Chapter 94
It was a golden ring embedded with a five-carat emerald.
As soon as she saw it, Adele immediately understood and was almost frightened to death.
“Your Majesty! Please don’t be so unreasonable!”
He grabbed her hand and kissed the back of her white hand, “Please be my empress.”
“I am already a married woman! Twice even!”
“Which is why I will never let go of an opportunity like this ever again. I won’t let you get away from me a third time.”
“B-but, I can’t—” Adele’s words became stuck inside her throat.
She could feel the deep pain behind the emperor’s determined gaze. She wasn’t able to speak after seeing that. Therefore, she decided to stand up and just stare at him silently.
Following her movements, the emperor tried to say reassuring words. “Take your time to think things over. You’ll be safe here.”
Her gaze never wandered from his face when she asked, “One question, Your Majesty.”
“Tell me.”
“Why… why is it me?”
“.…”
“This may sound a bit crude, but I… my body has already been claimed twice by two different men.” She reinstated, “There are so many beautiful and more talented ladies out there, why would a dignified person like you settle for less?”
“Adele.”
She lifted her head she heard the soft tone of his voice. The emperor had a terribly pitiful expression, he had a sad smile on his face.
“The imperial family had everything people could only ever dream of because of their birth.”
“Mn.”
“However, although there is a lot to gain… there is also much to be lost. Like the privilege of choosing your own marriage, a renowned political tool used to consolidate and strengthen one’s power.”
His eyes held an unfathomable expression, hiding the loneliness deep in his heart.
“Just like that, we are condemned to a life of misery by marrying someone we do not love. Infidelity isn’t even something uncommon, but simply a dirty secret they all strive to hide to maintain a perfect image.”
Rayence took her hand and covered it with his palm, “Adele, I do not want such a superficial life. I want to be able to share my life with a person I hold in my heart, whom I can share my joys and my woes.”
He tightened his hold on her, “I want to be with you.”
“Your Majesty, please don’t make things difficult for me—”
“This is my wish from you.”
When Adele heard his ‘wish’, it felt as if she was slapped in the face. Moreover, it was even her own doing and the slap was entirely her fault!
The day they met outside the castle and she floated unceremoniously in the air, they had a conversation precisely about that matter…
‘Uhm, Your Majesty? Will you help me?’
‘Then grant me a wish, milady.’
‘I’ll do a-anything!’
‘You promised, Adele.’
She didn’t think a silly joke would come back haunting her like this.
The emperor glanced at her. All of her items were studded with emeralds identical to his own pupils. From the tiny decorations on her neatly raised hair, to the necklace and ring she currently wore.
It was an outfit that matched perfectly well with this place.
An outfit suited for an Empress.
He smiled bitterly and prayed in his heart. He wanted her to accept him as well.
The emperor slowly placed a featherlight kiss on the back of her hand. The kiss was a little too polite that Adele barely felt anything touching her skin.
Still, she didn’t say anything until he left and soon, she was soon left alone. She cradled her head in her palms.
“Why…” Her head hurt so much she felt like it was on the verge of exploding.
She glanced at the emerald ring on her fourth finger. Adele took it off and settled it next to Noah’s yellow wedding ring. She was about to slip the ring back on, when she paused and closed her eyes.
Even for a short moment, she wanted to feel a little bit of freedom where she didn’t belong to anyone.
She wasn’t Enon’s widow, not Noah’s wife, and certainly not the emperor’s prospective empress. She just wanted to be herself, no matter how unrealistic it may sound.
Wallowing in agony, no one dared to disturb Adele. Maids would bring in tea or snacks every now and then, but she did not even touch them and continued sleeping. She didn’t want to do anything.
***
Darkness creeped inside her room.
The moon was high up in the sky as it scattered its rays between the gaps of the clouds.
Adele was awoken by the sound of clinking glass.
Knock! Knock!
“What is it?”
Small stones kept rapping against the glass window where she was, the third floor of the imperial palace. Adele opened the window and looked down.
Noah stood handsomely within the garden, waving his hand.
There were knights standing guard next to him. The battalion commanders she saw back when she visited the Knights Templar were also here!
She was extremely comforted by the sight of familiar faces.
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Adele suddenly remembered where they were and became anxious as she cast a furtive glance at their surroundings. But it seems that Noah didn’t share the same worries. He indifferently grabbed a protruding structure and scaled the walls of the palace until he reached her.
Finally, Noah sat on the windowsill, his figure towering over her. The moonlight behind him cast a dark shadow onto his face, but it only served to further exhibit his magnetic charm.
Noah caressed Adele’s pale cheek, “Wife, it’s good that you didn’t cry.”
He knew she was the type of woman where the corners of her eyes would become swollen whenever she shed tears. Noah thought that it was a relief, his little wife was not put into any distress, or else she would’ve turned puffy from crying.
Adele could only shake her head, feeling as if she was in a dream.