Luciano spoke up with a smile just a few seconds after Theodore had finished elaborating his idea. “I believe that His Majesty will be able to convince anyone as long as they listen to him. Along with the fact that it looks like all families here agree, that will make it easy for this idea to spread among the other nobles. If we have five years, we can influence the public view on this topic without many problems. Just a few words here to some marquess that doesn't have an heir but multiple daughters and would need to give his family's wealth to some stranger who happened to marry one of the daughters. A couple of hints about how the third empress of Artias ruled for longer than her husband and took over his tasks which caused the nation to flourish. Something like that should be enough if we do it continuously.”
Theodore mirrored the other's smile. “I am glad to hear that you share my opinion on this matter. It would be easier to change the public's mind before presenting them the law all of a sudden. Since I already hinted at making some of these changes, no one should be surprised though. I will make sure that Blanche gets involved in politics as much as I am, and since she is eager to do that, it will be easy to prove how serious we are. There is a female sword-fighter that can prove her abilities during the hunting festival in a few weeks too. We have two dignified duchesses that have a lot of influence as well so that they can spread the news about our new ideas. I also plan on possibly introducing a female minister if someone proves to be capable enough. Thus, we will have many female role models in the near future.”
Fiona's eyes lit up as soon as she heard about the chance of becoming a minister. She tried to hide it, but she balled her fists below the table and grinned to herself before turning to her father, who gave her a soft smile. It was too sweet how encouraging Duke Lamont was despite his conservative upbringing. And more than that, it was good to see that an intelligent young woman like Fiona didn't have to desperately try to impress a wealthy man to secure her household's future anymore.
It took a few seconds until everyone that had listened processed that new information, but it seemed like no one felt offended.
Sophia, who knew exactly that the talented sword-fighter was her friend Madeleine, beamed after hearing this and spoke up in a chirpy tone. “Then we can just help Your Majesty by talking about this matter? That is wonderful. We will do our best so that these laws will be successful.” She couldn't stop grinning at that, and even her normally rather shy husband smiled at his wife's content expression.
Theodore glanced over at Blanche at that and whispered to her. “I told you that there was absolutely no need to worry about any of this. We will win in the end. Everyone here would be happy about the changes we proposed. Duke Duremont is thinking right now, and he will soon decide that his wife and daughters are more important to him than the risks of angering the public. So, he will definitely agree in a minute.”
Indeed, it looked like Henry was lost in thought. He stared at his plate and occasionally glanced at his beaming daughter as well as his wife. After a few seconds of silence, he spoke up. “There are many women that have exceptional talent and only refrain from making our nation a better place due to the many restraints that our traditions have put onto them. So, I believe that it would be good to abolish any biases and allow our society to move forward. I would recommend that Your Majesty does this at a more leisure pace than how you introduced Her Majesty to the public though.”
It was true that Theodore had suddenly led his lover into the center of attention, even more so than before, only to make sure that everyone would know about their relationship. He hadn't been very tactful while doing that, and such stubbornness could lead to problems this time.
Blanche was sure that her lover would still master them, but she would do her best to keep an eye on him. “I will regulate him a bit, Your Grace. He already decided to do it in five years instead of ten, so I will make sure that he keeps this time span in mind.”
Theodore grinned at her. “I said five years at most. I can do it faster too. The laws are already written. Once they are affirmed by the ministers, they can become part of the constitution within a month. The hard part is making people accept this new development so that they won't just force their daughters to give up the right of succession to their brothers. But I can take care of that, I promise that to you. Everything will be wonderful, and if we have a little princess, she will become the ruler of the nation. If she wants to rule, that is.”
The empress was about to kiss him before she reminded herself that they weren't alone. It would be better to hold back a bit now. “Thank you, Theo. I trust that you will deal with this matter accordingly. But I am by your side and will get involved a bit too. I want to do something aside from sitting around after all.”
Her lover beamed at her and kissed the backside of her hand. “Of course. You will do as much as you want to. But I will not let you overwork yourself. You already did so much during the past weeks. I fear that you will forget to rest if you go on like this.” She doubted it.
