Beguiling the Enemy’s Patriarch - Chapter 154

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 154
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“You mustn’t set foot carelessly in His Majesty’s bedroom, Nia.”
“Yes. I’ll remember that.”
Nia nodded obediently. Marienne gazed down at the youngest maidservant who had recently joined them, her expression tinged with concern.
“You cannot address the Princess as ‘sister’ either. Do you understand?”
“Yes.”
The beautiful saint who had rescued her from the underground was actually a princess—and from a foreign land at that. It still felt surreal to Nia. She asked Marienne carefully.
“Then… will I not be able to see the Princess? I wanted to properly thank her…”
Nia’s face fell as she fidgeted with her clasped hands. That lingering concern had ultimately driven her to apply as a maidservant at the Imperial Palace. It had taken a full month from application to acceptance, though.
‘I thought I’d be able to see her more closely if I came here…’
Her spirits dampened slightly. As Nia swept and cleaned throughout the Imperial Palace following Marienne, she kept glancing back toward the bedroom. After another week passed, Nia gradually adapted to life in the Imperial Palace.
The Emperor with silver hair and crimson eyes was far more handsome than when she’d glimpsed him from a distance in Kelkita. She shouldn’t make eye contact, but his appearance alone was so overwhelming that meeting his gaze felt presumptuous. Moreover, for servants like Nia, the Emperor’s very presence was burdensome.
“He’s normally not like this, but for the past month or so…”
Marienne and Roxanne exchanged worried words. Nia listened intently while diligently cleaning the windows.
“He’s become excessively sharp. He’s been constantly tense.”
“And he doesn’t seem to be sleeping well… His complexion isn’t good.”
“Shouldn’t we perhaps have a physician prescribe sleeping medicine?”
“He doesn’t seem inclined to call his personal physician. Ah, Counselor. You’ve arrived at just the right moment. How is His Majesty doing?”
Felix, his complexion ashen, joined the maidservants’ conversation.
“Today as well…”
“You were scolded again today, Felix.”
“Ugh, Roxanne…”
The kind-looking counselor with ash-gray hair leaned against Roxanne and began sobbing.
“There’s a mountain of documents requiring his signature, but he doesn’t seem to be concentrating at all, which worries me… And he’s become so ruthless!”
“Well, he did have a somewhat firm side originally, Felix.”
“But… he was never this merciless before…”
Felix protested while wiping his tears.
“The moment any proposal is mentioned, it’s rejected, withdrawn, no room for reconsideration…”
“Stop crying and speak slowly, Felix.”
Nia nodded to herself while polishing the windows with vigor. The Emperor was certainly a man of dazzling beauty, but his aura was sharp. An unrestrained, seething energy constantly swirled around him. His expressions weren’t particularly varied, and his gaze was piercing. His tone was measured, yet carried a coldness to it.
On the day Nia was first assigned to the Imperial Palace, the Emperor had spoken only one sentence upon seeing her.
“I wish Yeni would like her.”
Yeni was said to be the Princess’s nickname.
“Is it true that the Princess still shows no signs of awakening?”
“Poor dear Princess… Why does she always suffer whenever she comes to Belgot?”
“Ahem… It’s best not to speak of that in front of His Majesty, Marienne. It’s something he’s always been sensitive about…”
“You’re right. I’ll be careful.”
The conversation ended with a simultaneous sigh from all three. Nia felt a twinge of guilt as she swept away every speck of dust from the window frame. The saint—that is, the Princess of Lebovni—had seemed to be suffering greatly that day. It was remarkable that she had saved Nia without hesitation. Somehow, the fact that the Princess remained unconscious for so long made Nia feel as though it were her fault, and her mood grew melancholy. Once she finished cleaning the windows, Roxanne called to her.
“Come here, Nia. Today we must clean the bedroom.”
Though Nia was new to her position, she had been personally selected by the Emperor himself, which meant she was summoned to various places throughout the palace. Only Marienne, Roxanne, and Nia were permitted entry into the bedroom. Roxanne’s instructions flowed without pause.
“The weather is lovely today, so go in and open the windows first. Check carefully that dust hasn’t accumulated on the windowsills.”
“Yes!”
“The Princess needs some sunlight too, so open the canopy halfway. Understood?”
“Don’t worry, Head Maidservant.”
Nia answered brightly. The sun hung long overhead at midday. Mid-August. In Belgot Barishard, the summer heat was murderous, but the season itself was mercifully brief.
“What beautiful weather.”
Nia murmured to herself as she gazed out the window.
“I wish she would wake on a day like this.”
