Chapter 5.5

Chapter 5.5

Sienna went out to check on the Red King’s condition, but she was quickly sent back at Patricia’s irritated request.

「Go back to the banquet hall and hold your position. I’m fine, so there’s no need for you to stay here. Don’t let him take the spotlight. Let everyone know that you are the one true king.」

Sienna couldn’t understand why her mother was so riled up. Because of her dreams, Sienna had already seen the future. Even though she knew that Dian would become the emperor, her position right now was unshakeable. There should have been no need for Patricia to fret.

‘There must be something else. I just need to figure them out one by one.’

She had become a king. She had a lot more power than she had before. She could now pick out the ones that were loyal to her and send them out on secret assignments.

According to the Empire’s laws, she had 100 days. After a new king received their stamp, they had 100 days to decide on their personal staff.

‘A hundred days is quite long.’

In the past, she thought it was too short. She needed to thoroughly gather enough information on each candidate and assess their skills. She couldn’t afford to miss anything. However, in order to do this, she would have to use those 100 days very wisely.

As Sienna remained lost in thought, no one around her could easily approach her. The banquet hall that was supposed to be merry felt tense instead.

Everything believed that the Princess was holding back her flaring rage. They were afraid they would say the wrong thing and make things even worse, so they all kept their distance from her. In the midst of all this, there was one person who was brave enough to step up. Everyone’s eyes were on Levi Morton as he walked up to the Princess.

“Your Majesty, is the Red King alright?”

“She’s fine. She just woke up, so there’s no need to worry. Go and see her when you have the time. She won’t reject your well-wishes.”

“I’ll make sure to go see her.”

Levi smiled brightly. He felt that if he went to see the Red King and told her that the Princess sent him, his presence would be more defined.

Sienna knew that Levi took her words and interpreted them to mean something grandiose. However, she pretended not to know. She had partly said this to him on purpose.

‘I’ll use him as a shield for now.’

If Sienna showed Levi some interest, Patricia wouldn’t stick her with another Blue King candidate.

‘You’re making things difficult, Mother.’

She didn’t see Joseph at all today. After hearing the news from Emma, Patricia had eliminated him as a candidate.

Patricia acted as if Sienna was the one that would choose her husband, the Blue King. However, in reality, Patricia was only sending her the candidates she approved of.

‘I don’t want to worry about anything else until after I’ve chosen my personal staff.’

She had to balance this just right. She couldn’t show any special interest in Levi, but she couldn’t completely ignore him either. She had to throw just the right bait to lure him in. But if Levi really did misunderstand, then it would become troublesome. Sienna didn’t think of him as husband material at all.

‘I don’t like the way he looks.’

Other than a few minor things, this was the most important reason.

Others viewed Levi Morton to be a ruggedly handsome man. He had a perfectly masculine face and was good to look at. However, to Sienna’s standards, he was very lacking. Her standards were high. If she had to choose between Levi and Joseph, she would have chosen Joseph. If their faces weren’t smooth, she had no use for them.

“Your Majesty, isn’t this a party in your honor? Forget all your worries and enjoy the party.”

Levi held out his hand to Sienna.

“I feel that I need to leave in order for everyone to enjoy the party.”

“That’s not true.”

“There’s a lot on my mind right now, so I think I need to get some air.”

“Let me escort you out.”

“No, I want to go alone.”

Levi looked disappointed and pulled back his hand. He understood the Princess’s discomfort and didn’t ask her twice.

“Tell them not to worry about me and enjoy the party. I feel that you are the only one who can announce this to them.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Levi accepted the assignment with excitment.

Sienna went out of the banquet hall and began to head for the connecting courtyard. It was an enclosed courtyard that was only accessible if you went through the buildings surrounding it. But it was so wide that one could forget that it was a mere courtyard. It would take a long time to go from one side to the other.

The sky had already darkened. The lamps placed at regular intervals gave off a soft glow.

“You may go. I’ll stay here alone.”

She spoke to the escort guards that followed her.

“But…”

“I’ll be fine. Because of today’s party, the security is very strict.”

The guards hesitated. Because of the banquet, a lot of people had entered the Palace. The guards were more tense than usual.

“If you’re that worried, lend me your sword. I want some time to think, and I don’t want to be bothered by anyone.”

“Yes, Your Majesty. We will stand by at the entrance of the banquet hall. Please don’t go too far into the courtyard.”

