Side Story 7

After finishing their brief honeymoon in Rakus, the two headed to Raspol and immediately went to where Duchess Daisy was resting.  

Ian, who got into the carriage with Vivian, clung tightly to her, showing no intention of letting go.  

Why are there so many competitors?  

Louis, who was sitting in front of Vivian and Ian with his arms crossed, let out a deep sigh. The problem was that compared to other competitors, he didn’t feel like he had much of an advantage.  

When they went up to the capital from Raspol, a murderous schedule awaited them.  

Not only did they have to hold the emperor’s coronation, but they also had to implement the long-prepared policies and carefully examine whether the new agreements with the Mage Tower were being properly executed.  

Louis, unwilling to let go of this moment of freedom, opened the carriage window to clear his increasingly cluttered mind.  

Feeling the autumn breeze coming through the window, Louis closed his eyes.  

Rakus had been hot. Louis couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.  

“Sis, His Highness the Crown Prince is acting strange. He’s laughing by himself.”  

The whispered voice was loud enough to be heard clearly. Louis’ eyebrows twitched, but he didn’t open his eyes.  

Soon, the carriage began to slow down and came to a stop.  

Louis, who opened his eyes wide, was the first to get off the carriage. He escorted Vivian and extended his hand to Ian, who was holding a bundle of daisies in his arms.  

“I can get off by myself! I’m seven years old!”  

“Sure. Seven is very impressive. But the carriage is high today. How about holding my hand?”  

Ian, looking at Louis’ large hand, lowered his head as if to gauge how high the carriage was.  

“T-the carriage is high!”  

Reluctantly, Ian grabbed Louis’ hand and got off. Watching Ian, who looked as if he had no choice, Louis wondered why all the kids around him were like this.  

There was Alisa, who always addressed Vivian with utmost respect, calling her “Angel” while speaking informally to him, and Ian Dinever, who didn’t seem to dislike him but wasn’t particularly friendly either.  

It seemed that he would soon have to show these kids the dignity of the empire’s Crown Prince. 

They headed to the grave of Duchess Daisy, located deep within the Dinever Duchy family cemetery, crossing the crisp autumn weather.  

Today, Ian performed his role admirably. He removed the withered bouquet of daisies and placed fresh flowers in their stead.  

“Mother, I’m here.”  

Vivian gently brushed the polished tombstone of the Duchess with her palm. Ian, catching the mixed feelings of regret and longing in his sister’s gaze, stood quietly.  

Louis vividly remembered the day Duchess Daisy was buried here. He had stood behind Vivian, who couldn’t even shed tears in the rain, watching her for a long time.  

But now, as her husband, he stood by Vivian’s side.  

He had ordered that the news of the Empress and Crown Prince’s visit not be disclosed, allowing them to bid farewell to the Duchess in peace. After the funeral was over, Louis had met the Duke to offer his condolences.  

Though it was considerate of the Dinever family, Louis still felt guilty for not being by Vivian’s side as her fiancé.  

He regretted not paying his respects when she was still Vivian Dinever and instead coming late as Vivian Lindez Tapeullon.  

If Vivian became Empress, it would not be easy for her to come down to Raspol.  

Burdened by guilt, Louis had delayed their departure to the capital by a day.  

Louis approached Ian, who was fidgeting and only watching his sister.  

“Should we step aside for a while so you can be alone with Mother, Sis?”  

Ian looked at his sister. When Vivian smiled and nodded, Ian pointed to a large tree in the middle of the Dinever family cemetery.  

“Sis, I’ll be over there.”  

The small boy with brown hair dashed off, and Louis followed at a leisurely pace.  

The caretaker of the Dinever cemetery seemed diligent and skilled. The well-maintained path had not a single blade of grass growing out of place.  

Louis approached Ian, who was crouching near the tree.  

“Your Highness, have you seen my mom?”  

Next to the tree roots, there were small towers made of stacked stones. They were not exactly towers, more like piles of stones, but Ian had carefully built them every time he visited, picking up pretty stones.  

“I have.”  

“The nanny said Mother looks just like Sis.”  

“Didn’t you see her portrait?”  

“I did… but portraits don’t move.”  

Louis spotted a stone suitable for stacking and bent down to pick it up, handing it to Ian.  

“She was quite beautiful. As much as Vivian.”  

Ian took the stone Louis handed him and placed it on the tower he had built while watching ants with his father a week ago.  

“I don’t really want to come here.”  

Ian sighed as he placed the stone on the tower. Louis, with his hands in his pockets, looked at Vivian.  

Sitting in front of the tombstone on a cloth sent by Tia, Vivian seemed to have much to say.  

What Vivian had, but Ian lacked, were memories.  

“When I come here, Dad and Sis look sad.”  

Ian, pouting, lightly tapped the half-built stone tower. The stones scattered and rolled across the ground.  

Louis nudged the stones with his foot before kneeling to pick them up and began stacking them again.  

“I understand how you feel, Ian, but if Duchess Daisy heard this, she would be very sad.”  

“……”  

Ian, watching Louis stack the stones, lowered his head.  

“Though I didn’t know her well, Vivian said she was very happy when she had you, Ian.”  

The stone tower was so small that Louis quickly rebuilt it after stacking a few stones. Dusting off his hands, he stood and stretched.  

“Just because you don’t remember doesn’t mean she wasn’t your mother.”  

“Mother passed away giving birth to me… so, so…”  

Ian’s eyes quickly filled with tears. He clenched his fists tightly, trembling as he tried to hold back his tears.  

