"You don't have to, Your Majesty."
Charlize stopped Dylan.
If she nodded her head, that country would have been destroyed immediately.
Dylan, who must have been serious, looked at Charlize and kissed the tip of her hair.
"Master is generous."
In the future, no matter how artistic and expensive the dress was, it seemed that there would be a rule that it had to be for Charlize in order to present it to the Emperor.
Charlize just came to see Dylan, but…
"Get out of my way."
"I went to Your Majesty's blessing, and I was moved. I will never forget it, Your Majesty."
The envoy shivered down the stairs.
He bent down so deeply that he was about to fall. He luckily did not stumble down the stairs, perhaps because of a desperate wish not to escape the emperor's gaze.
The next envoy looked very nervous.
"In the Kingdom of Leth… we have prepared Turkish Delight, a dessert."
Turkish Delight.
It was a sweet characterized by a strong sweet taste, also called Lokum. It has a soft blue color covered with coconut powder, but when it is cut off, it becomes blue and clear.
"…"
This time, Dylan's eyes caught on. Charlize just blinked indifferently.
"Isn't this the Lokum that Master likes?"
"?"
"Shall we reward the Kingdom of Leth?"
Dylan's eyes folded softly. His gentle, friendly eyes seemed to have no ulterior motive.
The envoy, who heard the story of the destruction because of a dress, looked blank with a sense of deprivation. However, the current envoy, who offered Lokum, opened his eyes wide.
Perhaps he was stunned by the good fortune that might be given with a nod of Charlize's head.
"Or do you not like it?"
In an instant, emotionless coolness passed by in his gentle eyes. Charlize woke up late from her thoughts and shook her head.
"No. Please do as Your Majesty will."
"Then I'll give him a reward."
"…Yes."
The envoys glared at the national flag of the Kingdom of Leth with jealous eyes.
'You're trying to give me power.'
Charlize thought slowly.
Since Dylan has only taken a humble attitude towards Charlize, everyone will put her will above the Emperor.
The servant picked up the Lokum box and displayed it on a table near Charlize.
If Charlize didn't eat it herself, Dylan would feed him, so she just ate first. Dylan looked somewhat proud as if he had seen a bird eating well.
In fact, Charlize was not mistaken. That's true, too, because Dylan was tired of the recent offering from the kingdom.
Although he would not express it to Charlize, there were many attempts to bring in women to the situation of an empire without an empress or even a queen.
Although they were trying to sneak into Dylan's bedroom, they were all caught up by the Shadow beforehand and thrown out, so there was no chance they would run into each other.
It was only necessary to reveal it perfectly once in all the world and imprint it.
'The Emperor's woman is one.'
Charlize Ronan. Only she will be the Emperor's only lover and companion.
Charlize put the Lokum in her mouth and ate it quite deliciously.
'It makes me feel better when I eat sweet things.'
As a genuine product, the taste was excellent.
She thought Dylan had only seen her eating Lokum and enjoying it in front of him only once, but she wondered how he would have known.
Dylan, meanwhile, looked quickly at the envoys. In the eyes of the emperor, the national flags of some countries that were trying to use the beauty trap that was not even good enough were shaken.
This is because the envoy accidentally breathed in a hurry and waved his hand holding the flag.
Everyone knew and bowed their heads.
As the continents were unified, the number of kingdoms was innumerable, and after that, the procession of genuine products continued for a long time.
After the official schedule ended, Charlize was escorted by Dylan to the garden.
The royal garden was fresh.
"For the first time, I thought that I didn't know how you would be recorded in history later."
She spoke openly like a faint mist. Dylan looked down at the flowers by Charlize's side and said.
"How do you think it will be recorded?"
"I don't know… The beauty of a woman who hides the emperor's wisdom? The achievement of continental unification is a record that will not be broken even after hundreds of years, and you will also receive attention."
"You are saying that you are concerned that I will be recorded as a tyrant and with a state of war."
Charlize nodded silently because it wasn't wrong.
The scent of the flowers tickled the tip of her nose. It's especially good. It was to Charlize's taste that only the flowers of incense were gathered.
Dylan took Charlize's hand and said. It was a simple hand-holding, but Dylan's warmth made her feel strange.
"I do not intend to leave this fact alone in the history books, I."
"…?"
"When I saw the case of the emperor who was known as a tyrant in the history books, I had doubts about whether he was a real tyrant."
Dylan said slowly.
"Because a true ruler would not allow a librarian to record your histories while remaining independent."
"…Ah."
"No matter what you worry about, it won't happen, Master."
She wasn't particularly worried.
It was a path of defeat that ran only for revenge from the beginning.
She doesn't care how it's recorded. She was just concerned about Dylan's posthumous reputation.
'I was worried ahead of time.'
Dylan is a genius. Although she never forgot that fact, she was surprised again.
Charlize looked up at Dylan. She was just going to look at him for a while, but somehow she couldn't take it off.
"…"
There was a strange tension. They only made eye contact, but in an instant, the warmth was mixed up to the point of embarrassment.
