170 – 174
“Hmm… this seems too risqué.”
After bathing, I pick out clothes to wear.
The first night spent with him.
Honestly, it’s annoying, but apart from that, I love him.
Is that why?
His eyes, his lips, his embrace staring at me all feel provocative, so I shake my head to clear my mind.
“But what should I wear?”
Underwear scattered all over the room.
My mother’s old underwear and the fancy lingerie I bought to tease Devian come into view.
“Isn’t this too much?”
Like a woman who’s restless and wants to do something with him.
Should I just go for a simple, innocent vibe?
I pick up the underwear embroidered with white lace.
If I pair this with lingerie…
As the underwear and lingerie seem to match better than expected, I decide to wear them tonight.
-Swishing… Swishing…
I undress from the bathrobe, change into clothes, lie on the bed, caress my lips, and get lost in thought.
Just a kiss was so good… How much better would that be?
I heard it’s great from Merina Ifa.
They said the first time hurts a lot…
Will it hurt a lot?
Now that it’s about to happen, I’m half excited, half worried.
After all, it’s something that has to be done, right?
For the stable throne, it’s time to start thinking about having a child.
Both myself and Devian are in our early twenties now.
We need to stay healthy until the child we have grows up to be an adult.
That way, by the time we depart, the child will already be grown enough to inherit the stable throne.
That’s our duty, Devian’s and mine.
Suddenly, as I glance at the seat beside me, the thought of the intense kiss we shared there not long ago makes my face flush.
“Ugh…”
He wouldn’t think of me as… promiscuous, would he?
I’m worried whether Devian might see me as inherently lewd and lascivious.
Why did I act like that earlier?
I was clearly so excited earlier to the point of being abnormal.
Sometimes there’s a libido before menstruation, but I struggled to push it out of my mind and fell asleep with difficulty.
But a little while ago, I just couldn’t hold back.
I can’t either…
Whenever I recall the recent situation, my face keeps heating up.
Thinking of the incredibly sensual and equally enjoyable kiss, I wait for Devian.
***
Due to my mother-in-law and Mary trying to kick me out of the banquet hall, it feels difficult to stay here.
-Tingling.
From Noble mtl dot com
-Tingling.
Mary’s glances are mostly harmless, but…
It’s hard to withstand my mother-in-law’s cold stares.
They feel as chilling as a winter’s icy wind.
They must have prepared in the information department, so I rise from my seat and say, “Mother-in-law. I believe the Emperor may not be feeling well, so I shall take my leave now.”
My words make my mother-in-law smile brightly, nodding her head, and saying, “Yes! Go on inside! Gather strength…”
What… is she asking me to gather strength for?
I sigh inwardly, seeing my mother-in-law blush shyly, but I don’t show any reaction.
“Alright then, I’ll take my leave.”
With that final farewell, I leave the banquet hall.
As I head towards our bedroom along the corridor,
someone approaches from the opposite side.
The attendant who was sitting on the bench a while ago.
In his left hand, he carries a basket suitable for travel.
“Your Grace. I have brought the cookies as you requested.”
Phew… I owe you one.
“Yes, thank you. You handled it well, right?”
He nods in response to my words.
I owe you one.
I respond to him with a bright smile.
“Thank you. I imagine time was tight.”
“No, not at all. It’s fortunate that I had prepared items for an assassin’s contingency.”
I nod at his words.
“Yes. Well done. Lock up the assassin in prison and gather all possible evidence by investigating the assassin’s whereabouts.”
Giving those instructions, he heads towards the honeymoon suite.
“Your Highness, did you come here because you were worried about the Emperor?”
I respond to the guard’s question with a perplexed expression.
“Th-that’s right.”
Ugh… Why am I feeling so nervous?
Just as I try to calm my pounding heart, there’s a knock on the door.
– Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
Does he know who’s come?
Normally, he would ask who it is.
Even the guards look puzzled as they open the door.
– Creak…
“Who is it?”
“Uh, it’s me.”
Is it a slightly naughty yet innocent feeling?
As I see the smooth silk lingerie that doesn’t reveal as much as last time, I inwardly sigh with relief.
Phew… I was worried she might come in and hug me right away.
“Oh? What’s that in your hand?”
I smile brightly in response to her question.
“Oh, I brought some cookies in case you got hungry. You haven’t eaten anything for a while, right? Go ahead and eat.”
As I open the basket and show her the cookies, Theodora’s eyes widen.
“Oh… Thank you.”
