One Day, My Fiancé Brought His First Love Along - Chapter 63

“Publicly, we’ll say they’re ordinary jewels. The fact that I gave you magical ones will remain a secret. Even as Emperor, and even if the Imperial family possesses several magical artifacts, wouldn’t it damage my reputation to hand such rare items over to knights just for reaching the finals?”

He wasn’t wrong.

Surely, even the Imperial family did not have that many magical artifacts in their possession.

To give something so precious to mere knights, simply for performing well in a swordsmanship tournament?

It was inevitable that many nobles would take offense.

“Good. Since you seem to understand, I’ll explain what the jewels do. The ones I gave you are actually a pair—they resonate with each other.”

Aileen’s expression shifted subtly.

“If you recite the activation phrase, the jewel will let you know where the other person is. You’re to use it in moments of extreme danger—when you absolutely must find one another.”

Whatever joy she’d felt at receiving a magical artifact vanished instantly.

Aileen now questioned the true motive behind Edys giving them, of all people, such items.

Perhaps sensing her faint stiffening, Edys quickly continued.

“To be honest, they’re consumable. I believe they could originally be used about five times, but these ones have already been used once or twice. So, you likely have only one or two uses left.”

Edys pointed to the jewel with his second finger—a finger marked by old wounds, hardly fitting for an emperor.

“See how it’s glowing so brightly? Once the magic is used up, that light will fade. It’ll turn into an ordinary jewel, no shinier than any other.”

Aileen stared silently at the jewel.

Carlisle, just as before, remained motionless, eyes fixed on the stone.

“Go ahead and take them out—they’re necklaces. I made the chains longer so they can be worn discreetly beneath your clothes. They’re expensive, so don’t ever take them off. Go on, try them now.”

The two of them quietly pulled out the necklaces. With careful hands, they revealed the thin silver chains tucked into the soft velvet lining.

Aileen and Carlisle each put theirs on.

“Carlisle, how are you so bad at this? You wield a sword like a master and yet…”

While Aileen had fastened hers in a single smooth motion, Carlisle had already failed five times.

The clasp was simply too small for his large hands. He kept missing.

Unable to watch any longer, Edys gestured toward Aileen.

“Help him out, Dame Aileen.”

“It’s fine.”

Aileen thought she had replied herself.

But to her surprise, the one who answered so sharply—so quickly—was Carlisle.

The man who had sat in complete silence until now suddenly refused her help with cold precision.

And the fact that the reason for his first words in this meeting was to reject her aid—was striking.

Seeing Aileen’s startled expression, Edys tried again with a gentler tone.

“The chain’s long enough—no need to be awkward. It’s not like she wants to do it, either.”

“I’m fine.”

Carlisle’s voice had dropped a degree, soft but heavy—the tone he used when his mood had taken a turn.

Aileen looked at his face. His lips were pressed into a hard line, and his eyes, fixed on Edys, had grown tense.

Suddenly, her mood plummeted as well. Judging by the situation, it wasn’t hard to guess why Carlisle was acting this way.

When Edys told her to help, Aileen had indeed felt somewhat awkward—but not to the point of disgust.

If it had been Tanil or Setar, she would’ve helped without hesitation. It wasn’t a matter of who it was—this wasn’t about personal feelings.

But for him to react with such visible aversion… Even if his heart had moved on to Judith, this was something else entirely.

What was so awful about fastening a simple necklace in an official setting? Did even the faintest contact disgust him? Just like that time in the Sel Order Commander’s office?

The air between the three of them began to freeze.

In the end, it was Edys who broke the silence, attempting to lighten the mood.

“Come now, Carlisle. You could’ve just asked me for help. No need to act proud—especially not with me.”

With a dramatic sigh, he beckoned Carlisle over.

“Come here. I’ll do it for you.”

Tsk. All this fuss over a necklace.

Edys exaggerated a loud click of his tongue.

Carlisle, as if nothing had happened, approached without resistance and bowed his head for Edys to clasp the necklace.

As she watched the Emperor help him fasten it, Aileen felt herself sinking—like a stone cast into the deep sea.

Why was he acting like this? She couldn’t understand him at all.

Until recently, they had trained together daily, maintaining a polite distance—coexisting like strangers.