The couple made sure that they had more than enough chances to rest properly while cuddling with each other. They even paused during work for a few minutes to be able to concentrate better after having read a while. They surely didn't do too much.
Blanche didn't say that though. Instead, she had to tear her eyes away from her lover's out of fear that she would kiss him soon if she didn't hold back. So, she forced herself to look at the guests, of which some looked like they expected the couple to kiss again. She cleared her throat and spoke up. “In any case, it is good to hear that the people here seem to agree in this matter. We promise to take care of it so that our society can slowly change. We will do what we can to ensure that women will have as much power and influence as men. It will definitely take a long time, but we will take as many little steps as necessary to get there. We are lucky enough to have very progressive families in our nation, so it will certainly be successful.” She showed the guests a bright smile. “Shall we drink a toast to this decision then?” She gestured to the wine glasses that every single of the guests had in front of them.
They all had red or white wine depending on their preference while Blanche had allowed herself to ask for some apricot tea. It might not look like wine, but at least she didn't have a clear liquid in her glass. For some reason, her lover had insisted on drinking the same so the both of them lifted their glasses with tea as the others raised their wine for a toast.
Theodore looked deep into his wife's eyes as he spoke. “May this nation continue to flourish under the reign of the Estien family. We all pray for a wonderful future with as much peace and prosperity for Artias as possible.”
Before they toasted, Henry spoke up as well. “Of course, we wish for our country's well-being, but we also hope for the best for the royal family. May His and Her Majesty be blessed with a long life full of happiness. We all pray for the royal heir to be in good health. May the pregnancy proceed well without any complications. We wish the little prince or princess a wonderful life.”
With that, the group drank from their glasses.
Afterward, it seemed like the serious topics were forgotten once again. Sophia had returned to chatting about what kind of cute things her daughter had done, and no one could stop her or had the desire to do so. Especially after she managed to convince Luciano to share some stories about the clingy Rebecca too.
It was one of the most pleasant tea parties Blanche had ever been to. The whole time, she smiled, and when she turned to her lover, he was also grinning at her. Throughout the event, nothing special happened, and it was good like this.
The guests bid the royal couple farewell at this point and slowly left one after the other. The Duremont family stayed behind longer than everyone else. When it seemed like they would leave too, Henry spoke up to ask the emperor to have a short private conversation with him.
Blanche was a bit worried about that after all. She wasn't sure whether she had messed up some kind of greeting or had dissatisfied the duke, so she was skeptical as watched the men from afar while eating one of the last cupcakes.
Next to her, Stella couldn't stop smiling even though her mistress was nervous. “The tea party went well, didn't it? The conversation looked so relaxing. It seems like His Majesty and you had no trouble entertaining anyone. It is good to see that you get along with the guests. Those were the most important families in the capital. If you have their trust, everything will go well.”
The empress sipped the remains of her tea before gabbing another cupcake. “I thought that it went well too. Then Duke Duremont wanted to speak to Theo alone. Maybe I did something wrong again. Who knows. I guess I will know in a few minutes. Hopefully, it's nothing bad.” It shouldn't be.
Henry didn't have an icy stare on his face like he usually did when he was mad, and Elaine was with him as well. He wouldn't let her stay next to him when he was going to try to scold the emperor.
Since Theodore was smiling, it didn't seem to be about the duke criticizing Blanche either.
The empress took another bite and swallowed it before turning to her maid. “What did you do the whole time? Did you enjoy eating the sweets that Darlene stole earlier?”
Stella froze and folded her hands. “So, you...saw that. I apologize, My Lady. But it looked so tasty that we couldn't resist.” She looked at her mistress with round eyes even though she had already seen the empress smile.
Blanche glanced at the table and scanned the leftovers of today. “It seems like you will have a lot to eat in the evening if you want to take care of all of this. You should probably bring this to the kitchen and let the staff deal with it. It will disappear in no time.”
Stella happily nodded and grabbed a cookie to put it into her mouth in whole. She beamed at her mistress and chewed a bit before speaking up. “Right now, everything is really nice. All of us can be together without needing to worry about anything. I hope it stays like this forever.” She paused, and her smile grew as she leaned to the empress' ear and put her hand on the other's shoulder. “And that means one thing. My intuition was right, wasn't it? When you started worrying about your nightmares, I always told you that it would end well. And look where you are now.”
