The Empress’s Beast Selection

Chapter 2 The Woman With My Husband’s Name

My heart was beating unsteadily.

Faster.

Sepia asked, pretending not to notice.

“Do you know who she is?”

“A cousin of the Stag family. I heard she’s very sick and is only now preparing for her debutante.”

Sepia’s mind pictured her appearance.

A fawn, slender and beautiful, the very definition of loveliness.

When Sepia fell silent, Miss Vole spoke up, as if to reassure her.

“It’s a one-sided name, not a two-sided one, so it won’t be a problem.”

“Yes. It’s not a common occurrence, and I’m sure His Majesty was intrigued to see it.”

She was right.

A woman who bears his name, he’s bound to be interested.

“I suppose so.”

Sepia nodded.

Suddenly, the dream she had today seemed like a premonition.

Tea time ended a little early, the atmosphere a little awkward.

There was no news of Demios as the sun set, no news of him as the night grew ripe.

Sepia looked out her bedroom window.

Word must have spread throughout the palace by now.

She stared up at the night sky and tried to piece together the information she’d gleaned at tea.

‘Adopted by the Count de Louvre.’

They were first cousins, but they had recently made enemies at the Louvre.

Adoption of adult relatives among the nobility was not uncommon.

The condition was usually that the child was of noble birth.

Given that she had been an orphan for so long, it was likely that she was adopted when they noticed that she bore the Emperor’s name.

The woman who bore the Emperor’s name was special.

A silent sigh escaped Sepia’s lips.

‘A name.’

A name is the act of imprinting another person on the flesh.

The bearer of a name had the power to give the bearer a sense of security, to make them feel a powerful pull.

There remained one more question of utmost importance.

Is it a one-way name. Or was it a two-way name?

The perfect sum of two halves would, in some cases, bring a different result.

She had managed to pull herself together and was caressing her arm.

‘It’s okay, we don’t know yet.’

The other person’s name could appear anywhere on her body.

She understands that the name gradually appears on the skin over a period of about a month.

At first, it would appear faintly, like a smudge of something, but after a few days, she realized it was an imprint.

‘Even I don’t know about his body.’

To the world, Sepia and Demios were known as an amicable couple.

Loyal to each other, sometimes even a little affectionate.

As Emperor, he was the kind of man who was willing to give her what she wanted, and as Empress, she was the same.

But that wasn’t all that was known.

Sepia lowered her eyes.

The sigh she exhaled became a mere breath by the window.

The Beastman Empire was a land of four seasons.

Now that it was autumn, the difference in temperature between inside and outside was especially pronounced.

The sigh that clung to the window would gradually be erased and oxidised into the air.

Unlike the anxiety that had already settled in her chest.

“It’s time for you to go to bed, Your Majesty.”

Concerned that Sepia had been standing by the window for so long, one of the maids came over and draped her shawl over her.

When she turned round, all three maids wore worried expressions.

‘They must have heard the news.’

At this rate, by tomorrow, there would be no one outside of Huangshan who didn’t know her.

Sepia forced a smile and nodded.

“Can you make me a hot cup of tea, please? I think I’ll just drink that and lie down.”

“I’ll be right back with some tea to help you sleep, Your Majesty.”

The maid, pleased that Sepia was even asking for something, quickly left to prepare the tea.

As Sepia sipped her steaming cup of tea, her mind wandered again.

Name imprinting was never meant to be romantic.

It was more of a tragedy, really.

A twisted relationship driven by an unalterable fate. If that wasn’t the star, then suffering was.

The enduring themes of theatre, opera, and other arts were even colder for the supporting characters in real life.

‘But it’s all right.’

She is still the Empress.

Sepia sighed, her only relief.

Suddenly, she remembered the dream she’d had today, and the past that hadn’t been represented in it.

Empress of the Huron Empire.

Now Empress, she used to call Sepia every morning at dawn and mentally abuse her.

‘You are a worthless child, and that will never change, even when you grow up.’

Those words had always isolated young Sepia.

But not anymore.

Setting down her glass, Sepia curled her hands into fists.

‘I’ve become the most useful person I can be, and I’m going to keep it that way.’

Though it was no longer her home, it was now her place.

