111. My Son, Yet Horrifying

2024.01.19.

Late Empress Eleonore.

At that painful name, Yuan paused briefly.

Clade’s mother.

The woman who had passed away ten years ago during the Monster Hunt Festival, poisoned and hastily transported to the capital, never getting to leave a single word of final message for Clade.

Naturally, her thoughts drifted to Clade, who would now be at Glory Hall.

Yuan consciously stopped thinking about Clade and opened her eyes wider, focusing intently on the figure of the late Empress Eleonore herself.

“…What does that have to do with anything?”

Tasha wore a dazed expression, as if she couldn’t figure out where or how to begin explaining.

But she quickly composed herself, glanced cautiously at the deeply sleeping Empress Marilyn, then lowered her voice and whispered.

“Did you know His Majesty the Emperor was originally engaged to the late Empress Eleonore?”

“What?”

Yuan flinched, nearly jumping in shock.

“After losing the imperial succession contest, the fiancée was changed—so the ‘Empress’ position desired by Marquis Rev’s family could still be secured.”

This was a story she had never heard before in her life.

That Clade’s mother had once been engaged to Emperor Igor?

Just imagining Empress Eleonore and the Emperor standing side by side sent chills crawling up her arms.

“That’s—”

“At the time, the Emperor wished that no matter which of his sons became Emperor, Marquis Rev’s daughter would one day become Empress.”

“…”

“In other words, the current Emperor lost both the throne and his bride.”

What a heartbreaking, yet fortunate twist of fate!

Had Empress Eleonore not married Emperor Alexei, Clade would never have been born.

But the sudden thought struck her—could this mean Igor harbored resentment toward his own brother and sister-in-law?

Could it be that Emperor Igor’s mad actions stemmed from jealousy over love?

Seeing Yuan’s troubled eyes, Tasha lowered her voice even further. Her gaze remained fixed with sorrow on the Empress.

“The Empress knows all of this too well. She lived through that very chaos herself. Grand Duke Drietter committed an outrage. How dare he commit such disrespect toward Her Majesty!”

In short, Empress Marilyn was fully aware of Emperor Igor’s circumstances.

And yet, Grand Duke Drietter had boldly presented a woman resembling the late Empress Eleonore as a gift to the Emperor, right before her eyes.

When Yuan sorted through the situation, she completely understood why Empress Marilyn had trembled violently and fainted.

“Then why would Grand Duke Drietter do such a thing on purpose?”

“Because of Princess Ariesta, of course!”

Tasha whispered sharply, sounding slightly exasperated.

She quickly glanced again at the Empress, then pulled Yuan’s arm and stepped aside into a corner, whispering.

“The Empress doesn’t want the Princess to be matched with His Highness Bollonico!”

“But why? Doesn’t Her Majesty wish to unite the princes with daughters from powerful families?”

Tasha suddenly clamped her lips shut, nearly blurting out the Empress’s intentions.

She looked as if she had just realized she had been rambling to an utterly clueless Crown Princess about palace secrets in the midst of confusion, and let out a long, frustrated sigh through her nose before falling silent.

She had nearly spilled everything uncontrollably, caught in the innocent, wide black eyes of Yuan.

To someone who might be entirely loyal to Bollonico!

Tasha suppressed the urge to grab a sword she didn’t have and smack herself hard on the head, then rushed toward the bed, following the rustling sound.

“Your Majesty!”

Empress Marilyn was struggling to rise, her face pale. Yuan quickly followed Tasha and helped support the Empress into a seated position. Marilyn looked slightly dazed, muttering incoherently.

“Bol—Bollonico? Noel?”

“Your Majesty, are you coming to your senses? You suddenly collapsed, so we left the middle of the title-bestowing ceremony. We don’t know where the two Princes are.”

Tasha reported the situation in her usual stiff, military tone.

But it was unclear whether the Empress had truly taken in her words. Her reaction remained unsettled.

“Bollonico. I must see Bollonico. I have to stop that man from luring Ariesta away!”

“Your Majesty!”

The Empress repeatedly tried to rise from the bed, only to sway and collapse back down.

She seemed deeply shaken by the events at Glory Hall, constantly clutching Tasha’s hand and calling for her sons.

Then suddenly, she glared at the door and parted her dry lips.

“Igor will come. After being abandoned by Eleonore, he’ll come to me!”

“Your Majesty! Please calm down! Everything is fine! Nothing has happened!”

“Should we bring Prince Bollonico or Prince Noel?”

Remembering how the Empress kept rambling about her sons, Yuan suggested this gently.

She hoped that if her sons were brought quickly and held close, the Empress might calm down.

But contrary to Yuan’s expectation, Empress Marilyn, with a half-dazed expression, tightly embraced Tasha’s waist and buried her face.

