queen caught me and kicked me out of the bedroom.¡± ¡°Geez.¡± When McKenna clicked his tongue, Heinley muttered about the recent injustice, ¡°The baby should know. If one stabs someone, bloodes out, right?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a delicate subject. At this rate, you¡¯ll give your child a knife to stab someone.¡± ¡°Is that bad?¡± ¡°... I wish I could kick Your Majesty out of here, too.¡± Heinley red at McKenna again because he wasn¡¯t taking his side. ¡°I¡¯ve been ying with swords since I was five years old, McKenna.¡± ¡°So you remember the time you ran away after the Queen, Your Majesty¡¯s mother, pped your rear?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember.¡± ¡°You erase what doesn¡¯t suit you from your memory.¡± ¡°Hey!¡± ¡°You turned into a bird and ran away from home. The King turned into a bird, chased you, caught you by the neck, and brought you back. The pce employees didn¡¯t know it was His Highness Heinley and His Majesty the King, so they joked that even the birds kept by the Royal Family tried to educate their children with proper etiquette. Do you really not remember?¡± Heinley¡¯s gaze remained cold, but McKenna smiled broadly, ¡°Now you remembered?¡± Although it might have seemed like they were fighting, Heinley wasn¡¯t really angry. In fact, the two were very close. Heinley also knew that even though Navier kicked him out of the bedroom, she wasn¡¯t that angry. He grumbled as if he was sad, but inside he was happy. When Navier was in the Eastern Empire, she repressed her emotions as much as possible. ¡®Isn¡¯t she expressing her emotions more freely now?¡¯ Heinley couldn¡¯t help but smile at the thought. McKenna noticed and muttered, ¡°Oh... you¡¯re bawdy...¡± McKenna knew Heinley would be upset now, so he grabbed his things and ran out. *** Old Duke Zemensia had entered the Imperial Pce to find clues to his daughter¡¯s death. As he walked around, he saw Heinley and McKenna chatting happily, which made his heart ache. ¡°My daughter lies dead while these bastards...¡± Duke Zemensia cursed as he clenched his teeth. Even if he died, he would not let those who caused his daughter¡¯s death be happy. *** After he left the Imperial Pce, Viscount Roteschu hurried on horseback to a location indicated by Emperor Sovieshu. Whenever his horse got tired, he stopped at the nearest town and bought the best horse to continue his journey as fast as possible. He wanted to hurry to save his daughter before Emperor Sovieshu changed his mind. His destination was on the outskirts of the Empire. After riding for several days, he arrived at a small but beautiful mansion. It was the kind of vi that nobles of simple tastes might use, so he felt a little relieved. ¡®He didn¡¯t lock my daughter in an unpleasant ce.¡¯ Three men who appeared to be guards stood in front of the mansion. As soon as Viscount Roteschu approached, they pointed their spears at him. Roteschu raised his hands to show that he had no weapons and spoke to the guards, ¡°My daughter. I havee to find my daughter.¡± Since the guards had not received any new orders, they didn¡¯t lower their spears. At that moment, a cheerful voice was heard. ¡°Father!¡± When Viscount Roteschu looked up, he saw his daughter running towards him. ¡°Rivetti!¡± Viscount Roteschu opened his arms and embraced his daughter. As she snuggled into his arms, he hugged her tightly. He had looked for her for so long. Seeing her safe caused tears to well up in his eyes. ¡°Father! How did you get here?¡± Rivetti asked, excited. Viscount Roteschu opened his mouth to say, ¡®Emperor Sovieshu told me.¡¯ But there was a lump in his throat and he couldn¡¯t speak. Tears kept falling down his cheeks, so he just hugged his daughter. ¡°Father?¡± Only then did Rivetti realize that his behavior was strange, so she stepped back in surprise. ¡°Father, what¡¯s going on?¡± Since Rivetti had been missing for a long time, his tears might be from the joy of seeing her again. However, his expression was too sorrowful to be mistaken for tears of joy. ¡°Father, do you know about Rashta?¡± ¡°Do you know too?¡± ¡°Yes! It was Rashta who tried to kill me!¡± Rivetti eximed with her fists clenched in anger. ¡°If His Majesty hadn¡¯t discovered Rashta¡¯s n in time and saved me, I don¡¯t know what would have be of me...¡± Rivetti¡¯s face turned pale, scared just by saying those words. Her fingers trembled. Time had passed, but it was clear that she still hadn¡¯t fully recovered from the shock of the attack. Viscount Roteschu was very angry to learn that Rashta had attacked Rivetti. He had heard it from Emperor Sovieshu, but he couldn¡¯t believe it. He was also angry with himself. If he hadn¡¯t constantly ckmailed Rashta, perhaps she wouldn¡¯t have attacked Rivetti. ¡®No, nothing would have changed...¡¯ ¡°She doesn¡¯t want it to be known that she¡¯s a ve, so she attacked you to keep your mouth shut.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m sure.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll sink her first! Just reveal that she¡¯s a ve!¡± Rivetti shouted angrily. She didn¡¯t know about the situation outside the mansion, so she thought that Rashta, who had attacked her and tried to kill her, was still living happily. When Viscount Roteschu shook his head, Rivetti was surprised and reproached him. ¡°Will we turn a blind eye? She tried to kill me, how can we turn a blind eye?¡± ¡°I have something to tell you, Rivetti.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to argue about this! I don¡¯t want to!¡± ¡°It¡¯s about us.¡± Rivetti was furious, but reluctantly managed to calm down when Viscount Roteschu took a firm hold on her shoulders. ¡°About us?¡± ¡°Your father is an evil man.¡± ¡°What?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words werepletely unexpected. Rivetti asked, bewildered, ¡°Why do you say that?¡± Rivetti knew that her father was not a good person, but she didn¡¯t consider him evil, either. It seemed strange that he would suddenly make such a confession. ¡°The princess that Rashta gave birth to has be your brother¡¯s daughter.¡± ¡°What?¡± Rivetti was very confused. ¡°Do you mean Ahn?¡± ¡°I mean Glorym.¡± ¡°How is this possible? How can the princess be my brother¡¯s daughter?¡± Viscount Roteschu¡¯s words were so shocking that she couldn¡¯t immediately ept them. ¡°That¡¯s what happened.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± ¡°Your brother has deceived His Majesty.¡± ¡°Father...¡± Rivetti finally realized the seriousness of the situation and her face paled. ¡°Then what will happen?... What will happen to my brother?...¡± Viscount Roteschu pondered for a moment before replying. Rivetti, who was still young, would believe him unconditionally. If he said n had been framed, she would believe him; if he said n was guilty, she would believe him, too. He would have liked to be honest and say, ¡®both your brother and I have been unjustly framed.¡¯ But he didn¡¯t know how Rivetti would react if he did. No matter what Rivetti did, he and n had already be the target of Emperor Sovieshu, who could wipe out the Viscount and his entire family. However, Emperor Sovieshu made a request. His request was for Viscount Roteschu to drag down Rashta with him, probably because he wanted to get rid of her quickly and, in return, he offered to pardon two of his family members. Rivetti would not ept this. Viscount Roteschu didn¡¯t know how she would react when he told her that only she and her mother would live. After much thought, Viscount Roteschu finally lied. ¡°Your father is an evil man, Rivetti.¡± ¡°Father...¡± ¡°Your father always knew. Now it¡¯s all over.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your father knew that your brother got Rashta pregnant.¡± ¡°No, that¡¯s absurd! Father, that can¡¯t be true! It¡¯s impossible! My brother is stupid and cowardly!¡± ¡°Rivetti!¡± Rivetti didn¡¯t ept it and entered a state of panic, came to her senses when Viscount Roteschu shouted her name. Roteschu held Rivetti¡¯s arms tightly and said, ¡°His Majesty has shown enormous mercy. He has said that only those involved will be punished. You and your mother knew nothing about it.¡± ¡°Father...¡± ¡°Go back to the estate. Go back to the estate before the situation gets worse. When your brother and I die, you will be the sessor.¡± ¡°Father! I hate this! I¡¯m the only one who will live!¡± ¡°Do you want your mother to die too?!¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Daughter, my precious daughter. You are intelligent, but young and immature...¡± ¡°Father... Father...¡± ¡°Your father ventured out for our family and failed in the attempt. I¡¯ll take responsibility for that, so don¡¯t me anyone. Go back to the estate, take care of your mother and take care of the estate. It¡¯s all yours and your mother¡¯s. Go back immediately. I¡¯ll get rid of the mansion here as soon as possible and send you the money, so pack your things and don¡¯t waste a second. Do you understand?¡± Rivetti shook her head in tears. Chapter 370 Chapter 370. Be Careful What You Wish For (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡®I¡¯ve been waiting for a chance to get revenge on Rashta. How could this happen?¡¯ Rivetti was happy to be reunited with her father. But she could not enjoy the moment because now she had to flee, while her father and brother would be executed. She was convinced that it couldn¡¯t be true. Although her father was greedy, she didn¡¯t believe him capable of plotting such madness. On the other hand, her brother, who was foolish and driven by his emotions, was definitely not someone who could be involved in this plot. However, Viscount Roteschu¡¯s expression was very serious, so he did not seem to be joking. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s eyes filled with tears again at the sight of his devastated daughter. No parent would want to admit to their children that they were evil. Viscount Roteschu was no different, so he never told his children that he had ckmailed Rashta for months. Yet now he had to take the me for a crime he had notmitted. ¡°When someone asks you about your father and brother, say that you had a terrible father and brother, that you didn¡¯t get along with us, evenmunication with us wasn¡¯t good. Do you understand?¡± ¡°Father, I don¡¯t like this. It¡¯s unfair. I want to see His Majesty. I¡¯ll tell His Majesty that my father had nothing to do with it!¡± ¡°No! His Majesty has already been merciful enough to allow you and your mother to be saved, so you mustn¡¯t make him angry!¡± ¡°Father...¡± Rivetti shook her head as she wept, but Viscount Roteschu suddenly stoppedforting her. He became cold as his sadness turned into anger at Rashta. How could n be the princess¡¯ father? Viscount Roteschu couldn¡¯t believe it. However, there was no reason for the emperor, eager to have a descendant, to deliberately make a fuss that the princess was not his real daughter. So it was clear that Rashta had a hand in it. Roteschu assumed that Rashta became pregnant through an affair and pretended that the emperor was the father, but when she found herself with no escape, she deliberately decided to drag n into her deceit. ¡®All to take revenge on the past! Besides, she dared to try to kill my daughter.¡¯ Viscount Roteschu clenched his jaw and fists. Even if Emperor Sovieshu hadn¡¯t made the request, Roteschu would have taken Rashta to hell with him. *** ¡°Surprise!¡± Nian had gone on holiday to a beautiful ce with Viscount Langdel for a few days. She returned with her hands full of gifts and a bright glow illuminating her face. ¡°Wow! How can a person glow so bright?¡± Laura was amazed when she saw Nian, whoughed and handed out gifts to each of mydies-in-waiting. As she did so, Rose, who had been out for a while, came in. ¡°Your Majesty, Viscount Langdel is outside. He is already back from vacation, but his face looks emaciated... Oh my, Nian!¡± Rose screamed as soon as she btedly became aware of Nian¡¯s presence. Nian smiled and hugged her lightly. ¡°Miss Rose, how are you?¡± Nian didn¡¯te to the imperial pce every day, and it had been a while since west saw each other. Mydies-in-waiting acted as if they hadn¡¯t seen Nian for years. After muchughter and chatter, I asked mydies-in-waiting to leave because I wanted to talk to Nian alone. ¡°Nian, I actually have something to ask you.¡± ¡°What is it, Your Majesty?¡± Nian seemed to notice that this was a delicate matter, so she sat across from me with a straight back and a serious expression. ¡°It¡¯s not too serious.¡± ¡°No? So can I rx again?¡± ¡°Listen to me first.¡± ¡°All right.¡± ¡°It¡¯s about Marquis Liberty.¡± ¡°Ahhh.¡± When I mentioned Marquis Liberty, Nian immediately widened her eyes. She didn¡¯t seem to find it strange. She smiled as I told her about Duke Liberty¡¯s request. She replied awkwardly, tucking her loose hair behind her ear. ¡°Well. I didn¡¯t feel that he approached with bad intentions, unless my senses betrayed me. You don¡¯t have to worry too much.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°If you are worried due to the request to reject him firmly, I already did that without being impolite.¡± She smiled before adding, ¡°But if Your Majesty wishes, I could be more terrifying.¡± ¡°No. I just thought Duke Liberty and his son might want to use you. If that¡¯s not what¡¯s happening, I can¡¯t interfere.¡± ¡°I think Duke Liberty made the request to Your Majesty as an excuse to have a conversation with you alone. Marquis Liberty doesn¡¯t seem like someone who would talk about these things with his father.¡± I was relieved to know that she would not be used by Duke Liberty. As I told Nian, the rest was her private life, so I couldn¡¯t interfere. After that, Nian went back to spend some more time with mydies-in-waiting. I sat alone in my armchair, thinking about various things. Old Duke Zemensia has been very quiet since Heinley¡¯s birthday. Was he calm because Heinley had protected his grandson? In fact, these days have been very peaceful. Although Lady Muney and William tried not to run into each other when they visited me, they almost always coincided so they had a few fights, but they didn¡¯t seem to get along so badly that they wanted to kill each other. Contrary to their ims, they both acted like ordinary siblings who couldn¡¯t stand each other. Evidently, I wouldn¡¯t tell Muney. In any case, recently the Ketron Family, the Liberty Family and the Zemensia Family... have been quiet. It was good news. This entire year has been turbulent. Thanks to that, I really appreciated this hard-won peace. The pain in my back increased as the days went by and my belly grew, but I was eating better than before... Ah, I was worried that Mastas seemed gloomy these days. At that moment, Countess Jubel entered, looking at me with a worried expression. ¡°Your Majesty, wouldn¡¯t it be better if you took a nap? You took a walk earlier and just met with Lady Nian. You must be very tired.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not tired, I just walked and talked a little.¡± ¡°Still, there¡¯s nothing wrong with being careful.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± I nodded and went to bed. But about ten minutester, I heard a knock at the door. My consciousness slowly faded as my dreams blended with reality. ¡°Come in.¡± I answered half asleep. My eyelids had be heavy, so I wanted to sleep a little longer. No matter who came in, I didn¡¯t think I woulde out of my dreams. But all mydies-in-waiting came in. Normally, only one of them came in, even when it was an urgent matter. They all had very strange expressions, a mix of happiness, anxiety, and confusion. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± I couldn¡¯t help but wake uppletely, since it was unusual for mydies-in-waiting toe in together. ¡°Your Majesty, take a look at this.¡± Rather than provide a long exnation, Countess Jubel handed me a newspaper. It was from the Eastern Empire, and I noticed that it was dated from a few days ago. ¡°What is this all about?¡± I was puzzled, but as soon as I took the newspaper my attention was drawn to therge text on the front page. The headline read, ¡®Princess Glorym is not Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s daughter¡¯. Chapter 371 Chapter 371. Be Careful What You Wish For (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°Is this true? Or a joke?¡± As soon as I asked, mydies-in-waiting frantically began to answer at the same time. It was difficult for me to understand them, so I shook my head and said, ¡°I¡¯ll read it myself.¡± It would be quicker that way. When I started to read the newspaper article, they fell silent. Although an article may seem objective, I knew it might contain the journalist¡¯s personal feelings and intentions, so I tried to extract only the relevant information. However, that information alone was full of surprises. The contents of the article could be summarized as follows, 1. The results of a paternity test conducted at the temple revealed that the princess did not have Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s blood. 2. Empress Rashta lived with another man before her marriage to Emperor Sovieshu, and she even had a child with him. 3. Empress Rashta concealed her previous marriage from Emperor Sovieshu. 4. The real father of the princess is Empress Rashta¡¯s first husband. 5. Emperor Sovieshu angrily deposed the princess as a result of the paternity test results. I had assumed that Rashta had a child before she became Sovieshu¡¯s concubine, but how did the truth surface? It was a little disconcerting. I cursed Sovieshu and Rashta on their wedding day because I didn¡¯t want them to be happy, but I didn¡¯t expect their rtionship to end up so badly. A journalist named Joanson went as far as ridiculing Empress Rashta. He remarked that it was contradictory for her to openly mock me for being a ¡®remarried empress¡¯ when she had also been married twice. ¡ª Of course, unlike Empress Navier, Empress Rashta was not recognized as a legitimate wife in either her first or second marriage. Laura was reading the newspaper over my shoulder, and she asked anxiously, ¡°Couldn¡¯t that journalist get in trouble for talking about it publicly? His Majesty Sovieshu will be furious when he sees this.¡± But Countess Jubel answered calmly, ¡°That journalist must have known that His Majesty would overlook it. If this story has reached us all the way here, it must have already spread throughout the Eastern Empire.¡± Rose clicked her tongue and said, ¡°The Eastern Empire... is very lively.¡± Mastas asked curiously, ¡°So... what will happen now?¡± Now I understood why mydies-in-waiting hade in with such unusual expressions, especially Laura and Countess Jubel. Unlike Rose and Mastas, who could fully enjoy the situation, both Laura and Countess Jubel were tied to the Eastern Empire. Their families, memories, estates and assets were all from the Eastern Empire. After he belittled me for Rashta¡¯s baby, it felt good that Sovieshu was in this situation. But since I was born in the Eastern Empire, it was awkward to see the Imperial Family be a mockery. Laura asked another question. ¡°Your Majesty, what will you do?¡± All mydies-in-waiting fell silent and waited for my answer. They had expectant faces. But in this case, isn¡¯t the answer obvious? ¡°It¡¯s shocking, but... what can I do?¡± Should I console Sovieshu by saying, ¡®I¡¯m sorry that Rashta¡¯s daughter is not your daughter¡¯? Should I console Rashta as empress of a neighboring country? Should I condemn her actions as the former empress? Or should I mock them? No. It would be inappropriate for me to intervene in any way. ¡°It¡¯s none of my business now.¡± I spoke firmly and folded the newspaper. *** There was anothermotion in the Eastern Empire. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua reappeared as suddenly as they left when they imed to have found clues as to the whereabouts of their second daughter. When the Isqua couple reappeared, doubts about Rashta¡¯s parentage intensified. People wanted the Isqua couple to take a paternity test with Rashta. ¡°Empress Rashta must undergo a paternity test with her parents this time.¡± ¡°She has lied so much. How could she not have lied about her real parents?¡± As soon as the couple crossed the capital they were arrested and imprisoned. It was still unclear whether Viscount and Viscountess Isqua were Rashta¡¯s real parents, as well as whether Empress Rashta would be removed soon. Nothing had been decided yet. Since no one expected that the Isqua couple would be imprisoned, everyone was baffled. People began to gossip about the cause. People were even more confused when it became known what Viscount and Viscountess Isqua were used of: ¡®attempted murder of a court mage¡¯s assistant¡¯. They didn¡¯t understand why a court mage¡¯s assistant had anything to do with them. However, the nobles quickly found the connection. ¡°Isn¡¯t the assistant to the court mage the mage residing in the Southern Pce?¡± ¡°The young girl rumored to have been brought by His Majesty to be his concubine...¡± ¡°Oh, my gosh! I thought it was a misunderstanding because she seems to be living quietly while working as an assistant. So, was it true that she became his concubine?¡± In an instant, several rumors arose. Some nobles believed that the Isqua couple had attacked Evely to protect the position of their daughter, Empress Rashta. Others believed that Rashta herself had asked them to take care of Evely. Sovieshu smiled coldly when he heard the second rumor. ¡°They are not Rashta¡¯s real parents, and they didn¡¯t even raise her. If they feel cornered, they won¡¯t hesitate to me Rashta for the incident.¡± ¡°Is Rashta behind that incident?¡± ¡°Does it matter?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s anger peaked after the paternity test. He had been taught not to show his emotions, so at first nce he seemed unaffected by the current dire situation, but he wasn¡¯t. He couldn¡¯t take it anymore. The problems with Duke Elgy caused his anger to grow even more. Sovieshu nned to persuade Duke Elgy, and threaten him if it didn¡¯t work out. However, that same day, Duke Elgy disclosed everything to the press. The newspapers published the news about the promissory notes and the port, and public opinion about Rashta became extremely negative. After that, people who had only shown support for Sovieshu began to criticize him because he let Rashta do whatever she wanted. In response, Sovieshu rushed the trial of Viscount and Viscountess Isqua. ¡°As soon as the couple is ready, proceed with the trial for the attempted murder of Evely.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Given the results of the investigation, there is no way for them to escape punishment.¡± Sovieshu spoke coldly, sat down on his chair, drew his sword, and began to wipe the de with a dry towel. His hand movements were so careless that it seemed at any moment he would cut himself with the de. Marquis Karl looked at Sovieshu with concern. ¡°Hmm... Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Sovieshu asked without looking at him. Marquis Karl spoke cautiously, ¡°Viscountess Verdi has said that the princess is ill...¡± Before Marquis Karl could finish his words, Sovieshu stopped moving. His eyes narrowed for a moment, though it was hard to tell because of his hair, and he asked coldly, ¡°Who is the princess?¡± This was true. The baby, who did not have a drop of the Emperor¡¯s blood, was not a princess. Glorym still lived in the imperial pce only because Sovieshu still had a little affection left for her. Marquis Karl, who had shown some sympathy for the innocent baby, was unwilling to bear Sovieshu¡¯s wrath for taking care of Rashta¡¯s second child. ¡°Pardon me, I forgot my words.¡± When Marquis Karl left, Sovieshu began to wipe his sword again. However, he moved slower than before. His gaze also wandered. Eventually, he cut his finger and blood came out. Sovieshu didn¡¯t wipe off the blood, he just stared nkly at the blood flowing down the white sword. He then closed his eyes and called out to a trusted knight. ¡°You summoned me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°... Find out how ill the baby is, and send for the pce doctor.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The knight answered with determination without showing any emotion and left. When Sovieshu was leftpletely alone, he lowered his sword and closed his eyes again. Glorym was not his daughter, but n¡¯s daughter. It frustrated him that he couldn¡¯t get the baby out of his heartpletely. Chapter 372 Chapter 372. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s Intervention (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Problems continued to arise one after another, increasing Sovieshu¡¯s anger like an iron ball falling down a steep slope. The next day, Viscount and Viscountess Isqua¡¯s trial began, but their testimony was unexpected. ¡°What does this mean?! How can they defend Rashta?!¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s roar, all his secretaries fell silent. They didn¡¯t know what to say because no one had anticipated this. ¡°It¡¯s absurd.¡± Sovieshu smiled helplessly and tightly squeezed the armrests of his throne. Since the Western Empire had provided evidence that the Isqua couple had attempted to murder Evely and demanded severe punishment, the couple would be unable to avoid punishment. Faced with this difficult situation, Sovieshu thought they would naturally me Rashta, even if she was not really involved. Sovieshu knew that Rashta was a runaway ve and, although he had not brought the Isqua couple forward, he was convinced that they were not Rashta¡¯s real parents. In some cases, it was possible for adoptive parents to develop a bond with a child simr to that of real parents. However, the Isqua couple had not raised Rashta, and they had known each other for such a short time that they were unlikely to have formed such a bond. But at the public trial, the couple firmly denied that Rashta had anything to do with their crime, despite people¡¯s doubts. It was certainly a brave act. Not even all real parents would do this in the face of severe punishment. Because of this, people began to whisper that Rashta really seemed to be the Isqua couple¡¯s daughter. They wouldn¡¯t have done this if Rashta was not their real daughter. ¡°Is Rashta really not involved?¡± ¡°...¡± Marquis Karl preferred to keep his thoughts about the Isqua couple to himself. Rashta may not have been involved, but many people try to drag others when they fall. Also, he had learned from Baron Lant that the couple frequently receivedrge sums of money from Rashta. He didn¡¯t expect such leeches to be grateful and loyal in the face of punishment. ¡°What will you do, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°What can I do? It bothers me, but I can¡¯t charge her with a crime that is not recognized by the true perpetrators.¡± Sovieshu answered coldly after he finally managed to calm down. Although he had nned to bring Rashta down by exposing her crimes one by one, starting with the Isqua trial, there were still many ways to remove Rashta from the position of empress. He wouldn¡¯t try to arbitrarily me her for this crime because it might cause people to doubt the veracity of other crimes. But once Sovieshu reluctantly decided to let it slide, an unexpected person intervened. *** ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to see you here so soon.¡± The Isqua couple, who were sitting against a wall inside a cell, suddenly raised their heads when they heard a man¡¯s voice. The man approached the cell. It was Viscount Roteschu. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua¡¯s expression became rigid when they saw his unpleasant face. Rashta used to say a lot of bad things about Roteschu. Naturally, the Isqua couple had a bad impression of him. Such a man approached them now that their pride was wounded and they were miserable. Viscountess Isqua asked, coldly, ¡°What do you want?¡± She showed no hesitation, but Viscount Roteschuughed derisively, ¡°You are stupid, pathetic bastards.¡± In response to the offensive remark, Viscount Isqua became furious and stared fiercely at Viscount Roteschu. ¡°What are you doing here? Did youe to mock our situation? If so, you¡¯vee to the wrong ce. We didn¡¯t even try to kill that bitch Evely, and even if we were framed with false evidence, we won¡¯t be severely punished for the attempted murder of amoner.¡± Viscount Isqua smirked as he continued to speak. ¡°But in your case it¡¯s different. You dared to introduce your own blood into the imperial family, which is tantamount to conspiring to usurp the throne. Shouldn¡¯t you worry about your own neck first?¡± They didn¡¯t dislike Viscount Roteschu enough tosh out at him in this way, but the couple was cornered. Only the determination to protect their daughter Rashta allowed them not to give in, but it was difficult to bear people¡¯s finger-pointing. Since Viscount Roteschu would soon be in a worse situation, they tried to calm down a little by insulting him. Roteschu should have looked scared, but he only smiled bitterly. ¡®Would any of this have happened if, instead of trying to find Rivetti, I had cracked down on n?¡¯ He suddenly thought of that. After he asked Rivetti to return to the estate, he went to the mansion in the capital to find out what had happened while he was away searching for Rivetti. He learned that n had taken Ahn to the imperial pce to meet with Sovieshu and then with Rashta. It was like oil in one hand and fire in the other. As much as it bothered him that the Isqua couple med him for this, Viscount Roteschu reluctantly acknowledged it. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± The couple hesitated due to his honesty. But then, Viscount Roteschuughed cruelly and sarcastically. ¡°Although my neck is in danger, I don¡¯t regret anything because I¡¯ll die to protect my family. But what about you? Didn¡¯t you try to kill your real daughter for the sake of a fake daughter you didn¡¯t even raise?¡± Viscount Roteschu clicked his tongue as if it was a wonderful thought. ¡°You won¡¯t be able to rest in peace when you die.¡± Chapter 373 Chapter 373. Viscount Roteschu¡¯s Intervention (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The Isqua couple was surprised by Viscount Roteschu¡¯s strange remarks. Viscountess Isqua asked directly. ¡°Our real daughter? What do you mean?¡± Since they had failed to find the two daughters they were separated from, they became attached to their fake daughter, Rashta. Although the affection they felt for her was not understood by others, since they had met her less than a year ago, it was strong enough that the couple decided not to me her unfairly. However, they were perplexed to hear about their real daughter. Viscount Roteschu smirked. ¡°Oh, no. I thought you already knew because you visited Rashta often. Don¡¯t you know yet?¡± Viscount Isqua eximed with a stiff expression. ¡°Speak inly!¡± ¡°It seems that the fake daughter you are trying to protect deliberately hid this from you.¡± ¡°It can¡¯t be...¡± ¡°Who is our real daughter?! Say it at once!¡± The Isqua couple guessed who it was, but they pressed Viscount Roteschu to speak the truth. His words seemed to imply that Evely was their real daughter, but, if that were true, it would be cruel and horrible. They feared to acknowledge it, so they shouted, distraught, at Viscount Roteschu. ¡°You have already figured it out, but you don¡¯t want to ept it. It¡¯s Evely. Evely. His Majesty¡¯s second concubine, the mage Evely.¡± The atmosphere suddenly became cold, as if the air had disappeared. Viscountess Isqua covered her face with both hands, her lips turned pale and her body trembled. ¡°It makes no sense... It¡¯s absurd... It¡¯s a lie!¡± Viscount Isqua shouted angrily. ¡°Why should we believe you?¡± Viscount Roteschu anticipated their reaction, so he smiled bitterly and handed over the orphanage documents he had brought along to clear up their doubts. ¡°Of course, I¡¯m not entirely sure because a paternity test was not conducted. I went to the temple and was told that it could not be done if the parties involved didn¡¯t show up. But given the evidence, it¡¯s very likely that Evely is your long-lost daughter.¡± Viscount Isqua crushed the documents in his hands and shouted. ¡°Why do you say it now? Why didn¡¯t you say it before?¡± If Roteschu hadn¡¯t waited so long to reveal the truth, they could have escaped with Evely to another country. At least, they wouldn¡¯t have tried to throw Evely out of the Imperial Pce for Rashta. But Roteschu waited until their situation came to a head to confess. He certainly must not mean well. ¡°Rashta tried to kill my daughter. I don¡¯t have to cover for her anymore.¡± Viscount Roteschu didn¡¯t deny his motive. Then he turned around and left.. Although the information he had obtained was inconclusive, he had to reveal it. It was no longer up to him if the couple believed him. At least he had cast a doubt in their minds that would haunt them. And even if Evely turned out not to be their daughter, it was none of his business now. As he walked up the prison steps, he heard heartbroken cries behind him that caused him to pause for a moment. ¡°Hurry up.¡± When the guard who secretly let him in rushed him, Roteschu quickly left the prison and gave the guard arge jewel as a reward. ¡°Go away at once.¡± Unbeknownst to Roteschu, Sovieshu watched him intently from the shadows. *** Viscount Roteschu went straight to the capital to exchange his jewels for cash. Once this was done, he put all the cash into several ordinary-looking bags, then he put the bags in a simple wooden box, andstly, he sealed the box with nails. He would send all the cash to his estate. While Rivetti was a smart girl and running the estate wasn¡¯t very difficult, she had no experience and had not learned how to govern, so she would surely make some mistakes. It would take a lot of money to cover those mistakes. After Viscount Roteschupleted the preparations that would help his daughter and wife, he walked back to his mansion proudly. But the feeling quickly faded. Within a few steps, tears began to fall down his cheeks. In fact, he was so scared that he wanted to run away. However, the Emperor had been benevolent by giving him time to organize his assets and save both his daughter and his wife. He knew that if he tried to abuse the emperor¡¯s benevolence, not only Roteschu and n would be executed, but the entire family would suffer the same fate. He had no choice but to go ahead despite his fear. When Roteschu arrived at the mansion, a ck carriage was already waiting in the center of the garden. The mansion had lost its splendor and looked deste, as it no longer had any employees. The butler, who was waiting in front of the carriage, came over and said sadly, ¡°My master...¡± ¡°Give this to my wife.¡± Viscount Roteschu handed the sealed boxes to his trusted butler. ¡°Master, shouldn¡¯t you do it yourself?¡± The butler held back tears. He had been by Viscount Roteschu¡¯s side since he was very young, so he cared more for Roteschu than his children. Although Viscount Roteschu was now a middle-aged man, the butler still thought of him like a little brother he had to look after. If only one person in the family could survive, he wanted it to be Viscount Roteschu. ¡°No chance to save me after n¡¯s scandal...¡± ¡°Master...¡± ¡°I will trust you.¡± Viscount Roteschu patted the butler¡¯s shoulder, then took out a small bag full of money. ¡°This is for you, so don¡¯t give it to Rivetti even if she asks for it. With this money, you will be able to live quietly.¡± When the butler epted the money in tears, Viscount Roteschu looked around as he wiped his own tears. ¡°Where is n?¡± n, who had been imprisoned even before the paternity test, was briefly released after Roteschu made the deal with Sovieshu. However, n was unable to see his father again. ¡°Some of the emperor¡¯s knights came to take him away.¡± ¡°...¡± Viscount Roteschu closed his eyes helplessly. The butler sniffled and wiped his tears with the sleeve of his ck suit. ¡°You, too, must leave.¡± ¡°I would like to serve you until tomorrow.¡± ¡°If you want to help me, leave now.¡± When the butler reluctantly climbed into the coachman¡¯s seat, Viscount Roteschu himself spurred the horses into motion. As he watched the carriage drive away, Roteschu¡¯s eyes filled with tears. He remembered a time when he became angry because his only sessor was too dumb, and his then-healthy wife defended her son. n was still little back then, and Rivetti had not yet been born... He remembered his weakened wife sitting in a rocking chair singing to little Rivetti in her arms... He remembered his emaciated wife lying on the bed. She was breathing hard but whenever he took her hand she squeezed it as hard as she could... ¡°My darling...¡± Disconste, Viscount Roteschu entered the mansion. Suddenly, he wondered what had happened to Ahn, but quickly put the matter aside because he didn¡¯t care whether he died or not. Chapter 374 Chapter 374. Anger And Peace (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°What are you thinking about, My Queen?¡± I was sitting on afortable chair in the garden admiring the reddish sunset when I heard Heinley¡¯s lovely voice next to me. When I turned, he was looking at me with warm eyes. One of his hands rested on the back of my chair. His purple eyes mixed with the reddish glow of the sunset created a more mysterious atmosphere than usual. ¡°You don¡¯t look too pleased. Is it because you are still upset about the war stories?¡± ¡°No.¡± I smiled and stroked his cheek with my hand. ¡°I told you it¡¯s fine to read the war stories to the baby, as long as you omit the violent parts that aren¡¯t good for a baby to hear.¡± Heinley leaned over a little and rubbed his cheek against my hand. Then he kissed my palm lightly and spoke with concern. ¡°But, My Queen, you don¡¯t seem very cheerful.¡± ¡°I¡¯m confused... by the news from the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you happy?¡± ¡°I have mixed feelings. It¡¯s not happy news, but it is satisfying.¡± Sovieshu had boasted of his love with Rashta, and I had witnessed how someone changes when love arises. Now, I was witnessing how someone changes when love ends. Of course, if the article was true, Rashta had done so many wrongs that even love couldn¡¯t cover them up. But now that Sovieshu was pulling away from Rashta... the man who falsely used my brother for Rashta¡¯s sake, and who believed her no matter what I said... it made me feel strange. I wonder if my love with Heinley could end like this. But I quickly dismissed that thought. Our love had just begun, there was no need to talk about the end. Besides, our love didn¡¯t have to end, like Sovieshu¡¯s. Our love could be longsting, like my parents¡¯. I shook my head, then I pulled Heinley by the neck and kissed his lips. It was pleasant to hear him moan due to the kiss. ¡°Queen. Isn¡¯t this bad prenatal education? The little bird will hear it.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think the little bird heard your moans.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t think I can stop myself.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The baby is asleep right now.¡± ¡°!¡± *** The Isqua couple were sitting against the wall of their cell in shock. They looked haggard, as if their soul had left their body. Viscount Isqua scratched the cold stone floor with his fingernails, while his wife tugged at her hair. Both had sunken eyes and paleplexions, to the point that they looked like vagabonds, rather than a noble married couple. ¡°Have these two gone crazy?¡± A guard made thement when he saw them, but the Isqua couple weren¡¯t even hurt by his words. The truth Viscount Roteschu had revealed pained them more than a guard¡¯s mockery. However, they still had doubts. ¡°Could it be true?¡± After a long time, Viscountess Isqua asked with difficulty. ¡°Is that mage really... our daughter?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. Viscount Roteschu, of all people, was the one who told us.¡± ¡°But we¡¯ve never had direct contact with Viscount Roteschu. Why would he lie to us?¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Although I know that the evidence provided by Viscount Roteschu is inconclusive...¡± Viscountess Isqua sighed. The more she talked about it, the more it hurt her and the more she regretted it. Viscount Isqua also let out a deep sigh and covered his head with both hands. ¡°Come to think of it, she looks a little like us.¡± ¡°Yes, her hair is the same color as yours, and her eyes are the same color as mine.¡± ¡°She¡¯s not a bad girl. We thought she was bad because we were on Rashta¡¯s side at the time.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. She is theplete opposite. She¡¯s a very smart and feisty girl...¡± The more they talked, the more they seemed to realize Evely¡¯s virtues. When they saw her as Rashta¡¯s enemy, Evely¡¯s actions seemed malicious and arrogant. But the prejudice that blinded them was now gone, and they struggled to understand how they ever viewed Evely in such a bad light. It was painful now that they btedly realized that Evely was a good girl. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we talk to her first?¡± ¡°What are you going to tell her?¡± ¡°We¡ª¡± ¡°Do you think she¡¯d like to know?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t leave the rtionship as it is.¡± Even if the couple was convicted of attempting to murder amoner, they would soon be released from prison, as nobles were rarely punished severely for such a crime. If Evely really was their daughter, they had to mend their rtionship somehow. Just then, footsteps were hearding down the prison stairs. The couple stopped talking and waited to see who wasing. Unexpectedly, Evely appeared. The couple looked at Evely in surprise, while she looked at them coldly. Their gazes intertwined intensely. ¡°Miss Evely, why did youe?¡± Viscountess Isqua forced a smile. Her daughter¡¯s coldness broke her heart. She wanted to touch her, look at her more closely, find out how she had been all these years. Although she tried to appear calm, her voice trembled. ¡°You seem to be afraid...¡± Evely muttered as she stared at Viscountess Isqua with a stony expression. Her tone was indifferent and her gaze sharp. She felt utter contempt for the couple, who were saddened to feel it. ¡°Miss Evely...¡± This time it was Viscount Isqua who carefully called out to Evely, but she asked coldly, ¡°Won¡¯t you treat me like a filthymoner today?¡± The couple were startled to remember everything that had been said to Evely. Their past words were now like daggers that stabbed into their chests. Evely smiled nonchntly, ¡°You had a haughty attitude when you were free, now you are pitiful locked up here.¡± ¡°Miss Evely, we have something to tell you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°We want to apologize... for how badly we have treated you...¡± Viscountess Isqua spoke again in a trembling voice. However, Evely frowned and raised her hand for her to stop. ¡°Oh, there is no need to apologize. It¡¯s not a sincere apology anyway.¡± Before either could answer, Evely added, ¡°Am I right?¡± The couple¡¯s faces paled. ¡°If you¡¯re apologizing now, it¡¯s because you¡¯re afraid I¡¯ll testify against you in court. And that¡¯s precisely what I will do.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the reason, Miss Evely.¡± ¡°It bothers me that now you want to pretend to be respectful. I would prefer that you act as you usually do, even if it¡¯s rude.¡± Evely took a step back, as if she couldn¡¯t stand the stench that emanated from the cell. Her actions once again pained the couple. ¡°And you asked why I¡¯m here. You used to approach me to mock me. Now, I¡¯vee to do the same.¡± Evely¡¯s every word cut deep. Chapter 375 Chapter 375. Anger And Peace (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°However, I¡¯m a little curious. What about me upset you so much that you tried to kill me?¡± ¡°Miss Evely. It¡¯s a mistake. We have been mean to you, but we have no connection to the attempt to kill you. Really.¡± ¡°Tell that to the judge.¡± Evely spoke sternly and took another step back. Then she stared at the couple for a moment,ughed casually, and turned to leave. ¡°It is said that children are a reflection of their parents.¡± Evely spoke without turning back to look at the couple. Their expressions stiffened due to her remark, but Evely couldn¡¯t see it. Even if she had seen it, she wouldn¡¯t have cared, as she considered them enemies. ¡°When Ipare you to Rashta, that phrase fits the bill perfectly, although she grew up separated from you. Your other daughter must be just as despicable as the three of you.¡± The Isqua couple couldn¡¯t hold back their tears. They wanted to tell her the truth, but neither could speak due to the lumps in their throats. With every echo of Evely¡¯s footsteps on the stairs, their hearts fluttered. When the door mmed shut, they copsed on the floor and burst into tears. After a while, Viscountess Isqua clenched her fists and said bitterly, ¡°We won¡¯t tell her we¡¯re her parents.¡± When Viscount Isqua looked at her in surprise, she crossed her arms around her chest and whispered, ¡°She hates us deeply. How can we tell her that we are her parents? If she knew, it would hurt her to remember what we have done to her, and it would also hurt her to remember what she has said to us.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, my wife.¡± Viscount Isqua reflected for a moment, and then he punched the wall with determination. ¡°We won¡¯t reveal the truth to Evely. But we have to deal with Rashta, who hid our real daughter from us and caused us to hurt her.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Besides, if Rashta gets her way, she¡¯ll definitely try to hurt Evely.¡± ¡°Yes, Rashta might have worsened the carriage incident. She might have ordered the same man we hired to cause an ident that would kill Evely.¡± The Isqua¡¯s statements at the trial were true. They had given an order to cause an ident that would scare Evely away. They never ordered the man they hired to kill her. At the time, they deeply despised Evely, but had no intention of taking her life. After the incident, they wondered how such a big misunderstanding happened. But, until that moment, they never thought that Rashta could be involved. However, they changed their minds upon learning that Rashta had hidden Evely¡¯s true identity. Now, Rashta seemed evil enough to order Evely¡¯s assassination. The couple exchanged cold nces. Rashta was the current empress, so even if they testified against her in Evely¡¯s case she would only receive an insignificant punishment. That wouldn¡¯t be enough to take revenge on Rashta. ¡°We have to do whatever it takes to remove Rashta from Evely¡¯s life so that she doesn¡¯t hurt her again.¡± *** ¡°Why...?¡± Heinley suddenly announced that he would test the knowledge and ability in basic martial arts of the noble children who had not made their debut in high society. I did not understand him at all. Noble families had private tutors to educate their children based on their preferences. Was it really necessary for Heinley to intervene like this? When I discussed it with mydies-in-waiting, Rose thought for a while and asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t it because of the baby that will be born soon?¡± ¡°You think?¡± ¡°Yes. When the baby grows up, today¡¯s noble children will be in full bloom. He may want to check their qualities beforehand.¡± Then Laura chimed in, ¡°If the age difference is not too great, they could be friends with the baby.¡± Countess Jubel also added as she embroidered. ¡°I think he is doing this to tease Old Duke Zemensia.¡± Mastas agreed with Countess Jubel. She said, ¡°There are two children in the Zemensia Family who qualify due to their age, but I heard that they weren¡¯t invited.¡± After each of mydies-in-waiting gave their opinion, their gazes focused on me. They wanted to know my opinion. I agreed with Countess Jubel. Heinley went as far as wearing a gift that Sovieshu sent to me to irritate him, so it was not strange that he would do this just to rankle Old Duke Zemensia. ¡°I think it¡¯s because of the baby that will be born soon.¡± I couldn¡¯t be honest about Heinley¡¯s sly nature, so I deliberately sided with Rose and Laura¡¯s generous interpretations. I felt like I was covering for him, which made me feel a little awkward. In the middle of the conversation, an unexpected guest arrived ¡ª Princess Charlotte. When her arrival was announced, mydies-in-waiting and I looked at Mastas at the same time. It was not intentional. Mastas was stunned for a moment, and asked in surprise, ¡°Why are you all looking at me?¡± I couldn¡¯t keep Princess Charlotte waiting long, as she was the princess of a country with which we were reconciling. She entered the drawing room a few momentster, wearing a form-fitting cream-colored dress with numerous ruffles, and sses. When I first met her, she seemed to be smart, but now I could have mistaken her for one of the schrs who worked in the imperial pce. ¡°Your Majesty, how have you been?¡± She also had a smooth voice. ¡°Fine. Have you felt at home here, Princess Charlotte?¡± ¡°Yes. I learned a lot about what makes a country powerful while touring the capital. It was certainly useful.¡± ¡°I¡¯m d it was useful.¡± I couldn¡¯t take my eyes off Mastas as I spoke. She was looking down with a somber expression. Ah... perhaps she was looking down sadly because she has a grayish stain on the toe of her left shoe. Once Princess Charlotte left, Mastas seemed more downcast. So much so that mydies-in-waiting surrounded her with concerned looks. . ¡°I¡¯m fine. There¡¯s no reason to be down.¡± Mastas turned around with flushed cheeks and walked away. Since then, it was impossible not to believe that Mastas really did like Koshar. That thought was on my mind until Heinley noticed during dinner. ¡°Queen? Are you worried about something?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not worried...¡± ¡°So what is it?¡± Just as I was about to answer that it was nothing serious, I suddenly remembered that he had been notorious for being a yboy. Although he had told me that he just acted like he was a yboy, not everyone could act that way. If I were asked to y that role, I would act colder than usual out of embarrassment, and if Laura had to do it, she would be so clumsy that it wouldn¡¯t take long for her to dissolve in a fit ofughter. It was fortunate that I could ask Heinley about romantic rtionships. ¡°Heinley.¡± ¡°Yes, My Queen.¡± ¡°Do you know much about romantic rtionships?¡± Heinley quickly stuck his fork in his mouth and shook his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know even a little?¡± ¡°No, My Queen. You¡¯re the only woman in my life. I don¡¯t know much about women.¡± ¡°Still, you should know at least a little because you were a yboy for so long.¡± ¡°No.¡± ... What¡¯s wrong? It¡¯s suspicious that he¡¯s so evasive. Many people knew about his past, so didn¡¯t his reaction seem to indicate that he was hiding something? ¡°So how did you manage to act like a yboy?¡± ¡°I just pretended...¡± That he avoided my gaze made me even more suspicious. Suddenly, I wanted to inquire about his past, but... I was able to suppress the urge. We were finally close and in love with each other. I didn¡¯t want to make the atmosphere ufortable, so there was no need to touch on the past. Besides, I didn¡¯t bring this up to interrogate Heinley about his past. I deliberately smiled casually and put the subject aside, ¡°I¡¯m not asking about your past. I just want to know your opinion on someone else¡¯s romantic situation.¡± ¡°My Queen, as I have no experience in that subject it¡¯s hard to answer, even if you are asking about someone else.¡± However, Heinley refused again and focused on his food. I felt a little upset to hear this so a thought involuntarily came out of my mouth. ¡°You are damned sly!¡± ¡°What?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes widened, as if he didn¡¯t understand what he had just heard. I hastily raised my spoon to my mouth and pretended to eat with as much focus as Heinley. *** ¡°Cute. Queen is cute. My Queen is very cute.¡± McKenna cheerfully entered the office the next morning, but then he heard a terrible noise. He fell into a daze when he saw Heinley dancing in front of the desk. Doubly tormented, he covered his eyes and let out a cry. ¡°My eyes and ears hurt! Please stop!¡± ¡°Ah, McKenna.¡± ¡°What the hell are you doing so early!?¡± McKenna grumbled and removed his hands from his eyes. He couldn¡¯t believe Heinley was singing and dancing so horribly on a sunny day. He considered it an insult to the pleasant weather. But Heinley was in such a good mood that he reacted to McKenna¡¯s words in good spirits, ¡°You¡¯re cute too.¡± ¡°Argh! Stop it already! Why are you acting like a fool so early in the morning? No, you don¡¯t have to tell me. I suppose the Empress told you, ¡®Queen is cute.¡± Heinley shook his head. ¡°No, I said that My Queen was cute because I was moved by the nickname My Queen gave to me.¡± ¡°What?¡± McKenna got goosebumps. ¡®Heinley called Empress Navier, who seems to be abination of ice and iron in a 50/50 ratio... ¡®cute¡¯?¡¯ Heinley smiled proudly and covered his cheeks with both hands, ¡°My Queen called me ¡®Sly¡¯.¡± ¡°... Huh?¡± McKenna¡¯s mouth opened wide and he took a step back. Puzzled, he patted his ears. ¡°What did you say?¡± ¡°She gave me a nickname.¡± ¡°But that¡¯s not the way Empress Navier normally speaks.¡± ¡°No... she spoke a little differently.¡± ¡°How did she say it?¡± ¡°¡®You are damned sly!¡¯ Something like that.¡± When Heinley mimicked the way Navier spoke, McKenna¡¯s expression became half mocking and half sympathetic. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just an insult?¡± Chapter 376 Chapter 376. Secret Intruder (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Usually, the nanny was chosen from among thedies-in-waiting. However, I had fewerdies-in-waiting than when I was in the Eastern Empire, and the only married woman among mydies-in-waiting was Countess Jubel. However, Countess Jubel was not suitable to be the nanny of the first child of the Western Imperial Family, as her family, her husband and herself were from the Eastern Empire. Besides, she yed the role of headdy-in-waiting. My child would most likely be the sessor. The people of the Western Empire might worry that the sessor would be too influenced by the culture of the Eastern Empire, with both a mother and nanny from the Eastern Empire. On the other hand, since a nanny could have as much influence as the parents, I was reluctant to ce my child under the care of someone I didn¡¯t know well. In the end, after I consulted with Heinley, I decided to invite several noblewomen who raised their own children to discuss the choice of nanny. So, under the pretext of tea and conversation, I called six noblewomen who lived nearby. The noblewomen have been friendly to metely, so naturally we began to talk about various topics. We talked about the weather, the controversies in the Eastern Empire and thetest events in high society. As a result, the topic of the Zemensia Family casually came up. ¡°Your Majesty, did you know that Duke Zemensia, his wife, and his children were kicked out of the family mansion?¡± As I thought about how to introduce the nanny issue, I shook my head a little in surprise at the unexpected news. The noblewomen began to speak all at once, since it¡¯s fun to share gossip with someone who still doesn¡¯t know anything. ¡°Your Majesty. It is said that Old Duke Zemensia kicked out his son, daughter-inw and grandchildren empty-handed. I was able to corroborate it because the sister of one of my maids works in that mansion.¡± ¡°Really? He kicked them out empty-handed?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty. Duke Zemensia only inherited his father¡¯s title, not his wealth. All his wealth belongs to Chri...¡± Thedy paused and looked me in the eye. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty.¡± When I indicated that there was no problem, thedy was relieved and continued, ¡°All of his wealth belongs to Christa. So Duke Zemensia had to leave empty-handed.¡± ¡°Why did Old Duke Zemensia go so far?¡± The noblewomen looked at each other with awkward expressions. It seemed they were wondering who brought this ufortable topic up, and wanted to scold the culprit. When I indicated again that there was no problem, one of them reluctantly exined. ¡°When the Emperor invited the noble children to the Imperial Pce, he left out the two children of the Zemensia Family.¡± ¡®So Heinley really did it to irritate Old Duke Zemensia.¡¯ ¡°It seems that Duke Zemensiained about it to the Old Duke, and during the argument he spoke very badly about Christa.¡± ¡°I also heard that his words about Christa were very harsh.¡± ¡°Of course, he must think that his future, and his children, are more important than his dead sister.¡± This time, all the noblewomen spoke sadly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Your Majesty. But Christa was too good to her family.¡± ¡°They had always been very close siblings, and Christa took good care of her family even after she became Queen.¡± Suddenly my brother came to mind. Now, he took good care of me and put me first, but if he married Princess Charlotte, or even if he married someone else and had his own family, would he change his priorities like Duke Zemensia? If Koshar¡¯s family and I had a conflict, would my brother also choose his wife and children? What about me? Who should I choose if my brother and Heinley were to have a conflict? ¡°Duke Zemensia intends to get it all back, even if he has to file awsuit. I think there will be many problems among that family in the future.¡± It was interesting to hear about the rise and fall of other people, but at the same time it was unpleasant. Especially since I knew that my marriage to Heinley had caused that family¡¯s downfall. Of course, it would be even more unpleasant if that family lived happily after what they did to me. In any case, I didn¡¯t want to talk about it anymore, so I cautiously brought up the reason for the invitation. Since I only invited married noblewomen who had children, they probably all had an inkling already. It was an honor to be the prince¡¯s or princess¡¯s nanny, but it was a great responsibility and required a lot of time. Naturally, many would not want to do it. It was not good to impose unwanted responsibilities, so I had to ask carefully. When I brought up the topic, the noblewomen were ready to answer. Some of them rmended someone else, some expressed their opinion on parenting methods, and some were interested in the position. I also asked for their opinions about other noblewomen I nned to meet with tomorrow. However, when I mentioned the fifth noblewoman, everyone¡¯s expressions turned strange. They seemed to be surprised that I had invited her. What¡¯s wrong? When I stopped talking in confusion, one of them smiled awkwardly and said, ¡°Your Majesty... that noblewoman was the concubine of the former king.¡± Chapter 377 Chapter 377. Secret Intruder (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 After the tea party was over, I went out for a walk in the garden alone. Due to the unexpected information, I needed to reorganize my thoughts. The concubine of the former king was one of the noblewomen I had invited to tomorrow¡¯s tea party. Rashta came to mind at the mention of ¡®the king¡¯s concubine¡¯, so I was reluctant to meet that noblewoman. I wasn¡¯t worried that Heinley might fall in love with another woman. I just didn¡¯t want to meet someone who had been a concubine as a candidate for my child¡¯s nanny. But I hesitated just as I was about to decide to cancel the invitation. It wouldn¡¯t be right to outcast a person with whom I had no rtionship. I had even talked face to face with Sovieshu several times, and he was the person who hurt me the most. I may not be a popr socialite but I held a powerful position. If I were to openly show even slight dislike for someone, it would cause other nobles to avoid that person as well. Wouldn¡¯t she be ostracized by high society if I suddenly canceled the invitation? Since my every action can affect others, shouldn¡¯t I be more even-handed in my treatment of people? At that moment, I saw some servants unloading boxes from a carriage, and one of them caught my eye. I wondered why a servant caught my eye, and I realized that I had never seen him before. I knew the faces of all the people who worked here in the imperial pce well. ¡®Is he new?¡¯ Except for the official business that I had to attend to,tely I paid no attention to anything else. It was likely that new people had been hired during this time. When our gazes met, he bowed to me as if he recognized me and continued unloading the boxes. After I looked over there for a while, I turned around and went back the way I came. I walked through the garden deep in thought, but just before I entered the corridor I caught a glimpse of the unknown servant reflected in a gleaming pir. He was following me with silent steps. My heart began to pound in fear. It could be a coincidence, but since he was aplete stranger I was worried that he might have bad intentions. Although most of the forces that had opposed Heinley had quietly surrendered, there were still roots that had not been cut. After some thought, I decided to cause the stranger to slip by using my magic to freeze the floor beneath his feet. I quickly determined his position through the pir and used my magic. However, I had no experience in mana control, so it was difficult to urately calcte the necessary mana power. I heard a hiss followed by a loud thud, and I turned around and saw that the servant had fallen to the floor. The floor beneath his feet was frozen, but so were his legs. Although I was surprised by the result, I tried to pretend it hadn¡¯t been me, ¡°Are you alright?¡± A group of guards who had heard the noises hurriedly approached. They shouted in rm at the scene before their eyes. ¡°It¡¯s an intruder!¡± ¡°An intruder attacked someone!¡± ¡°Catch him!¡± As soon as they saw me, their faces turned deathly pale. ¡°Your Majesty, get away at once!¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s just that...¡± Shortly after the guards pinned down the unknown servant, themotion escted when Viscount Langdel arrived with his men. The servant struggled against the knights, as if he feared he would be stabbed. His fear increased when Viscount Langdel held his sword to his neck without hesitation. *** After themotion subsided, I went to my bedroom because I suddenly felt dizzy. Iy down on the bed and was examined by the concerned pce doctor. My heart was still beating fast. ¡°Oh, it looks like you¡¯ve had quite a shock. You must rest, Your Majesty.¡± At that moment, I heard a faintugh. When I looked towards the sound, I saw Heinley leaning against the door trying to hold backughter. ¡°My Queen, I heard there¡¯s an intruder who uses ice magic.¡± *** Rashta had not been formally charged for her crimes yet, so she could remain in the Western Pce. She retained the title of Empress and dressed as such. However, she could only move freely within the Western Pce. Knights sent by Emperor Sovieshu prevented her from leaving. Viscount Roteschu had once told her, ¡®It is a shame that a ve is pregnant with my grandchild. It would be a disgrace for others to know.¡¯ For that reason, he locked her in a small room for many months. Back then, she had nothing, so her confinement in thevish Western Pce should not be difficult for her. But it was the confinement itself that tormented her. The noblemen who used toe to visit her rarely came these days. Even after noblewomen began to criticize the Empress because she invited only men to her tea parties, some of the men continued to visit. But not anymore. The maids, whom Rashta had deliberately selected due to their harsh backgrounds despite theirck of formal education as maids, did not help her in the least. They disowned Rashta as soon as she lost her dignity as Empress. Even in the face of ostracism by the maids, noblemen, and knights, Rashta was determined to find a way out. Duke Elgy, the person she trusted the most, betrayed her. Viscountess Verdi took her daughter from her. ¡®Would it have been better if I had remained close to Baron Lant?¡¯ . She had distanced herself from Baron Lant because he would not allow her to handle her money, because he disapproved of her rtionship with Duke Elgy, and because Navier advised her to trust Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries. Rashta btedly regretted that decision. Nevertheless, she shook her head. ¡®No, deciding not to trust Baron Lant was not a mistake. The mistake was to trust someone else after n betrayed me. I shouldn¡¯t have trusted anyone but myself! Still, I can¡¯t give up. I have to find a way to ovee this adversity.¡¯ While deep in thought, she saw a man at the entrance of the West Pce garden. Since she hadn¡¯t received any visitors these days, Rashta approached the man with a mixture of fear and curiosity. It was Baron Lant. ¡°Baron Lant...¡± Rashta whispered his name. Sovieshu must have been terribly angry, so she didn¡¯t expect any of his men to visit her. Baron Lant greeted Rashta with aplicated expression. ¡°How have you been, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Um, Rashta...¡± Baron Lant looked around and shook his head as Rashta tried to answer. ¡°We¡¯d better talk in the drawing room.¡± ¡°Yes,e on in.¡± Rashta nodded. He seemed to have something to say in secret. Baron Lant was right to request privacy. There was no one Rashta could trust in this pce. If any of the servants who wandered about were to overhear the conversation, undesirable rumors would undoubtedly spread. She walked ahead of him. In the drawing room, a maid served them tea and snacks, looking at them curiously. Rashta ordered the maid to leave. Rashta sat down after she made sure that no one could eavesdrop on the conversation. Baron Lant watched her with mixed feelings. He knew that Duke Elgy, whom Rashta blindly trusted, had betrayed her, so he somewhat understood the way she acted. ¡°What brings you here, Baron Lant?¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu and n will be tried for the attempt to deceive the Emperor with a fake princess.¡± ¡°Viscount Roteschu too?¡± ¡°Yes. They¡¯re both in prison. I thought you should know...¡± Baron Lant felt sorry to break this news to Rashta. However, Rashta blinked a few times before she shed a bright smile. She then put her hands around the teacup and smiled even more angelically. ¡°That makes me happy.¡± Baron Lant looked at Rashta in astonishment for a moment, ¡®Does she think it won¡¯t hurt her?¡¯ He was confused by her reaction. Rashta smiled slightly at the look of Baron Lant. It was obvious to her what he was thinking. Contrary to Baron Lant¡¯s assumption, Rashta knew that it was not in her best interest for Viscount Roteschu to stand trial. Roteschu was a malicious, selfish and ruthless person to anyone who was not of his family. He would not hesitate to make false usations to evade his crimes. He didn¡¯t mind pushing others when he was in danger. Despite the risk, she was pleased that Viscount Roteschu would be destroyed. ¡°He always intimidated Rashta.¡± Rashta pretended not to understand what Roteschu¡¯s trial implied for her own future. Ignorance would be an excellent shield against whaty ahead. It would also be a sword that would protect her, by arousingpassion in people like Baron Lant. Although ignorance in an Empress implied that she was notpetent, it could be a weapon to mitigate her crimes. The world was full of people who feltpassion for those they considered inferior to them. As Rashta expected, Baron Lant¡¯s expression turned sad when she implied that punishing the man who intimidated her was more important to her than whatever mighte out during his trial. Rashta thanked Baron Lant and deliberately showed more joy as soon as she realized this. ¡°Thank you for the news, Baron Lant.¡± Baron Lant¡¯s heart shrank as the unfortunate Empress thanked him without knowing the bleak future that awaited her. He had known her since she arrived at the imperial pce, during her brilliant days as a concubine. Back then, she didn¡¯t know anything, not even how to write. He felt that to send her to the gallows was like pushing a child off a cliff. What made him pity Rashta even more was that he had also been med by Sovieshu for this situation, which would close the door to any future promotion. But this was nothingpared to what could happen to Rashta, whose life was in danger. After a while, Baron Lant finally spoke with difficulty, ¡°Viscount Roteschu is an unscrupulous person. He will me the Empress for everything to cover up his own crimes. So, Your Majesty...¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you escape before the trial is held? If you want, I can help Your Majesty.¡± Chapter 378 Chapter 378. Warm And Cold (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 At Baron Lant¡¯s suggestion, Rashta asked for time to think. ¡°I¡¯d like to think about it more calmly.¡± Baron Lant answered with concern, ¡°There isn¡¯t much time left, Your Majesty.¡± Once Viscount Roteschu¡¯s trial was over, Rashta could be charged as an aplice. At that point there would be more eyes on her, so it would not be easy to run away. ¡°I¡¯ll end up in an even worse situation if I get caught, so I want to be very careful.¡± ¡°When life is at stake, quick decisions need to be made.¡± ¡°Still, I can¡¯t afford to make mistakes due to rash decisions.¡± After Baron Lant left, Rashta continued to reflect anxiously. ¡®I¡¯m in this terrible situation because I trusted other people. Can I really trust Baron Lant now?¡¯ She kicked the chair Duke Elgy used to sit on, sending it crashing to the floor. Rashta snorted and sat in front of her vanity table, and ran her hand over the scar on her forehead. Even if she trusted Baron Lant despite her doubts and managed to flee, her troubles would not end. The Eastern Empire was a vast and powerful country. If she fled, Sovieshu¡¯s men would soon find her. Her only option would be to flee abroad, but to receive help as an immigrant, she needed a document that clearly certified her identity and birthce. Without a document, it would be difficult for her to get a well-paying job. It would still be better than living like a ve, but she would have difficulty making ends meet. Settling in a new country would be expensive. She could buy a false identityter once she could save money, but how would she be able to save in a low-paying job? Besides, if her status as the fugitive empress was discovered, the punishment she would receive would be even greater. ¡®Queen Christa.¡¯ Rashta¡¯s hopeless eyes fell on a newspaper that was sticking out of a drawer. She took the newspaper and unfolded it. It contained the news that Queen Christa, who had moved to Compshire,mitted suicide because she resented her family. Rashta read the article, then put the paper back in the drawer and closed it. If Queen Christa had quietly retired to Compshire, she would have lost power and influence, but she would have livedfortably with the affection and sympathy of the people. But rather than choose that path, she chose to risk her future. The result was a wretched death. Rashta bit her nails nervously. ¡®If I ept Baron Lant¡¯s suggestion to escape from the Imperial Pce... it¡¯s possible that I¡¯ll end up like Queen Christa. Since I hold the position of empress, it¡¯s impossible that I will be sentenced to death. If I throw it all away to escape and get caught, won¡¯t the punishment be even worse?¡¯ Besides, she still believed that she coulde to an agreement with Sovieshu. ¡®I¡¯ll have to visit His Majesty first.¡¯ *** Meanwhile, Sovieshu was thinking about how to deal with Rashta. He paced the room back and forth with his hands behind his back, hunched over, unable to sit up due to the sharp pain in his heart. Marquis Karl stood in a dignified posture off to the side and followed Sovieshu with his eyes. Sovieshu stopped after a while and muttered in an exhausted voice, ¡°While we can settle the promissory note issue without scandal, we can¡¯t give up the port...¡± ¡°Are you thinking about what punishment Rashta could receive for her immunity?¡± Due to the honor and importance of the Imperial Family, its members were punished less severely for their crimes than anyone else. However, immunity didn¡¯tpletely exempt members of the Imperial Family from punishment. ¡°Yes.¡± Sovieshu sighed. ¡°If we have the marriage annulled, it would be possible to impose a severe punishment on her because it would mean that she was never the empress, but if we go in the direction of divorce and deposition, the greatest possible punishment would be to lock her up in a castle, an ind or in a remote tower.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, we must have the marriagepletely annulled. Only then will we be able to take a favorable position in the port case when it is brought before the Wol Continent Alliance. If the marriage is rendered void, the documents in which Rashta promised the port to Duke Elgy will be a mere piece of paper. To do this, it is necessary to emphasize that you were tricked into marriage.¡± ¡°I know, I know. But the court process to annul the marriage is long andplicated...¡± Moreover, Sovieshu would not be able to marry another woman while the marriage annulmentwsuit was ongoing, which would not be beneficial to Sovieshu as he wished to have a sessor. Even if the marriage was legally annulled by the courts, it still required approval by the High Priest, who didn¡¯t usually ept such requests from the Imperial Family, as they were in a position to abuse the system. There was only one time in history when an imperial marriage was annulled by the temple. ¡°That¡¯s true. We should also consider that Rashta might decide to drag you down with her, revealing that Your Majesty epted her even though you knew she was a runaway ve.¡± ¡°She might, if she didn¡¯t have a shred of love for Glorym.¡± ¡°The princess... Oh, I¡¯m sorry.¡± Marquis Karl, who hadn¡¯t thought about Glorym, realized that Sovieshu still cared about the princess. But he was right. Glorym was still a baby, so even if Rashta was punished, Glorym wouldn¡¯t suffer too much. However, if Rashta tried to drag Sovieshu down by revealing that she was a runaway ve, Glorym would suffer, as she would be a ve.. Since she was not responsible for her mother¡¯s crimes, this oue would be very cruel. ¡°Well, Rashta threw Glorym to the floor once... she¡¯s capable of anything.¡± Sovieshu muttered regretfully and ordered Marquis Karl to leave. As soon as Marquis Karl left the room, Sovieshu went to his office and immediately began to work. He looked for the most troublesome case, requiring his full focus, and dove into the case. Although it was not a relief, as there was a problem rted to the increase in loan sharks in different corners of the capital. He had finally managed to forget the problems rted to Rashta when Count Pirnu rushed into his office. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty!¡± Count Pirnu barged in so suddenly, and seemed so surprised, that it was obvious that he hadn¡¯te on ordinary business. Sovieshu asked anxiously. ¡°What happened? What happened this time?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the Western Empire, Your Majesty! It¡¯s the Western Empire!¡± ¡°What happened to the Western Empire?¡± ¡°Empress Rashta sent a letter to a noble there, in which she stated that the reason for Your Majesty¡¯s divorce from Navier was her infertility!¡± ¡°What?! When was that?¡± Sovieshu was astonished. He had a severe headache. Rashta seemed intent on causing one problem after another. ¡°The Western Empire is outraged and demands a public apology for Rashta¡¯s offense!¡± Chapter 379 Chapter 379. Warm And Cold (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°My Queen! There¡¯s an intruder who uses ice magic! The intruder froze a servant¡¯s legs! Aaah! It¡¯s scary! It¡¯s really so scary!¡± ¡°...¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you scared, My Queen?¡± Heinley was acting so dramatically, speaking with so much feigned fear and rm, that it was bing tiresome. I red at him, but Heinley didn¡¯t mind because he seemed to enjoy making fun of me. ¡°Queen, My Queen. What will we do if the fearsome ice mage shows up? My Queen, My Queen. Will you protect Heinley from the ice mage? I¡¯m scared.¡± ¡®He even pretends to speak like Rashta?¡¯ ¡°My baby, my baby, your mother is warm and cold at the same time.¡± Then he leaned close to my belly and whispered sweetly to our baby, ¡°My baby, your mother reads fairy tales full of dreams, hopes and love for you, but she is also able to freeze people alive if she doesn¡¯t like them.¡± I turned around to look at the clock on the wall. It had been half an hour since the pce doctor left. ¡®Enough is enough... I think I¡¯ve been pretty patient with him.¡¯ I got out of bed slowly and grabbed the pillow I was leaning on. Holding the pillow like a weapon, strengthening my grip on it, the desire to fight began to burn inside of me. ¡°Huh? Why do you hold the pillow like that, My Queen?¡± Heinley, who had been distracted in making fun of me, stopped and asked in confusion. ¡®Is his naughty mind unable to guess what¡¯s in store for him?¡¯ ¡°My Queen?¡± I swung the pillow to hit him. ¡°My Queen!¡± Heinley was surprised, but he quickly stepped back to avoid the pillow, opened the door and ran out. When I tried to chase after him with dignity, he was careful enough to turn back to close the door and flee just before my pillow caught up with him. As a result, the pillow crashed into the door with a loud thud. I looked at the closed door angrily. Since I was concerned about my reputation and honor as empress, I would never walk down the corridors swinging a pillow. Heinley knew my personality well. It was evident that he left my room so I couldn¡¯t chase after him. ¡°Your Majesty? What happened?¡± ¡°Are you all right?¡± ¡°Did you fall?¡± As I took a deep breath to calm my anger, mydies-in-waiting soon came to ask me from outside in an rmed voice. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Once I opened the door, mydies-in-waiting sighed with relief and looked at the pillow in my hand with curiosity. ¡°Your Majesty, why are you holding a pillow...?¡± Rather than tell a lie, I shook my head and put the pillow back on the bed. I didn¡¯t want the baby in my belly to misinterpret Heinley¡¯s words, so I would take some timeter to exin what happened. *** ¡®What did I just see?¡¯ Heinley wandered down the corridors deep in thought, unable to hide his surprise. What he had just experienced didn¡¯t seem real to him, so much so that he couldn¡¯t remember it well. ¡®My Queen... my graceful, elegant Queen used a pillow as a weapon.¡¯ Heinley only stopped when he ran into Koshar. He looked around and realized that he was on the first floor. He seemed to have walked faster than he expected. ¡°Good to see you, Your Majesty.¡± Heinley smiled in response and took the opportunity to ask him, ¡°Brother, you are just the person I wanted to see. Is it normal for your sister to use a pillow as a weapon when she gets angry on certain asions?¡± He believed that Koshar was the right person to answer this question. Since it was about Navier¡¯s honor, he couldn¡¯t tell anyone else about this incident. Koshar loved his sister very much, so he could rify things for Heinley while protecting Navier¡¯s privacy and honor. Heinley¡¯s assumption was correct, Koshar nodded awkwardly as if several memories hade to his mind. ¡°So she¡¯s always been like that...¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. Most of the time she doesn¡¯t express her emotions and keeps it all to herself, but on the asions when she uses a pillow as a weapon is when she shows her true anger.¡± ¡°I was surprised to see My Queen act with so much intensity, brother.¡± Koshar knew that Navier uses pillows as a weapon because they are stuffed with bird feathers. No matter how hard the hit, the other person would not be hurt. Navier and Sovieshu had been close since childhood, but often quarreled over various trivial matters. Because Sovieshu was the Crown Prince, Navier could not hurt him. So, after much thought, she decided to use pillows to settle quarrels. Koshar, who was more immature back then, taught his younger sister to use pillows to fight so that she would not be defeated by the crown prince in a pillow fight. But Sovieshu meant so much in Navier¡¯s past that Koshar couldn¡¯t even tell this trivial story without talking about him. For that reason, Koshar just said awkwardly, ¡°Navier doesn¡¯t get angry out of nowhere.¡± Heinley misunderstood Koshar¡¯s words, thinking that Koshar was indirectly ming him for Navier¡¯s anger. He felt embarrassed, so he quickly changed the subject. ¡°Now that I remember, brother. Do you want to marry Princess Charlotte of Whitemond?¡± ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind marrying her, but... I don¡¯t know if Princess Charlotte feels the same way.¡± ¡°You make an adequate spouse as you¡¯re very handsome.¡± The answer to Koshar¡¯s words came from Princess Charlotte herself, who was calmly approaching them. ¡°If one has no choice but to ept a political marriage, then one must do one¡¯s best.¡± Princess Charlotte greeted Emperor Heinley and then she turned to Koshar and spoke with a confident smile, ¡°I chose you, the most handsome of all the choices I had avable to me. Are there any women of higher status than me among your choices?¡± Koshar seemed surprised and embarrassed, and Heinley left quietly. When he entered his office, he saw McKenna writing seriously at his desk and said cheerfully, ¡°I saw something very interesting.¡± ¡°Yes? What?¡± ¡°A new love story... By the way, why do you look so serious?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s because of the intruder.¡± ¡°The intruder who used ice magic...¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡®Was there another intruder?¡¯ When Heinley stared at him, puzzled, McKenna exined a little annoyed. ¡°I mean the servant whose legs were frozen.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression stiffened. ¡°Oh, I had forgotten. Why was that servant there? I know his identity has been confirmed.¡± When Heinley heard about the supposed intruder who used ice magic, he thought it was a misunderstanding, but once he found out what had happened and confirmed that Navier was safe, he also inquired about the injured servant. The servant had been working at the Imperial Pce for five years. He typically worked in the warehouse, but today he hade all the way here because there were many boxes to carry. However, since the servant was caught alone in a secluded spot and turned deathly pale when he saw the knights, Viscount Langdel thought the situation was suspicious and offered to investigate. Heinley wanted to know about this. ¡°The servant never intended to harm the Empress. However, he was asked to approach the Empress to see what would happen.¡± Chapter 380 Chapter 380. Rashta¡¯s Despair (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 There was a bit of a stir due to the intruder yesterday, but the atmosphere soon calmed down as the alleged intruder turned out to be a servant of the imperial pce, and the person who used ice magic¡­ we were able to cover this up. Of course, I couldn¡¯t walk around unescorted for a while, and the knights would probably be busy trying to figure out who asked to approach me. In any case, I decided to meet with the noblewomen as nned. The former king¡¯s concubine was also invited, although I had hesitated to meet with her until the very end. But it wasn¡¯t a bad decision. ¡°Honestly, I was really worried that Your Majesty would meet with everyone but me.¡± The former king¡¯s concubine smiled broadly as soon as we sat down at the table, revealed her concerns, andughed. ¡°I thought that Your Majesty would be reluctant to invite me after what happened in the Eastern Empire.¡± The other noblewomen were taken aback by her candor. I was also surprised. The former king¡¯s concubine smiled so brightly that her eyes narrowed. She had a very different personalitypared to Christa¡¯s. Well¡­ Rashta and I also had very different personalities. That night, I told Heinley about it. However, I noticed as I spoke that his expression was not good. ¡°Heinley?¡± Why does Heinley have such a gloomy expression today? Usually he doesn¡¯t keep quiet. I leaned close to him and put my hand on his cheek. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± I was worried to see Heinley sad after he had enjoyed making fun of me only yesterday. What happened to him? Heinley answered immediately. ¡°There is something important I must tell you, My Queen.¡± ¡°All right, tell me.¡± ¡°A trial will be held against ¡®that woman¡¯ in the Eastern Empire.¡± Rashta is the person whom Heinley calls ¡®that woman¡¯. Will there be a trial against Rashta? ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Well, it is a huge problem that the princess is not actually the emperor¡¯s daughter¡­ It was reasonable for Rashta to be punished for it. ¡°I don¡¯t care what happens in the Eastern Empire anymore.¡± I stood up as I deliberately spoke firmly and coldly. I found it rather odd that Heinley had such a serious expression. Given his personality, shouldn¡¯t he be happy about the news? ¡°Yes, I know.¡± After Heinley said this, he sighed heavily, ¡°But the Eastern Empire asked if My Queen could attend the trial.¡± ¡°Me? At the trial?¡± ¡°Since you were a victim, the Eastern Empire asked if My Queen would attend as a witness¡­ What do you want to do?¡± *** Rashta went out into the corridor and made a request to a knight on watch. ¡°I would like to see His Majesty.¡± The knight could have ignored her, but he told her to wait a moment and headed to the Eastern Pce. Rashta wandered down the corridor, then returned to her room and sat in an armchair as she waited nervously. After a while, the knight returned with the answer. ¡°His Majesty ordered me to lead Empress Rashta to him.¡± Rashta looked at herself in the mirror and quicklybed her hair. Then, she followed the knight. ¡°Shameless.¡± ¡°Shemitted serious crimes without even flinching.¡± ¡°Who would have thought that with that innocent face she would be so despicable.¡± On the way to the Eastern Pce, the murmurs she heard in the corridors made her heart tear, but she tried hard to ignore them. When she finally met Sovieshu, she was weed by his icy gaze. His eyes, once filled with warm affection, were cold as if winter hade. His demeanor seemed to suggest that Rashta should not waste his time, so she opened her mouth with difficulty. ¡°What will you do to me?¡± ¡°It will depend on the crimes you havemitted.¡± ¡°I havemitted no crime, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You still think to deny it after all that has been revealed.¡± ¡°You knew¡­ I was a runaway ve, but you didn¡¯t care.¡± ¡°I knew you were a runaway ve. But I didn¡¯t know you were this kind of person.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, the Rashta you met back then and the Rashta in front of your eyes is the same person.¡± ¡°The man you loved and the man you betrayed is also the same person, Rashta.¡± There was no warmth in his words, only sharp thorns and painful wounds. ¡°Your Majesty, let me exin it all. If there is any misunderstanding, I will exin it to you.¡± Rashta spoke with a pained expression, but Sovieshu didn¡¯t want to listen to her absurd excuses. ¡°Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding? That the princess turned out not to be my daughter is a misunderstanding? Or is there some misunderstanding in the promissory notes presented by Duke Elgy? Or is the misunderstanding with the document promising a port to Duke Elgy? Or¡­¡± After a momentary pause, he looked at Rashta with a fierce expression. ¡°Or is it a misunderstanding that a rumor was spread in the Western Empire? A rumor that the cause for my divorce with Navier was her infertility?¡± ¡®What does he mean?¡¯ At the unexpected attack, Rashta eximed in surprise, ¡°Rashta never did that!¡± Sovieshu asked with an angry snort. ¡°You never did, or you wish you never did?¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°The Western Empire made an officialint. They want you to publicly apologize for that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m still¡­ I¡¯m still the Empress of the Eastern Empire, Your Majesty. You won¡¯t ask me to apologize publicly? That would be a disgrace to the Eastern Empire!¡± ¡°No. Don¡¯t worry, there is no need for you to apologize. Soon, you will not represent the Eastern Empire.¡± Rashta looked at Sovieshu in astonishment and burst into tears. ¡°Your Majesty¡­ Does Your Majesty no longer believe in Rashta? I remember the time you said you felt sorry for Rashta. I remember the time you said you would protect Rashta. However, now you falsely use Rashta?¡± Sovieshu stared at Rashta for a moment, speechless. ¡°Am I falsely using you? Of all that I said, what did you not do?¡± ¡°I did nothing!¡± Sovieshu¡¯s mouth opened wide. He really was surprised by her words. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know anymore. I don¡¯t know what the hell you are thinking.¡± ¡°Rashta didn¡¯t say that Navier was infertile! Rashta only said that there was a rumor that the reason for her divorce was her infertility! Your Majesty was the one who told me that Navier might be infertile!¡± When the other side uses absurd arguments, the shock is so great that it is difficult to think of what to say in rebuttal. This was the case for Sovieshu. He was shocked and couldn¡¯t understand Rashta. Even if such a rumor existed, didn¡¯t Rashta know that the fact that the Empress spread the rumor to a foreign noble via letter was in itself a problem? ¡°That¡¯s enough. Get out. It was crazy to think that I could talk to you.¡± He waved his hand,pletely exhausted. He felt foolish for trying to have onest conversation with Rashta, not to mention that talking about Navier reminded him of all his regrets. ¡°What will you do to me?¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have the answer at the trial. You¡¯ll be able to ask the judge directly.¡± At that moment, Rashta pleaded as tears streamed down her cheeks, ¡°¡­ Please save me.¡± Sovieshu, who had an intense headache, looked at her in bewilderment. Rashta looked like a soaked cat alone in the rain, her expression sad and forlorn. ¡°Your Majesty, don¡¯t let Rashta be severely punished. Rashta didn¡¯tmit any serious crime. If Rashta¡¯s crime was to sit on the Empress¡¯s throne, then it is our crime, not just Rashta¡¯s. Other than that, Rashta did nothing wrong.¡± Sovieshu kept his lips tightly closed. Chapter 381 Chapter 381. Rashta¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 If an opponent acts with arrogance, one would choose to fight until the opponent¡¯s morale copsed, and let them suffer severe punishment. In contrast, if an opponent acts in a pitiful manner, it lessened the desire to fight. This kind of opponent can make anyone confronting them feel ufortable, even when the punishment is deserved. It was especially the case for Sovieshu, who had picked up Rashta injured, cared for her, and showered her with affection. In the end, Sovieshu coldly ordered, ¡°Get out.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Rashta replied helplessly, her voice barely audible. Then she turned to leave. ¡°Rashta.¡± Sovieshu called out to her before she opened the door. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± Rashta turned around without the slightest hope, like a withered flower. ¡°The trial of Viscount Roteschu and the Isqua couple will be held today. You may attend if you want.¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t even look at Rashta¡¯s face as he spoke. She didn¡¯t understand why he asked her to attend the trials, but after some thought she replied that she would attend. Sovieshu nodded and told her that one of his secretaries would apany her. Rashta hoped it would be Baron Lant. However, the secretary that Sovieshuter sent to Rashta was Count Pirnu, not Baron Lant. Count Pirnu and Rashta didn¡¯t usually interact, even during her best days, so they were ufortable with each other. Instead, Baron Lant cared so much about her that he suggested she run away. For that reason, Rashta thought that Sovieshu had deliberately assigned Count Pirnu, with whom she didn¡¯t get along. Sovieshu¡¯s intentions were known only to Sovieshu himself, but Rashta was right that she was not to Count Pirnu¡¯s liking, who always had a bad feeling about Rashta. He had never liked her, starting specifically from the time he inquired about a gift that Rashta had received from Sovieshu. He discovered that she had given it to Viscount Roteschu, who sold it. ¡°Your Majesty is free to attend the High Court officially or unofficially. You can do it in the way that is most favorable for you.¡± ¡°What does Count Pirnu advise me?¡± ¡°I advise Your Majesty to attend the trial unofficially.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Both trials are rted to Your Majesty. The situation could beplicated if the Empress is present.¡± Rashta found it difficult to trust Count Pirnu, but his words convinced her, so she put on a simple dress, a light purple cloak over it, tied her hair up and hid her face with the hood of the cloak. The High Court was connected to the Imperial Pce through a small door, but people usually entered and exited through the front door. Thanks to this door connecting both buildings, Count Pirnu and Rashta were able to easily enter the Court without leaving the Imperial Pce. Rashta stood among the audience hidden under her hood. Count Pirnu and a guard stood on either side of her as a precaution. In therge hall, the whispers of the spectators could be heard. They were mainly talking about the uing trials, but at times they were also talking about Rashta. Since the remarks were negative, Rashta lowered her hood even further and asked, ¡°Which trial is first?¡± ¡°The trial of Viscount Roteschu will be first, then the trial of the Isqua couple.¡± The first trial only started after a 40 minute wait. ¡°Roteschu Rimwell.¡± When the High Court Judge, who sat in the highest seat, looked down and called out a name, a familiar face appeared. It was Viscount Roteschu. His arms were being held by two knights. As soon as he appeared, the audience fell silent for a moment. Rashta looked around. Although the hall was silent, everyone in the audience had a fierce expression. Due to the rich history of the Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire, it had always been a source of pride. Although there were times when an emperor did not win the hearts of the people, and other times when the people took the initiative to criticize the Imperial Family, generally, the people of the Eastern Empire loved the Imperial Family. Emperor Sovieshu was one of the most beloved Emperors. He had been involved in several scandals since he took Rashta as a concubine, but he never abandoned his duties. For the people, what was important was Sovieshu as an Emperor, not as a person. Even if he were a yboy, the people would not dislike him so long as he looked after the interests of the country. Viscount Roteschu had tried to make his granddaughter a member of the beloved Imperial. Nobody present directed a warm look at Viscount Roteschu. The Judge of the High Court felt the same way. When Viscount Roteschu stopped at the defendant¡¯s ce, the Judge started to recite the charges with an expression as cold as that of the audience present. ¡°Roteschu Rimwell. You deceived the Emperor, the people and the country to make the daughter of your son, n Rimwell, a princess. When Rashta Isqua, your son¡¯s wife, became the Emperor¡¯s concubine, she became pregnant by your son and you concealed it so that your granddaughter would be consecrated as a princess. Also, you took advantage of the secrecy of this rtionship for profit, and ckmailed Empress Rashta to periodically receive money and valuables. Is this true?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes, it is true.¡± When Viscount Roteschu recognized his crime, the people present began to curse loudly. Rashta held her breath. Among all the charges, it was only true that Viscount Roteschu had ckmailed her to receive money and valuables. However, Viscount Roteschu acknowledged all the charges, including the lies. ¡®What the hell is wrong with him? Why did he acknowledge those lies so casually?¡¯ The Judge of the High Court raised his hand to calm the audience and asked Viscount Roteschu another question. ¡°Who else is involved in this crime? If you tell the truth, your punishment could be reduced, but if you lie, your punishment will be greater.