Blanche didn't do much the following day. The doctor examined her once more, only to find nothing wrong again. After that, she ate lunch with Theodore and asked him for permission to invite Sophia again. Unsurprisingly, he allowed it. After demanding a kiss, her lover left to return to his office, which left Blanche with the usual amount of free time.

Today, she was satisfied with that. She finally could try out some new recipes, specifically the one that made her mouth water just from reading it. She took a few hours to make the pie with both white and dark chocolate, but it was definitely worth it. Since she shared with all of her friends and some servants, who stared at the cake for long enough to make her offer them a piece, everything was gone before she even realized it.

That reminded Blanche that she hadn't brought a cake for Theodore in a while. Normally, she had always brought a piece for dinner, but because they didn't eat together in the evening anymore, she hadn't had the chance to do that recently. However, giving Theodore the cake of the previous day when he came to chat with her also wouldn't work out since pastries tasted better when they were fresh. This meant that she would have to visit his office soon again to surprise him with some sweets. But since she didn't have any patience left, she simply planned to do that the next day.

After lunch, Blanche hurried to the kitchen immediately, only to freeze when she entered the room that was full of servants, who simultaneously turned to her. She almost stepped back to close the door again before she saw George trying to squeeze through a small gap to reach her.

George took a little while since most of the others were too busy with themselves to step aside. When he finally arrived at the entrance, he was completely out of breath and wiped some sweat off his forehead. “Hello, welcome to the kitchen. I'm sorry for not telling you sooner, but we were only informed today as well. The steward suddenly called all of us here. I'm pretty sure that he will ask us to move to a more open location to say whatever he wants to tell us, but I can't be certain. So, I don't believe that you'll be able to bake here today unless you intend to do that while being suffocated by five people.”

Blanche felt a pit of disappointment in her stomach as she glanced at the kitchen. For a second, she considered trying to go in anyway, but seeing how close the servants were standing next to each other made her rethink that. “You couldn't have known that earlier, so thank you for enlightening me. You won't gather here tomorrow too, will you?” She almost had to yell to be louder than the rest of the servants, who were happily chatting with their friends.

George shook his head with a dejected expression. “No, the steward only does this when there is an emergency. This is why I'm a bit nervous too. Hopefully, nothing bad happened.”

Blanche felt herself tensing. “Are the others alright?”

“Yes, they are perfectly fine. I searched for them within the crowd and managed to catch a glimpse of all of the three. I couldn't talk to them, but they looked annoyed rather than upset, so I doubt that they are hurt. They are somewhere in there.” George pointed at the people behind him.

The concubine breathed out in relief and glanced at the servants before giving up. There was no way that she would be able to find her friends in that mess or bake a cake. So, she could just leave and find something else to do for the day. She would have to postpone her surprise for her lover for a couple of days since she didn't have time tomorrow because of Sophia's visit, but that wasn't that tragic either. “Alright then. I assume that we'll see each other soon. Good luck with the steward.”

George gave her a forced smile. “Thank you. Hopefully, no one will get thrown out. Goodbye.” He turned around to the crowd and slouched his shoulders with a sigh before diving into the mess to find his friends.

Blanche slowly backed out of the kitchen and closed the door behind her, which left the corridor in a pleasant silence in comparison to the loud volume inside. “It seems like we'll have to find a new activity for the rest of the day. I'm not in the mood to go out, so let's return to our room first.”

Stella agreed, and they climbed up the stairs to the third floor to retreat into the concubine's chambers.

As soon as they were there, Blanche plopped down onto the sofa and stared at the ceiling. She didn't even stay on the couch for long enough to complain about her boredom but jumped up immediately. She didn't want to sit again, she wanted to move around. Still, she didn't want to take a walk right now, which left her in a dilemma. She turned to her maid. “Do you think that there is some fun way to move around inside without just strolling through the room?”

Stella blinked a few times. She seemed to be taken aback by her mistress' inquiry, but the gears in her head were turning. “Uhm... You could dance?”

