For the One Who Hates Me - Chapter 28

The noblewomen were a bit flustered. They didn’t know anything for certain either. They couldn’t just tell the Empress baseless rumors. Viscountess Helen said, “What’s for sure is that Duke Thane often requests audiences with the Emperor. Lady Elise rarely leaves her mansion, so it doesn’t seem like anything is happening between them.”

This meant that Duke Thane was the one pushing for it. Aura asked, “What kind of person is Lady Elise?”

One of the noblewomen answered, “She’s a gentle and refined lady. She’s not particularly flawed in any way.”

Aura slowly nodded. ‘If she can remain flawless in this environment, she’s either very good at playing politics, or she’s a truly good person. One of the two.’

Countess Yona, trying to lighten the mood, said, “S-Surely, he’s not already taking a concubine.” Karl had been crowned emperor for less than half a year. It was too soon for him to take a concubine. But they all knew that concubines were often taken for political reasons, especially when the emperor had just taken the throne after shaking up the imperial family.

Just then, a servant came into the garden. Aura recognized him. ‘He’s Karl’s personal servant. What’s going on?’

After listening to the servant, Mina hurried over to Aura. “Your Majesty, His Majesty the Emperor has sent you a gift. Would you like to receive it here?”

“A gift?” Aura was surprised. Why would he suddenly do something he never did? The noblewomen’s faces, on the other hand, brightened up. They started to get excited, as if they had found the perfect opportunity to change the mood.

“Oh my! A gift. Please, Your Majesty, open it.”

“Yes. We are so curious.”

At this point, it would be strange to refuse. Aura had no choice but to agree. “Alright, I’ll take it.”

A moment later, the servant presented her with a rectangular green box on a tray. Aura untied the ribbon. The noblewomen’s eyes were fixed on her. The servant added, “His Majesty the Emperor chose it himself.”

Aura nodded nonchalantly. When she opened the box, there was a diamond necklace so dazzling it hurt her eyes.

“Oh my! It’s so beautiful!”

“My goodness… to give such a gift. He’s so romantic.”

“I’m so jealous, Your Majesty.” Sincere praise poured in. They must have been thinking to themselves that the emperor wouldn’t be taking a concubine anytime soon.

Aura, on the other hand, was staring at the necklace. To be more precise, she was looking at the center of the rounded chain. There was a single strand of platinum hair, tied neatly with a cream-colored ribbon.

There was no doubt about it. It was a strand of her hair that she had left on Karl’s bed two nights ago. Aura burst out laughing. “Hahaha…” The noblewomen looked at each other and began to laugh with her. Of course, they all thought the empress was laughing because she liked the gift.

Click. Aura closed the box. She hadn’t pretended that the night had never happened to torment Karl. ‘He said someone helps him sleep because they give him a sense of security.’

When she heard that, she thought she shouldn’t get any closer to him. That’s why she had tried to pretend that nothing had happened. ‘Is he saying he won’t let me pretend that it never happened?’

His intention was teasing, but also… a bit obsessive. The laughter at the tea party didn’t die down for a long time.

That night, Aura finished preparing for bed and sat on her bed. She lit a candle on the bedside table and began to read a book, as was her habit. ‘Kasa’s magic research is advanced, but it’s centered on Zenia magic. They barely touch on Silesia magic.’

How long had she been like that? Mina came into the room without knocking.

“Mina?”

Mina came closer and said in a small voice, “Your Majesty, a letter has arrived from Jose.”

“From Jose? Give it to me.” Aura quickly closed her book. Mina took a letter from her pocket and handed it to her. The letter was crumpled, as if it had traveled a long way.

“The letter came from Silesia, beyond the northern border.”

“Did Jose go there himself? What about the academy?” Aura asked, taking the letter.

“It seems he got a short leave.”

“I see. Thank you. You can go now.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” After Mina left, Aura examined the letter. Jose had used the initial “H” instead of his name, as if he was aware of the danger. Aura opened the envelope and began to read the letter.

Your Majesty the Empress,

I hope you are well. I have come to Silesia to find traces of Julius. It is very cold and desolate here. I am also on edge every day because of the unfamiliar magic. Julius is quite famous even here. Thanks to that, I was able to look into the place where he lived…

The letter flowed smoothly. Jose said he was staying in the mansion where Julius had lived. It seemed he had bribed the lone butler and had been able to look into Julius’s study.

