Whose Child Belongs to the Emperor - Chapter 4- Part 10

Chapter 4- Part 10

Leonard rode without stopping. The knights from the Travell territory, who had left first, followed him.

‘An assassination guild…’

The moment he heard those words, it felt like all the blood had drained from his body.

Hope that the one he had desperately been searching for might be nearby and despair that he might lose her again tugged at him.

There’s no time to waste. He must hurry.

The urgency of his master was conveyed, and the horse’s pace increased.

After a while, Leonard and the knights arrived at a small village.

“Is this the place?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The town was small and quiet. It was still connected to Avila, so it wasn’t completely closed off, but it was far too shabby for the empress.

Leonard took a deep breath and called a young man passing by in the village.

“Where is Tenere?”

Just saying that name after running for a long time made his heart tremble.

However, Hans, who was moving firewood, had a face unfamiliar with the name.

“Wh-who?”

“Tenere. She should be in this village.”

“Uh, there’s no one like that here… Ugh!”

Hans, who was bewildered, had a sword pointed at his neck.

Leonard looked down at the stunned young man and said it coldly.

“Speak up, or I’ll slash you on the spot.”

“Wait, wait, wait. Who’s Tenere…….”

Tenere went by the alias Tasha in the village, so there was no way the villagers knew her name.

Hans stumbled back and looked at Leonard’s face.

Black hair that glowed red in the light, golden eyes.

He recognized the face.

“Josie, are you Josie’s father?”

“Josie?”

“Josie, Josie, Tasha’s son.”

The name was familiar. Leonard nodded.

“Where.”

“Well, why are you looking for Tasha…….?”

“I said, Where is she!.”

Leonard brought the blade closer to his throat.

Hans, who seemed to have understood the urgency, finally pointed in the direction of Tenere’s house.

“I-it’s the last house. It’s close to the forest.”

With the answer he wanted to hear, Leonard turned around without looking back.

Somewhere, it seemed like the sound of crying could be heard.

The small cabin quickly approached. With every sound of the horse’s hooves, his heart pounded.

The voices of the knights behind him were heard, but he didn’t think about anything.

Tenere. Tenere. Only that name echoed in his mind.

As he approached, the sobbing sound became more distinct. And in between, a woman’s voice.

“Please. Please, even if it’s just the child…

He heard that voice, which he had thought about countless times in the past two years.

It was a voice that was always calm, quiet, and full of warmth, but now it was filled with fear.

The man with the drawn sword looked at her and chuckled.

“Let’s just end it all at once. It’s easier for both you and us. We’ll soon send your brother with you…”

Leonard swung his sword as he spoke. The man closest to the door fell to the ground with a single blow, and the men turned their heads simultaneously.

“Wh-who is it?”

“Drop the sword.”

Tenere, crouching with her child in her arms, looked up. Wet eyes widened in surprise as they found him.

“……Your Majesty.”

There was no emotion in those eyes, no welcome or affection. There was only fear and bewilderment.

Leonard glanced at her, then at the child she carried, and turned away.

Pook!. His sword sank into the hesitant man’s body.

As if on cue, both knights charged at the others.

Leonard had just pulled his sword from the assassin’s body.

“Argh!”

“Go, stay away!”

The man closest to Tenere grabbed her by the hair, his sword pointed at her throat.

“If you want to keep the woman and child alive, you’ll have to…… crack!”

The man was speechless. In the moment he was out of sight, Tenere had slammed the arrow she held down with all her might.

The man screamed and pushed her away as the sharpened nock embedded itself in his body.

Tenere sank to the ground, clutching the sobbing child close.

It didn’t take long for it to be over.

She covered the child with a blanket and tried to calm her shaky breathing.

The only sound in the silent hut was the child’s wailing.

“……take him away.”

Tenere’s shoulders shook with the words. But the knights only seized the dead bodies and dragged them out of the house.

Their footsteps grew closer, and the shadows beneath their feet deepened.

“It’s been a while, Empress.”

Leonard slowly approached Tenere. Silence fell where the knights had left.

“…Your Majesty.”

Tenere, hugging the crying child, couldn’t even raise her head.

It was a frightened look. Leonard’s gaze scanned the room.

The room was excessively small.

It was smaller than the Empress’s palace without the annexes.

It was hard to believe that such a small house could contain a room, a bathroom, and a kitchen.

The ceiling was so low that you could touch it by raising your hand, and the bed was small enough to be filled by one person lying down.

‘In a house like this…’

It was hard to believe that someone who was once an empress was living in such a small and shabby house.

The house looked like it had been carefully decorated.

Looking at the clean bed, crib, handcrafted dolls, and mobile, he twisted his insides strangely.

“If you had run away from me, you should have lived well, not in this state.”

My resolve to calm her down and take her back to the palace was already fading.

What kind of situation was this? This is a matchbox-like house. Those shabby and worn-out clothes and calloused hands.

“Why…”

Tenere managed to open her mouth, as if asking why he had come. Her face still looked frightened.

Tenere couldn’t meet Leonard’s eyes for long, so she lowered her head.

He noticed the tension in the arm that held the child.

The child. Yes, there was a child.

The child she took with her was his.

“Whose child is this?”

Leonard asked. Tenere didn’t answer.

“Whose child, Empress?”

Leonard waited for Tenere to open her mouth with a somewhat anxious heart.

