Episode 72

Everyone turned their heads toward the source of the sound. Then, in a hurried motion, they all bowed.

“We greet Her Majesty, the Empress Dowager, the great moon of the Empire.”

“Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager.”

Respectful greetings rang out from every corner of the room.

The Empress Dowager had adorned herself more splendidly than usual today.

Dressed in all her finery, she looked less like a grandmother with a grandson and more like a noblewoman reigning over high society.

Her appearance made her seem significantly younger than her actual years.

“…Grandmother—no, Your Majesty, the Empress Dowager.”

The Crown Prince’s voice was noticeably tense, but the Empress Dowager paid no mind.

“This glass was originally meant to be offered to the elders of the imperial family.”

With effortless grace, she approached and took the glass from the Crown Prince’s hand. Then, with a hint of laughter in her voice, she added:

“But since elders like myself no longer attend such gatherings, it has instead been given to the young ladies.”

“……”

“So, my dear young ladies, I hope you won’t be too disappointed.”

‘She must have been in a real hurry.’

As the Empress Dowager said, it had been a long time since elders attended these events. Even if they wanted to, they were usually dismissed as being out of place.

That was likely why she had gone out of her way to dress in a manner that made her appear more youthful.

‘…Though, considering her authority, I doubt anyone would actually dare say such a thing about her.’

Even so, for her to attend this gathering despite the potential scrutiny…

My gaze shifted to Aria, whose face was still drained of color. But she wasn’t looking at me—she was staring at Chris.

Her lips moved soundlessly, forming words I could not hear.

But I recognized their shape.

A sudden fear gripped me.

I reached out and clung to Chris.

“Your Grace.”

Chris lowered his gaze to me. The moment I met his eyes, my fear only deepened.

“I am here, Mindia.”

And the moment he said those words…

Everything around me seemed to fade away.

‘I am here.’

‘…….’

‘I am… here.’

Chris’s voice echoed in my mind—the same words he had spoken in the underground prison. The same words he had said as he accepted me during the hunting festival.

But this time, everything was different. The air was bright and festive, the atmosphere filled with the warmth of youthful excitement.

A refreshing summer breeze swept through the garden again, as if the dark, damp past and any lurking dangers had been left in a distant, forgotten era.

“……”

I swallowed the heat rising in my throat.

The Empress Dowager smiled serenely and continued her speech.

“Though this old woman’s intrusion may have slightly dampened the mood, I hope you all enjoy the rest of the evening.”

“We are honored, Your Majesty.”

The Crown Prince bowed stiffly, his expression still rigid. No matter how arrogant he was, even he couldn’t fully show his true nature before the Empress Dowager.

She then turned to the young ladies with a knowing smile.

“And for those of you who may feel disappointed, I have prepared something in place of the Crown Prince’s toast.”

Immediately, the imperial attendants moved about, distributing small boxes to the gathered young lords and ladies—a parting gift from the villa.

For the young lords, silver cufflinks.

For the young ladies, corsages adorned with the emblematic white lilies of the Imperial family.

“Oh my.”

“How beautiful.”

Soft exclamations of admiration rippled through the crowd.

Then, the moment Aria opened her box, the reactions grew louder.

“Oh my goodness, what is that?”

“I didn’t know lilies like that existed…”

Inside her box lay a golden lily—its hue reminiscent of the Crown Prince’s hair. It must have been magically dyed.

Among all the ladies who had received white lily corsages, Aria alone had been given a golden one.

Its significance was unmistakable.

Aria flinched for a moment, her expression stiffening—before she slowly curled her lips into a smile and fastened the corsage around her wrist.

She was so naturally beautiful that even this suited her perfectly.

“It looks wonderful on you, Lady Aria!”

“…I am honored, Your Majesty the Empress Dowager.”

As Aria accepted the congratulations of the other noble ladies and bowed gracefully to the Crown Prince and the Empress Dowager, I smiled and opened my own box.

Then, I froze.

“……”

Inside my box, too, was a golden corsage.

* * &

“The Crown Prince is chasing after that girl again.”

One week before the summer villa event.

The Empress Dowager had received the same report from several young lords who were always by the Crown Prince’s side.

Their words had traveled through the mouths of attendants before reaching her ears.

“Yes, he speaks of Lady Mindia Reinhardt often, asking about her tastes and preferences. He mostly questions young lords who are acquainted with her.”

“Tsk. Albert has really fallen hard for something.”

Clicking her tongue, the Empress Dowager set down her teacup.

A moment ago, the tea had smelled fragrant. Now, it no longer did.

“I would sooner believe he was seducing a nun. That girl? The one who would talk to any young lord she pleased, desperately trying to win their favor? Does that even make sense?”

“……”

“She may have a better reputation now, but a woman’s past can never be erased.”

