Blanche only relaxed when the door closed behind them and expected her lover to set her down, but he didn't do that. Theodore carried her up all the way to his office without caring for all the stares they got. Then he still didn't let go of her but sat down on his chair and pulled her into his lap.
For once, Leon didn't complain. He just walked over to the desk while reading a document and scanned the emperor for a moment. “That bad?” His reaction was understandable though.
Theodore was fuming and glared into the distance while keeping an iron grip around his lover. It was very obvious that he was upset because of the meeting with Cedar. “I hate seeing his face so that would be enough to ruin my day. But he makes me want to gut him every time he looks at Blanche like he can use her as another playing piece in his games. That bastard. I should have finished his mother off way earlier. But I didn't do that, and now we have to deal with them again. All while Cedar acts like an emotionless puppet so that he even drinks stuff that made him gag before. What did that woman do to him?” None of this sounded good.
The concubine took that as her cue to intervene. “It's awful, but I know that you can deal with everything.” She had to strain her neck a bit to look at her lover, but it was enough to plant a kiss onto his cheek. She did so three times before his expression softened.
Theodore caressed the side of her head with his hand and gave her a little smile. “Are you trying to cheer me up?”
She mirrored his expression.“Of course. That person is gone now, so don't waste your time thinking about him. If you are upset, I will get sad too, so you need to distract yourself quickly. Let me tell you something that will make you happy.” She opened her mouth and was about to remind him of a few interactions they had had shortly after meeting each other for the first time.
But before she even managed to begin, Leonard chimed in. “I think that I might be able to give you information that will make you think about something else for a change.” He waited until the couple turned their heads to him before speaking. “Today, Duke Lamont's response arrived, and he agreed to become a minister. So, we will have six ones again, and Duke Vasquez can complain as much as he wants, but we won't have any space for him. Even if you did forgive him for a little mishap on a bad day, as he called it.”
A wide grin spread across Theodore's face. “Thank the gods.” It was his turn to press a kiss onto his lover's cheek before he continued in a tone that was completely different from the frustrated one he had used just a moment ago. “Duke Lamont is a person that gives his best to gain the favor of people in power. He has a very gentle personality and hates conflict, so he will probably agree to anything I propose. Surely, he will finish his work on time too. He is the perfect replacement for that arrogant man, who always troubled me. Everything will be much easier from now on.”
Leonard nodded, but his expression remained stiff.
The emperor noticed that immediately. “This is good news, isn't it? But it seems like there is something else bothering you.”
“Yes. Duke Vasquez requested an audience.”
Theodore laughed. “No way. Write him that I'm still furious. And end the letter by reminding him that I keep my promises. He won't be allowed inside unless he apologizes to my sweet angel.” He nuzzled his nose into his lover's neck and let out a satisfied hum.
Blanche lifted her hand and stroked over her lover's hair as she beamed at his adorable behavior. When he cuddled her, she just forgot the rest of the world, even that Claude would hold a grudge against her because of the emperor's order. It was strange how normal the situation felt even though they had just been attacked yesterday. That thought was enough to make her smile fade again. They still weren't safe no matter how often they told themselves this. She leaned her head sideways against Theodore's head and tangled her fingers in his hair. “Are you really going to ignore Duke Vasquez like this? He is the second most powerful duke, so that could cause problems.”
The emperor shook his head slightly. “He is the one who started this conflict. There were enough witnesses around, so no matter who he is, he will be blamed. To be honest, I could probably do this without him being guilty of anything too. After all, I'm the ruler of this nation. If I really want to play dirty, I would ruin my reputation but win in an instant. So, there is always a way for us to win. I'll make sure that you don't have to worry about anything.” He planted a small kiss onto her shoulder and moved his lips upwards to her jaw.
Blanche relaxed in his hold and closed her eyes. Not worrying sounded excellent, but she was doubtful whether she would be able to do that. But for now, she would allow herself a day off. After all, she had been distressed enough yesterday. Still, there was one thing that she would like to ask before giving in to the need to ban all horrible thoughts from her mind. “Theo?”
He replied with a hum.
