The Emperor and the Knightess

When Poliana obviously looked frustrated, the nanny took the baby outside. Alone in the room, Poliana finally had some peace and quiet to think clearly. This was when she realized that she was being unfair to innocent Dog Stew. Her son didn’t even do anything, yet Poliana, his own mother, was getting angry at him for no good reason.

‘I’m the worst.’

She could imagine how disappointed her emperor would be if he saw her like this. He would be especially upset at how his own flesh and blood was being treated.

But to Poliana, Dog Stew was the emperor’s son and the source of her misfortune. At the moment, she could not see her baby as her own son or her family. She did not feel any love for him at this point.

In the noble society, there was a clear priority set for the firstborn son as the heir to the family. After the third son, the rest of the children were considered expendable. This was the same for Poliana; she couldn’t remember being ever loved by her parents.

She might have carried him for 10 months and went through excruciating childbirth, but Dog Stew still did not feel like her family. He was an unwanted and unfamiliar figure; a royal prince and nothing more. She would’ve felt more affection towards him if he did not resemble Lucius the First so much.

What Poliana wanted was a family. She wished for a family that would greet her when she returned home from work. But even though she now had a son of her own, Poliana didn’t feel any joy at all.

Then one day, a guest arrived at Sitrin. Poliana could refuse most visitors from entering her land, but this particular guest was no ordinary visitor. It was not Sir Donau, the person Poliana has been hoping to see. She still hasn’t heard anything from her adopted brother yet.

This guest was actually the man Poliana dreaded to see the most.

It was the emperor, Lucius the First.

***

With the First Division knights’ protection, the emperor visited Poliana’s Sitrin. As soon as the royal visitor arrived at the Sitrin castle entrance, Poliana was informed of the news. She jumped in anger at how lax her land’s security system was. One would need to have a few days of traveling to get to the Sitrin border to her castle, so how was it that none of the Sitrin patrols reported to her in advance?

“What were the patrols and guards doing?!”

“They were all captured and ordered to guide the party to the castle safely.”

“It was the First Division that escorted the emperor? Dammit, it now makes sense since that unit is made up of the worst jerks…”

The patrols guarding the Sitrin borders approached the party to find out who was coming into the land. When the patrols realized it was the emperor, they were surprised and tried to get to Poliana as quickly as possible, but before they could leave, the knights of the First Division apparently grabbed all of them to prevent any of the patrols from reporting to the castle.

It was obvious that the emperor wanted this visit to be a surprise. Poliana didn’t have to see it in person to know what happened.

‘So his highness came in person… Is this a sign that I should confess to him?’

Officially, the emperor was touring the entire kingdom now that Acreia was stable. However, the real reason was that Lucius the First could no longer be patient. He could not endure another day without Poliana so he came to Sitrin to take her back to Yapa.

Not wanting her to figure out his true intent, Lucius the First made a point of visiting the other lands first. He toured the kingdom for 6 months before visiting Sitrin. The reason why Poliana was unaware of the emperor’s tour wasn’t because of the work by the Intelligence Unit or Poliana’s lack of sleep. It was because the vassals felt that they had nothing to fear from the emperor’s visit. Since Sitrin’s administration and accounting were clean as the snow, the vassals believed that there was no point in reporting the possibility of the emperor’s visit to their mistress. They truly believed that there was nothing to hide inside Sitrin.

Of course, what they didn’t know was the fact that Poliana recently bore Lucius the First’s son.

Poliana also hasn’t been interested in anything happening outside of her land. She didn’t pay any attention to the rest of the kingdom, and the result was the shockingly unexpected visit from the father of her secret son.

And Poliana, who mistakenly overestimated the power of the Intelligence Unit, believed that the emperor must know about her secret.

‘His highness… He must know everything!’

She thought that the Intelligence Unit found out about the existence of the royal baby! Poliana became paranoid, wondering if there was a spy inside her own land, possibly even inside the country house!

‘There is no point in lying to him anymore.’

Poliana invited Lucius the First to the country house. She knew she had to show him the baby, and because Dog Stew was too young, he could not go outside for a while longer.

On his way to the country house, Lucius the First could not stop smiling. He was finally going to be reunited with the woman he loved. On the way to the country house, the emperor was briefly informed of Poliana’s situation. All he heard, however, was that she remained inside the country house and did not leave the place for a long time. The emperor became worried that she might be suffering from a serious illness.

“Poliana!”

Only

The person he missed the most. The woman he loved. Lucius the First opened his arms to hug her.

Even though she has been vacationing at the country house with a hot spring, Poliana looked awful. Her skin and her hair were dry and rough, but thankfully, she seemed to be walking fine. The emperor, however, was curious why Poliana looked so tired and worried.

Poliana kneeled in front of the emperor and confessed, “I have done something terrible! I deserve to die, your highness!”

“Huh?”

Lucius the First became confused. It was true that Poliana’s vacation lasted much longer than expected. Was this really a crime? Not to the emperor. Lucius the First gave her permission to take all the time in the world. Even if she took 10 years off, the emperor would’ve never gotten angry with her.

Poliana bowed deeply, hitting her forehead on the floor. Lucius the First asked in shock, “P-pol?”

“I lied to you and tried to hide the birth of a royal prince! You saved me by making me your knight, yet I ended up replaying you with lies and disloyalty! I deserve to die!”