HTTRPIAO Ch 10

“Welcome!”

The Emperor barely acknowledged the greeting and approached Rishar. Etienne watched the unfamiliar bright smile that bloomed on his face. It was a smile he had never shown to Etienne.

“You’ve grown so much. You’ve become quite dependable.”

The Emperor personally helped Rishar to his feet. His eyes held deep affection as he looked at his distant nephew who had returned as a hero.

Etienne maintained a composed face at his position. It had been a while since he had seen the Emperor smile so brightly.

To be precise, it had been three years. The Emperor only smiled like that in front of Rishar.

However, he didn’t feel hurt or disappointed.

He had already passed the age of yearning for the Emperor’s affection and expecting it. Etienne no longer wanted anything from the Emperor.

“So that’s how it’s going to be?”

Leona gritted her teeth while glaring at the Emperor who was being affectionate towards Rishar. The Emperor was showing off his affection for Rishar in front of the crowd.

To an outsider, it might look like the Emperor was simply being fond of his distant nephew or welcoming a hero who had saved the empire from a crisis, but Leona saw it differently.

The Emperor’s current behavior wasn’t pure affection but rather a thoroughly calculated action.

Many nobles had attended today’s triumph ceremony. More people than expected had gathered to see Duke Eckhardt, who was being called the next emperor, with their own eyes.

The Emperor was now revealing his intentions in front of such people. Duke Eckhardt was the one he had marked as his successor.

Sure enough, the nobles standing on both sides of the platform were busy exchanging glances with each other. Their minds were probably racing, calculating which side would be more beneficial to them.

Leona bit her lower lip, trying to suppress her face from contorting.

The noble faction led by Duke Herace was fine. Following their leader’s will, they had long supported Etienne as the next emperor.

As long as she, the Empress, and the Duke didn’t falter, there wouldn’t be any defectors.

The problem lay with the neutral faction and various minority factions that hadn’t yet taken a position. They had begun showing interest in Duke Eckhardt.

Especially the nobles and knights affiliated with the military were like this. Though they officially claimed political neutrality, the atmosphere had already shifted towards the Duke.

Leona hid her anxious expression behind her fan. No matter how much she thought about it, she couldn’t see any good solution.

Until recently, she hadn’t worried about the neutral and minority factions. She had been confident in making Etienne Emperor without their power.

But things had changed as Duke Eckhardt had become active.

If the neutral and minority nobles supported Grand Duke Eckhardt and allied with the Emperor’s faction, there was a high possibility of losing control. She had to prevent that at all costs.

But how?

Leona’s mind became as tangled as knotted threads.

“It’s been a while,  Empress.”

Rishar’s voice greeting her brought Leona back to reality from her worried thoughts. She pushed her concerns aside and forced a smile.

There was no use worrying about it right now. This was a matter that needed to be handled gradually over time.

“…It has been a while, Grand Duke Eckhardt. I’m glad to see you in good health.”

“I’m glad as well.”

After exchanging formal greetings with Leona, Rishar turned his gaze to Etienne. His eyes, blue as deep ocean, sparkled like they held pearls.

“Your Highness.”

Rishar approached Etienne with a welcoming expression. The stiff demeanor he had shown to Leona moments ago was completely gone.

“It’s been a while. Have you been well?”

“Ah…”

Etienne awkwardly watched Rishar who was greeting him very formally.

During the past three years, Etienne had thought about the moment of meeting Rishar again many times. However, he hadn’t imagined a reunion like this.

Rishar calling him ‘Your Highness’ instead of ‘Hyung-nim.’

“I’ve been… fine, I guess.”

Etienne, who had been opening and closing his mouth like someone caught off guard, mumbled his response.

“Has the Grand Duke been well…?”

After hesitating for a moment, Etienne cautiously addressed Rishar like someone shy of strangers. If Rishar was going to treat him as the Empire’s prince with formality, he needed to respond in kind.

“I’ve been well.”

“I heard you went through a lot…”

Letting his words trail off, Etienne observed Rishar by the corner of his eyes. Up close, his face was both similar to and different from what he remembered.

His face had lost its boyish features and gained masculine ones, and his gaze had deepened along with his more mature eyes.

The biggest change was his height.

Their eye levels, which had been similar three years ago, were now completely different. Etienne awkwardly looked up at Rishar, who was now much taller than him.

The broad shoulders, the chest that looked solid as rock, the arms that showed muscles even while still… everything was unfamiliar.

“Let’s go to the palace. I’ve prepared a banquet for you.”

Just as Etienne was wondering what to say, the Emperor cut between the two of them. He grabbed Rishar’s wrist and led him to the imperial carriage.

