One of the people lined up in front stood out. Seira managed to hold back her yawn and looked at the man staring at her intently.
Turquoise eyes that resembled the greens of midsummer were directed at her. Louise Franto was the man in a luxurious suit and neatly brushed hair. Aside from his looks, he was also one of the three Dukes of the empire.
Seira and him had never got to exchange greetings since his succession to the Franto dukedom a few months ago. It was mainly because the previous Duke of Franto, Philias, hid his successor from the public eye. Even the nobles didn’t know of Louise’s existence before he rose as the new Duke of Franto.
The Duchess of Askan stared at Louise’s handsome face. In all fairness, Philias’ successor indeed resembled the previous Duke, which made it easier for Seira to recognize that the man was truly Louise Franto, the son of Philias Franto.
‘What is with this handkerchief?…’
She wondered in silence as he held out the expensive-looking piece of fabric again towards her. She hadn’t really paid attention to him as he mouthed in silence, ‘Wipe it.’
“Ah….”
Seira belatedly realized her mistake and handed back his handkerchief. Withholding yawns several times in a row made tears trickle down.
It was obvious that Duke Franto’s actions were conspicuous. Aven and Zion, and even Baron, who were all facing the Emperor, looked back at her. Baron’s eyes shook at the sight of the two of them.
‘No, I didn’t cry. Please don’t look at me like that!’
Seira almost spat curses in the air. She aggressively took the damned handkerchief from Franto and wiped away her tears. Perhaps it was only Calrad and Aven who wouldn’t misunderstand her tears here.
“Thank you,” Seira finally said, “I’ll return the handkerchief later.”
Seira then quickly lowered her head before saying anything else. She didn’t want more attention than what she already has on her now.
She felt a pause from Louis Franto, but she didn’t pay him attention after she thanked him. In the end, he took a step back and went back to his seat without speaking a word.
After all of that, Seira endured the countless glances that gravitated towards her. Finally when all the formal procedures of ending the subjugation war were over, Seira could finally think of returning to Askan as soon as possible.
But her plans didn’t happen as she wanted them to.
“I wanted to speak with you two, so please come along, Jeff and Askan.”
Before Seira could even leave, Calrad called her and Baron together. The young emperor entered the palace first, leaving behind Seira and her eyes full of hate.
“Seira…” Baron came closer, bent down and looked at her before he finally asked, “Is everything fine with you?”
She rubbed the space between her brows and Seira sighed heavily, “I suddenly feel dizzy. Couldn’t you just tell His Majesty that I’ll come and visit next time?”
Baron looked around with a troubled face, “Well…”
He was wary of the situation. The imperial knights were watching their way and he was sure they wouldn’t let her go. In most cases, Baron wouldn’t have minded a little fight, but there were too many eyes on them. The possibility of being accused of treason was high…
“Enough of this. I was merely joking,” Seira smiled and waved her hand. “After all, we can’t disobey the Emperor.”
Calrad’s words in the imperial court of Viseltium were like the law. No one would dare to ignore his call, except maybe if he suddenly dies.
Seira’s eyes turned towards the person next to her, “Aven.”
“Yes, Duchess,” the vassal replied promptly.
“I’ll be back soon enough, so be ready,” Seira instructed.
“Understood, Duchess,” he calmly responded.
It was time for her to walk past him and into the palace. Aven reached out for Seira’s warm hand as if holding her back from something that could hurt her.
“Please be careful,” Aven whispered in a soft voice.
She paused for a few seconds, but Seira eventually took her steps forward, passing through the wide open main gate and entered the palace.
A carriage took Seira further into the imperial palace and was accompanied by a servant. She looked around and noted that somehow the place they treaded was one that she hadn’t been to even when she was a prospective crown princess before.
‘It is true that Calrad became emperor…’ she mused silently.
Even though she knew it, the idea only hit her at that exact moment.
“Please enter,” the servant waved her inside.
“What about Duke Jeff?”
She felt the servant’s hesitation when an answer wasn’t provided. She was already suspicious when she saw two carriages prepared at the gate, but as expected, Calrad wanted to talk to her alone.
She released a weary sigh and stepped out of the carriage. She didn’t know what Calrad was going to say to her, but she was quite confident that she was more comfortable facing him instead of Baron.
The hallway was surprisingly empty. The servant even left her after she was guided to an open door. Seira looked back at the servant’s fast fading silhouette, and then turned around to take a step inside the room.
He was waiting in the middle of what looked like a drawing room that was decorated in vibrant colors. Calrad’s eyes stared at her as she took her time walking. A smile painted the lips Seira once kissed so sweetly, but the smile didn’t reach his cold eyes at all.
“Long time no see, Seira,” Calrad welcomed her.
Seira stared at his stubborn mouth and returned his smile with an equally bland one. She almost snorted at him for calling her by her name only and not addressing her as the ‘Duchess Askan’.
“Yes, it has been a while, isn’t it?” she replied.
Up close, she swore he wasn’t entirely how she remembered him to be. They broke up when he was just twenty-one years old, and now he was already twenty-eight, so that was quite understandable.
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