“You are such a lovely Princess.”
“Hello?”
Erhi smiled at her gaze.
The Duchess folded her fan and widened her eyes at that innocent reaction.
“Do you know who I am?”
“You are the Duchess of Huron!”
“Oh, you are so clever.”
It seemed that she had overheard the conversation between the Duchess and other nobles while wandering around.
The Duchess exchanged a few more words with Erhi and glanced at Sepia.
“I think you are talking to His Highness the Crown Prince. Is that right?”
Sepia fell silent at the sudden question.
Even though she seemed calm on the outside, her insides were not.
She wanted to separate her daughter and her mother right now.
To Sepia, her mother was the person who had carelessly pushed her into the pit of hell when she was young.
The mere presence of such a person near Erhi was enough to stimulate her anxiety.
And the source of the anxiety was Sepia's weakness, which she knew very well.
'What kind of image should I show my mother in front of the child?'
It was a problem she had pondered every day until just before the exchange ceremony.
Even though there had been a painful past, it seemed right to show a good relationship at least in front of the child.
However, when she saw her daughter and the Duchess together, it was hard to open her mouth.
"It doesn't seem like this is something the Duchess should be involved in."
“Hello?”
Erhi smiled at her gaze.
The Duchess folded her fan and widened her eyes at that innocent reaction.
“Do you know who I am?”
“You are the Duchess of Huron!”
“Oh, you are so clever.”
It seemed that she had overheard the conversation between the Duchess and other nobles while wandering around.
The Duchess exchanged a few more words with Erhi and glanced at Sepia.
“I think you are talking to His Highness the Crown Prince. Is that right?”
Sepia fell silent at the sudden question.
Even though she seemed calm on the outside, her insides were not.
She wanted to separate her daughter and her mother right now.
To Sepia, her mother was the person who had carelessly pushed her into the pit of hell when she was young.
The mere presence of such a person near Erhi was enough to stimulate her anxiety.
And the source of the anxiety was Sepia's weakness, which she knew very well.
'What kind of image should I show my mother in front of the child?'
It was a problem she had pondered every day until just before the exchange ceremony.
Even though there had been a painful past, it seemed right to show a good relationship at least in front of the child.
However, when she saw her daughter and the Duchess together, it was hard to open her mouth.
"It doesn't seem like this is something the Duchess should be involved in."
"Oh, it's disappointing that you seem to be married."
The Duchess's answer was enough to grab the attention of the nobles.
The news that the real mother of the Empress Beastkin would attend the banquet had been rumored even before it was held.
Most of the Huron Empire knew about the relationship between the mother and daughter, but most of the Beastkin people did not know the truth because of the Emperor's control.
Sepia muttered to herself as she watched the Duchess surrounded by the crowd.
'You haven't changed since the past, Mother.'
The Duchess, who had used her daughter as her shield, was still using the public's attention and Erhi to drive Sepia away.
It was when the nobles were cautiously looking at each other.
Erhi grabbed Sepia’s dress and said,
“Mom, my feet hurt.”
“My baby, are your shoes uncomfortable?”
Startled by the sudden whining, Sepia lowered her head and looked at the child’s feet.
The child’s small feet were wearing flats with red ribbon accents.
Madam Remody must have carefully selected comfortable shoes for her feet.
As Sepia was looking down at the red flats thoughtfully,
“My legs hurt, and I’m thirsty. Mom, let’s go and rest!”
“Erhi?”
Erhi suddenly grabbed Sepia’s hand and started running, dragging Sepia along.
She ran so well despite her sore feet.
Sepia was suddenly dragged by her daughter and had to walk briskly together.
“Erhi, where are you going?”
“We’re going to a place where Mom and I can rest!”
She didn’t know where she was going, but it seemed like she had decided on a destination.
The place the child took Sepia to was a lounge that only the royal family could enter.
“We’re here!”
The interior, with its large sofa and light food and drinks, was neat and smelled good.
Erhi, who seemed very happy to have arrived at her destination with Sepia, sat her down on the empty sofa.
Although she had been dragged here without knowing why, she felt strangely at ease because she could not see anyone else’s gaze.
