Chapter 237. Two Confused Men (2)
Translator: Aura / Editor: SaWarren
However, the ladies were deeply outraged at that brief scene.
“How could the groom, who had just married yesterday, be with his sister-in-law in such an intimate atmosphere!?”
“How could Christa do this?”
“How shameful! Although it is common to have concubines, isn’t Christa His Majesty’s sister-in-law?”
“The former king must be rolling over in his grave!”
“There’s nothing strange about it.”
“No?”
“Didn’t Christa used to love His Majesty?”
“Really?”
“It was a famous story. It is said that when she became the crown princess she kept wailing and crying. I thought it was a false rumor because it seemed that the late king and Christa had a good relations.h.i.+p…”
“Oh, my!”
“Still, why on earth did His Majesty do this as soon as he got married?!”
“People don’t change that easily.”
The ladies, who coldly condemned Heinley and Christa’s behavior, quickly headed for Navier.
Because the wedding had just taken place, they were deeply indignant that Emperor Heinley was doing these things with his sister-in-law.
Even the former queen, for whom they felt sorry, now seemed wicked.
Feeling sad, the ladies suddenly rushed to the banquet hall to become her force.
Meanwhile, Kapmen walked the corridors with his eyes down, oblivious to this fact.
He intended to go to his room and take the antidote at once. However, suddenly a feeling of emptiness came over him. ‘What shall I do next?’
When his heart, which had been boiling with jealousy, calmed down, a deep regret welled up within him.
Kapmen was stunned for a moment, and eventually made a decision.
‘As Navier said, it is best for me to love someone else. In order to suppress the potion’s effects, which is causing havoc with my emotions, it would be best to direct my suffering love to another. Then the two warring feelings will collide and I won’t have to go through this anymore.’
Desperate, Kapmen stood still for a moment as he thought about where to go.
Just then, he heard a cry from the balcony of this floor. Kapmen walked there and as he entered he was startled.
Rashta was sobbing, leaning against the railings.
‘No, not this woman!’
Kapmen tried to turn around hastily, but his eyes had already met Rashta’s.
‘How could things get so complicated!?’
Kapmen pursed his lips, but at that moment the tears acc.u.mulated in Rashta’s eyes and spilled down her cheeks.
Due to the strong potion’s effects, he couldn’t help taking off his coat.
“Grand Duke?”
To Rashta’s surprise, Kapmen covered her with his coat.
Rashta’s eyes widened, surprised by Kapmen’s att.i.tude, who normally treated her with disdain.
“This…”
“Don’t cry.”
“Ah…”
“If you cry, I’ll be sad.”
The bewildered Rashta stood up quickly, while Kapmen turned around cursing his tongue.
***
Did something bad happen?
For some reason Heinley did not return after going to talk alone with Grand Duke Kapmen.
It would not be easy to find them both, so after spending some time in the hall, I went back to our rooms first.
When I asked Yunim, he said Heinley had already returned.
Why did he come back alone without saying anything? He wasn’t like that…
It was strange, but once I got into my room, I went to the shared bedroom and knocked on Heinley’s door.
“Heinley, may I come in?”
“…”
“Heinley?”
However, the response I heard from inside the room was one of refusal.
“My Queen. I’m sorry. I don’t feel good right now.”
“Do you want me to get you some medicine?”
“No, it’s fine. I think I’ll feel better after I rest.”
His voice was weak.
He was starting to scare me.
Could it be that the side effects from using the mana stone bed were manifesting in Heinley already?
***
While Navier was curious about Heinley’s att.i.tude…
Kapmen, who was about to leave, ended up sitting on a balcony bench next to Rashta, pushed by the potion’s effects.
Kapmen now thought that the stars s.h.i.+ning in the heavens resembled Rashta, so he uttered profanities inside.
This potion was almost a curse!
Besides, even in the midst of all this, his feelings for Navier were still intact, and every time he looked at the moon in the sky, for him, it resembled Navier.
‘I must be going crazy.’
Rashta, unaware of what was going through Kapmen’s mind, loudly expressed her disgust at what had happened earlier.
“… So her brother got into it with Rashta… isn’t that too much?”
“That is too much.”
“It was almost a threat. Rashta only cared about her sister.”
[How many people will have heard that the deposed empress is infertile? Will this affect the position of the deposed empress?]
Kapmen smiled inwardly as Rashta whimpered.
She was a beautiful woman with a lovely voice. Moreover, her inner voice was soft and warm.
However, it was truly ironic that having such a sweet inner voice, she had such blatantly malicious thoughts.
Although he knew Rashta was lying, and it angered him that she said offensive things towards Navier, he was concerned about Rashta’s frail appearance.
It was due to the potion’s effects, but he couldn’t help it.
Rashta, who noticed Kapmen’s gaze, smiled as she clutched the coat he had given her with her hands.
There were more than a few men who had reacted like this, intoxicated by her appearance.
Kapmen’s att.i.tude was not new to Rashta.
[Men have no choice but to love Rashta. Heinley loved Rashta at first, too.]
Kapmen smiled slightly, listening to her confident thoughts, and quickly stood up when he felt the potion’s effects subside a little.
“I will leave now.”
He had to get back to his room quickly before he could do another foolish thing because he was out of control.
“Ah, the coat…”
“You can keep it.”
