《How to Safely Divorce an Obsessive Emperor》 CH 1 1. The Last Prophecy -Please¡­ The woman sobbed. A knife was stuck in her chest. Cold blood flowed down the blade, creating a dark red puddle on the floor. It¡¯s too much¡­ Someone approached the fallen woman. The woman already knew who it was. When she raised her eyes and looked up, it was as bright as facing the sun. Those eyes were too dazzling for a human to look straight into them. The woman sobbed weakly, feeling the burning pain in her eyes. -Please¡­ Help me. Don¡¯t kill me like this. The thin voice was pitiful. Just listening to it, you could feel the desperation in them so clearly it felt like it would burst your eardrums. Her thin wrist swayed like a flower stalk and grabbed the hem of the man who¡¯d approached her. ¨CDon¡¯t look away from me. I¡¯m your destiny. It¡¯s just that you don¡¯t know it yet. The woman¡¯s earnestness did not reach the man. The man simply stared at the bleeding woman with a knife stuck in her chest with emotionless eyes. ¨C No, this can¡¯t be fate. You are not my destiny. The man¡¯s words were cruel. Finally, the woman realized. The man had never loved her. Even if she died in front of his eyes, he wouldn¡¯t change his mind. ¨C If that¡¯s all you have to say. When the man finished talking, he turned his back and walked away. The back in the distance looked brutal. The indifference that didn¡¯t change until the end, and the cruel outward appearance. The man was brutal from start to finish. The woman staggered to her feet. Squeezing out the last remnants of her strength, her body shook steeply. ¨CThis can¡¯t be¡­ It can¡¯t. The disbelief drained the life out of her face. The woman spewed despair with a corpse-like face. ¨CYou must love me¡­Because that¡¯s our destiny. The woman who finished talking closed her eyes and collapsed. Her confession in the middle of the abandonment left a stain on her pale face, along with a foul smell of blood. * * * ¡°Ah¡­¡± That¡¯s where the dream ended. Lasilia opened her eyes and let out a silent groan. ¡°Lady Lasilia, are you alright?¡± Plotta asked from the side. Right now, Lasilia was travelling in a carriage accompanied by her Dream keeper. She had gotten into the carriage and closed her eyes for a moment, she must have dreamed then. ¡°Yes¡­.I¡¯m alright.¡± Lasilia blinked her eyes in cold sweat. Because of her overly vivid dream, reality had yet to caught on. it was as if half of her consciousness was still immersed in that dream. Even now, what she saw wasn¡¯t Plotta, the Dream keeper who was looking at her anxiously, but the terrifyingly indifferent golden eyes. The golden eyes were like a blade that pierced into her chest, so Lasilia bit her lips. ¡°Did you have a dream?¡± Lasilia was a prophet of the Kingdom of Delarta. God showed the future through Lasilia¡¯s dreams. Lasilia¡¯s dream was sealed on the altar through the testimony of dream keepers and thus became the word of God. ¡°I had a dream¡­ but I don¡¯t think it was a prophecy.¡± God¡¯s words were always clear. He showed me what was going to happen, so I was able to cope. A conversation with people whose face I do not recognize, unrelated to the kingdom of Delarta could not be a prophecy. ¡°Do you also have dreams that are not predictions?¡± ¡°That¡¯s what it looks like. How long has it been? Is it still far away?¡± Lasilia looked out of the window, trying to suppress her nervousness. Before having the strange dream about a man in gold, Lasilia saw a terrible prophecy that would overthrow the kingdom of Delarta. It was a scene in which the 12th prince Ricardo cut off the king¡¯s head. As soon as she had the dream, Lasilia sealed the dream at the altar and immediately sent a message to the king. It was only Plotta she used as a witness. It was such a dangerous prophecy that she was very reticent about it. Before Lasilia lived as a saint, she¡¯d met many people from prince Ricardo. She couldn¡¯t trust anyone. But even though it is such an urgent prophecy, there was no response from the royal family. In the end, Lasilia decided to visit the king herself. The prophet rarely left the Great Hall herself. Lasilia kept this matter strictly confidential and secretly left Daishinjeon without telling the priests. The only people who knew Lasilia¡¯s whereabouts were Plotta and Daishinjeon¡¯s horseman, who had been a dreamer and her friend since childhood. ¡°Have you ever wanted to look into a mirror?¡± Plotta suddenly asked a random question. ¡°What¡­?¡± Lasilia, who was looking at the dim forest path through the window, turned her head and faced Plotta. ¡°Why do you ask that?¡± Plotta did not shy away and looked straight into Lasilia¡¯s eyes. Instead of her usual upright posture, Potta was sitting with her toes up and twisted her hair with her index finger. ¡°I was always curious. How can you not be curious about how you look? The prophet is a person too, and a woman.¡± ¡°Because looking into the mirror has nothing to do with prophecy. Besides, you help me out with so many things.¡± ¡°Yes, I do. And I hate it so much. If you consider your beauty insignificant, just give it to me.¡± ¡°¡­Why are you talking like that, Plotta?¡± Plotta, who¡¯d said something really strange, smiled. It was somehow cold, omnious. ¡°I¡¯m telling you so that you know. Wouldn¡¯t that make you feel a little less wronged when you die?¡± ¡°Die¡­¡± What the hell is Plotta talking about? Lasilia, who had been raised as a prophet in the temple since she was very young, had no family or friends. It was Plotta who¡¯d taken over those empty spots. So she couldn¡¯t understand what Plotta was saying now. The person who wore such an unfamiliar expression her face didn¡¯t seem to be the Plotta that she had always known. ¡°Plotta, what the hell is wrong with you? Are you mad at me? What did I do wrong?¡± Plotta grinned. ¡°It¡¯s your fault. All of it, so many times. Lady Lasilia is a prophet while I am just a petty dream keeper. The position of a dream keeper sounds nice, but it is not different from being a servant. Besides, you¡¯ve never even thought of using the powers of a prophet properly, have you?¡± At the next moment, the smile disappeared from Plotta¡¯s face as if it had been washed away. ¡°I was desperate for all that. Everything you have.¡± ¡°Plotta¡­¡± She didn¡¯t know what to say. It was painful to hear Plotta¡¯s true feelings for the first time. The moment she bit her lips, (Hi Hi Hi Hi) Thud, thud! Suddenly, the carriage stopped and Lasilia¡¯s body almost collapsed forward. ¡°Oh, we must have arrived.¡± Flota changed her expression and rejoiced. Then the carriage door slammed open. ¡°What¡­!¡± Lasilia¡¯s face turned blue. The man who¡¯d opened the carriage was none other than Ricardo. ¡°You¡¯re on time, Your Highness.¡± Plotta greeted him with a smile. The fact that she didn¡¯t want to admit struck Lasilia. ¡°Plotta, don¡¯t tell me you¡­¡± Plotta had betrayed her. She¡¯d told Prince Ricardo of how she was running to the royal family without anyone¡¯s knowledge. He must have also been informed of the content of the prophecy. ¡°I told you so. It is to make you feel less wronged before you die, after all, it is better than dying without knowing anything, right?¡± Prince Ricardo approached and grabbed Lasilia¡¯s chin. ¡°Hello, it is nice to you. Beautiful prophet of Delarta.¡± The force of the grip was strong. It was like her Jawbone was being crushed. ¡°Put that hand away¡­I am the eye and mouth of God.¡± said Lasilia, concealing her pain. ¡°Ah, that God doesn¡¯t seem like a very good god to me.¡± Prince Ricardo smiled a strange smile. Plotta and Ricardo, who looked nothing alike, looking like each other¡¯s twins at that moment. ¡°I heard you say that I was going to cut off my brother¡¯s neck. The prophet is on her way to tell my brother about it, is it? If he knows that, how do you think things would turn out? At the very least, wouldn¡¯t he take my head off first?¡± ¡°That means God is protecting the kingdom of Delarta¡­.cough.¡± She was suffocating because prince Ricardo tightened his grip to strangle her. ¡°Listen, flower-like prophet. It¡¯s up to you right now. Whether you¡¯ll die or live. If you want to live, go back to the temple quietly. And shut up. For the rest of your life. As prophesized, I will strike my brother¡¯s neck and become king. Then I¡¯ll get you out of that haunted-den. If this half-faced prettiness is worth it, I will make you my concubine.¡± On one side of the suffocation and blurry vision, she could see Plotta¡¯s distorted face. ¡°It¡¯s useless, Your Highness. Lady Lasilia is a very honest person, so she doesn¡¯t have the flexibility to do that.¡± Prince Ricardo ignored Plotta¡¯s words. ¡°Or you die here. Now, what are you gonna do?¡± ¡°¡­¡­I,¡± Lasilia kept thinking desperately. she had to get out of this place. So she could inform the king of the prince¡¯s rebellion. But how? ¡®First of all, I have to lie. Pretend to cooperate, wait for the opportunity, and somehow¡­¡¯ Unfortunately, there was no other way to save her life here. Plotta betrayed her, and given the quietness of the temple¡¯s coachman throughout this, the knights brought in by the prince must have killed him, or he was in cahoots with Plotta. ¡°¡­¡­I don¡¯t want to die.¡± Emperor Ricardo laughed when he heard the words Lasilia struggled to say. ¡°I guess you too, don¡¯t wish to be an old lady that sells porridge for the rest of your life and die a virgin. Alright then¡­.¡± It was then. ¡°It¡¯s a lie.¡± She heard Plotta¡¯s voice and her side suddenly ached. ¡°What are you doing!¡± cried Prince Ricardo. He found that Plotta had stabbed her with a knife. ¡°¡­Gah!¡± I felt the burning pain clearly. Is it because I saw a woman stabbed by a knife in my dream? The boundary between reality and dream seemed to have been blurred. ¡°Don¡¯t be fooled, Your Highness. I know what kind of person Lasilia is. She will never cooperate with your Highness. It¡¯s safe to kill her as planned in the first place.¡± Puck! There was another tremendous pain in the place where she was stabbed. Flota twisted the knife embedded in her once more. She was definitely willing to make her stop breathing. ¡°Plo, ta¡­you¡­.¡± Lasilia staggered and reached out. But Plotta only looked at Lasilia with cold eyes. In those eyes, she already seemed to be a corpse. ¡°Damn it! I can¡¯t help anything if it¡¯s come to this. You can¡¯t be saved anymore.¡± Prince Ricardo drew out the knife from Lasilia¡¯s body, which stumbled and fell sideways. Puck! Blood spilled out uncontrollably. ¡°Get off.¡± Ricardo grabbed Plotta¡¯s elbow and pulled her towards the carriage door. Plotta glanced back at the bleeding Lasilia as she followed him down. ¡°Hey, Miss Lasilia. Let¡¯s never meet each other again.¡± ¡°Plo¡­tta¡­¡± As soon as the prince descended, the carriage door closed. Tang Tang, the prince tapped on the door and gave orders to his knights. ¡°Take this and drop it off the cliff. The body of the coachman as well. If it is found, make sure it looks like an accident.¡± ¡°Yes, Your Highness.¡± Oh, no¡­ get up¡­ I have to get up¡­run and notify the king of¡­treason. Lasilia squeezed the rest of her strength. But all she could with that power was wriggle her finger. Du¡­du¡­du¡­DHUP! After a while, the carriage loaded with the bodies of Lasilia and the coachman rolled down a remote cliff. * * * ¨C They¡¯re finally here. ¨CYes, yes. They¡¯re here. ¨C So now, you¡¯re doing¡­right? There was a commotion going around. The eyelids reacted first to the noise that filled her ears. Lasilia¡¯s dim eyes opened. The first thing that caught her eye was the bright light. ¡°¡­¡­?¡± It was so bright. Lasilia¡¯s room had never been so bright. Am I dreaming? ¡­¡­No, I¡¯m dead. She seemed to have died and gone to the kingdom of God. Lasilia opened her eyes and looked at the unbelievable scenery around her. Finally, her gaze turned to the window. On the ornate window sill covered with fine carvings and gold leafs, birds she had never seen before were sitting side by side, looking at her. Caw. Poot, poot. Chirp, chirping. ¡°¡­. Did you talk to me just now?¡± It was strange. Obviously, the birds were chirping, but it sounded like a human voice to her ears. ¡°Who¡¯s there?¡± It was then. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress, did you call?¡± ¡°¡­¡­?¡± Lasilia tilted her head. The Empress? Drumrolls ~ this is Ami, the translator. I impulsively picked up another novel to translate, while the title is cliche yes, it¡¯s only come out recently. Premise is interesting, sort of, so let¡¯s see what the story unfolds together! CH 2 2. Moon of the Death (1) ¡°Your majesty the empress, it¡¯s time to get up.¡± ¡°¡­¡­?¡± The birds flew away at the sound of the human voice. But what surprised Lasilia more than the birds who seemed to be speaking human language were the words that came out of a human themselves. Her Majesty the Empress¡­? Who the hell are you calling Empress? ¡°Then, I¡¯ll open the door.¡± Thud! There came a sound of tremendous heaviness by the door, followed by people. Srlk. The smooth curtain, which had been hanging at the foot of the bed, was pulled back. ¡°Did you have a good night¡¯s rest, your majesty?¡± ¡°¡­¡­!¡± Leila couldn¡¯t say anything, instead her mouth gaped. Silent astonishment stood between her lips. The six women, with their hands on their chest and bowing politely, were greeting herself, not someone else. They were calling her the empress, not any other person. ¡°Your Majesty, what¡¯s wrong with you?¡± After a long silence, the woman at the front asked. In terms of age and attitude, the woman seemed to be the highest in rank among them. ¡°What did you call me¡­¡­.¡± ¡°Majesty, is there something that is bothering you?¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± I didn¡¯t hear it wrong. I wasn¡¯t looking at it the wrong way. There was no one around me, and it was clear to me that these women were calling me empress. Why? What the hell is going on here? ¡°I¡­¡± Lasilia swallowed her saliva by force. It felt more like she was swallowing needles, not saliva though. ¡°Who am I¡­.what am I called?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡­?¡± Six women wore a look similar to Lasilia. Soon after, rumors quickly spread through the palace that the Empress of the Empire, Cartagena Pierion, had amnesia. * * * The atmosphere was strange. When she opened her eyes, even the prophet of that distant kingdom, who¡¯d suddenly become the Empress, could not be unaware that the current atmosphere was absurd. The Empress said she doesn¡¯t remember anything, and the court doctors did not blink an eye. They merely said, ¡°Is that so?¡± It was strange and even suspicious. ¡°Yes, then¡­ Let¡¯s say it¡¯s amnesia. Shall I inform that to his majesty?¡± The court doctor, who was reminded of the Emperor, cautiously asked her. ¡°What is this?¡± Neither the courtiers nor the maidservants suspected or worried about the amnesia. They just crouched down and looked her in the eye. ¡®¡­No one believes it. This ¡°amnesia.¡± ¡® If so, what is the reason? After thinking for a moment, Lasilia asked the courtier. ¡°Have I ever had memory loss before?¡± ¡°What? Um¡­ That¡¯s not true, Your Majesty.¡± Although she said no, Lasilia did not miss the courtier¡¯s eye roll before answering. ¡°It sounds like memory loss didn¡¯t happen, but something similar did.¡± The eyeballs rolled again. ¡°That¡¯s because¡­your majesty is so sensitive and delicate¡­on the day of the blue moon, you often get sick.¡± ¡°Blue Moon?¡± ¡°Yes, Her Majesty. The blue moon will appear in a few days.¡± If it¡¯s the blue moon¡­I once heard of it. The blue moon that rises only in the empire is said to be the moon of the demon realm. In some places, it is also called the moon of death. On the night of the frighteningly large and bright, but pale blue moon, you cannot see a shadow. It was a distant, fantasy-like moon that was visible to the eyes but never cast on the ground. ¡®Maybe it¡¯s because I¡¯ve never seen it, but it felt like just an old story.¡¯ Maybe that¡¯s why. Since ancient times, Blue Moons have been accompanied by all kinds of ominousness. Some said that when a Blue Moon rose, demons resurrect, and others say that the Blue Moon has the power to cast a curse. It is also said that it turned good people into madmen and took the lives of innocent people. ¡®Are they saying that the Blue Moon has something to do with her amnesia? No way¡­even so, you¡¯d still worry.¡¯ ¡®Being sensitive and delicate sounded different from being sick. If they don¡¯t believe it, they must think that they¡¯re being fooled. ¡® The court doctor said the empress¡¯s body was sensitive and delicate, not sickly. It had a different meaning entirely. ¡®Isn¡¯t it because you don¡¯t believe anything I say? Even more so since I¡¯m not the real Empress?¡¯ Her head throbbed. ¡®Then what should I do?¡¯ For now, she needed time to think this situation through calmly. Concluding this, Lasilia looked the people standing dead in the eye and spoke, ¡°If there were days I was uncomfortable so often, his majesty must have already guessed about it ahead of time. I don¡¯t think we need to tell him.¡± Things will be more complicated if the emperor finds out. ¡°Ah¡­are you sure? Is that alright?¡± The courtier was pleased. It was so obvious. It seemed like he was embarrassed to have to tell the emperor of this ailment. She had to find a way out of this situation quickly. ¡®I¡¯m not¨C yes, I¡¯m not supposed to be doing this here. I have to go back to Delarta.¡¯ Suddenly, she felt stuffy as if a rock had been placed on her chest. If God had resurrected her, there must be a reason for it. If the reason for her death was the treason by prince Ricardo, she might still have a chance to stop the rebellion now that she¡¯d been revived. ¡°I want to focus on quietly retrieving my memories by myself. I want you to leave now.¡± Everyone looked bright at Lasilia¡¯s words. However, when their eyes met, they hurriedly bowed their heads and took a servile position, to be polite. ¡®The empress seems to be quite difficult.¡¯ Everyone greeted her quickly and went out one after another. The steps did not make a single sound despite their speed. * * * ¡°What? Memory loss?¡± Bang! Contrary to what she¡¯d conveyed to the court doctor, rumors spread fast in the Imperial palace. In addition, the emperor had two shadow knights who were quick to examine the Empress¡¯ every move. One of them, Riyan, dropped the freshly bitten apple from her hand the moment he heard the word amnesia. It was certainly rare for Riyan, who is said to be the first human to reach the status of Sword Master, to make this mistake. That¡¯s how ridiculous it was. ¡°Yes, memory loss.¡± It was another shadow knight, Serben, who¡¯d come to the Empress¡¯ palace to inquire about the news as hot as freshly baked bread. Serben kicked the up apple with his toes, took it with his left hand and handed it to Riyan. When Riyan frowned, he rubbed the apple on his shirt and handed it back again. Crunch! Riyan looked at Serben as she took a big bite of the apple. ¡°Was memory loss such a common disease? I mean, like the heart disease, insomnia, suicidal thoughts, quadriplegia that Her Majesty often suffers from?¡± ¡°How can that be? But look at the timing. The blue moon will pop up soon. Any disease is possible then.¡± ¡°Oh, right. The Blue Moon.¡± The expressions of the two knights became similar. The mouths twisted so sourly they become bitter. ¡°His majesty will be really sick when the blue moon rises, and the Empress doesn¡¯t want to take responsibility for it, so she pretends to be in pain in advance¡­. that¡¯s right. That¡¯s the pattern, I¡¯ve been seeing it for four years. But why amnesia this time?¡± Crunch! Riyan took another bite of the apple, frowning to the top of her nose. Serben looked admiringly at the apple left with only the seed in just two bites. ¡°Does our evil and insidious Empress not know that even if she loses her memory, she can still make as much ¡®contact¡¯ as she wants?¡± Serben smirked and lightly pressed Riyan¡¯s wrinkled nose with his fingertips. ¡°I don¡¯t think our vicious and conscientious empress could have failed to calculate that much. She must have something else in mind.¡± ¡°What the hell do you think that is?¡± ¡°Well, I heard that she told the court not to tell His Majesty.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t understand that even more. She pretends to be sick just to avoid getting in contact with him during the Blue Moon. Then why would you keep it a secret? The talk would be all over the place, anyway.¡± ¡°Isn¡¯t it that she prepared something dramatic? She likes that kind of thing. Getting attention all alone.¡± ¡°Then she must be overjoyed.¡± ¡°I know.¡± The two knights, who were born twins, usually hit it off well, but there were no disagreements between them especially on the topic of Empress Cartagena. They had concluded early on that Empress Cartagena was a fickle liar and a conman with no conscience. The evidence was that she laid down on the bed with all sorts of excuses whenever the Blue Moon came. Crunch! Riyan muttered, gnawing at the seeds as if biting the enemy, not the apple. ¡°Yeah, the Blue Moon is right around the corner¡­.how is his majesty? Are there any signs yet?¡± ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be better to ask about it in person?¡± ¡°Who doesn¡¯t know that. His majesty is a man of courage. He says it¡¯s okay because he didn¡¯t die, even if the pain he feels is enough to want to die.¡± Unfortunately, that remark, too, needed no disagreement. The current emperor of the Eliaden Empire, Lescal, was different from ordinary humans in many ways. It started from his appearance of splendid gold. He was frighteningly beautiful, but also foreign. Even when he was not sitting on the throne, he was often alienated. His eyesight was twice as sharp as that of a human, and so was the life span. His skin was abnormally tough and knew not fatigue or disease. He was many times stronger than a human. He did not know the despair caused by the limitations of the body, nor did he know the human emotions that stemmed from despair. It was because of the blood of the Demons mixed in the Eliaden¡¯s imperial family. Over the years, the blood of demons was diluted and there were Emperors who barely showed the characteristics of demons, but Lescal was different. He was born with the characteristics of a demon that could not be hidden at all. But that monstrous body experienced pain, too. The pain stemmed from the human body¡¯s inability to contain the enormous power that came from the blood of the demons. On the day of the blue moon, the master of the Demon clan rises and the blood of the demons races as if ridiculing humans. The skin splits, and hard scales protrude from it, horns grow through the forehead bone. His back tears and his wing bones pop out. When the moon goes down, the change in appearance disappears, but that does not mean there is no pain. Riyan, who had been chewing her lips for a while, jumped from sitting on the floor. ¡°I should check it myself. I¡¯ll find out what our evil and insidious empress is up to.¡± Serben shook his head with his arms crossed. ¡°Knowing doesn¡¯t change anything. Seeing the memory loss and stuff, Her Majesty is thinking of staying in her bedroom again this time. You know there¡¯s nothing you can do about it.¡± ¡°I know it won¡¯t change anything, but I¡¯m still frustrated!¡± It was when Riyan cried out. Bam! The door to the office slammed open without warning. ¡°Your Majesty?¡± It was Lescal who opened the door. He came along clutching his wrists. Lescal had almost no expression, but now the two knights seemed to see a distinct impression. It was a very strange thing. ¡°I have to go to the empress.¡± ¡°What?¡± And this was a strange thing to say. As far as the two knights knew, this was the first time that Lescal visited the Empress first. Even if they disliked the Empress Cartagena, Lescal had no feelings about that. Lescal might consider the fountain in the Imperial Garden more useful than the empress. Anyway, he was looking for the empress. It was no ordinary matter. Lescal held out the wrist he was clutching to Riyan. ¡°The symptoms are appearing.¡± ¡°Your Majesty¡­!¡± On the inside of Lescal¡¯s wrist, skin had cracked and transparent stone-like scales grew. ¡°Damn it!¡± Riyan shut her eyes tightly. There was a reason why no one could touch the evil, insidious, vicious and liar Empress. Unfortunately, the Empress was the only one who could control the blood of the demons. CH 3 3. Death of the Moon (2) The Demon Clan had made a contract with a human magician to stay on earth. A contract was made to subordinate the blood of demons to humans and in return, maintain their human bodies. The blood of the demons has since been born in pairs with humans. The partners, called the companions of fate, were born alternatively in five families of the Empire. These five families, which were descended from the Magician, became the center of the Empire along with the Imperial family. ¡°I¡¯ll go first.¡± Shyang! Riyan stuck the knife into her waist band. Riyan, who usually likes to roll around on the floor of the Imperial palace, kept her knife untied because it got in the way. ¡°You don¡¯t know if her majesty will run if you inform her you¡¯re going there.¡± Riyan was serious, and also cautious. It was certain that Cartagena Peirion was born in a pair with Lescal. In the year Cartagena was born, Peirion, one of the five families, made a public declaration and revealed the markings on her body as proof of being a companion. Until Lescal and Cartagena were formally married four years ago, no one doubted that. The blood of the demons and their companions were always born as a pair. Among the previous Emperors, some were born without the characteristics of a demon, and in some cases, no companion was born at all ¨C but after Lescal, Cartagena was born. The markings were undeniable evidence. It is said that those born in pairs recognize each other¡¯s existence even if they don¡¯t see each other¡¯s faces. Contact, a method of controlling the blood of the demons, also came into effect automatically. However, during the four years after the wedding, the empress made all sorts of excuses to avoid contact. No one knew why. Riyan and Serben alone suspected that the Empress was a fake. However, in the year Cartagena was born, the chief priest himself checked her mark. In the course of the engagement ceremony, Lescal too, saw the markings. They couldn¡¯t doubt Cartagena as long as the marks were there. That was the problem. The Empress was torturing Lescal with the existence of a weapon that could never be replaced by anyone but her. That was why the two shadow knights grind their teeth when they saw the Empress Cartagena. In particular, Riyan was on the side that they should dispose of the fake companion, the Empress, and find the real one before it is too late. ¡°He can¡¯t miss it today.¡± Lescal would soon celebrate his 30th birthday. If Lescal was not able to control the blood of the demons in him until then, he might lose all of his character completely and become a demon. No one knew exactly what was going on because no such case existed in imperial history so far, but the rapid onset of the symptoms meant that the demonic power was growing stronger. ¡°I feel the same way. But why don¡¯t you leave your knife with me?¡± Serben reached out to Riyan. ¡°Why?¡± ¡°I keep thinking of a scene where you threaten her majesty with a knife to her throat. She is still the Empress.¡± Riyan shook her head with an expressionless smile. ¡°There¡¯s nothing I can¡¯t do. My role as his majesty¡¯s guardian knight is to protect his majesty. If her majesty continues to threaten him by using contact as leverage, there is no reason why I can¡¯t use a knife.¡± ¡°Ah, I mean¡­your majesty.¡± Serben, who knew his twin sister¡¯s personality better than anyone else, asked Lescal for help. But Riyan had already whisked out of the office with her sword on. ¡°Oh! Riyan!¡± Serben reached out but was too late. Liyan used the window, not the door, to her credit. ¡°I have to go quickly. Before Riyan ends up causing an accident.¡± Serben hurriedly opened the door of the office. In that short time, the scales grew to the size of half a fingernail. Lescal, who was holding his hands on his wrist ¨C turning black like a horse¡¯s foot ¨C moved. He couldn¡¯t put off contact anymore. He didn¡¯t want to, but he didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d get another chance to negotiate with the Empress over contact like today. Fortunately, the Empress¡¯ Palace was not far away. And the empress, who said she was suffering from Amnesia, remained quietly confined to her bedroom. * * * ¡°Your majesty the Empress! The blood flowing of the highest part of the continent, Lescal Lovaniallen Falken, Emperor of the Eliaden Empire is entering!¡± It hasn¡¯t been long since the maids were sent out. Lasilia, who had taken time to sort out her thoughts alone, suddenly had to greet the emperor. The prophet was usually calm. Lasilia had never thought of herself having a flustered personality. Life in the temple was always quiet, and Lasilia was only ever shocked by a very esoteric prophecy. even that became familiar to her after 25 years. But since she opened her eyes as the empress of the empire, she seemed to be flustered all the time. ¡°Hold on!¡± It was not until she heard that the emperor had come that Lasilia realized that she was in pajamas. The problem was that all the maids had been sent out. Lasilia hurriedly opened the chest of drawers that was visible to her. But the chest of drawers was filled with perfume and jewels, and she could not find a single piece of clothing. ¡°I¡¯ll open the door!¡± Hey! ¡­. thud. Moreover, the Emperor of this empire didn¡¯t seem to know how to wait. Let alone heeding my answer, the bedroom door was opened wide anyway. ¡°Wait a minute, I say!¡± It¡¯s too late. Further embarrassment was meaningless. With a short sigh, Lasilia got rid of her embarrassment and turned to face the emperor. Whether it was true or not, she was a patient right now, so it wouldn¡¯t be too bad for her to be wearing pajamas. ¡°Hell¡­..¡± But the moment she turned around, she met the splendidly shining gold eyes. She almost said, ¡°Are you crazy?¡± without realizing it. Lasilia managed to shut her mouth. She couldn¡¯t forget those eyes; he was the man from that dream. ¡°Oh my¡­.¡± Her body turned stiff. It was as if that golden eye turned into a blade and pierced her chest. ¡°I heard you¡¯re not feeling well¡­ I guess it¡¯s true. Seeing that you haven¡¯t even changed your clothes, yet.¡± How much time passed? When she closed her eyes because she couldn¡¯t stand the glittering eyes anymore, the emperor opened his mouth. At the words, Lasilia slowly exhaled and opened her eyes. The emperor was staring at her face. ¡°It¡¯s not that I¡¯m not feeling well.. I lost my memory.¡± Lasilia forced her stiff lips to move. Every word was carefully spoken. The Emperor¡¯s Golden eyes were too flashy. It was to the point she was sucked into them and forgot what she was talking about. Lasilia had not yet made her decision. She was not sure if she should delay in telling him of the memory loss or reveal her true identity. But they said she was the empress here. Even if it wasn¡¯t clear exactly, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to claim that someone of the status of Empress had become someone else. A very complex would begin, both politically and socially. ¡°I wasn¡¯t prepared to face others because I didn¡¯t even know who I was.¡± It was an excuse for still wearing pajamas, and a gentle request for him to leave considering the situation. Lasilia still needed time to organize her thoughts. ¡°Is that why? It¡¯s weird. It¡¯s like a different person.¡± It may be that the emperor did not understand what I was saying, but he was muttering about something else altogether. With his chin tilted lightly to the side, he stepped forward. Lasilia immediately stepped back. ¡°With all due respect, I don¡¯t even recognize your face.¡± So, whether they were a couple or not, he was just an unfamiliar man right now. ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°¡­¡­?¡± One thing was certain, anyway. The emperor must not have liked the empress one bit. I still do not know whether the woman in that dream was not the empress or not. However, looking at what he was doing right now, I could feel that the Emperor did not cherish or respect his Empress. Above all, he didn¡¯t seem to listen to the empress at all. The emperor, who narrowed the distance Lasilia had retreated to with an invisible speed, grabbed Lasilia¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Don¡¯t do this, Your Majesty.¡± Lasilia tried to push the emperor away. However, the emperor did not budge no matter how hard she tried. ¡°You can¡¯t avoid me today.¡± The glittering gold was too close. She was afraid she would go blind if he came so close, but she couldn¡¯t close her eyes in fear of what the Emperor might do. ¡°I¡¯m not avoiding anything¡­I¡¯m confused because I¡¯ve lost my memories. If you give me some time¡­¡± ¡°There is no time.¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± Lasilia couldn¡¯t understand what the emperor was saying, asked back, frowning. ¡°¡­¡­different.¡± The emperor, who muttered this, suddenly buried his face on the back of her neck. The sound of breathing came from above her neck. ¡°Ha!¡± Frustrated, Lasilia stepped firmly on the emperor¡¯s foot. She did it since it was useless to shake him off. ¡°Oh, dear¡­¡± ¡°Wow, she did even that now!¡± The knights standing behind the emperor like shadows spoke. The emperor, however, did not budge at all even after she stepped on his foot with all her might. ¡®Crazy. What¡¯s wrong with you?¡¯ The hand that clung to her shoulder was hot. Lasilia, who had been confined to the temple so far, was not immune to other people¡¯s body temperature. She didn¡¯t know if his temperature was originally this hot, but she at least knew that other people¡¯s body temperatures usually were different from that of a stove. The emperor, who was breathing in still, put his lips on her skin this time. Lasilia, who couldn¡¯t stand it anymore, shouted reflexively. ¡°Don¡¯t do it!¡± Everyone was surprised. The emperor¡¯s knights¡¯ shoulders flinched, and Lasilia became stiff and embarassed. ¡°¡­if so, then.¡± What was more surprising was the reaction of the emperor. The emperor drowsed on her as if he hated to part with Lasilia, but reluctantly let her go. As Lasilia quickly widened their distance and wrapped her arms around the neck his lips had touched, she spoke. ¡°I¡¯m confused, very-very confused. I ask you to leave now.¡± The emperor answered slowly, staring into her eyes like before. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go.¡± ¡°Your Majesty.¡± He raised his hands when she glared at him in amazement. ¡°Well then.¡± ¡°Thank you for your understanding. Please understand that I can¡¯t see you off because I¡¯m not dressed properly.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± The emperor took off very slowly afterwards, as if he meant it when saying he didn¡¯t want to go. Before leaving the bedroom door, the emperor looked back at Lasilia. ¡°When will your memories return?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I hope they don¡¯t come back.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± What does that mean? ¡°I¡¯m going back now. See you again in the evening.¡± Thump. The door closed as if it would not listen to the rejection. * * * ¡°What the hell was that just now, Your Majesty?¡± After leaving the queen¡¯s bedroom, Riyan could no longer hold back and opened her mouth. ¡°You know how her majesty is, don¡¯t you? How is that possible!¡± Serben nodded profusely next to her. He looked like he was dying to ask this too. As far as the two knights know, there has never been such close contact between Lescal and the Empress before. The empress repeatedly avoided him, and Lescal, who was worn out by the empress¡¯ rejection, was also not enthusiastic about the contact. To be exact, Lescal hated human contact. It may be because of the demon blood in him. It was no different even if the other side was the Empress, his parter of fate. The five sense, which were many times more sensitive to him than a human, made him come to dislike contact. ¡°Well¡­today, she smelled good.¡± Lescal¡¯s answer surprised the knights even more. ¡°What do you mean smell¡­ You mean the smell of Her Majesty? You used to hate her smell whenever you got close to her?¡± ¡°It was different today.¡± ¡°It was different? How? Do you mean to say that her majesty, the empress, sneaked in a great perfumer?¡± To Riyan¡¯s surprise, Lescal seriously pondered over her question. ¡°It wasn¡¯t the smell of perfume. It was just the smell of the empress. It was even the same one.¡± ¡°But why¡­?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know. That same smell felt different today. I wanted to keep smelling it.¡± ¡°What?¡± Riyan gaped and Serben, embarrassed, scrambled his hair. ¡°That¡¯s a little¡­ Why are you doing that all of a sudden¡­¡± It was then. ¡°Your Majesty! Your hand! Look at your hand!¡± Riyan suddenly jumped at Lescal and held his hand. ¡°Scales!¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± What he said was right. The inside of his wrist, which had been growing scales until he met the empress, had become intact. Originally, after the blue moon fell, his body returned to its original state, but there has never been such a quick change. Riyan, who opened her eyes wide, muttered as if she couldn¡¯t believe it. ¡°Ha, what is this¡­then, are you saying that her majesty was real all along?¡± CH 4 4. Contact ¡®I can¡¯t believe it¡­¡¯ Lasilia couldn¡¯t take her eyes off the mirror. It¡¯d already been 30 minutes. The woman in the mirror, Empress Cartagena, was beautiful. She seemed like she¡¯d drawn out all the beauty in the world and was created with all of someone¡¯s heart. The rich, smooth black hair and marble-like skin ¨C along with her vivid purple eyes that seemed to lit up created the image of an unrealistic beauty. Even other things like her earlobes and fingernails were pretty. But that wasn¡¯t all. She was the one I saw in my dream. She was the Empress of the Empire. The woman in the mirror was dying and bleeding from her chest. That face was hers now. It took several deep breaths for Lasilia to accept this outrageous reality. She herself had become an Empress. ¡®Then that dream¡­¡­ It might have been a prophecy.¡¯ There was no word of the real empress¡¯ death. Therefore, the death of the empress was something that had not yet happened, and would happen in the future. The empress died before an emperor who did not love her. The emperor watched the figure without any emotion. The empress expressed her love sadly, but the emperor was heartless to the point it gave her goosebumps. ¡®I fell in love with the emperor¡­ Does that mean I¡¯m going to die like this?¡¯ The heart that had not yet been stabbed was appalled. Lasilia closed her eyes tightly and rubbed her chest. ¡®No, you can¡¯t die like that.¡¯ It would be the most terrible death for her who¡¯d already died once from Plotta¡¯s betrayal. Until the betrayal, Plotta was the closest thing in the world to Lasilia. She was killed by someone whom she gave her deepest affections to ¨C it would be miserable if she had to die the same way again even after she became someone else. ¡®So, let¡¯s get out of here. One way or another.¡¯ Being revived doesn¡¯t make you a different person. Lacilia thought she was still a prophet. The prophet was a person who corrected the wrong things in the world on behalf of God. The rebellion led by Prince¡¯s Ricardo was one of those things. God showed her the rebellion against the monarchy and she was obliged to stop it. ¡®I have to go back to Delarta. Time has passed, so Prince Ricardo must have already committed treason. The king might be dead¡­but I still have the means to reverse the rebellion.¡¯ In Delarta, a place where prophets existed, the next king would also surely appear in the prophet¡¯s dream. Even if Ricardo used the trick of treason, if God recognized him as a king, he would have shown Ricardo¡¯s figure as king through Lasilia¡¯s dream. Ricardo could not hold the coronation if Lasilia said she hadn¡¯t seen such a thing. The problem was how to return to Delarta. ¡®It would be strange if the empress suddenly said that she would go to a small, far-away kingdom with no prior exchanges.¡¯ Lasilia kept thinking for a long time with her eyes closed. ¡®What if I tell them I¡¯m a prophet?¡­No, that¡¯s too dangerous. Besides, no one would believe me. Then how¡­Ah!¡¯ Lasilia¡¯s eyes widened. There was a way. There wasn¡¯t a way to get them to believe her, but there was a way to get to Delarta. ¡®Anyway, the empress has lost her memory.¡¯ So, what the Empress has to do is try to regain her memory. The Temple of Delarta made money by praying for healing. In fact, there were not many priests with healing powers, but the prayers¡¯ effects were still evident. ¡®Let¡¯s say I wish to receive a blessing.¡¯ Just in time, the emperor has left a message saying they should see other again this evening. She was going to find a way to somehow turn him down, but she now had to treat this chance as an opportunity. If a healing prayer is necessary to restore her memory, the emperor will not be able to refuse her request to go to Delarta. There was a faint smile on Lasilia¡¯s face. She was able to go back. * * * ¡°I¡¯m sleepy.¡± Lescal, who returned to the office and held the pen again as if nothing had happened, suddenly spat out. ¡°Uh-¡± ¡°This¡­¡± Riyan, who was lying on the floor of the office as usual, and Serben, who was standing next to her and honing his sword, responded immediately. By the time Lescal let go of his pen, Serben was already waiting for him with Lescal¡¯s cloak up. ¡°Will you be going to the bedroom?¡± ¡°Well, I guess¡­no, the sofa would be better.¡± Lescal walked to a long couch on one side of the office. Riyan tilted his head as she watched him he lay sideways. ¡°You must be uncomfortable. The sofa is shorter than His Majesty.¡± ¡°It¡¯ll be bad if it¡¯s too uncomfortable.¡± Lescal murmured with his eyes closed. ¡°Will you be in trouble if you¡¯re comfortable?¡± ¡°We¡¯re supposed to meet in the evening. I have to wake up before then.¡± ¡°Who¡­ Oh, Her Majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± As if he had fallen asleep, he heard the sound of even breathing from Lescal. Serben muttered softly as if he was dumbfounded. ¡°Your majesty is saying he¡¯ll sleep uncomfortably so he can meet the empress later¡­I can¡¯t believe this.¡± The relationship between Lescal and Empress Cartagena over the past four years has been beyond description. Lescal hated the empress. To be exact, he, unlike other humans, felt no emotion for her at all. However, it was Lescal who needed contact. So he had to condone the queen¡¯s arbitrary stirring of the Imperial Palace by swinging contact as a weapon. The Empress, on the other hand, wanted Lescal. To be exact, she wanted Lescal to see her as a companion of fate. She didn¡¯t hesitate to try to get his attention by committing suicide while simultaneously avoiding contact. Regrettably, Lescal had no interest in the Empress. Even when suffering from the Blue Moon¡¯s pain, he did not try to force contact with the empress. He said he doesn¡¯t even feel like it. So what happened today was shocking. ¡°Even if you can¡¯t believe it, you have to believe it. It happened anyway. And maybe this is it, right?¡± Riyan, who sat down near the couch where Lescal slept, said. In the meantime, Serben pulled the single-person sofa and placed Lescal¡¯s legs stretched out on the couch armrest on it. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°I mean, he¡¯s suddenly sleeping. He¡¯s trying to recover his body, isn¡¯t he?¡± ¡°I guess so.¡± Riyan carefully lifted Lescal¡¯s sleeve. ¡°It¡¯s amazing. It¡¯s all gone.¡± ¡°What? That fast?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Serben also came up to him and looked into his sleeve. There was no sign of the scales growing. After the Blue Moon came and showed signs of mutation, Lescal fell asleep as if he were dead. He understood that it inevitably occurs in the process of coping with the demon power in a human body. ¡°The mutation has never disappeared so quickly, and much less without pain.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°Then, was I wrong in my belief that her majesty was a cheat?¡± When asked by Riyan, Serben rubbed his chin. ¡°Well¡­I have no idea what her majesty is thinking. All I know is that she¡¯s a twisted and wicked person.¡± ¡°There is no human being that can understand her majesty¡­ha, if she¡¯s not a scam, then I¡¯m getting even more angry. Are you saying she¡¯s been turning a blind eye to this all along despite being able to enact ¡®contact¡¯ ?¡± ¡°Well, is that all you think?¡± ¡°Huh? What does that mean?¡± Serben continued, wrinkling his brows. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­Her majesty wasn¡¯t like that from the beginning, remember? In the early days of her marriage, she worked hard at the Imperial palace. Her demeanor changed only after his majesty expressed no interest in her. If that¡¯s the case, then isn¡¯t it just a matter of fact? The only weapon her majesty can wield is ¡®contact¡¯. If not, there would be no reason for her to exist at the Imperial palace.¡± ¡°Huh¡­? That¡¯s plausible. You¡¯re a little smart today.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome.¡± ¡°Then, has Her Majesty, who was vicious and dreary, but actually felt a lack of affection, now changed her mind? Why today¡­. Wait a minute.¡± Riyan pointed something out. ¡°No, it¡¯s not like that. Her Majesty tried to deny contact again today. His majesty just forcibly seized what she was trying to avoid.¡± ¡°Oh, that¡¯s¡­. Come to think of it, you¡¯re right.¡± ¡°Until now, His Majesty had never tried that much.¡± ¡°That¡¯s right. He didn¡¯t like even the hem of their clothes brushing past each other.¡± ¡°Maybe Her Majesty was real the whole time, but his Majesty is realizing it only now.¡± ¡°Hmm.¡± Serben was lost in thought. ¡°Is that possible? The pairs are destined to be partners from birth. It is said they could sense it the moment they see each other. How could he not recognize her for four years? That¡¯s why you and I considered her majesty to be a fraud in the first place.¡± ¡°Whatever it is, it should be related to the amnesia.¡± Riyan¡¯s eyes twinkled. ¡°Think about it. This is the first time she¡¯s ¡®lost her memories¡¯, even though she¡¯s made up all sorts of diseases every time the Blue Moon arrives. Saying the amnesia is merely a lie is sort of unreliable, right?¡± ¡°I know. I was curious about that, too.¡± ¡°In addition, Her Majesty looked different today to me. She was wearing pajamas when she heard his majesty was coming. The one who was perfectly dressed up even when she was committing suicide. Wasn¡¯t she the type of person who couldn¡¯t bear to show herself as imperfect even in death?¡± ¡°I totally agree with that.¡± ¡°So, amnesia is the problem.¡± Serben, who had been thinking for a while, frowned. ¡°But it doesn¡¯t make sense no matter how much I think about it. Who suddenly suffers from memory loss while sleeping? ¡°I didn¡¯t say it was real. It means there must be a reason why it has to be amnesia.¡± Riyan smiled and got up quickly. ¡°Anyway, that¡¯s why I¡¯ll leave my post for a little from now on.¡± ¡°What? Where are you going?¡± ¡°I am just so worried about her majesty, who¡¯s lost her memories.¡± Serben clicked his tongue. ¡°What are you ¡®worrying¡¯ about? You¡¯re just going to dig in the back.¡± ¡°Even if it¡¯s not me, there are people who report her Majesty¡¯s every move to his Majesty. There¡¯s nothing different about me stepping in too.¡± Riyan tapped Serben. ¡°You¡¯ want to know, too. Just close your eyes and cooperate.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Damn it, I can¡¯t say no. Then be careful. Don¡¯t forget that Her Majesty hates you. If you get caught, you¡¯ll be in trouble.¡± ¡°Even if she doesn¡¯t like me, her majesty can¡¯t follow me. I won¡¯t get caught, never.¡± Riyan left the office where Lescal was asleep, dangling the sword on her waist. * * * Whoo! The room was lined up with clothes. Lacilia looked at the mountains of clothes hanging on the hangers with her mouth slightly agape, as if she was fed up with everything. ¡°I brought all the new clothes. Please choose, Your Majesty.¡± Everyone in the Empress¡¯ palace knew that the emperor of Eliaden wasn¡¯t a husband who would say kind words to her in the evenin. The ladies of the Empress¡¯ palace were those who have watched the Empress¡¯ actions in the past four years tiringly, sometimes trembling with fear. The empress resented the indifferent emperor, and was overcome with evil because she could not mourn and grieve, so the empress closed her door to the emperor on the blue man when he needed her. All of that was because of a desperate longing, but the emperor never once looked at the empress. So today, when the evening meeting between the emperor and the empress was decided, the ladies and courtiers of the empress¡¯ palace were all nervous enough to have their shoulders go numb. No one will be able to handle the empress¡¯ wrath if there¡¯s even a small mistake in her grooming today. ¡°There are too many. I want you to choose the right one.¡± However, the empress, who should have driven them like rats, was strangely calm. ¡°Are you asking me to choose?¡± asked the first maidservant, the Marquis of Pasha. It felt like she stuttered a little. ¡°I hope so.¡± ¡°Ha, but¡­how dare I? Can I really do that? That¡¯s not proper, your majesty¡­¡± The Marquis of Pasha quickly withdrew. If the meeting goes wrong this evening, the queen will surely blame it on the wrong dress. She didn¡¯t want it to be her. ¡°You mean you don¡¯t want to.¡± Lasilia read the Marquis¡¯ embarrassment. Whatever the empress might have been like, Lasilia had no intention of forcing others to do something they didn¡¯t want to. ¡°Then this one.¡± Lasilia pointed to a dress. In fact, all of the empress¡¯s clothes were so colorful that it was ambiguous for her to choose. Among the clothes that were endlessly hung, Lasilia chose the clothes that looked the least decorated. She also liked it wasn¡¯t inflated at the top by tightening the waist to the point of suffocation. ¡°Y-you¡¯re going to wear this?¡± The women¡¯s faces turned blue when they checked the clothes Lasilia chose. ¡°but, this is¡­.¡± CH 5 (Riyan¡¯s pronouns are he for the first part of this chap since lasilia seems to think she¡¯s a guy) 5. Meaning of pajamas ¡°But, this is¡­.¡± What Lasilia chose was, ironically, a pajama set. For Lasilia, who was not accustomed to Eliaden¡¯s dress culture, the pajamas, which were splendidly built for the wedding¡¯s first night, looked like just a comfortable nice little dress. Of course, the pajamas were never worn. There has never been a time when the empress and the emperor slept together. The pajamas that were carefully made for their first night remained as new clothes and only ever hung on the hanger. ¡°Well, are you sure?¡± The maids exchanged crazy glances. It was a pity that Lasilia missed it because she was looking at the clothes she chose. ¡°Yes, this is my favorite.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­ okay, then.¡± Naturally, the maids did not believe that the empress¡¯ amnesia was real. It was also the maids who knew best that all the diseases the empress had attached to herself were false. Her life was precious, so she didn¡¯t mess around too much. The maids did not suspect that the empress would be unable to recognize her pajamas due to the memory loss. ¡°All right, Your Majesty. I¡¯ll dress you up according to the clothes you chose. Please sit here.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Lasilia sat down in front of the dressing table as the maids asked. Following the ladies¡¯ gesture, the courtiers stuck together and began brushing. Since it was a nightgown, there was no reason for her makeup to be too flashy, or her hair to be meticulously braided. The court ladies, who combed Lasilia¡¯s long hair, gathered only half of her hair, tied it loosely, and put a jewelry pin in it. ¡°Is there anything lacking, your Majesty?¡± When the courtiers withdrew, the Marquis of Pasha approached the side of the dressing table and asked. In a nutshell, there was no such thing. The dress, which was densely embroidered with light peach-colored silk and shiny silver, was much more beautiful when worn than when it was caught on a hanger. For Lasilia, who had always been wearing all similar-like prophet clothes, the texture of the silks wrapped around her skin was a luxury. ¡°Isn¡¯t she looking too pretty?¡± Lasilia muttered unconsciously. ¡°You¡¯re beautiful in every form.¡± Lasilia¡¯s cheeks blushed a little at the words of the marquis of Pasha. She must have looked like a narcissistic since she looked into the mirror and muttered that she was pretty. ¡®That was what I was saying to the empress.¡¯ Strangely, she didn¡¯t feel unbearably distant from this beautiful face. Maybe it was because the hair was similar. Lasilia had long black hair like the empress. Her face may not have been as beautiful as the empress, but other than that, she might have looked a bit similar. She didn¡¯t feel much taller or smaller than before, and the body shape didn¡¯t feel all that different either. ¡®I wish I could look like a very sick person to evoke sympathy if possible¡­with this face, it would be for the best. This dress is also the most modest among them all.¡¯ Lasilia nodded to the Marquis. ¡°That¡¯s enough. You all did a great job.¡± ¡°Haw¡­your majesty.¡± The maid and courtiers opened their eyes wide when they heard that they had worked hard. If nothing happened after, even Lasilia would have thought the reaction was a little strange. Goo, goo, goo! (Screaming) But something did happen. Birds were making a fuss outside the window. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± The color of the feathers was similar to that of the talking birds this morning. Lasilia jumped up and headed to the window. The maids who saw the empress open the window after she had finished grooming herself were at a loss. Clack, squeak! Lasilia opened the window. And what she saw was a rather strange sight. ¡°¡­Ugh, you crazy birds! Go away!¡± The birds were rushing at someone who was lightly leaning their buttocks over the a narrow window-frame. The person was one of the emperor¡¯s two knights that she saw during the day. ¡°Stop it.¡± First, Lasilia shooed away the birds. She thought the person might fall at this rate. Before even thinking, the words naturally flowed out, and the birds stopped doing what they were doing as if they understood them. ¡°¡­¡­Oh, my God. Thank you, Her Majesty. I didn¡¯t expect you to show me this mercy.¡± The knight, who seemed to have cut his reddish blonde hair short and showed his earlobes coolly, was a very impressive beauty in every way. In the day time, his appearance must have been hidden by the emperor¡¯s own crazy appearance. But whoever it was, it wasn¡¯t pleasant to see a person when I opened my window. ¡°You must have had business in my room.¡± The knight whose name was Riyan erased the embarrassment with a smile. ¡°And I didn¡¯t know I¡¯d get caught like this. Who knew that those crazy birds would suddenly scream ¡­Oh, I shouldn¡¯t have been caught.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± The beauty¡¯s cheeky smile made the atmosphere soft, but it gave me goosebumps when I thought about it for a second. ¡®He was watching me¡­ to find out whether the memory loss is fake or not.¡¯ Lasilia straightened herself up. ¡®I can¡¯t let my guard down for a moment.¡¯ The birds kept staring at Riyan with pointed eyes as if they were on the same wavelength. It was as if they were ready to come back at any moment. ¡°It wasn¡¯t the birds that were crazy, but the person who was in a place where they shouldn¡¯t be.¡± ¡°Well, you¡¯re not wrong. So what do you want to do with me?¡± Riyan smiled and asked. ¡°If it¡¯s justifiable, I¡¯ll accept the punishment. It¡¯s my mistake to be caught.¡± At the same time, Lasilia¡¯s expression hardened. He was too proud for some caught monitoring her. In addition, he said that the problem wasn¡¯t that he was monitoring her, but that he was caught. ¡°So you think there¡¯s nothing wrong with this.¡± ¡°Why are you saying that? Your Majesty must not have thought that there would be no eyes to look at the Empress. But I swear it on my knife, even if there are eyes that watch you, it¡¯s still less than half of what her majesty usually does to his majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± If this was true, it meant that the emperor and empress had each other monitored. ¡°Why. If you can¡¯t trust each other even this much, why¡¯d you even get married?¡± The more she knew, the stranger it got. ¡°But can I ask you a question?¡± Riyan pointed to her clothes out of the blue. ¡°From what I hear here, you¡¯ve changed for the meeting later in the evening¡­ Are you going to wear that?¡± ¡°I¡¯m more curious about the reason why you¡¯re asking me about my outfit. Is that what the emperor¡¯s knight usually does?¡± ¡°No, it¡¯s not that¡­¡± Riyan interrupted once in the middle. ¡°¡­¡­Well, I was wondering why you changed your mind.¡± ¡°I changed my mind?¡± ¡°Doesn¡¯t this mean you¡¯re going to allow contact now? That¡¯s why you changed into this, isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°Contact¡­?