#4. ‘Aidan’ is Dead

Aidan stared directly at the Empress’s face. The Empress was more composed than expected. There was not the slightest change in her calm expression. Rather, that seemed more unnatural. Even though others in the banquet hall were all stirring and agitated, she alone remained calm, which made her more suspicious. As if there was a reason she couldn’t be shaken.

What is he trying to do? Karina also couldn’t guess Aidan’s intentions. There was no evidence yet, and if he carelessly slandered the Empress in front of all these people, there would be a fierce backlash.

“Are you suspecting me?”

The Empress asked first, seemingly uncomfortable with the prolonged silence. Aidan smiled gently and shook his head.

“Of course not.”

Aidan answered without a moment’s hesitation and turned to look around at the nobles.

“However, someone here…”

His voice lowered, unlike when he was addressing the Empress. He was smiling faintly, but his eyes were cold. The nobles, though innocent, couldn’t help but flinch when their eyes met his. And then they were surprised at themselves. They were agitated by the fact that they had flinched when making eye contact with Aidan, not Lloyd.

“May or may not be.”

Aidan smirked and turned back to the Empress. The Empress’s eyebrows furrowed, wondering if he was playing games.

“But in any case, isn’t it true that someone wished for my death? So I want to respond to that wish.”

Even the Emperor narrowed his eyes and stared at Aidan, wondering what he meant.

“Bring in what we prepared.”

At Aidan’s command, Kai, who had been waiting on the side, nodded. Shortly after, several servants entered carrying long objects decorated with white chrysanthemums and placed them around the banquet hall.

“What is that?”

The Empress asked, now frowning to the point where she could no longer hide it. Her tone suggested, ‘why bring in uninvited guests to a banquet already decorated with all sorts of splendid flowers?’

“Chrysanthemums.”

Aidan answered calmly.

“I’m not asking because I don’t know that! I’m asking why you suddenly brought chrysanthemums everywhere.”

The Empress’s tone was becoming increasingly sharp. The more it did, the deeper Aidan’s smile became.

Karina was equally puzzled. He had asked her to get chrysanthemums, but she didn’t know he would bring them into the banquet so openly like this.

“Didn’t I tell you? That I wanted to meet the expectations of those who wished for my death. In a country I know of, they use these flowers at funerals.”

“Are you saying you’re going to turn this banquet into a funeral? Are you going to die in front of everyone?”

The Emperor frowned at the Empress’s words. Realizing her mistake, the Empress bit her lower lip hard. However, her hand holding the hem of her dress was trembling. Aidan’s ridiculous actions were clearly getting under her skin.

“Aidan Griffith is already dead. These flowers and my attire today are a tribute to him.”

Aidan answered in a calm and composed voice, regardless of the Emperor and Empress’s reactions. Suddenly, a silence fell over the banquet hall as if cold water had been poured. Everyone gathered there had to doubt their own ears, wondering if they had heard correctly.

Aidan is dead? What nonsense is this? He’s standing right there in front of us, perfectly fine.

As if voicing everyone’s thoughts, the Empress burst into a hollow laugh.

“Aidan, that’s enough joking.”

“It’s not a joke, I’m serious.”

Aidan didn’t hesitate even at the Empress’s cold rebuke.

“Aidan died in that attack that day.”

He answered while staring boldly at the Empress, and no one dared to step forward and say what nonsense this was. It didn’t look like a joke at all. That’s why it was more bewildering.

Karina swallowed the sigh rising in her throat. Unfortunately, it was all true, but the problem was that to others, it would sound like the ravings of a madman. She wondered why he was doing this when he must know that.

The Emperor also looked at Aidan with a hardened face, then let out a long sigh as if in disdain and turned his head away.

“And this is a banquet to celebrate the marriage of the reborn Aidan. I wanted to show you the extent of my determination.”

At Aidan’s continued words, everyone tilted their heads in confusion.

“I’ve decided to become a different person on the occasion of my marriage to Karina.”

Aidan smiled gently, looking at Karina. Only then did sighs of understanding flow from all around.

“Karina is like a gift from heaven to me. Meeting her has made me reflect on many things.”

