Episode 23
Emma had seen Alicia once before at the royal wedding.
Back then, Alicia looked very weak and nervous.
But after just one year, she seemed like a completely different woman.
“I haven’t been well, so I didn’t get to meet many people in the palace. I don’t think we’ve met before either, have we?”
“No, Your Highness…”
Emma didn’t mention the time she saw Alicia being abandoned by the emperor on their wedding night.
There was no need to bring it up.
“I don’t like beating around the bush.”
Alicia looked straight at Emma. She no longer looked like that pitiful woman from before.
“I may be married to the Emperor, but I’m not truly the Empress yet. And His Majesty only seems to care about Luveo.”
Even while admitting her weakness, Alicia’s blue eyes didn’t waver.
There was no sadness or hurt pride in her voice.
“Now that His Majesty is back, I’ve been trying to gain his attention. I’m sure you’ve noticed.”
“I have, Your Highness.”
Emma was surprised by how bold Alicia was.
“But trying alone isn’t enough. I barely met him, and after my recent fever, my memories aren’t that clear either.”
Emma remembered how the Emperor had once mumbled that the Empress had changed.
Alicia looked more confident now—her cheeks had color, and the way she slightly lifted her chin showed pride.
Even so, her gentle voice showed she still respected Emma, who had once served the late Empress.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I have anything to tell Your Highness. You already have grace and wisdom.”
Alicia didn’t deny the compliment. She’d learned from her past—being too kind only made people look down on her.
“Also, I’ve heard that you and the Emperor are getting along very well lately.”
For someone just twenty years old, Alicia had matured greatly.
“But it’s not enough.”
Alicia said firmly, and the soft smile disappeared from her face.
“I know you once served the late Empress. That’s why I’m not ordering you—I’m asking.”
Unlike other noblewomen, Alicia was straightforward, just like Emma’s former mistress, Diane.
“Of course, I’m doing this for myself… but I also want the Emperor to be happy.”
She didn’t try to dress up her words with fancy talk.
“What can I do to help, Your Highness?”
“I want to know more about His Majesty. Anything I don’t already know.”
Emma looked at Alicia for a moment, then smiled and nodded.
“Old people love telling stories.”
The Emperor had said the Empress had changed after her fever.
Lately, he’d been humming or smiling to himself.
Now, the woman in front of her, without pretending or hiding anything, was honestly asking for help.
That was enough reason for Emma to support her.
“Luckily, His Majesty is at the Great Assembly today and won’t return until midnight.”
Emma figured Alicia had called her here today on purpose.
“But if anyone finds out I was here, I could get scolded. Please keep this meeting a secret.”
Alicia was about to ask that, so she nodded.
Emma was a wise and careful woman.
“Of course.”
Alicia gave a soft smile. Her pink lips looked fresh and lovely even without makeup.
If this beautiful young woman could keep the Emperor at the palace, Emma would be happy.
“So, where should I begin?”
“Anything about His Majesty is fine, no matter how long ago it was. We have plenty of time today.”
“Alright. I still remember the day I entered the palace with the late Empress.”
Emma’s eyes softened with memory.
“Lady Diane… that is, the late Empress… was kind and beautiful.”
Her slow, warm voice made Alicia listen with shining eyes.
Meanwhile, at the audience chamber…
Unlike the peaceful Empress’s quarters, the Emperor’s meeting room was filled with tension.
Kaien sat on the throne, resting his chin on his hand, annoyed by the nobles arguing below.
Every time Duke Nigel spoke, Kaien’s eyebrows twitched with irritation.
“Nobles from far regions are ignoring the empire! This could lead to rebellion! Your Majesty must act now!”
After hours of ranting, Duke Nigel’s main point was that the imperial army should be sent to collect taxes from distant regions.
Most capital nobles had never even visited their lands and only cared about parties.
Nigel was a perfect example—and so were his allies.
“Your Majesty, paying taxes is the least duty of those who belong to the empire.”
People said the Emperor only knew violence.
But these nobles only cared about money and pleasure.
And for money, they would kill more ruthlessly than Kaien ever did.
“Duke Nigel.”
Finally, the Emperor spoke.
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
Nigel quickly bowed, trying to show how loyal he was.
If something went wrong in the empire, he could blame the “barbaric Emperor” instead of himself.
“Is that all you talk about in every Great Assembly?”
“I have no other issue, Your Majesty. But since you’re always away in Luveo, I must raise this here, where you’re present.”
“Oh? So the taxes in your lands are low?”
Kaien took a sip of wine and coldly stared at the Duke.
“No, Your Majesty. That’s not what I meant…”
“Of course not. I know well how rich the lands of all these high-ranking nobles are.”
They already had more than enough.
“You say I stay in a place like Luveo… Tell me, what kind of place is Luveo?”
His cold voice echoed through the hall.
“Your Majesty, I didn’t mean it like that…”
“Didn’t mean what, exactly?”
This Assembly followed imperial law, but that didn’t mean the nobles and the Emperor were equals.
“Was it not said last year that Luveo is just a wasteland full of savage people?”
“No, Your Majesty.”
“Then was it Marquis Sael who said it?”
The marquis, who had been silent, quickly stepped forward and bowed.
“No, Your Majesty.”
“So I remembered it wrong?”
Even though Kaien was far from them, his sharp gaze felt deadly.
“Did I forget something that happened just last year? You tell me, Duke.”
His aura was so strong that it felt like a soldier was standing there, not a ruler.
“I believe… it was Sage Lucan who said that, Your Majesty.”
Of course, Nigel thought the same, but blaming Lucan—who wasn’t here—was safer.
“I see. A close friend of yours said it.”
Still, Kaien looked just as angry.
“I only speak for the good of the empire.”
“Is the treasury empty? Just last month, you said you were handling the empire well.”
Kaien never handled affairs himself, but as he aged, Nigel found it harder to win arguments against him.
The former emperor had taught him nothing, but Kaien had a natural talent for leadership.
“If border lords become disloyal, they may join the western lords and turn against us.”
Kaien finally smiled—but to the others, it was chilling.
“You’re talking about war to me?”
That was Nigel’s mistake. None of them had the right to speak of war in front of Kaien.
“Wars caused by you nobles come from greed—not from disloyalty.”
Kaien hadn’t asked for it, but he was the only one who truly saw the lives of the common people.
“Borderlands are poor. Settlers barely survive there. They face wild beasts, hunger, cold, and bandits…”
Kaien stood up from the throne. His large shadow stretched across the hall.
“You nobles are celebrating the harvest, but most people are just trying to survive the winter.”
From above, they would never see reality. Kaien had lived in Luveo and saw things from the same level as the people.
“And you want to send imperial soldiers to collect taxes from them? Do you think that’ll make them loyal? Really?”
To people fighting for survival, soldiers asking for taxes were no better than thieves.
It would only make them hate the empire more.
“If rebellion comes, it won’t be because they’re disloyal. It’ll be because people like you, Duke, are greedy and keep stealing from them.”
The Duke couldn’t reply. Kaien was only 25, but he was no longer someone they could control.
“If I’m wrong, go ahead—prove it.”
“How could Your Majesty ever be wrong? I was mistaken…”
Duke Nigel lowered his head and swallowed his pride.
The nobles now saw the truth: this Emperor would not be easy to manipulate.
Unlike the last one, Kaien cared—and that made him their biggest threat.
