Tamed or Captured

Although he had become overly emotional while she was reading the fairy tale, the events unfolding in the story truly scared him.

To reassure him, Asha quickly continued reading the next part.

“After the flower died, the beautiful world became desolate. The ground became barren, the water stopped flowing and became polluted, fire burned the earth and made the water dry, and the wind blew a dusty wind across the world. Now, in the land of Etzheim, no life is seen. They all mourned the death of the flower and reflected on their actions.”

Karaf covered his eyes with his hands and lowered his head like some tragic hero.

“One day, God Etzheim, who felt sorry for them, gave them a flower seed. It was a small flower seed that the flower spirit had left with all its might before it died. The spirit of the wind did not even know that the seed had stuck to his body and was keeping him safe.”

Karaf’s shoulders trembled.

“When the seed fell to the ground, everyone did their best to protect the flower. Finally, the spirit of the flower was able to return to them and the Empire of Etzheim was able to regain peace and happiness.”

Although the story had a happy ending, Karaf’s expression remained somber.

After pondering for a while, he asked quietly.

“…… Do minorities grow up listening to these kinds of fairy tales?”

“It’s a popular fairy tale, although it has been slightly modified.”

“The story is just like my current situation.….”

Karaf let out a bitter laugh.

“But what if I’m not the flower seed in that tale…?”

He seemed to be preoccupied with thoughts of the second flower while listening to the story.

Asha shook her head and reassured him.

“The spirit of the wind protected the seed in the story. The flower’s demise occurred before I returned, and the remaining events of the story match our situation, I think.”

Karaf’s quivering eyes hardened once more, and Asha suddenly recalled the spy.

She wondered if minorities might interpret the story differently, perhaps viewing the second flower as the true hero who could save the world.

It was possible, as Karaf had feared, they might have mistaken the Second Flower for the savior of the world and demanded that Asha make him bloom. 

Given the existence of the second flower, such a scenario was entirely plausible.

But the important thing is that they did not know that Asha had come back from the past.

Asha tightened her grip on the book and composed herself.

The help of the minority was absolutely necessary for Karaf to flourish. If the relationship between Karaf and the minorities improves, he can break the curse and flourish.

With Karaf now calm, Asha pulled out another fairy tale book.

However, as she narrated the story, Karaf closed his eyes and smiled.

“……This reminds me of my childhood memories. When I suffered from severe insomnia, my nanny would read me fairy tales.”

“Your nanny?”

The fact that Karaf had a nanny piqued Asha’s curiosity.

“Yes, she was a kind soul who took care of me instead of my mother.”

“Where is she now?”

“My mother killed her.”

“……”

Asha’s mouth dropped open in shock.

Karaf smiled bitterly and said.

“It’s not a pleasant story. It appears my mother disliked her. Maybe she didn’t want to see her raise me with love instead of her. Or maybe everyone I care for dies…..”

Asha’s eyes widened as she suddenly recollected the time when she had encountered a young Karaf.

     No, it’s not like that. Think carefully. I’m sure there are people who love you.

He smiled softly, thinking of someone.

       Is he thinking about his nanny?

Her heart ached at the thought that she might be the only one who cared for him in the palace.

She gently placed a hand on his face, causing Karaf to look at her in surprise. Asha’s face turned sad as she spoke.

“Don’t say that with such a sad face.”

“……Yes, if the empress doesn’t want to hear it, I’ll just keep it to myself.”

“I don’t like that either. I want you to be honest with me about everything you keep inside, your thoughts and emotions. That way, I can understand Your Majesty better.”

Karaf’s eyes widened as he met Asha’s gaze.

The mood turned slightly pink, and his face was slightly flushed.

Watching him like that, Asha gave him a light tap on the shoulder, as if to say, ‘Don’t even dream,’ and said.

“Well, lie down. If you can’t sleep, I’ll sing you a lullaby.”

Karaf complied without realizing it, settling onto the bed and placing his hands on his stomach.

Asha patted the blanket and began to sing a soothing melody.

Karaf closed his eyes, feeling his heart calm down at her sweet singing voice.

He was reminded of his childhood nanny, who would sing to him when he was afraid and couldn’t sleep.

Though he couldn’t now remember the exact lyrics, her voice had always been a warm and comforting presence.

Suddenly, the words that her nanny had said to him when she came back to him injured rang in his ears.

‘My Prince….. I’m sure Your Highness will become an emperor who is loved by everyone. Someone will come to you and teach you how to love sincerely.’

