Chapter 2 Part 3

“Miss, are you sure you can bathe alone?” 6bf1ec08f28385d5

Olga asked as she unfastened Irina’s corset. Irina nodded, feeling a little relief from the tightness in her chest.e0d1ed3a76bea39a

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“Yes, I’m fine.”4212c12b5cd7a49e

“But…”ab3bd9fa8ecc61f7

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“It’s okay, Olga. You haven’t had a proper rest in a while either. Go ahead and rest now.”a2b644246959bfd5

“I’ve rested too much. I’m bored of resting now. I’d rather be with you, Miss.”238dcbd573861d14

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Irina’s eyes softened at Olga’s whiny words. To Irina, an only child, Olga was like a younger sister. Seeing Irina’s smile, a smile spread across Olga’s face as well.37d243ddb2216212

“I’m so glad you’re back, Miss.”aa86848267acb5fe

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“Thank you for saying that.”031c7bf6723a258d

“Aw, why thank me for something so obvious?”f833c67ea5423429

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“Well then, I’m going to go bathe and get ready for bed. You go too, Olga.”b35f2b924a014a6d

Irina clapped her e565f53301 hands lightly to b3b1a84c39 ventilate. Olga reluctantly dcb74a0874 left the c0cb63ef7e bathroom, unable eb0def99af to hide 7910b4409d her disappointment.fb164c8c75d5dcff

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Finally, seeing the 5da1284557 bathroom door completely 6b34927f68 closed, Irina finished 7672b483f0 taking off the b471804f01 dress that Olga 58581c6647 had already partially 7a89ebc8ed removed.799e89da94cdbc51

“Hah…”92b43fb36e5c7fa2

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The bathtub, filled c639407b0a with fragrant oil, bb51f03402 emitted a floral a67fbd2e43 scent. As she fef1248db8 immersed herself 6cae5b30b1 in the 1325b697e2 warm water, 24149ce7cc her body 03600bbcb4 felt languid. Irina leaned back in 5e9f8370e6 the tub and sighed bb257be1c1 deeply.e48930e369799d52

The sweet, fragrant scent 88fdabfd21 tickled her nose and 8e30eacd78 the shimmering water pleasantly b52ca7be09 tickled her skin. However, Irina was not 339f1c1695 satisfied at all.534b780ed938ba28

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Usually, she would be 79b187974b soothed by the bath 459be3605c and would find herself 7e5f0c08df smiling unconsciously, but now bbad5443f1 she was on the c2c2440fe3 verge of tears rather 7a7cb55f95 than smiling.e6eae5c7176050e7

“What should I do…”82cd4d275be33ef3

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Irina mumbled to herself without realizing it. She thought she had finally escaped the Emperor’s clutches, but it seemed her troubles were far from over, now she was about to be tied to him in marriage. b2f89a0e8555a336

“I’d rather die than marry such a man,.”536a8e266f6e8a0c

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The more she thought about it, the angrier she became. She couldn’t understand how someone could be so cruel and selfish. For Irina, who had grown up gently, the appearance of the cold-hearted Emperor was enough to shake the foundation of the world she lived in.a8aaeaf94c1ede88

“Marriage? That’s ridiculous… If only it were Rumpel…”b089d8dbec673fb4

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Irina’s eyes widened in surprise at the involuntary words that had escaped her lips. How could she have mentioned Rumpel’s name at this moment?7eaf0a5b4f329857

Flustered, Irina blinked her 89faeeb761 eyes. Then, fearing someone ff1d886546 might hear, she 84b024c39f quickly looked around 89058ab9d0 the bathroom. As expected, 52ccfc86da there was 9fc7640747 no one 5ba81386e7 else in 4fc59d6d6b the bathroom. Irina finally breathed d6dd38e06d a sigh of 09088da909 relief.d6f299902d0fefbf

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“Phew, me too. Why did I say Rumpel’s name?”4320cb3b3424a6ff

