Chapter 5
5. The Charm to Ward Off Nightmares
During His Majesty Aleksanteri’s birthday celebration, it was officially announced that I would become Empress.
Thanks to prior arrangements behind the scenes, there were no open objections from the nobility, and the people seemed to welcome the news as well.
Worried about how things might turn out, I felt an immense sense of relief.
The festivities lasted late into the night, and by the time I returned to the Imperial Palace, I was completely exhausted. As His Majesty escorted me to my chambers, I stumbled slightly, and he caught me in his strong, warm arms. While the embrace reassured me, I couldn’t help but notice that my feet ached inside my shoes, and my calves felt tight.
“Good night, Your Majesty Aleksanteri.”
“Good night, Reisie.”
He brushed back my bangs and pressed a gentle kiss to my forehead. Lowering my lashes, I accepted it quietly before entering my room.
Utterly worn out, I kicked off my shoes and stepped into the bathroom, where my maid came to assist me with my bath.
When she noticed the swelling in my feet, she carefully massaged them and let me soak in the warm tub until my muscles relaxed.
Afterward, I changed into my nightclothes, and she helped dry my hair.
Among the few maids who served me in the Imperial Palace, the one who tended to me the most was Nora — a young woman slightly older than I was.
Nora was the daughter of a baron. As she was not an heir and lacked the funds for a political marriage, she had come to work in the palace.
Her touch was gentle as she dried my hair. Nora had always been kind to me.
All the palace servants treated me with kindness and respect — likely under His Majesty’s instruction. Every one of them was a woman, no doubt by His Majesty’s deliberate choice.
“I’ll apply some perfumed oil to your hair now, Your Highness.”
“Please do.”
Thanks to the daily use of the finest oils, my hair gleamed with a deep luster. Even back at the House of Count Dian, I had taken care of it, but the difference that true luxury made was undeniable.
As the soothing motion of the comb lulled me into drowsiness, Nora spoke softly.
“All done, Your Highness. Please rest well.”
“Thank you, Nora. Good night.”
I thanked her and, half-swaying, made my way to the bed — only to collapse onto it and drift into sleep almost instantly.
In my dream, I had become Cecil.
As Cecil, I was watching over little Garne while he took his bath. He was only six years old — still too young to wash or dry himself properly — so he needed help.
I gently washed his hair as he sat in the warm bathwater.
When I first found him, his hair and body had been so dirty they looked gray. But once clean, his hair shone with a silvery glow, and his skin was as pale and delicate as porcelain.
After his bath, I dried his hair and body, dressed him in his pajamas, and then bathed myself quickly.
When I came out, Garne was already lying on the bed, half-asleep.
“Good night, Garne.”
“Good night, big sister.”
I lifted his soft fringe and pressed my lips to his forehead.
It was a charm — one my mother used to perform for me when I was little.
“No scary dreams, right?”
“You’ll be fine now.”
When I first began sleeping alone, I would sometimes run to my parents’ room crying about nightmares. My mother would always kiss my forehead and say,
“Good night, Cecil. Now you won’t have any bad dreams.”
And now, I was doing the same for Garne.
He often suffered from terrible nightmares in his sleep. I knew he must have endured horrible things before he came to live here.
When I first found him, he had been wearing only his undergarments — his body covered in wounds, with a deep stab mark in his shoulder. Even after healing, it left a scar.
One night, Garne woke up sobbing and clung to me. As I rubbed his trembling back to calm him, he began to murmur between hiccups.
“They all died… Big sister, uncle, aunt… everyone…”
“You had a bad dream, didn’t you?”
“They all died trying to protect me… Big sister, don’t die too…”
From his pomegranate-colored eyes fell heavy, shining tears. I gently wiped the sweat from his face and lifted his bangs again to kiss his forehead.
“It’s all right. You won’t have any more bad dreams.”
“Big sister…”
“Good night, Garne.”
As I held him close, I felt the tension slowly leave his small body.
Soon, Garne fell back into a peaceful sleep, his breathing calm and steady.
When I awoke, I felt as if I were still half-Cecil — her emotions and mine overlapping.
Cecil had promised that everything would be fine, yet she died protecting Garne… right before his eyes.
How much pain and grief must he have endured?
Just thinking about it made my heart ache.
During breakfast, I asked His Majesty a question that had been on my mind.
“Lord Alec, the kiss you gave me on the forehead before bed… Was that the same charm Cecil used to do?”
“You remember it?”
“I saw it in a dream. Cecil kissed Garne’s forehead so he wouldn’t have bad dreams.”
“I wanted to do the same — to keep you from having nightmares, Reisie.”
His Majesty smiled gently.
But I wondered if the one who truly needed that charm was him.
After witnessing Cecil’s death before his very eyes, he must have suffered through countless nightmares. Even before that, he had dreams of the day his guards were killed while he escaped. To have then lost the beloved Cecil — the pain must have carved deep scars into his heart.
“Then from now on, I’ll perform the charm for you, Lord Alec.”
“Really? That makes me happy.”
“After Cecil’s death, you must have had terrible dreams, didn’t you?”
At my question, His Majesty’s gaze dropped.
“I saw it happen again and again — Cecil dying before me. No matter how much I grew, in those dreams I was always that helpless six-year-old boy, unable to save her.”
“Lord Alec…”
“But now, I can protect you, Reisie. I have the power, the position — everything I need to keep you safe. I want you to let me protect you.”
“And I will do my best to protect you as well, Lord Alec.”
Even if I couldn’t protect him physically, I could at least support him emotionally.
“I’ll stay by your side so that you never suffer from bad dreams again.”
“Thank you, Reisie. Ever since I met you, the nightmares have almost disappeared. Since you began living with me, I haven’t had any at all.”
“Then I’ll stay by your side always, so they never return. I will never die before you do, Lord Alec. When your time comes, I’ll see you off — and only after that will I follow you. Please, go on ahead and wait for me.”
After all, I was ten years younger than him, and women tend to live longer than men.
If life proceeded as it should, His Majesty would pass first, and I would follow later. Otherwise, I would end up leaving him behind — twice.
“You’ve promised me that before.”
“And I’ll say it again and again. I swear I’ll stay by your side all my life — until the very end, when I see you off.”
At that moment, I swore once more:
I must never die like Cecil did.
That thought filled my heart with unshakable resolve.
