“I’ll teach you when you’re a little older, okay?”
“Yes, I understand.”
I responded quickly.
At first glance, it was a soft voice, but somehow it was mixed with firmness.
The empress added another word.
“And Lize, you should never drink this tea.”
“Why? Is it due to the bitterness?”
“That’s…”
I narrowed my eyes.
Normally, the empress would have responded immediately.
However, she seemed to be having trouble responding this time.
“If it’s hard for you to answer, you don’t need to.”
“…Yes.”
The empress just nodded with an ambiguous smile.
At that time, I didn’t know the fact that the empress started drinking tea with contraceptive effects from that day on to avoid leaving any heirs. I was simply curious about what the empress had talked with the emperor earlier.
“Well, about that, Your Majesty.”
I approached the empress.
I asked her carefully.
“Y-Your Majesty. Have you met the emperor yet?”
“Yes, I did.”
“Ju- just in case you’re in trouble because of me…
“It’s not like that.”
The empress shook her head repeatedly.
Afterwards, she knelt beside me and spoke, her gaze fixed on me.
“Leaving the crown prince in that state had been troubling me, so it all worked out in the end for the best.”
“But…”
“I hate having you feel useless guilt because of what you did. Okay?”
With that said, the empress gently stroked my cheek.
But I felt bad so I kept watching the empress.
If I hadn’t continued to visit Damian, the empress wouldn’t have had to be questioned by the emperor, right?
At that moment, the empress’s attitude seemed to have taken a turn.
“If you’re sorry to me, let’s sleep together today as a token of apology.
… … Eh? Are you serious about what you said to Damian?
The empress glanced at me with an envious and sorrowful expression.
“Did you think I was joking?”
“Yes? Oh no. That is…”
“Come to my bedroom at eight o’clock in the evening. Understood?”