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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: An Audience with the Emperor
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I stood before the grand doors of the audience chamber, where the Emperor awaited.
The thick iron doors, covered in ornate carvings, were intimidating; it felt as though I could never open them on my own, no matter how hard I tried.
I took a short, deep breath and nodded to the guards. The heavy iron doors slowly swung open.
The Emperor and Empress were seated on their thrones at the far end of the chamber, at the end of a long carpet that stretched from the entrance to the dais.
I could also see Andrea standing below the dais.
Andrea wore a sullen expression, clearly displeased that things weren't going according to his original plan.
The sight of it cheered me up a little.
‘My planning was worth it, then. Too bad for him, this is only the beginning.’
Lining both sides of the carpet were many nobles whose faces and names I didn't know, all staring at me.
‘It seems Calius isn't here yet.’
He was nowhere to be seen.
The heavy atmosphere, with all eyes fixed on me, was already beginning to suffocate me. Still, I walked forward without delay, thinking that the faster I moved, the faster this would all be over.
With every step, the train of my dress, as heavy as my own body, kept wrapping around my legs, making me feel as if I would trip.
I tried my best to walk straight, but I stumbled ungracefully a couple of times before finally reaching the Emperor and Empress.
I could hear the nobles whispering as they watched me.
“They said her mind comes and goes. It seems she's forgotten how to walk properly.”
“Pfft, look at her stagger.”
“Don’t laugh. It’s pitiful.”
Some watched with amusement, as if the mad princess were putting on a show for them. Others shook their heads with strained smiles, as if they were the ones feeling the shame.
‘I'm glad Calius isn't here to see me like this.’
Feeling a surge of shame, I pressed my lips together tightly.
The low self-esteem I'd developed over a lifetime in my past life couldn't be instantly restored just because I'd uncovered the conspiracy surrounding me.
I could only get through it by comforting myself moment by moment.
The needle-like stares and blade-sharp ridicule of the crowd felt as if they were piercing my skin.
Even this brief moment of greeting the Emperor and Empress was agonizingly difficult for me.
But I steeled myself, recalling the small warmth Kal had shared with me just before I came here.
“I stand before His Exalted Majesty, the Emperor, and…”
Despite having steeled my resolve, I was startled when my voice came out in a pathetic tremble.
But I forced myself to finish the greeting.
“…Her Benevolent Highness, the Empress.”
“Welcome, Chloe.”
My father, Emperor William, said listlessly.
His tone made all my courage and effort feel utterly pointless.
As I struggled to force out each and every word, it was clear my father had not the slightest interest in me.
‘Well, it's not like I expected anything.’
I had never received my father's attention, not once since the day I was born.
Even though we lived in the same palace, it had been a very long time since I'd last seen him.
‘Is this the first time since my mother's funeral?’
No, there was a similar occasion in my past life when the marriage proceedings with Viscount Felsus were underway, so this would be the second time for me.
In any case, across both my past and present lives, I had only seen his face a handful of times.
If it weren't for the silver hair passed down through the Idellian Imperial Family and the throne he sat upon, I might not have even recognized him.
My father's gaze did not linger long on his own flesh and blood, whom he hadn't seen in so long.
He gave me an indifferent once-over, then let out a short, exasperated sigh.
He must have found my appearance ridiculous—like a withered branch gaudily decorated.
I knew it too; it looked less like I was wearing the dress and more like the dress was wearing me.
My father's eyes quickly drifted to a group of young noble ladies.
‘He has no interest in me, nor in my marriage.’
Then again, seeing how his eyes wander to other women with his wife right beside him, he seems indifferent to his own marriage as well.
In any case, Cavalla was handling my marriage entirely, and my father was undoubtedly only sitting here out of a minimal sense of duty.
Whether she was pretending not to notice his philandering gaze or simply didn't care, Cavalla smiled serenely at me from beside him.
“You look absolutely lovely today, Chloe.”
She could tell such lies without batting an eye.
I feigned naive delight at Cavalla's perfunctory compliment and curtsied.
“Thank you, Your Highness.”
“None of that 'Your Highness.' Just call me Mother, as you usually do.”
“Yes, Mother.”
At our exchange, the nobles traded strange glances.
They were likely intrigued by the rumors about whether the Empress had harmed me and my birth mother, wondering if they were true.
Just then, a chamberlain at the entrance announced Calius's arrival.
