I tried not to reveal any expression towards him, but I couldnât help myself.
âI heard youâve lived there a long time. Is there anything especially memorable or impressive there?â
âNone at all, Your Majesty.â
When I was reincarnated, I only went out once; I couldnât tell what this royal wanted to say.
âIf you could give me some more detailsâŠâ
Oh, why is he so frustrating? This tyrant!
He didnât seem to be a patient man. Still, it is better for me to come out like this.
Isnât it said that the person who gets angry first loses?
âIâm glad to hear that.â
He had the aura of being forcefully brazen because of his long standing longing for Lania. It may have been because of his slyness, or something else, but it would be hard to show it, but Iâm grateful enough because this is a great training for me.
âI wish I could help you with this, but since His Majesty is here, thereâs no use for me. I shall take my leaveâŠâ
However, he wasnât such a pushover.
As soon as I heard those two words, cold sweat trickled down my back.
âW-what do you mean by that day?â
âAre you going to say that you canât remember, again?â
The weary voice of the emperor grew dim.
The only night I would have met this man was the time when I was going to give Haniel back.
âThat day you must haveâŠâ
âYes, I certainly waited!â
âI came out first and waited until nightfall. Itâs the Emperor who didnât come to meet me at that time. I donât know if Iâm the only one responsible, but if the Emperor is not satisfied with my actions, my guilt would weigh upon me until death.â
My increasingly loud words ended in an apology.
To be honest, I donât know if my excuse made sense.
Now, I just had to remember how long I waited for him that day.
âSo you havenât seen it all, have you?â
No, I canât give Haniel to him!
My mind went blank as I weighed losing Haniel with losing my life right now.
As if he was enjoying a spectacle, the emperor quietly leaned to the side.
âYes, Iâve waited so anxiously for you to come. I was waiting for you to come despite the bitter cold of the north.â
Why was he laughing at me? There was a tinge of anxiety around his smirking lips.
âWhen I am embarrassed, I speak everything on my mind without regard to my surroundings; and I think with the mentality of the lower class.â Since his expression did not change, I could not grasp what the Emperor was thinking.
âI didnât mean to. I made up my mind to tell Your Majesty honestly if you came on time, but when I saw you, I thought that there was a misunderstandingâŠâ
âThere is a reason why I couldnât go.â
ââŠI believe that you couldnât make it because of circumstances beyond your control; you should be generous enough to understand as you are a member of the Imperial Family.â
That was smooth, wasnât it? It must have been smooth.
The eyes of each other were on each other for a long time, but the wheeze had nothing more to come out than the breathing sound. No matter what glance the emperor looked at me, my mouth had already begun to go up freely.
The eyes laid to each other for a very long time, but there was no breeze and only the sound of their breath was heard. No matter what glance the emperor looked at me, my mouth had already begun to speak freely.
He didnât come! He didnât see it!
Baby, your motherâs alive! When life and death could be swept away in one place, there was nothing scarier than being abandoned. Even though the emperor said he saw it, he could not believe that the baby swan was the missing princess. He could not say anything without being alive.
âI see. Of course, I donât dare blame you.â
However, I couldnât help but speak up about it.
My smile became more natural as I regained the worldâs strongest composure.