"Your Majesty… did I hear you right? You wanted a former maid to enter the palace and you want to confer her the title of the 3rd Queen?"
The noble in the meeting mumbled and started discussing on their own. He was sure that most of them were against his announcement.
"Viscount Reed…" Damien clenched his fists. "Did you not hear the other things I said aside from those that you mentioned? That woman was no longer a maid. She was the mother of my son, the fourth star of this empire. Have you forgotten the law?"
"But we can't have a commoner being promoted to Queen, Your Majesty!"
"Count Bard…" Damien looked at the Count with a warning gaze. "Every woman who shared my bed will be promoted to Imperial concubine. The moment that woman slept with me, she was no longer a commoner."
"But she was not even given the title of a concubine, Your Majesty…"
"And those who bore an imperial son are automatically promoted as Queens. That rule was established so that every imperial prince would have a legitimate right to the throne," Damien added. "This law was created so that no imperial prince would be discriminated against from their imperial rights, Count Fowler."
Other nobles were about to say something but Damien cut them off by patting the table.
"There was an imperial prince living outside the palace and all you can think about was a woman's promotion to a queen? How can you call yourselves the nobles who swore their loyalty to the imperial family?"
With that, everyone fell silent. Even if there were people who did not look like they agree with the emperor's announcement, they had no choice but to go along with it. Without conferring the Queen title to the mother, the emperor's son would not receive his prince title.
Damien knew that his plans would face many oppositions but he was ready to face it all. Melissa and Luca lived outside the palace for so long. He could no longer allow that, now that he knew about his son's existence.
The nobles would not gladly accept and acknowledge Luca, so he would need to solidify his son's position as an imperial prince. He would never allow the nobles to look down on them. As long as he was alive, he would protect them.
Since the travel time was long, Luca and Melissa fell asleep inside the carriage. It was dark outside when the carriage stopped at the entrance of the Capital. The messenger knocked on the carriage door before he opened it.
"Your highness, would you mind if we stop over at an inn tonight? In order to ensure your proper welcome, we would like to bring you to the palace first thing in the morning."
Morning? But she thought the emperor wanted them to be there on that day. She looked at the knight that the emperor assigned and the knight immediately went toward them.
"What's the matter?" the knight asked the messenger.
"I am just asking if it was fine to stay at an inn tonight and arrive at the palace tomorrow, Sir Knight," the messenger's voice suddenly trembled.
"The emperor's order for us yesterday was to bring His and Her Highness to the palace today." The knight glared at the messenger. "I don't think the emperor's order would change without informing the knights that he assigned for the security of the third queen and the fourth prince."
"I'm sorry, Sir Knight. I was just thinking that His and Her highness might be tired so I was suggesting rest for a while." The messenger sighed.
"The palace is just 30 minutes away from here. Wouldn't it be better to rest in there than spend time at an inn at this moment?" the knight reprimanded the messenger and went back to ride his horse. "We're going to the palace now."
The messenger had no other choice but to follow since it was the knight's decision. At least he had a valid reason for failing his mission.
The carriage went on and it only stopped at the main gate of the palace. Melissa looked at the familiar gates and trembled. She was feeling mixed emotions. She was filled with anxiety, nostalgia, and excitement. She was pregnant when she left, then she came back with her child after almost six years.
She wondered how much have changed since the day she left?
"Mother, is this the place where Father lives? The palace is indeed huge!" Luca sounded amazed. He was finally at the place where her mother met his father.
The Imperial Guards opened the door when they saw the imperial crest on the carriage. Though they were intrigued to know who it was, they chose to shut their mouths and just watch quietly. The carriage stopped at the entrance of the Lotus Palace.
The knights knocked at the carriage door before they opened it and offered their hands to assist Melissa.
"We are here, your highness."
Melissa received one of the knight's help while the other knight carried Luca who was still asleep.
"You came here late." The emperor's voice was heard from the inside of the palace before the gates opened.
He welcomed Melissa with a hug and after he gave her a kiss on the forehead, he took Luca from the knight and carried the child. He smiled and held Melissa's hand as he guided them toward the palace.
"I asked them to clean the lotus palace for you. In three days, your Queen Appointment and Luca's Prince appointment will be held consecutively."
"Isn't that too soon, Your Majesty? We could wait for a week or a month for that." Since she worked in the palace, Melissa knew how hard it was to prepare for an event in the palace. How would they prepare for two appointments within just three days?
"No. If possible, I would appoint you right here and right now but I need to go through the proper procedures." Damien sighed. "I'll bring Luca to the temple tomorrow to confirm and to show those nobles who Luca was."
Melissa saw the determination in Damien's eyes and smiled. "Thank you, Your Majesty."
She knew that it was going to be hard for him, but he chose to push through. She was still afraid and doubtful but she was grateful for the emperor's support towards Luca. As long as the emperor looked at Luca with favor, her son would be safe.