Everyone was surprised by the Emperor’s unexpected action.

The chamberlain couldn’t hide his troubled expression when the Emperor tried to have Rishar board the imperial carriage, which was only meant for direct imperial family members. However, he couldn’t actively stop it.

Leona couldn’t stop the Emperor either. Usually, she would have confronted him about what he was doing, but there were too many watching eyes right now. If she said anything to the Emperor here, there was a high chance of people gossiping later.

“Your Majesty, I think it would be better if I rode on horseback.”

Rishar was also uncomfortable with the Emperor’s gesture. He carefully declined the Emperor’s favor. However, the Emperor was adamant.

“You must have been on horseback the entire way here. You must be tired, so take the carriage. It’ll be more comfortable.”

“Your Majesty.”

“Come now.”

“…As you wish.”

Rishar let out a small sigh, unable to overcome the Emperor’s stubbornness. Then Leona, who didn’t want to ride in the same carriage as Rishar, spoke up.

“The carriage won’t have enough space for all of us if Grand Duke Eckhardt rides with us, so I’ll take a different one.”

“Do as you please.”

The Emperor waved his hand dismissively at Leona’s words, as if he didn’t care what she did. Her face flushed at his attitude showing complete disinterest in her actions.

Just as she was about to say something in her momentary anger, the Emperor turned his attention to Etienne.

“What will you do?”

“Eh?”

“If you’re uncomfortable riding with the Duke, you can take another carriage with the Empress.”

The Emperor’s words were closer to a unilateral notification than asking for Etienne’s opinion. He had already assumed Etienne would take another carriage with Leona.

If you weren’t going to consider my opinion in the first place…

Etienne moved his lips with a bitter smile. His mouth felt sour as if bile was rising.

“I’ll…”

“If you don’t mind, please ride together with us.”

Rishar cut in before Etienne could say he would do that.

“Huh?”

Etienne’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected proposal. Rishar gave a slight eye-smile in response.

“Unless you’d feel uncomfortable.”

“I…”

Etienne didn’t answer immediately and rolled his eyes around. His gaze moved to the Emperor standing behind Rishar.

Just now, Etienne had clearly seen it. The moment Rishar proposed that they ride together, the Emperor’s brow had furrowed for just an instant. Though it was brief, his true feelings of not wanting to ride with Etienne had shown through.

“Go ahead.”

Before Etienne could answer, Leona quickly pushed him from behind. She absolutely couldn’t bear to see just the Emperor and Grand Duke Eckhardt riding in the imperial carriage together.

“Ah!”

“Careful.”

After being suddenly pushed by Leona, Etienne momentarily lost his balance and stumbled. Then, along with a low voice, a firm hand wrapped around his waist as if hugging him.

“Are you alright?”

Rishar, who had caught Etienne to prevent him from falling, asked in a polite voice. Then he carefully helped Etienne.

“Th-thank…”

“Please be careful.”

Etienne stammered, flustered at suddenly being held by Rishar. Rishar smiled leisurely and removed his hand from Etienne’s waist.

Just before their bodies separated from their close contact, Rishar leaned slightly toward Etienne’s ear and whispered something brief.

“…!”

Etienne’s body stiffened at the words that came with the warm breath. Rishar stepped back with a face that suggested his business was done.

“If you’ve decided to go with us, let’s get going.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

At the Emperor’s insistence, Rishar turned around with a smiling face. Etienne blankly stared at his retreating back as he walked toward the carriage, then covered his ear with his hand. His ear felt hot as if it was burning. The whisper continued to buzz around his warm earlobe.

‘I’m back, hyung-nim.’

 

* * *

 

“Congratulations on your return!”

“It’s an honor for our family to be able to meet the empire’s hero!”

The banquet held to celebrate the empire’s victory and Duke Eckhardt’s return continued until late into the night.

All the nobles gathered in the banquet hall praised Duke Eckhardt’s achievements. They surrounded the Duke and competed to speak with him.

It was their intention to make an impression on the hero who had risen as the Empire’s new power.

“Your Highness, do you remember me? I participated in the Battle of Ursula Plains…”

“Duke, this is my son. He entered the Imperial Military Academy this year, saying he wanted to serve close to Your Grace.”

“Please spare me just a moment of your time, Your Grace. I…”

Etienne quietly sipped his drink while sitting in a corner seat, listening to the voices of people praising Rishar. Perhaps because of the incident with Marquis Namia’s heir, none of the nobles approached him.

No, even if last night’s incident hadn’t happened, people wouldn’t have approached Etienne.

Regardless of faction, the attention of all nobles gathered here now was entirely focused on Grand Duke Eckhardt.