I Possessed The Immoral Empress - Chapter 52

“Yes, because Your Majesty the Empress cares more about others’ feelings than her own.”

“Oh, um… Well…”

Ermedeline, not accustomed to compliments, suddenly found herself speechless due to Félio’s unexpected words, which sounded somewhat strange.

“I, I’m not that kind, but… I mean…”

“Yes. You’re not the type to burden others with your troubles.”

“Then, if you know that, why…”

“Because I’m like that too. I just happen to be smarter and more proactive than Your Majesty the Empress, so I found out about the Duke de Françoise’s plans in advance and took care of them.”

Again, really?

That audacious face. Shamelessly boasting without changing his expression.

Normally, this kind of behavior felt absurd yet endearing, but this was not the situation for that now.

Ermedeline, who hadn’t wanted to get caught up with Félio, put on a dignified expression.

“You think I can just let this slide?”

“It’s not a joke. It’s serious. If you feel unjust, should I let Your Majesty the Empress take the lead next time?”

This time, he even raised one corner of his mouth, as if provoking.

Félio’s playful smile made the complex emotions of apology and gratitude towards him, which had tormented Ermedeline just a moment ago, suddenly disappear.

‘Ah, I really want to smack him once, just once.’

“I’ll definitely surpass Your Grace next time. No, if Your Grace  is in danger, even if I have to throw myself in harm’s way, I’ll protect you and make a show of it!!”

For a moment, Félio contemplated saying, “There’s no need for that, if you make a mistake, it’s the end for me too,” but instead, he continued with his audacious smile.

“But this time, I was still faster.”

“What?”

“We spread flyers saying that the Empress used her curse to deflect a curse on the orphanage.”

“What?!”

After the wrestling match of words, Ermedeline couldn’t even remember why she was initially angry.

After Félio left in a hurry, claiming he had urgent business, Ermedeline, who was left alone, burst into laughter at how absurd the situation was.

“His Grace, isn’t he shameless?”

“Yes, that’s right. Shameless, isn’t he? I can’t even praise myself like that!”

Rooney nodded with a plump expression, as if agreeing with Ermedeline’s words, and then turned to look in the direction where Félio had disappeared.

“And he’s quite warm-hearted.”

A faint smile graced Ermedeline’s lips as she laughed at Rooney’s reaction.

Rooney, who had initially intended to question what was warm-hearted about that shameless prince, changed her mind after seeing Ermedeline’s smile.

“Yes, that’s true too. He’s made the Empress smile since yesterday, who had been wearing a serious expression all this time.”

“Yeah, that’s right. Warm-hearted and kind.”

***

Getting up late in the morning, Valliere, who had spent the night in bed, was briefly filled with disappointment. For Henry and the original Valliere, it had been just one of many nights, but for the current Valliere, yesterday had been the first night of her life. However, the man she had spent the night with was nowhere to be found, and all that remained was the cold empty space in the morning, welcoming her.

As Valliere, still in her blanket, looked at the spot where Henry had been lying with dazed eyes, a maid tried to cheer her up.

“His Majesty always wakes up early to attend to his duties. So, please don’t be too upset. A large flower basket will be delivered sometime this morning.”

“A flower basket?”

“Yes, they’ve always sent one whenever you spent the night together. It looks like this place will become a paradise of flowers again.”

While Henry had become somewhat colder recently, it seemed that his past self had been quite affectionate toward his lover.

“Yeah. I like…”

“Will they send daisies or fog flowers?”

“Daisies? Fog flowers?”

The current Valliere’s taste leaned toward fancy flowers like roses and lilies, but it seemed that the original owner of this body had preferred simple flowers.

Valliere couldn’t understand why Henry liked fog flowers, which were given when roses were purchased, but she couldn’t afford to show any signs of it.

“Yeah, I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of flowers they send.”

However, even as the morning passed, and the sun was about to set, Henry’s flower basket hadn’t arrived.

Valliere had been waiting openly for the flower basket every time she heard footsteps outside all day, causing the maids to spend the day in a state of heightened tension.

“It seems there’s a lot of work to be done now that Foundation Day is over. He will have to deal with matters related to Duke de Françoise from yesterday as well.”

When the maid mentioned it, Valliere finally remembered that Duke de Françoise had died yesterday.

The name that had been erased from her mind yesterday as she had prepared for her first night.

‘That incompetent fool. He died from his own magic, didn’t he?’

“What did you say?”

“What are people saying about Duke de Françoise’s death?”

“Oh, well, they say the Duke held a grudge against the Empress and cast a curse, but the Empress deflected it with her own magic.”

“What?”

In an instant, Valliere, who knew that there was an ordinary person inside Ermedeline’s body, looked dismayed.

“The flyers have been spread out in the streets since morning!”

“Who would believe such things?”

“Of course, people do. The flyers had the Empress’s seal on them.”

“The Empress’s seal?”

“Yes.”

At least, it was fortunate that her name wasn’t associated with the Duke’s death. It seemed that sending a note demanding the maid who had brought the blueprints to be killed had been effective.

But the Empress deflecting a curse?

While in the past, it might have been possible to unconsciously deflect curses thanks to the instincts remaining in the body, this curse was aimed at the orphanage property, not herself.

‘She doesn’t know how to use magic. How in the world did she deflect a curse on the land? Does that even make sense? Could she have learned magic in such a short time?’

Félio, leaving Ermedeline’s reception room, headed straight to Henry’s office.

“Do the people seem to be accepting it?”

“Yes, it’s a plausible story.”

***

“Is it really not your doing? I accepted your intention, but I don’t quite understand. You seemed determined to have a subordinate suitable for achievements, but what’s the reason for the sudden change of heart?”

Henry’s gaze as he questioned Félio is sharp.

