“Elizabeth changed a month ago?”
The Emperor’s office.
Nikolai tapped the armrest of an oldfashioned chair.
In front of him stood a man with a robust physique and cold eyes.
It was Cares, the Minister of the Interior.
“It was a fever so serious that the healers had given up on it. After recovery, the person changed completely. They quit parties, drinking, and dating.”
“Could it be the death flower?”
“There were no symptoms of the death flower like red rashes shaped like flower petals, peculiar scent, coughing, or clotting.”
Nikolai knew best that Elizabeth had nothing to do with the death flower.
But he wanted to confirm it through someone else.
He didn’t know why he felt that way.
“Any news from the temple? There’s a priest who studies the death flower, isn’t there?”
“You mean Archbishop Akanso? Shall I call him?”
“No need. Hurry with the Empress’s appointment.”
“What if Elizabeth refuses to the end?”
“Has anyone ever defied my order and survived?”
I’ll give death to the defiant, Nikolai said, looking bored.
His confidant Cares was not shaken.
The Emperor’s place was like that.
“Elizabeth’s chamber must be close to my chamber. The harem is too far away.”
Cares’ eyes changed for a moment.
There had been countless Empresses, but it was the first time Nikolai had given such an order.
“Are you saying to bring her into the palace?”
“Why not?”
“A storm will come. Blood might spill.”
“The Casanova Emperor just collects beauties. As I have done so far.”
A mysterious smile crossed Nikolai’s lips.
He knew it.
That the seemingly peaceful palace would shake.
That Elizabeth would be placed in the middle of that storm.
‘Someone will survive, and someone will disappear without a trace. Someone might rise to a noble position.’
Cares rubbed his temple as if just thinking about it gave him a headache.
“There will be an outcry to hurry with the Empress’s appointment from the noble academy.”
“There are too many rats greedy for the throne.”
“You can’t leave it vacant forever.”
“The owner of Hart’s heart is for me to decide.”
The ruby tiara that only the Empress could wear.
Made of a heartshaped ruby and hundreds of diamonds, the tiara was called ‘Hart’s Heart.’
The Emperor manipulated the noble families with it.
Knowing this, the nobles bowed their heads.
If one of the four major families’ empresses became the Empress, the precarious balance of power would collapse at once.
People blinded by power can’t stand others having more power than them.
‘To rule the country wearing a fool’s mask requires skill. Carrots for the sycophants, and a whip for the robbers.’
What’s needed to have Elizabeth?
To obtain that red and enchanting silk mouse.
After Cares left, a servant brought chocolate cake.
Nikolai cut a corner with a fork and brought it to his mouth.
The rich chocolate cake was the only food he could taste.
“Sticky and bland. Was it always like this?”
Nikolai licked his red lips.
He was unaware that the sight was tempting enough to melt the hearts of countless women.
He tried to erase it several times, but Elizabeth’s pretty face had torn through his mind.
The mere thought brought a whiff of cherry blossom scent to his nose.
The twisting rosy hair and hands sculpted like white jade, the bottomless black eyes kept circling in his mind.
‘It wasn’t a kiss, it was an accident. It could have been her scheme.’
If it was a scheme, it was a huge success.
Just recalling the kiss of that day caused his sensations, which had become as hard as a lump of coal, to tremble.
The sweetness that pricked his tongue, the pleasant feeling that opened up his stifled chest, the fragrance that blinded his eyes and ears.
How could he forget that ecstasy?
He wanted to possess her as soon as possible.
He wanted to rush to the Emster mansion, bring Elizabeth, and didn’t care if he was called a tyrant.
He was extremely displeased with it.
“I’ve completely lost my selfcontrol. Is the goddess’s wolf mad? Or am I the one who’s mad?”
The veins on Nikolai’s hand bulged.
He couldn’t admit that someone had shaken him like this.
It was utterly unpleasant that it was a woman, and that the woman was refusing him.
Even the expectation that he was her first and last hope didn’t provide comfort.
Nikolai glared at the contract stamped with Elizabeth’s seal with smoldering eyes.
Only for a moment. He who had been hesitating pressed his lips to the small seal.
He took a deep breath.
It was unlikely, but it seemed like the scent of strawberries and cherry blossom jam was wafting out.
The short night spent with Elizabeth unraveled his sanity again.
“You will never know my heart forever, because you gladly accepted death. You actually waited, didn’t you? For someone to kill you.”
Tears formed in the black eyes fell drop by drop onto Nikolai’s chest.
It was quickly absorbed and felt chillingly cold.
How had Elizabeth seen through his inner thoughts like this?
The truth he had never told anyone.
Nikolai bit his lip.
Male lead reborn without memories — but he still falls for her.
The person he finds displeasing in this life turns out to be his cherished wife-master in previous life…
Xie Zhi and Fang Xianxing who had known each other for less than three days through a blind date sat in the same car in front of the civil affairs bureau. They had a disagreement and failed to get married.
Xie Zhi immediately took out his phone, slid through his contacts, and randomly selected the next marriage candidate.
The woman snatched his phone and hung up. Looking at his phone wallpaper, she awkwardly changed the subject: “An ancient painting, eh? It looks pretty good, it’s just that the person in the painting looks a bit like me.”
When he heard this, he sarcastically mocked her for being so delusional, completely unaware that, the person in front of him was the reincarnation of Wen Ru, the famous prime minister of Yuan Shun whom he most admired…
The female CEO who doesn’t want to get married with a divorce agreement in hand × The male archaeological researcher who will only get married if he’s sure he can get divorced
