The Empress' Beast Selection (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 5
“…Why are you laughing?”
He was laughing out loud, bending his waist slightly.
It gave a more cheerful impression than one of frivolity.
After catching his breath, the man wiped his tears and replied,
“You’d withstand the cold—or anything—better than a young lady like you.”
There was no way to argue against that. It was simply true from any angle.
From their brief exchange, one thing had become certain.
‘This man doesn’t know who I am.’
Just as Sophia didn’t recognize him, he had no idea who she was either.
That was precisely why such a conversation could even happen.
Sophia fiddled with the necklace resting between her collarbones.
‘It must be because of this.’
The gemstone strung on the silver chain was a mana stone, designed to mask the wearer’s natural scent.
Beastkin, being highly sensitive, usually identified others by their scent.
Though mana stones were extremely expensive, their ability to conceal one’s species was unmatched, and they had now become a symbol of high nobility.
Five years.
A short time or a long one, depending on how one saw it, for a person to change.
Sophia had lived under the title of Empress of the Beastkin Empire.
Wherever she went, people treated her by her position—or as a foreigner—rather than by her name.
Even the man before her didn’t know Sophia from the Huron Empire.
The realization that he didn’t recognize her made Sophia’s heart flutter slightly.
Gathering a bit more courage, she asked,
“What are you doing here?”
This was a palace without its master.
Even Sophia herself didn’t know why she had come here.
The man who had been watching her simply smiled silently before finally speaking.
“I was taking a brief tour of the imperial palace and got lost. Might you be able to guide me?”
She could have retorted, “You’re the one who’s lost,” but he didn’t say that.
Instead, he asked for her help with even greater gentleness.
Touring the palace in the dead of night.
Perhaps because the victory celebration was drawing near, there seemed to be many outsiders in the imperial palace today.
Suddenly, the afternoon’s events came to mind.
Sophia deliberately pushed Titié and Demios out of her thoughts.
“Alright.”
She wanted to move her body a little more, even if just to pass the time.
‘And I’d like to repay him for lending me his coat.’
As Sophia took a step forward, the man fell into step beside her.
The two walked together down an empty night path.
An unmaintained garden trail.
With only moonlight to guide them, their pace on this walk had no choice but to be slow.
‘How strange.’
Her previously unsettled heart now felt oddly at ease.
Sophia glanced up at the man as she walked slowly.
His profile, lit by moonlight, looked like a sharply carved sculpture.
His posture was perfectly straight, showing no sign of cold.
Where the light touched his exposed hands, wrists, and neck, faint lines shimmered.
All of them were scars.
Though his face bore no marks, if even the visible parts were like this, what state must the hidden areas be in?
‘Perhaps he’s one of those who just returned from the recent campaign.’
That seemed the most likely explanation.
While silently observing him,
she hadn’t realized he was already looking at her—until their eyes met.
She turned her head away too late.
“You may keep looking, if you’d like.”
His shameless remark made Sophia’s cheeks flush.
The man pressed further, asking her,
“Weren’t you interested in me?”
“My apologies.”
Sophia, having composed herself, kept her gaze fixed straight ahead.
The raw gemstone hanging below her neck was triangular, signifying her married status.
He probably couldn’t see it clearly in the dark.
Yet the man showed no sign of embarrassment.
Instead, he said,
“…So you’re a married lady.”
His golden eyes held an enigmatic glint before returning to their usual calm.
That ended their conversation.
Just as the atmosphere grew awkward, they arrived at a junction where lamplight was visible.
From here, the central avenue of the imperial palace would allow them to find any direction.
‘I wandered farther than I thought. My maids must be worried.’
Guiding him had taken longer than expected.
It was time now to return to her role as Empress.
They stood beneath a streetlamp, facing each other.
“Thank you for your help.”
The man expressed his gratitude.
Remembering his earlier shamelessness, Sophia avoided his eyes.
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
She turned to go—had it not been for his next question.
“You don’t even ask who I am.”
His words instantly halted Sophia’s steps.
She had wanted to ask who he was.
She needed to trace the source of that strange sense of familiarity she’d felt since earlier.
‘But if I start that conversation, I’ll have to reveal my own identity too.’
Though she’d learn soon enough, she didn’t want to disclose she was Empress just yet.