A place claimed by the goddess herself.

So Sepia had to stay.

No matter what.

Sepia ended up lying awake at night with a myriad of worries.

Causes for concern.

It was not until the next afternoon that she was able to face her husband.

***

A quiet afternoon.

Autumn roses were in full bloom in the main garden of the Imperial Palace.

Sepia changed into an outdoor dress and made her way to an intimate part of the rose garden.

The Emperor had invited her to tea.

Tea time was a much shorter affair than mealtime.

To have tea instead of a meal, and to have it outdoors, meant that Sepia had only a few moments to herself.

She was bitter about it, but she couldn’t complain.

Sepia led her maid to a wooden labyrinth.

The Emperor’s direct servant stood before her and greeted her.

“Empress, this way.”

She followed his lead and entered the wooden labyrinth.

The air smelled of tea with the fragrant scent of roses.

In the centre, obscured by the maze, was a pure white round table, and beyond it sat a beautiful man.

His silver hair spilled out as he moved his head.

His white skin and red eyes were in exquisite harmony with his delicate features.

The first ruler of the Beastman Empire, and the most beautiful man alive.

Demios Baroque Drodian.

He is the bloodline of a great divine beast.

“Welcome.”

Carnelian red eyes fixed on Sepia.

His hair and eye colour remained the same, but his appearance was cold, unlike when he was younger. But the one thing that didn’t change was the fact that he was Sepia’s favourite childhood friend.

“Your Majesty.”

She curtsied and sat down in the chair the maid had pulled out for her.

The table was already laid out with an exquisite array of refreshments.

The servant poured the tea, and the maid poured hot tea into Sepia’s goblet.

“I’ll take it.”

“Yes.”

A much shorter than usual conversation passed between them.

Sepia lowered her eyes.

It was mint tea, green in colour and, judging by the scent, tailored to Demios’s taste.

The tea was strong enough to make her mouth and head water at the same time as she took a sip.

It wasn’t her favourite, but the strong tea made her feel like she was facing her husband.

It allowed her to take a few more sips.

The forced clarity in her head gave her courage. She managed to get the first words out.

“I have heard a rumor concerning His Majesty. Is it true?”

From someone other than him.

Sepia swallowed her words.

Demios set his teacup down gracefully and only then nodded.

“Yes.”

It was nothing more than confirmation of what she already knew.

Nevertheless, it was as if a part of her that had vowed to remain unshaken was being swept downward.

His next words pushed Sepia back like a bigger wave.

“Attraction and stability. I thought it was bullshit, but it was true. It was an embrace, warm and soft.”

Demios’s eyes softened as he remembered the woman’s embrace.

She suffered from severe insomnia.

If she did fall asleep, she was plagued by nightmares.

The woman who bore Demios’s name was holding him.

Something Sepia could not do.

“Thank God.”

The sensation of her heart sinking into the mud made her dizzy.

Still, it was all right. Now for the important question.

“… Was it imprinted by His Majesty, then?”

“No.”

Sepia’s eyes widened in surprise at the bluntness of the answer.

She was so relieved that she almost let out a sigh.

“I see.”

She said as casually as she could.

But those sensitive red eyes were peering at her sensitively, as if trying to gauge her intentions.

“You seem to be bothered.”

She couldn’t say no.

Even if.

Even if they were a couple in name only.

The love of young lovers is no more.

Because.

They had never slept together.

A fact known only to Sephiroth and the Emperor’s handmaiden.

Not a shred of the love they once shared would remain.

Nevertheless, Demios had proposed to Sepia because of a revelation in the Temple of the Beastman Empire.

‘The Star of Ishtar.’

One born in a human body with a special destiny to restore the Empire.

For generations, the Star of Ishtar has been the mate of Emperors.

This time, it was Sepia.

A human had born the destiny that was meant for a Beastman.

She didn’t realize this until after she set foot in the Beastman Empire.

As Empress of the strangers, Sepia tried hard not to think of her past.

The one piece of memory that allowed her to breathe through the pain.

Only after much time had passed could she recall the painful memories and not be hurt.

“She bears your name, and as Empress, I’m bound to care.”

It was the same now.

‘I mustn’t show it.’

There was no love between him and Sepia.