Commotion (4)
Convinced I had no reason to be afraid, I straightened my back and faced the Emperor head-on. When you got right down to it, I was a victim in this affair too—there was no reason for me to fidget and tiptoe around as though I were the one at fault.
...Of course, behaving this way before the Emperor was, in itself, a rather foolish thing to do. If she decided I was being insolent and lopped my head off on the spot, I would have nowhere left to lodge a complaint.
I had walked in with confidence, betting on Seo Yeo standing guard outside and on the sheer enormity of the feelings the Emperor harbored for me.
Gazing into those black eyes that resembled the night sky, I spoke in my usual voice.
"Your Majesty. Before we talk, I must ask that you calm your wrath."
"...And what reason do We have to do so?"
One thing was certain: Her Majesty was angry with me. Had it been any other day, she might have said something along the lines of, "Since it is your request, I suppose We shall grant it."
Complete, of course, with a smile curling at one corner of her lips.
I opened my mouth in answer to the Emperor, who had snapped back at me with a prickly question.
"Anger has a way of clouding the eyes of ordinary people."
"......"
"But I do not believe Your Majesty to be one who would commit a grave error out of a moment's fury she could not suppress."
Having flattered her to the hilt, I put on the most pleasant expression I could manage the instant I finished speaking—though "pleasant" amounted to little more than a slight upturn of the corners of my mouth...
"...Hoo. I suppose I can at least grant a spoken request."
Astonishingly, the expression worked on Her Majesty. The Emperor let out a light sigh and then—remarkably—actually calmed her anger.
Truthfully, I had only half believed it would. Who knew it would really work?
Having recorded in my head that the Emperor was weak to praise, I went on gazing at her with that same expression.
"Very well. We shall accept your request. Is this to your satisfaction?"
"It is an honor."
Keeping my back straight as it was, I gave only the slightest tilt of my head.
I knew perfectly well that this was discourteous. But what could I do? The moment I lowered myself in the name of proper etiquette, Her Majesty's mood was bound to sour all over again.
Having come this far, I couldn't help but notice: Her Majesty far preferred me treating her with a familiarity that bordered on outright rudeness to me observing etiquette and keeping my distance.
Naturally, this was special treatment. Any other minister who behaved as I did would have his head flying off in an instant.
Having confirmed that the Emperor had settled down at least somewhat, I threw out my opening.
"I heard it from a messenger—the news that the mood within the palace has been restless since yesterday."
"Hmm. And so?"
"The palace being in an uproar means, in effect, that Your Majesty's mind has been troubled. The two are one and the same."
Having said that much, I continued in an unwavering voice.
"Might Your Majesty deign to tell this humble servant what it is that has troubled her mind so?"
"...Do you truly ask because you do not know?"
The Emperor let out a small sigh.
"In the past, at your request, We spared the lives of the children who had not yet undergone their coming-of-age rites—and how, in the end, was that repaid?"
"......"
"Do you have any idea how We felt, nearly made a widow before Our wedding has even been held?"
"...Your Majesty."
To the Emperor, who was staring at me with eyes like obsidian, I could give only this answer:
"One does not ordinarily call a woman a widow before the wedding ceremony has even taken pla—"
"Silence."
That's just cruel.
But I was right, wasn't I?
Her Majesty and I were something like a betrothed couple—an engagement that had, so far, only been settled at a council meeting. Since we had not yet formally held the wedding rites, the word "widow" was, strictly speaking, a stretch.
Her Majesty, who had wielded her authority rather unjustly against me, opened her mouth in a voice that was somehow forlorn.
"We have decided, Grand General, that We will bind Ourself to no one but you."
"...Your Majesty?"
"In such a situation, were you to lose your life, would that not make Us, for all intents and purposes, a faithful widow?"
A faithful widow.
A word for a woman who guarded her chastity and took no second husband. As the old saying went: a loyal minister serves no second lord, and a faithful wife serves no second husband.
Rather surprisingly, it was a venerable saying that had been circulating since the Warring States period.
In other words, the Emperor was all but declaring, point-blank, that she intended to walk the path of single-minded, undivided love.
"......"
