CHAPTER 53…………….
‘In two days, it’s the day I have a runes lesson with Everett.’
It had been Charlotte who carefully arranged that appointment, so changing the date felt inconsiderate.
But he disliked the thought of canceling his lesson with Everett even more.
‘The times overlap… if my conversation with Naz runs long…’
No matter how much he thought about it, he couldn’t find a way around it.
Naz was someone he needed to meet. Everett was someone he wanted to meet.
‘Should I ask to change the time? If I meet Naz during the day, I could go straight to the tavern afterward. They’re right next to each other anyway.’
It wasn’t a bad plan.
Just as he was about to ask Charlotte about rescheduling, someone knocked at the parlor door.
“It’s me, Olbreno.”
“Come in.”
When Harpha stepped inside, he first exchanged a polite greeting with Madam Charlotte.
“You’re early today.”
“Yes, I finished sooner than expected since there were many reserved guests in the afternoon. I came because I have something to tell you.”
Kyle looked at him.
“It’s a message from Lady Gronzy.”
“Everett? What did she say?”
“She asked to cancel the lesson in two days… that’s what she said.”
“Cancel?”
Kyle’s cold tone made Harpha look flustered, as if it were his fault.
“She said something urgent came up, and to please forgive her.”
Kyle let out a short sigh.
Sitting opposite him, Madam Charlotte studied his face carefully.
‘Who is this Everett, that just missing one meeting makes him look so sad?’
Kyle had always been remarkably bright, even as a child.
He understood his circumstances clearly, and so he rarely revealed his emotions.
People thought of him as detached and indifferent.
But they didn’t know.
That his heart was as fiery as his blazing hair.
Madam Charlotte knew that well—and she always felt a pang of pity that Kyle kept himself so tightly hidden.
‘Who is this lady who could gift our frozen sun, Lord Kyle, with such an expression?’
Her eyes sparkled with intrigue.
‘Everett Gronzy, was it? I wonder what rank her family holds.’
Now with a new target in mind, Madam Charlotte hummed a faint tune to herself.
“Madam, I’ll meet the fortune-teller at the arranged time.”
“Yes, very well. Then I’ll see you in two days.”
Kyle rose too, to escort her out.
“Where are you two going?”
Charlotte hid her smile behind her fan.
“On a date with our Lord Kyle.”
Innocent Harpha’s mouth fell open wide, and Charlotte’s laughter rang out even louder.
“Milady, are you ready?”
Hugo, standing outside Angelus’s chamber, asked in a low voice.
Though the High Priest’s rooms were perfectly sealed from the outside world, Hugo was far more cautious than usual.
The door opened, and Angelus appeared—wearing a thin dress that revealed her figure.
Flustered, Hugo quickly averted his eyes.
Angelus chuckled at his reaction.
“Well? Do I look like someone the Emperor would fall for at first sight?”
“Milady, the reason you’re going now is…”
“I know, I know. Don’t get so uptight over a joke.”
A maid draped a long rose-colored velvet cloak over her shoulders.
The High Priest’s chambers had a secret passage leading out of the temple.
When they exited through it, a black carriage Hugo had prepared was waiting.
While Hugo scanned their surroundings with sharp vigilance, Angelus—delighted at the rare chance to go out—was only in high spirits.
The carriage drove far from the temple.
Angelus sulked because Hugo wouldn’t let her open the window.
By the time she had yawned out of boredom several times, the carriage finally stopped.
“At last? I thought I’d die of boredom.”
“Yes, we’ve arrived. Milady, you must be especially careful with your words and behavior now.”
Angelus shot him a sly glare.
“You’re getting more arrogant. Have you forgotten who I am?”
At the cold gleam in her eyes, Hugo quickly bowed his head.
“I overstepped.”
Snorting through her nose, Angelus stepped down from the carriage.
They were surrounded by dense forest. Though the sky was bright and clear, the thick trees cloaked the ground in darkness.
Dim lights embedded in the earth glowed faintly, guiding the way.
Angelus walked between them without hesitation, deeper inside.
Before long, a large clearing appeared, and within it stood a massive mansion.
