“… If you have other plans, I will make the necessary arrangements. So command me. I will obey.”

Gislin withdrew without ultimately receiving an answer. Left alone, Cedric remained seated quietly for a long time, contemplating the last words his loyal aide had spoken.

The sun set during his busy day. He thought of Anita, who would be lying like a corpse in the darkened room with the curtains drawn after he had left.

The woman carrying his child. Although he did not want her, she was the wife he had taken through a legal procedure. Moreover, as she was pregnant with his heir, she would naturally become Empress.

If Hardyde had not fallen so far, and if Callithea were not in such a miserable state, perhaps no one would have objected to Anita receiving the crown and sceptre of the Empress at his side.

However, Hardyde had fallen and Callithea was in such a wretched state that it could no longer be considered an empire. Therefore, it would have been more fitting for the princess of a fallen empire to join her deceased family than to become Empress of Laxion at this time.

Hadn’t he originally planned for this? Cedric could not truthfully claim that he was not involved in the downfall of Callithea and Hardyde. His wife’s family had fallen apart so quickly because of the people he had sent and the various schemes he had employed.

According to the plan, he should have lost his wife by now. Perhaps she had fallen ill due to the many tragedies, made a mistake, or been assassinated by some wicked faction.

Hardyde had fallen, and her father was dead; no one was left to hold him accountable for her death. On the contrary, many would offer to kill Anita for him, while others would welcome her death.

However, the plan, which had been formulated a long time ago, had been derailed by the child she was carrying. Or had the child derailed it? Cedric clasped his hands together and squeezed them tightly.

“How many mothers willingly leave this world with their child?”

If he wanted to follow through with the plan, now was the time. The Crown Princess, who had miscarried due to shock, died without ever becoming Empress and joined her departed family. There could be no more natural or fitting story.

Yet a heavy surge of indignation welled up at the thought. Unable to suppress his anger, he slammed his clenched fist down on his desk. The reverberation caused a pen to shake and roll over, spilling its ink onto the bottle, which also broke. Cedric stared as the jet-black liquid instantly stained the clean, white stack of paper next to it.

“…They’re my child. Regardless of how they were conceived, they’re still my child. I cannot bear the sin of taking my own offspring’s life.”

Cedric pushed the memory of Anita dying in childbirth out of his mind and said something quietly to himself. After voicing these words, he truly seemed to feel pity for the child. A child whose life was being judged by his own father even before birth. Even he thought that was excessive.

Had he not already made up his mind after learning of the child’s existence? To let the child and its mother live? Cedric instantly and completely abandoned his original plans.

However, even though he had decided to let the child and its mother live, Cedric did not immediately grant them their full status and honor. Consequently, on the day the new Emperor of Laxion ascended the throne, when the coronation and enthronement ceremonies were held together, followed by a fortnight-long feast, the Crown Princess did not make a single appearance.

··· ✦ ···

Almost a month of spring was dedicated to the festival. The new emperor ascended to the highest position amid the people’s blessings.

“A new morning has dawned for the Empire! Long live His Imperial Majesty!”

“We bow to the sun of Laxion!”

“Long live His Imperial Majesty!”

“Long live! May you prosper forever!”

“Glory to Fion! Glory to Laxion!”

A proud display of Laxion’s national power, the coronation reached new heights of magnificence and splendor. Everyone spoke of how unlikely it was that they would witness such a sight again in their lifetime, while busy praising the day. This worship also reached Cedric, who was rising like the sun.

“In the end, he said nothing about the position of Empress.”

However, the Moon, which should naturally accompany the new Sun, did not rise. The Empress Palace, the Empress’s crown, and the sceptre remained in their places, left without an owner.

“I don’t know His Majesty’s intentions, but surely it’s obvious by now that he hasn’t said anything? Since he hasn’t mentioned any future plans for the vacant Empress seat, it will likely be filled soon…”

“The rumor is that it’s because of the child she’s carrying. After all, a father’s heart shows mercy to his child, even if he despises his wife and considers her to be useless.”

Duke Colbert and his supporters were relieved, although they were uneasy about Cedric’s silence regarding the Empress announcement. The nobles and common people were whispering about Anita, who had failed to attend the Emperor’s coronation and had not been promised any status.

This dealt a major blow to her honor and prestige. There was already much talk surrounding the princess from the fallen Callithea. Rumors ranged from her being expelled from the Imperial Palace within the year to her being banished immediately after giving birth.

“But the child will clearly be a hindrance later. If it’s a princess, that’s fine, but if a prince is born, it will cause problems.”

