“Nothing. You’re all here.”
Roxanne stopped at the arched pillars of the hallway.
It was snowing again.
“The sun has already set. The map..."
“Please show me next time.”
Roxanne stopped at the arched pillars of the hallway.
It was snowing again.
“The sun has already set. The map..."
“Please show me next time.”
Judging by the snow piling up quickly, it seemed like another blizzard was coming.
She wanted to send him back before the weather got too bad.
Roxanne, who had been looking at the sky, nodded his head.
“I’ll go back now.”
“Take care.”
Sepia also knew.
That the relationship that had been broken could not be restored.
However, it was fortunate that she could make plans with him again.
Sepia watched the back of the person leaving for a long time.
In the winter villa with snow falling.
The curtain surrounding the large bed was half-open.
“Your Majesty.”
With a sweet whisper, Titier was embraced by the Emperor.
“Thank you for bringing me to such a beautiful place.”
This was a private villa within the Emperor’s hunting grounds.
It was not a palace beyond the imperial castle, but it was larger and more luxurious than most villas.
Demios smiled as he hugged Titi.
“There are many things you're grateful for.”
His long and beautiful fingers brushed back her tangled white hair.
Titi rubbed her cheek against his chest as if she was being playful.
“Of course. The fact that Your Majesty is by my side right now and that I bear Your Majesty’s name, are all things I am grateful for.”
Demios’ name was engraved in black cursive on her chest, visible through the half-lidded slip.
Demios stared intently at the skin where his name was engraved and then kissed it deeply.
“Ah, Your Majesty.”
Titi hugged his head tightly.
Her mouth was making a weak sound, but her face, which the Emperor could not see, was soaked in victory.
‘It is clear that you have become estranged from the empress.’
Titi was the one who spread the rumors surrounding the Empress.
More people hated the Empress than Titi had expected.
No matter how merciful and wonderful the Empress was, she was ultimately a different person.
At first, she thought she had planned it wrong.
The Emperor’s gaze would not leave the Empress.
Especially when the Duke claimed to be the Empress’s mistress.
‘I thought I had failed, but I wasn’t.’
She even pretended to have a fever to prevent him from going to the Empress’s palace, but acting had its limits.
In the end, that night when the Emperor went to see the Empress.
When he found Titi, the Emperor hugged her like crazy.
After that, the Emperor never set foot in the Empress’s palace again.
Even now, look.
The one the Emperor brought to the winter villa was not the Empress, but herself.
He even offered to give it to Titi, who said she liked the villa so much.
Titi smiled triumphantly.
‘I can’t stand it.’
His female wanted another male.
The Emperor hated his woman getting involved in useless things.
Only in his arms, fragile like a flower.
That was all the Emperor wanted from his female.
“Be happy. Your Majesty, it’s too much.”
Titi whispered softly.
Her gaze was on the window beyond the curtain.
Beyond the large window, sleet was falling. Beyond the white forest, Titi’s emotions were stimulated.
The fact that it was so cold outside but inside the villa, so warm, was what she liked the most.
‘The time has come when snow looks pretty.’
The cold trash falling from the sky was as beautiful as jewels.
The winter that she had hated so much when she was poor had now become her favorite season.
In winter, her hands and feet would freeze, and no matter how much clothing she put on, she could not stop the cold wind that seeped in.
It was a season when many people would curl up in the alleys and freeze to death the next day.
If they couldn’t sell flowers, they would have to live in the alleys, so they had to try hard to attract customers to not die.
However, there was a change in their shabby life.
When the new Empress ascended to the throne, she created a workhouse and provided shelter for refugees on the streets. As the Empress provided shelter and rationed food, the number of people freezing to death decreased significantly.
Titi also spent three winters in a workhouse, but she could not understand those who were grateful to the Empress.
'Ugh, just with bread and water.'
While she was hanging out with dirty beggars in the old and shabby workhouse, it was obvious that the Empress was living in luxury in the splendid palace.
The job placement agency connected to the workhouse also had all-day sewing or simple labor, all of which were hard and didn't pay well.
When she didn't have much money, she would go to a factory through the job placement agency, but she would soon quit or run away after stealing the factory's safe and being chased.
