“What did you mean when you said nothing has changed, only the location?”
I asked again.
“You came here at this hour to ask that?”
“Yes. You said to come if I had any questions. Anytime.”
I asked again.
“You came here at this hour to ask that?”
“Yes. You said to come if I had any questions. Anytime.”
Although I didn’t know that day would be the first night of your remarriage.
“You came all the way here just because you were curious? Is that really the only reason?”
“You came all the way here just because you were curious? Is that really the only reason?”
“Are you curious?”
“Yes.”
“Tell me first and I’ll tell you back.”
He gave me a belittling look at my clumsy push-pull, then began to say, “Of course.”
“Even though you’ve gone from Empress to concubine, I’m still the same as a few days ago...”
Knock knock.
Linel approached me and lowered my head, and someone knocked on the bathroom door.
Who could it be?
Haa, who could it be? It had to be Roxana!
The sudden knock sent us both into a panic, shifting our bodies in and out of sync. Then he opened the terrace door.
“This won’t do.”
Below the building, five guards patrolled, but they had taken up residence behind the Empress's Palace building, chatting away.
Linel closed the terrace door again and led me inside.
"What should I do now?"
I mouthed, and he suddenly sat down in the bathtub.
Why was he acting like that?
I blinked, looking down at him, and he grabbed my arm.
"Go in."
"...Where?"
I looked around the bathroom.
I couldn't find a place to hide.
"Here."
He grabbed my waist with both hands and sank me into the bathtub.
"W-what are you doing?!"
I turned to the bathroom door and demanded in a hoarse voice,
"No matter how much I think about it, there's no other way. Hold your breath for a moment."
"I can't. I can't!"
"It's better to hold your breath for two minutes than to lose your breath entirely, right?"
“Yes.”
“Tell me first and I’ll tell you back.”
He gave me a belittling look at my clumsy push-pull, then began to say, “Of course.”
“Even though you’ve gone from Empress to concubine, I’m still the same as a few days ago...”
Knock knock.
Linel approached me and lowered my head, and someone knocked on the bathroom door.
Who could it be?
Haa, who could it be? It had to be Roxana!
The sudden knock sent us both into a panic, shifting our bodies in and out of sync. Then he opened the terrace door.
“This won’t do.”
Below the building, five guards patrolled, but they had taken up residence behind the Empress's Palace building, chatting away.
Linel closed the terrace door again and led me inside.
"What should I do now?"
I mouthed, and he suddenly sat down in the bathtub.
Why was he acting like that?
I blinked, looking down at him, and he grabbed my arm.
"Go in."
"...Where?"
I looked around the bathroom.
I couldn't find a place to hide.
"Here."
He grabbed my waist with both hands and sank me into the bathtub.
"W-what are you doing?!"
I turned to the bathroom door and demanded in a hoarse voice,
"No matter how much I think about it, there's no other way. Hold your breath for a moment."
"I can't. I can't!"
"It's better to hold your breath for two minutes than to lose your breath entirely, right?"
I had no choice.
"Your Majesty...?"
The bathroom door swung open, and I heard Roxana's voice.
I quickly took a deep breath and hid myself in the bathtub.
“Ah, I should have dove towards his feet...”
I chose the wrong direction.
The bathtub was so full of bubbles that I thought I wouldn’t be able to see anything, but the bottom of the bathtub was so clean.
I’d rather close my eyes.
It’s more comfortable to see nothing.
“What kind of rudeness is this?”
Linel said to Roxana in a displeased voice.
He gently placed his hand on the back of my head to keep me from jumping up.
“I’m, I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I knocked, but there was no answer, so I was worried...”
I could tell how embarrassed Roxana was just by hearing her voice.
“Of course I was bathing, why are you worried? Haha, are you worried that I might have passed out in the bathtub?”
He asked Roxana with a chuckle that seemed absurd.
“I was careless. Please forgive me.”
Roxana apologized to him again.
Please get out quickly...
It was becoming increasingly difficult to hold her breath.
“I wish you would just leave now.”
“Yes, just a moment... just a moment, Your Majesty.”
I heard Roxana walking towards me.
