Chapter 47

Are You Listening to Me? (2)

The Ellias Empire allowed individuals, regardless of status or gender, to undergo a coming-of-age ceremony on their eighteenth birthday. From that point on, their achievements could be officially recorded. In that sense, Aaron, who had recently celebrated his birthday and turned eighteen, could finally be considered to have met the minimum qualifications to become Egil’s successor. He had accumulated many achievements, either with Egil or alone on battlefields, but that was all before he turned eighteen. From now on, Aaron had to fight at least ten more battles to become the true successor to the Margrave, and win at least eight of them.

According to the original plan, Aaron would have left the capital and headed for the border immediately after turning eighteen. However, his contract with Legina kept him in the capital a little longer. Well… it had become pointless now, anyway.

“I will leave immediately after the situation is resolved.”

“Are you truly sure you can do it well?”

“Even if I can’t, I must. It is also for Your Highness’s sake.”

“Alright, you’ll manage it well yourself.”

He would not be disadvantaged by the Emperor for refusing the Imperial Princess. Gissley, who knew the relationships between the Imperial Family, Vestein, and Slyveig, patted his brother’s shoulder, told him to be as considerate as possible so as not to hurt Legina’s feelings, and then left the room.

And as time passed, Legina’s birthday finally arrived. It was the day she and Aaron had waited for, with conflicting thoughts and expectations.

“Who is looking for me?”

Legina, who had started preparing for the banquet early in the morning, asked the attendant, whose sleeve was embroidered with golden vines.

“His Majesty wishes to see Your Highness Legina.”

“Why?”

“What, what?”

“His Majesty must know that I’ll be busy all morning… So, if he’s looking for me even so early, there must be a reason, mustn’t there?”

“Ah, um… He just told me to summon Your Highness…”

“Go and tell him. Tell him I’ll be busy all day today and cannot spare any time, so if it’s not urgent, we’ll meet another time.”

“What?!”

The scream burst not from the Emperor’s attendant, but from Selma. To think of an Imperial Princess telling the Emperor to come and go as she pleased, when she was already acting so wildly these days! Selma stared at Legina with a face that looked like she was about to faint. And the Emperor’s attendant stared at Legina, his face utterly pale, unable to even blink, as if he had fainted with his eyes open. Indeed, he was the one who had to deliver this message directly, so he probably thought he was dead.

But what did she care? She was truly busy! Even if the banquet were just the usual scale, she would have had time to breathe, if not leisure. However, the Emperor, for some unknown reason, had more than doubled the scale of the banquet, making Legina truly, exceptionally busy.

“No, why do I have to suffer like this on my birthday? This is so unfair. Even if I accept Theore’s birthday was unavoidable, I should propose that His Majesty prepare his own birthday from now on.”

The Emperor’s birthday was in winter. Normally, Legina would have to take charge of those banquet preparations too, but…

Since when did a troublemaker celebrate their parents’ birthday? Besides, there’s no reason to celebrate the birthday of someone I don’t even consider my father.

Live comfortably, comfortably. Legina vowed internally to live comfortably, despite already living uncomfortably as it was. Legina called Una, who was relatively sane, to drag the Emperor’s attendant out of the room, then called Johan and even sent out Selma, who was swaying from shock.

At any other time, it would have been fine, but this was a banquet attended even by foreign envoys. No, why was he summoning envoys who hadn’t even been invited to Theore’s birthday, thus escalating things so much for her own birthday?! Legina gritted her teeth at the Emperor, continuously issuing instructions to those attending her. Changing clothes while checking the invitation list, putting on makeup while checking today’s schedule, styling her hair while giving instructions on how to handle any unusual incidents that might occur today…

Literally, a hectic morning and afternoon passed, and finally, in the evening, the bell signaling the start of the banquet began to ring throughout the capital.

“…Hey, isn’t it your birthday today? Why do you look like you’ve bitten into something bitter?”

“You know, Theore? My hand gets even sharper on my birthday.”

“…”

“Don’t you have something to say?”

“…Uh… sorry.”

“That’s right. As a person, you should apologize first for what you did wrong. Of course, apologizing should never become a habit that turns you into a pushover.”

The Emperor, Legina, and Theore, standing before the grand doors, were making their final adjustments to their attire before entering the banquet hall. They had already been informed that all the Imperial nobles and foreign envoys had arrived inside. Now, only the Imperial Family’s entrance remained. Legina was eager to enter, if only to avoid the sight of the Emperor peeking at her, checking her reaction.

“Legina.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Today…”

“If it’s not an urgent matter, shall we enter first? Theore, your cravat is crooked.”

