Chapter 8

Estian who appeared so suddenly left just as swiftly like the wind and Cecil left the bathroom afterwards. The servants retrieved her and began to clothe her as if they’d been waiting for her all along. After she’d been dressed, they led her to a chamber she’d never seen before.

“This is …”

“The Empress’ quarters. Starting today, this will be your residence. There’s no need for you to worry about the intruders anymore since the Emperor has already cleaned it up so your stay here will be pleasant.”

How on earth did the Emperor tidy up all the mess?

Does this mean it will be dangerous again after some time? Cecil followed the servants, lost in her thoughts. It was strange, however. A door was opened, then another; door after door, and the walk seemed never-ending. Cecil began to grow weary and demanded the servants,

“Hey, when the hell will my room appear?”

They answered her in confusion,

“Since the first room, everything falls under the Empress’ quarters. Is there perhaps an issue for…”

“… No, nothing of that sort. Keep going.”

The servants continued their tour for a long while, showing her around. This is the Room of Glory, this is the Room of Blessings, this is the prayer room, this is—, this is—, this is—… The commentaries were endless and Cecil’s head soon began to nod in dissatisfaction. They’d spent two hours merely traipsing about when the servants suddenly halted.

“… Is it over?”

“It’s about to start, but …”

The servant’s words made her morose. She’d been walking for two hours yet there was no telling of whether it will end anytime soon. Her legs were beginning to feel worn out. And she felt drowsy on top of that since she’d taken a bath. Most of all, her body demanded rest after an entire night of suffering.

“I’ll see to whatever’s left on my own. You may leave.”

“I understand, Your Majesty.”

After the cadre of servants took their leave, Cecil noticed a chamber that bore her name.

“… Is this the place?”

She had to open five doors before she even stepped into the first parlour. The parlour backed to a beautiful garden adorned with ponds wherein swans swam leisurely. A rabbit stopped for a drink from a pond next to a grazing deer.

“Being an Empress is great.”

Having feasted her eyes on the idyllic scenery, Cecil headed for the bed and laid down.

‘I’m sleepy…’

She’d suffered the Emperor’s torments till morning to the extent that her voice was barely audible by dawn and although she was feeling better now, the raw pain still scratched at her throat. Cecil turned on her side and on seeing a bowl of fruit, she reached for it. Picking up a bunch of ripe green grapes, she plucked off a grape and popped it into her mouth. The cold, ripe fruit burst in the cavern of her mouth and she closed her eyes to savour its refreshing taste.

As expected, I can eat these anytime. I can’t believe I really can eat this every day.

‘I love it.’

Eyes still closed, she munched on more grapes.

“Let’s enjoy it while I’m still alive.”

She recalled the assassins who appeared last night. Even if the Emperor didn’t intend to kill her off, she was in danger nonetheless.

‘When I came here from Navidan, I was angry and feeling wronged every day and clenched my teeth…’

It seemed as if the thoughts of Navidan was starting to dissipate from her head. Too much might have transpired that day, but she’d calmed down now. Why the hell? What’s the difference? In the midst of her thoughts, she fell asleep before she knew it.

***

Cecil stirred awake when someone touched her gently. The fingers that traced the injury on her forehead travelled down her face. She frowned and shook her head at the tingling sensation. The fingers slipped to her neck, then below her shoulders. She groaned as she slowly rubbed her neck. Whoever it was, was massaging the exact spot where she felt stiff.

“I wish I could live like this all the time…”

The words slipped out of her in her stupor. Then the person asked,

“What do you want?”

“I want to eat a multitude of fruits… and for someone to massage my aches away…”

“Is that all?”

The voice that had posed the question sounded sharper by a notch and the hand that kneaded her neck skimmed lower, hovering over her clavicles. She felt seared by the touch for some reason and deliberated on whether to resume speaking or not.

“Someone who will sleep with me at night… I wish I could continue to live like this…”

The maids who attended to her in Navidan retired to the main palace at night and she always spent the night alone.

While I hadn’t been afraid, I’d always felt bereft. I was relieved rather than surprised that someone was beside me the moment I woke up this morning.

She wondered if that was the right answer. The hand that had been hovering proceeded to rub and knead at the precise spot she needed it.

“Ungh.”

The ache and chill had awakened her fully. This is… my room? That means the voice, and the hand… is definitely…

“Your Majesty?”

“Are you awake?”

The voice made her spring to her feet but Estian’s hand was quicker. Pressing a finger to her forehead, he drove her to the bed on her back and leaned over her to whisper in her ear,

“Now that I’ve heard it all, you seem to possess everything you desired.”

“Yes, yes, definitely. I think so too.”She nodded vigorously.

“But what are you worried about?”

“I believe my lifespan is rather short.”

