The reason being, the late former Duke Seyfried and the Emperor had been close friends.

“If I summon my godson to the palace, who would think it strange?”

“Given the circumstances, I meant.”

The late Duke had even asked him to be his son’s godfather during his lifetime.

“Have a seat.”

The Emperor gestured to the seat in front of him. Once Astaire sat down, the chamberlain entered the room and served tea and refreshments.

However, Astaire didn’t touch any of it. He simply sat upright with his fists resting on his thighs.

The Emperor drank his tea comfortably.

Sunlight streamed through the wide glass window on one wall, making Astaire’s bright blond hair shine like gold.

Watching him, the Emperor murmured.

“The older you get, the more you resemble your father.”

A brief longing for his old friend flickered through the Emperor’s eyes.

“So, have you come to give me an answer to my proposal?”

“Yes. That’s correct.”

“May I hope for a positive answer?”

“Yes.”

Astaire straightened his back even more and gazed into the Emperor’s purple-tinged eyes.

The same eye color that both Phaios and Carlos possessed.

The color of the Emperor’s eyes.

“House Seyfried accepts Your Majesty’s proposal and will spare no effort in supporting the Second Prince to become the next Emperor.”

The Emperor laughed heartily, seemingly satisfied.

“Good.”

Clack. The sound of him setting down his teacup grated on Astaire particularly.

Now it was Astaire’s turn to discuss what he wanted.

Just before his relationship with Carlos completely fell apart, Astaire had received a proposal from the Emperor asking if he could help make his second son Emperor.

At first, he politely declined.

The official reason was that House Seyfried never betrayed its allies.

But his real reason was different.

He didn’t like the way Phaios constantly pursued his wife.

Not as a Duke, but personally, he didn’t want to help such a scoundrel.

He strongly wanted to do something about those eyes staring at another man’s wife.

“Please reconsider.”

The Emperor left only one sentence in response to Astaire’s refusal. And he never brought it up again.

But now the situation had changed.

Though the Emperor, who cherished his godson, had stopped Carlos’s attempts to bring down Duke Seyfried, there was nothing he could do about this case.

Carlos would attack House Seyfried at every opportunity going forward.

He needed to prepare in advance.

“If House Seyfried moves, the other Blue Bloods will naturally throw their support behind Phaios too.”

When the Emperor seemed extremely pleased, Astaire suddenly grew curious.

Why was the Emperor so blatantly protecting the Second Prince? Imperial custom dictated that fathers shouldn’t interfere in the struggle between brothers over the throne. But this Emperor was different.

“I ask not as Duke Seyfried, but as Your Majesty’s godson.”

“Yes. What are you curious about?”

The Emperor smiled with utmost benevolence.

“Why does Your Majesty support the Second Prince rather than the First Prince as the next Emperor?”

He’d been curious about this for a while.

“Yes, it’s worth being curious about.”

The Emperor stroked his chin gently and wore a distant expression for a moment.

“My sons take after their mothers more than me.”

He meant their temperaments, not their looks.

“Especially Carlos. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say his maternal grandfather has been reincarnated.”

Astaire finally understood.

Why the Emperor kept a strange distance from Carlos. Why he maintained such an oddly formal relationship with his firstborn son.

“You know I didn’t get along with Carlos’s maternal grandfather.”

“…I’ve only heard bits and pieces.”

“An Emperor can’t be purely sharp and cold. I realized this only after sitting on this throne and much time passing. You must also know how to embrace people.”

The Emperor reached out to receive the bright yellow sunlight streaming through the glass window.

“Warmth, mercy. I believe these are also qualities of an Emperor.”

Astaire withheld his own judgment on the Emperor’s opinion. It wasn’t his place to comment.

“Carlos severely lacks in that regard. On the other hand, my second son Phaios has a heart that loves humanity. He knows how to love people, show compassion, and care for them. Coldness is something that naturally sharpens over time with refinement.”

The Emperor wanted a good person who could embrace the people of the Avont Empire as the next Emperor.

Somehow, Astaire thought the current Emperor, who could see that far, was truly a wise ruler.

“Of course, that’s the official reason.”

“…Is there another reason?”

Astaire asked back.

Even he was a bit surprised this time.

“I suppose you could call it a personal reason. Isn’t it a man’s and father’s heart to want the child born from the woman he loves to succeed him?”

Astaire remained silent.

The fact that the Emperor truly loved Phaios’s birth mother, Stella, was a truth known only to those who knew.

Publicly, Stella was known simply as the Emperor’s mistress, but the Emperor had originally wanted to make her his Empress. However, the Emperor at the beginning of his reign lacked the power to formally marry the woman he loved.

He took Carlos’s mother as Empress and brought the woman he truly loved in only as the Emperor’s shadow.

The precarious peace achieved this way shattered one day.