“How did those people get inside the royal estate? And how did they get closer to the knights without being seen?”
“It's good that you mention that now.” Theodore lifted his head and addressed Leon. “I'll write the report in a few minutes so that you have all the information. The investigation hasn't started, but I can already guess how they managed to get so close to us. The trees again. That's exactly why they always attack in the forest. If they climb through the treetops and stop talking for a few minutes, no one will think that the few sounds are coming from something aside from animals. No one will look up then. In addition, our guards tend to stick to the same patterns when they are on patrol. They should refrain from doing that. If they continue like before, they give the enemy the chance to determine where the knights will be in a few minutes. Those attackers can come out of the trees slowly without needing to worry and then approach us from behind. This strategy allowed them to know where the guards would face so that they could knock them out from behind.”
Blanche opened her eyes just in time to see Leonard scribbling something down. The secretary made a few notes before setting down the pen and replying. “I will inform the knights of this so that it doesn't happen again. Is there anything else aside from the report?”
Theodore shook his head. “I don't think so. If anything comes...” He paused before resuming. “No, there is something. No one will leave the royal estate unless it's absolutely necessary. The staff members will be allowed to go on vacation as always, but they shouldn't go into the city every day. Everyone that is crucial to the palace or has great knowledge about our security measures will stay inside the walls. The entrances have to be checked by even more knights, and we need more patrols. Anyone that leaves or enters has to give their name and occupation so that we can have a list. And of course, they are to be searched each time. Anything that is even remotely suspicious will be confiscated for further investigation.”
Leonard wrote all of this down before looking up with a questioning gaze. “I assume that this means that Her Majesty will not be able to leave either. She already received permission to go to her sister's baby party, so this might upset her.” Sophia might be upset about that too. After all, the sisters were quite close, so Seraphina would definitely want to visit little Grace's party.
Theodore wasn't concerned with that though. He let out a snort. “Do I look like I care about that? No. It's unfortunate for them, but I didn't come up with this to spite her. The empress would be foolish to leave the royal estate at the moment. I mean, she could go out anyway, but if she gets attacked, others will be hurt too. So, if she tried to discuss with you, just tell her that knights will be injured due to her selfishness if she does insist on going out.”
That was true as well. It wasn't just dangerous for the empress herself if she decided to leave. It would endanger everyone else too. Even if Seraphina shouldn't be the main goal since it was obvious that the emperor could still act without her as he pursued possible perpetrators of an assassination attempt, it was clear that her death was desired by some as well. If she was attacked, more than a dozen royal knights could lose their lives while protecting her. Blanche hoped that Seraphina paid attention to that. She knew that the empress was clever, but the other woman also happened to be far too stubborn at some points. If Seraphina thought that something was safe, she usually wouldn't ask others for their view on this, much like she never questioned whether whom she perceived as a threat was really one. It would be unfavorable if she argued with the emperor here.
Leon seemed to be aware too. He frowned as he put down his pen with a little more force than normal. He crossed his arms and glared at the emperor. “Why do I have to tell her? If I remember correctly, I am neither responsible for these security measures nor am I her husband. For a while, I accepted it, but you don't think that you can avoid her forever, do you?”
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Theodore didn't seem affected by that at all and responded in a calm voice. “Theoretically, I can and will for as long as possible. After all, meeting that woman will only end up in another fight. I don't really care about what she is doing unless it hurts someone. She has enough leeway to stop sulking when I increase our security. If she doesn't let you explain, then send her to me. But if she understands, deal with this yourself. You're my right-hand man. You need to take care of everything I don't want to do. And I warned you about why I wouldn't meet her. Got it?”
Leonard glared at the other man for a few seconds before seemingly giving up. “Discussing with you is useless. You're so stubborn.”
The emperor grinned and rested his chin on his lover's shoulder again. “Obviously. That is a compliment, you know. It means that I will keep all of my promises. You remember the list I gave you? The one with all the things I want to do this year? I am already done with half of those, and I fully intend on fishing the other half too. Unless the parts about our enemies. We'll need to wait for their reactions. If they are very slow, it will take another six months after this year. But that won't keep me from winning in the end.”
