The Evil Empress Adores Me - Chapter 72

“Oh, what do I do? Your fingertips are all messed up….”

“It’s okay because it’ll get better eventually.”

“None of this is okay!”

I raised my voice, completely forgetting that it was rude to do so. 

“How could you keep wearing those gloves until after the tea party was over?!”

“Hang on, just calm down a little….”

“Calm down! How can I be calm?!”

“Lize.”

“Be honest, your Highness, aren’t you hurt?!”

Damian had called out to me in a sheepish voice. 

But unable to control my frustration, I ignored him as I bit my lips. 

The more the gloves were opened, the more of the Emperor’s malice and insidiousness was unveiled.

‘It was made from hard black leather to conceal any bloodshed.’

The Emperor’s calculations were on point. 

No one noticed that Damian was wearing needle-stitched gloves. 

Not even me. 

And it makes me so mad. 

Why on earth does the Emperor torment Damian so much? 

He already usurped the throne in the first place!

Damian looked at me with a sympathetic look, speaking in a hushed voice.

“*Sigh* I didn’t want to take off my gloves because I was afraid I’d make you worry….”

“Damian, it’s natural to be worried for others, that’s nothing to be guilt-ridden about.”

Her Majesty interjected with a resolute tone. 

The only person who understood my heart was the Empress, as expected.

I looked at her with tearful eyes. 

The Empress spoke with mixed emotions. 

“Let’s treat his fingers first. And….”

She turned her attention from me, narrowed her reddish eyes, and glared at Damian. 

“You made our Charlize cry, you’ll pay dearly for that.”

***

I patched up Damian’s fingers.

Well, of course, I can’t deny entirely that my personal feelings didn’t interfere during the treatment process. 

Pouring the disinfectant onto his fingers, Damian’s whole body squirmed. 

“Ah, it stings.”

“Be patient.”

I gave a cold reply. 

Hearing my dissatisfied voice, he asked helplessly as his shoulders drooped. 

“Lize, aren’t you being too cold-hearted with me?”

“You did just casually wear needle-filled gloves like it was nothing, remember?”

I squinted at Damian. 

“Your Highness, can’t you at least withstand measly stings from disinfectants?”

“Honestly, it doesn’t matter. It was quite painful though,” whispered Damian as he looked me in the eye.

“Then why would you endure the pain!”

I yelled at him. 

My blood was boiling!

“Argh!”

At the same time, a scream erupted from Damian’s mouth. 

It was because I wiped Damian’s fingertips with a cotton swab. 

Thankfully, the punctures weren’t too deep. 

He’ll recover fully if he takes the medicine given and a couple of days off from training. 

“Putting those gloves on without a fight was the best option,” Damian answered soberly. 

“What do you mean?”

“Why else would the Emperor go through the trouble of having those gloves made and gifting them to me?”

“….why?”

I blinked blankly. 

Damian continued to speak in a soft but burdened voice. 

“He carefully chose a place where presents could be given. A place where he could have everyone’s attention.”

At those startling words, I bit my lip. 

Looking back, I was so mad at what Damian went through that I didn’t even think about ‘that.’

Damian lightly shrugged his shoulders as he continued his words. 

‘It’s a test of my obedience towards the Emperor.”

“….Obedience?”

“Yes. To see how willing I am to obey him and how far I’ll endure anything irrational.”

Damian’s words were bereft of any childlike innocence. It was hard to believe such somber words came from a thirteen-year-old. 

“If I hadn’t worn those gloves, the Emperor would have raised suspicions.”

“Hey, but.”

“I have no issues being under suspicion but I don’t want to cause any more trouble than I already do for you and her Majesty,” murmured Damian as he stared at his bandaged fingertips.

I was overcome with emotion. 

Damian is still thirteen. 

And yet, this thirteen-year-old has to suffer under the Emperor’s harsh machinations…

“You know, your Highness,” I said as I opened my first aid kit. 

Damian glanced back at me before smiling. 

“You said you didn’t want to cause any trouble but….I don’t mind any of that.”

