The Emperor and the Knightess

Chapter 247

What Lucius the First offered was something Tory couldn’t refuse. She straightened up slowly. With her lady-like posture and bright eyes, Tory didn’t have to say a word. The emperor said to her, “I cannot give you a title that is inheritable, but instead, I will give you a status that is fit for your position.”

Tory did not have to ask the emperor how a woman could be given a position and an official status. This was because both of them knew that it was possible. It has already been done. There was already a woman who achieved an official government position and a landlord.

Marquess Poliana Winter.

Because it was already done once, it could be done again; it was actually going to be much easier.

For an easier and more comfortable life, Tory knew she should refuse this offer. But if such a boring life was what she truly wanted, Tory would’ve never betrayed her family. And if she didn’t make the public accusations, she would’ve never been given this offer.

Tory kneeled and kissed the back of Lucius the First’s hand. She will never get to kiss his lips and be in his arms, but she wasn’t disappointed. There was never love between them, and in fact, Tory preferred this working relationship much better.

Tory put her forehead on the emperor’s, no longer her husband’s, hand. She then finally burst into tears.

***

Lucius the First offered the same thing to Stra, who refused. She would’ve preferred to work as a volunteer maid; Stra knew she wouldn’t be able to handle a position that never existed before. It was a new position people will have a hard time accepting and therefore, she didn’t want it.

Stra asked, “Is Tory ok?”

When she learned that Tory was poisoned by her own people, Stra was shocked. She began to cry again and Lucius the First waited patiently until his “ex-wife” calmed down.

When he asked if she really wanted a divorce, Stra nodded. Lucius the first never had to make an effort for a woman, yet here he was, being rejected by his own wives.

‘Life can be so funny.’

It was true. Life was so full of unexpectedness. The emperor, however, was glad that he was given the chance to learn from so many people around him, including his ex-wives and his knights.

Stra asked, “A-are you going to g-get married again?”

“Well, yes since I don’t have an heir yet.”

“Oh, then are you going to propose to Marquess Winter?”

“W-why are you suddenly mentioning Marquess Winter?”

“Because you love her, right?”

Cough cough!

Lucius the First began to cough in shock. Stra, with a sympathetic expression, patted his back gently. The emperor thought nervously, ‘I made a mistake.’

He shouldn’t have coughed. He should’ve pretended ignorance and act normally. Lucius the First thought that it still wasn’t too late. He could just say he had a tickle in his throat…!

But then, when he looked at Stra’s face, he realized that she was certain of his love for Poliana. There was not an ounce of doubt in her face.

‘How did she know?’

Lucius the First sighed and decided against lying at this point. He recently lost a wife to childbirth, he lost the second one to a divorce and the third one on a technicality. He lost all three wives recently, and suddenly, he began to wonder, ‘C-could it be that all of them knew about it…? That they were just keeping silent for my sake?!’

This was the worst situation he could imagine. Lucius the First shook his head, wanting to hide somewhere. After a long silence, he finally asked, “How did you find out?”

Only the emperor’s closest friend Sir Ainno knew this secret. It was true that love was the hardest emotion to hide, but Lucius the First was born a royal. He had enough training since childhood to keep a poker face. This was actually his specialty.

He was so confident that he hid his feelings for Poliana perfectly. He was always very business-like around her, so how did Stra find out? Were there more people who knew about this? Lucius the First needed to know. His curiosity was killing him.

Stra replied, “I found out…”

Stra, the princess of a conquered kingdom, was secretly in love with the emperor, who invaded her land. So many people died from this war, but all Stra could think about was how generous the young emperor was to those who surrendered. And when she finally met him, he was more beautiful than she could ever imagine. She fell in love instantly.

She continued, “I found out when I saw your expression after the marquess got kicked by the deer.”

This was a lie. The truth was, Stra knew for a very long time. Perhaps from the very beginning. Was it because she was in love with him? Or was it because she was lucky? For a long time, Stra learned that Lucius the First’s gaze always somehow found the knightess.

Just like the rumors, the infamous knightess was an unusually ugly woman. And unlike the rumors, there was no romance between the emperor and the marquess. The emperor’s love was one-sided and the knightess was definitely unaware and not interested.

Lucius the First asked, “Was I that obvious at that time?”

“I’m sure that I’m the only one who noticed. It could’ve been only seen from my position at the time.”

Stra had the emperor’s weakness, but she wasn’t happy about it. She always tried desperately to hide her true feelings for him, and it was a coincidence that she found out how he felt. She wasn’t jealous because the knightess was an amazingly kind woman. Stra admired Poliana greatly.

Poliana was a completely different kind of friend than the other wives of the emperor. Poliana was very understanding and lovely, so how could Stra be angry at her?

Thankfully, Stra’s love for the emperor cooled quickly when she found out his love for Poliana. Instead, her interest in his love life intensified.

The emperor who was secretly in love with his knightess! How will this exciting story end?

What Stra felt for the emperor was real, but it took less than a year for it to cool down. As far as she knew, Lucius the First has been feeling the same way about Poliana for years, and it seemed that his love refused to lessen. Just how long has he been in love with her? And when will it end?

Will it ever end?

Stra felt sympathetic towards Lucius the First day and night.

Only

Then one day! She learned that the biggest obstacle between Poliana and the emperor’s potential marriage disappeared! It was the day when Poliana’s period returned.

And now! Lucius the First was no longer married. He was single, and although he was technically a divorce with a newborn baby, who cares? He was the emperor after all! If Poliana and Lucius the First were in love… They could be together!

‘Oh, maybe his highness doesn’t know that the marquess is no longer barren.’

Poliana’s change in condition was not a well-known fact. It was a private and personal knowledge, so those who knew did not talk about it openly. And so many things have happened since Poliana returned that Stra doubted she had time to talk about it with the emperor.

Stra firmly believed that the reason why Lucius the First did not propose to Poliana was because of her perceived infertility. Once the emperor learns that this was not the case, then he would be thrilled!

At least that is what Stra thought.

She said to him, “Your highness, if it is the problem of her infertility…”