¡± Lasilia couldn¡¯t understand a word Riyan was saying. ¡°What does that mean?¡± ¡°Oh, dear. Are you going to say that you don¡¯t even remember what contact is?¡± ¡°Like said, I lost my memory. I don¡¯t remember anything.¡± ¡°Hmm¡­¡± Riyan examined every inch of Lasilia¡¯s expression with his piercing eyes. Then suddenly he smiled. ¡°Well, that wouldn¡¯t be bad either. Above all, your majesty seems to have changed.¡± Riyan pulled out his head, put his lips to Lasilia¡¯s ear, and whispered. ¡°Listen, Your Majesty. I¡¯m glad if Her Majesty has changed her mind anyway. I¡¯ll forget what you¡¯ve done so far, so please do your part now.¡± The behind-the-scenes words that no one could hear except Lasilia quickly continued. ¡°But if it¡¯s just a scam again this time, I swear on it with my sword, Your Majesty will surely pay for it.¡± The latter was a clear threat. After finishing what was to be said, Riyan quickly pulled himself away. ¡°Then I¡¯ll be going now.¡± Whistle! Riyan jumped down. He took a understanding of the terrace railing downstairs with his toes and went down again using the rebound. It was too quick to do something about it. Bad guy, bad guy! Scold him! Scold him! But not for the birds. As if they could read her displeased expression, the birds quickly went after Riyan. ¡°Ah! You crazy birds! Stop!¡± Since he was holding onto the railing with both this hands, the birds pecked on them. His neat hair was messed up, and Riyan quickly disappeared with his head that looked like a magpie house. ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Lasilia, who was looking at the place where Riyan disappeared, finally turned by the window. Surely this place was strange. Not only was it certain that the birds were talking, but they were also taking sides. ¡®Oh, are you taking the Empress¡¯ side, not mine? Could it be that these birds belonged to the empress?¡¯ Once again, the unknown overwhelmed her. The thing that bothered Lasilia the most, among them, was ¡®contact¡¯. ¡°Your majesty, are you okay?¡± The Marquis of Pasha asked carefully. ¡°Shall I bring forth a cart? A poet¡­or a musician?¡± ¡°That¡¯s fine. Instead, I want to ask you something.¡± ¡°Please go ahead, Your Majesty.¡± Lasilia asked the Marquis, who bowed her head politely. ¡°What does contact mean?¡± * * * ¡°I have great news!¡± Riyan jumped into the emperor¡¯s office in excitement. This time, it was not an official door, but an entrance using the window. According to Riyan, it was usually faster. ¡°Shh. His Majesty is still asleep.¡± ¡°He¡¯s recovering. At times like this, no matter how loud I get, he doesn¡¯t wake up. No, didn¡¯t you hear me? I¡¯ve got some great news.¡± As soon as Riyan closed the window, she grabbed Serben¡¯s shoulder and spoke. Serben, who saw how excited his twin sister was, also began to get excited. That look wouldn¡¯t mean bad news. He didn¡¯t see that look even when they found out the empress was real. ¡°What is it? Hurry up and tell me.¡± ¡°The Empress changed her clothes for dinner tonight. Guess what she¡¯s wearing.¡± ¡°No, don¡¯t do that, just tell me. You know I¡¯m not cut out for that.¡± ¡°Pajamas.¡± Riyan actually wanted to bother Serben a little more, but her mouth was so itchy to tell that she couldn¡¯t stand it. ¡°Pajamas? She was wearing them during the day, too.¡± ¡°It¡¯s not that, she took out the pajamas for her first night.¡± ¡°Uh¡­what?¡± Serben blinked for a moment. ¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯m saying¡­¡± The answer came from behind the two men. ¡°Does that mean she¡¯s going to sleep with me?¡± It was Lescal. ¡°Your Majesty!¡± Sitting on the sofa, Lescal slowly smiled. ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to this evening.¡± I like how this chapter is just basically people secretly (or not) being like ¡®oo the emperor is going to get laid tonight¡¯ CH 6 6. How to safely refuse to sleep (1) They could¡¯ve sworn. They¡¯d never seen Lescal smile like this before. Even the shadow knights who were closest to Lescal, not to mention others. ¡°Your majesty¡­. how do you feel? Are you okay?¡± Serben asked with a puzzled face. ¡°Do I feel okay? Why are you asking me that?¡± To be honest, even Lescal had never seen himself like this. He didn¡¯t even know why he was smiling. ¡°Because you look happy.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t believe that is true.¡± ¡°Oh¡­ I see.¡± When Lescal, who wore a pleasant expression, said such a thing, the shadow knights tried to look away. ¡°But what do you mean that her wearing pajamas is related to the amnesia?¡± After a while, Serben, who shook off the awkwardness, asked. Riyan quickly opened her mouth as if she was dying to switch to some other topic. ¡°Let¡¯s say you have a terrible relationship with someone. But you have no choice but to face them, and this relationship can¡¯t stay the same for much longer. ¡°Hmm¡­well, I¡¯d suppose I¡¯d try to have a conversation with them.¡± ¡°What if you can¡¯t do that because you have a shitty personality?¡± ¡°Huh? Is there a person like that?¡± ¡°You know, her majesty.¡± ¡°Ah¡­that¡¯s right!¡± As if he understood, Serben patted his head. ¡°You want to change the relationship, but you can¡¯t come forward and admit you were wrong first. You¡¯d rather die than apologize¡­what do you do then? Pretend as if you¡¯ve never been on bad terms at all.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why she brought up amnesia.¡± ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s like that.¡± Riyan smiled a little mischievously at Lescal. ¡°Well, her majesty¡¯s change of heart is beyond my wildest guesses. Still, she seems to be making some efforts to improve her relationship with his majesty.¡± ¡°I see.¡± Lescal laughed again. He might not see it, but it was clear to the eyes of the two knights. ¡°So why don¡¯t you try a little bit, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°What kind of effort would I try?¡± ¡°Well, like other husbands, you can give flowers.¡± Serben stepped in. ¡°Her Majesty likes Gardenia.¡± Riyan looked at Serben in surprise. ¡°What? How do you know that?¡± ¡°By chance. Last winter, the courtiers of the Empress¡¯s palace couldn¡¯t procure the Gardenia flowers, so it was all in chaos.¡± ¡°Chaos? Did someone die?¡± ¡°I heard that the gardener was divided into three. I don¡¯t know if he¡¯s dead or alive.¡± ¡°¡­If that¡¯s the case, you should just say he¡¯s dead. Anyways, your majesty, by all means, Gardenia.¡± To their surprise, Lescal nodded. ¡°Do it.¡± ¡°All right, Your Majesty.¡± Riyan, who answered quickly, poked Serben in the side. ¡°Go ahead.¡± ¡°Ugh¡­fine.¡± Serben, who would have usually resisted by saying ¡®Don¡¯t make me do such annoying things¡¯ didn¡¯t argue as much today. It was too important a day for that. * * * ¡°¡­what?¡± Lasilia couldn¡¯t believe what she had just heard, so she asked again. ¡°That¡¯s what contact means¡­is that right?¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± The maids looked at the empress without knowing why. They wanted to think on why she was pretending to not know even this much if they all knew the amnesia was a lie, but they couldn¡¯t. The empress¡¯ amazed face looked so sincere right now. ¡°So it¡¯s¡­it¡¯s basically a married couple¡¯s act?¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± ¡°That¡­.so, on the blue moon¡­¡± ¡°Yes, your majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Lasilia at last shut up. ¡®Was it true that the blood of the demons flows through the Eliaden Imperial family? I thought it was just an old tale.¡¯ Well, there was no way to explain those golden eyes if not for the blood of the demons. ¡®So, that¡¯s what it was.¡¯ She could now understand why the emperor had come to her bedroom in the morning. She could also see why one of the shadow knights threatened her to do her part. ¡®Then it¡¯s really bad.¡¯ Regardless of the marital relationship she was now in, she was not the real empress. So she couldn¡¯t be a companion of fate. Suddenly, she felt a chill. ¡®That dream¡­don¡¯t tell me when he finds out I¡¯m not the real empress¡­is he going to kill me?¡¯ In her dream, she desperately said she loved him. The emperor said that such love wasn¡¯t necessary. The desperation could be understood if it was to not die. ¡®But that¡¯s not all.¡¯ Lasilia clenched her fist. It was a very serious matter that she was a fake. They said the blood of the demons could not be controlled without the companion of fate. She didn¡¯t know what would happen if the emperor completely mutated into a demon after his 30th birthday. ¡®How the hell am I supposed to deal with this?¡¯ They say the blue moon will come up in a few days. She had to find a way within those few days. Knock knock! ¡°Your majesty! His Majesty the Emperor has sent you a present!¡± An unexpected thing penetrated through gap in my thoughts. ¡°What?¡± ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± The maids were more surprised than Lasilia. The doors opened from both sides, and a huge amount of flowers came into view one after another in a vase as big as a basin. ¡°Oh, my God¡­¡± After the servants from the Imperial Palace retreated, the Empress¡¯ bedroom became a flower garden. The courtiers had to open the window quickly because the strong scent of the Gardenia flowers seemed to suffocate people. ¡°You must be very happy, Your Majesty.¡± The Marquis of Pasha spoke without knowing what was going on. ¡°These flowers he¡¯s sent to the Empress¡¯ palace are not just any flowers, they¡¯re flowers are your majesty¡¯s most liked flowers. He¡¯s never done this before¡­doesn¡¯t this mean his majesty is finally falling in love with your majesty, the empress?¡± After biting her teeth, Lasilia opened her mouth. ¡°I don¡¯t think that makes sense.¡± ¡°¡­¡­Yes, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°When you say ¡®finally fallen for you.¡¯ it means that he didn¡¯t love me before. Amnesia is no reason to fall in love with someone, so his majesty has no reason to be in love with me. The flowers must have come for comfort.¡± ¡°Well, that¡¯s¡­.¡± The Marquis of Pasha mumbled her words and couldn¡¯t finish her sentence. Seeing this, it made Lasilia realize the emperor and empress weren¡¯t on good terms with each other. It wasn¡¯t just that they were bad together, but they were openly monitoring one another. ¡®There was also a rumor in Delarta that the Emperor of the empire was mistreating the Empress. The rumor might have been exaggerated, but there must have been a problem to begin with. Seeing that the knight from earlier said that the empress had not played her part, It could have led to abuse.¡¯ What the hell was the reason? What kind of couple were the Emperor and Empress? Her thoughts continued. Meanwhile, time passed steadily towards the evening. * * * Count Felson, the chief chamberlain of the Imperial palace, was a very capable man. His presence was minimal, overshadowed by the two shadow knights, but he was a person who made sure to do his part. He was also told that the empress would visit the emperor, although a little later than the knights. Of course, he knew the emperor ordered to pluck all the Gardenia flowers in the garden and send them to the empress. It was he who worked the gardeners like crazy. Anyways, he was fully prepared for today, when the bedroom sharing might finally happen after 4 years. Dozens of candles were lit in the emperor¡¯s bedroom, and curtains were all lowered on the windows. They moved a table and set up food for the two of them, and served the sweetest wine in the palace. Above all, they worked the hardest on the emperor¡¯s clothes. The empress was said to be wearing the pajamas she didn¡¯t get to wear on their first night, so the emperor should be wearing something similar. Sadly, there were no pajamas built to wear on the first night. But there were so many new pajamas that you could step on them. Felson, who¡¯d been agonizing over dozens of pajamas, decided to recommend a nightgown instead of pajamas. The gown had to be black to make the most of his shining gold eyes and blonde hair. It had embroidery, but the golden thread might be too much, so he had to do something. The pattern was not too big, but it wasn¡¯t good if it was too modest either. After much consideration, Felson sprayed perfume based on Gardenia flowers on the night gown he chose. When asked to wear a gown on top of his bare body, Lescal stared at his face. ¡°Well, well, you¡¯ll look very good, Your Majesty.¡± Persson was a person who was proud on the fact that no one could match his aesthetic sense in this palace. ¡°Mingled with the subtle and sensual atmosphere in the bedroom, Her Majesty won¡¯t want to sleep anywhere else tonight.¡± ¡°¡­¡­if so.¡± Eventually, Lescal put his arm in the gown. Felson, who tied the cord around the robe moderately loose, but invisible as intended, trimmed Lescal¡¯s hair himself on behalf of the courtiers. ¡°You¡¯d better put your bangs down today, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Do as you please.¡± When granted permission, Felson¡¯s hands moved swiftly. Felson clenched his teeth and maintained a polite expression as he held himself back from humming. ¡°That¡¯s all, Your Majesty.¡± Even as he let go, Felson felt infinite pride in the work he had just completed. ¡°Her Majesty will surely fall in love with you.¡± Felson also knew the empress¡¯ character was going through a ¡®personality improvement¡¯ class. However, no matter how twisted her and her heart was, it would have no choice but to melt in front of the dazzling beauty in front of her. He couldn¡¯t have celebrated the emperor¡¯s 30th birthday like this. It was clear that the emperor was also trying to restore the marital relationship, which he had neglected so far, knowing that there was not much time left. If so, it was reasonable to help one¡¯s body be on fire. But what Lescal spouted next made Felson freeze. ¡°If the empress doesn¡¯t like it, you must take responsibility.¡± ¡°Oh, ¡­your Majesty¡­¡­.¡± Lescal, who turned his head away indifferently from the blushing Felson, looked at the wall clock. It was time for the empress to come soon. * * * There was no way to avoid it. In fact, I initially thought about hiding somewhere. However, the emperor persistently sent people in advance and positioned them in the passageway leading from the bedroom. ¡°Your Majesty, the time has come.¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Lasilia looked at a short man named the Chief Chamberlain of the Imperial Palace. From the moment he arrived at the Empress¡¯ palace, she could feel his strong determination to bring her to the emperor ¨C even counting the time in seconds. ¡®It¡¯s understandable because ¡®I¡¯ve¡¯ refused them several times before¡­I can¡¯t avoid this.¡¯ She couldn¡¯t do it. If she couldn¡¯t avoid facing the emperor, she had to find another way. Lasilia nodded after swallowing her dry saliva. ¡°You¡¯ll be guiding me, I assume.¡± ¡°Yes, your Majesty.¡± The maids, servants, and royal guards headed to the emperor¡¯s palace, surrounding Lasilia from front and behind. The number of people were so large that people would have thought they were going to war somewhere, not to meet the emperor. [Percussion] Anyway, they arrived at the Imperial Palace, exchanged etiquette that they had to exchange with each other, and the door closed behind her back after everyone else stepped away. ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Lasilia felt somehow that the emperor¡¯s bedroom, dimmer than the room designated for the prophet, was stuffy. Compared to other places, the air was several times heavier ¨C it seemed to press her whole body flat. Among them, the man with the heaviest presence opened his lips toward her, sweeping up his shiny blond hair alone in this dark place. ¡°Well, now,¡± ¡°¡­¡­.¡± ¡°Tell me what to do.¡± CH 7 7. How to safely refuse to sleep (2) ¡°I want to eat first.¡± She looked calm on the outside, but Lasilia¡¯s head was in a state of earthquake. She thought, ¡®Contact is what they were supposed to do in a blue moon. So maybe today isn¡¯t like that yet. Even during the day, he just kissed my lips. Would it have been so if contact was absolutely necessary? ¡­ Yeah, so not today.¡¯ Of course, she pushed him away, telling him not to do it. ¡®It won¡¯t be¡­ He obviously said to see me in the evening. So the bed¡­ If he needed contact, he would have asked to see me for the night. Right?¡¯ Lescal meant to see her at dinner, though. What turned it into the current mood was the nightgown Lasilia picked out without knowing anything about their first night. It was just a pity that Lasilia was completely unaware of that. ¡®Yes. Let¡¯s stay calm. Not today ¡­Yeah, not really.¡¯ ¡°Then.¡± Lescal, who must have no idea what was going on in Lasilia¡¯s head, nodded his head obediently. It had never happened before. Ever since the Empress suffered her amnesia, Lescal has strangely been listening to what the Empress had to say about her. It was a change that Lescal himself was not aware of yet. ¡°Sit here.¡± Rascal pulled out a chair in front of the table. At the movement of his arm, his exquisitely tailored gown was disheveled, revealing a glimpse of his chest. Lasilia was flustered and involuntarily turned her head to her side. ¡°Why?¡± Lasilia asked while trying to fix her gaze on the empty space. ¡°Do you normally eat meals dressed like that?¡± ¡°¡­¡± Rascal stiffened for a moment. ¡°Don¡¯t you like it?¡± ¡°I lost my memory, so everything is unfamiliar. I asked because I thought it wouldn¡¯t be a very nice outfit for a meal.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Rascal stiffened for a second. ¡°Maybe not very comfortable to eat.¡± ¡°I knew.¡± ¡°But it would be comfortable to sleep with. I have nothing else to take off other than this.¡± ¡°What¡­ !¡± She was about to scream. ¡®It¡¯s not today, what is it? It was just like that.¡¯ This time Lasilia hardened. Lescal, who looked at Lasilia who hadn¡¯t said anything, thankfully said this. ¡°May I change?¡± ¡°Now, you mean?¡± ¡°If you don¡¯t like it.¡± It was a chance. She had nothing more to think about. ¡°Yeah. I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°¡­ Right.¡± She won! Lescal pulled out his chair. ¡°Sit down and wait. It won¡¯t take long.¡± ¡°Yeah.¡± However, Lescal, who seemed ready to leave at any moment and do something to the chamberlain, stayed still with his hand on the back of his chair. ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Come and sit down.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ ¡± Lasilia moved her tense steps slowly. ¡®Seruk.¡¯ Seeing Lasilia finally sit down in her chair, Lescal slowly pushed his chair in front of her. Things didn¡¯t end there. As he pushed her chair, he tilted his head and inhaled her hair. Lasilia, remembering what he had done during the day, flinched and ducked her body to her side. Lescal murmured softly. ¡°¡­ How did you know? It didn¡¯t even touch your body.¡± ¡°¡­¡± So, that meant, he was about to put his lips somewhere on her body while he was sniffing it like before, but Lasilia noticed it before that. ¡®What is it? They must be on bad terms.¡¯ Seeing what the emperor was doing now, it didn¡¯t feel like that at all. Lasilia was as ignorant of what goes on between men and women as of what happened with that pair, but at least she knew that the habit of wanting to touch her body whenever possible was the exact opposite of what was said about a bad relationship. ¡®Why do you seem so impatient? Like a dog raised in the temple yard.¡¯ Eliarden¡¯s emperor was too big and dazzling to be called a puppy, but there was a bit of a resemblance to what he was doing anyway. The dog, who had left her on a leash and left in her yard, grunted every time Lasilia passed and was anxious to run over. When she hugged him once, he licked her all over and shook his tail so much that she couldn¡¯t see it. ¡°¡­ No, I still want to do it.¡± The emperor spat out these words in a small voice, bowed his head to her side, and quickly kissed Lasilia on the cheek. ¡°Huh¡± Lasilia threw her head back with a swish, but it was too late. The touch of his warm lips lingered on her cheeks. ¡°Then I will go.¡± The emperor looked at her with a gaze that would be as hot as his lips when he touched her body, then he turned away aesthetically. ¡°¡­ I can¡¯t!¡± As soon as the emperor left, Lasilia jumped to her feet. Her hand was involuntarily rubbing her cheek where his lips had touched. Regardless of whether she liked it or not, his strange touch was too hot. Lasilia had never experienced anything like that, so she was confused. She was afraid of confusing herself with a man who might kill her if he knew her true identity. ¡°I can¡¯t stay here any longer.¡± Her thoughts were later. For now, avoiding this place was the priority. Looking back, she could see why that room was so dim. The cozy room, lit only by candles instead of kerosene, suggested something more sticky and dense than a simple kiss on the cheek. Lasilia, who was heading to the door where the emperor had just disappeared, stopped her steps. When she thought about it, she couldn¡¯t be without someone to protect her. It was the emperor who had sent so many guards to the empress¡¯ palace just before. Click, thump! Turning to her side, Racilia opened the window. As in the empress¡¯ bedroom, there should be a spy in the emperor¡¯s bedroom. Last time the shadow knight came and went through the window, so she should be able to find him there too. ¡°¡­ he is not here.¡± But to her dismay, the emperor¡¯s bedroom window was smooth, with no protruding window frames or decorations. Although the walls were densely carved, there was nowhere for her to set foot. ¡°What should I do?¡± It was at this moment that Lasilia let out her bewilderment through her pale face. ¡°Coo! Coo!¡± ¡°Kakaook!¡± Birds that seemed familiar now flew by. ¡°No way¡­ Did you guys come on purpose?¡± ¨C Coming, coming. We come come when you call. She didn¡¯t know how, but those birds were helping themselves as well as talking. ¡°You have to get out of this place. But the door seems to be guarded by people. Is there any other way?¡± Thinking she was crazy, Lasilia asked the birds. -No, no. Humans don¡¯t have wings. -It¡¯s high, high. Humans are apart. ¡°Then¡­ Let me ask, is there any way to prevent the emperor from coming?¡± -No, no. -We can¡¯t, we can¡¯t. will die -Yes Yes. Emperor have a bad bad personality. Lasilia hurriedly continued. ¡°It¡¯s because I don¡¯t think I should be able to be alone with the emperor right now. Hiding for a while¡­ As long as we don¡¯t just be the two of us alone¡­¡± -¡­ ? The birds tilted their heads at her and exchanged glances with each other. ¨C Then there is, there is. Yay! A bird with glossy black feathers flew away. The bird that disappeared into the air for a moment brought a strangely red fruit. Tok. The bird placed it carefully next to Racilia¡¯s hand. ¨C Eat and sleep. Fall asleep. -Then, even if the two of you are alone, you are alone. Racilia smiled broadly. ¡°That¡¯s right. You guys are really smart. Yes, this will do, thank you.¡± The birds waggled their tail feathers proudly as if they were happy to be praised. ¨C I¡¯m glad, I¡¯m glad. -You¡¯re welcome welcome. -If you call, we will come, we will come. The birds left, leaving a wonderful message. When Lasilia closed the window and went back to the table, she casually mixed the berries the Black Bird had brought with her fruit platter, no long after the emperor returned. ¡°It didn¡¯t take long, right? As you said.¡± At the same time, the emperor who entered was growing at an angle to the extent that his eyes were burdened. His bangs, which had naturally covered his forehead a while ago, fell back neatly. Jeweled cuffs were worn on the sleeves, and pendants were hung to match the color of the indoor cloak that was worn over the growth. ¡®I don¡¯t know where to put my eyes.¡¯ Lasilia blinked at the completely changed emperor. ¡®It¡¯s kind of burdensome.¡¯ Even when she saw him during the day, he didn¡¯t dress that fancy. The emperor, who had been like a dog until just then, was now like a peacock with its tail fully raised. ¡°Or did it take a long time?¡± The emperor grabbed the chair across from her and pulled it out, and as he was about to sit down, he pulled the chair and sat next to Lasilia. ¡°¡­ No. It didn¡¯t take long.¡± ¡°Of course. Because I was in a hurry as you said.¡± ¡°¡­¡± So she didn¡¯t know what to do. Lasilia turned her gaze to the side, away from the burdened face staring at her. ¡°Then why are you sitting next to me?¡± ¡°¡­ Across from you it¡¯s too far.¡± ¡°It must be difficult to eat if you sit next to me.¡± At those words, the emperor tilted his head for a moment. ¡°¡­ Well, maybe.¡± ¡°Then it¡¯s better if you go to the other side.¡± ¡°That¡¯s all right.¡± What happened? ¡°Are you saying you want to sit like this?¡± ¡°I thought it would be okay to be uncomfortable. I will handle it.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Now the Emperor felt more like a gorgeous dog than a peacock. ¡°Then let¡¯s eat.¡± ¡°¡­¡± He was a very strange human being. ¡®Was it a rumor that they said he had a bad relationship with the empress? ¡­No, it¡¯s not. Judging from the reaction of the Marquise Fascard, it¡¯s clear that they didn¡¯t get along.¡¯ In the end, it meant that the emperor began to take a different attitude regardless of his feelings. ¡®It must be because of the jet lag. Because they said the blue moon was coming. The emperor is desperate to make contact.¡¯ For the first time, the emperor felt emotions other than fear. The name of that emotion should be compassion. But apart from his pity, when he realizes that she is not really the mate of fate, the problem will be very serious. ¡°I will serve the food for you.¡± So she had to feed him that fruit. Lasilia picked up the empty plate in front of him and put the food in it. While she pretended to be picking them up, she didn¡¯t forget the fruit the bird had brought her. ¡°Take that off.¡± However, feeding the fruit was not so smooth. While Lasilia held the fruit in her hand he asked her reason with his eyes. ¡°It is the first time I have ever seen that fruit. One is not supposed to eat that.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ Is it the imperial law?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what might be in it.¡± Since they were members of the royal family, they would have no choice but to be picky about food. ¡®It must be difficult to make him eat it.¡¯ After thinking about it for a while, Lasilia remembered that she was also a member of the imperial family. ¡°Then I will eat it.¡± ¡°You¡¯d better not eat it.¡± ¡°Just a little. If I can eat it and it¡¯s okay, wouldn¡¯t His Majesty eat it too?¡± Then Lescal snatched the fruit from Lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡°Let¡¯s do the opposite.¡± ¡°Yeah?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll taste it first, and if it¡¯s okay, you¡¯ll eat it.¡± The emperor, who had just said he wouldn¡¯t eat anything he didn¡¯t know, popped a bright red fruit the size of his fingernail into his mouth. ¡®Indeed¡­ ¡¯ Lasilia swallowed her dry saliva, staring at the emperor as he chewed and swallowed the red berries. CH 8 8. Shrydon I Softly¡­ thud. Finally, the emperor¡¯s body fell to the side. Not long after eating the fruit, the emperor let his eyelids droop. As if he was falling asleep, the emperor¡¯s head came down and pressed Racilia¡¯s shoulder. She tried to hold him so he wouldn¡¯t fall. For that reason, the difference in her physique was huge. She tried to hold on to the hem of her dress, but the emperor leaning on her shoulder slipped and fell to the floor along with the chair. She was at least holding on to his clothes, so he narrowly avoided getting hit on the head badly. ¡°Ha¡­ I can¡¯t. It is too heavy.¡± It was impossible to carry her to the bed. Lasilia somehow got the emperor to lie on the floor, then brought her pillow and put it under her head. ¡°I don¡¯t know what kind of fruit it is, but it works very well.¡± Lasilia looked at the sleeping emperor beside her, she murmured softly. ¡°It was easier to feed it than I thought. Thank God. By the way¡­ ¡± But why did the emperor say he would taste it first? She was fortunate, but a little curious as to why. ¡°If I hadn¡¯t known about the bad relationship, I might have thought that the emperor would have risked it first for her empress.¡± It was a moment when the emperor, who was strange, unfamiliar, difficult and fearful, felt a little bit more human. ¡°It would be nice if you misunderstood that we had contact like this¡­ Oh, then maybe it would be better to take off his clothes a little.¡± It was the moment when Lasilia put her hand on the body of the emperor after thinking that far. ¡°¡­ oh!¡± Suddenly, the emperor jerked his hand against her body, startling Lasilia as if her heart would skip a beat. She thought she had woken him up. Fortunately, the emperor did not wake up. He just had his hands clasped. ¡®What. How could he do this while sleeping?¡¯ Lasilia struggled to free her hand. His sleepiness was so strong that it made no sense. She eventually spread her fingers out one by one and she could barely get her hand out. ¡®It hurts.¡¯ She wondered if she would bruise the back of her hand. Not knowing when or where he might grab her again, Lasilia quickly distanced herself from him. He was apparently asleep, but his eyelids twitching as Lasilia walked away. ¡®Oh, come to think of it, we don¡¯t know how long the effect lasts.¡¯ He fell asleep, but she did not know when the emperor would wake up. If he wakes up in an hour or two, it¡¯s worth making contact after that. ¡®I¡¯ll have to hide somewhere until tomorrow morning. Since I lost my memory, saying that I was lost in the palace would be an excuse.¡¯ Decisions were made quickly, and actions were swift. Lasilia immediately went to the door. As she had expected, she opened the door and the two guards looked at her with puzzled looks. ¡°What is it, Her Majesty?¡± ¡°Your Majesty is asleep.¡± ¡°Ah¡­ ?¡± ¡°He will stay in my room until he wakes up.¡± ¡°Oh that¡­ We were not told what to do.¡± The guards stood in the way, but it wasn¡¯t unexpected. ¡°When he wakes up, find me and I will come back to him.¡± Then the guards had no choice. Lasilia returned to the empress¡¯ palace, escorted by her royal guard. * * * Thud. The door was closed. Lasilia, who repeatedly confirmed that no one was in the room, opened the window. ¡°You said you would come when called. Can you come now?¡± After she waited for a while, the wonderful birds flew in. This time the number was higher. It was a bit noisy as the birds chatted with different voices. ¡°Shh. I don¡¯t know if anyone will listen.¡± The birds soon became quiet. ¡°I need a place to hide until tomorrow morning. Is there a decent place where I can go undetected from here?¡± The birds talked to each other for a while. Then, as if coming to a conclusion, he vigorously nodded her head. -Yes, yes. -Yes, Yes. If it¡¯s there, it¡¯s okay, it¡¯s okay. Lasilia let out a sigh of relief. ¡°I am very fortunate. May I ask for guidance?¡± The birds talked to each other for a long time, and this time a blue-feathered bird jumped into the window. ¨C Me, me. ¡°I guess you mean to guide me. Thanks. Where should I go?¡± ¨C This way, this way. A small blue bird took flight. Lasilia, who also thanked the other birds, followed the blue bird. * * * These birds were definitely up to something. It wasn¡¯t normal for the birds to speak, but the blue bird was very clever and knew every nook and cranny of the imperial palace. The blue bird was very good at finding passages that people didn¡¯t go through, and took Lasilia to the northern tower. The palace was so vast that it seemed like it took about an hour to move. Upon entering the northern tower, the atmosphere was quite different. It was obviously gorgeous and well-polished like the rest of the imperial palace, but somehow it was quiet. It felt as if time had stopped there. ¡°Where is this?¡± -Here, no people. Don¡¯t come. ¡°Why?¡± -Here me the owner. ¡°Yes? Are you the owner?¡± Instead of answering, the blue bird poked at the closed door with its beak, as if to look directly. ¡°Can I come in here?¡± -Yes, Yes. Lasilia opened the door. She had no doubts because she knew the birds were clever. But as soon as she opened the door, someone shouted. ¡°Who are you!¡± ¡°Oh.¡± Lasilia stopped her motions, holding her by the handle. A blue bird slipped through the gap in the slightly open door. ¡°For a moment! Don¡¯t go in there.¡± ¡°Yes?¡± The blue bird had entered, so she couldn¡¯t escape alone. Lasilia sighed and opened the door again, intending only to take the bird out. ¡°Who are you! Who are you!¡± ¡°Ah¡­¡± It wasn¡¯t a person who was shouting. It was a very large parrot. The parrot was sitting in a large cage that reached almost to the ceiling, and the cage door was open. It must have been left that way so that the birds could come and go freely. And the cage was all yellow gold. She had no idea how much gold was spent. ¡°A bird¡­ Didn¡¯t you say you are the owner of this place?¡± The blue bird nodded her little head. -Yes, here. Bird, live. ¡°Aha¡­ Why do you live here?¡± It was the parrot who answered that. ¡°Ahem! This body is Kirne Tower¡¯s Shrydon I! It¡¯s the Duke of Shrydon!¡± ¡°Yes¡­?¡± ¡°Let¡¯s work together! Say hello!¡± The parrot flapped its wings and chirped loudly. Then the blue bird hurriedly flew into the cage and hit the parrot on the head with its little paw. It was noisy, so it seemed the hit meant to be quiet. The blue bird was small and the parrot was huge, but surprisingly the parrot calmed. And that¡¯s not all, he even slipped down from his thick gold perch to the floor. The blue bird, which proudly occupied the perch, flew to the feeder next to it and pecked at the feed. ¡°Still¡­ Will it work?¡± Lasilia went to the front of the cage and asked. -Yes, Yes. ¡°Why is this parrot so calm?¡± -Just because it¡¯s a bird, a bird. ¡°You¡¯re a bird too.¡± -We are not. We are different ¡°How are you different?¡± -Different, different. ¡°Well¡­ What¡¯s the point of talking that far?¡± Although they were very clever birds, they seemed to have limitations in expressing them in human language. But that alone was surprising enough. ¡°Who are you guys¡­¡± As Lasilia stroked the blue bird¡¯s head with her fingers, she saw the bird close her eyes and stretch her neck. -More, more. More, more. She even burrowed into the palm of her hand as if she wanted to keep being touched. ¡°You like people.¡± -No, no. People, no. ¡°You mean you don¡¯t like people?¡± -Yes. Not good, not good. ¡°So you¡¯re saying you like me?¡± -Yes, yes. ¡®It¡¯s so strange. Did you like the empress? Then, were they the birds raised by the empress? ¡­Oh, that¡¯s not it.¡¯ There were no new items in the empress¡¯s room, such as a cage. Birds always flew in from outside, so it didn¡¯t look like they were touched by humans. ¡°Do you guys know who I am?¡± Just in case, she asked. -Yes, yes. I know, I know. ¡°So, do you really know who I am?¡± -Yes, yes. Really, really. It was ridiculous, but it didn¡¯t sound like a lie. Racilia¡¯s hand stroking the blue bird trembled slightly. Maybe these birds were the key. The key to open a box containing the answers to the strange things that happened to her. ¡°Then maybe¡­ Do you know why I came here?¡± The blue bird, who had closed her eyes in a good mood, opened her eyes at that moment. -Since the real thing has arrived, he will wake up soon. ¡°He?¡± ¨C Him. ¡°Who is that?¡± -Him. The blue bird that had said that far flew away. -If you call, he will come again, he will come. The blue bird that said the same thing flew away somewhere. ¡°It got more difficult.¡± Lasilia, who had reached out to catch the blue bird, stopped her motion and put on her wistful expression. ¡°Who is he? Who will come?¡± Anyway, as the birds said, that was a place where no one went. She could put her mind at ease until tomorrow morning. There was no furniture for people like a bed or a chair, so Lasilia sat comfortably on the floor and leaned her back against the wall. ¡°Ahem. This body is the 1st generation of Shuraiden! The Duke of Shryden sends his greetings.¡± The parrot that had been quietly shrugging her shoulders waddled beside Racilia. Lasilia laughed. ¡°You said hello earlier, but now you send your greetings?¡± ¡°Ahem. Greetings.¡± ¡°Okay, hi. Nice to meet you. You must have been surprised by my sudden entry, but thank you for letting me stay.¡± As she stroked his head, the parrot patted the tips of his wings in a pleasing expression. ¡°Ahem. It was nothing. I¡¯m the 1st of Shraiden! Breakfast is fresh vegetables and peanuts! At six o¡¯clock every day!¡± ¡°Six hours¡­ That means people will come at that time.¡± It meant that she had to hide until then and go back. She seemed to be able to vaguely remember the route she took when she followed the blue bird. ¡°Then, about ten hours left? Until then, let¡¯s get along well, Duke.¡± As Lasilia smiled and said so, Shraiden gave her a strong nod. * * * Lescal woke up about an hour later. A normal person would have slept for about two days, but the body mixed with demon blood was different from that of a human in many ways. Waking up, he immediately sought the empress. Hearing that he had fallen asleep and the empress returned to her room, he headed straight to the empress¡¯ palace without the shadow knights accompanying him. But what was waiting for Rascal was an empty bedroom. The guards assigned to the empress¡¯ palace did not know where the empress went, when she went, or how she went. She was literally gone. ¡°¡­ I can¡¯t believe it.¡± Serben, who came running belatedly, murmured. Ryan clenched her fist as hard as she could, with his face crumpled. ¡°Is she doing this again? Didn¡¯t she just fix her mind?¡± He was ready to beat anyone with his fist. ¡°From His Majesty¡¯s point of view, this is no different from torture! What was that woman thinking¡­!¡± It was before Serben looked back at the guards in embarrassment and blocked Ryan¡¯s mouth. Puck! One sofa fell over. The armrest, which had been intact on the single-person sofa just before, had been ripped off and was in Lescal¡¯s hand. ¡°Go.¡± Rascal¡¯s voice quietly echoed in the empress¡¯s bedroom. ¡°Right Now.¡± CH 9 9. Oath to each other The floor was hard, but the thick carpet was soft. Then, it seemed that she had fallen asleep all of a sudden. ¡°Ah¡­ I see, I have fallen asleep. What time is it?¡± Lasilia, waking up to the faint morning sun, blinked her eyes as she searched for her watch. The time was a little before six o¡¯clock. ¡°Oh, I have to go back.¡± As Lasilia rustled and raised her body, the parrot sleeping on the perch also opened its eyes. ¡°Ahem. This body is the 1st generation of Shuraiden! Good morning!¡± ¡°Yes, good morning. Thanks to you, I got through the day safely. Then see you next time.¡± ¡°Ten thousand words! Good morning!¡± ¡°Hello, Duke. Bye.¡± When Lasilia left Shryden I¡¯s room, she closed the door and came down the stairs. Fortunately for her, she didn¡¯t run into anyone until she got all the way down the north tower. However, she was not on her way to the empress¡¯ palace. ¡°¡­¡± As the blue bird had warned her, she knew something was wrong the moment she opened the small door hidden behind the painting wall and stepped out. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress¡­?¡± When she arrived, the empty room was full of royal guards and courtiers. ¡°Aha¡­ I lost my way¡­¡± Lasilia¡¯s absurd excuse was overshadowed by the shouts of the guards. ¡°I found Her Majesty the Empress!¡± * * * ¡®I don¡¯t think the excuse will work.¡¯ Lasilia slightly regretted last night¡¯s decision. ¡®I must have made the wrong decision because I was flustered. My thoughts were short.¡¯ She vaguely assumed that since the emperor fell asleep first, it wouldn¡¯t be a big problem. In any case, she kept her promise and left the word that she would return to the empress¡¯ palace. But as soon as he woke up, he stayed up all night to find herself. ¡®Didn¡¯t they say that in the past, when the empress made an excuse that she was sick, he just let it go¡­? I thought he was just like that.¡¯ Looking at the number of guards in the empress¡¯ palace now, the empress, who had been avoiding contact every time, could be used. ¡®It must be useless to avoid it.¡¯ And she knew one thing. The Empress of Cartagena genuinely disliked making contact with the Emperor, to the extent that she would risk it all. ¡°Your Majesty the Emperor and the Empress have arrived.¡± Regardless of her ever-complicated thoughts, he eventually reached the empress¡¯ bedchamber. The front and back were surrounded by three times the number of guards than yesterday. ¡°Let him in.¡± The door opened on both sides. The emperor was standing in the room, the same as last night, dressed in splendor. No, it was flashy, but not flashy. His hair was disheveled and his clothes were disheveled. His eyes were bloodshot, and the corners of his eyes were dark. Lasilia swallowed her dry saliva. ¡®¡­It¡¯s kind of scary.¡¯ Originally, the emperor was the one who made the viewer nervous for no reason because of his crazy appearance. It was beyond the tension now that he felt suffocated. Two shadow knights were watching from behind the emperor¡¯s back, looking like they wanted to bite him, but that was nothing compared to the emperor. ¡°I was lost. Shame on me.¡± Lacilia was the first to open her mouth. It was because she felt that if she was swept away by the atmosphere, she would be frightened. ¡°¡­¡± Thump thump. In exchange for his words, the emperor came towards her. It was the first time she had heard someone¡¯s footsteps so loud. ¡°I couldn¡¯t sleep¡­ I was wondering if there was a place that came to my mind when I wandered around, but it wasn¡¯t.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Thump thump. The distance was getting closer. It looked like she would get caught. Lasilia glanced behind her like someone who was involuntarily looking for a place to escape. ¡°By my negligence¡­ It seems to have caused some concern. I apologize.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Thump thump. He finally stopped walking. The emperor was right in front of her. ¡°I can not understand.¡± The emperor opened his mouth while his bloodshot eyes reflected her image. ¡°Why did you run away? You were the first to show me the will to sleep.¡± ¡°¡­ Yes?¡± At first she thought she misunderstood. ¡°Sleeping¡­ What? When did I¡­?¡± ¡°But you ran away. You gave me medicine.¡± The emperor knew that the fruit was a problem. Her heart was pounding, but Lasilia struggled to shake her head. ¡°Your majesty. You seem to have misunderstood. I never meant to put you to sleep.¡± ¡°And you¡¯re lying.¡± Reddened gold eyes let out a sharp breath. ¡°Of all the things you¡¯ve done, today¡¯s work was the lowest. Just a moment ago, I was thinking that today would be totally unacceptable,¡± Having said that, the emperor suddenly hugged her. Lasilia struggled in bewilderment. ¡°You-Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Looking at your face¡­ Strange. I am no longer angry.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Strange.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Like the emperor who kept saying it was strange, Lasilia was also strange. His embrace was so strong that it seemed to choke her, but she couldn¡¯t push him away. ¡®He looks so earnest.¡¯ She understood that. That she didn¡¯t have much time. So she had no choice but to be desperate. However, it was a problem that the emperor, who might kill her, looked sad. ¡®You know. I shouldn¡¯t be here. There¡¯s nothing I can do for the Emperor.¡¯ Now was the time to speak. She didn¡¯t do much good in wasting time. Moreover, Lasilia feared that she would feel more than pity for the emperor, as her prophecy had predicted. ¡°Your majesty.¡± Lasilia opened her mouth and Lescal took a deep breath. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me to let go. I have no intention of letting go now.¡± ¡°Not that¡­ I have something to tell you.¡± ¡°Do it like this.¡± Lasilia said, feeling her discomfort and regret at the same time. ¡°I am not your destiny.¡± * * * ¡°What?¡± ¡°What?¡± It was the Shadow Knights who reacted before Lescal did. Surprise, despair, anger, and disbelief crossed their faces quickly. But that was only for a moment. ¡°It looks like you¡¯re ready to be honest now.¡± Sureureung. Ryan was holding his sword. The expression of the other knight standing next to him was as good as the one holding the sword. ¡®It¡¯s impossible to be honest.¡¯ She was less upset because she had expected it. It gave her goosebumps for a moment, but not enough to scare her. ¡°Pick up the sword. What are you talking about?¡± Lescal removed his body and stood blocking the Shadow Knights with his back. Lasilia calmly continued her words towards Rascal. ¡°I am not Your Majesty¡¯s companion. Because I lost my memory.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Even Lasilia did not know if these words would work. But for now, that was the best way. ¡°Partners of destiny are probably words for beings who belong to each other from birth. But to me who lost my memory, Your Majesty is just a stranger. I know nothing about you, and I have no feelings for you. Whenever Your Majesty comes by my side, I feel awkward and stiff with fear. How can you say that you are a partner of fate?¡± Lescal slowly followed Racilia¡¯s words. ¡°¡­There is nothing.¡± ¡°I have also heard from the maids what contact is. I cannot be of any help to Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Therefore?¡± ¡°As I said, it takes time. Recovering your memory will make a difference.¡± ¡°If I get my memory back.¡± Lescal tilted his chin once. The next moment he took Lasilia¡¯s hand. Wanting to grab it, he lightly turned his wrist and inserted the pod into Lasilia¡¯s hand holding her own. In an instant, he took a tight grip on her hand. ¡°If you want to win me some time, you¡¯ll have to swear, too.¡± Her hand be holded was not as uncomfortable or difficult as she thought. But it was embarrassing. ¡°What oath do you mean?¡± ¡°If you get your memories back, promise to return as my destined partner.¡± The word oath carries weight. For the Prophet, the meaning of the oath was many times heavier than for others. But it was acceptable. Because she never lost her memory, so she couldn¡¯t get it back. It was a promise that could not be kept in the first place. ¡°I swear.¡± ¡°Then I will allow you time as you wish.¡± ¡°Thank you, Your Majesty.¡± Lescal pulled Lasilia¡¯s hand, which was entangled in his own. The next moment his lips pressed very gently to the back of her hand. Somehow it was more embarrassing than a kiss on the cheek. She couldn¡¯t deny the feeling that a kiss with staring eyes like now was unfamiliar. Lescal continued without taking his lips from the back of her hand. ¡°During that time, I will do my best to bring back your memories.¡± ¡°¡­¡± * * * ¡°Is this the end? Does that make sense, Your Majesty?¡± Ryan couldn¡¯t accept the situation. ¡°She drugged Your Majesty! And are you saying that no punishment will be given to Her Majesty the empress who ran away? Of course not!¡± Serben also helped out. ¡°I am of the same opinion, Your Majesty. Because this time is different from the atrocities of the past¡­¡± ¡°It is a completely different thing!¡± Ryan couldn¡¯t contain his anger, and the rest of her tiptoe stamped him on the floor. From the moment they returned from the empress¡¯ palace, no, from the moment he kissed the empress, who was not happy even if the emperor didn¡¯t punish her, he must have been going crazy when he said that. But Lescal felt different. As he said, he forgot his anger at the moment the empress returned. It wasn¡¯t anger, but rather a different emotion arose. He was nervous. He never wanted to see the empress disappear again. Rather than get angry unnecessarily, he had to find a way to keep the empress firmly. ¡°You all misunderstood something, but I was the one who ate the sleeping fruit.¡± ¡°Yes¡­? You said His Majesty ate it yourself?¡± ¡°The empress didn¡¯t tell me to eat. She said she wanted to eat it.¡± ¡°No, then¡­ Are you saying His Majesty took away what she wanted to eat?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s a fruit I don¡¯t know. The empress could have gotten sick.¡± ¡°No, that¡­ ¡± Ryan couldn¡¯t speak any longer and bit his lips. Oddly enough, Lescal¡¯s words sounded like a maddening scream of caring for his empress so much that he would rather hurt himself. ¡°So you didn¡¯t get sick? Your Majesty.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not saying that I forgot the fact that the empress tried to put me to sleep and run away.¡± Widely! Rascal took the cloak off his shoulders and dropped it at his feet. The thought of taking off the cloak now meant that he had been completely distracted throughout the night. ¡°I¡¯m saying that making people swear is more effective than punishing them.¡± ¡°How does that happen? Her Majesty will postpone her amnesia until she feels like it.¡± ¡°We just need to find proof that she hasn¡¯t lost her memory. Even the smallest things.¡± Lescal brushed his hair. Oddly enough, the face seemed to be smiling. ¡°Then the empress can no longer reject me. Because she swore.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± The shadow knights who had been silent for a while nodded in turn. ¡°It could be¡­However, it doesn¡¯t seem easy to find evidence that she hasn¡¯t lost her memory. You can¡¯t keep an eye on Her Majesty for twenty-four hours a day.¡± Lescal cut off Serben¡¯s words. ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°Why can¡¯t I watch her twenty-four hours?¡± ¡°For that to happen, someone has to be with her all the time¡­ ,¡± Lescal interrupted Serben. As if this was his true intention, with a clear smile on his face. ¡°I will.¡± CH 10 8. Mark ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡± After the emperor left, the ladies-in-waiting came pouring in. Lasilia, who finished her bath and changed her clothes, forcibly concealed her expression that she was ashamed and about to die. ¡°That is¡­ She believes that Her Majesty the Empress cannot be unaware that it is a nightgown.¡± The Marquise¡¯s voice crept into the distance. ¡°Even if I ask again and again, she says that she likes the pajamas of the first night¡­¡± ¡°Stop. I see what you mean.¡± Lasilia let out a small sigh. She was the master of the empress repeating her obvious lies. She said that no one took her word for truth as her empress did. ¡°As you all know, I lost my memory. I can¡¯t remember even a trivial thing like pajamas. If I make a mistake like today, you must come forward and stop it.¡± ¡°That is¡­ I understand, Her Majesty the Empress.¡± Her answer was polite, but somehow not very trustworthy. Even at this moment, her ladies-in-waiting would be confused as to whether or not the empress was lying. ¡®I can¡¯t. I have no choice but to be more careful.¡¯ No matter how much she thought about it, she had no choice but to leave that place quickly. The moment she said the word fake, I immediately thought of the shadow knights who pulled out their swords. Ryan¡¯s threat to visit him separately was not for nothing. She thought, ¡®I need to get back as soon as possible. Naturally, there should be an opportunity to bring up the topic of healing prayer¡­¡¯ It was when she thought that far. Knock. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress.¡± The trigger came to Lasilia on its own. ¡°The Little Duke of Fielion, Ternaden, asks to see you.¡± * * * The minor Duke of Fielion was the empress¡¯s subordinate. ¡°I greet Her Majesty the Empress.¡± The age difference didn¡¯t seem too great. The cold-looking handsome man with her black hair and cold blue eyes resembled the empress terrifyingly, saying that he was a distant relative whom she had adopted to inherit her title seemed true. He bowed politely in front of Lasilia and kissed the back of her hand respectfully. ¡°May God bless your unfading beauty.¡± ¡°¡­ Thanks, Lord Fielion. Stop, get up.¡± ¡°As you wish.¡± Ternaden raised his body. The ladies-in-waiting quietly left the room without anyone telling them to. ¡°¡­?¡± While Lasilia thought it was a little strange, Ternaden came over to her, took a handful of her still half-wet hair, and smelled her scent. ¡°Hmm. It¡¯s lemon scented today. Knowing that I don¡¯t like it very much. Fresh things don¡¯t suit my sister.¡± What! Surprised, Lasilia cut off Ternaden¡¯s hand. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°What am I doing? It hurts.¡± Ternaden, holding the back of his reddened hand, clicked his tongue. The tone and movement were so natural that she guessed that the two were very close. ¡°Looks like you haven¡¯t heard yet that I lost my memory. I¡¯ve heard of your identity, but unfortunately I can¡¯t remember the slightest bit of time I spent with you. I hope you will understand even as a stranger.¡± ¡°What¡­? What else is this¡­? Are you going to pretend to have amnesia even now with me?¡± As she listened, it seemed that he had heard of amnesia. ¡°I want you to be polite even if we are of the same age.¡± ¡°Courtesy¡­? It¡¯s really infuriating.¡± Ternaden shook his head. The same was true of Lasilia. Not even one family member believed her words. It occurred to her that the road back to Delarta would be very long. Ternaden, who suddenly strode forward to her, sat down on the seat next to Lasilia. ¡°What are you doing?¡± ¡°I¡¯m serious. Stop doing this because it¡¯s no fun. Just say it. Are you mad at me? Didn¡¯t the witchcraft work?¡± ¡°Witchcraft¡­?¡± Ternaden Fielion knew the secret of the empress. She now seemed to know why her maids left the room. The empress would have been accustomed to sharing her secrets with him. To the extent that leaving her seat when the two of them were together became a habit for her ladies-in-waiting to take precedence over orders. ¡®The empress used magic? Why?¡¯ Lasilia changed her mind about sending Ternaden back. Ternaden Fielion could tell a story about the empress that no one else knew. ¡°If my sister is going to be angry with me, that¡¯s the only thing. Is the sorcery still ineffective? So are you trying to punish me?¡± ¡°¡­¡± When Lasilia was silent, Ternaden took her hand and put it on his cheek. The twisted eyes looked painful. ¡°Please, sister¡­ don¡¯t do this to me, I did my best for my sister. My sister knows that I went all the way to Trinidad and brought the strongest magician.¡± It was a long time ago when witchcraft was actively used. From some time ago, witchcraft was recognized as an insubstantial and unstable power compared to divine power or magic. The vast amount of knowledge required to master witchcraft also played a role in making witchcraft more difficult. There were more cases where the results of half-hearted witchcraft attempted with clumsy knowledge were disastrous. Eventually, the number of shamans continued to decrease, and they were forgotten in the world. Trinidad was a city where the few shamans left on the continent continued their past. ¡°It¡¯s only been a week since the shaman went. It takes time to take effect. Even the sorcerer said so. You won¡¯t be able to see it with your own eyes right now.¡± ¡°¡­How long do I have to believe that?¡± Lasilia took her hand and changed her tone. From Ternaden¡¯s attitude, it seemed that treating him as a stranger meant little. ¡°Until the Emperor¡¯s 30th birthday.¡± After hesitating for a moment, Ternaden spat out this answer. ¡°Before then, the effect will surely appear.¡± That was a year from now. It was too long to wait. And Lasilia couldn¡¯t stay in the empire for another year. Ternaden grabbed Lasilia¡¯s hand again. ¡°Trust me and stop forgiving me. I don¡¯t see you often, but there¡¯s nothing like this.¡± It was a desperate voice. If nothing else, it was clear that he was on the empress¡¯ side. Lasilia grabbed her hand again and pulled it away. Ternaden followed her hand as he receded with his pitiful eyes. ¡°Before I can forgive, there is something you need to know.¡± ¡°What? Tell me anything. I will do anything.¡± ¡°It¡¯s real that I have amnesia.¡± ¡°¡­what?¡± ¡°So tell me. What was the sorcery for?¡± * * * ¡°It¡¯s ridiculous¡­ Could it be a side effect of witchcraft?¡± Ternaden did not believe Lasilia¡¯s words until she explained again and again. ¡°I heard that the bigger the spell, the more side effects or recoil¡­ It¡¯s crazy, but that¡¯s how you lost your memory.¡± Ternaden clenched his chin and paced around the room frantically. ¡°Don¡¯t do that, sit down. Sit down and finish talking.¡± Lasilia pointed to the couch. Ternaden, who stopped her, looked at Lasilia for a long time before returning to the couch. ¡°So¡­ You really don¡¯t know anything? Everything you did with me?¡± ¡°I do not know. Is there anything else I need to know?¡± ¡°Shit. You should know everything! Do you mean that?¡± Ternaden burst into anger. In fact, he looked more frightened than angry. He grabbed his black hair, which resembled the empress¡¯s, as if tearing it off. ¡°What the hell is this¡­ Haha, I lost my memory. In a perilous time like now.¡± Raising his head again, Ternaden let go of his hair and looked at Lasilia with his longing eyes. His eyes looked sincere. ¡°Listen, sister.¡± ¡°I am listening.¡± ¡°My sister has lost her mark.¡± It was embarrassing enough. The mark was proof of rejection. If she lost it, as empress, she would of course have to do something. ¡°Could I lose the mark? Was the mark something like an object?¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± Ternaden laughed bitterly. ¡°You really don¡¯t seem to know anything. Calling the shaman to retrieve her mark, she forgot what her mark was.¡± Ternaden pointed a finger somewhere on his body. It was embarrassing because it was between the buttocks, but Ternaden¡¯s face was serious. ¡°My sister¡¯s mark is here. A place where nobody but your partner can see.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The mark was nestled deep inside her body. It couldn¡¯t be seen by the empress herself. It was in a position where only those with whom she had a very intimate relationship could see it. With the exception of her, there was a maid who tended to the baths. One day, the lady-in-waiting who was washing her body with extraordinary effort noticed that her mark had changed. It was a month before she and Lescal were to marry. In that month, more than half of the marks had disappeared. On the day of the wedding, the markings were so obliterated that anyone could see that they were incomplete. Like this, she couldn¡¯t hold the first night. Because she should have been caught by the emperor. ¡°So every time¡­ It seems to have been avoided. Not because I hate the Emperor.¡± ¡°Do you hate him?¡± Ternaden burst out laughing at her. ¡°Who is Lescal to you? If your love was so great, you would have eaten every single strand of Lescal¡¯s hair. Even if your stomach explodes and you die.¡± It was something she didn¡¯t understand. ¡°Even if I loved him¡­ It was something I couldn¡¯t keep hidden. Are you saying I risked getting married though?¡± ¡°Do you think I didn¡¯t stop my sister?¡± Ternaden¡¯s expression twisted. ¡°I¡¯ve said it many times. That¡¯s too risky. You said you had to give up your position as empress. If you couldn¡¯t, you wanted to at least postpone the marriage until you found a way.¡± That said, it was to no avail. ¡°Didn¡¯t the emperor doubt it? If I had refused to contact him like that, I could have been suspicious.¡± ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡± Ternaden let out a sigh in her crumpled face. ¡°The one who should be clinging to and begging is obviously Lescal, but that person is carefree.¡± There was a reason why companions were called companions. He was to love her empress just as the empress loved her emperor so much that she could chew it all up. But Lescal didn¡¯t. He never first asked for bed, never craved or demanded affection. Cartagena was no different from other human beings who elicited no emotions in him. The more he did, the more the empress struggled with the suspicion that he might not be her real partner. Having reached a dead end, the empress looked for a magician with the feeling of grabbing at least a straw, and practiced magic. Duke Peelion paid a huge price with his family¡¯s wealth. The result has yet to be known. Ternaden, who was running his hair nervously, made a suggestion. ¡°Let¡¯s check the mark now. Because the sorcery might have succeeded.¡± This wasn¡¯t just a problem for the empress. The entire Peelion dukedom might have to face the sin of adopting a fake partner as empress. ¡°Eliaden¡¯s blood cannot pass the age of thirty without a companion. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s real or not, but the original contract said so. Lescal will try to contact you somehow until then. You¡¯ve neglected it until now, but you can¡¯t do that anymore. Do you know what I mean? Until then, my sister must have the mark of a companion.¡± ¡°You know that. By the way¡­¡± ¡°Damn, if I had known this was going to happen, I should have confirmed the return of the mark and sent the shaman back. I thought it was successful because I had no contact so far. I never thought my sister would lose her memory. Anyway, I have to check now.¡± Ternaden spoke so casually that she almost forgot his words about where her mark was. ¡°Come on, sister. Turn around and take off your clothes.¡± ¡°What¡­?¡± ¡°Look that way.¡± But it was a position she should never forget. Lasilia threw up her hand to hide her embarrassment. ¡°I will check for a moment. ¡°Because my sister mark is in a place where I can¡¯t see it¡­ Oh, did you forget this too?¡± Ternaden looked at Lasilia, revealing her drumming emotions. ¡°I have already seen it many times. I mean, there is no need to be ashamed.¡± ¡°What does that mean? Why me?¡± ¡°I do not remember?¡± Ternaden approached. It was so close that their lips could touch at any moment. ¡°How was your relationship with your sister and me?¡± It was then. Clap, bang! Without any notice, the door to the fact that the two were there opened. And the person who entered was the emperor holding an impossibly sized bouquet of roses. CH 11 11. Scandal It seemed that the Emperor was not holding a bouquet of flowers, but that he was standing in a field of flowers. The combination of gold and red was so dazzling that it hurt her eyes. Usually, if the Emperor came, the attendants would go ahead and announce his visit. There was none of that now. Of course she was surprised. However, even the Emperor who entered the room did not look calm. The Emperor, who stood still after opening the door and entered, soon strode toward her direction. ¡°Ah, greetings to His Majesty the Emperor¡­¡± Belatedly, Ternaden got up from his seat and took a bow. ¡°Goodbye.¡± Puck! Lescal passed the heavy bouquet in his hand to Ternaden. ¡°Ugh, heavy,¡± Thud! Ternaden, who accidentally picked up the bouquet, hesitated, then fell backwards and hit him on the buttock. Then, Lescal kicked the fallen Ternaden with his foot. ¡°Ugh!¡± Lescal said to Ternaden who was groaning. ¡°Please quickly put it in a vase.¡± ¡°¡­ yes? What?¡± Ternaden did not understand what had happened to him. The Emperor dragged her out like a piece of luggage in front of the Duke of Pelion¡¯s heir, and the Shadow Knights. ¡°Did you see that? His Majesty just said¡­¡± Serben nudged Ryan¡¯s side and tried to whisper, but Ryan quickly cut him off. ¡°Huh. I don¡¯t believe it either, but don¡¯t you think we should get the little Duke out first?¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s right.¡± Fortunately, the incomprehensible things stopped there as the two knights moved quickly. * * * ¡°What did you come for?¡± As far as Lasilia knew, the Emperor was the most unreasonable person. With a blank expression, he made the most menacing expression. For reasons unknown, Lasilia thought he looked very dangerous now. ¡°Did I get in the way?¡± These were the words that came after a few breaths. But he did get in the way. ¡°I was in the middle of a chat. It¡¯s unfortunate, but there will be another opportunity next time.¡± It was an opportunity to learn more about the real Empress. It was regrettable that the conversation was cut off in the middle, but it was fortunate to know that there was a person named Duke Pelion that knew her. Above all, he was very close to the Empress, and believed in her memory loss. ¡°Next time¡­¡± The Emperor murmured softly and sat down in the same seat where Ternaden had sat. Ternaden was sitting close enough to whisper to Lasilia. So it meant that the Emperor was just as close. ¡°It¡¯s too close, Your Majesty. And why did you come?¡± The Emperor cut off her talk. ¡°You were closer to the Little Duke.¡± ¡°No. I wasn¡¯t.¡± ¡°You were closer.¡± The Emperor¡¯s face came closer as if their lips were about to touch. ¡°It was this close.¡± ¡®It wasn¡¯t at all. And what¡¯s the point of distance?¡¯ Racilia leaned back and put herself away. ¡°If you wish, do so.¡± ¡°And held hands.¡± At the same time as he said that, the Emperor grabbed Lasilia¡¯s hand. Lasilia looked at Lescal with a face of incomprehension. ¡°¡­It wasn¡¯t my will, but it happened. So now would you let go of her hand and keep your distance? It¡¯s too close.¡± The Emperor seemed to have no intention of moving. ¡°Did you tell him this too?¡± ¡°What?¡± ¡°Did you say ¡®I lost my memory, and it¡¯s uncomfortable because I¡¯m just a stranger, so don¡¯t touch me and stay away¡¯?¡± She reflected for a moment, but nothing like that happened. Instead of talking to her, he just grabbed her hand and pulled it away. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Why?¡± Even if it wasn¡¯t, the distance that was too close got closer. The golden eye in front of her nose was more than burdensome and disturbed her vision. ¡°Why are you telling me to stay away from you, but you didn¡¯t say the same to the little Duke?¡± ¡°I never had a chance to say that.¡± ¡°Really?¡± ¡°Yes?¡± ¡°If you had the opportunity, you would have rejected the Duke as well?¡± Her eyes blinked spontaneously. ¡®Why are you doing this? Do you have any problems with the Little Duke? ¡­Ah, that¡¯s not what he is after, she just doubts if I really lost my memory. The Empress and the Duke seemed to be close from the beginning.¡¯ So, saying that he¡¯d seen the mark many times was extremely jarring. Was it right to see it as just a close brother and sister? ¡°Yes, that is the answer.¡± ¡°If the little Duke hold your hand again, are you going to ask him to let go?¡± ¡°Of course I will. Even the little Duke is very unfamiliar to me.¡± ¡°¡­then.¡± After hearing that, the Emperor slowly let go of her hand. The distance that had been the difference of a piece of paper was widened to the size of a book. She looked at the Emperor with an expression that asked if it was all that far away, he met her eyes and said, ¡°From now on, be the first to tell him to let go of your hand. If he doesn¡¯t, do it yourself.¡± ¡°I will.¡± With that said, one book has grown into two books. It was still too close, but she felt like she could breathe now. ¡°What happened to the Little Duke?¡± She asked, with the Emperor still not taking his eyes off her. It was surprisingly uncomfortable to have a conversation side by side, eye to eye, from a distance of two books. ¡°I came to say goodbye. It looks like you heard the news now.¡± In reply, Lasilia raised her body. ¡°If that seat is good, I will move to sit down there.¡± ¡°That won¡¯t be necessary. You can just stay there.¡± ¡°I want to move.¡± At those words, the Emperor wrinkled his brow. But he didn¡¯t say no. ¡°¡­if you want.¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Moving her seat made her feel more comfortable. Lescal twitched the tips of his lips as he looked at Lasilia, who was breathing involuntarily. ¡°It¡¯s strange that he came. Even when you were sick, the Duke never came to visit you.¡± To be precise, he had come not to visit the Empress, but to ask about the sign. Lasilia quietly changed her words. ¡°Even your Majesty did not come to visit me.¡± In an instant, the golden eyes flashed. ¡°How do you know that? Did your memory come back?¡± ¡­No way. ¡°I heard about the past from the Duke.¡± ¡°Did you talk about me? What did you say?¡± ¡°He said that His Majesty and I weren¡¯t close enough to visit each other often.¡± It was more terrifying than that. The Empress loved the Emperor, and the Emperor was indifferent. But the emperor needed the Empress, and the Empress could not supply her need, so she concealed herself in lies. It was a relationship in which there was no way to improve unless the mark was perfected. But the emperor, who kept his mouth shut and stared her in the eyes, said: ¡°It is a lie.¡± * * * ¡®It¡¯s a lie.¡¯ ¡°The Little Duke lied. You and I got along very well.¡± ¡°¡­¡± It was a little absurd. ¡°It¡¯s hard to believe. They said that we were very good friends and that we hadn¡¯t even had a first night.¡± ¡°That would be proof that we were good friends.¡± The Emperor was a human being who could lie while staring her in the eye. ¡°I don¡¯t really understand why that happens.¡± ¡°The reason we didn¡¯t have the first night was because you didn¡¯t want to. It¡¯s a request that I don¡¯t know why, but I think the fact that we¡¯ve been following each other faithfully is proof that our relationship is very close.¡± It was nonsense, but it seemed like it made sense because he said it so confidently, and it was such a confusing feeling. ¡°¡­It¡¯s different from what little Duke Pelion and the ladies-in-waiting said.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t think they know us better than I do.¡± Not only them, but also Ryan said so. ¡°Even if it¡¯s His Majesty¡¯s Shadow Knight?¡± ¡°Even my shadow knight.¡± ¡°¡­¡± There must be a reason. Why did he lie so unbelievably? ¡®Why¡­ Ah, because of the blue moon.¡¯ Amnesia was perhaps an opportunity for the Emperor. The Emperor, who could no longer delay contact with her, was in a position to force his contact with the Empress, and the Empress untimely lost her memory. If it was said that they were originally close, it would be difficult for the Empress to find a reason to refuse contact in the future. ¡®Ha¡­ He was a smart man. Because I can¡¯t say with my own mouth that the past wasn¡¯t like that, he must have calculated that I would have no choice but to be swayed like this.¡¯ It was the correct answer. ¡°So from now on, I hope you don¡¯t say that you are too close to me. We always sat side by side in the same chair. Very close.¡± Sitting in a chair would be the beginning. ¡°¡­ If so, Your Majesty.¡± Fortunately, Lasilia had a plan in mind. ¡°I want to receive healing prayers. To bring back memories.¡± ¡°A prayer for healing?¡± ¡°Yes. The Little Duke of Pelion informed me. There are priests with healing powers in Delarta Kingdom.¡± There¡¯s probably no combination that¡¯s as bad as a prophet and a lie, but she needed to do it now. As long as the Emperor appeared like that, she should have been able to lie to him. Young Duke Pelion seemed to be on the Empress¡¯s side, so he would somehow match her rhythm, even if belatedly. ¡°I want to go to Delarta.¡± * * * ¡°Sleep. Take it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Serben held out a large vase, and Ryan talked. Ternaden looked at the two of them alternately with an absurd face. ¡°Take this¡­ What should I do?¡± ¡°Your Majesty gave the order himself, right? Put it in a vase. Plug it in.¡± ¡°So this is for me now¡­ to do it for real¡­ Is that what you mean?¡± ¡°It¡¯s an order from the Emperor. Were you thinking of rejecting it? You won¡¯t live long like this. Isn¡¯t that right, Serben?¡± ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Ternaden burst into anger. He had never personally encountered the Shadow Knights, but he had heard of them. It was said that they behaved like a member of the royal family with the protection of the Emperor on their back, and that was perfect. If that¡¯s what meant being a Shadow Knight then he wasn¡¯t grinding his teeth for nothing. ¡°¡­I will remember your names. Let¡¯s see how long it stays like that.¡± ¡°Well, do as you like.¡± Ryan snorted his snort sullenly. ¡°More than that, please give your heart and soul to His Highness. Please know that we cannot help at all according to His Majesty¡¯s wishes.¡± After speaking, the shadow knights sat cross-legged comfortably on the chairs behind them. So it meant that they would be watching while the young Duke of Pelion was arranging flowers that he didn¡¯t even know existed. ¡°¡­ this.¡± Ternaden swallowed all the curses in his stomach. Even though they could clearly see his distorted faces, the shadow knights didn¡¯t bat an eye. ¡°You¡­ Why are you doing this to me?¡± The third time a rose thorn pricked his finger, the impatient Ternaden turned around and glared at the shadow knights. ¡°Oh, there is no particular reason.¡± Ryan faced Ternaden with his clasped hands supporting the back of his head. ¡°I wonder if Her Majesty recently had a rather big accident. That¡¯s right.¡± ¡°What, what? Is that what you are talking about with Her Majesty?¡± ¡°So, of course, the Duke of Sox was a distant relative and an adoptee, so he wasn¡¯t someone who couldn¡¯t date at all, but it can¡¯t be helped that the arrow of love flies. Just accept it.¡± Ternaden¡¯s complexion suddenly changed. ¡°Uh, what is that¡­ ?What a scandal¡­!¡± ¡°It¡¯s also not something that Your Majesty doesn¡¯t know about. Right, Serben?¡± Serben nodded his head. ¡°There¡¯s no way you wouldn¡¯t know. You must have known it all before her wedding.¡± ¡°So, as the Blue Moon approached, she was feeling uncomfortable, and she told His Majesty that she would like him to pay attention to what kind of existence she is. Oh, that is, before he sat on one of the sofas and held his hand as if to treat Her Majesty alone.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ternaden bit his lip. ¡°Then do the flower arranging. You seem to have a knack for it.¡± It was the moment Ryan leaned against his back, thinking that he was polite enough to say, ¡°Don¡¯t annoy our Majesty,¡± as he opened his eyes. ¡°Ryan.¡± In the next room, where the Empress and Emperor were left alone, Lescal called Ryan. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± The two knights moved with unbelievable speed and entered the next room. Before the door closed again, Ternaden heard these words. ¡°How long does Delarta take from here?¡± CH 12 12. Red Stone ¡°Hmm¡­ It¡¯s pretty far. If you run the wagon to death¡­ Let¡¯s see. Even if I accelerate my way while sleeping only five hours a day, it is about two months. I have to cross a mountain range in the middle.¡± Two months. It was the time that it would take to go to Delarta. ¡®It¡¯s really far. If it¡¯s two months to go.¡¯ By the time she returned, it would feel even more far away. Lasilia glanced at the Emperor¡¯s expression. The hand had been tightly held by the Emperor since before. It was from the moment she said that she wanted to go to Delarta. Since she was in a position to ask for something, she couldn¡¯t pull her hand out mercilessly. Her hands were still warming to a body temperature much hotter than hers. ¡°Two months. Not bad.¡± ¡°Then why are you asking? It is a place where there is no communication with Elliarden.¡± ¡°Because the empress needed something there.¡± Lasilia, who thought he would reject her, saying that it was too far away, was relieved inside. ¡®Now¡­ Can I go back?¡¯ Even if she went back to Delarta, this won¡¯t be over. Above all, she did not know what the situation was like in Delarta, or whether King Ricardo had left the Great Temple as it was. But the thought of being able to escape that unfamiliar place already weighed on her heart. If the high priest believed in her, something would come up. ¡°Then it¡¯s my turn now.¡± The Emperor tightened his hand and spoke softly into his ear. ¡°I heard your request, so I want you to listen to mine too.¡± If she could go to Delarta, she could do that much. ¡°Tell me.¡± The Emperor would not ask for a new contact. That¡¯s because that was for after getting her memories back. But it was something not to be taken lightly. ¡°I want to be with you for those two months.¡± ¡°¡­ yes?¡± She wondered what that meant. ¡°What exactly do you mean by being together, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°Literally.¡± ¡°Literally?¡± ¡°I will be by your side. always.¡± ¡°Always¡­?¡± ¡°So that you don¡¯t misremember the past like today.¡± Lescal lifted her hand and placed it on his lips. ¡°I will tell you word by word.¡± That was strange, but it was also strange that it was two months. ¡°That means¡­ Are you saying that His Majesty will also go to Delarta?¡± ¡°No.¡± ¡°Then¡­?¡± Lescal tilted his head. ¡°Why should I go to Delarta?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°I have to call the priest here.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Lasilia¡¯s face hardened. No wonder it was too easy. It couldn¡¯t have been that easy. * * * ¡°You look so disappointed.¡± Ryan came closer to her and whispered softly. He was preparing a place for the Emperor to stay in the Empress¡¯ palace. He wasn¡¯t building a new room, but he had a lot to do, just like that. While the room next to him was crowded with courtiers and attendants, Ryan did not become the Emperor¡¯s shadow, but remained in the Empress¡¯ bedroom. ¡°As if there was a reason to go to Delarta.¡± ¡°¡­ It must have been embarrassing to see His Majesty¡¯s generosity.¡± It was the reason why La Silia couldn¡¯t insist on going to Delarta until the end. It was very exceptional for the imperial family to visit a foreign country for several months. There had to be a war or something like that. Since it was a special prayer, she said that it might have to be done at the shrine, and the Emperor said that if so, he would build one of Delarta¡¯s shrines inside the imperial palace. Then the chamberlain of the imperial palace moved quickly. As if preparations had already been made, the items for the Emperor¡¯s use were brought to the Empress¡¯ palace in a row. ¡°Hmm¡­ You come out like that. Well, I see.¡± Ryan accidentally touched a gardenia flower that was still fresh. ¡°Then, Her Majesty the Empress, it seems that Her Majesty is fine with the Emperor always sticking by her side, day and night, from now on?¡± No, it couldn¡¯t have been okay. Even thinking about it again, she was angry with the chamberlain, Count Persson. But there was no way to do anything further. Lasilia decided to think of the good side. First of all, it would be certain that the priest would come, so she would be able to hear the news of Delarta. If she was lucky, she might be able to get in touch with the high priest. It was the best she could do for her now. ¡°That¡¯s what happened, and I decided to accept it.¡± ¡°That¡¯s true. When did you become so resolute? In the past, if there was something you didn¡¯t like, the courtiers cut off their heads and ate it.¡± The Empress, she was told to formally punish her courtiers as a norm. There were various reasons, and many said that things like stealing and insults were just excuses to kill. Lasilia thought the reason might have been to conceal her mark. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. That I, who deserves to be blamed, don¡¯t remember anything now.¡± ¡°I know you¡¯re not a person with a clear conscience anyway.¡± There was no hesitation in Ryan¡¯s words. She was sure the shadow knights hated the Empress. It was proof that the Emperor¡¯s statement that he was on good terms with the Empress was an absurd lie. ¡°Isn¡¯t that oath absurd? If you memories return, you¡¯ll make contact. A blue moon could appear even tomorrow. His Majesty will have to lock himself in his room again and endure the terrible pain for several days.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Lasilia did not know exactly what kind of pain the Emperor was going through. There must be a limit to his understanding of the pain that the human body could endure. So she had to go back to where she was. Only when the fake disappeared would the Emperor find a true partner. ¡°You may not believe it, but I am doing my best in my own way.¡± ¡°Oh, amnesia is the best?¡± ¡°Just as it is your heart to be sarcastic, it must be my heart that is not comfortable to hear. If you don¡¯t have something to do, just leave.¡± ¡°Well, since you kicked everyone out, I have to get kicked out.¡± Ryan quickly turned around. But before opening the door, Ryan looked back at Lasilia. ¡°I¡¯m sure you remember well what I said earlier, Your Majesty the Empress. As much as the oath I made to His Majesty the Emperor.¡± ¡°¡­ Of course I remember.¡± ¡°You will have to.¡± Thud! Ryan closed the door and disappeared. * * * Beep beep! Gooooo! As soon as Ryan went out, the birds pecked at the window and cried. Lasilia looked at the closed door once more and then opened the window. ¡°What¡¯s the matter? I didn¡¯t even call.¡± ¨C That woman, that woman. ¨C It¡¯s grumpy, it¡¯s grumpy. ¨C Torturing, torturing. Lasilia laughed. ¡°So you came to kick me out again? It¡¯s okay.He is already gone.¡± ¨C Already gone? went? -No, no. This time a black bird came out. ¨C Harass, harass! Pooh Deok! Before Lasilia had time to stop, the black bird flew away. ¡°No, don¡¯t do that!¡± Lasilia shouted, but she was belated. ¡°It didn¡¯t bother me too much. All I could say was a few words¡­ Well, not yet.¡± Not yet. So, until now, he hadn¡¯t found out that she¡¯s fake. After that, it was a long problem not knowing what would happen to her. Lasilia smiled bitterly and shook her head. ¡°I probably won¡¯t. You guys go and dry them off.¡± Then the remaining birds flapped their wings and screamed. ¨C Why why? ¨C That woman, that woman is grumpy. * ¡°No. Not necessarily. She¡¯s just so loyal to the emperor. That¡¯s her job, and it¡¯s not fair to punish her for working too hard on her job. Go dry the black bird.¡± ¨C It¡¯s strange, it¡¯s strange. ¨C Fair, fair. The birds protested vigorously, but when Racilia petted their head and begged them, she eventually chased after the black bird. Lasilia shook her head as she picked up some of her feathers that had fallen on her window sill. ¡°He said he likes me, but he has a bit of a blind corner. What could be the reason?¡± This place was still full of unknowns. And one of those things where she didn¡¯t know exactly what those birds were. Still, one seemed to know. ¡°¡­ look alike.¡± His blind personality was somehow reminiscent of the Emperor. He said that if he had to go to the temple, he would rather build a temple. * * * ¡°What is it, Ryan?¡± ¡°This?¡± Poof! Leaving the Empress¡¯ palace, Ryan tossed something into the air and caught it. ¡°I don¡¯t know either.¡± ¡°What? But what are you holding on to so tightly?¡± ¡°It¡¯s Her Majesty¡¯s.¡± Ryan grinned and opened her palm, which was holding something in her. ¡°¡­ rock?¡± ¡°Looking at it, it doesn¡¯t look like stone. So, isn¡¯t it very strange? There¡¯s no way our evil Empress¡¯d have the delicate sensibility to keep things like stones beautifully.¡± Serben suddenly made a serious expression. ¡°There¡¯s no way Her Majesty would have given it to you¡­ Could it be that you stole it?¡± ¡°It¡¯s closer to being picked up than stolen.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°No. It¡¯s different.¡± Poof! Ryan thrown and catched the stone like a joke again. She was joking, the stone she threw with the strength of her arm rose beyond sight and fell only after a while. Without looking, Ryan reached out and grabbed her stone. ¡°I was with Her Majesty for a while. She sneaks open the dresser drawer and this is what comes out. I secretly took it out and held it in my hand, but she didn¡¯t say anything when she saw it. Well, that¡¯s just saying.¡± ¡°Hey, anyway¡­ no. There must be a reason for what you did. Have you ever tested whether amnesia is real?¡± ¡°Compassion and honor.¡± Whiing! The stone flew again. ¡°She is acting as if she has changed. With suspiciously common sense and nobleness. Even if I was openly sarcastic, she responded gracefully. Does that make sense? Our filthy and venomous Empress?¡± ¡°You are so good at wrapping yourself.¡± ¡°We were alone, but she¡¯s not the kind of person who would waste her talent for nothing.¡± ¡°Ah, I can¡¯t argue with that.¡± ¡°So now I am a bit confused. When people suffer from amnesia, they change completely, don¡¯t they?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°How did it happen? It¡¯s not just Her Majesty the Empress who has become a different person, His Majesty is like that too. Did you see him when he kicked the Little Duke of Peelion? Isn¡¯t it against the etiquette to kick a noble, no matter how majestic he is?¡± ¡°It¡¯s very different.¡± ¡°You¡¯re not the only one who doesn¡¯t know that, why are you doing that? It¡¯s like a suspicious husband who can¡¯t control his anger after witnessing his wife with another man¡­ No, but my stone! where did my stone go? It¡¯s time to fall¡­¡± Ryan was searching the air with her eyes wide open for the stone. ¡°Chaaaaaaagh!¡± Pod! A black bird appeared somewhere, cutting through the wind, and snatched a red stone with its beak. ¡°Evil! It¡¯s that crazy bird from back then! Hey you crazy! Are you saying you¡¯re going to eat a stone?¡± Ryan hastily drew her sword and ran. ¡°Caw!¡± The black bird flew high as if mocking Ryan. ¡°There! If I caught you, all your fur would be pulled out!¡± Soon, Ryan also became a dot. Left alone, Serben shook his head. ¡°¡­ Why did she have a real stone anyway? It really doesn¡¯t suit her.¡± It was absurd to say that the Empress treasured stones that were not even jewels. ¡°Isn¡¯t it an ordinary stone?¡± As for the answer, she would know when Ryan came back safely with the stone. But Ryan couldn¡¯t catch the black bird. The Black Bird also failed to return the stone to Lasilia. It was because the Emperor returned to the Empress after a short move at that time. CH 13 13. Twenty Four Hours (1) ¡®I think I¡¯m going to choke to death.¡¯ These were the feelings Lasilia felt after spending half a day with the Emperor. ¡®Why are you looking at me like that?¡¯ She didn¡¯t know that this meant that he would always be by her side. They ate together and drank tea together. She read, and she watched as the secretary put the imperial seal on a bunch of official documents. However, all the audiences were rejected. It was a trivial reason for not wanting to go to the throne room. ¡®¡­No, it doesn¡¯t seem insignificant for some reason.¡¯ That tenacious gaze could never be said to be insignificant. When she thought he would be looking at her like that in the audience room, she felt chills for no reason. ¡®He is an Emperor¡­ Wouldn¡¯t they think it was crazy or something similar?¡¯ The blue moon seemed so terrible. Seeing that he was staring at the Empress, who he usually didn¡¯t care about, as if every minute and every second was a waste. ¡®That said, my memory won¡¯t come back before Blue Moon.¡¯ The Emperor put his seal on the last official document. ¡°It is over now.¡± ¡°I see.¡± She was anxious inside. ¡®It seemed like he was just pressing the seal without reading it.¡¯ Well, it was someone else¡¯s empire. ¡°I can do anything now. Is there anything you want to do?¡± There¡¯s no such thing, she just wanted him to stop staring at her. ¡°There is nothing.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go for a walk, then.¡± The Emperor suggested taking a walk as if he had anticipated the refusal in advance. ¡°Walk¡­?¡± ¡°Would you like to go for a walk?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ No, I don¡¯t hate it.¡± The Emperor might not know it, but the word ¡°walking¡± sounded very fresh to Lasilia. The Prophet¡¯s life was simple. Sleeping in the deepest part of the Great Hall, in a dark room without windows, was most of the day. As for Lasilia, the time when her prophetic powers manifested was early, and she lived a life without windows from a young age. She, of course, sometimes went out of the temple. She was to stand in front of people as a symbol of the former state instead of most of the royal events. But it was a very different thing from a walk. Lasilia¡¯s role as empress was due to her frequent dealings with her royal family as a prophetess. In order to interpret her dream, Lasilia knew a lot about the history and situation of the continent, but on the contrary, she didn¡¯t know much about things that were not necessary for her role as a prophet. The outside appearance that could be seen when leaving the temple from time to time was a completely unknown territory to Lasilia. Every room in the imperial palace had a large window. If the emperor hadn¡¯t been staring at her like that all day, Lasilia would never have thought that she would be suffocated by being in her bedroom all her life. ¡°Is that okay?¡± The Emperor stared blankly at her face. ¡°¡­I found one.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°A thing you like.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°Your expression has changed.¡± While Lasilia was unknowingly touching her face, the Emperor got up from his temporary desk and approached her. ¡°Then shall we go?¡± The Emperor respectfully held out his arm in front of Lasilia. * * * The walk was more free than she thought. The guards and attendants who had followed behind them silently disappeared at the entrance of the garden. The garden of the imperial palace was divided into four areas, and the place she was now in was called the Garden of Water. The vast garden, which stretches along the deep and large canal that supplies water to the imperial palace, had deliberately cut down trees and planted low-key flowers to have an open view. The garden was very beautiful, with fountains and statues mixed with colorful flowers. ¡®Ah¡­¡¯ For a moment, she forgot the discomfort caused by the Emperor holding her arm tightly because she was distracted by the scene unfolding in front of her. He forgot to turn his head and stare at her face at the subject walking next to her. ¡°Is it good?¡± the emperor asked. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty.¡± ¡°Did you come for a walk with me?¡± Lasilia quietly changed her words. ¡°Because the garden is beautiful¡­ Except for one place.¡± It was because she found a corner of the garden only belatedly. There was only one place in this perfect garden, where all the flowers had been cut off. ¡°What happened over there?¡± Perhaps the problem was that the flowers were cut off, but gardeners there were diligently trimming the trees whose flowers had been cut off. ¡°This way.¡± Lescal pointed the other way, subtly covering the place where gardenias had been in full bloom until yesterday. ¡°Yes, Your Majesty?¡± ¡°I thought it would be better to go this way. How about boating? Let the boat float if you want.¡± She guessed it was award-winning. It looked like he was trying to hide something. ¡°The pear is good too. But I want to know what happened there.¡± Lescal furrowed his eyebrows. ¡°Why should I know that?¡± ¡°Is there anything I shouldn¡¯t have known about?¡± ¡°There is no such thing. I thought you might like boating.¡± She had never been on a boat before. She wondered what it would feel like to float on the water. ¡°If it¡¯s difficult to say, I¡¯ll just move on.¡± When the Emperor said he would hide it to the end, he intended to ask the birds. Unexpectedly, the Emperor muttered, averting his eyes with an awkward expression. ¡°No, I¡¯m not trying to hide anything¡­¡± Then Ryan intervened. ¡°Just say it, Your Majesty. It¡¯s not even a secret. Wouldn¡¯t it be more difficult if she just misunderstood it?¡± Lasilia was startled when Ryan crawled out from under the flower tree. What was even more surprising was that as soon as she felt her presence, the Emperor stretched out his arms and wrapped them tightly around her body. ¡°¡­Why are you out there?¡± ¡°Sorry if I startled you, Your Majesty. Because of the damn crow.¡± ¡°Crow?¡± ¡°Yes. Something was stolen from me, but I was chasing after it, and I happened to¡­¡± Ryan sighed in an inaudible swearing and brushed away the dust on her body. ¡°Anyway, you¡¯d better just say it, Your Majesty. Could it be that Her Majesty the Empress did not know what had happened to Gardenia Garden? It¡¯s the place she liked the most in the imperial palace.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± Lasilia struggled to turn her head to look at the Emperor. As he wrapped his arms around herself completely, he was in a pose looking up from under his chin. ¡°¡­I didn¡¯t ruin it on purpose.¡± His stiff jawline caught her eye first. The Emperor was still unable to meet her eyes. ¡°Just¡­ It¡¯s your favorite, so I just said to bring as many as they could.¡± ¡°¡­ah.¡± For the first time, Lasilia was able to connect the garden, which had been cut out of flowers, with the Emperor¡¯s secret. The flowers the Emperor had sent in abundance yesterday seemed to be called gardenias. ¡°You didn¡¯t ruin it.¡± ¡°¡­I didn¡¯t expect it to be like that.¡± ¡°Then the rose garden would have a similar shape.¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine there. I told them to make just one bouquet.¡± Wouldn¡¯t it be too conscienceless to call the size of a bouquet of flowers? ¡°Okay, let go.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The Emperor subtly softened the lines of his lips. It was an expression Lasilia was already used to. ¡®If I tell him to let go, he always makes that kind of expression.¡¯ It was also a familiar thing to reluctantly withdraw his hand. And she seemed to be getting used to it little by little. For example, when she didn¡¯t know that the noise was Ryan, the Emperor hugged her tightly. ¡®It¡¯s a bit similar to saying that he would eat an unknown fruit first.¡¯ It felt like it was something to cover her first from a threat, which he didn¡¯t know what it was. ¡®Even if the empress doesn¡¯t have feelings, does he have some kind of instinct as a companion? ¡­Well, that¡¯s why they¡¯re called partners of fate.¡¯ It was unfortunate. That the mark of the Empress was disappearing. ¡®That might be proof that he has another partner. It might have appeared to another companion after the mark of the Empress was erased.¡¯ They said that she must be born as his pair, so if the empress wasn¡¯t real, he must have a real partner somewhere. ¡®It would be nice if that person showed up first.¡¯ Either the real one appeared on its own, or the Empress disappeared and the Emperor set out to find the real one himself. ¡®I wish I could have a dream. Something about a true lover.¡¯ That was when she thought about it. Ryan asked, who had been watching Lescal¡¯s reaction carefully before shaking off the dust from her. ¡°By the way, you two, are you going to board the boat now?¡± The Emperor finally met her gaze. ¡°What do you think?¡± ¡°I am good.¡± He didn¡¯t know it, but Lasilia was a little excited. She liked walking slowly from the Empress¡¯ palace to the water garden, and she also liked feeling the fresh sunlight and air directly on her skin. Riding a boat would be even newer for her. ¡°Aha, you like riding a boat. Then, the two of you, please come down slowly to the dock. I will go ahead and tell them to prepare the boat.¡± Ryan, who finished her words, hurriedly ran toward the canal. * * * ¡°Um¡­ Do you really like boating?¡± It must have been about ten minutes since they boarded the boat. Ryan inevitably insisted on rowing herself and accompanied them on the boat ride. As the sword master-class knight made up her mind and rowed, the small boat floating on the waterway rushed into the middle of the water like a battleship. Lasilia, new to boating, didn¡¯t know what was wrong. She just thought that boating was much more exciting than riding her horse. ¡°I think so. It¡¯s fun because it¡¯s fast.¡± ¡°Yes? Is it fast or fun?¡± ¡°However.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Ryan looked at her face and narrowed her eyes. Lescal guessed something was wrong with that expression. ¡°Isn¡¯t the sun too hot?¡± It was the moment when Lescal spoke to Lasilia to divert attention and to use her as an excuse to stick around a little longer. ¡°Evil! That bastard bird!¡± Aww! Ryan jumped up from inside the boat, handing her paddle to Lescal. ¡°Your majesty! I¡¯m presumptuous, but please stir. Hey you damn bird! Give me back my things!¡± Ryan drew her sword and swung it through the air at her, making her growl. ¡°Oh, that bird¡­¡± Apparently, one of the birds that spoke to her was the black one. ¡°Caw!¡± ¨C Later, later. The moon rises, the moon rises A black bird called from afar. It seemed that he had come to tell her this. ¡°That is¡­¡± Lasilia covered her mouth with her hand. If it was the moon, it seemed to mean a blue moon. Ryan threw her temper. ¡°Take a look, Your Majesty! That bird, isn¡¯t it extremely suspicious? Strangely, when it sees me, it tries to bully me.¡± Pretending not to know, Lasilia defended the bird. ¡°Isn¡¯t that just a passing road? There would be no reason for birds to bother humans.¡± Ryan gnashed her teeth. ¡°This is what Her Majesty said because she did not know. What did that vicious bird do to me just now¡­ Ah, an opportunity!¡± It was still a long way from Lasilia¡¯s point of view, but it didn¡¯t seem like it to Ryan. She had previously dismissed it as a bird, but now she was sincere. Ryan, who lowered herself with a sword in her right hand, tried to leap into the air. ¡°Kyung! Stop!¡± Lasilia tried to grab Ryan. ¡°It¡¯s dangerous! don¡¯t get up.¡± Lescal caught Lasilia first and stopped her. ¡®It¡¯s no good!¡¯ Lasilia struggled and cried out in her heart. Meanwhile, Ryan, who had measured her distance with her sharp eyes, jumped up holding her sword. Birds were in the sky, and humans couldn¡¯t fly, but Ryan seemed to be able to catch the black bird somehow. ¡°No!¡± The moment Lasilia cried out earnestly, something happened. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª CH 14 14. Twenty Four Hours (2) Fuck! The culprit was a school of fish. As if reading Lasilia¡¯s mind, the school of fish living in the canal swam quickly and burrowed under the boat. Just at that moment, Ryan was about to jump on her feet. The boat capsized in an instant as a school of fish lifted the other side. ¡°Caw!¡± Fortunately, the black bird flew away safely. It was the humans who were not safe. She fell into the water with a splash! ¡®Ah¡­ I don¡¯t know how to swim.¡¯ As soon as she thought she was leaning, she was in the water. As if being sucked in, she was submerged in the water. ¡°Cartagena!¡± ¡°Ah, Your Majesty!¡± She heard a name that wasn¡¯t hers. Lasilia instinctively flung her limbs. Choking her breath, she became the weight of water, crushing her whole body. It felt like her unbound body was tied up. She had to struggle more, but her eyes closed. ¡°Cartagena!¡± When she couldn¡¯t even feel that she was suffocating anymore, someone snatched her body. * * * It was a very different dream this time. -This. The gold eyes were dazzling. At first she thought he was the Emperor. But he was a little different from the Emperor. They looked similar, but the tips of his ears were pointed. In the middle of his forehead was a wound that looked very painful and had not yet healed. -It is a gift. -Gift? What the man similar to the Emperor handed over was a red stone smaller than an egg. The fingernails handing the stone were red like the stone. Transparent scales sprouted around the fingernails, which looked as hard as steel. So she knew he wasn¡¯t human. -Because I need something to protect you when I¡¯m not there. At her cowardice, he reached out his hand and took the stone. The stones were warm. And she felt the slightest heartbeat. -I know. It was an egg, not a stone. -What is born from this? -It will be born with the image you like. At first, the golden eyes, which were dazzling like the eEmperor¡¯s but felt very cold and insensitive, were a little different at this moment. It was affectionate and tender, enough to be polite. -Made by cutting out part of my heart. As long as you exist, once born, it will not die. It will be with you forever. That tenderness broke her heart. -That¡¯s kind of sad. She reached for the heart he said he had cut out to give to her and placed hiser hand on his chest. Since he¡¯s not human, the position of his heart would be different, but that didn¡¯t matter. Because it would be in there anyway. -You must have been sick. I¡¯m sorry that you hurt yourself for me. -It¡¯s okay to be sick. He placed his hand on his chest and placed it on her chest. -If pain is the price I have to pay to be by your side, it can hurt as much as it likes. So she thought. If he couldn¡¯t avoid being sick, she¡¯d rather be sick together. * * * ¡°¡­Cool, kuck!¡± After vomiting up water, she caught her breath. ¡°Live!¡± A large hand wrapped around the back of her head. Her body was crushed by the weight of others. She was able to breathe, but she was choking again. ¡°Your majesty. Then I will really go back. Rest a little.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Fortunately, after hearing Ryan¡¯s voice, her body loosened up a bit. ¡°Ha¡­¡± Lasilia let out her breath. ¡°I¡­ I fell into the water.¡± ¡°Yes, Her Majesty. Fortunately, His Majesty rescued you.¡± It wasn¡¯t just her who was soaked, but also the Emperor and the Shadow Knight. The Emperor, who was drenched in water, was wearing all of that splendid growth that looked heavy just by looking at it. His body temperature had cooled, and her white, wet face looked especially cold. ¡°Your Majesty saved me. Thank you.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The Emperor just stared at this side with his lips tightly pursed, motionless. It wasn¡¯t the first time she¡¯d seen him make that expression. But this time, for some reason, her heart was pounding. ¡®Strange. They look alike.¡¯ The golden eye in her dream came to mind. It was somehow painful, and somehow kind. So somehow her heart ached. ¡®That wasn¡¯t the Emperor.¡¯ Then who was it? Why did the Prophet have such a dream? The dream was not at all like the prophecies one usually had. It felt like a very long past, not something in the future. ¡°Heh heh¡­ Wow, Her Majesty the Empress really drowned me¡­ Whoops.¡± At some point, people were pouring in. They were the guards and attendants who accompanied them to the entrance of the garden, and among them was a court physician who was dragged by the guards with a twisted wrist. The court physician, whose face was pitifully bluish from running with all his strength to match the speed of the royal guards, changed his complexion in another way and muttered gasping for breath. ¡°No, absolutely, absolutely, why did someone who hated boats go into the water¡­ Oh, anyway, you have to move it inside. Gotta warm up¡­¡± Before she could finish her words, the Emperor suddenly hugged Lasilia. ¡°Your majesty!¡± When he lifted her body, the clothes that had soaked in water dripped and poured out. ¡°Move.¡± The Emperor raised a low voice. At the low, quiet voice, the guards surrounding them split in half in an instant. ¡°You can walk, Your Majesty.¡± Lasilia put her hand on Lescal¡¯s chest, which touched his cheek, and pushed away. Of course, he wasn¡¯t pushed. ¡°Make an exception this time.¡± ¡°¡­? An exception?¡± ¡°You can¡¯t remember, it¡¯s unfamiliar, but you hate it when I touch you. Let¡¯s make an exception for that.¡± ¡°How could that be? It¡¯s not like my memory suddenly came back.¡± ¡°I almost lost you the other day.¡± Those words made Lasilia¡¯s mouth shut. Somehow sad, and somehow kind. ¡°¡­¡± When she raised her eyes, she could see the Emperor¡¯s teeth pulling and biting, soaring jaw muscles. ¡°When I thought I might lose you, everything else went out of my head. Nothing came in until I was sure that you¡¯re alive and in my arms right now.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°So make an exception for now. Because I don¡¯t know anything else.¡± ¡°¡­¡± While Lasilia finally couldn¡¯t say anything, the power to push Lescal gradually disappeared. Jerk, jerk. Only the muddy footsteps that were wet with water carried on in silence to the Empress¡¯ palace. * * * The road to the Empress¡¯ palace was too long. She couldn¡¯t even breathe properly in the arms of the emperor, so that was understandable. She recognized her body shaking as he walked, and the breath that was too close, the body temperature that directly touched her skin, was vivid every time, so it was embarrassing. So, when they arrived at the Empress¡¯ palace, she felt completely exhausted. In addition, when she appeared hugged by the Emperor, the astonished gazes directed at her were burdensome. It seemed that the courtiers of the Empress¡¯ palace would have many surprises until the Blue Moon passed. ¡°Please put me down now. I will go to the bathroom.¡± When the door to her bedroom opened, Lasilia said in a weary voice. ¡°You look tired. Wouldn¡¯t it be better to lie down?¡± ¡°I want to dry myself first.¡± ¡°Can¡¯t you dry yourself while lying down?¡± ¡°Then I¡¯d throw the bed away.¡± ¡°What does it matter? You are tired.¡± ¡°¡­¡± Even if Lasilia was a bit tired, she stared blankly at the Emperor, who told her to throw away at least one bed. ¡®The imperial family seems to have a lot of wealth.¡¯ There was no such royal family in Delarta. If there was such a crazy person, God would have shown it through prophecy long ago. The royal family would have been punished for dreaming of ridiculous waste in the name of the Prophet. ¡°I hate that. Please drop me off.¡± ¡°Why do you say you don¡¯t like it?¡± ¡°Because I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°Is the bed you¡¯re using now no good?¡± No way. ¡°¡­ no. It seems so. Even if I don¡¯t remember.¡± The Emperor touched her chin as if thinking about something, and he said: ¡°In that case, I will wash you in the bathroom. Then there is no need to abandon the bed, and there is no need for me to be away from you. That would be great.¡± Good? What part of that was good? She looked at the Emperor wondering if he was seriously saying that, but the Emperor was very serious. Seriously. ¡°I don¡¯t like it.¡± ¡°Why this time?¡± Did she have to put it into words for him to know? ¡­It seemed that during the Blue Moon, people became a little, no, very strange. ¡°Because there is no reason for that. Isn¡¯t it the work of courtiers?¡± ¡°Hmm¡­ Can¡¯t we make an exception for this?¡± What was he saying, really. ¡°It¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°¡­¡± The Emperor twitched his lips and finally set Lasilia down. But it wasn¡¯t just a quiet drop off. ¡°Don¡¯t overwork yourself for too long. I will be waiting here until you come out.¡± ¡°¡­? Your Majesty will have to change your clothes too. You are wet.¡± ¡°I¡¯m strong, so it¡¯s okay.¡± How could it be okay? ¡°The carpet is wet.¡± ¡°If it¡¯s wet we will change it, how much will it costs?¡± ¡°I love the carpet in my bedroom. I hate it being replaced.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°Please change and come after then.¡± Afraid that the Emperor would interrupt with another nonsense, Lasilia quickly went to her bathroom. ¡°Whoa¡­¡± When she closed the door and leaned against it, breathing became easier. ¡°It got worse.¡± No matter how ignorant she was, she couldn¡¯t help but notice that the Emperor was getting weirder. He did it from the time he tried to sit next to her, even lying about how they got along. ¡°He said today.¡± The black bird told her that the moon would rise today ¡°So I just have to hold on for today. The problem is that there is still a lot of time left for the moon to rise and set.¡± Even now, he said nonsense that he would follow her to the bathroom, but was it really okay? ¡°I can¡¯t help it. For now, I have no choice but to believe in the oath.¡± Rather than that, now she had to find a way to take off these wet clothes. She could not borrow the hands of courtiers. She couldn¡¯t increase the number of witnesses that knew about the mark. So she had to undress herself anyway. ¡°Your Majesty the Empress.¡± However, the empress had been going through this situation before. From changing her clothes to taking a bath, she would not have been able to hide the secrets engraved on her body every time she was in the position of being served. So the method she chose was the Marquess of Fashad. ¡°¡­? What happened?¡± ¡°I thought you would use the bathroom, so I prepared it in advance. Here.¡± From her familiar demeanor, Lasilia guessed that the Empress and the Marquess de Fashad shared a secret. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be too vigilant. There is no one else.¡± ¡°¡­then.¡± There was no point in trying to hide it if she already knew about the mark. Lasilia obediently stood in front of the bathtub as the Marquess led her. She opened the dense pearl buttons on the back of the Marquess with her deft hand. Just as the weight of her wet clothes seemed to be slowly decreasing, the Marquess whispered quietly in her ear. ¡°You will be in great trouble. His Majesty the Emperor is out of here. Even if it¡¯s a blue moon, it¡¯s like that, you¡¯re going to change the place to watch it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°But don¡¯t worry, Her Majesty. As before, I will protect you well. When it comes to cracking down on my mouth, no one will follow me in this palace.¡± It¡¯s a mouth lock¡­ Was he referring to the courtiers who quietly disappeared from the empress¡¯ palace? ¡°Your Majesty, you don¡¯t have to worry about anything. Just like before.¡± The Marquess repeated her words. What she really wanted to say was that she had always been there. ¡°I¡¯m glad that¡¯s the case.¡± As Lasilia responded slowly, the Marquess Fashad¡¯s voice became more subdued. ¡°So, Her Majesty, when will the inheritance of Count Iyef, which was promised at that time, be resolved?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± The Marquisess¡¯ presence was no way for the Empress to conceal her secrets. Rather, she was the opposite. The Marquess was taking advantage of the Empress¡¯s secret. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª CH 15 15. master of secrets ¡­took. the drenched coat fell to her feet. lasilia, who had become much lighter, turned her head to face the marquise of farshad. ¡°what does that mean? it¡¯s medicine.¡± the marquise nervously swallowed her dry saliva. ¡°didn¡¯t you promise me? i will give count ayef¡¯s inheritance right to my second son, not the count¡¯s daughter.¡± it seemed that count ayef had no sons. anyway, that didn¡¯t matter. ¡°so, in exchange for you waiting on my clothes, i decided to deprive you of another family¡¯s right to inherit? is my understanding right now?¡± ¡°isn¡¯t it normal to wait on clothes, her majesty? how long have i been doing the lockdown? ¡­!¡± racilia cut off the marquise. ¡°i don¡¯t know what you mean by that. as you know, i remember nothing of the former.¡± ¡°¡­that, like that¡­ i, you don¡¯t even have to do that to me, your majesty the empress.¡± the marquise also assumed that her amnesia was fake. ¡°what do you mean? ¡®you don¡¯t have to do that¡¯? amnesia may not be selective depending on the person.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the marquise twisted her mouth and held her hands tightly. ¡°to me¡­ you cannot do this, her majesty. if you knew what i was protecting you, you couldn¡¯t do this to me¡­¡± ¡°well. i don¡¯t know what that means either. what do you mean you are protecting me?¡± ¡°you know? how the mark is going.¡± again, her guess was correct. the marquise was robbing her, holding the empress¡¯s secret like her sword. maybe it was the empress who gave her the sword first, but that didn¡¯t matter to her. the marquise could see that she wielded her sword when she wanted, as long as she held a sword. ¡°a mark?¡± but just because she was, that didn¡¯t mean she had to take the knife in silence. ¡°¡­yes?¡± ¡°what is the mark?¡± as if the marquise of farshad couldn¡¯t believe it, she put on a puzzled expression. ¡°no way¡­ are you going to pretend you don¡¯t even know the signs?¡± ¡°i don¡¯t remember anything. so let¡¯s talk. what are the signs and what do they mean? and if i don¡¯t take away count ayef¡¯s right to inherit, what will you do with that fact?¡± ¡°that¡­ then, ah, are you saying that it doesn¡¯t matter if it is known?¡± ¡°like i said, i don¡¯t know what it is. it seems like it shouldn¡¯t be known that you¡¯ve been hiding it for me.¡± ¡°no, of course! if his majesty the emperor finds out¡­!¡± ¡°then? what¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°yes? that, that¡¯s right, the pielion family¡­¡± ¡°the farshad family? we¡¯ve been hiding secrets together until now, but does the fashad family have anything to do with it?¡± ¡°that¡­ crab¡­?¡± there was one thing the marquise of fascard did not know. she knew that no human being was as useless as the prophet. if the premise of blackmail was disclosure, it posed no threat to the prophet. the prophet¡¯s duty was to expose. ¡°if there is a guarantee that the peelion family will be harmed and the fashad family will be safe alone, then speak to his majesty. i don¡¯t remember anything, so i have nothing more to say.¡± ¡°ah¡­¡± the marquise made a strange moan and bit her lip. up until now, the marquise would have obtained this or that from the empress through threats disguised as her loyalty. when the empress refused to pay any more, citing her amnesia as an excuse, she said that if the marquise divulged her secret, all that was left was to die together. lasilia revealed that she would never die alone. that changed the positions of the blackmailer and the threatened. ¡°if that was all you could say, i would like you to take off my clothes. i want to wash myself.¡± ¡°¡­yes, her majesty the empress.¡± with her face pale as if she had just rolled over in the snow, the marquise began to take off her underdress. took, toduk¡­ her trembling fingertips began to unbutton her buttons. ¡°a little faster.¡± lasilia has been chasing the marquise. ¡°ah, ah! ¡­yes, yes. her majesty the empress¡­¡± for some reason, the marquise started to panic even more. ¡°don¡¯t be too scared. you just have to do what you¡¯ve been asked to do. then i will treat you as before. if your hands are shaking too much, wait a bit.¡± ¡°that¡­ ah, i understand.¡± her hands, which had been trembling for a while, stopped moving. then, as if she had settled down, she began to move properly. so lasilia did not know that she had something else that made the marquise¡¯s hands tremble. the fact that when she unbuttoned all the buttons on her undergarment, the mark that had been erased for more than half had clearly revived right above her buttocks. * * * ¡°put it on, your majesty.¡± lescal finished the bath in five minutes. it was at the level of soaking a soapy body in hot water once. today, serben did not stop wiping the water. lescal, who disliked contact with other humans, tended to do quite a bit of work alone. anyway, after wiping off all the water, serben put on new clothes on rascal¡¯s body. lescal asked without a word as he pushed his arm through his shirt and buttoned it up. ¡°what about ryan?¡± ¡°i understand that you are planning a bird hunt.¡± ¡°i will allow her to hunt birds. but take her sword away.