SEM 71

Chapter 71

Eliana’s face was pale from being tormented by visions throughout the night.

Rodin had stayed by her side all night as she wandered in her nightmares. Yet, she didn’t even have the presence of mind to offer thanks.

Rodin rubbed his left arm. It ached from where Eliana had bitten him as he tried to pull her away from the bed. He followed her figure as she gazed endlessly at the place where Gredi had departed.

“If you wish it, I will comply, Your Grace. Just allow me to stay by your side.”

Eliana closed her eyes.

She would have rather that Rodin looked away.

But she could no longer hope for his indifference toward her. Unless Rodin deliberately severed his bond with her, his imprint on Eliana would not fade.

No, as time passed, it was only growing more vivid. Only Eliana remained unaware of this truth.

“Go.”

Opening the door, Eliana commanded Rodin.

At her order, Rodin trudged away.

The imperial villa was in chaos, like a disturbed beehive, after the emperor was attacked in the dead of night. Outwardly, however, it was as quiet as a mouse. Not a sound escaped.

The servants, however, were different. Unlike the cautious nobles, the servants moved freely as the hands and feet of the household.

It was almost inevitable that a maid would notice a young man emerging from the Grand Duchess’s chamber.

“My goodness…”

The maid, covering her mouth, was bitten as she turned the corridor corner.

The knight leaving the Grand Duchess’s room surveyed the area before descending the stairs. Through the maid, who had discovered the room’s occupant, news of the Grand Duchess’s scandal quickly spread throughout the villa.

“Your Majesty, are you all right?”

Matteo’s brow deepened as he half-lay in the rattling carriage.

The carriage had stopped for the third time already. As the wheels sank into the mud and delayed their journey, Matteo’s frown deepened further.

Bliss, watching the emperor’s expression, peered outside. This time, the mud seemed especially thick, and the carriage could not move at all.

Seeing Bliss fidget, the emperor closed his eyes and pressed his lips tightly together. No matter how soft the cushions, riding over a rain-drenched, ruined road made his wounds throb.

“Has the culprit still not been caught?”

“The Imperial Knights have begun a discreet search.”

Bliss bowed slightly, gauging Matteo’s reaction.

“Do you think that will suffice?”

At Matteo’s shout, Baron Bliss fell silent.

Outwardly, the search was for the rebel who attacked the emperor. It was another assassination attempt in the Orante Forest—the same forest where the Crown Prince was murdered ten years ago.

The nobles held their breath in fear. Count Orante exhaled heavily, worried for his lands.

After the Crown Prince’s death ten years prior, the Orante estates had long been ignored by the royal family. Only when Matteo seized power after the emperor’s rise had they somewhat regained favor. Yet again, the emperor had been attacked in Orante Forest.

The count’s worries deepened, but no one cared. Everyone’s attention was on the emperor.

Matteo bit his lip.

“A temptress is a temptress. Calling two men to her room in a single night…”

Matteo clicked his tongue and frowned.

The man who had sought the Grand Duchess’s chamber under the cover of night clearly intended to assault her, not attack the emperor—much like Matteo himself might have.

And, unfortunately, the two had encountered each other.

“If only it hadn’t been him…”

Matteo’s audacity was beyond reason.

Bliss exhaled quietly. Serving a master whose misdeeds exceeded limits was difficult. As a lifelong servant, there were times one had to shoulder the master’s sins. Bliss’s mind spun, wondering how to handle this crisis.

Yet Matteo himself had not yet regained composure.

Seeing how serious matters had become, the emperor’s chosen response was flight. At least he had the sense not to greet Gredi Kriber, the Duke, and Empress Rosella brazenly upon their return.

Bliss looked out the window.

The villa, perched on a cliff at the forest’s edge and backed by mountains, was beautiful. Yet its mid-mountain location made travel treacherous in rain or snow.

“How are you feeling?”

At Bliss’s worried glance, the emperor gave a small, bitter laugh.

The wound was not as severe as feared. It was merely the shock of an unprecedented event that had frightened him; the injury posed no real threat to his life.

Yet Matteo could not forget the terror of the blade cutting through his flesh.

“Catch him. Handle him gently, as if he were wielding a brush or pen, not a blade.”

“Do you mean he was not a trained knight?”

Bliss asked in surprise. The one who had wounded the emperor was no ordinary person.

“Apparently, he went mad, turning on the Grand Duchess like I did.”

Laughing at his own words, Matteo clutched the wound in his side.

“Damn it! When will we be able to depart?”

Frustrated, Bliss finally dismounted to free the carriage wheel from the mud. Everyone was drenched in sweat from the effort.

The rain from yesterday seemed a lie; the sun rose, and a rainbow stretched across the cliff.

At the villa, chaos reigned simultaneously.

“What on earth is going on?”

Even as they boarded the carriage, people shook their heads in disbelief.

“So it seems,” came the murmurs.

As they climbed the carriage, some waved hurriedly and offered brief greetings.

During the hunt, the empress had disappeared, and the emperor was attacked at night, leaving the villa at dawn. Adding to the scandal, a young man had intruded into the Grand Duchess’s room while the Duke was absent.

A string of nearly unbelievable events left everyone in confusion that morning.

“Still, the empress has not returned. Are we even allowed to leave like this?”

At the young duchess’s question, the countess scoffed. She had spent the entire time catering to Rosella’s whims.

“The safety of Your Majesty comes first, young lady.”

Without looking back, the count’s carriage departed swiftly. By noon, the villa was deserted.

“It’s done, Your Majesty.”

The doctor’s words made Matteo wince. The antiseptic stung more than expected. Meanwhile, Bliss moved busily to adjust the emperor’s clothing.

The emperor had refused the doctor’s accompaniment, finding it cumbersome. Bliss resolved that next time, no matter what, a doctor would accompany them.

“Not bad at all.”

At Matteo’s compliment, the doctor bowed.

Hunting accidents were common, but the emperor had never been injured before. The doctor of Orante rarely treated the emperor, as the royal family usually brought their own physicians.

“Thank you.”

Sweating and stiff with anxiety, the doctor stepped back, clearly wanting to leave quickly.

Yet the imperious emperor, far from granting the man’s wish, mocked him. Matteo’s irritation stemmed from failing to achieve his goals due to the unexpected attack.

“How do my wounds look?”

“Well…”

The doctor hesitated, unsure how to respond. Orante was a forested land where animal attacks were common, but such lacerations were rare. Compared to being torn by animal fangs, it was merely a scratch from a sharp object.

Yet anyone, even the least perceptive, knew it would be dangerous to speak candidly in front of the emperor. The fate of Orante could rest on a single word.

“There is something odd.”

The emperor, feigning mockery, shrugged and gestured. He seemed unusually curious about what the country doctor had to say.

“Tell me. I’m curious about your diagnosis as well.”

“The weapon used by the assailant.”

“…”

“It was sharp, but it seems not to be a sword.”

“Not a sword? Then what was it?”

Matteo’s voice sharpened. Embarrassment burned his face at having screamed in fear at something that was not a sword.

The sensation of the blade pressing into his side still lingered vividly.

‘Was I really terrified and screamed over something that wasn’t even a sword?’

The doctor shook his head and presented the antiseptic cloth he had used.

“Is this blood?”