Titi's dream was to be the second wife of a wealthy noble.
Her rare appearance, acquired due to her unique illness, was also a weapon.
However, her life was not easy.
The nobles treated Titi as a plaything and threw her away when they got tired of her.
But now, look.
The silk slip Titi was wearing. The goose-down bedding and the six-layer mattress.
Everything in this villa, with its burning fireplace and gorgeous ornaments, was hers.
Isn't this a life that even the nobles who boasted about being nobles couldn't even dream of?
It was a life that was possible because the Emperor was by Titi’s side and because the Emperor’s name was on her chest.
“There are many things to be happy about, and many things to be thankful for... You are so different from anyone else.”
The Emperor, lying on his side, caressed Titi’s cheek with a relaxed expression.
Although she should have been offended by the comparison to her first wife, she merely blinked her eyes obediently.
“But don’t hate the Empress too much. It seems like the two of you have become distant because of me... I feel like something scary is going to happen.”
In fact, the more they were compared, the better.
The difference between the cold first wife and the loving mistress would have been extreme. When Titi grabbed the Emperor’s robe as if she was being childish, he asked,
“Are you afraid of the Empress?”
“Yes. She hate me.”
Titi said with an innocent face.
It was natural.
If she were the Empress, she would have torn apart the government that bore the Emperor’s name right away.
However, the Emperor’s eyes looked complicated and subtle.
“...I don’t think she hates you.”
“Is that so?”
“Because the Empress doesn’t love anyone.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
Titi tilted her head as if she didn’t understand.
The Emperor couldn’t hide his bitter smile as he looked at her as if he found her endearing.
“Yes. You shouldn’t know. You should only look at me. You can tell a lot by looking into someone’s eyes. The Empress is always looking into the distance.”
The Emperor kissed Titi's eyes.
Titi happily accepted his kiss and murmured.
“I’m not like the Empress. I only desire you. I don’t need anything else. That’s why I have your name engraved on me.”
The Empress was a foolish woman.
What male would like a female who tries to do something greater than him?
The Empress, who could get whatever she wanted just by quietly receiving love, was kicking away all of that wealth with her own feet.
“Yes. That’s all I want from you.”
The Emperor’s red eyes captured Titi.
The possessiveness that gleamed in his eyes always filled Titi.
“I wish Your Majesty would only look at me.”
“...As long as your eyes don’t change, I will keep you by my side.”
The Emperor rubbed Titi’s chest.
The name was a mark that could not be erased even if erased.
It was not a bad answer.
However, it did not satisfy Titi’s surname.
“...You know, Your Majesty. I heard that the purification ceremony is coming soon.”
“Yes.”
The Emperor nodded absentmindedly.
Titi, observing his reaction, got to the point.
“Can you take me to the purification ceremony too? Only Your Majesty and the Empress can enter... I don’t think I can even sleep a wink.”
The purification ceremony was a special ceremony that only the Emperor and Empress participated in for generations.
No one except the holy couple could descend to the mysterious underground temple.
Titi had no intention of being satisfied with a mere government position.
Asking to be taken to the purification ceremony was also a sign of her greed for the position of Empress in the future.
But the Emperor's response was cold.
"It's only for a day."
"But I'm scared and jealous. Many people in the Imperial Palace hate me because I'm a government official. If Your Majesty isn't here, I..."
Titi sobbed with wide eyes.
The Emperor pushed her away as she tried to embrace him.
“The purification ceremony is a sacred duty as a descendant of the gods. No outsider is allowed to enter the underground temple without the goddess’s permission.”
It was a completely different voice from the time when he had given her the villa as if it was nothing special.
Titi, frightened by the Emperor’s stubborn reaction, quickly changed her attitude and hugged his arm tightly.
“I’m sorry. I guess I acted childishly because I was afraid. Your Majesty will return to me once the purification ceremony is over. Am I right?”
The Emperor’s expression softened a little as Titi desperately clung to him.
“...Does it bother you that I’m with the Empress?”
“Yes. I don’t have any ill feelings toward the Empress, but I do get jealous as a woman. I wish Your Majesty could be my own male. Is it bad to have such feelings?”
The Emperor looked at Titi as if he found such a feeling strange and soon softened his voice.
