Diana, following the Emperor into the bedroom, took his overcoat herself instead of letting the chief servant handle it and said, "You've had a hard day since this morning."
"You're the one who's had it hard. It must have taken quite a while to get up early and dress up so beautifully," Ulrich playfully remarked.
At his teasing words, Diana laughed lightly, like leaves fluttering in the wind.
"Oh, are you scolding me for being beautiful?"
"That's why I'm telling you to dress poorly so I won't get jealous."
Ulrich said this and embraced his beautiful wife, kissing her forehead.
They still shared a sweet affection like newlyweds.
Knock knock.
Just then, a knock sounded, and the steward, Helen, entered.
"Your Majesty, it's time for the Empress to take her medicine, so I'm afraid I have to interrupt your time. Please forgive my rudeness."
"The health of the Empress is of utmost importance. Bring the medicine quickly."
Diana had been in a critical condition after a miscarriage due to poisoning a long time ago.
Since then, she had to take medicine regularly at specific times.
Diana took the medicine with a bitter mutter.
"Even if I take this medicine, I can no longer bear children, so my heart is heavy……."
Ulrich comforted her, patting her shoulder.
"Don't say such things. As long as you are healthy, that's all that matters to me."
"Your Majesty……."
Diana leaned her cheek against his chest, touched. Her eyes, however, were coldly hardened.
'I bet he'll use the winter hunt as an excuse to visit his mistress.'
I need to find that mistress and eliminate her.
Ulrich was so meticulous that he hadn't been able to find his new secret hunting ground yet.
Eight years ago, Diana drank poison herself.
At that time, she was pregnant with their second child, and it would have been very dangerous if she had a miscarriage.
But she went through with it.
To frame the Eiles Duke's family and the Empress Estelle for destruction, she had to pay such a price.
The Emperor, unlike the gentle Diana, didn't particularly like the upright Empress Estelle, making things easier.
Diana had recently heard that the Emperor was still meeting the mistress he had during that time.
Her own husband, betraying her while she was fighting for her life.
What a deceitful love. After spending deep time with the Emperor, Diana got up from her seat when it seemed appropriately regrettable.
"I shall take my leave now, so you rest comfortably."
Diana returned to her palace, changed her clothes, and said to Helen, the steward who followed her in, "The Duke of Agnes had quite an interesting expression today. Thanks to that child Wood, we had a very enjoyable spectacle."
"It's only the foster daughter who ended up pitiable."
"That's not necessarily the case. The situation turned out quite intriguingly, even though it seemed like the attempt to make her Eseled's heir had failed."
Diana, changing into her indoor dress, yawned long.
"I'm so tired, having been up since early."
"Shall I prepare a nap for you?"
"Yes, please. My nerves are sharp, so make sure the maids aren't loitering around."
"As you command."
As the surroundings became quiet, Diana opened her eyes, which she had been lazily half-closing.
She donned a thick robe.
A ruler's room always has a secret space. Diana operated a device to open a path leading down to an underground passage.
Holding a lamp in her hand, she familiarly navigated the long corridor.
As the passage ended and she ascended the stairs, the sound of rain became clear.
Ahead was a cold palace used to imprison the deposed empress.
"Hmm."
Diana hummed a tune as she entered the palace.
"Your Majesty, the Empress."
"Hmm. Good work."
She casually received the greeting from Hudson, a magician she employed as a researcher, and approached a huge crystal prison.
Inside, a boy with black hair floated unconscious.
He was Creed, the second prince, who was reported dead to the outside world.
"'Foresight' has not manifested yet?"
Hudson replied apologetically.
"I'm sorry."
"Well… it's okay. Anyway, if he inherited Estelle's blood, there's a possibility."
Diana looked at Creed and smiled blissfully.
"How fortunate I am to have discovered Estelle's hidden foresight ability."
Diana's elimination of Estelle wasn't to secure the next imperial succession or to take over the petty magic train business of the Eiles ducal family. It was because she found out about Estelle's foresight ability.
