Chapter 105
“Isabelle is still so gentle.” Reina smiled broadly and touched the blue lily flower with her hand.
Isabelle blinked at the action. ‘What is she doing?’ She was somewhat shocked that Reina dared to touch the flower, even knowing it was a trap.
Sure enough, Reina’s hand showed an abnormal reaction. The Emperor frowned upon seeing her hand immediately swell and turn red.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ah… I actually have an allergy to blue lilies. I thought it would be fine just touching it, but it seems to have gotten worse.”
“An allergy?” The Emperor’s gaze turned toward Isabelle. “You claimed you were close, yet you didn’t even know she had an allergy?”
“Your Majesty, I…” Isabelle stammered in panic.
She had planned to deny any knowledge and then lead Reina to the infirmary, but the Emperor’s questioning had utterly silenced her.
Just as the Emperor frowned, sensing the subtle silence, Reina suddenly stood up for Isabelle.
“Isabelle wouldn’t have done it on purpose. Who would imagine a Mernier having an allergy to the blue lily?”
She then politely requested permission. “If it’s not too much trouble, may I go get some allergy medicine? If I leave it like this, it will worsen and cause trouble.”
“I will accompany you.” Kaiden stood up as if he had been waiting for this moment.
The setup for their departure was perfectly natural. Seeing Reina’s swollen hand, the Emperor reluctantly granted permission.
“Very well. Go on.”
* * *
Thanks to Isabelle’s harassment, the two successfully left the banquet hall without suspicion and headed toward the infirmary.
Kaiden frowned as he rubbed Reina’s hand. “Why didn’t you immediately wrap your hand in aura? What if you get a scar?”
After their pact, Reina’s body became resistant to poison, as the aura detoxified it. Thus, she could have easily cured the blue lily allergy with aura, but Reina had deliberately exposed herself to the poison.
“Does it hurt?” He looked pained, as if he himself had broken out in a rash.
At his boundless affection, Reina blushed and replied, “It does hurt.”
“You look like you’re in pain.”
“To be honest, I thought I would be fine for just a moment. But Isabelle must have tampered with my bouquet.”
“…And you touched it knowing that?”
“I needed a plausible excuse to leave at the right time.”
When Reina answered casually, Kaiden spoke seriously. “I am sometimes uneasy about how you pursue your goals without regard for means or methods.”
“Pardon?”
“I fear you might even use your own life as a means to an end.”
The image of the Reina in his dream—one who was consumed for others, without a life of her own—flashed through his mind. Although it was only a dream, he had a bad feeling that Reina was perfectly capable of doing just that.
Kaiden spoke with sincerity. “I wish you wouldn’t do that.”
Reina looked disheartened when her casual action was pointed out.
“…I’m sorry.”
Yet, she offered no assurance that she wouldn’t do it again. Sensing this, Kaiden abruptly posed a question.
“If you had a golden opportunity to kill the Emperor, but it required you to risk your life, what would you do? Would you still move without hesitation?”
The serious question rendered Reina speechless. It was only fortunate that she managed to clamp down on her lips, having almost instantly answered, ‘Yes.’
And Kaiden did not miss that momentary hesitation.
He let out a low sigh. “Yes. This is why I feel uneasy.”
“Kaiden.”
“I will never put your life and the Emperor’s life on the same scale. If your life is required to kill the Emperor, I will choose not to kill him.”
“But for the sake of the greater good…”
“There is no such thing as a greater good paid for by someone’s sacrifice. Especially not if that someone is a cherished person.”
Reina pursed her lips at Kaiden’s resolute attitude. In the previous timeline, he became Emperor through the sacrifice of a loved one. It happened whether he wanted it or not, and it made him unhappy. Having witnessed that process, Reina understood the weight of his words.
Reina also realized, now that she had cherished ones, that there was nothing more cruel than losing someone you love. That must be why he, who had everything, died so miserably.
Nevertheless, she couldn’t easily promise him she wouldn’t sacrifice herself. Her rage and desire for revenge against the Emperor were powerful driving forces for Reina.
If the condition for killing the Emperor was Kaiden’s death, Reina would naturally choose to save Kaiden. But conversely, if the cost of killing the Emperor was her own death, she felt she would choose to kill the Emperor.
As she hesitated to answer, Kaiden spoke.
“Let’s do this. If you decide to risk your life to kill the Emperor, I will risk my life to prevent the Emperor from dying.”
“Kaiden.”
“This way, you will have no choice but to cherish your life, too. Because in that process, I might end up being killed by the Emperor’s hand.”
His face was calm, as if this were a clear solution. Reina, however, looked shocked. The mere thought of Kaiden being endangered by her reckless actions made her heart ache.
“Please don’t do that.”
When Reina whispered gloomily, Kaiden smiled broadly.
“So, always keep this in mind. That just as much as you don’t cherish your life, I won’t cherish mine.”
“…”
“Now I think I know how to protect you.”
After saying this, Kaiden walked away.
Reina followed him with an unutterably complex heart. Because just as she cherished him, he cherished her. This was the first time she truly grasped how dangerous it was to take the self-evident fact of her life’s worthlessness for granted, and how devastating that was to the person who loved her.
From this moment, Reina began to re-evaluate the obvious truth: that she must cherish her own life.
* * *
After receiving simple treatment in the infirmary, the Imperial Physician handed them something.
“This is the prescription.”
Reina quickly checked the prescription and asked, “Thank you. I feel a little dizzy, so may we rest here for a bit?”
“Yes. I will inform the Chamberlain.”
Once the Imperial Physician left the infirmary, Reina signaled to Kaiden.
“It’s the secret passage.”
The prescription given by the Imperial Physician had a drawing of the secret passage leading to the room that could be opened with the key. A map of the Imperial Palace’s secret passage—the level of information available to a Royal trusted by the Emperor was clearly different.
Reina and Kaiden slipped out of the infirmary and entered the passage. Given the frequent signs of people passing through, it seemed that someone used it regularly.
“There it is.”
The door at the end of the corridor looked ordinary on the outside. Kaiden examined the door and said, “A barrier is cast over it. Without a medium, it would connect to a different, disguised space.”
“You mean the key is the medium?”
“Yes. Just in case, I’ll open the door.”
When Kaiden held out his hand, Reina readily handed over the key.
Click. As the locked door opened, Reina and Kaiden exchanged tense looks.
The room inside was dark. Even when they looked around with the lamp in their hands, it seemed empty. The situation was different from what they had expected, and it felt somewhat anticlimactic.
Reina was about to step deeper inside when Kaiden suddenly stopped her.
“Don’t, Reina.”
“What?”
Reina was startled and halted her step. He was on high alert, as if something were right in front of them.
A moment later, he shielded her and said, “It’s not empty.”
»»» ♡ «««
Notes:
1. Blue Lily (푸른 백합 / Pureun Baekhap): A rare flower in the Imperial Palace, to which Reina is allergic. Isabelle attempted to use this allergy to cause trouble.
2. Imperial Physician (황궁의 / Hwang-gung-ui): The doctor assigned to the Imperial Palace.