¡± ¡°¡­yes?¡± it was an unexpected statement, so serben put on a puzzled expression. ¡°she has to take responsibility for the empress drowning. it is one month.¡± ¡°ha, one month at a time?¡± if she wasn¡¯t allowed to carry the sword for a month, ryan would almost certainly turn into a beast driven mad by her frustration. ¡°can you cut it down a bit, your majesty?¡± serben asked cautiously, but the answer was like a knife. ¡°no.¡± ¡°¡­she will suffer immensely and regret it. all right.¡± during the month that ryan would suffer, it was certain that he would become the object of her anger. serben was trying to comfort her, who was already suffering, and was finishing her clothes. ¡°your majesty?¡± ¡°¡­¡± lescal suddenly sank to the floor. he didn¡¯t hit it hard on the butt, thanks to the footrest he used to put on his shoes, but it was definitely odd. ¡°why is that? have you ever been hurt?¡± serben came up behind him and grabbed lescal¡¯s ankle. ¡°no. i wasn¡¯t hurt¡­¡± there were no injuries. until a little while ago, lescal was moving without any problems. and there was never a time when such keen senses failed to notice an injury. however, it was the sight of lescal¡¯s hands that made them both speechless. ¡°why is this happening?¡± lescal asked, looking at his hand that didn¡¯t stop shaking even when he gave it strength. ¡°that is¡­ umm¡­ maybe you can finally feel the shock you got when you saw her majesty fall into the water.¡± there were frequent cases of belated shock when a severe injury to the level of amputation of limbs was received. it was a common thing for knights living with swords. ¡°shock¡­ is it.¡± ¡°yes. you will be very surprised.¡± at those words, lescal briefly remembered what had happened in the canal. he hear a splash and the sound of the empress falling into the water repeated over and over again, and cold sweat began to flow. he felt sick to his stomach. ¡°i don¡¯t want anything to happen to the empress in the future.¡± lescal spat out low, clenching his fists with trembling hands. ¡°i might lose control of my body.¡± ¡°uh, that¡­ if that¡¯s the case, yes. i don¡¯t think so.¡± lescal quickly raised his head. ¡°from now on, you will be the empress¡¯ escort.¡± ¡°yes?¡± serben pointed a finger at himself with a surprised expression. ¡°is that what you mean?¡± ¡°ryan can¡¯t use her sword for a month.¡± ¡°no, i¡­ i am a shadow knight, your majesty!¡± it meant that he was well aware that he had been in charge of his majesty¡¯s bodyguard even before the ink on his knight¡¯s commission had dried. ¡°therefore.¡± ¡°no, your majesty¡­ the emperor and empress are different, so the escorts are different, but¡­¡± ¡°they will be the same from today.¡± serben tried his best not to cry. ¡°no. it¡¯s different. her majesty the empress is his majesty¡¯s companion and a member of the imperial family, but she does not inherit imperial blood.¡± ¡°it will be the same.¡± lescal was adamant. it was like nothing else could be the answer. ¡°when the empress fell into the water, my heart seemed to break. if the empress dies, i will die too. so it¡¯s the same.¡± ¡°oh no, that¡­ so suddenly¡­¡± ¡°protect her. make sure nothing happens to her.¡± ¡°that¡­ if so, as you wish.¡± serben nodded his head as it was, weighed down by the emperor¡¯s momentum. in fact, it seemed meaningful to designate an escort for the empress at this point, when lescal had already decided to stick with the empress for twenty-four hours, but there was something else to think about ahead of that. the emperor thought that it would be right for her to be his true partner. ¡®i don¡¯t think ryan will like it very much.¡¯ serben muttered to himself. ¡®of course i¡¯m bad too. if it¡¯s her majesty¡¯s personality¡­¡¯ with that personality, it was clear to his eyes how much more terrible she would be when she knew the emperor was sincere. even now, the empress lived by stirring her palace as she pleased. her extravagance was nothing. she unreservedly summoned her unmarried lover to her palace, killed several of her unknown courtiers, and buried dissatisfied nobles very often. even when the emperor showed no affection for the empress, she lived like that. now that the emperor cared for her as if she were his own life¡­ ¡®it¡¯s obvious without looking at it.¡¯ horrible was not enough to say. serben bit his teeth and read his heart. ¡®we should try to prevent that from happening as much as possible. perhaps she is fortunate to have become her majesty¡¯s escort.¡¯ as far as possible, the empress should remain unaware of the emperor¡¯s true feelings. ¡®but if he says it like that, even an idiot will notice¡­ this is really embarrassing.¡¯ he had to use the child anyway. first of all, he intended not to tell anyone useful information about the empress¡¯ love of denia flowers. * * * thud! he came quickly too. it felt like she was getting used to the sudden appearance of the emperor. ¡°are you here, your majesty?¡± she was fortunate enough that he came when she was at least dressed in her clothes. the emperor brushed his blonde hair with a strangely anxious look on his face. ¡°i didn¡¯t mean to take this long. the bath was finished quickly¡­¡± the bath was finished quickly, but it seemed like something else was going on. no, normally it takes a long time but it was too fast. ¡°i know that there is a distance to the imperial palace. you are not late at all.¡± his nervous expression slightly brightened. ¡°then.¡± the emperor sat next to her very casually. the problem was that lasilia deliberately sat on the sofa for one person, fearing this would happen, and despite this, the emperor sat on her armrest. he naturally clung to her body. there were naturally clear golden eyes looking down this way. looking at it, she wondered if she could adapt to that glitz, and now it seemed that she could read the expression to some extent. the emperor lightly gripped the tip of her lasilia¡¯s hair and kissed her on the lips. ¡°i was late because i was shocked because of you.¡± ¡°i see.¡± she didn¡¯t think he needed to kiss her. ¡°so i guess we¡¯ll have to keep making exceptions until the shock wears off.¡± ¡­what was he saying, really. CH 16 16. when the blue moon rises (1) it was an excuse. lasilia jumped up from the sofa. what was the shock? it looked so distant¡­ it hurt to speak every time, but today the emperor was dazzling. during that short period of time, he came back with a solid growth. at this point, she wondered if the emperor was a being who lived to dress up every day. ¡°it doesn¡¯t seem necessary.¡± ¡°why?¡± when lasilia got up, the emperor followed suit. ¡°it was already a few hours ago that i fell into the water, and even if i was shocked, it would have all gone.¡± ¡°it¡¯s not.¡± ¡°and wouldn¡¯t the drowning person have suffered more if they were shocked? i ask that you be considerate of my feelings as well.¡± ¡°ah¡­ i must have.¡± her physical condition wasn¡¯t bad enough to say such a thing, but she had the heart to pretend to be sick in order to separate herself from the annoying emperor. ¡°my consideration was lacking. it was you who fell into the water.¡± ¡°yes, so¡­¡± but that wasn¡¯t the case. ¡°you need to rest.¡± the emperor hugged her without warning. ¡°your majesty! ¡­let go. you don¡¯t have to do this.¡± ¡°i will let go. after i put you on the bed.¡± ¡°no, you don¡¯t have to¡­¡± ¡°you haven¡¯t been able to stand properly for a while. i will do more because you are the one who fell into the water.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the reason lasilia shut her mouth was because the words that she couldn¡¯t even stand up sounded like the truth. pushing the door of her bedroom with his shoulder, the emperor strode towards the bed. eventually, lasilia was speechless until she lay down on the bed. ¡°so you can be comfortable. until you feel better.¡± actually, she was fine now. it was the moment when she realized once again that she had to be careful with her words in front of the emperor. this person was unpredictable. she didn¡¯t know where to bounce. so she always seemed to be nervous when dealing with the emperor. ¡°¡­i will.¡± it looked like he should lie down like this. it was late, as the sun was setting anyway. maybe it would be better to go to bed early. because they said there was a blue moon today. lasilia nodded, and lescal lifted her blanket. it was as if he meant to cover her if he took her place. ¡°wait a minute. i have to take my shoes off.¡± ¡°ah¡­ you forgot your shoes.¡± reluctantly, lescal put down the blanket and quickly grabbed her feet before lasilia moved. ¡°your majesty.¡± she thought she had gotten used to the strange things he did, but this time she couldn¡¯t help but be taken aback. ¡°stay still. i just want to take off your shoes.¡± ¡°i can do it.¡± ¡°can¡¯t i?¡± it wouldn¡¯t be right. ¡°i don¡¯t think it¡¯s the emperor¡¯s job.¡± ¡°is it¡­¡± after thinking for a moment, lescal shook his head. ¡°no, i don¡¯t think that¡¯s something an emperor should do.¡± bewildered, lescal stared at lasilia¡¯s outstretched hand and lowered his head while holding her foot. ¡°did the instep look like this?¡± even after slowly removing her shoes, the emperor continued to hold her feet. for some reason, lasilia grabbed his wrist, feeling that he was about to do something absurd again. ¡°please let go now.¡± ¡°why?¡± ¡°it is inconvenient.¡± ¡°¡­¡± after lasilia spoke, as always, he did as she told him, only apparently. ¡°¡­i always kissed your instep.¡± ¡°what?¡± but he said such nonsense. ¡°because we got along very well.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lacilia clenched her teeth and held back her rising anger. ¡®are you treating me like an idiot? ¡­ha. i still have to endure it.¡¯ after today it will be fine. when the blue moon rises. ¡°because now i don¡¯t remember. i¡¯m sorry.¡± lasilia pushed lescal¡¯s hand away as if telling him to stop. however, lescal was quick to grab lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡°if you¡¯re uncomfortable, i¡¯ll stop kissing you on the instep.¡± he was talking like he was making a big concession. it¡¯s just something he shouldn¡¯t do. ¡°let me do it somewhere else instead.¡± ¡°¡­i clearly said that it was inconvenient.¡± ¡°so i said i would put up with your feet.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°i even took off your shoes.¡± ¡°¡­¡± who was the person who forcibly took off the shoes in the first place? ¡°i am afraid that if this discomfort continues, i will eventually stir up your majesty.¡± then the emperor twitched his lips. ¡°but if you avoid me every time, there¡¯s no way your memories will come back. did you forget that i decided to be by your side for twenty-four hours to help your memory return?¡± lescal gave strength to the hand he was holding. like an earnest stroke. ¡°i swore to help you to get your memories back as soon as possible. but you don¡¯t seem to be making any effort to recover your memories.¡± whoa. lasilia let out a short breath. even then, she felt, but the emperor had a corner that reminded her of a dog in the forecourt of the temple. once he started stroking her, he didn¡¯t even notice her circumstances and continued to tease her until her arms were sore. ¡­okay. because it¡¯s a blue moon. it¡¯s only today. ¡°i¡¯d rather do it. will you be okay?¡± lasilia, who was choosing her part with relatively little embarrassment, thought this. there would be no such place anyway. where the emperor¡¯s lips had touched so far, her latent heat remained to the point of embarrassment, making her feel suspicious all the time. hopefully she just thought she¡¯d be better off on her own. in an instant, gold eyes flashed. ¡°are you going to do it? a kiss?¡± ¡°yes.¡± in the blink of an eye, his face suddenly came right in front of her. ¡°good. do it.¡± the already dazzling golden eyes felt more burdensome today. ¡°¡­hehe, where would you like to go?¡± lasilia turned her head slightly to the side and cleared her throat. the emperor looked this way without blinking. ¡°as long as i like you, anywhere is fine.¡± ¡°then¡­ you¡¯d better close your eyes for now.¡± ¡°as you wish.¡± the emperor closed his eyes while lasilia tried to find a place where she would feel as safe as possible. ¡®i think i made a mistake somehow.¡¯ as a result, she unintentionally took the time to examine the emperor¡¯s face in every nook and cranny. ¡®i thought his forehead would be fine.¡¯ seeing this, she wasn¡¯t sure at all. the straight forehead was like a statue of some kind. the brow bone and bridge of the nose, the symmetrical cheekbones, the narrow bridge of the nose and the clear line of the lips below it were all embarrassing. ¡®is it because i closed my eyes?¡¯ maybe it¡¯s because she couldn¡¯t see the golden eyes that are too flashy to be called human. with his eyes closed, the emperor no longer seemed an alien being. he was just an unrealistically handsome man. ¡°it seems to be taking too long.¡± the emperor muttered lowly with his eyes closed. ¡°did you change your mind then?¡± ¡°i am choosing.¡± ¡°then just put it on my lips.¡± what was he talking about now? ¡°i¡¯ll do it on the cheek.¡± ¡°right or left?¡± should she even tell him that¡­? ¡°right.¡± ¡°good.¡± seeing what she said made her even more nervous. lasilia swallowed her dry saliva and looked at the emperor¡¯s right cheek. ¡®ha. i don¡¯t know. i¡¯ll just have to get rid of it quickly.¡¯ so she decided, and she put her lips on it. and at that moment, the emperor turned his head away. ¡°¡­?¡± by the time she realized what had happened, it was already too late. the moment the emperor turned his head away, their lips touched instead of the cheek, and an unexpected kiss began. ¡®this¡­ what?¡¯ the moment her lips touched his lips, she felt a sensation he had never thought of before. the soft wet skin and the mingling breath were something that surpassed all the touches lasilia had ever experienced. when she came to her senses, she was lying on her bed with the emperor hugging her tightly. ¡°¡­awesome!¡± puck! lasilia pushed the emperor away. ¡°ah¡­¡± surprisingly, the emperor was easily pushed away. he was different from when he usually didn¡¯t budge. ¡°no, that¡­¡± the emperor blinked. it was a face that seemed to have lost consciousness. ¡°this is too cowardly.¡± said lasilia, suppressing her wheezing breath. ¡°that is¡­ i didn¡¯t do that on purpose¡­¡± ¡°what if it wasn¡¯t on purpose? who forced you to turn your head?¡± ¡°just¡­ my body moved on its own. it happened without me knowing.¡± ¡°that sounds like a ridiculous excuse. please leave.¡± ¡°it is an excuse, but it is also true. really. i didn¡¯t do that on purpose¡­¡± that strangely flustered expression made her even more angry. ¡°get out.¡± ¡°that¡­ are you angry?¡± ¡°it would be weird if i wasn¡¯t. again, get out.¡± her voice was so cold that she startled herself as she spoke. the emperor, his shoulders drooping, rose from the aesthetic bed. ¡°i was wrong¡­ i¡¯m serious.¡± ¡°yes, you were wrong.¡± ¡°can you tell me how to relieve your anger?¡± ¡°i don¡¯t think the person who made you angry is saying something to someone who is angry. find out for yourself. and if you stay here, i will be more angry.¡± ¡°i get it.¡± the hesitant movements sped up a little. ¡°i¡¯m leaving, so don¡¯t be angry.¡± ¡°i am already angry.¡± ¡°that is¡­ i was really wrong.¡± the droopy shoulders drooped further down. the emperor turned his back helplessly and left the bedroom. ¡°ha.¡± she felt like she was breathing only after the emperor was gone. she couldn¡¯t even remember how she had been breathing until then. ¡°it¡¯s crazy. to do such a thing.¡± lasilia rubbed her lips with the back of her hand. ¡°for something like this¡­ i never thought i would feel like this.¡± that was the problem. at first, she didn¡¯t even know what was wrong. just like the emperor said that it happened naturally, it just felt natural for her. ¡°i must be crazy.¡± right before kissing him, she thought the emperor was too handsome. it didn¡¯t make sense from that point on. if her identity was revealed, the emperor would kill her. even after seeing the whole scene, she couldn¡¯t believe that she was still thinking about the emperor being handsome. -i love you. i am your destiny. she screamed like that in her dream. to a man who didn¡¯t show a single ray of emotion in his radiant eyes. lasilia was afraid that it might really be her own future. ¡°two months is too long.¡± she intended to hold out until she learned of delarta¡¯s circumstances, but now it was more urgent for her to get out of the emperor¡¯s side. ¡°i have to find a way. i can¡¯t go on like this.¡± as if making a promise, the blue moonlight fell over lasilia¡¯s shoulder as she nodded her head alone. lasilia¡¯s eyes widened as she turned her head toward her window. ¡°that¡­ blue moon?¡± CH 17 17. when the blue moon rises (2) bang! ¡°your majesty¡­?¡± ryan turned her head away in surprise. against the background of the blue moon, lescal was making a terribly distorted expression. seeing that no one was around, it seemed that he had bitten the guards on purpose. ¡°it¡¯s a blue moon! didn¡¯t you spend it with her majesty the empress?¡± ryan was on probation in the imperial palace. although it was not her intention, she had to be punished for the accident that caused the empress to fall into the water. she made a mistake because she was a gnome bird and she was momentarily blinded by it. to say she was a mistake, of course, she wasn¡¯t without a sense of injustice. no one would have guessed that the moment she was about to jump off the boat, a school of fish would appear and crash into the boat. still, it was her fault, so she calmly accepted the golden sword order that had been issued for a month. lescal was quite tolerant of his shadow knights, so he could continue hunting birds during the day. that was very fortunate. ¡°¡­she is angry.¡± ¡°yes?¡± took, toduk. blood dripped from the corner of lescal¡¯s mouth and dripped onto the carpet. lescal said softly, wiping his lips with his fist. ¡°because of what i did.¡± ¡°ah, her majesty the empress.¡± ryan quickly ran up and propped lescal over her shoulder, catching her blood with her clothes. ¡°¡­no, is that why she kicked his majesty out? even knowing that a blue moon has risen? does her majesty the empress have no heart? even if she wasn¡¯t a partner, but a stranger, she wouldn¡¯t be able to do something like this!¡± even as she dragged lescal into the bedroom, ryan couldn¡¯t stop her anger. ¡°ryan.¡± lescal stopped walking. ¡°yes, lungs.¡± ¡°be polite when putting the empress in your mouth.¡± ¡°uh¡­ yes, your majesty?¡± ryan made a bewildered face. a blue moon has risen. lescal was spitting out his blood. it meant that the whole inside of his body started to twist. in such a situation, she did not know how to speak with courtesy toward the empress. ¡°i am¡­¡± ¡°ouch!¡± then lescal vomited his blood. it was blood mixed with clots. ¡°i will move at once, your majesty.¡± ryan hurriedly supported lescal and carried him to his bed. ryan opened the chest of drawers in his bedroom and took out his vials, opened the lid, and poured them into lescal¡¯s mouth. it was painkillers and sleeping pills mixed with opium. she didn¡¯t know if it worked, but she just hoped it would alleviate some of the pain. ¡°would you like to tie it up?¡± having emptied the entire vial, ryan ran through the bedroom, shutting the window and bolting it on. ¡°¡­it¡¯s okay. she won¡¯t last long anyway.¡± meanwhile, lescal¡¯s clothes were soaked in blood. he would have vomited blood again. ¡°then what can i do for you? please speak, your majesty.¡± every time this happened, ryan was angry at her own powerlessness, and hated the empress. she added it now that she had a glimmer of hope that the empress might be real. despite having the power to control his demonic blood, the empress took off her acupuncture needle and stood by this pain. in her heart, she wanted to drag the empress and lock her in lescal¡¯s bedroom. ¡°if you allow it, i will bring her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°it is not allowed. get out.¡± ¡°¡­your majesty.¡± ¡°get out.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ryan bit her lip. however, she could not disobey the emperor. ¡°close the door tightly. so that i don¡¯t run out to find the empress.¡± ¡°¡­as you wish.¡± with teeth marks on her lips, ryan left the bedroom. just as lescal had said, ryan hung three iron bolts on the bedroom door and wrapped himself in chains. ¡°damn it.¡± ryan pulled her hair with both hands as if pulling it out. today, the moonlight flowing from the demon realm was brutally blue. lescal¡¯s moans could be heard from inside the tightly closed bedroom. every time she did that, ryan, who was messing with her hair, at some point kicked off her seat and stood up. ¡°¡­no, i can¡¯t stand it.¡± ryan ran toward the empress¡¯ palace. * * * knock, knock. ¡°¡­huh?¡± knock, knock. lasilia, who had been dozed off, opened her eyes to the sound of her window ringing. a black shadow snooped outside her window. ¡°ah¡­ it is you.¡± -yes, yes. open the door, open the door. ¡°wait a moment.¡± lacilia got out of bed and looked for her shoes. putting on her shoes reminded her of the process of taking them off, and her shoulders twitched spontaneously. ¡°what is it?¡± it was a black bird. -this, this. the black bird thumped something on her window sill with her head. ¡°what¡¯s this?¡± she picked it up and saw that it was a reddish stone. she was surprisingly similar to the red egg she had seen in her dream. lacilia was surprised, she asked. ¡°what¡¯s this? could it be an egg?¡± -keep it well, keep it. ¡°answer me. is this an egg?¡± -i don¡¯t know. don¡¯t know that ¡°then why did you bring it?¡± -i¡¯m giving it back. it was originally here. ¡°huh? what do you mean?¡± a black bird rolled around her eyes, and she shook her head. -i don¡¯t know. i was here, that girl stole it ¡°this was originally here, but who stole it? who is that woman?¡± at that, the black bird sighed with a somewhat tired face. -the woman. that human bother us. ¡°is she bothering you?¡± -yes, yes. keep bothering me, bothering me so we can¡¯t come anymore. ¡°you couldn¡¯t come. what does that mean?¡± -i can¡¯t come even if you call. that girl is bad, can¡¯t come. that was when he said that. bang, bang. ¡°your majesty the empress. i will go in.¡± shadow knight ryan knocked on the bedroom door. and at the same time, the black bird quickly flew away. * * * ¡°ryan. i think it would be unreasonable to turn a blind eye to this.¡± before ryan opened the bedroom door, serben blocked her way. what lasilia saw after opening the bedroom door was the scene of two shadow knights facing each other, staring at each other. even though both of them were bare-handed, tension was conveyed as if they were standing with a knife. ¡°your majesty instructed me to guard her majesty the empress. he would have given you similar instructions. go back to the imperial palace.¡± ¡°i¡¯m not going to violate the imperial order.¡± ryan looked over serben¡¯s shoulder at lasilia. ¡°i¡¯m going to appeal to her majesty the empress. if her majesty says she¡¯s going on her own feet, then her majesty can¡¯t help it either, right?¡± ¡°would that be okay if you did?¡± ¡°that doesn¡¯t mean i¡¯m forcibly taking her majesty by threatening her with her sword. i don¡¯t even have a knife right now.¡± ¡°oh, yes. there is no knife. that doesn¡¯t mean you suddenly become a different human being.¡± ¡°can you move away for a moment? please.¡± ¡°i¡¯m sorry, but i don¡¯t believe that. even his majesty won¡¯t believe it.¡± sreung! serben drew his sword. ¡°your majesty, please go in. i will send ryan back.¡± ryan laughed. ¡°it would be better if you just stayed. i¡¯m in a state where i can¡¯t see anything right now, and serben is no match for me at that time. it will just break the door.¡± serben clicked his tongue. ¡°it is an exaggeration. i can hold out until the royal guard arrives.¡± ¡°it¡¯s a bluff, her majesty. i believe in that and get hit in the back of the head.¡± she couldn¡¯t tell if the twin knights were going to fight right now, or if they were just showing off their friendship. still, lasilia was not in her character to watch a sword fight break out over her. ¡°it would be nice to put the knife in first. i want to hear what¡¯s going on.¡± at those words, ryan burst into anger. ¡°you don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on, now? a blue moon has risen!¡± ¡°so. what do you want from me?¡± ¡°ha, are you still going to use the excuse of memory loss? forgot all about what happens in a blue moon? so you don¡¯t know anything?¡± she knew. he seemed to understand why the shadow knight suddenly had his eyes reversed and ran. so that was the problem. she knew but she couldn¡¯t do anything. ¡°did you act like this before i lost my memory?¡± lasilia struggled to feign her composure. it was a pity that the emperor was suffering. however, if the empress had lost her mark, she would not have even been the real companion of the emperor in the first place. no matter how sorry she felt, there was nothing she could do. like the empress who said she loved the emperor as if she would die. ¡°did you knock on my bedroom door every blue moon for four years and pull me out?¡± ¡°weren¡¯t things different back then?¡± ¡°what was different?¡± ¡°at that time, even his majesty didn¡¯t want it¡­ damn, can¡¯t you fulfill your duties as an empress just for once? you are an empress, and since you have done everything in your life, can¡¯t you act like an empress just for today?¡± ¡°i am,¡± when her memory returned, she would do so. ¡®his majesty and i have agreed to do so, so it is not your business to intervene.¡¯ she meant to say that. but her conscience was much more painful than she thought. ¡°something like that.¡± it was then. bang! there was a terribly loud sound of something breaking. * * * ¡°who is there!¡± serben shouted toward the hallway. poof! the wind blew. at the same time, all the lanterns and candles that lit the hallway were extinguished. all she could see was the bright blue moonlight. the disparate moon rising from the other world seemed to distort all vision. ¡°you ask who i am!¡± ryan grabbed serben as he tried to jump forward. ¡°give me the knife. you protect her majesty.¡± serben passed the sword without a word. raising her sword, ryan plunged into the twisting darkness. ¡°don¡¯t move.¡± serben, who covered lasilia with his back, spat out softly. ¡°is it an intruder?¡± it was something that he often experienced even in a small kingdom like delarta. empire would have nothing more to say. but it was rare for an intruder to speak so openly and loudly. ¡°right now, i don¡¯t know. but somehow,¡± after a moment of silence, serben twisted his jawline. ¡°it doesn¡¯t look human.¡± ¡°it¡¯s not human.¡± ¡°there¡¯s his majesty the emperor and ryan, but there¡¯s no human big enough to attack with such a loud noise.¡± ¡°then¡­¡± in the next moment, the identity of the intruder was revealed. puck! ¡°ugh!¡± ryan, who was jumping into the darkness, bounced right up to serben¡¯s feet and flew away. ¡°ryan? ryan!¡± serben widened his eyes in disbelief even after seeing it. ryan clutched a broken knife with her bloodstained right arm. ¡°calm down, ryan! what happened!¡± serben grabbed ryan and raised him up. meanwhile, an intruder walked out of the darkness. as serben said, he wasn¡¯t human. both hands, exposed through the torn clothes, were covered with black scales. the red nails were sharp like blades. blood dripped from the tip of that fingernail. his half-dismembered face was covered in blood. she could see fragments of bone protruding through the skin. ¡°damn! her majesty the empress! avoid it!¡± serben let go of ryan and ran forward, clutching the broken sword. but it was to no avail. puck! with or without a knife, the intruder just passed serven. no, it was so momentary that it seemed to pass by, but serben¡¯s body was slammed into the opposite wall. the next moment, a non-human intruder was in front of her. ¡°¡­!¡± it was because of those eyes that the screams did not come out. ¡°your majesty¡­?¡± no matter how much his appearance changed, she could recognize that golden eye. ¡°ah¡­¡± ¡­took. as if in reply, the transformed emperor tilted his head. as soon as his forehead touched her forehead, both hands wrapped themselves tightly around her and hugged her. the emperor leaned on racilia as he was. ¡°it¡¯s heavy, it¡¯s heavy,¡± ¡­thud! the two people hugged and hugged like one body fell to the floor at the same time. CH 18 18. oath ¡°¡­¡± she couldn¡¯t sleep until the sun came up. ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± it was the same with the shadow knights. the emperor was still unconscious. in the meantime, she couldn¡¯t let go of his body that he was holding tight, so she had to lie down on the bed with him. since the emperor transformed into a demon, the shadow knights could not leave his side. eventually, the four of them entered the same bedroom. serben leaned against the door, and ryan sat down on the floor in front of the bed. it was strange that both of them calmly found their seats, unlike people who suddenly burst into other people¡¯s bedrooms. the strangest of them all was the emperor. the emperor, who had lost consciousness while embracing her, slept as if he were dead. there was barely any breathing. had he not slowly returned to his human form, she would have thought the emperor was dead. thanks to this, lasilia had to watch the emperor with her eyes open, unable to move. the bone fragment protruding from the forehead was a horn. the reason why the emperor was covered in blood was because of the mutations in his body. the bone fragment protruding was much worse in the back. it was almost to the point of hacking. this is because the wings are much larger than the horns. at first, she was shocked at how miserable it was. she could understand the words of pain that the human body could not handle. ¡°looks like he is almost back now.¡± ryan, who was sitting on the floor with her legs folded and her chin resting on the emperor, stared intently at the emperor. ¡°¡­right.¡± lasilia took a fresh look at the emperor, who had been keeping an eye on her all this time. his face was almost completely restored. as long as one wiped off the bloodstains, it wouldn¡¯t be any different than usual. there were still deep scars on his back, but all the bone fragments that had torn the skin and protruded were all in. other than that, black scales remained in places around the wound. the scales, which seemed to have been cut and pasted on her knife, gradually became transparent and thinned over time, then disappeared. ¡°i wish i could wipe his face. can i call someone to bring me a wet towel?¡± serben let go of his body leaning against the wall. ¡°i will go. it¡¯s not good to see him like this.¡± he was talking about lescal, who still had traces of mutation. lasilia asked. ¡°but isn¡¯t the fact about the blue moon a secret? people from eliadon would not know that the imperial family had demonic blood mixed in it.¡± ¡°still, if you see it with your own two eyes, there will be agitation¡­ ryan, will you continue to be by his majesty¡¯s side? would you like some medicine when he comes?¡± ¡°it¡¯s okay. it doesn¡¯t hurt.¡± ¡°if i let it go, it will hurt.¡± ¡°it was just scratched. go.¡± ¡°well, in that case.¡± serben left the bedroom. in the meantime, the emperor moved his head, and his blood-drenched hair touched the top of lasilia¡¯s chest. lasilia brushed the emperor¡¯s hair to tidy it, not because she hated it, but because it tickled her. ¡°it¡¯s really amazing.¡± ryan, who was watching the scene, said. ¡°did you tell me?¡± ¡°yes, what? even though you felt it yesterday. aren¡¯t you scared?¡± ¡°your majesty?¡± ¡°yes. like the mutation, and the sudden appearance last night¡­ i couldn¡¯t take it off, but you¡¯ve been putting up with his majesty all night long.¡± as ryan said, no matter how hard the two knights tried, they couldn¡¯t free the emperor. usually, the emperor¡¯s body was different from that of ordinary humans. when it mutated, it looked more like a demon than a human. ¡°it¡¯s not scary.¡± she was surprised. it was the same with the changed appearance, but the same was true with the two knights crashing out. still, she didn¡¯t think it was scary. even when the emperor was right in front of her nose, lasilia did not get the feeling that he was trying to harm her. ¡°he has lost his mind, but there¡¯s no reason to be afraid. he fell asleep like this, so he won¡¯t harm others.¡± ¡°well, that is a very unexpected perspective. what does it look like? no matter how you look at him, he is not human, are you okay?¡± ¡°i can¡¯t say that it¡¯s nothing. i can see in his eyes how painful it is.¡± ¡°that¡¯s not what i meant by asking. so, creepy or scary¡­ at least you don¡¯t like it because it¡¯s so ugly, or¡­ don¡¯t you?¡± was this look scary? lasilia looked at the emperor at a distance close enough to feel his breath intact. it was a problem because even when the bones were protruding and the scales were growing, it looked painful, but it wasn¡¯t scary. maybe it was because she had such a dream. it was because she saw someone with the same scaly face in advance who showed her a very affectionate gaze. and because those eyes were the same golden eyes as the emperor¡¯s. ¡°i don¡¯t think you can call this face ugly.¡± ryan muttered with a confused face. ¡°uh¡­ it¡¯s very¡­ that¡¯s an answer i wasn¡¯t expecting.¡± lasilia tilted her head. ¡°isn¡¯t his majesty a handsome man? is it only in my eyes?¡± ¡°no, that¡­ yes, of course, he has extraordinary beauty, but a mutation has occurred.¡± ¡°it still looks the same. the skin has changed and the bones have just come out.¡± ¡°so it¡¯s not a problem, is it?¡± ¡°it will eventually recover. and even though it had scales, it wasn¡¯t that strange.¡± again, it was because of the demon from her dream. thanks to seeing the appearance in advance, the transformation of the emperor did not seem very foreign or scary. it just didn¡¯t seem right. she thought it hurted too much ryan, who was looking at lasilia dumbfounded, shook her head. ¡°i am¡­ i really don¡¯t know her majesty. judging from what you¡¯re saying, you seem like someone who could be his destiny, so why are you so rejecting his majesty?¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia also wanted to know the reason. why had the empress lost her mark? ¡°i cannot give you an answer. i don¡¯t remember anything.¡± ryan laughed, twisting her cheeks and lips. ¡°hah¡­ that memory loss, it¡¯s really filthy convenient.¡± just then serben returned. ¡°i have brought you water and a towel, your majesty the empress¡­ has anything happened?¡± * * * serben looked at the two of them alternately and shook his eyes. it seemed to the knight with a keen sense that the air in the room was different from before. lasilia opened her mouth. ¡°nothing. sir sigres¡¯ loyalty was only impressive. give me a towel.¡± ¡°oh, so¡­? are you skipping over it? really?¡± ¡°there was nothing worthy of using the expression skipping.¡± when serben glanced at ryan, ryan subtly avoided his gaze. serben dipped the thickly wrapped towel around his forearm into the water, wring it out, and handed it to lasilia. ¡°here you are, her majesty.¡± ¡°good work.¡± taking the wet towel, lasilia naturally began to wipe lescal¡¯s face. ¡°oh,¡± then serben suddenly hesitated and nearly overturned the water bowl. ryan quickly grabbed the water bowl by her side. ¡°why?¡± at lasilia¡¯s words, serben frantically squinted his eyes. ¡°that is¡­ are you wiping everything?¡± ¡°i told you to bring a wet towel for that.¡± ¡°didn¡¯t her majesty the empress want the towel to wipe her face?¡± ¡°is my face dirtier than his majesty¡¯s now?¡± ¡°of course, as usual, the appearance is dirty but beautiful¡­ sorry. i made a mistake. i didn¡¯t mean to be rude on purpose¡­ no, you¡¯re cleaning it! your majesty!¡± serben, who was always calm and serene, seemed really flustered when he saw she was wiping his majesty. ¡°i wonder if i¡¯m better than you guys. your majesty is still holding on to me.¡± it was fortunate that her arm was not caught. in any case, it was lasilia who felt uncomfortable when someone else was idly by her side while he was hugging her so tightly. serben stupidly opened his mouth or not, lasilia meticulously wiped lescal¡¯s face with a wet towel. no matter how you look at it, it didn¡¯t make sense that this face was scary. he was more beautiful than any human lasilia had ever seen. if the first time she saw his face hadn¡¯t been in a dream in which she died, she wouldn¡¯t have been so afraid of him in the first place. ¡°i want you to change the towels¡­ sir sigres?¡± wiping the bloodstains quickly made the towel dirty. lasilia looked at serben to mean to change the towel, but neither serben nor ryan responded. both of them were staring at something. ¡°sir?¡± when lasilia called out once more, ryan pointed her finger at lescal¡¯s back. ¡°can you see it?¡± couldn¡¯t they see lescal was holding lasilia by the waist and resting his head on her shoulder. ¡°why but?¡± ¡°the wound¡­¡± ¡°wound?¡± ryan said in disbelief, with her eyes wide open. ¡°gone. entire. all of a sudden.¡± it was then. ¡°¡­are you dreaming?¡± lescal, who had returned to his original form, opened his eyes. ¡°your majesty¡­?¡± he reached out and cupped lasilia¡¯s cheek. ¡°you are in my bed.¡± lesscal spat out words that seemed to boil over, and their lips overlapped. * * * ¡°that¡¯s not it, your majesty is in my bed.¡± fortunately, the kiss was only an attempt. ryan and serben¡¯s momentary panicked moan made lescal look back, and lasilia was able to pull up the blanket to cover her face. lescal couldn¡¯t remember exactly what happened after the mutation happened. all he knew was that he had locked himself in the room and had ryan guard the door. so he couldn¡¯t easily accept the fact that this was the empress¡¯s bedroom. ¡°¡­you didn¡¯t come to me.¡± lescal sighed softly. his gaze toward lasilia was slow, as if hesitating. as soon as he opened his eyes, it was a completely different look from the time when he suddenly tried to overlap their lips. ¡°then maybe¡­ i force you¡­¡± ¡°no, your majesty!¡± it was serben who jumped up in response to those words. ¡°even though the two of you spent the night in the same bed, we also stayed in this room. there was nothing like that to worry about!¡± ¡°ah¡­¡± lescal crumpled his face slightly. it was hard to tell if he was angry or the other way around. ¡°good luck, then. are there any injuries?¡± it was strange. the expression was hard to recognize, but the gold eyes were the exact opposite. like the demons in her dream, they were affectionate and lonely. she had the illusion that the emperor seemed to have a similar affection, just like the demons who say it didn¡¯t matter if they were sick to protect her¡­ why would she have such a dream? lasilia hid her bitter smile. ¡°no, your majesty. you don¡¯t have to worry about last night¡¯s work anymore.¡± ¡°¡­ then.¡± he slowly raised himself up. ¡°i¡¯m still here¡­ am i?¡± ¡°i think you¡¯d better take a bath. i wiped your face, but there is still a lot of blood in other places.¡± ¡°right.¡± very slowly, lescal rose from the bed. the bed, where the two of them had been hugging each other all night, soon lost its warmth when one of them stood up. this made it easier to breathe, but on the other hand, it also made his skin feel a bit chilly. ¡°can i come back after taking a bath?¡± lescal asked lasilia, who was unconsciously wrapping his body in her arms. it was also a bit odd. she felt that the emperor, who used to lie calmly and make excuses to do whatever he wanted, was now overly cautious. ¡°aren¡¯t you supposed to be staying here for the time being?¡± ¡°that¡¯s right.¡± the question was slow, but the answer was quick. ¡°i will come after taking a bath.¡± ¡°do as you please.¡± ¡°it won¡¯t take long.¡± the emperor dared to say something he didn¡¯t have to do, and left the bedroom with ryan. ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª CH 19 19. dreams and reality ¡°you must have an attendant to take a bath. shall i call the chamberlain?¡± ¡°no, i don¡¯t need an attendant. as for the clothes, you¡­ no, that won¡¯t work call persson.¡± there was one thing lasilia misunderstood, but lescal was the most indifferent person in the imperial palace. the only reason he had been dressing like a picture for the past few days was lasilia. normally, he would have been able to wear the clothes that ryan brought him roughly, but not now. besides, lescal was in a state of great intimidation from last night. he couldn¡¯t wear any clothes. because he had to look a little nicer to the empress. it seemed like it was already too late, but still, just in case. ¡°all right.¡± ryan opened the bathroom door. it was a casual, natural movement, but she couldn¡¯t escape lescal¡¯s eyes. ¡°you use your left hand. is your right side uncomfortable?¡± there was blood on her right shoulder. it was a wound that serben said was a light scratch. ¡°i think it would be good to be careful for a day or so.¡± ¡°¡­ was it to the point where you couldn¡¯t stop it?¡± ¡°that is¡­ yesterday was different than usual.¡± the mutation lescal suffered during the blue moon and the pain it caused were familiar to the shadow knights. but yesterday was different. there had never been a case where lescal had broken through three thick iron bolted bedroom doors and burst out because of a mutation. he suffered, but there was no case of loss of intelligence like a blank paper. lescal groaned alone in the room. ¡°it¡¯s not that i can¡¯t stop it¡­ it was to the point of not being able to compete at all. your highness passed me before i even had time to use the sword.¡± the sword broke before he could even swing it. he still hadn¡¯t figured out exactly how his right shoulder was injured. last night, lescal was just scaring. ¡°and mutations were also done the most. the bones protruding from its back seemed to have taken the shape of wings almost entirely. in my opinion, the transition is accelerating as we approach your 30th birthday.¡± ¡°¡­¡± there was the sound of lescal biting his teeth. ryan also understood that feeling. she must have just been devastated. if it wasn¡¯t for the empress. if it hadn¡¯t been for the sight of her, since as soon as he was touched by the empress, he instantly returned to his human form. ¡°so, your majesty, just share a bedroom with her majesty. blue moon or not. no, just think of it as one body. treat her majesty as a great accessory and hang her around.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°this is the second time the mutation has stopped because of her majesty. it may be a coincidence once, but not twice. her majesty the empress is a true companion.¡± ¡°¡­would you like to stay with me?¡± lescal hesitated. ¡°the empress saw my transformation. no wonder she gets scared and runs away.¡± ¡°ah, that¡¯s it.¡± ryan suddenly grinned. she wasn¡¯t a mischievous smile when playing a prank, nor a fake laugh for self-help. she was sincere. ryan was really happy and laughing. ¡°she said you¡¯re handsome.¡± ¡°¡­what? who?¡± ¡°her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°who?¡± ¡°her majesty.¡± lescal frowned at her in confusion. ¡°it¡¯s not what you said last night. she saw the transformation yesterday.¡± ¡°she said that the mutation doesn¡¯t seem so strange. that you looked the same.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± confusion grew stronger. the gold eyes swayed to and fro as if experiencing an earthquake. ¡°¡­is the empress crazy?¡± ¡°doesn¡¯t being a partner of fate mean that you have to do that much?¡± ryan¡¯s expression became serious. ¡°because i have to subjugate the demon blood. in the first place, the demon tribe that started eliadon probably wouldn¡¯t have tied an ordinary human to be my fate.¡± ¡°still, the empress¡­¡± lescal was still hesitant. ryan shook her head in frustration. ¡°you¡¯re not going to say that, your majesty. since the mutation has accelerated, it means that there is not that much time. i can¡¯t afford to worry about things like why her majesty has rejected his majesty, what feelings she has for his majesty, and why.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°and just my opinion, but her majesty¡¯s feelings towards his majesty are not too bad.¡± lescal¡¯s golden eyes narrowed. ¡°why?¡± ¡°because she said you were handsome.¡± ¡°does it have anything to do with emotions? from the first time i saw her, i also thought that the empress¡¯ appearance was beautiful.¡± ¡°believe me, your majesty. if she hated her partner and was afraid of him, she would never have said he was good-looking.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lescal still couldn¡¯t believe it easily. ryan thought she had a long way to go and she pushed him into the bathroom. ¡°then i will quickly call the chamberlain.¡± * * * ¡°ah¡­ but isn¡¯t the blue moon over now?¡± while lescal was taking a bath, lasilia was also washing her face and changing her clothes. without much thought, she didn¡¯t stop lescal from coming back, but she looked out the window and saw that the sun was shining. the blue moon was over. the next blue moon was three months later. hopefully, delarta¡¯s priest would arrive and she would find a way to leave the empire within it. anyway, now that the blue moon was over, the emperor would return to his original nonchalant personality. it had to be. ¡°no, her majesty.¡± however, one of the courtiers who had been dressing her on behalf of the marquis of farshad cautiously opened her mouth. ¡°isn¡¯t it?¡± ¡°the blue moon does not set for three days. during the day, the blue moon remains afloat. the sun is shining, so you can¡¯t see it very well.¡± ¡°ah¡­ right.¡± a blue moon did not appear in delarta at the southern tip of the continent. the place where the blue moon could be clearly seen was the eliadon empire and several countries around it. ¡°three days. it means there are still two more days left.¡± would last night continue to repeat itself for the remaining two days? it wasn¡¯t too bad if no one was hurt. in any case, the unconscious person didn¡¯t do anything other than hug her tightly. but it¡¯s not like he wasn¡¯t losing his mind in the first place¡­ he would be in pain again while the transformation took place. thinking about the process made her feel frustrated. it¡¯s not her fault. she just happened to get the body of an empress. but why did she keep feeling like she was doing something wrong? lasilia let out a small sigh. the more she felt like this, the more it meant she had to disappear quickly. only then would the emperor find his true partner. her antipathy for the remaining two days was clouded by a mixture of guilt. ¡®yes, two days.¡¯ two more days were bearable. she was able to clean him up when he bled, hug him when he hugged her, and watch over him when he was in pain. if she said he couldn¡¯t even do that, it was too conscienceless. tuk-tuk, tuk-tuk. turruk, tok. tuk-tuk. at that moment, a small sound came from the dresser drawer. ¡°¡­? what is this?¡± lasilia opened the chest of drawers through which the sound came from. inside the chest of drawers filled with perfume, a red stone rolled between the bottles, making a clicking sound. it was the stone the black bird had brought her yesterday. although it looked very similar to the egg she saw in her dream, this one would be stoned. because a dream would always be a dream ¡°why is this here?¡± ¡°oh¡± as lasilia lifted the stone, the courtier who was tying her skirt fell on her flat floor. ¡°i-i put it in, your majesty the empress. you put it on the window sill while we were cleaning your bedroom, so i thought it was on purpose and kept it well¡­ my lady, i have committed a mortal sin! i didn¡¯t ask your majesty¡¯s will! please forgive me, her majesty.¡± ¡°¡­? to commit a sin when you put my things well, but why is it a sin? stand up. you did nothing wrong.¡± ¡°ah¡­ hah? is that really true?¡± ¡°it¡¯s okay.¡± ¡°ahhh¡­ don¡¯t be fooled, her majesty!¡± it wasn¡¯t a big deal, but the reaction was excessive. the courtier¡¯s small face turned blue, perhaps because she thought she would be punished in such a short time. it must have been because of the usual way the empress treated her court ladies. lasilia continued her words, looking at the courtier with a stone in her hand. ¡°from now on, i will do everything like this¡­¡± lasilia cut her off abruptly and looked at her hand. tuk-tuk, jjiik. it must have been a stone, but a faint movement was transmitted from the stone. ¡°¡­ hmm?¡± took¡­ jjiik! that wasn¡¯t all. one part was cracked and cracked. ¡°this is now¡­¡± ¡°beep!¡± and a small head popped out of the broken part. ¡°huh!¡± the court lady, who had been shaking her body just before, let out a large breath. ¡°eh, something in the stone¡­ alas no! egg! it was an egg, her majesty!¡± it was an egg, not a stone.she thought the dream was a dream, but the egg that appeared in that dream was now on her palm. ¡°beep!¡± a small creature that hadn¡¯t even opened its eyes yet screamed. curiously, lasilia seemed to be able to understand what it meant. ¡°ah, do you want to come out?¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°okay. wait for a moment.¡± lasilia carefully placed the half-broken egg on the dressing table. ¡°i think i need to break the shell¡­¡± the court lady, whose name she didn¡¯t know, was a quick-witted person with sharp fingertips. as lasilia struggled inside the egg, puzzled over the little creature that was already having a temper, she hurriedly opened the chest of drawers on the other side and pulled out a thin glass rod. ¡°is something like this okay, her majesty? it is a stick used for mixing perfume, but it is new and has not been used yet.¡± ¡°this will do. thank you.¡± ¡°wow, hwang gong!¡± knock, knock. lasilia lightly tapped the remnant of her egg with the tip of her glass rod, breaking it apart. her efforts were not in vain and the egg cracked safely. ¡°beep!¡± the tiny creature that emerged from the egg was a bird. although small, it had a beak and wing shape. it was still like a pink flesh with only downy hairs instead of feathers, but lasilia wondered if this bird would be as intensely red as a flame when it was all grown up. it was because the single feather sprouting from the back of the bird¡¯s head was a very pretty red color. ¡°beep.¡± as soon as the bird opened its eyes, it landed on lasilia¡¯s palm. then she started rubbing her little hair in the palm of her hand. ¡°yeah, nice to meet you. where are you from?¡± ¡°beep.¡± ¡°¡­ah?¡± ¡°beep.¡± the bird¡¯s answer was surprising. ¡°from the heart¡­ you said you came?¡± ¡°yes? from the heart?¡± while lasilia¡¯s expression hardened in surprise, the courtier also became puzzled. ¡°does her majesty the empress understand what the bird is saying?¡± ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª CH 20 20. king of birds (1) ¡°that is¡­¡± she heard the secret. lasilia calmly found a way to pass the situation. ¡®it¡¯s fine. i was only caught listening to what the bird was saying. they won¡¯t think that i¡¯m not the empress.¡¯ the problem was that she was so shocked to hear that it was born from the heart that she couldn¡¯t think of anything else. she should have been more careful. ¡°¡­if so, is it strange?¡± the doctor covered her mouth with her hand. it was to cover her bulging exclamation. ¡°oh, how. no-no-no wonder, her majesty the empress. it¡¯s not anywhere else, it¡¯s eliarden. witchcraft, magic, and spirits are long gone, but eliarden still has the most powerful magic.¡± the most powerful sorcery was the sorcery of subjugation related to demons and their blood. ¡°since her majesty is inherited by the blood of a shaman, wouldn¡¯t that be the case?¡± the doctor¡¯s eyes sparkle. ¡®this isn¡¯t it¡­¡¯ at first, she thought no one would believe lasilia when she said she talked to birds. she thought of passing it off as if the empress had lied on a regular basis. she thought that if she was a doctor who knew the character of the empress, she would pass on while pretending to agree with her in moderation. ¡®i think she really believes it.¡¯ she came now and there was no way she could pretend she wasn¡¯t back. ¡°what is your name?¡± ¡°ah yes. i am a court lady assigned to the empress palace a month ago, and my name is yvette.¡± ¡°yes, yvette. i will remember that name. can you keep this a secret? people doesn¡¯t want to hear that the empress is crazy because she lost her memory.¡± ¡°o, of course!¡± the court lady named yvette prostrated herself again. ¡°beep!¡± the newborn bird pecked lasilia¡¯s hand. she said she was hungry. ¡°this¡­ so what should i give you? what do birds eat?¡± ¡°beep¡­¡± ¡°you don¡¯t know either?¡± ¡°beep!¡± she didn¡¯t know because she was just born, she said. ¡°what? i¡¯ve never raised a bird before.¡± lasilia was fortunate in many ways that it was yvette who witnessed what happened today. the doctor, who had only been in the empress¡¯ palace for a month, did not know the empress very well. it was time for her to roughly guess what the atmosphere was like, but she didn¡¯t always see with her own two eyes what the empress did. she also had less of her antipathy toward the empress. yvette raised her head cautiously, she said. ¡°the bird eats grain or vegetables, your majesty the empress. if they are a bit bigger, they will also eat bugs. i know this well because i raised birds when i was young. shall i come prepared?¡± ¡°that¡­¡± ¡°of course, no one will know. i, that is to say, if her majesty tells me to do so.¡± the doctor, who said that she had been in the empress¡¯ palace for a month, was quick-witted and kind. besides, she knew how to take care of birds. ¡°beep¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia and the little bird¡¯s eyes met. the little bird nodded her head once, which meant it was fine. ¡°then don¡¯t leave it to me.¡± ¡°yes, her majesty! glory comes!¡± yvette jumped up and left her room. ¡°beep.¡± what did the little bird say? yvette said she was a harmless human being so it would be nice to have her by her side. ¡°how do you know that?¡± lasilia opened her eyes wide and tilted her head at the little bird. ¡°you didn¡¯t even know what you ate.¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°that is that and this is this? i don¡¯t think it makes sense though.¡± ¡°pippi. beep!¡± said the little bird. ¡°ah¡­¡± it was born for her and it existed for her, so it could instinctively distinguish what was good for her and what was not. ¡°strange¡­ are you sure he¡­ so, did that demon make it with its own heart?¡± ¡°beep.¡± ¡°don¡¯t you know? you don¡¯t know who made you, but do you know you were born for me?¡± ¡°beep.¡± there were many more things that the newborn bird did not know. the only thing in the bird¡¯s head was the reason he was born. it was created from someone¡¯s heart to protect someone. just like in that dream. ¡°hey.¡± ¡°beep?¡± ¡°that would be right. that you were born for someone.¡± ¡°beep!¡± the bird nodded vigorously. ¡°but that won¡¯t be for me. maybe you were born just now, so you can¡¯t tell the difference yet.¡± ¡°beep?¡± was this bird born for the empress? it would be more correct to say that he was born for a real companion who was not yet known. at any given time, the emperor would surely find the companion who was destined to be born as his couple and bring her to the empress¡¯ palace. this little bird might have been born in advance to prepare for the day. ¡°until you meet the person you will protect, i will take care of you.¡± ¡°beep?¡± the bird blinked its eyes as if it didn¡¯t know what that meant. ¡°so you¡¯d better keep your existence a secret.¡± it could be misunderstood if it became known that she was taking care of a bird that was born for a companion, not a real empress or a real companion. ¡°beep?¡± the little bird¡¯s eyes widened. what did it mean by that? ¡°it will take two days. i¡¯m hiding for two days.¡± if the blue moon appeared, wouldn¡¯t the emperor return? before that, it was said that he would stick by her side for two months, but lasilia didn¡¯t believe it. it must have been a decision she made before the blue moon because her heart was in a hurry. above all, it did not seem that the emperor would be able to abandon his life for such a long period of time. ¡°but just in case, if the emperor says he¡¯ll still be in the empress¡¯ palace after two days, let¡¯s pretend you¡¯re just an ordinary bird.¡± ¡°beep!¡± the little bird puffed up its tiny thorn-like fluff and raised its voice. it was cute to show off his temper with a small body that was still less than two fingers tall, but also worried about the future. ¡°sorry. but now i think that¡¯s for the best.¡± ¡°pip!¡± ¡°i¡¯ll promise. i will do my best so that the person you need to protect appears.¡± ¡°beep?¡± the little bird tilted its head. ¡°you don¡¯t know why? i don¡¯t know what you don¡¯t know. anyway, please know that i¡¯m trying too. don¡¯t be too angry.¡± ¡°beep.¡± the bird said it was too hungry to say more and sat down in a corner of the dressing table. lasilia took her handkerchief from her drawer, folded it several times, and placed her bird on it. ¡°even then, i won¡¯t be so soft. you need a place to eat and sleep¡­ ah!¡± she just realized, within this vast imperial palace, the perfect place for a bird to stay. * * * ¡°well, by the way, her majesty, how on earth do you know a road like this?¡± yvette returned quickly to find new food. fortunately, it was before the emperor came. lasilia, along with yvette, went to the tower where the emperor had been hiding before. yvette was surprised again and again as she moved along the inner road from the empress¡¯ palace, a corridor rarely even used by courtiers. ¡°you didn¡¯t lose your memory¡­ no no, i don¡¯t mean that.