“What are you saying?”

“What I’m saying is that I like his Highness very much.”

“….uh, what?”

Damian’s breathing became irregular for a moment.

Huh, did I say something I couldn’t say?

I was puzzled.

“Well, I like you.”

For a moment, Damian looked at me with a skeptical look. 

Then he asked me. 

“And do you like her Majesty too?”

“Absolutely! Who in the world doesn’t like our Majesty, the Empress!”

I shouted as I pumped my clenched fists in the air. 

Damian wore an upset expression when he heard that. 

‘Of course,’ he muttered.

Hey! What’s wrong with that?

Either way, I continued with what I had to say. 

“I’m happy that his Highness is considerate of Her Majesty and me. However…”

I paused for a moment. 

Whenever I encountered his thoughtful side, I felt a mixture of admiration and remorse. 

Because I knew his desperation. 

Damian was afraid we’d abandon him. 

“I for one, don’t want to see his Highness in pain or sick. That includes her Majesty too.”

I placed my hand over his hand, grasping it. 

Damian didn’t take his hand away. He just quietly closed his eyes. 

I meant what I said. 

Damian’s been through so much, imprisonment, loneliness, sickness, and pain. 

“So I’d like you to treat your body with a little more respect. Got it?”

“Still, what if gets difficult because you’re close to me…”

“Hey, hey. So what if it gets a little harder? With a heart that likes his Highness so much, I can overcome it all.”

I teased him a little. 

Damian slightly lowered his head, averting my gaze. The redness on his cheeks however was very telling. 

Hmm, Damian’s a bit shy, isn’t he?

 I concluded with a cheeky smile. 

“Your Highness.”

“Yes?”

“Do you like me that much? Your face is as red as a ripe tomato.”

Damian, who would usually crack up at my jokes, was awfully quiet for some reason. 

That’s odd. 

I lowered my head slightly, looking Damian in the eyes. 

Don’t tell me you’re gonna get mad at a joke?

I know you’re not that sensitive. 

“…of course.”

“What?”

“I like you a lot.”

Lifting his head, Damian answered as he looked straight at me. 

With a much more determined voice than usual, I was slightly taken aback. 

Well, thank you for liking me back…but why the serious voice all of a sudden?

Damian swallowed his saliva as he continued speaking.

“And even if you can’t be with me anymore.”

…can’t be with you?

I stared at Damian with a dumbfounded expression. 

He licked his lips for a second before finishing his words with all the strength he could muster. 

“I will still like you.”

He tried to pretend he was confident but his voice was already wavering. 

Oh, no way. 

I blinked both my eyes. 

“Is…is it because I received an adoption offer from the Duke?”

Damian jerked his head the other way instead of answering. 

After a while. 

He opened his mouth cautiously. 

“To be family with the Duke of Rochester… is a great opportunity for you.”

“Um, your Highness?”

“The Empress cares for you, the Duke of Rochester secretly adores you.”

Damian who seemed to be conflicted for a moment looked me in the eyes. 

“Let me go, Lize.”

“….what?”

“Wear nice clothes, eat delicious food, sleep in a comfortable bed, look at pretty twings…”

Damian blurred his words at the end. 

Biting his lips till they bled, Damian mumbled under his breath.

“I wish I could live like that.”

“But I’m going to turn down the offer.”

“WHATT?!”

Damian gaped at me as if he heard something extraordinary. 

Wait, why are you so surprised?

Did I say something I couldn’t again?

I shrugged off Damian’s reaction. 

“I’ve thought it through.”

“W-What happened?”

“The Empress has the Duke, members of the Imperial palace, and me as well.”

Those desperate scarlet eyes were completely fixed on me. 

Damian before was like an abandoned, defeated puppy…

‘Now he’s like a puppy that’s hopeful its owner will return.’

Damian looks cute but so miserable at the same time.

I smiled bitterly and continued. 

“But I’m the only one you have.”

“…Lize.”

“How could I leave his Highness behind?”

I wrapped a bandage around Damian’s fingertip, smiling tenderly. 

I was sincere.