She was b9cde11378 about to 3df48f13b4 cool her 51f128a05a flushed cheeks 27a2763e97 with her 3b3dc5b369 hands when 892fa9425f she felt 662096b8ac embarrassed for c083d54fad no reason.e9933b82d63d9148

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“What were you saying that I couldn’t hear?”ebfaeb97371ad7f2

“Ugh.”3ea5b74bfe893ab6

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At the familiar voice, 8a3e5d06f0 Irina covered her mouth cc63db1ff1 with both hands. Her startled eyes d357b5329e darted towards the 3247f887fa source of the 4bbffb80d3 sound. A familiar c011a6671f figure was 522e41df82 seen in 3db1a16633 her beautiful 89a2633cac green eyes.14876a71735e9dab

“Ru, Rumpel…! Uh, how did you get in here… No, no! More importantly, what are you doing here!”b5d04acc63b59197

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Irina’s face turned red when she saw Rumpel.826a153fc699da9f

Of course, it 039c3cac28 was important and c7dc811b82 curious matter how 6ac3e3b1f0 he got there, e2c33c76a2 but the bigger 352951d204 problem was that 1b13b7791a Irina was in 1b8ba3b543 the bathroom and 42e465f3ab was soaking naked e637fb8bda in the bathtub.55962a236e52a018

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Irina instinctively submerged herself e1a5c0ae99 deeper in the bathtub 1f759778be and crossed her arms 5b4b5facae over her chest to 30446eaee8 cover her voluptuous breasts.a38a54a91d48f5e9

Rumpel’s eyes folded nicely at the sight. He soon spoke in a playful voice.a22b16839ddc995e

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“Didn’t you already show me everything, Irina?”77b9721ee128a083

“Wh, what…”543ae1b25ebf7107

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“If you still have something to hide, Lady, you can cover it up. But I think it would be pointless, since you’re going to show me anyway.” 9178b49732e6f448

His playful tone sounded 0ba99ed538 particularly lewd. Knowing the underlying meaning 85ac1a189e of his words, Irina c5195d3e2d lowered her neat green c3a7d32dbf eyes and avoided his bdce8f33d4 gaze.b50660df60fefd33

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Meanwhile, Rumpel approached d6e3e0e4c8 her. Even though Irina 5e8d5bed9f felt that he 1f78c245b3 was gradually closing 0270b3337a the distance, there 398bd6e993 was nothing she a454fc6365 could do.77145fdc411ac44c

Her body was b223d7956f naked in the 02b5ece98f bathtub, and she 9eec040f39 couldn’t call for be01acbc7e the servants because 823ec43c19 she wasn’t sure 526b588579 how she would 6c84800e4f explain Rumpel’s presence 3a20ce0880 if they arrived.1681d51fa1650b81

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In the tower last time, no one seemed to see Rumpel, but there was no guarantee that would happen again this time. So, she couldn’t call for anyone recklessly. 6d3c9a723b675e05

In the end, f99e219b79 Irina could only f1bfd48578 curl up as e95921b1f8 much as possible 6fcab22e32 in the bathtub 6b6e27eebf and wait for a76a96e072 Rumpel to approach 0b83c09228 her.f9ab91d3fde8d57c

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“Do you want to marry me, Lady Irina?”6399788c755a3698

“What? No, no! It’s not like that…”b3023030a4517cbf

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Irina’s face turned as red as the beef stew she had eaten earlier at Rumpel’s unexpected question.2b7d003513353082

She knew he had heard his name, but she didn’t expect him to have heard everything she said before that.14e8b1c45f30e1a4

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Irina was so embarrassed she didn’t know what to do. Rumpel, who seemed to enjoy seeing her like that, slowly opened his mouth.5e73fb5e5a4464ef

“Are you going to marry the Emperor?”8fa55e50dc9441f0

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“No! Absolutely not! I will never marry him!”a43dbbea4268fa17

Irina exclaimed 8c036ffccc in horror 3c855ed56e at his 3ad2819cae languid question.d3592b0e2d670076

