“...When you say medicine, do you mean the holy water of the underground temple?”
“You already knew. Did the Duchess tell you that?”
“No. That was my guess.”
The Crown Prince shook his head as if he knew that. The Duchess had hidden the name of Empress Dalian’s illness in order to prevent the Emperor, who was her subordinate, from harm.
Bringing up that incident was no different from revealing the Emperor’s own corruption.
The Crown Prince’s testimony was a great shock in many ways.
The fact that her mother wanted to eliminate Dalian and become the Empress.
The fact that she was still trying to conceive a grandchild even though she was close to her age, she couldn’t leave out anything.
‘She wasn’t driving out the Empress, but rather coveting the position.’
In Sepia’s view, the position of the Empress was to embrace the country and its people as the mother of the empire.
However, to others, it was nothing more than the foundation of power.
“I guess I need some time to think about it.”
“I am grateful that you did not reject me outright.”
The Crown Prince held back a sigh.
He was a living witness who had personally witnessed how much his mother had abused Sepia.
It would not have been strange at all for the Empress of the Beastkin Empire to have stormed out after seeing Ludkus and claiming that she had held an exchange ceremony with impure intentions.
However, Sepia maintained her composure.
Ludkus quietly gazed at the calm waters of the Ishtar Empress.
Sepia was a vast ocean that would not even cause a ripple or damage if a stone was thrown onto the surface.
In fact, Ludkus had been secretly hopeful that things would go smoothly.
There had been a time when Dalian had harassed her terribly, but even then, Sepia had silently endured the pain. Even after Sepia became Empress, there was no national retaliation.
Even though she had been deposed and succeeded in regaining the throne with the new Emperor, no one held Huron responsible for the influence.
That was what he had pinned his hopes on.
In the past, he knew Sepia’s patience and obedience.
However, when he met Sepia again after many years, she was not a young Princess of Huron, but a proper Empress who ruled over a huge empire.
He had no choice but to put aside the hope that had briefly crossed his mind, seeing her appearance completely different from the past when she had wavered here and there.
“I guess I should go back now. I shouldn’t leave the banquet empty for too long on the first day of the exchange. The same goes for the Crown Prince.”
“I’ll go back later.”
“Then I’ll get up first. The conversation was enjoyable.”
The Empress stood up and turned around gracefully.
Ludkus had to stay a little longer, as he might cause misunderstandings if he went back to the banquet hall with the Empress. Ludkus stayed in his seat and saw her off until the Empress left.
Before he could even sense the empty seat left alone, someone came inside.
It was the Crown Prince’s aide who had been waiting outside, waiting for the two to finish their conversation.
“Did you have a good conversation?”
“Well. I don’t know if it ended well, but I think this was probably the best.”
The aide, who saw the bitterness on the Crown Prince’s face, did not ask any further questions.
Ludkus was satisfied with the aide’s quick-witted attitude and looked at the door through which the Empress had left.
‘I envy the Beastkin Empire a little.’
The mother, who had been going crazy because of her husband’s love, eventually expressed her anger through violence.
To Dalian, the position of Empress was a means to suppress her husband’s infidelity and remain by his side.
It was funny. The irony was that Dalian wanted the position of the Emperor’s wife, and the Duchess wanted the position of the Empress, not the Emperor’s wife.
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes. The Crown Princess is waiting for you.”
The Crown Prince went out through the door that the aide opened for him.
As he walked down the hallway where only the court ladies moved quickly, the string music from the banquet hall beyond the wall gradually grew closer.
As he entered, he saw a blond hair fluttering nearby.
Lilian, who sensed his presence, turned around and smiled faintly in front of the Crown Prince.
“Are you here?”
“I made you wait too long.”
“No. I’m glad you came back safely.”
Lillian looked down quietly.
She was always sly and virtuous.
Seeing his wife, who was his mother’s style from head to toe, in front of him made him feel a little strange.
And then he saw someone else’s appearance overlapping with hers.
For example, the last woman he spoke to.
Lillian was a woman fit for a wife.
It didn't mean that being obedient and devoted to her husband was bad.
But that was all. She was not a woman who would become an Empress.
She was a wife chosen by her mother, and at the time, he thought that Lillian was not bad.
However, as he grew older, he realized that his judgment was wrong.
