As they walked through the large and almost empty hallway, Emery could not help but look around and be mesmerized at the internal design of the palace that even the high ceiling had intricate designs inscribed on it.
“I wonder how much was spent to build this palace,” she mumbled to herself.
Her attention shifted to Castor when she heard him chuckle.
“What?”
“Nothing. It’s just unusual to hear someone wonder how much this palace costs.”
Emery simply shrugged.
“But Sapphire, I was just wondering… what made you change your mind about the of
On Emery’s first day at work in the Euthoria mansion, she woke up as early as five in the morning. After washing up, she left her room and went to the kitchen, where the other maidservants were already preparing breakfast."You’re Sapphire, right? The emperor’s new attendant?" one of them asked.Emery nodded, and a few seconds later, she was handed a tray of freshly brewed tea."Make sure to knock three times before entering His Imperial Highness’ room. And if you find him still sleeping, wait for him to wake up or else he will be mad as hell. If the tea grows cold before he wakes up, come back here and we will give you a new set."
Even after what Lady Serena said, the emperor remained unfazed since he did not display any sign of interest.“Seeing that kind of reaction, it seems like you already know it. What do you plan to do after bringing her here?”“You are already aware of what’s going to happen. Why bother asking?” the emperor stated, still not sparing the lady a single glance.Lady Serena chuckled out of amusement.“Then, what are you going to do if I refuse to let her be crowned an empress? Everyone knows that I am going to be your wife, and nothing will change that whether you love me or not. Besides, even your advisors and ministers agree that only I can take the throne next to you.”
“What do you mean I am hiding something?” Emery asked rather calmly, despite worrying if she had just busted herself.The emperor then flashed her a smile and replied, “By any chance, is your husband hurting you?”Emery’s serious expression changed into a dopey one because of the sudden change of topic. And not to mention, he was talking about someone who does not really exist. Anyhow, she was relieved that the emperor was not referring to her secret.“How did this become about my husband?”“Well, it seems like you are the one who is enduring a lot, Sapphire. Why don’t you just divorce your husband and devote yourself to me as my first concubine?” If that h
“She can either be protecting something or just not being open about herself.” Castor looked at the emperor. “Why don’t you just ask her yourself? I mean, wouldn’t that be easier?”This time, it was the emperor’s turn to shake his head.“It’s no use since she is wary of me. She would simply lie to me or won’t take me seriously. Why don’t you ask her? She seemed to trust you more.”Castor chuckled because he did not expect to hear such words from him. But just like the emperor, he was not confident that he would be able to get an honest answer from her since Emery was also keeping her guard around him. As the two try to look for some other ways to know more about Emery, the person of their interest was wi
Leaning back on his seat and resting his chin on the back of his hand, Emperor Claus looked at Castor with a grim expression.“A spy? How did you come up with that idea?” he asked the knight.“As I told you before, the king of the Silex Kingdom could possibly be suspecting us as the mastermind of the ongoing massacre of their soldiers. Sapphire’s appearance here at this time is just too suspicious to call it a simple coincidence. And not to mention, she said a while ago that she came from that kingdom.’’The emperor thought for a while and was reminded of the times he spent with his new attendant. So far, he noticed nothing out of the ordinary with her but Castor also had a point so he did not want to dismiss his speculation just yet.“Since this is still not proven, continue monitoring her and digging into her background. There is still a possibility that she is not a spy because no spy would reveal even one trut
When the morning came, there was a knock on the door that awakened the emperor from his slumber. Sitting, he noticed that Emery was still asleep so he lay her down on the sofa. Upon realizing that he could see the outline of her undergarments, he cursed at himself as he looked away. He covered her with his shirt before opening the door. “Your Imperial Highness, an urgent report from the south just came.” Castor handed him a letter from the lieutenant assigned in the south border. Reading it made the emperor sigh because it was his half-brother again who was stirring some trouble. “Are there six of you available?” he asked the knight. “Only five.” “That’s enough. Prepare to leave. We will go south this afternoon.” He turned on his heels and saw Emery still sleeping soundly. “I found her in the library going through some books last night. I think she is up to something so keep an eye on her as well.” Castor nodded. Despite wanting to ask how Emery ended up sleeping in the emperor’s
