NOVEL NEXT Chapter 4
Chapter 4 I’ll Warm His Majesty’s Bed For You
“Thank you for your permission, Your Majesty. I actually thought you might refuse.”
Titian smiled broadly.
There was something impudent about asking, even if she expected to be turned down.
Up close, she was a mythical deer.
But she knew that having herbivore blood in your veins didn’t mean you were all fragile and gentle.
“I see.”
Titian’s eyes narrowed at the bluntness of the words.
For better or worse, there was really nothing else to say.
‘What more can I say?’
A wolf can only have one mate in a lifetime.
Therefore, it was reprehensible for the Huang family, the bloodline of the Divine Wolf, to have a government.
But the only exception was the name imprint.
Her husband’s rightful mistress.
Maybe, just maybe, he’d be coming to the throne soon.
Titian smirked, as if she didn’t know what Sepia was thinking.
“I’d like to get along with the Empress, too.”
The words made Sepia shiver.
She wondered what Titian really meant.
The two of them couldn’t get along if they were sane.
Would it be any different if they were heartless?
It wasn’t.
Sepia and Demios were not in love even before Titian’s arrival.
But if you add to that the imprinting of both parties…
Her head was spinning.
When Sepia didn’t respond further, her eyes lit up as if she’d had a sudden realization.
“Ah, indeed. Would you like me to show you His Majesty’s name?”
Before she could stop herself.
Pulling down her robe, Titian revealed the name on her right breast.
Demios’s name in bold black letters.
It was a perfect imprint.
“Done.”
Titi shuddered at the coldness in her expression.
“I’m sorry, I thought Your Majesty would be curious.”
“His Majesty said he had already checked, so I didn’t need to check.”
“Is that so? Because if I were the Empress, I would have wanted to see it.”
Titian shook her head as if she didn’t understand.
Just then, the carriage stopped. They had arrived at the Empress’s palace.
The coachman was about to open the door.
Titian was the first to rise from her seat and pressed herself against Sepia.
“What…”
Titian’s shadow obscured Sepia.
Her violet eyes glowed in the darkness.
“Now don’t worry too much, I’ll warm His Majesty’s bed.”
What had she just heard?
The eerie glint of the eyes was creepy.
With a malicious whisper, the carriage door opened.
Titi smiled as brightly as ever, biting her lip.
She whirled round and immediately headed for the door.
And then she collapsed.
“Ouch!”
Her slender body tumbled forward as if she had lost her footing.
Sepia reflexively jumped to her feet. A cold bass gripped her insides.
“I told you to be careful.”
Demios picked her up and lowered her to the floor.
The Emperor’s white stag smiled shyly in his arms.
“I’m sorry, I tripped.”
Long silver and grey hair tangled together in the deepening sunset.
They were undeniably a match made in heaven.
So much so that she momentarily forgot what had happened in the carriage.
Beyond Titian, eyes stared at the Sepia.
“Why are you two together?”
It was clearly directed at Sepia.
Before she could answer, Titian interrupted.
“The Empress gave me a ride in her carriage, as we were on our way to Her Majesty’s palace.”
“You could have used another coachman.”
Demios’s gaze returned to Titi.
The white fawn’s eyes shone lovingly.
“I wanted to visit without Your Majesty’s knowledge.”
How dare she sneak into the Emperor’s palace.
It was ridiculous, but it’s harmless face justified it.
‘He’s very territorial by nature.’
It was an unflattering attitude, but Demios didn’t seem to mind.
Demios’s gaze returned to her as Sepia looked away.
“And the Empress?”
“I’m on my way back from discussions about the triumvirate.”
She was glad she could say it more calmly than she felt.
All parties organized in the Imperial Palace are under the Empress’s control.
It was Sepia’s job to make sure they ran smoothly.
She could see Demios’s brows narrow.
“The… Duke of Claude Leopard.”
The irritability added to his delicate beauty gave his an even colder air.
Strangely enough, Demios seemed to sour at the mention of victory.
