I Will Surrender My Position as the Empress - Chapter 65
Meanwhile, in the aftermath of the failed assassination attempt on the Empress, Viscountess Vuetta, which had turned her world upside down, gradually found a sense of stability. Above all, the couple personally visited the empress and offered comforting words, acknowledging the anxiety they must have felt given the severity of the situation. With the assassin having taken their own life, the incident had become an unpredictable void, and even the maidens of Vuetta’s estate were entangled in the affair. If the viscount and viscountess were wrongly accused, it could have led to a colossal scandal, affecting numerous individuals tied to their domain. As the crowd anxiously observed the situation, the Empress’s acknowledgment of the innocence of the viscount couple brought relief to many.
“I’m truly relieved that you’re unharmed. Thank you.”
“We failed to properly manage the estate, resulting in this incident. I sincerely apologize, Your Majesty.”
The viscount couple took turns expressing remorse and gratitude with gaunt faces.
“Please do not speak like that. Both of you have endured a lot.”
Politely refusing the Viscount couple’s offer to rest a few more days before departing, Adele prepared to leave the following day.
“Wouldn’t it be better to rest for another day? Your face looks pale,” Lionel remarked, examining Adele’s face.
Adele shrugged her shoulders dismissively in response.
“My face has always been like this. And look at the viscountess’s face. She looks pitiful. Do I have to leave so she can stretch her legs and get a good night’s sleep?”
Unable to deny the truth in her words, Lionel couldn’t bring himself to disagree.
“The tears shed by the viscountess now must be tears of joy. After all, unwanted guests are a common occurrence for nobility,” Adele joked with a smirk, and Lionel, pretending not to hear once again, cleared his throat lightly. In response, Adele narrowed her eyes.
“Even my aide has to be on my side! Do I have to admit that I’m an unwanted guest for you to acknowledge it?”
This time, Lionel joined in with a playful glare, raising an eyebrow in protest.
“Should I respond to what you said to yourself?”
“It wasn’t to myself,” Adele responded.
“It was to yourself.”
Adele laughed at Lionel’s serious face as he responded to her jest. Lionel, looking at the Empress, lowered his gaze and rolled his lips. Adele stifled her laughter and looked around slowly. Even Lennox and Duke Despone were preparing to depart with stern faces. Although Adele couldn’t catch Lennox and Duke Despone due to a lack of evidence, she had gained something valuable from this journey—the admiration-filled glances of the knights towards her.
“Your Majesty! If you jump up in excitement, you might hurt yourself, so please use the footstool.”
“No, wouldn’t a carriage be better, Your Majesty?”
“Your Majesty, is this all your luggage?”
The sturdy attendants, like large dogs wagging their tails, wandered around her, asking if she needed anything. Adele secretly chuckled at their behavior. Lionel, standing by her side, also raised his eyebrows with an amazed expression. Of course, Adele, not one to miss such an opportunity, maintained a dignified expression and praised the knights who gathered around her once again.
“As expected of the knights of Echmont, how do you all quickly understand what I need? Thanks to you all, I recovered quickly!”
****
A few days later, someone unexpectedly knocked on the door of Baldr Manor. It was unusual for anyone to visit the Duke, especially without a prior appointment; even the Emperor himself would typically schedule a visit. But the butler of the manor greeted the visitor with a welcoming smile.
“Welcome, your highness.”
Elizabeth smiled at the familiar butler.
“How have you been? Oh, has my absence made you look even better?”
“Please, spare me such words.”
The butler once held deep respect for Elizabeth, who had been the mistress of Baldr Manor. She was an open-minded person who valued abilities over social status, and as the mistress of the manor, she was flawless. So when Elizabeth boldly declared her intention to divorce the Duke, the butler shed tears alone. As Elizabeth walked away with a smirk, the urgent sound of footsteps reached her ears, and the door creaked open. The person who appeared, though familiar, seemed unfamiliar. It had been a long time since she looked into those clear blue eyes behind transparent glasses. Elizabeth greeted him with a relaxed smile.
“Long time, no see, Grand Duke.”
Theseus stared blankly at her tidy face. flowing golden hair, a confident expression bordering on arrogance, and a leisurely smile. Truly an unchanging person. She had been like this even on the day she proposed divorce and left the manor. Suppressing his emotions, Theseus greeted her.
“It’s been a while, Grand Duchess.”
Elizabeth and Theseus sat facing each other, with a table in between.
“I heard that Lionel had become the aide to Her Majesty the Empress.”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Thinking of Lionel, Elizabeth clenched her fist.
“Hmm… I always thought the minister had some radical tendencies, but I never expected him to respond directly to the Empress’s aide announcement.”
Theseus also chuckled softly at her words and nodded.
“Anyway…”
Elizabeth trailed off, silently studying Theseus’s face. When she had come to the capital to attend the Emperor’s wedding, she stayed in the palace and didn’t have a proper face-to-face meeting with him. After the divorce, this was the first time she sat down across from Theseus. He remained unchanged. Well, it was a political marriage from the start, so there was no reason for it to bother him. Elizabeth took a deep breath and straightforwardly revealed the reason for his visit.
