CH 33

RJR11-14 minutes 01.10.2023

After the Temple of Harios allowed the Knights of Saint Malik to join the Holy Knights, the temple became the subject of surveillance. It was a long time ago that the demons and priests, the roots of the imperial family, once fought a war. The temple was incorporated into the empire with the founding of Eliadan and has lived quietly enjoying the prosperity of the empire since then. There have been minor rebellions within the empire, but the temple has never been at the forefront. The temple seemed to have forgotten its long past and easily joined the reign of the empire. However, they suddenly accepted suspicious groups such as the Knights of St. Malik. It was necessary to watch carefully what this meant, whether it was now suddenly going to break up a long-standing friendly relationship.

“Crazy guys. Are you trying to defraud the Marquis of Her Majesty’s secrets? No, what if you live like that? What are you going to do with that?”

No matter how much she thought about it, the intention was very suspicious and scandalous. The Empress’s secret could be something great, or on the contrary, it could be nothing special. Either way, trying to pry it out of the temple caused outrage.

“The use will vary depending on what kind of secret it is. But it doesn’t change the fact that the purpose is to carry out a trick against the imperial family.”

“Huh. So, I’m getting fever.”

Ryan wiggled her fingers as if holding her sword.

“Shall we go and cut off some of their hair, Your Majesty? Either the marquis’ or the Minister’s.”

Lescal, who was continuing his thoughts, raised his eyebrows.

“…yet. There is no justification.”

“Why not? They are openly revealing their dark intention to interfere with her imperial family.”

Serven cautiously intervened.

“No, not outright. He said he moved secretly. The reason they found out so quickly was because Dekan was watching.”

Dekan was the vice-captain and third shadow knight who led the Silver Shield. Unlike the two shadow knights who became symbols of the imperial guard, Decan became a literal shadow because of his role.

“Ha, damn it. So you’re saying we have to wait until an accident happens?”

“For now. Even if the imperial family takes issue with the summoning of the marquis from the temple, there is no basis for punishment in itself. “It’s not a crime for a noble to visit a temple.”

That was also correct. Ryan gritted his teeth.

“I shouldn’t have let the Marquis go. He should have tortured him to open his mouth. If you know what the secret is, it becomes much easier to respond.”

Serben shook his head eagerly.

“No, of course I don’t believe what the Marquis says, but… Still, torture is not allowed. How are we going to take care of it?”

“Damn, damn.”

Ryan tapped her heel on the rough marble floor.

“Then what should we do, Your Majesty?”

“…I don’t know.”

As Lescal said this, a vein appeared on his neck.

“If we leave this fuss like this, it will eventually be revealed what the Empress is hiding. It’s not too late to go and use her hands then.”

It was a cool-headed and rational decision. But Lescal’s expression said that was not all.

“So?”

“The Empress will be displeased if the secret is revealed. I don’t like that.”

“Ah…”

“Hmm…”

Ryan and Serben were speechless for a moment.

“But… Her Majesty’s secret may have something to do with her past four years or her memory loss. If that’s the case, Your Majesty should know. No, Your Majesty should know this before anyone else.”

“I know that. But I don’t want to do something that might make the Empress displeased with me. No one likes to find out secrets.”

So he was saying that the Empress was hiding something, and he didn’t want the Empress to be angry with him if she found out through a third party. It seemed like Lescal had already become a loving husband. Ryan looked at the floor awkwardly for a moment and spoke again.

“Then um… I guess I’ll have to stop the Marquis. If I hurry alone, I will be able to block the path before we reach the temple.”

Then Serven expressed concern.

“No, even if we can stop today, that’s it. It would be useless if it were not to ban nobles from entering the temple itself.”

Even if such a ban were imposed, it could not prevent people from approaching Marquis Parshad at the Temple of Harios. It was impossible to ban all nobles from contact with all priests. Serven thought for a moment and said this.

“How about telling Her Majesty the Empress?”

“To the Empress?”

“Yes. If the Marquis was just shouting, there wouldn’t be a problem, but if there really is such a secret, Her Majesty the Empress will have to come up with a solution.”

Even if it was aimed at the imperial family, it would be the empress who would be the one to bite. The Empress also had to know about this matter.

“You’re making a deal. Your Majesty the Empress will tell you her secrets, and in return, His Majesty will solve her problems.”

That way, there was no need to force secrets through a third party, and there was no need to worry about the situation becoming bigger if the temple was involved.

“It’s a deal… good.”

It wouldn’t be a good situation for a couple to talk about business as usual, but it was different for Lescal. He was getting closer to the Empress little by little through his dealings.

“I should tell you now. Because it might turn out to be important.”

The last words sounded like an excuse to go to the Empress.

* * *

The Emperor returned before he could finish breakfast. Lasilia greeted the emperor with a roasted quail egg in her hand that she was about to put into her mouth.

“Are you here? Have you finished eating?”

“No yet.”

It was something he added haphazardly because he was staring at what she was eating, but the answer was surprising.

“You must be hungry.”

“…little.”