Erhi, who had Sepia sitting on the sofa, hugged her knees and proudly shouted,
“I saved Mom!”
At that shout, the hand that was trying to pat the child’s head stopped in midair.
“...Did Mom look uncomfortable?”
“Um, is uncomfortable different from anxious?”
The daughter, who was still unfamiliar with the vocabulary, asked the meaning of the word.
Sepia moved her hand that had stopped in midair and caressed the child’s small back.
“They have similar meanings.”
“Then both. That’s why I wanted to save Mom. Because Mom might want to be alone sometimes.”
They say that a child’s senses are more sensitive than they appear.
Along with the feeling of being stabbed in the stomach, her daughter's love for her seemed to seep deep into her heart.
"Then it's true that my daughter saved me."
"Hehe. I did well, didn't I?"
Sepia lifted Erhi, who was leaning on her lap, and held her in her arms.
As she held the warm and soft young body tightly, her turbulent heart seemed to soften.
'My child.'
For this child, she would have walked into the flames.
She was such a lovely child.
That was why she could not understand her own mother even more.
When Sepia rested her forehead on her small shoulder, the child who had been quietly held in her arms turned around and met her eyes.
"I know. The Duchess is your mother."
Sepia had never told the child who her real mother was.
Even so, the fact that she knew meant that the little child was concerned about the rumors.
"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you in advance."
"Ugh, no. That's not it."
The child flinched as if she had something else to say.
And then she spoke.
With the same eyes as Sepia's companion.
"My mother's eyes looked painful as you looked at your mother. That's why I was sad."
Erhi opened her arms and hugged Sepia's head tightly.
As if she were hiding her in her small arms.
Sepia could not even close her eyes and felt the warmth of her young daughter.
“I am so happy to be your daughter. So I wish you were like that too.”
There was a mysterious power in her words, babbling like a lark.
Sepia was reminiscing about the past in those arms.
Even when she was abused by the Empress of Huron, she actually believed in her mother. Her foolish hope that her mother would one day take her out of this hell.
That belief was shattered when Sepia was eliminated as a candidate for the Crown Princess.
In the end, she was her mother’s shield and a tool to ward off evil.
Her mother became the Emperor’s concubine.
Her father, who pushed his young daughter into the palace, saying he would make her the next Empress. She could only realize the truth after she realized it.
That no one in her family truly loved her.
But look.
The daughter she gave birth to was growing up well and comforting her. She now had a family who gave to her and truly loved her.
The emotion she realized anew was so precious that it brought tears to her eyes.
“...I’m also happy that Erhi is my daughter.”
“I’m always on my mother’s side. I want my mother to always be happy.”
A hand like a maple leaf patted her back.
Just like Sepia had pretended not to notice her crying one day.
‘I never thought I’d be comforted by my daughter.’
The daughter she had thought of as just a child was more virtuous than an adult.
Maybe even more so than herself.
It felt like all her worries had flown away.
‘Yes. My family is here.’
This was the paradise Sepia and her companion had created.
Therefore, no one could destroy Sepia here.
“I am, too. I love you. My daughter.”
“I love you, too. Mom!”
Joy blossomed in her slightly stronger heart.
It was when Sepia repeatedly kissed her lovely daughter’s cheeks.
Her son’s voice was heard through the carefully opened door.
“Mother, Erhi.”
“Drohan!”
Surprised, Erhi hurriedly got up and spread his arms to block Drohan.
“You can’t come in here.”
“Why?”
While Drohan frowned, Erhi shouted out, absorbed in her thoughts.
“Why, why... Males are not allowed in here!”
“No one other than the royal family is allowed in.”
“...Hee-ing.”
She couldn’t defeat Drohan with words.
Sepia burst into laughter as she looked at her daughter, who had her shoulders slumped.
“Erhi, I’m fine.”
“Really?”
Even the sight of the child glaring suspiciously was cute, so Sepia hugged Erhi and Drohan tightly at the same time.
“I-I can’t breathe!”
Even when Erhi struggled, Drohan didn’t move as if he were frozen.
Sepia knew very well that he was doing that because he liked it so much.
Her shy son avoided her gaze and muttered,
“Daddy is worried.”