Louis sighed deeply and took a step closer to Ian.  

“Ouch! That hurts!”  

Louis pulled Ian into a firm embrace, holding the back of his head. Startled by Louis’ solid frame, Ian struggled.  

“Losing someone you love is an unimaginable sorrow, even for me. But for a seven-year-old to blame himself for it is certainly not right.”  

Ian froze.  

“I don’t know who told you that, but if you think Duchess Daisy passed away because of you, I want to correct that misunderstanding.”  

Ian’s shoulders trembled slightly. Louis, who wasn’t skilled at comforting crying children, could only pat Ian’s head.  

After some time, Ian pulled away from Louis’ embrace and turned his back.  

“That doesn’t mean I’m giving up on Sis for you.”  

Louis smirked internally, realizing that no one in the Dinever family was easy to deal with, not even the youngest.  

“Louis! Ian!”  

Having spent enough time at the Duchess’ grave, Vivian called out to them, waving her hand.  

“Sis!”  

Ian ran to Vivian with a bright smile as if he had never been upset. Watching Ian’s lively back, Louis chuckled softly and followed.  

“Ian, were you crying?”  

Vivian’s face stiffened as Ian approached. She held his small face and gently stroked his slightly swollen eyes.  

Ian stepped back and shook his head vigorously.  

“I-I wasn’t crying…”  

Seeing Ian stammer, Vivian’s face filled with concern. She began examining him, wondering if he was unwell.  

“He saw a little snake under the tree and got scared.”  

Louis pointed to the large tree where they had been earlier.  

“A snake? He wasn’t bitten, was he?”  

When Ian shook his head with a blank expression, Vivian sighed in relief, saying she would inform the caretaker.  

Ian glanced back at Louis. When Louis winked at him, Ian quickly turned his head, his ears slightly red.  

It was time to return to the mansion. As they walked toward the carriage, Louis stopped and called out to Vivian.  

“Why don’t you and Ian get in the carriage first? I left something behind.”  

“Left something behind?”  

“Yes.”  

Vivian stared at Louis for a moment before nodding and boarding the carriage with Ian.  

Retracing his steps, Louis stood before the Duchess’ grave. A red leaf had fallen onto her tombstone. He bent down, brushed it away, and opened his mouth several times, but no words came out.  

From the library where he first met Vivian, to the lessons they attended together, the festival and circus they watched, and the snowy forest where Vivian confessed to him for the first time—memories flooded Louis’ mind.  

Finally, he recalled the back of young Vivian, who had witnessed her mother’s last moments.  

“I’m sorry… that’s all I can say.”  

As soon as Louis finished speaking, a gentle breeze swept through his hair. It felt as if the Duchess was telling him it was okay, that she forgave him.  

“When I return to the capital, I will become the Emperor of the Empire, and Vivian will become the Empress. There may be even harder days ahead. I, Luideos Lindez Tapeullon, swear before you, Duchess. No matter what hardships come, I will put Vivian before myself.”  

Louis’ golden eyes shone fiercely.  

“I will watch over Ian Dinever until he grows well, so don’t worry too much.”  

The daisies Ian had brought swayed beautifully in the wind.  

Louis bowed his head slightly. Though he was about to ascend to the highest position in the Empire, at this moment, he was just a man bowing respectfully to his beloved’s mother.  

Raising his head, Louis stared at the Duchess’ grave for a moment before turning away. After taking three steps, he turned back and said,  

“Oh, and if Vivian and I have our first child, I’d prefer a daughter… Is that something you can arrange from up there?”  

This time, there was no breeze, not even a slight wind. Staring at the silent grave, Louis clicked his tongue and headed for the carriage.  

Louis boarded the carriage, and it began its journey back to the Raspol estate.  

“Why are you looking at me like that? Like you want to eat me up.”  

Seeing Vivian smiling mischievously at him, Louis asked indifferently. Startled by his words, Vivian quickly covered Ian’s ears.  

“Sis, this is suffocating.”  

Ian grumbled as he freed himself from Vivian’s hands. Vivian sighed deeply, giving Louis a reproachful look.  

“Did you have a good conversation with Mother?”  

“…Well, yes.”  

“Is it a secret what you talked about?”  

“It’s not really a secret…”  

Louis glanced at Ian, who sighed and covered his ears with his small hands.  

“I told her I’d prefer our firstborn to be a daughter.”  

“What?”  

“Don’t you think it’ll be a daughter?”  

Leaning his elbow on the window and resting his chin on his hand, Louis smiled dazzlingly. Vivian’s face flushed as she glanced at Ian beside her.  

Seeing Ian still covering his ears tightly, Vivian chuckled softly.  

“I think a daughter would be lovely, but a son would be wonderful too.”  

That night, Louis had a vivid dream.  

A woman standing with her feet in the blue sea. Thinking it was Vivian, Louis approached her, only to realize it was Duchess Daisy.  

Daisy smiled brightly at Louis, cupped her hands, and picked something up from the sea.  

The Duchess handed what she had picked up to Louis. Unconsciously, Louis cupped his hands to receive it.  

As seawater dripped through his fingers, two stars sparkled in his palms. They were so dazzling that he couldn’t look at them for long.  

Months later, twins were born to Emperor Louis and Empress Vivian.  

A prince with black hair and a princess with brown hair. Both children were born with golden eyes, the symbol of the imperial family.  

When the two children opened their eyes for the first time, Emperor Luideos said they were like stars plucked from the sea.  

– Side Story Fin –