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Episode
“Everyone thinks I’ve always been happy. Kind parents. The daughter of a ducal family with wealth and honor……”
Salubia lowered her head slightly and looked at the flower petals sinking inside her teacup.
Her heart had always been dry, like a withered flower petal. Whenever people told her to smile, she smiled. Whenever they told her to cry, she cried.
“Your Majesty thought of me that way too, didn’t you?”
“……I did.”
Jenaden couldn’t deny what Salubia said.
Whenever he saw her, she was always smiling. Whenever he saw that pure, innocent smile of hers, it twisted something inside him.
She knew nothing.
He had secretly laughed at her for that.
“My parents used me as a tool. A tool they could turn into an Empress and use however they wanted.”
Every day had been difficult.
She had to constantly worry about making even the smallest mistake in etiquette, and if she made a mistake, she wouldn’t get any food that day.
Salubia had never even had the usual debutante ball, yet people talked about her like this:
Perhaps Duke and Duchess Bronar treasured their daughter so much that they didn’t let her go outside.
The only reason such rumors existed was that the two of them acted so affectionate toward Salubia in front of other people.
But in reality, they had never intended to let Salubia go outside.
Their goal had always been to make Salubia the Empress.
“I became Empress after being trained that harshly. Even though I’m nothing more than an Empress in name……”
“Nothing more than an Empress in name……? You are the Empress of an entire country.”
“Oh my, am I not?”
Salubia smiled, her eyes curving gently.
Jenaden made an uncomfortable expression.
“My parents probably would have abandoned me if I hadn’t become Empress.”
Salubia spoke calmly, as though she were talking about someone else.
No matter how cold parents were, could they really abandon their own daughter?
Jenaden’s eyes trembled.
Maybe Salubia’s situation was similar to his own.
Duke Bronar always treated Jenaden politely as the Emperor with a smile on his face, but behind that smile, he was doing everything he could to use Jenaden like a puppet.
Jenaden only knew the old wolf’s shallow tricks now and pretended not to notice them.
But it was different when he was young.
Back then, he used to tremble in fear at every word the Duke said.
As unpleasant memories came rushing back, Jenaden slowly closed and opened his eyes.
Not anymore.
He wasn’t that frightened child anymore.
“Oh, right…… Your Majesty……”
“What is it……?”
“I wanted to prepare this year’s birthday celebration a little differently. I was thinking, what if we held it as a masquerade ball?”
“I’m not sure……”
Jenaden answered indifferently, as though he didn’t have much of an opinion.
“……But what suddenly made you suggest something like that?”
“I just want to make this banquet feel special for some reason. And I might not even be here in the palace next year.”
Salubia’s dream was to leave this palace before next year came.
She wanted to find freedom and leave as soon as possible.
Somewhere without Jenaden.
Somewhere without her father.
“You sound very sure about that.”
“Don’t you want to get away from me quickly too, Your Majesty?”
Salubia stared at Jenaden as if asking him to agree.
But Jenaden’s tightly closed lips did not open.
“Your Majesty, then I think I should go and get back to preparing for your birthday.”
Jenaden’s silence made her uncomfortable.
Salubia stood up.
Jenaden glanced at her, then nodded as if he understood.
After leaving the imperial garden and heading back to the Empress’s Palace, Salubia’s steps slowed once she left the central palace.
She stopped in the middle of a long hallway.
She turned her head toward the windows.
Outside the arched window, engraved with beautiful lily patterns, she could see a wide blue sky.
“I can’t let those two meet as planned.”
She muttered to herself.
On the Emperor’s birthday, Jenaden and Elaine would meet again at the ball.
‘His Majesty and I have been together since His Majesty’s birthday.’
Elaine’s voice was something Salubia could never forget.
When Salubia asked through tears when the two of them had first met, Elaine had answered with a smile.
While Salubia had been enjoying the ball without knowing anything, the two of them had met again and fallen in love.
Elaine’s image shimmered before Salubia’s eyes like a mirage.
How could she ever forget her?
The woman who had received both Salubia’s envy and hatred at the same time.
Elaine’s long, straight blonde hair reached down to her waist and always swayed beautifully. Her silky hair shone smoothly like actual silk.
Her large eyes looked as though emerald jewels had been placed inside them, and whenever she smiled, they opened brightly like flowers in full bloom.
Her reddish cheeks looked as though they had been colored by peaches, and her pure white skin made her stand out even more.
Salubia herself had always said that everyone was beautiful, but the truly beautiful one had been Elaine.
That was why Jenaden could never forget her.
How could anyone forget a woman who looked like an angel descended from the heavens?
Heh.
A mocking smile appeared at the corner of Salubia’s lips.
She wasn’t trying to stop the two of them from meeting because she still had feelings for Jenaden.
It was simply that she wanted to let them meet after her dealings with Jenaden had progressed a little further.
If she did that, wouldn’t Jenaden completely trust her too?
“Things have to go according to my plan……”
She couldn’t stop feeling anxious.
Salubia bit down firmly on her lower lip.
Salubia’s hands became busy as she chose her dresses.
Behind her, the attendants hurried around with their arms full of luggage.
As soon as she finished preparing for the birthday celebration, she was going to spend a vacation with Jenaden at one of the Bronar family’s villas.
