Chapter 6.3

Chapter 6.3

Kuhn followed a step behind the Silver King. She was a king, and Edward Roxan was merely a merchant. He didn’t have the right to walk alongside her.

Only half a step. However, that small distance seemed so far.

‘Am I missing a few screws in my head?’

Even in the midst of all the chaos in his head, he still felt satisfied seeing her like this. There was no greater fool than him.

He saw her ear peek out of her blue-silver hair. His fingers twitched with the urge to touch it. He wanted to bury his lips against her white neck and clearly mark her as his.

‘I knew this would happen.’

He had only wanted to see her face, but now that his wish had been fulfilled, he had become unreasonably greedy. When Kuhn saw the end of the corridor approaching, he began to feel nervous. It was too short.

An attendant that had been waiting for her at her carriage bent down and lowered the carriage steps as soon as he saw Sienna leave the palace.

Kuhn quickened his steps and arrived at the carriage door before her. He held out his hand to escort her into the carriage. Her soft, slender hand grasped his. As she got up onto the carriage steps, she turned her head.

Kuhn liked it when her clear, golden eyes were staring straight into his. Half of him wanted her to get into the carriage, but the other half didn’t.

He wanted her to look away so that he could calm his heart, but at the same time, he wanted to cling onto her and beg her to look at him.

Sienna turned around and walked off the steps. Then she spoke to Kuhn.

“I have something to ask you, so come with me.”

She then spoke to a lady-in-waiting.

“We will walk to my palace. Keep twenty steps back.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After making sure the ladies-in-waiting couldn’t hear their conversation, the two of them began to walk side by side.

It was currently the afternoon break, so everything was quiet. There were barely any people that passed by them. The clouds in the sky softened the prickly sunshine. The wind carried the smell of fresh grass and felt refreshing.

Sienna glanced at Kuhn as he silently walked next to her. She didn’t know what he was thinking as his eyes began to repeatedly look left and right.

“Are you secretly memorizing the blueprint of the Palace?”

“Sorry?”

His shock seemed suspicious.

“The Palace is huge. You will never be able to memorize its structure that way.”

“That’s not it. I was just thinking of something ridiculous…”

Kuhn furrowed his brow before chuckling.

“You’re going to think it’s preposterous. I was searching for an escape route because I was thinking of kidnapping you out of the Palace.”

“…I see. How preposterous.”

“Your Majesty.”

“…”

“Your Majesty.”

“What is it?”

“If I kiss you, will you be mad at me?”

Sienna was momentarily startled. She wouldn’t put it past this man to do something like that. Sienna unconsciously turned her head back to make sure her ladies-in-waiting were a fair distance away.

“If you do that, I will certainly kill you.”

She grit her teeth and lowered her voice.

“Yes, yes. If I ruin the Silver King’s reputation, I’m sure I will never be forgiven.”

Kidnap her? Kiss her? The man who had disrespectfully said these things merely shrugged his shoulders. Sienna was giving him a ferocious glare, but he just grinned back at her. Sienna couldn’t help but chuckle as well. She didn’t know why she was so tolerant with this man.

“It would have been nice if we were in complete darkness.”

He murmured as he let out a sigh.

What was he thinking of doing in the dark? Sienna didn’t react to his suggestive words. However, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of agreement deep in her heart. The memory of the walk they had shared in the courtyard on the night of the coronation was firmly ingrained in her mind.

“When will you finally become a member of the nobility?”

“I don’t know.”

“Is the Iron King still unwilling to give you a title?”

“I haven’t spoken to him about that yet.”

He didn’t intend to talk about it at all. A title? Dian’s debt wouldn’t be paid off by a mere title.

“I’m just a trivial merchant, so please don’t worry about my title and speak comfortably with me.”

“…I’m not worried.”

Sienna replied primly.

“Will you introduce me to someone who can give me information without having to go through the protocols of the Imperial Palace?”

“Ah…”

Kuhn let out a sigh.

