It was nonsense, but the more I thought about it, the more interesting it became.
Besides, hadn’t all the plans I made recently fallen apart, and I ended up being punished by “that one”?
I couldn’t even leave the house, and every night I thought I’d go crazy from being punished.
“The Empress even took my pearl.”
I had almost won over Princess Helios, Duchess Ruby Shire.
Right before I succeeded, Leah suddenly snatched her away, and “that one” became even more furious.
Eloise’s beautiful violet eyes narrowed sharply.
“Didn’t she say it hadn’t been long since she got close with the Emperor?”
Before the marriage and even right after, the imperial couple had a terrible relationship.
But lately, they’d really gotten close—Eloise had seen it with her own eyes.
Was it because Leah had changed?
Leah, who used to be completely obedient to her father, Duke Celeste, had changed a bit.
Maybe it was the aftermath of that day—she’d become weaker, and her personality had shifted.
“Anyway, I’m not sure exactly.”
If they got close again this quickly, it could also mean they could fall apart just as quickly.
Just as she was thinking that, the Emperor appeared in Eloise’s sight.
“Hmm?”
Her eyes widened. The Emperor was walking alone, dressed a little messier than usual.
“This could work.”
It was different from the original plan, but this seemed like it could be fun too.
Eloise quickly formed a plan and walked up lightly.
“Greetings to Your Majesty the Emperor.”
Eloise greeted him in a shy voice.
But the Emperor just gave her a glance with his slightly cloudy golden eyes.
Then he passed by with a look like he’d just seen a crazy woman.
“What was that?”
All she did was greet him—why that expression?
The Emperor she’d seen until now was cold and scary, yes,
but he’d never reacted that ridiculously.
Eloise held back her fear and followed him.
“Your Majesty, um… I have something to say about Her Majesty the Empress…”
“Handle that stuff on your own.”
Hmm?
At the cold brush-off, Eloise flinched—but her eyes sparkled.
Did they fight? Or did their relationship get bad again?
The Emperor waved his hand like he was annoyed.
“I have to go find snuggy, so don’t bother me and get lost.”
Snuggy?
Just hearing it gave her goosebumps. It sounded like a secret nickname.
One that lovers might use…
“No way, another woman?”
The first stage of her plan was already complete. Her violet eyes gleamed with joy.
Eloise gave a polite bow and quickly disappeared.
“These days, is food poisoning spreading through the palace?
Does the maid not even know how to tell the Emperor and Crown Prince apart?”
…She didn’t even know Snuggy was Leah’s nickname.
Xian walked off indifferently to go find his pet bird.
****
“Ah, that was fun.”
After chatting with Countess Yekaterina and Baroness Sabine, I walked lightly along.
The two close friends had shared lots of fun stories about baking.
They said their still-young children loved cookie dough so much, they would act all cute just to lick the leftover dough after baking.
“Really? Don’t they get stomachaches from the eggs and flour?”
“It’s fine if you use pasteurized ingredients. Plus, it’s sweet with all the chocolate and sugar.”
It wasn’t a formal dessert, but apparently it was a well-known treat among commoner pâtissiers.
Baroness Sabine said she learned about it from her childhood pâtissier back when she lived with her family.
It sounded weird just hearing about it, but the sweet, soft taste seemed kind of addictive.
I thought about it deeply.
“Hmm. If it were made cold, like ice cream, it might be good?”
Come to think of it, in my past life, I’m pretty sure there was ice cream with cookie dough flavor.
Nobles had already tried most desserts, so they were always craving something new.
That’s probably why weird things like pancakes with hot chili sauce were showing up lately.
“I’ll test it first in the Empress’s palace kitchen, then tell Baroness Sabine.”
When the popularity from winning the competition is still hot, I need to launch a new dessert. Got to strike while the iron’s hot and make a ton of money!
Excitedly walking along, I suddenly noticed an unfamiliar scene in front of me.
Clack, clack—
It was a girl sitting in a chair with large wooden wheels on both sides, like a wheelchair. It looked like she’d been touring the outer garden and was trying to reenter the building.
But the stone path at the entrance was raised too high, and the wheels couldn’t easily get over it.
“Oh no…”
She had been struggling for quite a while—her breathing was heavy. Eventually, she gasped for air and grabbed her now-reddened hands after pushing at the wheels.
I approached with the maid who had been following me.
“Hello. Would it be alright if I helped you?”
I smiled sweetly as I greeted her.
The girl, startled, made eye contact with me and gave a slight nod. She looked around my age, very pale and delicate-looking.
I’d never seen her face before—maybe she came from the provinces?
“Hello, my lady. I’d be very grateful if you could help.”
The girl answered with a flustered smile.
Hmm, calling the Empress “my lady.” Definitely not from the capital, then. She doesn’t know who I am.
I smiled back and grabbed the armrest of her chair.
“Heave-ho. Can you help me with this?”
At my words, the maid quickly helped lift the chair. With two people working together, the chair easily cleared the raised stone path.
“Thank you. It’s my first time in the Imperial Capital, and I was wandering around out of curiosity… but I got lost.”
She thanked me in a soft voice.
“If it weren’t for you, my lady, I might’ve gotten separated from my group.”
