Chapter 7: What Do They Think of Me?
Why on earth did this man come looking for me?
Everything was confusing.
“I greet Your Majesty, the Empress.”
He entered the room and greeted me politely.
His partially swept black hair.
His strikingly handsome features.
The perfectly tailored black uniform suited him remarkably well.
The sight of his impeccable figure drew gasps of admiration from the surrounding maids.
As Marie, who had brought the tea, glanced at me, curiosity flickered in her eyes.
It wasn’t just Marie.
Behind Leonard’s broad shoulders, I could feel numerous other gazes eagerly observing him.
Yes, I know exactly what you’re all wondering.
Why would someone as enigmatic as him—the unicorn of this palace—come to see me?
Unfortunately, I don’t know the reason either.
“Well, we’ll leave you two alone now.”
At that moment, Countess Chloe declared her intent to leave the room.
I quickly turned my gaze to the maids.
No! Don’t leave me!
It’s already late, this man is unsettling, and most importantly, I’m much shyer than I appear.
Please, don’t leave. I beg you!
With all the fervor of someone who didn’t want to be left alone, I sent the maids an earnest look.
The maids were as capable as ever.
Sensing the situation, they all nodded in unison.
I knew I could trust them!
I gazed at them with eyes full of hope, but then—
“We’ve stayed too long already. If you need anything, please call for us anytime.”
“!”
Apparently, they misunderstood the meaning of my gaze.
And before leaving, one of them even gave me a thumbs-up.
Wait. What is that gesture supposed to mean…?
Click. The door closed.
…Jesus.
And so, I was left alone with this man.
***
“Have I perhaps been discourteous?”
Leonard spoke first.
He seemed to have noticed my uneasy expression.
“No, I was just surprised by your visit.”
I shook my head.
“Please, take a seat.”
I gestured to the seat across from me, and Leonard sat down.
“What brings you here? Is it about yesterday’s incident?”
I asked directly.
Yesterday had been my first encounter with Leonard.
Judging by the maids’ reactions, it seemed that Helena before my possession hadn’t met him either.
“Yes. It’s about that.”
As I had guessed, he had come because of what happened yesterday.
“First of all, I’d like to apologize to Your Majesty.”
“…Pardon?”
Apologize?
“During the process of subduing the intruder, I regret showing you such an unpleasant scene.”
“Ah.”
The destruction of the fountain and his bloody appearance as he dealt with the intruder.
It had indeed been quite a shocking sight.
“You couldn’t help it. It’s all right.”
I readily accepted his apology.
Though I’d been startled, it hadn’t given me nightmares or anything.
Now that I thought about it, I seemed to have grown a bit bolder since possessing Helena.
Leonard’s unexpected appearance had initially made me tense, but I felt relieved now.
I’d been worried it might be something serious.
For example, that the intruders had some connection to me and that he had come to interrogate me about it.
Then, he spoke again.
“Your Majesty.”
Leonard, who had been watching me intently, opened his mouth once more.
“If you don’t mind me asking, is there a particular reason why you don’t have any guards?”
“Guards?”
His question completely caught me off guard.
“Yes. When I saw you yesterday, I noticed there were no guards accompanying you. I wondered if there was a specific reason why you dismissed them.”
“Hmm, that’s a question for the maids.”
I called Countess Chloe to ask about the matter of guards.
“Her Majesty, the Empress, does not have any guards assigned to her.”
Countess Chloe explained.
“Is there a particular reason for this?”
Leonard asked, and the Countess nodded.
“Her Majesty requested guards from His Majesty the Emperor several times. However, His Majesty responded, ‘The Imperial Palace is safe enough, and having maids as attendants will suffice.’”
So, Jerome said that?
No wonder there weren’t any soldiers or even a single guard in the Empress’ Palace.
It turns out Jerome never allowed it.
“That’s quite peculiar.”
Leonard frowned.
“Accidents can happen anywhere. Even Her Highness, the Imperial Consort, has six guards. But the Empress’ Palace has none to protect it…”
“Well, there are soldiers guarding the entrance to the Empress’ Palace.”
“…”
Countess Chloe’s response left Leonard in silent contemplation.
It seemed like his thoughts were lingering a little too long.
“Sir Leonard?”
“…Ah.”
He let out a short sigh, as if only then realizing that I’d called him.
“I’ve taken up enough of your time. I’ll look further into the matter of the Empress’ Palace security.”
Rising from his seat, he bowed politely.
“Then, I’ll take my leave for now.”
“For now?”
I was startled and reflexively asked back.
“…Did I say something wrong?”
“Oh, no! It’s just that you’re so busy. For such matters, you could simply send a subordinate to deliver the message.”
“…I understand. I’ll do so.”
Was it just my imagination? His expression looked somewhat odd.
Without saying anything further, he left.
After he was gone.
The maids, who had been waiting outside, rushed into the room in a flurry.
“My goodness, Sir Leonard came to visit. How surprising, Your Majesty.”
“What brought him here?”
Their eager, curious eyes bombarded me with questions.
I’d heard that Helena was feared by the maids, but…
Judging by their behavior, it didn’t seem like that was entirely true.
“He asked about the security of the Empress’ Palace.”
“Was that really all? He didn’t come for any other reason?”
“Yes, that’s all it was.”
When I confirmed that it was nothing significant, the maids looked visibly disappointed.
“Were you expecting there to be another reason?”
“Oh, no, Your Majesty.”
Their flustered expressions made it clear they were embarrassed.
