Chapter 20

“Have a good dream, Lina.”

Kaiden smiled and touched Evelina’s hair. She felt strange because of the hot warmth that grazed her ears as he handled her hair. It felt as if the burning heat was pressing her heart on her ear.

“Kaiden too.”

She said that and stared at him unconsciously. He didn’t seem to know that his gown was open and she could see his upper body. Evelina still remembered his naked back.

But even though he was a man with a stern back, his pectoral muscles looked even more ferocious with a well-divided chest and well-shaded abs. He had a muscular body that was strong enough to think that he had not even 1% of fat in his body. Why were there so many wounds there?

Evelina felt her blood cool when she saw a large scar on the area where his heart would be.

‘You should have died when you were 14.’

It was because the original came to mind.

That was what the Marquis of Logias said when he poisoned and stabbed Kaiden in the chest, whose consciousness was blurry.

Evelina had to try to calm down, recalling that her adoptive father had often gone to war, realizing that this long, extraordinary scar in front of her was indeed her father’s work.

“I don’t think I can sleep.”

His expression was smiling shyly, but I couldn’t not know that he wasn’t laughing with that thought.

“Lina is too beautiful for that. I can see it even with my eyes closed.”

Evelina, who came to her senses at his words, smiled bitterly and turned around.

“Good night, Kaiden.”

She closed her eyes tightly to go to sleep. After, a thick, heavy arm wrapped around her belly covered her waist.

Evelina felt as if she had fallen into a hell that was tightening so she could not run away. But she knew she shouldn’t rebel. She went to sleep ignoring the meaningless loud sound of his heart behind her back.

There must have been something strange in the medicine. Otherwise, this

she couldn’t have been sleepy even though she was so nervous and dizzy.

