I greeted Aiden warmly, shook his hand, and jiggled it.
'He said the seal would loosen if we made contact.'
Life is give and take. Since Aiden is helping me, I will help Aiden too! It couldn't be better that our interests align. Of course, we have the common goal of destroying Devlin, but so far, I've received more help from Aiden. I thought Aiden would be happy, but his expression didn't seem bright.
'Huh... Does he not like it?'
Aiden's gaze was fixed on our clasped hands.
"Not that I don't like it, but..."
"Then it's fine. Let's go!"
Today, I was finally going to play with my animal friends. Yang said that Ssemseom wanted to see me. I walked toward the garden, still holding Aiden's hand. I could see Lisandro watching us from a distance again.
"Don't worry about Javier. I'll sneak some information when I go to Tifati."
"Still, don't get your hopes up. It's my first time, so I might not know much."
"How's the rock investigation going?"
No answer came, so I looked up and saw Aiden's expression was blank. His gaze was still on our clasped hands.
'Huh, could it be because of the fine?'
Dad's 'no contact with the emperor' order was still in effect.
'But the royal guards and direct maids are exceptions, right?'
Or maybe holding hands for too long isn't good? After a moment of thought, I decided to let go. Thud. Aiden grabbed my hand back.
'So he doesn't really mind?'
I was about to feel a bit sad, but I'm glad. I smiled in relief and continued walking toward the garden. I could see my animal friends waiting for me in the distance.
Excited, I dragged Aiden and ran, but suddenly stopped and looked around.
"Why are you doing that?"
I felt like someone was watching me, but it was probably just my imagination. *** The emotional changes from an unbelievable scene. The first was despair.
Esteban finally saw Mabel, who was holding hands with Aiden and walking slowly. Unaware of the situation, Mabel smiled brightly at Aiden and chattered cutely.
The second emotional change was anger, directed at Aiden. When the emperor holds hands, it should be politely refused. Why is he holding on so tightly?
Aiden and Mabel had become close, but I let it be because dropping them would be more dangerous.
'But do they really need to be so close?'
Mabel had asked for Aiden as her bodyguard three years ago. It seemed some kind of punishment was needed, as Oscar suggested. But that was short-lived. The next stage was resignation.
"Well, a fresh one is better than this old man..."
From a distance, Esteban watched the children with sad eyes. Suddenly, his gaze met Aiden's.
Aiden, with a blank expression, grabbed Mabel's hand as she tried to let go and walked leisurely with her.
The final emotional change was anger again. *** Peeking... From behind the slightly open door, Gustav felt a sky-blue gaze staring at him intently. Pretending not to notice, Gustav busily shuffled through papers but eventually looked up. As soon as their eyes met, Mabel smiled sweetly.
"Can I ask you for a favor, Gustav?"
Ah. Gustav's heart melted.
At such moments, he fully understood the situation emperor's willingness to grant Mabel's every request. But as a secretary, he couldn't lose his sense of reason. Gustav cleared his throat and said sternly,
"It should be an order, not a request, Your Majesty."
"Yes, because you are the emperor."
Mabel looked disappointed and muttered, "Oh well..."
Gustav wanted to kick himself for making Mabel sad. Meanwhile, Mabel walked up to Gustav and looked up at him. Her bright blue eyes reflected his image. Mabel held up two fingers.
Gustav was inwardly surprised.
'Knowing two already, she's a genius.'
Two was a number she should know, but Gustav, who was completely smitten with Mabel, didn't care.
"One is about my education."
"Yep. I can't keep being ignorant forever."
Gustav was moved. The emperor, whose very existence brings peace and prosperity to the empire, was willing to receive education.
'She is truly the hope of the empire...'
Regardless of Gustav's emotional response, Mabel continued.
"The other is about the fairy tale books piled up in my personal storage."
Esteban, who had promised to give her all the fairy tale books in the world, had kept his word. He gathered every fairy tale book from across the continent and gifted them to Mabel.
He had compiled the list of those books, so he couldn't not know. The task of compiling a list of all the fairy tale books in the world had been a nightmare.
"Besides the list, there are many more in the storage. What if I donate them, Gustav? What do you think?"
"Donate... It's a good intention, but the situation emperor might be disappointed. Is it okay?"
"Father gave me things I don't even use."
Mabel's logical reasoning made Gustav nod.
Esteban's gifts to Mabel were excessive in both quality and quantity. They filled every room of the palace she had received as a princess, and more. The items ranged from dresses she wore as a baby to various jewelry and rare magical items from around the world, including a legendary magic sword said to be inhabited by an ancient deity. It was safe to say he just gave her whatever he could.
"I don't wear baby clothes anymore."
"I've never even worn some of them. It's a waste. I can't read all the books by myself, so I want to share them with others and read them together."
Mabel's sincere desire to donate was clear to Gustav. After a moment of thought, he nodded.
"I'll arrange for them to be donated to orphanages."
Seeing Mabel's pure and bright response, Gustav felt like a rotten person. The moment he heard Mabel's donation plan, a sinister idea came to mind.
Gustav's serious tone made Mabel tilt her head.
"If you allow it, can I auction off some of your treasures to the nobles? We could use some of the proceeds for the donation, which would be meaningful."
The auction sounded like a good idea, so Mabel nodded readily.
What treasures should I put up for auction? There were so many expensive items around that I had lost my desire for material things.
"I'll inform the situation emperor about your teacher."
With both concerns resolved, Mabel left the office with a light step. Gustav escorted her to the door and smiled sinisterly.
'Finally, a chance to make some money.'
"A small auction, you said..."
I was taken aback by the grand auction hall. The gazes of the people waiting for me made me step back. Most were familiar faces. All the noble council members were there, and many of the nobles I had seen at the founding ceremony were also present. But...
He was so naturally blended in that I didn't even notice him. Sitting in the front row, Father waved at me with a smile. More importantly, why was the auction so large? I glared at Gustav, who had come in with me, and he avoided my gaze.
"Ha ha, everyone is waiting. Please take your seat, Your Majesty!"
Gustav laughed and changed the subject. I sighed and trudged to the throne and sat down.
'Well, it's for a donation, after all.'
The problem was the items I had brought for the auction. If I had known it would be such a large event, I would have brought something more appropriate.
"Everyone, please take your seats."
At my command, everyone sat down. A servant brought out a tray cart, and Gustav stepped forward confidently.
"Thank you for attending the auction of the emperor's treasures. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to orphanages."
The auction began with Gustav's explanation.
He approached the tray cart and lifted the cloth.
"The emperor's cat doll!"
I covered my face with both hands. I was so embarrassed that I wanted to hide in a mouse hole.
'I thought it was going to be a small auction.'
The thought of everyone seeing my old cat doll made me feel uncomfortable. I had no excuse if the auction failed. Unlike me, Gustav was thrilled.
"This doll has been with the emperor since she was two years old. It's a very precious item. The auction starts at 1 gold."
'No way, 1 gold for that doll?'
Even though I had no sense of money, I knew that was an absurd price. But what happened next was even more absurd.
"10 gold, we have a bid."