Therefore, she deliberately didn't kill the second prince and secretly took him away.
She planned to forcefully awaken his latent future foresight ability and use it as her weapon.
"This child will become a perfect weapon that ensures I never lose."
Her voice dripped with honey as she spoke.
"Report to me immediately if there's progress."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
*
"Where on earth are the ingredients supposed to be!"
Benny, a maid rummaging through the storeroom, couldn’t contain her frustration any longer. Sairen’s expression was no better.
"Could it be they’re deliberately making fools of us?"
They wanted to storm up to the rooms and confront the situation, but they dared not. Theorban's chilling threats loomed in their minds – the repercussions of stepping out of line were clear.
"Ah... I thought it was just a simple job of sticking close and teasing a child without being too obvious."
Frustrated, they searched everywhere and finally found a small hidden stash of ingredients.
"Count Alvin’s house is filled with baskets of various ingredients, and here we are in this impoverished duke’s house!"
The Count Alvin’s household, in reality, had many more mouths to feed, hence the abundance of ingredients. In contrast, there were only four people dining in Eseled’s residence.
The maids managed to prepare a modest breakfast.
"Ugh, so annoying! Why can’t we just starve her, given she’s a prisoner?"
Muttering, Benny and Sairen trudged up the stairs.
---
They were heading to the third room on the left. Knock, knock.
"Miss, we’ve brought your meal."
Entering the room, they halted in surprise. Navia was already eating.
Their expressions turned icy at the sight.
"…Miss, what is that?"
Glancing at the tray they brought, Navia replied, "Sorry. I was so hungry, and you weren’t coming..."
"Huh."
Annoyed by her response, the maids noticed Minerva, who was with Navia, flinch slightly.
'…These must be the maids she mentioned.'
Those spiteful maids brought by Count Alvin. Minerva kept quiet, holding her breath.
'Clearly, they don’t care about hiding their deceitful intentions.'
Navia considered making a scene but then decided against it, to avoid unnecessary drama.
"Leave it here for later. If you haven’t eaten, feel free to have some."
It was not uncommon for maids to eat their master’s leftovers, especially when made from fine ingredients.
However, Benny and Sairen were less than thrilled. The meal they brought for Navia was a simple sandwich, far inferior to what was already in front of her.
Benny, more temperamental than Sairen, clenched her jaw.
'Is she doing this on purpose to spite us?'
But Navia seemed genuinely oblivious to any ulterior motives.
"…Understood."
Despite their disdain for the mediocre food, they slammed the tray on Navia's table.
"Oh my, I should’ve been gentler. I'm sorry, Miss," Benny said mockingly as the sandwich’s contents spilled.
Navia paused, looking at the messy sandwich, and then brushed it off casually.
"It’s fine. These things happen."
Benny just smirked, thinking, 'She’s just a naive child after all.'
Children often don’t realize when they’re being mistreated if their ego is stroked just right.
"Our Miss is so kind."
"Actually, this food looks quite delicious. May I have some?"
Minerva's unexpected request caught Benny and Sairen off guard. They glanced at each other, not expecting anyone to show interest in the simple sandwich they had brought.
"Of course, you may," Navia replied, her voice calm and accommodating. "Please, feel free to help yourself."
Minerva reached out and took a sandwich, giving it a small bite. She chewed thoughtfully, her expression unreadable.
"See? It's not bad at all," she commented, offering a faint smile.
Benny and Sairen, still perplexed, watched in silence. They had not anticipated this turn of events. The simple act of sharing food seemed to have disrupted their initial intentions to belittle Navia.
As Minerva continued to eat, Navia turned her attention back to her own meal, her demeanor unfazed by the earlier exchange. The atmosphere in the room had subtly shifted, marked by an unspoken understanding.
Navia's grace under pressure and Minerva's unexpected intervention had, for the moment, altered the dynamics, leaving Benny and Sairen unsure of their next move.
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