MHCEN Chapter 14
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Chapter 14: One More Kiss
At the office in the afternoon.
“…And these are the exclusive ladies-in-waiting candidates for the empress. After you decide who you want, let me know, and I’ll take care of it.”
“Jaerim.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“If you want to laugh, laugh. If you want to be serious, be serious. Can you do just one?”
“Pfft… Ah. Sorry.” Jaerim’s shoulders shook and his face was red.
It made my blood boil when I saw him proudly holding back his laughter. “Ah! If you’re going to do that, just laugh! Laugh!”
“How could I dare to insult the empress…”
“I left the window open and petals flew in! Ah! Seriously!”
“Yes. I didn’t say anything. His Majesty really liked it.”
All of a sudden, Jaerim discovered the petal event.
‘Mu, don’t come back.’
Grinding my teeth, I carefully devised a plan to kill Semula.
Then, I checked the list of exclusive ladies-in-waiting Jaerim had given me.
“…Jaerim, do you have a sister?”
“Ah. I guess Iana applied to be your lady-in-waiting… She was outside for some reason.”
“Is your sister here?”
Jaerim nodded indifferently. “I have a younger sister with a significant age gap. Also, she doesn’t look like me. When people heard that I had a younger sister, everyone asked me, so I answered first.”
“I thought you were an only child.”
“I hear that often. Although I have siblings, I haven’t been with them often, so I am no different from an only child.”
I stared at the name Iana Ascal and asked, “Do you want me to choose your sister?”
I was willing to do so if he wanted me to. Being the empress’s exclusive lady-in-waiting was an honor for noble ladies.
Jaerim was an excellent chief of staff, so filling one more spot with his relative might not be a bad idea.
“No.” Jaerim immediately refused.
I glanced up and saw his frighteningly cold expression.
“Why?’
“As I said before, I am an aide to His Majesty. If it’s Iana, and she becomes the empress’s exclusive lady-in-waiting…”
“It would be difficult for you to use me?”
“That is correct. My sister could be in danger too.”
“I thought you were a heartless man, but you’re a kind brother to your sister, aren’t you?”
“My parents cherish her a lot since she’s the youngest. When she cries, no one leaves her.”
“So it’s okay for me to be in danger?”
“The only time the empress will be in danger is if the empire is on the brink of destruction or when the imperial power is ruined or overturned. So it won’t happen.”
“You’re as sharp as a sword, Jaerim.”
“I’ve never used a sword, but I’ve heard a lot of people compare me to one.”
Jaerim’s words weren’t wrong. He was definitely a man only for the emperor.
So, he wouldn’t want to have his family used as pawns.*
“Jaerim, you’re good at what you do, so do what you want. I will not have Iana as my exclusive maid.”
“It’s an honor, Empress.”
“You can select them for me, then. Please.”
Jaerim handed me the papers again. “…Then, as a token of my gratitude, this time, I will select the ladies-in-waiting, not for His Majesty, but for Your Majesty. Not power, but good people who will help you in your daily life.”
“I’m grateful to hear that.”
Jaerim lowered his head and went outside. But as soon as he came out, I heard a clear voice from beyond the door.
“Oppa! Oppa!! Did you come to talk to Her Majesty about her exclusive lady-in-waiting?! How did it go?!”
It was clear from the voice that they were still quite young. I clasped my hands, rested my chin atop them, and nodded with a smile.
‘Hmm. It was a good thing I didn’t choose her.’
She knew I was inside, but she was still so loud.
Are you still an immature baby who doesn’t know much yet?
“Ah, why! Tell me! I’m curious too!”
Haha. What a fuss. I’m glad I listened to Jaerim.
“I’ve been practicing saying congratulations to the empress for her marriage!”
This caught my attention.
“I heard it, too! Petals bloomed on their bed in the morning?!”
Wait a minute. Who told this to a little baby? What nonsense?!
No. That aside, how do petals bloom on a bed? Huh?!
“I just wanted to say congratulations… Aagh! Oppa, it hurts!! It hurts! It hurts! Mom said this was something to celebrate!!”
She’s a cute child, but I don’t think I’ll need to keep her next to me.
Hahaha. Petals. Hahaha. Hahaha.
I laughed and crumpled the papers in my hand.
‘D*mn Mu…’
You’ll see when you come back. Hahaha.
Meanwhile.
After their first night, Livanfell couldn’t concentrate on his work.
