EOSL CH 23

Chapter 23

His Majesty was still staring at the book, and I had my will taken away… It was an atmosphere where speaking felt difficult.

I thought hard. How exactly was I supposed to ask for forgiveness here? No matter how much I thought about it, the only thing that came to mind was something like, “Please execute me.” I seek forgiveness through death.”

I suddenly spoke up.

“The more I think about it, the more it feels like I really should die. This really isn’t a burial gown?”

“It’s not a burial gown.”

“…It is, isn’t it? It’s white.”

He lifted his gaze from the book and looked straight at me. His teeth were clenched tightly, and something unreadable flickered in his violet eyes.

“…I said it’s not.”

“…Yes, sir.”

I answered obediently, fists resting on my knees. He suddenly clenched his jaw like that. It seemed like something wasn’t going his way, and he was irritated.

What do I do in moments like this?

Just stay quiet and wait?

Should I at least clean my neck in preparation?

Then he spoke.

“Aira.”

“Yes.”

“You know what you did today, don’t you?”

He began with something obvious. I blinked lightly.

“I know.”

“Good.”

He relaxed his jaw and let out a sigh.

“I’m going to tell you a story. Listen carefully. Depending on your reaction, I will decide how to deal with your behavior.”

“A story?”

That wasn’t a bad proposal.

“Alright.”

I nodded eagerly. Showing that I was willing to cooperate felt very important.

He watched me for a moment. He slowly inhaled and exhaled, even lowering his eyelids slightly, as if calming himself.

What kind of story was he about to tell?

“It’s a romance.”

“I see.”

“Good. May I begin?”

“Yes. Of course.”

He looked at my face, then picked up two dolls from the shelf. The Thanksgiving limited edition and the Christmas limited edition.

The Thanksgiving doll had short hair and wore a shirt and pants, holding a bundle of eggs. Holding it up, he said,

“Let’s say there’s a man. And this is the woman.”

“Actually, all of Francis’s dolls are—”

“Just listen.”

“Yes.”

I shut my mouth again.

He waited until I quieted down and then began moving the dolls with both hands.

“The man truly liked the woman. He wanted to treasure her and always keep her by his side. Fortunately, it seemed the woman liked him as well. As if she had been imprinted with his name, she followed him.”

Thanksgiving looked down at Christmas. Christmas clasped her hands and gazed up at Thanksgiving.

Your Majesty… You must have played with dolls when you were younger. He moved them far too skillfully.

“It would have been nice if they could be together, but the man had too many enemies since childhood. His surroundings were filled with people who could easily wear the skin of beasts just to gain a fragment of power. He soon realized that he himself was not safe. No one could truly protect him. So he decided that until he was secure, he must not reveal the person he treasured to anyone. Not even to those he believed were allies.”

His voice was low, slow, and gentle. Elegant and refined in pronunciation.

“The man used those beast-like humans who pretended to be civilized. With the secret help of allies, he tried to eliminate them. But something unexpected happened. The woman—”

He moved Christmas dramatically. She raised both hands and stood up bravely.

“She approached the man boldly and courageously. Though much younger, she was strong and rarely intimidated. The man was happy she came to him—but he couldn’t accept her. If he did, the beasts would tear her apart first.”

“…”

The girl is pitiful.

Resting my chin in my hands, I became absorbed in his doll play.

There was barely any dialogue, yet it was easy to immerse myself. He clearly had a talent for this.

“Fortunately, the woman seemed loved by many. The man thought that as long as he alone ignored her, she would still be protected by others.”

“So he ignored her?”

“So he did. But because he couldn’t stop thinking about her, he tried to do things for her in secret. He assigned someone to guard her from behind the scenes. He bought dolls and books she liked. Sent gifts she would enjoy.”

“…”

“But the woman slowly began to grow tired. She told the man she had an important event and asked him—just this once—to come for her. The man wanted to. He wanted to finish everything in time for it. But it didn’t go as planned. Things became tangled. He missed her event… and his own plans were delayed by several years.”

“…”

“Years passed. After that, the woman seemed to give up on him. But the man never once gave up on her. In truth, he had longed for her for a very long time.”

My heart throbbed painfully.

Maybe because the woman’s situation felt similar to mine.

The image of the Christmas doll asking the man to come to her important event overlapped with my own memory—gathering all my courage to ask him to attend my debutante ball as my partner.

Strange.

At some point, I felt his gaze fixed only on my face.

His violet eyes shone beautifully as he looked at me. When he pronounced the word “longed,” I almost slipped into a sweet illusion.

An illusion that the man and woman in the story were us.

But—

Pull yourself together.

Don’t get too immersed.

I had already overcome my one-sided love. And I still had to stand before the very person I once loved. I didn’t want him to realize I was moved by this.

If he did, he might turn cold toward me again.

Don’t forget, Aira. The reason His Majesty is being gentle and smiling kindly at you is because you said you would give up on him. Stay in your place.

While I pressed my lips into a straight line, lost in thought—

“End.”

He said it suddenly.

Ah. I hadn’t even heard the final part properly.

I quickly clapped politely two or three times, pretending I had been listening carefully the whole time.

For a moment, his expression seemed to dim.

“What did you think of the story, Aira?”

What should I say? That it felt like my own story and I nearly cried? No. That’s not dignified enough.

What would Mother or Sister Bianca say when analyzing art?

“It doesn’t seem commercial. It feels like it borrows the structure of a classical romance.”

“…What?”

Was that wrong?

A crease formed between his brows again.

Had I said something strange?

He waved his hand impatiently.

“No, no. That’s not what I mean, Aira. Just tell me honestly how you feel. As a story. You seem like someone who would understand this kind of story well. I’m curious how you felt.”

How did I feel? Why would I understand it well?

I frowned—then suddenly glanced at the romance novel he had glared at earlier.

My eyes widened.

Ah.

Oh, so that’s it!

He knew I liked romance novels and wanted advice related to that genre!

“That’s fine… I’ll be honest.”

I moistened my lips and spoke carefully.

“Good. Go on.”

He urged me, brushing his golden hair back slowly.

A pleasant scent drifted from him. It was his original fragrance. Like before, I unconsciously held my breath and quickly organized my thoughts.

“Be honest. Say something only you can say.”

His voice was lower than before. His violet eyes deepened, fully focused on me.

Alright. I’ll treat this like reviewing a genre novel.

Finally, I spoke.

“If you’re asking my opinion… I think the man’s side is a bit ambiguous.”

“…What?”

The Emperor, who had been gazing at me with his chin resting on his fingers, suddenly faltered.