Evelina really fell asleep while closing her eyes like that.

~~~~

When she woke up in the morning, Kaiden was absent from the bedroom.

Instead:

「 I thought it would be nice if I was the first person to see you when you opened your eyes. But with that expectation, there’s something I have to go to. I hope you have a good morning without me. 

– Kayden. 」

Evelina felt strange because of the meaningful letter.

She was the daughter of an enemy who had sought his life multiple times. He said this to the daughter of his enemy? Was he really just trying to win the heart of his enemy’s daughter?

He had suffered for a very long time as a crown prince. Does it make sense for him to treat her like he really forgot she was an enemy just to win a woman’s heart?

That can’t be happening. Unless Kaiden was an idiot.

“Your Majesty, His Majesty, gave it to you.”

Evelina thought it was strange to see the room filled with pink peonies. Baroness Elias, a maid, was holding a bouquet of pink peony flowers, and a pink diamond necklace was placed on it as if it were on display.

“I see.”

Evelina knew that the jewel was the Empress’ necklace from the imperial house.

“Pretty.”

Evelina grabbed the bouquet of flowers handed to her and the necklace on it and checked it with her eyes. No matter how you look at it, her predecessors had worn it.

It was <Tears of a Mermaid>.

“Maybe last night with His Majesty…”

“Are you asking me if I had the first night?”

“I’m sorry.”

Evelina sighed without answering the words. That may be the case in the eyes of the servants. A friendly letter, a pink peony filled the room to the point of mistaking it as a greenhouse, and a famous jewel that only the Empress used. It will look like a gift from a satisfied Emperor after the first night.

“Do I have to answer?”

Evelina looked at the red medicine in her palm before she knew it, and asked.

Soon, while Baroness Elias bowed her head, she pretended to eat it, hiding it between the sleeves of her negligee.

“I’m sorry.”

Evelina saw Baroness Elias smiling with relief. From the perspective of the maid, it must have been a relief that the owner she was serving finally slept in the same room with the Emperor. In the first place, most of the maids who came to the palace came in to get married or for power.

However, Evelina felt strangely reluctant when she saw Baroness Elias’ smiling face. Trying to ignore it, she opened her mouth.

“Now that I’ve taken my medicine, can you help me get ready?”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Baroness Elias couldn’t hide her joy and smiled at Evelina. Evelina doubted whether it was a good thing she didn’t answer, but it was a question that didn’t have to be answered.

“Do you happen to know what happened to Countess Elbain?”

“Oh, her.”

Evelina asked about her other maid. Then Baroness Elias rolled her eyes as she contemplated and said.

“His Majesty said he would leave the disposition to Your Majesty. But maybe…”

“Maybe?”

“Wouldn’t she die if I kicked her out?””

“…”

“His Majesty is very angry.”

It occurred to her that Evelina could not expel Countess Elbain. She still didn’t know if she intended to give her chamomile tea. If a person died because of uncertainty, the discomfort was bound to haunt her for the next month.

“Yes, I see.”

She looked in the mirror with an uncomfortable expression.

Perhaps because the mermaid’s tears were pink diamonds, she had to wear a pink dress like the peonies today. Just as she was about to leave the bedroom.

– Click!

“Lina!”

Kaiden burst the door with a reminiscent face, perhaps in a rush. Behind him was the sound of footsteps as if several people were running.

“I heard you haven’t gone yet.”

“Oh, yes. I overslept.”

Evelina knew that Princess Elsius and the Dowager Empress would bother her if she left there, so she intentionally tried to prepare slowly.

The Emperor’s morning work ends at 12 o’clock. But it was only 11:30 now.

“Then let’s have lunch together.”

“… Yes.”

Evelina laughed hard, thinking that she would go ten minutes early.

“Oh, did you take your morning pills?”

“Yes.”

Then he said to Evelina with a relieved smile.

“It’s the first time we’ve eaten together, Empress.”

Kaiden’s low voice flowed into her ears and seemed to scratch her heart. His large body seemed to feel bigger as it came to her side.

“Your Majesty, where is your kravat?”

“I took it off because it was uncomfortable.”

Because the place where kravat should have been was vacant, his clothes were open in the front. The rib cage tucked into his thick neck, and the collarbones were visible below him along with the upper part of his solid pectoral muscles.

It caught the eye of Evelina. Her face turned pale as it reminded her of the wounds she had seen around his heart yesterday.

“Are you so disappointed that you can’t decide?”

“No.”

As Evelina shook her head, he smiled again with a pure expression and made eye contact with her.

“That’s a relief.”

He said so, gently gripping Evelina’s hand, and headed toward the terrace. There were also a lot of peonies, and Evelina was so intoxicated by the scent of peonies that she could not smell anything else.

After having been seated for lunch with him, she was surprised to see the meal served.

“I told them to take out all the carrots. And don’t worry, crustaceans won’t come up. The apples are all cut into rabbit shapes. Also the steak is well-done. The tableware has been heated for five minutes before serving. The wine served with it is from Burgundy, and the color is unique, but you can enjoy the flavor with steak.”

Evelina was speechless as the servant explained it to her.

What surprised Evelina the most, however, was that he knew her exact eating habits, favorite wine, and allergies. The scarlet wine of Burgundy in particular was very unusual. The wine was unique in color, but was produced only in the Burgundy region within the empire. It was also something she cherished so much that she only drank on special days when she was in the Marquis of Logias.

“Ah… why…”

Evelina looked at Kaiden in surprise that the head of the staff only gave him a steak plate. Then Kaiden cut all the steaks into straight squares as if he were cutting paper and gave it to her.

“Cutting is my specialty.”

“Oh… yes…”

“I’m much better at shooting.”

“Oh… yes…”

Evelina turned paler because of what he said. She thought it might be a warning. But he laughed and cut more as new steak plates were placed in front of him.

“Have some, Lina.”

“… Yes.”

She took her fork and put a piece of steak into her mouth. It was much better than what she had at the marquis. With the texture of meat melting in her mouth, Evelina mumbled unconsciously and started on her next piece.

Evelina, who was enjoying a good meal with wine, stopped when she saw Kaiden only cutting and not eating a single thing.

“Why aren’t you eating?”

“Oh, I forgot to eat for a while. Maybe…”

She looked nervously at him, wondering what else he was going to say.

“I was wondering if you could feed me, too.”

“Oh, yes.”

Evelina knew well that the action was very undignified as a noble, but she decided to do it. So she picked up a piece from her plate and fed it to him. Then he ate it with a look of patience.

At that moment.

“Ugh!”

Something that climbed up the chest came up out of her mouth.

“Lina!”

It was blood.

She covered her mouth, but she spilled the red pill hidden in her sleeve. The red pill circled around the table and stopped at her bloodstains.