Blanche's initial thought was to reject that. She wasn't good at dancing, and they didn't have any music either. But when she opened her mouth, she paused a bit longer. For some reason, she still felt like dancing for fun. At the ball, she had enjoyed waltzing despite her intimidating dance partner and her sickness. She wasn't sure whether she would still be able to do a waltz as well as she had done it that day or whether Luciano leading her had enabled her to finish without many mistakes, and that made her curious. “Stella, can you waltz?”

The maid stared at her with an irritated expression on her face before replying. “We servants sometimes dance at small parties too, but we aren't very keen on really following the correct steps. We just want to have fun. So, I did waltz two times already, however, that probably didn't look like a waltz. Aside from that, I regularly watch nobles at balls, so I know how you are supposed to do it. Why?”

A grin spread on Blanche's face. “We have a lot of free time today, right? Then let's try something completely new. We could dance together.”

Stella was a bit more skeptical than her mistress. “We could, but...we don't have any music. And we're both women. I don't know the leading part of the dance, and I assume that you also don't.”

“You're right about that. But in the end, that isn't important, is it? No one is watching us, and we're just doing it because we are bored. I won't complain if you're not good because I'm bad too. So, please?”

Stella sighed before a small smile appeared on her lips. She stepped closer to the concubine and bowed. She straightened her posture again and extended her hand towards her mistress. “Well, My Lady. Would you perhaps allow me to have this one dance with you?”

Blanche held herself back from snickering and played along. She made a curtsy before putting her hand in her maid's. “It would be a pleasure, Lady Stella.”

The first steps were catastrophic. Both weren't very skillful in the first place, and without music, they had nothing to keep their pace in check. They almost tripped over each other and stumbled around while giggling. But with time, it became a bit better. They managed to make a few turns without stepping on each other's feet and began to move around. Stella paid attention to not guide them too close to any pieces of the furniture, but other than that, they twirled through the whole room.

It definitely wasn't a beautiful sight, but none of them could bring themselves to care when they had so much fun by just fooling around. Though they might have been a little too loud with their laughter.

At some point, Blanche looked over Stella's shoulder by coincidence and saw Theodore standing next to the entrance with a soft smile, which almost gave her a heart attack. Immediately, she stopped, which caused the maid to turn around and freeze. Quickly, they stepped away from each other as the concubine felt the blood rush to her cheeks. “Theo, what are you doing here?”

Her lover's grin widened as he approached her. “I didn't mean to disturb you.”

His playful smirk made it more difficult for Blanche to form a coherent sentence than it should have. After stuttering for a moment, she finally managed to ask one question. “Why didn't you knock? We would have opened the door for you then.”

Theodore's response followed instantly. “I did knock. You must have been too immersed in the imaginary music to notice, but I knocked multiple times. Only when you didn't answer after the third attempt, I let myself in. I'm sorry for that, but I was a bit worried. The laughter coming from the room calmed me, but I still didn't trust it fully. Then I and Owen came in, and he left again. I've been here for two minutes already, and you didn't look in my direction. I didn't know whether I should be offended by that or be happy that you had so much fun.” His smile proved that he wasn't mad, but Blanche still felt bad.

“I'm sorry. I didn't hear or see you at all. Otherwise, I would have turned to you immediately.” The concubine closed the remaining distance between them and put her arms around him. “I'm sorry, it won't happen again.”

“It's fine. I already got my compensation.” Theodore cupped her cheeks with his hands and made her gaze up at him. “You are beautiful no matter what you do. But you don't know how heavenly you look when you laugh like that.” Without giving her a chance to reply, he leaned down to press his lips onto hers.

She leaned into him and placed one of her hands on the back of his head to keep him close to her. Their kiss was passionate enough to make her breathless by the time that they separated from each other.

Theodore slowly stroked over her head while he loosened his hold on her. “It's wonderful to see you like this. Though I fear that I might be starting to get a bit jealous. You keep dancing with others, but it's been a while since you joined me.” His smile hadn't faded, so it was clear that he was still joking, but she felt the need to defend herself anyway.