'I should have taken someone who would become an Empress, not a wife.'
But Lillian was not wrong.
He was just young in the past.
'No. What I envied was not the empire, but the Empress of the beasts.'
The one who would become an Emperor needed someone to stand shoulder to shoulder with.
A life partner who would share views and move the people while looking at the vast empire together.
His mother, even though she was sick and worn out, was anxious not to share even a single ounce of her power with the Crown Prince.
Despite all that, his mother had to live.
In fact, in front of his mother, he was an infinitely obedient son, no different from Lillian.
The Duchess had already arranged for someone to be Crown Prince when she became Empress.
If her mother passed away, the power would be scattered here and there, providing a bigger foundation for the imperial faction.
Although he was frustrated with not being able to seize power alone, he also felt sorry for the Crown Princess who didn’t say anything as if she was okay with a husband like this.
If he had defeated her mother and made Sepia the Crown Princess at that time, would things have been different now?
Ludkus looked up at the platform at the back of the floor.
There, the Emperor and Empress of the Beastkin Empire were talking.
Their faces looked quite serious as they talked.
What kind of business were they talking about?
It was impossible to hear from here. However, he was able to realize one more thing.
‘The object of my envy was not just one person.’
An Empress who could embrace an empire and an Emperor who had such a woman as his companion were enough to arouse his envy.
Dizzying thoughts clouded his mind.
Ludkus extended his arm to Lilian to sort out those inappropriate hopes.
“Would you like to dance a song?”
“Of course.”
A small, slender hand was placed on his arm as if it had been waiting.
The Crown Prince headed to the dance floor with his wife.
He could finally take his eyes off the stage, but he still couldn’t figure out how to keep looking back.
It was a strange, foolish desire.
Meanwhile, Sepia, who had been chatting with the Emperor, got up from her seat.
The Empress had seen Erhi wandering around the banquet hall alone without a nanny.
‘How did you leave her alone again?’
Madame Remody could be seen beyond the dancing crowd.
She was looking for Erhi, clutching her forehead.
‘I wonder if I made your last years difficult for nothing.’
When she had asked Remody to be the grandson’s nanny, she had accepted Sepia’s order with a look of great embarrassment.
But as she watched her daughter who was acting wild, she felt belatedly sorry for Madame Remody.
“I’ll be back.”
“Come with me.”
“No. The Emperor must keep his dignity. Otherwise, the Huron Empire will look at the Emperor of the Beastkin Empire and point fingers at you, calling you a fool for your daughter.”
“Please tell him that I appreciate the compliment.”
Sepia laughed at the joke that she casually accepted.
“Anyway, I’ll be back soon.”
She couldn’t find Erhi where Madame Remody was standing.
“Don’t turn your husband into a statue, and come back quickly.”
Unable to bear it, she gave a warm kiss to the Emperor’s cheek, who kept joking until the end.
“I’ll be back.”
“I’m looking forward to the night.”
He looked mischievous as he extended that shy greeting.
Sepia turned her back on the Emperor and headed toward the child.
“Erhi?”
When she approached, Erhi was already surrounded by a large crowd.
“Oh my, you’re such a cute Princess.”
“Look at those cute little hands and feet.”
“And what about that dense face!”
Mostly Hurons, they looked at the young Princess of the Beastkin empire with great love and affection.
The Beastkin nobles around them were the same.
The Beastmen shrugged their shoulders, taking the praise surrounding the Princess for granted.
It felt a little strange to look at a daughter who was loved even by the Hurons.
Erhi, who was the first to spot Sepia, pushed through the crowd and hugged her.
“Mom!”
“Erhi.”
“You already knew. Did the Duchess tell you that?”
“No. That was my guess.”
The Crown Prince shook his head as if he knew that. The Duchess had hidden the name of Empress Dalian’s illness in order to prevent the Emperor, who was her subordinate, from harm.
Bringing up that incident was no different from revealing the Emperor’s own corruption.
The Crown Prince’s testimony was a great shock in many ways.
The fact that her mother wanted to eliminate Dalian and become the Empress.
The fact that she was still trying to conceive a grandchild even though she was close to her age, she couldn’t leave out anything.
‘She wasn’t driving out the Empress, but rather coveting the position.’
