“……I’d prefer you not come inside. No need for farewells either.”

An inexplicable emotion stabbed her heart. Feeling suddenly upset, Yerena quickly finished her interrupted sentence. The man remained silent at her words. But Yerena could tell he was staring at her.

“If you understand, please leave without making things difficult. I have important things to do.”

As the strange pain in her chest intensified, Yerena stood up. She turned away from where the man was and walked.

In the not-so-spacious room, she arrived at a small makeshift prayer spot next to the fireplace. Though Yerena had paid no attention to this place that Alicia had created long ago, she had been using it consistently for the past few days.

“Kneeling and praying is useless. Lady Yerena, you don’t believe in the goddess.”

As she knelt heavily before the wooden goddess statue, the man spoke from behind. Yerena, who was just about to join her hands, furrowed her brow at his words and retorted sharply,

“So what? What does that have to do with you?”

The sun, beginning to set red, entered the room through the window. The man slowly moved along Yerena’s elongated shadow and spoke,

“Or do you believe that if you pray now, the high priest will give you the answer you want tomorrow?”

“Don’t concern yourself……”

Yerena, who was about to say something while frowning more deeply at the man who ignored her words and continued his own, suddenly froze. The reason was the low, heavy footsteps and an inexplicable pressure that began to weigh on her.

As the man drew closer, the eerie feeling grew stronger. Feeling a chill down her spine, Yerena, who had been kneeling, stood up again. And unconsciously knocked over the goddess statue. The wooden statue fell from the low drawer to the floor with a dull thud.

“I, I clearly told you to leave……”

“Do you want the curse to be lifted?”

Yerena, sensitized by the sudden noise, flinched and tried to step back but stopped when her lower back touched the drawer, awkwardly perching on it. Meanwhile, the man had completely closed in on her.

The man’s leg brushed against Yerena’s knee. Simultaneously, something like a wall blocked her front. At a distance of less than an inch, their breaths tickled each other’s ears.

“No, let me ask again. Do you want to enter His Majesty the Emperor’s bedroom?”

“W-What is this……”

“I asked if you truly want to become one of the many women in His Majesty’s rear palace?”

The man continued questioning Yerena, who was too flustered to make proper sounds. Though his voice was leisurely and gentle, the question itself was intimidating. Yerena felt afraid of this side of the man she had never seen before. But simultaneously, she felt a strange sense of relief.

“You wouldn’t want that.”

“……”

“You’re afraid. Of entering His Majesty’s bedroom.”

Except for the leg touching Yerena’s knee, the man didn’t make contact with any part of her body. Yet she felt as though he had captured her, holding her so tightly she couldn’t escape.

The problem was that she didn’t entirely want to break free. Surprised by her own emotions, Yerena opened her sightless eyes wide and shouted,

“No!”

She pushed the man’s shoulders with both hands. He moved away from her with remarkable ease.

“I want it. I do!”

“……”

“Why do you think I don’t believe in the goddess like Alicia and everyone else? Do you know how well I’ve memorized those long prayers!”

The guilt that had been festering inside her burst out all at once. Yerena despised herself.

‘What am I doing……’

Her family had fulfilled their responsibility as Sedas royalty through death. But what was she, who survived, doing?

‘As someone who survived…… living like this, what am I……’

If she truly cared for Sedas, she should be trying to escape the curse the empire’s clerics spoke of, trying to please the emperor somehow, but instead she hated herself for doing nothing proper while finding comfort in this tower and living with smiles.

‘I’m not in my right mind.’

She hated herself for complaining despite the opportunity. Hating the curse being lifted, leaving this tower, and suffering at the thought of entering the emperor’s bedroom to please him—it was terribly selfish behavior.

‘To think such thoughts at a time like this…… And I’ve been thinking about an imperial knight……’

And that wasn’t all. Yerena realized she had been thinking excessively about the man standing before her. To think about a man, an imperial knight at that, every night when she should be focused solely on Sedas—it made her so disgusted with herself she could vomit.

“However you see me, I believe. I believe the Goddess of Light will remove the curse of gh-ghosts attached to my body. So I can be beside the great empire’s Emperor……”

Yerena tried to deny these feelings. But whenever she imagined herself fawning in the emperor’s bedroom, her breath caught.

“E-Emperor’s side……”

Stumbling over her words, Yerena finally closed her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut. She bit her lip until it bled, then shouted,

“Didn’t you hear what I said earlier? What does it matter to you? Stop worrying about me and think about your own future. Shouldn’t you prepare for when you might lose your life at any moment?”