As for the reason.
‘It’s a hostile relationship.’
As the son of the Red Emperor, brother of the previous Emperor, Claude was rightly considered to be of imperial blood.
Why is Demios reacting so sharply.
‘Was there friction when he inherited the throne?’
But it’s been over a decade since the Duke of Leopard left for Torval.
Demios took the throne seven years ago, and it’s been a long time since he’s consolidated the left.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
With those words, Titian casually slipped her arm around Demios.
Sepia’s mind froze at the scene, as natural as breathing.
They had grown closer than she had expected.
‘The past is the past.’
It was a different woman who stood beside Demios today.
Sepia realized it once more.
That night.
No matter how deep the darkness grew, sleep would not come.
A time when even the handmaidens fell asleep.
Sepia gathered her shawl and walked out of the Empress’s palace.
The path was so familiar now that she could close her eyes and not get lost.
Still, she felt dizzy.
All the mishaps that were to come in the next few moments seemed so vague.
‘Clear hostility.’
It had been a long time since she had felt such intense malice since leaving her homeland.
It was as if they were declaring that they would take away everything that Sepia had.
Above all, Demios and Titian seemed to be consummated lovers.
She wandered aimlessly through the darkened garden.
When she looked up again, she was in a place she didn’t recognize.
‘Where am I?’
She was lost in a place she thought she knew so well.
She was in front of a remote, unlit palace.
The gates were huge, cold, and beautifully carved.
After a moment, it dawned on Sepia what this place was really about.
‘This is… an empty palace.’
She had heard it before.
A Grand Duke’s palace with a title but no owner.
And about the ghost palace.
‘I heard that it was created during the time of the first Emperor, but no one has ever received it.’
Everyone knew about this unique title.
But the owner was absent. For a very long time.
‘This is the first time I’ve been here.’
Sepia had heard about it, but she never expected to visit.
How did she end up here?
That’s how crazy she was.
During the day, when she was working a lot, she could pretend she was fine.
But when it came time to relax, it was hard to get out of her head.
Especially today.
Sepia squeezed her eyes shut.
‘I have to go back.’
At that moment, a sharp gust of wind hit her.
The light shawl slipped from her grasp.
The fabric fluttered in the wind and vanished before her eyes.
‘I’m cold.’
She had only lost a shawl, but she was freezing.
Winter hadn’t even arrived yet.
Sepia hunkered down.
She knew she had to get back, but it was hard to take one foot off the ground.
It was then.
“Excuse me.”
Sepia’s eyes widened.
A coat was draped over her shoulders with a pleasant bass sound.
Warmth wrapped around her back.
It was a man’s coat, warmed by someone’s body heat.
Sepia looked behind her.
There stood a man with his back to the moon.
His neck was craned far back, and his eyes were gold, shining like the sun.
The black hair that framed his handsome face resembled the purest night.
Even standing in the midnight moonlight, he had a warm glow in his eyes.
Sepia stared at him in silence.
The corners of the man’s mouth drew into a soft arc as if in response.
“Your clothes are too thin for the night.”
He smoothed the front of her coat over her shoulders.
At first glance, his hands were as well-groomed and large as his appearance.
The size difference made her feel trapped in the coat. Still.
‘Warm.’
The chill that had come over her a moment ago had been blown away.
Sephiroth fingered the unfamiliar hem of his coat, studying the man.
He didn’t look or sound like anyone she remembered.
‘What is that?’
This was the Beastman Empire.
She never heard of human visitors, so this man must be an animal.
A carnivore, or herbivore.
The man had a kindly face, but it gave the impression of a beast.
A large, clawed one, too.
The man’s coat had been removed, revealing only a thin shirt.
That bothered Sepia, and she opened her mouth.
“Your attire looks equally thin.”
She answered bluntly.
In an attitude unbecoming of the Empress’s.
She didn’t show it, but she was embarrassed.
But to Sepia’s surprise, the man didn’t seem offended. On the contrary.