“Your Majesty the Empress.”

Concerned about potential mistakes, she dismissed everyone around them.

“What is it, Minister Pahorder?”

“Are you okay? I heard you were sick. I was very worried, Leila.”

“Minister Pahorder, I am now the empress.”

Though she said it because she needed distance from him, not knowing Leila’s intentions made her feel somewhat sorry.

“……I apologize, Your Majesty the Empress.”

“Please be more careful in the future.”

As she turned and began walking away coldly, he said,

“Have your feelings changed? I remember that night vividly.”

She stopped in her tracks. No, she had no choice but to stop.

* * *

When Charte received a report that the Welfare Department was preparing a new event based on the empress’s suggestion, he was surprised by her ingenious idea.

The empress was an extremely strange person who defied common sense.

For someone who lacked the basic posture of noble ladies, was clumsy with court etiquette, and couldn’t even dance—a mandatory skill—to come up with such an idea…….

Though he had given her a chance because of her quirky and bold aspects, he hadn’t really expected much.

Rather, he had often doubted if she was truly Prime Minister Whyman’s daughter and felt anxious, but now he felt relieved.

She definitely had a different feel compared to ordinary noble ladies.

As the only daughter of Duke Whyman of the Oneroad Empire, she must have been raised as a precious treasure, but Charte had to acknowledge her tenacity and effort.

By the way, since last week, the wife he had his eye on had begun her seduction in earnest. He wondered how today would turn out.

He found himself unconsciously looking forward to story time.

* * *

Receiving the event preparation report, she couldn’t help but sigh.

How could they process things so quickly?

She felt sorry that the civil servants didn’t think about leaving work on time.

The entire Welfare Department had gathered for a meeting, excited about doing something new, and brought the first draft of documents.

The Welfare Department planned to make this an annual event to help underprivileged children.

Reading through the documents reminded her of Ivester, whom she had momentarily forgotten due to her busy schedule.

A man who was a friend to Leila but felt like a burden to her.

Ivester Pahorder.

As she turned and began walking away coldly, he said:

“Have your feelings changed? I remember that night vividly.”

She stopped in her tracks. No, she had no choice but to stop.

And she fell into the 108 worldly desires.

Should she continue walking! Or turn back and go to Ivester!

She quickly weighed the pros and cons and made a decision.

“Now doesn’t seem to be the time to talk.”

She left quickly and headed to the Empress’s Palace.

Without preparation, talking to Ivester could lead to mistakes and danger.

After all, he knew more about Leila than she did, so she had to be especially careful.

Of course, she could feel that he was watching her as she walked away, but she never looked back.

Regrettable, but unavoidable.

Besides, her current situation didn’t allow her the luxury of dwelling on Ivester, who was being rejected by her for reasons he didn’t understand.

Tonight was the night he would come.

She needed to prepare a story by searching through her memories.

Though she thought she was being ungrateful for complaining about something done for her survival, the workload was truly murderous.

Could this be a plot to kill her through overwork?

She was suspicious enough to wonder.

And the most regrettable thing was that if she had studied this hard before, she probably would have gotten into Seoul National University and passed all the civil service exams—judicial, administrative, and diplomatic—in one go.

Of course, if she had passed all those and then ended up here, she might have already died from anger.

He came to her room at the appointed time and went to his usual seat.

“Your Majesty, do you remember last week’s story? To briefly summarize……”

“Do you worry I can’t remember even that much? I wonder how you see me. Skip the unnecessary comments and start. Quickly.”

He cut off her words urgently, like someone with another appointment.

She began to worry about what was bothering him again.

Professional gamblers risked their hands, but she was risking her actual life, so she was always anxious, nervous, and scared.

To appease his mood, she quickly began her story.

* * *

“Eun-hee starts to truly shake things up by making thoughtful gifts for Gyo-min, and behind the scenes, she arranges for Ae-hyung to come to where they are whenever she meets Gyo-min. Naturally, Eun-hee leaves only traces of her presence before slipping away, causing the couple to have increasingly vicious fights and growing apart. Meanwhile, Gyo-min becomes more and more drawn to Eun-hee’s warm comfort and praise.”

‘An endlessly unfaithful fool. A worthless trash who doesn’t know how to be content with what he has.’

As Charte’s face grew increasingly grim, Yun-ah felt the chilling sensation of a knife drawing closer to her throat.

“Ae-hyung tries to win back the wavering Gyo-min by being nice to him, but when she discovers that the items he brought were sent by another woman, they end up fighting again. Meanwhile, Mrs. Min begins her revenge to reclaim the wealth that Gyo-min’s father, Chairman Jung, took from her in the past.”

‘It seems the empress is not talking about the Empire. There couldn’t be such hereditary trash in my country. It’s disgusting just to hear about it.’

Unaware that Charte’s reactions were like those of a drama viewer, Yun-ah felt greater terror at his expressions that kept changing from grimly distorted to pained and unpredictable.

“And Jae-woo falls in love with Eun-hee, wishing for her happiness rather than revenge, but unable to break his resolve, he decides to protect her.”

‘This fellow seems to be of good character, probably from the Empire. It wouldn’t be bad if Eun-hee ended up with him.’

