The Empress Tames the Tyrant - Chapter 62

Even after returning to his quarters, Cayenne could not settle his rage. Though he did not want to admit it, he felt a maddening sense of fear and anxiety at the possibility that, by some chance, Alicia could be taken from him.

“You must find a way before the nobles cause a riot in the morning.”

Chancellor Blake and Glenn, who received the Emperor’s near-impossible command, wore dark expressions. In the vast history of the Imperial Family, finding a way to validate this marriage retroactively was like searching for a needle in a desert.

“Your Majesty, it may be impossible by morning,” Glenn spoke honestly, but Cayenne immediately shook his head.

“Continental law, customary law, the laws set by the Holy See… under those frameworks, this marriage is certainly void.” Cayenne continued immediately. “Therefore, search the history of the Darius Imperial Family for a similar precedent.”

While it was impossible to review every law, searching specifically through the records of the Darius Imperial Family was a task that could be completed by morning.

“We have no choice but to find it.”

“With all due respect, Your Majesty, if you were to consummate the marriage even now…”

“Then the Empress would be condemned for abandoning her chastity while the marriage vows were void,” Cayenne countered. He still did not quite know how to fully master his own temperament, but he knew the cunning nature of Duke Nigel all too well. “Perhaps that is exactly what Duke Nigel wants. If the marriage vows have lapsed, we would both be guilty of an illicit affair.”

It was a terrifying situation to contemplate. A marriage required vows to be exchanged before a representative of God; even if a couple eloped against their parents’ wishes, the marriage could be recognized if they secretly took vows before a priest.

However, they were in the exact opposite situation. Everyone knew of their wedding vows, but they would also soon learn that those vows were void.

“Your Majesty is correct,” Emma spoke up, having entered at some point to serve tea. “Seneschal Miller and I have stayed in the palace for a long time, so it will be much easier for us to examine the records. Please allow us to help.”

Cayenne nodded readily at the unexpected reinforcements. However, the thought of the Great Sage staying in the same inner court as the Empress weighed on his mind.

“Madam, can the Great Sage visit the Empress’s palace without my permission?”

“There is no such protocol in the Imperial Palace.”

“What if he insists on the grounds of blood relations?”

The wise Emma immediately realized what Cayenne was worried about.

“This is Your Majesty’s palace. No one can change that fact.”

“Can I leave the countermeasures to you?”

“Yes. I shall protect the Empress at all costs.”

Though Cayenne was currently outnumbered, this was the Darius Imperial Palace, built and defended by his ancestors for generations. Naturally, there were Imperial Guards who risked their lives to defend this palace, along with a formidable Seneschal and Head Maid.

“I will select the staff to be sent to the Empress’s palace and then return to assist you.”

“Good. But make sure the Empress is not too frightened.”

Emma nodded and withdrew. Seeing Cayenne’s desperate face, she realized anew just how precious Alicia had become.

“I must protect them. Both the Empress and their marriage,” Emma murmured to herself, strengthening her resolve.

Alicia was now the most precious person to her as well. The dying wish of Diane had been for Cayenne’s happiness, and now, his happiness could not exist without Alicia.

As night fell, a strange tension reached the Empress’s palace. Agnes returned to Alicia’s bedchamber after exchanging a few words with the Head Maid sent by Emma.

“Why have so many people come?”

Alicia was looking through the curtains at the flickering lights at the entrance of her palace. To reach the Empress’s palace, one had to pass through the heavy imperial security and then the even more cautious inner court, so there had never been a need to station this many people.

“Not just the Imperial Guards, but those attendants… just how many are there?”

“It is said His Majesty the Emperor personally commanded Lady Emma.”

“Why? Is this palace in danger?” Alicia closed the curtains and turned to look at Agnes. “I know the Great Sage is in the inner court. But did you not say that, by law, he cannot visit me tonight?”

“Yes, that is correct.”

“His Majesty must know that as well. What on earth happened in the audience chamber for him to be this guarded?”

Cayenne did not want Alicia to be anxious, but she was far too intelligent to have the entire situation hidden from her. The fact that he had surrounded the palace so strictly despite the existing laws meant those laws alone were insufficient to stop the Great Sage.

“Actually… His Majesty told me to keep it a secret, but…”

When Agnes spoke with difficulty, Alicia quickly urged her with a look.

“Yes, the Empress should know. I heard the general situation from the Head Maid Lady Emma sent.”

“What situation?” Alicia asked urgently, sitting on the sofa in front of Agnes and tilting her fair eyebrows.

