Chapter 23

The date for the emperor's coronation was decided much quicker than expected. The castle became busy with the preparation.

Normally, the coronation of the new emperor took place within 3 months from the death of his father, but this time, Lucretius ordered it to be done within the month. The plan was to have a simple minimal ceremony. He also ordered to include our official wedding service to take place at the same time instead of having it as a separate ceremony.

It was obvious why the emperor was in such a hurry. The dowager empress was still as powerful as ever. She also remained in the empress's living quarter instead of moving out as the tradition dictated.

After the coronation, the dowager empress would not have any valid excuse to stay in the empress's place. The empress's room was right next to the emperor's room, and Lucretius felt unsafe in his own bed. The dowager empress had to go.

Rushing the coronation was a logical decision on his part.

I became very busy in preparing myself. Since Lucretius didn't have an empress, I had to attend in her place during the coronation as his first and only wife. I couldn't wear the empress's crown or sit on her seat, but I still had to be part of it. I sighed worriedly.

The whole process would take a week. It included the official coronation ceremony and several congratulatory parties afterward. I was expected to change my dresses at least twice every day for the eight days of festivity. That meant I needed to have sixteen dresses made. In less than a month!

It was an impossible task!

So far, we had three dresses completed. To save time, it was decided that the seamstresses will reuse the dresses and jewels of the former emperor's first empress, who was Lucretius's birthmother. Even though this made it quicker and easier, I still had to spend a lot of time being a human mannequin so the dresses could be adjusted to fit me.

There was something I haven't thought of when I first learned of the coronation plan. Whenever such a big event took place, important figures from other countries were invited. Small, weak colonies of Cransia, such as Aeal, had no right to refuse such an invitation.

The day before the coronation, Duke Aeal and his family arrived at the castle. When I heard this news, I dropped my bread on the table in shock.

What the hell!

Samantha took away the dropped bread without question.

The emperor, who was sitting across from me and eating a bread himself, said to me as if I was being foolish, "How could my only wife be so careless…"

"If you are so unhappy with me, then I can give up being your wife."

He shook his head. "That's not possible. An emperor needs to have at least one wife at all times. If I didn't have any wife, I don't even want to think about what the noble families would do to me."

He was smiling as if joking, but his voice sounded strange. He was hiding something from me.

I didn't know why, but I felt like his voice sounded expectant.

Expectant of what?

I tried to analyze what he had said so far, but nothing came to mind.

I buttered my new bread Samantha handed to me and asked, "…Do you know something that I don't?"

"Know something? I know a lot of things, but I don't know what my sweet wife is talking about."

Bastard!

He had been calling me many cutesy pet names, including variations of "my wife," "your highness," and "my lady wife." I didn't like it at all.

Now, he was making fun of me!

I chewed my bread angrily like my life depended on it. I pretended the bread was the emperor. They were both very pale. The difference was that the bread gave me nutrition while this man was harmful to me. Both my mind and body.

He came to my room again last night so I couldn't get much sleep. Unlike his promise of visiting my bedroom three to four times per week, he had been coming to my chamber pretty much every night.

Thanks to him, it had been like hell. My v.i.r.g.i.nity was still safe, but he used me like a human hot pack. Every night, he hugged me tight and fell asleep.

Because I hadn't been sleeping very well, my dark circles became huge, and I often fell asleep during the day. What I hated the most was that people interpreted my tiredness as something else entirely. When I yawned, usually around lunchtime, they looked at me knowingly and proudly and prepared me for a nap. They also often got me food that was known to be good for stamina.

I wanted to scream at them that it's not like that. I wanted to tell them I was still a v.i.r.g.i.n, but of course, I couldn't.

A rumor started that the emperor was madly in love with his wife, and that was why he spent every night with me.

However, at least, my effort to protect my body worked. On the second night we spent together, the emperor promised me he won't do anything until I said yes.

How did I manage it? I dared him.

I asked him boldly, "Aren't you confident in yourself?"

"Confident?"

"That you can make me want you… Aahhh!"

Before I could finish my sentence, the emperor pulled my wrist and practically threw me on the bed. He then came close to me.

Close enough to kiss me.

He grinned. Oh man. It should be illegal for a man to look this beautiful.

I knew the real him though. The real Lucretius made me anxious. Especially when he smiled like this.

"I will go along with it."

"What?"

He rubbed my lips with his finger and whispered, "I will wait till you beg me for it. Until then, I won't do anything."

Yes! My plan worked!

That was a month ago. At the time, I thought I won the battle, but I was terribly mistaken. If I could go back in time, I would stop myself from being so stupid.

I dared him to keep myself safe, but he took it as a personal challenge.

It was a challenge to seduce me.