Inside a small simple white castle, located at the South Pavilion, where no eyes watches and lip whispers was Emerald's momentary quarter. It was where the view of the beautiful garden can be seen in the distance.
As the early morning hours passed, it has been a few days since her wedding had happened. The event itself was like a distant memory as she could not recall everything that happened that day.
"Your Majesty!"
Lucia cationed, her voice rose from seeing Emerald outside the veranda with only a few layers of clothing. She quickly closed the door behind her and approached hastily. But, the maiden's stare was fixated on the magnificent garden which seemed to hide great mysteries.
"Do you not find it cold outside?" she asked in wonder. She swiftly took the wrinkled blanket that was laying on the unattended bed and shook her head in disapproval.
"Here, your Majesty" Lucia said as she offered the blanket to the young maiden.
Emerald took the blanket and covered her hands and feet absentmindedly.
With the look of dissatisfaction, Lucia took the blanket from Emerald's hand and properly covered her from the back as she said, "please cover yourself properly."
Emerald laughed from all the sweet nagging as it reminded her so much of her mother, Duchess Alina. This made Lucia blushed as she realized that she acted overly familiar.
Lucia then quickly retrieved her hands towards her side and bowed to the soon to be Empress, apologizing for the sudden act of impulse.
"My mother always said those words..." Emerald offered, taking Lucia's hand and placing it closer to her chest. "I missed it very much," she said as she gave a lighthearted smile to Lucia.
The two women sat facing each other in silence as they contemplated the warm exchange between them, holding each other hands.
Soon, it was time to prepare for the coronation.
"Should we get ready, your Majesty? Everything has been prepared for you," Lucia initiated.
Emerald nodded in agreement and for the last time, she took a glimpse of the Garden of Eve, appreciating its majestic presence and beauty.
***
"The moon of the Empire is here!" Kathleen announced as soon she catched a sight of Emerald walking inside the spacious parlor room.
The servants who came along to assist Emerald's ladies-in-waiting lined up to her presence quietly with their heads down and eyes to the ground. After the formalities, the maids and Emerald's two ladies-in-waiting work diligently to dress her in prestige and elagance, giving her a sophisticated eye catching look as they dress her in pastel color similar to the color of her blue eyes. Her long dark hair that reflected brown underneath the sun was carefully brushed thoroughly. It was then braided from top of her head in which where the crown would be placed.
As the preparations continued, all the ladies eagerly listened to Lucia as she told one of Goldivia's cultural belief.
Rain in Goldivia was believed to be a sign of blessing by the gods, showering the crop fields with just the right amount of water for a good harvest and preventing the season of drought. It was also believed that coronation for the new Emperor should be done on this day for the gods to bless the land with prosperity and peace.
It was predicted that today will rain, signifying the blessing of gods for the next ruler of the land.
"The rain will come for the Emperor who seeks prosperity for his people." Lucia said as she glanced over the window where the grey sky seemed to threaten a heavy rain.
***
As the ceremony began, Emerald and Calester sat next to each other as they watched the High Priest approach them. He carried the heavy golden crown in his hands, presenting its beautiful embedded clear diamonds to the crowd. Gracefully, he ascended to the throne to meet Prince Calester and Lady Arquilie.
Calester and Emerald then slowly rose to offer a formal greeting to the High Priest. They bowed their heads in respect as he approached them closer.
The High Priest said a short prayer under his breath as Calester bent one knee to the ground accepting the crown placed on his head.
Then, the High Priest gracefully moved to the next person, the moon of the Empire. His hands reached for the second crown from his apprentice. The crown was as magnificent and elegant as the Emperor's, but more feminine. Once again, the High Priest offered a short prayer and looked at Emerald.
It was only for a second, but Emerald felt that she had held her eyes fixated on the High Priest's for a long time. She felt a weird feeling as she bent her knees to the ground to accept the crown. It was her first time meeting the High Priest who bestowed her with the name "Radia"
"You have the mark of Sil..." the High Priest gently said as he smiled to proceed.
