Chapter 11 – Part 2
“I don’t have time or leisure to play around with love. So don’t expect love from me.”
It was a cold voice, but Beatrice thought it was kindness.
Perhaps he was worried about feeling lonely, since the war would keep him away from the palace so often.
“I understand.”
Beatrice squeezed Heinrich’s hand and smiled with her eyes closed.
“I will be a good Empress, so that I may be of service to you.”
There was no denying that there was a certain arrogance in her voice.
The childish expectation that she might be the only one who could heal this man’s wounds and the arrogance that she would be different from the Empress Dowager, who had jeopardized the country by wielding the scepter.
But as if reading her mind, Heinrich pulled her hand away.
“I intend to offer the north to the Duke of Travell.”
His voice remained cold. Beatrice didn’t quite understand his meaning.
“I will order him to administer it directly.”
“Your Majesty. That’s…….”
After the imperial wedding, territories were often granted to the empress or the imperial family. These territories were usually rich in resources, had ports, or at least had beautiful scenery. But why the cold and barren north?
Wasn’t it a place where many landowners fled due to the tyranny of the former lord, turning into lawless areas with roaming beasts? And now he wanted her father to manage it directly.
“You’re sending my father to…… such a place?”
“I simply decided that the Duke of Travell was the right man for the job.”
“…….”
“You said you would be a good empress, but I won’t ask you to interfere in public affairs.”
With those words, Beatrice turned to face Heinrich.
His blue eyes shone coldly in the darkened cell. As if the heat in them was a lie.
She asked in a trembling voice.
“Why did you propose to me……?”
Heinrich stared down at her as he had the day before. His voice was as cold as a blowing wind.
“Aren’t you the daughter of Duke Travell?”
“…….”
“I deemed you most suitable for the position of empress.”
Beatrice would not be the perfect Empress.
Heinrich would not seek her out except on set days, and Beatrice was forced to learn her duties from his officers instead of the Empress.
Naturally, she made mistakes, but there was no one to correct them and no one to comfort her.
If you bowed your head as if guilty, Heinrich would let out a short sigh or click his tongue.
He never raised his voice or became angry, but it was enough to make Beatrice’s heart sink.
Beatrice, who had grown up like a greenhouse flower on a duke’s estate, had never encountered someone treating her like this.
She had always been accustomed to kindness and affection. Who dared to treat her like this in the stronghold of Duke Travell?
But her father, who had always protected her, had left for the cold north, and Heinrich, who had become her husband, was no longer by her side.
She could only rely on her close friends from her lady days.
“He didn’t propose to me out of love. Seeing my face outside of official duties is only due to necessity.”
Less than a month after their wedding, Heinrich left for the war.
Beatrice confided in her closest friends. Her friends, who had always been affectionate, consoled her with sad expressions.
“Your Majesty will surely understand the Empress’s feelings.”
“Why don’t you embroider a gift for him?”
Beatrice felt a little relieved as her friends wiped away her tears and embraced her.
Little did she know, however, that she had made a huge mistake.
It wasn’t long before word of the emperor’s mistreatment of the empress spread throughout society.
It came from trusted friends.
Beatrice, who had always been looked upon favorably, did not realize how many people wished for her misfortune.
At first, there were those who covered their mouths with fans and asked about her relationship with the emperor.
Then there were those who interrupted her when she spoke or gossiped openly while she spoke.
Then there were those who invited her to parties and deliberately ignored the dress code, spilled wine on her clothes, or intentionally picked on her users or made a scene at parties she hosted.
State meetings were no different.
The empress was in a position to represent the emperor in his absence, but the vassals blatantly ignored her and talked amongst themselves.
If Beatrice made a small suggestion, she was asked first if it had been approved by the emperor, and some were quick to insult her, citing previous mistakes.
Beatrice had never learned to cope with such things.
Her father, Samuel Travell, had taught her that the higher you go, the more merciful you must be.
But he didn’t teach her that mercy is only for the strong.
Beatrice was still kind to everyone. Even those who insulted her.
Perhaps she thought that if she was good enough, like in a fairy tale, she would one day be rewarded.
