Chapter 15
(15) I Will Protect Your Majesty (7)
Eleanor was always polite, but the sentences she spun with her calm voice were bold.
Normally, one would be annoyed by someone so impudent and unaware of their place, but somehow it wasn’t unpleasant.
Was it because she did know her place all too well? Or because he sensed that he wasn’t an easy opponent for her to overstep?
“Ah, Your Majesty. I left Snow in such a hurry I couldn’t secure proper funds. I fear I may be inadequate to stand at your side.”
Only then did Heraith take note of Eleanor’s attire. Her silver hair was radiant, her flawless skin smooth, her eyes sparkled like jewels, and her full lips resembled ripe fruit.
She was dazzlingly beautiful, so much so that her lack of proper clothing had gone unnoticed. She wore an old, visibly worn coat far past its fashion prime. The cuffs and hem were clearly frayed.
The dress underneath was likely in similar condition. And peeking out from the hem were the combat boots she had worn when arriving at the palace.
Heraith, finding her appearance amusing, finally spoke.
“Why does it sound like you’re asking me to buy you clothes?”
“Surely not. Don’t you rule the greatest empire in this world? I wouldn’t take you for someone so stingy.”
“Oh my. I’ll be seen as miserly if I don’t buy you a few dresses?”
Heraith tapped the coachman’s bench with his finger.
“To the shopping district.”
***
The carriage stopped at the entrance to the shopping street. Heraith stepped out first and extended his hand. This time, Eleanor took it. Once she was down, she scanned the street with just her eyes.
“There are a lot of people.”
“Crowds gather even before the New Year’s Festival starts.”
“I’ve heard many foreigners visit the capital for it.”
“Some of them are already at the palace. Those who aren’t qualified to enter will be staying in luxury inns in the city.”
“If what I suspect really happens…”
“Then it becomes an international issue.”
Heraith calmly replied and pointed to a nearby dress shop.
“How about that one?”
“They sell mostly ready-made clothing. I suppose I’ll have to pick one from here for now.”
“How much are you planning to wring out of me?”
“A few dresses won’t put a scratch on Your Majesty’s mighty dignity, surely?”
Inside the store, the clerks froze when they recognized Heraith.
“What are you doing? No greeting for His Majesty?”
Too stunned to react, they finally bowed their heads hastily when Eleanor spoke.
“We greet the sun of the Empire!”
“Ah, hello. Nice to meet you for the first time.”
Since they rarely met the Emperor, the greetings were all over the place. Heraith didn’t seem offended. He twitched his fingers, a signal for them to raise their heads, but they had bowed too low to notice.
“You may raise your heads.”
Eleanor kindly added, but the clerks only slightly lifted their gaze, eyes still on the floor.
After all, this was Heraith the Mad Emperor. Though he’d never harmed commoners, his reputation was notorious.
The demon who had killed three of his former empresses, women he had once been close with. The public, unaware of palace intricacies, believed the rumors without question.
“I’d like to buy a dress ”
Eleanor said, and finally one brave clerk stepped forward.
“I-I will assist you.”
Even then, the clerk couldn’t raise her head completely. Realizing there was no way to ease their nerves, Eleanor followed her to the dress display.
“These dresses here are the finest we have. Th-they might not be worthy of someone so esteemed, though.”
“No, they’re beautiful. You have a good eye.”
At Eleanor’s compliment, the clerk perked up, only to blush and bow again after seeing her face.
“Thank you for the kind words.”
“Could you take this one down?”
Eleanor pointed to a deep purple dress.
The clerk hurriedly brought it over, assisted by another, and held it up for Eleanor to see. Heraith leaned against a wall, watching silently.
Eleanor turned to him with a radiant smile.
“What do you think?”
Honestly, Heraith didn’t care much about women’s clothing. It all looked the same to him. He couldn’t tell the difference between this ornate, gold-embroidered dress and the one she wore now.
Still, he answered.
“It’s extravagant.”
“But is it pretty?”
Heraith found her boldness amusing and replied willingly.
“It’s pretty.”
Eleanor accepted the compliment without much reaction, but the clerks flinched.
‘Pretty’—a word that didn’t suit the mad emperor at all.
“Then I’ll take this one. And I’d like a coat as well.”
“A… a coat, yes, this way.”
The tension among the clerks started to ease. They lifted their heads more and the one assisting Eleanor presented the coats with more confidence.
“This one’s made from white rabbit fur. It looks thin, but it keeps the wind out very well.”
“Alright, I’ll take this too. I’d like to change here if possible.”
“Yes, I’ll show you to the dressing room.”
Eleanor entered with the assisting clerks, then realized she was in a tight spot. After hesitating a moment, she asked a nearby clerk.
“Can I put this on my tab?”
***
The news that Heraith had gone on a ‘date’ with Eleanor spread fast, and the first to hear it was the Empress Dowager, Stephanie.
“A date? Heraith Delgado?”
Stephanie scoffed and asked Hensa,
“What do you make of this out-of-character behavior?”
“I passed them briefly—Eleanor Snow is quite beautiful.”
“So you think he fell for her looks?”
“Highly unlikely. He must have some motive…”
“Surely he hasn’t caught on to our plan?”
“No, absolutely not. Who could possibly suspect such a grand scheme that’s been in preparation for so long? Let’s just observe for now. Perhaps the Emperor’s only doing this to irritate Your Majesty.”
“As he always does?”
She wanted nothing more than to send an assassin to stab him in the back among the crowds. But Stephanie knew better than to act rashly.
“Yes, Your Majesty. You must endure.”
***
The first of the consorts to hear the news was Calliope. Told by Cecily, she turned red and sprang to her feet.
“That’s nonsense! A date? His Majesty said it himself?!”
“Yes, Lady Calliope. I heard it with my own ears. Eleanor Snow said she was going on a date with him and asked us to help her prepare.”
“No, no way. She must be lying!”
“But His Majesty visited the Tulip Palace before that, and they left together in the royal carriage.”
“No! No! No! His Majesty wouldn’t go on a date! He never even went on dates with his previous empresses!”
Calliope’s vision turned white with rage. She swayed and collapsed into a seat.
“He wouldn’t… he couldn’t.”
Heraith had never taken a previous empress out like that unless it was for a formal event. Yet now, he’d ridden in a carriage with a woman not yet publicly named Empress?
She clutched her head.
‘This isn’t the time to be emotional. The event has already happened. I must use this opportunity to my advantage.’
Her eyes gleamed as she looked at Cecily.
“If Eleanor Snow went out on a date with His Majesty, then the Tulip Palace is empty right now, right?”
“Pardon? Ah, yes. Even the guards are gone.”
The guards.
Calliope ground her teeth. She should’ve known this would happen the moment the Emperor assigned guards to Eleanor’s palace. Everything had been different since Eleanor Snow arrived.
‘What’s so special about her? Is the Snow family really that powerful?’
Calliope shot up and opened a drawer, pulling out a vial from a hidden compartment. She handed it to Cecily.
“Put this in Eleanor Snow’s face lotion.”