The cookies I brought, thinking Theodora didn’t eat properly at the banquet.
Watching Theodora take a bite of the cookie, I feel a sense of satisfaction inside.
Thank goodness. If I can just stall with these.
Theodora eats another cookie, probably feeling hungry.
“How do they taste?”
“They’re… delicious.”
As she eats the cookies, about half of the basket disappears.
“Yawn…”
Seeing her yawning, perhaps feeling sleepy.
“Are you tired?”
Theodora cutely nods in response to my question.
“Ugh… No. Can’t… sleep.”
She was still trying to resist the sleeping pill in some way.
I carefully lifted her, who was sitting on the sofa, into my arms.
She’s lighter than I thought.
“Ugh…”
Did she not expect to end up in my embrace?
Her face, now completely flushed, buries deep into my chest.
“Shall we go to bed, Your Majesty?”
“Ugh…”
Just moments ago, we even shared a deep kiss.
Why is she so shy all of a sudden?
Honestly, she looks too adorable right now.
With her long gray hair and fidgety red eyes.
I carefully lay her on the bed and gently hold her chin.
Our eyes lock for a moment.
And then…
“Mmm…”
Our tongues intertwine.
It’s hard to say who initiated it as we both eagerly respond to each other.
But unlike the kiss from before…
As I feel her movements slowing down, I gently pull away.
She looks at me with a dazed expression.
I kiss her cheek softly and say, “Sleep if you’re tired.”
“No… I shouldn’t sleep…”
Soon after.
-Snuggle… Snuggle…
I cover her with a blanket as she drifts off to sleep.
“Goodnight, sweet dreams.”
And that’s how I head to the sofa.
***
The morning after the end of the banquet.
From early on, I received a brief report from the Grand Duke.
Letters seemingly related to assassins, members of the Imperial Faction, and the Emperor’s advisors, as well as a receipt showing a hefty purchase by a member of the Imperial Faction from the Alchemist Guild.
If we arrest and investigate the Alchemist Guild officials about what exactly was purchased, the truth will come out.
“Hmm…”
The evidence of the Imperial Faction’s treason is also plentiful.
They won’t be able to squirm out of this easily.
“That’s enough of this.”
Shall we go meet Sabinelli?
Savinelli heads towards the palace prison where she is confined.
As she reaches the dark underground jail.
“Your Grace. Have you come?”
The guard greets me as he looks at me.
“Yes. Is everything alright?”
The guard smiles slightly at my question and says, “Last night, a lively woman came in, quite entertaining. hehehehe, so delicate and pretty. And those eyes full of fierceness were so…”
Not wanting to hear more, I raise my hand to interrupt him.
“I’m not interested in your tastes. Just… If she ends up dead, you’ll be the next one in the torture chamber.”
I say with a slight smile…
“hahahaha… Don’t worry, Your Grace! Even so, am I not a professional?”
“Yes, you should be a professional. You caught an assassin. If you kill her, won’t you have to pay for the money and manpower spent on catching an assassin? Isn’t that right?”
“Oh… It’s nothing.”
Passing the guard who awkwardly smiles, I enter inside.
“Where is Viscount Savinelli?”
Upon my question, the guard hurriedly responds, “He is on the first floor underground. I will guide you.”
I follow the guard inside as he leads the way.
“He is over there.”
As he says, I see the familiar man behind the iron bars, sleeping on a rough mat, and my heart aches.
Back in the days of Rome, I used to see him often, and I had always admired him, so seeing him now sleeping on a rough mat in such a pitiful state brings some regret.
Goodness… Should I have used the pardon even if it meant going against the rules?
I can grant him a pardon with the power I have, but I can’t use the pardon immediately.
Knowing that there are legal procedures in the Ministry of Justice for pardons, I am aware of the current procedure for a pardon.
“Viscount.”
I softly call out to him, and Savinelli, with sparse facial hair, turns his head.
“Your Grace. Have you come?”
***
“Ugh…”
I get up from the bed and look around.
Seeing a bright light behind the dark curtains, I instinctively sense that it’s morning.
“Ah…”
Yesterday… Did I fall asleep while kissing Devian?
I fell asleep in the midst of kissing.
It’s strange. I wasn’t that tired yesterday.
Suddenly, at some point, I fell asleep and couldn’t wake up.
Strange…
Being so excited yesterday, falling asleep suddenly, it’s all so incomprehensible.
“Ugh… First, I need to wash up and get ready.”
Because there’s a tight schedule today as well.
Hastily getting up from bed, I head to wash up.