Chapter 7
She could only wish for this banquet to end quickly.
Yet the line of nobles offering their congratulations seemed endless.
“Ha ha ha, the Princess and the Prince truly take after His Majesty.”
“They will surely grow to be dependable sovereigns, just like His Majesty.”
“Indeed, indeed. I greatly look forward to seeing which of them shall become the sun of this nation. Ha ha.”
Even as they offered their greetings, they were far too busy watching for signs of whom they ought to seat upon the throne.
“You would do well not to wag your tongues so carelessly.”
“Pardon?”
“I—I beg your pardon?”
“Be careful, lest your mouths tear apart from too much flattery.”
Unable to endure it any longer, the Emperor spoke, and the noisy nobles promptly fell silent.
Good grief. Dividing sides already, when they’ve barely even taken their first steps.
She let out a sigh toward the nobles and gave a small shake of her head.
“Ahem. It seems we’ve spoken far too long.”
“We shall take our leave now.”
Even as the nobles withdrew, she could feel their glances flickering toward herself and Lucas. She shifted in her mother’s embrace.
“Princess, are you feeling unwell?”
The Empress, noticing at once, met her daughter’s gaze and asked gently.
“Umamu.”
“Obubu.”
At the sound of her voice, Lucas too began to fidget restlessly in the Emperor’s arms, as if he had been waiting for his turn to complain.
It was no wonder, for an infant, remaining in one position for so long must have been stifling and uncomfortable.
The Emperor glanced between the two children, then gave a subtle signal to the chamberlain.
At his side, the chamberlain quickly brought over two goblets filled with a golden liquid, presenting them to the Emperor and Empress.
“His Majesty will now speak,” the chamberlain announced.
At those words, the nobles’ attention turned toward the Emperor.
Raising his goblet, the Emperor addressed the gathering nobles.
“I extend my gratitude to all of you who have gathered here today to celebrate the birth of the Princess and Prince.”
He looked over the banquet hall, offering his greeting to them.
“Now, enjoy the banquet to your heart’s content.”
With that, the Emperor lifted his goblet.
“We are grateful for your kindness, Your Majesty. Congratulations on the birth, Princess, Prince.”
The nobles bowed their heads toward the Emperor, the Empress, the Princess, and Lucas, then raised their goblets.
Satisfied, the Emperor gathered the children into his and the Empress’s arms, and together they left the banquet hall.
***
“Your Highness!”
“Princess, have you come to see your mother again today?”
After the banquet celebrating their first birthday, the Empress grew weaker by the day.
There came to be more days spent confined to her bed than walking in the gardens. To visit their ailing mother, she and Lucas practiced their toddling steps all the more diligently, making their way to the Empress’s palace.
With unsteady little steps, she ran straight into the Empress’s open arms.
Even while lying down, as soon as the Empress caught sight of her by the doorway, she would sit up in bed, spreading her arms wide and waiting for her.
“You’re walking even more bravely than yesterday.”
The Empress gathered her into her arms, showering her cheeks with kisses.
“Kya-ha-ha!”
She felt an overwhelming joy at her mother’s kisses.
A happiness she had never known in her previous life now filled her body in this moment, and she was content beyond words.
“And what did our Princess do today?”
Before her daughter arrived at the Empress’s palace, the Empress would always ask Lenny about what she had been doing.
In the meantime, the little girl would fiddle with her mother’s fingers and roll about on her belly at her side.
“Your Majesty, the Prince has arrived.”
“The Prince is a little late today.”
Since she visited the Empress’s palace every day, Lucas too began to follow after her.
At first, he would visit just as often, but it seemed he had fallen asleep today and come late.
Carried in Sylvia’s arms, Lucas entered the room with drowsy eyes still heavy with sleep, as she had expected, he must have taken quite a deep nap.
Sylvia gently passed Lucas into the Empress’s arms, then quietly stepped back.
“Ma-a?”
“Prince, are you starting to wake up?”
At the Empress’s soft voice, Lucas smiled sweetly, his sleepiness gradually lifting, and nestled into her embrace.
“Ri-i.”
Hearing her name, she turned toward Lucas.
She wondered, did Lucas know about their mother’s impending death too?
The always-smiling face of Lucas looked as though he knew everything and was pretending not to.
***
For the past year, she had visited the Empress’s Palace every day, spending time with her mother.
In the meantime, she’d come up with several plans for how to live a leisurely life as a jobless noble, but in the end, it seemed like the only way forward was to turn Lucas into a docile emperor who listened to her.
She had no desire to become emperor herself, and she loathed the idea of fighting for the throne even more. The plan she had carefully devised was to plant Lucas on that troublesome seat while she enjoyed every comfort and privilege she could from the sidelines.
And for the sake of a peaceful future, it seemed wise to secure a tidy sum and leave the palace behind one day.
If so, she would need to prepare some funds to use once she left the imperial court.
‘I’ll pocket what I can from the jewels they award me… That should do.’