“The Marquis Rodrian!”
Just as they had when I first entered, all eyes turned to the entrance.
The doors to the audience chamber, which had closed after I entered, slowly opened once more.
Calius appeared in the gap between the massive doors.
My gaze was completely captured by his intense, golden eyes, which were aimed directly at me.
“Ah…!”
A gasp of admiration escaped me before I could stop it.
His presence was like the brilliant sun breaking through a vast expanse of dark rain clouds.
When our eyes met, Calius gave a smile that seemed to overflow with confidence—or perhaps, arrogance.
It was as if he were asking me, ‘Aren't you impressed by my skill in bringing the marriage talks this far?’
He walked with a steady, powerful gait that looked flawless and firm even to my untrained eyes.
The knights of Ronheim followed behind him in formation.
There were about a dozen of them, but they moved with such discipline and precision that they seemed like a single person.
‘How… intense.’
Perhaps it was due to the environment of Ronheim, which was said to be perpetually covered in snow, but Calius's knights, clad in grayish-white leather armor, exuded a tremendous sense of intimidation.
‘They're like giants.’
I had wondered if Calius was considered tall even for someone from Ronheim, but seeing his knights, it seemed that wasn't the case.
Every one of them was at least a head taller than the people of Arental. Some were even taller by two heads or more.
‘Scary.’
I know you can't judge a person by their appearance, but their sheer size made me instinctively shrink back.
‘To think they lost to Arental, even with warriors who look so strong.’
I'd heard that as soon as they lost their Saintess, Ronheim collapsed in an instant, like a building whose cornerstone had crumbled.
‘I wonder what happened in Ronheim during the war.’
Calius's knights looked so formidable that it made me curious about the events of over a decade ago.
I remembered Calius's promise not to eat me alive and straightened my shoulders with confidence.
He was my staunch ally, not my enemy.
I squared my shoulders, but the others could not do the same.
The Arental nobles' expressions stiffened as they watched Calius and his retinue.
Furthermore, the Ronheim men had such grim faces that the Arental nobles seemed even more intimidated.
‘Is having a harsh look… a northern trait?’
Somehow, every one of them who met my eyes seemed to radiate a menacing aura.
‘It felt like they were glaring at me. …It must be my imagination.’
The Arental nobles, who had been momentarily frozen by the intimidating presence of Calius and his men, soon began to sneer at their attire.
Calius and his party were dressed in a manner that, while sturdy-looking, was utterly practical and devoid of any ornamentation.
To the people of Arental, who staked their authority and pride on extravagance, their appearance was that of filthy barbarians.
“Tsk, tsk. They say their culture is no different from that of primitives.”
“Don't they look like slash-and-burn farmers wandering the mountains?”
“A band of brigands I once saw near the border looked just like that.”
The low, clustered voices of mockery buzzed from all around.
If I could hear them, there was no way Calius couldn't.
But his resolute gaze did not waver for even a moment.
He crossed the carpet, which had felt so long to me, in just a few strides of his long legs.
“I greet the members of the Idellian Imperial Family.”
The Emperor spoke, displeased.
“You've brought quite a retinue.”
He seemed wary of the fact that Calius had entered the imperial palace with so many knights.
In truth, a dozen or so knights was not a large number in a palace garrisoned by the Imperial Guard.
But the presence exuded by Calius's dozen knights created the illusion of facing a hundred soldiers.
“My men were insistent on meeting my bride as soon as possible.”
His gaze turned to me.
How could a man from a land of winter possess a gaze as hot as the midsummer sun?
Everywhere his eyes touched, my skin seemed to tingle as if sunburned.
He smiled slightly and slowly continued.
“I had no choice but to bring them along.”
While Calius took his generous time to say those few words, no one dared to interrupt.
They could only wait anxiously for him to finish.
Then, he leisurely whispered to me.
“I ask for your understanding, Your Highness. They are a rather unruly bunch.”
He may have whispered, but his voice was loud enough for everyone to hear.
‘My father was the one who showed his displeasure, so why is he asking for my understanding?’
I glanced at my father.
‘It's an awkward situation—too ambiguous to call out, yet too uncomfortable to dismiss as a misunderstanding.’
If it had been anyone else, perhaps not, but coming from Calius, the intentionality was highly suspect.
The atmosphere in the audience chamber instantly grew frigid, with Calius at its center.