Karina was dumbfounded by the lies that continued so smoothly without even wetting his lips, but to the other nobles, Aidan seemed to be sincerely repenting and trying to change. Moreover, the look in Aidan’s eyes as he gazed at her was surprisingly affectionate. Even Karina was almost fooled. This person, wasn’t he perhaps a professional actor somewhere? She had such doubts because Aidan was looking at her with loving eyes as if it had always been that way.

“I promised that from now on, I would not consider any woman other than Karina, and to keep that promise, I briefly left the palace that day.”

Aidan naturally mentioned his secret meeting with Kate Spencer as well.

“There was a moment of wandering, but I wanted to convey that I would no longer continue private meetings, and I wanted to say it in person to show minimal courtesy to the other party, but it seems there was a big misunderstanding.”

He even made excuses for the wedding night too shamelessly and calmly. Whether to believe it or not was each person’s problem, but in any case, Aidan had officially announced in front of everyone that his relationship with Kate Spencer was over, and that he would do his best only for Karina from now on.

When a prince, especially Aidan who had never appealed his personal opinions before, directly said that this was actually the case, no one was going to challenge him saying it was ridiculous.

“I’m willing to swear on my name.”

Aidan, smiling handsomely, pulled Karina’s hand and kissed the back of it. Then he looked back at Karina and smiled gently.

It was the perfect image of a man in love. Aidan was acting as if he didn’t know what to do because Karina was so pretty.

Wow, this is creepy.

That was Karina’s honest feeling after experiencing Aidan sufficiently for the past few days. Still, it wasn’t bad to be perceived that their relationship was good. The Empress and Lloyd would be dying of displeasure, but if the princely couple’s relationship was seen as strong, the evaluation of Aidan would change in an instant.

“As expected of the young lady of the Hewitt family.”

“She’s the Princess Consort who has been praised as the next Empress candidate since she was young.”

“It’s amazing that she changed Prince Aidan like this at once.”

As expected, whispers could be heard from all around. It was an expression of praise for Karina and newfound fondness for the changed Aidan.

If this was what Aidan was aiming for, his plan had succeeded perfectly. He had even momentarily fooled Karina.

“I understand your intention, but it’s excessive.”

The Emperor stepped forward, trying to control the murmuring.

“This is a banquet that the Empress prepared with good intentions to celebrate your marriage.”

At the point that it was too much to mention a funeral at such an occasion, Aidan smiled faintly and bowed his head. He thought that both he, who had brought flowers used at funerals to a banquet prepared by the Empress, and the Empress, who had made excuses to call her injured adopted son to a celebration or whatever, were equally vicious, but he felt this was enough and showed his intention to follow the Emperor’s will.

“As this is a gathering to celebrate Prince Aidan and the new Princess Consort Karina, I hope everyone will enjoy it with a joyful heart.”

At the Emperor’s gesture, the music that had momentarily stopped began to play again. The tumultuous atmosphere settled, and Aidan also sat down with Karina in the seats prepared next to the Emperor.

As she sat down, Karina glanced at the Empress to check. Her hand placed on the armrest of the chair was clenched into a fist, seemingly displeased. Although she was trying to put on a smiling face because the Emperor was beside her and the nobles were watching, the corners of her lips trembled occasionally, suggesting that she had been quite emotionally shaken.

The Empress upset because of Aidan, what a precious sight.

Somehow feeling triumphant, a smile escaped her. It was a scene she couldn’t have even dreamed of in her previous life. It was Karina who had stood up to the Empress, while Aidan always hid behind her. In her memories, there was only the image of the Empress looking down on Aidan with a contemptuous gaze and attitude, and Aidan fumbling, unable to even make proper eye contact with her. Perhaps that’s why Aidan’s actions, which had embarrassed the Empress in front of everyone, felt refreshing.

As they settled into their seats, the nobles approached one by one, greeting the Emperor and Empress before offering words of congratulations to Aidan and Karina.

“I wish for nothing but happiness in your future together.”

“Thank you, Count Simon.”

“Seeing you today, you two look so good together. I’m already looking forward to the future imperial descendants.”

“I think it would be nice if a pretty princess who takes after Karina is born, Baron Jason.”

Aidan accurately called out the name and title of each person who greeted them. Not only that, but he also responded amiably to their greetings. Although she knew he had properly memorized all the portraits, she had worried unnecessarily about how it would be when he actually faced them in person.