The Evil Empress Adores Me - Chapter 73

The Empress has countless people, people who would love her without me. 

But if Damian disappears from me, I’ll truly be a loner in the world. 

Even though he has Siena, it’s still a long way till Siena comes to Damian’s side. 

If I leave him, Damian would be all alone until then. 

I don’t want to be cruel especially when he’s finally regained his smile. 

But most of all…

‘I know how sad it is to be lonely.’

Just as I was saved by the Empress, I want Damian to be saved. 

As I tied knots on the bandages, I teased Damian in a mischievous voice. 

“Say, your Highness. I really…do you really want to be a princess of Rochester?”

“Oh, no. That’s-”

Damian was rattled as he wore a bemused look. 

I reached out, clasping his hand. 

Damian didn’t pull away his hand but reacted by stiffening his shoulders. 

“Your Highness, without me, you’d be crying every night because you’d miss me,” I joked playfully. 

When those words reached his ears, Damian slowly raised his head. 

Slightly watery scarlet eyes looked at me intently. 

W-why are you staring at me like that?

I made this awkward. 

Just when I was about to change the subject, Damian opened his mouth. 

“….I really might.”

“What?”

What are you saying?

You’re not a kid, why cry?

I was caught off guard. 

Then a whisper tickled my ear. 

“Thank you so much, Lize.”

“…your Highness?”

“There’s nothing I can do now but someday I will.”

Before I knew it, Damian’s eyes were shining with determination.

He went on to speak more clearly. 

“One day, I’ll raise you up to a higher rank than a princess of Rochester.”

Your Highness, aren’t you making too many promises?

I was going to say that but ended up smiling and nodding along. 

I mean, there’s no harm, right?

As long as Damian can regain his motivation, I’ll be satisfied with that alone. 

* * *

After bandaging up all Damian’s fingertips, he and I went out to the living room where the Empress was waiting. 

“Prince, you’re done being treated.”

“Yes. Thank you for your concern.”

When asked by the Empress, Damian answered politely. 

Then the Empress smiled as she teased him. 

“Well then, how shall I punish you for making Charlize cry?”

I could feel an air of uneasiness as Damian tensed up. 

Hey, what are you nervous about?

Our Empress is like an angel who descended from heaven. 

She’s soo different from the Emperor, all right?

The Empress carried on. 

“The crown prince will be taking the role of candidate this time so Charlize will be my candidate instead.”

Huh?

My name popped out of nowhere, leaving me perplexed. 

Damian also looked a little surprised. 

“What?”

“I’ve decided to pair you with Charlize.”

“H-Hey, is that true?”

“Yes. That’s his punishment.”

The Empress said so, squinting at Damian. 

She proceeded to speak sharply at him. 

“Don’t tell me you don’t want to pair up with Charlize because she’s a maid, do you?”

“Of course not!” Damian exclaimed hastily. 

The Empress crossed her arms as Damian contemplated his words before continuing. 

“…thank you for your consideration,” Damian concluded. 

“Um, pardon your Majesty.”

I interjected, still confused. 

No, why am I the Empress’s candidate?

How does a maid start the harvest festival?

“How could I be a candidate alongside Damian?”

“Why, is something wrong?”

Unlike when she spoke to Damian, the Empress spoke to me in a gentle tone like a relaxing warm spring breeze. 

“It’s just that…my lowly status is unsuitable to be a candidate.”

I answered carefully. 

Honestly, how could I?

The start of the harvest festival is a role intended for the Emperor and his immediate family.

They can’t have such an important role be given in vain, can they?

As proof of that, the successors of the previous generations who were entrusted with the role came from noble families. 

Even the ladies who came in as potential candidates for the Empress were from prominent families, weren’t they?

It’s absurd for me to go and stand in such a place….

“Aside from the Emperor’s actions earlier….his Highness, the crown prince will help be in charge for the festival, won’t he?”

The Emperor’s candidate is the crown prince, meanwhile, the Empress’s candidate is a commoner maid. 

It’s an unbecoming combination. 

“Well, what’s wrong with that?”

With a calm expression, the Empress dismissed my concerns as she shrugged lightly. 

“If it’s against tradition, then so be it. Does the crown prince seem to be bothered by it?”

“Well…”

So many words were swirling in my mouth ready to burst out. 