What kind of Emperor didn’t take care of his meals properly? The Emperor was also starving, but he was eating luxurious food that was incomparable to when he lived as a prophet. Lasilia, embarrassed by the fork in her hand, sighed lightly and asked.

“Would you like to eat now?”

Since there was a lot of food prepared anyway, it meant that she was going to eat this at least. The Emperor walked past the table and came to the side.

“I will eat. Give it to me.”

Then, he lowered his head and swallowed the quail egg that was about to enter her mouth.

“…I didn’t mean to give you this.”

“I thought so.”

Was that possible? She wasn’t angry because she already knew that the Emperor was a human being who could lie as shamelessly as he wanted.

“If you are going to eat, please sit down and eat.”

“It’s okay for me to eat like this.”

“No. It’s not possible.”

“…”

The Emperor had a strangely glum expression. Lasilia turned her gaze and pretended not to notice the expression on her face.

“Then how about this?”

Lescal stabbed the grilled quail egg again with Lasilia’s fork.

“If I tell you something, you will give me this in exchange for the story.”

“For what kind of story do I have to pay a price?”

“It won’t be a story that will cause any harm. Trust me.”

“…”

Lasilia closed her mouth and studied the Emperor’s face. In the meantime, she learned how to read the expressions on that face. The Emperor was not lying. Moreover, the price the Emperor demanded was always simple and insignificant. Even if the Emperor lied, she had nothing to lose. She ate one less quail egg.

“Please speak. What are you talking about?”

Before answering, Lescal briefly caressed Lasilia’s hair. However, what made Lasilia more embarrassed than the unreasonable contact were the words that came out of the Emperor’s mouth.

“They say the Marchioness Parshad knows your secret.”

“…yes?”

“I took the bait at the temple. Sooner or later, they might ask for something using that secret.”

“…”

His hand caressing her hair was gentle. But Lasilia was so busy digesting what she had just heard that she didn’t even feel where he was touching her.

‘How could that… You can do stupid things, right? She must know very well that she, the one who hid the secret, cannot be safe.’

Lescal put the fork into Lasilia’s hand.

“It looks like it was a story worth paying for.”

“…”

So, as he was looking at her wondering what to do, Lescal wrapped his hand around the fork in her hand.

“I decided to feed you.”

It had never been like that. He said he would just give it to her. Lasilia pushed Lescal’s hand away.

“Don’t change your words. My ears are fine.”

Lescal twitched his lips and looked at Lasilia, then lowered his head and put the fork Lasilia held in her hand into her mouth. She wasn’t fed, but she looked similar to what she was fed. After chewing and swallowing his food, Lescal opened his mouth.

“I didn’t change my words. I meant to ask you to feed me from the beginning.”

“…”

“Then let’s say it properly this time. If I solve the problem that bothers you about the temple, will you feed me then?”

Even though he always did things that made no sense, Lasilia knew that the Emperor was a sharp and clever person. He noticed the existence of her secret. There was no way he was going to let this go. The temple’s involvement would mean that the situation was more complicated than she could now guess. The Knights of Saint Malik were a group that revered the wizard who waged war against demons, and the Temple of Harios made them the Holy Knights. It was scary to guess what would happen if the temple got the Empress’s secret into her hands. More than anything, she was scared of how the Emperor would come out when he found out she was a fake. Would he pick up the knife and stab the fake in the chest without hesitation?

“Well. I don’t think that will happen.”

Lasilia leaned back and slightly opened the distance.

“I don’t know what the secret is, but I don’t remember, Your Majesty. Even if the temple tries to find fault with a secret, how can that be possible if I’m like this?”

His golden eyes narrowed as she looked at his direction.

“…So does that mean you don’t need my help?”

“If I remember what the secret is, I’ll ask for it then… Oh, the Marchioness said she knew, so I guess you can hear it from her.”

“The Marchioness is on her way to the temple now. She may have already arrived.”

“But I still need to know what my secret is. If today is difficult, I should ask her to come tomorrow.”

Lasilia put her fork down on the table. She just hoped that the small clanking sound would not be heard as agitation.

“How should I call the Marchioness?”

When Lasilia asked, Lescal’s eyes changed for a moment. He didn’t know if she was asking this little thing because she really didn’t know, or if she was asking it on purpose to pretend she had lost her memory.

“Normally, I have the secretary write a letter. If it’s urgent, send someone directly. I will send a secretary to Marquis Parshad.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Lasilia stood up from her seat.

“I’ve finished eating, so I’ll just head back.”

Lescal quickly grabbed Lasilia’s hand.

“I missed breakfast, so let’s have lunch together.”

“…If you want.”

Even though the blue moon had passed, the Emperor didn’t seem to have changed much. She wondered about that. But now there was something more urgent than worrying about such things. She had to stop the Marchioness from arriving at the temple. With her confined to the Empress’s palace, it was natural that she had no way, but strangely enough, it seemed like she might have a way.

“Then at lunch.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After leaving the dining hall, Lasilia’s steps gradually became faster.