Blanche wished that she could be as confident as her lover. With everything that happened, she became more scared of being at fault for messing up the storyline. The fact that the dowager empress and the prince were here meant that she had done something that caused them to gain power quicker. But despite that depressing realization, she couldn't help but be filled with bliss when she heard how indifferent her lover was when it came to the empress.
She had changed the novel so much that the original threats weren't a danger to her anymore, and she would give her best to fight against the new ones as well. Even if she was scared.
Theodore was this sure that they would be happy in the end. And he was the hero, so he would definitely win. At least it should be like this, but the concubine wasn't certain anymore. The only thing she knew was that she would give everything in her power and even more than that to keep her lover safe. She wanted her happy ending with him, and even if she was in a position that didn't allow her to get involved in the fight for the throne, she would still support Theodore. If she was with him, he wouldn't be alone with all the things burdening him. Hopefully, that would help him to endure the exhausting time that they needed to face together now.
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It was a pleasant surprise that nothing special happened for the next few days. Cedar didn't visit, and their enemies were quiet in general. Unfortunately, that also meant that there weren't any new clues from the investigation.
It had been as Theodore had previously said. There wasn't any evidence that would be usable in a trial. Except for the attacker's faces, they knew nothing. Their opponents had gotten away with this assassination attempt as well. It was bitter, but if their enemies' goal had been making them scared even when they were within the palace walls, the dowager empress' men had definitely failed.
Now there were so many knights patrolling the hallways that one could see a guard from every angle. There were always at least two in a corridor, and more often than not, there were even more. Along with the fact that Owen followed Blanche's every step and that Theodore was with her each second, except for when he was in his office for two hours a day at most, this made her feel very safe. It was hard to get used to the knights also checking on the kitchen while she was baking, but apart from that, it was alright.
She still didn't like to be watched by other people, but she was slowly getting used to it. Since the staff members' gazes weren't as hateful as they had been half a year ago, she just ignored it for the most part. On some days, she even offered the guards a slice of her cake, which they surprisingly accepted quite frequently. Occasionally, even Noah stopped by when he had a break from watching the empress and had some cake too. Owen was less keen on eating sweets and insisted that he just didn't like them, but whenever the concubine managed to coax him into taking a piece, he took a second one as well.
Just like that, they were eating with a pair of knights and some servants again. Darlene and George had been kind enough to clean the dishes while Clark dried them and brought them back to the cupboards. On the other hand, Blanche and Stella were lazy and just sat at the table.
The concubine watched how Owen ate the third piece of her chocolate cake and grinned at him. “It seems like you really enjoy that recipe. Maybe we should make one of those more often.”
The head knight put the plate down on the table and met her gaze with his usual unaffected expression. “That would be unfavorable for my health. I should train again, but I haven't been able to motivate myself during the past weeks.” Which meant that he didn't want to cut off time from the little amount that he slept to do something exhausting. He might not have trained properly ever since he had been assigned to the concubine. Whether he had practiced while watching Theodore was questionable too.
“Owen, if you allow me to ask, I would like to know something. How are you this strong without training regularly anymore?”
Owen's response came immediately. “I do some exercises every day, and those seem to be enough. You and His Majesty send me away quite often when you are alone together, so I do not need to worry about finding time.”
That confused Blanche a bit. “So, you are doing something that keeps up your stamina, but you don't call it training? What do you do?”
“I start with running around the training square thirty times, and then I do some smaller exercises to strengthen specific muscles. Then I duel with at least three other people and even more if the fight is over fast. But that isn't real training. Before, I used to practice for over five hours a day and ended with aching muscles and shaking legs by the time the sun set. That is real training.”
The concubine's limps already felt heavy upon hearing that. She glanced at her maid, who had a just as irritated expression as her mistress. “You know, most people would call what you are doing now real training. If a person is as good as you, maintaining your abilities is fine. You can't get stronger after you reach a specific point. You should see that you are much more skillful than the others just by looking at them, right?”
