Euges grinned as he sat in the top seat and watched me frozen. âYour impression has changed a lot from last summerâs ball.â
âItâs an honor if Your Majesty remembers.â
âItâs quite impressive to see Princess eager to dance with me.â
F*icking hedonist Theresa. No matter how much money, power, and appearance the emperor had, why didnât you keep your fidelity to Clyde?
I thought carefully about how to answer. If I look like Iâm aiming for the position of the empress, Iâll lose his likeability right away. In other words, it meant the number of black hearts would increase.
The bad ending of Euges was the massacre of the Squire family. Letâs appeal that Iâm not the only one who was like that.
âAll the young ladies wanted to dance with Your Majesty. Because Your Majesty is like a prince from a fairy tale.â
âPrince?â
I was taken aback by Eugesâs question. Is it too much to call an emperor a prince? Donât tell me he will think that Iâm being sarcastic, as if I donât acknowledge him as the emperor.
I hastily added an explanation. âUh⌠Usually, the emperor is a man with a long beard⌠No, I mean, theyâre not too young and handsome like Your Majesty⌠Iâm sorry.â
âThey were attracted to me because Iâm young and handsome?â
Thatâs what it sounded like, but it was too plain.
âIt was never meant to be erotic. It was more yearning.â
The emperor is a tyrant. He is a cold and cruel tyrant that seduces someone with his enchanting appearance and scent but instantly kills those who try to get drunk on him. In a way, heâs pretty similar to Clyde. If Clyde was mad with self-loathing, this side believed only in himself and thought that everyone was lying except for himself.
At my desperate excuses and persuasion, Eugesâs eyebrows went up.
âFor something like that, Princessâs eyes toward me were very intense, werenât they?â
âI naturally have a strong impression.â
âAnd you always talk back to me.â
Sh*t. Does he believe in Confucianism? Even I, the developer, didnât know about that. Letâs be patient. Those who exist are the ones who get hit, and those who donât exist mean that they are the ones who get beaten in life.
âIâm sorryâŚâ
âStop being sorry and have some refreshments prepared. I told them to prepare everything that is popular these days, but I donât know if it will be okay.â
Even if it wasnât so, I was running out of sugar because I was dealing with the emperor. So I ate the cake right in front of me. Euges took a bite of the macaron and threw it with his fork. Just as I was opening my mouth to eat the cake, I froze in that position.
âThatâs terrible. Is this all you can do to entertain a distinguished guest who has made a contribution?â
Then, the court ladies, who exist like air, quickly approached and cleaned up the macaroons. âIâm sorry. I will bring a new one.â
I put the cake in my mouth, quickly chewed it, and swallowed it. I think Iâm going to have an upset stomach.
Euges asked, and I stopped my fork in case he started screaming again. âDoes it not suit your taste? I donât think I can eat it.â
âAh, no. Itâs delicious.â
I forked hard, fearing he might overturn the table, and Euges murmured softly. âReally? It didnât suit my taste. It looks like you have a good stomach.â
Ding!
[The Constellation âFinding Mukbang BJâ has sponsored 10,000 coins.]
[So, are you telling her to eat it or not?â Itâs making me crazy.â
That was what I was saying.
When I ate diligently, Euges suddenly got up. âFor the sake of Princess, I will show you around the Sun Palace. After a short walk, dinner will be ready.â
It was an unwelcome suggestion at all, but I would rather take a walk than chew a cake that doesnât even know if I eat it with my mouth or my nose.
âIt is an honor, Your Majesty.â
As I followed and got up, Euges held out his hand to escort me. I smiled awkwardly and lightly touched the tip of his hand. As I pretended to touch it, Euges held my hand like a beast trying to suffocate its prey. It felt like I could never escape.
âIâm upset that Princess is having a hard time with me.â
ââŚItâs not like that at all.â
We left the reception room and walked along the quiet corridor. It wasnât good weather for a walk as it started to drizzle, but it had its own charm. While only Eugesâs and my footsteps echoed, he broke the silence.
âI heard that there was a commotion in Valhalla not too long ago. Duke Squire seems to be very angry.â
âThere was a misunderstanding, and it was resolved smoothly and well.â
Euges snorted at my nonchalant answer. He didnât seem to believe at all whether he had known the situation in detail beforehand.
Although it didnât go smoothly because father threatened to do territory war.
