She was a woman who unnerved him in the strangest way.
Perhaps it was because he had yet to find the answer.
All he needed to do was discover why that woman had been permitted entry into the Emperor's garden.
Just then, the maid turned her head, revealing her face clearly.
‘Why that maid?’
Gray’s cold gaze lingered on the girl for a moment before he looked away.
“What are you looking at?”
“Nothing. Let us go.”
Gray strode forward once more, ignoring Orion’s repeated glances behind them.
Dusk had fallen before she realized it, and the imperial palace was gradually bathed in a warm, golden glow.
“Ah…”
Dalia let out a deep sigh as she looked up at the sky, then resumed walking.
Getting caught up in her chat with Moni had caused her to lose track of Lemon, and that was the problem.
If she returned this late, Annie was bound to scold her.
‘How can there not be a single soul passing by in a palace this vast?’
No matter which way she turned, left or right, every corridor looked the same, as if she were pacing around the very same spot.
She knew she had a terrible sense of direction, but wasn't this a bit much?
Chiding herself, she deliberately squared her drooping shoulders.
‘I’ll find the way no matter what!’
The moment she resolved to do so and took a confident step forward, she caught sight of a familiar face in the distance.
“Your Majesty!”
Even though she had only met him once before,
seeing someone she recognized after being lost brought tears of sheer relief to her eyes.
Dalia’s face lit up and she bounded toward him in excitement, but failing to watch her step, her foot caught on a stone and her body pitched forward violently.
“Ah!”
What did one need at a moment like this?
The answer: a proper breakfall.
Dalia acted instantly on what Cole had taught her.
Her shoulder brushed the ground, her back and hips rolled through the motion with practiced precision, and she fluidly planted a knee and sprang straight back to her feet.
‘What a relief, not a scratch.’
Clap, clap, clap.
Startled by applause coming from nearby, she looked up in surprise to find a large hand stretched out before her.
Raising her gaze further, she saw the Commander of the Imperial Guard, his hand extended somewhat hesitantly, as though he had meant to catch her.
His dark blue eyes flickered with embarrassment when their gazes met.
Dalia gave a gentle smile and inclined her head slightly.
“Thank you.”
With an impassive expression, the man nodded silently and discreetly took a step back.
Meanwhile, the red-haired man standing behind the Emperor clapped once more in admiration.
“That was truly impressive.”
“It was nothing, really.”
Though she spoke modestly, Dalia secretly basked in the praise her skill had earned.
‘I'm going to brag about this to Cole later.’
As she smiled cheerfully, her eyes locked right with the Emperor's.
He stood with clenched fists, glaring at her with utter displeasure.
‘Did I do something wrong?’
“It is an honor to see Your Majesty.”
Dalia curtsied hastily, as if surrendering herself.
The red-haired man chimed in on the Emperor's behalf:
“It really is remarkable. How could a young lady in a dress pull off such a—”
At that moment, the guard commander could be seen planting a sharp elbow into his side.
“Ow! What was that for?”
Ignoring the commotion behind him, the Emperor looked Dalia up and down with a piercing gaze.
“Here you are again… looking like a field of flowers.”
“Pardon?”
Dalia blinked in confusion, but he gave no answer, glancing briefly at her hair before changing the subject.
“Setting that aside, Miss… didn't you claim to be an official diplomat?”
Flustered, Dalia caught her breath and offered an awkward, smiling glance.
“Yes, I am an official diplomat.”
“Yet every time I see you, you seem remarkably carefree.”
“People do often tell me I seem rather easygoing—”
She tried to answer as earnestly as possible, but the Emperor cut her off mid-sentence.
“I was speaking in sarcasm.”
At the Emperor’s frosty tone, Dalia slowly lowered her eyes.
‘So he was being sarcastic? I suppose, being an emperor, he talks around things instead of speaking plainly.’
Dalia lifted her head and replied with calm agreement:
“Ah, I see. But as for me being calm and relaxed… that much is true.”
“Ha.”
A faint sound escaped someone.
Behind the Emperor, Dalia saw the red-haired man hurriedly clamp a hand over his mouth, while the guard commander beside him clenched his jaw so hard that the muscles bulged.
‘Wait… is a diplomat not allowed to be calm and relaxed?’
“Very well. Then what is a calm and relaxed diplomat doing standing around here instead of working? Or is this because you belong to a minor branch of the Foreign Minister’s family?”
The Emperor continued his interrogation with a cold edge to his voice.
Dalia began weighing her words carefully, watching his reaction.
‘I need to sound like a proper diplomat.’
“I was carrying out my duties.”
“And what duties might those be?”
“Getting a sense of the Empire's atmosphere, and learning what might benefit the Kingdom—”
“So you are telling the Emperor to his face that you are conducting espionage against the Empire? Is that a declaration of war?”
The Emperor cut her off with a brilliant smile that carved dimples into his cheeks.
“What? A declaration of war? Absolutely not! All I have seen so far is the imperial palace's landscaping!”
Dalia blurted out the words in sheer disbelief.
Espionage?
She would never set foot in this empire again once the Emperor was married off.
The Emperor’s gaze settled on her aggrieved expression.
“Miss, your inexperience practically reeks.”
“Do… do I smell like something?”
Dalia buried her nose into her sleeve to sniff it, but detected nothing.
“It was a figure of speech… I meant you make it obvious you have never worked a day in your—”
“—So it was sarcasm again. I understand. Yes, this truly is my first time working.”
Dalia briskly cut him off and finished the sentence for him.
One of Gray’s eyebrows shot up.
No matter what he said, his words merely bounced right back at him.
‘Just what is this woman?’
Sensing movement behind him, Gray turned around.
Orion was muffling his mouth with both hands, his shoulders shaking with silent laughter,
while Ethan stood stone-faced, gripping the hilt of his sword so tightly that his veins bulged.
If he kept talking to her, he would undoubtedly be dragged into her pace.
“So, why did you call out to me as you were passing by?”
Her eyes sparkled as if stars had been scattered inside them.
“Ah! Because of our earlier promise.”
“Promise?”
“You said you would grant my request if I complied with yours. But that day, you had to leave in a hurry for a meeting, didn't you?”
“Ah… that's right.”
“May I ask for it now?”
“Go ahead.”
“Please… meet with me just three times!”
Dalia offered the Emperor the sweetest smile she could muster.
Just three meetings… Wouldn't that be enough to build some rapport?
If she out of nowhere told him to get married, he would surely think she had lost her mind.
That was why she planned to establish some familiarity first, figure out what kind of woman he preferred, and arrange a natural encounter.
In contrast, however, Gray’s gaze suddenly turned frigid.
He had thought she might be a little different because she was eccentric… but in the end, she was no different at all.
What women wanted from him was always the exact same thing.
Himself.
So long as he had eyes, he was well aware that he possessed striking good looks.
On top of that, an emperor's absolute authority and inexhaustible wealth.
Ever since his youth, countless women had pursued him relentlessly—to the point where the previous Emperor had smuggled hundreds of women into his bedchamber.
And so, his revulsion toward women had grown deeper and deeper.
What difference was there between him and a breeding stallion?
Now, whenever a woman drew near, he felt only disgust and discomfort.
A mere touch was enough to churn his stomach to the verge of vomiting, and at times, it even brought him out in hives.
Suddenly, Gray stopped in his tracks.
He shifted his gaze back to the Lady of the Pink Flower Field standing before him.
‘Come to think of it… why am I able to speak with this woman so normally?’
