Eric looked at Grace for a moment with crimson eyes, then lowered his head.
You have come a long way.
The day we return to Taylor together is not far off, so please hold on just a little longer.
Grace nodded slowly.
Then, after gazing for a long time at the spot where they had disappeared, she muttered as if in prayer.
Taylor.
As she got up and stepped out into the hallway, Andrew hurriedly approached her.
The boy was truly sincere.
Grace smiled affectionately at him.
Did you have dinner?
“Of course, Duchess!”
As I climbed one more flight of stairs, the master room of the capital mansion came into view.
The master room of the capital mansion had a unique structure in which a shared space serving as the couple's living room was connected to their respective rooms.
As Grace appeared, two soldiers stood at attention and opened the door with disciplined movements.
As soon as the door opened, a wild, musky scent wafted out.
As Grace stepped into the space overflowing with warmth, a tiger sat languidly before her eyes.
Dressed in a loose robe, as if he had just finished bathing, he smiled broadly.
You came early, Grace.
My heart pounded as if it were sinking at that low, deep voice that felt like it was scraping the back of my throat.
It was truly uncomfortable not being able to control my heartbeat, my breathing, and things like that.
Ares laughed even more broadly.
Is something wrong, Madam?
For some reason, I was angry.
I am the cheapest thing in the world, and therefore, I am the easiest to handle.
Even if everything in the world doesn't go my way, at least my body and my mind have remained exactly as I wanted.
At that moment, Ares's playful expression changed abruptly.
He sprang to his feet and approached without hesitation, then stopped a step away and leaned in.
Looking directly into my face, he asked.
"what's the matter."
In a tone that suggested he would immediately take care of it if anything happened.
The pitch-black eyes are like the universe.
On days when I felt like I couldn't breathe, I would look up at the pitch-black sky and have such thoughts.
I am dust.
I am a passing breeze, and water that briefly moistens the earth.
Compared to that vast sky and endless time, I am a ridiculously small being, so my worries and hardships are just that insignificant.
Thinking that way, the gloom and worry that seemed to engulf the world felt like mere dust.
Then, as time passed and I looked back one day, everything from that time had truly vanished like dust.
So this, too, is likely a moment that will scatter into the void the moment I turn around.
Grace handed some of the documents she had brought to Ares.
No, not at all.
I was just thinking for a moment.
Ares did not take his eyes off Grace as he accepted the documents.
However, Grace's gaze was fixed on the documents.
This is the current financial status of the houses belonging to the Senate.
Only then did Ares turn his gaze to the documents.
The consequences of the Empress Hedby wielding food as a weapon were disastrous.
The great nobles led such a large number of subjects, and the amount of debt increased exponentially with every famine.
“The Grand Madam and I will take care of these families, so Your Excellency must retrieve the Capital Defense Force from Saxony.”
“What do you mean?
I’m going to attend the Senate meeting tomorrow and formalize our participation in the gladiatorial games.”
By next spring, everything will be back to normal.
Grace carefully retrieved the documents Ares was holding, then lightly bent her knees to greet him.
Then please rest.
Grace entered the Duchess's room on the left side of the common area and headed straight for the mirror.
She gazed quietly at her face for a moment, then closed her eyes.
Endless golden wheat fields, a fragrant scent, a winding, crystal-clear river.
Taylor.
Grace Taylor.
The wind that shakes me eventually subsides.
He quietly recited a passage from the scripture and took off his gloves.
Then, before his hesitation could last any longer, he took off the ring and placed it on the bottom shelf of the jewelry box.
The spot I had been holding onto all this time felt empty, but I knew I would eventually get used to it.
Someday, when I look back, today, too, will be just a grain of dust.
Grace closed the jewelry box.
The House of Saxony was a family established by receiving a fief and title from the Emperor, but its power had been in decline for two generations prior to the birth of the Hedwig.
