Chapter 4. The Empress’s Mistress Scandal: Day One

Three small children crouched low, moving stealthily. Though their little heads were clearly visible to adults, it was adorable how they thought they were so well hidden.

“Shh!”

“Shh.”

When the brown-haired boy, about six years old, signaled to be quiet, the children following behind nodded and imitated him.

In their tiny hands were cookies or candies, half-melted and sticky from their body heat. Surprisingly, despite swallowing hard, they absolutely refused to eat them.

It must be very difficult for young children, with an average age of only about five, to resist such temptation.

“Oh my, how cute. What are they up to?”

“Hmm. I’m not sure. That’s the direction of the rear garden…”

The gardeners watching leaned on their shovels, casually exchanging conversation.

But no one scolded or stopped the children.

Her Majesty the Empress was an extremely generous person. She was especially merciful to children.

Moreover, none of these children were troublemakers.

Wearing clothes too fine for commoners to eat, eating nutritious food. Living together with friends, mothers, and aunts in a place that was simply beautiful, there was no reason for them to become twisted.

“Wow.”

The children, who had crawled to the rear garden by now, sparkled their eyes.

A lady far prettier than any fairy tale princess sat holding a teacup, as always. Wearing incredibly fine clothes, and with amazingly cool knights beside her too!

Oh, and also…

“You rascals.”

“Eek!”

They’ve been caught!

The child who was trailing at the very back, wiping snot, was picked up and dangled by a knight.

The children immediately cried out “Waaah!” and ran towards Her Majesty the Empress.

“We wanted to give you this…”

“Snacks, for you.”

“This is for you too.”

However, no one was truly terrified or genuinely scared.

Even the caught child comfortably hung from the knight’s neck.

At first, everyone was awkward and didn’t know what to do, but now this was a familiar scene in the Empress’s palace.

“You wanted to eat these, but you’re giving them to me?”

“Yes. Um, Mama said we should thank the Empress… uh? Empe… Empe-ror… Your Majesty. Like when we pray!”

Bright sunlight enveloped the rear garden. The ruffles of the parasol fluttered in the gentle breeze, and beneath it, young children were gathered in a huddle.

No one could help but smile at such a pleasant and lovely scene.

Even a devil would smile at this sight.

I took the snacks the children were eagerly offering and placed them in an empty bowl. Then I picked up the cold cream puffs that were placed in front, putting one in each of their maple leaf-like palms.

“Good children deserve a reward.”

“Wooow!”

“Enjoy them.”

The children, excited by the unexpected gift, began to chatter and run about wildly.

Enjoying their lively appearance, I sipped the fragrant peach tea.

‘Ah, how peaceful.’

By now, the whole world must be in an uproar like a disturbed beehive due to the sudden announcement from the Empress’s palace.

But the Empress’s palace remained as usual, as if nothing had happened.

“Did you know the children would visit like this today? The number of cream puffs matches exactly.”

It was Sir Chedef who asked, with children dangling from both arms.

I nodded lightly and parted my lips.

“Aren’t they so adorable, all chubby like that?”

“Yes, truly blessed little ones. How can they run and play so freely in any situation?”

“Children are most beautiful when they’re being true to themselves. I don’t want to see them intimidated and shrinking back.”

The identity of these children was none other than the children of the maids in the Empress’s palace.

Some had entered with newborns from the beginning, while others had married male employees working in the Empress’s palace and given birth while working.

As their numbers grew one by one, two by one, now there were seven children living in the imperial palace.

Though their ages varied, they all shared the common need for care, so their mothers, the maids, took turns looking after the children in shifts, and as far as I knew, there hadn’t been any problems yet.

“I remember the first day a maid entered the Empress’s palace with a child. It had been so long since we’d seen such a young child that even the knights were all flustered.”

Sir Shofen, standing on my left side as a guard, muttered softly. He sounded deeply moved.

“The oldest child was just three years old. It feels like yesterday that the little one was toddling around… and now they’re already six.”

“Indeed, Your Majesty. They play so many pranks on the knights too.”

