78 "Brothers"

TILLY stared at Luna with admiration.

She's really beautiful.

Luna looked very elegant in her full-length dress with sheer mesh overlay, intricate black embroidered and embellished detailing, and frills across the bodice and sleeves.

She almost got insecure of the witch's dress.

Thankfully, Tilly loved her black and midnight blue gradient ombre chiffon dress.

"I mean no harm to Lady Nystrom and her baby," Lady Hayward told Luna in a calm voice, like a noble lady that she was. Gosh, her angelic face and peach-colored high neck corset dress made her look even lovelier. But still, looks could always be deceiving. "Please release me from your restraining magic, lady doctor."

Luna ignored Lady Hayward and turned to her instead. Then, the witch held her shoulder lightly. "Are you okay, Lady Nystrom?"

Tilly didn't know what exactly happened but when Luna touched her shoulder, she calmed down and was able to breathe properly again. And most of all, her body felt light all of a sudden. "I'm okay, Miss Luna. I just feel a little tired," she said. Then, she turned to Lady Hayward who looked confused for some reason. "Please undo the restraining magic you put of Lady Hayward. She's an important acquaintance of Her Royal Highness."

The witch politely bowed to her. "As you wish, Your Grace."

With just a snap of Luna's fingers, Lady Hayward suddenly was able to move.

Tilly stood up because it was rude not to when she had guests in the parlor room. She would have done that earlier had she not been frozen in her seat a while ago. "Lady Hayward, I'd like to introduce you to Miss Luna– my personal doctor." She turned to Luna with a knowing smile. "Miss Luna, this is Lady Hayward. She's also a doctor like you."

Lady Hayward and Luna exchanged polite greetings.

"Lady Hayward, I apologize if you feel offended," Tilly said after the introductions. "My doctor is new to the Royal Capital so she's not familiar with the nobles here yet. And Miss Luna is probably just worried about me because my pregnancy is sensitive. I hope you understand."

"Of course, Your Grace," Lady Hayward said with a smile. Then, she politely bowed to her. "I apologize if my appearance startled you. I know this will sound like an excuse but I came here assuming that Her Royal Highness has already told you about me. Again, my deepest apologies for my behavior tonight."

Tilly smiled at her. "It's alright, Lady Hayward."

"Now that your doctor is here, I will excuse myself," Lady Hayward said politely. Then, she bowed to her before turning to Luna. "I'm glad that Her Grace has a reliable doctor like you, Miss Luna."

Luna just smiled politely.

After that, Lady Hayward finally left the room.

Gosh, that was intense.

"Miss Luna–" Tilly gasped when Luna suddenly flicked her forehead with her fingers. "What was that for?"

"You almost revealed your powers to that cunning lady," Luna scolded her. "I know that you want to protect your baby. But will you please be more careful?"

She bit her lower lip but she couldn't counter the witch. "I'm sorry. I panicked when I was frozen in fear. And I couldn't move."

"That cunning doctor was trying to put a curse on you," the witch explained and her revelation made her gasp. But Luna remained pokerfaced as she continued explaining what happened to her. "It wasn't a deadly kind of curse. But if she succeeded, you would have been physically weak the whole duration of your pregnancy. I don't know what her plan is but she probably wanted you to rely on her while you were pregnant."

She got goosebumps.

In her past life, she remembered that she was "sick" her entire pregnancy. But she thought it was normal because according to her father then, her mother went through that as well.

"What would they accomplish by doing that?" Tilly asked in confusion. "Do they want me to be stuck in my room to restraint my movements?"

Luna flicked her forehead again. "Don't think about that yet, Lady Nystrom. The emperor will be here any minute. You can't show that kind of face to him. He's good at reading people so you should act as natural as possible."

Her forehead knotted in confusion. "You seem like you know what's going on between us and the royal family, Miss Luna. Moreover, how did you get here?"

"I have my ways to find you," the witch said. "And it's easy for me to infiltrate a palace with weak barrier. You know how strong I am, don't you?"

She nodded as confirmation. "Aren't you going to ask me how I got to know about you?"

