TFA~43

Chapter 43

“Erne, don’t tell me you haven’t been sleeping properly again?”

The moment he heard her scolding voice, a wave of emptiness washed over him, and Erne opened his eyes.

Soon, he saw Izaya staring down at him with a frown.

“I thought you said you’ve been working hard on state affairs lately. Those are important, but you shouldn’t treat your body carelessly.”

“Wh-who said I was being careless…?”

Erne tried to make an excuse, but Izaya pinched his cheek.

“W-what do you think you’re doing—!”

He was about to snap in anger, but Izaya ignored him and spoke to Melanie, who had been hesitating by the door.

“Melanie, bring some warm milk. Add plenty of honey. And bring some desserts as well.”

Then she looked back at him and said firmly,

“Since you’re here, rest for a bit before you go. Don’t push yourself again. Understood?”

His original purpose had clearly been to stop the tea party from happening.

He had no other business—he could have just snapped at her and left.

‘Do I look like someone who came here to drink milk? When you’re thinking about divorcing me?’

And yet, what he actually did… was nod.

Izaya smiled in satisfaction and led him to the tea table.

“Sit.”

At her words, Erne shot her a displeased look—but then he pulled out a chair for her.

“Y-you don’t have to do that…”

That was usually a servant’s job, but Erne only replied irritably,

“Just sit.”

“…Alright.”

Once Izaya sat down, Erne took his seat as well.

“Come to think of it, what have you been so busy with?”

He couldn’t answer honestly.

After all, the reason he had been “busy” was nothing more than an excuse to avoid her.

‘I’ll have to silence everyone in the Imperial Palace when I get back.’

Thinking that, he answered stiffly,

“Just… diplomatic issues with Etar.”

“Etar? Ah, because of the civil war?”

“Yeah.”

At that, Izaya’s eyes sharpened.

‘Etar… Right, by now the king and Sumad should be in full conflict.’

And Izaya knew how it would end.

‘This war… ends in total annihilation.’

At first, the rebel forces were small.

But gradually, their numbers grew.

Not only oppressed citizens, but even royal soldiers began to desert. Some nobles were also swayed by Sumad.

In the end, the king and nobles abandoned the palace, only to be captured by the people and brutally killed.

In seven years, Sumad’s rebel army became a revolutionary force.

But they could not sustain their new regime.

Taking advantage of the weakened state after the civil war, the Kingdom of Kagot—an enemy of the Empire—invaded Etar.

‘Because of that, Kagot monopolized Etar’s mana stones, and the price of magical goods in the Empire skyrocketed.’

And the public’s anger fell not on Duke Lauhen, who controlled everything—but on the Emperor.

‘But maybe this time… I can change that future. The problem is convincing him.’

Izaya spoke.

“I’ve heard Sumad is both popular and highly strategic. What do you think about supporting the rebels?”

“It’s not like I haven’t considered it. But right now, the advantage—”

“Yes, in terms of military strength, the current king obviously dominates. But there’s nothing to gain from him. He’s satisfied with maintaining the status quo. Sumad, on the other hand, wants to overturn it. There’s much more room for negotiation.”

Erne recalled the conditions Sumad had proposed and looked at Izaya with interest.

‘I thought she wasn’t interested in state affairs…’

He spoke again.

“So? You’re saying we should help them?”

“I’m not saying we should help first. If you give help too easily, they’ll take it for granted.”

Erne felt deflated.

‘That’s obvious. Who wouldn’t know that…’

Then—

“But when the other side reaches out first, don’t turn them away. People are surprisingly simple—when they’re desperate, they remember the one who helped them very vividly.”

Izaya smiled as she said that.

For a moment, Erne found himself staring blankly at her face, as if it were glowing.

But he soon snapped back and countered,

“But if we support rebels in an allied nation, other allies might criticize us.”

He hadn’t expected much of an answer.

Even he had struggled with that problem—he didn’t think Izaya could solve it.

But her reply came easily.

“Then make the agreement not with Sumad, but with the people of Etar. Frame it as humanitarian aid for those starving because of the war. And along with food, send military supplies to the rebels.”

‘Make the people the subject of the agreement?’

As someone born and raised in the ruling class, it was something he would never have considered.

But soon he found a flaw and pointed it out.

“Not a bad idea… if you have the funds.”

It wasn’t that he lacked money.

Erne had vast personal wealth and secret funds beyond the national treasury.

But he hadn’t committed them because he wasn’t fully convinced about supporting the rebels.

Then Izaya smirked.

“Don’t worry about the funds.”

“What?”

Just then—

“Your Majesty, the refreshments are ready.”

“Come in.”

As Melanie set down the milk and sweets, Izaya pointed at the cup in front of Erne.

“Drink the milk first.”

He glared at it, then took a sip.

The warm, rich liquid soothed his dry throat, and the tension in his body began to melt away.

His eyes started blinking heavily as drowsiness crept in.

But he forced himself to focus and looked at Izaya.

“Now tell me—”

He couldn’t finish.

Izaya suddenly stuffed an éclair into his mouth.

‘Sweets are just for restoring stamina…’

During sword training, he consumed so much energy that he couldn’t endure without high-calorie desserts.

“At the tea party, I want to prepare lots of things you like. So tell me—which do you prefer?”

Honestly, they all looked the same to him.

As long as they restored energy, it didn’t matter.

“Anything is fine, just earlier—what did you mean—”

“I care. If possible, I want to prepare things you like.”

He had intended to press her about the funding.

But her words stopped him.

‘How troublesome…’

After a moment, he pointed randomly.

It was a strawberry cream cake piled high with fresh strawberries.

Izaya beamed.

“I knew you’d like that! You’ve always liked strawberries.”

“I-I don’t—”

“You always eat desserts with fruit on top.”

The fact that she had noticed made his face heat up.

He quickly drank more milk.

Then Izaya lifted another plate.

“What about green grape crepes?”

Seeing her bright smile, his chest tightened.

‘Don’t be fooled. She’s still planning to divorce me…’

Then she continued,

“You don’t look pleased… do you not like green grapes? Or is it because I didn’t explain the funding?”

When he didn’t respond, she shrugged.

“It’s simple. We’ll gather investors for Etar trade through an auction.”

“Investors…?”

“Yes. Use their investment to support the rebels. If the revolution succeeds, grant them trade rights.”

Erne hadn’t thought of this—not because he was foolish.

But because as Emperor, he had always borne responsibility alone.

Sharing the burden wasn’t something he was used to.

“But not too many.”

She pointed at a pie on the plate.

“Investors won’t want to split such a delicious pie into too many small pieces.”

And she intended to hold the largest share.

‘I’ll need to prevent large merchant groups from monopolizing trade later.’

“Anyway, Erne, don’t worry about the investment. An opportunity will be created soon.”

She looked at him.

He was staring down blankly.

‘Hmm, he must be tired. Politics probably bores him.’

But his exhaustion wasn’t from boredom.

It was because of her.

‘You’re thinking about divorce… so why are you helping me? Why are you being so kind?’

Soon, after finishing the milk, Erne slowly stood up.

“I should get going.”

“Hm? You can rest a bit longer.”

“It’s fine—”

Suddenly, his vision spun.

He staggered.

“Erne?”

He heard Izaya calling his name—

But his consciousness had already sunk into darkness.