Blanche took a moment to remember her maid consoling often in the past. Back then, the world had looked so grim, and now she felt as if divine light illuminated her whole life. She let out a small chuckle and rested her hand on Stella's. “It seems like you were right. We finally reached a wonderful future. I'm glad that everything worked out in the end.” She smiled and looked up at her maid. “I need to thank you, don't I? You stayed with me the whole time even though I was so cold to you after we met. I'm not sure whether I would have been able to pull myself together without you. I was so scared at that time, and you were there to calm me down from the very beginning. You just pulled me out of the shell I was hiding in, and now I even found other friends through you. You truly were a light at the end of a dark tunnel. Thank you for your continuous support, Stella. I owe you.”
Stella's eyes filled with tears way too quickly. “My Lady...” She breathed that before trying to calm herself down a bit. After a few deep breaths, she whispered to the empress. “I would hug you now, but there are guests here.” She almost pouted while saying that, which made Blanche chuckle again.
“What are they going to complain about? If I give you permission, it's fine. Come here.” Blanche lifted her arms and stood up to welcome her friend into a hug.
Stella embraced her quickly and rested her chin on the other woman's shoulder. “Thank you, My Lady. I feel like I haven't done anything special, but if you are grateful, I seemed to have helped you. I'm happy about that.” She sniffled before continuing. “You should know that I'm incredibly glad to be able to stay here in the palace at your side along with our friends. I could never imagine serving another mistress. I'm glad that I became your maid.”
Blanche patted the other woman's back, but before she could respond, a third voice chimed in.
“Do I need to worry about my wife being stolen from me already? That's not good.”
Stella let go slowly before She stepped back and bowed. “I apologize. I did not mean to do anything insolent.” She looked like she wasn't sure whether this was the time to stand back or join in to joke about being competition for the emperor, so she just stayed quiet.
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Theodore's expression quickly calmed her though. He wasn't upset and just showed the maid a bright smile as he took her place and hugged Blanche. “I don't think you stand a chance here. I have my ways to make sure that my angel will never lack anything. This position is already taken.”
Blanche grinned at that and put her arms around her lover's neck. “She just took care of me while you were chatting with Duke Duremont. There is no need to be so jealous. You know that there is only room for you in my heart.” She looked up at him and stroked over his hair. “What did you talk about with him? Is there something I can't know?”
The emperor's lips formed a smirk as his hand found the back of her head. “I wonder. It seems like the Duremonts wanted to know whether there is anything special they can gift us as a congratulatory present. And the duchess' birthday is in a few weeks. They wanted to know whether we would attend even though you are pregnant. I said that we will need to decide that then. I won't put you in a carriage if you are feeling unwell.”
Blanche was relieved to hear that. Apparently, she hadn't offended anyone by voicing her thoughts today. “I see. Then we should rest a bit the day before so that I am feeling well enough to attend. It should be fine, I think. And about the first part...did you ask them not to gift us anything for our baby? They brought presents for the wedding, and they will bring some for the next baby party. There is no need to give us anything now.”
Theodore gently ran his fingers through her hair as he smiled down at her. “I think Duke Duremont wants to improve our relationship again. After all of the fights we had in the past, that may be necessary too. It's good to hear that he is doing his best. He even noticed that he will have to get along well with you as well. There won't be any problems with him in the future. If we ever need a noble to do us a favor, we have the person right here.”
Blanche would feel a bit bad about using that man's desire to end a fight that had developed because of her own actions too. Depending on the situation, it might be helpful though. “Then I'm glad to hear that as well. I already thought that there was a problem, but seemingly, it was just something nice. Maybe I'm too sensitive when it comes to things like that.”
Her lover became a bit more serious at that. “That is understandable. There were countless problems on our way, so I'm often expecting some kind of trouble too. It's strange that everything is so quiet now, but I enjoy it. That doesn't mean that I will let my guard down though. I will do my best to prevent anything like that from ever happening again. I won't stand for more fights for power that cause countless causalities nor will I allow a war. We saw how gruesome that was. There is no way that we'll stand by as it happens again.”
