Episode #13 Encounter

Lucifella tried to understand the Emperor’s intentions. But even before Lucifella or Estelle was born, this person had existed as the King of this country, and she had to admit that he was different from the people she had dealt with in the past.

“I can’t answer Your Majesty’s heart because I can’t fathom it.”

That was why Lucifella spoke frankly. If this was a kind of test, she didn’t know the answer, so how should she answer it?

She didn’t know the Emperor’s intentions and had no ability for her to escape. So, it was better for her to be honest.

Still, inside, she spat out curse words. It was humiliating for her to say it this way but for her it was the only way to survive from the Emperor of Yansgar.

“Tell me more.”

At those words, Lucifella raised her eyes.

“Your Majesty, I have neither the wit nor the peaking words to give a perfect answer based on the circumstances given to me and the expression on your Majesty’s face. If you ask me if I’m afraid, yes, I’m afraid. Your Majesty is the one who can punish my father and me. But if you’re talking about the person sitting in front of me right now, talking to me at this moment, I’m not afraid.”

At that, the Emperor smirked.

“It is the Emperor’s power that is scary, but as a person, myself, you are not afraid?” he asked.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

A heavy silence fell upon him. It wasn’t a lie, wasn’t that actually true for everyone?

The Emperor looked straight at Lucifella, and Lucifella did not avert her gaze.

His silent search came and went, and the Emperor raised his hand and pressed his forehead several times.

Despite his inexplicable actions, Lucifella’s feelings were calm because the Emperor didn’t seem to be in a bad mood. This was Estelle’s intuition, not Lucifella’s. Soon, as she expected, the Emperor lifted the corner of his mouth and burst into laughter.

“This is going to give Duke Aydin and Duke Heint some headache.”

‘Why is he mentioning the Duke of Heint here?’

Lucifella groaned inwardly. Fortunately, she didn’t seem to have said anything that would chop her neck away.

“If there is an answer to my question here, there is not. I was just asking a question for the question’s sake.”

Did he have to ask that simple question while frowning and making the atmosphere harsh? Lucifella wanted to protest, but she bit her tongue.

“Everyone is trying to guess the meaning of my words.”

Wasn’t that normal? Depending on the mood of the person sitting there, they might lose their head.

“Sometimes, what I say is just what it is.”

He smiled and beckoned Lucifella to come closer. After a moment’s hesitation, Lucifella walked right down to the dais.

She was able to see the Emperor closer. The Emperor, who looked like a non-human being from afar, was just an old man with a strong physique when looking close.

His eyes were a dark olive color anyone could have, his nose was blunt, and his mouth was wrinkled. If he didn’t sit on the throne and wasn’t robed, would anyone be able to think of him as an Emperor?

“I don’t have any particular intentions. Just looking at you, the child who used to hide behind her father and is now grown up and looking up at me, I can feel the passage of time.”

“I cannot remain just a child forever, Your Majesty.”

When Lucifella answered without hesitation, the Emperor nodded his head. Then he looked into Lucifella’s face. The Emperor stroked his chin with his hand.

“I knew that you had a special relationship with Temir. But I did not designate you as the Crown Princess. Why do you think so?” he asked.

“Isn’t it because you don’t like me?”

The Emperor was at a loss for words for a moment at the answer that came out so straight. Lucifella was overly candid, and she didn’t know how to say it round-about way.

“……………Did you think so?” asked the Emperor, puzzled.

“Because His Majesty the Crown Prince said so.”

“Tsk. Tsk. My son has no respect.”

He clicked his tongue and frowned.

“I never said anything like that. Being Luana’s daughter, I simply said that it would put a heavy burden on you, and your mother would not have wished that for her precious daughter. That is why you were not suitable for the Crown Prince.”

‘Luana? If it’s Luana, she’s Lucifella’s mother.’

“Your mother didn’t like heavy responsibilities, so she chose the seat next to Duke Aydin rather than the Duchess’ seat. If you are anything like your mother, you would hate the same heavy burden. The position of the Empress of the Empire is heavy. That’s why I didn’t hold you to it.”