I chuckled to myself.
Well, with his striking looks, extraordinary background, and unmatched skills, how could anyone not take an interest in him?
But I sincerely hoped the maids wouldn’t grow too fascinated with him.
Because.
He’s an incredibly dangerous man.
His unexpected visit today had taken me by surprise.
Of course, the maids didn’t know what kind of person he truly was.
Anyway, it seemed I’d managed to get through it without any issues, and for that, I was relieved.
Now, it was time for me to focus on my own tasks.
First, I had to meet with Helena’s allies, whom I hadn’t managed to see last time.
“By the way, who are the people I’m meeting today?”
***
“Commander!”
When Leonard returned to the knights’ barracks, a young knight called out to him.
It was Conrad.
“How did it go?”
Conrad asked teasingly.
Leonard, however, replied indifferently.
“What are you talking about?”
“Oh, come on. I already heard, Commander. You met with the Empress, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Was everything all right?”
“All right?”
“Well, the Empress is famous for her terrible temper.”
Conrad lowered his voice to a whisper.
“Everyone says she’ll throw whatever she gets her hands on if she’s even slightly displeased… She sounds terrifying!”
“Terrible temper, you say…”
Leonard thought of Helena.
Her gaze had been a little sharp, but she didn’t have a particularly fierce demeanor.
Rather, she seemed more like a frightened herbivore, wary of him.
“…I see.”
Leonard’s eyes narrowed.
During his encounter with the Empress, he’d sensed a strange uneasiness.
Helena seemed to avoid him.
Not just out of dislike, but out of genuine fear.
Why would that be?
As the Knight Commander, known for his strict adherence to decorum, Leonard had built a reputation for being a model of propriety.
At least outwardly, he had.
But Helena was different.
She was openly reluctant, even though she seemed to try to hide it.
It doesn’t seem to be just because of the incident in the garden…
Leonard recalled her wide eyes when he said he’d visit again.
I need to investigate this further.
A faint smile crept onto his lips without him realizing it.
***
The maids scattered to summon Helena’s allies.
I wondered when they would arrive, but then—
Knock, knock.
There was a knock at the door.
Speak of the devil.
“Come in.”
At my permission, the door opened.
“…!”
My eyes widened in surprise.
It wasn’t one of Helena’s allies.
What? Why is he here?
The moonlight streaming through the window illuminated him.
Under the soft light, his golden hair shone brilliantly.
“Empress.”
The one who entered the room was none other than Jerome.
Today seemed to be full of unexpected visitors.
“I came to ask you something…”
Jerome trailed off, glancing around.
His gaze landed on something.
He was looking at the teacups I hadn’t yet cleared away.
“…It seems you had a guest.”
Jerome’s eyes flicked toward the two teacups.
“Yes, well. More importantly, what brings you here?”
“…”
Jerome didn’t answer.
“Your Majesty?”
“You met alone with someone this late at night, without any maids present?”
Even as he spoke, his gaze remained fixed on the teacups.
I tilted my head.
“Is that important?”
Once again, he didn’t respond.
What was with this sudden visit and ignoring my questions?
Eventually, I asked again.
“What brings you here?”
“It’s about the Imperial Consort’s dress.”
Flinch.
I instinctively recoiled.
Was he here to confront me about Fay’s dress being torn?
That was entirely possible.
Jerome’s love for Fay was obsessive.
It wouldn’t be surprising if he came to reprimand the person who had harassed his beloved.
It’s fine. I was prepared to face this.
I calmly replied.
“Yes, I did it.”
“Why?”
“Because I was jealous of her dress.”
“No.”
Jerome dismissed my words outright.
“I’m not asking about such trivial reasons.”
He turned his head to look at me.
His piercing red eyes fixed on me coldly.
In a chilly voice, Jerome asked:
“Why did you claim responsibility for something you didn’t do?”
“…Pardon?”
Caught off guard by his unexpected question, I faltered.
He knew I didn’t do it?
That was strange.
As far as I knew, the matter had already been concluded with me being blamed for it.
Jerome himself had told Fay that I was the one responsible.
I feigned ignorance.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about, Your Majesty. I tore the Imperial Consort’s dress.”
“Don’t lie to me.”
Jerome furrowed his brow slightly.
For some reason, he was certain I wasn’t the culprit.
It seemed pointless to keep denying it.
“Yes, I didn’t do it. But I wanted to. Is that a problem?”
“Defending a maid? That’s not like you.”
“Defending my maids is my choice.”
“Why? Did you think I would dismiss your maid?”
“Isn’t that the case?”
My blunt response made his eyes flicker slightly.
Had I been too forthright?
But it seemed like an inevitable outcome to me.
Based on the Jerome I knew from the original story, it was entirely plausible.
There was no way he would let someone who harmed his beloved go unpunished.
“You wouldn’t spare anyone who hurt the Imperial Consort, would you?”
In the original story, Jerome had been merciless toward anyone who troubled Fay.
That’s why I lied, claiming responsibility for the incident.
I couldn’t bear to let a young maid face such harsh consequences.
Helena already had a long list of misdeeds, so adding one more didn’t seem like a big deal.
The only reason I was still alive was because my title as Empress provided some protection.
Eventually, my unchecked actions would lead to my downfall.
Of course, I had no intention of letting that happen.
I thought my explanation would suffice, but it didn’t seem to satisfy Jerome.
His frown deepened even further.
“You…”
In a voice that seemed to suppress something, he asked:
“What exactly do you think of me?”
—
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