Emerald's heart pounded as if suddenly it wanted to come out. She did not understand what the High Priest meant and lowered her eyes to the ground slowly.
The High Priest placed the crown in her head and turned his back to face the big audience who witnessed the coronation of the De Morgues couple.
"Long live Emperor Calester of De Morgues and Empress Emerald Radia of Arquilie. You are now the rulers of our great land of Goldivia."
The crowd cheered wildly when the High Priest made the announcement as the two rose from their knees and greeted the crowd with their noblest smile.
Then, Emerald heard a voice, addressing her in an unfamiliar way. It was low and manly.
"Radia," the voice said.
Emerald thought Calester called her for a second. Hearing a voice in a whisper, she looked at Calester dubiously, who was standing next to her and waving at the crowd.
"Did you call me, your Majesty?" She asked.
Calester met Emerald's eyes and promptly answered, "I didn't." He noticed the uncertainty in her eyes and slightly lifted his brows in interest. He looked back to the crowd, schooling his facial expression in a composed manner.
"Why?" he asked.
"I thought you did...I was mistaken" she mumbled and looked away from his stare, slightly feeling conscious of the close distance they have. She could not be so sure if she did hear a voice and decided to simply dismiss it as just a mere imagination.
Then, the voice giggled. Fear in her eyes quickly emerged. Her eyes widened from the unexpected sound that she instinctively directed her inspective gaze towards the huge crowd in front of her. Emerald swallowed her dry saliva before speaking. Her eyes trembled in anxiety as she wet her lips.
"Your Majesty...?" She whispered in fright as she did not know who the low voice belonged to. It was the same low voice that she heard previously during the wedding. She stared at the crowd a little longer, unconsciously tugging Calester's sleeves in fear.
Calester quickly noticed, knitting his brows slightly in bewilderment. He took Emerald's hand and squeezed it as it seemed she had forgotten where she was at that moment.
"What's wrong?" He asked in a whisper, his eyes still in the crowd.
"Ahm..." she hesitated a little and then said, "it's nothing, your Majesty... I'm just not used to loud cheering."
Calester fixed his gaze towards the maiden, but knew she would not say more. Unconvinced by her response, he looked away and did not fry on her until later.
***
As soon as they sat down, Calester asked again, "what happened, Empress?"
Emerald, who was enjoying her meal as the other guests, was prompted with a sudden question. She looked at Calester and said nothing.
"You were scared earlier. Did something happen?"
Emerald studied Calester's face for a minute, putting down the utensils in her hands. She took the napkin, whipping up the corners of her mouth, and finally said, "... I'm just not used to being in the center of a big crowd," ultimately deciding it was not wise to share it with Calester as he might not believe her.
"Please excuse me." Emerald informed him as she rose from her seat and headed towards the lavatory. Lucia and Kathleen naturally followed.
"Where is Lady Maggie? I haven't seen her si—"
As soon as she turned around to look ahead of her direction, Emerald accidentally knocked into someone.
The red wine splashed and spilled into their clothes and hair. Emerald felt the cold liquid, soaking into her shoulder sleeve. Her eyes caught the red silky hair, curled in sophistication, from the corner of her eyes and quickly apologized.
The two ladies-in-waiting behind ran in panic to help clean the spilled wine on Emerald's pale blue dress. But the woman on the floor was simply ignored and regarded as unimportant.
"Bitch!" The woman said, loudly enough for Emerald and the two ladies-in-waiting to hear.
It was Alexis Felon from House of Marquis.
She stood up from the ground, straightening the hem of her skirt that was stained in red wine. Her red hair was also slightly soaked from the wine.
Emerald did not take offense to the word as she thought the lady did not recognize her and held both Lucia and Kathleen hand in halt as their brows puckered from the word.
"You don't own anything in this Palace, Lady Arquilie..." Alexis criticized, "... you are only lucky to be born in the House of Arquilie."