As she moved to leave, she realized his coat was still draped over her shoulders.
“Thank you for the coat.”
“We’ll meet again, and you can return it then.”
His hand stopped hers as she tried to take it off.
Their hands briefly overlapped. Beneath his straight, neat fingers lay calluses covering every inch.
Such an utterly unfamiliar sensation.
To shake off the strange feeling, Sophia deliberately turned her thoughts elsewhere.
‘He must be one of the guests for the victory celebration.’
She’d see him again then.
She had just decided she’d need to review the guest list once more when—
“Lord Roxan!”
From afar, a red-haired knight came rushing toward them in a fluster.
Stopping before the man, he let out a sigh of relief, as if he’d finally found what he was looking for.
“Where on earth have you been?”
The red-haired knight seemed to be his retainer.
‘So his name is Roxan.’
Still, it was a name entirely absent from her memory.
The man addressed as Roxan merely shrugged under the knight’s reproachful gaze and ordered,
“Find me later. First, escort this lady back.”
“What—? No, ah, understood.”
The knight rubbed his face as if exasperated, then straightened his posture.
Meanwhile, the man bid Sophia farewell.
He even made a verbal promise.
“I’ll see you again.”
As darkness deepened, night mist slowly enveloped the imperial palace.
With a smile, the man turned and gradually disappeared from view.
On her way back, Sophia firmly declined the knight’s offer to escort her.
Unexpectedly, lights were on in the Empress’s quarters.
“Oh dear, where have you been!”
“I’m sorry.”
Surrounded by maids, Sophia kept apologizing.
They all looked worried, as if fearing she’d made some grave mistake.
Though they were easily flustered, they were all kind-hearted.
‘And I certainly don’t intend to do anything drastic.’
She felt guilty for causing them unnecessary trouble.
After the Empress’s quarters quieted down, Sophia took off the coat and handed it to a maid.
“Please keep this safe.”
“Huh? Whose coat is this? And it’s a man’s…”
Sophia evaded the question with a smile.
Back in her bedroom, Sophia immediately lay down on the bed.
‘I couldn’t sleep at all just a while ago.’
Perhaps it was from the chill she’d caught.
Suddenly, sleepiness crashed over her like a wave.
With half-closed eyes, she murmured his name.
‘Roxan, was it.’
She’d have to return his coat.
The victory celebration, which she’d viewed only as another duty of the Empress, now held a flicker of anticipation.
It would be the grandest party of the year.
Sophia closed her eyes.
The next morning.
Breakfast with the Emperor was Sophia’s first appointment.
After the first meal together, Demios hadn’t appeared at the second or third either.
‘I expected the same today.’
She’d assumed he’d be having breakfast with Titié.
But Sophia’s guess was wrong—Demios was already seated in the banquet hall before she arrived.
Sophia took her seat.
Soon, palace attendants served the meal.
The meal began—but Demios didn’t pick up his utensils.
“I never expected this of you, Empress.”
Sophia’s hand, which had just lifted her spoon, froze midair.
‘Is it because of last night?’
The lights in the Empress’s quarters late at night might have reached his ears.
Just as Sophia was choosing her reply,
“Pushing Titié from behind like that.”
What did he just say?
‘Did I hear that right?’
A sudden, ominous feeling swept over her.
Sophia barely managed to steady her heart.
“I don’t understand what you’re talking about.”
“So you’re denying it.”
His red eyes reproached her.
Under that accusatory gaze—like that of someone interrogating a criminal—Sophia’s mouth fell open.
‘He thinks I pushed Titié?’
He must be referring to right after they’d arrived together in the carriage yesterday.
Could he possibly think even her stumble when stepping down was deliberate…?
‘Ha.’
She was utterly speechless.
Sophia stared at him incredulously and asked,
“Did that young lady say so herself?”
“That young lady?”
“Lady Titié—the one who bears Your Majesty’s name.”
She was merely stating a fact.
Yet even so, Sophia felt a sharp pang, as if her heart were plummeting.
Demios, unaware of even that, remained silent for a moment before nodding.
“Yes.”
It was a confirmation that struck like a final blow.
What on earth had the two discussed in the Emperor’s palace?
And the one claiming to be the victim hadn’t even been present.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
_____
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