Whose Child Belongs to the Emperor - ✿ dusk blossoms ✿

Chapter 7 – Part 2

After a long meal, it was already dark outside.

Joshua ate his fill and seemed to be in a good mood.

Tenere held the child’s hand and shifted her position. Eric followed behind.

“Tenere…”

“Tenere.”

The voice that reached them belonged to Leonard. Joshua quickly snuggled into his father’s lap.

Leonard held the child in one hand and looked at Tenere.

“Are you okay?”

“What?”

Tenere was a little perplexed, but Leonard seemed oddly anxious.

“What… did you say?”

“….”

When she cautiously asked, Leonard instead tightly sealed his lips.

Watching Eric’s back as he returned to the room, Tenere turned her gaze back to Leonard.

“Can we talk for a moment in the room?”

His hesitant demeanor was not reassuring. Tenere slowly nodded.

Even though it was a small castle, there was a reception room and a garden. However, there was only one bedroom for private conversations.

Even if they weren’t married again yet, they could come and go as they pleased in each other’s bedrooms.

After having a maid bring her a simple herbal tea, Tenere found Leonard playing with their child.

He seemed to be enjoying himself as he picked him up and played with him.

‘He was fond of his child…….’

It was obvious at a glance that he truly cared for Joshua.

It wasn’t often that the emperor himself would take the time to play with a child, no matter how precious.

He had even offered to change Joshua’s diaper himself not long ago.

Leonard demonstrated games for Joshua to play, sat him on his lap, and read him short stories.

As he closed the thin book, Tenere spoke up.

“Your Majesty, the matter you want to discuss….”

“Ah.”

Only then did Leonard raise his head.

Joshua’s attention was drawn to the rubber ball that rolled as he slid off his father’s lap.

As he watched the child walk away, he glanced back towards Tenere.

He came in wanting to talk, but when she asked him what he wanted to talk about, he stuttered.

‘I was going to talk about Laura Hale.’

He was going to tell her not to worry and that he wasn’t going to get any concubines.

But when he remembered Laura’s nonchalant demeanor no matter what she wore, it was hard to get the words out.

“What did you and Lord Evan talk about?”

Leonard regretted the words the moment they came out, but he didn’t let it stop him from asking.

“It was just an innocent joke.”

Tenere replied as if it were no big deal.

But it had come up again and again.

Technically, it was a one-sided whisper from Eric’s side, but Tenere laughed and punched him in the arm.

To him, it was a childish gesture, a way of saying, ‘I’ve never been beaten like that.’

It wasn’t like he liked to be hit, but why did it bother him so much?

Looking at Leonard’s unresponsive face, Tenere seemed to hesitate as to whether she should tell him. She opened her mouth in a small voice.

“When an apple smiles, it’s called a green apple…….”

“…”

“It seems that the atmosphere improved when His Majesty initiated the warm conversation. My brother says that when he gets back to the manor, he’ll be just as relaxed with his people.”

It was a calm answer, but somehow it felt like he was trying desperately to protect his brother.

Leonard also knew that her response wasn’t entirely truthful. Perhaps it was to conceal any feelings of offense and later mock the Hale family and their arrogant behavior.

“And…”

“Yes?”

“Isn’t that all?”

Even as he spoke, Leonard appeared somewhat petty, eagerly awaiting Tenere’s response with an anxious heart.

Tenere seemed a bit flustered but soon spoke up.

“When I was in the north, after witnessing the chicken being slaughtered, I couldn’t eat chicken anymore. My brother asked if it was okay for the main course to be duck instead.”

Tenere’s response delivered two shocks to Leonard. One, that he was completely unaware of what Eric knew, and two, that this delicate person had personally witnessed a slaughter.

After a moment of silence, Leonard spoke.

“Are you alright?”

“I’m fine. In truth, as long as it’s meat, I eat it well. Brother just worries unnecessarily.”

Tenere answered with a smile, but Leonard remained silent.

He wondered if there was anything else he didn’t know. Things she didn’t like. Hated. Feared or found unpleasant.

“Your Majesty.”

It was Tenere who first opened her mouth.

“Does it bother you that I’m close to my brother?”

His small lips curled into a tight line at the direct question. Tenere hesitated a moment, noticing Leonhard’s expression.

“Could there be strange rumors circulating? I haven’t thought that far…”

In response to Lady Hale’s question about their time in the north, Tenere had to think about how their escape with her brother would be perceived.

There were many who sought to create messy speculation just by being close between genders. While it seemed unlikely that such standards would be applied even to siblings, those with malicious intent are rarely considered to have common sense.

“It’s nothing of importance.”

Leonard calmly replied. There were indeed some suspicions, but there was no concrete evidence.

It was said that the Empress had taken an interest in her stepbrother and had run away in love.

But he had found the source of the rumor and punished him severely, and if they were to see Joshua, who resembled him, it wouldn’t take long for the rumors to disappear.

The discomfort was simply…

“If you want me to keep my distance, I will.”

“…”

“But Your Majesty, my brother is my only real family, and he’s the one who has kept me safe. Even when I was in the manor, my brother was the only one who was able to calm my father’s anger, but I’ll do it right so there won’t be any unnecessary misunderstandings…….”

‘So, why is it that the one who helped you happened to be him? ’

‘Why do you cherish your brother so much when he never says a good word? ’

There were many things he wanted to say, but Leonard raised the corner of his mouth as if suppressing discomfort.

“I’m just curious, that’s all.”

It’s just a sense of avoidance.

The memory of almost making his half-sister an empress is still fresh in his mind, and all he can do is brush it off.

Leonard continued, trying to manage his complicated emotions.

“You’re right; he’s your only brother, and brotherly love is a good thing, not something to be wary of.”

The words brought an almost unseen smile to Tenere’s lips.

The emotions tangled in confusion were amusingly settled by just that one smile.

“Thank you for your consideration, Your Majesty.”

“You are most welcome. But…”