"Oho?"
When I failed to find my tongue for a moment, Her Majesty smiled playfully.
"To see you react like this—you must have rather liked what We just said."
Hearing that, I smiled just as she had and replied,
"There is no man in this world who would not rejoice to hear such words from a beauty like Your Majesty."
"...Ahem. What a thing to say so suddenly..."
All I had done was toss her own cheesy line right back at her. Apparently Her Majesty was the type who excelled at offense but was hopeless on defense.
If she got flustered after having her words returned just once, she still had a long way to go.
I gazed fondly at the sight of the Emperor flushing red and turning her head slightly away.
Then Her Majesty shot me a sharp look and spoke again.
"...That is not the point."
"Are you saying that a conversation confirming the bond between us is not important?"
"It is important enough—but you know full well that is not what We meant!"
Oh—her voice rose a little.
Even when angry, Her Majesty usually carried on in a calm, level tone, so the mere act of raising her voice was an exceedingly rare occurrence.
...No, come to think of it, I believe this was the first time I had ever seen it.
It was a moment that revealed a side of Her Majesty I had never witnessed before. Her defense really was weak, after all.
Having noted yet another entry in my mental ledger, I spoke in an even lighter mood.
"Then tell me—what could possibly matter more than the bond between us?"
"...Hoo. So you had a rather mischievous streak in you as well."
Her Majesty heaved a long sigh, then murmured in a small voice.
"To think I even like this side of you... I truly am a hopeless case."
"Your Majesty?"
It felt as though I had just heard another heart-stirring remark.
Even though I had clearly reacted to her words, the Emperor could not bring herself to tease me over it.
"In any case, that is what We wished to ask."
The way she tried to gloss over it suggested the murmur had been an unguarded slip of the tongue.
I put on a contented smile at that ticklish, fluttering feeling.
Her Majesty forcibly pretended not to notice my warm expression and pressed on.
"Grand General—why is it that you insist on leaving troubles behind you?"
"......"
"It is no different from treading the very edge of a blade. How, pray tell, do you imagine We feel, watching you do it?"
To that heavy question, I naturally fell silent.
At some point the Emperor had closed the distance between us, and she reached out a hand to stroke my cheek.
"It is not too late even now. Those entangled with traitorous houses—even now, We could..."
"Your Majesty."
I spoke before the Emperor could finish her sentence. It was a truly insolent thing to do, but there was no one in this room who could call me out on it.
"It is true that they may yet become sources of trouble. But to sever that possibility by harming other innocent children is not something I could ever wish for."
"...Grand General."
Her Majesty wore a sorrowful expression, as though she had already foreseen what my answer would be.
It pained my heart, but I could not yield. The moment I backed down here, children like Dong Bai would all have to be put to the sword.
"It is true that this commotion was set in motion by the children I have taken in."
"......"
"But in the end, it was also one of the children I took in who stopped it."
Having said that much, I respectfully offered my petition.
"Your Majesty, I beg you—please reconsider your command."
"...You will cling to your stubbornness to the very end, won't you."
The Emperor, realizing I had no intention of bending, let out a sigh.
"Very well. Perhaps it is thanks to this side of you that We were saved at all."
"......"
"Is it not a bitter irony? That the day would come when that kind heart of yours becomes Our torment."
I opened my mouth with a worried look.
"Your Majesty."
"Enough. Your will is that unyielding—forcing Our opinion upon you would hardly be becoming."
Having said so, Her Majesty looked up at me.
"Jeong Reung."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"The price for making Us worry this much—We shall collect it in full, later."
"...?"
A price? Whatever could she mean by that?
"Let us look forward, then, to the day we are joined as husband and wife."
"......"
Hearing those words, I understood exactly what Her Majesty intended by them.
Was this a declaration of war—an open proclamation that she intended to suck me dry?
"When that day comes, We shall not let you go all night long. Steel yourself."
As if to confirm my suspicion, Her Majesty whispered into my ear in a voice sweet as syrup.
Hearing Her Majesty's voice, I grasped one thing instinctively:
that Her Majesty was, in quality, on an entirely different plane from the amateurs(?) who swarmed all around me.