For the One Who Hates Me - Chapter 2
For three years, Aura had dreamed of this moment: plunging the dagger into Karl.
Stabbing the new emperor would surely cause an uproar. They would force her to her knees and put a sword to her neck. Perhaps they would even execute her on the spot. But Aura wasn’t afraid. She was as good as dead three years ago.
Yet, Karl simply covered his wounded side with his black cloak as if nothing had happened.
“The Princess Consort Aura—” His voice was much deeper and thicker than she remembered, the echo of a boy completely gone.
“—seems to have lost her sanity from her long confinement.”
He gave a slight jerk of his chin. The knights quickly surrounded Aura.
“The last room on the left, on the west corridor of the fourth floor, is the Princess Consort’s. Take her there.”
Karl remembered Aura’s room exactly. He looked at her and added, as if to make sure she heard him clearly, “She is to be the Empress of the Kasa Empire. Treat her with the utmost respect.”
Aura thought she had misheard. Empress? Is he really asking me to play the part of his wife now?
“Ha!”
A hollow laugh escaped her lips. Her boundless rage had twisted into a fit of maniacal laughter.
“Ahahaha!”
Her gaunt body shook, her brittle hair a mess. Her hysterical laughter filled the audience chamber. The knights exchanged glances. How could this woman, who was clearly out of her mind, become their new empress?
Aura finally managed to calm herself. She brushed her hair back and muttered, “I wonder who’s really lost their mind.” Her turquoise eyes shot a sharp glare at Karl. “I’d rather die than be your empress.”
“Why?”
His question was so nonchalant that it stung. Aura vowed to give him the most humiliating answer she could.
“Because you were born a commoner.”
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The knights instantly drew their swords.
“Your Majesty! Give us the command!”
“How could she say such a thing…? Unforgivable!”
“Put those swords away immediately,” Karl said.
“But, Your Majesty!”
“Now!”
The knights flinched at his ferocious tone. One by one, they sheathed their swords.
Karl walked toward Aura, his expression and steps unhurried. The dagger in his side, the insult to his mother—nothing seemed to matter. He took her by the shoulders and whispered quietly, “You’re right. I’m a commoner.” A mocking smile played on his lips. “That’s why I need a noble woman like you, Aura.”
Aura was speechless. Karl was saying he would use her, as if picking up a discarded object. In that moment, something churned in her stomach.
“Ugh.”
Aura covered her mouth and crumpled to the floor. The world spun. It felt as if someone was crushing her with a great weight. The dry retching continued, though there was nothing in her stomach to expel.
Aura collapsed. Her mind felt like it was drifting away. She thought to herself that she wished this was all just a nightmare she was having back in the tower.
A few days passed. The Empress’s coronation was now only ten days away.
Aura stayed cooped up in the princess consort’s room. The entire situation felt unreal. She felt as numb as if she were still trapped in the tower. She refused all food and medical treatment. She was afraid that if she ate and received care, she would then have to put on a dress and shoes and then be dragged to the coronation. The thought of spending the rest of her life by Karl’s side was worse than death.
Knock, knock.
A knock was followed by the door opening. A middle-aged woman with streaks of white in her hair entered, followed by a group of maids.
“It’s been a long time, Princess Consort.”
The woman bowed only slightly. It was Tasha, the head maid of the palace and Karl’s wet nurse. She had raised Karl in place of his deceased birth mother.
Aura had once tried to get along with Tasha. She had treated Tasha with kindness and respect despite her being from a fallen noble family, because she was like a mother to Karl.
But Tasha had kept her distance. She never seemed to approve of Aura. Aura found out why later, when she happened to overhear a conversation between Tasha and another maid.
“To marry a filthy Zenia girl when there are so many noble young ladies in Kasa… What a disgrace.”
Tasha hadn’t changed. Her stubborn face and arrogant expression were the same. Aura wasn’t surprised, now that Karl was emperor.
“Your Highness, I heard you haven’t been eating at all, so I came to see you.”
“Did Karl send you?”
A look of offense crossed Tasha’s face. Aura had spoken to both Karl and her without any sign of respect.
“As I’ve heard, your mind is clouded. Under the circumstances, let me help you with your meal.”
She looked as though she was ready to force-feed her. Aura was angry. Not just at Tasha, but at Karl. He must have received a report on her condition, and yet all he did was send a maid. It wasn’t that she wanted to be coddled. She couldn’t stand the way he was trying to handle her so casually.
A faint smile appeared on Aura’s lips. She stood up. “Since Tasha herself has come all this way, I suppose I should eat something. I’ll wash up first. I feel so dirty.”
“Your meal first—”
“I said I’ll wash, Tasha.”