Even as his papers continued to pile up, Livanfell just stared quietly into the space, his hands clasped.
As such a state passed through the morning and continued in the afternoon, Jaerim finally spoke.
“Your Majesty, what happened?”
“Jaerim.” As if Livanfell had been waiting for him to ask, he said Jaerim’s name. “It seems strange.”
Livanfell’s eyes flashed fiercely as he continued to clasp his hands together.
Surprised to see the serious expression on the emperor’s face, Jaerim ran to him and said, “What’s strange? Did something happen with the empress? Or did you see any suspicious people at the wedding?”
Yes. These days, I thought everything was going well.
While some people liked to see the empress position filled after being empty for so long, others were bound to want to keep her in check.
Although the Continental Peace Agreement was concluded and an overall ceasefire was in place, the truth was that it was like walking a tightrope.
This continent was too accustomed to invasion and plunder.
If something not in their hand were in someone else’s, they would immediately show their instincts and raise their sword.
However, even at the emperor’s marriage, they were quiet.
It bothered Jaerim even more.
“Your Majesty. If you tell me, I’ll check the situation. Please let me know.”
“…I have no memory.”
“Pardon?”
Did someone drug him?
Jaerim had seen many times how Livanfell had been exposed to death since childhood. So, he had developed resistance to a fairly good number of poisons.
After all, no matter what happened, it must have been firmly established.*
To step up and get through crises–that’s what a chief aide did.
Jaerim stared grimly at Livanfell.
Several people to assist him came to mind, including troops who could move immediately, neutral aristocrats, a nearby country that maintained a close relationship, and another country that would step forward when asked for help.
“Tell me, Your Majesty. Your Majesty will not be defeated as long as I am here,” Jaerim said with great vigor and confidence.
Livanfell, who had been looking into the air, turned to him.
His eyes, full of pensiveness, looked darker than usual.
Even when his mother almost killed him, his expression wasn’t dark as it was today.
How scary.
Jaerim swallowed hard and waited for Livanfell to speak.
“…Terriella is…”
Empress. He mentioned the empress’s name.
Could it be the empress? No. Even when they met earlier to talk about her ladies-in-waiting, she didn’t act differently.
Was she acting? If that’s the case, she was amazing at it.
Jaerim pictured all sorts of situations in his head every time Livanpel uttered a word.
What if the empress was an enemy? What if the empress had been approaching Rivanfell for a long time with an ulterior motive?
Rivanpel let out a deep sigh.
Jaerim felt sorry for Livanfell, his longtime friend and master and the emperor who ruled the empire, as he drooped.
Just as he was about to touch his shoulder, Livanfell opened his mouth.
“…Terriella touched me, but I don’t remember.”
And the words that came out of his mouth were completely unexpected.
“Terriella must have touched me. I clearly know that. But I have no memory after that, Jaerim.”
“…”
“I think I closed my eyes, but when I opened them, it was already morning. Haa. I’m going crazy. I was a fool for closing my eyes on such a day.”
Something was really strange.
“Terriella’s expression in the morning was really… Haa. She looked like she was trying hard to smile. Yeah. I’m sure of it. I really…”
Livanfell glanced at the decorative sword hanging on the wall.
“I deserve to die.”
“…Are you referring to your first night?”
“Then, is there anything more important than that?” Livanfell stared at Jaerim in bewilderment.
His eyes screamed, ‘Are you asking if there’s anything bigger than this? Are you insane?’
I heard everyone changes the moment they get married. The emperor is no different.
Jaerim gave up understanding Livanfell and grinned.
The countless troops and nations popped into his head and laughed at him, and he waved away the thought.
“No, you keep worrying on your own.”
As Jaerim was about to turn around, Livanfell spoke seriously. “No, Jaerim. Really.”
“Yes, really. You can worry about it alone.”
Jaerim turned around and returned to his seat. And he continued to work on behalf of the still-dazed Livanfell.
However, Rivanpel’s expression was still serious.
‘I really lost my memory. I didn’t fall asleep.’
His memory abruptly stopped as if someone had intentionally cut it out. Livanfell stared into space.
If the saint touched his memory…
‘Haa. How bad was I?’
A dark cloud hung over Livanfell’s face.
I returned from the empress’ palace to the bedroom of the main palace.
And first of all, I changed Mu’s hamster house even though I didn’t know when he’d come back.
