“It’s simple.”

He replied while spreading butter on a small piece of bread.

“Simple, you say?”

Jieselgrante’s head tilted unconsciously.

“I just clearly showed how much I care for and love you, Jiesel.”

Upon hearing those words, Jieselgrante’s face turned bright red.

Recently, things had changed a lot. But considering Cabelased’s past personality, this was unthinkable.

It was unimaginable that he would verbally express how much he loved and cared for her to someone else, especially her family.

Cooling her flushed cheeks with the back of her hand, she asked again.

“… Is that all there is to the secret?”

After seeming to ponder for a moment, Cabelased pushed a buttered piece of bread into her mouth and said,

“I don’t think I did anything else particularly special.”

Chewing the freshly baked, savory bread, Jieselgrante nodded slightly.

‘Well…’

Her family loved Jieselgrante very much.

If they learned that Cabelased loved her just as much, there would be no reason to object to their marriage.

Having finished organizing her thoughts, Jieselgrante looked at him.

As their eyes met, Cabelased’s eyes curved gently.

It was an expression that seemed to say she was so pretty for eating well.

‘He always looks at me with those eyes, so there was no room for doubt.’

Jieselgrante nodded once more.

Pushing the now empty plate to one side of the table, Cabelased said,

“Jiesel. There’s something I want to ask too. Now seems like a good opportunity.”

“What is it?”

“I’ve been thinking. Trinity, Jieselgrante.”

“…”

“Which of the two should I call you? What would you like to be called? I’ve wanted to ask that at least once.”

Jieselgrante shrugged her shoulders and said brightly,

“I don’t really care about that.”

Was the explanation insufficient?

Despite her answer, Cabelased slightly furrowed his handsome brow.

“What does that mean?”

To Cabelased’s question, Jieselgrante added softly,

“Actually, names don’t have any meaning, do they?”

In truth, judging by appearances alone, calling her Jieselgrante would be correct.

But regardless of outward appearance, the inner contents remained unchanged.

Whether Trinity, Jieselgrante, or someone else entirely, she was still herself.

It meant her consciousness didn’t change. Never.

Cabelased, who had been silent for a moment as if pondering, murmured with an expression of understanding,

“… I see.”

Jieselgrante gently placed her hand on top of Cabelased’s hand on the table.

He immediately turned his hand over, interlacing his fingers with hers.

And while gently caressing her hand, he whispered softly,

“It seems we’re done eating now.”

Cabelased’s red eyes, which had been staring intently at her face as if transfixed, glanced briefly towards the bed.

Despite being incredibly busy, Cabelased consistently made time to spend with Jieselgrante.

Sometimes it was just having a simple dinner and conversation, but often they spent intimate time in the bedroom.

At times, under the guise of a secret outing, they would go to bustling areas with minimal escorts.

As they spent more time together and created memories, they learned new things about each other they hadn’t known before.

The two often conversed about trending topics or things they saw before them, and now a wandering traveler was regaling them with tales.

“Ah, right! Have I told you about my travels to Ernesto before?”

The passersby who had been listening attentively to the wandering traveler shook their heads.

He then pointed to the edge of the square with a slightly boastful air and added,

“Ahem! Then I simply must tell you that story. From here, go straight that way! Keep going south and you’ll reach the Kingdom of Ernesto. That place is…”

Jieselgrante’s pace slowed a little.

Perhaps because she seemed interested in the wandering traveler’s story?

Cabelased immediately led her to a nearby bench.

“Are you interested in the Kingdom of Ernesto?”

As the wandering traveler’s tale was nearing its end, Cabelased asked.

“Not entirely uninterested. But have you been there, Cabel? To the Kingdom of Ernesto?”

“I’ve been there a few times. What about you?”

“Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve been outside the imperial palace much…”

Blinking slowly at Cabelased’s question, she quickly added,

“… Ah, right! I’ve been to the west.”

“What did you do there?”

“Just… I think I went there on business.”

Though her voice was quite calm as she spoke, it seems she couldn’t hide the distortion in her expression.