“Creepy, whether day or night.”
She shuddered slightly as she looked up at the house.
This was one of Duke Bacchad’s secret villas.
A butler, who managed the place alone, was waiting for her.
“You’ve arrived.”
“It’s been a while.”
“He’s waiting for you. This way…”
As she followed him down the dark corridor, Angelus thought to herself:
‘I mustn’t miss this chance. No matter what, I’ll seize it.’
At the end of the hallway, the butler carefully knocked.
“Come in.”
A rough voice answered.
When the door opened, the stench of burning hit her nose.
‘It feels stronger since it’s been a while…’
She held her breath briefly before resuming calmly.
In the middle of the large room was a pile of cushions.
Candles burned all around, flickering.
A man lay half-buried among the cushions.
Angelus slipped off her velvet cloak. The beads on her dress rattled against the fabric, making a faint sound.
It was a silent room—so the smallest noise made the man’s eyes snap open.
Bathed in the wavering candlelight, Angelus looked like a goddess.
“Oh…”
An excited murmur escaped his lips.
Angelus’s smile twisted into a sly curve.
As she walked forward, her dress whispered across the floor.
The man, who had been almost lying down, sat up.
When she reached him, Angelus lowered her head gracefully.
“I greet Your Majesty.”
Enthralled by her beauty, the Emperor hastily raised his hand.
“Saintess, here—sit here, quickly…”
He patted the spot beside him eagerly.
“The Duke of Bacchad has failed to tell me the most important thing.”
Angelus tilted her head with a seductive smile.
The Emperor, bewitched, replied:
“That you are this beautiful. I’ll summon the duke tomorrow and scold him for withholding such words.”
She laughed softly behind her hand.
Then she presented a cup of tea she had prepared.
“Please drink, Your Majesty. It is from the Bacchad family.”
As he took it, her hand briefly covered his. He swallowed hard.
“The duke especially asked me to understand Your Majesty’s heart.”
The Emperor smiled with satisfaction.
He had already drunk several cups of tea earlier, so he was dazed and groggy.
Only for a fleeting moment had her beauty snapped him back to alertness.
‘You could throw down a handful of leaves and he’d believe it’s Arcana.’
Mocking him inwardly, Angelus spread the Arcana cards carelessly across the table.
“Your Majesty, what troubles you most at present?”
Her soft voice slid into his ears like silk.
“Saintess, I dislike Kyle.”
“I understand, Your Majesty. From the Emperor’s seat, a grown Grand Duke—especially the son of the late Emperor—is not a comfortable presence.”
The Emperor exhaled roughly.
“For now he’s alone, so I could send him somewhere dangerous. But if he marries and gains backing…”
With his eyes closed, he revealed his hostility toward Kyle without restraint.
“They say the nobles are pressing you to marry him off. That must be hard on you, Your Majesty.”
“Yes. It’s nothing but coercion. How dare a bunch of nobles order me, the Emperor of the Empire, around!”
He cursed several times in frustration.
Angelus slid a card forward.
But in his dazed state, the Emperor couldn’t make out its image clearly.
“Lord Anish says the nobles are looking down on you.”
The Emperor slammed his hand down.
“I knew it! If they didn’t, they wouldn’t dare act like that.”
He flailed his arms angrily, as though the nobles were right in front of him.
‘Too good to enjoy alone.’
When he finally calmed down, Angelus spoke again.
“Your Majesty’s greatest worry is Grand Duke Kyle’s marriage, isn’t it?”
“Yes. If he were to marry a young lady of a powerful house… if that house allied with others and pushed Kyle to the throne…”
From the very day he became Emperor, that fear had tormented him.
Just as he had usurped his predecessor, he constantly feared Kyle would do the same.
“For that issue, Lord Anish has given me the perfect solution.”
The Emperor’s eyes snapped open, his body lifting upright.
“What is it? How can it be solved?”
Angelus laid down another card.
“What does this mean?”
She didn’t even glance at which card it was.
The Arcana itself didn’t matter. What mattered was her silver tongue.
“Your Majesty, the solution is to have Grand Duke Kyle married.”
