How could you say that to my precious child!
Looking at Titi, who was glaring as if she was going to run at him at any moment, he looked extremely flustered.
“T-that’s not it. That’s the truth. The Empire does not legally recognize concubines or wives other than the Empress, so the child that Lady Titi will bear will inevitably be illegitimate.”
Even after explaining that the law was like that, Titi’s anger did not subside.
Demios did not say anything during her confrontation with the minister.
Titi clung to the Emperor and appealed her grievances.
“Your Majesty, please say something.”
My child is not illegitimate.
However, the words Titi wanted to say would not come out of the Emperor’s mouth.
“...For now, just announce that the grandson has been born. The announcement will be made after two weeks. I will take my leave now.”
“I will do so, Your Majesty.”
The ministers left the room of the gods.
The two were left alone in the inner chamber.
The Emperor’s shocking statement made Titi hold her breath.
“The grandson will be adopted by the Empress.”
The night Roxanne returned, Sepia arranged a meeting with Madame Remody.
The first to speak as they sat down was Sepia.
“How did you know that Young Lady Titi was pregnant?”
The government had not yet officially announced the pregnancy.
It was probably for the safety of the mother and child before determining whether he was the grandson or not.
It was something that had to be kept strictly secret in the current situation.
But how did Madame Remody know about this?
“...Actually, Madame Swany told me.”
“Madame Swany?”
“Yes. She called me in separately and told me. It seemed like she had planted a beast in Young Lady Titi’s palace.”
Swany was mentioned again.
It was more than surprising.
‘I thought that was enough revenge. Wasn’t it enough?’
It was hard to understand the actions of the lady who had chosen to remain in seclusion since the death of the Empress dowager.
And even deliberately calling Madame Remody to tell her the news from the Repetto Palace.
“...Is the child a deer or a divine beast?”
“They say he is the grandson of the Empress.”
Sepia tightly shut her eyes. She had vaguely imagined that something like this would happen someday. But it was too early in the future. To the point where she couldn’t think of a clear solution. Her eyes were dizzy as if the ground she was standing on would collapse at any moment.
That would lead to an unhappy future for everyone.
'The lady is telling me to take the child away now.'
If she were to adopt the child, she would have to raise him completely separately from Titi.
It was to protect the authority of the child who would grow up to be the Emperor from Titi.
If she separated the mother and child for political reasons and could not give them love, then how different would she be from the Empress of Huron?
Remody began to persuade Sepia as if she knew the reason for her silence.
"The grandson is His Majesty's only child anyway. Since the nature of the divine beast is to only take care of His Majesty, there would be no need to look for a mother, saying that the Empress is different from him. If you can't solve your problem, you should adopt the grandson for the sake of the future and solidify your position as the Empress."
Remody was the most loyal maid of all.
That's why she made such an earnest request.
"I didn't want to say such things to such a fair and just person. But don’t you know well that an Empress who doesn’t have a grandson is dangerous?”
There has never been an Empress who didn’t have a child.
The same goes for the Emperor who took a government.
Sepia smiled bitterly.
“...I wish the position of Empress wasn’t maintained by the Emperor.”
The reason she first sent a letter to Demios was simply to survive.
However, the new foreign country she had arrived in welcomed her.
Although it was not her own but a special fate, it was still good.
In this place that needed Sepia, she wanted to do her best.
Not as someone’s wife, but as a great mother who had the empire as her child.
“Empress...”
Remody’s eyes were wet as if she regretted the words she had let out.
The lady knew well how Sepia had contributed to the empire all this time.
And the fact that her advice was acting as a dagger to Sepia.
“I understand what you want to say, madam. I would like to be alone now.”
“...Excuse me.”
Madam Remody got up from her seat and bowed.
The place where the lady left.
Sepia paused for a long time, staring into space.
'What am I hoping for here?'
She was a flawed Empress.
And the people of the empire would want a more perfect Empress.
Madame Remody was right when she said that she had to solidify her position.
However, if and interpret her words correctly, it was closer to the meaning of 'How long can I exist as Empress?'
Just because she had the title of Empress, was she really an Empress?
No.
If she couldn't spread her sails in front of the fierce waves, she could become a paper doll at any time.
The position of Empress existed because of the Emperor.
But she couldn't put down her tiara.
She was not an Empress, so she was just a stranger in Huron and the Suin Empire.
The next evening.
The maids announced Demios' visit.
"His Majesty has come."
Sepia and Remody's eyes met for a moment at Betty's words.
Sepia nodded.
"Bring him over here."
"Yes."
Betty guided the Emperor to the reception room with a slightly nervous face.
This was the first time she had seen him since the establishment of the new business division.
Demios, who was sitting in his seat, had a hostile air.
He got to the point as if there was no need to exchange greetings.
