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Chapter 39

The Emperor’s sudden appearance in the middle of this town made me very embarrassed. As far as I knew, he didn’t like to walk around the palace without a carriage, and he didn’t stop by this pub selling ordinary people’s food for just anything.

His overseas trip was very clearly over by now. After all his work though, I was sure that he had used up much of his energy and was supposed to just go straight back and rest. This place wasn’t somewhere where a lot of people went to relax.

When I rolled my eyes and checked the surroundings, security guards were already posted at the main entrance. At first, the pub looked very sophisticated with its natural flowers arranged in a wooden building designed for good sunlight. But when the emperor and knights pushed in at once, the pub looked very shabby in comparison.

While I was thinking about it, the emperor kept me in his arms and stayed still. He was silent for a long time, purposefully keeping his acknowledgment from Serek. Because of this, Serek had to continue to crouch down with one knee pressed to the ground and pay his respects to the emperor.

I carefully spoke. “Your Majesty.”

“What is it?”

“You didn’t have to come here yourself.”

“If I hadn’t come here myself, I wouldn’t be able to join this fun story. Don’t you think so?”

Serek’s face, which was still faced downward because of the Emperor’s gesture, was pale. I guess he still remembered what we were talking about.

“It’s an honor to meet you again, Your Majesty.”

“Oh, now you’re calling me Your Majesty? I don’t mind you calling me a rich bastard like you did earlier. I actually do have a lot of money.”

He seemed to be trying to keep a relaxed smile somehow, but his face turned blue. Then he barely took a deep breath and came back with a smiling face. “I was talking about someone else, but I think you’ve misheard, Your Majesty. How could I have said that about you, Your Majesty?”

“Aha, I see. Yes, because I suddenly stepped in on your conversation.”

“Yes, I have not received the official delegation. I think I shouldn’t have called Celestia just yet.” He kept staring at the emperor’s forearm, which was tightly wrapped around my shoulder, and now he started talking nonsense. He spoke in a way that, taken at face value, would have been polite, but in this situation implied that there was something going on between us.

We didn’t even have a formal military relationship, but it was easy to make people misunderstand.

How was I supposed to kill the spread of those kinds of rumors?

But before I got angry, the emperor beat me to it. “That’s enough.”

There was a strict line-drawing nuance on the word, and it seemed quite unpleasant.

I was a little grateful that I couldn’t see the Emperor’s face. I could now easily guess that he had a cold smile on his face. I didn’t really want to see the lion-like face picking at its prey to see how to kill it.

Serek opened his eyes wide as if he didn’t know how to react.

“It’s good for the empress dowager to have fun, but tell her to roll her toys gently.”

“…What?”

“Why do I bother talking with fools…?”

“…Are you saying that about me?” Serek’s angered expression came face to face with the emperor’s smirk.

“What? You have bad ears, too? There must be a misunderstanding, just as I thought the word ‘rich bastard’ was about me.”

“Your Majesty…”

When I saw Serek grit his teeth together, I couldn’t help but laugh. He seemed so foolish now, to even think of coming up with excuses in front of the emperor who must have been dealing with politicians all his life.

The emperor turned and loosened his grip on my shoulder. He seemed well, and I could see no signs of injury on his arms, as he was wearing a particularly long-sleeved dress today. However, I realized belatedly that he still seemed to be burning up, judging from the chill that rushed in when he dropped his arm from my shoulder.

In my haste, I glanced at Serek and followed the emperor outside.

10. Secretary of the Emperor

Perhaps it was not enough for the owner of the pub to bow repeatedly in farewell, but he eventually saw the emperor and me off from the establishment. As the guards followed me, Vinius headed towards my carriage, and I climbed into the carriage with the emperor.

I’d always felt burdened to be alone in the same space as him, but in a way, it might be a privilege. When I walked up to the wagon between the security guards and looked back, I felt a little better when I saw Serek looking our way.

As I sat on the silk chair of the fluffy imperial carriage, the emperor sat across from me and opened the document.

He was more distant than before. We sat diagonally on the seats, as far as we could be from each other.

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah.”