The moment I opened the bedroom door, which had been sealed shut, a clear and pristine energy swept in. Nia didn’t know it was sanctity, but she recognized it as the same aura that emanated from the Emperor and the Princess.
Nia stepped carefully into the bedroom and quietly closed the door behind her. She hurried toward the canopied bed. Gently grasping the canopy, she pulled it back. Sweet-colored pale pink hair caught her eye first.
A doll-like sleeping form.
“Good morning, Princess.”
Nia offered a small greeting out of habit, then immediately turned around. She needed to faithfully carry out Roxanne’s instructions to open the windows and dust them.
“What a beautifully clear day!”
Nia chattered away to the sleeping Princess as she pattered toward the windows.
“The sky is so blue, not a cloud in sight. The breeze is so gentle….”
Wide open. The large window swung halfway ajar. Late summer wind drifted through the opening. The curtains fluttered lightly in the breeze.
“Oh, that’s right.”
Nia paused mid-motion while gathering the curtains. She had suddenly remembered leaving the feather duster at the end of the corridor.
“Ah… how foolish of me.”
Nia sighed at her own carelessness and turned around. It was a trivial mistake she wouldn’t have made even at the Elad Marquis Estate, yet here she was making it in the Imperial Palace. She hurried quickly to the bedroom door, grasped the handle, and slipped out of the room. The bedroom fell silent once more.
It was a peaceful afternoon. Auredhian Belgot, who had been confined to the Imperial Palace for over a month, had been dragged away by Felix in a semi-forced absence, and Raulus was keeping Diego Schmart busy scrubbing his statues scattered throughout the Imperial Palace on this late summer afternoon.
An open window.
Curtains swaying gently.
Sanctity flowing abundantly through the room.
Denser than usual.
“….”
Warm sunlight poured across the bed. The white sheets were drenched entirely in golden light. The sheets rustled.
“…It’s so bright.”
Clear sky-blue eyes reflected the wide-open window. The brilliant blue sky beyond it was mirrored within them as well.
“….”
The thickened aura of sanctity pooled abundantly throughout the room. Rustle. The sheets rustled again. They dragged across the floor. Small white feet stepped directly onto the sheets trailing across the floor. Pale pink hair scattered delicately.
* * *
“Gasp…. Huff.”
Nia’s absence had been brief. When she returned to the bedroom with the feather duster, what she found was a wide-open window, curtains billowing dramatically, and an empty bed.
* * *
My eyes didn’t open of my own volition.
“….”
First, the light was blinding, and I heard someone’s voice faintly…. And strangely, I felt energized. Too restless to remain still. It must be time to wake now. My body understood before my mind did.
“It’s so bright….”
So I cracked my eyes open, only to squeeze them shut again the moment they opened. The sunlight stung. Blink. Blink. No matter how many times I opened and closed them, it was the same, so I finally lifted my hand to shield against the piercing rays.
“Ugh….”
My face contorted involuntarily. I burrowed back under the sheets with a wriggle. Once the sunlight was completely blocked, peace returned. Should I sleep more? Like this.
“….”
The deliberation lasted only a moment. My body felt refreshed, and my mind was gradually clearing. It really was time to get up. I pushed the sheets away and they fell straight to the floor. I rose slowly, my body still sluggish.
“…?”
I realized something was amiss the moment I was fully raising my upper body.
“Huh?”
I thought my body felt light, but it was lighter than expected. I stared blankly down at myself. White pajamas. Long pale pink hair loosely undone. Thump-thump, a peaceful heartbeat. Sanctity spreading through my entire body in rhythm with each pulse.
“That’s… strange.”
My thoughts were becoming clearer, but they still felt half a beat behind. I looked blankly around my surroundings. Where was I? It felt familiar somehow. The familiar flow of sanctity. A faint, clean scent lingering in the air.
“….”
A bedroom. Completely different from my bedroom in the Royal Palace. Once again, my body moved before my mind could judge. My feet touched the floor. It wasn’t a mistake. My body felt so light it might float away. I’d never felt this light before.
“This is strange, but still….”
Patter-patter. The sheets dragged long across the floor beneath my feet. I shoved them carelessly toward the bed and moved forward. The cool floor touched my bare feet.
“….”
My sluggish thoughts were gradually falling back into their normal rhythm. I lifted my arm and gripped the window frame. I gazed briefly at the cloudless, brilliant blue sky, then lowered my gaze. A fresh, verdant landscape came into view. A meticulously trimmed maze garden. A marble fountain. Flowers and trees in lush, varied colors. The familiar courtyard. The one I’d missed so much….
“Ah.”
Only then did I realize where I was. Without another thought, I tightened my grip on the window frame. It was half habit.
“Here we go.”
And I vaulted straight over the window frame.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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