CH 45

Self-Awareness and Secrets (1)

“I greet the Empress.”

“Welcome, Chancellor Bashel.”

Roelin greeted Heinez, who had his head bowed with courtesy towards her. He glanced at her for a while with that calm look on his face before he soon approached her at her very position of authority as he took a seat down.

“Would you like a cup of tea?”

“It’s actually fine, Empress. I just have to tell you something and leave right away, so I’ll only accept your sentiment.”

“Of course, let us do that then.”

Roelin winked at Silloa. Then, as Silloa was just about to prepare the tea, she quickly understood the meaning before taking her leave right away.

“We have finally decided on the person who will be in charge of the Empress’s education.”

Heinez looked back at Silloa through the slight opening of the door and opened his mouth calmly once again.

However, Roelin merely nodded without showing any signs of surprise at all as if she had already speculated it. In response to her calm reaction, Heinez began to ask while gazing at her with his eyes remained rather still.

“Have you known about it already?”

“Before the hunting competition, His Majesty had once said something about it, albeit in passing. He mentioned that Chancellor Bashel would soon assign a teacher to me.”

“…Oh, I see.”

Heinez’s purple eyes, which were concentrating on Roelin, started quivering slightly. However, he soon continued with an indifferent look. The main topic was simply a rough introduction to those who would be in charge of her education. Then, as he continued to the end of his introduction, he also remarked.

“And finally, I’m going to be in charge of your Imperial Education.”

“Chancellor Bashel is the one who will be in charge of my education?”

Roelin, who was still listening to Heinez, began to look at him with a slight surprise. She couldn’t help but be surprised because that person had already been overseeing the heavy responsibility as the Chancellor and was now in charge of her own education as well.

However, Heinez only replied with a calm look as if he was just asking which was all too natural.

“Yes, Empress.”

“…Then, I’ll have to say that I really look forward to your kind cooperation ahead.”

Roelin closed her mouth for a while and replied with a beat late. Her face instantly became rather blurred.

The silver-haired man who was sitting right in front of her had never been a comfortable opponent at all. His attitude was always polite, but she could still feel that his feelings for her were never that pleasant.

Of course, it seemed to have eased up a little more than initially.

Rather than being hostile… What should she really say? Nervousness? Or even, the idea of boundaries?

Perhaps it had been due to the fact that she was the Royal Daughter of Rakain, Erita, herself. Moreover, it was probably because of what Erita did as well and no matter how much she apologized for those things that had already transpired in the past, she still couldn’t return during when it happened at all.

She couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable while understanding it all with her head. That was precisely why she wanted to ask if someone else could actually teach her.

However, she knew full well that she couldn’t. Also, avoiding it wouldn’t solve everything as well.

It was something which she had to deal with anyway.

‘I should think of it as one of the costs of getting outside of Rakain itself.’

When it had come to that, it was actually nothing at all. In comparison to the targeted feelings of hatred and contempt towards her back in Rakain…

At that moment, Roelin’s thoughts felt all squeezed and Heinez’s voice could be heard once again.

“By the way, I was really embarrassed at the last hunting competition. It was the first official event that you had attended after the wedding, but I never imagined His Majesty wouldn’t be able to catch even a single beast at all.”

“Ah… back then—”

Roelin replied with an awkward look at what Heinez had uttered. A worried look passed through her white face. Even so, it was all because there had been something on her mind ever since the last hunting competition.

“…Chancellor Bashel. May I ask you a question?”

She hesitated for a moment before she finally brought it up. Then, Heinez nodded as he replied in a polite tone.

“Please do so, Empress.”

“Wouldn’t it be detrimental to His Majesty due to the hunting contest? For example, it has caused damage to the authority of His Majesty or something like that.”

“…are you worried?”

Heinez’s purple eyes once again narrowed themselves. It was an observing gaze, but Roelin simply nodded without noticing it at all.

“His Majesty said that I didn’t have to worry, but it still bothers me actually. As he said, do I really have no need to get worried?”

“Of course, it’s not that the Imperial Authority is so weak that His Majesty’s supremacy is reduced by that kind of course. It had just been a light ‘talk’ and everyone thought of it that way as well.”

“If it is so, then I’m glad.”

Roelin was sincerely relieved as she raised the corners of her mouth without realizing it. Heinez’s expression, which noticed her relaxed mouth, began to loosen a little as well.

“It is such a relief for me too.”

“…What?”

“Honestly, I didn’t think that the Empress would be so concerned and caring towards His Majesty.”

A smile spread across Heinez’s mouth. It was not like him who had always been wary of Roelin as he built up a wall as well. Roelin was puzzled by the unfamiliar impression of his before she blinked for a moment and responded to his words, albeit belatedly.

“That’s what Chancellor Bashel said, but I feel like I’ve done something rather great. It’s just an attitude that I should adhere to since I’ve already become His Majesty’s companion.”

“In fact, I didn’t really expect much from the Empress at all.”

Heinez calmly confessed his feelings as he listened to her response. Roelin immediately made a face at those words of his. Nevertheless, he still continued to talk while looking at her.

“Beside the unsavory incident from the year before last, the Empress has always been a Royal Daughter of the Rakain Kingdom. I didn’t think that your relationship would be very good either since you were only forced to accept the marriage with His Majesty. So, for me, I couldn’t loosen the boundaries that easily, let alone rely on the Empress.”