This time, the silence was a little shorter. It was because there was no need to worry.
It was definitely an idea that came from Arkan. Arkan planned to provide food and supplies to the people of the empire who had to fight hunger despite having a vast territory, and if the nobles who had been pushed back took important positions while most of the military officers were away, the power supporting Tenek would become stronger.
“...That’s right. That was my idea.”
Erdene didn’t have time to think about his answer before continuing with her question.
“Then, was Your Majesty involved in my father’s death?”
At that moment, Arkan’s face, which had been dark the whole time, changed.
“What do you mean?”
“I did, I didn’t. Just answer that.”
Erdene, who was breathing a little ragged, spoke in a seething voice.
“No matter how much Your Majesty and the Kings of the Inland gathered together and tried to incite Tenek if my father was alive, he would never have taken the throne. However, my father passed away suddenly while I was away at war, and thanks to that, Tenek was able to sit on the throne safely. I can never accept my father’s death. So, answer honestly. Was Your Majesty involved in it?”
“I swear not.”
Arkan answered firmly. Erdene did not respond immediately as if she did not believe him, but her blue-rimmed gaze seemed to soften a little.
“I... heard a brief news that the Emperor was ill. That was why I was trying to put into action what I had been thinking about. The sudden death of the Emperor of the empire was something I did not expect. From the beginning, what the Kings of the Inland Alliance and I aimed for... was to have Tenek persuade the Emperor while you were unable to settle the war with Vinotin. You...”
“You’re saying that you tried to drive me to incompetence as a commander, something like that?”
“...Yes. That’s what it is.”
Erdene, who had been listening to him with her arms folded, burst into laughter as if she was dumbfounded.
“You gathered the heads of seven Kings who ruled the country, and that was all you could do? You’re all fools. If my father were alive, do you think he would have been fooled by those words? If he had been that kind of person, Tenek would have pushed me out long ago and taken the Crown Prince’s place.”
Arkan sighed.
“I know. No, I guess it’s more accurate to say that I know now. We... underestimated the Emperor’s trust in you. I doubted that he would really leave his vast empire to his daughter just because she had some experience in warfare when he had a perfectly good eldest son. That kind of thing rarely happens in the inland. No matter how talented a daughter is, they won’t make her their successor. Maybe it would be better to take in an adopted child.”
Erdene laughed again.
“Underestimation is not enough to explain your foolishness. He really pushed ahead without knowing anything, and somehow everything fell into place. Tenek was born weak, so he was never even considered a candidate for the throne. My father didn’t trust him at all. He may be smart and cunning, but what’s the big deal? After all, the foundation of the empire is strength and courage.”
Then as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he narrowed his brows and looked at Erdene.
“...Do you really think that Emperor Tenek killed your father?”
Erdene did not answer the question, but silence itself was the most powerful affirmation.
Arkan, taken aback by the unexpected turn of events, rubbed the corners of his mouth nervously.
However, Erdene did not ask any further questions, but just looked at him and said.
“Yes. I will believe Your Majesty. I do not know what I suspect or what I think... I can’t talk right now. I have nothing in my hands.”
“Erdene.”
“I think it would be best to stop this conversation here for today. It was most important to confirm that Your Majesty was not involved in harming my father.”
Arkan, who had been quietly blinking, slowly stepped back.
“...Yes. I understand.”
An awkward silence passed between the two.
But for some reason, Arkan felt that the deep rift between him and Erdene had closed a little. It might have been because Erdene had finally heard the answer to the question that had been on her mind all along, the most important question to her... whether Arkan had been directly involved in the death of the late Emperor or not.
Erdene changed the subject.
“Now that I think about it, I heard from Sophia that Marchioness Fiddlers is here.”
Arkan nodded with an “ah. ”
“Yes. I called her here because I had no choice but to try to make you... regain consciousness. If it’s uncomfortable, I’ll tell her to go back down.”
Then Erdene smiled as if to say something.
“After all, didn’t yikes wake up thanks to that medicine? Don’t make me out to be an ungrateful person. She doesn’t like me anyway. I asked her to meet me once. I’ll see if she's reflected on herself.”
“I don’t think I would expect that. But if you want to, do whatever you want.”
Arkan nodded, checked the clock, and stood up.
There was a meeting to settle the pest problem.
As if he didn’t want to leave, he hesitated for a moment, then bent down and lightly kissed Erdene’s forehead.
The fever that had been so frightening that her skin trembled just from the touch had now disappeared without a trace.
“What is it?”
When their lips touched and then parted, Erdene asked with a smile.
“...What is it?”
Arkan fiddled with his reddened ear and muffled the question.
The moment he turned around, Erdene reached out and grabbed Arkan’s hand. Then she pressed her lips firmly against the back of his hand.
It was warm and soft.
Arkan, dumbfounded, looked down at the spot where her lips had touched and twitched his lips.
“...What is this?”
“What is it? I answered.”