¡± ¡°the bird told me.¡± ¡°yes? bird, is it a bird?¡± ¡°he seems to know the way well, having lived in the imperial palace.¡± yvette believed this without question. ¡°and¡­ it¡¯s really amazing. i thought this was a story that only appeared in the founding tale¡­ since the imperial palace is the beginning of eliadon, it seems that the mysterious things of the past still remain.¡± ¡°you seem to know the story of eliardon well.¡± ¡°ah, yes. before entering the imperial palace, i worked in the library, her majesty. i like to read books.¡± somehow, a conversation ensued, and that yvette came from a suitable family of knights, and that after her father died of a chronic illness at a young age, it was difficult for her to make a living, so she gave up her studies and found a job. he even learned the trivial matter that he had come to the imperial palace, which guarantees ¡°beep!¡± and what the bird said was right. yvette was harmless and helpful. she might still be a bit murky about the circumstances of the imperial palace, but she had a very knowledgeable maid besides that. ¡°your majesty the empress. what did the bird say even now?¡± yvette asked with a curious look on her face as she saw the little bird wriggling on her shoulder and lasilia giggling and running her fingers through her tiny head. ¡°they say you are trustworthy.¡± ¡°yes? no, really? how can a bird know that? it¡¯s really amazing.¡± at the same time, the wide-open eyes seemed like a clear-headed person. ¡®¡­but flotta did too.¡¯ she herself had no idea what flotta was thinking. it was only when flotta stabbed her in the back that she realized the betrayal. ¡®i can¡¯t rely on it too much.¡¯ she read lasilia¡¯s expression. ¡®the bird did. she can instinctively know what is good and bad for the person she is supposed to protect. so, yvette is someone who will be helpful to my real partner, not me.¡¯ the more he did, the more he thought that she had to find her place as soon as possible. ¡°this is it.¡± lasilia opened the door to the northern tower. ¡°huh, isn¡¯t this the north tower?¡± after escaping the hidden passage and climbing the tower, yvette recognized the location. ¡°do you know this place?¡± ¡°no. no. i just listened. she said that there is a separate palace guard in charge of the northern tower. i heard that the job is difficult, so the new courtiers can¡¯t even come in.¡± ¡°the job is tricky¡­ it could be.¡± after climbing all the stairs, lasilia knocked on the door of the room at the top of the tower. knock, knock. ¡°lord shryden. may i come in?¡± the answer came clearly. ¡°welcome!¡± a blush ran across yvette¡¯s face. it seemed like a sense of anticipation. ¡°a duke who lives in the tower of the imperial palace. it¡¯s so amazing. i feel like i entered a fairy tale book.¡± lasilia laughed lightly. ¡°perhaps. i feel like this is a different place too. lord shryden is also very amazing.¡± ¡°what should i do? should i open the door?¡± yvette opened the door with a flushed face and bowed her head respectfully. ¡°your majesty is eating.¡± lasilia entered the room first. then yvette came in and shut the door. at the same time, exclamations erupted from both sides. ¡°oh my god! is that the duke? is it real?¡± ¡°oh my god! king, the king has come!¡± the duke of shryden flew in front of lasilia. ¡°king! the king has come! king of birds! father of all birds!¡± yvette stared at the duke of shryden, forgetting to breathe, then lowered her voice to lasilia. ¡°are you the king of birds? oh, so i guess you understand what the birds are saying?¡± ¡°well¡­ i didn¡¯t say anything like that last time.¡± landing at lasilia¡¯s feet, the duke of shrydon lowered his head like a human and put his forehead on the floor. ¡°this body is the 1st of shraiden! greetings to the king of birds!¡± the really amazing thing happened next. ¡°beep.¡± when the little bird said something, the duke of shryden raised his head. placing one wing in front of the chest seemed extremely polite. ¡°welcome, king.¡± CH 21 21. king of birds (2) ¡°the king of birds?¡± ¡°father of all birds¡­? aren¡¯t all birds babies?¡± while the humans looked at the two birds in bewilderment, a small bird jumped out of lasilia¡¯s palm. the shryden was the largest of the parrots, and the little bird was no more than two fingers tall. compared to the duke of shryden, the little bird looked more like a bug than a bird. as the little bird came down to the floor, the duke of shryden lay flat on the floor to lower his eyes. ¡°pippi. beep.¡± the little bird muttered something and put his forehead on shryden¡¯s forehead. it was difficult to pinpoint, but a very mysterious feeling touched her skin. ¡°oh my god¡­ it¡¯s more like a fairy tale than a real fairy tale, her majesty.¡± yvette whispered as she tugged on lasilia¡¯s clothes. it was absurd, but it seemed that she didn¡¯t even know what she was doing because she was so distracted by what was unfolding in front of her eyes. ¡°i know.¡± after a while, the little bird removed its forehead. then, it flapped its small wings towards lasilia and cried out. she was told to pick him up again and put him in her hands. the duke of shryden shook his head angrily and fell flat. ¡°oh, i¡¯ll take you there!¡± the people were surprised by those words. although shryden was a parrot, and a very good copyist, he was still a bird. it felt like imitating human speech, but she didn¡¯t think he would be able to talk like a human. but now he really spoke. if you covered your eyes, you would have thought it was a person, not a bird. ¡°it seems a bit different.¡± as lasilia spoke her words, shryden let out a terribly human cough, ahem. ¡°yes. the father of all birds gave me the power to speak human words. so, from now on, i am taking the place of his father¡¯s mouth.¡± ¡°what¡­? birds have that kind of power?¡± ¡°is that all there is to it? he is still young and he is not able to use all his strength.¡± ¡°it¡¯s amazing.¡± ¡°and¡­ i know, right. it¡¯s really amazing. no, it is mysterious.¡± as the humans showed their admiration, the little bird swayed her hips and puffed up. ¡°you are no ordinary bird.¡± ¡°i mean. what should i do? i don¡¯t think it should be treated like a bird. i guess i should just use honorifics¡­¡± lasilia stopped her fingertips from trying to pet the bird. somehow it didn¡¯t seem like that. ¡°then what should i call you? won¡¯t you tell me?¡± ¡°beep.¡± the little bird lowered his head with a somewhat shy face. as lasilia did not understand him, the duke of shrydon slid in. ¡°it seems that the king wants her majesty to give him a new name.¡± ¡°i? it¡¯s the king of birds, is that okay?¡± ¡°he hopes so.¡± ¡°um¡­¡± after thinking for a while, lasilia nodded her head. she said that she was only temporary taking care of this bird herself. he was said to be the king of birds, so it seemed like he wouldn¡¯t even need to be taken care of, but he was given a little time to be with her. she won¡¯t need to know her real name. the owner of the bird thought different. ¡°then i¡¯ll call you pippi.¡± ¡°pippi?¡± the bird wriggled his body as if in shock. ¡°why? don¡¯t you like it?¡± ¡°beep!¡± this time, shrydon came out. ¡°isn¡¯t that a one-dimensional name? how would you like to be reminded that you are the noblest and strongest of the beasts of the earth?¡± ¡°ah¡­ then i¡¯ll have to think about it. right now i don¡¯t know of a nice name for the noblest and strongest bird.¡± ¡°beep! fit!¡­ beep?¡± the bird, which had been about to lose its temper when lasilia didn¡¯t like what he was saying, suddenly stopped moving. ¡°ah¡­ this. it looks like a guest has come to my estate.¡± it was the moment the duke of shryden said so. tak, tok, tok! the sound of hurried footsteps was also heard in the human ears. ¡°someone is coming.¡± lasilia hurriedly placed the little bird on the back of the duke of shrydon. the feathers on its back stood out so nicely that the figure of the little bird was obscured. ¡°please take care of pippi. keep pippi out of sight, be quiet about him too.¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°oh, he told me to hide his father¡¯s noble figure. such a sad thing¡­¡± even though it was a noble and strong bird, it was now just a baby bird with no more than two fingers. bang! the visit of the duke of shrydon was held with a hair¡¯s breadth. in fact, it should be said that it was torn rather than opened. it was the distorted emperor who pushed through the door, which had just been broken and whose handle rattled. * * * ¡°hwang, hwang, emperor¡¯s lungs¡­ oops!¡± yvette was startled and started to hiccup. the emperor was the emperor. however, half of him seemed to have undergone a mutation. his eyes glowed golden, and his left arm was covered in black scales, revealing red nails. there was a reason the door was torn. ¡®he recovered in the morning¡­ again?¡¯ as lasilia stared at the emperor with her hard face, he swung forward. the pace was too fast. it reminded her of the scene last night when the shadow knights ran away without knowing what was going on. ¡°your majesty!¡± unknowingly, lasilia stood in front of yvette and the duke of shryden. she thought and did not act. her body just moved. as if to protect those behind her, lasilia gripped the emperor¡¯s arm tightly. ¡°have you lost izzy again?¡± ¡°¡­no.¡± it was fortunate. the emperor was alert enough to speak. ¡°then why all of a sudden?¡± ¡°because you disappeared.¡± the emperor grabbed lasilia by the waist with his untransformed right hand. ¡°i had to find you.¡± lescal¡¯s words that he had to find her contained more context than lasilia could hear. he washed up in his frantic haste, changed his clothes, and ran to the empress¡¯ palace, where the empress was gone again. the guards who guarded the empress¡¯ palace said they never saw the empress leave her room. the idea of finding her went white in his head. when he came to his senses, he saw that a mutation was taking place. senses more sensitive than humans followed the scent of the empress, and his feet, faster than humans, moved toward the northern tower. sharper-than-human claws ripped open the door that hid the empress. this mutation was the first for lescal. until now, he had summoned his demonic blood, which had been just an innate pain and burden. because he had to find the empress. the sound of crumpling the rustling fabric spread as lescal tightened his arm around her waist. ¡°that is¡­ i apologize for leaving without a word, your majesty.¡± lasilia made her apologies with a confused expression. it was her fault. she should not forget that it was still the period when the blue moon was floating. to make his way to the empress, whom he did not normally like, meant that the emperor was desperate for it. lasilia was sorry that she couldn¡¯t understand his feelings, and her heart was broken that he had suffered the mutation again. ¡°i don¡¯t think i can take my eyes off you even for a second.¡± the emperor murmured and pressed his body closer together. at some point, his left hand was holding her back. the emperor¡¯s breath touched the nape of her neck as he murmured softly. his hand clasped her back, gently groping her skin. lasilia¡¯s cheeks turned slightly red. ¡®i¡¯m sorry, i¡¯m sorry¡­ it¡¯s kind of weird.¡¯ when the emperor¡¯s lips gently brushed her cheek, she couldn¡¯t help but think of the kiss they had shared on her bed. lasilia clearly remembered how a light kiss on her cheek turned into a tangled, bad kiss. at that moment, her patience was over. ¡°your majesty. i think you can stop now.¡± lescal flinched. ¡°¡­why?¡± ¡°i think your body has fully recovered.¡± ¡°no.¡± ¡°couldn¡¯t be.¡± lasilia twisted her shoulder and looked at the emperor¡¯s left arm. she wondered when it was covered with scales, but now it was a normal human figure. lescal shut his mouth for a moment, then he replied. ¡°¡­my body may have improved, but i am still shocked that you disappeared.¡± ¡°since the body is back, won¡¯t the mind also regain stability soon?¡± ¡°maybe someday. not yet.¡± maybe it¡¯s because his heart was so weak. even if it¡¯s a blue moon. lasilia swallowed a small sigh. ¡°then what do you mean?¡± ¡°stay like this. until i find peace of mind.¡± ¡°when will that be?¡± ¡°i do not know either. all i know is that i was very shocked that you disappeared without a word again. not once, but twice already.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°okay. twice.¡± those words began to dilute the feelings of guilt that had arisen from the two absences. ¡®this person doesn¡¯t know how much.¡¯ it was like a dog in the front yard of the temple. if you drew a line saying that you could come this far, you pretended not to see the line. ¡®that¡¯s why there were so many difficult times.¡¯ the high priest would have done the same. he wanted to drive it out, but since it is a temple, he couldn¡¯t drive out the life that entered on its own. if it was possible, he would not have tried to mix poison with rice. anyway, that¡¯s why lasilia had a principle for handling dogs. it was that once she drew the line, she had to keep it somehow. otherwise, it became more and more difficult to deal with. ¡°then punish me. for frightening your majesty.¡± at lasilia¡¯s words, lescal raised his head. ¡°you want me to punish you?¡± ¡°yes. since i was away without a word, it seems reasonable to be put on probation. i will be on my guard in my bedroom.¡± the gold eye rolled slowly. ¡°i didn¡¯t mean to punish¡­ it¡¯s not bad if you¡¯re sober with me,¡± ¡°no. i am the one who committed the wrong, but there is no reason for your majesty to be punished together. i will be on my own.¡± lasilia¡¯s principles were clear. unfortunately, lescal was not a dog. ¡°you¡¯re trying to keep me away on the pretext of being punished.¡± ¡°did you hear that? it seemed to me that his majesty was trying to break a promise through my fault.¡± ¡°you misunderstood. i had no intention of breaking the promise.¡± ¡°is it? your lips touched my cheek.¡± ¡°you-¡± lescal looked at lasilia and slightly twitched his lips. ¡°also me¡­¡± it was then. ¡°your majesty!¡± cudang-tang-tang. unlike usual, the shadow knights jumped up the tower with rough footsteps. * * * ¡°aha. you finally found it.¡± ¡°whoa, that¡¯s good, that¡¯s it.¡± ryan and serben were both covered in sweat. ryan took a deep breath while serben pulled down his sleeve and wiped away his sweat. ¡°and the body has been restored.¡± ¡°ah¡­? i know.¡± after wiping the sweat, serben was relieved. ¡°i¡¯ll say it again, it¡¯s really fortunate, your majesty. when you suddenly undergo a mutation earlier, it¡¯s really frightening¡­ uh, what about it?¡± serben cut off his words and furrowed his eyes. ¡°there was a problem. there are people who are not allowed.¡± he pointed the tip of his sword at lasilia¡¯s back. ¡°oh! uh, are you referring to me?¡± yvette, who had been holding her breath since lescal appeared, opened her mouth in surprise. CH 22 22. unauthorized she didn¡¯t know why he was holding the knife, but it was clear that it meant something bad. lasilia hid yvette with her body and hardened her expression towards serben. ¡°what are you doing, sir? put down the knife.¡± ¡°i am only doing my duty as a shadow knight, your majesty. his majesty¡¯s appearance is not to be seen by anyone without permission.¡± ¡°i don¡¯t know what you mean.¡± ryan added his words behind serben¡¯s back. ¡°in other words, since the court lady saw something she shouldn¡¯t have seen, it means that she should keep her mouth shut. she is her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°hee-ik, geup!¡± when she was told to cover her mouth, yvette covered her mouth with her hand. lasilia turned her arm behind her and wrapped it around yvette. yvette grabbed her sleeve with a trembling hand. even without looking at her expression, it was vividly conveyed how scared she must have been. ¡°i don¡¯t understand. isn¡¯t it true that everyone in the palace knows that his majesty changes his appearance during the blue moon? she saw it, so i had to shut her mouth. what do you mean by that?¡± ¡°that¡¯s because what you know and what you see with your own two eyes are different¡­ by the way, is her majesty interfering with the enforcement of the imperial law right now?¡± ¡°it is incomprehensible. aren¡¯t there many people who saw his majesty just yesterday? why does she have to be punished now?¡± ¡°no, her majesty the empress. except for her majesty, there were only the two of us.¡± ¡°no way. there were people everywhere in the palace.¡± ¡°it wasn¡¯t movement that humans could see.¡± she might not have been right. the emperor suddenly jumped out of the darkness. there was no one of the royal guards chasing behind the emperor. ¡°then how about today?¡± ¡°the witnesses were the chief knights of the royal guard. these are the ones who have sworn allegiance with their lives.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia lost her words. serben nodded as if he knew that and added a word. ¡°the only ones who are okay with seeing that are those who have sworn allegiance in death and those who have the blood of the imperial family. there are no exceptions.¡± it was clear that the imperial family inherited the blood of the demon tribe, but it was a long time ago that people directly witnessed it. there had never been an emperor who was born with the blood of demons as thickly as lescal. there were only a few emperors in the early days who were said to have undergone mutations in the blue moon. after that, everyone had a partner on time, or the demon¡¯s characteristics weren¡¯t strong enough to undergo mutation. even the shadow knights took time to get used to lescal¡¯s transformation. if ordinary people saw it, it would have a big impact. ¡°please get out of the way now, your majesty the empress. we will take care of that palace attendant.¡± it couldn¡¯t be. no matter how the law was, yvette had no choice but to follow her own words. lasilia shook her head. ¡°still¡­ that is too much.¡± ¡°the law has a reason, her majesty.¡± serben deliberately spoke in a calmer voice. ¡°even though it seems cruel, such a law has protected the imperial family and his majesty the emperor.¡± after a brief pause, serben twisted his mouth. ¡°and in that sense, i don¡¯t understand why her majesty would protect a court lady who violated a clear imperial law. since when did you save the life of a court lady? do you know how many courtiers have died in the empress¡¯ palace for reasons far less trivial than this? oh, of course you don¡¯t know. it would literally be too trivial for her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°that¡­¡± saying she didn¡¯t remember wasn¡¯t the answer. here, lasilia was the empress. eliarden¡¯s empress of cartagena was capricious, cruel, and a liar. she, and only she was the one who used her contacts as weapons to wield the emperor at will. ¡°so i can¡¯t help but wonder if i have some other purpose as a shadow knight, your majesty the empress. is there a reason why the courtier has to survive even though he has become a threat to the safety of the imperial family? is it because you are plotting something through that palace attendant? isn¡¯t that why we chose to hide in the north tower where no one was looking for you?¡± ¡°yes? no! not really!¡± yvette screamed and knelt on the floor. ¡°really¡­ really. her majesty the empress is not plotting anything. if she was going to do something through me, i should know! but she didn¡¯t say anything. really!¡± serben didn¡¯t listen to yvette¡¯s words. from what he had experienced so far, when the empress of cartagena did strange things, there was always a reason. it was already the second time that the empress, who talked about her memory loss, had disappeared without anyone noticing. twice could never have been a coincidence, so she should have been more thoroughly suspicious. contrary to what he suspected, empress cartagena could have been the real companion. ryan already seemed to accept it that way. but serben thought that was more of a problem. if so, it meant that the empress had other reasons for rejecting lescal. the reason was still unknown. but he was sure. it must be a reason to harm the emperor somehow, obviously insidious and evil. ¡°stand aside, her majesty. before things get more complicated.¡± serben raised his sword like his ultimatum. lasilia bit her lips. there was only one way. the only thing she could rely on at this moment was the emperor. ¡°your majesty.¡± * * * ¡°heh, hehe, really¡­ it¡¯s not real¡­ i really¡­ whoops!¡± terrified, yvette fell to the floor and cried helplessly. lasilia sat down next to her and hugged yvette protectively. ¡°¡­¡± the emperor approached her and sat down on the floor as if trying to meet eye level. she caught a glimpse of the shadow knights¡¯ puzzled expressions. the gaze that didn¡¯t have to look up at this moment felt like kindness. ¡°your majesty.¡± lasilia called out to lescal once again with difficulty. ¡°speak.¡± ¡°¡­it was just a coincidence that this courtier got to see his majesty. it was never intended.¡± ¡°intention is no exception.¡± ¡°i know. but your majesty also knows that you can make an exception.¡± ¡°are you going to make a deal?¡± ¡°i am asking you a favor.¡± the gold eyes that looked at lasilia narrowed. as if he was examining something, or as if he doubted it. ¡°if it was a request worth listening to, i would have listened willingly. but i¡¯m also unfamiliar with the situation where you ask me for the life of a courtier.¡± that said, he had no choice but to be suspicious. ¡°there was nothing like what his majesty¡¯s knight said. i just can¡¯t afford to see an innocent person punished excessively just for following me. i can swear by the name of god.¡± ¡°unfortunately, you have taken too many false oaths in the name of god.¡± ¡°¡­¡± what kind of person was the empress? lasilia closed her eyes and opened them. ¡°please make an exception this time.¡± eventually she had to say something like this. ¡°then i will make an exception for your majesty.¡± ¡°¡­the deal is right.¡± she couldn¡¯t deny that it was a deal. but it was the only way. serben tightly gripped the handle of his sword and said to lescal. ¡°your majesty. you must not respond. doesn¡¯t his majesty know what kind of person her majesty is?¡± ¡°quiet. i am thinking.¡± ¡°ung.¡± lescal covered serben¡¯s mouth with a gesture. as if really thinking about it, lescal slowly stroked his chin. ¡°if your oath is no exception. what are you going to do then?¡± ¡°¡­do you think i am lying?¡± ¡°right.¡± gold eyes looked at her as if they would pierce her body. ¡°i have no reason to trust you. of course, there is no reason to keep a court lady who has broken a clear law alive at risk. but now, i want to hear what you have to say. it doesn¡¯t matter whether it¡¯s a favor or a deal, so whatever.¡± ¡°okay, your majesty¡­¡± serben gritted his teeth and screamed in pain, but rascal didn¡¯t care. instead, he reached out and gently caressed lasilia¡¯s cheek. ¡°so you need a price. if you are lying to me now, what can i get for risking it?¡± it was strange. strangely, the words of the emperor, who talked about the cost of not believing, sounded as friendly as eye level. ¡®he said he didn¡¯t believe me because he had been lying all this time.¡¯ still, the emperor said he wanted to listen to her. whatever it was, at any risk. it didn¡¯t sound like desperate need, it sounded like blind affection. ¡®strange. the emperor said he hated the empress. but why¡­¡¯ why did he act like this? why did he confuse people like this? ¡°then.¡± lasilia put her hand on lescal¡¯s, who was carefully touching her cheek. at this moment, it felt like she had to do that. ¡°i will pay for anything. whatever your majesty wants.¡± as if the answer was unexpected, lescal twitched his shoulders. however, his hand, which had been weakly caressing his cheek, soon embraced his face powerfully. ¡°good then. it will be a fair deal.¡± at that, yvette stopped her crying and jerked her head up. ¡°ah¡­ me then¡­ so i don¡¯t have to die?¡± lescal answered with his gaze fixed on lasilia. ¡°no, you don¡¯t have to.¡± ¡°my god¡­ th, thank you! thank you, your majesty! thank you, her majesty!¡± the crying that she had been trying to hold back a little while ago now came out with more relief. serben looked at yvette and shook her head. it was a face full of worry. ¡°by the way.¡± ryan slapped serben on the shoulder and stepped forward to her. ryan was the one who believed that lescal¡¯s choice was not wrong. now that it was revealed that she was the real empress, lescal was right that she woos the empress unconditionally until full contact was made. but now, the risk was too great. it¡¯s not that she couldn¡¯t keep an eye on one court lady, but she couldn¡¯t blindly guarantee her life without even knowing what kind of person that palace lady was. ¡°since his majesty said it, i will follow it, but wouldn¡¯t a safety device be necessary? in any case, if today¡¯s affairs leak out through that palace, there will be a problem. like a snake head.¡± serben, who was opposed to the situation from the beginning to make an exception, came to the aid. ¡°that¡¯s right! there were the knights of st. malik!¡± CH 23 23. the imperial palace you won¡¯t believe ¡°the knights of saint malik¡­?¡± ¡°ah, her majesty the empress. that¡¯s¡­¡± yvette, who has a wide range of knowledge throughout the history of the empire, did not miss the opportunity. when lasilia showed ignorance, she quickly whispered in her ear. ¡°they are the knights of the harios temple. although the knights of st. malik have a long history, they were a somewhat dubious group that inherited ancient magic, so they were ostracized in society. it was very sudden, so there was a lot of talk.¡± the name of the first god, who was said to have created the continent, was harios. in delarta, kanes, the god of water and prosperity, was regarded as the main deity, but that did not deny the names of other gods. eliadon¡¯s main god was harios. the more they went to the provinces, the more freely they believed in the gods of the region, and there were no restrictions on other sects within the empire, but the harios temple had the greatest power. ¡°but why is it a snake head?¡± ¡°ah, i don¡¯t know that either. st. malik is the name of an ancient sorcerer and has nothing to do with snakes. he never said that he used snake-related magic¡­?¡± it seemed like a whisper, but it wasn¡¯t enough to avoid the shadow knights¡¯ ears. ¡°because they have long tongues, her majesty.¡± ryan said, looking at yvette. ¡°and as you can see from the fact that he mentions the name of the impostor wizard, he is anxious because he can¡¯t eat the imperial family, which has demonic blood.¡± it was also very old. it was before eliarden¡¯s name was even created. there was no way that the appearance of the demons was mysterious and beautiful like a fairy tale. the existence of demons was likely to be seen as a threat to humans, and there were many twists and turns until the demons finally subjugated their blood to humans and humanized their bodies. wizards were those who fought against the demons at the time. among them, archmage malik played the biggest role. yvette jerked her head to the side. ¡°do you think i am a slob from the knights of st. malik? absolutely not! i can swear!¡± ¡°i¡¯m not saying that. if the snakeheads find out about your majesty¡¯s violation of the imperial law, they might catch the pod.¡± ¡°ah, that¡­¡± yvette closed her mouth tightly, crying. lasilia patted yvette on the back and faced ryan. ¡°your majesty has already guaranteed yvette¡¯s life. his majesty¡¯s knights will not take lightly what his majesty said of her, but what else do you want to say?¡± ¡°as i said, i will follow your majesty¡¯s will. however, i would like to establish a countermeasure. it looks like we¡¯ll have to find a way to keep his life alive, but not break the law. then it doesn¡¯t matter even if this courtier actually mates with the snakeheads.¡± serben nodded. that¡¯s not to say there weren¡¯t any complaints. ¡°i agree¡­ i still think it¡¯s dangerous.¡± lasilia also learn a lesson about not blindly trusting people. she was already in debt to the emperor, although she did not intend to, she owed her heart a little. she wanted to stop needlessly harming the emperor with her guilt. ¡°if you can, that would be great, your majesty.¡± when lasilia said this, lescal gave a slow laugh. everyone was a little bewildered at how she seemed to be in a good mood all of a sudden. ¡°if the empress is like that, tell me how.¡± ¡°um, that¡­¡± yvette wiped away her tears and raised her hand. ¡°you said that there are times when it¡¯s okay to see his majesty¡¯s appearance change, right? wouldn¡¯t it be okay if i was like that too? i¡¯m not from the royal family, so i¡¯ll swear a death oath!¡± in a way, yvette was like a clean glass person. she looked straight into the inside to see what she was thinking. ryan replied, shaking her head. ¡°i don¡¯t think i¡¯d have to play the role of a fool with such a personality, but¡­ that¡¯s not allowed. because it is not a knight.¡± ¡°ah, no¡­¡± a slight shadow fell on yvette¡¯s sullen eyes. lasilia took yvette¡¯s hand as if to comfort her. then the emperor, who was looking at lasilia, pulled his hand opposite her and squeezed it. when lasilia looked at him with a questioning expression, the emperor subtly avoided her gaze. but he didn¡¯t let go of her hand. ¡°are there any exceptions?¡± still feeling indebted, lasilia gave up her hand and asked ryan. ¡°as far as i know, no. if you call in a legal scholar and ask him, he will know more details, but that increases the risk of the secret leaking out.¡± she threw words as if the emperor was no big deal. ¡°i guess we can make them royalty.¡± ¡°yes? members of the royal family? what do you mean?¡± ¡°you can adopt.¡± ¡°no, so where is the royal family that would adopt a court lady? not even a newborn baby, but a full-grown adult.¡± ¡°i¡¯m with you.¡± ¡°yes¡­?¡± for the first time, people who had been in different positions all along were of the same mind. she felt like she couldn¡¯t believe that the emperor was saying this now. ¡°me and the empress have no children yet. adoption isn¡¯t weird either.¡± serben raised his voice involuntarily. ¡°strange! absolutely strange!¡± yvette panicked and pulled lasilia¡¯s sleeve. ¡°your majesty the empress. i am older than her majesty the empress. i know it¡¯s a grace that overflows, but this is a bit¡­¡± ryan looked at lescal with a frown on his face. ¡°your majesty. i can fully understand the desire to fulfill her majesty¡¯s request, but the method is too excessive.¡± ¡°isn¡¯t there any other way? tell me if so, i will listen.¡± ¡°no, i don¡¯t have anything else to say if you say that¡­ still, she thinks that if a princess is older than her majesty, people will think something is suspicious¡­¡± the method came from a very unexpected place. ¡°ahem! i think i can help with that.¡± ¡®my god!¡¯ the duke of shryden showed off his presence by splendidly flaunting his large wings. ¡°what else is that¡­¡± embarrassment and bewilderment piled up on the shadow knights¡¯ faces. as if the duke of shryden had been expecting such an expression, he leisurely circled the air and landed on lasilia¡¯s lap. ¡°this body is the 1st of shraiden! they are the absolute royal family!¡± ¡°¡­hmm?¡± * * * pippi, a temporary name on hold, was well hidden among the feathers of the duke of shryden¡¯s head anyway. lasilia, who confirmed it¡¯s presence, put her mind at ease. pipi was so small that no one would notice him. ¡°the royal family¡­ what? a bird?¡± ¡°no, before that. no matter how parrot you are, can you talk like a human like that? you¡¯re not just talking, you¡¯re having a conversation.¡± serben and ryan looked at lescal. lescal narrowed his gold eyes and looked at the duke of shryden. in fact, he knew nothing about this strange bird either. ¡°shryden the 1st?¡± ¡°ahem. the northern tower of the imperial palace is the domain of lord shraiden i. the emperor ordered it.¡± ¡°why did the emperor do that?¡± lescal frowned. terrified by that expression, shryden burrowed into lasilia¡¯s arms and stuck her head out through her sleeve. lescal¡¯s impression of seeing it became more bleak. ¡°your majesty, do you know the duke of brennan?¡± ¡°¡­i know. and are birds originally animals that sit like that?¡± ¡°i was raised by the last duke of the brennan family. the poor duke, who had the unfortunate end of his life at the age of nine, bequeathed the title to me. however, humans are greedy beyond words. because i am a bird, there was no end to the shameless attempts to rob me of my inheritance rights. even if i wrote a book about what i experienced then, three or four volumes would come out¡­ and when the bird sits, it sits neatly on the perch. unless the human sitting across from you is staring at you horribly.¡± ¡°and¡­ really good¡­ hut,¡± yvette, who was exclaiming, realized her mistake and put her hand over her mouth. shuryden¡¯s words, which had paused for a moment because of yvette, continued. ¡°the emperor, unable to see anything worse than beasts surrounding the brennan family, arbitrarily retrieved the title and territory. at that time, i was just a young bird, and i didn¡¯t have the strength to protect the territory, and you must have judged that it would be difficult for the descendants of the brennan family to continue to be birds. however, my right to inherit was a legitimate legal process, and even the emperor of the empire could not take it away. therefore, the emperor gave me a new title available only for one generation, and set up a manor in one corner of the palace for the courtiers to take care of me.¡± ¡°oh, i think i¡¯ve heard of that too!¡± it was yvette again. ¡°from the imperial archives in the imperial library. at the time, the imperial secretary left memoirs under the title, ¡°the details of the imperial palace that you won¡¯t believe.¡± shryden also shouted enthusiastically. ¡°there is also a certificate of entitlement signed by the emperor! you will know when you open that chest of drawers!¡± at those words, serben jumped up and approached the chest of drawers. when he opened the antique chest of drawers, inside it was a certificate engraved like grains on a gold plate. ¡°no, what the¡­ it¡¯s like a fairy tale.¡± ryan received the words with the same face. ¡°after hearing it, it seems like the emperor would have done it. he must have giggled while signing the certificate¡­ no, he would have laughed happily.¡± lescal glanced at the certificate that serben had handed over, then handed it to serben. the deed was genuine. ¡°since you¡¯re a descendant of the brennan duchy, does that mean you¡¯re the royal family even if your blood isn¡¯t mixed?¡± ¡°that¡¯s right. the brennan duchy was the most closely related family to the imperial family, except for the five families. it¡¯s just that i haven¡¯t inherited the title, but i¡¯m the official successor, so i¡¯m right in the royal family.¡± ¡°¡­ it¡¯s like a nose ring hanging over your nose, but you can see it.¡± serben nodded, though his face was still shaken. ¡°that is¡­ yes, i think it would look better for a bird to adopt than for his majesty to adopt.¡± it was the same with ryan. ¡°there will be less people talking about it because there will be more people who don¡¯t know who the duke of shryden is.¡± yvette¡¯s face flushed with excitement. ¡°well, then am i going to become the daughter of a duke? really?¡± serben quickly added an explanation. ¡°even so, you cannot inherit the title. because the title of duke of shryden is limited to one year old. i don¡¯t think his wealth is very large.¡± ¡°no. no! i don¡¯t even want that. it¡¯s good that i¡¯m not going to die, but i suddenly became a noble lady! unbelievable! it¡¯s like a dream!¡± yvette was so happy that she grabbed lasilia¡¯s hand and shook it. ¡°good.¡± as lasilia smiled at yvette, lescal shook lasilia¡¯s hand. and lasilia looked back at lescal. ¡°why is his majesty like that?¡± ¡°because you will be happy.¡± ¡°it¡¯s a pleasure for me, but¡­¡± ¡°so it¡¯s a pleasure for me too.¡± lescal put his lips on the back of her hand that he was shaking. in an instant, there was a click and sound from the heart. lasilia held her breath for a moment and stared at lescal. ¡®ah¡­ why are you like this?¡¯ ¡°you¡¯re happy, so i¡¯m happy too,¡± was a word lasilia had never heard before. CH 24 24. the way of the duke¡¯s lady the adoption process took place in an instant. the duke of shryden verbally requested the adoption from the emperor of eliardon, and the emperor made two documents saying that he orally consented and stamped them. serben, ryan, and yvette were surprised that lord shryden had the official seal. it was shaped like a new sole, but a seal was a seal. ¡°ahem. would you put this in the chest of drawers with my bill of lading, sir sigres?¡± as serben accepted the imperial document that the parrot handed over with one foot, he looked as if he couldn¡¯t even say anything. ¡°that, that¡­ i will.¡± ¡°ahem.¡± shryden 1st flew into the golden cage. ¡°oh, then what should i do now? would it be all right if i continued serving as a court lady at the empress¡¯ palace as usual, her majesty?¡± unfortunately, it was something lasilia was completely unaware of. her experience dealing with royalty did not mean she knew enough about the customs or class system of aristocratic society. ¡°well. what do you want to do?¡± ¡°i am grateful if i can continue to work. it¡¯s just that my status has changed, right? if i don¡¯t have to reveal that i¡¯ve just been adopted into the ducal family, i¡¯d like to just stay like this.¡± ryan interrupted. ¡°then make her a maid. it is strange that the daughter of a duchy continues to do the hard work that courtiers do.¡± ¡°la-la¡­lady-in-waiting? me?¡± yvette pointed to her face with a frightened expression. ¡°gee, that can¡¯t be. i am that¡­¡± ¡°you are the daughter of a duke, now. although you¡¯re an adopted child.¡± ¡°sure¡­ that, yes¡­? woe, her majesty the empress?¡± somehow yvette seemed to be having trouble breathing, so lasilia gave her a pat on the back. ¡°if you want, do it. ¡­ no, i¡¯d rather you do that.¡± short thoughts, quick decisions. yvette was the only person who knew about pippi. she had no one more helpful than yvette when it came to taking care of pippi for the time being. if she became a court lady rather than a maid, she could keep her by her side without having to deal with other maids, so her secrets would be safer. ¡°that, that, that¡­ then i¡¯m very thankful, th-thank you.¡± yvette still stuttered. ¡°i, really¡­ it¡¯s like a dream¡­ i¡¯m not too crazy, but i think i¡¯m very happy. it¡¯s something i¡¯ve never thought of¡­ i am not a knight, but i will be loyal with my life, your majesty the empress.¡± ¡°no. you don¡¯t have to go that far. you just have to do your part.¡± lasilia gently squeezed yvette¡¯s hand and let it go. that small gesture contained the meaning of taking good care of pippi, who had no choice but to leave it here. ¡°my role¡­ ah yes i will keep this in mind, her majesty.¡± since she became the adopted daughter of the duke of shryden, the northern tower was also yvette¡¯s home. she decided to become a formal lady in-waiting from tomorrow, and yvette remained in the northern tower. * * * even while returning to the empress¡¯ palace from the northern tower, lescal did not let go of lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡®strange. why the hell is holding my hand?¡¯ that kept bothering her. ¡®this person is doing this because of the blue moon, but¡­¡¯ there was still no room for the moonlight to shine outside. however, after a little more time and the sun went down, the disparate deep blue moonlight would bathe the whole night. ¡°you know what?¡± the emperor¡¯s voice broke through the sound of footsteps. ¡°what do you mean?¡± ¡°that you never once asked me to let go of your hand after i asked you to.¡± ¡°that is¡­ okay.¡± this was why she was afraid of the debt of her heart. but it was something worth paying for. she knew that what lescal did was not so simple. the words that she wanted to do the favor no matter what the risk was still making her heart tingle. ¡®i know it¡¯s for contact. still a bit¡­¡¯ maybe it¡¯s too friendly. was it necessary to be so kind? ¡°so i feel very good right now.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia missed her reply when lescal lowered his head abruptly. ¡°if there is anything i ask of you in the future, i hope you will always do it.¡± ¡°that¡­ all right.¡± ¡°you have to do it. definitely, definitely.¡± ¡°¡­¡± with that said, it sounded like asking for favors was rather patronizing. ¡®it¡¯s too strange.¡¯ the relationship between the empress and the emperor was too strange. she felt like everything she had been told was a lie. ¡®is it not just instincts that remain in a blue moon, but also emotions?¡¯ in any case, their exact relationship would be known after the blue moon was over. ¡°if i have a favor to ask of you, i will tell you without hesitation.¡± lasilia concealed her confusion with those words. the night came faster than expected. * * * ¡°tonight you will have to sleep in one room. as you know from what you went through yesterday, even if you reject his majesty, it¡¯s useless anyway.¡± ¡°i get it.¡± it was something she was determined to do. it would be useless to be in the same space since she wasn¡¯t the real one, but she couldn¡¯t avoid it. it wasn¡¯t that the mutation wasn¡¯t scary. however, she also knew that when the moonlight faded, the emperor would quickly return to his original body. she would only have to hold out somehow until dawn. besides, there was a corner to believe in one thing. perhaps because of his instinct toward her companion, the emperor did not harm her even when he underwent mutations. yesterday and today, too. the emperor, who had transformed into a demon, simply embraced the person he believed to be his companion. so tonight it would be alright. ¡°oh, um¡­ are you willing to accept it?¡± the one who panicked was ryan, who deliberately and coercively spoke to her. ¡°wasn¡¯t the sir in a position to criticize me for not fulfilling my role in the blue moon? why are you surprised?¡± ¡°i know, right¡­ it¡¯s time to get used to it, but it keeps surprising me. it must be because it is so different from before.¡± ¡°comparing things i can¡¯t remember is something i can¡¯t answer. deliver my answer to his majesty, and bring him to the empress¡¯ palace when the time is right.¡± ¡°i understand, her majesty the empress. then¡­ oh, one more thing.¡± ryan, who was about to turn his back and leave the bedroom of the empress¡¯ palace, turned her body around again. ¡°why did you go to the north tower? no matter how much i think about it, i don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything to see there.¡± she thought of the answer in advance in case someone asked. it was a little surprising that the person was ryan, not the emperor. ¡°when i have time, i look around the palace. i wonder if it will help bring back memories. i just came across the north tower by accident.¡± ¡°it was a coincidence, but why did so many guards never see his majesty?¡± ¡°that¡¯s their business, not mine to explain.¡± ¡°well, that¡¯s not wrong. we need to kill more guards, oh.¡± ryan, who seemed to think about something for a moment, asked again. ¡°i¡¯m asking just in case, do you still have the same impression of his majesty¡¯s appearance even if you look at his majesty¡¯s side during the day instead of at night?¡± ¡°why do you have to ask that?¡± ¡°i was just genuinely curious. night and day can be different, right? her majesty may have been very surprised when he suddenly broke down the door and entered.¡± it was not very comfortable to ask questions about people¡¯s appearance. to lasilia, who was accustomed to the silence and darkness of a room without a mirror, a person¡¯s appearance did not mean much. the moment to be seen was short and there was a lot of time to forget. ¡®in the case of that person, though, the memory lasts longer because it¡¯s so intense.¡¯ besides, today¡¯s day was better than last night¡¯s. probably because her bones didn¡¯t protrude, which made her look less painful. ¡°because it was daytime, there wasn¡¯t much variation. i¡¯m glad he suffered less.¡± ¡°ah¡­ i didn¡¯t expect you to say that. so you¡¯re saying you haven¡¯t changed your mind?¡± ¡°there is no reason to change. it¡¯s not like his majesty has changed just because he went through a mutation for a while.¡± the change in his appearance was nothing compared to the growing friendliness of him. ¡°it seems that his majesty¡¯s transformation has no effect on her majesty the empress. all right.¡± ryan lightly bent her back. ¡°then i will bring his majesty.¡± ryan closed the door and stepped out. alone and without the help of her maids of honor, lasilia, who had changed into her nightgown, opened the window and sat down on the single-use sofa underneath, gazing at the blue moon. her time at the imperial palace was risky, but there were also good points. because she could look out of the window at any time. * * * ¡°there is nothing special about the northern tower. not yet.¡± ¡°ah, that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°it¡¯s hard to believe, but the duke of shryden¡¯s story is true. the library manager confirmed it.¡± ¡°he had no doubts. it¡¯s just what the emperor would do.¡± ¡°in case you didn¡¯t know, i also investigated the court lady¡¯s background. her mother died when she was young, and her father also died in the army. she has two younger siblings and both are still minors. she is not in extreme poverty, but she is not in a position to refuse money either. and it has been confirmed that she worked at the imperial library.¡± ¡°oh, must have been a bookworm. so, she did everything she could to read something like the imperial records. haven¡¯t you read all the books in the library?¡± ¡°¡­¡± serben, who was in charge of escorting the empress, could not escape from the empress¡¯ palace. and ryan was on her way to the emperor¡¯s palace, humming her lightly now. after staring at ryan, who had no intention of stopping her steps, serben eventually stopped in front of her. ¡°wait, ryan.¡± ¡°why?¡± ¡°we have something to talk about. aren¡¯t you worried?¡± ¡°what is there to worry about?¡± ¡°what? does it make sense that her majesty the empress coincidentally happened to be alone with a court lady in the northern tower? of course not, what¡¯s going on? it¡¯s something she has to do away from your majesty and our eyes.¡± ryan clicked her tongue and shook her head. ¡°so what? what, you want to overturn everything that has already been done? his majesty will take good care of it.¡± ¡°no, even if his majesty is like that¡­ neither you nor i can do that. we should either keep an eye on that palace guard or something. i naturally thought you would bring it up first.¡± ¡°oh, did you?¡± then, without warning, ryan kicked serben in the shin. serben held onto his shin and held back the scream that was about to explode. ¡°ugh! why, kick it, yes. in words¡­ you can do it.¡± serben barely spit it out with arrogance. ¡°because you acted so stupid today. at times like this, if i hit you once, you¡¯ll come to your senses.¡± ¡°i, what?¡± ¡°tsk tsk¡­ that palace maid has now become a lady-in-waiting. as the daughter of the duke of shryden. don¡¯t you know what that means?¡± ¡°hmm?¡± serben let go of his shin and looked at ryan. ¡°didn¡¯t she just ask him to make her a lady-in-waiting?¡± ¡°right now, the maid of honor in the empress¡¯ palace is the marquis of fashad.¡± ¡°so?¡± ¡°what will the marquise look like when the duke¡¯s daughter suddenly appears? to say that she is her majesty¡¯s maid of honor is to say that she is number two in the social world. of course, all requests to her majesty have to go through the marquis fashad.¡± serben¡¯s expression changed. ¡°then?¡± ¡°if there is something suspicious about the daughter of the duke of shryden, the eight ladies-in-waiting will take care of it without us trying.¡± CH 25 25. sleepless night ¡°you are a genius, ryan! to think all that!¡± serben exclaimed excitedly. then she kicked him in the shin again. ¡°lower your voice before anyone hears.¡± ¡°no, sir, ah, it hurts¡­ ha, who listens? there is not a single person around.¡± ¡°it¡¯s not all about the people around. it is said that birds listen to daytime talk.¡± serben gripped his shins and groaned, then raised his eyebrows in amazement. ¡°if a bird hears it, what will happen?¡± ¡°it¡¯s going to tell her majesty the empress, well. then, sooner or later, the evil and insidious plan i concocted will go to nothing.¡± serben let go of his shin and touched ryan¡¯s shoulder. and he asked with a very serious face. ¡°ryan. are you not feeling well? i am very worried about you.¡± ¡°i¡¯m very fine and smart, so there¡¯s no need for that.¡± ¡°no, it might be your mistake. there is no bird in the world that can understand human speech and even gossip, you know that?¡± ryan laughed. ¡°brother. you seem to have a problem. did you say that even after seeing the duke of shryden?¡± ¡°no, that is an exception. so didn¡¯t duke brennan intend to inherit the title in the first place?¡± ¡°i thought that was very strange.¡± ¡°what?¡± ryan pulled on serben¡¯s ear lobe. serben made a face of him, but obediently leaned over and held his ear close to her. ¡°i keep getting caught by birds.¡± ¡°huh?¡± ¡°remember when i said i stole something from her majesty¡¯s bedroom?¡± ¡°that red stone?¡± ¡°huh.¡± ryan¡¯s expression became serious. serben also became serious along with his twin sister. ¡°remember when i said that the crow stole the stone?¡± ¡°i do.¡± ¡°when her majesty the empress disappeared earlier, i heard this came out while looking around her room.¡± ryan rummaged through her pockets and pulled out something from her. it was something smaller than an apple seed. ¡°what is this?¡± ¡°a piece of stone that i stole and the black bird stole again. it went back to her majesty.¡± ¡°hmm?¡± ¡°it was broken and fell to the floor. judging from the lack of the rest, it must have been accidentally spilled while cleaning it up.¡± ¡°is the stone broken?¡± ¡°it can¡¯t be. it wasn¡¯t a stone, could it be an egg?¡± serben shook his head. ¡°there are eggs that hard? stones and eggs have a different weight.¡± ¡°i know. but look at this. it¡¯s too thin to be called a piece of stone. it¡¯s too hard to call it an eggshell.¡± serben carefully swiped the small piece. ¡°that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°and where her majesty is, there must have been a bird.¡± ¡°why?¡± ryan, who packed the stone fragments again, continued her words by blowing air from her mouth into her bangs. ¡°isn¡¯t it too amazing to call it a coincidence? could it be that the crow brought the stone i stole back to her majesty? and look what the duke of shryden did today. he stepped up and helped at the most embarrassing moment. he even made her majesty feel uncomfortable by sticking close to her majesty without notice.¡± ¡°so what do you mean?¡± ¡°the birds seem to be helping her majesty. and it won¡¯t be just one or two.¡± serben touched his forehead. ¡°no, a little¡­ let¡¯s say the odd thing happened twice. but it¡¯s too much to think that way¡­ aren¡¯t you delusional?¡± ¡°first companion.¡± serben sighed. ¡°ryan, sometimes you are too fast. explain why the story suddenly jumps there.¡± ¡°isn¡¯t there a record that the first companion was always with the bird?¡± ¡°there is a record. a bird with fiery red feathers that never dies¡­¡± ¡°it was called ¡®king of the birds¡¯ by later humans.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°it¡¯s the king of birds. did that word come about for nothing?¡± serben let out a second sigh. ¡°who was the person who said he would give you as many parchments as the number of parchments in the book if you knew who made it a must-read for the royal guards by making it a must-read for the royal guard?¡± ¡°i believe now. because her majesty the empress is real.¡± ¡°¡­ ryan. again, i am still in a position to be cautious.¡± ¡°either that or not. see you later ¡¯cause i¡¯m right anyway, right? i¡¯m going.¡± ryan quickly moved her body and passed serben¡¯s side. ¡°oh, wait.¡± serben hurriedly stretched out his arm, but ryan passed serben¡¯s hand very smoothly. so he didn¡¯t block the road, he meant ryan stopped him. serben looked at the hallway where ryan disappeared and muttered something to himself. ¡°it¡¯s a problem even if it¡¯s not real, but it¡¯s a problem even if it¡¯s real. then his majesty will love her majesty terribly for the rest of his life, so what should i do?¡± at some point, the self-talk became a sigh. ¡°now, well, it might look okay. i don¡¯t know why, but she is pretending to have amnesia, so she is pretending to be someone else. but that evil and insidious nature isn¡¯t going anywhere. ryan, you are fooling yourself there.¡± so, in fact, he was almost fooled today too. the empress looked like a completely different person today. how could she try so hard to save a courtier¡¯s life? she was not at all like the usual empress. ¡°no, well, if she is conspiring something, of course you should, but¡­¡± well, if not. if it was just an ordinary court lady and the empress had really lost her memory¡­ ¡°¡­oh, that would be nice.¡± serben raised his head and let out his sigh. how nice it would be if the empress who lost her memory had become a completely different person. he then could live his whole life just praying that those memories would not return to her. * * * today, too, persson put all his efforts into the empress¡¯s palace with lescal decorated like a painting. dressing up like this at bedtime was actually against everything he thought. luggage was also brought to stay with the empress for twenty-four hours, but lescal went to the emperor¡¯s palace to dress up for her. he himself had a hard time figuring out why. he just wanted to show off his good side to the empress, and at the same time he didn¡¯t want her to notice the fact that he was trying hard to make himself look good. thanks to this, the attendants of the imperial palace, including persson, became busy as well. ¡°your majesty the empress. his majesty the emperor is here.¡± the guards who announced the emperor¡¯s visit opened the door. upon entering through this door, the fact that it doubled as a drawing room came out, and the room on the left was the bedroom of the empress. ¡°don¡¯t follow me.¡± lescal entered the room by himself. there were a few more things that made it hard to know why. when he saw the empress, he wanted to be alone with her. whether it was the royal guard or the big chick, it was annoying. fortunately for him, she had reduced the empress¡¯s ladies-in-waiting that accompanied her. empress cartagena wasn¡¯t like that from the beginning. immediately after she got married, she diligently went in and out of her emperor¡¯s palace for one reason or another. however, without lescal noticing, the empress changed her attitude. she shrewd, lied, and treated her face, surrounded by her eight-serving maids. he paid no attention, for at that time he had no interest in the empress. he didn¡¯t even wonder why the empress¡¯ attitude had changed. but now, he was curious about everything about the empress. he even wondered what kind of soap the empress used. he wondered if using the same soap would make his smell as good as the empress, and then he wondered if the empress would like the smell as much as he did. ¡°¡­ doesn¡¯t that mean you like her?¡± lescal, who had opened the door to the bedroom where the empress would be alone, stopped her and smiled. saying he liked her was too modest, considering his condition. the desire to stick his nose into her skin, swallow her until all the smell was gone, and keep her inside himself was not what he liked to say. he had no interest in normal human feelings, but he knew roughly what it meant to like. but his desires were different from those gentle, kind words. click. he stopped his thoughts and opened the door. ¡°¡­¡± he didn¡¯t ask if the empress came as she always did, with a calm face. she was asleep in the moonlight. ¡°¡­¡± lescal suppressed his breathing, which was about to become rough, and walked towards the empress. her skin, bathed in blue moonlight, was like fine ivory. her loose black hair drew beautiful waves across her shoulders and back. she was the first person he felt beautiful. she was that, but he had a hard time taking his eyes off her the first time he saw her. the black eyelashes were in the shape of a half moon, so he wanted to put his lips on them. the straight nose had a rounded tip. the lips beneath it seemed to quiver like a fragrant fruit he had never touched. ¡°¡­¡± lescal, who had been approaching the empress as if possessed, stopped his stride. he was not confident he would not touch anywhere. just as lasilia realized that she had to draw a line for the emperor, so lescal had noticed that there was a line she had drawn for himself as well for the empress. when he showed his instincts, which were not gentle and not amiable, the empress stiffened her body and retreated out of her line. even though the suddenly cold gaze and the words to let go now didn¡¯t seem like a big deal, it continued to leave small scratches. he wasn¡¯t supposed to do anything she didn¡¯t like. then she might end up hating him altogether. lescal was numb to his emotions, but his other senses were keen. with today¡¯s events, he had learned when the empress disliked him less. just as she kept holding his hand after accepting his request, he had to create an opportunity like that one by one. ¡°¡­¡± lescal, having finished his thoughts, approached the empress, mortifying his footsteps. he carefully picked the empress up and laid her on the bed. fortunately, the empress only wiggled her eyelashes and did not wake up. lescal sat under the bed and leaned his head against the bed. with his head resting in front of her head, he could clearly see the empress¡¯s face. even in the moonlight of the underworld, which made beings on earth look cold and dark, the empress was beautiful. feeling the demon blood squirming inside of him, lescal held his breath and looked at the empress. it was a sleepless night. CH 26 26. between instinct and emotion ¡°¡­mmm.