Why was she coming? Could it be that she had noticed me hiding in the bathtub?
What if I got caught sneaking into the royal couple’s wedding night?
Without a second thought, this was a guillotine.
Roxana’s footsteps drew closer and seemed to stop before the bathtub.
The water lapped on the surface.
I opened my eyes and turned my head to the side, seeing Roxana’s fingertips in the water.
“The water is too cold, Your Majesty.”
Roxana’s voice worried him, and her hand dipped deeper into the bathtub.
What? Why did she keep putting her hand in?
I opened my eyes wide and stared at Roxana’s slender fingers moving leisurely in the water.
...Huh?
Roxana’s hand was slowly descending towards my head.
What if she wasn’t reaching for my hair?
She was after something, but could it be his...?
My gaze glanced down and then back up at Roxana's hand.
Oh, my God!
Just before Roxana's fingertips precariously touched my hair,
"That's unpleasant."
His hand reached into the tub and pulled Roxana's hand out.
Phew...
"Where are you putting your hand?"
When he looked serious, Roxana let out a coquettish laugh.
"Hohoho, I'm sorry. The water was so cold that I didn't realize it..."
"Does the water get hot when you put your hand in?"
"Perhaps."
What a cheeky bitch.
I snorted and then swallowed the water through my nose.
Ugh! My head started to hurt.
"That's not something I can expect in bed. So, I'd like you to get out of here."
He said to Roxana in a hushed voice.
I knew he was just saying that to get her out of here quickly, but I couldn't help but feel my stomach turn at those words.
"Then... I'll wait in the bedroom, Your Majesty."
Roxana's expectant, demure voice grew quiet, along with the sound of her footsteps fading away.
The bathroom door slammed shut, sending me carelessly back to the surface like a spring.
"Huh, huh, huh...!"
I covered my mouth with both hands, trying to catch my breath, afraid my breath might escape.
Linel, fixing my messy hair, asked with a pitiful look,
"Breathe slowly, breathe slowly."
I watched his calming up-and-down movements, regulating my breathing, and then gradually regained my composure, asking,
"Huh... But the bathtub water is too cold. Aren't you cold?"
Because of my body heat, I should have started with cold water from the beginning to prevent my skin from turning red later, but why was he bathing in cold water?
It wasn't even summer, it was already quite chilly autumn.
"Because today is a special day."
"Huh?"
"But the water seems lukewarm, unlike before?"
He stirred the bathtub water with his hand, a puzzled expression on his face.
I sat up, smirking, and sat across from him.
“I’m such a hot woman, that’s why.”
He laughed.
“Why don’t you tell me you’re expecting something?”
“Did you care about what time said to Roxana earlier?”
Linel asked, pushing back his wet hair.
His fresh appearance made me salivate.
“I hope the new Empress doesn’t know.”
“?”
“How... good... You are.”
“...What?”
“Anything.”
“!”
“Actually, that’s what I wanted to tell you.”
“Don’t worry, go back.”
He said with a smile. I rose from the bathtub and squeezed the water out of my clothes.
He rose in response, grabbed a long towel, and pressed the ends of my wet hair, adding,
“What you’re worried about won’t happen.”
“How can you be sure? They say a man’s body responds to a woman’s determined advances, even if his heart isn’t there.”
Linel whispered in my ear, one corner of his mouth raised bitterly.
“I... only react to you.”
“What is that...”
Was that beautiful nonsense?
Thinking he was joking, I pouted and rolled my eyes.
But Linel’s expression was unusual.
My gaze slightly lowered at his serious gaze.
Just like before, the towel around his waist felt precarious.
“I’d like to confirm it right away, but, as you know, it’s a bit difficult here right now.”
He took my hand and led me to the terrace door, looking down at the building.
“I think you can go down now.”
He untied the towel around his waist and brushed his hair again.
“Don’t catch a cold. It’s the Emperor’s orders.”
“I haven’t had a cold since I was seven.”
Since the red reagent dripped onto the right side of my face and burned it, I hadn’t shivered from the cold, let alone caught a cold.
“Thank goodness. Be careful.”
“What I’m worried about won’t happen, right?”