“Duke Nigel and the Great Sage met His Majesty in the audience chamber. The Chancellor and the Great Sage’s grandson were present… and it is said His Majesty’s voice was raised in anger several times.”

Alicia let out a sigh. Although Cayenne was someone familiar with violent means, he had been different recently. That was partly because he himself wished to change.

“His Majesty is different from before. Therefore, he would not have raised his voice without a significant reason.”

Alicia trusted Cayenne. Even if the whole world pointed fingers at him as a savage tyrant, that trust would not waver.

“Everyone fears him… but I do not.”

The Cayenne Alicia had seen with her own eyes possessed a warm heart like anyone else and knew how to move his large hands with great care.

“What on earth was discussed in the audience chamber?”

Above all, he always held a desire to be a better person. Knowing Cayenne’s constant effort to be better than his past self, how could he have failed to contain his anger? She had to know the reason immediately.

“Lady Emma could not know the details of the conversation. However, it is said that in the Emperor’s quarters, the Chancellor, Sir Glenn, and Lady Emma are searching through the records of the past Darius Imperial Family.”

“What records?”

Agnes hesitated for a moment, but no matter how she thought about it, it was only right for Alicia to know. This was a matter concerning Alicia’s own fate, and no one else’s.

“This part is a guess from Lady Emma and me, but…”

Alicia nodded, urging her on.

“What His Majesty commanded them to find are cases from the past where a marriage in the Darius Imperial Family was not consummated but continued nonetheless. In other words, an exceptional case or precedent like the current one.”

The Darius Imperial Family had a literally ancient history; going back to its ancestors meant a distant past, so it would not be surprising if anything had happened in between.

“He said it must be found by morning.”

Cayenne had said he could wait for the consummation. That was only a few days ago, so the reason everything had suddenly become urgent could only be explained by the audience with the Great Sage and Duke Nigel.

“By morning…”

“Presumably, in the audience chamber, Duke Nigel or the Great Sage, or rather, both of them simultaneously claimed the marriage is void.”

Alicia inadvertently bit her lip. That night, knowing the marriage vows would lapse, she had been the one to postpone the first night.

“Yes… that is the only possibility.”

At the time, she had been happy and grateful to have the power of choice, but now she could not be certain if that choice had been correct.

“Perhaps that is not all.” Alicia’s blue eyes shone calmly. “Everyone surrounding the Empress’s palace now is wary of the Great Sage. Why is that? Why did the Great Sage, who did not even attend the wedding using his old age as an excuse, come now?”

When her thoughts reached that point, an extreme sense of anxiety washed over her. Why had she acted as if the time given to the two of them was infinite? The time spent facing him and getting to know each other had been so sweet that she had momentarily forgotten the ways of the world.

“I must see His Majesty right now. Agnes, prepare me at once.”

“That is impossible.”

“Why? I can help too.”

Agnes stood firmly in front of Alicia.

“The one thing Lady Emma urged most strongly was that the Empress must not leave her palace.”

“Why? This is my business. Not anyone else’s, but mine! You want me to stay still when I might be dragged back to Lucan at any moment?”

Agnes’s heart ached, but her role was to stop Alicia.

“Your Majesty… no, Alicia. Please forget what I am about to say once this crisis has passed.”

Seeing Agnes’s sorrowful eyes, Alicia’s heart sank.

“Your marriage vows are already void. In other words… there will be those who do not recognize the two of you as a married couple.”

Just hearing the words made her eyes sting. What were the times she had shared with Cayenne, and what was that warmth?

“Therefore, the two of you must keep your distance until this situation is resolved. In the worst case… it could be seen as an illicit affair that goes against the doctrines of the Holy See.”

Alicia slumped onto the sofa. An illicit affair, the moment she heard that word, it felt as though the precious relationship between the two of them would vanish, and all strength left her body.

“His Majesty… already said I am his only wife.” Her fragile voice trembled.

“Yes. That is the only truth.” Agnes stroked Alicia’s shoulder. “But because we do not know what malicious people might use for slander, please… Your Majesty must remain here. That is His Majesty’s wish and the wish of everyone.”

Alicia bit her lip hard and managed to hold back her tears, giving a small nod. Cayenne was determined not to allow even a speck of filth to touch Alicia’s name. The same went for their marriage. She could not ignore his sincerity just because of a momentary surge of emotion.

“Do not worry, I understand the situation.” Alicia turned her gaze toward the ceiling because her eyes kept stinging. “But I will do everything I can here as well.”

It was a fight for her own fate, and no one else’s. If staying here was for the best, Alicia would gladly make the Empress’s palace her battlefield.