Lost in her elaborate schemes, she bounced her hips in excitement.
“Princess, are you heading to the Empress’s Palace again today?”
“Yeah! I’m going!”
Lenny lifted the gleeful girl into her arms and made her way to the Empress’s Palace.
As she continued to visit, her unsteady steps turned to quick trots, and the baby babble she used to manage evolved into a fair command of words.
Amidst a precarious blend of happiness and unease, the day of her and Lucas’s second birthday arrived.
The atmosphere in the imperial palace was far more subdued than it had been the year before.
It was because her mother’s condition had deteriorated so much, it wasn’t even certain whether she would be able to attend the banquet.
An official notice was sent to the provincial nobles, informing them to simply send gifts, while invitations were extended only to the nobles of the capital.
Though modest in scale, the banquet would still be held in the Parthus Hall, second only to the Central Hall within the palace.
They kept watch over her mother’s condition until the very day of the banquet, but in the end, the imperial physician judged that she would be unable to attend.
Just before the banquet began, she and Lucas went with their father to visit the Empress’s Palace.
“I’m sorry I won’t be able to be with you.”
“It’s okay… Please don’t be sick…”
“Mother…”
Already, the shadow of death clung darkly to her mother’s face.
The girl struggled to hold back the tears threatening to fall and etched her mother’s face into her memory.
The Empress’s hands, once so fair and soft, had withered to the bone, her joints starkly pronounced.
“Let’s head to the banquet hall now. The Empress needs her rest.”
“Yes, Your Majesty. Please… take good care of our children.”
“…You needn’t worry.”
Seeing the Empress’s pallor, the Emperor quickly took the children and led them from the Empress’s Palace toward the banquet hall.
“I’ll be with you today, so don’t be afraid.”
“Yes…”
“Yeah…”
He entered the banquet hall with the children in his arms.
“The Emperor His Majesty, and—”
The herald’s voice caught as he bit his lip.
It was likely because of the Empress’s absence.
“My apologies, Your Majesty…”
“It’s fine.”
The herald bowed his head in deep apology, but the Emperor calmly dismissed it and looked ahead.
The man drew in a deep breath and announced once more.
“His Majesty the Emperor, Her Highness Princess Eileen, and His Highness Prince Lucas are entering.”
The nobles gathered in the banquet hall bowed their heads solemnly as they entered.
Unlike the previous year, the twin children’s second birthday banquet passed in heavy, subdued silence.
“Sniffle… Waaah…”
Not long after that second birthday, their mother finally could not escape death.
“Mother! Mother!”
Eileen wept bitterly in Lenny’s arms.
“Princess, please don’t cry… Please don’t cry…”
Lenny clutched the child close, tears falling from her own eyes as well.
“I couldn’t protect Mother… Eileen was useless…”
The little girl was consumed by guilt over failing to protect her mother.
“That’s not your fault, Princess… Please, don’t say such things…”
“I miss Mother… Waaah…”
“Princess… My dear little prince…”
Lenny continued to rock her gently, patting her back until the girl’s sobs subsided.
But her grief did not end. Day and night she wept until her entire body burned with fever, eventually collapsing.
“Mother… Mother…”
Even in a dazed, feverish haze, she called for her mother.
“Princess, I’m right here.”
And every time, Lenny would hold her hand tightly, gently patting her belly.
In the midst of delirium, fragments of her past life began to surface.
She recalled the joy of awakening to her abilities earlier than Lucas, of boasting to her father and hearing his first-ever words of praise.
Then the scene changed. On the day of her coming-of-age ceremony, standing before the gathered nobles, she failed to display her powers, meeting her father’s cold gaze and Lucas’s mocking sneer.
Another shift in memory brought her to the moment after returning to the past, witnessing her mother’s death once again.
“Mother!”
She bolted awake, crying out for her.
Her whole body ached as though she’d been beaten, and her mind remained clouded and dull.
“Princess!”
A voice called out to her from beside the bed.
“Are you awake now? Can you see me?”
“…”
But she had no strength left to answer Lenny.
“You have no idea how worried I’ve been…”
“…”
“I was so afraid I might lose you too… Truly…”
Lenny clutched her hand tightly, weeping.
“Lenny…”
“Yes. I’m right here. I’ll stay right by your side like this.”
“It hurts… It hurts so much…”
“Fetch the palace physician at once!”
Even after that, Eileen struggled to regain full consciousness. And when she did, she would only call out for her mother.
The Princess’s residence, once filled with laughter and blooming smiles, grew bleak. Lenny and the other attendants could only watch in sorrow.
“Waaah! Mother! Don’t go! Don’t go! Eileen will go too!”
“What should I do, Princess? What should I do to stop your tears…”
Even when she managed to sleep, she would soon awaken in tears. Lenny, wiping her own eyes, could do nothing but hold her.
A month passed like that, and only then, when her mind finally cleared a little, did she realize there was something different about her body.