Legina cut off the Emperor’s words and began to personally adjust Theore’s attire, her touch gentle. Theore, though his words were sharp, flushed and pouted, pretending to be distracted, as her touch was that of the Legina he knew. And the Emperor, watching his two children, unnecessarily fiddled with his own perfectly tied cravat, his eyes filled with lingering regret.

“His Imperial Majesty Larousse I. Alpere, the Sun of the Ellias Empire, enters!”

The loud voice of the attendant announcing the Emperor’s entrance was heard, and the grand doors that had been blocking their way slowly began to open. The Emperor, with his usual dignified expression, took the first step, followed by Legina and Theore.

The hall, illuminated as brightly as day by dazzling lights, was excessively ornate, beyond what a simple word like ‘splendid’ could describe. Small golden chocolate fountains that made one wonder where they had come from, luxurious curtains woven from gold and silver threads pulled and twisted as finely as possible, and strange decorations that made one question if they really needed to be made of gold too… Legina sighed, lamenting that the Emperor, not she, was the one wasting national funds. She also pondered why the golden bird decorations, which she had explicitly removed from the list, were hanging from the ceiling alongside golden flower decorations.

No matter what I think, it must be His Majesty’s doing.

Regarding the Emperor, she no longer had any kind words. Legina ignored the Emperor, who was subtly glancing at her with a somehow proud expression, and lightly grasped Theore’s shoulder, who was impatiently stomping his feet, looking as if he would rush to the chocolate fountain at any moment.

“…If you cause trouble… you know, right?”

“I know!”

“This is a very important day for me. But if you cause a commotion and ruin my plan… this Noona will truly be angry.”

“…I got it…”

Theore felt the glistening madness in his sister’s violet eyes. He didn’t know how long he would remember this gaze, but at least until she moved according to her plan, he would be well-behaved. Legina thought so and looked at the Emperor. A joyful expression flickered in his violet eyes as he faced his daughter, but it returned to a sulky light as she subtly gestured for him to do his job with an indifferent expression.

“I welcome you all who have come to celebrate my beloved daughter’s birthday. As it is my beloved daughter’s birth anniversary, I hope you enjoy yourselves before you leave.”

At the Emperor’s words, the nobles began to whisper. Beloved… ? Since when did the Emperor love Legina? Was there a hidden trap in those words? Was he planning something? Surely nothing bad would happen to them? It was the Emperor who was flustered by the murmuring of not only the Empire’s nobles but also the foreign envoys. He had carefully prepared those words. But instead of applause, he was met with scrutinizing gazes, as if they were trying to discern some other meaning behind his words.

Suddenly, he recalled a remark Derain, who had come to deliver his headache medicine a while ago, had mumbled.

[“He’ll regret it bitterly later. He can’t use his good mind for things like this, tsk-tsk.”]

At that time, he hadn’t understood what he would regret, but seeing the nobles’ reaction today, he slowly began to grasp it. Furthermore, watching Theore’s eyes widen as he looked alternately at him and his sister, and Legina’s face, even more crumpled than before their entrance, a chill began to spread in his chest.

‘Beloved daughter’? What nonsense is that?

Legina gritted her teeth, holding back slightly vulgar words that she would never utter, even in her mind. Today was a day when she absolutely had to maintain a calm banquet atmosphere. Only then could her confession and Aaron’s acceptance later have a big impact and spread quickly throughout the capital! But now the Emperor had ruined it. She was now in danger of losing both the title of ‘madly in love’ and the opportunity to gain allies simultaneously.

And ‘beloved’? Beeloooved? I’d rather prostrate myself before that traitor and bow, what? Loooove? Am I crazy?

She had clearly told the Emperor. He had no daughter. She herself had resolved. Theore was the only family she had left. Of course, he might have been born that way, but her brother, who had become a troublemaker and then a pushover, ruining the country, because the Emperor and she had raised him wrongly, was her aching finger. So wasn’t she working day and night now, doing her best to ensure he wouldn’t be taken advantage of and could live as a competent troublemaker?!

But the Emperor was not!

“Your Majesty.”

“What, what is it?”

His flinching and trembling, checking her reaction, was a perfect copy of Theore. Was this why they said blood couldn’t lie? Legina felt her sanity slowly slipping away and desperately tried to think of other things, suppressing her rising anger.

“Stop with the nonsense and just say what you want to say, then excuse yourself, shall we?”

…No. Her sanity wasn’t just slipping; it had definitely flown away. A tremendous murderous aura emanated from Legina’s face as she smiled through gritted teeth.

– Mochinuna.