I Possessed The Immoral Empress

Ermedeline couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

It wasn’t because Felio was working with a perfectly straight posture as if nothing had happened.

She already knew well how strict he was about separating his public and private affairs.

No matter how upset he was, he would never abandon the orphanage that was about to open.

What truly shocked Ermedeline was Marchioness Grania, who was sitting at the end of the table, looking over documents with a very calm expression.

The young marchioness, who was always with Viella, had little interaction with Ermedeline.

Though she was a grateful person who had helped with everything, there had never been a personal connection between them.

But today, on the day Bellest, Viella, and Liena all left the capital, Marchioness Grania was sitting in her usual spot, doing her usual work.

Ermedeline, unsure how to react to this unexpected scene, awkwardly took her seat, glancing at the two of them.

Felio spoke first.

“…Though the food shortage is severe, we can manage for now with the grains we received earlier… Although many teachers have submitted their resignations, most of those in charge of accommodations remain…”

Felio reported the essential matters of the orphanage’s operation in a voice devoid of any emotion.

‘He sounds like a robot.’

Ermedeline, anxious about what had happened the previous day and worried about how to explain herself to Felio, had lost sleep.

But listening to his usual report, she felt her anxiety slowly subside.

And then there was Marchioness Grania.

Since she wasn’t in charge of interviews, there was no reason she couldn’t enter the palace, but she had usually handled her duties outside with the other maids.

Naturally, Ermedeline assumed she too had left the capital with the other maids.

Sensing Ermedeline’s gaze, Marchioness Grania, who had been reporting in a calm voice, took off her monocle and placed it beside her.

“Do you have something to say to me?”

“Oh, no… It’s just… Everyone is leaving the capital, so I thought you had left too.”

Hearing Ermedeline’s words, Marchioness Grania smiled faintly.

“My husband is a loyalist of the Emperor. And unfortunately, we have no children yet. We have no family to take care of or a father to obey, so we stayed. And since we stayed, we might as well do our work.”

There is that saying, isn’t there?

Even if the world ends tomorrow, I will plant an apple tree today.

Not all nobles were fleeing the capital sensing the winds of war.

Many, setting aside political positions, chose to stay for the sake of the capital’s citizens and their own pride.

They were still coming to the palace, working in their departments as usual.

Of course, they were handling more urgent matters than usual.

If the capital truly became a battlefield, the number of orphans would be incomparable to those caused by a plague.

Neither Henry nor Leopold would be so ruthless as to attack a facility full of children, but it had become crucial to get the orphanage up and running as quickly as possible, no matter how the situation unfolded.

Ermedeline quietly looked around the reception room.

A cold wind blew through her heart at the unfamiliar emptiness.

But seeing the people who still kept their positions, she steadied her resolve.

That’s right.

The assassination attempts mentioned in the original work hadn’t all happened yet, and these attempts grew more vicious with each passing day, making the situation precarious enough that one misstep could mean life or death.

But just as death had come at an entirely unexpected moment in her past life, this world was filled with uncertainties.

Therefore, she would face the present with confidence and commitment.

After Marchioness Grania left, Ermedeline gently grabbed the edge of Felio’s sleeve as he, too, was about to turn away.

“?”

Felio always felt a heavy heart whenever he left her behind, often leaving a part of himself in the palace.

Thus, he was glad that Ermedeline stopped him, but her cold face, filled with extreme sadness, prevented him from feeling wholly happy.

“I…”

“You don’t need to.”

Sensing what Ermedeline was about to say, Felio cut her off before she could finish her sentence.

“No, but…”

“If it’s an apology for yesterday, I don’t want it.”

“?”

Ermedeline, who had mustered all her courage to ease Felio’s heart, turned pale as his cold words made her feel as if the blood had drained from her heart.

‘Right. How could I expect forgiveness when I hid such an important truth from someone who trusted me with their life?’

As she bit her lip to hold back tears and was about to turn away, it was Felio who grabbed her hem this time.

“?”

Now, it was Ermedeline’s turn to look up at Felio with a faint blush on her cheeks.

In Felio’s eyes, he saw the fear of being hated but also a vague expectation in her violet eyes.

People often called Ermedeline a cold beauty, but in front of Felio was a woman whose face was flushed as if with a slight fever, unable to control the emotions leaking out.

