“Did you like those flowers?”

“I prefer wisteria.”

“Trying to imitate Anais again.”

Kylian responded with a tone of annoyance, even though he was the one who had asked first. Anais tried to smell them as she was holding the hydrangeas but found they had no scent, which puzzled her so she smelled them again.

“Hydrangeas don’t have a scent.”

“Mountain hydrangeas do.”

“That’s not a mountain hydrangea. It was grown in a glass greenhouse.”

“Ah.”

Anais nodded slightly at Kylian’s explanation. Not having much experience with the floral business, she didn’t know much about plants.

“Your Majesty.”

“…”

“Kylian.”

“Don’t call me by my name.”

“Yes.”

She followed Kylian, wanting to see his face. She wondered if he would be annoyed if she walked too close, but holding the flowers gave her courage.

“Hold this and follow me.”

She hoped, perhaps, he wanted to give them to her.

Maybe, even if he hadn’t acknowledged it before, now he realized she was Anais.

She couldn’t help feeling hopeful. Anais had wanted to deny her feelings for him. But since their kiss, her heart wavered constantly.

She shamefully wished he felt the same, while knowing it was a feeling she shouldn’t harbor. She hoped that Kylian truly loved her essence and would recognize her and share her feelings.

But she knew their relationship had a predetermined end. She wanted him to come to his senses and live his life properly. Her heart ached with these conflicting emotions.

“Wife.”

Anais was startled by Kylian’s happy voice and looked up. She was dressed fittingly as the Empress, no longer excessively adorned but instead elegant and dignified.

“Your Majesty.”

Anais then realized why Kylian had asked her to carry the flowers. It wasn’t a gift for her. Embarrassed, she found it hard to lift her head.

“Wife, I heard you were here and came to see you.”

“Oh, is that so? I was just on my way to my palace. Would you like to join me?”

“Yes.”

The Empress placed her beautiful hand on Kylian’s outstretched one while glancing at Anais.

“I’ve been looking for you since morning. Were you with His Majesty?”

“Not this morning. He just brought me here.”

“You must have been lazing around somewhere.”

Anais didn’t respond. Lately, both the Empress and Kylian had been too much for her, so she had been hiding, mostly in the abandoned palace Phileal had shown her.

“We’re having a small tea party today.”

“Is that so?”

“Would you like to join us, Your Majesty?”

“Sure.”

At that moment, Anais interrupted their conversation as she remembered the Emperor’s schedule.

“The administrative meeting with the ministers is about to start…”

“Are you my advisor?”

Anais flinched and shrank back at Kylian’s sharp retort. She found it difficult to look at him directly and speak. She was afraid her earlier excitement might be discovered.

“You’ve lost your manners lately. I’ll have to re-educate you.”

“That’s alright. I don’t want to burden the Wife with such tedious tasks.”

“Oh, my.”

Kylian brought her hand to his lips. The Empress, feeling a tickle from his lips on her ring, scowled before forcing a smile, like forcefully flattening a crumpled paper.

“I heard Your Majesty is planning something new.”

“Has word spread that far already?”

“Of course. The ladies report everything to me.”

Kylian looked embarrassed, blushed and then smiled at the Empress.

“I heard Your Majesty brought jewelers to the palace and hired new gardeners.”

“Yes.”

“Are you planning a new garden? Will you embellish the garden ornaments with jewels?”

“Well, that’s still a secret.”

“Hohoho.”

The Empress laughed and leaned her head on Kylian’s shoulder. In that moment, he involuntarily held his breath and stiffened, his heart racing because she rarely showed him such affection.

He was overwhelmingly happy, to the point he couldn’t adapt to it.

“Your Majesty.”

“Yes.”

“You often have flower petals in your hair.”

“Do I?”

Recalling how the Empress had previously been displeased, Kylian quickly tried to remove the petals from his hair. The Empress lifted her hand with a smile. He felt his heart pound, thinking she was about to remove the petals from his hair as she used to.

Unable to resist, he caught her hand and pressed it to his lips.

“What are you doing?”

“Ah… I’m sorry. I acted impulsively again.”

“Yes.”

The Empress hastily withdrew her hand and glanced at Anais standing behind him, then twisted into a smile.

“I was startled. Try it again.”

“What? Ah, yes.”

Kylian smiled happily and brought her palm to his lips again. He then rubbed his cheek against her rough palm while looking at her.

“You’re like a cat.”

“Am I?”

Kylian blushed with a pleased smile at the Empress’s comment.

“But, Wife, why the sudden change in your favorite flower?”