¡± she slept deeply today. lasilia opened her eyes feeling refreshed after a long time. the sun was clear and the room was cozy. in a warm season like these days, she didn¡¯t turn off the fire in the fireplace, so she felt a little cold at dawn, but today it wasn¡¯t like that at all. the morning was surprisingly refreshing. lasilia stretched herself happily. then she noticed something shiny by her bed. ¡°hmm? what is that?¡± when she removed the blanket that was blocking her view, she could see the glitter properly. it was the emperor¡¯s blonde hair. ¡°¡­hmm?¡± that was to say, the emperor was sleeping with only his head resting on the edge of her bed while sitting on the floor. ¡°why¡­ ah, the blue moon.¡± they were supposed to sleep in the same room. lasilia naturally knew that she would watch over the emperor suffering from mutations with the shadow knights, just like the day before. but she herself waited for the emperor and she fell asleep first¡­ ¡®¡­is that why he just slept next to me?¡¯ it was something she didn¡¯t quite understand. yesterday, too, there was obviously a blue moon. lasilia moved her body silently as she drew closer to the emperor. there was no sign that his bones had sprouted and re-entered, and there was no bloodstain. she saw instead that he was impeccably dressed. with that outfit, she couldn¡¯t figure out why he was sitting on the floor in such an uncomfortable position. ¡®it¡¯s strange¡­¡¯ lasilia tilted her head. ¡®what happened while i was asleep?¡¯ so, the sleeping face was just beautiful. at first she was just looking for traces of last night, but now it¡¯s just aimlessly staring. ¡®¡­what is human?¡¯ as she looked at the emperor¡¯s face, she almost forgot how much time had passed. she laughed bitterly at the fact that even the prophetess herself was seduced by his beauty. ¡®at this rate, i¡¯ll forget why mirrors weren¡¯t allowed in the prophet¡¯s room.¡¯ it meant to be wary of what was visible. the eyes were gullible. the prophet had an obligation to see the truth beyond what was seen. ¡°¡­anyway, i have to get up.¡± the emperor was still in a deep sleep. she didn¡¯t know how long he¡¯s been doing that, but if he stayed like that, his body would hurt here and there. lasilia got down from her bed and pushed the emperor onto her shoulder. it didn¡¯t make sense for her to carry this physique by herself and lift him to bed, it was best to push. ¡°groan,¡± she did everything in her power, but it was impossible to lift the emperor into bed. lasilia, who quickly gave up her no-nonsense task, rather put the emperor on the floor. she took a pillow for him, put it under his head, and covered him with the blanket. at this point, she seemed to have done all she could. it was at this moment that lasilia turned her body, thinking that she would be changing from her pajamas to her underdress before her ladies-in-waiting arrived. ¡°it was less covered in blankets, this way.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± the emperor was looking at her with clear eyes, wondering when he fell asleep. tok, he made a sound by tapping the floor with the tips of his fingers protruding from the covers. ¡°¡­so?¡± ¡°i was afraid i might have to cover you again.¡± lasilia¡¯s eyes became a little frightened. ¡°so what?¡± ¡°then i didn¡¯t go.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­i don¡¯t like this.¡± the emperor raised his lying body. it was an appearance that could not be seen as someone who had been asleep so soundly that he would not even know if someone touched him just a moment ago. ¡°were you pretending to be asleep?¡± when lasilia asked in a voice with a drop in temperature, her golden eyes shook slightly. ¡°¡­a little.¡± ¡°what was the reason? were you going to watch me do something?¡± ¡°no, i didn¡¯t think of that.¡± when lasilia stood still with an expression asking if she would believe it, lescal hurriedly explained. ¡°it is true that i was sleeping. when you opened your eyes, i awoke too. however¡­¡± ¡°however?¡± ¡°because you keep looking at me.¡± ¡°is that why you pretended to be asleep?¡± ¡°i don¡¯t think you hate it.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± the emperor¡¯s answer was very surprising. lasilia was briefly surprised by the unexpected answer. ¡°you never looked at me like that when i was awake. you never covered me with a blanket or anything. so.¡± ¡°so¡­?¡± ¡°it was good.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia made an impression involuntarily. it wasn¡¯t because she hated it, it was because she was embarrassed. ¡®such a small thing¡­¡¯ it was unfamiliar to her that he pretended to sleep with his eyes closed because he loved such trivial things. she knew that the blue moon intensified his instinct to need a companion. she confirmed with her own eyes how desperately he needed the existence of his companion for the blood of the demons. ¡®but this¡­ it¡¯s different.¡¯ there was no room for emotions or intentions in that instinct. it was an instinct that literally could not be controlled. the emperor¡¯s words that he liked little things sounded a little different from blue moon¡¯s instinct. not knowing exactly how, how much, or why it was different, lasilia felt unnecessarily strange. ¡°yes¡­ that¡¯s right.¡± ¡°don¡¯t you hate it when you open your eyes and talk?¡± the emperor asked with a slightly stiff face. perhaps it was because she had heard that, but now that expression read that he was carefully examining his mood. ¡°¡­not necessarily.¡± lasilia tried to calm down the agitated feeling. she didn¡¯t know what it was, but it wasn¡¯t good for her to feel more than she needed for the emperor. ¡°what i hate is when your majesty makes difficult words or demands. there is no such thing as falling asleep.¡± ¡°tell me specifically.¡± ¡°it¡¯s like asking me to put the blanket back on you just now. since you are awake, isn¡¯t it something you can cover yourself with the blanket again? asking me to do that seemed like a deliberate attempt to annoy me.¡± ¡°absolutely not.¡± lescal quickly got up and stood in front of lasilia. it was an act that came out of a hurry, but it was very difficult for humans to properly understand his actions. lescal moved too quickly and without warning. the gold eyes were brilliant, but the expression was few. all humans saw was the expressionless face of lescal, who had suddenly approached her. ¡°i will never bother you. if you are suffering because of me, it means that i made a mistake without knowing it. when that happens, let me know. so, allow me to ask for your forgiveness.¡± ¡°¡­¡± and lasilia somehow felt like she had realized how to understand lescal¡¯s expression. she could see that he was misunderstood and nervous. ¡°then.¡± ¡°please do so. please let me know.¡± ¡°¡­all right.¡± lescal let out a small breath. it meant he was relieved. ¡°thank you in advance.¡± ¡®¡­it feel serious.¡¯ this time lasilia sighed. she wasn¡¯t feeling good. looking at his sleeping face and thinking he was beautiful, she was now reading his expression and accepting his feelings. ¡®you know that shouldn¡¯t be the case.¡¯ the outcome of the emperor and herself had already been decided. she herself was struggling to avoid that ending. if she understood each and every emotion like this, she would eventually love the emperor, and the emperor would kill her like that. ¡°looks like there was no mutation yesterday.¡± lascilia moved her feet back and turned her body around. ¡°ah¡­ come to think of it.¡± the emperor was also asleep, and it seemed that he had no idea how the night had passed. anyway, it was fortunate. didn¡¯t the fact that there were no mutations mean that the blue moon would soon be over? ¡°then may you go back to your room now? i will wash now.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the emperor slightly twitched his lips and looked this way. it was embarrassing to see him with an expression of regret. ¡°¡­that should be it.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty.¡± after a quick greeting from lascilia, she headed for her bathroom as if she were running away. the emperor¡¯s expression, which she could understand now, remained as an afterimage in her mind, which was very difficult. * * * ¡°your majesty the empress. today is the day of discipline.¡± she opened her mouth with the marquise of farshad standing behind her and her seven ladies-in-waiting like knights. the expression was unusual. perhaps it was because she was able to read the very small expressions the emperor showed, and the clear expressions like those of the marquise fashad were easily visible to the eyes. it was the expression that he was determined to do something. ¡°is it?¡± ¡°yes, her majesty the empress, stand this way. you better go to the bathroom before the smoke disappears.¡± the marquise, outwardly pretending to be extremely polite, bowed to her and beckoned her. ¡°i will help you undress.¡± but her purpose was blackmail. the marquise clearly knew that the empress was hiding the signs of her disappearance, so she deliberately called all of her ladies-in-waiting and prepared a situation in which she would take off her clothes. it was a provocation, wondering if she could reveal her secret so easily. ¡°oh, i didn¡¯t say that.¡± unintentionally, however, lasilia had prepared herself for the provocations of the marquise. ¡°what do you mean, her majesty?¡± ¡°from now on, the princess of shryden will attend my bath.¡± ¡°yes? what do you mean by that?¡± a blood clot stood on her neck at the bewildered marquise. ¡°the princess of shryden. is there such a person in the empress¡¯ palace? we have never even heard of that name.¡± ¡°she received his majesty¡¯s approval yesterday and was appointed as the lady-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace.¡± ¡°yesterday. how could you do that without saying a word¡­¡± the marquise¡¯s voice began to tremble. lasilia was obtuse with things like this, but the ladies-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace were microcosms and pinnacles of society. the influence of the empress¡¯s eight aides, among them the first lady-in-waiting, the marquis fashad, was enormous. it was natural for her to be shocked when a stone was suddenly rolled in the world of solid power they had built. ¡°should i tell you in advance about choosing who will serve on me? it couldn¡¯t be.¡± ¡°your majesty the empress. there are etiquette and customs in the palace.¡± ¡°are you saying you¡¯re going to discuss etiquette and customs in front of me?¡± lasilia put on a stern expression. she was in fact the one she had as a prophetess, but not too different from her empress. ¡°i don¡¯t know who the empress is.¡± the marquise¡¯s complexion turned pale. but here she was, the marquise had quite a lot to lose if she backed down. they knew the empress of cartagena all too well. ¡°ha-ha-ona¡­ how could someone else entrust such an important job as attending a bath? that should be my responsibility as the first lady-in-waiting.¡± unfortunately, lasilia was not the empress of cartagena. ¡°then the princess of shryden must be the first lady-in-waiting.¡± ¡°yes¡­? her majesty, how can you say such words so easily?¡± ¡°even if you look at your status, isn¡¯t that right? princess shryden is the only daughter of the duchy.¡± the marquise involuntarily raised her voice. ¡°what are you talking about! the duke of shryden, there is no such family in the empire!¡± lasilia grinned whether or not the marquise cursed her. it was because she heard a cute voice beeping from behind the bathroom door. ¡°come in, princess.¡± ¡°uh, uh¡­? yes? did you already know that i have arrived, your majesty the empress? then i will go in.¡± yvette, who hesitated for a moment as if embarrassed, opened the bathroom door and entered. ¡°greeting her majesty,¡± she said. ¡°it¡¯s a very, very good morning!¡± ¡°beep!¡± the ladies-in-waiting saw yvette entering the bathroom and were astonished. ¡°you¡­!¡± CH 27 27. the great flood ¡°nonsense! a court lady is a lady-in-waiting!¡± the ladies-in-waiting were furious. it was natural. the ladies-in-waiting had never considered themselves to be of the same type as the palace servants. users were closer to consumables such as candles and curtains. when candle came one day and said that she would take the position of first maid, it was like a great flood that turned the whole world upside down. ¡°ah, you remember i was a court lady. you must be curious, i thought you didn¡¯t know anything about the palace face.¡± yvette was not at all discouraged even among the angry ladies-in-waiting. she was actually gritty. but she was prepared that there would be a backlash. besides, she was not the last maid, but the first maid, so even if her marquise hired her shaman and cursed herself, it would be understandable to her. strangely though, she was not afraid. maybe it¡¯s because she went through a series of very strange things yesterday. the king of birds and the empress, the being that the king protects, are on my side, so i wondered what the problem was. and yvette trusted the empress. the scariest being in the empire was the emperor. it was the same because he was an emperor, and the fact that he had demon blood mixed. even the emperor couldn¡¯t beat her empress. so, in fact, the most terrifying person in the empire had to be the empress. that made yvette very proud. ¡°what are you talking about!¡± when yvette calmly said what she had to say, the marquise burst out. lasilia looked at the marquis. ¡°that¡¯s rude. saying it to the princess of the duchy. your status has changed, so be careful from now on.¡± when the empress came out like this, the marquise was ready to grab her by the neck. ¡°woe, her majesty! where the hell is this happening! how can a court lady become a princess of a duchy!¡± ¡°the duke of shrydon adopted the princess. it was a formal adoption granted by his majesty.¡± ¡°who the hell is the duke of shryden! there is no such name in the empire!¡± ¡°you keep doubting my words, but that rudeness is forgiven once because of the time you spent by my side. if you¡¯re curious about the duke of shrydon, how about taking a look at the history of the empire? i will allow the end, so for the time being, stay at the marquis¡¯s residence and focus on reading. while the words have been spoken, you may leave the palace now.¡± the marquise of farshad¡¯s body trembled. ¡°your majesty the empress. how can you do this to me¡­ you can¡¯t do this to me. you can¡¯t just throw me away like this¡­¡± ¡°it wasn¡¯t abandoned, you were allowed to rest. i wonder why you keep twisting my words. are you doing this on purpose?¡± ¡°empress lungs¡­¡± the marquise, whose complexion had turned pale, looked as if she would collapse at any moment. the other ladies-in-waiting around her looked at lasilia and the marquise, unable to do anything about it. ¡°look out. as i said, there is no need to return to the palace until you read the history of the empire.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia turned her back on the speechless marquise and turned to the other ladies-in-waiting. ¡°starting today, my attendant will be the princess of shryden, who became the first lady-in-waiting. this is her first time playing the maid role, so there may be some immaturity. i hope you will wholeheartedly help her with her princess work. please convey my words to all the courtiers of the empress¡¯ palace.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the ladies-in-waiting rolled their eyes and said nothing. ¡°has anyone heard me?¡± when lasilia asked again, she only then heard a reply that was as big as a mosquito. ¡°yes, yes¡­ i understand, her majesty the empress.¡± lasilia nodded her head once. ¡°then i will take a bath now. it¡¯s fine for everyone to leave except for the princess of shryden.¡± ¡°yes, her majesty.¡± with that, it seemed that the great flood that had begun in the morning had come to an end. * * * fortunately, the underdress she wore today had buttons in the front. she could put on and take off as many times as she wanted. after lasilia, undressing, entered the bathtub, yvette entered her. ¡°beep!¡± pippi was also there. pippi popped out of yvette¡¯s hand and sat on racilia¡¯s shoulder wrapped in her towel. ¡°are you okay? it must be wet and slippery.¡± when lasilia asked while looking at her pipi, pipi shook its head. ¡°beep.¡± rubbing her unfeathered head against her skin meant that he had missed her all night yesterday. lasilia laughed and patted pippy¡¯s head. ¡°hold on for one more day. the blue moon sets tomorrow.¡± ¡°beep¡­¡± pippi was too childish. just like anyone ¡°but why discipline, her majesty? this will take a long time, so it would be better to do it at night.¡± yvette asked, gently fanning the wood fire to keep the smoke from extinguishing. ¡°it was not my will.¡± ¡°oh, then?¡± ¡°it seems that mrs. farshad wanted something.¡± ¡°um, no¡­ what could it be?¡± it must have been to give her a sense of danger that she had to take off her clothes in front of the ladies-in-waiting, but thanks to yvette, she was able to pass it on without any problems. but she couldn¡¯t say that to yvette. ¡®because it could become a problem later.¡¯ if it is known that yvette knew about the mark and that she participated in hiding it, yvette too could not escape punishment. perhaps she didn¡¯t know if it would affect the duke of shryden as well. she shouldn¡¯t have had that happen. ¡°well¡­ in any case, you won¡¯t feel good about me, so i¡¯m thinking of reducing the number of customers for the time being. i¡¯ll have to wear an underdress with buttons in the front. the same goes for pajamas.¡± ¡°ah, don¡¯t worry, sir. i will make sure there is nothing lacking, your majesty the empress.¡± it was something she wanted to avoid. ¡°leave me to wear the underwear. because it is more comfortable.¡± ¡°ah¡­ i understand, her majesty the empress.¡± yvette shut her mouth and fanned hard again. then she ate the smoke and coughed. although she became the first lady-in-waiting, even in lasilia¡¯s eyes, yvette was closer to the court lady. it was a pity that she smoked, so she got into the bathtub, but now it occurred to her that she didn¡¯t have to. ¡°i will stop now.¡± ¡°what, yes? her majesty the empress?¡± ¡°go out first and prepare the clothes you will wear today. i¡¯ll dry myself off and put on my underwear.¡± ¡°it would be cumbersome to do it alone. i will help.¡± ¡°no. then it will take more time. not only me, but your majesty¡¯s mealtime will be late as well.¡± ¡°ah, i guess. i will follow your wishes, her majesty.¡± yvette hurriedly got up and left the bathroom. then, as lasilia lifted herself from the bathtub, pipi covered his face with his wings, and he turned away. ¡°beep!¡± ¡°oh, did the water splash?¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°ah, you suddenly got up and panicked? okay. from now on, i will talk and move.¡± it was ridiculous for her to act like a human to a new subject born yesterday, and he was also a little cute. ¡°you will grow up quickly.¡± pipi¡¯s wings covered his eyes while racilia wiped her dry with a towel. ¡°i wonder what he will look like when he grows up.¡± ¡°beep!¡± when he becomes an adult, he becomes jaw-droppingly gorgeous, she says, swaying her hips proudly with pipi turned on her back. ¡°i know, red bird. i think that would be really cool.¡± ¡°beep!¡± but she wouldn¡¯t be able to see it herself. because pipi would have to find his place before he grows up. with such regret, lasilia stroked pippi¡¯s head. pippi flapped his wings, telling her to get dressed quickly. * * * breakfast was served in the dining room of the empress¡¯ palace. usually, breakfast was eaten simply in the office or bedroom while watching the morning routine, but after the emperor moved to the empress¡¯ palace, it somehow became a routine that could not be neglected. covered silver dishes filled the table. the table was half flowers and half food. the flickering candles in the silver candlesticks in the morning were burdensome. the most burdensome thing was the emperor sitting next to her. since it was the empress¡¯ palace, the seat of honor seemed to belong to the empress. the emperor sat to her right. it was said to be a seat next to her, but it was a seat where his face could be seen directly if she turned her head slightly to the side. the emperor, who made the mood agitated by saying that it was good in the morning, lit up the table with a uniquely more dazzling outfit. after one look at the emperor¡¯s face, the glittering silverware gave the illusion that the luster had died. ¡°the lady-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace is late.¡± serben spoke softly. if it was a normal meal, the shadow knight wouldn¡¯t open his mouth. however, the first lady-in-waiting, who was supposed to stand by the empress, wipe her hands and mouth with a napkin, and teach her food order, was nowhere to be seen. persson, the chamberlain of the imperial palace, who had been hardening his expression a moment ago, stepped out. ¡°i¡¯ll have to call another lady-in-waiting, your majesty the empress.¡± again, if it was the same meal as usual, persson wouldn¡¯t even step out. however, persson was slowly getting angry at the emperor¡¯s breakfast being delayed because of the lady-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace. lasilia had noticed that too. ¡°today is the first day of being sealed as a lady-in-waiting, so the work seems cumbersome. however, i can¡¯t make his majesty wait any longer, so it¡¯s best to start eating as it is. is that all right, your majesty?¡± ¡°it¡¯s okay to wait longer.¡± as if he had been waiting for lescal, he replied without hesitation. then he put his hand out on the table. ¡°if you don¡¯t want another lady-in-waiting, you can postpone the meal as much as you like.¡± ¡°thank you, but you don¡¯t have to. the food will get cold too¡­ but why are you holding out your hand?¡± ¡°make it easier to hold hands.¡± ¡°¡­ yes?¡± lescal let out a brief breath as lasilia tilted her head. lasilia could now recognize that it was the emperor¡¯s nervous expression. ¡°if i do you a favor, you¡¯ll let me hold your hand.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± except for lescal, everyone else in the restaurant had similar expressions. in particular, serben¡¯s expression was pitiful. ¡°no. you don¡¯t have to wait any longer. i can eat like this.¡± ¡°without an attendant?¡± ¡°just because i lost my memory doesn¡¯t mean i forgot how to eat.¡± ¡°then.¡± lescal raised one eyebrow and strangely averted his gaze. it was a look of disappointment. ¡°¡­then i will pour you water to wash your hands.¡± anyway, we had to eat. with his white-gloved hand, persson poured water from the silver jug into lescal¡¯s water bowl. lescal put his hand in the bowl of water and snapped his fingers, then persson picked up a thick white napkin and wiped his hands dry. ¡°pour water for washing with the empress.¡± ¡°ah, i understand.¡± persson went round the table to the other side of the table from lescal¡¯s, and poured water into the water bowl from lasilia¡¯s left. she imitated lescal¡¯s routine and wiped her hands, and lescal quickly stood up and snatched the napkin from persson¡¯s forearm. ¡°because there is no one to wipe you.¡± ¡°¡­yes, your majesty?¡± it was not difficult to grasp the emperor¡¯s intentions as he held a napkin and glared at his eyes. anyone other than lasilia could have known. ¡°i have to.¡± ¡°¡­then please.¡± it was tiring to refuse every little thing like this. if she refused, the emperor would come with another one. she¡¯d rather be comfortable accepting the little things that were acceptable, and rejecting the things that came next. lescal wrapped a napkin around lasilia¡¯s wet hand. then, more than necessary, he began to dry each finger very carefully. he seemed to be fiddling with his fingers rather than wiping off the water, but since lescal was the emperor, no one would openly say such a thing. ¡°with this, i have granted your request once more.¡± ¡®it¡¯s not like that, it feels like i¡¯ve been asked¡­¡¯ ¡°so next time i can hold your hand.¡± ¡°¡­¡± that was while she was thinking about how to respond. ¡°sorry for the delay, her majesty!¡± yvette let out a rough breath and entered the dining room. CH 28 28. nobility (1) ¡°i apologize, her majesty. to think that the two of you were delayed because of me¡­ ah, i really didn¡¯t expect this¡­¡± yvette turned pale at the sight of the still unopened silverware. it seemed that he would either fall down or fall down while weeping. but a bigger problem than yvette¡¯s being late for dinner was yvette¡¯s appearance now. ¡°what the hell happened?¡± lasilia asked with a hard face. yvette¡¯s clothes were dirty with soot everywhere. it was even more pity that there were traces of washing to try to wipe off the soot. ¡°that¡¯s it, her majesty¡­¡± yvette was speechless. instead, she moved her eyebrows vigorously. she looked like she couldn¡¯t figure out how to say it. ¡°princess of shryden. you would know that trying to save your words would be useless. please keep in mind that there are other places where i can ask you a question and answer.¡± she said that if she didn¡¯t answer properly, she would ask pippi. yvette quickly recognized the words and barely nodded. ¡°ah¡­ that¡¯s right. yes, that¡¯s it¡­¡± there was an accident on the way. from the railing overhead yvette descended the stairs, a barrel to scrape up the ash from the fireplace suddenly fell. it was covered with ashes in an instant, so she couldn¡¯t see who did it. but it was obvious. the ladies-in-waiting must have made up their mind to act properly. there would be plenty of grumps disguised as accidents like this in the future. it was something to watch out for in the future. yvette, who had a tough personality, knew very well that she was now the first lady-in-waiting in the empress¡¯ palace. from the time she was born, she couldn¡¯t fight with noble ladies-in-waiting, but at least she thought of finding a way to deal with the courtiers. that was fine, but there were other things that weren¡¯t really good. ¡°because my clothes are so dirty more than anything else¡­ i serve meals, but i couldn¡¯t come because i was covered in soot¡­ it¡¯s so upsetting¡­¡± tears welled up in yvette¡¯s round eyes. lasilia let out a light sigh. ¡°it is my fault. it wasn¡¯t enough that she let mrs. farshad out of the palace.¡± yvette jerked her head. ¡°no, what are you talking about! how could that be her majesty¡¯s fault! please stop saying that. this happened because i was inexperienced and immature! i will do well in the future, your majesty the empress!¡± ¡°no. those who were territorial towards you were also people of the empress¡¯ palace. so it means that i didn¡¯t handle the people around me very well. serving meals is fine, so the princess should change her clothes and come. what happened to the princess today will be covered later.¡± ¡°that is¡­ i apologize, her majesty the empress. i apologize.¡± yvette straightened her back, her weeping face. serben made a slightly sad face. ¡°the two of you have been very late with your meal¡­ keuheum, so why don¡¯t you move away for now, keuheum. great.¡± persson subtly instructed yvette to leave. the reason she dropped her words uncharacteristically was because of her shabby appearance, which was not seen as the first lady-in-waiting. no matter how she looked at her clothes, accessories, or way of speaking, she did not look like a noblewoman, but since the empress called her a princess, it was difficult to either exalt her words or demean her. ¡°ah¡­ i really don¡¯t know what to do. i will go out. i am sorry, i am sorry.¡± yvette left her dining hall. lasilia spoke to lescal with a not very bright face. ¡°i must apologize for interrupting the meal due to the empress¡¯ palace people. eat now.¡± ¡°it¡¯s okay if it¡¯s late.¡± come to think of it, lescal was still washing lasilia¡¯s hands. her skin was already dry, so now he just wrapped a napkin around her hand and fiddled with it. ¡°it¡¯s marketable.¡± ¡°not at all.¡± ¡°¡­i say it is.¡± ¡°ah.¡± lescal slowly let go of her lasilia¡¯s hand. sing that as a signal, persson opened the lids of the silver dishes one after another with a moderate movement. the opened lids were placed on a large silver tray and passed on to the other attendant waiting outside the door. ¡°i¡¯ve been thinking about it since yesterday.¡± lescal held up his fork and knife and gestured at a dish with his chin. persson swiftly cuts a roast venison thigh elegantly and places it on lescal¡¯s plate. lescal cut it in half and placed it on lasilia¡¯s plate. it was so natural that it was hard to believe that the emperor and empress had been sitting next to each other every day for a meal. ¡°i think it¡¯s a lie that you lost your memory.¡± ¡­click. the tip of lasilia¡¯s fork brushed the edge of the plate, making a small noise. it wasn¡¯t well marked, but the name of the noise was tension. ¡°¡­why do you say that?¡± ¡°i don¡¯t mean that you are lying. rather than losing your memory¡­ i meant that you became a completely different person.¡± ¡°¡­¡± she almost missed the fork. ¡°so good.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°i said it¡¯s marketable, so it¡¯ll cost a lot.¡± lescal continued to serve this dish and that dish to lasilia¡¯s plate. he seemed oblivious to the fact that the food on her plate was cooling down as he watched what kind of dishes lasilia was eating well. ¡°¡­thank you, i hope his majesty will eat it soon.¡± ¡°if you want.¡± it seemed friendly, but on the other hand, an embarrassing meal continued. * * * ¡°ryan.¡± serben approached ryan, who was sitting at the window of the corridor outside the dining room of the empress¡¯ palace and touching his leg. ryan muttered, turning her head to look at him. ¡°i¡¯m glad i didn¡¯t have a knife.¡± ¡°you knew me long ago.¡± ¡°ah, there are a few people with the same pace as you.¡± serben wrinkled his brow. ¡°what? to the royal guard?¡± ¡°huh. a few guys have improved quite a bit lately. don¡¯t be careless.¡± ¡°shit. i thought i was next to you¡­ oh, anyway. did you just hear?¡± ¡°hmm? what?¡± ryan narrowed her eyes. she thought that serben would be more distressed if he heard that several members of the guards had followed him, but unexpectedly, he wanted to talk about something else first. ¡°just before. what happened at the dinning hall.¡± ¡°you mean the lady-in-waiting was late?¡± ¡°other maids said they spilled ashes on their clothes. but does she know what her majesty said?¡± ¡°um¡­ could she have noticed the dirty and evil plan to appoint the court lady as her maid?¡± ¡°no. i don¡¯t think so.¡± ¡°then why are you asking?¡± ¡°she said it was her fault.¡± ryan made a puzzled expression. ¡°¡­hmm? what?¡± ¡°she said it was because she didn¡¯t handle the people under she well¡­ crazy, does that make sense?¡± ryan¡¯s mouth fell open. ¡°i know. it¡¯s really crazy.¡± ¡°no matter how much she pretends to lose her memory¡­ can you act like everyone else that much?¡± ryan thought, then shook her head. ¡°well¡­ i really don¡¯t know. i had always intended to welcome her majesty the empress if she had made up her mind to become someone else. but this isn¡¯t just about making up her mind, it¡¯s just like a different person, isn¡¯t she?¡± ¡°i do think so. i really have no idea what it is.¡± serben sighed. ¡°besides, seeing the lady-in-waiting suffer like that doesn¡¯t make me feel very good.¡± ¡°¡­damn it, that¡¯s right. so the insidious and evil side is rather like us.¡± when ryan grumbled, serben straightened up. ¡°let¡¯s be honest, sister. it¡¯s not us, it¡¯s you alone. because my sister came up with it.¡± ¡°shut up, brother. who was it that encouraged you to be a genius?¡± ¡°the vicious and despicable idea of turning a court lady into a lady-in-waiting came entirely from your head.¡± ¡°noisy.¡± ryan scratched the back of her head. ¡°well, i guess i¡¯ll have to keep an eye on it so it doesn¡¯t get too bad. because i don¡¯t want her to get hurt.¡± ¡°i know.¡± ¡°is your older brother staying at the empress¡¯ palace for the time being? good job. well, the maids of the empress¡¯ palace won¡¯t be easy though.¡± ¡°¡­can you resent me for calling you a genius?¡± ¡°oh, that is different. it is true that the idea was genius. in any case, we need to make sure that princess shyden isn¡¯t plotting something with her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°take care.¡± ryan tapped serben on the shoulder. serben sighed. * * * ¡®he thinks i¡¯m pretending.¡¯ lasilia rubbed her aching stomach and returned to her room. the longer the meal went on, the more the emperor became unusual. he asked if it would be good if she took a bite of it, if it was good, if she wanted to eat more, and if he thought she would nod, he quickly brought the food. later, he even asked if it was not bothersome to cut. instead, it was not enough to slice it, so she was busy refusing it because he was ready to put it in her mouth. there was no reason for yvette to come in the first place. she felt like she was fed up with being served a meal by the emperor. ¡®from now on, i will say that i will eat alone¡­ no, i don¡¯t think i did this last time.¡¯ the reason why the emperor was different could all be explained by the blue moon. lasilia took a deep breath. ¡®just one more day to wait. just one day.¡¯ it was fortunate that after breakfast, requests for an audience with the emperor came in line. the emperor had planned to cancel all the audience today, but the imperial secretary looked like he was going to cry, so lasilia actively intervened and told him to do what he had to do. thanks to that, she was able to get away from the emperor for a while. as she watched the emperor head toward the throne room, the imperial secretary was repeatedly surprised that his majesty¡¯s pace was originally so slow, but she didn¡¯t want to pay attention to that. ¡®just one day.¡¯ from then on, she really intended to avoid having the emperor stick around her, even if it meant feigning illness. it was the moment when she entered the truth with serben accompanying her with such thoughts. ¡°shh.¡± when the guards tried to open the door, serben stopped them. ¡°¡­?¡± laslia looked at serben. serben quietly opened the door on behalf of the guards and spoke in a very low voice. ¡°i hear a sound from inside. it would be good for you to listen.¡± ¡°ah¡­¡± as serben said, sharp voices were going back and forth as if they were fighting a war of nerves inside the room. ¡°¡­it¡¯s ridiculous to be the princess of the duke of shyden.¡± ¡°did you see her? do you think she can become the first lady-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace with her outfit like that? she will become a disgrace to her majesty.¡± ¡°the reason why nobles are nobles is that they have the dignity appropriate to their status. not knowing the subject is the opposite of decency. that¡¯s what we call vulgar.¡± ¡°if you have even a little bit of a thinking head, step back on your own. before you get really bad.¡± yvette¡¯s reply was not heard. it seemed he couldn¡¯t say a word. ¡°¡­right.¡± lasilia clenched her fists. ¡°thanks. if it wasn¡¯t for the wonder, i wouldn¡¯t have known.¡± ¡°you are welcome.¡± serben tried to hide the pricked expression on his conscience. ¡°then what are you going to do now?¡± lasilia laughed coldly. she didn¡¯t know anyone here, but she was angry. ¡°since you talked about the dignity of a noble, you should try to have it.¡± CH 29 29. nobility (2) ¡°your majesty the empress. are you here?¡± when lasilia entered the room, the ladies-in-waiting quickly changed their expressions. if she hadn¡¯t listened to the conversation outside the door beforehand, she wouldn¡¯t have known what had happened. ¡°why are you gathering like this?¡± in fact, after lasilia woke up in the body of the empress, the position of the ladies-in-waiting became quite ambiguous. the empress of cartagena was always accompanied by her ladies-in-waiting. the eight aristocratic women who followed her on both sides were a means to make her stand out and a symbol of power at the same time. the ladies-in-waiting of the empress¡¯ palace were no different from the empress, and they were very accustomed to roaming around the palace without hesitation and behaving carelessly. however, after the empress claimed that she had lost her memory, their circumstances changed completely. the empress did not visit her maids except when she was wearing her clothes, and her maids spent more time sitting idly in the empty rooms of the empress¡¯ palace. since there was so little to do, their job was to sip tea and eat different types of snacks. as a result, everyone gained weight little by little. how long couldn¡¯t it be like this? but they were too afraid to tell their displeasure openly to the empress. just this morning the marquis of fashad¡¯s liver trying to take out her grievances got her kicked out of the palace. as a result, the only thing he could do was to catch a relatively easygoing princess who didn¡¯t even look like a princess from whom she came from. ¡°did you enjoy your meal?¡± ¡°i heard that your majesty looked forward to a meal with the two of you very much.¡± instead of being greeted by courtiers, lasilia looked at yvette. yvette must have thought that she hadn¡¯t played her role from the first day, so her complexion was dark beyond words. ¡°¡­she would have instructed princess shyrden to change her clothes.¡± yvette was still in her soiled clothes. yvette caught her breath and lowered her head. ¡°i apologize, her majesty. to change my clothes, i had to leave the palace¡­¡± unlike the ladies-in-waiting, whose baggage and servants each brought from their family resided at the palace, yvette, the court lady, went home once every two days. ¡®this is really my mistake.¡¯ lasilia hadn¡¯t thought of that before. however, the empress of cartagena probably did not know that either. yvette was in a state where only her identity had changed. nothing that that status could have was given. even so, it would have been too conscienceless to hope that she would safely carry out her role as the first lady-in-waiting. ¡°if you allow me, i will go immediately.¡± ¡°that would be great, your majesty the empress.¡± oddly enough, one of the ladies-in-waiting, an aristocratic wife, stepped in to help. she wouldn¡¯t do it for nothing. ¡®because my eyes can¡¯t reach outside the palace. it might be easier to bully.¡¯ in the worst case, yvette might never return to the palace. ¡°no, there is no need for that. if it¡¯s a problem that you don¡¯t have clothes to change into, wear mine.¡± then there was an uproar. ¡°yes? yes, her majesty the empress? yes?¡± she didn¡¯t understand what she was talking about since yvette. the other ladies-in-waiting raised her voice with blood vessels in their necks as if they hadn¡¯t been careful of her words. ¡°no, her majesty the empress!¡± ¡°how can anyone wear royal clothes! absolutely not someone from different blood!¡± ¡°it made no sense for a court lady to become her lady-in-waiting!¡± perhaps the ladies-in-waiting also guessed that the empress was different from usual after she lost her memory. so she could have raised her voice without fear. however, it was only her style that was different, and lasilia was not a more relaxed character than cartagena. she would rather be a strict prophet than a capricious empress. ¡°let¡¯s talk more.¡± compared to the excited ladies-in-waiting, lasilia¡¯s voice was very small. but that little voice was like cold water that drenched her skin. ¡°if it is the dignity of an aristocrat to speak loud enough to make your ears hurt in front of me, the empress.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± in an instant, the inside actually became quiet. lasilia calmly looked at the maids who hadn¡¯t even gotten to know her face properly. she didn¡¯t have anyone in particular that caught her eye. she probably resembled the marquis de parshad. she still asked just in case. ¡°among them, will she be of any help to his majesty¡¯s companion in the future?¡± ¡°yes?¡± yvette widened her eyes. but she wasn¡¯t asking yvette. ¡°beep!¡± the answer came from the back of yvette¡¯s head. yvette, who was thick, always kept her hair up so as not to be cumbersome, and pipi seemed to be hiding somewhere in her thick hair. he said no such thing. then she didn¡¯t care anymore. ¡°princess of shryden.¡± ¡°yes-yes?¡± ¡°did you read the imperial etiquette book?¡± ¡°yes? alas, yes! i have read it.¡± ¡°good. wasn¡¯t there an example in the etiquette book that the empress shouldn¡¯t give the duke¡¯s daughter her clothes?¡± ¡°um¡­ no, her majesty the empress. there was no such thing. quite the contrary. it is a great honor for the imperial family to bestow clothes, and in that case, she said it was polite to wear the same clothes every time you interact with the imperial family.¡± ¡°then my ladies-in-waiting are saying that i misbehaved. did you use my memory loss as an excuse to make me an ill-mannered empress?¡± the maids¡¯ complexions changed. ¡°your majesty the empress¡­ that¡¯s too¡­ these are harsh words. we just¡­¡± ¡°just?¡± ¡°just¡­ this had never happened before in the empress¡¯ palace¡­¡± ¡°if it¡¯s not against the rules, why does that matter?¡± ¡°that is¡­¡± one of the ladies-in-waiting shouted as she folded the fan in her hand. ¡°i don¡¯t think there¡¯s ever been a case of a court lady becoming the maid of honor, your majesty.¡± ¡°there must have been no case where a duke¡¯s daughter became a court lady, is not it?¡± ¡°that¡­¡± immediately, their mouths were closed. ¡°if you know their ignorance, go and pick out clothes for the princess to wear.¡± ¡°your majesty the empress. how could you do that to us¡­¡± lasilia¡¯s expression grew colder. ¡°it is your job to follow my will. if you¡¯re not there to play and eat in the imperial palace, you guys have to do your part as well as the princess of shryden.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the ladies-in-waiting contorted their faces as if they were about to cry. ¡°bring the clothes.¡± the answer came very barely. ¡°¡­yes, her majesty the empress.¡± * * * ¡°well, then¡­ no, it¡¯s a very grateful and honored thing for you to embrace me¡­ but if you treat the ladies-in-waiting that way¡­ no, that¡¯s not to say i¡¯m going to be presumptuous¡­ still, they¡¯re her majesty¡¯s ladies-in-waiting¡­¡± muttered yvette in a hoarse voice. ¡°i¡¯m really fine¡­ it is said that i became the first lady-in-waiting, but that is a matter of status, and shouldn¡¯t i do my job with all my heart as i have been doing so far? no one will see me as a duke¡¯s daughter anyway, um¡­¡± ¡°princess of shryden.¡± ¡°yes, her majesty. no, i think the tittle is too much. it would make me feel more comfortable if you just called my name.¡± ¡°this must have happened since i decided to have myprincess as my lady-in-waiting. don¡¯t mind. isn¡¯t that the case?¡± ¡°no, your majesty. the ladies-in-waiting are all from families that are said to¡­ i heard that all of that is her majesty¡¯s strength. if things go wrong with the ladies-in-waiting¡­¡± if so, there was a reason to distance herself from the existing ladies-in-waiting. the empress would change anyway. the emperor had to find his true partner within a year and welcome her as the empress. the fact that the power of the previous empress remained in the palace was of no help to the new empress. pippi was right. yvette was a boon to a real companion. the fact that the existing powers of the empress¡¯ palace would be changed due to yvette would also be included in that beneficial aspect. ¡°that is something i have to deal with. i¡¯ll say it again, it¡¯s none of the princess¡¯s concern.¡± ¡°your majesty the empress¡­¡± yvette couldn¡¯t say anything more, her eyes welling up in tears. she must have felt that she was taking unnecessary risks for her own sake. she wanted to tell her it wasn¡¯t like that, but she couldn¡¯t correct it because it was a secret that she was a fake partner. ¡°is the princess¡¯s figure similar to mine? she must be well-fitting.¡± ¡°huh, what are you talking about! her majesty the empress is taller than me, and she is so slender!¡± ¡°what if the clothes don¡¯t fit?¡± ¡°oh, you don¡¯t have to worry about that! i¡¯ll fix it even if i stay up all night! i am really good at sewing!¡± she was always a woman of many talents. ¡°then i¡¯m glad¡­ oh, what about pippi? it seems to be hiding in your hair, that¡¯s right?¡± ¡°yes! i wonder if the inside of my hair feels like a nest. he sleeps well there.¡± ¡°looking at how quiet it is, it looks like it¡¯s still asleep.¡± ¡°i think so, her majesty.¡± while yvette smiled brightly at lasilia for no reason, her maids picked out her clothes. * * * ¡°i don¡¯t really like it.¡± in addition to bringing her clothes, the ladies-in-waiting had to wait on yvette to change her clothes. it was immediately apparent that everyone was grinding their teeth. a bigger problem than that was the clothes. of course, the ladies-in-waiting were courtiers and did not do anything harsh, but the red dress yvette was wearing seemed too uncomfortable to move. her clothes, which exposed her shoulders and upper chest, made for her impossible to lift her arms. ¡°your majesty empress haona, this outfit seemed most appropriate to you.¡± of course it would be a lie. it was obvious that they had done her best to choose clothes that yvette had never worn before and that were so uncomfortable. yvette was struggling to put on a dress that looked like it would flow down if she moved her body a little too vigorously. ¡°princess shryden has green eyes and brown hair. red doesn¡¯t suit her.¡± in fact, she was well-suited. but she couldn¡¯t say that she got along well with anyone when lasilia spoke harshly. ¡°that, yes¡­ is that so.¡± ¡°i can¡¯t trust your eyes. bring all the clothes, i will choose them myself.¡± ¡°yes, her majesty?¡± ¡°i already told you.¡± ¡°¡­¡± instead of answering, the ladies-in-waiting only exchanged glances. ¡°go now. don¡¯t make me wait. aren¡¯t you guys repeating the same thing over and over again because you can¡¯t understand what i¡¯m saying? i¡¯m starting to be a bit upset now.¡± ¡°¡­ah, i see. her majesty the empress.¡± the ladies-in-waiting left for the dressing room with tears in their eyes. because of the empress who directly said she was displeased, they didn¡¯t even have the courage to use their courtiers instead. it took half a day to move all the clothes in the dressing room. the clothes with rich skirts and colorful decorations were quite heavy, so they couldn¡¯t move several at once. besides, they had to be careful not to drag her clothes on the floor, so it was inevitable that it would take longer. lasilia gave half of the clothes to yvette. the ladies-in-waiting, who suddenly suffered from muscle pain from carrying and cleaning clothes for half a day, had no energy left to resist. translator note: i will be 2 weeks out (in a family travel) so don¡¯t worry because this story won¡¯t be dropped but during 2 weeks there won¡¯t be any new release. sorry!! CH 30 30. menescullen ellinkier bayard pipi the maids were given the punishment of having to read all ten books of etiquette. the reason there were ten volumes of books of etiquette was because etiquette continued to change in minor ways during the long history of the empire, but that was none of lasilia¡¯s business. like the marchioness parshad, he was not allowed to enter the palace until he finished reading. the empress¡¯s palace, where eight maids-in-waiting and the servants they brought with them, left like the tide, became quiet for the first time in a while. ¡°i don¡¯t know if that¡¯s really okay.¡± after swallowing a sip of cooled tea water, yvette opened her mouth. the reason the tea got cold was because yvette couldn¡¯t lift the tea cup because she was constantly shaking it with her hands. having tea alone with the empress was a privilege that only the first maid could enjoy. even that didn¡¯t happen often. yvette was crying as she held the teacup several times and felt like she was going to drop it at any moment. it was only after her tea had cooled down that she barely stopped shaking her hands. the expression on her face just before drinking tea was even solemn. anyway, when she drank it, it was tea. of course, the paper-thin teacup was incredibly expensive, and the tea was soft and fragrant without any bitterness even when it cooled, so it was like a dream, but it was still tea. all she had to do was drink it. ¡°will i be able to fill the empty space while the maids are away? i think i can do it well, but it also seems like a bit too arrogant¡­ oh, i really don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°beep!¡± pipi, who was sitting on lasilia¡¯s palm and eating the stewed cherries on the cake, screamed. ¡°pifi says don¡¯t worry. it¡¯s a deal that can be done well.¡± in fact, it was a bit harsher than that, but lasilia rephrased her words appropriately. yvette opened her eyes wide. ¡°how does pipi know that? it¡¯s a little bird that¡¯s just been born, right? no, of course it¡¯s a huge leak.¡± ¡°beep!¡± pipi shook her head left and right. ¡°oh, you seem angry¡­ did i say something wrong?¡± ¡°hmm¡­ looks like i made a mistake, not you. i guess he doesn¡¯t like the name pipi.¡± he said she didn¡¯t like it when even yvette called him pipi. ¡°ah¡­ but. he is the king of birds, but the name pipi seems too babyish.¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°then should i change the name? would that be better?¡± ¡°phee.¡± pipi gave a slightly ambiguous answer. he said it needed to be rebuilt, but it was okay to call it pipi. ¡°hmm¡­ you say you don¡¯t like pipi, so why don¡¯t you need another name?¡± ¡°beep.¡± ¡°because pipi is no match for the king of birds. yes, but?¡± ¡°phee pee.¡± ¡°oh, should i call you that? why only me?¡± ¡°phee¡­¡± pipi gathered his little wings and twisted them. he seemed somewhat embarrassed. ¡°what are you ashamed of?¡± ¡°beep!¡± when lasilia did not understand, she lost her temper this time. pipi, who had his eyes wide open, instead of responding, went down to the cake plate and pecked at the cake passionately. ¡°that¡¯s so bloody¡­ it seems like pipi really likes her majesty the empress.¡± he said he didn¡¯t like the name pipi, so they carefully added ¡®nim¡¯ after it. ¡°beep!¡± even while pipi was eating the cake, he reacted sensitively. ¡°i guess i¡¯ll have to come up with a new name.¡± yvette suddenly stood up at lasilia¡¯s words. ¡°shall i bring the naming convention? or even a chronicle? the names of all the nobles of all time are listed there.¡± ¡°if that¡¯s the case, don¡¯t you already know?¡± ¡°ah¡­! yes.¡± yvette sat down again. ¡°beep?¡± two people and a bird put their heads together and began to think about a name. after about two hours, pipi finally received the long name menuscullen ellinkier bayar pipi. * * * ¡°then, ren, can i call you this from now on?¡± as she added ¡°nim,¡± the honorifics naturally followed. pipi seemed to like it even more and raised his head proudly. ¡°beep.¡± ¡°huh. he said that would be good.¡± yvette smiled broadly. ¡°what a relief. he likes the new name.¡± ¡°beep beep. beep.¡± pipi flapped his wings as if he was in a good mood. ¡°uh?¡± ¡°hmm?¡± then his small body floated in the air. ¡°ren! you¡¯re flying!¡± ¡°it¡¯s already flying¡­ isn¡¯t it too fast?¡± ¡°i know, right. it¡¯s not even three days since you were born.¡± pipi, who had been floating about thirty centimeters from the tea table and fluttering for a while, sat down on the cake plate again, panting. ¡°blood, blood¡­¡± ¡°he said he was tired.¡± ¡°oh, then would you like some water?¡± yvette, who was quick-witted, poured water into the empty bowl. pipi pecked lasilia¡¯s hand. it meant asking for water. ¡°you rascal. i thought i could drink it alone.¡± lasilia chuckled, placing pipi in her palm and tilting her bowl of water to her mouth. it was then. ¡°phee?¡± suddenly pipi jerked his head up. at the same time, the voices of the royal guard rang out. ¡°your majesty the emperor is eating!¡± ¡°oh.¡± the panic was quick. lasilia took pipi and placed it in her sugar jar and closed the lid. it would be best to have him inside yvette¡¯s hair, but if she hurriedly hide it now, she wasn¡¯t confident that he wouldn¡¯t ruin yvette¡¯s hairstyle. ¡°are you here?¡± ¡°greeting your majesty the emperor.¡± the emperor, who had been dealing with nobles, palace officials, and ministers of state in the throne room all day, walked towards them, looking somewhat exhausted. ¡°do you remember that i have a chance to hold your hand?¡± needless to say, it happened this morning. ¡°yes. i know.¡± ¡°i have to use it now. it¡¯s a waste.¡± ¡°i see.¡± it was an opportunity that lescal forced his way into, but she just decided to give her hand. anyway, it was a blue moon. lasilia held out her hand. instead of taking her hand, lescal said the same thing again. ¡°it¡¯s such a waste.¡± so what should she do? ¡°¡­then take it later.¡± ¡°no, i have to take it now.¡± ¡°then take it.¡± ¡°¡­such a waste.¡± she wasn¡¯t sure what was a waste, but it was clear from the look on his face that he was regretting something. anyway, lescal took her hand. at first, he held her fingertips, then he lowered his head and breathed into her palm. ¡°what¡­ are you doing?¡± she felt somehow uncomfortable and a little embarrassed. as lasilia twisted her hand, lescal retorted softly, pressing his lips to her palm. ¡°because it¡¯s strange.¡± ¡°which one?¡± ¡°i smell a smell that isn¡¯t yours.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°it¡¯s a familiar smell, but it doesn¡¯t feel very good.¡± ¡°¡­¡± it was yvette whose complexion turned pale at those words. ¡°so, i¡¯m sorry. because i was not able to assist her majesty the empress well¡­ shall i bring water to wash up?¡± lasilia and lescal spoke almost at the same time. ¡°no. fine,¡± ¡°that would be nice.¡± ¡°ah¡­?¡± yvette, embarrassed, froze. lasilia glanced at lescal once and eventually nodded her head. ¡°then bring it.¡± ¡°yes, yes. your majesty the empress.¡± yvette turned on her heel and hurried out. thanks to serven and liyan, who had already left the scene together, in fact, only the emperor and empress were left. ¡°¡­i didn¡¯t know my hands smelled.¡± as lasilia sat down on the single-seat sofa where she was originally sitting, lescal casually sat on the armrest. he was firmly holding on to the lie that they had originally sat next to each other before she lost her memory. still, she was concerned about her smell, so she tried to smell herself a little. there seemed to be a faint scent of tea or cookies, but that was it. ¡°my sense of smell is different from that of ordinary humans.¡± lescal tilted his head to the side and rested his head slightly. ¡°are you saying it smells like something other than cookies or tea?¡± ¡°yes. it smells like something alive.¡± ¡­she was sure he was not talking about pipi. lasilia held her gaze as it almost went to her sugar jar. ¡°then it must be yvette¡¯s scent.¡± ¡°no. it doesn¡¯t even smell like the princess.¡± then she guessed he really meant pipi¡­ ¡°that¡¯s strange. i didn¡¯t really deal with people other than the maids.¡± ¡°simply being around people doesn¡¯t leave a smell. this means that it was touched directly by hand.¡± ¡­that¡¯s sharp. ¡°isn¡¯t the seat uncomfortable? if you want, i can move you to a larger chair.¡± lasilia turned her chair. lescal held lasilia¡¯s hand and looked into her eyes. ¡°is it here now?¡± at that moment her heart sank. ¡°¡­yes? what do you mean?¡± ¡°is that thing you touched with your hands here?¡± ¡°¡­¡± she had to say no. however, it seemed that the emperor¡¯s golden eyes would never be able to tell a lie. it was then. ¡°beep!¡± puck! pipi jumped out, hitting his head on the lid of the sugar jar. ¡°beep! beep!¡± pipi flew in and landed on the back of lasilia¡¯s hand, making a threatening noise towards lescal. ¡°pipi! phee!¡± ¡°this¡­¡± his golden eyes narrowed as he looked at pipi. lasilia held pipi in her hands as if to hide it. ¡°the bird¡­ i picked it up. it seems his mother abandoned him.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°it seems like it¡¯s following me well, so i think i¡¯ll keep it by my side¡­ at least until the mother appears.¡± that is, until pipi¡¯s real companion, the owner, appears. ¡°¡­if you want, i can¡¯t object.¡± lescal answered slowly, saying he really didn¡¯t like it. ¡°i don¡¯t like it, though.¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± pipi also stood up and said, ¡°it¡¯s her general.¡± lescal wrinkled his eyebrows as if he was dumbfounded. ¡°he is not afraid because he hasn¡¯t grown up yet.¡± ¡°ah¡­?¡± lasilia flinched as if she understood pipi¡¯s words. ¡°beep! beep!¡± she accepted, saying that pipi would grow up soon. lescal waved his hand in annoyance. ¡°tell me when he is all grown up.¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± pipi flapped his wings and said, ¡°you really need to learn how to sit on a chair.¡± meanwhile, lasilia closed her mouth. ¡°¡­¡± she was sure. lescal was listening to what pipi was saying. ¡®because it¡¯s a demon bird¡­ of course it is.