He lay next to Lilica. And spoke to Atil, who was standing there dazedly.
“Aren’t you going to lie down?”
“No, I’m lying down now.”
Atil circled around the bed and climbed in from the opposite side.
Lilica’s bed was wide enough for three people to lie down, but it wasn’t wide enough to feel distant.
“Ehehehe—”
Lilica laughed, as she felt the weight of the bed moving with her eyes closed.
Atil is next to her. And on the other side is His Majesty?
If it was a dream, it’s a good dream.
It would have been better if her mother was present.
How many times could she sleep with her mother in real life?
As she found a sense of stability with the body temperatures and breathing, Lilica fell into slumber once again.
Ludia, who came to exchange shifts the next morning, folded her arms.
‘Why is Atil here?’
And why are the three of them sleeping in the same bed?
‘That’s my daughter.’
She felt sullen.
However, the sight of Lilica’s peacefully sleeping face made her dismiss the idea of waking her up.
Besides, isn’t this a relatively rare sight?
She’d even wanted to call for an artist to leave a sketch.
She approached Altheos, and the hand she extended was pulled by him at once.
“?!”
She couldn’t even scream, wary of waking the children. Altheos hugged her waist and asked.
“Is it morning……?”
“It’s still dawn, and you’re sleeping in my daughter’s bed.”
Ludia whispered quietly, and Altheos closed his eyes momentarily like he was organising his thoughts, and then rose.
“Gosh.”
He got up slowly, and glanced back to see the sleeping forms of Atil and Lilica.
He brushed up his hair and let go of Ludia.
Ludia held in the urge to tease him with, “You seem to have gotten such a great rest,” and looked at Atil and Lilica.
She wondered if it’s alright for them to be too close.
She’d told Lilica not to get close to the next emperor, as he was too good a connection.
When Lilica eventually steps down from the position of princess, would he become a strong backer?
“Are we changing shifts?”
When Altheos got up from his seat and asked, Ludia shook her head.
“I think Atil will be quite embarrassed to see me present.”
“He shouldn’t have slept so well that he didn’t even know that someone else had entered.”
“Should you be saying that?”
Wasn’t he deep in slumber until she approached him?
“I’m strong.”
Ludia pointed out Altheos’ words.
“Perhaps that’s why he’s relaxing his guard for the first time in a long while.”
It meant that because Atil was sleeping with him, he was able to sleep deeply.
He mulled over Ludia’s words and found that she wasn’t wrong, so Altheos kept his mouth shut. Ludia spoke.
“Let’s have lunch together if you have the time.”
“Alright.”
Altheos left the bedroom. Ludia looked at her daughter’s sleeping face for a brief moment before leaving the room.
* * *
“Diare Wolfe?”
“That’s another impressive choice.”
Atil and Pi, who she was having breakfast with, spoke alternately.
Lilica looked at them both alternately and asked.
“Is she someone famous?”
“Doesn’t she have a name in Wolfe? You’re still going to have her as a conversational partner?
“Her Majesty the Empress must have a plan.”
Pi tilted his head as he said that.
He has yet to discern the reason Diare Wolfe was her conversational partner.
“What’s wrong? What kind of person is she?”
“Uh—”
Atil folded his arms and was about to say something, but Pi waved his hand.
“Actually, I’ve only heard rumours. I think it’s best for you to meet her in person and ascertain it with your eyes.”
Also, there was another from the Wolfe clan that’s present.
Lauv Wolfe stood silently like a shadow, but his gaze didn’t leave Lilica.
It was akin to a hound looking at its guardian, who was holding a snack.
Whether it’s the Sols or the Wolfes, they were loyal, but the conclusion was completely different.
As such, it’ll be better to be a little cautious of what they say.
At Pi’s words, Atil’s face turned dissatisfied and he spoke while moving his tomatoes to Lilica’s plate.
“After seeing her in person, let me know if she’s no good.”
Lilica didn’t hate tomatoes, so she gave him his favourite sausages instead.
This time, Atil slipped her the bell peppers.
As that was unacceptable, Lilica returned the bell peppers back to him and pondered.
Just what kind of person was she?
The members of the Wolfe family that she’d met were good people, and she liked them all.
As such, she had a vague positive feeling about Diare.
‘As she’s supposed to be a conversational partner.’
Fjord also asked to be her conversational partner.
Lilica was rather willing to do that.
She looked at Atil.
“Atil.”
“Speak.”
“Why do you dislike Fjord?”
Someone took a sharp inhale.
Atil replied to Lilica, feeling annoyed by that sound.
“If I die, that punk will ascend the throne.”
“What? But he’s a Barat, isn’t he?
Can he still become the emperor, when he isn’t a Takar?
Lilica tilted her head, and Atil explained.
“Aside from me, the one holding the highest rank in the imperial family is Fjord. To give you a rough explanation, his father is my uncle.”
Although he’s dead.
Additionally, Barat in itself held deep familial ties with the imperial family, so Fjord may be closer to a pureblood than Atil in terms of legitimacy.
As his mother wasn’t a blueblood, and someone from the lower ranks of the aristocracy.
At those remarks, Pi let out a, “Oh?”
“Come to think of it, that isn’t the case anymore.”
“What?”
“No, after Your Highness, it’s Princess Lilica.”
Atil’s knife paused in its motion. Lilica tilted her head and asked.
“It’s fine as long as it’s a Takar? Isn’t power a requirement?”
Tan had mentioned something like that before, but at that time, she didn’t know about power.
“It would be best if he possessed both, but Takar would be considered first anyways.”
Lilica nodded at Pi’s explanation.
“Then I’m the second.”
As it was a confident declaration, Atil and Pi found it amusing.
Lilica didn’t have much of an opinion. In any case, there’s no way she can be the emperor.
She’ll leave in eight years. But if she was a true Takar, she would definitely be self-confident.
Pi was lost in thought.
He didn’t even realise it, but after coming to a realisation again, he had strange thoughts.
What Pi was worried about was the birth of a child between the empress and the current emperor.
He promised to hand over the throne to Atil, but his mind can change as much as he wants when he has a child of his own.
But there was Lilica.
Pi didn’t notice it from the beginning, but the minds of the Barats, which were rather focused on the succession to the throne, would have worked faster.
‘In order for Fjord to ascend smoothly, it would be better to get rid of the princess. Ah, come to think of it, marrying Fjord and the princess wouldn’t be a bad idea, right? Since she wasn’t a Takar while being a Takar. But the Duke of Barat will boil with rage if the blood was muddied.’
It was a pleasant figment of imagination, but Atil wouldn’t leave him alone if he heard about this, so Pi just imagined it.
If the emperor adopted Lilica as a foster daughter to use her as a card, it would be a pretty good political plan.
‘In that case, would Barat kill her? Our princess.’
Simple thoughts such as ‘I wouldn’t like that…’ surged in his mind.
Pi decided to erase the plan to use Lilica from his mind for the time being.
In addition to being a precious being that he could treat comfortably, Atil also showed a good change because of her.
‘I’ll have to opt for the protecting path.’
Pi smiled at that thought, and Lilica, who met his gaze, gave him a smile.
Pi couldn’t help but smile again.
“That Diare Wolfe won’t pose a problem for our princess either.”