“Titi has a grandson.”
Demios finished his curt remark and stared at her intently.
As if he expected some kind of reaction from her.
However, Sepia simply endured his gaze with a straight face.
“...You’re not surprised.”
“I’m quite surprised.”
Even though he knew this in advance, he was still confused.
He soon laughed, thinking that Sepia wasn’t shaken at all.
“Yes. You're not a cold-blooded Empress for nothing.”
It was a reaction that suggested that he had been foolish for expecting it.
He clasped his hands together and rested his chin on Sepia’s hand as he ordered her.
“Then you know what I’m going to say. As Empress, adopt Titi’s child.”
That was the real reason the Emperor had come to see Sepia.
She had expected this from talking to his husband. But.
'I really didn't think he would tell me to raise the government's child.'
And with such a confident face.
Demios’s appearance was as if it was natural for him to make such a proposal. Sepia brought out the answer she had prepared in advance.
“I will decline.”
“...How unexpected. I thought you would accept it. This is a golden opportunity for the Empress to carry out your duty that you always talked about without even touching it.”
He blatantly exploited Sepia’s weakness.
It was still a sore spot, but she pretended as if it was nothing.
“Even if I don’t feel for Your Majesty, it’s not like it’s not true.”
In an empire where the concubine system wasn’t even legally established, asking someone to adopt a child from the government was an insult.
It meant that it wasn’t something the Emperor should be making such a bold request for.
Demios’s attitude was extremely rude, leaving aside the unfortunate future that everyone would be in.
Looking at Titi, who was glaring as if she was going to run at him at any moment, he looked extremely flustered.
“T-that’s not it. That’s the truth. The Empire does not legally recognize concubines or wives other than the Empress, so the child that Lady Titi will bear will inevitably be illegitimate.”
Even after explaining that the law was like that, Titi’s anger did not subside.
Demios did not say anything during her confrontation with the minister.
Titi clung to the Emperor and appealed her grievances.
“Your Majesty, please say something.”
My child is not illegitimate.
However, the words Titi wanted to say would not come out of the Emperor’s mouth.
“...For now, just announce that the grandson has been born. The announcement will be made after two weeks. I will take my leave now.”
“I will do so, Your Majesty.”
The ministers left the room of the gods.
The two were left alone in the inner chamber.
The Emperor’s shocking statement made Titi hold her breath.
“The grandson will be adopted by the Empress.”
***
The night Roxanne returned, Sepia arranged a meeting with Madame Remody.
The first to speak as they sat down was Sepia.
“How did you know that Young Lady Titi was pregnant?”
The government had not yet officially announced the pregnancy.
It was probably for the safety of the mother and child before determining whether he was the grandson or not.
It was something that had to be kept strictly secret in the current situation.
But how did Madame Remody know about this?
“...Actually, Madame Swany told me.”
“Madame Swany?”
“Yes. She called me in separately and told me. It seemed like she had planted a beast in Young Lady Titi’s palace.”
Swany was mentioned again.
It was more than surprising.
‘I thought that was enough revenge. Wasn’t it enough?’
It was hard to understand the actions of the lady who had chosen to remain in seclusion since the death of the Empress dowager.
And even deliberately calling Madame Remody to tell her the news from the Repetto Palace.
“...Is the child a deer or a divine beast?”
“They say he is the grandson of the Empress.”
Sepia tightly shut her eyes. She had vaguely imagined that something like this would happen someday. But it was too early in the future. To the point where she couldn’t think of a clear solution. Her eyes were dizzy as if the ground she was standing on would collapse at any moment.
“Your Majesty, I beg you.”
Madame Remody suddenly got up from her seat and approached Sepia, kneeling. When Sepia, surprised, tried to step back, Madam Remody desperately grabbed her hand and locked eyes with her.
“Madam? Why are you suddenly doing this...”
“If the child to be born is the grandson of the Empress, you must make him your child.”
Sepia gaped at the emphatic words. Madame Remody was the only one besides the Emperor who knew about her condition, and she was the one who insisted that it had to be cured. Despite the devoted efforts of Madam Remody, Sepia’s condition was not completely cured. It was probably a mental problem.
Why do I recall what Remody once said?
“The child that Titi will bear will definitely be illegitimate. His Majesty will also propose to Your Majesty that you adopt the government’s child. Please accept His Majesty’s negotiation.”
There was no such thing as a concubine in the imperial family. The child that Titi, the first mistress of the Emperor, would bear would be illegitimate regardless of the species. If she wanted to be born as a descendant of the Emperor and have her child registered in the imperial family, the only way was for Empress Sepia to adopt the child. It wasn’t a plan she hadn’t thought of at all. Titi’s child would be illegitimate, and if Sepia accepted the child, there would be no problem with the succession. However.