Had Mindia heard those words herself, she would have scoffed outright. The attendant, however, merely bowed apologetically.

“It will pass like all his other fleeting interests. His Highness has always been this way.”

“That, too, is a problem.”

The Empress Dowager thought of the Crown Prince, who still seemed far too young in her eyes. Of course, compared to her own years, he was just a boy.

And that was precisely what she liked.

“He hasn’t solidified his mind yet. Unlike his father.”

The Emperor—who had long since grown into a man and no longer listened to her—was not even her own blood.

The Empress Dowager had lost both her biological children at a young age when she was still the Empress.

In the end, she had personally chosen one of the former Emperor’s concubine’s children, adopting and raising him into an Emperor.

Even then, the Emperor’s position had been unstable for some time, forcing her to make drastic decisions.

To eliminate any threats to the throne, she had arranged for the poisoning of the Emperor’s half-brother—the previous Grand Duke Elzerian.

It had been simple: aside from the Emperor, he was the only remaining heir to the throne.

Disguising the poisoning as an illness had taken an immense amount of effort. Even with all her power, it had been a challenging task.

The then-Grand Duke of Elzerian, suspecting foul play, had fed his child small doses of poison over time to build immunity. He had fought desperately to protect his son.

The memory made the Empress Dowager sigh.

‘After all that effort to secure his position…’

The Emperor, the moment he felt secure in his power, had begun slipping from her control.

The power that had once been solely hers was now slowly dispersing.

She was still the most formidable elder of the Imperial family, but compared to her golden days as Empress, she had lost much.

Never before had she so desperately longed for a child of her own blood.

Someone who would listen to her. Someone she had raised with her own hands.

That was why, after the Empress’s death, she had taken in the young Crown Prince without hesitation.

“Yes, His Highness is still young. That is why he needs your guidance, Your Majesty.”

“And yet, the boy insists on ignoring my words.”

Raising him had made her regard him more as a son than a grandson.

That child was meant to become Crown Prince—and he had. That had been her decision.

Each time the Emperor produced an illegitimate child, she had ensured their quiet removal.

And yet, after all her careful grooming, the Crown Prince was starting to have foolish thoughts.

“If he just followed the plan I set for him, half his work would already be done.”

“Well, at least the alternative is also a Reinhardt lady.”

“Their births are not the same.”

To be frank, the Empress Dowager did not find any young lady suitable.

No woman was worthy of the grandson she had raised with such care.

But at the very least, Aria Reinhardt was the legitimate daughter of Duke Reinhardt—a staunch imperialist who knew exactly how to appease the Empress Dowager.

‘Her lineage isn’t bad at all.’

She had a delicate face and, by all accounts, a gentle nature. Once she was married, she would be a proper, obedient wife—one who would please both the Crown Prince and the Empress Dowager herself.

Mindia Reinhardt, on the other hand, had been flawed from birth…

“She isn’t even that pretty compared to Aria Reinhardt. Even if her features are decent, that dull hair color—her whole presence is gloomy.”

“She certainly lacks the qualities to stand beside His Highness.”

“Besides, that girl is already meant to be given to Grand Duke Elzerian.”

By sheer luck, Chris Elzerian had taken an interest in her.

“That was truly unexpected. Of all people, for Grand Duke Elzerian to be interested in a Reinhardt lady.”

“But a fortunate opportunity nonetheless.”

The attendant was right. It was an incredibly rare opportunity.

Once she was married and bore a child, the Empress Dowager could simply arrange for Chris Elzerian to be assassinated—or sent to die on the battlefield.

‘Then the remaining Grand Duchy of Elzerian would belong to Mindia Reinhardt’s child.’

And once Mindia was either persuaded or removed, the child would be left alone. Marrying that child into the imperial family would ensure everything remained within the Empire’s grasp.

The northern Grand Duchy would be absorbed into the imperial domain without the need for fabricated rebellion.

“I went through all that trouble setting things up, and now he wants to ruin it.”

The Empress Dowager massaged her temples. The attendant, who had served her for years, spoke carefully.

“Your Majesty, forbidding them from meeting outright may not be the best approach.”

“Oh?”

“The more His Majesty the Emperor was forbidden from seeing his concubines, the more he burned for them.”

“Good grief. So he inherited that trait from his father as well.”

The Empress Dowager sighed and then spoke.

“Then for now, we’ll handle it like this.”

As she detailed her plan, the attendant nodded eagerly.

When she was finished, an almost fawning admiration followed.

“As expected, Your Majesty is wise.”

The Empress Dowager smiled darkly.

“To soothe our dear Prince… we shall pretend to leave the possibility open.”

Of course, it would only be a façade.

But as long as the Crown Prince believed there was still a chance, he would restrain himself.

“That should be enough.”

A sharp, knowing smile spread across her lips.