Estian nodded at her declaration.

“You’re not wrong. It isn’t a well-known matter, but prior to your admittance into the palace and inauguration as an Empress, there were several women who’d been forced to enter the Imperial Palace at the behest of the powers that be of their countries in order to replace the woman before them, along with the condition that I accept the women even if they aren’t crowned as an Empress.”

It was her first time hearing of this.

“The first woman who came here was killed the very next day and the subsequent woman died a week after her arrival. The third woman managed to live up to a month before succumbing to her death. I killed the first one, but I couldn’t care less whether the other two lived or not. It seems that someone else exterminated them.”

He paused, and Cecil lent voice to the query that had been weighing on her mind.

“… Did you sleep with all three of them?”

“That bothers you more than their deaths?”

“Yes.”

As Estian stated earlier,

I don’t even know why I care more about that matter than how the women before me died. Am I going soft in the head after entering the palace?

He grinned at her and replied without missing a beat.

“You’re kinda weird.”

“It’s because I still have a lot to learn.”

“I don’t care. The important thing is that I like you.”

“I’m glad, but…”

“But?”

“You’ve yet to answer my question.”

At her soft remark, he chuckled slightly.

“I didn’t sleep with them.”

“… Great. You’re perfect.”

Cecil clenched her fist. He’s like the male lead in novels; a brave, albeit crazy man who was affectionate during the night, possessed money and wielded power, but hadn’t experienced his first time.

“I don’t understand what you mean by perfect, but I think it’s an honour. Besides, I like you and somehow, I don’t feel glad about having to get rid of your body. So I’ll inform you how to survive here.”

His hand brushed her face before moving to the bunch of grapes lying nearby. He plucked a grape and inserted the fruit and his finger into her mouth slowly. Her lips parted and the grape burst as her teeth bit down on it, the rich nectar exploding in her mouth. The sweetness spread on her tongue and as delight suffused her face, he looked at her in satisfaction before sampling the grape juice on his fingers. Estian hated grapes since the first poison he’d ever consumed in his life had been contained within the same green grapes yet he didn’t understand why it tasted so delicious now. He slowly stretched on top of her and whispered into her ear,

“The only way for you to survive in this palace…”

“How?”

Cecil lamented. What could she possibly do to survive? And then came a response that had never crossed her mind.

“I just need you to build a reputation that surpasses mine.”

“What? What do you mean?”

Her eyes widened at the unexpected answer.

***

At the same time, in the Holy Land nestled in a corner of the continent—a city-state, unlike the countries on the continents, that worships God in seclusion far away from the worldly laws…

Deep in the castle, there lies a temple surrounded by white columns. And at the crux of the temple is its Saintess—who’s praying today as usual. Or at least, that’s what she’s supposed to be doing. Instead, she stood at one end of the white columns with a stoic expression. A cold voice asserted,

“You’ve failed.”

“I’m sorry, Saintess.” A man knelt before her, his head bowed slightly. She shook her head.

“This isn’t the only chance we’ve got, we still have countless opportunities.”

Her eyes sparkled.

“The world ‘has the chance  to change its course.’”

“Go back. I’ll call you when I get better.”

“Yes, I understand.”

As the man withdrew, the Saintess who remained alone muttered to herself,

“Fuck you bastards. You can’t do anything right.”[1]

If someone were here and happened to eavesdrop, they’d have fallen into a dead swoon because the noblest person in the entire continent was speaking so naturally in such crude worldly tongue. She grumbled again.

“Why did I have to possess a saint instead of a villainess? Anne is a saintess, has numerous concerns to tend to and she can’t move around easily on top of that!”Grunting, she shook her fist in the air and a blue-gold vapour materialised in the vacant space. The virtue of shielding a saint from the world by the same token prevented her from travelling outside. The saintess who saw this muttered,

“My male lead, my male lead.”

She gritted her teeth. She was a writer from someplace on another realm who’d written a novel titled ‘A Villain is A Good Match for A Tyrant’. She’d bestowed the qualities she liked on Estian, the tyrannical male lead of her novel; handsome looks, a good physique, a wicked personality, a painful past, and made him an emperor who had black hair and black eyes, etc. It was entirely out of the blue but that there seems to exist some circumstances that mentioned Estian’s hatred for grapes.

The contents of her novel were simple. A hostess had possessed the Empress’—Cecil’s— body, and Estian who had never expressed interest in Cecil before, became intrigued by her abrupt changes. He then falls in love and consequently, begins to eat properly and live well. So when the author first opened her eyes, she realised that this was the world within her novel, and had proceeded to scream for she was now possessing the Saintess’ body.

Why did my novel, my male lead and everything else fall to someone else?

[1] Referring to the Saintess inside.