On the day she saw him again, transcending time, Carson Von Raymond, a beautiful man sitting on a horse, still overwhelmed Ines with that radiance draped over his entire body.

Every moment she endured, considering him a deity, and now, holding him solely as her man, seemed somehow unbearable. Ines, unable to withstand this moment, raised her arm to cover her eyes.

“Ines.”

As he called, Ines lowered her arm and looked at him. Carson lowered his lips and wiped away Ines’s tears.

“I love you.”

Ines’s body tensed at those words.

“I wanted to make you cry, from the moment we first met.”

“…”

“But seeing you cry, I hate it. It feels unpleasant.”

“It’s not that I cry because I hate it.”

“Even if I know, I hate it.”

Carson gently brushed Ines’s forehead and cheek. His body temperature, as warm as hers, melted into his hand. Trying not to avoid eye contact, the woman who made a considerable effort had her face gently caressed.

Their eyes meeting and feeling each other seemed to mix their souls.

The Ines in her imagination couldn’t follow the real Ines. Her strange expressions and unfamiliar voice, he had always shivered at the thrill from the beginning until now.

The two who met after a long journey were absorbed in each other to the point of forgetting the waiting time.

The more Carson filled, the more Ines felt empty. Burning with affection, he repeatedly called her name.

“Ines, Ines.”

Calling her name, Carson suddenly realized.

Throughout my life, I will love you even more. While looking at you, I will always feel a bit thirsty.

So, during the time I held you, I had to keep confirming. That you want me as much as I want you, that surprising fact.

That night, Ines left only one necklace, matching the color of her eyes, and spent the entire black night turning it white.

The Mondray Bank was designated as the central bank, and the monetary system of the island stabilized unbelievably quickly.

The Ministry of Finance, which was considered as the property of Mansuet, underwent a complete innovation with entirely new people.

“Is everyone here?”

Carson looked at the representatives crowded in front of him. As promised and pledged by Ines, she did not pull him down even one step. She climbed to the highest point by herself.

Now, all that remained was for her to put down her last step with my hand.

Knowing well that the voices of the weakened ones posed no threat, Mansuet, who had filled in for the meeting, did not utter a single word for a long time.

Around the time the reports from each department concluded, Carson raised his hand and called Noah, who was standing by his side.

“Go to Ines and tell her to wait a little longer.”
Mumbling and dragging out time, Carson felt that today’s meeting was unnecessarily prolonged. Since there were issues to address today, Carson generously let the representatives make noise as they pleased.

“All right.”

As Noah moved to carry out Carson’s command, he called Noah again.

“Don’t sleep; wait.”

Having received the order, Noah nodded slightly and quickly left the conference room. Since that night, Carson had not left Ines alone for even a day.

Imperceptibly, the emperor seemed to be living in Ines’s room. Was there ever any emperor who stayed in a maid’s room for so long?

But no one could do anything about it. To bring up such a small matter, considering the pressing issues faced by the aristocrats filling the conference room, it was too much.

Instead of yelling and making a fuss, Carson thought about Ines while facing the noise in front of him.

He thought that the longing in his heart would diminish a bit when he held her in his arms, but it was the opposite.

Closing his tired eyes, it seemed as if Ines’s voice echoed in his ears. Feeling the heat gathering somewhere in his body, he clenched his teeth.

“Sigh…”

As he let out a deep sigh, silence spread through the conference room. Carson swept his hair back and glanced around the audience.

“Looks like the discussions are almost done, so now it’s my turn to say one thing.”

He smirked and raised his lips, focusing his gaze squarely on Mansuet.

“Don’t I need to get married? How many times do I have to say this directly from the emperor’s mouth? You guys… are lazy.”

Carson tilted his head as if to say, “If you have anything to say, go ahead.”

“You should do it. Haven’t you sent a formal request every day to select an empress officially?”

“I’ve already declared that I will welcome the daughter of the Swedish Earl as the empress. But even so, nothing has been done yet. Isn’t that strange?”

“Even though you are the emperor, there are things you cannot do.”

“Why?”

“It is presumed that you are aware and asking is unnecessary.”

Carson burst into laughter. So far, they had never directly mentioned the crimes Ines committed.

“I don’t know.”

“You are a woman who committed a crime. Moreover, what kind of ordinary crime is it? Attempted murder. The scandal that stirred up the entire system. The protagonist of such a great scandal.”