Her son, who had always called them “Mom” and “Dad” since he was five, would act like this when he was worried about Sepia.
He could have just sent a nanny or a maid, but he must have been worried about his mother and came all the way to the break room to look for her.
She unintentionally worried the children.
Sepia kissed her son and daughter on the cheek.
“Let’s go back together.”
With her left and right hands holding her daughter's and son’s hands, she felt as secure as a thousand troops.
When Sepia returned to the banquet hall with her children, Roxanne talked to the Crown Prince of Huron and the ministers in the center of the social gathering.
Even aside from her original purpose, diplomacy between the empires was important.
Since it was the first day of welcoming distinguished guests, neither the Emperor nor the Empress could leave their seats.
Roxanne remained alone at the banquet and took care of everything Sepia had to do as the Empress.
Soon, Roxanne found Sepia and found her and the children.
“Empress, are you here?”
“Dad!”
Erhi released Sepia’s hand and ran to the Emperor’s arms.
Roxanne held her daughter.
Even Drohan held her hand tightly.
‘Ah, I was already in heaven.’
The moment Sepia had been searching for for a long time was completed like a puzzle.
The Duchess's answer was enough to grab the attention of the nobles.
The news that the real mother of the Empress Beastkin would attend the banquet had been rumored even before it was held.
Most of the Huron Empire knew about the relationship between the mother and daughter, but most of the Beastkin people did not know the truth because of the Emperor's control.
Sepia muttered to herself as she watched the Duchess surrounded by the crowd.
'You haven't changed since the past, Mother.'
The Duchess, who had used her daughter as her shield, was still using the public's attention and Erhi to drive Sepia away.
It was when the nobles were cautiously looking at each other.
Erhi grabbed Sepia’s dress and said,
“Mom, my feet hurt.”
“My baby, are your shoes uncomfortable?”
Startled by the sudden whining, Sepia lowered her head and looked at the child’s feet.
The child’s small feet were wearing flats with red ribbon accents.
Madam Remody must have carefully selected comfortable shoes for her feet.
As Sepia was looking down at the red flats thoughtfully,
“My legs hurt, and I’m thirsty. Mom, let’s go and rest!”
“Erhi?”
Erhi suddenly grabbed Sepia’s hand and started running, dragging Sepia along.
She ran so well despite her sore feet.
Sepia was suddenly dragged by her daughter and had to walk briskly together.
“Erhi, where are you going?”
“We’re going to a place where Mom and I can rest!”
She didn’t know where she was going, but it seemed like she had decided on a destination.
The place the child took Sepia to was a lounge that only the royal family could enter.
“We’re here!”
The interior, with its large sofa and light food and drinks, was neat and smelled good.
Erhi, who seemed very happy to have arrived at her destination with Sepia, sat her down on the empty sofa.
Although she had been dragged here without knowing why, she felt strangely at ease because she could not see anyone else’s gaze.
Erhi, who had Sepia sitting on the sofa, hugged her knees and proudly shouted,
“I saved Mom!”
At that shout, the hand that was trying to pat the child’s head stopped in midair.
“...Did Mom look uncomfortable?”
“Um, is uncomfortable different from anxious?”
The daughter, who was still unfamiliar with the vocabulary, asked the meaning of the word.
Sepia moved her hand that had stopped in midair and caressed the child’s small back.
“They have similar meanings.”
“Then both. That’s why I wanted to save Mom. Because Mom might want to be alone sometimes.”
They say that a child’s senses are more sensitive than they appear.
Along with the feeling of being stabbed in the stomach, her daughter's love for her seemed to seep deep into her heart.
"Then it's true that my daughter saved me."
"Hehe. I did well, didn't I?"
Sepia lifted Erhi, who was leaning on her lap, and held her in her arms.
As she held the warm and soft young body tightly, her turbulent heart seemed to soften.
'My child.'
For this child, she would have walked into the flames.
She was such a lovely child.
That was why she could not understand her own mother even more.
When Sepia rested her forehead on her small shoulder, the child who had been quietly held in her arms turned around and met her eyes.
"I know. The Duchess is your mother."