“After Carlos’s maternal grandfather poisoned Stella, I severed all affection for that boy, even though he’s my son.”

It made sense why Carlos had grown up so twisted.

But Astaire didn’t dwell on it. It wasn’t his business anyway, just the past. There was no reason to be curious or question it.

“What the Duke wants is for me to protect the Duchess?”

“…Yes, that’s correct.”

“As expected, my eyes weren’t wrong. Heh heh.”

Astaire’s eyes widened slightly at the Emperor’s words.

“Whenever I see the Duke and Duchess, I’m reminded of Stella and myself from the past.”

“…”

“That’s why I envy you, Duke. Because you have the power to protect the woman you love.”

“Did you say love?”

“Then what else would it be?”

Astaire showed a momentarily shocked expression.

The head butler had said something similar before.

To stop denying his love for Daphne.

To stop hurting her.

“Actually, I couldn’t imagine you loving anyone. So when you married the Duchess, I secretly thought you two had married through some kind of transaction.”

The Emperor’s insight was accurate. Astaire listened to his words calmly without showing surprise.

“But I was wrong. Seeing you again today, I realized I wasn’t right.”

“…”

“You love your wife, Duke. Truly. That’s why I want to help. I want to help the Duke and Duchess’s love last long. In return, support my true son, Phaios.”

“Won’t the trial resume anyway after my wife gives birth?”

Astaire calmly lied, bringing up the childbirth of Daphne who wasn’t even pregnant.

Then the Emperor looked clearly into this young man’s eyes.

Like he was examining Astaire’s inner thoughts.

An ordinary person would have felt uncomfortable and immediately lowered their head, but Astaire didn’t avoid his gaze.

The man silently endured the Avont Empire Emperor’s test.

And he passed the test confidently.

“That’s right.”

The Emperor rose from his seat. Daring to look up at the blazing sun, he murmured quietly.

“But won’t it work out somehow?”

It was an irresponsible statement, but Astaire nodded quietly.

This was enough.

The Emperor would help him and Daphne.

With that, today’s objective was achieved.

“Ah, right.”

The Emperor spoke while watching Astaire rise and bow. His tone suggested he just remembered something.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“I happen to know a gynecologist who would take good care of the Duchess. I thought I’d introduce her.”

“That would be an honor.”

“She’s the doctor who delivered Phaios. She’s discreet.”

Astaire’s hand setting down his teacup paused for a moment.

“And I’ll also send along some tea leaves that are good for women.”

“Thank you.”

After bowing respectfully to the Emperor again, Astaire left the reception room.

Just as he was about to board his carriage, a palace attendant came running with something.

“These are the tea leaves His Majesty prepared for you.”

When he opened it slightly, the box was filled with maca root.

Maca root was an herb that helped women conceive. It was known as a remedy that didn’t particularly help women who were already pregnant.

Astaire quietly pulled his lips into a smile.

As expected, there was no fooling the Empire’s Emperor.

It was late at night when Astaire arrived at the ducal estate. He’d had other business after visiting the palace.

The man went straight up to the couple’s bedroom where Daphne would be.

After the trial, the first thing he did was eliminate Daphne’s separate bedroom. The room’s owner had nothing particular to say about it. Probably because she had bad memories of being confined there.

“You’re back.”

Daphne greeted Astaire half-asleep, opening her eyes as she lay in bed.

Instead of answering, the man woke her with a kiss.

Soon Daphne’s eyes widened and she began hitting his back with her small fists.

The more she did, the more tightly the man held her.

After that, everything flowed naturally.

Daphne silently accepted Astaire.

Their clothes came off naturally. From head to toe, Astaire moved his tongue and both hands simultaneously, caressing Daphne devotedly.

“Mmm, nnh…”

Stop now, please stop.

She wanted to tell him to stop at the overwhelming excitement. Yet Astaire didn’t stop.

Briefly removing his glistening lips, he spoke in a husky voice.

“It’ll hurt if I don’t loosen you up enough.”

Since when did this man start caring about her pain? Daphne couldn’t understand.

“No, I’m fine now… Ah!”

Daphne suddenly drew her legs together. Holding her white thighs so it wouldn’t hurt, Astaire had his face buried between her legs.

Transparent liquid dripped down the man’s high, sharp nose bridge. Daphne knew exactly where it came from.

She covered her mouth while lying there. Blocking her vision made her more sensitive to the sensations rising from below.

“Ah, aah…”

Astaire tormented Daphne for a long while. Only when she thought she couldn’t endure anymore did he come up.

Astaire moved his enraged center without hesitation and pushed inside her.

Watching Astaire grimace, Daphne unknowingly held the man tightly. Slowly, he began to move.

“Is it hard?”

Honestly, it was overwhelming. He was always overwhelming to her.

But at the same time, she didn’t dislike the process of enduring him. Rather, it excited her.