The Crown Princess's Man (14)

Alcard Irus Lucrecian de Aikadum, the current Emperor of Aikadum. In his fifties, he faced Kaiston with a look and expression not much different from thirteen years ago. Of course, Kaiston, as seen through the Emperor’s eyes, was very different from back then.

“Kaiston.”

The Emperor smiled faintly as he called his name.

“Your Majesty. Have you been well?”

Seeing him bow politely, the Emperor blinked a couple of times. He had expected the man to be sharp and hostile like before, but things were different from the start. The Emperor’s gaze shifted from Kaiston to his daughter at his side.

“Liris. Did you return safely?”

Liris was the childhood nickname of Crown Princess Liriana.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The Emperor rose from his seat and walked around the desk.

“Come here.”

Seeing the Emperor open his arms, Liris looked up at Kaiston. When he let go of her hand, she ran into her father’s embrace, meeting him after a long time.

“I missed you. Do you know how worried I was about you?”

“You returned safely like this. I missed you a lot too.”

Holding and patting his still lovely, delicate daughter, the Emperor glanced at Kaiston. With a calm look, he watched the affectionate father and daughter.

“I heard you were with child; the journey to the Isles must have been hard.”

“It was fine. The Duke took such good care of me…”

The Emperor lifted Liris from his arms.

“Was life at the fortress… bearable?”

“Yes. It was much more pleasant than I thought.”

The Emperor stared intently at Liris as she smiled brightly with gentle eyes.

“I felt a little sad to leave.”

Saying that, Liris turned to Kaiston. The Emperor watched with a stern expression as Kaiston returned her smile.

“Liris…”

What had been a suspicion gradually hardened into certainty. His daughter, whom he had met after a year, was in love.

The Emperor made a low groan. It was hard to imagine his eccentric daughter falling head over heels for someone like other young ladies did; she used to detest all the self-important men of the Isles.

‘Perhaps she simply had a different type.’

The Emperor looked at Kaiston again. He was certainly a type hard to find on the Isles. If anything, an untamed beast: stronger, wiser, and more seasoned than most.

‘If she liked a man like that, it’s no wonder she couldn’t find a match on the Isles.’

He felt an unprompted pique.

“Thirteen years ago you were furious and said you wouldn’t marry that girl.”

Kaiston looked at Liris, slightly taken aback. It wasn’t solely because marrying an eight-year-old Crown Princess would be humiliating that he refused. To be precise, he had followed General Luther’s advice: if he didn’t avoid it, he would be trapped and inevitably killed when his usefulness ended.

But in front of Liris, he couldn’t bring up either reason.

Kaiston simply bowed his head and apologized.

“At that time, I was immature and rude, Your Majesty. Please forgive me.”

The Emperor’s mouth twitched. Seeing him come at such a low posture made something boil up inside him. He could tell, without further watching, how besotted the man was with the Crown Princess. He had swallowed his country, held his parents hostage, and locked him away in a prison-like fortress for thirteen years. Yet his look toward him contained no resentment or hatred; it was perfectly restrained.

For the Emperor, who had prepared a coldly rational, calculated bargain, it was disarming.

“For now, very well.”

Kaiston met the Emperor’s gaze, which was visibly displeased.

“We’ll discuss the details another day. Now, take your leave.”

Kaiston’s expression stiffened at the sudden decree to see guests off. The Emperor liked this look of his best among those he had seen today.

“Your Majesty, the Crown Princess…”

“I need to speak with Liris a bit more.”

Kaiston looked at Liris’s hand held by the Emperor.

“Then I’ll wait outside until your conversation is over.”

“There’s no need for that. You’re tired from a long journey; it’s better to rest in your familiar rooms. The Crown Princess will rest here in the palace.”

“Your Majesty, I…”

Liris frowned at her father’s repeated fussing and tried to pull her hand free, but the Emperor held it tightly and would not let go.

“Liris, there is much to discuss with your father, isn’t there?”

At his reproachful tone, Liris hesitated, sighed, and then nodded.

“Alright. Then I’ll stay at the palace tonight.”

At his daughter’s decisive “tonight,” the Emperor gave a hollow laugh. Now that she had a husband, she acted like an outsider. Kaiston, who had been watching them for a moment, lowered his gaze. He tightened his fist discreetly, released it, and swallowed the sudden surge of emotion.

“Then I’ll come to take you tomorrow, Crown Princess.”

“Yes, Duke. Please rest comfortably.”

“I will see you again, Your Majesty.”

He bowed to the Emperor and the Crown Princess, turned, and left the audience chamber; the Emperor glared at his departing back with irritation.

“That man…”

“Father!”