“Why did you come looking for me? I wouldn’t have taken long.”

The emperor, who turned the paper over, glanced at me and lowered his eyes again. “Are you upset that I came?”

“No, it’s not like that… I’m sorry.”

“I was on my way back anyway, and I couldn’t stand not doing anything about that man.”

It was hard to guess how he was really feeling because he always spoke calmly.

‘If you say such things casually while fluttering documents, I don’t know if it’s a joke or the truth.’

I couldn’t look at his back here, but why did he always sit so far away like that? So stubborn.

We were immersed in our own thoughts and worked without conversation in the carriage bound for the palace.

Back at the palace, I reported today’s events to my predecessor, who gave me a brief summary of what I needed to know about the royal family, including the resignation of the chief of staff.

“He resigned?”

“Yes, he’s older than I am because he’s been serving the former emperor. He did a great job, too.”

“…He was a good man.”

“You should go home and rest. That would be great.”

“Haha…”

“And let’s see, it’s pruning season, so the gardeners will be busy taking care of the trees…”

My heart thumped at the news of the chief, sandwiched between the other news as if it were nothing.

Did he really go home quietly to rest? No, I didn’t think so. It was such a sudden resignation.

I didn’t blame myself for what I said, since I was certain it was him. He turned his back on someone he shouldn’t have had.

He might be tortured in a dungeon, and even if he was at home, he’d be under surveillance. The Emperor would have told me if he had found a connection with Xenon, or if he had a useful income, but if he hadn’t… was he alive?

“…Are you listening?”

When I came to my senses, the secretary was staring at me, frowning.

“I think you’re busy thinking about something else.”

“No, I was listening.”

“What did I say?”

I was glad for my memory in times like these. I recited the story that I heard in one ear while thinking about it. “Because it’s time to hire a large number of gardeners to renovate the garden, if you have a schedule for a garden event, you need to coordinate it in advance.”

His expression relaxed gently. “Whoa, all right, I must have misunderstood. You can go now.”

“Yes.”

“And…”

“What?”

“Maybe I won’t be able to hold on very long here either. My knees, waist… I can’t get away with my age as easily anymore.”

“Secretary…”

“Early graduation or whatever, I look forward to seeing how you’ll do.”

I smiled awkwardly and nodded. I didn’t think I’d get my own way just because I wanted to, but the reasons for doing it were increasing.

After greeting the secretary, I stopped by my room and took a proper bath, so I went to the emperor’s room in a refreshed mood. He had taken off his top and was lying on the bed reading documents. The emperor must have washed up after a long trip, seeing how his hair, which had been covered with dust, was damp and clean now.

Having to take the time to read documents that required final approval like that while traveling must have been a difficult job, even for the emperor.

I approached him, who was lying on his stomach, and sat on the bed, putting a hand on his back. He had just washed up, so the skin was soft, but it looked terrible to my eyes. His back, which at first had only scars that looked like unrecognizable bruises, was now covered with scars with more and more distinct shapes. I knew in my head that a new wound that bled was much healthier than an old, unhealed wound, but it was not very good to see.

And even if it was a side effect, it was usually just a bruise, not like this, where his back was covered with sharp cuts… I didn’t know how much power he had used to end up like this.

Was it because of my presence that he thought he could take worse wounds? Or was it because he got a little freedom from constant pain now? He kept using more and more powerful magic regardless of how it hurt him.

There were many things I wanted to ask, but I kept my mouth shut and made use of my hands. He came from such a stupid situation where the people of a country depended on a single emperor. I didn’t want to say anything that would sound like blaming.

I couldn’t help but be astonished inside as I sensed magic from the outermost place I could reach, one layer at a time, as if untangling threads. How could there be such complicated magic?

When my hand touched the dark blue triangle pattern, the emperor took a short breath. Then he made a small click and shoved his nose into the document again.

Time flew by as I took care of the remaining wounds as I traced the muscles from his neck to his firm back and then to his shoulders. It wasn’t until darkness fully fell that his back became something worth looking at.

I got up, trying not to show my distress. My head was spinning. I did the best I could, and I couldn’t do any more either.