It’s still a place where god would sleep, so I put a jewel on it since it didn’t make sense that it didn’t.
I asked the maids to get a bed for the hamster, and I requested to make a new hamster wheel out of gold.
‘Would the idea of destroying the world disappear if I did this?’
I happily looked at the hamster house glistening with jewels. Then, as I tapped the empty house, I changed the lyrics and hummed a song.
“Hamster, hamster, I’ll give you jewelry. Eliminate destruction.”
At that moment, I heard a low voice from behind where I thought there was no one.
“Terriella.”
Was my name as soft as warm milk? It felt like pouring a lump of sugar into my mouth.
When I tilted my head back, Livanfell was there, and I didn’t even notice when he’d arrived. He glanced at the empty hamster house. “Is the hamster gone?”
“Ah. He ran away from home for a while because he’s in puberty. But he said he’d come back.”
“…Is that why you decorated it with jewelry?”
“I think he’ll like it if the house has jewels.”
Livanfell gave me an incomprehensible glance.
I looked away from the empty hamster house and got up. When I turned to focus on Livanfell, I noticed he had black hair, not white.
“Hmm? It’s not midnight yet.”
“Yes.”
“But why are you here?”
When I tilted my head, Livanfell smiled. “Why? Can’t I come?”
If you ask me if you can come, it’s not like I can say no…
“We’re a couple now. So, I think it would be nice if the empress could address me comfortably.”
“Address you comfortably?”
“Yes. You know my name.”
“I know… But is there an empress who calls the emperor by his name?”
“You.” Livanfell laughed and twirled my hair with his fingertip. “Strictly speaking, the empress is number one. Because I can’t do anything without the empress.”
“Is…that so.”
“I have to do well, so the empress doesn’t abandon me.”
I felt a burning sensation every time the back of his hand touching my hair brushed my cheek, pretending to be a mistake.
“Don’t throw me away, Terriella.”
Livanfell laughed playfully, but it didn’t sound playful at all.
I can’t tell when he’s being serious or when he’s joking.
“Hmm?” When I didn’t say anything, he asked again and followed up with an answer.
I took a step back and brushed back my hair.
“I-I won’t throw you away. Why would I throw people away?”
“You promised…Terriella. So, about yesterday.”
An inexplicable tension flowed over Livanfell’s smiling face.
“Perhaps… Did I do something wrong?”
“Wrong? You didn’t do anything wrong.”
Why would he ask such a question while looking nervous? What happened yesterday?
I brooded over the events from the day before.
We had the wedding, and after that, we stayed together in the bedroom of the empress’s palace, but Mu put us to sleep, so nothing special happened.
“Really?”
When I confirmed that he didn’t do anything wrong, Livanfell’s face lit up like a star.
“Then… Then, did I do well?”
Did I do well? The question sounded strange, but he’s probably too nervous to ask if he’s made a mistake.
“Yes. What else… ah.”
“Hmm?”
“If I had to pick one, kissing at the wedding was wrong.”
Because you suddenly kissed to deceive everyone without consulting me in advance. It would have been nice if we had discussed it in advance, and I wouldn’t have been so surprised.
I was going to let it go because it was in the past, but he asked if he had done anything wrong, so.
At my answer, Livanfell’s body began to stiffen as if under a curse.
“Kiss… I didn’t do well?”
“If I have to say it.”
Of course, I know he couldn’t help it because we had to kiss.
Livanfell looked shocked. He pressed his face against his large palm.
His golden eyes, I could see between his fingers, shook as if an earthquake had occurred.
‘Why are you like that?’
Have you lived your whole life without ever making a mistake?
I tilted my head at his shocked expression.
“Let’s do it one more time.”
“What?”
“It can’t be.” Livanfell, who shouted resolutely, approached me again. Before I even realized what he was doing, his palms wrapped around my waist and pulled me.
‘Uh…this…wait…’
I felt an odd sense of deja vu.
Wasn’t this the same as what I went through at the wedding yesterday?
Livanfell grabbed the tip of my chin and tilted it up. Red desire was seething in his eyes.
“Do you know what I am going to do next?” Livanfell slowly tilted his head to the side as if giving me time to say no.
I know. Because we already did it yesterday.
“If you don’t like it, push me away,” he murmured, his voice barely audible. His murmur was like a siren song.
It’s clear there’s an irresistible demonic temptation.
I wouldn’t have closed my eyes if it wasn’t for that.
*Not sure about the translation
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