Chapter 61

“Confine the Empress to the detached palace. We will discuss her fate later.”

Since the Emperor ordered the Empress to be confined to a detached palace, she must have gone there. But she didn’t just stay confined; she was stabbed and died, so something must have happened in the meantime. There were a few remote buildings within the imperial palace grounds that could be called ‘detached palaces.’ Since they were all secluded, they weren’t places one could go to without a guard. Edelis had no choice but to wait for Sir Pasis to return, but Lehan arrived even sooner.

“The person who attacked you has been identified.”

“What?”

“It took a while.”

“Oh… Who was it?”

“The remnants of the former Emperor’s faction.”

Lehan continued with a brief explanation. The Raksid intelligence department and the imperial palace’s intelligence agency had joined forces in the investigation, and a viscount from the former Emperor’s faction had leaked information. There wasn’t enough evidence yet to round them all up, but now that the viscount had leaked information, he would be subjected to intensive questioning. In that case, Marquis Tern, who was presumed to be the leader of the anti-Emperor faction, would cut ties with him, and Lehan intended to use that as bait to win him over.

“Why they attacked you still hasn’t been revealed, but we’ll find out soon.”

He told her not to worry, saying that while the marquis might be spared, he certainly wouldn’t be sent away easily. The chill in Lehan’s voice as he said this made her not even dare to ask how he would find out, or what “not easily” meant.

“O-Okay. I understand.”

“Then please bear with me just a little longer. Sigh, I thought I had made everything safe, but I didn’t think the anti-Emperor faction still hadn’t given up.”

“What do they want?”

“There’s no new emperor to install; there are no remaining royals. They’re likely trying to reclaim lost power or seek personal revenge.”

“…That’s a really difficult position to be in. Both getting there and staying there.”

Many people had shed blood for Lehan to become Emperor. And even in the early days of his reign, there had been rebellions in various regions. Things had quieted down after he had made a few thorough examples, but it wasn’t over yet.

“I’m alright. Even if I went back to the past, I would make the same choice.”

“…But.”

According to Sir Frache, Lehan had faced death many times. And while he didn’t say so himself, Edelis knew he had undergone incredibly rigorous training in the Grand Duchy of Raksid to become Emperor.

‘It would have been better if he hadn’t gone to the Grand Duchy and stayed with me. No, it’s selfish of me to wish that the Grand Duke’s son would live as just a knight.’

She understood that after he went to the Grand Duchy, he had been attacked by the then-Emperor’s faction, so he couldn’t have just reclaimed his status. But she hated the idea of Lehan being in danger. Noticing the worried expression on her face, he must have misunderstood something and smiled awkwardly.

“I’m sorry, Edelis. I said I’d make the same choice again, even after you were attacked.”

“Oh, no. It’s not like that…”

“I don’t regret it because you are by my side. If I had to choose a hundred or a thousand times, I would make the same choice.”

“Lehan…”

Lehan’s hand covered Edelis’s.

“I’m truly sorry, and you can call me selfish, but I can’t help it. However, I promise I will protect you no matter what.”

Edelis’s heart beat wildly. Even if their methods were different, Lehan was saying he would choose the path of being with her, just like her.

‘To say he’d make the same choice a hundred or a thousand times.’

Edelis leaned over, rested her forehead on his chest, and said, “You don’t have to be sorry.”

There was no reason for Lehan to be sorry; he who would choose her a hundred or a thousand times, who had no regrets.

“No matter what, choose me. It’s not selfish; I want to be by your side. For my sake, please make the same choice.”

“Edelis… Are you sure about that? Even if you might be in danger again?”

“You’ll protect me, won’t you?”

“Of course.”

“No matter what,” Lehan added quietly. 

Overcome with emotion, Edelis felt like she might cry. It was probably because of Lehan’s unconditional affection for her. Unable to control her feelings, Edelis pulled her hand out of his. Then she wrapped her arms around his neck. Even though Lehan’s body was leaning toward her, due to their height difference, Edelis had to stand on her tiptoes to kiss him on the lips. While Edelis had hugged him before, she had never kissed him first. Because of this, Lehan hadn’t expected it at all and didn’t even close his eyes. After a moment, Edelis pulled away, her face flushed.

“Ha, haha…”

Seeing Edelis’s awkward laugh, Lehan finally came to his senses. He immediately leaned in closer to her.

“Again.”

“What, what?”

“Do it again.”

“Do what again?”

Edelis was so shy she couldn’t even make eye contact with him, and Lehan became impatient. In the end, he couldn’t hold back and kissed her on the lips before hastily pulling away.

“Hurry. I don’t think I can hold back.”

Lehan’s breath was already hot as he said this. The eyes that held her gaze were dark and seemed to burn.

‘What happens if you can’t hold back?!’

Edelis couldn’t bring herself to ask and hesitated, so Lehan’s lips found hers again. He seemed to not even tolerate her breath escaping. After kissing her a few times, it seemed to be a signal, and her lips parted. His arms were wrapped tightly around her waist, and because of this, Edelis couldn’t pull back to breathe. She couldn’t even tilt her head back. Lehan’s hand, which had been cupping her cheek, had moved down to support her neck, along with her soft golden hair. He finally let go when she was gasping for air.