A knight took off the belt on his hip and held it up to her with both hands. Sienna took the sword and turned around. As she entered the courtyard, she didn’t hear anyone follow behind her.

‘If Prince Dian becomes the emperor, what will happen to me?’

The Prince would be intimidated by her. Because she was thought to be the next emperor.

In order to be acknowledged as a member of the imperial family, there had to be proof.

The person in question must carry the characteristic of the imperial family – two-toned hair.

If there were more than one member of the imperial family in line for the throne, another condition was applied in order to designate a line of succession.

This condition was related to the other half of their blood, the mother’s family. In other words, the status of the ducal family the mother belonged to.

The six ducal families all descended from a single ancestor. It was said that this ancestor was the first feudal lord and that he was baptized by the gods. Therefore, the feudal families and the imperial family could combine to successfully pass on the godly skills to future generations.

Until now, there had never been a case of an imperial offspring from a mother who had not been a member of a ducal family. But the opposite was often seen. A mother from a ducal household didn’t always produce a child of the imperial line.

There were times the people would murmur amongst each other of the children that were born of the Emperor but were not acknowledged as a member of the imperial family.

Therefore, the appearance of Prince Dian had turned the Palace upside-down. This was the first time anyone had seen an example of a child born of a mother of no important origin who carried the trait of the imperial family.

‘If you think about it, there’s no law preventing Prince Dian from becoming the emperor.’

The law stated that only those that had the ability to use the Holy Tree had the right to become the emperor. All the members of the imperial family had the ability, but they had differing levels of skill.

‘If I was able to become the emperor after him, that means that there was nothing insufficient on my side…’

Sienna had been slowly pacing around when she suddenly stopped in her tracks.

‘In order for me to become the next emperor, Prince Dian has to die without an heir.’

Her eyes shook. In her dream, Dian had looked young in his portrait. He didn’t look that different from the way he did now.

‘How old was I in my dreams? I wasn’t in my thirties. I looked older than that. Maybe my forties? Fifties? No, not my fifties.’

If she estimated that she was between her mid-thirties to mid-forties, that meant that Dian had died before he had turned forty.

‘He might have died even younger because he didn’t have an heir.’

Why did he die?

‘Does it… have to do with Mother?’

Sienna couldn’t completely cross out that possibility, so she felt terrible.

Two months had passed since she began having her dreams. Even though it hadn’t been that long, her trust in Patricia had already collapsed to the ground. However, in those two months, she couldn’t pick out a person she could completely trust.

Sienna had subconsciously held a sense of distrust when it came to Patricia. However, she had turned a blind eye to it. Whether it was because she felt that it was too troublesome to explore or whether it was because of the desire to trust her mother, Sienna didn’t know. But she had now seen it, and she couldn’t unsee it.

‘I was only focused on improving my own skills. I thought that was the right thing to do at the time.’

She turned to look towards the interior of the garden when she discovered a moving shadow.

“Who’s there?”

She tightly gripped the sword in her hand. She glared as the person revealed himself. With the light at his back, the figure appeared. Sienna’s eyes became colder.

All the thoughts she had been mulling through in her head flew away in an instant. She felt her stomach twist. The man standing in front of her was so hateful.

“Edward Roxan.”

“…”

“It seems that a lie leaves your mouth every time you open it.”

“Princess.”

“Shut up.”

Sienna unsheathed the sword in her hand and held it up towards Kuhn.

“You!”

Sienna shouted before biting her lips. She didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t explain why she was so angry. Even though she felt betrayed and was furious, she didn’t know the reason why she felt betrayed.

Kuhn took a step closer. As the distance between them shortened, Sienna’s hand flinched and trembled.

“Don’t come any closer.”

Kuhn took another step towards her. The tip of the blade was just about to touch his chest.

“I’ll pierce you. You think I won’t?”

“Go ahead.”

Sienna’s eyes widened. Kuhn took another stride, and the tip of the blade hit his chest. Shocked, Sienna took a step back.

“What game are you playing? Are you trying to get hurt on purpose?”

Sienna felt upset as she spoke. Yes. That was probably it. Even though she didn’t know what kind of relationship this man had with Prince Dian, she knew for a fact that he was Dian’s person.

“Or are you trying to hurt me? If I’m gone, then your master, the prince, will become the emperor. How simple.”

Sienna’s voice dripped with sarcasm. She could see Kuhn’s eyes sink and tremble at her words. He looked wronged and hopeless at the same time.