¡¯ there was one more thing to be careful about. she felt a little resentful of pipi, who broke the lid of the sugar jar and ran out. ¡®i have no choice but to pretend not to understand what fifi is saying.¡¯ lasilia changed the topic. ¡°isn¡¯t the bird so cute? i feel like i¡¯m already practicing. when it grows up, it will become a strong bird that can fly very far.¡± ¡°not really. i know that when he grows up, his temper will get dirty.¡± ¡°beep!¡± it looked like pipi was about to say something harsh to him, so she patted him on the head to tell him to stop. ¡°his personality will become more gentle in the future.¡± ¡°i hope so.¡± lescal took his hand stroking pipi. pipi got annoyed, but lescal didn¡¯t even blink. he buried his lips on the back of his hand and asked softly in a whisper. ¡°it¡¯s a blue moon today too. do you know?¡± ¡°yes.¡± ¡°that¡¯s why i¡¯d like to get permission in advance.¡± ¡°what permission do you mean?¡± the feeling of his lips tickling the back of her hand continued to take her nerves away. at this rate, it seemed like no matter what the emperor said, she would just answer yes. ¡°can i sleep in the bed today?¡± CH 31 rjr11-14 minutes 17.09.2023 yesterday, he slept on the floor because he couldn¡¯t ask for permission in advance. lescal emphasized twice that he was the one who first carried the sleeping lasilia to her bed. so, she couldn¡¯t help but notice that if he apologized, he meant to let him sleep next to her in the bed. pipi said he was a shameless person and instead he got annoyed. judging from the fact that he calmly slept on the floor, he wasn¡¯t the type of person to ignore his promise to sleep with someone after she regained her memories. even though she knew this, she felt a bit nervous for some reason. ¡®but today is the last day.¡¯ she just hoped that the emperor would return to his usual ways from tomorrow. ¡°shall we stop brushing, your majesty?¡± asked yvette, who had put on her pajamas and finished the final task of brushing his hair. his long hair was smooth enough. ¡°okay. good work.¡± ¡°oh my. what are you saying? it¡¯s something i should do.¡± yvette was busy all day. in addition to taking care of the little things, she had to organize the empty seats of the maids and talk to the courtiers. the courtiers were still bewildered by the series of events that had occurred. it was only natural that all the maids who told her to do this and that had disappeared. yvette cleverly changed the tasks and areas that the courtiers were responsible for. he left the courtiers scrambling for a day as they were forced to do something they were not used to doing instead of their usual job. in the meantime, the courtiers will realize that the empress¡¯s palace has changed, and they will also adapt to the new system without maids. so far, the idea seemed to be working well. it was really fortunate that there were no courtiers who were friendly with the maids who acted arrogantly as if they were one with the empress. of course, there would be backlash against yvette, whose status suddenly changed one day, but it would not be as strong as that of her maids. lasilia placed her hand on the back of yvette¡¯s hand. ¡°besides that, if anything else is difficult, let me know. i didn¡¯t make you my maid to make you go through difficult times.¡± ¡°of course, your majesty! how could you think like that? but so far it¡¯s really good. just today, none of the maids were there, but there was no problem.¡± ¡°okay. i know you are doing well. but if you need anything else, don¡¯t hesitate to tell me.¡± ¡°you even brought my younger siblings into the palace and shared a room with me. you also gave me so many precious clothes. what else could i need? i am just grateful and honored, your majesty.¡± she could tell just by looking at her expression that yvette was sincere. ¡°beep.¡± pipi flew out of nowhere onto her sleepy face. she flew around a bit during the day and whined about being tired, but in the evening she started flying around her room freely. if this continued, he might have turned into an adult in the blink of an eye. ¡°ren, i think you want to stop sleeping¡­ oh, by the way, your majesty knew about her, right? isn¡¯t there any trouble though?¡± when yvette asked, lasilia frowned slightly. ¡°maybe so.¡± ¡°huh, that¡¯s it. then is there anything i can do for you?¡± she had to be. but lasilia did not want to keep inserting yvette into her own secrets. the less she knew, the safer yvette was. ¡°for now, just pretend you don¡¯t know that pipi knows how to speak her language.¡± ¡°ah¡­? why¡­ no, no. i will follow you, your majesty.¡± everyone knew that yvette was the empress¡¯s companion, but she probably wondered why she had to hide that fact. but she didn¡¯t ask that far. what she meant was that she would accept anything rasilia told her to do. ¡°thank you.¡± ¡°yes? no, what are you talking about? i am very sorry, your majesty.¡± after the final brushing, everything was ready for bed. now all that was left was to wait for the emperor. * * * ¡°what can i say¡­ it¡¯s really quiet.¡± ryan spoke softly from behind lescal, who was heading towards the empress¡¯ palace. the reason the throne room was so crowded today like a market place was because of the aftermath of what happened in the empress¡¯ palace. it all started with the marquis of parshad. he was furious over the fact that his wife, who was the first maid in the empress¡¯s palace, was kicked out of the palace on her first day. if it had been a normal rescall, it was something she wouldn¡¯t have heard. however, lescal listened to the marquis¡¯ ridiculous accusations until the end. it wasn¡¯t because he suddenly became interested in the ins and outs of the palace, but because it was related to the empress. meanwhile, the fathers and husbands of the other maids who had been kicked out came to visit the throne room one after another. if the minister of state and the palace guard had not stamped their feet, saying that they had more urgent state affairs to attend to, the door to the throne room might have been torn off. ¡°the emperor¡¯s palace was in such chaos.¡± ¡°thank goodness the empress was able to live quietly.¡± ryan laughed softly. if courting was what lescal was doing, he was doing it really well. looking at lescal¡¯s words and actions, there was no doubt that he was sincere towards the empress. the empress was a true companion. she could tell that lescal was sincere about her. the question was what the empress was hiding by saying her memory loss. ¡°doesn¡¯t what lord parshad said bother you?¡± just before the palace guard ordered the guards to pull him out, marquis parshad left meaningful words. he said that there was a separate reason why the empress kicked his wife out of the palace with her ridiculous excuse. he said that his wife had accidentally discovered a secret her empress had been keeping from her, and that she had let it out to silence her. she said it would be a terribly dangerous and dirty secret. she also said that the only person who knew was her wife. at the same time, he revealed that he did not know what the secret was. ¡°maybe it¡¯s true. if she has such a secret, doesn¡¯t that explain why her majesty suddenly suffered from amnesia?¡± ¡°perhaps.¡± lescal was annoyed. ¡°and yet you won¡¯t take any action?¡± ¡°she, the empress, is my companion, and she is by my side. what else should i care about?¡± ¡°umm, that¡¯s¡­ in fact, the empress knows nothing about his majesty. even though she is his majesty¡¯s companion, she has been avoiding sleeping with him all this while, and what her intentions are. i cannot guarantee that there was no intention over the past four years.¡± ¡°it¡¯s intentional¡­ the empress deliberately avoids sleeping together, and then what? do you want to see me completely transform into a demon?¡± according to common sense, it made no sense. the fall of the emperor was the same as that of the empress. if lescal became a demon, cartagena¡¯s future could not be guaranteed. ¡°of course, i know this is nonsense. but her majesty the empress is a person who makes no sense. even if it were just a possibility, her majesty could have joined hands with a seditious force like saint malik.¡± ¡°that doesn¡¯t make sense.¡± ¡°why are you so sure?¡± ¡°because the phoenix was born.¡± ¡°phoenix¡­ yes?¡± ryan blinked. ¡°phoenix¡­ you say? so, that,¡± ¡°a part of my heart that i gave to my companion. the fact that it was born means that both sides were united. as you know, the phoenix has never been reborn. when the first companion died, the phoenix also disappeared. it was the only time the phoenix existed in the empire.¡± ¡°yes. according to the record, yes, but¡­ have you seen the phoenix?¡± ¡°the empress took it with her.¡± ¡°yes? but serven didn¡¯t know?¡± ¡°it haven¡¯t grown up yet. it¡¯s as big as your thumb. i think she was hiding it.¡± ¡°ah¡­ no matter how much it is, you don¡¯t notice it. tsk.¡± perhaps that piece of red stone was an eggshell. he stole it, so the birds would be upset. ryan reflected on his immature behavior for a moment. if she had kept the egg in her pocket, thinking it was a stone, the phoenix might not have been born. ¡°if the phoenix is born, there will be no more doubts. ¡°then what exactly did lord parshad say?¡± ¡°unless you lied to me, it would be true that the empress was hiding something.¡± ¡°however, your majesty is saying that since her majesty the empress is your true companion, it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± lescal nodded his head. ¡°i have no intention of letting the empress out of my sight. no matter what the empress¡¯s feelings are, she cannot leave me.¡± ¡°aha¡­ okay.¡± ryan scratched the back of his neck, feeling a little scared. since the blood of a demon is talking about the companion of one¡¯s destiny, it would naturally be different from an ordinary human, but it might have been difficult for an ordinary human to accept it. ¡°i know the empress might hate me now.¡± lescal, who was walking a few more steps, suddenly blurted out these words. ryan seemed to have caught her thoughts and scratched the back of her neck with her embarrassed face. ¡°oh, you won¡¯t like it. i told you the reason before.¡± ¡°because i¡¯m sure she doesn¡¯t feel the same way as me¡­ but in the end, the empress will also like me.¡± ryan looked at lescal¡¯s expression. a faint smile that was difficult to distinguish from an expressionless expression was revealed. ¡°is that because the phoenix was born?¡± ¡°that¡¯s right.¡± ryan laughed as if imitating lescal. ¡°then i guess i should thank you. what does the phoenix like, your majesty? i think i should at least offer some snacks.¡± ¡°that¡¯s enough.¡± lescal¡¯s smile disappeared as if it had washed away. that wasn¡¯t all, he even frowned as if he was displeased. ¡°there is no need to be nice to it too. even if you don¡¯t, it¡¯s arrogant.¡± ¡°uh, um? that¡¯s a bit¡­ it sounds like his majesty hates the phoenix¡­¡± ¡°no.¡± lescal said clearly. ¡°oh my. isn¡¯t the phoenix the one that connects you two?¡± ¡°no. it must be a part of me. to protect my companion when i¡¯m not around.¡± ¡°but you don¡¯t like it?¡± ¡°i have no choice but to let it go. it¡¯s not because i¡¯m willing.¡± ¡°aha.¡± ryan realized why lescal hated the phoenix. ¡®it must be homophobic.¡¯ the phoenix, which was said to have grown less, was probably behaving the same way as lescal. however, since he appears to be a small and cute bird, the empress would not stay away from the phoenix. he was different from lescal. ¡®you might feel like your place has been taken away.¡¯ ryan giggled inwardly. the name of that feeling of dislike would be jealousy. * * * and today, when he finally got to sleep in the same bed with the empress, his jealousy reached its peak. ¡°beep!¡± the empress, dressed in pajamas, opened the bedroom door. lescal understood what it meant to be nervous down to his very last hair. he took off his outer clothes, unable to breathe, and put on the gown persson gave him. he couldn¡¯t even remember how he walked to the bed. ¡°i¡¯m going to turn off the lights.¡± persson turned off the bedroom light and left, leaving behind a long, polite but now useless greeting. blue moonlight filled the bedroom where only the two of them were left. it felt like his whole body was made of stone, and it also felt like he was floating on the water. he couldn¡¯t breathe properly, his lungs were hurting. ¡°it looks like it¡¯s going to be a long night.¡± the empress whispered in a low voice. rescal, clutching his heart as if it were about to burst, tried to ask if he could possibly hold her hand. it was then. ¡°beep!¡± a young, cocky bird flew in and burrowed into the empress¡¯s palm as if showing off. CH 32 rjr11-13 minutes 24.09.2023 ¡°what are you doing?¡± lescal said to pipi. the voice was small, almost like a whisper, but it was somehow ominous. maybe it was because the moonlight was so blue. this was probably because the golden eyes stand out more clearly against the blue moonlight background. ¡°beep.¡± lasilia was a little scared, but pipi was rather calm. he pressed his body against her palm as if showing off and said he would sleep like this. ¡°why you? get out now.¡± lescal¡¯s white teeth were revealed. pipi turned his pack head and looked at lasilia. ¡°beep. pii.¡± pipi was complaining in his sleep. he asked her to stroke his head until he fell asleep. ¡®i think he¡¯s doing this on purpose¡­¡¯ she didn¡¯t know why, but pipi hated the emperor. it was the same for the emperor. ¡°can¡¯t you hear me telling you to turn off?¡± ¡°beepp!¡± lescal extended his hand towards pipi. her mouth opened of its own accord. ¡°your majesty!¡± ¡°¡­?¡± lescal hesitated. ¡°that¡¯s too much for a small bird.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lescal frowned. ¡°it¡¯s not excessive at all.¡± ¡°it seems excessive.¡± ¡°why?¡± lescal was very serious. ¡°because pipi is small. he doesn¡¯t take up much space, so there¡¯s no reason to kick him out. even if three people sleep, there will be plenty of bed.¡± ¡°it¡¯s not a seat issue.¡± ¡°then what¡¯s the problem?¡± ¡°if it¡¯s doing that¡­¡± lescal twitched his lips. ¡°if there is?¡± lescal¡¯s eyes glanced towards lasilia¡¯s hand, where pipi was leaning against his body. ¡°¡­i cannot hold your hand.¡± ¡°ah¡­¡± ¡­why did he want to hold her hand while she slept? lasilia wrinkled the bridge of her nose without realizing it. ¡°if it¡¯s a hand, i believe it was held during the day. did you still have more appointments left?¡± ¡°¡­no. it¡¯s not like that.¡± ¡°then it doesn¡¯t matter.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the thoughts inside the gold head rolled slowly in a circle. lasilia didn¡¯t know it, but that meant that lescal was desperately trying to think of a reason why he could hold her hand. ¡°no, there might be.¡± if it exists, it exists. what did it mean that it might exist? she looked at lescal blankly, as if asking lasilia to continue. ¡°so, if i grant your request¡­ ah, i called the imperial tailor.¡± ¡°yes? i have never asked for a tailor.¡± ¡°i heard the closet was half empty.¡± she didn¡¯t know that every little detail like that would reach the emperor¡¯s ears. ¡°even though that happened, i still have too many clothes.¡± ¡°then i can¡¯t hold hands?¡± again, the emperor was very serious despite saying such strange things. he was a little funny at first, but now she didn¡¯t even thought about it. it seemed like the seriousness had spread like a cold. ¡°¡­phew, no.¡± in the end, she lost to seriousness. giving yvette clothes she couldn¡¯t even wear wasn¡¯t a big deal, but the fact that the emperor found out about it and called a tailor made her heart itch a little. ¡®¡­although he definitely ask for something in return.¡¯ however, if the price of replenishing the closet was holding hands for one night, it was so simple that it felt mean to refuse. ¡°then let¡¯s do it this way. this hand belongs to your majesty, and this hand belongs to pipi.¡± ¡°pipi?¡± ¡°beep!¡± lasilia was actually surprised because they both reacted in completely different ways. ¡°did you give him a name? his name is pipi?¡± ¡°beep! pipipit!¡± neither of them seemed to be in a very good mood. pipi emphasized several times that his name was not just pipi, but a longer, fancier name, and that only lasilia could call him pipi. she couldn¡¯t figure out why the emperor was in a bad mood. ¡°name¡­ it¡¯s a name.¡± lescal frowned at her, touched her temple, and then opened his mouth again. ¡°call me by my name too.¡± ¡°yes¡­?¡± ¡°beep!¡± the emperor, who called the bird by its name and asked that it be treated like a bird, and the bird, who was fiercely opposed to this, could not understand either of them. ¡°is there anyone who calls you by your first name?¡± ¡°not now.¡± ¡°yes. isn¡¯t that because it shouldn¡¯t be done?¡± ¡°you are okay.¡± ¡°no. it¡¯s not okay.¡± ¡°you¡¯re all okay.¡± ¡°¡­¡± it was strange. her itchy heart has now calmed down. she didn¡¯t really know what it meant that everything was okay, but her heart just figured it out and became heavy alone. ¡®why do i feel this way? ¡­it¡¯s uncomfortable.¡¯ lasilia subtly averted her gaze. ¡°i¡¯ll think about it.¡± ¡°why?¡± ¡°i¡¯m still unfamiliar with your majesty. i don¡¯t think we¡¯re honest enough to call each other names.¡± ¡°if not yet, does that mean it will happen later?¡± ¡°i can¡¯t tell you that much. i don¡¯t know either.¡± ¡°why do you say you don¡¯t know? you even gave the bird a name.¡± ¡°because a bird is a bird.¡± ¡°what¡¯s different?¡± ¡°how can a bird and your majesty be the same? and i wish i could just sleep. i¡¯m worried that other people won¡¯t be able to sleep because we¡¯re noisy.¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± pipi flapped his wings noisily. he was just saying, ¡®stop talking nonsense and go to sleep.¡¯ ¡°¡­then let¡¯s give in today by holding hands.¡± what did this mean? lescal took lasilia¡¯s hand and squeezed it. pipi fluffed up his short feathers, which were no different from her downy, and showed his frustration. lescal glanced at her pipi and then placed his lips on the back of lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡°if it¡¯s not the time yet, i¡¯ll wait. the day you call my name.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia bit her lip, feeling the feeling of her lips gently covering the back of her hand. ¡®oh, please¡­ i hope you don¡¯t do this.¡¯ he thought it would be better to just hug her and press his lips against her. because he just had to push that away. rather, when the emperor was as polite and considerate as he was now, it was more difficult for lasilia to respond. ¡®just¡­ i guess it was unexpected. that¡¯s it.¡¯ lasilia forced herself to recall a brief dream she had had on the day she died. the pain of the knife being inserted into her chest and the blood flowing, and without a single ounce of pity, she recalled the emperor¡¯s cold golden interior. ¡®do not forget. if i fall in love with this person, i will die.¡¯ lasilia tried to sound calm. ¡°i just want to sleep. because i¡¯m tired.¡± ¡°as you wish.¡± the emperor let go of her hand that seemed like he would never let go of her and placed a pillow under her head while lasilia looked at him puzzled. ¡°ah¡­ thank you.¡± ¡°you¡¯re welcome.¡± he pulled her blanket up to under her chin and lay down next to lasilia. ¡°beep. beep-beep.¡± pipi continued to struggle with sleep. lasilia counted her time as she gently stroked pipi¡¯s soft head. the emperor took her hand, which was covered by her blanket, and squeezed it. the feeling of lying next to her while holding her hand and letting her sleep was very strange. lasilia had a nightmare that day. to say she was a nightmare, she wasn¡¯t that different from reality. it was a dream where she was in the middle, and demons and birds with red feathers were fighting in front of her and behind her. what was different from reality was that the fight between the two was not just an argument. when the red bird caws, the whole surrounding area is on fire. when the demon moved his hand, a blade-like wind rose and cut the flames. for some reason, he didn¡¯t get hurt at all. but it was a pretty bloody dream of hers, so lasilia groaned all night long. * * * ¡°good morning, your majesty. did you sleep well?¡± the morning started with a refreshing greeting from yvette. lasilia turned to see yvette pulling back the curtains of her bed, her strangely weary face showing. ¡°no. i¡¯ve been dreaming for too long.¡± ¡°well. what kind of dream was it?¡± ¡°¡­it wasn¡¯t a good dream.¡± lasilia shook her shoulders as she still felt like she was standing in the middle of a fireworks and a typhoon. then she suddenly realized that she was sleeping alone in her bed. ¡°what about pipi?¡± ¡°ah, ren, he is with the duke.¡± ¡°lord shryden? from morning?¡± ¡°yes. they both have business to attend to together.¡± it was said that pipi and the emperor woke up at dawn. the reason was unknown, but it was said that pipi had been making noise since that time, so the emperor took pipi out of the bedroom. the two seemed to be arguing about something, and then pipi went to see duke shryden. the emperor received the message and returned to the imperial palace. it was said that shadow knight liyan sigress took the emperor away with a serious look. ¡°so something like that happened and i didn¡¯t know?¡± lasilia could not hide her curiosity. the prophet¡¯s room was a stiflingly dark and quiet place. having lived in such places all her life, lasilia had a keen natural ear. she was a prophet, and when revelations from god came down to her, she was prone to falling asleep anywhere, so it was easy for her to wake up. she couldn¡¯t believe that she had fallen into a deep sleep without even noticing that the people who had been sleeping next to her had disappeared one by one in the early morning. ¡°because the bedroom was quiet. besides, if you¡¯ve had a long nightmare, it¡¯s easy to not wake up.¡± what did it mean that the bedroom was quiet? for some reason, it reminded her of the emperor who mercilessly snatched pipi and carried him outside when he was patting him while he was sleeping. ¡°¡­let¡¯s do it like that.¡± lasilia decided to stop thinking about what happened while she was asleep. even if the emperor acted as he had thought, it was meaningless. ¡°so, your majesty said that you would not be able to have breakfast with us today. he was very disappointed.¡± it was a good thing. lasilia rolled up the blanket and got up. ¡°what time is it? did i oversleep?¡± ¡°no, your majesty. you opened your eyes at the hour when you always woke up.¡± ¡°thank goodness. i want to wash my face.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty. we have prepared water. come this way.¡± yvette gently placed the slippers at her feet. * * * ¡°one more news has arrived.¡± serven handed out a secret letter to lescal with a stern expression. it was the second letter following the first one that came early in the morning. it was rare for messages to arrive every few hours. it meant that something unusual was happening. the place where the secret letter was sent was the secret intelligence gathering knights belonging to the imperial guard. although they were systematically part of the royal guard, few people knew the identity of this order. their role was to collect and report information that could be helpful or threatening to the imperial family from all over the empire. just as the emperor¡¯s guardian knights were nicknamed the shadow knights, the unknown ones also had the nickname silver shield. ¡°what are they saying this time?¡± ryan, who was sitting on the window sill instead of rolling around on the office floor like usual, quickly approached her. the first secret letter that woke serven up from his early morning sleep was that a priest belonging to the temple of harios had secretly visited marquis parshad. the second secret letter was what happened next. ¡°it is said that the marquis and his wife rode in a carriage. it looks like we¡¯re heading towards the temple of harios.¡± lescal frowned, and ryan¡¯s temples were filled with blood. ¡°what is that¡­? ¡­you mean that marquis farshad snatched it from the temple as soon as he spoke about her majesty¡¯s secret?¡± CH 33 rjr11-14 minutes 01.10.2023 after the temple of harios allowed the knights of saint malik to join the holy knights, the temple became the subject of surveillance. it was a long time ago that the demons and priests, the roots of the imperial family, once fought a war. the temple was incorporated into the empire with the founding of eliadan and has lived quietly enjoying the prosperity of the empire since then. there have been minor rebellions within the empire, but the temple has never been at the forefront. the temple seemed to have forgotten its long past and easily joined the reign of the empire. however, they suddenly accepted suspicious groups such as the knights of st. malik. it was necessary to watch carefully what this meant, whether it was now suddenly going to break up a long-standing friendly relationship. ¡°crazy guys. are you trying to defraud the marquis of her majesty¡¯s secrets? no, what if you live like that? what are you going to do with that?¡± no matter how much she thought about it, the intention was very suspicious and scandalous. the empress¡¯s secret could be something great, or on the contrary, it could be nothing special. either way, trying to pry it out of the temple caused outrage. ¡°the use will vary depending on what kind of secret it is. but it doesn¡¯t change the fact that the purpose is to carry out a trick against the imperial family.¡± ¡°huh. so, i¡¯m getting fever.¡± ryan wiggled her fingers as if holding her sword. ¡°shall we go and cut off some of their hair, your majesty? either the marquis¡¯ or the minister¡¯s.¡± lescal, who was continuing his thoughts, raised his eyebrows. ¡°¡­yet. there is no justification.¡± ¡°why not? they are openly revealing their dark intention to interfere with her imperial family.¡± serven cautiously intervened. ¡°no, not outright. he said he moved secretly. the reason they found out so quickly was because dekan was watching.¡± dekan was the vice-captain and third shadow knight who led the silver shield. unlike the two shadow knights who became symbols of the imperial guard, decan became a literal shadow because of his role. ¡°ha, damn it. so you¡¯re saying we have to wait until an accident happens?¡± ¡°for now. even if the imperial family takes issue with the summoning of the marquis from the temple, there is no basis for punishment in itself. ¡°it¡¯s not a crime for a noble to visit a temple.¡± that was also correct. ryan gritted his teeth. ¡°i shouldn¡¯t have let the marquis go. he should have tortured him to open his mouth. if you know what the secret is, it becomes much easier to respond.¡± serben shook his head eagerly. ¡°no, of course i don¡¯t believe what the marquis says, but¡­ still, torture is not allowed. how are we going to take care of it?¡± ¡°damn, damn.¡± ryan tapped her heel on the rough marble floor. ¡°then what should we do, your majesty?¡± ¡°¡­i don¡¯t know.¡± as lescal said this, a vein appeared on his neck. ¡°if we leave this fuss like this, it will eventually be revealed what the empress is hiding. it¡¯s not too late to go and use her hands then.¡± it was a cool-headed and rational decision. but lescal¡¯s expression said that was not all. ¡°so?¡± ¡°the empress will be displeased if the secret is revealed. i don¡¯t like that.¡± ¡°ah¡­¡± ¡°hmm¡­¡± ryan and serben were speechless for a moment. ¡°but¡­ her majesty¡¯s secret may have something to do with her past four years or her memory loss. if that¡¯s the case, your majesty should know. no, your majesty should know this before anyone else.¡± ¡°i know that. but i don¡¯t want to do something that might make the empress displeased with me. no one likes to find out secrets.¡± so he was saying that the empress was hiding something, and he didn¡¯t want the empress to be angry with him if she found out through a third party. it seemed like lescal had already become a loving husband. ryan looked at the floor awkwardly for a moment and spoke again. ¡°then um¡­ i guess i¡¯ll have to stop the marquis. if i hurry alone, i will be able to block the path before we reach the temple.¡± then serven expressed concern. ¡°no, even if we can stop today, that¡¯s it. it would be useless if it were not to ban nobles from entering the temple itself.¡± even if such a ban were imposed, it could not prevent people from approaching marquis parshad at the temple of harios. it was impossible to ban all nobles from contact with all priests. serven thought for a moment and said this. ¡°how about telling her majesty the empress?¡± ¡°to the empress?¡± ¡°yes. if the marquis was just shouting, there wouldn¡¯t be a problem, but if there really is such a secret, her majesty the empress will have to come up with a solution.¡± even if it was aimed at the imperial family, it would be the empress who would be the one to bite. the empress also had to know about this matter. ¡°you¡¯re making a deal. your majesty the empress will tell you her secrets, and in return, his majesty will solve her problems.¡± that way, there was no need to force secrets through a third party, and there was no need to worry about the situation becoming bigger if the temple was involved. ¡°it¡¯s a deal¡­ good.¡± it wouldn¡¯t be a good situation for a couple to talk about business as usual, but it was different for lescal. he was getting closer to the empress little by little through his dealings. ¡°i should tell you now. because it might turn out to be important.¡± the last words sounded like an excuse to go to the empress. * * * the emperor returned before he could finish breakfast. lasilia greeted the emperor with a roasted quail egg in her hand that she was about to put into her mouth. ¡°are you here? have you finished eating?¡± ¡°no yet.¡± it was something he added haphazardly because he was staring at what she was eating, but the answer was surprising. ¡°you must be hungry.¡± ¡°¡­little.¡± what kind of emperor didn¡¯t take care of his meals properly? the emperor was also starving, but he was eating luxurious food that was incomparable to when he lived as a prophet. lasilia, embarrassed by the fork in her hand, sighed lightly and asked. ¡°would you like to eat now?¡± since there was a lot of food prepared anyway, it meant that she was going to eat this at least. the emperor walked past the table and came to the side. ¡°i will eat. give it to me.¡± then, he lowered his head and swallowed the quail egg that was about to enter her mouth. ¡°¡­i didn¡¯t mean to give you this.¡± ¡°i thought so.¡± was that possible? she wasn¡¯t angry because she already knew that the emperor was a human being who could lie as shamelessly as he wanted. ¡°if you are going to eat, please sit down and eat.¡± ¡°it¡¯s okay for me to eat like this.¡± ¡°no. it¡¯s not possible.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the emperor had a strangely glum expression. lasilia turned her gaze and pretended not to notice the expression on her face. ¡°then how about this?¡± lescal stabbed the grilled quail egg again with lasilia¡¯s fork. ¡°if i tell you something, you will give me this in exchange for the story.¡± ¡°for what kind of story do i have to pay a price?¡± ¡°it won¡¯t be a story that will cause any harm. trust me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia closed her mouth and studied the emperor¡¯s face. in the meantime, she learned how to read the expressions on that face. the emperor was not lying. moreover, the price the emperor demanded was always simple and insignificant. even if the emperor lied, she had nothing to lose. she ate one less quail egg. ¡°please speak. what are you talking about?¡± before answering, lescal briefly caressed lasilia¡¯s hair. however, what made lasilia more embarrassed than the unreasonable contact were the words that came out of the emperor¡¯s mouth. ¡°they say the marchioness parshad knows your secret.¡± ¡°¡­yes?¡± ¡°i took the bait at the temple. sooner or later, they might ask for something using that secret.¡± ¡°¡­¡± his hand caressing her hair was gentle. but lasilia was so busy digesting what she had just heard that she didn¡¯t even feel where he was touching her. ¡®how could that¡­ you can do stupid things, right? she must know very well that she, the one who hid the secret, cannot be safe.¡¯ lescal put the fork into lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡°it looks like it was a story worth paying for.¡± ¡°¡­¡± so, as he was looking at her wondering what to do, lescal wrapped his hand around the fork in her hand. ¡°i decided to feed you.¡± it had never been like that. he said he would just give it to her. lasilia pushed lescal¡¯s hand away. ¡°don¡¯t change your words. my ears are fine.¡± lescal twitched his lips and looked at lasilia, then lowered his head and put the fork lasilia held in her hand into her mouth. she wasn¡¯t fed, but she looked similar to what she was fed. after chewing and swallowing his food, lescal opened his mouth. ¡°i didn¡¯t change my words. i meant to ask you to feed me from the beginning.¡± ¡°¡­¡± ¡°then let¡¯s say it properly this time. if i solve the problem that bothers you about the temple, will you feed me then?¡± even though he always did things that made no sense, lasilia knew that the emperor was a sharp and clever person. he noticed the existence of her secret. there was no way he was going to let this go. the temple¡¯s involvement would mean that the situation was more complicated than she could now guess. the knights of saint malik were a group that revered the wizard who waged war against demons, and the temple of harios made them the holy knights. it was scary to guess what would happen if the temple got the empress¡¯s secret into her hands. more than anything, she was scared of how the emperor would come out when he found out she was a fake. would he pick up the knife and stab the fake in the chest without hesitation? ¡°well. i don¡¯t think that will happen.¡± lasilia leaned back and slightly opened the distance. ¡°i don¡¯t know what the secret is, but i don¡¯t remember, your majesty. even if the temple tries to find fault with a secret, how can that be possible if i¡¯m like this?¡± his golden eyes narrowed as she looked at his direction. ¡°¡­so does that mean you don¡¯t need my help?¡± ¡°if i remember what the secret is, i¡¯ll ask for it then¡­ oh, the marchioness said she knew, so i guess you can hear it from her.¡± ¡°the marchioness is on her way to the temple now. she may have already arrived.¡± ¡°but i still need to know what my secret is. if today is difficult, i should ask her to come tomorrow.¡± lasilia put her fork down on the table. she just hoped that the small clanking sound would not be heard as agitation. ¡°how should i call the marchioness?¡± when lasilia asked, lescal¡¯s eyes changed for a moment. he didn¡¯t know if she was asking this little thing because she really didn¡¯t know, or if she was asking it on purpose to pretend she had lost her memory. ¡°normally, i have the secretary write a letter. if it¡¯s urgent, send someone directly. i will send a secretary to marquis parshad.¡± ¡°thank you, your majesty.¡± lasilia stood up from her seat. ¡°i¡¯ve finished eating, so i¡¯ll just head back.¡± lescal quickly grabbed lasilia¡¯s hand. ¡°i missed breakfast, so let¡¯s have lunch together.¡± ¡°¡­if you want.¡± even though the blue moon had passed, the emperor didn¡¯t seem to have changed much. she wondered about that. but now there was something more urgent than worrying about such things. she had to stop the marchioness from arriving at the temple. with her confined to the empress¡¯s palace, it was natural that she had no way, but strangely enough, it seemed like she might have a way. ¡°then at lunch.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty.¡± after leaving the dining hall, lasilia¡¯s steps gradually became faster. CH 34 rjr11-14 minutes 08.10.2023 the place lasilia headed to was the north tower. ¡°shryden hapha! are you inside? i¡¯m going in!¡± yvette, who was out of breath trying to keep up with lasilia¡¯s fast pace, finally announced her visit and opened the door. ¡°oh, this can¡¯t be right¡­ i guess neither of you are here.¡± but the room was empty. yvette stamped her foot. ¡°at a time like this, when her majesty the empress is urgently looking for her¡­¡± she felt dizzy for a moment when she saw the empty room. lasilia went to the window and opened it. ¡®they said they would come when called.¡¯ before pipi was born, the birds that were there said that. miraculously, the birds appeared whenever lasilia needed something from her. the reason the birds help him is probably because, like pipi, they consider themselves the demon¡¯s companion. but there was no time to discuss such things now. ¡°anyone, please come. it¡¯s urgent.¡± lasilia held her hands together and whispered in an earnest voice. ¡°please.¡± yvette came to her side and opened her mouth anxiously. ¡°your majesty the empress. could you please tell me what¡¯s going on? you might wonder if something like me can be of much help, but there might be something i can do.¡± lasilia shook her head. ¡°your heart is grateful. but you¡¯re better off not knowing.¡± ¡°why¡­ why is that so? i want to do something¡­¡± yvette was crying. just her facial expression conveyed her kind heart. she didn¡¯t know who her real companion was, but she would get a lot of comfort here just by having someone like yvette. ¡°there are many things a princess can do. so she doesn¡¯t have to feel sad about this moment.¡± ¡°but¡­ there¡¯s something troubling you right now. isn¡¯t that right?¡± ¡°okay. but i think that¡¯s something that can¡¯t be solved by human power.¡± ¡°yes? then¡­¡± it was a moment when yvette lost her words out of worry and embarrassment. caw! caw! coo coo coo coo! peep! beep, beep! birds began to fly in from somewhere and sit on the window sill one by one. ¡°oh! look, her majesty! suddenly the birds are coming! what the hell is this¡­?¡± yvette was startled and hurriedly pointed out the window. at first there were just one or two birds, but before we knew it, so many birds flew in that the entire window was covered. ¡°ah, you really came. thank you. maybe some of you¡­¡± it was the moment when lasilia spoke to the birds. ¡°beep!¡± pipi, who was flying with duke shryden from afar, screamed. she was here, so you guys shouldn¡¯t come forward. ¡°your majesty the empress! what brought you here?¡± duke schryden spoke in a deep voice again today, using the elegant language of an aristocrat. ¡°beep!¡± when pipi shouted for everyone to get out of the way, the birds split on both sides to clear the way. pipi was riding on duke shryden¡¯s neck, and as soon as duke shryden landed on the window, she jumped down and was hugged by lasilia. ¡°beep?¡± ¡°i have a favor to ask you, pipi.¡± ¡°beep!¡± he told her to just say anything. ¡°the marchioness parshad is said to be on her way to the temple now. i guess they¡¯re trying to make a deal with the temple. can you stop that?¡± ¡°beep?¡± ¡°please don¡¯t ask me why. it will be revealed someday, but not yet. i just want to buy some time.¡± ¡°beep¡­ beep.¡± pipi nodded his head. when pipi, who seemed to have grown a little more, opened his eyes fiercely, he even looked solemn. duke shryden stepped forward. ¡°where should i go? i will take care of you!¡± ¡°beep.¡± pipi shook his head. she needed something faster than a parrot, she said. ¡°beep!¡± pipi cried sharply into the empty space. then, a moment later, an eagle with huge wings flew in. the birds on both sides were startled and opened the road wider. ¡°beep!¡± pipi hopped on the eagle¡¯s back. ¡°ah, the eagle¡­ that¡¯s right. a parrot can¡¯t be faster than an eagle. indeed¡­¡± duke shryden drooped his wings and muttered gloomily. however, when pipi turned his head and said something, his expression quickly changed. ¡°huh? are you saying i should ride too? oh, glory to you!¡± the duke of shryden was very large, but the eagle was nothing compared to the parrot. it was comfortable even with two birds on board. ¡°beep!¡± pipi looked back at lasilia and made a short, firm sound. she said she would be back soon so she should wait. ¡°okay. i¡¯ll be waiting in my room. thank you.¡± as a signal that lasilia¡¯s hand gestures that were rubbing pipi¡¯s head had stopped, the eagle took off. whiing! the wind blew from the giant wings. the eagle soared into the sky in an instant. this was followed by numerous birds that had flocked to the window. ¡°and¡­ it¡¯s spectacular. it¡¯s my first time seeing a scene like that. it¡¯s really cool. all those birds are moving to help her majesty.¡± lasilia also agreed. it touched her heart to think that so many living beings were only there for her at this moment. on the other hand, it was also a little sad. ¡®this is not for me. do not forget. i have to leave here someday. and that too as quickly as possible.¡¯ lasilia gently stroked her heart, which was beating faster than usual. the prophet¡¯s heart must have been heavy. that way, no matter what situation she faces, she won¡¯t be able to move from her spot. lasilia hoped that her heart would become very heavy as she came down the north tower. it was three hours later that silver shield sent her third secret letter. the secret letter contained the content that the marquis¡¯ carriage on the way to the temple suddenly had an unexpected accident and he was unable to arrive at the temple. around the same time, a message arrived from the writer¡¯s secretary that the empress was looking for her marchioness. * * * ¡°beep.¡± pipi looked like she was in a very good mood. pipi, who had just finished her big day, was eating the walnuts that lasilia had given him and rubbing his head against her shoulders and cheeks to her heart¡¯s content. ¡°beep beep.¡± she was constantly saying that she was very proud of what she had done today, that it was a long way to the temple, and that she was a bit tired and tired right now. ¡°yeah, i know. you did very well.¡± lasilia handed her the nuts with a smiling face and pipi opened his mouth and ate them. yvette, who was embroidering a handkerchief for lasilia to use, tilted her head and asked: ¡°aren¡¯t you short on walnuts? should i bring more in advance?¡± ¡°no. i think what i have now is enough.¡± ¡°ren, you eat so well?¡± ¡°that¡¯s right, but my stomach is already full. i don¡¯t think i can eat any more.¡± ¡°peeee¡­¡± pipi gently covered his stomach with his short wings. yvette couldn¡¯t bring herself to say that he was cute, so she covered her head and suppressed her laughter. ¡°anyway, where have you been since early morning today? what did you do with lord shryden?¡± ¡°beep.¡± pipi flapped his wings as lasilia stroked his head and asked sweetly. he learned how to hunt his prey from the duke of shryden, he said. however, since the peacock had never actually caught and eaten prey with his own hands, he wandered around looking for a bird that could teach him how to hunt properly. ¡°why is hunting suddenly happening? aren¡¯t you going to continue living in the imperial palace?¡± ¡°beep!¡± ¡°ah¡­ did your majesty say that?¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± the cause was an argument in the early morning. she said that while pipi was sleeping soundly, she was suddenly grabbed by the back of her neck and her body was lifted. her culprit was the emperor. he told me to stop sleeping and go out and eat bugs like a bird. he was dumbfounded so i pecked the back of his hand, but surprisingly, not a single drop of blood came out. the emperor sarcastically asked what he could do with an undergrown beak. he said that he could clearly see a future where he would just eat whatever food was given to him and gain weight. ¡°and¡­ such harsh words.¡± ¡°beep!¡± pipi seemed to think it was time to curse at the emperor. the words were harsh, but to sum it up, it meant that he was a really bad-tempered person. ¡°was there something like that?¡­ it didn¡¯t look that way.¡± lasilia tilted her head. she thought that the emperor that pipi was talking about was very different from the emperor he knew. although the emperor was stubborn, he was not a mean person who deliberately said things that would cause people to get angry. ¡°beep!¡± pipi lost his temper and said he couldn¡¯t trust him. in fact, pipi didn¡¯t have a very good personality either. even when he told the birds flocking to the window to get out of the way, he lost his temper. ¡°beep beep! beep beep!¡± anyway, the emperor was a mean person, so he didn¡¯t need to be treated too kindly. he said it was enough for me to sleep in the same bed. ¡°hmm¡­ i agree with that too. if the three of us sleep together, we might have another nightmare.¡± ¡°beep?¡± ¡°a dream in which a bird that looks exactly like you and a demon that looks exactly like the emperor fight each other.¡± ¡°beep beep?¡± ¡°i didn¡¯t see who won.¡± lasilia smiled and stroked his skin. ¡°but i no longer have nightmares. the blue moon is over.¡± suddenly a thought crossed his mind that the emperor didn¡¯t seem to have changed much even though the blue moon had ended. ¡°hmm? your majesty, why are you doing this?¡± yvette looked at me as if her expression had suddenly become strange. ¡°¡­no. nothing¡¯s going on¡­ did she perhaps leave a message saying that your majesty is returning to the emperor¡¯s palace today?¡± yvette answered. ¡°no. i have never heard such a thing, your majesty.¡± so what happens today? * * * shss. it was a very quiet sound. lescal raised his head. a human shadow appeared in the empty office. ¡°you came in person today.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty¡­ long time no see.¡± it was the third shadow knight, decan, who silently placed one knee on the floor and placed a hand on his chest in greeting. lescal looked at decan and slightly moved the tip of his nose. ¡°have you been far away?¡± ¡°¡­yes, your majesty.¡± embarrassment quickly flashed across decan¡¯s face. although he was determined, he couldn¡¯t fool lescal¡¯s attention. there was always a case where the silver shield emptied the capital depending on its role. but of course, permission had to be obtained to stay in a foreign place long enough for lescal to notice a change in smell. decan went a long way without telling the other shadow knights. it meant there was a good reason, and lescal knew it. ¡°i will postpone discussing the rules. first, report today¡¯s work.¡± decan stood up. ¡°i thought we already told you that there was an accident. parshad found his feathers at the scene of the writer¡¯s carriage accident. there were minor injuries, but no deaths, and the marquis and his wife returned to their estate.¡± ¡°feather?¡± ¡°it appears that multiple birds appeared and caused the accident.¡± ¡°it¡¯s a bird.¡± lescal¡¯s expression softened and then became unpleasant again for a moment. ¡°it looks like the immature ones know how to grow. upset.¡± ¡°yes¡­?¡± he swore this was the first time she heard lescal mention his feelings. the other shadow knights had adapted to some extent, but unfortunately decan, who had been away from the capital for some time, had not yet. lescal continued speaking, glancing at decan, who was unusually embarrassed. ¡°and?¡± ¡°¡­?¡± ¡°i don¡¯t think you would have come here in person to talk about that. get out what you really want to say.¡± ¡°ah¡­ of course, your majesty.¡± decan calmed his expression. then his face became that of a knight holding a silver shield. decan definitely had something to say to the emperor today. ¡°the place i have been to is trinidad, your majesty.¡± CH 35 rjr11-13 minutes 15.10.2023 even lescal knew what kind of place trinidad was. it was a city like the land of the dead, where the surviving shamans continued the faltering legacy, and where con artists and criminals pretending to be shamans were hiding. ¡°why are you there?¡± ¡°the duke of piellion visited there a month ago. he was keeping an eye on it because it was something that had never happened before.¡± lescal¡¯s expression crumpled reflexively when he heard the words little duke piellion. it was a strange thing. before, even though i knew about their relationship before marriage, he didn¡¯t think anything of it, but now he felt like his ears were rotting just hearing the name. ¡°was there any business worth keeping an eye on?¡± ¡°the purpose of my visit to trinidad was to hire a shaman, but i was unable to find out the exact purpose. on the way back to the empire, the duke of damanso discovered that he had issued a pass to someone.¡± ¡°pass?¡± ¡°yes, your majesty. so, i am guessing that they probably brought a shaman to the empire.¡± ¡°the shaman¡­¡± tuk. lescal put down the pen he had been holding in his hand until then. the duke of damanso, who had an affair with the empress before marriage, personally visited lawless areas such as trinidad and brought people with him. no matter how he thought about it, this fact only implied one thing. ¡°was the empress involved?¡± ¡°i think so. i looked into the duke¡¯s movements in trinidad, and it is said that he spared no expense in finding the right shaman.¡± the statement that no money was spared implied many things. although the piellion family¡¯s wealth was enormous, the adopted son, the duke, did not yet have the authority to dispose of the family property as he pleased. duke piellion, called the old fox, was a man who would gladly replace the duke if a better person came forward even now. in the end, it was said that the duke was not the only one looking for a shaman. the piellion family was behind. ¡°the empress has a problem.¡± a problem that couldn¡¯t be solved with magic or divine power and requires magic-level power. ¡°did you say a month ago? did the empress ever visit the piellion family in the meantime?¡± ¡°not officially, your majesty. but maybe she was avoiding her eyes on purpose. she was extremely discreet in bringing the shaman with her.¡± ¡°even if she didn¡¯t go through house piellion, she would have had plenty of ways to contact the duke. in that case, the witchcraft must have been performed less than a month ago¡­ could it be that the empress¡¯s memory loss was caused by her witchcraft?¡± ¡°ah¡­ that might be possible. witchcraft has a reaction. if the shaman is clumsy or cannot handle the power of the spell, it is common for the subject¡¯s body to react.¡± an unpleasant feeling began to creep in. he told the empress that something was happening that she did not know about. previously it wouldn¡¯t have mattered, but now just thinking about it made his stomach turn. she looked at lescal¡¯s face as decan grew increasingly hard, and then quietly added, ¡°i¡¯m not sure, but that shaman may still be staying somewhere in the empire. the passes issued in piellion¡¯s name have not been used since.¡± ¡°a shaman would have the knack of walking around hiding his face.¡± ¡°that¡¯s true, but¡­ i feel like that¡¯s not all.¡± lescal glanced at decan. ¡°is that what you say as a shaman?¡± ¡°i¡¯m sorry, but i¡¯m not old enough to be called that yet.¡± decan was probably the only shaman in the empire. originally, decan wanted to become a priest. he said that studying theology actually led him to study witchcraft. most of his magic has now been lost, and he had no one to teach him, so he taught himself the magic of the decan. in any case, the shaman had something of an innate sense. he could be said to have the ability to sense strange energies. if this sense was very keen, it could even seem like foresight. ¡°if you feel that way, it means there¡¯s something there. he may be searched.¡± ¡°it is an honor, your majesty.¡± and decan had one more thing to do. ¡°and your majesty.¡± ¡°speak.¡± ¡°it may be indecent, but i would like to meet her majesty, if you allow it.¡± at those words, lescal looked decan up and down. ¡°the reason is?¡± ¡°i want to find out if there are any traces of witchcraft left.¡± ¡°¡­then.¡± he said he didn¡¯t really feel like it. ¡°keep it as short as possible.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty. thank you for your permission.¡± decan bent his back and disappeared without a sound. * * * ¡°today, i am your majesty¡¯s representative. i apologize, your majesty. instead, i will take you comfortably.¡± yvette quipped and held out her hand. ¡°you don¡¯t have to apologize. because you are enough.¡± lasilia held yvette¡¯s hand and went down to the garden. the emperor, who had lunch with him, did not make it until time to go for a walk. the emperor of an empire was quite a busy position. ¡°still, he seemed really disappointed. he didn¡¯t say it, but i felt it.¡± yvette had no doubt that the emperor and empress were a destined pair. in yvette¡¯s eyes, the emperor appeared to be a loving husband who loved the empress more than anything else in the world. however, she felt a little sad that the empress did not seem to know his feelings. but it was much better than the other way around. if the empress had longed for the emperor alone and the emperor had been cold-hearted, it would have been very heartbreaking to see her. ¡°¡­the weather is nice today. it seems like more flowers are blooming.¡± lasilia subtly changed the topic. she was worried about serven, who was following her at a reasonable distance from behind. everything he sees and hears would be relayed to the emperor. lasilia wanted to avoid a situation where the emperor found out too much. ¡°i know, right. you look different from yesterday, your majesty.¡± white flowers have begun to bloom again in the bare gardenia garden. after the emperor destroyed two of her gardens, lasilia refused the flowers. after that, it was fortunate that the palace garden was as beautiful as ever. ¡°i heard this, but the imperial tailor was very excited. she said his majesty said she could wear whatever fabric or jewelry she wanted. i think she was loudly saying that she was going to make a ton of clothes. it¡¯s a story that courtiers meet these days.¡± lasilia smiled bitterly. ¡®i guess i should just leave those clothes unworn.¡¯ all the new clothes will be a gift for your real pet. like a garden without flowers cut to make bouquets. ¡°oops. the marchioness parshad is coming tomorrow. should i prepare some refreshments?¡± yvette¡¯s face suddenly became solemn as she thought of such a thought. ¡°if you allow me, i will prepare really well. i want to make sure that people never hear people say that because someone from the palace is serving as the head of the maid, she has fallen to her standard.¡± ¡°i don¡¯t think we need refreshments. and her princess is doing well. even if her marchioness tries to find fault with her, she won¡¯t be able to.¡± ¡°oh my. her majesty the empress is too generous. i¡¯m sure she¡¯ll find fault with anything.¡± yvette clenched her fists as if she was already facing the marchioness. ¡°just keep doing what you¡¯re doing. and there is no need for refreshments. not even the marchioness would have the presence of mind to touch her sweets.¡± ¡°oh, i guess so. she wasn¡¯t called to do anything good. well then, i¡¯ll forget about the refreshments. instead, when you finish your walk, i will clean the parlor one more time.¡± ¡°do whatever feels comfortable to you.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty the empress.¡± it was a moment when two people were passing a fountain while exchanging a lively conversation. ¡°what¡­?¡± she felt an indescribably strange feeling. lasilia unconsciously hugged yvette as an eerie sensation suddenly struck her chest. sigh! the water from the fountain surged like a living creature and attacked lasilia. ¡°your majesty the empress!¡± serven came rushing over. but it was already too late. lasilia looked drenched from the top of her head to the tips of her toes. ¡°damn it! what a bastard!¡± sreung! serven drew his sword and stuck the tip of it in the bottom of the fountain. puck! the marble fountain cracked and water splashed everywhere. something resembling a shadow hovered among the spray of water. self! serven, who caught the momentary movement, stabbed his sword without hesitation. tsk! the tip of the knife tore something. ¡°¡­please do it gently.¡± then the shadow became a person. ¡°what¡­ decan?¡± ¡°it¡¯s been a while, lord sigress.¡± serven¡¯s complexion changed. ¡°ha! what is this, you bastard! did you just do that? are you out of your mind?¡± decan raised both hands. ¡°i swear on your majesty¡¯s name that i had no intention of harming your majesty the empress. it¡¯s because my ordering was poor.¡± ¡°ha, what is this¡­ oh, i don¡¯t know. first, kneel down and pray.¡± nodding his head, decan knelt down on one knee in front of lasilia. ¡°i committed a discourtesy. please punish me.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia stared at decan, who lowered his head. she was extremely polite in her tone and manner, but that was all. ¡®he doesn¡¯t seem to think she did anything wrong.¡¯ the strange sensation she felt before the water from the fountain gushes was not for nothing. ¡®you said your order was poor. so does that mean he is a shaman¡­? there were still shamans in the empire.¡¯ there must be a reason why a shaman suddenly appeared in front of her. ¡°first, let¡¯s hear who you are. it seems like you know lord sigress.¡± ¡°i am decan horsed, the third shadow who protects the current emperor of the empire.¡± ¡°are you saying he¡¯s a shadow knight? for that matter, i don¡¯t think i¡¯ve ever seen your face before.¡± ¡°the mission assigned to me is outside the imperial palace. you will never see my face inside the palace.¡± ¡°then what about today?¡± ¡°i¡¯m sorry for reporting you. your order has failed. punish me.¡± ¡°what was the spell for?¡± after a brief pause, decan raised his head and met his eyes. ¡°it was to find out if there were any traces of her majesty¡¯s recent use of witchcraft.