In Sepia’s view, the position of the Empress was to embrace the country and its people as the mother of the empire.
However, to others, it was nothing more than the foundation of power.
“I guess I need some time to think about it.”
“I am grateful that you did not reject me outright.”
The Crown Prince held back a sigh.
He was a living witness who had personally witnessed how much his mother had abused Sepia.
It would not have been strange at all for the Empress of the Beastkin Empire to have stormed out after seeing Ludkus and claiming that she had held an exchange ceremony with impure intentions.
However, Sepia maintained her composure.
Ludkus quietly gazed at the calm waters of the Ishtar Empress.
Sepia was a vast ocean that would not even cause a ripple or damage if a stone was thrown onto the surface.
In fact, Ludkus had been secretly hopeful that things would go smoothly.
There had been a time when Dalian had harassed her terribly, but even then, Sepia had silently endured the pain. Even after Sepia became Empress, there was no national retaliation.
Even though she had been deposed and succeeded in regaining the throne with the new Emperor, no one held Huron responsible for the influence.
That was what he had pinned his hopes on.
In the past, he knew Sepia’s patience and obedience.
However, when he met Sepia again after many years, she was not a young Princess of Huron, but a proper Empress who ruled over a huge empire.
He had no choice but to put aside the hope that had briefly crossed his mind, seeing her appearance completely different from the past when she had wavered here and there.
“I guess I should go back now. I shouldn’t leave the banquet empty for too long on the first day of the exchange. The same goes for the Crown Prince.”
“I’ll go back later.”
“Then I’ll get up first. The conversation was enjoyable.”
The Empress stood up and turned around gracefully.
Ludkus had to stay a little longer, as he might cause misunderstandings if he went back to the banquet hall with the Empress. Ludkus stayed in his seat and saw her off until the Empress left.
Before he could even sense the empty seat left alone, someone came inside.
It was the Crown Prince’s aide who had been waiting outside, waiting for the two to finish their conversation.
“Did you have a good conversation?”
“Well. I don’t know if it ended well, but I think this was probably the best.”
The aide, who saw the bitterness on the Crown Prince’s face, did not ask any further questions.
Ludkus was satisfied with the aide’s quick-witted attitude and looked at the door through which the Empress had left.
‘I envy the Beastkin Empire a little.’
The mother, who had been going crazy because of her husband’s love, eventually expressed her anger through violence.
To Dalian, the position of Empress was a means to suppress her husband’s infidelity and remain by his side.
It was funny. The irony was that Dalian wanted the position of the Emperor’s wife, and the Duchess wanted the position of the Empress, not the Emperor’s wife.
“Let’s go now.”
“Yes. The Crown Princess is waiting for you.”
The Crown Prince went out through the door that the aide opened for him.
As he walked down the hallway where only the court ladies moved quickly, the string music from the banquet hall beyond the wall gradually grew closer.
As he entered, he saw a blond hair fluttering nearby.
Lilian, who sensed his presence, turned around and smiled faintly in front of the Crown Prince.
“Are you here?”
“I made you wait too long.”
“No. I’m glad you came back safely.”
Lillian looked down quietly.
She was always sly and virtuous.
Seeing his wife, who was his mother’s style from head to toe, in front of him made him feel a little strange.
And then he saw someone else’s appearance overlapping with hers.
For example, the last woman he spoke to.
Lillian was a woman fit for a wife.
It didn't mean that being obedient and devoted to her husband was bad.
But that was all. She was not a woman who would become an Empress.
She was a wife chosen by her mother, and at the time, he thought that Lillian was not bad.
However, as he grew older, he realized that his judgment was wrong.
'I should have taken someone who would become an Empress, not a wife.'
But Lillian was not wrong.
He was just young in the past.
'No. What I envied was not the empire, but the Empress of the beasts.'
The one who would become an Emperor needed someone to stand shoulder to shoulder with.
A life partner who would share views and move the people while looking at the vast empire together.
His mother, even though she was sick and worn out, was anxious not to share even a single ounce of her power with the Crown Prince.
Despite all that, his mother had to live.
In fact, in front of his mother, he was an infinitely obedient son, no different from Lillian.
The Duchess had already arranged for someone to be Crown Prince when she became Empress.
