The northern region of the Southern Continent was the home of barbarians and those who tried to exert their evil influence. It was considered to be a barren land of civilization. However, if one goes past the barren land and went further south, there was a region where human civilization blossomed as much as it didn’t in the barren land. There weren’t many people who knew this, but Empress[1] Leila was one of the few people who did.
“Which Southern Continent country are you from?”
“...Jae Nation, Your Imperial Majesty.”
After hesitating for a bit, Yushin responded.
“What was your status in Jae Nation and what did you do there?”
“...I’m sorry, Your Majesty, but I can’t tell you that.”
“You can’t tell me… Even if I told you that it’s an order?”
This was an order from the Empress of a country. But if he refused that order? It was no different than giving up his life. However…
“I’m sorry, Your Imperial Majesty. I can’t tell you.”
Yushin calmly refused to obey the command. Instead, it was Elizabeth who became nervous by his side.
‘What’re you doing so fearlessly?’
Elizabeth knew that her mother was someone who would do something if she said she would. There was no one who could maintain such a rigid attitude in front of her mother besides her family members.
Realizing that Yushin might bear the brunt of her mother’s anger, Elizabeth quickly stepped forward to cover for him.
“Mother, I’m sorry, but this guy has his own reasons…”
“You must have grown up treasured.”
Empress Leila spoke before Elizabeth could even finish talking.
“Your Majesty?”
She calmly continued when Yushin questioned her.
“You must have grown up quite treasured. I believe my daughter said you handled the remaining Ghosts on your own? And three of them at that? And with your bare hands?”
“Yes, Your Majesty. That’s right.”
“I don’t know what the standards are for knights in the Southern Continent, but most of the surviving Ghost members are above an Expert. So, for you to have dealt with them with your bare hands means that you’re either a martial arts genius, or you’ve been given an education for gifted people since young? Or maybe even both.”
“That’s…”
Empress Leila continued to talk when Yushin tried to make excuses.
“That’s not all. You weren’t discouraged or nervous at all when you entered the Imperial Palace. Being able to boldly say everything you need to say to me, the Empress of this country, or to my husband. That means your family is either the Imperial family or a family that is equally powerful. Am I wrong?”
“......”
Yushin closed his mouth.
“So how were you kidnapped by the Ghosts? Well, to be more exact, you said you weren’t kidnapped but you were transferred? And before you met my daughter, you weren’t desperate or rebellious.”
“Your Imperial Majesty, I don’t know what you’re thinking but…”
“Wasn’t it your family that locked you up? And for them to transport you to another continent far away, doesn’t that mean that rather than not killing you, there’s a reason they can’t kill you? And you intended to follow along with their plan. I don’t know what the deal is, but there’s a possibility that something precious to you is being held hostage.”
“......”
“Was there anything wrong in my predictions so far?”
Looking at Leila’s relaxed expression, Yushin thought, ‘Is the Empress of this continent a monster?’
In a sense, he was correct.
Empress Leila slowly leaned back as she spoke.
“Truthfully, I was going to agree to whoever my daughter brought back home.”
“That’s good, then. It’s this guy. He’s pretty handsome. Problem solved. Then, shall we go back to our normal lives?”
Elizabeth butted in as if she had been waiting for Empress Leila to say those exact words. However, Empress Leila shook her head.
“But not you.”
“Why not?”
“...You’ve been more frazzled than he is. He’s been sitting still since the beginning.”
Blushing, Elizabeth stepped back when Empress Leila scolded her.
Empress Leila continued to talk.
“There are two reasons. First, it doesn’t matter whether your status is high or low, but I won’t allow someone who won’t reveal his identity. I will not acknowledge you if you do not tell me your identity in the Southern Continent and what led you to this continent.”
“What does that matter… yes, you’re right, but can’t you just let it go?”
“Let it go?”
At Empress Leila’s questions, Elizabeth responded in a small voice.
“Probably not.”
Elizabeth could understand.
His status really didn’t matter. If his status was high, then they just needed to treat his family accordingly. And it didn’t matter if his status was low. Considering the current Imperial family’s power and authority, she didn’t need a political marriage for a political partner. On the contrary, it may become noisier if she married someone who was awkwardly powerful. In that sense, someone who was ordinary with no power was better.
But, as Empress Leila said, it was troublesome to marry someone who wouldn’t fully identify himself. If they accepted someone into the Imperial Family without knowing what kind of a past that person has or what the person did in their life, and later on in life, a problem of the past comes up, then it becomes a burden of the Imperial Family.
Elizabeth at least had the sense to understand what Empress Leila was thinking.
“Mother, you said there were two reasons. What’s the other one?”
Empress Leila smiled at Elizabeth’s question.
“The second reason? It’s a much simpler reason.”
“What is it?”
“You aren’t courting because you’re in love, are you? Hm?”
Elizabeth’s eyes wavered, swiftly darting left and right as if there was an earthquake.
“What are you… how can you say something so slanderous, Your Majesty.”
Anyone could tell she was very agitated.
“Ho… Then did I see it wrong?”
“Yes. Of course, you did. We love each other very deeply. We already… even…”
“Already even, what?”
When Empress Leila pressured her, Elizabeth thought to herself.
‘Fuck it.’
“We’ve already done everything.”
This was often referred to as an irrational move.
“Ho… really?”
Milton might have fainted if he heard this, but Empress Leila merely smiled as if she thought it was ridiculous.
“I’m telling you, it’s true! Mother, your daughter isn’t pure anymore. My heart and body will not accept a different man.”
