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Chapter 62
“Thank you for coming here today.”
Pretending to be a charismatic queen was no difficult feat.
Even if Erne had no desire for the throne, she wasn’t a complete fool incapable of applying what she had observed from over her sister’s shoulder.
The nobles praised Erne’s dignified demeanor, saying she reminded them of the brief period when the late queen had been lucid and wise.
“I’d also like to take this opportunity to announce my engagement to Duke Douglas.”
Standing side by side with Windsor, who wore the engagement attire they had prepared, the nobles cheered.
Though it had been Windsor who first proposed their contract engagement, Erne couldn’t stop the heat from rising in her face. She cleared her throat to cover her embarrassment.
To win the favor of the new queen, the nobles lined up, each eager to leave a good impression on Erne and curry favor.
“Are you tired?”
Only Windsor, standing beside her, could read her condition and asked softly.
“I’m fine.”
Though she answered cheerfully in a small voice, Erne’s face betrayed her exhaustion.
“Since the second part of the event has started, it may be best for Your Majesty to retire for now.”
“What about Schuknen?”
“He got fussy from the long party and sleepiness. I had a servant take him back to the palace just now.”
The party was too much even for an adult to endure. It was only natural that a child couldn’t last the entire evening.
Erne nodded quickly at Windsor’s words and rose to her feet.
Disappointment lingered on the faces of those who hadn’t had the chance to greet her, but the moment they met Windsor’s piercing gaze, they all scattered.
“I’ll escort you.”
“Would you?”
As long as they were out of the ballroom, there would be fewer eyes watching—she just wanted to walk in peace.
Her feet ached in high heels, and although she had changed into a lighter crown for the banquet, wearing one for so long had given her a stiff neck.
‘I’ve hit my limits. Just a weakling with no stamina…’
Erne sighed inwardly, practically leaning on Windsor as they left the ballroom.
Once they reached the hallway leading to her palace, Erne handed her crown to the ladies-in-waiting following behind.
“It was so heavy, I thought I was going to die.”
“Are your feet okay, Your Majesty?”
“I can’t exactly go barefoot, can I?”
Had the maids not been following behind, she might have done exactly that. She longed to rip off her shoes and walk barefoot to her quarters. But with so many eyes still watching, she had to maintain her royal dignity.
As Erne sighed wistfully, Windsor looked down at her feet hidden beneath the hem of her dress with an unreadable expression.
After a moment of contemplation, he looked back up and said,
“Your Majesty, from today we are officially engaged.”
“Y-yes, we are.”
His intense gaze always made her feel like she was about to fall into them, even while a wave of nervousness welled up within her. She braced herself, expecting some outrageous line.
Just as she crossed her arms, preemptively warding off goosebumps—
“Please let me carry you.”
“…Eh?”
A strange sound escaped her lips.
“Why are you so surprised? As your fiancé, I’d like to carry my betrothed to her palace.”
“Y-you mean… here? Right now?”
“Your feet hurt, don’t they?”
Windsor spoke as if this were the most natural thing in the world. Erne was the only one panicking.
“But… there are people watching!”
“So what? We’re engaged. People will just assume we’re a loving couple. In fact, it’s beneficial for them to think we’re close.”
He smiled nonchalantly at her flustered expression.
“I’m heavy, you know. I haven’t taken off my jewelry or this dress…”
“I’m not that weak.”
As she nervously rattled off her excuses, Windsor crouched down and removed her shoes.
He gently cradled her swollen feet in his hands.
“Next time, I’ll ask a mage from the Tower to enchant your shoes for comfort.”
“There’s no need to waste such valuable talent for something like that…”
But she never got to finish.
Windsor simply lifted her onto his back.
“Wah!”
A weird squeal escaped her as she clung to him.
“Am I not heavy?”
“You’re light.”
“Liar…”
Too embarrassed to ask to be put down, Erne buried her burning face into Windsor’s broad back.
From behind, she heard gasps from the ladies-in-waiting.
Which only doubled her embarrassment.
“I’ll take you safely to the palace.”
Somehow, it felt like Windsor was enjoying this far too much.
“If you get tired, please put me down halfway.”
“There’s no chance of that happening.”
“If you do feel tired, it’s not entirely my fault, okay? My necklace, earrings, bracelets, and rings are all really heavy…”
Windsor chuckled softly, listening to her ramble.
The warmth of Erne against his back was comforting, a balm for all the thirst he had felt until now.
“It feels nice to be your fiancé, Your Majesty. Until now, I was only Schuknen’s guardian.”
“Not much has changed even now.”