Yuan froze at this unfamiliar behavior.

The Empress before her eyes was vastly different from her usual self.

She looked like a young beast struck in a vital spot, half its vitality drained.

Her hair, which always seemed to allow not a single strand out of place, was now loose and disheveled. Her perfect makeup, once flawlessly applied, was now half-smudged. The Empress no longer looked like a majestic sovereign, but like a weary girl.

Why did Yuan think of her as a girl rather than a noblewoman? Because this woman, who normally struggled so hard to control her expressions, now wore a face that laid bare the deepest emotions of her heart.

“Bollonico…?”

“Yes, shall we bring Prince Bollonico?”

Yuan asked calmly, in a gentle voice.

“Bollonico. Yes, this disaster is because of that boy. That’s why Grand Duke Drietter dared to present such a woman before me.”

Empress Marilyn grimaced briefly, then bit her parched lips tightly, trembling violently.

Tears welled up in her beautiful almond-shaped eyes, which had been fixed on the door, and dropped one after another.

“Bollonico… I gave birth to him, yet he doesn’t feel like mine. His face resembles mine, but inside—he’s just like his father. I try desperately not to show it, but he can’t fool my eyes. He can’t fool my eyes…”

At the Empress’s explosive words, Tasha widened her eyes and glanced at Yuan.

A flicker of alarm crossed Tasha’s face—worried about what might happen later if these words from an unstable Empress reached Yuan’s ears.

But Yuan remained calm.

She slowly approached the Empress, lowered herself, and met her gaze. The Empress then gripped Yuan’s shoulders tightly and warned her.

“Don’t be fooled by that doll-like face. That child is truly a demon. My son, but… horrifying.”

The last words were whispered so softly they were nearly inaudible, but Yuan heard them clearly.

Tasha must have heard them too, for she quickly lifted the Empress almost like a cradle and laid her back down.

Like a well-behaved noble lady, Empress Marilyn meekly surrendered her body to Tasha’s hands and sank into sleep like a collapse.

Tasha carefully covered her with a blanket, tidied the surroundings, then abruptly turned toward Yuan.

Caught off guard, Yuan found herself staring straight into Tasha’s eyes and could only smile awkwardly.

Otherwise, Tasha looked as if she might immediately draw a nonexistent sword and slice off Yuan’s ears and tongue for hearing things she shouldn’t have.

***

It took a full two days before Empress Marilyn properly left her bed.

During that time, Yuan was practically confined to the main palace, kept under Tasha’s watch.

“I told you all these palace matters because I was afraid you might make a mistake in front of Her Majesty.”

“Yes.”

“It’s common knowledge among those who know, but still, it’s best not to utter a word about it outside.”

“Yes. I understand, Lady Kimfri. And please, speak more freely now. You can call me Yuan.”

Tasha squinted at Yuan as if gauging how trustworthy her lips were, then gave a half-hearted nod.

Tasha had not only stayed up all night nursing the Empress until she could at least rise and walk, but also kept Yuan from leaving the main palace.

She seemed worried that she had spoken too freely to Yuan and that Yuan might pass it on to Bollonico or someone else.

So Yuan cooperated with Tasha, who had made up a reason to keep her there, and stayed by the Empress’s side.

Empress Marilyn canceled all her daily routines and remained secluded in the bedroom with them.

She dressed comfortably, unlike her usual tightly-laced attire, and leaned completely on Tasha.

She even delegated part of her urgent duties to Tasha—such deep trust needed no further proof.

And Tasha carried out those duties with utmost diligence.

Yuan had assumed Tasha belonged to the type who would look down on a helpless, broken Empress who had abandoned her responsibilities. But she was wrong.

Tasha murmured that, as another woman, she deeply sympathized with Empress Marilyn.

“This time, Grand Duke Drietter is completely in the wrong. He’s provoking Her Majesty because the marriage between Princess Ariesta and Prince Bollonico keeps getting delayed. Good heavens.”

Anyway. There was another reason why Empress Marilyn remained secluded in the main palace.

It was due to rumors about the Emperor, who had been staying in the palace longer than usual since the title-bestowing ceremony.

“How could the Emperor treat Her Majesty this way?”

“And not just anyone—a woman who looks like the late Empress! Spending several nights with her!”

“This is unacceptable!”

The whispers of the elderly maids grew louder each day.

Empress Marilyn suffered sleepless nights because of the vulgar rumors about the Emperor and the woman who resembled the late Empress Eleonore.

Then, when rumors spread like wildfire throughout the palace that Emperor Igor had officially taken the woman as his new concubine, her face turned deathly pale—and she fainted once again.

Emperor Igor came to see her a full day after she had collapsed.

“My Marilyn is unwell?”