At that moment, a group of cavalry appeared, making the ground shake.
They were knights wearing silver armor over their white priestly robes.
They carried flags with the Libra symbol, representing Moracynia.
“Holy knights.”
“Did they come out to welcome His Majesty?”
“Would they draw their swords to welcome someone?”
Raising the edge of my hand, I blocked the sunlight.
Squinting my eyes and concentrating, I noticed that most of them were holding swords.
Like soldiers preparing for a life-and-death war.
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem like a welcoming salute.”
“The guest reception is quite noisy.”
“Even so, isn’t it too reckless to act too disrespectfully to the emperor?”
“You resemble him.”
Nikolai gathered his eyebrows as if displeased.
He chuckled, cleared his throat, and cast his gaze into the distance.
“What are you trying to do?”
Smirking, he refined his voice and cast his gaze into the distance.
“What are you planning to do?”
“If you want peace, I’ll provide peace. If you want blood, I’ll give you blood.”
I, too, without realizing it, was in a state of wielding a sword like Nikolai.
Is it an illusion that he somehow looks joyful?
No, it wasn’t an illusion.
“Show the cavalry skills that you didn’t show on the training ground. I can easily deal with those guys while carrying you on the horse.”
“Do I have to watch?”
“Will you regret it?”
Nikolai raised the corner of his mouth.
It was the expression he showed when he wanted to act on his own.
“Have you come for an official matter, sir?”
Caress looked down at Susan and Franz.
Susan shrunk in front of Caress’s penetrating gaze.
Franz, with a firm chin, asked as if giving orders.
“Where has His Majesty gone?”
“I don’t know, sir.”
“When will he return?”
“I don’t know that either.”
“What does the Minister of Internal Affairs know?”
“It is not my duty to chase after His Majesty who has left the palace. It is busy enough to fill the vacancy left by His Majesty.”
Caress replied dryly.
Even if I tried to think positively, it sounded like ‘get lost, I’m busy.’
A strange light flickered on Franz’s face, who I thought would burst into anger.
“I heard that Viscount Brendan is trapped in the ice tower. He’s the one who tried to kidnap Elizabeth.”
“The rumors spread quickly.”
“He is probably the one who poisoned me. Stop treating Elizabeth like a fugitive.”
“Hmm…”
“Disband the pursuit team. I will prove Elizabeth’s innocence.”
Susan neatly gathered her hands and looked at Franz.
‘You look very dignified in times like this. Since you took the tonic, you’ve grown taller than me. You’ll probably surpass me in a little while.’
Susan was smaller in stature than her peers.
Even though she was 16, there were hardly any people who saw her as my age.
To Franz, who was growing rapidly day by day compared to Susan, she was a subject of admiration.
But to Caress, Franz seemed nothing more than an upstart.
“It is beyond my authority, sir. Please return to the Imperial Prince’s palace.”
“It is in the name of the Crown Prince.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but you have no authority.”
“!”
“Please stay quietly in the safe Imperial Prince’s palace. Since Her Majesty left her position, we don’t know what will happen.”
The look in Caress’s eyes, looking down at Franz, was as cold as the winter sea.
‘Quietly? It sounds like a threat to His Highness. You’re probably misunderstanding, right? Lord Caress is a loyal servant of Her Majesty.’
Susan looked at Franz with a nervous heart.
It seemed difficult to bear the insult as the powerless Crown Prince.
But Franz laughed.
A very hearty laugh.
“Thanks for the advice, Caress. Sorry for bothering a busy person.”
His laughing figure was so pitiful that Susan clasped her hands on her chest.
Throughout the return to the Imperial Prince’s palace, Franz didn’t say a word.
Susan didn’t know how to comfort him and bit her lips anxiously.
Franz, who had stopped abruptly, turned to Susan.
“To be honest, I don’t really want to stay quiet. What do you think, Susan?”
“I will follow His Highness’s will.”
“You don’t have to follow blindly. I want to hear Susan’s opinion.”
Blushing, Susan tightly gripped the hem of her dress.
“What do you think he is planning to do?”
“I want to abandon the title of the Crown Prince in name only. I want to help Elizabeth. First, I have to meet Viscount Nettleton.”
“What about my brother?”
“Will you come with me?”
Franz reached out his hand to Susan.
In her small hand, there were numerous calluses.
His short but tough life was evident in his hand stained with old wounds.
“Would I be of any help to Your Highness?”
“Just having Susan here is already a great strength.”
Franz smiled towards Susan, holding her hand with a smaller one.
While holding hands with someone smaller than him, Susan bowed her head deeply.
The loophole Franz was concealing was not only in the Canary Room.
Facing the knights right in front of the temple to see bloodshed?
Could there be a worse situation than this?
But Nikolai seemed excited like a child who had discovered a new toy.
“Dusting off horseshit in the holy sanctuary! Can’t you get off right now?”
One of the knights, who seemed unaware that his life was being rushed, shouted.
It was clear that Nikolai didn’t know he was the emperor.
It was understandable that humans who rode horses on a decent road would complain.
“Your Majesty, would it be okay to get off now?”
“Why should I do that on my land?”
“Good things are good.”
“An emperor who follows the orders of a crippled knight does not exist in the world.”
“We came to find the second divine water. You said you would follow like a loyal subject, didn’t you?”
Stamped even on the lips.
Now that he was here, he wanted to criticize and question why they came to pick a fight.
“You are right. There is no need to fight for no reason.”
For once, Nikolai agreed.
He applauded and poured praise.
“As expected, our merciful and wise Majesty! Please bear with it once. They will soon regret and kneel down.”
Nikolai willingly sheathed his sword.
“Oh, our child has changed… No, our Majesty has changed!”
I was genuinely moved.
This time, too, Nikolai struck a strong blow to the back of my head.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