Blanche nodded at that. She was glad that the memories of that time weren't as real to her as other moments. She only remembered still images and vague scenes but not the whole extent of cruelty on a battlefield. Even so, it was enough to know that this had to be avoided at all costs. But preventing wars wasn't enough.
In this timeline, there hadn't been a war. Still, there had been deaths. The Besseta family had been eliminated. Claude had been murdered, even if he clearly deserved it. Kate had been executed for trying to poison Blanche. All of those people had been killed because they had gotten involved in some shady matters. But that didn't mean that a whole family had deserved to be wiped from existence.
Along with those people, six royal guards had lost their lives too, just because the dowager empress had wanted to eliminate evidence. And that hadn't been everyone.
Seven years ago, Althea, the woman that had raised Theodore with love and affection, had died too.
The empress didn't delude herself into thinking that those had been all the people that had suffered because of power struggles for one second. There were way more. There had been far too many victims. In the old timeline, there had been hundred-thousands of deaths because of Claude's plots as well.
Blanche gritted her teeth at that and took a deep breath. That was over now. She was in a position that would allow her to prevent things from this from happening in the future. With Theodore by her side, they would definitely succeed. She spoke up in a quiet voice. “Power-hungriness and old grudges. Those were the main reasons for the bad things that happened. We will do something against that. I want to help you stabilize the country. I want the economy to flourish while we are at peace with every nation around us. Every person in Artias should have the chance to live happily in a safe environment without political tension. I will become a good empress and take care of everything with you. I promise that.”
Theodore pressed a kiss onto her forehead and then leaned back to make eye contact. “We will deal with any problems that may arise together. I promise that I will be by your side until the very end. We will master any obstacle that could be put in our path. We will win no matter what. And for now, everything is good. We did so much that we deserve a break now. You saw how perfect everything is, so there is no need to worry already. We are prepared to deal with anything that could happen.”
Blanche's expression softened as she looked at her lover. It was calming to hear all of that. Maybe she should stop overthinking things now. Problems could always develop, but those wouldn't take over everything. The couple would definitely move forward into a wonderful future. She leaned into her lover's touch and gave him a little smile. “I know that we can deal with everything. We will create a perfect future. But we won't need to worry the whole time. You are right about us deserving a break. We will make all of our dreams become reality. We have our own happy ending now.”
Theodore gave her a bright smile as he ran his fingers down the side of her face. “Yes, we do. And we deserve it. There will be nothing that can make us unhappy from now on. I promise you that.”
“If you keep promising, I will have to do it too.” She returned a just as radiant smile. “I promise that I will be with you for all eternity and love you with all of my heart. I want to become a good empress for the whole nation. And more importantly, I want to become a good mother and wife too.” She stood up on her tiptoes to press a kiss onto his lips.
Her lover gently cupped her face in return and spoke in a soft voice. “You already are. You are perfect just the way you are. I love everything about you. The only thing we will change is our knowledge. We have to improve. We will learn new things to make sure that we know what our child needs, and we will learn to help the nation. Let's move forward together and accept what the future holds for us. No matter what happens, we will make it wonderful.”
Hearing that made Blanche even happier than before. This world was truly perfect. Just to be held in her lover's arms while knowing that they were having a family together was enough to make her euphoric. She leaned her head against her lover's chest as one thought came into her mind.
Blanche liked this much more than being the villainess. She now had her own happy end with her beloved, and for the first time, it felt like she might actually be the heroine.
“Theodore!”
A loud voice pulled the couple out of their thoughts.
Theodore was slightly annoyed to be interrupted so rudely, but he froze upon seeing Leonard's expression. “What's wrong? Did something happen?”
Leon ran the last few steps toward the couple and took a few deep breaths to calm himself before replying. “There is a huge...problem. Your brother...ran away.”
The couple was dumbfounded at that. The emperor blinked a few times as utter shock became visible on his face before it morphed into something more exasperated. “What? He broke out of confinement? How is that possible? They should be under surveillance the whole time! What were the guards doing? Where is he?”