“…I will prepare it.”
A short while later, they were in the bathroom.
Aura took off her clothes without a second thought. As a princess and princess consort, it was common for her to be seen by maids. But the maids were horrified by her body. Her ribs were all visible, and her arms were like twigs.
“You need to eat more. You look no different from a corpse.”
Aura ignored Tasha’s words and got into the bathtub. The water was a comfortable temperature. But to Aura, who had used cold water for so long, it was not.
“It’s hot. Add more cold water.”
A maid cautiously poured cold water into the tub.
“More. It’s still hot.”
The maid added more cold water. The water cooled to the point where the steam disappeared. But Aura still felt hot and constricted.
“More.”
“Let me check.”
Tasha knelt by the tub and put her wrinkled hand in the water. “Any more and the water will get cold.”
“I’m hot.”
“How will you handle the coronation if you catch a cold?”
Aura stared at Tasha. Was this woman always this insolent? The more she thought about it, the more she realized how kind she had been in the past, putting up with this woman’s attitude.
“A head maid should be concerned with the water temperature, not the coronation.”
“Princess Consort, I am His Majesty the Emperor’s wet nurse.”
“I’m talking about your rank, Tasha.”
Tasha pressed her thin lips together. She was the head maid, and a head maid was, after all, a maid. Tasha sighed as if she was done with the conversation. “Honestly… you seem to be quite broken.”
“Broken?” Aura grabbed Tasha’s arm and pulled her with all her might into the bathtub.
“Gah! Ack!”
Splash!
The maids shrieked and covered their mouths.
“Head Maid!”
“Head Maid! Oh, what do we do?”
Aura grabbed the struggling Tasha by her collar.
“Gasp, cough! Cough!” Tasha sputtered, having swallowed water. Her face was pale, and her hair hung like seaweed.
“My, you’re the one who looks like a corpse.”
“H-Heeek…”
“You say I’m broken? Then go get your master. He’ll know if this water is hot or cold just by touching it.”
“Eugh…”
“I have things to say to your master. Go on.”
Aura released her grip, pushing Tasha.
“Aaah!”
Tasha fell backward, splashing into the water again. She thrashed and finally managed to pull herself out of the tub. She looked undignified, dragging her soaked dress as she fled.
The bathroom fell silent. The maids stood frozen in the corner. Aura rested her head against the side of the tub.
“What are you doing? Cold water.”
“Yes? Yes!”
A maid quickly fetched some cold water. Her hands trembled as she poured it into the tub. Aura looked at her hands and asked, “Are you scared?”
The maid flinched in terror and immediately prostrated herself. “I-I’m sorry, Princess Consort. I’m sorry…”
Aura couldn’t understand. How can they be scared of something so small? She couldn’t remember the last time she felt fear. It was the first thing she lost in the tower. When darkness persists, fear is the first thing to become numb.
Aura slowly lowered herself into the tub. Her stiff body gradually relaxed. A proper bath felt wonderful.
“Hah…”
She exhaled deeply. The fog in her mind slowly cleared. A single question came to her.
Why won’t Karl abandon me?
She was the wife he had wanted to die. She had even stabbed him, yet instead of killing or deposing her, he was forcing her to become empress.
“That’s why I need a noble woman like you, Aura.”
Noble. Aura found her clue in that word.
Karl needs “True Blood.”
“True Blood” referred to the legitimate sons and daughters of a royal or imperial family. Their mere existence inspired admiration from the people, just as Aura once had. Karl was far from being a “True Blood.” Moreover, he had ascended the throne through rebellion. He needed the people’s support now more than ever.
Having a “True Blood” wife would help stabilize his rule. But what royal family would give a legitimate daughter to a traitor? This must be his calculation: to use me.
Calculation. No word suited Karl better. It had always been this way. He had hidden his brilliant mind and excellent swordsmanship, as well as the perseverance to work harder than others. It wasn’t worth the trouble to be an open target for the crown prince.
Leaving for Devla must have been a part of his plan, too. It was more beneficial to hide and build his power for the rebellion, regardless of the pain his wife would suffer. And his plan had worked. Hadn’t he risen to the throne just as he’d intended?
Aura bit her lip. I won’t let things go your way anymore.
A short time later, Aura came out of the bathroom. The bath alone had brightened her face. Her hair, washed with good soap, now had a sheen to it. For a moment, her old beauty seemed to peek through.
She returned to the princess consort’s room. A man, who had been waiting for her by the window, was wearing a shirt instead of a knight’s uniform. His hair was neatly styled, revealing a smooth forehead. It was Karl.
With a cold look in his eyes, he asked, “Were you trying to drown my wet nurse?”
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