Unbeknownst to Me, I am Secretly Dating the Emperor - Chapter 111

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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 111
The incident with the tabloid journalist faded the moment I lay down in bed at home, only to resurface around lunchtime the next day.
It struck me while I was eating salad.
‘But did the journalist only follow me?’
It seemed like they were trying to gather information about people close to the Emperor, yet I still hadn’t met him once.
Fortunately, the Emperor didn’t stray far from his established routine, so I managed to avoid him without much effort.
I’d been trying to stay clear of situations where we might cross paths, but lately I’d grown relaxed enough that the tension had mostly dissolved.
‘If a journalist followed even me, they must have approached others too.’
After all, the people around me were far closer to the Emperor than I was.
Wait—did the others perhaps know who the Emperor’s secret lover was?
I wasn’t normally the type to care much about other people’s romantic affairs, but the Emperor was a different matter.
Since Ibeta, the heroine of the original story, had deviated from her route and begun living a different life, it seemed the Emperor’s fate had twisted somewhat as well.
I’d checked a few times, but Ibeta and I still hadn’t met.
And it didn’t seem like we would in the future either.
As someone who had experienced Ibeta’s Sacred Power firsthand, I found it hard to believe the Emperor could fall in love without the effects of ‘Blessing’ and ‘Healing.’
“I ran into a reporter from the Weekly Social Circle yesterday on my way home from work.”
The moment I swallowed my salad and broached the subject, all eyes turned to me at once.
It was rather overwhelming.
“And?”
Lucy prompted me cautiously to continue.
“Oh, it wasn’t much—they asked if I knew anything about His Majesty’s secret lover.”
A sharp intake of breath echoed across the table.
It came from Derek’s direction.
“Must’ve gone down the wrong pipe,” Lucy murmured, patting Derek’s back and handing him a glass of water.
The sound of her patting was decidedly vigorous.
“The Weekly Social Circle is notorious for being vicious—they’re a tabloid.”
Sophia looked at me with concern.
My gaze shifted naturally from Derek and Lucy to Sophia.
“That’s right. They’re famous for being relentless. I’ve heard they’ve actually snuck into mansions under the guise of investigating infidelity rumors, and even manipulated young ladies into fights with each other just to run a story.”
Though I was slow to pick up on gossip, Nathan filled me in with a few anecdotes, apparently they were quite well-known for this sort of thing.
“Well, I was fortunate that Imperial Guard knights happened to pass through the area nearby.”
If they’d cornered me when I was alone, it would have taken considerable effort to shake them off.
“So there were Imperial Guard knights in the vicinity,” Lucy murmured, her tone oddly guarded.
“Yes, it was fortunate.”
Sophia spoke up with a bright smile.
“Right.”
I nodded in agreement.
That journalist had indeed seemed persistent.
“Did anyone else have reporters approach them?”
“Yes.”
“But they only tracked our movements—they didn’t actually ask us anything.”
Sophia and Lucy answered in turn.
So the journalist who’d attached themselves to me was indeed a particularly tenacious type.
Once I’d resolved that curiosity, I naturally moved on to another question.
“By any chance, do you know who His Majesty’s lover is? Or, before that—does he even have a lover?”
My casual question elicited a strange reaction from everyone.
Derek’s breath caught again, the one he’d just recovered from.
Lucy’s hand, which had been patting his back, froze in midair.
Nathan began shoving food into his mouth endlessly, like someone who’d starved for days.
He seemed to have retained only the ‘putting it in’ part of the eating process.
Sophia simply laughed awkwardly.
‘What’s this? So there is a secret lover?’
Their reactions were so transparent that pretending not to notice was nearly impossible.
It felt like I’d cast out a fishing line without even baiting the hook and caught a trophy fish.
Even I, the one casting the line, was caught off-guard.
Sophia, the only one who’d managed to maintain some composure, finally opened her mouth carefully.
“We didn’t want to know either, but we found out. So we’re keeping the secret.”
Sophia looked genuinely sorry she couldn’t say more.