“...The child will find its mother.”
Sepia doesn’t remember her childhood in the Duke’s house. The beginning of the past always began in front of the Empress of Huron. The heart of a child growing up in the arms of someone other than her parents, or even someone who hates her, becomes hell.
'Can I love that child?'
The answer is 'No.' Even if she died and came back to life, Sepia had no confidence in raising a child born from her husband's mistress with sincere love. Even if it's wrong now, it was someone she once truly loved.
That she should take care of a child born from another woman as if he were her own?
That she should take care of a child born from another woman as if he were her own?
That would lead to an unhappy future for everyone.
'The lady is telling me to take the child away now.'
If she were to adopt the child, she would have to raise him completely separately from Titi.
It was to protect the authority of the child who would grow up to be the Emperor from Titi.
If she separated the mother and child for political reasons and could not give them love, then how different would she be from the Empress of Huron?
Remody began to persuade Sepia as if she knew the reason for her silence.
"The grandson is His Majesty's only child anyway. Since the nature of the divine beast is to only take care of His Majesty, there would be no need to look for a mother, saying that the Empress is different from him. If you can't solve your problem, you should adopt the grandson for the sake of the future and solidify your position as the Empress."
Remody was the most loyal maid of all.
That's why she made such an earnest request.
"I didn't want to say such things to such a fair and just person. But don’t you know well that an Empress who doesn’t have a grandson is dangerous?”
There has never been an Empress who didn’t have a child.
The same goes for the Emperor who took a government.
Sepia smiled bitterly.
“...I wish the position of Empress wasn’t maintained by the Emperor.”
The reason she first sent a letter to Demios was simply to survive.
However, the new foreign country she had arrived in welcomed her.
Although it was not her own but a special fate, it was still good.
In this place that needed Sepia, she wanted to do her best.
Not as someone’s wife, but as a great mother who had the empire as her child.
“Empress...”
Remody’s eyes were wet as if she regretted the words she had let out.
The lady knew well how Sepia had contributed to the empire all this time.
And the fact that her advice was acting as a dagger to Sepia.
“I understand what you want to say, madam. I would like to be alone now.”
“...Excuse me.”
Madam Remody got up from her seat and bowed.
The place where the lady left.
Sepia paused for a long time, staring into space.
'What am I hoping for here?'
She was a flawed Empress.
And the people of the empire would want a more perfect Empress.
Madame Remody was right when she said that she had to solidify her position.
However, if and interpret her words correctly, it was closer to the meaning of 'How long can I exist as Empress?'
Just because she had the title of Empress, was she really an Empress?
No.
If she couldn't spread her sails in front of the fierce waves, she could become a paper doll at any time.
The position of Empress existed because of the Emperor.
But she couldn't put down her tiara.
She was not an Empress, so she was just a stranger in Huron and the Suin Empire.
***
The next evening.
The maids announced Demios' visit.
"His Majesty has come."
Sepia and Remody's eyes met for a moment at Betty's words.
Sepia nodded.
"Bring him over here."
"Yes."
Betty guided the Emperor to the reception room with a slightly nervous face.
This was the first time she had seen him since the establishment of the new business division.
Demios, who was sitting in his seat, had a hostile air.
He got to the point as if there was no need to exchange greetings.
“Titi has a grandson.”
Demios finished his curt remark and stared at her intently.
As if he expected some kind of reaction from her.
However, Sepia simply endured his gaze with a straight face.
“...You’re not surprised.”
“I’m quite surprised.”
Even though he knew this in advance, he was still confused.
He soon laughed, thinking that Sepia wasn’t shaken at all.
“Yes. You're not a cold-blooded Empress for nothing.”
It was a reaction that suggested that he had been foolish for expecting it.
He clasped his hands together and rested his chin on Sepia’s hand as he ordered her.
“Then you know what I’m going to say. As Empress, adopt Titi’s child.”
That was the real reason the Emperor had come to see Sepia.
She had expected this from talking to his husband. But.
'I really didn't think he would tell me to raise the government's child.'
And with such a confident face.
Demios’s appearance was as if it was natural for him to make such a proposal. Sepia brought out the answer she had prepared in advance.
“I will decline.”
“...How unexpected. I thought you would accept it. This is a golden opportunity for the Empress to carry out your duty that you always talked about without even touching it.”
He blatantly exploited Sepia’s weakness.
It was still a sore spot, but she pretended as if it was nothing.
“Even if I don’t feel for Your Majesty, it’s not like it’s not true.”
In an empire where the concubine system wasn’t even legally established, asking someone to adopt a child from the government was an insult.
It meant that it wasn’t something the Emperor should be making such a bold request for.
Demios’s attitude was extremely rude, leaving aside the unfortunate future that everyone would be in.
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