“Episode 12”
“Excuse me?!”
I was so surprised that my body, lying on the bed, floated in the air for a moment before settling back down. As a result, the bed shook violently, causing even the body of Emperor Linel to shake. He raised an eyebrow teasingly and said,
“Yes. It felt like back then, when my body shook like this.”
“…?”
“It was like a wave of heat engulfing me, reaching deep into my body. I felt the warmth intensely… Was it really just an illusion?”
Was I too proactive during the night? But I wasn’t, was I? I just lay there motionless like a corpse. Oh, come to think of it, my body felt cool like a boulder when he touched it. So, for a moment back then, I guess I was proactive. Emperor Linel’s gaze, seemingly longing for something, continued to linger on my face. Now what should I do? Should I casually slip away, suggesting we check if it was really an illusion? Or should I turn off the lights first?
“But, I won’t force you into an embrace.”
Emperor Linel’s solemn voice made both of my hands, which were about to reach for the slipknot and the light switch, pause simultaneously. Wow, I almost blurted out something silly just now!
“…Your Majesty.”
“I mean it. That’s how I truly feel. I’m not sure about my body, though.”
His eyes, which were filled with desire just moments ago, softened considerably.
“Although I can practically do anything in the Raphion Empire, or almost anywhere on the Northern Continent, when it comes to my wife… I don’t want to.”
Surprisingly, his voice sounded genuine. It was astonishing to think that an Emperor with all the power could have such thoughts. Whether he could maintain that mindset was another matter altogether.
“I also want to have at least one person by my side whom I can’t treat casually or recklessly.”
Emperor Linel suddenly began to look adorable. A sudden impulse arose to throw off the flimsy slip I was wearing right now, not that I really intended to do so, but his words touched me deeply. The fact that he was a good man… made the reality of me being a substitute Empress even sadder. Unconsciously, I shook my head. A few seconds later, his large hand rested on the back of my head.
“I won’t treat you recklessly, but honestly, I don’t have much patience either.”
As he spoke as if confessing, I looked up again. He continued to smile while keeping his hand on my head, as if the priests were blessing us.
“Of course, I’ll need your permission. That’s for sure… Well, I’ll let you know in advance…”
He whispered into my ear as if it were a top-secret.
“I’m… terribly impatient. I hope you’ll keep that in mind.”
“Thank you for the information…”
I replied, biting my lower lip.
“Today, let’s leave it at that.”
He gestured toward my hand.
“…Yes?”
He meant to use my hand for something? My eyes wandered around. Emperor Linel withdrew the hand he had extended to me and glanced away.
“Why, can’t that work either?”
“No, I mean, I don’t know what you mean… but… it’s fine.”
“Oh? But Empress, why do you keep lowering your gaze?”
Well, why are my eyes doing that?
“And why are your eyes so wide open? Is there something you need to confirm in there?”
Emperor Linel asked, poking at the blanket we were covering ourselves with.
“No, it’s not that…”
My mouth shut completely in response to his joke, which didn’t match his deep voice at all. Why my eyes kept wandering to the wrong places, even I couldn’t explain. As a form of self-reflection, I tightly closed my eyes and mimed poking my eyes with two fingers. Then I heard Emperor Linel chuckle repeatedly.
“Empress, I almost made a big mistake just now.”
“…Why?”
“I was about to change my mind while you had your eyes closed.”
He complained, messing up his own hair at the back of his head.
“So, stop doing that.”
Stop doing what? What did I do to make the Emperor make such a pained expression? It wasn’t a displeased expression, but it wasn’t a good one either.
“I hope you’ll let me keep my promise just for today.”
His promise? Oh, could it be…?
“I won’t tell you more about it.”
Emperor Linel warned.
“Don’t be curious. Don’t try to confirm anything further.”
He shifted his hips, distancing himself from me a bit.
“…Yes?”
“Let’s just go to sleep quietly for tonight.”
He murmured softly, as if it were a reminder to himself.
“Here.”
Emperor Linel suddenly reached out his hand again.
“As I mentioned earlier, I’m satisfied with this for tonight.”
His tone was solemn, as if he were making a declaration. I placed my hand on his palm, just as he wanted.
“Your Majesty, are we just holding hands to sleep?”
He responded immediately to my question. Nodding. …It seemed to be true.
“You look disappointed? Seeing this, it seems the Empress isn’t all that innocent.”
He chuckled teasingly.
“What are you talking about? I don’t understand at all.”
I naturally let out a sigh. I didn’t expect much, but I really didn’t know we were just going to hold hands and sleep.
“You’re not very good at lying either.”
I remained silent as he lightly touched my cheek and chuckled.