“Is it a difficult request?”

“No, it’s not that. I’m just realizing that you really did have business with me.”

When Sienna didn’t seem to understand, Kuhn began to explain.

“I thought that you didn’t get in your carriage because you wanted to take a walk with me, Your Majesty.”

“I see that you’ve missed the mark by quite a lot.”

Sienna chuckled as she turned her eyes back to the front. Actually, she felt a prick in her heart. She definitely hadn’t wanted to part from him without sharing a word with him.

“Why do you need someone to give you information? I’m sure Your Majesty can obtain classified information if you put your mind to it.”

“What I’m looking for isn’t that kind of information. It’s a lot more trivial than that. I just want to know what my subjects need on a daily basis while having to live on limited funds. But if I ask somebody that kind of question, they’ll all be wondering about my intentions behind it. They might exaggerate the value of a coin when they answer me. I want an answer that isn’t calculated, and I can’t get that kind of information through the normal ways in the Palace.”

Kuhn began to think of ways to satisfy her request. He could just introduce her to an informant, but they weren’t usually law-abiding subjects. If he connected them, the informant would probably come and go from the Palace frequently, and Kuhn couldn’t stand the thought of seeing a rogue hanging around by her side.

‘It can’t be a man. A woman… What about her?’

The leader of Olga, Evita. There was no other woman in the field who was as talented as her. Kuhn had made his decision.

“There are people who buy and sell information. It’s not difficult to introduce you to some of them, but they aren’t the type of people who work by command. If you want information, you’ll have to pay a price.”

“A reward? Will money suffice?”

“That’s the kind of compensation they like best. I’ll begin to make the necessary preparations to have you two meet.”

“I’ll have a palace entry license made for them.”

“I won’t need it. I can figure out a way…”

Kuhn shut his mouth when he saw Sienna’s expression become cold. Haha, Kuhn laughed awkwardly and quickly spoke.

“Of course they’ll be needing a palace entry license to enter the palace.”

Sienna gave him a disgusted look as he began to change the subject. She would severely punish those who messed with the strict rules of the Palace. Her intense willpower burst out of her at that moment.

‘Let it slide.’

She calmed her breaths. She had decided that she wanted to learn about this world she hadn’t known before.

“Do whatever you need to do. I just need an informant.”

“Do you trust me?”

Sienna glanced at him. Her cold voice cut through the silence.

“I don’t trust you.”

Kuhn let out a weak laugh. For some reason, Sienna felt a prickle in her heart.

“Then why are you asking me to do this for you?”

“I don’t trust you, but I trust your judgment.”

“I work for the Iron King.”

“…I know.”

“I will try to buy out the informant I introduce to you and figure out what kind of information you’re given.”

Ha, Sienna laughed in disbelief. Even though she was the one who first said that she didn’t trust him, she couldn’t help but feel disappointed. Even though she was disgusted by the fact that he was telling her that he’d stab her in the back to her face, she didn’t hate him. More importantly, she didn’t know why she was feeling such conflicting emotions.

“Didn’t I just say that I’m looking for trivial information? It doesn’t matter who knows about it.”

The two of them settled into silence. They were both only having a superficial conversation as they tried to figure out the hidden intentions of the other person. They both felt the presence of a sturdy wall between them.

They saw the Silver King’s palace appear further ahead. They had already arrived at their destination. Was the palace always this close? The servants of the palace came out when they saw that their master had returned. Sienna finally stopped walking and stood still.

“I can get back on my own from here.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Sienna began to walk, but stopped and turned her head. Kuhn’s head was still lowered.

She turned her head back and began to walk once again. A few moments later, Kuhn finally straightened up. He watched as her figure became smaller and smaller. Had she turned back to look at him while his head was lowered?

‘Of course not.’

He thought to himself bitterly. Even after he saw her go inside her palace with her ladies-in-waiting, Kuhn couldn’t move from his spot. He was reluctant to leave.\n