At the exact same time every day, a cheerful, chattering voice filled the estate—like a songbird greeting the morning.
At first, she had thought her quiet home was perfectly fine.
But ever since the Empress started visiting, the silence felt… lonely.
The once tranquil mansion now seemed cold and empty whenever the Empress wasn’t there.
But when she arrived—the house felt warm, as if winter had turned into spring.
Especially when the Empress effortlessly remembered things even her three sons had never noticed about her.
—”You prefer tea brewed hot rather than cold, right? That’s perfect! Appleplum is delicious both ways.”
—”It’s no fun when His Majesty gulps his tea down too fast, but you savor it slowly, so I can actually talk to you! I love that!”
—”Didn’t you say you liked orange? What about Raplen flowers? A new variety just came out!”
Marchioness Hessen tapped her fingers on the table, deep in thought.
At first, she had assumed the Empress was visiting only for the gemstone—but the method she chose was unexpected.
Instead of demanding or threatening, she had opted to build a connection through thoughtful gifts.
“I thought she’d be arrogant and selfish.”
She had expected the Empress to offer an expensive trade or throw a fit if refused.
But instead, the Empress never once brought up the gemstone directly, focusing on small, enjoyable conversations instead.
She remembered every tiny detail that even her own sons would have ignored.
Having lived long enough to understand people well, Marchioness Hessen had to admit—
The Empress was straightforward yet clever, lighthearted yet determined.
She wasn’t malicious, nor was she naïve.
She was charming in a way that drew people in.
Her cat-like, sharp eyes didn’t match her bright smile as she fearlessly complained about the Emperor.
It was an irresistible kind of charm.
So much so that Marchioness Hessen had—without realizing—thought to herself: “It would be nice to have a daughter like that.”
The Empress had a talent for making people feel good around her—thoughtful without being overbearing, perceptive without being intrusive.
Even the Appleplum tea felt like a reflection of her personality.
A gentle yet effective remedy, something useful and comforting.
The way she brought it daily only strengthened their familiarity.
Every time she looked at those bright, eager golden eyes, it felt like the Empress was saying—
“I want to be friends!”
And because she didn’t sneak around or hide her intentions, it made her actions more amusing than suspicious.
Whenever Marchioness Hessen spent time with her, she felt an unfamiliar sense of loneliness wash away.
Her dull, uneventful days had become lively again.
Realizing this, she sighed.
“If only she weren’t trying to be friends, I wouldn’t mind giving her the jewel.”
She felt a strange sense of regret.
And then—she froze.
Wait. Why not?
The whole purpose of the gemstone and Gem Club was to form a close bond with someone.
Marchioness Hessen sat in stunned silence.
“She isn’t arrogant. She isn’t reckless or demanding.”
From everything she had observed, the Empress’s relationship with the Emperor seemed stable.
She wasn’t living in luxury surrounded by men, as the rumors had suggested.
Despite being the Empress, she didn’t abuse her power to get what she wanted.
Instead—she had taken the most honest approach possible:
She showed her true feelings and genuinely worked to earn others’ trust.
‘Was I the one treating her unfairly?’
The Gem Club had been created precisely to protect women from exclusion and discrimination.
Yet, she had done the very thing she hated—rejecting the Empress due to preconceived notions.
A faint embarrassment crept over her.
By personality and values alone, the Empress was already qualified to join Gem Club.
It had never been about status—only about forming a close-knit, supportive group.
Technically, members had to be foreign-born, but…
Her husband, the Emperor, was Kaibel’s cousin—a prince of Helios.
By marriage, that made the Empress part of the Helios royal family.
“…Would that count?”
Marchioness Hessen scratched her cheek.
In truth, she didn’t want to lose the Appleplum tea.
Or the Empress, either.
For days, she pondered over it—until, finally, at a Gem Club tea party, she spoke up.
“Ahem. Isn’t it time we considered new members?”
“I was just thinking that!”
“So was I! Actually, I wanted to introduce someone who shares my interests.”
Marchioness Hazel lit up with excitement, and Countess Ekaterina eagerly nodded.
“You know how people look down on noblewomen who bake? But this person doesn’t care about such nonsense. She even bakes with me and gifts me foreign cookbooks!”
Marchioness Hessen felt satisfied.
It seemed like they also had their own candidates in mind.
Perhaps if each of them sponsored one person—
She thought about requesting two more jewels from Helios as she spoke.
“Then let’s each name our candidates.”
The other two nodded.
And at the same time—
“The Empress.”
“Leah Vermouth.”
“Her Majesty the Empress.”
Silence.
The three women stared at one another.
‘You too?’
‘Me too!’
They exchanged bewildered glances, realization dawning.
Meanwhile, the tea party’s host, Duchess Ruby Shire, beamed.
“So, all three of you have come to like Her Majesty!”
