Chapter 15

Helio only let Liliana go after watching her eat the entire stew down to the last bite. Her expression at the time was priceless.

‘It’s delicious, but why am I the one eating this?’

The thought was written plainly on her face, making it hard for Helio to suppress his laughter.

While working in his office, Helio recalled her expression and chuckled to himself. His aide, Ternz, who was organizing papers nearby, looked at him in bewilderment.

“What are you looking at?” Helio’s face turned stern as he spoke sharply. Ternz awkwardly lowered his head.

“You seem to be in a good mood, Your Majesty.“

“Well, it’s not so much being in a good mood as…“ Helio quickly signed one document and passed it aside. The next one, he barely glanced at before tossing it to the floor.

“I think I understand why people keep pets.”

“Excuse me?“ Ternz hesitated, stopping mid-reach for the discarded document. Despite Helio’s occasional playful demeanor, he disliked nuisances.

While other royals often kept exotic pets, Helio had shown no interest in such things. The only exception was horses, but even that was different from keeping them as cherished companions.

The only one Helio had recently treated with such fondness was Liliana, the Empress Consort.

“The Emerald Palace feels too far away. Perhaps relocating her wouldn’t be a bad idea.“

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Ternz bowed his head, thinking, ‘As expected.‘

“Shall we move her to Aris Palace, closer to the Empress’s residence? It could help her build connections with the future Empress.”

Helio paused, stopping his work. Ternz tensed, wondering if he had misspoken. Helio placed his pen back in its holder and rested his chin on his hand.

“That’s right. There was Lady Gabriel.”

He frowned, looking annoyed, and then seemed to think deeply momentarily.

“No. Leave her in the Emerald Palace. That small woman would just get lost in a larger palace.“

“…Yes, Your Majesty.”

Ternz felt a mix of wonder and bewilderment at Helio’s surprisingly endearing view of Liliana.

From Ternz’s perspective, she was just a tiny woman who fearlessly stood her ground, quickly became sullen, and stubbornly refused to listen. How she had captured Helio’s heart was a mystery.

‘It might not be love, but…’

After all, the royal palace wasn’t a place where everlasting love could be expected. Perhaps treating the Empress Consort as a cherished pet in a cage, something to be enjoyed and watched over time, was better for her.

Ternz finished his thoughts and had just picked up and stacked the fallen papers when there was a knock at the door. Helio nodded slightly, and Ternz called out for the person to enter.

It was the chamberlain, looking unusually tense, much like when the Empress Dowager’s food had arrived at the Emperor’s palace.

No, his face was even paler.

So Ternz could guess that he had brought quite a serious matter.

The chamberlain did not disappoint Ternz’s expectations.

“Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has arrived.”

It was natural for silence to fall over the office. Helio tore the document he was reading lengthwise, and the only sound in the oppressive silence was the tearing of the paper.

“Should I tell her to leave?”

Ternz gulped and asked cautiously. Helio nodded, and just as the chamberlain was about to leave to carry out the order,

“No. Tell her to come in. I need to know what has stirred this commotion.“

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The chamberlain hurriedly went to bring the Empress Dowager, who was waiting outside.

Even though the Empress Dowager was expected, Helio did not move to tidy up the documents. He continued to read, discard, and tear up papers he deemed useless without hesitation.

This behavior barely ceased when the Empress Dowager arrived at the office. Ternz left to give them privacy, but the chamberlain had to stay to serve tea.

The chamberlain escorted the Empress Dowager to a table in the office. She sat down, but Helio remained standing, slightly askew, without any sign of respect.

“What are you doing?“

“I haven’t done anything yet, Your Majesty.“

“Didn’t you come to see me?”

Helio crossed his arms and looked at his mother with cold eyes.

“Didn’t you decide to be indifferent to me all your life?”

The Empress Dowager bitterly smiled at those words and lifted her teacup.

“The aroma is pleasant.“

“Mother.”

“I’m sorry.”

Helio was about to retort sharply but stopped abruptly at her words. His blue eyes widened slightly and then narrowed, becoming even colder.