“Oh, don’t mention it. It wasn’t a big deal. Since the roads seem unfamiliar, should I accompany you?”
I offered to go with her cheerfully. I was heading that way anyway.
The girl seemed worried about getting lost again and accepted my offer. The maid gently pushed the wheeled chair, and the two of us walked side by side.
“You must be familiar with the Outer Palace, my lady. Are you here for the tea gathering later this afternoon?”
“Oh, not quite. The weather was nice today, so I thought I’d come meet some friends.”
I replied casually, and she nodded without a hint of suspicion.
“You must live close to the Imperial Capital. I’m jealous.”
Hmm. I wasn’t trying to lie, but this got a little awkward. I couldn’t exactly say, Actually, I live in the Imperial Palace.
In moments like this, being shameless was the best approach.
Under the warm sunlight, I chatted away with the innocent-looking girl.
She said she had come to the capital a few weeks ago with her father.
Because of her weak health, they came to see a famous doctor, but the trip was long and tiring, so this was the first time she had stepped outside.
“That’s why the Outer Palace is so… ah.”
Just as she was speaking with a slightly flushed face, she touched her forehead.
She must’ve overexerted herself trying to move the chair earlier and from talking so much—her body was reaching its limit.
I quickly leaned in, concerned.
“Are you okay?”
“I-I’m fine… Just a little headache…”
No, she really didn’t look okay. She was sweating coldly!
At that moment, I ran into Xian as he came around the corner.
He was walking out from the finance department building, arms full of pouches. Judging from the amount, he’d probably used me as an excuse again to get more research funds.
“What are you doing here, Your Majes—”
“Xian! Quick, come help this lady!”
Thankfully, Xian was someone in love with medicine, so he always carried pouches full of all kinds of remedies.
“P-Pencil is what we need. But the pharmacy that carries it is far from here…”
“Oh, if it’s pencil you need, I happen to have some.”
Xian quickly rummaged through his pouch and pulled out the medicine.
Thanks to that, the girl—suddenly struck by chills—was able to take the medicine in time.
“Gasp… Th-thank you. You saved me.”
She sighed in relief and expressed her gratitude. Xian, looking proud, handed over a few more of his better meds.
He was about to go on one of his endless lectures about his medicine, so I quickly sent him away.
That guy gets all excited whenever medicine comes up. What if someone recognizes he used to be in my harem?!
“I don’t know how I can ever repay you.”
The girl looked at me with moved eyes. She seemed to think Xian was a doctor I knew from the capital.
“It’s okay. You’re feeling better now—that’s enough.”
“But still… Please let me have a chance to properly thank you, my lady.”
Just as we arrived at the meeting plaza of the Outer Palace, She suddenly realized she hadn’t introduced herself and grabbed my hand.
“I’m Aidin Chenowith, of the Marquis Chenowith family. And you are, my lady?”
Ah, here it comes.
Though I was about to awkwardly reveal my identity, I froze.
Wait a sec… Chenowith?
“I’ll be heading down to Triton in a month to recover, but… I hope we can meet again before then.”
That’s the family that owns the Triton territory!
I was stunned by the coincidence, mouth wide open—
“Aidin Chenowith, there you are! I thought you might’ve gotten lost… Your Majesty the Empress?”
A surprised voice called out. When I looked up, I saw Eloise walking up, wide-eyed.
“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”
“Y-Your Majesty the Empress?”
Aidin looked up at me in shock.
I nodded and smiled sweetly. Then I greeted Eloise, whom I hadn’t seen since that day.
“Hello, Eloise. Long time no see. I guess you’re here for the social gathering too?”
Eloise smiled brightly and nodded.
I returned the greeting naturally but couldn’t help feeling uneasy inside.
She’s something else. Trying to secretly give me a laxative and then ending up drinking it herself… that disaster is still fresh in my mind.
Even though it all ended as an “accidental incident,” she’s acting like it never happened. If it were me, I’d be quietly cringing inside.
“I don’t know if she’s just that carefree or if her personality is really something else.”
In any case, I didn’t want to get any closer to Eloise, So I turned to Aidin to say goodbye.
“It was lovely meeting you, my lady.”
I slipped a salve into her hand—one I’d snatched from Xian’s pouch. I’d seen earlier how her fingers turned red while she was turning the chair wheels.
“I have something to take care of, so I’ll head off. Let’s meet again soon.”
Aidin looked touched.
She clearly wanted to invite me to the social gathering, but since I was the Empress, she couldn’t bring herself to ask. She quietly said goodbye.
“Well then, see you.”
As I started walking back to the Empress’s palace with my maid, Eloise suddenly stopped me.
“Your Majesty. There’s something I need to tell you.”
****
“What is it you want to say?”
I had the maid take Aidin back and stood face to face with Eloise.
What’s this all of a sudden?
“It’s something important. I’ve been thinking for a long time whether I should tell you or not…”
Eloise hesitated, concern filling her purple eyes—the same color as mine.
“But… you’re my cousin, after all, Your Majesty.”
What could it be that she’s being this dramatic about? I glanced curiously toward the distant clock tower.
Ah, it’s almost time for Xian to wake up…
“His Majesty the Emperor… I think he has someone else in his heart.”
Huh?