Blanche almost got a bit dejected at the thought, but she tried to sound unaffected. “You know why. This is not about me not being willing. I was ignorant enough to ask you to join me in the past, and luckily, you were always strict and refused. I'd love to dance with you, but that's not possible at balls. Not as long as everyone is watching us.”

Theodore's smile turned into an apologetic one. “I'm sorry for not agreeing when you asked me, but-”

She cut him off before he could add anything else. “I know. You don't have to justify following the protocol. I was the one disregarding social norms that can't be ignored, so I should apologize.”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

It was quite clear why asking the emperor to dance would have been an issue, so it was obvious that Theodore couldn't have accepted his lover's request no matter what. Naturally, he hadn't been foolish enough to reconsider and had only politely declined and pampered Blanche the next few days to stop her from sulking, even though she had had no right to be upset. That was obviously the better alternative in comparison to insulting his wife. Still, Theodore tried to apologize to Blanche for rejecting her which served as a reminder of how lenient he was with his lover before he would start to hate her. The little fragments from Blanche's nightmare were enough to show her how drastic his behavior towards her would change if she messed up. Memories from her dreams rushed back into her brain, and she buried them under all the positive ones that she had.

Luckily, Theodore began speaking, which allowed her to focus on him instead of the horrible vision of his resentment. “Still, it's unfortunate. But we don't necessarily have to dance at events. We could also do it in private. Not so much right now because I have enough work for three emperors, but once I have fewer things to do, I'm only waiting for your invitation.”

After having practiced with Leon and Luciano, Blanche had felt a bit more confident that she wouldn't step on her lover's foot, but after the dance with Stella, she wasn't sure anymore. That didn't keep her from looking forward to waltzing with Theodore though. “Of course! I would be euphoric to join you. But I have to admit that presenting a good-looking waltz without music is pretty hard.” The memory of her stumbling around with her maid was still fresh in her mind, so it was hard to ignore it. Even though her lover certainly wouldn't mind, she didn't want to be that unskilled in front of Theodore. The music at the ball had helped with keeping an even pace tremendously, so she would like to have that.

Her lover wasn't fazed by her remark. Instead, he just proposed something ridiculous. “I could ask the orchestra to play for us.”

Blanche thought that she had misheard for a moment, but she quickly saw that her lover was serious. That made her ask again. “For us alone?”

Theodore nodded. “Why not? They work for me and will surely come when I ask them to. No one will complain about the emperor's request.” He was right about that, but it still felt odd to consider forcing twenty people to play just so that two could dance.

It would probably make Blanche really uncomfortable to know that every single member of the orchestra was there to allow her and her lover to have their music. “Still...that would be strange, wouldn't it?”

Gently, Theodore took her hand and caressed her palm with his thumb. “I don't think so.”

“It might not seem like that to you because you are used to attracting all the attention when you enter a room. You grew up with everyone around you waiting for your orders. For me, it's a little different. I don't like so much attention.” Even though it was hypocritical of Blanche to say that when she had spent the first fifteen months at her lover's side causing one fight after the other at each event. Her antagonizing the empress and clinging to Theodore whenever it was possible also hadn't made her more inconspicuous. Despite that, she had always hated it when countless eyes were watching her. Not necessarily because they were observing her but because she knew that they looked down on her.

Most aristocrats already disliked Blanche based on her role as the emperor's concubine and waited for another mistake to make fun of. When she was at an event, she was constantly being judged by others, and she despised that. Theodore's presence made it a bit better most of the time, but even he couldn't stop the nobles from gossiping. Blanche loved attention but only when it came from the people she cared about, so even a room with an orchestra of twenty players would make her feel nervous about making an error.

Theodore smiled at her. “In that case...we might have to dance without music for now until I can persuade you.” He let go of her to take a step backward and bowed down.

That gesture made Blanche panic before Theodore could even say anything. The emperor bowing to someone was definitely wrong, and if anyone saw that, it might cause an uproar due to aristocrats claiming that he was submitting to her by doing that. That would only fuel the rumors saying that the ruler was blinded by a seductress, who had no qualms about using him. She opened her mouth to remind him of that when she remembered that they were alone. What they were doing inside her room wouldn't be seen by anyone but Stella.