‘Oh, I see. Lucifella’s mother chose the lesser position over Duchess. Something about her must have been very impressive. However……...’

In conclusion, he was saying, ‘Your mom hated heavy seats, so you’ll hate it too.’ It was, indeed, a self-centered interpretation.

“But I didn’t know that you were into it deep enough to jump into the Imperial Palace Lake. If I knew you had that kind of heart, I would have thought about it one more time.”

Seeing Emperor’s face, Lucifella realized why she was not penalized for her colossal deed of jumping into the Imperial Palace Lake. The Emperor had ordered to bury the issue.

“Do you still have Temir in your heart? If it’s an unwanted engagement, I can break it with the King’s Decree.”

And now, with these words of the Emperor, Lucifella knew that the Emperor had no idea what she had done to the Crown Prince yesterday. Lucifella was finally relieved only then.

The reason the Emperor had called her aside was to ask her opinion without any interruption.

Even if he were able to break up her engagement through a King’s Decree, for him to say something like this, he would have a confrontation with the temple side to invalidate the will with the seal of the temple. The Emperor was showing kindness to Lucifella and seemed to be fond of her.

“Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty, but now everything is over.”

At Lucifella’s words, the Emperor gave her a puzzled look and then right away smiled softly, as if he understood. She felt uncomfortable when she discovered the human side of the Emperor, whom she had always thought cruel.

“Has Duke Heint treated you well?”

“He doesn’t not treat me well.”

At Lucifella’s words, the Emperor burst into laughter again. His appearance was just that of a village grandfather with a simple appearance.

“He is not a bad guy.”

Lucifella frowned, not answering that. Seeing her expression, the Emperor nodded his head as if he knew what was going on.

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“Aydin’s daughter, you are not good at hiding your true feelings.”

That was the word she heard almost every day when she was Estelle. In a really tense situation, she took care of her expression on her own, but when she thought it was safe, she couldn’t take care of her facial muscles.

“The House of Heint has a large area of the south, and it is a place where the most powerful knights are trained. The territory is also on the wealthy side, and his face isn’t ugly either, so wouldn’t that make a good bridegroom?”

“Well, I think so.”

When she answered reluctantly, the Emperor grinned and shook his head flutteringly.

“If you ever want to end your engagement, just tell me. It is for that reason that I have called you today. If the relationship isn’t right, then we need to fix it.”

If she asked him to end her engagement here, will Lucifella be linked with the Crown Prince?

If she were the real Lucifella, she would welcome it, but she didn’t want to marry that weirdo. The Duke of Heint was better. Lucifella, suppressing her feeling of discomfort, expressed her gratitude.

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Okay then, go back now.”

The Emperor nodded his head and pointed her out to leave. The Emperor had work to do, and he deliberately made time to meet her.

Lucifella once again curtsied and left the meeting room.

She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t even realize that she was stepping on Hajo-Har, the star of Ersha that was engraved on the velvet carpet.

As she walked along with the attendant, she thought about how she felt. Because she was simple, it was usually easy for her to grasp her own feelings. But now, she was very confused.

She thought only about how she would kill him when she first saw the Emperor in the ballroom.

But she was Lucifella, and the Emperor wasn’t a bad person as an individual. Throwing away his dignitary, he was nothing more than a friendly old man.

It was not without resentment that the army he led trampled on Ersha. However, even though she wanted to vent her anger, somehow, those feelings did not seem to come out because she was trapped in a body called Lucifella.

When she met the Emperor, her concerns about how to behave were more critical than her hostility. What did she want? What did she wish for?

She felt confused.

“Uh?”

Then, she realized she was alone in the hallway.

Where did the servant go? She looked around, and when she came to a fork in the corridor, she walked straight ahead. Then another fork in the corridor.

Upon seeing it, she realized she had come the wrong way. She tried to return to where she was, but she lost her direction as to where to go.

She lost her way in this vast Imperial Palace. She sighed.

Lucifella moved her steps as fast as she could to ask any passing attendant or knight. But......

Why not? Why? How was that no one passed by in this vast Imperial Palace?

