PLAE 14

Chapter 14

Hearing a voice calling her, Rashid turned his head and, upon seeing Azelina, slowly approached.

It was a situation that made her feel completely overwhelmed.

She didn’t want to show Rashid her broken and collapsing self… yet an uneasy tension clung to her relentlessly.

Azelina tried her hardest to straighten her back and keep her shoulders from slumping.

“The Princess Melisina you met nearby seemed upset just now. Do you know why?”

“……”

“My wife used to be someone who could speak properly, you know.”

It was a clear taunt. But Azelina had been through countless situations like this, so she no longer felt devastation or shame.

Rashid remained indifferent toward Azelina.

Even now, Azelina was doing everything she could to avoid staggering, biting her lips until they bled, but Rashid didn’t notice.

The remark about Princess Melisina being upset was clearly meant to imply that Azelina had somehow offended her, perhaps?

No—he asked it as if he were absolutely certain.

Azelina, unable to bear the glaring sunlight today, lowered her gaze.

She had vowed never to live at the mercy of the Emperor, yet a single incident at the Marquis’s residence almost swayed her heart. She felt utterly pathetic.

Her vision blurred, her body reaching its limit.

As Azelina wavered, Rashid, despite his own surprise, instinctively reached out a hand to support her.

What expression was Rashid wearing as he looked at her? Azelina was intensely curious, but no matter how hard she tried, her blurred vision did not clear.

That night, under a cloudless sky, only the heavens seemed to pity her as the intense pain of the sword finally pierced her body.

Her consciousness was gradually being overtaken by that night’s sky.

“…Even if things have changed, some habits remain.”

Rashid held Azelina firmly in place and inserted his fingers into her mouth. Then he let out a lukewarm sigh.

Azelina could only breathe again after her throat was forcibly opened.

Rashid attempted to shield her eyes with his other hand, but complete darkness had already fallen.

It was common knowledge that the Emperor’s only consort, Empress Azelina, was rumored not to be loved by the Emperor.

That was also the decisive reason Clayta had refused to relinquish her claim to the Empress’s position.

Clayta always felt gleeful seeing Azelina, whom she often quarreled with, humiliated as an Empress not loved by the Emperor in the social circles.

Perhaps that was why she sometimes acted more cruelly than other noblewomen.

However, everything changed after the tea party at the Ivanjelich Marquisate.

The Emperor, appearing from who knows where, boldly held Azelina’s hand and left the Marquisate.

Since that day, rumors spread throughout the empire: “The Empress of the Igreta Empire might not actually be unloved by the Emperor.”

“Have you heard that His Majesty held the Empress’s hand that day?”

One of the Belisiv Marquisate maids asked with wide, innocent eyes, hands folded. The surrounding maids laughed and replied.

“Of course! I went to the Marquisate with the young lady that day.”

“I don’t know why His Majesty suddenly went to the Ivanjelich Marquisate, but just seeing it made my heart race!”

Cindy, Clayta’s loyal maid, frowned at the maids gossiping about Azelina and Rashid again today.

“You dare…! Our young lady still hasn’t eaten properly from that shock. How can you speak so carelessly? Inside the Marquisate, no less!”

Cindy scolded them seriously, yet the maids frowned and retorted sharply.

“Well, it’s true our young lady’s a little pitiful. But isn’t it natural that His Majesty loves the Empress? Besides, she hasn’t even officially been declared Empress yet.”

“Right. His Majesty did hold the Empress’s hand, so what’s the problem?”

Cindy firmly believed that the maids of the Marquisate were on her side and the young lady’s side. Yet they spoke like that… they were infuriating traitors.

“They ‘love’ her? They only held her hand. Did His Majesty kiss her? Hug her? You, as maids of the Belisiv Marquisate, shouldn’t even be talking about the Empress inside the Marquisate, should you?”

Despite Cindy’s words, the maids continued giggling over the incident.

Cindy felt a deep sense of betrayal and, simultaneously, an unnecessary guilt toward Clayta.

She vowed to seek revenge, for her mistress’s sake.

When Azelina opened her eyes, she found Iana looking at her worriedly, eyes glistening.

What on earth had happened?

Azelina wanted to reassure Iana but couldn’t say a word—her mind was in utter chaos.

Realizing Azelina had woken up, Iana quickly stood and checked on her.

“Your Highness…! Really… I thought something terrible had happened.”

“I…”

“Oh! His Majesty personally carried you here.”

When Azelina struggled to speak, Iana quickly replied.

“He stayed until the royal physician finished the examination. The doctor said not to overexert yourself for a while. So avoid places with large crowds from now on.”

Iana made an exaggerated gesture and frowned.

“…Understood.”

Azelina reluctantly nodded.

“I’ll bring your medicine.”

Saying so, Iana left the room after giving Azelina a long, concerned look.

Even after Iana left and the door slammed shut, Azelina couldn’t take her eyes off her.

Sitting on the bed with a white blanket half covering her and leaning against the wall, Azelina let out a light sigh as soon as Iana was gone.

“Sis, I wouldn’t get too close to the Second Prince. Rumor has it he has the highest chance of becoming Crown Prince.”

Azelina recalled her younger sister Emily’s words, which she had taken lightly at the time. Had she heeded them, perhaps many things would have changed.

Thinking back, this meeting had been ill-fated from the start. Azelina needed to monopolize someone to feel at ease, but the position of Emperor could never favor only one person.

“…What can I do now?”

Though she had calmly accepted this absurd situation, now everything felt oddly alien.

That night, Azelina couldn’t sleep well again and played with Iana late into the night.

She had recently been struggling to sleep at night and felt bored with palace life.

Iana, noticing this, suggested a coin-flipping game.

It was a bit childish, and since it was technically gambling, it had to be played carefully in the palace, but it was surprisingly fun.

“Is it really your first time playing in a while?”

“You said not to let His Majesty see.”

The loser had to drink a cup of unsweetened hibiscus tea. Iana kept winning, and Azelina had already drunk three cups in a row.

It was no surprise Iana was good at it, considering she taught Azelina the game.

Even as she drank the hibiscus tea, Azelina felt unjustly treated.

She frowned, likely from drinking too much sour tea.