The secretary threw his arms into the air. “I don't know! That's what I'm trying to find out. He just disappeared today after having a fight with the dowager empress. I will travel to their house immediately and investigate the matter. I'm in the middle of preparing the carriage. His Royal Highness left behind a note saying that he wants to visit the city and will come back after one or two days, but there is no way that we can just trust that. I will find him as soon as possible.”
Blanche was frozen in place as she heard that and could just stare at Leon before looking at Theodore. That was ridiculous. Surely, there weren't as many guards in the confinement mansion, where the dowager empress and the prince were staying, as in the palace. But the estate was much smaller, which meant that there should be knights at every corner. The security measures might be even more heightened than the ones here, even for Cedar, who could at least move freely and was treated politely in contrast to Camille. The fact that the news of the escape was already here proved that much.
How could anyone flee from such a place? Had Cedar talked himself out? There was no way. Theodore would only have sent trustworthy people there. Surely, the prince hadn't been able to climb over a wall without being seen either, right? That would be too easy. And why was he even saying that he would come back? None of this made sense.
Blanche opened her mouth for a moment and closed it again before speaking. “Why? Breaking out is a risk. He has to have some kind of goal. Cedar probably won't just run around in the capital and return because he was bored. He can't really do anything if he's out on his own, can he? Doesn't he just risk getting hurt if he meets some dangerous people that see that he is a noble?” Besides, she was rather sure that Cedar had told her that going out into the city was connected to bad memories for him. He wouldn't run away and risk angering his mother for no reason.
Theodore weakly shook his head. “I wouldn't worry about him defending himself. He is a genius at sword-fighting. If he has the desire to win, he would even be able to take on Owen despite their difference in height and strength. Some lowlife criminals that run around in the streets won't trouble him. But I still don't understand why he is doing this. As you said, he can't do anything unless he gets the support of someone powerful. No one should want to help him after his mother lost everything. And last time, it looked like he had no real desire to overthrow me. That's why he didn't fight back either. You're right about him having some kind of intention, but... I don't get what he could want. What will roaming the streets gain him?” He stared into the distance for a moment before turning to Leon. “You said he had a fight with that woman. Did anyone say what it was about? Did anyone talk to him in general before he left?”
Leonard nodded. “We have no detailed information, but he definitely got into a discussion with one of the guards. Apparently, that man scolded him for coming too close to the edges of the property. His Royal Highness replied calmly and talked to him for a while. The next thing the colleagues noticed was the knight lying on the ground with his sword missing. He was knocked out cleanly and will recover in a short while. But there was blood that didn't belong to the guard too. That means that we can assume that they fought and that His Royal Highness got hurt.” Which meant that Cedar being able to defend himself against any criminals wasn't true.
That was enough to make Blanche worry, and she fully blamed it on her vague memories of the past. She looked up to her lover while asking herself what reason Cedar could have for this once again. Wouldn't he just end up being caught if he was hurt? If he returned like planned, the security measures would be heightened, and there would be no way for him to go out again when he really needed to do something for his secret goal. And why wouldn't he stay behind after getting injured to get treatment? She knew that he hated getting help, but this was ridiculous. It didn't make sense no matter how she put it.
Theodore furrowed his brows as he gazed at the floor. “This is...” He didn't finish that sentence and was quiet for a moment. Then he lifted his head and looked at Leonard. “Find him quickly. I need the reason for his escape attempt. But first, find him and get him treatment, or that idiot will kill himself because he refuses to visit a doctor.”
Leon nodded and took a step back. “I'm on my way. It won't take long. No one can hide from me. I'll leave the work here to you. ” He tried to sound confident, but he actually just appeared to be grim. If someone was hiding, they definitely didn't want to be found by him. Not when he actually looked like an assassin with this cold glare on his face. He turned around and hurried off to take the next carriage to the confinement mansion.
Blanche looked after him before lifting her head and putting her hand on Theodore's cheek. “It will be fine. Leon will find him and bring him back safely. This won't have any negative consequences for us. I'm sure of that.” She gently brushed her fingers over his forehead in an attempt to stop him from looking at her with such a concerned expression. As expected, it was hard to distract him in this situation, but she did her best. “Everything will be alright, Theo.”
