Chapter 47
Ivan idly twirled his wine glass. Rodan’s gaze had already been fixed on that spinning glass in the air dozens of times by now.
“……”
Rodan’s lips twitched repeatedly, as if debating whether to say something about how distracting it was. But in the end, he managed to suppress the impulse. It must have been because he sensed something uneasy in Ivan’s expression.
“Rodan.”
Rodan, who had been on the verge of leaving, stopped mid-step, wearing a face that clearly said he intended to go. Ivan didn’t miss the moment and called out to him. Rodan quickly wiped away the flicker of surprise and met his gaze with a calm expression.
“The investigation into your family that I told you to conduct?”
“I’m making a few final adjustments to the report.”
Rodan’s reply was crisp. Knowing his usual work habits, the investigation into his family was likely already complete. He was probably now calculating how much time and money would be required between the submission of the marriage proposal and the actual ceremony.
“It’s almost finished.”
Perhaps thinking Ivan meant to push him to hurry, Rodan quickly added the follow-up. Ivan made no reply, simply raised the glass to his lips, and tipped it back. His Adam’s apple bobbed as the strong liquor slid down.
“Is there anything else you’d like to order me to do?”
Unable to endure the silence, Rodan asked first.
“Buy a house.”
Ivan finally answered, but it was apparently not the sort of order Rodan had been expecting. His quiet glance spoke volumes.
“By a house, you mean…?”
“A place for Amelia to stay.”
Ivan’s answer was clear. Rodan moistened his lips with his tongue, his face tense. He seemed to want to ask if Ivan had forgotten what they’d discussed before.
“Understood.”
But in the end, he accepted the order. He must have sensed that Ivan wouldn’t listen to objections.
“You’ve done things I’ve tried to dissuade you from before, but you always managed to steer things toward the result you wanted…”
There was even a trace of trust in his tone. Understandably so—despite all of Rodan’s warnings, Ivan had still gone in and out of the temple multiple times, seduced a priestess, and even gotten her pregnant. Now he had installed her in the imperial palace and was preparing to reveal the temple’s secrets when the Leed delegation arrived.
Just as that improbable series of coincidences had been possible, whatever decision Ivan made regarding Amelia could also turn out in an unexpected way. Rodan clearly placed some hope in that possibility.
“And preparations for receiving the delegation?”
“They’re nearly complete as well.”
“Be sure to pay attention to the seating of the high nobility—Duke Russell, Count Skipper, and the like.”
Rodan nodded reassuringly. If Ivan knew him, he had probably already arranged them closest to the delegation, but it was a precautionary reminder. When the temple’s secrets were exposed, Ivan was curious what expressions those who had tried to keep the imperial family in their grasp through the temple would wear.
“Is it certain the priestess has stated she’ll testify?”
Rodan asked hesitantly. They couldn’t risk embarrassment if Amelia suddenly acted foolishly after all the arrangements were made. His concern was understandable.
“She knows I’ll be marrying soon. She also knows the child won’t be acknowledged as mine.”
Ivan was calm. He had no doubt Amelia would follow him.
“You told her that plainly? Will that be all right?”
Rodan’s face betrayed open worry.
“She may seem delicate and quiet at first glance, but you can never know someone’s true heart.”
Ivan did feel slightly uneasy that he hadn’t kept it from her until the end. The image of Amelia’s tear-stained face, wounded, lingered unpleasantly in his mind.
“She fears death and wants to leave the temple.”
“……”
“She’s spent her whole life under oppression there, sacrificing herself for generations. If she returned, she’d have to share a bed with some stranger and bear his children—of course she wouldn’t want that.”
But Ivan was certain Amelia wouldn’t betray him. She, too, was in a position with no way back. She couldn’t return to the temple, and she couldn’t let her child die. Just as he had arranged from the start.
“Understood. I’ll see to it properly.”
At last, Rodan yielded to his orders and left the office. The ice in the glass rattled faintly. Ivan stared at it without meaning.
“……”
The uneven pieces of ice stacked together wobbled precariously. Picking up the glass, Ivan opened the window and dumped its contents out. The bothersome noise vanished completely.
Only then, at ease, did Ivan think—
He had already shown Amelia excessive mercy. In time, once everything had been buried and life went on, she would come to accept that fact.
News came that the Leed delegation had arrived. Amelia, as one of those attending the welcoming ceremony, was dressing for the occasion.
“Are you finished?”
“Just need to fix my hair…”
“Tie it up neatly. It’s a nuisance when it’s loose.”
At her request, the maid nodded reluctantly. Amelia’s black hair was the only one of its kind in Escliffe, rare and lustrous as if oiled, so the maid thought it a shame to hide it by tying it up.
“This isn’t an occasion where I’m trying to look pretty.”
Since Amelia put it that way, the maid couldn’t bring herself to suggest leaving it down. She tied it into a neat low bun, then finished with a pearl headband and pearl earrings.
“They say it’s time to leave.”
Louie came to inform her, and Amelia nodded, rising from her seat. As she stepped toward the door, she caught sight of her reflection in the full-length mirror beside it and paused.
A white puff-sleeved dress, pearl jewelry, and flat white shoes—an image of pure, impeccable grace. Her expression gave no clue to what she was thinking.
“Let’s go.”
At her words, the maid hurried to open the door.
“Greetings, Priestess.”
“It’s been a while.”
Waiting outside, the head maid, Madam Warner, bowed and then led the way. Amelia followed slowly behind.
Escliffe’s summers weren’t harsh; the sunlight was pleasantly warm. Passing through a garden in full bloom with summer roses, Amelia recalled how the late empress had loved them—and naturally, she thought of Ivan.
For nearly half a month, he hadn’t visited her once. Night after night she would wake several times, half-expecting him, but he never came. The door he once used remained firmly shut. The suffocating longing that had made her lift her head toward it each night had slowly strangled and died.
“……”
Ivan hadn’t gone to see Ian either. From the start, he had said he’d never visited the child by his own will, so it was hardly surprising.
“How has His Majesty been, Madam Warner?”
The sudden question made Warner pause briefly, but her shoulders quickly settled as if nothing had happened.
“Always in good health.”
That was all she said. As the head maid, she couldn’t be entirely open with someone like Amelia, who was an outsider. Amelia knew that, but she didn’t think Warner was lying—there was no reason to.
“I see. That’s good to hear.”
Amelia’s reply was calm. Warner, after briefly suspecting some hidden intent, seemed to decide it was just a polite inquiry and moved on without fuss.
“Your seat will be in the very front row. If there’s anything at all you find uncomfortable, you may summon someone to correct it at once.”
“All right.”
As Warner gave brief instructions, nobles began arriving one by one to fill the seats for the ceremony. Amelia walked past them to her designated spot and sat down.
“His Imperial Majesty enters!”
This announcement came after the Leed delegation, the high nobles of Escliffe, and Amelia herself were seated. The attendant’s voice rang out to herald Ivan’s arrival.
Amelia quietly watched as he strode down the central aisle, passed her, and finally sat opposite them in the place of highest honor. He was dressed more splendidly than usual, his smooth, handsome features all the more striking.
“……”
Their eyes met. His expression was indifferent. Amelia now knew that was his true face. But knowing it didn’t make her sad.
There were far sadder, far more hopeless things in life than that.
