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Chapter 11…
“You are truly dazzlingly beautiful.”
“His Majesty won’t be able to take his eyes off you for even a moment.”
After the preparations were finally finished, Lucrezia was completely exhausted.
She had not eaten anything for hours while being dressed and adorned. She could barely drink water through a straw, afraid that her makeup would be ruined.
She understood why the maids were making such a fuss. It was the day of their union, blessed by a divine oracle. Of course they would treat it as important.
But the real problem was whether their efforts would actually be rewarded.
Will he come?
The Emperor might not come at all.
Just like on their first night.
The Empire was strongly influenced by religion, so even the Emperor would find it difficult to defy an oracle. Still, this was Kyrion Winchester—a man who looked as though he had never done anything he did not wish to do.
In truth, she was afraid to face him.
The clear look of contempt she had seen on his face the last time still felt as vivid as yesterday.
After her preparations were complete, priests entered the room.
They had been dispatched directly from the Grand Temple to further bless the auspicious day of union granted by the oracle. They sprinkled holy water throughout the bedchamber.
Only after they finished did Lucrezia find herself completely alone.
According to procedure, this was the time the Emperor should appear.
She waited silently, hardly daring to breathe.
Soon, she sensed someone enter the room.
“Doesn’t it feel like we’re inside a beast’s cage?”
Lucrezia drew in a breath.
Though the Emperor’s voice was low, it sounded as if he were whispering right beside her ear.
She could not immediately understand what he meant. She looked up at him blankly.
He stood in the darkness, only his silhouette visible. Slowly, at a relaxed pace, he approached the bed.
“There are plenty of people outside that door waiting for us to breed.”
The blunt word made Lucrezia’s cheeks burn red.
He continued stepping closer without waiting for her reply. At last, he entered the candlelight.
“It’s been a while, Empress.”
A faint smile curved his lips.
But his eyes were not smiling at all. It was clearly not a smile of kindness.
“…It has been some time, Your Majesty.”
Now that he was truly before her, her mouth felt painfully dry. She forced herself to speak.
He barely seemed to listen to her greeting.
“The timing of the oracle was quite convenient.”
He murmured as he came to stand beside the bed.
As if drawn by a magnet, her gaze lifted to his face. In the soft candlelight, he looked almost unreal.
“Did the Earth Mother truly bless our union with her own hands? Or…”
His hand reached out and gripped her chin. Lucrezia froze.
“…Was it a scheme by your guardian, who persuaded the High Priest?”
Her body stiffened slightly, like a deer startled by light.
She tried desperately to hide her agitation, but it was useless before an Emperor whose senses had been sharpened on the battlefield.
Looking down at her widened eyes, he muttered,
“…It’s confusing.”
Was she a thoroughly brainwashed puppet? Or did she still have a bit of her own will left?
He slowly ran his tongue across his lips.
That small movement captured her entire attention.
Her mind was racing.
Did Father persuade the High Priest…?
There was clear distrust toward the High Priest in his words.
The High Priest was a symbol of moral authority. An oracle was considered sacred speech delivered by the Earth Mother through him.
To call it a scheme meant accusing the High Priest of being bribed to deliver a false oracle. For an ordinary citizen, even suggesting such a thing would be considered blasphemy.
Yet the Emperor spoke of it openly.
As if entranced, Lucrezia opened her mouth. She felt she needed to understand his true intentions.
“…The High Priest must simply have delivered the oracle.”
“Simply an oracle… Oracles have always been convenient tools for the Temple. For collecting donations. For removing troublesome people. For driving out the fairy folk.”
Her heart skipped.
Did he just say fairy folk?
She looked at him in shock.
She felt she had to hear more.
“The fairy folk…?”
“Isn’t it a well-known story? That the Temple feared their abilities and framed and persecuted them?”
She had never heard such a thing.
The idea that the Temple framed the fairy folk was shocking. Her thoughts felt jumbled.
“Framed them—”
“Are you going to continue this boring conversation, Empress?”
He cut her off.
She suddenly came back to her senses. Right now, she had to somehow draw him to the bed. Chances to be alone with him like this were rare.
Her father had even relied on the power of an oracle for this night. That meant he had prepared thoroughly.
She still had not managed to obtain any useful information from the Imperial Household. If she let tonight pass uselessly, she could not imagine her father’s anger.
“…Your Majesty.”
She forced herself to speak, hiding her trembling.
The Emperor simply watched her, as if waiting to see what she would do.
She moistened her dry lips. She knew, in theory, how a man and woman shared a night. But in practice, this was her first time.
They say it usually starts with a kiss…
When she lifted her head, her gaze met his lips.
They were perfectly shaped, as if carved by an artist.
If those lips bit, licked, and drew in her own as the maids had described—
Just imagining it made her cheeks burn. It felt like an improper thought.
She could not even attempt it. Even standing on her toes, she doubted she could reach him.
Then what am I supposed to do next…?
The Emperor remained still.
Was he truly going to allow her tonight?
She remembered how firmly he had rejected her on their first night. Had the oracle changed his mind at least a little?
At least… the clothes…
They could not spend the night fully dressed. Her hands, trembling uncontrollably now, reached out.
“May I… touch Your Majesty?”
He said nothing.
Since he did not refuse, could she take it as permission?
Her heart pounded wildly as she reached for his clothing. She felt as if he might cut her down at any moment for such audacity.
But even after she unfastened the first button, he merely watched.
Through the opened collar, she saw the hollow of his collarbone. His scent seemed stronger now.
Her hands trembled too much to undo the next button.
In her swirling thoughts, she found one solution.
I need Elnash leaves.
She remembered the scented candle Clara had left before leaving the room. Clara had insisted she light the Elnash candle to calm her nerves.
She desperately needed its soothing effect.
“Please excuse me for a moment, Your Majesty.”
She carefully lit the candle by the bedside.
A strong fragrance soon filled the room.
…What?
She froze.
This was not the scent of Elnash leaves.
It was dangerously sweet.
No…
She remembered reading that certain poisonous scents were dangerously sweet, capable of numbing the human mind—especially those meant to arouse desire.
Clara!
She recalled Clara urging her to light it before sharing the bed.
At the same time, she felt arms wrap around her from behind.
How could she be this clumsy?
Kyrion watched the woman’s every move.
Her pale cheeks were flushed red with embarrassment. Her glittering eyelashes trembled constantly.
Was this innocence an act? Something meant to arouse him?
Honestly, it was not entirely ineffective.
Each time he saw her trembling shoulders, a damp heat stirred in his stomach.
He wanted to sink his teeth into that pale skin that pretended to know nothing of men and watch her reaction. Would she scream innocently? Or would she finally open her arms and cling to him?
He had not been in a good mood since morning.
The long, endless rain was part of it. So was having to play along with this ridiculous oracle.
But watching the scene before him, perhaps the day was not the worst after all.
“May I… touch Your Majesty?”
The Empress’s fingertips trembled as she reached for his collar.
If he stayed still, how far would she go?
Would she end up crying? Or would she show another performance?
He had no intention of getting her pregnant.
The woman before him was merely a pawn of Marquis Zephyr. He had no desire to complicate matters by planting his seed in her womb.
But even without going that far, it seemed he could at least strip away her mask.
