It was a romance novel, so the focus was on overcoming trials to achieve the love of the protagonist, but in retrospect, the Empire’s civil war allowed the Kingdom of Brillian to interfere since the Kaylen family served as the center of the emperor’s faction, which had disappeared causing the Empire to weaken.

‘In the last chapter, without mentioning the Empress, Helios and Daisy, who suppressed the rebellion, overcame their sadness, got married, and lived happily ever after. It ended like that.’

No one knows the story after the end. Were they able to be happy until the end?

‘Let’s avoid the Empress as much as possible!’

I clenched my fists and vowed. For a smooth life without bumps, keep relationships to a minimum, and avoid the original characters except for the twins!

However, that vow was quickly broken.

***

It was a clear sky without a single cloud. The scent of summer was fast approaching. We prepared diligently from the morning and got on the carriage.

​​I tied my hair in a ponytail with a lavender ribbon that matched my dress. It was hot, so I tied it up high to keep my neck cool.

Ariel chose a lavender dress too, saying she would wear the same outfit as me, but I persuaded her, saying that it would be prettier to match with the same design in a different color rather than the same color.

‘The trend is a similar look.’

Ariel, wearing a burgundy dress with pigtails, was ten times cuter than usual, so when I complimented her, she blushed slightly.

“It’s already hot.”

Ariel flapped her fan and opened the carriage window.

“I want to take off my jacket.”

Erial flapped his shirt while unbuttoning it.

“Still, we’re not adults yet, so we’re dressed casually.”

Wearing the clothes accordingly is important when meeting the emperor, so we had to dress formally. Since I’m not an adult yet, I wore light clothes without the heavy petticoat and corset. Every summer, I miss cotton t-shirts and shorts.

“Where is the air conditioner?”

Fortunately, air conditioning existed! However, because it’s expensive, some aristocrats don’t have it unless they’re wealthy. The air conditioning here is a temperature-controlled device operated by a mana stone, and it’s an artifact that serves as an air conditioner in the summer and a heater in the winter. The weather isn’t very hot yet, so it was not yet installed in the carriage, but when the temperature rises further, the artifact will be attached to the carriage.

‘I can’t believe you’re rich enough to put expensive artifacts on the wagon. You’re the best.’

TL/N: She’s talking about the duke

Since the duke is an adult, he wore a uniform and even a cape. Still, it’s impressive that he doesn’t sweat a single drop.

‘I think I could believe that the Duke isn’t human.’

Ariel and Erial seemed to have the same thoughts as me, impressed by the Duke.

“We’ve arrived.”

When the duke got off first and reached out his hand, I pushed Ariel slightly. She figured out what I was trying to do, and held the Duke’s hand with a deep breath. I then got off the carriage with Erial’s escort.

As we arrived at the Imperial Palace, the servant who was waiting approached us. It was the Imperial Palace I had seen a few days ago, but the atmosphere at night and day was very different. The pure white castle was even more spectacular in the daytime.

As I was walking along the long hallway, Ariel approached me, poked at my side, and whispered softly.

​​“Sister, I’m telling you this again, it’s not like that. Rather, I envy Father. Because he’s a man, he was able to escort you. I don’t care about gender but I can do it too.”

Ariel’s shoulders looked gloomy when she said that. It didn’t matter whether they envied me or the Duke. Anyway, because she seemed to feel lonely, I grinned and grabbed her hand.

“Then, I’ll leave the escort to Ariel today.”

“Really?”

We walked while whispering to each other behind the Duke and servant. We were holding each other’s hands tightly.

“Please wait a moment.”

We already arrived at the office where the emperor is. After guiding the way, the servant knocked and announced that we had come, and soon we were given permission to enter.

“The glory of the Empire, I greet Your Majesty the Emperor, descendant of the sun.”

The twins and I bowed our heads behind the duke and showed courtesy. His Majesty ordered us to raise our heads with a warm smile.

“The Duke’s children all look so brilliant. The future of the empire is bright.”

“Thank you.”

The duke replied without admiration to the emperor’s praise. In the letter, the duke wrote only one necessary line of what he needed, so he took out a small coffer from his arms and handed it to the emperor without any courtesy.

“Oh, oh. This is Triska’s tears! A treasure that is said to have the energy of the Fire Spirit King that was asleep in the Duke’s house. Is it okay to give me this precious thing?”

“Yes. My niece’s life was saved, so I have to give you something worthy of it.”

Is it just me who thinks the duke is a bit arrogant?

No, isn’t it really rare if it contains the energy of the Fire Spirit King? I was only saved from the pond, and besides, the emperor didn’t save me, it was Sirius, so why are you giving it to the emperor?

My stomach hurt, but I couldn’t express it.