“No, it’s only natural.”
“I think so too. So please understand my childishness.”
The Emperor ended up embracing her when she said that she could not accept it but just listened to him.
She wanted to send him back before the weather got too bad.
Roxanne, who had been looking at the sky, nodded his head.
“I’ll go back now.”
“Take care.”
Sepia also knew.
That the relationship that had been broken could not be restored.
However, it was fortunate that she could make plans with him again.
Sepia watched the back of the person leaving for a long time.
***
In the winter villa with snow falling.
The curtain surrounding the large bed was half-open.
“Your Majesty.”
With a sweet whisper, Titier was embraced by the Emperor.
“Thank you for bringing me to such a beautiful place.”
This was a private villa within the Emperor’s hunting grounds.
It was not a palace beyond the imperial castle, but it was larger and more luxurious than most villas.
Demios smiled as he hugged Titi.
“There are many things you're grateful for.”
His long and beautiful fingers brushed back her tangled white hair.
Titi rubbed her cheek against his chest as if she was being playful.
“Of course. The fact that Your Majesty is by my side right now and that I bear Your Majesty’s name, are all things I am grateful for.”
Demios’ name was engraved in black cursive on her chest, visible through the half-lidded slip.
Demios stared intently at the skin where his name was engraved and then kissed it deeply.
“Ah, Your Majesty.”
Titi hugged his head tightly.
Her mouth was making a weak sound, but her face, which the Emperor could not see, was soaked in victory.
‘It is clear that you have become estranged from the empress.’
Titi was the one who spread the rumors surrounding the Empress.
More people hated the Empress than Titi had expected.
No matter how merciful and wonderful the Empress was, she was ultimately a different person.
At first, she thought she had planned it wrong.
The Emperor’s gaze would not leave the Empress.
Especially when the Duke claimed to be the Empress’s mistress.
‘I thought I had failed, but I wasn’t.’
She even pretended to have a fever to prevent him from going to the Empress’s palace, but acting had its limits.
In the end, that night when the Emperor went to see the Empress.
When he found Titi, the Emperor hugged her like crazy.
After that, the Emperor never set foot in the Empress’s palace again.
Even now, look.
The one the Emperor brought to the winter villa was not the Empress, but herself.
He even offered to give it to Titi, who said she liked the villa so much.
Titi smiled triumphantly.
‘I can’t stand it.’
His female wanted another male.
The Emperor hated his woman getting involved in useless things.
Only in his arms, fragile like a flower.
That was all the Emperor wanted from his female.
“Be happy. Your Majesty, it’s too much.”
Titi whispered softly.
Her gaze was on the window beyond the curtain.
Beyond the large window, sleet was falling. Beyond the white forest, Titi’s emotions were stimulated.
The fact that it was so cold outside but inside the villa, so warm, was what she liked the most.
‘The time has come when snow looks pretty.’
The cold trash falling from the sky was as beautiful as jewels.
The winter that she had hated so much when she was poor had now become her favorite season.
In winter, her hands and feet would freeze, and no matter how much clothing she put on, she could not stop the cold wind that seeped in.
It was a season when many people would curl up in the alleys and freeze to death the next day.
If they couldn’t sell flowers, they would have to live in the alleys, so they had to try hard to attract customers to not die.
However, there was a change in their shabby life.
When the new Empress ascended to the throne, she created a workhouse and provided shelter for refugees on the streets. As the Empress provided shelter and rationed food, the number of people freezing to death decreased significantly.
Titi also spent three winters in a workhouse, but she could not understand those who were grateful to the Empress.
'Ugh, just with bread and water.'
While she was hanging out with dirty beggars in the old and shabby workhouse, it was obvious that the Empress was living in luxury in the splendid palace.
The job placement agency connected to the workhouse also had all-day sewing or simple labor, all of which were hard and didn't pay well.
When she didn't have much money, she would go to a factory through the job placement agency, but she would soon quit or run away after stealing the factory's safe and being chased.
Titi's dream was to be the second wife of a wealthy noble.
Her rare appearance, acquired due to her unique illness, was also a weapon.
However, her life was not easy.
The nobles treated Titi as a plaything and threw her away when they got tired of her.
