Chapter 8.1

When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was, of course, a pair of blue eyes. Not one pair, but two.

“I’m back…”

The astonished faces of the two people gleamed with the same light.

***

Adrian was on the verge of exploding. In his heart, he felt that he wouldn’t be satisfied until he had captured all those who had done this to Claire and dismembered them. He even felt like capturing and killing Hubert Ianster, who had allowed Celine to exist in this world. The mercenary group that had kidnapped Claire and the count’s knights that Celine had been leading were already decapitated and impaled on a stake, with their heads hung on the city gate. When the decapitated heads, a sight only seen during wartime, were hung on the city gate, the people of the Quinze-Nouais Empire once again trembled in fear.

But what helped Adrian endure was Leo, who would hold his two fingers tightly whenever he was about to lose control. The number of captured mercenaries exceeded two hundred, but he only executed those who were directly involved in the act. When the days that Claire didn’t open her eyes grew longer and his heart ached, Adrian would lift Leo and hug him. And he thought to himself. She would absolutely not like his current actions. Thinking that, he could endure anything.

He held the child in his arms and hummed a nonsensical lullaby he had once heard from her. Leo was several times stronger than Adrian. The child had clearly heard his mother’s voice. And every night, he would have a similar dream. The face was that of another person, but it was definitely his mother. And in the dream, his mother always wanted to come back. His mother sat in a strange, small room, and always called Leo’s name. One time, his mother drew a picture of Leo’s face, and even to a child’s eyes, it was a really ugly Leo. But Leo knew. He knew his mother would open her eyes again soon.

As usual, when he was keeping watch by her side, the child approached Adrian and climbed onto his lap. And this time, instead of holding his hand, he hugged Adrian’s neck. As if asking for a hug. When Adrian, as if by magic, understood and hugged Leo tightly, Leo reached out his small hand, which was wrapped around his neck, and stroked the back of Adrian’s head.

“It’s okay, Papa. Really.”

“Huh?”

“Mom said so. She said not to worry.”

“Huh? Right…”

Adrian was being consoled by his young son.

“She appeared in my dream yesterday. Mom said she’d be back soon.”

“Yes, Leo. Mom will come back to us soon.”

Adrian felt resentful of Claire. Why didn’t she appear in his dreams…?

“Hyuntaek… I’m sorry…”

“Huh?”

“Hyuntaek…”

Adrian couldn’t believe his ears. When he and Leo simultaneously turned their heads to look at Claire, she suddenly opened her eyes wide.

“Claire!”

As he approached her, holding Leo, she smiled brightly as if it were a lie.

“I’m back…”

And Claire fell back into a deep sleep, but Adrian knew. He knew she had returned to them.

***

When I opened my eyes again, Adrian was hugging my body and crying like a child. I gently stroked the back of Adrian’s head. He looked at my actions with disbelief.

“Claire…”

When I smiled faintly, Adrian’s words of scolding immediately flew at me.

“Are you laughing? Claire, really… you…”

“I’m sorry.”

“Are you trying to run away from this world entirely this time? You’re a malicious one, Claire Ianster.”

I stroked his back as he cried like a child and whispered.

“But I kept my promise, didn’t I? I tried to come back no matter what.”

“Yes… This time, I believed you. That you would.”

The child held my finger, which was resting on the bed, tightly. I escaped from Adrian and hugged Leo in my arms. It felt like I had two sons.

He reached for the rope to summon a maid, but I stopped Adrian.

“I don’t need anything right now.”

“But you’ve been lying down for so long. You have to eat something. I have to call the doctor, too…”

“I’m okay now. Really.”

“But!”

“No, tomorrow… Let’s all three of us sleep together now. I’m so sleepy.”

At my words, Adrian hesitated for a moment, then roughly took off his outer clothes and slipped into the bed. As I hugged Leo in front, Adrian hugged me from behind. And so, the three of us fell into a deep sleep again. In our own world, where no one would disturb us, I was able to have a good night’s sleep for the first time in a long time.

I had truly returned home.

***

“What? Next week?”

