Finally, Me Too!
“Ah, yes……” I managed a response, but I still couldn’t keep up with what was happening. While I was only glancing around nervously, Cecilia made Ileina stand right in front of me.
“……”
“……”
Even though the Empress’s room was dark as night, it was bright enough to see every object clearly. Thanks to that, I noticed her figure was petite right away.
Because of the full-body tights, her curves were almost invisible.
We stood there in silence, and when she couldn’t take it anymore, Cecilia spoke up.
“Ileina, please take off your mask for a moment.”
“Yes.”
Her voice was surprisingly clear.
Ileina immediately removed the mask. Only then could I see her face properly, and the moment I did, I couldn’t help but widen my eyes in surprise.
She had ash-gray hair that flowed down to her shoulders. Her eyes gazing at me were pale blue.
‘She’s prettier than I thought?’
But with no expression on her face, it gave off a cold feeling.
“Ileina. Introduce yourself.”
Only after Cecilia’s instruction did Ileina bow slightly.
“I am Ileina, Chief Personal Secretary.”
A very short and concise introduction.
Then she put the mask back on according to Cecilia’s instructions.
“As I mentioned before, this girl will be dedicated to guarding you. She’s quite skilled in combat, so you can trust her abilities.”
“Since it’s Your Majesty’s word, I have no doubts.”
I stepped closer to Ileina and offered my right hand.
“My name is Luke Nedville. I’m the Chief Personal Secretary to Your Majesty. Please treat me well from now on.”
“……”
Ileina only looked at my hand and didn’t show any reaction.
What the heck? Now I feel awkward…
While I was hesitating whether to pull back my hand or not,
“Yes.”
With that short reply, Ileina gently took my hand. Her hand was quite small compared to mine.
‘She can really fight, right?’
Cecilia had told me not to worry about her skills, so I trusted her… but I couldn’t shake the uneasy feeling.
Cecilia called the two women back in front of me again.
“Lucia, you may return. Ileina, please wait in the Chief Personal Secretary’s room.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
The two women disappeared from sight in an instant!
Since I had watched the scene with my own eyes, my mouth hung wide open.
“Fufu. You look quite surprised.”
Cecilia must have thought my expression was ridiculous. She wouldn’t be smiling otherwise.
“Yes, it felt like she had cast a spell or something.”
“It is magic. To be precise, a magical tool.”
Cecilia slowly walked to the bed and sat down, then gestured for me to come closer.
“Now that I’ve shown you Lucia and Ileina, I should tell you about them too. You’re the kind of person who can’t stand not knowing something.”
“You see through me perfectly, Your Majesty.”
I bowed my waist.
“Those girls are members of the secret unit called ‘Luna,’ made up only of women.”
By the way, this setting didn’t exist in the original work.
It seems the original author completely butchered all the details.
Thanks to that, I ended up doing all the hard work. Sigh.
“They normally hide like shadows but, if I blow this horn, they’ll appear anywhere, anytime.”
“That means the horn is also a magical tool, correct?”
“Yes.”
Cecilia nodded once.
After that, she explained the background of Luna’s creation and how she had been operating it.
“That’s all I’ll tell you about Luna. I won’t answer questions.”
“Even just the explanation was enough for me to understand.”
Cecilia’s ruby-red eyes stared at me intently. After a brief silence, she spoke again.
“Finally, only I and my mother know about Luna’s existence. You can figure out what that means.”
“I will never reveal it anywhere, Your Majesty.”
I quickly gave the answer I thought she would like. Sure enough, she nodded with a satisfied expression.
Then she stood up again.
“I have something to give you.”
“Is it the black horn I mentioned?”
“You are indeed a capable secretary.”
Satisfaction dripped from Cecilia’s voice.
I had only poked to check, but it was the right answer.
Cecilia walked toward the desk and snapped her fingers. I quickly approached her side.
“Here.”
I received the horn she had given me with proper respect. It had a string so I could hang it around my neck.
By wearing this, I could call Ileina anytime, anywhere.
Of course, I’d have to hide it well inside my clothes so no one would notice.
“Don’t lose it. It’s a hard-to-obtain magical tool.”
“I will remember it well, Your Majesty.”
I bowed at a ninety-degree angle and expressed my gratitude.
Ileina’s skills were untested, so there was some anxiety. But since Cecilia trusted her, I had to trust her too.
Still, knowing I had one bodyguard protecting me made my heart much more at ease.
* * *
The days passed after that day.