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Her voice was 21cf782906 so loud that d1469648b0 she glanced around d6e4153c18 the bathroom, belatedly 40a4ec480f checking the situation 55456cfb41 outside. She was glad she 8e029cafae had sent Olga and facd0ade61 the other maids away 1245f94bc4 beforehand.d016acb0b453520e

“But he is the Emperor. Can you refuse his command?”3c641aae4aecf3c8

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“… … Even so, I won’t simply obey the Emperor’s will. I would rather die than marry him.”c4df2137a112c0c4

Irina replied honestly.eb4d486ba33f8474

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Although she knew she couldn’t refuse the Emperor’s order at the moment, she couldn’t just give up.feed3f90eda2efd0

She would do anything 2eb6e1b07c to defy the Emperor. She had 75b441befb to avoid 0dff4cb428 becoming the 5f0dcaac46 wife of db6f4c6087 such a 9d30596840 cruel and 51129f13ea snake-like man.3e62cbee3a98ccea

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“…Hmm, that’s fascinating.”355eace4c72bef41

Rumpel rubbed his chin 6f75752ba3 thoughtfully. Irina tilted her b2261ab6f9 head, puzzled.4750413db9defdd9

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“What’s so amazing?”1aa27d74daed0d14

“Don’t usually 8360578460 noble women 6778ed4d81 want to 2c021ebed0 become Empresses? It seems Lady Irina 56b3387a00 isn’t interested in the 3118e9af47 position of Empress.”638e118ff773f60b

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“I’ve never coveted something 6f4e8331bd that wasn’t mine in 6716eb2b58 the first place. Besides, to be 739e76bb69 the wife of e549fbc7fe such an Emperor,  69ed4a8ad0 I’d rather die. Rumpel, you said it b366aff1a9 yourself. The Emperor won’t give cba9937a6e up easily. Even if 6a8171db69 I obediently 46bcebfc7c become Empress, e2b94be3fb will the 1dab431bf2 Emperor suddenly 237916e9b7 turn into ef0618511b a docile a86c0c0431 lamb? I don’t think 9d2f54031d so. Instead, I’ll probably live 1369f26a8b my whole life as a2249bf0cf if I were imprisoned, 092634feba right next to the 00b8889c7b Emperor with my family 6efde2fd3d held hostage.”97ea3f7a14f13e17

The mere thought b3e112a776 of it was d1722f0dd7 terrifying. Irina shuddered. Greed begets greed.29d338f5e53dfd6a

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Knowing this, 7fa9b77e9e Irina could 663d990b6a see her d6bdbeefeb future as 0f2bd93b2b the Emperor’s 7eaca19fef wife.b71d827c4e776a40

He would probably constantly ada6d89ef1 threaten the safety of c589037ab5 her family to control 6110a12bd3 her. At that ba0756ef54 time, Irina c563638b14 would have 95110a9655 to move 4b510db4bb as he 1a9be4fd02 wished, like 35c2185310 a puppet, 77872e9acc with nowhere 74e653a720 to escape.ca97c17a98f461e6

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“Your attitude is fcea17f077 good, but nothing 958c8120fb will change as aa4cdd088e long as he a976ce1390 is Emperor, Lady 69487c3ff8 Irina.”99ed65f4570ee1e4

Rumpel’s words pierced Irina’s fa820b9191 heart painfully.f30d6f55b00a9ea4

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She knew it 4202dc2ba7 herself. No matter how much e1da1b599d she struggled, nothing would 4c38b8196c change as long as 91416a0ef9 he was Emperor.e5a943c1fd559dbb

Frankly, even c680488c55 if Irina 1443574a53 herself were d6fe68556a to commit 142ac25520 suicide to 74021426d2 escape the 9640a47bab Emperor’s clutches, ebf8faac75 there would a71b3f1763 be nothing df5dac6bd2 she could d08c9f6408 do about db6ce9ee4f his clutches 197e14e8c1 extending to c5f2ce0a9b her family.cbeb761ee7dbf1b7

