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Episode 6
“You stripped Marquis Dermang of his title, didn’t you?”
Duke Bronard spoke as he cut into the steak made from tender veal. He looked at Jenaden as he spoke.
Jenaden listened to the duke while spearing a piece of steak with his fork. Juice was slowly running out of the perfectly cooked meat. Jenaden stared at the piece on his fork for a moment before speaking with an indifferent expression.
“……He was running a slave market in his territory, which is illegal under imperial law. And he was addicted to gambling, so he kept taking money from the people by forcing them to pay ridiculous taxes……”
“Even so, there was no need to strip him of his title.”
Duke Bronard argued against Jenaden’s words.
Jenaden slightly raised his eyes and looked at him. A tense atmosphere filled the space between them.
Sarubia had been quietly eating beside Jenaden, but she quickly sensed that something was wrong. She gave the duke a gentle smile and tried to speak.
“Father, isn’t today supposed to be a vacation……”
“How dare you interrupt me while I’m speaking?”
Duke Bronard cut her off and answered coldly.
His intimidating gaze turned toward Sarubia.
Jenaden frowned when he saw the duke treating Sarubia without even the slightest respect, despite her being the Empress of the empire.
“Duke. She may be your daughter, but she is also the Empress of this country.”
“Oh, my apologies. I was being rude. I was only trying to teach my daughter some manners because she was being disrespectful……”
“She is no longer your daughter.”
“……”
Was he telling the duke not to interfere anymore?
Faced with Jenaden’s clear warning, Duke Bronard bit his lower lip tightly. His face turned slightly red with anger.
As if you’re anything more than a puppet emperor!
He wanted to shout those words right then and there.
But he forced himself to hold back when he thought about the future, where Jenaden and Sarubia’s child would become emperor and make his future prosperous.
Still, he wanted to put this rude emperor in his place.
So he raised one corner of his mouth and spoke with a mocking expression.
“Some of the other nobles and I are planning to submit a petition. It will be about restoring Marquis Dermang’s title.”
“I’ve already made my decision. You know I can’t reverse it.”
“Oh, is that so?”
Jenaden answered coldly, but Duke Bronard didn’t seem bothered at all. Instead, he raised one corner of his mouth and gave him a confident smile.
In the Elsania Empire, there were far fewer nobles on Emperor Jenaden’s side than there were nobles supporting Duke Bronard.
Most of the noble families had already sided with Duke Bronard long ago.
They believed it was more beneficial to stay on the duke’s side than to support the emperor, whose power was still weak. If they stayed close to the duke, they could at least receive some benefits from him.
Even though the emperor had strong authority, countless laws were overturned because of strong opposition from the nobles in the Central Noble Council.
And at the center of those nobles was Duke Bronard himself.
Jenaden wanted to cut off Duke Bronard’s head right then and there.
But he knew that his own faction was still too weak.
He swallowed down the anger rising inside him and bit his lower lip tightly.
“All right. I understand.”
At Jenaden’s answer, Duke Bronard smiled once.
Then he reached for the bell beside the dining table and rang it.
“Bring out the dessert.”
“Yes, Your Grace!”
The servant bowed and quickly left the room.
Sarubia watched him leave, and her face became so pale that she looked as if she might collapse at any moment.
Lunch felt like the last meal before being sent to hell.
Sarubia wanted to soothe her exhausted heart by resting, but she didn’t even have time for that.
She immediately had tea with her mother, the Duchess.
Inside the villa’s sitting room, the only sound was the two of them drinking tea.
Not a single word was spoken.
“When are you going to have a child?”
“We still think it’s a little too early.”
“What are you talking about? How long has it been since you entered the palace?”
“Mother……”
“Are you talking back to me now?”
Sarubia tried to answer, but the duchess’s sharp words left her speechless.
The Duchess angrily put down her teacup and looked Sarubia up and down.
“We took in a girl whose birth was completely unknown, turned her into a noble, and even made her Empress. And this is all we get in return?”
“But……”
“Your job is to give birth to a Crown Prince who will inherit the emperor’s position. Don’t forget that. That is your duty.”
You have never once treated me like your real daughter.
She was nothing more than a doll that existed to fulfill their desires.
That was the only reason Sarubia had ever been valued.
She no longer had any expectations of them.
Sarubia’s eyes became cold and still.
Without answering, she simply took another sip of tea.
Jenaden and Sarubia left the villa with only a few knights accompanying them because they wanted to look around the Bronard territory.
The carriage carrying the two of them quickly left the villa.
Inside the moving carriage, Jenaden and Sarubia silently stared out the windows.
“Your Majesty. If I end up getting divorced, I want to give up the Bronard name.”
“Is it because you hate them?”
“……I don’t know. Maybe it is.”
Sarubia spoke with a sigh.
By then, the carriage had already entered the center of the territory.
They could see the market and all kinds of people walking around.
As Sarubia looked outside, she caught sight of a woman smiling as she walked along, holding the hand of a child who was smiling happily beside her.
If I hadn’t been adopted.
Or if I had been adopted by an ordinary family, would I have been able to receive my parents’ love?
She turned her gaze and quietly looked at Jenaden.
His handsome side profile was visible as he stared out the window.
His brow was slightly furrowed, as if he were thinking about something.