Assured that the letter would be delivered to Raphael, Emery went back to the Euthoria mansion where she saw the carriage already at the entrance. The emperor also came into sight and when she decided to approach him, she came to a halt upon seeing a woman speaking with him. It was someone she never saw before. Standing on the side, she overheard their conversation.“King Lawson will be staying here for a week so prepare the Eldford Hall for his stay. My daily scheduled meal with Serena will be on hold within that week since she will transfer here for the meantime. Formal meetings will be done for four days. Keep the first day only for formal introductions. The last day would be a ball for every noble,” Emperor Claus said before handing her the scroll, containing the detailed plans for the king’s visit.“I will make the necessary preparations within the palace, Your Imperial Highness. I will also make sure to update you with the progress.”As of the moment, Emery could not sense anyth
Upon stepping into the hall where the emperor’s room was, Emery was left speechless. Right before her, Castor was banging the door, asking Emperor Claus if everything was okay. It was clear that he was worried sick because when the emperor never opened the door, the knights forced their way in. The next thing she saw sent chills down her spine. Right across from her was the emperor looking at her directly in the eyes with a gaze so sharp and evil. A devil’s grin marked his lips from ear to ear. This was the version of him that she had never seen before, freezing her in place and unable to look away from him.“Your Imperial Highness, calm down,” Castor said, trying not to provoke him as much as possible since the worst could happen with his current state.However, the emperor ignored the knight’s words and pointed at Emery.“Chain her legs and lock her in her room,” he demanded.The knights looked at each other, unsure of what to do.“Don’t make me repeat myself,” Emperor Claus said a
Fate just had its way of playing with the lives of people, especially Emery who seemed to be its favorite to play with. Emery gave birth to twins, one boy and one girl. She thought that having them would finally mend her relationship with King Lawson that was on the verge of being broken once more, however, she was wrong. Rather than having a stable relationship, it became more chaotic when King Lawson came back from a three-week trip to another kingdom for a diplomatic meeting. Her heart broke as she watched him return with another woman. It was not just an ordinary woman, but the younger sister and seemingly exact replica of Royal Concubine Hazel. She received the king’s utmost attention with the reason that King Lawson felt guilty of letting Lady Hazel be killed. Hence, his only way to redeem himself was to treat her younger sister better. Emery let it slide, thinking that her twins needed more attention from her since their father barely spent time with them. However, even in he
The people along the main street of Elescaster City halted whatever they were doing upon hearing clops of horses’ hooves getting louder and seeing a group of men passing by at a rather fast speed towards the direction of the palace. They had to clear the streets in order to avoid getting stomped. Several of the men were clearly foreign soldiers judging by the unfamiliar armor they wore. However, they only grew curious of the other two leading them since they wore a hooded cape that hid their faces from anyone. It took them several minutes to reach the main gates of the palace, halting their horses to get their identities checked. The two people at the front removed their hoods, revealing a young boy and an older woman. With only one look at the younger one, the guards could tell that it was none other than the twin of the empire’s Crown Prince. His hair was as dark as the night, which was contrary to his pair of eyes that resembled the golden sun. The guard bowed their heads in his
In the midst of the wide gladiator stadium filled with spectators both from the noble and ordinary families, two women faced off against each other, their swords at the ready. Right at the side where a large throne stood was Emperor Claus overlooking the open ground with Castor right next to him. The other knights stood at different posts around the stadium to make sure that no outsiders would dare interfere with the duel.The rows of seats right below him were occupied by the ministers, including the emperor’s three advisors—Sir Tarkin, Sir Vlachos, and Sir Louvel. As much as these three men were against the said duel as it could put the empire into a state of instability because of Emery’s non-Varmorian blood and lack of influence and wealth, this was also by far the safest option they have to keep the Hagans’ reputation unstained. They were already aware of th