She felt reluctant to carelessly mention someone else’s painful family history, but it also felt like the right approach.

‘Rather……’

Yerena knew the man was showing interest in her. She had already realized that she didn’t feel aversion to his attention.

“Let me say it again, I desperately want to serve the Emperor. What an honor it would be for a prisoner like me to be by his side.”

Words she couldn’t say earlier now flowed smoothly as she decided to shatter this relationship here. Yerena gritted her teeth and continued,

“You told me before. How the lady from the Principality of Litra is treated as the emperor’s consort.”

“……”

“I want that kind of life too. Since I can’t return to Sedas anyway, I might as well try living a glamorous new life in the empire.”

“……”

“Do you know how tired I’ve been of this place where I have only you and Jane to talk to? Though I’m a prisoner now, I was once a kingdom’s princess! This shabby tower doesn’t suit me—I need a beautiful palace. I need many maids and overflowing jewels.”

Wanting the life of a glamorous consort? Even as she spoke, bile rose in her throat. But suppressing her revulsion, Yerena shouted to the end,

“A life wearing beautiful dresses and adorned with jewels by the emperor’s side…… That life suits me. Do you understand?”

Her eyes grew hot. Yerena pretended not to notice as she wiped away tears that were about to fall with her sleeve.

The man didn’t make a sound even as she poured out all manner of words. Certain that he was disappointed in her, Yerena turned her head to the side. Though she couldn’t see, imagining him looking at her with disgust from right in front was unbearable.

“……I’ll take my leave now.”

The man spoke only after Yerena’s rough breathing had subsided. Despite his voice being no different than usual, she jumped, her shoulders rising sharply.

She immediately turned her body completely away. Though her breathing had quieted, her thin back still rose and fell noticeably as the man stepped backward, watching her.

The door creaked open. Yerena relaxed her body, thinking the man was leaving. But he remained standing at the partially opened door. Outside, Jane, who seemed to have returned some time ago, was holding a snack basket.

The fresh, sweet scent of raspberry jam and savory bread wafting from the basket contrasted sharply with the heavily depressed atmosphere. The man briefly looked at the basket in Jane’s hands, who couldn’t meet his eyes, then turned his head to look once more at Yerena’s thin back and said,

“Don’t skip your meals.”

* * *

‘Magnificent.’

The man with a goatee looked around in admiration. The splendid and imposing building, both inside and out, was so impressive that he forgot his legs ached from walking so long.

‘Was all this built with tributes from other countries?’

Just as the man clicked his tongue while examining the gold-plated column patterns, the young servant walking ahead stopped before a massive door, turned around, and looked him up and down. Then, with a somewhat dismissive expression, he spoke while walking away,

“Wait here.”

‘This young thing!’

The goateed man felt indignant but soon relaxed. Though he was a high nobleman on the rise in Sedas, in the empire he was merely an envoy from a defeated country. Moreover, a young servant of the emperor in the imperial palace was likely from a decent family in the empire.

“You are summoned to enter.”

After the man had adjusted his attire several times, the servant who had guided him received some message from another servant and spoke to him. The man nodded, smoothing the wrinkles at his collar one last time.

The door opened, revealing a long red carpet. And at its end, on a raised platform, sat a figure wearing a golden crown on a golden throne.

“Your Majesty. The envoy from Sedas.”

The servant, who had gone one step ahead of the man, bowed deeply at the platform and announced. The emperor, who had been twirling his long black hair with his finger, finally turned his head to look at the man—the Sedas envoy, Count Wibly.

“Great sun of the empire. I am honored to meet Your Majesty the Emperor.”

Before even making eye contact with the emperor, Count Wibly bowed deeply. A smile appeared on the emperor’s lips at the sight of him not raising his head without permission.

“Raise your head.”

Emperor Kedrick spoke with feigned benevolence. Count Wibly slowly raised his head, but his waist remained slightly bent. The emperor laughed at this behavior that so well catered to his ego and commanded,

“Good. Now tell me why you’ve come before me.”

“I’ve brought the tribute you requested. Here is the list for your review.”

Count Wibly held out a book with both hands. At the emperor’s nod, a servant took the book and presented it directly before the emperor. He examined the total amount of tribute written on the first page. It listed an amount of tribute difficult for a small country like Sedas to provide.