¡± ¡°My son, n Rimwell, and my daughter-inw, Rashta Isqua.¡± Viscount Roteschu closed his eyes as the audience spat out curses with violence. Count Pirnu saw Rashta at his side bite her lips tightly. ¡°Do you acknowledge all the charges?¡± The High Court Judge asked another question, to which Viscount Roteschu calmly replied, ¡°¡­Yes. I nned it with my son and daughter-inw because I wanted my descendants to belong to the Imperial Family.¡± From the moment n fell in love with Rashta, Viscount Roteschu did not want to ept Rashta as his daughter-inw, so he opposed it with all kinds of actions and mistreated Rashta. However, he himself called Rashta his ¡®daughter-inw¡¯ now. It was really ironic. The Judge spoke again with an expressionless face. ¡°Bring in n Rimwell.¡± This time n appeared, escorted by knights. The outraged voices from the audience grew louder, and they began to throw eggs, fruits and so on. ¡°Bloody bastard!¡± ¡°How dare you covet the Imperial Family?!¡± ¡°You deserve to be hanged!¡± ¡°Hang them both right now!¡± ¡°Where does the Empress hide? She has to be sentenced with them!¡± Hearing the shouts all around her, Rashta¡¯s face turned pale. She had expected Viscount Roteschu to me others for his crimes to protect himself. She had not expected that Viscount Roteschu would ept the charges and try to drag everyone down with him. Viscount Roteschu held his son with one hand and Rashta with the other, and dragged all of three of them to their deaths. Rashta¡¯s legs trembled with fear. There was no more fearsome person than one willing to die in order to drag others down. One could find ways to attack those who try to defend themselves, but there was no way to deal with someone whounched a suicide attack. This was the case with Viscount Roteschu. Beneath the baggy cloak, a couple of tears fell to the floor. ¡®His Majesty wanted me toe here to see this? Since I¡¯m cornered, does he expect me to just ept my fate without doing anything?¡¯ Chapter 382 Chapter 382. Death Penalty (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Rashta stood there stunned, unable to shake off her astonishment. She didn¡¯t move after she shed a couple of tears, so that even Count Pirnu, who didn¡¯t like Rashta, was worried that she would copse. By the time Rashta came to her senses, the Isqua couple had already been taken to the defendants¡¯ site to testify. Finally, Rashta sighed, a little relieved. Viscount and Viscountess Isqua had always been loyal, so she felt reassured that their testimony would be favorable for her. Besides, the Isqua couple¡¯s trial was not rted to Glorym, but to Evely. Rashta felt more rxed than before. She was sorry that the Isqua couple, who cared for her so much, found themselves in this situation, but she had heard that nobles are not punished severely for this kind of case if they are sentenced. The audience didn¡¯t seem to care much about this casepared to the trial of Viscount Roteschu and n. Some people even left the courtroom as if the show was over. ¡°Marsha Isqua. Gillimt Isqua. Do you still hold the same position on Miss Evely¡¯s case?¡± Rashta heard a person nearby muttering with irritation, ¡°They¡¯ll never acknowledge their crime.¡± She also saw the spectators surrounding the person nodding. ¡°We plead guilty.¡± However, what the Isqua couple said was surprising, causing a small stir in the courtroom. The High Court Judge raised his hand to signal to the audience to be quiet. Once everyone calmed down, the Judge asked, ¡°So, do you acknowledge that you nned to kill Miss Evely on her way to the Western Empire?¡± Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®Why would they acknowledge it?¡¯ She wondered, but didn¡¯t worry too much. This case only involved the Isqua couple. Rashta didn¡¯t even know if they had really nned to kill Evely. Perhaps irrefutable evidence had been found that proved they had actually nned to kill her. ¡°Yes, we acknowledge it.¡± ¡°Did you do this for your daughter, Empress Rashta?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Miss Evely is a talented mage, so she became a court mage¡¯s assistant and stayed at the Southern Pce. Empress Rashta always worried that Miss Evely caused the change in Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s attitude towards Empress Rashta. It is for that reason that¡­ we nned such a horrible crime.¡± The stir grew louder. The High Court Judge asked another question in disgust. ¡°So, you attempted to kill Miss Evely despite the fact that she was not the Emperor¡¯s concubine?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± ¡°Is Empress Rashta involved?¡± The couple¡¯s statement may have changed due to new evidence or because they were tired of the ongoing trial, but everyone believed that they would never acknowledge whether Empress Rashta was involved in this crime. Since the couple had always shown deep love for their daughter, even the High Court Judge thought that the couple would protect Empress Rashta again. ¡°Yes.¡± But what Viscount Isqua said shocked everyone. Rashta¡¯s eyes widened. For a moment, she thought she had misunderstood. ¡®What¡­ what did he mean?¡¯ ¡°You mean the crime was on Empress Rashta¡¯s order?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± When Viscountess Isqua also acknowledged that Rashta was involved the stir in the courtroom became thunderous. ¡°Why did you suddenly change your statement?¡± The Judge asked skeptically with a frown. He found their behavior suspicious. If the Isqua couple had changed their statement to a false one due to someone else¡¯s threats, it needed to be rified. Rashta¡¯s involvement in the crimemitted by Viscount Roteschu and n had already been confirmed. The Judge could not add a false crime against her just because he detested her. However, Viscount Isqua¡¯s next statement was much more shocking than the previous one. ¡°We have endured all kinds of insults for someone who is not even our real daughter. Empress Rashta, who bears the most responsibility for this crime, just watched in silence as the whole burden fell on us. We can¡¯t take it anymore.¡± Murmurs suddenly multiplied. The courtroom was thrown into chaos as if a dam had broken. ¡°Who isn¡¯t their real daughter?¡± ¡°Do they mean Empress Rashta?¡± ¡°Is Empress Rashta not the couple¡¯s real daughter?¡± Rashta took two steps back, she couldn¡¯t even breathe. ¡®What¡¯s going on? Why did they do that? Why do they say that now?¡¯ The High Court Judge was too shocked to speak. Only when his assistant whispered to him, ¡°Your Honor,¡± he was able to ask aloud, ¡°Are you saying that Empress Rashta is not your real daughter?¡± If this were true, it would be another scandal. It couldn¡¯t evenpare to Evely¡¯s case. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± The couple confirmed it in unison. The audience looked at each other in astonishment. The shock was so great that the courtroom fellpletely silent as if a bucket of water had fallen. The High Court Judge took it in and continued, ¡°But you imed that Empress Rashta was your daughter since before she ascended the throne. Empress Rashta also imed from the beginning that you were her real parents.¡± Viscount Isqua replied coldly with an expressionless face. ¡°We needed money to find our real daughters and Empress Rashta needed noble parents to ascend to the throne. It is not umon for a person to seek fake noble parents to clear their identity.¡± One person in the audience couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°So who are Empress Rashta¡¯s real parents? Is it themoner who recently imed to be her real father? Viscountess Isqua also replied coldly, ¡°We don¡¯t know. What we can be sure of is that her parents are not nobility.¡± The High Court Judge reflected on the facts. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. If this was true¡­ it was a serious problem. The question was whether Emperor Sovieshu knew about it, or whether it was his own n. However, the High Court Judge was in a bind because he couldn¡¯t ask about it here. If it was Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s initiative, he couldn¡¯t let the Isqua couple reveal the truth in front of everyone. Manymoners were among the spectators, as well as several journalists. If the Isqua couple implicated Emperor Sovieshu, the Imperial Family would be ridiculed. If the Imperial Family was ridiculed, the High Court Judge who allowed this to happen would be in trouble. However, the audience didn¡¯t care if the revtions affected the Judge. While the Judge was thinking of various solutions, a person in the audience asked aloud, ¡°Did you conspire to deceive Emperor Sovieshu, or was it Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s initiative?¡± Chapter 383 Chapter 383. Death Penalty (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The High Court Judge feared that the couple would involve the Emperor, to try to mitigate their crime, no matter whether it was true or false. He was horrified as he quickly calcted his responsibility for what was about to happen. But the audience, protected by anonymity, had nothing to fear. The Emperor would not punish all those who came to watch. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu does not know.¡± However, the Isqua couple¡¯s reply defied expectations. ¡°Rashta promised us that if she became the Empress, she would help us find our daughters and bestow all kinds of riches on us.¡± ¡°We conspired with Rashta to deceive Emperor Sovieshu.¡± ¡°We don¡¯t have to lie about this.¡± ¡°If necessary, we can do a paternity test with Rashta.¡± Rashta wanted to scream, ¡®No, His Majesty Sovieshu knew I was a ve.¡¯ Sovieshu didn¡¯t know about the Isqua couple¡¯s background, but he did know that Rashta¡¯s real parents were not nobility. Besides, it was Duke Elgy who brought the Isquas. ¡®Why is this matter being discussed?¡¯ Rashta felt sunken and aggrieved. She wanted to stop the false usations and rify the matter for everyone. However, she couldn¡¯t do it because she hade in secret. She stared at the broken eggs and crushed fruits scattered on the floor. Rashta shuddered as she imagined what would happen if she stepped forward now to refute the couple¡¯s statements. The High Court Judge, who had remained silent for a while, left the courtroom and entered a small meeting room with other important officials to decide the sentence. Considerable time passed, but the Judge still didn¡¯te out. The audience remained in ce. Not a single person left. Before Rashta realized it, not only the Isqua couple, but also Viscount Roteschu and n were at the defendants¡¯ site. She noticed the Isqua couple and Viscount Roteschu exchanging strange nces. The couple red at Viscount Roteschu with hatred. Others might think the exchange was insignificant, but not Rashta¡­ ¡®Viscount Roteschu told them about Evely.¡¯ Rashta understood the situation at once. Otherwise, there was no reason for the Isqua couple to suddenly change their position, nor for them to look at Viscount Roteschu like that. When the High Court Judge finally appeared, the loud talkers fell silent, as if they had reached an unspoken agreement. The Judge returned to his seat, raised his gavel and rapped his desk several times with a solemn expression. He recited the charges of Viscount Roteschu, n and the Isqua couple, one by one. He then added a few personal words and issued the sentence firmly. ¡°Roteschu Rimwell. Death penalty.¡± ¡°n Rimwell. Death penalty.¡± ¡°Gillimt Isqua. Death penalty.¡± ¡°Marsha Isqua. Death penalty.¡± *** The Eastern Empire wanted me to testify as an affected party in the promissory note case. I could also testify in other cases, but the Eastern Empire was most interested in my detailed testimony about the promissory notes. Heinley asked me to think it over. That night we went to sleep in each other¡¯s arms without saying anything. The next day, Heinley left for work and I was still hesitant about whether I should attend. So I decided to tell mydies-in-waiting. The first to react was Countess Jubel, who spoke firmly. ¡°Of course you have to go! You must go and tell everything! About the times she called Your Majesty ¡®sister¡¯ because you had the ¡®same husband¡¯, the time she tried to follow Your Majesty to the special banquet attended only by highly distinguished guests, the scandal she caused at the dinner held before the special banquet and how she imitated your behavior as Empress, the lie she told that Lord Koshar pushed her, the time she wore the same dress as Your Majesty and imed that Your Majesty had copied her, the letter she sent to a noble of the Western Empire in which she stated that Your Majesty was infertile¡­ Whew! Whew! Just talking about it makes me lose my cool.¡± Beside her, Laura added with clenched fists, ¡°Your Majesty must also say that Rashta lied when she mentioned that Your Majesty sent her all kinds of gifts to wee her as a concubine! That she pretended to be Emperor Heinley¡¯s letter friend, back when His Majesty was a Prince! Ah, also that when Your Majesty danced with Emperor Sovieshu at the New Year¡¯s ball, she deliberately burst into tears to interrupt the dance!¡± Rose and Mastas, who didn¡¯t know all that I had been through in the Eastern Empire, repeatedly gasped and stared open-mouthed with surprise. ¡°Your Majesty endured all that?¡± ¡°Your Majesty was attacked one-sidedly?¡± ¡°It wasn¡¯t one-sided.¡± Despite my correction, Rose and Mastas looked at me with sad eyes. However, I was serious. Although I overlooked much of what Rashta did to me, to maintain my dignity as Empress, I did at least retaliate for some offenses. And Evely retaliated on my behalf for the times when Rashta called me her ¡®sister¡¯. ¡°Your Majesty, are you going?¡± Laura sped her hands and looked at me. Her expression told me that she hoped I would attend and testify. I hesitated for a moment before answering honestly, ¡°I¡¯m thinking about it.¡± All of Rashta¡¯s actions that Countess Jubel and Laura recalled had hurt me at the time. It even made me angry to think about it now. But it wouldn¡¯t do any good to say things like this at the trial¡­ besides, Sovieshu was the one who sent gifts to Rashta on my behalf and took her to the dinner ahead of the special banquet. As angry as I was about what she did to me, I could not attend the High Court, where serious crimes were dealt with, to address personal matters such as, ¡®Empress Rashta used to call me sister and copied my dress.¡¯ I also couldn¡¯t disprove the usation that my brother pushed Rashta, and that he hired fake parents for her. Thetter had been nned by Sovieshu. He would ensure that there was no evidence. As for the false usation that Koshar pushed Rashta¡­ I could not step forward because my brother attempted to make Rashta lose her child with abortive drugs. An officialint had already been filed with the Eastern Empire regarding the letter Rashta sent to Duke Liberty about my supposed infertility. I didn¡¯t want to deal with the High Court about a matter for which I should receive a formal, public apology. ¡°I have also been asked to attend.¡± Huh? As I pondered, a man¡¯s voice interrupted my thoughts. It was Viscount Langdel. He didn¡¯t usually intervene when I was talking to mydies-in-waiting. ¡°By the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°Yes. It seems the Eastern Empire wants me to testify about the report I wrote. Your Majesty Navier handed the report over to Emperor Sovieshu in exchange for my release.¡± Oh, that will finally be revealed. ¡°The nder suffered by Lady Nian can be erased.¡± ¡°Yes, so I will definitely go. I will go to clear Nian¡¯s name and to see that woman¡¯s downfall with my own eyes.¡± Viscount Langdel spoke sternly. A fiery emotion shed in his eyes. As if he was happy to put an end to a terrible resentment. ¡°If Your Majesty goes, I can escort you, as we would both go to the same ce. There must be a deep-seated hatred in Your Majesty¡¯s heart. Going to the Eastern Empire to witness her downfall will make you feel better.¡± ¡°Part of me wants to see what will happen to Rashta. She pushed me to leave my country, after all. The other part of me doesn¡¯t want to see how weak she has be.¡± When I confessed what I felt, Mastas asked me in bewilderment, ¡°So, will Your Majesty forgive that woman?¡± ¡°I won¡¯t forgive her. I just don¡¯t want to see her break down, because I might feel bad for hating her. As much as I hate someone, it would affect me to see that person in a pitiful state.¡± Yes. Sometimes I think of Rashta and get angry, I think, ¡®what a crazy woman¡¯. The same happens when I think of Sovieshu. ¡®What an evil man¡¯. After I see Rashta fall, will I be able to hate her with all my heart? And if I still hate her, wouldn¡¯t I feel bad? Heinley asked me to make my own decision. After much thought, I decided to attend, so I went to tell Heinley, ¡°Do you want to testify, Queen? About all the damage she did to you?¡± ¡°No, I¡¯ll just go to watch.¡± ¡°Just to watch?¡± Heinley asked with concern, ¡°You may hear a lot of unpleasant remarks about that woman.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better not to hear anything about that woman? Besides, you may be ufortable in the long carriage ride¡­¡± ¡°Although the situation is serious, Rashta is popr among themoners, so there will not be many unpleasant remarks, even if many people are disappointed. I think being deposed will be her only punishment.¡± Heinley thought about it for a moment and agreed, ¡°Then let¡¯s go together, My Queen. Only then will I feel calm.¡± Chapter 384 Chapter 384. Will (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Heinley and I agreed to travel to the Eastern Empire together, and we began the preparations. My parents also wanted toe because they had been away from home for a long time. They decided not to attend the trial, but instead nned to go to their estate. My parents could also testify against Rashta in the High Court, as she had hired an assassin to end their lives. A serious crime. However, it was difficult to make this public in the High Court as a secret informant of Heinley¡¯s discovered Rashta¡¯s plot. Heinley told my parents that he could make their secret informant a witness if they wished, but my parents shook hands with him lovingly. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Once Rashta is deposed, she won¡¯t be able to harm us.¡± ¡°The fake princess case alone is enough for her to be deposed, it would be in vain to mention this case. It doesn¡¯t benefit us at all.¡± ¡°It would not be good to reveal that there are informants from the Western Empire hidden in the Eastern Empire. So it¡¯s best to let it go, Your Majesty.¡± Despite this, my parents seemed really happy that Heinley was so considerate. So was I¡­ Soon after, we set off for the Eastern Empire. On the way, Heinley rode his horse up to the carriage I upied with mydies-in-waiting, and asked through the window. ¡°My Queen. How many points do you think I have now with your parents?¡± I would have preferred that he didn¡¯t ask me this in the presence of other people. ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask them yourself?¡± ¡°Right, I can¡¯t trust you.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t trust me?¡± ¡°Ever since My Queen pped my rear without my consent, I¡¯ve lost trust.¡± ¡°Heinley, your voice.¡± ¡°I know you like my voice.¡± I meant to tell him to lower his voice. But before I could speak again, Heinley whispered sweetly, ¡°I love you.¡± He¡¯s a¡­ fox! No, he¡¯s a mix between a fox dog and a fox bird. Yes, he¡¯s a fox bird dog. Is thetter too offensive? Heinley couldn¡¯t read my offensive thoughts, so he smiled naively when our gazes met. He slipped his head through the small window of the carriage to give me a kiss. Then he straightened his posture on the horse and pretended not to have done anything. He was as cute as he was naughty, so I reached out with my hand to pinch his thigh. Heinleyughed and grabbed my hand. ¡°My Queen, do you remember this path?¡± ¡°How could I not remember it?¡± ¡°That time, we rode on horseback to reach the Western Empire. Sometimes I think about it. I¡¯ll never forget it.¡± I won¡¯t forget it either¡­ However, if I agreed with him, Heinley might ask if it was because he had hugged me tightly as we rode together on horseback. Of course it was memorable, but I deliberately changed the focus of the conversation. ¡°In my case, what I will remember forever is how I had to escape in the secret space inside a carriage seat, crouched ufortably.¡± That was true. Heinley said with a chuckle, ¡°Of course I¡¯ll remember that for the rest of my life, too.¡± Then heughed louder. After I looked out the window for a while, I closed it and turned my attention inside the carriage. If I left the window open, Heinley would only focus on me instead of the road ahead. Heinley¡¯s words made me vividly remember that day. Our escape was hard and I feared we would be caught, but I was full of hope. Heinley wrapped his arms around me lovingly and we moved together in one direction, our bodies pressed against each other. Although I didn¡¯t want to experience something like that again, Heinley had definitely been the light in my dark past. Now I could look back on the hard times I went through with a smile. ¡°My Queen. My Queen. I just had an excellent idea!¡± Unable to resist, Heinley knocked on the carriage window again. As soon as I opened the window, Heinley matched his horse¡¯s pace with that of the carriage and spoke with enthusiasm. ¡°My Queen, how about we ride a horse together when our baby has grown a little?¡± ¡°It sounds like fun.¡± ¡°Our child will ride on a foal and McKenna will take care of it, while the two of us ride horses together across the prairie. Don¡¯t you think you¡¯d enjoy it?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± But will McKenna enjoy it too? McKenna, who was riding beside Heinley, didn¡¯t look happy at all. When McKenna¡¯s eyes fell on me, I pulled my head back in and closed the window. About five secondster, I heard McKennain to Heinley. A smile naturally appeared on my face. How could this be so much fun? Laura, who was sitting across from me, murmured, ¡°I have never been interested in men, Your Majesty. But when I see you with His Majesty Heinley, I feel like I¡¯d like to get married too.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°So, Miss Laura intends to get engaged soon?¡± Anotherdy in waiting chimed in and I looked at Laura. Her family didn¡¯t want her to enter a political marriage too soon. Even Laura herself was not interested in romantic rtionships. But if Laura wished, there were many young nobles from respectable families ready to marry her. When the subject of engagement came up, Laura pondered seriously for a moment and then shook her head. ¡°No, that¡¯s not it.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t you say a moment ago that you would like to get married?¡± ¡°It would be fine if he were a man like His Majesty Heinley, but if by bad luck I get a man like Countess Jubel¡¯s husband or His Majesty Sovieshu¡ª Ouch! Why did you pinch me, Chapter 385 Chapter 385. Will (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Since Evely lived in the Southern Pce, she was able to learn of the Isqua couple¡¯s scandalous trial within hours.. She learned that the Isquas, who had done so much to protect Empress Rashta, revealed on their own that Rashta was not their real daughter. Evely clicked her tongue as soon as the court mage told her what happened. ¡°They have such simr personalities that I can¡¯t believe they are a fake family. It¡¯s quite curious. Are they really not her parents? Could it be a n among those three?¡± The court mage also clicked his tongue, ¡°I don¡¯t believe it, how can you be such a pessimistic girl?¡± ¡°Master, that¡¯s because you didn¡¯t live through what I did. If you saw the world from my eyes, you would realize that it is a twisted ce.¡± ¡°What about me? Do I also look like a twisted person in your eyes?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you the day you retire and leave me your position as court mage.¡± When the court mage¡¯s eyes narrowed, Evely fell silent and hurried out of theboratory with a sk. As she left, the court mage pointed at her and muttered, ¡°You¡¯ll be in trouble tomorrow.¡± Evely was amused by the threat, and she walked away with a smile. Although he often scolded her, the court mage had been the person who cared for her the mosttely. He didn¡¯t look after her like a father would, but like a close family friend. She sometimes felt him like a rtive. It was enough to make Evely happy. Empress Navier had been her benefactor and she still considered her as such, but there was an inevitable distance due to her position as Empress. In contrast, the court mage was not a benefactor, but someone close to her. Although neither were her rtives, both were very important to Evely. Right now, her mood was truly excellent because Empress Rashta and the Isqua couple, whom she hated so much, were going down. She descended the stairs and walked to her room, only to find a formally dressed woman in front of the door. She had never seen this woman before, so she asked cautiously. ¡°Who are you?¡± The woman didn¡¯t answer, instead she adjusted her sses and asked, ¡°Are you Miss Evely? The court mage¡¯s assistant?¡± ¡°¡­ Yes, that¡¯s me.¡± Evely nced warily at the closed door. ¡®Could she have stolen something from me while I was in theboratory?¡¯ The woman didn¡¯t look like a thief, but she still raised suspicions. The woman noticed that Evely was on guard, but spoke calmly anyway, ¡°I am the administrator of Miss Evely¡¯s parents¡¯ estate.¡± ¡°What? My¡­ my parents?¡± Evely asked, puzzled as she stepped back. ¡°You¡¯re a con artist, right?¡± ¡®After I spent my whole life as an orphan, now a woman suddenly appears who ims to be the administrator of my parents¡¯ estate. She is clearly lying.¡¯ The woman showed her the ess pass to the imperial pce and her state-redited estate administrator¡¯s license. Evely nced at it, but she had no way of knowing if it was fake or real because she wasn¡¯t familiar with that field. Still, she pretended to recognize it and asked with wide eyes, ¡°Why are you here?¡± The woman exined, ¡°Miss Evely, your parents have been looking for you all this time. Fortunately, you have now been found.¡± ¡°But why would an estate administratore¡­ instead of my parents? Do my parents want me to take over their debts? It still seems like a con to me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not debts, it¡¯s their wealth.¡± ¡°Their wealth?¡± Evely frowned. If the estate administrator hade to say she should assume their debts, it would certainly be a con, but this was a little less suspicious. ¡°Why would my parents leave me their wealth?¡± ¡°They have died.¡± ¡°¡­ Have¡­ died¡­ both of them?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. In their will they asked to find their daughter and leave her their wealth.¡± Evely was stunned by the unexpected news. An estate administrator suddenly told her about her parents, the wealth they had left her, and that they had died¡­ ¡°It¡¯s a huge sum. If you don¡¯t believe me, you can take someone else with you for the inheritance paperwork.¡± ¡°Are you really talking about my parents?¡± Evely asked as a few tears fell down her cheeks. The parents she never had. The parents she hated all her life because she thought they had abandoned her. The parents she didn¡¯t think she needed. ¡®My parents died while searching for me, and even after their death they asked for the search to continue in their will.¡¯ Evely felt an emptiness and sadness in a corner of her heart. She couldn¡¯t even think about the inheritance. Her eyes filled with tears. The woman looked at Evely with aplicated expression and nodded silently. Evely asked as she wiped away her tears. ¡°What are my parents¡¯ names? When did they die? Are they from the Eastern Empire? What about my rtives? Were they buried at death? Can I visit their graves?¡± Although she never felt the need to know about her parents, these questions arose spontaneously. But the woman shook her head and didn¡¯t answer a single question. ¡°Forgive me, Miss Evely. Your parents asked me not to reveal their names.¡± ¡°Why¡­?¡± ¡°They were not good people. They were so ashamed that they instructed me not to reveal their names to Miss Evely.¡± Evely blinked in disbelief and eximed tearfully, ¡°It¡¯s absurd! I don¡¯t care if they were bad people! You told me that my parents never stopped looking for me, but you can¡¯t even tell me their names!¡± Tears came out of her eyes again. When she came to her senses, the sk she clutched tightly in her hand was already tilted, and the liquid inside was falling to the floor. ¡°It¡¯s written in the will.¡± ¡°Nonsense!¡± ¡°¡­ Although they were not good people, they always loved Miss Evely. They never gave up hope of finding you.¡± Evely shook her head as her eyes burned. ¡®It couldn¡¯t be. What kind of parents say they love their daughter, leave her their wealth, but don¡¯t reveal their names?¡¯ ¡°They¡¯re not dead, right? They only left me a part of their wealth because they fear I¡¯ll be a nuisance. Am I the illegitimate child of some noble? The estate administrator answered with a bitter smile, ¡°No, you¡¯re not.¡± In fact, though it was true that they left her their wealth and that they never stopped looking for her, everything was a lie. Evely¡¯s parents were still alive. They were the protagonists of the trial that caused a stir across the country. However, they did not want their names to be associated with Evely¡¯s name. They wanted their daughter to receive all their wealth, rather than be the descendant of a family full of dishonor. ¡°They also left you thesest words.¡± Evely epted the paper and read it with a lump in her throat. ¡ª We love you, we will love you forever. We would never abandon you, so if you thought that, we ask you to forget it. We couldn¡¯t protect you while we were alive, but we promise to protect you from beyond. Evely looked up as she silently shed tears. The estate administrator extended a handkerchief to her with a sad smile. Chapter 386 Chapter 386. Someone To Trust (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Back in the Western Pce, Rashta¡¯s hands trembled as she pulled at her hair. She never expected that the Isqua couple would betray her. The attempt to deceive the emperor was an extremely serious crime, which could not bepared to the attempt to kill Evely. For that reason, the High Court Judge sentenced them to death on the spot. The sentence could only be overturnedter if a paternity test showed that Rashta was their daughter, after all. ¡®It won¡¯t be overturned.¡¯ Rashta shook her head. She knew that she was not their real daughter, so she was clear about the result if a paternity test were to be done. The sentence would definitely not be overturned. Now, there was only one possible scenario. The Isquas would die as evil and miserable fallen nobles who conspired with the emperor¡¯s concubine to deceive him, and Rashta would¡­ ¡°No! No!¡± Rashta screamed and knocked over the tea set. It shattered with a loud thud, but she paid no attention. Rashta found it hard to breathe. She could not believe it. Her charges would bepounded by Viscount and Viscountess Isqua¡¯s scandalous confessions. ¡®Because of lies told by that scum!¡¯ It was a serious crime to deceive the emperor by iming Rashta¡¯s daughter was his biological child, but now, their marriage was seen as a ruse nned by Rashta. Part of her life had quickly been exposed as a sham. ¡°No! No! It isn¡¯t true! That bastard Sovieshu was the one who asked me to marry him!¡± Rashta screamed, pushed the table and kicked the chair. ¡°Duke Elgy was the one who brought the Isqua couple!¡± She clenched her fist, kicked the bed in fury, bit a pillow and threw it on the floor. ¡°Viscount Roteschu is a bloody bastard! I won¡¯t be satisfied even if I personally torture him to death! I should have killed him! I should have killed him!¡± Her anger did not subside no matter how much she screamed, writhed, pulled her hair and sobbed. ¡®Viscount Roteschu was always a filthy piece of trash. But I really did love the Isqua couple. I even came to wish they were my real parents.¡¯ Their betrayal became a spear lodged in her heart. Rashta fell to her knees and sobbed. ¡®Why does everyone betray me? Why is everyone so mean to me? Why doesn¡¯t anyone support me?¡¯ Rashta remembered how the people cursed as they threw eggs and fruits at the trial of Viscount Roteschu and n. And then she remembered the horrible voices that cried out for Empress Rashta to be sentenced with them at once¡­ Eventually, her fear became stronger than her anger. ¡°I must run away. Baron Lant¡¯s suggestion to flee makes sense now. I can¡¯t stay here any longer. Everyone mes Rashta!¡± Rashta desperately called out to Arian, her most experienced maid. Although Rashta didn¡¯t trust her, she couldn¡¯t leave the Western Pce on her own. Only Baron Lant could help her flee, so she had to call him. ¡°Your Majesty?!¡± Arian was startled to see the room turned upside down. Rashta, her eyes filled with tears, made a request. ¡°Baron Lant¡­ Call Baron Lant. Please hurry!¡± Arian hesitated a moment, but then she left. Rashta wasn¡¯t sure whether Arian would do this for her, but after a while Baron Lant arrived. As soon as Rashta was alone with Baron Lant, she clutched at his clothes in tears and pleaded with him. ¡°I¡¯m afraid. I¡¯m afraid, Baron Lant. Everyone mes me for their own mistakes. Everyone tries to take me down to save themselves. At this rate, I will definitely be sentenced to death. I don¡¯t want to die. I don¡¯t want to die! Please help me flee! Get me out of here! Please!¡± Baron Lant raised his hands awkwardly with a troubled expression. His suggestion a few days ago had been impulsive, when he thought of the innocent Rashta from her days as concubine, but now he hade to his senses. He still felt sorry for her, but there were too many factors to take into ount and he could not act onpassion alone. Besides, the current situation was worse than a few days ago, when he suggested that she run away. ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°Please, Baron Lant. Please.¡± As Baron Lant hesitated, Rashta looked at him with pleading eyes like a puppy¡¯s. She looked so pitiful that it would make anyone¡¯s heart shudder. Her ck eyes looked like those of a trapped animal. ¡°I can¡¯t help you all the way, but¡­ I¡¯ll help you leave the capital.¡± In the end, Baron Lant eded. Although he could have turned a deaf ear to Rashta¡¯s request, he felt that he would have nightmares for the rest of his life if he didn¡¯t help her. ¡°Thank you! Thank you so much!¡± ¡°We must get out of here right now.¡± ¡°But the knights will prevent me from leaving the Western Pce.¡± ¡°I can distract the knights for a while. It¡¯s not easy, but once is enough to seed, so hurry up and take all your money.¡± Rashta didn¡¯t have much money left. When she asked the Isquas to leave, she offered them most of the jewelry she had. Rashta never had direct ess to funds as Empress, so she couldn¡¯t use them. ¡°Wait a few minutes.¡± Still, Rashta began to search every corner of the room. In a ce where she would have no connections, identity or rtives, only money could help her. So she decided to take anything that could be used as money. ¡°I¡¯ll go ahead to make the necessary preparations¡­¡± Baron Lant had already prepared a carriage for Rashta a few days ago. He nced at his watch. ¡°In 30 minutes, I will have the knights abandon their posts at the gate of the Western Pce. Go out that way, head for the corridor and continue straight ahead.¡± ¡°Alright.¡± ¡°Dress as you normally would until you reach the gate. Once outside, put on a cloak to cover your clothes and your face.¡± Baron Lant left the room. She was still busily moving about, collecting jewelry and valuables. At the same time, she kept an eye on the time. Rashta left the room 15 minutester. She calcted that it would be better to leave now, even if she hadn¡¯t yet collected all her valuables, rather than run out of time. However, she was surprised as she entered the drawing room. Arian seemed to be waiting for her. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say¡­ you were going to do theundry?¡± Rashta stammered and examined Arian, whose expression was stiff, not her usual obedient, calm expression. As soon as Rashta saw her, she guessed that Arian had made an important decision. ¡®She¡¯s clearly going to rat me out.¡¯ Rashta¡¯s face became pale as she stared menacingly at Arian. Arian advised her, worried, ¡°Your Majesty, if you run away, it will only make your situation worse. It will be better if you face the usations.¡± However, Rashta believed that Arian had ulterior motives. ¡®Since when does she care about me?¡¯ Arian didn¡¯t even dissuade the maids when they stopped obeying Rashta. If it hadn¡¯t been for the article about how often Rashta reced her maids, she would have immediately reassigned Arian or fired her. Rashta was surprised that she now spoke to her like this. ¡°Your Majesty, you must defend yourself if you did nothing wrong. Otherwise, you must pay the price. It is not a good idea to run away.¡± Chapter 387 Chapter 387. Someone To Trust (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Arian tried to dissuade her once more, but Rashta answered in tears, ¡°You say that because you weren¡¯t at the High Court! You don¡¯t know how furious everyone is! Nobody will listen to me! I¡¯m scared!¡± Arian stared at Rashta in silence for a moment, then sighed and took a step back. ¡°Then leave quickly, Your Majesty. I¡¯ll pretend I didn¡¯t see you.¡± Rashta wiped away her tears as she looked at Arian in amazement. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll pretend I didn¡¯t see Your Majesty flee. ¡­ Leave, quickly.¡± Rashta stared stunned at Arian. ¡®Really? Does she really mean it?¡¯ Rashta found it strange that Arian, who had just told her not to run away, suddenly changed her mind. She didn¡¯t take her eyes off Arian, who looked down at the floor. ¡°Thank you. Thank you.¡± Rashta murmured and headed for the door. ¡®No.¡¯ However, Rashta stopped when she grabbed the doorknob and narrowed her eyes. ¡®Arian only acts like this to save her own skin.¡¯ Rashta remembered all those who betrayed her. Each person whom she had trusted because she thought they would be different from the others had let her down. From n, whom she believed to be kind, to Sovieshu, her savior. And now Arian wanted to help her? A maid with whom she didn¡¯t even have a close rtionship? ¡®Of course not. As soon as I leave, she¡¯ll go straight to His Majesty and tell him that I ran away. That¡¯s the reason why she seems meek.¡¯ After thinking about it, Rashta turned around, cautiously took out the dagger she had hidden in her sleeve and held it tightly behind her back. ¡°Arian¡­ thank you so much.¡± Then she walked slowly over to Arian with tears in her eyes. *** When Rashta arrived at the entrance of the Western Pce at the time indicated by Baron Lant, she didn¡¯t see any knights. Judging from the bustle nearby, it seemed that Baron Lant had used some trick to force them to chase after someone else. As soon as Rashta stepped out of the Western Pce, she put on a loose cloak and hid her face with the hood. She crossed the gardens and reached the nearby corridor indicated by Baron Lant. The sunlight overhead was blocked and all was silent. As she walked straight ahead, she saw a carriage ready to leave at the end of the corridor. ¡°This way.¡± Baron Lant called softly to her from inside the carriage. Rashta ran quickly, opened the carriage door and copsed on the seat, trying to catch her breath. Her hands were shaking. She still felt the horrifying sensation of piercing flesh in her fingertips. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Yes? Yes?¡± ¡± I smell blood¡­ are you all right?¡± ¡°I was discovered on the way here, so I had a little fight¡­¡± When Rashta spoke with trembling lips, Baron Lant asked no more questions. Instead, he removed the cover from the seat in front of him. Rashta watched with her arms wrapped around her trembling body. She felt mild curiosity as to why he had removed the seat cover. ¡°Your Majesty. Please step in here.¡± ¡°In here?¡± When Rashta asked in surprise, Baron Lant quickly replied ¡°yes¡±. ¡°Navier must have used this method to escape. It seems simple, but no one thinks to search here unless a thorough carriage inspection is conducted. Most carriages do not have hollow seat interiors because bandits could attack the carriages from underneath.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± The space inside the seat seemed cramped and ufortable, but Rashta quickly got in and curled up. Baron Lant put the seat cover back on. After a while, the carriage began to move slowly. It was not easy to stay cooped up alone in a dark space. Every time the carriage rattled, Rashta¡¯s heart sank and she clutched her knees tighter. To shake off her fears, she forced herself to think of hopeful things. ¡®If I get out of here¡­ at least I won¡¯t be a ve again. I¡¯ll sell the valuables I brought to buy a little house. What else can I do¡­? I can do anything. Mind you, I won¡¯t fall in love again. I won¡¯t trust other people either¡­ How long have I been in the carriage like this?¡¯ ¡°Are we out of the capital yet?¡± Baron Lant answered quietly, ¡°Yes, we have left the capital. We are halfway to our destination. You can rest assured.¡± Rashta sighed with relief and tears slid down her cheeks. ¡°When we reach the next town, I¡¯ll find a coachman to take Your Majesty to another country and I¡¯ll return at once. If I stay away from my post for too long, it will arouse suspicion.¡± Rashta curled up further into the dark space and thanked Baron Lant several times. ¡®But¡­ can I really trust Baron Lant? He¡¯s a secretary to His Majesty Sovieshu. He won¡¯t feel remorse and rat me out?¡¯ Although the situation became a little safer, she began to feel in danger again. ¡®If Sovieshu trusts Baron Lant, could Baron Lant be someone I could trust?¡¯ At that moment, a loud rattle was heard and the carriage abruptly came to a halt. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ Rashta remained quiet with her eyes wide open. Her heartbeat was so loud that she couldn¡¯t hear the noises outside. Slowly, the voices from outside became clearer. Rashta heard Baron Lant arguing with another man. ¡®Isn¡¯t that¡­ Duke Tuania¡¯s voice?¡¯ She had no time to be surprised by the unexpected voice as she suddenly felt as if the carriage was tilting. Startled, Rashta removed her hands from her knees and tried to hold herself steady against the inside of the seat. The carriage, which had tippedpletely to one side, fell with a loud thud. Rashta was unable to stand firm and fell sideways. She struggled to use both hands to remove the seat cover. However, she had been left in a most ufortable position and she couldn¡¯t move properly as the inside of the seat was so cramped that she had no room to move. However, she knew that staying in the carriage was unsafe amid themotion outside. ¡°I said there¡¯s no one inside!¡± ¡°Is there no one? Do you mean that my knights can safely pierce the entire carriage with their spears?¡± ¡°Duke Tuania, you can¡¯t touch someone else¡¯s carriage without permission!¡± ¡°Huh? When did you be so naive, Baron Lant?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t do it! You can¡¯t do it!¡± ¡°I¡¯ll pay for the damages! Knights, pierce the carriage with your spears!¡± ¡°As youmand, Sir!¡± Without first inspecting the interior of the carriage, Duke Tuania ordered his knights to attack the carriage. Rashta panicked and desperately tried to get out of the cramped space but she slipped. Her hands were shaking. At that moment, the sharp point of a spear pierced the top of the seat, above Rashta¡¯s head. ¡°Aaaahh!¡± Rashta screamed in terror. As Rashta screamed, many more spears pierced the carriage from different directions with immense force. There was not the slightest mercy in the men who pierced the carriage. As soon as one of them aimed towards the bottom of the carriage, she was sure to be stabbed to death. ¡°Get me out! Get me out! There¡¯s someone inside! Get me out!¡± As soon as Rashta screamed, the attack on the carriage stopped. Rashta sobbed. Shortly after, the door mmed open and severalrge hands pulled her from inside the seat. When Rashta saw the situation outside, her whole body shuddered. Knights surrounded her on all sides. Baron Lant was pinned to the ground. He seemed to have been beaten as he tried to stop the knights. But Rashta¡¯s attention was soon directed to Duke Tuania, who had a cruel smile on his face. ¡°I lost my wife because of you. I¡¯ve been waiting for the day I could get revenge ever since I found out what you did, Rashta.¡± Rashta turned pale and stumbled back. Let me¡­ Please let me go!¡± Chapter 388 Chapter 388. Rashta¡¯s Despair (1) ¡°How is Arian?¡± ¡°I did my best to treat her, but her condition remains critical because she was stabbed in the lungs.¡± ¡°You must save her.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Just in case, look for the mage Evely. I heard that girl has healing magic.¡± ¡°All right.¡± Shortly after the pce doctor left, Sovieshu walked out of his office, followed by Marquis Karl and some knights. Sovieshu went to a tower attached to the Imperial Pce. Their steps echoed as they climbed the narrow spiral staircase. ¡°Good thing Your Majesty decided to keep an eye on Baron Lant.¡± Marquis Karl spoke, relieved, but Sovieshu didn¡¯t answer. Then Marquis Karl sighed and added, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that the maid Arian would try to help Rashta in the end.¡± *** The third trade team reported via carrier pigeon that they had arrived in Rwibt and began trade negotiations. With their arrival, all three teams that departed from different locations of the Western Empire and headed to different parts of Rwibt hadpleted the initial journey sessfully and began trading. The first and second trade teams had performed well, so unless there were anyst minute surprises, the third trade team was expected to achieve simr sess.. Kapmen closed his eyes, folded the letter and put it in his pocket. His aim to establish trade between the Wol Continent and the Hwa Continent advanced fast, like a sailboat with favorable winds. ¡®But why does my heart feel so empty? Why isn¡¯t my joy greater when others congratte me? If I am honest with myself, it makes no sense for me to still wonder. I know the reason, but I can¡¯t find a solution. Sometimes I think it would be better if I left, but thest time I walked away from Empress Navier, nothing changed. It only caused me more pain.¡¯ After the incident at the wedding, Kapmen had learned what could happen if his pain grew too much. Recently, he even started to think that it would be better for Navier¡¯s sake if he died. Kapmen sighed, rose from his seat and walked to therge garden located in the outermost part of the Imperial Pce. He decided to distract himself with a walk outdoors. [Damn. Who the hell saved the Empress with ice magic?] Kapmen¡¯s footsteps stopped. He looked back with a stiff expression. Unlike the main pce of Rwibt, which was strictly controlled, ess to the main pce of the various countries of the Wol Continent was rtively free. From what Kapmen had seen, although there were certain differences from country to country, generally the spaces where important state affairs were dealt with and the residences of the ruling family were strictly guarded, while therge outdoor gardens were more essible. The garden of the Western Empire¡¯s Imperial Pce was like arge park that all kinds of people could ess. [Will the Empress¡¯ child be a boy or a girl?] [Is there any chance that Nian will leave Viscount Langdel for me¡­?] [I hope that the Eastern Empire will be destroyed by internal conflicts¡­] [Old Duke Zemensia has sunk, but he still acts with arrogance.] Kapmen heard the inner voice of many people from all directions. It was hard to identify the person who wondered about the person who saved Empress Navier with ice magic. Kapmen hurried out of the garden and went to speak with the detective who handled the case of the servant whose legs were frozen when he tried to approach the Empress Navier. ¡°I would like to meet with the detective on the case Empress Navier was involved in.¡± Although he managed to meet with the detective, the man was reluctant to talk about the progress of the investigation. ¡°Grand Duke, I hope you are not offended. I am not at liberty to reveal the details of the case. You need approval from someone with authority to disclose this information.¡± He was a distinguished guest, but no detective would want to show the progress of an investigation rted to the Empress of the Western Empire, much less to a foreigner. But there was another reason, the detective didn¡¯t want him to know that no progress had been made. It could be a dishonor to the Western Empire. ¡°I understand.¡± Kapmen nodded calmly and left. The detective was relieved. Although he tly refused, he was secretly nervous because of Kapmen¡¯s distinguished status. However, the detective would not have been relieved if he had been able to read Kapmen¡¯s mind. ¡®Nothing has been found out.¡¯ This was because Kapmen had already confirmed how far the investigation had progressed through his thoughts. The servant still imed that he epted the money, but not with the intent to harm the Empress. He was merely interested in the money, but insisted he would never have epted it if that person had shown bad intentions. The person who offered him the money had his face covered by the hood of his cloak, so he didn¡¯t know who it was. ¡®I think it would be better to meet personally with the servant¡­¡¯ [Is it possible that he doesn¡¯t know what happened?] At that moment, it seemed to him that he heard the same voice he heard in the garden earlier, the voice that prompted him to consult with the detective. The voice stopped at the same time Kapmen halted. ¡°I¡¯m not sure. But it sounds like the same voice.¡± Kapmen slowly turned around. *** Sovieshu stopped at the top of the tower stairs before a massive iron door, and knocked. Soon after, the door opened from the inside and a woman peeked out and greeted him politely. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± It was Delise. She looked thin and emaciated, although she wasn¡¯t ill. She spoke with her mouth unnaturally narrowed. ¡°You won¡¯t suffer anymore.¡± Sovieshu spoke to Delise sympathetically. He then signaled to one of the knights. At the signal, the knight extended a bag in his hands to Delise. She was startled as she took the bag and checked the contents. It was filled with shiny gold coins. When she looked at Sovieshu with wide eyes, he nodded. ¡°She can¡¯t hurt you anymore. Go home now.¡± Delise¡¯s eyes twitched with excitement. ¡°Yes¡­ Yes¡­¡± Then Delise squeezed the bag between her hands and bowed in thanks with aplicated expression. ¡°Thank you. For saving me. For hiding me.¡± Delise descended the tower with wobbly steps. Once outside, Sovieshu tried to have a knight escort her, but she repeatedly refused and left by herself. During her time in the tower, even when she took a walk around the area at dusk, an imperial knight was always by her side to protect her. Although she was grateful, she also felt overwhelmed. She seemed to want to be alone to enjoy her freedom. Sovieshu watched Delise¡¯s back as she walked away and issued an order in a low voice. ¡°There is likely to be amotion outside the Imperial Pce. It may be dangerous, so make sure she returns home safely, but follow her from a distance so as not to disturb her.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The knight, who was often tasked with escorting Delise, nodded and followed her discreetly. Once the two had disappeared from his sight, Sovieshu returned to his office. Marquis Karl, who remained silent all the way back to the office, asked him a question, ¡°Your Majesty, why did you leave Rashta¡¯s escape to Duke Tuania? It is possible that Duke Tuania may try to harm her before the trial.¡± ¡°With Baron Lant present, Duke Tuania will not harm her, no matter how angry he is.¡± ¡°Still¡­ wouldn¡¯t it have been better to send Count Pirnu?¡± ¡°Duke Tuania is an idiot.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡®As idiotic as I am,¡¯ Sovieshu answered only inwardly. The temple would never invalidate his marriage to Rashta. Even if it did, it would be impossible to undo the divorce with Navier. She became the Empress of the Western Empire and was pregnant with the sessor of that country. There was no way for Navier to return to his side. No matter how much he missed her, no matter how much he cared for her, no matter how much he cried and pleaded, not even if Navier changed her mind, she would never again be his wife. The fact that Empress Navier remarried as soon as she got divorced astonished everyone, but if she were to leave her second husband to return to her first one, it would irreparably damage her reputation. Even more so now that she was pregnant by the Emperor of the Western Empire. He did not want Navier to suffer public ridicule foring back to his side. Although sometimes he wished that Navier woulde back no matter the consequences, he knew it was a delusion. Duke Tuania was a lot like him. He lost his beloved wife due to his idiocy. Sovieshu became angry every time he saw Duke Tuania because he saw himself reflected in the Duke. He left it up to Duke Tuania to catch Rashta because he wanted at least one of them to be able to feel better. There was no other reason. Chapter 389 Chapter 389. Rashta¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Meanwhile, Delise walked with a spring in her step after she finally left the Imperial Pce. She was overjoyed to be free again. Although the tower had windows from which she could see the sky up close, the sky looked much more beautiful when seen from outside. Moreover, on the way out of the Imperial Pce, she ran into Marquis Farang, who handed a document to her. This document gave her indescribable pleasure. As she walked, she heard angry voices on the main street. It sounded like a there was a violentmotion. ¡®Is it a gang fight?¡¯ Delise hesitated and cocked her head as she thought about taking another route. ¡°Imprison the Empress!¡± ¡°What Empress? She tried to flee after her lies were discovered. How can she call herself the Empress?!¡± ¡°Look at her filthy face!¡± ¡°The so-called hope of themoners turned out to be a con artist!¡± When Delise listened carefully, she could make out some of the shouts. As soon as she heard the word ¡®Empress¡¯, two faces came to her mind. Empress Navier¡¯s face and Empress Rashta¡¯s. Themotion moved closer and closer in her direction. Two knights had a person forcibly held by the arms, while themoners surrounded them. It seemed that their curses and merciless usations were directed against that person. When the curious procession came close, Delise saw one of the Empresses she had in mind. She was the second Empress. A very beautiful Empress with an angelic face, pure silver hair, and bright ck eyes full of sadness. The Empress that Delise had once loved and admired¡­ Incredibly, amid the crowd, Rashta¡¯s eyes fell immediately on Delise. Rashta wasn¡¯t handcuffed, but she couldn¡¯t move freely because the knights held her arms tightly. Even if she managed to get rid of the knights, she was surrounded bymoners who seemed eager to attack her. She had no escape. However, Rashta¡¯s pride seemed hurt when she saw Delise walking freely. She stared at Delise with pursed lips. Delise approached Rashta step by step, but it was difficult in therge crowd of people surrounding the Empress. When Delise felt close enough, she grinned broadly and stuck out her tongue. Her tongue had been cut in half. It was barely attached and looked as if it would detach at any moment. *** ¡°Rashta fainted?¡± Sovieshu, who was in the office, raised an eyebrow at Count Pirnu¡¯s report. ¡°Was she hurt by the people?¡± Before Count Pirnu could reply, Sovieshu¡¯s thoughts turned in another direction. ¡°No. She must have been surprised that themoners, who always greeted her with cheers and adoration, insulted and cursed her.¡± ¡°It seems there was another reason.¡± Count Pirnu recalled what Rashta murmured several times while unconscious, ¡®Stick it on. I¡¯m sorry. You have to stick it on. No, don¡¯t rip it off.¡¯ It was clear that she had seen something horrible. Sovieshu coincidentally thought of Delise. ¡®Maybe they crossed paths?¡¯ When Sovieshu learned that Rashta had ordered Delise¡¯s tongue cut out, he quickly sent someone to stop it. But half of Delise¡¯s tongue had already been cut out. He even asked Evely to try to heal her once he discovered that she had healing magic, but Evely couldn¡¯t undo the action. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Count Pirnu asked the thoughtful Sovieshu, ¡°Every time Rashta seems to regain consciousness, she calls out to Your Majesty. What are you going to do?¡± Sovieshu spoke firmly, ¡°Forget about it.¡± He didn¡¯t want to see Rashta¡¯s face. Sovieshu pitied Rashta even when she smiled. Due to her pitiful life since birth, whenever she pleaded with him in tears, Sovieshu felt an inexplicable pressure in his chest. Only when he didn¡¯t see her face or was with a group of people could he assess her crimes coldly. ¡°Just report back to me when she recovers.¡± But in less than a minute, Sovieshu changed his mind. ¡°No. I¡¯ll see her personally.¡± ¡®I¡¯ll have to talk to her at some point anyway.¡¯ There was still a little time left before the trial started, so it would be better to talk now. *** Rashta¡¯s room was decorated with a harmoniousbination of soft cream, warm purple and splendid gold. It looked somewhere out of a fairy-tale. Any child would believe that a prince or princess lived there, happily ever after. There was a time when this ce was full of happiness andughter, but now it was darker than ever. There was no happily ever after. The room wasn¡¯t cold, but it wasn¡¯t warm either. Inside, Rashta was surrounded by the pce doctor, some knights and maids, all devoid of sympathy for the Empress. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± When Sovieshu entered, everyone present greeted him politely. Sovieshu immediately asked the pce doctor. ¡°How is she?¡± ¡°She has minor bruises, but otherwise she¡¯s fine. It looks like she had a bad shock.¡± Sovieshu waved his hand for everyone to leave the room. Once the knights, the maids and the pce doctor had left, Sovieshu said coldly as he looked at Rashta, ¡°Stop pretending to be asleep.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re awake.¡± Rashta¡¯s eyelids fluttered open, revealing her ck eyes. She sat up in bed and looked at Sovieshu with resentment. Tears slowly gathered in her eyes. ¡°Running away was not a good decision.¡± ¡°It was you who cornered me so that I had no choice but to run away.¡± ¡°Me? It was your decision, Rashta.¡± ¡°I was locked in here, so I didn¡¯t know what was going on outside. Even the maids didn¡¯t tell me. I wouldn¡¯t have escaped if Your Majesty hadn¡¯t made me watch the trial of Viscount Roteschu and the trial of the Isquas¡­¡± Rashta paused as she spoke, startled, and asked Sovieshu in a shaky voice. ¡°Did you do it on purpose? Did you want to scare me into running away?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°You lie! That exins it all!¡± ¡°You always me others. You should at least take responsibility for your actions, Rashta.¡± ¡°What about Your Majesty? Don¡¯t you me me, too?¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°I have seen Your Majesty cry and repeatedly call out to Navier. Your Majesty now wants to make Rashta pay for your decision to divorce that woman, right?¡± Chapter 390 Chapter 390. I Will Not Sink Alone (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Sovieshu stood up with a sigh. ¡°I have never said that bing Empress was your fault. I know it¡¯s my fault. I¡¯m the only one to me that my marriage with Navier is over. I¡¯m the only one to me for believing in you.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯ll be punished for all the crimes you¡¯vemitted, Rashta. When will you acknowledge it?¡± ¡°What have I done?!¡± ¡°You really don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°Well, it doesn¡¯t matter if you don¡¯t know. Where you¡¯re going, you don¡¯t need to have an answer.¡± Sovieshu spoke coldly and walked towards the door. Rashta, who wasining indignantly, got out of bed frightened by Sovieshu¡¯s words. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. Wait a moment.¡± She hurriedly ran over, knelt down and grabbed Sovieshu around the waist. ¡°I will not oppose my deposition. I will ept the divorce at once. But please let Glorym and I live quietly, somewhere secluded in the countryside. Please, I don¡¯t want to go to trial. I¡¯m afraid of the people.¡± Sovieshu looked down. Her white hands trembled pitifully. However, he shook her off. ¡°It¡¯s absurd to ask for a deal after all you¡¯ve done, Rashta.¡± She copsed helplessly to the floor, screaming, her facepletely red. ¡°I¡¯m innocent! It¡¯s unjust for me to be punished! It¡¯s Your Majesty who should be punished for your crimes!¡± ¡°The High Court will list every one of your crimes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll reveal yours!¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Your Majesty deceived everyone because you always knew I was a runaway ve! I¡¯ll tell all! Why not talk if I¡¯m going to die anyway? I¡¯ll tell it all!¡± Rashta screamed at the top of her lungs, but Sovieshu didn¡¯t even flinch. ¡°Tell it.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you say so because there¡¯s no proof. If people believe you, I will be seen as a foolish Emperor who was blinded by love. But that¡¯s all. In time, it will be forgotten.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Instead, shouldn¡¯t you think of your children?¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± ¡°Actually, your son will be a ve, regardless of what you reveal about me.¡± Rashta was bewildered and asked, frightened, ¡°What do you mean? Why will Ahn be a ve? What did Ahn do?¡± ¡°The child will have to pay for his parents¡¯ crimes.¡± Rashta had no affection for Ahn. At least, that was what she used to think. But now, despair filled her heart and she felt unbearable pain. Although Rashta didn¡¯t love Ahn as much as she loved Glorym, she didn¡¯t want Ahn to suffer. ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are! I don¡¯t recognize you! You¡¯re worse than Duke Elgy! You¡¯re a damned bastard! How can you do this?!¡± Sovieshu easily dodged Rashta, who rushed at him, her face distorted with pain and rage. He opened the door and walked out. From behind the closed door, helpless screams, like those of a trapped animal, could be heard. *** The day of Empress Rashta¡¯s trial had finally arrived. The sky was a dull gray and people flocked to the High Court to witness the historic trial in an uneasy mood, their minds were in turmoil. A woman of iparable beauty who managed to captivate the Emperor and oust a worthy Empress. The Empress who tried to deceive the Emperor so that her daughter, born of her lover, would be a princess. The Empress who tried to kill an innocent woman for fear that the Emperor would fix his eyes on her. The Empress who gave up a port because of a handsome foreign Duke with whom she fell in love.The Empress who was caught trying to escape. Although they were d that Empress Rashta would finally be punished, this was the same Empress Rashta who was once praised and loved as the ¡®hope of themoners.¡¯ For a brief time, she had been the light they longed for. She turned out to be a false hope. Count Pirnu, who hated Rashta, was also not very cheerful. However, it wasn¡¯t because of Rashta¡¯s downfall. It was because two Empresses had to leave the throne in a short time. Given the current scenario, the next Empress would definitely not be amoner. The highest position that someone without Imperial blood could aspire to was that of Empress of the Eastern Empire. Just thinking about the number of noble families that wouldpete fiercely to elevate their daughters to that honorable position was already a headache. Count Pirnu had a pen and paper to record the results of today¡¯s trial. Of course, there are people in charge of that, but he intended to record today¡¯s events in his own way. ¡°Count Pirnu.¡± The Count¡¯s busy hand stopped when Sovieshu spoke. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Where is Navier? Has she arrived?¡± Count Pirnu didn¡¯t have an answer. Fortunately, Marquis Karl, who had just entered, answered instead. ¡°Your Majesty. Empress Navier arrived at the Troby Mansionst night.¡± ¡°At the Troby Mansion?¡± ¡°The Duchess Troby, Empress Navier and Emperor Heinley arrived directly at the mansion.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression became anxious. ¡°Will she attend the trial?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, as I reported to you earlier, Empress Navier intends to observe discreetly, so it is best not to seek her out.¡± ¡°Does that mean I¡¯ll see her among the general audience? Or will she sit among the nobility?¡± ¡°About that¡­¡± Marquis Karl tried not to speak inappropriately. However, how long could he politely evade what Emperor Sovieshu actually wanted to know? Eventually, he couldn¡¯t hold back any longer. ¡°Your Majesty. Empress Navier didn¡¯te here as representative of the Western Empire, but as Your Majesty¡¯s ex-wife. Please refrain from asking about the details.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression stiffened. Chapter 391 Chapter 391. I Will Not Sink Alone (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Count Pirnu pretended to be busy and hurried out of the office with his belongings. Marquis Karl looked down as he reproached himself, ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have responded that way¡¯. Sovieshu¡¯s lips moved several times, but in the end he couldn¡¯t say a word. Soon after, he suddenly asked with a frown, ¡°What about Duke Elgy? Is he still in the capital?¡± Once the port case became public, Sovieshu officially notified Duke Elgy to leave the Imperial Pce. In the past, Duke Elgy was allowed to stay in the Southern Pce in ordance with the customs and reputation of a powerful country like the Eastern Empire. Now that there was an open confrontation between Sovieshu and Duke Elgy, there was no need to keep up appearances. But although Elgy had caused a scandal and was asked to leave the Pce, he remained in the capital. Sovieshu didn¡¯t understand what he really wanted to achieve. As long as Duke Elgy remained in the Eastern Empire, he would be criticized by nobles andmoners alike. Duke Elgy¡¯s actions made Sovieshu uneasy. ¡°Yes, he has been quiet since he met with Viscountess Verdi.¡± ¡°With Viscountess Verdi¡­¡± Sovieshu narrowed his eyes. A few days ago, one of his spies reported that Duke Elgy had met with Viscountess Verdi and suggested that she should flee to another country with Princess Glorym. Sovieshu didn¡¯t trust Duke Elgy, but he found his suggestion so interesting that he left him alone. If Duke Elgy helped Viscountess Verdi flee, he intended to rece Duke Elgy¡¯s subordinates on the way with his own subordinates, who would take Glorym to a safe ce. Glorym was too much like Rashta to be raised as a noble in the Eastern Empire. Sovieshu could not bear to see Glorym raised by another family in the Eastern Empire, nor could he bear to see her face turn into Rashta¡¯s. He didn¡¯t have the confidence to show her love like before. However, the moments he spent by her side would not be easily erased from his heart because he truly loved Glorym. He loved the cute little angel who smiled at him while making strange sounds, like ¡®aba, aba¡¯. Since Glorym¡¯s parents are criminals, Glorym was doomed to be a ve, just like Ahn. But Sovieshu couldn¡¯t see the girl he considered his daughter turned into a ve. Since he pitied her situation, he could make an exception for her to live as amoner. But would the girl be able to bear the look of contempt from others once she grew up? For that reason, he intended to give her the identity of a daughter belonging to a small noble family from another country, granting her the money necessary for her to live carefree for the rest of her life. With this, he would have done the best he could for her welfare and the pain he felt every time he thought of that girl would disappear. At least that¡¯s what Sovieshu believed. ¡°How long until the trial begins?¡± ¡°About two hours to go, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Well, I¡¯ll go rest for half an hour.¡± With a heavy sigh, Sovieshu left his office and went upstairs to his bedroom. Once inside, he sat on the bed and gazed with tear-filled eyes at Navier¡¯s painting and his daughter¡¯s painting. When he closed his eyes, tears streamed down his cheeks. *** It was during our stay at the first inn after we crossed the border into the Eastern Empire that I realized that the trial might be more harsh than I expected. It was there that I learned about the port case and the confessions of Viscount Roteschu and the Isqua couple at their High Court trials. ¡®Will Rivetti be alright?¡¯ The sentences had not yet been carried out and Rivetti¡¯s name had not appeared in the newspapers. Still, I felt worried ever since I read that Viscount Roteschu and his son would be executed. I couldn¡¯t help but wonder what had happened to Rivetti, the girl who cried inconsbly in front of me when she heard about my divorce. I decided to ask someone to look for her. ¡®I hope she¡¯s alright.¡¯ I was sitting at the dressing table looking at myself in the mirror as I reflected on what was happening in the Eastern Empire. At that moment, Heinley knocked on the door. ¡°Are you ready, My Queen?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Heinley entered dressed as an ordinary young noble. He was wearing a dark cloak with a hood that he could use to hide his face. The cloak was lined with only gold edges. It was inpared to Heinley¡¯s usual style. I guess I looked the same way, since I was wearing a simr cloak, only in a different color. If Rivetti is found, I¡¯ll receive a message from Troby Mansion. McKenna had decided to stay at the Mansion, so at least I¡¯ll be well informed. ¡°Are you sure you want to go?¡± Heinley asked me one more time before we climbed into the carriage. It was a modest carriage and didn¡¯t even have the Imperial Family¡¯s crest on it. I just nodded. Rashta and Sovieshu were the two people who hurt me the most. As the Emperor, Sovieshu was responsible for our divorce¡­ but that didn¡¯t mean I didn¡¯t also hate Rashta. Even if I felt ufortable at the trial, I wanted to see Rashta fall from the position of Empress. I remembered how Rashta looked at me with a smile the moment the High Priest mentioned Sovieshu¡¯s divorce request in front of everyone, and the moment I agreed to step down from my position as Empress of the Eastern Empire. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± ¡°If you feel overwhelmed or just don¡¯t want to continue watching, let me know immediately. The knights will be waiting outside, ready to leave at once.¡± We arrived at the High Court. There were already many people around, so no one focused their attention on us. We sat in the back of the seating area for the nobility. Some people looked at us, but turned their heads again without paying much attention. After a while, the door inside the High Court opened and Sovieshu appeared. When Sovieshu entered, the people gathered to witness the trial bowed. He raised his hand in greeting and sat down on his throne. Shortly after, Rashta entered through the same door, escorted by two knights, one on either side of her. I recognized one of the knights. He knelt before me when I left my room to face the divorce. Rashta sat quietly next to Sovieshu. Heinley held my hand to give me strength. Then, the High Court Judge entered and stopped in front of his seat. The audience fell silent at that instant. The Judge looked around for a moment and spoke firmly. ¡°We will begin the trial of Empress Rashta for the alleged deception of the Imperial Family, as well as for other crimes.¡± *** The first witnesses to take the stand were Viscount Roteschu and the Isqua couple. They had been sentenced to death, but there was no news of their execution. It seems that they were kept in prison. They reiterated the statements they had made at the previous trial. Although the audience already knew their testimony, the reaction was as if they were hearing it for the first time. Rashta watched them testify with a somber expression. n was the only one whose testimony deviated. ¡°I don¡¯t know anything, Your Honor! I really don¡¯t know, Your Majesty! Even if it¡¯ s true, it was plotted by Rashta and my father. I really wasn¡¯t involved!¡± As n shouted, Viscount Roteschu closed his eyes regretfully and Rashta clenched the armrests of her throne tightly. ¡°I don¡¯t like that woman either, but that man is even more despicable¡­¡± Heinley muttered and clicked his tongue. He wasn¡¯t the only one, as all around us voices could be heard criticizing n. Even amidst the uproar, Rashta stared nkly at the witnesses. After all four testified, the next person to appear was the President of the Bear Corporation? ¡®Why is he here? ¡­ Ah, It¡¯s because of the promissory notes.¡¯ ¡°Empress Rashta wanted to use promissory notes issued by our Corporation to support numerous institutions, such as orphanages and nursing homes. But after several investigations, we discovered that those promissory notes did not belong to Her Majesty Rashta, but to Empress Navier.¡± As I expected, it was rted to my promissory notes. Because I declined to testify, the President of the Bear Corporation himself appeared. ¡°There was an article in themoners¡¯ newspaper that raised suspicions about this a while back. So, was it true?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°You kept silent at the time. Why are you revealing it now?¡± ¡°At that time, public support for Empress Rashta was too strong and her position as Empress solid, so I considered that my Corporation would be the only one affected.¡± The President of the Bear Corporation was a very intelligent man, who acted strictly on the basis of profit. Rather than make excuses, he revealed the truth and sincerely apologized. ¡°It¡¯s definitely my fault for not daring to reveal it at the time.¡± I looked around and noticed that, while all of Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries were present, one was absent. ¡®Where is Baron Lant?¡¯ Wasn¡¯t Baron Lant the only one among Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries who treated Rashta with affection? Heinley quickly noticed that I had diverted my attention. ¡°My Queen? What¡¯s the matter?¡± ¡°Nothing, it¡¯s nothing.¡± I shook my head and refocused on the trial. Perhaps because of Sovieshu¡¯s presence, the trial proceeded in rtive calm, except for the moment when n protested. The next person to take the stand was a woman I didn¡¯t know. She looked familiar to me at first sight¡­ but I couldn¡¯t remember her. As I stared at her, she squeezed the armrests of the stand¡¯s seat tightly and spoke. ¡°I.. was a maid¡­ to Empress Rashta¡­ Delise.¡± Ah, she was a maid of Rashta¡¯s. ¡°Go on.¡± ¡°Empress Navier¡­. rejected¡­ blue bird¡­ that Emperor Sovieshu¡­ sent as a gift¡­ Rashta took advantage¡­ plucked¡­ the feathers¡­ from the living bird¡­ and lied¡­ to Emperor Sovieshu¡­ to me¡­ Empress Navier.¡± Her speech was slow and slightly erratic. Combined with the fact that she paused every few words, it gave the impression that she found it difficult to speak. The way she spoke seemed to annoy the audience. A rough man grumbled loudly, ¡°Why do you talk like that?¡± Delise shuddered. Her gaze strayed for a moment, looking for the source of the voice. At the same time, a journalist sitting in the press area stood up angrily. However, Delise took a deep breath and continued calmly. ¡°My tongue¡­ is cut in half¡­ Empress Rashta¡­ ordered that¡­ it be cut off¡­ so that¡­ I would not¡­ give her away.¡± A stir broke out in the courtroom. ¡°Oh, my!¡± ¡°That¡¯s crazy!¡± ¡°Are you serious?!¡± ¡°How could she do that?!¡± The audience red fiercely at the person who had said the unpleasant words to Delise. Several people around me also shuddered and waved their arms, as if the mere thought of what Rashta had done was horrible. The High Court Judge looked at Delise withpassionate eyes and asked Rashta. ¡°That is true, Your Majesty?¡± Rashta answered firmly. ¡°No.¡± Insults erupted from the audience, but Rashta didn¡¯t even blink as she stared at Delise. The next person to appear was a familiar face¡­ Evely. Evely testified that Rashta had insulted and harassed her along with the Isquas, who had always looked down on her for not belonging to the nobility. She also spoke about the attack she suffered on the way to the Western Empire. Next, Viscount Langdel took the stand. He revealed the investigation he had conducted to clear Nian¡¯s name. ¡°¡­ Back then, His Majesty was so blinded by Rashta that he didn¡¯t even pay attention to my investigation.¡± At the end, he added a few words criticizing Sovieshu, but unfortunately this was Sovieshu¡¯s home. The audience didn¡¯t react positively to Langdel¡¯s criticism. Then Sovieshu¡¯s secretary, Marquis Karl, took the stand. He talked about how Rashta always borrowed money from Duke Elgy to cover the expenses of her lover n and her first child Ahn, the port case that caused a stir across the empire, and finally, the scandals that had surrounded her rtionship with Duke Elgy. Perhaps because these cases had been made public before, with the exception of Delise¡¯s case, the atmosphere in the High Court was not as violent as I feared. Still, every time a witness appeared and revealed the respective evidence, the atmosphere turned colder. However, every time the High Court Judge asked Rashta if it was true, she tly denied it. After Marquis Karl stepped down from the stand, someone shouted, ¡°Your Honor! There is something I want to reveal!¡± It was the same journalist who had stood up angrily when Delise had been offended earlier. ¡°Who are you?¡± When the High Court Judge asked with a frown, the journalist quickly left the press area and went up to the stand. Like other journalists, he carried a notebook in one hand and a pen in the other, but he also had a document under his arm. The Judge¡¯s aides tried to stop him, but themoners began to shout his name, ¡°Joanson!¡±, ¡°It¡¯s Joanson!¡±, ¡°Joanson!¡± ¡°Joanson!¡± Joanson was a name I had seen in several articles recently. He seemed highly esteemed by themoners. ¡°Give this to His Honor.¡± Because the audience was chanting Joanson¡¯s name, the aides could not forcibly remove him. Joanson gave the document to the nearest aide. ¡°Bring it to me.¡± By order of the High Court Judge, the aide epted the document and handed it over to him. The Judge¡¯s expression became distorted as he looked over the document. The audience was also curious about the change in the High Court Judge¡¯s expression, so they stopped chanting Joanson¡¯s name and remained silent. ¡°What document is that?¡± When Sovieshu asked on behalf of the audience, the High Court Judge stood up and answered. ¡°This is a court document regarding a criminal who was sentenced to very for fraud.¡± What did that have to do with Rashta¡¯s trial? As the audience murmured in confusion, Joanson quickly interjected. ¡°That criminal¡¯s name is exactly the same as the man who once imed to be the Empress¡¯ real father. His daughter¡¯s name is Rashta. Her current age matches that of the Empress. The ce where he was sentenced to very, along with his daughter, was Rimwell.¡± The murmurs grew louder. There was a stir everywhere. ¡°Does that mean Empress Rashta was a ve, not amoner?!¡± ¡°A ve?! Not amoner, but a ve?!¡± ¡°So the so-called representative of themoners was a ve who shamelessly posed as a member of the nobility?!¡± Insults erupted from the section of the hall reserved formoners. They screamed and protested angrily, as if this were the most serious crime evermitted. ¡°Put her down!¡± ¡°How dare a ve sit next to the Emperor!¡± ¡°She has to step down from the throne and kneel!¡± ¡°Good heavens!¡± ¡°How dare a ve pose as a noble to be the Empress?! It¡¯s a dishonor to the Eastern Empire!¡± ¡°Put her down! Put her down!¡± In contrast, the nobles were so shocked that they remained silent. It was clear to me that this was not part of Sovieshu¡¯s ns. Although he appeared indifferent on the outside, I could tell that he was very angry. This shocking revtion and the protests of the audience hadpletely exhausted Rashta¡¯s patience, who had remained calm so far. Rashta stormed out of her seat to the stand, shoved Joanson, and yelled, ¡°His Majesty Sovieshu is castrated!¡± Chapter 392 Chapter 392. Sentence (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The murmurs of the audience disappeared and the courtroom became incredibly quiet. The audience¡¯s gazes simultaneously fell on one person. Sovieshu. His face seemed to be covered by a thinyer of ice. Rashta didn¡¯t stop there. She pointed a finger at Sovieshu and eximed, ¡°His Majesty imed that Empress Navier was infertile and forced me to have a child with another man to hide the fact that he is castrated!¡± The murmurs that had disappeared suddenly returned. Amotion spread throughout the courtroom like wildfire. I pressed my lips together tightly and tried to keep my expression serious. Clearly I shouldn¡¯tugh in this situation, but it was difficult. I felt a gaze on me. It was Heinley. When our eyes met, he quickly looked away. However, as I watched him, his shoulders shook and he shifted back and forth in his seat. He seemed to suppress his desire to ask me if Sovieshu really had problems with his manhood. I preferred not to answer that question, so I pretended not to see him. However, the person sitting on my other side¡­ ¡°Is it true?¡± ¡°Mother! You know she didn¡¯t mean that.¡± ¡°I¡¯m just curious.¡± I didn¡¯t expect my mother to ask that, but then I remembered that she once advised me that if Sovieshu brought a woman as a concubine, I should look for a man who was more endowed, vigorous, handsome, and younger, and take him as my lover. Come to think of it, doesn¡¯t Heinley fit the bill perfectly? Although Heinley is not only my lover, he meets the necessary requirements to my satisfaction. Surprised by my realization, I stared at Heinley, while my mother pinched me repeatedly on the arm. I whispered in my mother¡¯s ear so Heinley wouldn¡¯t hear, ¡°He¡¯s not impotent.¡± ¡°So, he¡¯s not castrated?¡± ¡°Mother. You should use proper words.¡± ¡°Does his manhood have trouble getting up?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Is there something wrong with my choice of words?¡± When I tried to answer, Rashta¡¯s loud voice caught my attention again. ¡°His Majesty forced me to have a child with another man! It was all done on His Majesty¡¯s order!¡± ¡°Silence!¡± The High Court Judge shouted angrily, with his facepletely red. Although he had treated her politely as the Empress of the Eastern Empire thus far, he seemed to havepletely exploded upon hearing Rashta im Emperor Sovieshu is ¡®castrated¡¯. The audience also began to shout at her to shut up. Rashta was determined not to give in, so she took off one of her heels and mmed it against the stand tform to silence the audience. When everyone was baffled into silence, Rashta hurled her shoes at the audience and pointed at themoners. ¡°Shut up! I am the one who has the right to speak because I am standing here!¡± Themoners fell silent in fear, and a youngdy who was nearby dropped her fan. Sovieshu looked genuinely surprised. He fluctuated from anger to embarrassment constantly. Heinley clicked his tongue and whispered, ¡°From the moment she called me a liar in front of everyone I¡¯ve thought she had a lot of courage.¡± ¡­ Come to think of it, it would have been unthinkable for anyone else to call me ¡®sister¡¯ knowing that I was the Empress, especially if that person had no power. In any case, this type of courage was not praiseworthy. ¡°Your Majesty, are you trying to drag Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s reputation because you are in danger?¡± The Judge¡¯s voice was calm again. He was a man who took pride in his work. He must have lost his temper fearing that Rashta would ruin his work. ¡°Of course!¡± When Rashta admitted it, even the High Court Judge hesitated. Rashta looked around mockingly and said sarcastically, ¡°If I wasn¡¯t the only one who did wrong, why should I be the only one to bear responsibility for the crimes? The aplices must be dragged in. Would anyone present here be willing to die alone when it is unfair?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In the time that Empress Navier was married to Emperor Sovieshu, she was never able to have a child, but she became pregnant as soon as she married a man from the neighboring country. I, as you all know, have already had two children. So who has the problem? Isn¡¯t this proof that Emperor Sovieshu is seedless?¡± The audience looked at Sovieshu in astonishment at Rashta¡¯s coherent words. However, this wasn¡¯t a matter that could be talked about openly. Besides, even if Sovieshu really was infertile, there was no way to determine that for sure. People could get into trouble if they were caught whispering about the Emperor¡¯s possible infertility, so everyone just watched in silence. ¡°It got good.¡± Heinley murmured. Truth be told, I was also enjoying seeing Sovieshu put on the ropes like this for the first time¡­ should I feel guilty? Sovieshu just stared at Rashta nkly. His impassive attitude seemed to say, ¡®let¡¯s see how far she goes with her nonsense¡¯. He gave the impression that he didn¡¯t care at all about Rashta¡¯s words. But Sovieshu and I spent many years together andI could tell that he was really angry. If he tried to intervene or deny Rashta¡¯s words, it would only make the situation worse and damage his image, so he controlled his expression and remained calm. Chapter 393 Chapter 393. Sentence (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 At that moment, I saw that Delise shot an unusual look at the journalist Joanson. She had already stepped down from the witness stand. Do they know each other? Joanson nodded slightly, as if on cue, and walked over to Rashta, who was in the center of the stand. ¡°Excuse me, Your Majesty. It is my turn to speak, now. Your Majesty can continue your delusional talkter.¡± Rashta replied, ¡°How rude!¡± ¡°Everyone here knows that the person who uttered the most disrespectful remarks was Your Majesty Rashta towards His Majesty Sovieshu, but now you dare to call me rude.¡± As the audience cheered Joanson, Rashta began to waver. For a time, when she first became the Empress, she was the recipient of these cheers. But now, Joanson received the ovations while Rashta, who held the most honorable position, was showered with insults. Her proud expression and demeanor crumbled. ¡°Your Honor, allow me to continue with my speech. Did you know that the man who imed that he was Empress Rashta¡¯s real father, the man sentenced to very, the man who is recorded as having a daughter named Rashta, disappeared after Empress Rashta sent for him?¡± This, coupled with what Joanson had said at the beginning of his speech, further cornered Rashta. ¡°That never happened!¡± Rashta protested, but this time Marquis Karl stood up and interrupted her. ¡°Empress Rashta¡¯s real father has been prepared as a witness.¡± On the stand, Joanson quickly turned his head to look at Marquis Karl. He didn¡¯t know that the missing man who was said to be Rashta¡¯s father would be brought to the Court. This was a move prepared separately by both Sovieshu and Joanson, but now their actions coincided. When the move prepared by the Emperor meshed perfectly with the acimed journalist¡¯s revtion, Joanson¡¯s credibility increased even more. The man, who was escorted by knights, took the stand and testified before the High Court Judge. ¡°Rashta sent for me and on the way to the pce some knights saved me from dying at the hands of other unidentified individuals.¡± This man¡¯s presence was very shocking for Rashta. The moment the desperate Rashta heard the man¡¯s words, she grimaced in pain, as if she had been stabbed. Next, the pce doctor, a knight, and several maids who worked in the Western Pce took the stand to testify that Rashta had attempted to assassinate Arian, her closest maid, in order to escape a few days ago. Later, a man who imed to be an assassin hired by Rashta confessed that he had been coerced to assassinate the Duke and Duchess Troby because the Empress threatened him with her power. He imed that he didn¡¯t carry out her order, because he didn¡¯t agree¡­ Rashta protested and denied all usations, but the High Court Judge, who had lost his temper due to Rashta¡¯s actions a moment ago, asked Sovieshu with a serious expression whether Rashta would be granted immunity due to her position as Empress. Sovieshu replied tly. ¡°Sentence her like any criminal.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s words implied that Rashta would be deposed based on this sentence. Rashta continued to scream, now with apletely reddened face. ¡°Your Majesty, do you intend to abandon me after you used me? I hid that Your Majesty is a castrated man, and I also helped you hide the fact that Your Majesty divorced Empress Navier to hide this truth. Is this how you¡¯ll abandon me after you took advantage of me?!¡± In other words, she didn¡¯t want to die alone. ¡°Empress Rashta Isqua, you will be sentenced for the following crimes: Collusion with Viscount Roteschu and his son n to deceive Emperor Sovieshu in an attempt to make n Rimwell¡¯s child a member of the Imperial Family; Identity theft by passing off Viscount and Viscountess Isqua as your real parents in order to ascend to the position of Empress; Unauthorized use of Empress Navier¡¯s promissory notes as your own; The unjustified and heinous order to cut out a maid¡¯s tongue to hide another of your crimes; Attempted murder of Evely, the court mage¡¯s assistant; Borrowingrge sums of money from a foreign duke on behalf of the Empress of the Eastern Empire and, to top it off, the unauthorized transfer ofnd from the Eastern Empire to this foreign Duke; Attempted murder of the Duke and Duchess Troby; Contempt for the High Court; Defamation of His Majesty Emperor Sovieshu; Lastly, you impersonated amoner as well as a noble when in reality you are a ve, and you tried to murder your real father to hide it. Do you plead guilty to these crimes?¡± ¡°No! Of course not!¡± ¡°You deserve to be sentenced to death for less than half of these crimes, but in consideration of the fact that you are the Empress, I sentence you to prison.¡± The High Court Judge rapped his wooden gavel three times. The two knights who had brought Rashta in approached her and grabbed her by the arms. Rashta struggled and began screaming, demanding to be released, but it was in vain. The audience waspletely exhausted. The Judge exchanged nces with the assisting judges as he wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. After Rashta was taken out of the Court, Sovieshu casually turned around and walked out through the door that only the Emperor and the Empress could use. ¡°We should leave, My Queen.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Rashta tried to reduce her sentence by dragging Sovieshu with her, but it didn¡¯t work. However, the seeds sown by Rashta will remain rooted in people¡¯s hearts. If the next empress is also unable to bear his children, then people will really suspect Sovieshu. When it is not the Emperor¡¯s own child who bes the sessor, power begins to divide. Heinley¡¯s older brother had no children, so his power was unstable. For his brother¡¯s sake, Heinley had to spend much of his time as a Prince abroad. Would Sovieshu¡¯s sessor do the same as Heinley? Would the sessor keep his mouth shut and stay away so as not to harm Sovieshu? Chapter 394

Chapter 394

[Huh? Is he looking at me?] Kapmen heard that voice again. [What¡¯s wrong¡­? Why is he acting so strange?] All the detectives had simr expressions, but Kapmen was able to quickly recognize who the voice belonged to. For a moment, the Grand Duke looked straight at that detective due to his thoughts. [Now that I remember, isn¡¯t this the man who sided with the Emperor to drive out Queen Christa?] Kapmen deliberately turned his head to look at other detectives. Only then did the detective who had suspicious thoughts calm down a little, but he couldn¡¯t rxpletely around Kapmen. [Just in case, I¡¯ll ask Imaruter.] On one asion, Empress Navier asked Kapmen to investigate Christa¡¯sdies-in-waiting, so he knew certain things about them. Imaru was ady-in-waiting who was very close to Queen Christa. However, when Christa retired to Compshire, Imaru did not follow her because she was a newlywed at the time.. Kapmen went straight to visit Imaru. ¡°What is the reason for your visit, Grand Duke?¡± Imaru believed that Kapmen had contributed to Christa¡¯s downfall, so she treated him coldly. She didn¡¯t even allow Kapmen to enter her mansion. However, Kapmen didn¡¯t mind how he was treated. He wanted to find out the intentions of the person behind the servant who tailed Empress Navier¡­ Rather than be honest, Kapmen took a small risk. ¡°I heard a strange story.¡± ¡°What do you mean by that?¡± ¡°Well, while personally investigating the servant who tailed the Empress, a detective told me a strange story.¡± ¡°What does that have to do with me?¡± ¡°The detective mentioned your name¡­¡± Before Kapmen finished speaking, he heard Imaru¡¯s nervous voice echoing in her head. [Did Lilide get drunk again and say too much?] Kapmen wondered if the detective¡¯s name was Lilide, as he also discovered that this detective was Imaru¡¯s lover. But soon after, he remembered that Lilide was anotherdy-in-waiting close to Christa. Unlike Imaru, Lilide had followed Christa to Compshire. Kapmen left and went directly to meet Lilide. Like mostdies-in-waiting, she fortunately lived close to the capital. However, meeting Lilide was not as easy. ¡°My apologies, Grand Duke. Lady Lilide hasn¡¯t wanted to see anyone since she returned from Compshire. Much less strangers.¡± The butler asked him to be understanding. Lilidepletely avoided any visits because seeing Christa¡¯s death up close was too traumatic. ¡°I came on Lady Imaru¡¯s behalf to convey a message to her.¡± Although this persuaded Lilide to meet with Grand Duke Kapmen, she was even more hostile than Imaru. [It¡¯s as if Christa died due to his lies. He is a scum who follows the Empress. He kills people with his tongue.] It was also more difficult to obtain relevant information due to the number of insults that ran through her mind. Among the information that Kapmen was able to obtain from Lilide, at least one piece was useful. After Christa¡¯s death, Lilide went back down to Compshire and met ¡®that person¡¯. Although Kapmen could not find out who ¡®that person¡¯ was, he immediately packed his bags and left for Compshire. Inwardly, he thought that the Old Duke Zemensia, Duke Liberty, or Marquis Ketron might be ¡®that person¡¯. Duke Liberty and Marquis Ketron became bats that flew towards Empress Navier, but they were her enemies before, while Old Duke Zemensia was still an enemy. It could be someone else, but these three were the most suspicious. Once Kapmen entered Compshire¡¯s Mansion, he felt disheartened as he looked around the deste mansion. It had beenpletely cleared out and not a single piece of furniture was left. He hade this far through the names and ces he discovered from other people¡¯s thoughts, but now he wasn¡¯t sure if his investigation was on the right track. Even if Lilide did meet ¡®that person¡¯ in Compshire, and it led her to engage in an evil plot against Navier¡­. would ¡®that person¡¯ show up here again? ¡®It¡¯ll be difficult to find clues in this clean and empty mansion.¡¯ But as Kapmen slowly walked through the mansion, he heard someone¡¯s thoughts. Kapmen looked around in bewilderment, but there was nowhere to hide because the furniture had been removed. As a result, he had no choice but to open the window and jump out. Since he was on the second floor, he took some of the impact on his knees, but he wasn¡¯t seriously hurt because he was agile. [What was that noise?] Kapmen leaned against the wall and didn¡¯t move. [Did I hear wrong?] Fortunately, the person who entered the mansion didn¡¯t seem to find traces of anyone else. [Yes, it must have been my imagination. No one woulde here. It¡¯s so empty that even thieves wouldn¡¯te.] Although Kapmen heard the inner voice growing more distant, he remained hidden. He couldn¡¯t rx. Somehow, he had avoided being discovered by this person, but he was still unaware of their intentions. Besides, with what he had learned so far through this person¡¯s thoughts, it was hard to tell if this was the person who wanted to harm Navier. Still, Kapmen didn¡¯t lose hope. Since thoughts are private, people typically blurt out a lot of information in their mind at unexpected moments. The detective was loyal to Imaru, while Imaru and Lilide were loyal to the deceased queen, but in the end they all revealed information in their minds that could be considered a betrayal.. [Christa¡­] Suddenly, Kapmen heard the inner voice again as footsteps approached. The mansion¡¯s visitor seemed to have approached the window. [Sister, I vow to you that I will avenge your death.] Kapmen shuddered. ¡®Sister?¡¯ There was only one person who would call the former Queen Christa their sister. Duke Zemensia. However, hadn¡¯t Duke Zemensia been thrown out by his father, Old Duke Zemensia due to his harsh words about Christa? [You made a mistake, but the punishment you received was worse than you deserved.] Chapter 395

