The Female Lead Takes Care of Everything - Chapter 77

No matter how he looked at it, the only answer was the magic stone mine.

“Yeah,” Magia nodded.

“Thanks to you three little ones, His Majesty is practically floating with joy.”

“So, the emperor is in a good mood.”

“…”

Magia glanced at Nivellia.

“But hey, kitten.”

“Hmm?”

“You know who the emperor is, right?”

“I do!”

Nivellia answered proudly.

“Grandma and Grandpa told me! A long, long time ago, they said that once the war ends, we should definitely chop off that imperial bastard’s—”

“Mm! Mmmph!”

Before she could finish, Magia quickly covered her mouth with his hand.

But Aref and Soles had already heard everything.

As the carriage passed through the gates of the imperial palace, Soles gently held his little sister’s hand and spoke to her in a serious tone.

“His Majesty the Emperor is the highest authority in the entire empire.”

“Isn’t Grandma the biggest boss?”

“Well… she kind of is, but…”

His resolve wavered for a moment, but Soles quickly pulled himself together.

If he didn’t prepare Nivellia properly now, there was a very real chance she’d end up locked in the imperial dungeon.

“He’s an adult. Even Grandma and Grandpa show respect when they meet him. You know what manners are, right?”

“It’s saying ‘hello,’ right?”

Nivellia beamed with confidence.

“Exactly!”

Soles looked as if he had just discovered a miracle.

“So, you’ll greet him nicely, right?”

“Hello!”

“And you absolutely cannot speak casually.”

“You mean like ending with ‘you’?”

“Right!”

Soles held out his pinky and asked her to promise.

Nivellia gladly linked fingers with him.

Only then did Soles breathe a sigh of relief.

‘This should be good enough.’

She was only four years old. Expecting her to say something like, “It is an honor to meet the radiant sun of the empire, Your Majesty,” would be absurd.

The only manners she really knew were greetings taught in preschool.

Besides, this was the same child who treated the ninety-something-year-old Grand Witch like a playmate and bossed around the 200-year-old Tower Master as if he were her assistant.

She even spanked the Tower Master once.

But no one had ever dared call Nivellia rude.

She was the youngest daughter of a noble family of national heroes.

One of the chosen heirs of Rubeo.

The granddaughter of a saint.

And right now, there were no girls Nivellia’s age within the royal family.

Which made her the highest-ranking young noble girl in the entire Dramenor Empire.

Even though she had no idea.

“Aref, did you hear that? You have to greet the Emperor properly when we meet him!”

“Okay. I say ‘Hello,’ right?”

“Aref is so smart! But if you get scared, just tell me, okay?”

“Okay.”

Nivellia proudly repeated what she had just learned for Aref’s benefit.

He had heard everything already, and he had learned slightly more formal etiquette in lessons, but he nodded along with a smile.

Thump.

A large hand gently patted Soles on the head as he was watching them.

It was Magia.

“You’ve got your hands full, don’t you?”

“It’s not too bad. They usually listen to me.”

“That’s because it’s you. If it were anyone else, they wouldn’t even bother listening.”

Magia muttered that under his breath.

“Hehe…”

Pleased by the compliment, Soles smiled like a typical child his age.

The imperial palace sat on the tallest hill in the capital city of Hwangseong.

From the hilltop, one could see the entire city below. And the road leading to the palace was packed with carriages.

For every carriage going in, just as many were coming out. It was early in the day, and the entrance line stretched on endlessly.

But the carriage carrying Nivellia passed through without any delay.

That was because the Emperor had personally ordered that any carriage carrying the Tower Master be allowed in immediately.

“So many carriages…”

Nivellia, peeking out through the small window with just her eyes showing, murmured softly.

It was her first time at the palace, and seeing so many unfamiliar people and surroundings made her shy.

She glanced up at Magia with a worried face, as if to ask, “What do I do now?”

Magia gently sat her up straight beside him and said,

“Come to think of it, kitten, this is your first visit to the palace, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.”

Nivellia’s world was surprisingly small.

She was either at home or at preschool.

Occasionally, she visited the De Gladius estate.

But even then, she never asked to go out first.

“I still like going out, though.”