Her lover forced himself to relax a little as he showed her a fake smile. “Thank you. I'm sure that it will be fine too. It's just that... I don't trust him. If Cedar suddenly regained his memories, then he will come here and try to...” He continued in a whisper as he tightened his hold on her. “Take you away from me.”
Blanche gently ran her fingers through his hair as she met his gaze with a serious expression. “Even if he would try that, I have a say in this matter too. I will never ever look at someone aside from you. But I doubt that he would even try it even with his memories. He never used to put his wishes about mine.” After all, Cedar had allowed her to return to the palace despite his obvious worries countless times. He was the type to never act on what he wanted, not when he seemed to think that making others happy was his only goal in life. Plus, Blanche even doubted that Cedar remembered what the couple did. “There is no need to worry. Especially since I don't believe that he will ever gain those memories. He never acted anything like he did back then. I would notice if he was the same. He isn't. If he had remembered, he would have given me a hint in the letter he sent back after receiving mine. With how distant he was, there is no way that he even has the slightest idea.”
She would have noticed it if Cedar started to joke around with her as they had done it in the past. He hadn't trusted her in this world, and his usual protective mechanisms, which she had gotten used to seeing him without, had all been put up to keep everyone else away from him. His last letter, in which he had addressed Blanche with her title as the empress while using flowery words to thank Theodore and her for being generous enough not to give him a harsher punishment, revealed that too. He hadn't mentioned grieving for her nor had he been desperate to see his originally deceased friend again. He had only politely told her that she shouldn't contact a person that had committed treason in his usual indirect way. There was no way that he remembered anything about their friendship.
Blanche did her best to sound calming while she explained that to her husband. “That woman and Allen Duremont are more likely to regain their memories, and as long as it doesn't happen to them, we can be safe. Of course, someone may be injured and gain them overnight like you did, but I'm sure that it won't happen. I can't guarantee it, but I feel like there won't be anyone but us who truly remembers. My intuition tells me that.” If this world wanted to give everyone another chance to be happy, leaving Cedar without his memories would be much more logical. Blanche just hoped that their world kept that in mind. “If Cedar did remember, he would already have tried to contact me, but he didn't. He doesn't trust me, you know? That means that you can relax and wait for Leon to find him.” She cupped his face and stroked over his skin.
Theodore gave her a little smile and rested his forehead against hers. “Thank you. I'm sure that it will be fine too. No matter what happens, it will be alright.” His smile faded again. “In the worst case, we just have to...keep up some boundaries. We have the upper hand, so there shouldn't be any problems. I will take care of anything in whatever way I have to. Even if I dislike it. For now, we will just assume that he doesn't have his memories, and he's just...” He paused and met his lover's gaze to whisper to her. “Maybe he is trying to dig himself out of his current life. Maybe he is trying to change. That would be the much more pleasant choice. Maybe...this is his attempt at escaping his mother even if it's just for the one day that he spends in the capital.”
Blanche hadn't thought about it like that yet. She looked at her lover and replied in a soft voice. “If so, then we should cheer on him. If he does end up trying to harm us, whether he has his memories or not, we will know how to keep him from doing any damage. There won't be an issue. I am sure of that. We have reached our happy end. No one can take that away from us anymore. But this may be the beginning of his story. It would be nice if he has a happy end too.”
Theodore chuckled quietly at that. “But only if we won't need to be treated like villains for that. I refuse to give up our happiness to help him.”
Blanche showed him a blinding smile. “We don't have to do that. He may be the main character of his own story but so are we. We are the hero and the heroine of our story, so there is no way that our ending won't be satisfying. We have our happily ever after. If we need to defend it, we will do that. We will always succeed. And in the end, we will be even happier than now because our angel will be there too.” She carefully led his hand to her stomach and beamed at him. “Doesn't that sound wonderful?”
“It does. As long as you are with me, everything would. I love you.” Her husband's lips found hers, and he captured her in a kiss. It felt like their worries would melt away with just that, and maybe they did. Blanche would make sure to tell him that she loved him too as soon as he released her.
But for now, she would enjoy his affection to the fullest.