The fact that it was a secret, combined with everyone’s awkward expressions, made my curiosity fade.
Still.
I asked, knowing it was childish.
“Surely Bes doesn’t know?”
I’d have felt rather left out if I was the only one who didn’t.
Fortunately, this answer came easily.
“I don’t.”
“If I did, it would be a disaster.”
“Then that’s fine.”
I smiled wryly and returned to my salad.
I heard collective sighs of relief around the table.
* * *
It was the day of Ibeta’s Ancient Language lesson.
When I arrived at the Separate Palace, Ibeta and Bes were just finishing tea time with the young ladies who’d been selected as their attendants.
As soon as they heard me approach, their conversation stopped.
“Oh, it’s Lina!”
Bes waved in greeting.
“Hello,” Ibeta said, turning to greet me.
“It’s our pleasure to meet you,” the attendant ladies offered in unison with practiced grace.
‘They seemed to be in the middle of something interesting.’
“I wish I’d come a little later.”
“Not at all. Your timing is perfect—actually, we had something we wanted to tell you.”
Ibeta approached me with a lovely smile and took my hand.
“What’s this about?”
When I returned her grip, Bes came over and extended her hand to me as well.
I found myself holding both their hands.
“Well, Ibeta is planning to have her Debutante Ball.”
Bes answered in Ibeta’s stead.
“A Debutante Ball?”
Ibeta was an adult now, so the timing was certainly right for one.
“It must be disappointing for Bes.”
Though Bes had received a title and would eventually have her own Debutante Ball, it wasn’t yet her time.
Bes hadn’t yet reached her coming-of-age birthday.
“I don’t really want to have one.”
Bes, shy by nature, wrinkled her nose slightly as she spoke in a small voice. The prospect of becoming the center of attention at a gala full of strangers clearly didn’t appeal to her.
“Your feelings might change later, though. There’s also the option of doing something smaller, inviting only close acquaintances and keeping it formal in appearance alone.”
Bes seemed to think the latter approach was at least acceptable.
“Ibeta will be quite busy for a while, then?”
Usually a Debutante Ball was arranged to coincide with a young lady’s coming-of-age birthday.
Since Ibeta’s birthday had already passed, preparations would need to move quickly.
“It seems so.”
Ibeta made a small groaning sound as all the work ahead came to mind, though her expression remained bright with anticipation.
“We were just discussing my chaperone,” Ibeta said softly.
Who served as chaperone was arguably even more important than the dress itself.
“Would you possibly consider being my chaperone?”
Ibeta’s eyes sparkled as she made the request.
It seemed the heroine’s criteria for choosing a chaperone leaned heavily toward personal connection.
Though I was only four years older than Ibeta, it wasn’t unheard of for a chaperone to be a close elder sister or older cousin.
‘Of course, those ladies usually have tremendous social connections.’
It wasn’t the best option, but it wasn’t an impossible one either.
However, there was a constraint preventing me from becoming Ibeta’s chaperone, and it had nothing to do with age.
“I’m sorry. I’ve never had a Debutante Ball myself.”
Academy graduates typically entered society around the time of their graduation.
Even those who became administrators and didn’t actively participate in social circles typically made an appearance to establish their social standing.
It was all about future connections, after all.
But I had rejected that standard progression.
When I’d first graduated from the Academy, I’d only pretended to be mature on the surface; inwardly, I was still a rebellious adolescent.
Moreover, I still remembered my childhood vow not to become the Renquels countess, so I had deliberately forgone a Debutante Ball.
“I…”
Ibeta trailed off, clearly disappointed, and pressed her lips together with a sorrowful expression.
I squeezed her hand a bit more firmly.
“It’s all right. It’s not that I couldn’t—I chose not to.”
Looking back now, it was admittedly a rather embarrassing reason.
I smiled sheepishly to comfort her, and her expression finally softened a little.
“There will be many who’d be honored to be your chaperone. I’ll have to bow out, I’m afraid.”
“What about the Renquels countess, then?” Bes suggested, trying to cheer up the dejected Ibeta.

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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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