Liris snapped angrily.

“Why on earth are you being so petulant with him?!”

“Him?”

“He’s now my husband and your son-in-law! He promised me he’d love me and forget any ill feelings toward you… Father, why are you being so unreasonable? Honestly, anyone can see who’s the victim here!”

“Liris.”

The Emperor’s expression hardened.

“Why are you being so foolish? You’ve already given your whole heart to that man. What, are you playing at love?”

At the Emperor’s words, Liris shut her mouth and looked at her father.

“Wake up, Liris. You still don’t understand the danger of the House of Baras.”

“Baras was smoothly absorbed into the Empire anyway. What’s the problem?”

“That man’s bloodline is a monster that devours public sentiment. If you fall under his sway, this entire Aikadum will become Baras’s in an instant.”

“Anyway, the child in my womb has half Aikadum blood and half Baras blood. This child will inherit the throne, so what exactly…”

“Liris.”

The Emperor said, looking into Liris’s amber eyes.

“He’ll stay on the Isles for the time being. Watch him. See what influence his presence has on the people.”

“Father, how can you be so certain about something you haven’t even experienced? What basis do you have?”

At Liris’s words, the Emperor made a low sound.

“My daughter. This story goes back to our ancestors. But you don’t need to know it all yet. Take one step back in your heart, and from the position of the Empire’s Crown Princess, deal with him rationally. In doing so, you will come to understand your own ‘fear’ of him.”

Kaiston, who had been standing stiffly even after leaving the audience chamber, had no choice but to move because of the knights’ stares.

That damn—no, the Emperor was impossible to deal with. He was displeased no matter what. He had promised Liris he wouldn’t hate him, so he shouldn’t let bitterness take over even if he couldn’t like him. But with the Emperor behaving so spitefully, there was no way he could like him.

His brisk steps grew slower and, at some point, he stopped abruptly.

His insides burned black. It was anxiety. The suffocating fear that she might be taken from him overwhelmed him.

Kaiston looked out over the corridor. The palace garden, far more splendid and beautiful than the Red Moon, looked gentle in the autumn sun. It was a place that clashed with his near-monochrome self.

Though the autumn breeze around the corridor remained mild, the moment it brushed him it froze and shattered without a trace. A pitch-black darkness, like the color of his hair, settled heavily only where he stood. The man, robbed of the warmth in his hand, spent a long time gnawing on his misery alone.

“Haa…”

He sighed. He hadn’t even brought up his parents’ matter. After all this effort, he hadn’t even managed that.

Kaiston nervously splashed water on his face and composed himself again.

Right, it’s only one night. He’d come back to his in-laws after a long time; it’s only natural she’d rest in her familiar rooms. He hadn’t even dealt with Raiden yet, so the Emperor wouldn’t already be sharpening his blade. The Emperor was probably just sulking because he’d lost his daughter.

This was not the time to lose his composure.

Kaiston resumed walking slowly.

At the end of the corridor by the audience chamber, Saik, Millen, and Nel were waiting. They looked at Kaiston, who had returned alone, with curiosity.

“Commander, where is the Crown Princess?”

Kaiston answered Saik calmly.

“She’s in private audience with His Majesty. She said she’d rest at the palace today, so I came out first.”

“Ah… indeed, it’s like she’s returned home after a long time.”

As Saik said, this palace was where the Crown Princess had been born and raised. Somehow that was comforting. Yes, it was natural, because she had come home.

“You gentlemen should go home and visit briefly as well.”

They all blinked wide-eyed at the Commander’s remark as he seemed to remember after a few steps.

“What?”

“Home?”

“Yes.”

“No, it’s not like we have to start visiting family on the very first day in the Isles…”

Saik, who waved his hand as if annoyed, sighed at Kaiston’s stern look.

“Understood. We’ll go and make a proper appearance there, so don’t look at us like that.”

“Nel, I heard you have relatives on the Isles too.”

“Yes. My maternal grandparents and my uncle live on the Isles.”

“Good. Return by the day after tomorrow. You all know the dukes’ residences on the Isles, right?”

“Yes. I have the addresses you wrote down.”

“Commander, I won’t go.”

Millen said stubbornly to Kaiston.

“I’m estranged from my father. Don’t you know?”

“Where is the sense in parents and children being estranged? I won’t send you alone, so come along.”

“Ugh, fine, fine, I said I’m coming.”

“Good. That’s settled. No more complaints. Follow me.”

Millen looked up at Kaiston with a resentful face as Kaiston climbed onto his horse first. Kaiston snorted a laugh.

“Even if you look at me that way, it won’t help. You know it.”

In the end, Millen mounted his horse with a displeased expression.