The order fell, and those in the room moved simultaneously. Bringing an Imperial Palace maid along posed the risk of unexpected variables. This room in the underground of the Ivory Palace was a bedroom Diane had specially prepared for her insomnia. She sometimes slept here from late at night until the morning to get continuous rest. So, she believed she could somehow navigate her way around. Loraine swiftly untied the bound maid from the chair and disappeared into the adjacent room. Not forgetting to gag her mouth in preparation for possible screams. At that moment, the sound of the door opening to the underground echoed. Everyone in the room quickly vanished into the adjacent room, and Diane hurriedly lay on the bed, flipping the blanket over herself. The maid who remained in the room tried to stifle her breath. The creaking footsteps descending the stairs sounded precarious as if they could break at any moment. Every nerve in Diane’s body was on edge. Anxiously trying to discern the footsteps, Diane noticed that two people were coming down the stairs. Diane opened her eyes and looked towards the stairs. The small lantern hanging on the stairs swung, and suddenly, someone revealed themselves. Shortly after, a figure of slightly smaller stature followed. Even with just the silhouette, Diane recognized that they were the Emperor and Lady Giggs. She gritted her teeth.
Hannah Giggs, that cunning snake of a woman!
******
When the Emperor confidently stepped into the underground bedroom, the maid who had been waiting quickly stood up and greeted him. Upon seeing Lady Giggs’ face following the Emperor, she took a sharp breath and took a step back. The Emperor, with a scrutinizing gaze as if examining something, carefully surveyed the darkness.
“Is Diane asleep?”
“Yes.”
“There were screams. Do you know where they came from?”
“Yes? I-I didn’t hear anything.”
“Really?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“Bring a lantern.”
The trembling maid quickly brought a lantern, gently illuminating the room. Diane Portier lying on the bed, showed no signs of movement. Emperor Karl, holding the lantern, approached slowly with the maid leading the way. At that moment, something sparkled on the floor. Karl stopped and looked down. Shimmering strands of long hair were scattered across the red velvet carpet. Kneeling, he picked up the strands. Upon closer inspection, it was human hair, with signs of being cut abruptly. Karl’s gaze shifted to Diane, lying on the bed.
“Diane.”
“…”
“Diane, wake up.”
As if just waking up, Diane, who had been lying motionless, opened her eyes. Carefully looking at the Emperor, she stiffened. The Emperor stood over her like a giant, his face illuminated by the lantern captivatingly alluring, but his gaze was as cold as frost. He seemed like a messenger of death.
“Your, Your Majesty.”
Diane, startled, stood up as if prompted. With a blank expression, she looked at him. The Emperor, standing tall as if to look down at her, was both enchanting in the flickering light and chilling with his icy gaze. He seemed like an executioner.
“What are you doing at this hour? Lady Giggs?”
Diane had intended to keep a grip on the situation. By now, Loraine and the maid should have left the Ivory Palace. At that moment, the Emperor reached out and touched her ear. Not knowing what he was doing, Diane turned her head, and the next moment, she almost let out a scream. The Emperor was holding a handful of Diane’s hair in his left hand and comparing it with a few strands of hair held in his right hand. The ones in his right hand were straighter, resembling normal hair more than Dian’s tangled curls. Karl slowly turned his gaze and met Dian’s eyes.
“One Imperial Palace maid has disappeared. Do you know where she is?”
His voice was so ruthless and rough that Dian, shivering, managed to answer with trembling lips.
“I’ve been asleep all this time… Why are you asking me such things…”
“Is that so?”
Tears poured from Diane’s eyes.
“The one in the long blonde hair seems not to be yours.”
The Emperor’s interrogation continued, and Diane desperately held onto his arm.
“Your Majesty, what are you thinking? Why are you doing this to me?”
Karl looked at Diane, then turned to look at the door through which Loraine had left. Dian’s heart raced. Desperately, she clung to the Emperor’s arm, pleading.
“Your Majesty, I was sleeping. Please believe me!”
After a moment of silence, while still looking at the door, Karl forcefully shook off Diane’s hand.
“Diane Poitier.”
“…”
“Before, I mentioned that I would revoke all the authority I had given you. Yet you continued to wield my authority in secret.”
“Your Majesty…”
“I will no longer tolerate it.”
Karl angrily tossed the handful of hair onto the floor, simultaneously releasing his pent-up emotions. The reason he clung to the strands, refusing to discard them, was inexplicable. The act of throwing it away without a justifiable cause seemed bothersome, carrying a weight of guilt. Observing Diane’s wide-eyed shock, Karl finally felt liberated as he shed the burden of remorse. Once, he had bestowed upon Diane a power comparable to that of the empress, yet he remained convinced that Adelaide alone could shield him. The emperor’s unapologetic turn and departure left Diane unable to fathom catching up.
On the other hand, Lady Giggs, standing in silence, cast a contemplative glance at Diane before following the emperor. Witnessing the Empress, favored by Hannah Giggs, shattered over the woman who bore the Emperor’s favor, was sufficient. Mrs. Giggs’ eyes glowed with a tinge of blue. As dawn broke, her maid was discovered outside the palace with her hair shorn. Though Lady Giggs met her personally, the maid, gripped by fear, remained tight-lipped.
“What should I do?”
In response to the servant’s inquiry, Lady Giggs rose, addressing the matter with composure.
“Cease your inquiries; provide generous severance pay and escort the maid out of the palace. The one who altered her appearance has already paid the price and will do so again in the future.”