‘The worth of the spirit stone prepared and myself doesn’t match at all. Should I have just asked the Duke to prepare Sirius’ present?’

The ‘Tears of Triska,’ which the emperor took out from the box with admiration, was a beautifully crafted necklace in the shape of a water droplet, by the hands of an artisan. The necklace, which blazed as if it could start a fire at any moment, had a color similar to Ariel’s hair.

‘Oh my gosh. It’s such a waste to give that to the emperor.’

A necklace so beautiful that it catches anyone’s eye in an instant. It was something that did not suit the emperor. No matter how you see him, he looked like a dean. He seemed kind and tolerant, but he wasn’t handsome.

‘I’m glad that their maternal blood is strong. Neither Helios nor Sirius resembles the emperor.’

Helios’ appearance was omitted because of his mouth, and Sirius was also a very handsome man. His face resembled the empress’s face when it is said the emperor fell in love with her. Compared to Helios, he was a handsome man with thin and slightly drooping eyes, exuding a soft and pitiful atmosphere.

‘He was described in the novel as a sickly handsome boy with black hair and black eyes.’

I remembered Sirius, whom I met at the Crown Prince’s birthday banquet. He was a hundred million light-years away from the word sickly. I still can’t forget the cold eyes that looked down at me from the pond.

‘No, Sirius, who doesn’t care about the world, saved me. Let’s think positively.’

I erased Sirius who was cold-hearted from my head. I tried to focus on the emperor’s words and finish my thoughts, but the conversation came to an end.

“Do you have a moment? There’s something I want to talk about with the two of you.”

“Right now? But we need to greet Prince Sirius.”

As expected of the Duke!

Regardless of who, when, where, what, how, or why, he firmly showed his resolve. Despite his refusal, the emperor did not erase his smile.

“If it’s Sirius, why don’t we just send the children? I was going to call you anyways, but wouldn’t it be more convenient for the duke to finish our conversation now and go?”

“…….”

The Duke seemed to be conflicted when the emperor said he had to come again if he refused today.

‘The Duke has the tendency to do everything once  as he goes out.’

​​The Duke nodded his head reluctantly, probably because it was too much trouble to come again. He was expressionless as usual, but anyone who knew the duke well could tell. Telling by the slight wrinkles on his forehead, he was annoyed!

‘Let’s not bother him.’

I nodded.

The twins, who read my eyes, also nodded. If you bother, he’ll explode.

“Of course. We will go out first.”

Except for the duke, I, the oldest, said as a representative. The emperor greeted me kindly like Santa Clause.

“Uncle seems very annoyed. I hope it fades by the time we get on the carriage.”

“I know. When Father is angry, things around gets cold without the need for a thermostat.”

“It’s okay. Even if Father is annoyed, he doesn’t say anything to me and sister. You might be dragged away though.”

Erial’s expression hardened. Often, they had matches under the guise of training, but Erial was unilaterally beaten. But I couldn’t help but laugh.

‘No. Ariel, it’s because you don’t know, if the Duke gets annoyed, he sometimes bothers me.’

It’s such a terrible time that I can’t even tell the twins! The Duke, who is in a bad mood, sometimes comes to my room and asks me to have a cup of tea. At first, I tried hard to relax and lighten the mood, but the Duke remained silent.

‘A moment of dreadful silence.’

The duke left my room after sipping tea without saying a word. I still wondered about the reason why he came to drink tea in the first place. You might think that drinking tea without a word is not hard, but who would be comfortable with your boss, who doesn’t seem to be in a good mood, sitting in front of you without saying a word!

Only the sound of drinking tea and the clacking sound of the teacup can be heard. Thanks to this, putting down a teacup without making a sound become my specialty.

‘Now, I’ve adapted to this situation to the point where I space out even if the Duke comes.’

I was close to giving up. Phew, by the way, the Imperial Palace is too wide. We were being guided to Sirius’ palace by the court maid, but even after walking for a long time, I still could not see his palace.

“How much longer do we have to go?”

“You just have to walk as much as you have come now.”

My trashy stamina, give me strength! We still have halfway to go!

I was smiling on the outside, but crying on the inside. I usually take a lot of walks, but my stamina doesn’t increase. Seriously, I was contemplating whether I should take swordsmanship training along with Erial, but there was a presence among the bushes.

“Who is it!”

Erial, who felt the presence first, stood in front of us and shouted, wary of the bushes. The maid, who was guiding the way, was also surprised, so she hugged me and Ariel tightly to protect us.

“Help me.”

It was a voice so delicate that it overshadowed our caution. We then relaxed and approached the bushes.

***

Bella wasn’t feeling well. It was because of the man smiling in front of her with an excited expression.

“I heard the Ardentines are coming today.”

Helios said in a voice full of curiosity.