“Let’s lie down now.”
We slid into bed side by side. He tucked our joined hands under the blanket and repeatedly applied and released pressure, as if he were massaging my hand. It felt like he was pressing on my hand. After a few minutes, he called me.
“Empress, no, Zelda…”
My name. From his sweet voice. Hearing my name from Emperor Linel’s lips felt strange. When I didn’t respond immediately, he turned his body towards me.
“This is much better. From now on, when we’re alone, we should call each other by name.”
His face, with a smile, was too close.
“When it’s just the two of us, let’s call each other by name. What do you think?”
“Are you suggesting I call you by your name, Your Majesty?”
“Yes. You’re the only one in the world who can call me Zelda now.”
Indeed, since Emperor Linel’s predecessor and mother passed away before he turned 20, there was no one who could call him by name.
“I can’t remember the last time someone called my name.”
“Linel…”
Somewhere I found the courage, and without any hesitation, I called him. It felt as natural as if I had always called the Emperor by his name.
“What?”
“What did you say?”
It didn’t seem like he didn’t hear me, but he kept asking.
“Why do you keep pretending not to hear, Linel?”
“Heh, heh, heh!”
This time, he burst into laughter. I couldn’t understand where the joke was in what I said. Anyway, he seemed happy, so I was happy too. Like a teenage boy receiving a confession, he blushed while insisting that I keep calling his name.
“Come on.”
“Linel, aren’t you tired?”
“That means you’re tired and want me to stop now, right?”
He’s indeed a very observant man.
“I’m impressed.”
I pretended to be amazed.
“Zelda.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
I called him Your Majesty again.
When I addressed him again as “Your Majesty,” he glanced at me sideways.
“Oh, Linel.”
Quickly calling him by his name again, he pursed his lips and looked up at the ceiling. After a moment of hesitation, he spoke to me in a solemn voice.
“I like your name. It’s growing on me.”
“My name? You mean my name is growing on you?”
Not me, just the name? The phrasing felt odd, so I asked him again. Linel chuckled with an enigmatic smile and emphasized that it was indeed growing on him. Could it be that he was referring not to my name but to me? A fleeting hope brushed through my mind like a gust of wind. But that couldn’t be, right? It must just be something he’s saying. I silently nodded my head to myself, sorting through my thoughts. Despite the deepening night, our pointless conversation seemed endless. As our words dwindled, he murmured in his sleep like a child.
“Zelda, it’s not cold sleeping with you. It’s really strange…”
Linel’s sleepy voice seeped into my chest, swirling around. Moments later, the sound of his peaceful breathing tickled my ears. Carefully turning my head to the side, I saw him asleep with a smile on his face.
“When I’m with you, it feels like my body isn’t thrown into the fire. I want to keep sleeping comfortably like this from now on…”
Whispering quietly to myself while watching him, I drifted off to sleep. I felt as if my hand, which had been holding his, was being led outside of the blanket. Perhaps it was just a dream. Feeling Linel’s heartbeat in my hand… It must have been an illusion, right?
***When I woke up in the morning, Linel had already gotten up and left the bedroom before me.
“Your Majesty, did you sleep well?”
Sharon greeted me with a much brighter expression, examining my complexion as she exchanged morning pleasantries. She was clearly aware of the fact that Linel had spent the night in my bedroom. Sharon hesitantly parted her lips as she glanced at the spot where he had been lying.
“Her Majesty instructed not to wake you up, as she said you were sleeping deeply.”
“I see. Still, please wake me up next time. It was the same on the first day, but I overslept again and couldn’t see Her Majesty off.”
I imagined Linel waking up first and looking down at me, peacefully asleep, and somehow his face seemed flushed.
“Yes, I will do so. Your Majesty.”
Sharon replied with a bright smile.
“Oh, Sharon. Do you like the new accommodation?”
“Yes, but it’s too much for me!”
I had arranged for Sharon to move to one of the rooms closest to my bedroom, which is usually used by maids when they stay in the palace.
“I don’t know how to thank you for Your Majesty’s grace.”
“You’re more than qualified. If you need anything in the future, just let me know. I’ll do what I can to help within my means.”
“I’m already so satisfied! Thank you very much.”
Sharon’s face, which had been smiling brightly, suddenly turned solemn again.
“Your Majesty…”
“Yes?”
“Duke Martins has requested an audience.”
“The Duke again?”
What could that person want today? Sharon elongated her words with a hesitant tone, then corrected herself, saying that she had missed some information and reopened her notebook.
“He requested to meet with His Majesty the Emperor.”
“What? The Duke with His Majesty?”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I was informed. Should I go to Secretary Raphael to confirm again?”