If her mother passed away, the power would be scattered here and there, providing a bigger foundation for the imperial faction.
Although he was frustrated with not being able to seize power alone, he also felt sorry for the Crown Princess who didn’t say anything as if she was okay with a husband like this.
If he had defeated her mother and made Sepia the Crown Princess at that time, would things have been different now?
Ludkus looked up at the platform at the back of the floor.
There, the Emperor and Empress of the Beastkin Empire were talking.
Their faces looked quite serious as they talked.
What kind of business were they talking about?
It was impossible to hear from here. However, he was able to realize one more thing.
‘The object of my envy was not just one person.’
An Empress who could embrace an empire and an Emperor who had such a woman as his companion were enough to arouse his envy.
Dizzying thoughts clouded his mind.
Ludkus extended his arm to Lilian to sort out those inappropriate hopes.
“Would you like to dance a song?”
“Of course.”
A small, slender hand was placed on his arm as if it had been waiting.
The Crown Prince headed to the dance floor with his wife.
He could finally take his eyes off the stage, but he still couldn’t figure out how to keep looking back.
It was a strange, foolish desire.
Meanwhile, Sepia, who had been chatting with the Emperor, got up from her seat.
The Empress had seen Erhi wandering around the banquet hall alone without a nanny.
‘How did you leave her alone again?’
Madame Remody could be seen beyond the dancing crowd.
She was looking for Erhi, clutching her forehead.
‘I wonder if I made your last years difficult for nothing.’
When she had asked Remody to be the grandson’s nanny, she had accepted Sepia’s order with a look of great embarrassment.
But as she watched her daughter who was acting wild, she felt belatedly sorry for Madame Remody.
“I’ll be back.”
“Come with me.”
“No. The Emperor must keep his dignity. Otherwise, the Huron Empire will look at the Emperor of the Beastkin Empire and point fingers at you, calling you a fool for your daughter.”
“Please tell him that I appreciate the compliment.”
Sepia laughed at the joke that she casually accepted.
“Anyway, I’ll be back soon.”
She couldn’t find Erhi where Madame Remody was standing.
“Don’t turn your husband into a statue, and come back quickly.”
Unable to bear it, she gave a warm kiss to the Emperor’s cheek, who kept joking until the end.
“I’ll be back.”
“I’m looking forward to the night.”
He looked mischievous as he extended that shy greeting.
Sepia turned her back on the Emperor and headed toward the child.
“Erhi?”
When she approached, Erhi was already surrounded by a large crowd.
“Oh my, you’re such a cute Princess.”
“Look at those cute little hands and feet.”
“And what about that dense face!”
Mostly Hurons, they looked at the young Princess of the Beastkin empire with great love and affection.
The Beastkin nobles around them were the same.
The Beastmen shrugged their shoulders, taking the praise surrounding the Princess for granted.
It felt a little strange to look at a daughter who was loved even by the Hurons.
Erhi, who was the first to spot Sepia, pushed through the crowd and hugged her.
“Mom!”
“Erhi.”
Sepia should have asked if she had left the nanny behind again, but she didn’t want to scold her child in front of so many people.
Instead of scolding her, Sepia hugged Erhi and patted her young daughter’s head.
“Are you enjoying the banquet?”
“Yes! All the guests of the Huron Empire are nice people!”
“Is that so? Since Erhi is nice, they're also nice.”
Sepia, who was at eye level with the child, kissed her convex forehead.
The nobles were glaring at the lovely mother and daughter with envious glances.
“Meet the Empress of the Beastkin Empire.”
Sepia raised her head at the greeting that followed along with the fluttering fan.
Duchess of Arte. Her gaze was focused on the Princess along with the Empress.
Instead of scolding her, Sepia hugged Erhi and patted her young daughter’s head.
“Are you enjoying the banquet?”
“Yes! All the guests of the Huron Empire are nice people!”
“Is that so? Since Erhi is nice, they're also nice.”
Sepia, who was at eye level with the child, kissed her convex forehead.
The nobles were glaring at the lovely mother and daughter with envious glances.
“Meet the Empress of the Beastkin Empire.”
Sepia raised her head at the greeting that followed along with the fluttering fan.
Duchess of Arte. Her gaze was focused on the Princess along with the Empress.
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