“Even if she is a lawful wife, she cannot enjoy that honor unless she is granted the title of empress. If the child is not born to an empress, wouldn’t it be only natural for them to be considered inferior to children born later to the empress?”

“That may be, but the child is not illegitimate. His Imperial Majesty’s marriage was certainly lawful.”

Furthermore, Anita was a thorn in the side of the factions that had seized power. To potential rivals, she was merely the Emperor’s lawful spouse — nothing more, nothing less. Many of the common people pitied her, and the remaining forces of the Asteria faith supported her. However, they had no real power.

“Let’s wait and see for now. Ideally, she would meet the same fate as her mother, but even if not, there will be many opportunities. Children are fragile by nature, are they not? A small thorn can mean the difference between life and death.”

“If we’re going to act, it’s better to do it now…”

“That won’t do. Don’t you remember? Before the coronation, we sent people out a few times, but His Majesty dealt with them all. It would be wrong to assume that His Majesty’s silence on the matter means tacit approval. His Majesty is no ordinary man. He is clearly investigating. If we were to be caught…”

“Are you scared, perhaps? How can you serve His Grace the Duke with such faint courage?”

“What did you say?”

“Now, now. Stop it! This is not the time for us to be fighting amongst ourselves. More importantly, are they close to capturing the traitors? Let’s resolve that issue first. Count Naren is trying to take the credit. We must prevent that from happening.”

“That’s right. Now that His Majesty has ascended the throne, those worthless officials and scholars, devoid of both history and honor, dare to direct their barbs at us. We must crush them first to show them their place.”

As the new sun rose and the Colbert family seized power, they simultaneously targeted Anita and kept a close eye on the new Emperor. The officials and palace attendants within the Imperial Palace, especially those who attended to the Emperor and Anita directly, found themselves in a difficult position.

“We can no longer address her as Her Highness the Crown Princess, but nor can we address her as Her Imperial Majesty the Empress.”

“Still, wouldn’t it be proper to address her as Her Imperial Majesty the Empress within the palace, at least? Precedents show that she was usually addressed as Empress before the coronation.”

“We cannot follow the precedent in this case. In all previous cases, the crown princess had already been confirmed as the future empress, and the former emperors had either announced their intention to hold an enthronement ceremony with a coronation or held a coronation for the empress separately afterwards.”

“What about following the example set during the reign of Yeren II? In Yeren II’s case, wasn’t his spouse simply called the Emperor’s consort, even after his coronation?”

“That is also problematic. During her time as Crown Princess, she had committed crimes that were revealed, and it was certain that she would not become Empress. She was even confined to a tower. Furthermore, she was soon ordered to commit s*icide. After her criminal status was confirmed following the trial, she was no longer referred to as the Emperor’s consort. The current Crown Princess is not in such a situation, is she?”

“Legally, however, that is the correct form of address. There is no other choice.”

Firstly, as she had not been designated Empress, Anita could not be referred to as such, even though her husband, Cedric, was Emperor. According to precedent, those designated as the future empress were called empress even before the enthronement ceremony, which was often combined with the coronation. However, in Anita’s case, the emperor had not promised to designate her at all.

Consequently, her form of address, treatment, residence, number of palace attendants and expenses could not be definitively settled. Eventually, due to complaints from the practical staff, the aides broached the topic with Cedric a few times, but he always responded briefly that he would postpone the decision until later and then fell silent.

Another month passed this way. With spring long gone and summer approaching, a degree of regularity was established. Anita was referred to simply as ‘Her Highness’, with no preceding title, or as the ‘Emperor’s consort’. Behind her back, however, she was scornfully called names such as ‘the soon-to-be-abandoned Empress’ or ‘Her Highness the Crown Princess’. She was still residing in the Crown Prince’s Palace, so the overall treatment she received remained at the level of a Crown Princess.

Over time, a general atmosphere of disrespect towards Anita pervaded the Imperial Palace. Many palace attendants were not courteous, and some even displayed open mockery.

Fortunately, this did not extend to the bedroom, where Anita mostly stayed. The newly appointed head maid of the Crown Prince’s Palace was the Marchioness Kalente, whom Cedric had chosen. She was extremely strict about discipline, and Dian, who supervised the knights, would not tolerate any disrespect towards his master.

“Your Highness.”

“Renee!”

However, it was difficult to be entirely oblivious to the atmosphere outside. When Renee, who had been confined to bed for several months with a serious illness, returned to her side, Anita found herself unconsciously bursting into tears.