It was natural for me to assume myself as an old woman.
I don't know the exact number of my age, but it was definitely more than a thousand. So it's hard for me to fell in love because I see everyone as children.
But the exchange of our tongue and heat, it drove my instinct. I feel like age, my past reincarnations, traumas, all that don't matter any more. It was as if I finally live in the present.
"Are you aware of what you're doing?," I whispered, slightly dizzy at the kiss that was making me out of breath.
"Of course. We could go further, but I really wanted you to recover as soon as possible,".
I blushed slightly at this new profound feeling that is growing inside me. He took my hand and kissed my knuckles one by one, not taking me off his sight.
"Carina, in 2 years, I will definitely gain power. I will play this game my own way. And I will definitely make you the empress with a seat decorated worthy of your place,"
He came closer and kissed my forehead. "So you don't need to help me any more. The child in me is gone. I just want you to sit back and rest,".
The night ended like that.
The next day, my condition seemed to be mysteriously slightly better.
——
With a knock, a stern voice spoke, "enter,".
As I entered the room with my knight, Gale, I bowed. "Duke,".
"Caspian, your report," Caine leaned slightly forward.
The air is very tense that both Gale and Caine's aide is suffocating to breath. The tyrannical family, Aspera, is all dainty flower fields ever since the youngest daughter, Carina, recovered from her coma. But after the meeting with the crown prince, she mysteriously vomited blood and had been in bed for a month. Her sleep is also irregular, so it's been awhile that the family is talking together.
So the whole servants freaked out and walking on thin ice with both the duke and the ducal heir lest they lose their head.
It's obvious the reason why they're behaving like tyrants. Their patience is running thin when the emperor ordered for an investigation, but there's no progress. Adding fuel to the fire is the fact that the crown prince is only detained and is not allowed to have any visitors at the moment, so to involve him in the investigation is out of the question.
The rumours did not help either. We don't know who spread the rumour that the crown prince tried to assassinate Carina, but Caine and Caspian is fuming when they heard of this that they almost plan to revolt.
"It's a fact that the crown price planted shadow guards around the mansion. However, they all swear that they were just ordered to spy on Carina's movements,"
"Even after being tortured?,"
"Yes," Caspian gritted his teeth. To see his younger sister weak in bed again, it seems to recall his bad memory of that time when Carina went into a coma.
Gale just realized that he really is working with Asperas, a rather far from normal family. To even torture the crown prince's men, their power is even up to par with the emperor. It's ridiculous how even the emperor couldn't even tame them.
Caine, on the other hand, felt exasperated. First of all, he knew deep in his heart that the rumour about the crown prince wanting to assassinate Carina is ridiculous. There's no way he wanted to harm someone that could give him power and easily win the throne.
"No, we've been looking at this wrong," Caine intertwined his fingers together, elbow on his desk.
He sharpened his gaze. "The one that would benefit from assassinating Carina is the second prince,".
All of a sudden, their discussion seems to a halt when they heard a knock. "I told you not to disturb us," Caine gritted his teeth. Even though Caine seemed to be the calmest compared to me, he is the most impatient one.
"Father, it's me," a weak voice spoke.
Caine abruptly stood up from his chair, panicked that he may have been too harsh. "D-Daughter? Come in,".
I scoffed. Now Carina can hate my father a little so she can like me better.
———
"Your highness, bad news!!," the butler busted into my room.
I massaged my temples. Lately all I've been having is bad news ever since the lady of the Aspera family was almost assassinated. I thought the tides turned to my favour. Now that the crown prince is pinned for that crime and he messed up his own game, he was supposed to be out of the equation.
But the crown prince men barged into my palace like they own the place and its grating on my nerves, forcing me to admit a crime I did not commit as if I am the one who tried to assassinate the lady of the Aspera.
Why would I even go near such tyrannical dogs anyway?
"What is it again?," I sighed, grabbing my night robe.
As I stood up from my bed, my butler was roughly pushed to the side, revealing a tall and huge build man. His stern, sharp violet eyes and his silver hair that reminds the whole capital of the white dogs of the empire.
"Duke Caine!!," I panicked and quickly ran to the sofa.
"Please take a seat," I quickly composed myself, but sweat drenched my back and my legs are shaking.
He didn't say anything. His eyes did not move an inch. "Prince Wilhem Jhilveid Wyrin von Astling," he casually called me out.
I am scared of this person.
The Asperas are like the vessels of the demons. They are cruel, brutal and don't care for the women and children.
The memory I had of Caine grabbing my mother's neck flashed in my head. She was struggling to breath, her eyes rolled behind. It was scary, so scary that every time I see the Asperas I shook in fear. Fear is my only driving motivation to be the emperor and get rid of them for good.
"You benefited the most from assassinating my daughter,"
I almost scoffed. Bunch of tyrants caring about their daughter? Ridiculous!
"Why would I even touch the beloved daughter of an Aspera? That is a mad decision," I yelled in desperation.
The crown prince is trying to put the blame on me, and now even the Asperas too?
I am going to lose the fight for the throne, and more of my dignity!
"Indeed. So either you provide proof or you'll be disbanded back to your land... like your mother,".
Caine pulled behind his gloves and walked out of my room with the swish of his cape. He is done with his business in mere seconds.
I clenched my fist. My mother was only trying to protect me. She was a gentle and good woman, even modest for the daughter of a duke. She's the first concubine, a concubine that is loved by the emperor. But why did no one remember that side of hers when she tried to poison the empress? Why did no one stood up for me and her when people clearly know that the empress tried to kill us first?
This world is unfair, but it's all the more reason I need to become the emperor, and get rid of injustice for good!