“Am I not a subject of the royal family? I just thought it was a good opportunity to restore the royal family’s reputation, which had suffered due to Duke de Françoise.”

“Indeed, indeed. Truly a loyal answer. But don’t you hold a grudge against the Empress?”

Words can be lies at any time.

Henry kept his eyes sharp to catch any hint in Félio’s expression, no matter what answer came from his mouth.

“I do hold a grudge. A personal one. But the current Empress can be of help to the royal family. She used her own funds to establish an orphanage and cares about the people’s safety, doesn’t she? The duty of a subject comes before personal grievances.”

Throughout Félio’s response, Henry scrutinized him persistently, but Félio’s face showed no hint of emotion.

“Very well. That’s right. With loyal subjects like you, the future of Trivian looks promising.”

Henry stopped being persistent and let Félio go.

He couldn’t help but chuckle to himself when he thought about how he had been trying to probe for any emotional connection between them.

“What’s the harm if there is? After all, that woman had already seen and met all pretty boys in the capital. Besides, what does it matter to me who she meets in the first place?”

Around the time Henry was mocking his own actions, Count Hallstein informed him that Marchioness Belian had come to visit.

“Valliere?”

In truth, Henry didn’t want to meet her.

He had spent the night with her on a whim, but ever since waking up in the morning, he had been plagued by a strange feeling that he couldn’t quite put his finger on, rather than the emotions one would expect after spending the night with a longtime lover.

Moreover, when he began to suspect that Valliere might be involved with Duke de Françoise, Henry truly regretted his actions from the previous day.

“I’m busy…”

However, he felt uncomfortable trying to turn her away with a suitable excuse.

Still, she had been his lover just the night before, and he found it too callous to send her away so readily.

“Let her in.”

But Valliere’s expression as she looked at Henry, who seemed sluggish and distant, was not a pleasant one.

“What’s the matter?”

“You would know better than I what’s the matter.”

The voices of the two, who didn’t have particularly positive feelings toward each other, sounded too sharp for them to be lovers who had spent the night together.

“What?”

Seeing Valliere’s expression, which was bristling with anger, Henry felt like there might be something, but he couldn’t quite guess what it was.

“I don’t really know.”

“Huh?”

With a somewhat arrogant snort, Valliere sat down in front of Henry and punched his arm.

Before Henry could even react to her sudden arrogance, Valliere scolded him sharply in a cutting tone.

“Flowers! Flowers! Why didn’t you send any?!”

“Ah…”

Sending the flowers she liked after spending the night together was a long-standing tradition between them. Henry had always sent her a flower basket to comfort Valliere, who would wake up alone in the morning, feeling lonely due to his busy schedule.

“I forgot about that.”

Despite sending countless flower baskets before, Henry hadn’t even thought about it until Valliere brought it up in person.

“Right. I was thoughtless. I’ll send the flowers tomorrow…”

“Tomorrow, you should send the flowers meant for tomorrow.”

Despite having spent just one night together, Valliere suddenly felt closer to Henry.

Mixing flesh had a remarkable effect on increasing intimacy, and even though it had only happened once, Valliere’s attitude towards Henry had instantly become more comfortable.

However, Henry found Valliere’s sudden change in attitude to be unfamiliar.

No, it was more than unfamiliar; it felt strangely uncomfortable.

After pushing him away and acting coldly for so long, why did this change in attitude as soon as he granted her the title of Marchioness?

It felt like seeing the bottom of a person he had never known before.

“I’ll send them tomorrow. There won’t be a need to send flowers tomorrow.”

Henry’s heart had cooled down in an instant. He replied in a somewhat cold tone and then shifted his gaze to the documents in his hand.

“What do you mean by that…”

“I’m busy. I can’t come to visit every day.”

Even as Valliere looked puzzled by Henry’s attitude, which was so different from what she had expected, his gaze remained fixed on the documents.

“Yes, I see. You’re busy. I understand.”

Even though Valliere made a sarcastic farewell filled with wounded pride due to Henry’s attitude, he didn’t even lift his head until the end.

***

‘Why? Why are you doing this again? Why?’

Valliere, who had no idea why Henry had turned cold again, began trembling with disappointment and anger as she started throwing objects.

‘What’s the problem? Why are you rejecting me?’

This time, she was about to smash the mirror, but as she peered inside, she saw herself as a lovely, elegantly refined woman. Clearly, she had the innocent charm that suited daisies and fog flowers.

‘This body is the same as the woman you love! So why? Why are you rejecting me?’

Valliere’s heart was thrown into chaos by Henry’s unpredictable reactions that occurred several times a day.

Last night, Henry had been so affectionate and kind. In the dim light, his blue eyes were filled with tenderness as he looked at her. Valliere felt like she could melt away under that gaze. Furthermore, this beautiful man, the emperor himself, loved none other than her.

She was overwhelmed by the realization.

His gaze and voice made her feel like she was traversing between heaven and hell in an instant. Her bittersweet first love had begun.

However, Henry’s first love was not the current Valliere. In the original story, Valliere met Henry at the age of eight, becoming friends and eventually lovers after experiencing many challenging and intense moments together.

Valliere may have put on the facade of her first love, but Henry couldn’t help but notice that her soul was different from before. Of course, he attributed her change to the oppressive atmosphere of the palace, believing that she had fallen victim to its corrupting influence.

However, Henry didn’t want her to lose the last remaining vestiges of her humanity, even if she had transformed into this different lover. He didn’t want to let go of the memory of those unstable moments of happiness from their time together, back when he was still human before getting involved in the dark deeds of his stepbrothers.

Despite the hardships, Henry’s first love had brought him happiness, like a flickering beacon in the midst of a storm. Even though he couldn’t bring himself to admit it, he didn’t want to let go of that memory, and now it was slowly coming to an end.