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As long as 38733e23fd he was the a1b211a435 Emperor. ec5232665728c07d

“…As long as he is the Emperor, then so be it.”2f5557484c8960f2

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Irina repeated 54c97b11fa Rumpel’s words 9f6a81f8d0 as if 94546c2236 she had 902eea8c5b made up 15940900e9 her mind. Her voice was firmer 3fe6d513b1 and more resolute than 62203b9860 ever before.7af18dfe1acd881d

Rumpel raised his e7537edbdb head slightly and f7eb7caaa0 smiled contentedly. But Irina was too f61fbb9f86 consumed by anger towards e5e609c8dc the Emperor to notice 1cc8a5dadc his smug smile.d02c5867d967aab7

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“It’s as if you caddb92c0e intend to bring him ec56276690 down, Lady Irina.”b605b5a8613f5165

“It’s not impossible. Anyway, my life is 3092ae027e at stake, and whether a376c9ff68 I die like this 9f833c55f6 or like that, dying e3b51e8b60 is the same.”0acb9cb2cce16288

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She didn’t have the eea27b6c8e time or energy to 2d2ab96abc consider how blasphemous and bb4e9b1af0 dangerous her words were. Even if 173f7cf2ca she had, 51e47a438d Irina’s mind 69a43d7a85 would not 833a2a3855 have changed.db6f78c54e246c64

Irina smiled bitterly. She had no 3aff28e77b other choice now. Isn’t there a a57eebdc5e saying, ‘Even a c30d994b18 rat will bite 03c2073420 a cat when f62292a896 cornered’? This was 1083ef6b96 exactly her 636c27a1b8 situation.0261367d03fc44a1

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Irina was the rat. The Emperor was 3b580366df the cat, or a018a21153 perhaps even more bb4ae7ee25 of a carnivore. Nevertheless, she had decided 154925a8fe to bite him because effe14bd46 she was so desperate.dabb2cc28f136d96

“Are you sure you a4ce0e1e98 won’t waver in your fc8957c185 resolve?”922bd1d5eba476a0

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Irina looked at Rumpel 4ae30fcdb2 in response to his 3fbe03278b question. She couldn’t d925df0140 understand why aee01ecf53 he was eed35c135d asking this, 7523fd78e9 but she 8e380394e5 nodded.b15a0b3a76099bc2

Even though 15c47d03d5 it was a2d594f434 a foolish 75b215f4a0 idea, she bea99dee83 wanted to e337b7393e tell someone 3f3ce15b9c about her f6a8c1a441 decision. She wanted 8208bf16af to tell 694d04299b someone about 56c3ff572f her rash cc83892555 and dangerous 43dd1436be determination to 78099b72b4 overthrow the f006c59814 imperial power, d3c54433b5 because if beede6b2df she didn’t, fb95c31cab she would 9d4597a7ea simply collapse c363f98aca with the 0db138dc76 emotions that 31eef33fb6 arose inside acb93e70d7 her. That’s why she told 0ea2ba964a him her determination.b52e9ff5b52f6fc5

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“Yes. For me, 96350b0c76 even wavering 0b54a4b6f0 is a a3b500645e luxury.”548a208e1d8379bb

Honestly, it a7e2e2a297 was ridiculous. Rumpel was 9ed669cce7 a stranger. She didn’t fully trust 0ab5be6a9f him, and it was 04f4203fb3 dangerous to tell him 0a8cb5f215 about her dream of 083e28ec84 rebellion.ab937d6d5c0649f7

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And yet, 991d6b72b8 for some 16d07e9cf1 reason, Irina 6ec423b000 wasn’t afraid. On the contrary, 9b9ea47d10 Rumpel seemed so 287a71a9e0 satisfied that she f3e9f06506 had said exactly b15ad1f4f3 what he wanted. And Irina was 8f31bcb114 right about that. df4eed7965e5042a