Chapter 395

Ch 395. Red Farewell (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Afterwards, Duke Zemensia wandered around the mansion for a while. Once he left, Kapmen re-entered the mansion. Perhaps because he was alone in an empty mansion, Duke Zemensia had reflected a lot, so Kapmen was able to obtain more information than he expected. At first, Duke Zemensia couldn¡¯t really empathize with his father¡¯s anger. Although Christa¡¯s death saddened him, he didn¡¯t think there was any reason to be angry with Emperor Heinley. Besides, he already had his own children. As much as he loved his sister, he had to take care of those who were alive. Just as his father abandoned his daughter for the future of his grandchildren. But shortly after, everything changed. Duke Zemensia pretended to have a big fight with his father in which he was thrown out in order to dispel any suspicion from Emperor Heinley. If his fathermitted a crime, his wife, children and himself were likely to be harmed. Instead, if hemitted a crime, his wife and children might seek his father¡¯s protection, since Old Duke Zemensia had been one of the most respected nobles in the Western Empire. However, Duke Zemensia didn¡¯t think about his sudden change of heart or what exactly he was up to, so Kapmen didn¡¯t find out his motivations. [In their happy return, it will be thest time they smile.] That was Duke Zemensia¡¯sst thought. His determination strengthened as he ran his hands over the window frames. When Kapmen took a closer look at the window that Duke Zemensia stood in for a while, he noticed some unusual marks. They were marks that the window had been obstructed. ¡®Is it because of this¡­?¡¯ Seeing this, Kapmen had an idea why Duke Zemensia had a change of heart, but it was still unclear to him what he was up to. Kapmen clenched his fists. He hurried out of the mansion, mounted his horse, and headed for the capital. Duke Zemensia watched him from a distance. *** After the trial, I went straight to Troby Mansion, but my mother didn¡¯t return with me as she had been called by Sovieshu. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Your Majesty. You can rest assured as Viscount Langdel will be with Duchess Troby.¡± The deputymander of the 5th Division of the Supranational Knights, who was escorting me in ce of Viscount Langdel, informed me that the Viscount had been summoned by Sovieshu along with my mother. I was curious about what Sovieshu intended to say to both of them, but mydies-in-waiting weren¡¯t around to discuss it. Since it had been a while since we werest here, I sent Laura and Countess Jubel to their respective homes. ¡°Your Majesty, what would you like for dinner?¡± I replied to the butler that I would wait for my mother to dine with her. Fortunately, I didn¡¯t wait long. She didn¡¯t have a serious expression, so it didn¡¯t seem like there was bad news, but I wanted to be sure. ¡°Mother, why did he call for you?¡± I asked as soon as she returned. My mother took off her cloak and handed it to a maid with a strange look on her face. ¡°He told me he will lift Koshar¡¯s banishment.¡± ¡°Really?¡± This was good news. It meant that my brother could seed the Troby Family without trouble. ¡°And Viscount Langdel¡­¡± ¡°Yes. Viscount Langdel was banished due to his attempt to harm a descendant of the Imperial Family. Since it is now known that Glorym is not Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s daughter, I suppose his banishment will also be lifted.¡± I felt relieved to hear that. I don¡¯t know if Viscount Langdel or my brother will immediately return to the Eastern Empire just because the banishment is lifted, but this was their home for many years. As I was deep in thought, my mother suddenly began tough. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Mother?¡± When I asked, puzzled, my mother shook her head. ¡°His Majesty told Viscount Langdel that he could understand the difficulties he had been through, but Viscount Langdel replied coldly.¡± ¡°What did he say?¡± ¡°For him, His Majesty¡¯s only difference with Rashta is that His Majesty has power, so he did not want his sympathy because in all other ways Sovieshu and Rashta are the same.¡± I could understand Viscount Langdel¡¯s perspective. Although at first he was only angry at Rashta for her actions to smear Duchess Tuania¡¯s reputation, Sovieshu contributed by burying the matter, and Viscount Langdel nearly died. ¡°¡­ Did His Majesty listen to him quietly?¡± ¡°Even if Langdel¡¯s words bothered him, he couldn¡¯t act recklessly. He¡¯ll soon have to file aint with the Wol Continent Alliance regarding the port case. It¡¯s not in his interest to stir up trouble with amander of the knights of the Alliance.¡± Sovieshu must have been very angry inside because his pride had been hurt. After dinner with my mother, I went back to my room alone. I might eventually feel bad, but for now, I didn¡¯t feel that way. In a corner of my chest, I felt as if Heinley danced while in the form of Queen. Maybe because I saw that Rashta didn¡¯t fall easily in the High Court. Also, it was the first time I saw Sovieshu being publicly insulted. I could say that I felt sorry that Rashta had to remain locked in a tower for the rest of her life, but¡­ those would be empty words. I didn¡¯t really feel sorry for her. This feeling might changeter, but not at the moment. Once I changed intofortable clothes to sleep, the butler came to inform me of someone¡¯s visit. ¡°Your Majesty. Hmm¡­ there¡¯s someone here to see you.¡± ¡°Who is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Lord Liedreux¡­¡± It¡¯s Sovieshu. As children, Sovieshu and I came up with the idea that we should each use a pseudonym that only the two of us knew so that we could sneak off alone in secret. ¡®Lord Liedreux¡¯ was the pseudonym Sovieshu used back then. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Please tell him that I¡¯m asleep.¡± At my firm words, the butler¡¯s expression stiffened, as if he thought my reaction was unusual. I closed the door, sat down on the bed and closed my eyes. How long has it been? When I looked at the clock, I realized that two hours had passed. I got up and walked around the room, then went out into the nearby corridor and looked out the window. I didn¡¯t imagine that Sovieshu would still be waiting for me outside. However¡­ I actually saw him. His face was covered with a hood, like when I went to the High Court, but it was definitely Sovieshu. I could feel it. He was leaning against a wall outside the mansion, and his shoulders seemed to tremble slightly. I couldn¡¯t see him properly because he was far away, but it looked that way in my eyes. Is he crying¡­? After watching him for a brief moment, I turned around and went back to my room. I closed the windows andy down on the bed. The next morning, I didn¡¯t even look out the window. ¡°Navier. You said you¡¯d head back today, right?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Why don¡¯t you rest for a few more days before you leave?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t wait to get return. I want to share the good news with my brother.¡± My parents nned to spend a month in the Eastern Empire before returning to the Western Empire. Once I had breakfast and spent some time with my parents, I put on the appropriate clothes and boarded the carriage, in which Heinley was waiting for me. This time, we could use a carriage with our Imperial Family¡¯s crest. I didn¡¯t want to look out the window. Although I know Sovieshu must have already returned to the Imperial Pce, I just¡­ I just didn¡¯t want to see him. But then I felt that I was thinking too much about Sovieshu, so I quickly changed my mind and looked out the window, to convince myself that I didn¡¯t care about him in the least. The moment the carriage left the mansion and I looked at the outer exterior where Sovieshu was standingst night, I was shocked. He¡­ was still standing there, and he looked at me. For a brief moment, our gazes met. His eyes were filled with dark despair. He seemed to silently ask me for help. But what could I do to help him? I hurried to avoid his gaze and rested my head on Heinley¡¯s shoulder. My heart was pounding. At first nce, Sovieshu¡¯s eyes looked like those of a person on the verge of death, and when I turned my head to avoid him, I felt as if I had done something wrong. ¡°My Queen, are you alright?¡± I shook my head, took it off his shoulder, and sat up properly. ¡°You can keep leaning on me¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Was it I who hurt Sovieshu in our marriage? Not at all. Was there reason to pity him merely due to his pleading look? Not at all. As the carriage moved forward, I struggled to find new thoughts that would rid his eyes full of despair from my head. Heinley, who was looking out the window, suddenly called out to me, ¡°My Queen.¡± ¡°Really, I¡¯m fine.¡± When I repeated it to him, Heinley suggested with a smile, ¡°It¡¯s not that. Look out the window.¡± I didn¡¯t want to look. Although we had moved away from Sovieshu, I was afraid to see that look again, begging for help. ¡°My Queen, hurry up!¡± Heinley insisted, so I had no choice but to look out the window. ¡°Ah¡­¡± At that moment, I could see bright red gs waving as I heard people cheering, ¡°Your Majesty!¡±, ¡°Your Majesty!¡± My mind went nk. All these people hade out into the street to cheer for me. ¡°Ah¡­¡± I don¡¯t know if it had been arranged, but people were continually joining the crowd in the street while others waved the red gs from their homes and their stores. I could see the number of people increasing by the minute. Some were crying. Then Heinley murmured, ¡°Are they sorry for what they did at Rashta¡¯s wedding parade?¡± I shook my head. I don¡¯t know. However¡­ I remembered Rashta¡¯s wedding day. The silence of the people towards me, the disdain and the ufortable cold treatment. Those who had shown their rejection of me back then waved red gs to wish me happiness and cheered for me as they slowly followed the carriage. The corners of my eyes began to itch, and eventually tears slipped down my cheeks. ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley called me softly and hugged me gently. ¡°My Queen. My wife. Navier.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Red symbolizes misfortune in the Western Empire, so it feels a little ufortable.¡± ¡°Heinley.¡± When I pretended to re at him for his joke, Heinleyughed and shook his head, ¡°I know that in the Eastern Empire red symbolizes happiness. My Queen, everyone wishes for you to be happy.¡± ¡°¡­ Yes.¡± ¡°From now on only good things will happen. You, me and our child on the way¡­ we will be happy forever.¡± Chapter 396

Chapter 396

Ch 396. Bloody Tears (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Back in the capital, Kapmen visited the chancellor and informed him that Duke Zemensia was making ns against the Emperor and the Empress. However, the chancellor looked at him with a sullen expression. ¡°You don¡¯t mean Old Duke Zemensia, but Duke Zemensia?¡± ¡°Yes, the son.¡± ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen, Duke Zemensia has lived with friends ever since his father threw him out. He hates his father and his sister due to the situation he is in now.¡± ¡°I know for sure that Duke Zemensia is nning something.¡± Kapmen recalled the determination with which Duke Zemensia vowed to avenge his sister¡¯s death. ¡°Duke Zemensia ns to attack the Emperor and Empress as soon as they return to the Western Empire.¡± The chancellor frowned. His pride had been wounded. ¡°Since it was an unofficial visit to the Eastern Empire there will be no grand weing ceremony on that day. They will return quietly. And upon their return there will be stricter controls than ever before with knights stationed everywhere and restricted ess for visitors.¡± The chancellor added a warning without hiding his displeasure. ¡°Don¡¯t meddle in our country¡¯s affairs, we are well prepared.¡± Kapmen might be a representative from an allied country, but he was still a foreign noble. The chancellor didn¡¯t think that a foreign nobleman should meddle too much in the affairs of the Western Empire. Moreover, while Kapmen was in Compshire, the chancellor was offended by the report that the Grand Duke had been snooping around the investigation department regarding the incident involving Empress Navier. It could be considered an act of contempt towards the Western Empire. [He seems to imply that the Western Empire¡¯s security is unreliable.] Kapmen felt ufortable as he listened to the chancellor¡¯s inner voice. The chancellor¡¯s reasons were valid. Kapmen would also have been offended if a foreign noble tried to meddle in his own country¡¯s affairs. However, what mattered now was not anyone¡¯s pride, but Navier¡¯s safety. ¡°But it would be nice to increase security just in case. It¡¯s reliable information.¡± ¡°Where does that reliable informatione from?¡± The chancellor sighed and spoke with confidence. ¡°The Duke Zemensia, the Duchess, and their children are staying with friends who live far from here. Due to Emperor Heinley¡¯s strict orders, there are knights who keep us informed of the location of the Old Duke and his soldiers. We also have knights all over the Imperial Pce.¡± ¡°Even so¡­¡± ¡°Duke Zemensia has no soldiers at his disposal as his father has everyone with him. Besides, Duke Zemensia left on a trip a few days ago to a ce farther away.¡± These weren¡¯t lies. Kapmen could tell by reading his thoughts. In the end, Kapmen had to leave without sess. The bad feeling he had didn¡¯t go away, so he monitored the way back to the Western Empire as a precaution. He also instructed his personal guards to look out for anyone making suspicious movements. He did this for a few days and saw no suspicious movements, just as the chancellor had imed. Neither when the Emperor and Empress entered the capital of the Western Empire in their carriages, nor when they arrived at the Imperial Pce. ¡®From what he said, I thought he would attack the Emperor and Empress on their way back to the Western Empire. Did I misunderstand him? Perhaps he meant that he would take advantage of any opportunity when Heinley and Navier are alone to attack?¡¯ Once the procession reached the entrance of the Imperial Pce, Kapmen finally calmed down a little. He decided to tell Navier about this separately. At the entrance of the Imperial Pce, Heinley was talking to McKenna while Navier beamed with happiness. They looked like two lovebirds whenever their gazes met. While watching the chaotic scene as servants unloaded the luggage from the carriages, Kapmen suddenly heard from above the inner voice of a person. [I¡¯m sorry to leave first, father. I¡¯m sorry, my wife. I love you, my children. Sister Christa¡­ I¡¯m going to give you one final gift before I join you to keep youpany.] Kapmen raised his head in shock. This was a person prepared to die. A red cloak fluttered high above, on the roof of the Pce Imperial. Just then, Duke Zemensia jumped. As if the world had slowed down, Kapmen could clearly see that fleeting moment. Everyone was scattered at the entrance of the Imperial Pce. And right over Navier, Duke Zemensia fell¡­ Thest thing Kapmen knew was that he had instinctively lunged to protect Navier with his body. A person fell on top of them both with a thud. After a brief silence, shouts erupted. ¡°Zemensia¡­¡± Ketron, who watched the scene from a distance, copsed to the ground having lost strength in his legs. He covered his mouth with trembling hands and crawled back. A few days ago, after returning from Compshire, Duke Zemensia went to find Ketron to ask for his help. Zemensia confessed to him that he had discovered that his sister had notmitted suicide, but had been murdered after being imprisoned, tortured and humiliated. He nned tomit suicide in the ce where his sister used to live. Remorse wouldn¡¯t allow him to remain alive. A shadow of death loomed over the face of Duke Zemensia, who asked his cousin for onest favor. As much as Marquis Ketron tried to dissuade him, Duke Zemensia did not want to hear him and shouted, ¡°If you don¡¯t help me, I¡¯ll stick this dagger in my heart right now.¡± ¡°Alright, alright. Calm down for now. Who will take care of your wife and children if you die?¡± Marquis Ketron eventually relented. Not only to fulfill his cousin¡¯s final request, but also because he felt some guilt for switching his allegiance to Emperor Heinley so shortly after Christa¡¯s death. So the prior night, Marquis Ketron used illusionary magic to hide Zemensia from the gazes of others so that he could climb to the roof of the pce. But no matter how much time passed, there was no news of his cousin¡¯s death. He thought that his cousin might have faltered in the final moments, so he had rushed over to try to persuade him to give up and live. ¡°Navier!¡± Emperor Heinley¡¯s anguished cry ripped through the blue sky. Chapter 397 Chapter 397. Bloody Tears (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes, it seems that the doors and windows were blocked so that not even sunlight could enter.¡± ¡°It¡¯s also said that her death was not a suicide, but a murder.¡± ¡°Impossible.¡± ¡°Well, it could be a lie. That man hated His Majesty.¡± ¡°He could have led a normal life if he had stayed still. Don¡¯t you think he felt so bad about not doing anything to save his sister that he killed himself?¡± ¡°Yes, that could have driven him to suicide.¡± ¡°Still, why did he jump on the Empress Navier?¡± ¡°I heard that he wanted to die in public. Maybe he thought he could kill two birds with one stone?¡± People seemed to gather to talk about Duke Zemensia¡¯s suicide. Heinley¡¯s Underground Knights went around the capital listening to these remarks, carefully monitoring the people¡¯s moods and reactions. ¡°I never thought that he wouldmit suicide¡­¡± The chancellor didn¡¯t dare mention that he was warned by Kapmen and kept his mouth shut. If it were known that he only kept his eye on the Old Duke despite the warning, the enraged Emperor Heinley might hold him responsible. Emperor Heinley was usually lenient, but now he was not his usual self and seemed very dangerous. The chancellor feared that the Emperor might explode if he found out about his carelessness. ¡°What about Duke Zemensia¡¯s will?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know if it should be called a will, but¡­ it seems that he prepared several letters with simr content in advance.¡± In the homes of Duke Zemensia¡¯s friends, where he stayed after his father pretended to throw him out, dozens of letters were found in which he expressed regret, ¡®I discovered that Emperor Heinley kept my sister locked up in order to kill her.¡¯ Duke Zemensia had also left letters prepared in other parts of the Western Empire to be made public after his death. It was even revealed that he often spoke of rescinding his status as Duke because he felt he was going crazy. Friends who hosted Duke Zemensia testified that he was going crazy. He drank and talked nonsense all the time. Heinley muttered in a cold voice, ¡°He wasn¡¯t crazy, he was only pretending.¡± Duke Zemensia¡¯s preparations were too thorough for a man who had simply gone mad with remorse. Even his wife and children were staying in a mansion outside the capital under the pretext that they didn¡¯t want to inconvenience his friends. Heinley sent knights to capture them, but assumed the three had crossed the border and fled to another country. Just before the collision, Navier reflexively cast her ice magic on the man falling on her, while Kapmen tried to push her away and protect her with his body. It all happened in an instant. In front of Heinley¡¯s own eyes. Duke Zemensia died on the spot, but both Kapmen and Navier survived because Navier¡¯s ice magic slowed down the Duke¡¯s fall. However, because she cast the magic on impulse, its effects were limited. As a result, although they were still alive, neither had been able to wake up. Unable to bear the pain in his heart, Heinley closed his eyes and clutched the left side of his chest as he writhed to hide his pain. He hated himself for only distrusting Old Duke Zemensia even though McKenna had warned him that the situation seemed strange. He hated himself for thinking that he could easily use Duke Zemensia after saving his son, after the Duke tearfully thanked him. If Duke Zemensia had survived the fall, Heinley would have been able to ease some of his pain by unleashing his anger on the one responsible. But the man who endangered the woman he loved and his unborn child could no longer be punished, as he had died instantly. His anger, which had lost its target, gnawed at his insides. McKenna looked at Heinley with tears in his eyes. ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± Heinley had been unable to cry, and his eyes were bloodshot. He asked McKenna, ¡°What about Old Duke Zemensia? Has he been caught?¡± *** Loud noises and cries of pain came continuously from behind the tightly closed iron door. Blood flowed under the door and formed puddles. The Underground Knights, whom Heinley had gathered and worked with directly during his years as a Prince, were calm because they knew Heinley¡¯s personality. In contrast, the Knights of the Imperial Guard held their breath in fear and clenched their fists. They still regarded Emperor Heinley as a carefree yboy Prince. Although he had adapted to his duties as Emperor better than expected, it was often attributed to the fact that Empress Navier was by his side to guide him. However, everyone¡¯s opinion changed when the enraged Emperor Heinley ordered that Old Duke Zemensia and his son¡¯s corpse be brought to a dungeon, then personally entered and locked the iron door. Since then the cries of pain had not ceased. They didn¡¯t know what was going on inside, what was causing the loud noises, nor how much blood had been spilled on the other side of the door. After three hours, the cries finally ceased for a moment. The Knights of the Imperial Guard were relieved and unconsciously rxed their shoulders and arms, which had been tense all along. ¡®Is it over?¡¯ *** It wasn¡¯t over yet. When Heinley held out the tool in his hand to the side, Mastas stepped forward and took it. The Knights of the Imperial Guard shuddered in fear just from hearing the sounds that came from inside the dungeon, but Mastas¡¯ expression was indifferent. She was renowned for being ruthless with her hands, so much so that she was nicknamed ¡®Blood Hands¡¯. She could be extremely cold even against a person she didn¡¯t hold a grudge against, but now she was also furious about what happened to Navier. She was so angry that she wanted to tear Duke Zemensia¡¯s corpse apart with her bare hands. The Old Duke was trembling as he looked at Heinley. The corners of Heinley¡¯s mouth turned up slightly. ¡°I can¡¯t believe I¡¯m doing this to the person I once respected. Doesn¡¯t life take very strange turns, Old Duke?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have¡­ the qualities¡­ of an Emperor¡­ you can never be¡­ an Emperor.¡± ¡°I am the Emperor.¡± With a smirk, Heinley stomped on the Old Duke¡¯s head, grinding it against the floor. ¡°Ah¡­ Ahhh! Even¡­ if you do this¡­ you won¡¯t get¡­ anything.¡± Heinley continued to smirk as he increased the pressure. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you beg, insult, or talk nonsense. Nothing will bring your son back to life.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes had turned so red that he didn¡¯t seem to have a smile on his face. Old Duke Zemensia¡¯s eyes had also turned red. His gaze was on his son, who was now but a shapeless corpse. When the Old Duke coughed, broken teeth fell from his mouth. ¡°You killed your brother¡­ you killed my daughter¡­ you killed my son¡­ and now you will kill me¡­¡± The Old Duke let out augh that made him feel like his lungs would tear and looked at Heinley. ¡°Bastard¡­ not even¡­ in hell¡­ will you be epted.¡± Mastas frowned to the side. When King Wharton III was alive, a rumor circted that Heinley had caused him to be infertile. After the early death of King Wharton III, a rumor circted that Heinley had poisoned his older brother. That rumor haunted Heinley like a shadow that refused to go away. Old Duke was trying to upset Heinley by talking about it. ¡°Should I shut his mouth?¡± At Mastas¡¯ question, the Old Duke spat out a mouthful of blood and sneered. ¡°Did you think no one¡­ would me you¡­ if you poisoned him? Who¡­ benefited most¡­ from King Wharton III¡­ turning into a sick person?¡± Rather than reply, Heinley stomped on the Old Duke again. The Old Duke trembled, but didn¡¯t close his mouth. As if his dead daughter and son had breathed theirst strength into him. ¡°Even if I die¡­ even if my family dies¡­ people will say¡­ the former King died suddenly¡­. not long after¡­ the former Queen¡­ also died suspiciously¡­ at a young age¡­ her family¡­ who questioned it¡­ and investigated¡­ all died¡­¡± The Old Duke shivered as if he were happy just thinking about it. ¡°No matter¡­ what you do to me¡­ you will be remembered¡­. in history¡­ as a cruel Emperor¡­. no matter how well you rule¡­ you will be remembered¡­ as the Emperor¡­ who killed the former King¡­ and the family of the former Queen¡­¡± ¡°In your situation, Old Duke¡­¡± Heinley sighed briefly and smiled. ¡°You should have prayed and begged for me to kill you. Do you want to know what will happen now?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Sir Mastas.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°We must request cooperation from other countries to help us capture all the rtives, servants and soldiers of the man who tried to assassinate the Empress and her unborn child.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes, bloodshot with anger, turned colder. ¡°It seems the Old Duke is very hungry.¡± Heinley looked silently at Duke Zemensia¡¯s corpse, then signaled to Mastas, and walked out. The Old Duke¡¯s eyes widened so much that they seemed about to pop out. Chapter 398 Chapter 398. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Blood streamed across the floor, but there wasn¡¯t too much blood on Heinley. Once Heinley left the dungeon, he didn¡¯t head straight for Navier¡¯s room, but went to his room to take a bath. He needed to wipe off the blood, but he also didn¡¯t want to approach Navier while his deep resentment against the Old Duke remained in his body. He was determined to prevent anything that could harm Navier. Even if it was superstition. Heinley poured cold water over himself several times as he looked at himself in the mirror. He struggled to control his expression. He wanted to get rid of the Old Duke¡¯s curses and regain his lovely and pure side that Navier loved. But no matter how much water he poured over himself, the reflection in the mirror was a terrifying man full of resentment and revenge. Heinley put the small bucket aside, closed his eyes and took a deep breath to suppress his anger. As the Old Duke had said, people would be suspicious of him, even if he showed mercy to the rest of the Zemensia Family. Thest words of a dying man can easily influence people. As Duke Zemensia could not defeat Heinley with his power, he tarnished his reputation with his public suicide and his letters questioning the circumstances of Christa¡¯s death, iming she had been murdered. It was revealed that Duke Zemensia had distributed copies of his letter across the country and abroad. Heinley poured cold water over his head again. If he performed well as Emperor, the people of his generation would eventually cast aside their suspicions and prejudices, but these events would still be recorded in history, and Heinley would be questioned. Until Heinley ascended the throne, the Zemensia Family were the pride of the country. In the future, people might say something like, ¡ª Emperor Heinley allegedly poisoned his brother to take the throne. He seduced a respected foreign Empress and used her in an attempt to change his image. He then imprisoned his brother¡¯s wife due to a scandal and murdered her. Queen Christa¡¯s brother, who had admired and supported the Emperor, went mad andmitted suicide when he discovered the truth. In the end, Emperor Heinley wiped out Queen Christa¡¯s entire family. If he showed mercy to the Zemensia Family now, thest part of this assessment would disappear. Duchess Zemensia fled with her children to a foreign country, and in order to capture them he had to involve other countries in this. For the sake of Heinley¡¯s reputation, it would be better to let them be. Heinley opened his eyes slowly. ¡®Still, I can¡¯t show mercy.¡¯ Although he may be despised in history, his hatred would only fade when he wiped out every member of that family. He wanted to kill even the children. However¡­ ¡®If I do that, My Queen will hate me when she wakes up.¡¯ After he took a full bath with cold water, Heinley struggled to erase these terrifying thoughts. ¡®I¡¯ll think about itter.¡¯ He went straight to Navier¡¯s room. He didn¡¯t perfume himself or dressvishly as usual. *** ¡°Empress Navier!¡± ¡°Please open your eyes¡­¡± ¡°Empress Navier¡­¡± After half a day had passed, the tears still flowed. Navier¡¯sdies-in-waiting, her attendants, her personal knights, Nian and Koshar, who hastened toe as soon as they were informed, Princess Charlotte, who still remained at the Imperial Pce, and the noblewomen with whom she had be close, wept in the room. Fortunately, the Duke and Duchess Troby had stayed behind in the Eastern Empire. Had they seen their daughter copse, they would have lost their mindspletely. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. Please save our Navier. Empress Navier was finally able to forget the past and rebuild her life here. Please save her!¡± Laura held onto the hem of Heinley¡¯s cloak as she cried. Koshar also looked at Heinley with pleading eyes. He could protect his sister with his sword, but he couldn¡¯t do anything to heal her. Heinley walked over to Navier, squeezed her hand and said to Koshar. ¡°As soon as they both lost consciousness, I sent the fastest bird to the Eastern Empire. I¡¯ll do everything to ensure that she survives, brother.¡± ¡°To the Eastern Empire?¡± Countess Jubel asked, ¡°To notify the Duke and Duchess Troby?¡± ¡°I heard that Navier has looked after a mage who now resides in the Imperial Pce of the Eastern Empire. She can use healing magic, so I hope she can heal both the Empress and Grand Duke Kapmen. I will also notify the Duke and Duchess Troby.¡± Heinley squeezed Navier¡¯s hand tighter. His heart ached as he spoke. ¡®If I hadn¡¯t returned the mana to that girl, Navier now¡­¡¯ His hand shook slightly. ¡°Will His Majesty Sovieshu agree to send her?¡± Rose managed to ask in a hushed voice. Heinley nodded. ¡°He will not refuse.¡± ¡®He will send her. That bloody man still loves Navier. I saw him after Rashta¡¯s trial, staring at the window in Navier¡¯s room all night long.¡¯ *** ¡°Viscountess Verdi fled with Glorym.¡± ¡°Where is she?¡± ¡°She has not yet left the capital.¡± ¡°Help her flee, in secret.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Follow her on the sly¡­ When it¡¯s time for the Viscountess to meet Duke Elgy¡¯s subordinate, impersonate that person and take her to the Southern Kingdom. Once you reach the border of the Southern Kingdom, you will meet Count Elia.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± As preparations had been made beforehand, the knight set off as soon as he received Sovieshu¡¯s orders. Sovieshu sighed and tried to put Glorym out of his mind. ¡®This should be enough to loosen our bond.¡¯ The girl was not his real daughter, nor the princess he loved so much. On the contrary, Glorym¡¯s parents were people he detested, so he had already done a lot for her. She would fall from princess to fake noble, but at least she wouldn¡¯t live as a ve for the rest of her life. Sovieshu returned to his bedroom and looked at the blue bird in the cage, which was calmly scratching its feathers with its beak. The bird chirped happily as Sovieshu entered the room. Sovieshu fed the bird and sat on the bed with a nk stare. After a while, he went to the Western Pce. The Western Pce was empty. The beautifully decorated room used by Rashta was now vacant, as Rashta had been temporarily locked up in the Southern Pce before she was confined in a tower. The room was deste because all the furniture had been removed, because it was believed that its association with Rashta could bring misfortune. This same room had been used by Sovieshu¡¯s mother, and then by his wife¡­ ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu spoke the name of the woman who had been his wife since childhood, clutched his chest, and exhaled, in pain. Chapter 399 Chapter 399. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Rashta was the one who had used this room until recently, but the empty room reminded him of Navier. ¡ª Do you see this, Your Majesty? It¡¯s my room. He remembered what Navier had said with enthusiasm on the day she first came to use this room. She paced the room with her arms outstretched and standing on tiptoes. She took a deep breath and murmured as their eyes met. ¡ª This is the scent of power¡­ When Sovieshuughed because he found it funny, Navierughed too. In the present day, Sovieshu alsoughed at the memory. While most of the time Navier acted coldly, sometimes she joked. But even her jokes sounded serious because of her indifferent expression. Sovieshu looked around the room in a daze. His eyesnded on an empty spot where Navier¡¯s desk used to be. The wooden desk originated from the Northern Kingdom. He had gifted it to Navier. When he gave it to her, Sovieshu sat down on the desk and opened his arms. Navierined that it wasn¡¯t that elegant, but she walked over to him and hugged him warmly. ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu fell to his knees and clutched his chest, finding it difficult to breathe. ¡®Why did I start to think of her as cold even when we had so many good memories?¡¯ At least twice a week, the two of them had dinner together and talked about all sorts of things. They were not sweet or lovey-dovey like the couples in romance novels, but they were good friends. In all the years they spent together, there were many quarrels and arguments, but they never seriously fought. When they were the Crown Prince and the Crown Princess, the nobles said they were as cute as a pair of young lovebirds. ¡°Navier¡­¡± He whispered Navier¡¯s name ruefully. ¡®I should have waited a while longer, and made Grand Lilteang¡¯s foolish son Scherl my sessor if it looked like we wouldn¡¯t have a child. Why the hell did I abandon my wife and childhood friend? Why do I have to go through this?¡¯ ¡°Navier¡­¡± Sovieshu repeatedly pounded the floor with his fists. ¡®Navier, I feel lonely. It¡¯s painful. I¡¯m exhausted. Navier, look at me just once. Navier, you saw me. I saw you look at me. I saw you hidden behind the curtains. Why were you avoiding me? Navier, please, just look at me one more time¡­¡¯ His mind was in turmoil. The events of the night following Rashta¡¯s trial and the present day ovepped in his mind. He also remembered how Heinley stared at him from another window. He seemed to say with his eyes, ¡ª ¡®Now it¡¯s me who lives with Navier, whoughs with her, who holds her hand. The woman next to me is my wife, not yours¡¯. He couldn¡¯t forget Navier¡¯s cold eyes as she left in the carriage¡­ Sovieshu was really desperate. ¡®If I¡¯m taking myst breath, would she look at me again? If I apologized to her on my deathbed, would she want to see me one more time?¡¯ He was too tired. He just wanted Navier¡¯s encouragement onest time. One word would be enough. He wished at least to see her up close. ¡®Will she pity me if I die?¡¯ Intense longing and painpletely clouded his senses. ¡°Navier¡­ my wife.¡± Sovieshu smiled helplessly. ¡®When did it start? When did things start to go wrong?¡¯ ¡®Rashta¡­¡¯ Sovieshu closed his eyes. What he told Rashta was true. He didn¡¯t me her for his split with Navier. ¡®But if Rashta hadn¡¯t made me believe that the baby in her womb was mine¡­¡¯ Sovieshu shook his head. Although the situation would have been different, that wasn¡¯t the main problem. ¡®The problem was that I brought Rashta here. I shouldn¡¯t have gone hunting that day.¡¯ ¡®No, what I shouldn¡¯t have done was to take pity on her after I brought her in to treat her injuries.¡¯ ¡®No, what I should have done was to tell my wife after I took pity on Rashta.¡¯ ¡®I should have told Navier that I had rescued a ve, that she had been injured because of me, that her situation was pitiful, and asked whether she would ept Rashta as a maid in the Western Pce.¡¯ ¡ª I heard that you found a runaway ve at the hunting grounds. Is that true? ¡®I should have answered Navier¡¯s question differently.¡¯ ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have locked up Navier¡¯sdy-in-waiting for insulting Rashta.¡¯ ¡®I shouldn¡¯t havepared Navier to Rashta.¡¯ ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have said, ¡°can¡¯t you let it go at least this once?¡±¡¯ ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have made Rashta my concubine.¡¯ ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have sent gifts to Rashta in Navier¡¯s name.¡¯ ¡°Enough!¡± Sovieshu eximed. The veins on his neck bulged. He waspletely exhausted. He couldn¡¯t bear the flood of regrets that invaded his mind. The most painful part was remembering the numerous mistakes he made, the mistakes that could have been righted. If he hadn¡¯t asked Navier for a divorce, he could have made amends for all his mistakes. All he had to do was repent, ask for forgiveness, and patiently approach her again. ¡°Alcohol.¡± Sovieshu went out into the corridor and ordered a knight. ¡°Bring a bottle of alcohol.¡± When the knight brought the bottle of alcohol, Sovieshu began to drink non-stop. He drank, drank and drank until he felt the alcohol rise up his nose. When he lifted his ss to take another sip, he could see Navier sitting at the desk through the clear liquid. She looked thoughtful before she scowled at him. ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to stop drinking?¡± ¡°Ah¡­ ah¡­ Navier¡­ Navier¡­¡± He lost the strength in his hand for a moment and the ss fell to the floor and shattered. Sovieshu copsed on the ground and sobbed. ¡®I messed it all up with my hands¡­ with my own hands.¡¯ As he wept, effusive shouts and cheers could be heard through the window. People were celebrating the execution of Viscount Roteschu, n Rimwell and the Isqua couple. *** Rashta, who had been temporarily locked up in the Southern Pce, was deposed in the very same hall where she had reached the peak of power. The Empress¡¯ crown was taken from her and her luxurious robes were changed to a ck robe. Sovieshu didn¡¯t show up. There were no final courtesies paid to the Empress who provoked the Emperor¡¯s wrath; the Empress who concealed her status as a ve to ascend the throne; the Empress who tried to relinquish imperial territory to her foreign lover. Rashta was exhausted and endured the entire process without strength. She waspletely destroyed when her father, who had abandoned her twice before, abandoned her for the third andst time in the High Court. It was as if the small ss beads left in her heart had shattered. With both arms held by the knights, Rashta climbed barefoot up the narrow, steep stairs of the tower. On the way, a knight spoke darkly. ¡°I have waited for this moment since the day I escorted the legitimate Empress to divorce court.¡± Rashta turned her head. ¡°You¡­¡± It was the Deputy Commander of the Knights of the Imperial Guard, the woman who always followed Empress Navier like a shadow. Sir Artina. The knight didn¡¯t reveal her name, but Rashta recognized her. Rashta stared at her and asked, ¡°How is it possible?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Why wasn¡¯t she betrayed by everyone?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Everyone betrayed me. I thought no one would betray me if I ascended to the throne, but once I became the Empress, I was further betrayed. Why didn¡¯t that happen to Navier?¡± The corners of Sir Artina¡¯s mouth twisted coldly. ¡°What are you talking about? It¡¯s because she was betrayed that you were able to upy the position of Empress, if only for a short time.¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± Rashta blinked and agreed. A faint smile appeared on her face. . ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± In her current state, Rashta didn¡¯t have the same strength as when she threw her shoes and shouted in the High Court that the Emperor was a castrated man. Another knight winked at Sir Artina with an expression that seemed to say, ¡®Has she gone mad?¡¯ Sir Artina shook her head. It didn¡¯t matter if she had gone mad. Rashta would remain locked in the tower for the rest of her life. She would spend her days alone in a room where she would have time to think about the evil deeds she hadmitted. She would have no way to die by her own hand and no one to talk to. She could only dwell on the past, day after day. Life imprisonment was a cruel punishment even if it seemed mercifulpared to a death sentence. No matter how much one came to regret one¡¯s evil deeds, nothing would change. Locked in a room for many years, even a normal person would eventually go insane. As Sir Artina watched her move limply, she thought that Rashta would not hold out for long. When they reached the top of the tower, a knight opened the door and Sir Artina pushed Rashta inside. ¡°Aah!¡± As soon as Rashta fell to the floor, the door was mmed shut and locked. Rashta looked around. It was dark. The room contained a dpidated bed. There was a tiny bathroom to the side. Everything was dark, there was not a single candle. The only light was from sunlight, which entered through a small window high up. The room would only get darker at night. ¡®Will I live here for the rest of my life?¡¯ Rashta began to feel terror and panic. ¡°I don¡¯t want to¡­ I don¡¯t want to!¡± Rashta rushed to the door and started pounding on it. Her pounding echoed in the small room. ¡°Open the door! Open the door!¡± Rashta kicked, punched and headbutted the door, but it wouldn¡¯t open. There wasn¡¯t even an answer. ¡°I don¡¯t want to stay here! Open the door! Open the door!¡± The knights seemed to have gone downstairs. Rashta took a step back and yelled at the top of her lungs. She yelled several times as if she were a crow. For a moment, she felt relieved thinking that she was still young and death would note soon. But her youth had another implication. ¡®How many years will I be here? What will I do in that time?¡¯ It was terrifying. ¡°Sovieshu! Your Majesty! Open the door!¡± Completely bewildered and desperate, Rashta pounded on the door again. ¡°Your Majesty! Open the door! I¡¯m sorry! Open the door! Your Majesty, open the door!¡± Rashta clung to the door in tears. No matter how much she yelled, there was no answer. ¡°Your Majesty, please open the door!¡± Rashta sobbed and banged her head against the door. ¡°You said you would be my savior! You promised me that I would never have to go through a hard time again! Your Majesty, you said you would always protect me!¡± Chapter 400 Chapter 400. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (1) // The title is repeated. Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Rashta shook her head as she yelled, but since no one responded she crawled back and curled up next to the bed. As she trembled, she remembered the moment Delise stuck her tongue out at her with a smile, Pix¡¯s severed head, the blue bird¡¯s shrieks as she plucked its feathers, how she had to stab Arian in order to run away. Rashta felt overwhelmed by all her evil deeds and they came to her mind as hallucinations. ¡°No! No! I¡¯m scared! Your Majesty! I¡¯m scared! Your Majesty, I¡¯m scared!¡± Rashta cried and stomped heavily on the floor, but the hallucinations didn¡¯t go away. ¡°Save me, Your Majesty!¡± Rashta ran back to the door and pounded on it. At that moment, a p at the bottom of the door used for food opened, and a white hand slipped in. That hand disappeared as soon as it dropped a pill on the floor. Rashta stared at the pill until she realized it hadn¡¯t been a hallucination, and rushed to pound on the door again. ¡°Open it! Open it! Open the door! Please help me!¡± However, the person had already left quietly. Several hourster, Rashta slowly reached out to pick up the pill. Rashta looked at the pill in a daze. There was no indication of what kind of pill it was, but Rashta immediately deduced it. It was a poison pill. She threw it away. ¡°What is this supposed to mean?! What do you want to achieve?!¡± There was no response. Rashta took onest look at the poison pill before she quickly went to bed and curled up. ¡®Do they want to poison me because I was sentenced to life imprisonment? Did they send me that poison pill to die? Do they think I¡¯ll swallow it? Never! I¡¯ll never swallow it!¡¯ One day, two days, three days passed, and she finally picked up the poison pill. Rashta shuddered as she took the pill in her hands. There was no way she could bear to stay here for long. As she passed the days doing nothing, the hallucinations increased, and she saw those she had hurt and those who had tried to hurt her. Navier¡¯s gaze on the day of her divorce from Sovieshu appeared incessantly before Rashta¡¯s eyes. Simrly, she hallucinated Viscount Roteschu and the Isqua couple, wearing a rope around their necks, grabbing her by the ankles to drag her down. She had nightmares every day. In the course of the day, she slept so that time would pass quickly, but at night she couldn¡¯t fall asleep, so she trembled with fear in the dark. What terrified her most was that these days would repeat themselves for decades toe. Eventually, Rashta decided to take the poison pill. She popped the pill into her mouth as tears ran down her cheeks. ¡°Your Majesty, I¡¯m scared. Your Majesty, I¡¯m scared. Your Majesty¡­ why don¡¯t youe save me¡­¡± Rashta cried in fear after she swallowed the pill. The poison quickly spread through her body. She began to tremble and wrapped her arms around herself. In a matter of seconds, she had copsed. The spasms were so violent that she couldn¡¯t help but roll around on the floor. Her arms and legs wouldn¡¯t stop shaking, but her mind became calm in the midst of it. She felt lucky that she wouldn¡¯t have to stay locked up for decades. Rashta looked at the small window high up. She could see a yellow moon. The moon seemed to look at her with a smile. ¡®Why are you mocking me?¡¯ Rashta only thought the words, as she couldn¡¯t move her lips. Suddenly, she remembered the first baby she had held in her arms. Curiosity began to rise. ¡®Whose baby was that? Did the parents who lost that baby suffer as much as I did? Did it leave as deep a wound as it left in me?¡¯ Rashta¡¯s eyes slowly closed. ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter anymore. But¡­ if there is life after death, I want to see that baby, alive and well.¡¯ Rashta coughed several times, spitting blood. ¡®Your Majesty¡­ Even if Your Majesty hates Rashta¡­ Rashta loved Your Majesty very much¡­ Rashta truly loved Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu was the man who loved her the most. He was the man who made her the happiest. ¡­ In her fading mind, she suddenly found herself in a dark, cramped room. Viscount Roteschu handed her the dead baby, but this time the baby was not dead. The baby was perfectly healthy. After she pped Viscount Roteschu for lying, Sovieshu arrived to take her away. He told her that he believed in her innocence, that he was sorry he had locked her up here, and that he would free her. Once she went downstairs and left the tower, she ran into Delise. Arian was at her side. Delise¡¯s tongue was intact and Arian was healthy. Rashta said she was sorry and burst into tears, and both womenforted her, smiling. Once Rashta wiped away her tears, she saw two children ying together. She was told that they were Ahn and Glorym. Both had grown up a lot since she¡¯dst seen them. As she followed the children into a flower-filled garden, she saw Empress Navier from a distance, surrounded by herdies-in-waiting. Rashta flustered and swallowed hard. It was the same Empress Navier from the painting that Rivetti cherished. Maybe that¡¯s why she looked like a princess belonging to a fairy tale rather than a real person. Rashta called out to her. Empress Navier looked back with cold eyes. ¡ª I am Rashta. Navier frowned as if she didn¡¯t know who she was. Rashta repeated herself through tears. ¡ª I am Rashta. Rashta had always wanted to be like Rivetti. And Rivetti admired Empress Navier above anyone else. ¡ª I am Rashta. A faint smile appeared on Navier¡¯s cold face. Though she didn¡¯t recognize Rashta, she hugged her as she had done with Rivetti. It was aforting hug. Before her eyes closedpletely, Rashta stopped moving. The wind blowing through the window made her silver hair flutter in the air as if it hade to life. Her corpse was found a weekter. Chapter 401 Chapter 401. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 It was raining so hard that even with an umbre, one would still get wet. Few people ventured out into the rain, especially nobles, who would rather stay in theirrge mansions, warming themselves in front of the firece and drinking hot soup. However, two nobles and one infant ventured out that day. ¡°To tell the truth, I don¡¯t understand why you want to help the princess.¡± ¡°Emperor Sovieshu might kill the baby for revenge.¡± It was Duke Elgy, Viscountess Verdi, and Glorym, wrapped in a nket, asleep in the Viscountess¡¯s arms. ¡°His Majesty would not be so cruel.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s only an assumption on my part. But even if he doesn¡¯t kill her, her parents are criminals, so the girl will be a ve. Wouldn¡¯t that be a pity?¡± Viscountess Verdi looked at him, disturbed. It is said that the enemy of your enemy is your friend, but Duke Elgy, who betrayed Rashta, couldn¡¯t be considered a friend of Viscountess Verdi¡¯s. While both had inmon the fact that they had betrayed Rashta, Viscountess Verdi still distrusted Duke Elgy. However, she had no choice but to ept Duke Elgy¡¯s proposal to run away with Glorym, because at this time no one was paying too much attention to Rashta¡¯s children. She had not changed her opinion of him, but she couldn¡¯t ask anyone else for help. It had been a few days since she epted his help, so they were now some distance from the capital. But the distrust didn¡¯t go away. ¡®Why would Duke Elgy go through all this trouble to help the princess?¡¯ Duke Elgy, who noticed her distrust, smiled slightly. ¡°This will be the first andst time I help, after this, we won¡¯t see each other again.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t answer the question of why you offered to help us.¡± Duke Elgy replied coldly. ¡°I didn¡¯t force you to ept my help. If you don¡¯t want it, you can refuse it and leave. I don¡¯t need to convince you.¡± His words were unpleasant, but it was true. Viscountess Verdi had to decide whether to take the risk or leave Glorym in Sovieshu¡¯s hands. It was her choice toe all this way at Duke Elgy¡¯s suggestion. She did it to protect this lovely baby, whom she had cared for since her birth. ¡°Looks like you won¡¯t back down.¡± ¡°Now is not the time to stand idly by.¡± Viscountess Verdi, who spoke firmly, hugged the baby tighter as if ready to sacrifice herself to protect her. Duke Elgy murmured as he watched the baby sleep peacefully in the heavy rain. ¡°The baby looks so much like Rashta that it worries me.¡± Viscountess Verdi hastily covered Glorym¡¯s head with the nket. That was also what worried her most. The baby looked too much like Rashta. Anyone who knew Rashta¡¯s face would see it reflected in Glorym. Duke Elgy sighed and stepped out of the carriage. His attendant, who was waiting outside, quickly opened the umbre and raised it over his head. He took onest look at the Princess and Viscountess Verdi, and advised, ¡°Emperor Sovieshu might be after you, so you¡¯d better hurry. It sure won¡¯t be pleasant if he finds you.¡± *** As Sovieshu looked at the letters from various nearby countries on his desk, he sighed and leaned back against the back of the chair. It had been a few days since the position of Empress had be vacant, and already the nobles were advising that Sovieshu should ept a new Empress. That was the extent of it for the moment, but Sovieshu knew that the various factions would be louder as time went on. Sovieshu sighed again. He didn¡¯t want anyone by his side at the moment. Not only because he¡¯d gone through two divorces in quick session, but also because of Rashta¡¯s curse. In the High Court, Rashta shouted that Sovieshu was a castrated man and that he had no seeds. Few people believed her malicious words. Most thought it was Rashta¡¯sst desperate move, while a few only considered it a possibility. But if Sovieshu married a third time, it would be a different story. Everyone would attentively wait for the third Empress to be pregnant by Sovieshu. Just thinking about it was exhausting. The more he thought about it, the more he felt a sharp pain in the side of his stomach. In the end, Sovieshu called the pce doctor. ¡°Are you all right, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I feel a sharp pain around my stomach.¡± The pce doctor said after he examined him, ¡®Take this. You need to clear your mind, Your Majesty.¡± The pce doctor handed him the medicine and left. Sovieshu came out of his office soon after. He slowly wandered around the main pce as he tried to quiet his overwhelmed mind. But no matter where he went, the sadness was unbearable because he kept reminiscing about the old days. It was very hard for Sovieshu to see Navier marry another man in front of his own eyes, but he had been able to bear it for the baby that was soon to be born. However, now that the baby was gone, so was his peace of mind. He felt he was alone in the midst of a heavy blizzard. ¡®Viscountess Verdi must have escaped safely.¡¯ What was known on the outside was that Glorym was locked in the opposite tower from Rashta. Sovieshu was stunned for a moment as he remembered the girl he would never see again, then shook his head and walked away down the corridor. Wandering around idly overwhelmed him even more, so he headed back to his office. However, he found Marquis Karl standing in front of his office with a very ufortable expression. Standing next to him was a ck-haired man whom Sovieshu had never seen before. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± When Sovieshu asked as he approached, Marquis Karl bowed politely and pointed at the ck-haired man. ¡°Your Majesty, this is an envoy from the Western Empire. He hase with an urgent message.¡± Sovieshu frowned. ¡°An envoy?¡± ¡°My name is Crow, Your Majesty. This is the first time I greet you.¡± The ck-haired man looked too ordinary to havee as an envoy. He didn¡¯t even have an escort or servants. But if he was not truly an official envoy, Marquis Karl would not have brought him here. ¡°What have youe for?¡± Sovieshu asked a little anxiously. Since he had received letters and delegations from other countries one after another, it was not strange that an envoy from the Western Empire woulde at this time. ¡®So why do I feel so ufortable?¡¯ If he was a mere envoy who would express the support of the Western Empire, he would not havee with an urgent message. ¡°Your Majesty, Empress Navier of the Western Empire has been attacked.¡± His words struck him like lightning. Sovieshu was unable to say anything for a moment. Attacked¡­? Attacked¡­ Attacked. ¡°What do you mean attacked?¡± When Sovieshu, who was slow to assimte it, asked in fright, the ck-haired envoy answered with difficulty. ¡°Exactly as I said. A man who held a grudge against Emperor Heinley deliberately threw himself at Empress Navier from the roof of the Imperial Pce.¡± Marquis Karl looked at the envoy open-mouthed while Sovieshu reflexively shook his head. ¡®It can¡¯t be. No way.¡¯ Then Evely came to his mind. Evely was an extremely rare and valuable mage, as she had healing powers. ¡®If it¡¯s Evely¡­ wait, what condition is Navier in? Don¡¯t tell me that¡­¡¯ ¡°Died?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s voice trembled like a sheep¡¯s. ¡°No.¡± The ck-haired envoy was quick to answer. ¡°She¡¯s alive. But she¡¯s in aa¡­¡± Before the envoy could officially request the help of a mage Emperor Heinley knew about, Sovieshu stepped forward and said, ¡°There is a mage in our country who can use healing magic. Empress Navier supported her in the past. This mage can go to the Western Empire to help her.¡± Sovieshu turned to Marquis Karl and issued the order. ¡°Marquis Karl. Find Evely and tell her about the situation on the way.¡± Next, Sovieshu ordered Count Pirnu to prepare the fastest carriage and horses. Within three hours, the delegation was ready to depart for the Western Empire. It included Evely, who would be in charge of Empress Navier¡¯s treatment, knights in anticipation of possible attacks, officials to understand the context of the incident and a person who would return to the Eastern Empire with a report of the situation. Due to the need for speed, only one carriage would make the journey. Everyone involved had a close rtionship with Empress Navier, so they quickly finished their preparations and boarded the carriage. ¡°Navier¡­¡± Sovieshu mentioned her name painfully as he looked out the window at the carriage in the distance. ¡°Navier, what happened to you¡­¡± It all happened so fast that it was actually hard to take it in. Suddenly, Sovieshu felt a sharp pain in his chest, so he clenched his fist and leaned his head against the window frame. Chapter 402 Chapter 402. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The bad news didn¡¯t end there. A few dayster, the jailer who was responsible for taking food to Rashta entered Sovieshu¡¯s office and reported in a shaky voice that the deposed empress had not eaten or drunk anything for several days, and that she was too quiet, so he peered in through the slit in the door. Although the slit was small, it should have been possible to see the inmate walking around the room. But what the jailer saw was Rashta¡¯s silver hair covered in blood. What he assumed was Rashta¡¯s head waspletely still. Also, there was a foul odor. He needed the emperor¡¯s permission to check inside the room. Sovieshu stood up. ¡°Take me to the tower.¡± Sovieshu was in a daze as he climbed the stairs to the top of the tower. ¡®Is she really dead?¡¯ Thest time he saw Rashta, she seemed determined to hold out til the end. He thought it would at least be a few years before she went crazy from being locked up for so long. However, he saw the dposed corpse as soon as he opened the door. Only a few traces remained of the beautiful face reminiscent of an angel: Rashta¡¯s thick, beautiful silver hair. As the jailer had said, her hair was covered in blood, which hade out of her mouth and was pooled on the floor, staining her hair. The jailer covered his mouth and hurried down the stairs. The knights who came with Sovieshu grimaced. Sovieshu stared nkly down at her lifeless corpse. He hadn¡¯t wanted to see her face when she was deposed, nor when she was locked in the tower. And now, it was worse to see her after her miserable death. She didn¡¯t even die with her eyes closed. Sovieshu was startled upon hearing augh, as clearly as if a living Rashta was in the same room with him. ¡ª Why doesn¡¯t Your Majesty say that you love me? Her voice was mixed withughter and echoed in his ears. After he stared at her for a while, he turned around and walked down the steep stairs. He remembered how Rashta cried as if the world was ending when her ankle was caught in the trap. Some questions were useless now, but he suddenly became curious again. ¡®Rashta will be remembered as the most evil empress in the history of the Eastern Empire, but was she always like that? Did I misjudge her because I was captivated by her angelic appearance? Or did she change because of the Imperial Pce, the power and the nobles?¡¯ ¡°The answer will never be known.¡± Sovieshu murmured hisst thought, and Marquis Karl asked while wiping his mouth with a handkerchief, ¡°Your Majesty, what did you say?¡± ¡°Nothing.¡± Sovieshu shook his head, thought for a moment, and ordered. ¡°Do not bury her with the honors befitting an Empress. Cremate her and scatter her ashes on the vast in.¡± *** Sovieshu was devastated. His wife, with whom he was to spend the rest of his life, had abandoned him, and the child he longed for turned out not to be his. Glorym was now far away, and Rashta, who fought until thest moment, died alone. Sovieshu, who considered life to be fleeting, only dreamed of living happily with his wife and children. He wanted to give his children the family that his own father did not give him. Why was it so difficult to attain? Wasn¡¯t it ironic that the Emperor struggled in vain to achieve his vision for a happy family, while manymoners had achieved this dream? Even Navier¡­ Navier thought she had found true happiness in the Western Empire, but she had been attacked there and was now in critical condition. Sovieshu¡¯s stomach ached again as his heart burned. Persistent thoughts of sadness and distress made him double over and cover his face with his hands, pressing his eyelids with his fingertips. He felt that only the news that Navier was out of danger would stop the devastating feeling of sinking into a swamp. ***. ¡°Your Majesty, Duke Elgy is here.¡± ¡°What has hee for?¡± Sovieshu was looking at Navier¡¯s painting while muttering to himself when Duke Elgy¡¯s visit was announced. ¡°He wants to say goodbye before he leaves.¡± Sovieshu frowned at the unwanted visit. He hated Duke Elgy because he came out rtively unscathed despite his involvement in Rashta¡¯s scandals. In fact, Duke Elgy could still take over one of the Eastern Empire¡¯s key ports if the Wol Continent Alliance¡¯s ruling supported him. Of course, the odds of that ruling were low. Just as Sovieshu respected the Wol Continent Alliance, the Wol Continent Alliance respected the Eastern Empire. There was a high probability that the Wol Continent Alliance would side with Sovieshu, albeit reluctantly. However, if the result was unfavorable to Sovieshu, he would have to negotiate with the Wol Continent Alliance to get the desired result. Thest thing he wanted was for the situation to be even moreplicated. After he sank into his thoughts for a while, he agreed to meet Duke Elgy in the drawing room. He didn¡¯t want to see his face, but he was curious. ¡®Why the hell did he do this?¡¯ There were many things he didn¡¯t understand about his actions. He was a known friend of Heinley¡¯s and helped Navier escape from Troby Mansion, but he was also close to Rashta. He and Rashta were the subject of several scandals due to their close rtionship, but at thest moment, he revealed two serious crimes that had beenmitted by Rashta, which further worsened his image. Following all this, his reputation as a yboy continued to sink, and now everyone was talking badly about him. So Sovieshu was curious. Why did he do this? What did he want to achieve? Duke Elgy greeted Sovieshu with a quiet smile as soon as he entered the drawing room. ¡°It¡¯s time for me to go. Thank you for all your attention thus far, Your Majesty. The next time we meet may be at the Alliance Court.¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t reply. Sitting with his arms crossed, he looked at Elgy for a moment. ¡°Did you know that Rashta is dead?¡± Duke Elgy flinched slightly. Sovieshu took his reaction as an answer and asked another question. ¡°I think you were to me for Rashta¡¯s drastic change. What kind of resentment led you to do that?¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s expression was unreadable. His lips curved into a smile and he answered with the same question. ¡°So, Your Majesty wants to know what led me to do that?¡± Chapter 403 Chapter 403. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Sovieshu looked at Duke Elgy and ordered, ¡°Speak at once.¡± ¡°It¡¯s due to Lady Aleisia.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s face stiffened as if it had been covered by a thinyer of ice. He thought that Duke Elgy was Aleisia¡¯s child. He blinked slowly a few times. ¡°By chance¡­¡± ¡°No.¡± Duke Elgy smiled as if he had read his mind. ¡°My mother is not a cockroach who meddles in other families.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Unfortunately, my father was the worst kind of insect.¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s smile spread across his face. Sovieshu was more confused. Aside from the rumor that Aleisia hadmitted suicide, there was another, more disturbing rumor. It was rumored that her parents, fearful of what others might think, threw their daughter into the sea and disguised her death as a suicide. Unlike other concubines, Aleisia didn¡¯t meet the same end¡­ ¡ª That woman¡­ Sovieshu swallowed hard. ¡ª That woman gave my mother cookiesced with abortive drugs. The voice in Sovieshu¡¯s mind was his own back from when he was a child. ¡ª I ate them by mistake, Father. Sovieshu¡¯s eyes trembled. ¡ª His Majesty¡¯s embraces are warm. Sovieshu¡¯s mother cried as another voice whispered. ¡ª Children often die young The voice continued, speaking affectionately, and his mother still cried. ¡ª You¡¯ll have a little brother. His mother unhappy. His father angry. He walked fast as he carried some cookies. Navier eating the cookies. A happy memory, because theyughed with each other. ¡ª There is evidence that abortive drugs entered the Empress¡¯s pce! His father¡¯s angry voice¡­ That woman dragged out in tears. The fragmented scenes shed quickly through Sovieshu¡¯s mind. He examined Duke Elgy¡¯s face carefully. Only his mother, Aleisia, and Sovieshu himself knew the truth about that incident. However, this man¡­ ¡°It¡¯s not really what you think, you seem to be misunderstanding.¡± Duke Elgy¡¯s smile turned into an expression of enormous displeasure. As if he hated to be misunderstood. However, Sovieshu didn¡¯t understand. If Aleisia had not died as he had believed, and if she married a man and gave birth to Duke Elgy, his behavior was somewhat understandable. But if Elgy was not Aleisia¡¯s child, his behavior was iprehensible. Rather than exin further, Duke Elgy took out two small boxes and ced them carefully on the floor. ¡°This is a parting gift I prepared for Your Majesty.¡± Duke Elgy bowed politely and withdrew. Sovieshu looked at the boxes on the floor. One was blue and the other red, and both were so small that only a small jewel would fit inside. Sovieshu clenched his fist. For reasons as yet unknown, Duke Elgy seemed to hold a grudge against him. His hostility had also been directed at Rashta in the past. Now, he has given Sovieshu a gift. But it was definitely not given with good intentions. It definitely was not poison. If Sovieshu was poisoned by opening the boxes, Duke Elgy would have to bear the terrible consequences, as well as his family and his country. So it could not be poison¡­ ¡®Even if it was poison, I don¡¯t really care. Glorym has gone far away and it¡¯s uncertain whether Navier will survive. What does it matter if I am poisoned and die?¡¯ Sovieshu got up from the couch and went over to the boxes. Slowly, he picked them up. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he opened the blue box. Inside was a key with a blue jewel embedded in it. When he opened the red box, he found a key with a red jewel. Sovieshu examined the keys for a moment, then called out to Marquis Karl. ¡°Where did Duke Elgy stay when he was a guest?¡± ¡°In the thirdrgest room in the Southern Pce.¡± ¡°I need to know if he left anything behind. Check every corner of the room.¡± Marquis Karl replied in bewilderment. ¡°As far as I know, that room was cleaned as soon as Duke Elgy left.¡± ¡°Was anything strange found at the time?¡± Marquis Karl called the man who was in charge of the servants who cleaned the pce and asked him about it. The man answered that Duke Elgy had left a locked safe, so it was sent to him at the inn where he was staying. Sovieshu sent knights to fetch the safe. As he waited, he paced impatiently around the room. After a while, the knights returned with the safe. ¡°Was there really only one?¡± He had two keys, but there was only one lock. ¡°Yes, there was only one. The innkeeper kept it because he thought the guest woulde back for the safe.¡± Did Duke Elgy only leave one safe by mistake? Or was the other one stolen? The safe was not heavy enough to prevent someone from stealing it. In any case, one of the keys given by Duke Elgy should do for this one. Sovieshu ordered everyone out of the drawing room. He then hesitantly took out the key with the blue jewel embedded in it and inserted it into the lock of the safe. The key went in smoothly and he heard a click when he turned the key. His heartbeat raced uncontrobly. ¡®What could be inside? Perhaps something dangerous¡­¡¯ However, another safe was inside. Surprised, Sovieshu put the key with the blue jewel aside and took the key with the red jewel. What the hell would he find? Why put a safe inside a safe¡­? But when he lifted the smaller safe, a piece of paper fell to the floor. It had been inside of the bigger safe, the one opened by the key with the blue jewel. He didn¡¯t pick up the paper, but read what was written on it. ¡ª Drugs. ¡°Drugs?¡± ¡®Does he mean drugs used to treat the sick or drugs used by people who are mentally weak?¡¯ Sovieshu pondered for a moment, then took the key with the red jewel, slowly inserted it into the lock and turned it. The second safe opened with a click. Inside, there was another piece of paper. This time it was not a single word, so Sovieshu took the paper and read the message. ¡ª Princess Glorym is His Majesty¡¯s true daughter. The shock caused all of Sovieshu¡¯s thoughts to vanish in an instant. ¡®What does this mean? What does this mean?¡¯ As if someone had removed his brain, Sovieshu was in a state of panic and couldn¡¯t think. He dropped the paper. If he had been on his feet, he would have copsed. Sovieshu shook his head. ¡®What the hell is this¡­? It¡¯s absurd. It¡¯s absurd, absolutely absurd.¡¯ The paternity test had been performed in front of Sovieshu¡¯s watchful eyes. The priest pricked the princess¡¯s finger with a strange tool in front of everyone. ¡®It wasn¡¯t just once. It was done twice. Wait, did the priest also draw blood from the Princess¡¯s finger the second time?¡¯ Sovieshu frantically tried to recall the memories of that day. ¡®No, the second time he didn¡¯t draw blood from the princess¡¯s finger. He used the blood that had already been drawn.¡¯ When Rashta insisted that Glorym¡¯s blood be drawn again to repeat the test, the priest objected. Sovieshu put his hands on his head. He also remembered wondering why Duke Elgy had appeared at the temple back then. ¡®¡­ No, no, it can¡¯t be. Although Duke Elgy is a member of the royal family of another country, there is no way he could have manipted the paternity test so easily. Besides, a priest never lies. Priests never lie¡­¡¯ ¡°Karl! Karl!¡± Sovieshu desperately called out to Marquis Karl. When Marquis Karl, who was waiting in front of the door, entered, Sovieshu ordered him with trembling hands. ¡°Viscountess Verdi, bring Viscountess Verdi. Bring Glorym!¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°I need to check something, so bring them back! Right now! Hurry!¡± Marquis Karl was confused, but he immediately went out to find Viscountess Verdi. He knew how to find them because a knight was following them on Sovieshu¡¯s orders. Sovieshu clenched the paper Duke Elgy had left for him. ¡°It can¡¯t be. It can¡¯t be. The test result was manipted. The priest lied on purpose.¡± ¡®Yes, it was a lie.¡¯ This was clearly the reason why Duke Elgy helped Viscountess Verdi escape. Duke Elgy wanted to keep Sovieshu from conducting a new paternity test, so he had taken the princess away. Now, he revealed this so that Sovieshu would spend the rest of his life tormented. The reason he gave Sovieshu the keys and not the safe was probably to buy time to escape Sovieshu¡¯s wrath. It had already been several hours since Duke Elgy had left. ¡®But¡­ but what if Duke Elgy helped the princess escape because he feels guilty?¡¯ Sovieshu looked at the painting of the princess in his bedroom with empty eyes. ¡°It can¡¯t be. It can¡¯t be.¡± Chapter 404 Chapter 404. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (1) // The next one is thest one with this same title Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Viscountess Verdi¡¯s eyes were full of love as she watched the baby in a deep sleep. She held Glorym in her arms to keep her warm. Though it hadn¡¯t been easy, escaping had been smoother than she expected. The knights¡¯ inspections at the checkpoints were not strict, and the people with whom they crossed paths were friendly. At this rate, it looked like they could be over the border in a few more hours. ¡®It¡¯s fortunate that Lord Koshar drove out the Eternal Thousand bandits from this area.¡¯ The Eternal Thousand bandits used to roam in this area frequently, but when Koshar was exiled to the area by Duke Troby, he made a hobby of fighting against them. Thanks to Koshar, Viscountess Verdi believed, there were currently no traces of the Eternal Thousand bandits. She had even heard that they were now terrorizing people in the Western Empire. When they finally arrived at Palme, Viscountess Verdi got out of the carriage with the baby in her arms and went to the bathroom. She could manage to sleep and eat in the carriage, but she had no choice but to leave the safety of the carriage to use the bathroom. She went to a nearby inn and ordered food. While she waited, she heard people whispering. ¡°A woman with a baby?¡± ¡°Yes. The knights seem to be in a hurry to find her.¡± ¡°Is she a criminal?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. There is such a rush to find her, so she must be in serious trouble.¡± They were travelers who hade a long way and encountered stricter checkpoints than they were used to. Viscountess Verdi hurried back to the carriage without waiting for the food. ¡°Let¡¯s go, quickly!¡± The Viscountess urged the coachman. Although she wasn¡¯t sure that the woman with a baby mentioned by the travelers was herself and Glorym, it would be best to avoid any possible risk. Duke Elgy had arranged for this coachman and informed him of the situation, so he started the carriage without asking any questions, and they left Palme just before the inspection at the checkpoints was reinforced by the knights. The Viscountess¡¯ heart pounded and she hugged the baby tightly. ¡®In fact, the checkpoints have seemed more flexible than usual, until now. Did Emperor Sovieshu let us escape? Is it because he still has a little love left for the baby?¡¯ Sovieshu had sent the pce doctor when Glorym was sick and kept her protected within the Imperial Pce as the scandal unfolded, so Viscountess Verdi had believed that he still had some love for Glorym. ¡®But if that¡¯s the case, why is he trying to catch us now?¡¯ After hearing the people at the inn, Viscountess Verdi had doubts. Fortunately, both the carriage and the horses were excellent, and the coachman was verypetent, so the carriage sped away upon the Viscountess¡¯ request to hurry. ¡ª The baby looks so much like Rashta that it worries me. Duke Elgy¡¯s words came to her mind and increased her nervousness. Suddenly, the coachman lost control of the horses, and the carriage began to spin. ¡°Aaaahh!¡± Viscountess Verdi shielded the baby with her arms. The carriage, which had spun around several times, came to a stop when it collided with a huge rock and overturned. The Viscountess suffered a heavy blow, but she didn¡¯t release the baby, even when she felt she was about to lose consciousness. She could not hear very well, but she was aware that the baby was crying inconsbly. Someone opened the carriage door abruptly. The noises didn¡¯t stop and rough hands snatched the princess away from her. ¡°No!¡± With a huge effort, Viscountess Verdi crawled towards the door, holding out her hands toward the baby. A tall, ruthless-looking man was holding the baby with one hand, looking down at the frail Viscountess without pity. ¡°My Lord, what do you want to do?¡± ¡°Get rid of anything useless.¡± After hearing those words, Viscountess Verdi finally lost consciousness. The man who took Glorym was Kelderek, the Celestial Lord of the Eternal Thousand bandits. He held the baby as if she were a bag while he instructed his subordinates. ¡°Search the carriage! There must be a lot of money and jewelry! It looks like it belongs to a noble escaping in a hurry, so we should find many valuable goods! His subordinatesughed and began to search the carriage. As their leader had deduced, they found many jewels and money inside. Kelderekughed good-naturedly. It had been a while since they hadst achieved such great results, so his subordinates praised him. ¡°We¡¯ve been so lucky on our first day back here. Our luck will continue to improve from now on.¡± ¡°Our Celestial Lord was right about that bastard Koshar!¡± ¡°Yes, that bastard was able to ditch his bad reputation when he left the Eastern Empire.¡± They had left for the Western Empire to escape Koshar, but ran into Koshar again as soon as they arrived. Then, they learned that Koshar¡¯s sister had be the Empress of the Western Empire. The bandits did not believe it was a simple coincidence. They felt that the siblings of that family had some kind of grudge against them, since wherever they went, Koshar faced them and his sister became the Empress. They had to move elsewhere, so Kelderek racked his brains and decided to return to the Eastern Empire. The result was already paying off. ¡°I¡¯m a genius! Koshar, you¡¯re a bloody bastard. May we never meet again!¡± Kelderekughed and handed the baby to the subordinate next to him. ¡°Leave the girl anywhere. Let¡¯s go.¡± However, before the bandits left, a man named Bucheon suddenly approached the baby, took her in his arms and murmured, ¡°Doesn¡¯t¡­ doesn¡¯t this baby look like she¡¯s my daughter?¡± At these words, Kelderek trembled and shouted in anger. ¡°What are you talking about, asshole?! How can youpare your ugly face to a baby like this one? Apologize to the baby for the offense!¡± Bucheon quickly changed his words. ¡°She looks like my wife! That¡¯s what I meant.¡± ¡°Do you ever think before you speak?!¡± Kelderek trembled again, but Bucheon ignored him and made a request. ¡°My Lord, didn¡¯t you order to leave this girl anywhere? Please, let¡¯s leave her at my house.¡± ¡°What?! Why?¡± ¡°I have been married to my wife for ten years, but we have not been able to have children. This girl is identical to my wife, so she must be my daughter.¡± ¡°Asshole¡­ you don¡¯t have a bit of intelligence.¡± ¡°Huh? She has two eyes, a nose and a mouth just like my wife, doesn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°You asshole. Do what you want.¡± Kelderek insulted him onest time, but Bucheon was thrilled. He held the baby tenderly and whispered to her. ¡°My daughter, my daughter.¡± Chapter 405 Chapter 405. Sovieshu¡¯s Despair (2) ¡°Your Majesty. Viscountess Verdi has been found, but there was no trace of the baby.¡± The knight providing the report spoke seriously. Sovieshu had not slept for several days. As a result, he had dark circles under his eyes, and he seemed so weak that if he were pushed just a little too hard, he would immediately copse and be unable to wake up. He had been trained since he was a child and he was used to working as usual no matter how exhausted he might be, but these days his mind did not function fully. Sovieshu stared at the knight with sunken eyes. The knight lowered his head, unable to tolerate the Emperor¡¯s gaze. It seemed like life had been extinguished from Sovieshu¡¯s eyes. ¡°A thorough search was conducted, but she was not found. Furthermore, when we found the Viscountess¡­¡± ¡°Where was she found?¡± ¡°It was beyond the borders, a road surrounded by forest, far from the nearest vige. The carriage had overturned and the Viscountess was injured.¡± Marquis Karl, who was at Sovieshu¡¯s side, put his hand to his forehead. Glorym was a baby, and if she was left alone in the forest¡­ Sovieshu closed his eyes. He had a headache and felt a sharp pain in his stomach that was hard to bear. The thread of hope that he had clung to over thest few days seemed to have torn. Sovieshu seemed terribly exhausted, so Marquis Karl asked. ¡°Why did the carriage overturn? Was it an ident?¡± The knight recalled the moment when Viscountess Verdi was found unconscious. There were no valuables left in the carriage. ¡°Bandits had already raided the carriage. When the carriage overturned, the coachman was killed and Viscountess Verdi was injured.¡± ¡°Did you ask Viscountess Verdi about the baby?¡± ¡°I asked her while her injuries were being treated. Thest thing she heard was a bandit, who said to take only valuables.¡± Marquis Karl looked at Sovieshu. His face had be terribly pale, like a colorless wax figure. Marquis Karl issued the order, ¡°Send men to search all the nearby viges and forests. Find out if someone picked up a baby, if a baby suddenly appeared in a house, if a traveler with a baby passed by, and so on.¡± Once the knight had left, Marquis Karl asked Sovieshu. ¡°What will you do about Viscountess Verdi, Your Majesty?¡± If the baby still held the title of princess and had been lost while in the Viscountess¡¯ care, it would be considered a serious crime. However, Glorym¡¯s position had not yet been restored, so no such crime wasmitted. On the other hand, Glorym was the daughter of criminals and was supposed to be locked away in a tower, so it was indeed a crime to have secretly escaped with her. But Sovieshu had overlooked Viscountess Verdi¡¯s escape, and had even rxed inspection at the checkpoints, so this matter could not be dealt with in ordance with thews. ¡°I¡¯ll think about it at another time.¡± Sovieshu muttered with a heavy voice. His mind was absorbed in the note left behind by Duke Elgy about Glorym¡¯s true identity. He couldn¡¯t think of anything else. After Marquis Karl left, Sovieshu remained sitting in silence, his eyes on the carpet. He covered his face with his hands and sighed in pain. ¡®Where is she? Did she crawl away on her own? She couldn¡¯t crawl when I kept her by my side. But now¡­ now I don¡¯t know anything about her.¡¯ ¡®Does Glorym know she¡¯s lost?¡¯ He was very worried. ¡®Maybe the bandits took the baby, too? What can they do with a baby? Will they sell her into very?¡¯ Legally, only criminals and their descendants could be ves, but there were many people who were enved illegally. Rivetti was rescued from such a fate by Sovieshu¡¯s own knights. ¡®If the bandits want to sell the baby into very¡­¡¯ ¡°Glorym¡­ Glorym¡­¡± All kinds of terrible thoughts went through his head. He was afraid that the baby would be attacked by a wild animal, that a bird would drop her as it carried her off in its ws, that bandits would kill her for being noisy, or that she would be sold into very. His hands trembled and his stomach ached again. Sovieshu rang the small bell and ordered alcohol. He couldn¡¯t bear this situation while sober. As soon as the servant brought a bottle of alcohol, Sovieshu drank straight from the bottle. When Sovieshu ordered the fifth bottle, Marquis Karl could no longer stand idly by and came in to stop him. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± . ¡°Who told you toe in?¡± ¡°Forgive me, Your Majesty. But it would be detrimental to your health to drink any more.¡± ¡°I know. It¡¯s just that¡­ I can¡¯t stand it.¡± Sovieshu was not angry. He didn¡¯t even seem to have the strength to get angry. Marquis Karl approached carefully, took the bottle of alcohol from his hand and ced it on the tray. The empty ss brought by the servant sat on the tray, untouched. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t drink anymore, so go away.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I said I won¡¯t drink anymore.¡± Sovieshu ordered with his hand on his forehead, but Marquis Karl did not leave.. ¡°The paternity tests were conducted in front of many people. The results could not have been tampered with in front of so many witnesses. We all saw the moment when the priest drew blood from the girl for the tests.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Even if Duke Elgy managed to tamper with the results of the paternity tests at the temple, we still cannot know the truth. Duke Elgy himself would not know the true results.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Besides, even if Glorym is found, the paternity test can¡¯t be repeated because Rashta is dead.¡± Sovieshu slowly removed his hand from his forehead. His gaze was icy, but Marquis Karl didn¡¯t stop. ¡°Duke Elgy dared to say that, not because he is convinced that Glorym is Your Majesty¡¯s daughter, but to torment Your Majesty with doubt. The fact that he would write a message confirming Glorym¡¯s paternity when Duke Elgy himself is unaware of the truth is proof of his bad intentions. He has a grudge against Your Majesty, so you must not fall into his trap.¡± Duke Elgy only gave him the keys and left the safe at the inn to dy Sovieshu and buy time to leave the capital and head for a nearby port. When Sovieshu ordered Viscountess Verdi and Duke Elgy captured, the Duke had already boarded a ship. Marquis Karl was right. Duke Elgy made numerous preparations. It was very likely that his appearance at the temple was not to tamper with the test results, but to cast doubtter on about the possibility that the test might have been tampered with. Although Sovieshu understood what Marquis Karl meant, he could not ept it. ¡°If the test results were tampered with, doesn¡¯t that mean it¡¯s possible that she is my daughter?!¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°If that baby is my daughter, then I would have caused my daughter¡¯s death through my own actions. How can you ask me to calm down?¡± ¡°She is not dead, Your Majesty. We will find her.¡± Marquis Karl tried to reassure him, but Sovieshu couldn¡¯t listen to Marquis Karl anymore. The thought of never again seeing the child he had so longed for filled him with terrible fear. Marquis Karl looked at Sovieshu with regret, but then he took the bottle and left. He could hear Sovieshu¡¯s anguished screams through the closed door. ¡®The baby must be found.¡¯ Marquis Karl believed that Duke Elgy had lied, but he still hoped that the baby would be found. Otherwise, he worried that Sovieshu would be unable to ovee this shock. Chapter 406 Chapter 406. Separate Again (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Despite the deep desire of Sovieshu and Marquis Karl, Glorym was not found. A thorough search was carried out in the viges and in the nearby forest, and even, with the consent of the neighboring countries, in all border viges, but the silver-haired baby was not to be found. The chance that the baby could survive alone in the forest was slim to none, so the knights were sorry to report that Glorym had most likely died. Sovieshu went back to sleep. He could see the people he wanted to see, even if it was only in his dreams. Sovieshu performed his daily work wlessly and acted normally in audiences with the people, so many believed that he had forgotten the devastating news and returned to his original role as Emperor. However, he drank five to six bottles of hard alcohol a night. Even with the door closed, crying could be heard from his bedroom. ¡°His Majesty is damaging his stomach, so he must not drink any more alcohol. Please stop it.¡± The pce doctor, who couldn¡¯t bear to see Sovieshy drinking himself sick, pleaded with Marquis Karl. But Sovieshu was the country¡¯s Emperor, and there was no way his secretary could stop him. ¡°The best thing would be if news arrived that Empress Navier has awakened¡­¡± Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries were very concerned. But before the news about Navier came, another terrible piece of news about Glorym arrived. One of the knights in charge of the search in the forest had found Glorym¡¯s bloodstained clothes in a cave. Since the bandits believed the baby might belong to an important noble family, the Celestial Lord of the Eternal Thousand bandits ordered to fake her death just in case, and his subordinates deliberately used the baby¡¯s clothes to achieve this. The knights did not know that the Eternal Thousand bandits had taken the baby and were sure that Glorym had died. Sovieshupletely lost his senses when he held the baby¡¯s clothes. ¡°Glorym¡­ my daughter.¡± As he held the baby¡¯s clothes with both hands, he couldn¡¯t close his mouth and his eyes widened. He had seen these clothes on the baby before. ¡°My daughter. My little girl. My baby.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes filled with tears. With a lump in his throat, he fell to his knees and clutched the baby¡¯s clothes against his chest. Tears slid down his face. ¡°Glorym!¡± Sovieshu entered his bedroom and walked over to Glorym¡¯s painting. Hugging the blood-stained clothes, he let out a deep sigh as he looked at Glorym¡¯s portrait, painted on the days when she was healthy and happy. He remembered her little limbs, her wide smile, her cute lips, and the first time he heard her say, ¡®aba, aba¡¯ Sovieshu sighed and writhed in pain. ¡®I threw her out, such a lovely baby, my own daughter. It¡¯s like I killed her.¡¯ ¡ª Please believe me! Rashta¡¯s spite-filled voice echoed in his ears. ¡ª She¡¯s Your Majesty¡¯s daughter! He remembered how the baby wiggled in his arms. She was very small and fragile. A baby to be protected. She was the most precious, the sweetest baby in the world. ¡°Daughter, take your father. Daughter, take your father with you!¡± Sovieshu couldn¡¯t stand it. He sobbed and hit his head against the wall. ¡®Navier died. My daughter died. It was all in vain.¡¯ The loss, anger and frustration that grew inside of him was unbearable. The pain he felt every time he hit his head against the wall momentarily suppressed the pain in his heart. ¡°Your Majesty! Calm down, Your Majesty!¡± His secretaries barged in to restrain him, but Sovieshu shook them off and continued to hit his head against the wall. He didn¡¯t stop hurting himself until his forehead started to bleed. Sovieshu felt his heart almost jump out of his chest when the baby, whom he had abandoned, appeared in front of his eyes, frightened, as if she was waiting to be found before dying. ¡°Glorym! Glorym! My baby! Bring my baby! Marquis Karl, find my baby!¡± A knight of the Imperial Guard, who couldn¡¯t bear to see Sovieshu¡¯s current state, approached him and knocked him out with a blow to the back. He was prepared to receive a severe punishment, but he did it anyway. However, Marquis Karl indicated to the knight that he had done the right thing. The same knight took Sovieshu to his bed. ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to tie up His Majesty¡­ until he calms down a bit?¡± The Emperor seemedpletely out of control, so much so that he didn¡¯t mind hurting himself in front of other people. The knight was worried about what else he might do impulsively. Marquis Karl thought about it for a moment but shook his head. ¡°We can¡¯t do it without a good reason.¡± Marquis Karl also believed that Sovieshu was in a serious condition, but he didn¡¯t dare to bind the Emperor. ¡°What about the envoy who traveled with Evely to the Eastern Empire? Has he still not returned?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Well, it¡¯s still too soon to expect his return, but¡­ I hope he¡¯ll be back sooner. I think that will calm down His Majesty a bit.¡± Marquis Karl hesitated as to whether he should take the baby¡¯s clothes away from Sovieshu. In the end, he carefully hid them and left the room. Leaving Sovieshu alone was a mistake. When he woke up, Sovieshu saw the two paintings in his bedroom and wept profusely. The two women in the paintings merged in his tear-clouded vision. Navier and Glorym. His beloved wife and his beloved daughter. The perfect family that he had always dreamed of appeared before his eyes. Sovieshu beat his chest as he cried and shouted their names. He stretched out his hands reaching for the wife who had always been by his side, and called out to her, ¡°Navier¡­ Help me, Navier. It is painful. Navier. Please help me.¡± However, when he recalled the news from the Western Empire regarding the attack that resulted in Navier in aa, his shoulders shook and heughed strangely. He wasn¡¯t trulyughing. Theughter was the result of his sadness peaking. ¡®I should have stopped Navier from going to that bloody country.¡¯ His foolish, selfish decisions now caused him enormous pain and regret. It seemed to him that Navier looked unusually pale in the painting today. Like a corpse. Sovieshu believed that Navier had died, just as his daughter. Sovieshu copsed before Glorym¡¯s painting. ¡°Baby. My baby. Glorym, where are you?¡± The tears, flowing incessantly, clouded his vision further. ¡°Glorym. Daddy¡¯s here. My baby, where are you?¡± As he sobbed, he suddenly became frightened. ¡®How terrified would my daughter be without her father by her side? She must be very afraid.¡¯ It scared him to think that if he did not hold her hand tightly, she would not be able to move forward. Even now, she was separated from Viscountess Verdi, who cared for her. ¡®Such an angelic baby deserves to go to heaven. But she won¡¯t be able to find that path as she cries and calls for her father.¡¯ Sovieshu ordered a servant to bring alcohol and drank again. After he drank a lot, an illusion of Navier appeared in front of his eyes. The illusion appeared every time he drank. Sovieshu spoke to Navier in tears. ¡ª I don¡¯t know if I can do well. ¡°You¡¯ll do well. The only one who made a mistake was me.¡± ¡ª Stop drinking. ¡°Navier¡­ Navier¡­ please live. Tell me you¡¯re alive. Tell me you¡¯re happy. Please.¡± Then, Navier disappeared. ¡®Could it be because I started talking about reality?¡¯ Sovieshu stood up and looked around. At that moment, he saw Navier walk away through the window. She was wearing the same dress she wore on the day when they fought over Rashta. Just like then, Sovieshu¡¯s hands were resting firmly on the windowsill. The difference was that now he was crying and shaking his head. ¡®I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m sorry¡­¡¯ He apologized several times, but then he saw a person standing on the roof. It was Rashta. She watched Navier walk by as her blood-soaked silver hair fluttered. Sovieshu¡¯s eyes widened. ¡®It¡¯s an illusion, it¡¯s only an illusion¡­¡¯ As he repeated these words in his mind, Rashta turned her head toward him. She smiled broadly, blood pooled around her mouth, and pointed down with her finger. Sovieshu shook his head. ¡®Don¡¯t do it! Don¡¯t do it! Please don¡¯t!¡¯ But Rashta jumped off the roof toward Navier. ¡°?Nooo!¡± Sovieshu screamed and jumped out of the window. Chapter 407 Chapter 407. Separate Again (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 When Sovieshu opened his eyes, he was back in his bedroom. But the sheets which usually kept him warm were so cold that he was shivering. ¡°My daughter. Dad is sorry. Dad is sorry you left first. Dad is sorry for not believing you were my daughter.