“But unlike back then, you’re riding on my back right now.”
She had once drawn a line, and he used to cling desperately to her… but now Windsor had grown accustomed to her and learned exactly how to deal with her.
Erne gave him a mock glare, not truly annoyed, and eventually let her body relax against him.
“You did very well today.”
Her bare feet dangled freely, her shoes long since removed, and it felt incredibly refreshing.
Freed from the torment of her heels, the relief melted into sleepiness.
Drowsily, she answered his praise.
“You did well too, Windsor.”
“If you’re sleepy, go ahead and rest.”
“…Mmm.”
“You’re already asleep, aren’t you?”
“No, I’m not. Not yet…”
Determined to stay awake until they arrived, Erne opened her eyes wide and wriggled slightly.
Pffft. Windsor let out a soft, breathy laugh.
“I promised Schuknen I’d read him a bedtime story tonight… but I didn’t keep that promise. If I apologize tomorrow, do you think he’ll forgive me?”
“Of course. He definitely will.”
“He says he misses Ash and Selene. When I invited Countess Vanessa, he insisted Selene come too.”
Maybe because she was sleepy, Erne just kept talking about all sorts of trivial things.
She talked, Windsor listened.
“Do you think the children will recognize me?”
“They will. Children have sharp eyes.”
“Right. They’re frighteningly honest sometimes…”
Again, her sentence trailed off—something Windsor had grown used to. He smiled faintly and shook his head.
After glancing back at the distance between them and the maids, he lowered his voice.
Only Erne, on his back, could hear.
“Go ahead and sleep, Erne.”
“…Whenever you call me by name instead of ‘Your Majesty,’ it feels like I’m waking up from a dream.”
“Hm. That doesn’t sound like a compliment.”
“No, it’s a good thing. It’s the only time I feel like I can just be me.”
He didn’t completely understand her feelings—but he didn’t not understand either.
Perhaps it was the phrase “waking from a dream” that made Windsor’s face fall slightly.
“I’ll call you by name more often when we’re alone.”
“I’d like that.”
“Did you enjoy the banquet today?”
“Yes. You said the Douglas family prepared it, right? The royal family doesn’t have enough funds to host a party like that.”
“It’s your first banquet since becoming queen. It had to be historic.”
“But still… turning the chocolate fountain for the kids into solid gold was a bit much.”
So she had found out.
Windsor awkwardly lifted his shoulder and offered a hurried excuse.
“Schuknen’s idea.”
But judging by the skeptical look on her face, it wasn’t an excuse he could get away with.
He always used Schuknen as a scapegoat whenever things looked bad—something Erne was all too familiar with.
“Really, it’s true. He was very insistent…”
“And the gold dust on the red carpet I walked down?”
“Flowers are too cliché. And they wither too fast…”
“The orchestra you hired—aren’t they the most famous in the Kamusch Empire? Don’t they usually require a year’s notice?”
“Well, yes. It was difficult to book them, but not impossible. I simply paid a year’s worth of reservation fees.”
Erne’s eyes flew open.
“What? A whole year’s worth?”
“Yes.”
He looked both proud and slightly sheepish.
Erne swallowed a stunned laugh at Windsor’s impressive finances.
Sensing another scolding coming, Windsor quickly changed the subject.
They had finally reached her palace.
“What’s next on your agenda?”
“Well…”
She had thought about it, but couldn’t answer right away.
The sleep that had fled earlier came rushing back in a wave, and Erne’s eyes began to droop.
Seeing her palace ahead, she kicked her legs slightly in the air.
She wanted to be put down.
“Thank you.”
Once her feet touched the ground, Erne rubbed her sleepy eyes and stopped Windsor from leaving.
“Windsor.”
“Yes, Your Majesty?”
Now that she had stopped him, it was clear she had spoken on impulse, weakened by drowsiness.
Glancing between his engagement attire and her own, Erne bit her lip.
This man was endlessly kind to her. She took a deep breath and said,
“You said it earlier… we’re engaged.”
“I did. Today is the happiest day for me.”
His eyes curved like crescent moons as he smiled, and Erne stammered, finally blurting out—
“So… would you… like to come in for… ramen?”
Damn it. The only lines that came to mind were cringey clichés from Korean dramas.
“No, wait… I meant… would you like to… charge your phone?”
Windsor just stared at her blankly for a moment… then slowly smiled.
“Not that either! I just—!”
As she flailed, not even knowing what she was saying anymore, Windsor took her hand and gently interrupted.
“Would it be all right if I came in for a moment?”
Erne barely managed to nod.