Of course, she knew that all the manpower was concentrated around the Emperor’s office, but wasn’t this a bit harsh?

She let out a sigh as she was about to recall the direction that the attendant took.

Eventually, she walked around until she found stairs in a remote place.

Since she was on the 3rd floor, she was about to go down the stairs, but in an afterthought, she didn’t know exactly which side of the palace she was in.

She walked up the stairs instead of down. She wanted to look down from a high place to figure out where she was.

If it were a forbidden zone, they would have a knight guarding it, and she would then ask him for the way out.

Lucifella went up the stairs one more floor and walked down the hallway again.

The hallway was covered with soft carpets muffling any noise. If this is the case, it will be difficult to guard. While thinking about it, she found a man coming around the hallway.

It was a man with black glasses, with long blond hair down to his shoulders

The man’s dark blonde hair gleamed in the sunlight from the window in the hallway.

He was walking, struggling with several books. Then, through the book, Lucifella and the man’s eyes met.

“Ahhhh!”

He dropped all the books he was holding as if startled by the sudden appearance of her.

The carpet didn’t make a loud noise, but the book had fallen and was scattered.

Lucifella automatically began to pick up books. When she looked at the book, she noticed that it was a love story with an unusual title.

“Lady Aydin, this is heavy.”

‘Does he know me?’ Then Lucifella remembered that the man was the second prince, Yiojif.

“Greetings, Your Highness Prince… … .”

“Ahhhh!”

The prince was about to wave his hand, saying it was okay to skip the greeting, but he dropped the book he had just picked up again.

‘What, is he stupid?’ She started picking up the book again.

“Ugh, I’m sorry, My Lady.”

Yansgar had also been ruined. The Crown Prince’s personality is garbage, and the second prince is stupid.

Lucifella evaluated it coldly. When she put her hand on the last book, at the same time, Yiojif’s hand was on it.

“Uh……?”

At the familiar touch on the back of her hand, she widened her eyes and looked at Yiojif. He smiled, not knowing why. Lucifella furrowed her eyebrows very slightly. This man was someone who had to be kept at a distance.

“Give it to me, My Lady.”

At the soft voice, Lucifella quietly removed her hand from the book. He at once lifted the stacked books up. Lucifella narrowed her eyes at him.

“Is there a book you want to find badly enough for My Lady to visit the Imperial Library?”

At that question, Lucifella shook her head.

“So, this was the Imperial Library.”

“Yes, from here to the top floor, everything is the library.”

Yiojif smiled at Lucifella.

“If you are looking for a book here, I can help you find it,” he said.

“No, I was simply lost.”

“Um, you’re lost, but you’re a unique person coming upstairs.”

“The higher the floor, the easier it is to find your way.”

Oh, he gave a small exclamation and said with a nice look.

“I’ll guide you, My Lady.”

“But then ……..”

‘Shouldn’t he deal with that pile of books first?’ As Lucifella’s eyes turned to the pile of books, Yiojif smiled sheepishly and put the book down.

Even though there were quite a few, Yiojif’s hands set the books down the hallway almost without shaking. He had a completely different look than the struggling look he had before.

“The stairs that My Lady came to are the stairs that lead only to the study. If you go to the ground floor, there will be no exit, so please follow me.”

Brushing off his hands, Yiojif smiled as he saw Lucifella’s wary expression on her face.

“What? My Lady, do I have something on my face?”

“No.”

She shook her head. Her gaze rested on the books stacked on the floor.

“It will be okay to leave them here for a while. It’s not an old book. It won’t go bad,” Yiojif said to Lucifella cheerfully.

“Let’s go down, My Lady.”

Lucifella nodded her head. It was funny that the prince guided her, and this man felt uncomfortable. But she thought there was nothing she could do about it.

After a while, she passed the Throne Room again, and Yiojif explained the correction direction.

“You should have turned to the right instead of this way here.”

Lucifella silently observed the man.

He was a handsome man with a docile, scholarly look. The tone was as smooth as flowing water, rather than having a strong power like the Crown Prince or Jed, and he was a little overly talkative. But he had a lot of shady sides of him.

