At the imperial palace

Zushi regretted her very first order an hour after she sent it out.

‘What was I thinking? House arrest?’

The her who sent that order acted on her emotions as a mother rather than the Empress. When she realized that she wanted to take it back, but it was already too late.

How come they sent that letter so quickly? After that day, Zushi noticed how odd, no how hostile half the castle was to her.

When Mo explained it, she felt very troubled. The Ageha family has more control than she thought.

Moreover, she underestimated Ageha Lillian’s influence and popularity. Zushi sighed again. It seems that was the wrong move to make. But, how was she supposed to know?

That woman hurt Braden so easily. How could she hurt an innocent child without hesitation?

“Is the Empress slacking on paperwork already?” A familiar voice said.

Zushi lifted her head to see a woman with short pale blonde colored hair. It was her other sister Astra.

“You are too late.” She mumbled. “You said you would be here for the ceremony.”

Astra sighed. “I got held up in the northern territory. Did you know? There is an ongoing war there.”

“What does somebody from the royal educational institute have anything to do with the wars?”

“Aside from me providing teaching services for the children up there. I am a former soldier.”

“Wait,” Zushi exclaimed as she raised her face. “Don’t tell me you fought?!!”

Astra laughed. “It was only when the kids got attacked. I had to defend them.”

“But you–” Zushi looked worriedly at her sister.

“I stopped by the medic.”

“You got hurt?!!”

Astra continued to laugh, and Zushi stood up. She walked over to where her sister was. “Astra..”

“It is alright.” Astra patted her hair. “Are you doing well as the Empress?”

Zushi sighed. “Is that because you heard the rumors?”

“Yes. Can I ask why? I think they warned you already, but the Ageha family’s control of the imperial palace is now..”

“That woman hurt Braden.”

“I see.” Astra nodded. “Then I can see why you did that. But Zushi, I will condemn you for that behavior. The current you are the Empress.”

“I know.”

“I understand why you accepted the offer in the end. But it is not like you do not care for the Kingdom.”

“Your right. I was too hasty.” Zushi trailed off. “Say, Astra, do you know Ageha Lillian well?”

“If your asking whether we are friends, the answer is no. But I have seen her in the royal library a lot, so we have exchanged a few words.”

“The library?”

“It seems she likes to read.”

That seems quite normal. Zushi took some paper from her desk and jotted it down.

Astra laughed. “Are you serious?”

“But! I don’t know much about her.”

“Haven’t you asked around?”

“After the house arrest thing. Do you think I would be shameless enough to ask around about her?”

Besides, it is not like she had to do that. Ageha Lillian is very popular; everybody talks about her. So there was no need for her to snoop around when the information is right in front of her face. But even then, the information she has gathered is more or less the same as the rumors she has already heard.

Astra nodded. “Then why don’t you invite her for a meal? I hear she is accepting invitations recently.”

“I did send her one, but-”

“Wait, you sent one before lifting her ban?”

Zushis face color turned pale, but Astra laughed. “It is fine. If you sent her a direct invitation, it is the same as lifting the ban.”

Is that how this works? Only a week or so has passed since she became the Empress. Since so many years have passed since there was an Empress, there was a lot of backlog of work. Even though the Ageha family has mainly taken charge since then, they have neglected some of the Empress duties.

“There are a lot of laws that I don’t understand. I don’t know if it is okay for me to approve of these things or not.”

“I can help you there. But in the future, you should find a reliable assistant.”

“Do you think I could ask—”

Astra blinked and awkwardly scratched her hair. “Well, it wouldn’t be a bad idea. Ageha Lillian is probably the most knowledgeable about the current laws and legislations but is that fine with you? There are already so many people comparing the two of you. If you do something like this, it could potentially backfire.”

“It is not like I do not understand that. But the past week, I have struggled a lot. I may have received etiquette lessons and other training before I started. But I lack the sufficient knowledge of the Empire’s current state.”

She wondered why nobody mentioned the most important part to her during the training, but now she understood. “It seems that nobody understands what I have to do. But they do know that they need an Empress.”

“Maybe you should stop thinking too deeply about it.”

“But-“Zushi looked at the ground. “At this stage, I do not think anybody will take me seriously.”

“That is why you should-”

“Pardon me, Empress.” A voice said behind the door. “Miss Ageha Lillian and Sir Lucas have arrived.”

Zushi blinked. “Already, but I sent the invitation for tomorrow.”

“She probably wants to confirm your intention ahead of time.” Astra nodded. “This is good for you; get going.”

Zushi bit her lip but nodded. She felt a bit cautious after what happened during the coronation, but she cannot avoid the woman forever.

…

The place where the two waited for her was the garden parlor. Initially, she prepared this place for the meeting tomorrow, so everything was set up already. Zushi took a deep breath before she approached the table.

“Again, curses, I didn’t separate from you earlier, so where do you keep getting it?”

“Maybe when I went to the rose garden?”

The black-haired man reached over and pinched the woman’s cheeks. “I told you to be especially careful around plants.”

When she mentioned inviting miss Lillian over, the head butler advised her to invite this man also. But Zushi blinked, surprised at the sight. The frightening aura from the supposedly evil general was not present. She and the other man seemed to be talking normally.

So this person has a normal side to her as well?

The first one to notice her was the black-haired man. “Empress.”

Lillian tilted her head, and her lips blossomed into a beautiful smile, and yet there was something evil about it. Unlike the earlier display, there was something cold about her aura.

“You have arrived earlier than I expected, Miss Lillian and sir Lucas,” Zushi said calmly as she took a seat opposite the round table.

She regretted using a round table now, and since she is so close to them. It will be difficult for her to avoid their gazes.

No, she can’t freeze up now.

Lillian nodded. “I have had a lot of time on my hands lately.”

Zushi felt a jab in her heart after she said those words. Indeed because she put the woman under house arrest naturally, she would not have any work to do. This is very awkward; why did she invite her over again?

“I wanted to apologize.” Zushi managed to say. Right, this is what she needs to do first.

“I would accept that apology, but we both know you do not need it. Your instincts as a mother emerged before your instincts as an Empress, it seems?”

Gah- why does she already have that figured out? Is she that gullible?

But, it seems there is no use lying in front of somebody who already has it all worked out. With a determined look on her face and trembling hands, Zushi said one word. “Yes.”

For a moment, nobody spoke, and she gradually felt the air become colder and colder. Her heartbeat sped up as beads of sweat fell from her face.

After a few minutes, somebody broke the silence, “Naive.”

But it did not come from Lillian.