I conversed with a customer. Since they came to talk about trivial daily matters, I listened with a light heart today. After drinking a cup of tea, the customer shed a few tears and left. 

She smiled slightly, saying she loved shedding tears and talking while drinking tea, then left the consultation room.

And tomorrow is that day!

The day I go to counsel Kajian. I worried about what tea to bring. Since he’s the emperor anyway, he’s probably tried most teas. So the tea’s effects would be more important than the type.

And well, the tea I chose isn’t bad-tasting either.

I selected the tea that had the best response from customers during the week.

After putting the tea in my bag, I hung a sign at the consultation office.

<Closed Today>

Customers who make reservations know I’m off tomorrow, but just in case someone comes without knowing, I hung this up before boarding the carriage that came to pick me up and headed to the mansion.

I leaned my head against the carriage wall and sighed.

What will the emperor talk about this time?

“Last time I stopped him because it seemed like he’d talk about politics…”

Anyway, it was troublesome because Kajian kept trying to reveal his inner thoughts.

I don’t want to know such things.

Grumbling inwardly, I looked at the box containing the tea I’d packed in my bag.

I’ll give this to Kajian tomorrow and listen to his stories.

When I arrived at the mansion, I headed straight to Anan’s room.

“Annelia, welcome.”

When I first got married, I only learned matters related to the mansion from Andre, but not anymore. Anan’s health improved, so she started helping me organize documents.

Anan had me work on matters related to the businesses run by the Charlot family. Though she handled documents I didn’t know well yet, Anan was teaching me one by one. Because it’s better to learn properly and handle things than to ruin work by making wrong decisions.

Anan organized documents and gave them to me.

“You can look at these. It’ll help if you refer to how I handle them.”

“Thank you.”

I smiled gently and sat on the sofa. Anan got up from her desk, walked over to me, and sat across from me.

“Is something wrong?”

“No, just… my mind is complicated as tomorrow approaches.”

“Because of His Majesty?”

“Every time we meet, he tries to give me something strange.”

Anan laughed. On the day of our first consultation, he tried to give me a diamond necklace.

<If you give me things like this, I can’t do consultations. I’m not doing this hoping for such things.>

At my firm words, Kajian smiled bitterly and gave me gold coins as compensation. I accepted that money because he insisted it was travel expenses and I must take it, but the compensation was quite generous.

“Last time too, I saw similar signs, so I spoke firmly.”

Since I wouldn’t accept gifts, he said he had a nice villa and asked if I wanted to have it.

Why does he keep trying to give me something?

“He even said he wasn’t testing me…”

Kajian seemed sincere. Because I wouldn’t accept, he became more anxious and tried to give me more.

I told him to use that money to improve soldiers’ treatment instead.

“Thanks to Annelia, the soldiers’ wages increased.”

“Well, that’s…”

The emperor listened to me and conveyed that he raised the monthly pay of knights at the frontier base. Of course, he didn’t forget to mention during the meeting that it was Lady Marquis Charlot’s opinion.

Thanks to that, I’ve now become a power player in the empire.

No, who asked him to say that?

“It’s really a headache.”

Father and I are scrambling to meet each other, and people without connections to me are trying desperately to schedule time with me.

And people came to the consultation office like crazy, but I refused, saying I couldn’t take any more reservations. They said they’d wait, but I refused because there seemed to be too many.

What suffering is this because of the emperor?

“I want to live quietly.”

Anan offered me a teacup.

“That might never happen.”

“Anan!”

“Everyone’s scrambling to meet you because Annelia shines so brightly.”

“That’s because I have His Majesty’s trust. How long will that last?”

Anan pondered, then firmly grasped my hand.

“His Majesty probably won’t be able to let Annelia go. As long as Annelia doesn’t change.”

Well… I can’t deny that.

I nodded at Anan’s words and drank my tea.

* * *

Kajian hummed.

Yesterday he was very tired from meetings with nobles. His head spun because he had to calculate and discuss everything. He had to be careful with his words because their positions could change depending on their interests.

“When is Annelia coming?”

Kajian drank tea while lost in thought for a moment. The tea Annelia left was fascinating. Since it was tea that could make you shed tears, he was savoring it carefully.

The door opened and Annelia entered. She wore neat clothes, had her hair up, and wore gold earrings. And on one hand, she wore the ring worn by the lady of the Charlot marquis family.

Annelia smiled, bowed her head, and greeted him.

“It’s been a while, Your Majesty.”

“Has it been a week? Time doesn’t pass quickly.”

After the war broke out, Annelia came to the imperial palace every week.

What she did wasn’t remarkable. She just listened to Kajian’s stories, empathized with him, and received about consultation fees. Of course, he wanted to give her something more besides the consultation fee, but Annelia refused. Though that was raising her value even more.

“Today, you see.”

He started light conversation. Annelia listened to those stories and smiled.

One hour was too short a time to talk with Annelia. This time passed too well.

After Annelia left the office, Prime Minister Jerakun entered. He was a middle-aged man with brown eyes and brown hair. Wearing glasses, he brought documents and placed them before Kajian.

“These are today’s agenda items.”

