Remaried Empress

To be honest, I was skeptical whether the strain between us could be relieved so quickly, but a rejection would only worsen our relationship.

"..."

I knew the rational answer was yes. An inharmonious relationship between the emperor and empress would reveal weakness to our enemies, and even if Sovieshu loved another woman, it was my duty to show everyone that I was on good terms with him.

"Empress?"

However, the answer lodged itself in my throat. My pride was bruised. It was hard to not be affected by strong emotions when my husband loved another woman and took her as his concubine. Whenever Sovieshu and I had problems before it could be ignored, but that wasn't the case anymore. Anyone with an ounce of wit knew that anytime we fought, it was about Rashta.

"Yes."

I forced a smile and nodded.

"I'm looking forward to it."

When he heard my answer, Sovieshu smiled and lifted his arm again.

"Shall we walk together?"

"Of course."

We strolled the grounds wordlessly together. Our shoes echoed on the stone path, and the breeze flew pleasantly on our faces. In the past, I had taken many pleasant walks with Sovieshu and shared comfortable silences with him. It was all gone days now...

I stopped myself from sighing, and Sovieshu broke the silence.

"Did you know that Grand Duke Kapmen is still here at the palace?"

"Yes."

I had looked over the relevant documents of course, but why did he bring up Grand Duke Kapmen all of a sudden? I looked up, and Sovieshu explained.

"Kapmen wants to open diplomatic relations between Rwibt and the Wol continent."

Oh...is that what he's here for?

"The officials have varying opinions as to whether it's beneficial or not. The Hwa continent where Rwibt is located is certainly exotic and appealing, but it's too different from the Wol continent. Moreover, we're too far away to significantly influence each other."

"Efforts to establish trade would be a drain on the state coffers."

"Exactly. There are so many things to discuss. What is the Empress' opinion?"

"Grand Duke Kapmen graduated from the magical academy in Wirwol. Autonomous or not, it is clearly in Eastern Empire territory. Rwibt may be too dissimilar in culture, but the grand duke has spent many years in this Empire and must have given thought to it more than anyone else. The Eastern Empire is in a relatively good position to open diplomatic relations, so there is no reason to miss this opportunity."

Sovieshu frequently consulted me on various issues, and I naturally replied. He nodded in agreement. Instead of commenting on my answer however, he slightly shifted topics.

"Have you ever had a private conversation with Grand Duke Kapmen?"

Grand Duke Kapmen. He criticized me for not dealing with Rashta properly. Should that be called a conversation?

"Only briefly..."

Alright, I'll call it a conversation. Sovieshu spoke again.

"Kapmen said if we were to open diplomatic relations with Rwibt, he would like the Empress to be involved."

"Grand Duke Kapmen?"

Sovieshu seemed to wonder what kind of words Kapmen and I shared, but I did as well. Why did Kapmen criticize me?

"He said he wants you in the next meeting."

*

*

*

After a conversation that started with my birthday and ended with Kapmen, Sovieshu returned to the eastern palace, while I strolled around more by myself. However, thoughts of Kapmen and my birthday felt distant.

Frankly...I was skeptical. Would Rashta, the one who wanted to attend a special banquet for only twenty people, passively let me and Sovieshu leave for the villa alone? Well...there was a high probability that there would be three of us there instead of two, and I would be completely stressed out.

I sighed as I approached a fountain, when I spotted Prince Heinley. I halted in surprise. He was exactly at the place I left him. I thought he would have gone for a walk or gone back to his quarters, so what was he still doing here?

"Queen."

Had Prince Heinley sensed my feelings? He turned his head and smiled.

"Why haven't you gone yet?"

I approached him where he was sitting by the fountain and splashing the water with one hand.

"Hmm...can I tell you the truth?"

He pulled his hand out of the water and smiled softly.

"I was waiting for you to come back."

"!"

"When one gets lost, one should remain where they are."

"You don't know the way?"