As Charte’s fierce expression softened slightly, Yun-ah felt relieved.

And at the same time, she became curious.

About the unpredictable flow of Charte’s constantly changing consciousness.

“Eun-hee suddenly declares their relationship over to Gyo-min. But Gyo-min, already deeply infatuated, becomes more desperate, and his hatred and anger toward Ae-hyung grow. This drives their marriage to its worst state.”

“What’s the point of staying together when trust is broken.”

“Pardon? I’m sorry, you spoke so softly I couldn’t hear well.”

“It’s nothing. Continue.”

Yun-ah, who had been closely observing Charte’s changes, tensed again as his expression shifted.

But this time, he didn’t look angry but rather empty.

Though she thought any change that wasn’t anger wasn’t bad, his emotions became more unclear, making her more concerned about his mood.

“Eventually, Ae-hyung visits Eun-hee and causes a scene, while Gyo-min’s anger grows, not considering his own wrongdoing of having an affair. The couple’s relationship continues to deteriorate.”

‘Judging by his conduct, that fellow is definitely from a barbaric tribe. Typically, the more shameless one is, the less aware they are of their own faults.’

Yun-ah, who had been telling the story while watching Charte, suddenly wiped her face.

It was an instinctive reaction to his gaze, which looked as if he was seeing the filthiest thing in the world.

Unable to understand why, an anxious Yun-ah heightened all her senses toward Charte.

“For the perfect revenge, Eun-hee creates beauty products that become hugely successful, and she pays off debts that Ae-hyung can’t repay, collecting the IOUs. It was part of her plan to acquire Ae-hyung’s beauty salon.”

At that moment, one corner of Charte’s mouth lifted slightly. It was an unconscious action.

‘She’s surrounding both home and workplace so there’s no escape. This is what proper revenge should be.’

And while Charte was lost in thought and didn’t see it, a flash of joy momentarily crossed Yun-ah’s face.

‘I think I understand why the emperor’s expressions keep changing.’

Yun-ah felt slightly excited as a thrill wrapped around her entire body.

“Gyo-min takes Eun-hee outdoors. Seeing an opportunity, Eun-hee deliberately falls to the ground and uses the excuse of needing to clean up to go to their lodging. Learning of this, Ae-hyung and Jae-woo rush to stop them. At that moment, Gyo-min confesses to Eun-hee and kisses her, unaware of how her eyes have turned murderous.”

* * *

Crash!

Suddenly, Charte’s face flushed with anger, and the cup in his hand shattered, startling her into stopping her story and looking at him.

He seemed slightly confused, as if he had done it unconsciously.

Blood dripped from his hand.

“Ah! Your Majesty! Your hand……”

She rushed over, grabbed his hand, and wiped the blood with her handkerchief.

What’s going on? Why suddenly? Wasn’t he absorbed in the story? Could he be angry at the story? But to break a cup?

Ah…… she had momentarily forgotten.

The fact that he was a psychopath…… Was she going to lose her life today?

Fear weighed heavily on her heart.

That couldn’t happen.

She stood up and searched for emergency medicine.

Unable to find any medicine, she poured the alcohol that was in front of her onto his hand.

“Ah!”

He cried out in pain, then quickly returned to his dignified expression.

“What are you doing?”

“I need to disinfect it. I don’t know where the medicine is. These are precious hands—we can’t let them scar.”

Unable to understand exactly why he was angry, she quickly began to flatter him.

“Your Majesty’s injury is the Empire’s injury. You must value your royal body and be careful.”

“What did you just say?”

He looked at her with an incredulous, unimpressed expression.

“After working as an empress, I realized how difficult your job is. Your Majesty is truly excellent and remarkable. So please take better care of yourself.”

“I didn’t expect you to think that way.”

He spoke with an expression of complete disbelief.

Is this not right?

She had been so sincere. If he dislikes both praise and the lack of it, what was she supposed to do?

The emperor’s moods were truly difficult to manage.

Dealing with someone who had likely been pampered since childhood and grown up in an environment where everyone coddled him was challenging.

To shift his attention, she changed the subject.

“Your Majesty, have you received the report about the treasure auction?”

“I have.”

“Have you thought about what items you might contribute?”

“To think you would dare consider selling my possessions……”

“Ah……”

She felt disappointed.

Seeing that he had received the report without comment, she had privately been pleased, thinking he didn’t view it negatively, but hearing him speak like that was very annoying.

“Empress.”

“Yes.”

“Would you please release my hand now?”

“Ah!”

Startled, she dropped his hand as if throwing it away.

She had been holding it continuously without realizing it.

Feeling embarrassed, as if she had suddenly become a pervert with a hand f*tish, she quickly said,

“That’s all for tonight, Your Majesty.”

As he stood up to leave, he said to her:

“Empress, you are really……”

She looked at him. She had to hear the final verdict.

“Good at choosing where to end your stories. Very good.”

“Pardon?”

Was that a compliment just now? She looked at him in surprise.

“See you next week.”

She felt proud of herself for protecting her neck once again.

Anyway, he seemed to be enjoying The Seduction of the Marked Wife.

At least for this week.

She would never let her guard down. Vigilance was essential.