“Oh, really, is that so?”
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“I’m telling you, it’s true!? Truly, I’m being honest.”
Yushin’s face turned pale as he listened to the mother and daughter’s conversation.
‘But I didn’t say I’d cooperate to this extent?’
He had agreed to pretend to be a couple with her, but he had never agreed to be a highly treasonous person who took the purity of an Imperial Princess of a country.
Although he had given up on his life, but still… The death penalty for taking the virginity of the Imperial Princess. He absolutely refused to die for that.
Yushin debated whether he should step forward and deny it. But then…
“Fine. Then why don’t the two of you kiss right now?”
Empress Leila came up with something to stop her daughter stubbornly forcing the issue.
“Fine. K… Kiss?”
“Didn’t you say you did everything?”
“Well, that’s… we haven’t kissed yet.”
“You’ve done everything so you’re not pure anymore, but you’re telling me you haven’t kissed yet?”
“Coincidentally, yes?”
“Just what did you do that that happened?”
Elizabeth gritted her teeth at Empress Leila’s question.
“Ki… Kissing is hallowed, right? So I tried to save it until I got married.”
“It’s fine. I’m giving you permission. Just do it.”
The Empress of the country and her mother, Empress Leila, was allowing it.
“Now. Quickly. Do it.”
Normally, at this point, other daughters would admit that she lied and apologize, like so: ‘I’m sorry, Mom. I lied to you.’
But…
“Okay, fine. Mother. That’s nothing. I’ll do it. So.”
In many ways, Elizabeth wasn’t a typical daughter.
She approached Yushin and whispered to him softly.
“I’m sorry. Please cooperate with me a bit. I’ll pay you back later.”
Elizabeth wasn’t just kissing him. She would owe him a favor for it. This was a situation that most men on the continent would never have dreamt of, but Yushin was merely bewildered.
‘Is she really going to do it?’
He didn’t know much about the chastity of women on this continent, but in the Southern Continent where Yushin was from, unmarried women could be kicked out of their families if they kissed other men. So how could someone from an extraordinary family, the Imperial Princess of the Imperial Family do this?
He had to stop her. He had to stop her but…
“Close your eyes.”
For some reason, he didn’t want to. He couldn’t bring himself to stop Elizabeth as she slowly got closer to him as she whispered.
Their lips got close and closer until they were close enough to feel each other’s breath. And the moment their lips were about to touch…
“What the hell are you doing?”
Milton interrupted them.
The two separated in a hurry, and Empress Leila clicked her tongue.
“Tsk. You’re not helping.”
***
With all that said, Yushin still stayed at the palace as Elizabeth’s guest. Although Milton didn’t like it, there wasn’t much he could do about it.
And a few days later.
“Elizabeth, it’s time for you to keep your promise to me.”
“Ah… I know. But will you be alright?”
“I know what the problem is, but it’s my problem.”
“Technically, we could… no, nevermind. Either way, I’ll keep my word.”
Elizabeth’s promise to Yushin was to arrange for him to meet with someone.
When he had been held prisoner by the remaining Ghost members, he had given up halfway, but he had become deeply interested as he listened to Milton’s story from Elizabeth. It had greatly interested him to hear about Milton making enough contribution on the battlefield and later building a great empire and rising to the position of a Grand Duke even though he had been a low-ranking provincial aristocrat.
That was why she had told him that if she survived, she would facilitate a private meeting with Milton Forrest for him. At that, Yushin had promised cooperation and been following Elizabeth without making a fuss.
And now, as promised, he was in a private meeting with Milton Forrest.
“I don’t like you. Get out.”
Milton was being disagreeable from the start. It was obvious why Milton hated Yushin - he was a thief who was trying to steal his beloved daughter.
“Father, please listen.”
Elizabeth tried to convince Milton by siding with Yushin, but it backfired.
“Right. No matter what anyone says, a man talks with his fists. Why don’t we spar a bit?”
“Father!”
At this rate, it didn’t seem like it would be a proper conversation.
In the end, Yushin got down on his knees and brought his hands forward with one hand fisted and the other wrapped around as he bowed his head.
“I would like to formally greet you, sir. I am Yushin, Crown Prince of Jae Nation. I greet the Emperor of the continent.”
“...What?”
“What?”
Elizabeth exclaimed from next to him. This was the first time she heard about this as well.
Yushin slowly lifted his head.
“I will explain everything to you. I beg you, please listen to me.”
And Yushin began to talk about himself.
***
Yushin, as he said earlier, was the Crown Prince of Jae Nation. He became the Crown Prince because he was the eldest son and the current emperor of the Jae Nation firmly believed that the eldest son should succeed him in order for there to be no problems later on.
However, the problem was his circumstances. Although Yushin was the eldest son, his mother was a low-ranking servant in the Imperial Palace. She wasn’t of noble birth, and her family were ordinary farmers. Of course, the moment she gave birth to the Emperor’s child, and the eldest son at that, she became a Queen.
However, she was just a Queen in name. Just because she rose to the position of Queen, that didn’t mean she had as much power as the concubines when she didn’t have power or wealth. Rather, the women who joined the Imperial Harem after her had much more power.
But, it was the Empress who made her suffer the most. The Empress was the daughter of a high-ranking daughter and had married the Emperor when he had only been a Crown Prince. Her only drawback was that she didn’t have any children.
However, she became pregnant the year after Yushin was born. And when Yushin became two, she gave birth. It was a boy. From then on, conflict had already been scheduled.
1. Raw said Queen, but I believe it’s a mistake