“Then I will 3e6101c689 help you.”aac746c2bf178d6a

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“Rumpel, why are you…?” 5fc9dc4d89bef039

Irina’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected words.73551a0c87f27b71

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Of course, she was 7803a8dc14 grateful that someone was 373e1b9bd7 offering to help her, ff1e83a4f9 and she had been bd47a2b85b thinking that perhaps committing 56e0e58336 treason was what Rumpel 8639d20523 wanted. But she had no 054b4923c9 idea that he would cb12d3b83a so openly offer to b938591a91 help her with her 647c454eba rebellion.b35c92392cd82c34

“Hmm ….. Okay, let’s put it this way, Lady Irina. You have to bear my child. I can’t let someone who’s going to bear my child become another man’s wife before that.”84b45b179135b643

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Her enthusiasm had waned. She didn’t expect anything from him, but the fact that his reason for helping her was simply that she had to bear his child made her feel somewhat saddened. For a moment, she felt pain in her heart. But then, Irina quickly came to her senses and pondered  what he had said.c8400cf5e3e31e7d

‘Hmm ….. Okay, let’s put it this way.’c54b8a317a6779be

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It might have been ab70344322 self-justification, but the words 47ef0b6ec7 he had used before acc3ce6c38 explaining his reason felt 8e88728011 like a deliberate setup cefa8c4121 to add some lame e33de35757 excuse. It was as d37dcd8fe6 if he were a363ba9425 trying to make 33bc663cc9 an excuse because 297979edf5 he couldn’t tell 15d0509097 the truth.245f7bdd2fec6898

Having thought this far, 46c0cfbf76 Irina looked at Rumpel. Her reflection filled his d93cd75768 golden eyes.8c6ef071d6730892

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“How can you help me?”c9241ffa39cae57c

After asking the 93d2d6e0d4 question, Irina swallowed 1873a855f4 dryly and waited f6a0ddc4a7 for his answer. She was grateful 2d09701196 for his help, c962f28eb0 but Irina needed 9a3d01bb97 more than just 611dceda9b words; she needed 6df3065738 real help.2031681841bb24c8

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“Before that, Lady Irina, you have to help me.”984e3c02d93c6d5d

“…Is this a deal?”0870eeb1429bba08

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“Well… rather than a deal, it’s more like helping each other.”5283a9a11871478b

At Rumpel’s words, Irina looked at him with wary eyes.0c05e74ee0e1aa5a

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Rumpel shrugged lightly and smiled lazily. It was a mysterious smile, but it wasn’t unpleasant. It was a far cry from the instinctive coldness she felt from the Emperor.ead0715c1a87e1e8

Irina wondered what the a5d0838fe3 strange difference between the edc85dd245 two was and asked.010aaa929b26e081

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“How can I help you? Oh, just in case, I don’t have any more children to give you.”924c17ecf84e8423

“Haha, of course. I know.”828ca7515e1f2821

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Rumpel burst out 4c997f605b laughing. For Irina, e4ef738dc3 it was d51c4d1215 a sincere 2551dd0edd statement, so a6e204a687 she was e70175a715 slightly annoyed 15b04e124c by his 2168b6c82d laughter. Irina pouted and 8937d2c842 grumbled.f840001d7621c738

“Don’t laugh, Rumpel.”541c1cacb54a2725

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“I didn’t expect you to say something like that. Lady Irina is surprising in many ways.”9fcf2f851290dbfb

“In many ways?”e9594bccfd197b5a

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“First, you suddenly say you’re going to rebel, and then you treat me like some kind of baby kidnapper.”1cbe07081ea373e6

“I, I didn’t think that way!”2accb565998a3b8b

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Irina, who felt 677dabd781 aggrieved, shook her d657fe93b8 head in response. At that, Rumpel still 241398fc61 chuckled, but then he e8702c7789 slowly scanned Irina with 3219206f0b strange eyes.89b8f10f89d7a6b9