Consequently, the family's daughters were often sent to serve as ladies-in-waiting at the Imperial Palace, while the men became low-ranking officials.
Due to the discontinuous inheritance of hemophilia, no one walked the path of a knight.
Being constantly cautious, just in case, was a daily routine.
Hetbiga also became a lady-in-waiting at the imperial palace at the age of eighteen.
The palace was vast and complex, so many ladies-in-waiting were needed.
Her first place of work was the Bureau of Officials.
Her role was to supervise and manage the servants and maids there.
Governing others was more difficult than expected.
However, the Hedbig family was astute.
They quickly got the hang of it and found joy in managing personnel.
Once she had become somewhat accustomed to the work of the bureaucracy, her duties changed.
Her next assignment was the Imperial Guard residence.
Unlike the men of the Count of Saxony, who lived only indoors for fear of shedding blood, the knights of the Guard were full of vitality.
It was fun.
I experienced love for the first time in my life.
I felt a sense of fulfillment, as if all happiness was within me.
Then one day, her workplace changed again.
This time, it was the Empress's Palace.
It seemed that rumors of her doing a good job had reached the Empress's ears.
However, her role was not to look after the Empress's personal safety.
Nevertheless, she was given a significant role in managing the palace itself, and since the Empress's bedroom was also under her care, she had many opportunities to see the Empress.
Empress Eili Grafden was truly beautiful.
At that time, she was pregnant with her second child.
Emperor Venus kissed her swollen belly, and Crown Prince Ares, who looked exactly like the Emperor, smiled while holding his mother's hand.
I had the thought that not all nobles are the same.
Life in the Empress's palace was comfortable.
Until I knew I had a baby in my belly.
As soon as she found out she was pregnant, Hedby went to see the child's father.
And with a slightly fluttering heart, she confessed.
I'm pregnant with your child.
However, the response I received was a cold one.
Is it my child?
Only then did he realize why she had given him love but not assurance.
He had no intention of marrying the daughter of a nobleman who was not even granted a mansion in the second quarter of the capital.
Hetbiga was in despair.
If she gave birth to a child alone, she would undoubtedly be expelled from the family.
Being expelled meant she would be driven out of the imperial palace as well, and the rest of her life was clearly doomed.
In the meantime, Empress Ailey died.
White flags were raised throughout the capital.
At a time when the whole world mourned the death of the Empress and the baby, the Hedby family wandered the world searching for a way to kill their own child.
And then the man appeared.
Hazel Chernin, with his deep blue eyes.
He said this as if he could see right into my heart.
Isn't it unfair?
For some babies, the whole world mourns their death, while for others, they are denied even before they are born.
"…Watch your mouth.
Don't blabber on like that."
Aren't you even sorry to the baby?
What do you know!!!
Let's save it.
Your baby.
"omg!!"
Hedbiga sprang to her feet, breathing heavily.
Her back was drenched in sweat, and her heart was pounding violently.
Clutching her heart, which was beating painfully hard, she rose and hurriedly gulped down some water.
Her hands trembled, and the water spilled from the glass, soaking her sleeve.
Hetby ran outside wrapped in fur as if possessed by something.
“Your Majesty the Empress!”
The knights guarding her room in the hallway followed in surprise.
However, Hetbiga did not even notice them following.
After running and running like a madman, the place I arrived at was none other than the underground tomb of the Imperial Palace.
My ragged breath shattered into white fragments.
Beneath a pillar carved with a tiger, a massive stone sarcophagus and a smaller one, about half its size, lay side by side.
It was the coffin of Empress Ailey and Crown Prince Ares.
Hetbiga walked toward Crown Prince Ares's coffin.
Standing motionless before the coffin like someone who had lost their mind, she gave a low command.
Open.
"…yes?"
Open it.
“Ah, do you mean to open Prince Ares’s coffin?”
Hetby repeated the same words, paying no heed to the gravedigger's shocked question.
Open it.