"Not intuitively."

I pulled out a handkerchief and offered it to him with a smile. He took it and dried his hand, then tucked the handkerchief away.

"My handkerchief."

He gave a chuckle as I reached out my hand in embarrassment.

"Don't worry. I'll give it back to you after I wash it."

"It's fine."

"But this way we can see each other again, right?"

He gave an easy smile, and I nodded at his playful tone. At the same time, I remembered what he said a few hours ago.

"Prince Heinley. About my birthday."

He said he was here for my birthday, though I didn't think that was entirely true. He did seem to want to spend time with me, and I felt sorry and wanted his understanding.

"I don't think we can spend time and have a meal together."

"We can't?"

"The Emperor wants to go to the royal villa. Just him and me."

"Ah..."

His lips parted and he blinked dazedly, until he murmured "Yes, I see."

"I'm sorry."

"No, it's your birthday, and you needn't feel sorry for me."

"..."

"Please, don't be sorry. I don't want to put pressure on you."

*

*

*

"You must be feeling a lot of pressure..."

Sir McKenna stared awkwardly at the scene before him. Spread before him were various jeweled rings, prized possessions associated with various legends. Prince Heinley usually carried them in an enchanted pouch, but now he had taken them all out to examine each one. He was going to give one of these precious rings as a gift to the empress of another country. McKenna couldn't help but be perplexed.

"Why are you giving a ring all of a sudden?"

"Birthday."

"Empress Navier?"

"Mmm."

"How do you know that again? ...And isn't the gift too much? The Eastern Empire may be prestigious, but so is the Western Kingdom. There isn't a wide enough gap between the countries for you to offer such a tribute."

Prince Heinley put the jewels back in his pouch.

"I'll choose when you're not around. You're a nag."

He pulled out a handkerchief instead.

"What's that?"

"Can't you see? It's a precious handkerchief."

The prince then transformed into a bird, holding the handkerchief in his beak and flying in front of McKenna. The prince pointed a claw at his neck.

"You want me to tie it there?"

McKenna fastened the handkerchief to the bird's neck, and he was rewarded with a feathery smack of a tail. Prince Heinley then flew out the window, and McKenna frowned as he watched him disappear.

The handkerchief appeared to have been embroidered with the letter "N"...

"Is Prince Heinley's letter acquaintance Empress Navier?"

After parting from Prince Heinley, I stopped by the library and researched all I could on the country of Rwibt and the Hwa continent. Although Grand Duke Kapmen had described The Travelogue as a delusional account, it was still the most well-known book on the country. I don't know why the grand duke requested my presence at that next meeting, but I wanted to broaden my knowledge on the Rwibt culture as much as possible.

'I wish I had a book with more detail...'

I was seated on a bench cross-referencing the Travelogue with other books when there was a tapping noise from the window.

It was Queen. I opened the window and he hopped onto the sill, displaying his wings. I noticed he wore a handkerchief around his neck.

"Did Prince Heinley tie this on you?"

The handkerchief was my own. I smiled, and Queen tilted his head. I held Queen in one arm and petted his beak with my other hand, and checked his legs for a note. There was none this time.

"Are you here to show off?"

Or perhaps he came here to return the handkerchief? He couldn't answer me of course, and simply blinked at me with his gorgeous violet eyes. I couldn't resist them, and smothered his head with kisses one after another.

"Queen is so pretty, especially with the handkerchief around your neck."

– Gu!

He seemed to like it so much that I couldn't bring myself to remove it. As I petted his back I thought, Queen smells good. What kind of thought was that? I put my nose to his shoulder and inhaled.

– !

The scent subtly reminded me of Prince Heinley. Did he wash the handkerchief and spray his perfume on it? I found it so charming that a bird smelled like this that I leaned in to whisper in his ear.

"You smell like Prince Heinley, Queen."

Queen unfolded his wings in shock. Then he covered his beak with his wings and opened his eyes wide.