“Related to the war?”

“Of course!”

At Jerakun’s words, Kajian smiled and started work. After Annelia left, Kajian’s mood improved and his efficiency increased, so Jerakun waited for this time to bring loads of work.

Watching Kajian handle work, he said.

“I’m worried about Your Majesty.”

“About what?”

“Just… wondering if you’re becoming psychologically dependent on one person.”

At Jerakun’s words, Kajian said indifferently.

“I’m already dependent. Aren’t I running wild wanting to give her something without any thought?”

Hearing Kajian’s words, Jerakun was surprised.

“You tried to give her something?”

“Though few people know yet, I’ll tell the prime minister. Recently I tried to give Annelia jewels and got scolded.”

Jerakun drew in a breath for a moment.

“Maybe the Charlot marquis family is wealthy, so she refused?”

“More than that, she just said she dislikes such things. I told her to at least take travel expenses, so she only took money.”

“Is that so?”

“And when I tried to talk about successors, she said she wouldn’t listen.”

Jerakun was shocked.

“Your Majesty, have you decided on a successor?”

“I’m thinking about it in various ways.”

“To think she wouldn’t listen to such things.”

Jerakun spoke like he didn’t understand.

“Why on earth wouldn’t she?”

“She just dislikes such things. She wants to live peacefully and quietly. Should I say that’s her nature?”

“How peculiar.”

Jerakun had seen much human greed while in the prime minister’s position. But to be detached from such things—what kind of person is she?

“That’s why I keep her close.”

Kajian leaned his head against the chair.

“So I can talk about anything with her. I can spend time comfortably without any calculations.”

Jerakun nodded.

Kajian was counted among the most outstanding emperors in Duke Empire history. It might be natural for him to hold power. Many people approached him and wished for many things. In the midst of that, someone like Annelia who wished for little appeared, so it would be fascinating.

Actually, Jerakun found it very fascinating too.

A person who approaches someone with much purely, wishing for nothing?

“She’s just a woman with clear boundaries. Such people don’t waver easily either.”

Kajian smiled gently.

“I envy Marquis Charlot. To have met such a companion.”

<I like Luden not because he’s Marquis Charlot, but because he’s Luden.>

Recalling what Annelia said before, Kajian let out a laugh.

The tea she left for him to drink suddenly came to mind.

“Prime Minister, will you have a cup of tea?”

“Tea?”

“Tea that makes you cry.”

“Ah, that rumored one? Is it real?”

Jerakun had heard there was tea at the consultation office Annelia ran that made you shed tears. Very special tea that made anyone cry when they drank it. But he believed such a thing absolutely couldn’t exist!

“It’s right here.”

The emperor was giving him tea he cherished and cherished again.

“Have a cup.”

Kajian offered tea to Jerakun.

“It’s effective when you want to cry.”

Jerakun thought what was in the teacup looked like pretty poison.

But since it was a gift from the emperor, he couldn’t refuse.

* * *

‘Really.’

I grumbled.

Today the emperor dropped a huge bombshell. He told me why Lorina couldn’t become the successor.

Saying he only told the empress, he whispered to me.

“It’s not about qualifications but personality.”

He said she can’t endure if she doesn’t get what she wants. He said people with such personalities lack restraint and become problems when they become emperor, and I agreed with those words.

A setting that wasn’t in the original work.

I recalled Lorina approaching Luden. If she originally had such a personality, I wondered if the original work’s Luden would have struggled later.

Does the current Lorina still like Luden?

And isn’t the emperor saying such things to inform me of something?

I pondered for a moment, then smiled gently.

Anyway, even if Luden now wavers toward Lorina, he can’t leave me. Both he and I are bound to each other.

Well, it’s not bad.

* * *

The place where war broke out wasn’t very far from the knight training grounds. Since the knight corps was also at the frontier and the war broke out at the border’s end, letters Annelia sent didn’t take long to arrive.

Luden received Annelia’s letter. But there was something else besides the letter. Opening a heart-shaped box, he found bottles containing tea leaves inside.

It was definitely tea infused with Annelia’s magic.

Holding Annelia’s letter, he slowly began reading.

<Drink the tea freely. You can serve it to others too.>

“What tea is it?”

Today he happened to agree to have a cup of tea with Reytan. Reytan, who entered the barracks, looked at the tea Luden was holding with curious eyes.

“Is that the tea you’re drinking today?”

“Mm, it wasn’t… but shall we?”

There are precautions before drinking this tea.

“But this tea has Annelia’s special secret method in it—will it be okay?”

At Luden’s words, Reytan’s eyes widened.

“That special tea only provided at the consultation office?”

“Yes.”

“They say just drinking it makes you cry buckets?”

He could tell how the rumors had spread so far. Since it wasn’t wrong, Luden just shrugged silently.

“I should try drinking it once.”

At Reytan’s words, Luden brewed the tea in a teapot. Reytan, sitting in a chair, touched the teacup Luden handed him with a resolute face.

Seemingly wondering what would happen if he drank this, he drank the tea audibly. After taking a sip, he closed his eyes for a moment at the gentle sensation washing over him.