"I am, but that can wait," she said. "You can relax for the whole evening. No one and no spell can touch you on my watch."

That was very reassuring to hear.

She still didn't understand how Luna seemed to know everything. But she already decided to trust her. Plus, she believed that the power of the witch could protect her and Winter.

"We'll talk about important matters after this party," Luna told her. Then, she put her hands on her shoulders. "Breathe, Lady Nystrom," she said to her softly. "I've got your back."

Tilly got emotional. She was so relieved to have another ally that she could trust. But also at the same time, she felt guilty because of what she did to Luna in her past life. "Thank you, Miss Luna– I mean it."

And I'll make it up to you in this lifetime.

***

TILLY was surprised when she woke up after she felt a cold hand on her forehead.

Eh? I fell asleep?

"Honey, you're up?"

Tilly blinked a few times while looking at Kiho's worried face. Then, a few moments later, she realized that she was still in the parlor room. She was sitting on the sofa while leaning against Kiho's solid and literally cool body. "Gosh," she said in admiration. Then, she cupped his face between her hands and kissed her on the lips. "Why are you so handsome, Kiho?"

Kiho smiled and caressed her face with the back of his hand. "Maybe I have this certain kind of glow because you make me feel loved every single day?"

She smiled and was about to kiss him again when she heard a barfing sound. When she looked at the direction of where it came from, she blushed when she saw Luna. The witch was just sitting across them while eating a slice of strawberry shortcake.

And Luna looked disgusted.

"Please don't make me throw up," Luna said with a frown. "I hate married couple who shamelessly flirt in front of single people. God, I never so felt lonely in my life until now."

Tilly just giggled at that. "Sorry. We can't just help it."

"I'm going to head out for a minute," Luna said, then she stood up with her plate of cake. "I'll just call you when His Majesty arrives."

"Thank you, Miss Luna," Kiho said sincerely.

The witch just waved her hand before she went out of the parlor room.

"What happened?" Tilly asked curiously. "Why do you seem like you have softened up to Miss Luna already?"

"When I came to fetch you, I saw that Miss Luna was sincerely protecting you," Kiho explained. "I want to be kind to everyone who's kind to you."

She smiled and gently pinched his cheek. "Thank you, hon."

He shifted his head to kiss the palm of her hand. "His Majesty is about to arrive. But if you still feel tired, you can stay here. Everyone knows you're pregnant so they'll understand."

She shook her head. "Thank you for worrying about me, hon. But as a duchess, I have social responsibilities. Plus, I have rested enough."

"Are you sure?"

"Uh-huh," she assured him. "How about you? Are you ready for the dinner?"

"Yes. Father is guiding me accordingly," he said. "And you're here, Tilly. As long as you're by my side, I can get through everything."

Tilly smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck. Then, she pulled him closer to her and rubbed her nose against his nose. "Let's get this dinner over and done with so we could go home and… you know?"

"Oh," Kiho said, then something akin to exhilaration glinted gold in his warm gaze. "I'll have you for dessert, Tilly."

Gosh.

My husband is so sexy!

***

THANKFULLY, the dinner went smoothly.

The guests, all high-ranking nobles, seemed to enjoy the variety of sumptuous dinner that Kiho and Tilly prepared for them.

After the short ceremony where Emperor Aku officially appointed Kiho and Tilly as the new Duke and Duchess of Oakes, the nobles took turns in congratulating them. After that, the emperor asked everyone to go home because according to him, Tilly was pregnant and had to rest early.

Each guest that attended the party took home a gift set from Tilly's jewelry shop. That would help House Nystrom show off their wealth despite being a newly established house.

After that night, every noble in the empire wouldn't dare to look down on House Nystrom anymore.

***

AFTER the formal dinner, Kiho was summoned by the emperor in the royal parlor room.

Begrudgingly, he had to send Tilly home first because he didn't want her to get tired of waiting. He knew that he could trust his wife's safety to Lord Prescott and Miss Luna. He was just hoping that His Majesty would send him home early.