“Answer?”
Arkan asked back as if asking what she meant, carefully intertwining his fingers with Erdene’s.
His eyes, looking down at her face with his upper body bent, were filled with desire, confusion, and pitiful anticipation.
“I didn’t say anything, so what on earth did you answer?”
Erdene smiled with the corners of her lips raised.
Arkan’s gaze was instantly stolen by her bright, even comfortable smile.
“You said nothing, really? I thought I heard you say you loved me.”
“Sa...”
“Or not.”
When Erdene suddenly tried to shake off his hand, imitating a sly young lady, Arkan unconsciously grabbed both of her hands.
His ears were so hot. He was afraid they would melt and fall off.
“...It’s not, it’s not.”
“What if it’s not?”
Arkan, who had been lowering his face as if it was going to burst, looked up at Erdene with his lips pressed together.
“...It’s true that I said I love you.”
It was definitely an idea that came from Arkan. Arkan planned to provide food and supplies to the people of the empire who had to fight hunger despite having a vast territory, and if the nobles who had been pushed back took important positions while most of the military officers were away, the power supporting Tenek would become stronger.
“...That’s right. That was my idea.”
Erdene didn’t have time to think about his answer before continuing with her question.
“Then, was Your Majesty involved in my father’s death?”
At that moment, Arkan’s face, which had been dark the whole time, changed.
“What do you mean?”
“I did, I didn’t. Just answer that.”
Erdene, who was breathing a little ragged, spoke in a seething voice.
“No matter how much Your Majesty and the Kings of the Inland gathered together and tried to incite Tenek if my father was alive, he would never have taken the throne. However, my father passed away suddenly while I was away at war, and thanks to that, Tenek was able to sit on the throne safely. I can never accept my father’s death. So, answer honestly. Was Your Majesty involved in it?”
“I swear not.”
Arkan answered firmly. Erdene did not respond immediately as if she did not believe him, but her blue-rimmed gaze seemed to soften a little.
“I... heard a brief news that the Emperor was ill. That was why I was trying to put into action what I had been thinking about. The sudden death of the Emperor of the empire was something I did not expect. From the beginning, what the Kings of the Inland Alliance and I aimed for... was to have Tenek persuade the Emperor while you were unable to settle the war with Vinotin. You...”
“You’re saying that you tried to drive me to incompetence as a commander, something like that?”
“...Yes. That’s what it is.”
Erdene, who had been listening to him with her arms folded, burst into laughter as if she was dumbfounded.
“You gathered the heads of seven Kings who ruled the country, and that was all you could do? You’re all fools. If my father were alive, do you think he would have been fooled by those words? If he had been that kind of person, Tenek would have pushed me out long ago and taken the Crown Prince’s place.”
Arkan sighed.
“I know. No, I guess it’s more accurate to say that I know now. We... underestimated the Emperor’s trust in you. I doubted that he would really leave his vast empire to his daughter just because she had some experience in warfare when he had a perfectly good eldest son. That kind of thing rarely happens in the inland. No matter how talented a daughter is, they won’t make her their successor. Maybe it would be better to take in an adopted child.”
Erdene laughed again.
“Underestimation is not enough to explain your foolishness. He really pushed ahead without knowing anything, and somehow everything fell into place. Tenek was born weak, so he was never even considered a candidate for the throne. My father didn’t trust him at all. He may be smart and cunning, but what’s the big deal? After all, the foundation of the empire is strength and courage.”
She paused for a moment and turned her gaze out the window.
The flags rising into the air, the shouts, the sharp chords of the clashing of the weapons, and the dust rising. The sound of horse hooves.
All of these things passed through her mind like a fantasy, like a dream she had long ago.
“My name, Erdene Badd. Do you know what that name means? Gold and silver, coral, pearl, turquoise and lapis lazuli, mother-of-pearl and steel, copper. It means nine jewels. Can you guess why I was given that name? Because the one who will become the Emperor must be well-endowed with talents, and only the one who will become the Emperor can obtain all of those splendors. I was the heir who was promised the throne from the moment I was born. If you had known that, you would not have thought of giving the entire land of the empire to Tenek. You would have thought about it at least once more.”
But Erdene, and Arkan, who was silently enduring her anger, knew.
Even if time could be turned back now, and even if Erdene went back to before she went to war with Vinotin, Arkan would have made the same choice for the inland.
That’s why I hated it... Erdene thought.
Time could not be turned back, but even if he could, Arkan would somehow take the empire away from her.
Whether he married her or not, Erdene would never sit on the lofty throne of the Golden Castle.
As long as Arkan lives.
Arkan watched her hands gripping the sheet tremble with anger before speaking.
“Yes. It was our... no, my mistake. However, it is only as your husband that I can admit this as a mistake. I believe you know that it cannot be otherwise.”
His sincerity was felt in the words, ‘I believe you know’, not in the words that he believed she would understand. And his conviction.