My body was recovering fast. Although Hailey couldn’t perform the surgery without leaving a scar, her skills were excellent. And Adrian didn’t stop preparing for our wedding even while I was unconscious.

“Yes.”

“But that’s too soon. I mean, it doesn’t make sense that the emperor would do something so reckless and his subjects wouldn’t stop him, right?”

But no one could stop Adrian. Instead of stopping him, his subjects felt pity for him.

“I never thought about stopping the preparations.”

“Why?”

“Because it would be like admitting that you were going to die. And since I knew you’d come back, there was no reason to stop preparing.”

Adrian answered with a proud expression.

He took care of Celine’s body, thinking of Hubert Ianster and me. My father said he clutched her coffin and cried endlessly. But because of the grave mistakes Celine had made, the count decided to overlook Adrian’s on-the-spot execution. Since it was revealed that she tried to kill the woman who was to be empress and even the child who was to be the crown prince, the Ianster Count family would have had nothing to say if they had been ruined.

I asked Adrian to postpone the wedding date a little. Even if she wasn’t my real sister, I wanted to take some time to mourn her. That child, who has probably returned to the world she lived in, might be living as a fugitive or might already be caught. Her young face kept coming to mind.

The Quinze-Nouais Empire’s Founding Festival was about to begin. This festival, which starts in late autumn, lasts for a month until early winter, to pray for a good harvest in the coming year. Five years ago, I escaped Quinze-Nouais on the last day of this festival. Originally, Adrian wanted to start this festival with our wedding, but at my insistence, the wedding was postponed to the last day of the Founding Festival.

Regardless of the date, I had already started my duties as empress, and there was a pile of work to be done due to the empress’s position being vacant for a long time. Fortunately, with my experience of managing the internal affairs of the count’s family, I was able to handle the empress’s duties one by one with ease.

Lately, Leo was also studying hard for his lessons to become the crown prince. I felt a sense of pity every time I saw him studying and writing something with his small hands, thinking that he wouldn’t have had to suffer this much if he had a slightly more ordinary father. However, Quinze-Nouais was an empire that valued martial arts more than academics. And our Leonardo Quinze-Nouais, like his father and the previous emperor, enjoyed his training time in the practice yard the most.

When that happened, Adrian couldn’t help but find Leo adorable. When the child held a sword and ran, Adrian would cover his mouth and his eyes would light up.

And that behavior of being at a loss became even more pronounced at night.

Even after I came back, Adrian would come to me every night and finish his day by standing outside my door and giving me a long kiss. His plan to end the day with a simple goodnight kiss always failed. Every time, the subjects standing by his side had to turn around and listen to the embarrassing sounds the emperor and his fiancée made. He never knew when to stop until I pushed him away, feeling embarrassed.

“Adrian, if you’re going to do this, just come in.”

I whispered to him every time, but he would always shake his head with a uselessly determined look.

“No, I promised.”

‘A promise to whom, exactly?’

But, I clenched my fists and decided to cheer him on.

Time passed, and the long-awaited Founding Festival began with the first banquet. It was exactly as I remembered it from five years ago. And a few days before the festival began, news arrived that a guest from the eastern continent, the Turk Empire, would be visiting for a peace treaty.

Adrian was in a bad mood from the morning.

“Adrian, is something wrong?”

“Huh? No.”

“I think so…”

After I came back here, I moved into the Empress’s Palace. I was a bit uneasy about important documents being sent in and out of the palace, and I didn’t want to hesitate anymore. But Adrian, who had more confidential documents than I did, started working in my office, bringing his work with him.

As Adrian was working, he came to my side and rested his head on my lap, playing with my hair, when the head chamberlain knocked and entered the office.

“Duke Henry Kabyl of the Kabyl Territory from the Turk Empire is in the reception room.”

“The Duke?”

I stood up abruptly, genuinely happy. It was so nice to hear that my old superior was visiting after a long time. Adrian grabbed my arm as I was about to rush out.

“Claire!”

“Huh? Why?”

“Don’t forget your promise.”

“What… promise?”

“That you wouldn’t smile at him.”

“How can I not smile at all when I meet someone?”

“Ha, still no. I don’t like it.”