“What are you talking about?“

“I’m sorry, Your Majesty. I mean it sincerely.“

“Ha!”

Helio laughed mockingly. Even so, the Empress Dowager did not flinch.

Helio strode over with long strides and sat across from the Empress Dowager. He leaned forward and glared at her.

“No matter what you say, you can’t return home.”

It was an arrogant tone as if expecting the Empress Dowager to back down. But she did not.

Still holding the teacup, yet unable to take a sip, she spoke elegantly.

“I’m not here to make a deal. I’m here to apologize. I have wronged you greatly, Your Majesty. And trying to cover it up to make amends now is also a sin.”

Helio slowly withdrew his gaze from the Empress Dowager and leaned back in his chair. With a languid expression, he asked,

“Who put you up to this?”

The Empress Dowager smiled at that question.

“Is it that obvious?“

“I thought you’d spend your life sending insipid food, but now you’re playing strange games. Someone must have put you up to it.“

“Who do you think it is?”

Helio replied as if it were obvious.

“Empress Consort Liliana.”

The Empress Dowager nodded.

“Empress Consort Liliana came to see me today.”

The Empress Dowager recalled the events of the day.

She had been pondering what food to prepare and send tomorrow. Then the head maid came in, saying that Liliana had come to visit.

She had hurriedly ordered her to be brought in and soon met Liliana, neatly dressed.

As soon as Liliana entered the reception room, she knelt before the Empress Dowager.

“I came to apologize to Your Majesty the Empress Dowager.”

Hearing those words, the Empress Dowager understood why Liliana had come.

She had sent food to the Emerald Palace, where the Emperor was headed, but this time, the plates hadn’t been returned empty. Upon inquiring, she was told that the Empress, not the Emperor, had eaten it.

The Empress Dowager signaled to the maid, who then helped Liliana stand.

“You wouldn’t have eaten it on purpose. His Majesty must have given it to you.“

“Even so, I thought it right to apologize since it wasn’t meant for me.“

“I see… Was it delicious?”

At that short question, Liliana looked up in surprise. The Empress Dowager realized that her words, spoken without much thought, might have seemed quite chilling to Liliana and smiled.

“I ask without any ulterior motive. His Majesty never eats it, so I can’t tell if it’s good.”

At those words, Liliana looked briefly sympathetic before quickly composing herself and nodding.

“Yes, it was very delicious. It was full of sincerity.”

Liliana was holding her hands tightly at her waist. Despite her calm, pale face, this action showed she was nervous.

Liliana licked her lower lip slightly before speaking.

“If I may ask, why do you wish to improve your relationship with His Majesty?“

The Empress Dowager sighed, leaning on the armrest.

“Because of you.“

“Pardon…?“

“Yes. Seeing His Majesty joke with you made me realize something. I suddenly realized that I didn’t know my own son. And I realized something else. Since I can’t go back home anyway, there’s no reason for me to hate him…”

Liliana bowed her head involuntarily. The Empress Dowager did not seem to resent Helio for confining her here. Instead, she seemed to accept it as a rightful consequence.

But what would change if she expressed this now? The Emperor’s heart had already been firmly closed off.

Unless the child from the original story was born, nothing would naturally soften the hearts of these two.

Yet, leaving this lonely woman alone in this resplendently desolate palace didn’t sit well with her.

Liliana closed her eyes tightly, then opened them and spoke.

“It is too late for the two of you to become close naturally.”

The Empress Dowager’s expression sank at Liliana’s words. Fortunately, she did not seem angry at Liliana, but that sad expression was not easy to look at either.

Liliana took a step closer to the Empress Dowager and spoke.

“But apologizing… might still be possible.”

At those words, the Empress Dowager looked up at Liliana. It struck her again how much Liliana resembled Helio.

Perhaps her concern for the Empress Dowager was an extension of her concern for Helio.

Liliana knew that she might be getting involved in matters that weren’t her business, but she couldn’t turn back now.

“Of course, whether His Majesty accepts it is up to him. But you still need to do it. Not to ease your mind. Because it needs to be done. Because Her Majesty the Empress Dowager believes she should apologize for the past.”