But as he turned around, Kapmen heard Sovieshu’s thoughts.
[Anyway, she will not hold the position of Empress for long.]
He had a calm voice.
When Kapmen looked up he saw Sovieshu leaning on the railings of one of the upstairs balconies.
He was looking precisely in this direction.
Once Kapmen bowed his head in greeting, Rashta looked in that same direction, wondering, ‘What’s wrong?’
She stood up in surprise to see Sovieshu.
“Your Majesty! This is…”
She tried to excuse herself, but Sovieshu left the balcony without a word.
Rashta hurriedly left the balcony where she was with Grand Duke Kapmen and went upstairs. However, Sovieshu was already gone.
Rashta panicked for a moment, but soon calmed down.
‘No. That’s better. He seemed to think Rashta was a trapped fish, so he was calm. It was about time His Majesty knew how loved Rashta is. Now that he has seen someone like the Grand Duke approach me, he will be jealous and worried.’
Rashta, who thought better of it, smiled softly and went back downstairs to stop Grand Duke Kapmen instead of going after Sovieshu.
‘I must make him understand that if he continues to miss his ex-wife he will lose me too.’
“Grand Duke. Let’s talk a little more.”
***
The next day I tried to see Heinley, but was informed that McKenna had come for him on urgent border business.
Instead, he left for me a plate of scrambled eggs and bread.
As I looked at the plate I suddenly felt anxious.
The wedding night was a formality. After we slept together for the first time, was the friends.h.i.+p we had built lost? I was even embarra.s.sed every time I thought Heinley might like me.
But yesterday, the ladies were exceptionally kind to me.
Yes. Oddly enough, the ladies of the Western Empire treated me well.
That was quite an achievement.
Our marriage was not for love anyway….
Maybe I got carried away by the pa.s.sion he showed on the wedding night.
Hugging me, saying that he loved me, that he would be happy even if he died like this, whispering that he didn’t want to leave my side, and holding me in his strong arms all night long….
I really think I got carried away by that…
It was possible that Heinley was just excited because it was his first experience.
To appease my bitter feelings, I went out into the garden.
There, I met Grand Duke Kapmen.
Grand Duke Kapmen was startled for a moment, but soon approached me.
When I saw him, I remembered the moment our eyes met on the day of the wedding night.
I deliberately put aside personal matters and broached the subject of trade.
Grand Duke Kapmen followed suit immediately and we talked for a while. But as we walked, Rashta appeared and greeted us.
“Grand Duke Kapmen. Sister. Good morning.”
How long would she keep calling me sister?
I didn’t like it, but I showed a calm expression and returned her greeting.
Grand Duke Kapmen at my side, also greeted her calmly.
“Good morning.”
Rashta stood in front of Grand Duke Kapmen, smiled charmingly and asked him gently,
“Grand Duke, did you return safely last night?”
Last night? Were they together? What was going on?
While I was surprised, Grand Duke Kapmen opened his mouth.
“My coat yesterday…”
“Ah, the coat. I have it.”
Rashta looked at me, as if they were talking about a secret.
Should I leave this situation?
As I thought about it, I heard Kapmen’s firm voice.
“I want it back.”
The strangeness didn’t end there.
Rashta asked, looking puzzled at Grand Duke Kapmen.
“Why are you acting like this now, Grand Duke?”
Why was she so puzzled? Isn’t Grand Duke Kapmen always so cold?
“Please send it through an errand boy.”
After Rashta left, I asked curiously.
“What happened between you two?”
Then, Grand Duke Kapmen replied firmly,
“Nothing happened.”
“?”
***
Although he said nothing happened, Kapmen was actually a little shocked.
Kapmen was sure that yesterday the potion’s effects worked toward Rashta. However, when he woke up this morning he felt better. Now it didn’t matter if he saw Rashta.
The problem was that the potion’s effects were still working toward Navier.
‘What’s the reason?’
Kapmen thought it was strange, and he wondered if it was the same for Heinley, so he rushed over to see him as soon as he finished talking to Navier.
Just then, Heinley was talking to Christa.
‘I drank it twice, the effects of the second potion disappeared quickly, but not the first…’
“I was drunk and lost my head for a moment. I’m sorry. When I get drunk I’m not fully conscious.”
“You were drunk?”
“That’s right. But, as others may misunderstand, from now on when I’m drunk, please don’t worry about me and pa.s.s by.”
Heinley clearly remembered that Christa was the one who approached him first and wiped his forehead, but even then he a.s.sumed it was his mistake.
Instead, Christa, who had her hopes set on yesterday, felt that she was losing strength in her legs and that she would collapse at any moment.
Although when she wiped the sweat from him, he suddenly ran off as if he had regained consciousness. She thought Heinley had just been surprised by his feelings for her…
“Or call McKenna or some official.”
Heinley spoke coldly and decisively. Christa looked at him with trembling eyes and left as if she were running away.
Kapmen realized that the love potion’s effects on Heinley had also worn off within a day.
‘If the potion’s effects are no stronger than before, then why are the potion’s effects still intact towards Navier?’
The hypothesis that his teacher mentioned to him was ringing in his ears.
He said Kapmen was in love with her before he drank the potion so it proved to be more effective.
‘Was I always… in love with Empress Navier?’