To him, that person was Asha. 

Karaf wondered if his nanny was watching over him from the afterlife with a smile.

     Is she finally resting in peace?

In the past, she might have looked at him and pounded her chest in frustration.

She even could have blamed herself for not teaching him how to love properly…..

Karaf let out a little chuckle.

But now, Karaf had learned how to love someone, and he hoped that she was now resting peacefully in heaven.

Feeling Karaf’s even breathing, Asha stopped singing and gently brushed his bangs aside, whispering.

“Sweet dreams.”

Then she turned the lamp towards herself and finished reading in silence.

Asha, who was reading a book that contained information about the emperors and empresses of the past, stopped at a certain passage.

Asha came across a passage about the Emperor’s flower, which stated that when the flower withers, his mate Vanessa loses her powers. 

The ability then passes on to someone else for the sake of the flower that will be born with the next spirit.

The role of the empress only ends after the emperor’s death.

It was not entirely wrong to say that she could only be free from this fate after his death.

Now the spy’s words made sense.

The butterfly, who was stripped of her position as empress, was said to have spent the rest of her life under the protection of the temple.

Asha wondered if she could have met Karaf’s mother at the temple if she hadn’t died from a mental illness.

Some time passed, and Karaf, pretending to be asleep, opened one eye and saw Asha dozing off with a book in her lap.

“Did she really fall asleep? Before me..…?”

She intended to put him to sleep, but she was the one who fell asleep first while reading a book.

Karaf smiled as he carefully laid Asha on the bed.

She slept soundly with a peaceful expression on her face.

He couldn’t help but hold back a laugh when he saw the book she had been reading so diligently.

It was a tedious book about the monarchy, arranged chronologically from year to year.

“I used to fall asleep all the time while reading this book.”

He smiled sadly. 

His love for books was influenced by his nanny, but there were other reasons as well. 

And as someone who was considered a nuisance in the palace, he always looked for places to hide, and the rose garden and library were where he found solace.

When he was young, reading books in the library by himself was the only time he felt truly free.

Back then, Karaf had little to do, so he dedicated himself to studying and reading books, hoping to earn his mother’s approval.

Yet he had no idea that his mother did not want him to become emperor…

Karaf shook his head to clear the unpleasant memories of his past and looked back at Asha.

She must have been exhausted from spending several days cooped up in the room, searching for information. Watching her work so hard to break the curse, filled him with immense gratitude.

Karaf gently covered her with the blanket and turned off the lamp before lying down on the bed.

Even though they slept with their backs turned to each other, he felt much closer to her than before.

* * * * *

At that moment, Sosa received a change of clothes to sleep in and was on his way to his room.

While walking down the hallway, he heard a commotion coming from one of the rooms.

Jackal had promised to teach the children hunting skills, but Sosa wondered if he was really giving them a lesson at night.

As he cautiously opened the door, Sosa was stunned by what he saw.

In the middle of the room stood a blue-gray horse surrounded by children who were climbing on its back, petting its fur, pulling its mane, and playing with excitement.

Although Jackal had previously mentioned that he disliked noisy children, he was caught having fun with them.

“…….”

There was a moment of silence, and Jackal’s face turned red with embarrassment. 

He attempted to speak, but only weak, faltering sounds came out instead of words.

“Purung……”

Leaving Jackal even more embarrassed, Sosa casually asked the children.

“Was Mr. Horse playing with you?”

“Yes!”

“Really? But that horse is very vicious.”

“No! Mr. Horse is not vicious at all!”

“We like Mr. Horse!”

The children clung even tighter to Jackal’s body, causing him to close his eyes and blush.

“….Then, I’ll go wash up first.”

Sosa closed the door, shaking his head. 

As he had suspected before, Jackal pretended not to like the children, but deep down, he loved spending time with them.

For a while, the joyful sounds of children playing echoed through the halls.

* * * * *

The following day, someone arrived at the Imperial Palace early in the morning.

When Asha opened the door to the drawing-room, she was surprised to find Nia Delphinium sitting comfortably on the sofa.

As soon as Nia spotted Asha, she stood up and politely bowed her head with her hands together.

“Greetings, Lady Vanessa. I’m Nia Delphinium. We met at the tea party hosted by the Duchess of Lilac. Thank you for taking the time to meet with me.”

Asha was about to inquire about the reason for her visit when she noticed the somber expression on Nia’s face and realized something was wrong.

Asha’s expression turned serious as she asked.

“Did you come to see me because something happened with the Count?”