At Kylian’s question, the Empress laughed and began to walk again. He moved beside her and gently took her hand. She leaned on him and slowed her pace.

“People change.”

“Sometimes wisteria looks beautiful, other times hydrangeas do.”

Anais knew that Lilith, who was impersonating her, liked hydrangeas. Realizing she was Lilith, more evidence to prove her identity became apparent.

Lilith and Kylian were fated for each other. In the original story, they relied on each other for growth and healed each other’s wounds.

Anais felt like an outsider once again. There had been many times in the past when Kylian and Lilith spent time alone. She didn’t want to remember her painful past, which only added to her growing melancholy.

“Where have you been?”

“I had some matters to attend to at the Temple of Julias.”

Anais recalled how Kylian used to visit Lilith at the Temple of Julias every day. He would go there whenever he had time.

Her fondness for wisteria was due to memories of Kylian often having wisteria in his hair.

Soon, they arrived at the back garden of the Empress’s palace. The garden was prepared for the tea party. It was adorned with beautiful, translucent fabric in various colors. The sunlight filtering through it created a scene reminiscent of stained glass.

Five noblewomen were already seated at a white, round table. As they saw the Emperor and Empress, they stood up.

“It’s our first time having tea with His Majesty.”

“We are graced by the presence of the two suns of Quipnos.”

“We are graced by the presence of the two suns of Quipnos.”

“We are graced by the presence of the two suns of Quipnos.”

Though there were five, only three voices were heard. Anais felt a pang in her heart as she watched Kylian pull out a chair for the Empress. She was glad to be holding the bouquet of hydrangeas, as it helped her mask her expression.

“Today, His Majesty will join us for tea. That’s alright with everyone, right?”

“Of course, Your Majesty.”

“It’s an honor for us.”

“Oh, Your Majesties. Did you intentionally match your clothing colors?”

“No, it just happened to be the same.”

The Empress laughed, and everyone giggled like young girls, covering their mouths with fans. Both the Emperor and Empress were wearing black, a dress and a suit, respectively. It wasn’t a funeral, but the reason for their choice of color was unclear.

Anais remembered Lilith’s preference for wearing black.

“Why don’t you wear something bright? Like a dress.”

“Black suits me better. I like this black dress.”

If only Lilith hadn’t gone to the village that day, she wouldn’t have been kidnapped. The main culprit of the kidnapping was High Priest Raviel. Despite knowing Raviel was the true criminal, Duke Percival had kept him until after the coup to use and then discard him.

Otherwise, Raviel would have been severely punished. Other accomplices were merely executed, but the mastermind deserved no forgiveness.

Raviel had mistakenly believed that Lilith’s presence threatened his position. The other criminals had only taken Anais as an opportunity for escape funds.

Kylian sat next to the Empress. She smiled and locked eyes with him. He tenderly tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, which had slipped out from her elegantly styled hair.

“Even your hair is beautiful, Wife.”

“Hohoho. So is yours, Kylian.”

The Empress had been organizing tea parties frequently lately, perhaps due to the extended period she had been asleep. She might have felt insecure, but she was always capable of establishing her position anytime.

The Emperor seemed willing to do anything for her. She had brought him to this gathering to demonstrate this to the noblewomen.

“For His Majesty, chamomile tea. For the rest of the ladies, black tea, please.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The affectionate couple continued their conversation while being observed by the noblewomen.

“Oh, the scented oil Marchioness Ardith gave me last time was wonderful. His Majesty loved it.”

“Wife, are you referring to that refreshing scent from last time?”

“Yes.”

“Oh my, that’s an exclusive product from our company! With your permission, Your Majesty, I’d like to present it to you monthly. Would that be alright?”

“That would be good, Marchioness Ardith.”

As the Empress spoke graciously, Kylian, watching her, then smiled and inadvertently glanced at Anais.

Then, with a flick of his hand, he set in motion his planned surprise. At that moment, his servants that had been hidden around, appeared in the garden with bouquets of hydrangeas.

“Oh, Your Majesty?”

Suddenly, Kylian was on one knee on the ground, kissing the back of Anais’ hand.

“I’ve been troubled about not properly celebrating since you woke up, Wife.”

With a smile, the Empress met his gaze.

“Please continue to be with me, Anais.”

“Hahaha. Yes, I’d love to.”

As the Empress responded, Anais found herself unable to stay any longer. She left the flowers behind and fled. Kylian was acutely aware of her running away, not needing to look back.

His heart ached slightly, but he chose to ignore it.

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