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~Chapter 8~
Before coming to the empire, Dahlia had seen a portrait of the emperor. The portrait was handsome, but the real emperor was on another level.
She had worried about how to meet the emperor, but she met him on the very first day.
She felt as if the goddess of luck was smiling at her.
If things kept going this well, she just needed to support the emperor’s marriage and stop the end of the world.
While she was grinning to herself and imagining things, the emperor’s cold voice brought her back.
“You have a lot of nerve, ignoring me right in front of me.”
Ignore him? Dahlia was startled, her eyes wide.
What had the emperor just said? Oh!
“Ah, I’m… I’m Ria, the fresh-air diplomat from the Kingdom of Forevern.”
Cold sweat ran down Ria’s back.
Why did she remember Cole’s words right now?
As Ria looked around to see the emperor’s reaction, he just watched her with an unreadable face.
After a moment, his red lips finally moved.
“Fresh-air diplomat?”
“No, not fresh air. I mean, I’m an official diplomat.”
Ria quickly blurted out whatever excuse came to her.
“Aren’t all diplomats official? Captain of the Guard.”
When the emperor turned his head, Ria looked too.
Behind the emperor was a handsome knight with dark blue hair and a serious face.
To be captain of the guard at such a young age—he was definitely impressive. He must have been the one who put a sword to her neck earlier.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“He says that’s right.”
“That’s right.”
Ria lowered her eyes and gave a forced, awkward smile as she agreed with them.
“We’re all saying the same thing now?”
“Yes. All correct.”
Ria quickly nodded.
The emperor frowned a little as he looked at her, then changed the subject.
“So, Miss Ria. No last name? Are you a commoner?”
“No, I’m Ria Hadran.”
The emperor paused, then spoke with interest.
“The Hadran family from Forevern. That’s the family of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, right?”
Ria’s eyes went wide as she nodded without thinking.
How could he know all the noble families of such a small kingdom?
She’d heard rumors the young emperor was smart, but not to this extent.
“But the young lady of that family has a different name, doesn’t she?”
“Oh, I’m from a distant branch.”
“I see. Miss Ria Hadran. How did you get into this garden?”
His black eyes suddenly sharpened and held her gaze. This was the main question.
The sudden pressure made Ria feel like a rabbit caught in a trap, so she answered honestly.
“I followed a bird.”
“A bird?”
He didn’t look satisfied. One eyebrow rose.
Ria looked back at him with a straight face.
She needed to get close to him and get him married quickly. It wouldn’t help to make a bad impression by lying.
“So, where is the bird?”
“Uh, well…”
Ria glanced up at the sky.
Luckily, Lemon was sitting on a leafy branch above, watching.
He hadn’t gone far.
But as Ria looked back at the emperor, she wondered if she should really say where Lemon was.
If she said, “It’s right above your head,” would he believe her? Even Annie hadn’t believed her about the invisible bird at first—wouldn’t the emperor think she was crazy?
Just before, she’d promised herself to be honest with the emperor, but now she sighed inside and whispered,
“I don’t know.”
Grey quietly watched the sulking girl in front of him.
Her emotions changed fast.
When she bowed her head, he noticed the green leaf still stuck in her pink hair.
Was she planning to walk around like that?
Watching this odd girl, strange thoughts appeared and disappeared in his mind.
“Miss.”
He called to shake off his thoughts.
She slowly looked up, showing her small and pretty features.
Her big eyes looked like a mix of sky blue and purple. She had a small, raised nose and plump pink lips. Even with dirt on her face from falling, she was still as beautiful as any woman at the festival.
His gaze naturally returned to her eyes.
They were so clear—like the dawn sky—a mysterious color he had never seen.
“Yes,” she answered, sneaking glances at him. She acted just like someone telling a lie.
Even though he usually disliked women, even he had to admire her beauty.
But that was all.
He didn’t want to waste any more time on her.
“Good try.”
“Huh? What do you mean, good try?”
She tilted her head, innocent and confused.
“I’ll give you credit for trying to get my attention. You’re the first to barge into my private garden, where I want to be alone. Still, I’ve decided to forgive you once, so you can stop now.”
“Huh?”
The pink-haired girl tilted her head the other way, not understanding.
“Even if you try this hard, there’s no way I’ll marry you.”
“What? What did you say?”
For the first time, her honest feelings showed—until now, she’d only seemed odd or like she was lying.
No way.
“You’re not saying I came here to seduce Your Majesty, right?”
“You understood exactly.”
“Really? That’s not it, right?”
“You got it right.”
Ria grabbed her pink hair with one hand, still holding his jacket.
“How could you misunderstand like that…”
“Didn’t you just fall for me?”
“Me? When?”
Her eyes were full of protest.
Really, no way?
Grey raised an eyebrow and asked,
“Didn’t you admire me just now?”
“That’s just because I’ve never seen anyone as handsome as Your Majesty.”
“Right.”
Grey nodded, as if he knew it all along.
So, she had fallen for him, after all.
But Ria quickly waved her hands.
“‘You must think I fell for you’—but it’s not true. I don’t have even a speck of interest in Your Majesty. I could even swear it.”
Not even a speck of interest? That was a new feeling for him, and it was strange.
Grey leaned back in his chair and stared at her.
She looked so truly upset that he wanted to test if she was lying. But his truth-detecting power could only be used once a day, and not for something silly.
“If you say so.”
“It’s not ‘if you say so,’ it’s the truth!”
The pink-haired girl clenched her fists to defend herself.
“But for this next question, you better answer carefully, Miss.”
His voice turned low, and she looked puzzled.
“Yes?”
“When you entered this garden, was there nothing blocking your way?”
“No, nothing at all.”
Grey looked her straight in the eyes and used his truth power.
“Is that true?”
“Yes.”
‘Truth.’
He didn’t expect that.
Surprised by the unexpected answer, he stayed silent for a moment.
He had used his one truth-detecting chance for the day, and she was telling the truth.
Grey’s black eyes grew deeper.
“Miss, do you see those lilac bushes?”
“Yes.”
“Go over there, then come back.”
“Is that an order?”
She looked annoyed but watched him carefully.
“Yes. It’s an order.”
“Okay.”
She dropped her shoulders, gently put his jacket on the ground, and walked slowly to the lilac bushes. She put her hand on the bush, then looked back at him, as if asking, “Is that enough?”
Grey nodded and stared at a shining line on the ground.
That shining line was something only he could see.