“A-Ah, well…”
“Like might be too strong a word…”
“She just seemed… nicer than I expected…”
One by one, they hesitantly admitted their interactions with Leah.
—‘Because the Appleplum tea was delicious.’
—‘Because she was easy to talk to.’
—‘Because she baked with me.’
Though each experience was different, the underlying sentiment was exactly the same.
“So what you’re all really saying is—despite pretending otherwise, you actually want to be closer to Her Majesty, right?”
Ruby summarized it in a single line.
The three women fell silent.
Ruby grinned and stood up.
“I’ll go tell Her Majesty this wonderful news right away! A unanimous decision—how exciting!”
“W-Wait! At least consider our dignity—”
“Duchess!”
And so—
For the first time in Gem Club’s history, two new members were admitted at once.
—”Hello, it’s a pleasure to meet you all.”
The former princess of Helios, Duchess Ruby Shire.
—”Hello! I’m so happy to finally join you!”
And the Empress of Bermut, Leah Bermut.
*****
“I’ve never seen a pearl like this before.”
I murmured in awe.
The pearl resting on its velvet cushion gleamed far more radiantly than any ordinary pearl, its pure white glow utterly mesmerizing.
It was my ticket to becoming a full-fledged member of the Gem Club—and more importantly, the key to calming Xian’s rampages, just like the Red Book had hinted.
This pearl was exactly that.
“Each gemstone carries a unique power and brings good fortune to its owner,” Marchioness Hessen added.
She had also informed me of an important rule: the first person to touch the gem with bare skin becomes its rightful owner.
Without hesitation, I carefully removed the pearl from its stone case with my bare hands.
Then, to keep it close at all times, I had it set into a pendant necklace.
Haha, how satisfying! I finally got my hands on it!
And even better—
“It actually seems to work.”
To test its effectiveness, I changed my usual plans.
Instead of heading out to socialize with Ruby and the other Gem Club ladies, I went to find Xian.
His reaction?
“The sun must be rising in the west. You’ve been spending every day outside the palace, and now—”
“Xian, give me your hand.”
“Why?”
“Just do it… There. Now, I’ll sit here quietly. You can keep working.”
Lately, he had seemed busier than usual, and his tone was colder—almost as if he were sulking.
But I ignored it and firmly took his hand, making him flinch slightly.
I pulled up a chair and settled beside him, resting my chin on my hand as I watched him intently.
Xian, now trapped with his left hand in my grasp, stiffened and averted his gaze.
“Xian, how do you feel?”
“…What do you mean.”
“How do you feel while we’re sitting like this?”
“…What about it.”
“Why are you acting weird? Maybe this isn’t working. Should I let go?”
“Who told you to let go?”
His response was oddly phrased, but since I didn’t fully understand how the pearl worked yet, I kept holding on for two hours.
And—it worked wonders!
Even when I started going out more frequently to spend time with Ruby and the other ladies, Xian didn’t complain.
Most importantly—
Puk.
“…Are you satisfied now?”
“Yes! Completely!”
I had pricked Xian’s finger to draw blood as the final test.
Of course, he had been reluctant at first.
But after endless pleading, calling it a personal wish, and pulling out all my best coaxing tactics, I had finally gotten his approval.
For safety, I secured him tightly to a chair beforehand.
At the same time, I had secretly stationed a wounded knight nearby, his small cut bleeding just enough for my experiment.
And to my absolute delight—Xian didn’t go berserk.
Technically speaking, his pupils did lose focus for a brief moment the instant both of them bled at the same time.
But—
As soon as I gripped his hand tightly and silently whispered “calm down, calm down” in my heart, the pearl suddenly emitted a faint melodic hum.
-♬♩♬♪
A haunting, ethereal sound.
It felt like being drawn into the depths of a beautiful lake or the endless ocean.
‘Wow. That’s… stunning.’
I instinctively knew—this sound could only be heard by the gem’s rightful owner.
I listened, utterly mesmerized by the melody, until—
Suddenly, the sound vanished.
And at that exact moment, Xian’s golden eyes regained focus.
“What did you just do?”
He looked at me suspiciously.
Normally, he would have been on edge after bleeding—even if just a little.
But nothing had changed, making the situation feel… odd to him.
“What do you mean?”
Internally, I was bursting with joy.
It worked!
The pearl’s power was real!
With some more training, I could completely suppress his rampages!
Xian, slightly tense, examined his own hand suspiciously.
Then, when I cheerfully began untying the ropes that had secured him to the chair, he shot me a flat, unimpressed stare.
“Be honest. Who have you been secretly spending time with lately?”
“Huh? No one.”
“Then why is your taste getting weirder by the day?”
“What do you mean? Oh! Can I try pricking two of your fingers next time? I’ll tie you up even more securely!”
“……”
