Chapter 42

Marianne once saw the portraits of the previous emperor and empress. One day she learned about imperial history from Julia. Emperor Cassius in the painting was a good-looking handsome man, and Empress Blair was a classical and elegant beauty. Blair’s beauty was particularly impressive. Even though she wore a glittering crown and splendid accessories on her body, her face stood out among other things. Her golden hair and blue eyes like a lake were also the conditions of beauty that the daughters of the noble families coveted back then.

Eckart seemed to be a mixture of his parents’ appearances in an amazing proportion.

His great skeleton took after his father while his impression and meticulous line took after his mother. His cold and sensitive handsomeness seemed like a tabernacle protecting him.

If one was watching him closely, one would feel as if one were captivated by his handsome appearance.

‘I just want to touch it very gently.’

Marianne even thought of that weird thing while watching him.

But she came to her senses hurriedly and repelled it from her mind. She couldn’t afford to toy with such idle thinking.

In the meantime, it seemed that the unwelcome guests were just around the corner. It looked like they were passing by visibly, and then faded away. Along with the beat of their regular pace, the sound of the swords rattling and their chattering could be heard.

How long had passed? The garden was quiet again.

While looking at them tensely, Eckart felt relaxed when the knights left his field of view.

Marianne stood on her tiptoes to get out of his tight arms. She pulled the collar covering the head with her small hands. Eckart’s upper body slightly leaned forward when she pulled the hem of his robe. There was no problem up to that point.

But they stiffened as if they were possessed by the freezing spell. Eckart had to hold his breath for a moment, and it took quite a long time for Marianne to recognize his warmth on her forehead. Even though they didn’t look at each other at that moment, it was obvious what they were doing now. Eckart’s lips touched Marianne’s forehead as if he kissed her.

There was a tremendous silence for a moment. Their tense moment was much heavier than that when they had to hold their breath in order not to be caught by the patrolling knights a moment ago.

“Well, can I speak now?”

Marianne quickly stepped back and said, “…Okay. You have to finish your words,” Eckart replied with his back straight.

The hem of his long robe covering her body was put back to its original position.

“Let me discuss the size and schedule of the party with Mrs. Charlotte and let you know later.”

“Got it.”

“I’ve got one favor to ask of you, but let me tell you later.”

“Sure.”

“Do you have anything more to say?” she demanded because she wanted to end the conversation quickly.

“I know several men I want you to make friends with formally. I came today to ask for your opinion and host an occasion for you to get acquainted with them. But as you are thinking of hosting a party, let me invite them to your party and meet you for friendship.”

“Not a problem at all. Who are they?”

“Duchess Lamont, Lady Rane, and Countess Renault. Lady Beatrice of the Euclid family.”

Marianne once again memorized the four names mentioned.

“Are they members of Duchess Lamont’s salon?”

“Right. Fortunately, it seems Mrs. Reinhardt is doing her bit well,” said Eckart, showing a surprised reaction.

“So, what are you going to do about that maid who fell from the tree?”

“Well, I’m going to watch her for a little longer. I’ve told her something. I think we can use her as our spy later.”

“I hope you can keep in mind that you shouldn’t trust people so easily.”

Was he betrayed by someone close to him?

Whenever he said something to her, he reminded her of that habitually. She was sick and tired of that.

“Yes, will do.”

“It’s better for you not to be too deeply involved in anything or approaching something too fast.”

“Yes, of course. I’ll keep it in mind, too.”

“Are you applying the ointment well?”

“Yes, of course. Pardon? Ointment? ”

While replying with a sulken voice, she suddenly came to her senses when he mentioned ‘ointment.’

“I asked Wales to give it to you. Didn’t you receive it?”

Oh, that grass-scented ointment!

Marianne recalled a small barrel with a golden herb stem engraved on it. She groped the inside of her mouth where she bit the tip of her tongue unconsciously. She had a cold sore in her mouth, and it felt less painful after applying the ointment. So, she put it in the dresser drawer and applied it four or five times a day.

“I received it well. Thank you. I am much better now.”

Marianne grinned at him, expressing her gratitude.

But he narrowed his eyebrows as if he was displeased with something.

“Next time, try not to harm yourself like that.”

“Are you worried about me again?”

“Isn’t common sense that if a hostage is injured, it’s hard to get the right ransom?”

“Oh, you are doing all this to get back the right amount of ransom for me… ”

“I know I’m asking for too much, but I hope a collaborator like you working with me won’t harm herself.”

“I’m sorry I have betrayed your expectations.”

Deep inside, she felt the emperor was not the type of person who would be a bad guy. She pulled the shawl and lifted the hem of her thin pajamas and pretended to show manners.

“Good night, Your Excellency. The night breeze is so cold.”

Eckart nodded once as a sign that she could leave now.

But as soon as she turned, he suddenly grabbed her wrist and turned her around to look at him.

“…?” She looked at Eckart with a perplexed look.

“I forgot one thing.”

“Pardon?”

Eckart seemed to hesitate for a moment and then raised her hand at shoulder height politely.

“This is my Informal greeting, but I express my gratitude to you as Frey’s Eckart, not Aslan’s Emperor.”

Then he kissed the back of her hand without gloves with his lips that touched her forehead a moment ago.

“Gratitude to me?”

“I wouldn’t have said that without your suggestion. When the day comes for you to pay the price, I will definitely repay your credit on this project.”

“Price? Credit? What is all this…”

Marianne murmured with an absurd look, but Eckart let go of her hand without any further answer…

He turned back. His black robe, which was darker than the night sky, erased its very existence as soon as it entered the moonless shade.

“What are you talking about?”

Although she asked back at the empty place where he once was, his answer did not come back.

In front of her there were only an empty bench, a tree, and a fence with blue rose vines.

“What the heck is this? He just said what he wanted to tell me and went away.”

Marianne grunted openly, tightening the shawl around her shoulders. While she was quickly walking toward the main building, she felt especially cold on her forehead and the back of her hand. She rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand without any reason until the tender skin became slightly red.

* * *

It was almost two decades since Duke Kling returned to the Lucio Imperial Palace.

The spacious Conrad Hall was a political sanctuary that the central ministers wished to step on, but it was just one of the halls of the imperial palace that he was not familiar with. It was also a place he thought he would never come back in his lifetime.

He stared at the sunny windows in the hallway.

There was the national bird of the imperial family, the ivory statue of the two-headed eagle Brenda reflected light, which was built in the garden outside the building. That strong image brought back old memories to him.

It was only four years ago that the previous emperor Cassius died. However, Kling did not hold any important positions not only during the current Eckart’s cabinet, but also during the Cassius’s reign. While he was stuck in Lennox focused on raising his only daughter, powerful central bureaucrats kept taking away or losing the pendulum of power for generations in the capital. The last name Kling was gradually removed from the list of important names in the imperial court. Alienation from the central power was regarded as unfortunate for the noble family who thought of the world of honor. But the loss of his power was what Duke Kling himself wanted.

It was a period when the power of the lords was no less than that of the emperor.

Cassius was very uncomfortable with the Hubble family, which demanded excessive rights on the pretext of kinship. As the closest friend of Cassius, Kling wanted to support him more than anything else, while he did not want to be the source of any unintended trouble for him. That was why he didn’t receive any top positions in the government except for his temporary duty as the chief secretary of the Interior Ministry. After he received the title of duke, he didn’t take on any other government positions.