¡± Sovieshu staggered over to the paintings. He took both of them down, cing his precious paintings side by side on the floor. He opened his arms, embracing Navier¡¯s painting with one arm and Glorym¡¯s with the other. He could feel warmth through the paintings. In his mind, the subjects of the paintings also opened their arms to return Sovieshu¡¯s embrace. A childhood memory came to his mind. ¡ª We¡¯ll be a couple when we grow up, Navier. ¡ª Aren¡¯t we already a couple? ¡ª It¡¯ll be different. We¡¯ll be a married couple. I want us to have a baby that looks like us. We¡¯ll have a family portrait taken of us with our child and I¡¯ll hang it up in my room. Sovieshu smiled slightly. ¡°My family¡­¡± As his voice trailed off he saw a little girl in the distance, standing on the white snow. The girl, who was crying, ran up to him as soon as she saw him and asked why he hadn¡¯te earlier. ¡°Glorym.¡± Sovieshu took a step toward the girl. But before he could get closer to her, someone grabbed him. It was Navier. She shook her head. ¡°Don¡¯t leave. Stay, Sovieshu.¡± He looked alternately at Navier and Glorym. After a moment¡¯s hesitation, he understood. He would die if he went that way. But then he could be by his daughter¡¯s side again. When his eyes met Navier¡¯s, he couldn¡¯t stop crying. He remembered waiting for her outside Troby Mansion in the dead of night. He remembered the moment their gazes met as she drove away in the carriage. He remembered her wedding, her wedding to Heinley. ¡°Don¡¯t go away, Sovieshu.¡± The girl urged him toe quickly while Navier pulled him from behind. They both meant a lot to him, but they stood opposite from each other. Sovieshu looked at each of them several times, smiled helplessly and pushed Navier¡¯s hand away. ¡°You stay. Live, Navier. Be happy.¡± ¡®The baby died, but not Navier.¡¯ He wanted to be with Navier. He wanted to go with her, he didn¡¯t want to lose her twice, but he knew that this time he had to let her go. ¡°Don¡¯t follow me. Even if youe here we may not meet again, so live happily for many years.¡± Sovieshu turned around,forted the frightened girl, and walked down a path with no end in sight. *** Marquis Karl moved anxiously down the corridor, unable to tear himself away from Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom. Suddenly, he heard a loud noise not far away, which was followed by several shouts. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty!¡± ¡®Did that noisee from outside¡­¡¯ When Marquis Karl entered the bedroom, he discovered that Sovieshu had fallen out of his window. Terrified, he shouted orders. ¡°The pce doctor! Get the pce doctor! Evely! Get Miss Evely!¡± However, he immediately remembered that Evely, the precious healing mage, had gone to the Western Empire to heal Navier. ¡°Navier¡­¡± A faint whisper came from Sovieshu. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty! The pce doctor! Get the pce doctor!¡± Marquis Karl shouted in despair. *** ¡°You woke up!¡± I heard a cry of joy. When I opened my eyes, I saw Heinley¡¯s tearful face in front of me. ¡°¡­ Heinley?¡± My throat hurt badly, but I managed to open my mouth and say his name. ¡°My Queen!¡± Heinley whimpered, grabbed my hand, and rested his forehead against it. Was my hand cold or did Heinley have a fever? His forehead seemed especially warm. I was still a little dazed as Heinley sobbed. ¡°Queen, I thought I would lose you¡­ I was so afraid I would lose you¡­¡± Behind Heinley, I could see Sovieshu¡¯s shadow. The shadow, which looked troubled, shed for an instant as soon as I saw it, and disappeared through the wall. This made me remember the dream I had. Sovieshu was about to go the wrong way, so I stopped him, but he pushed my hand away and told me not to follow him. He wanted me to live. He wanted me to live happily for many years. Then he took the hand of a girl who was covered in blood from head to toe and walked away. My heart ached strangely. I felt an indescribable sense of loss, as if something had been torn from me. *** I was only able to learn the full story of what had happened the day after I woke up. On the day I woke up, the pce doctor had done everything possible to get me to rest. I was also able to speak to Evely. ¡°I am happy to be able to return Your Majesty¡¯s kindness.¡± ¡°You saved my life¡­¡± Grand Duke Kapmen and Evely had saved me. Heinley also told me that I survived because I used my ice magic on Duke Zemensia just before he fell on me, but I couldn¡¯t quite remember¡­ However, many people witnessed the attack, so my ice magic may be a small problem once I fully recover. In any case, thanks to using my ice magic and Grand Duke Kapmen wrapping his arms around me, I was able to survive Zemensia¡¯s attempt to crush me. My baby also survived. But I fell into aa, so Evely came all the way from the Eastern Empire to heal me. Evely lowered her head, her face turnedpletely red, and she smiled brightly. She swayed from side to side and looked at me briefly. She seemed very proud of herself. ¡°You have be an amazing person, Evely.¡± ¡°Yes! I saved Your Majesty! And a¡­ umm¡­ I don¡¯t remember what country he¡¯s from¡­ well, never mind¡­ I also saved the Grand Duke!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t say this because you saved me. You truly have be an amazing person.¡± Mages with healing abilities were highly valued. Of course, each mage had a unique ability, and they were each valuable in some way. However, healing abilities were especially remarkable because they could save lives. ¡°It¡¯s also thanks to Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything.¡± Evely quickly shook her head to indicate that she disagreed. Iughed because she looked so cute. But I was also worried. Unlike me, Grand Duke Kapmen hadn¡¯t woken up yet. Will he recover soon? ording to the pce doctor, he should wake up at any moment. Evely also told me that she had used more of her magic on Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Excuse me, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes? What is it?¡± ¡°Your Majesty, the Emperor¡­ uh¡­ I mean Emperor Sovieshu¡­¡± What did Evely want to say? She looked at me with a strange hesitation. When I indicated that she could talk with a soft smile, she continued as if she didn¡¯t know how to say it. ¡°Does Your Majesty have a bad rtionship with Emperor Sovieshu?¡± I smiled awkwardly. It was a difficult question to answer. My rtionship with Sovieshu is¡­plicated. We were once friends and a couple destined to spend our lives together, but suddenly he became someone I hated to see, and I even wished that he wouldn¡¯t be happy. But it felt a little ufortable to see him so low. However, as we both represent our respective Empires, I couldn¡¯t express these personal feelings. ¡°It¡¯s a normal rtionship.¡± In the end, I ended my answer with, ¡°Why do you ask?¡± to get to the point. Evely hesitated, smiled shyly and scratched her cheek. ¡°It seems that Emperor Sovieshu still loves and cares for Your Majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Forgive me. I don¡¯t want to make you feel ufortable. But when he sent me here, he was very pale and seemed desperate¡­¡± ¡°Did Sovieshu send you?¡± ¡°Yes. As soon as he heard the news, he immediately called me and ordered me to save Your Majesty.¡± I remembered that on the night of Rashta¡¯s trial, Sovieshu stood crying outside of my parents¡¯ mansion until I left in the carriage. Should I write a letter to thank him for sending Evely? Chapter 408 Chapter 408. Sovieshu¡¯s Change (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Evely came once a day to use her healing magic, I took the medicines prescribed by the pce doctor, and rested in bed, so I recovered quickly. For a time I believed that I would actually die. Now, my physical condition is almost back to what it was before. ¡°My Queen, that¡¯s only what you think.¡± However, Heinley disagreed and said that I had not recovered yet. ¡°I feel like you¡¯re exaggerating a bit.¡± ¡°Exaggerating? My Queen, if it had been the other way around, you¡¯d be as worried as I am.¡± Despite my look of irritation, Heinley was adamant. ¡°You¡¯re still unwell. You must remain onplete bed rest until you have fully recovered.¡± ¡°Alright, stop nagging.¡± When I turned my head away in annoyance, Heinley picked up a small bowl and a spoon from the dining trolley and approached my side of the bed. ¡°You want to feed me again?¡± ¡°My Queen, you¡¯re convalescent.¡± ¡°My hands are fine.¡± ¡°My Queen, you would do the same for me if it were the other way around.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Come on. Open your mouth and say, ¡®aah¡¯. It¡¯s the beef soup you wanted to eat, My Queen.¡± As much as I wanted to refuse, I couldn¡¯t because Heinley used the phrase ¡®if it were the other way around¡¯ as a weapon. There was no way to counter that. In any case, the time I was in aa must have been worse for Heinley. I lost consciousness instantly, but he had to endure not knowing whether I would wake up all this time. My brother, mydies-in-waiting and my parents, who hurried back to the Western Empire upon receiving news of the attack¡­ all were very worried. McKenna even prayed for me, saying, ¡®It doesn¡¯t matter that I have to take care of all your work, I¡¯ll do it withoutint, so please wake up.¡¯ Finally, I opened my mouth and ate the soup. ¡°I¡¯ll make one thing clear. It¡¯s not me you¡¯re feeding.¡± ¡°Then who am I feeding?¡± ¡°The baby bird in my belly.¡± ¡°Then, baby bird, open your mouth and say ¡®aah¡¯ again.¡± As I obediently ate the soup, I suddenly thought of the Zemensia Family. I had heard that the culprit, Duke Zemensia, died on the spot. The Old Duke Zemensia was brought in his ce to meet alone with Heinley. Shortly afterwards, all members of the Zemensia Family were arrested and sentenced to death or very for the attempted murder of the Empress. That couldn¡¯t be all, so I wanted to know more details. Countess Jubel was the only one who told me a little, albeit reluctantly, and my otherdies-in-waiting kept their mouths shut. So did my attendants and knights. They all said that it would be best not to listen to such stories for the sake of the baby in my belly. They said that I had been through a lot, and I should only focus on good things. ¡°Queen? Won¡¯t you say ¡®aah¡¯?¡± ¡°Aah.¡± While Heinley fed me, Laura¡¯s anxious voice came from outside the door. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty! I have something to tell you!¡± I excused myself to Heinley and let Laura in. She walked in with a happy expression, curtseyed to Heinley, and eximed, ¡°Your Majesty, Grand Duke Kapmen has awakened!¡± I was surprised and tried to get up, but Heinley stopped me. After I scowled at him, I asked Laura. ¡°What state is he in? Is he fine?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. He¡¯s been sitting up in his bed staring nkly ever since he woke up.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen and Evely were now treated as heroes for saving me, and Laura, being close to me, was full of joy. I indicated with my eyes to Heinley that I wanted to go see Grand Duke Kapmen. Grand Duke Kapmen and Evely¡¯s actions were not only heroic, but they were truly my saviors. Especially Grand Duke Kapmen, who was more injured than I, and was in aa until now because he protected me with his own body. I wanted to see him awake and healthy. Fortunately, Heinley reached out to help me up. ¡°Let¡¯s go together, My Queen.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen initially stayed in a room for distinguished guests, but after the attack he was moved to the room across from mine so that we could both receive prompt treatment from the pce doctor. This made it easier for me to visit him. With Heinley¡¯s help, I followed Laura and entered Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s room. He was sitting on the bed with his hands on his knees. As Laura had said, he had a nk stare. He seemed a little confused. At least he had no external injuries thanks to the healing magic, but his body still needed time to return to its previous condition. Grand Duke Kapmen seemed to hear us enter, so he turned slightly to look in our direction. However, his eyes were still unfocused. I had a terrible thought. Maybe he had lost his sight. In my head, I asked repeatedly whether he was alright. He should be able to hear my thoughts. I don¡¯t know if it was because he was bothered by the incessant questions I asked in my mind, or if it was just coincidence, but Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s eyes slowly began to focus. ¡°Oh.¡± It seemed like I wasn¡¯t the only one who noticed the change, because Laura eximed with surprise. As I got closer to Grand Duke Kapmen, his eyes seemed to focus more. ¡°Are you all right?¡± The concern that I had previously expressed only in my mind, came out of my mouth. Grand Duke Kapmen blinked several times. As I watched him with concern, Grand Duke Kapmen finally spoke. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± Contrary to his initial nk stare, his voice was calm and precise. Added to that was the fact that he spoke with a certain coldness. He was the healthy Kapmen I remembered. ¡®Thank goodness¡­ he seems to be fine.¡¯ I sighed in relief and remembered to thank him. Although I had already done it in my mind, I had to tell him properly. ¡°Thank you.¡± ¡°¡­ It was nothing.¡± ¡°I heard that you saved my life. Thank you very much, Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± ¡°I only did what I had to do.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen met my eyes with a smile. His usually impassive gaze was friendly and warm. Oh¡­ oh my gosh. My mouth opened a little by itself. I asked Grand Duke Kapmen with my eyes, ¡®Perhaps¡­?¡¯ He seemed to understand and nodded slightly. My mouth opened wide. Laura looked at me quizzically because she didn¡¯t understand what was going on. Heinley looked puzzled too, but I couldn¡¯t exin it, so Iughed. ¡®Grand Duke Kapmen finally got rid of the effects of the love potion!¡¯ Chapter 409 Chapter 409. Sovieshu¡¯s Change (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 An urgent message arrived for Evely from the Eastern Empire. Emperor Sovieshu had been injured, so they wanted her to return as soon as my health was sufficiently improved. When I heard the news, I remembered the Sovieshu that I saw in my dreams. Was he seriously injured? ¡°There¡¯s no mention that his state of health is serious, so shouldn¡¯t he be fine?¡± Evely spoke rtively calmly, but it was impossible to tell. The Emperor¡¯s state of health, especially if it was delicate, was not usuallymunicated fully to the public. On the contrary, there were many cases in which an Emperor set a trap by lying about an illness. ¡°I wanted to stay longer with Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°There will be other opportunities. Come visit me from time to time.¡± ¡°Can Ie often?¡± ¡°You cane often, but I don¡¯t want you to feel pressured.¡± ¡°Please allow me to visit often¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright. Come as often as you like.¡± Evely sped her hands together and squirmed on the spot with happiness. I remembered the racing chariot that Sovieshu sent as a gift when my pregnancy was announced. I asked my attendants to prepare that chariot for Evely. She packed her bags and departed directly for the Eastern Empire. ¡®He¡¯ll be fine¡­¡¯ After Evely left, I was worried. Could it be that my curse reached him? Was my curse real? Could it be that my magical ability was not ice, but cursing people? As I walked slowly around the garden, deep in thought, I heard a voice call out to me not far away. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± When I turned around, I saw Grand Duke Kapmen in a wheelchair. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen.¡± After I greeted him with a cheerful smile, the Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s attendant pushed the wheelchair closer. ¡°Give us a moment alone.¡± ¡°As youmand.¡± Once the attendant withdrew, I also asked Viscount Langdel to leave us alone for a moment. ¡°Forgive me, Your Majesty, but I can¡¯t leave. I couldn¡¯t be at ease if I were separated from Your Majesty.¡± Since Viscount Langdel tly refused, I led Grand Duke Kapmen to a nearby room inside the Pce. Only then did Viscount Langdel agree to stand guard outside while we talked. Other than Grand Duke Kapmen and I, there was no one in the room, and only the ticking of the clock could be heard. Before, I would have felt ufortable being alone like this with Grand Duke Kapmen, since I knew he was attracted to me involuntarily due to the love potion. But I no longer felt that way. While I hadn¡¯t heard a definite answer yet, I was convinced that the love potion had lost its effectiveness after Grand Duke Kapmen fell into aa. ¡°First of all, thank you so very much for saving my life.¡± ¡°We saved each other.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think that is so.¡± ¡°If Your Majesty hadn¡¯t slowed down that man¡¯s fall, I might have died on the spot.¡± ¡°¡­You¡¯re exaggerating. That was only a coincidence.¡± ¡®It¡¯s just a joke, right?¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmenughed and fiddled with the glove which he had removed from one hand. As I watched him fidget with the white glove, I asked the question I most wanted to ask. ¡°The effects of the love potion¡­¡± ¡°They are gone.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen answered firmly before I finished my question, and stopped fiddling with his glove. ¡°Now I can hide it.¡± ¡°Hide it?¡± ¡°How is your recovery going?¡± ¡®He seems to have just changed the subject.¡¯ I narrowed my eyes. Grand Duke Kapmen could hear my thoughts, but he ignored them and didn¡¯t answer. Suddenly, I felt like I had overlooked something. Earlier, when Grand Duke Kapmen had just woken up¡­ something didn¡¯t fit¡­ ¡°You look well. Miss Evely is very talented.¡± The clue I was about to reach in my memories was snatched from my grasp by Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s voice. It was a pity, but in the end I desisted and replied with a smile. ¡°Yes, I¡¯m fine. I can¡¯t make any sudden movements, but it¡¯s better than staying in bed.¡± Kapmen smiled slightly and put his glove back on. *** Grand Duke Kapmen remained in the room even after Navier left. As he gazed at the chair in which Navier had sat, he murmured as if she were still sitting there. ¡°I only got to hold you in my arms once. It makes me happy that it was to save you.¡± His voice was too low to be overheard. Kapmen looked at the empty seat, took off his glove again, and put his hand over his heart. ¡®It still hurts¡­ but now I can hide it or at least I hope so.¡¯ ¡®That¡¯s all that matters¡­¡¯ *** The weather at night was cold and damp. Buried in the silky golden sheets, I raised my head to look through the window every time the wind blew hard. I wanted very much to sleep in Heinley¡¯s arms, but the pce doctor insisted that I had to sleep in a separate bed until I was fully recovered. For that reason, I was lying alone in my room with nothing to do. Lately it has been the same for thest few days. Heinley¡­ ¡°What are you doing?¡± Heinley was holding a golden jar which contained something he was sprinkling around my bed, on the window frames, the door frames, and so on. ¡°Heinley¡­? Heinley¡­? Heinley.¡± I called out to him three times in a row while I was wrapped in the sheets. Heinley, who was busy with whatever he was doing, raised his head and said, ¡°Yes?¡± I reached my hand out from under the sheets and pointed to the white crystals he had sprinkled on the window sill. ¡°What are you sprinkling?¡± ¡°Umm¡­¡± Heinley didn¡¯t answer immediately and fiddled with the white crystals in the jar. ¡°If you don¡¯t answer, I¡¯ll freeze it all.¡± ¡°I meant to answer. Besides, why do you be so violent? You make my heart race.¡± ¡°¡­ I make your heart race?¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you I like you acting like that?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Oh, I haven¡¯t told you yet. Forget it, My Queen. I¡¯ll tell you about it some other time.¡± Heinley walked over to me, picked up a few white crystals, and ced them on my hand. I held the crystals up to my eyes, but I still didn¡¯t know what they were. ¡°It¡¯s salt.¡± ¡°Salt?¡± What kind of salt? When I looked at him puzzled, Heinley picked up the salt from my hand. ¡°I¡¯m sprinkling it to ward off the bad energies.¡± ¡°Bad energies?¡± ¡°Even if I were not scared, it is better to prevent it¡­¡± ¡°Do you mean it¡¯s to ward off the ghost of Duke Zemensia in case it appears?¡± Was he afraid that the man who died during the attack against me would reappear as a ghost? Was that what Heinley feared? ¡°Ah, I suppose that¡¯s right.¡± Before, during the ghost¡¯smotion caused by Marquis Ketron, Heinley was never afraid. He pretended to be scared in front of me, but I was convinced that he really wasn¡¯t. But now that I saw him sprinkling salt everywhere, my conviction disappeared. Is he really afraid of ghosts? As I watched him, he took a blue jewel from his pocket and waved it over the salt. ¡°Is that an aromatic sea jewel?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± It was said that aromatic sea jewels drive away impurities and curses¡­ ¡°It¡¯s safe now, isn¡¯t it, My Queen?¡± ¡°I would have felt safe even without all this.¡± ¡°Not me. Like I told you, I¡¯m scared.¡± Heinley murmured as he approached me. ¡°Pleasefort me. I¡¯m scared.¡± Then he leaned forwards to kiss on my cheek. No, he almost did. Heinley stopped short just before his lips grazed my cheek and pulled back. ¡°Heinley?¡± Why didn¡¯t he kiss me? As I looked at him with curiosity, Heinley awkwardly touched the corner of his mouth. Then he suddenly picked up the jar of salt again. ¡°I¡¯ll sprinkle some more.¡± Heinley? *** In the luxurious bedroom, the courtiers whispered as they turned their gazes from time to time to the canopied bed. It was the third day after Emperor Sovieshu had fallen out of the window. He had injured his right arm and leg, but his injuries didn¡¯t seem so severe that he should still be in aa. However, Emperor Sovieshu was still unconscious. At first, the courtiers waited calmly for Sovieshu to wake up, but on the second day they began to whisper among themselves. Some said that pitiful cries could be heard from the tower where Rashta had died, while others said that Rashta seemed to be trying to take Emperor Sovieshu away. ¡°Could he have seen Rashta¡¯s ghost?¡± ¡°Hush, don¡¯t say sinister things!¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a possibility? Although he wasn¡¯t seriously injured, he hasn¡¯t woken up for several days¡­¡± At that moment, a muffled voice came from the bed. ¡°Who is Rashta?¡± It was the voice of Emperor Sovieshu. The courtiers looked at each other in surprise. When they btedly came to their senses, they began to call out to him. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± The curtains around the bed were pulled open abruptly, revealing Emperor Sovieshu sitting in an ufortable position, one hand on his head. ¡°Damn. My head hurts.¡± As Sovieshu muttered under his breath, a courtier came out of the room and the other two quickly approached him. ¡°Your Majesty, are you all right?¡± ¡°How do you feel, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°If you fools didn¡¯t make such a fuss, my head wouldn¡¯t hurt so much.¡± Sovieshu waved his hand impatiently and the courtiers became quiet. Only then, Sovieshu removed his hand from his head and asked with a serious expression. ¡°What happened to Navier? Is she all right?¡± The courtiers remained silent. They looked at each other, bewildered, as a simr question popped into their minds. ¡®What is His Majesty talking about?¡¯ However, they soon remembered what had happened. ¡®Ah¡­ Empress Navier had been seriously injured. His Majesty wants to know if any news about her condition has arrived.¡¯ ¡°We still have received no news.¡± At a courtier¡¯s answer, Sovieshu got out of bed and stood up. ¡°I¡¯ll go see her myself.¡± ¡®He intends to go to the Western Empire? He shouldn¡¯t even be walking in his condition!¡¯ The courtiers waved their hands in concern. The pce doctor had ruled out a serious injury, but Sovieshu certainly needed rest because of his broken bones in his right arm and leg. He should not get up yet. As expected, Sovieshu immediately clenched his teeth in pain and staggered. The courtiers held him at the same time. By this time, Marquis Karl and the pce doctor had arrived. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Oh my, Your Majesty!¡± Sovieshu, who leaned on the courtiers¡¯ shoulders for bnce, looked quizzically at Marquis Karl and the doctor who were rushing to him and seemed close to tears. Then Sovieshu murmured with a frown. ¡°Your Majesty¡­?¡± Before he finished what he wanted to say, he suddenly raised his eyebrows, looked back at Marquis Karl and asked in bewilderment, ¡°Marquis Karl? How has your beard grown this much¡­ and in one day?¡± Marquis Karl, who was about to tearfully ask Sovieshu if he was alright, paused. ¡®What is he talking about?¡¯ He thought he had misheard, but Sovieshu¡¯s finger was pointed precisely at his beard. Marquis Karl ran both hands through his beard. ¡°Your Majesty? I have had this beard for five years now.¡± ¡°What?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression twisted a little. It was as if he had heard nonsense. ¡°What are you saying? You always apply weird creams on your chin and above your lip because it won¡¯t grow. You mean it worked so well that you grew a beard like that in one day?¡± The courtiers looked at each other. Marquis Karl¡¯s eyes narrowed and the doctor¡¯s mouth fell open, so wide that it seemed his jaw would drop to the floor. Sovieshu looked at them all even more puzzled. ¡°Also, why did you break into my bedroom without permission, Marquis Karl? Why are all these people gathered in my bedroom? Why do you call me Your Majesty?¡± The pce doctor covered his mouth with both hands. Although Marquis Karl was not a doctor, he understood something about Sovieshu¡¯s strange condition. But Sovieshu, who had plunged those present into confusion, looked at everyone as if they were crazy and headed for the door. ¡°I need to see Navier first. Before I fell, I clearly saw that she was about to be hit by the peaches.¡± Sovieshu staggered out of the bedroom, but no one stopped him. Marquis Karl was the first toe to his senses. He called the Knight Commander, who was waiting outside the bedroom, and followed Sovieshu. The Commander rushed to Sovieshu¡¯s aid. Leaning on his shoulder, Sovieshu struggled down the stairs leading to the Western Pce and continued down the corridor. ¡®Damn, I think I broke my leg,¡¯ Sovieshu thought. Marquis Karl followed him in silence while thinking, ¡®No, no, it can¡¯t be¡¯. ¡°Your Majesty, isn¡¯t Navier¡­ in the Western Empire?¡± Sovieshu muttered as he walked, clenching his teeth in pain. ¡°What? How would Navier be in the Western Empire? Just yesterday we sneaked out to pick peaches.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Marquis Karl stroked his beard with one hand. Although it might be hard to ept, he now had no doubts. Part of Sovieshu¡¯s memory¡­ had disappeared. Furthermore, Sovieshu¡¯s memory seemed to have halted sometime during his days as the Crown Prince. Around the time that he was between 18 and 19 years old. At that age, Sovieshu had once climbed arge peach tree, to pick some of the delicious ripe peaches for Navier. Navier, in her days as Crown Princess, was under a strict diet to control her weight whenever an important celebration approached. Sovieshu would sneak food to her whenever he could, and that had been the first time he had climbed a tree. Although it was unusual for the Crown Prince to climb a tree, he might have obtained the idea from a romance novel and decided to do the same for Navier. In any case, Sovieshu managed to climb up the tree, but fell abruptly as he pulled a handful of peaches, which hit Navier on the head and caused a bump. Apparently, Sovieshu thought that these events had happened the day before. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Marquis Karl spoke in a deep voice. ¡°Why is everyone acting so strange?¡± Sovieshu looked at Marquis Karl with annoyance and rubbed his injured arm. ¡°I don¡¯t understand anything, starting with your beard. Why do you call me Your Majesty¡­? No, wait, why was I lying in my father¡¯s bedroom?¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure when I climbed up the peach tree¡­. Damn! The peaches! Navier!¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°First, let¡¯s check that Navier is alright.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± As Sovieshu tried to hurry, Marquis Karl called out repeatedly. ¡°Let¡¯s see Navier first, Marquis Karl. It seems that she will also hit me with her pillow today. Navier might put peaches inside the pillow to make the blows stronger.¡± ¡°¡­ Your Majesty fell from a second story window, not from a tree.¡± ¡°What are you saying?¡± ¡°As I said, Empress Navier is not in the Pce.¡± Sovieshu paused for a moment and asked with concern. ¡°Has she gone away because she¡¯s angry? Did the peaches hit her that hard?¡± Marquis Karl answered with sorrow. ¡°Navier¡­ married another man.¡± Chapter 410 Chapter 410. Marquis Karl¡¯s Shock (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Sovieshu frowned as if Marquis Karl¡¯s words made no sense, so far-fetched that they didn¡¯t even deserve to be heard. ¡°What are you saying? Navier is married to me. ¡°After the divorce, she remarried.¡± ¡°She divorced me?¡± There was no edge in Sovieshu¡¯s voice. He didn¡¯t believe Marquis Karl¡¯s words. Marquis Karl tugged at his own beard and didn¡¯t say anything to contradict Sovieshu, whose eyes twitched. Although Sovieshu knew deep down that something wasn¡¯t right, he preferred to turn a blind eye because it all seemed so absurd. ¡°Why would I divorce Navier? Did Navier¡­ did she cheat on me with another man? Does she not care about me? Or is it because of the peaches?¡± Marquis Karl felt the urge to cry andugh at the same time. A smile came to his eyes and sadness came to his lips. He recalled the close rtionship between Navier and Sovieshu in the past. Back then, no one would have expected that Sovieshu would one day divorce Navier. The fight over some peaches was the worst thing that Marquis Karl could remember about that time. ¡®How did they end up like this?¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty took another woman as your concubine.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°That¡¯s not all. You divorced Navier to make your concubine the Empress.¡± ¡°What¡­? That¡¯s¡­ that¡¯s ridiculous¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s what happened. So Navier remarried and settled in the Western Empire.¡± Sovieshu shook his head with wide eyes. ¡°That doesn¡¯t make sense. I fell in love with another woman and asked Navier for a divorce? Me? How was I able to do that?¡± ¡°You did.¡± Sovieshu, who was constantly shaking his head, suddenly stopped and asked. ¡°Is that woman¡¯s name Rashta?¡± ¡°Did you remember it?¡± ¡°No. I heard the courtiers whispering her name as I woke up.¡± Sovieshu thought about it some more and asked, ¡°Does that woman have reddish hair by any chance?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯spletely different.¡± Marquis Karl answered with certainty. ¡°I can¡¯t believe it. I can¡¯t believe I married another woman. I can¡¯t believe I asked Navier for a divorce. It¡¯s absolutely impossible.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°Enough with the silly jokes! Please!¡± With that, Sovieshu hurried to the Western Pce. The Knight Commander helped him without saying a word. Sovieshu entered the room which had been upied by Navier back then, but it waspletely empty. As soon as he saw the empty rooms, Sovieshu lost strength in his legs and nearly copsed. The Knight Commander reacted quickly, preventing Sovieshu¡¯s fall. When Sovieshu looked at Marquis Karl with a stiff expression. Marquis Karl bowed his head, his heart heavy with pain. If Sovieshu¡¯s memory had truly returned to his days as the Crown Prince, then, from his perspective, he had suddenly lost both his mother and his wife. His despair must be enormous. Sovieshu looked at the floor for a moment and then said, ¡°Let¡¯s go back.¡± Back in his bedroom in the Eastern Pce, while he was examined by the pce doctor, Sovieshu asked, ¡°Marquis Karl. Did Navier¡­ suffer a lot? Because of me?¡± ¡°Yes. She suffered very much. Very much.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°She had a very difficult time.¡± Marquis Karl thought that Sovieshu would now ask about Rashta. He thought he would ask about the woman whom he loved so much, enough to leave Navier. As he decided on the right words, Sovieshu asked another question. ¡°Is it possible to bring Navier back?¡± Marquis Karl looked at him in surprise. The pce doctor, who was still there, also looked at Sovieshu with wide eyes. However, Sovieshu¡¯s expression was serious. He stared at Marquis Karl with determination and repeated himself. ¡°Alright. Didn¡¯t you say I¡¯m the Emperor? I¡¯ll find out for myself.¡± ¡°Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Another question, Marquis Karl. Who did Navier remarry?¡± ¡°She married Prince Heinley of the Western Kingdom.¡± ¡°Bullshit! Damn it, tell me this is a joke at once! Please! You mean she married that child who used to run away from home all the time? Navier?¡± He was startled. He raised his hand and swiped it across his head. ¡°It¡¯s absurd. As affected as Navier¡­ was by the divorce, how could she marry that¡­ that child¡­¡± Marquis Karl was close toughter despite the sadness of the situation. He could understand the reason for Sovieshu¡¯s reaction. ¡°Prince Heinley is no longer a child, Your Majesty.¡± The pce doctor had spoken instead of Marquis Karl. With a frown, Sovieshu recognized, ¡°I overlooked the fact that the Prince must have grown up by now, too.¡± Marquis Karl added a few more words. ¡°He is no longer a Prince.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°He has now ascended to the throne as the Emperor of the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Western Empire? What do you mean by Empire? Isn¡¯t it the Western Kingdom?¡± ¡°The Western Kingdom proimed itself an Empire.¡± ¡°How could a country that only has jewels proim itself an Empire?¡± At that age, Sovieshu had shadowed his father, so he had learned the practical matters regarding geopolitics, and even led some tasks. With help and guidance, he would regain his former skills eventually. But there was a lot of work to be done right now. Duke Elgy, Glorym, and all other sorts of problems thate up every day¡­ Marquis Karlined internally, ¡®¡­ we¡¯ll have to manage somehow.¡¯ He felt that he and the other secretaries were under so much pressure, they would die in a few years. Despite the distress he felt, he didn¡¯t show any signs of it and asked the pce doctor, ¡°How is he?¡± ¡°He has bruises, sprains and broken bones, but nothing too serious. If he adheres to the treatment, he will recover.¡± Marquis Karl looked at Sovieshu and asked quietly, ¡°What about his head?¡± Sovieshu narrowed his eyes because Marquis Karl had not spoken low enough that he couldn¡¯t hear, but he knew that his condition was unusual, so he also waited for the answer. The pce doctor shook his head without confidence. ¡°He did not suffer any serious blows to the head. In my opinion¡­¡± The doctor hesitated, wondering whether it was right to say, ¡®It seems to be a mental problem,¡¯ but Sovieshu asked first, ¡°Am I crazy?¡± Once the doctor shook his head hurriedly, Sovieshu sighed andy down on the bed. ¡°I¡¯ll take a long nap. My limbs hurt a lot. Besides¡­ I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m so sleepy.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll change your bandages.¡± ¡°All right.¡± By the time the pce doctor applied ointment to the affected areas and put on new bandages, Sovieshu was already deeply asleep, as if he had fainted. Marquis Karl ordered the courtiers gathered in the bedroom to leave. He then left with the pce doctor. However, he made sure to leave a knight in the bedroom to prevent Sovieshu from hurting himself again. Chapter 411

Chapter 411

Chapter 410. Marquis Karl¡¯s Shock (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 When one is alone in a dark ce, scary thoughts oftene to mind for no apparent reason. This was the case for the knight, although he wasn¡¯t exactly alone. Emperor Sovieshu was asleep on the bed in front of him. Due to Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s actions during the daytime, the knight wasn¡¯t feeling calm at all. On this moonless night, the knight averted his gaze to the window. A cold wind blew through the bedroom, and he thought that the window might not be closed properly. While he rubbed his arms, the knight walked over to make sure that the window was fully closed. At that moment, Sovieshu, who was deeply asleep, as if he had fainted, woke up abruptly. The knight¡¯s heart almost jumped out of his chest, but he managed to stay calm and approached the Emperor. ¡°Your Majesty, are you all right?¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t answer the question, but looked around and suddenly ran to the window. ¡®What¡¯s the matter with him?! He has not yet drunk alcohol.¡¯ Startled, the knight followed Sovieshu with his arms outstretched as a precaution. But this time Sovieshu didn¡¯t jump out, he just held on to the window frame and looked down. Then he turned his head toward the knight and asked, urgently. ¡°Where is Navier? Is she alright?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± The knight blinked in puzzlement as he remembered that in the morning, Sovieshu had also asked if Navier was alright as soon as he woke up. ¡®It can¡¯t be, did he forget again?¡¯ The knight didn¡¯t answer right away because he was nervous. so Sovieshu asked sharply, ¡°I asked if Navier is alright.¡± The knight, after thinking about the day¡¯s events, asked Sovieshu as Marquis Karl would have done. ¡°Your Majesty, isn¡¯t Navier in the Western Empire?¡± At these words, Sovieshu¡¯s eyelids twitched. His gaze shifted to the wall where the two paintings hung. The wall was empty. After Sovieshu fell out of the window, Marquis Karl deliberately ordered the removal of Navier¡¯s painting and Glorym¡¯s painting, willing to endure Sovieshu¡¯s wrath. The knight held his breath because he found everything about the situation so strange. In the daytime, the Emperor had not noticed that the paintings were missing from the wall. But now, the Emperor was staring at the empty spot where the two paintings had been. ¡°Your Majesty? What is it?¡± At the knight¡¯s cautious question, Sovieshu looked at him again. ¡°What happened to the paintings?¡± The knight was horrified and swallowed hard. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Where are the paintings?¡± ¡®Has his memory¡­ has it returned?¡¯ The knight answered naturally even though he was confused. ¡°Marquis Karl ordered the paintings to be hung elsewhere because they hurt Your Majesty.¡± ¡°What nonsense.¡± A cold voice came out of Sovieshu¡¯s mouth. The knight swallowed hard again. As Sovieshu pushed back his hair with one hand, he noticed the bandage on it and muttered, ¡°Yes, it¡¯s impossible for Navier to be here.¡± Then, he put both hands on his head and closed his eyes. Tears fell from his closed eyes, so the knight hastily looked away. *** The next day, Marquis Karl was unsettled when he received the news that Sovieshu had regained his memory. It was really fortunate that Sovieshu regained his memory so quickly because there was a lot of work to be done, but at the same time, it was a pity because he would suffer again. After Marquis Karl fixed his beard in front of the mirror, he went to Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom and loudly announced himself, ¡°Your Majesty, it is Karl.¡± ¡°Come in.¡± A sleepy voice answered. Marquis Karl opened the door, bowed and examined Sovieshu¡¯s countenance. Although he was very worried about Sovieshu¡¯s state after he regained his memory, he didn¡¯t look as bad as expected. ¡®It¡¯s a relief.¡¯ While Marquis Karl was pleased that he was better, Sovieshu got up from the bed and instructed him. ¡°Marquis Karl. I didn¡¯t ask yesterday. You¡¯re my secretary, correct? Where is my office located? Is it the same office my father used? Let¡¯s go there. I¡¯ll need your help.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡®What¡¯s going on¡­?¡¯ Marquis Karl stared nkly. Sovieshu took off his nightclothes,id it on the bed and rang the bell. When the servants rushed in, they carefully washed and dressed him. Once Sovieshu was ready, he looked at his Emperor¡¯s attire with curiosity and instructed Marquis Karl again. ¡°Come on. There is much to examine and consider about my future self.¡± Marquis Karl opened his mouth in astonishment. ¡®His Majesty¡¯s personality¡­ has it split in two?¡¯ *** Now that my body had recovered enough to take a walk at a moderate pace, it was time to solve the problem I had postponed, which is none other than the involuntary revtion of my magic. It was somewhat strange to describe it as a problem. The matter of the ¡®intruder who used ice magic¡¯ had been a discussion topic because of the danger it posed, until the mage¡¯s identity was revealed¡­ rumors spread quickly, so everyone must already know it was me, but it was still better to clear the matter up. For that reason, I attended my first meeting in a long time, in part to show that I was recovered, and also to talk about my magic. I deliberately joined the meeting a littlete, and the officials all turned to look at me at the same time. ¡°I am very pleased about your speedy recovery, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°The Zemensia Family has finally sunk, so you won¡¯t have to worry anymore.¡± ¡°From now on, security at the Imperial Pce will be tightened so that nothing like this will ever happen again.¡± I epted the kind words of the officials with a smile. Then, I acknowledged that I had used ice magic. ¡°So Your Majesty is a mage?¡± To tell the truth, I still couldn¡¯t control my magic well, so I was a little embarrassed to answer that. However, an Empress must act with dignity no matter the situation, so I calmly answered. ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± Since I pretended that I had intentionally concealed my magic until that moment, I slightly raised my chin and maintained aposed expression. The deluded nobles praised me excessively, saying that it was a suitable ability for me, an extraordinary and powerful ability. ¡°So the cold atmosphere around Your Majesty is due to your magical ability!¡± ¡­ Sometimes they madepletely absurd remarks, but overall, the atmosphere was nice. It could notpare with the first time I came to the West with Heinley. Then I sat on a chair to listen to the remaining agenda items, but slowly I began to feel tired, so I left the meeting room first and went to my room. ¡®I guess I¡¯m not strong enough yet to sit in an ufortable position for long.¡¯ I¡¯ll tell the pce doctor about itter and ask him to rmend exercises that don¡¯t require too much effort. In any case, now that I¡¯ve been exposed in public, I¡¯d like to learn more about my magic¡­ Oh my, what is that?! ¡°Your Majesty?¡± When I stopped abruptly, Viscount Langdel called out to me in concern, then turned his head in the direction I was looking and immediately stiffened. Not far away, a couple were embracing and kissing each other passionately. Perhaps they didn¡¯t intend to kiss in public because they were hidden in the bushes, but unfortunately, I could see it all. They didn¡¯t seem to notice our presence. ¡°Let¡¯s go another way.¡± I cleared my throat and turned around as Viscount Langdel followed me with a serious expression. Mydies-in-waiting whispered among themselves and burst outughing. At first I alsoughed a little with amazement. However, as I heard the sound of our footsteps on the grass, I began to worry as I thought about Heinley¡¯s behaviorst night. Why did Heinley suddenly pull back when he was about to kiss me? Could it be because I¡¯m still recovering? I don¡¯t think so. He didn¡¯t try to kiss me passionately, as it was just a kiss on the cheek. Besides, I had no external injuries thanks to the healing magic. Of course, I still had to be careful, because if I didn¡¯t rest properly, the effects of the healing magic would wear off. But is receiving a kiss on the cheek included among the things I should be careful about? No, absolutely not. So why didn¡¯t he kiss me? As I pondered, the person responsible for my concern appeared not far away. It seemed that the meeting was over. Heinley was walking down a short flight of stairs with an official to his right and McKenna to his left. ¡°Heinley.¡± When I called out to him, Heinley came up to me with a beautiful smile. He didn¡¯t look like the person who stopped when he was about to kiss me yesterday. ¡°Do you have a moment?¡± I had to clear my doubts. ¡°There¡¯s something I want to check with you. Can we be alone for a moment?¡± I¡¯ll test Heinley to find out if he¡¯s avoiding kissing me or that time was just a coincidence. This was the quickest way to clear my doubts. Chapter 412 Chapter 412. The Man Who Married My Wife (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The official looked at Heinley and I with his mouth slightly open and the log book tightly against his chest. When I pointed towards the pce, Heinley¡¯s eyes narrowed and a smile yed on his lips. He leaned over to me. ¡°What do you want to check, My Queen?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll check that you¡¯re right in the head.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Juste with me.¡± I took Heinley to an empty room in the Imperial Pce, closed the door, and approached him. After I nudged his chest to make him sit on the armchair, I examined his face from side to side with a firm gaze. Heinley smiled at me as he squeezed the armrests. ¡°Huh? You don¡¯t look like you want to check my head.¡± Heinley asked the question with his beautiful purple eyes narrowed, then slowly opened them again as he took a deep breath. His little gestures made me go crazy. Rather than answer, I gently lifted his chin with my index finger and slowly brought his face close to mine. Heinley didn¡¯t resist and followed my lead. Our faces were close enough that we could feel each other¡¯s breath. Just as I started to think that what happened yesterday might have been a figment of my imagination, Heinley suddenly eximed as if he had remembered something. ¡°Ah!¡± ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± When I asked in bewilderment, Heinley hurriedly stood up and looked around. ¡°Come to think of it, I have some urgent business to attend to. I had forgotten.¡± In an instant, the tense and erotic atmosphere vanished. ¡®It seems that he has definitely avoided kissing me.¡¯ Upset, I pushed Heinley back onto the armchair. ¡°My Queen?¡± ¡°Why are you avoiding me?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Why do you avoid kissing me?¡± Heinley¡¯s eyes twitched, but I didn¡¯t release him and pressed my knees against his thighs. I pushed his shoulders against the back of the armchair so that he couldn¡¯t move as I moved closer. As I watched him in that state, Heinley slowly opened his mouth. ¡°Queen¡­ this is too hard for me. Stop.¡± I frowned. Is it too hard? Is it so hard for him to be close to me? I felt sad and angry at the same time. Heinley was also breathing heavily, as if trying to show how ufortable he was having my body so close to his. ¡®Wait¡­ why does he look like that? Are his cheeks flushed?¡¯ Now that I looked at him carefully, he seemed to be¡­ aroused¡­ At that moment, Heinley slowly stood up, and I could clearly see what he meant by ¡®hard¡¯. I looked up awkwardly as I realized I had misunderstood him. He didn¡¯t say it was hard because he didn¡¯t like it. On second thought, ever since the possibility that I was pregnant arose, we had slept holding hands. But these days, he wouldn¡¯t even hold my hand. So why? Why does he avoid me even though he¡¯s so aroused when he is close to me? ¡°My Queen. To tell the truth, I received too many curses as we dealt with the Zemensia Family.¡± Heinley began to confess reluctantly. Fortunately, he changed his mind and told me, but I was surprised. ¡°And because of that reason you have avoided me?¡± ¡°I am not avoiding you.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t want to touch me.¡± ¡°My Queen, it really worries me to touch you in this state.¡± ¡°You punished those who deserved it. You don¡¯t have to feel guilty.¡± ¡°Still, I¡¯d prefer not to.¡± I thought it was one of Heinley¡¯s jokes, but he seemed to be serious. So I could only sigh. ¡°So, how long do you n to do this?¡± ¡°Just one week.¡± ¡°One week?¡± ¡°I¡¯m purifying my body with cold baths. I¡¯ll do it for just one more week.¡± I understood how Heinley felt, but¡­ what I needed now was to feel his warmth and his skin. It bothered me that he didn¡¯t want to touch me. However, I couldn¡¯t object because he was doing it for me. With a calm expression, I muttered that I understood, then I turned around and left the room. *** Back in Heinley¡¯s office, McKenna, who learned what had happened forty minutes ago, clicked his tongue and muttered. ¡°I worry that Her Majesty will be very displeased by this.¡± Heinley plunged the tip of the pen into the ink bottle and asked, ¡°Does it worry you or entertain you?¡± ¡°Of course it¡¯s the former.¡± ¡°Then why is your tone so cheerful?¡± ¡°¡­ Is it so obvious? Should I be more subdued?¡± When McKenna asked in a whisper, Heinley looked at him sullenly for a moment. McKenna chuckled. Heinley shook his head and looked back at the documents waiting for his approval on the desk. While Navier was unconscious, Heinley fell behind because he was busy dealing with the Zemensia Family in every possible way. Now, he intended to fully resolve the backlog during this time in which he couldn¡¯t touch Navier. McKenna looked at his cousin with a worried expression, but Heinley didn¡¯t notice because he had lowered his gaze. ¡®All sorts of curses and insults were hurled at Empress Navier and her baby by the Zemensia family.¡¯ At the time, Heinley treated all those words as nonsense and showed no mercy. But apparently, he had been affected. ¡®Heinley isn¡¯t usually afraid of such things.¡¯ A knock on the door brought McKenna out of his thoughts. ¡°Come in.¡± At Heinley¡¯s permission, a servant entered and reported, ¡°Your Majesty, Crow has returned from the Eastern Empire.¡± As soon as Heinley nodded, the servant left, and an intelligent looking man with dark hair and eyes entered. Crow entered and exchanged greetings with McKenna before approaching Heinley¡¯s desk. ¡°You¡¯re finally back.¡± Heinley nced up briefly and greeted the man politely, then returned his attention to the documents. Still, he continued talking to the man. ¡°How did it go?¡± ¡°The Eastern Empire is in chaos right now. After that woman was deposed, she was locked in a tower, in which she died, and Emperor Sovieshu was injured during a fit in which he saw hallucinations.¡± ¡°What hallucinations?¡± ¡°I couldn¡¯t find out.¡± McKenna murmured. ¡°I thought that had been a lie so that Miss Evely would return as soon as possible. I suppose it wasn¡¯t a lie.¡± Heinley added, his voice devoid of emotion, ¡°Yes. It seems he really has been injured.¡± Heinley didn¡¯t care if he was injured. In fact, they all had simr thoughts, so Heinley soon asked. ¡°What about Duke Elgy?¡± ¡°He headed to the port, but I don¡¯t know the details because I was focused on the Imperial Pce.¡± ¡°Good job. He¡¯s sure to visit his mother after some time sailing the sea.¡± Chapter 413 Chapter 413. The Man Who Married My Wife (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 While the Emperor of the Western Empire struggled to shake off the curses and unwanted memories that lingered in his mind, the Emperor of the Eastern Empire struggled to regain his lost memories. One day, Sovieshu woke up to find that his mother, father, and wife were gone. As Sovieshu dealt with their absence, it seemed absurd and unbelievable to him that all this was caused by himself ¡ª in the future. However, Sovieshu didn¡¯t despair. ¡°Is this my office?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I appreciate your guidance.¡± Sovieshu decided to stoically take back what he had lost. Fortunately, all his actions were documented because he was the Emperor. Besides, Sovieshu was in the habit of personally documenting important information and his thoughts. He assumed he maintained that habit over the years, so he decided to check the records first. ¡°Marquis Karl, who are my secretaries?¡± ¡°Count Pirnu, Count Noreiyu, and myself. We are three in total.¡± ¡°Three? Only three? Was I that frugal? Me?¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s surprised remark, Marquis Karl concealed his difort. ¡°There was one more, but he resigned on Your Majesty¡¯s orders.¡± Marquis Karl quickly thought over his words to make sure he had not said anything inappropriate. Nowadays, he spoke more carefully than ever. He feared that he would slip-up and increase Sovieshu¡¯s shock, making his condition even worse. Among Sovieshu¡¯s lost memories, there were many that he would really prefer to forget, so he had to be very, very careful when he spoke. Besides, Sovieshu still suffered due to the bad memories that reappeared after sunset. ¡°I see.¡± Fortunately, Sovieshu didn¡¯t seem interested in the secretary who was forced to resign. At least for now. Sovieshu ran his hand over the desk. Then he sat down. ¡°This desk is different from my father¡¯s. Did Navier choose it?¡± ¡°How did you know?¡± ¡°It¡¯s exactly Navier¡¯s taste. She loves gold.¡± Sovieshu ran his fingers across the gold-covered desk with a satisfied smirk and asked, ¡°Well. So it¡¯s been six years since thest day I remember?¡± On the way to the office, Sovieshu went over important dates from the past with Karl, who was now convinced that Sovieshu¡¯s memory stopped on a date six years prior. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Six years is not a problem. I can catch up quickly.¡± ¡°Of course, of course.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s see¡­ first gather all the secretaries here tomorrow morning. Also bring all the newspapers, records and so on that you can get for thest six years.¡± ¡°As youmand.¡± ¡°What else do I need¡­ ah. Marquis Karl, ask the people who have been close to me to write about the relevant events of thest six years and bring them to me.¡± ¡°You mean thest six years that they have worked by your side?¡± ¡°Yes. It doesn¡¯t have to be formal, it doesn¡¯t have to be detailed, and it doesn¡¯t have to be objective either. I want to know what has happened from different points of view.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°If you listen to only one side, the information will be biased.¡± Once Marquis Karl left, Sovieshu looked around as he rubbed his hands together. Navier¡¯s touch was all over the office, not just on the desk. Ivory-colored curtains with gold prints, chairs covered in gold, red carpets with gold patterns, gold sculptures carved on pirs¡­ ¡®Our rtionship didn¡¯t seem to deteriorate immediately after I ascended to the throne. It¡¯s strange.¡¯ Sovieshu spoke to himself as he opened his desk drawer. He used to write down important information, but also his thoughts, what he needed to remember, and so on. It was a habit his mother had instilled in him since childhood, so if he didn¡¯t abandon this habit as soon as he ascended the throne, the personal records had to be somewhere in the office. He knew that if the Emperor had memory problems things could deteriorate. ¡°Here it is.¡± After he took out a bunch of files from the drawer, he reached in and noticed a hollow space. When he pressed the inner ends of the drawer, the wood blocking the bottom split open. Sovieshu pulled the contents out and ced them on the desk. He found an envelope full of documents, another full of letters, and his personal diaries. After Sovieshu flipped through the letters, he opened one of the diaries. Based on the dates, the diary containedst year¡¯s events. ¡®At that time we were not yet divorced.¡¯ Sovieshu closed it and opened the diary with the current year¡¯s events. As soon as he opened it about halfway, he noticed the name the courtiers had whispered. Rashta. Sovieshu returned to the first page, and saw the name again. Rashta. Sovieshu reopenedst year¡¯s diary and checked thest few pages. The name ¡®Rashta¡¯ appeared in the winter of that year, days before the New Year¡¯s celebrations. It all started like this: ¡ª I rescued a woman who fell into a trap on my hunting ground. ¡°A trap?¡± ¡ª She is the most pitiful person I have ever seen. ¡ª Apletely helpless and defenseless woman. ¡ª I have never seen anyone cry like that, as if their whole world copsed. ¡ª She looked like a forlorn angel. Sovieshu raised his eyebrows. When he heard that he had fallen in love with a woman named Rashta and had divorced Navier, he couldn¡¯t believe it, even though he knew that Marquis Karl wouldn¡¯t lie. From the diary, it was clear that this woman named Rashta had made a deep impression on him. In any case, at the bottom of that page he had written about his surprise when he found her. Sovieshu turned to the next page. ¡ª Navier asked about the woman¡¯s identity. I thought I had done a good deed, but suddenly I felt ufortable, as if she was using me of doing something wrong. ¡ª When I went to the central garden of the pce to find out what the fuss was all about, I saw Navier¡¯sdy-in-waiting shoving and yelling ¡°dirty¡± at Rashta, who was in a wheelchair. ¡ª Rashta was so scared that she couldn¡¯t even answer properly. ¡ª I was surprised that Navier did nothing to defend her. Sovieshu turned the page again. ¡ª Rashta marvels at the little things. She was very touched by a cake I gave her. What kind of life has she led? Life as a ve seems harder than I could ever imagine. ¡ª I¡¯ll have Count Pirnu draw up a report on the condition of ves. ¡ª I said things to Navier that I shouldn¡¯t have said. As angry as I was, I shouldn¡¯t havepared her to someone else. ¡ª Even though Navier has everything, she should also appreciate the little things. I think we really do live in the clouds. ¡ª Is it reasonable to expect the same level of manners from those who don¡¯t have the same level of education as us? Couldn¡¯t Navier be sympathetic and let her actions slide? ¡ª What does Navier think of Rashta? That she¡¯s scum? She insulted Rashta just because she sat on a chair that anyone can use. ¡ª Many people whispered about whether Rashta was a runaway ve. I threatened that I would punish anyone who talked about it, but that didn¡¯t stop them, so I was deliberately kind to her in public to quiet the rumors. ¡ª Didn¡¯t she say that she didn¡¯t like to dance? But Navier happily danced with the yboy Prince of the Western Kingdom. ¡°Who¡¯s the yboy Prince?¡± Sovieshu muttered with a frown as he closed the diary. ¡°My future self¡­ is an idiot.¡± He muttered as he pressed his temples. These diaries, which were written from his own perspective, clearly showed that he was bing increasingly estranged from Navier. ¡®He was an idiot who didn¡¯t even try to understand her.¡¯ Sovieshu couldn¡¯t bear to check the diaries any longer, so he checked the contents of the envelope containing documents. ¡°Hmm?¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression stiffened. The documents were quite recent. ¡°What is this?¡± It was a report about the strange phenomenon of mana decline, which had worsened in recent years. ¡®The person my future self suspects as the culprit is¡­¡¯ ¡°Heinley, the man who married my wife.¡± Chapter 414 Chapter 414. I Must Go (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡®But why? Why did I begin to suspect Emperor Heinley?¡¯ Fortunately, that was also documented: The dean of the magical academy imed that the patron who sent the ne to Evely was from the Western Empire. ¡®And who is Evely? Well, it doesn¡¯t matter¡­¡¯ Additionally, Evely¡¯s ne was the key during the investigation into the phenomenon of mana decline, but a bird stole it before the results were obtained. His future self became suspicious of the Western Empire as soon as that bird appeared. ¡®Why was I so sure that the bird¡¯s appearance was definitive proof of involvement by the Western Empire?¡¯ The final reason for his suspicions was the dean¡¯s confession that Emperor Heinley was an exceptional mage. This was not public knowledge. ¡°It¡¯s crazy¡­¡± Sovieshu put the report down on the desk and sank into anxiety. The situation his future self was dealing with was truly grim. That wasn¡¯t all. Sovieshuughed at the absurdity that an important investigation would be halted in the absence of conclusive evidence. ¡°Did I be so ipetent?¡± Mages constituted the East¡¯s military power and were the reason why the Eastern Empire remained the most powerful country. No matter how difficult, this investigation had to continue. ¡®How could I stop there?¡¯ Once Sovieshu put the report back into the envelope, he examined the other diaries, and confirmed that they only contained the records of his days after he became Emperor. He had no memories beyond his neen years of age, but the diaries corresponded to thest three years, so the three years in between were nk. ¡®I¡¯m sure those diaries are somewhere here too¡­¡¯ For now, Sovieshu summarized what he had discovered so far. ¡°I must meet with Navier. Definitely.¡± While he was busy writing, he suddenly started to doze off. He rubbed his eyes in an attempt to stay awake, but the sleepiness that washed over him was hard to resist. Unable to bear it, Sovieshu tried to get up, but he fell back into the chair and fell asleep on the desk. *** Meanwhile, Marquis Karl met with the other secretaries to inform them of Sovieshu¡¯s condition. All the other secretaries knew that Sovieshu¡¯s memory had returned to his days as Crown Prince because it had been witnessed by many people yesterday. However, only Marquis Karl and the knight who had been on duty in Sovieshu¡¯s bedroom knew that his memory had returned to normal overnight. That¡¯s what he would talk about with the secretaries. ¡°¡­ I don¡¯t know if his memory only came back that one time, or if he¡¯ll return to his original state every night. I don¡¯t know if His Majesty remembers the events during the daytime when he regains his memory at night.¡± Marquis Karl then conveyed the orders given by Crown Prince Sovieshu. He examined the secretaries¡¯ faces for a moment and asked, ¡°Does anyone have any questions?¡± They all had many questions, but since they hadn¡¯t yet seen Sovieshu personally, they didn¡¯t know what to say. Still, Count Pirnu asked, ¡°What will happen if His Majesty has two personalities for a long time?¡± ¡°First we have to confirm that his original personality returns every night. If so, we have to be honest with him and find a way to deal with it.¡± ¡°I agree.¡± Marquis Karl added helplessly, ¡°Just in case, I will ask Miss Evely to use her healing magic on His Majesty once she returns. Although the pce doctor said that he did not suffer any major head injury¡­¡± *** That evening, Marquis Karl headed to the Eastern Pce to confirm whether Sovieshu would revert to his personality from the present. However, Sovieshu was not in the Eastern Pce. ¡°His Majesty has not returned yet?¡± ¡°No, His Majesty hasn¡¯t been back since he went out with you earlier.¡± ¡®Is he still in the office?¡¯ Marquis Karl turned around and headed to the office in the main pce. As expected, two knights were in front of the office door. When Karl knocked, he heard a voice say from inside, ¡°Come in.¡± As soon as he entered, Marquis Karl noticed that Sovieshu¡¯s mood was different from that morning, so he was startled. Sovieshu had a sunken look different from the Crown Prince Sovieshu with whom Marquis Karl spent the morning. Sovieshu stared grimly at the papers spread out on the desk. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Your Majesty?¡± ¡®He has regained his memory. It seems that he really does have two personalities.¡¯ Marquis Karl spoke as if he didn¡¯t know. However, the answer he received waspletely unexpected. ¡°Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°The sun does not rise.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°My world has turned dark.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°Have I gone crazy?¡± While Marquis Karl stayed silent because he found it difficult to answer, Sovieshu muttered, ¡°When I woke up thest time, it was at night. Have I slept all day? But even if I slept all day, why am I dressed in these clothes and why am I in the main office? I was in the Eastern Pce when I woke up.¡± Sovieshu also pointed his finger at the desk as he spoke. There were all kinds of papers on the desk. Although it was not visible from Marquis Karl¡¯s vantage point, one of the papers contained a sentence written a few hours ago by Sovieshu while he was awake as Crown Prince Sovieshu. ¡ª Did I go crazy in the future? ¡°Oh, that¡¯s¡­¡± Marquis Karl panicked, but Sovieshu urged him to speak. ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, tell me the truth.¡± In the end, Karl confessed all he knew about the difference in his personality between day and night. ¡°Damn it!¡± Sovieshu cursed and remained deep in thought for some time. Then he asked, ¡°What about Navier? Any news from her?¡± ¡°Yes, she woke up and is healthy. Miss Evely is said to have been of great help. ¡°¡­ Thank goodness.¡± Sovieshu was relieved. He had been worried ever since he saw the hallucination of Rashta looking down at Navier. For a moment, he thought that Navier had died. ¡°Uh, Your Majesty. There is one more thing I need to tell you.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°As I mentioned to you earlier, Your Majesty¡¯s memory reverts back to Your Majesty¡¯s days as a Crown Prince. While in that state, Your Majesty has issued certain orders¡­¡± After considering this, Emperor Sovieshu ordered, ¡°Obey unless it¡¯s madness.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Now I don¡¯t want to do or think about anything. My eyes are closing.¡± Once Sovieshu said this, he narrowed his eyes as if he would really fall asleep right away. However, he managed to resist and gave a new order. ¡°Bring me only the documents that need to be urgently evaluated.¡± After that, Sovieshu worked like a machine and, when he was done, he fell asleep as if he had copsed. As if he did not want to be awake, Emperor Sovieshu spent much less time awake than Crown Prince Sovieshu. Karl looked at the sleeping Sovieshu with sadness. Although he had to leave, he was worried that Sovieshu would be left alone in that state, so in the end he stayed by his side the whole night. The next morning, Sovieshu sat up, rubbed his eyes, and looked at Marquis Karl, puzzled. ¡°Marquis Karl, why are you here and not at home?¡± ¡°Your Majesty regained his memoryst night. Do you remember?¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°No. I don¡¯t remember at all.¡± ¡°It was for a few hours at night.¡± ¡°I have no recollection.¡± Sovieshu felt unsettled to think that there was no connection between his two personalities, and he worried at the prospect that the situation could remain like this forever. But rather than express what he felt, Sovieshu spoke to Marquis Karl about what he had been pondering before falling asleep. ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°There is one thing I was thinking about a lot yesterday.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I must make a visit to the Western Empire.¡± ¡°What?!¡± Chapter 415 Chapter 415. I Must Go (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 I didn¡¯t know if it would really be a whole week, but what is certain is that Heinley has avoided all physical touch for several days. Honestly, I wasn¡¯t afraid of the curses sent our way by the Zemensia Family, unlike Heinley. However, I have had nightmares. I haven¡¯t had nightmares like this since my divorce. They came up again after the incident in which my baby and I almost died. In these nightmares I always looked up in fear. If Heinley had been by my side to take care of me during this time, I would have felt safer and reassured. However, Heinley still avoided me as if he had a contagious disease. ¡°Your Majesty, have you heard? News has spread that Rashta has died.¡± ¡°Rashta¡­¡± ¡°Yes, shemitted suicide in the tower where she was locked up after she was deposed¡­¡± The news of Rashta¡¯s death made me feel ufortable. Laura was the one who told me the news. She also hated Rashta very much, but as she spoke, she seemed disturbed. It was not easy to speak ill of a dead person. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s wonderful news.¡± Yet Countess Jubel did not feel any of that. ¡°It¡¯s a relief not to have to bow to her when I return to the Eastern Empire.¡± Laura nodded with a serious expression and asked, ¡°What will His Majesty Sovieshu do now? Will he remarry?¡± As long as the ruler of a country remains unmarried, there will be pressure from all sides to marry. Every day will be more strenuous and difficult. Sovieshu deeply desires to have his own children, so I think he¡¯ll remarry soon. After we talked about Rashta for about three hours, I ate a light meal,y down on the bed and sped my hands together, feeling somewhat restless. In the Eastern Empire I used to turn to work whenever I was going through a difficult time. I liked to distract myself with work, so that when I reconsidered my personal issues, I could be as objective as possible. But now I couldn¡¯t work all night to rx because I was in the process of recovery while also being pregnant. Heinley wasn¡¯t currently giving me strength either. As I tried to fall asleep, I felt arge hand caressing my hair. When I opened my eyes I saw Heinley. It seemed that my thoughts and emotions had finally reached him. ¡°My Queen?¡± I tried to call his name. I was surprised to feel his touch after a long time. He hadn¡¯t touched me for fear of superstitions. Does he have the courage now? When the thought crossed my mind, I no longer felt sleepy. I spoke coldly, ¡°You said you didn¡¯t want to touch me.¡± Heinleyughed and denied it. ¡°I never said I didn¡¯t want to, My Queen.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you worried about touching me anymore?¡± ¡°My Queen seemed to suffer.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t suffer in the least.¡± ¡°But I suffered.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Why do you look so sad?¡± ¡°Me? No, I¡¯m not sad. It¡¯s just that I feel restless because so much has happened at once.¡± It was hard for me to understand my own words because my voice became hoarse. I coughed to clear my throat and Heinley pulled the sheets up to cover me. When I coughed again, Heinley put his hand on my forehead with a worried expression. ¡°Did you catch a cold?¡± ¡°No.¡± My cough wasn¡¯t due to a cold, but I felt happy to have Heinley so close to me. Heinley continued to ask questions about my health, and I sleepily answered each one while resting my head on his chest. ¡°My Queen.¡± Heinley spoke rather seriously. ¡°Do whatever you want.¡± ¡°Why do you say that?¡± ¡°I think you¡¯re sad.¡± ¡°Me?¡± ¡°Well, from what I¡¯ve researched, there are times when a pregnant woman bes sad¡­¡± ¡®Really?¡¯ Heinley examined my expression and asked, ¡°Do you want to go on a pic? Or do you want to look at the jewels on disy in the Gem Room? Or would you rather see my private jewelry collection, My Queen? That will make you feel so much better.¡± ¡°Umm, I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°How about a boat ride? Or should we invite a theaterpany to put on a y for us here in the pce?¡± I wasn¡¯t convinced at first. But as I listened to Heinley, little by little, I began to agree. What I needed now was to keep my mind upied. ¡°Then, Heinley¡­¡± ¡°Tell me, My Queen.¡± ¡°I would like to work.¡± ¡°¡­ What you want to do to feel better is¡­ work?¡± ¡°Yes. I won¡¯t push myself too hard.¡± Heinley¡¯s expression turned ambiguous, with traces of sadness and pain. ¡°Heinley?¡± I caressed the corners of his eyes with my fingers, and he took my hand and pressed it to his cheek, narrowing his eyes as he muttered, ¡°I¡¯d be very happy if McKenna told me that he wants to work twice as hard rather than ck off. Buting from My Queen, it hurts in my heart.¡± That was a little funny¡­ but at least Heinley understood me. He seemed to realize that no matter how much time I was forced to rest, it wouldn¡¯t help me recover. The next day, Heinley summoned the pce doctor and McKenna. The four of us spent two hours determining what work I could do without too much effort. That afternoon, I was finally able to participate in a meeting. It was certainly an effective medicine, in contrast to taking a walk or sitting in a chair for no reason. While the officials loudly expressed their opinions, arguing with so much fervor that their veins bulged, frantically shuffling papers from one side to the other, I kept track of the meeting agenda and wrote down the conclusions. The chancellor, who was in charge of running the meeting, suddenly frowned right before he reached thest item on the agenda. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± At Heinley¡¯s question, the chancellor raised his eyebrows and quickly looked at me. ¡®Why is he looking at me?¡¯ ¡°Chancellor?¡± Heinley spoke sharply, as if he found the chancellor¡¯s attitude uneptable. ¡°Oh, forgive me.¡± The chancellor coughed a couple of times and then apologized. ¡°We have received a request from the mining town of Yorne. Every year, there is a flood around this time¡­¡± ¡®A flood? Why did the chancellor pause?¡¯ The chancellor looked at me again. ¡®Why does he look at me? Does he intend to me me for the flood?¡¯ As I looked at him, puzzled, Heinley cleared his throat briefly and tapped the armrests of his throne. The chancellor was startled and hastened to continue, ¡°They have heard that Your Majesty is a great ice mage, so they have asked Your Majesty to help them with Your Majesty¡¯s magic.¡± A Great Ice Mage? ¡­Me? Chapter 416 Chapter 416. An Easy Task (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 I heard the sound of suppressedughter next to me. When I turned my head, I saw Heinley biting his lip. Was it so amusing for him to hear someone say that I¡¯m a Great Mage? I suppose it¡¯s because he knows I haven¡¯t mastered my magic. Still, isn¡¯t heughing too hard? I red at him, but Heinley seemed unable to meet my eyes as he tried to stifle hisughter. So I sighed and turned my attention back to the chancellor. Well, it was my fault that it was believed that I was a Great Mage, since I didn¡¯t rify that matter fully before. Since Heinley seemed unable to speak, I would let him fight hisughter while I inquired about the situation. ¡°Chancellor.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The chancellor, whose look made me feel ufortable, turned toward me and answered immediately with a smile. ¡°You can ask me whatever you want, Your Majesty. I will answer honestly.¡± Why was he speaking so amiably? He didn¡¯t used to be like that with me. The officials around me exchanged whispers, ¡°I¡¯ve seen others act like that.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t that a false kindness?¡± In any case, the chancellor looked at me with sped hands and a broad smile. It was somewhat annoying¡­ appearances can be deceiving. ¡°Since this area bes flooded every year, hasn¡¯t a barrier been built?¡± ¡°Every year the dam is rebuilt.¡± ¡®Every year?! The whole dam?!¡¯ The chancellor continued in a serious tone, as if he guessed what I was thinking. ¡°The dam also copses every year.¡± I had no idea that construction techniques in the Western Empire were so bad. ¡°Why is that?¡± No, I don¡¯t think that poor construction techniques are the reason. ¡°It¡¯s because of the water dragon that lives at the bottom of the river.¡± ¡°You mean the water dragon always destroys the dam?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± The chancellor sighed heavily. ¡°The problem is that no one can predict when it will destroy the dam. It¡¯s better when it¡¯s after the annual flood, but sometimes, as right now, it destroys the dam before the flood is expected.¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t the water dragon destroy the dam while it¡¯s under construction?¡± ¡°No, it always waits until the dam is fully built to destroy it.¡± The chancellor sighed again. He seemed to have suddenly aged 25 years. ¡°Besides, it is able to destroy the dam no matter how strong it¡¯s made, so the dams aren¡¯t made too sturdy, otherwise the expense would be greater.¡± ¡°So this isn¡¯t the first time this has happened?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct. Whenever the flood coincides with the copse of the dam, we must evacuate to a small vige nearby that serves as a refuge. But the townspeople hope it will be different now because they heard about Your Majesty¡¯s amazing ability.¡± Heinley, who had just managed to win the difficult battle againstughter, bit his lips once more when the chancellor referred to my ¡°amazing ability.¡± I knew it. The chancellor seemed to suspect that I actually concealed my magic because my ability wasn¡¯t that useful, so now he brought this out to make me look bad for fooling the nobility. I could also hear the officials exchanging whispers again. I tried to hide my embarrassment and spoke honestly. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but my magic isn¡¯t enough to freeze all the water that overflows in a flood.¡± ¡°I understand. We¡¯ll handle the flood as we normally would.¡± The chancellor seemed a little disappointed, but he didn¡¯t insist. It was clear that he didn¡¯t have high expectations. Given my fame as the Ice Empress, most people might think it was an incredible coincidence that I was actually an Ice Mage. The Chancellor must have found it unlikely that I was also a Great Mage. There are few mages, and each possesses a unique ability. Even when mages have simr abilities, they could be easily distinguished because of the variations in mana control and the way an ability is performed. Being a mage is extraordinary in itself, since mages are so rare. Among mages, however, there is a subset of even more extraordinary and powerful mages. Most of thetter mages belong to the Eastern Empire. This matter was dropped soon after and was not touched upon further. ¡°It happens every year¡­¡± I kept thinking about it even after the meeting ended. ¡°My Queen, it¡¯s not your duty to use your magic to deal with the flood. Don¡¯t me yourself.¡± ¡®I don¡¯t actually me myself, but I am worried¡­ Am I so worried because they asked for my help to solve it?¡¯ In any case, that night I used the bathwater after taking a bath to find out if I could stop the flood. ¡®¡­ It will not work.¡¯ I couldn¡¯t even freeze the bathwater. It would be impossible for me to freeze the overflowing river. ¡°My Queen, what are you doing? Can Ie in?¡± As I watched some ice cubes float in the bathtub, Heinley called out to me from outside. When I opened the door, Heinley came in, looking worried. ¡°Are you alright? I heard strange noises.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I was just practicing my magic.¡± ¡°Magic?¡± As soon as I pointed at the bathtub with my finger, Heinley¡¯s eyes widened and he showed his admiration. ¡°You made some ice cubes? I see you¡¯ve gotten better at using your mana, My Queen.¡± ¡°¡­ I wanted to freeze all the water in the bathtub.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± Heinley looked around aimlessly. He seemed to think he had misspoken and was trying to find the words to fix it¡­ but he didn¡¯t seem to know what to say. ¡°Well, if you consider how little time has passed since you became a mage, you¡¯ve improved fast¡­. right?¡± ¡®Why does he ask me? Why does he seem so unconvinced?¡¯ When I pinched his cheeks, Heinleyughed and looked me in the eyes. Then he lifted me in his arms effortlessly, walked out of the bathroom, and put me on the bed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was just kidding. You really have improved fast. It hasn¡¯t even been a year.¡± ¡°Still, it¡¯s disappointing.¡± ¡°My Queen, even if you were able to freeze the entire sea, not just the river, you can¡¯t go there and overexert yourself in your current state.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Healing magic will lose its effectiveness if you be too weak, My Queen. Besides, our baby eagle ispletely dependent on you. It is not good for you to overexert yourself.¡± Our baby eagle¡­ I put my hands on my belly. Heinley was right, I¡¯ve always put my duties before myself. Even if I had the power to prevent the flood right now, it would be difficult to go all the way to that mining town and use my magic at such arge scale. ¡°My Queen¡­ Navier¡­¡± While I was lost in my thoughts, Heinley¡¯s voice snapped me back to reality. He was smiling. He had one knee on the floor as he rested his chin on the bed. ¡°What is it?¡± When I asked the question, he looked so cute that my hand moved on its own to his hair. As I gently brushed back his hair, Heinley closed his eyes to enjoy my caresses. When I was about to withdraw my hand, Heinley took it and kissed it. It tickled every time his lips touched my hand, so I couldn¡¯t help but giggle. Then, Heinley bit my fingers sweetly. Every time his tongue brushed against my fingers, I shivered. ¡®Does he feel the same way I do?¡¯ Heinley looked at me as he repeatedly bit my fingers. His deep and captivating gaze made me feel an inexplicable warmth. As I gently moved my fingers inside his mouth, Heinley narrowed his eyes and let out a soft moan of delight. ¡°My Queen¡­ I like this.¡± However, it didn¡¯tst. Heinley¡¯s expression soon turned serious, he stepped back, and went into the bathroom. When he left, the heat I felt earlier disappeared. ¡°The ice cubes were very helpful¡­ I had lost my mind, My Queen.¡± Heinley walked back into the room muttering. He sighed, then slipped under the sheets with a helpless smile. Chapter 417 Chapter 417. An Easy Task (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡®How can a dam be built in a short time¡­?¡¯ The next day, after eating breakfast, I left the bedroom before Heinley and headed to my office. I intended to ask my aides to gather information about the dams, but none had yet arrived. Rather than idly wait for them to arrive, I went to the library to check the records rted to this topic. ¡®Short time¡­ Short time¡­ Short time¡­¡¯ However, I did not find a way to build a dam in a short time. By the time most of the officials had arrived at the Imperial Pce to perform their duties, I left the library and called a master builder to hear his opinion. His answer was not satisfactory either. ¡°Your Majesty, it¡¯s not about how fast it can be built. It¡¯s about how sturdy the dam is.¡± ¡°I know. But in this case it needs to be built in a short time.¡± ¡°Building a dam in less than a year is already a feat in itself.¡± I consulted other builders and received simr answers. In the end, after I ordered my aides to research ¡®how to build a dam in a short time¡¯, I locked myself back in the library. *** ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have agreed to her request¡­¡± As Heinley muttered helplessly, McKenna reproached him sharply. ¡°You should have told the Empress that she needed to rest more. The Empress is always ready to step up when it¡¯s necessary, so why did you encourage her yourself?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t think she¡¯d take the work to this extreme!¡± Heinley replied regretfully. ¡°She promised she wouldn¡¯t work too hard!¡± It had been three days since the meeting in which the flood, the dam, and the water dragon were discussed. Navier was constantly busy these days, whether locked in the library or in conversation with her aides. Aside from the hours when she ate and slept, Navier didn¡¯t take a break. She didn¡¯t even want to take a short walk, so Heinley and McKenna couldn¡¯t help but worry. McKenna sighed deeply and shook his head. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that my work hasn¡¯t slowed down at all even though Her Majesty works so hard. Why would that be?¡± ¡°McKenna, it seems you are primarily worried about your own workload rather than My Queen overworking herself.¡± ¡°Not at all, Your Majesty. I am definitely worried about Her Majesty. It¡¯s all Lord Yorne¡¯s fault.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Also the Chancellor¡¯s, Your Majesty.¡± Lord Yorne truly cared about his people, but McKenna needed to me someone. The pce doctor, who was responsible for Navier¡¯s health, also felt regret. ¡®I shouldn¡¯t have told her that she could handle light work. I should have told her to eat, rest, and have fun like it was her job.¡¯ On the fourth day, Heinley finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore and went to see Navier, who was locked in the library. If she continued working at this pace, she could copse from overwork since she recently survived the attack that almost killed her. He had to find a way to persuade her to take a break. ¡®I¡¯ve been restlessly worrying for three days. It¡¯s time to act.¡¯ *** Whenever a dam needed to be built in the Eastern Empire with urgency, arge number of mages with earth-rted abilities were quickly mobilized. It was easy. However, the situation was different in the Western Empire. I searched all the records in the library, but there was no answer on how to build a dam in a short time. There were only anecdotes of dams that were built quickly but copsed soon after, highlighting the risks of poor construction. When Heinley came to see me in the library and asked me to stop working, I decided to change direction. ¡°What do you mean by a change in direction?¡± Heinley seemed puzzled by my words after I agreed to his pleas and happily left the library by his side. ¡°I think it would be better to solve the cause first.¡± ¡°The cause?¡± ¡°Even if we solve the current problem, if we don¡¯t prevent the dragon from destroying the dam, we¡¯ll continue to face this situation. I n to solve the cause. That way, even if we don¡¯t solve the problem of the flood this year, we will give the people the peace of mind that it won¡¯t happen again.¡± This situation urs every few years, so they are prepared to evacuate¡­ Heinley nodded. ¡°Yes, it would be better to solve the cause. But, My Queen, how can we stop the water dragon from breaking the dam whenever it feels like it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s easy.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an easy task.¡± ¡°What?¡± *** Meanwhile, in the Eastern Empire, Sovieshu was being treated with Evely¡¯s healing magic. Initially, Evely was expected a few days earlier, but she was dyed by heavy rain which fell on the way from the Western Empire. ¡°¡­ How is he?¡± As soon as Evely breathed out and lowered her hands as she finished using her healing magic, Marquis Karl, who had nervously watched the whole scene, asked. ¡°Do you think His Majesty will recover?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. I have never studied medicine, Marquis Karl. All I did was to pour my mana over his body. His shoulders, arms and legs are definitely healed.¡± Marquis Karl personally pulled up a chair for Evely. Sovieshu, who now had reverted to his time as Crown Prince, was seated on the bed with his eyes closed. ¡°Your Majesty¡­?¡± Marquis Karl carefully called out to Sovieshu. The pce doctor had said that Sovieshu¡¯s split personality might be due to a mental problem, rather than a physical injury. Upon examination, it was determined that Sovieshu had not suffered any serious blows to the head, so Marquis Karl agreed with the pce doctor. Even so, he still had a little hope that Evely¡¯s magic would work. Eventually, Sovieshu opened his eyes. Evely, who was fanning herself with her hand, looked at him with curiosity. ¡°It¡¯s useless.¡± But the words that came out of Sovieshu¡¯s mouth were categorical. Marquis Karl¡¯s shoulders, raised in anticipation, slumped again. Sovieshu shrugged and calmly took a sip of the coffee on his bedside table. ¡°It¡¯s a mental problem.¡± Sovieshu, who admitted without hesitation that he had gone crazy, spoke to the pce doctor. ¡°Doctor, I believe my metal state will only improve once I see Navier. It¡¯s most likely, isn¡¯t it?¡± As Marquis Karl and Evely stared at Sovieshu, the pce doctor shook his head, ufortably. ¡°I never said it was the most likely¡­¡± ¡°Doctor?¡± ¡°¡­ But to solve Your Majesty¡¯s problem, it would be helpful to meet the people who caused you the most shock.¡± Marquis Karl took a deep breath and thought gloomily that those two people were Glorym and Navier. There was no way to find Glorym. So¡­ there was no choice but to ask Empress Navier for help despite how shameful it would be Chapter 418 Chapter 418. Heinley¡¯s Birthday Wish (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Heinley blinked a few times and asked, ¡°What?¡± This was the third time he repeated himself. ¡°It¡¯s easy.¡± And the third time I answered. Nevertheless, Heinley still had a dumbfounded expression. He seemed to question whether the problem could be solved easily. Yes, there is a simple way. But first¡­ ¡°I need you to rify some things.¡± ¡°Tell me, Queen.¡± ¡°Do you know why the water dragon always destroys the dam?¡± Heinley shook his head helplessly. ¡°I don¡¯t know. If I did, I would have already found a solution.¡± After a few moments, Heinley seemed to realize something. ¡°Ah, you know what the reason is?¡± ¡°It would certainly be nice to know, but it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°What?¡± Heinley looked around in bewilderment, aimlessly. He didn¡¯t seem to understand my words. However, I will exinter. I still had other questions to ask. Dragons possess extraordinary intelligence. They were able tomunicate perfectly well. I didn¡¯t know why this dragon behaved with such violence. Well. For the other party to be willing to talk, one must first show one¡¯s good intentions. ¡°Have you ever asked the water dragon not to destroy the dam?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Heinley answered with a bitter smile. ¡°A shrine was built to implore it not to do so. And many jewels of the kind that dragons love were offered.¡± ¡°Didn¡¯t that work?¡± ¡°No. It just came out of the water, turned into a human form and took the jewels. Then, it went back to destroy the dam.¡± ¡°For starters, it¡¯s clear that the water dragon is angry because it just waits until the dam is finished to destroy it. No matter how we try to negotiate, it will tear the dam down.¡± ¡°Yes. I don¡¯t know if its nest is affected by the dam, or if it hates how noisy the construction is, or if it just doesn¡¯t like its presence.¡± ¡°So, basically the problem is that the water dragon hates the dam.¡± ¡°Exactly.¡± ¡°Then we¡¯ll make a dam like it likes.¡± ¡°What?¡± I had lost count of how many times Heinley had asked, ¡®What?¡¯ Heinley then asked in confusion. ¡°Is there any way to do it?¡± ¡°Yes, the next time the dam is built, it must bepletely covered in jewels.¡± With this simple solution, the town will not have to suffer anymore. ¡°¡­ What?¡± I¡¯d like to know the number of times Heinley has said, ¡®What?¡¯ From his skeptical expression, he seemed to find it a far-fetched idea. Did my words sound so absurd? My logic was not at all unsound. ¡°Heinley. Dragons love jewels, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°While some dragons may be different, the water dragon in question does not present abnormal behavior, as it took all the jewels despite its anger. If we build a dam it likes, it won¡¯t destroy it. And it will certainly love a Jewel Dam.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right, My Queen. But wouldn¡¯t it be too expensive?¡± ¡°It will be much less than the expense of building a new dam every year for decades.¡± No one knows the exact life expectancy of the dragons, but it is said to be at least thousands of years. That means that if the conflict continues, the townspeople will continue to suffer for generations. Heinley looked at me in a daze and whispered, ¡°Jewel Dam¡­¡± *** The Chancellor, McKenna and the Minister of Finance all had simr reactions when Heinley shared Navier¡¯s idea with them. They stood open-mouthed, half-stunned and doubtful. ¡°It is evident that she was once the Empress of the Eastern Empire. Her idea is on a mind-boggling scale.¡± ¡°Her Majesty wants to cover the entire dam with jewels¡­¡± ¡°Oh my, wouldn¡¯t that be too expensive¡­?¡± It was a simple idea, easy for everyone to understand. Everyone knew that dragons were obsessed with jewels. Even children¡¯s books told such tales. However, who else would consider building a dam covered in jewels? Even if someone else had thought of it no one would dare to try to carry it out. However, the Empress proposed it like it was no big deal. The three aides of the Western Emperor clicked their tongues. The mood in the room was thoughtful and heavy. The expression ¡®the sky¡¯s the limit¡¯ was characteristic of the Eastern Empire, and it fit the current situation perfectly. Navier¡¯s mentality that ¡®nothing is impossible¡¯ was evident. Perhaps this attitude was due to the position the Eastern Empire had long upied as the most powerful country. But once the shock was over, everyone thought she was right. ¡°Dragons¡¯ obsession with jewels is well known.¡± ¡°The water dragon is no different. It settled in a river near a gemstone mine. ¡± ¡°It is likely that if we build the Jewel Dam, the water dragon will im it as its own¡­¡± ¡°What does it matter? The jewels embedded in the dam cannot be extracted in any way. It makes no difference whether the dragon ims the dam as its own or not, all we care about is that it doesn¡¯t destroy it.¡± It seemed like too much money to carry out, but this was the best way to deal with the dragon. A dragon will happily ept an enormous quantity of jewels in exchange for its forgiveness for whatever transgression caused its anger. A normal dragon would most likely be engrossed in admiring a Jewel Dam and cast aside its resentment. Then, it will protect the dam rather than destroy it. It would even defend it against anyone who tried to approach the dam with bad intentions, crushing them against the bottom of the river. It would take a shocking amount of jewels, but it would certainly be beneficial in the long run. Much better than building a new dam every year. Besides, the mining town produced a significant number of the jewels extracted in the Western Empire, so no matter how many years of mining output had to be poured into the dam, its construction was a necessity. Heinley nodded and decided. ¡°We¡¯ll do it.¡± Chapter 419 Chapter 419. Heinley¡¯s Birthday Wish (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 The solution to prevent the destruction of the dam was a measure to deal with the next flood. It was not a defense n for the present asion. The Jewel Dam had to be built more carefully than a normal dam, so it wouldn¡¯t be easy to finish in a year. But the flood was just around the corner. Would the townspeople really have to evacuate? I kept thinking about this for a few days, but I still didn¡¯t have an answer. On that rainy day, I walked deep in thought around the garden, when someone gently took my umbre. When I looked to the side in surprise, I saw Heinley with one hand behind his back while he held the umbre for me with the other. ¡°What are you thinking about so deeply that you didn¡¯t even notice my presence?¡± The moment our gazes met, his lips curved into a smile. Perhaps he had been caught in the rain on the way, his hair, his body and even his lips were wet. If no one had been around, I would have stood on my tiptoes and kissed his captivating lips. To hide my regret, I acted nonchnt. ¡°I was wondering if there was a way to build a dam in a short time.¡± Heinley chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s not possible to do that, My Queen.¡± ¡°I know. The disaster would be worse if we hastily built a dam unable to withstand the flooding.¡± Heinley nodded in agreement. As I walked by his side, my unease due to the situation faded away and I feltforted. Maybe it¡¯s because I liked to walk by his side in the rain. After we walked like this for a while, Heinley hesitantly confessed. ¡°To tell you the truth, I feel a little inferior to the Eastern Empire.