I finally made a final statement.
Then, his mouth moved, his expression hesitant, and then he spoke quietly in a weak voice.
“It’s broken.”
“...What? Where are you going?”
“The place you’re worried about.”
“No way! You can’t lie when someone who witnessed and experienced it is right in front of you!”
What kind of blatant lie could you possibly tell?
“I only react to you. I don’t know if you’ll believe me.”
It was something I wanted to believe.
“Then before I met you, you weren’t able to function at all...”
“Useless.”
“Then, before that, our married life...”
“Since neither of us remembers, how can you know what it was like?”
Oh, right. That’s right.
“I didn’t know you had the power to breathe such life into me!”
I grabbed his hand, moved.
“...”
“I want to perform another miracle.”
“...Go quickly.”
Linel cleared his throat and pushed me on the back.
“If we get caught here before I perform a miracle, it’s over.”
“Your Majesty. I, I’m sorry, but I... didn’t understand what you were saying.”
Roxana stuttered, shocked by what the Emperor had just said.
“I said I was receiving treatment because my function was impaired.”
“So what you’re saying is...”
“It means that even if the Empress tries, it’s useless.”
Linel looked up at Roxana, who was leaning toward him, and grabbed both of her wrists.
He sighed and sat up, and Roxana sat up straight, looking at him with surprised eyes. She looked here and there, and no matter how much she looked, his body should be fine...
What? It’s not working?
Roxana, faced with an unimaginable predicament, asked him with trembling lips,
“Did I make some... mistake...?”
“No, it’s my body that makes mistakes.”
“Are you saying that on purpose to avoid me?”
“If you don’t believe me, ask the palace doctor.”
Linel shook his head, maintaining a serious tone.
“If you still don’t believe me, I’m willing to have the palace doctor examine me again in front of the Empress.”
Roxana stared at him with her mouth wide open, barely able to keep her gaze from drifting downward.
He didn't seem like the kind of person who would lie about something that involved a man's pride.
Roxana was utterly bewildered by the Emperor’s unexpected and horrifying confession.
She wanted to ask him how he'd been handling his body to end up like that.
"When did you start having these symptoms?"
"Well, about a month ago... I think it started after some stress."
"You didn't eat anything wrong, did you?"
"I've been eating the same food as usual. I don't remember anything unusual."
Roxana's words stung.
Linel wouldn't remember, but he had drunk the magic potion she'd given him.
She suspected the potion had caused him some kind of side effect. Should she go find the magic tower master attached to Zelda and ask him?
Or maybe Logan had tampered with the magic potion he'd given her? Roxana sighed, feeling frustrated.
"It's late, so let's go to sleep for now."
Linel lay back down on the bed.
The two of them slept far apart.
Oddly, Roxana felt a chill run through her whenever she tried to get close to him.
Thinking it might be the positioning, she moved a little further away from him, and the cold was much less severe.
It was a colder, cooler bed than usual.
Even though she was covered with a blanket, her whole body felt chilly, like standing outside in a robe in the middle of winter.
It seemed to be the effects of Linel's hypothermia.
After enduring the red potion, her body temperature had risen, so she hadn't felt the cold...
'Was this just a temporary phenomenon?'
Roxana suddenly felt uneasy.
Disturbed by various factors, she had trouble falling asleep.
He, too, seemed to be having trouble sleeping, tossing and turning.
Then, around 5 a.m., he woke up.
Roxana watched him, half-asleep, as he rose from bed.
Linel quietly dressed and left the bedroom.
Roxana didn't stop him. As soon as he left, the bedroom quickly warmed up.
Only then did Roxana's body warm itself again, and she drifted off to sleep.
Before the sun rose, Linel left the Empress's Palace and headed to the main palace.
He needed to drink a potion to raise his body temperature immediately.
He deliberately did not take any potions to raise his body temperature before his second wedding.
And today, enduring the bone-chilling pain, he immersed himself in cold water.
His intention was to lower his hypothermic body temperature even further, keeping Roxana away.
He wanted to distance himself from her, even if it meant he wasn't hypothermic.
Even without hypothermia, he couldn't spend his first night with Roxana.
