‘The Empress Dowager has already reviewed these, so you only need to stamp them.’
A noble suddenly demanded a seal without explaining the information the documents held. So Verkley naturally refused.
‘Shouldn’t I know what it’s about?’
‘Does that mean you don’t trust the Empress Dowager?’
‘…I understand.’
Verkley was forced to stamp the document without knowing its contents.
‘No, who is the ruler of the Owen Empire? Verkely or Hera?’
Eliana felt resentment.
The situation in which many people secretly ignored Verkley reminded Eliana of her past.
That’s why.
Eliana, who had already gotten close to him like a faithful servant, was empathizing with Verkley before she knew it.
It’s frustrating being beaten when your opponents outnumbered you.
Eliana closed her eyes to sleep, reflecting on the situation of their previous meeting.
‘I’ve just started observing him, but Verkley is amazing at keeping his patience.’
So what will happen if Hera doesn’t fail, unlike in the novel?
Instant anxiety struck.
It was possible that Verkley would not be able to capture Hera as he’d done in the novel.
This was because Hera was overwhelming under certain circumstances.
Even though the nobles kept Hera in check, they did not support Verkley.
They supported Duke Crombell in the periphery.
In short, Verkley held not an ounce of power.
Judging from his nightly pain, it was certain he’d signed a contract with a demon, but Eliana was worried he might die one way or the other.
Of course, if he died, she’d have to stick with Hera… It’s not that she didn’t care for him. She just wanted to live.
Eliana was startled awake at the untimely ringing of the bell. It was dawn. She must have fallen asleep.
It was Verkley’s bell, but he never rang it, even when he was in agonizing pain.
A sudden ominous feeling crept up against Eliana, and she sprinted to the next room in her pyjamas.
“Your Majesty!” Eliana shouted when she saw Verkley lying on the floor.
Verkley lay beside his bed, panting frantically, the bell tossed aside on the floor next to him.
He must have taken it down with him.
Verkley had sensed when Eliana entered his bedroom but could not respond because of the breathless pain.
His lungs couldn’t work properly. It was as if he was experiencing an asthma attack.
With a loud groan, Verkley’s face turned blue.
Eliana thought of ways she could push oxygen into his airway, but there was nothing useful in the emperor’s bedroom.
And since Verkley was always ignored there were no guards near his bedroom.
Eliana paced back and forth in a hurry, unable to help and eventually kneeled at his side.
“Your Majesty! Listen to the way I breathe and take a deep breath! Like this, hoo, ha, hoo, ha!”
“Cough.”
At that moment, Verkely desperately clung to Eliana’s arm.
His breathing was dangerously staggering as if he were going to die any second.
She didn’t know whether he’d die if she left him. No, that was a lie. She already knew he couldn’t fully die.
A soul that has been sold to a demon solely belongs to it.
In other words, he can’t die until their deal is complete.
A body that experienced raw pain and could not die was not a blessing but a curse.
Eliana took a deep breath as she concluded.
‘If I witness him die and come back to life, Verkley might kill me.’
She would not allow him to die this way.
Eliana shouted in resolute. “Your Majesty, forgive me!”
Despite Eliana’s warning, Verkley uncontrollably gasped.
Shivers coursed Verkley’s body while he held Eliana’s arm like it was his lifeline.
She pinched his nose with one hand and tilted his head back before performing mouth-to-mouth respiration.
“Eup!”
Verkley struggled as if frightened by the sudden touch of her lips.
Eliana made sure she had a secure grip on Verkley and kept pushing oxygen into his mouth.
It was like a clumsy kiss, their lips touching and separating multiple times.
His lips were as cool as his hands.
Before she knew it, Verkley was breathing, going limp and clinging to her.
Like a baby bird being fed by its mother, Verkley gripped Eliana’s nape with his mouth parted.
After a few moments, however, Verkley’s breathing began to return to normal.
As soon as he took a last deep breath, Eliana saw his red eyes turn back to blue again.
But she wiped her lips as if she had seen nothing.
‘In the novel, Verkley described that when he used his powers, his blue eyes would turn to red.’
She couldn’t have been more pleased with this.
Eliana hid her smile, confirming that Verkley had signed a contract with a demon.
It was clear that this path was the golden path.
Eliana carefully helped Verkley steady himself.
Verkley’s eyes slightly shook.
He looked confused. His eyes were still out of focus, and he appeared agitated.