¡± What is he talking about? When I looked at him, puzzled, there was a dissatisfied smile on his lips. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how I would feel if the gap was wider. But even though the gap isn¡¯t so wide, it makes me sad to always be behind someone else. In this case, the Eastern Empire.¡± I didn¡¯t understand, but¡­ I took his hand anyway. Heinley squeezed my hand, raised it to his lips and kissed it, then he swore, ¡°As Emperor, I¡¯ll make sure toy the foundations of the Western Empire so that the next generations won¡¯t feel the same way.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°The magnitude of My Queen¡¯s ideas exposed the gap between the Western Empire and the Eastern Empire.¡± ¡®I was the one who made him feel that way?¡¯ Suddenly, I remembered that he had prepared for many years to fight a war against the Eastern Empire¡­ and that he gave up the war for me. Was Heinley thinking about that? I couldn¡¯t help but feel sad and sorry, so I held his hand tighter. I didn¡¯t know just how deep his desire to conquer the Eastern Empire was. But if he always thought about the gap between the Eastern Empire and the Western Empire¡­ it could be due to his sense of inferiority. I lost my confidence for a moment. Heinley loves me deeply now, but I feared that one day he would regret it. I feared that he would regret giving up his dreams for me. If his regret grows too much, I¡¯m afraid that his love for me will fade away. Although I shouldn¡¯t think about it on these happy days, it was impossible not to worry. At that moment, the wind blew very hard and the rain became wild. Despite the umbre, the wind swept my hair into my face and I got wet. As I pushed my hair away, Heinley pulled me into his arms to shelter me from the rain. I felt warm in his arms. When I leaned into his chest, Heinley wrapped an arm around me tightly. It was quite a while before Heinley let go. Unlike me, Heinley was more wet than before. Raindrops slid down his face, making it look like he had cried. When he let go, the warmth disappeared and I felt chills. As I shivered with my arms wrapped around my own body, Heinley put his hand on my cheek and smiled slightly. As he touched me, the warmth began to spread through my body again. I felt so warm that I closed my eyes and he took the opportunity to kiss the tip of my nose several times in a row. *** When I returned to my room, hot water for my bath was already prepared. I was about to enter the bathroom, but I turned to look at Heinley. There should also be hot water ready in Heinley¡¯s room, but he had followed me to my room. Our gazes met and Heinley spoke with a cute smile on his face. ¡°Go take your bath first, My Queen.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to go take a bath?¡± ¡°I want to stay here for a while. Close to you.¡± Laura flushed and ran into the bathroom. Countess Jubel pretended not to hear a word, but the corners of her lips turned up in a naughty smirk. Rose, who was humming while making tea, fell silent in surprise. Heinley stared at me with that cute smile. His expression caused an unexpected proposal to slip out. ¡°Do you want to take a bath with me?¡± Heinley¡¯s smile faded at my words. His expression turned stiff and his mouth fell open, as if he had heard somethingpletely unthinkable. I averted my gaze as I awkwardly touched my hair. I hesitated for a moment, but in the end I went into the bathroom without waiting for an answer. I spoke impulsively. It was a really stupid proposal. It¡¯s all because of the rain. Yes, it¡¯s because of the rain. In the middle of the rain he showed me his weaker side, which made me realize how much he gave up for me. Especially because of the raindrops that slid down his face, making it look like he had cried. ¡°Gosh, I was taken by surprise just now. The Emperor is really sweet around Your Majesty.¡± Laura, who was waiting for me, rushed over to help me take my clothes off. But Heinley suddenly walked in and Laura hastily withdrew her hands and greeted him. ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to see Emperor Heinley.¡± She had already greeted him. Perhaps Laura was so shocked when Heinley came into the bathroom that she forgot. When he gestured at Laura to leave, she looked at me in bewilderment, as she didn¡¯t know about my proposal to Heinley. Once I nodded, Laura flushed up to her ears and walked out. Countess Jubel and Rose followed her, after leaving the cup of tea on a small table near the bathtub. After the bathroom door closed behind them, Heinley took off his coat, hung it on a perch, and started to remove his shirt. ¡°Do you really want me to take a bath with you, My Queen?¡± ¡°¡­ You should have asked that question before you started taking off your clothes.¡± ¡°That means you changed your mind.¡± ¡°It means I¡¯m thinking about it.¡± Heinley quickly took off his shirt and tossed it aside before I could finish thinking about it. His chiseled chest and smooth skin were revealed before my eyes. As he had been drenched in the rain, his skin seemed especially damp. I was starting to think that it would be better if we bathed separately, but I changed my mind as soon as I saw his naked upper body. ¡®We¡¯re married, so what does it matter if we take a bath together?¡¯ As I wrestled with the little devil inside me that tempted me to do it, Heinley came up behind me, nibbled gently on my ear, and whispered. ¡°Are you still thinking about it?¡± I shook my head reflexively. Then, I heard him chuckle, followed by a series of soft kisses on my ears, cheeks and neck. ¡°Navier.¡± ¡°Heinley¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯ll never regret it.¡± ¡°!¡± His right hand slid down my right arm until he reached my hand and intertwined our fingers together. As he kissed my neck, he whispered softly. ¡°I¡¯ll never regret it, so take that expression off.¡± ¡°What expression?¡± ¡°That anxious expression.¡± With one hand he firmly held my right hand and with the other he helped me take off my clothes. ¡®Why did he say that I seem anxious?¡¯ I didn¡¯t feel like arguing, so once we entered the bathtub I simplyid my head against his chest. Leaning against him, his chest felt very warm and I could hear his heart beating loudly. Every time I moved my head slightly, Heinleyughed as if it tickled him. *** ¡°I shouldn¡¯t have agreed to bathe together.¡± As we bathed, Heinley regretted it exactly 39 times. He spoke like it had been psychological torture for him¡­ But I felt very satisfied and enjoyed the warmth of his naked body that I needed so much. And although Heinley acted like it was torture, his flushed face said otherwise. He looked happy and pleased. After the bath, we flirted andughed while lying side by side on the bed in my room. Maybe because I was sleepy, talking nonsense while looking into his purple eyes made me feel like I was on a cloud. Laughter flowed naturally from me as if I were drunk. As time passed, sleep overcame me and my eyes began to close. ¡°Your Majesty. Your Majesty the Emperor. Are you still awake?¡± I heard McKenna call from the other side of the door. Heinley frowned, but quietly got out of bed to open the door. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Wrapped in the bedsheets, I watched Heinley from the side. His expression became stiff, and was quickly followed by a cold smile. What news had McKenna brought? I couldn¡¯t hear their voices, so it was impossible to tell. Soon after, McKenna left and Heinley returned to bed. But rather than lie down next to me, he just sat on the corner of the bed with a worried expression. ¡°What happened?¡± When I asked with unease, Heinley looked down helplessly. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡°Emperor Sovieshu wants to stay here for two weeks to recuperate.¡± Chapter 420 Chapter 420. Enthusiastic (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°Sovieshu? Here?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Heinley¡¯s mood copsed in an instant. It was like a bright sunny day suddenly bing gray and dreary in a matter of seconds. His expression was so bad, it seemed permanently etched on his handsome face. Although he kept his mouth shut, I could tell how unhappy he was about the situation. I didn¡¯t want to see him down, so I caressed his face to try tofort him. Only then did his mood and expression improve a little. He rested his cheek on my palm and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know why he has toe here to recuperate. His country isrger and has many nice vis.¡± I patted him on the shoulder without saying a word. What could I say that wouldfort him in a time like this? ¡°Damn¡­¡± He muttered under his breath. Sovieshu sent Evely to treat Grand Duke Kapmen and me only weeks before, though he was under no obligation to do so. Now that he was asking to stay here for two weeks, it was difficult to refuse because of the help we received. Besides, it would be inappropriate not to let hime, given his position. Heinley knew all this, which was why he sighed helplessly. ¡°Could it be that Emperor Sovieshu still has feelings for you? I¡¯m nervous, My Queen.¡± ¡°I love my husband, Heinley. And that is you.¡± ¡°Even so¡­¡± Heinley bit his lips, lowered his gaze, and soon after, in the blink of an eye, he turned into ¡®Queen¡¯. He hopped onto myp and embraced me with his wings. ¡°Heinley.¡± Poor thing. When I held him tightly, his body trembled. ¡°Heinley.¡± ¡ª Gu¡­ ¡°It wouldn¡¯t be wise to refuse, but we can borrow a group of mages in exchange.¡± ¡ª Gu¡­ ¡°If we borrow mages with earth-rted abilities, we can at least build a temporary dam.¡± ¡ª Gu¡­ Heinley nodded somberly amid his sadness, perhaps he had also thought of the mages. I rubbed his little head and pampered him. He shouldn¡¯t be nervous. Well, if our roles were reversed, I¡¯d be nervous too. In fact, I¡¯d even be angry if Heinley¡¯s ex-wife came here to ¡®recuperate¡¯. It was inevitable that Heinley would feel this way. All I could do was try to reassure him. *** ¡ª Your Majesty is wee to stay in the Western Empire during your recuperation. Due to the fresh air and beautifulndscapes, our country is a fantastic destination to rx, so it will certainly benefit Your Majesty. In fact, you ought to stay longer than two weeks. On second thought, it may be impossible due to your busy schedule. ¡ª We need to build a temporary dam urgently, so we would like Your Majesty to help us by providing mages with earth-rted abilities, if it¡¯s not an inconvenience. ¡ª We eagerly await your visit¡­ In the Eastern Empire Emperor¡¯s office, the voice of Emperor Heinley¡¯s envoy clearly resounded. Sovieshu nodded as he listened attentively to the letter being recited word for word. As soon as the envoy left, Sovieshu muttered sullenly. ¡°The Western Empire is a ¡®fantastic destination¡¯, I assume that by that he meant, ¡®what need do you have toe to our country¡¯. He also doesn¡¯t want me to stay longer than two weeks, those are empty words. Then he asks to borrow mages if ¡°it¡¯s not an inconvenience,¡± but that sounds like a threat. He is hinting that my stay there won¡¯t be pleasant if I don¡¯t lend them the mages, right?¡± Marquis Karl coughed and nodded slightly. ¡°Your Majesty has interpreted the letter too harshly, but it¡¯s certainly possible that you are correct.¡± Sovieshu snorted. ¡°What¡¯s so fresh about the air in a country full of mines? If he really wanted to boast about his country, it wouldn¡¯t be about itsndscapes.¡± His words sounded a little dismissive towards the Western Empire, but honestly it was true. In terms of climate, air andndscapes, the Eastern Empire was better. However, a smile appeared on Sovieshu¡¯s lips even as he grumbled. ¡®I¡¯ll finally be reunited with my wife, who was always by my side.¡¯ Despite his wretched situation, he was happy to know that he would soon see Navier. Sovieshu folded the letter and handed it to Marquis Karl. He then rose from his seat and walked to the window with his hands behind his back. Marquis Karl and the Knight Commander, still traumatized by his fall through the window, quickly approached Sovieshu. ¡°I¡¯m not going to jump, so stay away.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, you didn¡¯t intend to jump back then either.¡± ¡°You said I was drunk that time. I¡¯m sober now.¡± ¡°Forgive me, Your Majesty. I hope you understand that the people around you care about your well-being.¡± Sovieshu clicked his tongue, but did not order them to stay away. Instead, he muttered to himself. ¡°The view from this window is as unfamiliar as it is inhospitable because the person who knows me best is not here.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°I thought nothing was more terrifying than Navier swinging a pillow, but now I know I was wrong.¡± ¡°Your Majesty should not have deposed her.¡± ¡°I know. I didn¡¯t think my own stupidity would be the most terrifying thing.¡± Sovieshu gritted his teeth. ¡°It¡¯s all due to the blows my father gave me on the head. The consequences showed up over time.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Or did Navier stuff peaches inside her pillow to hit me?¡± Since Marquis Karl didn¡¯t answer, Sovieshu asked directly, ¡°Was it like that?¡± ¡°No, it definitely wasn¡¯t peaches.¡± ¡°If it wasn¡¯t peaches, what did she hit me with?¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°Tell me the truth. It¡¯s been six years anyway.¡± ¡°From what I remember, it was only¡­¡± ¡°It was ¡­?¡± ¡°Actually, I don¡¯t know. All I know is that Your Majesty dropped the peaches and one hit Navier on the head and left her with a bump. When Your Majesty went to apologize to her, Your Majesty ended up with a simr bump on your forehead.¡± ¡®So she did put something inside the pillow¡­¡¯ Sovieshu sighed wistfully as he looked at Marquis Karl with his mouth slightly open. ¡®What¡¯s the use in talking about it? It happened six years ago.¡¯ There was much more about Navier that he couldn¡¯t remember other than the incident with the peaches. That matter was unimportant now that he had to recover his wife, who had be the wife of another man. ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°How much has Navier grown?¡± ¡°She grew a lot in these years.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°She has be a distinguished empress.¡± ¡°Distinguished¡­ huh.¡± Sovieshu bit his lips and took a deep breath to control his emotions. He knew he shouldn¡¯tugh under the circumstances, but it was impossible to imagine Navier as a distinguished Empress. ¡°I¡¯m serious. Both Your Majesty and Navier were admired by everyone during your time as Emperor and Empress.¡± ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°You told me that I revert to my present-day self at night, the one who still has the memories of thest six years, correct?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Grab him by the neck and punch him in the face.¡± ¡°What?! Your¡­ Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl was startled, but Sovieshu looked out the window again with sadness. When Marquis Karl saw the pain on his face, he recalled the conversation he had with the other secretaries. It was about when and how to tell Sovieshu about Princess Glorym and Navier¡¯s pregnancy. Thanks to the measures taken to keep everyone¡¯s mouths shut, very few people knew of Sovieshu¡¯s condition. When Sovieshu awoke from the fall, several courtiers witnessed his memory loss. However, all were informed that the loss was only temporary, and he was now well. As a result, Sovieshu had not yet heard about Princess Glorym and Navier¡¯s pregnancy. But since Sovieshu would travel to the Western Empire, he needed to be told about Navier¡¯s pregnancy. The matter of Princess Glorym could still be postponed. ¡°Marquis Karl. It seems you want to tell me something. Go ahead and do so.¡± Sovieshu spoke without looking away from the window. ¡®Did he notice my unease?¡¯ Marquis Karl thought. Then, he confessed. ¡°Your Majesty, there is something you should know before you go to the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Do you want me to be careful because Navier is now another man¡¯s wife?¡± ¡°Besides that¡­¡± ¡°Is there something else?¡± ¡°Navier is pregnant.¡± Sovieshu turned his head. Marquis Karl averted his gaze for a few moments before looking at Sovieshu. To his surprise, Sovieshu did not seem angry or desperate. There were even subtle traces of satisfaction on his face. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± When Marquis Karl called him carefully because he was confused, Sovieshu sighed with sorrow before his expression returned to normal. ¡°I see. Navier is pregnant. I understand¡­¡± ¡®Pregnant by another man.¡¯ Sovieshu thought with a frown, but quickly turned away with an inscrutable expression that Marquis Karl could not read. ¡®Did His Majesty suspect that Navier was infertile even six years ago?¡¯ Marquis Karl reflected with confusion. Although Sovieshu and Navier were married at the time, they had not yet consummated the marriage. Sovieshu¡¯s reaction was strange. In any case, he was relieved that Sovieshu¡¯s shock was less intense than expected. ¡°Your Majesty. I¡¯ll tell you this just in case. Your marriage with Navier ended badly. Navier doesn¡¯t know about Your Majesty¡¯s current condition, and even if she knew, she might treat Your Majesty coldly.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Sovieshu answered calmly. ¡°Still, I must go.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°I must see Navier.¡± Sovieshu paused briefly and then added, ¡°For the sake of the country.¡± Chapter 421 Chapter 421. Enthusiastic (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°I really wish I was powerful enough to freeze the whole river¡­¡± The servant who brought water to fill the buckets looked at me, rmed. From his expression, he seemed be thinking, ¡®how many more times will I have to fetch water?¡¯ Rose, who was sitting on a bench fanning herself as she watched me,ughed. ¡°Your Majesty is already truly extraordinary. Your Majesty doesn¡¯t need to master her magic.¡± Countess Jubel, who was ying chess with Laura, also interjected while she moved a chess piece. ¡°That¡¯s right. Your Majesty can hire experienced mages.¡± Laura did not participate in the conversation because she was focused on her chess game. Mastas was also busy advising Laura and Countess Jubel. ¡°No, not that one. Why are you moving that pawn there¡­?¡± I sighed and looked at the fifteen buckets which had been lined up in the garden. Chunks of ice floated on the water, as if they had broken off a cier. It was the result of many failed attempts to freeze all the water. This time, Heinley and I shrewdly took advantage of Sovieshu¡¯s undesirable visit to borrow mages from the Eastern Empire, but since this may not be possible in the future, I wanted to master my magic just in case. I was frustrated that I wasn¡¯t improving at the pace I expected. Mydies-in-waiting seemed to find my frustration odd, since I wasn¡¯t a mage originally, but now that I had gained the ability, wouldn¡¯t it be nice if I could use it properly? The more things one can master, the better. Even though I trained in my own way, it wasn¡¯t yielding results. In fact, the best ce to learn was the magical academy, but they wouldn¡¯t want to help me. Although Heinley was no longer involved in the phenomenon of mana decline, he still hadn¡¯t managed to dispel the suspicions against him. Suddenly, I had a new thought. ¡®Couldn¡¯t Grand Duke Kapmen help me now that he has recovered?¡¯ No sooner had I thought of it than Grand Duke Kapmen appeared. I seemed to have called him with my thoughts. He stared at the buckets with surprise and I quickly approached him. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen. Could you help me train?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen was no longer under the effects of the love potion, so he is no longer attracted to me. He had already helped Heinley learn to control my mana, and now he could help me train. He was one of the top graduates of the magical academy, after all. However, Grand Duke Kapmen listened quietly to my thoughts and immediately shook his head. ¡°No.¡± ¡°You can¡¯t?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct. Each person devises their own method to master their magic. If our abilities were simr, I could help you a little, but since our abilities arepletely different, I can¡¯t¡­¡± Grand Duke Kapmen stopped abruptly as he spoke. Did hee up with an idea? There must be a way to help me! ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen hesitated. From his stiff expression, he seemed unsure whether to tell me. ¡°What is it?¡± At my insistence, Grand Duke Kapmen reluctantly spoke. ¡°Actually¡­ a friend of mine ising to visit soon.¡± ¡°Oh! Your friend is a mage with an ice-rted ability?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Great! His friend can help me! ¡°Could your friend help me?¡± However, Grand Duke Kapmen seemedpletely ufortable, even though he was the one who mentioned his friend in the first ce. ¡°Is it not possible?¡± At my insistence, Grand Duke Kapmen awkwardly confessed. ¡°My friend deeply hates the nobility.¡± ¡°He¡¯s amoner?¡± ¡°Yes. His parents are freed ves.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°Your Majesty is a member of the Imperial Family, so his hatred will be even greater¡­ he probably won¡¯t want to help you.¡± ¡°Then how did you befriend him?¡± ¡°I¡¯m an exception because I am a foreigner from the Hwa Continent.¡± I nodded with regret, and Grand Kapmen said, ¡°Please forget what I said.¡± Then he turned and walked away. Mastas, who had been listening to the exchange, advised me as if it were a simple matter. ¡°Your Majesty, wouldn¡¯t you just have to conceal that you are the Empress in order to learn from Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend?¡± When I looked at her, Mastas smiled. ¡°That¡¯s Your Majesty¡¯s specialty.¡± ¡°Learning?¡± ¡°Concealing.¡± If I hide my identity as Empress, I can learn to master my magic¡­ We¡¯re both friends of Kapmen¡¯s, so my identity won¡¯t be a problem. There are many richmoners, so it won¡¯t be unusual if I am apanied by an escort. Besides, he¡¯ll be nearby since he¡¯s visiting the capital. ¡®It should work.¡¯ Once I convinced myself, Kapmen quickened his steps. It was clear he wanted to run away because he had heard my thoughts. ¡°Grand Duke.¡± But when I called out to him a little loudly, he turned around helplessly, stared at me, and walked towards me with resignation. Still, he tried to dissuade me. ¡°It¡¯s not a good idea.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it enough to conceal my identity as a noblewoman?¡± ¡°Someone else might be able to fool him, but Your Majesty cannot conceal her nobility even in the eyes of those who don¡¯t know it.¡± ¡°You think so?¡± ¡°It¡¯s evident at first nce that Your Majesty is a noble, even someone whoes across Your Majesty in passing would notice.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true. I can pretend to be amoner.¡± ¡°How would you do it?¡± Before I knew it, mydies-in-waiting had set aside the chess game and turned their attention to me. I felt embarrassed to have all eyes on me, but when I met Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend, I would have to perform as amoner in front of more people. I could not hesitate in the face of this audience. I cleared my throat, spoke with a rough voice, gestured with my hands very casually. ¡°Hey! Hey! Over here! Young man, do you have some time? I have plenty of money and time, would you like toe with me to a pleasant ce to talk? Hey, I have a business proposal for you!¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± Kapmen¡¯s jaw dropped wide open, so wide as if it had been broken. And I heard a roar ofughter behind me. It was Heinley. Chapter 422 Chapter 422. Mesmerized (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 As soon as I turned around in embarrassment, I saw Heinley doubled over withughter. His hands were on his stomach and his body was shaking. If Heinley doesn¡¯t stopughing right now, he¡¯ll have to face the consequences. I red at him fiercely, but Heinley couldn¡¯t even straighten up to look at me. ¡°Was my performance so bad?¡± When I asked Grand Duke Kapmen, he averted his gaze. ¡®I see. It was bad.¡¯ Mastas folded her arms and offered her honest opinion. ¡°Your Majesty, not allmoners talk like rascals.¡± ¡°Oh, yes¡­ I know.¡± Of course I knew. I have metmoners in the audience hall every day and listened to their stories, so how could I not be familiar with the waymoners speak? Even if they tried to speak more formally than they normally would when they were before me, I knew that the manner of speaking I imitated wasn¡¯t the norm for all themoners. ¡°I thought that I would look like a noble at first nce if I spoke as usual, as Grand Duke Kapmen said. So I used the most different manner of speaking I could think of.¡± Mydies-in-waiting nodded with understanding. No one remarked any further on why I had spoken like a rascal. However, there was a naughty eagle that was stillughing uproariously. I walked over to him and froze the grass beneath him. Heinley was still doubled over, so he wouldn¡¯t notice my anger unless I did this. As I expected, Heinley stoppedughing and he straightened his back and asked with a serious expression. ¡°By the way, My Queen. What was it that you said? Did you ask Grand Duke Kapmen to apany you to a pleasant ce?¡± ¡°No, I was just pretending to be a roughmoner.¡± ¡°Why?¡± He had mocked me just now, so I wanted to make him suffer with curiosity. However, if I really wanted to pose as amoner to learn how to master my magic, I needed Heinley to agree to my n to meet with Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend. When I exined the situation, Heinley¡¯s expression became strained with concern. ¡°Is there no other alternative?¡± ¡°The only mages with ice-rted abilities that I know of are associated with the Eastern Empire.¡± Mages tend to hide their ability as much as possible since they can use their magic as a secret weapon to defend themselves. ¡°Since I now have this power, I must learn to use it properly¡­¡± As I spoke, I was struck by Heinley¡¯s expression. ¡°Are you worried?¡± Perhaps he feared another surprise attack? Although I would pose as amoner, I could still take guards with me, but Heinley might be worried anyway. ¡°No, It¡¯s not that.¡± Heinley shook his head. ¡°I¡¯m not worried because the guards will escort you. Besides, it¡¯s someone associated with Grand Duke Kapmen, so I can rest easy.¡± Heinley paused and smiled at Grand Duke Kapmen. He seemed to trust him fully. Ever since he saved me, Heinley¡¯s perception of Grand Duke Kapmen seemed to have improved dramatically. ¡°So?¡± ¡°I think anyone would notice if you pose as amoner, My Queen.¡± Is my acting that bad? When I frowned, Heinley wrapped his arms around my waist, ¡°How about we do this, My Queen¡ª¡± ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty!¡± Heinley couldn¡¯t finish his suggestion because a knight approached him in a hurry. The knight had an urgent expression on his face. He stopped in front of us breathlessly, so he spoke between gasps, ¡°He has arrived. The Emperor of the Eastern Empire is here.¡± The pleasant and serene atmosphere changed in an instant. Countess Jubel let the chess piece she was holding fall to the ground. Mastas bit her lips and sped her hands. Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s eyes flicked back and forth as he listened to everyone¡¯s thoughts. Heinley¡¯s smile had disappearedpletely, he pursed his lips and became serious. But soon, an indifferent smile appeared on his face. ¡°Since our guest has arrived, we must wee him.¡± Then his gaze turned to me. As if he wanted me to apany him. However¡­ I could tell that his smile wasn¡¯t calm and indifferent. Heinley was only pretending. I could tell that inside he felt quite the opposite. ¡°I don¡¯t feel well right now. I need to rest.¡± So I decided to lie. ¡°I think I overexerted myself with the magic practice.¡± I rubbed my neck and also my wrists. Although I was clearly feigning exhaustion, no one would question it. ¡°It¡¯s alright, My Queen. I¡¯ll take care of it.¡± Especially not Heinley. *** When I entered the drawing room, mydies-in-waiting asked anxiously. ¡°Your Majesty, do you really not feel well?¡± ¡°Did you overdo the use of magic?¡± ¡°Should we call the pce doctor?¡± I was sure everyone knew that I only pretended to feel sick so as not to meet Sovieshu. Still, mydies-in-waiting worried anyway. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± They rxed a little when I waved my hand to signal that I was fine, and sat down on the couch. ¡°Can you get me a ss of warm milk?¡± It was a lie that I felt sick from overexertion, but I really was mentally exhausted. I managed to avoid him this time, but I couldn¡¯t avoid Sovieshu for two weeks. If I avoided him, I would not only be rude to the Emperor of the Eastern Empire, but it would also be ungrateful since Sovieshu sent Evely with no hesitation when I was in aa. Now he would even lend a group of mages to us. I would have to thank him personally. I wondered about Sovieshu¡¯s health. When he became injured, Evely was here, which dyed his treatment with her healing magic. But if he was able toe all this way under the pretext of his recuperation, it seems unlikely that he was seriously injured. What worried me the most was Heinley. As much as I told him that he was my husband and the only man I loved, Heinley was sad. After thinking for a while, I decided to prepare a special present for Heinley. ¡°Miss Rose, can you get an easel, canvas and painting supplies?¡± ¡°Huh? You want to paint?¡± I had already given Heinley a work of art as a gift. But on that asion, it had only been a sketch because I only wanted to illustrate his ¡®special dance¡¯. As a result, Heinley thoroughly mocked me. This time, I¡¯ll try to erase the impression he had of my artistic talents with this painting, which I¡¯ll send him as a gift. After a while, Rose returned with the paint and brushes, and a servant brought an easel and a chair. As I sat down in front of the easel and picked up a brush, Laura pulled up a small chair and sat down next to me. ¡°What do you n to paint?¡± Mastas and Rose also came over and stood behind me. They all wanted to see. ¡°I think His Majesty Heinley has a lot on his mind, so I want to ease his anxiety with a painting.¡± ¡°Incredible. Sounds fantastic just from hearing the concept.¡± ¡°That is so thoughtful of Your Majesty!¡± ¡°Do you have an idea of what to do?¡± ¡°Of course. The title will be ¡®I Will Love You Until Death Separates Us.¡± ¡°Wonderful!¡± ¡°How romantic!¡± ¡°How passionate!¡± The voices of mydies-in-waiting were full of excitement. As I listened to theirpliments, I painted a grave and then two intertwined rings. After I painted the background, I shifted the easel so that everyone could appreciate the result. Rose and Countess Jubel apuded at how beautiful it was. ¡°It¡¯s like the title Your Majesty thought of.¡± ¡°Emperor Heinley will feel better when he sees it.¡± I made it simple because I didn¡¯t have much time, so thepliments from mydies-in-waiting were a little over the top. But that made me happy. ¡°Without a frame it won¡¯t look like a painting made with love. Heinley loves jewels, so it would be nice if the frame was covered in jewels.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s choose it together, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes, let¡¯s go.¡± *** Navier went into another room to select the frame with Countess Jubel and Rose. Mastas and Laura stayed behind. Once they were alone, Mastas pointed at the painting and asked ¡°As you know, Laura, I don¡¯t know much about art. Am I the only one who interprets the meaning of the painting as ¡®I¡¯ll kill you¡¯?¡± Laura checked that they were alone before shaking her head. ¡°That isn¡¯t my interpretation, but painting scares me a little too.¡± ¡°Why did she paint a grave so realistically? Is art supposed to be like that?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know either. Maybe it¡¯s something only the Empress and the Emperor understand. It must be something private between them.¡± Chapter 423 Chapter 423. Mesmerized (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Meanwhile, Heinley was slumped in his desk chair, while McKenna and the Chancellor worked. He had parted ways with Emperor Sovieshu after a brief wee talk, feeling upset. The bad mood drained him of energy and motivation, so now he didn¡¯t want to do anything. Fortunately, Sovieshu himself had said that he couldn¡¯t talk much because he wasn¡¯t feeling well, but¡­ ¡°He looked good.¡± Sovieshu looked much better than Heinley had expected. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean that he had fully recovered. He might only seem fine on the outside thanks to Evely¡¯s healing magic. The problem was¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t know how to exin it, but it annoyed me to talk to him. What do you think, McKenna?¡± ¡°Your Majesty has always been annoyed to see Emperor Sovieshu.¡± ¡°True. But didn¡¯t he seem especially strange today?¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t spent enough time with Emperor Sovieshu to im that he was especially strange today.¡± Heinley just nodded. Normally he would argue with McKenna, but today he was in no mood to do so. ¡ª Wee to the Western Empire. ¡ª d to be here, thank you. ¡ª I appreciate you for lending the mages to us. ¡ª I am pleased to help. It was an inconsequential conversation, but¡­ ¡°His eyes had an unusual look.¡± ¡°They looked earnest and youthful.¡± ¡°Exactly. He didn¡¯t have that liveliness in his eyes before.¡± Heinley became more serious and rubbed his chin. ¡°Given the current situation, there should be no reason for his eyes to sparkle.¡± In fact, Heinley had doubts about Sovieshu¡¯s true health condition. Heinley didn¡¯t even notice that McKenna had tried to tease him byplimenting Sovieshu¡¯s eyes as he described them. As a result, McKenna started to think seriously about Sovieshu¡¯s appearance earlier. But as he recalled the wee, he found nothing unusual. ¡®Marquis Karl seemed to take special care of Emperor Sovieshu, but¡­ it is likely that it was because he has not fully recovered.¡¯ At that moment, there was a knock at the door. ¡°Come in.¡± The person who entered was Mastas. In her hands, she held a painting covered with a cloth. ¡°Mastas? What is that?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gift from the Empress to Your Majesty.¡± ¡°A gift?¡± Mastas quickly approached and held out the painting. McKenna received it and ced it on Heinley¡¯s desk. Heinley was puzzled but lifted the cloth with curiosity. Less than two secondster, he covered the painting again. ¡°This is the gift? Are you sure?¡± ¡°Yes, the Empress painted it herself for Your Majesty.¡± Once Mastas bowed and left, Heinley held up the cloth that covered the painting once more and showed it to McKenna. ¡°What do you think this means, McKenna? The painting does not have a title.¡± McKenna examined the painting seriously. The painting was a realistic depiction of a cemetery, and an excavated grave at the center. A coffin was slightly visible amid the piles of dirt. On top of the coffin were two intertwined wedding rings. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu is here, so behave yourself. If you don¡¯t, I¡¯ll bury you in a grave. That coffin is for you¡­ No, I know. It¡¯s more like, ¡®If you don¡¯t behave properly, our marriage will be buried in a grave.''¡± Heinley found this interpretation so absurd that he tly denied it, ¡°No, it¡¯s definitely not that.¡± The chancellor, who paid attention to the conversation from the side, approached. ¡°Your Majesty, I am well versed in the arts. Particrly in painting. If the gift is a painting, I can interpret it for you.¡± When Heinley showed him the painting, the Chancellor meticulously examined it up and down, several times. Soon after, he nodded his head as if he understood. ¡°What does it mean?¡± When Heinley asked with skepticism, the Chancellor exined with conviction. ¡°The two wedding rings symbolize a couple, while the grave symbolizes a tired mind. In other words, Her Majesty is now dissatisfied with the marriage.¡± ¡°What?!¡± ¡°What the Empress Navier wants to say through this painting is that she is unhappy at Your Majesty¡¯s side.¡± Heinley refused to believe such absurd interpretations, so he indignantly ordered McKenna and the Chancellor to leave. However, he was a little nervous. Navier would notmunicate something unpleasant through a gift without a good reason. ¡®Did I do something that she didn¡¯t like? Did she try to express it through a painting because it was hard for her to say it directly? Could it be because Iughed at her for too long when she tried to act like amoner?¡¯ *** ¡®What will Heinley say when we meet for dinner? Will he apologize to me for making fun of my artistic talent before? Will he be moved by the meaning of my painting? I hope he won¡¯t be sad anymore.¡¯ It doesn¡¯t matter what he says. I just wanted to make Heinley feel better. I hoped he woulde back soon. However, around dusk, Heinley still hadn¡¯t arrived. While I waited, one of my attendants arrived. ¡°Your Majesty. The flood could happen at any time, so we must send the mages to Yorne as soon as possible. Emperor Sovieshu says that Her Majesty¡¯s presence is required to resolve this matter.¡± ¡°Why is my presence necessary?¡± Of course, it was only an excuse. Why would my help be needed to send the mages to Yorne? If the issue is about how the temporary dam will be built, there is no need for me to opine. There is no need for Heinley to be involved either. It is a matter to be decided by the experts. I¡¯m not in charge of building the dam and I¡¯m not an expert in construction, so why would Sovieshu say my presence is necessary? Evidently, it was one of his whims. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu heard that Your Majesty was the one who came up with this n.¡± I suppose it¡¯s an adequate excuse. And although I didn¡¯t want to see him¡­ I couldn¡¯t avoid him for two weeks. ¡°Where is His Majesty Heinley?¡± ¡°His Majesty is in the Twilight Hall with Emperor Sovieshu.¡± I nodded, adjusted my dress and went out to meet them. As I walked, I tried to keep my expression as cool as possible. I was not going to meet him as his ex-wife, but as the Empress of a neighboring country. I had to draw that line clearly. Even if Iter thanked him for sending Evely, I had to show a harsh and unfriendly attitude for the moment. When I arrived at the Twilight Hall, the knights opened the doors for me. While I waited, I took a deep breath and shrugged my shoulders to maintain myposure. When therge doors were fully opened, I saw that Sovieshu and Heinley were seated at the table across from each other. As I entered, they both stood up and turned to me. After I politely greeted Heinley as if I hadn¡¯t seen him earlier, I turned to Sovieshu. I intended to greet him properly before turning my attention back to Heinley. But the moment our eyes met, what I saw was not the Sovieshu who suffered in front of my parents¡¯ mansion after Rashta¡¯s trial, nor the Sovieshu who was angry at the High Court due to his wounded pride, nor the Sovieshu who begged for help as I left the Eastern Empire in my carriage. What I saw was a man who was mesmerized, as if he had seen something awe-inspiring. Chapter 424 Chapter 424. Has He Gone Crazy? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Is he out of his mind? I didn¡¯t understand his expression. I scowled at him, but Sovieshu¡¯s stunned expression remained unchanged. He was so dazed that it seemed like the only way to snap him out of it was to p in front of his face. ¡°Your Majesty Sovieshu.¡± I couldn¡¯t bear it, so I called out to him sharply. ¡°Oh. I see.¡± Sovieshu finally raised his eyebrows and spoke as if he had just realized something. Then he narrowed his eyes and smiled. ¡°You have grown. You really, really have grown up wonderfully.¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Is he talking about me? His eyes were definitely on me, but how could he speak to me like that? ¡°Even your gaze has be more determined. Your beautiful eyes radiate confidence. You look wonderful.¡± ¡­ Has he gone crazy? He was clearly speaking to me. Heinley, who was across from Sovieshu, was staring at him with his mouth open. He looked as if he didn¡¯t understand what was going on. In fact, everyone else seemed just as confused. in the hall had simr expressions on their faces as they stared at Sovieshu. Momentster, Heinley looked me up and down, surreptitiously. He seemed to be checking if I had indeed grown taller. Sovieshu and I had met recently, so to say that I have ¡°grown¡± didn¡¯t make sense. Could it be a joke? But it doesn¡¯t sound like he¡¯s joking. Slowly, doubt crept up. Have I really grown? In any case, it doesn¡¯t matter. I mustn¡¯t let his words affect me. ¡°Let¡¯s sit down.¡± As soon as I spoke coldly, Sovieshu sat down and smiled at me. Thest time we met he was devastated. It was only a few weeks ago, but since then, did he attain enlightenment? Something like, ¡®life is short and you only live once, so you should never lose hope¡­?¡¯ I made sure to control my expression and I sat next to Heinley. Sovieshu¡¯s lips twisted for a moment when I sat down next to my husband, but he didn¡¯t lose his smile. ¡°Let¡¯s resume.¡± McKenna interjected, but although the meeting resumed, the atmosphere remained ufortable. What were the points under discussion? The mages¡¯ loan had been agreed upon beforehand, so there should be no problems in that regard. ¡°The Eastern Empire willply with the loan of the mages. But the mages must be paid for their work. Naturally it is up to the borrower to bear the payment. If you don¡¯t want to pay, it would be very selfish of Your Majesty Heinley.¡± Apparently, I was mistaken and there was indeed a problem with the loan. It seemed that Sovieshu wanted Heinley to pay. ¡°Don¡¯t you consider the remuneration too high?¡± Heinley asked an appropriate question. ¡°The Western Kingdom¡­ oh, I¡¯m sorry. I still can¡¯t get used to it. Doesn¡¯t the Western Empire, which boasts of its wealth, have the ability to pay for it?¡± ¡°Of course we can afford it. But I didn¡¯t think the Eastern Empire was short of money¡­ Ah, I had forgotten. You have no money to pay your men because the ousted Empress left an enormous debt, and her actions will continue to cost dearly in the future.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fortunate that you know our situation well. In that case, I can raise the price a little more, since you understand our position.¡± ¡°¡­¡± It¡¯s strange. Sovieshu is acting differently. Why is his current logic¡­ provocative? He replies in such a way that it is impossible to argue properly against his irrational arguments. It is irritating. This was not Sovieshu¡¯s usual style. Usually, Sovieshu spoke as little as possible in meetings and turned a deaf ear to the provocations of others. Only in his days as Crown Prince did he used to speak this way, to annoy the other party. As I examined Sovieshu¡¯s behavior with narrowed eyes, he turned his gaze to me. At that moment, our eyes met before I could look away. With his eyes on me, Sovieshu changed his words without blinking. ¡°¡­ But between our two countries, certain concessions can be made.¡± It was evident that he had changed his mind because of me. The attention of those present was naturally drawn to me, perhaps due to the same thought. *** Once the meeting was over, I deliberately wrapped my arms around Heinley¡¯s waist and spoke lovingly. ¡°You felt sick to your stomach earlier. Are you better now? ¡°What? Oh, yes. I felt sick. Earlier.¡± Heinley quickly understood my intentions and he frowned a little and leaned his head on my shoulder. ¡°But in My Queen¡¯s arms I will feel better soon.¡± It seemed a little childish to act like two lovebirds in front of others. I know that, as an Empress, I should not behave this way in front of our subordinates, but I did it because of my ex-husband¡¯s presence. To draw a line. I swallowed my embarrassment and tried to speak more fondly than usual as I caressed Heinley¡¯s shoulders. ¡°If we return to our bedroom, I¡¯ll rub your stomach so you¡¯ll get better faster.¡± ¡°We can go now. I don¡¯t have anything else to do.¡± ¡°Alright. We can also talk about painting.¡± ¡°Oh,e to think of it, there is a matter I must attend to urgently.¡± Why did he stop ying along? When I dug my fingernails into his arm, Heinley amended his words meekly. ¡°Actually, it can wait¡­¡± I grabbed his hand and walked in the direction of our bedroom. But just as we took the stairs, a soft voice stopped me from behind. ¡°Empress Navier.¡± It was Sovieshu. When I turned around, I noticed that he hade closer. He seemed even more mesmerized than before, his demeanor still unusual. ¡°Your Majesty Sovieshu.¡± Once I calmly nodded to indicate that I had heard, Sovieshu casually proposed, ¡°There is a message I need to convey to the Empress of the Western Empire. Could I request a few minutes of your time, in private?¡± Chapter 425 Chapter 425. Has He Gone Crazy? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Sovieshu deliberately asked for time to speak privately with the ¡®Empress of the Western Empire¡¯. It was a clever move. It would be difficult to refuse such a public request in front of so many people present. If I refuse him now, it will be rumored that I put my personal affairs ahead of the country. It won¡¯t be long before malicious rumors begin to spread about my rtionship with Sovieshu. I frowned and Sovieshu raised his hand and pressed a finger between his brow. What does he mean by it? When I frowned again, he pressed his brow again. He seemed to be holding backughter. I was about to raise my hand and touch my own brow when I understood. In his days as Crown Prince, Sovieshu used to raise his hand and press it to my brow whenever I frowned. Back then, it would sometimes make me even angrier, but sometimes it tickled and my anger would pass. It can¡¯t be¡­ Why does Sovieshu behave as he did in those days? What does he intend to achieve? While I stood there, speechless, Heinley firmly intervened. ¡°Speak here.¡± Sovieshuughed with insolence. ¡°Pardon, but it¡¯s not a matter appropriate to be discussed with the Emperor of the Western Empire.¡± Heinley shuddered. ¡°What could you possibly have to say to my wife in private?¡± The atmosphere between them had turned cold in an instant. I squeezed Heinley¡¯s hand so that he would back off without causing trouble. However, the moment Sovieshu repeated the word ¡®wife¡¯ with a smirk, Heinley was unable to remain impassive and fell for the provocation. I felt him flex the muscles in his arm. Sovieshu continued, ¡°What I want to talk about is a matter between Empresses.¡± ¡°¡­ What did you say?¡± ¡°If I had a wife, I would have entrusted this task to her, but as you know, I¡¯m unmarried now.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Since I currently y the role of both Emperor and Empress, I am requesting a meeting between Empresses, so I ask that the Emperor of the Western Empire retires.¡± Sovieshu once more resorted to that irritating logic he had used earlier in the meeting. Heinley was so furious that he rubbed his neck with his free hand. Sovieshu looked at me calmly, and spoke brazenly. ¡°For that reason, Your Majesty Navier, could you give me a few minutes to talk to you?¡± He wants to talk to me alone because he currently ys the role of Empress? How funny. ¡°Of course, Your Majesty Sovieshu¡­¡± At my polite answer, Heinley turned to me and looked at me with puppy eyes. He seemed to think that I would talk in private with Sovieshu. Well, he needs to speak to the Empress alone. How could a request by the Emperor of the Eastern Empire be ignored? ¡°¡­However, I don¡¯t feel well, so I will delegate the role of Empress to my husband for a little while.¡± It didn¡¯t need to be me. I spoke with my hand ced gently on Heinley¡¯s shoulder, and in an instant, Sovieshu¡¯s and Heinley¡¯s reactions were exchanged. ¡°Heinley. For three hours, you will be the Empress.¡± ¡°I will be an excellent Empress, My Queen!¡± That would be enough. I squeezed Heinley¡¯s shoulder, turned around, and walked up the stairs. I could hear Heinley speaking triumphantly. ¡°So, Empress Sovieshu. What do you need to talk about between Empresses?¡± *** ¡°Was it a fruitful conversation between Empresses?¡± After Navier retired, Sovieshu and Heinley spent about fifteen minutes alone. On the way back to his temporary residence, Marquis Karl asked about it sullenly. Sovieshu gave Marquis Karl an exasperated look, as if asking, ¡®What kind of question is that?¡¯ Marquis Karl smiled patiently. He knew that Sovieshu¡¯s scheme had not turned out as nned. ¡°It seems the temporary Empress of the Western Empire does not have a good demeanor.¡± ¡°He has grown up as one would expect given the rumors that he used to run away from his parents. The way he talks bothers me.¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s mutter, Marquis Karl smiled again. ¡®Those are two different views.¡¯ Emperor Sovieshu, who was older and more mature than Heinley, considered him to be a mere yboy prince with a bad reputation. Crown Prince Sovieshu, whose maturity level was more simr to Heinley¡¯s, considered him a troublemaker. Marquis Karl was curious to observe the differing perspectives of the Western Emperor. ¡°Come to think of it, Your Majesty¡¯s current mental age and Emperor Heinley¡¯s age are almost the same.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°It seems you two have things inmon because you are about the same age, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°The same mental age?¡± ¡°I mean maturity¡­¡± ¡°Marquis Karl, it sounds like you¡¯re praising him.¡± ¡°No, I¡¯m not.¡± ¡°Then why did youe to that conclusion?¡± ¡°Because you used to take no notice of Emperor Heinley.¡± The real Sovieshu looked down on Emperor Heinley, as if Heinley was nothing more than an insect not worth noticing. When he reverted to his days as Crown Prince, Sovieshu viewed the Western Empire as an upstart country and Emperor Heinley as a nuisance. But he considered it a fight between equals. Marquis Karl noticed the differences between Sovieshu¡¯s two personalities¡­ Once Marquis Karl left, Sovieshu eximed, incredulous, ¡°My age! We¡¯re around the same age!¡± Angrily, he pulled out a diary he had hidden between his clothes in the dresser. It was the diary in which he recorded the events of thest year. He had brought it with him to read in his spare time. Sovieshuy on the bed and opened the diary. He reviewed what had happened after the arrival of the woman named Rashta. Sovieshu believed that the beautiful moments he spent with Navier were also remembered fondly by her. He intended to ask for her forgiveness and believed that these memories would convince Navier. But first, he needed to understand the past in order to heal her wounds one by one. Only then would shee to forgive him. At least that¡¯s what Sovieshu thought. He focused on the words written in ck ink on the white paper. ¡ª I was rather cold to Navier and punished one of herdies-in-waiting harshly for her offense to Rashta¡­ We argued over that matter and I asked why she couldn¡¯t be obedient to me for once¡­ *** ¡°I¡¯m sorry to say this, Countess Jubel, but do all the servants of the Eastern Empire behave this way?¡± It was a bright day and the sunlight poured into my room and the wind caressed my cheeks. The weather was perfect, so I sat down to read a book near the wide-open windows. Laura dozed off on a nearby couch. In the midst of the rxing atmosphere, Rose¡¯s sharp voice immediately caught my attention. When I looked at her, I saw that Countess Jubel was also puzzled. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Rose huffed with annoyance and crossed her arms. ¡°The servants brought by Emperor Sovieshu are arrogant and don¡¯t do their job well. It¡¯s only been a day and they¡¯ve already caused a lot of trouble.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°How strange. Why would that be?¡± Countess Jubel said no more, probably because she preferred not to speak ill of the Eastern Empire, and turned back to what she had been doing. Rose voiced her displeasure a few more times, but since Countess Jubel didn¡¯t pay much attention to her, she eventually shut her mouth and left. However, after a while she came back, astonished. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. Emperor Sovieshu ising to see you.¡± ¡°Sovieshu¡­¡± ¡°Yes, I saw himing in this direction just now¡ª¡± She was interrupted by the bell ringing and the voice of my attendant from the other side of the door. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress. Emperor Sovieshu of the Eastern Empire wants to meet with you.¡± Laura, who had woken up with a jolt, stood up. Mastas also stood holding her sharpened spear. Countess Jubel looked at me anxiously. I was taken aback. I didn¡¯t expect him toe all this way. But I couldn¡¯t avoid him, so I let him in. Momentster, the door opened and in walked Sovieshu. Unlike his formal appearance the prior day, he was dressed casually in a light shirt and ck pants. As soon as he entered, he smiled gently at me while I maintained a cold expression. Once mydies-in-waiting left the room, I spoke sharply. ¡°What are your true intentions? If you are here only to recover, how do you exin your actions yesterday and today?¡± ¡°I feel better when I see you.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t. I don¡¯t feelfortable in your presence. And I have told you on other asions not to speak to me informally, Your Majesty Sovieshu.¡± ¡°I prefer it when you talk to me informally.¡± Huh? ¡°What are you saying? Have you gone crazy?¡± ¡°Yes, I have gone crazy.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Is he making an inappropriate joke? He came to find me in my room for such an unimportant matter? As I looked at him in confusion, Sovieshu smiled awkwardly. ¡°I really have gone crazy, Navier.¡± Chapter 426 Chapter 426. Can It Be True? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 My ex-husband says he has gone crazy. How should I react in this situation? 1. Check his forehead for a fever. 2. p him to make sure he hasn¡¯t lost his mind. 3. Say he¡¯s lying. 4. I¡­ I can¡¯t think of a fourth option. I¡¯ll opt for option number three. ¡°Don¡¯t lie.¡± I spoke coldly with narrowed eyes. Sovieshu flicked his own forehead with his fingers. ¡°My memories stopped in a moment in the past.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I climbed a tall tree to try to pick peaches for you. That¡¯s myst memory.¡± That was several years ago. In my days as Crown Princess, I used to read romance novels together with Sovieshu, lying side by side on the grass in the garden. In the parts where the lovers whispered romantic words to each other, we bothughed in embarrassment, and in the parts where the lovers kissed, we surreptitiously looked at each other¡¯s lips. Among those romance novels, there was a story in which a man climbed to the top of a tree to pick fruits for his sweetheart. ¡ª Can you do it too? Sovieshu confidently said that he could do it. ¡ª Then do it for me. The next day, Sovieshu called me to watch him pick peaches for me. However, he fell from the tree and several peaches hit my head. Despite the pain, I was more worried about Sovieshu, who had lost consciousness when he fell. I tearfully called for the pce doctor, and onlyter I noticed the bump on my forehead. Later, when Sovieshu woke up, he came to my room and showed me a handful of peaches. He said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. They¡¯re a little squashed.¡± Strangely enough, my worry was reced by anger. I grabbed two pillows and struck him on the back. As Sovieshu tried to run away, the peaches slipped out of his hands. I slipped as I stepped on the peaches, so Sovieshu hurriedly caught me, shielded me with his body and we fell together. We ended up on the hard floor, our bodies awkwardly entangled. His dark hair was covered in white feathers, which hade out of the pillow. A feather alsonded on my lips. Sovieshu reached up and carefully removed the feather. Then, I felt the briefest kiss on my lips, light as a feather. His face was redder than a peach, and he looked at me and jumped up. He reached out to help me up and then ran off, but he also slipped on a piece of peach and fell again. I heard a loud thud. Before I could ask him if he was alright, he hurriedly opened the door and ran away. I was too embarrassed to follow him, so I squatted down and hugged the torn pillow. Our first kiss was filled with white feathers, chaos and the smell of peaches. Is this what Sovieshu is talking about? I didn¡¯t expect that my eyes would fill with tears. On this sunny day, it hurt so much to remember the happy times we shared in the past, so I became angry. He¡¯s the one who threw all that away. What¡¯s wrong with him? Why does he have to talk about the past? Why does he insist on reminding me that he abandoned me? I have been trying to heal the wounds he caused me by Heinley¡¯s side. As I stared at him icily with tightly pursed lips, Sovieshu carefully raised his hand and brushed it along my cheek. He caught a tear with his fingers. I immediately stepped back and repeated as coldly as possible, ¡°Don¡¯t lie¡­¡± Sovieshu smiled weakly and lowered his gaze. In truth, he didn¡¯t seem to be lying. ¡°I knew it would displease everyone if I came all this way.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°But I had toe.¡± ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡± ¡°The peaches fell on you.¡± ¡°Stop.¡± ¡°I had to make sure you were alright.¡± ¡°Stop it!¡± When I shouted, Sovieshu finally shut his mouth. I clenched my fists and looked at him with fury, then pointed my finger at the door and shouted again. ¡°Get out!¡± These were not words that the Empress of the Western Empire should speak to the Emperor of the Eastern Empire. It was rude and disrespectful. However, I couldn¡¯t bear to look at his face any longer. I promised myself that I would treat him like anyone else and that I would not show the slightest vulnerability. But when he brought up our shared memories, the wounds, which had been closed, reopened and I lost myposure. ¡°I will leave.¡± Sovieshu answered calmly and looked up to meet my eyes. ¡°I will be obedient.¡± After he uttered these unexpected words, he left immediately. I stared at the closed door with my mouth slightly open. What had he just said¡­? Obediently? Did that proud man really use the word ¡®obedient¡¯? Heplied with my demand¡­ ¡ª I am tired of arguing with you. Can¡¯t you just be obedient to me for once?¡± That cold voice echoed in my mind, the words that shattered my pride and plunged me into despair. Chapter 427 Chapter 427. Can It Be True? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 ¡°My Queen.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Queen?¡± While I was deep in thought, purple eyes suddenly appeared in front of me. I leaned back in surprise. ¡°What are you thinking so deeply about?¡± It was Heinley. He kneeled on the floor, ced his chin on myp, and looked up at me. I shook my head with an unconcerned smile. Truth be told¡­ I was wondering if it was possible that Sovieshu lost his memory. However, I couldn¡¯t tell Heinley that I was thinking about Sovieshu. ¡°I was thinking about the painting.¡± As soon as I brought it up, Heinley flinched and stood up. ¡°I see.¡± He walked over to the table, drank a ss of water and, acting nonchnt, tried to leave my room. ¡°Heinley.¡± When I called his name, he slowly turned back to me. Come to think of it, he¡¯s been like that since yesterday. He changes the subject every time I want to talk about my painting. ¡°Did you receive my gift?¡± When I finally asked him about it directly, Heinley put on a serious expression as he carefully studied the gold trim around the edges of the bed. He observed the decorations with so much care, it seemed like they had been spoiled. ¡°Heinley? You didn¡¯t receive it?¡± ¡°Yes, I did, My Queen.¡± ¡°What did you think?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a wonderful painting. I think My Queen is a talented painter.¡± As I nodded happily, Heinley continued cautiously, ¡°The meaning implicit in the painting is¡­ very deep.¡± ¡®Deep? Why does he sound unconvinced?¡¯ ¡°It took me a while¡­ to understand.¡± He hesitated again on hisst word. ¡°My Queen, I realized that the meaning of your painting coincided with¡­ my thoughts.¡± I can¡¯t believe he hesitated for the third time. Also, why does he act so nervous? If he understood the meaning, why did he seem so unsure? When I frowned, Heinley paused before turning into Queen. He was hidden beneath the pile of clothes, but then he emerged, spread his wings vigorously and began to dance. He was adorable¡­ but he was also suspicious. Even his dance steps were a little different from when he danced with joy in the past. What¡¯s the matter with him? Is my expression scary? Although I rubbed my cheeks, I couldn¡¯t tell if my expression was scary with my hands alone. ¡°There is nothing to worry about.¡± Still, he was so stiff that I became concerned and spoke in the softest voice possible. Heinley stopped dancing, hopped to my side, and returned to his human form. When I clicked my tongue and stroked his messy hair, his blond hair felt soft between my fingers. Maybe because he is a bird, his hair was like silk. I liked the way it felt, so I closed my eyes and stroked his hair while leaning against Heinley¡¯s chest. Suddenly, Heinley called out. ¡°My Queen.¡± He sounded a little ufortable. How long has it been? Thest thing I remembered was stroking Heinley¡¯s hair. When I opened my eyes, I was asleep, using his chest like a pillow. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I must have dozed off.¡± As I hastened to raise my head, Heinley reached out and gently ced my head back on his chest. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I should tell you this¡­¡± ¡°What? Wait, why do you like to move my head as you please?¡± ¡°Your head returns on its own to my chest.¡± I didn¡¯t protest but tickled his chest, when he added, ¡°Isn¡¯t Emperor Sovieshu acting a little strange? At his words, I stopped tickling him. I remembered what Sovieshu said about losing his memory. Of course, I had thought it was a lie. But now that Heinley pointed it out, I began to wonder¡­ ¡®Can it be true?¡¯ ¡°What did you find strange about him?¡± ¡°Hmm, about that¡­¡± Several wrinkles appeared between Heinley¡¯s brows. ¡°It¡¯s hard to put into words.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The way he talks is¡­ a little different.¡± ¡°What do you mean by ¡®a little different¡¯?¡± Heinley frowned as if it was really hard to exin. In the end, he couldn¡¯t find the right words, and as my bedtime set by the pce doctor approached, he pulled the covers over me, kissed my forehead, and left. However, the doubts in my mind did not disappear and settled in a corner of my head. Did Sovieshu really lose his memory? *** Yesterday¡¯s weather was beautiful, but over the course of one day, the sky turnedpletely dark and gray. Judging by the thick, dark clouds, it would rain at any moment. However, the wind was still pleasantly cool, so I kept the office windows open. As I worked sitting at my desk, I looked out the windows whenever I got bored. I also spoke to my baby with my hands on my belly. ¡°Do you see that? Those are clouds. Dark clouds. Clouds like that appear before it rains.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°This is a pen. And this is an ink bottle. To write, you have to dip the tip of the pen in the ink¡­ Well, you¡¯ll learn thatter.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t read a children¡¯s story to you right now. If you¡¯re bored, you can fall asleep.¡± Of course, I never talked to my baby when someone was around because it would look strange. People would think that I was talking to myself. Time passed quietly until around lunchtime. Just as I debated about whether I should have lunch with mydies-in-waiting, with Heinley, or eat in my office while I finished my work, one of my attendants came in with an awkward look and reported. ¡°Your Majesty. Emperor Sovieshu hase to discuss an ¡®official¡¯ matter.¡± Once I nodded as I grumbled on the inside, my attendant left and a momentter Sovieshu entered. Yesterday, I got carried away due to his unexpected remarks, but today I definitely will not react emotionally. I waited until Sovieshu was standing in the middle of the office and asked coldly. ¡°What have youe for?¡± Sovieshu approached me steadily and ced his hands lightly on my desk. ¡°I heard that Your Majesty Navier is a mage.¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± What does he care? ¡°First of all, congrattions.¡± ¡°You came here to say that?¡± ¡°I¡¯vee to discuss an official matter.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I¡¯m here to make a proposal.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve told you not to speak to me informally.¡± ¡°We can both talk informally. I don¡¯t mind.¡± ¡°¡­¡± What I would like to do is insult him, but then the line between us would fade away. I wanted to keep my distance from him, so I didn¡¯t answer. Sovieshu smiled slightly as if all was well and got to the point. ¡°You can study at the magical academy if you want.¡± His proposal was strange. ¡°You want me to be a student at the magical academy?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want to attend sses with other students, I can arrange private lessons for you. Of course, you would have toe to the Eastern Empire.¡± I still hadn¡¯t mastered my magic because my ability had manifested very recently. Although I may seem extraordinary to others, it¡¯s only because I¡¯m also the Empress. In fact, I knew better than anyone that I wouldn¡¯t even measure up to an average mage. For that reason, I had put a lot of effort into my magic practices with buckets of water before Sovieshu¡¯s arrival. Given how badly I wanted to improve, the proposal was very attractive. However¡­ ¡°It¡¯s not necessary.¡± I asked for his help to build a temporary dam because it was an urgent problem faced by the people of the Western Empire. I didn¡¯t want to receive Sovieshu¡¯s help to improve my personal magic ability. ¡°It will be very hard to learn on your own.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not necessary.¡± ¡°Why won¡¯t you ept my help?¡± ¡°You know perfectly well.¡± I didn¡¯t know if Sovieshu really had lost his memory, but I did not care to confirm it. I looked down at the papers and waved my hand, signaling to him to leave. I would never act so impolitely before the Emperor of a neighboring country, but now it didn¡¯t seem wrong. Wasn¡¯t Sovieshu the first one to treat me without respect? ¡°¡­¡± But no matter how long I waited, I didn¡¯t hear the door open. When I finally looked up with a frown, he was just looking at me, amused. ¡°Why are you still here?¡± Despite my anger, Sovieshu answered with a smile. ¡°It¡¯s wonderful.¡± ¡°Wonderful?¡± ¡°You grew up so wonderfully. Did you use a rare spell to grow? Can you now eat as much as you want? I¡¯m curious about everything.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°What the hell happened to me, watching you grow into such a wonderful woman and¡­¡± Sovieshu swallowed thest words. It was as if he didn¡¯t want to say them. It was a good choice. I didn¡¯t want to hear it either. But¡­ ¡°Have you really lost your memory?¡± ¡°Yes, even if you won¡¯t believe me, it¡¯s true.¡± If it was true that Sovieshu had lost his memory, I suppose it was because he suffered a blow to the head. Didn¡¯t he receive the proper treatment? Is it because Evely was here and could not heal him on time? I sighed. If that were the case, it was impossible not to feel partially at fault. Besides¡­ if he had indeed lost his memory, it was surprising that his memories went back to the days when we had a good rtionship. After I spent a while tapping a document with the tip of the pen, I finally opened my mouth and spoke carefully. ¡°If you really lost your memory, I hope someday you get your memories back. But we can¡¯t go back to the past.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°We can¡¯t go back to the time you remember, so all that¡¯s left for you is to adapt to the present.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°You hurt me a lot. You married someone else, and I also married someone else. And now, I love my husband.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s expression darkened and his smile faded. I btedly realized that I was still tapping the paper with the tip of the pen as I spoke. The ink seeped out and turned into a ck tear. ¡°I once cursed you because I didn¡¯t want you to be happy. Now, I don¡¯t care so much.¡± As I blotted the ink spot, I spoke withplete sincerity. ¡°I hope that you also find happiness with someone else.¡± Of course, as long as he was not as happy as I was. That could still make me angry. ¡°Navier.¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious. Sometimes I don¡¯t mean it when I¡¯m angry, but at least this time I do.¡± ¡°Navier.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°You want me to be happy?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Do you want me to find love again?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But you can¡¯te back to my side, right?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Then, can I be your lover?¡± ¡°Uh¡­ what?¡± ¡°That way I can love someone, live happily, but you won¡¯t have toe back to my side.¡± Chapter 428 Chapter 428. Just Around The Corner (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 Uh¡­ he¡¯s trying to manipte me. I was in shock for a few moments before I came to my senses, as if a bucket of cold water had been dumped on me. ¡°First of all¡­ I should apologize.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because I hadn¡¯t believed you when you said you had gone crazy.¡± I pressed my temples. It wasn¡¯t funny at all, and it made my head hurt. ¡°It¡¯s clear now that you weren¡¯t lying. The only exnation I can find for your offensive proposal is that you have gone crazy. Completely crazy.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you want to?¡± Has he no shame? ¡°Of course not. The question itself is absurd.¡± ¡°Absurd? Is it because I am the Emperor?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then?¡± ¡°Because of the person you became.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°I don¡¯t love you.¡± ¡°That isn¡¯t true.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t love you.¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re not telling the truth.¡± I was surprised that Sovieshu spoke with such determination. ¡®What¡¯s the matter with him? How can he be so arrogant?¡¯ ¡°In my memories¡ª¡± ¡°Search well in your memories.¡± I held back a little because he had lost his memory. Atst, I said coldly. ¡°Once you search well, you¡¯ll know why I hate you.¡± ¡°I want to redeem myself for my mistakes. I want to apologize. I ask for your forgiveness.¡± ¡°You must recover your memories first. How can you sincerely ask for forgiveness if you have lost your memory?¡± Finally, I pointed a finger at the door and ordered him to leave. ¡°Go away.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°You said you would be obedient. Go away.¡± Once I raised my voice, Sovieshu slumped his shoulders and walked out. As I looked at his pitiful figure, I put my hand on my forehead. Rationally, I could understand his motivation for doing this. Back then, in the time Sovieshu currently remembers, he and I never quarreled so seriously. He wouldn¡¯t have given up, even if I was angry. When Sovieshu fell in love with Rashta and treated me coldly, I could not understand it at all. This must be how Sovieshu feels right now. I didn¡¯t even know I loved him back then, but we were friends and aplices and his actions hurt me. It was hard to believe that a person could change so much from one moment to the next. Sovieshu, who lost his memory, probably thinks the same. But that was it. Emotionally, I could never, never ept him. All the anger and annoyance I felt was due to indignation that the person I spoke to coldly was not the Sovieshu I hated, but the Sovieshu who was my friend. ¡°Sovieshu¡­ you must recover your memory quickly. Don¡¯t hide behind your past.¡± I eventually looked at the papers again, but I couldn¡¯t concentrate like before. Even the sound of the pen scratching on paper was annoying, so I paced back and forth across the office before leaving in search of Heinley. ¡°Where is His Majesty Heinley?¡± I felt that the only way to calm myself down was to see Heinley. The knight I asked informed me that he was in the training grounds. As I expected, as soon as I saw Heinley, I was reassured. He was swinging a wooden sword at arge dummy. Every time the sword collided with the wooden dummy there was a soft thump. As I watched him, Heinley seemed to notice my presence, so he lowered his sword and looked at me. Just then the wind blew hard, which ruffled his hair that I liked so much. When I waved at him, Heinley smiled so warmly that I finally regained myposure. He immediately approached me. ¡°You came to see me?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Heinley seemed momentarily surprised by my straightforward answer, so I immediately reaffirmed it with a soft smile. ¡°I¡¯vee to see you.¡± Heinley ran his hand through his hair. ¡°I¡¯m drenched in sweat. Should I go take a bath?¡± ¡°You look good like that.¡± ¡°You like to look at my body when I¡¯m covered in sweat?¡± Oh, that was a misunderstanding. I was just trying to say there was no need for him to take a bath. Just as I caught the change in Heinley¡¯s smile, he took off his shirt to show off his firm chest and abdomen. His smile turned into a naughty one. ¡®I want to tease you, I want to tease you,¡¯ he seemed to say, so I deliberately put my hand on the sword he held and looked away. ¡°Can I try it too?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Heinley handed the sword to me in some confusion. ¡°Wait, do you want to hit it¡­ with the sword¡­?¡± He gestured towards the wooden dummy. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± I wanted to hit it while I imagined it was Sovieshu. ¡°Won¡¯t it be hard now that you are pregnant?¡± ¡°It will just be a light hit.¡± ¡°Did something bad happen and now you want to swipe at the wooden dummy with my sword?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I guess that¡¯s a yes.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Rather than exin further, I gripped the sword tightly and headed for the wooden dummy. I held the sword with both hands and struck the wooden dummy¡¯s head. *** ¡°Watch closely. This is you. Think of this dummy as you. That¡¯s what Her Majesty meant.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Of course! The Empress even sent you a message through a painting, but Your Majesty didn¡¯t catch it. So the Empress is angry.¡± ¡°My Queen is not usually so violent¡­¡± ¡°Everyone has a violent side. I may seem very nice on the outside, but sometimes very violent thoughtse to my mind when I see Your Majesty.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°¡¯I have to work harder! I have to work harder!¡¯ That¡¯s what I think.¡± McKenna had been speaking energetically as he waved his hands, but he nervously changed his words at thest minute. Heinley chuckled and praised him. ¡°You¡¯re so cute, McKenna.¡± McKenna¡¯s face became stiff. ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± Heinley shook his head with a soft smile. ¡°It¡¯s true. I¡¯m serious.¡± Goosebumps broke out on McKenna¡¯s skin and he rubbed his arms. ¡°Don¡¯t say disgusting things. It¡¯s awkward.¡± Heinley sighed, then crossed his arms and turned serious again. ¡°What is certain is that something happened that upset her¡­¡± McKenna was finally relieved and lowered his hands. He then muttered, ¡°It could be¡ª¡± ¡°The painting has nothing to do with it.¡± Heinley tly cut him off. ¡°I¡¯m not talking about the painting¡­ I heard that Emperor Sovieshu visited Empress Navier¡¯s office during the day.¡± Heinley¡¯s eyebrows rose as if by magic at those words. ¡°What?!¡± As he jumped up his chair fell to the floor. ¡°Well, he was there for a short time. Apparently he came out with a sour face.¡± ¡°Really? I suppose My Queen treated him very coldly.¡± ¡°It may have been unpleasant to Her Majesty even if she acted with the formality of the Empress.¡± ¡°Yes, it makes sense. That would exin why she attacked the head of the wooden dummy with so much vigor.¡± Heinley nodded several times, lifted the chair off the floor, and put on his coat. ¡°I must leave now.¡± ¡°Where to?¡± Chapter 429 Chapter 429. Not Much Time Left (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: HB168 After I took an aromatic bath with flower petals, I walked into the drawing room and was surprised when I saw Heinley there. ¡°Heinley?¡± ¡®Isn¡¯t it still a couple of hours until dinner?¡¯ There was a cup of tea in front of him. Since the cup was half empty, I didn¡¯t think he had just arrived. When I looked at him, Heinley smiled and waved at me. The same way I had greeted him a while ago. I couldn¡¯t help but smile too. When I reached over and ced my hand over his, intertwining our fingers, Heinley held it firmly and kissed my hand slowly, from the back to my fingers. ¡°It tickles.¡± Heinley chuckled as he kissed me slowly again. ¡°I told you it tickles.¡± He did it one more time. As I squirmed and giggled involuntarily, Heinley slid his arm around my back, settled me on hisp and hugged me tightly. Leaning against his chest, I closed my eyes and rested my headfortably on his shoulder. ¡­ It was very pleasant. ¡°My Queen. Did you just take a bath? You smell good.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t I usually smell good?¡± ¡°Oh, you usually smell nice, but now it¡¯s more intense.¡± ¡°So you don¡¯t like my scent, you like the scent of my bath.¡± ¡°What? Absolutely not! I like your scent, My Queen.¡± ¡°I was only kidding.¡± Why did he get so nervous over a joke? I looked up and lifted Heinley¡¯s chin with my hand. He let out a sigh. Then he shook his head and gently bit my fingers. ¡°You always bite me.¡± ¡°Because I¡¯m a bird.¡± ¡°You only say you¡¯re a bird when it suits you.¡± ¡°But it¡¯s the truth. I really am a bird.¡± He was right. ¡°Will our baby be a bird too?¡± ¡°Our child will definitely be a bird.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Huh? Why do you look so serious all of a sudden, Queen?¡± ¡°I¡¯m scared.¡± ¡°My Queen?¡± Heinley took my finger out of his mouth and hugged me tighter around the waist. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Heinley spoke with rm, as if he shared my fear. But unlike his tone, his muscr arms held me steady. I hadn¡¯t seriously thought about this until now. ¡°If our baby gets mixed up with other birds¡­ how will I be able to tell it apart?¡± As soon as I confessed my fear, Heinley¡¯s serious expression disappeared and he broke intoughter. ¡°Don¡¯tugh! It¡¯s very serious. All birds look the same to my eyes.¡± I spoke coldly because I was embarrassed, but Heinley was not fooled and he rubbed his cheek against mine. ¡°Do you confuse me with the other birds too?¡± ¡°No, not you. You¡¯re especiallyrge and handsome.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll be able to tell our child apart.¡± Really? But shouldn¡¯t I also be able to tell it apart? As soon as I instinctively put my hand on my belly, I felt the baby inside meugh too. *** After I steadied my emotions in Heinley¡¯s armsst night, I regretted that I hadn¡¯t been as cold as possible to Sovieshu. As soon as Heinley left for work, I made up my mind with clenched fists. ¡®Today, I will not get involved with Sovieshu at all.¡¯ During breakfast, Heinley told me that the mages had already left for Yorne. The flood problem has been solved with the temporary dam that the mages will build, andter with the Jewel Dam. Of course, the construction of the Jewel Dam will take about a year, but it has been solved anyway, so today I will have a positive mind. I was looking through some parenting books that Countess Jubel rmended, when¡­ ¡®What?¡¯ No way. As soon as I decided to have a positive outlook, I heard angry voicesing from the corridor. ¡®What could be going on?¡¯ ¡°Didn¡¯t you like these books, Your Majesty?¡± Countess Jubel asked with concern, as I had be distracted. ¡°It¡¯s not that, it seems there¡¯s amotion outside.¡± ¡°What?¡± Although Countess Jubel hadn¡¯t noticed anything unusual, I heard it clearly. I got up and left the drawing room, where Mastas and Rose were facing each other with serious faces. ¡°Are you two fighting?¡± I asked with concern, to which Mastas answered with a hasty curtsey. ¡°No, Your Majesty. Never.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not the proper way to respond in this situation.¡± Rose tugged on Mastas¡¯ dress to get her upright again and added, ¡°We were not fighting, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Then what about the angry voices a moment ago¡­?¡± ¡°Ah¡­ that¡­¡± Mastas snuck a nce at Rose that made me suspect that something bad had happened. Both slumped their shoulders. As I silently watched them, Mastas scratched her head and finally spoke again, ¡°Your Majesty¡­ the servants of the Eastern Empire are actually rude vermin bastards¡­¡± Just as the insults seemed to get more hostile, Rose covered Mastas¡¯ mouth with one hand and took over ¡°We were justining to each other because we have constant shes with those people.¡± ¡°shes? You mean there are fights?¡± There are people in the Eastern Empire who feel deep pride due to their origins in the most powerful country, so it is true that they tend to look down a little on people from other countries. In particr, the people who worked in the Imperial Pce feel this pride the most strongly. However, it was unusual for servants to be so reckless as to reveal such contempt while in another country. Not even in the Pce of the Eastern Empire did they act like that around foreigners who came as distinguished guests. Why would they cause trouble in the Western Empire? No matter how deep someone¡¯s pride runs, wouldn¡¯t they be careful to avoid a problem? Rose added hastily. ¡°It¡¯s not to the point of fighting.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s just minor arguments. But it happens two or three times a day¡­¡± I understand what she means. It gets more annoying as it repeats over time. However, it was strange all the same. Had Sovieshu¡¯s authority weakened with the loss of his memory? No, that¡¯s not it. Even when he had his memories intact, Sovieshu never directly controlled the servants. It was a job for someone in a lower position. Moreover, Sovieshu¡¯s memory loss seemed to be known to few people in the Eastern Empire. However, how was it possible that among the servants brought in there were so many particrly arrogant ones? It was certainly strange. ¡°Your Majesty? Hmm¡­ Did it bother you to hear about the Eastern Empire¡¯s offensive behavior?¡± Rose and Mastas looked at me worriedly, so I shook my hand to ease their minds and went back to the drawing room. But I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about it. ¡®Could it be¡­ that the people brought here aren¡¯t actually servants?¡¯ *** Just as several servants of the Eastern Empire were chatting among themselves in a spacious room that looked like a warehouse, there was a sudden knock at the door. ¡®Who could it be?¡¯ All the servants looked at the door in bewilderment and were surprised to see Emperor Sovieshu enter. The servants hastened to kneel on the floor with fright. Sovieshu stood in the doorway for a moment, then took a step inside and mmed the door shut with one hand ¡°Hello.¡± At his friendly greeting, the servants murmured nervously. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty.¡± Their anxiety worsened when Sovieshu asked with an expressionless face, ¡°Do you have any idea why I came here?¡± They blurted out different answers at the same time. But as soon as Sovieshu knocked loudly on the closed door, the room fell silent. A smile like a spring breeze spread across Sovieshu¡¯s face. ¡°My esteemed subordinates.¡± With a soft voice, he walked over to personally help the servants to their feet one by one. ¡°Why are you all so nervous? There¡¯s no need for that.¡± The servants stood up in shame. They were still reluctant to meet his eyes, so Sovieshu pretended to sigh. ¡°I trust all of you. I only came becausetely I¡¯ve heard a lot of things being said about my valued subordinates.¡± His words sounded like a rebuke. As the servants lowered their heads even further, Sovieshu put a hand on the shoulder of thest servant he helped to stand up, patted it and smiled, ¡°I know this task affects your pride, but it is for the good of the Eastern Empire, is it not?¡± The servant in front of Sovieshu managed to speak. ¡°Yes, yes, Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu smiled confidently as he lowered his hand from the servant¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You must hold out a little longer like you have done so far. We don¡¯t have much time left before we return home.¡± As Sovieshu walked to his room after encouraging the ¡®servants¡¯ he had brought along, Marquis Karl spoke with relief. ¡°To tell the truth, I was a little worried when Your Majesty announced the visit to the Western Empire.¡± ¡°You were worried?¡± ¡°Your Majesty was very close to Navier in the days of your memory, so I was worried that it would cloud your judgment. But now I am relieved.¡± Despite the trouble with Navier, once Marquis Karl saw Sovieshu control the ¡®servants¡¯ so well, his worry disappeared. He considered that his attitude befitted that of an Emperor. Crown Prince Sovieshu was more outspoken than the current Sovieshu, who had spent several years as Emperor. So when he said that his two purposes foring here were Navier and the country, Marquis Karl became very worried¡­ although he agreed thating here might help recover his memory. ¡°No one would think that the main reason for your visit is this, everyone would think that you only came to see Navier.¡± ¡°Navier is the main reason.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°If Navier wasn¡¯t here, I would have sent you or another secretary to take care of this matter.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I see.¡± ¡®Will I ever be able to rx?¡¯ Marquis Karl closed his mouth sullenly. Chapter 430 Chapter 430. Look! Look Here! (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra After Rose and Mastas told me about the trouble being caused by the servants of the Eastern Empire, I spent a long time pondering the matter. Once I had organized my thoughts, I went to my office and summoned McKenna. When McKenna walked into the office, I asked him to sit down and waited until my assistant closed the door tightly before speaking. ¡°McKenna, there¡¯s a task I need you to do.¡± McKenna, who had walked in with a puzzled expression, mumbled in surprise. ¡°Your Majesty¡­ how can Your Majesty do this to me?¡± From his expression, he seemed to feel that I had betrayed him. ¡°No, it¡¯s not ordinary work. It¡¯s important work.¡± I shook my head as I held backughter due to his reaction, but McKenna only became more dejected. ¡°Emperor Heinley also says the tasks he entrusts to me are important.¡± Heinley must put a lot of pressure on him. I felt bad because I also turned to McKenna, so I was quick to exin. ¡°I can talk to Heinley so he can find someone to help you lessen your workload. What do you think?¡± McKenna sighed with resignation and finally spoke more seriously. ¡°What does Your Majesty need me for?¡± Rather than answer right away, I sat down across from McKenna. ¡°The servants who came with Emperor Sovieshu. How many are there in total?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ I don¡¯t remember the exact number. He brought about the same number that important royal families from neighboring countries bring on unofficial visits.¡± ¡°Does that number include knights?¡± ¡°No, it only takes into ount the servants. It does not include trusted men like the knights and Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard that the servants have been causing troubletely.¡± McKenna¡¯s expression turned ufortable in an instant, and he sped his hands tightly together. ¡°It¡¯s not serious enough to call it trouble.¡± He didn¡¯t look me in the eye. ¡°That would be an exaggeration on our part. It¡¯s just that our Empires are not very friendly with one another, so there¡¯s been some conflict.¡± His reply was in the same vein as Rose¡¯s, who didn¡¯t want to insult the servants in front of me since I am from the Eastern Empire, after all. No matter how much theye to ept me, they will always be careful with their words about the Eastern Empire in my presence. It was inevitable. As I reflected, McKenna finally asked cautiously, ¡°Your Majesty, why do you ask?¡± I didn¡¯t answer with the same caution. Instead, I deliberately asked him in a casual manner. ¡°Have you checked if those servants are really servants?¡± ¡°What?¡± It took McKenna a moment to understand what I meant and he responded with a frown, ¡°Of course. There were some well-muscled ones, but none that could pose a threat.¡± He then asked as he looked me in the eye. ¡°Is Your Majesty concerned that there are knights disguised as servants?¡± I shook my head. ¡°I¡¯m concerned that there are mages in disguise.¡± ¡°What? Mages? Who would have such valuable people pose as servants¡­?¡± McKenna paused. He seemed to have finally understood the difference: The Eastern Empire had an army of mages at its disposal, unlike the Western Empire, which had amon army. ¡°I understand, Your Majesty. But even if there are mages disguised as servants, there¡¯s no way for us to find out. If they avoid using their magic, we cannot know their identity.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Since they knew how to deplete mages of their mana, I assumed they would also know how to find out if someone was a mage. McKenna asked another question, ¡°Are you suspicious because the servants keep causing trouble?¡± ¡°Yes. It¡¯s true that the servants of the Eastern Empire are arrogant, but they are not foolish enough to cause fights several times a day.¡± ¡°¡­¡± From his look, he seemed to want to refute it, but at the same time he seemed frustrated that he couldn¡¯t say that the servants were indeed that foolish in front of me. ¡°I¡¯m telling you the truth.¡± When I asserted firmly, McKenna nodded meekly. ¡°Alright. If so, it¡¯s not a matter I can solve on my own, so I¡¯ll report it to His Majesty first. It¡¯s not because I¡¯mzy. You know that, right?¡± ¡°Of course do.¡± When I confirmed that I didn¡¯t think he waszy, McKenna smiled broadly. It was a relief to tell him about my suspicions, but the matter still troubled me. ¡°Sovieshu may havee here in search of traces about the phenomenon of mana decline, so we must not let our guard down.¡± We needed to be extremely careful to continue to hide the truth. ¡°!¡± McKenna had be very stiff. I smiled at him and stood up. Heinley had given up his war ns for me, so now I would help him hide what he had done. Sovieshu said that he came to check that I was alright, since hisst memory was from the day when several peaches fell on my head. But now I knew that it had been an excuse. Didn¡¯t he also say that he hade to apologize to me? He¡¯s a liar. *** ¡°Your Majesty. Your Majesty!¡± McKenna called for Heinley as he searched for him, but since he couldn¡¯t find him, he stopped and looked around. ¡®How strange. I¡¯m sure I heard he was around here somewhere.¡¯ As he stood motionless, sand fell on his head. McKenna looked up in surprise. Atop the wide pir, which was adorned with glittering jewels, sat arge bird with golden feathers as shiny as the jewels. The bird held a branch in its beak. Behind the bird, McKenna saw hints of a rudimentary kind of nest. As soon as McKenna saw this, his eyebrows shot up. ¡°Your Majesty, no! We had agreed to make a silk nest based on thetest trends! Couldn¡¯t Your Majesty stand the wait? Is that why you started to make one on your own? Therge bird, majestic and handsome, loudly chirped in protest. ¡ª Gu. Gu. Gu. Gu. Gu. Gu. It spat the branch to the side as if it were frustrating, and swooped down gracefully. The bird turned into a human form when it touched the ground. It was Heinley. As he fixed his messy hair, he exined, ¡°It¡¯s better if my child has several homes.¡± McKenna stomped his foot. ¡°I had it all nned out in my head. The baby¡¯s only nest would be so pretty and luxurious!¡± ¡°Why are you making ns for my child?¡± ¡°You¡¯re right¡­ it¡¯s not my child.¡± ¡°Do it anyway. If there are several nests, my child can y wherever it wants.¡± ¡°Come to think of it, we¡¯ll soon have to start with the preparations for the baby¡¯s room.¡± ¡°It will have to be discussed with My Queen first.¡± ¡°Alright. By the way, take the jewels out of the little bird¡¯s nest, Your Majesty. It could cause harm to the baby.¡± ¡°No. The more jewels, the better.¡± ¡°That¡¯s Your Majesty¡¯s opinion¡­¡± ¡°I like gems, and My Queen likes gold and silver. Our child will be morefortable while surrounded by all this splendor.¡± McKenna thought it was absurd, but suddenly he noticed Heinley¡¯s shiny hair. ¡®Well, it makes sense¡­¡¯ ¡°Anyway, why are you here?¡± ¡°Get dressed first, it¡¯s ufortable¡­¡± McKenna looked around, found Heinley¡¯s clothes in a pile in a corner and quickly handed them to him. ¡°Now, tell me why you¡¯re here.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, does the Empress know what we did?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Does she know about our involvement in the phenomenon of mana decline?¡± Heinley, who was quietly fastening his cloak, suddenly turned serious. ¡°Yes.¡± McKenna sighed heavily. Of course, it was not a surprise because the Empress herself had brought it up. ¡°What did My Queen tell you? Is she angry with me?¡± ¡°Oh no. It¡¯s about something more important.¡± ¡°What could be more important than that?¡± McKenna faithfully ryed the conversation he had with Navier. Of course, he didn¡¯t mention that he grumbled the moment Navier said she had worked for him. When McKenna finished, Heinley seemed surprised. However, his lips remained stiff. ¡°If it¡¯s true, wouldn¡¯t that be a serious problem! I pretended to be calm in front of the Empress, but my heart raced as soon as I heard those words. If our involvement in the phenomenon of mana decline is discovered, how the mages associated with the Eastern Empire might react¡­¡± McKenna spoke with concern, but once he noticed Heinley¡¯s sad expression, he called out to him in astonishment, ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Heinley seemed to realize his state only then. He smiled and nodded as if everything was fine. ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± McKenna was unable to speak further. Although Heinley did not say anything, he could guess how he felt. For a moment, McKenna felt sorry for his cousin. But as sad and painful as it was, it was a decision made by Heinley himself. There was nothing he could do about this decision, which would stay with him for the rest of his life. Heinley would have to bear any regrets he might have on his own. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± All McKenna could do was pretend he didn¡¯t notice. Heinley took some time to reflect before he spoke slowly. ¡°First¡­¡± Chapter 431 Chapter 431. Look! Look Here! (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡®How could this happen?¡¯ I watched the tea being poured by a maid as I tried to keep my mind nk. After the maid left, I looked ahead with the utmost serenity. But no matter how much time passed and how calm I remained, the situation before me was bizarre. I was sitting at a table with four foolish men at lunchtime. Across from me, Sovieshu repeatedly alternated between smiling and frowning. Sitting next to him, Marquis Karl awkwardly sipped on his tea. Next to me, Heinley had a happy smile on his face¡­ but I could tell that his jaw was tense. He would do better to rx, or else his jaw would hurtter. On my other side, McKenna stared ahead without blinking. His gaze was fixed on the silk scarf tied around Marquis Karl¡¯s neck. When I recalled how we came to this, I sighed internally. Last night, Heinley hade to my room to make an announcement. ¡°We¡¯ve devised the perfect countermeasure so that the Eastern Empire can¡¯t snoop into the phenomenon of mana decline.