Jenaden wouldn’t have loved me either.
He would have lived an ordinary life and fallen in love with an ordinary person.
Like other couples, he would have found happiness in little things. He would have met someone who cherished him, married her, and built a happy family.
Throb.
Suddenly, pain shot through her chest.
Sarubia raised her hand and gently grabbed the fabric over her heart.
Jenaden noticed her frowning and asked,
“Are you feeling sick……?”
Sarubia shook her head.
“……It’s nothing.”
Sarubia sighed and looked out the window again.
That was when she saw a familiar flash of blonde hair.
“Huh……?”
It can’t be.
That was what she thought.
But the moment the blonde woman turned around, Sarubia had no choice but to suddenly jump to her feet.
“Please stop the carriage for a moment……!”
At Sarubia’s shout, the coachman immediately stopped the carriage.
She quickly got out, passing the confused Jenaden.
“Sarubia……!”
She heard Jenaden calling her name, but Sarubia could see nothing except that familiar blonde woman.
There’s no way she could be here.
Sarubia thought to herself.
But the back of the woman standing before her was unmistakably someone Sarubia would never forget.
“Elaine……!”
Sarubia shouted.
The woman who looked just like Elaine disappeared around the corner of an alley.
Sarubia immediately followed her into the alley.
But the moment she went farther inside, she suddenly crashed into someone and fell hard onto the ground.
“Ouch!”
“Ah……”
The person she had bumped into also fell onto the ground.
Sarubia got up and slowly approached the person.
The person lying on the ground and struggling to get back up was surprisingly a young-looking girl.
Sarubia looked flustered and spoke to her.
“Are you okay……?”
Sarubia carefully held out one hand.
The girl suddenly grabbed her hand and pulled her closer.
“P-Please save me……!”
“What? What do you mean……?”
Sarubia was confused by the girl’s desperate cry.
Just then, she heard voices coming from deeper inside the alley.
“Little brat, so this is where you were hiding.”
Sarubia looked toward the voices.
About four large men were slowly walking toward them.
From their rough and intimidating appearances, Sarubia immediately realized that they were dangerous people.
Her expression hardened.
When the men started approaching, the girl grabbed the edge of Sarubia’s dress and began trembling.
Sarubia glanced at the girl before turning her sharp gaze toward the men.
“What are you doing?”
“Miss, stay out of this. Looks like you’re from a pretty wealthy family.”
Sarubia raised one eyebrow and deliberately put on an arrogant expression.
She quietly pulled the girl behind her.
The girl, who was on the verge of tears, trembled as she hid behind Sarubia. She was barely able to stand while gripping the back of Sarubia’s dress.
The men laughed loudly at the sight.
“Don’t try anything stupid. Just hand the kid over.”
“How rude. Do you even know who you’re talking to?”
The men looked at each other after hearing Sarubia’s words.
Then they burst out laughing.
Of course, they had no idea that she was the Empress of the empire.
Sarubia bit her lower lip tightly.
If she handed the girl over to them now, it was obvious what would happen to her.
The girl was dressed in dirty, shabby clothes and had clearly escaped from somewhere.
And the men chasing her looked like the kind of people who would do terrible things.
Don’t tell me…… this is something like a slave market.
Suddenly, she remembered what Jenaden had said during lunch.
There was no way there could be a slave market in Duke Bronard’s territory, especially in broad daylight like this.
Sarubia reached one hand behind her and tightly held the girl’s hand.
“……When I count to three, turn around and run.”
The girl gave a small nod at Sarubia’s whisper.
One, two, three……
Sarubia counted silently.
The moment she reached three, she turned around, grabbed the girl’s hand, and ran as fast as she could.
“……Those bastards……!”
The men cursed when they realized that Sarubia and the girl had suddenly run away.
Sarubia pulled the girl along and ran into another alley.
Her dress caught slightly on a loose stone, and she heard the fabric tear.
But Sarubia didn’t stop.
“Huff…… huff……!”
She glanced behind her while running.
The girl was breathing heavily as she desperately followed Sarubia.
“Just a little farther and we’ll be oka……!”
That was when it happened.
The door of an old shop that Sarubia was about to pass suddenly opened.
A mysterious hand reached out from inside and grabbed Sarubia’s arm.
Sarubia was startled and quickly tried to shake it off.
“Eek……!”
She screamed.
The person who had grabbed her was a man with curly brown hair and a face covered in freckles.
The man put his index finger to his lips and quietly whispered,
“Shh……”
“Let go of me……!”
Sarubia pulled her arm away and quickly pulled the little girl into her arms.
The man looked troubled by Sarubia’s suspicious gaze and spoke.
“I’m trying to help you. It’s dangerous if you go any farther inside. Come into the shop.”
“How am I supposed to trust you?”
Sarubia could feel the little girl trembling in her arms.
She held the girl even tighter.
The girl’s eyes were also filled with fear as her whole body shook.
“Phew……”
The man let out a small sigh and carefully spoke again.
“Please trust me. Those guys are going to be here any second……!”
The moment he finished speaking, Sarubia heard the men’s voices coming from the end of the alley.
Can I really trust him?
But she had no other choice.
“They’ll be here soon.”
“……O-Okay.”
Sarubia let out a sigh and gestured for the girl to go inside.
Then she followed the man into the shop.
