Meeting With The Emperor

Returning to her hotel room, Harriet, who was satisfied with her haul, dropped her body directly onto the bed she had not used at all. Harriet lazily took off her dress and tossed it onto the side of the bedside chair. She smiled silly at the thought of Liam's reaction to receiving a gift from her. Would the man wake up without the full moon again? While she was here, was he lonely? Harriet laughed to herself. However, her mind slowly returned to the coming war and her responsibilities. Harriet closed her eyes. Every tip of her finger touched the soft taste of the white hotel bed sheet. Before entering her dream world, she considered the West Continent's answer for this continent. And that day, Harriet was haunted by such a long and terrible nightmare. Red flags, rain of ash, and sparks of fire. Burnt ground, damp with blood, and gloomy grey skies. It was the image of the great battlefield in Harriet's dream. Yes. Surprisingly, Harriet knew that this was a dream world. She stood looking up at the sky alone. The corpses of horses and soldiers in red armor littered the surroundings. When Harriet looked back, she saw the beach in the distance. At the other end, the golden sun was almost setting. And Harriet saw a man standing alone, his black silhouette with his back to the sun. But Harriet couldn't see who it was. –STAB! "Ugh!" Harriet looked down, where a long sword pierced her chest from behind. Blood dripped from Harriet's lips, falling to the ground. Then, Harriet looked up at the silhouette against the golden sun. Harriet shed tears of blood. ***  The Emperor opened his eyes wide on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He growled softly.  "Looks like I've been napping too much," he mumbled. It was the middle of the night, but he couldn't sleep. He should work his night at his study alone. However, just as he was about to rise, suddenly, there was a knock on his door. "Your Majesty!" The Emperor lifted his body fitfully and opened the door. "What is it? There is a problem?" "Y… you haven't slept yet?" asked one of the Emperor's secretaries. The emperor saw a scroll in his secretary's hand and took it without saying anything. The middle-aged man unrolled the letter and muttered under his breath. "This is a reply sent straight from the middle of the ocean, Your Majesty. An envoy from the West Continent has come to send a message to our maritime defense line," explained the secretary. The emperor nodded once and then ordered his secretary to summon everyone.  "Don't forget, Harri," the man said, taking his robe. While everyone had gathered in the throne room, the Emperor was somewhat surprised to see Harriet's figure appearing a little late. Her face was pale, and her eyebrows were visible. He had never seen her this messy before. The emperor couldn't ask her what was wrong. He ordered his secretary to read the message from the West Continent. The Hyacinth Kingdom had acknowledged that one of their princes was the culprit and proposed to hand over the prince as a prisoner to the Euclase Continent. The culprit was Prince Julian Hyacinth. And because of his failure, another prince who became his competitor in the struggle for the royal throne also won to become the Crown Prince. It was this other prince who decided to send the perpetrator into custody. He even promised to come personally to take the culprit, his brother, to Euclase. "Crown Prince Heinrich Hyacinth promised to come to Euclase within a week." After the Emperor's Secretary closed the letter, whispers and discussions broke out between the minister and the nobles. Everyone fell silent as Harriet rose from her seat. "As I promised, this matter will be the duty and authority of Goldlane, Almandine, and Amaryllis." Harriet bowed in salute and left, followed by her Lycan guards without another word. With Harriet gone, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. The Emperor said they must remain vigilant and not let down their guard. Every g*n and cannon would not be withdrawn, and everyone had to stay prepared for the worst. The Emperor dismissed the meeting. In the end, he was glad things ended well. But Harriet's today's appearance bothered him. Had Harriet just had another problem? It shouldn't be. As it turned out, it was not only the Emperor who had noticed how pale Harriet had become that day but another man. Ezekiel Euclase furrowed his brows as he looked at Harriet. The woman's nosebleed that afternoon at the boutique flashed in his mind. Had she just rested now? As Ezekiel stepped into the palace, he could hear his father talking to his secretary in the hallway. Ezekiel stopped walking when he heard Harriet's name from his father. "She must have postponed her rest again. I've never seen her face so pale; try sending someone to inquire about her condition," the Emperor's words made Ezekiel even more curious. So Ezekiel stepped closer to his father. "You're even more worried about that woman than your son," he said coldly behind the Emperor. Axias, the Emperor, turned his head to his only son. The two stared at each other in silence for a moment, and the Emperor's Secretary quickly withdrew to carry out the Emperor's orders. "I've told you this before, but I have considered Harriet, my daughter. A father will automatically love his daughter more than his son," said the middle-aged man casually. Ezekiel looked at his father coldly. "If you have nothing more to say, get some rest," Axias ordered. Ezekiel looked at his father's shoes, which the middle-aged man was wearing carelessly in his rush to go to the throne room to attend a meeting. His father was always like this. He was messy, very outspoken, and… TAP. Axias touched Ezekiel's shoulder and massaged it gently. "You've worked hard. Don't forget to rest, or you'll soon look old like me," said the middle-aged man. He smiled warmly and walked away. Watching his father's back walking away, Ezekiel tried to open his mouth. He was doubtful, but he wanted to try to ask. "Father, why do you want Harriet to accompany me as Empress so badly?" the man asked as his father began to walk away from him. Axias stopped walking and raised his eyebrows high. The middle-aged man smiled gently after a split second, noticing the change in Ezekiel's tone at the mention of Harriet. What's this all of a sudden? "Why do you want to know now?" Axias asked without looking back. Ezekiel looked at him, annoyed. "Is it because she is married now?" asked the middle-aged man again. "What makes you so sure Harriet will make a good Empress? That's all I want to know, Father," said Ezekiel. But Ezekiel only heard his father chuckle as he turned to face him. "Why do you think?" Ezekiel was silent for a moment. "Because of her political talent and ability to negotiate?" The emperor shook his head. "Aren't you better than her at that?" Ezekiel was surprised. In the hallway, a father and son faced each other. Then why did the Emperor value Harriet Goldlane so much more than he, his son, all along? "Listen, you know deep down that you are better at politics and negotiations than her. But you can still admit that she is talented at all of that and more successful than you, right?" asked Axias. Then he let out a small laugh. "And that's why you got so mad at her and thought I and everyone else were unfair?"  Ezekiel couldn't answer because it was true. Meanwhile, Axias continued his laughter and walked away, leaving his son, who was still confused. "You're too late, kid. If you were willing to get to know her better and marry her, you would probably know," said Axias, making Ezekiel even more annoyed. Why couldn't his father tell him and have confused him like this?! Annoyed, Ezekiel turned to leave, still hearing the mocking laughter of his father walking off in the opposite direction.