Even though his eyes were not excessive, there was something about Dylan that attracted people. He breathed.
Everyone breathes, but Dylan feels special. She wondered if kissing would give him a taste of Lokum, but that thought crossed her mind reflexively.
"Do you know what time is the most dangerous to the emperor?"
Dylan said, suddenly breaking the silence. His short black hair looked soft. Her fingertips remembered what a strange sensation it felt as she stroked his hair.
"…Maybe it's a night when you're vulnerable to assassinations."
"Yes, Master."
Dylan laughed softly. Charlize felt a little strange to Dylan.
"Shadow was away, and Master said that you would stand by me."
"…Yes."
"Do you remember the day we saw fireworks together? Tonight, it's a little different from fireworks, but I prepared a special sky."
"…"
"I'd like to spend the night with you. I'm not forcing you, but I just miss you."
How can he be so tender and affectionate?
On the first day she became Dylan's teacher, an assassin entered his bedroom. Charlize heard that the 13th Prince, who was a boy, also handled the assassin by himself.
The emperor who has reached the highest level of master through Charlize's teaching is not afraid of an assassination attempt.
Asking her to protect him was only a weak excuse, but it was a subtle hint that he wanted to have a sexual intercourse.
Charlize hesitated, then she picked the flowers for a while. And she put it into Dylan's hand.
"…What is it?"
"You always prepare a new sky, so I want to give you something."
"Isn't Master who has already given me the throne?"
Charlize didn't show off at all, but she was the one who made a great contribution to Dylan's rise to the throne.
"… I like looking at the sky. Especially if it's a special sky."
Charlize lowered her eyes and spoke, then slowly lifted her eyes to meet Dylan's.
The mysterious navy blue eyes that resembled the universe were simply beautiful. He doesn't know if it's because of that specialness that he's fascinated by Charlize's eyes no matter how many times he watches it.
Charlize's eyes slowly curve. Dylan felt strange at the first flowers he had ever received from a woman. It's not that he doesn't like it, it's that he feels numb.
"I wish the night would come sooner."
Both Charlize and Dylan forgot the troubles caused by the secret magic tower at this moment.
They were only with each other.
***
Grand Duchy of Ronan.
The second young master, Dante, barely suppressed the desire to rip off his head. Damn it. He doesn't just want to rip his head out.
If possible, he wanted to throw away the dignity of a high-ranking noble, and swear at them as much as he could. To whom?
To Dante himself.
"Why did I do that?"
If he regretted it and thought that regretting it could be the end of it, he was firmly mistaken.
His attitude toward Charlize in the past was unscrupulous and immoral no matter how much he thought about it.
It was so painful that he felt disillusioned with himself even though he suffered deeply.
He felt like he was stuck in the middle of a vicious cycle that could never be broken. Is it really only Dante?
Perhaps Akan and the Grand Duke will live with the same regret. It was endless, like a swamp that the more you struggle to get out, the deeper you fall.
"…"
It's been several years since he couldn't sleep because of his nervousness.
Dante finally put down the sword he was wielding. Even though he had not heard that he was as good as Akan, the level of talent that made him stand out was recognized. But now, he doesn't have any affection for swordsmanship.
He was sure Charlize wanted it, too.
She wouldn't have asked for much. Even if she was blunt, if only they hadn't neglected her.
If only they had provided as much support as the family would have given her like a young noble lady when she grew up.
At least he wouldn't let the servants ignore her, and if he had said one sentence to Charlize, 'You are our family too.'
"So far…"
It wouldn't have happened.
All of this happened because of Ronan himself. From beginning to end, they were thoroughly cruel to Charlize, with no excuse.
He missed Charlize.
Yeah, he misses her. He wants to see his younger sister. He wants to see his family. In fact, it is not a natural attraction of bloodlines.
But he can't see her. He was ashamed to say so. He knows it's not a topic to visit. In honor of Ronan, to Dylan. They resisted and even rebelled, but they survived.
'It must have been all thanks to Charlize that saved my life.'
Because Ronan's disposition was so generous that even those who followed the emperor rarely objected.
He wants to be forgiven, but he knows that day will never come.
He missed Charlize, who is like a thorn in his lungs, all the time he breathed. Hungry for Charlize's affection. He knew he was going to live like that.
"… Bring me a drink."
"Young Master."
Dante's entourage hesitated as if worried, but the young master had no expression on his face.
"I won't order it twice."
Dante looked back.
Ronan's authority within the Grand Duchy remained, but he wouldn't be as prominent as he used to be.
The label of a rebellious family will be inherited from generation to generation. But that didn't matter.
If he didn't calm this empty mind somehow, he felt like he was going crazy.
***
The sky is amazing.
Charlize exclaimed slowly.
"Ah… it's beautiful."
It must have been magic.
The night sky seen from the Imperial Palace was not as bright as the usual darkness, but red.
To be exact, it was pinkish.
The color of the sky she saw for the first time made her feel strange. It didn't feel real, so she felt like she was floating, and it was somewhat exciting.
"Your Majesty."
Charlize kissed Dylan's lips without notice.