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± I was a little nervous. What had hee up with that he qualified as a ¡®perfect countermeasure¡¯? However, it was nothing special. ¡°Even if most of the Eastern Empire servants brought here are mages in disguise, there is no way to tell them apart, My Queen.¡± ¡°I know.¡± ¡°Therefore, we will take advantage of the fact that they are in our territory to keep a close eye on them.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible that mages are concealed among the knights, so we will keep a close eye on them as well.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°Even on Emperor Sovieshu and his secretary, because they might try to snoop on their own.¡± The swarm tactic¡­ It was simr to a war tactic used to overwhelm the enemy with numbers. If there was no way to tell the mages apart, it was undoubtedly the most effective method. As Heinley had hinted, our biggest weapon was the number of people. This would make it easy to deal with our opponent. If every person who came from the Eastern Empire was under watch, no one would be able to investigate or enter ces they shouldn¡¯t. Any suspicious behavior would be easily stopped. ¡°Knights will stay close to knights, and servants close to servants.¡± ¡°I see. So McKenna will stay close to Marquis Karl?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What about Sovieshu?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll have to do it myself.¡± After Heinley told me his n, I gently patted his back, and told him that he would do well. It was important to cheer him up. However¡­ that¡¯s how I ended up at this lunch, sitting at a table with Heinley, McKenna, Marquis Karl, and Sovieshu. Sovieshu wanted to see me, and Marquis Karl never wanted to part with Sovieshu. While Heinley and McKenna were executing their swarm tactic. As a result, the five of us were now sitting together. It was very ufortable. When I scoffed due to the situation, Sovieshu called my name with a smile. ¡°Navier.¡± Did he want me to smile back at him? I maintained my cold andposed demeanor and replied nonchntly. ¡°Sovieshu.¡± At this time, Heinley suddenly intervened and called me. ¡°Navier.¡± ¡®What is this cunning eagle up to¡­?¡¯ ¡°Heinley.¡± I couldn¡¯t just ignore him, so when I called Heinley¡¯s name, too, Sovieshu looked at him in disgust. Then Heinley smiled broadly and spoke to Sovieshu. ¡°Sovieshu.¡± As we absurdly called each other by name, Marquis Karl munched on a cookie with an expression that seemed to say, ¡®stop it already¡¯. For my part, I stifled the sigh that was about to escape me and lifted my teacup. I¡¯ll pretend not to notice that Sovieshu and Heinley are looking at each other like they want to fight. ¡°My wife.¡± Just as I decided to turn a blind eye, Heinley called me his wife. It was strange to hear him call me his wife since he usually called me his Queen. Even McKenna seemed to choke. When I turned my gaze to him, Heinley calmly reached out his hand and pretended to wipe something from the corner of my mouth. ¡°You have something here.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± I hadn¡¯t eaten anything. ¡°My love.¡± ¡°Ahem!¡± When Heinley kissed my lips, Marquis Karl coughed and his face reddened. He seemed to be choking on his food. Sovieshu kept a smile on his face, but fireballs seemed about to shoot out of his eyes. Judging by the way he grabbed and released the knife, it seemed like he wanted to use it as a weapon. It was probably Heinley¡¯s neck that he wanted to stab. I knew how Heinley felt, but did he really have to do something so embarrassing? Heinley then ran his hand through his hair, looking absolutely charming. ¡°It¡¯s hot here, isn¡¯t it?¡± I watched in confusion as he lifted his arms, allowing his jacket to slide off, exposing the white vest he wore underneath. ¡®What¡¯s that blue jewel that shines on Heinley¡¯s chest? Is it Fairy Tear?¡¯ It was simultaneously childish and amusing, so I shook my head. Just then, I heard a thud from across the table. Sovieshu was clutching his head. He had an expression of deep pain. His intention to fight Heinley had disappeared. It seemed like he was really suffering. ¡°Your Majesty? Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl was panicking as he called out to Sovieshu. ¡°Bring the pce doctor.¡± Heinley hurriedly issued the order. I couldn¡¯t help but swallow hard. While Sovieshu had made a promise to me regarding that jewel, it had been after the peaches incident. The ¡®current¡¯ Sovieshu wouldn¡¯t be able to remember the promise. Sovieshu, whose eyes were bloodshot, lost all strength and copsed. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Marquis Karl¡¯s shouts mixed with the bustle as the pce doctor arrived. Suddenly, I recalled the legend. This jewel, called the ¡®Fairy Tear¡¯, came from a fairy who lost her husband and fell into an eternal sleep. Chapter 432 Chapter 432. Kapmen¡¯s Friend (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Countess Jubel.¡± Before dinner, I quietly asked Countess Jubel for a favor. ¡°Could you go check if Emperor Sovieshu is better?¡± Sovieshu, who had fainted at the sight of Fairy Tear, was rushed to his room to be examined by the pce doctor. Based on the pce doctor¡¯s diagnosis, all his vital signs were normal. However, two hourster, Sovieshu still hadn¡¯t woken up. ¡°I suppose this situation must not be easy for Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a little ufortable.¡± While I would have preferred not to pay attention to him, I couldn¡¯t due to his position¡­ In fact, if Sovieshu had not been my ex-husband, I would have been more attentive because a distinguished guest was unwell during a visit to our country. But due to the fact that Sovieshu was now my ex-husband, I didn¡¯t pay him the attention I should have. Both because I didn¡¯t want to get involved with him, and because I worried that Heinley would be ufortable. ¡°Don¡¯t stay too long. Just find out if he¡¯s better ande back.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± While I waited for Countess Jubel to return, I caressed the petals of the flowers in a vase for no reason and walked barefoot on the soft carpet. Countess Jubel returned shortly thereafter. ¡°He has already awakened, but he is still resting in his room . I couldn¡¯t see him in person because he wasn¡¯t allowing anyone in.¡± ¡°Is he better?¡± ¡°Marquis Karl told me he¡¯ll be fine. There is no reason to worry.¡± It¡¯s a relief. Once I nodded, Countess Jubel continued with some unnecessary words offort. In any case¡­ It was hard to believe that the mere legend behind the jewel ¡®Fairy Tear¡¯ would have caused such a strong reaction in Sovieshu. Although he has lost his memory, did he hear that he sent me the jewel? Was it too much to find out that I gave his gift to Heinley? *** The next day, Heinley had to leave for work very early, so I ate breakfast alone. While I ate, I pondered the matter seriously. ¡®Should I send someone to check on Sovieshu?¡¯ As Empress, I should check on the condition of our distinguished guest. But as his ex-wife, I should pay him no attention. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Before I coulde to a conclusion, an unexpected person came to visit me. It was Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°What brings you here at this hour?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen had nevere to see me early in the morning even when he was under the effects of the love potion. It was strange. ¡°I came because I thought I should let you know about my friend.¡± ¡°What friend?¡± ¡°The one who hates nobles¡­¡± Ah, I remember now. ¡°You mean the ice mage?¡± ¡°Yes, he has arrived in the capital. Your Majesty had asked me to inform you. He agreed to meet at a cafe nearby, in two hours¡­¡± ¡°So, you¡¯re going out now to meet your friend?¡± Grand Duke Kapmen paused and frowned. ¡°Yes. But, as I told you before, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a good idea.¡± Kapmen¡¯s countenance distorted further. He still seemed hesitant about taking me to meet his friend. Mydies-in-waiting, who hadughed hysterically at my mediocre acting skills, covered their mouths and giggled, probably because they were remembering my performance. Except for Mastas, who wore a confident smile. I preferred to go. It would also help to clear my mind. ¡°Countess Jubel.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll need the clothes I asked you to prepare in advance.¡± After I found out about Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend, I ordered mydies-in-waiting to get clothes that would make me look like a richmoner. Countess Jubel understood at once and hurried to my room. Grand Duke Kapmen now ced both hands on his forehead with a look of nervousness. I ignored him and issued some more orders. ¡°Mastas. While I get ready, let Heinley know I¡¯ll be gone for a few hours. Laura. Exin the situation to Viscount Langdel and tell him that I want him to escort me. Rose. Prepare the carriage that I will use as amoner.¡± ¡°Yes!¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Understood.¡± Mydies-in-waiting rushed to follow my orders. Grand Duke Kapmen ran his hands over his face, but his look of concern did not dissuade me. I returned to my room to change my clothes. Finally, a little over an hourter, I left the Imperial Pce in a in carriage, apanied by Viscount Langdel, his knights, and Grand Duke Kapmen. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± On the way, Grand Duke Kapmen earnestly advised me, ¡°As a reminder, my friend truly hates nobles. Even if he believes Your Majesty is not nobility, he could still make unpleasant remarks about nobles.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± ¡°If my friend makes unpleasant remarks¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll hit him in the mouth with my fan.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Grand Duke Kapmen looked at me with shock and covered his forehead with his hand. When I thought, ¡®it¡¯s just a joke,¡¯ he lowered his hand with an embarrassed expression and changed the subject. ¡°I told my friend about Your Majesty in a letter.¡± ¡°What did you tell him?¡± ¡°I told him that your name is ¡®Navi¡¯ and that you are the daughter of a wealthy merchant family.¡± ¡°Did you mention that I¡¯m a mage?¡± ¡°Yes, I exined to my friend that Your Majesty couldn¡¯t attend the academy because of Your Majesty¡¯s pregnancy.¡± I nodded and rxed my facial muscles as I looked at myself in the mirror that I had brought. ¡°Your Majesty. You must not talk like a rascal.¡± ¡°All right.¡± ¡®Why did the Grand Duke introduce me as ¡®Navi¡¯?¡¯ As soon as I thought about it, Grand Duke Kapmen averted his gaze and cleared his throat. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s not important.¡± ¡°On the contrary, I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t help but hear your thoughts.¡± I chuckled, grateful for his consideration. But what I was most grateful to him for was that he pretended not to know that I had deliberately rushed out to avoid dealing with Sovieshu. Chapter 433 Chapter 433. Kapmen¡¯s Friend (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Since the agreed upon meeting spot was a cafe near the Imperial Pce, the carriage ride was really short. Grand Duke Kapmen got off first and extended his hand to me. I hesitated for a second before taking his hand as I stepped down from the carriage. ¡®My name is Navi. My parents are merchants. I must overlook his unpleasant remarks. I must not talk like a rascal. Good. That sounds easy enough.¡¯ As Grand Duke Kapmen approached the entrance to the cafe, an attendant opened the doors. So as not to appear too nervous, I took a deep breath before entering. ¡°Have you ever been to a cafe?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard about them¡­¡± I never had a reason to visit one before. I had rarely even been to restaurants. ¡°Richmoners frequent these ces. They don¡¯t hold parties in private lounges, they gather in cafes, fancy restaurants, theaters, and so on.¡± ¡°I see that the Grand Duke has been to a cafe before.¡± ¡°The students at the magical academy belonged to different social sses, so sometimes I visited these ces.¡± Come to think of it, Grand Duke Kapmen told me that he distributed the magic potions he made in the ck market. I couldn¡¯t believe that he was involved in such activities given his righteous attitude. I followed him upstairs to the third floor, where the tables were arranged in such a way that the center of the rooms were empty. ¡°The rooms are cleared for dances and games. I understand that balls are held once a week.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen exined as we walked to the tables in the back. Only one person sat at one of these tables, so I quickly realized that it was his friend. As soon as I saw him, I questioned Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s advice not to speak like a rascal. This man looked like a rascal at first nce. Since he was a rascal, wouldn¡¯t it be better to also act like one so that he would be morefortable? Of course, I couldn¡¯t be sure because I had never had a rascal friend. I examined Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend as I hid my surprise under my expressionless face. Thick hair disheveled like a bird after shaking its feathers, fierce eyes that suggested that he would pull out a knife to demand money at any moment, scars on his face that could not have been caused by an ident but were the result of dozens of street fights. Of course, one shouldn¡¯t judge a person by first impressions alone, but this was not only my own impression. Viscount Langdel, who stood behind me, looked a little nervous. ¡°Hey, Kapmen.¡± Didn¡¯t he speak in a manner simr to mine when I posed as a rascal? As my suspicion grew, the man stood up and shook Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s hand casually, then he hugged him tightly and quickly stepped away. ¡°What have you got? How have you been?¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine, how about you?¡± ¡°I was in the Northern Kingdom. It¡¯s bloody awesome, but it¡¯s cold as hell. I was told that it gets colder when winter falls¡­ the locals considered that the weather was warm during my visit. Damn, those guys¡¯ skin must be three times thicker than mine.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you speak without using badnguage?¡± When Grand Duke Kapmen awkwardly reproached him, his friend mockingly called him a ¡®bitter old man¡¯. He must have noticed my presence, but he didn¡¯t look at me. When Grand Duke Kapmen said, ¡°Dolshi, I want to introduce you to someone,¡± his sneer faded and he looked at me. I knew he was only pretending not to see me. From the way he looked at me, he seemed to not have the slightest interest in me. ¡®Ugh, ¡®miscreant¡¯ is a name that would suit someone like him better,¡¯ I scoffed, in my mind. Grand Duke Kapmen suddenly bit his lip hard, undoubtedly having heard my thoughts. ¡®Oh dear. I need to control my thoughts.¡¯ ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Why do you look like you want tough?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing. More importantly, Dolshi. I want you to meet ¡®Navi¡¯. I¡¯ve told you about her in my letters.¡± ¡°I figured as much, but ¡®Butterfly¡¯ is a damn strange name.¡± (TL/N: Navi = Butterfly) ¡®See? I told you..¡¯ ¡°¡­¡± When Grand Duke Kapmen bit his lip hard again upon hearing my thoughts, Dolshi raised an eyebrow in annoyance. After I let out a deep sigh in my mind, I spoke directly to Dolshi. ¡°I¡¯m Na¡ª I¡¯m Navi.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡®Grand Duke Kapmen, don¡¯t you dare hold backughter like that!¡¯ ¡°I¡¯m Dolshi.¡± Dolshi pped the palm of his hand against mine. At least, he still hasn¡¯t discovered that I¡¯m a noblewoman. Wasn¡¯t this a good start? *** Dolshi didn¡¯t seem to be interested in me at all. It wasn¡¯t that he hated or disliked me, it was just that he acted like I didn¡¯t exist. Grand Duke Kapmen asked if he could advise me on the use of ice magic, but Dolshi immediately refused. He said it would be too much trouble for someone aszy as him. But I couldn¡¯t ept the first refusal, so I listened to their conversation while I ate the best-selling dessert in the cafe. Most of the topics they discussed were not rted to magic or anything that interested me, so my attention was constantly diverted to the cafe, as I had never visited one before. I also looked out the window, watching the busy passerby as I ate the chocte cake. After some time, a carriage pulled up outside the cafe and I watched as a man got out of it. I leaned my head a little closer to the window. ¡®Is that Sovieshu?¡¯ Unless my eyesight was failing me, it was definitely Sovieshu. But before I had time to check, the man walked into the cafe¡­ ¡®Oh, no!¡¯ When I reflexively stood up, Viscount Langdel, who sat at the table behind me, stood up immediately. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Miss?¡± I was about to tell him, ¡®I think I saw Emperor Sovieshu,¡¯ but I just shook my head with a smile before sitting back down as I opened my fan. ¡®Was the man I saw really Sovieshu? Why would hee here?¡¯ As I frowned I saw my face reflected in the silver cup, framed by red hair and long bangs which obscured my eyes. Of course, I had disguised myself a bit, just in case. The disguise was just a wig, but it would work. It would hide me from people who had never seen me up close. At most, someone would think that I resembled the Empress. Anyone who saw me more frequently, like the nobles I was close to, would nevere to a cafe frequented bymoners. Sovieshu, on the other hand, was the worst person who could appear in the cafe. He knew well enough that he would certainly discover me beneath my simple disguise. Just as I recognized him at the cafe entrance, despite the fact that he got out of an ordinary carriage with a hood that covered half his face. ¡°Miss Navi?¡± Surely because he heard my thoughts, Grand Duke Kapmen, who was engrossed in his conversation, turned his gaze to me. Then, he asked a clever question. ¡°Do you feel ill?¡± I nodded, and asked a question in my mind. ¡®I thought I saw Sovieshu enter the cafe. Can you please go check if Sovieshu is really here?¡¯ It was best to check first. If I was right, I couldn¡¯t leave right away because I might run into him. Once I find out where Sovieshu is sitting, I¡¯ll hide my face and sneak out. ¡°Wait here. I¡¯ll get the medicine from the carriage.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen found a reasonable excuse, then nodded to me, got up, and went downstairs. I held the fan in front of my face and hid my agitation under a nonchnt expression. If I appeared too anxious, Kapmen¡¯s friend might suspect me. However, he still didn¡¯t seem interested in looking at me. But then¡­ Kapmen¡¯s friend, who had barely made eye contact with me all this time, suddenly turned and stared at me. Is he paying attention to me because he¡¯s bored now that he has no one to talk to? Or is it because I¡¯m hiding my face with the fan? ¡°It¡¯s hot.¡± I quickly excused myself, but he didn¡¯t take his eyes off me. ¡®Why is he looking at me like that?¡¯ I felt inexplicably ufortable due to his fixed gaze. At that moment, I recalled the words of Grand Duke Kapmen¡ª ¡®Your Majesty can be seen to belong to the nobility at a nce.¡¯ ¡®No, I don¡¯t think so. As I watched the other people in the cafe, I noticed that there more than onemoner dressed and acted as if they were a noble.¡¯ ¡°Aha.¡± As I tried to ignore Dolshi¡¯s gaze, he suddenly let out an ominous whisper. It was as if he had discovered the whole truth. A wide smile appeared on his lips. My heartbeat was out of control. Still, I kept my expression indifferent and lowered my fan a little. Although I didn¡¯t know why he reacted that way, I had to appear confident. Just then, I heard amotion on the stairs, so I turned my head. It was Sovieshu. I quickly raised the fan again to cover my face, but our eyes had already met. Chapter 434 Chapter 434. Disappointment (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra In front of me, Kapmen¡¯s friend¡¯s expression seemed to say, ¡®I think I know who you are.¡¯ At the same time, I was aware that Sovieshu was on my left, and we briefly made eye contact. I clenched my jaw nervously. I had asked Kapmen to find out whether it was really Sovieshu. Where has he gone? As my heart started to pound faster, Dolshi asked with his wide smile. ¡°Do you need my help?¡± ¡®What does he mean?¡¯ No, there was no doubt what he meant. Anyone with average intelligence would have noticed that I deliberately hid my face with my fan to avoid the man who had juste up the stairs. Rather than answer, I stood up while keeping the fan over my face. Although I was puzzled to have met Sovieshu at this cafe, I didn¡¯t want to make a scene in a public ce, so I had to leave. There was also no need for Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend to witness an unpleasant meeting. ¡°I hope we will meet again soon.¡± I realized that I had acted too formally as I tried to hide my difort, but I had already turned away. If I were to look back now to correct my words it would be even stranger. As if nothing was wrong, I walked with my back straight past Sovieshu without looking at him. He was standing on the stairs leading to the third floor. I hoped that Sovieshu would stand still, but he chased after me. I kept going without looking back. I ran into Grand Duke Kapmen on the stairs to the first floor. When he looked past me, shock shed across his face. I supposed they hadn¡¯t crossed paths on the way. ¡°Miss Navi.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go now.¡± I spoke casually and continued down the stairs. But Sovieshu was still after me and I heard him call out to me in a low voice just before I entered the carriage. ¡°Navier.¡± Now my name is not Navier, my name is ¡®Navi¡¯, so for once, I could ignore him. I quickly got into the carriage, but as I was about to close the door, Sovieshu reached out and grabbed it. ¡°Navier.¡± Viscount Langdel, whom I had brought as an escort, could not deal with Sovieshu due to his status. However, if Sovieshu tried to harm me, he would have a reason to intervene. ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu smiled gently as he firmly gripped the carriage door. He looked like a lunatic. ¡°You went out to have fun?¡± ¡°If you know I went out to enjoy myself, why are you bothering me? Can¡¯t you pretend we don¡¯t know each other?¡± ¡°Do you mind if Ie with you?¡± ¡°What for?¡± ¡°It would help my recovery.¡± ¡°No. No way.¡± I spoke firmly but he wouldn¡¯t budge. I hesitated for a moment, and then mmed his fingers with my fan, but not too hard. ¡°Ow!¡± Sovieshu quickly removed his hand and looked at me in surprise as if he could not believe what had just happened. I quickly closed the carriage door and knocked on the front wall. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± *** A strange thought crossed my mind just before the carriage entered the Imperial Pce. I knocked on the front wall of the carriage to order the coachman to stop. Then I crossed my arms and rested my head against the seat in afortable position. Earlier, I was so shocked to meet Sovieshu that my mind was in chaos, to the point that I didn¡¯t know what to think. Now that I was away from him, I became curious. I was at the cafe to meet Kapmen¡¯s friend, but why was Sovieshu there? I had wondered before if Sovieshu came to the Western Empire to investigate the phenomenon of mana decline. Could that be the reason why he went to that cafe? After thinking about it for a while, I opened the carriage window and spoke to Viscount Langdel, who was escorting me on a horse. ¡°Viscount Langdel, can you hide near the cafe we just left to find out about Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s movements?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± *** Once I returned to my room, I asked Countess Jubel to inquire about Sovieshu¡¯s condition. While I drank a cup of tea, Countess Jubel came back and reported, ¡°I was told that he went out for a while to get some fresh air.¡± Heinley had said he would keep an eye on Sovieshu personally. I knew it would be difficult for Heinley to follow him at all times due to his busy schedule. However, why didn¡¯t he have someone else keeping an eye on Sovieshu today? As I drank a second cup of tea deep in thought, Rose asked anxiously. ¡°How did it go, Your Majesty? Was that man very rude?¡± Rose and the otherdies-in-waiting had no idea that I had run into Sovieshu. ¡°Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend refused to teach me because it would be a nuisance. Nothing can be done about his rudeness.¡± ¡°Oh, my! Didn¡¯t he want to help Your Majesty?! How could he think it is a nuisance to teach Your Majesty?!¡± ¡°Even if he doesn¡¯t know that Your Majesty is the Empress, no one sane could ever think that Your Majesty is a nuisance!¡± ¡°We barely exchanged words. He didn¡¯t even want to give me advice.¡± In the end, he even let out a strange and ominous, ¡®aha¡¯. But the disappointment that Kapmen¡¯s friend was uninterested in teaching me magic wasn¡¯t as bad as the fear that Sovieshu could have discovered something about the phenomenon of mana decline. Although it would be sad not to master my magic. I sighed and poured myself another cup of tea. Right now the priority was finding out what Sovieshu was up to. Was Heinley still very busy? I¡¯d like to discuss this with him. ¡°Your Majesty. I think you have had too much tea.¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to drink another cupter?¡± When I replied that tea wasn¡¯t bad for my baby and lifted the cup of tea to my mouth, a great idea shed through my mind, ¡°Mastas.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I want you to do something¡­¡± *** Viscount Langdel, who returned that night, said that Sovieshu had left the cafe by the time he returned, so he had to look for him around the capital. He said it was not easy to find Sovieshu because he had also used an ordinary carriage like me. But he did find him eventually, and¡­ ¡°Sovieshu was in a seedy restaurant?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Sovieshu and a seedy restaurant. It didn¡¯t fit at all. He was a very proud man¡­ Did his memory loss diminish his sense of pride? It was such improper behavior that I became suspicious. Could it be that there¡¯s a huge secret about the phenomenon of mana decline hidden in that seedy restaurant? As I thought about it, my unease grew and I asked urgently. ¡°What was he doing there?¡± If Sovieshu had found evidence that implicated the Western Empire in the phenomenon of mana decline, he might be the one to dere war. The war that had been Heinley¡¯s lifelong dream, and he gave it up for me. If Heinley were to start a war, it would only be due to a desire for conquest, but if Sovieshu used the phenomenon of mana decline as a pretext to start a war, then his cause might be considered just by neighboring countries, who could either decide to join the Eastern Empire, or stay out of it. Viscount Langdel hesitated, unable to answer immediately. ¡°It¡¯s alright. You may speak.¡± Viscount Langdel finally confessed a little reluctantly. ¡°He was fighting.¡± What? ¡°Fighting? Emperor Sovieshu ¡­fighting? In a seedy restaurant? Or was it his knight¡­¡± ¡°Emperor Sovieshu was fighting personally.¡± This was unexpected. Surprised, I bit my lower lip unconsciously. After several strange thoughts, my suspicions arose again. ¡°Did Sovieshu fight against a man with good physique? I mean, did the man look like a knight in disguise? Could it be that Heinley sent a man to watch Sovieshu, and when thetter noticed he fought against him? Or did he make a fuss on purpose to hide that he was investigating the phenomenon of mana decline? ¡°No, the man was a drunkard who spouted all sorts of vulgar insults. There was no indication that he was trained inbat.¡± What¡¯s going on? I was even more confused. Viscount Langdel sighed and then muttered with resignation. ¡°The drunkard was saying bad things about Your Majesty. Sovieshu couldn¡¯t stand it, so he confronted him¡­¡± Chapter 435 Chapter 435. Disappointment (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra All kinds of documents on various matters were scattered on my desk. However, my mind was elsewhere, so I couldn¡¯t concentrate on the work. As I tapped a piece of paper with the tip of the pen, ck spots of ink appeared. Eventually, I crumpled it up, set it aside and ced a new sheet on the desk. It was the ninth. I sighed as I looked at a pile of crumpled paper in a corner of the desk. I still didn¡¯t know why Sovieshu was in a seedy restaurant. Perhaps he really went there due to the phenomenon of mana decline. However, that didn¡¯t take away from the fact that Sovieshu fought with a drunkard because of me. If he went there in secret and dropped his cover because he became angry when he heard insults towards me¡­ ¡®I hope he recovers his memory soon.¡¯ Emperor Sovieshu would never have done that. I¡¯d rather have the proud and arrogant Sovieshue back so that I could hate him from the depths of my soul. Isn¡¯t it cruel that the person who hurt me doesn¡¯t even remember why I hate him from the bottom of my heart? ¡°Your Majesty. Emperor Heinley is here.¡± After I crumpled the ninth piece of paper into a ball, Heinley¡¯s visit finally forced me to stop this nonsensical behavior. ¡°Let him in.¡± I tossed the crumpled pieces of paper into the wastebasket and organized my desk. Heinley walked in just as I finished. ¡°My Queen.¡± I didn¡¯t want to spend any more time in my office, so I took him to our bedroom. When we arrived, Heinley approached me with open arms, kissed me on my neck, cheeks and ears. Then he took a step back. He seemed even happier to see me than usual. Could it be because we were apart all day? All the unpleasant emotions that had umted in me started to dissipate. His very presence made me feel better. ¡°Did you have a good day at work?¡± Before Heinley could answer, I put my arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He was my fortress. ¡°Queen? Do you know how good this makes me feel?¡± ¡°It makes me feel good too.¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°It makes me happy to be with you.¡± ¡°My Queen¡­ Queen. Navier.¡± I rubbed my cheek against his chest. Being in his presence would keep the undesirable emotions, the unpleasant pity and difort, at bay. At that moment, I felt his muscles in contact with my body tense and contract. ¡°Heinley. Breathe.¡± When I looked up, Heinley exhaled and rubbed his forehead against mine. ¡°What happened while I was out?¡± Once I held his body against mine even tighter, Heinley quietly moaned, as if he was suffering. ¡°My Queen¡­ I feel as if I have one foot in heaven and one foot in this world. ¡°Why only one foot in this world?¡± ¡°You know why, My Queen.¡± He took my hand gently and slid it down. Soon I could feel something rather hard. ¡°Queen.¡± Heinley sighed heavily, then he bit my ear a few times and whispered. ¡°Could you wait a moment?¡± Once I nodded and stepped back, Heinley awkwardly walked away and entered the bathroom. My face was also a little hot, so I took my fan out and attempted to lower my temperature. Then I went out to the drawing room to order dinner. When the food arrived, I took it into the bedroom. I waited for Heinley at the table. When he came out of the bathroom, he was a little flushed, but he acted as if nothing had happened, walked over calmly and sat down across from me. I didn¡¯t want him to feel embarrassed, so I brought up a serious topic right away. ¡°Heinley. I went to see Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s friend today and ran into Sovieshu.¡± Heinley responded as he removed the silver lid from the food and set it aside. ¡°Yes, I know. I couldn¡¯t keep an eye on Emperor Sovieshu today, so I asked a friend to do it for me.¡± ¡°A friend?¡± ¡°A bird.¡± ¡°From the Bird¡­ Tribe?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± I had thought it strange that Heinley didn¡¯t set anyone to keep an eye on him. I hadn¡¯t expected it to be a member of the Bird-Headed tribe. Come to think of it, there was no more appropriate spy. That way it would be easy to know his every move. ¡°Did Sovieshu go out to investigate the phenomenon of mana decline?¡± ¡°That didn¡¯t seem to be the case.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°He wandered around haphazardly, as if he was just out to clear his mind.¡± Is that so¡­ ¡°My Queen, you don¡¯t have to worry. I¡¯ll keep an eye on him at all times.¡± ¡°That¡¯s good to hear.¡± ¡°What about you, My Queen? Did you learn more about magic today? Was it useful?¡± As he asked several questions in a row, the corners of Heinley¡¯s lips suddenly curved up. ¡°Was Kapmen¡¯s friend fooled by Queen¡¯s acting?¡± ¡°It didn¡¯t work out as I expected.¡± Heinleyughed. ¡°Was it after he saw how you were acting?¡± ¡®What is this naughty eagle insinuating?¡¯ When I red at him fiercely, Heinley cleared his throat and quickly changed his words. ¡°To tell the truth, I have no doubt that he was fooled by your incredible acting.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem like that¡¯s what you meant.¡± ¡°Yes, that¡¯s what I meant to say.¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not.¡± ¡°My Queen, don¡¯t you believe me?¡± ¡°As much as you believe in my acting skills.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Heinley fell silent and hurried to eat a piece of the crabmeat on his te, then suddenly pretended to be startled by something and eximed. ¡°Oh! My Queen, I¡¯ve heard something strange.¡± ¡°Are you trying to get off the hook by changing the subject?¡± ¡°No, I really just remembered it. It¡¯s something very strange¡­¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I heard that My Queen¡¯sdies-in-waiting are behind a strange rumor about ¡®mana¡¯ that is spreading. Could it have been under My Queen¡¯s orders?¡± ¡°Who told you mydies-in-waiting are behind it? ¡°An ordinary person could not find out, but I am a small exception. Isn¡¯t there a saying that birds may hear you during the day?¡± I recalled the adage, ¡®Birds listen by day, rats by night.¡¯ Does he mean that someone from his tribe told him? In any case, it was true. I wiped my mouth with a napkin and hid my smile. *** ¡ª I need you to go somewhere. When Sovieshu woke up at night, he frowned when he saw the note lying on the sheets. The note was written in arge piece of paper,rger than most sheets of paper. Maybe his day self was worried that his night self would overlook it. If someone else had written it, one of his subordinates would naturally have taken it off the bed. But no one did. Undoubtedly because Sovieshu wrote to himself. ¡ª You must go to this ce at night, so I can¡¯t do it myself. Although he had learned of his other self from Marquis Karl, Sovieshu had never attempted tomunicate with his day self. There was no need to do so. Now, his day self had been the first tomunicate. Sovieshu sighed, crumpled the paper, set it aside and wiped his forehead with his hand. Sovieshu didn¡¯t want to do anything. He didn¡¯t even want to think. In his clouded mind, he saw a blurry image of a man wearing a white vest and a blue jewel around his neck. Sitting next to him¡­ ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu sighed again, threw off the sheets, got up, and walked over to the window. The fact that she wasn¡¯t far away brought him pain andfort at the same time. ¡®Is there a more terrible hope in this world?¡¯ With his eyes closed, Sovieshu leaned his forehead against the window. After a while, he grabbed the piece of paper again and smoothed it, checked the location he was to visit, and went out. If it were a stupid request, he wouldn¡¯t have gone. However, he was disturbed by the word ¡®mana.¡¯ Marquis Karl had informed him that his day self was investigating the phenomenon of mana decline, so he wondered if he had discovered anything. Apanied only by the Knight Commander, Sovieshu took a deep breath and snuck away to the ce indicated on the piece of paper. It appeared to be one of the many empty rooms in the Imperial Pce. A room with no particr purpose. There was no knight guarding the door. After he ordered the Knight Commander to stand guard outside, Sovieshu opened the door and entered. The interior was dark. There were no curtains, so only the moonlighting in through the windows illuminated the room. Sovieshu looked around the room without interest. ¡®What could be here?¡¯ At that moment, a cold voice that was all too familiar came from the side. ¡°As I expected, the purpose of your visit was not to ask for forgiveness.¡± Chapter 436 Chapter 436. The Man I Hate (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra My voice sounded a little colder than usual. Sovieshu stopped dead in his tracks and his shoulders stiffened. He slowly turned to me, unable to rx. His face looked dark because his back was to the moonlit window, so it was difficult to read his expression. Only his lips shut tightly were visible in the darkness. As Sovieshu walked towards me, his face also slowly became visible. From his expression, Sovieshu seemed to wonder why I was here. ¡°Navier. I¡­¡± He stopped a few feet from me and opened his mouth hesitantly. I didn¡¯t move and deliberately cut him off before he started. ¡°Didn¡¯t youe to apologize? Didn¡¯t youe to make sure I was alright? I see that you are a very good liar.¡± I had already nned what I would say. I didn¡¯t lure Sovieshu here to hear his excuses. I wanted to set up a situation where his lies would be exposed and he would regret it, with the intention that he would return to his country due to shame and guilt. Even if he didn¡¯t leave right away, he wouldn¡¯t be able to walk around at ease anymore. ¡°Navier.¡± Sovieshu shook his head. I ignored him, turned around and grabbed the doorknob. But before I could open the door, a hand reached up from behind and held the door closed. ¡°Wait, Navier.¡± When I turned my head with indifference, I was met by his disturbed eyes and trembling lips. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°Navier. I came here to¡­¡± ¡°To investigate the phenomenon of mana decline. Your Majesty has long held suspicions against the Western Empire.¡± ¡°Navier. Please.¡± I was still trying to open the door while Sovieshu tried to stop me. His fingers shook against the door and his fingernails turned white as he exerted pressure. ¡°I¡¯ll be honest with you. Your Majesty said you came to apologize, so I was a little hopeful.¡± I stared at his hand as I lied to him. ¡°I will never return. However, I was willing to forgive Your Majesty.¡± I took a handkerchief from my pocket, covered his hand with it so as not to touch it directly and squeezed it. Although I didn¡¯t squeeze hard, Sovieshu lowered his hand helplessly. ¡°Navier.¡± His voice was shaky. He may have been crying, but I just looked away from him as I spoke. ¡°I thought the 19-year-old Sovieshu was different. It seems I was wrong.¡± ¡°Just because I¡¯m concerned about the phenomenon of mana decline doesn¡¯t mean that I don¡¯t regret what I did to you.¡± When I opened the door without answering, Sovieshu¡¯s Knight Commander looked at me with wide eyes. From his expression, the Knight Commander also seemed to wonder what I was doing there. Behind me, Sovieshu hurriedly said, ¡°Please. Navier. You know that just because I love the Eastern Empire doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t love you. Just because I worry about the phenomenon of mana decline doesn¡¯t mean I don¡¯t also worry about you.¡± ¡°I know you better than you think. I know that you never cared about me as much as you cared about Rashta.¡± I could tell that my words were like a sharp knife being twisted into his heart. I remembered that Viscount Langdel told me that Sovieshu punched a drunkard who badmouthed me. I remembered that Sovieshu had sent Evely as soon as I was badly wounded. I remembered his sorrowful eyes when our gazes met as I drove by in the carriage. Perhaps Sovieshu was really worried about me as he had said. A person can feel several emotions at the same time. It might be true that he was concerned about me and the phenomenon of mana decline. However, that doesn¡¯t mean that the two carry equal weight. In my opinion, Sovieshu¡¯s worry about me was mild. It was not at all his priority. That made me angry. Not because his worry for me was small, but because he tried to hide his real purpose behind it. ¡°If you came here for another purpose, you shouldn¡¯t have used me as a pretext. Don¡¯t pretend that you are sorry, don¡¯t pretend that you are suffering, don¡¯t pretend that you regret your actions only for your own interests.¡± ¡°Navier, it¡¯s not like that. You know it. You know me well.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know you.¡± ¡°Navier¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know anything about you. The man I thought I knew wouldn¡¯t have thrown me away because he was in love with another woman.¡± ¡°!¡± I heard nothing more. I immediately turned and walked away. I didn¡¯t even mention that there were no secrets to look for in that room. He should have realized it already. With each step I took, the click of my heels echoed across the dark corridor. Viscount Langdel was waiting for me, and as soon as I appeared, he bowed his head calmly. ¡°Are you finished?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± I walked ahead and he followed me quietly. I didn¡¯t turn my head until I reached my room. Chapter 437 Chapter 437. The Man I Hate (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Back in the room for distinguished guests, Sovieshu closed his eyes and mmed his head against the wall as soon as he closed the door. He wanted to drink but feared that alcohol would cause the reappearance of the hallucinations in which he saw Navier. Sovieshu held a hand against his chest and leaned over, biting his lip hard. He slid slowly down the wall, his jaw clenched to stifle the cries of pain. He copsed to the floor and shed tears silently. He wanted to turn back time. ¡®Two years, no, just one year. I wish I could go back a year.¡¯ It was unfair. He had note to the Western Empire of his own free will, he had note to investigate the phenomenon of mana decline under the pretense of apologizing to Navier, so he considered all the words she had spoken unfair. This made him regret what he had done to Navier even more. He could imagine how unfair it must have felt for Navier to have her brother falsely used and banished. How unfair it must have felt to be used by Sovieshu of spreading strange rumors about Rashta. How unfair it must have felt when he sent gifts to Rashta on Navier¡¯s behalf and the nobles gossiped about it. ¡°Navier¡­¡± When he opened his eyes he thought he saw Navier on the bed. She was sitting in afortable position, looking at him with eyes that said, ¡®What are you doing?¡¯ When he reached towards her, she smiled and disappeared. Sovieshu stood up, supporting his weight against the wall, and staggered over to the bed. As soon as he flopped on the bed, he closed his eyes and got under the sheets, clutching them and gasping for breath. His aimless anger finally found a target. ¡°Damned kid.¡± The target of his anger was his day self, the 19-year-old who only caused trouble while having none of the bad memories. Sovieshu went to his desk, tore off a nk sheet of paper, picked up a pen, and uncapped the ink bottle. ¡ª What the hell are you doing? Do you want both of us to be hated by Navier until the end? You¡¯re crazy! Once he finished the letter, he left it on the desk, went out into the corridor and ordered for Marquis Karl to be called. After a while, the servant brought the half-asleep Marquis Karl. Sovieshu, who ushered Marquis Karl into the room, pointed to the other letter, ¡°Get rid of it.¡± Puzzled, Marquis Karl hesitantly picked up the letter. He seemed unsure whether he should tear it up or not. Sovieshu snatched the letter from him and spoke coldly. ¡°I¡¯m not asking you to get rid of this.¡± He tapped his head with a finger. ¡°Find a way to get rid of the personality that appears by day.¡± ¡°!¡± *** I went out to the garden earlier than usual because I wanted to take an early morning walk. As I walked deep in thought, I nearly fell when I tripped over a stone, but Mastas rushed to help me. ¡°Your Majesty, are you alright?¡± Mastas asked with concern. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡± ¡°You don¡¯t look well.¡± ¡°My mood is not the best.¡± ¡°Ah, it¡¯s because it¡¯s too early¡­¡± Although mydies-in-waiting helped me set a trap for Sovieshu, they were unaware of the implications of the rumors they had spread. I was sorry I couldn¡¯t be honest with them, but I had no choice. The matter of the phenomenon of mana decline was highly confidential and few officials in the Western Empire knew about it. Mastas might know. Although she was mydy-in-waiting, she was also one of Heinley¡¯s knights. However, my otherdies-in-waiting no doubt spread the rumors without knowing the real reason. All I said to mydies was, ¡®I think Sovieshu hase with bad intentions. I¡¯ll have to make him reconsider how long he will stay here.¡¯ Of course, mydies-in-waiting didn¡¯t hesitate to roll up their sleeves. Countess Jubel was fanning herself as if it were hot, and said, ¡°Your Majesty is the kind of person who finds it unpleasant to be anything less than polite. That is not the case for many people, like myself and my husband, but Your Majesty is courteous to everyone.¡± Laura added with a sigh, ¡°Countess Jubel and Count Jubel are a perfect match. I don¡¯t know why you have such a bad rtionship.¡± ¡°Laura. Don¡¯t forget I have a fan in my hand. I am not afraid to hit you with it in the mouth.¡± As I listened to Countess Jubel and Laura¡¯s quarrel, I paused by the fountain to feel the stream of water with my hand. ¡®Your Majesty is the kind of person who finds it unpleasant to be anything less than polite¡­¡¯ Maybe that¡¯s the reason for my difort. When I spoke sharply to Sovieshu, I noticed that every word I said hurt him and I felt ufortable. Especially since the person I spoke to was the 19-year-old Sovieshu who had no memories of what he did to me. *** After my walk, I went directly to my office in an ambiguous state, neitherfortable nor ufortable. Mydies-in-waiting left to attend to their business. Only Viscount Langdel and two other knights were still by my side. But these three also left as soon as I entered the office, so I was left all alone in a space filled with the smell of paper and ink. Luckily, I felt much better once it all went quiet. When I buried my face inside a book and smelled it, I calmed down more. ¡°Whew¡­¡± After I exhaled, I lowered the book and closed it. Just then, I heard someone tapping the window. I turned my head in surprise. On the other side of the window was¡­ ¡°Queen?¡± Heinley, who was turned into a bird, had his mouth wide open. ¡®¡­ Did he see me do that just now?¡¯ Embarrassed, I hurried to return the book to its ce and ran for the door to escape. Behind me, I heard Heinley¡¯s beak tapping the window repeatedly. When I reached the door, I looked back and noticed that Heinley was still tapping the window with his beak. I can¡¯t do it. If I let him in now, he¡¯ll return to his human form and mock me. As I shook my head, Queen¡¯s eyes widened, he hunched over with a pitiful look and weakly pped his wings. He acted like a sad puppy. Despite his pitiable appearance I continued to shake my head. Queen suddenly touched his forehead with his wings, wobbled, and ended his performance by slumping on the window sill. In the end, I walked over to the window and opened it. Queen immediately flew in and happily circled the room. Chapter 438 Chapter 438. Dolshi¡¯s Drawing (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Why are youing in here like this?¡± I asked coldly to hide how embarrassed I was after he caught me smelling the book. ¡°Aren¡¯t you working? You know you don¡¯t have time to y these games.¡± Heinley, still in Queen form, pretended tough by shaking his wings, then he closed the curtains with his beak, and returned to his human form. ¡°I came here because I want to show you something. Besides, there¡¯s a matter we need to talk about.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°You have toe with me to see.¡± Heinley walked over to the window and grabbed the curtains with a wide smile. ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you outside. Will you join me, My Queen?¡± Once I nodded, Heinley turned into a bird again, opened the curtains with his beak, and flew through the window. He hovered by the window, pping hisrge wings as he stared at me, as if to urge me to hurry. What could it be? I couldn¡¯t guess, but I went outside and circled the building to meet Queen. He was flying in circles while he waited. When he saw me, he signaled for me to follow and flew off somewhere. I followed him down a narrow path behind the pce. After a while, the path opened up to a t area. This area showed signs of former glory, but now only the old columns that once supported an ancient building remained. ¡®Why did he bring me here?¡¯ Although I¡¯m open-minded, I didn¡¯t understand why he brought me to see some ruins. As I looked around in bewilderment, Queen flew to the top of one of the columns. I stared at it, wondering what I was looking at¡­ ¡°Is it¡­ is it a nest?¡± It looked like a nest made of intertwined branches. As if he had heard my murmur, Queen nodded and perched on the nest. From the distance, I thought I saw a smile spread across his face. ¡®It can¡¯t be. Did you bring me all the way here just to show off your nest?¡¯ I couldn¡¯t even see the nest properly from the ground. All I could see was the jewels encrusted in the column, surrounding the nest. Queen flew into the bushes nearby. After a while, Heinley emerged in his human form, wearing clothes. ¡°It¡¯s a nest for our baby, My Queen.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°What do you think? Do you like it?¡± Heinley¡¯s smile shined with pride, so I couldn¡¯t ask whether he had lost his mind. However, I had to find a way to make him understand that I didn¡¯t like it. ¡°Isn¡¯t it too¡­ high?¡± I didn¡¯t like it at all! Does he want our baby to sleep on some twigs?! ¡°It¡¯s normal. Babies belonging to our tribe love high ces, My Queen. The bravest babies throw tantrums and demand to have their nests built in the highest ces.¡± ¡°If our baby falls¡ª¡± ¡°It will fly.¡± ¡°¡­ If the baby falls from up there, it will die. Even birds can¡¯t fly when they are babies.¡± ¡°The birds in our tribe learn to fly earlier than normal birds, My Queen. They learn to fly before they even learn to talk, so you don¡¯t have to worry.¡± How can he ask me not to worry when he built a nest for our baby in such a tall column? It¡¯s absurd! So should I ept that our baby will sleep in such a ce? I didn¡¯t want that. Not only would my baby sleep in a dangerously high ce, but despite the pretty jewels, did Heinley seriously think that my baby could sleep on a bunch of dirty twigs? But if I get angry, he might think that I don¡¯t care about his tribe¡¯s customs. As I pondered, Heinley¡¯s proud expression faded and his mood became serious. ¡°My Queen. There¡¯s another matter requiring a serious discussion.¡± ¡°I think this also requires a serious discussion!¡± ¡°Do you think we should add more jewels?¡± ¡°The problem is not the decorations¡­¡± It¡¯s how high it is! It¡¯s too high! I had a headache. Thanks to this, the difort I felt about my confrontation with Sovieshu disappeared. I sighed, sat down on a rock, and asked. ¡°What is it that we must discuss?¡± ¡®I doubt that any matter he wants to discuss would be as serious as the matter of the nest.¡¯ ¡°It¡¯s rted to the phenomenon of mana decline.¡± The matter was more serious than I expected. Heinley had avoided this topic as much as possible, even after I discovered his involvement. He admitted that he was responsible, but that was all he said. I didn¡¯t ask any more questions either. It was the first time he brought it up on his own, so I naturally became nervous. ¡°What happened?¡± ¡°My Queen, as you know, I didn¡¯t cause the phenomenon. All I did was speed it up a little.¡± I don¡¯t think he sped it up just a ¡®little¡¯. ¡°I know.¡± However, I just nodded. I decided to let his excuse slide. It no longer matters whether he sped it up a little or a lot. ¡°Mana stones are used to cause mana decline. As soon as I gave up on the war, I began to retrieve all the mana stones that were easy to obtain with the help of my tribe and the Underground Knights.¡± ¡°I see.¡± ¡°But not all the mana stones have been recovered. It¡¯s impossible to do this in just a few days, as they have been hidden in many ces, and it took years to ce them all.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± ¡°Emperor Sovieshu seems to have deduced that the mana stones have something to do with this phenomenon ever since the incident of the mana ne. He has temporarily prohibited the use of mana stones in his country and at the Magical Academy.¡± ¡°How serious is it?¡± ¡°Since he has suspicions, he has continued the investigation into mana stones. The schrs from the Academy are cooperating.¡± The situation was not good. I had unconsciously sped my hands, so Heinley raised his eyebrows and ced a hand over mine. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry so much, My Queen.¡± ¡°But if you get caught¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s the reason I am telling you now, My Queen.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°I need to retrieve the mana stones to avoid getting caught.¡± ¡°Ah.¡± ¡°So I¡­¡± Heinley seemed to hesitate. ¡°It¡¯s alright. Tell me.¡± ¡°I may have to leave for a few days.¡± He¡¯ll leave? I won¡¯t see him for a few days? ¡°Won¡¯t it be dangerous?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine.¡± As I looked at him with concern, Heinley ced his other hand on mine and squeezed them. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, My Queen. I didn¡¯t want you to be affected by being on my side.¡± I shook my head. I should be the one who was most sorry. I didn¡¯t know what to say, so I looked at the ground. My throat felt tight. If Heinley hadn¡¯t given up the war for me, he wouldn¡¯t need to retrieve the mana stones now. Because of me, he had no other choice. ¡°I¡¯m so truly sorry, My Queen. I¡¯ll work it out. Also, while Emperor Sovieshu is here, I won¡¯t be gone for long.¡± *** When Heinley told me about the problem rted to the mana decline, I felt so sorry that I didn¡¯t consider the practical implications of his absence. Once I returned to my office and sat down at my desk, I considered that the chancellor and I would have to divide Heinley¡¯s duties during his absences. Heinley would certainly not want me to take on his duties due to my pregnancy, but what if that was the only option? Thanks to my training and experience in the Eastern Empire, I was able to adapt without difficulty to my duties in the Western Empire. Back then, whenever Sovieshu was away, I had to work a little more than usual. However, his absences were nned and typically short, so he was able to take care of important tasks in advance. But Heinley¡¯s absences would be different, so it was difficult to n in advance. Although he didn¡¯t specify how many more mana stones he would need to retrieve, I could tell that he would take multiple trips of uncertain duration¡­ ¡°Your Majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Your Majesty Navier.¡± How long was I lost in my thoughts? My attendant called me repeatedly multiple times before I noticed. As I rang the little bell on the desk to signal that he could enter, my attendant came in. His expression was ufortable, and he held a pretty golden box in his hands. ¡°Your Majesty. Emperor Sovieshu asked me to deliver this to the Empress.¡± Sovieshu sent this? While I kept an expressionless face to hide my bewilderment, my attendant ced the box on my desk. I signaled to him to leave and he bowed awkwardly. Once I was alone again, I tore off the shiny wrapping paper. An elegant wooden box was revealed. I removed the lid and saw three plump peaches ced on a cream-colored cloth. A note had been tucked into the inner edge of the box. ¡ª I bought them while thinking of you. I put the lid back on and put my hand to my forehead. I knew he had gone crazy, but I was shocked to discover that it was worse than I thought. I had been needlessly worried about my harsh words. He acted like he was deeply remorseful, but now he sent peaches? The very next day? He is definitely mocking me. Furious, I tore a sheet of paper from the first notebook within reach and poured out my anger in crude penmanship. Chapter 439 Chapter 439. Dolshi¡¯s Drawing (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra The box was returned to Sovieshu. It was brought by Navier¡¯s attendant with a polite apology: Empress Navier appreciated it, but she couldn¡¯t ept it due to various reasons. As soon as the attendant left, Sovieshu opened the box. Although he thought that she wouldn¡¯t ept it sincerely, he expected that she would keep it anyway due to the mutual respect between their countries. He was a little saddened that she had returned it immediately. Since childhood, he had fights with Navier, but they had never been serious. For that reason, he didn¡¯t know how to apologize in the face of Navier¡¯s inordinate hatred. ¡®Navier hasn¡¯t even wanted to talk to me¡­¡¯ As Sovieshu stared depressed at the untouched peaches, he noticed a crumpled piece of paper. Once he took out the paper and smoothed it, he saw an unfamiliar scrawl. ¡ª It has only been a few hours since I spoke to you clearly. If you feel even a little bit remorseful, you should leave. You truly are shameless. ¡®A few hours?¡¯ Sovieshu had no idea that his night self had met with Navier. He had seen the note in which his night self asked if he wanted them both to be hated by Navier until the end, but he never thought it was because he met Navier. Sovieshu examined the note left by his night self, then crumpled the paper in his hand. ¡®¡­Navier would hate us until the end? It seems that there was an important conversation. Shouldn¡¯t he have informed me about it? And isn¡¯t it his fault that Navier treats us so coldly? He is the one who ended a suitable marriage with Navier. He messed it all up. I hate him.¡¯ *** Duke Elgy sat on the deck of a ship as he twirled a medallion in his hand. At first nce, he seemed unhappy due to his indifferent expression. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with him?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Leave him alone. He always falls into moods like this after he gets what he wants. He¡¯ll be excited again when something catches his interest.¡± The pirates didn¡¯t take their eyes off Duke Elgy, but they didn¡¯t talk to him. His gloomy mood had persisted for many days. As the salty wind blew, the chirrup of a seagull was heard. Duke Elgy looked up. The bird was actually a cockatoo. It perched on Elgy¡¯s leg and offered him the letter that was tied on its leg with a squeak. Elgy took the letter and unfolded it. He immediately recognized Heinley¡¯s penmanship. ¡ª Are you busy? Could you help me retrieve the mana stones nted in Blue Bohean? Elgy folded the letter and tied it back to the cockatoo¡¯s leg. It seemed that he had no intention to write an answer. The cockatoo didn¡¯t insist either but simply flew away with the letter. As he watched the bird, Duke Elgy leaned against the outside wall of the cabin. ¡®Help him retrieve the mana stones¡­¡¯ Duke Elgy sank deep in thought. He knew that upon his arrival in Blue Bohean he would be rebuked and lectured due to his actions in the Eastern Empire. He thought about that woman¡­ in her usual quiet voice, she would say that Duke Elgy should not have harmed anyone. Then he thought of his father, who would probably listen to the woman while sipping coffee. There woulde a point where his father would not be able to take the ufortable situation any longer and he would leave the room. ¡®After that, I will¡­¡¯ *** The more I thought about it, the harder it was to believe it, and I became more and more angry. He¡¯s shameless. He didn¡¯t only lose his memory, but also his pride and dignity. The Sovieshu I knew had strong pride. Maybe his pride as Crown Prince was not as strong as it was in his days as Emperor. But it should still be strong enough to feel shame at being caught while searching another country¡¯s pce under the pretense that he hade to apologize. He should have returned immediately to the Eastern Empire. However, he sent me peaches! How could he send me peaches in a situation where even an apology letter like, ¡®I apologize for yesterday¡¯s misunderstanding¡¯, would be disgraceful? ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°What is it, Miss Rose?¡± ¡°Are you alright?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± To tell the truth, I didn¡¯t feel well. Anger at Sovieshu, worry and guilt that Heinley had to retrieve the mana stones, concern about having to handle Imperial affairs in his absence, the possibility that our involvement in the mana decline would be discovered, theck of progress in my magical training¡­ all that and more overwhelmed my mind. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Just then, a knight informed me that Grand Duke Kapmen hade to see me. I went out to the drawing room to receive him. When I saw him, I recalled thest time I saw him and an awkward smile appeared on my face. He had kindly introduced me to his friend, but I was so surprised to see Sovieshu that I rushed out of the cafe and left him there. ¡°Have a seat, Grand Duke.¡± ¡°Did you return to the Pce safely, Your Majesty?¡± Come to think of it, we had taken a single carriage to the cafe. And I left on that carriage, without him. ¡°Yes, thank you for introducing me to your friend. I¡¯m sorry I left first.¡± ¡°It was inevitable.¡± Kapmen finally sat down, took off his hat and put it on his knees. As we exchanged cordial words, Mastas brought coffee, other drinks, and food. But strangely, once the two of us werepletely alone in the drawing room, Kapmen suddenly cut off the pleasant conversation. ¡®Looks like he didn¡¯t juste to greet me.¡¯ The Grand Duke looked towards the closed door and immediately changed the subject. ¡°What did you talk to Dolshi about while I went to check about Emperor Sovieshu?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you already know? Didn¡¯t you¡­¡± ¡­ Didn¡¯t you hear his thoughts? I omitted thatst part due to fear that someone might overhear. Grand Duke Kapmen needed to hide his ability in order to take advantage of it. ¡°No.¡± Who knew that rascal Dolshi would be the type to be careful about what he thinks? ¡°I can¡¯t hear Dolshi¡¯s thoughts.¡± ¡°How is that possible? Can¡¯t you hear everyone¡¯s¡­?¡± Were there exceptions? ¡°No. I don¡¯t know the reason.¡± After his calm reply, Kapmen pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and held it out to me. ¡°What is this?¡± As I epted it and unfolded it, I realized that it was a drawing that could be described as a ¡®doodle¡¯. It looked like a three-year-old who was particrly bad at drawing had done it. ¡°Do you have a nephew?¡± ¡°It was drawn by Dolshi.¡± ¡°Oh¡­Sorry.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, he knows he¡¯s not good at drawing.¡± I see. At least the rascal has good eyesight¡­ but it¡¯s even more curious. Why would Grand Duke Kapmen give me a drawing that Dolshi himself knows is bad? ¡°Dolshi asked me to give it to thedy with the funny name.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t expect that he would mock your false name.¡± It¡¯s a lie! What other reason would there be to call a person ¡®Butterfly¡¯? Only in moments like this, when Iin in my mind, it is a little less awkward that the other person can hear my thoughts. Grand Duke Kapmen smiled bitterly and clenched his coffee cup. I felt a little guilty forining excessively in my mind about that absurd name. ¡°Well, it seems I don¡¯t have good taste in names.¡± He already knew my opinion, so there was no need to answer. I smiled awkwardly, took a sip of my drink and quickly changed the subject. ¡°Why did Dolshi ask you to give this to me?¡± He had shown no interest in me. Although he offered to help me before I ran away, he also said strange things¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t know. He just told me, ¡®If she does this, I¡¯ll help her.¡¯¡± ¡°Does that mean he¡¯ll help me master my magic if I do this?¡± ¡°It seems so.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen hesitated as he answered, as if it was really annoying not to be able to hear the other person¡¯s thoughts. I nodded and focused my gaze back on Dolshi¡¯s drawing. ¡°¡­¡± I needed to decipher it so I could decide whether to do what he wanted. But no matter how hard I looked at it, the drawing was so rudimentary that I couldn¡¯t figure out what it meant. Let¡¯s see¡­ There are lines drawn from top to bottom separated by a small space, and in the center there is a shape that makes me think of an intense glowing light¡­ ¡°¡­ I don¡¯t know what it is. Didn¡¯t he say anything?¡± ¡°Yes, I asked him. Dolshi said, ¡®She¡¯ll know as soon as she sees it.¡¯¡± It was a drawing that I would understand. I nodded and exchanged a few more words with Kapmen. Once he left, I called mydies-in-waiting and showed them the drawing to see what they thought. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just a joke?¡± ¡°The lines are not straight. I think he was mocking Your Majesty as he drew them.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it the sea? It¡¯s waves. Don¡¯t the waves shine with the sunlight?¡± But it was useless, mydies-in-waiting didn¡¯t understand the drawing either. Now that I was in this situation, I felt a little sorry that I tried to convey my feelings to Heinley through a painting. Did Heinley feel lost trying to decipher the meaning of the painting I sent him? Of course, unlike Dolshi, I¡¯m good at drawing, so Heinley wasn¡¯t confused by my meaning¡­ wait. Let¡¯s think of it another way. Requests are usually made in writing. In my case, I sent a painting because I wanted tofort Heinley in a different way than I usually did. However, Dolshi could have made his request in writing ormunicated through Kapmen. Yet he sent a drawing despite knowing that he didn¡¯t have that skill. I think this is an important point. Just as I narrowed my eyes because I felt that I was close to having an important realization, Viscount Langdel entered the room. It seemed that he hade to report to me on an important matter, but mydies-in-waiting osted him first to ask what he thought of the drawing. Viscount Langdel stared at it for a moment and said, ¡°Isn¡¯t it a wall? I think it¡¯s a wall.¡± ¡°A wall?¡± ¡°Now that you mention it, it really does look like a wall, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. From here to here¡­ those lines are the wall but that thing in the middle? It appears to be shining. What could it be?¡± While mydies-in-waiting were discussing it, Viscount Langdel looked at me. He wanted to talk to me, but mydies-in-waiting wouldn¡¯t stop chattering about the drawing. When he was finally able to shake them off, Viscount Langdel hastened to report, ¡°Your Majesty, a while ago you asked me to find Miss Rivetti. She has finally been found.¡± With this, mydies-in-waiting fell silent at the same time, as if they had agreed beforehand. Chapter 440 Chapter 440. Day And Night (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°You found Rivetti?!¡± Laura immediately pounced on Viscount Langdel, her face inches from his and her eyes wide. ¡°Where is she? Is she all right?!¡± Viscount Langdel leaned back awkwardly, as if overwhelmed. ¡°Miss Rivetti is in Moire. A small town near the Rimwell Estate, which Miss Rivetti inherited.¡± ¡°Is she healthy? Is she hurt?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, it¡¯s not mentioned in the report.¡± Since there was a report, I assumed that Viscount Langdel had not found Rivetti himself. It must have been one of his men. I put my hand on my chest with relief. I was worried that Rivetti wouldmit some folly due to her unfortunate situation. ¡°Viscount Langdel, is it possible for you to bring Miss Rivetti?¡± ¡°Here?¡± Could a young noblewoman who had only recently debuted in high society manage a territory on her own? It was unlikely that she had been taught how to do so. I had heard that her mother was very ill. Perhaps she still retains her faculties, but if her body is weak, it will be hard for her to guide her daughter. ¡°Just this once, please.¡± Viscount Langdel nodded with a smile. ¡°I will. It is not a difficult task.¡± AfterViscount Langdel left, Countess Jubel and Laura exchanged worried looks. ¡°Will Miss Rivettie, Countess? I don¡¯t think she will want to, due to shame.¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible that she wille, since Miss Rivetti admires Her Majesty very much. It must havee as a shock that her father and brother were in cahoots with ¡®that woman¡¯ and lost their lives because of it.¡± ¡°But Miss Rivetti had nothing to do with it.¡± Mastas and Rose didn¡¯t know Rivetti so they remained silent. I paced back and forth across the room with my hands behind my back as I listened to Countess Jubel and Laura talk. Shortly after, I went out into the corridor. Mastas quickly followed me and asked me about Rivetti. As I replied, a sudden pain arose in one side of my belly. When I stopped with my hands on my belly, Mastas asked in surprise. ¡°Your Majesty? Are you all right?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m fine.¡± I lowered my hands and continued to talk about Rivetti. *** ¡®¡­ Just as Rivetti needs to learn how to manage her estate, I must figure out how to act on Heinley¡¯s behalf while he is gone.¡¯ Once Mastas went back to sit with the rest of mydies-in-waiting, I went on a walk escorted by Viscount Langdel and sank into thought. As I walked without paying much attention to where I was going, I noticed Sovieshu standing at the edge of the pond. For a moment, I thought that he was about to jump. ¡°Viscount Langdel!¡± Startled, I called for Viscount Langdel to grab Sovieshu, and I also extended my hand, intending to freeze the water. Only a few small shards of ice formed around my hand and fell to the ground, but Viscount Langdel managed to grab Sovieshu around the waist and pulled him back. Sovieshu was astonished, but quickly became angry. ¡°What the hell are you doing?¡± ¡°I asked him to do it.¡± When I exined with indifference, his anger vanished immediately. ¡°Really?¡± Sovieshu smiled sheepishly, as if he was embarrassed by his outburst now that he knew it was on my orders. ¡°Navier.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be disrespectful. I am Her Majesty Empress Navier to you.¡± After he spoke to me with false closeness, I turned and walked away. Why did I have the impression that Sovieshu would jump into the pond when I saw him there? Although Emperor Sovieshu had gone through difficult times due to Rashta¡¯s trial and death, and the discovery that his daughter wasn¡¯t truly his own, it didn¡¯t make sense for the 19 year old Sovieshu, who didn¡¯t have these memories, to feel this much despair. The worry that I felt in the moment turned out to be unnecessary. The situation was so absurd that it hurt my pride. ¡°Navier.¡± I quickened my steps without looking back. I only stopped once I was sure that no one besides Viscount Langdel was following me. Finally, I felt relieved and sat down on a bench in the garden. *** ¡°Your Majesty. I need to ask¡­ just in case¡­¡± ¡°No, I never intended to jump.¡± At Sovieshu¡¯s firm answer, Marquis Karl reluctantly nodded. They were back in the room for distinguished guests. Marquis Karl hadn¡¯t seen Sovieshu¡¯s expression just before Viscount Langdel grabbed him because he was far away. However, it was unlikely that Viscount Langdel would have pulled Sovieshu back like that for no reason. Sovieshu¡¯s ¡®real¡¯ personality, which appeared at night, came to Marquis Karl¡¯s mind. ¡ª Find a way to get rid of the personality that appears by day. Marquis Karl rubbed his face with both hands. Could it be that Sovieshu¡¯s day personality knew what had been said? Did he try to jump into the pond due to revenge, or did he think he could destroy the ¡®real¡¯ personality with another shock? Marquis Karl wondered if he was losing his own mind. ¡°Marquis Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Have you had any worriestely?¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Have you?¡± ¡°No, Your Majesty. Of course not.¡± After Marquis Karl answered with a smile, Sovieshu returned the smile and turned away from him. Again, Marquis Karl could only see Sovieshu¡¯s back, so he didn¡¯t notice that Sovieshu¡¯s expression had be grim. ¡®It¡¯s impossible that the bastard does not think the same as me.¡¯ Sovieshu narrowed his eyes as he clenched his hand. After the incident a few days ago, Sovieshu started to question thepetence of ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯. ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯ didn¡¯t share important information, despite the fact that he was the main culprit of the current situation. ¡®He¡¯s truly useless.¡¯ Sovieshu disliked ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯ more and more. When he saw the pond, the thought crossed his mind that one more shock could cause the ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯ to finally disappear. Sovieshu rxed his hand and looked at Marquis Karl via the mirror. He noticed his sad expression. ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯ retained all memories and had more knowledge, so Marquis Karl considered him the ¡®real¡¯ Sovieshu. ¡®Marquis Karl may be loyal, but he seems to be more loyal to the ¡®Night Sovieshu¡¯ than to me. Can I really trust him?¡¯ The inevitable conclusion was ¡®no¡¯. Chapter 441 Chapter 441. Day And Night (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra I was waiting for Rivetti toe, waiting for Sovieshu to return to the Eastern Empire, waiting for Heinley¡¯s uing mission to recover the mana stones, and waiting for our baby bird to be born. Recently, my life has be endless waiting¡­ If I wanted to lie down on the long couch in the drawing room, I had to prop myself up with a cushion so I couldfortably stroke my pregnant belly with both hands. I reached over to pick up the piece of paper on the coffee table. It was the drawing sent by Dolshi, which I had not yet been able to decipher. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to ask him directly what it meant, or ask a child to interpret it? The only puzzle I could solve in this time full of waiting was this peculiar drawing. ¡®A wall¡­ shiny things¡­ why must he express his meaning through a drawing?¡¯ After I studied it for a while, I ced the paper on the coffee table upside down, so I didn¡¯t have to look at it. I couldn¡¯t spend all day on this, so I went to my office to take care of my duties. In the early afternoon, I went out into the garden to take a break. I had decided to take a walk while I tried to decipher the drawing and then return to my office. However, after a few steps I felt an unexpected breeze behind me. The grass beneath my feet froze and shivers ran through my body. The grass didn¡¯t wither or harden as with the arrival of winter, but remained intact. Fresh green des were still visible. However, it was definitely frozen. When I crushed the grass with my feet, it felt crunchy and broke into pieces. ¡°Be careful!¡± Startled, Viscount Langdel stretched out an arm to force me to stay back as he approached me. Since I had recently been the victim of a surprise attack, I obediently backed off as told. At that moment, I lost my bnce and bumped against something as I stumbled backwards. Someone gently supported me, and I grabbed that person¡¯s arm to steady myself. ¡°Thank you.¡± I turned around to see who had helped me. It was someone unexpected¡­ ¡®Dolshi?!¡¯ It was Kapmen¡¯s friend, who shouldn¡¯t have known my identity. Before Viscount Langdel could draw his sword. Dolshi stretched out a finger and froze him in ce. Without making any sounds, Viscount Langdel¡¯s eyes closed as if he had fallen asleep. As if he had turned into a doll manipted by Dolshi at will. As I watched in bewilderment at his powerful magical ability, Dolshi asked. ¡°Did you see what I sent you?¡± Once I nodded, Dolshi leaned an arm against the wall and smiled proudly. ¡°What do you think about it? Do you think it is possible?¡± From the way he spoke, it seemed that he already knew all about my true identity. In fact, he had managed to infiltrate the Imperial Pce and find me. ¡°Do you think it will work?¡± Since I didn¡¯t answer at right away, Dolshi rephrased the question. ¡°Which parts weren¡¯t good enough?¡± Coincidentally, I happened to have Dolshi¡¯s drawing with me. I looked around, wondering if anyone nearby was aware of the situation, as I slowly took out the drawing, trying to buy time. However, no one other than the frozen Viscount Langdel was nearby, so I finally unfolded the drawing and showed it to him. ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you drew.¡± ¡°How can that be? I drew it so that it was easy to understand.¡± Dolshi pretended to be surprised and pointed his finger at the part figures that mydies-in-waiting assumed to be a ¡®wall¡¯ with Viscount Langdel¡¯s help. ¡°A dam.¡± A dam? Dolshi then pointed to the shiny parts. ¡°Lots of jewels.¡± He smiled very happily at the end of his exnation and waved his hand over the full drawing. ¡°A dam of jewels.¡± After his exnation, he left. Although he hadn¡¯t revealed his identity, as soon as I heard his words many things came to mind. Of course, I could be wrong, but I would lose nothing by doing what he wants. After I returned to my room, I summoned painters and master builders and gave them orders to design a robust and luxurious dam. Actually, it didn¡¯t matter who Dolshi was. What mattered was that he could help me master my magic, and for that I needed him to like the new design. For the moment, he didn¡¯t seem to have bad intentions. I left the finished design on the windowsill of the drawing room, and the next day it had disappeared. ¡®I assume Dolshi took it. I wonder if he liked it?¡¯ ¡°Your Majesty, what¡¯s the matter? Why do you keep looking at that window?¡± ¡°Now that I think of it, didn¡¯t Your Majesty leave something therest night? It¡¯s no longer there.¡± ¡°Your Majesty, do you want us to search for it?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s fine.¡± Once I reassured my anxiousdies-in-waiting with a smile, I looked at Viscount Langdel. He stared at the sword on his waist with a somber expression. He seemed to have been very shocked that Dolshi subdued him yesterday in the blink of an eye, without the slightest difficulty, despite his efforts to guard me properly. ¡°Viscount Langdel, are you all right?¡± When I asked with concern, he nodded helplessly. ¡®He doesn¡¯t seem well at all¡­¡¯ Laura seemed to agree, so she whispered to me. ¡°Did he fight with Nian?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°One never knows. As it happens, Nian hasn¡¯t been aroundtely.¡± ¡°It¡¯s normal for Nian not toe.¡± She may be avoiding the Imperial Pce while Sovieshu is here. I preferred not to mention it because I didn¡¯t want to talk about him. *** The rain began to fall. As I watched the sky darken, I adjusted the cushion on my seat and wiped the wax from the candles to stop the light from flickering constantly. It was still only seven o¡¯clock in the morning, but I couldn¡¯t believe that the sky was still so dark at this hour. The ps of thunder made it difficult for me to concentrate, so after I broke the tip of the pen for the umpteenth time, I put it aside and stood up. As I approached the window, the room turned white for an instant due to the lightning, and then everything went dark again. It was amazing that I didn¡¯t feel any movement from the baby in my belly in the middle of all this. My child must be very brave. I felt the little bird kick in response as I stroked my belly. Once satisfied, I turned around and sat down. Although I couldn¡¯t concentrate, I intended to finish this work. It was a matter for the imperial audience. But just as I was looking at the documents with the tip of the pen pressed to my lips, there was an urgent knock on the door. Then, I heard an rm bell ringing outside. ¡®What¡¯s going on?¡¯ As soon as I authorized his entrance, one of my assistants rushed in with a pale face. He wasn¡¯t even properly dressed. I looked at the clock to check the time. Something had certainly happened. It was still too early for the officials toe to work at the Imperial Pce. I cane to my office earlier because it is so close. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± In any case, I was startled to see him so distressed. Several possibilities urred to me to exin my attendant¡¯s behavior. ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Chapter 442 Chapter 442. Thunder (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang has escaped!¡± At the same time that my attendant, Sir Marcus, eximed, another loud p of thunder was heard. ¡°How could Grand Duke Lilteang have escaped¡­?¡± When I asked, another sh of lightning appeared behind me. Sir Marcus flinched and sank to the floor, perhaps because I seemed angry and terrifying against the light. I was a little surprised, but definitely not angry. ¡°You may stand.¡± He stood up quickly. His hair was wet and stuck to his forehead from running in the rain. When I offered him a handkerchief, he held out both hands shakily. ¡°Have a seat.¡± ¡°My clothes are soaked, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Once I pointed to the couch, he hesitantly sat and sped his hands tightly. He seemed to think I would now scold him. ¡°What about His Majesty Heinley? Does he know?¡± ¡°Someone else must have reported to him.¡± ¡°What happened?¡± From what I knew, Grand Duke Lilteang was imprisoned in the Red Tower due to the incident at Heinley¡¯s birthday party. I knew that the Red Tower had the strictest level of security, since it is used to imprison high-status nobles. How did Grand Duke Lilteang manage to escape from such a secure prison in a foreign country? After the rumble of thunder was heard again, the rain fell harder. This was the perfect day for him to escape¡­ I realized that Sir Marcus still had not answered my question, so I repeated it. ¡°Do we not yet know the details of his escape?¡± ¡°That¡¯s correct.¡± He wiped his brow with the handkerchief. Still, he seemed to remain nervous. ¡°Sir Marcus.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Is there anything else you want to tell me?¡± When I asked him directly to clear up my doubts, he shrugged his shoulders. ¡°What do you mean?¡± Although he pretended not to know anything else, he clenched the handkerchief tightly in his fist, so I insisted. ¡°As far as I know, Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s punishment was carried out with the consent of Emperor Sovieshu.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty.¡± If a high-status noble of another country is punished, it can escte into a conflict due to the other country¡¯s sense of pride. For this reason, such crimes would typically be handled through a formalint against the country of origin. But this case was different. The Western Empire punished Grand Duke Lilteang directly, with Sovieshu¡¯s agreement. There was no way for this matter to escte into a conflict between countries. Then why did my attendante rushing in so early, and so nervously? ¡°Is there something about Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s punishment imprisonment that I don¡¯t know?¡± *** The well-paved roads remained intact in the heavy rain. However, even a road in perfect condition could not lessen the difort of walking with soaked clothes and shoes. ¡°Damn it!¡± Grand Duke Lilteang cursed as he tugged on his cumbersome cloak. He wanted to take it off at once, but he had to hide his face until he reached the Eastern Empire. The rain clouded his vision, so he raised his hand to rub his eyes and asked, ¡°Where are we going?¡± A man holding an umbre in one hand and a map with wet corners in the other vaguely murmured. ¡°Umm¡­¡± ¡°Where are we going?!¡± The Grand Duke yelled in despair, but bitter blood pooled in his mouth, his face contorted and he clenched his jaw. He covered his mouth and groaned in pain. The blood trickled down from the corners of his lips and fell to the ground. ¡°Umm¡­¡± The umbre man was still not speaking clearly. His nonchnt behavior infuriated the Grand Duke, but he restrained his anger. He had experienced pain from losing his cool. He wouldn¡¯t be foolish enough to burst out in anger again. ¡°Look here. Umm, isn¡¯t this the right way?¡± At his words, Grand Duke Lilteang couldn¡¯t restrain his anger, so he snatched the map and shouted. ¡°What the hell is wrong with you?!¡± His torn mouth bled even more, but his fury overcame the momentary pain. ¡°Concentrate! The bastard must be on to us! That lunatic¡¯s subordinates must be after us by now!¡± The map was torn to pieces in his hands. The wet fragments fell to the ground. The umbre man looked down at it and whispered once more, ¡°Umm¡­¡± Grand Duke Lilteang snorted in irritation. His face was a bloody mess because his mouth had been sewn shut with a stone inside. His strong body was now thin to the bone, and the area around his lips had lost flesh. Due to the hasty escape, he had not yet received proper treatment, so blood gushed out every time he moved his mouth too much. The Grand Duke looked so hideous that few people would dare to look at his face. However, the umbre man rather smiled at the Grand Duke without concern for his anger. It was an indifferent attitude, as if he didn¡¯t care. ¡°It¡¯s alright. I¡¯ve already told you that you have to trust me, Grand Duke.¡± The voice was polite, but at the same timezy. The Grand Duke thought he detected an unfamiliar ent. Discouraged, he pointed with his finger at the direction they were supposed to follow. ¡°We¡¯ve to go that way fast! Or else that lunatic¡¯s subordinates will catch up with us!¡± The umbre man raised his hand, grabbed the Grand Duke¡¯s fingers andughed. ¡°Shh¡­ It¡¯s alright. Just trust me.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s run away¡ª!¡± ¡°Not now.¡± The umbre man looked at the fragments of the muddy map at his feet and pointed in the direction of the capital with a slight tilt of the umbre. ¡°I forgot that I need to meet with one more person before I leave.¡± Grand Duke Lilteang was close to tears. ¡®I was finally able to escape from that ce, so why the hell is he pointing in that direction? He should have finished his business first!¡¯ ¡°Who the hell would return to his enemy¡¯sir in a situation like this?!¡± Chapter 443 Chapter 443. Thunder (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Let¡¯s also postpone the audiences scheduled for the afternoon.¡± Audiences are one of my daily duties, but the bad weather was a valid reason to make an exception, so my attendants agreed with my decision. After I quickly finished with the important business in my office, I went straight to the matrimonial bedroom. In this bedroom,pletely isted from the rumble of thunder, Heinley slept peacefully like a beautiful angel. Even his messy hair made him look lovely. I stroked his cheeks a few times and whispered in his ear. ¡°Heinley.¡± His body immediately shuddered and his eyshes fluttered. Then he opened his purple eyes which I loved so much. ¡°My Queen? Navier.¡± He held out his hand as he called me in a sleepy voice. He tugged gently on the back of my neck, pulling me towards him, and kissed my corbone, neck and chin. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you sleep more?¡± He nced at the clock and ran his hand over his eyes. ¡°It¡¯s still early.¡± Last night, Heinley told me that he nned to sleepte because he had no work in the morning. Now, he didn¡¯t seem to want to wake up. ¡°Heinley, did no one deliver a message to you yet?¡± ¡°A message? Was it urgent?¡± ¡°It seemed urgent.¡± ¡°I haven¡¯t been told of anything¡­ McKenna may have decided to tell me about itter.¡± My attendant had rushed to my office with a pale face before the usual time, and during rough weather, just to let me know. Did McKenna decide on his own that it wasn¡¯t an urgent matter? That made it all the more suspicious. After I asked my attendant if there was something I didn¡¯t know about Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s imprisonment, he became flustered and was unable to answer. He pleaded with me to understand that he was in a position where he couldn¡¯t give me that answer. So I turned directly to Heinley. ¡°Wake up already.¡± When I pulled the covers off him, Heinley clung to my legs with a frown. ¡°Huh? What is it, My Queen?¡± ¡°I heard that Grand Duke Lilteang escaped.¡± ¡°The Grand Duke?¡± Heinley looked up a little surprised, but then leaned back into myp with a smile. ¡°You punished him with Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s approval, so there shouldn¡¯t be any problem, right?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± His silky hair slipped through my fingers. After I stroked it for a while, I ced one hand on each cheek, and pinched them tightly. ¡°So, why was my attendant so pale? Huh, Heinley? What could be the reason?¡± *** ¡°You told me you¡¯d sleepte. Did you fall out of bed? You must have just left your bed since you still have the marks of the pillow all over your cheek.¡± When Heinley walked into the office, his cheeks were noticeably reddened and puffy. McKennaughed at him with his hands on his stomach. Heinley clenched his teeth as he repressed the urge to force McKenna to transform into a bird, tie a pretty ribbon around his wings, and throw him out the window. ¡°I heard that Grand Duke Lilteang escaped.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± At the mention of the Grand Duke, McKenna immediately turned serious. ¡°Someone must have helped him escape from the tower. The signs indicate that he had help from the outside.¡± ¡°You should have told me.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t want to tell you while the two of you slept because I was afraid that the Empress would find it strange. Her Majesty Navier might have realized that there was a serious problem.¡± Heinley snorted. If Navier hadn¡¯t gotten up early and gone to her office, if Navier¡¯s faithful attendant hadn¡¯t rushed over to inform her, Heinley would have been truly grateful for McKenna¡¯s consideration. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± McKenna asked worriedly as he noticed Heinley¡¯s dejection. ¡°An attendant of My Queen¡¯s told her about it very early. My Queen woke me up because she noticed something strange going on.¡± McKenna frowned. ¡°So the Empress already knows? Your Majesty told her¡­ about the nature of the punishment?¡± Heinley covered his face with his hands. ¡°Yes. What if My Queen thinks I¡¯m trash and can¡¯t bear to be around me anymore?¡± ¡°She¡¯ll discard you¡­¡± ¡°McKenna!¡± As the two were about to start fighting, the chancellor, who had remained quiet all along, cleared his throat to make his presence known. ¡°We have instructed knights to investigate who helped him escape and track him down. The 2nd Guards Corps were also instructed to block the road leading to the capital and investigate those who entered and left around the time of the escape. So you need not worry, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Good work.¡± Heinley then gave some more instructions and looked thoughtfully out the window. The torrential rain showed no signs of slowing, so it seemed like night outside the window, even though it wasn¡¯t even noon. ¡°What are you thinking, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°What about Emperor Sovieshu?¡± ¡°He wouldn¡¯t know about the escape yet, unless he¡¯s involved. If you order it, the investigation will continue in secret to prevent him from finding out.¡± Heinley had already thought about it, so he shook his head. ¡°No, I¡¯d rather meet with him to discuss it.¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It is worth reminding him that the decision to lock up Grand Duke Lilteang in the Western Empire was made by both of us.¡± That said, Heinley called a servant and ordered, ¡°Ask Emperor Sovieshu to have lunch with me.¡± *** Heinley will discuss it with Sovieshu. Although Heinley¡¯s punishment had been quite cruel, Grand Duke Lilteang had provoked an incident in which an innocent child could have lost his life. Emperor Sovieshu would likely want the matter to be resolved without any fuss, and it would be possible to pretend that the escape had simply not urred. The Grand Duke would be found and re-imprisoned, or Sovieshu would quietly take him away. It would be fine no matter what conclusion was reached. It should be in his interest to avoid a scandal to preserve the honor of the Eastern Empire. The uncertainty was how the current Sovieshu would react. He probably doesn¡¯t know that he agreed to let the Western Empire punish the Grand Duke, unless Marquis Karl already informed him. Still, he might be angered by the cruel punishment inflicted on a high-status noble from his country. I pondered long and hard, but this matter was out of my control. Eventually, I forced myself to focus my attention on the children¡¯s book lying open on myp. It was not good for my baby¡¯s education to imagine a person whose mouth was sewn shut with a stone inside. Therefore, I set out to distract myself and purify my mind by reading happy stories. ¡°I don¡¯t like this!¡± Laura suddenly screamed as she covered her ears and her body shuddered at the rumble of thunder. Suddenly memories came to me that made meugh. Laura lowered her hands and asked, ¡°Your Majesty, what happened? What happened? Did you think of something funny?¡± Countess Jubel gave Laura a severe look, but Laura insisted with sparkling eyes. ¡°What happened? What happened?¡± ¡°It¡¯s nothing special. It¡¯s just that I remembered that my brother was afraid of thunder as a child.¡± ¡°Lord Koshar?¡± I didn¡¯t know if he was still afraid of them. We didn¡¯t spend enough time together for me to know. ¡°I never would have guessed.¡± Almost at the same time, Mastas said, ¡°I can imagine it.¡± Laura and Mastas looked at each other, puzzled by their contradictoryments. I sided with Laura¡¯s reaction. Mastas¡¯ remark was strange. Mastas looked at us as if we were being unfair, and exined, ¡°At first nce he seems weak and vulnerable. Isn¡¯t it understandable that he is afraid of thunder?¡± Mastas is talking about my brother? As if she was thinking the same thing, Laura asked quietly whether I had another brother. With a smile, I confirmed that Koshar is my only brother. Mastas became even sadder because my otherdies-in-waiting didn¡¯t agree with her view of my brother either. The situation was very funny. Rose pursed her lips tightly as her shoulders shook. In the midst of theughter and chatter, someone hurriedly knocked on the door of the drawing room. The room fell silent, and Laura headed for the door. Chapter 444 Chapter 444. Cruel Emperor (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra I asked, ¡°Who is it?¡± as Laura opened the door. ¡°Viscount Langdel!¡± she eximed. ¡°Your Majesty, it¡¯s Viscount Langdel.¡± ¡°Let him in.¡± Viscount Langdel entered, took off his damp hat and sat down on the couch. His shoulders were soaked, the rest of his outfit was untouched. ¡°Did you juste from somewhere?¡± ¡°Yes, I had business to attend to,¡± He said, looking around awkwardly before deciding to set his hat down on hisp. ¡°You will be morefortable if you set it down beside you.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry. More importantly, Your Majesty, I need to leave again until tomorrow.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes. But you can rest assured that my deputymander will take good care of you.¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. It¡¯s raining too hard to leave the pce anyway.