I was lucky enough to find his research notes. It seems that in his later years, Julius was obsessed with crystal ball magic. He also spent a lot of time figuring out how to prevent the seal from being easily broken. Your Majesty, he was not a good magician. His notes were filled with phrases about how “a suitable sacrifice” was needed to break the seal.

“A suitable sacrifice…?”

I am sending this to you by letter as it seems to be important information. I thought you might be able to figure out how to break the seal with this alone. I will send you another letter as soon as I find out more.

-Sincerely, H.

‘It sounds like you need to pay a heavy price to break the seal. But “suitable” is a bit abstract.’

She wasn’t afraid of words like “sacrifice” or “price.” She was prepared to give whatever it took, no matter what it was.

Knock, knock.

A knock was followed by the bedroom door opening. Aura looked at the door, expecting to see Mina, but was surprised. The shadow from the hallway was all too familiar. Aura quickly put the letter under her pillow.

Karl entered the room. ‘Is it the night of the hapgung? No, it can’t be.’

“Karl. What is it?”

“I can’t sleep.” He naturally came over to the bed and sat next to Aura, as if they had made a plan. She was baffled by his nonchalant attitude. “Do you think this is a hotel?”

Karl leaned his head against the headboard. He tilted his head slightly and said to Aura, “You get to lie and mock me all the time.”

“When did I ever?”

“In the garden. Talking about dreams and delusions. I almost believed you.”

Aura was taken aback. She had tried to hide the fact that she had helped him sleep, but he had found out anyway.

“So you should at least let me do this.”

“…Do whatever you want.” If she argued, it would only give him an excuse to bring up the subject again. He smirked and closed his eyes. It seemed he hadn’t slept at all last night either. ‘If he wants to sleep, he should lie down.’

Aura opened the book she had left on the bedside table. But Karl’s hand appeared and took the book away.

“Hey. Give it back.”

“Why are you reading a book on magic? You were reading it all the time in the garden, too.”

“Do I have to get my reading habits approved?”

“It’s bad for your eyes. Stop reading.” Karl closed the book.

At this point, Aura had lost the will to fight. Karl had suddenly appeared and taken the spot next to her in bed. He had also taken her book. She would have believed it was a dream.

‘Why is he acting like this today?’

And his strangely relaxed attitude bothered her the most. He had begged her to help him sleep just two days ago. Why was he acting so confident now?

“Give me the book and go to sleep, Karl.” Aura tried to snatch the book. Karl reached out to her other side.

“Oh, really!” Aura was getting annoyed. She put her hand on Karl’s shoulder and reached for the book, but his arms were too long. Her fingertips barely touched the book.

“Please…!”

Aura’s knee came up onto Karl’s thigh. At that moment, he wrapped his arms around her waist. “!” Aura found herself on his lap. Only then did she realize she had been tricked.

“Did you come here just to tease me?”

“I couldn’t sleep just by being in the same bed as you.”

“What?”

“I need to be touching you to fall asleep. So what else was I supposed to do?” The book fell to the floor. He wrapped his arms around Aura and slowly laid down.

Aura was holding on to him like a teddy bear. She thought about struggling, but decided against it. It was obvious she couldn’t escape. Although she was a bit angry, it was better to just wait for him to fall asleep.

His breathing became slower. The soft, low sound of his breath and the regular beating of his heart. The body heat that was always a little warmer than hers, the firm chest. Everything…

‘This is a problem. It’s not uncomfortable.’

Humans were creatures of adaptation. How else could she get so used to being in his arms? Aura subtly lifted her head to look at Karl. He was fast asleep, as always.

‘Is he really going to take a concubine?’

He must have talked about a concubine with Duke Thane. She wondered why he hadn’t said anything to her. ‘It’s not that I’m sad about it…’

Aura couldn’t finish her thought. She was just… worried. She wondered about the Elise she had seen at the coronation. She was definitely a woman with a unique aura. A gentle, kind look with a delicate, clean feeling. She reminded her of her old self. The Aura from her princess days, who had come to Kasa with a very different aura.

Aura suddenly became curious. “Karl.” There was no answer, so he must have been asleep. Aura rested her forehead on his chest. “Why do you like me so much?” ‘The woman you liked is no longer here.’

Mulling over that cynical question, Aura closed her eyes. And at that moment, Karl slowly opened his eyes. He put his hands on Aura’s shoulders and gently laid her down on the bed.

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