“No, it’s okay. If that’s how the report came, it must be correct.”
Ugh, just the thought of the three of us meeting together already made me feel uneasy.
“Yeah, we should meet together…”
I resolved myself and got out of bed. My stomach rumbled.
“Your Majesty, before you shower, I’ll have breakfast served first,” Sharon said.
I nodded, once again impressed by Sharon’s excellent service.
“Yeah, that sounds good.”
I chuckled and patted my stomach. An hour later, I had finished the hearty breakfast Sharon had prepared and had also finished showering.
“We’re meeting the Duke and His Majesty in the afternoon. What about the morning schedule?”
I asked Sharon as I sat in front of the vanity.
“Oh, right. My apologies. I momentarily forgot to report the morning schedule while focusing on informing you of the most important agenda for today.”
Sharon quickly retrieved her notebook from her dress pocket, lightly tapping her head with her fist. I smiled at her haste and turned my body toward her, sitting on the chair by the vanity.
“This morning, there is a tea time with noble ladies in the reception room. It might be a good opportunity to see if there is anyone among the ladies you’d like to bring in as a new maid.”
“Hmm, a tea time with the ladies… How many will be attending?”
“Today, fifteen noble ladies have been invited to the palace.”
“Will the ladies we saw in the bedroom yesterday also be attending?”
“Yes, they are on the list.”
“I see.”
I nodded and adjusted my posture to look into the mirror.
“Now, I’ll have the attendants who will take care of Your Majesty’s hair and makeup come in.”
“Okay.”
Sharon swiftly opened the bedroom door and ushered in two attendants who had been waiting. She proudly introduced the first attendant who would take care of my hair.
“Your Majesty, this is Solly, who comes from a royal gardener family. He has been grooming and tending to gardens for generations, and he is more skilled in hairdressing than landscaping.”
I extended my hand to Solly as I listened to Sharon’s praise.
“Nice to meet you, Solly. You have quite a talent.”
“Oh, Your Majesty, you’re too kind! I will serve you with all my heart!”
Solly smiled innocently and kissed the back of my hand.
“I look forward to it. Please treat my hair as if it were a garden and style it as you wish.”
Solly’s face brightened even more at my words.
“And this is Theresa, who will be in charge of makeup. She comes from an artist background and her makeup skills are like painting. She’s especially talented in mixing various colors to create unique lipsticks that can’t be found anywhere else in the world.”
“Ah, Theresa is also truly excellent. Please paint my face as beautifully and elegantly as possible.”
“I’ll do my best to make Your Majesty the most beautiful and sophisticated in the entire Laphion Empire!”
“I’m counting on you.”
I nodded with a slight smile at Theresa’s enthusiastic gaze. Today, as with yesterday, I wore the dress Sharon had personally selected for me. I admired Sharon’s eye for dresses once again. The three attendants discussed in earnest how to style my hair and do my makeup, occasionally asking for my input. Did I really need to select maids when there were experts in attire, hair, and makeup available? I pondered this seriously while entrusting myself to their care.
“Everything is ready, Your Majesty.”
Upon Sharon’s words, I stood up from the vanity chair and stood in front of the full-length mirror.
“Wow, I didn’t expect you to look this beautiful!”
“You’re too kind!”
“I feel a bit disrespectful saying this, but you look much, much more splendid than when we saw you at the wedding!”
They surrounded me, showering me with continuous compliments. I couldn’t help but agree with them, feeling a definite change in the atmosphere. In the mirror, there was no longer Zelda von Troba, the bath attendant from the Kingdom of Shattonil. Instead, there stood Zelda Gideon Edpha, the Empress of the Laphion Empire. Suddenly, I thought of someone who would want to see this more refined version of me than yesterday. Lionel, what is he doing right now? But before meeting him, I had to attend the tea time with the noble ladies. Knock, knock. Along with the knocking sound, a maid informed Sharon that she was needed outside the bedroom. Sharon sought my permission and left the room. A few minutes later, she returned with a smile, but her expression soon turned contemplative.
“Sharon, what’s wrong?”
“Yo-Your Majesty… I think you should hurry to the reception room, the place for tea time.”
“Why? Are the gathered ladies urging for your presence?”
I approached Sharon, who seemed flustered, and asked.
“T-That’s not it…”
Sharon hesitated to continue, her eyes filled with embarrassment.
“What’s the matter then?”
I felt a sudden sense of unease. As I furrowed my brows slightly, Sharon spoke in a subdued voice.
“It’s, um, about the tea time… It’s been reported that there are… candidates for Your Majesty’s concubines present…”
What?