¡± After the Viscount bid us farewell, Laura walked over to the window to check the weather again and eximed in amazement. ¡°Wow, where could Viscount Langdel be going in this weather?¡± ¡°Although he is acting as my personal knight, he is a member of the Wol Continent Alliance. He must have many obligations.¡± Laura pped in realization. ¡°Oh, that¡¯s true, he must have many other things to do.¡± She must have forgotten that Viscount Langdel was a Commander of the Transnational Knights because he spent so much time at my side. ¡°Indeed, it¡¯s admirable for Viscount Langdel to have stayed so long at Your Majesty¡¯s side.¡± Although Countess Jubel liked Viscount Langdel, she seemed to disapprove of the wet marks his hat left on the couch. In the end, she couldn¡¯t take it anymore and asked a maid to dry the couch. Meanwhile, I sat in front of the window with a nket and a cushion. I sank into my thoughts with my head leaning against the frame. I didn¡¯t care that Viscount Langdel had to leave to settle his affairs¡­ what still bothered me was the matter with Grand Duke Lilteang. If Grand Duke Lilteang had been imprisoned under normal conditions, there would be no problem because he was punished for his crime with Sovieshu¡¯s approval. However, the imprisonment would not be considered ¡®under normal conditions¡¯. Once it became known that Grand Duke Lilteang was punished inhumanely, Sovieshu could demand exnations. If I was dealing with a simr matter where a noble of my country was unfairly punished, I would formallyin if the other side was a hostile country. Of course, the rtionship between the Eastern Empire and the Western Empire was not so bad that it could be considered hostile. However, Sovieshu might try to take advantage of this situation in some way¡­ There could be trouble. I lightly tapped my head against the window frame. Since Sovieshu¡¯s current state was not normal, it was difficult to predict how things would turn out. How does Heinley intend to deal with this? *** At that moment, Heinley was in arge dining room that was rarely used. He was seated at one end of an extremely long table, while Sovieshu was seated at the opposite end, with his servants standing by on either side. The table was impractical for a meal between the two, but Heinley deliberately chose it for this asion. There was little reaction from Sovieshu to the extravagant table and the awkward distance between him and his host. With a fake smile, Heinley said, ¡°I hope you enjoy the meal.¡± Two chefs appeared and set the dishes down in front of Heinley and Sovieshu, then they withdrew. Sovieshu skipped the courtesies and went straight to the point. ¡°What is it that you want to tell me?¡± Sovieshu didn¡¯t think it was necessary to exchange pleasantries. Heinley agreed. ¡°Do you remember that Grand Duke Lilteang almost killed a child belonging to one of our most distinguished noble families?¡± Sovieshu still had many sections of his diary to check. Marquis Karl also helped to refresh Sovieshu¡¯s memory, but he focused on what he felt was most necessary for Sovieshu to know. Since Sovieshu didn¡¯t answer and his expression became stiff, Heinley calmly chopped the head off his fish and continued. ¡°The Grand Duke escaped.¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°I thought I should let you know. If you find him first, of course, you will send him back here as he has not yetpleted the five year sentence.¡± Sovieshu smiled and chopped the head off his fish just like Heinley did. ¡°We¡¯ll see.¡± His answer was vague while he analyzed the situation. ¡®From how he talked about Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s crime, I assume that the imprisonment wasn¡¯t done secretly. ¡®I¡¯ must have agreed to it. Did he remind me of the facts of the case with the intention that I share responsibility with him for any rted problems, because I allowed that sentence?¡¯ Sovieshu had recognized Heinley¡¯s cunning, so his reply was astute. ¡°One wonders how badly the Grand Duke was treated that he risked escaping.¡± Although Sovieshu didn¡¯t understand why his other self had allowed the Western Empire to carry out the Grand Duke¡¯s punishment, he was convinced that his other self wouldn¡¯t have allowed him to be tortured, so he made the usation under this assumption. Besides, it was the kind of usation he could use blindly to annoy Heinley. Unbeknownst to Sovieshu, he was right on target. Still, Heinley replied without hesitation. ¡°The Grand Duke has received special treatment. You don¡¯t have to worry like he¡¯s a child.¡± Sovieshu disliked the Grand Duke, but he despised Emperor Heinley, so he whispered sarcastically as he scooped the meat off his fish with his fork, ¡°If a foreigner like Grand Duke Lilteang was able to escape a Western prison, it is likely that you need to improve security measures. How about increasing the number of guards?¡± ¡°My security measures are sufficient.¡± Heinley replied with a smile that hid his difort, then looked awkwardly at the servants on either side of Sovieshu and replied with the same sarcasm. ¡°Only Your Majesty¡¯s mages or the Transnational Knights would be able to break through the security of the Red Tower where Grand Duke Lilteang was imprisoned.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Of course, it¡¯s impossible for the Transnational Knights to appear out of nowhere.¡± It was obvious what Heinley meant: ¡®Wasn¡¯t it you who helped the Grand Duke escape?¡¯ ¡°It sounds like you¡¯re looking for someone to me.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a reasonable suspicion. After all, you have a habit of snooping around in the homes of other men.¡± They smiled coldly at each other, while cursing inwardly. ¡®He¡¯s as sly as a fox.¡¯ ¡®He¡¯s slippery like a snake.¡¯ Chapter 445 Chapter 445. Cruel Emperor (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra I was in my office, scrutinizing the notes summarizing the discussion at the Privy Council in rtion to Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s case. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. ¡®Surely it¡¯s Heinley.¡¯ If it had been someone else, one of my attendants would have announced them first. Since they didn¡¯t, there was no doubt that it was Heinley. However, rather than allow him to enter immediately, I rested my arms on the desk and stared at the door. After a few moments, he knocked again. I got up quietly, walked over to the door and waited. As soon as I heard two knocks in a row, I opened the door forcefully. Heinley stood with his hand raised in the air in surprise and his eyes went wide. Then his face brightened. ¡°My Queen, you appeared as if by magic.¡± I didn¡¯t answer and turned around. However, Heinley stepped in front of me and held out a box he was carrying. ¡°My Queen. Here you go.¡± When I took it, I noticed that the box was rather hot. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the pea soup you wanted to eat.¡± I opened the lid and caught a whiff of the delicious aroma. It seemed like the soup was freshly made. It made my mouth water. ¡°I made it myself.¡± Heinley boasted with a lovely smile. He was too cute. However, it was obvious that he was trying to assuage my displeasure with food. Two opposite emotions arose in me. Part of me wanted to overlook what happened, but another part of me wanted to state the hard truth, even if he didn¡¯t want to hear it. After a moment of reflection, I sighed, and opted for thetter. I put the box Heinley had given me on the desk and took his hands. ¡°Heinley.¡± ¡°Eat it before it gets cold.¡± Although it would have been nice to pretend that nothing had happened¡­ this wasn¡¯t the first time I became aware of certain actions and behavior that were different from what Heinley disyed in front of me, and in front of the public. I felt the need to talk it over with him seriously, at least once. ¡°Heinley. I know you don¡¯t do it impulsively¡­ but I wish you wouldn¡¯t punish people so cruelly.¡± Heinley¡¯s smile faded and he looked down at his hands in mine. ¡°The Grand Duke¡¯s imprisonment was punishment enough. There was no need to be more cruel.¡± Heinley pursed his lips at the perceived injustice. ¡°But My Queen, he¡ª¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like Grand Duke Lilteang either. At first, he tried to get close to me through bribes, but since that didn¡¯t work, he sided with Rashta to discredit me.¡± I didn¡¯t want to seem too harsh because I was afraid of hurting Heinley¡¯s feelings, so I looked into his eyes and stroked his face. ¡°Heinley. Even if revenge is justified, if your methods are cruel, people will focus more on the cruelty than on the cause you avenged.¡± If he wants to have two faces, he really shouldn¡¯t allow anyone to find that out. Despite Heinley¡¯s efforts to pretend to be innocent, I¡¯ve seen his other side on more than one asion. Heinley had also done cruel acts openly. Like the ruthlessness he showed in his quest to eliminate the Zemensia Family. ¡°Heinley. There¡¯s a clear difference between severe punishment and cruel punishment.¡± Heinley truly loves the Western Empire. I didn¡¯t want his legacy as Emperor to be tarnished just because of his ruthlessness. He stared at me in silence for a moment, then turned away from me. ¡°My Queen, I understand what you mean. I¡¯ll try not to be so ruthless, but I hope My Queen understands that I didn¡¯t ascend to the throne under the same conditions as Emperor Sovieshu. It is enough for him to sit quietly and perform his duties, and his authority is increased by doing everything ording to thew.¡± I could only see Heinley¡¯s back, but I could tell that he sighed regretfully. ¡°My Queen, I must make sure that the nobles don¡¯t underestimate me anymore. But even rats bite cats when cornered, so I can¡¯t push the nobles into a corner either. I must be a fair Emperor and, at the same time, a fearsome Emperor. I must not be an Emperor who provokes the nobles, but an Emperor before whom they must bow.¡± That said, Heinley kissed me once on each cheek and left. I returned to my desk and tried to read the Privy Council notes. However, I couldn¡¯t stop thinking about what Heinley said. I had lost my appetite, so I didn¡¯t even want to eat the delicious soup, but I also didn¡¯t want to throw away the food Heinley had prepared for me. After a while, I opened the box and took out the bowl of soup. When I raised a spoonful to my mouth, I realized that it had already gone cold. Still, I kept eating. By the time I had eaten almost half of it, one of my attendants walked in. ¡°What is it?¡± My attendant looked very ufortable. He was carrying a silver box. ¡°Did you hear me?¡± ¡°Pardon me, Your Majesty. Emperor Sovieshu sends this to Your Majesty¡­¡± As soon as my attendant spoke, I understood why he was so ufortable . Sovieshu? Again? He won¡¯t leave me alone. ¡°Tell him I¡¯m not here.¡± When I tly refused, my attendant nervously left the room with the box. I set the spoon aside. I didn¡¯t want to force myself to eat any more soup because I felt like my stomach would hurt. Heinley was important to me, but so was our baby bird. I didn¡¯t want our child to be nauseous because I ate too much. I cleared the bowl away from the desk, and poured myself a cup of tea. As I drank slowly, my attendant returned. ¡®What now?¡¯ I stared at him with a frown and he held out a letter. From his expression, it was clear that he also didn¡¯t want to deal with this. ¡°The Emperor of the Eastern Empire¡­¡± ¡°Send it back.¡± My attendant left with the letter. I put the notes away and covered my eyes with my hands. Due to my anger I could no longer concentrate on what was written. However, my attendant soon returned and held out a letter to me. I was about to send it back when I noticed that the letter had been sealed with the official stamp of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire. He sent it as an official letter so that I could not refuse it again. I reluctantly epted the letter, asked my attendant to leave, and ripped it open. What could he have to say that is so important to require an official letter! ¡ª Will you send this one back, too? The ¡®official¡¯ letter was brief ¡­ but my irritation was immense. I stood up immediately and stormed out. As soon as I opened the door, a bouquet of flowers appeared before my eyes, blocking my view. I took the bouquet and Sovieshu¡¯s face appeared behind it. ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± ¡°Your Majesty. My husband gives me bouquets of flowers daily. There is absolutely no need for anyone else to get me flowers.¡± I had to hold back the urge to hit Sovieshu with the bouquet. When will these fifteen dayse to an end? Am I imagining things, or did time always move so slowly? Before Sovieshu could answer, a rain-soaked messenger rushed in as if he was in a great hurry. The messenger bowed the moment he noticed Sovieshu and me. I recognized him. He was a regr messenger for Viscount Langdel. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± The messenger saved me from another absurd conversation with Sovieshu. ¡°Viscount Langdel¡­ the Commander¡­ ordered me tomunicate this to you immediately¡­ without dy¡­¡± I didn¡¯t understand what he meant, but it seemed that it was ufortable for him to speak in front of Sovieshu. Without hesitation, I returned the bouquet to Sovieshu and entered my office with the messenger. Once I closed the door and asked him to speak with confidence, the messenger spoke respectfully. ¡°Your Majesty, Commander Langdel ordered me to warn you that tomorrow someone wille to visit you. Commander Langdel wants you to refuse whatever that person asks of you.¡± Chapter 446 Chapter 446. Unbearable (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Since he told me about Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s escape and implied that I agreed to his punishment, something must have happened while the Grand Duke was incarcerated that Heinley is worried wille to light.¡± Sovieshu concluded as he paced around his room. After meeting with Emperor Heinley, Sovieshu was overwhelmed with anger and was unable to think clearly. Once he calmed down, he was able to read Heinley¡¯s true intentions. ¡®Young Sovieshu is able to think like Emperor Heinley because their mental ages are simr.¡¯ Marquis Karl pondered in amazement and concurred. ¡°Your Majesty is likely correct. Grand Duke Lilteang must have been injured while he was imprisoned. Whether it was intentionally or by ident.¡± Sovieshu paused to analyze the situation once more. After a while, he smiled coldly. ¡°Even if that¡¯s not what happened, it doesn¡¯t matter. We just have to find Grand Duke Lilteang first and get our story straight.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty.¡± With the decision made, Sovieshu rang the small bell to summon his ¡®servants¡¯, ¡°There has been a change of ns. I want you all to focus on finding out about Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s whereabouts instead of investigating about the phenomenon of mana decline.¡± ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°If I were in Emperor Heinley¡¯s position, I would have hidden any evidence that links me to the mana decline. It¡¯s a more serious problem than the Grand Duke¡¯s.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Since it won¡¯t be easy to find evidence of his involvement in the former, let¡¯s throw them off the scent¡­¡± ¡°What do you mean, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I think they already know our intentions and may even be hoping to set a trap. We¡¯ll pretend to keep searching for clues about the mana decline, but our goal will now be to find Grand Duke Lilteang.¡± *** In order to find out the whereabouts of the Grand Duke, Sovieshu needed to allow his ¡®servants¡¯ to move freely. To do so, he left the Imperial Pce with them, allowing them to scatter along the way. He entered a tavern frequented bymoners and ordered a drink, with no intention of drinking it. Thest time Sovieshu went to a tavern he got into a fight, so Marquis Karl apanied him this time. The waiter left two liquor sses and a tray of cheese on the table. Sovieshu casually pushed the drinks towards Marquis Karl, while positioning the tray of cheese closer to himself. He smiled with satisfaction. ¡°I hope we get good results today.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Marquis Karl nodded as he kept his eyes on the liquor in front of him. He didn¡¯t think Sovieshu should drink any alcohol since he had fallen out of the window while drunk. ¡°What¡¯s the matter, Karl? Can¡¯t you drink alcohol?¡± ¡°Why did you give me your ss?¡± ¡°That liquor is bitter.¡± ¡°And the snacks¡­¡± ¡°I like them.¡± Although Marquis Karl was reluctant to drink so much, he had no choice, so he took the first ss. Meanwhile, Sovieshu looked around as he devoured the cheese. He even seemed to enjoy the musician¡¯s up-tempo violin tune. Observing him, Marquis Karl hoped that Sovieshu would soon forget about Navier and begin to enjoy these small pleasures of life again. But no sooner had that thoughte to mind than an unpleasant conversation nearby reached his ears. ¡°His Majesty was a little careless even as a Prince, but he wasn¡¯t cruel, right?¡± ¡°What are you saying? There have always been rumors about his cruelty.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true, like the rumor that he associates with pirates¡­¡± ¡°What did you expect from someone who is friends with a man like Duke Elgy¡­¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s different now. His actions were truly cruel. It wasn¡¯t enough for him to confine his sister-inw and drive her to suicide, he also eliminated her whole family.¡± ¡°But His Majesty has not confined and killed innocent people. It sounds a little misleading when you put it like that.¡± . ¡°Yes, it¡¯s like a half-told story. The Zemensia familymitted many crimes.¡± ¡°I think he¡¯s right. No matter what kind of person His Majesty may have been before, it cannot be denied that he became cold and cruel after the arrival of Empress Navier.¡± ¡°No, there were always rumors that His Majesty was so. You forget what is said about the death of the former King.¡± ¡°Shh!¡± ¡°People who are charming will cloud anyone¡¯s judgment. I¡¯m worried that His Majesty is getting carried away by Empress Navier¡¯s charm.¡± Marquis Karl groaned inwardly. ¡®Not now!¡¯ He looked at Sovieshu, who was watching the group of drunks closely. Sovieshu¡¯s legs were crossed and he shook his leg faster every time he heard the negative remarks about Navier. Although most of the drunks took Navier¡¯s side, he couldn¡¯t ignore the words of her opponents. Marquis Karl hurried to call the waiter because he feared that Sovieshu would get into another fight. ¡°What other food do you have here? I want more. All of them! Hurry up!¡± He held out a handful of coins, and the waiter brought their food directly. ¡°Here you go.¡± Marquis Karl quickly pushed the tray in front of Sovieshu, who took a cracker and bit down hard. Harder than necessary to bite on a cracker. Like he was grinding his teeth with fury. Marquis Karl became even more rmed and tried to reassure Sovieshu. ¡°No need to pay attention to such nonsense. Commoners like these have always branded Navier as heartless, even though she fulfills her duties to perfection.¡± But it was in vain. Sovieshu put another cracker in his mouth again, chewed it hard and swallowed it. ¡°I don¡¯t like him.¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t like Heinley.¡± At least this time Sovieshu didn¡¯t get up to fight. Marquis Karl was a little relieved and quickly pushed another tray of food towards him. ¡°Why did Navier marry such a scoundrel?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°The Western Empire will be backed into a corner when its involvement in the mana decline bes known. Does it make sense for her to stay here when the people don¡¯t appreciate her? I don¡¯t think so.¡± Sovieshu added with conviction, ¡°The only reason Navier married a scoundrel like Heinley is because she was angry with me.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°Honestly, I¡¯m much better than him.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± To Marquis Karl, the Day Sovieshu was simr to Heinley, but he still sided with Sovieshu. When Sovieshu recalled how Heinley had tried to twist the Grand Duke¡¯s case in his favor, he became more indignant. ¡°Other men are inadequate for a woman like Navier, but Heinley is the worst of them all.¡± Sovieshu¡¯s eyes filled with determination. ¡°It¡¯s clear to me now. I must take Navier back at any cost.¡± Marquis Karl became a little uneasy. He wondered how badly yesterday¡¯s conversation between Sovieshu and Emperor Heinley must have been for Sovieshu¡¯s hatred to have increased even more. Since the current Sovieshu was more driven by his emotions than his adult self, Marquis Karl was concerned that he would not be able to predict his actions. As the Night Sovieshu had said, it was necessary tobine their two separate personalities as soon as possible. ¡®But how?¡¯ Marquis Karl did not stop thinking about it all the way back to the pce. In contrast, Sovieshu was disgusted by the people of the Western Empire who called Navier a ¡®Bloodthirsty Empress who dominates the indolent Emperor Heinley¡¯. After walking in silence for a while, Sovieshu turned to Marquis Karl. ¡°Karl.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Inquire about the people close to Duke Zemensia. Find any rtives who are still alive, even those who turned their backs on him after his fall, are useful.¡± Chapter 447 Chapter 447. Unbearable (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Grand Duke Lilteang had not yet been found. When I first spoke to Heinley about the escape, he seemed more worried that I would discover his cruel treatment of the Grand Duke. As for recapturing the Grand Duke, he didn¡¯t seem troubled. However, contrary to expectations, it turned out to be difficult to find any clue to his whereabouts. Heinley had been very quiet these days, even now as he joined me on my usual walk in the garden. He walked by my side with a preupied, thoughtful expression. It was unbearable to see him like this, so I rubbed his shoulders gently. ¡°Heinley, are you alright?¡± He finally looked at me and answered with a smile. ¡°Of course. I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find him soon, My Queen.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the attitude, Your Majesty.¡± Heinley chuckled and rubbed his forehead against mine. ¡°My Queen, you are lovely. It¡¯s so endearing when you express yourself naturally.¡± Is now really the time for this? In any case, I felt pleased that my words seemed tofort him. When McKenna called him from afar, Heinley thanked me for the pleasant walk, kissed me on the cheek, and left. I watched Heinley return to the pce and only turned around when I couldn¡¯t see him anymore. I hoped the Grand Duke would be captured soon, for Heinley¡¯s peace of mind. When I continued my walk alone, I saw Sovieshu. He approached me as soon as he saw me. Since I couldn¡¯t simply ignore him, I nodded to him and headed off in another direction. However, Sovieshu followed me and tried to walk beside me. I veered in the opposite direction, but he turned again to stay by my side. I finally stopped and faced him angrily. He stopped too and looked me in the eye. If he were an insect, I would have squashed him by now. What was he trying to do by following me? ¡°Navier, you¡¯re being deceived.¡± ¡°I know I was deceived. By you.¡± I walked away quickly, but I couldn¡¯t shake him off. He matched my pace and began to speak again. ¡°Navier. Do you know who Emperor Heinley really is?¡± ¡°Yes, I do.¡± ¡°You still don¡¯t know him.¡± ¡°I know him better than you.¡± ¡°Once you find out what kind of a person he is, you won¡¯t want to be around him.¡° ¡°Go away. I don¡¯t want to hear you speak nonsense.¡± Despite my bluntness and my re, he didn¡¯t leave. ¡°Such beautiful eyes. They have always been beautiful, but now they¡¯re even more so.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t speak to me like that!¡± It was useless to speak to him. ¡°Think about it, Navier. I made a mistake, but I promised to love you forever. What about that scoundrel? He married you shortly after he met you. Don¡¯t you know what that means? He fell in love with your appearance, that¡¯s all. How can you believe that his love for you willst forever?¡± It¡¯s outrageous¡­ for him, of all people, to say something like that to me. In my fury, I froze the grass beneath Sovieshu. ¡°Your ability is just like you.¡± ¡°Heinley will not divorce me. Don¡¯tpare him to you.¡± ¡°His love for you will end, and you¡¯ll be sad.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you see I¡¯m pregnant? I¡¯m carrying Heinley¡¯s child.¡± ¡°I hope the baby resembles you.¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter what you say, nothing could ever make me want to return to your side.¡± I turned around right away. ¡°Do not speak of this again.¡± I left, upset, but Sovieshu soon reached me. ¡°Navier, I can ept the baby as my own.¡± What¡­? ¡°The baby can also recognize me as the father. It doesn¡¯t know who its father is yet.¡± While I stared at him dumbfounded, Sovieshu smiled proudly, and it infuriated me. I raised my voice and spoke as coldly as I knew how. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? You said before you had given up. Why can¡¯t you let it go?¡± ¡°I found out that your husband isn¡¯t a good man. And give up? It wasn¡¯t me who gave up.¡± ¡°Heinley may be wed like anyone else, but he¡¯s a better man than you.¡± ¡°Open your eyes, Navier. Your anger won¡¯t allow you to listen to me. It¡¯s not only about Heinley, the people of the Western Empire¡­¡± ¡°What about the people of the Western Empire?¡± ¡°¡­ Forget it.¡± ¡°Say it. What about my people?¡± Sovieshu suddenly didn¡¯t want to speak. Probably because he didn¡¯t really have anything to say. ¡°If you¡¯re done with your supposed recovery, then return to the Eastern Empire and mind your own business. You still need toe up with a way to keep the port that was foolishly promised to another country.¡± Before I could hear Sovieshu¡¯s response, one of my attendants shouted as he rushed up to me. ¡°Your Majesty! Your Majesty! A member¡­ a member of the Transnational Knights hase to see you.¡± ¡°The Transnational Knights? Do you mean Viscount Langdel?¡± ¡°Is Viscount Langdel a Transnational Knight?¡± Sovieshu asked in surprise. I motioned for him to keep his mouth shut and turned my attention to my attendant. Fortunately, my attendant paid no attention to Sovieshu¡¯s question. ¡°It¡¯s not Viscount Langdel. It¡¯s someone else.¡± ¡°Someone else?¡± *** I followed my attendant to the small room where I received the guests. When I entered, I saw a silver-haired man dressed in a snow-white uniform who was facing away from me. ¡°You must be Viscount Langdel¡¯s Liege. I¡¯ve heard of you.¡± At the sound of my voice, the man turned to face me. He was a handsome man with long, narrow fox-like eyes. He introduced himself with a sly smile, ¡°Lady Navier. I am Angel, Commander of the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights.¡± Then he bowed. This must be the person Viscount Langdel warned me about. There was no doubt. I wondered what request he would make. I epted his greeting in the usual manner for now. However, the Transnational Knights didn¡¯t usually visit with friendly intentions. It¡¯s the reason why everyone was so surprised that Viscount Langdel decided to be my personal knight. Why has this mane here? I felt a little nervous, but my attendant seemed even more so, as he had clenched his fists. ¡°Bring us tea and crackers.¡± Once I ordered it, my attendant hurried out of the room. ¡°Have a seat.¡± When I pointed to the couch, the 4th Commander, who had waited for me standing up, finally sat down. I sat across from him and watched him. He was a handsome man with foxlike features, a yful smile, good posture, and broad shoulders. As a Commander of the Transnational Knights, his martial arts prowess must be exceptional. I was struck by his white gloves. It seemed that he never took them off, even indoors. At first nce, he didn¡¯t seem like a bad person. But if I take into ount the notoriety of the Transnational Knights, and Viscount Langdel¡¯s warning through a messenger, there¡¯s no doubt that he is a man to beware. When our eyes met as I examined him, he chuckled and spoke without looking away. ¡°You¡¯re a keen observer.¡± At that moment, my attendant returned with tea and left again after cing it all on the table. The 4th Commander raised his cup of tea, still wearing the white gloves. He closed his eyes as if savoring the tea. Then he set the cup on the table and spoke amiably, as if to reassure me. ¡°You need not be anxious, Lady Navier. I just came to ask you for a favor as the 5th Division Commander¡¯s Liege.¡± He came not to ask the Empress of the Western Empire, but the 5th Division Commander¡¯s Liege? ¡°What favor?¡± Viscount Langdel had already told me how to answer, but I had to ask anyway. I was also curious. ¡°You see, on the way here¡­¡± The 4th Commander did not answer directly. What¡¯s he talking about? ¡°I came across a terribly skinny man. Geez, he had a mouth full of wounds. It would frighten anyone to look at him.¡± Although I narrowed my eyes, the 4th Commander stared at me as he raised his cup of tea. His smile became so wide that it was reflected in his eyes. Then he whispered, like a child who tells a secret. ¡°He had stitches around his mouth. It looked like it had been sewn shut.¡± ¡°!¡± Grand Duke Lilteang immediately came to mind. While I looked at him, hiding my shock, he finally made his request. ¡°I¡¯m in charge of several missions at once, so I¡¯m a little short-handed right now. Lady Navier, if you agree, in exchange for Grand Duke Lilteang¡ªoops.¡± The 4th Commander tapped his mouth as if he¡¯d made a mistake, and named his request with a smirk. ¡°Could you lend the 5th division to me?¡± I was stunned. Can this truly be called a request? It seems more like ckmail. If I lend him the 5th Division, then he would tell me where we can find Grand Duke Lilteang. Chapter 448 Chapter 448. Brief Farewell (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t.¡± My answer was determined in advance. The 4th Commander seemed surprised by my answer. Was he so confident that I would fall for his ckmail? ¡°You can¡¯t?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t.¡± ¡°Wasn¡¯t I sufficiently clear? It¡¯s in exchange for Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s whereabouts.¡± The 4th Commander spoke in disbelief. It seemed that he hadn¡¯t considered the possibility of rejection. ¡°I don¡¯t intend to use the 5th Division for anything untoward, Your Majesty. Although it¡¯s not my own division, we are allrades. I just need help because I¡¯m short-handed.¡± ¡°Still, I can¡¯t agree to your request.¡± With a sly smile, the 4th Commander asked me a rather clever question. ¡°Did Commander Langdel warn you about me?¡± Of course, I didn¡¯t have to answer that question honestly. Fortunately, he wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that I was lying. ¡°No.¡± He cocked his head, even more confused by my firm answer. ¡°Then why¡­?¡± I mimicked his sly smile in an effort to look as rxed as possible. ¡°Before you threaten, you should first find out what methods work best with the other party. ckmail certainly doesn¡¯t work with me, Commander Angel.¡± That said, the 4th Commander got up from the couch and went to the door quietly. But just before he twisted the knob, he turned his head toward me, ¡°You know what?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°I would have been disappointed had you agreed to lend the 5th Division.¡± ¡°!¡± Was he trying to test me? Did he want to know if I would betray hisrades if it suited me? While suspicions arose in my mind, the 4th Commander added with a radiant smile. ¡°You have made your choice, Your Majesty. Don¡¯t say I didn¡¯t try to help.¡± *** When I awoke the next morning, Heinley was already gone. I summoned one of his attendants to find out the reason. ¡°His Majesty went out at dawn, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Howe?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know the details, Your Majesty. However, he didn¡¯t seem to be in high spirits. I suppose it is something serious.¡± The attendant looked worried. After I finished breakfast, I finally discovered the reason for his sudden absence. ¡°Grand Duke Lilteang was found in a bad state in the middle of the night outside the Eastern Empire¡¯s embassy, Your Majesty.¡± The news was reported to me by my attendant, and I instructed him to inquire further. After a pause, my attendant added, ¡°The embassy contacted Emperor Sovieshu right away.¡± ¡°So, is Grand Duke Lilteang with Emperor Sovieshu now?¡± ¡°No, he is still at the embassy. But it seems that Emperor Sovieshu demanded exnations from Emperor Heinley.¡± My attendant bowed and left the room. Mydies-in-waiting, with whom I had just eaten breakfast, looked at each other. They seemed worried that the Grand Duke had been found ¡®in a bad state¡¯. I couldn¡¯t tell them that everything would be alright. It was evident that the situation did not look good. I couldn¡¯t sit still, so I went to see Heinley, but he wasn¡¯t in his office. Only McKenna was there. He told me that Heinley had gone to his nest. ¡°You mean the one behind the Twilight Gardens?¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Thank you for letting me know.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Your Majesty.¡± However, McKenna rushed up to me as I was about to leave the office. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡° Did he have anything else to tell me? McKenna was hesitant, as if he didn¡¯t know whether to speak. ¡°Emperor Sovieshu med His Majesty for the Grand Duke¡¯s serious injuries.¡± McKenna watched for my reaction. Did he want me tofort Heinley, or did he have more to tell me about Sovieshu? I waited a moment, but he didn¡¯t say another word. So I replied that I understood, left the office and went to the Twilight Gardens. ¡®Heinley¡­¡¯ Atop the jeweled column, Heinley was in his bird form perched on the shabby nest of twigs. He stared nkly into the distance. What is he thinking? It didn¡¯t look good. His sadness was noticeable even in his bird form. I wanted to reach out to him tofort him, but every step I took was difficult. I wasn¡¯t sure what to do. As I pursed my lips, I saw Heinley wrap his wings around his head and then I heard him coo sadly. Fear overwhelmed me. If I approached him now, would I be reminding him of all he gave up for me? Would he begin to regret it? I was afraid that his regret would turn into resentment. Chapter 449 Chapter 449. Brief Farewell (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra While Navier was torn between desire tofort her husband and fear to face him due to her worry that he coulde to resent her, Mastas met with her brother, April. Together, they went to a secret conference among the Underground Knights. After the conference, as they walked back, Mastas asked her brother with concern. ¡°What is the word on the street about Grand Duke Lilteang?¡± The Grand Duke had been found outside the front gate of the Embassy of the Eastern Empire, so anyone who passed by must have seen his emaciated appearance. Mastas was concerned about how the passersby had reacted. ¡°Has anything been said about Our Majesty?¡± ¡°Do you mean Her Majesty the Empress or His Majesty the Emperor?¡± ¡°Of course I mean His Majesty Emperor Heinley. Empress Navier has nothing to do with this.¡± ¡°People know that Grand Duke Lilteang was punished because of what he did to Duke Zemensia¡¯s son. They believe that Emperor Heinley must have held the Zemensia Family in high esteem, otherwise he would not have treated a member of a foreign imperial family so harshly. They seemed pleased, since the Grand Duke has never had a positive image in our country.¡± Mastas was relieved. But she noticed that April¡¯s expression was somewhat solemn, so she asked, puzzled. ¡°What¡¯s with that face?¡± April answered reluctantly. ¡°People have a misconception.¡± ¡°A misconception?¡± ¡°Although the people seem pleased with His Majesty¡¯s actions, Her Majesty¡¯s reputation was affected by this situation.¡± Mastas¡¯ eyes widened and she grabbed April by the cor of his shirt. ¡°What are you talking about?! What did our empress supposedly do?!¡± ¡°I am but a messenger! What did I do to deserve to be tugged around with so much violence?¡± ¡°Oh, sorry.¡± Mastas quickly released her brother. He smoothed the wrinkled cor of his shirt while he huffed. ¡°As people see it, His Majesty held the Zemensia Family in high esteem, but in the end hepletely destroyed them due to his love for Empress Navier.¡± ¡°And how else should His Majesty treat a family of traitors?¡± ¡°The problem is that some people believe that His Majesty was willing to discard his loyal subjects for Her Majesty.¡± ¡°That¡¯s absurd! Those vultures had no understanding of what loyalty means. They targeted Her Majesty first!¡± ¡°Of course, most people share your opinion. However, I¡¯m concerned that the bad opinions of the minority will spread. People like to badmouth more than they like to praise.¡± ¡°That won¡¯t happen!¡± Mastas ruffled her brother¡¯s hair, making it so wild that it looked like a bird¡¯s nest. As April debated whether to tell his sister about an incident in which Easterners quarreled with Westerners who badmouthed Navier in their presence, he saw someone over Mastas¡¯ shoulder. His eyes widened and he raised his hand in greeting. ¡°Lord Koshar!¡± Mastas flinched and asked under her breath, ¡°Lord¡­ Lord Koshar is here? Behind me?¡± ¡°Here I am, Miss Mastas.¡± Mastas became stiff like a wooden doll, frozen in an awkward posture. With her eyes, she asked her brother for help. Mastas didn¡¯t actually know what kind of help she wanted, exactly, but she asked for help anyway. However, her brother misunderstood her silent pleas for help. He smiled with satisfaction, winked at her, and quickly left. Confused by April¡¯s sudden departure, Koshar asked, ¡°Has something urgente up?¡± Mastas sped her hands tightly and mumbled, ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t¡­ I don¡¯t know.¡± Flustered, her eyes wandered around the corridor. She couldn¡¯t help it. She had never spoken face to face with a man as handsome, delicate, and innocent as Lord Koshar. In fact, she thought that Lord Koshar seemed as pure as a lily of the valley. Mastas worried that Lord Koshar might faint suddenly, like before, so she wanted to speak carefully. ¡°Um¡­ Lord¡­ this ¡­ um, Lord Koshar.¡± ¡°Tell me, Miss Mastas.¡± ¡°Um¡­ the weather was bad a few days ago.¡± ¡°It was.¡± ¡°To avoid catching a cold, one can drink a ss of milk mixed with honey.¡± ¡°Is that advice you think I should follow?¡± ¡°Since you¡¯re delicate¡­ well, it¡¯s not a bad thing for you to be delicate. I like¡­ Lord Koshar is delicate.. Wait, that doesn¡¯t mean I like¡­ Uh, I don¡¯t dislike you either¡­ What I mean is, with your delicate constitution, you can easily catch a cold from bad weather. It would do you good to drink warm milk mixed with honey.¡± Mastas realized that it was very difficult to deal with a delicate man. She struggled to choose the right words so as not to hurt him. Since she lowered her head in embarrassment, she didn¡¯t notice Koshar¡¯s gaze on her as he held back hisughter. Amid her struggle to find the right words, she suddenly blurted out, ¡°Don¡¯t get sick!¡± Then, she quickly turned and ran down the corridor like a cheetah. Quietly, Koshar murmured to himself as he watched her run away. ¡°How endearing.¡± *** ¡°Mastas, why is your face so red? Weren¡¯t you supposed to meet your brother?¡± Rose teased as soon as Mastas entered the drawing room. Indeed, Mastas¡¯ face, neck and ears were as red as a tomato. ¡°Uh¡­ I¡­What?!¡± Laura chimed in. ¡°Maybe the brother you went to see¡­ was someone else¡¯s brother?¡± ¡°No!¡± Mastas spoke firmly. Then she stomped to the corner, pulled out her spear, and waved it. She seemed to be channeling the adrenaline through her spear. Rose and Laura looked at each other, giggling. Countess Jubel mumbled while shaking her head, ¡°She doesn¡¯t know how to lie.¡± ¡°She was definitely with a man, right?¡± ¡°Definitely. If not, why would she act like that?¡± ¡°I can hear you! I can hear it all!¡± Mastas screamed at them, put the spear away and stomped out of the drawing room. Mydies-in-waiting burst outughing. I also enjoyed their chatter. It was nice to set aside my worries about Heinley for a little while, while I enjoyed the cheerful atmosphere. After a while, Rose suggested that we eat pudding. Countess Jubel wanted cookies, and Laura remarked that if we were to have cookies, it would also be nice to have ice cream. They called the maids to order the desserts while I went to my bedroom. My clothes felt tight and I wanted to loosen some of the inside buttons. When I returned, all kinds of desserts were disyed on the table. We took our seats and picked up our forks. Just as I was about to taste the pudding, I was interrupted by a knight¡¯s voice outside the door, ¡°Your Majesty, Emperor Sovieshu is here to see you.¡± Mydies-in-waiting froze, mouths full and forks in midair. When I put down my fork, they all reluctantly put down theirs as well. Countess Jubel sighed and stood up, followed by the others. ¡°Stay here.¡± ¡°What?¡± Mydies-in-waiting¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Don¡¯t leave.¡± After I repeated my request, I got up to open the door myself. As soon as I opened the door, I saw Sovieshu holding a basket. When I stepped back, he walked past me into the drawing room. I spoke to him coldly. ¡°What brings you here?¡± Sovieshu nced at mydies-in-waiting. They stared at him with displeasure, but Sovieshu immediately turned to me and handed me the basket, as if he didn¡¯t mind the presence of mydies-in-waiting. ¡°It¡¯s a gift.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want it.¡± Despite my curt refusal, he set it down on the table next to the desserts. Then, he walked to the door, pausing before he left. ¡°You can look at itter.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll throw it away.¡± Countess Jubel and Laura, who didn¡¯t know that Emperor Sovieshu was actually the neen-year-old Sovieshu, coughed and looked startled. Sovieshu smiled bitterly. ¡°No matter how much you push me away, I have no choice but to hold on to you.¡± This surprised me. I asked mydies-in-waiting to stay because I thought he would not say inappropriate things in front of them to preserve what little is left of his pride. ¡°You are my soulmate. No matter how often you reject me, I will seek you out, Navier. Because I need you like I need air to breathe.¡± Sovieshu stared at me with bright eyes eager to say many things, then lowered his gaze. However, as if realizing that he was wasting time, he raised his head and looked at me. I felt as if he was memorizing every part of my face. Slowly, his eyes roamed all over my face. ¡°I love you, Navier.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t.¡± ¡°That doesn¡¯t change how I feel about you. Even though you say you¡¯ll nevere back to me, that you don¡¯t love me, even that you hate me, I love you. I¡¯ve thought of you as my wife all my life. How can I erase our days together now?¡± ¡°In time you wille to think of me as a stranger. It worked for me¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s possible. I will yearn for you no matter how many years pass.¡± ¡°Look for the silver-haired woman who looks like an angel. Then, it will surely be possible.¡± ¡°The silver-haired woman¡­¡± Sovieshu muttered with resentment. He must have heard about Rashta¡¯s appearance, but he couldn¡¯t seem to remember her. He just stared at me again and said, ¡°I heard that the Commander of the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights came to see you. He may be headed to the Eastern Empire to discuss the matter of the port, so I think I¡¯ll go back, even though I haven¡¯tpleted the two weeks yet.¡± He hesitated, so I spoke harshly. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Sovieshu nodded regretfully and whispered, ¡°Goodbye. I¡¯ll write to you.¡± Then he left. After I closed the door and returned to my seat, all mydies-in-waiting leaned forward and peppered me with questions. ¡°Is he really leaving?¡± ¡°What was that all about?¡± ¡°How can he ask Her Majesty to go back to him?¡± ¡°He is clinging to Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± I answered sharply, then went into my bedroom with the basket. Once I pulled aside the lid, I saw that it was filled with envelopes. Why did he do all this? Disgusted, I picked up the basket with the intention of sending it back, but a letter without an envelope caught my eye. When I took it, I saw the familiar penmanship. ¡ª This is the only letter written by me. The rest were written by travelers from the Eastern Empire I met during my stay here. They are mercenaries, businessmen and other fellow countrymen. These letters were written by people who appreciate you. Read them one by one, whenever you feel sad. Chapter 450 Chapter 450. Irresistible Offer (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡ª I wish Your Majesty happiness, wherever you are. ¡ª I wanted to request an audience with Your Majesty just to meet you once. It¡¯s a pity that in the end I couldn¡¯t do it. ¡ª If Your Majesty does not feel at home in the Western Empire because its people treat you poorly, you are wee back at any time. ¡°My Queen? What are you doing?¡± Heinley walked into the room as he dried his damp hair with a towel. Hey down next to me and watched me take the letters out of the basket one by one. I was engrossed as I read them, which seemed to arouse Heinley¡¯s curiosity. He naturally slipped his arm under my neck. ¡°I¡¯m reading letters.¡± I rested my head on his arm, then handed him one of the letters. ¡°These are letters written to you by people of the Eastern Empire?¡± As he read, he began to caress me with his hand. Although he spoke casually about mundane matters, his hand seemed to have naughty intentions. When I tapped the back of his hand with an envelope, Heinley let out a regretful chuckle. ¡°Have mercy on me, my wife. Since I can¡¯t embrace you, at least let me touch you. Please?¡± ¡°What are you pouting about? You¡¯re embracing me right now.¡± ¡°I had a different sort of embrace in mind¡­ An embrace that brings me even closer to you.¡± I raised my head to re at him, then I bit and tugged gently on his lower lip. Pleased, he yed along and kissed me passionately as he caressed my body. Afterwards, I rested my head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat, which was pounding. At that moment, Heinley stretched his leg and kicked the basket, making it fall off the bed. He grinned brazenly at me. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t like the owner of that basket, but I didn¡¯t mean to kick its contents.¡± He was clearly acting innocent¡­ but I let it pass and buried my head back into his chest. It was certainly better for Heinley to openly express his hatred towards Sovieshu than for him to iste himself in the nest with a nk expression. ¡°By the way, My Queen. How are things going between my brother Koshar and Princess Charlotte? What does my brother think of marrying her?¡± ¡°Although he wouldn¡¯t mind, I think he¡¯s still not sure.. However, I heard that he has met with Princess Charlotte a few times, so we may soon know his honest answer.¡± My feelings about Koshar marrying out of obligation were still ambiguous. Although most nobles were forced into arranged marriages, I knew how much my brother loved his freedom. I didn¡¯t know what would be best¡­ *** Viscount Langdel showed up the next day around two o¡¯clock in the afternoon. Although he had only been away for a few days, he seemed very exhausted due to the dark circles under his eyes. ¡°Viscount Langdel, are you all right?¡± I asked with concern, not intending to pry, to which Viscount Langdel answered with a tired voice, ¡°I feared that Commander Angel was the one who released Grand Duke Lilteang, so I hardly slept while I searched for him.¡± ¡°But Grand Duke Lilteang¡­¡± ¡°Yes, Commander Angel managed to elude me. He left the Grand Duke in front of the embassy.¡± I recalled the Viscount¡¯s soaked shoulders on the day with heavy rain. So he had been in search of the Grand Duke ever since. To my surprise, Heinley quietly allowed the Grand Duke to leave with Sovieshu to the Eastern Empire. More importantly, if it really had been Commander Angel who released the Grand Duke, why had he turned him over to Sovieshu so quickly when I knew he had no issues resorting to ckmail¡­ ¡°Are you sure it was Commander Angel who took the Grand Duke to the embassy?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but I suspect so. Forgive me for not telling you in advance, Your Majesty.¡± Viscount Langdel pressed his hands together in apology. Rather than reassure him that it didn¡¯t matter, I asked him more questions. ¡°Why did you ask me to refuse the 4th Commander¡¯s request? And why didn¡¯t you tell me that he was the one who would visit?¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t trust that my messenger could convey my words properly, or that something could happen to him¡­ Commander Angel was adamantly opposed when I decided to be Your Majesty¡¯s personal knight.¡± Viscount Langdel¡¯s answers were straightforward but gave me much to think about. Like the fact that the 4th Commander has a powerful influence, and the fact that Viscount Langdel managed to keep the 4th Commander somewhat at bay. In any case, it was a relief that Commander Angel left without causing more trouble. I was worried that his sudden appearance was rted to the mana decline phenomenon. Maybe things will be quiet for some time now that both Commander Angel and Sovieshu left. ¡°By the way, Your Majesty. Do you remember that you asked me to bring Miss Rivetti here? Well, my subordinate informed me that she epted the invitation and is on her way.¡± Chapter 451 Chapter 451. Irresistible Offer (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Where should Rivetti stay once she arrives? I don¡¯t know if she should stay in a room for distinguished guests, in a room fordies-in-waiting, or in one of the empty rooms near mine. ¡°If the room is too close to Your Majesty¡¯s, she might feel overwhelmed.¡± ¡°Geez, I don¡¯t think so, Miss Rose. Rivetti is the kind of girl who wants to be as close to the Empress as possible.¡± ¡°But Laura, Miss Rose may be right. She¡¯s a cheerful young girl, but¡­ a lot of bad things happened to her all at once. We can do our best to cheer her up, but she may need some time alone as well.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. She wasn¡¯t in her own territory, she was caught¡ª Ah, I meant, she was found in a nearby town. This may indicate that she wants to be alone and away from people who know her.¡± Mydies-in-waiting had different opinions, which changed repeatedly as they discussed the matter. It would not be easy toe to a consensus. After they went round and round for a while to no avail, they pushed me to go see Heinley. They thought that I should get his opinion, but it was obvious that they wanted to encourage me to spend more time with him. Secretly, I wanted to see Heinley too¡­ so I pretended not to understand their underlying motives and hurried off to get Heinley¡¯s opinion. But though I went to his office, the training grounds, the garden, and even the area behind the Twilight Garden where he built his precious nest, there was no trace of Heinley. Could he be hurt somewhere? Could he have been struck by an arrow while flying around? Did he get lost? What if he suddenly fainted? What if he crashed into a big tree mid-flight and broke his wing? I was bing anxious. It was worse when McKenna couldn¡¯t tell me where he was. ¡°He may be napping on a tree enjoying the sunlight, Your Majesty. He does it often. Don¡¯t worry.¡± McKenna smiled like it was no big deal that Heinley was missing, but how could I not worry? ¡°He could be in danger. A pretty little bird like Heinley attracts too much attention, McKenna.¡± ¡°What? A pretty little bird? You must not be talking about Heinley, but about me, right?¡± ¡°I meant Heinley. Of course, your blue feathers are also very pretty.¡± ¡°¡­ Forgive me, Your Majesty. With all due respect, I can¡¯t agree that Emperor Heinley is pretty or little. It¡¯s a matter of pride andmon sense.¡± McKenna shook his head as if to forget my words. Then, he quickly looked around to check that no one could see him, turned into a blue bird, and flew around the room. After a few turns, he picked up his clothes with his beak, flew out the window, and returned as a fully dressed man shortly after. ¡°The blue bird you just saw is little and pretty. His Majesty Heinley is huge.¡± In my eyes, Heinley¡¯s gold feathers were the prettiest. That was also because I love gold. Of course, I couldn¡¯t deny that McKenna was a bit smaller, but Heinley wasn¡¯t huge either. He was just the right size to hug himfortably. It was the most appropriate size for a bird. ¡°I¡¯ll continue to look for him.¡± McKenna didn¡¯t seem to be much help, so I left the ce and asked around again, bing more and more nervous. Suddenly, I recalled the fountain where I discovered that Heinley is Queen. The fountain in that abandoned pce had surprised me in several ways. Could he be there? As soon as I considered it, I felt an inexplicable certainty that Heinley would be there, so I quickly headed for the abandoned pce. I walked through the rickety front door, past the bumpy gravel path, and through the deserted corridor. Then, I saw the fountain. ¡®My intuition didn¡¯t fail.¡¯ Just as I expected, Heinley was there. He was sitting on the edge of the fountain, singing with his eyes closed while he looked up at the sky. His clothes were scattered nearby. His voice, deep and melodious, radiated the morning essence. As I leaned my head against the pir while I observed him and listened to his lovely voice, Heinley stopped singing and looked my way, as if he¡¯d sensed my presence. When our eyes met, he raised his eyebrows and smiled broadly. ¡°My Queen.¡± When I got closer to him, Heinley leaned into my stomach and whispered, ¡°Close your eyes, my baby.¡± Then he kissed the back of my hand, stood up, and kissed me on the lips. He didn¡¯t stop at that, he gently nibbled along my jawline and on my earlobes. But suddenly he closed his eyes and pulled away from me as he prayed under his breath. He stepped into the fountain and sank below the water, so that only his upper body was exposed. He looked at me and smiled awkwardly. He was too lovely, so I couldn¡¯t help but crouch down. I whispered as I held out my hand. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be shy, Heinley. You¡¯re all mine anyway.¡± Heinley blushed terribly. ¡°Who are you talking to, My Queen?¡± ¡°You spoke to my stomach, so I just spoke to yours.¡± ¡°But that wasn¡¯t my stomach, My Queen¡­¡± I lifted my hand and caressed his body, from his chest to his lips. Heinley bit my fingers with a slight smile. After we yed for a while, I removed my shoes and set them aside, lifted my skirt up to my knees, and stepped into the fountain. I sat on the edge, next to Heinley. ¡°The water is cold. Will you be alright?¡± Heinley was worried, but I reminded him that the day was warm. He nodded and we looked at each other in silence. ¡°Actually, Heinley, I¡¯m a little cold.¡± Heinley smiled, sat beside me, and pulled me close. In contact with his body, I felt a pleasant warmth envelop me. Not in the strange sense, but rather an authentic warmth that kept the cold at bay. As I warmed up in his arms, I btedly remembered the reason I began looking for him in the first ce. Then I remembered how worried I was as I searched for him. ¡°Before I came here, I was scared because I couldn¡¯t find you, Heinley.¡± Just the memory of it annoyed me. As Iined, I pped Heinley¡¯s thigh, who apologized with a flinch. ¡°I needed to organize my thoughts.¡± ¡°Does it help you toe here?¡± ¡°When Ie here¡­ I feel like my problems are not so serious.¡± ¡°Why? Is this ce special to you?¡± This fountain was a special ce for me. On the day when I saw Heinley in the fountain, the moment was all mine. Heinley didn¡¯t see me. So if this was a special ce for Heinley, it was likely due to something else, something that had nothing to do with me. I was curious to know what it was. Everything rted to Heinley fascinated me. ¡°Well, it¡¯s because of something that happened when I was young. It wasn¡¯t a good thing¡­ it was a little ident¡­¡± Heinley frowned and answered in an inconsequential tone. However, he didn¡¯t borate on the ident. He downyed it. I didn¡¯t know whether to inquire further or let it pass. I thought I should inquire further, to strengthen our bond, but I didn¡¯t want to open a wound that he didn¡¯t want to talk about just to satisfy my curiosity. So I changed the subject and brought up Rivetti. ¡°Rivetti will be here soon.¡± ¡°Rivetti?¡± Heinley tilted his head as if he couldn¡¯t remember who Rivetti was. Come to think of it, I didn¡¯t think Heinley had ever met her. ¡°She is Viscount Roteschu¡¯s daughter.¡± When I rified her identity, Heinley found it strange that the Viscount¡¯s daughter woulde to see me. Although Viscount Roteschu betrayed Rashta, back when I was still in the Eastern Empire he was in cahoots with her to destroy me. Once I exined that Rivetti was a youngdy who adores me, he finally understood. ¡°Given what happened to her father and brother, she must need the support. I will ask her to stay with me for some time¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright, My Queen. It¡¯s up to you. You are the mistress of this pce after all.¡± ¡°But I don¡¯t know which room to put her in.¡± Once I told Heinley about the three options I had discussed with mydies-in-waiting, he answered immediately. ¡°You said the youngdy adores you, right? That she has collected all your portraits? Then there¡¯s only one option. Give her a room as far away from you as possible.¡± ¡°Why?¡± ¡°Because she likes you a lot. It should be enough that she can stay in your Pce.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s my opinion, My Queen.¡± ¡°Rivetti is a woman, Heinley.¡± ¡°Your parents, your brother, and our baby bird are the only people I¡¯m not wary of, My Queen.¡± *** Grand Duke Lilteang was in agony during the journey to the Eastern Empire, and his condition became critical upon his arrival. Sovieshu even sent the Imperial doctor to the Grand Duke¡¯s mansion, but to no avail. The Grand Duke¡¯s health, already weak from months of malnourishment and harsh conditions in prison, hadpletely deteriorated due to the heavy downpour on the day of his escape. When Evely used her healing magic, his external wounds healed, but the illness persisted. His fever was constantly rising and falling. Four days passed like this and people began to suggest that Grand Duke Lilteang¡¯s son, the next in line to the throne, should be taken to the Imperial Pce just in case. It was at this moment that the 4th Commander of the Transnational Knights paid Sovieshu a visit. The officials were nervous, but those who had apanied Sovieshu to the Western Empire were not too surprised. During his return journey, Sovieshu read his diary and examined records rted to the port case. Various preparations were made beforehand so that even Day Sovieshu could stand with dignity in front of the 4th Commander of the Transnational Knights. However, what the 4th Commander said to him was unexpectedly positive. ¡°The Eastern Empire is in a real bind over the port case. So the Chief of the Alliance has an offer.¡± ¡°Offer?¡± ¡°Is it true that the Eastern Empire is investigating the Western Empire for its alleged involvement in the phenomenon of mana decline because it has found a clue to it? ¡°¡­¡± ¡°The Chief says that if you share the clue with us, the alliance will side with Your Majesty in the port case.¡± Chapter 452 Chapter 452. Finding Weak Spots (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra When the 4th Commander made the offer, Sovieshu raised his eyebrows. The 4th Commander smiled confidently, as if he had no doubt that Sovieshu would ept. ¡°No, thank you.¡± However, Sovieshu refused without giving it much thought. ¡°You refuse?¡± The 4th Commander was astonished. ¡°Are you sure?¡± A disdainful smile appeared on Sovieshu¡¯s lips. ¡°I certainly wouldn¡¯t shoot myself in the foot.¡± He still had no concrete evidence, but even if he did, he would not share it with the Transnational Knights. Mages constituted the Eastern Empire¡¯s strength. The Transnational Knights would initially use any evidence to corner the Western Empire. But what would happen after? Surely, the Transnational Knights would turn against the Eastern Empire. The port was precious, but it could be recovered, whether by force or diplomacy. But that wasn¡¯t the case with the mages. Sovieshu would never reveal the weak spot of his country¡¯s power simply to temporarily harm the Western Empire. The 4th Commander¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°I see. It¡¯s a shame, Your Majesty.¡± The 4th Commander bade Sovieshu a courteous farewell and left the Imperial Pce. His adjutant, who had been waiting outside, approached Angel as soon as he came out. ¡°How did it go, Commander?¡± ¡°He won¡¯t cooperate.¡± The 4th Commander answered with regret. ¡°His image will worsen with the loss of the port, so I thought he would cooperate.¡± ¡°He must know that mages are more important than the port.¡± ¡°No, both are important. Besides, there was a way to keep both.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Had I been in his position, I would have handed over the information to keep the port. Then, after the Western Empire was weakened by the Transnational Knights, I would destroy them, and finally I would get rid of the Wol Continent Alliance.¡± The adjutant got goosebumps as he listened to the 4th Commander¡¯s ruthlessness. ¡°That¡¯s a terrifying prospect, Commander. What if Emperor Sovieshues up with a simr n and suddenly changes his mind?¡± ¡°He¡¯s too stubborn and rigid. It probably won¡¯t happen.¡± ¡°Is that so?¡± ¡°Actually¡­¡± ¡®Actually, it¡¯s someone like Emperor Heinley who would think like this.¡¯ Hepleted the thought only in his mind, so his adjutant was puzzled. ¡°Commander? You were saying?¡­¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go to Blue Bohean. Unfortunately, the n toplete both missions simultaneously has failed. We have no choice but to solve them one at a time.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Ah, one more thing.¡± The 4th Commander, who was already on his way to the carriage, suddenly turned around. ¡°Yes?¡± A smirk shed in the 4th Commander¡¯s eyes. Meanwhile, back in the Imperial Pce, Sovieshu sent for Marquis Karl. By the time Marquis Karl hurried into his office, Sovieshu had a report open on his desk. It was about Duke Elgy and Rashta. After he waited a while in silence, Marquis Karl asked cautiously. ¡°You sent for me, Your Majesty?¡± With his eyes still fixed on the report, Sovieshu finally gave an order. ¡°Convey to the King of Blue Bohean to carefully consider his actions, for the sake of the friendship between our countries.¡± *** Sovieshu was busy protecting the port, the 4th Commander was busy with the two missions, and Heinley was working hard to eliminate traces of his preparations for war. After he said goodbye to Navier and turned into a bird, he flew to another location where he had cleverly concealed a mana stone. Once he retrieved the mana stones, there would be no evidence to support the suspicions against him. He didn¡¯t want to leave Navier since she was pregnant, but he had to act fast to prevent the Eastern Empire from finding out about his schemes. Heinley wanted to keep the method he used to speed up the phenomenon of mana decline a secret. Although he had been forced to abandon the war, he could someday pass on the secret to his children. He flew arduously until he finally spotted his destination. It was a beautiful open-air temple without walls. Many pirs held up the ceiling. Heinley had embedded a mana stone in one of those pirs. It was so well hidden that he had to retrieve it himself. However, just as he finished a reconnaissance flight, he spotted some suspicious people in the vicinity, so he continued to fly. ¡®Who are they?¡¯ Although the suspects were disguised as merchants and travelers, they couldn¡¯t be. No merchant or traveler would remain hidden near the temple, monitoring activity in all directions. ¡®Have they discovered that there is a mana stone around here? Are they Sovieshu¡¯s subordinates?¡¯ Worried, Heinley circled the sky. When one of the men separated from the group and went into the forest, Heinley quickly flew in that direction. Heinley swooped down towards the man and returned to his human form just before he hit the ground, knocking the man down from behind. ¡°ARGH!¡± The man fell to the ground. Heinley grabbed him by the hair and pulled back hard. ¡°Who are you?¡± ¡°Who¡­ Who am I?¡± ¡°You heard right. Who are you? What are you doing here?¡± The struggling man tried to draw his concealed knife, but Heinley stopped him with a jerk. The man then tried to bite his own tongue, but Heinley squeezed his jaw tightly, forcing the man to open his mouth. Since he still refused to answer, Heinley seized his knife and threatened him. The captive man sobbed and began to talk. ¡°The Alliance¡­ I¡¯m from the Alliance. I was assigned to investigate this area.¡± ¡°Which Division? Say it properly.¡± ¡°I¡¯m from the 4th¡­ The 4th Division of the Transnational Knights!¡± Heinley clicked his tongue and released the man¡¯s jaw. He knew that the 4th Commander tried to borrow the Knights of the 5th Division from Navier. ¡®He wasn¡¯t just looking into the port.¡¯ Heinley had wondered why the 4th Division was so short-handed as to have to borrow another division. ¡®He must be short of men because he¡¯s investigating the mana decline, too.¡¯ The 4th Commander had sent all the knights at his disposal to areas where mages were known to have lost their powers. Such a time-consuming investigation was tedious, but effective. It was also a method that could jeopardize Heinley¡¯s n to retrieve all the mana stones on his own. Just then, he heard a groan. The Knight he had captured was staring at him with frightened eyes. Although he had confessed his purpose under duress, he btedly seemed to realize that his life could not be spared. He had seen the face of Emperor Heinley. After a while, Heinley disposed of another Knight of the 4th Commander lurking near the temple, unearthed the hidden mana stone, and left the ce. Even though he had achieved his objective, he felt uneasy. ¡®I am running out of time.¡¯ Chapter 453 Chapter 453. Finding Weak Spots (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra It seems that when some leave, otherse. Two days after Heinley left for an urgent mission abroad, Viscount Langdel received a message from his subordinate that Rivetti had been brought to the capital. As soon as I heard the news, I went out into the garden with mydies-in-waiting. We wanted to wee Rivetti in person. At the moment when I started to wonder how long we had been waiting, we finally saw a carriageing in through the main gate. Mydies-in-waiting, who were yawning bored mere seconds earlier, pped their hands in joy at the sight of the carriage. As soon as the carriage came to a stop, the door burst open and Rivetti jumped out. ¡°Oh! Your Majesty! Your Majesty!¡± Rivetti ran to me. Viscount Langdel flinched at Rivetti¡¯sck of decorum. He seemed about to take a step forward to stop her, but before he could do so, I stepped forward myself with my arms open, and hugged Rivetti. ¡°Rivetti.¡± While Viscount Langdel tactfully stepped back, Rivetti burst into tears as soon as she was in my arms. ¡°Your Majesty, I¡¯ve missed you. I¡¯ve missed you a lot.¡± As I held Rivetti, I noticed that she had lost weight. I felt sad thinking about the terrible heartache she must have experienced. Her words were drowned out by sobs, so I patted her back, waiting for her to unburden herself. When she calmed down a bit, I kept an arm around Rivetti¡¯s shoulders and led her inside the pce. ¡°Let¡¯s go inside, Rivetti.¡± *** Once inside, tears continued to fall down Rivetti¡¯s face. ¡°Miss Rose, please bring the tea.¡± Rose soon returned and poured out a cup. I took it from her and handed it to Rivetti. After a few sips, Rivetti finally calmed down. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t want to cry. On the way here I told myself repeatedly that I wouldn¡¯t cry¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡± I barely spoke words of reassurance but her face twisted as if she was about to start crying again. However, she held back the tears. Afraid to broach the subject of how she had been recently, I just sat next to her and patted her arm. But only a momentter, I blurted out a thought that had been on my mind. ¡°Rivetti, would you like to stay in the Western Empire?¡± Rivetti¡¯s eyes widened at my offer. Even her sniffling ceased. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You can live here if you like.¡± It was a sincere offer. I took Rivetti¡¯s hand and squeezed it. Rivetti¡¯s eyes filled with tears again. ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± ¡°What do you think?¡± After a pause, Rivetti replied awkwardly. ¡°I really appreciate the offer, Your Majesty, but¡­ I can¡¯t stay. I came here because I wanted to see Your Majesty, but I cannot stay long.¡± Laura, who had been listening, intervened. ¡°Why not? You can stay here with us! Forget your sadness. Here, you can start over.¡± Rivetti shook her head with regret. ¡°I¡¯d love to stay¡­ but I inherited my father¡¯s estate. It may be a small estate, but my father asked me to look after it. Besides¡­ my mother is still there¡­¡± It was difficult to make a case against such reasons, so Laura dropped the subject. I didn¡¯t try to persuade Rivetti either, and drank my tea in silence. From the information gathered by Viscount Langdel¡¯s men, Rivetti had not been in her estate, but rather in a town nearby. It was evident that she had something else on her mind, but that didn¡¯t matter now. ¡°You must do what you think is best, Rivetti.¡± With her hands tightly wrapped around the warm cup, Rivetti answered in a whisper. ¡°Yes.¡± After we chatted some more, Laura led Rivetti to the room that had been prepared for her. The otherdies-in-waiting left one by one, until only Countess Jubel and I were left. I heard the Countess click her tongue. ¡°It¡¯s sad that such a cheerful young girl already looks so grim. Still, her resilience after all that has happened is admirable.¡± After Countess Jubel left, I sat in an armchair and hummed a luby for my baby. While I hummed, I thought about Rivetti¡¯s strength and courage. I had been through my own share of suffering and painful events, but it couldn¡¯tpare to Rivetti¡¯s suffering. Very suddenly, she lost her father and her brother. She was truly resilient. ¡®Suddenly¡­¡¯ Rivetti¡¯s situation made me think of Sovieshu¡¯s. His loss of memories made it possible for him to approach me brazenly, which angered me greatly. But now that I think of it, his situation was simr to Rivetti¡¯s. Sovieshu woke up overnight without his father, without his mother, and with his wife married to another man¡­ Comparing their situations made me ufortable, so I focused on my luby. *** The next morning, I woke up and walked to the window. As I stared up at the sky, I wondered whether Heinley had hurt himself, whether he achieved his objective, whether he was sad again¡­ Just then, I spotted a familiar golden bird flying towards me. When I opened the window in surprise, the lovely golden bird flew in and circled around the room. ¡°Queen!¡± It was Heinley. As soon as I yelled his name, Heinley quickly returned to his human form and embraced me. ¡°How have you been?¡± Before I could answer that I was fine, a set of questions came out of my mouth. ¡°What about your mission? Did it go well?¡± ¡°Yes, I retrieved another one. There are still many more.¡± ¡°Was it dangerous¡­?¡± Before we could talk about it, there was a knock at the door. ¡°Your Majesty. Miss Rivetti is here.¡± Since he had no clothes, Heinley hurried into the matrimonial bedroom, while I went out into the drawing room. Yesterday, Rivetti couldn¡¯t even speak properly and cried the whole time, but she seemed to have found herposure overnight and she stood in my drawing room with a resolute expression. ¡°Your Majesty¡­ may I ask you a favor? Rather, two favors.¡± ¡°Tell me.¡± We had just taken a seat when Rivetti blurted out. ¡°Your Majesty! I want to learn how to govern my estate.¡± ¡°It¡¯s a lot of responsibility¡­¡± ¡°Yes. I was never taught anything about it.¡± ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll help you as much as I can.¡± ¡°Thank you!¡± Rivetti stood up and curtseyed. When I gestured for her to sit down again, she did so quickly. I noticed that tears had welled up in her eyes. ¡°Didn¡¯t you have another favor to ask me?¡± Only then did Rivetti reply. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± In fact, I had anticipated that Rivetti would ask about managing her estate. However, it was hard to guess what other favor she would ask of me. Rivetti hesitated for a moment as she watched my expression. Then she asked carefully. ¡°Could you help me¡­ find Ahn?¡± ¡°Ahn?¡± ¡± Yes. My brother¡¯s son¡­¡± Chapter 454 Chapter 454. Unexpected Events (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra I looked at Rivetti in astonishment. If I remember correctly, she hated the child born between Rashta and her brother. I never expected that she would want to find him, and that she would ask for my help. On myst visit to the Eastern Empire, I had heard that the child was sentenced to be sold into very because both of his parents were criminals. ¡°I know it¡¯s difficult to understand, Your Majesty. I don¡¯t love him.¡± While I remained silent, Rivetti bowed her head and sped her hands tightly together. ¡°However¡­ he¡¯s the only link that remains between me and my brother. Although I don¡¯t love him, my brother loved him.¡± ¡°Do you want to take care of him?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t love him. I don¡¯t feel able to. But I don¡¯t want him to suffer.¡± I felt sorry for her. How much did she suffer? What must have brought about this drastic change of heart towards the nephew she had been ashamed of? ¡°I promise I¡¯ll find him.¡± I couldn¡¯t say no. Rivetti left after curtseying several times. ¡®She¡¯s a good girl.¡¯ Once Rivetti left, I went back to my room alone. I wanted to read to ease my troubled mind, so I opened a dictionary. As I studied each word in the dictionary, I came across the word ¡®nationality¡¯, and realized something btedly. ¡®Don¡¯t we need the cooperation of the Eastern Empire to find Rivetti¡¯s nephew?¡¯ The court records of the Eastern Empire would list the location where Rivetti¡¯s nephew was sold into very. There was no way for a foreigner to consult these records. My petition would be denied immediately. Rivetti wouldn¡¯t be allowed to consult those records either. There was no way they would show it to someone whose family was involved, especially if she was the powerless mistress of a small estate. ¡®What should I do¡­?¡¯ After I put the dictionary away and paced back and forth, I remembered that Sovieshu had sent a letter after his departure, which I had received yesterday. It was so absurd for him to send me a letter that I threw it in a box for useless things. Since I never intended to respond, I didn¡¯t even bother to read it. But now I need the letter. I could pretend to respond and ask him to help me find Rivetti¡¯s nephew. I looked for the box, found the letter, and unfolded it to see the familiar penmanship. ¡ª The 4th Division Commander came to see me. He said that if I revealed our evidence about the Western Empire¡¯s involvement in the mana decline, the Alliance would side with the Eastern Empire in the port case. ¡ª Don¡¯t worry, I refused. I did a good thing for you, don¡¯t you think? Doesn¡¯t this earn me some points? ¡ª By the way, my diary mentioned a man named Duke Elgy. What did I do to him to justify his inordinate hatred for me? Do you know the reason for his grudge? Oh, my!¡­ I never expected that his letter would be important! I could not believe that the 4th Commander attempted to make a deal with Sovieshu to obtain evidence about the mana decline. ¡°My Queen?¡± While I was still in shock, the door leading to the matrimonial bedroom opened slightly, and Heinley called me in a low voice. I needed to show the letter to Heinley, so I told him toe in quickly. ¡°Is the youngdy Rivetti gone?¡± ¡°She¡¯s gone. More importantly, you need to look at this.¡± Heinley walked in wrapped in a nket. ¡°What is it?¡± Heinley¡¯s expression turned grim as soon as he saw the letter. Then he nced at my face and returned his expression to a more innocent look, but it was clear that the mere fact that I had received a letter from Sovieshu had bothered him a little. ¡°Just focus on what it says at the top.¡± When I pointed to the part about the 4th Commander, Heinley became worried. ¡°In fact, I found two 4th Division knights lurking near the temple where I went to retrieve the mana stone.¡± ¡°Did they know something?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, but this letter suggests otherwise. They must have been sent to investigate because mages lost their mana in that area.¡± I could see now that with every word the Fourth Commander said was an attempt to manipte me. At the time, I thought that he only wanted to test me. Fourth Commander Angel might have an angelic smile as his name suggests, but he uses it to hide his deceit. ¡°Well¡­¡± Heinley narrowed his eyes and skimmed over Sovieshu¡¯s letter again. ¡°Either way, this sure isn¡¯t good news for me or for Emperor Sovieshu.¡± ¡°Why do you think it¡¯s not good for Sovieshu either?¡± ¡°It must have been a blow to themander¡¯s pride to have his offer refused. People who y dirty like him are especially prideful.¡± ¡°But all will be well, My Queen.¡± Heinley, who had be serious, set the letter aside and smiled broadly at me. ¡°No matter how much they dig, once I get rid of all the evidence, it will be over. After all, mana decline is a natural phenomenon that has been going on for a long time.¡± Still, I squeezed his hand anxiously. He squeezed mine in return. ¡°By the way, My Queen. Can I tear up this letter?¡± Ah! Rivetti! ¡°No, you need to write a response.¡± ¡°¡­ you are joking, right?¡± ¡°Rivetti asked for a favor¡­¡± Chapter 455 Chapter 455. Unexpected Events (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Heinley sent a reply to Sovieshu for me. The next day, he left to retrieve another mana stone, and Kapmen and Dolshi came unexpectedly to visit me. ¡°Dolshi wants to test you before teaching you how to master your magic.¡± However, it seemed that this was just a pretext. I knew it the moment I saw Dolshie in with some drawings. ¡°Here you go.¡± Each drawing was a depiction of a splendid shiny wall, so it was clear that it was not Dolshi¡¯s work. When I epted the drawings, Dolshi winked at me as if he was handing a bribe. Except that bribes must be carefully selected. It must be something desired by the person from whom one wants to obtain a favor, rather than something wished for by the one offering the bribe¡­ It was absurd, but given my suspicions of who Dolshi really was I didn¡¯t dare to reject the drawings, so I put them away. As if he at least had some self-awareness, Dolshi smirked. ¡°I¡¯ll take a look at your magic. Isn¡¯t there a more spacious ce?¡± ¡°Outside¡­¡± ¡°Not outside. Somewhere private.¡± I led them to an empty room on the first floor. It was set aside for meetings, and although it was spacious, there was almost no furniture other than a small table and chairs. ¡°How about here?¡± ¡°Yes, this room is fine.¡± Dolshi sat down, then turned to me with a serious expression, as if he had decided to evaluate me properly. ¡°First of all, let¡¯s see what you¡¯re capable of. I want you to use your magic to the best of your ability.¡± I nodded and took the small bell. As I was about to call my butler to order a bucket of water, Dolshi stopped me. ¡°Hang on, funny-nameddy.¡± Dolshi pointed his hand at the small bell. ¡°What are you going to do?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to ask for a bucket of water.¡± ¡°Do you intend to freeze only water all your life? If you want to master your ice magic to drink cold water, I suppose it is useful, but if you don¡¯t want to stop there, you must forget that method.¡± In my practice sessions, I had always focused on freezing things. How was I supposed to do it then? When I looked at him in bewilderment, he raised his chin. ¡°Just release your magic.¡± At first, I felt anxious because I didn¡¯t understand what I was supposed to do¡­ but,e to think of it, I had indeed used ice magic out of thin air before, hadn¡¯t I? Like when I instinctively deflected Duke Zemensia¡¯s fall¡­ I nodded and awkwardly raised my hands. I wasn¡¯t used to it, so I felt like an entric mage with my hands in the air like this. Still, as I focused my attention, a thin ice-like substance appeared around my hands and fell to the ground. ¡®It worked!¡¯ However, when I nced sideways towards Dolshi, he was unimpressed. ¡°You¡¯re too weak.¡± I felt a little defeated and lowered my hands. Grand Duke Kapmen quickly took my side. ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t it impressive that she aplished this in such a short time?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you know you are no good at lying?¡± This made me upset. Deep down, Grand Duke Kapmen also thought that my skill as a mage was poor. He avoided my eyes when I shot him a sharp look. Well, he had been one of the academy¡¯s top graduates after all¡­ I felt even more sullen. ¡°Funny-nameddy. You know who wants you to use magic like that?¡± ¡°The enemy?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± Dolshi pointed upwards and said, ¡°Try it again.¡± If I knew how to do it, I wouldn¡¯t have asked for his help¡­ *** Dolshi nagged me for about two hours. Frankly, he didn¡¯t help me at all. At least he helped me realize that magic is self-taught. I had to perfect my magic on my own. Dolshi did nothing but criticize me from thefort of his chair during these two hours, but he rubbed his neck and groaned. ¡°This is tiring, really tiring.¡± He stretched out in the chair and said, ¡°I want coffee.¡± When I red at him, he even went so far as to mock me. ¡°Ah, I forgot. You can¡¯t drink coffee.¡± ¡®He¡¯s so cocky that he must be the dragon. He¡¯s a rather irksome dragon.¡¯ I onlyined inwardly while I kept a serene expression. I called a servant and instructed him to bring coffee and refreshments. Dolshi seemed to be truly hungry. When the food arrived, Dolshi was excited and ate relentlessly. At the same time, he talked to Kapmen about subjects that I didn¡¯t know anything about. Kapmen had something to say about all of them. ¡®They seem to be good friends.¡¯ It was curious to see Kapmen, whom I considered a prim and rigid noble like myself, respond to Dolshi¡¯s unscrupulous remarks without a moment¡¯s hesitation. Slowly I also became interested in their conversation. Dolshi talked about endless deserts, mountain peaks that pierce clouds, and huge many-legged monsters that emerge from the ocean. The world he described was a far cry from my life in the imperial pce, surrounded by elegance, soft perfumes, exquisite silk, and fine music. Still, his life seemed to have its own charm. As I listened to the two of them in silence, Dolshi suddenly changed the subject with a twinkle in his eyes. ¡°Kapmen.¡± ¡°What?¡± Dolshi leaned forward and spoke quietly. ¡°You mentioned something about a love potion in one of yourst letters. You wanted to find a way to reverse its effects.¡± Kapmen shuddered, and so did I, but Dolshi didn¡¯t notice. ¡°Did you get rid of the effects?¡± Apparently, Grand Duke Kapmen had also asked Dolshi for help with the love potion. ¡°¡­ I did.¡± ¡°How?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know how to exin it.¡± I didn¡¯t feel much interest in that subject, so I awkwardly picked up a cookie and munched on it. Dolshi, on the other hand, found the subject of the love potion fascinating and spent the next half hour questioning Grand Duke Kapmen about the potion, its side effects, and forming conjectures about possible antidotes and how the Grand Duke was finally freed of the effects. In the end, he asked, ¡°Kapmen, do you have any of that potion left?¡± When Kapmen stared at him with a frown, Dolshi grinned. ¡°Give me one.¡± ¡°What for?¡± ¡°Just give it to me.¡± A confident smile spread across Dolshi¡¯s face. With apprehension, Kapmen asked, ¡°What are you going to do?¡± Dolshi responded as if it were obvious. ¡°I¡¯ll drink it.¡± Kapmen was incredulous. ¡°What are you talking about? Didn¡¯t I just tell you how much it made me suffer?¡± However, Dolshi was stubborn. ¡°It won¡¯t happen to me, I¡¯m not that weak. Still, it¡¯s fascinating that it had such a powerful effect on you.¡± Kapmen¡¯s eyebrow was twitching, but Dolshi continued to pester with the same stubborn insistence of a child. ¡°I¡¯m curious to know what it feels like. Give it to me. I¡¯m a great mage, so I can counter it quickly.¡± I didn¡¯t know dragons were such obstinate creatures. Just as Dolshi continued to bring me drawings and designs ever since he found out about the Jewel Dam¡­ now he seemed determined to obtain Kapmen¡¯s potion by any means necessary. With a startle, I saw something sh red inside of Dolshi¡¯s eyes. The energy around him suddenly became menacing. His eyes sparkled with malevolence. Eventually, Kapmen reluctantly stood up and left the room. I assumed he would fetch the potion. Once the door closed, Dolshi turned to me. ¡°If you¡¯re well rested, funny-nameddy, get back to practice.¡± When I made ice powder out of thin air for the umpteenth time, the Grand Duke returned with the potion. Grand Duke Kapmen handed Dolshi the small bottle in his hand. Giggling, Dolshi seized the bottle from him like a rascal. ¡°Dolshi, I am warning you¡­¡± Despite Kapmen¡¯s efforts to dissuade him once more, Dolshi removed the cork and drank directly from the bottle before Kapmen finished his warning. ¡°!¡± Kapmen and I hid under the table at the same time. It was a reflex provoked by our devastating experiences with the potion. ¡°It doesn¡¯t taste like anything¡­ What? Why did you two hide? I need to see someone¡¯s face for the potion to take effect.¡± Kapmen shook his head, to stop me from leaving my hiding spot. Since I agreed, I nodded. Dolshi had imed that he could counteract the potion immediately, but I didn¡¯t want to take any risks. It could also have side effects for Dolshi. ¡°Which of you will volunteer?¡± Annoyed by the situation, Dolshi began to tap on the table behind which we were hiding. Still, Kapmen and I crouched still as dead, so heughed and said. ¡°If neither of you will volunteer, I will choose instead.¡± He stood up, and his chair fell to the floor. At the same time, I heard the door open. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± It was McKenna¡¯s voice. I looked up, perplexed and my eyes met Kapmen¡¯s. We both knew what was about to happen and hurriedly stood up at the same time. Dolshi¡¯s gaze was already on the door. I swallowed dryly. Will it take effect? Come to think of it, he¡¯s a dragon, so hopefully¡­it¡¯s unlikely¡­ Right? Just then, Dolshi pointed towards McKenna and asked me, ¡°Who is that lovely little blue bird, so blue like it¡¯s made out of the blue sky itself?¡± Chapter 456 Chapter 456. A Bedtime Story (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Where is the lovely little blue bird he talks about? I was so stunned that I couldn¡¯t answer right away. Of course, McKenna is a blue bird, but how¡­ ¡®Oh, my.¡¯ I shouldn¡¯t have thought about that while in the presence of Grand Duke Kapmen. However, it wasn¡¯t easy to control thoughts. Now that the thought that McKenna is a blue bird crossed my mind, it was harder to shake it off. I hastily looked over at Grand Duke Kapmen, but he only stared at Dolshi, as if he had not paid attention to my thoughts at all. I was a little relieved. Anyway, on second thought, I realized that he must certainly already know about this. Except for Dolshi, whose thoughts he couldn¡¯t read, was there anyone else in this world whose secrets he didn¡¯t know? In any case, what was important now were Dolshi¡¯s strange words. Without hesitation, and without even batting an eye, I said, ¡°A blue bird? I don¡¯t see any blue birds here.¡± McKenna was still frozen by the door. I could almost hear his heartbeat. Dolshi¡¯s eyebrows rose as he stared at McKenna. He then turned back to me. ¡°Right there. A lovely little blue bird. Oh my! So lovely how it pped its wings.¡± I looked at Grand Duke Kapmen and wondered in my mind, ¡®Dolshi has repeated ¡®blue bird, blue bird¡¯ several times. Does he really see him as a blue bird, or is he saying that because of his blue hair?¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen didn¡¯t look at me, but he shook his head slightly. He didn¡¯t seem to know either. He had said that he couldn¡¯t hear Dolshi¡¯s thoughts after all. Meanwhile, Dolshi approached McKenna, who turned and fled in a hurry. Dolshi ran after him. *** Fortunately, Dolshi seemed toe to his senses a few hourster. I didn¡¯t witness it myself. I heard from McKenna that Dolshi stopped the pursuit suddenly, looked around,and walked off somewhere. But he didn¡¯t return to the room where he taught me to use my magic, so Grand Duke Kapmen also left. He promised to return at ater date. ¡°What the hell was that?¡± Once he determined it waspletely safe toe to my office, McKenna came in with a pale face. ¡°¡­ He may be a dragon.¡± When I told him about Dolshi, McKenna¡¯s face turned even paler. ¡°But¡­ but why did the dragon call me a blue bird?¡± ¡°Maybe he was hallucinating.¡± ¡°How could it be?¡± Since I couldn¡¯t talk about the love potion, I just shook my head. McKenna shuddered with fright as he rubbed his forearms. ¡°He called me ¡®blue bird¡¯ with his eyes fixed on me! Gosh, for a moment I felt like my heart would jump out of my chest.¡± Was there anything I could say to calm him down? I only smiled awkwardly while McKenna continued to grumble, until his expression suddenly became serious after a few minutes. ¡°Oh, no. That strange dragon made me forget all about the urgent matter I had to tell you. Your Majesty, I need your opinion about a religious ceremony.¡± ¡°Religious ceremony?¡± ¡°Yes, a renowned priestess who left on pilgrimage will pass through our Empire. A neighboring country recently held a grand ceremony to wee her. The priestess blessed them and said that the country will be reinvigorated by the royal family¡¯s next generation.¡± McKenna paused and spoke quietly. ¡°It¡¯s only a blessing, but some interpreted her words as a prophecy.¡± Then, he continued speaking normally. ¡°I heard that she usually says positive things. I thought it would be a good idea to wee her and invite her to stay at the Imperial Pce.¡± Certainly, if the priestess says nice things about the Western Empire¡¯s future, people will be happy. These were troubled times, so perhaps a blessing for our future would sow the seeds of hope in the people¡¯s hearts. However¡­ ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you ask Heinley?¡± It should be Heinley who decides whether to hold the ceremony. If he agreed to wee the priestess, I would take care of the rest. ¡°Well¡­¡± McKenna sighed with a gloomy face. ¡°I think she¡¯ll arrive before His Majesty Heinley returns.¡± Heinley had left only this morning and would return soon, but McKenna didn¡¯t ask for his opinion before he left? If a neighboring country had held a grand weing ceremony for her, how did we lose track of her whereabouts until she was so close to arriving? ¡°How is that possible?¡± ¡°The priestess concealed her whereabouts after thest ceremony. She may have been overwhelmed. It¡¯s even possible that she intended to pass incognito across the Western Empire; members of our tribe discovered her on the way back from a mission to retrieve a mana stone.¡± ¡°I see. It¡¯s not an easy decision to make.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right, Your Majesty.¡± In this case, it was not a question of whether I should wee her or hold a ceremony on Heinley¡¯s behalf. It was a question of whether I should receive her with avish ceremony when the priestess might want to pass through discreetly. If we were to hold a grand weing ceremony, the priestess might be offended and curse us. This would greatly hurt the public opinion about the Imperial Family. But if we pretended not to know that she would be passing through and she left without a wee, if the people find out they mightin that we were too impolite. Since Heinley was absent, I would be the target of any discontent. McKenna anxiously asked, ¡°What shall we do, Your Majesty?¡± Chapter 457 Chapter 457. A Bedtime Story (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Arge ship docked in one of the ports of Blue Bohean. There was no g indicating the ship¡¯s affiliation. A total of twelve people disembarked from therge ship. They quickly dispersed, and one of them walked through the empty back streets for a while before boarding a carriage. The man asked the coachman to make a brief stop at one of the busy markets. After visiting a few stores, the man returned to the carriage. This time, he was headed to a faraway destination. The carriage only stopped deep in the udia Duchy. ¡°Here we are, Your Grace.¡± It was Duke Elgy who climbed out of the carriage. After the butler greeted him solemnly, Elgy entered the mansion. He carried a small briefcase in his hand, but left his luggage for the butler to take inside. The interior of the mansion was bright and decorated in light cream and purple hues. The atmosphere was idyllic, as if pleasant music was about to y at any moment. Despite therge size of the mansion, few people resided there. It was more like a majestic dollhouse than afortable residence. Duke Elgy paused in the foyer and looked around pensively. The butler, who had followed him, asked, ¡°Would you like to see the Grand Duke?¡± ¡°No.¡± Duke Elgy answered curtly and ordered the butler to take his suitcase to his room. He turned to leave, but after a few steps he stopped dead in his tracks. A voice called to him cheerfully. ¡°My son!¡± Elgy turned around and looked up with a frown. On the second floor balustrade, a svelte woman stood with a broad smile. Elgy¡¯s face hardened like a stone when he saw the woman, whose face was partially veiled by her hair. ¡°When did you arrive, my dear son?¡± The woman descended the stairs with soft steps like a butterfly and stood in front of Duke Elgy. With her elegant dress and straight posture, she looked like a distinguished noblewoman. Her eyes were full of affection as she looked at Duke Elgy. ¡°The recent months have been hard for me because I¡¯ve missed you so much, my son. You should¡¯ve at least written to me.¡± The woman smiled and took Duke Elgy¡¯s arm, but he quickly shook her off. ¡°My son¡­ are you still displeased with your mother?¡± The woman asked with a pitiful look, but Duke Elgy turned to leave. This time, he was stopped by the angry voice of a man. ¡°What do you think you¡¯re doing?!¡± His father shouted from the stairs. ¡°You must answer when spoken to.¡± At the sight of his father, Duke Elgy¡¯s eyes became much colder. Even more so than when he saw the woman moments before. His son¡¯s expression of intense displeasure, as if he had seen a most despicable and unclean person, caused Grand Duke udia¡¯s face to darken. Elgy didn¡¯t speak at all, he just turned and walked through the arched doorway to the back of the mansion. ¡°Elgy.¡± Although toote, Grand Duke udia sternly called after his son. The woman covered her face with her hands and sobbed. ¡°Darling, will Elgy never forgive me?