It was physically impossible, let alone emotionally.
Linel knew he had a real problem before meeting Zelda at the tavern.
He consulted with the palace doctor and even underwent a thorough examination at Wizard Big's clinic, but the cause remained unknown.
Zelda had lost her own memories, so she couldn't tell him what he had been like in the past.
Linel returned to the main palace bedroom and opened the nightstand drawer next to the bed.
His hands trembled slightly from the cold.
He drank a potion to raise his body temperature and lay down on the bed, pulling the blanket up to his nose.
Because he hadn't taken the potion on time, the effect was slow to take effect.
"This won't work."
Linel sat up again.
Instinctively, his body left the bedroom and headed somewhere.
It was the room where Zelda was temporarily staying.
He carefully opened the door and went inside.
'Only react to you.'
Ever since returning from the Empress's Palace, I had been mulling over Linel's words until I fell asleep.
Perhaps because of those words, the anxiety that he might spend his first night with Roxana had vanished.
A cool breeze blew from somewhere.
It seemed to cool my body, which had been heated up before I fell asleep.
I woke up feeling refreshed.
I rolled over to my side, stretched, and slowly opened my eyes.
"Nelly... no, Linel...?!"
He was in my bed, right in front of me.
He was curled up, shivering, the blanket pulled up to his neck.
"Is this a dream?"
I rubbed my eyes and reached out to touch his face.
At that moment, Linel snuggled into my arms like a child.
"Please... hold me..."
His body was as cold as a giant block of ice.
"Your Majesty...?"
The bathroom door swung open, and I heard Roxana's voice.
I quickly took a deep breath and hid myself in the bathtub.
“Ah, I should have dove towards his feet...”
I chose the wrong direction.
The bathtub was so full of bubbles that I thought I wouldn’t be able to see anything, but the bottom of the bathtub was so clean.
I’d rather close my eyes.
It’s more comfortable to see nothing.
“What kind of rudeness is this?”
Linel said to Roxana in a displeased voice.
He gently placed his hand on the back of my head to keep me from jumping up.
“I’m, I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I knocked, but there was no answer, so I was worried...”
I could tell how embarrassed Roxana was just by hearing her voice.
“Of course I was bathing, why are you worried? Haha, are you worried that I might have passed out in the bathtub?”
He asked Roxana with a chuckle that seemed absurd.
“I was careless. Please forgive me.”
Roxana apologized to him again.
Please get out quickly...
It was becoming increasingly difficult to hold her breath.
“I wish you would just leave now.”
“Yes, just a moment... just a moment, Your Majesty.”
I heard Roxana walking towards me.
Why was she coming? Could it be that she had noticed me hiding in the bathtub?
What if I got caught sneaking into the royal couple’s wedding night?
Without a second thought, this was a guillotine.
Roxana’s footsteps drew closer and seemed to stop before the bathtub.
The water lapped on the surface.
I opened my eyes and turned my head to the side, seeing Roxana’s fingertips in the water.
“The water is too cold, Your Majesty.”
Roxana’s voice worried him, and her hand dipped deeper into the bathtub.
What? Why did she keep putting her hand in?
I opened my eyes wide and stared at Roxana’s slender fingers moving leisurely in the water.
...Huh?
Roxana’s hand was slowly descending towards my head.
What if she wasn’t reaching for my hair?
She was after something, but could it be his...?
My gaze glanced down and then back up at Roxana's hand.
Oh, my God!
Just before Roxana's fingertips precariously touched my hair,
"That's unpleasant."
His hand reached into the tub and pulled Roxana's hand out.
Phew...
"Where are you putting your hand?"
When he looked serious, Roxana let out a coquettish laugh.
"Hohoho, I'm sorry. The water was so cold that I didn't realize it..."
"Does the water get hot when you put your hand in?"
"Perhaps."
What a cheeky bitch.
I snorted and then swallowed the water through my nose.
Ugh! My head started to hurt.
"That's not something I can expect in bed. So, I'd like you to get out of here."
He said to Roxana in a hushed voice.
I knew he was just saying that to get her out of here quickly, but I couldn't help but feel my stomach turn at those words.