Any time she did, a guardian absolutely had to come along.

“Tower Master, where will we get off? Is it Primus Palace?”

“We’re going a bit farther. The Emperor…”

Magia glanced at Nivellia just as he was about to say “the Emperor.” Their eyes met, and she blinked up at him with her big, curious eyes.

“His Majesty is waiting for you at Tertius Palace.”

Soles’ eyes went wide at that.

Aref asked, “Hyung, what’s Tertius Palace? And… Frimi… Frimu…?”

“Primus Palace,” Soles corrected him gently and began explaining.

“There are a lot of buildings in the palace, but only four are officially called palaces. Two of those are Primus and Tertius.”

Primus Palace means the first palace. It’s the first building you see when you enter the imperial grounds.

It’s the most iconic structure in the palace and the place where most official government affairs take place.

It houses many departments, busy administrators, and receives guests from all over.

The second palace, Secundus, contains the Emperor’s office and the workspaces of the heads of the different ministries. It’s where all the important meetings happen.

And then there’s Tertius Palace.

The third palace, and the one they were heading to, is usually only opened for special events or banquets.

It also serves as lodging for diplomats and nobles attending formal gatherings.

“I’ve never been to Tertius Palace!” Soles exclaimed.

He had only visited the first palace before.

Nivellia and Aref had never seen any of them, and now their faces were full of excitement.

“Is it a cool place?” Nivellia asked Magia.

“Well…” Magia shrugged lightly.

“It’s worth seeing at least once.”

The carriage stopped in front of Tertius Palace.

The building glimmered with a soft blue light, and the children couldn’t hide their amazement.

It was the most beautiful place they had ever seen.

Nivellia was carried out in Magia’s arms.

“Keep your eyes closed until I tell you it’s okay.”

“Okay.”

Nivellia nodded obediently and buried her face against Magia’s chest, keeping her eyes tightly shut.

Aref had been watching and soon understood why.

He noticed the knights standing nearby, swords at their sides.

“Nini is scared of swords,” he remembered Soles saying earlier.

Aref looked at Nivellia again. Her tiny hands were gripping Magia’s robe tightly, her knuckles pale.

“…”

His heart sank as he watched her.

‘Is it okay for me to learn swordsmanship?’

The only time Nivellia pulled away from him was when he trained with a sword.

‘If I become a knight… will she stop liking me?’

Would she be this afraid of him?

What if she refused to come near him at all?

He was learning to fight so he could protect her. That was his duty. His most important goal.

But now, the thought of her being afraid of him made his head hurt.

At that moment, someone approached.

“Tower Master.”

Magia looked toward the voice.

“The chamberlain.”

A well-dressed woman in her middle years bowed to them politely.

“Please follow me.”

She led them up to the third floor, to a quiet room.

“Your Majesty, the guests have arrived.”

“Let them in.”

The room was likely a reception lounge used during banquets. Small mirrors and vanity tables lined the walls.

There were no windows.

At the far end, someone stood at a vanity table.

She had pale silver hair, as if dusted with ash, swept back and neatly tied.

Wearing round gold-rimmed glasses, Emperor Ferratore turned with a smile to greet them.

“Before the sun that lights the Empire, we greet His Majesty the Emperor.”

Magia bowed respectfully.

Soles and Aref quickly followed his lead.

“Hellooo…”

Nivellia peeked out from behind Magia’s leg and gave a small, shy greeting.

“Thank you for coming, especially on such short notice.”

The Emperor took long strides toward Nivellia and knelt down to meet her eye level.

Nivellia stared straight at him as he went down on one knee.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Lady Deiamor.”

“…Okay.”

The Emperor quietly studied her face, which looked just like the Saint’s.

Blue eyes met with gray.

“…”

Nivellia tilted her head curiously. The Emperor’s smile grew a little wider.

Then he stood and turned to Soles.

“It’s been a while, young master Deiamor. Have you been well?”

“Thank you for remembering me. Yes, my family and I have all been doing well.”

“You’re a fine young man. And now…”

The Emperor looked at Aref.

‘Huh?’

Aref noticed something odd in the Emperor’s expression. For just a moment, it seemed to waver.

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