As she continued to caress the child, avoiding eye contact, she finally spoke.

“I…. am already ruined.”

“Whose child is this, Empress?”

A flash of impatience flashed across his lips.

No, he didn’t even need an excuse; all he needed was one word.

This child is yours, Your Majesty, your blood.

If you say that, he will not need any excuses.

“It’s… my child.”

But Tenere did not give Leonard the answer he wanted easily.

Her body shrank as if the child were taken from her.

“I gave birth to this child, so this is my child.”

“Who is the child’s father..”

“I don’t know.”

Having said that, Tenere clamped her mouth shut and turned her head away. Her hand continued to stroke the child’s back.

Wrapped in an old blanket, he couldn’t see the child’s head or face.

He cried himself to sleep, exhausted.

Leonard let out a short, bitter laugh.

“An unknown man’s child, is that what you’re saying?”

Even if she begged for forgiveness for running away with the crown prince, even if she blamed him for not giving her his love, he was ready to accept any excuse.

But saying that it wasn’t his child was not an option.

Leonard’s brow twitched slightly at this unexpected turn of events.

“You said I could have a lover. Besides, my body has already been tainted. So…”

“We’re no longer husband and wife, so I’m not to interfere with you; is that what you are trying to say?”

Tenere didn’t respond. Her hand trembled as she continued to stroke the child.

Leonard’s gaze lingered on her hand for a moment.

Am I that frightening?

Why?

Wondering if he was making a fierce face, Leonard tried to soften his expression.

Then Tenere hesitated and opened her mouth.

“If you have come for me, Lady Salvatore will be disappointed.”

Tenere still didn’t look at him. But the moment she heard those words, Leonard felt relieved.

He understood what she was afraid of.

“I ended my engagement with her when I married you; did you forget?”

Alaina Salvatore was nothing to him. No, she shouldn’t be anything.

He wanted to say many things, but at the moment, the only thing he could say was that.

“You’ve left the position of the Empress vacant for too long.”

Leonard opened his mouth.

As she said, he left the Empress’s position vacant for two years. And now, after running away, he came to find the fallen Empress.

So, who would think this wasn’t love? Even a five-year-old child wouldn’t doubt his words.

“You’re right.”

Leonard said.

“The Empress’s position has been vacant for too long.”

‘So, you should fill that seat again.’

‘You have said you love me, and I’m ready to say I love you from now on.’

“Now that Salvatore has returned, she must return to her position as it should be…”

“What are you talking about, Empress?”

Leonard said, wrapping Tenere’s cheek with his hand. He felt the warmth on her tear-stained face.

“To me, you are my only Empress.”

Leonard gently smiled, as if trying to comfort Tenere.

The hand that had been caressing the sleeping child stopped.

“What do you mean?”

Tenere looked at him cautiously. Her upward gaze was welcoming.

Leonard didn’t hesitate to hold her hand and bring it up. He gently kissed the back of her rough hand.

“Is it too late for me to tell you that I love you now?”

“…”

Tenere’s eyes widened in surprise. But it was only for a moment, and she quickly turned her head away from his gaze.

“You don’t even want to look at me now.”

“That’s not it.”

“I’ve been looking for you all this time.”

Leonard kissed her hand carefully, even though she seemed uncomfortable. Tenere didn’t pull her hand away forcibly.

“This was so… sudden.”

A flush spread across her cheeks. Leonhardt was relieved at last.

“Why don’t you come back to me?”

Leonard said it with a gentle smile.

Tenere hesitated at the words, her lips just about to part.

“Tenere!”

A shrieking voice called out. The voice was familiar.

“My brother…….”

A smile of relief spread across Tenere’s face as she recognized Eric.

Leonard’s mouth tightened slightly.

“You, are you okay? How about Josie?”

Eric asked thoughtfully, noticing the blood on the floor. Tenere nodded.

“His Majesty saved me, brother.”

The words made Eric turn around. Despair flashed across his face as he spotted Leonard.

“……Greetings, His Majesty the Emperor.”

“It’s been a long time, Lord Evan.”

Despite the friendly greeting, Eric looked uncomfortable.

The distrustful stare wasn’t pleasant, but he was willing to give the Empress’s brother the benefit of the doubt.

“I see you’ve been protecting the Empress all this time, and I’ll make a case for it in the palace.”

“The Empress……?”

At that, Eric looked back at Tenere as if demanding an explanation. Leonard spoke up quickly.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t heard back from the Empress yet.”

Tenere’s shoulders stiffened slightly as their gazes met.

Hesitating between her brother’s and the Emperor’s gazes, she spoke cautiously.

“Are you sure you won’t ……punish us?”

A glance in her brother’s direction told her that he was worried that Eric might be guilty.

Leonhard smiled fondly as if to reassure her.

“Of course not.”

A large hand stroked his tear-dried face. Tenere hesitated, then slowly took the hand.

Moist eyes softened. Leonard continued to speak while holding her hand.

“I will follow Her Majesty’s words.”

Tenere nodded, her wet eyes softening. Leonard looked at her and then at the child wrapped in an old blanket.

He hadn’t said anything yet, but there was no doubt that the child was his, the son of the Emperor.

Everything was for the sake of bringing back this child and his bloodline.

It wasn’t about personal feelings.

‘It seems you’ve found a good excuse to bring the lady back to Empress.’

A voice mixed with laughter echoed in his ears.