‘So you didn’t tell me because of me? Because you like me? Really?’

Felio wanted to wrap his arms around Ermedeline’s slender, trembling shoulders right away, but he couldn’t.

He couldn’t add his overwhelming feelings to this pitiful and lovely woman who was trying to maintain her balance on the thin line between life and death, trying to assert her own righteousness.

“I said there’s no need for an apology because I don’t need to receive one. Her Majesty the Empress did nothing wrong, and I’m not angry, so why would I accept an apology?”

“Huh?”

What brazen words are these?

When was he shouting in the alley yesterday? How could he say he wasn’t angry?

Ermedeline doubted Felio’s sincerity for a moment, her eyes widening as she tilted her head.

“Puhuh.”

Of course, Felio knew exactly why Ermedeline was making such an expression.

He hadn’t forgotten the commotion from yesterday, as he hadn’t developed amnesia.

“I did get a little excited yesterday, but I hold no grudges.”

“What?”

“I’m saying I’m a clean person with no grudges.”

“Oh…”

Ermedeline, who had spent a sleepless night blaming herself for betraying Felio, let out an involuntary short sigh at his nonchalant response.

Felio found Ermedeline’s ever-changing expressions so adorable and endearing that he felt he could stand there and watch her forever, but there was something he needed to say.

“Your Majesty.”

“?”

Ermedeline, taken aback by Felio’s suddenly lowered voice as he called her, met his silver eyes with her violet ones.

“Sometimes, trust requires nothing.”

“?”

“When I fought back-to-back with Roberto in fierce battles, I always felt secure. I never thought I’d be attacked and killed from behind.”

“……”

“Though Roberto is quite a skilled swordsman, sometimes in battle, there are moments where skill alone can’t provide an answer. But even in those moments, I never once worried about my back.”

“……”

Ermedeline stood silently, taking deep breaths with a heavy heart.

“Even if Roberto had turned and stabbed me in the back, I would have thought there must be a reason. Trust like that needs no reason. It only matters who’s guarding your back.”

Felio knelt in front of Ermedeline with a gentle smile.

“The same goes for you, Your Majesty. Whatever you do or don’t do, my trust in you will not waver.”

He wanted to say that his love for her would never change, but this was a palace dominated by Henry.

Hoping his insufficient words conveyed at least some of his feelings, Felio reverently kissed the back of Ermedeline’s hand.

As Felio bowed his head, his neatly arranged hair began to ripple like waves.

The dark blue hair undulated as if she were watching a calm ocean.

Without realizing it, Ermedeline lifted her fingers and touched a few strands of Felio’s soft-looking hair.

The blue fragments of the mysterious wave stayed on her fingers like sand for a moment before vanishing instantly.

Ermedeline quickly gathered her wits and glanced around.

Rooney was nearby but seemed too engrossed in polishing a vase to have noticed. Moreover, Felio, the person involved, seemed oblivious to her subtle gesture. After the brief kiss, he slowly raised his head, his mysterious silver eyes half-closed.

‘Phew, no one saw that, right?’

Hoping to hide her embarrassment, Ermedeline resorted to an extreme measure.

“I will stab you in the back and hand you over to the enemies if I ever find myself at a disadvantage!!”

‘Aaaaaaaah!’

After Felio left, Ermedeline’s mind was filled with internal screams. She felt like she could kick away a hundred blankets if she had them. Felio, responding with a simple “Anytime,” had left, exuding an air of cool nonchalance.

Even Rooney, who loved teasing Felio, looked at Ermedeline with a pitying expression.

‘Aaaaaaaah! I wish I could find a time machine and go back to the past!’

No one seemed to have noticed her secretly touching Felio’s hair, but why did she say such an unnecessary thing? Instead of thanking him, she had blurted out that nonsense.

‘Aaaaaaaah! Gods who can summon souls from other worlds, please, turn back time by thirty minutes! Please…’

Desperately, Ermedeline rubbed her palms together towards the empty air, but unfortunately, time didn’t rewind even a second.

‘This wretched mouth! This wicked mouth!’

Finally resigned, Ermedeline, teary-eyed, pressed her forehead against the wall and slumped down. Rooney peeked at her through the door crack and smirked mischievously.