Anyway…

When he got inside the parlor, the emperor invited him for tea. Seeing that only the two of them were in the room, he knew that they would talk about something important.

"Kiho, congratulations on being a duke," Emperor Aku greeted him with a smile. "You don't have any idea how proud I am of who you have become."

Kiho bowed politely. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"I'm genuinely happy for you," the emperor continued. "I know I always say this but I really see you as a younger brother."

In the past, he would feel warm whenever His Majesty said those words to him.

But right now, all he felt was pain.

"Your Majesty, if you really see me as a younger brother, then shouldn't you treat my family as your own as well?"

The emperor was supposed to drink tea but his hand stopped mid-way. He looked shocked by his question. After looking at him long and hard, understanding finally crossed the emperor's eyes. Then, he gently put the tea cup down on the table. "You and your son will always be family to me, Kiho."

Kiho felt gutted when he heard that.

His Majesty doesn't consider Tilly as family.

To be honest, a part of him still regretted the fact that he had betrayed the emperor for his wife. But after hearing what His Majesty just said about his family, the part of him that still saw His Majesty as a brother finally vanished.

He told Tilly that in a war, she shouldn't get attached to anyone.

It's time for me to walk the talk.

"Your Majesty, I won't consider anyone who doesn't treat Tilly kindly as a part of my family," Kiho declared coldly. "And I will consider anyone who would try to harm my wife as an enemy. No matter who they are, or how their status in the society is."

The emperor obviously didn't feel threatened by his words. "Oh, Kiho. How many times do I have to tell you that you should be careful of what you say to me? I will not always tolerate your rudeness, you know? My patience and generosity have limits as well."

"I have my limits, too, Your Majesty," he said firmly. "I won't stay still if someone comes at my family."

"It seems like I have spoiled you too much, Kiho," Emperor Aku said coldly, his red eyes glowing menacingly. "How dare you say to my face that you're going to betray me just because of a woman?"

"Tilly is not just any woman, Your Majesty," he said, his own yellowish eyes glowing in golden light now. "She's my life."

The emperor seemed to be affected by his words because he suddenly calmed down.

"How can I hate you when I see myself in you?" Emperor Aku asked with a bitter smile. "I knew you'd choose Lady Nystrom because if I were in your situation, I would choose Nia as well no matter what. I understand you, Kiho. And for that reason, I wouldn't hold this against you. After all, just like me, you're only a victim of love."

"We're different, Your Majesty," he said while shaking his head. "Yes, I am in love with Tilly. But I'm not blinded by love. If Tilly was the kind of woman who would hurt other people just to get what she wanted, then I wouldn't turn a blind eye. I wouldn't tolerate her no matter how much I loved her. But thankfully, my Tilly is different from the one you love."

"Take. It. Back," the emperor said in an eerily calm but intimidating voice. "You can insult me all you want, Kiho. But I won't forgive you if you talk that way about Nia."

"Your Majesty, I genuinely see you as a brother."

Again, his words seemed to have a calming effect on the emperor.

But this time, he knew that it wasn't just his words that forced him to calm down. The shocked look on the emperor's face was enough to tell him that his feelings reached him.

"You're an older brother and a father figure to me so let me say this," Kiho said in a broken voice, tears now forming at the corner of his eyes. "An emperor shouldn't sacrifice the life of his subjects just to protect his own interest. As a younger brother, I have to stop you from becoming a rotten ruler." He couldn't hold it back now. He stood up and bowed to the emperor. When he raised his head, his tears silently rolled down his cheeks while looking at the man that he used to respect the most. "Thank you for everything, Brother Aku."

Aku, just like him, got emotional. His head hanged low while he was gently pressing the bridge between his eyes as if he was trying hard not to cry. "I can't believe that would be the last time I'd hear you call me that, Kiho."

And that was how their brotherhood ended.

***

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hi. I apologize. I was supposed to post 2 chapters today but my file got corrupted. I couldn't recover the stuff that I had written so far so I had to rewrite it again. I could only finish one chapter tonight because I spent the day crying and getting angry at myself for not having a backup file. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you soon. :'(

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