That meant that the concubine didn't have to worry at all. Slowly, the concern ebbed away, and a small feeling of irritation remained. Blanche was way too focused on not causing any rumors so that the slightest incident in private could already distress her. Maybe she was truly too harsh with herself in that regard. But in the end, she had no choice. Her life depended on not offending the empress,

At that moment, Theodore straightened his posture and extended his arm towards her.

That allowed Blanche to finally understand was his intention was, and the last flicker of confusion disappeared. Instead, she got hopeful. “Didn't you say that you were busy?”

That earned her a bright smile from Theodore. “I am. But obviously, I can spare a few minutes for my angel. And since you said that you don't want an orchestra, we can dance without having to prepare anything. Well then, would you honor me by joining me for this dance?”

Blanche put her hand into his and stepped closer to him. “Gladly.” Despite her curt answer, she could feel her lips stretching into a wide grin, and her heart beat faster. The last time that she had danced with her lover had been when he had taught her the basic steps, and that had been over a year ago. She had adored doing it back then, and she would still love it.

Theodore put his arm around her waist and intertwined their fingers before making eye contact. “Are you ready?” She nodded excitedly, which caused him to give her a small kiss on her forehead. He began to count to give them something to even their pace with. Slowly, he started to move and pulled her along with him.

Her worry about not being able to follow him quickly proved to be unnecessary.

It only took a minute, and they had found a pace that allowed them to move in sync. Just like it had been at the ball with Luciano, Blanche felt like the steps became more fluent with time, and she had to think less about where to put her feet. At some point, it became an automatic process, and she looked up at her lover to share her excitement. She shut her mouth again when she saw that his eyes were closed.

Theodore looked so calm right now but also very serious. Despite not looking, he managed to continue their dance without hesitating for a second. His movements were skillful and made it obvious that he was experienced when it came to ballroom dancing. He was graceful, seemingly without putting in any effort, and moved across the floor as if he was floating. That only underlined his presence as the ruler though. No one that watched him would wonder whether he was educated in the field of ballroom manners or question his royal bloodline.

The difference between his coordinated movements and the ones of Blanche as an inexperienced amateur was painfully obvious. She hadn't stumbled yet, but she was sure that her lover was the one she should thank for that.

Theodore opened his eyes at the exact moment that she thought that. As soon as he realized that she was watching him, he began gazing at her with a smile that made her want to kiss him. The only reason that Blanche didn't dare to do that was not wanting to disturb their movements.

Theodore stopped counting, and she expected to get confused with the steps, but allowing her lover to lead her gave her the chance to continue without faltering. This made him speak up. “See? You aren't bad at all.” He carefully guided her away from the sofa to not run into it before looking back at her. “You aren't making any mistakes.”

Blanche raised an eyebrow at that. “Are you sure that it is because of my skills? I would assume that this is thanks to your effort. You learned to dance when you were a child, so it's natural that you perfected it until now. I'm pretty convinced that you leading me is the reason that this works out so well.”

“I admit that I have impressed multiple teachers with my abilities, but that wouldn't help a person that can't dance. I think that we don't make any errors right now because we are in tune with each other. We're just the perfect couple.”

That remark stung in her heart. This was exactly what Blanche had always thought when she had seen Seraphina and Theodore dancing. The spouses had been educated in noble etiquette including waltzing ever since their early childhood, and they were very efficient students. So, it wasn't odd for a dance of these two to look like a flawless example from a guidebook. Still, Blanche had seen it as some kind of sign of their destined future together. The perfect couple with the same interests and personality was moving at the exact same pace. This was how the novel had portrayed them after all.

So, Theodore telling Blanche that he saw her as the person that was his ideal partner made her want to yell out of joy. She wanted to throw her arms around him and forget that any other possibility than him being with her even existed.

But she couldn't do that. Not without revealing how fragile her mind was at the moment.

So, Blanche settled for moving a bit closer to him. “I love you.” At the moment that their eyes met, she already knew what would follow.