"Then... I'll wait in the bedroom, Your Majesty."
Roxana's expectant, demure voice grew quiet, along with the sound of her footsteps fading away.
The bathroom door slammed shut, sending me carelessly back to the surface like a spring.
"Huh, huh, huh...!"
I covered my mouth with both hands, trying to catch my breath, afraid my breath might escape.
Linel, fixing my messy hair, asked with a pitiful look,
"Breathe slowly, breathe slowly."
I watched his calming up-and-down movements, regulating my breathing, and then gradually regained my composure, asking,
"Huh... But the bathtub water is too cold. Aren't you cold?"
Because of my body heat, I should have started with cold water from the beginning to prevent my skin from turning red later, but why was he bathing in cold water?
It wasn't even summer, it was already quite chilly autumn.
"Because today is a special day."
"Huh?"
"But the water seems lukewarm, unlike before?"
He stirred the bathtub water with his hand, a puzzled expression on his face.
I sat up, smirking, and sat across from him.
“I’m such a hot woman, that’s why.”
He laughed.
“Why don’t you tell me you’re expecting something?”
“Did you care about what time said to Roxana earlier?”
Linel asked, pushing back his wet hair.
His fresh appearance made me salivate.
“I hope the new Empress doesn’t know.”
“?”
“How... good... You are.”
“...What?”
“Anything.”
“!”
“Actually, that’s what I wanted to tell you.”
“Don’t worry, go back.”
He said with a smile. I rose from the bathtub and squeezed the water out of my clothes.
He rose in response, grabbed a long towel, and pressed the ends of my wet hair, adding,
“What you’re worried about won’t happen.”
“How can you be sure? They say a man’s body responds to a woman’s determined advances, even if his heart isn’t there.”
Linel whispered in my ear, one corner of his mouth raised bitterly.
“I... only react to you.”
“What is that...”
Was that beautiful nonsense?
Thinking he was joking, I pouted and rolled my eyes.
But Linel’s expression was unusual.
My gaze slightly lowered at his serious gaze.
Just like before, the towel around his waist felt precarious.
“I’d like to confirm it right away, but, as you know, it’s a bit difficult here right now.”
He took my hand and led me to the terrace door, looking down at the building.
“I think you can go down now.”
He untied the towel around his waist and brushed his hair again.
“Don’t catch a cold. It’s the Emperor’s orders.”
“I haven’t had a cold since I was seven.”
Since the red reagent dripped onto the right side of my face and burned it, I hadn’t shivered from the cold, let alone caught a cold.
“Thank goodness. Be careful.”
“What I’m worried about won’t happen, right?”
I finally made a final statement.
Then, his mouth moved, his expression hesitant, and then he spoke quietly in a weak voice.
“It’s broken.”
“...What? Where are you going?”
“The place you’re worried about.”
“No way! You can’t lie when someone who witnessed and experienced it is right in front of you!”
What kind of blatant lie could you possibly tell?
“I only react to you. I don’t know if you’ll believe me.”
It was something I wanted to believe.
“Then before I met you, you weren’t able to function at all...”
“Useless.”
“Then, before that, our married life...”
“Since neither of us remembers, how can you know what it was like?”
Oh, right. That’s right.
“I didn’t know you had the power to breathe such life into me!”
I grabbed his hand, moved.
“...”
“I want to perform another miracle.”
“...Go quickly.”
Linel cleared his throat and pushed me on the back.
“If we get caught here before I perform a miracle, it’s over.”
***
“Your Majesty. I, I’m sorry, but I... didn’t understand what you were saying.”
Roxana stuttered, shocked by what the Emperor had just said.
“I said I was receiving treatment because my function was impaired.”
“So what you’re saying is...”
“It means that even if the Empress tries, it’s useless.”
Linel looked up at Roxana, who was leaning toward him, and grabbed both of her wrists.
He sighed and sat up, and Roxana sat up straight, looking at him with surprised eyes. She looked here and there, and no matter how much she looked, his body should be fine...
What? It’s not working?
Roxana, faced with an unimaginable predicament, asked him with trembling lips,
“Did I make some... mistake...?”