“Hah… Hah…”

Edelis was busy catching her breath. But Lehan continued to crave her, as if her lips were something he was deprived of.

“Edelis, hurry.”

With a hazy mind, Edelis wondered how Lehan had become like this. Was it because she had kissed him first? It seemed to have flipped a switch in him. As Edelis’s ragged breathing began to steady, Lehan lowered his lips to hers again.

‘If this continues, I’ll be in trouble!’

Before he could devour her again, Edelis quickly kissed him on the lips. And like a student who had completed an assignment, she said with a triumphant look, “Satisfied now?”

“Did you just say… ‘satisfied’?”

But it seemed she had chosen her words poorly.

“If you’re talking about the fact that you kissed me first, then maybe. But to truly satisfy me, it will take a lot more. You know that, don’t you?”

“I did it again just like you said…”

Edelis’s voice trailed off as she avoided his gaze. Lehan’s eyes had become even darker than before.

“That’s not nearly enough.”

“Was it bad?”

“You know full well that’s not what I mean.”

Lehan said, with a rare, serious expression.

‘I know, it was just something I said to change the subject.’

Edelis looked away awkwardly, then kissed him on the lips one more time. The first time was always the hardest; the second was easy, and the third even easier.

“Be satisfied with this.”

“Just a little more.”

But Lehan was insatiable, and he delved into her again. He repeated “just a little more,” “just one last time,” and “this is really the last time,” as he clung to her. In the end, only after Edelis adamantly demanded that he stop for real did Lehan finally let her go.

***

The next day, Edelis completely revised her plan to search for the detached palace early in the morning. Sir Frache had found her as soon as he arrived at work, proudly telling her that he had finally arranged to meet the Saintess outside the temple today.

‘In that case, I’ll just go around the imperial palace when Sir Frache is out with the Saintess!’

Sir Frache had said he would leave after his shift change with Sir Pasis, so that was the perfect time. This meant she didn’t need to roam the palace with Sir Ferrin in the morning, where she might run into the Saintess. The much-anticipated time for Sir Frache to finish his shift arrived.

“Sir Frache, good luck!”

“Yes!”

It would be good if Sir Frache and the Saintess ended up together, or even if they just spent a long time together outside. Sir Frache said he would do his best, as he had even received cheers from the Knights. When Sir Pasis arrived, Sir Frache left to meet the Saintess as if he’d been waiting for this moment, and Edelis grabbed the book and went out to the garden with Sir Pasis. Sir Pasis glanced at the book repeatedly.

“Your Majesty, may I ask what that book is?”

“It’s nothing special. Just a book I’m reading these days.”

Perhaps because the Saintess had shown interest in the book the day before, Sir Pasis was also curious.

“Is it alright if I have a quick look?”

“No, you can’t.”

Sir Pasis wasn’t a main character in the book, so he wouldn’t be able to see the contents. But what had happened with the Saintess yesterday made her uneasy about handing it over. Edelis simply quickened her pace, searching for a location where the book might shine. It took a considerable amount of time, as she had to enter each of the outer palaces in the already vast imperial grounds to find the place where the Empress was confined.

“The Lady Saintess showed great interest in that book.”

“So, she wanted you to borrow the book for her?”

“…That’s not it.”

“I’m not lending this book, no matter what.”

“…”

They arrived at a small palace located slightly to the east of the north, a place you had to take a carriage to get to from the Ruby Palace. It was a tiny place, barely worthy of the name palace. Edelis rummaged through a bundle of keys to find the right one for this unused palace and opened the door. When she went inside, a thick cloud of dust billowed up, making her cough.

“Cough! Cough!”

She fanned the air with her hand, but it was no use. Just as she was about to leave, thinking this wasn’t the place, she saw another room further inside. She had a bad feeling about it. Edelis rattled the bunch of keys, trying to find the one for this room. That’s when Sir Pasis brought up the Saintess again.

“Your Majesty. The Lady Saintess wished to see you.”

“Please tell her to formally request an audience. Not through you.”

“She said she just needed you to bring the book out for a moment.”

“…You don’t sound like my guard from the Imperial Knights.”

She didn’t want to meet the Saintess even if she requested an audience. But to make such a plea through Sir Pasis, who would play a crucial role in Edelis’s life, was a low blow. She wondered if she had made a mistake by telling Sir Pasis to escort the Saintess.

‘No, she would have called Sir Pasis separately to talk to him anyway.’

Finally, Edelis found the key, put it in the lock, and turned it. With a ‘click,’ the door opened. And as she took a step inside, the book began to flash.

‘Yes!’

Edelis opened the book. It must be the next part of the story she had seen before, so it would be near the end. Just as the video was about to unfold from the book, Edelis’s vision suddenly went black. Immediately after, Edelis collapsed onto the dusty floor.

“I didn’t want to do this either.”

Sir Pasis looked down at her with a cold expression she had never seen before.