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lasilia desperately suppressed her embarrassment. ¡®it means that you knew that duke piellion had called a shaman. he was trying to determine if it was because she was the empress¡­ that means even the emperor knows.¡¯ the emperor had already found out that the empress had a secret. she wanted to see if she used witchcraft there. it was only a matter of time before secrecy and witchcraft were linked. ¡®the mark was being erased¡­ if they find out she called a shaman to try to get it back, it¡¯s all over.¡¯ she clenched her teeth so that lasilia could not hear. the emperor was not a fool. on the outside, he was acting as if he would take out his liver just to get in touch, but behind the scenes, he was digging into the empress¡¯s identity one by one. no matter how pitiful he looked like a dog with a leash tied to a stake, she was not upset. he could have killed her at any time with just one word. lasilia slowly exhaled her breath and asked her question that could have killed her. ¡°so, did you find any traces?¡± CH 36 rjr11-14 minutes 22.10.2023 it seemed like a long time had passed until the third shadow knight¡¯s answer was heard. ¡°¡­i couldn¡¯t find it.¡± ¡°¡­right.¡± she had to bite her lip to prevent her sigh of relief from escaping. ¡°i ask one more question. was it his majesty¡¯s order?¡± ¡°you didn¡¯t order it, but you gave permission.¡± she felt like she knew what happened. decan came forward to check the magic, and leskal would not have opposed it. in any case, it was no different from giving his orders. the emperor also wanted to know why the empress used a witch doctor. ¡°then i can¡¯t punish you for getting wet. i will pretend it never happened.¡± ¡°¡­yes?¡± decan winced. lasilia just turned her body around. ¡°let¡¯s go back.¡± ¡°oh, yes. yes, your majesty the empress.¡± yvette, who was still dazed, ran after lasilia. ¡°her majesty, are you okay?¡± ¡°¡­no.¡± it wasn¡¯t okay. it couldn¡¯t be okay. her body was shaking. ¡°my body is cold. i think i might catch a cold.¡± ¡°i guess the water was too cold. what should i do?¡± yvette stamped her foot. ¡°i can¡¯t take off my clothes here¡­ no, of course, if you tell me, i will take it off as much as i want!¡± it seemed so sincere that lasilia chuckled. ¡°it¡¯s fine. i¡¯ll take her heart.¡± ¡°ah, it¡¯s true¡­¡± ¡°i know. it would be better to walk faster than that.¡± ¡°ah, really¡­ why did the driver i saw for the first time fail the order¡­? if her majesty catches a cold, i will always blame the knight. lord sigress, too.¡± yvette couldn¡¯t stop worrying until she arrived at the empress¡¯ palace. * * * ¡°ha, how did this all happen?¡± serben put his sword back in its sheath and shook his head. ¡°i still can¡¯t believe it. deccan horsed made a mistake with his spell. did you eat something wrong? no, it was a mistake, right? did you have anything stored up with her majesty the empress?¡± serben rubbed his chin, feeling strange even as he spoke. ¡°no¡­ you have hardly ever met her majesty the empress. what is there to accumulate? no, really. why are you acting like ryan?¡± ¡°so¡­¡± decan clenched and unclenched her fists with a look of disbelief. ¡°it was a spell that could not fail. it wasn¡¯t complicated or difficult, it was just a very basic spell to detect traces of other shamans.¡± ¡°what? did you fail at that?¡± ¡°no, rather than a failure¡­¡± decan frowned, recalling the situation just now. his spell didn¡¯t fail. rather, he should have said that he was disturbed. if there had been no interruption, the empress would not have been covered in water, but only a few drops of water would have splashed on the hem of her dress. a few drops of the water would seep along the shaman¡¯s trail, and then dry up as if nothing had happened once he had finished checking. however, the empress¡¯ entire body was wet. as if trying to cover her eyes. what on earth happened? serven tapped decan on the shoulder. ¡°well, don¡¯t worry about anything. he said that her majesty the empress will make something like nothing that happened before.¡± even though they were the same shadow knight and the same knight rank, there was a slight difference between the two. the sigres family was a prestigious family that had produced knights belonging to the imperial knighthood for generations. his grandfather¡¯s grandfather¡¯s grandfather all held the title of baronet. decan¡¯s father was a vassal of baron sigres, serben and ryan¡¯s father. because of this, decan tended to treat serven and liyan as people he still served. serben and ryan didn¡¯t really care how he treated them. to them, decan was a skilled shaman and a knight trustworthy enough to be entrusted with the third shadow. since he joined the royal guards later than them, he just treated them as juniors. ¡°still, i wanted to ask. why on earth would you say that?¡± ¡°who, her majesty the empress?¡± ¡°yes. it doesn¡¯t make sense, does it? your majesty is the empress.¡± ¡°that is¡­ well, it just happened that way. i guess he had a completely different personality after suffering from amnesia¡­ it seems like you no longer have much interest in killing and harassing people.¡± ¡°is that true?¡± ¡°you just went through that too. our empress was very noble even after being suddenly hit by water. moreover, he judged mistakes and mistakes fairly.¡± ¡°that¡¯s right¡­¡± decan stopped his words and frowned. ¡°hey kid, why are you looking like that? anyway, isn¡¯t that a good thing? it¡¯s just that the number of bloody incidents in the imperial palace has decreased.¡± ¡°can people be that different?¡± ¡°well, i don¡¯t know. maybe it¡¯s memory loss, a change in personality, or it¡¯s all just an act. but so far, it¡¯s holding up well. for your majesty¡¯s sake, i just hope that you will continue to do so for the rest of your life.¡± her worries about what she would do if the empress viciously manipulated her emperor, who was infatuated with her, were now slowly fading away. even in serben¡¯s eyes, the empress seemed to have become a completely different person. the empress before her felt even more unfamiliar. decan slowly shook his chin. ¡°i don¡¯t really believe it, but it would be a good thing if there was no punishment.¡± ¡°hmm? what are you talking about.¡± serben slapped decan on the back. ¡°you won¡¯t just let it go. you better be prepared.¡± ¡°i¡¯m sure you¡¯ll make it like it never was¡­¡± ¡°ah, that¡¯s what her majesty the empress said.¡± ¡°then¡­?¡± ¡°your majesty is different.¡± ¡°yes¡­?¡± decan, who had not been to her palace since the empress¡¯s amnesia, did not understand what that meant. ¡°well, you¡¯ll know what i mean later. anyway, i told you everything.¡± after finishing his words, serben quickly followed behind the empress. decan, who was pondering over serven¡¯s words that he still did not understand, belatedly noticed something strange. ¡°now that i think about it, why did sir sigress escort her majesty the empress¡­?¡± something was changing. and the empress would know the reason. * * * ¡°i will first take off your clothes, your majesty.¡± after returning to her empress¡¯ palace, lasilia was taken into the bathroom by yvette. ¡°the water is heating up right now, so you just have to wait a moment. ah, how can i do this? her lips have turned blue, your majesty.¡± yvette¡¯s hands began to diligently undo the buttons. her heavy, highly decorated outer dress came off, revealing her inner dress. lasilia held yvette¡¯s hand. ¡°okay. i will take off her underwear.¡± ¡°his hands are shaking! i will do it.¡± ¡°no. don¡¯t touch it anymore.¡± thanks to her pale lips, lasilia¡¯s words sounded colder. ¡°ah, then¡­ yes, her majesty. i will follow her commands.¡± yvette bowed her head and took a step back. he looked pitiful, but she was right about this. yvette wasn¡¯t supposed to know anything about the mark. ¡°turn her around. when i take off my clothes and get into the bathtub, you can come to me then.¡± ¡°¡­yes, your majesty the empress.¡± yvette quietly turned her back. lasilia took off her clothes without taking her eyes off yvette. her hands kept shaking, so it wasn¡¯t easy to undo her buttons. she was glad she had changed all of her underdresses to ones that buttoned the front. then she discovered something strange. yvette¡¯s clothes were barely wet. she was a little wet, but it was just from taking off her outer dress a moment ago. ¡°isn¡¯t the princess wet?¡± ¡°yes? ah, yes. thanks to her majesty¡¯s protection, i didn¡¯t get wet at all! ¡­oh my. even thinking about it again, i feel so sad and guilty, your majesty. i should have covered her majesty the empress and gotten wet on her behalf!¡± ¡°there is no need to say that. i¡¯m glad you didn¡¯t get wet.¡± ¡°thank goodness. i just apologize¡­¡± even thinking about it again, it was hard to believe. ¡®it was a spell aimed at me, so will i be the only one who suffers the damage?¡¯ in dell¡¯arta, where the sacred power of the priests was given priority, little was known about her magic. there was only a vague perception that it was a primitive form of magic without a system and an unstable power that had been used in ancient times. but maybe that wasn¡¯t the case. the target was clearly identified and force was applied. however, since they said it was a mistake, it may have been a much more sophisticated force. after taking off her wet clothes, lasilia wrapped her towel around her body and entered her bathtub. splash. yvette asked as she heard a small sound of water. ¡°your majesty the empress¡­? did you take a bath?¡± ¡°yes, you can turn your back now.¡± ¡°yes.¡± yvette quickly turned around, tidied up her wet clothes and came to her side. ¡°is the water temperature right? can i wash her hair?¡± ¡°the temperature is good. her head¡­ no. i will do it.¡± ¡°then just soap it¡­?¡± ¡°that¡¯s okay too.¡± yvette was crying. ¡°originally, i have to do everything¡­¡± ¡°no way. i only heard the marchioness of parshad take off her clothes.¡± ¡°no, because i was a palace servant. attending a bath is a royal servant¡¯s job.¡± ¡°yes, so you don¡¯t have to.¡± ¡°no, that¡¯s why it¡¯s good, isn¡¯t it? even though she is a maid, she can do the work of a court lady. so i thought i could be more helpful¡­¡± she had a very disappointed face, so she felt sorry for her, but she was also grateful. lasilia lifted her wet hand and patted the back of yvette¡¯s hand. ¡°that¡¯s right. so it¡¯s helping me a lot. i just don¡¯t like being a bath attendant.¡± ¡°ah¡­ if that¡¯s the case.¡± as the warm water began to warm my body, the chill subsided little by little. lasilia rested her head on the edge of her bathtub and looked up at the bathroom ceiling, which was filled with magnificent marble sculptures. as soon as she felt better, her head exploded with worry. ¡®what happens now?¡¯ two months were still far away. she could not just wait for the priest to arrive from dell¡¯arta. ¡®i wonder if i can leave here without my identity being discovered.¡¯ that was the best way to survive. but the problem was that there was no way. ¡®if only i could get out of the palace¡­ ha. did she say that the empress said she couldn¡¯t leave the palace without a reason? wouldn¡¯t she be like that if she said she went to the duchy of piellion? you can try to meet her family.¡¯ that wasn¡¯t a very good method either. obviously, an escort will follow. the emperor ordered his shadow knights to escort the empress. she didn¡¯t know if escorting was her purpose or if she meant surveillance. ¡®i can¡¯t beat those escorts by myself. and the empress looks are so striking.¡¯ with this outfit on her face, you will notice that she is an empress wherever she goes. ¡®if you change her clothes¡­ still, i guess i¡¯ll have to hide her face too. ¡®wouldn¡¯t she be more suspicious then?¡¯ moreover, lasilia knew nothing about her life outside of her temple or the imperial palace. even if she managed to escape her escorts, including serben, she was at a loss as to whether she would be able to make the two-month long journey to dell¡¯arta while keeping her identity hidden. ¡®it¡¯s impossible for her to run away. besides, she¡¯s the empress. there¡¯s no way i¡¯m letting her get away.¡¯ why did she come back to life in the body of the empress? lasilia chewed her lips. ¡®if only i had not been the empress, my return to dell¡¯arta would not have been so difficult¡­ ah?¡¯ then she suddenly had this thought. if she wasn¡¯t the empress she would be. if she says she was no longer the empress. as long as she becomes someone who has nothing to do with her status as empress. then wouldn¡¯t she be able to go anywhere? CH 37 rjr11-13 minutes 29.10.2023 bang, bang! the bathroom door rang as if to shatter her thoughts. ¡°your majesty the empress! your majesty ate it!¡± a bewildered palace servant¡¯s voice continued from outside the bathroom. ¡°oh, his majesty has arrived! shall i open the door, your majesty?¡± yvette stood up. lasilia urgently stopped yvette. let alone the fact that she was bathing, she wanted to avoid facing the emperor while she was thinking about running away. ¡°no, just say you¡¯re in trouble because you¡¯re taking a bath.¡± ¡°oh, still¡­ i understand.¡± yvette came out of the bathroom. it took quite some time as if something was going on. lasilia continued to stare at her ceiling, her eyebrows furrowed. she wanted to continue her thoughts, but the emperor was not the only one who interrupted her. ¡°beep!¡± this time, pipi flew through the window. she seemed like she wouldn¡¯t back down until she pricked the window with her little beak and opened it. ¡°what¡¯s happen?¡± lasilia stood up from her bathtub and opened the window. ¡°beep!¡± pipi rushed in and started circling around, muttering something. ¡°ah¡­? where did you hear about that again?¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± pipi was angry after hearing what happened in the garden. today too, pipi was practicing hunting with duke shreiden, and when she heard what happened to lasilia, her anger rose to the top of her head. ¡°and¡­ that far away? is she already able to fly on her own?¡± ¡°beep!¡± he told her to stop talking and tell her what to do with that unpleasant person. ¡°they said it was a mistake. she was embarrassed herself.¡± ¡°beep!¡± mistakes were his problem, and he said he couldn¡¯t overlook them. ¡°it¡¯s fine. my clothes are just wet. it¡¯s not like i completely fell into the water like i did then¡­ oh, come to think of it, water-related accidents happen frequently here.¡± ¡°beep? beep!¡± ¡°no, it¡¯s really okay. it was a mistake even then.¡± ¡°beep! beep!¡± ¡°really. so don¡¯t do anything. that person is a witch doctor. what if you get hurt?¡± ¡°beep!¡± pipi flapped her wings, wondering if she could possibly be defeated. then he said he would take care of it and flew off again. ¡°ah. it¡¯s really good now. it¡¯s still that small.¡± pipi, who was still so small, was no longer visible. ¡°no, but you shouldn¡¯t be admiring something like this. pipi might get hurt.¡± she had no choice but to ask the emperor for a favor. she opened the bathroom door as lasilia wrapped a wet towel around her body. she wanted yvette to convey her words to the emperor. ¡°ah¡­¡± ¡°¡­¡± but she swore, she had no idea that the emperor was still there. she made eye contact with the emperor. at that moment, both of them froze and could not move. ¡°woe, your majesty the empress! why don¡¯t you call me¡­¡± yvette, who had been frozen together, was embarrassed and blurted out her words. ¡°i know¡­ i didn¡¯t know you were still there. you are not dressed appropriately, so we will close the door.¡± after coming to her senses, lasilia turned her back and slammed the door shut. ¡°wait for a sec.¡± widely! the emperor held the door from the other side. as she looked over his shoulder, she saw his hand stuck in the crack of the door. she didn¡¯t know it would hurt. ¡°just talk. i won¡¯t tell you to open the door.¡± ¡°¡­first, remove your hand. you might get hurt.¡± ¡°i will do it if you listen.¡± ¡°okay, put your hands away.¡± the hand stuck in the door slowly disappeared. lasilia left the door open, leaving just that much of a gap. the emperor began to speak slowly. ¡°that is¡­ so i¡­ i didn¡¯t know that decan did it that way. i didn¡¯t do that on purpose.¡± the emperor was apologizing for what had happened in the garden. ¡°trust me. that¡¯s not really what i meant¡­¡± ¡°they said it was a mistake. i also knew that and decided to move on.¡± ¡°even if it was a mistake, it shouldn¡¯t have happened.¡± ¡°what can we do about what has already happened? and it was no big deal. it¡¯s just wet.¡± ¡°no, it¡¯s not like that. how can it not be a big deal? it¡¯s my fault. i shouldn¡¯t have done that.¡± thud. the sound of something hitting the door rang out. for some reason, it felt like the emperor was pressing his forehead against the bathroom door. ¡°what should i do? to relieve your anger.¡± she didn¡¯t even say she was angry. ¡°you don¡¯t have to do that. i¡¯m not angry.¡± ¡°no way. you¡¯re still avoiding me.¡± it was true that she was avoiding it, but it was for a different reason. ¡°¡­yes. as i said, my outfit is inappropriate right now.¡± ¡°so i tried to wait until the bath was over¡­ if i wear clothes, you won¡¯t avoid me?¡± still, she would avoid it. if he continues to look at himself like this, with the eyes of a fateful companion. ¡®it might be okay to pretend to be angry for a while.¡¯ lasilia pursed her lips. she was uncomfortable with the emperor, this situation, and herself experiencing all of this. ¡°i didn¡¯t know how i felt. you¡¯re right to be angry. i hope we won¡¯t have to see each other for a while.¡± it felt as if the emperor¡¯s embarrassment was leaking through the door. ¡°¡­what is that¡­¡± ¡°oh, and i think i¡¯ll be even more upset if something happens to fifi. please crack down on your majesty¡¯s knights. then,¡± thud! lasilia closed the bathroom door. her body, which had been warmed by warm water at best, became cold again from the wet towel. ¡°cold¡­¡± lasilia went back into her bathtub with his arm around her shoulders. he water no longer felt warm. * * * ¡°cough!¡± finally, a cold came. the cause of the problem was staying in the cold water for too long. ¡°what should i do, your majesty¡­ this is all my negligence.¡± yvette shed tears after coughing a few times. self-reproach again led to a fountain. she couldn¡¯t stop herself from saying that she should have been covered in water. ¡°hmm¡­ i know now that it¡¯s no use saying no, but can¡¯t you just be quiet¡­ my head hurt.¡± ¡°omg! yes, yes! from now on, i won¡¯t even make a sound, your majesty!¡± ¡°your breathing is okay¡­¡± ¡°yes, yes! then just breathe!¡± it was a pretty bad cold. the cough that scratched his throat was serious, but his fever was so high that he felt dizzy. it felt like i was half dreaming. the court doctor said he visited several times, but he couldn¡¯t remember that. still, since he took the medicine, he will get better. ¡°your majesty the empress. good night?¡± yvette¡¯s concerns were heard through the faint gap of consciousness. ¡°umm¡­ no. but i think i¡¯ll fall asleep soon.¡± ¡°ah, i see. sleep well. you will feel much better after you sleep.¡± ¡°huh¡­¡± ¡°is there anything you need before you go to sleep? can i take you to the bathroom before that?¡± ¡°no, it¡¯s okay¡­ oh, shouldn¡¯t you drink ginger juice?¡± ¡°yes? ginger juice? would you like some ginger juice, your majesty?¡± ¡°no way. it must be the most delicious juice in the world. but i said you have to eat it if you catch a cold. even if i don¡¯t want to eat it, i always make it¡­¡± ¡°yes? me?¡± yvette opened her eyes wide. ¡°i didn¡¯t even know there was such a thing as ginger juice.¡± ¡°ah¡­? flota, she always¡­¡± ¡°flota?¡± ¡°¡­? ah¡­¡± it was because of a cold. lasilia¡¯s complexion turned slightly pale as she accidentally mentioned the past. yvette, who was tilting her head, came to lasilia¡¯s side and stamped her feet. ¡°oh my gosh. in the meantime, your complexion has worsened, your majesty. by the way, who is this person named plota?¡± ¡°flota¡­ i know.¡± lasilia deliberately interrupted her for a moment. there was only one acceptable excuse in this situation. ¡°i don¡¯t know. i thought i might remember something¡­ i can¡¯t think of it anymore.¡± ¡°well¡­ could it be that she was the duke¡¯s maid? if he usually made ginger juice¡­ oh, that¡¯s right. but what about ginger juice? tell me what it is and i will do my best to make it.¡± ¡°it¡¯s fine.¡± it was now unknown whether ginger juice was really effective in treating colds. because plota would never have cared for her. maybe he fed it to me every time to see that he was disgusted by the spicy and astringent taste. ¡°i¡¯ll just sleep¡­ oh, what about pipi? are you hurt anywhere?¡± ¡°ren hasn¡¯t returned yet. i will go to shriden and ask about his whereabouts.¡± ¡°okay. watch carefully. just in case.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty. don¡¯t worry, just sleep.¡± ¡°huh.¡± she thought she heard a small sound of yvette leaving the room. lasilia coughed in a half-asleep state and then fell asleep. and she had a dream. * * * -are humans naturally this weak? it was a shocking thing to hear from a human who believed he was young and healthy, but for now, he nodded. because it was true that she had a cold. -but i¡¯m worried because she won¡¯t die easily¡­ hitch! -i don¡¯t understand. how can you get sick just by falling into the water? the water was very, very cold beneath the thickly frozen surface of a lake in the middle of a mountain range covered in ice, but to the demons, water was just water. -if i told you that the fact that i only caught a cold after falling into that lake is proof that i am very healthy, wouldn¡¯t you believe me? he didn¡¯t even hear anything like that. -it would be nice if there was a way to make your body better. the tips of his red nails touched my forehead. he didn¡¯t know why the expressionless expression that humans couldn¡¯t understand seemed so affectionate and warm when it touched him. -but your body is different from mine. i don¡¯t know how. -it¡¯s fine. it will be better if you stay warm. -then. grumbling. he could hear a fire burning somewhere. but it was not visible. -you didn¡¯t start the fire? -i smoked it. -where? i can¡¯t see it. -inside my body. -huh? the demon held out his arm covered in black scales. -even if you light a fire here, you can¡¯t maintain it. instead, i can do it with my body. it¡¯s holding me. -ah¡­ the black scales seemed to be turning red. as expected, he couldn¡¯t understand his existence. how can one be so dedicated? you are a demon, not human. why me, a human? -touch it. if it¡¯s too hot, we¡¯ll reduce the flame. he placed his hand on his outstretched arm. -how about it? is it enough to burn your skin? -¡­no. just right. it was very warm. it was just warm. he opened his arms and hugged his body, not his arms. -i think i¡¯ll get better soon if i stay like this. he seemed a little stiff at first, but i followed his hugging movements. -i can¡¯t understand human illness, but i think i can understand the word good. a voice different from that of a human passed by my earlobe softly. -good. when he heard those words, his body trembled strangely. -me too. ¡®i like you.¡¯ * * * ¡°¡­good¡­ ah¡­¡± lasilia mumbled in her sleep. actually, it was really good. her headache disappeared and her body felt warm all the way down to her toes. he was holding something very warm. it was hard but soft. it was cozy and comfortable. it smelled warm and refreshing. ¡°me too.¡± someone¡¯s low voice reached her earlobe. it was that voice that brought lasilia back from her dream to reality. it all resembled a dream now, the only thing that was different was the voice. she knew that voice. ¡°¡­your majesty?¡± lasilia frantically raised her head. she was looking at herself, dazed, as if the emperor¡¯s golden eyes had caught a cold. CH 38 rjr11-14 minutes 05.11.2023 ¡°what are you doing!¡± lasilia pushed lescal away. lescal, who had been pushed around in a haphazard manner, looked extremely mortified. ¡°you hugged me first.¡± ¡°yes? i beg your pardon?¡± ¡°it¡¯s true. you grabbed my arm first.¡± he then continued with the excuse that he stretched out his arms and hugged her. lescal had no choice but to hug lasilia face to face. lasilia stared with a frown at lescal, who emphasized twice that he had no choice. ¡°why did you come to my room in the first place? i told you i wouldn¡¯t see you for a while.¡± lescal looked away for a moment, like people who have trouble answering. ¡°that¡­ because you said you were asleep.¡± ¡°what do you mean?¡± ¡°so, strictly speaking, i didn¡¯t go against your will. you said we should avoid seeing each other face to face. but since i¡¯m the only one who sees you¡­¡± ¡°it¡¯s a play on words, your majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lescal twitched his lips. he meant that he had nothing to say. lasilia pulled up her blanket and pointed to her bedroom door. ¡°please leave. it¡¯s a cold. i don¡¯t want to transfer it to your majesty.¡± ¡°if that¡¯s the case, you don¡¯t have to worry. i don¡¯t catch colds.¡± ¡°i don¡¯t know that.¡± ¡°i¡¯ve never caught one before.¡± ¡°i can¡¯t believe it. please leave.¡± ¡°you can trust me. i¡¯ve never been caught, and it¡¯s okay if i get caught.¡± ¡°i¡¯m not okay.¡± lasilia pointed to the door again. ¡°get out. i want to rest comfortably.¡± ¡°¡­you said you liked it first.¡± ¡°get out.¡± ¡°¡­¡± lescal reluctantly got up. ¡°can i ask you something before i leave?¡± even after he got up, he couldn¡¯t easily let go of his regrets. ¡°i think it would be better for you to just leave.¡± and lasilia was uncomfortable with that. it became more difficult for her to face the emperor, especially after her dream of her demons. she kept reminding me of useless emotions, sensations she didn¡¯t want to know. ¡°you¡¯re still angry.¡± she decided to pretend. if she could avoid him. ¡°yes.¡± ¡°¡­then.¡± the emperor turned his back, his shoulders strangely slumping. the clothes, as nice as the picture, were clearly wrinkled on one side. this was because he was lying on her side and holding her body tightly. ¡°i hope you get over your anger quickly.¡± ¡°i don¡¯t think that will happen.¡± lasilia said coldly. lescal¡¯s shoulder line went down that much. ¡°i will go and see. i hope you get better soon.¡± ¡°¡­¡± she deliberately didn¡¯t answer. ¡­widely. the very slow sound of the door tormented her mind. * * * ¡°you¡¯re not feeling well. how could you¡­?¡± the next day, her cough got even worse. every time she spoke, her throat hurt so much that she had to keep drinking tea with honey. as a result, she was so full that she lost her appetite. still, she could not put off meeting the marchioness farshad. in fact, the marchioness had to wait for three hours in the throne room of the empress¡¯s palace because lasilia could not stop coughing the entire time. the backless chairs in her throne room were extremely uncomfortable. when lasilia appeared after three hours of waiting, the marchioness was so exhausted that she was in a state of distress. ¡°¡­why did you call me?¡± the marchioness¡¯s eyes glanced, and out of the corner of her eye, she studied lasilia. she actually had no intention of making her work this big for her marchioness. it was true that she knew the empress¡¯s secret. but her secret was already gone. on the day the empress fell into the ditch, the marchioness, who was changing her clothes, clearly saw that her mark had been revived. the reason she made it so big was her husband, who was an idiot and had an impatient personality. when she heard that madame qi had been kicked out of her house, not only had she been pushed out of her position as head of maid, the marquis rushed to the emperor¡¯s palace. however, the empress, who was supposed to appear in a panic, was nowhere to be seen, and the emperor had no interest in the empress¡¯s secrets. rather, she said that he was rude for telling her secrets and had her guards drag him out of the palace. aside from her pride, the loss was severe. in the meantime, the marquis and his wife were too intoxicated by the power play that came with her position as the first maid of honor in the empress¡¯ palace. it was ridiculous to ask for this to be returned intact overnight. meanwhile, her feet were moving quickly in the temple. although she did spin her words, it was clear that she was interested in the empress¡¯s secret. the marquis quickly replied that she would visit the temple tomorrow. by the time the marchioness had let the empress know that she no longer had her secret, it was already too late. her husband and his wife thought over and over again about her. but no matter how much she thought about it, the only way to return to being her first maid was to threaten the empress with her secret. so she decided to take an adventure. if she pretends to join hands with the temple, empress will automatically surrender first. the empress seemed completely unaware that her mark had completely returned. so adventure will work for her. an accident happened and the trip to the temple was delayed, but it could have been a good thing. the more this happens, the more anxious the empress will become. the fact that ishewas called to the palace today was proof of that. squeak! the marchioness spread her feather fan to hide her mouth. anyway, today was a fight she would win. however, she couldn¡¯t help but notice her smiling face already. ¡°i¡¯m sure you haven¡¯t forgotten that you punished this body and kicked it out, your majesty.¡± ¡°ah, cough, yes. i didn¡¯t forget. i was wondering why someone who was supposed to be punished was going to the temple.¡± the marchioness grinned over her fan and crossed her ankles. it was as if she could see in her eyes the empress who was desperately striving for her. ¡°yes, your majesty. she was a high priest, and she was the first maid in the empress¡¯ palace, so she took a lot of interest in this person.¡± ¡°i see.¡± ¡°yes, you were very interested.¡± ¡°okay.¡± ¡°¡­?¡± the marchioness folded her fan. the empress, who said she had a bad cold, had a fever and her cheeks were red. it was clear that she was sick, as she had cold sweat running down her forehead. if she had called herself like that, it would have been because her body was sweet, but she couldn¡¯t figure out why she looked so calm. ¡°would you like me to speak directly about your interest?¡± the marchioness, who could no longer bear it, spoke first. ¡°no. i¡¯m not feeling well, so i¡¯d like to avoid a long conversation. i¡¯ll hear about your personal story later.¡± ¡°¡­yes?¡± it wasn¡¯t ridiculous. she trembled as the marchioness held her fan. ¡°then what about me¡­ why did you call me?¡± ¡°i was told that you had an accident on your way to the temple,¡± she said. ¡°i wanted to make sure you were okay.¡± ¡°well, as you can see, i¡¯m safe.¡± ¡°i heard a bird had an accident. am i right?¡± ¡°yes, that¡¯s right. have you been curious about that?¡± ¡°what kind of accident was it?¡± ¡°suddenly, the birds ran up and pecked at the horse, and the horse took a wrong turn. the wheels of the carriage hit a stone and were damaged¡­ are you really curious about this?¡± ¡°yes. what a relief. if something like that had happened while going along a cliff-like area instead of a smooth road, it wouldn¡¯t have been just a hardship.¡± ¡°yes, that¡¯s right¡­ god must have taken care of it. it was a relief¡­?¡± the empress nodded her head lightly with her pale face, and the marchioness blinked her eyes at her empress, not knowing what she was saying. it was then. knock, knock. ¡°your majesty the empress. i brought you what you said.¡± the door to the throne room rang. the marchioness frowned at her knowing voice. she was clearly the courtier. ¡°come in.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty the empress.¡± she politely opened the door and the courtier who came in was empty-handed. instead of her, something was sitting on her shoulder. ¡°ah, anit!¡± quadang! the marchioness let out a startled sound and rolled around on the floor with her backless chair. ¡°ahem. what kind of indecency is this, mrs. parshad? ¡°do not correct her behavior in front of her majesty the empress.¡± ¡°w-what¡­¡± the marchioness pointed with her trembling hand to yvette¡¯s shoulder. duke schreiden, who had gently scolded the marquis, flew over and sat down at lasilia¡¯s feet, bowing her head. ¡°i meet your majesty the empress. ahem, today is also an indescribable honor.¡± she wasn¡¯t surprised simply because the bird spoke clearly. the marchioness had seen that big parrot. just yesterday, on the way to the temple. when a flock of birds suddenly came and covered the carriage in black, one parrot stood out in particular. not only was it large, but its bright yellow and bright blue feathers and bright red beak were very impressive. ¡°thank you for coming. be at ease.¡± ¡°i am very grateful, your majesty.¡± after she finished speaking, the parrot flew over and sat on the chandelier hanging from the ceiling. squeak, squeal. squeak, squeak. a huge chandelier filled with crystals began to squeak and shake. it felt somehow eerie. strangely enough, the marchioness felt anxious, as if the chandelier was going to fall on her head. ¡°well, that bird¡­ why¡­¡± ¡°i want to show you.¡± ¡°you mean to me?¡± ¡°as you can see, it is a very talented bird. thankfully, they listen to everything i say. oh, they said that the accident that happened on the way to the temple yesterday was caused by birds. do you remember what kind of bird it was?¡± ¡°that¡­ that is¡­¡± the marchioness turned pale. ¡°i¡¯m sorry. from now on you will have to be careful of the birds. you never know which bird will cause what kind of accident.¡± ¡°w-what are you saying¡­ oh, you said that¡­ ¡± ¡°there.¡± instead of repeating her words, the empress pointed to her parrot as if to look. the parrot used its beak to peck at a small piece of crystal hanging loosely. puck! the crystal fell to the floor and made a loud noise. the marchioness¡¯s feet trembled. if the crystal had turned just a little to the right, she would have heard that scary sound in her head. ¡°birds are everywhere. and this bird knows how to command birds. isn¡¯t that amazing?¡± the marchioness¡¯s lips lost color and turned purple. ¡°that¡¯s, that¡¯s it for me right now¡­¡± ¡°this is advice to be careful where you go from now on. i¡¯m so glad you were safe from yesterday¡¯s accident.¡± ¡°¡­¡± the marchioness closed her mouth. it was because she realized that the empress was now threatening her. although she was cruel and capricious, she seemed like a completely different person from the empress, who obeyed her orders as long as she pleased her. ¡°i confirmed that everything was okay, so it¡¯s okay. i hope you get back home safely.¡± lasilia raised her body. ¡°your majesty the empress. you can¡¯t walk alone yet.¡± yvette quickly came to her side and held her arm. lasilia picked up her pace, resting her head lightly on yvette¡¯s shoulder. ¡°thanks.¡± ¡°i apologize, your majesty. it¡¯s my job, so please include what you said. you have a sore throat due to a cold.¡± lasilia and yvette left the throne room like affectionate sisters. ¡°ahem! please give me the honor of being your escort!¡± duke shriden followed behind the two food ducks. ¡°¡­¡± the marchioness remained in the empty throne room with a gaunt look on her face. CH 39 rjr11-14 minutes 12.11.2023 ¡°ah¡­ what?¡± it was a very drowsy voice. at first glance, the voice was soft, but it had a soft and loose feel that made it difficult to guess its age. ¡°did the marquis step away?¡± ¡°so it is, saint.¡± ¡°i am indeed. i got hit with some bird poop.¡± the beautiful young man who was called a saint wrinkled the bridge of his nose. he was as handsome as he was beautiful. it was a face that seemed to captivate me without even realizing it. ¡°so what should we do now? there is no way to find out the empress¡¯s secret except through the mouth of the marquis.¡± those who politely folded their hands in front of the young man were high-ranking priests. it had a strange appearance. there was no place where the class system was as strict as the shrine. he left home as a child and suffered as a servant for over ten years before becoming a priest. after living the difficult life of a priest for about twenty years, he was able to become a priest. the number of positions for high-ranking priests was limited to thirteen. in other words, no one among the thirteen could become a high-ranking priest unless he died. therefore, most of the high-ranking priests were grumpy old men who had spent their entire lives in the temple, and the priests below them were treated as little more than foot wipers. however, in front of the young man, it felt like the high-ranking priests had become old shoes. ¡°ah¡­ i almost know what the secret is. but this is a temple and you are priests, right? you can¡¯t just ask to take off a woman¡¯s underwear. what if i get misunderstood as a pervert?¡± ¡°yes¡­? cow, underwear¡­ did you say that?¡± looking at the confused high-ranking priests, the young man smiled as smoothly as if he had been greased. ¡°huh. once you take it off, you¡¯ll see. i wonder if there is no way to remove it.¡± the high-ranking priests exchanged embarrassed glances and bowed. ¡°if that¡¯s the case, we¡¯ll¡­¡± ¡°yes, i know. i didn¡¯t expect you guys to be particularly useful¡­ ah, but tell me one thing. how do i take off the royal family¡¯s clothes?¡± ¡°that¡¯s it¡­ if it were clothes, i would change them every day.¡± ¡°tsk. other than changing clothes. you mean there has to be something to take it off?¡± ¡°that¡­ umm¡­ therefore¡­¡± after putting our old heads together for a while, a solution emerged. she often had to take off her clothes when making new clothes. and at the same time, there was a rumor that the imperial tailor was busy coming and going every day in the imperial palace to make new clothes for the empress. ¡°okay. that will do.¡± the young man¡¯s eyes sparkled. his bright green eyes, which were usually light green, briefly revealed a golden color at times like this. however, the place where the young man was was very dark, and the old eyes of the high-ranking priests who had a hard time with the young man did not notice the momentary change. ¡°bring the imperial tailor. i need to get you ready, so as quickly as possible. and without the imperial palace knowing.¡± the high-ranking priests looked embarrassed. ¡°i will do my best, but it may be a bit difficult. unless the tailor himself comes forward to cooperate with the temple¡­ besides, it somehow seems like the emperor has one eye on this side.¡± ¡°i am indeed. he came out like this as soon as he said he didn¡¯t expect to be useful. okay, then. i¡¯ll take care of it. everyone, go out.¡± ¡°saint. what does it mean to take care of it yourself¡­?¡± the young man erased his greasy smile and completely changed his expression. ¡°do i really have to ask that?¡± ¡°huh¡­ ah, no. i won¡¯t ask.¡± when the laughter disappeared, the young man no longer looked relaxed or drowsy. it was as scary as a monster made of ice. ¡°get out. and tell my children to come.¡± ¡°¡­all right.¡± the high-ranking priests retreated and left the young man¡¯s room. after a while, people wearing white armor appeared in front of the young man. ¡°did you call me, father?¡± ¡°okay.¡± the boots, cape, and all-white outfit with a blood-red cross drawn only on the left chest looked more like fanatics than knights. ¡°get the imperial tailor. we need to make him cooperate, so take shik-sol as a hostage. you only need one hostage. kill the rest in front of everyone. that way you can listen well.¡± ¡°i receive orders.¡± the knights bent their knees. ¡°saint malik, father of those who know the truth.¡± * * * ¡°your majesty has now passed away.¡± yvette cautiously opened her mouth. to the outside world, lasilia was currently suffering from a severe cold. the emperor, who had planned to stay in the next room for two months, was forced to return to the imperial palace. he seemed to instinctively realize that this was not the time to blatantly make promises. however, despite the fact that he had returned, the emperor visited the empress¡¯ palace five or six times a day. his justification was to visit the sick. and each time, he was rejected again and again. because of this, there were endless eyewitness accounts in the imperial palace saying that they felt sorry for his majesty and could not bear to see him. yvette was one of those people. just looking at her appearance, it looks like the emperor would cut off the heads of people who dared to say the word ¡®refusal¡¯, but when he heard that the empress had refused to visit her in hospital, she just slumped her shoulders and said, she turned around without saying anything. it was even more unfortunate that she only lowered the corners of her eyes with her usual expressionless expression. ¡°uh¡­ you¡¯ve been coughing a lot lately, your majesty.¡± yvette gathered her courage and spoke out. ¡°so¡­ i think his majesty the emperor could come visit us in hospital, but¡­¡± ¡°not yet.¡± lasilia deliberately cut her off coldly. it was better for her not to see the emperor now. ¡°ah¡­ i see. i understand.¡± yvette lowered her head with a sullen expression. it wasn¡¯t my intention, but somehow she felt sorry on his face. ¡°it would be better for the princess to go out in case she catches a cold. i will be alone.¡± then yvette was startled and threw up her hands. ¡°oh! what are you saying, your majesty? you¡¯re sick, so of course you need someone to take care of you! if my mouth is the problem, i won¡¯t be the first to say a word from now on!¡± ¡°you can say that much. aside from that, it¡¯s because i don¡¯t feel at peace. i¡¯ll call you when i need to, so until then, rest easy. don¡¯t you need time to take care of her younger siblings?¡± ¡°ah¡­ if so, yes. thank you for your consideration, your majesty.¡± lasilia nodded her head. as yvette left the bedroom, she looked behind her in succession. ¡°but your majesty, you must call me whenever you need me. of course.¡± ¡°you do not have to worry. i will do that.¡± ¡°yes. do not forget it.¡± yvette left the aesthetic bedroom. now that she was alone, lasilia comforted her confused emotions. ¡°we have to go back before the problem gets bigger¡­ she can¡¯t just wait in del¡¯arta for the priest to come.¡± now there was a way to contact us first. she didn¡¯t know that if she asked pipi a favor, the birds would deliver the letter. however, it was a method she didn¡¯t really like. the long journey, which would take two months even by carriage, would be difficult for the birds. and it bothered her that she was asking fifi for a way to leave eliaden. ¡°i think you won¡¯t like it. when i find out what kind of letter it is. but i can¡¯t lie to pipi.¡± what would pipi do when she finds out she was a fake? would he get angry? should she be sad? or would she try to find a real companion? she had only been living in someone else¡¯s body for less than a month, but there were already things that were difficult to let go of. if she was to lock herself in that windowless, dark, quiet room again, she would think of the things here. she would miss it even though she knew it was not hers. ¡°but that¡¯s the only way.¡± pipi was a smart bird, so one day he would understand his situation. lasilia, she thought, was just getting up from her bed to write a letter to her vicar of del¡¯arta. knock, knock! ¡°your majesty the empress.¡± yvette, who had just left the bedroom, returned. her cheeks flushed all of a sudden. it seemed like something good had happened. ¡°i know you¡¯re unwell¡­ because it¡¯s urgent. the imperial tailor requested an audience, saying the measurements he took at that time seemed to be incorrect.¡± ¡°hmm¡­?¡± lasilia tilted her head for a moment. ¡®was it that urgent?¡¯ yvette looked at him with both hands clasped together. it seemed like it meant not to refuse. ¡°didn¡¯t you tell the tailor i had a cold?¡± ¡°of course it is, but we can¡¯t make clothes without measuring them¡­ uh, then that means her majesty¡¯s new clothes will be delayed by that much.¡± ¡°¡­then.¡± it would be okay to just take the measurements again for a moment. the emperor said his cold was serious, but in fact, as yvette said, he was almost completely cured. ¡°then i¡¯ll see you in the living room.¡± ¡°yes-yes! your majesty the empress!¡± yvette¡¯s voice came out much brighter. he seemed really happy that he had not turned down the imperial tailor. * * * ¡°your measurements have changed a lot recently, your majesty.¡± these were the words of the imperial tailor. he had tape measures of different thickness wrapped around his arm and carefully measured his body here and there. ¡°if this happens, your clothes won¡¯t come out right. i¡¯ll have to measure everything again.¡± ¡°is it?¡± she just thought it must be because the tailor was like that. ¡°indeed, i would like you to take off her outer garment. i have to measure the numbers.¡± ¡°outer clothes¡­?¡± it was a request that had not been made before. lasilia looked at the imperial tailor as if it was something new. it was clearly the same face. but it felt different then. his cheeks were as red as yvette¡¯s. ¡°oh, i see. your majesty, please open your arms and i will take them off.¡± yvette suddenly approached. lasilia shook her head. ¡°wait a minute, princess. take off her outer clothes. is that really necessary? and i think it¡¯s not in line with imperial etiquette.¡± ¡°uh¡­? ah, i see. anyone who can touch the clothes of the royal family¡­¡± then the tailor intervened. ¡°no, your majesty. it¡¯s essential for making clothes.¡± then yvette also nodded vigorously. ¡°oh, that¡¯s right. because making clothes for her majesty the empress is the most important job! it might be against etiquette, but shouldn¡¯t i just be aware of it? then i will unbutton it, your majesty.¡± ¡°princess shriden. i haven¡¯t agreed yet,¡± tuk! yvette moved her hands impatiently, causing the top buttonhole to open and the button to fall off. ¡°oh my. it would have been fine if you had stayed still. please raise your arms, your majesty.¡± ¡°princess¡­?¡± at this point, she couldn¡¯t help but feel that something was strange. normal yvette would never have behaved like this. even if it wasn¡¯t a big deal that a button fell off, she would have felt incredibly guilty. ¡°put down your clothes and look at me. tell me what happened before i get the tailor.¡± ¡°what happened¡­¡± yvette¡¯s eyes were bloodshot as she looked at me. it¡¯s suspicious that it¡¯s because she worked too hard on sewing. CH 40 rjr11-14 minutes 19.11.2023 ¡°what is going on? what are you talking about?¡± with bloodshot eyes, yvette spoke quickly. ¡°nothing happened. i have to take off her majesty¡¯s clothes.¡± ¡°no, i will measure it later. everyone, please leave.¡± ¡°no, your majesty! i need to measure you!¡± yvette burst into tears and grabbed her coat. squeak! there was a long tear near the shoulder of her dress. ¡°princess shryden!¡± ¡°please stay still, your majesty!¡± sigh! the clothes were torn longer. ¡°stop it now! why are you doing this!¡± ¡°because i have to take off your clothes!¡± it was difficult to stop yvette with force alone. even though she held onto both of her hands and pulled them apart, yvette was still clinging to the torn hem of his clothes. lasilia shouted out the door of the drawing room. ¡°lord sergen! come in and get these people out!¡± what was even stranger was what happened next. upon hearing lasilia¡¯s voice, serven entered the living room. the imperial tailor blocked his path and said: ¡°your majesty the empress needs to take measurements. only then can we make clothes properly.¡± ¡°ah¡­? that¡­ go?¡± serven, who heard those words, quietly stretched out his hands. ¡°lord serven?¡± ¡°i said it should be so, your majesty. please stay still.¡± ¡°what?¡± it was strange. it was really strange. yvette came over and forcibly pulled down her clothes. ¡°look. even sir serven said the same thing. her majesty just needs to stay still. i will take care of everything.¡± everyone seemed to be possessed by something. lasilia snatched back the torn piece of her dress and looked yvette straight in the eyes. ¡°princess shryden. no, yvette.¡± ¡°yes, your majesty the empress.¡± it was only bloodshot, but there was no hesitation in the gaze looking at her. she could tell by looking at it. yvette had no intention of harming her. something strange was just happening. lasilia calmed her mind. now she had to get yvette to come to her senses. ¡°i am displeased with what you are doing. you tried to force me to take off my clothes against my will in front of other people. this is unacceptable.¡± ¡°but we still have to make the clothes properly. you have to take off your clothes to measure your size.¡± ¡°are you going to keep making me uncomfortable? is that what you mean?¡± ¡°uh¡­? i am¡­ i thought it would be nice for her majesty the empress to wear pretty clothes¡­¡± ¡°if you don¡¯t listen to me for that reason, i don¡¯t need your service. you don¡¯t have to be my maid anymore.¡± ¡°uh, that¡­¡± yvette¡¯s eyes wavered. lasilia witnessed the strange phenomenon of bloodshot eyes turning white again and then turning red again. she looked bloodshot, but that wasn¡¯t it. ¡°that is¡­ no, i have to make clothes for her majesty the empress¡­ so i¡­¡± ¡°take your hands off my body.¡± ¡°well, i¡­ oh, no!¡± at one point, yvette cried out and clung to lasilia. ¡°no! don¡¯t do that to me! then i¡­ uh?¡± yvette shook her head with a confused expression. ¡°why¡­ why¡­? why do i¡­ am doing this? her majesty¡¯s clothes¡­ wow, i did! i took her majesty¡¯s clothes¡­!¡± yvette was shocked, having finally realized what she had done. looking at it, she was sure. it wasn¡¯t normal just now. it also meant that both the imperial tailor and serven were insane. ¡°get up first. stand behind me.¡± lasilia did not take her eyes off the two and hid yvette behind her back. yvette still couldn¡¯t believe what she had done. ¡°why on earth did i¡­?¡± ¡°i think that tailor is doing something strange.¡± jerk. as soon as she finished speaking, serven came right in front of her. serven¡¯s eyes were red and bloodshot, just like yvette¡¯s. ¡°your majesty the empress. i don¡¯t know why you¡¯re rejecting it. don¡¯t you have to take your measurements to make clothes?¡± slurp! while speaking his words, serven at the same time touched the hilt of his sword and made a sound. lasilia turned to face serven, wrapping her hands around yvette behind her. ¡°so? are you saying you¡¯re going to use a knife to take off my clothes?¡± ¡°because you have no choice but to measure.¡± ¡°haha. why do i have to measure myself?¡± ¡°that¡¯s it, to make clothes for her majesty the empress¡­¡± ¡°okay. to make my own clothes. why do i have to make those clothes in a way that i find offensive?¡± ¡°ah¡­?¡± serven tilted his head. there seemed to be some confusion. ¡°if you¡¯re offended, i won¡¯t¡­ no, you have to measure it. you can¡¯t make clothes if you don¡¯t know the measurements.¡± ¡°please come to your senses right now. do you think it makes sense to put a knife to me to make my clothes?¡± ¡°umm¡­ of course it doesn¡¯t make sense¡­ ah?¡± then the tailor shouted. ¡°you have to measure! certainly!¡± serven¡¯s eyes, which were shaking like yvette¡¯s, turned red again. ¡°yes, your majesty.¡± slurp! serven pulled out his sword. ¡°if you keep insisting, i will take it off for you. oh, you don¡¯t have to worry. if you stay still, i can take it off without scratching a single hair.¡± shish! the tip of serven¡¯s sword moved over the dress. ¡°oh! no!¡± yvette rushed forward and tried to block serven¡¯s sword with her palm. ¡°no! yvette!¡± lasilia pulled yvette. tsk! blood splattered out from somewhere. ¡°ah¡­¡± yvette, who suffered a long cut from her palm to her forearm, sat down with a groan. serven thrust his blood-covered knife in front of lasilia, not even knowing what he had done. ¡°i will take off your clothes for you, empress¡­¡± ¡°listen to me! i told you not to!¡± lasilia became impatient and looked into serven¡¯s eyes and shouted. no, she tried to scream, but her voice wasn¡¯t loud enough. instead, it was deep. the words she uttered with as much force in her throat left a strange ringing sound in her ears. ¡°ah¡­¡± ¡­clang. serven suddenly twisted his body and dropped his sword. it was then. knock, knock. the chamberlain of the emperor¡¯s palace knocked on the closed drawing room door. ¡°your majesty the empress. now his majesty the emperor has eaten it. may i open the door?¡± now was not the time to discuss other matters. ¡°open the door.¡± ¡°your majesty the empress.¡± thud! it was the moment when the door opened on both sides. the tailor, who had been watching this and that since serven dropped his sword, hurriedly blocked the chamberlain¡¯s path. ¡°close the door. her majesty must take off her clothes and measure her now.¡± ¡°umm¡­? ah, then¡­¡± the chamberlain tried to close the road gate. swish! at that moment, lescal reached out and grabbed the tailor by the back of his neck. ¡°your majesty! how dare you do that!¡± everyone looked at lescal in surprise. lescal threw the tailor he had lifted into the air onto the floor. ¡°hold on. don¡¯t let me die with my own hands.¡± ¡°yes-yes? yes, your majesty?¡± the next moment, lescal was in front of lasilia. lescal, who looked at the knife on the floor, serven¡¯s body frozen in embarrassment, and the bleeding maid, grabbed serven back. puck! just like that one day, serven flew away and landed against the wall. serven, who hit his back so hard, was unable to stand on his own two legs and collapsed on the floor. ¡°are you okay?¡± lescal grabbed lasilia. ¡°yes. my clothes are a little torn, but it¡¯s no problem. however¡­¡± the calmness she had been trying so hard to maintain instantly melted when lescal grabbed her. lasilia stumbled and put her head on lescal¡¯s shoulder. she could feel her hand shaking as he held her. leskal rubbed lasilia¡¯s back. if she wasn¡¯t mistaken, his hands seemed to be shaking too. ¡°it doesn¡¯t look okay.¡± ¡°no. no injuries whatsoever¡­ ah, princess shryden. the princess is injured.¡± yvette shook her head, holding her injured arm. ¡°i am okay. even though i was injured, i was only slightly injured. i¡¯ve been hurt like this before.¡± ¡°don¡¯t say it¡¯s okay. you need to get treatment quickly.¡± lescal turned lasilia¡¯s head from yvette back to him. ¡°you.¡± ¡°yes?¡± ¡°do you not need treatment?¡± ¡°ah¡­ i wasn¡¯t hurt.¡± ¡°she is hurt.¡± ¡°no. i wasn¡¯t hurt.¡± ¡°you¡¯re hurt. even if you can¡¯t see it, you¡¯re probably hurt.¡± lescal continued to insist that she was injured and held rasilia¡¯s body. lasilia panicked and she hit him on the shoulder. ¡°you don¡¯t have to do this.¡± ¡°your hands are shaking. it¡¯s because you got hurt.¡± ¡°no. this¡­ in amazement,¡± ¡°okay. i mean, i got hurt.¡± lescal, holding lasilia, opened the door to his bedroom. before that, he looked at serven and left a short message. ¡°call ryan.¡± he also said that he would not deal with serven. ¡°¡­yes, your majesty.¡± serven lowered his head with a deathly look on his face. it became ryan¡¯s job to clean up the strange things that happened today. * * * ¡°the tailor is in bad shape, your majesty.¡± ryan said while holding back his teeth. ¡°did i make that happen?¡± ¡°no, absolutely not. her eyes rolled back and purple foam flowed from her mouth. it looks similar to the reaction of witchcraft, but according to deccan, there are no traces of witchcraft. now i can barely breathe. but it seems difficult to act like a person again.¡± ¡°so you¡¯re saying it¡¯s not witchcraft?¡± ¡°it¡¯s similar to witchcraft, but it¡¯s not witchcraft¡­ that is the conclusion, your majesty.¡± ¡°¡­¡± instead of answering, lescal¡¯s blood clotted at his temple. someone tried to use the imperial tailor to put their hands on the empress. the exact purpose was unknown. all he could tell was that he was trying to remove her clothes under the pretense of taking her measurements again. ¡°who were you in contact with before coming here?¡± ¡°deccan is looking into it. i will let you know as soon as the news comes.¡± ¡°tell them to hurry. i don¡¯t plan on waiting long.¡± ryan bent her waist straight. ¡°of course, your majesty. i also know deccan well.¡± ¡°have you chosen the empress¡¯s escort?¡± ¡°i made a list. would you like to check it yourself?¡± ¡°i¡¯ll check tonight.¡± ¡°all right.¡± the place where lescal was located was lasilia¡¯s bedroom. after the previous incident, lescal had no intention of leaving lasilia¡¯s side. ryan¡¯s mind was busy answering his questions, choosing what to say to the empress and what to hide. ¡°then what happens to lord serven?¡± lasilia asked, lying still on her bed while lescal was by her side. ¡°¡­i thought you were sleeping.¡± lescal turned his head and looked at lasilia. yes, she did pretend to sleep. because she was uncomfortable being around the emperor. moreover, it was known that the cold was not completely cured. still, she couldn¡¯t pretend not to know the obvious. ¡°i woke up. will sir sigress be disciplined?¡± ¡°yes.¡± lescal nodded his head once. the light nod seemed somehow heavy. ¡°he has set a sword against you. we will never meet him again in the palace.¡± lasilia¡¯s eyes turned to ryan. ryan turned her head to the side to hide her distressed expression. serven was the one who foolishly fell under what seemed like a spell, but the results were quite severe. lescal¡¯s last mercy was not to go to the execution site. as the brother and sister, she couldn¡¯t help but feel uncomfortable. ¡°i do not wish for lord serven to be punished.¡± so when lasilia said these words in a calm voice, ryan was surprised by her sincerity. ¡°just now¡­ what did you say, your majesty?¡±