Of course, her parents would be there too.
It was only a short trip, about three days of staying there, but there were so many things to pack that they were enough to fill an entire carriage.
With Asta and Stella’s help, Salubia picked out dresses that were at least comfortable enough to move around in from among the countless dresses, then handed them to the other attendants.
“Did you pack the gift for His Majesty?”
At Salubia’s question, Stella nodded and said,
“Of course!”
“All right. That’s a relief.”
She smiled brightly.
One by one, Salubia’s belongings were loaded into the carriage, and she waited in front of it with the attendants for Jenaden.
Unlike usual, Salubia was wearing a dress that looked comfortable and easy to move around in.
She also wore a hat decorated with ostrich feathers and roses.
After wearing nothing but corsets and heavy, dragging dresses inside the palace, changing into something light and comfortable made Salubia feel strangely excited.
“Stella, take good care of the Empress’s Palace while I’m gone.”
Salubia spoke gently to Stella, who would be staying behind at the palace.
Stella’s lips stuck out sadly because she couldn’t go with them.
Asta, who was standing beside her, poked Stella lightly around the waist with her elbow, as if telling her that was enough.
Salubia couldn’t hold back her laughter at the sight and quietly giggled.
“His Majesty is coming!”
At the chief attendant’s announcement, the palace attendants who had been standing there split into two lines for Jenaden and bowed their heads.
Salubia turned around and looked at Jenaden walking toward them from a distance.
His long, jet-black hair fluttered in the wind.
Jenaden’s clothes were also simple enough that he looked like an ordinary nobleman.
His coat, embroidered with blue and gold thread, suited his blue eyes perfectly.
The clothes themselves weren’t flashy, but perhaps because of Jenaden’s face, he somehow made them look elegant and luxurious.
When Jenaden saw Salubia, he smiled beautifully, his eyes curving.
“Empress, you look even more beautiful today.”
As Jenaden approached her, he gave her an affectionate look.
Salubia glanced around and saw the people watching them with moved expressions.
She quietly sighed.
They’re falling for it again.
If she could do whatever she wanted, she would act naturally whenever she was with him.
But there were too many eyes watching them.
She decided to play along with Jenaden’s act.
She smiled brightly at him, pretending to have fallen in love with him all over again.
“You look very handsome too, Your Majesty.”
One of Jenaden’s eyebrows twitched.
But no one noticed.
After checking the luggage in the carriage for a moment, they soon prepared to leave.
Jenaden climbed into the carriage first, then turned around and held out one hand to Salubia as she stepped onto the carriage step.
“Empress, be careful……”
At his gentlemanly behavior, the female attendants covered their mouths and quietly fussed over the sight.
Salubia gave Jenaden a slightly annoyed look for a moment, then gently placed her hand on his palm.
“You’re pretty good at acting.”
The moment they got inside the carriage and the door closed, Salubia casually said it.
“Am I?”
“Yes. Very.”
At Salubia’s sulky expression, Jenaden gave a quiet laugh.
It was strange.
Jenaden felt much more comfortable with Salubia now that she occasionally showed her thorns than when she had been completely infatuated with him.
“Come to think of it, why did you suddenly decide to spend our vacation at the Bronar family’s villa?”
“Let’s just say it’s your birthday present, Your Majesty.”
After saying that, Salubia turned her head and silently stared out the window.
Maybe it was because it was morning.
The air was quite chilly.
The Bronar family’s villa wasn’t very far from the capital.
Her father and mother were obviously already there.
They would probably pretend to treat Jenaden and her kindly while showing their true intentions.
This time, things won’t be like before.
I’m not the weak Empress I was before my regression.
Salubia repeated those words to herself like a spell.
“Welcome, Your Majesty.”
As expected, they had arrived at the villa first and were waiting for Jenaden and Salubia.
When Jenaden and Salubia got out of the carriage, Duke Bronar narrowed his sharp-looking eyes into a smile.
The Duchess beside him quickly walked over to Salubia and held both of her hands tightly.
From the outside, they looked like an incredibly affectionate mother and daughter.
“Mother, Father. I told you that you didn’t have to decorate the place so extravagantly.”
Jenaden and Salubia had hoped to spend their vacation without making a big deal about being the Emperor and Empress.
That was why they had casually told the Bronar family in advance to prepare things normally.
But the Bronar family had completely ignored their words.
The newly painted exterior of the villa shone white.
Following the attendants inside, Salubia saw a magnificent chandelier covered in gold and jewels.
Even the chandelier in the imperial palace probably isn’t this extravagant.
The Duke and Duchess of Bronar liked to appear frugal, but in reality, they loved living lavishly.
Salubia turned her eyes toward Duke Bronar.
He looked back at her with a shameless smile.
“Your Majesty, you must be hungry. I think it would be best to have lunch first.”
The moment Salubia saw the Duke’s eyes briefly sparkle as he spoke, she had a bad feeling.
What is he planning to say during lunch?
Just thinking about how much he would ignore her and Jenaden while pushing his own greed made her feel sick.
But she couldn’t show it.
She forced a smile and reluctantly nodded.
It felt like she had walked straight into a tiger’s den.
Salubia’s lips went completely dry.