But now, look.
The silk slip Titi was wearing. The goose-down bedding and the six-layer mattress.
Everything in this villa, with its burning fireplace and gorgeous ornaments, was hers.
Isn't this a life that even the nobles who boasted about being nobles couldn't even dream of?
It was a life that was possible because the Emperor was by Titi’s side and because the Emperor’s name was on her chest.
“There are many things to be happy about, and many things to be thankful for... You are so different from anyone else.”
The Emperor, lying on his side, caressed Titi’s cheek with a relaxed expression.
Although she should have been offended by the comparison to her first wife, she merely blinked her eyes obediently.
“But don’t hate the Empress too much. It seems like the two of you have become distant because of me... I feel like something scary is going to happen.”
In fact, the more they were compared, the better.
The difference between the cold first wife and the loving mistress would have been extreme. When Titi grabbed the Emperor’s robe as if she was being childish, he asked,
“Are you afraid of the Empress?”
“Yes. She hate me.”
Titi said with an innocent face.
It was natural.
If she were the Empress, she would have torn apart the government that bore the Emperor’s name right away.
However, the Emperor’s eyes looked complicated and subtle.
“...I don’t think she hates you.”
“Is that so?”
“Because the Empress doesn’t love anyone.”
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
Titi tilted her head as if she didn’t understand.
The Emperor couldn’t hide his bitter smile as he looked at her as if he found her endearing.
“Yes. You shouldn’t know. You should only look at me. You can tell a lot by looking into someone’s eyes. The Empress is always looking into the distance.”
The Emperor kissed Titi's eyes.
Titi happily accepted his kiss and murmured.
“I’m not like the Empress. I only desire you. I don’t need anything else. That’s why I have your name engraved on me.”
The Empress was a foolish woman.
What male would like a female who tries to do something greater than him?
The Empress, who could get whatever she wanted just by quietly receiving love, was kicking away all of that wealth with her own feet.
“Yes. That’s all I want from you.”
The Emperor’s red eyes captured Titi.
The possessiveness that gleamed in his eyes always filled Titi.
“I wish Your Majesty would only look at me.”
“...As long as your eyes don’t change, I will keep you by my side.”
The Emperor rubbed Titi’s chest.
The name was a mark that could not be erased even if erased.
It was not a bad answer.
However, it did not satisfy Titi’s surname.
“...You know, Your Majesty. I heard that the purification ceremony is coming soon.”
“Yes.”
The Emperor nodded absentmindedly.
Titi, observing his reaction, got to the point.
“Can you take me to the purification ceremony too? Only Your Majesty and the Empress can enter... I don’t think I can even sleep a wink.”
The purification ceremony was a special ceremony that only the Emperor and Empress participated in for generations.
No one except the holy couple could descend to the mysterious underground temple.
Titi had no intention of being satisfied with a mere government position.
Asking to be taken to the purification ceremony was also a sign of her greed for the position of Empress in the future.
But the Emperor's response was cold.
"It's only for a day."
"But I'm scared and jealous. Many people in the Imperial Palace hate me because I'm a government official. If Your Majesty isn't here, I..."
Titi sobbed with wide eyes.
The Emperor pushed her away as she tried to embrace him.
“The purification ceremony is a sacred duty as a descendant of the gods. No outsider is allowed to enter the underground temple without the goddess’s permission.”
It was a completely different voice from the time when he had given her the villa as if it was nothing special.
Titi, frightened by the Emperor’s stubborn reaction, quickly changed her attitude and hugged his arm tightly.
“I’m sorry. I guess I acted childishly because I was afraid. Your Majesty will return to me once the purification ceremony is over. Am I right?”
The Emperor’s expression softened a little as Titi desperately clung to him.
“...Does it bother you that I’m with the Empress?”
“Yes. I don’t have any ill feelings toward the Empress, but I do get jealous as a woman. I wish Your Majesty could be my own male. Is it bad to have such feelings?”
The Emperor looked at Titi as if he found such a feeling strange and soon softened his voice.
“No, it’s only natural.”
“I think so too. So please understand my childishness.”
The Emperor ended up embracing her when she said that she could not accept it but just listened to him.
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