Translator: Nox

Chapter 15

Aila furrowed her brow, displeased that her private time had been interrupted.

Turning her head, she saw a man in the uniform of the Imperial Guard hurrying across the rear garden. It was a knight named Rowen, who had been tasked with escorting her father in place of Barkas, the overall commander of this journey.

The knight bowed before them, offering a brief courtesy to Aila before speaking urgently to his superior.

“His Majesty has commanded that the Commander be brought to him immediately.”

Aila instinctively knew that it was Senevia who had summoned Barkas. One look at the knight’s grim expression was enough to guess that something unpleasant was brewing.

She bit her lip. This pilgrimage was proceeding with the official sanction of the Council. Furthermore, the marriage between herself and Barkas was a match the conservative nobles—supporters of the Crown Prince—had been pushing for a long time. No matter what schemes that woman plotted now, she wouldn’t be able to overturn it.

Nevertheless, Aila couldn’t shake an ominous premonition. Hadn’t that woman used every trick in the book for years to drive a wedge between Gares and Barkas?

She had even managed to brush aside Grand Duke Siyeokan’s fierce opposition to keep Barkas, who had only just completed his knighthood ceremony, tied to Talia’s side for seven long years. She was undoubtedly trying to manipulate the Emperor again to sabotage them.

Though she knew it was a breach of etiquette, Aila stepped between the two men.

“I shall go as well.”

“But, Your Highness, His Majesty…”

“I am an Imperial Princess of this Empire. I have the right to an audience with His Majesty the Emperor whenever I wish. And I have decided that I will see my father now, alongside my fiancé.”

Faced with her resolute stance, the knight looked flustered and glanced toward Barkas for direction.

Aila felt a prickle of annoyance at the implication that his decision mattered more than her will, but she didn’t let it show, knowing full well that the knights practically worshipped Barkas.

Eventually, Barkas nodded.

“Do as Her Highness wishes.”

Once his permission was given, the knight fell in step to her left as an escort.

Aila kept her back ramrod straight as she left the garden and headed toward the Main Palace.

Passing through the entrance of the Great Hall, she was met with the interior scenery swirling with intense summer sunlight. She crossed the brilliantly white marble hall and ascended the stairs covered in maroon carpet.

The massive doors leading to the Emperor’s audience chamber were engraved with the image of Darian, the first Emperor who founded the Roem Empire, and the knights who followed him.

Glancing indifferently at the statues of heroes she had seen a thousand times before, she passed through the grand entrance. A vast hall with a lavishly patterned carpet and a golden throne at the far end revealed itself.

Aila straightened her spine as she looked up at the man who held all the power in the world and the woman standing by his side. Her father wore his usual solemn expression, and Senevia…

Suddenly, her train of thought snapped. The moment she saw the Empress surrounded by a golden halo, a sense of helplessness bordering on despair washed over her.

Somehow, Senevia grew more beautiful with each passing year. It was almost horrifying.

‘The golden devil…’

Whenever she faced her, Aila was reminded of a fable she had read as a child.

In a certain village lived two brothers who cherished each other more than anyone else. However, a devil who hated all good things in the world decided to tear them apart and dropped a large lump of gold on the path they were walking. Blinded by the brilliant radiance, the brothers fought over the gold until they finally killed each other.

When she first saw Senevia, Aila thought that the gold the devil had prepared to destroy them had appeared in human form.

Her radiance had blinded the eyes and heart of a once-honorable monarch, stained a woman’s entire life with grief, and forced her and her brother to live in terrible sorrow and humiliation.

As if that weren’t enough, that devil had finally given birth to the Emperor’s son, threatening even Gares’s position.

Aila’s gaze naturally drifted down to the small boy standing beside the Empress. The Second Prince, Asros Roem Guirta, was looking down at her and Barkas with curious green eyes.

Every time she saw that young boy with his intelligent gaze, Aila was overcome by a powerful sense of crisis. It was almost incomprehensible to her why Gares directed such sharp hostility toward Talia—who was nothing more than a source of scandal—rather than his younger brother, who was next in line for the throne.

Thinking of the years of humiliation her mother had to endure because of Talia made Aila’s blood boil as well. But Talia was a negligible existence who could exert no influence upon them.

Everything that girl had done since entering the palace was harass innocent servants and cause all sorts of scandals that made everyone click their tongues. How could such a foolish brat be a threat?

To Aila, Talia was merely unpleasant and perhaps even a bit pitiful. A bitter remnant of the past that simply had to be endured. That was all. That was why she could magnanimously overlook the wicked pranks the insignificant girl threw her way.

But Asros was different. She was well aware that many in the palace held affection for the boy with the innocent eyes. And she knew that those who were uneasy about Gares’s volatile temper had begun to harbor secret expectations for the young prince…

“What are you doing, not showing proper respect?”

The heavy, resonating voice snapped Aila out of her thoughts. The Emperor was looking at her with a questioning gaze.

Aila stepped to her fiancé’s side and gave a light bow.

“I followed Lord Siekan here out of a desire to see Father’s face. I beg you to forgive my unannounced visit.”

“Raise your head. You may come to see me whenever you wish.”

The gentle voice of the Empire’s Emperor, Virius Roem Guirta, echoed above her. Perhaps because he felt guilt whenever he saw her, reminded of the wife he had betrayed, he tended to be exceptionally soft toward her.

Swallowing a cold sneer, Aila bowed her head politely.

“I thank you for your generous words.”

“It’s actually for the best. It’s something the First Princess would have found out anyway. We might as well take this opportunity to explain it to everyone.”

Senevia, who was stroking her son’s reddish-brown curls, leaned toward the Emperor and spoke in a whisper.

Asros looked at them with a curious expression, as if the conversation between the adults was entirely fascinating. Aila, who had been watching her half-brother with wary eyes, turned a sharp gaze toward the Empress.

“What is it you intend to explain?”

“His Majesty will tell you the details.”

Senevia replied in a soft, whispering tone and gently patted the back of the Emperor’s hand. Aila tried her best to ignore the gesture.

After an awkward silence that felt like an eternity, her father, who had been quiet as if choosing his words, finally spoke.

“The reason I summoned you today is to inform you of a change regarding this pilgrimage.”

“Please speak, Sire. I am listening.”

Barkas showed no agitation at the sudden news. The Emperor seemed briefly uncomfortable with his subordinate’s stoic attitude, but soon continued bluntly.

“Talia shall also go on this pilgrimage. Arrange for additional guards for her and prepare the necessary travel equipment.”

Aila froze at the unexpected command.