Erdene suddenly felt the strength drain from her fingertips.
Arkan spoke again.
“But I can tell you this clearly. I really... know nothing about your father’s death. Nothing.”
The flags rising into the air, the shouts, the sharp chords of the clashing of the weapons, and the dust rising. The sound of horse hooves.
All of these things passed through her mind like a fantasy, like a dream she had long ago.
“My name, Erdene Badd. Do you know what that name means? Gold and silver, coral, pearl, turquoise and lapis lazuli, mother-of-pearl and steel, copper. It means nine jewels. Can you guess why I was given that name? Because the one who will become the Emperor must be well-endowed with talents, and only the one who will become the Emperor can obtain all of those splendors. I was the heir who was promised the throne from the moment I was born. If you had known that, you would not have thought of giving the entire land of the empire to Tenek. You would have thought about it at least once more.”
But Erdene, and Arkan, who was silently enduring her anger, knew.
Even if time could be turned back now, and even if Erdene went back to before she went to war with Vinotin, Arkan would have made the same choice for the inland.
That’s why I hated it... Erdene thought.
Time could not be turned back, but even if he could, Arkan would somehow take the empire away from her.
Whether he married her or not, Erdene would never sit on the lofty throne of the Golden Castle.
As long as Arkan lives.
Arkan watched her hands gripping the sheet tremble with anger before speaking.
“Yes. It was our... no, my mistake. However, it is only as your husband that I can admit this as a mistake. I believe you know that it cannot be otherwise.”
His sincerity was felt in the words, ‘I believe you know’, not in the words that he believed she would understand. And his conviction.
Erdene suddenly felt the strength drain from her fingertips.
Arkan spoke again.
“But I can tell you this clearly. I really... know nothing about your father’s death. Nothing.”
Then as if a thought suddenly occurred to him, he narrowed his brows and looked at Erdene.
“...Do you really think that Emperor Tenek killed your father?”
Erdene did not answer the question, but silence itself was the most powerful affirmation.
Arkan, taken aback by the unexpected turn of events, rubbed the corners of his mouth nervously.
However, Erdene did not ask any further questions, but just looked at him and said.
“Yes. I will believe Your Majesty. I do not know what I suspect or what I think... I can’t talk right now. I have nothing in my hands.”
“Erdene.”
“I think it would be best to stop this conversation here for today. It was most important to confirm that Your Majesty was not involved in harming my father.”
Arkan, who had been quietly blinking, slowly stepped back.
“...Yes. I understand.”
An awkward silence passed between the two.
But for some reason, Arkan felt that the deep rift between him and Erdene had closed a little. It might have been because Erdene had finally heard the answer to the question that had been on her mind all along, the most important question to her... whether Arkan had been directly involved in the death of the late Emperor or not.
Erdene changed the subject.
“Now that I think about it, I heard from Sophia that Marchioness Fiddlers is here.”
Arkan nodded with an “ah. ”
“Yes. I called her here because I had no choice but to try to make you... regain consciousness. If it’s uncomfortable, I’ll tell her to go back down.”
Then Erdene smiled as if to say something.
“After all, didn’t yikes wake up thanks to that medicine? Don’t make me out to be an ungrateful person. She doesn’t like me anyway. I asked her to meet me once. I’ll see if she's reflected on herself.”
“I don’t think I would expect that. But if you want to, do whatever you want.”
Arkan nodded, checked the clock, and stood up.
There was a meeting to settle the pest problem.
As if he didn’t want to leave, he hesitated for a moment, then bent down and lightly kissed Erdene’s forehead.
The fever that had been so frightening that her skin trembled just from the touch had now disappeared without a trace.
“What is it?”
When their lips touched and then parted, Erdene asked with a smile.
“...What is it?”
Arkan fiddled with his reddened ear and muffled the question.
The moment he turned around, Erdene reached out and grabbed Arkan’s hand. Then she pressed her lips firmly against the back of his hand.
It was warm and soft.
Arkan, dumbfounded, looked down at the spot where her lips had touched and twitched his lips.
“...What is this?”
“What is it? I answered.”
“Answer?”
Arkan asked back as if asking what she meant, carefully intertwining his fingers with Erdene’s.
His eyes, looking down at her face with his upper body bent, were filled with desire, confusion, and pitiful anticipation.
“I didn’t say anything, so what on earth did you answer?”
Erdene smiled with the corners of her lips raised.
Arkan’s gaze was instantly stolen by her bright, even comfortable smile.
“You said nothing, really? I thought I heard you say you loved me.”
“Sa...”
“Or not.”
When Erdene suddenly tried to shake off his hand, imitating a sly young lady, Arkan unconsciously grabbed both of her hands.
His ears were so hot. He was afraid they would melt and fall off.
“...It’s not, it’s not.”
“What if it’s not?”
Arkan, who had been lowering his face as if it was going to burst, looked up at Erdene with his lips pressed together.
“...It’s true that I said I love you.”
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