“They’re healthy.”

“Yes. The child’s dream is to become a knight protecting Your Majesty the Empress. How admirable.”

At first, the entire imperial palace was turned upside down at the mention of bringing a maid’s child into the palace. The marketplace was in an uproar too.

‘There was fierce criticism about not using young children for political purposes.’

But how is it now?

Anyone who wanted to become a palace maid wished to be assigned to the Empress’s palace.

To begin with, working in the imperial palace meant that one didn’t have a proper place to live or had some problem at home.

Although the pay was generous, once you entered the palace, you couldn’t leave freely. Your life could be at the mercy of your superiors’ moods, and in the worst case, you could die caught up in an assassination attempt.

Nevertheless, there must be a reason why people still enter the palace despite all this.

‘For example… needing a place to escape because the child’s father is violent.’

In fact, two of the maids who entered my palace had even received death threats from their divorced husbands.

With young children, they couldn’t go out to earn money, and they didn’t have reliable family to turn to. Their ex-husbands would show up in front of their house every three days.

It was so scary, and they were backed into a corner. That’s when they saw the advertisement for the Empress’s palace.

A place where they could work even with children, and moreover, a place their ex-husbands could never find them. A safe haven where they could protect their children.

Needing only that one thing, they applied to the Empress’s palace, and Madame Berthold carefully reviewed even their reasons for applying before selecting them.

Fortunately, the people originally loyal to me from the Achilo family and the new maids who had no reason not to be loyal to me mixed well with shared intentions, and now the interior of the Empress’s palace was so tightly united that no one could break it.

“I think I heard that the knights who went on expedition returned the other day.”

“Yes. Shall we escort you to the training grounds?”

“Yes. They must have had a hard time hunting monsters, I should at least see their faces.”

My guards were now Sir Chedef and Sir Shofen, not Derek.

The reason was simple.

Because Derek was no longer my personal guard.

As the vice-captain of the Astaroth Knights, Derek would be busy training apprentice knights today as well.

‘Though he still seems to want to return as my personal guard.’

I told him that if he wanted to, he should raise a skilled person capable of replacing him as vice-captain.

Then who is the captain?

Until last year, the captain of the Astaroth Knights was Sir Woxon, unmatched in character.

But from this year, the position of captain has changed.

“Wow, it’s intense today too. Captain.”

“How can a person be so flawless? Are you sure he’s human? He must be incredibly tired after returning from the expedition the other day…”

Just then, Sir Shofen and Sir Chedef each made a comment. It was human praise mixed with admiration, awe, and a bit of jealousy.

“……”

I silently raised my head to look straight ahead.

Golden sunlight flowed like a waterfall over the sweat-soaked shoulder blades.

The pectoralis major connecting to the anterior deltoid was pleasingly broad and plump, and the serratus anterior stretching down to the firm abdominals was the result of relentless daily training.

Jet-black hair, a high-bridged nose, and lips tinged with arrogance remained the same, but he was no longer a boy who could be called young, but a fully grown male.

Though he might not realize it himself, there stood a man who often made captivating expressions that swayed the hearts of women in the Empress’s palace.

“I sometimes genuinely wonder if he knows how cool he looks training shirtless like that.”

Sir Chedef pouted, mismatched with his burly physique.

I giggled briefly in agreement and filled my eyes with the beautiful monster I had created.

Have you ever seen the horizon, my dear?

Skin that glows softly like the earth gradually brightening as dawn breaks, pushing away layers of darkness.

Long, slender eyes that soften whenever they turn to me. The gentle gaze held within them.

‘The elements that make up Mereum, whom I cherish.’

When I see Mereum, I’m reminded of mornings when baby animals rub their sleepy eyes and stand on their hind legs, and plants that have starved all night greedily open their mouths.

Mereum, who had just become an adult after explosive growth, possessed that kind of vitality.

“Phew, the Captain’s sword dance is always a pleasure to watch. It has a captivating quality.”

Sir Shofen whistled briefly.

I silently agreed with him.

‘Even I find it difficult to take my eyes off Mereum.’