“I’ve never thought that. Not even once.”

It was true that he had made an effort to make Dian the next emperor. However, if he was going to be embroiled in a messy domestic dispute between family members, he wouldn’t have stepped foot in this endeavor. Dian was going to become the emperor without hurting anyone. They were finally at the phase where this was a possibility.

Kuhn had to put the security of his family first. The risk of incurring the bloody resentment of the imperial family was too great. But nowadays, Kuhn felt that their plan to avoid harming Sienna was a relief, and it wasn’t just for the sake of his family’s safety.

Last night, he stayed up until dawn before finally coming to a decision.

Just once. I’ll go see her just one more time.

It was similar to the way a gambler vainly claimed, ‘Just one more time.’ He knew without a doubt that he would regret this decision. Even though he knew this, he attended the party.

Kuhn had recklessly believed that if he could have just one look at her from a distance, he’d be able to settle his heart and get over her. However, as soon as he saw the Princess, he realized how lousy his willpower actually was.

When Dian was being coronated, Kuhn watched as she continued to stand firm. She was shining so brightly in his eyes. She was so noble, wonderful, and strong. He had never met a woman like her. She was probably the only woman of her kind in this entire world.

As Kuhn continued to approach her, Sienna stepped back.

“Why are you doing this?! Do you want to die?”

“People don’t die that easily.”

“I may seem laughable in your eyes, but I’ve gotten better with the sword. Do you think I won’t be able to take off an arm?”

“Yes, please do as you wish. You can pierce me and curse me. I don’t mind. Please tell me you hate and despise me.”

Sienna scowled. Was this man actually a weird pervert?

“Why should I?”

“I think that’s the only way I can give up on you.”

Sienna slowly lowered the sword. She blankly stared at him.

“You’re a coward.”

“Yes, I know.”

“You’re telling me to cut you off since you cannot control your own heart.”

Kuhn smiled bitterly.

“Princess, sometimes you act slow, but you sure know how to cut the ground from under someone’s feet.”

“Address me correctly.”

A laugh burst out of Kuhn’s mouth. When he saw that Sienna was glaring at him, he quickly responded.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Sienna picked up the sheath and slid the sword inside. Then she placed the sword on the ground. Watching her closely, Kuhn scoffed. He was laughing at himself because he seemed to be attaching meaning behind her every move.

“Edward? Kuhn? Or are none of them your real name?”

“…Kuhn. That’s my real name.”

“Really?”

“Yes. If I’m lying, I will accept any punishment you deem to give me.”

“You already have plenty of offenses that deserve punishment.”

This time, Sienna approached him, and Kuhn stepped back. Unlike Kuhn’s slow steps earlier, Sienna’s footsteps didn’t hesitate. Kuhn continued to walk backward until his back hit a tree. He had nowhere to run.

Sienna placed both her hands on the collar of his dress coat and pulled. Kuhn’s face lifelessly moved down to hers.

“Wear something simpler.”

“Excuse me?”

“You look like a womanizer.”

Kuhn blinked before bursting out into laughter. His arms wound around Sienna’s hips. He pulled her tightly against him as he suppressed the urge to swallow her lips.

“Your Majesty, I’m going to make an earnest request. Please run away.”

“From what?”

“From me. I might do something crazy to make you mine.”

He could predict his future. From now on, he was going to be crazy about her, and he wasn’t going to recover.

He had never been so greedy about something in his entire life. Whenever he wanted something, it always became his, so he never had a need to feel greedy. Because his clan was so wealthy and strong, even though they were a wandering organization, they had the power to overtake kingdoms.

He was the head of his clan. He never wanted for anything growing up. So now that he had found something he wanted so much, something that was forbidden to him, he didn’t know how to act.

Sienna chuckled before putting both her hands on his chest as she pushed him away. Kuhn obediently lowered his arms.

“I can never belong to someone.”

She turned around and walked deeper into the garden. Kuhn let out a sigh as he watched her cold back.

He pressed a hand to his upper abdomen and rubbed. He had a weak stomach. When he grieved his parents’ deaths as a child, his stomach would give him trouble. He still felt the aftereffects of it to this day. From then on, whenever something bothered him a lot, his stomach would hurt.

‘It looks like I’ll be getting a lot of stomachaches from now on.’

He followed after Sienna. For the sake of his stomach, he should have walked away. However, like a bee to a fragrant flower, his legs automatically led him to her.\n