If anything, she had been the one to act a bit cold, while Carlisle had offered advice, even fetched her water—friendly, even.

Granted, he was the same toward the other knights.

But now, to suddenly recoil like this? And in front of her?

She was upset.

From beginning to end, he was the one at fault—so why did he keep agitating her? Why did he seem so desperate to shake the fragile calm she had only just managed to reclaim?

But her spiraling thoughts were abruptly cut off by the Emperor’s booming voice, sounding far too delighted after finally managing to fasten the necklace.

“Well then! Now that the necklaces are on, let’s move on.”

She shot a glare at Carlisle as he returned to his seat.

Aileen’s violet eyes, now tinged with red from rising anger, locked onto him.

Yet Carlisle didn’t spare her so much as a glance. As if he knew no other path but the one straight ahead, he simply walked back to his place in silence.

Ha… A faint scoff escaped her lips.

Aileen withdrew her gaze and turned her attention back to the Emperor’s voice.

“From this point on, the two of you will investigate the case I mentioned earlier. We have a rough idea of who’s involved—you might suspect it yourselves. But they’re dangerous people, unafraid of consequences, so there’s a chance you’ll both face real danger. That’s why I gave you the jewels.”

Edys’s expression grew solemn once more. Aileen immediately grasped who he had in mind.

It had to be the Marquess of Hessiden. In the Empire, he was Edys’s most formidable political enemy.

As soon as the realization hit, another question stirred within her.

Why, if he was being this cautious, this guarded—why did Edys still trust Carlisle?

What if Carlisle, in an attempt to protect Judith, leaked everything to Marquess Hessiden? What if he misspoke in front of Judith?

But Aileen seemed to be the only one concerned about that. Edys, without hesitation, dropped an even heavier bomb.

“And there may soon be a battle against the northern tribes. No, more than likely, there will be—just as there always has been. I intend to send the two of you to the front.”

“……”

“The current chieftain of the northern tribes is still difficult to read. His approach is unlike his predecessors.”

Wasn’t his name Santinu? Aileen recalled hearing it from Duke Revart.

The northern tribes operated under a rotating leadership system. This time, the chieftain was from a particularly bold and youthful faction.

Fortunately, her memory had not failed her—Edys soon spoke the name himself, alongside a bold declaration.

“Santinu is young. And so am I. The long and bitter feud between the Empire and the northern tribes—perhaps it’s grown tiresome. Abandoning old traditions, putting an end to ancient grudges… That’s what I see for the Empire’s future.”

Aileen, who had been listening intently, instinctively raised her eyebrows. Just how many times had Edys surprised her today?

Peace with the northern tribes? Reconciliation? Could such a thing even be possible?

No one understood the deeply rooted, blood-soaked animosity between the two sides better than Edys, Emperor of the Diert Empire.

And yet, it was he who now spoke of peace.

Aileen had never even imagined such a future.

Tossing out words capable of upending everything, Edys carried on, his expression steady, his voice unwavering.

“We don’t yet know what Santinu wants. The northern tribes have always followed a predictable pattern, but this time it’s different. The current silence could mean they’re preparing for something bigger—or it could mean that Santinu genuinely wants peace.”

“…Do you truly believe peace between the Empire and the northern tribes is possible?”

“I see a sliver of hope. And if there’s even the faintest opening in Santinu’s heart, I will not hesitate to seize it. I’ll give it everything I have. I can no longer stand by and watch innocent Imperial citizens be sacrificed in a pointless conflict.”

His tone had shed every trace of lightness. This was the Emperor—not the playful Edys from moments before, but a sovereign carrying the weight of his people.

The young Emperor, once a discarded prince, now stood as the undeniable pillar of the Diert Empire.

Aileen bowed her head slightly, waiting for what he would say next. His following words were soft, laced with quiet bitterness.

“If Santinu truly does desire peace, but still ends up attacking… it would be because he couldn’t overcome pressure from the other chieftains.”

If that were true—if the reason behind their silence had indeed been a hope for peace…

Edys’s heavy, honest confession came to an end. It was so raw, so sincere, that it left the room silent, steeped in contemplation.

The one to break that silence was Carlisle.

Other than his brief interaction over the necklace, he had said nothing all this time. Now, his calm gaze met the Emperor’s.

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