Chapter 13
Chapter 13: That Problematic Rumor
Late in the morning, delectable foods were laid out in the Empress’s chambers. The Emperor had ordered them prepared for the Empress, who had not left her room.
“Please eat, Empress. I instructed them to prepare your favorites.”
“You must have free time on your hands, coming here personally to concern yourself with my meals.”
“I have an abundance of work to do. Thanks to you, Empress.”
Tatar glanced at the pile of documents haphazardly placed on one side of the low dining table. The paperwork had doubled due to her pushing her duties onto him.
While he didn’t mind handling her work, it was troublesome to lose so much personal time. For instance, he had no outlet to relieve his built-up stress, occasionally resulting in violent outbursts. He barely managed by receiving reports on Vinea’s every move.
Finally, he came to check in person that his Empress was still breathing properly.
Tatar stood up and moved behind Vinea, who was seated at the table opening a letter. Due to his tall stature, his shadow fell over the letter, making it difficult to read. Her eyes narrowed slightly.
“A letter from Veshnu. From Grand Duke Akta Bardag?”
“He would have received a report that the assassination failed. The contents of the letter are always the same.”
Her uncle’s letters of concern were truly tedious. Inquiries about her married life and the state of Tessibania, how her father was faring as Emperor, assurances that her mother’s health had improved greatly so she needn’t worry…
Banal and useless content. However, it was sufficient evidence to show he was concerned for his niece who had married into a foreign country.
Whether she replied or not would make little difference in the future, so Vinea tore up the letter and carelessly tossed it onto the table. Tatar’s low chuckle sounded above her head.
The next letter she opened was also from Veshnu. The reason a letter bearing the seal of the Veshnu imperial family could come directly to her room without going through Tatar was that it was a letter of concern sent to a daughter who had become Empress.
Upon opening the letter, it contained the news she had been waiting for days.
[My beloved Vinea, are you faring well? The palace is so desolate without you. Your mother and I, in this familiar yet strange place…]
She skipped over the lengthy greetings and turned directly to the next page.
[…Thus, I am sending you part of the materials about Sefitiana that you requested. It’s not surprising that you, who became a princess overnight and had to marry an unwanted partner, would be curious about the start of the last war. I’m sorry, Vinea. Whenever you need anything, contact your father. I love you.]
The days of shedding tears of longing while reading family letters had long since passed. Vinea set down the letter with an unaffected expression.
Tatar, who had been watching from behind, also lost interest at the content that didn’t deviate much from expectations.
“What did you request?”
“I asked for materials related to Sefitiana.”
“This isn’t the first time you’ve made such a request, is it? You must already know all the contents.”
“I also asked for the restoration of documents from the ruined temple near the border.”
One of Tatar’s eyebrows raised.
That was the temple located closest to the wasteland where Sefitiana was first discovered 100 years ago.
The reason it had been left untouched until now was that it had been completely submerged 40 years ago due to flooding from a nearby river, barely retaining its shape.
Additionally, it was situated near the border where the effects of the war had been most severe. With less than a year having passed since the declaration of the war’s end, the tension between the two empires had not yet fully dissipated, making it too soon to disturb.
“I hear the archaeologists in Veshnu are skilled. It’s a good idea, but isn’t there another reason we haven’t shown interest in that place?”
Tatar sat down heavily on the sofa with the pile of documents, carelessly brushing back his disheveled bangs.
“It would take nearly a year just to restore the temple. We’d regress again before then. In the end, it would be a futile effort.”
Even in the seemingly eternal time given to them, there was a flaw. They could not surpass the time limit of one year. Because of this, they didn’t bother with plans that would take over a year, or close to it. The restoration of the submerged temple was no exception.
They had attempted restoration a couple of times, wondering if there might be something helpful, but always regressed in time before seeing the end result.
“We need to finish before the regression. I plan to bring in workers from villages near the abandoned temple, with the cooperation of the Veshnu Empire.”
“Will that be enough?”
“If it were, we would have succeeded in restoration long ago. We’ll source the manpower from Veshnu and the materials from Tessibania. They’ll be eager to outdo each other, so they’ll naturally speed things up.”
“The plan is good, but the two empires have already joined forces to build temples burying Sefitiana. There’s no proper justification.”
“How hard could it be to create one measly justification?”
There were plenty of justifications. They just needed to choose from the unfavorable futures soon to come and polish them to look presentable. After briefly searching her memories, Vinea chose one of the useful cards.
“An epidemic will soon sweep through Tessibania. We should use that.”
“The work I have to handle will double from now on.”
He flipped through the documents with a bored expression. Watching him, Vinea stood up from her seat. She approached him closely and gently traced the slight shadows under his eyes with her index finger.
His eyes, reminiscent of clouds on an overcast day, slowly closed at her gentle touch.
“Bear with the fatigue for now. In return, I’ll spend my time for Your Majesty in the next life.”
Tatar, who had caught Vinea’s hand caressing his eyes, slowly opened his eyes. He stared at Vinea with eyes that made it impossible to guess what he was thinking.
“You handle me as if I’m in the palm of your hand.”
“Does that displease you?”
“No. It means the Empress knows me too well.”
