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"Our night is a disaster!" Urduja exclaims happily, clapping her hands as she tells her ladies-in-waiting.
They exchange glances at each other, and cannot believe that their empress seems joyful and cheerful about it.
"D-Do you mean nothing happened last night, Your Imperial Majesty?" Gertrude dares to ask as she plasters a wry smile, feeling cumbersome a little.
Urduja shakes her head, smiling. "Yep! I made him sleep at the daybed last night," she says proudly and approaches the daybed where Alistair sleeps. She sits on and taps it with a huge grin on her face.
Gertrude sighs and does a facepalm. She is supposed to receive the good news that Empress Urduja and Emperor Alistair have a good chance that they will have their heir but she is wrong.
'They need an heir!' Gertrude sighs, surrendering. "Let's get you prepared, Your Imperial Majesty."
"Before that…" Urduja pauses as she massages her temple, feeling a little dizzy. "Ingrid, please bring me a cup of peppermint tea."
"Yes, Your Imperial Majesty," Ingrid says and curtseys.
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"Here is your green tea, Your Imperial Majesty," Maximus bestows Alistair a cup of coffee to his desk.
Alistair nods his head, feeling a little dizzy as well. Having a migraine attacking him. He starts sipping in the cup and feels a little relief.
"How's your night with Empress Urduja?"
Alistair's expression changes into a sour. "It was a disastrous one!" He hisses. "That woman…" he says through gritted teeth. "That incompetent woman…"
Maximus gulps. He checks if Emperor Alistair is annoyed but he sees a slight frown on the emperor's lips.
"Disastrous one, you mean nothing happened?"
Alistair doesn't answer, instead, he sips on his hot drink. Maximus will take that as a yes.
The last time Emperor Alistair visited Empress Urduja three months ago was the news of Maximus that the imperial couple had done it. That is why it surprised him to know that nothing happened between them when it was supposed to be something that happened.
It may surprise him that nothing happened between him and the empress, but he could do nothing.
"I passed out the moment Urduja and I had finished two bottles of wine. And so is she."
Wide-eyed, Maximus gasps from what he heard from Emperor Alistair. "You both passed out? With two bottles of wine?" he asks, surprised. "Why would you and Empress Urduja drink two bottles when you both have a low tolerance for liquor?"
Alistair clenches his hand. "Because that woman challenged me! I wouldn't even dare to lose myself in front of her! Now I have a migraine because of her!" he said in annoyance.
'He lost his composure,' Maximus says in his mind. 'But how can Emperor Alistair accept Empress Urduja's challenge so easily? Did she provoke him?' he wonders.
"Give me the reports now," Alistair orders.
Maximus snaps back and bows. "As you command, Your Imperial Majesty."
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'I don't want to get drunk ever again. I don't want to get drunk ever again. I don't want to get drunk ever again,' Urduja chants on her head as she continues working for the whole day.
She will never want to get drunk again. The migraine she felt is unbearable. It is a good thing the coffee helps to subside the hangover she is experiencing.
She has not told her ladies-in-waiting that she and Alistair drank the two bottles of wine until they can't drink anymore. Urduja feels that she doesn't need to inform them but she feels guilty as she is not telling them how hilarious that she challenged Alistair to drink as much as possible.
She thought that the body of Urduja can handle so much liquor but she was wrong. She is mistaken that Alistair can handle liquor but as soon as they finished the bottle, both of them spoke slurred words.
Urduja shakes her head, castigating those thoughts. She takes out from the drawer the letter of proposal of taking Diamond Moon Knights to be her elite knights.
She rereads the letter before she suddenly remembers about the former Captain of Diamond Moon Knights.
She hasn't spoken to that person yet. But she needs to speak with that person as soon as Alistair approves her proposal. But before that, she has another proposal she needs to present to the members of the imperial family.
Urduja has done studying the account records and some reports for the past millennial years. She has come up with a solution to one of the crisis issues the empire is facing.
"Your Imperial Majesty."
She glances at the door. "Come in."
Viscount Isaac shows himself and emerges into her study room. "Meeting with the imperial court."
Urduja nods and stands up. "Yes, I am aware. We must go." She brings her proposal to the court, to Alistair, and a stationary to write down notes.
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As Urduja makes her way to the conference room, she crosses paths with Alistair who is on his way as well to the conference room.
"Empress," Alistair greets her with a nod.
"Emperor," Urduja greets back.
Then they fall silent and neither of them speaks. Maximus and Isaac exchanged glances from this deafening silence. The same silence they experienced after the night the imperial couple stayed at Her Imperial Majesty's chamber.
Maximus clears his throat which makes them snap back to reality. Alistair passes by her and doesn't even tug her along with him.
Urduja rolls her eyes while Maximus sees it before he follows Emperor Alistair.
Urduja is a bit fuming mad for that Emperor Asshole who had just ignored her. She narrows her eyes, sending glares at the back of Alistair. She thinks that Alistair is facing her.
'You asshole! Emperor Asshole! Loser!' Urduja utters in her mind.
"Their Imperial Majesties have arrived!" The palace guard announces as soon as Alistair and Urduna arrive at the conference room.
The members of the imperial court and military court stand. The men bow their heads and the women curtsey before them.
"Long live, Emperor Alistair, Empress Urduja!"
Alistair and Urduja nod their head at them.
"You may all rise," Alistair says in his icy tone as he makes his way to his seat.
Urduja ignores the stares of the people who are here. She frowns a little as she receives the same judgment and ridicule stares every time she is attending a meeting with them.
She sits near Alistair as the meeting starts. They are discussing the funds donated by the neighboring empires: Chevelure Empire, Vespertine Empire, and Heavenize Empire as to where it must be distributed and designated. Urduja listens to both imperial and military courts.
The imperial court stands to be designated more to the principal scholars of the empire. They want to spend the fund looking for more scholars since few scholars managed to pass this year. The military court wants the funds to be put more on military training for the imperial knights and hire more imperial knights for each knight squad.
Urduja sighs in disappointment as the conflict starts to brawl between the two courts. She simply takes a glance at Alistair who is silently watching the members argue right in front of him with his cold demeanor.
She turns at Isaac while Isaac looks back at her. Urduja nods at him. Isaac nods, understanding what the empress tries to mean.
"Emperor, can I have your attention?" Urduja raises her hand and her voice to gain everyone's attention.
The brawl starts to dissipate when Empress Urduja speaks. Alistair turns his head to look at her with an icy gaze.
"Would the interruption be suitable for this topic, Your Imperial Majesty?"
Urduja turns her head at Baroness Idony from the House of Badden upon hearing the baroness's deflating tone. She plasters a stony and composed aura before she nods her head.
"Yes. This is related to the donated funds from our neighboring empires. I have a proposal for that which will benefit the imperial court and military court." Urduja turns her head at Isaac. "Viscount Isaac, please."
Isaac nods and starts distributing the files to the members. Even to Emperor Alistair.
"What is this all about, Empress Urduja?" Alistair asks, creasing his forehead as he reads the content.
Urduja smiles and confidently looks at them. "I wish to propose to resolve the famine the Lucelence Empire is experiencing," she says to make the members of the imperial court and military court exchange glances.