“I love you too.” Immediately, Theodore's lips crashed onto hers, and he pulled her even closer.

After a few seconds, they slowed down their pace, and their posture became more of a hug. They were still spinning very slowly, but other than that, they weren't dancing anymore.

Blanche didn't really care about that when she was pressed against Theodore's chest. She didn't have any intention of moving her face away from him either way. She couldn't allow her lover to see the uncertainty in her expression, or she would be forced to answer his questions again.

The emotional state in which she currently was troubled her quite a bit.

In one second, Blanche believed that she would be able to change the novel's ending and even hoped to stay Theodore's lover. In the next one, she almost cried because he told her that he loved her and feared losing everything because of Seraphina and the noble's rumors. She was too uncertain right now. Maybe she should come to a better conclusion than to wait for the story to progress to confirm whether she could keep the main characters apart and whether Sefare was a real danger. But she was tired of overthinking.

The mere existence of “To Be Empress” had ruined her mental health, and she was scared of every single thing that might cause an issue and despised every second that Theodore interacted with his wife. How could she go on like this? She wouldn't be able to remain in this unclear state, in which the hope for a happy ending and the despair of being executed by her lover were only minutes away from each other. Not for much longer.

But she wouldn't have to if she could just endure it for a few more weeks.

Blanche had to prevent the main characters from meeting for the smaller scenes and see whether she was successful in keeping them at a distance from each other. If that was possible, she could truly win. But if it wasn't possible, that realization would crush her heart.

Theodore pulled her out of her thoughts by suddenly speaking up. “Do you remember the hunting festival?”

She tried her best to not let him hear that she was lost in thoughts and replied. “Yes. It will be soon, right? I don't know when exactly though.”

“In two weeks and four days. Like last year, we'll hold it in the forest next to the estate. Nothing will be very different, so you already know what will happen. It's the same every year.” He let out a quiet chuckle. “Even the amount of points most people have stays constant, so the same people are the three best ones each time. So, I assume that I'll win again.” He would.

Theodore wasn't a very good fighter. He had received the basic training in his childhood but hated weapons and had stopped as fast as possible by claiming that his personal knight would simply protect him. He was able to shoot moving animals with a bow and fight with a sword, but he wasn't exceptional here like he was in many other fields. The only reason he won the hunting festival every year was that all the other nobles had trained even less. The few ones that were better with a bow often didn't take part since they were too old or didn't want to offend the emperor by being better than him despite him assuring them that he didn't care about winning. He truly didn't care about that though. To Theodore, victory in such a competition meant nothing, so he didn't try to improve his skills with the bow either. Still, he would win again this year.

The novel had described the events at the hunting festival, and those would serve to deepen the bond that had formed between the main characters and also begin to increase their romantic interest in each other. Some important event, which should have led to the first kiss, had happened directly before that and made the spouses think about each other as a love interest for the first time.

At the hunt, each woman would give her husband, or a male family member, a beautifully adorned handkerchief. The winner's honor would then be due to that woman as well. Naturally, Seraphina would give Theodore her handkerchief, and since he would win, they would celebrate this together. The heroine would tell him that she was proud of him, which would cause both of them to blush.

Thinking about that scene was revolting to Blanche. Not only because it marked the beginning of the main character's romance, but also because she couldn't prevent it. How could she forbid Theodore to accept his wife's handkerchief when he had to do it to not greatly offend Seraphina? She also couldn't keep him from winning. She would just have to stand there and watch while the spouses got closer to each other.

Unless they didn't have any desire to do so.

Maybe the main characters wouldn't be keen on talking with one another that much since they hadn't become friends yet. Seraphina hadn't been as ecstatic because of Theodore's gift as she should have been, and because of that, they also hadn't begun to eat with each other regularly. Were those missing interactions enough to secure that they wouldn't be interested in one another?

Blanche hoped that this was the case, but she couldn't be sure. The prospect of being forced to stand by while the heroine praised Theodore already send stings to her heart.

Again, she began praying to the gods despite all the terror they had shown her already. Just once they could be spare her the sight of such a heartbreaking scene, right?