“My Lady?”

“Oh, no, no.”

Yiojif laughed at her again. When Lucifella saw that bastard’s face, she thought that she had to get out of the Imperial Palace quickly.

“Ah, but I was surprised at your idea of going up to a high place to find a way. I know that travelers find their way that way. My Lady must also read a lot of travel books.”

“Well, yes.”

As Yiojif began talking about travel books with his sparkling face, she answered simply and looked down the Imperial Palace through the huge arched window glass in the hallway.

While they were walking, she saw men in purple uniforms lined up on the right-hand side of the palace. These were the knights she had seen before entering the Throne Room earlier.

Yiojif followed Lucifella’s gaze and looked down at the gathered Knights and spoke.

“Unfortunately, it is not the 1st Knights. The Duke of Heint rarely works for the Knights Guild. You would have been able to see the face of your fiancé, so it is a pity, right?

Oh, it seemed that it was the 2nd Knights. Lucifella thought so, and her gaze came to a point where she looked at the Knights Guild. And standing tall, the footsteps stopped.

“Uh? My Lady, would you like to appreciate the gardens of the Imperial Palace? The garden is the pride of the Imperial Palace. At some point, I will guide you to the place where you can see the most beautiful scenery of the Imperial Palace.”

Not answering Yiojif’s words, Lucifella suddenly rolled up her dress and started running down the middle of the hallway. As she ran, her gaze was fixed on the window in the hallway.

“My Lady!”

In the distance, she heard the voice of Yiojif chasing after her, but none of that voice could be heard.

She needed a place where she could see him more clearly. But the reason she couldn’t go down the stairs was that the moment the human she saw disappeared from her view, she was afraid that what she had seen would disappear.

She ran to the window just above the gathering of the knights in purple uniforms.

As she was contemplating what to do, when she opened the window, she unlocked the door lock as soon as she saw that the balcony was connected. After she opened the window that was as tall as she was, she made her way to the balcony right in front of it.

As if unable to hear Yiojif, Lucifella leaned her body against the railing of the balcony.

Her heart was beating like crazy. Her eyes were fixed on one place.

A young man in the center dressed in a dark purple knightly uniform.

How could she forget?

How could she forget?

How could she forget that figure?

Bright blue hair shattered in the sunlight. The uniquely elegant features penetrate into the eyes. As if he was talking about something, he was moving his lips.

Even though he was a knight, he had a beautiful face with his big stature. Even that graceful gesture, she never forgot. She couldn’t forget.

Was it gladness? Was it longing? Was it resentment?

“Why are you like this, gasp..gasp… … My Lady? What’s going on?”

As Yiojif chasing had caught up to her, gasped for breath, Lucifella asked him.

“That person, who is that person?”

She knew it, but wanted to confirm. Her voice was trembling. Her eyes were shaking. Yiojif took a deep breath and said struggling.

“My Lady, heh, wait a minute… … I ran too much... … .”

“I know you have held a sword, so don’t pretend to be clumsy and tell me straight!”

Yiojif, who was gasping for breath at the words of Lucifella, who had lost her composure, slowed down. Then his gaze changed in an instant. A frail prince who was gasping for breath over a short distance, he was transformed into a surprisingly undistorted figure.

A mischievous smile spread across the gentle-looking face. He looked at Lucifella like a little child observing a strange thing.

He seemed to be very interested in the situation now.

He looked at where her fingertips point ended, sighed, purposely taking his time, and looked at the angrily flustered face of Lucifella.

“If that is the Duke of Ruirk, you would have seen him more than once or twice, so why don’t you know? No, you wouldn’t know. My Lady was someone who only looked at my brother.”

“… … Duke Ruirk?”

“Yes, he was the Duke of Ersha. And he is now Duke of Yansgar. My Lady, did you have any interest in that man over the Duke Heint?”

At Yiojif’s words, her face went white. Her heart raced and her heartbeat echoed through her head. Without a second thought, her lips and tongue moved steadily to pronounce a familiar name.

“Khal… … i… … d.”

That was the man’s name.