“Huh? Oh… okay. I’ll do my best.”

Duke Henry Kabyl had visited our empire with a command from the Turk Emperor to deliver a pair of horses of the most precious lineage in Turk. Presenting the best-bred horses from the eastern continent had a significant meaning. In war, fast mobility is directly related to victory. Turk had sent horses as a gift to convey their promise of peace. They said the construction of the maritime city had already begun.

He was just as I remembered him from a long time ago. And I couldn’t keep my promise with Adrian for a single second. Seeing him, a flood of joy washed over me. Henry also kept a bright face the whole time, sharing news from the Kabyl territory.

“The one who misses Lady Taylor the most right now is Gary.”

“The butler?”

“She’s not a lady anymore. Besides, you got her name wrong.”

The emperor intruded on our conversation, showing his displeasure.

“Ah, yes. I’m used to it. Please forgive me, Your Majesty.”

I gave Adrian a quick glare and then turned my attention back to him.

“He must be making a big fuss about how hard it is, the butler Gary.”

“Yes, he is. He had to do all those things alone after you left. He complained a lot to me about how he couldn’t even say a proper goodbye to the empress. But now he has a new assistant as well.”

“Then when things calm down, please give the butler Gary a vacation. When I said I was taking a break alone, he was very envious.”

“Ah… that vacation?”

Henry smiled gently as if he remembered something.

“You’re talking about the vacation I forced you to take, wanting to hide the empress from the emperor of Quinze-Nouais when he was staying at our mansion, right?”

“Huh?”

Only then did I learn the full story of that incident. And Adrian’s face, upon hearing those words, was crumpled beyond repair.

He continued to share news from the territory after that. I kept smiling, even clapping my hands, at the news from the Kabyl territory, which I hadn’t heard in a long time. This was an irresistible force. I had spent five years there. It was more than enough time for the two of us to form a bond. I didn’t even realize that Adrian was glaring at me with sharp eyes next to me.

“Next time we meet, please stop using formal language with me.”

“Okay. I’m just doing it now because I consider you a friend. And I’m not even married yet.”

“Claire!”

At my words, Adrian, who had been holding it in so well, yelled at me. I doubted if this man with a scowling face was really the iron-blooded emperor that everyone feared and shook their heads at.

But what could I do? His whining to me looked so cute.

And among the Kabyl entourage was also a quite cute Hugh, though not as cute as Adrian.

***

“How have you been, Sally?”

“I’m fine, Hugh… You’ve been well too, right?”

“No, ever since you left, I’ve been thinking about you every day… I haven’t been able to live comfortably.”

Hugh, whom I saw after a long time, was just as Sally had remembered him. Of course, Sally hadn’t thought about Hugh for that long after returning to Quinze-Nouais, but she sometimes remembered the expression on his face when she said she wanted to stop seeing him.

“I see.”

“Actually, I didn’t have to come here this time, but I begged the butler and came with the Duke. I wanted to see you…”

Sally found herself in Hugh’s pure expression of affection, just as she had been when she had a crush on Cedric.

“By the way, Sally. Are you going to be the Empress’s closest lady-in-waiting now?”

“Yes, since Lady Claire is becoming the empress, I’ll naturally stay by her side.”

Then, Hugh came close to Sally and held her hands in both of his.

“That’s great. I just want you to be happy wherever you are.”

Sally was so grateful for Hugh’s pure heart that she started to cry without realizing it. Not wanting to show him her tears, Sally pulled her hands out of his and wrapped her arms around his neck again.

“Hugh is a really good person. You’ll find a really great woman.”

“Yeah, I have nothing more to wish for if that happens. I don’t know if I’ll be able to find a woman I like as much as you… By the way, Sally, do you know that person?”

“Who?”

In the corner of the garden where Sally and Hugh were talking, Cedric was seen standing with eyes so sharp they looked like they would burn everything down.

“Oh… he’s the Vice-Captain of the Quinze-Nouais Imperial First Knights.”

“Oh, really? But did you arrange to meet him? Why is he looking over here all the time?”

“I don’t know… I’m not sure either… Don’t worry about it.”