"Queen?"

I playfully called out to him, but Queen trembled and hopped back towards the window.

 "Are you going already?"

He looked so cute, and I opened my arms to him before he would fly away. However, he stiffened like ice and shook his head.

*

*

"Sometimes she says the most suggestive things..."

Back in his room, Prince Heinley unfastened the handkerchief from his neck. His face was still burning.

"My scent..."

Heinley sniffed the handkerchief. He had sprayed it with his favorite perfume after he wished it. She recognized his favorite scene right away?

Heinley crouched to the ground, his cheeks flushed. The Empress' whispered words were for Queen, but he still felt his heart pound as he remembered the way her breath tickled his ear.

Unfortunately, it was McKenna who ruined that embarrassing and exciting feeling.

"Why are you naked? Sorry."

Heinley glared at McKenna—his secretary, his knight, his cousin, and even his friend.

"You'll get sick. Cover yourself up."

McKenna went to the closet and pulled out a comfortable outfit, while Heinley stood up, clicking his tongue and holding out his hand. Instead of handing the clothes over, however, McKenna had a few questions to ask first.

"Your Highness. The person you went to see with the handkerchief...was it the Empress of the Eastern Empire?"

"Give me the clothes."

McKenna handed over the items, and Heinley accepted them with a look that said, Why would you ask me that? McKenna kept staring questioningly, however, but Heinley offered only a vague reply.

"Well."

He dressed, then went outside the palace. He took a pathway that would allow the evening breeze to cool his heated face. McKenna was persistent, however, and stuck by his side.

"Your Highness, you have to be honest. Was your letter acquaintance Empress Navier?"

McKenna ignored Prince Heinley's initial defiance.

"Does it matter? Just keep your mouth shut. I'm recounting a good memory and your keep interrupting."

"Is memory important when reality is right in front of you? How can I not care, Prince? Is your letter acquaintance someone you can love?"

"!"

"I'm in favor of you in a serious romantic relationship. However, if your partner is the empress of a powerful country, it's a different story..."

"..."

"You should never be involved in the empresses of other countries, powerful or not. Do you want to become politically entangled with the Eastern Empire?"

McKenna's eyes were moist in genuine worry. Prince Heinley and Empress Navier had a dead end relationship. Even if Emperor Sovieshu had his heart set on Rashta, no country would ever remove the sitting empress and place a runaway-slave-turned-concubine in her position. The empress could not initiate a divorce from her husband either. And even if Emperor Sovieshu deposed Empress Navier, there was no way she would remarry a prince from another country.

"It's not like that. And you're exaggerating."

"Really? Can I trust you?

"..."

"Why won't you answer, huh?"

McKenna paused, then asked more carefully,

"I haven't asked the most important thing yet. Do you two have mutual feelings for each other? "

Heinley hesitated, then he held up his hand, his eyes looking elsewhere. His expression was the same, but the mood had changed. McKenna stopped his interrogation and looked in the same direction as Prince Heinley.

A woman with a light purple parasol was walking towards them on the white stone pathway. It was Rashta, Emperor Sovieshu's concubine.

McKenna quieted his mouth. The Emperor's lover and rising star of society had completely sank in a matter of days. McKenna wasn't sure about the other residences, but many of the guests in the southern palace sneered at Rashta for covering up the fact she was a runaway slave. After Viscount Roteschu's claim spread, Rashta went around attempting to correct the gossip, but no one believed her. Perhaps that was why the once-shining Rashta was now in a depressed mood.

McKenna looked at Prince Heinley. The prince already had stirred trouble with Rashta, and he was quite outspoken once he started talking. Whether it was a blessing or misfortune though, Prince Heinley walked past Rashta as if he didn't notice her, and McKenna was relieved and quick to follow. However, it was Rashta who called out.

"Your Highness."

McKenna huffed and pushed at the small of Prince Heinley's back. However, Prince Heinley turned with a frown, and Rashta approached them.