¡± Her sobs echoed in the foyer with genuine sadness. The butler and Grand Duke udia looked at her with troubled expressions. *** The door led to a garden, covered partially by a roof. The vines, which in summer dyed the roof purple with grapes, were now just twisted dry branches. The apple trees scattered around the backyard were full of delicious red apples, but Duke Elgy didn¡¯t even nce at them as he walked. When he reached the far side of the garden, the path became a narrow trail that slowly disappeared among the trees. Duke Elgy lifted the branches that stood in his way and followed this trail. He walked like this for a while, until a cottage came into view. It was quite smallpared to the main building, but it was cozy. In the clearing between the path and the cottage, there was a small vegetable garden and, beside it, a woman. She was immobile in a wheelchair, so it was difficult to discern whether the woman was a person or a corpse. She must have heard Elgying through the bushes, but she didn¡¯t even turn her head. ¡°Mother.¡± Duke Elgy called her hoarsely. Only then did the woman turn her head. When the woman saw him, the light instantly returned to her lifeless face. The moment she reached out her hand, Elgy dropped his briefcase, rushed over to her, knelt and took her hand. He rested his cheek on the back of her bony hand. ¡°I¡¯m home, mother.¡± His warm murmur waspletely different from his cold tone before. The leaves on the trees around them fluttered in the breeze. Duke Elgy lifted his head and took off his coat. Then he stood up and ced it on the woman¡¯s shoulders. ¡°Isn¡¯t it cold? Shall we go inside?¡± When the woman shook her head and said she wished to stay outside longer, Elgy picked up his briefcase and pulled out a long scarf from inside. As soon as he wrapped it around the woman¡¯s neck, she smiled and grabbed Elgy¡¯s hand. ¡°Are you warm enough, Mother?¡± The woman nodded. Elgy slowly pushed the wheelchair so she could take a closer look at her vegetable garden. She began to hum a song, but after two turns around the garden she broke into a violent fit of coughing. Her cough sounded so painful that he worried she might spit up blood if it continued. Elgy rushed inside with the woman in his arms andid her on the bed. He propped the pillows against the headboard and helped her sit up. Fortunately, the inside of the cottage was warm because the firece was lit. Then he boiled some water, made an herbal tea, and took it to her. After she drank, he carefully helped hery down and wrapped her in a thick nket. Once he was sure she wasfortable, Elgy pulled up a chair next to the bed and sat down. ¡°I heard an amusing story on the way here, mother. Do you want to hear it? It¡¯s about a man who betrayed his vows with the naive woman who loved him. Again.¡± The woman closed her eyes weakly. ¡°Of course, the man was punished along with the despicable woman he took as his mistress.. And¡­ that¡¯s not the end of the story yet. Would you like to hear it?¡± A slight smile shed across the woman¡¯s lips and she nodded with her eyes closed. Chapter 458 Chapter 458. Do You Remember? (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra I pondered the matter of how to wee the priestess for a moment and made a decision. ¡°Let¡¯s talk to her first. Let¡¯s not n a public weing ceremony yet. I will personally ask the priestess if there¡¯s anything we can do for her.¡± The priestess wouldn¡¯t like us to hold a grand celebration, since she was trying to pass through incognito. And while some might say that ¡®sometimes doing nothing is the best option¡¯, in this case, it could backfire. If the peopleter find out that I didn¡¯t even try to greet the priestess, they mightin. It was necessary to find apromise. When both options are precarious, the best choice is to find a middle ground. ¡°I understand. I¡¯ll find out her precise location, Your Majesty.¡± Three dayster, I set off early for the ce where the priestess was to pass, escorted by a small retinue that included Viscount Langdel, a few of his knights, and trusted Imperial Guards, all disguised as ordinary people. McKenna was also with me. I had been surprised to discover that McKenna was skilled inbat. More importantly, he could also transform into a bird and quickly ry a message if a problem arose. In the countryside, not too far from the capital, we waited like travelers for the priestess to pass by. Soon after, we saw a woman in a cassock trudging in our direction. She was unescorted and looked extremely tired. Anyone who saw her would not discover her identity. Nothing about her pointed to her status as priestess. There were all kinds of priests. While the current High Priest could be recognized at first nce, I had heard that he looked like azy thug in his days as a novice priest, although I could not imagine it. ¡°Huh?¡± Just then, the priestess, who had been shuffling forward with a pained expression, stopped and looked at me. She then looked around and noticed McKenna, Viscount Langdel, and the knights around me. She rolled her eyes, rubbed her forehead, and groaned. ¡°I can¡¯t believe that I¡¯ve been found even though I attempted to hide my route.¡± She seemed to know who we were. I stood up with Viscount Langdel¡¯s help and approached her. ¡°Am I slowing you down?¡± She smiled helplessly and bowed. ¡°No. It just took me by surprise. I didn¡¯t expect you toe here yourself¡­¡± ¡°I heard that you wish to pass through our Empire discreetly. However, it was difficult for me to turn a blind eye since the High Priest has helped me so much.¡± ¡°I beg your pardon, Your Majesty.¡± This time she bowed in apology, then scratched her nose awkwardly. ¡°I heard you are on pilgrimage. Is there anything I can do for you? If so, let me know.¡± ¡°Do not worry, I must only walk straight. ¡­ Actually, it would be nice to have a carriage or a horse, but then it wouldn¡¯t be a pilgrimage, so I can¡¯t ask for it.¡± Sheughed sheepishly and, for no apparent reason, bowed to me again. Then she turned her attention to Viscount Langdel and whispered quietly to me. ¡°He is a straight and honest man. But his righteousness may not always be helpful to you.¡± What does she mean? I didn¡¯t have time to wonder, as the priestess next looked at McKenna and clicked her tongue. ¡°Why? What did I do?¡± Since the priestess only clicked her tongue once more, McKenna became irritated. The priestess then turned her attention to me, ignoring McKenna¡¯s reaction. I¡¯d like to receive a blessing, but I didn¡¯t know what she was about to say. She became more solemn than I expected, so I swallowed dryly. Still, I maintained myposure. Finally, the priestess whispered softly so that I could only hear her. ¡°!¡± I was stunned and tried to understand the meaning of her words, but before I could ask any questions, she continued speaking, louder this time. ¡°The people of the Western Empire should rejoice. Her Majesty¡¯s marriage to Emperor Heinley has suppressed his bloodthirsty nature.¡± The Imperial Guards looked at me in surprise. ¡°I must be on my way, so I ask for your understanding.¡± That said, the priestess bowed to me and continued her pilgrimage alone. ¡°Goodness. Why did she look at me in such an ominous way?¡± McKenna grumbled in horror as he stared at her, then turned to me. ¡°By the way, Your Majesty. What did that priestess whisper to you earlier?¡± *** ¡°if you have more than one child, make sure you raise them to be close.¡± That was what the priestess whispered to me. In principle, it didn¡¯t seem like anything out of the ordinary. It¡¯s what any family with more than one child desires. However, the priestess had said this wish desired by all parents in a low voice so that no one else would hear. Why is that? ¡°Your Majesty, what did the priestess tell you?¡± ¡°You don¡¯t have to be a fortune teller to know that it was something very good. Right?¡± ¡°Did she say your baby will also be a great Emperor?¡± ¡°No, she must have said that our Empress will be a great mage.¡± Mydies-in-waiting, who knew I had gone out to see the priestess, peppered me with questions as soon as I returned, but I couldn¡¯t answer them withplete sincerity. I even found it hard to repeat, ¡®Heinley was lucky to have met me.¡¯ In the end, I just smiled. ¡°The people of the Western Empire should be grateful that Emperor Heinley married Her Majesty.¡± But the story was openly told by Viscount Langdel, causing mydies-in-waiting to exim with delight. ¡°That¡¯s true!¡± Mydies-in-waiting were happy to hear this because it would help change people¡¯s minds. There had been reportstely that some people were concerned about Heinley¡¯s actions towards the Zemensia Family. They said he became cruel because of me. The priestess¡¯ words would boost my reputation. ¡°The Imperial Guards escorting Your Majesty also heard, so the news will soon spread. Maybe that¡¯s why the priestess said it out loud.¡± Viscount Langdel smiled softly when our eyes met. I only mumbled thanks, unable to convey the fact that the priestess made a strange remark about him. Chapter 459 Chapter 459. Do You Remember? (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Since I kept no secrets from Heinley, I told him everything the priestess said once he returned two dayster. ¡°She said to make sure we raise our children to be close? Maybe she couldn¡¯te up with a better blessing and said the first thing that came to mind.¡± He frowned as he considered the priestess¡¯s prophecy about our children. While it may not have meant anything in particr, he also thought it was strange. And when I told him that the priestess clicked her tongue at McKenna twice, Heinley let out a chuckle. However, Heinley became serious when I reached the part about Viscount Langdel. ¡°You know, I saw more knights from the 4th Division on mytest trip.¡± ¡°Do you think they¡¯ve discovered something?¡± ¡°No. It seemed the same scenario asst time. Surely they heard about someone who lost their mana in that area, so they are prowling for evidence.¡± ¡°Did you have to face them?¡± Heinley told mest time that he had no choice but to ¡°take care of¡± some Knights of the 4th Division he encountered. Otherwise, he would have left with the uncertainty of how much the knights already knew. I became concerned since he hade across more Knights from the 4th Division. The 4th Commander would be suspicious if his Knights frequently disappeared during their investigations. He would naturally conclude that someone was trying to eliminate evidence. ¡°I diverted their attention by causing amotion nearby. But I also can¡¯t resort to that every time.¡± *** There are three methods to recover the mana stones without being discovered: Eliminate anyone who might witness the mana stone retrieval; Wait until the Knights are distracted; Create a distraction. So far, Heinley eliminated the witnesses and created a distraction. While these methods are efficient, it would arouse suspicion if used repeatedly. The other option depended on how well-trained the knights of the 4th Division are. Competent knights do not let their guard down frequently. So a new method was necessary. ¡®Come to think of it, couldn¡¯t Marquis Ketron use illusionary magic?¡¯ It would be convenient to enlist the help of Marquis Ketron¡­ but Marquis Ketron didn¡¯t seem to know of Heinley¡¯s involvement in the mana decline. Moreover, even though he was now on our side, Heinley still didn¡¯t trust himpletely. Could Marquis Ketron be tricked into helping Heinley without giving him any context? That might work once or twice, but not much else¡­ Still, I think it would be fine. Unless there were dozens of mana stones scattered around, no, even if there were hundreds of mana stones, we would take any help we could get. Well, at least I¡¯ll keep this option in mind. In truth¡­ I preferred to ask Dolshi for help, only I had doubts about what he might want in return. He had requested so many jewels for teaching me to master my magic. What would he want in return for retrieving the mana stones? Still, it wouldn¡¯t hurt to ask. However, how would Dolshi react to the Western Empire¡¯s involvement¡­ As I stirred the warm water in therge basin with my hands, deep in thought, I heard Dolshi¡¯s voice. ¡°Funny-nameddy, don¡¯t tell me that¡¯s what you call training?¡± When I looked up in surprise, Dolshi came directly toward me. Grand Duke Kapmen walked beside him with a worried expression. As I stared at Dolshi with my hands in the warm water, he cleared his throat and avoided my gaze. I guess he remembered that he suddenly ran off after a blue bird while teaching me magic. ¡°It¡¯s a good way to train.¡± In a matter of three seconds, Dolshi changed his mind. He smiled brazenly and waved his hand for me to continue. Since I had only been ying with the water, I took my hands out and dried them with the towel on myp. Dolshi looked around and indicated with his eyes that he wanted space. I asked mydies-in-waiting and Viscount Langdel to give us privacy, and they moved away at once, but kept me in sight. Dolshi seemed satisfied and asked, ¡°Funny-nameddy. Is the blue bird I saw a sort of bird that is bred here?¡± ¡°¡­¡± I kept my mouth shut. I couldn¡¯t think of what to answer. Dolshi tilted his head and murmured. ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure it was a blue bird. It looked so cute I followed it, but I couldn¡¯t find it. When I came to my senses, there was no bird.¡± Rather than a bird, he would have seen a man with blue hair¡­ ¡°Kapmen, could it be that your wonderful potion also causes hallucinations?¡± When Grand Duke Kapmen quickly shook his head, Dolshi insisted, ¡°Funny-nameddy. Do you raise birds in the pce? Blue birds?¡± I wasn¡¯t able to say no. If Dolshi spots McKenna flying around in his bird form, he might think I¡¯ve lied to him and be ferocious. ¡°We breed those kinds of birds, but¡­ why do you ask?¡± ¡°What do you mean why? Because I saw a cute one.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t you think that was a side effect of the potion? Now that the effects have worn off, do you really need the bird?¡± I couldn¡¯t understand how the potion caused Dolshi to see McKenna, who was in his human form at the time, as a bird, but anyway¡­ Dolshi tilted his head at my words and smiled carelessly, agreeing with me. But¡­ ¡°Still, it made me feel good. Come to think of it, I think I¡¯d like to raise a bird.¡± Just then, I heard a familiar voice. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± It was McKenna! McKenna rushed over to me clutching an envelope, but as soon as he saw Dolshi, he stopped dead in his tracks. He couldn¡¯t even open his mouth as his eyes darted everywhere, as if he was terrified now that he knew Dolshi was truly a dragon. However, Dolshi paid no attention to McKenna. Under the influence of the potion, he had called him singing, ¡®blue bird, blue bird¡¯. But now, he was indifferent, just like he acted on the day when Grand Duke Kapmen introduced him to me. I looked at McKenna for a moment, then promised Dolshi. ¡°I¡¯ll present you with one of the blue birds bred in the pce. ¡± ¡°Oh! Will you?¡± Dolshi smiled broadly. Then he turned to leave with Grand Duke Kapmen, and said, ¡°I look forward to it.¡± I looked back at McKenna. McKenna¡¯s shoulders finally rxed a little. An idea suddenly urred to me. Maybe this would work¡­ ¡°Your Majesty, why do you look at me like that?¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± McKenna, turned into a blue bird, could ask Dolshi¡­ ¡°You looked at me with very calcting eyes.¡± ¡°Not at all, McKenna.¡± *** Duke Elgy continued the story until his mother fell asleep. He remained by her side and only rose from the chair five hourster. He rearranged the rumpled sheets, gently kissed her forehead, and left the cottage. He walked back through the narrow path cluttered with pesky branches, and returned to the main building. But as soon as he opened the door to his bedroom, he sighed with annoyance when he saw his father waiting for him, stiff as a stone doll. ¡°What are you doing in my room without my permission?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t forget this room is part of my mansion.¡± Duke Elgy frowned. He wasn¡¯t staying here forck of money, which his father knew perfectly well. Duke Elgy absolutely loathed his father, so he ignored his presence and began to empty the contents of his briefcase on the bed. ¡°What trouble have you gotten yourself into this time? Every time I hear about you, I feel so ashamed it¡¯s unbearable. You probably have no idea¡­¡± ¡°Of course I know.¡± ¡°What are you saying? That you do such things on purpose?¡± ¡°Is it worse if I shame you inadvertently or if I do it on purpose? Father, did you think it was the former? Or is it what you wanted to believe?¡± ¡°!¡± Duke Elgy spoke bluntly, unbuttoned his waistcoat, andid it on the bed. ¡°His Majesty has summoned you.¡± Duke Elgy abruptly stopped unbuttoning his shirt and lowered his hands. ¡°The Emperor of the Eastern Empire has sent an envoy. His Majesty is furious. This time you¡¯ve crossed a line. The Imperial Family of the Eastern Empire is on a different level than the other families you¡¯ve tricked before.¡± Duke Elgy headed to the door without answering. If his father wouldn¡¯t leave the room, then Elgy had no choice but to leave himself. Just before the door closed, Grand Duke udia asked coldly, but with a hint of helplessness. ¡°When will you forgive ysia? You know she risked her life to save you. How can you repay her like this?¡± The door mming was the only response. Chapter 460 Chapter 460. So It Wasn¡¯t Her (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Shortly after McKenna entered the office, Heinley noticed that he was unfocused. It seemed to him that McKenna was depressed. ¡°Why do you look so pathetic? Did you find out you¡¯re about to die?¡± McKenna sighed and let his shoulders droop. ¡°I wondered if it would be better if I was slightly less handsome. In my bird form, I mean.¡± ¡°What? Have you lost your mind?¡± ¡°It¡¯s inevitable that you feel jealous. A greater being than yourself has already acknowledged that I¡¯m a lovely bird.¡± Heinley stared at McKenna, who continued to mumble about his splendid blue feathers, which attracted so much unwanted attention. While McKenna remained absorbed in such reflections, Heinley shook his head as if McKenna had truly gone mad. After a while, McKenna¡¯s ramblings ended, and he saw that Heinley was bent over his desk as he diligently wrote something down. If it were rted to work, he would have sat at his desk properly. ¡°What are you doing, Your Majesty?¡± Heinley, who had been nibbling on the tip of the feather, removed the quill from his mouth and smiled proudly. ¡°Writing a love letter.¡± ¡°Ugh! Could you write it somewhere far from my eyes?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t want to see, close your eyes.¡± Heinley spoke bluntly and continued writing with an expression of delight. McKenna shuddered, but continued to ask questions, unable to suppress his curiosity. ¡°It¡¯s for Her Majesty, right? Why write a letter, when you could tell her?¡± ¡°I have to leave on another mission, so I came up with the idea to hide a letter that will bring back old memories. My Queen will be surprised to find my love letter.¡± It was actually an exaggeration to call it a letter. It was more like a small, short note. ¡®It has nothing to do with the letter Emperor Sovieshu sent her.¡¯ Heinley convinced himself, finished the letter, then folded it four times and gently kissed it. He pocketed the letter and went to find Navier. When he found her, they embraced, and he slipped the letter into the pocket of her coat. *** ¡°What¡¯s with this sudden embrace?¡± Heinley told me sweetly that he missed me, then kissed my cheek and my lips several times. Then he left. Is it because he has to go off to retrieve another mana stone? The area where Heinley kissed me felt warm. I ran my fingers over my cheeks and my lips, but suddenly I stopped, worried that the baby in my belly had seen the scene. ¡°Baby, close your eyes when mom and dad kiss.¡± By the time I finished work for the day, it was about five o¡¯clock in the afternoon. I went back to my room to change intofortable clothes. I had arranged a farewell dinner for my father, since he was scheduled to return to the Eastern Empire tomorrow. He had been away from the Troby Estate for a long time. Since he wanted toe back before my baby was born, he had to go home now. Just as I put my coat back on, Mastas came up to me with a flushed face. ¡°Your Majesty, I¡­ I have a favor to ask of you.¡± She hesitated for a moment, so I wondered what it was about. Then she handed me a small note. ¡°What is it?¡± When I took it in bewilderment, Mastas turned tomato red up to her ears. ¡°Can you give this to Lord Koshar for me, please?¡± My brother? Laura shrieked, covered her face with one hand, and pped Mastas¡¯ back with the other. ¡°A confession?! Is that a confession?!¡± ¡°No, no!¡± Mastas was quick to deny it, then turned to me. ¡°Will it be all right¡­?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± I was curious about the contents of the note, but rather than ask about it, I agreed to do the favor and put it in my pocket. However, my curiosity was unbearable on my way to dinner. What did the note say? Sometimes, I suspected that Mastas liked my brother. Does she really like him? Mastas was a strong, good youngdy and, indeed, a knight. It seemed like a good match. However¡­ Princess Charlotte officially proposed to my brother, and he is seriously considering it. If Mastas was in love with my brother¡­ Lost in my thoughts, I quickly reached the dining hall. My brother was alone by the door. ¡°Why are you standing out here?¡± ¡°I was waiting for you.¡± My brother answered with a smile and held out his arm to escort me. Before epting his arm, it urred to me that I should give him the letter. It might look strange if I gave it to him in front of my father and mother. ¡°Wait a minute.¡± I took the note out of my pocket and handed it to him. ¡°Miss Mastas asked me to give you this.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t she yourdy-in-waiting?¡± I nodded and went into the dining hall by myself. My brother would want to read the letter right away. *** Koshar stared at the note written on pink paper and smiled with embarrassment. ¡®Mastas is the cutedy-in-waiting who treats me as if I were very frail. She walks around carrying a spear while wearing a lovely dress. What did she write? Could it be about the drink she mentionedst time?¡¯ Koshar unfolded the note. ¡ª Do you remember the first time you patted my rear? I have been in love with you since then. ¡°!¡± Koshar dropped the note in shock. *** ¡°Father, I enjoyed the time we have shared here. It¡¯s a shame you have to leave.¡± ¡°I have been away for a long time. The locals might be grumbling about my absence by now.¡± ¡°It¡¯s more likely they are worried, for you are a good lord, father.¡± During dinner, my father talked about his estate. My father loved Troby Estate as much as he loved Koshar and I. He worried endlessly whenever he was away. Knowing how he felt, I did not express my regrets anymore. I was deeply grateful that my parents spent so much time with me in the Western Empire. ¡°Mother, will you stay?¡± ¡°I have some business to take care of, so I¡¯ll be leaving as well, Navier.¡± ¡°Ah¡­. I see. Well, then, so be it.¡± My mother looked at my belly and smiled warmly. I was showing quite a bit by now. ¡°It is better that we leave now so that we can return before our grandchild is born.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired?¡± My mother gently ced her hand on my belly. ¡°I think your tummy isrger than mine was at this stage of pregnancy¡­¡± ¡°My hands and feet have been numbtely¡­¡± When he wasn¡¯t off on a mission, Heinley massaged my hands, feet and legs, but I still felt ufortable often. Concerned, my mother shared some advice. While we talked, I heard my father ask my brother. ¡°Are you sick?¡± My mother and I turned to my brother. Indeed, he seemed pale. ¡°No.¡± My brother denied it, but his expression made it clear that it was a lie. However, I suspected that my brother¡¯s appearance was due to the note. He was fine when we met before I entered the dining hall. My suspicions grew after dinner. ¡°Do you have an answer for Miss Mastas?¡± My brother became serious, as if I had made an improper remark. His reply was firm. ¡°No.¡± What did the note say? However, my brother came to my drawing room soon after I arrived, and gave me a neatly folded letter. ¡°Please give this to Miss Mastas.¡± My suspicion was confirmed. ¡°You said you wouldn¡¯t reply.¡± ¡°I have considered it and decided it is better to rify things. There seems to have been a misunderstanding.¡± ¡°A misunderstanding? What misunderstanding?¡± ¡°I can¡¯t tell you. It might be impolite to Miss Mastas.¡± What did she write? Was it something inappropriate? I was more curious than ever about the contents of the letter, but still handed it to Mastas directly. She epted the letter with trembling hands. This time, I also restrained my curiosity. If Mastas wanted me to know, she would have told me. I shouldn¡¯t even be thinking about the messages exchanged between Mastas and my brother! I should be thinking about how to retrieve the mana stones without the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights getting suspicious. But before I could forget about the letters, I noticed that Mastas¡¯ expression became gloomy. ¡°Miss Mastas?¡± What¡¯s going on? I approached her with concern, but Mastas mumbled that she was fine and hurried out the door. Laura, who happened to enter at that moment, widened her eyes. ¡°What¡¯s the matter with Mastas, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Chapter 461 Chapter 461. So It Wasn¡¯t Her (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Laura brought cookies for us to eat together, so we gathered around the table. I expected Mastas would return on time to eat the cookies with us, but she didn¡¯t. She only showed up hourster, but her eyelids were puffy¡­ Even the perceptive Countess Jubel didn¡¯t dare specte about what caused Mastas¡¯ eyelids to be so puffy. I went into the bathroom to take a bath, and Rose helped me undress. Suddenly, she blurted out, ¡°Huh?¡± She held a light pink note in her hand. ¡°Your Majesty, I found this in your pocket.¡± My eyes widened in amazement. Isn¡¯t this the note Mastas asked me to deliver to my brother? But¡­ how could it be? I had certainly handed Koshar the note from Mastas. He even sent a reply. So what is this other note in my pocket? ¡°Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Thank you.¡± I told Rose to wait fifteen minutes before she came in to assist me, and she closed the door on her way out. I sat in the corner of the bathtub and unfolded the note, revealing neat penmanship. ¡ª Every time I see you I worry that you will get hurt, Lord Koshar. If you are ever afraid to go somewhere or need support, let me know and I will protect you. I¡¯m also quite worried that you might fall down the stairs. I¡¯ve had trouble sleeping. ¡°¡­ Good heavens!¡± I could not believe there was anyone who worried my brother would be hurt, when all his life, my family and I worried that he would hurt others. No, that wasn¡¯t important¡­ What was important was that this was Mastas¡¯ note to my brother! So what about the note I gave him? What was in the note my brother read and replied to? I thought about whether it was a note written by me, but I didn¡¯t remember writing any note or keeping it in my pocket. In any case, I made a mistake. I still had my bathrobe on, so I walked out of the bathroom directly. ¡°Your Majesty? Aren¡¯t you going to take a bath?¡± I asked the surprised Rose to fetch my brother while Countess Jubel helped me change into afortable dressing-gown. Shortly after, my brother appeared looking puzzled. ¡°Did you send for me, Navier?¡± I asked mydies-in-waiting to leave, then handed my brother the ¡®real¡¯ note that Mastas had asked me to deliver to him. ¡°Here.¡± ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°I must have made a mistake. This is what Miss Mastas asked me to give you. The note I handed to you before was something else.¡± My brother blinked a couple of times and his face became more pale. His mouth fell open. He stared at me in a daze. Then, he raised his hand to his forehead, as if he had suddenlye down with a bad headache. ¡°Koshar? What¡¯s the matter?¡± My brother mumbled iprehensibly. ¡°That means you¡­ patted¡­¡± What is he talking about? ¡°You were the one who¡­¡± I stared at him with a frown, and my brother hastily straightened up and shook his head. Although I was still confused, I held out the ¡®real¡¯ note. ¡°Take this note and write a new reply to Miss Mastas. For my part¡­ I will apologize to her. It was my fault. Ah, and give me back the other note. I think it¡¯s mine.¡± However, my brother jumped up and said, ¡°I threw that note away, Navier.¡± ¡°You threw it away?¡± ¡°I lost¡­ I lost it!¡± What¡¯s the matter with him? Why did he change his answer? That¡¯s suspicious. What was the other note about? ¡°Then tell me what it said.¡± ¡°I forgot.¡± ¡°You forgot?¡± My brother told an outrageous lie and then ran off, shouting that he would write another reply to Mastas and deliver it to him himself. He was in such a hurry to leave that he jumped over the couch, as if it were an enemy¡¯s barrier. He mmed the door on his way out. What on earth did the note say? *** After my parents left for the Eastern Empire, I felt a little dispirited and filled my stomach with tasty food to try to fill the emptiness I felt due to their absence. ¡°Your Majesty, Your Majesty. Did you hear that?¡± Mastas skipped into my room and blurted out information brightly. ¡°The story of the priestess saying that the Emperor should thank the heavens three times a day for marrying Your Majesty has spread far and wide!¡± ¡°¡­ The story seems to have been slightly distorted.¡± ¡°That¡¯s how rumors are. In any case, everyone is talking about it. I wrote down what I heard on the way here. I¡¯ll read the most impressive to you.¡± Mastas took a note from her pocket and read, ¡°Someone with as spotless a reputation as Her Majesty Navier would never cause a bloodbath out of the blue! When someone seems to change so suddenly, the new environment must be the problem!¡± She read with perfect diction like a child in front of an etiquette teacher, but I was embarrassed by the words. ¡°Just so you know, a guard keeping watch over the west wall said this. He was cking off. I initially intended to report him, but I turned a blind eye because of what he said.¡± When I met with the priestess, I never intended to cause these kinds of rumors. I did it because I thought people would be upset if I didn¡¯t meet with her. Still, I felt grateful due to the unexpectedly positive oue. So long as it didn¡¯t negatively impact Heinley¡¯s image¡­ In an attempt to shake off my difort, I ate several cookies, but to no avail. Just then, Mastas¡¯ smile, shining like the sun itself, caught the keen eyes belonging to Countess Jubel. ¡°Miss Mastas. Are there any other rumors besides that one?¡± ¡°What?¡± Mastas¡¯ eyes widened. Countess Jubel ced her hand on her chin and looked at her mischievously. ¡°A simple rumor would not cause such a happy face. Am I right?¡± ¡°It is so, it is so.¡± ¡°Really?¡± Countess Jubel insisted, but Mastas tly denied it. However, after Countess Jubel left, Mastas immediately confessed. ¡°Uh, Your Majesty. Lord Koshar wrote a new letter in reply to mine.¡± So that¡¯s the reason her face is so bright. She must¡¯ve liked what was written. Since I also had to confess something to her, I was relieved that she brought up the subject, and apologized, ¡°I owe you an apology, Miss Mastas. I realized toote that I handed Koshar a different note from what you gave to me.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all right.¡± Mastas scratched her ear and attempted to suppress her embarrassment, but her expression was somewhere between a smile and a frown. ¡°I like the new reply I received¡­ Lord Koshar said his first reply was rather harsh due to ¡­ the shameful contents of the note he received originally. He said he was sorry and invited me to dinner.¡± ¡°I am d to hear it.¡± I kept an appropriate smile throughout, but as Mastas skipped out of the room, I slumped down on the couch and covered my face. My legs faltered and my heart thumped. It had not been easy to suppress the anxiety that shot up after seeing my brother¡¯s reaction yesterday. Now it has resurfaced. The original note was shameful? What on earth was it about? Who wrote it? I was curious, but at the same time, I didn¡¯t want to know the answer. Chapter 462 Chapter 462. No Need For Words (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Following the confrontation with his father, Duke Elgy went to the Royal Pce to meet the King. The King seemed terribly angry. Of course, this was how the King usually seemed whenever Duke Elgy was in his presence. ¡°What the hell do you hope to achieve? You cannot im this is the first, second, or even third time you do this! You and I know that your actions are not the result of love!¡± The King shouted without giving Elgy an opportunity to speak, or even to greet him properly. The King of Blue Bohean rose abruptly from his throne, unable to control his anger. ¡°This time you¡¯ve gone too far. If you don¡¯t stop, I¡¯ll finish you off. I will also eliminate your father without a second thought.¡± Despite the terrifying statement, Elgy did not hesitate to answer. ¡°When you decide to take down an opponent, you must also be prepared to be taken down.¡± ¡°You¡­ You¡­ You brat!¡­¡± The king¡¯s face turned red with rage as he clenched his fists. He felt an intense urge to lift Elgy by the throat and throw him from the highest tower of the pce. Elgy faced him calmly with a contemptuous smile. After meeting the king¡¯s furious gaze with that insolent smile, Elgy stared at the corner. There, a man stood staring at him coldly. He was one of Emperor Sovieshu¡¯s secretaries. Their eyes met, but they didn¡¯t greet each other. The King, who made an effort to calm down, sat back on his throne. ¡°Duke Elgy, you shall immediately notify the Alliance that you renounce your im to the Eastern Empire¡¯s port.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Don¡¯t be stubborn. It was discovered that Empress Rashta was born a ve, so her title as Empress of the Eastern Empire will be nullified. Consequently, any agreement signed by her is void. There is no point making a fuss over this matter.¡± Since Duke Elgy remained silent, the King approached Elgy. ¡°I don¡¯t care if you ruin your own reputation or destroy your own life, but don¡¯t harm the country.¡± The King raised his hand and patted Elgy¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t forget that the reason you can strut around other countries with such arrogance is due to the prosperity of Blue Bohean. You¡¯re not stupid enough to bite the hand that feeds you¡­¡± *** ¡°Still at it?¡± After the confrontation with the King of Blue Bohean, Duke Elgy ran into Princess Sirim. She seemed to have followed him. ¡°What do you hope to gain from your actions? You know it does no one any good, not even you. How long do you think my brother, the king, will turn a blind eye to your behavior?¡± Duke Elgy walked in silence, but Princess Sirim matched his stride and continued to speak. ¡°If others choose to follow a bad path, it¡¯s none of our business as long as it doesn¡¯t harm us. Please stop such futile attempts to seek revenge and think of yourself.¡± Duke Elgy stopped suddenly, and Princess Sirim came to a halt. ¡°My dear cousin¡­¡± Before the Princess could speak again, a stranger¡¯s voice interrupted them. ¡°Oh, my. Duke Elgy. Are you busy?¡± A man dressed in a white uniform approached. It was Angel, the Commander of the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights, with a fox-like face. ¡°Let¡¯s talkter.¡± Princess Sirim patted Duke Elgy on the back and walked away. ¡°Did I interrupt? I am Angel, Commander of the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights of the Wol Continent Alliance.¡± Duke Elgy politely asked what brought the Commander here. Angel looked at Princess Sirim as she walked away. ¡°I am here to investigate theint you filed with the Alliance, Duke Elgy.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°The agreement didn¡¯t indicate what you offered in return for the port. What were the terms?¡± ¡°My body.¡± ¡°¡­ Ah. Your body.¡± Angel murmured with a mysterious smile. ¡°It seems your body is very expensive.¡± Despite Angel¡¯s unpleasant and ufortable expression, Duke Elgy remained confident and dignified. ¡°I suppose.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll have to repeat that at the Alliance Court. If you are ashamed, you may state another reason. I¡¯ll pretend not to know you changed your mind.¡± ¡°There is no need to change my words.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Angel took out a small notebook and wrote down Dukes Elgy¡¯s confident answer. Then he asked. ¡°The Eastern Empire ims that the deal between Duke Elgy and the former Empress Rashta is uwful, since Empress Rashta was not a legitimate Empress due to her status as a ve. Moreover, the Eastern Empire asserts that the deal itself is invalid because it was made arbitrarily by Empress Rashta. Is that correct?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°You disagree with the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°There is one prerequisite for Empress Rashta¡¯s status as Empress to be considered void. Emperor Sovieshu must not have known that Empress Rashta was a ve.¡± ¡°Do you assert that Emperor Sovieshu knew about Empress Rashta¡¯s status and consented to ascend her to the position of Empress despite the truth?¡± ¡°Correct. Therefore, the deals she made as empress are valid since she was a legitimate empress.¡± Angel scribbled some more notes in his notebook as Elgy spoke, but suddenly, his hand stopped moving across the paper. Although he seemed to have a lot more to write, he lowered the notebook and asked, ¡°By any chance, did the Emperor of the Western Empire know about this?¡± ¡°Why would you think the Emperor of the Western Empire knows about my negotiations with the Empress of the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°Before he ascended the throne it used to be said that you two were close friends. Didn¡¯t you two n this together?¡± ¡°Just because Emperor Heinley and I are friends doesn¡¯t mean we¡¯re in cahoots. In this case he was not even aware of my actions.¡± ¡°It is curious that in the unprecedented events that urred in the Eastern Empire, the most benefited was Emperor Heinley.¡± ¡°It cannot be said that he benefited when all he did was marry the woman he fell in love with. Not even Emperor Heinley could be so calcting.¡± ¡°Marriages are the result of calctions, Duke Elgy.¡± Angel scribbled some more. ¡°Ah, Duke Elgy. This is unrted to the port case, but¡­¡± ¡°Go ahead and ask.¡± ¡°Is Emperor Heinley involved in the mana decline phenomenon?¡± Duke Elgy hesitated for a split second before replying. ¡°No.¡± Angel nodded and smiled, ¡°I see.¡± Then he jotted down onest sentence in his notebook. ¡ª Duke Elgy knows something. Chapter 463 Chapter 463. Contact (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°Your Majesty. Your Majesty.¡± In the dead of night, a soft whisper caused Sovieshu to suddenly sit up. Marquis Karl quickly stepped back. ¡°Pardon me, Your Majesty. But you didn¡¯t wake up, no matter how long I waited¡­.¡± ¡°No, you did the right thing.¡± Sovieshu looked at the clock, which showed it was two o¡¯clock, and scowled. Ever since his personality was divided in two, he woke up shortly after sunset. But in recent days, he had been sleeping longer. There was even a day when he didn¡¯t wake up and slept through the night. The day after that, Sovieshu felt uneasy. ¡°Bring me a ss of cold water.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Once Marquis Karl returned with the water, he said, ¡°I havepleted the investigation Your Majesty ordered.¡± ¡°Ah, you mean the investigation about how tobine my two personalities?¡± ¡°Yes. Since Your Majesty suffered a great shock that split your personality, the pce doctor and I used to think that you must meet the person who caused that shock.¡± ¡°That¡¯s also what I thought at first, but it didn¡¯t work out.¡± ¡°Indeed. After your daytime self met with Empress Navier, he began to act differently than expected.¡± What Marquis Karl said sounded very dangerous. The Sovieshu by day acted neither like the present day Emperor Sovieshu nor like the 19-year old Crown Prince Sovieshu Marquis Karl remembered. ¡°You mean my other personality has intentions contrary to mine?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°In my opinion, we should not try to cure Your Majesty¡¯s shocked mind with another shock. Instead, we should consider your mind injured, and find a way to heal it.¡± Marquis Karl hesitated for a moment, and asked, ¡°Your Majesty, could you tell me what happened that day?¡± ¡°I hallucinated that Rashta was about to end Navier¡¯s life. I jumped to try to save her¡­ Then, I vaguely remember a dream. I followed a child covered in blood. It was probably Glorym.¡± ¡®It would be nice if he could meet Glorym once more. But Glorym is dead.¡¯ Marquis Karl examined Sovieshu¡¯s expression closely, and continued, ¡°And after that?¡± ¡°I woke up in this state.¡± Sovieshu sighed, and got out of bed. Then he shook his head, dizzy for a moment, but quickly recovered his bnce and murmured, ¡°Maybe therein lies the key.¡± Marquis Karl then reported on several urgent matters. Sovieshu walked to his desk and stamped or rejected the documents waiting for his attention Once those matters were dealt with, Sovieshu went back to bed, as usual. ¡°Your Majesty, the Commander of the 4th Division of the Transnational Knights paid us a visit.¡± Marquis Karl reported on Angel¡¯s demand for a deal, and the decision made by the daytime Sovieshu. ¡°It seems the Alliance is trying to take advantage of the conflict between the Eastern and Western Empires.¡± Sovieshu muttered coldly, thought for a moment, and ordered, ¡°Present to the Alliance written and signed testimonies from nobles and officials, which attest to Duke Elgy¡¯s appearance with Rashta¡¯s son at the time of the paternity test. Include the fact that Duke Elgy was the only person on her side when the rumor spread that she was a ve, as well as the multiple scandals that resulted from their close rtionship.¡± He intended to im that Duke Elgy was aware of Rashta¡¯s status as a ve, which would make the agreement invalid. However, there was one more matter Marquis Karl wanted to report. Observing that he didn¡¯t intend to leave just yet, Sovieshu asked impatiently, ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Emperor Heinley has requested that we locate the location of Rashta¡¯s other child. Her son¡­¡± ¡°Why would I help that scoundrel?¡± ¡°He mentions that Empress Navier would like to know.¡± ¡°Uh¡­ Let the daytime fool handle that.¡± *** Unaware of what happened during the night, the neen-year-old Sovieshu woke up the next morning. Sovieshu sat at his desk and ate breakfast while he examined the work which had beenpleted overnight. Sovieshu knew that his night self woke up at night to handle urgent matters. For now, he avoided such matters in the daytime, because he knew he wasn¡¯tpetent enough. However, he needed to learn so he could handle it someday. He noticed a letter on his desk. Sovieshu summoned one of his assistants. ¡°Can we find Viscount Rostechu¡¯s grandson?¡± The assistant responded immediately. ¡°Yes. The boy was sold into very. The records of his sale will show where he is.¡± ¡°Find him and bring him here.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡®Isn¡¯t that the firstborn of that woman named Rashta? Why would Navier be looking for him?¡¯ The daytime Sovieshu didn¡¯t know that Rashta abandoned Ahn, and he didn¡¯t understand the request made by Navier through Emperor Heinley. In any case, if he found the child, he would have an excuse to contact Navier again. ¡®Why do you want to contact my¡­¡¯ He was suddenly reminded of the irritating words in the letter from Emperor Heinley. Now upset, Sovieshu walked to the West Pce. He entered the room that had once belonged to Navier, though he had no recollection of it, and sat on the floor of the unfurnished room. As he tried to imagine the intimate conversations he could have had with Navier in that room, jealousy came over him. He pounded his fists on the floor in an attempt to suppress the pain in his heart. ¡°Ahh!¡± A sudden headache caused Sovieshu to moan with pain. He clutched his head in his hands. His ears rang as if thunder had struck nearby. It was quite some time before Sovieshu could lower his hands. When he finally did, his expression was much darker. The headaches started after he saw Navier. Before, he would have simply asked the doctor for pain relievers to cope with the headaches. But now, the headaches were so severe that they reminded him that he was not the ¡®real¡¯ Sovieshu. At this rate, he felt that the time woulde when he would no longer wake up as a neen year old. When that happened, he would cease to exist. It terrified him just thinking about it. Worse still, he couldn¡¯t consult Marquis Karl, nor the other secretaries, since they were all men of the night Sovieshu. They would happily listen to him confess his fears and then think of a way to get rid of him as soon as possible. ¡®I need someone to confide in¡¯. Sovieshu got up, walked to the window and held on to the frame. The garden, covered with colorful autumn leaves, was beautiful even in the chilly wind. ¡®It must be a subordinate who follows my orders and keeps quiet about my condition.¡¯ He also needed sleeping pills. Pills to keep him in deep sleep, so he would never wake up in the middle of the night. If he stayed asleep and couldn¡¯t wake up¡­ wouldn¡¯t his night personality weaken and gradually fade? Chapter 464 Chapter 464. Wordless Communication Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Heinley returned from his recent mission to recover the stones in the middle of heavy rain. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, My Queen. I just need to take a hot bath and sleep well.¡± The next day, however, Heinley couldn¡¯t even speak, so I summoned the doctor. ¡°He is clear-headed, but he has a sore throat.¡± After the doctor left, Heinley clutched his throat, distressed that he could notmunicate. It pained me to see him in such a state, so I took his hand and promised, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Heinley. I¡¯ll take care of you until you feel better.¡± ¡°No way, Your Majesty. It would be terrible if Your Majesty caught a cold! I¡¯ll take care of His Majesty.¡± McKenna tried to dissuade me, but it was impossible for Heinley tomunicate with anyone but me. He needed me by his side at a time like this, since I am the only one who can understand him. ¡°It¡¯s fine, McKenna. Look at Heinley, he is having a hard time because he can¡¯tmunicate. I am the only one who can understand him. I must stay.¡± Just like now. Heinley was making desperate gestures to indicate that he preferred to be cared for by me. McKenna¡¯s eyes widened as he nced at Heinley. ¡°Perhaps¡­ His Majesty is trying to say that I would understand him better¡­?¡± What an absurd remark. I was about to refute him, but in the end I agreed to let him stay. Even if I knew his help would not be necessary. *** Heinley had never experienced so much tension before. He swallowed hard. His throat burned terribly as he swallowed due to his inmed throat. He couldn¡¯t rx his shoulders due to his difort. He could have endured a terrible fever or several broken bones, but the inability to speak had him in agony. When Navier painted for him, Heinley didn¡¯t understand what it meant at all. She was still unaware that he couldn¡¯t interpret her artwork, as Heinley conveniently allowed for the misunderstanding to be overlooked. Heinley loved Navier, but he had realized that they couldn¡¯tmunicate without words. Once again, he was reminded of this fact. Since his voice wouldn¡¯te out, he tried to convey with desperate gestures that he preferred McKenna¡¯s care, but Navier didn¡¯t understand. Rather, she sat down next to him and said with a sweet smile, ¡°It¡¯s alright, Heinley. I¡¯ll stay by your side all day.¡± Heinley¡¯s hands trembled. Navier believed she and Heinley could understand each other through a nce. Wouldn¡¯t she be disappointed if she discovered theirmunication had problems? He didn¡¯t want to see the disappointed look on her face. Therefore, he was determined to remain conscious despite the severe fever and sore throat that made it difficult to breathe. At least then he would have a chance tomunicate properly with Navier. ¡°Heinley? Are you cold?¡± Navier looked at him with concern on her cold face as she squeezed his trembling hands. Heinley clung to her hands and shot a look at McKenna over Navier¡¯s shoulder. ¡®Help me.¡¯ McKenna nodded discreetly to show that he understood. But a momentter, Heinley suddenly lost consciousness, overwhelmed by the tension. When he came to, Navier was in extreme distress, watching his face closely. There was no greater happiness than to gaze into those cold eyes full of affection. Heinley thought he had been a fool to have resisted her offer to nurse him back to health. He had given up the war in exchange for these eyes. How could he have been scared? He must have been crazy to contemte turning her down. He med himself for his mistrust and, with great effort, smiled at Navier. But when Navier saw him smile, she frowned. ¡°Are you trying to make fun of me?¡± ¡°!¡± Heinley quickly shook his head. It seemed that his facial muscles didn¡¯t move as he wished due to how sick he was. He rxed his expression so as not to upset Navier. Half an hourter, Heinley felt thirsty, so he raised a hand and pointed to his mouth. ¡®Water. Please give me water, My Queen.¡¯ As he opened and closed his mouth, Navier frowned again. ¡°If that¡¯s what you want, I really can¡¯t say no to you.¡± ¡®What did I do?¡¯ Before Heinley could reply, Navier kissed his cheek. When her cool, soft lips touched his flushed skin, he got goosebumps. But as she pulled back, he felt like crying. Over Navier¡¯s shoulder, Heinley saw McKenna holding a ss of water. ¡®No, don¡¯t bring it. It¡¯s alright. My Queen will be embarrassed that she misunderstood.¡¯ After Heinley spoke with his eyes, McKenna set the ss aside. Relieved, Heinley smiled at Navier and mouthed ¡®thank you¡¯ to McKenna. Then, about an hourter. Heinley wanted to change his clothes, so he grabbed his own shirt and lightly shook it. ¡°Are you hot?¡± Navier fanned him, while McKenna, who was holding fresh clothes, hesitated and sat back down when Heinley signaled that it was alright. Later, when Heinley ran his hand across his stomach because he was hungry, Navier asked if it hurt and rubbed it as she sang to him. McKenna, who was about order soup, looked Heinley in the eye and asked, ¡®What do you want me to do? Shall I sit back down?¡¯ This time, Heinley said that it didn¡¯t matter. He reached for McKenna, unnoticed by Navier, wiggling his fingers desperately. ¡®Save me!¡¯ Chapter 465 Chapter 465. He Was The Enemy (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Where on earth am I? I looked around. I was certainly inside an imperial pce. Was it the pce of the Eastern Empire or the Western Empire? Strangely enough, I couldn¡¯t tell. My head felt foggytely¡­ I was perplexed but I didn¡¯t feel afraid. My legs moved forward on their own, toward the grand banquet hall. The door was ajar, even though it¡¯s usually closed. I heard a ruckus inside. It wasn¡¯t the noise from a party, or chatter. It was the sound of amotion¡­ My curiosity was aroused and I naturally entered the banquet hall to see what was happening. Inside, I stared down from the balcony and saw two huge birds. Both were beautiful golden-feathered birds, screeching loudly as they pped their wings, exposing their plump bellies. They faced each other with their beaks wide open and pecked at one another. Why on earth are they fighting? What are they doing here? I grabbed the railing of the balcony and leaned over to see better. That is when I noticed a sparkle. It was something shiny between the two birds. What is it? When I squinted, I discovered that it was a golden crown. The two birds were fighting over a crown. ¡°My Queen.¡± My eyes snapped open. There was no grand banquet hall, no majestic birds, no crown. I could only see a soft gold and ivory nket. ¡°My Queen.¡± Looking up, I saw not the majestic birds from my dream, but a sly and lovely bird looking down at me with worry. ¡®Oh no! I must¡¯ve fallen asleep while I was taking care of him. How long have I been asleep?¡¯ ¡°Why were you sleeping in that awkward position? And where is McKenna?¡± Ah. Now I remembered. ¡°He looked tired, so I told him to get some rest.¡± ¡°Really? He didn¡¯t insist on staying?¡± Heinley¡¯s expression turned fierce. But after McKenna left us alone, I crouched on the floor and rested my chin on the bed. In that position, I observed Heinley¡¯s peaceful face as he slept soundly for a long time. I must have fallen asleep as I watched his handsome face. ¡°He wanted to stay. I was the one who sent him away. He¡¯s always so busy.¡± His expression told me that as soon as Heinley recovered, he would scold McKenna for leaving, so I defended him. Then I put my hand on Heinley¡¯s. ¡°More importantly, what about you, Heinley? How are you feeling? It seems your voice has returned.¡± ¡°I¡¯m fine. I don¡¯t have a sore throat anymore.¡± With a look, Heinley told me that he knew I changed the subject of McKenna on purpose, but he decided to turn a blind eye. He ced his free hand on his neck. ¡°It¡¯s been like this since I was a child. I always get better after one day.¡± ¡°Thank goodness. Do you know how worried I was yesterday?¡± ¡°I know. But I may have recovered even faster thanks to My Queen¡¯s loving care.¡± ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡± ¡°It¡¯s true. I felt like my life was in danger.¡± What was the threat to his life? What did he mean? When I stared at him bewildered, Heinley averted his eyes and sat up in bed. ¡°Oh! I¡¯m so hungry.¡± It was my turn to give him a look telling him that I knew he deliberately changed the subject. *** ¡°Breakfast should be light. Just a warm soup, preferably. You can eat some bread, but not much. It would be even better if you don¡¯t eat it.¡± The pce doctor checked on Heinley early in the morning and left after a few instructions. I ordered soup with potatoes and mushrooms and, once it arrived, fed Heinley myself, spoonful by spoonful. It was awkward¡­ but Heinley likes this. That¡¯s what is important. ¡°This is a little strange, My Queen.¡± He likes to feed me and tries to do it often. Does he find it strange now that I¡¯m the one feeding him? Heinley¡¯s mouth opened awkwardly. Later, at lunch, the pce doctor allowed Heinley to eat a proper meal, as long as he avoided spicy and salty foods, so we sat across from each other in the garden, surrounded by spectacr autumn foliage. Heinley was eating much more than usual, as if he were famished. While he ate, I blurted out the words I had wanted to say since yesterday. ¡°Heinley. Next time it rains, take shelter. Don¡¯t get so wet.¡± ¡°I was trying to retrieve a mana stone by taking advantage of the heavy rain.¡± ¡°You got wet because of the mana stones?¡± ¡°Well¡­¡± ¡°I see. Mana stones are indeed the problem.¡± I stopped nagging in the face of such an important problem. I didn¡¯t know what to say, so I kept my mouth shut. Heinley smiled and changed the subject. ¡°Still, getting sick wasn¡¯t all that bad, since My Queen worried about me.¡± ¡°I always worry about you, so don¡¯t get sick.¡± Did Heinley really think I didn¡¯t worry about him? He seemed so happy because of the wide smile on his face. With a sigh, I cut up the fish in front of us and served it to him. Heinley ate most of it quickly, but he kept some fish on his te, which he held up to my mouth with his fork. He did this even though I should be taking care of him¡­ But I didn¡¯t want to nag, so I held back and opened my mouth. As I chewed, I remembered what I wanted to ask him yesterday but couldn¡¯t due to Heinley¡¯s illness. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Heinley. Does Duke Elgy have a grudge against Emperor Sovieshu?¡± ¡°Elgy?¡± Sovieshu asked in a letter whether Duke Elgy held a grudge against him. He said the doubt arose after he read about him in his diary. When I read that, I became curious too. Did Sovieshu think that Elgy didn¡¯t target the port, but him? Heinley frowned with his fork in his mouth. ¡°Well, I¡¯m not sure about the grudge. What I do know is that he hates him, but¡­¡± ¡°But?¡± ¡°He hates more than a few people.¡± ¡°So this happens often?¡± ¡°He¡¯s cursed.¡± Was he like that by ident? Or was it intentional? Chapter 466 Chapter 466. He Was The Enemy (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra After eating a hearty lunch, Heinley said he had business to attend to and left to meet with McKenna. I urged him to rest today, since he had been so sick. But he replied that it couldn¡¯t wait and left without heeding my advice. ¡®Is this how it feels?¡¯ Whenever people advised me to rest, I didn¡¯t listen either, and threw myself into my work. Did these people feel the same helplessness I feel as I watch my husband walk away? In any case, I couldn¡¯t be the one to rest when my newly recovered husband is working so hard. I instructed one of my assistants to deliver a healthy blue bird to Grand Duke Kapmen, then went to my office to deal with some business. Later, I went to my room to have dinner with mydies-in-waiting. Rivetti, who was busy with her studies and with exploring the pce, also joined. ¡°How are your studies progressing?¡± ¡°It has been harder than I expected. It¡¯s a small estate, so I thought I would learn to handle it quickly. It seems I underestimated what managing an estate entails.¡± And so, as we ate, we chatted about the Rivetti estate, about the nanny I needed to hire for my baby, about where to ce the nursery, and how to decorate it. It was then that the question I¡¯d asked Heinley earlier, about Duke Elgy¡¯s feelings toward Sovieshu, came to mind. I asked Countess Jubel and Laura this question. I wanted to gather different points of view. Countess Jubel cocked her head and said, ¡°I also wonder if Duke Elgy holds a grudge against His Majesty Sovieshu, but to tell the truth, Duke Elgy¡­¡± What was she about to say? Countess Jubel stopped and examined my countenance. ¡°I brought it up, Countess, so you may answer truthfully.¡± ¡°¡­Duke Elgy is a mysterious man. I wonder why he betrayed Rashta.¡± ¡°Me too!¡± Laura eximed and stuck her fork into her pudding. ¡°They were close, like a couple. Why did he do that?¡± Then she turned her focus back to the pudding. Rose and Mastas didn¡¯t know anything about Elgy and Rashta, so they just listened quietly while they ate. It was Rivetti who had an unexpected reaction. Her eyes widened. ¡°What are you talking about?¡± Laura was also surprised by Rivetti¡¯s reaction. ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± ¡°No. Weren¡¯t the two of them really close?¡± Since Rivetti had suffered through a series of terrible experiences, including seclusion to keep her safe from Rashta, she must not have heard the full ount of what happened at the paternity test.. Even after it was all over, she moved to a small town near her estate and didn¡¯t pay attention to the gossip. ¡°During the blood test at the temple to find out if the princess was His Majesty Sovieshu¡¯s daughter, Duke Elgy suddenly appeared with Rashta¡¯s son. Or rather¡­ with your nephew.¡± At Laura¡¯s exnation, Rivetti dropped her fork. ¡°Is this true?¡± Laura fell silent, unsure whether to finish the story, but Countess Jubel took over. ¡°As a result of that incident, it was confirmed that n and Rashta were secretly lovers.¡± Rivetti turned pale. Rose elbowed Countess Jubel in the side and shook her head, but Countess Jubel maintained an innocent expression. She seemed to think it was better to tell Rivetti now, since she would eventually find out anyway because it wasn¡¯t a secret. But when Countess Jubel looked at Rivetti, her expression softened. Rivetti was biting her lips hard and ring at the steak on her te. Her expression was fierce. Unaware that she had be the center of attention, Rivetti muttered absent-mindedly, ¡°So¡­ does that mean that Duke Elgy is the one who ruined my family? Because of him, my father and brother¡­ were falsely used of colluding with Rashta?¡± *** ¡°Here.¡± Koshar was standing by the main gate of the pce, and he waved to Mastas, who had juste out and was looking around. Mastas smiled radiantly as soon as she saw him. Koshar didn¡¯t have a name for what he felt at her cheerful smile. Most nobles in the Eastern Empire frowned at the sight of him, or grimaced with fright. While this reaction was lessmon in the Western Empire, no one had ever reacted with so much happiness due to his presence. Not even his family showed this degree of happiness when they saw him. He had always been a troublemaker, and although they loved him, there was an indelible worry in their eyes. ¡°Lord Koshar!¡± Mastas, who came running up like a puppy, raised her hands awkwardly in the air as if she didn¡¯t know where to put them, then hastily settled them on either side like a knight standing at attention and put on a straight face. ¡°How are you? Hello.¡± She attempted to control her facial expressions and behavior toote. Koshar wanted tough, but held back. The two headed to the tavern. But once at their table, Mastas¡¯ expression darkened. It wasn¡¯t a forced expression of seriousness like before, but a truly gloomy expression. ¡°Miss Mastas. Are you all right?¡± When Koshar asked with concern, Mastas shook her head quickly, as if she had suddenly stirred awake. ¡°I¡¯m fine. I was just thinking about someone.¡± ¡°Is it a man?¡± ¡°No! I don¡¯t think of any man other than Lord Koshar!¡± ¡°!¡± ¡°Well, that¡­ that doesn¡¯t mean I think about you all the time. I don¡¯t even think about you. No, it¡¯s not that I don¡¯t think about you at all, but I don¡¯t¡­ not a lot.¡± Mastas rambled, then held up her hand, her index finger and thumb close together to show Koshar just how little she thought of him. ¡°This much. Sometimes I think of you, very asionally.¡± Koshar reached out and gently lifted Mastas¡¯ index finger, widening the space between her fingers. ¡°This is how much I think about Miss Mastas.¡± Mastas stared at her fingers with wonder, her face as red as a tomato. ¡°That¡­that much¡­¡± The distance between her fingers was less than an inch, but to her eyes, it was like the distance from the depths of the ocean to the highest part of the sky. Chapter 467 Chapter 467. Knots (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Stiflingughter, Koshar asked. ¡°So, who were you thinking of?¡± ¡°Ah, the youngdy whom Her Majesty took under her wing. Her name is Rivetti, the youngdy is simr to a defenseless puppy.¡± Something about her own answer seemed to displease Mastas, and she scrunched up her face and punched her own thigh. Koshar didn¡¯t understand why Mastas would reproach herself for her own words, but he was more interested in the way she clenched her fist. One could strike incredibly hard without hurting themselves with that technique. Too many knights didn¡¯t even know proper technique, so it was clear that she was reallypetent. When the food finally arrived, the two began to eat in silence. Mastas opened her mouth several times, as if she wanted to say many things, but then closed it, while Koshar was unable to start a conversation because he didn¡¯t know what to talk about with ady. However, neither disliked the silence. Moreover, it allowed them to hear the voices around them. ¡°Didn¡¯t that priestess say that we were fortunate in His Majestys¡¯ choice of Our Empress of the Western Empire?¡± ¡°Since when do you call Her Majesty ¡®Our¡¯ Empress?¡± ¡°What? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Before, you would refer to her simply as Her Majesty.¡± ¡°Ah, that was before I got used to Our Empress.¡± ¡°You got used to it right after you heard about the priestess¡¯spliment. What a coincidence.¡± ¡°Oh my, can¡¯t I change my mind?¡± As Koshar and Mastas overheard simrly pleasant conversations about Navier all around them, they happily ate in silence. Neither were particrly devout, but they were very grateful to this mysterious priestess. But then¡­ ¡°I still have my doubts. After all, she¡¯s a foreigner. Any foreigner will side with her home country in a conflict. Empress Navier looks out for us now, but when pushes to shove she will turn her back on us. I¡¯m not saying it¡¯s wrong. I would do the same. But for that reason, I can¡¯t trust the Empress¡ª¡± Koshar didn¡¯t pounce on him with a flurry of fists like he used to. But not because he didn¡¯t want to. It was because Mastas reacted first. She jumped up, mmed her fist on the table, shouting, ¡°Watch your mouth!¡± Koshar instinctively stood up and stopped her, experiencing for the very first time how it felt to be around someone hot-tempered and impulsive. When Mastas finally came to, she stared at her fist with regret and remained in that mood for the rest of the meal and during the walk back to the pce. Koshar, on the other hand, felt very satisfied with his meal. Back at the Imperial Pce, Navier sent for him. ¡°How was dinner?¡± She asked, pretending to be indifferent. He answered truthfully. ¡°Charming¡­.Ah! The tavern ¡­ the tavern was charming. The dinner was nice andfortable.¡± It was a polite remark. But Navier¡¯s face stiffened. Koshar lifted a hand to his chin, feeling ufortable. He always slipped up and made inappropriate remarks, so he worried he said something he shouldn¡¯t have. As he thought over his words, his sister advised him with some concern. ¡°Brother, if you like Miss Mastas¡­ perhaps you should reconsider your marriage to Princess Charlotte.¡± *** When I gave Koshar advice yesterday¡­ Was it disrespectful to Princess Charlotte? I was confused all night. If the Princess of Whitemond married my brother, it would not only benefit Whitemond, but the Western Empire as well. As Empress of the Western Empire, my words may have been too imprudent. But when I saw my brother¡¯s face light up when he talked about Mastas, I couldn¡¯t help myself because I cared about his happiness. I had already noticed Mastas¡¯ fascination, as she often said with a mesmerized smile that my brother was delicate but strong-willed. She even seemed to remember my brother¡¯s face in mine, as sometimes she would nce at me sideways and blush. I¡¯d feel ufortable if it was one-sided, but it seemed like they were both attracted to each other. Under these circumstances, I don¡¯t think it¡¯s fair for my brother to proceed with a politically advantageous marriage ¡®for the sake of the family¡¯¡­ It wouldn¡¯t be fair to Princess Charlotte in the long run, either. My brother could cause Princess Charlotte to suffer the same pain that I suffered with Sovieshu. I didn¡¯t want that to happen to her. It wasmon to have a mistress, but that does not mean that it does not affect people¡¯s hearts. That is why love causes conflicts so often. Many nobles fought over mistresses, and many attacked their spouse¡¯s lover even when they had their own lovers. Thinking about it cooped up in my office made me more restless, so I went for a walk. It wasn¡¯t like me to meddle in my brother¡¯s personal life in the first ce. So why did I say that yesterday? Is it because of the way Heinley always looks at me, with a lovely sparkle in his eyes? Is it because I¡¯ve found true love and I want my brother to marry for love too? In any case, I am being nosy. Nosy, nosy, nosy¡­. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± Oh my! As I walked aimlessly, I bumped into Grand Duke Kapmen. How much did he hear? He smiled awkwardly as if he had heard my thoughts. Embarrassed, I averted my gaze, and heughed. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t mean to make fun of you. It just seems that you have be much more rxed.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°In the past, you strived to appear like an Empress at all times.¡± Is he saying that I have lost my dignity as Empress? ¡°Oh no. That¡¯s not what I meant.¡± Maybe it is true that I seem more rxed now that I have fewer worries in the Western Empire. ¡°By the way, did you send the bird to Dolshi?¡± ¡°Yes. He must have received it by now.¡± ¡°Thank you. I hope he likes it.¡± When I parted from Grand Duke Kapmen, I walked a little further until a knight rushed up to me to report the arrival of an envoy from the Eastern Empire. Once I returned to my office, I saw the envoy talking to one of my aides. I didn¡¯t know the name of the envoy, but I did recognize his face. I greeted him politely and he pulled a sealed letter from his breast pocket. He held it out with both hands. ¡°I havee to deliver a response to Emperor Heinley¡¯s letter.¡± Even though this is a response to Heinley¡¯s letter, it is being delivered to me. I immediately assumed that Ahn had been found. ¡°Thank you.¡± That seemed to be all, so I walked into my office and opened the letter. *** ¡°He was found? Already?¡± As I expected, the letter contained the news that Ahn had been found. There was some nonsense as well. When I told Rivetti the news, her expression turnedplicated as she cupped her cheeks with her hands. I couldn¡¯t tell if she was surprised, happy, or worried, but it was the first time she had shown emotions with such intensity since she learned about Duke Elgy. In fact, ever since she heard that Duke Elgy appeared at the temple with Ahn in his arms, Rivetti lived as if she had fallen into a dark pit. Her eyes turned cold whenever she talked about Duke Elgy. Deep resentment, pain, and thirst for revenge had seized her. She wasn¡¯t naive and she had ws, but she used to have a feisty and lively personality. She didn¡¯t give up and sought to make a new life for herself after her father and brother died together. Now that a clear enemy had appeared,tely I worried that she would go after Duke Elgy with a knife. Duke Elgy was not someone who could be killed with just a knife. ¡°Huh?¡± Laura had apanied Rivetti to my office and asked in surprise, ¡°So, does that mean that you will return to the Eastern Empire already?¡± ¡°I¡¯m not sure.¡± Rivetti¡¯s hands trembled. Although she had a duty to take care of her brother¡¯s only son, now that it would be a reality, she was afraid. ¡°If you bring Ahn here¡­¡± Laura opened her mouth, but suddenly paused and changed her words. ¡°Well, that may not be possible.¡± Ahn looked a lot like Rashta. The nobles of the Western Empire had seen Rashta¡¯s memorable face a few times. If Rivetti brought Ahn here, everyone would know who his mother was. It was evident that Laura realized this. In fact, I had the same thought, so it was difficult to know what to say. Rivetti wanted to study here, so I could not ask her to leave to reunite with Ahn. And while I could give her a home outside the capital, she wouldn¡¯t be able toe to the pce with the child. Chapter 468 Chapter 468. Knots (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra ¡°First I have to look for him. Once I have him with me, I¡¯ll decide what to do. I could take him to Rimwell, but I¡¯m afraid others will harass him while I¡¯m not there due to his origins¡­ I¡¯ll have to think about it some more.¡± Laura, who had lost heart at the sight of the unhappy Rivetti, asked. ¡°Are you going to the Eastern Empire regardless?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± Rivetti answered quietly, sped her hands together and looked at me. ¡°May I go, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°It¡¯s your home, Rivetti.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­¡± Her sad expression made it difficult to refuse her unspoken request. ¡°Unfortunately, the child cannot be raised in the pce. However, I can provide you with a home nearby.¡± While Ahn was Rivetti¡¯s nephew, he had no ce in high society because he was not a noble. However, if I found a big mansion with a spacious yard, it would be enough for him to y. Once he¡¯s old enough to leave the mansion, perhaps Rivetti will take him to her estate. ¡°Thank you. I am deeply grateful to you, Your Majesty. Always. Your Majesty will always be my hero.¡± Rivetti¡¯s gratitude was sincere, but I had done nothing to deserve it. However, I didn¡¯t deny her thanks. My actions weren¡¯t sufficiently extraordinary to make me a hero, but right now Rivetti needed someone to rely on, and I had be a pir for her. There was no reason to tell her that I was a rather flimsy pir. Ah, there was one more thing. ¡°Miss Rivetti.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I would like to ask for a favor.¡± ¡°Yes! You may ask me anything!¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re not one to cause trouble, but please mind your behavior while you¡¯re in the Eastern Empire?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± Rivetti¡¯s eyes widened. She seemed to fear I didn¡¯t trust her, but that was not the case. ¡°It is not because of my trust in you, but because the situation isplicated on many fronts. Transnational knights are out there, prowling.¡° ¡°I have nothing to do with those people¡­¡± ¡°I know. But just in case.¡± It was unlikely that she would get in trouble with the Transnational Knights. Truthfully, it was the resentment Rivetti had developed toward Duke Elgy that worried me. Rivetti¡¯s rtionship with Rashta had always been hostile, and that didn¡¯t change even after Rashta died. Now that Rashta was gone, Rivetti had branded Duke Elgy as her greatest enemy. I didn¡¯t want to see Rivetti, clouded by revenge, entangled with him. I didn¡¯t want to see her suffer or get into dangerous situations. Rivetti nodded and smiled broadly, oblivious to my thoughts. ¡°Of course! Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯lle back safely with Ahn!¡± *** His mind was so gued with worries that the letters on the paper looked like twisted earthworms. Sovieshu stared nkly at the indecipherable words with an expressionless face. Ever since the Day Sovieshu realized he needed a confidant, he felt surrounded by enemies. He felt closely watched by those who followed the Night Sovieshu, in an attempt to extract information and pass it on to him. He was so worried he couldn¡¯t rx for even a moment. To top it off, the headaches were getting worse. The pce doctor warned him that taking too many painkillers was detrimental to his health, so he received treatment from a healing mage, but it didn¡¯t improve his headaches. ¡®Could it be that my headaches are caused by a mental problem?¡¯ Even getting sleeping pills without alerting the Night Sovieshu and his supporters was no easy task. In the midst of this, his only hope, Navier, lived in a distant country. ¡®Navier won¡¯te personally to pick up this little boy named Ahn.¡¯ No matter how optimistic he tried to be, Navier was unlikely to fetch the little boy herself. As he absentmindedly rolled the pen in his hand, an unpleasant letter caught his eye. At first, the letters danced freely before his eyes, but after struggling to focus he made out its contents. It was a request¡­ ¡®Do they really think I have to wee the next empress soon for the sake of the country¡¯s stability, and the prosperity of the Imperial Family? And if I don¡¯t¡­ I should bring Sheir to the imperial pce and educate him? How dare they.¡¯ *** ¡°This isn¡¯t the bird I wanted.¡± It was the day after Empress Navier sent a blue bird to Dolshi, with Grand Duke Kapmen as the messenger. Dolshi rushed over to receive his gift, but he put the blue bird back in the cage and said firmly. ¡°I want the bird I saw.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen walked helplessly amid the fallen leaves in the garden, weighed down by the traces of a love that had not yet been erased. However, he became irritated as soon as Dolshi osted him about the blue bird. ¡®That¡¯s what he gets for taking the potion after I warned him not to.¡¯ ¡°What do you want me to do?¡± Although Grand Duke Kapmen was annoyed, Dolshi repeated his demand. ¡°I want that bird.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen took out another vial of love potion from his pocket and held it out to Dolshi. ¡°Drink this first.¡± Perplexed, Dolshi epted the potion. ¡°Drink it while you look at it. Then you will get the bird you want.¡± Dolshi¡¯s expression crumpled. Still, his eyes were fixed on the vial. He seemed tempted. ¡®Stupid dragon.¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen had no desire to deal with Dolshi, so he quickly went on his way. Dolshi alternately looked between the vial and the cage. When he noticed that Grand Duke Kapmen had walked away he hurried to follow. ¡°What the hell, are you avoiding me now? This is a serious matter!¡± Grand Duke Kapmen covered his ears. ¡°Shut up!.¡± ¡®Those two might be in love.¡¯ He suddenly overheard a wild thought. Grand Duke Kapmen stopped in his tracks. Dolshi found it convenient and started nagging him again. However, the inner thoughts from the unknown person were louder than Dolshi¡¯s boisterous voice. ¡®The blue bird¡­ is an excuse. What that redhead likes is that handsome man.¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen reflexively pushed Dolshi away, causing him to fall. Then he began to search the surrounding area for the source of those thoughts. ¡®My keen powers of observation are inescapable. The redhead is barely hiding his intentions; it¡¯s obvious he¡¯s trying to get his attention under the pretext of the blue bird. Huh. The handsome man doesn¡¯t seem to notice. Attractive men are like that. They don¡¯t realize how attractive they are and how they charm everyone around them without a thought.¡¯ Chapter 469 Chapter 469. Birdhead¡¯s Nursery (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra Every thought was more terrifying than thest. And although the thoughts themselves were shameless, the inner voice conveyed serenity and intelligence. ¡®Stop! How can you think that in such a solemn voice!¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen shouted in his mind as he hurriedly looked from side to side. He had never been subjected to such gruesome thoughts. He wished to hear no more. ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± ¡°Stay ten feet away.¡± Grand Duke Kapmen coldly warned Dolshi, still looking for the culprit. Finally, he saw a woman sitting with good posture beneath arge tree. She held a thick book in one hand and wore sses. The book was titled ¡®An In-Depth Review of Tactics and Strategy¡¯. ¡®That woman¡¯s inner thoughts¡­ Arepletely unexpected given her appearance and present upation!¡¯ Her expression was so solemn and wise that one would never imagine she could think such nonsense. Grand Duke Kapmen approached the woman. As he walked, he realized that this was the ce where he once copsed with painful longing for Navier. For a moment, the sad memory of his unrequited love clouded his mind¡­ But then he noticed the woman again, and their eyes met. Since Grand Duke Kapmen hade too close, the woman raised her eyebrows and asked coldly, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± At the same time, her inner voice cried out, ¡®Wow, what a stud! Up close, he¡¯s even more handsome. Such virility and manliness! If a man like this said, ¡®Princess Charlotte, I want your love,¡¯ I would not hesitate to run into his arms. It¡¯d be ecstasy!¡¯ Grand Duke Kapmen¡¯s lips quivered. He had never met someone whose words and inner thoughts were so remarkably different. He had met people who show a kind smile while holding a dagger behind their back, but he had never met a person with such a serious expression and such a naughty imagination. ¡®Why does he look so nervous as he stares at me? Oh, my! There is but one possibility¡­ Did this man really fall in love with me at first sight?¡¯ ¡°No¡­that¡¯s not it¡­¡± *** It seemed like only yesterday that the first autumn leaves began to fall. In the blink of an eye, the wind became colder and the air chilled the tip of one¡¯s nose. Sovieshu ordered a table to be set up on the terrace, took his diary and sat there. Once a servant brought the chestnuts and sugar in meltedrd, apanied by a bowl of soup so hot that he would need to blow on it to eat it, Sovieshu held his diary open with one hand and lifted a spoon with the other. Eating alone was boring. It was always better to be distracted by something to shake off that feeling. But while his eyes were on the diary, his mind wandered. ¡ª Marquis Karl, I read in the court records that the woman named Rashta spoke rudely and yelled a scandalous usation. Was it true? He recalled the Marquis Karl¡¯s puzzled expression from a few days ago. Sovieshu lost his appetite, clicked his tongue and closed the diary. After that first petition asking him to remarry or at least bring Sheir to the pce, a series of simr petitions followed. The woman named Rashta made a statement that shocked the entire audience at the High Court. And now, the Empress¡¯s seat was vacant and Grand Duke Lilteang, the next in the line of session, was in a delicate state of health. The people had reason to be uneasy. Since Sovieshu didn¡¯t want to marry any other woman than Navier, he thought it wouldn¡¯t be a bad idea to bring Sheir to the pce. Sheir would be an excellent shield against those who insisted Sovieshu remarry. Besides, if he was going to bring Sheir to the imperial pce eventually, he had better do it before he fell into someone else¡¯s hands. His reflections over, Sovieshu set down his spoon and called Marquis Karl. ¡°Did you send for me, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Bring Sheir. If it will have to be done anyway, then the sooner the better.¡± Marquis Karl seemed surprised for a moment, but quickly bowed dutifully. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± His surprise was short-lived, for he knew it was only a matter of time before this happened. Moreover, the night Sovieshu was of the same opinion . ¡°Ah, Your Majesty. About the investigation of the Zemensia Family, which you previously ordered.¡± ¡°Is itpleted?¡± ¡°Duke Zemensia had many friends, but none were close. After all, his family was once the most powerful among the nobility. He must have had many followers, but few true friends.¡± ¡°Still, there must be some with whom he was close.¡± ¡°Yes. Duke Zemensia was especially close to his cousin, Marquis Ketron, and Duke Liberty. Both were also close to the former queen.¡± ¡°What are they doing now?¡± ¡°Marquis Ketron was involved in the murder attempt on the Empress by Duke Zemensia, but shifted his allegiance in favor of the Empress soon after the former queen¡¯s death. As a result, he saved his own skin. However, he has hardly been seen since. He rarely leaves his mansion.¡± ¡°What about the other one?¡± ¡°Duke Liberty had also sided with the Empress before the former queen¡¯s death. I heard his position remains the same, although he seems more reserved these days.¡± Sovieshu was thoughtful for a while. There were many things to consider in order to sessfully collude with foreign nobles. Besides, what he wanted was to get rid of Heinley, not to harm Navier. He had to evaluate all possible scenarios. If things went wrong, Sovieshu might be betrayed and his intentions exposed. After waiting for Sovieshu¡¯s answer for a long time, Marquis Karl asked carefully. ¡°What shall we do, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Sound them out in secret.¡± ¡°As youmand.¡± Marquis Karl bowed and left. But soon after he returned. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Sovieshu, having barely eaten, had just ordered the servants to take away the food. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°Someone from the Western Empire hase for the boy.¡± ¡°Where are they now?¡± Sovieshu stood up. Navier had resorted to Emperor Heinley¡¯s help to convey the message, but it was a personal request from her, so no official envoy would be sent. It was likely that someone close to Navier was sent. ¡®If I take good care of them, they will say good things about me to Navier.¡¯ Sovieshu quickened his pace. Chapter 470 Chapter 470. Birdhead¡¯s Nursery (2) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra The ¡®guest¡¯ sent by Navier was waiting in a small room close to the White Rose Room. When Sovieshu entered, the ¡®guest¡¯, who had not expected to be weed in person by the Emperor, suddenly jumped up, dropping their bag to the floor. ¡°Your Majesty, it¡¯s an honor to meet you. I am Rivetti Rimwell.¡± Rivetti Rimwell? The name sounded familiar to Sovieshu. ¡°You are¡ª¡± ¡°Do you not remember? Oh, well, we only met briefly that time. I am Ahn¡¯s aunt, whom Your Majesty saved¡­¡± Sovieshu finally remembered it. It was a name he had seen in court records. She was the daughter of Viscount Roteschu Rimwell, who was sentenced to death once his collusion with Rashta was revealed. Attempting to pass off one¡¯s own flesh and blood as the Emperor¡¯s was an extremely serious crime. It was so serious that entire families could be punished. But oddly enough, in this case only the two men directly involved with the scheme were punished¡ª Roteschu Rimwell and n Rimwell. The first child born to n Rimwell and Rashta was sold into very, but his sentence was unrted to this particr crime. Ahn was the child of a ve, and his father, who was a noble, became a felon along with his mother, so he was treated in ordance with thew. What surprised Sovieshu the most was that Rivetti Rimwell and Viscountess Rimwell were spared from any punishment. When Sovieshu read that in the court records, he wondered why, but the answer was not in his diary either. The fact that it wasn¡¯t in the diary meant that his night self had decided not to write about it for some reason. Sovieshu guessed that he made some sort of deal with Viscount Roteschu. But now, one of these people appeared before his eyes, sent by no other than Navier. ¡®It seems like a twisted story involving many tangled rtionships. No¡­¡¯ Sovieshu frowned slightly. He didn¡¯t want to dwell on suchplicated thoughts. ¡®This youngdy named Rivetti¡ª no, she¡¯s no longer simply the daughter of a noble family. She¡¯s the mistress of an estate. I received the document in which her father bequeathed his estate to her.¡¯ The Night Sovieshu made sure to approve it. The day Sovieshu had wondered why, but since he couldn¡¯t remember and was unaware of any connection to Navier, he didn¡¯t think much of it. In any case, he believed that if he delved into the rtionship between this Lady Rimwell, Navier, and Rashta, he would find clues to his lost memories¡­ *** We decided that the room across from mine and Heinley¡¯s would be the nursery because that way we could check on the baby at any time. With this resolved, we began to set it up. ¡°What design would you like for the cradle, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Why not make the cradle out of spruce?¡± ¡°A mobile made of the moon and stars would be pretty!¡± ¡°Ah, Miss Rose! His Majesty said he has ns for a bejeweled mobile, so we¡¯d better not interfere.¡± ¡°The baby¡¯s clothes should be soft, right?¡± ¡°The baby will also need formal wear for the parties.¡± The pce had been in a constant bustletely, getting the nursery, toys and essories ready. Perhaps due to the new life on the way, the dim shadows that hovered over the pce had faded. In addition to setting up the nursery, the pce also needed a slight renovation so that the baby could meander around without getting hurt¡­ There was more work than expected. Fluffy rugs wereid in the corridors, small chairs were made so the baby could sit when his little feet hurt, more knights were posted throughout the pce, and decorations were hung close to the floor, where a child¡¯s eyes could appreciate them. As I wrapped my hands around my prominent belly, I carefully prepared for my first baby. However, while the dim shadows had faded from around the pce, a dark cloud remained around my head that would not dissipate no matter how bright the environment was. ¡®I wonder if there¡¯s a way to secretly remove the nest Heinley is making.¡¯ The more I learned about babies as I prepared everything for my child, the more I realized how fragile and tiny babies are. A nest was not at all suitable! The more I thought about it, the less I wanted to leave my baby in Heinley¡¯s sloppy nest of twigs. The problem was¡­ ¡°My Queen, My Queen. Between this yellow jewel and this purple jewel, which one is prettier?¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°My Queen?¡± Heinley was busy decorating his nest. McKenna also hurried to and fro, collecting silk from somewhere for his own nest. Since they had to build their nests in their bird forms,tely I often saw arge golden bird and a small blue bird pping their wings through my office windows. ¡°Can¡¯t we put the baby in the nest after he grows up a bit?¡± ¡°Well, Your Majesty. The tribe¡¯s babies need to spend several hours a day in their bird form.¡± ¡°I know that, McKenna. What I mean is, babies don¡¯t necessarily have to be in a nest when they¡¯re turned into birds, right?¡± ¡°When you¡¯re a bird, the nest is the mostfortable ce to be.¡± I wanted to disagree. But I¡¯ve never been a bird, so I couldn¡¯t refute McKenna¡¯s statement. In the end, I met Heinley and McKenna in my drawing room to help pick out the silk and other decorations for the nests. Heinley and McKenna turned into birds to feel the silks, while I, as the sole human, only had to wrap the silks around their bird bodies. ¡°Your Majesty.¡± Just then, Viscount Langdel called. Since I had asked mydies-in-waiting to leave so that we could carry out this task, I went to the door myself and asked what was the matter. I had told them not to disturb me as much as possible, as I had a difficult job to do. ¡°A man named Dolshi is here.¡± Ah, Dolshi. I asked them to alert me if he came. But now¡­ When I looked back, McKenna was frozen while holding a twig in his beak. Queen seemed tough as he pped his wings as if he found the situation enormously funny, then he rolled under the table. Sometimes they seem a little dumb. Or is it that their brains shrink to the size of a bird¡¯s? ¡°Viscount Langdel, my belly feels very heavy right now. Could you tell him toe another time? I don¡¯t feel well.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Once I closed the door and returned to the couch, McKenna¡¯s legs gave way and he fell t on the table. It was so cute to see a little bird lying face-down. But the adorable scene didn¡¯tst more than two seconds, as Heinley kicked McKenna as soon as I burst intoughter. Heinley theny down exactly as McKenna had done and looked up at me with a twinkle in his eye. It was obvious what he wanted to ask, ¡®I¡¯m cuter, aren¡¯t I?¡¯ ¡­ Yes there can be no doubt. Whoever named them the Birdheaded Tribe chose a suitable name. *** Chapter 471 Chapter 471. Unexpected (1) Trantor: Aura / Editor: Tiny Zebra After we chose shiny jewels and the most exquisite silks for the nests, Heinley and McKenna returned to their human form and the three of us ate together. Over the course of the meal, the two birdheads squabbled. This time, it wasn¡¯t about the nest. It all started because Heinleyughed at McKenna about the situation with Dolshi. ¡°Do you hear the wedding bells, McKenna?¡± McKenna huffed angrily, but Heinley wouldn¡¯t let it go. ¡°Dragons have fluid genders, so what is the issue? Besides, you can fly too, so you make a good couple.¡± ¡°How can you say such nonsense!¡± ¡°Why else would he be after you with such determination?¡± ¡°What?! He¡¯s not after me. He doesn¡¯t even look at me when we cross paths! He just wants a pet!¡± After we finished our meal amidstughter and chatter, we ordered tea and coffee. Then we went out to the garden to enjoy dessert and soak up the sun. I enjoyed the peacefulness as I listened to Heinley sing a soft luby to the baby, while McKenna covered his ears. But then, Sir April showed up. ¡°Your Majesty the Emperor.¡± ¡°What is it?¡± Heinley stopped singing and his rxed expression shifted to his usual Emperor¡¯s expression. McKenna quickly lowered his hands and stood up. ¡°We have received a letter from the Wol Continental Alliance.¡± ¡°A letter?¡± ¡°Yes. Letters were sent to all countries. They probably all have simr contents.¡± April held out the letter to Heinley. He took it and began to read, frowning. I wondered what it said. It didn¡¯t seem like good news. ¡°It¡¯s an invitation.¡± Perhaps feeling our eyes on him, Heinley exined the contents of the letter. ¡°The New Year¡¯s celebrations will be organized by the Alliance and they have sent invitations to the rulers of all the countries. The Alliance has important matters to discuss, so they want us all to be there.¡± All the rulers in one ce¡­ it was unusual, but not unprecedented. Such gatherings took ce every few years. But was it already time to meet? Somehow, I didn¡¯t think so¡­ Standing next to me, McKenna clicked his tongue. ¡°The Alliance must be up to something. Their men are all over the ce trying to find out our country¡¯s ns. But now, all of a sudden, they want to meet?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. Also, we can¡¯t be sure that other countries received this exact letter.¡± Having discussed this for some time, Heinley finally stood up and kissed me on the forehead. ¡°I wanted to spend the whole day with you, My Queen. But may I leave you for a moment?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Since when did he ask me for permission? Heinley kissed my forehead and my cheek a few times, then ced his hand on my belly and murmured, ¡°Listen to your mom and behave.¡± Then he turned and hurried to the main pce followed by April and McKenna. Even after the three of them left, I sat alone and got some fresh air until sunset. I wanted to stroll around, buttely my belly was so heavy that it was difficult to walk even short distances. With a baby in my belly, it was to be expected, but it was still much heavier than I could¡¯ve imagined, so it was scary at times. ¡°Your Majesty, the evening breeze is cold. It would be better if you came in.¡± ¡°Yes. I was just about to.¡± However, as I walked down the stone path toward the pce, I saw two tall silhouettes facing each other, not far from the path. I immediately recognized one of the silhouettes. ¡®Mastas?¡¯ I had no doubt it was her due to the spear on her back. And the taller silhouette, standing in front of Mastas was¡­ ¡°Lord Koshar. I like you.¡± Wasn¡¯t it my brother? *** ¡®It¡¯s too frustrating¡­¡¯ Mastas was lost in thought. Fallen leaves crunched beneath her feet and the cold wind bit at her cheeks, but she didn¡¯t feel the cold nor heard the noise. Her chest was tight, as if she had been assigned an impossible mission. Her stomach was heavy even though she hadn¡¯t eaten yet. ¡®What should I do?¡¯ Lately, Lord Koshar came to her mind as soon as she woke up. She frequently thought of him, but ever since their dinner, he had taken hold of her mind and her heart, and he refused to leave. Although Koshar was weak, he was more persistent than any opponent she had faced before. If only she could go days, no, weeks without seeing that face, it would be easier. The problem was that she was one of Navier¡¯sdies-in-waiting. She had to take care of someone who looked exactly like Koshar from morning to night. Even on days when she didn¡¯t see Koshar, when Mastas looked at Navier, her affection for him grew. ¡®Lord Koshar is about to marry Princess Charlotte¡­ I shouldn¡¯t feel this way.¡¯ People¡¯s hearts are difficult to control. ¡®Could it be because Lord Koshar is too frail?¡¯ She was worried that he would be hurt if she took her eyes off him even for a moment. He was the kind of person who would catch a cold with just a slight chill and he wouldn¡¯t be able to get out of bed. The slightest misstep could twist his ankle. A fall could break his bones. ¡®Yes, that¡¯s it. It¡¯s because he is frail.¡¯ Still, he had a kind heart and a strong sense of justice. When she couldn¡¯t contain her anger and wanted to beat up the ruffian who insulted the Empress, he stopped her from doing anything crazy. ¡®He¡¯s the perfect man. The reason he hasn¡¯t married yet must be because no one is good enough for him. He is such a pure and handsome man that I¡¯m embarrassed to even dare to love him.¡¯ Just then, of all people, Koshar himself appeared. He was leaning against a wall alone. Something must have been on his mind, as he was staring crestfallen at the ground. Every time his golden hair swayed in the breeze, Mastas¡¯ heart pounded. She felt that, at any moment, she would sprout wings and fly away. ¡®Is it normal to shed tears at the sight of someone so beautiful?¡¯ Sensing her presence, Koshar raised his head. The moment their gazes met, Mastas was suddenly filled with courage. She had made up her mind. She would confess the truth. The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!