Sally managed to turn her face away from Cedric. And she took her arms off Hugh’s neck and took a step back from him.

“Um, by the way, Sally… I’m just asking this one last time without any hope.”

“What is it?”

“You’re never going to go back to Turk, are you?”

Hugh said that and rummaged through his inner pocket. Sally instinctively knew what he was trying to take out and quickly grabbed his hand.

“Yes, I’m never going back to Turk now. So, we can’t see each other again. Okay?”

“Huh? Yes, okay.”

Feeling sorry, Sally stood on her tiptoes and kissed him on the cheek.

“I have to go, I’m busy. Have a good time in Quinze-Nouais and get home safely. Okay?”

Sally felt very sorry for rejecting him, but she couldn’t help it. She left Hugh behind and ran toward the Empress’s Palace, and he could only stare blankly, unable to stop her sudden departure.

***

Cedric was burning with anxiety because Sally hadn’t shown up for several days. That day, when Lady Claire was kidnapped, he thought that Sally and His Highness the Crown Prince had also disappeared. But thankfully, she was hiding deep in the forest, holding His Highness the Crown Prince in her arms. Cedric and Owen were badly injured, so they took Sally and Leo and returned to the palace. Cedric wanted to say something to Sally, who was sitting in front of him, clearly shaken, but in the end, he returned to the castle without saying a word.

After that, a chilling atmosphere hung over the imperial palace. But thankfully, Her Majesty the Empress recovered her health. And the person who played a major role in that was none other than his younger sister, Hailey Duncan. But the problem began after that.

Only then did Cedric have the courage to ask if Sally was okay. He had been unable to approach her due to the guilt of not being able to properly protect those three people.

Then one day, he saw Sally again when he went to visit Her Majesty the Empress who had moved to the Empress’s Palace. But those two weren’t the only ones in the reception room. The mistress of the Fraser Barony, who had sent a marriage proposal to him and had not yet received a reply, was also there. It seemed she had requested an audience upon hearing the news of Her Majesty’s recovery.

“Oh, I see Sir Duncan here again.”

Cedric bowed respectfully and then immediately greeted the Baroness. She looked at him and said in a gentle voice, “Your Majesty, did you know?”

Cedric and the Empress awkwardly rolled their eyes and glanced at Sally, but she showed no expression at all.

“What is it?”

“It’s said that all the families in the capital who sent a marriage proposal to Sir Duncan have received a letter of refusal.”

“That’s good news.”

The Empress, as if she realized she had said the wrong thing, quickly shut her mouth.

“Yes, that’s right. But Sir Duncan has not yet sent any reply to my daughter. So, there’s a lot of talk in the capital about the Fraser and Duncan marriage.”

Baroness Fraser was a woman who was very well-versed in aristocratic society. Cedric realized that the mistress of the Fraser household was putting pressure on him. Given the timing, he had completely forgotten about that marriage proposal. It was just that… In the end, he couldn’t say a word and hurried out of there.

And Cedric couldn’t sleep peacefully after that day. As the sleepless nights grew longer, only Sally’s crumpled expression at Baroness Fraser’s last words came to mind.

So, he intentionally walked toward the Empress’s Palace today with the thought of meeting Sally. He didn’t know what to say, but he felt that his dirty mood would only disappear if he met her as soon as possible.

However, even before he reached the Empress’s Palace, Cedric had to see Sally talking and standing close to some guy. He saw that the man was wearing a Turk knight’s uniform.

He couldn’t know what they were talking about, but Sally’s face was flushed. That woman often makes such expressions in front of men. Without knowing how much it stirs a man’s heart.

From a distance, as he tried to calm his noisy heart and glared at her, Sally suddenly put her hands around the man’s neck and hugged him.

Seeing that, Cedric became unpleasantly angry, as if someone had squeezed his heart. Just when he thought she was pulling away after the hug, she even kissed the man’s cheek.

Cedric was so angry he couldn’t stand it. The anger that surged up in him was greater than when he found out that the man who had helped him recapture the Pen territory was actually a spy who had stabbed him in the back. He couldn’t understand what this emotion was. But he had to meet her right now.