CHAPTER 97…………………………………….
“Ugh, heavy…”
Something warm and heavy was pressing down on my chest, and that odd pressure woke me in the early dawn.
What’s this? I feel like I’ve been in this situation once before.
Groaning, I cracked my eyes open — and the first thing I saw was a round, honey-colored crown of hair.
“Aslan?”
I’d fallen asleep beside him last night while nursing him. When did he wake up and climb on top of me?
I tried to gently move him back into a comfortable position, but Aslan whimpered.
“Mm… Mommy…”
“Aslan, are you awake?”
It wasn’t just half-awake mumbling; his eyes slowly blinked open, fully conscious now.
“Mm, I think I feel a little better…”
But his voice was hoarse, and he still looked so weak that my heart ached.
I patted his back softly, and soon Aslan drifted back into a peaceful sleep.
“Oh dear, what could possibly hurt in such a tiny little body… You’ve got to get better soon…”
If only I could take his sickness for him.
My eyes stung, but I couldn’t cry now — it would only make Aslan worry.
I blinked hard, drying my tears, and placed my hand on his forehead.
‘His fever’s gone down a bit. Thank goodness…’
Carefully, I turned to my side and let him rest on my arm.
His breathing was soft and even — much better than yesterday.
When I opened my eyes again, the sun had already climbed past noon.
“Your Highness, may I come in?”
It was Louisa’s voice from outside.
“Come in.”
“Pardon my intrusion.”
The door opened soundlessly, and Louisa approached the bed.
Since I couldn’t get up with Aslan on me, I turned my head slightly and spoke to her.
“I’ll just listen like this. I can’t move because of Aslan.”
“Please don’t worry, Your Highness. How are you feeling?”
“I’m fine now. Aslan seems much better too.”
His fever had definitely dropped since dawn.
Louisa, clearly relieved, handed me a folder of documents.
“Lady Mary Jane’s team has returned from their investigation. This is the report you requested.”
“No one was hurt, right?”
“Everyone’s safe and sound.”
“That’s a relief.”
They’d already suffered enough because of me — if anyone had gotten injured on top of that, I couldn’t have forgiven myself.
The report contained everything I’d asked for, down to the last detail.
“When’s the trial scheduled?”
“Tomorrow, Your Highness.”
Apparently Lloyd had arranged the earliest possible date.
Louisa went on to brief me on the condition of the mine survivors and the situation outside.
Only then did I feel my chest loosen, and I exhaled deeply.
“You’ve done well. Make sure everyone gets some rest.”
“You should rest too, Your Highness. You’ve overexerted yourself these past days.”
“I know. I will.”
“Shall I bring you something to eat?”
“I’d rather sleep a little longer first.”
“Understood.”
Louisa carefully closed the curtains to darken the room and replaced the water on the bedside table before leaving.
Now in the dim room, I gazed quietly at Aslan’s sleeping face.
‘What is Aslan, really?’
It was hard enough to believe that a cat could become a person — but the strange powers he had left no doubt that something supernatural was at play.
But honestly, it didn’t matter what he was.
“Just… please be healthy. Live a long, long life with your mom.”
“Mmm…”
I wasn’t sure if he heard me or was just talking in his sleep, but his lips moved faintly.
Oh, my sweet boy.
So much trouble, so much worry — and yet I loved him more than anything.
Holding him tightly in my arms, I drifted back into light sleep, unaware of the shocking events waiting for me tomorrow.
Meanwhile, chaos erupted in the Imperial Palace of the Capital.
“When the hell is that bastard Archibald coming back?!”
It had been over a week since Archibald left to retrieve Mars’s ring — and still no word.
Mars was on edge, practically losing his mind.
He’d bitten his nails down so far there was nothing left to chew.
Gabriel, on the other hand, was as calm as ever, replying without even looking up from his book.
“They say the mine in the Grand Duchy of Eckhart collapsed. No contact since then — we can assume he was captured.”
“Then that means my ring is still with Minerva!”
Bang!
Mars slammed his fist on the table and snatched Gabriel’s book, throwing it across the room.
“What were you thinking trusting that idiot with something like this? How can you be so damn calm?!”
Gabriel’s brow furrowed slightly at the interruption, but soon he smoothed his expression back into a placid smile.
“Everything is going according to plan.”
Mars wanted to believe him — after all, Gabriel’s plans had never failed before.
But if that fool Archibald opened his mouth even once…
“No matter who’s backing you — even with the Basilika Dukedom at your back — you can’t afford to cross the Grand Duke of Eckhart. If I go down, you go down with me. Got it?”
“Of course.”
Gabriel shrugged lightly, unbothered.
Mars gnawed at his fingers again — not nails now, but raw skin.
With a sigh, Gabriel stood, retrieved a bottle of wine, and gracefully popped the cork.
Pouring the crimson liquid into a crystal glass, he offered it to Mars.
“Drink. Calm down. And stop chewing your fingers.”
“…”
Mars glared at him, displeased — but the gleam of the red wine caught his eye, and his anger softened.
Almost entranced, he drank it down in one gulp, and soon his mood began to lift.
“Feeling better now?”
“It’s your pour — how could I not? I was too harsh earlier.”
“I understand.”
Gabriel smiled, refilling the empty glass.
The sound of wine being poured and swallowed filled the room.
“What’s the name of this wine? Actually, never mind. Just keep bringing it. For some reason, wine tastes better when you serve it. When I pour it myself, it’s never the same.”
Gabriel’s lips curved sweetly.
“It’s called Black Cat.”
“Black Cat?”
“I thought of a cat I used to torment as a child — so I picked it specially.”
Mars took another long swig, trying to recall.
Vague, hazy memories surfaced.
Gabriel smiled faintly, as if reminiscing.
“They say when a black cat gets angry, disaster follows. That cat must have been very angry with us — we plucked its fur, pulled out its claws and fangs. Yet, oddly enough, disaster hasn’t come.”
“Ah, now that you mention it, I do remember. Just a silly superstition.”
Mars smirked, proud of his own cynicism.
“Still, that was fun, wasn’t it? Even if Minerva ruined it at the end.”
“…Yes, indeed.”
As Mars began drinking straight from the bottle, Gabriel’s smile deepened.
“Still, I want to get along with Minerva again.”
“She freed your cat and later turned her back on you — what’s there to like about her? I can’t stand that she’s even my twin.”
Gabriel bit back a laugh.
He could understand Mars’s inferiority complex, but the sight of him drunkenly ranting made him look like nothing but a pitiful fool.
“Anyway, don’t worry too much about Archibald. I’ve given the proper orders.”
As Gabriel rose from his seat, Mars frowned.
“Where are you going?”
“To Cassius. It’s time for his medicine.”
“You mean that tonic? Doesn’t seem to be working. The kid’s still dull and sleeps all the time.”
“He’s sleeping a lot because he’s growing.”
Cassius had been frail and small since birth.
Gabriel had gathered every rare tonic and medicine he could find and fed them to the boy himself — but Cassius remained small and lethargic.
Mars wasn’t even sure the boy could one day become emperor.
‘Well, if not, we can always have another.’
Even though the boy took after Gabriel, Mars felt strangely detached from him.
Unconcerned, he continued emptying the bottle.
Gabriel watched him until the very last moment, a satisfied smile tugging at his lips as he quietly left the room.