Tatar lightly kissed Vinea’s palm before turning his eyes back to the mountain of documents.
“The rumors about the Empress are quite something.”
“Ah. You mean the rumors that the Empress from an enemy country dares to manipulate the Emperor of Tessibania at will, that she’s the villainess of the century?”
“If you want, I’ll take care of it.”
“No, leave it be.”
Vinea turned away with a disinterested face. Those rumors, she hadn’t failed to anticipate them. She had heard much worse before, so this level was nothing.
Insignificant and boring too. If she wanted to, she could use him to plunge Tessibania into a hell worse than hell itself.
Compared to the evil deeds she had committed in past lives, the rumor of being a villainess of the century was merely cute.
Vinea pulled the bell cord attached to the bed, and soon after, the head maid entered the room.
The head maid quickly composed her surprised expression upon seeing Tatar sitting on the sofa examining documents, and bowed.
“You called for me?”
“I will visit the Knight’s Order at dawn five days from now. Prepare accordingly.”
“Understood.”
It wasn’t unusual for the Empress to inspect the Knight’s Order. The problem was that she had hardly been doing any of her duties as Empress until now.
It was a startling order to suddenly announce she would visit the Knight’s Order near the border, not even the one within the imperial palace.
After the head maid left the room, Tatar spoke while flipping through documents.
“I can understand the merchant guild’s banquet being your first, but this outing will likely be quite troublesome. Many will be interested in the Empress who has stirred up such grand rumors.”
“I’m aware. Since I’ve rejected all audiences until now, they’ll see this as their chance to approach.”
“You seem to be hoping for that.”
“I need rumors. Rumors that can spread quickly and widely.”
“Is there anything more grand than being a villainess who manipulates the Emperor?”
Vinea approached the vase placed by the window.
A single lily stood proudly in the center of the white vase, surrounded by decorative leaves.
How elegant and pure. The white petals crumpled helplessly in Vinea’s tightly clenched hand.
Someone’s face, strikingly similar to the lily, naturally came to mind. Eurene Castallo. The persistent connection that clung annoyingly through dozens of repeated lives.
Facing that clear face that believed she was truly his destiny made her recall, even when she wanted to forget, how many times that noble love had dragged them into the mud.
A stupid noble lady who knew nothing. A woman who dared to try to possess Tatar, without even the memories of wandering through the same time dozens of times.
If it meant taking what that woman had, she could gladly endure the trouble.
Especially if it helped in pursuing the clues thrown by Sefitiana.
“The Blessed Lily. I want that title.”
If she could snatch away the title that woman would soon acquire, she could naturally draw the praise that would be directed at her.
That would become a good weapon. Just as in the past, when she escaped pretending to be truly noble despite committing all sorts of evil deeds.
“…”
Tatar remained silent.
Vinea turned her body again to check his face. The speed at which he flipped through documents remained unchanged, and his expression was the same.
“I wonder if you’re skilled or if you’re really okay with this.”
At Vinea’s muttered words, meant to be heard, he put down the document he was reading with a thud and stood up.
“Since the Empress seems curious about my reaction, I’ll kindly answer.”
Vinea stared intently at Tatar as he approached her closely.
The Blessed Lily. The clear face of the woman who would soon acquire that title if she didn’t snatch it away came to mind.
That pure and white smile, just shedding her girlhood and beautifully blooming. She who acted as if only what she did was good, distinguishing between good and evil, was the most terrible of the connections that clung to Tatar under the name of love.
As if trying to read the hidden intentions in Vinea’s blue eyes, his persistent gaze captured the blue eyes.
“Telling you to manipulate me as you please is the same as saying you can kill her using my hands. Does that answer your question?”
“I wonder if you’d give the same answer even if this were truly the last life.”
Pfft, he let out a laugh as if deflating.
His shoe completely crushed the lily that had fallen from Vinea’s hand and was rolling on the floor.
“Even if the regression ends, do you think we can go back to how we were before? My Empress, Vinea. We can’t go back to the past. How could we let this hellish experience pass like a night’s dream?”
A deep smile settled on his face.
“Do whatever you want. Whether you want to destroy the empire, manipulate me, or kill her to steal that title.”
Realizing that Vinea’s mood had changed at his answer, Tatar smiled lightly.
“If it were me, I would have cut off her head, thrown it at my feet, and told you to burn it with your own hands. Then I would have checked what expression you were making.”
“I’m not that vicious.”
Anyway, now that she was certain he wouldn’t interfere, it was time to move freely.
“I’ll be away from the palace for a few days.”
“That’s not a sound I like to hear.”
Tatar took Vinea’s hand and lightly kissed it. Bending at the waist, he raised his head to meet her eyes, his own eyes curving slightly to hide the madness within them.
“Call me whenever you need me. That includes killing Eurene Castallo.”
“I’m quite capable of handling such trivial matters on my own. So, Your Majesty.”
Vinea raised her hand towards Tatar’s neck. Without commenting on his state of dress, buttons carelessly undone as usual with no regard for etiquette, she simply buttoned up his collar to the top.
“You should keep a close eye on His Majesty, the Emperor Emeritus. By now, he must be struggling with his hatred for his new daughter-in-law. And refrain from unnecessary violence.”
“As you command.”