Or was it arrogance—the belief that her goodness was not an accessory that could be shed depending on the situation?
She didn’t realize that my laughter and kindness would be seen as cowardice by others.
It wasn’t just the socialites who began to ignore her. The imperial courtiers also began to look down on the powerless empress.
They would enter her room without knocking and open the windows for ventilation, and the water she brought in the morning became increasingly cold.
It was not uncommon for her to be missing a fork or knife at meals, and when she was ordered to bring them back, she would sigh or even sulk.
When shopping for clothes, she would openly grope you or purposely bring you jewelry that didn’t match your outfit.
She was disrespected by the very people who were supposed to help her make a living.
With no one to turn to, Beatrice gradually lost her smile.
What kept her going was Heinrich, who was far away in another country.
When he returns, everything will be fine. He would help her.
He told her not to hope for love, but she is the Empress. He will do what he must for the sake of the imperial family.
Only that belief sustained her.
When Heinrich returned to the palace after two years of victorious warfare, Beatrice deliberately dressed modestly to greet him.
Her handmaidens fidgeted as if they sensed her intentions, and that alone was enough to make Beatrice feel very happy.
“Congratulations on your victory, Your Majesty.”
Heinrich bowed politely but did not reply.
He had dismounted from his great horse and was ragged from the long war.
But nothing about his ragged body or his dark eyes made him more intimidating than before.
His cold gaze slowly swept over Beatrice. Beatrice felt strangely satisfied with his discomfort.
“What is this appearance?”
“…….”
Beatrice didn’t answer. When she didn’t speak, Heinrich looked back at his handmaiden.
“Why is the empress in such a state?”
“I apologize, Your Majesty. The Empress chose these clothes herself…….”
“Have them altered.”
Heinrich said, looking at Beatrice. But Beatrice shook her head.
“I can’t afford to be extravagant when I’m the Empress,” she said, “especially when you’re fighting for the Empire.”
“What an empress wears is imperial dignity. Do you mean to tell me that in your eyes, this imperial dignity is so shabby?”
Though his words were meant as a reproach, Beatrice was relieved to hear them.
It’s all over now; at least no one will look down on her while he stays in the palace.
She bowed her head in relief.
“……I will call for the designer and seamstress tomorrow.”
Heinrich nodded and brushed past her.
There was no warm greeting, no affectionate hug or kiss, but Beatrice was content with that.
Heinrich remained at the palace for some time.
He was still a blunt man who sought her out only on the obligatory reunion days, but the maids quickly changed their demeanor when he ordered the empress’s clothes to be refitted.
Even the nobles of the social circles were now more polite to the colorfully dressed woman.
But it was short-lived. The emperor remained confined to his office and paid no attention to the empress.
The handmaidens began to neglect her, focusing their efforts on grooming her and nothing else.
As time passed, Beatrice grew increasingly restless.
She knew it. that the only reason she had no enemies as a lady was because of her father, the Duke of Travell.
And that an Empress without the Emperor’s favor would be ignored, even by her own people.
One day, when the morning bath became as cold as ice again, Beatrice went to his bedroom late at night with a handkerchief she had embroidered herself.
“What can I do for you?”
“I have something urgent to tell you.”
Heinrich was not surprised to see her in the room. He didn’t even ask the servant to bring her a cup of tea.
It was clear that he meant for her to tell him what she wanted and leave, but Beatrice swallowed hard and handed him what she had brought.
“I made this for you, Your Majesty.”
It was a handkerchief embroidered with flowers the same color as Heinrich’s eyes and tied with hand-knitted lace at the corners of his ears.
It was a labor of love, but Heinrich didn’t take it.
“Your Majesty……?”
“The Empress’s job is not to idly embroider.”
His voice was as cold as always.
“If you have time, you’d better read a book.”
Heinrich turned away, as if he didn’t want to hear more. Beatrice quickly grabbed his sleeve.
Hadn’t she accepted it then that the only reason she was Empress was because she was really the daughter of the Duke of Travell?
Her head, barely held up in misery, dropped limply.
“I wonder if you could help me …… a little.”