On the day before the duel between Emery and the empress, the former just finished her daily training with Jadeite in the barracks of the knights. She did not want to exhaust herself too much so right after their morning drill, she decided to go back to Euthoria Mansion and have some rest. Jadeite, on the other hand, stayed behind and had sparrings against the other knights. Before she could leave the barracks, Castor walked up to her. “You still have some time to back out,” he said even though he already knew that Emery would do no such thing. “Backing out is not one of my options, Sir Castor,” she replied. Just as she was about to leave, she stopped for a moment and hesitantly asked, “H-His Imperial Highness… H-How is he? He never visited for the past few days so…” “If you are worried, then it is better to go and check up on him yourself,” the knight replied, giving her a pat on the shoulder before heading back inside the barracks. Emery let out a sigh. She did receive a report f
Upon Emery’s return to Euthoria Mansion, she clenched her fist in annoyance upon seeing that the emperor had returned first. He was waiting for her right at the entrance, but even after stepping out of the carriage, she still gave him the cold shoulders. However, even before she could take another step away from him, he held her wrist, stopping her from running away from him again.“Just five minutes of your time, please let me explain myself,” he pleaded.Emery took her hand away from him and the very next second, her hand landed on his cheek with a sharp slap. Those who witnessed it froze in place, not knowing what to do at all because intervening in such a heated yet cold war between the two seemed to be enough to make one pass out.“You shou
The consecutive clashing of blades filled the open ground of the knights’ barracks as Emery and Jadeite continued to fight each other. It had been more than five minutes already and yet the latter showed little sign of exhaustion despite the fact that she had been all over the place like an agile and skilled monkey. Meanwhile, Emery seemed to be so close to falling on her knees as beads of sweat ran down the side of her face. Her heavy breathing pretty much showed that her endurance was not that good.“You have gone rusted, Emery!” Jadeite claimed, wearing her infamous grin.She tightened her hold onto her pair of short swords and sprinted towards Emery. She had tired her out so a head-on and full attack would most likely end the first round of their sparring. Slashing diagonally with her right hand first, Eme
It was early in the morning when Emery finally regained consciousness. She slowly opened her eyes and the very first thing that came into sight was the familiar intricate drawings of her room’s high ceiling. The back of her neck still ached and the wound on her back that was still healing felt like several needles were piercing her skin all at the same time. Groaning, she shifted her gaze to the side and saw the emperor looking at her with a worried look.Only then, she was reminded of what had occurred even before she lost consciousness. That was enough to make her sit up and leave the bed.“Milady!” the emperor called out, rising from his seat and going after her.Emery opened the door of her twins’ room and rushed to the crib. She felt her he
“Different,” Jadeite hissed. “He is definitely different because he will hurt you in another way. First, he just watched his empress trample over you during their wedding reception. What’s next? Watch you die? Is that considered love, Emery? Is that how you define it?”Emery was unable to say a word, hence, Lila stepped between them and pushed Jadeite out of the room to help her cool down her head. Raphael, on the other hand, simply gave Emery a small pat on the shoulder.“Jadeite has a point,” he said. “However, if you truly want to stay here, then I support you for that. I know you are thinking about the kids’ future so you are not to be blamed.”She managed a small smile.
Emperor Claus strode towards her and dropped his sword before grabbing Emery behind the neck. He pulled her close and sealed her lips with his, making the knights turn their backs on them to give them privacy.His kisses were harsh, torrid, and rushed that Emery had a hard time keeping up with him. She had her hands lean against his chest to gain control, however, even if she tried to make him slow down, she failed to do so.His hand slipped around her waist as he deepened the kiss while hearing the almost inaudible moan of the woman he could not have enough of. After several more seconds, he seemed to have snapped back to his senses upon tasting something metallic—blood. He slowed down before breaking away, leaning his forehead against Emery’s and looking her directly in the eyes as they both tried to catch their breath.