After a moment of silence, he spoke in a dazed tone. “W-What did you….”
“Ah… I’m sorry, Your Majesty. You weren’t breathing well, so I had to give you mouth-to-mouth…”
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“…”
“Did I make you feel uncomfortable? I’m sorry.” Eliana hesitantly muttered, seeing him more agitated than she expected.
She gave him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but it was practically almost a kiss.
That contact would have led to a kiss if she hadn’t moved away so quickly.
Verkley did not respond to Eliana’s apology.
Embarrassment ate at her when she didn’t get an answer.
Because from Verkley’s point of view, he might have thought he was suddenly getting kissed.
Eliana automatically reacted when she saw him on the floor, but when her senses came back to her, she felt embarrassed.
‘But I’d much rather see him alive and breathing than lying dead…’
As Eliana struggled to explain, Verkley spoke in a low voice. “You didn’t make me… uncomfortable.”
“Ah, please forgive me. I’m sorry I offended you… Excuse me?”
“I feel rather clear-headed.”
Eliana blankly stared at Verkley.
He had the most content smile on his face.
The sight was so beautiful that Eliana almost lost herself before barely managing to turn away.
His answer felt strange.
A man who says his head has cleared from an act that is mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but similar to a kiss.
Was this a green light?
Eliana tried to dismiss Verkley’s words.
No way… Was it possible?
‘You couldn’t have feelings for me, right?’
It’s what she concluded in the mind of her endless thoughts.
Eliana did not immediately let go of her ridiculous speculation. She rolled her eyes but then quickly stopped.
There was no way Verkley would have feelings for her.
She hasn’t even done anything yet.
She’s trying her best to get along with Verkley, but there was no way the mastermind in this story could fall in love with her.
For some reason, her face burned.
He was not real, so she seemed to be getting swept away for no reason.
Eliana touched her lips. She could still feel the coldness of his skin.
The sensation of his soft lips felt so entirely vivid that her hand began to tremble, and she withdrew her hand.
“Ay, really, you’re making me worry with your nonsense.”
Eliana glanced at Verkley.
He was still smiling. That smile looked strangely surly.
As Eliana tensed and stepped back, Verkley continued. “Now, I’m certain.”
“Really? Certain of what?”
“Eliana, you may return to your room now.”
Eliana’s question did not receive an answer.
Verkley just dismissed her with his hand.
‘Um, what? What’s he certain of? Was I the only one curious about this?’
Eliana looked at him with a stunned face, but Verkley did not give in and once again dismissed her.
Eventually, Eliana headed to her room with a tearful look on her face.
Somehow, his atmosphere seemed quite different than usual. It would be better to not ask more questions.
* * *
When Eliana left the bedroom, Verkley’s eyes turned red again.
He started at the door where Eliana had just left from and coolly said,
“God blessed me with a gift just in time.”
* * *
After saving Verkley with mouth-to-mouth, his attitude began to slightly change.
Eliana was used to being around Hera, trying to stay on the right line these past few days, so being around him was very different.
Eliana has also noticeably gained a little fat.
It was Eliana who wanted to get close to Verkley, but strangely, she wanted to get to know him better.
‘His gentle attitude is strangely confusing.’
It was when Eliana was lost in thought.
She felt someone pulling on her sleeve, so she looked down.
Long, slender fingers carefully held her sleeve.
It was Verkley.
“Your Majesty?”
Eliana tilted her head as Verkley pulled her sleeve.
She was standing beside him and calmly waiting, so she had to look down.
Verkley was resting under an umbrella and offered Eliana a pretty smile. “You‘ll get hot. You can sit next to me.”
He would go for a walk at least once a day or as many as three times a day.
Even though he was the emperor, he stayed in a separate palace, not the main palace, and there were quite a few walking trails.
You could refer to it as the Seasonal Palace, where the trails had different themes in the spring, summer, fall, and winter surrounding the main palace.
Verkley was familiar with the garden structure of the Seasonal Palace and enjoyed walking alone.
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Eliana, who was sweating under the scorching sun, thought, why not?
“Oh, may I?”
The umbrella wasn’t that wide, so she only got half of the room, but she still wanted to cool down.
Then Verkley wrapped an arm around Eliana’s shoulder and pulled her close.
T/N: i made a mistake. so apparently, Hera is NOT Verkley’s biological mother (I have no idea why I thought she was). so please keep in mind that she’s his stepmother from now on.