Owen paused for a moment before replying. “It has been a while since I took care of the younger knights, so I would not know. Right now, I am only able to watch a few fights of every person, and while that is enough to get an overview of their abilities, observing how they improve would be much more informative. At the current point in time, my title as the head knight is more honorable, but since I am with you or His Majesty more often than not, I can barely fulfill any of my old tasks. I feel guilty for making my second-in-command take on those duties.”
Blanche scanned his expression as a frown appeared on her face. He still didn't show whether he was sad about that, and his voice also hadn't given her a hint. Now she was unsure whether he disliked being a personal knight. After all, this greatly restricted him and his free time. Maybe he didn't want to keep this position anymore and felt too responsible to ask whether he could go back to being the head knight and nothing else. The concubine pondered about that for a few seconds before deciding to carefully address this topic. “Say, Owen. Do you like your position as Theodore's personal guard?”
Owen was silent for a moment before responding. “I fear that you may have misunderstood my intentions. While I am regretful that I won't be able to fulfill my duties, I would never wish to give up protecting His Majesty with my life. I am very content with this position, even if it may demand a lot of me.”
Blanche lowered her gaze to her cup and lifted it to stare at the tea inside. “Then I'm sorry that you need to watch me at the moment. I'm sure that Theo will allow you to stay with him again when this is over.”
“That is not what I meant to say either. I am glad that I am able to protect you too, Lady Blanche.”
She lifted her head and made eye contact with Owen. It didn't seem like he was lying, but it was hard to tell. But from what Blanche had experienced until now, he wasn't the type to be dishonest. She gave him a small smile. “Thank you. I'm glad that you're by my side as well. I feel much safer like this.” Still, it was regretful that he couldn't meet his subordinates and check on them as often because of this. That thought gave her an idea. Blanche stood up and pressed her palms against the table. “How about we go to the training grounds? If I go with you, you can protect me while watching the knights for a bit.” She glanced at the clock, and her grin shrank. “We don't have too much time today, but we could still catch a glimpse of them.”
Owen was quiet again. He took a few seconds before replying. “Are you certain? The knights in training aren't known to be the cleanest or politest people. They act like young boys fighting for the first time, with some being extremely brazen.”
The concubine made a rejecting gesture with her hand. “I don't care. Dirtying my dress is the biggest issue. There is some soil there, isn't it? Then I won't go onto the duel square, so I won't get dirty. That should be fine.”
“In that case, I would like to accept your offer.”
Blanche inwardly raised a hand in victory before facing her maid. “Then let's go, Stella. We'll watch the royal knights train. The most competent fighters in Artias will duel in front of us. That is definitely a sight to behold.” She had completely forgotten about the two guards at the table that seemed awfully bashful about her comment, so she quickly bid them farewell before leaving the palace.
The garden was full of knights as per usual, and the closer they came to the training grounds, the more men in uniforms were standing around. When the group reached the training square, which was close to the weaponry that was frequented quite often too, most of the knights watched them skeptically until one of them bowed. The others imitated that, which made Blanche a bit uncomfortable.
She glanced over her shoulder at Owen and smiled at him. “They all seem very happy to see you. I thought that they were brazen?”
Owen took his time before replying. “I doubt that they would greet me like this. I come here every day.”
The concubine didn't like what that option hinted at, but she quickly pushed those thoughts aside. She hurried to reach the edge of the sandy circle and let her gaze roam across the people training there. She was curious about how duels between some of the most experienced fighters looked and was happy that they had come at the right time. But she only managed to look at the first fight, which happened about twenty steps away from her, for one second before one of the men was thrown onto the floor and the other's sword was pointed at his neck.
Blanche blinked a few times as she scanned the winner's face. That man was obviously Theodore. He lowered his weapon and straightened his posture while giving the knight tips about how to improve while having the typical aloof expression he always showed in public. For a single moment, bad memories came back into Blanche's mind. Seeing Theodore duel was still scary to her, maybe because she had seen his life being threatened like this one too many times. But it would be selfish to stop him because of that. After all, he needed to train.
She considered calling out to him, but she didn't want to interrupt his training, so she was in a dilemma. This didn't bother her for long though. As soon as she began bargaining with her herself, the emperor turned to her.