“No, it’s my body that makes mistakes.”
“Are you saying that on purpose to avoid me?”
“If you don’t believe me, ask the palace doctor.”
Linel shook his head, maintaining a serious tone.
“If you still don’t believe me, I’m willing to have the palace doctor examine me again in front of the Empress.”
Roxana stared at him with her mouth wide open, barely able to keep her gaze from drifting downward.
He didn't seem like the kind of person who would lie about something that involved a man's pride.
Roxana was utterly bewildered by the Emperor’s unexpected and horrifying confession.
She wanted to ask him how he'd been handling his body to end up like that.
"When did you start having these symptoms?"
"Well, about a month ago... I think it started after some stress."
"You didn't eat anything wrong, did you?"
"I've been eating the same food as usual. I don't remember anything unusual."
Roxana's words stung.
Linel wouldn't remember, but he had drunk the magic potion she'd given him.
She suspected the potion had caused him some kind of side effect. Should she go find the magic tower master attached to Zelda and ask him?
Or maybe Logan had tampered with the magic potion he'd given her? Roxana sighed, feeling frustrated.
"It's late, so let's go to sleep for now."
Linel lay back down on the bed.
The two of them slept far apart.
Oddly, Roxana felt a chill run through her whenever she tried to get close to him.
Thinking it might be the positioning, she moved a little further away from him, and the cold was much less severe.
It was a colder, cooler bed than usual.
Even though she was covered with a blanket, her whole body felt chilly, like standing outside in a robe in the middle of winter.
It seemed to be the effects of Linel's hypothermia.
After enduring the red potion, her body temperature had risen, so she hadn't felt the cold...
'Was this just a temporary phenomenon?'
Roxana suddenly felt uneasy.
Disturbed by various factors, she had trouble falling asleep.
He, too, seemed to be having trouble sleeping, tossing and turning.
Then, around 5 a.m., he woke up.
Roxana watched him, half-asleep, as he rose from bed.
Linel quietly dressed and left the bedroom.
Roxana didn't stop him. As soon as he left, the bedroom quickly warmed up.
Only then did Roxana's body warm itself again, and she drifted off to sleep.
***
Before the sun rose, Linel left the Empress's Palace and headed to the main palace.
He needed to drink a potion to raise his body temperature immediately.
He deliberately did not take any potions to raise his body temperature before his second wedding.
And today, enduring the bone-chilling pain, he immersed himself in cold water.
His intention was to lower his hypothermic body temperature even further, keeping Roxana away.
He wanted to distance himself from her, even if it meant he wasn't hypothermic.
Even without hypothermia, he couldn't spend his first night with Roxana.
It was physically impossible, let alone emotionally.
Linel knew he had a real problem before meeting Zelda at the tavern.
He consulted with the palace doctor and even underwent a thorough examination at Wizard Big's clinic, but the cause remained unknown.
Zelda had lost her own memories, so she couldn't tell him what he had been like in the past.
Linel returned to the main palace bedroom and opened the nightstand drawer next to the bed.
His hands trembled slightly from the cold.
He drank a potion to raise his body temperature and lay down on the bed, pulling the blanket up to his nose.
Because he hadn't taken the potion on time, the effect was slow to take effect.
"This won't work."
Linel sat up again.
Instinctively, his body left the bedroom and headed somewhere.
It was the room where Zelda was temporarily staying.
He carefully opened the door and went inside.
***
'Only react to you.'
Ever since returning from the Empress's Palace, I had been mulling over Linel's words until I fell asleep.
Perhaps because of those words, the anxiety that he might spend his first night with Roxana had vanished.
A cool breeze blew from somewhere.
It seemed to cool my body, which had been heated up before I fell asleep.
I woke up feeling refreshed.
I rolled over to my side, stretched, and slowly opened my eyes.
"Nelly... no, Linel...?!"
He was in my bed, right in front of me.
He was curled up, shivering, the blanket pulled up to his neck.
"Is this a dream?"
I rubbed my eyes and reached out to touch his face.
At that moment, Linel snuggled into my arms like a child.
"Please... hold me..."
His body was as cold as a giant block of ice.
Comments
Post a Comment