“You seem to prefer neatness, Your Highness.”
Ikar had muttered softly just as Renev withdrew his hand from Ikar’s jacket.
“Neatness?”
“No, never mind. Sit.”
Ikar walked to the sofa, his head slightly lowered.
Was it my imagination, or did his broad shoulders seem a bit more sullen today?
Renev thought as he took a seat opposite Ikar.
Ikar usually disliked wasting time and got to the point quickly when conversing.
But for some reason, today he hesitated.
‘What is he trying to say?’
Feeling a little anxious, Renev stared at him quietly. Soon, Ikar broke the silence.
“Your Highness, was it Bessie that you received as a fruit gift from Baron Shaban last time?”
“Yes.”
As Renev nodded, Ikar added,
“I’ve designated Bessie as a prohibited item in the palace, so there’s no need to worry anymore.”
Caught off guard by Ikar’s unexpected statement, Renev widened his eyes.
‘Bessie is a prohibited item in the palace? Why?’
He recalled a recent conversation with Ikar about this. Though he had acted as if it wasn’t his business, it seemed Ikar had noticed.
“Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty.”
Trying to hide his unsettled expression, Renev briefly lowered his gaze.
‘Why does Ikar always say things that soothe my painful past?’
In every aspect, Ikar was the exact opposite of Lucius.
Even in the matter of the peach, called Bessie in Bashuker.
Lucius knew Renev was allergic to peaches, yet he allowed them on the table.
‘Sometimes it’s fine to enjoy commoner food.’
He would say such things.
“Your Highness, may I ask one more thing?”
Just then, Ikar’s voice pulled Renev out of his unpleasant memories. Renev lifted his gaze to look at Ikar.
“Please speak, Your Majesty.”
“I felt the need to investigate the matter further, so I summoned Baron Shaban to the palace.”
“……”
“Do you have anything to say about that?”
Feeling as though Ikar was seeing right through him, Renev swallowed hard.
‘How much does he know?’
If he had directly confronted Baron Shaban, Ikar likely knew the entire context.
That Eshika gifted him Bessie. And that he had gifted Eshika something that would cause skin rash. All of it.
This was not good.
Ikar would have sensed that he and Eshika were in conflict, attempting to harm each other.
And it was likely Ikar interrogated Baron Shaban for a reason.
If Renev or Eshika were to be injured or killed, Ikar would bear the responsibility.
He would have to answer to Paradium and Solti, who had offered hostages for peace. They would surely protest.
So, it made sense that Ikar, sensing tension, would try to mediate between them.
Taking a deep breath, Renev finally spoke.
“Since it appears Your Majesty already understands the context, I won’t dodge the issue.”
“Is that to say, you admit to everything?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Renev expected to receive suitable punishment from an angered Ikar.
Fasting for a few days, or perhaps being confined…
Expecting such penalties, Renev slowly lifted his gaze.
“……?”
But the face he met was full of Ikar’s smiles.
Had admitting the truth been the correct choice? Or was this the calm before the storm?
Icarus swallowed his dry spit, waiting for a verdict, but mumbled softly enough that it wouldn’t be well-heard.
“Being purely innocent won’t sustain you on the Empress’ throne.”
Alone in the drawing room, Icarus stared at the seat where Reneve had been sitting just moments before.
The corners of Icarus’ mouth turned up in pleasure.
Indeed, he felt reassured that his judgment hadn’t been wrong.
Icarus had been raised with the mentality of returning what he’d received, regardless of its nature.
The influence on such a character trait of Icarus was predominantly that of the Sun Emperor.
Icarus didn’t enjoy an ordinary childhood like other princes of different empires.
Being a son of the Emperor, one might easily think he would have been nurtured with utmost care deep inside the Imperial Palace due to his noble birth, but the Sun Emperor was different.
Survival of the fittest.
Damn it, the Sun Emperor believed so.
Therefore, he acted according to his beliefs.
He expelled all his children from the palace before the age of ten, without regard to gender, and that too, unarmed.
The intention was to bestow the throne upon the child who survived on their own.
Dahan and Vain were with Icarus.
But what would life have been like for a child who was cast out from the palace at a young age?
Death would be the end of it.
Fortunately, Icarus had a strong survival instinct.
He was able to survive into adulthood, thanks to his exceptionally robust physique, innate intuition, and unique insight.
In a way, the Sun Emperor’s brutal method had been quite effective.
There was no one to deceive Icarus, who had been nothing but a vagabond street child and not a prince.
Rather, he exposed his true self.
For this reason, Icarus became perceptive in assessing people, and he had been eyeing Reneve from the beginning.
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.”