I didn’t respond to suspicious requests, but fortunately, no damage had occurred yet.
As usual, it was the same daily grind of paperwork.
Ah, I’d rather have a hand injury and just rest…
The peaceful days were so endless that I felt like quitting.
Today too, I had been so busy with morning work that lunch time arrived before I knew it.
“Move to the dining room.”
Right as Cecilia was about to stand from her throne, a knock echoed from the study door.
-Knock, knock.
It was the steward who had come, reporting that someone had urgently requested an audience with Cecilia.
“You three go ahead. I’ll handle the audience and come back.”
With that, Flora and I moved to the dining room first. We sat at our seats but waited for Cecilia to arrive.
Fortunately, she returned quickly.
“Oh? Your Majesty, did something good happen?”
Flora noticed Cecilia’s expression and immediately asked. Sure enough, Cecilia’s face was brighter than usual.
But instead of answering, she sat in her own seat. She rolled her eyes around us, then spoke.
“I have news that I’ve been waiting for.”
“What is it?”
This time I asked.
A smile immediately appeared at the corner of Cecilia’s mouth.
“It seems they succeeded in the monster extermination.”
“!”
The maids and I all showed surprised expressions at that single word.
It was, as Cecilia said, the news everyone had been waiting for.
“That’s wonderful! Now there won’t be any danger to the empire.”
Flora was the happiest.
“We were really worried, but hearing good news makes me so relieved.”
Mulia said it calmly, but joy showed on her face.
Then I would have to speak last again…
“Thanks to Your Majesty’s bold decision, such a good result has come. It’s all thanks to Your Majesty’s grace.”
“I just decided to send them. Thanks to how well they fought, my people can sleep in peace.”
No matter how I tried to praise her, Cecilia answered calmly.
Should I call her correct? Or naive…?
Still, it was better than showing off her superiority. On the other hand, I felt a sense of dissonance that this kind of person would become a tyrant later.
“The knights will take another ten days to return, so we’ll have to welcome them grandly.”
“Before that, how about holding a noble council tomorrow?”
I didn’t want to talk about work during lunch, but there was no choice now.
I had just received the rare news of monster extermination success, so I needed to prepare for the work that would come after.
“Mm. You’re right. Announcing the joyful news in a place where all nobles are gathered would be best.”
“You’ve worked hard, Your Majesty.”
Mulia lightly bowed, and Flora and I did the same toward her.
“As an emperor, I’m just doing what I have to do.”
After lunch, Cecilia immediately issued a notice about tomorrow’s noble council.
* * *
The next day, Cecilia held the noble council at nine in the morning.
At the gathering, she announced the first agenda: the successful monster extermination.
“It’s wonderful news!”
“Oh, it’s truly fortunate!”
“We must commend the efforts of those who brought the victory report!”
The Imperial Faction and even the Aristocratic Faction voiced their joy at this agenda.
“We were about to discuss what to do to commend their efforts. Feel free to present your opinions.”
As soon as Cecilia finished speaking, members of the Imperial Faction raised their hands one after another to request speaking time.
They had shrunk back when requesting deployment…
After being disappointed once, seeing such active behavior now didn’t seem good. It felt like a desperate attempt to make up for the past mistake.
Occasionally, the Aristocratic Faction had opinions, but mostly they weren’t helpful.
After several rounds of discussion, the conclusion was to hold a parade for them and host a celebration banquet at the imperial palace for the successful monster extermination.
I was transcribing the discussion on paper when I suddenly felt a gaze.
‘Is it my imagination?’
Still, out of curiosity, I looked around. Soon I was certain there was someone staring at me fiercely.
It was Marquis Marlboro.
……Why is he staring so hard?
Like he has a grudge against me.
“No matter what, he’s an unpleasant guy.”
I muttered in a very small voice.
* * *
Since the start of the noble council, Marquis Marlboro had been keeping a close eye on Luke Nedville.
He was curious about what guts the young man had to refuse the letter he sent.
Of course, he hadn’t written the sender’s name on the letter on purpose, but it was only to look down on the kid.
He hadn’t thought that Luke would actually not respond.
But when he really got rejected, his pride was scratched. Not a big wound, but an unpleasant one.
‘All that guts must be thanks to that woman?’
While thinking that, their eyes met.
“……”
Apparently, only he thought their eyes met. Luke immediately lowered his gaze to the paper.
‘I’ll make you regret it, you little punk.’
Marlboro clicked his tongue.