Capitulo 114

Episode 114

Arriving in front of the Palace Fortress, I was surprised to see the person waiting to meet me.

Your, Your Majesty?

When he got off the carriage, Aster, whose face was completely relaxed, was worried.

He approached and checked every part of my body.

Your complexion looks bad, is it okay? Is it hurt anywhere?

Yes. I’m fine… I think.

Seeing someone so concerned about me made me feel uncomfortable.

In particular, it was still unfamiliar for people outside the family to do this.

Let’s go inside.

Aster approached me. I looked at the hand silently and put my hand on it.

He held my hand tightly.

My frozen fingertips melted slightly as they came in contact with the warm body temperature. I waved goodbye to the people around me on the way.

We slowly made our way towards the Winter Palace gardens.

Are you really well?

Of course, Your Majesty.

He stopped and looked at me again.

Your hands are shaking.

Aster lifted the hand he was holding.

I looked at my shaking hands and closed my mouth.

You don’t have to pretend in front of me.

His words eased the tension in my body.

Would you like to rest for a while?

As I nodded slowly, Aster led me to a nearby courtyard.

In the courtyard with a small fountain, tropical flowers were in full bloom.

Sit here and wait a moment. Go and get the tea here.

As I was about to go to the servant following behind, I unknowingly grabbed the edge of his robe.

Princess?

Surprised, I quickly withdrew my hand.

I’m sorry. Go.

Aster was silent for a moment.

He knelt down in front of me.

When I saw the purple eyes staring silently at me, I remembered the man who had just desired me and my body trembled.

It was a feeling that overflowed with something I had seen from time to time.

Are you really okay?

No, it was different.

Aster didn’t try to arbitrarily handle me regardless of my intentions, nor did he reveal his inferior feelings.

Karina. I don’t know what’s going on. So I want you to be honest with me. Even if time passes and I get to know you better.

Aster said softly, stroking the back of my hand.

Showing my weakness to someone was disgusting.

The moment someone showed weakness, they all rushed to bite me.

And I remembered what Andrew said.

Saying that I don’t love Aster.

Aster was a good person to me.

The way he smiled saying he didn’t mind me using him made me believe him without realizing it.

Please stay by my side for a moment.

I had a hard time opening my mouth.

I will stay by your side until you say it’s okay.

Aster lowered his head and kissed the back of my hand.

I felt a sense of relief from the warm, soft touch.

I was convinced he would never hurt me.

* * *

It didn’t take long for me to find my stability.

Soon refreshments were served on the spot.

As I drank the warm herbal tea, my tension and anxiety melted away.

Ah.

You seem to be a little better now.

Aster smiled broadly and pushed the plate with the macaroni in front of me.

It’s fragrant when eaten with rose jam.

I silently put some jam on it as he recommended and took a big bite.

The fragrant scent of the flowers spread all over my mouth.

You seem to like it.

Do you?

Because you’re smiling.

I guess my expression was relaxed without realizing it.

I rubbed my cheek with the back of my hand and avoided his gaze.

I was embarrassed to have caught him earlier, but I didn’t think any more about it.

What did Andrew do?

I shook my head at his words.

How did you know?

There are very few people who know the Archduke’s magic. One of them is me.

At his comment, I told him what had happened in the car.

Aster’s face hardened when he even spoke about Andrew’s insane state.

Are you really saying that?

Yes.

He had a worried look on his face.

Even though the Archduke doesn’t know much about curses, he knows he shouldn’t say things like that.

What do you mean?

Aster shrugged her shoulders and said.

The curse that has been passed down from generation to generation in the imperial family often manifests itself as an obsession with someone. So the princes try not to become engrossed in something, and not to give too much affection.

In particular, Aster, who was the Crown Prince, received that education thoroughly.

If he tried to have any affection, he would immediately throw it away, and if he gave any sign of getting close to anyone, there were many cases where he would never see them again.

I know how my father, who was the emperor at the time, was obsessed with my deceased mother, but there is no way I can say such a thing.

My mouth fell open at the sight of Aster who spoke bluntly about his tough childhood.

Isn’t it hard?

He tilted his head as if he didn’t know what to say.

It was like that when I was young.

Mm. It wasn’t hard because I had nothing to fall in love with.

As he said that, his face darkened slightly.

Aster, who soon erased his expression, looked at me with worried eyes and said.

If the Grand Duke’s power is out of his control, it can be really dangerous. Especially, because winter magic is death in its essence….

It meant that crazy Andrew could kill me in anger for not getting me.

Would it be hard without other mages holding him back?

He shook his head.

It was a force created to control the strongest people in this world in the first place, so it seemed inevitable.

At times like this, I hate the fact that I am the emperor.

Your Majesty.

I’ve never thought about this before, and I can’t stand it because I thought you would be in danger….

He looked like he was about to collapse.

He is also a descendant of the royal family.

There was a good chance he would get caught up in the same unusual emotions as Andrew.

I silently took his hand.

I’ll be fine. He doesn’t even have a docile personality to the point where he could be easily captured.

I couldn’t tell him, but there was a way to neutralize Andrew’s power.

I remembered the item that appeared in the status window.

Karina’s tears.

This was probably the reason she couldn’t come to when Tatiana burst into tears.

I had never shed tears in front of male protagonists before, so I didn’t know my tears had this kind of power.

I smiled softly at Aster.

I also have my mother, and Aster will come to me if I’m in trouble. I don’t think you can stand to see your lover being kidnapped by another man.

You trust me too much.

You’re the man I chose.

He laughed like it was ridiculous.

And I decided to increase the number of people who would protect me and suggested several methods.

But the most important thing was also to capture Andrew.

There is no way to stop him at the moment. No one had seen him threaten me.

It was such subtle magic that even Fio didn’t notice.

If he was caught recklessly from this side, the violent reaction from the aristocrats would not be formidable.

He needed solid proof.

First, we needed to find evidence of treason quickly. The spy who infiltrated the Grand Duchess said he would soon meet Julius, the head of the Cassel family.

The meeting between the two meant that the Cassels had already decided to join the Archduke’s side.

In addition, the Prince of Gloucester, who possessed the Cassel family wealth, was gaining power.

Aster, who is not yet strong, is in a difficult situation to attack.

We must destroy the Cassel family first.

It will not be easy.

He also knew it well.

If it doesn’t collapse, no matter how much we attack it from the outside, there is a way to make it self-destruct from the inside.

Was anyone there long enough to dig inside?

I found a way to split without having to dig deep into it.

I let Aster know what I discovered.

* * *

Ethan headed for a cafe on the outskirts of the capital.

Often visited for secret meetings with nobles, anonymity was fully guaranteed.

He tapped on the car window with satisfaction.

He was sure the princess would contact him first.

No noble had knelt under Cassel’s name.

Cassel has contracted on equal footing with the nobles. How come, he is trying to show off to the emperor?

When Julius learned the full story, he scolded Ethan harshly.

He looked at his untreated right arm and raised his head.

We have arrived, Ethan.

At the driver’s words, he stepped out of the carriage.

As he entered, the waitress greeted him.

The princess is waiting over there.

As she led them in, they saw the princess sitting up straight.

His body was comfortable at the thought that the blue eyes looking up at him would have been tinged with a sense of defeat.

Ethan loved this moment.

The moment when those nobles bowed their heads to themselves, who ridiculed them as commoners.

It didn’t matter if he stood up and didn’t salute him.

Thank you for calling me that, princess.

Ethan smiled brightly and sat down across from her.

The dog he was carrying shifted back and forth at his feet.

Did you know that you are also a made wizard?

Ethan looked down at the dog barking from below and looked up in disbelief.