Episode 10
“Goodbye.”
I waved to the two men as their carriage left the duke’s mansion. But the moment they were out of sight, I tore off the fake smile I had forced on my face.
“Ugh! I’m so mad!!”
The sudden outburst surprised the servants nearby. It was very unlike the usual calm Lady Coet, but I was too angry to care.
Fuming, I turned to them and demanded,
“Who was that man?”
One of the maids carefully answered,
“That was Count Livingston, His Majesty’s head attendant—”
Oh. So he was the emperor’s attendant?
I calmed down for a second… until she finished her sentence.
“—His butler, Roger.”
“Huh? The butler?”
“Yes…”
I blinked in shock.
The maid answered so timidly it felt like she had done something wrong.
What? He was just the servant of a servant? And he acted that arrogant?
I lost all patience. Forget appearances and pretending to be polite. I stomped my feet in frustration so hard it felt like I was trying to punish the ground itself.
Weirdly enough, the ground actually sank under my feet.
Why is the ground so soft here?
It didn’t matter now. From today, Roger was officially the second most annoying character in this novel. That investigator? He’s number three.
And the number one most annoying person? Of course, it’s still the emperor—who hasn’t even shown up yet.
Please never appear in front of me.
But of course, a few days later, I received a letter from the emperor himself.
It was an invitation to come to the capital in a few days.
He said he was worried about his fiancée, but instead of visiting me, he just sent a tea party invitation?
His true intentions were so obvious I couldn’t help but sigh. Still, the mansion staff was thrilled that the emperor had invited me.
After all, being engaged to the emperor was a huge honor and a source of pride for the family. But I knew better. In the original story, Eileen was thrown away as his fiancée later on.
The emperor’s decision to propose and later reject her was just politics and whim. The Coet family was nothing more than a tool to him, dancing in the palm of his hand.
Even so, he was the emperor. The most powerful person in the empire. I couldn’t reject the invitation.
So on the day of the visit, I started my morning with a long bath.
Four maids worked together to scrub and polish my skin, then rubbed camellia-scented oil all over my body. They treated my hair the same way.
After drying me off, they applied makeup to my face, styled my hair with pearl ornaments, and pulled it to one side.
To match my hair color, they chose a pink dress close to my skin tone. I wore diamond earrings, a necklace, and a bracelet that sparkled beautifully.
Whoa… So this is what they mean when they say “Clothes make the woman.”
Looking at myself in the full-length mirror, I couldn’t help but gasp.
Eileen, all dressed up, looked like a goddess. Even I couldn’t stop staring.
“You look so beautiful, my lady.”
“It’s a masterpiece!”
The maids looked proud, wiping the sweat from their brows with satisfied smiles.
Compared to the last time Roger visited, I was now ten times more dressed up. Then I got into the carriage and headed for the palace.
As expected, the palace was much bigger and grander than the duke’s mansion.
The main building was ivory-colored with mint decorations on every window, and tall spires reached toward the sky. It was stunning.
Not a speck of dust anywhere—clearly, the servants were worked hard to keep it spotless.
Clatter clatter.
My carriage rolled smoothly over the road. The road was so perfectly paved that it felt like gliding. I could ride it for hours without getting motion sickness.
Finally, the carriage stopped in front of the palace.
With a servant escorting me, I entered the emperor’s reception room.
The servant stopped in front of a large, closed door.
Knock knock.
“Your Majesty, Lady Coet has arrived.”
“Let her in.”
The doors, white and shining, opened to reveal a bright room with one wall made entirely of glass. In the center stood a large table, flanked by wide couches that looked comfortable enough to lie down on. The emperor was seated there, waiting.
“I greet the sun of the empire.”
“Welcome.”
He spread his arms toward me—without even standing up. How arrogant.
Everyone in the empire worships the emperor, so maybe they find this normal. But I don’t.
I come from a democratic society, after all.
Hasn’t he ever heard of noblesse oblige? No wonder I prefer the duke over the emperor.
Having grown up in a society where equality is normal, his arrogance was hard to stomach.
So I deliberately kept my head down and avoided eye contact. But then he suddenly walked over, lifted my chin gently, and looked into my eyes.
In that moment, it felt like a flash went off in front of me.
The man in front of me was glowing like gold, as if the entire city of Eldorado had turned into a person. His golden curls shone like silk. His deep blue eyes sparkled like precious jewels.
His nose was so high it looked like a mountain range, and his features were as perfect as a sculpture.
Wow. So this is the male lead. His looks are unreal.
No wonder the female lead falls for him despite his rotten personality. Even I was dazed by his beauty. Then the golden statue smiled softly.
“Lady Coet.”
“Y-Yes, Your Majesty.”
His gentle voice called out to me. I was still distracted by his face and stammered my reply.
He called me Lady, not by name. A clear sign that we weren’t close—just formal.
“It’s good to see you again. Have you been well?”
He pretended to care, speaking in a fake, kind tone.
“I’m well, thanks to your concern.”
As if. You barely pretended to care when I was missing!
“I heard you were sick. I worried about you. Are you feeling better?”
“I’ve recovered, thanks to Your Majesty’s concern.”
You didn’t even visit once!
With every sentence, I screamed in my head.
“I’m glad to hear that.”
The emperor nodded, looking strangely satisfied. Then suddenly, he dropped a bomb.
“Then you can spend the whole day with me today.”
“Pardon? The whole day… with Your Majesty?”
What?! Are you serious?!
I nearly screamed and grabbed my hair, but I kept my composure. Instead, I forced a fake smile and clapped my hands.
“Oh my. I’d love that.”
“Is that so?”
As I kept up the act, he leaned back and laughed out loud.
He seriously thinks I’m enjoying this?
I clenched my teeth and smiled.
The truth was, the emperor had planned this all along. He had scheduled a full day of dates with Eileen—lunch, then an opera, followed by dessert.
He said it was a tea party, but now it was a full date? What’s going on in his head?
“This way, please.”
A servant guided us into the dining room.
A sparkling chandelier hung from the ceiling. Below it was a huge dining table, filled with dozens of delicious-looking dishes.
I had never seen such luxurious food—not even in my past life.
Wow. This is the emperor’s table!
My jaw dropped. I almost drooled from the smell alone.
At the duke’s countryside mansion, the meals were balanced but simple—mostly vegetables and essential nutrients.
At the duke’s main house, noble meals included various meats.
But here at the palace? It was a feast of exotic dishes and rich flavors. I bet even a heat-stroked T-Rex would jump up after eating this.
“The chef really deserves an award for this!”
I slammed my fork down on the table in excitement—but oops. I accidentally said it out loud instead of just thinking it.
“My lady?”
I turned and saw the emperor looking at me in surprise.