Cabelased, who had been closely observing her expression, soon muttered as if to himself,

“It must not have been a pleasant memory.”

With that, Jieselgrante realized he knew about her past events.

She had once been forced to kneel before the leader of a barbaric tribe.

But since it hadn’t been made public, more people were unaware of it.

Apparently not Cabelased, though.

“Where else have you been?”

“Nowhere. Nowhere else.”

As Jieselgrante shook her head, Cabelased asked meaningfully,

“You mean you’ve never been on a trip?”

“No.”

Jieselgrante bit into the apple she was holding with a crisp sound.

Looking back, her journey to the western part of the empire on the Emperor’s orders was the farthest she had ever traveled in her life.

Of course, after becoming Jieselgrante, she was able to move around more freely, but she wasn’t in a position to leisurely travel here and there every season.

She had things to do, after all.

She had to avenge those who killed Trinity, and that revenge had just been completed.

She had no purpose after the revenge was over.

If Cabelased hadn’t reached out to her, asking her to become the Empress, when she felt empty as if hollowed out…

For a while after the revenge was over, it was overwhelming just to keep up with the complex and rapidly changing emotions that swept through her.

Only now had she found stability.

“I’ve never traveled, but is that a problem?”

She asked, taking another bite of the sweet apple.

“It’s not that, but…”

Uncharacteristically, Cabelased trailed off. Lost in thought, he stared into the distance for a while.

“…?”

Jieselgrante was about to ask what he was thinking so deeply about, but soon stopped.

Because the evening glow was just too beautiful at that moment.

After returning from outside the imperial palace, Jieselgrante couldn’t see a single strand of Cabelased’s hair for several days.

When she asked Count Preston, the Emperor’s closest aide and advisor, for the reason, he only repeated the same words.

‘…I apologize, His Majesty is extremely busy right now.’

And when she was able to see his face again, she was a bit surprised. In just a few days, his face had become quite gaunt.

“If something’s going on, won’t you tell me? If there’s anything I can do to help, I want to.”

“Alright.”

With an expression that seemed to say he had been hoping to hear those words from her, Cabelased continued.

“Can you spare some time for me? A few days or so.”

“Of course!”

Jieselgrante nodded without a moment’s hesitation.

She truly thought it would be good if she could be of help to him.

His eyes, which had looked even sharper due to his gaunt appearance over the past few days, curved into a gentle line.

Cabelased hugged her tightly, as if enclosing her in his arms. He seemed very pleased with her answer.

Just as she was about to move her lips, unsure of what to say, Cabelased spoke.

“Have everything prepared so we can leave tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow already?”

When she asked with a bewildered face, Cabelased separated their touching upper bodies. Then, examining her expression, he asked,

“Why, don’t you want to?”

“It’s not that, but…”

“If it’s about work, don’t worry, Jiesel. I’ll take care of it so you don’t have to worry.”

When Cabelased asked if there was anywhere she wanted to go, Jieselgrante thought of Duke Amaterasu’s domain.

She wanted to sort out her personal affairs before the wedding.

However, there was a small problem.

The distance from the imperial capital to Duke Amaterasu’s domain was quite far. It was definitely not a journey that could be completed in just a few days.

Although Jieselgrante was worried about the trip taking too long, Cabelased nodded willingly.

Suggesting that even if it was a bit far, it would be good to pass through the Kardia duchy and the Kingdom of Ernesto on the way.

As both the Emperor and Empress were leaving the imperial palace at the same time, only a small, elite group was selected for their escort.

Thus, the two set out on their journey, and were on their way to their first stop, the Kardia duchy.

“…!”

Jieselgrante couldn’t take her eyes off the scenery visible through the carriage window.

She moved closer to the window, wanting to see it from up close.

“It seems to be a giant sequoia.”

As she turned her head, Cabelased, who had been closing his eyes until just now, was looking at her with his eyes half-open.

“Is that the name of that tree?”

Cabelased nodded and added an explanation.

“It’s known as the largest tree in the world. And that…”