âWell, letâs say so. The important thing is not that, itâs the award for meritorious service Princess had done. How about becoming the imperial wizard right away? I will support you as much as you like with your personal magic tower and assistants.â
To become an imperial wizard, you had to quit school. Neither was the direction I wanted, so I carefully chose my words and refused. âIâm grateful that Your Majesty rated my abilities highly, but how can a person who hasnât graduated from Valhalla become a member of the imperial family?â
âSo you reject it. Compared to the status of a princess, itâs not a particularly attractive proposal. If so, tell me what Princess wants.â
It was an obvious test. You shouldnât want something too much or too trivial. If you couldnât come up with a well-balanced answer, you wouldnât know how Euges would react. But is there such an answer?
Klatang! The unpleasant sound of stones being kicked to the marble floor rang out clearly.
ââŚâ
ââŚâ
ââŚâ
A terrifying silence passed. After stepping on the stones, the courter became contemplative and immediately bowed to the floor and prayed.
âPlease spare me, Your Majesty!â
Euges put his big hand on his forehead. His hand trembled slightly, and blood vessels stood on his forehead. It was a big deal. Eugesâs shallow patience was about to be running out. The court lady would surely die. Because today was the day to put fabric on all the shoes!
âYour Majesty, there is something I want.â
I didnât think of myself to be particularly chivalrous. However, I didnât have the mental strength to watch a person die in front of my eyes.
âI want to see ice thorn wolfâs bane. If itâs the flower garden of the imperial family, there must be such a precious flower.â
âIce thorn wolfâs bane?â
Euges looked back at the chamberlain with a furrowed expression on his face that he had never heard of before. âIs there such a thing?â
âThere is a small garden of it, Your Majesty.â
When he heard that there was a separate flower garden, Euges looked even more puzzled.
The chamberlain continued. âItâs a flower that is always placed in Your Majestyâs bedroom.â
âAh, that flower.â
Ice thorn wolfâs bane is a magical flower with a powerful paralyzing poison. Itâs a dangerous plant that if a non-wizard holds it with their bare hands, their whole body becomes paralyzed and dies within five minutes. Still, it was an effective herb for the emperor. Eugesâs neurosis was a disease caused by his lineage. Because his five senses were very sensitive, the paralyzing effect of the ice thorn wolfâs bane worked positively on him.
Euges smiled nervously and looked at me. âDo you mean to tell me to look at those flowers to calm my temper?â
If I really meant it that way, it would only be a sarcastic remark to the emperor. I flatly denied it. âItâs not like that. Iâm saying this because Your Majesty seems to have felt a headache from the sharp sound. Taking painkillers will have an immediate effect, but frequent use is not good for your health. So if Your Majesty goes to the garden with me, you will have a similar effect.â
âGoing to the garden for my health can be a prize for Princess?â
There was no hesitation in my answer. âYes. If it works, I will take good care of Your Majesty. There is no greater reward than that.â Euges might not believe it, but I was sincere.
He stared at me with an expression that he wanted to strangle me, then gently closed his eyes. When he opened his eyes again, his expression softened. âGuide me.â
The chief chamberlain thanked me with a wink and hurriedly led us to the flower garden.
âI didnât know magic plants were left in the imperial family. I thought the flowers in the bedroom were brought from outside.â
As soon as it was reported that monsters were attracted by magical plants, the imperial family replaced the garden with ordinary plants.
The chamberlain replied, âDonât worry, weâre taking care of it thoroughly, so itâs not dangerous.â
âI see. I donât think monsters will attack on this scale.â
Magical plants were also great for ornamental purposes because of their mysterious shapes and colors. The ice thorn wolfâs bane was emitting an enchanting light that could only be found in a celestial garden. Still, the light was much more prominent because of the rainy weather.
âHmm. It calms me down quite a bit.â
His relaxed action made the court ladies look relieved inside. I thought the emperor was being generous today. Still, he had a stiff look on his face. If he was really in a good mood, he would have ordered the cloth covering the court ladiesâ shoes to be undone.
Euges reached out gracefully and grabbed the hair of the court lady who had stepped on the stone and pulled it away.
âAargh!â
The atmosphere froze again in an instant.
âLetâs pretend princessâs efforts to ease my heart, so I give you a chance,â Euges said to the court lady with a benevolent expression. âPick that flower that is said to be effective for me.â