Sepia had never told the child who her real mother was.
Even so, the fact that she knew meant that the little child was concerned about the rumors.
"I'm sorry I couldn't tell you in advance."
"Ugh, no. That's not it."
The child flinched as if she had something else to say.
And then she spoke.
With the same eyes as Sepia's companion.
"My mother's eyes looked painful as you looked at your mother. That's why I was sad."
Erhi opened her arms and hugged Sepia's head tightly.
As if she were hiding her in her small arms.
Sepia could not even close her eyes and felt the warmth of her young daughter.
“I am so happy to be your daughter. So I wish you were like that too.”
There was a mysterious power in her words, babbling like a lark.
Sepia was reminiscing about the past in those arms.
Even when she was abused by the Empress of Huron, she actually believed in her mother. Her foolish hope that her mother would one day take her out of this hell.
That belief was shattered when Sepia was eliminated as a candidate for the Crown Princess.
In the end, she was her mother’s shield and a tool to ward off evil.
Her mother became the Emperor’s concubine.
Her father, who pushed his young daughter into the palace, saying he would make her the next Empress. She could only realize the truth after she realized it.
That no one in her family truly loved her.
But look.
The daughter she gave birth to was growing up well and comforting her. She now had a family who gave to her and truly loved her.
The emotion she realized anew was so precious that it brought tears to her eyes.
“...I’m also happy that Erhi is my daughter.”
“I’m always on my mother’s side. I want my mother to always be happy.”
A hand like a maple leaf patted her back.
Just like Sepia had pretended not to notice her crying one day.
‘I never thought I’d be comforted by my daughter.’
The daughter she had thought of as just a child was more virtuous than an adult.
Maybe even more so than herself.
It felt like all her worries had flown away.
‘Yes. My family is here.’
This was the paradise Sepia and her companion had created.
Therefore, no one could destroy Sepia here.
“I am, too. I love you. My daughter.”
“I love you, too. Mom!”
Joy blossomed in her slightly stronger heart.
It was when Sepia repeatedly kissed her lovely daughter’s cheeks.
Her son’s voice was heard through the carefully opened door.
“Mother, Erhi.”
“Drohan!”
Surprised, Erhi hurriedly got up and spread his arms to block Drohan.
“You can’t come in here.”
“Why?”
While Drohan frowned, Erhi shouted out, absorbed in her thoughts.
“Why, why... Males are not allowed in here!”
“No one other than the royal family is allowed in.”
“...Hee-ing.”
She couldn’t defeat Drohan with words.
Sepia burst into laughter as she looked at her daughter, who had her shoulders slumped.
“Erhi, I’m fine.”
“Really?”
Even the sight of the child glaring suspiciously was cute, so Sepia hugged Erhi and Drohan tightly at the same time.
“I-I can’t breathe!”
Even when Erhi struggled, Drohan didn’t move as if he were frozen.
Sepia knew very well that he was doing that because he liked it so much.
Her shy son avoided her gaze and muttered,
“Daddy is worried.”
Her son, who had always called them “Mom” and “Dad” since he was five, would act like this when he was worried about Sepia.
He could have just sent a nanny or a maid, but he must have been worried about his mother and came all the way to the break room to look for her.
She unintentionally worried the children.
Sepia kissed her son and daughter on the cheek.
“Let’s go back together.”
With her left and right hands holding her daughter's and son’s hands, she felt as secure as a thousand troops.
When Sepia returned to the banquet hall with her children, Roxanne talked to the Crown Prince of Huron and the ministers in the center of the social gathering.
Even aside from her original purpose, diplomacy between the empires was important.
Since it was the first day of welcoming distinguished guests, neither the Emperor nor the Empress could leave their seats.
Roxanne remained alone at the banquet and took care of everything Sepia had to do as the Empress.
Soon, Roxanne found Sepia and found her and the children.
“Empress, are you here?”
“Dad!”
Erhi released Sepia’s hand and ran to the Emperor’s arms.
Roxanne held her daughter.
Even Drohan held her hand tightly.
‘Ah, I was already in heaven.’
The moment Sepia had been searching for for a long time was completed like a puzzle.
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