### Episode 6
The new Emperor and Empress of the **Brixton Empire** left the capital for two days to spend their honeymoon at a villa outside the city.
It was short, but with so many urgent state affairs waiting, **Emperor Cyrus** simply couldn’t spare more time.
Unlike the grand and solemn Imperial Palace, the villa had a bright and cozy atmosphere. It was filled with comfortable spaces where one could rest freely.
Right in front of the villa were a large lake and a forest—beautiful and peaceful scenery everywhere.
**Knock, knock—**
A servant came in quietly and placed something on the table: two silk robes embroidered with jewels, bottles of scented oil, and glasses beside red and white wine.
“If you need anything, please ring the bell. Have a pleasant time, Your Majesties.”
Cyrus stood by the window, staring outside in silence. His expression showed that he was lost in thought.
**Arion** grew worried. Was he regretting their marriage already?
She handed him a glass of wine.
“Your Majesty, is something troubling you?”
Since the wedding ended, Cyrus had been thinking deeply. He worried that this marriage might somehow harm Arion, the saintess who had received divine revelation for the first time in five hundred years. Thoughts of his late parents also crossed his mind—but mostly, his concern was about Arion herself.
He took a sip of wine and said,
“Hmm. The scent is pleasant.”
As the fragrance filled the air, Cyrus slowly relaxed, just as Arion had hoped. His tense mind began to calm.
He decided not to tell her about his worries. Instead, he would simply protect and care for her in silence.
Arion felt a little sad that, even after marriage, he wasn’t opening up about his thoughts. But seeing his face soften again made her relieved.
Cyrus gently brushed aside her silver hair and softly caressed her cheek.
“Have you always been locked away in the temple? Your skin is so pale. I’d like to see a bit more color on it.”
Her skin looked almost sickly white.
When she lived with her family, they often compared her to **Maria**, her sister with warm, sun-kissed skin. That had always been one of Arion’s insecurities.
Maybe her husband thought the same? She quickly hid her thoughts and looked up at him with a shy smile, her ruby-red eyes glimmering.
Perhaps it was the wine, but for once, she had the courage to look straight into his eyes.
Cyrus noticed that she was hiding something—but her smile made him forget everything.
He quietly draped the silk robe over her slender shoulders, thinking, *I’ll make sure she eats well and becomes as soft and round as a little bear.*
After that, they drank wine together more seriously.
Whether it was the fine vintage or the mood itself, the wine tasted especially good that night.
Cyrus drank as if it were water, while Arion only pretended to sip. By the time she realized it, she was lying beside him in the wide bed—both sound asleep.
He must have been exhausted from his recent workload before the wedding.
Arion reached over to pull the blanket over him, but then she found herself staring at his face up close.
His red eyes usually gave him a fierce look, but asleep, his features were soft—like a sculpture of a beautiful child.
Just then, Cyrus suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand in his sleep.
“…Am I doing well? Can you see me…?”
He mumbled something unclear and fell back into deep sleep.
Arion froze. Was that sleep-talking? Or… a woman’s name she just heard?
*Maria?* The name reminded her of her sister, and her heart sank.
*Talking about another woman on our first night?*
So much for him looking like an innocent child.
She pricked up her ears, tense.
After all, their marriage was a political arrangement. She shouldn’t read too much into it.
He was the Emperor—of course there had been other women, and there might be more in the future.
“If I worry every time,” she thought, “I’ll only exhaust myself.”
—
The next morning at the villa, birds were singing peacefully.
A servant entered, startled by the sight of the empty wine bottles.
“I prepared an extra-large bottle, but perhaps it still wasn’t enough…?”
Cyrus replied playfully,
“Next time, bring some cookies too. Drinking only wine is a bit much.”
The servant stammered, “B-but Your Majesty once refused snacks, saying they spoil the taste of wine! Ah, my apologies, Your Majesty. As you wish.”
Then, noticing something unexpected, the servant bowed deeply, flustered.
Arion watched and wondered, *What kind of life has he lived to make others fear him so much?*
Still dizzy from the wine, she skipped breakfast and only drank a cup of cold honey tea.
“Let’s take a walk outside,” Cyrus suggested.
They walked by the lake, whose calm surface looked deeper than it appeared.
Unlike the capital, this peaceful nature made worldly worries seem far away.
Cyrus spoke first.
“By the way, why did you leave the Great Temple? I heard something before, but I couldn’t quite understand it.”
Arion froze for a second, remembering the chaotic scene from a few days ago. What had he seen of her back then?
Fortunately, he had only understood part of her story—he thought her words about being a sacrifice were just a metaphor for her hardships.
“I was tired of life in the temple,” she said quietly. “I was nothing but the High Priest’s puppet. I want to become a good person—someone who exposes corruption and builds a better world.”
Those were words she had been meaning to tell him, so she said them with conviction.
Cyrus listened seriously.
*A better world…*
He once had that dream too, when he was a crown prince. But years of war had buried such ideals.
He looked at Arion’s eyes—pure yet shadowed.
That angelic woman had something dark behind her calm smile. Beneath her hidden resentment, there was something radiant. Like sunlight glimmering through a snow-covered window.
Arion picked up a small stone and threw it into the lake.
Ripples spread across the surface, and large fish darted toward it.
Cyrus smiled.
“For now, you should relax and enjoy this time. It’s your honeymoon, after all.”
He wasn’t sure he could build a better world like she dreamed of—but he made one silent vow:
*I’ll make this woman the happiest person alive. Whatever she wants to do, I’ll support her with everything I have.*
Arion still couldn’t quite read his expression. Normally, she was good at reading people—but Cyrus was impossible to figure out.
She turned her eyes to the lovely scenery around them. In the garden, a pair of deer played, and a parrot spread its colorful wings, chirping beautifully.
“How can the world be so beautiful…” she murmured.
When a tiny, fluffy puppy appeared, she gasped softly in delight.
Cyrus smiled, comforted to see her so gentle again. *If only I could see her like this more often,* he thought.
Just as he stepped forward to catch the puppy for her, a large **snake** suddenly sprang out of the bushes—
and **bit into the Emperor’s thigh.**
—