The fact that Damian agreed to become the Emperor’s candidate is enough to be viewed by others as him ‘being subservient to the Emperor.’

And then to have the one being paired up with him is a mere maid of honor. 

Putting that aside, is it appropriate for me to start the festival?

No matter how much the Empress cares for me, a maid and an Empress are incompatible… 

Then a voice spoke. 

“Lize.”

The calmness in that voice made me raise my head. 

Damian was looking straight at me. 

“If you don’t want to, I won’t force you to take the role of candidate.”

“…your Highness, the crown prince.”

“But just because you have a lower status than mine or that it’s improper to stand with me…”

I clenched my fists, it was as if his words were peering into me. 

Damian ended with a final note. 

“I hope you don’t turn this offer.”

I bit my lip. 

I know, I know. 

It’s a great opportunity to stand as a candidate for the harvest festival. 

The Empress’s candidate was a position that even the ladies from noble families were anxious for. 

Everyone that gathers at the harvest will know that I am favored by the Empress.

And those gazes that subtly ignored me will also disappear. 

So the Empress and Damian are both…

‘…..they’re deliberating trying to make go as a candidate, even though I’m not worthy of them.’

The affection they were giving, made me feel I was going to cry.

Damian interrupted with a line straight from the heart. 

“If I have to say, Lize, if you were her Majesty’s candidate…I think I’ll be a little more relieved.”

“There’s more.”

“Since everyone’s gossips about me being the crown prince, wouldn’t it be nice to have at least one person who knows so at my side? 

Damian gave a playful smile after saying that. 

The Empress also reassured me. 

“I obviously hate seeing the Emperor’s face, whatever would I do without my Charlize if she’s not by my side?”

“Your Majesty!”

“We might just end up getting into a fight during the harvest festival. Shouldn’t that be avoided?”

At the Empress’s joke, I laughed contentedly. 

The Empress stroked my hair as she waited for me to finish laughing. 

“What do you say? Will you be my candidate, Lize?”

“…yes, I will.”

I nodded my head lightly. 

The Empress closed her eyes, embracing me. 

I voiced my resolve. 

“Thank you. So as to not let anyone make fun of her Majesty…I will work very hard.”

“It’s good to work hard but don’t overdo it. Understand?”

The Empress spoke kindly.

*Sigh* How is our Empress so angelic?

I gave a big smile before answering.

“Yes!”

***

A few days pass. 

I wrote to the Duke, saying with the utmost respect, ‘I politely decline your adoption offer.’

Later that same night.

The Empress suddenly came to see me. 

“Lize.”

Hey, why does the Empress look so blue?

I was lying in bed and about to fall asleep when I jumped up at the sight of the Empress. 

“Your Majesty, what’s going on?”

“It’s about…”

Sitting at the end of my bed, the Empress repeatedly smacked her lips. 

After an awkward silence, the Empress spoke in a hoarse voice. 

“My brother offered to adopt you but you turned down his offer…”

“Oh, that….”

I slipped up my words unintentionally. 

I sent the letter of refusal today but didn’t expect word to reach the Empress so soon. 

The Empress asked me a question, mindful in her approach. 

“…it wasn’t what you wanted, was it?”

“You gave me a good opportunity, Empress. I’m sorry.”

Bowing my head, I glanced at Her Majesty’s expression. 

The Empress looked like she wanted to stomp her feet in anguish. 

I’m sorry about this. 

After a while, the Empress spoke again, doing her best to remain composed. 

“No, it’s okay. You didn’t want to be adopted. But…”

But?

I tilted my head. 

The Empress bit her lips, mustering the courage to ask me. 

“Can you tell me what made you refuse and why?”

There was a sad desperate look in the Empress’s eyes that made me worry. 

It was a look that said if I somehow can I find out what made me refuse in the first place, I can fix it and try again…

“It’s…”

I smiled nervously. 

The Empress can try but the reason I refused isn’t something that is fixed in an instant. 

“If I become a princess of Rochester, I’ll have to leave the Imperial palace right?”

I’m also not a royal official so I won’t be able to stay at the palace. 

I shrugged and continued. 

“Then I wouldn’t be able to see your Majesty as often as I do now.”

“But Charlize, you would be my sister if you were adopted by the Duke.”

The Empress strengthened her voice. 

“If you want to, you come to the palace every day. I’ll make it happen.”

The Empress clenched her fists as she said that last part.